Vampire's Crucible

by Yvette Bostic

  “You don’t crave me anymore, do you?”

  “That’s a loaded question, princess,” he replied.

  I rolled to my side and laughed. “I suppose you’re right.”

  “I no longer crave your blood,” he said, running his fingers down my shoulder. “My vampire needs are no longer clouding my human desires.”

  “I’m not sure that’s a good thing,” I whispered, his touch making me shiver.

  “How so?”

  “Your vampire needs kept everything else, um, reserved.”

  His stupid smirk showed itself and I blushed.

  “I still don’t see the problem,” he murmured as he moved closer to me, and my breath hitched.

  Damn him! We didn’t have time for this. I pushed against his chest, and he stopped, but his eyes begged for more. My heart raced, and I was pretty sure he could hear it.

  “I have questions,” I said, surprised at my breathlessness.

  “Of course you do.” A second later, he hovered over me, trailing kisses down my neck. “Do you know how good it feels to do this and not fight back the urge to bite you?”

  “No, but I can imagine,” I whispered, tilting my head to give him more. What the hell was I doing? I was supposed to be pushing him away. I had questions.

  “Ask your questions,” he mumbled as his hand swept beneath my shirt.

  “I can’t think when you do that.” I ran my fingers through his hair and moaned as his hands became more curious. “I really do have questions, Logan.”

  He rolled over onto his back, taking me with him. “Fine.” He laced his fingers behind his head and growled at me. I stuck my tongue out and sat up, almost regretting it. The focus of his desire lined up perfectly with mine, distracting me despite the layers of clothing between us. I rolled off him and crossed the room.

  “You are a huge distraction,” I muttered.

  “Thank you.”

  I rolled my eyes and tried to put out the fire in my middle. “Seriously, I need to understand your changes,” I said, collecting my thoughts as best I could. “Does taking another vampire’s blood change you? Like a mage’s blood is different from a human’s, and a shifter is poisonous to you.”

  Logan sat up, his playfulness vanishing. “I felt like nothing could stop me,” he said. “I think I took everything from them, not just their blood. I could feel their strength and magic infusing into me.” He stood and closed the space between us again, but he didn’t touch me. “It was terrifying and exhilarating. I can see me getting hooked on it like a drug.”

  Well that didn’t sound good. Would he go on a vampire killing spree now? Was that really a bad thing? Probably not, considering Jack’s goals, except it might make him reckless, which would get us both killed.

  “Do we trust Braden after what he did to you?” I asked.

  He took a step back and turned away. “I don’t know. He had to know it wouldn’t kill me as long as I fed immediately.”

  “But I was the only thing on the menu.”

  “Yeah.”

  “I assume you would’ve had to kill me in order to heal.”

  He dropped back onto the bed, putting his elbows on his knees and threading his fingers through his hair. “Not necessarily, but it would’ve taken a great deal of control to stop before you died.”

  This time I closed the space between us, sitting down next to him. “And how much effort did it take to not even start?”

  He lifted his head and turned those hazel eyes on me. “So, what did he intend to prove?” Logan asked, changing the subject.

  “I don’t know,” I replied, holding his gaze. “Did he lurk outside the window and watch Göksu heal you? Does it even matter if he saw? I can’t see how Braden can gain anything from it.”

  No matter how many ways I wrapped my head around it, I couldn’t understand what Braden had tried to accomplish. My death? Or did he just get a kick out of being cruel?

  “I suppose he could have been lurking, but I don’t know if it matters, either,” Logan replied. “But does that mean he also saw Niyol show up with Mr. Universe with wings?”

  I raised an eyebrow at him and stifled a giggle. “Mr. Universe with wings?”

  “Don’t tell me you didn’t notice the muscles rolling across his chest.”

  This time I didn’t stop the laugh. “Oh my God, Logan! Jealous much?”

  “I wasn’t the one drooling over him.”

  Was my vampire pouting? We played this game before and I fell for his antics.

  “I wasn’t drooling,” I insisted, pushing his shoulder. “I was in awe over the magical wings. Didn’t you see the way the magic swirled through them?”

