Demi's at Stake

by N. L. Hoffmann

  “I want you to be careful.”

  “He’s the one who told me about my mom. We’re going to see her after this.” I turned to face her.

  Something passed over her face just then. Sadness maybe? She looked down at our joined hands before returning her gaze to me. “She left. She came here to talk to me and said that no one could find her after today. That if you come looking, to let you know she’s sorry.”

  Feeling anger rising in me, I stood, throwing my hands into the air. “You have got to be kidding me? She took off again? What the hell is her problem?”

  “She has very dangerous people watching her. There’s nothing you can do to help, so this is her way of protecting you.”

  “I’m a damn hunter! I know how to protect myself.” Staring over at Cathal, I wondered if he could find her again. He turned to face me, our gazes locking. “Why won’t she allow me to help her? Does she want to run for the rest of her life?”

  Shrugging, she looked over at Cathal. “Vampires are unpredictable creatures, Demi. She tries to keep as much humanity in her as she can. This decision was made by the human part of her. Even though she left you behind years ago, she still has your best interests at heart.”

  That was complete bullshit. I suddenly learned she exists, but she thought her best option was to disappear? What could be so bad that she couldn’t stick around so I could help? I wake up every day knowing it might be my last, yet it doesn’t stop me from performing my duties.

  “She can’t be on the run for the rest of her life. We could be a family.”

  Shrugging, she looked back out at the water. “There is more to her story than you will ever know. Just like I’m sure there’s more to your story concerning that vampire.”

  She stood, pulling me into a hug. “This concerns me, but I hope you know what you’re doing. I’m sure Seth is angry about this.”

  I grinned. “When isn’t he angry about something? He’ll probably have an early heart attack since we’re so ‘hard to control’.”

  She chuckled. “He needs to remember that you girls are grown. I’m afraid he’ll never let you live your lives.”

  “He has no choice. I refuse to be kept on a leash.”

  She glanced at the vampire again. “Obviously. Though I question your judgment. He is extremely dangerous. My father told me that allowing him to walk free is to risk all of mankind. He said there was no way to tame a beast like him.” She brushed away the hair that fell into my face. “You are not only putting yourself at risk, but your siblings.”

  When I looked away, she placed her hand against my jaw and brought my gaze back to her. “This is serious, Demi. Get rid of the vampire.”

  I pulled away and shook my head. “No. He means something to me. I won’t do what you’re asking.”

  Disappointment filling her face, she sat back down. “That’s not what I wanted to hear. Vampires have no morals. One day, he will turn on you. You should take this opportunity to trap him in the cave while you still have people around to help.”

  Surprised, I stared at her. “Are you saying everyone is going to leave me because I choose to stay with him?”

  Mom shrugged. “Hunters don’t have relationships with vampires. Or any supernaturals. Humans are to come first. That is the order of things.”

  Angry, I clenched my fists. “You don’t know Cathal like I do.”

  “Love blinds you, but you’ll see.”

  She looked back out at the water, eyes glassing over. When I said her name, she never acknowledged me. This was not how I wanted to end things with her.

  When I looked at Cathal, he smiled at me. I couldn’t bring myself to return it as I walked in his direction. We needed to get back to Denver and destroy that spider bitch. Right now wasn’t the time to focus on her opinion. Still, it hurt that she wasn’t a little more accepting.

  CATHAL WHISKED US BACK to his apartment, then he took my hand, leading me over to the couch, a serious expression on his face.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, sitting and looking up at him.

  He placed his hands on either side of my face, lowering his lips to mine, kissing me softly. “I just wanted to spend some time with you. I heard everything your aunt said. I just want you to know that if you decide you would rather end what we have, I would understand. I’m a monster and have done so many bad things in my lifetime. When I was freed from that dungeon, I was a good man for a while. Until my life spiraled out of control.”

  He started to pace. “There was a woman who worked at one of the shops in town. I watched her from a distance, eventually getting the courage to talk to her. We became close and started to see each other.”

