Loved by the Vampires

by ERIN BEDFORD

  They carried me up the stairs and into the kitchen. A sharp inhale told me Tristan had come into the room. "Piper! Fuck, Bishop, what happened to her?"

  "You know this woman?" Bishop, the guy carrying me, questioned. "We found her down in the basement. The creature has escaped." The suspicion in his voice was clear, but to my relief and surprise Tristan stuck up for me.

  "You don't think she let him go, do you?" Tristan snarled, no longer the big teddy bear guy he'd shown me earlier. "She's bleeding and unconscious, for God's sake!"

  "It could be a trick." Bishop tightened his grip on me. "She shows up a few days before the vampire, and now he's missing? I don't think so."

  "Why don't you make sure she doesn't die first before judging her," Tristan argued, his arm going under me as well. "Here, let someone who actually cares if she dies, take her to the infirmary."

  “Here’s her daggers.” The other voice from down below said.

  “Thanks,” Tristan grunted.

  "I have to make a report to Vincent," Bishop declared, far happier about that task than keeping me alive.

  Tristan held me tight, and a jerk in his shoulders signaled his nod. "Do what you have to do, and I'll do the same."

  They parted ways, but as Tristan carried me toward the infirmary, other hunters whispered as we passed by. Tristan only held me tighter and lowered his voice to say, "Don't worry, Piper. I got ya."

  On one hand, it was really sweet of Tristan to look out for me. On the other, I felt like a total jerk for letting him take the heat for me when I did indeed let Marcus out. Unfortunately for both of us, I didn't have a choice. It was him, or me and mine. And while Tristan was a nice enough guy, I'd do worse than throw a maybe not so innocent guy under the proverbial bus to keep us safe.

  Chapter 11

  Allister

  This was such bullshit. How could she do this to us? It wasn't like we didn't have enough to worry about with the hunters chasing us and Marcus’s capture. Why not go undercover into the only place more dangerous than being on the run? Yeah, that was a great idea. Good job, Piper.

  "Man, can you like cool it for five minutes?" Rayne rubbed his temples, his elbows on his knees as he squeezed his eyes closed. "You are giving me a serious migraine."

  "Then stop listening." I pushed off the windowsill of the hotel room Darren had rented for him and Piper. We'd arrived shortly after Gretchen told us where Piper had gone with Darren. The fact that it was in Atlanta had been dumb luck. Any farther, and we would have been in trouble.

  Rayne opened his eyes and glared up at me. "I can't help it when you project so damn loudly."

  "Well, I'm a little stressed. What do you expect?" My voice rose an octave, pulling the attention of my brother who was busy going over the map of the manor Piper had gone into. He arched his brow at me, but I ignored him, choosing to direct my anger and frustration at Rayne.

  Rayne stood up and shoved a finger at my chest. "We're all stressed. It's not just you." He gestured wildly toward the butler. "Darren over there is this close to a heart attack because he's stressing so much about Piper—

  who he let go on this asinine mission by herself." He gave the butler a pointed look before going to Wynn. "Wynn might look like he's all calm lounging on the bed like the world’s laziest ass vampire, but right now he's going over every single thing he’s said and heard from Piper during his visit, wondering if he missed something. Something that could have kept her from going."

  Wynn shifted uncomfortably on the bed but didn't protest.

  "And your brother..." Rayne swiveled his finger over to Drake and laughed mockingly. "Your brother is so freaked out, the only thing he can think about is pulling the heads off of every single vampire hunter who dared to look in Piper's direction. Like little flies." He made a deranged face as he pretended to pull the wings off of flies. When he was finished making fun of my brother, who looked two seconds away from pulling Rayne's head off, he turned to Antoine. However, before he could get a word out, Antoine must have thought something at Rayne because he snapped his mouth shut and twisted back around to me.

  "You are not the only one worried about Piper. You're not the only one who loves her. So don't think that you can go off halfcocked on your own. This won't work unless we're all in it together."

  I went to argue, but once again Antoine interrupted.

