Bound by Blood (The Garner Witch Series)

by P. A. Lupton

“I realize that you hold a black belt in martial arts and have won many competitions. I had my private investigator check you out, once I knew who you were.” He gave me a rueful shrug. “However, I still have no intention of fighting you.”

  Since the feminism angle wasn’t going to sway him, I tried a different tactic of persuasion. “Well, I suppose you’re not that concerned about my safety then.” I feigned nonchalance as I shrugged and turned to walk away.

  He grabbed a hold of my elbow. “What do you mean? Of course I am concerned about your safety!”

  “Well, according to you, I am woefully ill-equipped to defend against a vampire attack. I need to understand how fast and strong they are. You are the only vampire I know and you won’t help me, so I can only assume you aren’t that concerned.” I was smiling on the inside, but managed to maintain my expressionless poker face.

  He was going to concede; I saw his mind churning. He wanted to reject the logic behind my argument, but ultimately, he knew I was right; there was no other way for me to train. He heaved a sighwith resigned acceptance. “All right, I will help you. But only because you are right—you need to understand the danger you are in.”

  “Thank You.” I kissed him cheerfully before saying, “Where can we go to fight.”

  “Right now?” He suddenly seemed panicked.

  “You know what they say: Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today.” I laughed. “Don’t worry so much. It’ll be fun.”

  “Why do I feel like I have just been hoodwinked?” he asked with a smile.

  Chapter 10

  The basement proved the perfect venue for our little sparring match. My mother apparently practiced gymnastics as a child, which was why the entire floor was covered in gym mats. There were also mirrors and other gymnastic paraphernalia, not that we would need any of that.

  “It’s still overwhelming for me. I keep discovering more and more about my mother.” I was embarrassed, not expecting to become choked up just by seeing equipment in the basement.

  “Are you absolutely positive you want to do this?” he asked, wearily.

  “Yes. And don’t you dare hold back—I’ll be able to tell. I need to know the degree of strength I’m up against. So if you have the chance to hit me, take it. And make sure you hit me as hard as you can—I need you to go for the kill.”

  “You have no idea what you are asking for. I... I do not think I can do that.” His eyes were wide, and he looked a little frantic.

  “Nathan. Do you think a crazy vampire serial killer will go easy on me if I’m fighting for my life?”

  His lips tightened. “You are right.”

  We circled each other for a few minutes. I was tuned into him, which helped me anticipate the exact moment he was going to attack. I moved to block the assault, and just barely escaped. Man, he was so fast, and—damn it—he was going easy on me.

  “Nathan, you’re faster than that. Please, don’t restrain yourself.”

  He came at me again, this time just a blur of movement as he hit me. Hard. My ribs felt as if they’d cracked when I thumped into the mats. Thank goodness they were there or it would’ve been worse. I remained still as I caught my breath.

  “Brianna, are all right?” he rushed over to me, panic filling his eyes as he frantically scanned my body attempting to gauge if I was hurt. “I knew this was a bad idea.”

  “Listen to me... I need to know what I’m dealing with, so stop feeling guilty. And stop holding back.” I stood up, prepared to go another round.

  “You are a stubborn woman,” he said, obviously irritated that I wanted to continue.

  “I think you may have mentioned that before.” I winked and smiled. “Again.”

  I changed my strategy for this attack. Rather than trying to watch his movements—which was impossible anyway—I closed my eyes and fought on instinct alone. I was moderately more successful. By moderately more successful, I meant it took him a fraction of a second longer to knock me on my ass.

  We sparred for only an hour. But even in such a short timeframe, I’d improved. Not that you could tell—by the time we were finished, I was black and blue. I’d never taken such a pummeling and I’d fought some of the best martial artists in the world. On top of that, I knew Nathan had still reigned in his vampire strength.

  “You still restrained yourself—I could sense it,” I said as he held out a hand to help me up again. “Next time, I want you to use your full strength.”

  “Next time?” he asked, incredulously. “We are not doing this again! I feel dreadful enough for agreeing to it this time.”

