Conquer the Darkness Read online

  Feeling like the earth was moving beneath his feet, it took a second for him to realize that the female had pushed open a side door to leave the casino. She paused, glancing over her shoulder as if sensing his fierce gaze. Then, with a faint frown, she was heading out of the building.

  “Damn.”

  Shaking himself out of his stunned inertia, Ulric charged across the casino, thankful that most of the guests were tucked in their beds. Or perhaps they were tucked in someone else’s bed. It was Vegas, after all. The only important thing was that he didn’t have to toss customers out of his path as he stormed across the floor.

  Bursting into the early dawn shadows, he glanced toward the waiting line of taxis that were pulled beneath the wide canopy. He scowled when he didn’t instantly spot his quarry. Where was she? Then he caught a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye.

  Whirling to the side, he watched as she moved to the edge of the sidewalk. His gaze skimmed over her pale, oval face that was framed by long hair that shimmered like crimson fire in the light spilling from the casino. Her features were bold, with a hint of sensuality in the curve of her lips and the smoldering dark eyes.

  Ulric, however, didn’t focus on her undoubted beauty. Instead he allowed her scent to settle deep in his soul.

  Family.

  The word whispered through his mind, stirring ancient memories that’d been locked away for centuries. He grimaced, aching regret clenching his heart as images cascaded through his mind. As if they’d been piled up, just waiting for the opportunity to be released.

  He could see himself as a young pup, running through the open fields as he hunted rabbits. And spending the day dozing in the family cottage with his father standing guard. And being held in his mother’s arms when he was afraid.

  He swallowed the pain, forcing himself to concentrate on the female who was slowly turning to face him. He’d spent years building barriers around his memories; later he would deal with the bleak task of returning the damn things where they belonged. Nothing mattered in this moment but discovering the truth of the woman standing in front of him.

  “Brigette,” he breathed.

  Her eyes widened, her expression stricken as she suddenly recognized him. “Ulric?”

  “I don’t believe it.” His voice sounded harsh in the hush of dawn. “Are you real?”

  She licked her lips. “I could ask you the same question. I thought you were dead.”

  “This is…” Ulric was lost for words, his gaze absorbing the high cheekbones and stubborn line of her jaw. Brigette had been younger than him, but her resemblance to his uncle was unmistakable. “A miracle,” he finally managed to mutter, taking a step forward.

  “No.” She lifted her hand. “Stay back.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  Her eyes darted from side to side. Was she searching for someone?

  “You have to forget that you’ve seen me.”

  Ulric snorted at the ridiculous command. “I’m getting old, but not that old. There’s no way I’m forgetting that a cousin I believed slaughtered for the past five hundred years is alive and standing in my casino.”

  “Your casino?” She pointed toward the nearby building. “This belongs to you?”

  “In part.” He was too stunned to feel the usual pride in the empire he had helped to create. Right now, he was overwhelmed with the sight and smell of this female. “How did you survive?”

  Her hand dropped, her shoulders slumping. “I’m not sure I did.”

  “Come back inside,” he urged, barely keeping himself from reaching to grab her arm. She was clearly skittish. He couldn’t risk scaring her away. “I have a personal suite where we can talk in private.”

  “I can’t.”

  “Are you in trouble? Are you hiding from someone? I can help.”

  She shook her head, backing toward the curb. “Forget me, Ulric.”

  “Like hell. I’ve believed I was alone for centuries. I—”

  “I understand,” she interrupted. “I truly do. But it’s too dangerous.”

  The sound of squealing tires momentarily distracted Ulric as a shiny silver Jaguar entered the circle drive. The car slowed as a side door was shoved open. Ulric instinctively braced himself, preparing for an attack. Instead, Brigette was leaping forward, disappearing into the car before it was squealing away.

  “No,” Ulric snarled in disbelief.

  He stepped off the curb, his gaze locked on the back of the vehicle.

  “Sir.” A uniformed doorman abruptly appeared in front of him. “Do you need me to call security?”

  Ulric turned his head, knowing that his eyes would be smoldering with the golden power of his wolf. “I’ll take care of the situation.”

  Indifferent to the curious stares of the bored taxi drivers, Ulric ran after the Jag. Yeah, he got the irony of a werewolf chasing cars, but right now he didn’t give a damn. Nothing mattered but keeping Brigette in sight.

  They headed south for several blocks, Ulric falling farther and farther behind. When the car suddenly zoomed through a red light, there was a loud, angry blast of a horn and Ulric leaped toward a nearby corner as a whoosh of air washed over him. Shit. He’d almost been flattened by a bus.

  Unnerved by the near miss, he watched as the taillights of the Jag disappeared around a corner. He was never going to catch the car. Did he risk changing into his wolf form? It was still dark enough to hide him from most prying eyes, but there was always the danger of…

  Ulric stiffened, a prickle of awareness intruding into his fierce concentration.

  He was being followed.

  With a low curse, he pivoted on his heel and circled back to the hotel. He would track down Brigette after he’d dealt with his unwelcome shadow.

