The Serpent's Kiss (The Hunter Chronicles Book 4)

by Claire Marta

  Before Asier could answer, a light tap at the door drew their attention. He knew who it was from the way the demonic face inked on his forearm pulsed.

  After a hesitation it opened. Lexi, his pink haired bartender stood at the door. She was curvaceous in all the right places which drew the interest of many a male eye. Her beautiful youthful face paled as she saw the corpse.

  “The Russians are on their way.” She managed to whisper through her bright pink painted lips.

  They were right on time. Asier’s expression softened at Lexi’s distress. He knew she could not stomach what they were sometimes forced to do. But she knew business was business.

  “Molto Bene. We will wait upstairs in the club, come and find me when they arrive.”

  “Yes Master.” She remained on the threshold of the door unwilling to step inside.

  “Show them into a meeting room before you do. It’s time they see that displeasing me has unpleasant consequences.”

  Lexi bobbed her head. Her attention was still fixed on the corpse at Kane’s feet.

  “He was a pathetic little runt.” Kane told her with a confident cocky grin. “Barely any fun at all. You should have heard him screaming like a pig.”

  She didn’t answer. Instead she grew paler than she already was. Her natural ability to blend in wavered with her emotions. For a moment her small black horns were noticeable among the tumble of her candy floss pink hair. Lexi was young, barely twenty years old. Asier had raised the succubus halfling since the age of five as a favour to her mother. She was the only demon now living he would allow in London. The only one he did not hate with an unforgiving passion. She was like a daughter to him. One he did not like seeing upset although he could not show it publicly. A weakness could always be exploited in his world. He would not let her be his. Asier also did not like Kane’s interest in her. It was something that had appeared the moment she had developed tits.

  “You need to feed.” Asier told her, drawing her out of the room with his hand firmly on her elbow. “Go up into the club. Find a young human male, there are plenty in the liquor side. Just make sure he leaves alive when your done fucking him.”

  The mention of food made her dove grey eyes dilate. “You don’t mind?” She questioned as her hair tumbled into her eyes.

  “No you can continue your duties after.” He assured her with an amused smile. “This shade of pink suits you.” Taking a strand between his fingers he gently rubbed the locks together. “Are you going to stick with it this time?” His little demon was fond of changing the colour of her hair. Each week it was something new.

  “I’m not sure I like it.” She huffed more like her cheeky self as she crossed her arms under her chest unconsciously thrusting it out. “It’s a bit to girly.”

  Asier chuckled shaking his head. She was still such a teenager in the body of a woman. Things would never change. “Vai. Off you go, and take all the time you need.”

  Leaning forward she planted a quick kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.” Her voice was soft.

  Still smiling he watched her head towards the stairs.

  “You do know this will expose my innocent mind to kinky shit.” Twitch purred dramatically against Jasmine’s ear.

  A grunt was Jasmine’s first response. She knew that was a fucking lie. Her friend might still be a virgin physically, but mentally he was the biggest pervert going. Where they were headed would probably be tame in comparison.

  The darkness of the London streets around them was lit with the dazzle of lights from surrounding buildings. Horns beeped as cars rumbled impatiently by on the roads. The chill in the April night air was mixed with the smells of the city. The faint odour of food, exhaust fumes and fuel which always lingered. It was something Jasmine was used to. It was home. People were hurrying by, jostling them as they rushed on their way. Even at night the city never seemed to sleep. It always ebbed and flowed with life. In more ways than one.

  Jasmine had a death grip on Twitch’s arm. Her body was shaking so bad it was one of the only things keeping her up. The pain was pulsating. Flooding her system and locking her muscles as she mentally clawed her way through each jagged twist, grasping to the lulls which were becoming less and less. To anyone watching she probably looked like a junkie. Sweat glistened across her face as her limbs shook.

