Nightshade (1)

by Michelle Rowen

  Four days of fighting for my life. And it didn’t look like it was over yet.

  I had to get out of there. I didn’t know where I was going to go, all by myself with a baby. I had no supplies for her, I was a terrible babysitter, and had zero maternal instinct, but I knew I had to do this. I’d protect her, no matter what.

  I ignored the urge to go back inside and hope for the best.

  Noah was right. If there was anyone in there who sided with Dr. Gray, then I wasn’t safe here. And this child wasn’t, either.

  “Where are you going?” A deep voice stopped me in my tracks.

  It was Declan. He was following me.

  Strong resolve filled me as I turned to face him. “I’m leaving.”

  “Are you?”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re going back to San Diego?”

  “No, I—I’m not sure where I’m going.” I swallowed hard.

  He glanced back at the house. “They want you here. There are more tests that can be done with your blood. You’re a part of this research program now whether you like it or not.”

  I shook my head. “I can’t stay.”

  His gaze dropped to my arms. “Do they know you’re trying to take the baby?”

  “Just let me go, Declan. Please. It’s dangerous here. The baby’s in danger. I promised Matthias I’d take care of her. Don’t try to stop me.”

  He studied me for a long moment with that familiar blank expression I’d grown to hate. “I’m not trying to stop you.”

  “You’re not?”

  “No.”

  “Then what are you doing out here?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” he asked. “I’m coming with you.”

  My eyes widened with surprise. “What are you talking about?”

  He glanced around again and I noticed this time it was with wariness. “Get in the car before someone sees us.”

  I didn’t argue. I got in, holding the baby on my lap since there was nowhere else to put her. Declan got in the driver’s side and grabbed the keys from under the seat. It was as if he knew they’d be there.

  “Noah—” I began.

  “He told me.”

  “But he said you were—but ... but the serum ...” Confusion made my thoughts cloudy. “I don’t understand.”

  “Do you honestly think the serum changes anything?” he asked stiffly, pulling the door closed behind him and sliding the key into the ignition. “It works to dampen my emotions—a lot—but I still know the difference between right and wrong. And it doesn’t make me forget what I’ve experienced. They can’t make me do anything I don’t agree with. And whether I’m on this new serum or not, I know what I want.” He snorted humorlessly. “Although, it might take me a long time to get it.”

  “What do you want?” I asked.

  “You,” he said simply. “And I want you to be safe. It’s my fault you’re a part of this. The least I can do is make sure you’re okay.”

  I was stunned. “Declan—”

  “I understand if you want to get rid of me as soon as possible.”

  “Of course I don’t want to get rid of you.” Tears welled in my eyes as I allowed relief and happiness to flow through me—relief that he was here, with me, happiness because I never would have believed this could happen. “I thought you were gone, that this new serum had taken you away forever.”

  “I never went anywhere. But this serum, it’s still a problem. I want to be with you, but it’s not an option for me right now. I don’t know when it will be again.”

  The memory of being with him the other night came back crystal clear into my mind. While he was on the serum, that wouldn’t happen again. Carson had said the new serum was permanent, but I refused to believe that was true.

  “Trust me. I can be very patient.” I leaned toward him and kissed him, but he didn’t kiss me back. It reminded me of being with Matthias. I’d refused to kiss him as well, although it hadn’t been because my emotions were repressed.

  Declan pulled the car onto the road and headed out of town. The baby felt warm in my arms, so small but so full of life.

  “For a dhampyr, she doesn’t seem to be all that drawn to my scent,” I said.

  “That makes one of us.” Declan glanced at me again. “We’ll have to stop and pick up some supplies. Formula, diapers.”

  I made a face. “Me, changing diapers. Not exactly something I’d planned on. Then again, I hadn’t planned on any of this, had I?”

  “I think you’ll do just fine. And we’ll keep an eye on things from afar and check in with Noah in a couple of days. I made him promise to look after Molly.”

