Page 81 of The Vampire Kingpin
“He must’ve taken her out of here in the shadows,” said Zaq.
I rasped a curse and took off, hoping to catch them when he dropped back out of the shadows. Renata went with me, and Zaq called, “I’ll grab security and meet you in front of the building.”
I raised a hand in acknowledgment and picked up the pace. Together, me and Renata raced up the marble steps, through the foyer and outside to the nondescript industrial zone above the ballroom.
The only trace of Lark was a single, purply red stiletto teetering on the curb. My heart dropped into my fancy leather shoes.
I snatched up the stiletto. “Any word from Velma?”
Renata shook her head, her full lips pressed into a tight line.
Zaq and a couple of guys in tuxes burst out of the building. Instead of security, he’d brought his brothers. The three might be dhampirs, but they were stupid-powerful, and along with their father, owned this city. I felt a tinge of hope. If anyone could help me find Lark, they could.
“You see where they went?” Zaq asked.
“No.” I grabbed his arm, uncaring of his older brother Gabriel’s frown. “You have cams, right? You can find her. Please, Zaq.”
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d said ‘please,’ but for Lark, I’d drop to my goddamn knees and beg.
“You can’t track her yourself?” asked his younger brother Rafe.
I shot him a quick, despairing look. Why were we standing here discussing this? But I answered, because I needed his help.
“My phone’s busted and we don’t know where Velma is.”
“She was the backup,” Zaq muttered.
The three brothers exchanged a look.
I released Zaq. “The cams,” I urged. “I’ll try Monster. Maybe he knows something.”
Before I finished the sentence, the silver-haired dhampir dashed out of the building, skidding to a stop when he saw me. “Velma texted. Lark’s on the West Side.”
“Where?” I demanded.
“Tenth Avenue, moving north. Velma’s following them—she was in the shadows, that’s why she couldn’t text before.”
Zaq squeezed my shoulder. “Okay, now we have something. And Velma’s with her. She’ll be safe.”
“Unless Darkman’s crew gets Velma, too,” muttered Rafe.
Zaq elbowed his younger brother. “Not helpful.”
Gabriel had his phone out. “We need video on Tenth Avenue ASAP,” he barked.
Monster glanced at his own screen. “Velma just checked in. They’re heading for the heliport on West 30th.”
My heart leapt. “Tell her we’re on our way, to stall him if she has to. We can’t let him get Lark on a helicopter.”
“Forget the video,” Gabriel said into his phone. “Send a half-dozen soldiers to the West 30th Heliport.”
The heliport was a little over a mile away. I could cover that in under four minutes. I shot off, knowing every second counted, Zaq keeping pace with me.
With every step, I prayed we wouldn’t be too late. That once again, I wouldn’t fail the woman I loved.
Because yeah, I loved Lark. I felt the truth clear to my toes. My heart reached out to hers, the mate bond questing for its match.
One section of the heliport was lit up like it was noon. A shiny brown chopper was warming up on a helipad next to the Hudson, its rotors spinning slowly as the pilot prepared for takeoff. Ten yards away, Darkman had Lark pressed to his front, an arm around her throat, a knife to her chest. She was barefoot, her hair spilling out of that movie-star twist.
