Sid (The Protectors Series) Book #4 (10 page)

Lana
ignored them both. Letting go of Sid’s arm, she rushed to the girls. Saying a prayer to keep her safe, she calmed herself with a few deep breaths as she knelt next to their bodies, taking a real close look at each of them.

“My God
, they can’t be any older than eighteen.” Lana frowned, looking at the girls, trying to be professional and keeping her emotions out of it. Forcing her emotions aside, Lana really looked as a cop would look at the crime scene. “I don’t think they’ve been raped.”

“What makes you think that?” Sid knelt down next to her.

“No marks. Their clothes are perfectly fine. Not a rip on them. Has everything been processed?” Lana frowned, looking over the girls carefully.

“Yes
,” Jared answered, also looking them over.

Lana reached out
, lifting one of the girl’s short skirts up slightly. “No bruising.” Looking around the area with a cop’s eye, she spoke to Sid. “They weren’t killed here.”

“No, they weren’t
,” Jared answered with respect. He was impressed that this woman, who had just arrived, knew that with one sweep of her eyes.

“Don’t break me away once I touch them
,” Lana warned both men.

“If what happened last time happens
, I’m not going to sit here and watch you get attacked or whatever the hell happened.” Sid’s tone implied he wasn’t going to budge on that.

“Just please
, try not to do that.” Lana looked away. “I really don’t want to get stuck in their last memories of life.”

“Then don’t do this.” Sid shook his head. “If it’s not safe for you
, we will think of something else.”

“Nothing we do in our line of
work is safe, but I have an opportunity to find out information we could never learn otherwise. It’s worth the risk,” Lana argued. “Just don’t break me away.”

Sid started to say something else, but Lana quickly grabbed onto
Megan’s cold, lifeless hand. She was now reliving Megan’s last hours of life.

“Shit!” Sid cursed
, his eyes on Lana, ready for whatever was to come.

Both men watched as Lana’s spine straightened
; her head flipped to the sky with eyes wide open. A slow smile spread across her wide red lips and stayed for a few minutes until it started to fade into a frown. Her body jerked once, her hand raised slowly out in front of her in a gesture of confusion and fear. Sid could feel the emotions radiating off her.

“Is she okay?” Jared asked
. His stance was firm as he stood over her, watching with concern.

“I
don’t fucking know, but I don’t like this shit,” Sid hissed, ready to pounce. “I can’t tell if she is in trouble or not.”

Suddenly
, Lana let go, falling back, but Sid stopped her from landing on her ass. A loud gasp escaped her throat as she blinked her eyes, quickly trying to focus.

“Are you okay?” Sid brought her face to his. “Hey!”

Lana finally focused on him and nodded, “I’m good.” A small smile of triumph reached her eyes. “They were last at a motel in Alexandria. I know the place.”

“Let’s go!” Jared was already leaving the area
, barking orders to uniformed officers who were left guarding the area until the coroner came.

Sid helped Lana up as a uniformed officer walked over. “You get something
, Lana?”

Lana turned
, glancing at the officer. “Yeah, Fred,” she nodded. “Finally.”

“Good, these people need to be stopped.” He nodded to Lana then Sid before turning his sad gaze to the girls.

Sid watched Lana give the officer the information to pass on to the coroner. She had at least obtained one name, so it shouldn’t be hard for them to find out who the second girl was so their families could be contacted. Once she was finished, he picked her up and headed up the hill, a new respect for this woman filling him along with the need to possess her.

Chapter 10

Slade ran to Adam’s room
, practically running Damon down in the process. He heard heavy boots behind him. He was sure with the urgency on his face he didn’t have to explain anything to Damon.

He passed Jill
, who had opened up her door, sticking her head out at the noise of them running down the hall. He practically busted the door off its hinges as he flew into Adam’s room.

Damon followed
, spotting Tessa on the floor. “Dammit!”

Jill stepped into the room and gasped. “Tessa.” She ran over, but Slade stopped her.

“Don’t touch her,” Slade ordered, going down to the ground. He put his fingers to her neck, feeling for a pulse. Relief shadowed his face as he checked each eye. “Tessa!”

A sigh of relief filled the room when her eyes fluttered
; a low moan escaped her lips.

“What the hell happened?” Damon asked
, looking around trying to figure it out.

“I’m not sure, but I got a text from Adam saying she was in his room unconscious.” Slade glanced at Jill. “Get me a cold rag.”

Jill scrambled to her feet, running to do as ordered. Rushing back, she handed him a cool, wet washcloth. “Here.”

“Tessa, open your eye
s. Come on. Open them for me. I know you hear me,” Slade urged her.

“Where’s Jared?” Jill asked
, watching Tessa trying to focus once her eyes were open.

“He’s with Sid.” Damon walked away. “I’ll call him.”

“Don’t tell him anything other than he needs to get back right away.” Slade leaned down in Tessa’s vision and held the cool washcloth against her neck.