  She knew from experience it was only going to get worse. What she was feeling right now was nothing compared to what would soon follow. This was just a warning. A taste of things to come. The last time it had left her a sobbing mess on a stony beach as she had fought to breathe and stay conscious. Unlike then though there was no magic potion to take away the pain. Only one thing could help her now.

  A vampire’s bite.

  Twitch was guiding her gently along towards Trafalgar square. The streets were packed, like most evenings, with people and tourists looking for a good night out. Bundled in light jackets and jumpers they barely spared them a glance.

  Jasmine knew they probably made an odd looking couple. The tall, slim male dressed from head to toe in black, with a shirt buttoned right up under his chin, wearing a long black velvety coat. Although his hair was a mess of reddish curls that fell past his shoulders, it did not always hide the faded burn marks on the mage’s handsome face and neck. Jasmine herself was wearing dark blue jeans, an old pair of trainers and an oversized red jumper with stars all over it. Being in a hurry she had not had time to change.

  Not that her friend would have let her. The moment he had realised what was happening, he had dragged her out the front door determined to fix her problem. He hated seeing her in pain. Twitch ignored anyone who dared to look their way, and Jasmine just avoided eye contact. This was embarrassing enough without having to stop and talk to anyone. She just prayed they didn’t run into anyone they knew.

  Only Twitch, her best friend, knew of her condition. It was a secret. One she meant to keep. She knew if her boss or other team mates found out it could jeopardize her job at the Supernatural branch of Scotland Yard. Compromised. That’s what she would be labelled. Since she was on probation after just getting her job back, she did not want to lose it again. If that happened it would kill her. She loved the damn job. It was the only place she could use her talents as a sensitive. Not many people had the ability to sense supernaturals, but she was one of them. It was both a blessing and a curse. It was who she was.

  Leading her across the road, the mage swore loudly at the cars that didn’t stop. Several screeched to a halt beeping their horns and other swerved around them. Twitch raised a hand to give them a middle finger. Jasmine didn’t want to play lemming tonight. At this rate the pain she was experiencing would probably kill her anyway.

  “Twitch with the amount of porn you watch I am surprised you haven’t gone blind.” Jasmine snapped through gritted teeth as they stepped safely onto the pavement. “It was your bloody idea to come tonight anyway.” Curling her hands into the back of his coat, she clung to him for support.

  Taking a ragged breath she focused on keeping her legs moving. She knew she was being harsh. Without him she would still been laying in a foetal position on his living room carpet rocking back and forth. He was only doing this to help her. Yet she hated the fact he had to do this at all. Jasmine did not want or need this problem. Life was complicated enough already. This just sucked.

  Arm wrapped around her waist, Twitch kept her tucked under his shoulder. “I might be male but even I know period cramps don’t last for a week and half…well not yours anyway, and your moods have been as about as stable as nitro-fucking-glycerin.”

  They were weaving their way through the crowds now. Pace a sluggish, dawdling, they kept stopping and starting. Every step Jasmine found an effort. All she wanted to do was lay down and wish the agony away. Twitch had other ideas. Every time she began to sag he would haul her up again. Determination was written across his face.

  Luckily, their destination wasn’t far. The club they were headed to was between Leicester square and China town.
Jasmine wasn’t sure she really wanted to go. Not after learning how ruthless the owner really was. Would he even help her? Would he remember her from Prague? The questions kept milling around inside her head.

  “You’ve also been taking stupid risks at work which isn’t like you.” Twitch added with a frown as he glanced down at her. “And besides your room doesn’t lie.”

  Jasmine rolled her eyes. Somehow the techno mage had convinced her to move in with him, and she had found herself doing so without any real fight. She had been lonely at her own little flat and she was practically at his place in South Kensington all the time anyway when they weren’t working. It hadn’t taken him much to talk her into it. So in the space of three days, Jasmine had moved all her possessions into one of Twitch’s spare bedrooms in his old, dilapidated Victorian house. Her own home in Kilburn had been rented out to someone he knew. It had been easy and hassle free.

  And suspiciously fast.

