Love Bitten (Vampire Blood Royals Book 1)

by Sabrina C Rose

“You have a lot of nerve coming into my house and threatening me. Especially after all I do for your kind.” His voice became raspier, more hostile.

  “This is why I’ve never had much patience for traders. You all talk incessantly. Accept the terms or don’t.”

  Splinters looked flabbergasted, shocked that he had the audacity to speak to him in such a way. The gaunt man took a step forward. Julius matched it. He was not afraid of a shifter. Especially not the one in front of him.

  “No, I do not accept.” Splinters backed off, then raised his arm. With a flick of his hand, he signaled for his men to attack.

  Adrenaline suffused his body when the shifters rushed him. Against his tenacity, they would not win.

  One of them pushed him backward into another, trying to knock him over. He needed to find the upper hand, some sort of advantage in a six against one fight. He needed to break the chain by the weakest link.

  “Sometimes a bounty just falls into your lap,” one of them taunted.

  “We should save him. Stuff him and post him up,” another said.

  Julius found an opening. He bulldozed their weakest link, a thin shifter with a mop of what looked like straw on his head. His eyes bulged in surprise when Julius grabbed his neck and twisted.

  A sick howl sounded behind him. Each of the shifters bent for a moment, and he wondered if a death in the pack caused them pain.

  It didn’t. It was their rallying cry.

  The other men pulled knives from their clothing and rushed him. He had to keep the poisoned blades away from his skin. He used every tactic he was trained to use. Without his battle armor, he was exposed, a disadvantage they exploited. Before long, several gashes lined his arms and legs, but he’d been quick enough to not let them cut deeper than paper.

  This was a street fight, plain and simple. Dirty. Vampire against shifter. Instinct against instinct. Julius knew the outcome; he’d win or die trying. His vampire was completely at the surface as his opponents became a tangle of limbs, punching and kicking and slicing. Every time they closed in, he pushed against one, toppling him off balance and pressing the advantage to end him. Until one of them made a mistake.

  The hilt of a dagger hit his feet with a thud. In a flash, he dove for it, sprang to his feet, and gutted one of his attackers.

  They were losing steam and breathing hard. They didn’t have much fight left. He didn’t either. All of the shallow cuts of their blades were starting to take their toll. Then they started to shift.

  By the gods.

  He had to stop the remaining two. There was no way he’d be able to fight against their regenerative properties

  He held the blade tight in his hand, thankful his father had the foresight to have all of his sons trained like warriors. He pushed the one whose fur had started to pop out of his back, and slammed the dagger into his heart.

  With a short, strangled cry, he fell to the floor, pulled the knife from his heart and slumped forward.

  He heard the other shifter too late. When he turned to face him, another dagger cut into him, this time serrating his gut and twisting deep. He pulled the shifter into him and ripped at his throat with his fangs. It stung his mouth like alcohol burning an open wound. To his surprise, he had enough good blood in him for it to scab over and heal. The wound in his gut, however, did not.

  Julius could feel the poison spreading inside his body. It felt like hot coals being liquified and thrust through his veins. He had to stop it from spreading. He’d have to risk losing too much blood over having his blood poisoned. Before he could pull the knife from his gut, a sick, sadistic laugh erupted behind him. His body swayed as he turned toward their leader.

  “You will die for this, fanger. I always get what I am owed.” Splinters’s bravado masked his fear well. The rapid fire beating of the shifter’s heart was even loud enough that Julius could hear it. In a sudden motion Splinters didn’t see coming, Julius pulled the dagger from his stomach and launched it at him. Accuracy was not his ally that day. It didn’t pierce his heart, but his lungs instead.

  The thin man looked shocked as he fell to the floor. He clutched at the blade in his chest.

  “Go ahead, take it out. You’ll bleed out like your mutt here. Or I’ll do it for you. Either way you die.” Julius’s gaze was deadly. “You’ve stolen from me. And I always get what I am owed.”

