Chapter 3

This is such a fucking bad idea.

Hades sat in the back of his town car, glaring out the window. Night was descending on the world outside, grey rainclouds reflecting his mood. Ever since Adrianna had left his office the night before, his body hadn't relaxed for even one damned second…and he feared it would remain that way, until he gave it what it wanted.

Adrianna.

Trembling underneath him.

Screaming his name as she came around his-

He cut that fantasy short as he felt his hands tighten into fists in his lap. His knuckles and fingers actually hurt from constantly clenching, but whenever he was around her, whenever she ran her slim fingers through her luscious curls or whenever she smiled that beautiful smile of hers, clenching his hands was all he could do to stop himself from grabbing her and doing what he so desperately craved to do...

Every time he saw her, it became harder to walk away, harder to pretend he didn't care about her; that he didn't love her. He was doing what he'd set out to do; acted like a complete bastard towards her to make sure she wouldn't miss him when he inevitably disappeared from her life…but it didn't make this situation any easier on him. Seeing her, being in the same room with her, talking to her the way he did…it killed him. She was everything he'd ever wanted, everything he'd dreamt about for millennia and now that she was finally within his reach, he couldn't even hold her. Not if he was expected to walk away from her in the end. If he touched her, if she touched him…he feared he would never be able to let go. Just hearing her voice was already torture enough. So much so that he'd let one of his men call her to let her know he was coming with Gerard. He'd even considered letting one of his men do the drop, but he didn't trust anyone else to handle The Gomorrah Codex, so here he was, en route to Adrianna…for the very last time.

"I really don't want to do this."

Hades ground his teeth, keeping his eyes glued to the window. "I don't care what you want, mister Gerard. You're doing this. Preferably quickly."

"You don't understand. The person that woman wants me to rat on-"

"Detective Salvatore."

"Detective Salvatore," he corrected himself, hearing the venom in Hades' voice. "She's asking me to snitch on someone who has connections, who can take a life without blinking-"

"Well, then there's really only one question you should ask yourself, mister Gerard."

"Which is?"

"Who are you more afraid of? Him-" Hades turned to face him, his eyes stone cold. "-or me?"

He could see the man swallow hard…and the hesitation in his eyes. This Rodchenko-guy had to be quite a piece of work if Frederik actually had to think about which was the lesser of two evils. Adrianna had told him about Rodchenko off course, about the fact that he was a serial killer…but she'd never gone into detail and whenever he'd tried to get her to talk to him about it, she just shook her head and whispered that she didn't want to think about that sadist while she was with him.

"Look, you have nothing to worry about," Hades said as the car made a left turn. "I won't let anything happen to you. And neither will detective Salvatore."

"I want to believe you, but you have no idea who you're dealing with."

"Neither do you," Hades said, his voice calm, threatening.

The man swallowed hard, that fear in his eyes growing. "Please, I'm begging you, don't make me do this."

Hades looked away from his employee's pleading eyes, a new disturbing, human emotion swirling through him. He wasn't sure what it was, but he didn't like it and for some reason, it made a part of him want to turn the car around. The only problem was that he needed that Codex. That book was the closest he'd gotten to finding a way to protect Adrianna…and nothing was more important than her.

"Man up, Gerard," Hades snapped. "Tell her everything you know and when you're done, I'll make you disappear."

"You can do that?"

Hades cocked an annoyed brow. He was well aware of the fact that only a handful of employees knew who he really was-only those who worked closest with him- and that Gerard wasn't one of them, but they all knew he wasn't a man to be trifled with; they all knew he was powerful beyond measure. So, the fact that Gerard even felt the need to ask that question, was yet another sign of irrational fear.

"You just do your part," Hades said. "And I'll make sure Rodchenko never finds you."

Frederik sniffed, shaking his head. "You still don't understand. It's not-"

The car came to a halt in front of the alley he'd appeared in on that very first night on Earth; the alley across from her apartment building. At once, Hades felt his heart thump faster in his chest. It was as if the damned thing knew she was near and raced in anticipation. It didn't know this would be the last time he'd see her; it didn't know this moment was nothing to feel joyous about.

It just beat.

For her.

"Moment of truth, mister Gerard," Hades snarled as the driver opened his door. "Now, get out of the fucking car."


"This is such a bad idea."

"I agree."

Adrianna's eyes flickered to her open Macbook on the fireplace mantle where Maggie was taking up the screen, her arms crossed over her chest.

"You never should've promised him The Gomorrah Codex without discussing it with me first, Anna."

"We're discussing it now," Adrianna said, gathering books and stray pieces of clothing that were scattered around the room.

"First of all, this is not something you discuss over Skype," Maggie said. "And secondly, this is not a discussion, since you've already made the deal."

Adrianna cast her a guilty look as she fished for a bra underneath her couch. "Okay, look, I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about this sooner, but by the time I got home from work last night, it was too late to call you and I was planning on coming by later, but half an hour ago one of his men called me and said he was already on his way, so everything moved much faster than I'd expected-"

"I would've said no," Maggie announced, leaning closer to the screen. "That Codex is too powerful and in the wrong hands-"

"I don't think he's planning on doing anything bad with it," Adrianna said, shrugging. "Don't ask me why, I just have this feeling that he's an okay guy."

"Oh, really?" Maggie sang, a smile pulling at her lips. "And does this feeling happen to come from between your legs?"

Adrianna cocked an eyebrow, shoving all of her clutter in the chest against the back wall. "It's not like that."

"It's not?" Maggie chimed. "Then why are you tidying your apartment?"

"What, I can't clean now?"

"You never do. For anyone."

