by K.N. Lee
Koa nodded. She knew all about the fall of some of the angels. She knew how their spawn were banished to the Netherworld centuries ago. Still, the Netherworld was only a place separated from the human world by a simple gate. “Yes, I know all of that, but why was he with those Netherworld vamps?”
“He was hired.”
Koa slumped against the headboard. She blew her bangs out of her eyes. “That’s right. He did say that they were mercenaries.” She lifted a brow. “Hired for what?”
“To find you.”
“Why? Why does Bund want to find me?” Koa needed to know.
Halston and Raven shared a glance. Koa noticed.
Koa slammed her fist on the bed. “Why are you two hiding things from me?”
“Don’t get so worked up. I’ll tell you everything, when you’re healed.”
“Tell me now!”
“Get some sleep, darling,” Raven said and hopped from the bed. “Will you take me back home? I think my presence will only agitate Koa and prolong her recovery.”
Koa reached out. She didn’t realize how weak she felt. “No. Don’t go.” Koa wished she could hug her mother again. She would give anything to lie in her arms and cry like she did when she was a child.
Raven looked back. She ran over and leapt onto the bed. She licked Koa’s face and snuggled her head into the crevice of her neck. “Rest up. I’ll see you at home.”
“Okay,” Koa replied. She sighed and pulled the covers up. She did feel tired already.
Halston waited for Raven to leave the room. Koa watched him from a tiny space in the covers. He sat there in silence for a moment. The silence made Koa uncomfortable. She knew what was coming.
“I’m sorry,” Koa blurted before Halston could put the words together to say what was on his mind.
Halston seemed surprised that she actually apologized. Koa thought that was a good sign. He hadn’t expected that.
He nodded. His eyes were hopeful. “Thank you for that, Koa. It means a lot. But why did you go there without me? Why would you go against my orders and put yourself at risk?”
Koa groaned. She knew he would ask. She sat up and tried to scoot closer to him. Moving was a laborious task, but Koa needed him to forgive her. He still didn’t say that he did.
“You fail to understand that we care about you, Koa. We only do these things to keep you safe. You’re very important to all of us in the Netherworld Division.”
Koa frowned. She didn’t like how he kept saying ‘we’ and ‘us’ instead of, I care about you, or, you’re important to me.
“I didn’t want you to try to stop me. I wanted answers, and you just weren’t giving them.”
He turned his head to meet her eyes. She looked down. The look was too intense. She felt almost hypnotized by it. She drew circles in the covers with her finger, feeling sheepish, like a child who knew she had done something wrong and awaited her father’s scolding.
“I told you already. I am here to protect you. You don’t need to know everything. Some things are best left alone.”
Koa didn’t say anything. She heard Halston, but she was stubborn. She still wanted to know.
Halston sighed. “And now I see that I have to protect you from yourself.”
Koa looked up. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Halston stood and wrapped his holster across his back and grabbed a vest from his wardrobe.
“It means you’re out, Koa.”
Koa fought through the pain and sat up. Her face paled. Her hands started to shake. He couldn’t be saying what she thought he was. Koa stared at Halston with wide eyes. “What?”
He nodded. “I hate to do it, but it’s for the best. You’re a liability and it’s better if you don’t know what’s happening out there. You’re no longer part of the Netherworld Division. You revealed Raven’s identity. It’s best if you and Raven lay low and live a quiet life in your new home.” He put his hands in his pockets and looked away. “You no longer have to let these things worry you. I will take care of it from here on out.”
Koa stared at him. She wouldn’t shy away from his eyes if he would just look at her. She could make him change his mind.
“Or you can move wherever you want.”
Koa started to speak, but her voice was caught in her throat. He couldn’t look her in the eye. That statement hurt her more than anything. She didn’t want to be away from him. Couldn’t he see that?
She felt as though Halston was breaking up with her. She was speechless. Her heart felt as though it was being twisted and crushed. The heartache hurt more than her side did.
