I blinked as my eyes focused on Jared’s. I saw that he had looked into me like I looked into him. We stared at each other for a long moment as a smile hinted on the edge of our lips.
“Are we okay?” I asked him silently. I felt him concentrate.
“Yes.” His voice sounded like a whisper in my mind, almost silent from disuse. I smiled as I realized that my mind must have sounded like that to Damian once upon a time. Who would have known that all that metaphysical bonding would have a purpose?
Jared laced his fingers through mine, and his thumb rubbed soothing circles across the length of my thumb. He leaned forward to kiss me, wincing in pain and looking at my arm. The graze wound from the silver bullet was still there but no longer bled.
“You didn’t feel that?” he asked incredulously.
I shrugged. “I’m used to it. Besides, after this,” I touched the fresh pink scars on the side of my neck, “I can deal with anything.”
“What are you going to tell Damian?”
I had felt that question weighing on Jared’s heart, deciding to wait until he asked it to answer. “The truth.”
“Won’t that affect your…relationship?”
I sighed. “There is no relationship. At this time I work for him, nothing more.”
Jared smiled. “Good.”
Burying his hand in my hair, Jared brought my mouth to his. His kiss felt strong and fierce. I felt through our new bonds all of the things he wanted to do to me, and I planned to let him.
After all, we had time.
Chapter Ten
When Jared and I arrived back at Donavan’s house, the sun started to set. Donavan almost had their car packed, while Monique sat in one of the rocking chairs on the porch, cradling her newborn twins in her arms. She glowed with joy as she sang softly to the babies.
We had to hurry back to Malevolent Dead, before Rose figured out we had killed her ginger dragon and sent another one after us. I saw a sleek, black corvette parked next to my car, and in Jared’s mind that it belonged to him. He had good taste. That’s for sure.
Donavan eyed us as we came over to the cars. His eyes widened slightly as he sensed the bond that now spread between Jared and I. He didn’t say anything, to which I felt grateful. I did my damnedest to keep Damian out of my head, so he wouldn’t find out yet. After our talk, I knew he wouldn’t be emotionally ready for this.
When the final rays of sun disappeared beyond the horizon, the vampires came out of Donavan’s basement, once again discussing the day’s soaps. Without looking at Damian for instruction, they approached the cars we had driven over in, and my heart ached as I saw that I wouldn’t have my friend in the front seat with me.
Monique and Donavan drove in their minivan to Malevolent Dead, with Jared, Damian, Dez, and I acting as spotters in case Rose attacked us on the interstate.
We pulled into the club’s parking lot without a problem and hurried inside. The majority of the DeLocket Clan waited in the club itself. I left Damian and Dez to dole out guest rooms, while I ran up to my room to shower. I let the hot water massage my aching muscles before tackling the dirt and grim that covered me from head to toe. After washing the blood out of my hair, rinsed, and repeated, I finally felt clean. As I grabbed a towel I saw a set of clothes folded neatly on the lid of my hamper, with my gun and throwing knives sitting beside them, and smiled. Jared. He remembered that my one-track mind often meant I forgot the most basic of needs. I quickly dressed, sliding my Walther P22 into the holster on my belt. I walked out of the bathroom as I pulled my wet hair up into a ponytail to find Jared sitting on my bed with his forgotten shirt balled up in his hands and a first aid kit next to him.
We didn’t need to look into each other’s eyes to read the pain there. Thanks to our new bond, we didn’t need to talk about it. I walked over to Jared and kissed his forehead before sitting next to him and grabbing the first aid kit.
The graze wound from the silver bullet slowly healed, but needed to be sterilized and bandaged to prevent infection. I hated silver. It made me heal like a human and those carefree days were long behind me. I saw the shadow of a smile cross Jared’s lips, before he helped me apply the peroxide and bandage.