  Avoiding the front lobby, Ulric headed toward the entrance just beyond the large dumpsters. It was an area he tried to avoid. His sensitive nose and rotting trash didn’t mix. Halting in front of the heavy door that led to the storage room next to the kitchen, he abruptly spun on his heel to confront the female he’d sensed stalking him.

  Rainn.

  The rare zephyr sprite had appeared out of the desert twenty years ago and quickly earned Chiron’s trust. Now she was second only to Ulric among the Dreamscape employees.

  He scowled down at her.

  Standing next to him, she appeared shockingly fragile with her slender curves and delicate features. Her hair was cut in a straight line at her shoulders and was as dark and glossy as polished ebony. Her wide eyes were pale, like a spring mist. Her skin was soft and dewy and her lips a lush, bow-shaped invitation.

  Tonight, she had exchanged her usual business attire for a pair of black jeans and a black sweater that clung to her with growl-worthy results.

  All in all, a tiny bundle of temptation with an inner core of pure steel.

  A dangerous combination.

  His scowl deepened. “Why the hell are you following me?”

  Chapter 2

  Rainn stood her ground despite the fact that Ulric’s power was vibrating around her with a tangible warning. The Were might be a beast at heart, but he had full control over his animal. He wouldn’t strike until he was sure she was a danger.

  Which meant that the quicker she proved she was no threat, the less likely he would rip her open with his massive claws.

  “I saw you take off from the hotel and I thought something must be wrong,” she hurriedly assured him.

  He narrowed his smoldering gaze. Did he sense she was lying?

  “I don’t need a babysitter.”

  Her lips twitched. Truer words had never been spoken.

  “Let’s go inside.” She nodded toward the nearby door. “I want to talk to you.”

  “I’m busy now.”

  She watched as his gaze moved over her shoulder. He was already becoming distra
cted.

  “With the red-haired Were?” she bluntly demanded.

  He jerked. Ah. That caught his attention.

  “This is none of your business,” he snapped.

  “It is if you’re planning to do something stupid.”

  He made a choked sound, looking genuinely offended. “When have I ever done anything stupid?”

  She held up her hand, ticking off his stupidity on her fingers. “The day you forced one of our customers to strip off his clothes and leave the casino naked.”

  “He wasn’t a customer,” Ulric protested. “He was the manager of a rival hotel who was handing out coupons to his all-you-can-eat buffet.”

  She touched her second finger. “And what about the night you decided to climb to the top of the High Roller and howl loud enough to attract the police?”

  “It was a full moon. It always makes me a little…”

  “Stupid?” she suggested in sweet tones.

  “Giddy,” he corrected, shaking his head as she touched another finger. “Enough.”

  “Hmm.” She lowered her hand. “Tell me about the female.”

  “No.”

  Rainn ignored his sharp refusal. “She’s a Were. Do you know her?”

  He hesitated, clearly torn between wanting to toss her in the nearby dumpster so he could return to chasing his female, and his craving to share what was prompting his strange behavior.

  “She’s my cousin,” he abruptly revealed.

  Rainn’s breath hissed between her teeth. Great. Just great. Her difficult task had just become damned near impossible.

  “I thought your family were all killed by the Anasso who banished Chiron?”

  “So did I.” A vulnerable joy softened his features. “It’s a miracle.”

  Rainn swiftly considered her various options. It didn’t take long.

  She had one.

  “Or a trap,” she warned in blunt tones.

  Ulric sent her an angry glare. “A trap? What are you talking about?”

  “I’ve had my eye on the female for hours.”

  “Why?”

  Rainn headed toward the nearby door. “Follow me.”

  “I don’t have time.”

  “It won’t take long,” she assured him, pulling open the door and stepping inside. She could only hope his curiosity would overcome his urgency to return to his hunt. “You need to see this.”

  “Fine,” he muttered, following her through the maze of narrow corridors that at last led to the security office.

  They entered the office that many people would no doubt find surprisingly small. They had over two thousand cameras spread throughout the casino, and fifty monitors lining the walls, but there were only three staff members keeping watch. Chiron preferred to have his guards on the casino floor, either mingling among the humans undercover as fellow guests or standing at the doors in full uniform.

  “Out,” Rainn commanded as she headed toward the hub of computers that powered the cameras.

  The three guards were all curs, which meant they’d been bitten by a Were and weren’t purebloods like Ulric. Still, they were all over six foot with the muscles of a steroid-addicted wrestler. The fact that they didn’t hesitate to follow her orders was as much a testament to Chiron’s respect for her authority as her own powers.

  It was a knowledge that always warmed her heart, even as she tried to keep in mind that her reason for being in Vegas had nothing to do with earning a place in Chiron’s clan. Even if that clan did include the gorgeous, outrageously sexy Ulric.

  On cue, the male moved close enough to surround her in his luscious heat. Rainn swallowed, doing her best to ignore the scent of his primitive musk.

  “What do you want to show me?” Ulric demanded.

  Rainn squashed her shiver of awareness, concentrating on reversing the security video to the spot where the redheaded Were had made her appearance. Then she pointed toward a nearby monitor.

