The Tomb of Blood

by Britney Jackson

  Kara raised an eyebrow. “You think that would help?” she scoffed. “It seems to me that once she sets her mind to something, there’s no stopping her.”

  “He could hurt her,” Kallias argued, imploring Kara to agree with him.

  “I doubt it,” Kara assured him. She sat down on the edge of the bed. “When Aaron allowed you all to enter the Tomb of Blood, you became members of this colony, whether that was your intention or not. That means you’re officially under Aaron’s protection. He won’t allow any harm to come to Rose.”

  “Unless she breaks the rules,” Erik added uneasily.

  Kara leaned back, resting her weight on her hands. She shrugged. “I’ve broken his rules more times than I can count, and he hasn’t killed me yet.”

  “We watched him kill a vampire just for questioning him,” Kallias said.

  “Yeah, but that was Lafi,” Kara said, waving her hand dismissively. “Aaron’s been looking for a reason to kill Lafi for centuries. He hated Lafi.”

  “He always has,” Erik agreed. “Almost as much as we did.”

  Kallias frowned at that. “If Aaron hated him that much, why didn’t he just kill him? Why would he need a reason? It’s not like anyone can stop him.”

  “Aaron’s rules are like a contract. When vampires join this colony, they expect him to keep his side of the deal as well,” Kara explained. “If Aaron had killed Lafi without a justifiable reason…well, people would’ve asked questions.”

  Rose nodded. “Questions like: why did Aaron allow Lafi to join the Tomb of Blood in the first place?” she asked, directing that question at Kara.

  Kara smiled at the question. “Aaron brought Lafi here for Alana.”

  “What?” Erik asked, surprised. “How do you know that?”

  “This is what I do,” Kara bragged, laughing at him. “If I want to know something, I have ways of finding out. And I had wondered about that myself.”

  Rose frowned. “But I thought Lafi was the one who captured Alana.”

  Kara’s smile faded. “He did more than that,” she growled lowly.

  “Right,” Rose said uncomfortably. “Then, why would Alana ask Aaron to make Lafi immortal and then bring him to her? That doesn’t make sense.”

  “Of course it doesn’t make sense,” Kallias said. “Alana’s a psychopath.”

  “Actually, she’s a sociopath,” Rose corrected, “based on the definition.”

  Erik looked up at the ceiling and groaned, “Not the definitions again!”

  “Because,” Kara said, answering Rose’s question, “an immortal doesn’t die when you torture them. She wanted to make Lafi suffer for what he did.”

  “Over and over and over,” Erik added.

  “And Aaron was okay with that?” Kallias asked.

  Kara shrugged. “I think he hoped that it would help if Alana could take out her anger on Lafi. He probably thought it would help her get over it.”

  “It doesn’t work that way,” Rose said quietly, staring down at the marble floor. “When you feed that part of yourself, it doesn’t go away. It gets stronger.”

  Kara nodded. “No amount of vengeance was ever enough for Alana.”

  “It still isn’t, apparently,” Kallias said. “She’s trying to destroy the world.”

  “The world was pretty terrible to her,” Rose mumbled sadly.

  Kallias scowled at Rose, bewildered by her comment. “Now, you’re sympathizing with Alana?” he asked incredulously. “She’s insane, Rose.”

  Rose narrowed her eyes at him. “I know. And obviously, I don’t agree with what she’s done. But you have to admit: what happened to her was terrible.”

  Kallias rolled his eyes. “Forgive me if I don’t sympathize with the person who wants to start a war that will end humanity as we know it,” he muttered. He redirected his attention toward Kara. “Look, I don’t care why Aaron killed Lafi. The fact remains that he could kill Rose. I’m bound to her, so if she’s in danger, I’ll feel it. But what if I can’t get back to her in time? I can’t take that risk.”

  “You took that risk last night,” Rose pointed out.

  “You were staying with Kara last night,” Kallias said, “not Aaron.”

  Kara raised an eyebrow at that. “What’s the difference?”

  That question seemed to agitate Kallias. “The difference is,” he growled, “I can see your thoughts. I can see that you care about Rose and would never hurt her. Aaron’s feelings toward her, on the other hand, are less reassuring.”

