“How did Michael survive?”
A small noise drew my attention behind Heather. I’d been so focused on the conversation, I didn’t notice the butlers had cleared away the donors, and only two had stayed behind to finish cleaning up.
“Michael worked for a security company, a guard-for-hire when corporate CEO’s or celebrities needed protection. Apparently, at the time of the massacre, Michael was away on a security detail for some foreign executive.”
“That explains his uber-psycho militant attitude.” I snorted and rolled my eyes.
“Yes, well, that uber-psycho is hunting us, Mercy,” Kat said.
“Why us?” I looked at her and Edgar. “If you didn’t kill his family, why is he after your, uh, our clan?”
“We may be on decent terms with most humans we interact with, friends even with some,” Edgar said, smiling at Heather, “but we still attempt to hide our identities. Not all covens know all clans, and not all clans know all covens. It’s safer that way, but Benjamin here had a relationship with a witch from Angelica’s coven.”
“It was a long, long time ago,” Benjamin said wistfully, staring down at the table.
“Because of that, we maintained a tenuous friendship with the coven. Mostly, Kat and I would visit the coven occasionally after Benjamin cut ties, although Julius and Danielle lived at their covenstead for a brief time.”
“They needed my help establishing a new priestess after their previous one passed unexpectedly,” Danielle said, a distant look in her grass green eyes, “suspiciously.”
“I suspected the priest, who had mysteriously disappeared by the time we arrived,” Julius said, his hand rubbing Danielle’s shoulder where it lay with his arm draped over the back of her chair. “I believe he was dealing in the dark arts for the benefit of the local clan, and…”
“Julius,” Edgar said kindly, “I know you suspect Cassandra has some connection to the rogue clan, but we’ve seen no evidence of this.”
“Did I make a mistake?” Heather’s gaze flicked back and forth between the two scowling men, a single crease lined her perfect brow as she bit her bottom lip.
“No, my dear,” Edgar said, soothing her. “You’ve done nothing wrong. When will Cassandra be arriving?”
“She’ll be here before dawn, you’ll have to spend another day here.”
“Your coven won’t mind?” Kat asked, placing her hand gently on top of Heather’s.
“They think I’ve already sent you away.” She started to appear frazzled, worrying her bottom lip. “As long as no one pops by unexpectedly, they’ll never know you’re still here. The staff is mine, loyal to me, so the coven won’t find out I went against their wishes.”
“We can leave,” Kat said. “We can go now. You shouldn’t risk your standing within the coven for us.”
“No, please. It’ll be fine, I swear.” Heather smiled at Kat, her eyes sliding to Edgar briefly, a hint of affection in them. Hmm, I wonder who’s sleeping where today…
Chapter 3
With a full belly and nothing to do, I lounged on an enormous, leather sectional sofa in the coven’s private theater. The remote control in my hands had so many buttons that I swore it must have controlled a secret space station. Thankfully, a small group of buttons resembled my own clicker, making me homesick but allowing me to power up the giant screen and flip through the satellite channels.
Behind me at the bar, Benjamin mixed drinks for himself, Julius, and Danielle. The adorably cute couple— Gag me! —snuggled in a corner of the U-shaped sectional. After serving the grinning duo, Benjamin sat near me on his own plush cushion and sipped his caramel colored liquid. I tried to summon up some envy at his ability to consume something other than blood, but I’d never been much of a drinker.
“You want to find a movie?” I handed him the oversized remote control which he fumbled with his free hand, dropping it in his lap. I folded my legs under me, letting my head sink into the fluffy headrest.
While he stared at the buttons, looking as confused as I was, I observed Julius and Danielle as they whispered to each other, lost in their own little bubble. “How long have they been together?”
“Huh?” Benjamin looked at me from the corner of his eye, his eyebrow raised, then glanced at the lovebirds. “Oh. Um, I think it’s been around two hundred and forty years give or take.”
“No shit?” I peeked at them again, then gave Benjamin big eyes. “How the hell can they still be so in love? They’re so sweet, I almost want to vomit.”
