By Blood Sworn

by Jones, Janice

  “Creed,” Jason hissed. “I knew that lying piece of shit was wrapped up in this somehow.”

  “Well, he’s made his choice as well,” Adam replied. “I know you thought you could save him, but if she doesn’t kill him, Tristan will—if he fails. Nothing you can do about that now.”

  “How does she know Creed?” Jason asked. “Was he a target or something?”

  Adam stretched his leg out in front of him. “Lovers.”

  Jason sat on the metal stool he pulled from the corner. As he scratched at his chin, he wanted to scrub the image of them as lovers from his brain.

  “I thought he was lying about that,” Jason replied.

  Adam continued, “She’s the reason Cyrus is dead. Creed killed him defending her. They both testified that it was self-defense—Cyrus lost his mind and shot her twice for some reason. I tried to prove it was an elaborate scheme to get his money and holdings, but I could never gather enough evidence.”

  “I don’t see her doing something like that,” Jason waved his hand at the accusations. “She’s a good person.”

  “She was a different person back then, Jason,” Adam rolled his eyes. “People can change. She may be good now, but even you had your vices when you were younger.”

  Wine, women, and song, he thought with a grin. Adam had indulged that side of him for quite a while. Anything he desired, he got, as long as he remained loyal to Adam and the Council—and he did. Everyone has to grow up sometime though. Jason had learned to reign in some of his childish tendencies, but beautiful women were still his weakness.

  “I was a teenager, human, and being given everything my heart desired,” Jason replied. “And immortality!”

  “Yes. And, like her, you grew up,” Adam grinned.

  “Well, they didn’t part ways on good terms,” Jason stated. “In fact, he betrayed her in some way. I can tell. She will kill him and good riddance.”

  Chapter 27

  Michael received word about Romania while he was at a late lunch with the new clients. The small pharmaceutical company had agreed to their terms and their money. A few blocks from K Street, they met to finalize the deal. When the message came, Michael’s appetite evaporated.

  “Something wrong, Mr. Gale?” the CEO said as she laid her warm hand on his arm. He could feel the heat of her blood as it rushed through her veins. “You look pale.”

  Michael slipped his phone back into his inside jacket pocket with a grin. He’d planned on a more private encounter with her before the end of the day, but that wasn’t going to happen now. He could feel the tip of her high heel glide up his leg. At no time did her expression change though. Her lustful scent circled his nose. Everyone else just stared at their menus and nursed fresh coffee.

  “I’ve got an emergency, I’m afraid,” he said as he waved to their waiter. “It’s on me.”

  Michael explained the tab should be charged to his personal account, as always. He stood, made another apology, and left the restaurant with a promise to call the CEO when he returned to New York.

  On the ride up to his room on the fifteenth floor, he called his father.

  “Michael,” Conner answered in rather a happy tone. That was odd.

  “Con, what’s going on? What happened in Romania?”

  He heard a door close in the background and the noise that surrounded Conner was gone.

  “First, I don’t have any updates on Alex or Xavier Ramos,” he started. “Nikki and Sebastian Rayne have both been poisoned with a compound we have yet to identify.”

  Michael rushed down the hall and practically kicked in his door. As he threw clothes into his bag, he cradled the phone between his ear and his shoulder.

  “Where are the others?” he asked. “You said Sebastian was hurt. What about Alex and Xavier? And the twins and the young women, Erin and Amy?”

  There was silence, then Conner heaved a hard sigh.

  As Michael waited for his father to reply, he checked out of the room with the television menu, grabbed his bag and briefcase, and left the room. He tapped the elevator button with his foot.

  “Con? You still there?”

  “Yes,” he replied then cleared his throat. “One of the twins has been badly injured. His brother is on board the plane with his teammates, Jason, and Adam.”

  “And?”

  Conner cleared his throat again. Michael didn’t like the feeling of doom that settled over him as he stepped from the elevator into the noisy lobby. The doorman flagged him a cab.