  That he’d make sure his cat was okay made me smile. “See? You’re still a softie.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Being responsible for those I’ve chosen to take care of doesn’t make me a softie.”

  “If you say so.”

  “Also, we’ll keep tabs on the vampires and when they manage to find and release Kristoff. Now that Matthias is gone, it’s only a matter of time.”

  A fresh surge of dread moved through me. “You really think so?”

  “I do. And we’ll also keep an eye on you. If the Nightshade bothers you again—”

  “Then what will we do?”

  “We’ll deal.”

  I allowed myself to grin at that. “You’re pretty optimistic for an emotionless dhampyr assassin with a baby on board.”

  He raised an eyebrow, but kept his attention on the road. “Trying to be.”

  This wasn’t over, I knew that much. The image of Matthias with my blood on his lips a moment before he burst into ash haunted me.

  But something else haunted me as well, in an entirely different way. It was what he said before sinking his fangs into me. I cringed as I touched the raw marks on my throat.

  “I’ll find you.”

  That was what he’d whispered to me. He’d made me promise to look after his daughter and then he’d said, “I’ll find you.”

  Not exactly the typical last words of a man about to die.

  I couldn’t help but remember his books on magic and his friendship with Houdini, who’d been a master of escape and illusion.

  I remembered him speaking with disgust about being forced by his brother to drink the blood of another female dhampyr child in an Amarantos ritual.

  Immortality, I thought as Declan began to drive us east toward the sunrise. True immortality.

  It just might be something worth dying for.

  Turn the page for a special preview of

  Bloodlust

  by Michelle Rowen

  Coming soon from Berkley Sensation!

  RAVENOUS WAS THE PERFECT NAME FOR A PLACE LIKE this.

  I’d arrived at the seedy North Hollywood bar a half hour ago. A friend had sent me an email earlier today asking me to meet him here tonight at ten o’clock because he “had to talk to me about something very important.” So here I was—ready, willing, and able to talk.

  But by ten thirty he still hadn’t shown. And I was getting worried.

  Maybe he’s dead, a little voice in my head whispered.

  My chest tightened at the thought. No, he was too smart. Too wily. Too young and cocky. I refused to allow myself to believe he’d let himself get killed. Tonight he could possibly have the information that would help get my back life to normal.

  Where are you, Noah?

  My attention shifted to a blond guy in a leather duster approaching the far left of the small dance floor. A heavy metal tune had begun to blare through the speakers, making it difficult to concentrate. Even in the dim light of the club, his skin was so pale it seemed to faintly glow, easily making him stand out from the rest of the crowd. He scanned the few dancers, coming to rest on a petite redhead wearing a micro-short leather skirt.

  When he smiled I saw the subtle glint of fangs beneath his upper lip.

  She noticed him looking and smiled back at him, thrusting her ample chest forward—the universal easy-girl’s sig
nal for “come and get me, bad boy.”

  The girl had no idea this bad boy was a vampire.

  “For fuck’s sake,” I said under my breath. “Don’t be so stupid.”

  Two weeks ago I thought vampires didn’t exist. But they do. There were those who preferred to keep their distance from humans, but others like this one, well ... they were just really hungry.

  The redhead was going to die.

  I wasn’t psychic. I had no special supernatural powers, no superstrength, no otherworldly abilities—but I knew her fate. I saw it in the vampire’s pale gaze as he flicked a smug look at his friend also standing at the edge of the dance floor.

  A large part of me didn’t want to get involved. I had my own vast and varied problems to deal with. Plus, not to judge a book by its cover, but girls like this one, seemingly alone and vulnerable at this kind of dive, would likely find trouble sooner or later. If she couldn’t protect herself, if she had no one around to keep an eye on her, then I didn’t think her future was a bright one.

  But it didn’t mean I was just going to let this monster make her his nightcap.

