His heart sank as he entered the kitchen. Sydney was sprawled on the floor, wearing only a robe, which was spread wide open exposing her naked body. Next to her was a pile of ash. Vampire. Blood, he could smell blood, Sydney’s blood. He could hear her heartbeat. She was alive. He knelt down and gently lifted her head and spoke to her softly, “Sydney love, can you hear me?” She didn’t respond. “It’s going to be okay. I’m here now. I will take care of you.” He gently kissed her on the forehead.
Needing to see where and how badly she was injured, he turned her head slightly to inspect her wound. A tiny, cut bled from the back of her skull. Kade thanked God her breathing and heartbeat were steady. Later, she’d have a goose egg and a bad headache, but she’d be okay. Kade held a handkerchief to her head. Dammit. Simone must have sent a vampire to Philadelphia. And his girl had staked him well and dead. But if one vampire was here, more could be on their way. Kade needed the protection of his home and security team to keep her safe.
He had to get her out of here. Kade spoke telepathically to Luca telling him what happened. They needed to collect Sydney, take her to the jet and get to New Orleans, now. Luca ran into the apartment, quickly finding Kade on the kitchen floor next to Sydney. Kade had forgotten her nudity. Glancing up to Luca then back to Sydney’s naked body, he pulled her robe shut and covered her. She was his only. “Luca, grab a blanket and pillow from her bedroom and let’s go. I will carry her down.” Luca did as he was commanded and hurried after Kade to the car.
Kade was overwhelmed with guilt. He knew damn well what Simone was capable of, and he left Sydney alone anyway. She looked peaceful as she slept with her head on his lap. He pulled the blanket up to her neck covering her shoulders. Nothing would happen to her now that she was with him. She’d be spitting tacks when she woke up to find she was in New Orleans, but from now on, she was not getting to call the shots. Those days were over, and she would just need to deal with it. There was no way she was leaving him. She was his, and he would protect her with his life.
Chapter Nine
Sydney stirred and tried opening her eyes. The light was blinding. And she had a killer headache. Where am I? She woke in a warm, soft bed that smelled of lilac. She wondered if she was dreaming. Her head hurt something fierce. Need Advil, now. If she could only get out of bed and look for her pills, she’d be good. Sydney placed her palms flat against the bed and slowly pushed up. She felt soft but strong hands pushing her back down into the bed. Who is here with me?
Kade saw her stir. They still had an hour before they landed. What was she doing? Getting out of bed? She was a walking disaster. He reached over and gently pushed her back into the pillows. “Easy there, Sydney. You’re safe. Just lie down, and I will get you some water. You in pain, love?”
She yawned, “Where am I? Kade? Oh my God. A vampire. My condo.” Sydney was starting to panic as memories flashed into her head. She looked around, struggling to get her bearings. She was talking fast, not letting Kade get a word in edgewise. “Am I...in a plane? How the hell did I get in a plane? Where are we going?” She had traveled enough to recognize the hum of the engines.
Kade smiled. It didn’t take her very long to try to control the situation. That was his girl. “Yes, we’re in my plane, and we’re on our way to my home in New Orleans. Now, come on love, lie back and let me take care of you. You are safe now. The vampire who attacked you...not so much. You took care of him back there. He’s dead.” He smiled at her...that warm, sexy smile that she could not resist.
He wanted to ask details about what happened, but was apprehensive. He didn’t want her to talk if she wasn’t ready. He still wasn’t exactly sure what happened to her, but it was hard to ignore the fingerprint bruise marks that were starting to appear around her neck, she had been strangled. “You have a small cut on the back of your head, but it has stopped bleeding. I iced it, but I can get you some more. Here, take these for your headache.” He handed her pills and a bottle of water and sat down next to her. “Sydney, about what happened at the condo...”
“Considering that I can barely open my eyes, I'll forgive the fact that I'm in a plane heading to New Orleans. Couldn’t you just take me to a hospital or something? You know, that would be a logical course of action, but then again, nothing seems to make sense since I met you.” She was just too tired to fight, but when she regained her strength, Kade had some explaining to do. On the one hand, she would prefer to work the case in Philly, on the off chance more dead girls showed up. On the other hand, if Kade was going after Simone, she wanted to be there. Payback was a bitch...and after her little encounter with the sumo wrestler vamp, she was so up for it.
Sydney was starting to remember pieces of what happened back in her home. It wasn’t her first fight, but she’d be lying if she said it didn’t shake her up a bit. She wasn’t used to battling against vampires, or any other supernaturals, but she was a fighter and that was what counted. She laid her head back, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. She glanced up at Kade. “I was in the shower and heard a noise. He slammed me to the floor, before I had a chance to see who was in my condo. I always keep a spare gun hidden in the bathroom, and a few other places, you know, just in case. A girl can’t be too careful. Anyway, the gun went flying into the kitchen. Before my shower, I’d been going through my weapons...and I was fooling around with a stake and shoved it in the pocket of my robe. But, the gun I had in the bathroom...it didn’t have silver bullets or anything, so I knew it wouldn’t do much good. I played like I was going for the gun. ” She shook her head. Sydney suddenly remembered the vampire saying something about Kade being his Mistress’s mate. Was Kade married? He said they were lovers, but did he marry her? “He said Simone sent him to deal with me since, apparently, I was messing with her mate.” She looked up at him, hoping for a response. Kade must be good at poker, because he remained expressionless as she continued to speak.
“He thought he could play a little before killing me. I don’t even know how he got in...broke into my apartment.” Her voice trailed off. She looked down at the water bottle not wanting to look at him when she said the words. “He...he was going to rape me. I staked him instead.” She fought back tears knowing how close she’d come to being violated, killed. Kade was about to interrupt and tell her it would all be okay, but she held up her hand preventing him from speaking. “Kade, please. Don’t say anything. You warned me. I'm a big girl who makes her own decisions. Rape, violence, it’s not new to me. I mean I’m a cop. Every day this happens...just not to me.”
Kade did not want to show emotion, lest he freak the hell out right in front of Sydney. He was so furious that another vampire dared to lay a hand on her that he wanted to break something, but he knew any further violence would only demonstrate to Sydney what monsters vampires were. Now was not the time. What she needed was comfort. He needed to calm her, soothe her. He decided to save the anger, to harness it for when he obliterated his enemy. Simone, and whoever else was helping her, would pay dearly for hurting Sydney. As incensed as he was, he needed to help her heal, physically, emotionally.