“No!” Marcus bit out a little stronger than he would have liked, causing Christina to wince. “I can feel your hunger. It’s almost as strong as your need for sleep. I can’t take from you. You need to sleep, rest, and, when you awake, you’ll need to feed.”
“No, I’m fine,” Christina lied, as she looked at him from beneath hooded eyes. “You need blood more than I do. You must drink from me.”
A weak smile played on the corners of his mouth. His mate had just endured the conversion and then taken the life of Michael to save them, yet her concern for him outweighed her concern for herself. Her exhaustion beat at him. She desperately needed to rest and feed, yet she thought only of him and his injuries.
And he knew just how she felt. The pain from his injuries throbbed with each beat of his heart. He bled profusely, his strength draining with every drop of his blood. He, too, needed to rest and feed. Marcus relaxed his head against the wall and sighed deeply.
“I’m too weak to argue, Christina. You must rest now.” Marcus gave his command a mental push, expending his much-needed energy to provide what his mate needed. Christina’s health and safety came before all else, and Marcus would make sure she got what her body required.
She laid her head in his lap, exhaustion taking her as her heavy lids slowly closed. Her last thoughts went to the women, who like herself, had been tortured by Michael.
“The women…playroom…” was all she managed to say before she succumbed to the overwhelming need her body had for rest.
“Vlad and Nicholai are on it,” Demetri quietly assured from the doorway.
Marcus’ eyes never strayed from his mate. He longed to smooth her rumpled hair, but his arm and hand still hung uselessly to the floor. “We know, sweetheart,” he reassured her, not sure if his words of comfort would reach her in the dream state. “Vladimir and Nikko have them.”
Chapter 32
“Can you sit up?” Demetri asked Tatiana as she leaned against him.
“I think so.”
Demetri helped her into a seated position. When she swayed slightly, she locked her elbow and rested her hand on the floor to brace herself. Demetri’s powerful blood healed her wound quickly and renewed her strength. If only it hadn’t also made her feel strange.
Her sexuality had been brought to life as she fed, in a way that had never happened before. Infused with warmth, her body craved the touch of the one who fed her—a most curious reaction. But knowing this was not the time to examine those feelings, the female warrior ruthlessly pushed them to the back of her mind, saving them until a future time.
Demetri crossed to Marcus and Christina. When he knelt next to the couple, his pants absorbed Marcus’ blood from the floor. “How are you, comrade?”
“I’ll be fine. It’s Christina I’m worried about.”
“She’ll be fine, once she feeds.” Demetri bowed his head in a formal, courtly gesture. “With your permission, I offer your heartmate my blood.”
Marcus glanced down at the proffered arm.
“I thank you for your offer, but you can’t let her feed from you, my friend.” The younger Alpha had obviously noticed the fading bite mark on Demetri’s wrist. “You have already given this night.”
“I’ll be fine.”
Marcus brushed off the offer with a shake of his head. “No, I can’t accept, but thank you. When we get back to the plantation, we’ll see that she gets the blood she needs.” Marcus winced in pain when he attempted to shift his arm. “Tell me about the women in the shack.”
“Nicholai and Vlad stayed with them. They should have gotten the women to safety by now. Tatiana and I will go out and send the males back in here to get you and your female.” He turned his attention to Tatiana. “Tatiana, can you walk?”
She rose slowly, carefully testing her body. “I can. I'm stiff and sore, but no worse for wear. Let’s go.”
Demetri held onto her arm as they left the compound, sending something akin to electric current coursing through her body.
Tatiana jerked her arm from his grasp. “I’m fine. I don’t need any help.”
Having this large male so close made her feel…uncomfortable. She considered herself a strong, independent female. She didn’t need the help of any man, certainly didn’t want his help, but something seemed to pull her to him. She needed some space, whether from the desire to be autonomous or the need to put some distance between her and the attraction she felt, she couldn’t be sure. She couldn’t wait to clean this mess up, so she could put the Alphas and Demetri in her rearview mirror.
