“Stupid bitch!” the bald guard yelled. “Who the hell is she? No one’s supposed to be down here.”

“I got her.” The man moved around to her side, keeping the gun at her head. It was the skinny man she had followed. Neither of them appeared to have fangs. Maybe they weren’t vampires.

The guard yanked out Anna’s dagger and pressed his hand against the wound. “Shoot her if she moves.”

“Who are you?” the skinny man asked.

“And how the hell did you get here?” The fat guard nursed his wound. “Are you one of the new ones? You’re supposed to stay upstairs.”

“I followed him,” Anna said, motioning with her thumb at the skinny guy.

The guard frowned. “Lance? Where were you?”

His hand shook, but he covered it by changing positions. “Just went out to run an errand.” His voice sounded as shaky as the gun. He was lying to the guard.

“He was talking to someone, a tall man,” Anna said. “Very secretive. When he left, I followed—” The gun smashed into her temple, and everything went black.

* * *

Anna woke to shouts and the sounds of running. She lay on a stone floor. It was dark here. No sconces. She had no idea how she’d gotten here or how long she’d been unconscious. She didn’t feel any pain except for the violent headache from where the skinny guard had hit her.

“I think he went this way,” someone called.

She stood and tried to adjust her vision, but it made her head hurt worse.

“How did he get loose?” the fat guard yelled.

“I don’t know, but the master will flay us if he escapes.”

“There won’t be anything left of us to flay if this monster gets hold of us.”

Monster? Was he talking about the man he’d tortured? He hadn’t looked capable of escaping, much less hurting anyone. Anna listened to the sounds of the hunt, doors clanging and the guards shouting as she tried to get her bearings. She felt a warm breath on her neck and froze. She wasn’t alone. Whoever or whatever was behind her was close. Instinctively, Anna eased her hand toward her talisman. It wasn’t there. She lowered her hands, quickly but quietly checking to see if it could have fallen and caught on her gown. It was gone. A sick knot settled in her stomach. The guards must have taken her talisman and her dagger. She’d never lost her talisman, never even taken it off. A warrior was only half a warrior without her talisman.

“Who are you?” she said, keeping her voice calm.

No answer. Another warm breath. Closer? Her heart was pounding in her ears. If this was a vampire, she was screwed. Fists clenched, she slowly turned. The only think she could make out was a tall shape. Broad. Male. Definitely a male scent. There was something wild about the smell. Not quite human. The guards were yelling, coming closer. The shape let out a roar, and Anna threw a hard kick at his midsection. It didn’t connect. The darkness had swallowed him. She spun, straining to see him. Nothing. She heard breathing several feet away. Without her weapons, she wasn’t as effective, but she still had her senses, strength, and speed. She rushed toward the sound, and as she swung at his head, she saw another shadow dart past. There were two of them? She could see one of them now, and she struck. An arm reached out and grabbed her wrist, blocking her blow. She pulled free and went for him again. He ducked, but he wasn’t nearly as fast as before. Or he was a different one. One what?

She aimed a kick at his chest, and he let out a groan. Then arms grabbed her, locked around her, and she smelled blood. She heard sniffing. Was he crying? She hadn’t hurt him that bad. She’d just gotten started. The arms weren’t pinning her now. He seemed to be holding on to her to keep from falling…

Over his labored breaths, she heard the guards coming.

“We need to check this section. He can’t have gone far.”

She stepped back, and the shape slid away with a thud. Anna moved to the corner of the cell, away from the voices and whoever she had fought. Where was the second man?

“What happened to the lights?” the fat guard asked.

“I don’t know. They were on earlier when I brought his food.”

“Turn them on.”

“I’m getting them now.”

The lights came on, the dim glow almost a shock after the pitch-black darkness. She was in a cell, and a man lay on the floor. Dark hair covered his face, and he wore a white shirt and a kilt. Or the shirt had been white at one time. Now it was smeared with blood. Like his hands. He couldn’t be the one who’d stood behind her. He’d moved too fast, like a vampire. This looked like the man she’d seen in the torture room. At least he was dressed now.

The guards caught sight of the man and cursed. “How did he get here? I left him in the torture room,” the fat guard said, confirming Anna’s suspicion.

“I didn’t bring him here.” The skinny guard was defensive.

