Theirs was a sad tale. Lisette had been transformed against her will by her husband, who had turned vampire. Her twin brothers, not understanding the nature of her illness, had tried to help her hide her condition by insisting she feed from them. Repeated exposure to the virus, however, had transformed both into immortals before Seth could find Lisette and prevent it. According to David and Seth, neither brother had ever expressed a hint of regret and wouldn’t hesitate to do the same again. Yet Lisette lived with constant guilt over infecting them. No amount of reassurance would soothe her, though Ami thought she concealed it well.
Lisette looked up, her face lighting with a smile. She gave Ami a friendly wave, then winked at Marcus.
A woman and two men—all human—stood near the immortals. Ami recognized the woman as Tracy, Lisette’s Second. The other two must be Étienne’s and Richart’s. Both men flirted shamelessly with the leggy blonde. One said something that made Tracy laugh and the younger man flush as red as his hair. Ami hazarded a guess that he was Sheldon.
Her eyes narrowed as she recalled the danger in which Sheldon had placed Marcus.
“Now, now,” Marcus said. “I know you’re protective of me, but don’t go charging over there to rip him a new one. I’m sure several others have already beaten you to the punch.”
Ami grinned up at him.
Eyes twinkling, he smiled back. “Try to refrain from eating the callow cubs, lioness. Most won’t attain your hunting skills even after years of practice.”
She nudged him with her shoulder. “Sweet talker.”
“He wishes!” Richart called out.
“You’re just jealous,” Marcus retorted.
Étienne laughed and shoved his brother.
“Hey!” a deep voice shouted from the back of the house. “Is that Ami?”
Ami jumped when everyone in the room chorused, “Yes.” They knew her?
Pursing her lips, she eyed Marcus balefully. “I think being your Second has made me notorious.”
He shook his head. “Remaining at my side and standing against thirty-four vampires made you notorious. You’ve only yourself to blame.”
Darnell emerged from the hallway on the opposite side of the room. Tall and lean with medium brown skin and a shaved head, he hurried forward with a broad grin. “There she is!”
Happiness flooding her, Ami dropped Marcus’s hand and slung her arms around Darnell’s neck as he swooped down and lifted her into a tight hug. She laughed as he twisted from side to side so her feet swung back and forth like a bell’s clapper.
“I missed you,” she declared.
“I missed you, too,” he said. “And damned near passed out every time someone informed me of your latest exploits. What the hell, Ami?” Setting her on her feet, he peered down at Ami with a concern that warmed her heart. “Thirty-four? Thirty-four?”
She sighed. “I wish everyone would focus less on the number of vampires we fought and more on the fact that we defeated them.”
“Trust me. That fact does not go unacknowledged. Everyone on the Immortal Guardians Web site considers you a legend.”
“What do they consider me?” Marcus asked behind her. Darnell scowled at him. “Insane.”
Ami punched him in the shoulder. “Don’t pick on him.”
“You almost died for him,” he snapped.
She raised one eyebrow. “Wouldn’t you do the same for David?”
He grumbled a bit, then said, “David doesn’t take unnecessary risks.”
“He did a year and a half ago,” she pointed out, reminding him of the day Seth and David had risked their lives to rescue her.
He gave her a sweet smile. “That risk was necessary.”
Ami turned back to Marcus and found him watching her carefully. When Darnell moved to put a companionable arm around her shoulders, Marcus reclaimed her hand and tugged her away from him.
Was he jealous?
Two immortals she had never seen before entered from the hallway.
“Who are they?” Marcus asked.
Darnell glanced over his shoulder and gave the two men a friendly nod. Most of the other inhabitants of the room stared at them curiously. “Stanislav and Yuri. They’re passing through on their way to Virginia.”
“Time for a changing of the guard?”
Seth liked to move immortals around every so often to keep them from getting bored. New environments tended to revitalize them, particularly if the immortals found themselves out of their element or comfort zone.
But Darnell shook his head. “Beefing up the numbers. Whatever the hell is going down here is beginning to spill over into neighboring states. O’Kearney left for Tennessee half an hour ago. Apparently the vampire gathering taking place now is a hell of a lot larger than the one Bastien instigated.”
Ami frowned. “How is that possible?”
“We can’t be absolutely certain yet,” Darnell said, “but when Bastien plotted his revenge, he only recruited vampires who had already been turned. We think whoever the ringleader is this time has ordered his followers to turn humans at will.”
