Seduced by Blood

by Laurie London

  The young woman’s lids flew open, her gaze darting around the room in terror. Her deathly white complexion and pale blue lips made it look as if a slight breeze could blow straight through her and make her bones rattle. Roxy’s heart went out to her. She was a petite thing and those chains were much too heavy to tolerate for long. She had to be miserable.

  “Who’s there?”

  Even though Roxy wasn’t part of the shadows, it was clear Yvonne hadn’t seen her yet.

  “Shh. It’s okay,” she said in her calmest voice. “Your sister sent me.” She stepped a little closer and handed the young woman a small stuffed animal. When Roxy had spotted it on Yvonne’s bed in the sisters’ apartment, she knew it’d make the perfect scent marker. “Cosette gave this to me to give to you. Said this little hedgehog is your favorite.”

  “Cosette sent you?” The young woman looked warily at the toy that wasn’t much larger than the palm of her hand. A mixture of relief and disbelief flitted behind her eyes as if she were wondering whether this could be some kind of trick.

  “Yes. She told me what happened to the two of you. All of it—the woman in your apartment, the bloodletting, the promise Cosette made to secure your release.”

  “How did you find me? Are you…the police?” She asked it hesitantly, as if she didn’t really expect the answer to be yes.

  “You could say that. What was done to you and your sister was horrible. My…my associate and I were able to track you here and we will see that justice is served against those who did this to you.”

  “They’re monsters, you know. Vampires. And they—”

  “Yes, I know,” Roxy said, interrupting her. There’d be time enough for that later. But now, first things first.

  “Where is Cosette? Is she okay? Is she here with you?” Chains clanking, Yvonne struggled to roll to her side. She clutched the hedgehog to her chest as if the exertion from the movement was a little too much. And it probably was.

  “Yes, she’s with a colleague of mine and is sick with worry about you.” Roxy eyed the chains but stopped herself from yanking them from the wall. “May I?” She reached slowly for the shackles around Yvonne’s ankle, so as not to startle her.

  “They’re locked and I think that…that woman has the key.”

  The instant Roxy’s fingers closed around the chain, fire shot through her hands. Cursing in pain, she let go. Welts in the shape of links tracked across her palms and she could feel the energy pouring from her system.

  Silver. The damn chains were made of silver.

  The girl’s eyes widened and she scrambled as far away into the corner as she could. “You’re…you’re one of them.”

  Roxy staggered backward and hit the low-lying table, sending the coffin crashing to the ground. “Yvonne, I—”

  “Vampires can’t touch silver. She…she told me that.”

  “You’re right.” She grabbed the plastic bottle from the ground and poured water onto her hands. It cooled the burns a little, but the weakness remained. “And, yes, I am a vampire. But I’m nothing like the woman who is holding you here.”

  “Don’t…don’t hurt me.” She drew her knees to her chest, tucking her hands under her bare toes, to make herself as small as possible.

  “I’m not going to—”

  A thin wisp of smoke wafted into the room from the tunnel.

  “What the hell?” Was the mansion on fire? Where was Santiago? “Come on. We’ve got to get you out of here. Is there an extra key around here?”

  “Stay away.” The young woman’s voice had that high-pitched, you’re-a-monster tone.

  “You’ve got to believe me, Yvonne. I’m here to help. Your sister wouldn’t have sent me if she didn’t trust me.” The smoke was thickening. They seriously needed to get out of here.

  “How do I know that she’s even alive? That you’re not just saying that to get to me?”

  Roxy’s patience was wearing thin. “Well, for one thing, if I was like the woman who took you, I wouldn’t give a shit what you thought. I’d probably rip your throat out right now and replenish the energy I just lost from that silver. And second of all, it’s my job to keep people like you safe from people like her. So whether you cooperate or not, I’m taking you with me.”

  Yvonne didn’t move, but she didn’t argue either. “The only key I’ve seen is the one she keeps in her pocket.” She shuddered as if recalling an unpleasant memory.

  “Then I’ll have to break them somehow.”

