Tattoos and Cupcakes (Amulet of Queens Book 1)

by Everly Taylor

  A knock on the door had us all turning. I got up to answer it, letting in one of the others from our clan. He looked between us, a panicked look on his face, finally settling on me. “Jordan needs you now.”

  “Fuck, I’m coming. Jordan is with Sam, this can’t be good,” I explained, leaving the room with them on my heels.

  Not bothering to knock we entered the room to find Sam propped on a chair, her fangs bared at Jordan, ready to take him on.

  I wasn’t sure exactly how to approach this, we hadn’t turned anyone in longer than I could remember, and everyone we had back then already knew what we were. “Sam, what are you doing up there?”

  She shot her head around to me, the bloodred ring around her irises highlighting her eyes.

  “Who the fuck are you people?” she shouted.

  Damien stepped forward. “Hey Sam, remember me?” He tried a smile, his hands out in a placating gesture while at the same time using small amounts of his persuasion on her, something he very rarely did.

  “What the fuck are you? What the fuck did you do to me?” she asked, reaching up and touching her own fangs, pricking her finger, and making blood well to the surface.

  “Sam, we didn’t do this to you, we rescued you and Lena after someone took you,” Damien replied, still focusing on her.

  “What the hell do you mean took us? If you rescued both of us then why isn’t Lena in here with me?” She glanced between us wanting answers.

  “We were hoping you could tell us what happened. The three of us only arrived after the fact and rescued you,” I said.

  “Where’s Lena?” she asked warily, slowly starting to come down from her perch.

  “She’s resting in another room at the moment, she’s safe here, as are you,” Damien added from next to me.

  “You don’t want her around me because of what I am, do you? How the hell is this even fucking possible?” she inquired, panic starting to rise in her voice as she looked at her finger.

  “I’m sure Lena can handle being around you, but that’s not why. She’s just sleeping at the moment and needs to rest,” I answered honestly. After seeing exactly what Selena had handled, I knew a freshly turned vampire would be no match for her. “We also don’t know how this happened, but we are going to find out,” I reassured her, taking over where Damien had left off.

  “What, what am I now?” As she stared intently at me, I could see why Lena was friends with this one. Underneath that soft, bubbly demeanor she was as tough as Lena, ready to face whatever without the bullshit.

  “You’re a vampire, Sam,” I stated bluntly, with my eyes still locked on her so she would know and accept the truth.

  She dropped into the chair, sagging against it while looking at her feet.

  It looks like you have this handled, so we’re going back to Lena. Call if you need us, Adrien informed me as they exited the room.

  “Vampires aren’t even fucking real, they are like myths or some shit to scare kids. Made up characters to put on cereal boxes,” she rambled, still in disbelief even with the evidence in front of her, or rather sticking out of her face.

  “We are very much real, I assure you. And as much fun as it would be to have my face on a cereal box I’ll pass.” I smirked at her, hoping to lighten the mood a little. “Anyways, most good stories have to come with some shred of truth. In this case vampires really do exist, and now you’re one of us.”

  She let out a short laugh. “So what, I have to kill people now if I want to live? I would rather be back in that mansion dead,” she stated firmly.

  “No Sam, you don’t have to kill people. In fact we don’t ever kill people, and we make it our goal to do the exact opposite. We need humans to survive, but we make sure in doing so we give them something in return.” I felt a tug through our connection, Valentina was asking us to meet with her.

  “We will have more time to talk later, for now I have to go take care of some things to ensure that you and Lena stay safe. Jordan will protect you and answer any questions you have, okay?” I asked again, using a bit of my own persuasion to reassure her that everything would be alright.

  “No funny business?” Sam asked, eyeing Jordan who was leaning against the opposite wall.

  He gave a short laugh and put his hands up. “No funny business.”

  “Alright, where are you going?” she asked as I opened the door.

