Scarlet Heat

by Evangeline Anderson

  At last he came on the phone.

  “Corbin,” I said, skipping the small talk. “I’m worried about Taylor. Do you know where she is? Is she with Addison? Is she all right?”

  “You mean she is not with you?” He sounded worried, which put my hackles up at once.

  “No, she’s not fucking with me or I wouldn’t be calling you,” I snapped. “She left last night after we had a…a disagreement.” I couldn’t bring myself to tell him what had actually happened. “I was coming after her but I totaled my truck. I need someone to come get me so I can find out where the hell she went to—I’m afraid something’s wrong.”

  I heard a click as someone else picked up on another line.

  “I’ll come,” Addison said. “Where are you, Victor?”

  “You are not going by yourself,” Corbin said sternly.

  “Why not?” Addison asked. “You stay and run the club—I can pick up Victor.”

  “Not by yourself,” Corbin said.

  She blew out a breath, sounding irritated. “Corbin, if this is some kind of weird jealousy thing—”

  “It has nothing to do with jealousy, darling—I trust you as God above,” he murmured. “It has to do with the fact that Victor is a werewolf and tonight is the full moon. Therefore you will not go and get him—I will.”

  “One of you come get me right fucking now,” I growled, losing patience. “Corbin’s right—the moon’s full but I’m not changing until I find out Taylor’s okay.”

  “I will be right there,” Corbin said smoothly. “Tell me your location…”

  When his sleek Mercedes pulled up, they were both in it so I guessed Addison had won at least half the battle. Actually, I was glad to see her. She was Taylor’s best friend—if there was anything to know, she would know it.

  I slid into the backseat and nodded at both of them.

  “Thanks for the ride. What do you know about Taylor?”

  Addison gave me a stony look in the mirror.

  “I know she was really upset. She said that the two of you, um, had sex. But she was afraid—”

  I felt sick. “Afraid of what?” Afraid that I’d raped her probably. And the way I felt about what had happened between us, she wasn’t far off the mark. That was why Addison’s next words caught me off guard.

  She took a deep breath. “Taylor was afraid she’d, uh, forced you, Victor.”

  “What?” I shook my head. “She was afraid she what? But that’s crazy—it doesn’t make any sense. Why would she think that?”

  Addison frowned. “She said she couldn’t actually remember much of the, um, encounter—only that when she woke up she was on top of you and you were pretty…” She cleared her throat. “Pretty upset.”

  “Hell yes, I was fucking upset,” I growled. “But not because of that. I never thought she forced me.”

  “I knew it!” She slapped the back of the seat between us triumphantly. “I knew it had to be all some kind of stupid misunderstanding. I tried to tell her that but she wouldn’t listen.”

  “Shit.” I put a hand over my eyes. “I had no idea.” How could things have gotten so mixed up between Taylor and me? She thought she had hurt and forced me instead of the other way around? Then…was she really not mad at me? Don’t get too excited, I told myself grimly. She probably will be angry when she knows how things really happened. Which I fully intended to tell her—as soon as I found her and made sure she was all right. If only we had talked last night—if only I hadn’t sent her away… “I’m such an idiot,” I groaned, aloud.

  “Such idiocy can be remedied,” Corbin said, meeting my eyes in the rearview mirror. “As soon as we find Taylor.”

  “But where did she go?” I demanded, looking again at Addison. “Where did you take her?”

  “To my place,” she said. “She was really tired after eating so much fast food and—”

  “Wait a minute.” I held up a hand. “You said she ate something?”

  “That’s right—you don’t know.” Addison frowned. “Yes, she was so upset but then she got a sudden craving for food—real food, not blood. So we went through the Checker’s drive-thru and she ate like…well, like she hadn’t tasted real food in years.” She shrugged. “Which she hadn’t so I guess I thought it was okay. Only Corbin says not.”

  “A vampire shouldn’t be able to ingest anything besides blood and a few other liquids like wine or tea,” he said. “The fact that Taylor is now able to eat solid foods troubles me greatly.”

