Psychic Storm: Ten Dangerously Sexy Tales of Psychic Witches, Vampires, Mediums, Empaths and Seers

by Deanna Chase

  “A quick feed will help you bounce back. Taking a rest should bring up your core temp, too. Swing by, and I’ll let the others know.”

  No sooner do I end the call and clip the phone back to my waist, it vibrates again. This time it’s Sal. “The generators are still secure and there’s no sign of Ivan here. The good news is we’ve got him on the run. I saw the wolves racing through the woods minutes ago, hot on his trail.” He pauses. Even in his weariness I sense the underlying thrill of the chase through his speech. “We were trying to flush him into the open, but the woods hide many things in the dark.”

  I think back to some of the traps I’ve set in the past. The ruthless rogue predators whom I caught and showed exactly what ruthless truly meant.

  “Look up—don’t neglect the trees. The wolves can’t scan high as easily as you and it would be where I’d hide.”

  A grunt greets me on the end of the line. “Good thought. When I was a general, we fought in the open. The jungles were far, far away.”

  He hangs up, assuring me he’ll check the trees. I pace again, wondering if this plan of Asa’s to have the hunters track down Ivan is the best course of action. My own futility cripples me. Rafe will always be my prime concern. Leaving his side to attend the hunt has never been a viable option though I hadn’t anticipated how I’d feel about my employees and guests’ safety.

  When did a piece of land in the middle of nowhere and a bunch of humans become so important to me? What would happen if Ivan did ruin it all and the police came to investigate?

  Rafe and I would have to start again somewhere else. But the decades I have invested here, dammit, they do mean something to me after all. I don’t want to lose it.

  This place has become a part of me. The fact hits me hard—the truth lodging in my throat like a hard pill to swallow.

  The shock of revelation leaves me staring into space for a few minutes.

  Francesca enters from the hall, breaking the spell, leaving her post watching the back entrance into the north wing of the building. “Liam came in the back. He made his way to the pool to warm up.”

  Pulling myself away from the realization that I have allowed myself to care for something beyond Rafe, I focus on what Francesca’s saying.

  I wondered how long Liam could take being in mist form out in the cold. The fact he’s going to an eighty-two degree pool to first warm up is telling. I hope I can convince him to go back out armed and in human form. Another set of legs and eyes, with a weapon, will be much more valuable. Some men are stubborn. It shouldn’t take much to get the warrior in him to the forefront, to recognize the real need and act on it.

  Nodding to Francesca, I let her know I heard and she returns to her post. We have Theresa positioned in the lobby watching the front and the west wing. Matt, Jet’s mate, is on the second floor as our first line of defense in case Ivan enters through a window again. Rafe, the strongest of the four mates, is in the west wing, at the pool. That wing has the most glass and the least amount of defensible walls.

  Honestly, I’m a little freaked at the idea of having anyone susceptible to vampire wiles watching an entrance. We’re limited with only the four humans powerful enough to resist Ivan long enough to call for help, but it is the only choice we have.

  I resume my earlier movements, prior to the phone calls. My pacing must be nerve-wracking to the companions, servants, and employees left in the building, all of whom are gathered in seats watching me. I feel like a caged tiger pacing in front of bars at the zoo.

  What the hell do they all want from me? I hold back the urge scream obscenities. It might make me feel better, but I bet it would freak the shit out of all of them.

  Let me think about the facts so far—Ivan’s wound will require him to feed soon. The apartments are secure, for the most part by Jerry. The dogs are watching the cabins. Ivan’s only option to feed is either to catch one of the vampires tracking him or… or… to come here.

  Shit. I knew it would come to this. My agitated mind didn’t allow me to connect the facts and see the truth.

  “Change of plans, everyone.” I look up to find all thirty sets of eyes glued to me. Guess my nerves are catching. “You’re all going to the basement. Grab coats and food. It’s cold down there.”

