Wicked Crazy
Vampire Love
~~~
Cassandra Lawson
Copyright ©2017 Cassandra Lawson
All Rights Reserved
Proofreading by Kendra’s Editing and Book Services
This book is a work of fiction. All characters and events are creations of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual people or events is purely coincidental.
The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement is investigated by federal law enforcement agencies and is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Also by Cassandra Lawson
Love Without Batteries Series
Dirty at 30 (Book 1)
Naughty at 30 (Book 2)
Moon Virus Series
Raven’s Blood (Book 1)
Embrace the Heat (Book 2)
Seducing Death (Book 3)
Shattered Restraint (Book 4)
Moon Virus Books 1-4
Impulsive Destiny (Book 5)
Psy-Vamp Series
Vampires and Vixens (Book 1)
Safe Hex With a Vampire (Book 2)
Vampires Prefer Blondes (Book 3)
The Vampire Will See You Now (Book 4)
Wanton with a Vampire (Book 5)
Vampire in Geek’s Clothing (Book 6)
Spells That Bind Series
Sinfully Spellbound (Book 1)
Shamelessly Spellbound (Book 2)
Acknowledgments
I want to thank all the readers who have stood by me since I published the first Psy-Vamp book in 2013. Your support and encouragement has meant the world to me. I also want to thank my wonderful beta readers, Kari, Levenia and Ria for all your insights. My wonderfully talented daughters, Seramina and Jilliana, were heavily involved in the design process of this cover, and I greatly appreciate their efforts.
Table of Contents
Also by Cassandra Lawson
Acknowledgments
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Epilogue
Author’s Note
About The Author
Prologue
“Where is the child?” Corbin demanded through his teeth.
Alonzo had known this day would come, had in fact expected it to come years ago. It amazed him that he’d been able to pull off this deception for so long. As the years passed, he’d begun to wonder if he could avoid this day of reckoning. Pretending was easy since he hadn’t seen the vampire standing before him in many years. The exact number of years, he wasn’t sure of anymore. His mind wasn’t quite as sharp as it had once been. There were times when insanity was a good thing, especially when it allowed him short periods of peace—times when he forgot the awful things he’d done in his past.
“Tell me what I want to know or I will cut you into little pieces,” Corbin growled, moving closer.
Looking at the vampire who would probably kill him once he learned everything, Alonzo waited for the all-consuming fear he’d expected to feel when this moment arrived, but it didn’t come. The fear was definitely there, but it was accompanied by a sense of relief. Soon, it would all be over. He looked forward to his release.
Most vampires never aged past their early twenties unless they refrained from feeding on human energy. Corbin seemed to have developed fine lines around his light brown eyes. Even his dark blond hair had thinned some since the last time Alonzo had seen him, making him wonder if Corbin was struggling with his own guilt. With an inner sigh, Alonzo realized that was simply wishful thinking on his part.
“She’s been gone for many years,” Alonzo replied. His eyes widened when the hunter entered the room. As a vampire, Alonzo feared hunters but none more than Nicola.
“She?” Corbin practically gasped.
Alonzo smiled at Corbin’s shocked expression. He’d had a similar reaction when they’d discovered the gender of the child. Vampires produced only male children—or so he’d believed.
“She should be dead,” Nicola said with quiet authority. Her vivid blue eyes were narrowed, and her thin lips pressed together in an angry line. It was clear the gender meant nothing to her. “I should have handled this myself rather than trusting idiot vampire scientists.”
The skin around Corbin’s face and neck flushed. “This is not the time to place blame.”
“Your vampires are the ones who betrayed us,” Nicola hissed.
Alonzo’s mind drifted as Corbin and Nicola argued. He’d known both the hunters and the vampires involved in the original order would be angry if they learned the girl was still alive. She’d been an experiment meant to prove hunters and vampires were different species. Her life and death were all part of a twisted alliance born from the mutual desire of both sides to start a war. The hunters and vampires hadn’t even been able to work together to achieve that end, so the order had fallen apart. They’d been ordered to destroy the unborn child who was both hunter and vampire. She’d been too much of a liability. Instead of killing her, the scientists involved in the experiment had hidden the breeder surrogate away. Alonzo was ashamed to admit his reasons hadn’t been noble. The child’s very existence had fascinated him, and he’d longed to experiment on her. He and several other vampires had done just that for a short time before guilt got the better of them.
“Tell me, Alonzo,” Nicola crooned as she moved toward him with an almost seductive grace. “Where is the little lab rat hidden?”
“Don’t call her that!” Alonzo snapped. “She is your daughter.”
