Deceptive Changes: Kat LaMond Book 1

by R A Baker

  Haven answered, “I have.” I swung my eyes to his and found that they were ice blue. I cringed and backed into a corner.

  “Why are you all skittish, Katja-love?”

  I swung me eyes to Thorn and said, “Because, um, eew.” They chuckled and backed off a few feet.

  Todd saved me. “Back off, guys. She doesn’t want to do this right now.”

  They turned to Todd and looked at him. Todd’s jaw set firmer and lifted a fraction of an inch. Thorn and Sven backed down and flashed smiles at me as they walked away.

  I walked over to Todd and curled into him. “Haven’t you guys been around women before?”

  They rolled their eyes. “Yes, love.”

  I sighed. “Then why so interested now?”

  Thorn flashed fangs. “You’re ours, they weren’t.”

  I made a disgusted face. “This is so damn gross. Really, you shouldn’t even try to smell anything for the next few days.”

  They laughed and rolled their eyes again. “You are so squeamish, love.”

  I nodded. “Yes, I am, damn it. Let’s leave this conversation for a faraway time because…eww.”

  Haven appeared by my side. I gasped and pushed into Todd. He pulled me tighter into him and looked at Haven over my head. I was looking at Haven too. “You shouldn’t be so uncomfortable, Katja.”

  I frowned. “Why shouldn’t I be uncomfortable? You guys are telling me, um…” I stopped talking because the whole thing was making me gag.

  I pushed away from Todd, holding my hand in front of my mouth, and walked out of the kitchen. I was halfway to the bathroom when my stomach settled down. I breathed deeply and leaned against the dining room wall before sinking to the floor. I laid my head on my knees and breathed deeply.

  Haven walked over to me slowly and sat down beside me. He wound his arm around my shoulders. “You shouldn’t be so disgusted by this. Relish that you’re human, Katja.” His voice was solemn and a little sad.

  “I wish there was a way to be human, a woman, and not have to have this without taking the equipment,” I said softly and with longing.

  He chuckled softly and kissed the top of my head. “You don’t want children?”

  I looked at him, perplexed, and shook my head. “I can’t have any, actually.”

  “I’m sorry, Katja.” He seemed to be truly saddened by that fact.

  “Don’t be. I got over it a long time ago. Todd actually helped a lot with keeping me sane about not being able to bear children.”

  “What happened?” Such an innocent question which should have had a simple answer but I hesitated. It wasn’t a horrible story, nothing like Sven or Thorn’s story, but it was my story.

  I snuggled closer and said, “I don’t know if I was always barren or not but I found out after I got out of the military and married Todd. We had been like we are now, loving and always around each other. We talked about starting a family. When we threw condoms and birth control out the window and still didn’t get pregnant, I went to see the doctor. They said, ‘It’ll take some time’. So we tried for a year and still nothing. Finally, I called on some fertility docs and scheduled a round of tests on both Todd and myself. The tests showed that Todd was just fine, his little guys were active as heck but my body wasn’t so good. I had a lot of damage inside that no doctor ever told me about.” I stopped speaking and let the memories invade my head.

  I spoke quietly as I described the memories to Haven, “Todd and I were sitting in the doctor’s office, waiting to hear about me. The doctor came in with a stack of papers and x-rays. He walked over to me and put a hand on my shoulder. I remember looking up at him with hope and the expression I saw in his face was sadness. I was a lot wimpier than I am now because I turned into Todd and started to cry. He held me until I settled down and let the doctor explain. The doctor couldn’t explain the damage; he couldn’t tell me more than I was barren and would never be able to have children. Todd asked if there was any way to repair the damage and the doc shook his head. ‘Your wife, Mr. Jenkins, has too much scar tissue built around her ovaries, I’m sorry to say, to salvage any eggs.’ I remember being angry because I had wanted to bring a life into this crap world that was the product of our love.