  “Erin Sinclair is the traitor we were worried about,” Conner stated. “Alex and Xavier are in the process of trying to capture her. Apparently, there’s another team in play—freelance most likely. I don’t have any details on that yet.”

  “And Amy?”

  He knew the answer before Conner said it. She was dead—killed by someone they trusted. Conner explained how it happened in detail, but it didn’t really matter. Michael knew what if felt like to lose someone under his command. Even if they knew what they signed on for, no one expects to die.

  “I’ll be at the airport in about an hour,” Michael groaned as he craned his neck to see the afternoon traffic as it stacked up.

  Music, like a full orchestra, floated down the hallway at them. Becker sent Marcus and the others to get the trucks and meet Payne out front. Tomas and Xavier backed him and Alex up. They moved down either side of the wide hallway in pairs. They closed and locked doors that were not already secured, if they could.

  Xavier marked the rooms they’d checked with an X in chalk. Tomas followed close behind him, watching their backs. He seemed nervous, in an excited sort of way. She remembered a timid and kind man who had been replaced by a priest turned vampire. He prayed over them before they set fire to his mentor. He’d said a prayer over the building as it burned with him inside.

  Now, as he held a gun at their backs, she wondered if he still knew a prayer or two.

  The music grew in volume and intensity as they reached the double doors of the ballroom. Strings and brass instruments fought for the lead in the piece. Alex didn’t recognize it. She was not a classical music fan. Suddenly, it stopped.

  “Tomas,” Becker whispered. “Stay here. Shoot anybody who comes at you.”

  He nodded as he held up his weapon.

  Inside, they found more broken furniture scattered around the enormous room, tables turned on their sides. A crystal chandelier hung overhead. Harsh, white light splashed a wide circle in the center of the dance floor. The three of them kept to the shadows on one side. Movement in the darkness on the other side of the dance floor prompted them to raise their weapons all together at once.

  “You made it,” they heard Erin giggle as she stepped from the dark into the harsh circle of light. “And you brought friends.”

  Alex stepped into the light, Erin’s weapon still drawn on her. “And so did you, I see.”

  Creed and Coop slid into the light as well. Coop smiled and winked at Alex. His vampireness was beautiful. Everything about him was intensified.

  When Xavier stepped up next to Alex, his finger hovered over the trigger. He was wound so tight that the slightest sound would set him off. He clearly had his sights set on Erin. Singular and cold, his stare seemed to bore right through her.

  “Damn,” Coop harped. “I thought you were dead.”

  Becker stepped up to his group and smiled. “Look who’s talkin’.”

  Becker and Coop laughed while the others stood there. Alex shifted her focus from Erin to Creed. He looked and smelled different, like in Vegas. She could feel the mental blocks in place so she didn’t even try to push past them.

  “Good girl,” Creed purred in her direction.

  “Is this the devil you mentioned, Coop?” Alex grinned. “You know, right after he put a bullet through your chest?”

  “Better the one you kn
ow, right?” Coop replied. “Besides, look at me now! Good as new.”

  Alex nodded. She glanced back and Tomas was still at the door. But now he looked scared and ready to run.

  “So now what?” Coop smiled. “You try to take us in?”

  “Nope,” Alex answered. “Which one of you killed Matt?”

  Creed and Coop glanced at each and laughed. Becker took a small step forward.

  “We could just take you both to the Pack, I guess,” Becker replied with a scratch of his beard. “I mean, neither one of you will beat Lucas.”

  “If you want me,” Coop growled. His new fangs extended fully and his well-proportioned arms bulked even more. “You know what you can try to do.”

  Alex felt a familiar twinge deep inside. Her scalp tingled and her muscles tightened. She wasn’t sure how much of her power she could unleash and not give away her secret. To her surprise, it wasn’t Creed’s anger she felt crawl up her spine from across the scuffed dance floor. It wasn’t Coop’s jealousy, which she could feel all around his still-changing body, that caused her hair to stand on end either.