****
As the couple made their way around the building, approaching the vehicles, Vlad advanced toward them. “The women are in the car,” he said and gestured toward one of the black SUVs.
Nicholai pinned Demetri with his stare. “They don’t look good, cousin. I’m not sure they will make it.”
“Show me,” Demetri commanded, reaching for Nicholai’s mind, using the mindlink they had established centuries ago.
The Alpha easily picked the images from his cousin’s photographic memory. He clearly saw the women chained to the wall, the instruments used for torture sitting on the trays. The dead woman lying on the metal table. The scene played out before him as clearly as if he had been in the disgusting room himself.
Tatiana pushed past the males and climbed into the SUV, leaving the back door open. He tracked the way her leathers enveloped her heart-shaped ass when she bent at the waist to crawl inside. She was a sight to behold, that female. With her black hair and cat-like eyes, she looked as deadly as a panther.
Too bad she hadn’t been deadly. Instead, she had been injured because she’d gotten in the way of his blade. It just confirmed what he had always believed; females did not belong in combat.
After a few minutes, she exited the vehicle with a grim look on her face. The female had paled considerably, her olive complexion now white. Was her ghostly parlor more a result of the physical expenditure or the emotional distress at what she found in the back of the car?
“They have been terribly abused.” Tatiana answered his unspoken question. “They require medical and psychiatric care. We need to get them to a hospital.”
Vlad crossed his thick arms across his chest. “They can’t go to a hospital. The doctors will ask questions. And what will the women say? ‘We were kidnapped and tortured by an evil vampire who drained us and kept us around for his sick pleasure’?”
The female rounded on Vlad with her seething temper and bit out between clenched teeth, “You’re suggesting we let them die so we can keep our existence a secret. They haven’t been through enough at the hands of one of our kind; they must die for us, too?”
Demetri stepped between the two, facing the incensed female. “There may be a way for them to be able to go to the hospital. I could wipe their memories.”
Nicholai shook his head. “Cousin, you know if a memory is too traumatic, it can’t be erased. Besides, don’t you think the doctors would be suspicious if three women show up seriously injured, and none of them can remember what happened?”
“I’m not talking about a complete memory erase. I could change their memories, make it so they think a human kidnapped them. I can remove only the memories associated with vampires, like I did in Vegas.”
“You can do that?” Tatiana asked incredulously. “I’ve never heard of a vampire being able to do that.”
The thickly muscled Alpha nodded. “Yes, I can do that. It is just one of my many talents.”
“I can only imagine your talents,” Tatiana muttered.
Was that an attempt to flirt? No, Demetri quickly decided, looking at the angry expression on her face. Definitely not flirting. He shook away the thought so he could concentrate on what his cousin said.
After more discussion between the members of the group, they decided Tatiana and Demetri would take the women to the hospital. Nicholai came up with a plausible story to tell the doctors about how he and Tatiana were out hiking and came ac
ross the women in a cabin in the woods.
With the cover story decided, Demetri climbed into the SUV. One by one, he touched each woman on her forehead and began the arduous task of easing their memories. He sent a wave of comfort and peace to surround each mind, then changed the memories of Michael so that all vampiric characteristics were gone.
The difficult task took a physical toll on Demetri, especially since Tatiana had fed from him just a short while ago. When it was done, he slumped into the driver’s seat and laid his head on the steering wheel. Exhaustion weighed heavily upon him but, determined to see the situation through to the end, he refused to give in to his weariness.
Tatiana slid into the passenger seat beside him and placed her hand gently on his forearm. “Thank you. You have done much this evening, and I can see it has taken a lot out of you.”
Demetri sat up and started the engine. “I’m fine. You should check on the females.”
“They have names.” Tatiana looked back over her shoulder.
“I know, I touched their minds. I know more than just their names.”
Yeah, he knew a lot more. He’d lived their memories, the sound, the feel of every torturous act. He’d known it would be like that, but he’d done it anyway, because it had to be done.
