Page 23 of The Vampire Kingpin (The Vampire Syndicate #7)

Lark

Z ayne herded me through a labyrinth of poorly lit passages that I’d never been in. “What in Hades did you do?”

“Nothing,” I bit out. “All I did was talk to my cousin and his lieutenant. I didn’t even know they were gonna be out there—they were waiting for me.”

“Then why is Spider so pissed off?”

“He heard me tell my cousin and his lieutenant that I could get money from him. I was just trying to get them off my back, but Spider showed up at exactly the wrong time.”

“Oh. And he doesn’t believe you?”

“I don’t know. He wouldn’t let me explain.” Anger and frustration welled up inside me, turning my stomach into a tight knot.

We passed DeeDee’s bedroom. She was smiling down at an iPad, but she glanced up as we passed and met my eyes. Her smile faded, but I could sense her predominant emotion, and inside, she was happy-dancing that I was in trouble.

Bitch.

DeeDee put down the device and scrambled to her feet. “Need any help?” she asked Zayne, who shook her head.

“I’ve got it.”

DeeDee followed us into the hall and stayed there, watching until we turned down a short hall with only one room, its thick door ajar.

Zayne nudged me inside. “Look,” she said, “I’ll keep an ear to the ground, see if I can find anything else. But if I were you, when Spider shows up, I’d grovel. Tell him you’re sorry, that you didn’t mean it.”

I threw up my hands. “But I didn’t mean it. It was a lie.”

“Then you just have to tell him that, okay?”

“Yeah, sure. I’ll tell him. Again.” I took in the sagging cot, pink Formica table and a pair of chrome chairs with cracked yellow vinyl seats, and my shoulders sagged. “Just…don’t let them forget I’m in here, okay?”

“I won’t.” Zayne hesitated, then squeezed my shoulder. “It will be okay, you’ll see.” She closed the heavy, silver-reinforced door behind her.

“Sure,” I said as the room went dark. On the other side of the door, a bolt slammed into place.

I made my way to the table where I’d glimpsed a squat candle just before the door shut. I felt around the base, relieved to find it was battery-operated. I flipped the switch, and it lit up, a spot of gold in the grimy cell.

Skirting the table, I opened the room’s only other door to find a toilet and a ceramic sink that appeared to have been rescued from a dumpster.

“Well,” I muttered to myself. “Beggars can’t be choosers.”

I sank onto the cot. The metal frame creaked in protest.

A bitter taste filled my mouth.

So much for Spider asking me to join his lair.

Hell, so much for trust. Spider had immediately believed the worst of me, and probably Velma and Monster, too. Even Zayne had seemed doubtful, although at least she’d been willing to listen to my side.

Dad always said the only people we could rely on were ourselves. We three against the world.

But my parents had used me, too. As soon as I hit my mid-teens, I’d been their shill, the barely legal bait dangled in front of vampires to score invites to exclusive syndicate parties.

Then they’d decided to go big and “sold” me to the Darkman Syndicate.

Yeah, my own parents had inked a deal with Jared Darkman—a million dollars in return for a month with me.

“Easiest cash I ever made,” my dad had said in satisfaction as he showed me the briefcase full of bills.

I’d gaped at them. “Are you out of your minds?! How could you do this without asking me?”

Mom paused in the act of touching up her scarlet lipstick. Blond and ethereally beautiful, she wrinkled her nose at me in the mirror.

“But he’s never going to have you,” she said, like that made it okay. “We’ll take the money and move to Europe. We can live as humans until things cool down.”

I’d backed away, furious and frightened. “You’re wrong. Jared’s not going to give this up. He wants me, and he’s used to getting whatever he wants. I’ve barely been able to hold him off.”

“We can handle him,” my father said with his typical confidence. The son of a Spanish baron and his mistress from back when being a Spanish nobleman meant something, there was little he didn’t believe he could handle.

I turned on him. “I trusted you. I trusted both of you. I thought we were a team. You have to clear these things with me first. I’m not a-a toy you can wave at a man, then snatch away.”

“Calm down,” said my father.

Calm down? A red haze filled my vision.

“I’m not gonna do it,” I’d said and stomped into my connecting room. Behind me, I could hear Dad telling Mom to give me a little time, I’d come around.

Fuck that.

I’d shoved a few things into a plastic bag and jumped off my balcony. I’d been on my way out of Vegas when Jared and a half-dozen enforcers had stormed into our hotel suite.

My mom had managed to get off a message to me. “Stay low,” she’d said. “We’ll contact you.”

And that was the last thing I’d heard from either of them.

I’d wasted a couple of precious nights, dithering about going back, but they would’ve contacted me if they were still alive.