  “Yeah, almost as troubling as the fact that she can go out in the noonday sun without burning to ash,” I muttered.

  His eyes widened in the rearview mirror. “She what?” He looked at Addison. “Why didn’t you tell me that?”

  “I told you everything else,” she protested. “About the heat and everything—I guess I just forgot about that.”

  Corbin shook his head. “All of these strange things happening to Taylor at once…it is almost like a convergence of some kind. It troubles me deeply.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” I said. “The main thing is to find her and make sure she’s okay. When did you last see her?” I asked Addison.

  “Last night, about an hour after I picked her up from your place. She said she was tired and just wanted to go to bed. I tried to call her a few hours later to check on her but she didn’t answer. I figured she was just sleeping—you know how soundly vamps sleep.” She nudged Corbin who gave her an affectionate smirk.

  “At least we do not snore like some humans I could mention.”

  Addison poked him again and then looked back at me.

  “Anyway, I went home around noon to see her and she wasn’t there—neither was my car. Her cell phone was, though, with a missed call from you. It looked like she went somewhere and just forgot it. So then I figured she was holed up for the day, somewhere. But when it got dark and she still didn’t come home…”

  “And you weren’t answering your phone either,” Corbin put in. “We had hoped she went back to you and you weren’t picking up because the two of you were…ahem, reconciling.”

  “I wasn’t picking up my phone because I was passed out cold in a field all day,” I said roughly. “So where does that leave Taylor?”

  Addison looked upset. “We don’t know. I have no idea where else she would go. She doesn’t talk to her parents anymore.”

  “Yeah, she told me about the ‘bride of Satan’ stuff,” I said. “So where—”

  Just then my cell rang and I felt a great surge of relief. Surely that was Taylor, finally returning my calls! I fumbled my cell out of my pocket and answered without even looking at the screen.

  “Hello? Baby?” I said anxiously.

  “Um, I don’t think I’m who you think I am,” said a voice on the other end. “This is Gwendolyn LeRoux—you know, the witch you hired? You wanted me to find the identity of the person who bought the cursed trap that was planted on your land.”

  “Oh, Gwendolyn, right.” I could feel myself deflating. “Look, now really isn’t the best time, so—”

  “Now, I know Taylor said you’ve already pretty much figured it out,” she went on. “But there’s something beneath the obvious—something big I think you should know about.”

  “Wait a minute—back up,” I said. “When did Taylor say that? When did you talk to her?”

  “Last night.” She suddenly sounded guarded. “Look, I’m sorry it didn’t work out between the two of you. I hope you know the role I played was strictly professional—I have no interest in taking sides.”

  “What role did you play?” I growled, tightening my grip on the phone case until it creaked in my hand. “What did you do to her, Gwendolyn? What did you fucking do?”

  “I only did what she asked me to do,” she said levelly. “Like I said, it’s not personal and it’s not what I’m calling you about. I need to tell you something about the person who put the trap on your land.”

  “I’ll be right there,” I snapped. In the front seat I
could hear Addison telling Corbin to take the turn-off for Ybor City. Luckily, we hadn’t passed it yet.

  “I’ll be waiting but I expect you to keep a civil tongue in your head,” Gwendolyn said. “Blaming me for what happened between you and Taylor makes about as much sense as blaming the divorce lawyer for your divorce.”

  My heart traveled up into my throat and stayed there. Divorce? What the hell was she talking about? I hung up without saying goodbye.

  Corbin made the turn and before I knew it we were whizzing down the dark streets of central Ybor and pulling up in front of the witch’s pale yellow house.

  Gwendolyn met us at the door with a frown on her face, which changed to a look of surprise when she saw Addison and Corbin as well.

  “What are the two of you doing here?” she asked and for the first time there was a tinge of fear in her voice. “Look, I told you, it was nothing personal.”

  “What did you do?” I demanded, the minute we got inside her house. “Tell me right now—when you saw Taylor last night, what did you do?”