Corbin looked thoughtful for a moment before shaking his head. “Nicola is right. Regardless of the gender of the child, she was only an experiment. Now, she’s a liability.”
“What exactly were you hoping to accomplish by keeping her alive?” Nicola asked in a deceptively calm voice. “I’d believe it was simple curiosity had I not heard from one of your old acquaintances that you’d sent her away.”
Alonzo’s heart seized, fearing the traitor might have been involved with placing the girl, but that couldn’t be the cas
e. If the traitor had known where the girl was, Corbin and Nicola wouldn’t have tracked him down.
“I’ll deal with this,” Corbin said through his teeth, eyes blazing with hate.
“I made the mistake of trusting vampires to destroy the evidence of our connection before,” Nicola ground out. “Your vampires failed. This is now a hunter matter.”
Neither Corbin nor Nicola had been involved, other than to donate their genetic material. It was clear by Corbin’s cocky grin that he knew more than Nicola.
“Two of your hunters were sent to make sure the abortion was performed,” Corbin told her.
Nicola’s jaw ticked as she glared at Alonzo. “Did you kill the hunters?”
Alonzo shook his head. Hunters, as it turned out, weren’t all bad.
“I’ll make sure they’ve been dealt with,” Nicola muttered angrily.
“Who took the girl away?” Corbin demanded of him.
Alonzo felt his mind wandering as he pictured the sweet little girl. His memories were bittersweet and filled with regrets. They should have sent her away at birth. He knew, if there was a god, he’d spend an eternity in Hell for the years he’d experimented on her.
“If you don’t answer us, I’m going to lose patience and begin cutting pieces off your body,” Nicola warned.
“She has a family now,” Alonzo replied with a slight smile. “They promised to love her. She has real parents and a brother to protect her.” His eyes landed on Corbin, and he wondered again how many years had passed. “She must be ten by now. Such a lovely girl—strong yet kind despite how we all treated her in the early days.”
“She’s in her twenties, you imbecile!” Corbin shouted. “How long has she been gone? Never mind. If you think she’s ten, how the hell can I trust you to know how long she’s been gone?”
“Where are the others, Alonzo?” Nicola practically growled. “Tell me where to find the others who were supposed to destroy her?”
“They’re all gone,” Alonzo replied with a shrug. “Some are dead and others in hiding. I have no idea where to find them. It’s better that way.” This time, a giggle slipped past his lips. Some days, it was harder maintaining the facade of sanity. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could pull it off, but he hoped he could manage until he took his last breath. He needed to protect the girl. “She’s safe.”
“How could you betray your own people?” Corbin demanded. “You’re just as much a part of the cause as any of us—more so since you were among the scientists involved with this experiment. If the existence of the order is discovered, you’ll die, too.”
Alonzo’s temper snapped, his thoughts more lucid than they’d been in years. “The cause? You ask me about the cause. You ask me about the girl, but never ask her name.”
“She doesn’t need a name,” Nicola scoffed. “The girl is a failed experiment.”
“She’s your daughter!” Alonzo shouted. “She’s a beautiful girl who you plan to kill for your own selfish agenda.”
“Selfish?” Corbin asked, shaking his head in confusion. “It was all done for the greater good. Now, tell us where the girl is, and we’ll let you go. You don’t have to die today, Alonzo.”
Alonzo shook his head. “The hunters will keep her safe.” As soon as the words left his mouth, he wanted to cry out. He’d failed her. “What have I done?”
Corbin laughed. “Told us the girl is with hunters. We’ll find her. You haven’t done her any favors by sending her away.”
“I gave her a normal life,” Alonzo argued.
“Normal life?” Nicola asked with a sneer. “What you gave her was a few years to believe she’s more than a tool. She would have been better off having died all those years ago. How many years was she experimented on? I’ll bet she spent nearly a decade being abused to appease the sick curiosity of you and the other traitors. At least, we wanted to give her peace.”
“She’s been gone since she was three,” Alonzo argued. “I’ll bet she doesn’t even remember what happened to her here. You’ll never find her, anyway. She’s safe from you, living on a different continent.” A wistful smile played on his lips. His mind was drifting again as the room swirled around him. “I’ll bet she enjoys watching the sun set over the water by her home. They’ll protect her. Few know what she is, and they’ll keep her secret well-hidden.” He imagined her running along the beach, her beautiful blonde hair blowing in the breeze. It was an image that always brought a smile to his face. She was happy and safe. When he looked over at Nicola’s twisted smirk, Alonzo realized his mistake. He’d given them an even bigger clue to the girl’s whereabouts.
