Vampish: The Hunt: (An Enemies-to-Lovers Paranormal Romance)

by G. K. DeRosa

  I whipped the door open, and Red nearly staggered into me. I restrained the urge to catch her, folding my arms across my chest instead. “Try to get yourself together before we meet Dinah, okay? I don’t need you fumbling all around.”

  She speared me with a narrowed glare and shot me the finger.

  “And put something else on,” I shouted as she spun toward the bedroom. “Those sweats don’t exactly say bloodwhore.”

  “Fang you!” she yelled back before slamming the door.

  Was I being a dick to her on purpose? Of course. Did I care? Not one bit. Red didn’t know me when I wasn’t making googly eyes at her. She had no idea of the darkness that lay just beneath the surface or the amount of control that was needed to keep it there. To keep the monster at bay.

  Other vampires were jealous of Carmen Rosa’s direct offspring, jealous of the power, but no one knew what came along with that power. There was always a price.

  I gritted my teeth as we marched down the street in silence. Anger roiled through my veins, and it took everything I had to keep it in check. Dinah should’ve been just around the block, and then the show would begin.

  “I’m sorry.”

  I halted mid-stride and pivoted toward my sicari shadow. “What?” I snarled.

  Her head snapped back, and I almost regretted my tone. “Look, I don’t want to go into this with any bad blood between us.” Her lip curled into a smile.

  Oh sure, now she was cracking jokes.

  “It’s fine,” I mumbled and continued walking.

  She grabbed my hand and jerked me to a stop again. “No, it’s not.” She snagged her lower lip between her teeth, eyes cast down at our interlaced fingers. “This thing between us scares me.”

  The words dribbled out so quickly I wasn’t sure I heard them right. My fingers trapped her chin and forced her eyes to mine. “It scares the shit out of me too,” I muttered.

  The hint of a smile crept across her full lips, and my dead heart swelled. “Maybe we can talk about it later, after we take Ronin down. My entire life has been dedicated to that sole purpose, and maybe, once I’ve succeeded, I can consider what my life will look like after.”

  My head dipped slowly, and I could barely contain the satisfied smile from flashing across my face. Maybe redemption was real. My eyes slowly razed over Red, taking in the ridiculously naughty outfit. Those thigh-high leather boots and mini skirt were lethal. Even more so with the array of weapons tucked beneath.

  My hand snaked out—I wanted to touch her; I needed to. Just to make sure she was real. To confirm I hadn’t imagined her words.

  “There you are.” Dinah’s voice sent my fluttering heart to a standstill. “I thought I heard voices.”

  I schooled my expression to neutral despite my skyrocketing pulse. How much had she heard? I eyed her, trying to gauge by the look on her face, but it was a blank canvas. I gave Dinah a smile and caressed her cheek, the skin icy beneath my touch. My eyes locked on hers, and I let crimson flood the endless obsidian. Power pulsated from my pupils, and her body slackened against mine. “What does Ronin want with my bloodwhore?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Try again, Dinah. Why did Ronin ask for her?”

  “I really have no idea. He only told me to contact you and insisted you bring the girl.”

  “One more thing.” I brushed my thumb against her cheek, and a big smile lit up her dead eyes. “Did you hear our conversation?”

  “I just heard voices. Couldn’t make out the specifics over the breeze as I ran.”

  I released her, and she sagged back against the brick wall.

  “You can compel other vampires?” Red screeched.

  “Not all. Only ones younger and weaker than me.” I shrugged. “Okay, I guess it is a good amount.” I shot her a playful wink.

  “So not Ronin?”

  “Probably not.”

  The vacant look in Dinah’s eyes cleared, and she pushed herself off the wall. “You two ready or what?”

  I nodded. “Waiting on you, darling.” I hitched my arm through hers and wrapped my free hand around Red’s. It was showtime.

  Chapter

  Thirty-Six

  Phoenix

  * * *

  Ransom’s fingers tightened around mine as we stood in the middle of the empty warehouse. I eyed the soaring rafters, a chill settling into my bones and chasing out the warmth from Ransom’s hand. I watched him from the corner of my eye, but I didn’t need to look. I could feel the strain of his shoulders, hear the grinding of his teeth.