  “You won’t have enough time to save her anyway. The closest hospital is miles away. She’ll be dead by the time you get there.” He laughed again, but this time it ended in a bloodied cough. “You couldn’t save her if you tried, vampire.” Splinters’s slick voice gurgled, the blood churning in his lungs. “Either way, I still win.”

  “No.” His eyes blackened. “You don’t.”

  He lunged at Splinters, digging his hand into his chest adjacent to the blade. The shifter’s body resisted, but Julius didn’t stop until he’d broken through his ribcage. Flesh and muscle dug into his fingernails, and the trader’s blood burned his hands, charring them black.

  “You’ll never win.” Julius growled and ripped out his heart.

  Splinters’s entire body went rigid as a board, stuck in that final moment like he was reaching for his heart but couldn’t.

  “You should have accepted my deal,” Julius said when the trader’s eyes glossed over.

  Then Julius staggered backward and dropped to his knees. The poison was still spreading, and he was losing too much blood. He was weakening fast. Subconsciously, his fingers found the wound on his stomach. It was worse than Evan’s. Evan had had a clean cut. His was ragged, and his insides were shredded. A wave of exhaustion sent his palms to the floor.

  No, he needed to get up. His mate needed him. Even if he had to crawl to get to her. She was losing time, and who knew if the healing drought would do her any good at this point. He dragged himself to her.

  Julius hauled himself up and released the restraints on her arms and legs. Her body slumped forward. Catching her should have been easy, but she nearly leveled him. He clutched her and laid her down on the floor beside him. Her heartbeat was faint.

  He searched her pockets for the vial Verna promised. At least the mage did not lie. In a small hidden pocket in her dress, he found the small vial. A single serving of clear liquid was inside of it. Uncapping it, he tilted Erica’s head back and put it to her lips, praying like hell her reflexes were still there.

  She couldn’t die. He wouldn’t let her.

  He waited for her body to make way for the healing drought, but Julius collapsed back in exhaustion, the poison and blood loss having taken its toll. He fought for as long as he could. He had to make sure she lived. He had to stay awake. Darkness crept into the corners of his eyes as he used the last of his strength to cuddle next to his mate. The darkness proved stronger.

  “For the all gods, let her live.” He let out the single prayer. Then, the blackness overtook him.

  20

  ERICA

  ERICA GAINED JUST ENOUGH consciousness to know she wasn’t at home. It was too cold. Howling wind gusted against her, forcing her body to curl into the fetal position. Immediately, she opened her eyes. She sat up and looked around.

  Bodies littered the floor around her. All of them were immobile with blank stares looking past the ceiling at nothingness. Pools of their blood stained the floor beneath them. They were… no more. She stopped just short of letting the “d” word into her mind. Even though that was exactly what they deserved. She was glad they got theirs. The only regret she had was that she didn’t get to witness it. Then her thoughts shifted to the obvious. Someone had saved her. The vial that Verna had given her was empty on the floor. Had Verna come back? After she’d given her the healing drought and stiffly walked away, she’d never thought she’d see her again.

  Quickly, she realized the witch didn’t. Her eyes glanced over several bodies until a distinct outline made her heart sink.

  Oh no. No, no, no. It was Julius. He was too still. She tapped his shoulder, but he didn’t st
ir.

  “Julius.” She shook him. Nothing.

  “Julius, please wake up.” She shook him again. Still, his body remained just as immobile as all the others.

  “Come on. Please don’t be dead.” Tears welled in her eyes and fell when he didn’t respond to her touch. One thought repeated in her mind: he wasn’t dead. There was no way he could be. He couldn’t be because the world needed him in it. His bright smile, his mischievous smirk, his confidence, and generosity were all necessary. She couldn’t live in a world where Julius wasn’t a part of it. No, she refused to. She pushed at him again willing him to move for her. When he didn’t, her heart shattered inside her chest, and a darkness threatened to overtake her.

  “Please, wake up. Please, It’s Erica. Your Erica.” She lifted his hand to her face and pressed it against her cheek. “See, it’s me. I’m alive, and now you have to be too. Wake up for me. Come on, Julius. You have to wake up. You hear me? You have to. I can’t live without you.”

