It was impossible to believe that anything lacking jet propulsion could be capable of following them, but Jagr clearly wasn’t in the mood to take any chances, and she wasn’t overly anxious to distract him while he charged across the empty fields at sonic speed.
Still, her patience wasn’t endless. As ten minutes became twenty, Regan had had enough.
They were miles from Hannibal.
Hell, they were miles from anything resembling civilization.
“Hey, Sacagawea, I didn’t sign up for the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Where are we going?” she demanded, her teeth clenched to keep them from chattering.
“North.”
Smart ass.
“Yeah, I got that much.” She forced her gaze from the empty fairgrounds they were passing to the austere beauty of his face. Her heart skipped a familiar beat. “Why don’t we just go back to one of the hotels? There’re two of them that not only have our scent all over them, but come complete with a bed and hot shower.”
“A hotel is too easily surrounded.” Jagr slowed his pace, his eyes shimmering like sapphires in the darkness. “And along with the bed and shower come very large windows that are perfect for allowing in the morning sunlight.”
“Seems like a reasonable price to pay,” she muttered, aggravated by the insistent, merciless awareness that refused to leave her in peace.
A ghost of a smile played about his lips. The bastard knew precisely the effect he had on her treacherous body.
“You would miss me if I were reduced to a tiny pile of ash.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I think you might look good in shades of gray.”
“Harsh, little one,” he chastised. “Your manners leave a great deal to be desired.”
“As if yours are any better?”
“Obviously, we deserve one another.”
Her heart didn’t skip this time. It came to a complete, perfect stop.
We deserve one another…
The words were harmless, nothing more than a casual joke. But there was nothing amusing in the poignant longing that flooded her heart.
“Not freaking likely.” She squirmed in his arms, suddenly more afraid of the sensations jolting through her body than being dropped. “I’m freezing. Put me down.”
Miraculously, Jagr came to a halt and gently lowered her to her feet. Not that she believed for a moment he was actually following orders. She wasn’t that stupid.
A rabid tiger would be more likely to dance the rumba.
Obviously it suited his purpose to stand in an empty field, staring at the large, abandoned building. A building that looked as if it could be some sort of creepy asylum.
A suspicion that became absolute certainty when Jagr tilted back his head as if testing the air.
“Remain close to my side,” he muttered.
Regan rubbed her arms, as much from the brittle tension radiating from Jagr as from the chill still clinging to her skin.
“You think the curs are chasing us?”
His gaze continued to scan the darkness. “There’s always a possibility that we’ve been followed, but I’m more concerned with the vampire who has a lair in the area. I wouldn’t want any misunderstandings by bringing a Were into his territory.”
Regan stiffened in wariness. Another vampire? Just what she needed.
“There’s a clan here?”
“No. Tane has no connection to a clan, although he no doubt has a number of guards with him. He’s a Charon.”
“A Charon.” She shook her head, dredging up the little Greek mythology she’d read. “You mean a ferryman?”
“Not quite.” His expression had settled into those cold, remote lines that always meant trouble. “A vampire assassin.”
Well, this just got better and better.
“Just to clarify, does that mean he’s a vampire who happens to be an assassin, or that he’s an assassin who kills vampires?”
“He hunts vampires.”
“He’s some sort of cannibal, and you intend to invade his territory? Are you nuts?”
“Tane’s not a cannibal. He’s a part of an elite group of warriors that Styx founded long before he became the Anasso, their sole purpose being to destroy those vampires who have become unstable.”
“Unstable?”
“It’s rare, but not unknown.”
Regan shuddered. The thought of a powerful, predatory vampire becoming unhinged wasn’t a pretty one.
Actually it was downright terrifying.
“Should I ask?”
His expression was grim. “No.”
Good enough for her.
“So this Tane hunts them down and kills them?” she instead demanded.
“It’s his duty.”
“Lovely.” With a grimace, her attention shifted toward the nearby building. At a distance it looked as if it had once been a handsome structure. Three stories, with a large verandah on the ground level and a balcony with a decorative railing running along the second floor, it boasted the type of high arched windows popular before air-conditioning, and six fluted columns that added an air of graceful dignity. The darkness, however, couldn’t disguise the fact that the red bricks were crumbling into slow oblivion and the windows were missing most of their panes of glass. “Why does he live out here in the middle of nowhere? Does he give the other vampires the heebie-jeebies?”
“A Charon must always remain above the politics and loyalties of various clans,” Jagr said, his tone distracted as he continued to remain on guard. “The killing of a vampire, even one who is beyond salvation, has started too many wars.”
“So he has to live in isolation?”
“Beyond his servants, yes. It helps avoid complications.”
“Jeez.” Regan grimaced. “What a crappy job.”
“Tane took his position willingly. Many vampires prefer solitude.”
“Vamps like you?”
His head turned, his brilliant eyes narrowed as if her soft question had struck a nerve.
“I can’t deny that I’ve spent the past centuries preferring the company of books to that of my brothers.”
“Did you blame them for leaving you in the hands of Kesi?”
Jagr tensed, his fangs flashing as his features hardened with a frozen fury.
“I blamed them for allowing me to be turned into the same sort of monster who tortured me in the first place.”
“You…” Regan was forced to halt and clear her throat. “You resent being a vampire?”
“I did.” The cold bitterness slowly thawed as he studied her wary eyes. “But I’m beginning to discover being turned isn’t without a few benefits.” His finger brushed her cheek, the cool caress leaving a trail of fire in its wake. “Do you want me to tell you some of those benefits, little one?”