by M. Garnet
“Bathromo, the Council does not answer to you, you answer to them.” He leaned into her, pinning her against the cabinet. She was watching the faces in the elevator, but she was more aware of the feel of the hard body pressing against her from behind. “In fact, I think it would be advisable for you to contact them. Of course, they will probably want you to come to Rome. But Rome is beautiful this time of year.”
“And what of the rumors of the antigens in the blood of this woman?” This came out almost as a growl from the man in the elevator.
She began to seem to hear the voices from far off as the man behind her, almost twice her size, leaned his hips against her, pushing her against the hard surface of the cabinet. What she felt was the thickness of his erection that pulsed a heat right through their clothes. She actually felt her body beginning to respond to him.
Rad lifted one hand and pulled her hair back on one side. She felt him tilt his head enough that she could see his dark hair from the corner of her eye as he bent his head and lowered his lips to her neck. She stood, immovable, not breathing, her eyes watching the men in the elevator. All three of the men took a short step forward and then stepped back, their eyes turning dark until she thought that their irises had expanded to the size of their entire eye.
Oh God, was he going to bite her? He had said he would not without her permission. She felt his lips on her neck and there was intense warmth that spread from the kiss, where he lingered, all the way down to her stomach and to her groin. But it got more intense because he ran his tongue along the vein that was throbbing in her neck and she felt the tightening in her entire female organ. She clinched her muscles, trying to control herself, but she realized that he probably was feeling her muscles moving as he was pressing against her hips so tightly.
Finally he raised his head and she could breathe. “You know, Bathromo, the lady would like you to have your slave take his finger off that button before I come over there and remove his entire hand. There is a servant below with her clothes. He needs to use the elevator and we have unfinished business after that taste, and yes, it is sweeter than anything you have ever imagined. Now take your dirty crew out of here.”
He finally moved away from her and she was grateful she had the cabinet to hang onto. He walked like he owned the world, towards the elevator and suddenly Bathromo started pushing the elevator buttons. By the time Rad had reached the elevator, the door had started to close.
He turned and looked at her. “You did well. I need to go down and make sure that they leave and maybe, really get my message through to Bathromo. Your clothes will be up in a minute.” He walked back slowly past her to the door leading to the stairs and was gone.
She stood leaning against the counter top, waiting for her knees to be strong enough to hold her up. She heard the elevator and she looked over. A young man was there with several suitcases. She did not move as he gathered up the cases and walked into the suite, looking around. Okay, he came in without waiting to be asked, so he must be mortal. She stopped and thought for a moment. What was her life becoming when she had to think about a guy carrying a suitcase whether he was normal or not?
Chapter Seven
He stalked Bathromo carefully. The old male was tough and sensitive, a true Vampire who had nurtured his talents. But he needed to have a lesson. How dare he come to the lair of an enforcer. Besides, Rad still had the smell and taste of her and he was fighting the greatest urge to return and claim her, to taste her, to feel her, to enter her. He needed to use that energy somewhere else before he could go back to be in her presence. He knew that he could not control her mentally, but he could overpower her with his strength. Suddenly he realized that when it happened, he wanted her to allow it.
He wondered if she would allow it? As he had leaned into her in the kitchen he had realized that she had responded. He felt her heat that made the smell drift off of her into the air. He felt her muscles grip as she tried to resist the urges of her own body. He had also been surprised that his own body had instantly thrown up the big boy as he leaned into her. He thought he had taken care of that problem with the ladies but she had instantly reached him. Fuck.
He wanted to slam his fist through a wall. What was he thinking? It had been a long time since he had cared for another person in this way, especially a mortal. But that raised the question, was she mortal? Now he saw the three men. They were walking and he knew they were also stalking. He let one of them see a woman down one alley and suggested he did not want to share. The Vampire looked slyly at his master and slowly dropped back. When there was enough distance, he went back to the alley to enter it.
Rad took him quickly. From the dust, Rad took his billfold and a ring, putting them into his pocket. He placed all the rest of the items into a dumpster. He moved as a shadow, catching up with the pair and was awarded with the sight that Bathromo and his other servant had parted company. Bathromo had sent him after a prostitute that he was bringing back so that Bathromo could feed.
Rad moved as a shadow around Bathromo. Rad appeared behind the servant and with one quick stroke drove the silver knife through his heart. The woman started to scream but Rad entered her mind, stopping her thoughts, then sent her away with no memory of what had happened. He picked up the wallet out of the limp pants, grabbing the ring that was rolling on the sidewalk.
He walked back to Bathromo and looked at the Vampire in the eye. No one, even one as old as Bathromo, could meet the stare of an enforcer for very long. Bathromo finally looked away. Rad took his hand and put the two rings into it. “You will need to find your own meal. Do not repeat the mistake you made this day and push me or the Council—there will be repercussions you won’t enjoy.” Rad was gone.