Adrianna just shot her a smile. "So, as I was saying, Lucian claims he only wants that Codex to protect someone and I believe him-"

"It's Lucian now?"

Adrianna sighed, walking over to the laptop. "Okay, I see the time for a serious conversation with you has passed, so I'm signing off."

"Sure, I understand," Maggie smiled. "You still have to make yourself pretty for Luc-"

Adrianna closed the computer on her friend, doing one more quick inspection of the room. Her parents had hated the run down place and had offered to pay for a more upscale living situation, but Adrianna loved her tiny apartment; the open kitchen, the exposed brick walls, the wooden floors, the giant loft windows that made the space light and airy. She hadn't gotten much furniture-just a couch, a tiny coffee table and a chest to store things in- but other than that, it was empty. She'd always intended to buy a bookcase too, but she'd never gotten to it, so now, her books were piled up in stacks against the walls. And as it turned out, she liked it much better that way. Books didn't belong stuffed in dusty shelves. They needed to breath.

Her eyes flickered to the giant clock that hung in between windows. Only ten minutes until he was going to be there…and her heart started racing, as if it could feel him getting closer…

Confused, Adrianna all but ran passed her kitchen, into the room beside it. Her bed wasn't made, her clothes from the day before laid abandoned on the wooden floor, the book she'd been reading rested on the windowsill above her iron headboard. Her cleaning frenzy obviously hadn't extended to this room, but it's not like he would set foot inside her bedroom.

Unless-

She shook her head, nipping that thought in the butt. She wouldn't go there. Lucian Nox was a source, a means to an end. He could never be more. Time had run out on more. Soon, she would become a vampire, start a new life. Besides, even if she did want anything more, it was pretty obvious that Lucian couldn't stand her. He 'd done nothing but glare and fist his hands the entire time she'd been in his office. That weren't exactly positive signals.

Shrugging off her sweats and jersey, Adrianna grabbed a pair of dark jeans and a red blouse, slipping them on in record time. Her curls were too wild today for any elastic to tame, so she let them hang loose, running her hands over them in a last effort to control them somewhat. To no avail. And then, as the finishing touch, she grabbed the cover stick on her nightstand, trying to get rid of the evidence of her sleepless nights by smoothing the beige makeup on the bags under her ey-

"What the hell are you doing?" she whispered at her reflection in the full length mirror, dropping her hands to her side. "He's coming here with a person of interest, someone you need to question. This isn't a date or anything. Stop beautifying and keep it professiona-"

A knock on the door made the words die on her lips, her heart now racing so fast she could swear she heard it echo through the room.

Pull yourself together, she scolded herself as she slipped on a pair of heels and closed her bedroom door behind her. It's just another interrogation. There's nothing special about-

Her mind shut down when she opened the door…and stared right into those grey, magnificent eyes. Was it just her imagination or did he get more handsome every time she saw him?

"Detective Salvatore," he rumbled, that deep voice making her breath falter.

"Mister Nox," she greeted, taking a step aside so he could enter with Frederik in tow.

When Lucian passed her, she noticed for the first time how tall he actually was. He towered over her-even in heels-and for some reason, that made her skin tingle. She felt so small, vulnerable…and yet safe at the same time.

"Wow, how little do you get paid?" Frederik mumbled.

Adrianna flushed, embarrassed as she closed the door, suddenly feeling very self-conscious about the apartment she'd loved only seconds ago. Seeing Lucian standing in the middle of it-in his expensive suit, wearing his expensive watch-made her feel incredibly inadequate.

"Seriously," Frederik added. "Even my place is bigger and-"

"Gerard-" Lucian growled, cutting his insults off. "-sit down and don't speak until you're spoken to."

Adrianna normally didn't like men coming to her defense; she could take care of herself…but when he stood up for her, she could actually feel her temperature rise.

"Do you have The Gomorrah Codex?" Lucian rumbled as Frederik sank down on her couch.

"No," she said, noticing his eyes turning harder as she ran a hand through her raven curls. "I didn't know you would be coming today. I've been home for maybe an hour-"

"How fast can you get it here?"

Her stomach knotted together at his eagerness to get that Codex, although it shouldn't have. She knew he was only there because she'd promised him something in return. He wasn't there to do her a favor. Why would he? They weren't friends…or anything else. This was a business transaction.

Nothing more, nothing less.

She should remember that.

"Maggie can't leave the store right now and I'm, well, here. But we could go get it after we wrap this up-"

"No," he barked. "I'll stop by the store later. Alone. Just make sure your friend has The Codex ready for me."

He really doesn't want to spend one more second with me after this is over.

"Fine," she snapped, a little offended. "You can do whatever you want."

"No, detective…I really can't."

Adrianna's heart dropped when she noticed that turmoil swirling in his eyes again. Despite her annoyance with him only seconds ago, that strange urge to comfort him kicked in again. Suddenly all she wanted to do was wrap her arms around his neck and-

Lucian's eyes abruptly tore away from hers. "Ask mister Gerard your questions so we can wrap this up."

She huffed, that annoyance coming back with a vengeance. "You know, if we're keeping you from something important, you could just go. I don't need you here."

"I do!" Frederik cut in, distracting Adrianna from the way Lucian's eyes had darkened. "I can't leave this place alone! Not once I've told you! He will know!"

Adrianna felt a twinge of guilt when she noticed Frederik wringing his hand, his eyes anxious. The man was absolutely petrified of Rodchenko…but he was there, ready to help her put an end to him and no matter the reason, that was impressive. No one had ever dared to rat on Rodchenko.

"You know you're signing my death warrant here, right?" Frederik snarled as Adrianna sat down on the coffee table across from him. "The least you can do is let the man who's my only chance of survival stay here!"

