Blood at Stake (Warriors of the Krieger Book 2)

by Theresa Hissong

  “Where the hell are you going?” I demanded, as he dumped me on the sofa and headed out of the room. I started to stand, but a warning growl from his chest caused me to stop dead in my tracks. When Ashby growled, it was something to be afraid of. The sound was completely animalistic and scary as hell, even more so than when Dragus growled at Charity. The sound was so loud and deep that it rattled my chest and the picture on the wall above where I was standing. I’d never heard a vampire make that sound before.

  “Stay,” he demanded, before pulling his phone out of his pocket. Ashby pressed a key on his phone and he was quickly connected to whoever he was calling. “At Lydia Duncan’s place. The humans are coming, there are about ten of them. I need backup immediately.”

  Ashby ended the call as quickly as he placed it. He reached behind himself and retrieved a gun I didn’t even know he had on him. I watched as he checked all the little mechanisms and ammo to make sure it was ready for use, then he turned the gun around, holding it by the barrel. “Keep this with you. Shoot anyone who isn’t a vampire.”

  “Wait…what?” I backed up, holding my hands up in the air. “I don’t know how to use that damn thing.”

  “Put your finger on the trigger,” he instructed, pulling me by the hand. He placed the gun in my palm and folded my fingers around the grip, but kept my index finger straight out. “Release the safety first. Point then shoot. That’s it.”

  “What if I miss?” I gasped, looking at the gun like it might go off and shoot me.

  “You won’t,” he assured me.

  “You have a lot of faith in me,” I chuckled, nervously.

  “It’ll signal to me that you are in danger,” he admitted. The corners of his eyes crinkled with worry and stress. His whole body changed in an instant. He went from mate to warrior right in front of my eyes. “I’ll be here before you can shoot the gun a second time.”

  “Okay,” I nodded, because that was all I could think to do at the moment.

  “Lydia,” he said, taking my face with his hands. “I want you to lock yourself in, and I’ll come back for you.”

  “No…no, no, no,” I shook my head repeatedly. “Dragus said that to Charity once, and he came back hurt. So, no…no…no!”

  “You don’t have any choice,” he paused to reach out with his senses. “They’re here, love. I have to go. Just do as I tell you.”

  Before I could argue, Ashby had locked me away in my own safe room, with a loaded gun and no fucking clue what the hell was going on outside my house.

  Immediately, I laid the gun down on the table by the vaulted door, pointing the business end away from me, but where it would be easily accessible if I needed it. I couldn’t hear anything that may be going on outside of my house, due to the thick concrete walls of my safe room.

  My hands shook as I thought of him being outside, alone, with those stake wielding humans. Why were they after me? What did I have that was so special that they were back to try and take my blood? Obviously, I was not the only one they’d attacked. And why the hell were we afraid of humans anyway? Vampires were a thousand times stronger!

  The Krieger were even more powerful. I only knew of one special talent Ashby had as a Krieger. Dragus had the ability to do several different things. Could Ashby have other powers he didn’t tell me about? Oh, damn! Did he actually read my mind the other day?

  I really wished I could read his mind right at the moment. Then I’d know what the hell was going on outside of my room, my house.

  My only saving grace was a monitor I had installed when I bought this house. It only had two cameras, one was outside the room and the other was on my porch. I made a mental note to add more cameras to this damn thing, if I made it out of here alive.

  Pulling up the feed, there was no one outside the safe room. All I could see from the front door camera was the back end of the SUV Ashby was driving when he arrived at the house earlier in the evening. An occasional shadow would pass outside the range of the camera or a pair of headlights would bounce off the porch, but other than that I had nothing to go on.

  It was a good thirty minutes that I watched the camera. There was nothing other than flashing blue lights just off the camera to tell me that I wasn’t alone and Ashby’s fellow warriors had shown up to help.

