“I don’t want a seat, I want to find out who is going around killing innocent Londoners in such a horrific way, and I won’t find that out, excuse my French, sitting on my bloody arse.” She cast her gaze over the four A-list handsome officers. “And I want people to stop talking gibberish.”
“It’s not gibberish, I can assure you,” Cooper said. “We have knowledge and experience of these shifters. We want to help. We will help.”
“Okay.” She sat, needing to stop thinking about standing and set all her concentration on fathoming out what the heck had just happened to her day. “Tell me how you are going to find this shifter and, if it’s so dangerous and bloodthirsty, how you will place it under arrest.”
Cooper and Elijah shared a look.
“What?” Bloody hell, how much patience did these men think she had?
“It’s just that we have no intention of arresting this beast,” Elijah said.
“So what is your intention?” she asked.
“We’ll kill it.” Elijah drew a line over his throat, just above his shirt collar. “We’ll slit its throat, drain its disgusting, dirty blood, then burn it to cinders.”
“That should do it.” Cooper nodded.
So did Ben and the other police officer who so far had been silent.
“What?” She stood and jabbed her finger at him. “It’s outrageous to even say such a thing. Have you forgotten, Sergeant, that we have a justice system here in the UK? You can’t go taking the law into your own hands, no matter what the crime, how hideous. There might be vigilantes where you come from, but not here in London.”
“I understand that, ma’am, but this is our justice, this is the only way to keep the people of London safe, and I have taken a solemn vow before Her Majesty and an oath to Master Benedict to preserve human life at all costs, no matter the cost or course of action.”
Her mouth fell open as she stared at Elijah. Not usually lost for words, Corey couldn’t find even one.
“Detective Inspector,” Henry said. “Forgive me, but I have no choice but to draw you into this matter. You’re the only one readily available and qualified for the task.” He steered her to the chair again. “Sit.”
She did as he’d asked. Sat with a bump. “Who is Master Benedict?”
“He is the great leader,” Cooper said. He squatted so he was level with her and rested his forearms on his knees, hands dangling. “He is the great leader of our world.”
Again she studied his eyes—ethereal, intoxicating, seductive. “What world?” The question came out as a whisper, as if her throat wasn’t sure it wanted to utter the syllables, her brain not wanting to hear the answer.
These were no ordinary policemen standing in Henry’s office. This was no ordinary case. And if shifters were real, what the hell else was out there?
“Our world,” Cooper said, unblinking, his voice low. “Is the world of vampires.”
Chapter Two
“Vampires,” she repeated. Another word that seemed utterly ridiculous coming from her mouth while at work, here, in her superior’s office.
Cooper nodded and took her hand in his.
She gasped and snatched it away. What the bloody hell was he doing touching her like that, and why was he so cold? “What the…?” She stood and scooted back, eyes wide, staring at him. “Why are you freezing? It’s warm in here. It’s the middle of summer, for heaven’s sake.”
He held his hand up, frowned at it. “Cold?”
“Yes, very cold.”
“Sorry about that.” He shrugged. “Vampire problem.”
“Stop saying vampire. Like shifters, they’re not real.” Her heart was clattering against her ribcage. She wanted to get away from all of them. No, what she really wanted to do was wake up, because this must be a dream, some creepy, freaky, vivid dream she had to draw an end to.
“I am real,” Cooper said, “we’re real.”
She faced Henry. “Sir?”
“It is true. Vampires exist, right here in London.”
“But, what…I mean…how…why?”
“Many years ago, back in the days when Robert Peel set up the force,” Henry said, “the most senior police were approached by the Worshipful Company of the Ancient Order.”
“The what?”
“The Worshipful Company of the Ancient Order, Smithfield. It’s a millennia-old establishment that forms the headquarters for vampires the world over.”
She switched her attention from Henry to the officers. Were these devastatingly handsome men really bloodsucking, evil, bat-loving vampires?
Why am I even entertaining that thought? It’s ridiculous.
But Henry carried on as if there was nothing remotely ridiculous about any of it. “Robert Peel accepted their proposition that a top secret section of the police force should be manned by vampires, only ever four at a time, that’s more than enough with their…what shall I call it…special skill set. And that they’d work parallel with the police in any other-worldly cases.”
“Like shifter attacks.”
“Yes,” Elijah said. “And in the past we’ve also dealt with werewolves, demons, and vampires who’ve lost their moral compass.”
“Vampires have morals?” she asked.
“Of course.” Ben frowned. “Bram Stoker gave us a bad reputation at a time when we’d almost become accepted. Set us back centuries as far as I’m concerned.”
“So you don’t want to drink the blood of humans?”
“I’m not saying that.” He raised his eyebrows, and a smile tugged his lips.
“What are you saying then?” she snapped. Jesus, that smile of Ben’s was seductive…and he knew it.
“The majority of vampires want to live a quiet existence with the people they love.”
“People. Is that human or vampire people?” she asked.
“Could be either.”
“And you, Sergeant Grant, do you have a human to exist with?” she asked.
“No, ma’am.” Ben shook his head. “Let’s just say we’re all married to the job.”
“Or haven’t met the right human yet,” Cooper added. “I prefer human relationships, not that I’ve had one for a while.” He tapped his chin, as if thinking. “Must be going on a century now.”
She faced him again, her hands on her hips. “A century, really? You expect me to believe all of this crap?”
“You’re going to have to,” Henry said. “Put your disbelief, your innate confidence that you know everything there is to know about life on Earth aside, and accept this new revelation about vampires and shifters. God knows I had to ten years ago.”
“You’ve known about these blokes for ten years?”
“As soon as I accepted this position I was given the file. To be honest, you’re fairly junior to be in the loop, but as I said, you’re available and the best one for the job. You need to work with Cooper, Elijah, Ben, and Flynn and catch this evil beast before he shreds another citizen of our city.”