  “I broke the blood-bond holding her to you—all right?” Her voice was tense and low.

  “You what?” Corbin glared at her. “That bond was sanctified by the Goddess and the Laws of Ownership were not satisfied—not for another two months.”

  “Taylor couldn’t wait another two months—she begged me to do it right away.” Gwendolyn put her arms over her chest. “I only did what she wanted—she said she wanted to set Victor free.” She nodded at me and I nearly groaned.

  “Because she thought something happened that didn’t really happen,” I said. “At least not the way she thinks it happened.” I frowned at her. “Hey—what time did you break the bond, anyway? Would it have anything to do with the burning sensation I had all over my fucking body or the partial heart attack I had right after?”

  The witch looked stricken. “You felt it?”

  “Yes, I fucking felt it! I ran my truck into a tree and spent the day unconscious,” I roared.

  She took a step back. “Taylor swore you didn’t love her anymore—you shouldn’t have been able to feel any of it.”

  “Of course I still love her,” I growled, trying to get hold of myself. “I never stopped.” I sank down on her flowery couch and put my head in my hands. “She divorced me,” I said numbly, hardly able to believe it. “She fucking divorced me without even telling me. God, what a fucking mess.”

  “Breaking a sanctified bond was black magic indeed, witch,” Corbin said soberly. “You will have much to answer for.”

  “Taylor thought she had a good reason to break the bond, though,” Addison interjected. “She was so upset last night—when she wasn’t eating, anyway.”

  Gwendolyn frowned. “Yes—she said she was hungry here too. She ate about half a jar of my Grams’ homemade pickles. It was…weird. I’ve never heard of a vamp who could eat before.”

  “Or go into heat. Or go out into the sun,” Addison added.

  Gwendolyn frowned. “Say that again.”

  “What—the going into heat part? I really shouldn’t have told you that.” Addison looked chagrined. “It’s kind of personal…”

  “No, the part about going out into the sun. Did she really do that?”

  “Only for a minute,” I said dully. “I got her right back inside. All that happened was she got an instant tan.”

  “You know, I thought she looked tan for a vamp. Going out in the sun, eating…” She looked at me suddenly. “Look, I hate to ask personal questions but have the two of you been, uh, you know…making love?”

  “I wouldn’t exactly call it that,” I said heavily. “But yeah, we had sex. Not that it’s any of your Goddamned business, witch.”

  Gwendolyn seemed not to hear my insult. She had a preoccupied look on her face, as though she was trying to remember something important. “Going into heat, screwing a werewolf, going out in the sun…” she muttered to herself. Suddenly she snapped her fingers. “That’s it—that’s it! I’ll be right back.”

  “What’s all that about?” Addison asked.

  “I don’t know.” Corbin looked troubled. “But I have a feeling it isn’t good, darling.”

  “Here. Here it is.” Gwendolyn came hurrying back into the room with a huge, dusty, crumbling book cradled carefully in her arms. “It’s Grams’ old grimoire,” she explained. “It has spells handed down for generations but it also has a whole section on supernatural lore. She used to let me look at it when I was a little girl if I was very, very careful. There was one part that always fascinated me but I haven’t thought of it in years. Hang on…it’s here somewhere…” She was scanning rapidly through the ancient book as she talked. Finally she came to a page filled with spidery writing and a drawing of a howling wolf done in faded brown ink.

  “What does it say?” Addison asked. “The handwriting is so curly and elaborate it’s hard to read.”

  “Only to your modern eyes, darling,” Corbin murmured. “Allow me.” He looked at Gwendolyn. “May I?”

  She nodded and he began to read out loud.

  “When she of the night

  Drinks from he of the day

  The curse of the moon

  May the sun’s curse allay.

  When she succumbs

  To the were’s Scarlet Heat

  And is bred by the wolf

  Then meat may she eat

  And nevermore fear

  The sun’s golden light

  When she drinks from the one

  Who howls in the night.”

