Don't Hex and Drive (Stay a Spell #2) - Juliette Cross Page 0,111

as the stairs leading to the upper floors.

“Ruben and I will take the right, you both take the left.”

Sal and Gabriel nodded and took off, then so did Ruben and I, tracing down the hall of the first floor then up to the second and repeating the process. Still, I could smell her presence close. So close. By the time we reached the landing to the fourth floor, I halted in my tracks.

Ruben stopped and marched back to me. “What do you—?” Then he glanced up the stairs, his nostrils flaring. The scent of humans in the building was detectable to him as well now. “Fifth floor.”

We moved as one, tearing up to the fifth floor and tracing directly to an open room. An empty room. No lights or signs of life anywhere. We didn’t need light to see anyway.

“Here.” Ruben crouched on the floor and lifted a blanket, bringing it to his nose.

I met him and did the same. “That’s her. Jennifer.”

A drop of dark blood stained the edge of the blanket. Ruben reached over to the bed and lifted a leather cuff chained to the bed. “For fuck’s sake.”

He’d kept them chained. Fury lashed through my chest at the fear this asshole had instilled in these girls, at him taking what wasn’t rightfully his. Ruben traced out and to the next room. His fuming growl dragged me there, too.

An empty carton of cup-of-soup littered the floor next to an empty water bottle, but what had Ruben’s silver gaze cutting the room with rage was the paint chipped away by someone’s fingernail to write her name: Kara.

“I’m going to beat him bloody once we get him,” promised Ruben. And I didn’t doubt him for one second.

This was Ruben’s territory, his responsibility to protect humans from our kind getting out of hand. Not only was this a sin against these girls, but it was a challenge to his authority. I had no doubt he’d use Blake Bellingrath as an example once we found the fucker.

I swept the room but found nothing, then went to the next where I smelled the remaining scent of Emma. When I scanned the room, nothing but old mattresses on the single beds, I did find a half-empty cup of soda sitting underneath one bed.

I was sniffing its contents when Ruben asked behind me, “What is it?”

“Coke. But something else, too.” I inhaled deeply, trying to dissect the scent. Then it hit me, and I cursed under my breath. I’d come across this smell before in my dealings with low-life motherfuckers around the world. Most vampires didn’t need it. They could use glamour or the paralysis of their bite to subdue their victims, but some still dabbled in man-made drugs.

Ruben took the cup from me and smelled. A glint of silver rolled over his eyes, his jaw clenching as he said, “Rohypnol.”

“That would definitely make his victims go quietly from the places he abducted them.”

Because they’d likely be unconscious. Yet, he was still using it on them during captivity. The women were likely still fighting back. Good.

Gabriel and Sal suddenly appeared in the doorway, slightly winded since they must’ve completed the search of their entire wing then come to meet us.

“He’s moved them,” said Gabriel.

“He’s cautious, I’ll give him that,” I said to Ruben.

“Yeah, enough not to stay in one place too long with the girls. He may not want his customers to know where the girls are after their feeding.”

I couldn’t help the sneer at the thought of these terrified women being hauled around like cattle.

“Let’s head back.” Just the look of this place, thinking of these women in captivity, had my beast clawing to get back to Isadora. I didn’t like her so near here.

We traced back within two minutes. Roland was leaning his back against my car, his gaze vigilant on the streets while he chatted with Isadora, who had her window down.

“No luck?” he asked.

“Some,” said Ruben.

Isadora popped out of the car. “You found where he was keeping them?” Her green eyes rounded with shock.

“Was,” I emphasized. “He’s moved them.” I turned to Ruben, all of us gathered beside my car now. “He likely has several places scouted so he can rotate their locations.”

“I wish it was Saturday. Time to catch this asshole,” Ruben ground out, his eyes stormy blue. “Are you ready, Isadora? Still want to do this?”

My sweet girl looked at each and every one of us hardass vampires, resolve set in the upward tilt of her chin. “Damn right,