  When he didn’t move, a blast of frustration shot through her and came soaring out of her mouth in a wail. How dare they take him away from her? How could they? It wasn’t fair.

  She screamed, not caring if she wasn’t alone in the warehouse. It would be better if she wasn’t. That way they could put her out of her misery. She balled up her fist and slammed it against his chest. Julius’s eyes rolled. Relief released the tension in her gut.

  “Thank God,” she said, clutching at her heart, then laid her head flat against his chest to be sure. He was breathing. They were shallow and slow breaths, but they were there. He was still in there.

  “Can you hear me?” She yelled as loud as she could. He blinked several times in rapid succession, but then he went still again. Still like Evan had done back in the hotel suite. Her eyes traced his body, stopping at his arms and legs, then settled on his abdomen. He was cut up bad. Dark red-black resin protruded from his lacerations. He was poisoned.

  “Julius! You have to fight,” she yelled. His eyes rolled again. That gave her hope. He was fighting. Fighting for her.

  That was good. Now she needed to encourage his body to heal. He needed blood. She looked around for something sharp. Several knives littered the floor, she picked one up. No, she looked at Julius then dropped it. It was probably poisoned. She looked at the vial again. It was tiny, but a small glass shard was better than nothing. She smashed it against the ground. Thankfully, it broke apart into something useful. Pressing her teeth together, she raked a shard against the side of her palm until she saw bright red blood bubble up to the cut. Frick, that hurt like hell. But it didn’t matter. She looked down at Julius and pressed her hand to his lips.

  When he didn’t move right away, she rubbed her palm back and forth. More of her blood came out and dripped over the sides of his face.

  “Come on Julius, drink,” she said, forcing her hand past his lips, hitting his teeth.

  She didn’t have to wait very long for him to latch on. He drank slowly at first, then he took a few sips. Then he stopped.

  She looked at her hand. Fuck. It had healed. She took the shard to it again and put her hand to his mouth. Again, he drank for only a moment, then stopped. When she tried a third time, his head moved to one side.

  “Julius?” She craned her head to see if he’d woken. He hadn’t.

  What the hell? Maybe he’d had enough. When Evan had finished, he’d stopped drinking. She looked down at Julius. Maybe this was the same, but he’d drank so little. She pulled up his shirt to look at his wound.

  That wasn’t right. It didn’t start to close like it had with Evan. He should have been healing faster than that. She pulled his shirt up as high as it would go. The black resin inside his veins had spread much farther.

  “Fuck.”

  It had crawled up to his heart.

  “Julius?” she called to him.

  Asher’s words, from when she’d first tried to revive Evan, played in her head.

  He may be too far gone to save.

  It was then, as her mind settled on those dooming words, that she realized she’d do anything to keep him alive in this world. The businessman had crawled up under her skin and settled there. She wasn’t afraid to admit what was already growing in her heart since the day they met. She loved him. She loved everything about him. How utterly confident he was. How he knew when to rattle her cage and when she needed a gentle stroking. He knew her inside and out. Even with his pleasure venom gone from her system, she felt the pull toward him. Something she’d never felt with anyone else.

  Erica shook the voice from her head. She was not going to let him die. Even if he needed every ounce of blood she had, she was not going to see him dead.

  She picked up the shard again, then looked from her palm and down to her wrist. He needed more blood. As hard as she could, she jabbed the glass into her wrist, hoping like hell she’d at least get a vein. It hurt worse than with her hand, but when the blood began to spill, she rushed to put it to Julius’s lips. It smeared across his face.

  “Drink!” she screamed when he didn’t respond at first.

  His eyes rolled again, but he suckled at her wrist, then took long deep gulps.

  “That’s it, Julius. Take as much as you need,” she whispered. When she felt his fangs push into her skin, she knew he’d latched on this time. She closed her eyes and let him drink. With each gulp, he was going to get stronger.

  “Keep going,” she encouraged.