“I’m not going to have to say anything.” Damon frowned walking out of the room. “He’s going to know.”

Tessa finally became aware and tried to sit up. “Whoa, Tessa.” Slade stopped her. “Not so fast.”

“Listen to him
, Tessa,” Jill urged when she continued to struggle. “We need to make sure you’re okay.”

“Do you have any pain?” Slade watched her closely. “Can you move your fingers?”

“Yeah.” She squeezed her eyes shut, moving her fingers. “My head hurts.”

“I’m going to try to sit you up
, okay? Tell me right away if anything hurts.” Slade leaned down, wedging his arm under her shoulders. Slowly, he set her up against the wall. “You okay?”

Tessa nodded slightly, but winc
ed. Her shaking hand went to her head. After a minute, her eyes popped open, still slightly unfocused, and searched the room. “Where’s Adam?”

“Did he do this?” Slade asked, anger edging his words.

“He didn’t mean to.” Tessa’s eyes filled with tears. “He’s messed up right now. He didn’t mean to hurt me.”

Slade cursed under his breath as his eyes met Jill’s. Picking her up carefully
, Slade stood. “I’m going to take you to my office for a little while so I can keep an eye on you, okay?”

Tessa didn’t say anything as tears flowed down her cheeks.

“Can I do anything?” Jill asked, following them out of Adam’s room.

Slade turned meeting her stare. “Try to get in contact with Adam.” He frowned. “But stay away from him.”

Jill nodded, pulling her phone out of her back pocket.

“I mean it
, Jill,” Slade warned. “Don’t go near him. Just try to find out where he is.”

Slade waited until Jill nodded her understanding
, before he walked out the door, meeting Damon. “Did you get Jared?”

Damon was staring at Tessa who had stopped crying
; she had her eyes closed against Slade’s chest. “Yeah, he’s on his way.”

“Good. I’m taking her to my office.” Slade moved past him. “I’m pretty sure she has a concussion, but
and I want to keep an eye on her.”

“I’ll tell him as soon as he gets here.” Damon’s eyes flared. “
Did Adam do this?”

Slade’s eyes darkened as he nodded. “He needs to be found.”
The words and warning in Slade’s eyes were enough for Damon to understand they may have a rogue on the loose.

******

Lana, Sid and Jared stood outside the rundown motel, which only totaled one floor of six rooms. The white paint peeled from days of harsh weather and neglect.

“This place looks shut down
,” Jared frowned, looking around.

“It is.” Lana moved to the last room on the end
, staring at it. “You have a flashlight?”

“No.” Sid passed her
, walking up to the door. “We see perfectly at night and don’t need them. Is this the room?”

“Are you sure this is right?” Jared walked up behind them. “It doesn’t look like this place has been used in years.”

Lana smiled. “I’m sure.” She nudged Sid out of the way. Leaning down, she reached behind a thin, leafless bush, pushing a large rock out of the way.

Sid backed up
, watching her tight dress slide up her thick, firm thighs. “Damn,” he mumbled, his eyes heating as they moved down her legs and back to her ass again. Adjusting himself, he tried to stay focused.

“I can’t believe it’s here.” Lana turned around with a huge smile and
a key. She caught Sid’s eyes roaming her lower half while Jared stood silently laughing. “What?”

Jared just shook his head
, grabbing the key and unlocking the door.

Sid stopped Lana before she could go inside. “Do not wear that dress again when on duty
,” Sid growled, the heat in his words searing her to the spot.

A feeling of power over the gorgeous vampire set Lana on fire as she watched him move past her
, following Jared inside the room. “Then give me more time to dress appropriately for work,” she shot back, and then followed them inside.

“What the hell is this place?” Jared frowned.

“It’s a place teenagers come to do…” Lana lit a candle that was on a small damaged table, “things.”

“Such as?”

“Make out; drink, you know, teenage stuff.” Lana held the candle up, looking around. She found more candles and began lighting them so she could see. Finally, the room was aglow with candle light.

“Did you do teenage stuff here?” Sid glanced at her
.

“
Oh, yeah,” she grinned. She had actually lost her virginity here with Mason Barton, but she kept that piece of information to herself.

“By the look on your face
, I’d say you did more than make out here,” Jared chuckled.

“I’ll never tell
,” Lana chuckled. “I can’t believe kids still come here.” By the look of the place, they still took care of this room just like they did when she was young and foolish, looking for a place to experiment the joys of growing up.

Going over beside the bed
, she picked up a small trashcan, pouring the contents out. Rubber wrappers and beer cans scattered across the bed.

“Find anything?” Sid asked walking over.

“No, not really.” Lana took off her shoe, using the heel to poke around in the trash.

“They weren’t killed here
,” Sid observed. “It’s too clean, and I don’t think whoever killed them would stay around and tidy the place.”

