Rule Read Free

nod, but lifted her hand. “If you’ll please allow me to call in a supplier before you do.”
    My lids closed slowly though my aggravation. “I am fine. I will see Hunter and then I will feed. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” I turned, trying to keep my posture straight while I made my way to the tunnel. The moment darkness surrounded me, my shoulders caved, but not for long. Movement headed in my direction. Two humans. They were collectors. My knowledge came from Julius’ blood within me. There wasn’t anyone’s history in the underground city that I didn’t know. Their names, ages, even their personality types filtered through and I focused on it long enough for them to pass. My claws were extended, as were my fangs. The demon inside of me went wild and it took every ounce of restraint I had to make it through the door at the end. The moment I broke through, lightheadedness slammed into me. The smell of death was so overwhelming it was sickening.
    Bodies were piled in the corner. The closer I got, the more their identities began to register—suppliers, collectors, four vampires … humans who didn’t belong here. But not Hunter.
    My eyebrows drew in for only a moment before anger flared. Someone was taking humans from the top and bringing them underground. It wasn’t allowed. Not for kills. Kills were meant to stay above. From the looks of things, someone had grown comfortable breaking the rules.
    “Master Delacroix?”
    I turned, eyeing the collector who stood a good distance away.
    “Where’s the human? The one who committed suicide.”
    The tall blond man glanced to the side before his lips parted. “The soldier?”
    “That’s right,” I said, walking closer. “Where’s his body?”
    Confusion masked his features before he glanced to the far left at the furnace. “Sir, we burn them. The human was here, but I only saw him once. I assume he’s already gone.”
    Gone. The word kept crawling under my skin, enraging me past the point of sanity.
    “How often are the bodies burned? Once a day? A week?”
    I could have easily pried into his memories … his knowledge. If I wasn’t feeling so weak, perhaps I would have. Even through death hung heavily in the air, I could smell the collector’s blood, teasing the vampire in me.
    “Usually every other day. Sometimes three can go by before the collector on duty gets around to disposing of the bodies.”
    I nodded, reaching up, tempted to pull at my hair. Nothing was going as I wanted. If I could have seen Hunter, maybe a part of me might have been able to move forward. Now all I felt was more frustrated than ever. And I’d never move past this. At least not anytime soon.
    “Thank you.” I turned to leave, catching something glistening from the opposite side of the room. My steps faltered and I switched my route, heading toward the small reflection on the floor. The closer I got, the sicker I felt. The pure aura warned me back, but I couldn’t stop. I knew what I was looking at. I knew who it belonged to.
    Sitting by the exit of the room lay Hunter’s rosary. Everything in me wanted to lower to pick it up, but I knew better. Normally, I could have touched it, but in my state, the relic would have burned right through my skin like acid. And probably at a faster rate. I turned, waving the collector over who was still staring at me.
    “What is this doing here?” Even as I asked, I took in the barrier that blocked off the tunnel. It had a door in the middle. Anyone could come through or leave from it. Not that I thought Hunter would have been doing much walking. Not in his condition. No human could withstand a gunshot wound to the head. Not even if Tessa’s blood would have still been within him. She hadn’t been that strong. It would have taken… My head shook. It wasn’t worth thinking about. Or perhaps my mind was grasping at straws for some form of closure or revenge. Hunter was dead. Even if by some off the wall chance he’d taken blood from