  I call Theresa, Matt, Francesca, and Rafe back in. All of them will be staying together. Within ten minutes, they are ready to descend the basement stairs located in our private suite. Joanna arrives at the back door to get out of the cold right when the last of the group shuffles through the hotel kitchen.

  “What’s going on?” Joanna asks.

  I’m standing near one of the tables in the dining room, counting heads and making sure no one’s left behind. Rafe nods to me from the entrance to our suite.

  “I’m putting them in a more secure location.” I reply to Joanna. “Hopefully, it won’t be long until Ivan’s caught.”

  Done, he says while closing the door. The last of them have descended the stairs.

  Joanna looks cold and very pale.

  “You need to feed. Here.”

  Before she can protest, I draw my nails across my wrist and thrust it to her lips. Her eyes go wide, but the lure of drinking old blood causes her to latch on to me quickly.

  What are you doing, Dria? Rafe’s voice in my mind sounds angry.

  I’m starting Plan B.

  I close the mental door firmly, not wanting to explain myself right now.

  While Joanna feeds on me, I lean over and brush her hair carefully to one side. My teeth break the skin on her neck before she has any idea what’s going on. One small mouthful is all I need. Sealing the fang marks, I rise and pull her off my wrist.

  My hands cup her face gently as I angle her to look deep into my eyes. Exerting my will, I capture her mind so swiftly that she has no time to register even fear.

  I’m going to need your help over the next few hours. You will not remember any of this. I’m going to lock parts of your mind away to protect your sanity. Do you understand?

  Yes, my mistress. I will do whatever you command.

  Sleep, sweet Joanna, sleep.

  Liam exits the pool wing. He sees me across the lobby sitting at one of the dining room tables alone and gives me a wave.

  “Where is everyone?”

  “I sent them down to the basement.” I’m feeling cool and calm now.

  The path ahead of me makes every moment crystal clear. Live by a plan and you live. No plan and you die.

  “Are you hungry?” I ask.

  “Yes.” Liam eyeballs me sitting prim and still in my seat. “Want me to go down there or will you send someone up?”

  “No need.” I smile. “There are several pints in the fridge. Some employees donated while you’ve been in the field. Just pop a bag in the microwave to take the chill off.”

  He wanders past me to get the blood. “Good thinking.”

  “Speaking of good thinking, are you ready to go out with a weapon and not as mist the next time?”

  Liam sighs as he places the bag in the microwave and sets it to low. “Yes, I had the same realization myself. While misting to fly is a wonderful skill to have, it isn’t the greatest for a large-scale surveillance at night.”

  “I agree. Go out when you’re ready, but stay close to the main building. I have a feeling Ivan is on his way here.”

  “Here? Out of every place he could get warm, why here?”

  “Because he came here for me. I’m going to give him exactly what he wants.”

  Not knowing how to respond to that, Liam wisely says nothing. My phone vibrates, yet again.

  “Yes?”

  “It’s Antonio. Did Joanna make it back?”

  “Yes. She’s warming up in the gym on the first floor. Getting her blood moving with some exercises to increase her core temp.”

  “I can stay out a bit longer. Where do you want me next?”

  I check the map we moved from the theater. It’s spread out on the table in front of me.
/>   “Move to the front of the main building. Stay about a thousand yards out. I have a feeling the hungry Ivan is going to head our way soon.”

  “Roger that.” Antonio ends the call, sounding way happier than a cold vampire should sound.

  I open up my mental link to Asa.

  Asa? I need you to circle back towards the main building. Call Drew first and tell him you want his help. Make a big noisy show getting yourselves to the main building. Explain to him that he’s bait for Ivan.

  Excuse me, repeat that command?

  Jesus, I’m in your head, Asa. It’s not like you misheard me.

  Are you truly using him as bait?

  No, I have other plans for him. I’m going to be the bait.

  Does Rafe know about this? His mental voice sounds tentative.

  Rafe always knows everything I have planned. That doesn’t mean he always agrees with it.

