Kiss of Midnight_ A Midnight Breed Novel - Lara Adrian [94]
“Oh, God. You mean that unexplained explosion I heard about on the news?” She looked at Nikolai, whose hard jaw was clamped tight. “I’m very sorry.”
“If not for Conlan throwing himself on that suckhead coward, I wouldn’t be standing here. That’s for damn sure.”
Gabrielle was truly saddened for the loss Lucan and his men had suffered, but a new dread had lodged itself in her chest when she thought of how close her friend had come to the kind of evil Brent had apparently delivered.
What if Kendra was hurt? What if he had done something to her, and she needed help?
“I have to call her.” Gabrielle started digging in her purse for her cell phone. “I have to call Kendra right now and make sure she’s all right.”
Lucan’s hand clamped down around her wrist, firmly yet beseechingly. “I’m sorry, Gabrielle. I can’t let you do that.”
“She’s my friend, Lucan. And I’m sorry, but you can’t stop me.”
Gabrielle flipped open the phone, more resolved than ever to make the call. Before she could dial Kendra’s number, the device flew from her fingers and appeared in Lucan’s hand. He closed it, then slipped the phone into his jacket pocket.
“Gideon,” he said conversationally, even while his steely gaze remained locked on Gabrielle. “Ask Savannah to come and see Gabrielle to more comfortable quarters while we finish here. Get her something to eat.”
“Give it back to me,” Gabrielle said, ignoring the current of surprise that ran through the other men when she challenged Lucan’s attempt to control her. “I need to know that she’s okay, Lucan.”
He came toward her, and for a second she feared what he might do to her as he reached out to touch her face. In front of the others, he stroked her cheek tenderly, possessively. He spoke softly. “Your friend’s well-being is out of your hands. If she’s not yet been bled dry by this Rogue—and believe me, that’s a very real possibility—then he poses no further danger to her now.”
“But what if he did something to her? What if he turned her into one of those Minions?”
Lucan shook his head. “Only the most powerful of our kind can create Minions. That gutter trash who blew himself up in the tunnel was incapable. He was nothing but an expendable pawn.”
Gabrielle moved out of his caress despite the comfort his touch gave her. “What if that’s how he saw Kendra? What if he turned her over to someone who does have more power than him?”
Lucan’s expression was grim, but unwavering. His tone was as gentle as she’d ever heard it, which only made his words harder to accept. “Then you should forget her entirely, because she is already as good as dead.”
CHAPTER
Twenty-one
I hope the tea isn’t too strong. If you’d like a little milk in it, I can get you some from the kitchen.”
Gabrielle smiled, truly warmed by the hospitality of Gideon’s mate. “The tea is perfect, thank you.”
She had been surprised to learn that there were other women in the compound, and felt she’d made an instant friend in the beautiful Savannah. As soon as she’d arrived to fetch Gabrielle on Lucan’s order, Savannah had gone to great lengths to ensure that Gabrielle was comfortable and relaxed.
As relaxed as she could be, at any rate, surrounded by heavily armed vampires in a maximum-security bunker housed several hundred feet below the ground.
Not that she would have guessed that, seated as she was now, across from Savannah at a long, dark cherry table in a tastefully appointed dining room, sipping an exotic, spicy tea from a delicate bone china cup while music played softly in the background.
This chamber, and the spacious residential suite adjoining it, belonged to Gideon and Savannah. From all appearances, they lived as a normal couple within the compound, in comfortable living quarters, surrounded by sumptuous furniture, countless books, and beautiful objets d’art. Everything was of the finest quality and all of it impeccably maintained, no different than one might expect to find in a pricey Back Bay brownstone. If not for the absence of windows, it would have been close to perfect.