The Bloody City Read Online Free PDF

feel that way now.”
    “I can’t believe Occam is a goddamn shapeshifter. There’s not a whole lot of us.”
    “There’s not a whole lot of Sirens, either. I’m pretty glad he’s not one of us.”
    “This is what we explained to you, though. They don’t turn normals. And the ones with the rarest abilities float to the top, not to mention the ones with the strongest abilities. It’s a pissing contest.” He fell silent a moment. “Are you impressed by them?”
    “Impressed? With what?” She shifted and crossed her legs. “The drugs? The drinking? The utter filth? Their penchant for trying to rape and kill people?”
    “They live like pigs, don’t they? It’s a result of their physiology, actually. They’re not susceptible to germs and illnesses, or overdoses. They don’t have to be clean or careful. When you can’t really die, you tend to get careless.”
    “It sounds like an existence that would get really old, really fast.”
    “I guess it’s better than our existence right now.”
    “Doesn’t mean I’m impressed by them.”
    “Unfortunately, they’re very strong and very well-connected. We need them for this.”
    She took in his profile. He was handsome, his jaw strong, his nose big, but it fit his face. His features were chiseled and blatantly masculine. Maybe the remnant of Zack’s power made her fixate.
    He narrowed his dark eyes at her. “What?”
    “Why did you send me to talk to the vampires?”
    “We went over that.”
    “You really thought they’d take pity on someone, even someone who’s been victimized by the Institute? They don’t seem to give a damn about non-vampires.”
    “Well they certainly wouldn’t have taken pity on me or Aaron. You were holding a better hand.” He sat up on the seat. “Don’t let what happened haunt you. Vampires love to mess with people. It could have been much worse. They actually did take pity on us. They let us walk out of there.”
    June resisted the urge to press. The people she trusted most couldn’t have possibly used her as fodder.
    They had to get off the train and take a bus to Hyde Park, where they were hiding out. They’d left Aaron’s downtown penthouse before the end of winter, since downtown wasn’t the ideal place for slipping in and out. Aaron owned a house in the quiet, residential, and university-focused area of Hyde Park where people were unlikely to be looking for the city’s two biggest villains—or heroes, depending on whom the media asked.
    The house wasn’t in his real name, and Aaron wasn’t there. Sam and Aaron had agreed not to hide out in the same place, so if one of them was captured, the other remained free. They actually didn’t know where Aaron was—another safety measure. Most news outlets believed Aaron and Sam weren’t in the city. The favorite bit of speculation at the moment was they had fled to Canada.
    The bus wasn’t empty so they had to disguise themselves, but the streets were quiet and deserted in the pre-dawn darkness, and the walk from the bus stop to the house proved uneventful. The house where they were hiding was simple, middle class, and non-descript, though canvassed with a sophisticated security system. Robbie would have been proud of their paranoia.
    Despite being around five AM, all the lights were on in the house. As soon as they started up the narrow cement walkway—having tripped the beams at the gate—the front door opened. June hadn’t reached the porch steps yet when someone swept her up in big, strong arms.
    “You’re safe,” Micha whispered against her hair. “Thank God.”
    She squeezed him. Sam climbed the steps.
    “This has been a long night.” Micha drew back, his arms still around her. His eyes glistened in the light from the door.
    Another person walked down the steps, and Micha released her.
    “I’m so glad to see you in once piece.” Her brother Jason hugged her tightly. “How were the vampires?”
    June huffed against his shoulder. “Complete