by Thea Dane
“It should be obvious. I’m feeding.” He turned his face away from her again. Was he going to lie and pretend to be eating extra rare steak?
“On what? It looked like you had blood all over your mouth.”
“I apologize for my moment of unruliness. I haven’t fed in weeks.” He shifted, giving her a view of what he held. He clutched a hospital bag of transfusion blood.
So that was what Stacy delivered. “You drink blood? Like a va-va-vampire?” She tried not to laugh at herself. Perhaps the pretend stammer of surprise was a bit much.
“You should know now, Violetta. I am a vampire.”
At least he didn’t lie. But what made him so comfortable revealing the information to her? “I don’t understand. I thought vampires weren’t real.”
He rose from his seat, looking every inch the polished businessman. Not one speck of blood anywhere. He approached her, taking his time. His eyes still had that captivating look that made both chills and heat run up her spine. “Do you want to know more about me?”
His voice became quiet and melodic. He got closer. She had no weapon except for a silver pocket knife and had lost the chance to get away from him. Vampires possessed speed. If Lee wanted to use it, he could spring on her before she had a chance to turn on her heel.
“I asked, do you wish to know more about me?” His baritone voice was pure silk wrapped in velvet. He stood about an arm’s length away. “If not, you can leave and pretend you saw nothing.”
By offering her a choice, she knew he didn’t intend to harm her. She willed her mind to resist the hypnotic tone of his voice. It was meant to put her in a lull, to calm any anxieties she had about seeing him during his feeding. But she didn’t feel anxious. She felt the beginnings of arousal as her skin began to get warm beneath her clothes and her breath started to quicken. Was his voice causing the effect or was it her own body betraying her as she stood facing this vampire alpha?
She slowed her breathing before she spoke. “What if I don’t want to leave?” Her own voice came out soft and breathy, not at all what she wanted. She cleared her throat and tried again. “What are you going to tell me about yourself?”
“If you want to know, you’ll have to step in here and close the door behind you.”
He waited for her to make a decision. She reached behind her for the door latch. The door clicked softly as it shut. Lee waited several moments before speaking. “I come from a long line of vampires. Some of us are made. I was born one in Ireland three hundred years ago. Both my parents were vampires.”
Violetta absorbed the information. The case study her family compiled on Lee didn’t contain whether he was born a vampire or turned into one. “I always wondered about your company logo. ‘Established in 1750’. What was established, you or your business?”
“I started my industry in tea and textiles. I expanded the business once the Industrial Revolution took off.”
“Very adaptable.”
“We have to be, if we want to survive.” He returned to the chair and picked up the drained bag of blood. “The world has changed. Humans have evolved. They’re not always motivated by fear, so we find other ways to function in society.”
“I thought vampires didn’t care about being part of society. I mean, in all the books and movies, humans are food.”
“We still require blood, obviously.” He smiled at her. She wasn’t sure if it was because he thought what she said was cute or if he was trying to guess if her blood type matched the one on the bag. He revealed a bit of his fangs. “The old ways of getting it were...messy and time-consuming.”
She watched him return the bag to the insulated Fast Dash cooler. “How does all that work, then? Do you tell the hospital you’re anemic and need bags of blood delivered?”
“I don’t have to lie. The president of Briar City Health Resources knows what I am. In exchange for my yearly contributions to his building fund, he makes sure to supply enough blood to me and other Bloodbound.”
He named his order of vampires. Violetta was surprised to hear how the human president of an organization that helped people was wittingly in league with a vampire. “So you never take blood from someone the old-fashioned way?”
“Not without asking first.” He smiled again. “Don’t look at me that way. When supplies are scarce, there are humans willing to strike a blood bargain in exchange for something else, usually money or a new business connection.”
She made a face.
He raised an eyebrow. “You still find it distasteful? There’s no difference between what I do and what you humans do when bargaining. A transaction is a transaction.”
She didn’t want to raise his suspicions by continuing to show her reaction to his reasoning. “Are there more vampires in Briar City?”
“Yes. About a hundred more. We make up less than one percent of the population, but we live discreetly among you. Some, like Nicholas, you’ve already met. But he shouldn’t surprise you. Most attorneys are out for blood.”
She bit her tongue, unsure if he’d like it if she laughed. “Does the rest of your staff know you’re a vampire?”
“Yes. They’re paid well to maintain confidentiality.”
“I see. I guess you and other vampires are well settled around here?”
“If you’re asking whether we’re civilized, we abide by a specific code. It’s my job to keep order.”
“They all obey you?” She watched his reaction after asking the question. Lee had a perfect poker face.
“Most do. Vampire justice is very expedient for those who don’t.”
The seductive note to his voice before was long gone, replaced with a firm tone. She put her hands together and realized they turned cold. “Why did you tell me this?”
“You’re a smart woman, Violetta. If we’re going to be working close, you need to be informed. I was waiting for the right time to tell you. It looks like you chose for me.” He reached around her and opened the door. Cooler air drifted in. Lee stood inches from her. The sleeve of his suit brushed her arm. “I still expect you to keep what I said between us. Not every human here knows what I am.”
