by CT Nicholson
“Elle, she was in the middle of a change and didn’t know what was happening. She feels awful for what she did. When you almost died, Aiden decided to change you.” Jodi stepped to the door. “It was that or let you go, which he couldn’t bear. I’ll go get you some food.”
“Blood?” Drinking blood didn’t sound good to her. Not even the smallest bit.
“You’ll be fine for a few more hours so I’ll just bring you some bacon, eggs, and toast.” Jodi opened the door and started out before Elle grabbed her arm.
She moved across the room in a blur compared to her normal speed. “Please allow Anya to come see me.”
Jodi gave a quick nod and smiled. “You’ll get used to it. It took me a while to understand the strength and heightened senses.”
Once Jodi left, Elle ran to the mirror and looked closer at her mouth. Normal.
“How do you make them come out?” Remembering the others seemed to have trouble controlling their fangs when they got angry, Elle thought about the redhead touching Aiden and they popped out.
In the mirror she looked normal except for the large canine teeth sticking out of her mouth. Her normally dull brown hair seemed to shine, making her wonder what else the turn had done to her body. Looking down her body, she noticed even without a bra her breasts seemed perkier. Unfortunately, they didn't look any bigger.
Her slightly rounded belly had flattened some, not super-model thin but she didn’t feel like she should get in the floor and do crunches anymore. Apparently the change didn't make you taller. She looked much the same as she studied her reflection.
The door opened slowly to reveal Anya in all her normal glory though the dark circles under her eyes showed her true emotions. Anya ran to her and wrapped her arms around Elle.
“I’m so sorry, Elle. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t even realize what I’d done before Lena had me against the wall.” Sob’s wracked Anya’s body.
In the five years they'd known each other, Elle had never heard Anya cry. “It’s ok. None of this is your fault. It’s that man and Luciana.” She didn’t regret the malice lacing the redhead's name. Everything that happened was Luciana’s fault.
“Aiden’s mate really is a conniving bitch and her son... What an ass!” Anya pulled away and studied Elle. “You’re beautiful. Not that you weren’t before. I’ve always envied you.”
Elle might've been shocked by Anya’s last confession if not still stuck on the fact of Aiden had a mate. “M-mate?”
“Yeah, all of this happened because she plotted to get Aiden back. And kill whoever stood in the way, namely you. No one’s quite sure what her exact plan is and Lucian won’t talk.” Anya’s brows knitted together with concern as she looked at Elle.
Lucian. Luciana. When she’d first seen the young man, Elle thought he looked just like Aiden. And now she felt like someone stabbed her in the heart. The man she loved already had a mate. A son.
“Oh, Elle. You love him.” Anya stated more than questioned. “You didn’t know. They aren’t together now. He believed, everyone did really, she died over a hundred years ago.”
“How do you know all of this?” Anya seemed to know more about the man Elle loved than she did.
“Nicolas. He feels responsible for everything because when Luciana turned rogue, it was his responsibility to kill her and he failed. Now she’s killed who knows how many people and is the cause of us being changed.” Anya dropped her gaze to the floor.
Elle knew something was bothering Anya but she’d wait until Anya felt ready to talk.
Jodi came in with a plate filled with bacon, eggs, toast, and even some fruit. Sitting the plate on the coffee table, she looked up at Elle with a sympathetic smile.
“Why didn’t Aiden stay until I woke up?”
The sympathetic smile dropped. “He has to find Luciana.”
“There are others who could’ve done that.” If he cared, wouldn’t he have stayed?
Nodding her head, Jodi looked her straight in the eyes. “He feels responsible for what happened to you and thinks you’ll hate him for turning you into one of us.”
Hate him? “He saved my life and he thinks I’ll hate him? Why does everyone feel responsible? The only person who’s at fault is Luciana and her son.”
With her excellent hearing, she caught Anya’s intake of breath.
