“I managed to shake the Salinas. Chen’s guys were harder, but I avoided them too. Unfortunately, I met up with some old friends at MacT’s.” He groaned when she pronounced him fixed, rolled his shoulders, then slipped his shirt back on.
“Old friends?”
“I never told you about that pair of Ravager sisters I met a few months ago. Trust me when I tell you they don’t like to be told no.”
“Yeah, I get that.”
At her knowing tone, he frowned. “How about you fill me in on your night? I waited at MacT’s for hours. Then the sex sisters showed up and cornered me. I barely escaped in one piece.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
“Please. I’m surprised you didn’t jump them both with promises to ‘call them in the morning’.” At his scowl, she laughed. “Ah, so that’s what landed you in trouble in the first place, hmm?”
“You don’t know the first thing about Ravagers. Sex with them is all well and good, but when they want to mark you, run for the hills.”
“Why?” Marking was bad? Dominic had wanted to mark her. She still didn’t know exactly what that meant.
“Ravagers like to share sex partners.”
“I know that. But I didn’t think you were into guys.”
“You’re hilarious.”
“Are you telling me their females wanted to share you?” She goggled at the thought.
Two groups of Ravagers lived in Cross Step. The more “civilized” Savages and the unruly Lawless clan, who lived in their animal-like form out in the country. The Savages numbered in the thousands, but Ravager females were rare.
Though Sean liked to spread himself around the ladies, frankly, she couldn’t see him sharing himself that much.
“I know we haven’t dealt much with Ravagers, but come on, Vicki,” he said with a snort. “Are you that clueless?”
“About Ravager sexual practices? Yes, so fill me in.” Please. What the hell did I get myself into earlier?
“All I can say is I’m glad Chen’s not a Ravager. Diana’s enough to deal with.” He swore under his breath.
“Like Chen’s not? Need I remind you he’s after us since your brilliant plan failed?”
“Only because you didn’t whammy him after you got the ring.” Sean touched the bandage at the base of his neck and sighed. “I think he’s gotten to the Salinas as well.”
“I meant to tell you about that. The cops followed me into a Ravager bar, working for Mister Chen.”
“A Ravager bar?” Sean narrowed glowing yellow eyes at her, his emotion still running high. “What the fuck did you stumble into when we split up?”
Chapter Five
Vicki didn’t plan to go into detail. She did her best to skirt around the fact that four Voiders had expressed interest in her. “So I blasted them before I left,” she ended.
“That’s why your energy seems different.” He groaned. “We’re screwed.”
“What? Why? What about my energy?”
“Vicki, tell me all of it. Leave nothing out. It’s important.”
She swallowed around a dry throat, knowing this wouldn’t be good. “After I lost the Salinas, I hid out, like I told you. Except I must have been sitting at these guys’ table because they came up to me.”
“What guys?”
“Four huge Ravagers.”
“Four? Great, a pack. Damn it.”
“I know what a pack is, genius.” She scowled. “A family unit consisting of a lead female and her packmates. Except these guys were all alone.”
“They don’t always have a female in their family groupings. I’ve even seen a few packs with non-Ravager females, but it’s rare.” He paused, his eyes intent on her. “If no one made a stink in that bar, the pack you met must have been Savage. What happened next?”
“They brought me a beer.” She stalled, not wanting to discuss sex with her cousin. She stood and paced.
“Vicki, just tell me.” He sighed, sounding resigned. “If it makes you feel any better, my run-in with Kate and Diana nearly did me in. Diana’s been trying to mark me for some time, and I got sloppy. Trust me, two female Ravagers are enough to put me down. I can only imagine four males all over you.” He grimaced. “Let me rephrase that.”
“Yeah, well…” She couldn’t help blushing.
“Shit. Did they bite you?”
“No. But one of them talked about marking me, and I think Eric meant to do so before I zapped them.”
“This story is getting worse by the second.”
“Why? Because they wanted to mark me? That’s like taking a girlfriend, right? It’s not marriage or anything.”
“It’s almost worse. Marking is what they do to someone they want to own. No, it’s not a slavery kind of thing. It’s hard to explain. Look, once they mark you, you might as well say goodbye to any hopes of a Norm boyfriend. The sex is addictive, so I’ve heard. It’s bad enough without the marking,” he muttered to himself. “I can’t believe you knocked four of them back then ran.”
“What? I should have stayed and waited for them to finish what they started?”
“Hell no. But Ravagers love the chase and they prize strength. The fact they wanted to mark you at all is telling. They must have taken a real liking to you. Probably sensed you’re a Conduit. From what I can gather, they really like our type, and there aren’t that many of us to begin with. Our energy burns brighter than most.” Sean paused in thought and his eyes glowed. “Did they fuck you?”
“Geez, that’s kind of personal, isn’t it?”
“You said they didn’t bite you, but sex can be a powerful craving with them.”
“For me or for them?”
“For both.”
“Well, I… Well.” She cleared her throat and glanced away, feeling stupid. Vicki wasn’t a prude, but she didn’t talk about sex with her family. “I had a good time, but I don’t know that they did.”
Sean wiped a hand over his face. “How did you get home?”
“I ran for about a mile then hopped on the bus.”
“That’s a start.” He stood. “We need to leave. Now. Grab a bag, enough stuff to get you by for a few days. Then we’ll swing by my place. Between Tommy Chen and these Ravagers, we’re not looking good to finish this case soon.”
“No kidding. But rest easy. I had Santora pick up the ring. Our client should have it by tomorrow morning, so one problem solved, at least.”
“Great. Now we just have to do some major damage control.” Sean looked tired.
“Did someone say damage?” Eric growled from the shadows.
“Hell.” Sean launched himself at Eric, taking the offensive. “Vicki, get out of here!” Before Sean could touch Eric, Jesse and Logan tackled him to the ground.
“No way.” Vicki stepped forward to help when rough arms grabbed her from behind. She squirmed but couldn’t break free, not even when she tried to tap into the male’s energy, which she found blocked.