  "Allister, Rayne's right." Our head of house stared down at the map of the manor on the tablet, not looking in my direction. "Piper went in there with a plan, and we need to make sure she can complete it without her getting killed in the process."

  I swallowed my words and nodded stiffly.

  Drake gave me a look, asking in his twin way if I was alright. I nodded again, less tight, and settled at the table they were at. The blueprints of the manor weren't easy to find. The vampire hunters really didn't want anyone to know where they lived or what was in it. We had to pull every connection we had to find these and then some. We were racking up debts with Morpheus, ones that none of us wanted to pay.

  "So, have you heard from Piper at all?" Drake asked Darren, who shook his head sadly.

  "No, but she's only been in for a couple of days. We didn't plan to meet up again until tomorrow," Darren answered in a monotone voice, as if he couldn't stand to put any emotion behind his tone without breaking. I'd never seen the serious butler so distraught before. It made this all the worse.

  "That means nothing." I sighed, leaning forward on my hand, my elbow on the table. "She could be fine, or she could have already been killed."

  "No." The confidence in Antoine's voice made me feel slightly better, but only slightly. "If she were, I'd know it." His pale eyes focused hard on the tablet before him, his jaw tightening, the only sign that he was feeling anything.

  "Well, then that means something at least." Drake snorted and scrubbed a hand over his jaw. "She's not dead, but that doesn't mean they don't have her already. They could be waiting to use her to get the rest of us. They currently have Marcus, it's only a matter of time before they get the rest of us."

  I clamped my hand down on Drake's shoulder. He snapped his mouth shut and glanced over at me, real fear in his eyes. "It's going to be okay. We'll get through this. We've been through worse."

  Drake drew in a deep breath, more for the calming effects than the actual need to breathe, and set his hand on mine, giving it a tight squeeze. "You're right. You're right. We can do this. We just have to figure out a way to communicate with her. Then maybe we can work out a plan to get Marcus and her out of there."

  "Does she even know Marcus is in there?" Rayne inquired behind me. "I mean, we can't plan anything until we know the whole situation. Suppose she doesn't know he's in there. She won't know to help him and then it could be too late. Or suppose she does know." He paced back and forth, running his fingers through the long strands on top of his head. "Would she come back here to consult with you before making a plan to break him out herself?" Rayne gave a hopeful look to Darren before scoffing a laugh. "What am I saying? Of course she wouldn't."

  We all laughed slightly at that.

  Smiling down at the table, I commented, "Piper does whatever the fuck she wants, without asking permission."

  "A fault and a blessing it seems."

  All of our heads jerked up to see Marcus in the doorway of the hotel room.

  "Holy shit, man!" Drake jumped out of his seat and barreled up to Marcus, grabbing him in a tight embrace without asking before Marcus rolled his eyes and pushed him away.

  I walked up to him and shook his hand, nodding in camaraderie. "You don't look bad for a dead guy."

  Marcus chuckled. He actually chuckled. Something bad must have happened in there for him to be acting this way, but now wasn't the time to be asking.

  Wynn didn't move from the bed, giving Marcus a two-finger wave.

  Antoine stood from the table as Marcus moved farther into the room. Marcus stopped before Antoine and they had some kind of silent conversation before they c
lasped each other’s forearms and hugged briefly. Except when Marcus pulled back, Antoine jerked him close, sniffing him before scowling. "Why do you smell like Piper's blood?"

  Everyone in the room but Darren inhaled deeply. The sweet scent of Piper's blood was all over Marcus, and it was pulling at every bit of the alpha protectiveness inside me. Piper could be hurt right now. Dying, or worse, Marcus might have killed her. It wasn't a secret that he didn't like her. That he wanted to get rid of her from the beginning.

  Rayne must have read my thoughts, because he was stomping across the room and shoving at Marcus's chest. "What did you do to her? Did you kill her? Did you?" He hit him again and again before Antoine grabbed him by the back of the shirt and threw him halfway across the room.

  "Calm yourself, Rayne. Let Marcus explain."

  "Yeah, Rayne." Drake smirked in the redhead's direction. "You're the mind reader, don't jump to conclusions."