  “Just down the hall, Jordan can send someone to get us if you need anything. We’ll be back in a little while to check on you. For now try to get your questions answered as best as you can with Jordan, then feed and get some rest. Being changed takes its toll on a human.” I shut the door behind me, heading for Valentina’s room.

  She must have heard we were back and wanted updates, although we didn’t have much to give her. Now it seemed like we had more questions that actual answers and it was driving me nuts. A lot of this hinged on Sam remembering what happened to her during the change, which was very rare. Also, we wouldn’t know if Lena would be able to give any valuable information from the time she was held captive until she woke up.

  I knocked on Valentina’s door, entering at her command.

  I had honestly expected her to call us before now wanting updates, but I realized quickly though why she had not.

  Valentina sat propped in her bed against the cushions, once again looking extremely ill. She gestured to us to take a seat next to her as she always did. “I know you are all probably wondering about my deteriorated condition again,” she began, as the other two took seats next to her, with me choosing to stand against the wall.

  None of us were exactly sure what to say, but knew she called us here for a reason, so we waited for her to continue. “I knew that the amulet had already bonded with Selena, I could feel the connection between the two when I met her for the first time. It was my hope that even given that link, the amulet would still respond to me and provide protection for our clan.

  “When I bled on the amulet it did respond to me as I had hoped it would. What I didn’t count on is Selena’s power. She has somehow been able to draw from the amulet, vast amounts of power at a time, draining it much faster than I had been prepared for.

  “Earlier this evening there were several times I felt a drain but nothing too significant. Then not too long ago it was as if all of the power from the amulet was gone, and I reverted back to this state. Please tell me that one of you knows something.” She looked between us, waiting for an explanation.

  “Damien and Aldrich informed you that Selena was taken earlier tonight with the amulet?” Adrien started. When she nodded he continued, “We traced them back to a mansion Sylred has possession of on the outskirts of the city. When we were finally able to locate her, she had already taken down Sylred and the men that were with her in the room.” Her eyes widened in surprise, and she knew just as well as I did how powerful Sylred was and what this would mean for us all.

  “How?” Valentina demanded.

  “We have no idea, when I got there the amulet was glowing around her and everyone had already collapsed on the floor, when I walked in she collapsed also. That is all of the information we have so far, we’re waiting for her to wake up so we can find out more,” Adrien explained.

  “Alright, I’m just glad you got her and the amulet back safely. The rest can wait,” Valentina said, resting her head against the pillows.

  “That’s actually not everything.” I knew she wouldn’t like it but we had to tell her. Stepping away from the wall I added, “She had a friend with her when they were taken, we found her at the house also.”

  “Okay, if you brought her back here that’s fine, we need to protect Selena’s friends as well.” Valentina looked confused why this would be an issue.

  “She was dead when I picked her up, Valentina,” I told her.

  “Oh, well that could change things, couldn’t it? So I’m assuming she is in transition right now?” she inquired.

  “Yeah, she freaked out a bit at first, but she
settled down and Jordan’s with her now with instructions to come find us if anything is needed.”

  “Jordan is a good choice, he has a calm head on his shoulders and will hopefully help keep her relaxed during her change while she adjusts. Any idea what happened?” Valentina asked.

  “Not really, I figured questioning her can wait. We kind of need to get her through this stage first, and then we can try to see what she knows,” I replied.

  “Agreed. Does Selena know yet?”

  “No, she’s still unconscious. I’m not so sure it will be best to tell her right away,” Damien said.

  “After what she went through in that house I don’t think it’s a good idea either. We’ll let her know Sam is here and safe, but I think until she processes everything it’s better to wait,” Adrien added.

  “You three know her best, do what you think is right as far as that’s concerned. Are there any other updates?” she asked.

  “That’s it for now, we’ll keep you posted my queen,” I replied knowing she would want to stay in the loop on this.

  “Please see that you do. Leave me now while I rest,” she commanded, so we all stood and bowed before leaving her room.

