Blood Dolls Read online

  There weren’t many guests—according to the three vehicles in the lot anyway. I couldn’t be sure if Annie was familiar with me or my ride, but it wouldn’t have surprised me. I stashed the Bronco down the road a ways, near the RV park along the river’s edge. No one would pay much attention to it there, and it would be gone soon enough.

  I strapped on my Glock and my mother’s Browning—just in case everything went to hell in a hurry—before grabbing Mandy’s makeup box and my cell phone. Then I locked up the Bronco and activated my blood vision long enough to make short work of the hike up through the trees.

  Light glowed through the curtains of the last room of the building farthest from the motel office. The rest of the windows were dark, either from the late hour or the abundant vacancy. There was practically zero guesswork. A silhouette of a girl in a dress appeared in front of the lit curtains, and my heart lurched.

  Was it enough? Could this work? God, I needed this to work.

  I hurried across the parking lot and tapped softly at the door. “It’s me,” I whispered, knowing Mandy’s wolfy ears would hear me just fine.

  The door opened, and a slender arm shot out, grabbing the front of my blazer. Mandy wrenched me inside the room and shut the door behind us, flipping the deadbolt as soon as she did. Then her arms were around my waist, squeezing the life out of me.

  “Oh my God, Jenna. This is crazy. I can’t believe we’re doing this.” She pressed her face into my shoulder and took a deep breath. “I’m so sorry I called your human life boring. And I’m sorry you don’t like being a vampire. I wouldn’t like being a bloodsucker either—”

  “It’s okay,” I said, petting the curls in her hair. They looked just the way Scarlett’s had at the barn. I grabbed Mandy’s shoulders and held her away from me to get a look at the rest of her handiwork. “Is that the fanciest dress you could find?” I asked, touching a pink, ruffled sleeve.

  Mandy’s eyes widened with affront. “Dude, it’s a weeknight in Podunk, ‘Merica. I had to wolf it to the nearest 24-hour superstore, wearing my sweats like a fucking Christmas wreath around my neck. Then I had to trot my way back here with plastic sacks hanging from my mouth.” She stuck her tongue out. “Is that fancy enough for you?”

  “Sorry, sorry.” I held up my hands. “I’m just nervous. You look great.”

  “Damn right, I do.” She turned around and snatched a satiny, pink ribbon off the edge of the bed. “Now, let’s put the bow on this gift horse.”

  I accepted the jab with pinched lips and traded her the ribbon for the makeup palette. We had plenty left to do and no idea how much time we were working with.

  I secured the ribbon in her hair as she added blush to her cheeks. The finished result made my skin crawl. When I first encountered Scarlett, I’d thought she and Mandy could be sisters. Now, they could have passed for twins. As long as Annie wasn’t long-lost pals with the baroness, she’d never tell the difference.

  “Why Ruby Lillard?” Mandy asked as I dug through the rest of the supplies I’d had her pick up.

  “It’s one of Scarlett’s aliases. All that detention time in the bat cave records room is finally paying off.” I grabbed the roll of duct tape and fished my cell phone out of my pocket. “Skirt up, buttercup.”

  Mandy groaned. “I haven’t shaved in four days. This is going to suck. I can already tell.” She grabbed the ruffled hem of her dress and scrunched it up to her waist before propping her foot on the edge of the bed.

  “We’ll attach it to the inside of your thigh,” I said, ripping off a long piece of tape. “The cotton shorts go on over, so it will stay hidden if your skirt flips up, and you should be able to power it on whether your hands are tied in the front or back.”

  “That’s, um, awfully close to my...” Mandy wagged her eyebrows. “Make sure you have it on silent mode and not vibrate, mmkay?”

  “Got it.” I moved quickly, all the while stealing glances at the cheap alarm clock on the bedside table. Every little sound sent a bolt of adrenaline through my heart. My chest ached from the relentless panic I couldn’t seem to stave off.

  Mandy picked a wedgie and readjusted her skirt after pulling on the shorts. She wiggled her hips and made an uncomfortable face. “I sure hope you don’t have one of those recalled models that’s prone to overheating. My lady bits are hot enough.”