  Marcus dusted himself off. Not that it did much good. His clothes were ripped and covered in blood. His and Piper's. He looked far better than he should for a guy who hadn't eaten in several days, and had likely been tortured for over half of that. But unlike Rayne, I didn't attack him. I gave him the chance to get his bearings before he finally spoke.

  "Piper is alive." The room seemed to sag at his words, or maybe that was just me. That was until he added on, "At least she was when I left her."

  "What do you mean when you left her?" Rayne snarled, coming at him again, but this time I stepped in front of him, holding him back from Marcus. "You just left her there? Huh? You took what you needed and ran? You coward!"

  Marcus snorted. "Before you get your panties any further into a bind, you should know I can't make Piper do anything she doesn't want to do. She stayed behind by choice."

  "Of course she did." Drake threw his head back and turned his back on the lot of us as if he couldn't stand to look at any of us right now.

  Antoine placed a hand on Marcus's shoulder and then gestured to Darren who went to the blood cooler. "Sit. Eat. Explain."

  Marcus took Antoine's seat at the table and accepted the blood bag. He sucked it down a lot slower than expected, but I had a feeling that might have been due to Piper’s blood that lingered on him.

  We waited anxiously for him to collect himself, but it was my brother who gave in first. "Come on, the anticipation is killing me. Just tell us what happened already."

  Marcus sat the blood bag down on the table, completely drained, and crossed his arms over his chest. "The plan didn't go the way we expected. They were waiting for me when I rounded back to follow them." His eyes darted to Antoine, who inclined his head in understanding. "They drugged me, took me to a base, but I didn't get a chance to check it out before they were moving me again." He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "The next time I woke up, Piper was standing over me with another hunter." Twisting in his seat, he narrowed his eyes on Darren. "She's bulked up over this last year."

  Darren didn't even flinch, simply stared back at him, not giving an inch.

  Rayne sighed with aggravation. "We know."

  "She's pretty handy with a dagger too," Marcus pointed out with a bit of a smirk. It made me curious about what she'd done to put that look on his face.

  "We know." Rayne scowled. "Just tell us what happened already."

  Antoine shot Rayne a warning look before jerking his head toward Marcus. "Go ahead."

  Marcus shifted back in his seat. "I was beaten badly and blood starved."

  "You attacked her, didn't you?" Rayne snapped, before Marcus could finish his explanation.

  "Rayne. One more word..." Antoine's command sunk into each of us, making the room heavier with tension.

  Rayne pressed his lips tightly together and collapsed on the nearby bed, pouting like a child.

  Marcus wasn't deterred by Rayne's interruptions or accusations. "She should have just left me there. I was as good as dead anyway." His lips ticked up at the edges. "But of course she wouldn't. She fed me..." He trailed off, saying more by not saying anything. "But when we were going to leave, she wouldn't come with me." Marcus shook his head, annoyance and a hint of pride on his face. "Pfft, she even cut her arm and made me bite her again to make it look like she'd been attacked rather than rescuing me."

  "Why didn't she come with you?" I asked quietly. "Why would she stay behind?"

  It was Darren who answered. Not Marcus.

  "She doesn't want to just save one of you." All eyes turned toward the butler. "Piper plans to save all of you. Either by killing all the hunters or finding someone else for them to chase."

  "Something else to chase?" Drake mused, his fingers tapping on the top of the table. "What the hell is that crazy woman thinking?"

  "Don't let her hear that." Rayne snorted, then shot a look to Antoine to make sure it was alright to talk again. "She'll use those newfound skills on your balls."

  I snorted. "Too late, they're already in her purse."

  "Look who's talking? If she's got mine, she's got all of ours." Drake socked me in the arm.

  I winced and rubbed the sore spot. "Good point."

  "As titillating as this conversation is," Wynn groused from the bed, "I would like to know what we're going to do to get Piper out without getting her killed."

  "Get her out?" Drake gaped. "After all the trouble she went through to get in? Plus, all the preparation she did just to make herself look the part?" He gestured toward Darren. "Didn't you tell him how many hours she spent training?" Drake rubbed his nose and leaned back in his chair, balancing on the legs. "She could kick our asses easily. The hunters don't stand a chance."