* * * *
She had taken the suitcases into the bedroom she had chosen and when she opened them, they did contain her clothes. So she spent an hour putting the clothes away. She got dressed in jeans and a loose tee, putting her feet into flats. She took a scarf and after brushing her hair until it had a nice shine she pulled it back at the neck, tied with the scarf. She did not know what else to do. She went back out and sat in one of the chairs in the main room. There was a low table and she finally noticed a remote laying on it. She picked it up and found it had a lot more buttons than the usual remote. She looked at it closely, pushed the first one that said Access. Across the room a cabinet had doors that slid open and revealed a huge flat screen TV. Great. She surfed and at last settled on the national news.
This time he returned by the elevator. He walked out of the sliding doors into the room with that strange grace that was also forceful. He looked at her as he passed into one of the bedrooms. She heard the shower running and chalked up some more information about Vampires. They needed to clean up and take baths. Was there still some human in the dead?
When he came out after about a half hour later, he had on tan colored pants that were tight over his muscular legs with the gold amulet on his chest, and that was all. He had a towel in his hand that he was using on his long dark hair. He walked behind her to the kitchen. She heard him pouring some liquid and did not want to see if it was blood, but when he came back he went to the long couch that was on an angle to her chair and set a glass down that looked like whiskey. He stretched out on the couch and looked at the TV.
She waited a minute, trying not to look at the broad chest, the strong stomach and the dark line of hair below his belly button, disappearing into his pants. Okay, she knew Vampires were supposed to be appealing. Get the mind on something else. “Can I ask you some questions?”
He looked over at her. “Take the scarf out of your hair.” He looked back at the TV.
She let out a long sigh. “If I take it out, will you answer my questions? Shit, I can’t play this game. I am no good at it. I don’t understand the rules.”
She heard him let out a sigh that almost matched hers. “Fuck, I’m sorry, I guess I am making it harder on you. It is my way, it is how I do things.” Again she heard a deep sigh.
“I will answer your questions if I can.”
She tried to keep her attention on the TV but she kept finding she was watching him out of the corner of her eyes. She reached up and slipped the scarf from her hair and shook her head to fan her hair. She cleared her throat. “So how did they find out about me?”
He took a long moment to answer. He was absorbing the smell that had floated on the air when she had shook her head. Finally he closed his eyes and willed himself to remember the ruling. “You donated blood at a blood bank.”
She looked over at him. That damn stupid blood donation. “What? Did it get reported? Do you guys monitor blood banks, or what?”
He put a muscular arm behind his head and pulled one leg up. “There are some Vampires who try not to feed on mortals. Actually, most of us stock blood for emergency. Anyways, they buy blood or steal. They had a deal with one of the techs at the bank where you donated. They went in at the end of the day and some of what they got was yours.” He seemed to hesitate, then looked over at her. “They sampled it and fought over it. Several Vamps got killed and a mortal was killed. There was a team sent in to clean up the mess and find out what happened. They needed to make sure no one traced it to Vampires. But they did trace it to a scent of blood that there was almost not even a drop left of, but in going through the records, they followed each person who had given blood that day. Then a reliable enforcer found you, except you pushed him down an escalator.”
She sat still, staring at the TV, but she didn’t see it. She was trying to understand what he had told her. She was trying to hold herself together. “So, people have died over my blood?”
He rolled his head over to look at her. “What are you thinking in that brilliant little head of yours?”
She took a deep breath before answering him. “That you and your so called Council aren’t going to be happy with just a sample of my blood. That I am earmarked as a lab rat.”
Now she looked really angry. He could feel the anger vibrating from her. The problem was, she was probably right. Unless she bonded with a really strong protector, they would keep her somewhere and on a regular basis they would draw blood from her that would either be processed for reproduction and testing or just given to the highest bidder or as a reward for some special reason. Sure, she would be kept in a palace and she would be given the very best of everything, jewels, food, companionship, everything except freedom. For some women the perks would be enough. But he already knew, with the short time he had been with this woman, that no matter what they offered her, it wouldn’t be enough.
She jumped up and ran to the balcony. He was right behind her. He couldn’t let her commit suicide. The sun was behind the building, so the balcony was in shadows. In his bare feet she did not hear him and he stayed a step behind to see what she was going to do. She gripped the railing until her knuckles turned white but it didn’t look like she was going to throw herself over. He stepped back and leaned against the glass, his arms crossed, just watching her.
“I’m not going to jump. You are not going to lose your precious blood treasure chest.” Her voice shook with anger. She knew when he was near. He wondered how close he had to be when she became aware of him. He had seen her tense up in the restaurant when Bathromo entered. It had happened when the three Vampires were about ten or fifteen feet from her.
She turned around to face him. She was fighting all kinds of emotions and she immediately realized it was a mistake to face a tall muscular, half dressed man with his looks. “Can you give me some privacy?”
“Not out here.” He did not move.
She moved away from the railing and tried to pass him to go back into the room. He put his arm out and stopped her. “I can take you somewhere. Is there someplace that will help you to take all of this in?”
She looked up at him. “Yes, someplace where there are no Vampires. Where people aren’t after me for my blood. Where the world is normal and I don’t have people like you looking at me like you want to eat me and do more to me than I want done.”
