A Cold Day in Hell (The Hellcat Series) Read online

  Her nostrils flared, and she took a deep breath, as though pulling the scent of him deep into her lungs. Her eyes closed, and her head fell back slightly. Tension trickled from her body in tiny increments. Outwardly he was calm and patient; inside her mind, he was relentless.

  Gabi was in a highly erotic dream. An incredibly realistic one. The feel of his skin under her nails and fingertips was smooth, cool and familiar. The scent of him was warm and spicy and made her hungry to taste him. The solidity of his muscular body, pressed tightly against hers, was both stimulating and reassuring, driving her crazy and keeping her sane. But somehow she still knew that it wasn't real. Even through the confusing red haze, she knew he wasn't actually in her arms. And she wanted him there. Now.

  She forced herself awake, aware, forced her eyes open. Ah, there he was. A few feet away from her. Her own Adonis. Hair ever so slightly mussy, curling into the collar of his full-length leather duster. The one he needed to have specially made to accommodate his broader shoulders and lean frame. His sapphire blue eyes were fixed on her face—hot, wicked, knowing eyes, with the faintest trace of tension narrowing them.

  "Lea," he said, his voice halfway between a growl and a purr. If only she could purr like he could; it always sent a shiver through her body, as though he somehow strummed a chord inside her.

  "Jules," she replied, her voice coming out in a husky whisper. Something flared in the depths of his eyes, and then he was in front of her. A fingertip reached up to brush the hair from her face and tuck it behind her ear. Something about her face disturbed him. His lips narrowed, and she could feel anger simmering inside him. As she opened her mouth to ask him why he was angry, she felt pain flare down the side of her face.

  It brought her up short, trying to remember what had happened in the last few minutes. The memories eluded her, so she brought her left hand up towards her face. He caught her hand, just short of touching the side of her face, and kissed the backs of her fingers, then ran his warm, wet tongue over her knuckles. Pain she hadn't been aware of ignited for a split second before vanishing.

  His other hand travelled feather-light down her right arm and pried gently at her hand, which was locked around something. Ah, Nex. She'd been gripping the sword so tightly that she could feel the ridges of the hilt embedded in her palm. Her hand felt sticky, coated with something. He gently helped her unlock the death grip she had on the hilt, and pried it from her. She heard the metallic clank as the blade hit the tarmac, but she wasn't worried. Nex was tough; she could take it. He brought the hand up and placed it on his chest. She looked at it and felt her eyebrows furrow in confusion. It seemed to be caked in blood and dust. Before the confusion could upset her, his hands tilted her head upward and his mouth claimed hers.

  The erotic dream was back, this time accompanied by faint flickers of pain as she writhed under his expert hands and mouth. Her wrists hurt, her mouth and her face hurt, her ribs, collarbone—all complained about the movements. But it didn't give her pause. None of that mattered; only the feel and taste of him mattered. The pain made her think that, maybe this time, the dream wasn't really a dream. His tongue invaded her mouth, and then the taste of ambrosia. All thoughts and worries fled her mind. Only sensation remained. The ambrosia warmed her mouth, then her throat and then her entire body, turning her to liquid. The taste she craved began to fade, and she knew she had to have more.

  Julius needed to get her somewhere safe. Now. Her response was so potent that he was finding it hard to control his own reactions. His body was screaming to rip away the clothing separating them, and to bury himself in her deeply enough to make them one entity. Her taste, her scent, her excitement and arousal called to him like crystal meth to an addict in withdrawal. The smell of the other Vampire still lingering in the alley and the fine dusting of his ash covering Gabi's arms and legs wasn't helping his sanity. Possessiveness reared up, clawing at his mind like a trapped tiger.

  The car, he told himself firmly, Alexander was bringing a car. Get her to the car. He shifted his grip on her and lifted her into his arms. She entwined her arms around his neck and began to leave a trail of wet, nipping kisses across his jaw and down his neck.