"Okay," she said, her voice kind. "He can stay. But you know I could protect you too-"

"No," Frederik whispered, that fear in his brown eyes growing. "You can't. The police can't help me."

"Off course we can. That's why we're here."

He shook his head. "No. There's no protection against him. Please, detective…stop pursuing this case. If you don't, you'll get hurt."

"Are you threatening her?"

Adrianna's eyes snapped back to Lucian when he growled those words, the hairs on her neck standing up. God, what was it about this man? He was clearly an Alpha-male…but she didn't like Alpha-males, right? She'd grown up around a whole pack of them and she'd always sworn she'd never fall for someone so dominant. And yet, here he was, acting all primal…and she didn't hate it…to say the least.

"I'm not threatening her," Frederik sighed, his eyes kind on hers. "I'm warning her. You have no idea what's going-"

There was a loud pop…and Adrianna froze.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she'd registered the sound of glass breaking, the feeling of something wet splashing all over her face…but she couldn't move.

And then, she was on the ground, with Lucian crouched over her, his lips moving. She knew he was talking to her, but it felt like she was under water, his voice too far away to make out the words, her limbs feeling numb. When her eyes touched his, it was as if she was staring into the eyes of a different man. There was nothing cold or hard; nothing angry or annoyed. Only worry, fear…and something else she couldn't put her finger on…but whatever it was, it snapped her out of her shock and brought her back into the present.

The present where a sniper had just shot Frederik Gerard.

The present where a sniper was probably still aiming for them.

For him.

"Adrianna?!" he barked, his hands now cupping her cheek. "Do you hear me?! Are you hurt?!"

She shook her head, hating how-in the middle of this shit storm-she was very aware of the fact that this was the first time he'd touched her…and how much she loved it.

"I'm okay," she said. "You?"

He raised a little…and another bullet forced its way inside her home, digging into the wall by her fireplace…only an inch above Lucian's back.

Her heart thundering, Adrianna clutched his shirt, pulling him down against her body…and then suddenly, this strange calm came over her. Her eyes drifted closed as she felt his warm breath on her neck; as she drew his masculine, smokey scent into her lungs; as she felt his hands trailing up her sides…

Salvatore, stop it! Your life's in danger! His life's in danger! This is not the time or place to finally grow a libido!

"Don't straighten up," she whispered, feeling his hard chest still on top of hers. "Just roll off me and onto the floor."

He immediately did as she'd said, laying down on his back beside her, his eyes glued to the ceiling, his hands fisted so tightly she noticed his knuckles turning white.

Hating how her body actually protested the sudden distance between them, Adrianna reached under her couch, grabbing the gun she had taped under there for emergencies.

"I don't think a semi-automatic will be of any help," Lucian rumbled, his voice raw. "It doesn't have the range to take that sniper out."

"No, it doesn't," she said, releasing the magazine to check the bullets. "But if he realizes he can't get to us from way over there and stops by personally-" she shoved the clip back in, pulling back the slide. "-it'll do."

He looked at her then, a strange look in his charcoal eyes.

"What?" she asked.

"I've never seen this side of you."

"Never?" she frowned. "You do realize we've just met, right?"

His Adam's Apple bouncing, his eyes flickered from her to the shattered window. "We should move. There are too many opportunities for him to shoot us in here."

"I know," Adrianna agreed, cocking the hammer of her weapon. "Cover your eyes."

"What? Why?"

"I have to make it harder for him to see us, throw him off our location for a moment-" she explained, aiming her weapon at her new, expensive ceiling lights. "-and since my light switch is by the door, I have to improvise. Once it's dark, I'll need you to help me push the couch to that door over there-" she said, pointing at her bedroom. "There's only one window in there, easily barricaded. It's the safest place to be right now."

"Okay," he growled.

Looking away from those distracting eyes, she focused back on the task at hand, shooting the lightbulbs one by one, making glass crash down until the room bathed in darkness.

"Ready?" she said, slipping the gun in the waistband of her jeans. "Go!"

In a flash, they both grabbed a side of the couch, scraping it over her wooden floor, using it as cover on their way to her bedroom…ignoring the body that still laid on top of it.

The second they reached her bedroom and ducked inside, Adrianna heard two more bullets breaking the window in her kitchen, digging into her brick wall. Whoever this sniper was…he was good.

"The bed!" she screamed when she shut the door.

Lucian was already on the other side of the room.

Quickly, they grabbed the solid iron bedframe, propping it upright against the window, shielding them from the sniper.

"Alright, now we just have to find something to block the-"

Before she could finish her thought, Lucian was already shoving her dresser in front of the door.

"Good thinking," she said, impressed.

That dresser was an antique.

A heavy antique.

"Do you have a phone?" she asked, realizing she'd stupidly left hers in the living room.

He nodded, pulling out some expensive looking device.

"Thank you," she said, dialing her precinct.

She didn't have to wait long for an answer.

"Eric, it's Adrianna."

"Hey, Salvatore! Missing me already?"

"Eric, listen-"

"Or did you forget something on your desk again? Let me guess, your keys?"

"Eric-"

"When are you going to-"

"Christ, stop talking you idiot!" she yelled, finally shutting him up. "Listen, I know this is going to sound like a prank, but I swear to you, it's not, okay?"

"Okay," he said, his voice hesitant. "What is it?"

She waited a beat and said, "There's a sniper outside of my apartment."

"I'm sorry? There's a what outside of your apartment?"

"You heard me."

"Why is someone trying to shoot you, Salvatore?!" He panicked.

