Suddenly, I was very eager to get to cleaning, and so were the other blood slaves. We scurried off to get supplies and got to work. Angie and Misty started arguing over who got to clean the bathrooms. They both wanted to please Hadrian by going above and beyond. Hadrian broke up the argument by telling Angie to clean the master bath and Misty to clean the guest bathroom.
That left the living room, dining room, and den to Judah and me, which was where the bulk of the party had taken place last night. I got a trash bag and began cleaning up beer bottles.
Judah came behind me, dusting. “Hey,” he whispered.
I looked at him. “Yeah?”
“That stuff you were saying last night?”
“Uh huh?”
“Well, it’s all coming back to me. When we kissed, I remembered. I remembered everything. I remembered Tempest.”
“Right,” I said.
“How could I have forgotten her?”
I looked around to make sure that Hadrian wasn’t anywhere nearby, but he had left the living room entirely and gone back the hall to watch television in his bedroom. “Well, it’s compulsion, Judah. Hadrian compelled you to forget.”
“Why did I remember?”
“I don’t know. I remembered when I saw you last night at the party. Maybe it’s got something to do with our alpha bond, or something to do with us being werewolves.”
“They don’t know I’m a wolf,” said Judah. “When I realized I couldn’t outrun the vampires, I shifted into human form, thinking they’d go easier on me.”
“We figured,” I said. “We figured they’d captured you and turned you into a blood slave. I’m here to get you out.”
“Out,” he said. “Right. But that would mean leaving Hadrian.”
“I know,” I said, and I felt my heart breaking at the thought of it.
“I can’t leave him,” said Judah. “He’s… he’s my everything.”
“I know,” I said. “But that’s not real. It’s a bonding thing that happens when a vampire drinks your blood, that’s all. Last night, I was in love with Petal. But that’s all gone now that Hadrian bit me.”
Judah nodded. “Okay, that makes sense. But, you know, it doesn’t make it feel any less real.”
“I do know,” I said, sweeping more bottles into the trash bag.
“Damn it,” said Judah. “What I feel for Hadrian, it’s bigger than anything I’ve ever felt.”
“Bigger than Tempest?”
“I…” He shook his head. The question hung between us, unanswered.
I remembered my feelings for Landon vaguely, but there was nothing between Landon and me except one little kiss, and he could never be with me without losing his mind, so it didn’t seem like a big deal to move on from him. There was nothing really to even move on from.
“What the hell are you doing here, anyway?” said Judah. “You left the pack without an alpha?”
“I’m here to rescue you,” I said. “Admittedly, I didn’t count on it taking so long.”
“But the pack,” he said. “What about the pack?”
“The pack is fine. The council is in charge, and I made a deal with the bloods to leave them alone.”
“You made a what with the bloods? Are you crazy?”
“I had to do something,” I said. “They were really angry after we raided their headquarters. They were coming after us all. It was the best option that I had at the time. After I get you out of here, I have to go and capture Aston Waterfield.”
“I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”
“It doesn’t matter. Look. My sister is going to help us. Friday, at Ally’s party. She’ll bite us and break whatever bond we have with Hadrian. Then we can run. You go back to the pack. I’ll stay here and deal with Waterfield.”
“Friday?”
“Yes,” I said. “Can you hang on that long? You have to pretend that you don’t remember anything. Do whatever Hadrian tells you to do. Don’t question him.”
“Of course not,” said Judah.
* * *
That night, Hadrian took Angie out in the middle of the night. He was drinking a lot. It took a lot to get a vampire drunk, but Hadrian was diligent about it, and he managed to get there. Hadrian and Angie left together, and the rest of us were all jealous that he’d taken her and not us.
Judah seemed the least upset about it, however. He went back to sleep right off.
I stayed awake, trying to convince myself to stop caring about Hadrian, but I couldn’t help it. With Petal, we’d all sometimes been able to crawl into bed with her, but Hadrian had made it clear that his bed was off limits. Misty told me sometimes he did take one of us back there to sleep with him, and that sometimes there was more than sleeping or blood drinking going on when he did.
I felt a stab of longing. I wanted Hadrian to be with me in that way. The feelings I had for him were so huge that I wanted to cement them with him in a physical way. But another part of me tried to argue with that. I knew that what I felt for Hadrian wasn’t real. I remembered Landon had called what the vampires did to the blood slaves rape. I remembered, and I knew that I would feel differently after I was no longer tied to Hadrian.
But I didn’t care. I still wanted him. Anything he asked me for, I would do for him. Anything at all.
When Hadrian returned in the early morning, he was still drunk, and he was alone. He was in a foul mood, and he made us all go out of the building with him. He huddled under large black umbrella against the sun.
He took us out into a park, where there were benches and a statue of King Viggo. There was also blood everywhere. Blood and… and bits of someone. There were clumps of hair and strings of intestines and organs that had been ripped in two. It was a body.
“You need to clean this up,” said Hadrian to us.
“What is this?” I said. “What happened?”
“It’s Angie,” said Hadrian.
I was horrified. He’d killed her? Why had he killed her like this? Why had he ripped her up?
