“Even at death’s door, you killed your attacker,” he said flatly. “That’s what the watcher saw. He knows how you fight now. Knows that you don’t stop, even when you barely have a breath in your body.”
Sadness darkened her expression. “Two men died tonight.”
Yeah, he wouldn’t exactly be grieving over them. “Why’d you go into the alley?” His hand was still curved around her neck. He could feel her pulse jerking beneath his touch.
“Because I smelled the blood.” Her gaze turned distant. “Someone was hurt. The blond man was yelling, saying he needed help.” She shrugged. “I might be a vamp, but I’m still a cop, too. So I went to help him.”
“And got ambushed.”
“Yes.”
His voice roughened as he said, “The next time you hear someone calling out for help, you’re not even going to hesitate, are you?”
“Aidan…”
“You were warned before, Jane. Being a hero will just get you killed.” That particular warning had come from a very powerful voodoo queen, a queen who had foreseen Jane’s fate.
Sometimes, you couldn’t change fate, no matter how hard you tried.
Jane’s lashes lowered. “I already died once.”
His hand slid from her neck.
“And I can’t just watch while an innocent suffers.” Her hand was at her side, pressing against the scar that marked her. No, not a scar. A burn.
A burn left by a sadistic vampire long ago.
“That’s not who I am,” Jane said.
No, it wasn’t.
She gave him a tight smile. “I have to go now. I need to…to check in at the station.” Her chin notched up. “I’m supposed to see my brother today.”
Aidan’s body iced. “That’s a bad idea. Very, very bad.” He’d prefer for her to never get anywhere near Drew Hart again. The guy was a ticking time bomb—one who had already exploded once and Aidan knew for certain, Drew would again.
“After he got out of intensive care at the hospital, Drew was transferred to a maximum security psych ward. I can’t just leave him there.”
Why not? As far as Aidan was concerned, the dick was getting off too lightly. Jane’s brother Drew had shot her—he’d been the one to set in motion the horrible chain of events that resulted in Jane’s transformation into a vampire.
No, I’m the one who did that. I’m the one who brought her brother to this town. Because Aidan had mistakenly thought he was doing something to make Jane happy. He hadn’t realized her precious Drew was a nutjob.
He tried to kill me, but Jane got caught in the cross-fire. He took her out.
And I will destroy him.
“Drew hasn’t spoken to anyone, not since he woke up in the hospital. I need to see him.”
“The guy opened fire at a college campus. He needs to stay locked away.”
Jane swallowed. “Once upon a time, he saved me.” She turned away from Aidan and took two steps. “He—”
“Bullshit.” Aidan grabbed her wrist. “Once upon a time, a sadistic vampire bastard broke into your house. He killed your mother and step-father. The vamp tied you up and tortured you and your brother left you to that hell.”
Tears gleamed in her beautiful eyes. “Drew hid to protect himself. When it was safe, he came back for me. He got me out of there. He—”
Time for hard truths. “He wants supernaturals dead. You’re a supernatural now. What do you think that means?”
She looked down at her hand, then back up at him. “It means I have to see him. Drew is my responsibility.”
Fuck. There she went. Being all noble again. He had to break that habit before it killed her—a second time.
“I’ll do some digging and see what I can possibly uncover about those jerks in the alley.” She pulled her hand free. “I’ll check some mug shots. Guys like that—maybe they’ve got a criminal record. I get a name to match a face, and it will be the perfect lead to take me to whoever was pulling the strings in that alley.”
That wasn’t exactly a face-off that he wanted. “Don’t charge into battle without me.” He had leads that he’d be following up on as well.
She stared at him, and her face softened. “You won’t change, will you?”
He made himself smile. “Baby, I can already shift into the form of a wolf. What more change do you want from me?”
She smiled back at him. Such a beautiful sight. Then Jane was walking away. His gaze dropped to her ass and the sweet sway of her hips.
Another beautiful sight.
Jane unlocked the office door and left him. He turned back to his desk. He touched those claw marks once more.
And he swore that he could still taste Jane’s blood on his tongue. He could taste it—and he wanted more.
His hand fisted over those marks. What am I becoming?
***
Paris paused outside of the Voodoo Shop. He was going behind his alpha’s back, and that didn’t sit right with him. As a rule, he never kept secrets from Aidan. Aidan was his best freaking friend. Aidan was family but…