“Not at this time,” I admitted. “We are looking for them and any information we can find on those bullets they used to shoot you with.” I saw her flinch, and I wanted to take those memories away. No female should be treated the way that Lydia had been the night before. The beautiful, petite vixen should be cherished, not harmed.
Her emerald eyes softened and she pulled a card from her desk. After scribbling on the backside of it, she handed it to me, “Here’s the number directly to my office. You know, just in case.”
I walked around the desk and sat on the edge, kicking my feet straight out in front of me. She was so close that I reached out and stroked her cheek while she was seated in her chair.
“You need to be safe, Lydia,” I sighed, as she closed her eyes and leaned into my palm for comfort. “Please don’t leave this place with anyone but me.”
“I’ll call you about an hour before I’m ready to leave,” she said and placed her tiny hand over mine. I felt the stirrings of something deep in the pit of my stomach. It was a tightness that made the muscles over my abdomen tremble.
“Promise?” I raised a brow. Lydia and Charity were two of the sneakiest females I’d ever met, and I wouldn’t put it past her to head out on her own.
“Promise,” she replied, her eyes never leaving mine.
“I have to go,” I said, regretfully. Leaning down, I captured her lips. Managing only the briefest of touches, I pressed my lips to hers and pulled away.
“Be safe,” she said, touching my cheek. We didn’t speak for a few moments, both of us remembering what had happened earlier in the evening.
I nodded, because I didn’t trust myself to say anything else. I didn’t want to leave her here alone, but I knew that she’d be okay. I had a patrol already in the area. I had to keep telling myself that she was going to be safe.
After closing the door to her office, I made my way back to the floor of the club. All of the employees watched me, with a bit of wariness in their eyes, as I passed a few customers sitting in booths to my right. The music was fast and modern. Dancers were already gyrating on the floor in the center of the room.
The bouncer removed the red rope and allowed me to exit without a word. He turned to a young vampire couple and asked for identification before allowing them access to the club. I walked around the side of the building searching for anything out of the ordinary on my way back to the Hummer.
The night was cool and quiet. The sky was cloudless, and the moon was only half full. My senses were on high alert. Someone was hunting us and, from what I’d seen, they were serious about taking one of us out. As far as I was concerned, no one was going to hunt the woman inside that club…
No one!
Chapter 5
Lydia
Ashby had only been gone an hour, and I couldn’t concentrate. He possessed my mind and body. Whatever happened back at the Krieger estate was more than just sex. It was a claiming. The sweet ache between my legs was welcomed, and I didn’t want to lose whatever connection we had.
I rubbed absently at my chest and frowned at the tightness there. Stress from the attack the night before must’ve been getting to me, because I felt strange. Humans, out of all of the species that hated us, were out to get us. I didn’t want to be on the wrong end of a stake ever again.
My neck still burned slightly from the bullet that had sunk in the flesh there. Ashby said it had been enchanted by a witch. My immediate thought was to call Kai Laveau, our witch friend from Maple Hills, who helped Charity formulate a potion to cure the Lycan victims a few months ago.
A knock on the office door brought me back from my thoughts. Meadow entered, and I saw the red tinged tears rimming her pretty blue eyes.
“Don’t cry, sweetheart,” I said, standing up from my seat and opening my arms to her. She was new to her powers of precognition and had arrived just in time to see me shot and staked out back behind the club.
“I was almost too late,” she sniffled and squeezed me a little too hard for my liking. Although we were vampires, we still needed time to heal. We still felt pain.
“You did fine,” I assured her, pushing her away carefully. “Why are you here? Aren’t you off tonight?”
“Yes, ma’am,” she smiled. “I’m on my way to the support group Krieger Dragus and Lady Charity enrolled me in for my abilities. I just wanted to stop by and check on you.”
Every vampire had some ability. Usually, it took a good ten years for that talent to manifest. We had support groups for the new vampires to help them harness their special talents. Charity asked Dragus to get Meadow into one, and I’m glad that they took care of that before they left on their honeymoon.
“Well, I’m fine. Now, get out of here and have fun!”
She laughed and gave me another bone crushing hug before bouncing out the door. Her brown hair swayed in time with her steps as she walked down the hallway leading toward the front of the club.
The night had been very productive. I was able to get a few things accomplished that I’d been putting off for the past few weeks. My chest ached periodically throughout the night. It wasn’t enough to disable me, but the tenderness stayed just under the surface, reminding me it was there. I called Dr. Mason at the hospital, and he told me that I shouldn’t be hurting or in any discomfort except for maybe some burning around the wounds.
This was different. The dull ache felt like someone was pulling on my chest. It was like, if I let go and gave in, I’d be pulled to whatever wanted me. I imagined an invisible entity dragging me out of my office and through the streets to wherever it wanted me to go.
Finally, right at closing time the pull lessened. I took a deep, satisfying breath of air, tasting the unique scents of everyone who’d passed through the club tonight. Jackson, one of the bartenders, was cleaning the bar top when I sat down on a stool. He slid over a shot of whiskey and smiled, “You look like you could use that.”