  “What do you mean? Of course we are. How else will I improve?” I tried not to wince as he pulled me to my feet. The sudden movement hurt, and I didn’t want him seeing how much pain I was suffering through, otherwise he’d never agree to spar with me again.

  A protracted silence spanned between us, and he looked at me thoughtfully “All right. I will do it on one condition and it is not negotiable, so if you cannot handle it, then it is the end of this discussion.”

  I tensed in anticipation. “What is your condition?”

  “You will permit me heal you afterward. I will not have you walking around injured or suffering any unnecessary pain.”

  “Heal me? You can heal me?”

  “After I bit you and I healed the marks with my blood, so why are you so surprised by the fact I can heal you?” He raised his eyebrows.

  “I thought it was limited to the bite marks on the skin.”

  A crooked grin flashed along his mouth, almost smugly. “It is not limited. Though, you will need to ingest a few drops of my blood as most of your injuries are internal.”

  “Ingest?” Why wasn’t the thought as repulsive as it should have been? Shockingly, I was morbidly curious about what it would be like to taste his blood.

  “You must also understand there are consequences to consuming my blood,” he warned.

  “What sort of consequences? Will I turn into a vampire?”

  “No, of course not. I told you when I was changed I had been nearly killed, a ritual was performed, and then I swallowed a lot of the vampire’s blood. What I require to heal your injuries is merely a few drops. Yet, it is essential that you understand vampire blood heals all wounds, including the damage done by aging. It keeps our bodies at our optimal age and physical condition, somewhere between twenty-five and thirty. Every time you consume my blood, all harm would be reversed and you essentially return to that age.”

  “Are you saying that my body could turn back to a twenty-five-year-old just from a few drops of your blood?” I was astonished.

  “Yes. That is exactly what I am saying. The side effect is negligible now as you are only twenty-eight, but I will not carry on unless you know precisely what will happen.”

  I considered his proposal for a few minutes. Unnerving as it was to lose years of your life, this wasn’t quite the same. I wouldn’t necessarily be losing years, merely the evidence of those years. Besides, if I didn’t allow it, I’d be unprepared to face the killer and aging wouldn’t be an issue anyway. And on the upside, this would be cheaper than the dozens of facials and pounds of skin care I’d need to garner the same results.

  “Okay, I accept your condition. I don’t have to...bite you, do I?” I asked, nervously.

  “No.” He chuckled lightly…at first. And then as he drew closer, flashing a look that told me this meant more to him than just healing.

  Not now. I could examine that issue later.

  He punctured his index finger with his fang. As the blood pooled on the pad, he brought it to my mouth. Feral intensity glimmered in his eyes as he slipped his finger between my lips. My injuries healed instantly as his blood coursed through my body, tingling and expanding through every cell of my being, and causing heat to consume me. But that wasn’t just from the healing. I flushed with arousal when the eroticism of having his finger in my mouth suddenly occurred to me. And the carnal expression he wore proved he was not unaffected
.

  An immeasurable span of time passed before he removed his finger with a rough growl. Closing his eyes, he surged in to fasten his mouth to mine.

  I was suddenly spinning as he slipped his tongue into my mouth, thrusting with slow languorous strokes. It was dizzying. I could barely stand, my knees weakening, and I started to lose my balance. Somehow Nathan knew, because in the next moment he tightened his arm around my waist and pulled my body closer, supporting my weight as though it were nothing.

  He exuded power, the way he held me, kissing me with a demanding and intensely possessive desperation. He was hotter than a flame, and his heat was consuming me, making me burn brighter, hotter.

  I moaned, pressing into him harder. The strain of his erection compressed against my stomach, the proof of his arousal spurring my reaction even more. Nathan broke the kiss and gently knotted his fingers through my hair, tilting my head while tracing kisses along my neck.

  “You taste so sweet, like honey. I will never have enough of you,” he whispered, breathlessly, while still licking, sucking, and nibbling my neck.

  I felt as though a heat bomb had detonated, sending liquid fire throughout my entire body. I ran my tongue along his neck, savoring his salty flavor before maneuvering my mouth over his. This time I took control of the kiss, sweeping a firm tongue across his lips until he opened to let me delve deeper.