  A quick glance around revealed no tools stacked anywhere or objects she could use as one. Except for the coffin, the tiny room was bare. She’d have to do it with her hands either by breaking the links or pulling them from the wall. Normally, something like this wouldn’t be much of a problem, but she wasn’t at a hundred percent given the energy drain, and the fact that the links were silver made it tricky.

  Removing her jacket, she turned it around, and slipped her hands into the sleeves. She’d use them as makeshift gloves to cover each hand. With her hands protected, she grabbed the chain, braced her feet on the wall for leverage and pulled. Nothing.

  The smell of smoke was getting stronger. She hoped to God Santiago was all right. He’d need to manage things on his own until she could get Yvonne out of here.

  She pulled again, harder this time. Sweat rolled down her temple as she ground her teeth together and her fangs pricked her lower lip. Feeling a slight give, she leaned more of her weight into it. Finally, one of the links broke, sending her backward against the overturned coffin.

  “You did it!” Yvonne held up an almost-two-foot length of chain still attached to her ankle, but not the wall.

  “One down, three to go.” Roxy pushed herself up and reached for the next one.

  The second chain was even harder than the first. No matter how hard she tried, none of the links would give way, so she concentrated on where it was affixed to the wall. Changing her grip, she pulled and strained. Finally, after what felt like forever, the bolt moved slightly. Roxy changed the angle and pulled again. This time, it loosened further and she was able to slide it out of its crumbled hole.

  Ten minutes later, though Roxy was sweaty and exhausted, Yvonne was finally freed. She leaned against the wall, feeling much weaker than when she’d started, almost nauseous. This wasn’t the beginning of another panic attack, was it? If it was, she didn’t have the luxury of waiting till the sensation passed this time. The smell of smoke was so strong now that she could almost taste the acrid flavor of burning wood on her tongue. Soon they’d be coughing, struggling to find oxygen.

  With the broken chains dangling, Yvonne swayed and steadied herself on the coffin. “I feel sick.”

  Ha. That makes two of us.

  “Blood loss will do that to you.” She looped the young woman’s arm over her shoulder to support as much of her weight as she could and they shuffled toward the doorway.

  Okay, they weren’t going to be able to move very fast like this. Not only would she need to support Yvonne’s weight for two hundred or more feet, but she had to make sure the chains didn’t inadvertently touch her skin. If only the tunnel wasn’t so damn narrow, she thought. If she could muster up the energy, she could carry Yvonne and probably move faster than if the young woman had to travel all the way on foot.

  She poked her head into the tunnel where the smell of smoke was even stronger. “Maybe you should wait here while I go for help.” She’d find Santiago and between the two of them, they should be able to get Yvonne out of here.

  Yvonne’s eyes widened. “Don’t…don’t leave me.”

  Roxy wasn’t sure whether the young woman actually trusted her now or not. “Are you strong enough for a piggy back ride?”

  “I…I can try.”

  After zipping her jacket all the way up to her neck, she squatted down for Yvonne to climb onto her back, but something on the floor drew her attention. Next to the coffin was a small antique clock and a copy of Gothic Homes magazine. Regular-looking items that you’
d keep on your nightstand.

  “Don’t tell me she sleeps inside that thing every day?” Roxy asked with disgust. She could only guess that when the woman woke, she’d take the few steps over to where Yvonne was chained. Her own private sweetblood supply, available whenever she wanted it.

  “You mean you don’t…sleep in coffins?”

  “I prefer a bed with sheets and blankets. Preferably an electric blanket, actually.”

  “Oh. That’s…good. I’m sure her friend sleeps in coffins.”

  “Her friend?” Was Yvonne referring to other Darkbloods, she wondered?

  She told Roxy about what had happened shortly after she arrived. The well-dressed man had seemed so distinguished at first and yet had turned out to be no less a monster than the woman.

  An edible centerpiece? That was seriously messed up. Poor thing. So that explained the plastic on the dining room table. But who was he? A lover? A guest? She’d mention it to the capture team so they could find out as much as they could about him from Yvonne before wiping her memory.