  A knock sounded on the door, and I reached for the gun, hoping to hell I didn’t shoot anyone that didn’t need to be shot. Switching over to the camera outside the door, I saw Ashby standing there. He came up so fast that I didn’t even know he was there, until he knocked on the metal door.

  “Lydia,” Ashby said from the other side of the door, his voice was so loud, I had no problem hearing it. I opened the door and dropped the gun as if it had burned me. I launched myself into his arms and began my assessment. He laughed as I searched his body for any damage from his outing.

  “You can do this every night that I come home, mate,” he smiled when my finger traveled the circuit around his waistband. I noticed his hardness growing in the front of his pants, but didn’t comment on it, because I was quickly released and pushed behind his body as someone approached.

  “Rowland,” Ashy announced when the large vampire reached the bottom of the stairs.

  “Just here to check on…,” the statement hung in the air, as the two men faced each other. At first, I was confused as to what was going on, but I quickly caught up to speed when Rowland voiced what he’s seeing for the first time. Ashby allowed me just a small space to peek under his arm at the other Krieger.

  “Wow,” he laughed, his scar looked odd against his wide smile. His normally dark eyes were bright blue when he smiled. “That was quick.”

  “We haven’t said anything,” Ashby admitted, quickly. He used both hands to shift me where I was dead center at his back. His protective side was sweet, but that was uncalled for. Rowland was his brother and shouldn’t be a threat.

  “When did it happen?” Rowland asked. I tried to remove myself from between Ashby’s shoulder blades, but obviously that was where he wanted me to be, by the way he pushed me back to the protective area behind him. If he didn’t let me face the other Krieger, then I might just climb his back and talk to Rowland over Ashby’s head. Despite Rowland’s interest in me, he was still my friend. Ashby would just have to get over the fact that I would probably be seeing the other men he worked with on a nightly basis.

  “This evening,” Ashby answered.

  “We woke up like this,” I laughed at my mate’s back.

  “Hm,” Rowland said…or mumbled. Both sounded close to a moan if you ask me. “You need to tell the queen.”

  “I know,” Ashby nodded. Did I hear regret in his voice? Did he not want me?

  The stiffness in Ashby’s body signaled to me that he may in fact have read my thoughts. I grounded my molars together to keep from throwing a fit to rival all the ones before.

  “Thank you, Rowland,” Ashby said through his own clenched teeth, dismissing his fellow warrior. The unspoken dismissal of the other warrior caused a shiver to roll down my spine. The rumble in his voice told me he wasn’t holding up very well, standing between his brother and his mate.

  Once Rowland left the confines of my basement, I tried to walk away from Ashby, but was quickly turned around in his strong arms.

  “I don’t regret anything about what has happened with you,” he growled, holding me tight against his body.

  “So you can read my mind,” I gasped. Dammit!

  “Not all of the time,” he admitted with a heavy sigh. “Only when you are agitated. I can’t mind speak with you. I can feel you though. I can feel your uncertainty, and I will tell you now that I don’t like sensing those things from you.”

  What could I say to that? He could feel me, just like I felt him the other day. Like when he was close the heaviness lifted from my chest. Like when he was away, I felt like I had an elephant sitting on my chest.

  “Every mating is different,” he said, stroking my cheek to calm my anxiety. “We just have
to learn our unique abilities as we progress.”

  “Okay,” I sighed, leaning in to his chest. “Are you going to tell me what happened out there?”

  “We caught one of the humans,” he began. “They were coming from the wooded area behind your house. When they saw me, they all fled. The idiots left one of their own behind. They sped away in a vehicle that didn’t have any plates on it. I would’ve chased them, but I didn’t want to leave you here, alone and unprotected.”

  “Where is the human now?” I asked, on a growl. I wanted to ask him what the hell he wanted from me.

  “You are going nowhere near that man,” Ashby protested after reading my thoughts.

  “I want to see if it is one of those men that attacked me,” I demanded, folding my arms over my chest, in defiance. One way or another, I was going to see this human Ashby had captured. This was my existence the humans were tangling with, and I wouldn’t sit back and let the Krieger handle this one.