  I’d made the right decision earlier. Telling Ransom we still had a chance was the only way we’d get through this alive. What happened when this was all over was another story. I’d deal with the repercussions later.

  Dinah’s movement caught my eye, and I followed her line of sight to a door in the far corner of the sprawling space. It creaked open, and Ronin marched through. My eyes zoned in on that tattoo, and nausea roiled through my gut. I was going to ram my stake right into that mark and obliterate the smug smile from his face.

  Ronin moved slowly toward us, each step measured. A prickle of unease skirted up my spine. When he finally reached us, he paused, his dark gaze raking over me then Ransom. “I’m so pleased you were able to locate your little friend on short notice.”

  Ransom shrugged, sparing me a quick glance. “She wants me as bad as I want her, so it’s not hard to coax her into a little extra time together.”

  A wicked chuckle burst from the rebel vampire’s lips. “I bet.” He rubbed his hands together, the smile melting away. “Dinah’s filled me in on the debacle on the border.”

  “Yeah, bad timing, friend. Did you find out why the alpha wasn’t there?”

  He nodded slowly. “The shifter supreme alpha called a last-minute meeting apparently.”

  “How inopportune.”

  “In fact.” Ronin raised a dark brow, his bald head glistening beneath the flickering halogen lights. His eyes chased to our interlocked hands, and I resisted the urge to release Ransom.

  Instead, I leaned closer and gazed at the vampire adoringly like a good bloodwhore.

  Ronin scrubbed at his chin. “I find it odd that a small camp of tigers took out dozens of serviles and got the drop on Dinah.” He took a step closer to me and cocked a brow. “Don’t you?”

  I put on my best simpering bloodwhore face and batted my lashes at the bastard. “That does seem strange.”

  “Maybe the tigers aren’t as dumb as they look,” Ransom added, revealing that guarded dimple.

  “Or maybe they knew you were coming.” His hand shot out and clamped around my neck.

  Ransom stiffened beside me, but he didn’t move.

  Ronin’s eyes seared into mine, the deep scarlet eclipsing the cold black. I drew in a breath and threw up my mental walls. I could do this. I’d blocked Demetra dozens of times, and there was no way this vamp-hole was stronger. They were from the same generation, only one sire away from the queen.

  “Did you know about the attack on the tigers?” His words blurred in the background as his power swept inside my mind. I fought back, gritting my teeth.

  “No,” I rasped out.

  “Ransom didn’t tell you?”

  “No,” I repeated, more calmly this time.

  He released his hold on me, and I slumped back, right into Ransom’s arms. He exhaled sharply against my ear, and goose bumps exploded down my arm.

  Ronin swiveled to Ransom, crimson pulsing across his irises. “Then it had to be you.”

  “You’re reaching, my friend. Blundered missions happen to the best of us. Perhaps you should check with your recon team. They obviously missed the threat.”

  I drew in short breaths to slow the frantic racing of my heart. We had this. Ronin couldn’t compel Ransom, no way. If I’d broken past the compulsion, it would be cake for him.

  “It’s possible but unlikely.” His narrowed glare bounced back and forth between us. “You know, Ransom, this mis
sion was a test. To confirm your loyalty. But there’s more to it.” His eyes fixed on mine, and he inhaled deeply.

  “I needed to determine if you knew about her—or if she’d managed to dupe you too.” He paused, and his fangs lengthened. My blood ran cold. “I haven’t decided yet. From the first time I saw her at my club, her scent triggered something in my memories. It’s clear the two of you are sharing large amounts of blood as you’ve muddled her fragrance, but once I had time to think on it, everything clicked right into place.”

  Ronin swept his finger across my cheek, and a growl vibrated low in my belly.

  “That’s right, little wolf. In ten years, I’ve never forgotten what I saw that night. I searched for you for an entire year. That red wolf that took out my best friend with a single bite.” His nostrils flared. “I almost didn’t recognize your scent. Almost. Then last night, Lazlo came across a pile of vampire ash, more like a mountain.” His head swayed from side to side as he regarded me. “I had to see it myself, and do you know what I realized?”

