Once Bitten, Twice Shy

by Scarlett Jade

  “I don't want to go!” She cried out in terror as they propelled her up the stairs. The man grinned wider, his eyes flashing in the warm light of the house.

  “Come to me, my beautiful. I've waited so long for you to arrive. Ahh, the way your skin shudders and heart trips. It’ll be a pleasure to take you.” The man clenched her good hand in a vise-like grip and pulled her to him. She tripped over the threshold and fell against his chest. As his hands caught her ass and kneaded her flesh roughly, she found herself screaming. The more she screamed, the more he seemed to like it. She beat at him with her cast, pain radiating up her arm in waves. He finally released her and she stumbled back. Billy moved forward to enchant her and the man put his hand up. “No, Billy. Let her be afraid; I enjoy it.” He ran a hand down his robe, the lower half tented out from his erection.

  Billy swallowed nervously and stepped back. “Yes, Master.”

  Trevor grinned widely. “Are you pleased, Master? I've done everything you asked.”

  The man frowned. “Trevor, you imbecile, you almost killed her. You should know better. You've let your title in the human world get your ego up. You forget where you come from, boy. I remember you as the sniveling prick who was puking on the corner.” He stepped forward and caught Trevor by the throat, lifting him slightly off the ground. “Let's make sure you don't forget where you came from and who made you who you are today, shall we?” He flexed his fingers around Trevor's long, pale throat and grinned in pleasure as his face turned ruby. Once he finally released him, Trevor fell to the floor in a heap, gasping for air. “Of course, Claudio, let's not forget where I came from.”

  Claudio smiled in perverse pleasure. “Good. Remember, you can be replaced by a new leech before the end of the day.”

  Trevor smirked. “How, Master? You've killed off the rest.”

  Claudio shook his head. “True, but I can make a hundred more, better than you, any day of the week. You've done well, Trevor. You pulled Jeremy in for me and I’ve got something better than him now. I have his blood mate; a part witch, plus I have the witch-vampire child. They will be my legacy. You are no longer needed and therefore disposable. Remember that, Trevor. Do not consider crossing me now.” He turned back to Sasha, who’d stumbled into the kitchen and was pulling at the door, trying to escape. “There's no hope, sweetness. You may as well accept that. No hope.”

  Billy had sat down with Onyx on the black leather couch and rocked her slowly. “Master, where will the baby sleep?”

  Claudio smiled magnanimously. “In my chambers. She has a crib waiting for her. I never want to be far from the girl who will be my queen one day.”

  Sasha turned quickly as his words echoed through the house. “Your queen?” she whispered, shuffling closer, her black eyes flashing in fury. “Your queen? She will never be your queen!” She held onto the wall as she stepped into the living room. “I won't allow you to hurt her.”

  Claudio shrugged. “There will be nothing you can do about it, frankly. I plan on making her my bride as soon as she is viable for my seed. Until then, you'll be my whore, bearing me my army of children.”

  She pushed her hair out of her face. “I'll never.”

  Claudio grinned widely and snapped his fingers. “Trevor.”

  He stood warily at the edge of the room, watching quietly. “Yes, sir.”

  “Take her below to the chamber, won't you?” Claudio clapped his slender hands together in glee and Sasha paled as Trevor came up to her and grasped her arm roughly.

  “You don't have to do this,” she whispered adamantly.

  Trevor frowned, his blue eyes almost sad for a second before he gripped her tighter. “Of course I do, Sasha. I have no choice.” He pulled her forward and she hit him in the back of the head with her cast. “God damn you, I don't want to hurt you!” He snatched her forward again and she dug her bare feet into the glossy wooden floor as best as she could.

  “Then, let me go!” She hit him in the face with her cast again and he backhanded her. Her head snapped to the left and she saw stars. Claudio giggled as Trevor dragged her down the stairs. She hit him again and again.

  Claudio sighed. “She's so feisty, isn't she?”

  ***

  Finally Trevor grew tired of Sasha’s incessant fighting and he drew back a fist and punched her in the nose. She collapsed in his arms and he sighed in relief as he caught her as she slid down the staircase and threw her over his shoulder. He grunted as he hefted her down the last few steps and his eyes went wide at the chamber. He stopped short and Claudio bumped into his back.