She promised, “I won’t say anything.” What normal person would believe her, anyway?
Lee gave an approving nod. From this angle, she could see the flecks of gold in his green eyes. “I’ll let you go for the night, then.”
She took a step back before she turned away. When she stepped into the adjoining office room, she got the impression like she crossed a big divide between herself and Lee. Up close, she had absorbed some of his energy. It left her both invigorated and a little fatigued at the same time, sort of like after she had a good five mile run on the treadmill at the gym.
“Violetta.”
She looked at him over her shoulder once she was out in the hall. She had an urge to go back towards him yet stayed put. “Yes?”
“How’s the party planning coming along?”
It wasn’t, but she wouldn’t be that blunt in telling him. “Right now I’m narrowing the catering choices down to rack of lamb and filet mignon.”
“Go with the filet mignon. Extra garnish. Medium rare, of course.”
“Only one way to eat filet mignon, right?”
He put a hand in his pocket and took out his phone. “I have a flight to catch. I’ll be in Ireland this weekend.”
Was he going there for business or something else she should know about? There was no way she could ask without seeming nosy. “Anything you need me to do while you’re gone?”
“Speed up your progress on the fundraising gala. I expect a report first thing Monday morning. Good night, Violetta.” He shut the door to his office.
CASTLE DESMOND, RONAN Village, rural Ireland
“I have no choice but to host a Christmas party.” Lee told his mother over dinner at the castle estate. He waited for the butler to come around to the table with the platter of vegetables and exit the dining hall before he talked further. “And if that weren’t bad
enough, I have to do it the night before the coronation ceremony.”
His mother Salome held her glass up to the chandelier. “Do you like these crystal glasses? I ordered them from that new décor website.”
“Mother, are you listening?”
“Yes, my darling Leeland, of course I am. You want to be a big scrooge this year and not have a Christmas party to entertain all those human worker bees you employ.”
Lee crinkled his face when his mother called him by his full name. “I have bigger things to tend to.”
“Such as?”
“Such as finding the business associate who went AWOL and stopping a vampire gang from roaming Briar City in search of midnight snacks.” He speared a couple roasted carrots from the vegetable platter.
“Speaking of snacks, have you visited my kitchen since you’ve been here? I had that eighteenth century partition gutted and kept the open space. It’s a shame your father even had the thing built. I do miss him sometimes.” She took a moment of silence. “It’s good the number of slayers in the world have dwindled over the centuries.”
Lee had a familiar ache center in his chest. He was a ten year-old child the last time his father walked through this castle. “Yes, it is a good thing.”
Lord Desmond’s life ended after a band of slayers met him in France when he went to pay a visit to King Louis XV. They killed him a week before Christmas. Since then, the cheerful season of Yuletide simply didn’t resonate with Lee. He hated how the memory could still affect him. Even his mother eventually came around to partaking in the seasonal festivities again. He hated feeling any kind of weakness.
“I had bay windows installed to let in the moonlight.” Salome was still telling him all about her kitchen renovations. “The village finally got Wi-fi, so I was able to get remodeling ideas after I streamed the Happy Home Decorating Channel.”
Lee looked around the dining hall and saw the results of his mother’s newest fascination with the modern world. The dark drapery was replaced with blinds and a very bright yellow and orange accent rug covered the eight hundred year-old flagstones. “You don’t think it takes away from the original design?”
“Oh, goodness, all those dreary gray stones and heavy mason work? It’s positively dated.”
“It’s a castle, mother. It’s supposed to be dated.”
Salome scoffed. “This is Castle Desmond, not Castle Dracula. I hate when my friends from the ladies tea club come over and get scared every time they bump into a suit of armor. I want the family estate to enter the twenty-first century.”
Lee chewed on the carrot. “We should be influencing humans, not the other way around.”
“But they can be so original. I think it’s because they have such short lifespans. Their creativity only comes in short bursts.” She set her dinner napkin on the table. “Now, about your upcoming Christmas party. Didn’t you say your attorney friend came up with the idea?”
“No, it was my new assistant.”
“One of us?”
“She’s human.”
“Ah. Well, either way, it’s good you contracted the work out. You have many talents, Leeland, but throwing a soiree isn’t one of them.”
“This party has to go on without a hitch. Trust needs to be re-established with business partners and citizens.”
“And this assistant of yours understands why this party is important?”
Lee thought of Violetta. “Yes, but it’s taking her a long time to plan.”
“Good parties always take time to pull off. You trust her to do her job well, don’t you?”
Something about Violetta made Lee wonder. She seemed to know more than what she let on. Those deep brown eyes of hers could go through him when she looked at him long enough. It was strange. In all his three hundred years of existence, no human woman ever made him feel unsettled. Not to mention turned on at the same time.
He wanted to get close to Violetta. He desired to put his mouth on her supple brown skin. His fangs extended at the thought of how her blood would taste.
“Lee, I asked you a question.” His mother huffed. “Do you trust your assistant to pull off this festive bash?”
