Elemental Assassin 01 - Spider's Bite

calling, which meant our prey for the evening had arrived. Damn and double damn Charles Carlyle. Because no matter how much I wanted Donovan Caine, no matter how much he wanted me, tracking the vampire came first. Finding out who his Air elemental boss was came first.
    Avenging Fletcher came first.
    I sighed. “Sorry, detective. Duty calls.”
    “I know,” Donovan said in a husky voice. “I can feel your phone vibrating against my thigh.”
    Our gazes locked. Desire still brightened the detective’s eyes, along with something else—relief. I wondered at the emotion. Relief about what? That he wouldn’t betray his dead partner by fucking me? That his morals would remain intact for another night? Or that he wouldn’t discover how good it would be between us and hunger for more?
    My phone kept vibrating. I slid off the detective’s lap, pulled the cell out of my jeans pocket, and flipped it open.
    “What is it, Finn?”
    “Carlyle just walked in the front door, in case you were wondering,” Finn said in a wry voice. “Or would you rather keep dry humping the good detective?”
    My gaze cut to the front of the club. It took me a few seconds to pick out Charles Carlyle, aka Chuckie C., from the rest of the crowd. But once I did, it was easy enough to track him. The short, stocky vampire sported a black suit with wide, white pinstripes and white wingtips. The black lights spread throughout the club made the stripes and shoes glow a bright fluorescent. Better than GPS. A black fedora covered Carlyle’s bald spot. He also had two other accessories—a girl on either arm. The women sported the heart-and-arrow rune necklace of the club’s workers. Chuckie C. was starting his tab off early.
    Carlyle headed straight for the giant manning the entrance to the private VIP rooms. Carlyle said something to the giant. After a moment, the taller man stepped aside, and Carlyle and the girls entered the hallway.
    “Where are you?” I asked Finn.
    “Back past the VIP entrance in a booth with Roslyn.”
    I spotted the two of them, as close together as Donovan Caine and I had been a minute ago. “Stay there. We’ll come to you.”
    I snapped the phone shut and turned to the detective. “Carlyle’s here. Let’s go.”
     * * * 
    We left the bar and slithered through the crowd until we reached Roslyn and Finn. One of the vampire’s hands was out of sight under the table. Judging from the smile on Finn’s face, Roslyn had been stroking more than his ego. At the sight of the detective and me, the vampire got to her feet and smoothed down her skirt. Roslyn stared at the sequined fruit glittering on my black T-shirt.
    “Cherries. Cute,” she said.
    I grinned.
    “Follow me.” Roslyn headed toward a door in the very back wall of the club.
    Donovan Caine fell in step behind her.
    “Stay out here and keep an eye on things,” I told Finn. “Carlyle might have friends coming to join him.”
    “Not a problem. I’m feeling a bit thirsty anyway.” Finn winked, got to his feet, and wandered off toward the bar.
    I caught up with Roslyn just as the vampire opened a door set into the red velvet that covered the walls. The opening led to a small hallway that stretched out in either direction before branching off at both ends. Roslyn closed the door behind us, lessening the rocking beat of the music.
    “This way,” she said and turned left.
    We followed her down the passageway. A variety of rooms lay on either side of the hall. Offices with computers and printers, private bathrooms for the staff, a break room with vending machines and rows of metal lockers. The business side of the nightclub. The walls back here were covered with black velvet instead of red. It matched the carpet underfoot.
    Roslyn made several more turns, leading us deeper into this rabbit’s warren. Each hallway was slightly narrower than the one before, until the final one we came to was just wide enough for one person to comfortably walk through. This passageway was constructed of dark paneling instead of velvet. A variety of narrow slits lined either side at eye level. Each one had a knob on the side so you could open and close it. Reminded me of something you’d find on the door of an old-fashioned speakeasy.
    Roslyn stopped at the entrance to the hallway and fixed us with a flat stare. “Carlyle’s in the third room on the right. You’ve got thirty minutes before I send one of the bouncers to check on the girls. Be gone by then.”
    I gave her a