by Kendra Ashe
I tried to concentrate on the moment, but all I could think about was the searing need that his touch had awakened.
“My only interest is in finding Wren,” I breathed.
“I know what you really want,” he said, his lips next to my ear. “Let me give it to you. Let me relieve your suffering. It will be like nothing you have ever experienced,” he promised.
I shook my head, maybe a little too forcefully, which was telling. He knew exactly how he made me feel.
I had to focus on something other than having sex with Mason.
I wanted him way too bad. If I let go now, I would be lost. There was no doubt I would end up as one of his feeders. Maybe worse.
Death was interesting and at times, even alluring, but that type of death wasn’t something that held any appeal for me.
“Mason, please. You are not being fair,” I breathed.
“What did you want with that vampire?” he asked. “Maybe you wanted some of this.” Then he was sinking his teeth into my neck.
I barely felt the pain through the shock. Yelping, I jumped away and my hand flew to my neck. I felt something wet and warm where he’d bitten me. When I pulled my hand away and saw the crimson against my pale skin, I was almost dizzy with horror.
“How could you do that?” I gasped.
There was laughter dancing in his cold blue eyes. “No need to panic. I barely broke the skin.”
“Does this mean I’m going to -?” I couldn’t even make myself say the word turn.
“No, you are not a vampire, but if I didn’t have the self-control that I do, or if I were another vampire, you would likely be dead. Is that what you want?” he asked, harshly.
Giving him the evil eye, I shook my head. “You had no right to bite me. That was just plain disrespectful.”
The laughter I saw in his eyes was infuriating. I was tempted to slap his face but thought better of it. I still needed his help.
“This vampire isn’t like that. He’s basically a closet Seeker.”
Smirking, Mason cocked his head to one side. “Do you really think that Seekers don’t kill? Please tell me you’re not that naive.”
I opened my mouth to deliver a stinging comeback but then realized that I didn’t know what to say. This was something that I hadn’t thought about.
“The Seekers are killers, the same as the rest of us,” he said. There was a wicked gleam in his eye that drove home his point.
“Either way, he didn’t feed on me,” I shot back.
“But he could have. That’s my point,” Mason growled.
“Why do you care anyway? Remember, I’m just human. Food for vampires.”
He seemed startled by my question. For a fraction of a moment, I thought I saw confusion in his hard eyes.
I was beginning to think that even he had no idea why he cared.
As suddenly as he’d erupted, he calmed. Leaning one shoulder against the wall, he said, “So, tell me about your vampire.”
I hesitated. There was a possibility that Mason wouldn’t believe Ax’s story. Hell, I wasn’t even sure I did. Mostly, I didn’t, but it was the only thing I had to go on.
There was no doubt Ax believed what he said, but was it real?
Either way, if I was going to find out what happened to Wren, I would need all the help I could get, which meant I’d probably have to trust Mason.
I explained what I’d learned from Ax, and then slipped into silence while I waited for Mason to respond.
His reaction wasn’t long in coming. Mason’s lips spread into a wide smile. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. This secret valley is nothing more than a myth. There is no secret laboratory trying to discover the reason we are vampires.”
“Okay then, why don’t you tell me something, Mason? Why do you think vampires are what they are?”
He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again.
“Do you think this curse just happened?” I asked.
Mason shrugged. “We are what we are.”
Shaking my head, I started wagging a finger at him. “That’s a copout and you know it. There’s a reason for everything. Nothing is just chance.”
“Okay then, you tell me. Why am I a vampire? What are we?” he asked, his voice dripping sarcasm.
“Maybe you can find out from Kieran, whoever he is. I think Ax is right about one thing. Vampires are not just cursed creatures. There has to be more to it than that.”
Reaching out, he grabbed my arm and pulled me to him until my head was resting against his chest. “And how would sweet Claire know what a vampire really is?”
This time, I was the one left speechless. I didn’t have the slightest idea what caused vampirism. Before running into our office ghost and that night in the Lafayette Cemetery, I’d been sure our world consisted of only what we could see and touch.
But there had to be a logical reason why vampires existed. The first vampire had to be created somehow. There had to be something to the legends of the vampires.
“Let’s walk and enjoy the night,” he said, taking my hand in his.
“We have to find Wren,” I told him, shaking my head.
“Relax,” he said. “Wren might be a young vampire but he is perfectly capable of taking care of himself. After all, I am his maker and teacher.”
“But he could be in danger. Even vampires can be killed, at least that’s what I’ve heard.”
“You heard right.” He nodded. “But we can’t go in blind to save him. They are using Wren as bait to draw out the Seekers. I suspected the murders are a play by the Nightwalkers that are trying to start a war with the Seekers. Now I’m almost sure of it.”
“But why? What is that going to accomplish?”
“They want to squash any hope vampires have of changing their situation. They are easier to control that way. Some just hate the idea that the Seekers want to expose vampires to the world. If people know about vampires, it puts the Nightwalkers at a disadvantage,” he explained.
“So what’s the plan?” I asked as we stepped outside.