Alonzo made a break for it. Pulling the old cell phone from his pocket, he opened it and hit the only contact on there. He had to warn the girl’s family—her real family, not those who’d only donated to her genetics. Neither Nicola nor Corbin expected him to run, allowing him to make it out of the room and down the stairs. The call went to voicemail.
“They know she’s alive. I revealed too many details,” he panted out.
Alonzo was almost to the street when the bullet slammed into his back. It burned like fire, yet he still struggled to speak into the phone. “Protect her.”
Collapsing to the ground, Alonzo deleted his contacts and call log just as Corbin approached him at a leisurely pace.
“It’s too late, Alonzo,” Corbin called out. “You’ll bleed out before anyone can help you.”
Nicola laughed. “Come on, Alonzo. Why not do the right thing before you die and tell us where the little lab rat is? You know as well as I do that the hunters will kill her when they figure out what she is. You might have convinced one family to protect her, but they can’t hide her true nature forever. It’s better for her if we find her first. At least, we won’t torture her before she dies. I may even agree she’s of some use and allow her to live.”
Nicola’s booted foot made contact with his side, but the pain barely registered as his life slipped away. Soon, he was overcome with numbing cold and his many regrets. “I’ll call the others to start searching for the girl,” Nicola spat out. “We won’t get anything out of this worthless vampire.”
“Why did you stay here?” Corbin asked from close to his ear after Nicola walked away. “Why did you send her away? I understand why you wanted to experiment on her, but why not kill her when you were done?”
Reaching into the front pocket of his pants, Alonzo pulled out the old photo of the girl. After looking down at it one final time, he handed it to Corbin, hoping he’d see her as more than a liability. “She’s your daughter.” The words were hard to push past his lips. “Your own child. Protect her.”
Corbin’s eyes remained on the photo for a long time before meeting Alonzo’s gaze again. Alonzo was surprised by the depth of emotion he saw, but Corbin quickly masked it.
“There’s much more at stake than her life,” Corbin stated, but there was doubt in his voice. As Alonzo gave in to the darkness, he hoped that small seed of doubt would grow.
Chapter One
Two Months Later
Looking around the day spa he’d been dragged off to, Drew resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
“I knew this would cheer you up!” Lydia stated in her annoyingly cheerful voice. She was Drew’s aunt by marriage but only a few years older than him. She’d become a vampire by being given huge amounts of his uncle’s life force while in a coma. Her reaction to that change still baffled him. For some unknown reason, her hair now grew to her ankles. If she cut it, it grew back within hours. Today, she’d put it in two braids, probably to keep it out of the way during their spa trip. The braids made her look like a hillbilly Rapunzel. She’d hated him when they’d first met—a reaction that made sense. At some point, she’d decided he had redeeming qualities. He didn’t, but he liked being able to accuse someone else in the family of being crazier than him.
“Even I can see this isn’t working, and I’m the ultimate optimist,” Trish muttered in her cute squeaky voice. Trish was als
o his aunt now, which was a little weird since she’d starred in many of his porno-inspired fantasies before marrying his uncle. The woman was all curves with brown hair and eyes. She claimed to see the good in him, but she was one of those people who viewed the glass as half-full. In his case, she was definitely being far too optimistic. At first, her support had perplexed him, but he’d come to find it comforting. These annoyingly cheerful women were among the first he called when he had a problem.
Secretly respecting and loving these two women didn’t mean he wasn’t going to say something crude and offensive. That was just his nature—something they’d known when they’d dragged him off for a spa day.
Drew looked over at Trish, who was sitting in the spa chair on his right while Lydia sat on his left. They were all in fluffy white robes, having just gotten massages. “It would have cheered me up if you’d let me go in the room with you when you got your massage,” he said with a smirk. “Instead, I had to be all alone, imagining those fantastic breasts exposed. You know what would make me feel better?”
“You can’t see them,” she told him.
“Come on, babe,” he crooned. “You said you wanted to make me feel better.”
Trish had been raising his little brother for almost two years, and in that time, she’d perfected a look meant to convey her displeasure. At first, he’d insisted it didn’t work on him, but it did.
“I’m not going to say I’m sorry for wanting to see your boobs. Seriously, how big are those things? I’d need both hands to hold one,” he mused.
“You poor thing,” Lydia cooed. “You always try to avoid talking about your feelings when they’re really bad. I’m going to get you an extra long foot massage with your pedicure today.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Drew shouted, startling the woman doing his pedicure. “How do I keep getting talked into spa days? I don’t need to be cheered up. Even if I needed to be cheered up, having some chick buff my fucking heels isn’t going to cheer me up.”
“This is worse than I thought,” Trish said with a sigh.
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