Marcus swore.
Darnell nodded, his handsome face somber. “The missing person reports are piling up. And it’s the only way we’ve been able to explain how their numbers have remained so high despite the vamps you and Ami took out over a week ago and the vamps you all managed to destroy in last night’s sting.”
“What was the final count on that?” Ami asked.
“Last night? Eighty-three.”
The astonishingly high figure sent chills through her.
Beside her, Marcus stiffened. His hand tightened around hers, his grip almost painful. “What the hell is he doing here?” he growled.
Surprised by the menace that darkened the words, she followed his gaze beyond Darnell’s shoulder and the two Russians to the immortal entering from the hallway.
Upon hearing Marcus’s question, Bastien said, “Fuck you, too.”
A cold breeze ruffled Ami’s hair as the door behind her opened.
Bastien’s gaze drifted to hers. His features softened. “Hello, princess.”
Marcus’s silent disapproval swirled around her like fog.
Ami raised her chin and thrust it out stubbornly. She might still struggle against the weakness that infused her whenever she met strangers, but she was sure as hell strong enough not to let others pick and choose her friends and enemies. Bastien had been nothing but kind to her. She wouldn’t believe the things people said about him without more proof than gossip.
So, she gave him a warm smile. “Hi, Bastien.”
While Marcus stewed beside her, Bastien lowered one eyelid in a delighted wink.
“What the fuck is he doing here?” A gravelly voice demanded behind her.
Ami looked around as Roland and Sarah entered. Roland slammed the door. Holding hands, the couple moved to stand on the other side of Marcus.
Looking back at Bastien, Ami wondered if she was the only one who caught the tightening of his lips and the muscle that leapt in his jaw before he sent Sarah a taunting smile. “Hello, darling. How’s the head?”
Ami winced. The fractured skull Bastien had given Sarah had nearly killed her and was not something anyone should make light of.
Hair and clothing stirred as Roland swept past humans and immortals alike and tackled Bastien, slamming him into the wall. Sheetrock and soundproofing insulation exploded outward in a cloud of dust and black scraps. Splinters flew as a two-by-four cracked.
The humans in the living room raced to the relative safety of the dining room. Yuri and Stanislav observed the immortal pair bent on killing each other with curiosity. Étienne, Lisette, and Richart pretty much ignored them, continuing their conversation.
Ami looked up at Marcus and tugged his hand.
“What?”
“Aren’t you going to stop them?”
“I hadn’t planned on it, no.”
On his other side, Sarah said, “You know Seth won’t like this.”
Marcus caught Darnell’s eye. “Is Seth here?”
“Yes. He and David are downstairs training a couple of youngsters Seth is stationing in South Carolina.”
David and Seth referred to just about any immortal turned in the past century and a half as a youngster.
Marcus sighed heavily. “Fine.” Releasing Ami’s hand, he leaped across the room and inserted himself between Roland and Bastien.
Ami expected Roland to keep pounding away. But spilling his friend’s blood must not have appealed to him. He stopped when Marcus wouldn’t let him shove him out of the way.
Eyes glowing, blood flowing from a split lip, cut cheek, and broken nose (all of which healed as she watched), Roland locked gazes with a bloodied Bastien, who Marcus held at bay with one hand planted in the center of his chest.
“Why are you here?” Roland snarled.
“Haven’t you heard?” Bastien sneered. “I require David’s protection. Some of you immortals want my head on a platter for a little murder and mayhem I committed.”
You immortals. Bastien still didn’t think of himself as one of them. Perhaps he never would.
“For killing the vampire at the network?” Étienne asked. “I find it hard to believe any immortal would object to that.”
Lisette nodded. “I killed seven last night.”
Cautiously, Marcus lowered his arm and moved to stand beside Roland.
“He didn’t just kill a vampire,” Chris Reordon inserted. “He took out several of my men.”
“Humans?” Richart inquired with a frown.
“Yes.”
“I didn’t kill them,” Bastien pointed out dryly. “None were permanently damaged. Didn’t Seth and David patch all the wankers up?”
“The crimes you committed at the network last night aren’t the only reason so many are calling for your execution,” Chris snapped.
“Execution?” Tracy repeated.
“What is the reason?” Sheldon posed.