  “Did she know you were a vampire?” I asked.

  Shaking his head, Cathal walked to the window to look outside, placing a hand on the frame. “One evening I was out hunting. I didn’t kill many people at the time, but it did occasionally happen. I was in the middle of my dinner when a child approached me from behind. When I turned around, she ran away, screaming. I ran after her, but as soon I crested the hill, I saw a band of wagons. People stared at me as if I were some kind of monster. Looking back, I guess I appeared to be one, considering I had blood on my face. The men quickly grabbed their guns.”

  He sighed, glancing over at me. “As I was about to run, the woman I was seeing rushed out of one of the wagons, calling my name, asking me if I was sick. One of the men, obviously realizing what I was, called her a demon worshipper. One man grasped her arms, while another pointed a gun at her. Others started walking in my direction, guns trained on me. My options were to either save her or run.” He shrugged. “I chose to save her.”

  Turning around to fully face me, he raked his fingers through his hair. “I killed most of the people that night in order to save her. Word traveled quickly. The next day, hunters arrived in town. It wasn’t long before they were on my trail.”

  Astonished, I moved to the edge of the couch. “What happened to her?”

  “I took her to another location. Gave her enough money to live on. The last time I saw her was right before the hunters managed to trap me.”

  So Cathal had only been trying to protect the woman he loved. I couldn’t help but feel slightly disappointed that he’d found someone prior to me. What did I expect, though? He was extremely old! The man probably had many women in his time.

  Standing, I walked to him and wrapped my arms around his waist. He lowered his head to my hair, inhaling.

  “It’s bad that you killed all those people, but I understand to a point. I thought you were a cold-blooded killer who did it because you wanted to.” Pressing my face to his chest, I took a deep breath. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”

  Cathal pulled back to look into my face. “I understand if you want to place me back into that cave.”

  “I’m not putting you back in there, Cathal. My aunt can either get over her problem with you or she can’t. Yes, you’re a vampire and most are assholes. But there’s something different about you. I have a feeling there’s more to you than what people see.”

  Standing on my tiptoes, I kissed him softly. He responded, deepening it, running his fingers through my hair. When I started inching the hem of his shirt up, he grinned and pulled away, yanking it over his head. His chest exposed, I ran my fingers over the warm, tight skin, tracing every muscle.

  Why did he have to be so perfect, flawless? I felt so inadequate, so weak. Then realization hit me.

  Moving away from him, I walked into his bedroom and glanced over my shoulder, seeing him following. Spotting the cup on the nightstand, I grabbed it, turning around.

  “What are you doing?” he asked.

  Walking over to him, I held it out in front of me. “I want to drink from it.”

  Cathal stared at me for a few long seconds, eyes wide. “Are you sure? Hell, you don’t have to. I know what it means to drink from it.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked, confused.

  “You feel like doing
this will take something away from you. Almost like selling a piece of your soul.”

  I glanced down at the cup, nodding. “You’re right. It would be.”

  He frowned, slowly nodding. “I understand.”

  “No, you don’t. You don’t understand. It’s more than just giving up a piece of me. If this means I can prove myself to you, I’ll gladly drink from this. Let me gain all the knowledge about the supernaturals. Let me hold all your secrets, Cathal. I want to be that one person for you.”

  Stepping forward, he brushed his knuckles down the side of my face. “I must tell you what will happen.” He swallowed hard. “I’m not supposed to, but I feel that you should know the truth before you decide.”

  I didn’t like where this was going. He acted as if I would be upset. Maybe I didn’t know everything that came with drinking from the cup, but I basically just told Cathal I loved him. Shouldn’t he be more excited? Maybe jumping up and down like he won the lottery? That was how I pictured it in my head anyway.

  “Demi, by drinking from this cup, you’ll go through a tremendous amount of pain. It may even last for days. Your body will have to heal after the magic takes over.”

