The male vamp's scent didn't just cling to hers, it commingled with hers. Anna's descendant was converted. Fury swept over him at the new information. He met his own gaze in the mirror above the dresser and the cold steel-colored eyes that stared back at him surprised him. Where had the deep blue color gone? He ran his fingers over his clean-shaven face, noting the harsh lines that surrounded his mouth. He might not have aged but his face had taken on a hard, merciless look.

The phone rang, distracting him. He turned his gaze to the offending sound, and moved to pound the machine to oblivion.

"Rose, it's Helen. I got to the phone too late to answer your call, but I got your message. I don't mind going in early to have your father ready to meet you. Honey, I'm worried about you. You sounded stressed. Well...I guess you're on your way, so I'll see you in half an hour-"

He picked up the phone and spoke to the woman, compelling her. "Give me directions to this place."

The woman gave him directions and agreed to meet him there immediately.

Satisfaction filled him as he hung up the phone. Her name was Rose. He could've tracked her scent down, but he had very little time left before sunrise. Being one step ahead of her gave him an advantage.

Glancing in the mirror once more, he surveyed the ruthless, icy smile that tilted the corners of his lips.

The male vamp's scent might be intertwined with hers, but no male vampire's blood was mixed with Rose's. That meant she wasn't mated yet, and there was no way he'd let her feck up his chance to remain above ground. As long as she was unmated, her need for protection kept him out of the earth, kept him breathing, moving and feasting. The curse might compel him to find her, to keep her safe...but he had his own agenda to fulfill.

Now that he was free of his prison of dirt, he'd take his body to the full extent of his pain tolerance to exact the revenge that had kept him sane for over two hundred years.

Chapter Nine

Rose drove into the Five Star Hotel's parking lot and lowered her forehead to her car's steering wheel. She took deep breaths to calm her shattered nerves. Pulling the keys from the ignition, she slid her shaking hands between her thighs to steady them. Her heart thundered in her ears, loud and clear, but slower than she thought it should be for the panicky way she felt.

Her gut clenched as she glanced at her wide-eyed, troubled expression in the rearview mirror. She had no idea what was happening to her. She just remembered waking up to excruciating pain in her belly and back. Sharp, shooting, unforgiving pain made her scream out and double over in a defensive posture. She'd tried to get out of bed, to call someone, but the horrific shards of pain slicing through her were too much. She clung to the bed, panting through the unrelenting waves.

Her head had pounded in agony. She truly felt as if someone was trying to unscrew it right off her body. It felt so real, so painfully palpable, she'd crawled over to the mirror to see for herself that her head was still attached. With supreme effort, she stood to see her reflection, but when she finally made it upright and confirmed she looked normal despite the pain, a bright light had splintered through her skull, taking her to her knees. She'd gripped the dresser, trying to hold on, but she couldn't. Her fingers pulled away from the wood as she fell over onto her side crying out for Duncan to help her.

And just where had the jerk gone? Then again, if he'd tried to comfort or help her while all that pain had gripped her, he would've been the one with the gouges on his body instead of her dresser. At the very least, Duncan would've thought she was possessed.

What was going on?

Taking a deep breath, she opened the car door and was surprised by the strong smells that assailed her senses. Freshly laid asphalt from the construction work being done across the street, the woman's cologne clinging to the man stumbling out of the casino twenty feet away. She even smelled the alcohol on his breath. Ugh. Her stomach churned.

When she started to stand, her knees buckled and she fell back in her car's seat once more. She felt so damn weak...as if she needed to eat an eight-course meal to give her the strength to get out of her car.

Gritting her teeth in frustration, she forced herself up once more and shut the door. She'd driven to the hotel early on purpose. This way she wouldn't run into anyone she knew while she retrieved her mother's paperwork as well as her passport she'd stuck in the same envelope. She didn't know what was going on with her, but somehow she intuitively knew...it had to do with her mother and she didn't want to have idle chitchat with anyone at the moment.

As soon as she retrieved the paperwork from her room in the hotel, she planned to go see her father. To ask him if he remembered anything about her mother's past. Then she'd book her flight to Ireland. She felt desperate for answers.

When the drunk exiting the hotel started to pass her, he stumbled. Without a thought, she reached out and grabbed him, catching him on the way down. She held him by his shirt, hanging in the air a couple of inches above the hard asphalt. Surprised that this two-hundred-pound man felt as if he weighed nothing more than a napkin, she pulled him to his feet.