"I'll explain later. But right now, I could really use some help here. I'm pretty sure he's set up on top of the building across from mine. I'm barricaded into my bedroom, but if he decides to stop by-"

She heard a flurry of movement on the other end of the line and realized with relief that Eric had put her on speaker at some point. Every cop in the station had heard what was going on and was preparing to move in.

"We're on our way!" he said. "Stay inside!"

"Stay inside? What do you think I'm going to do? Take a stroll around the-"

He hung up on her, but since he was coming to her rescue, she decided to let it go.

"They're on their way," she said, turning back to Lucian…who was standing with his back against the wall, his eyes running over the room, his hands balled in fists again. For a second, she thought he was scared…but it wasn't fear she saw in his eyes. It was something else…something that looked more like anger, but wasn't…

"Thank you for the phone."

"Will they be long?" he snarled, snatching the device out of her fingers.

"A few minutes."

His jaw set even more.

"Are you okay?" she asked, even though she could clearly tell he wasn't.

"I'll be better once I'm out of this bedroom," he barked. "Away from-"

He cut himself off, but she had a pretty good idea of what he'd been about to say.

"Away from me?"

His eyes narrowed on hers

"You really don't like me, do you?"

He just glared at her, running a hand over his neck…making a little gasp escaped her lips.

"You're hurt!"

He followed her eyes down to the bloodstain in his side, quickly lowering his arm again so his jacket fell back over it. "I'm fine."

She took a step towards him, but as soon as she did, he took one back, snarling, "It's nothing."

"It's not nothing," she huffed. "You're bleeding. Did you get shot?"

"No. A piece of glass cut me when we were moving the couch, that's all. I'm fine."

She sniffed, ducking into the tiny en suite bathroom.

"What are you doing?" he growled after her.

"Getting the first aid-kit."

"There's no need for that! I'm-"

"-fine, yes!" she yelled back. "So you keep saying!"

She could hear him mumble stuff under his breath, but paid no attention as she rummaged through the cabinet underneath her sink.

When she straightened again, first aid-kit in hand, ready to walk back out, she caught her reflection in the mirror…and her feet stopped.

Her face was smeared with blood…Frederik's blood. It must've gotten on her when the bullet had-

She shook her head, pushing back the memory; pushing back the emotions. She couldn't let them out now. She would break if she let them out now and this wasn't the time. She had to hold on a little longer, compartmentalize. Right now, all that mattered was making sure Lucian was okay and getting out of there. She could deal with the rest later.

Grabbing a towel, she held it under a stream of hot water and then ran it over her face and neck, wiping away the worst of the blood.

"Are you alright?"

Adrianna turned to find him standing in the doorway, watching her.

"Yes. I'm-"

"-fine?"

She rolled her eyes. "Just take of your shirt."

He straightened, his body tense. "Excuse me?"

"So I can examine the wound," she explained, feeling herself starting to blush.

"No. I told you-"

"Look, either you take it off or I take it off."

Did I really just suggest undressing him? she thought, feeling her blush deepen. Who are you right now?

"Just do as I say," she groaned. "You know I'm not dropping this."

He mumbled under his breath again, but as he turned and disappeared into the bedroom, she caught a flicker of him shrugging of his jacket, so she figured she'd won the argument.

Throwing the bloody towel into the laundry basket, she grabbed the first aid-kit and followed him into the other room…

…and then forgot how to breath.

Holy cheese on a cracker.

She really, really tried not to stare…but damn. She'd fantasized about what he would look like without a shirt so many times-too many times-and yet, nothing she'd imagined had even come close to the reality. The muscular planes of his chest, the tightness of his abdomen, those contoured pecks that would fit the shallow palm of a girl's hand perfectly. Hers for example.

When she finally managed to tear her gaze away from his body, she found him watching her with dark, clouded eyes.

Busted, she felt that blush crawl into her cheeks again.

"It doesn't look that bad," she said, pretending she'd been eyeing his wound instead of just shamelessly ogling him.

"I told you," he growled, reaching for his shirt again.

"Wait. It should at least be cleaned."

"There's no need."

"It can infect if you don't let me-"

"I'll take the risk."

"Well, I'd rather not, so if you don't mind-"

"I mind."

"Oh for the love of God!" she groaned. "Don't be so stubborn, Lucian!"

His eyes narrowed on hers and she immediately realized why. She'd never addressed him informally before…Or yelled at him.

"Look," she said, calmer. "Please. If just for my own piece of mind, let me disinfect it. That glass probably has gunpowder on it and my floor isn't spotless-"

"You don't say," he growled, looking over the room again…making her blood boil.

"Well, I'm sorry it's not up to your liking, Your Majesty! I didn't exactly think I'd be entertaining in here tonight! If I'd known a sniper would hold us at gunpoint and we'd have to flee into my bedroom, I would've made sure it was spotless for Your Royal Excellence!"

His lips twitched.

Is he laughing at me?

The son of a bitch!

Her anger and pride taking the upper hand, she decided to stop waiting for permission to help him and just go for it…but the second she got close enough to touch him, he held out his hand and snarled, "Just give me the damned thing and I'll do it myself if it's that important to you!"

"The wound is in your side. It would be easier if I-"

He snatched the kit out of her hand before she could finish her sentence.

"Fine!" she huffed, stalking to the other side of the room again as she mumbled, "Ass" under her breath.

As she leaned back against the wall, her arms crossed defensively over her chest, she watched him pull out the alcohol wipes.

"Not so rough!" she shrieked when he started rubbing them over the wound as if he was sandpapering a piece of wood. "You'll hurt yourself!"

"I can handle it!" he barked, throwing the wipe on her floor and simultaneously pulling a bandage out of the box, slapping it onto the cut. "There! Happy?!"