  After another quick scan for the missing-in-action Noah, I slid off the tall stool and began weaving my way through the rough-looking crowd toward the exit. The vampire and the girl were now dancing together, if you could call it that. His hand closed on her ass under her short skirt, pulling them groin to groin as he pressed his lips to her throat. It looked sexy—kind of romantic, even—but I knew it wasn’t. Or it wouldn’t be for long.

  I froze in place as a horrible thought occurred to me. He was going to bite her right in front of everyone.

  I wanted to walk away, pretend I hadn’t seen the vampire, leave this club, and contact Noah another night, but I couldn’t do that. I’d never be accused of being a sweet and softhearted woman who wanted to help the helpless, but if there was a problem that was standing right in front of me and I might, possibly, be able to do something about it, then I had to. My conscience wouldn’t allow otherwise.

  “I really don’t want to do this,” I whispered to myself.

  But I did it anyway.

  I forced myself to walk close enough to brush against the vampire. He immediately caught my scent and released the girl.

  I kept walking. I didn’t have to look over my shoulder to know he was now following me. He was the mouse and I was the cheese. It didn’t really matter what I looked like, how I filled out the thin white tank top I wore, or how long my legs were under my skirt. I was irresistible.

  Believe me, I wasn’t saying it to be vain. I wished like hell I didn’t have this particular effect on the bloodsuckers.

  I exited the club. Even though it was hot air that brushed against my bare arms and legs, I still shivered. I picked up my pace, ignored my racing heart, and walked toward the parking lot out back of the bar.

  “Hey beautiful,” the vampire said from close behind me. “What’s your name?”

  I forced myself to look coyly over my shoulder. “Sorry, I don’t talk to strangers.”

  “Oh, c’mon, don’t be like that.” He was right next to me now and he stroked a long strand of black hair off my forehead, pausing to roll it between his fingertips. He held it up so he could inhale its scent, and his eyes darkened with lust and hunger. “Damn, you smell good. Where are you going, honey?”

  I shuddered. “Back to my motel room.”

  “We can keep you company.” He glanced at his friend—dark hair, sallow skin, and a slow smile stretching his gaunt cheeks. He bared his sharp fangs as if he didn’t care who saw that beneath his human facade he was a monster.

  I’d just wanted to lure the vampire away from the girl. I didn’t want this, but it did come with the territory. I tried my best to stay calm. “I don’t want company. Really, just leave me alone.”

  “And what if we don’t want to leave you alone?”

  “Then you’re in serious trouble.”

  He grinned at that, then inhaled deeply, and thin, dark veins branched along his jawline and down his neck. Each vampire showed their hunger slightly differently—it was like their fingerprint, and along with their fangs it revealed them to be much different from human. The black of his pupils spread out to cover the pale gray of his irises.

  His hand shot out and he grabbed me by my throat. I clawed at his arm as he dragged me around the corner into an alleyway, and then he threw me roughly at his friend.

  “Hold the bitch still,” he snapped.

  I tried to struggle against him. I’d hoped very hard it wouldn’t come to this, but I’d overestimated how much control a hungry vampire had. Fear laced through me as the blond’s lips peeled back from his fangs.

  “No, wait—my blood—” But I wasn’t able to finish my sentence. He wrenched my head to the side so violently he easily could have snapped my neck. I gasped in pain as his fangs sliced into the soft flesh of my throat.

  The vampire’s friend had grabbed my left breast and was squeezing it so hard that tears sprung to my eyes.

  “She tastes incredible,” the blond growled as he slurped at my blood.

  A moment later, he gasped and pulled back from me, his black eyes registering surprise now that he realized that my incredible blood came with a bit of an aftertaste.

  “What’s wrong?” his friend asked.

  “I don’t know.” The vampire’s mouth gaped open and he touched his lips, looking down at the unnaturally dark crimson color of my blood on his fingertips. His brows drew together in confusion before he staggered back a few steps from me.

  When he screamed, fire poured out of his mouth. In mere seconds, the only thing that remained of Thirsty Vampire One was a fall of fiery ash, turning the hot July night into a Christmas card from hell.