  “How do I heal?”

  Cathal smiled, putting a finger over my lips. “With the cup comes immortality, so your body will be able to repair the damage itself. Also, you won’t be human any longer. What will you become? I’m not sure. I don’t know if there is even a name for it.”

  I glanced down at the cup. “All that comes from drinking out of this?”

  Nodding, Cathal grabbed it from me. “This is a big decision. Not one you should take lightly.”

  “You left something out,” I told him, snatching back the cup. He raised his eyebrows. “What about the true love part?”

  “Well, it proves that you’re mine. We’ll form a bond. Everything you feel, I feel. Whatever I feel, you feel.”

  “Wow. I guess it comes with a lot more responsibility than I figured.”

  I chewed on my bottom lip, debating. Did I want to be with him forever? Did I want to be immortal? And the biggest question of all... Did I want to give up being a human?

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Hearing my phone ring, I pulled it out of my back pocket. Seth, probably wondering where the heck I was. Looking at Cathal, I held up a finger. I hated that were interrupted, but to stop him from coming to find me, I knew I had to answer.

  “Yeah?”

  “You need to start answering your phone,” he growled. “We have a huge fucking problem. Troy’s guys transporting Jesse and Alex to Mexico were ambushed, found dead with vampire bites to their necks. Jesse and Alex are nowhere to be found.”

  Shocked, I looked over at Cathal. “Why would a vampire want them? And why Mexico?”

  Seth sighed. “If you were around more instead of hanging out with that vampire, you would know some of these details.”

  “Well, someone is being an asshole.”

  “Anyway, Mexico is where Troy’s contacts are. They have their own prison down there for supernaturals. Troy thought it a good idea to put two hunters in there.”

  A part of me wished Cathal had torn out both their throats at the barn, but that would have been wrong. They didn’t deserve the same punishment as Dante. Though going to a prison full of supernaturals could be worse.

  “But now they’re running around free again. We need to find them before what happens gets out. We don’t need everyone knowing we’re working with a damn vampire.”

  “Seth, you have to get over that. The options are to accept the situation, or we go our separate ways.”

  “You’d choose a vampire over your own family?” He sounded like he couldn’t believe I’d say such a thing.

  “I’d choose to live my life, Seth.”

  Seth sighed. “Troy and Blair went out to the house to see if there’s any evidence of Jesse returning. They probably won’t see much because the house sits so far back, and Troy can’t go inside because Jesse may be there.”

  Seth paused. “Shit. Someone’s knocking. Hang on.”

  I heard shuffling, then some low voices, which quickly turned into shouting.

  Alarmed, I looked over at Cathal, setting down the cup. “Take me to the motel.”

  Cathal nodded and pulled me to him, transporting us to the motel. Seth’s door was open, two men standing outside. Eric and Bear. All three pointed and yelled at the same time. I didn’t even know how they could understand each other. If they weren’t careful, someone might call the cops. Maybe that was their goal.

  Turning to Cathal, I frowned. “You should probably go.”

  “I don’t want them to harm you or your family. It’s best if I stay.”

  I glanced over in their direction. “If they know you’re here, it might make everything worse. They want you dead, Cathal.”

  Running a frustrated hand through his hair, he gave a terse nod. “Fine, but let me know when the coast is clear.” He disappeared before I could say anything else.

  Taking a deep breath, I started walking toward the building.

  Bear glanced over his shoulder and gave me a feral smile. “There’s the vampire lover now.”

  Just as I opened my mouth to say something, Troy and Blair pulled up. Seeing Troy climb out, Bear’s face turned red with anger as he strode toward him.

  “You son of a bitch! Hanging out with vampire lovers?! How dare you!”

  Troy came at Bear at the same time, hands clenched. Blair and I tried to grab him, which I was sure looked comical. Two petite women trying to hold back a muscular man who towered over us.

