I gave Rosalie a chance to settle this without any more bloodshed and although I didn’t intend to hurt her, I couldn’t guarantee that I wouldn’t kill her.
“A single wolf is no match for the likes of you. I’ve seen what you are capable of.”
Again, she’s proving to be a smart girl. She knows she can’t take me down, unless her numbers overwhelm me.
“And you’ve also seen that I kept her from feeding. My intentions should be obvious.” I tried reasoning with her. Taking a step closer to Kaley, I positioned myself as her guard in case things escalated. “I mean you no harm, but that can easily change. The choice is yours.”
From the dawn of time, werewolves have been no match for vampires, but they outnumbered me, and would eventually take me down. Unlike Kaley’s attack, I wouldn’t seek to turn them, but I would decrease their numbers even more, leaving them an easy target for assimilation from another pack. I stared at Rosalie, waiting for her decision and felt the presence of another vampire approaching. I smiled. “While you take your time deciding, our numbers increase. What will it be?”
Raven entered the bar, head up, and shoulders back. Her long coat swished with every step, snapping at her heels. She approached without caution, ignoring Rosalie.
“I counted thirty wolves coming in,” she spoke, showing no expression. “I’d say we are evenly matched now, My Lady.” Bowing respectfully, a slight smile broke across her face as she bared her neck to me.
Rosalie rolled her eyes and dropped to the floor. A soft glow emanated from her as she shook off her human skin, exposing a beautiful, grey wolf. Raven immediately took an attack stance between us.
“Wait,” I ordered.
The wolf approached with her head down, this was not a challenge. Her eyes watched Raven intently as she nuzzled her nose into my hand, then strutted outside.
“You are a sight for sore eyes.” I squeezed Raven’s shoulder. “How did you know where to find us?”
She shook her head. “If I dreamed, I’d say it was a dream so we’ll call it a vision. It led me here.”
“That would be Abby’s doing. She’s been helping me find Kaley.”
“In that case,” Raven said, turning to Abby and bowing her head. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Abby extended her hand while Raven looked her over, then grabbed her hand and pulled Abby into her.
“It deserves more than a handshake,” she said and then laughed as she tightened her grip around Abby’s waist, giving her a very tight hug.
Kaley sprung to her feet.
Raven spun around, twirling Abby in her grip, depositing her slowly to her feet, as she faced Kaley. In an attempt to keep the situation from escalating, I dove into that dark mental space, the place I knew better than to linger in for too long. The same place that makes me power hungry and makes me want to control everything, and I connected with Kaley’s mind.
She hissed, but didn’t move.
Surrender to me and relax, I thought.
Kaley’s shoulders immediately slumped forward and her mind went calm.
“We will get you home soon,” I whispered, tenderly caressing her face, reinforcing tranquility.
As ragged as Kaley looked, the Hightower beauty continued to shine through. Her high cheekbones accentuated her majestically beautiful and flawless face, her skin as smooth and perfect as Katherine and Tamara’s. Kaley’s blue eyes deceivingly shone with the promise of a passionate adventure only to greet you with the deadly demise of her fangs. Admiring Kaley’s features only made me miss Tamara that much more.
“My Lady,” Raven interrupted. “Tank and Hummer are five minutes from here. We must have a decision from the wolves soon.”
I nodded. “Abby, since you know Rosalie, would you please explain that two more vampires are on the way and I need to know if her pack will attack us or if they will allow us to transport Kaley out in peace.”
“I will explain it to those animals myself!” Raven barked and headed for the door.
I couldn’t let her out there. She would surely piss off the pack and we would end up killing most of them. The growl that reverberated from my throat shook the hanging wine glasses and Raven stopped in mid-step. Her eyes were mere slits and her lip curled in disapproval. She moved toward me with exquisite speed, and still, her movements seemed sluggish, I could have moved before she ever reached me, but I stood my ground. She stopped, our faces inches from each other. I heard the front door open.
Abby gasped.
“Let the wolves decide if vengeance is worth their deaths,” I warned.
Raven tried entering my mind, but all she found was her own emptiness staring back at her and after a moment, she presented a formal bow, waved her hand and said, “As my lady wishes.”
I knew Raven’s thoughts about werewolves. She was among those who had to give up her hold on them when they rebelled against our kind. A long time ago, werewolves belonged to vampires as pets. Only the strongest of our kind acquired them. Raven had several packs that she cared for, and in return, they protected her. Much as guard dogs protects humans today. Raven lived through dark and troubled times. She survived by being feared, sacrificing several wolves a month kept the packs obedient to her. Katherine’s experience was well familiar with Raven’s dislike of wolves.
“Um…I hate to interrupt, but your ride is here and Rosalie has given her word that you can leave peacefully.”
Raven snickered and stepped back.
“Thank you, Abby. Raven, please grab Kaley and make sure not to undo her ties.” I stepped out of the bar to find a double line of werewolves creating a path directly to the suburban Tank was driving. Yeah, it was an uneasy feeling, knowing that I would be walking down the center of the enemy’s lines, but my fear was actually for Kaley. If the wolves harmed her, the Hightower hand would come beating down upon Texas. Katherine would have no mercy. I only hoped that Rosalie kept her word.
