Ashes & Dust (Bloodlust Book 1)

by J. M. Adele

  Springing to action, Shiloh pulled her hair back in a ponytail and threw on a strapless summer dress. Wow. Zombie to babe in sixty seconds.

  Shouldering her way past, Shiloh didn’t waste any more time. “Let’s go.”

  _____

  The mall was packed with frazzled parents entertaining their bored children while soaking up some free air-conditioning. Groups of teens occupied seating areas, spewing commentary. Hardcore shopaholics hopped from boutique to boutique, getting their dose of retail therapy. And Lanie sat with her sister in a coffee house, wishing she’d let sleeping zombies lie.

  “Are you sure you don’t even want anything to drink?”

  “You said he’d be here. Where is he?”

  Lanie wanted to growl and smash her fist on the table, but she rolled her tongue along the metal of her braces and sighed instead. Shi had been through hell. Lanie needed to remember that. Nobody knew how they’d cope under traumatic circumstances until they were in the thick of it.

  But sure as shit, I wouldn’t be pining for a stupid boy.

  “You know, ever since you’ve come back you’re obsessed with your boyfriend. You used to have other things in your life. You had swimming, and family, and friends. Now you can barely stand up without him holding your hand. What the hell, Shi? Why do you want to see him so badly?”

  “I—” Shiloh stopped, her attention grabbed by a commotion coming from the electronic store across the corridor.

  “I’m calling security!”

  Lanie could just see a balding, red-faced man through a gap in the huddle of onlookers. He looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel, madly flapping his hand as a smoke ring billowed around his face.

  “Put out that cigarette. There’s no smoking in here,” the middle-aged man said.

  “I didn’t steal nothin’.” Lanie couldn’t see the man who’d replied.

  Shiloh shot to her feet, nearly toppling her chair as she craned her neck to get a better view. Lanie watched her sister’s face instead of the spectacle. The way she’d zeroed in on whoever was making trouble, her body angling towards him, Lanie half expected Seth to come swaggering over to their table.

  But Seth wouldn’t be caught stealing or smoking. The only daring thing he did was sneak in her sister’s window.

  A collage of emotions stirred Shiloh’s features until finally she settled on confusion.

  A shadow stretched over the table and climbed Shiloh’s body. “What are you lookin’ at? Show’s over.”

  That was definitely not Seth’s voice.

  That voice held the promise of danger and sin.

  Lanie tilted her head to take in their visitor, the cigarette still pinched between his thumb and finger. Dark was the word that came to mind. He had midnight black hair, tied in a low ponytail. Thick brows anchored low over eyes so dark the pupils were swallowed whole. Smooth brown skin stretched over the angles of his face, his chin partially hidden by a goatee. The guy wore jeans and a black long-sleeved Henley with a checked flannel shirt over the top. In summer. Like he was giving heat the finger. Anger radiated in a magnetic field around him as his eyes pierced into her sister. And Shiloh just stood there staring dumbly.

  Lanie had the urge to jump between them, but the guy’s head whipped around to check over his shoulder, breaking his grip on Shiloh. He sneered before turning back and dropping his cigarette on the carpet, stubbing it out with his boot. Shooting one last glance at Shiloh, he strolled away, disappearing into the crowd.

  One of the baristas came scurrying over to scoop up the cigarette butt and clean the carpet. Shiloh tottered on the heels of her feet before landing stiffly on her chair, a crease between her brows.

  Lanie shook off the encounter with Darkness Himself, chalking it up to shopper rage. The guy was unhinged—the way he’d stared Shiloh down with super-heated intensity. He was like a star before going supernova. A gun without the safety on. Something to stay the hell away from.

  “That was weird. Are you okay?”

  “Hm.” A flush fanned out across her sister’s neck.

  Seth seemed to materialize out of nowhere. Lanie’s hand slapped on her chest, her heart jerking in fright. “Shit, Seth. Where did you come from?”

  He slipped his hands onto Shiloh’s shoulders as he leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. “Hey, baby.”

  Here he was again, hijacking her time with Shiloh. Lanie’s eyes automatically traveled over his body before she pulled them back, grinding her teeth. Stupid asshole had some sort of animal magnetism, and she hated him all the more because she wasn’t entirely immune.