“You’re right. They're the only ones responsible but he changed Luciana and she turned rogue. He doesn’t want the same thing to happen to you. He’s decided to hunt Luciana down and then he’s transferring to another Guardian team.” Jodi grabbed Elle’s shoulder and gave a comforting squeeze. “I just found out he was leaving. He informed Julian before he left for the hunt.”
“I need to get home.” Looking around for things to pack, she realized she didn’t have anything of her own there. “I need to go now.”
If Aiden cared for her like she did him, then he would've stayed with her. Instead, he was out searching for his long lost mate instead and planned on leaving Sanctuary and people he loved just to stay away from Elle. Work and Princess would take her mind off the fact that her heart had been shattered into a million pieces. Maybe some ice cream would help, too.
“You can’t go home, at least not yet. Luciana is still out there.”
“I’m a vampire now, too. I can’t stand being here anymore. You can put someone in front of my home but I’m leaving either way.” Elle walked out the door with both women on her heels.
Anya grabbed her hand and walked beside her. “Nicolas came back early. He'll take us and stay to make sure nothing happens to us.”
Elle nodded and followed Anya to find Nicolas.
Chapter Twenty-Three
A grin played on Luciana’s red lips as she watched the Guardians go in separate directions. Finally. She’d ran from them all night and even had her last two rogue followers smear her blood in different places to throw the trail in multiple directions.
Now Aiden headed alone on his hunt to find her and she couldn’t wait to throw her plan into motion. Killing Aiden had been her goal for so long and the time grew so close now she could taste his blood on her lips. Even her stomach started to growl, craving his blood to fill her.
She followed behind him and waited for him to realize she stalked him, instead of the other way around.
Within a few minutes he reached slowly, almost invisibly, for his weapon.
Ahh, his favorite daggers. Aiden took longer than she thought he would to realize she was following him. Maybe his whore dying distracted him from his task.
“You should really pay more attention, Aiden. Never know what kind of danger could be lurking around the next corner.” She let his name roll off her tongue, just the way he used to beg her to say his name over and over in her ‘sexy’ drawl.
She didn’t miss the pain and regret he tried hiding.
“Luciana.”
She loved hearing him strain as he said her name. Even after all this time, he still cared for her. Torturing him would be much more exciting than she thought.
“Oh, Aiden, how I've missed you.” She moved close enough to feel his heat seep through her clothes. With his focus on her, her favorite rogue moved in from behind. “Now that your new play thing is dead, I’m interested to start where we left off before you tried to have me killed.”
Aiden turned a second too late as the knife her comrade raised went into his chest. The rogue would die sooner than planned if the knife hit Aiden’s heart. She wasn’t ready for him to die yet. She had so much planned for him.
His eyes rounded with shock before squeezing closed with pain. With blood pouring down his chest, he fell with a crack to the ground. “Goodnight my love, until tomorrow.” She kissed his lips then laughed aloud.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Elle still wouldn't open the Bed & Breakfast until she knew Luciana wasn't a threat so cleaning turned out to be the next best thing. Gloves covered her hands and forearms as she scrubbed the second bathtub and dreaded the next obst
acle--the toilet. It had never been her favorite thing but someone had to do the dirty work and she appreciated the distraction.
When they finally arrived back at her home, she was slammed with the memory of Aiden holding her against the wall. The passionate kiss they shared lasted for less than a minute, yet she couldn’t get the feel of his lips off her brain.
Then the memory of the attack took hold and she was swamped with the smell of the rotting corpse on her floor. Aiden made sure no evidence remained but he couldn’t exactly erase her memory. Could he?
“Are you wanting a hole in the tub?” Anya leaned against the doorway, studying her nails as she spoke.
Elle glanced down and realized she’d been scrubbing the same spot over and over. “How long have you been there?”
Tossing the sponge down, Elle pulled off her gloves and washed her hands.
“Long enough. Maybe he’ll come around. You need to quit thinking about him.” Anya sounded more mature than ever.
Turning vampire may have been a good thing for her. Maybe.