  “This is your female entering the casino just after midnight,” she said.

  He leaned over her shoulder, his breath brushing her cheek. “Brigette.”

  Rainn hastily moved to the side. She couldn’t think when he was touching her. “What?”

  “Her name is Brigette,” he explained, his gaze glued to the monitor.

  Brigette. Rainn tested the name in her head. She didn’t like it. It sounded…narcissistic.

  “Okay,” was all she said.

  Ulric watched the female on the video as she sashayed through the front doors and made a slow circuit of the gaming rooms.

  “She was alone,” Ulric said, speaking more to himself than Rainn.

  “Yes.”

  “Did she meet anyone here?”

  “No, which was what captured my attention,” Rainn told him.

  He turned his head to study her with a suspicious expression. Could he sense she was lying?

  “Not every beautiful woman comes to Dreamscape to meet a man.” His gaze flicked down her body before returning to her face. “As you should know.”

  Rainn’s breath caught in her throat. Was he calling her beautiful?

  She clenched her hands. She had to focus on convincing Ulric that the female was dangerous.

  “Guests come here to gamble, to drink, or meet with friends,” she said. “Your supposed cousin spends over six hours wandering from one end of the casino to the other. She doesn’t gamble. She doesn’t drink. And she never talks to anyone.”

  “There’s no supposed about it. She’s without a doubt my cousin,” he snapped, returning his attention to the monitor. “Maybe she was waiting for someone.”

  “She was,” Rainn agreed. “You.”

  The air heated as Ulric struggled to maintain his temper. “Explain.”

  “Watch.” Rainn reached out to fast-forward the video to the point where Brigette’s bored expression was suddenly replaced by one of anticipation. “She has been wandering aimlessly until you enter the room. Then she suddenly stops, before she’s crossing the floor to make sure that she’s in your line of sight.”

  Ulric shrugged. “That’s the most direct route to the door.”

  Rainn leashed her surge of annoyance. Ulric believed the female was a long-lost relative. Of course he didn’t want to accept she might be luring him into a trap.

  “Keep watching.” Rainn pointed at the monitor. “She pauses, glancing over her shoulder in an obvious effort to attract your attention, then she lures you out of the casino.”

  Ulric snorted. “Lured me out so she could disappear?”

  Rainn arched her brows. “Are you going to claim you don’t intend to try and track her down?”

  Ulric’s features tightened. “That falls under the none-of-your-business category.”

  He couldn’t be further from the truth. It was very much her business. It was, in fact, the purpose of her life.

  “Did she tell you why she was here?” she pressed.

  “She didn’t have the chance. We only spoke for a couple of seconds.” He paused, his jaw clenching. “I do know she was scared.”

  “Of what?”

  “That’s what I intend to find out.”

  “I knew it.” Rainn gave a resigned shake of her head at the sight of his stubborn expression. “Stupid.”

  * * * *

  Ulric pivoted on his heel, suddenly angry. He didn’t know if it was because Rainn had called him stupid. Or because he knew she was right.

  And in the end, it didn’t matter.

  He’d already made up his mind what he was going to do. Stupid or not.

  Maybe it was suspicious that Brigette had been wandering around the casino. And that she’d left the minute he’d arrived. But there were probably a dozen explanations. She could have been waiting for someone who was late. Or she could have come into the
casino to avoid someone searching for her. Or…

  He released a frustrated growl.

  There was one way to discover the truth.

  Ask Brigette.

  But first he had to find her.

  “I need you to take over my duties for a few days,” he told Rainn as he headed for the door. “I’m not even going to barter over your outrageous demands.” The zephyr sprite had a habit of draining Dreamscape’s coffers dry when she was asked to take on extra duties.

  He didn’t think it was the money. Or not entirely. She had to have a fortune tucked away. It was the game of bartering that she loved.

  She followed him out of the security office. “Where are you going?”

  “Family business.” Ulric paused. Damn, it felt good to say that. Family. He allowed himself a second to savor the thought, then gave a small shake of his head. He was wasting time. “Tell Chiron I’ll call him later.”

  Not waiting for Rainn to continue her argument, Ulric headed toward the stairs at the end of the hallway. Chiron had offered him the penthouse apartment, but Ulric preferred to be close to the casino. Opening the heavy fire door, he jogged up two flights of stairs and used the keypad to enter his corner suite.

  The living room was designed with a sleek simplicity in shades of gray and black. Ulric hated clutter. In his life. In his mind. In his space. These rooms represented his love for precise order.

  Or perhaps a fanatical urge to control everything around him.

  Whatever.

  Closing the door, Ulric crossed the pale gray carpet. He desperately wanted to hop in the shower. He didn’t need his heightened sense of smell to know he was pungent after his sweaty run through the desert. At the moment, however, he had more important matters demanding his attention.

  He took a seat at his desk, which was situated next to the glass wall that offered a view of the pool complex. It was a stunning sight, with the glittering blue water that was surrounded by lush vegetation and small fountains. The idea had been to create the sense of a garden of paradise for the humans. Ulric was surprised to discover he was equally enchanted.