The crowd in front of the Emporium had dwindled and the night had grown quiet. In the distance, I could hear the laughter of a woman. Somewhere nearby, sirens blared, but these sounds were not uncommon.
Mason led me to an area of the Quarter where the streets were darker. Normally, I wouldn’t have dared walk the streets at night, but I was with Mason. As long as I was with him, I would be safe.
“My plan is to sit tight and let them make another move. They won’t hurt Mason as long as he is useful,” he said.
We walked, neither of us saying anything. The silence didn’t bother me. I was still trying to put my thoughts in order and analyze my feelings for Mason. Just being close to him was addictive. The more I was with him, the more I craved his company.
“I’m not comfortable waiting. I think we should look for Wren.” I said, shattering the calm of the moment.
“In time,” he told me, without bothering to clue me into his plan.
Frustrated, I turned to glare at him. “Maybe you don’t care because you think vampires aren’t actually alive, so it doesn’t matter what happens to Wren.”
“We are alive, just a different kind of alive. When a vampire turns, their body dies and is reborn to an existence of eternal darkness. Perhaps it is the darkness that dwells in the soul that gives us life.”
“No, I don’t think so,” I said. “If you were reanimated by the darkness of the soul, all vampires would be evil, and I haven’t seen any evidence of that.”
“Don’t let yourself be seduced by that darkness, Claire,” he warned.
What he was saying didn’t make sense. I knew Wren was a good man, and he wouldn’t convince me otherwise.
“What if they do kill him?” I asked again.
“They won’t kill him, at least not yet.”
Stopping, I turned to face Mason. “But how do you know this for sure? How do you know they are using him for bait?�
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“This is why Colin went through the trouble of letting me know. I doubt he just happened by while they were taking Wren. I know Colin and he wouldn’t have bothered with a Seeker.”
“So you don’t trust Colin?”
I couldn’t blame him. From the moment I saw Colin, I’d known there was something bad about him.
Mason shook his head. “I trust him about as much as I would a rattlesnake. They are using Wren, but I already have a plan in place.”
“Is Colin as powerful as you? He was in that vision with you last night. He was in bed with us, touching me. How could he do that without you knowing he was there?”
A shadow dropped over Mason’s features. “He has no manners. If I hadn’t been so preoccupied, I would have sensed him sooner.”
“Oh,” I muttered. The blood rushed to my face as I remembered the intimacy I’d shared with him the night before.
“Who were you before you turned?” I asked, changing the subject, and not just because I was embarrassed about succumbing to the vision he’d stuck in my head. I was genuinely interested in who Mason Romero really was.
For a long time, he didn’t answer. Just as I was beginning to think it was something he didn’t want to talk about, he turned to look at me. “I was a knight under King Edward III.”
“Wow! How interesting. It must be amazing to see a world so different than the one you were born to.”
“It was so long ago. Most of it doesn’t seem real anymore.” Again, he slipped into silence, seeming to lose himself in those memories.
“What was your name then?” I asked.
Suddenly his face brightened. “Sir Jonathan of Lincolnshire, at your service, my lady.”
“So you were a real, honest to goodness knight? That’s awesome!” I laughed, glad for the sudden shift in his mood.
I was seeing a side of Mason that I was sure few people ever saw. “You must have been a noble and fierce knight.”
“Not fierce enough, I’m afraid.” His mood once again turned somber. “I searched for the answers for centuries. There are none.”
I placed a hand on his shoulder. “Maybe you were not searching in the right place?”
Stopping suddenly, Mason wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me so close that our bodies were almost like one.
“Tell me, Claire, are you afraid of me? Do you trust me?”
My heart was pounding furiously against my ribs. “Yes and yes.”
His velvety smooth laughter was so dark, yet so wonderfully sexy.
“Hold on,” he told me.
Wrapping my arms around his neck, I rested my head against his firm chest.
Suddenly the ground was no longer beneath my feet. We were moving through the night so fast that we seemed to be riding the wind. Never had I known such exhilaration. The feeling was pure freedom.
Chapter Sixteen
High above the city, the lights of New Orleans seemed magical. With the moon and a blanket of stars as our backdrop, I flew through the night in the arms of a vampire. Without warning, we stopped moving, but we were still floating somewhere between heaven and earth.
Mason’s lips were on mine - his tongue forcing its way into my mouth. Relenting, I let myself get caught up in his hunger.
I eagerly returned his kiss. Even when I felt his fangs with my tongue, I didn’t pull away. The thrill of exploring the night in such a way was second only to being in his arms.
Was this what it was like to fall in love?
Could I really be falling for a vampire?
When I thought about just how crazy my situation was, I could feel the wings of a thousand butterflies fluttering in my stomach.
The thought slipped from my mind. Nothing seemed important – nothing other than being in his embrace.
This was the moment that I finally came to accept that I wanted Mason Romero. It wasn’t just simple lust. I wanted him more than I wanted to breathe.
We descended. “Let me love you, Claire,” he whispered in my ear.
Tilting my head back, I gazed into his eyes and felt myself falling into that place of no return. We again came together in a searing kiss of need - a need that transcended the cravings of the flesh. At that moment, I knew that I was exactly where I should be.
