Peter glanced in the rearview mirror at Agatha, who was watching a young man walking on the street with a hungry gleam in her eye. “No one’s hunting, tonight or ever,” Peter warned her.
“Maybe I’ll put a stake through your heart instead,” Agatha retorted.
They were all on edge and at each other’s throats from the hunger. Peter ignored Agatha’s cruel words. They reminded him too much of his fight with Ashe. She had dared him to go into the church with her, knowing full well he could not. Even the view of the altar through the open door had been dangerous, inflicting on him a physical pain to match the one that had pierced through his heart. He wished she could understand how much she meant to him. Peter hated his desire for blood, his instinctive urge to harm her. It was only because of this affliction that he had to be dishonest with her. But she had refused to let him explain.
Peter slowed as he turned onto the side street Vanessa had pointed out. It was little more than an alley between two apartment buildings. Either one of them could have contained the man they were looking for, but Peter had a feeling they would not find him there. If David had reconnected with Ashe, he would be with his family.
Peter parked the car and the three of them got out.
“Check the names on the door buzzers. I doubt David used his real name, but if any of them are blank or look brand new we should check them out.”
Peter and Vanessa took the apartment building nearest the car and Agatha went across the street.
“You don’t think this is Landon’s fault, do you?” Vanessa asked as Peter scanned the names of the apartment’s tenants.
“You tell me,” he replied. Most of the labels were yellowed with age, the ink used to write on them bluish and smudged. Only one lacked a name.
“I don’t know why you hate him so much,” Vanessa said. “He’s been keeping us fed better than you have.”
“Because he stole our supplier,” Peter replied as he pushed the nameless buzzer. The voice that answered was female. He wondered if she lived alone, and if she’d be missed were he to go up there and surprise her. His mouth watered.
“Sorry, wrong apartment,” Peter replied into the intercom, banishing the dark thoughts from his mind.
He waved Vanessa to follow him back to the car, telling her, “You shouldn’t trust anything that man says or does. He’s a snake, and we’re better than that. Did you know his family was still hunting out in the country before we moved here?”
Vanessa shrugged him off and went to join Agatha at the car.
“He wasn’t there,” Agatha said sullenly as they got back into the car.
Peter pulled out onto the street, planning to circle back to the city hospital for the second time. He was out of ideas.
Vanessa was already busy talking on the phone to Landon; it sounded like. Peter tried to control his disgust. He didn’t like the smile playing across Vanessa’s lips as she listened to whatever the asshole was saying.
Vanessa removed the phone from her ear. “I need you to drop me off at Landon’s. No, never mind. I can walk from our house. Yeah, let’s go back to the house.” She sounded anxious and Peter tried not to read too much into it. She was free to date whoever she wanted to, whether Peter approved or not. In any case, he was glad for a break from the search for David.
Ashe sat quietly on the high-backed wooden chair trying hard not to cry. Landon lounged on an antique velvet sofa across from her, an amused grin curling up the corners of his mouth. It was dark outside, but there were few lights on in the room, making the shadows around them long and sinister. Ashe didn’t know how long she had been here, only that she wasn’t allowed to leave.
“Shouldn’t you tie her up or something?”
A woman came into the room. She couldn’t have been a college student, but she must have still been in her twenties or at the very most thirty. She had long black hair and green-grey eyes that Ashe thought looked like Peter’s.
“Don’t worry, Vanessa. She knows I’m faster than her and if she tries to run I drain her,” Landon said casually.
Ashe felt stupid for having gone to meet Landon. He had tricked her and threatened her into following him to his house. He was a vampire after all and now he was going to kill her, or worse, turn her.
“Why did you bring me here?” Ashe asked. “If this has something to do with Peter, you’re wasting your time.”
“I know about your fight,” Landon said. “I have visions sometimes. Precognition.” He tapped his temple with a long finger. “Why do you think I called when I did? I thought you’d be vulnerable after finding out about Peter’s dirty little secret. But this isn’t about Peter. This is about your father.”