“I know.” Tatiana’s voice softened. “I don’t know how you tolerated reliving their horrors.”
Demetri shrugged and put the vehicle in gear. He eased the SUV down the dirt drive.
The female glanced over her shoulder again as they bumped along. “What is your name?” she asked the thin woman with short brown hair in the back seat.
“M-my name is Catherine.” The weary woman took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I think they said their names are Anne and Tammy.”
Demetri nodded his head in agreement from the front seat, confirming to Tatiana he knew their names. He also knew Anne and Tammy would not reply. Once Demetri had eased their memories, exhaustion overtook them. They both rested, their heads leaning on the back of the bench seat. In contrast, Catherine sat very still, staring out the window while they drove.
Tatiana remained turned around in her seat, watching over the women, and Demetri mentally rehearsed the cover story he would tell the doctors. They made the trip in silence, all lost in their own thoughts. And really, what could they say?
****
After they dropped the women off at the hospital, Tatiana and Demetri drove to Marcus’ mansion. Since leaving the hospital, Demetri had been stewing about injuring Tatiana. Guilt rode him hard about the incident, about how his blade injured the female now sitting next to him. He hadn’t wanted her there in the first place, to prevent just such an accident. Only sheer luck made her injury easily repairable. It made his stomach turn to think he might have killed her.
The vibration of the cell in his pocket pulled him from his reflection. He took it out, looking down at the caller identification before punching the “talk” button.
“Hello, cousin. What’s going on?”
An explosion sounded in the background.
Nicholai’s voice sounded strained. “We got Marcus and Christina out and torched the place. It just went up in a blaze of gory, as they say.”
“I believe the correct word is glory, cousin.” Demetri chuckled. After all these centuries, some English vernaculars continued to give his cousin trouble.
His mood turned serious once more as his thought turned to the bastard that had caused all this trouble. “And Michael’s body?”
“We burned it and left the bones outside for the sun. Once it rises, his ashes will scatter in the wind. How did everything go at the hospital?”
Demetri gave a heavy sigh. “It took a little mental persuasion with the doctor and nurses, but eventually they believed the story about us finding the women in the woods. Obviously, they called the police.”
“You allowed them to do that?”
“Yes, in order to authenticate the validity of the kidnapping story. It is standard procedure for the police to be notified by hospital personnel.”
“Oh. Of course. What happened after they arrived?”
“Catherine gave the police a detailed description of Michael. In fact, the police sketch artist did a fair representation. Obviously, Michael will never be found.” Demetri palmed the steering wheel and turned the SUV. “How are Marcus and Christina?”
Nicholai hesitated. In a whisper he replied, “Marcus is in pain, but his wounds are not fatal. Christina does not look good. She needs to feed, soon.”
Demetri heard the concern in his cousin’s voice. “Get them to the plantation as quickly as possible. Tatiana and I are on our way there now.”
Chapter 33
Stephan followed as Marcus and Christina were helped to their bedroom suite. With his arm draped around Nicholai’s shoulders for support, Marcus watched Vlad carefully lay Christina on the bed. Supported by Nicholai’s arm around his waist, Marcus limped around the bed and lay down beside her. Each movement sent a streak of pain through him, making perspiration dot his brow from the effort.
“What happened?” the Alpha leader demanded of Nicholai, nodding in the direction of the bandages on Marcus’ arm and wrist.
Nicholai informed Stephan of the night’s events. Stephan paled, then sat on the edge of the bed by Marcus.
Marcus had been drifting in and out of consciousness during the ride home, but his concern for his mate forced him to remain in the moment. “I must help Christina,” he stated, trying to rise. Pain raced throughout his body and the room tilted on its axis.
Stephan splayed a staying hand on Marcus’ chest. “She will be fine. You are home and safe. I will see to it that no harm comes to you or your heartmate.”
“She killed Michael, you know,” Nicholai shared.
