Dante (Blood Brothers Book 5) (18 page)

There
was too much happening now, but
seeing her in danger had
awakened
the feelings that had been dormant.
The discovery of new love gave him the second wind he needed to fight through several more of the creatures. If Adonis’s plan had been to exhaust them, it was certainly working. He’d never battled such a large group of adversaries at once, but after what seemed like an eternity, it seemed that their foes’ numbers had finally diminished.

“Isis, come with me,” he called to her. They had to search for the children. She raced to his side and looked up at him with eyes that were now dark green ringed with gold. Her tongue hung out as she panted for air, obviously as worn out from the fight as he was. “Are you all right?” He brushed his fingers against the back of her head.

Her ears perked up. “
After this is over I think I’ll sleep for days, but other than that, I’m fine
.”

“You were taking some lumps over there.”

“
So were you. Shit
!” Without warning, she jumped past him and knocked another one of their opponents to the ground. He must have been coming after Dante, but she’d saved him, making short order of dispatching the fiend.

Dante looked around him to ensure he wouldn’t be surprised by another attack. Surveying his surroundings, he was thankful to see his brothers alive and
holding their own.
Giovanni had a rogue by the throat, holding him in the air with one hand while punching him in the face with the other. Romeo held the arm of one foe, while Wolf grasped the other and they yanked them off. Sasha and Maggie
tag-teamed
another
rogue
, while Nico and Marco
prevailed
in their own fights.

He tore through the house, relieved to see most of his comrades were also still alive, despite their having been outnumbered. Both sides were nearly even now, and he knew they wouldn’t have been able to accomplish what should have been an impossible feat without the skill set of each team member working together. The diminished group of rogues gave Dante and Isis the opportunity to properly search the house.

They cautiously made their way through each room, only to be greeted by at least one or two of those red-eyed motherfuckers. As a team, he and Isis killed everything that dared to cross their paths. As their search continued, Dante grew agitated.
There was no sign of the children and he was beginning to believe this was one elaborate set up.
And what was worse, something else was bugging the shit out of him, but he couldn’t
remember
what it was.

When they came to yet another room, a tall, muscular, ebony-skinned vampire with waist-length, dreadlocked hair and glowing red eyes stood in the middle of it as if he’d been waiting for them. But unlike the other rogues who’d immediately attacked them, he laughed. “Isis. It took you long enough to get here,” he greeted with a wide, malicious grin.

Dante recognized Black Adder, the leader of the Serpent Gang, from pictures and a few near encounters. But why would he be waiting for Isis?

Isis snarled at the red-eyed beast, rearing back on her hind legs as if she was about to spring, but Dante forestalled her. He wanted a piece of this rogue himself. He flashed across the room to the Serpent Gang leader with hands clenched into fists. Before Dante could reach him, Black Adder dissipated and reappeared on the other side of the room.

Baring menacing fangs, the rogue tossed his head back and laughed. Dante rushed at him again, but with the same result. This dance of cat and mouse continued for several more moves. Even when Isis tried to catch up with Black Adder, he would already be out of the way. This black magic shit was pissing Dante off, and when he finally got his hands on that bastard, it wouldn’t be pretty.

Black Adder reappeared above them with his back clinging to the ceiling as if he were a spider, forcing Dante and Isis to crane their necks to see him. The rogue laughed again. “Isis, there’s no need to continue the pretense. Tell your boyfriend whose side you’re really on. Everything was arranged after your little trip to Vegas, remember?”

Dante stiffened. Had she been playing him all along?

“
Don’t listen to him, Dante. I don’t know what he’s talking about
,” she projected to his mind.

“Isis, there’s no need to hide your thoughts from me. We’re connected, remember? Forever and always. When you promised to be mine, the link between us was created, never to be broken. I’ll forgive you for what you did on that plane, and”
—
his grin widened
—
“a few hours ago.” Black Adder focused his red gaze on Dante. “Was it good, Grimaldi? She’s always been a wild piece of ass. I can’t fault you for sampling some of that sweet shifter pussy, but
you had to know
you could never possibly handle someone with her
insatiable
appetites.”

