Cast in Blood (Morgan Blackstone Vampires Book 1)

by Michelle Rabe

  “That it’s always twenty–twenty?” Charles’s voice was wary.

  “Exactly. So, learn from the experience, and leave the guilt to the Catholics,” she replied a tart note of humor in her tone.

  “I am a Catholic,” he replied, with dry sarcasm.

  “Okay, then learn from it, and give me back my phone,” she said. “I assume you brought it with you?”

  “Of course.” He reached into his pocket, slipped the device out and handed it to her.

  She hit the home button, tapped a code on the screen, unlocking it and smiled. “You plugged it in.”

  “Yeah,” Charles shrugged, “I know how much you hate it when the battery is dead and you want to use it. So I…” He shook his head and stopped before his long–winded explanation turned into full–on babble.

  “Thank you, my friend.” Morgan offered him her hand. When he took it, she pulled him into a hug.

  What the Hell? Charles thought. It felt awkward being in her arms. He half expected Nicholas to walk out and interrupt them. More than that, he wasn’t sure he deserved either her thanks or friendship. After a few moments, he pushed away, holding her at arm’s length. He narrowed his eyes and put on what he hoped was a playful scowl. “Shouldn’t you be resting?”

  “That’s what Nicholas and Marcus seem to think,” she scoffed and pulled free of his grip. She wrapped her arms around herself, and rubbed her upper arms as though she was trying to warm up.

  “Considering what your body is going through,” he began, intending to take her side, when his eyes met hers, there was something in them that challenged him, had always challenged him, and the rest of the world. He smiled and finished with the truth she knew, but didn’t want to hear, “I am inclined to agree.”

  “I just don’t want to be stuck inside.” A dramatic roll of her eyes accompanied the frustrated sigh.

  “So there’s this lovely bench.” Charles shrugged a very human gesture that made her smile. “You can be out in the air, and still make Nicholas happy.”

  “When did you get to be so practical?”

  “Blame the applied psychology courses I had to take the last time I went to college.” He paused and rolled his chocolate eyes. “They’re all about decision making and relationships.”

  “What have they done to you?” Morgan teased, bumping his shoulder with hers.

  He chuckled and bumped her back, when he thought he heard a soft gasp escape her lips, he remembered the still healing bruises that dotted her skin. “Do they hurt?” Charles asked, eyeing the ones on her arms, visible past the sleeves of her shirt.

  “Only when someone bumps them,” she answered, with a stare that saw everything and nothing. “Alexander thought it was a fine game to try to make me scream.”

  Charles felt a shiver pace the length of his spine. “Make you scream?”

  “He was trying to break my will.” She turned haunted eyes on him, and Charles went still. This can’t be good he thought, not daring to breathe lest he antagonize the beast he saw lurking deep within those emerald pools.

  “He liked to slice my flesh open and put shards of glass or metal in the wounds,” she continued her stare still boring through him, without acknowledging his presence.

  “So, you have metal and glass in your skin?” Charles asked, in a low whisper. He wanted to reach out and wrap his arm around her, to take away that haunted look, but he didn’t dare.

  “Not anymore.” A fine tremor ran through her whole body. “They worked their way out, ripping and tearing new wounds as they went. I couldn’t let him win,” she whispered, turning the phone over in her palm.

  Charles didn’t know what to say or do, so he took Morgan’s empty hand in his, and waited for her to say more. After several minutes, she glanced back at her phone. “You want to check your messages?” God, that feels like an easy way out, but that’s what we need. I don’t think she’s ready to talk about this yet. She gives Nicholas and Marcus their answers, but there’s more that she remembers. This is Morgan; she’s going to tell us everything on her own time or never.

  “Yes,” she breathed. A slight smile curled her lips as though she too had been looking for a way out of the conversation.

  “I’m sure most of, if not all, are out of date,” he reminded her.

  “I don’t care,” she snapped, and Charles thought he saw a speck of orange flash within her pupils. “This is my life. It was taken from me. I need to do something to try to reclaim it.” There was an edge of desperation as she spoke.

