“Release me.” Her breath caught as his hand groped along her belted waist.
“Any more knives? Do I need to frisk you?”
“Let me go!”
“I will. Eventually.” His chin grazed the top of her head. “I haven’t decided yet what to do with you.”
She swallowed hard. There was no way she could overpower this man. And even if she did, where could she go? The only way out of this cave was the stream. And death.
His cheek slid along her hair till she felt his breath, hot against her ear. Hot? Shouldn’t a vampire be cold? His whiskered jaw scraped across her cheek. She tilted her head away from him, but that only served to give him better access to her throat. He buried his nose in the crook of her neck, and she shuddered.
“You have the scent of a shifter.” With his right hand, he took hold of her jaw and turned her face toward him. “And the golden eyes of a tiger.”
Her gaze met his, and for a few seconds she forgot to breathe. His stare was bold and fierce, as if he was trying to look into her soul. His eyes were not solid brown, as she’d thought, but hazel, with shards of gold and green shimmering among the brown.
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?”