The witch reached into the dish and popped a chocolate in her mouth. She pulled his head to her neck.
Poor thing. The magic in her blood barely hummed and she already wanted sweets.
Her energy bristled with nervous tension.
“Relax, sweetheart.” Why had they given him a witch so new, nervous, and powerless? It didn’t make sense. This was the kind they would have sold to be drained, not as bait for wealthy clients. He stroked her arm as he took another sip. Her blood still held vital energy and was still a treat. Every drop would be needed when the trap sprang.
Harsh bitter filled his mouth. A drop seared its way down his throat. His eyes watered and his breathing grew shallow.
The beating of the witch’s heart slowed and stopped.
Matthias shoved her from his lap and spat out the blood. Poison? The room blurred.
Someone laughed, deep and growing closer.
“Wh…” Matthias fell to the floor and started to crawl away on his hands and knees.
A foot in his back pressed him against the sticky floor. “Pull the van around.” Ambrose said. “Carry the body.”
The body? Matthias struggled to hang on to a thought. Poisoned. He retched. The witch’s blood in his stomach came up in a cold puddle. His face rested in the thick liquid. Drowning in blood.
He reached for his watch. His arm dropped limp beside him before he could press the panic button.
Images of Alice looking at him with love in her eyes formed in the blackness. It’ll take more than death to make me break my promise to you. Her words played louder than the slowing beating of his heart. He promised her forever. Gray folded in on her beautiful face, stealing away his reason to hang on.
“ALICE’S TRACKERS ARE separated enough I have to assume she is no longer in possession of her PPK device.” Reginald paced his room, and looked at his watch. The squad would be waiting for him in the briefing room. “Matthias is on the move with one of Alice’s targeted suspects. I have not given him any orders to eliminate targets.”
“I saw Alice moving west with one of Matthias’ targeted suspects. Her vitals are strong. My feed on her indicates she isn’t in distress. Not yet.” Titus’ voice didn’t reflect any emotion. “Send one man to ensure Matthias isn’t in trouble. Send the squad to the den to perform the raid. Give them orders to check on Alice. We can’t have anyone suspect her implant.”
“Sir, do I understand that you wish me to leave Alice on her own with a suspect?” Reginald cocked up his mouth. The golden girl wouldn’t survive a night alone with the type of vampire she was dealing with. Before she fought out her own moral dilemma over killing, she’d be an empty blood bag.
“You follow her. Indicate you will bring in that suspect. I want you to let her handle herself until she can’t. Understood.” The slight clip in his tone, indicated the call was all but finished.
“Yes, of course, sir.” Reginald tapped his foot on the carpet. Questioning orders from Titus was dangerous, but their operation being uncovered would end them all. “It’s outside of PPK protocol for me not to lead the squad personally.”
“Not when you are the only vampire on the squad that is tracking an upper level vampire to its nest. Any other member would attract attention and spook them.” Titus paused, his breathing the only indication of his annoyance. “Does anyone on my squad question your authority? Influence the others. That’s one of the perks of all the alterations. Use it.” Titus sighed. “Questioning the Aries squad? The next call you make better be to tell me that all the vampires have been brought in and Alice held her own. Bonus if she kills one.”
“Yes, sir.” Reginald hung up. Bonus if she kills? Alice the good witch? If she killed a vampire, it might be worth reassessing her. Maybe. That Titus wanted her on his squad grated on him. Amarok, sure. Killer. Fierce. Not Alice. No matter how competent or able, she didn’t have a killer’s soul.
He opened the door and started toward the makeshift briefing room. Who to send to retrieve Matthias? Amarok. Might as well have some fun. His sour mood lifted.
“I KNEW IT had to be related to you. I hate you! Is this, whoever it is, supposed to make up for Drew? He’s gone. The only good thing in my miserable eternity with you. Go away.” An angry female voice carried.
Matthias scanned the dark room. No furniture. Metal devices hung to the wall. A heavy chain held him in place. The taste of poison on his tongue stung with an acid that burned from his mouth to his gut.
He tugged at the chain. Alive. His internal clock said it was the start of a new night. This wasn’t his first time in a compromising position. The restraints behind his back were rigid. The chain holding him to the wall had some give, but his hands were connected, locked in place. Smart. Must not be their first time holding a vampire.
“I can’t bring him back. This wasn’t about me or my den, my love. Let me help you avenge Drew. Together we can take the worthless thing to places of pain so beautiful.” The familiar voice of Ambrose filtered through the door.
“We are not doing anything together. You know nothing of beauty. You and Lucius are despicable.” A smack punctuated her words. “If you ever loved me, you would walk into the sun.”
“Kindra, please.” Ambrose’s voice filled with anguish.
“I’ll leave the body for your henchmen to dispose of. You’ve taken everything from me now. I have nothing left to give you.”
“Love.”
“You will never have that again. You would only destroy it too.” The door flew opened. Kindra stepped into the room and walked to Matthias. She snatched his jaw and tilted his face up.
Ambrose’s presence faded.