“You know me so well,” I smiled and then laughed when he shook his head.
A slight breeze blew across my arm, as I sensed Ashby enter the bar. When I turned around, he looked almost lethal standing there in the doorway. His face softened when his eyes found me sitting at the bar. The tight feeling in my chest all but vanished.
“Hey, doll,” he said, leaning in to place a soft kiss to my lips. He tasted amazing, like a fine wine made just for me. His clothes held many different scents, of both male and female, human and vampire. Something inside my chest pinched, and all I wanted to do was rub myself all over him so that the only scent he had on his body was mine.
“Hey,” I said, instead of dragging him back to my office for a quick romp on my desk. “How was work?”
“We can talk about it while I drive you back to your place,” he stated. Something in his tone told me that he didn’t like whatever he had to tell me, and I had a feeling I wasn’t going to like it either.
Once inside the Krieger Hummer, Ashby sighed heavily, “We found some information about who attacked you.” I noticed how the muscle in his jaw ticked at what he had to tell me.
“And?” I pushed.
“Seems that there is a human group that has been attacking our kind to obtain blood to change themselves into vampires. The idiots think that they can duplicate the process by draining the human of blood and pumping our blood into the human once they reach the point of death.”
“Well, that’s just stupid,” I laughed. “It’s not that easy.”
Our blood had to be delivered fresh into the human. If they were harvesting our blood and giving it to a human, they’d have to basically force us to give our blood straight from the vein. A transfusion wouldn’t do anything. The genetics in our blood died out seconds after it left our body.
We consumed human blood for nutrients. Our blood was different from a humans, thicker. The change was made when the human body was drained, by the mouth of the maker and our fresh blood was consumed. The DNA in our blood changed the whole makeup of the human body, because the hu
man’s blood would no longer be in charge. When you drain a human to the point of death, there was so little of the human blood left in the system that the vampire blood kills off what remains during the change. So, in a sense, the human dies until the vampire blood takes over the body, giving life to its new host.
This was why when you become a “maker”, you have a bond with the human you changed. It’s almost as if you have given birth to a child.
“We know that, but the humans who attacked you don’t,” he sighed. “We found an old abandoned camp downriver from Port Royal about thirty miles. There was a dead human there and empty vials of blood…vampire blood.”
“Any sign of the humans who attacked me?” I shivered. Ashby placed a hand on my leg and shook his head. I had a feeling he wasn’t telling me everything, as if the scene they’d found was more gruesome than just a dead body.
We arrived at my house, which wasn’t too far from the Krieger estate, within fifteen minutes. I lived in a nice modern home that I’d had built about twenty years ago and had just remodeled it with new carpet, paint and updated kitchen. Although I never used the kitchen, it would help if I ever wanted to sell it and move somewhere else.
“I’ll walk you inside,” he said, looking around the property. There were about two hours before the sun came up and soon my Nachtmann would show up to watch my home while I was in my death sleep for the day.
Ashby took my keys as we reached the door. I stood in place when he held up his hand and closed his eyes in concentration. He spoke in a low whisper only I can hear, “Let me just check.”
Suddenly, I felt something move across my body, an invisible touch that I barely registered. The Krieger had unbelievable powers that went above and beyond what normal vampires possessed. I assumed he had some ability to feel his surroundings with only his powers, because that’s what it felt like to me.
“Everything’s okay,” he said, with a relieved sigh.
“What did you do?” I asked, wanting to confirm what I suspected.
“I can push my powers out,” he smiled. “I can feel other people, human or vampire, around the area I am in.” He shrugged and followed me inside.
“How far out can you reach?” He took my hand and tugged me to sit on the sofa, pulling me down onto his lap. I had to concentrate, because being this close to him caused all kinds of ideas to run through my mind.
“A half of a mile,” he admitted. “If I concentrate, maybe a mile.”
“I can make you see things,” I admitted freely.
“Like?” he asked, with a raised brow.
“Usually, things I’ve seen or I can even make up a scene in my head and project it to you.”
“Can you show me something?” he asked in awe, leaning back into the soft material, pulling me with him so that I was nestled into his massive chest.
“I guess,” I bit my lip. “What do you want to see?”
“Show me where you grew up,” he smiled. “I’d like to know.”
Closing my eyes, I pictured a time long ago. It was the early seventeen hundreds, I was a young woman dressed in fine material my mother had acquired in town. She’d hand sewn the yellow cloth just in time for the spring, making me a beautiful dress.
My father was a blacksmith and had made a name for himself in the area. He worked hard for the things he provided us. The people of Birmingham, England were our friends, not a one ever saying a bad thing about my family name.
There had been rumors of a demon taking the lives of cattle just outside of town. The animals were all drained of blood. Only puncture marks in the throat showed how these animals may have died.
I was expected to marry the son of the wealthiest farmer in town. The same family that had found their cattle dead. It’d been months since any problems, and my family and I were out at their home for dinner. We’d sat on the porch with his family until the sun was almost down. My father had wanted us to hurry home, because of the continued unease around town concerning the possible demon in the area, even though there hadn’t been any killings reported for some time. I pictured myself laughing with my mother over the silly rumors that had been spread around town.
