by Raine Miller
“What can I do for you?”
“Just following the law. I plan to be in New Orleans for a while. Personal business.”
“Here to see one of your vampires? Have you registered with my office?”
“I plan to.”
“And her?”
Scared stiff, Sasa nervously thought to herself that she might explode with laughter if he told the Archon that he planned to be in her for a while too.
“She’s part of that personal business.”
The Archon’s face remained emotionless, except for a tiny smile that showed just the tips of his fangs. Slowly, almost seductively, he ran his tongue across his top teeth as he moved his gaze from Vasilije to her.
Staring as her like she was an entree on some living menu, he continued to address Vasilije. “I don’t know what is customary where you come from, but here in New Orleans, we don’t generally have humans on our arms. Unless she’s a slave.”
Vasilije gently squeezed her hand as he answered. “She’s mine. What I do with her is my business.”
The Archon slowly turned his eyes back to Vasilije and then in a hollow voice said, “Enjoy your time in my area. Remember, however, you’re not in London. We’re a bit more close-knit here.”
With that, he rose from behind his desk and stiffly walked out of the room, offering Vasilije no handshake or even a polite goodbye.
“It’s time to go, Sasa.”
Vasilije led the way back outside, saying nothing until the two of them were almost a block away. Unlike just a few minutes earlier, Sasa felt waves of emotion coming from him now.
“It’s best if you go home now, love.”
Sasa couldn’t believe she was going to have to deal with this again. “Vasilije, no. Why do you keep pushing me away from helping you? I’m staying.”
His response surprised her. Blue eyes wide with emotion stared down at her. “I can’t promise I can protect you, Sasa. Please go home. I don’t want to see you hurt.”
“You’re just scaring me so I’ll leave.”
Suddenly, he grabbed her upper arms, as if to shake her. Fear of him raced through her for the first time.
“Sasa, you need to be scared. Didn’t you hear how the Archon spoke to me? And didn’t you listen when he basically said you should be a slave?”
“Well, he wasn’t very nice, but not every vampire can be you.”
Vasilije dropped his hands, obviously frustrated, and looked up toward the night sky. Maybe her joking had gone too far.
“You’re not kidding, are you?”
Lowering his gaze to meet hers, his blue eyes showed concern more than anything else. “Sasa, something is very wrong. That man knew everything about me. I never mentioned where I’m from and that one of my vampires lived here, and my accent isn’t English, yet he referred to me being from London and knows about Teagan.”
“What are you saying?”
Shaking his head, he took her hand and began walking. “I don’t know. Something doesn’t feel right. And that part about humans as slaves? That’s not an opinion that’s generally held by the Archons.”
“How would he know who you are? Did you mention anything to anyone?”
“No. The only people I’ve spoken to since I’ve gotten here are you and Jeremy. I’ve done some nosing around to find where the local groups are who might know something about Teagan’s murder, but I haven’t said a thing to anyone.”
Sasa turned to look away, afraid what she was thinking was written all over her face. There was someone else in New Orleans who knew where he was from. Had she contacted the Archon? If so, why since she was in town expressly to get revenge on Vasilije?
Turning back, she asked, “And did he really mean I should be a slave?”
“Not the kind you think. He meant a bleeder.”
Sasa felt her own blood run cold. “Bleeder? What’s that?”
Vasilije pulled her up next to him. “Sasa, it’s exactly what it says. As my bleeder, you’d be mine to feed on whenever I chose. Vampires prefer to feed from their own, but some think it’s acceptable to keep a human for times when there isn’t one of us around.”
“I’m confused. Why wouldn’t you just sire a vampire instead of making a human a slave?”
“I would, but some of my kind want to punish humans for hunting us.”
Sasa felt sick to her stomach. “Vasilije, maybe I won’t go with you.”
Bending down, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead. “Good. I’d feel much better if you were safe at home.”
“Okay. I’ll go.”
“Go home and stay there, Sasa. I’ll contact you later.”