Matthias turned his hands, not getting any leverage.
“Aren’t you a pretty one. Why did you kill my child?” Kindra released his head with such force it smacked into the wall behind him. “Shame what’s going to happen to that gorgeous face. Under other circumstances I would have taken you to bed.”
He laughed and deliberately raked his eyes over her, stopping at her slender hips a moment before they trailed up. “You aren’t my type.”
She pulled off a red stiletto and flung it at him. The heel buried itself into his chest. “I’m every man’s type.”
“Drew wasn’t much of a man.” Matthias twisted his arms. The cuff whined. “If that is the standard, I can see why you might believe that.”
Kindra walked over to him and punched him in the mouth. “Don’t make me lose my temper. We have all night.”
So much like his own maker. Beautiful. Arrogant. Dark. The type that used to move his heart, or at least arouse his desire. “Come here.”
She arched a high brow and brushed back her light brown hair. “I’m going to hurt you in ways you never imagined. You’ll scream my name in pleasure and agony.”
“Such a beautiful line to blur.” He purred and licked his lips. “I’ve imagined some depraved things. Let me show you. Have you been bitten since your change?”
Her gaze lingered on his mouth. “You want to bite me?” The vibrations coming from her, while still dominated by grief and anger, started to blend with arousal.
Too easy. “Who wouldn’t?” He rolled the words out smoothly and let his eyes linger on her neck. “I’ll make you feel. How long has it been?”
She pulled the shoe from his chest and tossed it aside. The long red nails she wore didn’t deter her as she unbuttoned his shirt.
He twisted his hands harder. The cuffs didn’t give. The link between them cracked. “You are stunning. Ambrose is a fool.”
“But I am not.” She rammed the palm of her hand against his nose, shattering it.
Red blinded him, followed by white hot pain.
Kindra leaned in, her cheek rested against his face, and whispered, “I’m going to leave you clinging to life in the sun.”
He twisted his wrists again. Nothing. The poison had him weaker than usual and the cuffs held firm. Matthias gnashed into her face and turned his head, yanking off a chunk
of flesh.
“What have you done to me?” Kindra screamed and reached for her cheek. Her fingers touched the hole in her face. She kicked him and bit in his neck. After a deep sip, she turned and spat out the blood.
“Made the outside match your soul.” He stood and ran forward. The chains remained firmly attached.
She walked over to the devices on the wall and pulled off one with arrow prongs on the end. “Did you know my maker descends from the vampire who designed this? And the cuffs you are wearing. Nasty men. I never thought I would enjoy spending anytime in this room.”
“Ambrose?” Matthias exaggerated his laughter. If toying with her vanity hadn’t made her sloppy, picking holes in her pride would. “He’s only slightly more of a man than Drew was. Undo these cuffs and I’ll show you how to use those things properly, sweetheart.”
Kindra growled and stomped toward him. She flung off her other heel and stabbed the prongs in Matthias chest. She twisted, removed, it and speared him again. “I’m no sweetheart.”
He dropped to his knees and coughed up blood as the prongs dug into his lungs. “I’m a gentleman to flaw, bitch.”
“Gentleman? Gentleman death, like Lucius?” She yanked the prongs back and tossed it on the floor. “Then I will do to you what I would to him.” Kindra knelt beside his and ran her fingernails along his jaw. She held his eyes while the fingers of her other hand dug between his ribs.
“I killed him slowly.” Matthias stared back at her with deep hatred. “He cried out for you in his last breaths.”
She twisted her grip snapping his rib and pulled the end through his skin. “Whose name will you cry out?” Her tongue ran along the shard of bone.
Matthias groaned as she slid his broken rib between two others, missing his heart. He twisted his hands again. Nothing. The poison was stopping him from healing as well keeping him at the mercy of a weaker vampire. Rage boiled to the surface. If he died here, no one would alert the team that Alice wasn’t at the den. Not until it was too late.
Kindra pulled the bone out and repositioned it. “Is that fear in the blackness? It’s not so sexy.”
The rough edges brushed his heart. White streaks splintered across his vision. One more pierce and she would be on target.
She slipped the bone free. “For Drew.”
Matthias ground his jaw and thrashed his hands in the restraints. Nothing. He closed his eyes.
Alice smiled up at him through the darkness. “You make this place more than bearable, it’s my fairytale and you are my prince charming.”
“You make eternity too fleeting.” He kissed her forehead. “I will love you forever and always wish for one more second. One more kiss. One more embrace. One more glance into your beautiful soul.”
The most important memory. The first time he realized Alice loved him too. Would she ever get that memory back now? He tried to open his eyes. His heart pounded harder but slower. A splinter of his rib lodged into the muscle.
Kindra twisted.
He reached for her hand. She knew. The cuffs held him in place.
“I told you, I was going to leave you clinging to life in the sun.” Kindra kissed his bloody lips and moved away.
The sound of keys clinging together flittered into the blackness.