  “Okay, climb on, but don’t let any of the chains touch me. I can’t afford to lose any more energy.” Things would be hard enough as it was.

  The chains snaked around Roxy’s legs as if they were trying to trip her up. The young woman was frailer than she thought—hell, without the extra weight of the silver, she’d be as light and inconsequential as a down feather in a windstorm. But given Roxy’s reduced energy level, it wasn’t all bad. She would’ve had a lot harder time carrying a healthy girl Cosette’s size.

  Her foot caught the edge of the magazine, exposing a white sticklike object underneath.

  It was a bone. A human radius.

  The bitch slept with the bones of her victims? God, she’s twisted. Roxy wanted nothing more than to get the hell away from this place as quickly as possible.

  “What’s wrong?” Yvonne asked.

  “Nothing. I’m… It’s fine.”

  Then she remembered all of the torch holders in the tunnel. There had to be dozens of the strange criss-crossed sconces. She hadn’t bothered to examine them very closely at the time because she’d been hell-bent on following Yvonne’s scent, but she’d be willing to bet they were made of bone.

  Looks like we got here just in time.

  They’d only advanced about twenty feet into the corridor when the smoke got substantially thicker. It swirled like little eddies of water around the bone torchlights and made visibility difficult. Roxy crouched as low as she could. Her human passenger wouldn’t last much longer in this. Yvonne coughed and raised her hand reflexively. The silver chain flicked against Roxy’s cheek, burning it.

  Roxy stumbled and fell to her knees, unable to catch herself. Something in her wrist popped as it hit the stone floor, the same wrist injured all those years ago in that alley with Ian.

  “Sorry,” Yvonne said, choking. Her coughing was getting worse.

  “That’s okay.” Roxy tried to stand again but the ligaments in her legs felt like liquid. She might be able to survive smoke inhalation, but Yvonne sure as hell wouldn’t. And neither of them would survive a fire.

  “Hang on.” Ignoring the pain in her wrist, she pushed herself up and started forward again. Whatever injury she’d sustained, the tissue would regenerate in a few days. She kept that in mind with each painful movement. They had to be about halfway by now.

  A loud crack sounded ahead of them and a shower of sparks filled the corridor as one of the wooden support beams fell, completely blocking their path. There was no way around it.

  “I think we might need a plan B.”

  “What’s plan B?”

  “I don’t know. Ask me when I figure it out. But it looks like plan A isn’t happening.” She did a little hitch to keep Yvonne from slipping, then turned and headed back to the tiny room.

  After setting Yvonne down, she grabbed the phone from her pocket to call Santiago. Maybe he could—

  Three missed calls from him. She quickly hit redial. He answered on the first ring.

  “Where the hell are you? Are you all right? Do you have the girl?” He sounded more worried than pissed.

  “Yes, and we’re okay, but not for long. It’s really smoky in here and we’re trapped.” She told him about the long tunnel. “I’m going to need your help.”

  * * *

  THICK BLACK SMOKE filled the hallway and flames had reached one of the walls by the time Santiago pushed open the door to the library at the far end. This place was a goddamn tinderbox. It couldn’t have been more than five minutes since the candle had ignited the drapes.

  With his hands out in front of him, he headed to the far right corner. If the bookshelf was still open, he should see a narrow stairway. If not, there was a lever somewhere. She had said it was on the third or fourth shelf, but frankly, he’d just rip the whole thing from the wall rather than risk precious time feeling around for a hidey-hole handle. Not only was this place going up in flames but dawn was right around the corner.

  His leg hit the edge of a table and a few objects clattered to the ground. “What the hell?” He stumbled, shot a hand out to catch himself, and touched a few hard, cylindrical objects on the surface. Wood dowels? Not quite. They were connected at weird angles and too irregular. Bones? His fingers skimmed over the knobby end of one of them. Maybe. He’d be willing to bet they were human, too.

  He found the bookcase Roxy had described, but when he felt around for an opening, there was only the wall. It must’ve closed behind her. Well, he sure as hell wasn’t going to fumble around for the handle. Gripping the sides, he gave it a good jerk. Except for some books falling from the shelves, nothing happened. He put more muscle into it, but the shelf still didn’t give way. What was it made of anyway? He took a step backward, poised to give it a good kick, when his phone vibrated. It was Roxy.