  His hands were on the move and I felt him slowly reach under my shirt, allowing me ample time to stop him if I wanted. He grazed his fingertips along my tummy, then up farther until he cradled my lace-covered breast in his hand. He rasped his thumb across my nipple.

  “Oh...God...Nathan.” I was panting, barely able to catch my breath. “It’s too much, but I need more.” I whimpered.

  In the next moment, faster than I’d seen him move before, he had my shirt lifted over my head and discarded to the floor. He glanced at me as if to ask my permission, and in response I smiled, bringing my lips to his again. It was all the consent he needed—he unhooked my bra and bared my breasts to his hungry gaze. Embarrassment filled me at first. I felt exposed under his stare, half-naked while he was fully dressed.

  “You are absolutely exquisite,” he breathed, reverently, taking my aching peak into his mouth. Just like that, all the awkwardness I’d felt disappeared as electric currents sizzled through my skin. It was unbelievable. He grazed his teeth enticingly over my nipple and swirled his tongue before moving to the other.

  My eager hands reached for the buttons of his shirt, fumbling with them before shoving the garment down his arms. Frenzied and impatient to finally see and feel his skin against mine, I yanked off his shirt and stood back, gaping at the bounty I’d revealed. I moved closer and trailed my fingertips over the rippling muscles in his abs and chest.

  “You’re hard as steel under soft, warm flesh... Incredible,” I whispered between kisses.

  He groaned.

  Just when I was nearly unable to endure another minute of the sensual torture, my cell phone rang. I continued kissing him, hoping whoever it was would leave a message, but it had already ruined the mood. I heaved out a frustrated breath as I reached for the phone.

  “Hmmm... Saved by the bell?” he murmured, perturbed.

  I flipped open my phone. “Hello?”

  “Reece, you’re never gonna believe this!”

  “Morrison, is that you?” I bit out, annoyed with his timing.

  “Yeah. Guess where I am?”

  “Morrison, I’m not in the mood for twenty questions. Just spit it out.”

  “Jeez. Don’t get your panties in a bunch.”

  God, if he only knew the condition of my panties at the moment. I heard Nathan chuckle as he reached for his shirt while passing me mine. Yep, super hearing.

  I held my shirt in front of my bared chest. “Okay, I’m sorry. You caught me at a bad time. Where are you?”

  “Sanford, Colorado. Population 718. Now, ask me what I’m doing here,” he ordered, excitedly.

  I complied with barely concealed impatience. “What are you doing there?”

  “I think I found another victim.”

  I glanced to Nathan to see if he’d heard, and I could tell by the tension blistering off him that he had. “Explain.”

  “Well, the timing of the murders has been bothering me. They were close to a month apart, but weren’t quite on the same days. I always had a hunch there was meaning to the dates, and I was right. February 28th, April 28th, and May 27th—each fell on the night of a full moon.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yeah. So, it got me to thinking—why did he miss the March 30th full moon? I did a search for any deaths reported on March 30th imputing the description of our victims, and I got a hit in the small town of Sanford. The victim’s name is Celia Ryder. They haven’t had any murders in their town before, and the lack of defensive wounds had them write the death off as natural causes, but I’m positive once the DNA comes back, we’ll find she’s a victim.”

  “Good work, Morrison.” My praise was genuine, though discovering another victim that I now knew was a relative was so much harder to bear than before.

  “I’m gonna see what I can find out here, and I’ll meet you back in the office Monday morning.”

  “Okay. Talk to you later.” I snapped the phone shut with a sigh and glanced at Nathan. “Did you hear?”

  “Yes, I did. I’m so sorry, Brianna.” Compassion flickered in his gaze.

  “It’s okay,” I said, flatly, as I put on my shirt. The phone call from Morrison was about as effective as a cold shower.

  “Brianna, I do not share your empathic gifts, but I can see that you are hurting.” He wrapped his arms around me, the action intended to comfort.

