Blood Shadows Read online

  Heat consumed her body as their lips almost touched.

  ‘Fight it all you want, Caitlin. But you’re no match for me. And by the time I’ve finished with you, I won’t need to seduce your soul out of that impenetrable astral body – you’re going to give it to me willingly.’

  CHAPTER THREE

  With a triumphant glimmer in his eyes, Kane pulled back, releasing her wrists. But Caitlin caught hold of his T-shirt. Her trembling fingers clutched the soft cotton as she kept him above her, her fingers tense against his hard chest.

  ‘What’s it called?’ she asked, hating the urgency in her voice.

  ‘The question that’s been burning those lips for the past fourteen years, right?’ he said, his arms braced either side of the table, his biceps taut.

  ‘Tell me,’ she demanded quietly.

  He glanced down at her fist then back into her eyes with a hint of a coaxing smile. ‘That’s a tight grip. I could make good use of that.’

  ‘How do you know all this stuff, Kane?’

  ‘Later,’ he said with a playful wink as he pressed his thumb down over her knuckles, forcing her to release him before lifting her hand to his lips, tauntingly kissing the back of it.

  As he relaxed back in his chair, she wanted to grab him again but suppressed her exasperation. Kane wasn’t going to tell her anything between these four walls, no matter what she did. He had no intention of putting his release at risk. She had to be satisfied with knowing that it wasn’t the last she’d be seeing of Kane Malloy, that she’d achieved at least one goal tonight.

  But as Caitlin pulled herself off the table, she still couldn’t suppress her indignation enough to prevent her glaring at him on her way to the door. A look that told him it most definitely wasn’t over. He might be coming for her but she’d be ready. And judging by his smirk, he was thriving on her silent defiance, their secret unspoken exchange of understanding concealed from those behind the glass.

  Exiting the interrogation room, Caitlin slammed the door behind her and leaned up against the corridor wall. Resting her head back against it, she clenched the papers to her chest as the shock hit her for the second time.

  Kane had at last confirmed it. Whatever others had denied, she had been right – there was a link between her parents’ deaths.

  She took a few steady breaths. Her throat tightened, her heart pounding.

  Seven years to the day. Seven years to the hour.

  Everyone else might have insisted on it being a coincidence, but Caitlin had never believed it. And never less so than when she’d risked her new job to break into the department’s secret archives – a furtive endeavour that led to her uncovering her only clue. The psychics’ independent reports had specified both her parents had had their astral bodies torn out and, with them, their souls – souls that were subsequently trapped and not at rest. It was information that never made it onto the official database, information that had instead been shoved away in some dusty old filing box at the back of a disused storeroom never to see the light of day.

  But her findings had only reinforced her logic that whatever had killed them was coming for her next.

  Coming for her in less than five days’ time – the anniversary of their deaths.

  Those who denied it were just protecting a scared young woman but Caitlin didn’t want protecting. Caitlin had wanted the truth. And nearly fourteen years later, Kane had been the only one to give it to her. It might have been hard, fast and cruel but it was the truth at least.

  She raked her trembling fingers back through her hair. She’d been right; if anyone was going to know of the species, it had to be a master vampire. It had to be something archaic if no one else could identify it, if even the most learned of the third species from whom she had begged for information over the years had come up with nothing.

  More to the point, she believed every word when Kane told her he could kill it. Whatever it was.

  Though it wrenched at her stomach, tore at her dignity, her self-respect, she now knew for sure that Kane was integral to her survival, her vengeance – all he knew, all he was, all he was capable of. It was going to take something lethal to bring that creature down, and there was nothing more lethal than Kane Malloy.

  Damn him that she needed him. And damn it that her wrists still tingled from his touch, heat still lingering in her cheeks. She lifted the back of her hand to her mouth so her lips could touch where his had been, but she flinched, dropping her hand away again as the doors to her left flew open.

  Max stopped abruptly as their eyes met, an uncharacteristic panic in his.

  ‘I’m fine,’ she said, pre-empting his question.

