N. Walters - Damek's Redemption

She’d taken a risk by asking him not to kill her assailant. She, better than most, understood what that had cost him. Paranormal creatures were more primal than most, their instincts honed deeper than that of a human’s. They protected themselves and those they considered to be under their care at all cost. Werewolves were especially like that, being pack animals. Sonia had never known of a vampire to look out for anyone other than himself, but then again, she’d never met an ancient one.

“Thank you for not killing him.” She’d known deep in her heart that killing that man wouldn’t be good for Damek. Sensed that he was teetering on the edge of a precipice and she didn’t want to be the one who pushed him over the edge. She had no idea what it cost him to wield such power, but guessed it would have to take a toll on him, be an energy drain at the very least.

Damek shrugged. “I will do it in a heartbeat if he makes trouble again. This was his second and final warning.”

Second? That’s right. Damek had met the hunter last night. Her arm ached and she hurt all over, making it difficult to think through the constant pain. And that didn’t even count the adrenaline still racing through her body. She was a mess and had to get a grip on herself. “He’s the man you told me about, isn’t he? The one who was following me?”

Damek shifted and the leather beneath him squeaked slightly. He looked so imposing sitting there and, knowing what she did about him, she should be scared out of her mind. Instead, she felt safe. She longed to crawl onto his lap and lay her head on his shoulder, wanted to feel his strong arms wrapped around her and hear him promise to keep her safe.

Damek inclined his head.

Damn, everything was getting more complicated by the moment. Sonia tried to order her thoughts, but it wasn’t easy. She was still jittery from the attack, not to mention her hormones raging out of control. Sitting next to Damek made all her nerve endings tingle and her body come alive. It was as though after facing the possibility of death, her body wanted to taste life.

She wanted to make love with Damek. Knowing what he was and what she was, knowing all the problems they faced and the secrets between them made no difference whatsoever. She wanted him.

Damek was very aware of Sonia sitting next to him, watching his every move. It took more control than he thought he possessed not to take her down onto the plush leather seat, strip her bare and taste every inch of her sweet skin. Even though she’d cleaned up and changed her sweater, he could still smell her blood. The wound on her arm was still seeping and the damaged clothing tucked in her bag was stained.

He cracked the window and took a deep breath and then another, inhaling the exhaust fumes and pollution from the city street. The safest thing he could do for Sonia was to check her in to a new hotel. From what he’d been able to dig out of the hunter’s mind, Sonia wasn’t being watched now. Luther Kostas was supposed to contact Barnes and tell him where to take her. No one would be able to find her if Damek paid cash for her hotel.

But he would not rest, not knowing she was out there unprotected. Barnes’s contact was somewhere in the city and Sonia wouldn’t be safe until Damek found out where he was and dealt with him.

He drew his cell phone out of his coat pocket and dialed a number he was very familiar with. It was answered on the second ring with a sleepy, “Hello.”

“I did not think of the time. I’m sorry for that.”

Through the receiver, he heard blankets shifting in the background. “Damek. What’s wrong? What do you need?”

He closed his eyes and gave thanks for Craig Lawton. He might be human, but he was trustworthy, a rarity among his species. “I need you to check two names for me. I need everything you can find on them.”

He heard Craig rummaging around and imagined he had his laptop ready to go. “Shoot.”

“John Barnes and Luther Kostas.”

“Can you tell me anything about them? It would help narrow the search.”

“They are vampire hunters and they are both currently in the city.”

“Shit.” Damek could hear Craig’s fingers flying over the keyboard. “This might take me a while.”

“Call me back as soon as you know anything. I’m especially interested in Luther Kostas. He seems to be the one in charge.”

“Got it. I’ll talk to you soon.”

The line went dead and Damek was sure he’d know a lot more about his adversary within a few hours. From what he’d been able to glean from the hunter’s memory, John Barnes didn’t know much about his boss beyond his name and a phone number, and that number had been changed just hours ago with the hunter not having received the new one yet.

Such was the way of the paranormal hunters, a protection mechanism against their paranormal prey. They changed phones frequently and knew little about one another beyond their love of the hunt and their hatred of the paranormal creatures they pursued. But in this day of cyberspace no one could truly hide, and Craig Lawton was one of the best hackers in the world. If there was anything out there to find, Craig would find it. There was always a money trail, something that would lead him to his prey.

Sonia was watching him and she was shivering, her entire body shaking with the tremor. Damek swore, whipped off his suit jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. “Why didn’t you tell me you were cold?”

“I didn’t know.” She sounded slightly bemused. “I mean, I guess I blocked it out.”

He rubbed his arms over hers, being careful of her wound, willing her to get warm. “It’s probably shock due to blood loss and everything else you’ve been through tonight.”

“Who did you call?” she asked.

Damek knew he should lie to her if only to protect Craig, but found he couldn’t, not with her enormous gray eyes watching him.

“Craig Lawton.”

She frowned. “The guy from the club earlier this evening. He’s some kind of computer whiz, isn’t he?”

Damek nodded. “Yes, he uses his skills to help us keep abreast of our enemies.”

The limo stopped and Damek could hear the thick metal door rolling up. “Where are we?” she asked.

“Home,” he replied. “We are at my home.” He still wasn’t completely sure why he’d brought her here other than the fact he knew he wouldn’t rest unless he knew she was safe, and he didn’t trust anyone else to guard her but him.

The limo glided forward into the underground garage and came to a halt in front of his private elevator. Damek opened the door and slid out before his driver could come around. He reached in and helped Sonia out of the car, dragging her bag out behind her. He closed the door with a thunk of finality.

“That’s all for tonight, Jerome. Call it a night.”

“Yes, sir. Have a good evening.” His driver slid back into the driver’s seat and the limo headed back to the gate. Damek placed his palm over the sensor on the elevator.

“Wow. That’s high-tech.”

Sonia stood beside him, shivering in spite of the fact she was wearing a sweater and had his coat draped over her shoulders. He wrapped his arm around her waist and guided her into the elevator when the door soundlessly slid open.

“It responds only to me.” The elevator went up until it hit the top floor, the penthouse. The door slid open to a foyer. Damek ushered her across the marble-tile floor to his elaborately carved front door. Once again, he placed his hand on another sensor. Three locks clicked open.

Once they were inside, he turned his security system on. It didn’t go to an outside source, but would take evasive action against intruders and would alert him if anyone tried to get into the elevator or his apartment.