“I didn’t either…holy hell. It must have been the hybrid.”

“Why would he do that? And how did he get the door open? I’ve got the key.”

“What is he? A ghost—dammit. What’s she doing here?” The fat guard had caught sight of Anna. “What the hell’s going on?”

“I did put her here,” the skinny guard said. “I had to lock her up quick, and I only had this cell key. The hybrid must have brought him later.”

The fat guard cursed. “We don’t have time to move them both. We have to find that damned hybrid. Put one of them in the next cell.”

“She’s conscious,” the skinny guard said. “I’ll move her.”

“I’m surprised she’s alive, as hard as you hit her. And just as she was starting to talk. I think you are hiding something, Lance.”

“She was getting ready to attack. I saw her muscles tense.” Lance, the skinny guard, opened the cell and pointed his gun at her. “Get out here.”

Anna walked to the cell door. Lance’s eyes were filled with hatred. He was hiding something from the other guard, and she’d outed him. As soon as he found the right moment, she knew she’d be dead. “What are you?” she asked. “Vampire? Demon?”

Fear and hatred flashed in his eyes, and he opened the door to the adjoining cell. “Get inside.”

As Anna entered, she glanced back at the man lying on the floor in the other cell.

Lance slammed the door. “What are we going to do with her, Bart?”

“We’ll have to deal with her in the morning,” the fat guard said. “Let’s find the hybrid.”

“I don’t know why they don’t just destroy him since we have the new specimen.”

“The master wants to make sure this one works out first,” Bart said. “Let’s go deal with this mess.”

“You gonna leave him unchained?” Lance asked, nodding toward the other cell.

“He’s no threat in that condition,” Bart said. “And I drugged him earlier. I’ll chain him in the morning.”

She’d beaten up a tortured, drugged man. Hell, what a night. She waited until the footsteps faded and then walked to the bars between their cells. The dungeon was still relatively dark, even with the sconce, and she couldn’t see the man clearly. She could only assume he was alive. “Hey,” she whispered. “Can you hear me?”

His fingers twitched, and he tried to move but collapsed to the floor again. His hair still covered part of his face, and he wore a beard. From what she could see, his eye and cheek were swollen and streaked with blood. Like Angus’s.

“Who are you?” she asked. “What are you doing here?”

He rolled slightly, and his hair fell back from his face.

Anna’s breath caught. “Faelan.”

CHAPTER THREE

ANNA PRESSED CLOSER to the bars. It couldn’t be Faelan, could it? She’d just talked to Ronan. He said Faelan and Bree should be home soon. Unless they had been captured in the last few hours. Could he be Duncan? He and Faelan looked enough like to be brothers. No, this man had a beard. Faelan and Duncan had both been clean-shaven in Virginia. But that was a few days ago.

She studied him a minute longer, the length of his hair, the shape of his head. Definitely not Duncan. But she couldn’t be sure this wasn’t Faelan. Whoever he was, he needed help.

“Can you move closer?” Anna asked. All warriors had basic medical training. She didn’t know what she could do with these bars between them, but she had to try.

He must have heard her because he started sliding closer. It was slow, and she cringed as he groaned in pain.

“What’s your name?” she asked.

His eyes opened, and Anna saw a flare of recognition before they closed again. Was it him? Good God. The clan must not know, or this place would be surrounded by warriors. And Bree would fight the Dark One himself to free Faelan. Anna reached through the bars and touched his hand. A jolt ran up her arm. Blimey. What was that? She’d touched Faelan dozens of times sparring with him. He’d beaten her every time, but he’d never shocked her.

She checked his hand. No wedding ring, but he did have a broken finger. There wasn’t a talisman at his neck, but the guards could have taken his too. She needed to see his chest. A warrior’s battle marks were as good as fingerprints, and she knew most of the warriors’ marks from sparring with them, since males usually sparred shirtless.

She shook his arm gently, and he hissed. She yanked her arm back. Maybe he wasn’t human. But he looked so much like Faelan. Demons could shift into human forms, but she’d never known a demon that could shift into a known identity. Even if that were the case, a demon would never be able to maintain his human shell if he were this injured.

“Can you roll over? I need to see your chest.” Hopefully he’d think she was checking his injuries.