  “Morning, Lanie. I’m good. Thanks for asking.” Seth curled one corner of his lip, pulled out a chair, and flipped it around to sit on it backwards. Turning away from Lanie, Seth addressed her sister, “It’s good to see you out. Are you still waiting for your coffee?”

  Stiff shouldered, Shi’s hand locked on to Seth’s forearm before her lips finally curved up, her shoulders dropping. “Hi.”

  Ugh. Excuse me while I gag.

  “Hi.” He returned her goofy smile before his face hardened. “Who was that guy?”

  Shi’s hand slipped off his arm, her chin dipping as her mouth clamped shut.

  Lanie’s brow creased before she jumped in to answer. “He was just some random loser.” Okay, she’s acting super weird. Maybe Shi had seen the stranger before. Why else would he have come to their table instead of taking off before security could catch him?

  Flexing his fingers, Seth searched the shoppers as they wandered past the door. “He won’t come back. Nobody looks at my girl like that and lives.” He grinned and laid a kiss on Shiloh’s lips. “I’m starving. What’s on the menu?”

  “Shiloh’s not eating.” Lanie didn’t mean to snap, but who the hell invited him? Although, it was good to see Shiloh smile, even if it was through her green-tinged viewpoint.

  “What? Are you sick?” Seth feathered his fingertips along her cheek and Shiloh practically purred at the touch. Lanie’s stomach lurched as she watched on and coughed to cover it up. “Do we need to get you to the doctor?”

  “No. I’m fine. I think I’d like a steak.”

  Lanie cocked a brow. “Steak? At ten in the morning? Yeah, well, they don’t do that here.”

  “I’ll cook you a steak if you come back to my place.”

  “Hold up. Mom and Dad won’t let her go to your place.”

  “Then we’ll eat at yours.”

  “Suit yourself.” Lanie sculled the rest of her cappuccino before gathering her bag.

  Seth stood, tucking her sister under his arm. “I’ll take Shiloh home. We’ll meet you there.”

  “I don’t have my license yet, genius. Shiloh drove over here.”

  “Hasn’t stopped you before.”

  “You’re such a jerk.”

  “And you’re a spoilt brat.”

  His words cut deep, bringing tears to her eyes. Why did she even care about his opinion?

  Turning her cheek, she told her sister she’d wait at the car before weaving through the crowds to the elevator. Lanie punched the close-doors button before anyone could join her, setting free a deluge of pain as the lift ascended to the rooftop. She’d been keeping it all bottled up—the rejection, the loneliness, the despair, and the inadequacy. It had to come out sometime, right? Spoilt brat. Yeah, if being ignored meant you were spoilt, then she was that.

  She put on her sunglasses, keeping her head down as she exited past the shoppers waiting to get in the elevator. Cars prowled the lot, vultures waiting to pounce on the next available space. The bright California sun hit her in the face as it bounced off multiple windshields, heating her already foul mood to a boil. Reaching the car, she slapped her hands on the roof, spun her back to the door, and slid down to squat. Releasing a spray of curse words, she smacked the back of her head against the metal, hoping she left a dent in its perfectly shiny exterior. It would be a visual cue for anyone still under the illusion that they were the perfect fam
ily.

  “He ain’t worth it.”

  Jerking sideways, she fell on her ass, letting out a squeal. The dark-haired guy stood over her, legs apart, taking a drag of a cigarette. What the hell? Had he followed her? She was all too aware that she was hidden between the cars. Nobody would see her unless they were driving past and looked to the side. All they would see was him having a smoke. The guy loomed large above her, radiating anger. His sharp features drawn tight, midnight eyes drilling into her, encroaching on her personal space. Her tears ran in rivers, frustration forgotten as danger took its place. His chest puffed out as he held in a lungful of smoke. Crouching down to her level, he made an O with his mouth and blew a sequence of smoke rings in her face.

  Grimacing from the toxic onslaught, she held her breath, too scared to move. Why had he followed her? How had he followed her? She’d been alone in the lift. Unless he took the stairs.

  “Stop crying. I ain’t gonna hurt ya.”

  She doubted that with every bone of her body, their forms turning brittle. “Back off.”

