Night Haven

by Fiona Jayde

  No one would know, she reassured herself again and tried to pretend interest in vampire gangs in Isla Vista. The college town was heaven for vamps, with a population heavy with drunken underage dopes happily willing to be bitten.

  She had no pity for the ones who let themselves be taken. She hadn’t felt pity for them in nearly ten years. Ever since she’d had to kill Darlene.

  Scowling, Dina jerked her attention to the present, refusing to think back to that night, long before her father made her younger brother alpha because she didn’t have passion for their cause. That night when her best friend willingly let herself be turned into a vampire and had to fill her newfound taste for blood.

  “…plenty of abandoned structures on the bluffs.”

  Once more, Dina forced herself to focus. Her brother stood in front of three large monitors with a map of Isla Vista split between the screens. Off to his left, Zachariel manned the large console heaped with keyboards, monitors and books. The whole room with its shelves of tech equipment was a geek’s wet dream, including the mesh chairs Dina and the other bloodwolves leaned back on. The nerd-squad image was tarnished a bit by Earth, Wind & Fire cheerfully humming something in the background. Zach didn’t talk much but Dina couldn’t fault his taste.

  Using a slim pointer, Manakell circled the area along the cliffs. “We should beef up patrol around here.” In the past four years since their father died and his mate left him, Man’s bright and yellow eyes grew darker every day.

  “We look too old.” Dina hadn’t realized she’d spoken out loud until Man simply raised his eyebrows, coolly inviting her to make her point.

  She wished she’d left her hair loose, so that the other bloodwolves wouldn’t see her flushing. She hadn’t challenged Manakell four years ago when they were both ravaged by grief of losing their father. Her brother was the chosen alpha and she had lost the passion for their cause.

  She sure as hell wouldn’t challenge him now, with the magic leeched out from her blood.

  With five other bloodwolves looking at her, Dina kept her voice steady and firm. “We’re much older than that crowd. We’ll stand out too much.”

  “Unless you bust out the club wear.” This was from Sammael, a snort to lift the tension.

  She simply flipped her cousin off, and the room temperature rose a notch. Zach kept on clacking at the keys.

  “Point is, Isla Vista vampires are regulars. They blend. We won’t.”

  “Won’t matter.” Manakell looked at her directly, his stance relaxed, his voice intense and cool.

  Dina didn’t let her gaze drop when she shrugged. “Your call.” She had bigger and badder things to deal with. If Man found out what she lacked, he would be forced to tell her to stay home, then forced to do something about it after she flatly disobeyed him. A familiar pattern, because the same thing happened to his mate and didn’t that turn out peachy?

  “Gonna keep shut about last night?”

  She remained calm and even managed a cocky fuck-you smile when she turned towards Roguell. “Excuse me?”

  He stood to tower over her, a clear challenge of a male intent on dominating. Somewhere to her left Man growled, soft, low, enough to let on he wasn’t happy. Sam shifted in his chair, enough to show support.

  Dina ignored them both and hoped no one could smell her fear.

  “Last night, at Kennedy’s. You had a clear shot. You didn’t take it.”

  Now was the time for irony, even if her heart was loud in her throat. “No bites, no stakes.” She shot Manakell a sunny smile. “Isn’t that right, brother?”

  Man didn’t look at her. “That’s right.” The soft words held an unspoken threat and even if it ruffled Dina’s fur, it also calmed her belly. Alpha or not, her brother had her back.

  She let the rest of the meeting wash over her, picking apart last night, coolly examining the way she had responded to the vampire. She let him touch her, kiss her. He hadn’t smelled like blood. Instead his scent was that old soft leather mixed with the musk of male. Again she sank into the memory of him, his body against hers, his mouth hot and hungry.

  “If you can’t fight, you’re no good hunting.”

  She hadn’t noticed Rogue until his hand was on her arm. The meet was over, she heard Man and Sammael arguing somewhere in the house. Amidst the empty chairs and the blanked monitors, she was alone with Rogue.

  “You really intend to tell me what I do?” She kept her voice ice hard as her hands fisted at her sides.