  Asa hesitates a brief instant before responding. I’m not so sure in this instance that Rafe would be wrong.

  You let me worry about that. Get Drew to the main building and hide. Wait for my signal and then bring him in the entrance by the pool.

  Yes, ma’am.

  We end the connection just as Liam finishes his drink.

  “You feeling ready to face the cold yet?” I ask.

  Liam regards me with cold, calculating eyes. I think he was watching me while I mentally talked to Asa.

  “You’re a cold-blooded killer hiding in that lovely body, aren’t you?”

  “Aren’t we all, Liam? After all, we’re vampires.”

  He nods, accepting the truth of my words. “Yes, we are. But some of us are better at it than others.”

  I smile at him. It’s a chilling smile that doesn’t reach my eyes. “You’re right. Some of us are. We’re the ones who live the longest.”

  “Ivan won’t be one of them, will he?” Liam asks softly.

  “Not if I have anything to say about it.”

  Liam layers back up and ventures out via the side door. He’s off to flush Ivan closer to the hotel and help spring my trap. I contact Sal over the phone then mentally connect with Jonathan, who’s working tandem with Jet. Instructing them all to make separate, large sweeping circles three-quarters of a mile out around the main building, and then to tighten up on each pass.

  Dria, Rafe pushes into my mind. I’m not happy with this plan. You’re making a huge assumption. Have you even tried your theory yet?

  I can’t risk alerting him. Logically, though, it all adds up. I think it will work.

  It’s a big chance.

  I know. I try to send reassurance to him through our link. I’m not in danger. You trust me on that, right?

  I do. He heaves a big mental sigh. I just hate this is a battle I can’t be at your side. I see him leaning against a wall in the workroom. He’s the last stand if Ivan gets past me and all the other vampires. Yeah, that’s a snowball’s chance in hell.

  We’re not even ten feet apart. You can charge up the stairs if I need you.

  That brings a smile to his face. One of the best things about you, is you don’t need me.

  One of, huh? You’ll have to tell me all the others when this mess is over.

  Like you don’t already know… Rafe gently closes the link, knowing I need to concentrate for the next steps to go off flawlessly.

  Everything is in place. I wait for the guest of honor to arrive.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Recent phone calls from Asa, Liam and Antonio have informed me of Ivan’s whereabouts. Jon hasn’t spoken to me through our mental connection, not even once. I never got a chance to practice opening that form of communication with him, and I think part of him feels uncomfortable with it. Asa reported seeing the wolf forms of Jet and Jonathan, so I know they are out there, but not where.

  The circle tightens little by little with each pass the team makes, drawing our target in closer. I have not revealed all the details of my secondary plan to anyone yet, besides Rafe, and there’s the off chance that I might be wrong. Very off chance.

  The hours drag in an endless march while I ponder my plan. The dark dawn of morning passes but cannot be distinguished from the never-ending night. Thankfully, the blood the master vamps gave me in the media room still sustains me, so I will be at my peak when the time comes to act.

  All the lights in the inn have been extinguished, except for the ones by the pool. I enter through the double set of doors and place myself in the lighted area. Mikey and the other parrots stay miraculously out of my way. It adds to the freakiness of the moment when not even the birds break the silence.

  I settle myself in a lounge chair for an extended wait. My body stills as I sink into the lush cushion to portray the semblance of relaxation. By slowing my heart, I achieve a meditative-like state. It’s not the same as the one I reach after yoga, but in a pinch, it will do. It allows me to open my senses. Makes me aware of everything around, to an extensive degree.

  The plant fronds rustle in the circulating air. The gentle lap of the water against the side of the pool calls to the astrological water-sign in me that I was born under all those centuries ago. I never used to believe in all that star-sign bull. But it doesn’t need me to believe in it to be real—like most things in life, it either exists in spite of you, or because of you.

  Have I thought of every outcome? Will my plan come together in the end? I’m not one for self-doubt, that’s for sure. It’s slightly nerve-wracking to have all the events of the past forty hours come down to this moment. Will that sadistic son of a bitch take the bait? Am I the real reason he has come here or is it something else?