“I just need to keep myself distracted.” She sprayed the mirror with Windex and began wiping the glass with paper towels. Windows and mirrors didn’t really clean well for her. Streaks started to form across the mirror within seconds of finishing.
“Someone’s here to see you.”
Elle jerked her attention back to Anya. Her heart raced with excitement and she even had a small smile across her lips. When Princess came galloping through the bathroom door, Elle couldn’t help her disappointment that her visitor wasn't Aiden.
Thoughts of him faded slightly when Princess came to a halt and started growling at her. Elle’s mouth dropped as her dog growled at her for the first time. Trying to make Princess feel less threatened, Elle dropped down on her knees and let Princess sniff her hand.
“Most dogs don’t like vampires. Maybe they sense the predator in us.” Nicolas stood outside the door, arms crossed over his chest, his legs steady as if he was ready for a fight.
“She’ll have to get over it.” At first Princess stayed resistant but after only a few seconds of sniffing, she pounced on Elle. The small dog knocked her off balance and she laughed when Nicolas moved in to save the day.
“She’s okay.” She laughed for the first time since coming home. “Thank you, Princess. I needed that.”
The sound of Nicolas’s phone echoed around the small bathroom. She rolled her eyes. Someone else checking in but not Aiden. Apparently he really didn’t care. Not once did he call and check on her.
“I can’t believe you call that music. You can’t understand any of those screaming words.” Anya hated Nicolas’ ringtone and spoke up every time his phone rang.
Nicolas ignored her. “Yeah,” he spoke into the phone and moved down the hall.
Elle strained to hear and her shoulder's dropped when Ethan spoke.
“Aiden’s gone. We can’t find him anywhere. There’s only one person who could have him right now.”
Jumping to her feet, she wacked her head onto the open cabinet above the sink. How did that get opened?
“Sorry, I was looking at what you had in there. You should really spring for a little bit better soap for your guests.” Anya picked up the bar soap from the shelf.
Not caring one damn bit about what soap she had, Elle moved into the hall so she could hear a bit better.
Nicolas ran his hand over his shaved head.
“What do you mean he’s missing? How long? Wasn’t he with the others?” Nicolas gripped the phone tight, his knuckles turning white.
She hoped he didn’t crush the phone. What if she killed him?
“Slow down. He’s been missing for a few hours—”
“Hours! Why am I just hearing about this now, damn it?” Nicolas glanced her way before turning away as if she wouldn’t be able to hear him anymore.
“We weren’t sure. As for the others, they all went in separate directions. Turns out she sent a few rogues running around with her blood on them. She’s smarter than we thought.” Ethan spoke and Elle could even hear his fingers flying across the keys on his computer.
“Or you all aren’t as smart as you thought.” Nicolas growled aloud in frustration. “I’m bringing the girls back and I’m going on the hunt as soon as the damn sun goes down.”
“No. I’m not going back there. If she’s got Aiden she doesn’t give a damn about me. If she even knows I’m alive.” Elle needed a moment to think. Going back to Sanctuary didn’t suit her one bit.
Nicolas glared at her. “I’ll carry you back if I have to, but I’m not staying around here while my cousin is in danger.”
Anya spoke up. “You’re not carrying anyone. We’ll be fine.”
With one hand propped on her hip, Anya draped her free arm around Elle’s shoulders and gave Nicolas a daring look.
Thank God for Anya. Elle needed the support and when Anya made her choice, nothing or no one could change her mind.
“Fuck. I’ll be there after dark.” Nicolas gave them both a pissed look before stomping away.
“What a baby.” Anya laughed before she started ranting about the soap again.
Two long hours later and Nicolas left them after spending twenty minutes lecturing them about staying put and not letting anyone in. Not that his rule really mattered. If a rogue wanted in, they’d just bust through the door like last time.
“What are you thinking about?” Anya sat on the couch with her feet curled under her.
