Free Lacey and Lethal by Laurann Dohner Page A

table and dressed.
    “Lethal?”
    He lifted it again, his keen hearing picking up the sound from the phone. “What?”
    “Do we need fresh blood on hand? Did you turn her?”
    “No.” Disgust rose. “She’s not ready for that yet.”
    “Yet?” Chase sounded surprised.
    “You suspected.”
    “I was half joking and fishing for information. Shit. Okay.” Chase suddenly laughed. “Blaron will want to come with. You know that, right? We’re both curious to meet the woman who finally snagged you.” He paused. “We also want to know the details of how you were taken.”
    “I told you she works with a team of humans.” He wouldn’t admit Lacey was the one who took him down. They’d never cease teasing him. It was better to allow his friends to assume he’d faced off against a group of humans. “Just get here.”
    “We’re preparing to roll.”
    Lethal placed the phone down again and returned to the bedroom. It only took moments to retrieve a washcloth and clean away any traces of blood from Lacey’s face and neck. He returned to the stack of clothes, chose a couple of items, and dressed her carefully before gently hoisting her over his shoulder. A sense of urgency filled him to get her out of the apartment. A tinge of danger lurked and he hadn’t survived as long as he had without listening to his instincts.
    He paused outside her bedroom door after flipping off the lights and took the loaded gun she’d left there. He checked the safety, half listening for any sound from outside. The high windows were closed and covered by curtains. He grinned. She’d bluffed about having him sealed below ground, just as he’d suspected.
    An engine passed close before all sound died. He cocked his head.
    “This is it,” an unfamiliar voice stated after a van door slid open. “She put it in her mother’s maiden name.”
    “Fuck,” Lethal growled, quickly locating the stairs out of the apartment. They weren’t his men. The humans Lacey worked with had found them.
    He held Lacey firmly over his shoulder by gripping her behind her thighs. He kept his other hand free to use the gun. He left the phone where it lay—he would go to them.
    Lethal heard more voices and counted four approaching human males. They weren’t very stealthy as they surrounded the building. He glanced around the abandoned auto store—signs on the wall told him what it had once been. He spotted the attic access high up on the right corner and ran toward it. He bent, braced, and leapt. Having Lacey’s added weight wasn’t a concern but he worried when he landed on the rickety metal of the stairs. The sound was loud and he knew the humans heard it as they became silent.
    He didn’t have time to waste. He kicked the door hard, snapping the lock, and rushed up the ten steps. There was one more door he broke through before he breathed fresh air as he glanced around again. More buildings were nearby. He only hesitated for a second while he shoved the gun into the waistband of his pants and adjusted Lacey in the cradle of his arms to cushion her. He ran full speed toward the edge.
    The twenty feet he sailed over wasn’t a great distance but the woman in his arms was frail. Regret was strong that he hadn’t turned her already. He didn’t pause after landing, just kept going, jumping across a few more buildings.
    Gunfire erupted from the street but it only assured him that he’d made a clean getaway. He didn’t want to fight while Lacey was helpless. The humans must have resorted to shooting out the locks to gain entry to the building. He paused a block down, knowing the direction his men would come from. It was only a matter of minutes before he saw the windowless cargo van with the familiar catering logo.
    He glanced around to make certain no humans were in the immediate vicinity before he tucked Lacey’s head against his chest and jumped. Soft grass cushioned his landing and he stepped out into the street so they couldn’t be missed. The driver