by Cat Miller
“I’m a lawyer. I studied criminal psychology. He can’t be the biggest bully on the block if he allows others to take his lunch money. The other bullies won’t respect him,” Donavan explained his theory.
“Why doesn’t she do something? Why doesn’t she fight? She should just kill him where he stands. I would force him to do it himself or have one of his men do it if I could control the minds of others,” Lloyd mused.
“She isn’t as strong as she once was,” Adele sniffed. “She is riding a difficult line between telepathic and physical strength. Since she was turned, her power has teetered back and forth. The more she begins to feel physical strength, her telepathic strength wanes and vice versa. Darren took more from her than just the humanity she held so dear. Her gifts were partially human in nature. He also weakened her considerably.”
Griffin looked at his mother in stunned silence.
“She came to me for help because she said I had the best shields in town. We’d been working on strengthening hers against attack. Right now she could probably hold her own in a fight, but telepathically there isn’t much fight left in her. She can probably pick up some thought from unshielded minds but that’s it.”
Chase knew all this, but it had been a secret to everyone else but Adele. She had been working with Lovely on building her mental shields for these telepathically weak times. Lovely was working with her friend Karrie to build her physical and self-defense skills for the physically weak days. His Lovely had paid dearly for her change. She was much healthier and happier as a demi-vamp. It was just one more reason to see Darren suffer before he died.
David finished his speech and looked down at Lovely. He pulled her closer by her hair and stroked her cheek.
“This is your last chance, beauty. Will you join me, or do you die today?” he purred the question.
Lovely spat in his face and struck out with an open handed strike to his face. He roared at her and struck back. Derek stood nearby cringing and squirming. Chase roared when his Lovely’s body went limp and fell into David.
“Now is the time!” David shouted to the crowd.
“Today begins our new world order!”
He lifted Lovely’s limp body from the ground and sank his fangs in her jugular. He drank greedily. Chase struggled to his feet and went for the door only to be tackled by Gage. He fought to get to his mate while Gage told him over and over that it was far too late. He would need to save his energy to avenge his mate now. It was the only thing left to do. Chase crumpled and turned to watch his uncle murder his one true love. He would need to remember this in the days to come when he wanted to lie down and die. He would need this memory to keep him alive long enough to make this bastard pay.
When David finished his meal he lifted his head to look down at the female in his arms, with eyes the black of night. Blood covered his lips and dripped from his fangs. The crowd cheered while David shook with energy. He released Lovely without a care and her body tumbled end over end down the concrete stairs and came to rest in an unnatural looking heap on the sidewalk. David shook his head like a confused animal and staggered into the building without a word to his gathered army.
The Shade looked around at each other and began to quickly disband as if they were used to their leader’s unpredictable behavior. Chase watched Derek surreptitiously make his way down the stairs and scoop up Lovely’s broken body. He moved quickly off screen.
The office had taken on the cold sorrowful atmosphere of a mausoleum. The women sniffled and moaned. The men struggled to bear up under the heavy sadness. Across the room, Griffin actually passed out. The trauma of watching his child die was too much. He would have to be the one to tell Tessa that only her child was dead.
TWENTY THREE
Chase just couldn’t wrap his head around the loss of his mate. He felt crushed into the ground. When the horror of seeing his only love murdered faded a bit, he expected to feel the loss of the warmth she brought to his soul but the emptiness of her absence never came.
Griffin slumped back into a corner chair. A never-ending flow of tears streamed down his face. Chase’s father and mother were taking turns going back and forth between Lovely’s grieving mate and her father, but Chase wasn’t grieving. He closed his eyes and prayed for the thousandth time. He heard Lloyd say to Adele that he was in denial. It was possible that his heart and mind refused to let go of Lovely. Maybe this was why vamps that lost their mates tended to go nuts. If he had to live without her but still feel that she was alive in his heart, Chase would never stop looking for her.