  “How dare you,” Troy growled. “Did you think I wouldn’t figure it out eventually? I know you have a vampire on your payroll!”

  “Ridiculous!” Bear spat. “I don’t consort with bloodsuckers!”

  Starting to laugh, Troy relaxed. Relieved, I let go of his arm. I didn’t know how much longer I could have struggled with him. If he really wanted to, he could have just pushed both of us off him.

  Troy tossed his cowboy hat onto the SUV, pushing his hair back from his forehead. “I got close enough today to see him standing inside your house. You should have picked someone who wasn’t on the most wanted list of vampires, Uncle. What makes it worse is Franny was all over him! How dare you come over here judging them when you’re doing the exact same thing. The difference is, you’re condoning murder. You send that bloodsucker out, claiming he’s Cathal so he looks bad.”

  “Every vampire is bad, Troy. Don’t start thinking some of them may be okay to work with. They’ll all rip your throat out the second you let down your guard.”

  “You obviously think Leo is okay to work with.” Troy shook his head in disbelief. “You let him into your home and allow him to be with your daughter.”

  Seth stepped out of the motel, grinning. “I guess we have something in common.”

  Bear spun. “Don’t think this means you’re forgiven for what you tried to do to my son!” he shouted, earning a few looks from passersby.

  Face contorting with anger, Seth put a finger in his face. “You’re lucky he’s even alive. He kidnapped my sister. For that, he should be put down like a feral dog.”

  Eric tried to pull Bear away, but he yanked his arm back, glaring at me. “If she would just share the cup, we wouldn’t have a problem. Instead, she wants to keep all the knowledge to herself. What right does she have to decide who deserves this knowledge? It should be voted upon by the families.”

  “You think anyone in your family is deserving? You’re all a bunch of lunatics,” Blair said, crossing her arms over her chest. “It belongs to the vampire, so he can decide who is deserving.”

  “You’re trusting it to a vampire? You want him to make the choice?” Eric stared at us in amazement. This time, it was Bear who started dragging him back toward the car. “This isn’t over. Our family and yours have officially become enemies.” He pointed at Troy. “That goes for you, too. Don’t even think about coming back onto
Collins’ property again.”

  When they drove away, we all just stood there, not sure what to say. The Collins family was now our enemy. I wasn’t sure what that meant for the future. Hunters were supposed to stick together.

  What was the goal behind having a vampire masquerade as Cathal? Was it to make other hunters believe he was a bigger problem than he really was? It seemed they were desperate for the cup and would go to great lengths to get it. And who wouldn’t? It contained all the knowledge of supernaturals. The family who obtained that would be the head family. Everyone would come to them for answers.

  When Seth’s phone started ringing, he disappeared back into the motel room. Troy looked at me, frowning, then motioned for me to follow. When I gave him a questioning look as we walked, he sighed.

  “Look, you have to give up the vampire. Other hunters are going to get wind of it and will come after him...and you.”

  “I can take care of myself. If that means going in my own direction, so be it. What kind of life would I have if I allowed others to dictate it? Other people’s opinions mean shit to me. My family may be upset that I chose to take up with a vampire, but it’s my choice. My life.”

  Troy stared at me, eyes wide. “How can you say that? Your family should be your main focus.”

  “And they have been, but I think it’s time I did my own thing. I’ve let Seth lead the way for too long. I can’t just stay in a motel all the time and jump when he says. I know he only has the best of intentions for me, but what kind of life is that, Troy?”

  When he didn’t answer, I looked toward the street, watching the traffic drive by. “I have feelings for Cathal. I don’t think I can give up on him now.”

  Admitting it out loud made me feel better than I thought it would. I had been scared to admit that I was falling for a damn vampire. After growing up and being told they were the enemy, it was hard to believe I could feel safe in the arms of one.

  Shaking his head, Troy gave me a stern look. “You’re making a mistake. Love is bullshit. It doesn’t exist. I thought you had actually figured that out. I thought you were like me.”