I waited for Raven to join me, with Kaley in tow and we proceeded down the long aisle the shifters had created. True to Rosalie’s word, we got some snarls, some growls and even some grunts, but we loaded Kaley peacefully into the SUV and made off as quickly as possible.
The sun greeted us in mid-flight. Thank God, the Hightowers own their jet, which travels with several coffins, just in case. No, vamps don’t need to sleep in coffins. It just makes it easier to transport them around the airport. I couldn’t see having to explain to airport security why a dead body that would rise when the sun set was stuffed inside a giant duffle bag. Coffins were a good thing.
We landed at the West Palm Beach Airport, which was the closest airport to Lake Worthington. The forty-minute drive north seemed to be the longest car ride I ever had to endure. Pulling up to the estate’s massive gates, my heart did a pitter-patter with the thought of seeing Tamara again. While we came up the driveway, I rolled the window down and the smell of Katherine’s roses hit me. Inhaling their sweet scent, I also caught a whiff of Tamara. She had recently been through here, maybe an hour or two ago. As we pulled up to the front doors, Stacia stood patiently awaiting our arrival. She looked as gorgeous and business-like as ever. A lethal combination.
“Welcome home, Lady Izzy,” she greeted. “I assume all are accounted for?”
“You assume right, Stacia.” I closed the truck door and headed inside the house. I didn’t need to be around to watch the servants unload the coffins. I had done my job.
“My Lady, a moment please?” She motioned for my return. “I have issues to discuss with you.”
“Oh, really?” Surprised that she would want me to tend to business now instead of greeting Tamara, I turned and met her gaze. “Can’t this wait?”
“No, Izzy. It can’t wait.” Her tone was firm.
I followed Stacia into the backyard, near the purple rose bed. Taking a seat on the concrete bench that adorned the pathway, she blurted out, “We have had problems with Lady Tamara.”
Now I understood the formalities, this wasn’
t going to be good news.
“As you know, Lady Tamara has been changing,” she continued, shaking her head incredulously. “We cannot find a suitable donor to supply her with nourishment.”
“What about Trisha? She’s been Tamara’s Primera Sangre for over a year now.” Primera Sangre literally translates to first blood. Every powerful vampire had several to help satisfy their hunger when they first rise for the evening, but Tamara had decided on only one since she required little blood and we both trusted Trisha.
“No.” She shook her head. “Trisha quit after Tamara tried to bleed her a second time.”
“A second time?” Feeling the importance of what she had said, I plopped on the bench next to her. “Tell me everything.”
“After you left, Tamara became obstinate and reckless about her feedings. She bled Helena in a moment of passion, then attacked Trisha. We cleaned up all the loose ends.” Stacia looked at me with a please-don’t-be-angry-with-me look.
Cleaning up loose ends meant they had disposed of Helena’s body properly, ensuring she wouldn’t return from the dead. Stacia had been a busy girl cleaning up after Tamara. Damn it! I couldn’t believe she had bled Helena. She was a very sexy gift from the Irish Clan for our union and the first person Tamara and I had had a ménage à trois with. “How many others has she bled?” I needed to know how much damage I was walking back into.
“Six, in total,” she whispered.
Hearing the sorrow in her voice, I assumed Tamara was brutal. I had only been gone a couple of weeks. She shouldn’t have had to feed that often. Unless, her condition deteriorated.
“So many in such a short time.” I sulked at the possibility that even as a vampire, I could lose Tamara well before my own death.
“Yes.” Stacia leaned forward, placing her hand on mine and gave it a quick squeeze. “Shamana is out of ideas, but she hasn’t given up. None of us will give up. We’ll figure this out.”
“Thank you,” I automatically responded- not paying attention to her. My mind flirted with the probability that I would face an eternity alone, that didn’t frighten me, but losing Tamara terrified me. I had already decided that I wouldn’t live my life without her in it. The problem now was to find a way to end my immortal existence when the time came. “Help me find peace when the time comes,” I whispered, not looking at Stacia for fear that she would turn down my request, but I knew of no one else to trust for such an important matter.
It took her a moment to register what I had asked and as expected, she jerked away in shock. “No,” she shook her head adamantly. “I can’t do that. You’ve become my…my friend. I don’t have many friends and I won’t dwindle my own numbers.”
“Stacia, please,” my gaze met hers. “I don’t want to live without Tamara.” As I said that, I felt a warm drop run down my face.
“Please don’t cry,” she said, wiping my bloody tear away. “I’ll consider it, but I’ll make no promises.”
I hugged her. “Thank you.”
“Alright enough of you.” She pulled away, rising to her feet. “Let’s get you to Tamara. I think she was in the garage, working on her new motorcycle. She’s been out a lot during the day. I think,” she said, giggling. “She’s even got somewhat of a tan.”
“A motorcycle, huh?”
“Yeah, Celeste finally got her to come out of the house, even helped her pick out a motorcycle.”
“Let me guess, they bought matching bikes,” I teased with a fake chuckle.