"Overjoyed!"

They fell silent then, both of them seething…and yet, she couldn't seem to force her eyes away from the man; his mesmerizing chest, the five o'clock shadow on his jaw, his big rough hands… It was a real waste that such a beautiful package contained a bastard like him.

"I didn't take you for the jewelry wearing-type," she broke the tense silence, her eyes lingering on the black crystal that hung from a chain around his neck.

He ignored her, grabbing his shirt.

"Is it something magic?" she asked, watching his fingers still on the buttons for a moment. "Crystals usually are."

He slipped on his jacket, his grey eyes still focused on the wall.

"It's pretty."

"Pretty?" he growled.

She smiled smugly. If there was one thing that got a man to talk, it was hurting his pride.

"Is it magic?"

His eyes narrowed on hers. "Why do you keep asking me that?"

"Because you wear expensive suits."

His eyes narrowed even more. "What?"

"You're clearly a levelheaded, successful businessman," she explained. "So, I'm just trying to figure out how someone like you winds up shopping for a Codex, wearing a crystal."

"My great aunt was a gypsy. That's how I know magic exist, alright?" he snapped. "And the crystal is a family heirloom. Now, drop it."

"And the Codex?"

"Is none of your business."

Everything about him in that moment screamed that the topic was off limits…and yet, she couldn't help herself.

"This girl you want to protect-"

"Enough," he cut her off, his eyes spitting fire. "I've asked you nicely to drop it, woman."

She tensed, her eyebrows almost disappearing into her hairline. "Okay, first of all, you think that is asking me nicely? Who raised you? A pack of wolves? And secondly…woman?!"

"All I'm saying, is that curiosity is a dangerous thing…detective," he gnarled. "It killed the cat, remember?"

"Good thing they have nine lives. Call me woman again and we'll find out if you only have the one!"

She could've sworn she saw those amazing lips twitch again, but before she could be sure, he was back to his stoic self.

"And you should probably stop calling me detective, too," she mumbled, her heart aching. "I won't be one much longer."

He frowned. "Why not?"

She leaned back against the wall, shrugging. "My sergeant told me not to go after Rodchenko. His ex-bartender's dead body on my couch might make him suspect I didn't listen."

"So he'll fire you? Just like that?"

"Well, not exactly just like that," she admitted. "There have been a few other occasions when I've done questionable things to get Rodchenko. It's just that I-" She trailed off, shaking her head. She knew that from the outside looking in, it was hard to understand why she was so focused on this one case when people got killed everyday.

"It's just that what?"

A little smile pulled at her lips as this sudden interest in her life. "Who's curious now?"

He sniffed. "Don't flatter yourself. I just want to know who the fucker is that's shooting at us."

Made sense…

"Have you ever heard about The Carver?"

"In passing."

"He was my first case," she whispered, wringing her hands. "Almost two years ago, I was just starting out as a detective. My first call, on my first day was a body drop. A young girl, my age, found in an alley. Now, when I was a beat cop, I'd seen dead bodies before. But none like her. The things he'd done… Do you know why we call him The Carver?"

He shook his head.

"After he rapes his victims with so much force they're destroyed inside, he cuts up their faces, their bodies…and then lets them bleed out. He makes these girls suffer, humiliates them and when he's done, he drops them somewhere like a piece of trash. They have families, friends, lovers…and he just erases them."

She ran her fingers through her hair, frustrated, angry. Monsters like him shouldn't be out there…

"You will catch him, detective."

"Yeah," she whispered, shaking her head. "That's what I've been telling myself for two years and now-" She swallowed hard, the image of Frederik getting shot cutting of her breath.

Don't think about that now.

Compartmentalize.

Feel later.

"I thought Frederik Gerard would be the answer to it all," she continued. "But as it turns out, he'll be the noose around my neck. I'll lose my badge over this and once that happens, it won't matter what I do or what proof I find. Right now, I'm going rogue, yes, but as long as I'm a detective, my sergeant and captain will back me up if I'm successful. They'd spin it, claim that I was working in the shadows with their full support… but if I lose my job, that's that. It's over. Even if I caught him in the act then, nothing I would say would be reliable in a court anymore. All his lawyer would have to do, is point out that I'm a disgraced detective who got fired over her obsession with his client. Rodchenko would walk, double jeopardy would protect him from every standing trail for the murder of these women again and their families would never get closure. He knows that; he knows I know that…and he knows I won't let that happen. If I lose my badge, I'll have to back off…and wait for the next body to drop."

"Unless your colleagues find him on top of that building across the street," Lucian tried. "They wouldn't be able to ignore that."

She shook her head. "I'll bet you everything I own that Rodchenko isn't the sniper. Much too risky. He hired someone to do this and that person is long gone by now. Even if he's not, even if-by some miracle-we find him, he won't flip on Rodchenko. No one will. Not after tonight. Not after Frederik."

A tense silence filled the space between them again.

"Look," she whispered after a few minutes. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry about this. You wouldn't be in this mess without me."

Those hands curled into fists again as his eyes held hers with an intensity that made her knees wobble.

"And you don't have to worry," she added, feeling her mouth go dry under his gaze. "You held up your end of the deal. I'll get you that Codex-"

He flinched as if she'd just slapped him in the face, but before he could react, a loud creak made her pull out her gun, aiming it at the door.

"What is it?" Lucian rumbled.

"The floorboards in the hall are loose," she whispered, cocking the hammer. "They creak like that every time someone walks on them. And someone just did."

They could hear her front door being kicked in then, hurried footsteps heading their way.

"If you come in, I'm putting a bullet between your eyes!"