The thought that had plagued him earlier returned full force. That comment from the rogue who’d accused her of being a traitor suddenly made sense.

Dante’s heart plummeted within his chest. It was his worst nightmares coming true.
This was a setup and
Isis was a part of the entire conspiracy. Paris had tried to warn him, as had Giovanni. But he’d stubbornly trusted her, believed she could never do him harm, that she had feelings for him. His beliefs had
prove
n
false. It was hap
pening all over again for him—
another Flora situation
—
but this was far worse.

Several emotions warred within him all at once: rage, pain, sadness, disbelief, confusion, and most of all, betrayal. She’d betrayed him. Isis was a liar, who’d led him to believe…

The rage won out. Springing in the air, he reached for the ceiling, managing to catch an off guard Black Adder in a viselike grip. Stunned by the swiftness of his capture,
the other vampire
attempted to
break free
from Dante without success.

“
No! Dante, don’t! Listen to me
!” Isis’s voice filtered into his mind, but he was beyond listening, especially when it came to anything she had to say to him. Her attempt to save her boyfriend further enraged him. He slashed his talons against Black Adder’s face.

His adversary slapped his hands over Dante’s ears. Hard. His ears rang, but he kept his fingers locked around the rogue’s throat. A fist slammed into his stomach and the air whooshed from his lungs, making him loosen his grip. Black Adder followed that move with a punch to the chest, sending Dante flying across the room. By the time he’d lunged to his feet, the Serpent Gang leader was gone.

Breathing raggedly, he focused his attention on Isis, who stood in the center of the room. She’d shifted back to
her human
form. Blood covered her naked frame from head to toe. Dante wasn’t sure whether to take h
er in his arms or choke the hell
out of her.

Her eyes were wide, silently imploring him, but for what he wasn’t sure. One thing he did know: He wasn’t in the mood to listen to any more lies. He’d trusted her. What they’d shared had all been a ploy to lead them to their demise. Not only had she managed to dupe him, but Pack Kyriakis as well. Paris was generally an astute judge of character, but apparently not as good as Dante thought.

He clenched his hands into fists at his sides, willing himself not to kill her right there on the spot. Though he didn’t like battling women, he would take the bitch out if she made one wrong move.

She held her hand out to him, but he gazed at it with all the contempt that welled inside him.

“Dante, I don’t know why he said the things he did, but they weren’t true. I swear. I’d never betray you.”

His nostrils flared, and he barely resisted the urge to call her a liar. Too angry to even speak, he continued to stare directly into
her
deceitful
eyes
. How many times had he looked into them thinking she was the most genuine and open person he’d ever met? When he’d gazed into those eyes, he believed himself invincible, that he could conquer anything and anyone. She had been the reason he saw light again when the dark had threatened to consume him. Yet
,
it had all been a lie. All of it!

This had been a setup from the start, and if Isis was in on it, perhaps Giovanni’s source was too. After all, there was no sign of the children and “the source” had told him they’d be here. With all the rogues they’d battled, Dante suspected Adonis hadn’t counted on them surviving, or maybe he’d wanted them to, but barely. Knowing Adonis’s sadistic streak,
he probably intended to keep the children alive long enough for them to witness the children’s murder.
Everything was finally coming together. Would Adonis be making an appeara
nce soon? Or
,
perhaps
,
Beatrice.

Isis wrapped her arms over her bare breasts. The movement drew Dante’s attention to her
again
. His tongue cleaved to the roof of his mouth and the words wouldn’t come.

“Please say something.” Her eyes glistened with the suspicious sheen of tears. Knowing what a good actress she was, Dante didn’t buy it for a minute.

Remembering his rule not to hit a woman unless he needed to defend himself, he turned on his heel and made his way out of the room, leaving her standing
alone in the room
. He hesitated for the briefest of seconds, hoping deep down that she could offer some kind of explanation, something to show him he’d misconstrued the situation, but her silence spoke volumes.

He flashed out of the room and raced back toward the stairs. His team still fought on valiantly, but the numbers were now on th
eir side. His group now double
and
,
in some cases
,
triple-teamed the remaining rogues.