“No
, they weren’t killed here, though I wasn’t sure from her memories. I haven’t been in this room for over ten years, but I know they were here.” Lana used her shoe to push the trash back in the can. “As soon as I connected with Megan, they were walking out of here. I was just hoping we would find something here. I did get a look of the guy they were here with. Maybe Jill can do a profile pic.”

“Did it seem like they were forced from here?” Jared asked.

“No, not at all.” Lana frowned. “When I do a reading, sometimes I see events as they happen and sometimes it’s scattered in no certain timeline. When I read Vincent, it was a total replay of his hours before death. With this girl Megan, things came in flashes. I saw the outside of this motel and knew they had been here, but wasn’t sure if this is where they were killed. It can get very confusing and sometimes none of it makes sense. Before they take their last breath is when I’m released.”

“Did you see this room just as it is?” Sid asked
, leaning against the wall.

“Yes. They were laughing and having a good time. There was another guy here, a little older than them, but the
y seemed comfortable with him. I know they left this room alive because of this.” Lana walked over and pointed at a carved initial in the doorframe by the lock.

Sid watched her running her finger over the initial when
she turned quickly. “What?” He pushed himself from the wall.

“Damn, I almost forgot.” She hurried past Sid
, heading toward the small bathroom. Across from it was a small closet. Throwing the door open, she took the candle from the table, holding it up to the wall. Hundreds of names were scribbled across the walls of the closet. Looking for the area that had free space, she began to search and found what she was looking for. Touching the name Megan Cooper, she smiled when underneath was yesterday’s date. Next to it was the name Ben Foster with the same date. And underneath those was Amanda Turner. “They were here yesterday. I would say. The other girl’s name is Amanda Turner, and it looked like they were here with a Ben Foster.”

“What is this?
” Sid looked at the wall of the small closet.

“Whenever you used the room
, you signed in.” Lana shook her head. “And it looks like the tradition stuck.”

“Is your name on the wall?” Jared teased.

Lana looked around and found it. “Right there.” She pointed to her name with a large smile. It had been so long since she went down memory lane. “And that was my boyfriend at the time, Mason Barton.”

“Mason?” Sid grunted
with a frown. “What kind of name is Mason?”

Putting the candle on the shelf
, Lana grinned at Jared. “He was the quarterback on the football team. Took the team to state as a matter of fact.”

“Yeah, he’s probably gay
,” Sid snorted.

She made a purring sound. “Oh, he was far from gay.” Lana bent over
, looking at more names, her ass sticking in the air.

“Damn
, man, I’m wanting to tap that.” An unknown voice filled the room.

Sid, Jared and Lana all turned
, aiming their guns at the voice.

“Whoa
, shit!” The guy’s hands went straight up in the air.

“Don’t move a fucking muscle
, asshole,” Jared growled as he made his way toward the guy, gun still aimed.

Once Jared had him up against the wall and patted down
, Sid and Lana relaxed.

“Where in the hell did that come from?” Sid
stared at her gun, putting his own gun in the waist of his jeans.

Lana put her foot up on the bed
, lifting her tight skirt high. Strapped to her firm thigh was a holster. Looking over her shoulder at Sid, she grinned as she re-holstered her gun. “I never go anywhere without my gun.”

Sid watched as she put her foot back on the ground
before she shimmied her skirt back down. “Son of a bitch.” Sid shook his head, trying to clear the image of that holster strapped to her thigh. “It’s a damn good thing we aren’t alone in this room.”

Seeing the h
eated look in his golden eyes had Lana swallowing hard, and it wasn’t her stomach tingling this time. Her whole body tingled as her nipples hardened under his stare. “Why is that?”
Oh, Lana, you did not go there,
she mentally scolded herself.

His eyes moved from her body to her face in a slow
, mind-blowing glance. “I’ll show you later.” His voice was deep and serious, but the sexy smile that spread across his perfect lips promised things that made women weak in the knees. “That’s a promise.”

Before Lana could comment, which was not the easiest thing in the world for her to do at the moment, Jared’s voice broke her thoughts of hot
, dirty images floating around in her mind.

“Hey!” Jared had the guy by the neck. “We gotta go. Damon called and said we need to get back now.”

“Why?” Sid eyes stayed on Lana as she started blowing out candles. “What’s up?

“He wouldn’t say
, so I know it’s not good.” Jared frowned, pushing the guy to Sid. “I’ll drive, but let’s go. Something’s wrong.”

“You got any handcuffs up that dress?” Sid glanced at Lana
, who was coming up behind him.

“Nope, no room
,” Lana smiled sweetly. “Sorry.”

“Looks like you’re going for a ride
,” Sid told the guy as he led him out the door. “So don’t try anything stupid.”

“Who are you?”
he asked, looking at each of them, fear evident in his shaking body and voice. “Where you taking me?”

“
To VC Headquarters.” Sid opened the door, putting him in the back seat, and climbed in beside him. “We just need to ask you a few questions, and if things check out, you can be on your way.”