Chase closed his eyes and bowed his head. He searched every corner of his mind for any trace of his mate. He had just about given hope when he felt the dark spot where the presence of his Lovely had curled up disappeared begin to unfurl and warm the depths of his soul. His body moved of its own volition and he was completely unable to react. He rose from the chair and looked at his mother.
“I’m going home. I want to be alone. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Chase’s mouth said the words but his mind was not in control. His heart pounded. His mind screamed a joyous sound of relief. It was his Lovely. She was leading him to her without the others knowing. His body carried him toward the door but Adele grabbed his arm. She looked deeply into his eyes and the tightness around her eyes relaxed. The sorrow was fading. Chase had the feeling she was talking to Lovely instead of him when she spoke. There was more to Adele Vaughn than she ever let on in public. Adele knew that Lovely was in the room even if the others didn’t.
“You will call me also. Won’t you… Chase?” She smirked and released his arm.
“Yes, Ma’am,” his mouth said.
On the way out of the house he was greeted by dozens of warriors and Wrath guards that gave him condolences on the loss of his mate. Many of the warriors had been friends with Lovely during her time on the Enclave and Chase felt the sincerity of their sorrow for a female many of them had considered to be one of their own. His mouth thanked them and his feet slowly took him out the door. His mind howled and wallowed in the glory of knowing that his mate was very near. She didn’t have the strength to do this trick from afar.
As soon as he figured out how she survived the scene he had watched, Chase was going to put her over his knee. Then he was going to kiss it all better. He loved her so much and was so thankful for another chance at life with his mate. He was glad someone else controlled his limbs because his knees were weak. The last couple of years were a crazy rollercoaster ride but the past hour had been the worst of his life. Watching his mate’s lifeless body roll down the steps and come to an unnatural looking rest would be a thing that brought him nightmares for years to come.
****
Gage felt a restless anticipation and couldn’t figure out if it was his nerves or Koren’s. In all of his years as a warrior, Gage never knew fear the likes of which he experienced when he knew for sure his mate, his sweet gentle hearted Koren, was in the group of females held prisoner on the Enclave.
He placed the blame for this debacle squarely on his own shoulders. When the Council hall was attacked, he threw everything he had at it and left the Enclave undermanned and vulnerable. His careless judgment had cost the lives of an unknown number of warriors and he shuddered to think of what was happening to the females. Gage was certain Koren had taken a beating. He would spend the rest of his life making up for every scratch and bruise on her beautiful body if he ever got her back in his arms.
Every minute that passed had Gage more and more on edge. Something was definitely wrong with Koren. He had waited long enough. If he had to go in there alone and carry out every female and child on his back, he would do it. Gage got to his feet and went to his gun cabinet.
Greyson stuck his head in the room and instantly had everyone’s attention.
“We’ve got movement out by the road.”
“What kind of movement?” Gage asked.
“It looks like one of the travel buses from the Enclave hit a tree.” Greys
on looked oddly hopeful.
“Do you think Dani exchanged herself for the females’ release? Isn’t that what the lunatic wanted? I’m hoping the bastard actually kept his word. I’ve got several teams going out to surround the bus in case it’s a trap.”
A group of vamps in full battle gear hustled past the window and around the building. Gage was fastening his vest and holstering weapons while Greyson was speaking.
“I’m coming with you,” said a red-eyed Griffin.
“Griff, I know you feel the need to do something but, I can’t have you in harm’s way. Please, remember who you are, Councilman,” Gage pleaded.
“I don’t care. I at least want to see her. I need to see her.”
Griffin pushed past Gage and out the front door.
Gage swallowed hard. He couldn’t deny Griffin the right to see the body of his child if that was his wish. Gage just hoped they were able to retrieve Dani’s body.
The driveway leading from the main road was a third of a mile long. The house itself was blocked from view by a copse of trees. Gage picked his way through the trees to catch up with Greyson. His team took point and they were quickly moving in. When the men came out of the tree line, the bus door flew open and every warrior hit the ground with weapons drawn and ready to fire.