And then every bit of money had been transferred out of all five of our joint accounts and I’d known Jared hadn’t just gotten to them, he was after me, too.

I pressed both hands to my belly, still sick at how it had all fallen out.

Turns out, Jared was the kind of dude who held a grudge. He wasn’t going to let this go until he’d had that month from me, and now, he’d apparently put a bounty out on me.

I scrubbed my hands over my face, exhausted clear to my bones. I was so tired of just trying to survive.

Maybe it was time to stop running. I’d lost my parents over this, although that had been due to their damn greed. I didn’t want to lose Spider, too. Already, Velma had been injured because of me.

At least with Jared, I wouldn’t have to worry about falling in love. Because, yeah I was in love with Spider.

And you know what? Being in love sucked.

A thorny ache prickled my throat. I sat back, eyes stinging, chest tight.

Hating Grim and Troll. Hating Jared even more. But most of all, hating that this was the end for me and Spider.

He was the best thing that had happened to me in…well, ever. I refused to take him and his lair down with me.

Because I had to get out of here…and let Jared find me.

A tear slid down my cheek. I dug my fingernails into my thighs, squeezed my eyes shut.

Chill, Lark. It’s just another scam, right? Well, maybe not a scam, but you’ll be playing a part—the vampire prince’s pretty, brainless thrall.

My stomach made a high dive off a board into an empty pool.

Jared Darkman had a worse reputation than Spider. He also had a whole fucking syndicate behind him. We’d poked the bear. Well, my parents had, anyway, and he wanted his revenge. He was going to do his level best to break me.

“Aw, ain’t you sweet?”

My eyes flew open. Troll leaned against the rough stone wall next to the door, a hand clamped over his bloody bicep. He was pale beneath his natural tan, but he managed a sneer.

“Tell me, are you crying over Spider—or what Darkman’s gonna do to you?”

My heart simply…stopped. Then it came back online, beating triple time.

I came to my feet. “How did you get in here?”

“I was right with you the whole time. Spider’s gotten complacent. Thinks no one’s got the guts to break into his precious Cavern. Which means it’s just you and me, sweet cheeks.”

Just in case I didn’t understand, he slid his uninjured hand down to his groin and cupped it.

An involuntary shiver shook me.

His mouth curled in a sly grin. “Nothin’ to say?”

“Just that you must have a death wish, because when Spider finds you in here, you’re toast.”

“He won’t. No one saw me come in here.”

“Or he’s letting you think that,” I retorted.

A hint of uncertainty darkened Troll’s square face. He darted a look around the cramped cell.

I pressed my point. “Spider’s smart. If I were you, I’d get out while you can. There are cams everywhere,” I added, even though I hadn’t seen any inside the Cavern.

Troll shrugged. “If he knew I was in here, he’d have already come. And neither of us is leaving until they open that.” He nodded at the locked door.

I shook my head like I knew better, but he was right, of course. I’d just been trying to crack his confidence. Make him nervous and he might back off.

“No, we’re alone.” Troll looked me over like he was mentally tearing off my clothes. “And I wanna taste of that high-class pussy of yours. See what the fuss is about.”

“Yeah?” I slid my switchblade from my sock. “Come any closer and this high-class pussy will cut off your fucking dick and shove it into your mouth.”

Troll winced, then took a menacing step forward to make up for it. “Does Spider know about Darkman?” His eyes narrowed. “No, of course not. He has no clue, does he? You didn’t even tell us.”

“So? There’s a lot of things I haven’t told you.”

“Two million big ones. That’s what Darkman’s payin’.”

My jaw unhinged. “Two million?”

“You heard me.” Troll pushed off the wall and prowled toward me. “Although I betcha I could get him to up the ante. He’s hell-bent on dragging you back to Vegas. Something about punishing you for leading him on.”

I circled sideways, aware he was trying to box me in.

He circled with me, his injured arm hugged to his side. It had stopped bleeding, but a silver injury like that would take days to heal. Troll didn’t seem worried, though. He seemed to think he could take me one-armed.

Unfortunately, he was probably right. The man was damn strong if he’d managed to stay in the shadows that long despite the silver poisoning his blood.

I darted a glance at the cell door. Where the fuck was Spider?

Troll crowded me into a corner between the cot and the wall.

I tightened my grip on the switchblade handle. “Back off, or I will cut you.”

He tsked. “You’d cut your own lieutenant?”

I stiffened. “You’re not my lieutenant anymore.”

“I am if I say I am, little girl. But make it good for me, and maybe I’ll tell Darkman I couldn’t find you.” His breath had gotten heavier, his eyes encircled with neon blue.