  “I thought you said that you didn’t trust Kara,” Rose said with a frown.

  “I don’t,” Kallias said, “but I trust her a hell of a lot more than Aaron.”

  “That’s surprising,” Kara said. “Aaron is far more honest than I am.”

  “What is your issue with Aaron anyway?” Rose asked suspiciously.

  Kallias scowled at her. “He’s an asshole,” he growled.

  Rose smiled. “So are you. You two should get along great.”

  The office chair squeaked as Erik rocked back onto the back wheels again. He clasped his hands together and rested them on his stomach. “Hey, I’m curious about this, too. You never told me that you knew Aaron so well.”

  “That’s because I don’t know him well,” Kallias said. “We met. Once.”

  Rose raised an eyebrow. “And?”

  Kallias sighed in frustration, and then, realizing that Rose wouldn’t give up without an answer, he said, “I had only been a vampire for a few months. I was starving, and I was hiding in a cave, away from civilization, so that I could resist my hunger. Between the hunger and the isolation, I was starting to lose my mind.” He shrugged. “Aaron found me like that, and he tried to make me feed.”

  “Something tells me you left out a big chunk of that story,” Erik said.

  Rose winced as she understood. “Wait. Did he try, or did he succeed?”

  Kallias sighed at her astuteness. “I couldn’t resist,” he admitted. “He brought a human to me, and he cut her wrist. I couldn’t resist the scent of fresh blood. I bit her. I managed to stop before she died, but Aaron killed her anyway.”

  “You probably couldn’t control your abilities that early,” Kara said.

  “No, I couldn’t,” Kallias said irritably. “What is your point?”

  “You wouldn’t have been able to erase the human’s memory,” Kara pointed out, “which means she could have revealed what you were to everyone.”

  “Are you saying that it was good that he killed her?” Kallias snarled.

  “No,” Kara corrected, her eyebrow lifting at his hostility. “I’m saying that he may have spared you from being hunted down by an angry mob.”

  “I was living in a cave,” Kallias reminded her.

  Erik snorted at that. “Oh, believe me,” he interjected, “angry mobs are not deterred by caves. Kara and I know that from experience. Don’t we?”

  A guilty smile curled at the edges of Kara’s lips.

  “Kara had a bad habit of sleeping with princesses,” Erik explained to Kallias and Rose, “which would usually lead to angry mobs coming after us.”

  Kara shrugged unapologetically. “Princesses need orgasms, too.”

  “Inspiring,” Rose said dryly. “You should put that on a T-shirt.”

  Kara laughed and winked at her.

  “The point is,” Kallias said, ignoring their banter, “Aaron has no respect for human life, and he thinks that everyone should do what he tells them to do.”

  “Kind of like you wanting me to do what you tell me to do?” Rose asked.

  Kallias scowled at her. “I just don’t want you to stay here with him.”

  Rose shifted her gaze toward Kara. “Do I even have a choice?”

  “Honestly?” Kara asked. When Rose nodded, she sighed and shook her head. “No. When Aaron asks you to do something, he expects you to do it.”

  “I don’t care what he expects,” Kallias growled. He turned his full attention to Rose, his brown eyes
softening with concern. “You can say no. We can leave. Run, if we have to. We can fight Alana and her army on our own.”

  Rose scoffed, “You really think that sounds safer?”

  “He’s right,” Kara agreed. She leaned forward, resting her hands on her thighs. “If you want to leave, you can. I can get you out, if it’s what you really want. I know how to get in and out of here without being seen by the cameras. And I’ll do my best to protect you. But I can’t promise he won’t come after us.”

  “You’re not leaving your home for me,” Rose informed her.

  “I swore I would protect you,” Kara began, “and I fully intend…”

  “I am not holding you to that stupid oath!” Rose exclaimed. She shook her head in frustration. “And I’m not planning on leaving either. Not until after we stop Alana. I am staying here tonight, and nothing will happen to me.”

  Kara stood, raking her fingers through her silky, blue-streaked hair. “If that’s your decision,” she sighed, “then, follow me. I’ll show you to his room.”

