Embraced by Blood

by Laurie London

  The assassin dabbed his forehead with a neatly folded handkerchief. She was thrilled to see the tips of his fangs protruding from his lips.

  “I had planned to use her as bait,” he said softly, almost to himself. “Then torture and kill her in front of the traitor. But this plan could fit nicely into my goals. I wonder what his reaction would be if he watched her transform into the very enemy he’s been trying to destroy. Yes, this could be infinitely more interesting than just killing her.”

  Emboldened by his reaction, she asked, “Will you help me find her?”

  “And how did you come up with this ingenious idea?”

  She pretended not to notice that he hadn’t answered her question. “I was inspired by the sex clubs in Southeast Asia, where sex slaves are bought and sold in those high-priced viewing suites. It gives the vampire population what they want in an exciting and titillating manner. Not only will it appeal to existing reverts, but I believe it will entice others over to our way of thinking. If this goes well, I can see it expanding into other major cities.”

  He laid a hand on her shoulder. “An impressive goal. I like the way your mind operates. Come. Let us discuss this matter further in the privacy of my suite. I would very much like to hear the details in greater depth. Shall we?”

  Was he serious? “Yes. Yes, of course.” She knew she sounded like an overexuberant puppy, but she didn’t care. To have his support would be monumental. “Please, you haven’t told me your name.”

  He slipped those long fingers into her palm and her inner thighs trembled.

  He brought the back of her hand up to his lips, as if she were a lady. “I am Christoph Rejavik, and I am very pleased to meet you, Ms. Capelli.”

  “Ventra. Please. Call me Ventra.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  LILY CLOSED THE FRONT DOOR of the Willow Run carriage house and leaned her forehead on the heavy wood. Thank goodness her parents were gone—especially her father. She’d thought the evening would never end. Dinner with him was never an easy affair. On the surface, he’d been polite enough to Alfonso, but beneath that crusty exterior, he was seething. She’d seen it in his eyes and she heard it in his snide tone.

  With Steven in town for Zoe’s recital, Lily’s father had been pressuring her to resume her relationship, and he saw Alfonso’s presence as a threat to that. A few times during dinner, she’d come close to having it out with her father, but Alfonso had nudged her under the table, discreetly stroking the back of her hand, calming her down, diffusing her anger until her parents finally left.

  At least her mother understood. She’d offered to bring Zoe back to the main house with them on the pretense of watching a movie and sleeping there. Since Alfonso would be leaving for home before dawn, at least they’d have the carriage house to themselves. Her mother might be irritating and nosy sometimes, but she was also very perceptive.

  “He’s an old guy, set in his ways. It doesn’t do any good to engage him.” Alfonso came up behind her and kissed the back of her neck, sending shivers down her spine.

  “But he’s so—”

  “It’s not worth it, Lil,” he said, turning her around to face him.

  The bright azure of his eyes and the faint smell of the herbs he’d chopped earlier set her at ease, and she felt her shoulders relax under his fingers.

  “He’s just like my father,” he continued. “Stubborn and convinced he’s always right and that anyone who disagrees with him is wrong. You may never be good enough in his eyes, no matter what you do, just as I was never good enough for my father either. Maybe you need to stop looking for his approval and live your life the way you want to live it. Just don’t screw it up, like I did.” A dark cloud dampened his expression and he started to turn away from her, but she stopped him.

  “You didn’t screw up, Alfonso. It may feel like it because you surrounded yourself with Darkbloods for the last century, but that’s not you. You were never one of them. And you’ve proved that over and over again.”

  Two deep furrows formed between his brows and his eyes raked over her face, studying her as if he was seeing her for the first time. “You don’t know what I know. What I’ve seen. What I’ve done.”

  She grabbed him by the wrist and let her thumb caress his. “So tell me.”

  HE HESITATED AND LOOKED DOWN at their hands. Neither of them said anything for a full minute, the air heavy with silence.

  He tried to let go, but she held tight.

  What would she do if she knew the truth about him? Would she despise him? Would she accept him?

  Maybe it was time to come clean, despite what she’d think of him. Hell, maybe it was better if she knew anyway. He was about to step out of her life, and this would ensure she wouldn’t come back. He shouldn’t care what she thought of him if it meant she would be safe. If she was horrified by what he’d done, by what he used to be, then maybe it would be for the best. She wouldn’t want to be with him and that would keep her away.

  He led her into the living room, which was filled with pictures chronicling her life with her family. Zoe as a pudgy baby. Zoe taking her first steps. Lily and Zoe laughing in a park. Zoe playing the piano. Yes, Lily deserved to know what sort of person he was, what kind of a man she thought she’d once loved.

  One thing was certain. No matter what her reaction was, he would always love her—always wish things could’ve been different. That he’d made different choices back then, so that he was a different man now.

  She sat on the overstuffed couch, tucking a bare foot underneath her, but he remained standing.