  His grip went painful on her forearm, his fingers digging hard into her skin. She’d die before she’d show him that he hurt her.

  “Problem?”

  Keeping a feral grin in place, she slid a glance towards her brother. “Not till I count to three.”

  They both heard the muttered “bitch” and both chose to ignore it as Roguell stalked away.

  Man followed him with a long, thoughtful gaze. “You want to fill me in?”

  She was too tired to snap at him. “Nothing to fill about.” I made out with a vampire and can’t shift any more. “That thing, where we can’t kill vamps without proof.” It was a good way to change the subject. “You never said why.” And though she’d always thought of it as stupid, she’d kept her mouth shut, careful not to do anything that could have been seen as a challenge—either by him or by the other Lycks. Especially by the other Lycks.

  That was before. Right now, she didn’t care. Maybe if he threw her at the wall, she’d get the wolf back in her blood.

  “You never really asked.” Man crossed his arms, the gesture more tired than arrogant. “One of them helped…me.”

  The pause had been so smooth Dina wouldn’t have noticed if she hadn’t looked for it. A vampire had helped Valoelle, Man’s mate. Man’s ex-mate—if that was even the right word. Which probably explained the “don’t kill till you’re sure they’re bad” approach.

  “They aren’t all after easy blood.”

  “They’re animals.” She didn’t have the energy to pack heat in her words.

  Man shrugged. “We’re the same damned thing with wolf mixed in.”

  She peered into his face, noting the tired eyes, the tension of his stance that had nothing to do with her and everything with being the alpha. “We don’t feed on—”

  “We do.” Soft and sharp voice, a shard of glass slicing through silence. “We feed off our mates, crave their taste the same as a vampire. Except most vamps aren’t particular. Sometimes…” He shrugged again. “Sometimes I wonder if it’s better.”

  “Daddy would’ve—” She shut up but the words flew out anyway, beat at Man’s weary eyes until they hardened.

  “He’s gone.” The implied “I’m not him” hung heavy in the air. “If you can’t handle hunting, you need to let me know.”

  Chapter Three

  Her fragrance caressed him every time Luke breathed. He didn’t know how he could sense it two days later, that potent mix of woman and arousal and raw-edged nerves.

  The sweaty dreams in the few hours that he slept tortured him further. Visions of strong slim limbs, that lush mouth crying out in pleasure, teeth sinking into his own fevered skin.

  She was a bloodwolf for God’s sake. A woman made from the same magic that spawned him, a race that called their young by angel names. A mix of blood and wolf and man, created to balance the scales after the Earth priestesses unleashed vampires on the world in an attempt to live forever.

  Luke didn’t know how much of that was true, but the wolf Valoelle had been convinced of it. And since he’d saved her life and got his ass kicked in the process, he figured she didn’t have much need to lie.

  Walking among the trees at Alameda Park, Luke tried to get the bloodwolf’s aroma out of his head by focusing on the night air filled with dying leaves and human sweat. Lovers and druggies came here to find solitude among the shadows. And he despised himself for being one of the vampires hoping to score a snack.

  He didn’t go to a club tonight. Couldn’t risk seeing
her again, not with her scent driving him insane and her bold features burned into his memory. With her eyes watching him from the drawing on his desk, Luke hadn’t fed in days. Even now, with hunger tearing his gut to shreds, he shuddered with disgust thinking of blood.

  He hoped he’d find somebody out for a thrill, a faceless fix devoid of any feelings. He didn’t even know the bloodwolf’s name, and yet the thought of touching someone else revolted him, adding to the sick clenching in his stomach.

  A vampire who hated feeding. Luke would’ve laughed if it wasn’t so pathetic.

  The smell of blood, sudden and sharp, caught his attention. His stomach recoiling, Luke followed the trail a few yards to the right. The scene in front of him could have been easily mistaken for a kiss, as two bodies wrapped around each other in a parody of passion. He couldn’t quite tell the gender of the one on the bottom, but in the shadows of the oak tree, he heard an encouraging, excited moan.