Stephan’s head snapped in Nikko’s direction. “But Michael converted her.”
Marcus winced. He hated thinking about his heartmate having blood ties to anyone other than him. A converted vampire experienced a special tie to one’s sire. If Stephan were to die he’d know it immediately. It had been described to him like something akin to having a part of you ripped from your body, the pain both physical and psychological.
“Since she had just completed the conversion, is it possible that their bond wouldn’t have been deeply established?” Marcus asked hopefully.
Stephan shrugged. “Our bond certainly grew over the years. I guess it might be possible that she might not have felt much discomfort since she killed him right after he converted her.”
“Not to mention, when she killed him, she had just experienced the pain of the conversion. I’m sure the pain of her sire dying was nothing compared to that,” Nicholai reassured Marcus.
“Good point.” Marcus gave a small, satisfied smile.
After a glance at his mate to assure himself she still slept soundly, Marcus watched Stephan wearily scrub a hand over the grim expression on his face. It reminded him of how his sire looked with Katrina’s limp body in his arms.
Marcus settled back onto the mattress. “How is Kat?”
“Alex and I both had to give her blood, she’d lost so much. Michael almost drained her. She lay near death. If Christina hadn’t come out of the panic room when she did, I would have lost Katrina. I will forever be grateful to your heartmate for her sacrifice for Kat…and me.” Stephan glanced over to Christina. “She needs to feed. With your permission, I offer my blood to your heartmate. It is the least I can do, since she saved both you and Kat. And you need to feed as well, Marcus.”
Marcus laid his bandaged hand on his sire’s forearm to forestall his attempt to rise. “No, I can’t let you do that. You, Alex, and Demetri all gave blood tonight. I won’t let any of you give to us.”
“There is some bagged blood in the fridge, no?” Vlad said.
“Feeding directly from the vein would be better,” Stephan responded. “You need the extra strength it would provide.”
Nicholai walked to the bed, next to Steph
an. “You and your heartmate both need blood. Vlad and I have not yet given tonight. I offer my blood to you.”
“And with your permission, I will gladly give my blood to your heartmate,” Vlad offered in his dark voice, his thick Siberian accent rolling his r’s.
Marcus thought for a moment about Nicholai’s offer and found he had no choice but to accept. He needed blood to heal so he could take care of his mate. His eyes met Nicholai’s dark gaze. After a slight nod, Nicholai slid the sleeve of his black shirt up his arm and extended his wrist.
Marcus brought the wrist to his mouth, looked up to meet his friend’s eyes in thanks, then bit deeply into the flesh. The blood rushed past his lips, down his throat. The powerful liquid fed his cells, giving them new life. With each drink, his strength returned a little more. When he drank enough to sustain him through the night, he sealed the puncture wounds and released the proffered arm.
“Thank you, Nicholai. Your generosity will not be forgotten.”
Nicholai bowed his head. “I was happy to be of help to a warrior such as yourself. Now we must see to Christina.”
A flare of jealousy spiked within Marcus at the thought of another taking care of his mate. A low growl of warning escaped his chest.
Chapter 34
Nicholai lowered his sleeve back down over his forearm, then moved from Marcus’ bed. His eyes met Vladimir’s, and the two warriors exchanged a knowing look.
“Marcus,” Vlad said quietly, “you need to awaken Christina so she can drink.”
Marcus breathed out a heavy sigh as his mind balked at the suggestion. Completely depleted by the conversion, her body needed time to recover. But it also required blood, so reluctantly he pushed into her mind and gave his heartmate the mental command to awaken, choosing to remain there to monitor her thoughts.
Christina’s eyes fluttered. While she fought the sleepy fog, her mind churned through the tumultuous memories of Michael. The kidnapping. The pain. The conversion.
In her hazy, confused state, she didn’t know where she lay and let out a blood-curdling scream. Her fingers curled around the sheet, pulling the satin up to her throat, not realizing she was now safe.
Deadly Alpha Page 20