  “I suppose I can understand that,” Charles nodded, and let go of Morgan’s hand. “Just don’t stay out here too long. Too much alone time is not good for getting your head together, trust me.”

  “I do. Thank you.”

  “Anytime.” He gave her a small bow, “Christophe and I will be going out, if there’s anything you need.” He offered, and waited until she shook her head, before walking back inside.

  Morgan watched him go, rubbing the smooth front of her phone with her thumb. She frowned. Before her abduction, she had kept it with her at all times, but now it looked like a piece of alien technology. It would be so easy to just smash this and never worry about what’s on the voicemails. That won’t make them go away. The service provider will still have them on their servers. Better to get this taken care of now. She tapped a button and the screen lit up, showing that she had several dozen text messages, missed calls and voicemails waiting for her. She took a deep breath and slid her finger across the cool glass front.

  After a few minutes, she had gone through the business related texts and messages. Charles or Christophe would have handled all of them. The only messages that remained were from Nicholas.

  I don’t know if I want to listen to this, she thought. Under normal circumstances, I welcome the sound of his voice. He could read the dictionary for all I care, but can I listen to these? She wondered. She knew the path they would take. The first few would be from the days after she disappeared. He would be wondering why she hadn’t called him to check on the estate. He would give her updates. As time went on, the messages would take on a more concerned tone. The last would be frantic, after he’d heard from Marcus. He would be grasping at straws, perhaps even angry that she had allowed herself to be caught off guard. I don’t know if I have the strength to hear him like that.

  11 – NEW ORLEANS – SEPTEMBER 30, 2009

  EMOTIONS THAT WEREN’T his own flowed through Nicholas’s mind, reminding him of a television turned on for the white noise. Schooling his thoughts, Nicholas let them join the flow, waiting for the right one to catch his attention. He hated how vulnerable this method of hunting left him while he sought his prey, but it was the most efficient, and time was of the essence.

  That’s her, she’s the one! Nicholas smiled, when the other man’s thought caught his attention. A self–satisfied smirk curled the vampire’s lips, as he pushed his consciousness outward, using abilities passed from one so–called ‘Assassin’ to the next. Those abilities allowed him to invade his prey’s mind. Looking through the human’s eyes, Nicholas was able to get his bearings. His prey was only a few blocks away.

  His smirk, changing to a predatory smile, Nicholas broke into a sprint, moving too fast for human eyes to register. The city flew past, as he dodged several intoxicated pedestrians, and one man taking his dog for a walk. Nicholas stopped, a discreet distance from his prey.

  He paused, scanning the area, needing to learn the lay of the land. Oak trees canopied the edges of the street, bowing their leafy heads toward the ground casting deep shadows along the sidewalks. Grand houses lined the streets, hidden behind walls or wrought iron fences. Nicholas smiled. He was still in the affluent Garden District. Nicholas watched his prey and his prey was watching the girl, in her late teens, perhaps early twenties. I wonder why she’s walking alone so late, Nicholas thought, as his prey slid out of his hiding place to follow her.

  On silent feet, Nicholas stole through the shadows, closing the distanc
e to his prey in less than a minute. Night air filled his lungs, and the quickening thump of his prey’s heart, his ears. The human man was so focused on the young woman that he had no inkling he was being stalked. On some visceral level the human’s instincts registered the presence of a predator, because his scent spiked with the sharp tang of fear, but the man didn’t look around.

  That’s right. Chalk it up to fear of being caught, because you are. I’m not what you fear, though you should, Nicholas thought, as he relaxed the tight control he kept on his beast. His smile morphed, becoming a fang–bearing grin, as he saw what he needed; the rest was a waiting game. Up ahead, the young woman pulled her coat tighter around her, as though the balmy night had taken a sudden chill. At that moment her stalker’s heartbeat quickened. He was making his move, the thrill of the hunt overtaking caution.

  A soft chuckle escaped Nicholas’s lips as he slipped through the shadows, passing his prey and the woman. The vampire breathed deep, letting the varied scents fill his lungs, as his mind filtered the information. This was where he was at his best, prey before him, thrill of the hunt pumping within his veins.

