Chapter Seven
Madison leaned against the wall in the training room, her heart still hammering from the kiss Simon had forced upon her. Not that she’d fought him very hard. If she were being honest with herself, she’d enjoyed it way more than she cared to admit.
She’d never imagined in a million years that Simon would taste as good as he had. He was a vampire for crying out loud. He should have tasted of death and disgust.
Bringing her hand to her mouth, she touched her bottom lip, reliving the feel of his tongue licking her there.
His scent remained on her skin, tantalizing and teasing in its masculine essence.
Angry with her body’s betrayal, Madison yanked her hand away from her face and attempted to block out the memory of that kiss.
The door opened and Sawyer stuck his head inside. “Le Blanc is gone.”
Madison’s heart stuttered.
“What do you mean gone?” Roman growled, barreling toward the door.
Sawyer shrugged. “I saw him sail over the gate a couple of minutes ago.”
Madison followed Roman from the room, Lydia tight on her heels.
“We have to go after him,” Lydia blurted, hurrying to catch up to her mate. “Svetlana will have him in her clutches before the sun comes up.”
Roman continued down the long hallway. “What the hell is he thinking?”
Madison knew good and damn well what Simon thought. “He’s worried about us. Especially, Jacie.”
“What are you going to do?” Lydia grabbed onto Roman’s arm, forcing him to stop and face her.
“I’m going after him.”
Madison shook her head. “You can’t go after him. It’ll be daylight soon. If you get caught out there and she gets her hands on you too…”
“Think of Jacie,” Lydia argued. “You can’t leave her unprotected.”
Roman looked from one to the other. “Simon hasn’t always been the most honorable vampire I know, but he’s become a friend over the past couple of years. I can’t just leave him out there to face Svetlana alone.”
“I’ll go.”
All eyes swung in Sawyer’s direction.
The massive werewolf’s expression remained blank. “Lydia’s right. You’re needed here.”
“I’m coming with you,” Madison announced.
Sawyer’s gaze sliced in her direction. “Not on your life.”
She lifted her chin. “You can’t stop me. Besides, no one can shoot better than me, and we both know it.”
Long seconds ticked by before Sawyer finally responded. “I don’t like it.”
“You don’t have to like it,” Madison shot back. “Let’s go.”
With a reluctant nod, Sawyer spun on his heel. “Gather what you need. We leave in ten minutes.”
Madison faced Roman and Lydia, their faces pale and drawn. “I know what I’m doing.”
Roman briefly closed his eyes and then blew out a breath. “Promise me that you’ll stay close to Sawyer at all times. Get in there and get Simon out. Don’t be a hero by going after Svetlana.”
“I’ll be back before the sun sets tonight.” With that, Madison jogged off toward her room.
Once inside, she changed into black jeans, a black sweatshirt, boots, and a jacket.
She hurried over to her bed, bent and pulled a duffle bag full of guns from beneath it. She didn’t have to check to know how much ammo she had, Madison had always been prepared.
* * * *
Daylight was beginning to show by the time Sawyer’s truck stopped in front of a wrought iron gate. “It’s not too late to turn back.”
Madison opened her door and jumped out.
“I’ll take that as a no,” he murmured, following suit.
“Are you sure this is the right place?”
Sawyer rounded the truck and stood next to her. “I’m positive. I can smell Simon’s stench from a mile away.”
Madison held her tongue. A couple of hours ago, she would have agreed with the wolf, but that was before Simon had kissed her. She knew all too well that the vampire had no such stench.
Tossing her bag of weapons over the gate, Madison gripped the cold iron bars and quickly scaled it.
Sawyer, obviously having leapt over, waited for her on the other side.
Madison picked up her bag of guns and trekked up the drive toward a two-story house in the distance.
The fog was slowly dissipating by the time the two of them arrived on Simon’s porch. Madison kept her gaze trained on her surroundings while Sawyer eased over to a window, bent the bars covering the glass, and shattered the pane. “He’s definitely in there.”
Madison waited for Sawyer to climb through and open the door. She stepped inside.
The first thing she noticed was the lack of pictures on the walls. No mirrors or knickknacks anywhere in the room. Just a brown sofa and a matching loveseat.
They crept deeper inside, coming to stop at in the kitchen. “Where would he sleep?”
“Somewhere underground,” Sawyer rumbled, running his palms along the walls.
Madison stared at the back of his head. “Ya think?”
Glancing over his shoulder, Sawyer sent her a pitiful excuse for a grin. “Sorry. I couldn’t help myself.”
With a sigh of irritation, Madison marched into the kitchen. She stepped inside an empty pantry, tapping her toe along the baseboards. A panel moved. “Over here.”
Sawyer joined her in the pantry, grabbed onto the panel, and pulled it from the wall to reveal a silver door underneath. “Son of a bitch!”
Madison reached out and tried the large door handle. It turned easily in her hand.
“He’s insane,” Sawyer growled. “Doesn’t he realize that he’s vulnerable down there with an unlocked door?”
Madison stepped forward to find a set of stairs leading down into total darkness. “I believe that was the point.”
Unzipping the bag she carried, Madison retrieved a flashlight, switched it on, and descended the stairs.
“You’re just going to rush right down there without knowing what lies in wait,” Sawyer bit out, coming down behind her. “Damn fool woman.”
Shining the light along the walls, Madison soon located a switch and flipped it up. The room flooded with light.
To Madison’s surprise, it looked completely different than the upstairs. The walls were a warm chocolate-brown, trimmed in a cream color. A large flat screen television hung on one wall while paintings and different pieces of art littered the rest. Soft, beige carpet adorned the floor, and a huge king-sized bed sat in the center of it all.
And there, on his back in the middle of said bed, lay a very naked, very well endowed…Simon Le Blanc.
“I’ll never be able to unsee that,” Sawyer snapped, curling his lip.
Neither would Madison. In fact, she couldn’t bring herself to look away.
Simon’s body had to be the most perfectly sculpted work of art she’d ever seen.
A sound came from upstairs.
Sawyer stiffened, placing a finger to his lips. He motioned for her to stay put as he quietly moved toward the stairs.
Madison got it in gear, rushing forward to grab onto the arm of his shirt.
He leaned down until his mouth was next to her ear. “Lock this iron door behind me. Do not open it for any reason. No matter what you hear.”
“I’m not going to stand down here while you go up there alone. I’m not a coward,” she hissed back.
A muscle ticked along Sawyer’s jaw. He yanked his chin toward Simon’s sleeping form. “That’s what you’re here for. You can’t help him if you get yourself hurt or worse. Now lock the damn door behind me and do not come out for any reason.”
Sawyer rushed up the stairs without another word, quietly closing the door behind him.
“Son of a bitch.”