“Freaking bloods,” Hadrian muttered. “This is why they should be locked up all the time. I don’t know why any of them are allowed to run free. They can’t handle the sight of a topless girl without going insane.”
Oh, blood and fangs. So, that was what had happened. This was how the trackers killed in rage mode. I’d heard stories, but I’d never really seen it. It was horrifying.
Hadrian glared at us. “Well? What are you waiting for? Clean it.”
None of us moved.
He stalked over and grabbed each of us by the chin and looked into our eyes. He compelled us to do it, and to stay quiet while we did. After that, we didn’t have any choice. We had to pick up all the gory pieces. Hadrian had us put them in trash bags, like it wasn’t a body we were disposing of, like it wasn’t a person.
While he perched on a bench, watching us, another vampire came over and sat down with Hadrian. “What happened here?”
“Freaking bloodhound saw my blood slave’s boobs, went nuts, and killed her,” said Hadrian.
“Oh, blood and fangs,” said the vampire. “Sorry, man.”
“Yeah, and the worst of it is that I hear that I’m not even entitled to compensation for it. If I want a new blood slave, I have to pay. How is that fair?”
“It’s not.”
“They’re saying that I brought her out here naked at my own risk, knowing that there are bloods that patrol the perimeter. I think that’s totally stupid and unfair. Now, I’ve only got three slaves, and it’s like I’ve been taken down five notches. You know how long it took me to save up for a fourth?”
“I get it,” said the vampire. “I still can’t afford a fourth myself.”
“I’m so pissed,” said Hadrian.
Judah brushed up against me, his eyes flashing with anger.
I nodded at him. We couldn’t speak. We’d been compelled against it. But bond or not, it was hard to love a man who had so little regard for our lives. I felt it. Judah fe
lt it too. Even Misty seemed subdued.
* * *
When we got back to Hadrian’s place, he put us all in the shower because we were filthy. He was still in a bad mood, but he told us that he wanted us to make him feel better after what he’d lost today, and he said we could put on a little show for him. He made us wash each other in the shower, which was a very confusing experience. I was disgusted and pretty upset from the day’s work, but I still felt the desire to make Hadrian happy, and it was very uncomfortable to be naked with the others, forced to touch each other.
Misty was the most enthusiastic, but neither Judah nor I seemed to be able to muster enough gusto for the activity to satisfy Hadrian.
Hadrian got pissed off and compelled us to dance together for him naked. Then he pulled Misty onto his lap and started making out with her.
I had my back to Judah. He was grinding against me and I was pushing my hips into him.
“We can’t wait until Friday,” said Judah in my ear. “This is unbearable.”
“What are you saying?”
“It’s not like I don’t still like him,” said Judah. “But I hate myself for it, do you know what I mean? I can’t handle the way it feels, having two completely different feelings inside me.”
“Yeah, I get that,” I said. “But we have to wait for the party. We have to wait for Desta.”
“Why?” said Judah. “What if we just bite him?”
My eyes widened. A werewolf bite would weaken a vampire. “To do that, we have to shift.”
“Exactly,” he said.
“He’ll call for help. More vampires will come. They’ll kill us.”
“So, we have to move fast, then,” said Judah.
“I don’t know,” I said. “This isn’t much of a plan.” Of course, who was I kidding? I wasn’t really much for plans in general. I tended to rush in and hope things worked out. That was how I’d ended up here in the city as a blood slave in the first place. “And if we do this, our bond to Hadrian, we’ll still have it.”
“Forever?”
“I…” Now that I thought about it, I remembered that Desta had stopped biting Landon to let the bond fade, so that things could be “real” between them. Except Landon’s feelings for her hadn’t been real. “I think it’ll fade with time, actually.”
“Then let’s get the hell out of here,” said Judah.
“What? Now?”
“Well, we’re not wearing clothes,” said Judah. “Easier to shift, right?”
I laughed a little. He had a point.
“Count of three,” Judah murmured. “One…”
I shut my eyes, relaxing and finding my wolf. At first, it hadn’t been easy for me to shift, but Judah had taught me how.
“Two…”
My wolf was ready and eager, clawing at the skin of my neck, trying to push through.
“Three.”
I let the wolf out. At the same time, Judah released his wolf.
Immediately, any feelings I had toward Hadrian were severed. That was a handy trick. Also, the scent of the vampires was strong—a strange smell of old blood and all things unnatural.
Judah’s wolf had reddish fur that gleamed gold under the lights in the room. He bared his teeth, leaping forward and heading for Hadrian.
I was right on his heels. It felt good to be in wolf form again, as though I had been held enslaved for far too long, and now I was my true self again.
Misty screamed, trying to extricate herself from Hadrian’s lap.
Hadrian shoved her aside, swearing. “What are the odds my remaining blood slaves are werewolves? Fangs, can’t I catch a break?”
And then Judah and I both pounced.
I sank my teeth into Hadrian’s right arm.
Judah went for Hadrian’s neck. Maybe he thought he could bite Hadrian’s head right off—kill him.
Hadrian let out an inhuman shriek, and we all went down on the ground. The chair that Hadrian had been sitting on splintered, chunks of wood going everywhere.
