Patterson, James - Alex Cross 7 - Violets Are Blue

'We want our money back,' William said to them. 'Daniel and Charles are fakes.'

Alex Cross 7 - Violets Are Blue

Chapter Thirty-Three

'Your place or ours?' William asked the actors, keeping the I question as non-threatening as he possibly could. He didn't want to lose Dara and Andrew now. He had plans for them.

'Where are you staying?' Dara asked. She was incredibly sure of herself, a goddess in her own mind, a diva. Yet another one. William answered, 'Michael and I are at Circus Circus.'

'We're at the Bellagio. We're camped out in a suite. Let's go there. It's fabulous, the best inVegas.We have drugs/Andrew said.'MDMA. You like?'

'We have lots of fun toys,' Dara said and gently brushed William's blond hair with her fingers. He could have killed her for the affront. Instead, he took her hand and kissed it. She was so full of life, and rich, warm blood.

The suite at the Bellagio was on a high floor and it looked out across a man-made lake with fountains that shot water hundreds of feet into the air. The fountains were choreographed to a song from A Chorus Line. William thought it was an incredible amount of water to be wasting in the desert. He glanced around the room and was surprised that he didn't totally hate it - there were no nylon rugs or ultra acrylic-coated walls anyway. Bowls of fruit and fresh flowers had been left out in several places. God, he was hungry, famished, but not for grapes and apples.

Dara slid out of her Bob Mackie party dress as soon as she pranced in the door. The young actress's body was tanned and toned. She shrugged off an expensive bra.

Her small breasts were pert, the nipples erect. She kept on her creamy white thong underwear. And her high heels - Jimmy Choo's.

William smiled at the actors - their primping, their practiced, shallow attempts at seduction and eroticism. He wouldn't be surprised if a makeup person popped out of a closet, and suddenly wondered what Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston were like together in bed? Probably a beautiful, blond bore.

'Your turn,' Dara said teasingly to the brothers.'Let's see what you have. Strut your stuff. Let's all get in the mood.'

'You won't be disappointed,' William said. He smiled and began to peel off his clothes. He took his time with the boots, then slowly unzipped his tight black leather jumpsuit.'You sure you don't want to take this monkeysuit off for me?' he asked Dara.

Her eyes were wide. So were Andrew's.

William unbound Michael's ponytail, letting his brother's wavy blond hair flow down onto his shoulders. He kissed Michael's cheek, then his shoulder blade. He began to undress him.

'Oh my, my, my,' Dara whispered, 'you two are beautiful.'

They were both hard. Michael and William were large and their penises pulsed and throbbed as they stood there naked. They weren't shy. The brothers were used to nudity since their boyhoods. They were also accustomed to having sex with strangers.

Dara looked around and said, 'I feel outnumbered, but not overmatched.' She took some coke from her purse.

William gently stayed her hand.'You won't need that. Lie down on the bed. Trust me a little. Trust yourself, Dara.'

Like a magician, William produced four silk scarves - red, blue, and silver. He tied Dara to the bedposts. She struggled some, pretended to be afraid. They all enjoyed watching her act, and Michael put his arm around Andrew, who was getting lost in the shuffle. He was high, too. His blue eyes were glazed.

'Why don't you get comfortable,' Michael whispered. 'You're among friends.'

Andrew slid a pair of handcuffs from a black leather bag on the floor. "These are for you. Just for fun. Okay?'

Michael obediently thrust his hands out, ready to be cuffed. 'Just for fun,' he said, and laughed.

'This is going to be so great,'Andrew said, his tongue more than a little thick. 'I can feel a rush already. I think I'm starting to peak.'

'No, you aren't even close,' Michael told him.

It happened so fast that it almost didn't seem possible. Suddenly, Michael had locked the handcuffs onto Andrew's wrists. Then he took the actor down on the carpet. He was all over Andrew. He and William gagged him with silk scarves. They moved so fast. They took off his clothes. They tied his ankles with more scarves.

'Trust us, Andrew. This will be great. You can't imagine,' William whispered. Then he watched Michael bite into Andrew's throat. Just a sip. A few delicious drops. An aperitif.

Andrew Cotton's beautiful eyes became wild with fear and confusion. The look was priceless. He knew that he was going to die. Soon, very soon. Maybe in just a couple of minutes.

Dara couldn't see what was happening on the floor.'Hey. What are you men doing down there? Is it dirty? Are you buggering one another? I'm feeling neglected up here. Somebody come to bed with me. Bugger me.'

William rose up to her and his penis was large and beautiful, his stomach impossibly flat, his smile enchanting, irresistible, and he knew it.

'Up popped the devil,' he said.

'Kiss me, devil,' she whispered, and fluttered her eyelashes. 'Make love to me. Forget about old Andrew. And Michael. You're not in love with your own brother are you?'

'Who wouldn't be?'William asked.

He knelt over her and then he lowered his body very slowly. He closed his arms around her. Suddenly, Dara was shaking. She knew, without really knowing. Like so many men and women William had feasted on, she wanted to die, without knowing what it was that she wanted. He knew she could see herself reflected in his deep brown eyes. He knew Dara felt she had never looked more desirable.

And he did desire her. Right now, he wanted Dam more than anything else on the earth. He inhaled her scents - flesh, soap, a citrus fragrance, the rich blood coursing through her veins. Then his tongue gently lapped at her earlobe. He knew that Dara felt as if she had been touched inside. It wasn't physically possible - but she had felt William's tongue deep inside her.

Suddenly, Michael was lifting Andrew up onto the immense bed. There was room for everyone. Andrew was bound in colorful scarves and shiny silver handcuffs. There was a harsh, red mark on his neck. And blood running down his chest. The actor was already dead.

Dara was beginning to understand everything. William was right this was so much better without the cocaine. He was touching her everywhere and he was so warm, so hot, this was exquisite. She was writhing, ready to come already, bursting with yearning and desire.

'This is just the beginning,'William whispered against her throat. 'Your pleasure is only just starting. I promise, Dara.'

He licked away her bittersweet perfume. He kissed her again and again. Then he bit down into her throat.

It got better and better.

The ecstasy of pain.

Dying like this.

No one understood that until the end.

Alex Cross 7 - Violets Are Blue

Chapter Thirty-Four

It had happened again. Jesus. Two more ungodly murders. An FBI helicopter was waiting for me at the airport in Fresno. I was flown to Las Vegas where an FBI sedan was waiting. The driver, an agent named Carl Lenards, informed me that Director In Charge Craig was already at the crime scene. Then Lenards filled me in on the rest.

The latest murders had taken place at a five-diamond luxury hotel, the Bellagio. When it had opened in 1998, the Bellagio was the most expensive hotel ever built. It was upscale, and family friendly, until now anyway. There was hardly a trace of the old Las Vegas - no naked ladies, no mobsters in shiny, sharkskin suits.

Las Vegas police cars and EMS vehicles were parked all over the approach driveway from Boulevard South, Route 604. There were also at least a half dozen TV vans on the property. I estimated that five to six hundred onlookers were gathered outside the hotel. Why was the crowd so large? Exactly what had happened inside? All I had so far were sketchy details of the murders. I knew that the bodies had been drained. But not hung.