"I'd rather you didn't!"

Letting out a relieved sigh at the sound of Eric's voice, she lowered her gun.

"You can open the door now!" Eric yelled. "You're in the clear!"

When Lucian moved for the dresser, she said, "You're hurt. I can do it." but he just cocked a brow and moved the dresser away from the door as if it weight nothing.

You're surprised? Did you see his muscles?

When the door opened, it opened on a room filled to the brim with heavily armed cops…cops who all cast her a relieved smile.

"There she is," Eric sang, his smile dropping when Lucian exited her bedroom behind her. "And there he is. Who is he, exactly?"

"Lucian Nox," he answered before she could.

A few of the cops shot her teasing look, but she just rolled her eyes.

"Did you get the gunman?" she asked.

"No," Damian, the newest edition to the force, said. "He was long gone. But there was definitely someone up there."

"Yeah, no shit," she whispered, taking stock of the damage. "I sure as hell didn't do this."

"No," a deep, commanding voice boomed. "You did so much more damage."

Adrianna's heart dropped as her sergeant walked in, her eyes flickering to Eric who shot her an apologetic look. She realized off course that she wouldn't have been able to keep this from her superiors, but she'd rather hoped she wouldn't be humiliated in front of her entire precinct.

"Sarge-"

The grey haired man raised his hand, cutting her off, his brown eyes disappointed and angry on hers. She wasn't sure which of the two she hated most.

"Salvatore-" he barked. "-did I or did I not tell you yesterday morning that you were not to investigate Dimitri Rodchenko any further?!"

"Yes," she said, her eyes dropping from his. "You did, sir."

"And did you not agree to do so? Be it under protest?"

"Yes."

"YES!" he yelled, making the others in the room squirm uncomfortably…except Lucian. She could see him from the corner of her eye, standing by the wall, watching everything unfold with narrow eyes.

"So-" Sergeant Carr continued. "-before I relieve you off your gun and badge, just for the fun of it, explain to me how less than forty hours later your place gets shot up by a sniper and I find Frederik Gerard with a hole in his skull on your fucking couch!"

"Actually-" Lucian rumbled before she could say anything, moving to stand beside her. "-I think I might be able to answer that."

"Lucian," she whispered, shaking her head. "Don't."

"I'm sorry," Carr snarled. "Who are you?"

"I'm Lucian," he said, holding out his hand for him. "Lucian Nox."

They shook hands, but her sergeant wasn't relaxing one bit. "And how are you involved in this mess?"

"He's not," she jumped in, shooting Lucian a confused look. "He doesn't have anything to do with this."

"I do, actually," Lucian said, calmly. "In fact, this is really all my fault."

"What?" Carr frowned, taking the words right out of her mouth.

"What are you doing?" she whispered.

"I own club Cepa a few blocks from here," he continued, cool as a cucumber. "Detective Salvatore came by my club a few weeks ago to inquire about Dimitri Rodchenko. Seeing we're in the same line of business, she'd figured I might have some valuable information about him. Which I didn't-"

"And how does he-" Carr snapped, pointing at Frederik's body. "-fit into all of this?"

"I'm getting to that," Lucian rumbled, a hint of darkness in his voice. "As I was saying, I didn't have any information about him back then, but then mister Gerard starting working for me. I knew he'd worked for Rodchenko in the past and after a quick word with him, I realized he did have some valuable intel on his ex-boss. I called detective Salvatore to ask her if we could meet up, but when she didn't pick up her phone, I took it upon myself to find out where she lived and take Gerard to her. It was disturbingly easy to track her down. Are you aware that your precinct's firewall is a joke?"

"So-" sergeant Carr said, clearly confused. "-you came her with Gerard and detective Salvatore-"

"-told me to leave," he lied. "She informed me that you'd taken her off the case and that she didn't want to do anything to risk her job. She knew losing her badge would only do damage if Rodchenko would ever see the inside of a court and she didn't want to take that chance."

"Is this true, detective?" Carr asked, frowning.

Shellshocked, Adrianna opened her mouth…but no words made it out. What was he doing?

"She doesn't really know what to say," Lucian said, casting her sergeant a fake smile. "When she came to question me weeks ago, she'd promised me that anything I said or did that would help her nail Rodchenko to the wall, would never be linked back to me. That's why she's hesitant to confirm anything I just testified to. She wants to keep her promise …even though confirming it means keeping her job." He emphasized those last words almost unnoticeably… but she'd noticed.

And she understood, too.

She understood what he was doing.

He was helping her; taking the blame so she could keep her badge…and keep going after Rodchenko. After all, a civilian bringing another civilian to a detective because the latter wants to do the right thing, wasn't illegal and it certainly wasn't the detective's fault. So, she understood his reasoning…but not his motives. Why was he helping her? As far as she could tell, he didn't like her…at all.

"Detective," Carr barked again. "Is this true?"

She ran her hands over her jeans, her heart thundering. "Yes. Yes, it's true."

Carr sighed, rubbing his forehead. She could tell he saw right through the bullshit, but as long as they both stuck to their story, there wasn't much he could do. There weren't any other witnesses.

"Okay," Carr snapped. "Just both give your statements to an officer. Separately."

As Adrianna gave her statement to Eric, Lucian did the same on the other side of the room. She caught his eye every now and then, but the contact never lasted for more than a second and she never saw anything but rage in those grey eyes. She understood why he was angry, of course. He never would've been in this mess if she hadn't bribed him into bringing Frederik to her; he never would've been the target of a sniper...

