LITMIR.BIZ

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this twisty, she felt claustrophobic not being able to see long distances around her.

      “I’m so dizzy…they took a lot…of blood.” He pressed a fist to his forehead and his body swayed slightly. She held his arm tighter to steady him. “I know this is going to sound crazy but they…they were vampires.” His gaze darted around wildly as if he expected them to pop out from the woods or drop from the trees.

      That didn’t surprise her in the slightest. She was half-tempted to track his captors herself, but that would mean the young man would have to stay here by himself. After what he’d just been through, she couldn’t in good conscience do that to him, even if his memory would get wiped later.

      “Okay, in the car. Let’s get you out of here.”

      Other than the residual smell on the man’s clothes, she didn’t detect any active Darkblood odor in the immediate vicinity, but that could change in the blink of an eye. Maybe they hadn’t discovered their prisoner was gone yet. If they had, they’d have quickly shadow-moved in the darkness, easily following the sweetblood scent, and retrieved him. Best to get out of here now.

      “I’m serious,” he said forcefully, as if she didn’t believe him. His teeth chattered and his hands shook. “They kidnapped m-m-me in Vancouver…and brought me up here. They had fangs…black eyes…even their whites were black.”

      Darkbloods for sure, then, and not some random rogue who got carried away when he ran into a sweetblood. A vampire’s eyes would turn black over time when they only consumed blood. She put her arm around him, trying to comfort him as she steered him to the car. He was going into shock and he needed medical attention. If only there was a blanket in the car to keep him warm, but all she had were a few light jackets in her suitcase. She took off her hoodie and wrapped it around his shoulders, trying not to think about how insanely cold she was. “What’s your name?”

      “M-Mason.”

      “Well, Mason, I believe you.”

      His eyes widened. “You…you do? You’re not just saying that?”

      “Nope.” And then, because she didn’t want to sound patronizing, she added, “I know it’s a fact because I’ve seen this before.” She wasn’t about to tell him she was a vampire and that she’d rescued lots of sweetbloods, including one an old lover had almost killed. The truth was necessary only up to a point. “Now come on.”

      Unarmed and most likely outnumbered because Darkbloods worked in pairs, she wasn’t eager to confront the enemy if they stepped out of the darkness right now.

      She helped Mason into the passenger seat, careful not to touch or focus on the bruises and scratches that ran up and down his arms. It was best to avoid contact with any of his blood, whether she trusted herself or not. “You’re going to be just fine. I promise.”

      The medical staff at region headquarters would see that he was healthy before returning him to his normal life, the memory of his ordeal wiped from his head, and their agents could deal with the Darkblood situation themselves.

      A pair of headlights pierced the darkness. Just her luck. They had company. Positioning herself between the young man and the roadway, she tried to block him from view. The last thing she needed was more human witnesses.

      A red pickup slowed down and a man with a ball cap stared out at her. When she noticed the circular insignia on the side, her breath caught in her throat.

      Cascade Search and Rescue.

      Great. What were the chances that they’d simply drive past if they thought someone needed help? And what if they were actually out looking for this guy?

      On the drive up here, she vaguely remembered hearing a radio bulletin about two hikers who’d failed to report back to their Whistler hotel, prompting authorities to organize a search. Maybe these guys were headed up there.

      She smiled and gave a cheery wave to signify everything was okay. Manipulating the memory of one human who’d had an encounter with vampires was one thing, but multiple humans? Not only was she not skilled enough to perform a group mind wipe, but given that she hadn’t taken any blood in days, most likely she didn’t have the energy needed to perform one.

      “Thank God, the authorities,” Mason said. “Someone needs to…go after those monsters…who tried to…kill me before they do this…to someone else.”

      “I agree.” The authorities, yes, but not the human variety.

      Darkbloods often brought human prey back to their dens, where they drained their blood and disposed of the bodies. Given the IV line, that clearly was what they’d been doing to Mason. He was lucky to have gotten out of there, especially considering he was a sweetblood. But it was odd they’d locate their den in this remote area and in the same vicinity as the region office. This wasn’t exactly a good place for an illegal blood siphoning operation and it was far from their clientele, who tended to stick close to larger cities where there were more humans to feed from.

      Also, Darkbloods in northern areas weren’t normally as brash or bold as they were down South. Because ultraviolet light in the Pacific Northwest was low for most of the year, the energy in the human blood supply wasn’t as volatile. This in turn led to a less aggressive nature in the small vampire population who fed from them, including Darkbloods.

      At least, that’s how it worked in theory. She’d never been far north enough to experience it for herself.

      Mason’s hands couldn’t fasten the seat belt, so she snapped it for him. But before she could jog around to the driver’s side, she noticed that the red truck had eased off the road in front of them and turned around.

      Damn. Her stomach sank like a pair of concrete shoes. They were coming to help.

      Whatever happened to humans who didn’t want to get involved? The kind of people who could watch a mugging from a balcony and not call the police. The kind who would hide behind a Dumpster, either too scared or too indifferent to come to the aid of a dying man who had helped them. It was just her luck that the truck was not being driven by that kind of person. An image of a similar situation many years ago stirred in her mind, but that one didn’t involve humans. Cowardliness and apathy were common traits in both races.

      But then she considered the flip side. The problem with being too concerned was that you could get sucked into doing something you hadn’t planned, which, ironically, was what had brought her here in the first place.

      Her friend and former student, Lily DeGraff, had told her about a pre-wedding trip she was going to take with her fiancé and daughter—a trip that would have to be postponed because of her work with the Agency, the enforcement arm of the Governing Council.

      Alfonso, her future groom, was excited to show them his ancestral home in the Hill Country of Spain as well as reconnect with his sister to invite her to the wedding this summer. Lily had dreaded telling Alfonso they’d need to change their plans.

      As she listened to Lily’s predicament, Roxy had recalled the last time she’d been in Spain. She’d also gone with a man she loved, but she didn’t mention anything about it to Lily at the time. Some memories were best left in the past. No one had known the truth about Ian. Not their coworkers in the Agency, not his friends. Only his mother knew, and Roxy had vowed not to tell another soul. If the truth got out, it would’ve destroyed his family.

      “He’s going to be so disappointed,” Lily had confided. “He’s been looking forward to this trip for a long time. I’m not sure how I’m going to make it up to him.”

      Though Roxy had never met Lily’s region commander before, Tristan Santiago had a reputation for being a hard-ass and totally inflexible. Maybe that was the issue. He wouldn’t give Lily the time off. Roxy had worked with men like him, men who enjoyed their authority and weren’t afraid to use it. Lily’s commander needed to understand that he couldn’t keep treating his people this way. Technically, Lily didn’t actually work for him—she provided tracking services to his region. He couldn’t expect to—

      “No,

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