  “We left the doctor’s office and Todd was perfectly calm about the whole thing, a strong shoulder to lean on. I wasn’t. I was a wreck. I threw myself into my work and neglected Todd and my life. I lost some weight and wasn’t at all healthy. I was lucky if I ate once a day.” I chuckled at the memory of Todd. “One day, Todd pulled me aside before I could go to work and kissed me, hard and passionately. I remember fighting him. I didn’t think I was worthy of his love. I didn’t deserve to be in his life. The kiss was everything it should have been, filled with love and hope. He pulled back from me and whispered, ‘I love you no matter what, Kat. So what? We can’t have children. Like that’s such a bad thing. I see the crime out there. I deal with the deaths of little, helpless, children. I don’t want that for my children, our children’.

  “After that day, we went to counseling and I worked out that I was still worthy of Todd’s love but our relationship had faltered. I was deeply involved in my work and so was he. We hardly saw each other, like two ships passing in the dark. We talked about it and found that we would divorce.” I looked up and saw that Todd had come into the hall. He had tears in his eyes.

  I blinked the tears from my eyes and continued, “We stayed in touch and once in a while we had dinner and sometimes more than dinner. We still loved each other and didn’t want to lose the bond we had formed.” I chuckled. “We actually saw a lot more of each other when we weren’t married. And then this whole Antreas…” Haven sucked in a breath at the mention of the dead king. “This whole vampire thing happened and now look at us? Happily in a seven-sided triangle. There you go, my story.” Haven leaned his head against my shoulder and whispered sweet nothings into my ear. I chuckled and kissed his cheek. I extricated from Haven, stood up, and went to Todd.

  “Are you okay, Todd?”

  He nodded and pulled me into his arms. “I hadn’t thought about that for a long while. I didn’t think you would remember.”

  I nuzzled his neck and said, “Of course I remember. I especially remember the weeks before we divorced and our times together after.” I turned into him and kissed his neck. “I’ve always loved you, Todd. I’m sorry that I was such a wimp about it.” I was getting emotional again.

  “You dealt with it the only way you knew how, babe.” He kissed my head. I felt a drop of water hit my cheek and looked up. He had tears silently running down his face.

  Thorn and Sven came up to us and wrapped their arms around Todd and me. A few moments later Haven, Trace, and Erick walked up and gave us hugs.

  Todd pushed them back and pulled me with him to our bedroom. He pulled me onto his lap when he sat on the chair in the sitting area.

  “Why did you tell Haven?”

  I frowned, again. “I told him because he asked. I’m not going to hide something when each of them has told me a little painful history in their lives.”

  “Haven hasn’t told you anything about his life.”

  I smiled. “I haven’t asked for real. I figure he’ll tell me when he’s ready. I was ready to tell mine, even though it involved you.”

  “I wish you hadn’t ripped the scab off this wound, Kat.” I didn’t understand his reticence to talk about our life with Haven.

  “What do you mean?”

  “It took a long while, even after we divorced, to come to terms with this.” I hadn’t realized that he had taken it as hard as I had, if not harder.

  “Why didn’t you ever say anything?”

  “I figured I should be strong for you and after a while you were happy and I didn’t want to ruin that hard won happiness.” His voice was so soft and filled with pain that my heart broke at the sound of it.

  “I’m so sorry, Todd. I didn’t know.” I kissed him softly, running my hand through his longish hair.
<
br />   “How could you know, Kat?” he asked when we separated. “I never told you. I didn’t ever want you to know.” He leaned his head on my chest and breathed deeply.

  “Why did you take it so hard?” I had to know. Was it because of how hard I had taken it? Was it because he desperately wanted children?

  “I wanted you to have children, our children. I wanted you to be happy and have the life you always wanted.”

  “Why didn’t you marry someone who could give you children?”

  “I didn’t want another woman to have my children, Kat, only you.” He kissed my neck and pressed his lips against my chin. I dipped my head and kissed him tenderly.

  I pulled back slowly and said, “Why didn’t we stay married?”

  He chuckled and said, “I’ve always wondered that but I’m glad things turned out the way they did. I would never have met the people I have or had the relationships that I have now.”

  I hadn’t asked about his relationships after me, I’d always been too frightened of the answer, but I wasn’t now. “Did you see other women after our divorce?”

  He chuckled and said, “I didn’t. Women approached me but I’d turn them down. Besides, we were still seeing each other, sort of.”