“Hell if I know.” He pushed a button and settled on some anime show that I knew would bore me to death.
“How old are you?”
“Don’t you know it’s impolite to ask a person’s age?” His mouth twisted into a wry grin.
I gave him my best matter-of-fact face. “That’s a woman thing, dude.” A smile forced its way to my mouth.
“Well, I’ll tell you my age,” he said, twitching his head to fling his bangs out of his eyes, “but you might want to avoid asking other vamps. They tend to get persnickety about sharing details about themselves.”
“Fine.” I snorted, puckering my lips as I rolled my eyes. “So?”
“I’m four hundred.”
“Four hundred? Exactly?”
“No, but I only count every fifty years now. I gave up counting each year after I hit two hundred. I figure I’ll be four hundred for another twenty-three years or so, then four-fifty, and so on.”
“I guess that makes sense. I think I’ll be twenty-nine for the rest of my life. However long that is.”
“Seems like a sound plan.” He nodded slowly. “When’s your birthday?”
“It was just last month—”
Glittery sparks rained down on my head. Benjamin grinned like a madman, his finger pointed up, looking like a Fourth of July sparkler. And, just like a sparkler, the sparks zapped against my skin, making me giggle.
“Happy last birthday of your human life!”
Julius chuckled while Danielle giggled, clapping her delicate hands. I shook my head at my new family and couldn’t help grinning, finally starting to feel a sense of belonging. I licked my fingers and pinched his fingertip as if I were snuffing a candle flame.
Benjamin blew on his fingertip like a cowboy would blow on a smoking gun after a high-noon shootout.
“You’re a funny guy.” I pushed on his shoulder, and he fell to his side, pretending as if I’d given him a hard shove. In a blink, he sat back up with a Cheshire grin, wiggling his fingers at me until I squealed, falling over with laughter.
“Ahem.”
We all turned to the door. Kat stood in the entry, her arms crossed in her usual condescending way. Spoil sport.
“Cassandra’s motorcade just entered the gate. They’ll be here in five minutes.” With that, she disappeared into the dim hallway.
“Talk about a wet blanket. How old is she again? I swear she must’ve been a damn Quaker, as uptight as she is.”
“You’re kind of close,” he said, leaning over to whisper in my ear. “She was a nun.”
“What?” I shot up in my seat, back ramrod straight. The three of them stared at me as if I had two heads. Sinking back down, I shifted my gaze to the door and back, worried Kat would know we were talking about her and storm in to tear me a new one. “She was a fucking nun?”
“Yeah, but keep that to yourself. That woman is scary, and I’m two hundred years older than her.”
“Okay, sure, but you better tell me more later.”
“If she doesn’t find out and skin me alive, I’ll fill you in.” His crooked grin returned.
Chapter 4
Cassandra came in blazing, like her red hair. Tall and thin with a button nose that turned up ever so slightly at the end. Piercing hazel eyes shifted between green and gold, adding to her fierce exterior. When she spoke, her aggressive demeanor was complete.
“Who’d have thought the Martis clan would ever need our help?” She spoke into the air as if t
he world listened with bated breath, and put heavy emphasis on the end of Martis. Like peace, if peace were a distasteful word.
“Cassandra,” Edgar said, his voice dripping with sweet syrup, “we are ever so grateful for your assistance. We were just discussing how it had been ages since we’d seen you, and how wonderful it will be to spend some quality time with you and your coven.”
Taking her cue, Kat stepped forward and did the whole air-kiss thing that hoity-toity rich ladies like to do. Cassandra lapped up the attention, pulling Benjamin and then Julius in for full body hugs. I glanced at Danielle and admired her patience, or maybe she was only acting as if it didn’t bother her. If that was the case, I applauded her skills.
After a similar air-kiss with Danielle, Cassandra turned to inspect me. I stood straight and still, unwilling to squirm under her scrutiny. Everything about her made me want to scratch her eyes out.
“You’re new here.” Her voice rolled over me like a predator sizing up their prey for an easy meal. Try me, bitch. A muffled snort and a zing of amusement came from Kat, and I could feel her grin in my head even though she kept her face mostly stoic.