"So," Eric said, closing his notebook. "I have everything I need. You should come by the station later and sign the official report, but for now-"

His voice disappeared into the background when Adrianna saw a coroner come in and put Frederik's body in a bag. Cold chills started running up and down her spine, guilt and rage working together to make her stomach turn and her heart drop. She could feel her body trying to betray her; could feel tears building behind her eyes...but she fought back, keeping them at bay. Besides her family, no one had ever seen her cry...and she intended to keep it that way.

"Salvatore?"

Adrianna focused back on Eric, rubbing her forehead. "I'm sorry. You were saying I should come by the station and sign the report. That's fine. I'll stop by later today or tomorrow at the latest."

"Good," he said, his eyes worried. "We're done here, then. Are you going to be okay?"

She nodded, trying to pull of a convincing smile when she sang, "It's me. When am I not okay?"

"Where are you going to stay?" he asked, unconvinced.

Adrianna wasn't sure what he was talking about...until she realized her windows were shattered, her lights were shot to pieces, her bed was still propped up against the window and her couch and floor had blood on them... Obviously, she couldn't stay there. Not tonight. And maybe not even after that. Her little piece of heaven had been tainted...

"Maggie's," she answered, hoping he hadn't noticed the little tremor in her voice. "She lives above the shop. She has a pull-out couch. I can stay there until this is dealt with."

"Maggie's isn't exactly safe," he said, frowning. "You could use one of the department's safe houses-"

"No," she rushed, shaking her head. "No safe house. I know what they're like. I helped set them up, remember."

"Salvatore-" he said, his voice close to a whisper. "Adrianna… This sniper hit Gerard right in the medulla oblongata. I don't need to tell you what that means. This guy's a pro, Adrianna and if he was contracted to kill you, he won't just stop trying now."

"He wasn't contracted to kill me. He was contracted to kill Frederik Gerard."

"And yet, he kept firing after he'd killed him."

She sighed, running a hand through her curls. "I'll be okay at Maggie's."

"Salvatore-"

"Eric," she cut him off. "It's been a long night. Please, get off my back. I'll be fine."

He sighed, knowing better than to push the matter. "If you need anything or if you change your mind about the safe house-"

"I'll call you."

"Good," he said, signaling at his partner-who was done questioning Lucian-that it was time to go. "Be careful, Salvatore."

And then, both of them were on their way.

Leaving her alone again.

With the man who'd just saved her ass, the man who was standing in the middle of her destroyed living room, his body still oozing anger.

"Thank you," she whispered, his hard eyes flying to hers.

She'd never seen someone grow more angry because of an apology until that very moment.

"Lucian," she said, her eyes dropping. "Im sorry about-"

Before she could say another word, he was stalking past her. At first, she thought he was heading for the door, ready to storm out and never return. That's why she didn't move from her spot, why she didn't turn around. For some reason she didn't understand, she couldn't stand the idea of actually watching him walk out of her life. However, because she hadn't turned around, she didn't realize he was still in her apartment until she heard something being slammed shut in her bedroom.

What the hell?

Confused, she followed the noise, huffing when she found him shoving handfuls of clothes in her gym-bag.

"What do you think you're doing?" she shrieked, feeling a little violated when his giant hand snagged a bunch of her delicates from a drawer and forced them in the already chock-full bag.

"What does it look like?" he snarled, his voice venomous.

"It looks like you're either a secret transvestite and you're robbing me…or you're packing up my stuff because you're under the strange impression that I'm going somewhere with you! I'm not sure which option I prefer!"

"Do you think I like it?" he barked, his eyes shooting fire. "This wasn't part of my plan either! But you obviously can't stay here! A sniper just opened fire on us-"

"I wasn't planning on staying here. I-"

"-was going to stay with your friend, in that shop," he sniffed. "Yeah, I heard. I don't think that's a very good idea, though. My place-"

"I'm sorry, your place?" Adrianna shrieked. "I'm not going home with you. I barely know you. You barely know me. Why would you even suggest this?"

"I'm not suggesting anything," he snapped. "You are coming with me. Do you really think you'll be any safer in that shop than you are here? There's zero security, not to mention that building looks like one strong breeze could knock it down. I on the other hand have guards, bulletproof windows-"

"Wait," she cut him off, confused. "Are you worried about me, mister Nox?"

His hands stilled on the zipper.

"Because, the last time I checked, you didn't like me very much. I don't think you've said a kind word to me since we met and-"

"This has nothing to do with worry, detective," he cut her off, throwing the bag over his shoulder. "This is about the fact that some fucker just tried to shoot me and that pisses me off, so now, I have an invested interest in locking up Rodchenko. Clearly, he's after you, so I figure that if I keep you near, I have a better chance of getting to him than if I went at it alone."

"Really? You just want to help me catch Rodchenko?" she asked, watching him closely. As a detective, she had a sixth sense for spotting liars…and something about this man raised every red flag. But, why would he lie? Not to mention his explanation made more sense than hers. Why would he be worried about her?

"Look, I appreciate the offer, but I'm going to have to decline. I can get to Rodchenko myself. I don't want to-"

"See," he barked. "You seem to think this is a discussion. It's not. You're coming. Period."

She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't do well with orders."

"Off course you don't," he mumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He just glared at her, letting the bag slip from his fingers, making it crash to the ground with a loud thump. "Okay, I'll tell you what, I'm going downstairs, I'm calling my driver to pick me up and if you're not by my side by the time that car arrives, I might just start feeling bad about lying to the police and I might decide to take a little trip to the station."

She gasped, glaring right back. "You wouldn't."

"Oh," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "Try me, detective."

"I would lose my badge! Rodchenko-"

"I don't care!"