  She reached the spot on his neck where the artery ran close to the surface, and without warning sank her tiny, ever so slightly pointed canines into his flesh, puncturing the artery and then suckling at the wound. The world reeled around him as fireworks went off in his mind. His resolve vaporised. His control obliterated, branding her as his own became his only priority.

  There was a wall behind her, though he couldn't remember moving. He released her legs back to the ground and pressed her against the pollution-stained bricks. Her hands were already ripping at his belt, as desperate to touch him as he was to touch her. A separate, saner part of his brain assessed the alleyway, checking for company and alert for danger. His men weren’t far off; he could sense them clearly. They wouldn't allow anyone down here. Nothing else human or supernatural was nearby. His belt buckle came free, and her fingers deftly undid his trousers. That was all he could take. He lifted her with one arm and slid his other hand under her skirt to the edge of her lace panties; they gave no resistance as he shredded them. She curled her arms around his neck, her legs around his waist, and captured his lips with hers, groaning into his mouth.

  The sensation as he thrust inside her was indescribable. He knew the hoarse shout was his, though it barely sounded human. She was hot, slick and welcoming, and she threw her head back in silent ecstasy as the exquisite pleasure rode them both.

  It was hours…days…eons…later that sanity finally prevailed. Heads together, panted breaths mingled, forming little puffs of steam in the cooling night air. Reality came into focus. Somehow he'd managed to get them to a small, unlit alcove at a fire exit. Her back and shoulders were probably scraped raw by the rough bricks. The swelling on her face was subsiding already, though her lips were puffy from their desperate kissing. He gently set her back on her feet and stepped back to refasten his trousers and belt. Then he silently shrugged out of his duster and pulled it around her shoulders. There wasn't much left of her clothing. His men would know what had gone on in the alleyway, but they didn’t need to see the evidence for themselves.

  "You okay?" he asked, needing to swallow to make his voice work properly.

  "I think so," she replied, more whisper than statement. She enfolded herself in the jacket, suddenly shivering. "What happened?"

  "Alexander has a car waiting for us," he said. "Let’s get out of here. We can talk in the car." He pulled her with him out of the alcove. She stooped to collect Nex, as he'd known she would, as they walked through the ash once again. She stopped in the middle of the area strewn with ash.

  "That was me?" she asked, sliding the toe of one boot through the mess. He nodded and put an arm around her to pull her away from the scene. She resisted slightly, turning with a frown to study the remains, but didn't stop walking. "Sorry," she muttered. "I don't think I meant to kill him. I remember trying to keep him alive."

  A snort of amused surprise escaped him as they exited the alley to find Alexander's Ferrari purring on the curb, the man himself leaning against the door with an amused grin on his face. There weren't many people on the planet with the nerve to actually tease him, but Alexander was one of his oldest friends, and it had been decades since he'd been able to tease Julius about sexual escapades. He would take full advantage now.

  "Later," he growled warningly to his second in command.

  "Whaaat?" Alexander asked, with overdone innocence. Then he chuckled and pulled away from the car. "Look after my baby," he said with a gentle tap to the car's roof. "We'll take Hellcat's back to the estate. Kyle is giving the girls a ride home." Then with a teasing bow of his head to Gabi, he sauntered off in the direction of the club. Two dark forms peeled away from the shadows on either side of the alley and swiftly followed him.

  As Julius held the door to allow Gabi to fold herself into the Ferrari's passenger seat, he
finally allowed himself the wash of relief he hadn't had time to experience when he first rushed into the alley. It wasn't him. The Vampire he'd been expecting. He'd been absolutely convinced he'd find Caspian in that alley, with some kind of supernatural hold over Gabi. The thought had terrified him almost more than the thought of her in Dantè's clutches. But with that came the knowledge that a rogue Vampire had arrived in the City despite his extra precautions. Things were getting more complicated by the day.