  He marched up to her and shoved open the door opposite, stepping inside. Caitlin reluctantly took her cue and followed him in.

  ‘What the hell was that?’ he demanded, spinning to face her, his finger thrust in the direction of the interrogation room.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Stay on your side of the table. Do not approach the assailant. Stick to the line of questioning. At what point did you decide all of the above were inapplicable?’

  She leaned back against the table and placed the signed papers beside her. ‘He offered to let me read him.’

  ‘Which you fell for.’

  ‘I knew he wasn’t going to do anything to risk being able to get out of here.’

  ‘I just sat behind two-way glass and watched that bastard pin you to a table. Which bit of this are you not getting?’

  ‘He caught me off guard.’

  ‘Like he did in the corridor? He was toying with you, Caitlin. With all of us. He is a game player.’

  ‘He had his little Neanderthal routine – and so what? I’ve been pinned down by uglier and more vicious vampires than him.’

  He sighed in exasperation. ‘He played you like a puppet in there all for our benefit and you let him. Just like he was planning to snatch you from right under our noses earlier. You should never have approached him. You know what he is capable of.’

  ‘But he hasn’t fully worked out what I’m capable of, has he? He wanted to prove a point and he did. Let him keep thinking that way and he’ll be more pliable. By lowering my guard, he’ll lower his. I know what I’m doing, Max. And I can do this, I promise you.’

  Max took a step closer. ‘I have spoken to you as your boss, but now I’m telling you as your stepfather that this is over, Caitlin. You are not getting involved. You are ending this now.’

  ‘I can’t do that.’

  ‘Yes, you can. And you will. Xavier’s going to join us in a few minutes, and you’re going to tell him you’ve changed your mind.’

  ‘Nothing has changed, Max.’

  Max frowned as he studied her warily. ‘He said something in your ear when he had you on the table. What was it?’

  It sickened her to lie to him, but telling him the truth would have him locking her in a safe house whether she chose it or not. It had to be between her and Kane. She needed it to be between just her and Kane if she was going to get what she wanted. And she would get what she wanted. She wasn’t sure how yet, but she would. ‘Nothing of importance.’

  ‘It didn’t look that way from the expression on your face, or from the way you grabbed him.’

  ‘Like you said, he’s a game player. He likes a reaction. I decided to give him one to play with.’

  Max’s eyes flashed with suspicion but there was also an unease behind them that, if she hadn’t so desperately wanted to get out of there, break from the scrutiny of his gaze, she may have been tempted to probe. ‘So he gave you no clue as to why you’re still alive? Or why he summoned you?’

  ‘We both know him better than that.’

  ‘Why didn’t you bite your lip, Caitlin?’

  ‘Like he wanted me to? He knew you were watching. He was waiting for me to call in the reinforcements. I wanted to show him I wasn’t scared of him.’

  ‘And are you scared of him?’

  ‘What kind of question is
that?’

  ‘Too many people have been reeled in by him, Caitlin. Behind those looks and that charm he is dangerous and he is vicious and he will do whatever it takes to get what he wants.’

  ‘I’m the one who contributed to that profile, remember? So don’t talk to me like I’m some rookie, Max. Not you, of all people. You know I know my stuff. And I know that vampire better than anyone else in this unit. I know you have this need to protect me because of Mum, because of Dad, but I’m a grown woman. And this is well within my ability. And reluctant though you are to admit it, you know it.’

  ‘What you are doing is insane. It’s suicide.’

  ‘It’s hard to think of it as suicide when the clock’s already ticking.’

  His eyes flared. ‘No. Please don’t tell me that’s what this is about.’

  ‘I’m just saying I see things differently to you.’

  He stepped up to her. ‘Nothing is coming for you, Caitlin. What happened to your parents is totally unrelated – a mind-screwing coincidence and nothing more. You cannot put your life on the line for some delusional belief.’

  But now she knew it wasn’t delusional. No matter how much everyone had tried to convince her otherwise. ‘I have a job to do, Max,’ Caitlin said firmly. ‘Kane is my case. I’m going to bring him back in and this time, I promise, I’ll do it legit.’