Ashe suddenly felt dizzy. She should have known her father wouldn’t be able to leave the vampire world so easily.
Vanessa moved to the sofa to sit next to Landon. He put his arm around the back of the sofa where she sat. “You know what he is, don’t you?” she asked.
Ashe nodded nervously. “But what does it have to do with me?”
“You’re insurance, collateral for a debt that needs to be paid,” Landon replied lazily. He crossed one leg over the other as he spoke. “Our clans are getting hungry and we need the blood David supplies us. As soon as he gets us the blood, he can have you back. If he doesn’t give us the blood, you’ll take its place. We’ve got a lot of mouths to feed and you’ve only got eight pints of blood in you. There are ways of keeping you alive while we drain you. We’ve had centuries to perfect the practice.”
Vanessa leaned in towards Landon and whispered into his ear, but Ashe was close enough to hear her. “Have you called him yet?” she asked.
Landon replied in a regular voice. “No, I’m going to have the girl do it.”
He handed his phone to Ashe and she could hear it already ringing on the other end as she accepted it.
“Tell him what we told you. He has to deliver the blood here by midnight, or we’re taking yours instead.”
Ashe held the phone to her ear with a shaking hand. After a while, her father’s voice came on the line.
“Landon, I told you I’m done. Stop calling me.”
“Dad?” Ashe said in a scared voice, “It’s me, Ashe.”
“Ashe? What are you doing with Landon’s phone? Is everything okay?”
Ashe felt like she was going to cry, but she didn’t want Landon to have the satisfaction of seeing her afraid. “I’m at Landon’s house. He said he wants the blood you owe him. If you do that by midnight, I can go home with you. If you don’t, he’s going to—”
Ashe was unable to finish her thought.
Her father sounded like he was trying to remain calm for her sake, though his panic was all too obvious. “Okay. I’ll be there. Hang on.”
“And tell Mom I’m sorry,” Ashe cried. “I know we only fought so much because we loved each other. Tell her I never blamed her for you leaving.”
David’s voice cracked as he replied, “Stop saying those things. You can tell her yourself when I bring you home. Landon hasn’t hurt you, has he?”
“No,” Ashe replied. “Please come soon.”
“Are you alone? How many of them are there?”
Ashe had only seen two of them, but Landon had made references to the rest of his clan and she assumed that they were nearby. “I don’t know,” she replied. “Landon and a woman are with me.”
Vanessa snatched the phone from Ashe’s hand and shoved it at Landon. “I think he got the message.”
Landon shrugged and put the phone into his pocket. “And now, we wait,” he said.
Ashe hoped that her father would get there soon and that they would let her leave as promised. She feared that they would never let him free; that they would keep using Ashe to threaten him into working for them until she grew old and died. She didn’t think she could handle always being in danger like that. Even now she was on the brink of bursting into terrified tears.
Vanessa stood and left the room. Ashe could hear her f
ootsteps going downstairs. When she came back she was holding an empty wine glass cloudy with dust. “You’re out of blood,” she said.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Landon replied sharply.
“I can smell it,” Vanessa whined. “I can smell her blood.” She stalked up behind Ashe who instinctively flinched away. “How about just a taste? No one has to know. I won’t drink enough to hurt her.” She clutched the back of Ashe’s chair. Her long nails dug into the wood and left score marks.
“No,” Landon refused. “The others will wake at the smell of blood. They’ll wonder why you’re feeding without them and be angry. I can’t hold them all off at once. She’ll be torn to shreds.”
Vanessa pouted and retreated back out of the room.
Landon leaned forward, placing his hand on Ashe’s knee. She jerked it out of his grip and glared at him.
“If you want, I could turn you,” he said in a low voice. He glanced behind her towards the kitchen before continuing. “Vanessa might not like it much, but I have a feeling her clan’s not going to be around here much longer. It was her plan, you know, bringing you here. But she has no idea of just how much I’ve taken a liking to you.”
