Sylvia Day - A Touch of Crimson

Adrian was beside her before she could catch her breath. “What do you feel?”

She shivered. “This place crawls.”

“A nest, perhaps?” Damien said, joining them.

“I don’t know what that is.”

“A group of rogue vamps,” Adrian explained.

Great. Just what she’d always wanted. “There are definitely more than a few.”

Damien looked at Adrian. “You weren’t kidding. She’s hypersensitive.”

Adrian gave a curt nod.

She pulled herself together. “Do we want to dig around now? Or wait for reinforcements?”

Jason gave her a thorough once-over. “Can you pinpoint their location?”

She nodded, knowing the wind would steer her in the right direction if she gave it a chance. “The closer I get to them, the more I’ll feel it. I just need to wander around a bit.”

“No.” Adrian turned away as if that was all there was to say on the matter. “Now we know Phineas wasn’t followed; he walked into a nest. We can take it from here and track without risking her.”

Lindsay debated her next move. Challenging him in front of his men wasn’t an option for her, but she also wasn’t going to be denied the chance to help “for her own good.”

When no better idea presented itself, she went with the only solution that came to mind-she walked away.

She headed toward the main street, figuring the road most traveled was the best place to start; plus she was hoping the highly visible location would prevent Adrian from restraining her-she wouldn’t put it past him. She didn’t doubt that he was capable of tossing her over his shoulder and putting her where he felt was safest. As it was, she felt his gaze on her. For better or worse, her senses were as focused on him as they were on finding their prey.

Elijah fell into step beside her. His eyes were shielded behind shades, but she knew he was surveying the area with a predator’s meticulousness. “FYI: there are usually consequences for defiance.”

“I figured. I’m a big girl; I can handle it. Are you going to be okay?”

“I’m not supposed to let you out of my sight.”

“So you’re damned if you come with me and damned if you don’t.” Her lips pursed. “What do you think he’ll do?”

He shrugged. “Not sure. Insubordination is usually fatal, but I suspect he’ll go easier on you.”

Apprehension rippled through her, intensifying the disquiet caused by the frantic wind. She was certain Adrian was capable of things she couldn’t even imagine; he wouldn’t have been placed in charge of the Sentinels otherwise. Still, she didn’t fear him-after all, it was her safety he was concerned with in the first place. Worrying about the consequences wasn’t going to get her anywhere. The only thing she could do was what she’d always done: put one foot in front of the other and keep moving forward.

Fortunately, that reasoning seemed to be doing her good now. With every step she took, Lindsay grew more comfortable. However Adrian felt about her mutiny, he was giving her the lead. She appreciated that. It gave her credit for having a brain and some experience. Considering the cavernous gap between her abilities and his, his show of trust meant a lot to her.

As she and Elijah walked past a Dairy Queen, she glanced through the windows. There were families and teenagers inside, laughing and eating and living so happily unaware. Lucky bastards.

“Do you have a girlfriend?” she asked. “Or a wife? Kids?”

“I’m not mated.”

She resisted the urge to see how closely Adrian was following. It would actually be better if she were alone; a group of intimidating hot guys in a town of this size was a dead giveaway that something unusual was going on. “Is that who you lost? Your mate? Sorry-I shouldn’t pry.”

Elijah looked at her. “If I’d lost my mate, I wouldn’t be alive now. Lycans languish when their mates die. Death follows swiftly.”

“Oh. Like wolves? The real ones. I read that they mate for life.”

He turned his attention forward again. “Yes.”

“That happens to humans, too, you know. With couples who’ve been married a long time. The surviving partner usually doesn’t last long after their spouse passes away. Does the same thing apply to vampires? And Sentinels?”

“Vampires pair up, but not for life. Sentinels don’t date.”

“Ah, well… They’ve got a lot to hide and it’s not like they can commingle among themselves-there aren’t enough of them. I can see why one-night stands would be the best route under those circumstances.”

“To my knowledge, they don’t even have sex. Period. They don’t seem to have a craving for it as far as I can tell. I’ve always gotten the impression the urge was beneath them.”

Lindsay grinned, knowing damn well Adrian craved sex. The man practically dripped it from his pores. “You’re just not their type, I guess.”

“Sentinels are never without lycans nearby,” he insisted quietly. “I would have heard something from someone.”

It was the unwavering conviction in Elijah’s tone that caught her, followed by recollections of how collected the Sentinels were. She had yet to see one laugh or really smile. They didn’t even raise their voices, whether with excitement or anger. Not that she’d been around them long enough to make a comprehensive study of it…

“You’ve got to be kidding,” she said.

“Why would I?”

She was surprised to realize she believed him. He was one of those guys who just didn’t bullshit. Which left her confused. She knew masculine interest when she saw it-not to mention Adrian had come right out and said what his intentions were. What else could he want from her, if it wasn’t to explore the attraction between them?

They reached the end of the main drag, where the road veered to the left, turning into a more residential area. Signs said the turnoff for Zion National Park was close.

“So are you looking for your soul mate?” she asked. “Does it work like that? Only one person in the world for you sort of thing?”

“No. No. And no.”

“I hear ya. This is the wrong kind of life to want any sort of long-term relationship. I threw out that possibility a long time ago.” The wind whipped through her hair. “We’re close.”

He looked at her. “Care to explain the crazy gusts of wind that follow you?”

“We’re in a place called Hurricane. What do you expect?” She jerked her chin at a rocky hill across the street; then she darted across the road at full speed.

Elijah stayed directly on her heels. “Lycans sense danger in the air before we catch scent of it,” he pressed.

She still considered her weather radar too personal and too revealing to share. She wasn’t sure what exactly it revealed, but it said something about her she’d rather keep to herself-for now.

Her hand slid under the flap of her messenger bag and gripped the hilt of a throwing knife. They passed some sort of monument, a stone pillar with a brass plaque. There were small homes fanning out in a horseshoe behind it. Old homes from the fifties or earlier.

“Do you scent equally well in both forms?” she asked, raking the area with an examining gaze.

The next minute she was bumped in the thigh, drawing her attention to a massive chocolate-colored wolf beside her. She supposed that answered her question.

“Wow.” She was seriously impressed. “How did you do that so fast? And where are your clothes?”

He gave her a look that she pegged as exasperated.

“Fine,” she conceded, reaching out to touch his fur to see if it was soft or coarse. It turned out to be somewhere between the two. The lustrous cocoa pelt was relieved by patches of white on his chest and paws, making the overall package both beautiful and regal. “You’re a really good-looking wolf, you know.”