  All of the anger and pure hatred she felt driving into her body from across the space between them was Erin’s. It spiked every time Alex moved or spoke or blinked.

  “That sounds like a dare,” Becker grinned, shaking off his heavy jacket and his shoulder holster. “I’ve been hoping to kick your ass since that training session in Utah.”

  “Yeah,” Coop laughed as he popped his knuckles. “I did kinda sucker punch you, but you could take it then.” He shrugged. “Now you’re just an average joe. I can smell your body aging from here,” he frowned and spat on the dirty floor.

  Before anyone could blink, Coop reached back, pulled a long shiny blade from underneath his leather jacket and let it go. It planted itself in Becker’s left shoulder. The power from the throw knocked Becker off his feet.

  A shot rang out before Alex or Xavier had time to react. Tomas sent two rounds straight up. Both shots clipped the tenuous wires that held the old chandelier in place above them. It crashed down—right on top of Coop. That gave Tomas time to reach Becker.

  “Get him out of here,” Alex ordered. One quick jerk and Tomas pulled the blade from Becker’s shoulder. He howled in pain. “Get to the plane!”

  Becker protested, but Tomas pulled him toward the exit anyway. As she turned back, Erin charged full force. They sailed through the air. Alex felt her back bounce off the floor, then she slid over the dirty hardwood with Erin’s hands around her neck. They took out a group of chairs like a double sized bowling ball as it made a strike.

  Erin grunted and growled as Alex easily removed her hands and catapulted her back toward Xavier and Creed, whose battle had begun as well. Alex jumped to her feet as Erin crawled from a pile of crumpled tables. Her eyes were wild with hate. Blood leaked from a cut just above her left brow. The feeling of blood tracing down her face angered her even more.

  The windows along the far wall were busted. Some black-out drapes hung haphazardly over a few of them, but the snow still jumped into the room on the wind as it howled outside. A storm.

  Great time for a freaking storm, Alex thought.

  Erin had ditched her uniform. That was a big mistake.

  Alex and Xavier wouldn’t have to battle the temperature as it fell like Erin would. On the supplements, she must have felt invincible. That was a big mistake too.

  Alex dropped her jacket. She wouldn’t actually need it. This uniform worked with or without it.

  As Erin’s anger spiked, Alex could smell her body as it rejected the chemicals. The first clue was her shiny brow. The sweat on her upper lip glistened. The reaction seemed to escalate as her temper did. Alex had to use this to her advantage.

  Erin was not going to make it without another dose or two. Alex, however, felt stronger than ever. She took a deep breath and straightened her posture.

  “They told me I was better than you,” Erin groaned. “Younger, stronger! Everything you are not!”

  She took a swing and missed. But her roundhouse sent Alex back a couple of steps. There was some power behind it and Alex was impressed. She tried two more kicks, which Alex easily blocked. Alex clocked her with two quick jabs and Erin was on her ass again.

  “You should probably stay down,” Alex suggested as she pushed up her sleeve. She knew Erin wouldn’t stay down. She knew Erin’s sole purpose in life, at this moment, was to kill her. It wouldn’t hurt to convince her . . .

  Erin jumped to her feet with blinding speed. The punches they traded, the kicks and other Taekwondo moves they performed, lit a fire in Alex that she hadn’t felt in a very long time. Every time she landed a solid punch or executed a perfect backflip to avoid one from Erin, she felt her blood pick up speed. Then her ego got the better of her. She miscalculated and missed a right hook. Erin’s booted right foot slammed into her left side and she felt two ribs crack.

  “You should probably stay down,” Erin mocked her as her knees hit the floor.

  The next thing she felt was Erin’s hand grab her by the hair and pull her to her feet again. The pain from her side shot through her in vicious strikes. When Erin’s fist bounced off the spot again, she screamed. It mixed with Xavier’s howl of pain as she saw Creed practically drop kick him through an exit door.

  “Xavier!”