  The young woman walked past Nicholas. Her steps were short and quick, as she tried in desperation to convince herself that this was just another walk home. Reaching out with part of his mind, Nicholas brushed against her consciousness, projecting menace. You need to be away from here, or else you’re not going to live to see morning. Run away little girl. The woman yelped, and with a slight jump, she began running. As Nicholas watched, her stalker deflated, a puppet whose strings were left loose. The only sounds in the night were the slap of her shoes on the pavement, and the slight rustle of leaves in the breeze.

  “That’s what happens when you frighten little girls.” Nicholas said from the shadows. Wide blue eyes pinned him before they narrowed. “Oh good, your brain is not completely fried.”

  “Who the fuck, are you?” The man spat, bloodshot eyes dragged themselves over Nicholas, catching the glint of silver at his wrist, and the flashes of gold and platinum on two fingers.

  “You don’t want to do that, young man,” Nicholas whispered, and took a slow step back into the alley, positioning the light from the street lamp, so it caught the diamonds set in his wedding band. The human’s eyes latched on the sparkle and smiled, showing a set of perfect white teeth.

  “Hand over your money, and jewelry, I’ll let you walk away.” he growled in a predictable, almost cliché manner. It made Nicholas laugh.

  “This was an anniversary gift from my wife.” Nicholas pointed to the white gold Rolex. He chuckled and took a step further into the velvet shadows. “I doubt she’d forgive me for handing it over to the likes of you.” The predator in him watched with satisfaction as the human mirrored his movement. You’re already calculating that score you think you’re going to get from selling these trinkets.

  “You’d prefer to make her a widow?”

  “Of course not,” Nicholas answered, as the human pulled a gun from his jacket pocket. Nicholas smiled, flashing the sharp points of his long canine teeth. “You however, intended to make that young woman’s fiancé as good as a widower,” he mused, closing the distance, feeling the press of the gun’s muzzle in his stomach. “And without remorse, so, perhaps you should explain to me why I should show you one moment of mercy?” Nicholas slipped his hand around the back of the human’s neck, caressing the warm flesh like a lover. The human sputtered protestations while Nicholas slid the gun from his trembling grip.

  “Please don’t.”

  “Don’t what? Don’t kill you? Not happening,” Nicholas whispered, and then he struck. There was a moment of resistance from the human’s flesh, a token fight against death. Then Nicholas’s fangs ripped through the layers of skin. The delicate tips pierced the vessel deep within, releasing a hot flood of metallic wine into his mouth. Clutching the human to his chest with an iron grip, Nicholas moved deeper into the alley, drinking.

  The frantic heartbeat thundered in his ears, while the blood began suffusing Nicholas with strength. The pulse began stuttering, fighting to sustain the frantic pace, trying to stave off death. Nicholas withdrew his fangs and let the dying man fall to the ground.

  Blue eyes fluttered, begging without words, for mercy. Nicholas knelt, examining the wound. He drew one of the daggers from the sheath on his wrist before hiding the bite marks with a quick, deep slash to the human’s throat.

  “Mercy is not mine to offer,” he said to the corpse, before using the dead man’s t–shirt to clean the blade.

  “Ah Nicholai, this is better than I could have expected,” Alexander chuckled. Nicholas spun around, rising from his crouch, senses alert. The younger vampire was clapping with feigned civility, as he sauntered toward Nicholas, pale blue eyes burning with madness.

  That was a stupid, stupid move, Nicholai, being caught off your guard, he thought. “So, what I heard is true. Someone did let you out. Perfect. Now I can execute you, without the Council interfering,” Nicholas growled, drawing his sword out of the cane. “I’ve wanted to do this since you stole her blood and made yourself one of us.”

  “How did you do it? I was always the better match for her, more powerful, influential.”

  “You forgot narcissistic, psychotic, controlling, and misogynistic. I wonder why she just didn’t fall at your feet when you tried to court her.”

  “She screamed your name. When the procedures got painful, she screamed,” Alexander ran his tongue across his lower lip.

  “I should have ended you centuries ago,” Nicholas snarled, feeling rage tense his muscles. Alexander drew a short sword from a sheath on his back, as Nicholas settled into a fighting stance.

