at a time, while he hid in the shadows. The last man he’d kept alive long enough to get the information he wanted.
He put on his sunglasses and pulled his hood forward to hide his face.
Zareb paced his living room restlessly. The other vampires stood motionless around the room’s edges, unwilling to come closer to him or Zareb.
“You returned home almost at dawn this morning. Tell me anything you didn’t have time to tell me before the day sleep took you.” Zareb paused in his pacing.
Ethan almost growled. Cassie had been gone for three days. The hell with talking, he wanted to get moving. They’d finally figured out where Garrity had Cassie, and Ethan wanted to be there now. He’d kill every one of the bastards. And if they’d hurt her—he wouldn’t even consider the possibility that she was dead—he’d kill them slowly. No Second One for them. Too easy. The Second One rumbled its thoughts on that.
But Zareb wouldn’t get his ass moving until he got an answer to his question. “The Collector is a scientist and a fucking entrepreneur according to what the guy said last night. I told you about the coffins and the binders. This Collector rewards those who work for him by feeding them small doses of energy from captive vampires. That’s why his men move so fast.”
“And?” Zareb glanced at his watch.
“The Collector created the beasts. He’s a stem cell research genius. The beasts really are made from a bunch of other animals.” He stopped and closed his eyes. This was the hardest part to tell. “He searches particularly for vampires from our bloodline who’re lost to the Second One. I don’t know how the hell he does it, but he uses their brain cells to create the beasts’ brains. They have our intelligence, hunting ability, and the Second One’s mindless lust for killing. The one difference is that the Collector has programmed their brains so that he or his people can control them.” He turned away. “I’m sure he was pissed off that one of his beasts killed Darren and that Garrity didn’t get a chance to harvest his brain.”
The gathered vampires moved restlessly. Their hate, their need to kill battered at Ethan.
“After we take care of Garrity, this Collector is fucking finished.” Death lived in Zareb’s eyes. “Let’s go.”
Ethan was oblivious to the dark streets, to the others in the car. He reached out with his thoughts, searching, searching. Damn it, why couldn’t he sense her? He finally grew aware that the car had stopped. He climbed out and waited while other cars parked nearby.
Zareb had pulled out all the stops. Twenty of his children surrounded him. The four brothers who guarded his home stood a little apart from them.
One of the brothers spoke. “We left her alone, so we’re here to help get her back.”
Zareb nodded. “We’re a mile from the building where we think Garrity is headquartered. He’s grown careless and arrogant. He doesn’t know how many children I have or how powerful we are when united.” He stared into the darkness. “Run, my children. And then kill.”
And so they ran, shadows gliding silently around buildings and through streets. Ethan was the first to reach the abandoned building. The rest spread out around it, looking for other ways in. He wanted to tear the door off with his bare hands, but Zareb moved in front of him.
“You’re too lost to your anger. We don’t need any noise to announce our visit. Let me.” Zareb touched the door and it simply dissolved.
Ethan stepped inside and then froze. He knelt and touched his finger to the floor. Her blood, her scent. He looked back. “She’s here.”
They flowed silently into the building.
Cassie lay in her glass coffin. She could see everything as long as she didn’t have to turn her head. Her mind was alive, a maelstrom of panicked thoughts and emotions. Where was Ethan? Had Garrity caught him? And how could she exist like this—her eyes the only thing she could move—for a lifetime?
No, no, no! Horror broke over her in waves of terror and despair. She was a vampire. She could live for many lifetimes. Like this.
She couldn’t even twitch, but her senses were so sharp they almost hurt. Cassie could hear sounds from outside the coffin—whispers, laughter, and a discussion about when the best time to bury her would be. Her heartbeat raced, and she would’ve screamed if she could make a sound. Her mind spun images of looking up