  “No, I was too caught up watching you drool.”

  I pushed him again, but he didn’t move. “You are not serious.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “What if I am?”

  “He’s an elemental!” I exclaimed. “He doesn’t have any of the necessary... tools to satisfy a woman.”

  “How do you know?”

  I jumped up from the bed and stared down at him. I knew he was deliberately pushing me, so why did I keep arguing? “I can’t believe we’re having this discussion.” I put my hands on my hips and glared at him. “Do you really not know how I feel about you?”

  “How could I possibly know when you keep pushing me away?” Logan countered.

  He was right, but I wasn’t telling him that. I’d already been bitten by that snake once with Kellen. I thought he cared and look how that turned out. I had begged, pleaded, and prayed for my foster parents to love me and look how that turned out.

  “You…” I pointed a finger at him as tears welled in my eyes. “No one has ever loved me, Logan.”

  Before I could blink away my tears, his hands wrapped around my fingers and his forehead connected with mine. “Then let me be the first,” he whispered.

  “I hate you right now,” I mumbled.

  “That wasn’t the answer I was looking for.”

  “If I love you and you leave...”

  He covered my lips with his, stopping my comment. I knew it was foolish, but I couldn’t stand the thought of being heartbroken. And if he left me, my heart would shatter. I leaned into his kiss, just like he knew I would.

  He ended the moment with a sigh and stepped back, still holding my hands in his. “I’m not leaving,” he said.

  I had to believe him. It was too late to tell myself I didn’t love him. “Okay. And I’ll try not to be so pitiful and insecure.”

  “Deal. Now, any more questions before we leave?”

  “Can we learn how to fight together? I had no idea what to do with that ogre. I’m sure there was a better way if we would’ve coordinated.”

  “Yes, and hopefully we’ll get some time to do that before we get to Australia,” Logan replied, releasing one of my hands. “Your plan has a lot of holes.”

  “I know,” I said, shrugging. “I just couldn’t think of anything else that would convince Kellen to stay here.”

  “Hopefully you’ll be able to convince the mages not to kill me when I pop out of the portal.”

  “That’s the least of my worries,” I said, drawing his full attention. “Vampires can’t use the portal, remember? They won’t know who you are. Besides, how many mages can sense a vampire?”

  “I don’t know if they can sense vampires as much as they notice our unnatural reflexes, which you now have.”

  “Oh. We need to work on that.” They might think I was a vampire if I didn’t get my shit together.

  “It’ll be dark in less than an hour,” Logan said. “Let’s call for our taxi, buy you a couple sweat shirts, and then go for a run. I can’t wait to catch you.” He winked and released my other hand, reappearing on the bed a second later to snatch up his phone.

  He swung the backpack over his shoulder and held out his hand to me. I sighed, like I wasn’t going to accept the invitation. Yeah, right. I laced my fingers in his and let him lead me from the room.<
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  Ten minutes later, a taxi rolled up outside the hotel. Logan asked the driver to take us to the nearest department store as we scooted in the back seat. When we arrived, Logan paid with cash. Did he always pay with cash? He must have, because I’d never seen him swipe a credit card. I’d also never seen him stop at an ATM. Just how much cash did he carry around? I sighed, remembering the envelope Kellen had given me at dinner… which was now heading back to Logan’s house, hidden amongst our new wardrobe.

  “Do you know who bought my clothes yesterday?” I asked, following him into the store.

  “Yes,” he replied.

  I waited a couple seconds, expecting him to answer me. He didn’t. “And?”

  “Does it matter?”

  “Duh! I need to know who to pay back,” I replied, gripping his elbow and forcing him to stop between two aisles. “According to Kellen, I have money now. I don’t like owing someone.”

  “I don’t want your money,” he stated, stepping towards me to avoid a woman and three small children.

  “You paid for all of that?”

  “Who did you think paid?”

  “Jonathan or Kellen.” I thought back to my conversation with Manny. “Our fashion guru implied Marissa had taken care of it. I knew Victor wasn’t involved, so I assumed the other two.”