  “What I’ve never told you is that many years ago I actually took an Oath of Loyalty to the Alliance and to Pavlos. I had to promise to uphold their covenants, promote their agenda and forsake all other needs that didn’t correspond to…to the Overlord’s. And I did…for a time. Not many members are asked, so it’s supposed to be an honor. Since I was a friend of Pavlos’s when the Alliance started, it was only natural that he would ask me to be a part of his inner circle. I put it off as long as I could, but finally I couldn’t see any way to avoid it. It was during this time that I brilliantly entered into a relationship with a human woman, a sweetblood. I cared for her but had no intention of it getting too serious.”

  He ran a hand through his hair. “Jesus, just saying this aloud makes me ill. I’m reminded of my utter stupidity and gross lack of judgment.”

  She quietly waited for him to continue, but he wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or not. Was she waiting to blow up? Was her disgust simmering below the surface? He couldn’t look at her—didn’t want to see it in her eyes. It really didn’t matter what he thought or felt about it. She needed to hear this.

  “It was made very clear to me that if I didn’t take the Blood Oath, Jessica would be in danger. So I agreed, thinking I could fake it and figure a way out of the mess later. When it was done, a small piece of muslin soaked in my blood was placed inside a shevala for safekeeping and—”

  “My God. The Order of the Red Sword.” Her voice was soft.

  He glanced over at her, expecting to see a hint of loathing or disgust in her expression, but all he saw was concern. “You’ve heard of it? It’s rarely spoken of by name within the Alliance. Its members are revered and respected—feared, actually. None of the rank and file know much about them.”

  “It’s the Alliance’s version of Tracker Academy. Supposedly, they’re experts in scent memories. Although their tracking skills are good, they’re not quite as strong as a Class-A Tracker.”

  “Council propaganda, Lil. I’ve seen blood assassins at work. Their abilities are unmatched.”

  She stiffened at that slight, but he continued.

  “As a result of being in this inner circle, I was privy to even more of the Alliance’s monstrous ways. God, I was so naïve. Until then, I’d thought—hoped, actually—that they were engaging in and promoting harmless fun. Deep down, though, I knew the truth, but I chose to turn a blind eye toward it. Once I was inducted
, things changed. I saw everything. Every fucking thing. I couldn’t stand what they were doing and what they wanted me to do, so I left. That’s when they activated my blood assassin for the first time. A killer named Christoph Rejavik.”

  “Couldn’t your father have helped you?”

  “I did speak to him and he…refused to help me. Rejavik tracked Jessica down and…” His voice caught again. He stood and paced on the other side of the antique coffee table littered with more family photos, including one he’d taken of Lily. They were on Coronado Beach, where they’d stayed for a few nights in the old glamorous hotel. The sun had just set, orange sky stretching out over the horizon behind her. She looked so happy then, so carefree. Not tense and worried as she was now. Too much information would do that to you, he thought.

  “The woman. It was her, wasn’t it? The one that you…” Lily looked like she was going to throw up. “You don’t need to tell me more if it’s too difficult.”

  “No, I want you to know this. You need to know what happened. When I left the Alliance—the first time—the assassin easily found Jessica. I’m not sure if it was because I did occasionally take her blood or if he followed my scent track there. The important thing was that he found her.”

  “And were you there, too?”

  “No, at least I had the sense not to lead them to her, or so I thought. I was staying in a roadside inn. They found me later.”

  “What…what happened then?”

  “They wore me down, exposed me to the sun for several days, embedded tiny silver spikes into my skin, then when I was at my weakest, most vulnerable point, Rejavik…” Alfonso’s hands balled into fists and his nostrils flared. “He made me watch as he…fed…from Jess. Then, without sealing her wounds, he untied me.”

  The air inside the living room was stifling hot and he suddenly felt like puking. Before he drew in another breath, Lily was at his side, putting a cool hand on the back of his neck. Soothing energies coursed through him, loosening the tethers around his rigid exterior. He paused for a moment as she ran her hand down his arm and threaded her fingers into his.

  He was stunned. This wasn’t the action of someone who was disgusted. Maybe she wasn’t rejecting him. Maybe she didn’t find this as abhorrent as he’d thought she would.

  “After it was over, I was…devastated. Couldn’t stand to think what I’d done to her. When word got out that she was dead, drained of her lifeblood, my father and brother put two and two together. They confronted me and things between us got even uglier.”

  “And your mother?”

  “My mother, who was always so idealistic, never thought I was capable of such…an atrocity. Little did she know, I was.”

  “She wasn’t idealistic, Alfonso. What the assassin did was atrocious. You were a victim, just as Jessica was.”

  He stared down at their intertwined fingers, the current of her energies causing his arm to tingle, and he wasn’t sure what to think. On the one hand, he was relieved she didn’t think of him as some sort of a freak. On the other, it’d be better for her to be repulsed by his actions. It would make her want to stay away from him, and ultimately she’d be safe—which was the only thing that really mattered.

  “But that’s not all you’re worried about, is it?” she asked.

  “If they know about you, you’re a target, Lil, just as Jessica was.”

  Lily was silent for a few minutes. “She was a musician, wasn’t she?”

  “Yes, she attended the Conservatoire de Paris.”

  “And a human.”

  “Yes.”

  “Hardly a trained Agency fighter, like me. Big difference.”