When I didn’t respond, Cassandra stepped into my personal space. It took all my strength to hold in the blast of air begging to be released.
“Who might you be?” She tilted her head like a bird. “You smell quite new.”
Ew! “Uh, that’s an odd thing to say. Are you a shifter as well as a witch?” I couldn’t help but poke a little.
“No!” She curled her lip, blanching as if she’d bitten something rotten. “I’m just that good.”
Someone better get a muzzle before I bite this bitch! A chuckle echoed down my connection with Kat, and I shot her a nasty look.
“This is Mercy,” she said, stepping close to me. Her hand clasped mine, squeezing gently. “She’s my fledgling, and you’re correct, she is new. We’re still teaching her restraint.”
Don’t make excuses for me! I screamed in my head, hoping it would traverse our bond. Her grip on my hand tightened, and I felt only a little smug for succeeding. Okay, a lot smug.
“Well, isn’t this just delightful,” Cassandra crooned, her high-pitched voice nearing dog whistle.
“Why don’t we retire to the sitting room?” Heather took the reins. “Would you like my chef to fix you and your entourage something to eat?”
“That would be lovely, darling.”
Cassandra walked beside Heather as we marched through the huge house. I followed behind our new rescuer, watching her ass swish from side to side. The woman acted like she rubbed elbows with society’s most elite, but her fancy, skin-tight red dress lacked the luster of designer couture. Which is saying a lot, since I hadn’t much experience with high fashion.
Kat still held my hand, and for once, I didn’t mind. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to contain myself around this woman. A glance back at Benjamin got me a smirk with waggling eyebrows.
Behind our group, two of four burly, rough looking men brought up the rear. The other two planted themselves on either side of the grand double-doored entrance. When we entered the sunken sitting room, I sighed a silent breath of relief when I saw Chima and Isabel stationed on either end of the room.
To my surprise, I spotted two of the werewolf guards from the restaurant battle also standing guard. I felt myself blush when I made eye contact with the guy who’d shifted in the limousine from furry wolf to hot naked man. He didn’t smile, but his eyes did.
As Kat led me to a high-back chaise, I considered the sexy man while silently cursing my sire for picking the most uncomfortable seat in the place. A popping sound and the smell of burning pine drew my attention to an enormous fireplace. The warmth felt nice but didn’t affect me as it used to.
“…one stop before we reach our final destination. Bull and his pack arrived at the camp this morning.”
I blinked, realizing I’d tuned Cassandra out pretty easily. I suppose the distracting eye candy helped with that.
“How did his pack fare during the raid?” Edgar asked.
“Those idiot hunters didn’t know what they were getting into,” she said, giggling as if the whole thing were a hilarious joke. “Some of the pack were injured, but it was the hunters that took a hit. You know, they attacked a building packed with Otherkin and Nightkin with only twelve hunters. I think they made it out with maybe half their people alive.”
Murmurs of disbelief filled the room. I opened my mouth to express my rage over Lynn’s death, but Kat squeezed my hand, so I clamped my lips shut. However, I couldn’t resist sighing my annoyance.
“You left quite the blaze behind, Kat.” Cassandra directed her sharp gaze in our direction. I practically felt the slices on my skin as she looked me up and down again.
“I hope none of the Kin were harmed by my fire,” Kat said. “Mercy and I were a bit cornered on that roof. Poor Lynn, the werebear, tried to come to our aid and got cut down. It was awful.”
I was touched by the emotion I felt emanating from her. She’d been rather cold about Lynn’s death the last few times we’d discussed it. Given a chance, I think I could’ve made a connection with Lynn. I certainly had in my dreams, cuddling with a life-sized teddy bear…
“When the fire spread to the lower floors, everyone scattered,” she said. “Left the hunters to deal with the blaze. Between that and them coming after you in your little cave, Bull was able to get the pack out of the city unnoticed.”