I shut my mind off from Jared, a trick I learned from hanging around Damian, before I let my mind wander. I knew what had to be done. The BMC would never give up until Monique and I died, and probably everyone else once Rose found out about her dragon. If I convinced Rose that I killed the dragon, then she might leave everyone alone. What about Monique? I still didn’t know how to protect the witch and her offspring. I could try to barter with Rose, but I didn’t have anything she wanted. Dez said that Rose couldn’t touch the babies. I sighed, pretending the burn of the peroxide irritated me and not my predicament. Rose would kill everyone just to get to me and I couldn’t allow that.
As soon as I could get away, I’d go to Haven and give myself over to the Blood Moon Corporation. I saw no other choice.
Jared and I went down to Malevolent Dead. Damian had just about cleared the dance floor, assigning Donavan’s Weres their rooms until the danger passed. I received some angry looks from the Clan as I walked over to where Dez stood on Damian’s right. I didn’t blame them. They had been a happy Clan until I arrived.
Damian looked at me with his mouth open to ask a question, when a lavender haze appeared in the middle of the dance floor. The Weres scattered as the haze thickened. The air around us grew heavy until we heard an audible pop.
The haze cleared to show Amythist Dyier standing on the dance floor, wearing a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt rather than the ninja cat-suit she had been wearing earlier. She smiled at Dez as he walked over to her. I saw something small and round in his hand. They spoke too low for us to hear, but I could easily read the smile on Amy’s face; Dez gave her the symbol of Khor that she needed.
The tension in the room relaxed as Amy and Dez shook hands, and the Weres returned to getting their room assignments from Damian. I glanced over at Jared, but saw that he was busy talking shop with T.D. at the bar. This was my moment.
I went back up toward my room, passing by a couple of Weres as I went, and hurried to the little known emergency exit that would let me out in the alley next to the club. The October air would have been cold if I had been human, but as a Were the air felt cool and inviting. I walked down Market Street, blending in with the humans taking in the night life. I sensed vampires nearby and knew that they patrolled the area for Damian. By the time they recognized me and reported my whereabouts to Damian I would already be at Haven. It was too late for anyone to do anything now.
As I turned onto East Battery Street I felt a weight being lifted off my shoulders. The BMC wouldn’t hurt anyone else if I turned myself in. It was the perfect solution even though I knew that it guaranteed my death.
Haven was a beautiful building with one half circular and the other rectangular. Large windows with sweeping balconies looked out over the Charleston Harbor. Palm trees stood tall on the edge of the sidewalk and I felt surprised to see not a single light on. Even the porch light wasn’t lit. I glanced around before opening the gate and walking up to the front door. I had expected Rose to be here and feared the worst. I should turn around and return to Malevolent Dead, just in case she decided to come after Damian and the Weres herself, but I felt a pull to the house. I picked the lock and let myself inside.
Haven was eerily quiet on the inside, and I wondered belatedly where the shifter that lived here was. Did Rose order her out when she came to town? I used my wolf sense to listen and smell, not coming up with a single thing.
That’s odd.
Once I felt sure that the lower level was clear, I ascended the stairs to check the guest rooms where Jared and I had stayed, when we came here to take out the Skyner twins. That mission seemed like it happen ages ago, in another lifetime. I found it hard to believe that so much had happened in so little time.
Just like with the first level, this one was clear as well. My sto
mach lurched as I thought about Malevolent Dead. Rose had to be there. She’d never believe Damian when he said I wasn’t there. Rose would tear the building down brick by brick, killing anyone that stood in her way.
I had to return there. I had to stop this.
As I turned, a fist connected with my face. My head snapped back, hitting the wall behind me. Stars exploded across my vision as I tried to use my senses to see what attacked me. It smelled like vampire, but also something else, something much older.
Shaking my head, I tried my best to keep an eye on the creature in front of me. The vampire smiled, flashing her fangs at me, before she lashed out with lightning speed. I never felt a thing, just wind rushing across my face, before the vampire stood back. Then I felt it, warm wetness across my forehead. I looked at her hand and saw a silver blade glinting in the moonlight. Damn.
I would need stitches, I thought as I wiped blood from my eyes. I hope it doesn’t scar. I really didn’t need any more. I had enough. Thank you.