"Thanks," he mumbled at the same time she heard him say, Damn, she's fuckable.

Angry at what she realized she'd just heard-his thoughts-she dropped his sleeve.

"Go home to your wife and kids, Dan."

The man's eyes widened and he took several steps back. "How'd you know my name? And that I was married?" Then his gaze narrowed and he snarled, "Are you following me? Did she hire you?"

Rose's stomach growled, rumbling in emptiness. She heard his heart rate increase in fear and anger. Why did she hear his thoughts, know his name or his marital status? And why the hell was the sound of his blood pumping through his veins akin to hearing yummy popcorn popping in one of those machines at the movie theater?

Her stomach rumbled again and she turned to walk away, but the man grabbed her arm.

"Hey, lady, I'm talking to you."

Anger rose within her. Rose grabbed his hand and pulled it off her arm.

The man yelped and fell to his knees, cradling his hand. "You've crushed my hand."

Surprised by his total weenieness, she replied, "I said, go home," then walked up the stairs and entered the hotel.

Okaaaaaaay, that had to be the most bizarre interchange I've ever had. Her stomach growled again, the hollowness sending a wave of nausea through her.

I wish I'd eaten, she thought as she walked through the main hotel lobby. But the smell of the early morning breakfast being prepared in one of the hotel's restaurants almost made her lose what little contents her stomach held.

Ugh, I must've passed the "I'm really hungry" stage and moved into the "If I eat right now, I'll hurl" stage.

Rose had just punched the elevator button to go downstairs to her room, when she heard Michelle's hyper voice call out, "Rose!"

Oh shit. She turned to see Mish running across the lobby's gleaming tile floor to come a sliding halt beside her. "Ohmigod, I just had the best night of my life," she gushed.

Rose met her friend's excited gaze. She couldn't believe it...the scent of sex clung to Mish. And Rose caught two distinct male scents as well. Why could she smell them? Did someone rub Vicks under her nose and activate some dormant heightened sense of smell she never knew she had? Damn, maybe she could apply to be a bomb or cocaine sniffer for the police. What a cakewalk job that'd be.

Shrugging away her rambling thoughts, Rose narrowed her gaze. "Tell me you didn't sleep with both of them."

Mish's cheeks turned red and she glanced around the quiet lobby. Uh-oh, should I lie to her? I never took Rose for a prude.

Rose stiffened at the thoughts that spilled forth from Michelle.

Tossing the ends of her hair over her shoulder, Rose said in a calm, even tone. "I'd prefer the truth..." Even though I wish like hell I couldn't hear your thoughts.

Michelle gave her a mischievous look. "Okay, okay...yes, I slept with both men. I've always wondered," she started to say, then put her hand on Rose's arm and rushed to finish, "But I did make them both wear condoms."

Rose sighed and shook her head, saying in a dry tone, "There's always that. You seem none the worse for wear."

"I'm on top of the world," Mish said, twirling around. Then she faced Rose once more and raised her eyebrows. "You look way too serious for someone who's just sneaking in at four a.m. How'd your evening with Stryker go?"

"Duncan," Rose supplied.

"Oooh, Duncan. What a sexy name. Now spill."

She stepped into the elevator and Michelle followed her in. Rose pushed the button to her floor and replied in a miffed tone, "He didn't stay all night." Shrugging off her annoyance, she continued, "I've got to get my paperwork and head over to see my dad."

"At this hour?" Michelle asked, glancing at her watch.

Rose nodded, stepping off the elevator when it arrived at her floor. "Helen's going to open the doors for me. Dad was always an early riser. He should be awake. I'm hoping to catch a flight to Ireland today if I can."

As she turned to head down the hall to her room, Michelle called after her, "Something about you seems different."

Tell me about it, Rose thought. "I'm fine. I've just got a lot on my mind at the moment."

Duncan's cell phone rang when he was almost to Rose's house. Mark's caller ID displayed on the readout.

Flipping open the phone, Duncan answered, "What is it?"

"Rose's door has been kicked open and I smell a latent scent of another vampire who was recently here."

Duncan's stomach pitched. "Be there in one minute." He closed the cell phone and gunned his car's engine.

Duncan's wheels squealed when he slammed on the brakes and halted behind Mark's truck.

Mark poked his head outside Rose's front door as Duncan approached with purposeful strides. "She's not here. The cop in me made me walk in-"

"For Rose's safety we'll ignore the rule," Duncan interrupted him in a curt tone.