  I kicked the side of the leg he balanced on, knocking the chair over. Drake jumped to his feet quickly, so as not to fall on his ass. He glared at me and I flipped him off. "Regardless of if she could kick their asses or not, we have to either help her or get her out." I glanced around the room. "I don't know about you guys, but I vote for the former. If Piper thinks she can get the hunters off our tails, then I think we should let her do it."

  "I concur." Marcus leaned forward, just noticing the tablet with the map of the manor in front of him. "I didn't get to see much, but I do know one thing."

  "What's that?" Darren stepped away from where he stood by the wall. His expression hopeful.

  "The president of the vampire hunters is there now. That's why Piper was able to get in to save me. All the hunters were distracted here." He pointed at a large open building on the map. "They had some kind of gathering there. The president was going to talk to them and interrogate me." His words slowed as he thought of something. "Perhaps Piper could get rid of him or explain about...us."

  "Do you think it will help?" Antoine inquired, leaning against the dresser.

  "Killing him?" Marcus hummed. "Probably not. They'd just elect someone else."

  "And convincing him otherwise?" Drake prompted, with as much hope as the rest of us were probably feeling.

  A huff from Wynn drew our gazes. "If anyone could persuade this president to chase a more worthy quarry, it is our Piper."

  Chapter 12

  Piper

  Pretending to be out for longer than a few minutes was torture. I had never been the most patient person. If it came to being eaten by a bear or playing dead, I'd be eaten seconds into it.

  Tristan took me to the infirmary and before he could even lay me down, I started to get antsy. My nose itched. I was going to sneeze. I couldn't hold it back. It was coming. I couldn't...

  ACHOO!

  I jerked in Tristan's arm and groaned when I smacked my forehead on his chin. "Ow, fuck!"

  Tristan's head whipped back and his arms dropped slightly before he held me tighter. "Well, at least you're not dead."

  He sat me down on the nearby bed and stepped back. "So, are you really hurt or are they telling the truth?"

  "What?" I held my head, my eyes squinting at I looked up at him. "What are you talking about?"

  Tristan huffed and moved over to th
e door, shutting it quietly before coming back to kneel in front of me. "Did you help that vampire escape?"

  I blinked. "Why would I do that? He fucking bit me." I gestured to the wound on my neck.

  "But you're still alive. Breathing." Tristan sat back on his haunches. "You have to admit it's suspicious."

  "What? Because the evil vampire didn't kill me, I must be in cahoots with him?" I shoved as much self-righteous anger into my glare as I could.

  Tristan placed his hands on my arms. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I just...I don't know you that well and as much as I want to believe it, things just don't add up." He paused and looked me straight in the eyes. "Why were you even down there? I thought you were going to get a better look?"

  I winced as he parroted my words back to me. "I know. I lied." I ducked my head and sighed, trying to find some way to explain without giving myself away. Thankfully at that moment someone came in the infirmary door. An old man in a white coat, who had to be the doctor, bustled in with a tablet in his hands.

  "Ah, Mr. Parrish. What brings you in here? I thought I was told a young lady was hurt." The old man looked over the rim of his glasses, glancing between Tristan and me. "And you are?"

  "Oh, hey, Doctor Colton." Tristan stood up and stepped away from me, putting some space between us. "This is Piper. She had a run-in with the captured vampire."

  "Ah, yes. Miss..."

  "Piper is fine," I told the doctor before he could ask. "And I'm fine, really."

  "Nonsense. It's protocol for anyone who has been bitten to see the physician. We want to make sure you've haven't been enthralled." I held back a snort as he came to a stop before me.

  Enthralled. Ha. A little late for that. I didn't need to be bitten by any of the Durands to be obsessed with them.

  I sat still while the doctor poked and prodded at me. He checked my wound before pouring liquid on it that tingled, but that was it. Tristan and Doctor Colton seemed to sigh in relief when I didn't react. I guess I passed whatever test that had been, because the doctor worked on patching me up next.