  Smoke came out of his nose as he snorted. “Or what?”

  “I’ve got a gun.” She pushed the threat through a narrowed throat.

  His features smoothed in a laconic mask. Casually, he raised his cigarette closer to his face, rolling it between his thumb and finger. He flicked the ash and took another drag before settling his black eyes on hers. “No, you don’t. Your dad’s got a gun in a safe in your basement. But you . . . you’re not old enough.”

  The bottom dropped out of her world. How would he know that unless he’d been watching them? Even then. He’d have to have been inside their house to know about the gun safe. She thought of Shiloh. Did this guy have something to do with her disappearance? Had he done something to her and now he was after Lanie?

  Somebody help me!

  The hot pavement bit at her hands as she scuttled towards the front of the car like a crab. “How do you know that?”

  “I know a lot of stuff about you, Lanie Elizabeth Howard.”

  On the Hunt

  “You fucking creep. Stay away from me. I’m calling the cops.” She was barely able to speak. Her heartbeat hammered between her ears as she pictured her face illustrating the headlines. ‘Pool of Blood Left Behind as Sister of Missing Girl Disappears.’

  “Oh, yeah? What are ya gonna tell them? That I threatened you with secondhand smoke?”

  Please. Don’t . . . “What do you want?” she sobbed.

  “Nothin’. I don’t want nothin’ from you, or your sister.”

  “Leave her alone!”

  Lanie’s head whipped to the right. Seth.

  He charged at the guy, fist first, landing a punch that knocked him over. Lanie sprang up and dashed around the other side of the hood where Shiloh watched on in shock.

  The stranger unfurled to his full height, a couple of inches taller than Seth’s six-foot two. Lifting his hand, he inspected his now broken cigarette, its tip hanging by the thinnest slice of paper.

  Releasing another snort, he turned his gaze on the sisters. “He broke my smoke.”

  Is he joking right now?

  As if in slow motion, Seth’s fist went flying at the stranger’s face again. It never hit its target, the guy snapping out his palm to catch it in his grip. Seth’s body twisted in pain as he let out a grunt, and dropped to his knees, out of view. Lanie might’ve laughed at Seth’s misfortune, but the fact was he’d come to her rescue. He was the last person she’d expected to stick up for her. Thank Christ he had.

  The girls moved around in time to see the stranger bend to whisper something in Seth’s ear. Seth jerked his head away before the guy turned to leave, calling over his shoulder, “Nice talking to ya, Lanie. See you at school.”

  School? What?

  Shit. They’d be seeing him again. Who the hell was he?

  ‘Nothin’. I don’t want nothin’ from you, or your sister.’

  That was the biggest lie she’d ever heard.

  Seth cradled his sore hand against his chest and got to his feet, his face red with anger.

  Shiloh raced to her boyfriend’s side. “What did he say?”

  “He bit me.”

  What the frick?

  Lanie heard Shiloh suck in a breath. “You’re bleeding.” Reaching up to his ear, she drew a bloodied finger back, swaying as she fixed her gaze on the blood running towards her palm.

  Lanie’s stomach almost folded inside out as she witnessed her sister poke out her tongue and lick her finger clean. Red spots flecked Shiloh’s irises before the black of her pupils completely engulfed the whites of her eyes. She released the same feral cry she’d made after coming home.

  Holy shit. Lanie’s skin prickled all over, her jaw hanging loose.

  “Shiloh?” Seth mouthed, holding his hands over his ears.

  Shiloh’s head twisted in his direction, the sinister black orbs showing no evidence of humanity. Her scream ceased, replaced by the distant sound of car horns blaring, crunching metal, and shattering glass.

  Like she was attached to a bungee cord, Shiloh leapt backwards, landing on all fours on the roof of a car three rows back.

  Jesus Christ. What the frick is happening?

  “Shi!” Lanie started after her, though every muscle was coiled, ready to run in the opposite direction. A beast had emerged, but her sister was still in there somewhere. And Lanie needed to save her.

  “Stay there. Don’t come near me.”

  Even her sister’s voice was unrecognizable, plunging to a gravelly depth. Lanie kept coming, and Shiloh took off. As fast as a bullet, she ghosted into thin air.