  “What do you think it will do to her when I send her your heart?” Alexander growled, prowling closer. It was there, in an instant, the scene played out in Nicholas’s mind.

  Morgan stood in the foyer, the chandelier casting a shadow over her features. A black box rested in her hands, a small piece of paper fell from the top of it, a hand shot out and caught it before it hit the floor. She lifted the lid of the box just enough to confirm what was inside. Moving with inhuman speed she snapped the box closed. In an instant the other hand was there, trying to take it, but Morgan clutched the box to her chest and dropped to her knees. She curled herself around the box as though it was the only thing holding her together.

  The mini movie had only taken seconds to play out in the theater of his mind, enough to shift Nicholas’s focus. The distraction was enough. Alexander was there, rushing him. Nicholas caught sight of movement and threw his arms up, protecting his heart as Alexander slammed into, and propelled them back to the end of the alley.

  Dear Gods, he’s stronger than before, but how is that possible? Nicholas had time to think before his head slammed against the block wall with a sickening crack.

  “I thought you’d have more fight in you than this, Assassin. Pretty little Morgan, was more of a challenge.” he sneered, pulling his sword back, readying for a fatal blow. Nicholas’s world narrowed, to the steel that was about to end his life. An image of Morgan clutching the box containing his heart in one hand and a blood stained rapier in the other, flashed in his mind. Nicholas swatted the blade away with his, leaving a long deep wound in the other vampire’s arm.

  “I wonder how Morgan will react when I bring her your heart,” he thought out loud, a smile curling his lips. Alexander staggered backward, staring at the wound in his arm, as though it wasn’t something he’d been expecting. Nicholas used the distraction to his advantage and slipped past his defenses. His blade was less than an inch from plunging into Alexander’s heart, when he caught Nicholas’s arm with his free hand, and wrenched it away. Pain blossomed, a scream was ripped from the Lead Enforcer, he felt joints pop, bones grind against one another to the point of breaking, and muscles rip. Using his injured arm as leverage Alexander forced the Lead Enforcer to his knees.

  “It is fitting that you should be on your knees when I kill you. You
were always too haughty for a soldier.” Alexander laid his blade against the side of Nicholas’s neck for a moment, before he drew it back for the fatal strike.

  There’s not much time, someone must have heard that. I need more time, I’ve got to stay rational, Nicholas thought, fighting through the haze of pain and searing rage. The timing has got to be perfect.

  “Don’t move,” a male voice echoed through the alley, filled with the kind of authority that Nicholas knew well, human law enforcement. Alexander laughed and started his swing. Three quick shots rang out and Nicholas used his good arm to plunge his dagger into Alexander’s thigh. The force of the blow was enough to change the trajectory of the fatal swing, so it caught Nicholas’s upper arm. Bullets ripped into Alexander’s back, center mass. He staggered, and Nicholas sprang to his feet. Wild ice blue eyes assessed the situation in an instant before falling on Nicholas, filled with scorn.

  “Another time Assassin,” Alexander hissed, before disappearing into the night.

  “What was that about?” the human asked, as if sensing that the danger had passed.

  Nicholas took a moment to assess the man who had saved his life. He had dark brown unkempt hair, a slight goatee, and in spite of the situation, seemed to be smirking. “It’s an old argument.” Nicholas cradled his ruined arm against his chest, dagger ready in his good hand. Gods, this is foolish in so many ways. Morgan has every right to rip my head off when I get home.

  “Do you need a hospital?” Eric asked, taking in the vampire’s condition.

  “No. What did you shoot him with?” The damage was massive. Under normal circumstances, it should slow any vampire down long enough to finish the job. He thought, taking a moment to pick up his discarded sheath. He settled it back on the blade, and the cane looked harmless again.

  “Glaser rounds, they shatter on impact, doing maximum damage. Elizabeth theorized…” The human began.

  “Elizabeth,” Nicholas whispered under his breath. “You’re Eric?” He paused, taking a moment to really look at the young man who was his Enforcer’s blood donor.