  He looked down at me and scowled. Damn. That was the second time today I got that look. “I’m not as rich as Kellen, but I’m not destitute, AJ.” He spun on his heel and headed to the women’s clothing department.

  I nearly ran after him but was afraid of what would happen. So I stood there like an idiot for several moments, before focusing on one foot at a time. This was ridiculous.

  When I caught up to him, he already had three hooded sweatshirts in his arm. “We should also buy you some cargo pants,” he said. “But we need to go the boy’s section for that.”

  I almost snapped at him for making fun of my less than five-foot height, but I refrained. I’d already pissed him off once. Make that twice today.

  “I’m sorry,” I mumbled.

  “You can make it up to me later.” He offered his hand again without a smile and I took it. Of course.

  We picked up a couple pair of cargo pants from the boy’s section, along with socks and a pair of boots. I felt like we were outfitting for a camping trip. After Logan paid—and I remained silent about it—he called another cab. It dropped us at an old train station on the edge of town just as the sun fell behind the western mountains. I should have known the name of the mountain range, but I didn’t. I was pretty sure it was some section of the Rockies but had no idea which one.

  “This place is kind of creepy,” I muttered under my breath.

  “Yep. I’m hoping for some practice,” Logan said.

  I looked up at him with narrowed eyes, assuming he meant to practice on real vampires.

  “Do you think you can repeat the shards of glass you used on Fiona?” he asked.

  “They were Niyol’s, not mine,” I corrected. “But I should be able to, in theory. It can’t be much different than my spear.”

  He raised an eyebrow at me. “That really was Niyol’s doing?”

  “Yep.”

  “Okay, we’ll work on that later. Let’s see how fast you are.” He pulled the straps on the backpack tight around his shoulders, then held his hand out to me. “We’ll start out slow and increase the speed as we go,” he said. “I’m going to assume your stamina is not the same as mine, so we’re only going to the end of the station.” He pointed down a line of tracks leading away from the station. A dirt trail wide enough for one vehicle ran between the two tracks.

  “Okay.” I laced my fingers in his and took a deep breath. “Ready.”

  A slight tug on my hand signaled Logan’s forward motion. I kept pace pretty easily, staying focused on the ground blurring beneath my feet. I didn’t want to trip and fall, which would likely happen if I got distracted. I wasn’t ready for Logan’s sudden stop and ran into his back, rolling both of us over several times.

  “Warn me next time,” I grumbled, pushing myself off the ground.

  “Watch something besides your feet.” I looked up at my vampire to find him grinning at me. “Let’s try that again. Only this time, I’m not holding your hand. Follow right behind me.”

  I brushed my palms on my yoga pants and nodded. I could do this without falling on my face. “Ready.”

  Logan took off again, and I focused on his back. He was still wearing dress slacks with his unbuttoned shirt flapping at his waist. I nearly stumbled when I realized I could see him. I’d never been able to see him when he moved this quick, and there was no doubting the speed as everything else flew by me in a blur.

  He stopped suddenly, again. I would’ve plowed into him if he hadn’t caught me.

  “I could,” I said between gasps of air, “see you.”

  He raised my arms over my head helping me take deeper breaths. I had no idea that worked so well, but it was a trick I needed to remember.

  “Thank you,” I said when my breathing returned to something close to normal. “I’ve never been able to see you when you sprint around like that. Why now?”

  “Because you were moving at the same speed,” he replied, lowering my arms. “We definitely need to work on stamina, but not today. I don’t want you worn out before we even get started.”

  “How fast were we moving?”

  “Pretty quick.”

  I felt the evasion and smacked his shoulder. “You mean slow for you and fast for me.”

  “Isn’t that always the case?” He smiled, and I knew he wasn’t talking about running. He pulled me to his chest before I could reply. “Let’s refresh your basic hand-to-hand combat. We’re being watched.”

  “How can you tell?” I whispered.

  He smiled, revealing slightly elongated fangs. Damn. “Ready?”

  I nodded, and he leaned down and kissed my neck. His fangs brushed against my skin, making me shiver.

  “As long as you move as fast as I do, you can see me, princess.”