Grief hit him when he saw two more of his agents along with two shifters among the casualties. Paris would mourn their loss when all was said and done. Seeing Giovanni take on a rogue in a one-on-one situation, he hurried over to offer assistance. Grabbing the creature from behind, he held on tightly while Giovanni smashed his fist through its chest, pulled out the heart, and threw it on the ground before crushing it beneath his heel.

His chest heaving as he attempted to catch his breath, Giovanni inclined his head. “Thank you, Dante.”

“Anytime.”

A troubled expression marred the older vampire’s forehead. “This was a
trap
.”

“No shit.” Dante snorted, trying to push Is
is’s betrayal from his mind.
She was dead to him. As far as he was concerned, she only existed somewhere in a distant dream
—
an unpleasant one. From here on out, he intended to focus on the task at hand
;
finding the true location of the children. “And we should probably get the hell out of here before another gang of rogues appear. Most of us may have survived this wave, but I don’t know if we’d be able to handle another onslaught. Not only that, we’re dealing with black magic the likes of which I’ve never seen. And
,
what the hell did you chant to make those things appear the way you did?”

A slight smile quirked Giovanni’s lips for a brief moment. “Sometimes one must fight fire with fire. Like I said, I’ve had to do many things over the years out of necessity, and one of those was learning the black arts.”

“What happened to your source? I thought it was a reliable one.”

“She is. I would trust her with my life, which leads me to believe something has happened to her.”

It suddenly dawned on Dante who Giovanni’s source was. “Nya? You trusted information given by her? She’s Adonis’s whore.”

“I’ll let that comment slid
e
, Dante, but only this once. And, yes, I’d trust her with my life.”

Dante swept his arms out. “Then what was all this about? Why aren’t the children here like she said they’d be and why were all these creatures stronger than normal rogues?”

Giovanni released a sigh. “This conversation is probably best left for when we get out of here.”

Dante nodded. The sooner they
left
this place, the better. And the sooner he got away from Isis,
the better his heart would be.

Chapter
Fourteen

Numb. The cold fingers of pain and despair wrapped themselves around her heart so tightly she could barely breathe. Falling to her knees, she allowed her blood-matted hair to hang over her face like a curtain of shame. For as long as she lived, Isis would never forget the expression in Dante’s eyes. If she could have, she would have wiped away the anguish that had briefly flitted across his face
but
had quickly been
fol
lowed by
anger. No, rage. He’d quickly masked the emotions, but she’d seen them nonetheless. And
,
it hurt like a deep cut to her soul.

The most difficult part had not been his look, however. It was how he hadn’t even asked her if any of it was true.
He had looked
right through her as if she wasn’t in the room.
Dante
hadn’t bothered to demand an answer. It made her
doubt that he actually had feelings for her
after being so certain
.
Isis couldn’t bring herself to be
angry wi
th him for not fighting for her
.
She’d brought it all on herself for not telling him about her association with the Serpent Gang when she had the chance. Now
,
it was too late.

She hadn’t laid
eyes on Black Adder in years, however
,
he wasn’t surprised to see her. In fact,
from the way it appeared, he had expected
her.
Isis didn’t understand why he had lied about meeting her recently.
He’d always been possessive of her, but when she’d run off after witnessing that ritual he’d been involved in, he had never sought her out. She’d taken that as a sign that he’d moved on.
Apparently
,
that wasn’t the case.

Hastily wiping away a tear,
Isis
wobbled to her feet.
She needed to get to the extra clothing she’d hid not too far from this building
. In her haste to shift,
she’d
ripped
her outfit to rags
. For the first time since Dante had left her alone in the room something struck her. The silence. There was absolutely no sound to be heard. The noise of battle was gone. She must have been in here longer than she realized.

Despite seeing no one around her,
Isis couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t alone. The hairs on the back of her neck rose, and she had the distinct impression of being watched. Whirling around, she surveyed every nook and cranny of the room, but saw nothing. She shifted her hands to claws, preparing to defend herself as she remembered how the invisible foes had come out of nowhere.

When a chuckle
assaulted
her ears, Isis straightened to her full height, alert now that her suspicions were confirmed.