I stopped for a moment to collect myself. It was hard remembering what had happened to me that night, but for some reason, I wanted Ashby to know.
“Are you alright?” he asked, concern etched in his beautifully strong face.
“Yeah,” I sighed. “I want you to know.”
Closing my eyes again, I projected the memory. My father was racing home, the horses were pushing with everything they had to get back to town. My mother held me close to her as we rounded a corner. The buggy lost control and flipped.
I remembered being tossed and screaming for my father and mother. I’d become very dizzy as I felt blood seeping out of my head. I knew that I was going to die when I looked down and saw a piece of wood sticking through my chest, the pretty dress was ruined. Just as I was about to lose conciseness, a figure appeared, and I thought he was an angel.
When I awoke several nights later, I felt…different. In a sense, I was stronger and felt more powerful than ever. It wasn’t until the raging thirst burned my throat did I realize something was wrong. I didn’t crave water or food. I knew what I had to have to sate the thirst.
I needed blood.
A man, not much older than myself, appeared at my bedside. He was handsome and had the most amazing green eyes I’d ever seen. His hair was dark as night, his clothes made out of the most expensive material I’d ever seen.
“My name is Leo,” he spoke softly. “Things are going to be confusing, my dear, but I need you to trust me. I couldn’t leave you there to die.”
He explained to me that I was a vampire, but I didn’t believe him at first. When he broke open his own vein, I fed from him without question.
As the years passed, we traveled together, sometimes even pretending to be a married couple, although we never had sex. He was my best friend.
We only had about a hundred years together before he was killed in front of me by a clan of stake wielding priests in France. He gave his life to protect me, pushing me out of harm’s way, yelling for me to run as fast as I could and never look back. My only regret was that I did look back, right as they drove a stake through his heart.
Chapter 6
Ashby
Bloody tears roll softly down her face as she showed me the end of her human life. It was a strange act. I could still see the room around me, but my mind replayed her visions as if the memories were my own.
Unfortunately, some of those memories were my own as well.
“Alydian,” I whispered, in shock.
“What did you say?” she gasped, coming back from her visions.
“Alydian,” I said, louder this time.
“How do you know my real name?” she demanded, standing up to put distance between us. I reached for her, but she backed away again. “Tell me!”
“Leonardo Chaplain was a friend of mine. Well, he was more of an acquaintance,” I admitted. “When we met, he told me about you. He said that his child was his best friend and that he’d hoped that one day he could introduce us.”
“How…when?” she struggled to speak, the bloody tears rolled down her cheeks faster now, and all I wanted to do was to wipe them away.
“You were on your own, about twenty years before he was killed,” I spoke from memory. “We were in Greece at the time when we met after a rogue vampire had entered into a tavern he was working at one night. After the rogue was taken away, we talked for a few hours over a bottle of wine. He spoke highly of you, not as a lover would, but as a near and dear friend.”
“Oh, Leo…,” she collapsed back onto the couch and hung her head in her palms.
My arms folded around her tiny body instantly. I was just as shocked as she was at the visions and the information she shared with me. Leonardo was a good man, never took a life as a vampire and was always a friend to the Krieger.
“I was in Fra
nce,” she cried. “That’s where we reconnected and lived until his death. I’m sorry, Ashby, but I’m just in shock. I really shouldn’t be. Leo knew a lot of people.” She laughed at a memory.
I kissed her. Her gasp of surprise melted into a heated embrace that reminded me that dawn was coming, and I needed to get home. I let our lips speak for several moments, just taking her softness and sweet scent with me until I could see her again.
“I have to go,” I whispered, pressing my forehead to hers. “I want to finish this conversation.”
“Me, too,” she smiled and it was genuine. Her pouty lips curved up at the corners, causing me to place a soft kiss to the right side, where just a hint of a dimple showed. I couldn’t help myself.
“I’m off tomorrow,” I said, pulling my keys from my pocket. “Can we spend some time together?”
“I’d really like that,” she smiled and stood up from the couch to walk me out. My barely beating heart clenched from the beauty before me. Lydia’s body sagged, and I tighten my hold on her. She looked completely drained.
“What’s wrong?” I demanded, my voice almost a growl.
“Visions drain me a little,” she admitted, shyly.
“Here,” I said, pulling her toward my throat. “Take what you need.”
“I’ll be fine until morning, really.” She tried to pull back, but the rumble in my chest told her that I meant business. She needed strength now.
Her tiny fangs pierced the vein in my neck. Lydia relaxed as she sipped at my vein. The raging erection I had wasn’t just from the sexuality of the bite, but of the woman attached to my vein. Lifting her up, I wrapped her legs around my waist so that she didn’t have to stand on the tips of her toes to reach me.
“Drink, baby,” I whispered and stroked her hair. Her tiny rumble was like a whip lassoing my heart. She was perfect for me, and I’d be damned if I let anyone hurt her again, like those humans had done when they tried to take her blood.
Blood at Stake (Warriors of the Krieger Book 2) Page 4