  “Oh.” He grinned and lifted an eyebrow. “I just thought you would have dated other women. You’re a very sexy, yummy, man.”

  He laughed and rolled his eyes. “Thanks, babe, but no. You’re all I ever wanted and still want.” A flash of doubt and guilt went through me. He saw it and qualified it with, “Woman, Kat. You’re the only woman I will ever want.”

  I leaned close to his ear and asked, “Do you feel like I’m cheating on you?”

  He shook his head. “No, Kat. If I thought that then I’d be cheating, too.” Heat flashed through me as I remembered his time with the guys. “You didn’t date, either.” He stated it but I answered.

  “No. I was too busy and I was seeing you, off and on.” I couldn’t explain the desperate love I felt for him.

  I got off his lap and wandered around the room. I wasn’t the same person I had been three years previous. I had changed a great deal. I’ve killed people, albeit undead people, but people nonetheless.

  My thoughts were interrupted when my cell phone rang. “Hello?”

  “Kat, its Starla.”

  “Hey. What’s up?”

  “I was wondering, Sal told me you had that big house still, and, uh…” She paused.

  “Did you need to use it, Starla?”

  “Would it be too much to ask?”

  I chuckled. “No, it isn’t. You can use the house. Give me a few hours to make sure it’s clean and then you can move in.” I didn’t want to know why she needed the house and she didn’t explain.

  “Thanks, Kat.”

  I mumbled, “You’re welcome,” and hung up the phone.

  I told Todd about Starla’s request as I changed into jeans and a t-shirt. The vampires must have told Trace and Erick because they came into the room and changed. “You’re going with me?”

  “Of course, Kat. We aren’t going to leave you alone.”

  I left the room because I didn’t want to see their gorgeous bodies and be distracted before I got the house fixed up for Starla.

  Thorn, Sven, and Haven were already in jeans and t-shirts and ready to go. Todd walked up behind me and kissed behind my ear. I shivered and turned to hug him. “Ready to go?” I asked against his lips. He kissed me then nodded.

  Trace and Erick came out of the bedroom. I stared at them. Erick’s wavy brown hair was tied back in a ponytail that gave him the appearance of having short hair and his green eyes were sparkling. Trace’s blue-y grey eyes were striking against the blue-grey shirt. I took in a sharp breath as they walked up to Todd and me. I think I moaned because they beamed at me and kissed my cheeks. I turned in Todd’s arms and watched them walk away. I took a deep breath and looked up at Todd. He was watching the two as they walked up to Sven and Thorn.

  I stopped them from doing anything that would keep us here with, “Ready to go?” They turned from the two vampires and nodded.

  >< ><

  We left the house and Todd drove us over to the other house. It wasn’t far but we didn’t feel like walking, more specifically I didn’t feel like walking. The three vampires would probably have beaten us if they’d decided to run over.

  We piled out of the truck and walked into the house. It had been cleaned recently and just needed airing out. We opened windows in the big bedroom and the kitchen, sitting room, and what used to be my office. I stopped as the memories of me sleeping in this room came back. I was glad I no longer lived in this big house. I was much happier in the small house that we lived in now.

  I called Starla and left a voicemail saying the house was ready for whenever they wanted to move in. I clicked the phone shut and walked out of the house.

  Cyril and a bunch of his goons walked around the side of the house. “Cyril,” I said. I had no weapons. I stepped back and a vampire I hadn’t seen grabbed me around the waist, pinning my arms at my side. I screamed and kicked the vampire in his shin.

  “Your men can’t help you now, slayer,” Cyril said as he laughed, more like chortled but whichever. I struggled against the big vampire’s iron embrace.

  “What did you do to them?”

  “Nothing. Yet.” His eyes got that sadistic glow to them.

  My heart thudded in my neck. “Are you just going to talk to me or are we going to fight?”