  “You will need to identify him,” he scowled. “But you are not going to be in the same room as he is. You can pick him out of a lineup.”

  “Can we do that now?” I asked, leaving the room and Ashby as I made my way for the stairs. “Because, I’m going to the station with or without you. I want to see this human.”

  Chapter 10

  Ashby

  Frustration wasn’t even the beginning of what I was feeling toward my mate. She sauntered out of the room like a model on a runway, swaying her hips as she went. My traitorous manhood stiffened as I watched her walk away. I had to adjust myself to keep from being in pain.

  Lydia was mad, hurt, at the things she assumed I thought. I could hear her thoughts, but only when she was under high stress. So, if she was anxious, in pain, or scared, I would know what was going on in her head. Also, when she was angry. Those I didn’t like, at all. All of the other thoughts she had were her own, not for me to know.

  Rowland raised a brow as Lydia stomped past him and jumped into the front seat of my SUV. He laughed boisterously when she slammed the door so hard, I thought it may crack.

  “Red’s got a temper,” he chuckled.

  “Don’t,” I growled, punching my finger into the center of his chest. “Do not say a damn word against my mate!” Blood seeped into my eyes and my fangs punched through my gums painfully.

  “Hey,” Rowland held his hands up where I could see them. “Just making a statement.”

  “We are going to the station,” I said, clenching my hands at my side. The last thing I needed to do was to get into an altercation with Rowland about my mate’s temper. She was fired up enough already. If I did anything to him, she’d have my balls in a sling before I could make the next move. They were friends, and I needed to remember that, but I didn’t like knowing that they were close in any way. She was my mate, and I didn’t want her anywhere near another male…for eternity.

  The ride over to the station was quiet. Lydia didn’t speak to me, and her thoughts were silent, which I hoped that meant she was not angry. I’d forced the issue about her being in the same room as the human, because I panicked. The thought of those men touching her, hurting her again, caused an anger inside me that I didn’t like myself.

  I was quickly becoming obsessed with her…my mate. I never thought this day would come for me. It’d been so long since I was privileged enough to have a woman, a female, to care for…to call my own, that I was having a hard time not worrying about her protection. She needed to be taken care of more now, because she was mated to a Krieger. She could be targeted because of her newfound status.

  “Alydian,” I spoke her true name as we parked. I reached out and gently touched her hand.

  “Ashby,” she smiled, but quickly frowned. The look on my face must have worried her. “What’s wrong?”

  “I want you to stay at my home,” I said. “It’s not safe for you to be alone.”

  “I have my Nacthmann,” she paused. “Is it really that bad that I have to go to the estate? Was Charity right when Dragus told her that?”

  “He was correct, doll,” I shivered. “One of the Krieger’s mates was taken in England. She didn’t think she needed to be protected as much as her Krieger had told her. The hunters took her from a shopping mall. They delivered her body back to the estate. The things they’d done to her were unthinkable.”

  “Oh,” she gasped. “What about the Krieger? What happened to him?”

  “He’s better,” I sighed, heavily. “The heartbreak was horrible for the first decade. He was sedated and kept comfortable for a very long time. It’s been about thirty years, but he is functioning, keeping it together enough to do his job. But he’s not the same…never will be.”

  “Oh,” she sniffled. Bloody tears glistened in the corner of her eyes.

  “The loss of a mate is said to be worse than a stake to the heart. At least a stake to the heart will take away the pain.” I touched her cheek and pulled her tiny body across the console, so that I could hold her in my arms. The memory of that night still hit too close to home.

  “I understand,” she whispered. “I can stay.”

  “If you’re not ready,” I began, but she cut me off with a tiny finger to my lips. The last thing I wanted to do was push her. I could have trainees keep an eye on her when I was unable to be there.

  “I saw the way Dragus was with my Charity. If it will give you peace of mind, I will stay. We just need to get some of my things from the house,” she sighed. “Can we go there before dawn?”