  Corbin frowned. “There seems to be another stanza but it is too badly smudged…”

  “Oh my God—that’s it! That’s it!” Gwendolyn interrupted. “Taylor is the fulfillment of the prophecy. I knew there was something weird about her eating pickles—it’s been bothering me ever since I saw her.”

  “When did you last see her?” I demanded. “What time did you finish doing our fucking ‘divorce’?”

  She stiffened. “Taylor left right after I was finished and that’s all I know. You’re going to have to get over the bond breaking, though. I thought I was doing her a favor.”

  “What you’ve done is made her vulnerable to every other supernatural creature in the Tampa Bay area,” Corbin said, frowning. “She is still a very young vampire and if any other creature should learn about her new talents—”

  “But how could they?” Addison objected. “Roderick’s dead and she’s out of Celeste’s power—”

  “Did you say Celeste?” Gwendolyn’s creamy brown skin had suddenly gone pale.

  “Yes—she’s the one who made Taylor into a vamp in the first place. Against her will, I might add.” Addison sounded pissed. “She treated her like dirt the entire time she had Taylor in her power—why?”

  “Because…” Gwendolyn turned to me. “That’s what I wanted to tell you when I called you in the first place. The scent on the cursed trap you brought me—it was were. But something about it felt wrong—too obvious. So I worked a discovery spell on it anyway and I found another presence underneath. It might have been a were who placed that trap on your land, but the person who had it made and paid for it in the first place was—”

  “Celeste,” I finished for her in a whisper.

  Gwendolyn nodded. “I’m afraid so. But the name didn’t mean anything to me—until now.”

  “Why would Celeste do such a thing?” Addison demanded. “Taylor’s free of her since Corbin took her away—isn’t she?”

  “She was free so long as she was under the protection of the blood-bond,” Corbin said grimly. “I told you once, my darling, that Celeste had impeccable instincts about finding those who were meant to be born to darkness—who would make good vampires.”

  “But…but Taylor wasn’t a very good vampire,” Addison objected. “I mean, not until recently, apparently.” She looked at me.

  “She wasn’t so good at first,” I said dully. “But lately her skills…they were really coming along. She could glamo
ur and heal…” I shivered when I thought of her little pink tongue licking me, healing me and couldn’t go on.

  “I don’t think it was Taylor’s skills or lack thereof that Celeste was interested in,” Corbin said. “If she somehow knew about this prophecy, if she had any idea of what Taylor was capable of becoming…”

  “What—a vampire who can eat fast food?” Addison said.

  He shook his head. “Eating is the least of it. If Taylor has fulfilled this prophecy, she could become a vampire who walks in the day. A being who has all of our power and none of our limitations. That is significant.”

  “But I’ve known interracial couples before,” Gwendolyn objected. “I mean, vamp/were couples. They all had their little kinks and quirks but none of them ever became day-walkers or whatever the hell you want to call it.”

  “This must be a special case. There is more to this prophecy than meets the eye.” Corbin looked at the book again. He flipped the page revealing another drawing in the same, faded brown ink. “Or is there? Well, well…what is this?”

  I stared at the page, feeling suddenly cold all over. Except for my brand—it was burning like molten lead eating into the skin of my lower back. The drawing was of a creature that was neither man nor wolf but stuck somewhere in between. It was what humans thought of when they said “wolfman” and what weres thought of when they said “cursed.”

  “What is that thing?” Addison said, sounding mystified. “It’s not a normal werewolf, is it?”

  “No,” Corbin said quietly. “Not normal at all.”

  I looked up to see him studying me.

  “It’s a were who bears the curse,” I said hoarsely. “One who can’t go among others of his kind or take a mate. Who is doomed to be alone forever because of the beast inside.”

  “I see.” He nodded slowly and looked at Gwendolyn. “And would you know the last stanza of this prophecy, witch?”

  She cleared her throat and recited.

  “Half man and half beast

  Cursed to draw breath

  The other wolves fear him

  For his name is death.”