Sasa left Vasilije a few blocks from her house, but as she walked home, she dreaded staying in that house alone. It seemed so empty now that her mother was gone, and what had always felt welcoming and secure now felt hollow and lonely. Hopping on the streetcar, she made her way to Teagan’s house in the Garden District and found Jeremy still fast asleep on the couch.
As she crawled into the bed she and Vasilije had shared, a calmness enveloped her. Breathing deeply, she let Vasilije’s sweetly musky scent fill her nose. Uniquely him, it made her feel safe.
Drifting off to sleep, she tried to push the memory of what the Archon had said out of her mind. Maybe what her mother had said was true. Maybe vampires were monsters.
Well, maybe not all of them.
***
“Your man just left. To say I was surprised when he was announced would be an understatement. All I want to know is why isn’t he dead yet?”
Tatiana sat listening to the Louisiana Archon chastise her, more interested in how Vasilije had acted toward Sasa than anything else. “I want to have my revenge on him first.”
Steel gray eyes shot back a look of irritation at her. “You have a job to do for us, Tatiana. That job doesn’t include revenge for whatever slight this vampire has inflicted on you.”
“It’s far more than a slight, your honor. I told you I made a formal complaint about him in London. Vampire law says...”
The Archon cut her off with an angry wave of his hand. “I know what you charged in London, and we found that his infraction wasn’t serious enough for us to get involved in a formal hearing. Find another boy to play with. But not before you do what you’ve been instructed. We chose you because you claim to hate him. Were we wrong?”
The hate she felt for Vasilije made her fingers numb it was so strong. “No, you weren’t wrong. I just want to make him suffer before I kill him.”
The Archon stood from behind his desk and walked to where she sat. Looking down at her, he straightened his tie and adjusted his suit coat before he spoke. “He’ll suffer when you kill him. You may take as long to do the actual deed as you like, but no more of this playing around. We don’t much care one way or another what happens to the girl, but if you’re going to kill her too, make sure it’s clean and not something I have to deal with afterward. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, sir.”
As the Archon walked out of his office, Tatiana sat alone silently cursing the laws of their world. Vasilije had broken their rules, no matter what the Archons said, and he needed to pay for that. Whatever bigger plan they had didn’t mean anything compared to her need for revenge. Alex was the last straw, and this time, Vasilije wasn’t going to get away with what he’d done.
CHAPTER 8
It was almost three a.m. by the time Vasilije got back to Teagan’s, and all he wanted was the feel of his mattress against his back and the chance to stretch out his tired legs. He’d learned very little about who could be behind Teagan’s murder. The group of vampires he’d visited in the Quarter seemed to believe some hunters in the area could be responsible, but he remained unconvinced.
At least they’d spoken to him. The vampires outside the city—Swamprats, as the Quarter group called them—were so paranoid of outsiders they wouldn’t even listen to his questions. After dealing with both groups, all he knew was the New Orleans vampir
es were an entirely different breed than what he was used to.
Teagan, how the fuck did you deal with them?
As he passed by Jeremy on the couch, he saw him begin to stir as the spell’s effect began to wear off. Hopefully, he still had a few hours before he woke up and he had to deal with him.
Fuck. And they call this place The Big Easy?
In the dark, he stripped out of his clothes and headed for the bed. Even before he made it there, he saw her sleeping. She looked like an angel, her hands folded under her cheek on the pillow next to his.
What is she doing here?
As quietly as he could, he slid under the covers, careful not to wake her. Slowly, his body melded into the comfort of the bed beneath him and the night’s events faded into the back of his mind.
He turned to look to his left as Sasa sighed in her sleep. She looked so comfortable, so right next to him. Had she always slept on that side next to Teagan?
Vasilije caught himself as he began to imagine them together in the very bed he now shared with her. Jealousy stung him at the thought of Teagan touching her. Making love to her. Had he loved her? Had she loved him?