I stalked around the vampire, trying to gauge what she would do next. The vampire became more and more agitated as she watched me. Her nose smelled the sweet scent of my blood. She hissed, exposing her fangs, and lunged at me. I stayed still for a fraction of a second longer than most would, and then rolled to the side, lashing out with my fist as I stood.
The vampire’s head snapped to the side, and I smiled as I heard bones breaking upon impact. That didn’t slow the creature down. She spun, delivering a kick to my already bruised ribs. As I struggled to stand I felt an alien presence in my mind, evaluating my injuries and waiting for my next move. I froze, eyes widening, as I realized what I felt earlier.
It couldn’t be! I was mistaken, thinking Damian was the only one. How stupid of me not to recognize another born vampire when I saw one?
The vampire smiled as she felt my epiphany, and held her hand out at me. For a second I didn’t know what she was planning, until I saw blue magic blast out of her hand into me. I crashed back against the wall with the magic keeping me pressed against the wall until plaster cracked from the pressure. My vision blurred as the pressure became too much.
How in the hell could a vampire wield magic? Even a born vampire like Damian couldn’t do that, but here she blasted me like a witch of some kind.
I screamed as pain exploded though my chest as my ribs broke. The blue light of the magic blinded my vision, but not before I saw the born vampire peel her lips back in a hiss, exposing her glistening fangs.
Chapter Eleven
Pain radiated through me, reminding me that I was alive as I woke up. I tried to bring my hand up to my head to check the wound the silver knife made, but wasn’t surprised to find my hands tied behind my back. Opening my eyes, I saw the born vampire lounging on the sofa. In front of her my gun sat on the coffee table. The lights in the living room of Haven were on, and the TV tuned in to some reality show. The vampire flipped through a magazine as she twirled her mousy brown hair around a finger. She wore a white tank top and khaki capris with pink flip flops on her elegant feet. How normal she looked sitting there surprised me. The vampire smiled as she heard my thoughts.
“Rose will be back in a minute,” the vampire said smoothly. “Amythist ran off again.”
As I thought about Amythist at Malevolent Dead, the born vampire closed the magazine and turned to me.
“She’s making friends?” she asked.
“Evidently Dez could get her the Symbol of Khor without a price.”
She growled. “I told Rose we couldn’t trust her.”
“Who are you?” I asked, changing the subject.
“Sharice. Rose’s daughter.”
My mind reeled. How in the world could this be Rose’s daughter? Rose was a witch, and this was a magic wielding vampire. If a witch got turned into a vamp, their magic would disappear. Same thing if a witch got turned into a Were. This in itself was an abomination.
“Rose is freaking out about the twins,” I muttered to myself.
Sharice’s hazel eyes flashed with anger. “I am not some abomination that needs to be killed,” she snarled. Standing up, she stalked across the room to where I lay. She bent down, digging her long, manicured nail into the bandage on my arm until I hissed in pain. “You will do well to remember that.”
As Sharice returned to the sofa, I heard the front door open and footsteps as the person walked into the room. Sharice looked up, smiling and nodding at me.
The woman looked like she was in her seventies, with her white hair tied up in a tight bun. Her steel blue eyes flashed with triumph when she saw me. Rose Mykal, witch leader of the Blood Moon Corporation said, “Hello, Sarah. How great it is to see you. I see you’ve already met Sharice.”
“I had the pleasure,” I growled.
When Rose flexed her fingers, I felt a shock of pain slice through me. “Manners,” she warned.
“I’m here, Rose,” I said quickly, “ready to accept my punishment for breaking my contract. You can leave the Weres alone now.”
Pain reverberated through me. “Who are you to tell me what I can and cannot do, dog? The witch bred with that mutt. The abomination has to be dealt with.”
“She had twins,” I screamed as the pain started to burn within me. “One’s a witch and one’s a Were. There’s no atrocity there.”
Rose shook her head as she sat on the couch next to Sharice. I saw the resemblance as they sat side by side. Sharice had told the truth.
“Just kill her already,” Sharice begged. “I want to get back at them for killing Samson.”