  I clenched my jaw, letting the question hang in the air.

  “It was you. The scent was unmistakable, a hint of cherry and vanilla—that’s you, and the stronger, more pungent odor of this man.” He jerked his thumb at Ransom. “Now, either he’s been purposely trying to keep you away from me by mixing his blood with yours or you’ve been using him. For what, I can only imagine…” He ran his tongue across his incisors. “If Carmen Rosa had gotten her hands on you first, you’d have made the perfect assassin. Is that why you’re here?”

  “No,” I hissed. My pulse pounded across my eardrums. We were so fanged.

  “Liar, liar.” He wagged a finger at me. “Perhaps along with that special bite comes the ability to evade compulsion. Am I right?”

  “No.”

  “I’m a little confused as to what’s going on.” Ransom untangled his fingers from mine and pursed his pouty lips. “What is he talking about?”

  Ronin whirled on him, and a dozen serviles appeared from the dark corners of the sprawling space. “You claim to be so attached to the girl, so I ask you now, did you know that her wolf’s bite has the ability to kill a vampire on the spot?”

  Ransom turned to me, mischief sparkling in his bottomless irises. “Red, what have you been keeping from me?”

  “Bite me,” I growled. Were we still playing the game? We’d never discussed a contingency plan. I ignored the spike of fear, shoving it deep down. Emotions had no place in a situation like this.

  Ransom moved closer to Ronin and slapped him on the back. “My friend, I assure you I had no idea. A weapon like that…” He let out a low whistle. “I never would’ve brought her around had I known. I would’ve sold her to the highest bidder if I was being honest.”

  A sly grin curled the vampire’s thin lips. “So she means nothing to you?”

  “Besides being the most incredible juice box, no.”

  A sharp sting lanced across my chest.

  “If I decided to kill her right now, you wouldn’t raise a hand against me?”

  Ransom shrugged, sticking out his lower lip. “I’d be disappointed and insist on one more taste before robbing the world of her exquisite essence, but beyond that, I understand what her existence means to our kind. If you believe putting her down is the safest bet, I suppose I’d concur.”

  A string of curses erupted from my mouth before I could stop them. I dropped down and reached for the stake at my thigh. Leaping up, I trained it at Ronin’s chest. I saw my opening so clearly. He hadn’t expected it. His eyes widened as I hit my mark, but a blur smacked the weapon out of my hand before the pointy tip penetrated flesh.

  My head spun around to meet Ransom. “No!” I cried as the stake clattered to the floor.

  Ronin leapt back, howling for his guards. I lunged to the right, but Dinah jumped in my way. A second later, I was surrounded.

  I freed the second stake and jabbed blindly, but there were too many of them. Shrieks and howls rang out around me as I tore into flesh. With my free hand, I reached for the spray vervain tucked into my bra and doused the nearest vamp. He screamed as the poisonous liquid seared away at his flesh. I called to my wolf, begging her to surface as I sprayed the surrounding vamps once more. She scratched at my insides as fur exploded over my skin, and I dropped to all fours.

  “Don’t let her turn!” Ronin shouted. He tossed something silver across the room, and Dinah snatched it in her teeth.

  Skidding down to the floor beside me faster than I could follow, she slapped a metal bracelet across my wrist. All the wolf drained right out of me. I let out a curse as she buried a needle into my neck.

  Son of a vamp! I fought against the haze for an excruciatingly long minute before ice zipped through my veins stealing my strength. Dinah grabbed one arm and another vaguely familiar male hauled me up by the other. As I kicked and struggled, my muscles like mush, a pair of piercing obsidian irises met mine from across the room. Fury burned through my veins as Ransom’s dark gaze fixed on me. “You’ll pay for this,” I mouthed before they dragged me away.

  * * *

  To be continued…

  Keep reading for a sneak peek at Vampish: Kiss of Death, releasing on April 12th and you can preorder it here :)

  Sneak Peek of Vampish: Kiss of Death

  Chapter 1

  Ransom

  * * *

  A month. An entire month relegated to this hell hole. The four walls of this cell were closing in on me, the roughhewn stone my own private torture chamber. The only time I was allowed out was to watch her. A worse form of torture.