  The twilight illumination of this Alaskan region won’t arrive for several more hours. The master vamps outside shouldn’t have problems with the minimal diluted sun exposure. Since Antonio and Joanna are younger, they might be uncomfortable if they were outside when the sunset-like hours occur. With luck, this mess will be resolved before that becomes an issue.

  I connect mentally with Jonathan; the wait has been long enough and I have a feeling he won’t know how to reach out to me.

  Any sight of Ivan?

  Jesus! That’s freaky. Can’t you give me any warning before you jump in my head?

  I smile at the thought. What do you suggest, furball? I knock?

  Okay, okay…Good point. Back to your question. Yes, I spotted him about ten minutes ago. As I was closing in, he gave me the slip.

  Where did you last see him?

  About a quarter of a mile from cabin ten, Jon answers. He appears to be working his way slowly to the main building.

  How was he moving?

  Pretty good. Not running at an all-out sprint, but moving along. He must have warmed up somewhere.

  Thanks. Keep me posted with any changes. Try to tighten the circle to draw him in.

  Sure thing, Viv. You ready for him?

  I smile at that one. I was turned ready.

  We end our connection and I reach through my bloodline with my extended consciousness. I tap on each thread, chasing it to its end. Every dot of energy accounted for, including a few new sparkling ones that weren’t there before.

  Asa? Where are you and Drew?

  We followed a trail that led to the maintenance building. There were signs of forced entry. We think Ivan broke in to warm up at some point.

  Good, I was wondering where he might have done that. Jon spotted him by the cabins a little bit ago. Get into position near the stone gardens outside the pool wing. It won’t be long now.

  How can you be so sure? It looks like an obvious trap. What if he’s smart enough to stay away?

  You let me worry about that. Don’t come into the building until you get my signal.

  Roger.

  Ending our connection, I unleash my aura. Every bit I keep locked away comes rushing to the surface. My skin tingles; the tiny hairs on my arms stand on end. The power feels like a long-lost blanket—both comforting and confining. Similar to when I hunted Rafe for
our afternoon sex in the basement, I close my eyes allowing my senses to extend into the building. I push through interior walls, pausing only when I reach the cold outdoors.

  There. I sense something. It hides in the small attic above the fun floor. A new presence lurks. A hungry vampire sits still in the dark. Good thing I have what he needs after recovering from the gunshot wound—blood.

  I send the delicious taste of my power into the air. Next, I accentuate his hunger by broadcasting the gut-burning hollow I felt a few short hours ago when I turned Paul. The illusion wraps itself so softly around Ivan that he has no idea it’s not his own body calling its needs to him.

  His movement hits my mind before I physically hear it. He’s descending through a ceiling access panel into a third-floor hallway. While even vampires can’t see in complete blackness, we can draw on the slightest illumination to see our surroundings with ease. The emergency exits signs will be more than Ivan needs to find his way.

  I draw upon a memory of the compelling scent of ancient vampire blood to weave a trace of the aroma into the air—I intend to make him work at tracking it down. He reaches the second floor landing at a dead run and leaps several stairs at a time to land heavily on the wood floor at the base of the staircase. The smell permeates the lobby, causing him to stand in confusion while trying to regain his bearings.

  His steps vibrate through the floor to my poolside chair. Ivan moves first down the hall toward the dojo. After a few minutes, he returns the way he came. His solid weight touches down softly on the lobby rug. All of these sensations come through to me from my connection to the inn. Blood, sweat, and tears went into its construction and upkeep. The fluids from all the people who have consumed my blood for decades allow my energy to infuse the very inn itself, and in this moment, give it a life of its own.

  I sense Ivan’s step heading toward the pool and project the removal of my clothes. Laying my curvy, delectable body across the chaise. Posing myself on my back, my breasts remain covered by my arm. I draw my right leg up to conceal the juncture between my legs.