War of Hearts (True Immortality 1)

She studied him a moment, perhaps trying to deduce if he was lying. She wrinkled her nose. “Well, that’s not creepy.”

Ignoring her sarcasm, he gestured to the door. “Let’s go.”

Conall waited, studying her impatiently as she considered him in return. As her soulful eyes wandered over his body, an electric awareness shivered through him, reminding him of the call of the full moon.

Ashforth was right. She was a dangerous creature in more ways than one.

She relaxed her fighting stance, exhaling wearily. “Fine.”

Relieved but still alert, Conall nodded. He’d barely turned a millimeter toward the door when he felt the blast of a forceful wind against his back. A dark blur shot past him but his reflexes were fast and he reached out for what he hoped was the scruff of her neck.

Making purchase, he shoved her against the door and slammed his body into hers.

She gasped, her cheek pressed hard to the door along with the front of her body. With a grunt she pushed against him but Conall leaned his entire weight into her. “How?” she panted, looking up at him in shock.

Conall tightened his grip on her neck and bent his head to her ear. “You may be fast, lass, but I’m faster.”

Her upper lip curled. “I’m not at full strength.”

“Aye, well, I suppose we’ll see how we get on when you are.” He took hold of her wrists and brought them down behind her back.

Thea squirmed, and he tightened his hold, knowing it must be painful, but she never showed it. “Let’s go.”

“You really think I’ll believe you’re the world’s best bloodhound without testing that theory?”

He heard the warning in her voice.

In the name of expedience, he transferred his hold on her to one hand and quickly pulled the syringe out of his back pocket. Just like that, the coppery, blood-like tang of her terror filled his nostrils and Conall forced down a prickle of guilt. He couldn’t imagine she felt guilty about all the people she’d murdered. He didn’t want to use the drug now that he knew it messed with his ability to track her, but she didn’t know that. “Easy way … or hard way?”

“I … I can pay you more than Ashforth.”

“By stealing from people. No thanks.” Conall kept the syringe in one hand while he yanked open the door and quickly grabbed her arm with the other. His huge hand wrapped easily around her small biceps. For a tall woman with generous assets, she felt fragile and small beneath his touch. Most human females did.

But she wasn’t human, he reminded himself, as he yanked her out into the hallway.

“I would think someone who is mercenary enough to hunt a woman he knows nothing about for money wouldn’t care where the money comes from.”

Conall stopped and hauled her close, bending to enunciate the words in her face so she could make no mistake about his determination to finish this job. “Ashforth isn’t paying me. Someone important to me is dying and I hear you’re the cure. I bring you to Ashforth to answer for murdering his wife, and he’ll give me some of your blood.”

If she felt anything about this information, she did a wonderful job of not showing it. Instead, she tilted her chin in defiance. “I’ll give you some of my blood, if you’ll just let me go.”

“No can do.” He shook his head and continued to pull her down the hall with him. “I struck a bargain with this man and my word is my honor.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me, right?” she sneered, trying, and failing, to yank free of his hold.

Conall gritted his teeth and held on tighter. If she kept fighting him, he’d inadvertently hurt her. Stupid lass. “Keep moving.”

She stopped as they entered the stairwell. “Seriously. My life is more important than your goddamn honor.”

“There’s a trail of bodies from the East Coast of the US through mainland Europe that makes the latter questionable.”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Exasperated, wishing he could drug her without causing her pain or him to lose his connection to her, Conall let the growl show in his voice. “Let’s cease talking entirely.”

To his surprise and relief, she did.Thea had spent a good few hours recuperating in the tiny room of the hostel, feeling her strength slowly come back.

Do you know what she didn’t feel?

That internal goddamn warning system that alerted her to danger! Conall was standing right outside her door when she heard him. Not felt him. Heard him!

Her internal warning system was broken.

Or so she thought.

As the bastard hauled her none-too-gently down the rear stairwell of the building, it took Thea a moment to feel the warning because her heart rate was already speeding. But the prickle of heat down her neck and spine, the overwhelming feeling of dread, alerted her.