A motorcycle and a tan, Celeste obviously hadn’t miss the opportunity to spend time with Tamara. I wondered how else she helped her out, but I was back now and planned to make up for lost time. Long before we reached the garage, I heard the awful sounds of an engine revving, then spewing, trying to stay alive while catching its last breath as it died.
“God damn it!” Tamara’s sweet voice snapped into the silence, and the dreadful sound of two steel plates grinding against each other tore through the air.
Stacia stopped as we got closer. “Her temper runs on a short fuse,” she said, heading in the opposite direction. “Good luck.”
Oh, that’s great. Stacia’s comment made me wonder what the hell I was walking back into. It didn’t matter. My place was with Tamara, for better or worse. Oh God! I had started thinking like a married person.
I shrugged it off and quietly entered the garage. I wanted to surprise Tamara, but the surprise was on me when she came barreling out on her motorcycle, almost hitting me. She swerved. I jumped, landing on my feet. The bike fell over, pinned her underneath it and dragged her a few yards until they both came to a stop in one of Katherine’s Rose beds.
“Oh shit!” I yelled and ran to her side. “Are you okay?” I shouted while lifting the heavy cycle with one hand. “Answer me!”
“Don’t throw it,” she mumbled with a dazed look.
Don’t throw it…that’s all she could say to me. She was more worried about ruining the bike then she was about her own health? This was all Celeste’s fault! That little bitch sunk her pheromones into Tamara and now she wasn’t thinking straight. I was so angry with Celeste and worried about Tamara that I let the stupid bike drop out of my hand, smashing on the ground.
“Did you have to drop it?” Tamara asked as she held out her hand.
“What? No I love you…I’ve missed you?” Placing my hands on my cocked hips, I stared at her sprawled out on the concrete floor, bleeding from her knees, elbows and face with an outstretched hand.
“Of course I love you,” she replied, extending her hand out to me further. “Now, help me up.”
“Really?” I ignored her gesture. “That’s all I get?”
Her brows came together and she bit her bottom lip. “I would give you more, but I think I broke my leg.” She half-heartedly grinned.
“Oh God!” I shrieked. I picked her up and carried her into the house, while my monster wanted just a small taste of her fresh blood. I carried her to the library and tried to put her down.
She protested, “Take me to the kitchen, Viola will know what to do.”
So off to the kitchen we went. Viola had apparently seen the accident and had the kitchen table cleared for Tamara’s medical care. Bandages, gauze, hydrogen peroxide and a small stitching kit littered the table. Bottles of painkillers adorned the kitchen countertops. That’s when I realized that Viola hadn’t seen the accident. She had prepared for the next mishap. I had been away for too long.
“Good to have you home, Miss Izzy.” Viola took one look at Tamara cradled in my arms and pointed at the table. “Just put her down, right there.”
“How frequent does this happen?”
“Not much,” Tamara answered, squirming out of my arms and onto the makeshift infirmary table.
“Oh, maybe five or six times,” Viola said, cleaning off Tamara’s bloody knees.
“That’s a relief. I was worried it happened more often.”
Viola turned to me and mouthed, a day.
“Oh.” I was shocked. Taking a seat near her, I watched as Viola patched Tamara back together. She was always a plethora of information, telling me how Tamara seemed more normal after she fed from Lady Hightower. It somehow slowed her transformation to human, but that there was only so much blood Katherine could give her, and she had to rely on donors to meet the majority of her needs. Then she would fall into a deep sleep as her body absorbed the nutrients. Viola informed me that Celeste made herself accessible to Tamara whenever she called her. Evidently, they had become close. Viola rolled her eyes and scrunched her noise. I knew the feeling. I was feeling kind of sick hearing this, too.
When the last of the bandages went on, Tamara smiled. “Well, are you going to give me a real greeting now?”
I just stared at her. Had I really missed that much in the two weeks I was away? I found it difficult to wrap my mind around the fact that Celeste made her move and Tamara fell for it. Hook, line and sinker.
She rolled her eyes. “How about a hey-I’m-so-excited-
to-see-you greeting.” She then raised her eyebrows, and nodded her head toward the bedroom.
“Oh, yes. How silly of me to forget.” My voice grew louder. “It’s what I had intended to do before I had to rush you to see Dr. Viola in the makeshift hospital she has set up for you in the kitchen!” By the time I was done, I was in an all out screaming fit.
Tamara shrugged her shoulders. “Well? Dr. Viola is done with me, right?” She looked at the cook slash emergency physician.
“Sure,” Viola threw the bloody towel in the sink.
Picking her up, I raced upstairs.
Viola yelled, “Make sure she feeds.”
Chapter Three
Laying Tamara on our large bed, a moment of mourning swept over me as I realized that Helena would no longer join us. This is what I feared the most—having memories of people that were no longer around. But I took it in stride and helped Tamara out of her ripped and torn clothing as she moaned in pain.
“Strange to see me like this huh?” She wiggled out of her tight pants. “I feel so…so…human,” she said, caressing my face. “I’m glad you’re home.”
“We’ll fix this. I promise.”
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Izzy.” Her words cut to my core. “Promise me that you’ll love me enough to not to let me suffer for too long.”
“Promise,” I said, choking back tears.
Dying to Live Page 4