  “Where’s your phone?” I asked, checking under the bags on the bedspread.

  “Charging in the bathroom,” Mandy said. “There’s only one outlet in here, and it’s powering the lamp and a space heater. The desk lady said something about the propane tank getting low.”

  I headed to the back of the room where a door opened into a tiny space just big enough for a sink, toilet, and a half-sized tub and shower. I found Mandy’s phone on top of the toilet tank, seeing as how the complimentary sliver of bar soap and a stiff, tightly rolled towel claimed the narrow ledge around the sink.

  I tapped the screen and checked to make sure the battery was fully charged before unplugging it. Vanessa knew that Mandy would be camping somewhere around these parts. She might have asked tech to track my sole harem donor’s mobile, too, but I doubted it would raise any alarms until we left the area. By then, Mandy would have powered on my cell, so it wouldn’t matter.

  Since my phone was the one with the biggest, reddest flag attached to it, I’d strapped it to Mandy’s leg. No matter what happened to me, I needed Blood Vice to be there for Mandy—to keep her safe from Annie and, ultimately, from Ursula. That’s where this wild bat chase was leading.

  I needed Roman to be there for Mandy, too. In case Vanessa found me first. I knew he’d have a watchful friendly in the tech room. Or maybe he’d be in there himself. I held Mandy’s phone against my chest, debating if I should turn it on and risk calling him. If everything went to shit—more so than it already had—I didn’t want to regret not hearing his voice one last time.

  “Jenna,” Mandy hissed from the bedroom. “We have company.”

  “Shit.” I flipped off the bathroom light and fumbled with the shower curtain. Annie was more resourceful than I’d expected. The original plan was to watch from the wooded lot across the road, but there was no leaving the room now. “Can you see what kind of vehicle it is?”

  “I think it’s one of those older Cadillacs. A real boat, you know? It’s either gray or silver.” Mandy gasped. “Oh my God. She’s backing it in, right in front of the room. What do I do?”

  “Keep the door locked and turn off the light,” I said. “Make her work for it. If it’s too easy, she’ll get suspicious.”

  “Right. Right. Good idea.”

  I could hear the panic in her breath as she hurried across the room.

  “You’ve got this, Mandy,” I said, trying to encourage and calm her. She’d been through training at the bat cave, too—and a hell of a lot worse than that—but she was still only eighteen. I couldn’t help but feel a pinch of guilt whenever I involved her in anything even remotely dangerous.

  “Jenna?” she said, resolve steadying her voice. “Be careful.”

  “I will. You do the same.”

  Something smashed through the front window, and Mandy screamed. I bit my tongue and pressed my back against the shower wall. Glass crunched under someone’s foot. Then something or someone thumped against the thin wall. Mandy made a strangled noise as the intruder shushed her.

  It killed me to wait and do nothing. That it was part of the plan didn’t make the feat any easier. The Glock dug into my hip, and I felt the weight of the Browning against my ankle. I could have stepped around the corner and ended this right now. God, I wanted to. But I had to think about the endgame.

  Just a little longer, I pleaded with myself, hoping Mandy could hear the promise, too.

  Glass crunched again, and then I heard a trunk lid close. A car door slammed a second later. The vehicle’s engine revved as it sped off.

  I counted to five, waiting to be sure there was enough distance between us that Miller woul
dn’t notice me leaving after her. Then I stumbled out of the shower stall and into the motel room. It was trashed. Glass littered the floor. The mattress lay skewed atop the box spring, and the small space heater had been knocked over.

  “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!” A spitfire of a little old lady appeared outside the broken window. Her wrinkled face bunched angrily as she took in the mess and me in the middle of it. “You’re not the little missy I rented this room to,” she said, shaking an arthritic finger at me. “I already called the po-lice. They’re on their way.”

  She shrank away from me when I stepped through the window. There was a tall, possibly violent woman looming over her in the dead of night. Who could blame her?