Ashe felt sick. She despised Landon and all of his kind. He was just as bad as Peter. No, not quite. Whereas Peter had purposely lied to Ashe, Landon was being completely transparent about his intentions towards her. He didn’t pretend he had her best interests at heart. He only wanted her for his own satisfaction, for the blood flowing in her veins.
“I’d never become one of you,” Ashe replied. “I’d rather die first.”
Landon chuckled to himself. “You may just have your wish,” he said as a commotion from downstairs brought him to his feet. Ashe instinctively moved to follow him, but he gestured her back down into the chair. “No, you stay here.” He left the room.
Ashe waited nervously, her knees pressed together as she picked at the fraying edges of the holes in her jeans. She tried to think of a way out, but she knew Landon would always be two steps ahead of her. He had seen her fight with Peter before it had happened and there was no telling how far his power extended. She listened for footsteps before slowly standing from her chair and creeping toward the window. The outside wall of the house was sheer, with no overhangs or footholds between her window and the ground. Ashe guessed that even if she fell straight down, the muddy grass would break her fall enough to prevent a twisted ankle. She undid the latch at the top of the window and pushed it open. It slid upwards as if greased and Ashe let out a breath of relief that it hadn’t squeaked or gotten stuck halfway. She took one last look towards the ground below and steeled herself, summoning the courage she needed to make her escape.
The sounds from downstairs were getting closer and before Ashe could commit to the jump she could hear footsteps on the stairs. She slammed the window shut and went back to her chair; trying to steady her nervous breathing before Landon and whomever he was with entered the room.
Two new women were with him, along with Vanessa. One was a double of Vanessa herself, with long black hair and eyes like Peter’s. The other had a predatory grin on her face that made Ashe shrink back in her chair. Her canines were razor sharp and the hollows in her cheeks made her look like a corpse. She may have been breathtakingly beautiful once, but now she seemed ill and the old-fashioned, almost Victorian dress she wore did her no favors. Her black hair was pinned up intricately in a style fitting her ancient clothing.
“How long until we feast?” the woman asked, eying Ashe like she was a prime cut of steak.
“Yeah, you promised us blood,” the one who looked a lot like Vanessa added. “I doubt David’s coming. Let’s drain the girl and get it over with. We’re in too much pain for this to go on much longer.”
Landon growled, “No. I already told Vanessa we can’t do anything until we know for sure. David’s loyalty to us is too valuable. We wait until midnight.”
She snarled at Landon, but said nothing more. Ashe could see the hunger in her eyes, and as the two women settled onto the sofa across from her, she prayed that Landon would not leave her alone with them. Ashe knew that Landon was the only one keeping them from tearing her limb from limb, if only until midnight.
There was a difference between vampires like Landon and those like Peter, but Ashe had been too blind to see it until it was too late. She didn’t want to die without Peter knowing how much he really meant to her. It had broken her heart to say those things to him at the church, but by the time she had realized this, the words had already been said and Peter had gone. She would have given anything for one last look into Peter’s eyes to tell him she was sorry and that she hadn’t meant to hurt him the way she had. It wasn’t his fault he was what he was.
The house was quiet; too quiet. Peter had drifted off for what had seemed like mere moments, lying on his bed trying to forget the sharp pangs in his stomach. But it was already dark and there was no sign of the rest of his clan. Peter feared that his sisters were out on the hunt and in the morning, they would have to leave the city to flee the trail of bodies leading right to their doorstep. He regretted that he hadn’t been able to apologize to Ashe and that he would be leaving her feeling betrayed. The memory of her face when had she told him to go away still haunted him; its pain was something he would never forget.
His mother and father were still in the basement, lying in bed as if stricken with the flu. The pallor over their faces was like a death mask and his mother’s eyes barely fluttered open when he called their names.
