Indebted - The Vampire Diaries (The Hunter Book 1)

Chapter 25 - 'Vengeance Looked Good On You, Darling.'

Cain's hand grasped the handle of the door, tugging it open as he entered his office. The room was dark, the light turned off but he could feel the presence of another person. His hand immediately reached behind him, drawing a gun and pointing it at the shadowy figure of a man sitting at his desk. He moved slowly, flipping on the light on switch.

"I think we should talk, don't you?" Wolfgang said in greeting, his hazel eyes seeming to penetrate deep into Cain's soul. The Nachtstern was surrounded by an aura of calm control, the atmosphere taut with the threat of sudden violence, "You can put the gun down, Cain."

"What's this about, Wolfgang?" Cain asked, sliding his gun back into the waistband of his jeans, looking at Wolfgang as he shifted nervously. The hunter was intimidating and the werewolf felt the fear that was associated with his name, "We can start with the fact that you lost two hundred and fifty thousand dollars of my money."

"I can explain," Cain said quickly, his features consumed by panic. Wolfgang narrowed his eyes, leaning forward as his piercing gaze stabbed into Cain, "Make it quick or your death will be anything but."

"We got hit." The werewolf explained, "My guys were rolling with a bunch of witches, they tried to sort it but they got taken out."

"Who did it?" Wolfgang asked, steepling his fingers as he awaited an explanation. "A vampire."

"And what the hell does a vampire want with my money?" Wolfgang demanded, his tone laced with restrained fury. Nobody messed with Wolfgang Nachtstern. Cain let out a shaky breath, shrugging his shoulders hesitantly, "I don't know, man."

Katherine emerged from the shadows, grabbing Cain by the hair and slamming his head down on the desk before holding him back up and pulling him against her body. "Your heartbeat just doubled in speed. Don't lie." Katherine hissed and the werewolf's face contorted in a mixture of anger, fear and pain, "Get your bitch to back off."

Katherine snarled, slamming his head into the table again, breaking his nose as Cain cried in pain. Katherine pushed him down again before releasing him, letting Cain slump to the floor as he cradled his nose. "Call me that again and I'll tear your head off, do you understand?" Katherine threatened and Cain nodded vigorously, "Now, answer Wolfgang's question."

"He burnt it." Cain explained, "Took the whole fucking shipment, burnt the cash and disappeared like he was never there."

"He burnt it? Did he say anything, leave a name to explain why he felt so bold?" Wolfgang asked, his face contorted with fury. Cain gulped, letting out a hesitant sigh, "He said he was the son of Nikolai Sokolov."

"Good. Now, get out." Wolfgang demanded. Cain nodded, not trusting himself to talk before scrambling out of the office as he ran away. Katherine folded her arms, turning to Wolfgang, "I'm assuming that you know who this guy is?"

"His name is Dmitri Sokolov." Wolfgang said as he let out a sigh, running a hand through his dark hair, "A vampire I turned back in the 17th century. I forced him to watch his whole family die."

"And now he's coming for revenge." Katherine finished and Wolfgang nodded, rising from the desk as he met her gaze, his hazel eyes glittering in the dim light, "I can handle Dmitri. It's about finding the right way to take him out."

Russia, 1694 -

Wolfgang watched as Dmitri's eyes fluttered open, his eyes glancing around rapidly to take in his surroundings as his newly enhanced senses overwhelmed him. Wolfgang remembered the experience well, the dull ache in his head, the ringing in his ears and the scraping hunger that consumed him, his veins rubbing together like sandpaper.