  “Move forward, Trevor. I feel the need to get this moving along. We’re almost at the full moon and, from what I understand about witches, she’ll be the most fertile then. I need to implant.” He pushed against Trevor's back, who staggered forward, almost losing his grip on Sasha's prone body.

  “Claudio, what’s all of this?” Trevor felt bile rising in his throat as he shifted her on his shoulder.

  Claudio turned toward him with a macabre smile. “Why, my dear boy…this is the chamber of my pleasure and her absolute pain.” He touched a chain against the wall and crooked his finger. “Bring her forward, so we may secure her to the wall.”

  “Why?” Trevor whispered.

  Claudio smiled wide. “So I can torture her before the act.” Trevor stood frozen and Claudio frowned. “Don't pussy out now, boy. You've come this far. You've lied; you've fucked Jeremy over since the two of you met. Don't weaken on me now. You know what this would mean for us as a new species.”

  Trevor sagged under the weight of his servitude. “Yes, Master.”

  Claudio smiled again. “You want eternal life, do you not?”

  Trevor's face came up and his eyes glistened with fervor. “More than anything, Master.”

  “The bitch is the key to it all. Let us begin.”

  Trevor hung his head as he stepped forward. Claudio shackled her good arm then snatched her broken arm hard, the plaster cracking as he broke the healing bone to attach the metal cuff to her wrist. He spread her legs wide and shackled both ankles before stepping back with a twisted smile. She hung forward, her shoulders at an awkward angle and her dark hair swirling around her face. Her eyes were closed and a slow trickle of blood came from her nose. Her mouth hung open and the slow rasp of her breathing filled the room.

  Claudio reached forward and snatched her thin nightgown off, the rip of material making Trevor's throat tighten. She’d lost so much weight in the last few months. She'd barely been kept alive with IV nutrients. Claudio picked up a cat o' nine tails. “Shall we?” The electric snap through the air made him clench.

  Claudio beat her mercilessly until Trevor finally screamed. “You have to stop, Claudio! Please!”

  Claudio turned to him, his eyes milky green and face twisted in terrible pleasure. “Get out.”

  Trevor ran up the stairs, the sound of torture filling his ears.

  ***

  Jeremy rode through the night on the cycle. Gena had offered to ride with him, of course, and her long, pale arms were wrapped tightly around his waist. Her delicate fingers kept slipping down to casually brush his dick and it infuriated him. He grabbed at her wayward palms again and pulled her hands higher on his stomach. “Stop it, Gena!”

  She sighed against his back. “We could be good together, Jeremy. I could make you forget her.” He ignored the press of her full breasts against his back.

  “You aren't my mate, Gena, and nothing you ever do will make it so.” He gunned the engine and shot to the head of the pack, closer to Victor's cycle.

  Victor pointed ahead to a light glowing on the horizon. A town was coming up. They'd have somewhere to stay for the day and then they'd search the house at dusk. Some of the pure-blooded vampires could handle the sun, could even masquerade among the humans for short periods, but most preferred the dark. The sun didn't burn them, nor did it make them sparkle, like the movie indicated. It just drained them, gave them a fever, and made the bloodlust unbearable
, so they stayed in the shadows.

  Jeremy knew he'd never sleep, not this full of adrenaline. He peeled Gena's wandering fingers from his dick one last time as they rolled into the small Italian town. Victor motioned for them to follow him to a tall, sprawling villa, the white stone exterior glistening in the moonlight. The smell of freesia surrounded them and Jeremy breathed deeply. The cycles sputtered to a stop as they cut the engines and the pack of misfits clambered off and stretched. Victor walked through the courtyard of the beautiful home and knocked on the door. Jeremy caught up with him, climbing the stone staircase.

  “You know these people?”

  Victor nodded as a light flickered on. The knob twisted and a middle-aged woman opened the door. She was nondescript in appearance, and her body was round and soft, her hair short and gray, cropped into a boyish cut around her face. Only when she smiled did her true beauty come through. Her brown eyes lit up and her face crinkled sweetly. “Victor,” she breathed, opening her arms to him.