  ‘You are stepping beyond the boundaries of your job. I’ve suspected it for months and now that performance in there just confirmed it.’

  The door handle turned, and Xavier’s frame soon dominated the open doorway. He looked first to Max then Caitlin. ‘Are you all right, Caitlin? Max was worried you’d be shaken up.’

  ‘I’m fine,’ Caitlin declared, shooting Max a glower at even suggesting the possibility. She handed Xavier the papers. ‘When will he be released?’

  ‘Now that he’s signed, within the next couple of hours.’ He looked across at Max. ‘I’d like a few moments alone with Agent Parish please, Max.’

  Max glanced from Xavier to Caitlin, his frustration clear as he reluctantly conceded, closing the door sharply on his way out.

  Xavier indicated for her to take a seat. ‘I must say, I’m impressed. That was quite the performance in there. That whole helpless-female-on-the-table routine must have had Kane’s pulse reaching almost human rates. You nearly got us a conviction in one simple move.’ He pulled a chair from the wall so he could sit adjacent to her. ‘If I had any doubt you could do this, it’s well and truly quashed. I think you made the best decision of your career tonight.’

  ‘I wish Max would see it that way.’

  ‘You said the family connection wouldn’t be a problem.’

  ‘It’s not. But he’s still my boss. And I’d still like my job back at the end of this.’

  ‘Don’t you worry about that.’ He paused. ‘I know you’ve not had it easy in the unit, Caitlin. I know you’ve had a lot to prove both in living up to your father’s reputation and proving you’re not just here because of Max. You’re the only shadow reader to get out of the interrogation room. You should be very proud of yourself as I’m sure your father would be.’

  ‘My father never wanted me to come into this line of work, Mr Carter. He didn’t want me to use my shadow-reading at all.’

  ‘I think he might have changed his mind after tonight. You’re an exceptionally talented young woman. We’re lucky to have recruited you.’

  ‘I appreciate you saying so.’

  ‘And clearly I’m not the only one to have noticed. Did Kane give you any more clues as to what he might want with you?’

  Caitlin held his gaze as steadily as she could. ‘No. Nothing.’

  Xavier contemplated her in the silence for a moment. ‘Are you sure, Caitlin? It’s very important I know before I send you in on this case. If there is anything I should be aware of, now is the time to tell me.’

  ‘If he does want me for something, he’s not going to let it slip until he’s ready. You know that.’

  ‘Indeed I do.’ He leaned back in his chair. ‘For over forty years I’ve been trying to get my hands on him. I’m not ashamed to say I will have a lot of personal satisfaction when he’s finally brought to justice.’

  ‘I read some of your early reports on him. They’re very damning.’

  ‘He’s done some damnable things. Some of the worst crimes I’ve ever come across. Sadistic. Cruel. Twisted. I’ve seen some vicious cases of torture over the years but I’ve never seen the process seemingly enjoyed as much. Some of those people, those vampires, he’d kept alive for days. One of them – an agent who couldn’t have been much older than you when you started – he’d torn a tooth out every hour before starting on the fingernails, then the toenails. The mess he made of his face, I…’ He lowered his gaze for a moment before looking back at her. ‘Sometimes you see it – the anger, the hatred. Then other times he’s so terrifyingly detached. I don’t know which I despise more.’

  She’d read every one of those reports. Every one she’d managed to get her hands on. Some substantiated. Many not. Witnesses were in short supply. So were survivors. ‘They got worse after Arana died, didn’t they? The incidents. As if what happened to her was a catalyst. ’

  He frowned a little, a hint of disapproval in his eyes at the suggestion. ‘It’s more likely he just stopped caring about covering his tracks when he didn’t have her to protect anymore.’

  ‘From what I managed to find out over the years, she was the only thing he ever cared about.’

  Xavier raised his eyebrows slightly. ‘I read the insightful piece you wrote about that in his profile. It was quite brilliant. But the death of a loved one is never an excuse to inflict the kind of pain he has.’