  He’d told her he was on his way. Had they gotten out? Had something happened? “What’s wrong? Where are you?”

  “Are you almost here? The smoke is getting really bad.” She sounded calmer than he’d have expected for someone trapped in a fire.

  “I’m in the library, trying to get through the bookshelf. I’ll be there in a minute.”

  He could hear coughing in the background, then the sound changed as if she’d cupped her hand over the receiver. “She’s not doing well. I’m afraid if we don’t get her out of here soon, she’s not going to make it. She wasn’t in good shape to begin with. Please, you’ve got to hurry.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  “Did you find the lever?”

  “Not yet,” he said, feeling a little guilty for not even trying.

  “Goddamn it, Santiago, I can tell you’re lying. The bookcase is heavy, as in lead-panel heavy, and it’s reinforced with steel. You might be able to muscle it away from the wall but that’ll take time. And time is something we don’t have.”

  “How do I get it open?”

  “Use the damn handle to unlock the slide bolts.”

  She walked him through it with the calmness of a 911 dispatcher and his fingers soon found a tiny lever on the back of the third shelf. The bookcase slid easily, as if mocking his efforts to strong-arm it. Ask nice and I’ll open. If not, screw you.

  “Got it. Be there in a minute.”

  “Okay. Be careful. We’ll be waiting.”

  Hanging up, he shoved the desk into the opening to keep the bookshelf from sliding closed. There wasn’t much time until it caught fire as well, so he’d have to move fast.

  He glanced over his shoulder. Flames had reached the room now and were advancing across the wall, curling the wallpaper and giving the place an eerie golden glow amidst the hazy smoke. The air crackled and hissed like the inside of a popcorn popper.

  He vaulted over the desk and through the opening in the wall. A steep, narrow staircase led downward and curved out of sight. A series of torches lit up the stone walls and a few dusty cobwebs hung from the ceiling. But what most surprised him was a chute running parallel to the s
tairs, reminding him of a slide at a water park or a luge track. He didn’t have time to contemplate its purpose. All he knew was that it would get him to the bottom faster than if he went on foot. Given all the smoke, shadow moving would be difficult. He jumped onto the chute, crossed his arms over his chest, and as he made his body rigid he shot downward, picking up speed around the curve.

  Jesus, Mary and Joseph. If he wasn’t trying to save someone from a burning building and get out alive himself, this might actually be fun. Had Roxy done this, too, when she came down? He’d have to remember to ask her.

  When he got to the bottom, the chute was angled perfectly that he landed right on his feet. The smoke was thinner, making it easier to meld with the shadows, and he raced down the corridor.

  He soon arrived at the collapsed area that Roxy had told him about. Wooden support beams, bricks and debris filled the tunnel, making passage impossible. With his bare hands, he began removing the rubble, throwing the crap haphazardly behind him like a dog digging in the yard.

  He hadn’t gotten far when Roxy called again, but when he answered, all he heard was static. It didn’t surprise him that he had shitty coverage down here. He was about to pocket the phone when he saw the message indicator. She’d left him a voice mail?

  He clicked his earpiece.

  “I smell a Darkblood nearby,” she whispered. “I can’t figure out where it’s coming from though. Hurry.”

  A surge of adrenaline shot through his veins. He’d run out of time. But as fast as he removed bricks and debris, more came down from the sides to fill the void. His skin heated up almost unbearably even though the fire was still a good distance behind him.

  How often had he told his people that some human deaths could not be avoided? Sure, they could try to help them, but at some point, there wasn’t much they could do. They were collateral damage in this war. A strong offense against Darkbloods was the best way to prevent humans from dying, but Guardians couldn’t prevent them all.

  He grabbed a wooden beam and pulled it from the rubble, sending sparks flying everywhere. Why would Roxy sacrifice herself like this? Surely she could’ve made it out of the tunnel if she hadn’t been bringing the human female with her.