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.
Russell had no memory of how he’d ended up in a vampire coma, but he’d been found in Han’s cave with Han’s tattoo of ownership on his right wrist. It could only mean that Han had attacked him, sucked him dry, then stashed him away for thirty-nine freakin’ years.
Russell’s theory had been confirmed when he’d met Han and the bastard had declared that Russell belonged to him. Russell had known then and there that Han had to die. But if possible, he had one question to ask Master Han before killing him. Why? Why did you leave me there for thirty-nine years?
During that time, Russell had lost everything. Unlike Jia, he had nothing left to lose. There was no family, no home, no future. Nothing and no one.
That was the way it needed to stay. He had to work alone. A partner would slow him down. Make him feel responsible. Make him . . . feel. Feelings would make him weak. And weakness would make him fail.
“Tenzen!” Rajiv called over one of his uncles. “Will you take Jia to her room?”
The princess’s eyes blazed with anger, and she aimed a molten-gold glare at Russell. “See what you’ve done? I’ll be a prisoner!”
Tenzen took hold of her arm, and she shook him off. “I know the way.” With a lift of her chin, she started across the courtyard.
Her dignified exit was somewhat marred by the squishing sound of her wet boot, but even so, Russell was impressed by her refusal to appear defeated. Was she really a prisoner? He winced at the sight of her uncle and two guards following close behind her.
“Jia, thank God you’re back!” J.L. Wang grinned at her as he approached. “Are you all right?”
Russell’s eyes narrowed. J.L. was the vampire she’d called her friend, using his full name, Jin Long. As a former special agent for the FBI, J.L. had fit right into MacKay Security and Investigation. Officially, he was head of security for the West Coast Coven, headquartered in his hometown of San Francisco. But recently, he spent most of his time in China, where his knowledge of Chinese was helping the good Vamps in their fight against Master Han.
Jia lifted a hand in greeting, then marched right past J.L. without a word. As J.L.’s smile faded, a pang of satisfaction reverberated in Russell’s chest.
J.L. jogged over to Rajiv and Russell. “What happened?”
“Russell found her and brought her back,” Rajiv replied.
“Thank you.” J.L. gave Russell a quick smile. “We were worried about her.”
Russell’s hands curled into fists. “Then why weren’t you with her? You call yourself her friend but leave her alone to face danger?”
J.L. stiffened. “What’s gotten into you?”
“She wasn’t alone,” Rajiv explained. “At least not at first. My brother’s wife has recently given birth to twins. Jia offered to be our emissary to deliver gifts and assist with the care of the babies. She set off a week ago with a small caravan. Five guards. Just across the border in Thailand, she managed to sneak away in the middle of the night. The guards searched for her but couldn’t find her. So they rushed on to my brother’s village, and he called tonight with the news that she was missing.”
“We were about to search for her,” J.L. added. “Where did you find her?”
Russell shifted his weight. He wasn’t sure if these guys knew about Jia’s plan to assassinate Master Han. Even though he should warn them, he found himself strangely reluctant to tattle on her. “I’m not sure. Someplace in northern Myanmar.”
J.L.’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Master Han has a camp there.”
Russell shrugged. “He has camps all over.”
“Was Han there?” Rajiv demanded. “Was she trying to kill him?”
So they knew. Russell sighed. “Yes, she tried and came damned close to succeeding.”
J.L. sucked in a hissing breath.
Rajiv grimaced. “I strictly forbade her to go anywhere near Han or his camps.”
J.L. shook his head. “She’s too impetuous. She’ll get herself killed.”
A surge of anger shot through Russell. “At least she’s doing something! She had the courage to go after him, which is more than I can say for the two of you!”
Rajiv’s eyes flashed with anger. “If you know where Han is, tell me and I’ll gladly kill him. I promised Jia I would avenge her family. And since you found her, you must have been near Han, too. Why didn’t you kill him?”
Russell’s jaw shifted as he ground his teeth.
“Do you think we’re doing nothing here?” J.L. glared at him. “In the last two months, we’ve attacked six of Han’s camps and taken his supersoldiers. They’re in the clinic now, being changed back to normal.”
“We’ve whittled Han’s army down to three hundred and twenty,” Rajiv added.
Russell scoffed. “Instead of saving soldiers, we need to kill Han. Once the head is dead, the body will wither away.”
“Then the next time you see Han, call us,” J.L. growled. “We’re on the same side, dammit.”