  Death was the kindest part of what Kane’s sister had been subjected to. Caitlin remembered having thrown up after reading the details of her murder. She remembered the sleepless nights. It was the only time she’d had second thoughts about being an agent.

  ‘When you’ve lost someone you care about under such brutal circumstances, excuses are irrelevant.’

  ‘Your empathy is admirable. But Kane is Kane. He’s done far worse than those lycans did to Arana. The only difference is someone he cared about was the victim that time. He’s never spared a thought for his victim’s loved ones – wives, husbands, sons, daughters. The only difference is those lycans had no control over what they were doing. Kane knows what he is doing every step of the way. And he enjoys it.’

  ‘Really? I still think a lot of those crimes were committed when he was looking for answers.’

  ‘And if we’d told him, he would have torn every one of the lycans in Blackthorn apart. We would have had lycans from every other locale inciting revenge and had an inter-species war on our hands within days. I don’t need to explain how many human lives could be lost in the crossfire in Blackthorn and Lowtown alone. Shared vampire and lycan communities like ours would implode and we don’t have the resources to deal with it. We bring him in and we guarantee safeguarding this community. We need to protect human lives first and foremost, Caitlin. That is why we exist.’

  ‘I understand that. And I appreciate your faith in me.’

  ‘Faith I don’t give out freely. He’s up to something and I’m not afraid to admit to you that I’m worried.’

  ‘Do you think he’s found out lycans were responsible for Arana?’

  ‘There’s no way for him to know.’

  ‘But his conversations with Jask have you worried, right?’

  ‘The fact Jask is still alive is reassurance enough. But nothing good can come out of communications between them. The vampire and lycan communities in Blackthorn may have to share the same district, but ensuring they maintain separate areas sustains the peace. We can’t let anything jeopardise that.’

  ‘So what now?’

  ‘You get yourself home,’ Xavier said. ‘You get a good meal in you. You sleep. You rest and you wait until he comes to you. Keep to your normal routine. Make yourself available.
My guess is he’ll lie low for a couple of days. I suggest you reserve as much strength as you can in the interim.’

  ‘Maybe I should go to him. I can go to some of his more popular haunts. If I put word out I’m looking for him, he’ll have to come. He won’t be able to abide people thinking he won’t face up to me.’

  ‘I think more provocation would be a bad idea. You’ve already humiliated him enough. I don’t want him making this personal. As much as it goes against your nature, I would acquiesce at this stage. As far as he’s concerned, he’s got the upper hand. And we need to keep it that way.’

  ‘And when I come into contact with him again?’

  ‘It’s going to be purely down to your intuition. Obviously we can’t wire you or set you up with a tracking device. If he gets a hint of an inside job, there’s no saying what he’ll do, whether he needs you or not. Provoke him as little as possible, but ascertain whatever you can as quickly as you can and then you do what you can to get the hell out of there.’

  She frowned. ‘You do know that my chances of finding anything out are minimal, sir?’

  ‘Minimal is better than impossible, because that’s the alternative we’re facing. The only reason I am letting you do this is because you’ve survived already. The only conclusion I can make is that he’s handpicked you because he needs a shadow reader for something. If you can defer whatever that is until you can find out more, that’s what you need to do. Keep yourself useful to him. Do not aggravate him. Do not challenge him. I want you back alive and intact.’ He took a card from his inside pocket and slid it across to her. ‘That’s my personal number. Memorize it. Use it and we’ll find you wherever you are.’

  She nodded as she examined the card.

  ‘Caitlin.’

  She looked back up at him.

  ‘I would not ask you to do this if I had any other option,’ he said. ‘There are huge risks involved, and I won’t deny it. If you are having second thoughts, I would rather you say now.’

  ‘If I wanted easy options, I wouldn’t have taken this job, Mr Carter. I want to do this.’

  He nodded, stood and held out his hand for her to shake. ‘I admire your tenacity and your bravery. And I look forward to your success.’