Page 29 of The Vampire Kingpin (The Vampire Syndicate #7)
Lark
T he band launched into another salsa tune, the rhythm pulsing in my body. I pressed against Spider, feeling the heat between us, and swiveled my hips in sync with the beat. Focusing on the music and the glittery feeling of being out with this strong, sexy man.
When Jared Darkman arrived, terror had zoomed over me, jamming my lungs. I’d trembled like a freaking rabbit. And Spider had known, had said exactly the right thing. That he was facing this with me made me so damn grateful.
His dark eyes caught mine. “You good?”
My chest loosened. I drew a steadying inhale. “Yeah.”
His sculpted lips tilted up. “That’s my Lark.”
He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me even closer. Adrenaline fizzed in me. Spider’s hand was inside the back of my dress again, his middle finger sliding between my ass cheeks to my thong, causing a needy tug low in my belly.
He rubbed his hips against me, letting me feel how hard he was beneath his tuxedo pants. “When this is over,” he said in husky tones, “you’re so going to get fucked.”
I let my mouth curve in a teasing smile. “Promise?”
Yeah, I realized he was trying to distract me. But he was also reminding me of the endgame: turn the tables on Jared Darkman and come out of this alive and free.
Please let me come out of this alive and free.
Because I wanted to have sex with Spider after this was over. And then again tomorrow night and the night after that.
But I wanted more than that. I wanted to dig into what made him tick, find out the little things like his favorite color and how he met Velma. I craved the big stuff too. I wanted to hear the story of how he rose to be the Underworld kingpin…and if he could ever love me like he loved Amina.
Spider’s spine went rigid beneath my hands. “Don’t look, but he’s to your right. Five yards or so away.”
I pulled back my shoulders. “He recognized me?”
“Think so. He keeps trying to see your face.”
The salsa finished, and Spider steered me off the dance floor, a hand on the small of my back. He snagged a couple of champagne glasses from a server and handed me one.
“He’s still dancing with Zaq’s mate,” he said out of the side of his mouth.
Sipping my champagne, I turned and faced the dance floor. “I see him.”
Jared Darkman in the flesh, his hard body dressed in a bespoke tux. And yeah, I was still afraid, but even stronger was my stone-cold determination to end this.
No more hiding in the Underworld for me.
First, we’d take care of Jared Darkman. And then I’d charm the ever livin’ hell out of Spider the Underworld Kingpin until he couldn’t help but fall in love with me.
Spider’s arm pressed against mine and I flashed him a quick, I’ve-got-this smile.
He winked back. I know.
I glanced at Princess Renata. She was lean and wiry, with big gray eyes and a heart-shaped face.
But what caught my attention was her complete lack of interest in Jared and his brooding, Lord Byron vibe.
He whispered something in her ear, and she shot back a reply that made him flinch and put a good half foot of space between them.
I fought the urge to laugh.
That glittery feeling hit me again—the kind you get just before pulling off a heist. Sure, we might not have plotted every detail like my parents would’ve, but the plan was solid.
Bait Jared into trying to snatch me, then send an alert via the tracking device I wore. Spider would burst in along with Zaq Kral, catching him in the act. As an out-of-town guest, Jared would have broken one of the most basic rules of syndicate hospitality: Don’t mess with another vampire’s lover.
When Spider staked him, not even Jared’s father could object. And if Darkman Senior had a problem, he could take it up with Karoly Kral—one of the world’s most powerful primuses.
"Alright," I said. "Let's do this."
Spider's eyes flicked to my elbow-length black gloves. "You got your blade?"
“Yep.” The skinny silver blade was firmly in its slot on my inner left forearm, a bit of insurance Spider had insisted I bring.
“And the tracking device is activated.” I touched the lower point of the diamond cutout where I’d sewn a tiny bead that would alert Spider.
If something went wrong, it was also a GPS device that he and Velma could track on their phones.
I blew a kiss to Spider and slid along the edge of the dance floor, heading for the restrooms. He set off in the opposite direction, searching for a quiet corner to fade into the shadows and follow me.
The restroom stalls were like mini bathrooms with their own sinks, mirrors, and personal care products, and toilets with built-in bidets. This early in the evening, all five stalls were empty.
Perfect. Jared wasn’t an idiot—he wouldn’t try and kidnap me if anyone else was around.
I ducked into a stall to smooth my skirt and adjusted my mask—not DeeDee’s handmade mask, either. I’d worn that into the limo but switched to a mask I’d found in Spider’s closet instead.
Velma and Monster hadn’t been able to turn up anything off about DeeDee, but she’d gone back to being fake-nice. Call me paranoid, but her eagerness for me to wear her mask had set off a giant red light flashing in my brain. Plus, the mask had been itchy and a little too heavy.
Footsteps sounded. I stilled, my hands fisting, until I heard the tap-tap of high heels.
Not Jared, then.
I tapped the glove over the silver blade for luck and exited the stall. A masked woman in a party dress blocked my way.
When I tried to go around her, she glowered at me from beneath her straight black fringe. “Where’s my mask?”
I reared back. “DeeDee?”
“Yeah. Where’s the mask I made you?”
What the fuck? I veered around her, aiming for the exit. “I like this one better.”
“Jesus. I don’t know why Jared wants you so bad,” she muttered, and struck out at my stomach with a silver switchblade.
She almost caught me—I hadn’t expected an attack, and I was still stuck on that “Jared.” But she was a human and five times slower than me. I jumped back, body curved like a C, and the blade just missed me.
Shaking off my surprise, I snapped into action, using her own momentum to shove her headfirst into the stall and onto her knees in front of the toilet.
Slamming the toilet seat up, I pushed her face toward the bowl of water. “What do you know about Jared Darkman?”
“Go to Hades, bitch.”
“Wrong answer.” I dunked her in the toilet bowl, holding her down while I counted—slowly—to ten. Then I pulled her out. “Now,” I said grimly as she came up retching, “what do you know about Jared Darkman?”
She wiped the water from her face. “He’ll kill me,” she whined.
“Yeah?” I pressed her head downward again, stopping just above the water line. “But if you don’t talk, you’ll die right now.”
“No!” She twisted against my grip but couldn’t break free. “I’ll talk, I’ll talk.”
“Smart choice. What did the mask have to do with it?”
“You don’t know? I thought that’s why you aren’t wearing it.”
“Because—?”
“I wove silver thread through it.”
I knit my brows. “I didn’t see any silver.”
“Because I’m good. Those masks make me a lot of money on the Dark Web. Way more than I can make bartending.”
“So why are you working for Jared Darkman?”
“He’s paying a lot of money for you. And I don’t like you.”
I shook my head. “Gods, you’re an ass. What are you going to do when Spider finds out? You’re not gonna live to see any of that money. You’ll be at the bottom of the Hudson River.”
She gave a weird little shrug, like she didn’t care. That’s when it hit me—she’d crafted Spider’s mask, too.
A chill shot down my spine. Silver is a vampire’s Achilles’ heel. Spider was powerful, but silver could still bring him to his knees. Already, it could have entered his bloodstream, weakening him…leaving him vulnerable. I had to warn him.
“You bitch—” I smashed her forehead against the toilet’s porcelain rim, leaving her groaning on the floor, her hand to her bleeding head.
I burst out of the stall just as Velma slammed into the restroom. My gaze shot to hers, my heart drumming in my ears.
“Where’s Spider?” we demanded in unison.