darts Dr. Lipton had fashioned for the immortals to use against vampires.
He scanned the dark scenery around him, looking for the culprit, and belatedly heard the heartbeat behind him that his thoughts had drowned out.
Casually, he turned. His own heart gave a weird little skip. Lisette, the French immortal, crouched there, her lovely face expressionless.
And her face truly was lovely. He had never been this close to her before. Her skin was pale perfection, her raven hair pulled back from her face in a braid that fell to her waist. Her slender body was clad in a formfitting T-shirt and cargo pants accentuated with holstered Glock 18s. The handles of two sheathed shoto swords peeked at him over her shoulders.
She reminded him of that woman in the Tomb Raider games he had seen Darnell and Ami playing.
And her scent . . .
He drew in a deep breath. She smelled even better than Ami. And Ami smelled better than the lollipops she brought him.
A long minute passed during which Lisette stared at him, waiting for the tranquilizer to take effect. Little did she know the drug would have no more effect on him than it would on Seth.
Zach raised an eyebrow.
Her forehead crinkled in a frown. Quick as lightning, she drew three more darts from her pocket and stuck them in his neck.
With slow, deliberate movements, Zach reached up and removed them.
She bit her lip.
“That hurts, you know,” he said softly enough that he hoped those down in the house wouldn’t hear it over the sparring noises and boisterous cheers.
A thin wire slipped over his head from behind and jerked across his neck, shutting off air.
“Not as much as this will, asshole,” a male voice growled in his ear.
It carried a British accent, so it wasn’t one of her brothers.
What exactly was going on here?
Before Zach could ponder further, a figure appeared on the roof beside him. Sarah met Zach’s gaze, took in the piano wire choking him, glanced at Lisette—who looked guilty as hell—then turned her attention to the man behind Zach.
“Hi,” Sarah said.
“You followed me?” that one growled.
Ah. Roland.
“Yes, I did.”
“Why?”
“Curiosity. You wouldn’t say why you were coming back and told me not to follow you, which left me no choice but to do so.”
Both spoke as softly as Zach had.
Roland grunted.
“So,” she said.
“So?” Roland parroted.
“Watcha doin’?”
“Lisette has some questions for this one.”
“Uh-huh. And . . . you thought this was the best way to elicit answers?”
“Yes.”
“Uh-huh. Uh-huh. You don’t think . . . maybe . . . this sort of thing might be why everyone calls you antisocial?”
“Considering the questions, I thought he would likely be uncooperative.”
“Oh.” She studied Zach, then looked at Lisette. “Ohhhhhh.” Her brows drew together. “Is this a lover’s quarrel kind of thing? Did he do something to piss you off?”
Lisette looked uncomfortable.
“He didn’t cheat on you, did he?” Sarah asked, all concern. “I didn’t realize you were seeing anyone.”
Zach watched Lisette, ignoring the pain in his throat and the burn beginning to fill his lungs.
Lisette visually consulted Roland over Zach’s shoulder. “It isn’t about me.”
“Then who is it about?” Sarah asked.
Roland must have mouthed a name, because—though Zach heard nothing—Sarah’s eyes blazed a bright luminescent green, very rare amongst immortals. “Really.” She moved, silently circling around to stand with her husband at Zach’s back. “Let me give you a little help with that, sweetie.”
In all of his thousands of years of existence, Zach didn’t think anything so peculiar had ever happened to him.
Or so intriguing.
Or entertaining.
As the husband-and-wife team slowly choked him toward unconsciousness, he pondered what to do. He could make enough noise to draw David’s attention. But David wouldn’t appreciate his presence here any more than Seth would.
He could teleport away.
He scanned the dark scenery around him, looking for the culprit, and belatedly heard the heartbeat behind him that his thoughts had drowned out.
Casually, he turned. His own heart gave a weird little skip. Lisette, the French immortal, crouched there, her lovely face expressionless.
And her face truly was lovely. He had never been this close to her before. Her skin was pale perfection, her raven hair pulled back from her face in a braid that fell to her waist. Her slender body was clad in a formfitting T-shirt and cargo pants accentuated with holstered Glock 18s. The handles of two sheathed shoto swords peeked at him over her shoulders.
She reminded him of that woman in the Tomb Raider games he had seen Darnell and Ami playing.
And her scent . . .
He drew in a deep breath. She smelled even better than Ami. And Ami smelled better than the lollipops she brought him.
A long minute passed during which Lisette stared at him, waiting for the tranquilizer to take effect. Little did she know the drug would have no more effect on him than it would on Seth.
Zach raised an eyebrow.
Her forehead crinkled in a frown. Quick as lightning, she drew three more darts from her pocket and stuck them in his neck.
With slow, deliberate movements, Zach reached up and removed them.
She bit her lip.
“That hurts, you know,” he said softly enough that he hoped those down in the house wouldn’t hear it over the sparring noises and boisterous cheers.
A thin wire slipped over his head from behind and jerked across his neck, shutting off air.
“Not as much as this will, asshole,” a male voice growled in his ear.
It carried a British accent, so it wasn’t one of her brothers.
What exactly was going on here?
Before Zach could ponder further, a figure appeared on the roof beside him. Sarah met Zach’s gaze, took in the piano wire choking him, glanced at Lisette—who looked guilty as hell—then turned her attention to the man behind Zach.
“Hi,” Sarah said.
“You followed me?” that one growled.
Ah. Roland.
“Yes, I did.”
“Why?”
“Curiosity. You wouldn’t say why you were coming back and told me not to follow you, which left me no choice but to do so.”
Both spoke as softly as Zach had.
Roland grunted.
“So,” she said.
“So?” Roland parroted.
“Watcha doin’?”
“Lisette has some questions for this one.”
“Uh-huh. And . . . you thought this was the best way to elicit answers?”
“Yes.”
“Uh-huh. Uh-huh. You don’t think . . . maybe . . . this sort of thing might be why everyone calls you antisocial?”
“Considering the questions, I thought he would likely be uncooperative.”
“Oh.” She studied Zach, then looked at Lisette. “Ohhhhhh.” Her brows drew together. “Is this a lover’s quarrel kind of thing? Did he do something to piss you off?”
Lisette looked uncomfortable.
“He didn’t cheat on you, did he?” Sarah asked, all concern. “I didn’t realize you were seeing anyone.”
Zach watched Lisette, ignoring the pain in his throat and the burn beginning to fill his lungs.
Lisette visually consulted Roland over Zach’s shoulder. “It isn’t about me.”
“Then who is it about?” Sarah asked.
Roland must have mouthed a name, because—though Zach heard nothing—Sarah’s eyes blazed a bright luminescent green, very rare amongst immortals. “Really.” She moved, silently circling around to stand with her husband at Zach’s back. “Let me give you a little help with that, sweetie.”
In all of his thousands of years of existence, Zach didn’t think anything so peculiar had ever happened to him.
Or so intriguing.
Or entertaining.
As the husband-and-wife team slowly choked him toward unconsciousness, he pondered what to do. He could make enough noise to draw David’s attention. But David wouldn’t appreciate his presence here any more than Seth would.
He could teleport away.
Similar Books