The females with children came pouring out of the bus. Greyson got to his feet and began to assign the females to warriors if their mates weren’t on hand to scoop them up. The glad sounds of reunited friends and mates sucked the tension from the air. In a matter of seconds the bus was nearly emptied and Greyson boarded to check for stragglers.
Gage knew he should be moving to help his people but his Koren had not left the bus with the other females. He approached the open door to find Greyson lifting a female from the front seat behind the driver. He expected to see the body of Danielle Vaughn but the light hair was all wrong. Her long platinum hair was matted with blood and her face was swollen beyond the point of recognition. Her arm flopped over Greyson’s shoulder unnaturally. It looked to be broken in several places. Then he noticed her hand. The distinctive sapphire and diamond band of his mate adorned the left ring finger of the battered female. Gage roared and the female started. She opened one eye as far as she could and reached for him.
“Gage, carry her to the house and straight to your bed. I’ll be right behind you. I think she’s got some broken ribs. I don’t want to jostle her now that’s she’s awake so don’t run. She’s not critical at this point but she has to be in a lot of pain. I’m going to check the rest of the bus,” Greyson explained while he transferred Koren into Gage’s trembling arms.
“Baby, Koren, I’m so sorry I didn’t protect you.” He gently kissed her swollen, battered face and she tried to speak. He couldn’t hear so he turned his ear toward her split lips.
“Tessa,” She said and pointed to the rear of the bus.
“Tessa?” he asked to be sure he’d heard correctly.
“Go now while he’s down. She fed him his own drug.” She panted through the pain.
“Tessa fed the Rogue?” Gage asked gently.
Koren nodded and promptly gave into the pain and exhaustion now that her message was delivered. Tessa was on the bus. Greyson rushed to the back.
“Holy shit,” Greyson cursed.
Gage gingerly carried his precious burden to the rear of the bus where Greyson stood with his mouth agape. On the bench seat a couple laid tangled together like lovers with their clothes on. The male held a petite brunette with distinctive white and red markings tightly to his body. She clung to him as if her life depended on it, and it seemed that it did. Gage thought Koren was mistaken and confused due to her injuries until Greyson brushed the female’s hair aside to reveal a black-eyed Tessa Vaughn, her lips and teeth stained red with blood. She wasn’t sporting any fangs yet. That would take a few days. The likeness between Tessa and Dani was startling. Reilly was forced to induce a rapid change to save her life. He nearly drained himself to flooding her blood with his blood. Tessa was sweating and shaking. It would be a painful experience for her while her body fought the change.
“It’s a good thing I brought in a large supply of blood and medical equipment in case we had battle injuries. It looks like Doc and his brand new baby vamp are both in need of sustenance.” Greyson chuckled. Reilly roused enough to kiss Tessa’s head.
“My baby,” Reilly crooned.
“Let’s pray she survives the change,” Greyson said somberly.
It was true that only about half of the humans that attempted the change survived the experience. In Tessa’s case it was either give it a try or let her die. A noise from the front of the bus had Greyson pulled his gun. He lowered it quickly when a frantic Debbie Deidrick came barreling down the aisle of the bus. She pushed him out of the way to get to Tessa. She brushed the hair from her face breathed a deep sigh of relief. Tessa opened her eyes and gave a weak smile to Debbie. Griffin also came to stand in the front of the bus, looking anxiously for his ex-mate.
“I didn’t know if it was you or Dani. Chase is out of his mind with grief. I had to come and see for myself.” Debbie voice shook with the force of her emotions. She held Tessa in a tight embrace.
“Sorry.” Tessa wheezed. She looked confused and the pain of her rapid change had her shaking. It was obvious that Tessa had planned this whole charade and was completely unaware that she had had an audience over the security feed they had been monitoring. Her eyes drifted shut and Greyson reached to check her pulse. He seemed satisfied for the moment so Gage decided to try sorting this mess out.