Halston took a breath and started toward the door. He tried to make his voice sound light and calm. “I’ll still protect you and make sure you’re safe, you just won’t live the life of a Netherworld agent anymore. Bund is still out there and I will do everything within my power to stop him.”
Koa felt her body tense at the thought of Bund out there in the world, ready to strike at her once again. She thought of his promise to keep her as a pet for all eternity. Her stomach churned.
Halston gave her one last look. The look was too quick. “Now rest up.” He left before she could protest.
The sleek black door to his otherwise all-white bedroom closed. She heard him head outside. He whispered to Raven and she felt her face heat with rage.
Koa balled up her fists. They were conspiring. She heard his footsteps walk down his long marble hallway and to the double curved stairs that led to the landing, and he was gone.
Tears dripped down her cheeks and onto the white blankets. Her heart sped. She didn’t like this feeling. Halston was done with her. When would she see him again? How would she survive without the purpose the Netherworld Division gave her?
Koa screamed. She covered her face and yelled in anguish. “How dare you? How dare you?” She shouted and pounded her fists in the blankets with all of her might. She needed something more rewarding.
She wanted to hit something, to hurt something. She growled and came to her feet. Koa gasped as the pain made her double over. Her breath was knocked from her as her skin screamed in agony.
The pain was unnerving. The constant burning of her flesh only intensified her anger. Pain was rare for Koa. This was new, and she hated it.
Another feeling swept in and made her fall to her knees. Koa groaned. This pain was different. Still, Bund’s pain couldn’t compare to what overcame her. This was something that she was very familiar with. She had grown up with it. It had haunted her for years.
The hunger.
Koa looked up. She had an idea. Nothing would cure her faster than human blood. She crawled over to the chair and pulled herself up. She was so tired. All she could think of was how energized a little human blood would make her.
Koa thought of how disappointed Halston would be once he found out. He had worked hard to help her fight the hunger for blood. They had a strict feeding schedule, but once again, an intense battle had ruined it.
Koa shook her head and sucked in an agonizing breath as tears threatened to break free. She didn’t care what Halston thought anymore. She didn’t care about any of it.
Koa was out. She was free. She already hated it.
She knew Halston would be livid, and she welcomed it, he deserved to feel guilty for shoving her aside. She lifted herself into the air and flew toward that wall of glass and kicked it with all of her strength. It crashed into thousands of pieces of glass and Koa flew out, into the sun and as high as she could go.
She’d find a new home and a new family. Wryn Castle called out to her.
12
Ian Pratt came when called. Koa smiled when he came to the door of her usual room in the Wryn Castle. His large, hazel puppy dog eyes lit up when he saw her.
He had a quiet, geeky quality. There was an undeniable intelligence that she could see in his eyes. That was what made Koa choose him out of all the others who had been presented to her three years ago at her membership meeting.
&nb
sp; Ian was smart, very smart, and equally attractive. The thing that drew Koa to him though, was that he didn’t know he was hot. That made her like him even more. His black hair was unruly, but it was soft and clean whenever she ran her fingers through it.
Koa watched him as he stood outside the doorway. He gripped the handles of his green, graphic-print backpack and smiled at her.
Koa did something she hadn’t planned. She pulled him into the room, closed the door, and hugged him tightly. She almost sobbed into his chest but she bit the tears back. She breathed deeply.
Ian was so warm. He smelled so good. He smelled like youth. Real youth, not a young mask hiding a hundred-year-old creature. His scent was fresh, like freshly washed clothes. She held him close and nearly melted when he wrapped his arms around her back.
“What’s this?” Ian asked when he felt the blood on her side. He looked genuinely alarmed. “Are you okay? What happened Koa?”
Koa didn’t speak. She was grateful to have someone care about her. All she wanted was to feel cared for… to feel loved. She simply held him. She liked that he was thin. She liked that he was tall. Ian rested his chin on her head and sighed. He loved her. That fact didn’t make Koa feel good.