“Well, glad we could help with that.” Edgar smiled at Cassandra, pouring on the charm. On closer inspection, I noticed he appeared younger and a bit more dashing. Too bad he had to waste his illusion skills on such an unworthy human, although I could sort of understand the need. This infuriating woman seemed to crave attention, like an aging child star grasping for the fading limelight.
“Where exactly are you escorting us to, my dear?”
“It’s an abandoned summer camp deep in the woods of Liberty Mountain. My coven recently acquired it as a possible new covenstead, a place to practice our Craft in peaceful privacy.”
I flicked my eyes to Julius, curious what he thought her coven’s actual intentions were for the new location. He had a vice-grip hold on Danielle’s hand, but he kept his facial expressions in check. Danielle also appeared calm, but I could see a hint of strain in her eyes.
A butler appeared, bending to whisper in Heather’s ear. He straightened, spun, and hurried away.
“Chef has prepared a splendid meal for you and your people, Cassandra. They are setting the dining table as we speak. Shall we?”
“Let’s,” Cassandra said, gesturing to her biggest guard.
“I’m feeling a bit worn out from all the excitement of the past few days,” Danielle said, pulling Julius up as she stood. “We’re going to call it a night if you don’t mind.”
“Of course,” Heather said. “You need to rest up for tomorrow.”
“Pleasant dreams,” Cassandra said, grinning like a hyena while waggling her fingers at them. She followed Heather out of the room, her two guards in tow.
“You go with Benjamin,” Kat whispered. “Take one of the guards with you and keep them in your room. I don’t trust this witch.”
Chapter 5
Edgar huddled with Chima and Isabel, and Chima called over our other two guards. Kat finally released my hand, and we stood. Hurried mutterings filled my sensitive hearing, and I heard that hot guy raise his voice briefly, resulting in some nodding and eyes peering our way.
When Kat walked towards the clustered group, and the hot guy walked my way, my heart stuttered. I glanced at Benjamin and found him shuddering with silent laughter, biting back a grin. A loud crackling from the fire brought me back to watching the lithe man stalk over and stop two feet away.
I fought the urge to close the distance and blushed when he cocked an eyebrow at me. Oh, shit. Can he smell my attraction to him? Do werewolves sense pheromones and stuff like that? How embarrassing!
He cleared his th
roat. “Hey, I’m Nick Owens,” he said in a sexy southern drawl. “I’m assigned to guard you tonight.” His eyes connected with mine, and I sunk into their pale blue depths. A sharp pinch on my arm stopped me from drowning.
“Ow!” I glared at Benjamin. The worried look on his face sobered me up. “What’s wrong?”
“Edgar wants us out of sight. Now.” He spun, pausing long enough for Nick to get to the front of our line. A not-so-gentle nudge from him put me between Benjamin and Nick as we rushed back the way we came, detouring through a side hallway that led to a set of stairs I’d never have been able to find on my own.
As we made our discreet escape, I took the time to peruse the goods on the man in front of me. Nick hit a lot of the bullet-points on my mental list of what makes a man drool-worthy. He kept his hair short, but long enough to be slightly shaggy and provide a good grip. Muscles stretched his black T-shirt so it clung to his arms and torso without being overly bulky, and black military pants fit snug around his tight ass.
Keep your hands to yourself, Mercy. I swallowed hard. That hot rear was in my direct line of sight. I couldn’t help but ogle it as he climbed the stairs at a brisk pace. I had to bite my tongue to keep from biting his—
“Go straight to your room, Mercy,” Benjamin said and I almost growled at him. “I’ll be in the shadows of the hallway. Nick will stay with you. I’m sure you won’t mind.” His serious tone took on an edge of sarcasm on that last bit, and I glared at him over my shoulder.
“We’ll be fine,” I hissed. “Why the fuck are we trusting these people? We need guards to protect us from our protectors?”
“We’re in a bind,” he whispered. “All the other clans are retreating, scared the hunters might turn on them next. Bull has been a loyal friend to us for many years, and unfortunately, Cassandra and her coven are part of the package. We’ll be safe once we get to the camp and the pack.”
Moving Day (Vamp Tales Book 3) Page 2