"Well," Mark started to speak, then hesitated.

When he paused, Duncan automatically jumped into his mind, seeking answers the younger vamp held back.

God, what he must've done to her.

Rage and fear radiated through Duncan, squeezing his heart. He growled low in his throat and shoved past Mark. Inhaling deeply, he followed his senses, tracking the path the other vamp had taken. It led him right to Rose's bedroom. With each step he took, dread filled him.

Stepping inside Rose's bedroom, he took in the sight of her ripped sheets and gouged dresser top. Visions of his dream came slamming back. She'd been in severe, excruciating pain.

Duncan's hands fisted at his sides. With supreme effort, he stayed rooted where he stood when all he wanted to do was tear into anyone near him. He heard Mark fall into step behind him and closed his eyes to calm the beast roaring within him. Taking deep breaths, he concentrated on the mixture of scents in her room.

Separating out his own scent and Mark's, the intruder's scent slammed into him full force. Duncan was surprised at the power behind this vampire, power he'd never encountered when mixing with the other clans. The man's apathy literally hung in the air around Duncan as if taunting him. Clenching his jaw, Duncan opened his eyes.

"What do you smell?" Mark asked quietly.

Duncan turned and narrowed his gaze on his vampri. "I smell a Sythen."

"But James has been captured."

Duncan shook his head. "It's not James."

Duncan walked over and started to touch the deep furrows in the dresser top. Made by small hands. A woman's, not a man's. His hand shook so bad, he had to curl his fingers into a fist to calm his rioting emotions.

When he stared at his own golden gaze in the mirror, knowledge he'd been holding back slammed into his consciousness.

What he'd dreamed, all the pain he'd experienced...it was Rose converting to a vampire-a Sythen. The bastard let her go through the conversion in a conscious state. He'd let her suffer. The sick fuck.

"Did you see this? Your senses are far superior to mine. Might be a place to start," Mark said.

Duncan turned to see Mark holding a pillow from Rose's bed. Hope and dread fought a raging battle within him as he approached.

Grasping the pillow, he stood there, holding it, staring at the drops of blood. His heart had never beat so hard.

"Aren't you going to check it out?" Mark prodded.

Duncan met his anxious gaze then lifted the pillow to taste the drops of blood.

The vamp's flavor, strong and ancient coated his tongue, making him want to puke. But he was too relieved to discover no other blood mixed with Rose's. She might be converted, but she wasn't mated to the vamp. Not yet at least.

The small taste also helped him focus on Rose, seek her out on a subconscious level. She was alive and currently not fearful.

Throwing the pillow down, he turned on his heel, striding from the room.

"Hey, you going to share your thoughts?" Mark asked, following him out of the room. "I can sense the change in your mood."

"She's alive. I've got to find her," Duncan simply stated as he made his way out of Rose's house.

Mark followed him out, shutting the splintered door behind him. "If you want my help, you need to clue me in."

Duncan stopped mid-stride on his way to his car. He turned back to Mark. "Thanks for your help."

Mark stopped walking and a shocked expression crossed his face before he composed himself. "You're welcome. Now tell me what the hell is going on so I can help you find Rose."

Duncan sighed. "I do need your help since I need all my wits about me to track her."

"Lay it on me."

"Call Ian and inform him we've got another rogue Sythen on our hands, a very powerful one. Tell him to talk to Eamon and find out who this vamp is."

Mark frowned. "Hey, if this vamp has Rose and he's as powerful as you think he is, you'll need backup. You shouldn't go after him alone."

Duncan narrowed his gaze. "I believe the Sythen converted Rose but for whatever reason didn't mate with her. At least not yet." Hope filled him. "Maybe she somehow fought him off. I don't know. Finding her is my first priority."

"What is it about this one human woman that is making all the Sythens go bonkers?" Mark asked, shaking his head as he opened his car door.

Without a second thought, Duncan replied, "There's something special about her."

Mark jerked his gaze to his. "That sounded personal and not just an objective observation."

"It's very personal. Call Ian, fill him in and find out what you can," he said before he got in his car.

Rose arrived at the retirement home feeling so sick if she'd had any food in her belly she'd have lost it as soon as she parked her car. As it was, her stomach rolled in hunger, clenching and cramping to be filled. As soon as she met with her father, she'd find something to eat...if the strong smells didn't make her throw up first.