His wasn’t real love. There was no way that it could be… the glamour made him think he was in love. She wished it was real.
Halston’s face haunted her. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block the disappointed look he had given her out of her mind.
“I’m fine, Ian, but you can make me all better.” She gently grabbed the back of his neck and planted a soft kiss on his supple, human flesh. He nearly trembled with glee.
Koa gave him a gentle nudge, but it was enough to send him falling backward. She grabbed his collar, lifted him from the ground, and led him to the bed. The instant his head fell onto the plush black comforter, she was on his chest. She tied her hair back, getting it out of the way. Every vein and artery pulsed in her body. She needed him.
Koa moaned and plunged her teeth into his neck. She drank, greedily. She knew why she was so hungry, so out of control, and yet she didn’t care. Halston could abandon her. Her mother could keep secrets from her. She would have a new family, one that wouldn’t lie to her or hide things from her.
The blood gushed into her mouth and that familiar euphoria radiated throughout her entire body. She could feel his blood rushing and meeting with her own.
She felt powerful. She felt invincible. Koa could feel herself healing as she drained the blood from Ian’s neck.
She nearly cried out from the intense pleasure. Her heart was breaking. Halston had hurt her, but Ian was sustaining her. He was rebuilding her. Koa sucked the blood until Ian was nearly dry.
Dry? Koa paled. No!
Ian let out a whimper and Koa froze. She realized what she had done and ripped her mouth away from his neck. Alarm overcame her when she looked down at his pale face. She grabbed him.
He was cold.
She screamed the most horrified scream she’d ever heard leave her lungs.
“Ian!” Koa tapped his shoulder. “Are you all right?” She shook him. He was limp and unresponsive. Koa’s eyes widened. Terror overcame her.
Ian’s eyes fluttered closed and she squealed.
“Ian!” She grabbed his face and shook his head from side to side. He groaned.
Koa slapped him. She couldn’t let the young man die. She loved him, in her own way. He had been her pet for nearly three years. She was paying his way through the University. She couldn’t lose him. He meant more to her than the blood.
There were nights when they would talk for hours after her feeding. She knew everything there was to know about him. She knew that his mother had died of cancer when he was in high school, and that his father had killed himself shortly afterward. He had been sent to live with an aunt until he was of legal age, and left the states as soon as he graduated.
Ian was smart. He studied chemistry and archeology, of all things. He’d always wanted to be like Indiana Jones. Koa nearly smiled at the memory of him telling her that. She couldn’t let this good young man die.
An idea came to her. It hit her full force and wouldn’t back down. Koa had no choice. She would set him free.
She leaned down to his ear. “Ian… do you want to live?”
Ian’s head lolled to the side. He weakly opened an eye and stared at her drunkenly with it. Koa could feel her heart racing.
What have I done? I’ve become a monster. Koa swallowed. Halston was right to fire her. She had become the very creature they fought to stop.
His life was hanging from a thread. She could see the luster start to leave those hazel eyes.
She felt her heart skip a beat when he mouthed the word, yes.
Koa swallowed. She licked her lips of the blood and nodded. “Are you sure?” Koa whispered. “You know what I mean, don’t you?”
Ian nodded and his eyes rolled into the back of his head.
Koa shot up and bit her wrist. She shoved her bleeding wrist into his mouth and squeezed her eyes shut the moment he started to drink from her. She’d never, ever turned someone before. She had no idea what it meant. She hadn’t a clue what this would change. She was contributing to the vampire population, the very beings that she and Halston and his organization strove to decrease.
Koa almost forgot. She wasn’t a part of the organization anymore. She could follow her own rules. Besides, Ian wasn’t a bad person. Therefore, he would not be one of the bad vampires that she had once been sent out to kill.
She felt a pang of guilt the instant Ian withdrew his mouth and cried out in pain. She rolled off of him and onto the floor. Like a frightened child, Koa scrambled into a corner. She watched him with wide, horrified eyes and pulled her legs into her chest. She held her legs close with both arms wrapped around them and tearfully watched as Ian’s human body died.
