Marie's head was bent over the ring. She was rocking back and forth slowly. But at Maya's question, her head lifted. "Evil-it cannot cross my line."
The red line of dust.
But that didn't make sense. "No. Adam's not evil. He's looking for his niece, he's not-"
Her head lowered again, and the rocking continued.
He wasn't evil. Was he? But Maya couldn't just dismiss Marie's words. She'd done that once before, and had her life stolen as a result. She turned away, her hand gripping the doorframe. "I should have listened to you all those years ago. Things could have been so different for me."
A soft laugh floated in the air. "Ah, child, now whatever made you think I was talking about the vampire?"
Her heart kicked into a furious rhythm. If not the vampire, then who? She turned around, the question on her lips.
But Marie was gone. The red velvet chair sat empty, and the ruby ring glinted on the table.
Maya stormed out of the house moments later. The yard was empty-all the men and women in white had disappeared.
Where the hell was Adam? Evil-it cannot cross my line.
She stepped off the porch-
And was jerked against a hard male chest.
Her claws lifted and a snarl curled her lips.
"Easy, vampire. It's just me." Adam's arms tightened around her as his breath fanned over her cheek.
She glanced over his shoulder. "Where did everybody go?"
"Don't know. Just seemed to disappear right before you came barreling out of the house."
That wasn't a good sign. Why would they all leave? Unless– hell . "We need to get out of here."
She shoved away from him. Noticed the utter silence of the yard.
Oh, no, not good.
She'd left her gun with the bike, not wanting Marie's guards to think she was a threat.
Marie had enough threats in her life-that was why the mambo had to move locations every few months.
Fucking stupid.
"Why do-"
She took off running for the bike. Her nostrils flared as she moved, drinking in the scents of the night. Human flesh. Decayed vegetation. Dank earth. Wisps of smoke. Animal.
Wolf .
She heard the growls just as she touched the cold metal of the motorcycle. She reached into her saddlebag, locked her fingers around the butt of the gun.
Over the years, she'd learned a few important facts.
Fact one. Bullets soaked in holy water could kill a vampire-if they pierced his heart. She'd been lucky enough to learn that one while she was still alive. Well, sort of.
Fact two. The bullets could be made of any metal to work on a vamp, but if she was going up against shifters, particularly those damn vicious wolf shifters, she needed to make absolutely sure the bullets were made out of silver.
Fact three. A silver bullet/holy water combination could really save her ass.
A howl sounded to the right.
Maya spun around, weapon ready.
"What the hell was-" Adam jerked to a stop beside her, his chest rising and falling quickly.
"Get on the bike." She could smell the wolves, hear the soft pad of their paws as they closed in.
How many? Three? Four? Damn. Six? More? When the wolf shifters tracked in packs, they were nearly unstoppable. The fact that they could communicate telepathically while in animal form, well, that just made it all the easier for them to hunt.
And they were very, very good at hunting.
Definitely time to leave.
She heard him draw in a deep breath. "Shit. Why are the wolves stalking us?"
"'Cause they're probably working for Nassor's men." She'd seen it before. Vamps using the wolves as hunting dogs. But now wasn't the time to talk about how easily some of the wolves' allegiance could be bought.
Now was, quite simply, the time to run.
Talk could come later.
In the darkness, she saw a pair of glowing eyes staring back at her.
Then another.
Another.
"Get on the bike!" The growls and snarls were louder now. Had to be at least six of them. Maybe more.
Adam got on the bike.
The wolves stalked from the shadows, bodies hugging the ground, mouths open, fangs dripping with saliva.
The lead wolf, a big black beast missing half of his right ear, kept his eerie stare locked on her.
His muscles bunched.
Shit.
Maya jumped on the back of the motorcycle, wrapped her left arm around Adam's muscled waist. With her right hand, she lifted the gun, aimed-
The wolf sprang forward "Go!" She screamed and pulled the trigger.
The bullet fired, blasting straight toward the snarling beast.
The wolf twisted, jerking to the left, and the bullet slammed into his flesh. The bastard fell to the ground, a long whimper of pain gurgling in his throat.
Not a heart shot. Or a head shot. Sonofabitch. He'd live.
The motorcycle's engine fired to life, and the bike shot forward, snarling like a demon straight from hell.
The rest of the pack sprang forward, jaws snapping.
Adam and Maya flew past them, but she felt a flash of burning pain sear her thigh.
One of the wolves had clawed her.
She jerked around, fired one shot. Another.
The wolves were chasing them, their big, powerful bodies eating up the road nearly as fast as the motorcycle.
She couldn't aim for shit while the bike was swerving all over the road.
Hell. "Faster!" If he didn't get them out of there within the next thirty seconds, the wolves would tear them apart.
The motor growled. Adam leaned forward, curling his body into the bike. Maya held on with one hand, and kept trying to aim with the other.
With a sudden burst of speed, the motorcycle raced forward.
The wolves couldn't keep the pace.
Finally.
Maya tucked the gun into the back of her jeans. Her palm smoothed over her thigh. Touched blood. She hissed out a breath at the pain.
Damn. It was deep.
But she'd heal. She always did.
She pressed her head against Adam's back, drawing in a hard breath. Wolf shifters. Fucking werewolves. She hated those animals.
They'd kill anyone, anything. Conscienceless, predatory. They were the worst kinds of monsters.
Psychotic.
And now the wolves were on their trail.
The fact that the wolves were after her, when they'd pretty much stayed the hell out of her way before, was no coincidence. She'd never believed in coincidences. Someone-probably that spineless Stephan-had reported to Nassor's men about her little meeting with Adam, and the vamps had called in the dogs.
"Maya?" Adam's voice shouted over the roaring motor.
"It's okay." She licked her lips, then said, louder, "We've lost them."
For now. But wolves never gave up on a hunt.