“You’re just as beaut
iful as I remember, Isis.” The deep
, velvety
voice that used to make her quiver with lust
now filled her with disgust.

Bile rose in her throat but she forced it back down. She bared her extended canines
and glared in the direction of the voice
. “Show yourself. That’s the least you can do, considering the stunt you pulled.” For all she knew, Black Adder intended to kill her. But
,
she wouldn’t let him take her down without a fight.

In a mist of smoke, Black Adder materialized. “As you wish, beautiful.” His coal black gaze skimmed over her in a slow perusal.
His smile was malevolent
. “Mmm, even when you look a mess, you’re still gorgeous.”

“Fuck you! Why did you tell Dante I was in on this?”

He raised one broad shoulder in a shrug. “Why not?”

Fury
seared throughout her body
, propelling her feet forward. She caught him with a vicious swipe of her fist. The move obviously caught him by surprise, because he crashed into the wall.
Black Adder
was instantly on his feet again, his eyes red and fangs bared. “Cunt!” He rushed at her, but she dodged the fist thrown in her direction.

Claws out and ready to take him on, she planted her feet on the floor, but instead of attacking again as she anticipated, the red glow left his eyes and
he smiled. “Come on and fight,” Isis taunted. “
This is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

Black Adder moved his head from side to side, cracking his neck. “Among other things, but I thought you deserved to suffer a little before I kill you.”

She sneered
. “You always were a sadistic bastard.”

“And
,
you were always a power whore. I see you’re up to your old tricks
—
latching on to the alpha in the group. What’s the matter? Did you try your wiles on the Kyriakis Alpha and he turned
you down? Did he see past your tight little pussy and ass? I guess one fuck was enough for him.”

“Shut up,” she hissed between gritted teeth. “You couldn’t be further from the truth. I have no more interest in him than he has in me. And whatever you may think, it wasn’t completely about the power. When I was with you
,
it was because my feelings were genuine.”

He raised one sinister brow. “Oh? So you didn’t cast my friend aside for me
or did I imagine it?
You know what y
ou are? You’re a leech, Isis—
too weak to stand on your own. And Grimaldi finally recognized it. I’m surprised you managed to snag him. Beautiful though you may be, I always thought he was a bit more astute than to fall for
someone like you
.”

The more he spoke, the angrier she became. She clenched her fists, digging her nails into her palms until they bled.
The
first punch
she
had
landed had
been a lucky shot. The next one wouldn’t be so easily accomplished.
Isis forced herself to make no sudden moves, deciding
the
way to handle the situation was to allow
him come to her and then counterattack.
To even have a chance at getting out of here alive,
she’d have to keep a cool head no matter what he said to
provoke
her.
Black Adder was the type to play mind games with his prey before he went in for the kill.

She raised her chin in defiance. “What’s the matter? Jealous I found someone much better than you? In and out of bed?”

He snarled, clenching his fists at his sides
. “You always were a bitch. That’s why I liked you so much, but you’ve become soft over the years. All that gushy love stuff never would have occurred to you years ago,
but
you’ve been dying to tell Grimaldi how you feel. You disappoint me, Isis.”

She stiffened.
He seemed to know
way
more about what was going on with her than he should have.
“What would you know about what I’ve told Dante?”

His smile
d
to reveal
his fangs
. “
I think it would surprise you how much I know. For instance, I know you’ve been struggling with this so called secret of yours these past few days. You believe yourself to be in love with Grimaldi and you think he might feel the same for you. But you’re too scared if he knew about your past, he’d drop you. Oops. Too late for that, I suppose.” His laugher was cruel and gut-wrenching.

A chill ran down her spin. It was one thing if he was having her followed but somehow he’d managed to get inside her head and violate her by stealing her thoughts. His taunts had hit home in more ways than she would ever let him
know
. The man was a sadistic devil whom she wished she’d never gotten involved with.
“
How do you know these things?
”

“Did you think I’d let you walk away from me without any repercussions, bitch? I told you, we’re connected. I can read your every thought and have known all your moves since you thought you’d seen the last of me. By the way, why do you think you and your friends weren’t killed when you went to Sidewinder’s Vegas compound? You thought you were being so brave by going in there with a group of my gang, but it was on my orders they didn’t touch you…or Grimaldi and Kyriakis as they rummaged through the house.”

