Dark Hunger

missing females. Jasmine had been alone.

Juliette didn't hesitate, she turned and ran, following the small animal trail through the brush. I think my sister's in trouble.

I am feeding, near full strength. Wait for me. I will get us to her.

She couldn't wait. She knew it didn't make sense, but she had to do something. Adrenaline was pouring through her body. Fear took hold of her mind. What if Jasmine had been taken the night before and the males had her already for nearly twenty-four hours? Please God, please God. She chanted the plea, her chest burning, her throat closing. The more she ran, the more she was certain the jaguars had been on her sister's trail, tracking her.

'Juliette,' Riordan caught her in strong arms, in front of her, blocking her way. She hit his chest hard, but his larger frame barely rocked under her assault. 'We have to be cautious. And we do not want to ruin any tracks. If they have her, it is better to slow down and find her trail, than to go running around without direction.'

'You don't know what they do,' she hissed, pulling away from him.

'We will find her and get her back.'

She stepped away from him and wrapped her arms around her body, hunching. 'You have no idea what she will suffer, and I can never take it back.'

He led the way, moving fluidly, so silent not even the leaves rustled. Juliette tried to breathe, to get her brain functioning again. I couldn't bear it if something happened to Jasmine. It's my fault. I was supposed to draw the guards away. I wasn't here to do it, and she probably left tracks. The males would be able to follow her easily.

This is not your fault Juliette. Riordan could smell them now. He didn't want to tell her, but he knew as they approached the small hut covered over with vines and creepers. The structure was difficult to see through all the foliage. He reached for her hand. The door was splintered down the middle, one half cracked and broken out, leaving a large hole.

A terrible cry welled up in Juliette. She couldn't stop it, couldn't repress it. The sound tore through her body, raw and horrible, tearing her throat. It was an agonized cry of pain and heartache and grief. It was a cry of revenge, of promise, a vow of absolute retribution.

Chapter 8

Riordan went through the door first. The stench of terror permeated the room. The pungent odor of large cats was overpowering. A table was overturned. There was a smear of blood on the wall and another on a broken chair.

Juliette pressed her hand to her mouth, choking back a sob. 'She's just a child, Riordan. She's just turned twenty.' She pushed past Riordan and hurried across the room to the wall. She inhaled deeply, scenting the blood. 'This isn't from Jasmine. It's Solange. She was here.'

Riordan was examining the room and the forest floor just outside. 'She came when they were taking Jasmine and she must have shifted on the run. Can she do that? See, here are her footprints, and here are ripped clothes and claw marks. She did not have time to shed her clothes and shifted with them on. The seams of the material separated and she ripped the rest away from her so she could fight. She was the one who destroyed the door trying to get to your sister. They barred it from the inside and took your sister out the back. One was carrying her. They were in the form of men. See.' he crouched beside the tracks. 'This one is suddenly heavier, and he's bearing a weight. Jasmine is not struggling.'

'She's unconscious,' Juliette said. 'She would fight them with her last breath. We all watched my mother die. Solange saw them kill her mother and yet she raced in, without hesitation, to try to stop them.' She turned back to study the blood. 'She isn't hurt too bad.'

'One remained behind, a big male, and he shifted into jaguar form. He probably didn't want to harm her when he saw she was female and she shifted on the run. After all, she is probably extremely rare.' Riordan followed the tracks. 'She got away, into the forest. The big male is after her.' He turned back to Juliette. 'Which one do we go after?'

'Maybe we should split up. I'll follow Solange. We've fought together before, and I know how she thinks. She'll accept me. You go after Jasmine. You're far stronger and can travel faster. You have a chance of getting to her before they hurt her.'

'Dawn will be breaking soon, Juliette. I will have to go to ground. If I do not reach your sister before that time, she will spend another day in torment.' Riordan cursed the vulnerability of his heritage. 'I cannot walk in the sun.' His fingers brushed her cheek. 'You will burn, Juliette. Your skin is no longer able to stand intense sunlight and your eyes will burn.'

'I don't care about my skin.' Juliette pushed past him and studied the ground, the direction the group of men had taken. She tried to think who would need her the most. Riordan was fast; he could get her close to her sister before he would have to get away from the sun. 'Jasmine's already been with them for hours. If you don't think you'll have enough time to get to her then I'll have to trust Solange to get away from her attacker alone. We have to find Jasmine fast, Riordan.'

Riordan circled her waist with one arm, lifting her. The surrounding jungle was a blur as he raced through it. She had no idea how he could focus on the tracks, on the small bruised leaves, snapped twigs, and occasional footprint when he moved so quickly. She didn't need to tell him her younger sister was in dire trouble; he could read every worry in her mind. When the males shifted form, they were without clothes. Jasmine was alone and without protection. Juliette could only pray that the males would want to get her as far from help as possible. She tried not to think of her cousin-alone, hurt, running for her life.

I can send for my brothers, but they are hundreds of miles away. They would not be here for several risings.

Solange will fight. They will not take her easily. Even as she thought it, a wave of hope went through her. It was true, Solange was a fighter. She would never surrender, never give up, no matter how injured she was. I feel as if I'm deserting her, but she has a much better chance than Jasmine.

From what I have seen of your cousin in your mind, she would want you to go after Jasmine.

Riordan was all too aware of the time slipping away from them. The jaguar males were adept at losing themselves in the forest. They had spread out, weaving through the trees, more cunning now, obviously certain there would be an attempt to follow them.

The wind rose in a sudden rush off the forest floor, carrying a swirling eddy of vegetation, leaves and twigs and petals of flowers in a dark funnel straight toward the sky. The debris burst over them, a cloud of missiles hurled from the ground by unseen hands. Riordan reacted instantly, instinctively swinging his body around in midair to better protect Juliette. Debris embedded in his skin, drove for his heart. He swore in several languages as he raced to get them to earth where he could fight without the burden of Juliette's human form hampering him.

Remove your clothes now and as soon as you feel the ground under your feet, shift and blend into the trees. Hide your true self deep within the animal.

It was the grimness in his voice that had her obeying without hesitation. She couldn't always shift to her other form, certainly not at will in the way he did, or even the way Solange was able to do, but she recognized they were in mortal danger. She managed to wiggle out of her jeans and unbutton her blouse before they were on the ground. She tossed her clothes away from her, willing the change, embracing it.

Riordan moved in her mind, picking up the image, lending his strength. The shifting was slightly different from that of Carpathians, but he was deep in her mind and knew how it worked now so he was able to provide the extra speed. The jaguar sprang into the lower branches of a tree and disappeared entirely into the canopy. Riordan turned to face his enemy.

A shadowy figure exploded out of the ground, erupting directly in front of Riordan, fist slamming into his chest and driving deep. Riordan twisted slightly, taking the pain and letting it go, sweeping with one leg to send his attacker sprawling. There was no sound, and no face. The vampire was nothing more than black smoke dissolving