“Why now? Why after all this time?” she managed to ask.
“Because you have ruined a very good thing for me. I was using the Society as my cover, you see. It was perfect. I’d kill lowly humans and see that those deaths were blamed on the Society’s most dangerous preternaturals. It allowed me easy access to humans, such as Franny Millhouse’s escort service, and the perfect scapegoat when I was done.”
Mina frowned. “But you don’t need a scapegoat since you can change your looks, no one would know it was you to begin with. You’d never get caught.”
“True,” he agreed. “But it’s not nearly as much fun. I like killing a human, and then walking into a Society meeting and being heralded as—what is that silly name again? Oh yes, a Society’s Savior. It’s deliciously ironic, isn’t it?”
Mina stared at this monster that could hide behind the mask of an archangel. He was like a serial killer who liked to stay at the crime scene, watching the police struggle for clues. Pure evil.
“How—how did I ruin things for you? I didn’t know any of this.”
“No,” he agreed. “But you did start to ask questions. Enough questions that Jude began to watch me. Jackson Hallowell, of course, never would have put it together, but Jude, he has a dark soul. And your questions about the escort service got him thinking. Of course, he doesn’t realize yet that I’m on to him. But I know it’s only a matter of time now before I’m added to the most dangerous list. But of course, unlike the case of your lover, I am very dangerous.”
“Why did you attack that woman outside of Sebastian’s club?” Mina asked at the mention of Sebastian.
Daniel shrugged. “For fun. To scare you. To make sure Sebastian stays firmly planted on that most dangerous list until he and his club are destroyed.” He smiled sweetly. “Just to be mean.”
“Is that why you chose to attack me from the beginning? To be mean?”
“Oh no,” he said sincerely. “I needed you.”
“Why?”
“You were a virgin, and I need virgin blood to survive. That’s what sustains a creature like me.”
“What are you?” she asked.
“I am a vampire, but I’m a variant of the undead. An incubus—far more powerful than an average vampire. But to maintain that power, I must survive on the blood of virgins.”
She stared at him, even surrounded by all the preternaturals that she was, this seemed almost unreal.
“But why did you cross me over if you intended me to die?” she asked.
“Because the blood is so much sweeter if I cross the victim over. And until you, I don’t believe any of my other victims did survive. I left them, just like you, and they burned in the sun. Or starved. Or were killed because they’d become little more than raving lunatics.”
Mina stared at him, realizing she could have easily suffered any of those fates. She’d been lucky—an odd thought given the horror she had survived.
“But why me? Why not my sisters?” She always wondered that. Since he hadn’t wanted her money? Or her sexual favors?
He laughed. “Well, that is simple. They weren’t virgins.” Then he sobered. “Enough talk. It’s time to do what I came here for. To finish what I started so long ago.”
Mina watched as the handsome mask of Donatello melted away, replaced by the hideous creature who’d haunted her for so long. Jagged, razor-sharp teeth, skeletal features, glowing red eyes.
Panic filled Mina, but she tried to stay calm. As he started to stroll toward her, she darted for the door. She made it, her hand on the handle, when he caught her by the back of the neck, hurling her into the center of the room. She landed amid the chairs, fallen, breathless. She scrambled along the floor as she heard him approaching, but he easily caught her, picking her up by the throat. She gasped as he lifted her off the ground, her feet dangling several inches from the floor.
She clawed at the finger digging into her throat, but she couldn’t begin to break his crushing hold. Spots started to appear before her eyes, and she struggled to stay conscious. She couldn’t die. She couldn’t.
Suddenly, she heard a voice that she never believed she would hear again. “Let her go, or I’ll kill you.”
Sebastian watched as the vampire holding Mina released her, her body crumpling to the floor. Relief flooded Sebastian as she pushed herself upright, her frightened eyes locking with his. He offered a slight smile, which she didn’t return. She appeared in shock.
His eyes left her, returning to the other vampire, now seeing his handsome features, wavy hair, and charming smile.