One bite was enough. I released my jaws and sprang away from Hadrian.
But Judah was still there, worrying at the wound he’d created at Hadrian’s throat.
Hadrian was white-faced, not making any noise, and blood was spurting everywhere. Of course, Hadrian probably couldn’t make noise with this throat bit out.
We needed to go. Judah could get his revenge later. I yipped at him.
He didn’t notice. He was too set on the kill. I knew the feeling, after taking down prey. It was all-consuming. But this prey didn’t die easily, and we were in danger.
I rammed my head into Judah’s midsection.
He raised his blood-stained muzzle from Hadrian, giving me a curious look.
I howled at him, nodding toward the door. We needed to go.
And Judah reluctantly left Hadrian’s body and took off running.
Together we ran for the apartment door.
Which posed a problem that we hadn’t thought of. We were in wolf form. We couldn’t turn a door knob.
CHAPTER THREE
I shifted back as quickly as I could and turned the knob. Then, figuring there were going to be more doors or possibly an elevator in our future, I stayed in human form, and I dashed out the door.
Judah, still in wolf form, was right behind me.
I was completely naked, but it was the last thing I was worried about. I had already been exposed to strangers, anyway, considering Petal and Hadrian and the other vampires had no respect for any of their slaves.
We careened down the hallway toward the elevator.
When we got there, we paused for a minute, hitting the down button. But when the elevator doors didn’t open right away, I made a split second decision that we shouldn’t wait, and I took off running again.
Judah came with me.
I pushed open the door to the stairs, and we started down them as fast as we could. I was getting winded, and Judah got ahead of me. He was faster in wolf form. I needed to shift too if I wanted to run fast.
But I didn’t want to stop moving, and I’d never shifted while running before. I didn’t know how to make it work. I tried to find my wolf, but I only felt my lungs working hard and my heart pounding. Could I do this?
Judah streaked down another set of stairs. The stairs turned on themselves in a square, and now he was so far ahead that I had lost sight of him.
I needed to shift and now.
The urgency seemed to help. I found the wolf, and I let the fur and teeth and claws explode over me.
Then I was moving quickly, and I caught up with Judah, who was holding back a little, I think, waiting for me.
We rushed down the rest of the stairs to arrive at the bottom.
Luckily, the door pushed open, so we just put our bodies into it and it swung wide to let us free.
Now, we were in the lobby of the apartment building. The front wall was made entirely of glass and the floor was warm hard wood. The other three walls were stone, and there was a fountain flowing over the stones, elegantly trickling. It was fancy.
Vampires were sitting on stools in the corners, sipping lattes. They looked up at us.
We ran for the doors out of the place.
The vampires were standing up. Would they come after us? If so, we needed to pick up the pace considerably. Wolves and vampires could both run at very high speeds. I wasn’t sure if they were faster or not, but if they came after us—
Judah had already switched into higher gear. He streaked ahead of me, so fast he was nothing but a reddish gold blur. He burst through the glass doors of the building, sending glass shattering everywhere.
I leaped after him, speeding up as well, sailing through the hole he’d created. In seconds, I was right behind him and we we moving so fast that the air whistled past our ears and our fur was plastered back away from our faces.
Running this hard felt good too, like unleashing a part of myself that had always wanted to come out and play.
We sped down th
e streets and then turned a hard right to head into the park. The fence was close this way.
When we got there, Judah took a running leap and cleared the fence in one jump.
I skidded to a stop in front of it.
He was halfway into the woods before he realized that I wasn’t behind him. Then he stopped and turned.
We looked at each other through the fence for a moment. I really couldn’t afford that moment. The vampires were after us. They had to be. I knew that they couldn’t be far behind. They wouldn’t simply sit by as werewolves tore through the streets.
Judah shifted back into human form and came to the fence.
I shifted back too.
He clutched the chain link. “What the hell, Camber?”
“You know I have to stay,” I said. “I made a deal.”
“Yeah, you mentioned that, but you didn’t explain any of it. It sounds insane.”
I laughed helplessly. “It probably is. But I don’t have a choice.”
“Of course you do. Come with me now. We’ll figure it out together. The pack needs you.”
“No, the pack needs you,” I said. “Tempest needs you. Go now, and I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Camber—”
“We don’t have time to argue about it,” I said, and I shifted back into wolf form. I started to back away from the fence.
“Damn it, Camber.” Judah rattled the chain link. But he shifted back too.
And I watched as he turned and ran into the woods. I stayed until I was sure that he had gotten away safely.
Then I ran too.
CHAPTER FOUR
I wasn’t sure where to run or what to do. I had thought that vampires were right on our heels, but none ever came after me, at least none that I could see. Maybe they had been too caught up in their coffee and conversation to care. Maybe Hadrian hadn’t called out for help quick enough for them to track us. I couldn’t be sure.
I did know that the vampires were soft. Too many parties. Too much alcohol. Too much time on their hands with nothing to fill it. They sought pleasure constantly and they found it, which meant that they were never happy, because happiness thrives on the idea of comparing it to sadness. And with nothing there to remind them of what it felt to be sad, they could not feel anything at all except dissatisfaction.
Blood Melody Page 3