  “For godsake, don’t you understand?” Hurt shone in her eyes, but he didn’t care. “We’re not talking Darkbloods here. We’re talking a blood assassin from the Order of the Red Sword. I’ve seen their torture chamber and what they do in it. I can still smell its dampness, feel the claustrophobic atmosphere and hear the groans of the devices and the high-pitched screams of the victims. Rumor has it that one of their original members was a favored executioner for Vlad the Impaler, and after what I witnessed, I don’t doubt that it’s true. Not only are they killing machines, sent to destroy the traitor, but they’re also trained to kill any loved ones as well. To teach others a lesson that betraying the Alliance will cost more than one life—it’ll cost the lives of your whole family.”

  She started to protest, just as he knew the fighter in her would, but he interrupted her.

  “Sharing blood makes you more vulnerable, creates a direct link to the assassin, as he has with me. He’d smell my blood in you and yours in me. He’d either use you to get to me or vice versa. Then he’d have us both. And since we know I can hardly keep from taking your blood, even a casual relationship won’t work. Believe me, I thought about it, because the last thing I wanted to do was leave you.”

  “But we can face him together.”

  “Listen to me.” He held her face in his hands. “We’re not just talking you, Lily. What about Zoe? If he finds you, he finds her.”

  The competitive fight in her eyes faded as the enormity of his words sank in.

  “You don’t belong in this mess I’ve created,” he continued, “and neither does she. I can’t take that chance and endanger your life or the life of your beautiful daughter. Those are the risks, now that the assassin has been activated. Right now he’s in Europe, but sooner or later, he’ll track me back to the States. And when he does, he’ll find me unless I’m on the move again. You deserve better than this. You deserve better than me.”

  She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. Her lips were soft, warm, as they moved against his. He kissed her back, and when his tongue brushed against her elongated fang, the resulting electricity went straight to his groin. How could she still feel this way about him after knowing everything? What he’d seen, what he’d done, what he’d promised—all were unforgivable. He’d tried to make up for that by feeding information to the Agency all these years, but nothing could truly nullify the horrible things he’d once done.

  His joy in her reaction to him was bittersweet. He wouldn’t be able to stay much longer.

  “A man’s worth isn’t measured by what he does when times are good,” she said, pulling away from him. Her voice was confident and clear, the set of her jaw determined. “It’s easy to do the right thing when things are going well. It’s how you act during the tough times that defines your character.”

  She laced her fingers in his and led him past the kitchen, down the hallway and into her bedroom.

  “WHAT ARE YOU DOING, LIL?” he growled.

  Noting that he came along willingly, she didn’t bother to answer. He’d find out soon enough.

  With one bare foot, she kicked the door closed behind them, took him to her bed and pushed him down on the mattress. Standing between his knees, she looked down into his face.

  His eyes were crystalline, his lips slightly open as if he were breathing hard.

  “Thank you for finally telling me the truth. I know how hard it was for you.” Knowing all these details made everything so clear. Why he’d acted as he had. What he’d done. What he’d said. He had only wanted to protect her.

  “I love you, you know,” she continued, as she began to undress him. First his shirt, then his boots and socks. “I’ve never stopped loving you, even when you said you didn’t love me back. I’ve not felt the same since you left. Nothing about me is as good as it was when we were together. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat. Even my abilities declined. Knowing all of this about you doesn’t change my feelings. I knew you’d been through shit, Alfonso. I just didn’t know all the details.”

  “Lily, I—”

  “Shhh.” He’d been so worried about her that it was her turn to serve him now.

  After quickly lighting a few candles, she knelt down between his legs, eager to pull him into her mouth, to feel his body inside hers. She wanted him with an urgency she couldn’t quite define. As she slid her hands up
his thick thighs, he sucked in a breath through his teeth. She unfastened his jeans and belt, grasped the zipper pull and tugged it over the swell beneath it. Several inches of his erection extended above the waistband of his black boxer briefs. A delicious heaviness pooled low in her belly and she licked her lips.

  “Lily, we can’t. We shouldn’t.”

  He must’ve seen the tips of her fangs.

  “I won’t take your blood if you don’t want me to.”

  “It’s not that I don’t want it—thoughts of making love to you and sharing blood consume me.”

  “Then let’s not worry about it. If it happens, it happens. You said yourself that the assassin is still in Europe.”

  Making love to him didn’t always cause a blood need in her, but it almost always did in him. In fact, had they ever made love without him taking her blood? She didn’t think they had.

  And with that, she stripped off his jeans.

  He let her.

  The thin, sinewy cord of muscle traced along the outside of his abdomen and ended somewhere under the last item of clothing he wore. She hooked her fingers into the waistband of his tight boxer briefs and as she slipped them over his hips, he groaned. His erection sprang free, lying thick and proud up the left side of his belly.

  He was amazing, utterly magnificent in the candlelight. He had propped himself up on his elbows to watch her. The flickering shadow and corresponding light accentuated the well-defined muscles of his stomach. The splayed-out ends of his hair brushed the tops of his shoulders, its golden color shimmering and catching the light with every movement. The pupils in his eyes had expanded, crowding out the blue until only a tiny ring of color was left.