  CHAPTER 5

  Gabi's head felt like the inside of a tumble dryer. A bizarre mix of emotions all tumbling together, fighting for dominance. Satiation, elation and exhaustion countered by an adrenalin-inspired high and confusion. Her body was sore; in some places painfully sore, in others pleasurably sore. She let her head fall back onto the headrest and closed her eyes, frowning as she tried to put the pieces of the last half hour together. Julius remained quiet, giving her room to work through what had just happened.

  "So, Red Rage again, huh?" she asked at last, as the memories of tracking and finding the Rogue solidified in her mind. She opened her eyes and assessed the marks and bruises, which were already beginning to fade from her skin. She pushed back the sleeves of Julius's coat and stared at her wrists.

  "Yes," Julius agreed quietly, keeping his eyes on the road, though he didn't need to. "But not quite the same as last time."

  Gabi looked at him sharply. "What do you mean?"

  Julius glanced her way briefly, a pensive frown on his face. "I didn't see the whole fight, but when I got to you, he had your hands pinned above your head, and he was about to bite you." He took a deep breath and looked away, back to the road outside. His hands tightened on the steering wheel of the car. "I got there just in time to see the terror disappear from your eyes and the rage take hold. Only it wasn't the insane, incontrollable fury that I've seen countless times before. You directed the Rage. You harnessed it and used it for a purpose. It didn't control you; you controlled it." The certainty and awe in his voice was unnerving.

  "I…" she started, "I don't really remember. I only remember the moment that changed everything. He was going to bite me; he wanted my blood. The terror had me frozen. I couldn't move, I couldn't fight, I couldn't stop him. And as he lowered his mouth towards my neck," she gave an involuntary shudder, "I suddenly knew that he just wasn't allowed to do that. There was only one person with permission to do that." She glanced at him sideways and noted that his jaw was set in a rigid line, tension radiated from him like heat from the sun, and he was working very hard to keep his emotions from her. She continued, "Once that thought was in my mind, the terror turned to anger, then to rage. I felt the mist descending. I felt it take over, and I didn't fight it, I embraced it." The Ferrari's engine roared as Julius accelerated onto the highway. "I don't feel like I had any control over it, though. What makes you say that I controlled it?"

  "There was a calmness to your thoughts,” he explained. “A methodical single-mindedness to the way you attacked him. You had a goal, and you were going to achieve it. I think it's possible you would've brought yourself out of the Rage given a bit more time. A Vampire in the grip of Red Rage is oblivious to all around him. If you were in the same Rage, you would've been as likely to attack a rubbish bin or the building as attack the Vampire threatening you. You would've lashed out blindly, possibly hitting your target by accident. It would've been impossible to precisely and systematically cut down an attacker. That is the biggest complication with the Red Rage; a Vampire in its grip is as much a threat to themselves as to anyone around them."

  Gabi turned this new information over in her head.

  "I really don't remember the fight or killing him," she said, shaking her head, nothing else was coming to her. "And the next thing I knew, I was having a very realistic, erotic dream." She shot him an accusing glare.

  The tension eased in his face by a scant degree, and the faintest trace of amusement twitched his lower lip. "Sorry," he said, not sounding it in the least. "It was a bit of an experiment. It was only meant to ease you out of the Rage."

  "Not make me pounce on you like a rabid tigress?" she asked, allowing mild sarcasm to colour her tone. This time an actual smile turned his lips up.

  "Well, that was an added bonus." There was an evil twinkle in his eye as he glanced at her in the darkness of the car. If she'd had the energy, she would've punched him. The smile faded. "Honestly, I thought I would be able to control myself, Lea. I just wanted to get you out of there and home. I could see you'd been injured but wasn't sure how badly." He picked up one of her arms and turned her wrist over. The bruising was still clear, even in the dim lighting in the car and even after consuming his blood. "And then you sank your teeth into my neck," he almost growled. "I know you were still not completely yourself at the time, but for future reference, that utterly shreds any hint of self-control I have."

  "Really?" she asked, intrigued and already mulling possible future experiments.

  "That is not a good idea, Gabrielle," he warned, his voice no longer a purr. "I'm not even sure I would've known if something dangerous approached us. I certainly didn't care if we were seen."