  The paralyzing effect disappeared and I clamped my hand to my neck to stop the flow of blood. I felt weak and my legs threatened to crumple beneath me. I had to struggle to remain standing. The vampire’s friend moved his shocked gaze to look at me. His hunger showed along his hollow cheekbones, the sallow skin etched with a spiderweb of dark blue veins, his eyes soulless and black as pitch.

  “You’re the one I’ve heard about, aren’t you? Your blood is poison to us.” His voice was a whisper, but his hands were clenched, his jaw tight. Anger and grief flashed through his eyes as he came at me, not waiting for my answer.

  He wasn’t going to bite me. He was just going to kill me as I’d killed his friend.

  Before his hand did more than brush against my throat, someone grabbed him, spun him around, and a scarred fist slammed into his jaw, knocking him backward.

  “Don’t fucking touch her,” the man attached to the fist growled. His gaze flicked to me, resting on my injured throat for a split second, before returning to the vampire.

  I pressed back against the cold wall as the vampire recovered quickly and launched himself at his attacker. Silver flashed, too fast to fully register. The blade sank into the vampire’s chest right up to the hilt. He attempted to pull it out, but didn’t have enough time. His hands burst into fire along with the rest of his body and he exploded outward into another ashy cloud.

  The knife clanged to the pavement and the man crouched to snatch it up and slide it into the sheath he wore at his hip. Then he glared at me through his right eye. The left was covered by a black patch. He’d lost the eye a long time ago in another fight with a vampire in which he hadn’t fared quite as well as this.

  I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath. I finally released it and inhaled shakily.

  He was well over six feet tall, heavily muscled, and covered in ragged scars, including those on his face, branching out from where his eye patch sat, down his cheek and jaw and along the left side of his neck. His dark hair was cut very short, almost shaved. He wasn’t the type of man you wanted to meet in a dark alley like this. Not if you valued your life. Declan Reyes was scary as hell.

  My hero.

  I finally allowed myself to relax just a little bit and I wiped
my tears away.

  He came toward me and roughly brushed the hair back off my neck. “Let me see.”

  I reluctantly pulled my hand away from the bite wound.

  “Damn it, Jill.” His lips thinned. “What the hell did you think you were doing just now? Trying to get yourself killed?”

  “They were going to kill a girl in there. Right in front of everyone.”

  “So you offered yourself up as a willing sacrifice instead?”

  “I thought I could distract them without getting bit. I guess I was fooling myself.”

  “Where’s Noah?” He pulled a clean rag from his pocket and held it against my throat.

  “He hasn’t shown yet.”

  “Then you shouldn’t have stuck around.” He glanced over his shoulder in the direction of the bar. “You need to stop trying to protect others all the time. You have to focus on protecting yourself.”

  Declan had a tendency to see me as way more altruistic than I actually was. “So I should have just stood by and watched them tear her throat out?”

  “Next time come find me first before you decide to play the pied piper to vampires.” He touched my face gently. “Are you okay?”

  “I’ll be fine.” I searched for some emotion on his battle-scarred face—anger, fear, maybe even annoyance—but came up empty.

  “We need to go.”

  “But Noah—”

  “Isn’t here. Something must have gone wrong. We’ll wait for him to contact us again.”

  “Don’t you think we should wait just a little while longer?”

  “No. Best to cut our losses and try again later.”

  I felt the thud of disappointment push away the small amount of hope I’d allowed myself to feel earlier. Declan had chosen to remain outside when we’d arrived just before ten o’clock. While it wasn’t the classiest bar in Los Angeles, the way he looked—like death incarnate, which as a vampire hunter he came by honestly—might have gained us a bit too much attention.

  Declan was a dhampyr—human mother, vampire father. While this gave him a great deal of extra strength, it wasn’t nearly the same as being fully vampire. He healed much faster than a human, but every single time he received a flesh wound it left a scar behind as a reminder of the horror he’d been through.