He pulled his mind back into the present. “She’s capable and independent, big on detail. She wants to open her own interior design firm one day.”
His mother’s eyes practically lit up. “Isn’t that fascinating? I can’t wait to meet her myself.”
Lee put his fork down. “You want to meet Violetta?”
“Is that her name? How Shakespearean. Of course, I’d like to meet this assistant who could be the future host of her own home décor and renovation show. When I fly in for your coronation, I’ll say hi to her and perhaps sample some of the locals.”
“Leave the humans alone. Their blood stays in their veins.”
Salome smiled. “We’ll see.”
Why did he have to go and tell his mother about Violetta? Now he not only had to worry about meeting his fundraising goal, but he had to keep his mother from painting the town red. Literally. With the blood of humans and whatever new paint the Happy Home Decorating Channel recommended.
Chapter Five
Violetta wished she knew what business Lee was up to in Ireland. Was it a secret vampire meetup he had to attend? Whatever it was, it couldn’t be business-related, or else he would’ve put it on the schedule she had access to.
Well, wherever he was and whatever he was doing across the pond, she had her own secret agenda. On Sunday afternoon, she took the train to the shopping district and walked into the tiny store space that held Nat’s Natural Herbal Cures. Her friend, Natasha Youngblood, was at the front counter of the natural health food shop. She gave a surprised smile when she saw Violetta come in.
“Hey, V. Long time, no see.” She came from around the counter and gave her a hug. “I was starting to think a big box store stole you from me.”
Violetta felt the contained strength within Natasha’s arms. The woman was a petite little thing yet her dainty appearance disguised the fact she was a wolf shifter. “I’ve been busy the past few weeks.”
“Word got around the Briar City Wolf Pack about your brother. I’m sorry.” Natasha shook her head. Her thick, full Afro moved as the heat came on through the ceiling vent. “How’s he doing?”
“He’s healing, but it’s taking a while.”
The wolf shifter put her hands on her hips. “Slaying vampires is dangerous. I don’t know how your family keeps it up generation after generation.”
Sometimes Violetta wondered herself. “That’s why I came here. I’m going to make sure the Bloodbound pay for what happened to Vince.”
“You found out which one of them attacked him?”
“No, but I’m going to hit them where it hurts.” She took her phone from her backpack and showed Natasha the snapshot of Lee’s computer screen. “Tell me what this is. I found it on Lee Desmond’s personal laptop.”
Natasha’s grey-blue eyes got big. “Lee Desmond, the billionaire? How’d you get to his computer?”
“I’m his personal assistant.”
“You work for the city’s vampire alpha? That doesn’t make—no. Tell me you’re not thinking of doing what I think you’re thinking of doing.”
“Taking him out? Absolutely.”
Natasha looked like she swallowed a giant bitter pill that lodged in sideways. “V., there’s a reason why he’s the alpha. You’d be crazy to try to take him down.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Even though her friend’s comment stung a little, Violetta could see her perspective. The situation did look a little crazy. Here she was, a twenty-three year-old woman still in school, looking to slay a vampire who had centuries of strength and life experience. “I have to do this, Nat. For Vince. For my family’s reputation.”
Natasha’s mouth tightened, as though she literally was holding back her words. “Let me see that picture again.”
Violetta showed her the grid. “Do you have any idea what
it is?”
“Looks like a computer schematic, like a blueprint. Maybe Lee wants to build something.”
“I wouldn’t know. He keeps me busy with his endless schedule of meetings, hobnobs with his vamp friends, and planning his Christmas party.”
Natasha looked at the picture again. “Actually, this looks more like a road layout.”
“I took a picture of the web address link, if that helps.” Violetta swiped the screen to go to the next picture. “I couldn’t understand all the letters and numbers, though. Is it code?”
“Let’s see.” Her friend went to the front of the shop and turned the sign so it said CLOSED. “My laptop is in the back office.”
“Thanks, Nat. I owe you one.”
Her friend motioned her head in the negative. “You may not want to thank me just yet. I have no idea what I can find out about those pictures.”
Violetta followed her into the store’s back room that functioned as both storage space for the wares and Natasha’s office. “I’m glad you never hung up your computer hacker cap.”
“Well, I try to be an honest woman these days, so my old skill set doesn’t pay the bills.” She sat down and turned on her laptop. “Read me the letters and numbers.”
Violetta did as she asked. Within seconds, Natasha had a black screen with an error message. “No good,” she said, attempting to refresh the page. “Looks like a firewall.” She hit a series of key commands. “This is a tough one. It’s encrypted like those bank accounts that go through the dark web.”
“It was on Lee’s personal computer. Does that mean anything?”
“He might not want anyone at work to know what he’s surfing on the web in private. Guess he didn’t realize how nosy you can be.”
“Says the chick who knows how to hack into bank accounts on the dark web.”
“Hey, it was to catch a bad guy. I did what the government wanted so I could stay out of jail.” Natasha typed in another prompt. This time, the error message went away and was replaced with the fang and sword logo for the Briar City Bloodbound. “Bingo.”