  She had the distinct impression he was regretting telling her that little titbit. She'd have to make sure he retracted that regret. The thought of him losing all control because of something she did to him was very, very appealing. His next question brought her back to earth.

  "Would you mind telling me why you were trying to keep the Rogue alive, instead of just dispatching him?” he demanded.

  "I knew you would want to question him, find out where he came from and why he was in the City," she explained. "He—" She broke off as she suddenly remembered something. She didn't really want to tell Julius this, but it was too late now.

  "He what, Gabrielle?" Julius prodded.

  She bit her bottom lip. "He seemed to know I was Dhampir."

  The Ferrari actually veered out of its lane for a split second before Julius pulled it straight with a rare curse. There was a sharp crack as something inside the steering wheel gave way. Oh dear, Alexander was going to be distraught, she thought.

  "What did he say to you?" Julius ground out.

  Gabi was actually considering asking him to pull over before he wrecked the car. She should've waited until they were at the estate to tell him, she realised, a few minutes too late.

  "He said I was the epitome of Vampire cuisine, that I would be a five-Michelin-star dinner." She was amazed she could recall his exact words.

  "Had he come here specifically to find you?" Short, terse as he guided the Ferrari onto an off ramp but didn't slow.

  "No, it seemed to be pure coincidence." She was fairly sure about that. "He said he'd heard rumours, but he hadn't believed them. Once he saw me fight and put it together with my unusual scent, he figured it out."

  A little of the anxiety eased from him, but not enough to call him composed. The car finally slowed; they were in the street leading to the estate. Gabi was debating calling him out on what was really going on as they turned into his driveway and the guards at the gatehouse rushed to open up, but one look at the expression on the guard's face was enough to freeze the words in her throat.

  "What's wrong, Artemus?" Julius asked, rolling down the Ferrari's window.

  "You have a visitor, Sire," Artemus replied without preamble. "He arrived about an hour ago and requested hospitium. He refused to discuss the nature of his call with anyone except you personally." The other Vampire trailed off as Gabi felt the white-hot flare of Julius's power as it exploded outward.

  "Where is he now?" Julius said, his voice quiet enough to be truly scary.

  "I, uh," Artemus swallowed, "I couldn't raise you on the phone, Sire, so I contacted Liam. He told me to send the visitor to the main house, and he would take care of him until you arrived home or called back."

  The Vampire's hands were held rigidly at his sides, but Gabi could see him trying to keep from fidgeting. He was very nervous about something. "It has
been many decades since I heard the request for hospitium, Sire. He is old school, and he made the Werewolves very anxious. Would you like me to gather the guard?"

  Julius gave a curt nod. "Alert them that I may have need of them tonight. Alexander should be no more than a few minutes away in Gabrielle's car. Tell him what you've told me, and tell him to come straight to the house. No one else is to enter the main house without a direct order from me. Double the guard on the perimeter, and call in any night patrols. Send any Werewolves back to their quarters, and replace them with Clan," he ordered in a clipped tone. "And Artemus." He paused.

  "Yes, Sire."

  "Keep it low key. No excitement from anyone."

  "Understood, Sire." He gave a sharp nod and disappeared back into the guardhouse.

  "Has this got anything to do with what you've been keeping from me?" Gabi asked into the palpable tension of the car.

  Julius didn't reply immediately as he pulled the car to a neck-jerking stop outside the entrance of the main house. Gabi suddenly knew that this was a pivotal point in their relationship. If he still refused to include her in what was going on, she would walk away from him tonight. She would step outside and call a cab to take her home. Then she would call Irene to come and alter the Magical Barrier so that Alexander and Julius couldn't get into her home. She knew he was still undecided on whether to tell her; she could feel it. She also stayed quiet. It was his decision. Either she was a full and equal part of his life, or she was nothing to him. There was no halfway with her. He knew that. He might not like it, but he knew it. Her heartbeat sounded loud to her own ears as she waited for him to make a decision.