  He obliged. He pulled blood from her. It never seemed like he had enough. She didn’t care. She’d freely give him every last drop of her blood if she could.

  By now she realized the warehouse was empty. No one else had come for her. Her thoughts turned to his siblings. Where were they? They must be on their way. She had to believe that.

  “You have to be strong,” she said. “Because we’re going to walk out of here. Someone’s coming to get us, but we have to meet them outside so they can see us.”

  She wasn’t sure that was true, but she needed to keep her mind focused on anything other than the lightheadedness she was experiencing. Or the irregular thudding of her heart the that seemed to get wirier the more blood he took.

  “They’re coming.” She needed to lay down. She curled up with him, leaving her arm craned over her head so he could drink from her. She pressed her ear to his chest. The only thing keeping her from thinking about her blood loss was keeping her mind focused on his breathing. His strengthening breaths were all that separated her from insanity. “You’re going to be alright. You have to be. We’re mates, remember? That means you’re mine too. That means I can’t live without you either. Just keep drinking, Julius. You’re going to be alright. I promise.”

  She repeated the words over and over until her voice was raw. She was getting colder. So, so cold. Her body shivered against his. It was getting harder for her to stay awake. Feeling his warmth against her body was soothing.

  “I’m so tired.” She tried to fight for every bit of consciousness she could muster. She shouldn’t go to sleep. She had to fight for Julius. Though, she wasn’t sure if she could anymore. Thankfully, she didn’t have to. He unlatched and settled back down. She lay on his chest, listening to him breathe.

  She was exhausted. Her eyes were heavy. She tried to blink to keep them open. She could keep them closed, she thought. For just a moment. Give them a bit of rest, then open them again in a little while.

  “You’re going to be okay,” she breathed. Then her eyes fluttered closed.

  Time was a funny thing. She wasn’t sure how long she laid there, but the longer she was there, the stronger she became. Even in her sleep, she could feel the healing drought still working, starting in her feet and working its way up to the rest of her. She could feel herself growing stronger like a well that was being replenished by rain.

  “Erica!” Footsteps bounded toward them.

  Her eyes found just enough strength to open. Erica lifted her head from Julius’s chest and saw a girl with a flowing
black mane racing toward them. She inwardly slumped with relief.

  “Julius, we’re okay. The cavalry has arrived.”

  “Jules!” Dani raced down the long aisle to get to them.

  “He was poisoned. I gave him some of my blood.”

  “Here.” Dani pulled her off of Julius and sat her beside him. When she shivered, Dani pulled off her heavy coat and wrapped her in it. She briskly rubbed Erica’s arms from the outside creating as much friction heat as she could.

  “I’m fine.” She wrenched away and pointed at Julius.

  Dani was already lifting his blood-soaked shirt. She quickly assessed Julius’s wound.

  “He’s healing,” she said with relief, then turned to Erica. “I can’t thank you enough.” It only took a moment for Dani to assess the dead shifters around them. “I see we’ve made a bit of a mess. Let’s get out of here before housecleaning shows up.”

  Dani lifted Erica first, like she weighed no more than a feather, and carried her to the car. Wow, she was strong. How Dani managed to lay her in the back seat without breaking stride was a miracle she couldn’t begin to comprehend. Once Dani made sure to blast the heat to get her warm, she raced back for Julius.

  When they returned, Erica was surprised to see his eyes were open, even though they were fully black. His vampire was awake. She’d never been so relieved in her life.

  “He might be a bit heavy—”

  “Let me down.” Julius’s voice was gruff and thick.

  Carefully, she set Julius on his feet. He was in the car in a flash, hovering over Erica, studying her with concern. Every bit of him checked and rechecked her.

  “I’m fine,” Erica said.

  He wrapped himself around her. He was so warm. Much warmer than he’d been before. He was gaining heat rapidly. She snuggled into him like she was curling up next to a warm fire.

  “You’re okay.” She smiled and craned her neck to kiss him.

  “Yes, thanks to you.” He leaned in to kiss her lips. “I love you too, you know.”

  “You heard me?”