“You knew it was Tessa?” Gage asked Debbie.
“I knew she had a plan that involved me helping her get her hair dyed to match Dani’s and stay hidden until the time was right. The right time for what I had no idea. It was clear Tessa planned to impersonate her daughter. They looked so much alike once her hair was done and their scent is very similar. When we saw Dani being led to the Rogue I couldn’t tell who it was. So I kept quiet. I didn’t want to give Chase false hope and Tessa is convinced someone on the Council is feeding the Rogue information so I couldn’t voice my suspicions with so many present. If she is correct, the sacrifice she was making to protect her daughter and gain the release of our people would have been for nothing. If the news of an imposter Danielle was carried back to the Rogue he will keep hunting for her,” Debbie explained.
“I was waiting for her,” Reilly added tiredly. “Tessa called yesterday to tell me she was ready to be changed. She said she wanted to be with me. She said I would need to change her to save her life. I was confused. I thought she was sick but she wouldn’t explain. She told me where to meet her and that I should be ready for anything. I was ready and waiting. This has to work. I love her.” Reilly reached up to stroke her hair.
The sound of a furious Mason could be heard yelling his wife’s name in the distance. Debbie winced. She would have a lot of explaining to do to her mate and her son. Debbie kissed her friend’s face and laid her back in Reilly’s arms before slinking off of the bus to go face her worried mate.
“I’m going to need some help with these two.” Greyson lifted Tessa from Reilly’s weak arms.
Gage ducked into a row of seats with Koren held tightly in his arms when Griffin approached from behind. His expression was one of pure sorrow.
“Give me Tessa. You get him.” Griffin made the last word sound like a curse. Now Gage understood Griffin’s words from earlier. Clearly he was aware of Tessa’s change and her new connection to Reilly. He knew Tessa would be on this bus. He just didn’t know why until Debbie explained.
Reilly leaned forward to reach for Tessa, nearly slid onto the floor in an effort keep her away from Griffin.
“She’s mine!” he hissed.
“I know,” Griffin replied. His eyes glistened with tears.
****
Dani felt like the worst mate in history. After the drama of their lives and the threats to their relationship up until this point, it was a
real kick in the teeth for Chase that she hadn’t been able to trust him with the plan her mother had conceived. He was being very understanding but that was likely because he was still reeling from first losing her, then getting her back, all in the space of a few hours.
Dani couldn’t imagine living through the rest of the day after watching Chase die. Her mother had no idea the entire performance was playing out for a portion of the Council, including Griffin and Chase, via a remote view security system. Her mom was adamant that her death had to look genuine. The Rogue, who turned out to be Chase’s dead uncle, needed to believe she was gone. Tessa believed someone on the inside was feeding the Rogue information. It had all happened so fast Dani’s head was still spinning, but she never would have gone along with her mother’s plan if she had known Chase would be forced to watch it play out.
Once Chase had her in his arms he didn’t want to let go. They made good use of a wall in her mother’s hotel suite before he would even allow her to speak. Chase was in need of some serious proof of life before he could process anything else. She explained everything she could before hustling her mate out into the viper’s nest. She wanted to go without him but Chase wasn’t having it. He would be nearby for whatever was about to go down.
“Why do I have to hide? I want to stand with you. Preferably in front of you,” Chase complained. The blue-green color of the ocean in his eyes gleamed wetly. He couldn’t handle losing her again. Dani wrapped her arms around his waist and let him hold her for as long as was possible.
She was forcing him to watch from a hidden position on the sidelines and it was pissing him off. She explained that his choices were to agree with her or be forced to behave through mind control. He didn’t need to know she was feeling telepathically useless after the effort she had put into controlling his body and mind earlier. He piped down but she knew punishment would follow this day. Dani would gladly repent in any way Chase saw fit as soon as this mess was over.
