Chapter 5: The Hunt

Thomas

Azriel was right. I came here thinking I’d crack the Crimson Circle, but there’s something much bigger at play. Every non-human I see is so keyed up, it’s a wonder I didn’t sense it sooner.

“Look at that,” he says, pointing into the midst of the crowd. To the untrained eye it would just be a mass of people partying their asses off, but my attention snaps immediately to a demon in the midst.

He’s perfectly still. Not relaxed – poised. Coiled as if ready to strike. His eyes have gone completely black, trained on something just out of my line of vision. Danger rolls off him like smoke, but I can’t tell if he’s the one in trouble, or if he’s tracking something.

“Son of a bitch,” I mutter.

“Told you.” Azriel socks me in the shoulder. Hard. “Maybe you were just too distracted by that girl to notice anything.”

“What girl?” It sounds as stupid out loud as I was afraid it would. Azriel snorts and shakes his head. He doesn’t have to say anything, but he does anyway.

“Un-fucking-real.”

“Forget it,” I snarl. “What’s up with him?” We both lock in on the demon again.

“Can’t say. I’ve sniffed him out a couple of times and he’s always like this. But every time I try to follow…” He shrugs.

“Slips away, huh?”

“Not this time.” As if on cue the demon we’re stalking is on the move again. Slinking through the crowd, not even blinking in case he should lose whatever it is he’s got a bead on. And we’re right behind him. Keeping a safe distance, weaving through the crowd like phantoms.

This block is crammed with bars piled on top of one another, and we follow our mark as he creeps into one. It’s a madhouse inside. A band jams out on stage as partiers shout over them. Pure fucking chaos, and Azriel and I edge into the throng doing our damndest not to draw attention to ourselves.

Supernaturals mix in with the oblivious humans, and all it would take is one false move on our part to give the game away. Azriel’s quarry might clock us and vanish again.

My attention is riveted to the demon we’re pursuing, but something keeps flickering at the edges of my vision. A low crackle in my chest sharpens the deeper I get into the club, and that silvery sensation I felt back in the hotel lobby pulls at me again.

Flicking my eyes to the side for the briefest second, a whole new vision crashes over me. My feet freeze in place.

It’s her.

Emily is just a few paces away, chatting with another girl. The girl she was with when I first saw her.

Tiny beads of sweat pepper Emily’s forehead, making her shine in the neon light from behind the bar. Her slender neck seems even longer as it glides down to the pale skin revealed by her scoop neck dress. My mouth waters just looking at it.

I have to force myself to look away. Squeezing my eyes shut as I take a deep breath. But as soon as I open them again, my gaze goes straight back to her.

“Fuck,” I grunt, biting down and ripping my eyes away.

That son of a bitch Azriel was right—this girl is a world class distraction. I’ve just proved it. Because in the two seconds I’ve spent looking at her, I’ve lost track of both him and the demon we’re hunting.

No matter how hard I scan the crowd, I can’t catch a glimpse of either of them. I must be losing my fucking touch. This bar isn’t even that big.

Or maybe the magnetic pull that girl carries inside her has scrambled my brains. A few seconds ago I could pick out the humans from the supernaturals with ease, even while zeroed in on our prey. Now it’s just one big tangled mass. Everything but Emily is a blur.

“Goddamnit.” Irritation blooms into outright rage, and I clench my fists to keep from losing my shit right where I stand. One careless glance is all it took to shake my focus.

All because of some girl.

I dart a look her way again, red anger clouding the edges of my vision. She’s every bit as captivating as she was before, blunting the razor’s edge of my fury. Then something over her shoulder catches my eye.

There are two vampires loitering near the bar, watching Emily—a little too closely for my taste. A possessive fire flares up in my gut, and I have to check myself to keep from storming over. After all, what difference does it make if they’re looking at her? It’s not like I have any reason to be jealous. All the same, their keen attention unsettles the shit out of me.

I’ve got two choices – get into a scrap with these two, or get moving. And since a bar brawl would only screw up my hopes of remaining incognito, I opt for the latter.

Plunging back into the crowd, I double down on finding Azriel again. It’s as if the world gets clearer with every step I take away from Emily. Suddenly, I’m able to discern my kind from the humans again. Which isn’t necessarily a good thing.

The energy in the room is thick as blood, as if a feeding frenzy could break out at any moment. These creatures are primed to the teeth for the upcoming auction, and the air sizzles with bloodlust. Despite all the rules I keep for myself, my own thirst is in danger of spiraling out of control. I refuse to hunt humans for sport, but the scent in this bar is enough to stifle all the better angels in my nature.

My phone buzzes, and I pull it out, relieved for any distraction.

It’s Azriel.

“Where are you? I think I got the lead we need.”

That jolts me back to myself. I’m here on a mission, and I’ve let a momentary lapse in focus rattle me.

“Perfect,” I text back. “Let me know where to meet you.”

Those three dots dance up, and I stare a hole in my screen waiting for a reply.

Then I hear it. Even through the confusion of voices blasting through the bar, something tickles its way into my ear. Closing my eyes to listen harder, all the hairs on my neck stand on end.

It’s the sound of a muffled scream. A woman’s scream. And I know exactly whose.

All pretenses of playing it cool fall away, and I shove my way through the throng to try and get closer to the sound. Emily and the girl she was talking to aren’t in front of the bar anymore, and neither are the two vampires who were watching them.

My gut was right. It wasn’t jealousy driving me nuts—it was danger in the air. Jostling past folks without giving a good goddamn if their drinks dropped or they call me an asshole, I make straight for the emergency exit on the far side of the bar. The door is just ajar, and I can smell human panic wafting in from outside.

Kicking through the door, I erupt into the alleyway and immediately size up the scene. The two vampires have the girls pinioned, and a lone demon has a fistful of Emily’s hair. The sight of her so terrified is all it takes to send white hot fury boiling through my veins.

Vampires can have any humans they want in the whole goddamn city.

Just not these two.