“Glad to see you thinking like a detective again.” Olivia gave him a nod of approval. “You’re right. Rogue One is still out there, so is the one that killed Brittany. That’s two… at least.”
Silence fell over the room, and Olivia locked eyes with Pete. She didn’t need telepathy to know what he was thinking.
“Shit.” Pete tugged his gloves on. “Whoever is making these rogues is making his own little rogue coven, isn’t he?”
“Most likely,” Olivia said evenly. “If there is a rogue coven being built, then they’re definitely holing up somewhere together. We’ve got to find their nest.”
“So these rogues—” Doug asked slowly. “They are turned by other rogues, and that’s why they’re crazy?”
“Yes.” Olivia nodded. She was relieved that he was asking the right questions and looking to solve the problem. At least it was a step in the right direction, and it gave her some shred of hope. “Well, that, or they’re turned by someone who didn’t do the blood exchange properly by not giving them enough blood. Essentially, they are starved and crazy with hunger… the turn doesn’t go right, and they get stuck in a feeding frenzy state.”
“So they’re like a bunch of hopped-up crack addicts?” Doug asked in a matter-of-fact tone. He pursed his lips. “That’s the first explanation I’ve heard that’s made any fuckin’ sense since I woke up.”
Olivia nodded, and to her surprise, the hint of a smile played at his lips before he looked away. A modicum of progress.
“Good.” Olivia tugged her gloves back on. “We have to get going.”
“You girls better not engage them if they show up here.” Pete’s eyes flickered red, a symptom of his demon lineage.
Olivia didn’t miss the look of surprise on Doug’s face, but to his credit, he said nothing.
“I mean it, Trixie,” Pete said seriously. “You and Sadie stay inside and keep an eye on the monitors in Olivia’s office, but if you see them, do not engage them. You call me, and I’ll bring Shane.”
“I don’t know who this Shane guy is,” Doug chimed in. “But if I were you, I’d bring a lot of guns too.”
“Not a problem, partner.”
“Shit.” Trixie cracked her knuckles and let out a growl of frustration. “I wasn’t turned yesterday. I may not be part demon, dude, but I’m not a dumb ass.”
“Demon?” Doug asked, but then he held his hand up. “Tell me later.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Sadie elbowed Trixie and made a face that told her to shut up. “We’ll hold down the fort, Olivia. I did hang with you for that century you worked as a sentry, and I picked up a thing or two. We’ve got it covered.”
“I’ll leave Van upstairs too.” Olivia squatted and scratched his favorite spot. “He’ll be another set of ears and eyes for you.”
“We should get going,” Pete said.
“But it’s not sundown yet,” Maya said quietly. “I hate taking the tunnels.” She ran her hands over the red bustier minidress. “I should probably change my clothes.”
“Well, since my partner is dead,” Doug snapped, “I think you can live with getting a little dirt on that
“Sorry,” she added quickly. “That came out all wrong.”
Doug lifted one shoulder and shifted his weight. Olivia could tell that he felt badly for barking at Maya, and it only endeared him to her further.
“It’s okay,” Doug said apologetically. “I just want to get going and get this shit over with.”
Olivia crossed to the large chair in the living room and shoved it aside, revealing an opening to the tunnels. She sensed Doug watching her every move, but she couldn’t bring herself to look at him and risk seeing that look of contempt. She dug deep down inside and grabbed onto the cold mind-set of the sentry she used to be. It was that icy attitude that got her through more hunting excursions and executions than she cared to remember.
Doug brushed past her and dropped soundlessly into the tunnels. Olivia hesitated before joining the others. For the first time in over three hundred years, she doubted her own resolve. She could kill the rogue, kill a hundred, but killing her feelings for Doug… that was one mission she didn’t think she could complete.
Chapter 10
Doug had heard the expression, the underbelly of the city, and he thought he had seen it already as a homicide detective in New York City. He could not have been more wrong. As he and the others raced through the sewer tunnels beneath Manhattan, he realized how little he really knew about the city he lived in for the past ten years. He, like most humans, was oblivious to the world that existed above and beneath his feet.
He didn’t know how fast they were running, but it felt more like flying. His body hummed with power as he pumped his arms and legs with little effort. Doug noted the way he could see and hear
The entire world was amplified. Brighter. Louder. Sharper. It was as if he had been living in a two- dimensional, black-and-white world as a human, and now, as a vampire, everything was in Technicolor and high- definition. He might have been dead, but ironically, he never felt more alive, and he felt guilty as hell about it.
He shouldn’t like what he had become. A bloodsucker. A monster. He should loathe it and detest it like he did when he first woke up, but somehow… he didn’t. Doug’s jaw clenched as he battled with his emotions. Was he being brainwashed on top of everything else? Was he losing himself in this insanity?
He flicked his gaze to Olivia. She ran beside him, matching his speed, and in spite of how fast they were moving he saw her perfectly. She was as stunning as ever. Her red curls flew behind her, but she stared straight ahead, intensely focused on their destination.
Doug said nothing. He simply kept pace beside her and looked straight ahead. He could sense Pete and Maya right behind them, but he didn’t want to turn and look. It seemed like a bad idea to take his eyes off the proverbial road.
Seconds later, Olivia’s hand rested on his, and they came to an immediate stop. He wavered briefly from the biggest head rush of his life. For a minute, while he stopped moving, it felt like the world around him hadn’t.
“It will pass in a minute.” Olivia squeezed his arm gently and held him. He looked into her worried green eyes as the dizziness subsided. “It’s a common side effect after running at that speed for the first time.”
“I’m fine.” Doug pulled his arm from her grasp and stuffed his hands in the pockets of the long coat, even though what he really wanted was to hold her hands. “Thanks. Where are we?” he asked, quickly needing to change the subject.
“The Cloisters are directly above us.” Olivia pointed up. “The Presidium is located underneath The Cloisters and Fort Tryon Park.”
“I thought vampires lived in luxury.” He looked at the wet, mossy tunnel they stood in and made a scoffing sound. “This is a shithole.”
“We’re not in the Presidium yet.” Olivia smirked and arched one eyebrow as she reached above them and pushed in a rectangular stone in the wall.
A section of the wall swung inward, and bright light flooded the sewer tunnel, revealing a lush, decadent hallway to a whole other world. Crystal chandeliers hung from a curved ceiling, and portraits lined the brightly lit corridor.
The door swung shut, closing silently, and when Doug turned around there was no sign of the door. He tried to squelch the feeling of being buried alive and took in the rest of his surroundings as swiftly as possible. The floors were red marble and reminded him of a river of blood, and the walls were a sunny yellow. The paintings