  He stepped forward and picked the woman up, spinning her around. He kissed her fleshy neck and smiled. “Hello, Rose.”

  “You brought friends?” She twined her arms around his neck and kissed his mouth. “You know where they can stay. Show them to their rooms then you come to me, lover.” She kissed him again and sashayed away, her full hips undulating.

  Jeremy's mouth hung open. “Well all right then, Victor. You go get laid. Just tell us where to sleep.”

  Victor grinned like the cat caught in the cream. “I've only a couple hours before sunrise. She's demanding, this one.” He pointed down the hallway. “There are bedrooms that way. Excuse me while I relieve my tensions.” He streaked down the hallway after Rose.

  Jeremy shook his head and looked around the villa. “This is a beautiful place.” The rooms were done in masculine amber and chocolate, expensive fabrics and leathers on the furniture. Gena stretched, her shirt riding high on her stomach.

  “I could use some tension-relieving too. Anyone care to scratch my itch?” She glanced at the vampires and licked her full mouth. One young vampire by the name of Lane stepped forward.

  “I can help you out.”

  Gena smiled wide, her teeth flashing. “Then come get some, little boy.” She walked down the hall, tossing a smirk back at Jeremy. She twitched her ass hard, as if hoping it would entice him.

  Jeremy sighed and rubbed his forehead. “We should sleep.” The rest of the vampires nodded in agreement. They walked down the hallway to separate rooms. Jeremy opened the door to the room he picked and admired the beautiful four-post ebony bed, covered tastefully in a silver and blue comforter and pillows. He shrugged his jacket and shirt off and draped them over a brocade chair before he bent to slip his boots off and undid his jeans, the rasp of the zipper loud in the serenity of the room. He peeled them off and padded to the bed dressed only in his underwear. Crawling between the smooth, cool sheets he sighed and reflected that this was definitely the nicest place they'd stayed at on their journey. His eyes slid shut as dawn streaked across the sky. Exhaustion consumed him.

  He woke startled, not long after he’d fallen asleep. The room was light and she stood in front of the window, the sunlight gilding her copper hair. She was naked, her full breasts high on her chest, with pert nipples. She was willowy and thin, her ribs and hip bones poking out of her creamy iridescent skin. He sat up quickly and rubbed his eyes. “Gena? What are you doing here?”

  She smiled slowly. “Getting what I want.” She shrugged one milky shoulder and slipped toward him, her hips rippling forward as though she was a jungle cat, seeking out her prey.

  He jumped off the bed and she moved like lightning, pressing him to the wall with her cool flesh. “Gena, you need to leave.” She was stronger than she seemed and he fought to push her slight weight away from him. Finally, he was able to slip around her and she laughed.

  “I want you, Jeremy, and I always get what I want.” She shifted forward again, and he found himself pressed back into the brocade chair, her legs spread wide over him as she rocked against his boxers.

  “Gena. No!” He shoved at her and she only ground harder. His cock betrayed him as it rose hard to meet her wet thrusts.

  “Your body wants me.” She grinned as she pushed him back against the brocade harder.

  “But my mind and heart don’t, Gena.” He looked square into her eyes. “I don't want you and I never will. You’re a bitch and a slut. Any woman who would tempt another's blood mate is no real woman. You're a disgrace.”

  She hissed and jumped off his lap. “You’re making a horrible mistake.” She shook her head firmly. “You’ll regret this, Jeremy.” She held her regal head high as she flounced out of the door. The echoing slam vibrated off the walls and he let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd held. The sooner he got his mate and child back, the better life would be. He could leave the vamps for good and they could pretend to be humans. Nothing more.

  ***

  Sasha woke to immense pain ripping through her body and her limbs twitching. Claudio stood before her, a garish grin on his face. “Welcome back to the world of the living.” He casually removed the electrocuting prong from her side and watched in glee as she slumped forward again.

  Tears poured down her face. “Why are you doing this to me?” she garbled out.

  He smiled. “Because torture turns me on.”