Ian writhed and cried as his body was thrown back and forth across the bed. He begged in agony for help. Koa couldn’t control her sobs when he cried out for his mother. He was delirious with pain and it hurt her to hear him suffer.
Koa wished she could help him. She’d never seen this before. His cries cut into her very soul.
His cries continued for far too long, and then, there was silence. The silence was so thick that Koa realized that she was holding her breath. She looked at his body through a blurry film of tears.
Did I do it right? Timidly, Koa crawled onto all fours. She peeked over the side of the bed at his body. Ian lied there, sprawled across the bed, as if frozen… or lifeless.
His black hair was wild and covered his face. It was soaking wet from his sweat.
Koa sucked in a breath. Tears choked her. “No,” she whispered. She climbed onto the bed. Something was wrong. “Ian. Please.” She touched his face. It was cold as ice, even colder than before she fed him her blood. She buried her face in her hands. Her shoulders shook with her wracking sobs.
Koa was devastated. Ian had been more than a pet. Ian had been a friend. Koa felt her heart breaking. She’d never had many friends in her life, and she just killed one.
The bed creaked. Koa moved her hands from her face. She was almost too afraid to look… too afraid to hope.
Through tears, Koa looked at Ian’s face. It was blurry, but she could see, with delight, that he was looking back at her.
Koa gasped and tackled him with glee. She littered his face with dozens of kisses. She laughed maniacally.
“Ian! You’re all right.”
He nodded and smiled. He hugged her tightly and Koa could feel that he was stronger. His arms no longer felt weak. His grip on her felt as hard as stone. She felt safe. She felt relieved and joyous.
“Yes, mistress. Thank you.”
Koa pulled back. She held his face in both of her hands and gave him a serious look. “No more mistress. Understood? I am Koa to you from now on.”
His smile widened. “Yes, mis—” He paused and laughed. Koa couldn’t help but smile. “Y
es, Koa.” He ran a hand over her side again. He looked up in surprise. “You’re all healed!”
Koa kissed his forehead. “Thanks to you.” After all of the inner turmoil she experienced only seconds ago, she felt at peace.
A knock came at the door. Koa glanced at it. She knew who was there. She knew her scent. Cinnamon and sugar.
“Come on in, Lexi.”
Lexi opened the door and peeked inside. She smacked on her cinnamon flavored gum and looked at the two of them. She sighed and shook her head. The door closed behind her.
“You two are getting a bit loud, don’t you think?” Lexi looked at Koa who sat on Ian’s lap in nothing but what she left Halston’s loft in. Her panties and bra.
Koa came to her feet. She walked over to the nightstand where she kept a few of her belongings in case she actually wanted to stay longer than a night. Koa pulled out her credit card. She nodded to Ian. “Welcome Ian Pratt to the club. He’s my sire.”
Lexi looked at Koa in disbelief. “You sired someone?” She stared at Ian and smirked. “Not a bad choice.”
Ian was on his feet and looking at himself in the mirror. Koa and Lexi watched as he checked himself out. He smiled as he fixed his hair which seemed to have a bit more luster. His eyes were a little brighter. Ian examined his neck, which was smooth and clear of fang marks. He looked over at them.
“Sweet!” He turned and looked at his profile and held his shirt up. “Call me crazy but is it just me, or did my abs become more defined?”
Koa shook her head with a smile glued to her face. It had worked. Lexi took her card.
“You know what this means, right? You sire him, you have to take care of him.”
Koa looked at her and shrugged. “I have been taking care of him for the past three years.”
Mischief danced in Lexi’s eyes. “Oh no, Koa. That’s not what I mean. He has to live with you now. He’s like a baby, and you have to watch over him until he is prepared to go off into the world on his own.” She mocked a curtsy and winked before leaving. “Have fun,” she sang as she left the room.