  I didn’t flash my badge. There wasn’t time for stories tonight, but I did spare her a curt nod before taking off down the hill toward the Bronco, Mandy’s phone clutched in one hand. I pressed the power button and pulled up the GPS app that allowed us to track one another.

  As soon as Mandy powered on my phone, I’d see exactly where she was. Until then, I could only assume Miller was taking her someplace near Spero Heights. Maybe Springfield. That’s where I’d find Ursula, and the devil only knew who else. I hated to admit it, but I was going to need help.

  Once I reached the Bronco, I punched in Roman’s number and hit the call button.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Mandy?”

  “It’s me,” I said, steering the Bronco up a tight curve leading back to the highway.

  “Jenna.” My name on Roman’s lips made anything sound possible. I took a breath as he continued. “You shouldn’t have called. Vanessa may have a trace running on Mandy’s phone, too.”

  “But you don’t know for certain?” I’d take any shred of hope I could get my hands on. “It doesn’t matter. My phone will show up on the grid soon enough, and I need you to convince Vanessa to send a team after it.”

  “She won’t,” Roman said. “Blood duels are too personal. Besides, she has all agents on standby for when Miller is captured. With the mood Vanessa’s in, I don’t doubt she’ll extract Ursula’s location by any means necessary.”

  I sniffed. “That might be a little difficult, considering Miller’s not in the city and likely won’t be returning tonight.”

  Roman was quiet a moment. “And...she has your phone?”

  “No, Mandy does, but she’s in the trunk of Miller’s new ride. I have eyes on her taillights now.” At least, I hoped those were the Cadillac’s taillights up ahead. I couldn’t risk getting any closer without alarming her.

  “Dare I even ask how you pulled that off?” Roman laughed under his breath. He’d been soft-spoken the entire call.

  “Are you...okay?” My heart flopped uselessly in my chest. As if there were anything I could do to help him if he weren’t. So far, I’d only figured out how to make a bad situation worse.

  “I’ve been ordered to wait in Vanessa’s office,” he confessed. “She’s threatened to withhold my next anointment if I interfere with the blood duel.”

  “She can’t do that—”

  “Yes, she can.” Roman sighed. “At least, by a day or two if she sees fit to discipline me. It is allowed by the rules of House Lilith.” The strain in his voice ripped at my heart.

  “Tell her...” This was hard, but it had to be done. I swallowed and tried again. “Tell her to call off the blood duel, help me bring in Ursula, and I’ll ask the duke for a transfer myself.”

  “Jenna.” He sounded doubtful, but we both knew it was the best offer we could make Vanessa. It was the only offer we could make her.

  “Do it, Roman. Tell her I’ll go to Alaska if you think it will make a difference,” I said.

  “I’ll call you back.” His tone shifted, and I suspected Vanessa had entered the room. He hung up without another word.

  I dropped Mandy’s phone on my lap and looked back up at the road, squinting through the trees for the distant taillights. The phone buzzed a second later. I stole a glance down at it, wondering if Roman was returning my call so soon, but it was the GPS app. Mandy had managed to turn on my phone.

  About damn time.

  She was almost a mile ahead of me. A few minutes later, Miller jumped onto I-44 West. I cringed, even though I’d expected it. We were moving farther away from Blood Vice. Even with flashers, sirens, and doubling the speed limit, backup would be a while.

  Every minute that passed snowballed my doubt and dread. I could end up facing Ursula on my own. And I would, if for nothing more than to go down swinging to save Mandy. I couldn’t ask her to help me set the trap and then just walk away.

  I’d screwed up plenty over the past few days, but there was still a definite line that I’d refused to cross. Tossing Mandy to the wolves—or rather, tossing the wolf to the vampires—was miles beyond that line. Sireless vampling or not, I still had some integrity.

  When Mandy’s phone rang in my lap, I nearly drove off the road.

  “Yes?” I answered without checking the caller ID.

  “You really have a trace on Miller?” Vanessa asked by way of greeting. “This isn’t just some ploy to compel me to call off the blood duel?” Her hatred echoed through the line, but she’d found her professional edge again since we’d parted ways—or rather, since I’d run for my life.