  Stoically, I sighed. “You’re right, but the only thing that will make me feel better is if we catch this asshole. Excuse my language.”

  Silence reigned for a few minutes while my mind turned over every detail of this case. Finally, I reluctantly extracted myself from his arms. “You need to tell me how you found Leslie and Morganna.”

  He cleared his throat looking rather abashed. “I was actually contacted by Susan Marcone, Sherri’s mother, first.”

  “Wait a minute. You had contact with the first victim as well?” The accusation in my tone was biting. “You never mentioned that when we interviewed you.”

  “I did not tell you I was a vampire then either, for obvious reasons. If I indicated that Susan Marcone had contacted me, I would have had no reasonable explanation as to why. Susan was your mother’s older sister, and one of the living family members who knew what I am. Susan knew the danger facing her and Sherri. I could not have explained all of that to the FBI.”

  It was a reasonable explanation, I couldn’t deny it.

  “Susan passed away of leukemia only a few months ago. After Sherri’s murder, she had no reason left to fight—Sherri was her entire world.” Regret saturated his tone. “In any case, Susan had no idea who else to contact when Sherri suspected she was being followed. She was sick and could not run. I employ a private detective full time for my company. After Sherri was murdered, I asked her to begin searching for the rest your family. I am not exactly sure how she located them.”

  “If the killer tracked Sherri through her mother, why would he kill Sherri but not Susan as well? Why would he leave a family member alive if he worked so hard to locate them?”

  “Her mother’s blood would not have been desirable because of the leukemia. Besides, she would never have survived an unbinding ritual in her condition, so he would have been unable to steal her power. Vampires can scent when someone’s blood is diseased. After her bone marrow transplant, she went into a brief remission. However, unbeknownst to Susan, I was certain her cancer had returned. When I met with her before Sherri’s murder, the scent of cancer was potent in her blood.”

  “I need to figure out how he found her.” My frustration with this case was growing. “Maybe we should head back up?”

  Embarrassm
ent caused my cheeks to flush when I suddenly remembered what we were doing before my phone rang. “I’m sorry we were...um...interrupted...before.”

  He stepped closer, pressing a soft kiss to my forehead. “It is for the best. I really would not want our first time together to be in a basement on some dusty gym mats.”

  He smiled reassuringly, took my hand, and led the way upstairs. I noticed a mirror on the way, and caught a quick glimpse of my reflection.

  I turned swiftly toward the mirror. “Oh, my god. What happened to my tan?” I was horrified by my pale complexion.

  He snickered. “I warned you that my vampire blood would heal all damage. That includes sun damage. Why do you think vampires have a reputation for being so pale?”

  “Damn it. I would’ve liked to keep that.”

  “You look dazzling, with or without the tan.” He leaned over and kissed me again, and I almost attacked him right there on the stairs.

  “Nathan, I wanted to ask you something, but I don’t want you to take it the wrong way. And you can say no if you want to.” I anxiously looked away.

  “What is it?” He arched a brow, curiosity burning brightly in his eyes.

  “I wanted to sleep in my mother’s bed tonight.” I shrugged. “It would make me feel close to her, and I really don’t want to be alone. Would you stay with me, just to sleep?” I stressed the last part so he wouldn’t think I was propositioning him. Although, I don’t think he’d oppose after the basement episode.

  A slow smile spread across his face. “Nothing would make me happier.”

  A short while later, we were settled in my mother’s bed. Contentment filled me—it felt as though a piece of her was there with me. Nathan’s presence was comforting as he lay with his chest to my back, and his arm draped over my hip. We talked for a long time and he told me more about my mom and the rest of my family. It was an intimacy beyond what I’d ever shared with another man, and he was a perfect gentleman.

  I dozed off feeling so protected...and loved.

  Chapter 11

  I woke up the next morning slightly disoriented by the change in scenery. Hard to believe in witches and vampires in the light of morning, I’d almost convinced myself that I had dreamed everything that happened yesterday. However, awareness slowly returned as my senses sharpened. I was in my mother’s bed with Nathan, which meant yesterday was real. Irrationally, the knowledge pleased me.