  Jasmine had figured out quickly her new bedroom was a mood room. Literally. The wallpaper and furniture reflected a different colour with her emotions. Mostly it was shades of greys and blacks. Twitch had kept humming to himself every time he had poked his nose around the door, which seemed to be every five minutes. It had started to get annoying. Especially when she was half dressed. He seemed to have no idea of personal space.

  “Ha bloody ha.” Jasmine answered. A cold sweat had broken out over her body and she could feel droplets trailing down between her shoulder blades beneath her jumper.

  “You’re the one in denial Jazzy, not me. This is only because you are so fucking stubborn and waited too long.” Twitch muttered back furiously. “Let’s just get this over and done with. I am sure you will feel a million times better.”

  He was right. She knew she had lost weight. Her appetite had been missing for weeks. Even with the mage constantly trying to shovel food down her throat, she just didn’t want it. She had a sharpness to her collar bone which had not been there before. Her clothes hung from her frame even more than before. Twitch had even told her she reminded him of a scarecrow.

  Even after deciding to forget all about Eric, the vamp who she had been stupid enough to fall in love with, she hadn’t realised how hard it was going to be. Her resolve had lasted a week. He had left her heart in limbo. Now it was frozen in her chest as if touched by his wintry powers. Forever cold. Jasmine could not stop loving him. Yearning for him. She couldn’t understand it. Day by day the longing for him got steadily worse, like a growing obsession, which no form of rehab could stop.

  However, she was done with being heartbroken. Instead, anger had replaced her hurt. It filled her with bitterness at the situation, making her lash out at her friends. She had resolved to be strong, but how was that possible when she didn’t feel if she knew who she was anymore? Jasmine also knew this had been making her take more risks at work than normal. Getting herself into situations that put her in harm’s way.

  Her vampire addiction was also not helping. As the need grew to be bitten, she had gotten more and more jittery. Pain seemed to be the only thing that kept her mind clear. A sharp whack or jab helped her focus. She had discovered this completely by accident. Twitch had yet to see the self-inflicted bruises on her arms where she deliberately hurt herself. She knew he would have a fit when he saw them. Not that she planned to show him.

  Jasmine also knew she had been putting this moment off too long. The pain had been starting to creep up on her for days but she had been ignoring it. Hoping in some small way it would just disappear. Now it was tearing at her insides, screaming through her body. She couldn’t stand it.

  “You’re turning into a fussing mother hen you know that?” She groaned out as the pain ebbed once more.

  “No, I am being the best bestie in existence. Ignoring this and running yourself into the ground is not helping.” The mage responded, dragging her up again as her legs buckled. “Get bitten for your addiction. Have a good shag. Get the fucking blue eyed arse hat of a vamp out of your system like anyone else would do, and move on with your fucking life.”

  Could it really be that simple? Would fucking someone else really make her stop loving Eric? Would it turn her feelings completely to hate? Indifference?

  “Why you couldn’t have just given into Ben back on Avalon and had sex with the cheese ball I don’t know.” Twitch continued. “Or just slept with me.” He added in a grumble.

  Ben was a cousin of Twitch’s who lived on the mystical isle of Avalon. A place they had visited only a few weeks ago. It was also where Jasmine had discovered her birth mother was from, which made them all related by blood. It had come as a shock. Her adoptive parents who had raised her and died in a car crash some years previously, had known nothing of her biological family.

  “Is this your way of saying you still want to have sex with me?” She asked suddenly feeling confused. Twitch had made more than several advances while they were there. Jasmine was hoping he had finally taken the hint that she wasn’t interested in anything more than friendship. Finding out they were also distant cousins just made the whole thing more awkward. Yet he didn’t seem to want to give up. In a way it was flattering.

  “No Jazzy. This is my way of telling you to get yourself sorted out. Mark is already starting to notice. Do you want to lose your job again?” He sighed in exasperation. Mark, their boss, was more than sharp. If he realised what was going on, then he would not be pleased. It was something she wanted to avoid. Needed to avoid.

