Keri Arthur: Dangerous Games

"A dangerous one. For you, and for the inventive fellow who has been torturing the others."

Something akin to fear prickled across my skin. How did Gautier know about the other killings? Was he involved? It wouldn't be surprising if he was—after all, like tended to attract like, so it made sense that Gautier would gravitate toward other evil little psychopaths. He wasn't the world's greatest thinker, even if he was a killer born and bred. "So you know the person behind it?"

"Of course. And I have a lot of admiration for his methods."

I just bet he did.

"I'm going to flank him," Rhoan said. "Keep him talking."

"Have you forgotten, Gautier, that the Directorate specializes in capture of nonhuman criminals? That we guardians are judge, jury, and executioner? We will find the man behind these killings, and we will take him out." I gave him a nasty smile that was more than a little bluff. Gautier scared the crap out of me, and I didn't mind admitting it to myself. But I'd never, ever admit it to him. "And guess what, stinko? You've already been judged, and have been found extremely wanting. Whether you're involved or not, you're a dead man."

His smile faded a little, and the sensation of danger swirled around me. "It's nice to know recent events haven't knocked the bravado out of you. It is something I have always wished to do myself."

"Yeah, yeah, you're the big bad vampire we all have to fear. I've heard the song before. Just get on with whatever shit you're here to deliver."

"Impatient to play the game. That's nice." He paused, and his gaze went to the floor above. In that moment, I knew he knew Rhoan was up there, and something inside me froze.

Everything was about to go to hell in a big, bad way.

"But first," he continued, voice all oily smoothness, "tell your flatmate that if he take one more step, the child dies."

Oh God, oh God … child? What the hell was Gautier talking about? I licked my lips, and tried to control the fear churning my gut. That was what this sick bastard wanted—fear—and I'd be damned if I'd give him it so easily.

"What shit arc you talking now, Gautier?" Rhoan said, voice harsh as he stepped out of the shadows and came closer to the railing. I was glad to note he kept near one of the support beams. It'd give him cover if Gautier suddenly whipped out a weapon.

After all, his hands were behind his back for a reason, and Gautier didn't do anything without a reason.

"I talk of the child who hangs above us."

"That has to be the oldest trick in the book, Gautier." And one I'd used myself—successfully—on my brother. "I'm surprised you'd sink to something less than… creative?"

He gave me another of his flat smiles. "Oh, I am not above using old tricks. However, I do like putting new spins on them. Take the old money or the box question, for example."

What the hell? "Has being off the leash totally fried your brain cells? Because you're not making the tiniest bit of sense at the moment."

"It's simple, really. It's all about options. What do you want more: to capture me, or to save the life of the child above us?"

"What child?" I asked again.

I tensed as one hand came out from behind his back, but all he did was casually lean sideways and pressed a switch. Lights flickered, throwing uneven spats of brightness across the shadow-filled room. Not that any of us actually needed lights. It was just done for effect.

"Fuck," Rhoan said softly.

I didn't look up, as much as I wanted to. I was closer to Gautier. I was the one who had the chance of hitting him if he moved.

"Tell me," I said flatly.

"There's a little girl above us with a rope around her neck. She's standing on her toes on a thin board."

"Dead or alive?" If she was dead, I was going to charge Gautier and kill him, no matter what he had hidden behind his back.

"Alive." Rhoan paused. "Blood still flows, and I can hear a heartbeat. Just."

He was more vampire than me He had to drink blood during the rise of the full moon, and was therefore more attuned to the thud of life. Still, the news that she was alive didn't do anything to ease the tension riding my limbs Quite the opposite, actually.

Just because she was alive now didn't mean that Gautier intended to keep her that way Or that he'd allow us to help her.

"How long her heart continues to beat is up to you." Gautier moved his other hand and finally revealed what he'd been hiding The biggest fucking laser rifle I'd ever seen. "One move, Riley, and your pack-mate dies. This rifle has a wide-fire beam that will treat flesh much the same as it treats concrete With complete disdain."

"Gautier, if you've got a damn point, please come to it," Rhoan snapped.

Gautier's smile was lazy Obviously, he had this all planned out to the nth degree, and he wasn't about to hurry.

"Do you know anything about hanging?"

"No. But if you'd like to volunteer, I'd gladly experiment on you."

I might as well have not spoken. The great Gautier was on a roll, and there was no stopping him. And as much as I wanted to help the little kid, I believed what he said about that laser.

For good or for bad, I wasn't about to risk my brother's life on the off chance of stopping Gautier.

"Hanging with little or no drop, which is the case with the kiddy above us, usually results in death by strangulation. Asphyxia, to use the correct terminology. The kiddy struggled the usual one to three minutes after suspension, then became as you see her now. However, there have been recorded cases of people being successfully revived even after thirty minutes." He paused and glanced at the watch on his free hand. "Which gives you precisely nineteen minutes."

"You're a bastard, Gautier."

I said it with venom, and he laughed. "Well, I would have thought that was a given."

"And the point of this whole charade?" Rhoan said, voice flat—a sure sign his control was close to the edge.

"As I said, it's all about options." He paused, smiling like a cat who knew the mouse was his. "Option one. Play my game and save the child. Option two, come after me now and let the child die."

"You forgot option three—kill you and save the child."

"There is no option three. You move, Rhoan dies. Rhoan moves, he dies. Either way, I win."

Because he knew we were pack-mates. He might think that Rhoan was a wolf who'd become a vampire, but that didn't matter. He knew that for wolves, the true death of a close pack-mate could incapacitate for weeks, if not months. Particularly with us, because Rhoan wasn't only my pack-mate, he was my twin. We were two halves of a whole—and truth was, I really didn't know if either us would want to live without the other. We were too much a part of each other's lives.

I crossed my arms. Which meant the laser was no longer aimed at the monster in front of me and left me somewhat vulnerable, but I wasn't worried about him shooting me. Far from it. He'd drawn us here for a reason, and it wasn't so he could kill us. "What game is it you wish to play, Gautier?"

"I was hoping you'd choose that one. As much as I like listening to life slowly slipping away, the game has the potential to offer us both so much more."

"For God's sake, just get on with it," Rhoan said.

Gautier's smile faded. The sensation of danger that had been swirling around me sharpened abruptly, and sweat broke out across my skin.

"Jack often commented in the past on how good Rhoan was, and how good he expected you to be, Riley, when you finally gave in and joined the ranks. So I think it only fair that we have a little test to see who truly is the best guardian. And the test is, of course, stopping the madman behind the recent killings."

"I feel inclined to point out that, a, you're no longer a guardian, and, b, you said earlier you know the man behind the killings. That gives a rather good head start, doesn't it?"