  “Oh, no, we aren’t going to fight. I just needed to know how off guard you are and I found you amazingly off guard. Your men will be returned to you as soon as I bleed you, slayer.” I gulped and struggled harder. He walked up to me and put his hand on my face. I turned my head away from his hand. “Oh, my.” He sniffed me and laughed happily, crazily. “I’m going to enjoy this. Why don’t we bring your men out?” He snapped his fingers and my men were dragged from behind the house, bloody and bruised, by big vampires. Tears popped out of my eyes as I looked at their faces. Sven and Thorn were fighting hard against the big vampires that had them. I didn’t see Haven, maybe he had escaped.

  Cyril took my neck in his cool hand and brought his lips to mine. I grimaced and he kissed my teeth. I opened my mouth to bite his lips but he had moved back. “Oh, I’m going to enjoy this as much as I enjoyed taking Thorn in front of Sven.” I hissed and clenched my teeth. “He’s told you, has he?” I didn’t say anything.

  Sven was shouting and cursing Cyril. I flicked my eyes to him and shook my head. It was no use. I was going to take my punishment and hope to find a way out of it before he did horrible damage to me.

  I wiggled around to see if I could find any weapons on the big vampire that had a hold of me. I felt a knife on the left side. I groaned and moved my body. I could feel the vampire loosen his grip. Cyril had turned his back on me and was rehashing the past with Sven and Thorn. I could see the pain Cyril’s words were causing.

  I wiggled a little more and the vampire’s hold loosened further. I breathed deeply and turned into him. His black eyes were surprised. I grabbed the knife and stabbed him, twisting the blade. He hadn’t had a moment to squeak or make a sound to alert Cyril. The vampires that were holding my men shouted in surprise. I turned abruptly and stabbed Cyril. Unfortunately it was on his right side and did minimal damage. I pulled the blade out as I twirled around and caught a vampire that had tried to sneak up on me.

  The surprise was enough for Sven and Thorn to break the bad guys’ hold on them and take them out. They were gunning for Cyril. I let them do their thing. I was just trying to stay alive long enough to make sure my human men were alive.

  Haven appeared out of thin air. “About time,” I muttered. He chuckled and shoved his fist through the vampire’s chest that I had been fighting. The vampire looked down at me in surprise and fell forward, dead.

  I turned and found that Sven and Thorn had Cyril by the arms. Cyril was on his knees and his arms were held back at odd angl
es. The other vampires that we hadn’t killed took off as soon as Thorn and Sven had captured Cyril.

  I walked over to my guys and helped them up. Todd had a big gash on his forehead and blood was running down his face. Haven came over and gave them each a little blood, healing their wounds.

  When all were healed we stood in front of Cyril. I still had the blade but it was of no use to me. Sven and Thorn were going to take their revenge on Cyril, we were only going to keep watch and make sure Cyril didn’t escape. Cyril glared at me and I just smiled. I looked at my guys and found them smiling as well. The smiles weren’t exactly happy, more a wild smile than anything else. Cyril stopped glaring and fear took its place.

  “Have at him, Sven, Thorn. We’ll keep our eyes open for anything else. Make sure he’s dead before we leave.” The hard edge to my voice startled me. They took Cyril into the house. Todd walked over to me and kissed me.

  I pulled back and called Starla. “Hey, Starla. Uh, the house isn’t ready. I lied earlier.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  My heart faltered. “Um, nothing. Never mind. Talk with you later on.” I clicked the phone shut and ran into the house. I found the guys in the sitting room. Sven was beating the shit out of Cyril. The others followed a few moments later. I had to make sure that Cyril died. It was the only way, hopefully, to free Starla from the vampire’s hold.

  I stepped back to Haven and asked him. “Yes, the only way will be for that vampire to die.” I nodded. Good.

  I turned back and watched as Sven hit Cyril again and again, blood flying everywhere. Sven called Haven over. Haven held Cyril as Sven walked over to me. His eyes were cobalt and not happy. I cringed. “Don’t be afraid of me, Katja. I am going to ask for your blood though.” I nodded. He took my wrist and bit me. He took enough to color his skin pink and walked back over to Cyril.

  Sven ripped Cyril’s shirt to pieces and clawed his chest. I grimaced as blood flowed from the claw marks. Thorn snapped off a piece of the windowsill and stabbed Cyril in the stomach. Cyril screamed as Thorn ripped the wood out of Cyril so viciously that his stomach was opened.