I barely noticed that I was now lying on a bed of soft grass. Mason’s hand slid over my skin in a soft caress.
His mouth was on my flesh. I felt an explosion of mind-numbing need course through me. The pain of his fangs piercing my skin finally pushed me over the edge. I had to have him. I could no longer push the feeling aside.
“Mason, I want you,” I panted. I needed to feel him possess me - quenching the need that was overwhelming my entire being.
He lifted his head to peer into my eyes. “You are so warm and beautiful, my sweet Claire.”
“Mason, I want to be with you, always. I want you to turn me.” I didn’t even know where the thought had come from. I was running on pure need.
It wasn’t just my body that needed him. My soul also needed him.
I couldn’t even catch my breath. I was being consumed by something that I had no idea how to control and couldn’t even begin to understand. It was a longing that I had to satisfy, no matter the cost.
Without warning, he pulled away and a chill settled over me. I was left lying in the grass, desperately needing him to put out the fire that was now burning out of control.
“You have no idea what you’re asking for.” His voice was so soft that it was barely audible.
The cool night air brought on a shiver, reminding me that I was completely naked from the waist up. Snatching my shirt from where it lay in the grass, I covered myself.
Kneeling down beside me, Mason reached out to caress my cheek with his cool fingers. “One minute you want death and the next you want eternity. What darkness dwells in your heart that makes you crave such torment?”
Taking his hand in mine, I brought it to my lips. “Being with you is the first time I’ve really felt like living.”
Mason shook his head. “The life of a vampire is not life. It is death of the soul.”
“I don’t believe that,” I said, pushing into a sitting position. “I can feel your soul. I can feel the ice melt when I am in your arms.”
Cupping my face in his hands, he brought his mouth down on mine. I could feel his fangs piercing my flesh as he kissed me.
Finally, it was Mason who broke the kiss. “What you are feeling is the spell of the vampire. Nothing more.” As he spoke, his eyes glowed with more intensity than I’d ever seen in them.
Swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat, I asked, “What about you, Mason? What do you feel?”
Turning away, he stared up into the night sky. “I feel nothing. I’m a vampire, remember?”
His words were like a blast of ice water in my face. I didn’t trust myself to speak without revealing the pain that was eating away at my heart.
When Mason turned his attention back to me, he was smiling as if the last few minutes hadn’t happened.
That hurt almost as much as his words.
He offered me his hand. “We should get back.”
Although I let him take my hand, I said nothing. I was hurting, but I couldn’t be sure why, or even if it was real.
Could he be right?
Were my feelings nothing more than an illusion brought on by his vampire spell?
Either way, I was determined not to let him see my emotion. I would be as careless as he was.
If vampires really were devoid of emotion, maybe they were the lucky ones.
Chapter Seventeen
Mason left me before dawn. He promised to return when the sun went down. I was under no illusions now. His only purpose for seeing me again was so that we could help Wren.
At least he was there to help find my boss, and I was thankful. There was just a part of me that wished there was more to it, and that maybe he did feel something.
Self-preservation to
ok over and I decided I’d simply ignore my feelings for Mason. I didn’t want to be just another of his groupies. Dating a vampire was just plain dumb anyway.
Trying to sleep was useless. I was too restless for that. When I wasn’t thinking about Wren, I kept running through the events of the night.
I must have appeared pretty naive and stupid in Mason’s eyes. Even the memory of how I’d acted brought a blush of shame to my face.
Maybe he was right. I’d simply been under the vampire spell.
For those few minutes that I’d been in his arms, I would have given up my soul to be with him. In fact, I’d freely offered to do just that, but he’d refused me.
Now I felt stupid. I’d been like putty in his arms. He probably thought I was weak.
I should be thanking him for saving me the anguish of his existence, instead of feeling like I’d just lost my last friend. Really, I couldn’t understand what I liked about him. He was arrogant and not particularly nice to others, but I was still drawn to him. Even when I wasn’t with Mason, he was on my mind.
Focusing on anything else was difficult, but I tried. Blocking out his kisses was like trying to walk on water. It just wasn’t going to happen.
Since he was nowhere around, maybe it wasn’t just the vampire’s spell that was making me feel this way. Maybe it was real.
The morning sun was just peeking through my bedroom window when I finally gave up trying to sleep.
It wasn’t as if I didn’t have anything else to do. There were dishes to wash and a floor to vacuum. Although these chores were tedious and mundane, they would help keep my mind off Wren and Mason.
After a couple hours of furious housecleaning, I managed to fall asleep on the couch, but my sleep was restless. As soon as I drifted off, my dreams were filled with strange, ghastly images of tattooed bodies and Mason’s seductive vampire eyes.
When I finally opened my eyes, I was nearly as tired as I’d been before falling asleep. What I needed was some food and a few cups of straight caffeine. Since I didn’t happen to have any straight caffeine, coffee would have to work.
After a meal that included a ham and cheese sandwich, as well as a cup of strong coffee, I sat at my living room window, staring out at the world. People milled back and forth in front of my apartment, but I didn’t really see them.