She saw his chest rise in a deep sigh and she realized that he was taking air into his lungs, so Vampires breathed, at least sometimes. They must, if they could smell her. “You understand that being a Vampire has made me and all others have some traits that are appealing to mortals? We have looks that draw mortals to us. We don’t need it because we are stronger and faster than any mortal, plus the fates gave us the ability to control or influence most mortals. But it is there and it is a fact. We might be the minority on this planet, but we have been made to last.” He waited, his arm blocking her passage.
She started to step back but he caught her and drew her to him tightly. She had no resistance against his strength as he pulled her against his chest, and she did feel and smell the sex. He set her back on her own feet and she took a deep breath. She let her anger take over, it seemed to be the only weapon she had against him.
“Shit, what are you trying to prove? You already have me convinced that you are real and that there are things that go bump in the night. But I sure as hell am not going to let those things screw me or screw with my head. Now let me pass.” She was not foolish enough to try to push against him, so she just stood back.
“What I am trying to prove to you is that not all of them are like Bathromo. They will not try to overpower you or scare you. They will try to romance you, and you have won’t have a hell of a lot of resistance.” He moved into the room and she followed. He had a cell phone to his ear, but she didn’t want to hear, so she went to her bedroom and lay down on the bed to think things over. He seemed to leave her alone for almost an hour before she heard him call her.
“Misty, I want you to come out and try something.” She heard his low velvet voice. She did not want to be in the same room with him, especially since she was still processing the feelings from the contact on the balcony. But she thought that if she did not do as he requested, he might resort to force, and she did not like to think about that. She got up and went, standing in the doorway.
“I would like you to sit in the chair and close your eyes and tell me when you feel my presence. It will help me to protect you. You seem to have some extra talents that no one has discovered. We both know you were aware of Bathromo before you saw him. This could be an asset, but it might help to know how close or far the sense reaches.” She realized that he was being helpful by giving her an explanation. She had a feeling that he was more used to giving orders and not explaining himself.
She tried not to look at him, aware that he still wore only the tan pants. Since he was barefoot, she was pretty sure she would not hear him. She went to a chair in the middle of the room and sat down and drew her legs up under her. She felt him walk up behind her with her scarf in his hands as he folded it. She knew he intended to blindfold her and she gritted her teeth, determined not to let him see her reaction. Instead she gripped the arms of the chair as he tied the scarf, then he was gone. Really gone. She could not feel him anywhere. She could not hear anything
She sat stiffly, turning her head when she heard the elevator doors open. She knew a Vampire was in the elevator. It was not Rad—she was not sure how she knew, but it was not him. She was not sure what to do, but as long as she did not invite him in she should be okay. It was also not the ugly feeling of Bathromo. She felt Rad. He was to the left of her. She raised her hand.
He asked her, “What do you feel?”
She moved her head as she answered. “You are on my left, not very close, but in the room.”
“Good, that was the first sense you had of me, correct?”
She hesitated than went on to let him know the rest, even though he did not ask. “Yes, but there is a Vampire on the elevator. I can feel him waiting.”
There was a silence then she heard surprise in another male voice. “Amazing, will you invite me in, madam?”
She tore off the scarf and looked at the elevator. There was a handsome young man standing there with a large rolling suitcase beside him. He was fair
with a lot of blond hair and what she guessed were probably blue eyes under the blond eyebrows. He was tall, but not quite as tall as Rad.
“Misty, this is a friend, invite him in. He comes bearing gifts, but unlike Greeks, the Swedes can be trusted.” Rad actually produced a smile that reached his eyes.
She did not offer a smile, but she did invite him in. He came over to her dragging the suitcase. He took her hand and she noticed his was cold like Rad’s.
He did not have an accent as he spoke. “Rad is not too polite. It comes from being able to give too many orders. I am Alexander Bider, and you are the lovely Misty Bower.” He kissed her knuckles and she saw Rad watching them closely as he moved away.
“Aah, the smell, so, so sweet. Please call me Alex and don’t worry about the big gorilla in the room. He is tame most of the time and he knows I will not bite you. I am very good at following the rules. But it is such a shame.” He looked at her, giving her a very large boyish grin. He pulled the suitcase over, laying it on its side. “Here is your surprise.”
He stepped back to allow her room to open the case. She hesitated, leaned down, unzipped and pulled the top back. The case was full of drawing material. More important, it was full of some of the finest drawing and watercolors on the market. One hundred percent cotton on backing, stretched so it would not warp when watered, pads of color from China and Italy, tubes of watercolors from Italy and Denmark. There were brushes of a multitude of sizes made from the finest of natural hair. She pulled up the items to see down in the case where there were drafting tools. She looked up at Alex.
For all his size and handsome face, he look hesitant. “Is it correct? Does it please you?”
She cleared her voice. “Yes, it is all very nice. Much better than I have ever been able to afford. Thank you.”
He grinned like a little boy. He turned to Rad. “Well, old man. What have you done to Bathromo? He has closed down half the town.”