  “After this, we can spend the rest of the night moving some of your things,” I smiled. The tightened muscle around my heart eased knowing she would be with me at my home. Safe. Secure. And mine.

  “Can we see this human now?” she asked, changing the subject.

  “Come on,” I sighed.

  Lydia followed me into the station. Taryn, our dispatcher, stood up as we entered the room. Her eyes widened when she took in my new eye color, but didn’t mention anything. I was grateful when she composed herself enough to address Lydia properly.

  “My lady,” she said, averting her eyes.

  “Hello,” Lydia smiled.

  “Krieger Ashby, a message came for you from Krieger Dragus.” She pulled a piece of folded paper from a file, handing it to me quickly so that she could answer the ringing telephone.

  I took the paper and unfolded it.

  Krieger Ashby,

  My mate and I will be returning in two nights. I have been notified of the attack against my mate’s maker, Lydia Duncan. Lady Charity is deeply concerned.

  Please have a report for me, and on my desk, before I arrive Tuesday.

  Krieger Dragus

  “Looks like Dragus and Charity are coming home Tuesday,” I said, handing her the sheet of paper.

  “She doesn’t need to worry,” Lydia sighed and shook her head. “That child is as protective of me as I am of her.” Lydia let out a shaky laugh and returned the note. I folded it, sliding it into my pocket.

  We took the elevator into the basement, stopping at the first room on the right. The corridor in the basement was quiet. Cells that housed the inmates were further down passed the security bars that were enchanted to drain the prisoner’s powers. Humans that were involved in vampire related crimes were kept in a different section on the first floor, but the only interrogation room was in the basement.

  I flicked on the overhead light, and used the knob to dim the lights, so that she could see through one-way privacy glass.

  “Stay here while I have them bring the suspect into the room. I promise to be back very soon,” I whispered, stoking her arm before I walked out the door. My chest ached when I closed the door. Leaving her for any reason, any amount of time, tore at my heart. I didn’t want to bring the human into the room, where her beautiful eyes would fall upon his form. She was too perfect for that man to taint Lydia’s beauty.

  I found Powle in his office, working over a file, “I need you to bring the human into the interrogation room as so
on as possible.”

  “Is Ms. Lydia…,” he paused, once he looked up from his work. His mouth fell open, and I laughed when he shook his head a few times before continuing. “Did you know that your eyes are yellow?”

  “Yes,” I scowled.

  “How the hell? Who?” I laughed as Powle sputtered a bunch of broken sentences.

  “I don’t understand how it happened, but Lydia and I mated during the day.” Powle stood up and held out his beefy hand.

  “Congratulations, my brother,” he smiled. “How is she handling it?”

  “Much better than I thought,” I let out a heavy breath and leaned against his desk. “Fate has a weird way of throwing a wrench into life, doesn’t it?”

  “You have no idea, Krieger,” he shook his head. “I’ll bring the man down. You go sit with your mate. Give me about ten minutes.”

  I found her standing still as a statue next to the privacy glass at the back of the room. I didn’t speak as I held my hand out to her as a silent demand that I wanted her in my arms. I smiled as she floated over to me, her feet rising off the floor by a few inches. I’d noticed this slight ability of hers once before. It was something she did subconsciously. I don’t think she even knew she did it.

  “Powle will bring the man into that room in a few minutes,” I said, pointing toward the glass that separated us from the interrogation room. “I promise you, the human cannot see you. I want you to tell me if that was the man who harmed you.”

  “Okay,” she shivered, remembering the events of the night she was attacked after Dragus and Charity’s wedding.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” I asked. “We can always get the human to talk.”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “I need to do this.”

  We both looked up when Powle opened the door to the room on the other side of the glass. The human was cuffed, his disheveled brown hair stood in disarray around his face as if he’d been running his filthy hands through it repeatedly since we caught him outside of Lydia’s home. He’d been frantic to get away, screaming threats of suing the vampires for mishandling him.