Teagan had never been a man to devote himself to one woman, so Vasilije doubted it had been love on his side. Strangely, that didn’t give him any comfort. The idea that Sasa had given her heart to someone who didn’t love her in return gnawed at him.
Turning the light on, she asked, “Did you find anything out?”
The sound of her voice roused him from his thoughts. As he considered her question, she propped her head up on her hand and looked up at him, waiting for an answer.
“What are you doing here, Sasa?”
“I asked first.”
“Not much.”
Sasa made a noise to show her sympathy and lowered her head to the pillow. The way she looked at him, like he imagined a wife did at a husband, made him want to set things straight.
“Why are you here?”
For a long moment, she was silent. Then in a voice that threatened to undo his resolve, she said, “I didn’t want to be alone.”
Jesus, how can anyone be so open?
“Sasa, I can’t replace Teagan. I’m not like him.”
She closed her eyes and silently lay next to him, but he had to continue.
“I can’t be what he was.”
Sasa looked up at him with hurt in her eyes. “Don’t...don’t say that.”
“I’m not a boyfriend. I’m a man who fucks the girlfriend of his dead friend.”
The words rang in his ears, sounding far harsher than he intended them to be. Instinctively, he turned his face away from her, unable to deal with the sadness he was sure he’d see.
Sasa gently touched his stomach, exciting him more than he wished.
“Look at me. Please.”
Vasilije looked back at her and cringed at the pain he saw on her face. “Sasa...don’t.”
“Don’t talk like that about what we’ve done together.”
“This is nothing. This is two people consoling themselves. That’s all.”
Fuck. He knew he was being an asshole, but whatever she was feeling—whatever she thought they were—couldn’t be.
As he saw her face register the hurt from his words, he sensed the bedroom door open. Before he could intercept Jeremy, he was at his side of the bed, a new vampire hungry for blood.
“Whatever you did to make me pass out only made me hungry. Feed me.”
Jeremy was as obnoxious as he’d been before the spell, but since Vasilije had created this mess, he knew he had to deal with it. Nature took over and his fangs punched down into his mouth. Pressing against his wrist, he pierced his own skin and opened a vein. Blood oozed down his inner arm as he lifted his wrist to Jeremy’s mouth.
“Drink.”
Doing as he was ordered, Jeremy’s mouth drew eagerly on Vasilije’s wrist, silencing him for at least a short time. Sasa lay staring up at the scene, her eyes wide with curiosity.
“This is what I am, Sasa. Not a boyfriend. Not some roommate. Vampire.”
She said nothing and seemed intently interested in Jeremy’s feeding. Her eyes were riveted to his wrist, where Jeremy continued to greedily lap up the blood his body craved. Vasilije wanted her to watch. She needed to see exactly what he was so whatever fantasy she’d created disappeared quickly.
Sasa stopped watching and left the bed. Standing there in just her panties and one of Teagan’s t-shirts, she looked so innocent—far too innocent to be involved with him. He waited for her to say something. Anything. Goodbye. Tell him he could go fuck himself. But she just silently stood while Jeremy finished.
Vasilije yanked his wrist away from Jeremy’s mouth and slid his tongue over the wound to seal it. Eyes closed, he allowed himself to enjoy the feelings feeding one of his vampires brought out in him. He’d deal with Sasa in a minute, but for now, he let the joy ease into him.
Sasa made a noise as she rounded the corner of the bed, and Vasilije slowly opened his eyes to see her approaching his side of the bed. Before he could say a word, she had Jeremy pushed against the wall. His newest vampire wasted little time responding to her, the question of her relationship with his sire obviously of little consequence to him.
Vasilije sat stunned as he watched them move from mere kissing to something far more erotic. Sasa stood on her toes to wrap her arms around Jeremy’s neck, causing her shirt to rise just above the bottom of her pretty ass. Jeremy’s hand slid down to cup that ass before he pulled her into his body. Young and eager, he slid his fingers under her panties, grazing the delicate skin Vasilije had known just days before.
Vasilije knew what she was doing. A little ploy to make him jealous. And it was working.