"Lucian-"

"And that's another thing," he hissed, his hands balling into fists by his side again. "I don't know when you decided it was appropriate to start addressing me by my first name, but the last time I checked, I didn't give you permission to take liberties, so mister Nox will do just fine!"

Her cheeks flooded with blood, partly out of anger, partly embarrassment. Calling him Lucian probably was overstepping...but for some reason, it felt so much more natural than mister Nox...

"So, calling you Lucian is a bridge too far, but moving in with you-"

"You're stalling, detective!" he cut her off, getting his cellphone out of his pocket again. "I'm calling my driver. You have approximately five minutes. I'm gone the second he gets here and if you're not there, I'm going straight to your sergeant."

And with that, he moved passed her, out the door.

Her heart racing, she just stood there, frozen, staring at her packed bag. She couldn't afford to lose her badge...and the world couldn't afford to give Rodchenko free range...but she couldn't possibly do what he'd demanded of her, could she? She couldn't go and hide away in some stranger's house! Right?!


"I got it, Mike," Hades gnarled at his driver as he got out of the car to open the door for him.

The salt-and-pepper haired man cast him a confused look, but knew better than to question his boss and quietly got back behind the wheel.

With the door in hand, Hades waited. He knew he'd told her he would leave the second the car had arrived...but he couldn't. Even though not so long ago, he'd prayed for the moment he could leave that apartment, get in his car and drive away, he now couldn't do it.

Because she was in danger.

And not just in danger of falling in love with him. Not anymore. Her actual life was being threatened. Some homicidal maniac was after her. So, what was he supposed to do? He couldn't just turn his back on her. The whole point of him becoming a mortal, of getting into this clusterfuck, of going through this torture, was to safe her from his brothers, the gods. He'd be damned if he was going to lose her at the hand of some mortal idiot with a gun! So now, he didn't only have to find a way to keep her hidden from his brothers once he had to leave earth, he also had to help her nail Rodchenko to the wall before that fucker harmed her…

If only she wouldn't make it so damned hard for him to do the right thing. He wasn't surprised that she wasn't jumping at the idea of coming with him, though. After all, to her, he was a stranger. Not to mention she was proud and stubborn, a dangerous combination in any woman, but in Adrianna…lethal. She didn't get that from strangers, though. He remembered both her parents being just as thickheaded. He just hoped she would come down out of her own free will. If she didn't… Well, let's just say he wasn't above throwing her over his shoulder. The only reason he hadn't done so to begin with, was the fact that throwing her over his shoulder would require touching her… And his body was still recovering from when she'd touched him earlier… When she'd pulled him down against her, saving him from that bullet, he'd actually wished she'd just let him die. She was so damned soft. And that smell… Everything about her was even more intense, more delicious than it had been in his dreams. Even his love for her felt different here, more urgent. Because it was real now. She was real and she was unbelievable.

So, obviously, he couldn't touch her again.

If he touched her again, he just knew he would-

"I thought you were going to leave the second your driver got here."

Hades briefly pressed his eyes shut in relief…before turning to face her and snapping in that voice he hated using on her, "He just arrived."

"Mmmmm," she murmured, those sweet lips twitching.

Don't smile.

Please.

Don't do that to me. I'm already on the edge.

"Just so we're clear, though," she said, her soft voice making his skin prickle. "This is a temporary thing until I get my apartment cleaned up-"

"You're not going anywhere until we put Rodchenko behind bars."

-and you're safe, he added in his head as he opened the door for her.

She hesitated for a brief moment, looking from him to the car…and then she let out a deep sigh and threw her bag in.

"Fine, we'll do it your way-" she said, adding in a teasing voice, "-Lucian."

His hand tightened on the door. He knew Lucian wasn't his real name, but in a way, it was more real than Hades. It was given to him by her…and whenever she said it in that honey-dripping voice of hers, he was back in that dream, holding her, hearing her whisper I love you against his chest. Why hadn't he just made up some random name? He could barely hold it together as it was.

"I told you not to call me that," he barked.

"I know," she sang, that defying, stubborn…beautiful smile on her lips. "But, you're not in any position to order me around. You want me to come with you so you can catch Rodchenko? Fine, I'll come. I want him caught, too. But I'm not going to do everything by your rules. I've been hunting Rodchenko longer than you have. I know him. I know how he thinks. So, as I see it, you need me…Lucian."

He took in a deep, calming breath, his muscles aching from forcing his body to stay in place.

"Just get in the car, detective," he snarled.

"You can call me Adrianna now, you know," she corrected. "It's only fair."

Adrianna…

"I think I'll keep it at detective, detective." He said, even though he wanted nothing more than to call her by the name he'd been worshipping for years. He had to keep her at a distance…and from the way her lips had dropped, he knew it had worked.

"God," she hissed. "I'm so looking forward to living with you, mister Personality."

"Get in."

Her noticed her mumbling something under her breath as she finally ducked in the car, but he couldn't make out what she'd said. He was pretty sure it wasn't anything flattering, though.

Good.

As long as she hated him, she didn't love him.

Clutching his hands, he was about to round the car and get in at the other side…but then he realized he would be in an even smaller space with her, alone, that smell of hers enveloping him. Being in her fucking bedroom had already been torture enough. He never thought he'd find himself in the room where she'd dreamt of him, the room where she woke up after spending the night with him…

"Sir?"

Hades ignored the questioning look of his driver as he slipped in the passenger's seat beside him. He never drove in front, but today, it was absolutely necessary.

"Just drive, Mike," Hades growled.

The man once again did as he'd commanded, steering the car to the other side of town, to his home…the home he'd now be sharing with the woman he'd been planning on leaving today…

Somewhere, he just knew, Aphrodite was laughing.