  I forced myself off the cot and stared through the small cutout in the metal door, without getting too close. The door along with the iron bars were doused with vervain daily, not to mention the vervain smoke they pumped into my cell to keep me weak.

  This sucked. Pun intended.

  Why had I ever agreed to spy for Carmen Rosa?

  Now I was a prisoner, under the thumb of the barely sane self-proclaimed king of the Children of the Night.

  “Hello? Isn’t it breakfast time already?” I called out. The only positive side of being stuck here was my daily ration of blood, real blood, not that synthetic garbage the Etrian Assembly tried to force on us. Blud rations were at a new low according to Ronin, and the attacks on the borders were only escalating. If the assembly didn’t find a way to get more nourishment to the starving serviles they’d have two wars to deal with. A civil war within Nocturnis’s borders and a second one with the shifters.

  If I knew one thing about the supreme alpha of Marlwoods, it was that he wouldn’t stand idly by while his people were killed.

  I yawned and stretched my arms over my head. It was a good thing I didn’t care one lick about all that political crap. Especially not when the switch was off. That’s right, I was cruising along emotionless, guilt-free. I felt nothing.

  I squeezed my eyes shut and those damned emerald irises flashed across the dark abyss. Well, almost nothing. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get the images of the day Red had been captured out of my mind. It was the only tiny bit of residual guilt I couldn’t quite shake. Maybe it was because Ronin forced me to stand outside of her cell eight hours a day, every day.

  I couldn’t help but relive the moment, over and over again.

  The dark walls of my cell blurred, and my mind whizzed back in time to a month ago, to that warehouse, when I lost her.

  * * *

  That impetuous little sicari reached for the stake strapped at her thigh, and already I knew what she would do. She’d try to kill Ronin and fail, and he’d snap her neck for the effort. I wouldn’t let that happen, I just couldn’t. I lunged, smacking the weapon out of her hand before she pierced his flesh, just a few inches to the right of his heart. Red was good, but there was no way she’d make it out alive against Ronin, his top generals and dozens of starving serviles.

  If only she hadn’t been so rash. I could’ve found a way to talk us out of this mess. I ha
d a plan, but I could see it in her eyes. She didn’t trust me. So I did what was expected. Saving Ronin’s life had to earn me some bonus points, right?

  Red would never trust me, but maybe I could gain Ronin’s trust instead, and somehow make this right.

  As Dinah and Stark dragged Red off the floor, her eyes shot daggers at me. “You’ll pay for this,” she mouthed, venom spewing from her glare. Even after everything we’d been through, she still thought I’d abandoned her.

  Pain lanced across my chest, the hurt so acute it sucked all the air from my lungs. As I watched Ronin’s generals take her away, a gaping hole opened up in my gut. I massaged the spot in my chest, but the agony only grew worse. It was like my insides were being ripped apart.

  The door slammed behind them, and my knees buckled.

  “Ransom?” Ronin towered over me as I drew in ragged breaths, on my hands and knees. I forced my lungs to keep pumping. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

  “What?” I finally growled.

  “You said you felt nothing for the girl, correct?” Those dark eyes bored into me, daring me to lie.

  How could I?

  Gods, Red meant more to me than anything in my entire existence. Even if she hated me right now. I couldn’t abandon her here with him. I’d have to find a way to get her out eventually. But right now… Right now there was only one thing I could do.

  “Ransom?” Ronin’s voice jerked me back to the present. “Just a juice box to quote you earlier, right?”

  I squeezed my eyes shut and imagined that switch, buried deep in the far recesses of my mind. I reached for it and flicked it off. All the pain siphoned from my chest, and immediately I felt lighter, freer. I released a sigh, and the hint of a smile curled my lips. “Just a juice box,” I answered.

  * * *

  At the time it was true. But dammit if that switch wasn’t a finicky little thing. Most times I was fine, but sometimes, when I was with her those pesky human emotions fluttered to the surface. I couldn’t bear them.