  Back at Selena’s side we all sat thoughtfully for a moment. “What do you think this is going to mean for Selena?” Adrien pondered, breaking the silence.

  “I’m not really sure.” I shook my head, emphasizing that I had no clue. “I can only hope that she decides to accept who she is after everything she has been through.”

  They all nodded in agreement and fell back into silence, each one of us lost in our own thoughts as we waited for her to wake up.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Selena

  I blinked my eyes open, the light filtering in through my eyelids as I squinted, trying to discern where I was. The last thing I remembered was a large explosion of light before I collapsed. Feeling the soft comforter over me was a huge step from being chained to the wall, so it couldn’t be that bad wherever I was.

  My arms still ached from holding them in the same position for so long, and my other muscles were sore though I couldn’t tell from what. I shifted my arms as I tried to sit myself up, but found I was still a little weak. Movement at my side caught my attention. Turning my head and willing my eyes open again, I saw Adrien sitting there with his head in his hands, staring at his feet. Damien and Aldrich also stood in the room lost in thought.

  “Hey guys.” My voice was scratchy, but all three of them came rushing over to the side of my bed.

  “Selena, you’re awake,” Adrien said, reaching for a glass of water sitting next to the table, and handing it to me after the other two helped me sit up.

  I took a deep drink of the water and my throat burned, but I didn’t care. “Damn, if I knew I would get this kind of treatment I would have gotten chained up sooner,” I teased and took another drink of water.

  “We would treat you like this regardless, Cupcake,” Adrien replied, taking the water from me and putting it back on the stand.

  “How are you feeling?” Aldrich asked.

  “A little sore, but fine. How did you guys find me?” I inquired, wondering how they had actually been able to find us. “Wait, Sam! Oh God!” I sat forward in the bed, swinging my legs around as tears started pouring down my cheeks.

  Aldrich reached over and took my hand, “Lena, Sam is fine,” he reassured me gently.

  “She’s not Aldrich, I saw him kill her with my own eyes. Sylred drank her blood and threw her to the ground, her body was dragged out by his men,” I cried, they had to listen to me, this guy was a monster and had killed my best friend, they needed to know how dangerous he was.

  They all looked at each other for a minute. “I don’t know exactly what happened in that room, but he didn’t kill her, Lena,” Adrien insisted. “We found her when we found you and brought her back with us. She’s had a lot of blood loss, that’s for sure, and is weak, but she’s in the other room recovering.”

  “There’s no way, I saw her. I saw what he did to her, she was dead, Adrien.” I stared at him in disbelief, although hope had started to glimmer through the sadness. Could Sam really be okay?

  “I promise she’s okay Lena,” Damien said sitting next to me on the bed, and resting his hand on my thigh. “We wouldn’t lie to you, she’s okay, just recovering.” His hand was warm on my skin, comforting and I knew that these three wouldn’t lead me on.

  Straightening on the bed, I studied them for a minute. “Take me to see her please, I have to know for myself.” I started to push off from the bed, but Damien’s hand lightly held me in place.

  “Look Lena, it might not be such a good idea for you to see her just yet. She’s resting and recovering, maybe wait until she wakes up later? We have one of our best guys sitting in with her, with instructions to come get us if anything changes.” He lightly squeezed my thigh, reassuring me that she was okay.

  “If you’re sure she’s okay? She’s not hurt or anything?” I asked. I felt bad letting them insist I stay in bed, but I trusted them completely, they had, after all, come and rescued us. I had no reason to do otherwise. They had been doing that from the day they walked into my life it seemed.

  “She is completely safe here Lena,” Aldrich reassured, leaning once more against the wall. He tried to remain distant and cool, but I could tell he had feelings in there somewhere.

  “Okay, I’ll trust you,” I acquiesced. Now that I knew Sam was safe I needed answers, ones they had seemed to be quite good at avoiding. “So do you want to tell me how you found us now?” Tilting my head to the side I looked at Adrien, deciding he could start.