  She laughed, the barking sound shocking her. “Can't get a woman the normal way? Or is it that you don't like women? What is it, Claudio?”

  The slap hit her hard and her face jerked to the side. She turned back to him and spit blood in his face. “I'll die before you fuck me.”

  He casually wiped her bloody spittle from his face and then stuck his fingers into his mouth, slurping them clean. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as bloodlust overtook him. “Do not tempt me, witch. You’ll help me create a new breed of vampire; a faster, smarter, better vampire. One that can enchant and entrance, seduce and violate. One that is so damn powerful no one will know what to do with it. Your daughter will be my queen when you are too used up to continue on.” He shrugged as he palmed the prod and shot forward, pressing it to her side again. She screamed in pain and he groaned in pleasure. As he removed the prod from her side, she quivered.

  “And Trevor?”

  Claudio blinked. “You care because? Why aren't you shaking in fear of me?”

  Sasha smirked. “Yes, I care. I want to know what to tell them when I kill you. I want to know where to find the bastard, so I can rip him limb from limb for what he's done to me and to those I love.” She spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor.

  Claudio shook his head and placed the prod on the table. “Fine, we'll talk, for now.” He leaned against the edge and folded his arms. “Trevor was found in 1942 during World War II. During those times, we often scavenged the scenes of war for those who were barely breathing, taking what blood we could, recruiting vampires into our coven as we saw fit, et cetera.” He waved his hand casually. “I found him sniveling in a ditch, not a scratch on him as those around him died. I knew then and there he was a craven pussy I could bend to my will. I fell upon him and drained him until there was a mere pint left in his veins. I fed him one drop of my blood, just enough to keep him alive. As time has passed, he’s proven himself useful and I've kept him alive, one drop at a time. It's enough to keep him young, although, I've let his age accelerate a bit now so Jeremy wouldn't find anything suspicious. He's still plenty human, just barely contaminated. He so hopes one day I'll turn him all the way.” Claudio sighed in pleasure and leveled her with a cold look. “Does that satisfy your curiosity yet, my pet?”

  She shook her head. “No. Why would you do all of this to Jeremy if you hate him so?”

  Claudio grinned, and the smell of his breath wafted over her. She retched, blood and spit spattering the floor around her. “I’ve never hated Jeremy. I love him. He’s my blood. His mother was a stupid bitch, fucking a werewolf, but I was prepared to bring him up
as my own, until he thought he was ballsy enough to have a full vampire bitch. He had to be taught a lesson. He had to know his place. That he was separate and not equal to those better than him.” He shrugged. “Trevor was always there for him, keeping tabs, reining in that incredible temper and power, building him into the man he is today. Really, it was me, the whole time. I orchestrated it all, and things were going according to plan…until you.”

  His milky gaze probed her face. “Me?” she whispered.

  He nodded. “I had plans for him to mate with JJ; another human I keep alive for my purposes. She never took with his seed. It was infuriating, really. Believe me, it was not for lack of trying, the bitch drained him of his seed as often as she could. The problem, I believe, was him leaving every full moon. It’s truly a shame because they would’ve made beautiful children too. But you are better, I daresay.” He leaned forward and stroked her face with his cool finger. She fought the urge to bite the offending digit off.

  “JJ?” she whispered. “The ex?”

  He nodded. “If only she hadn't been such a jealous bitch. She let her station in life get to her head and drove him away. Then, you came into the picture, the little witch who didn’t know her heritage. Of course you nurtured his seed, even using protection. Why must the gods be against me?”

  He smiled slowly and pursed his lips before he spoke again. “But I've tricked them again. Now, you’re here with me, and I'll have what I want, either way. I have a piece of Jeremy, and the one thing he wants the most. He’ll come and, when he does, I'll have everything I want. He'll stay so I won't hurt you anymore. He’ll conform. Last I heard our beautiful boy was full of bloodlust, so it’ll be easy.”

  Sasha shook her head and grimaced at the pain rippling through her body. “He'll never do it.”

  Claudio gripped her chin between his fingers and pinched hard. She blinked and gritted her teeth against the pain, refusing to give him satisfaction. “He will.”