All Others (Vampire Assassin League Book 27) Read Online Free

was palpable. Almost debilitating. And then the HNLU swiveled on its stand, aiming the lens toward the inner stairwell. It was followed almost instantly by the FLIR. Both pieces of equipment focused on the same area. Cam couldn’t see much. There was a lot of darkness in the cellar. Could contain a paranormal being. Could also be a whole lot of nothing...like rodents. Maybe even another BPRG knot-head. There were two still unaccounted for: Scott and Tom.
    The indicator lights on both Cam’s units blinked nonstop. And then his temperature gauge started dropping. It hovered at 62.3 for several seconds, as if stuck there and then sank again.
    60.0.
    59.6.
    Cam clicked his recorder on and started speaking. “This is Doctor Cameron Preston. New Orleans, Louisiana. Ramsay mansion. Cellar. Local time is 0300. Exactly. Is there anyone here with me?”
    He waited ten seconds. The temperature sank again.
    58.3.
    58.0.
    Good thing he wore a thinly-woven, moisture-wicking t-shirt beneath his dark blue work pullover. It was growing downright chilly.
    57.9.
    “Is there anyone here with me?”
    “
Yes.
”
    The word was whispered. Harsh. And raised every hair along the back of Cam’s neck. The temperature dropped again.
    57.7.
    He cleared his throat. The recorder caught it.
    “What is your name?”
    He held his breath for the ten seconds. Nothing happened.
    “Do you have a name?”
    He waited again. Eight seconds into it, he got another whisper, exactly like before.
    “
Jesse.
”
    There wasn’t a Jesse in the file. The alleged murderer’s name had been Louis. The victim was an Eleanor. Cam’s breath came out in a whoosh that audibly trembled. The recorder caught that, too. He was probably going to sound scared when they played it back. He wasn’t. He was excited as all get-out.
    “Are you angry, Jesse?”
    Seven seconds into his count, there was a slight thud noise as something fell. And then there was the distinct sound of trickling water. Both came from over his right shoulder near the outside doors. The HNLU spun. The FLIR followed it. Cam didn’t move his eyes. There was a glowing shape starting to take form within the span of blackness. He watched it with palms that grew damp and a trickle of sweat along his spine. And a mouth that went dry as dust.
    He knew. He tried to swallow before speaking.
    “Is that...you, Jesse?”
    His voice was whisper soft. It got an immediate answer. From behind him. It didn’t sound remotely spectral. Or male.
    “Oh my. My. My.”
    There were distinct gaps between the words.
Damn everything!
The form he’d been watching vanished. It didn’t leave even a hint of mist. The only record he’d have of it was the camera attached to his goggles, and he’d better hope it was functioning. Cam’s eyes went wide, he sucked in a huge gulp of air to combat instant anger, and he was still working to contain it as he did a one-eighty to face the intruder.
    And then his jaw dropped.

 
     

CHAPTER FOUR
    Brain freeze-up was a physical impossibility. That didn’t mean it didn’t happen.
    Cameron watched as a supermodel-type woman walked right toward him. The fabric of her dress glided along one curvy thigh and then the other. It wasn’t doing anything to prevent his eyes from watching the rest of her. He couldn’t tell much through the night goggles, but he could tell enough. She was dark-skinned and dark-haired. She was tall. She was incredibly gorgeous.
    And because nothing was making sense, his mind started factoring probabilities, as if that was normal. It probably had to do with his science background and the unbelievable nature of her appearance. If his brain was working properly, he’d know.
    Okay. Chances of seeing a black woman in Louisiana were pretty high. That was a given.
    Odds of running across a stunning black woman in Louisiana? Probably up in the high percentile as well. Maybe...95%.
    Chances of said knockout crossing his path while wearing an eye-popping, slinky evening gown?