She pulled away from Adam. Climbed on the bike. Lucas tossed her a set of keys. She caught them with her left hand. In seconds, the motorcycle revved to life beneath her legs.
Oh, yeah. She'd missed this.
Adam and Lucas crowded around her.
She didn't want to take them with her, but she understood their need for vengeance.
And backup, well, maybe it wouldn't be such a terrible idea. Because she didn't know how many members of her little "family" would be waiting to greet her.
"So here's the deal," she said, raising her voice over the growl of the bike. "Adam and I are going in first. You wait until we're clear-then you bring your pack in," she told Lucas. "You wait, got that? If they catch your scent too soon, war's gonna break out and we'll all be lucky to get out alive." Much less succeed in killing Torrence and Nassor.
"You." She pointed to Adam. "You ride with me, and do exactly as I say." Maya had a feeling Adam wasn't going to like the plan spinning through her mind, but if they both wanted to get close to Nassor, well, she figured there was only one way to do it.
The Born Master needed a dragon's blood to regain his strength.
Maybe she'd just give him one.
"Are we gonna catch the bastard while he's sleeping?" Lucas asked, his smile curving another inch.
"No." She pushed back the kickstand. "The Master's up and waiting." Calling.
His smile disappeared. "Shit."
Adam climbed onto the bike behind her. Locked his arms around her waist. "How long?"
A shrug. "About an hour." So he was still weak. Even if Torrence had a nice food supply lined up for the Master, his strength wouldn't be at peak level.
Now was the time to attack.
You had to cut off the head of the snake in order to kill the beast. Once Nassor was dead, the vampires would flee. The call would stop.
Her fingers tightened around the handlebars. This was it.
She looked across the desert. He was waiting.
Come.
The bike shot forward with a howl of fury. Spun with a shriek and headed away from the blazing lights of the Strip.
Headed deep into the desert.
It was a beautiful night for death.
Maya lost track of time as she drove the motorcycle. The vibrations from the bike traveled up her legs, pushed against her sex. Adam didn't speak. Just kept his arms around her. Tight and strong.
With every mile that passed, the call in her mind grew louder.
No wonder Torrence had been keeping Cammie and Jordan at Blood Rock. He'd wanted the Master to have easy access.
They rose over a hill and Maya brought the bike to a shuddering halt.
There. A massive house, with a thick security wall surrounding it on all sides. Guards. Dozens of them. Patrolling with weapons, and with fangs and claws. Vampires .
Lights blazed from the house-not really a house, Maya thought. Too big. Made of heavy stone, the place looked more like some kind of fortress, rising from the desert.
She counted at least three stories. Knew there had to be a basement. With vampires, there was always a basement.
Four floors. Maybe more.
So where would she find Torrence? Nassor? Her foot pressed against the hard earth as she stared at the Master's lair.
"What's the plan?" Adam's breath blew against her ear. "How are you planning to get past the guards?"
Ah, that was the tricky part. Odds were good that Torrence wouldn't be one of the low-level goons patrolling the gates. So, getting in shouldn't be a problem, not with the gift she was bringing.
Maya glanced back at him. "Do you trust me?"
They were so close that barely an inch separated their faces. She could see straight into his eyes.
"Yes."
Absolutely certain.
Maya swallowed to ease the lump in her throat. The damn bad thing was that she trusted him, too. With every bit of her soul, she trusted the dragon. "Th-that's good, Slick. Real good." She revved the engine. "Remember that, okay?" She shot down the hill, forcing the bike to go as fast as it could.
The guards saw them coming. The vamps ran for them, shouting and drawing their guns.
Bullets rained into the ground on either side of her. One slammed into the front of the motorcycle.
Maya whipped the bike to the right, brought it to a stop in a cloud of fumes and burning rubber.
"I've come for the Master!" Her voice rang out, cutting past the shouts and the bullets. She barred her teeth and said, "I'm answering his call."
The vamps closed in, suspicion heavy on their pale faces. Black eyes drifted past her to study Adam. The tension that swept over the crowd had Maya leaping from the motorcycle and jerking Adam behind her.
"He's got no scent." This came from a short, bald vamp who stepped forward with his gun raised and his lips peeled back into a snarl. Ah, the one in charge. The boss always liked to speak first.
Maya's gaze dropped to the gun. Probably just regular bullets, in case any curious humans happened by. The shots would hurt like hell, of course, but it wouldn't be anything fatal to her.
But she couldn't afford to be slowed down.
Maya lifted her hands, moving them in a fast blur, and locked her claws around Adam's throat.
"Don't even think about hurting my gift," she warned, voice deadly.
The vamps hesitated.
"What is he?" This came from the leader, who eyed them both with deep suspicion.
Maya smiled at him and deliberately pressed her claws into Adam's flesh. A trickle of blood flowed down his neck.
He didn't flinch. His body was rock-hard beside her.
"He's a dragon," she said, and brought her mouth to his throat, licking away the blood. "He's going to make Nassor very, very happy."
A rumble swept through the crowd. Most of the vamps began to inch back.
But the guy in front just curled back his lip. "Bullshit."
"Adam." A little demonstration would be in order. "Why don't you show these guys just what you can become?"
He held up his arm.
The skin slowly began to shift colors, getting darker. The flesh become harder. Scaled.
"That's enough," she said, not wanting to push him too far, yet.
Adam's arm transformed back to a man's.
"Are you crazy?" The vampire shrieked, raising his gun. "That bastard can kill us all!"
Well, at least he believed her now.
"No, he can't." Sorry, Adam. "He's linked with my blood, and he'll do whatever I want." She turned slightly, looked up into his eyes. Sleep.
He blinked.
She'd never wanted to force her power onto him, but there wasn't an option now. If the vamps thought he was any kind of threat, they'd never let him inside.