“I killed the dragon,” I said as pain ricocheted through me. Rose didn’t even need to keep eye contact with me for her magic to work. I gritted my teeth as I realized the stupidity of my actions. Of course Rose wasn’t going to give up just because I came here. She wanted the DeLocket Clan dead and nothing would stop that. What about Damian? How long would he live after they found out about his assistance?
“The vampire Lord will not be harmed,” Sharice said. “He’s a part of this.”
I wanted to ask a part of what, but Rose’s magic shot through me.
I felt something familiar in my mind, but my agony-ridden thoughts couldn’t decipher it. I tried using my wolf, but the pain kept those abilities at bay as well. The pain blinded me, and I felt like a human waiting for Rose to tire and end my existence.
“Leave her alone, Mykal.”
I wanted to cry as I heard Jared’s British accent. The witch never moved as Jared walked into the room. Sharice glanced at him, but turned her attention back to her reality show.
“She’s being punished for her crimes, Fontaine,” Rose said matter-of-factly. “I’d leave if I were you.”
“I can’t,” he said. “I have a message for you from Damian.”
Rose turned her head a fraction of an inch and her magic stopped ravaging my body. “Yes?”
“He said that torturing the woman he loves is no way to get back on his good side.”
In a movement too fast to see, Rose jumped onto her feet with her face inches away from Jared’s. “You tell him that I had no choice. I wasn’t going to risk everything for a human!”
I felt rage will my mind, and knew that it wasn’t Sharice or Jared. Damian’s anger bubbled over into me. Using Damian’s rage to my advantage, I easily turned it into strength and flexed. The bonds that held me snapped and I pulled myself to my feet and staggered into Jared’s arms.
“What were you thinking?” his mind yelled at me.
I sighed. “You are just going to get yourself killed,” I warned. “I broke my contract. Let me deal with the consequences.”
“Over my dead body.”
The door crashed open, breaking off its hinges from the force. Damian strode in with his plum colored eyes ablaze with fury.
“I wouldn’t have believed it had Sarah’s mind not shown me,” he hissed as he stalked over to Rose. “What in the hell do you think you are doing?”
Sharice stood up, standing o
ff to her mother’s right. I blinked, looking from Rose to Damian and back to Rose again. How in the world did they know each other?
“Trying to save you,” Rose said. “You know what happened last time you fell for a human. I can’t stand for you to go through that again.”
“So you sent a vampire necromancer to kill me?”
Rose’s eyes grew wide. “Is that what you think? I sent him to kill her.” Rose pointed at me. “The second he found out that she wasn’t Phaedra she was supposed to die. You were never supposed to get hurt.” Rose turned to Sharice. “Kill her.”
Damian made a move to stop the vampire, but Rose’s hand closed around his wrist. “You forget that I am stronger than you. Watch as my daughter drains your pet.”
I narrowed my eyes, careful to keep my mind blank as Sharice stalked over to me. Jared reached for his gun and Sharice smiled.
“Guns don’t kill me, mutt,” she snarled. “Not even ones like yours with wooden rounds.”
“Yeah,” I growled as Sharice came within arm’s reach. My eyes had changed from their human blue to wolfish amber. “What about wolves?”
I changed forms before she could react, my jaws clamped down on her arm. Sharice backpedaled, succeeding only in tripping and falling onto the floor. I heard scuffling as Damian prevented Rose from coming over as my jaws shredded the vampire’s arm before letting go and focusing on her chest. I wasn’t sure if decapitation would work with her kind, but I bet a shredded heart would. Gun fire roared as the scuffling turned frantic. I used my paws to dig through Sharice’s flesh. Sharice screamed as she tried to fight me off, but it was no use. I was a Were with a born vampire’s blood running through my system. Sharice had surprised me before, but now I had the advantage.
I felt Rose’s magic tear through my body. I faltered as I tried to brace myself, but it was too late. Sharice grabbed the scruff of my neck, wrapping her viselike arms around me as she attempted to wrench my head off my shoulders. I snarled. My jaws snapped as I struggled to get a hold of her. I tried to get into her thoughts like I could do with either Jared or Damian, but she had her mind locked up tight. I had no clue what her next move would be or where her thoughts lay about her mother.
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