55 Why Would I Harm A Hostage?

It came from the couch, which may as well have been a throne despite its shabby appearance based on the way the vampire was sitting in it. He wore an elegant suit and cravat that had been fashionable centuries ago and swirled blood around in a wine glass before taking a sip.

"Dorian," Flint said faintly. "What are you doing here?"

"I simply wanted to check on the status of my investment. And what do I find? Little Ruby has been missing for over a month yet you did not say a word. Care to explain yourself?"

He ended up tripping over his words in his haste to save himself. "I didn't mean to hide it from you! I just—she's been predictable all these years so I thought I could find her myself. There was no need to bother someone as esteemed as you about this!"

The vampire raised a sleek black eyebrow. "Oh? Then where is she now?"

"…not here. I found her in Las Vegas but she spotted me and managed to escape."

"And here you said she was predictable! Shame on you for not knowing your own niece better. Tell me everything that happened since she ran away and I might let you live," Dorian commanded.

Flint gulped. He really shouldn't be pushing his luck here right now but… "Where are my wife and daughter? I won't tell you anything until I know they're safe."

He actually laughed. "You have more of a backbone than I thought! Rest assured, they are fine. For now. That may change depending on how cooperative you are."

"I'll tell you everything! Just don't hurt them!"

A cruel smile lit Dorian's face as he listened to Flint's story right up until he got to the part about how Ruby was spotted with a vampire in Las Vegas. His expression immediately hardened and his eyes glinted murderously.

"You said that you thought he was a human at first when he waved you away from a particular spot in the redwood forest near here?" he asked in a frigid tone. "Where was that spot exactly?"

Flint was startled by the sudden attitude shift. Did Dorian know that other vampire? "Uh…it was several miles northeast of the nearest freeway exit."

"And how did you know he was a vampire?"

"Well he couldn't be a human if he stayed up all night without even looking tired, could he? I tailed them for days and only ever saw him after dark. Ruby would never go into hiding with a human and in hindsight it was suspicious that a human was alone in the middle of an empty stretch of forest.

"I figured he ended up hiding her for some reason. They seemed really close when I saw them together; almost like they were two humans on a date. But that can't be right because a vampire and a fairy could never—"

Dorian interrupted him with blazing red eyes. "Did you manage to catch a name?"

The coffee table in front of the couch went flying across the room in an instant. Flint didn't even see it happen and turned in horror toward the vampire who was now on his feet with his hands curled upward like claws.

Dorian began cursing in an ancient language he couldn't understand and snapped his fingers. Two other vampires dressed similarly to him appeared out of nowhere, each holding a struggling fairy hostage. Lily and Flora.

Both of them were gagged and had tears running down their faces. Flora was still clutching her teddy bear and blanket in her arms as she kicked at her captor.

"I told you everything I know; let them go!" Flint cried desperately. "You said you wouldn't hurt them!"

That cruel smile crossed the vampire's face again. "I used the word 'may.' I gave you no promises."

"You can't!"

"You will find that I am quite capable of doing anything I set my mind to. Take the little one away," he ordered the fae holding Flora.

She whimpered and reached out for her parents, dropping her bear in the process. Her captor bent down with ease and picked it back up before heading outside.

"Where are you taking her?" Flint shouted, rushing forward to stop them but getting held back by yet another of Dorian's subordinates. No matter how hard he struggled, a fairy was no match for a vampire's strength.

Dorian sighed and straightened his cravat.

"Calm down, you are embarrassing yourself. If Ruby truly is under the protection of Ash Mayhew, worthless as he is, she will be difficult to find. Having a hostage will entice her to cooperate. Why would I harm a hostage?

"I am not an unreasonable fae. She will be perfectly comfortable as long as Ruby does as she is told. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for a couple of double-crossers such as you. Did you truly believe you would be able to get away with stealing my deposit and running?"

Flint knew it was all over for him as soon as he saw the murderous glint in those horrifyingly red eyes. They were the eyes of someone who had killed before and had no qualms about doing it as many times as he deemed necessary.

"This was my idea," he said desperately. "Please leave my wife out of this, I beg of you!"

Dorian shook his head and tsked almost pityingly at him. "I am afraid she has already seen too much. But her death shall be swifter than yours, I can promise you that much."

"Don't—!"

Flint's cry fell on deaf ears. The vampire holding her ripped her throat out with his teeth in one fluid motion. Lily crumpled to the floor in a bloody heap, her wings bent at odd angles. Glamours no longer worked when a fae was dead.

She slowly began crumbling into a pile of soil the way all earth fairies did when they passed from this world. Choked sobs made their way out of his throat but there was nothing he could do. His wife was gone.