  Fresh blood called out to him, with the venomous beauty of a snake.

  They gave away their blood for a slim chance of immortality, a high brought on by danger, the thrill of the taboo. Vampires did exist, and humans happily bared their necks for them.

  Sometimes Luke saved them, those who came to their senses, struggling, calling out for help. Most times he let them be, because he knew firsthand they wouldn’t welcome being rescued. They wanted it—just as he had. And he could tell them immortality meant nothing. He was already the same ash he would become once he finally found the guts to face the sun.

  Ignoring the aching of his insides, Luke watched to see if pink-striped hair on the bottom would let a vampire drain his life away. The whiff of blood teased at his senses. Once more he thought of those gold eyes and that clean musk of female desire, dark and beautiful. He used the memory of her to keep insanity away.

  He closed his eyes for a short second, let her wash over him as he kept a keen focus for any sounds of struggle. There were none of course, but still he waited, a part of him hoping he could help.

  Her fragrance grew stronger, edgier. As if he conjured her, the bloodwolf burst out of the shadows, made a slow move to plunge her knife into the curved back of the vampire, only to be swatted away as if she were a fly.

  Silent, Luke watched her regain her feet, slow, graceful yet sluggish, as if her balance didn’t add up and her body refused to listen. Fluid, she reared up, sent the vamp backwards with a weak snap-kick to his jewels. The knife gleamed in her hand, a short and wicked blade extending from between two of her fingers. It sliced through empty air.

  Her hands were clenched, her face a mask of crazed serenity. She would change now, he imagined, turn herself into the wolf that flowed inside her blood. Luke waited for it, tensed for it, knew she would smell him, and he wouldn’t lift a hand against her even if she ripped him up to pieces. He knew it as much as he breathed.

  Except she remained standing tall, as if waiting for the vampire to fly at her, tear at her flesh with angry teeth and hands. Luke’s vision was already dark when he smelled blood rising above the blur of senses.

  He moved without thinking, felt his muscles sing as he ripped the vampire off her. A short, cracking jerk broke the vamp’s neck and Luke watched it fall onto the hard November dirt. Somewhere, the teen scrambled away, taking his sloppy whimpers with him.

  The bloodwolf lay unmoving on the ground, the soft curves of her chest rising and falling with each harsh breath she took. The eyes that locked with his were dark and gold and desperate.

  She bled—a nasty rip over her shoulder that tore through fabric and skin.

  “Get up.” He kept his tone quiet, afraid to move closer to her, afraid the beast inside him would take over. And yet, somehow, the scent pumping from her—blood, desperation, pain—soothed almost as much as it grated.

  “You up for round two?” Tough voice, weary eyes.

  Luke didn’t know why he found the combination so alluring. “You’re hurt.”

  She touched a fingertip to that soft mouth and wiped at her own blood. He followed her motions with his eyes and wondered how the hunger didn’t shred him.

  “Try it.” The words didn’t have much punch as she got up—or rather hauled herself up as if by will alone. She faced him, bleeding, tired, beautiful.

  For once, the craving didn’t demand instant satisfaction. He didn’t want her blood. He wanted to devour all of her, her fragrance, her skin, her vulnerable and defiant mouth. “I could’ve tried last night.” A pause. “I didn’t.”

  She shook her head at that. Luke wondered if she knew she had a tiny pulse inside the fragile hollow of her neck. He wondered what it’d taste like when he licked it.

  “You can’t shift, can you?” He kept his voice quiet, flat. “You walk around bleeding, every vamp in the city will want you.” He sure as hell did.

  “Is that a threat?”

  “You tell me, bloodwolf.”

  Those fascinating gold eyes narrowed. “I’ll handle it.”

  “Find one of your kind to take you home.” If only to protect her from him. The usual hunger was nothing compared to this craving to devour her. All of her.

  Her chin jerked up. “I got this to protect me.” She lifted her fist, the knife gleaming like a flipped-up middle finger. His body hardened more as Luke barked out a laugh.