Fuck her. He wasn’t some local yokel frat boy like Jeremy. He was a four hundred year old vampire. He could have any woman he wanted. If she wanted some boy barely out of adolescence, she could have him.
But he wasn’t going to sit idly by and watch.
One swift movement brought him directly behind Sasa, his erect cock pressing against her back. His voice low and deep, he spoke quietly as he began to hypnotize her. “You want this, Sasa. Let your body be ours. Let go.”
Vasilije ran his hands over her taut belly and dainty little panties wet from desire for what his words promised. As Jeremy continued his focus on her mouth, Vasilije paid attention to other regions of her body he already knew intimately. Crouching, he slid those drenched panties down her beautiful legs and off her feet, tossing them aside dismissively.
Sasa obeyed his command and arched to accommodate his sensual caresses as his fingers trailed from her swollen clit to her opening. Each pass through her soft folds elicited needy moans from her, exciting him more.
He planted small kisses along her hip as he played with her cunt, knowing she wanted so much more than kisses and teasing. Above, Jeremy fondled her excited nipples, and Sasa pushed her ass out to encourage Vasilije to finally do more than play with her.
Standing to his full height, he pushed his stiff cock between her legs, just grazing where he knew she so desperately wanted him to stay. She moaned into Jeremy’s mouth, a begging mew that sent a jolt of arousal from Vasilije’s balls through his erection. From this angle, he was at a distinct disadvantage, though. That had to change.
“Jeremy, behind her,” he ordered as he moved to slide in front of her.
As the younger vampire took his position at her back, Vasilije brought her up against his body. “Focus on her legs.”
Sasa wrapped her arms around his neck and her mouth rooted for his. So willing, she rolled her hips against him, leaving evidence of her desire on his stiff cock. This was going to be quite enjoyable.
Jeremy dropped to his knees and began kissing her thighs. Now in the position of power, Vasilije took control of Sasa, kissing her deeply as she moaned into his mouth. He liked the thought of turning the tables on her little game.
Little girls shouldn’t play with fire.
He spoke to her, his voice the same hypnotic tone as before as he slowly stroked her neck and stared into her eyes. “Sasa, look at me. You will do whatever I tell you to. Do you understand?”
Sasa smiled and nodded. “Yes, Vasilije.”
“Tell me what you want, love.”
She was silent for a moment and then quietly she said next to his ear, “I want you to stop trying to hypnotize me. It won’t work. And since I mean nothing to you, I want him, not you. So why don’t you go back to watching?”
Sasa stared defiantly up at him, her face the picture of smugness. So, she wanted to test him? Fine. Now she’d see what she got when she played games with a vampire.
In the low, deep voice of a sire, he commanded, “Jeremy, go back to the couch. Now.”
Jeremy immediately rose to his feet and skulked away, unable to disobey his sire’s command. As he closed the door behind him, Vasilije roughly pulled Sasa to meet his body.
“Mine.”
Sasa worked to wriggle out of his hold as she protested his claim. “I’m nothing to you. Let me go!”
Her words—his words—enraged him. She wasn’t nothing to him. At that moment, she was the only thing that mattered in the world. The feel of her pressed against him as he held her tightly to his body made his claim all the more real.
Mine.
Vasilije spun them around and pinned her against the wall. One hand captured her hands above her head, and the other cupped her sex and pressed against her tightened bud.
Sasa looked up at him, her eyes wide with surprise as she seemed to realize what she’d awakened in him. “Vasilije, please...”
He slid a finger through her wet slit, gliding up and down with her moans. Her eyes closed, and she arched toward his body, needy for his touch. Vasilije leaned close to her ear, and groaning at his own need to be inside her, whispered, “Tell me you don’t want this and I’ll release you. If not, you’re mine.”
He didn’t have to wait for her answer. Her mouth was on his neck, kissing him as she worked to tip her hips to make her pussy more available to him. When she spoke, her voice was edged with desire, like music to his ears.