  He danced back, and I immediately followed. He swept his leg towards mine, but I leapt over it before he hit me.

  “Very good,” my vampire purred.

  “Thank you. Do I get a weapon?”

  “If you wish.”

  A short shard of condensed air appeared in my hand, looking a lot like sharpened glass. I flipped it back and forth in front of my chest twice, then lunged. Logan jumped back, then slipped to my left. I followed his movement, jabbing my small blade at his stomach. He twisted to the side and grabbed my wrist, swinging me around and pulling my back into his chest. I went with it. Then, I used our momentum to thrust my hip into his groin. He bent over, still holding my wrist. I dropped my weapon and grabbed his forearm, taking his weight on my back and rolling him over my shoulder. He fell to the ground with a thud, and I sat on his stomach. Like he couldn’t just throw me off again.

  “I like this new toy,” I said, grinning wildly at his surprised expression. “I might actually be able to stab you.”

  “I was taking it easy on you, but I can see it wasn’t necessary,” he stated. “No weapons for you, little girl.” He wrapped his hands around my waist and lifted me just as easily as I knew he could. Rather than standing, he sat up and lowered me onto his lap. “We’re about to have company,” he whispered. My smile vanished, but his didn’t. “You fought like a vampire, not a human,” he continued softly, kissing my neck.

  “But I smell like a human,” I hissed in his ear.

  “They won’t know that until it’s too late.” He continued kissing my neck and his hands found their way under my shirt.

  “How can you not be worried?” I asked, scanning the empty station behind him, trying to ignore how good his hands felt on my skin.

  “Because you are amazing,” he replied.

  Several flickers emerged from the shadows of the old building and I tensed. The sun was long past the horizon, leaving only shades o
f pink and purple across the sky. Logan stood, but didn’t let me go.

  “Did you see how many?” he asked, his gaze not leaving my face.

  “Maybe five?” I answered, realizing the importance of his question. I had seen their shadows in the dark. My eyebrows rose.

  “I was truly hoping that was the case,” he said.

  Did he mean the number of vampires or was he talking about my ability to see them? I didn’t have time to ask, as four men and two women appeared about fifty feet away, fanning out in a half circle to my right.

  “Well, what do we have here?” the tallest man asked, shadows concealing most of his face.

  “Good evening,” Logan said. “We’re out for a stroll, hoping to catch the next train.”

  A sharp laugh erupted from one of the women, but she snapped her mouth closed a second later. A stiff breeze blew into my face, bringing with it their myriad of smells. Tangy metal, cedar, over-ripe strawberries, and something weird I couldn’t place.

  “You looking for a clan or just passing through?” the tall male asked, taking a step closer.

  “Just passing through,” Logan responded.

  “Then I suggest you keep going.”

  I looked up at my vampire. His fully-extended fangs hung over his bottom lip and the whites of his eyes were completely gone. Shit. This was gonna get ugly. There was no way these guys didn’t see that. Logan’s hand slipped from my waist, and I felt his claws run across my butt. Yep, this was gonna get ugly.

  My vampire really needed to get a grip.

  The group across from us shifted restlessly, and I couldn’t help but notice several sets of claws in the group. This was really gonna suck. Could I create several shards of glass and throw them with any accuracy? Probably not. Would I be the vampire’s first target? Most definitely.

  So what the hell was Logan thinking?

  Niyol?

  Don’t worry, princess. I’m with you.

  Could you tell me your plan really quick, so I don’t screw it up?

  My elemental chuckled, and the wind whipped around us, drawing dirt and small rocks into the air.

  I’ll get the two in the middle and leave the girls to you.

  You’re such a gentleman.

  He chuckled again as Logan lunged at the tallest vampire. I didn’t have time to watch them collide, as a short, stout woman and lanky man rushed towards me. So much for leaving the girls to me. I drew my spear, making it longer than normal, and dropped to my knees. My weapon swept across both their shins with a loud snap. The impact jarred my wrists, but I knew I wouldn’t have time to cry over it. I jumped to my feet and spun around just in time to block the woman’s claws coming towards my face.