  “You think I can’t take you?” She crouched now, the blade a bright point in the shadows. Her scent changed, mixed with the copper shade of desperation.

  Luke moved seconds before she lunged, leaned away from the knife that missed his face by inches. Her hand was still extended when he grabbed her, pulled her against him, holding her fist and the blade in front of her. Her breaths were quick jerks of her chest, her fragrance deeper now, darker.

  “You’re too slow, bloodwolf.”

  Her body trembled, her buttocks firm and tight against his cock. Luke let her wrench away before he let himself kiss the smooth shine of her hair.

  The sharp wind caressed the dying trees as she came at him once again, a snarl on her face, her blade bright and gleaming. Luke moved, let her own momentum push her to the ground. And either he was crazy, or that short second while she stayed still, he got the sense she wanted him to cover her.

  “I won’t fight you.”

  “Yeah, right.” She didn’t lunge at him when she got up. Small semblance of progress.

  Hunger forgotten, his body throbbed for her. That’s when he heard a rustling of footsteps—a vampire, maybe two, smelling wolf blood and wanting their piece of the action.

  The way she swept her gaze around her, Luke figured that she heard them as well. With a swift movement he stripped off his jacket, held it out to her while she lifted her eyebrows.

  “So I can smell like you?” Her stance was light, her face determined.

  “Better than smelling like a wounded bloodwolf.”

  It was a short relief when she finally snatched the leather from his fingers and threw it around her shoulders, dimming her scent. Since her blade was already pointed at him, he took the opportunity to split his palm, using his blood to dull the smell of hers.

  That carnal mouth trembled open in the dark. “Why—” She paused a moment, tried again. “What the hell are you doing?”

  His hunger numbed for now, as did the insane need to touch her. Those gold eyes still held his. “Damned if I know,” he told her quietly, and it was absolutely true. “I got a place a couple of blocks away. You can clean up, cover your scent.” He figured she would laugh as soon as he stopped speaking. Instead she looked around, not trusting him, not seeing a viable alternative.

  Her eyes were direct and solemn when they met his once more. “You touch me, you’re dead.”

  Relief was laced with something deeper. “I’m already dead.”

  She must have lost her mind along with all her other senses.

  The leather of his jacket touched her skin, a subtle caress that promised more if only Dina would allow her mind to go there. Even if she didn’t sti
nk like blood, ripping it off her shoulders would show how much his scent affected her. And frankly, she would rather die.

  This whole damned thing spiraled beyond stupidity. Stupid of her trying to rescue that damned kid knowing full well she didn’t have the strength to fight a vampire. Apparently, fear and adrenaline weren’t enough to unite the mind and body. Dina still couldn’t feel the magic in her blood.

  Maybe she couldn’t shift—but she could feel the mixed traces of male and leather wrapped around her. It teased her skin as she walked with a vampire out of the park.

  He hadn’t touched her—not that night, not now, though clearly he knew she didn’t have the strength to fight him. He hadn’t touched her, and those times when she pushed herself into him, his hands were hot but they weren’t bruising. She still had enough instinct left to know he wouldn’t hurt her.

  And when she caught his gaze, hungry and hot, the shivers in her belly had everything to do with nerves and nothing to do with fear.

  “What’s your name, vampire?”

  “Luke.” Low raspy tone, as if he felt the heat pulsing inside her.

  “I’m Dina.” She didn’t know why she told him her name. Too late to take it back now.

  “Dina.” He said it slowly, as if seeing how her name would taste on his tongue. “Not a common angel name.”

  “Too many Gabbys in the family.”

  He chuckled, soft and sexy. She really didn’t like the way the sound shivered on her skin.

  “You seem to know a lot about my kind.”

  He shrugged, a move that somehow reminded her of Manakell. “I had plenty of time to ask questions.”

  Dina let the pause stretch as they walked side by side in companionable silence. His scent still hugged her. The park was now replaced by tidy fences and mowed lawns. Humans living in those neat curtained houses had no idea who went bump in their nights.

  “When were you turned?” She didn’t like how her voice turned tentative.