  “Mandy is in the trunk of Miller’s car,” I said. “We convinced her that Mandy’s Scarlett. Where do you think she’ll take her?”

  Vanessa breathed heavily into the phone. She was waiting for me to confirm the deal Roman had relayed before she extended any olive branches.

  “We both want to solve this case.” Hopefully, more than we want to destroy each other, I silently added. “I will beg the duke to be transferred when we’re done. He’ll be feeling extra appreciative, so it should be an easy yes.”

  “No bordering states,” Vanessa said. She wouldn’t make this easy. I knew there would be additional hoops to jump through.

  “Deal.”

  “And you’ll present me with a fresh harem donor as an official apology for your vampling debauchery.”

  That sounded like it had the potential to get awkward, but it was still better than dying in a blood duel. “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Good. I withdraw my challenge then.”

  I blew out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. “Thank you.”

  “I have four units geared up and ready to head out,” Vanessa said. “We’ll meet you at Miller’s destination.”

  “Okay.”

  “And Skye?” she said before I hung up. “Don’t get trigger happy with the duchess. Wait for us.”

  “I will, as long as I can.”

  She ended the call without saying anything more.

  My shoulders loosened a bit, and I rested easier against the driver’s seat of the Bronco. I laughed to myself, giddy at the possibility that I might not die a true death tonight. It was just a tiny likelihood, but it was something to cling to.

  My heart ached at the thought of Roman, but hopefully Vanessa would anoint him after our differences were settled tonight. I couldn’t be distracted by the lacking future waiting beyond that.

  Some part of me wanted to hope there was still a chance for Roman and I, however abstract it was at the moment. Maybe the solution would come to me later, once I’d accomplished the other impossible things on my list.

  I checked the GPS app again to make sure I was still on Miller’s trail yet a comfortable distance away. The shotgun in the back of the Bronco was only loaded with skeet shells. They weren’t made of silver, but they’d still hurt, plenty.

  I would keep my word and wait for Vanessa’s assembled team as long as I could. But I wouldn’t wait forever. I had more important promises to keep.

  * * * * *

  The farther Miller led me away from St. Louis, the more my anxiety returned, tightening my shoulders and creasing my brow. I needed this trip to last long enough for Blood Vice to catch up, but if it went on too long, arrangements would have to be made for
the approaching day.

  There were vamp-friendly bunkers scattered all over the country, but as an ignorant vampling, I didn’t know where the vast majority were located. I didn’t have friends or acquaintances in those communities. Hell, in the few circles I’d managed to briefly stumble into, I was pretty much considered a leper.

  Despite the fact that I’d managed to form a lifeblood bond with my boss’s half-sired donor, I didn’t set out to make waves. I wasn’t evil. I wasn’t actively plotting to destroy anyone—well, okay, besides Scarlett. But did she really count? I didn’t think so, especially now that I’d agreed to transfer out of state and those revenge plans had to be put on hold.

  I’d thought Mandy would be eager to take Scarlett down, as well. But after we’d dismantled the Scarlett Inn, she’d seemed less enthusiastic about finding the baroness. Mandy had embraced her fate and was finding her place in the world. I had more than a decade on her, yet I refused to do the same.

  Perhaps her therapy sessions with Dr. Delph had taught her how to let go of such ugly grudges. I wasn’t sure I could. I’d compromise for now, for Roman’s sake and my own. Alive was better than avenged. Anyway, Mandy seemed to think that Scarlett would lie low for a while now that Raphael was out of the picture. I had nothing but time. I could learn to be patient.

  It was nearing 2:00 A.M. before the blinking dot on the map exited the highway. We were still maybe twenty minutes from Springfield. Miller turned south on a smaller state highway. Her speed dropped a fraction, and the traffic thinned, so I backed off, letting another quarter of a mile stretch between us.

  Mandy’s cell phone lit up in my lap. My eyes darted down, quickly reading the text on the screen.

  20 MILES OUT. WAIT.

  Vanessa was making good time, but maybe not good enough. Her message faded, and the map reappeared on the phone screen. The dot that represented Miller had made another turn.