  —

  Rose lost track of the numerous hallways they’d traveled down, of the hundreds of doors they’d passed, as Kara led her to Aaron’s room. Aside from the faint sound of running water—showers, most likely—and the occasional murmuring or laughing, the Tomb of Blood was quiet and still, most of the vampires not yet awake. According to Kara, no one ever left the tombs until long after sunset. Kara’s boots thudded heavily against the marble floor ahead of her, echoing through the hall, and Rose couldn’t help but watch Kara as they walked.

  She told herself that it was just the fact that Kara was the only person in the hall, literally the only person she could watch. But it was more than that. There was something so magnetic about Kara, something that had affected Rose since she’d met Kara, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

  When Kara reached the end of the hall, she spun around to face Rose. She leaned back against the wall behind her, bending her leg and propping her boot against the wall. She looked so relaxed, her shoulders rolled back, her body slouched so languidly against the wall, as if she planned to wait there all day.

  Kara tilted her head back against the wall, her sleek, black-and-blue hair falling out of her face. She stared at Rose, that familiar smirk tilting at her lips.

  “Um…I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Rose said dryly, pointing at the solid, block wall that Kara was leaning against, “but this is kind of a dead end.”

  Kara placed her finger against her lips and whispered, “Shh.” Then, she curled her forefinger back toward her, beckoning Rose closer. “Come here.”

  Rose frowned at the strange request, and then, she took one step closer.

  Kara shook her head slowly, her smile widening. She continued to curl her forefinger back toward herself, beckoning Rose closer and closer until their bodies almost touched. Then, in a low, sultry whisper, Kara urged, “Closer.”

  Rose swallowed uneasily and took one step closer, which caused their bodies to press together, every inch of her soft, curvy body pressed against Kara’s firmer, muscular body. Heat rushed to Rose’s face as she suddenly felt intensely aware of the fact that this was the same body that she’d seen undressed less than an hour ago. The closeness of their bodies affected Rose more than she wanted to admit. She felt her breath coming harsher and faster, and her heart raced against her chest. Kara smelled of leather and violets—a scent that was both warm and sweet, all at once—and that scent intoxicated Rose. Her stomach clenched with hunger, and fiery, primal desire burned throughout her body.

  Kara smiled, her icy blue eyes darkening with lust, as if she knew exactly what Rose was feeling. Then, she threaded her fingers in Rose’s thick, auburn hair and pulled Rose’s face forward, until Kara’s soft lips brushed against Rose’s ear. “No one knows that this corridor is here,” she whispered in Rose’s ear.

  Rose shuddered against Kara as Kara’s warm breath fell against her ear, raising chill bumps on her skin. She blushed as she heard Kara chuckle at her. She took a step backward, out of Kara’s arms. “What corridor?” she whispered.

  Kara grinned and turned around, toward the wall. She lifted her hand to her mouth and ran her forefinger along one of her fangs, slicing open her finger. The scent of Kara’s blood—so warm and sweet—immediately assaulted Rose’s senses, intensifying the potent hunger that she already felt. Kara cast a curious, amused glance back at her before she pressed her bleeding finger against a random spot on the wall—a small, electronic sensor that looked identical to the rest of the block wall—and then, the wall slid open, revealing the dark corridor.

  Kara tugged Rose inside, and the door slid closed behind them, closing them inside a tunnel that looked more like a cave than a hallway. Rather than block and marble, the walls and floor of this corridor were made of dirt. Only one torch lit the long, narrow tunnel. Their footsteps echoed off of the dirt walls.

  Kara glanced over her shoulder as she led the way down the tunnel. “That sensor only recognizes my blood and Aaron’s blood. That’s why I had to escort you to his room. You needed my blood to get inside,” she explained.

  Rose nodded as she glanced around, frowning at the primitive tunnel. “This seems significantly less advanced than the rest of the Tomb of Blood.”

  Kara laughed, “Yeah. Aaron refuses to renovate his own space.”

  “Why?” Rose asked curiously as a rock crunched beneath her shoe.

  Kara shrugged one shoulder. “He hasn’t said, but I would imagine that it’s because he doesn’t trust anyone enough to let them see where he sleeps.”

  “Except you,” Rose stated, lifting her eyebrows.

  Kara smiled at her. “And you,” she murmured, “apparently.”

