On the Prowl (Bad Things #2)(9)

Julian didn’t really care about that fellow.

Rose mattered.

He unhooked her seatbelt and carefully pulled her from the car. “I’ve got you.” She was warm in his arms. He could feel the stir of her breath against his neck when he lifted her up, but Rose’s green eyes didn’t open.

With her held tightly against him, Julian walked away from the vehicle. The scent of gasoline was growing stronger. If that SUV ignited, Rose couldn’t be near it. Fire was a surefire way to permanently kill a vampire, and Rose wasn’t going to die on his watch—not ever again. That was a vow he meant to take to the grave with him.

“Love?” He eased her down near the road. The woman who’d been screaming before screeched away from the scene in her sedan as her tires left a trail of burnt rubber in their wake. He brushed back Rose’s hair as he searched for injuries. But…

She just had a few scratches. Nothing too terrible. Nothing that should have made Rose stay unconscious this way. She was a vamp. Vamps were strong. Too strong for this.

“Help…me…” It was the blond bastard, groaning and waking in the SUV.

Julian didn’t look at him. “Rose.” He’d said her name, roughly, demandingly, but his touch was tender as he stroked her cheek. “Wake up.”

She didn’t.

Why the hell not?

Icy tendrils seemed to snake around his heart. Fear. He didn’t usually experience fear. Emotions were for the weak, and he didn’t have time to waste on them. But with Rose, it was different. With Rose, everything was different.

He pulled her into his arms once more, holding her tightly, and he turned toward his motorcycle. He’d get her to safety. She was breathing, there was no sign of deep injury…

Drugged.

He stilled, just a foot away from his motorcycle, as the truth hit him. Her unconsciousness was too deep for there to be any other explanation.

“Don’t…leave me…” The human yelled from the wreckage. “My legs are t-trapped! Get me out!”

Julian stared down at Rose’s face. He walked forward, then he very carefully put her on the ground near his motorcycle. “I’ll be right back.” His hand lingered on her cheek.

“Fucking help me!”

The human was getting on his last nerve.

Julian stalked back toward the wreckage. He leaned into the open passenger side—

“Thank God,” the blond gasped. “Thought you were going to leave me here.”

“I am.” Because he’d just caught sight of the syringe on the floorboard. He bent and scooped it up. Broken and empty. “What did you give her?”

“Get me out! Don’t you smell the gas? Don’t you—”

Julian grabbed the guy’s arm. “You drugged her. Were you part of that team in the alley? Were you there for her all along?” Because the club was an obvious place to hunt for a vampire. With drinks flowing so heavily, with people dancing and getting lost in the moment—a club like that one was practically a dream vampire destination. And a vampire hunter would have known that. You just waited there, didn’t you, hoping that the vamp in the area would come in…

The answer was on the man’s face. “Get me out.” Now he was pleading. “And I’ll tell you everything.”

A siren shrieked in the distance. The woman he’d sent away—she’d probably called the cops. He sighed. Humans. Always asking for more trouble.

“You drugged her.” He didn’t need any other explanation. “That was your mistake.”

Fire ignited near the back of the vehicle, flames shooting up into the air.

The human screamed. “Get me out now!”

“Looks like someone is about to burn.” He smiled. “Like I said, you made a mistake.” Then Julian left the bastard. He went back to Rose, ignoring the man’s screams. She was still out cold, dammit.

The blond roared. “Get me out—and I’ll tell you everything I know!”

Julian stared down at Rose.

Her lashes began to flutter. His lips parted as he crouched before her. “Come on. Come back to me.” He let his claws slide out and he raked his forearm, a deep enough cut that blood trickled to the surface. Then he gave Rose that blood, knowing it would help heal her.

At first, she didn’t drink.

The sirens grew louder. The scent of smoke and the crackle of flames were louder.

“He has a muse! She’s locked up! A muse and an angel!”

Rose’s lips pressed to Julian’s forearm. She began to drink. The icy tendrils finally released his heart.

“He’s got a witch locked up, too! The guy wanted a mermaid, but he didn’t get her. The vampire is next on his list—he wants her because she wasn’t bitten or born, but created from magic. Oh, shit, dammit, the flames are almost on me! Get me out! Get me out!”

Rose’s green eyes were open. She pushed his arm away, frowning. “Julian?”

The human screamed again—this time, the cry was ripe with pain.

“He’s burning.” Julian didn’t move. “Do you want him to live or die?”

Horror flashed on her face. “Live.”

Because she was still a human at heart. She didn’t get that some monsters were better off dead. After the hell she’d been through, he’d thought she would have learned that particular dark truth by now.