  “Well, I went for a walk tonight and ended up in front of your apartment building,” he said, slightly blushing.

  “Kinda stalkerish don’t you think?” I grinned at him. “I mean, I’m grateful you chose tonight to be a creepy stalker, but damn Adrien.”

  He narrowed his eyes at me. “It wasn’t like that Lena, I just went out for a walk, thinking about things and yeah, okay, you. Before I realized it I was standing there looking up at your apartment.” He shrugged as if it was no big deal. I crooked my finger at him telling him to come closer to me.

  Placing a kiss on his cheek I whispered, “Thank you for caring to check on me Adrien.” My words made him grin smugly at the other two.

  “Hey, I checked on you tonight and got kicked out! What the fuck is that about?” Damien laughed next to me.

  “Yeah, well you barged into my apartment and teased me about my weapon of choice. Different story,” I added.

  “Bullshit,” Damien muttered next to me, making us all laugh.

  “Anyways,” Adrien cleared his throat, “so I saw that there was a broken window and went into your apartment to see if you were okay. You obviously weren’t there so we followed your trail to that house. I reached you right when you collapsed in that small room.”

  “We don’t know anything much other than that Lena, we were hoping you could tell us more,” Aldrich said from his spot against the wall.

  “I don’t have much more to tell really. They broke in and drugged us, then brought us wherever. I woke up chained to a wall in that small room. For hours they ignored me completely and then after, I pissed Sylred off because I kept blowing up his men, so he threatened Sam.” My voice caught. “I thought she was dead. There was nothing I could do to stop him.”

  I swallowed hard, willing my tears to recede. Sam was okay, she was safe in the other room. Taking a deep breath I continued, “I was furious at everything, and I couldn’t control it. It was like that light came from inside me instead of the amulet, I don’t know how to explain it. Sylred stood there laughing, like killing my friend hadn’t meant a thing.

  “Then I think I just lost control, the chains snapped and that light exploded from inside of me. All of his men crumpled to the floor along with him. Right after that everything went black until I woke up here.” I knew how crazy I sounded, taking out a group of full grown men with no
thing other than light inside of me. If anyone would believe me it had to be these men, hell, they were vampires.

  “You have no idea how you did it?” Adrien questioned.

  “No. It just happened. It was like in the shop, but it didn’t kill them. Sylred was pissed because I had already killed some of his men, but I couldn’t control it. The one time I thought I might be able to stop it, the amulet killed the guy anyway. Then ‘poof’ dusty vampires at my feet again.” I shrugged, I didn’t want to think about destroying those men, or what that made me.

  “It’s not your fault Lena. You didn’t ask for them to attack you the way they did. The amulet was protecting its queen the way it’s supposed to.” Damien squeezed my thigh again. This time heat spread up my thigh in unexpected excitement. This was not the time to get a lady boner for these guys! Focus.

  “It still doesn’t make it any better,” I grumbled.

  “It’s because you care Lena, that’s what sets you apart from them, that is what makes you different,” Adrien said softly.

  “Maybe.” I still wasn’t convinced about this whole vampire thing, but it was nice to have some people in my corner regardless. I glanced up as Adrien stood, leaning over and kissing me on the forehead.

  “We have to go let Valentina know you’re awake, Cupcake,” he informed me, gently running his thumb over my bottom lip and making me tremble as he moved toward the door.

  Aldrich surprised me by coming up to the bed and laying a chaste kiss on the top of my head. “Get some rest, you deserve it.” Looking slightly embarrassed he headed for the door also.

  As Damien started to stand I grabbed his hand on my thigh. “Can you stay? I don’t exactly want to be by myself yet,” I pleaded, I just didn’t want to be left to my own thoughts and think about that room again for now.

  He looked at the other two next to the door. “We’ll update Valentina, stay with her,” Aldrich replied before leaving the room with Adrien following him.