Elle didn't know if Anya would like where her thoughts were going but she started talking anyway. “I want to help find Aiden. I can't stand the thought of that bitch hurting him.”
Anya's brows rose. “Why didn't you want to go back with Nicolas?”
“I needed to know you’d help me. The only way I'll be able to find him is by spying on Ethan. He's our best chance.” She didn't know what she planned to do if she found Luciana and Aiden.
“Sounds like a plan. I already had a bag packed in case you decided to go back.” Anya ran from the room with her vampire speed and was back in seconds.
Elle grunted when the bag slammed hard into her hard. “You need to watch your strength.”
“Sorry. It comes so easily.”
Kneeling, Elle hugged Princess before she put some food and water in the empty bowls. Once out the door, she took a deep breath.
Since meeting Aiden, her life had been nothing less than adventurous and she truly didn’t care. She hurt knowing she could never have him but she couldn’t stand around while he got himself killed. . Her heart dropped and her throat tightened. What if he still wanted Luciana?
No. Elle shook her head and dismissed her crazy thoughts. Aiden may have loved Luciana, but he could never be with someone so cold and evil. Reassuring herself, she slid into the passenger seat of Anya’s car and nodded for her to go.
****
“Why the fuck are you doing this?” Aiden growled as he struggled against the titanium chains. He couldn't move much with his legs chained together and connected to something at the foot of the bed. The bitch chained his arms above his head, giving him no room to maneuver. To top it off, she’d stripped him naked.
“I loved you Aiden and you turned me into some kind of monster. When my parents realized what I was, they tried to kill me.” She spoke softly as she ran one sharp nail up his calf, and thigh before resting on his flaccid cock. “Hmmm, we need to do something about this.”
“You just don’t do it for me anymore, babe.” Aiden needed to keep her distracted. He never realized she’d talked to her parents about them. Of course they wouldn’t have taken the news of their baby girl turning into a vampire well. If Luciana had told Aiden the truth, maybe he could've saved her from the hurt and kept her from turning rogue.
She smiled up at him and grabbed him in her hand. When his cock failed to respond to her touch, her eyes turned to ice and she moved away. “Fine! I’ll just torture you. That’s probably a lot more exciting anyway.”
The house she held him in looked even more run down than the first one where they’d found Elle and Anya. He could tell this house was where the rogues stayed. But not Lucian. Aiden couldn't smell or see any sign that Lucian was ever there. He probably didn’t even know anything about the dump.
“You lied to our son. He believes I’m the bad guy. Does he even know the difference between vampires and rogues?” His body started to shake with anger as he thought of what she’d done to their Lucian over the years.
“I never lied! You did this to us. You tried to kill me! When I found out I was pregnant, I knew what I had to do.” She grabbed something and kept it hidden from his view.
Aiden knew she laid it all on his shoulders. If she needed to torture him then he’d deal with the pain or possibly his own death. He got himself into the situation and he needed to take responsibility. That and find a damn way out of there.
Once again she slid up his calf, but not with her nails. In her hand this time she held a Bagh Nakh; a tiger claw. “I’ve learned a few tricks over the years and practiced with many weapons but this is my favorite. So many have died with this.”
The cold laughter sounded around him as four sharp claws tore a line up his calf and thigh. His fangs were already extended and he stiffened under the claw as it came within a millimeter of his cock. Surely she wouldn’t. He shook his head and held back a scream.
Luciana swatted his chest playfully with the same hand. The Bagh Nakh swiped against his skin leaving four small cuts. Blood beaded on the cuts and slipped down his chest.
“Oh Aiden, I don’t think I could mess up my favorite part of you.” She clucked her tongue at him as she tapped the claw down his stomach to end right below his belly button. With every tap she caused four more punctures and more blood. “If you don’t show me some kind of reaction down there, I might get angry enough, but for now the rest of your body is mine.”
One large swipe across his stomach seared him and his scream broke through his control and echoed throughout the room. The pain was excruciating but he tried to stay awake.