  Rose frowned at that. She opened her mouth to argue, but she froze as the scent of fresh blood filled her senses. It smelled sweet and powerful, like vampire blood, and Rose once again felt that intense hunger twisting at her gut.

  Kara stopped and turned toward her. “Rose? What’s wrong?”

  “Blood,” Rose breathed, exhaling shakily. “I smell blood.”

  “Of course you do,” Kara said, grinning at her. “It’s breakfast time.”

  Rose’s eyes widened. “Br-breakfast?” she stammered worriedly.

  Kara laughed at her nervousness. “Come on,” she urged.

  The scent of blood grew stronger and stronger as they continued down the tunnel. Rose felt increasingly anxious as they progressed toward the source of blood at a sickeningly slow pace. Her entire body thrummed with hunger, ravenous, unsatisfied hunger that Kara had accidentally awakened in the hallway.

  Rose risked a glance at Kara, hyper-aware of the quick, steady pounding of Kara’s heart. Kara’s hair lay around her neck and over her shoulders, the blue strands barely visible in the darkness. The soft, sleek hair shielded Kara’s neck from Rose’s gaze, but she could still sense the artery pulsing there, in time with that loud, steady pounding. Rose swallowed hard, trying to regain control of her hunger before she wound up embarrassing herself in front of Kara. Again.

  But then, Kara looked at her, as if she’d sensed Rose’s gaze on her, and her soft, pale lips curved into a wide, wolfish grin. “When did you feed last?”

  Rose blushed. “It’s been…a couple of nights,” she admitted sheepishly, licking her fangs. She ducked her head. “I usually have to feed every night.”

  “Why does that embarrass you?” Kara asked curiously.

  Rose shrugged. “I can’t control my hunger like the rest of you can.”

  Kara laughed, “Yes, you can. If you couldn’t control it, you would have jumped me already. I mean, if that look you keep giving me is any indication…”

  Rose’s face managed to turn an even darker shade of red. “Sorry.”

  Kara veered closer to her, until her shoulder brushed Rose’s shoulder. She tilted her head toward Rose, her sweet-smelling, violet-scented hair falling over her face, and then, Rose felt Kara’s warm breath
on her ear again. “I don’t know why you are apologizing, ást. I like it when you give me that look,” she whispered, her voice lilting more than usual. “As a matter of fact, it turns me on.”

  Rose tripped. Partially because having a woman whisper in your ear that you turned her on can be a little distracting. So distracting, in fact, that Rose had apparently forgotten how to move her feet. But also because…Kara had used that word again. Ást. The word that Erik had said was too sentimental for Kara.

  Fortunately, Rose didn’t fall flat on her face. Instead, she fell directly into Kara’s arms. Kara had swept her arm out in front of Rose in just enough time to catch her. Rose blushed deeply as she stared up at Kara’s amused smirk.

  “Are you all right?” Kara asked, clearly struggling to suppress laughter.

  “Um…there was a rock,” Rose lied as Kara set her back on her feet.

  “Oh?” Kara asked, lifting her eyebrows. “I didn’t see it.”

  “Me either,” Rose muttered. She avoided Kara’s gaze, instead busying herself with straightening her disheveled clothing. “That’s why I tripped.”

  Kara snorted at that. Her gaze still on her clothes, Rose didn’t realize that Kara had moved closer until she felt Kara’s warm breath on her ear again.

  Kara’s lips curved into a smile against the shell of Rose’s ear as she whispered, “Liar.” Then, Kara stepped back and began walking again, as if the entire incident had never happened. “Come. Aaron doesn’t appreciate lateness.”

  The dirt floor sloped downward, causing the tunnel to grow wider and wider as they continued deeper into the ground. Then, finally, the tunnel opened into a large, cavernous room that was lit only by the many computer screens that covered one wall. For a moment, Rose just stared at the computer screens, which displayed videos of various rooms inside the Tomb of Blood and many places outside the Tomb of Blood as well, because she couldn’t figure out how the heck this kind of technology was functioning in the primitive, cave-like room. But then, the soft, breathless moaning drew her out of her investigation, and she shifted her gaze away from the screens, toward the large bed in the middle of the room.