Isis gasped in horror. Dante was right. She had led them to danger, albeit unwittingly. “How?”

Black Adder rolled his eyes. “You still don’t get it, do you? My alliance with Adonis has given me power beyond what the likes of one such as you could understand. It’s also given me the ability to link to your thoughts without
your knowledge
. I’ve been waiting for the proper opportunity to pay you back, bitch. No one fucking walks away from me until I say they can.”

“How long have you been watching me?”

He sighed impatiently. “Not much has changed, I see. You still don’t listen. I haven’t followed you. I’ve had no need to. I said I’ve linked myself to your thoughts and when I choose to, I can tell what you’re thinking and what you’re feeling. I’ve been doing it off and on for
a
couple
years, but things have gotten pretty interesting within the last few months. Mmm, mmm, mmm, but those were some interesting nights you’ve
spent lately
.”

Casting aside her resolve to wait for his attack, Isis
charged at him again, but this time he was ready for her. He sidestepped her grasping hands and caught a handful of her hair. Black Adder smacked her across the face and then backhanded her, making Isis’s head reel. When she tried to hit him, he caught her fist in his and squeezed until her bones shattered, but even if it did hurt like a son of a bitch, she wouldn’t give him the satisfact
ion of hearing her scream. A wave of fire
shot to her shoulder, and spread through her entire body. The pain was incredible, but she continued in her attempt to break free.

The harder she fought, the stronger his grip became. If
she got opportunity, Isis
could shift to get the added strength she needed and to speed along the healing process.

While he still held her crushed hand in his grip, he grabbed her by the throat and squeezed, cutting off her air supply. He was so strong Isis could barely move, and she grew woozy.

“Now listen, you whore. Did you fucking think you could leave me, try to ruin our plans, and expect to get away with it? This was the night the Grimaldis were supposed to meet defeat and you helped them!”

“
What are you talking about
?” she got out telepathically.

“You and your fucking boyfriend ruined everything, bitch!” He released her throat long enough to backhand her again.

Blood gushed from her nose and now split lip. A red haze covered her eyes as dizziness took over and she fought to remain conscious. There was no way she’d let this fight end like this. “You’re crazy.”

“At one point
,
I was crazy for you. So crazy, I thought maybe I’d give you another chance, which is why I maintained a link with you.”

Isis hoped the look she conveyed held every
single ounce of contempt she felt for him. Injecting every bit of venom she could muster into her voice, she said, “That’s called stalking, you psycho. If I disappeared from your life and made no effort to contact you, it should have been a sign I wanted nothing further to do with you.”

Black Adder slapped her hard again, and Isis’s head snapped back. His eyes now glowed the eerie blood
-
red she’d come to associate with rogues touched by black magic. “Isn’t it ironic that just when I was about to seek you out again
,
you start snooping around my hangouts? So
,
I kept this mind link with you. And lo and behold, here you are.”

Isis
moistened her blood-caked lips. He was way too powerful for her to take out herself. Her only chance of
survival at this point was to keep Black Adder talking and catch him off guard. There seemed to be one thing that hadn’t changed about him, and that was his love of bragging about every single thing he felt he’d accomplished. “You couldn’t ha
ve known all my thoughts, B.A.”

The rogue
snorted
. “No. The power granted me wasn’t strong enough to keep the link permanent, so I used it sparingly. It was enough. I knew your thoughts would lead you here; all you had to do was take the bait we’d set for you.”

“What bait? What are you talking about?”

“Apparently
,
I’m not the only one who’s had to deal with a traitorous bitch.
He knew
his lover
would warn the Grimaldis
, and he used that to his advantage
.
I learned through you that Giovanni had fallen for the intel. You played right into our hands
.”

It was on the tip of her tongue to point out that his plan hadn’t worked out quite as well as he’d thought since the Grimaldis had survived this melee, but she wisely kept that tidbit to herself. She needed to save all her energy for healing and
escaping.