“Don’t wake your father,” she whispered as Peter leaned in close.
Peter nodded. “Where is everyone?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
His mother feebly shook her head, giving Peter all the answer he needed.
“It’s okay, I’ll find them.” He turned to leave.
“Lock the basement door on your way out,” his mother said. “And find your sisters and bring them home.”
Peter did as he was told and turned the bolt on the basement door behind him. Vivid images of his father’s last hunt flashed through Peter’s mind as he tried to think of where his sisters might have gone. If they were out hunting, they could be anywhere in the city. It would be impossible to track them down unless Peter heard screaming or the wail of police sirens. They may have gone to campus where it would be easy to lure lone male students out into the quiet churchyard or the park by the hospital. Or they may have gone to a bar to pick out victims.
Then Peter remembered the phone call Vanessa received in the car and her request to be dropped off at Landon’s house. Was it possible they were all there together? This whole blood mess had started with Landon and it seemed fitting that it would end with him.
Peter rushed out the front door and into the night. A brisk wind tugged at his coat as he ran down the sidewalk. He would be lucky if they were still there when he arrived, but he was desperate and could think of no other place they might be. As Peter turned onto Landon’s street, he could see that there were lights on in his house. The front-facing windows of the first and second floors burned brightly in the darkness, giving Peter the glimmer of hope that he so badly needed.
He was nearly at the house when a car swerved onto the curb inches from running him over. The driver got out and Peter saw that it was David, clutching a paper sack to his chest and looking like he’d seen a ghost.
“What are you doing here?” David asked, his voice frantic.
“I should ask you the same thing,” Peter growled. He had wasted all afternoon looking for David and here he was on his way to make a delivery to Landon. Peter could have jumped over the car and strangled him.
“I thought you cared about Ashe,” David said. “Why would you use her like this?”
Peter had no idea what David was talking about, but the fear in his tone was infectious. “What the hell is going on?” Peter demanded.
“Ashe was right. You’re all monsters. You kidnapped my daughter and threatened to hurt her, al
l for a few bags of blood. I know I messed up too, but I can make everything right, I promise. I have the blood right here. It’s not midnight yet. You don’t need to hurt her. Please don’t hurt her.” David broke into desperate sobs and tried to shove the paper bag towards Peter over the hood of the car. A blood bag fell out and started leaking black blood onto the metal. Peter tried to ignore the alluring smell of it and the desperate ache in his bones to drink it up.
A sick unease came over him as he tried to make sense of David’s frantic babbling. Was it really possible Landon could have kidnapped Ashe and was using her to extort blood from David? If Landon had hurt even a hair on Ashe’s head, he would have hell to pay for it.
“I’m not here for the blood,” Peter said, shoving the bag back towards David. “I’m here to make sure no one gets hurt. That includes your daughter.”
David took the paper bag up in his arms, clutching it to his chest like a newborn baby. “They’ve got her inside, I think. I need to deliver the blood or they’ll take hers instead. I should have known I’d never be able to stop working for you.”
“Not me. Landon,” Peter said. The distinction was important. Peter wasn’t one of the monsters. Ashe meant the world to Peter and he would have done anything to keep her safe. His own immortality was worth nothing if it meant hurting her. Ashe had not only shown Peter his own darkness, but the light that came with it. She was the reason that Peter had not succumbed to his hunger like his sisters had. She made him more human than he would have ever thought possible. If he lost her, Peter too would be lost.
“Your clan’s a part of it too,” David replied.
Peter didn’t care who was involved. Time was ticking away and the cutthroats had Ashe at their mercy. If his sisters were there, they would go down with Landon. He would destroy them all if he had to. He realized now that no amount of pain could equal that of losing Ashe.
“You need to get back in your car and wait there,” Peter instructed David. “We’re going to need that blood you brought, but only after I know that Ashe is safe. I promise I’ll bring back your daughter.”
Love of A Dragon (Exalted Dragons Book 1) Page 27