  A moment of panic welled up inside her. “No.”

  “Well there you are then.” Twitch replied. “I am also not being rebound guy. Chicks never stay with rebound guys.”

  As the ground abruptly moved beneath her feet Jasmine thought she was having another dizzy spell for a moment. When she heard the gasps and shrieks of the people around her, she realised she was wrong. Twitch halted. The arm around her waist tightened a fraction as he waited for things to settle.

  “Fucking earthquakes.” He muttered, head swivelling around he eyed the crowd nervously.

  Jasmine knew it wasn’t the first time they had experienced them. London had been suffering from mini tremors over the last few weeks. It was rare, but this seemed to be happening more and more lately. None of the experts could explain it, but whatever was happening it was centred, in the heart of the city.

  “Do you think it’s leading up to a big one?” She managed to ask as she clutched the back of his coat. The ground had finally ceased it’s rolling. Murmurs around them rose as frightened and shaken the people hurried on their way.

  “Wouldn’t that be a kick in the nuts?” Twitch responded with a grin. Moving forwards he continued their progress.

  The smell of spicy food wafted in the air as they drew closer to china town. A place Jasmine had explored many times. Tonight there was none of the enjoyment. What she wanted was to get this over with. Then they could go home.

  Liquor and Lust was the name of the club they were heading for. It had become one of the hottest night clubs in London since opening its door over eight months ago. Run by the Master Vampire of the city, it was a place people went to be seen and have more than a good time. Vampires working there offered to bite you for a small fee. It was a booming business as everyone wanted to try the orgasmic experience. The place had turned into a tourist attraction within weeks. Jasmine had only heard of it from magazines. Never in her life had she thought she would step into such a place. Clubs had never really been her thing.

  The building was easy to find by the blazing red sign which hung welcomingly above a pair of imposing grey metal doors. A line could be seen half way down the block as eager patrons queued to get in. It looked endless. This was going to take forever. Jasmine groaned inwardly. She was never going to be able to hold out that long. Sinking further into Twitch’s embrace, she let her head rest against his chest. This night couldn’t possible get any worse.

  It was then she noticed the crowd gathered up beside the main doors. People were protesting
. Voices raised, they were chanting loudly and ranting at the bouncers who stood guarding out front. It looked like another anti-vampire group. Quite a few had popped up in the last six months, after the excitement of vampires revealing themselves to the world more than a year ago had died down. They did not believe vampires should have rights, as they were supposed to be dead. Their argument was that walking, breathing corpses should not be entitled to anything. These bigots also did not like the fact that the vampires worked and ran businesses. All of them were successful and a lot of the hatred was fuelled by jealously and fear.

  “Protect the virtuous, the innocent.” The leader of the bunch began to shout. He was big and looked like he spent most of his time pumping iron. “We have to protect ourselves and our children from these blood sucking demons.”

  “Oh for fuck sake.” Twitch muttered angrily as he stopped just before them.

  The locks of his hair began to tickle Jasmine’s nose as he turned his head to gauge the mob. Raising her free hand she batted away his curls.

  “Now what?” She asked, sagging even more against him. At this rate he would soon be carrying her.

  The mage hummed in this throat. “We get through these fuckards then go find you a vamp who’s willing to stick his fangs in you. That can’t be hard right?”

  A beef guy with an unattractive face curled his lips at them in distaste as he overheard their words. “Whore!” He spat. Spittle landed inches from Jasmine’s feet.

  Taking a swift step forwards, Twitch jabbed his finger into the man’s chest. “Look arsehole, I really don’t need your red neck prejudiced shit tonight. You leave my friend alone.”

  The guy leered back at him. “And what are you going to do about it skinny?”

  Twitch’s eyes began to glow faintly. Jasmine sensed his magic rise. Chasing goosebumps over her skin she could feel it buzzing against her sixth sense. It crackled at the end of the fingertip he still had pressed to the gorilla’s chest.