There was something so . . . sincere about his eyes and expression. Instinctively, she felt he was solid and honest. A man who said and did what he felt was right and never apologized for it.
His gaze lowered to her mouth, then returned to her eyes. “Shall I teleport you back to Tiger Town?”
“No!” She pulled away, surprised for a second that he let her go. “I can’t go back there. Anywhere but there.”
He smirked. “So you admit that is your home.”
“Yes, but I can’t go back before my mission is done.”
“Your family must be worried sick—”
“My family is dead! My parents and brother, hacked to pieces by Master Han. I won’t stop until I’ve killed him.”
The vampire stiffened. “You will not kill Han.”
“I will! I swore I would avenge my family—”
“You’re not killing Han!” the vampire yelled. “I am!”
Jia paused a moment, stunned by the vampire’s words and the ferocious look on his face. “Why do you want—”
“I don’t explain myself,” he growled and took a step toward her. “I was so close to killing Han tonight. I had a clear shot at his neck, and you ruined it.”
She stepped back. “You—”
“Two years of tracking that bastard, and you screwed it up!”
She winced. No wonder he was pissed. “I didn’t know.”
“You know nothing about warfare! You can’t attack his guards first. He just teleports away.”
“I realize that now. I’ll do better next—”
“There is no next time for you. Killing Han is my job, and you will stay out of it!”
Jia’s breath caught when she realized who this vampire must be. How many times had she heard Jin Long and her cousin complain about him? Angus kept sending them on missions to find him, and somehow, he always eluded them.
What was his name? He seemed like a legend, the way people gossiped about him. Some said he was dangerous; others called him a hero. According to her cousin, he’d cut the tracking chip out of his arm and disappeared two years ago, vowing to kill Master Han. A few times, when Rajiv and Jin Long had found themselves surrounded by Han’s soldiers, this vampire had miraculously appeared and rescued them.
Just like he’d rescued her tonight. “I know who you are. You’re the—the—”
“The deserter?” he growled. “Do they say I’m crazy?”
“No! Of course not.” She winced inwardly. This was not the time to admit that Rajiv called him “The Crazy One.” And Jin Long claimed he was a loose cannon. She searched her mind for something good they’d said about him. “They say you’re the best tracker in the world.”
He stared at her a moment, then looked away, shifting his weight as if he didn’t know how to respond.
He’s not used to compliments, she thought, and her heart softened. What a lonesome man he had to be. But so wonderfully dedicated to his cause. She inhaled sharply as an idea popped into her mind. “I know what to do. We’ll work together!”
He blinked. “No.”
“Yes!” It was a brilliant solution, so brilliant that she felt a surge of confidence that she could easily convince him. “It’s perfect! We have the same goal, so all we have to do is team up to defeat our common foe.”
“Hell, no.”
“In fact, I think fate has brought us together for this purpose.”
He hesitated, a stunned look on his face.
Yes! He was coming around. The more she thought about this new idea, the more excited she became. She’d always known it would be difficult to kill Han, but when she’d asked her uncles, Rinzen and Tenzen, to help her, they had refused. And then, to make matters worse, they’d reported her plan to her cousin, and Rajiv had forbidden her to go. Vengeance should be left to the male were-tigers, Rajiv had told her. As the resident princess in Tiger Town, it was her job to play hostess and perform the tea ceremony for their visitors. She’d been sorely tempted to tell Rajiv what he could do with the ceremonial teapot.
“As a vampire, you can do all the levitating and teleporting,” she continued. “And I’ll do whatever needs to be done during the day. I can even guard you while you’re in your death-sleep.”
He shook his head. “I don’t need a guard. No one knows about this place.”
“I know.”
He snorted. “You have no idea where we are.”
“That’s even better! No one should know the location of our secret hideout.”
“Our hideout?”
“Yes!” She grinned, delighted that he was agreeing. “And you needn’t worry that I won’t pull my weight. I know martial arts, and you’ve seen how well I throw knives.”
“I work alone.”
She waved a dismissive hand. “I realize you’re stuck in a rut over that, but it’s time for you to be daring enough to try something new. We have to be bold in order to succeed.”
He gave her an incredulous look. “Are you calling me a coward?”
“Of course not. I’m just saying we’ll be more efficient as a team. Take tonight, for example. If I had known your plans ahead of time, I wouldn’t have interfered.” She gave him an encouraging smile. “We should start right now tracking down Master Han. You know where his camps are, right? Let’s go!”
“I think we should go.” The vampire grabbed hold of her arms.
Yes! They were a team! “Shouldn’t you arm yourself—” She stopped when everything went black.
When her feet hit solid ground, she pulled away from him and looked around her. Oh, God, no.
They were in the courtyard of Tiger Town. Torches lit up the perimeter, and dozens of armed male were-tigers were standing nearby. They all stared at her in shock. Her heart sank in dismay.
“Jia!” Rajiv ran toward her. “Where have you been?”
“What have you done?” she hissed at the vampire. “I told you not to bring me here.”
Rajiv stopped in front of her. “Jia, what happened? You left seven days ago to see my brother in Thailand, and then today I get a call from him that you never arrived! I was about to send out search parties for you.”
The vampire smirked. “I thought you might be worried about her.”
“Russell!” Rajiv shook his hand. “Thank you for bringing back my cousin.”
Russell? So that was the vampire’s name. Jia glared at him. It could take her weeks to find Han again. And now that Rajiv knew what she was up to, she’d have a hard time escaping Tiger Town.
“Cousin?” Russell gave her a wary look. “You’re in the royal family?”
She was royally pissed. Before she could answer, Rajiv cut in.
“She’s our resident princess,” he explained. “We are indebted to you for bringing her back safely.”
Russell’s face went cold. Without looking at her, he muttered, “I’ll be going then.”
“You’re leaving me here?” Anger spiked in her chest. “We have the same goal. I thought you understood me. I thought I could trust you.”
His mouth thinned. “You thought wrong.”
She pulled her arm back and slapped him hard across the face.
Chapter Two
Russell shifted his jaw to make sure it still worked. She was damned strong for a princess. And damned angry.
He turned away from her accusing glare. No matter what she thought, he’d done the right thing. The woman had family, royal family, and they were relieved to have her safely home. Her plan to go after Han was clearly suicidal. The bastard had hundreds of supersoldiers. She’d never manage to kill him on her own.
That’s why she wanted to team up with you. With a dismissive snort, he ignored the inner voice. No doubt it had hurt like hell when she’d lost her parents and brother, but her need for vengeance could never take precedence over his. Vengeance was all that he had left. She still had family. And friends. Still had a home and a future. There was no need for her to suffer anymore.
And that was the big difference between them. He didn’t give a shit if he suffered or died. He’d endured enough pain that his cold, undead heart had grown immune to it.
When Angus and his buddies had found him three years ago in Master Han’s cave in Thailand, they’d wakened him from a vampire coma. It had been unnerving to discover he’d joined the ranks of the Undead, but he’d adjusted quickly. After all, being a vampire put him on equal footing with the villain who had attacked him. It made revenge possible. And that gave him a reason to live.