  Alex bent forward and flipped Erin over her back with her full strength. Her body hit the floor so hard she could have sworn the floor boards cracked. When Alex dropped her fist on her abs, Erin released a hard breath. It smoked from between her puckered lips. Before she could regroup, Alex picked her up by her neck, and, as she pressed her left elbow into her own side, she slammed Erin back down with enough force to make an impression on the hardwood.

  Her next move was to put her fist through her face, but Erin rolled away. Alex’s fist bounced off the wood and her index finger snapped. She snapped it back in place even as pain rumbled up her arm. Her body, as it healed, sent spikes of pain through her.

  Another scream, either Xavier or Creed, took her attention for a few seconds. That was long enough for Erin’s quick left jab to snap her head back hard enough to blur her vision. When Erin tried to sweep her feet, Alex was surprised that she was able to jump out of the way with her head still spinning. She landed on a pile of sturdy debris directly behind her. It was balanced enough to keep her upright.

  Erin gave her a nod of approval. Alex jumped down so that her body was at an angle to Erin. From that vantage point, she was able to catch Erin by the ankle while she swung her leg out. With all of her strength, Alex pulled Erin toward her and planted her right knee in her gut as hard as she could. With Erin’s lungs emptied, she took hold of her belt with her left hand and her neck with her right and lifted Erin from the floor. She only had a few seconds before the pain in her side would buckle her knees again. As if Erin was a bag of trash, Alex threw her halfway across the room. She landed on top of a pile of tables with a loud crash.

  In less time than she had hoped, Erin was back on her feet. She threw a chair then charged her again. Erin came headfirst at Alex. She drove deep into her stomach and Alex’s feet left the floor. Again, they were airborne. This time, they only stopped because of the wall. Its already warped and weak plaster caved when Alex crashed into it. Almost the entire wall crumbled around them when they came to an abrupt halt.

  Erin took her by the front of her shirt and bounced her off the frame inside until it broke. More plaster fell around her and she breathed in the sheetrock dust. Alex forced her foot between them and pushed. Erin lost her grip and stumbled backward. Alex coughed and untangled herself from the rubble. When she could breathe again, Erin was already on her feet.

  This time, the flurry of Erin’s kicks sent her backward until she had no other choice but to let some of them land just to bring Erin close enough to grab hold of. The pain was excruciating, but Alex ha
d her right where she needed her to be.

  “Don’t make me do this,” Alex huffed and coughed.

  “Do what?” Erin coughed as well, but she coughed up blood, not sheetrock dust. She wiped at her mouth then looked at her hand. It was covered in the blackest blood Alex had ever seen. She laughed as she wiped her hand on her jeans. “Kill me? I’m winning, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

  From too far away for Alex to help, she heard glass break and a howl of pain. At this distance, she couldn’t even recognize who was in pain and who was the cause of it. It was time to end this.

  She didn’t know what Erin had expected, but Alex jumped straight up and planted both feet in Erin’s chest. The surprise on her face as she soared through empty space was worth the pain as Alex landed on her left side. The noise Erin made as she demolished the already trashed furniture in her path echoed for a few minutes. Bats that had taken refuge in the rafters scattered above them.

  She noticed the struggle it took for Erin to get to her feet again. She also noticed the presence of a sweet candy smell, just like with Coop. But it wasn’t just Erin’s sweat she smelled. The odor was doubled because Alex’s body had begun to change too. She’d felt it, but she just thought it was her healing abilities kicking in. But maybe it wasn’t.

  The pain to her right thigh was sudden and sharp. She looked down to see a piece of metal lodged there. The wound immediately began to itch and burn, so she yanked it free.

  “Won’t do you any good,” Erin sighed and coughed up more blood. “The poison’s already in your system now.”

  A rush of anger flooded Alex’s body. Without a second thought, she and Erin traded hard punches again, but this time Alex didn’t hold back. She let all of her power go. If she was going to die from some poison, she wouldn’t be the only one. Erin grunted and howled as Alex unleashed a blinding series of kicks and jabs to her face and body. Her brain kept saying stop, but her muscles wouldn’t listen.