  Lanie skidded to a halt in the middle of the lane, turning in circles to search the sea of cars. Heart pounding, thoughts scattering, the only clear thing she could think was what the hell?

  What happened to you?

  _____

  Seth drove Lanie back to his home in silence. In her head, she tried to write the script for the scene ahead. Her explanation of Shiloh’s whereabouts to her parents. How could she tell them that she’d disappeared again? And why?

  She kept her eyes glued to the windows for any sign of her sister while she chewed her fingernails until they bled. Truth was, she wasn’t so sure she wanted to see Shi at all. Those black eyes. They’d belonged to a wild animal. Lanie shuddered as she bit down too hard.

  “Stop biting your nails.”

  “What do you care?”

  “You’re bleeding.” Seth turned away, glancing out his side window. “If she’s waiting at my place and sees more blood, what do you think is going to happen?”

  Oh, shit. “Yeah.”

  What if she attacked his father? “Is your dad home?”

  “No, he’s away.”

  Seth parked around the back and turned off the car, not getting out of his seat. With his eyes closed, he spoke through gritted teeth. “You can wash up in the downstairs bathroom. There are Band-Aids in the cabinet.”

  Exiting the car, he slammed the door behind him, and jogged up the back steps.

  Jeez, he was acting like it was her fault that Shiloh had gone feral.

  What if her sister was watching her right now? And I’m out here on my own.

  Fumbling for the door handle, she bolted up the steps, making sure to lock the back door behind her. Her fingers were a mess, blood smearing on the handle. She’d have to come back and clean that up after she found the bathroom. A bathroom. The house was so huge, she guessed it had several on each level, just like her place.

  “Seth?”

  No response. Unless he didn’t hear her. He must’ve gone upstairs. He had his own first-aid to attend to.

  Padding through the kitchen and living area, she headed for the hallway. Testing the doors, she located the laundry and a cupboard before she finally found what she was looking for. Lanie cleaned off the blood, using a Kleenex to dry her fingers and stop the bleeding before she caught sight of herself in the mirror. The lights drained her face of color.
Or maybe it was the fact that her sister was some kind of monster. A monster who would be sleeping down the hallway from her, if Shiloh ever came home.

  Oh my God. What if her sister was irretrievable, replaced by that blood thirsty thing? What if she came for Lanie in the night? What if Shiloh slaughtered the whole family and then skipped over the road to finish Seth off, too?

  How did this happen? Was it an infection, or had her DNA mutated in some way? There had to be something that had done this to her. And that meant there were more of them.

  Like Darkness Himself. He knew too much. Had he been the one to hurt Shiloh?

  Reaching to open the cabinet, her hand shook, and she knocked the Band-Aid packet into the sink. It took three tries before she was able to rip the box open and bandage her fingers.

  Her head shot up as a loud thump sounded through the ceiling. She raced for the kitchen, sliding a large blade from the knife block. Sidestepping her way up the stairs, she crept along the hallway towards the grunts, gasps, and knocking muffled behind one of the doors. Her palm was sticky with sweat, the metal handle slippery in her grasp. Swallowing against a dry mouth, she opened the door and froze. Her heart stammered in her chest as she found her sister straddling Seth, blood staining the front of his shirt. Shiloh spun her head around, eyes a fiery crimson, and red dripping from her fangs.

  Fucking. Fangs.

  The knife bounced on the carpet as it slid from Lanie’s hand, her body following suit as she checked out on her twisted reality.

  _____

  Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my GOD.

  She’d just sucked on Seth’s blood. And liked it. She wanted more, the taste of it setting off detonations of pleasure all the way from her throat, through her chest to her core. His flavor, cinnamon and heat, sparked a lust for more than just his blood. She wanted his body stripped and ready for her to feast.

  But she was aware that they were in the parking lot, and that her sister was staring, horrified. A scream ripped at her throat, the beast in her protesting the mental shackles she’d enforced.

  “Shiloh.” His lips curled around her name.

  She frowned as Seth’s hand obstructed her view of the blood dripping from his ear. Realizing how loud she was, she abruptly cut off the sound. The urge to strike at his vein and drink him dry consumed her with a force she wasn’t strong enough to endure.