Chapter Nineteen
“ILLUMATURATE.” ALICE CONTINUED to deliberately stumble on the word. She repeated the spell so often with Morrigana, she’d dreamed about casting it. Today was the day.
The haze from whatever they gave her last night to make her sleep, hung over her for most of the morning, but was wearing off. It didn’t matter. She knew what the witch had been doing to prepare for the spell. Things were almost ready.
Energy from witches came and went upstairs, but the steady, deathly-still cold in the basement served as a constant reminder of what was at stake.
The witch groaned and sat down the mixture she was working on. “Illumeeturath.” Her deep gray eyes shimmered as she focused on Alice. “Who worked the ward? Your power suggests several generations of separation.”
Was the tone impressed or not? Several generations weren’t many considering how long pure witches had been assumed extinct. “I get around. My magic is useful.” Not entirely untrue. Alice glanced away from the beautiful witch. Her smooth, pewter skin didn’t have a single imperfection. Matthias said Morrigana used vampire parts to keep her youthful. Maybe Lucius had very strong parts. “Why do you work for Lucius? What you are means you don’t have to belong to anyone. I thought we were a proud species.”
“Proud? We don’t carry such sentiments. Pride destroys powerful creatures.” The witch laughed and then her face hardened. “When I rip the ward out of your flesh, I’ll sniff out the fingerprint.”
“He’s dangerous. How old is he?” After a long silence with no answer, Alice repeated a few of the words again. “Better?”
“Lucius is a child. My puppet. Leave his strings to me or I will strangle you with them.” She started mixing again.
Lucius a child? How powerful were witches? Powerful enough that the PPK hunted them to the brink of extinction. “Is this relic making your…” Her what? Idea? Cash cow? Was she just sadistic? “You know all witches are descendants of the pure line. This can kill them. Me.”
The witch dipped her fingers in the mixture. “Hold still.” She wiped a circle on Alice’s forehead. “I have no descendants. There are no pure males left. Haven’t been for centuries.”
Centuries? How old were they? “There are human male witches. Some quite powerful.”
“Powerful?” Her tone reflected disgust. “Perhaps by some standards, and there are light elves, as your mother saw fit to further muddle things with.” She closed her eyes and muttered a chant so faint Alice couldn’t make out the words.
A dark force in Alice’s chest snaked out, energizing her. She backed away. The shadows in the room thinned, revealing shelves with books and jars. “What are you doing?”
“Awakening your witch. Lucius wishes you to survive. You have a wealthy buyer he says. The pure witch hiding in your heart will see you through this.” Her stare bored into Alice. “It’s stronger than your presence indicates.” She muttered another few words. “Do you feel that shadow writhing into your light now?”
Alice shook her head. “No!” Her light was what defined her. It gave her an identity amid the blurred lines of good and evil at the PPK. Made her different than the creatures who’d betrayed and hurt her. “I don’t want my witch stronger. Undo it. The elf will see me through.” Tears came to her eyes and burned a path down her cheeks. “I won’t do this ritual unless you…” Her crying grew stronger.
The witch pressed a small, round glass like Decker used so long ago to Alice’s face, catching the tears. “Bonus for my trouble. Don’t fear your witch. It is more powerful than the elf you struggle to hold onto. I see your light survives regardless of the strength of your witch. Pity that.”
More than love was at risk. “But his power. It can’t go back to him. Please, undo it. He’ll be so powerful.”
“I did sense your energy wasn’t in line with your own gifts. What I’ve done will help you hold on to it.” The witch continued to catch tears until Alice stopped crying.
Morrigana said her darkness was what allowed her to keep the stolen gifts. Morrigana could undo this. If it weakened her, she would undo it. “I don’t feel different. I see better.” She closed her eyes, searching for any differences. Her fears lessened. The haze from the drug induced sleep was gone. A hatred for the witch in the room remained. Whatever she did, hadn’t altered that. The monster killed human witches for what? Money? Power? She was no better than pure humans with their own hate.
“The darkness will no longer scare you. Nothing can hide from a witch in the shadows. You’ll see through many illusions now.” The witch spun around and raised a brow. “Just as I see through them. What did you do to Lucius?”
Lie? Yes. Don’t make her more of an enemy. “It’s my blood. A hybrid b
onus. I didn’t mean to.”
“Very well. Keep your secrets for now. I will have them all after you’ve recovered.” She waved her hand. “Repeat the spell.”
Alice continued to read the words as she watched the witch move around. “Is it about staying young? Do the witches like you rely on vampire parts to survive?”
The witch swept the center of the room while she muttered to herself. “What you see, though old by your standards, is young for a witch. My witches admire vitality and beauty as humans are apt to do. Age and wisdom is only respected and sacred among the old mages.”
“Old mages?”
“Ask the witch who gave you that ward.” She gathered the dust from the floor into the corner and rested the broom against the wall.
“She’s dead.” Why had that lie slipped out so easily? Her witch?
“Unfortunate.” She pulled a jar off the shelf. “Stand in the center of the room.” The witch rang a small bell.
Two human witches came in the room. Both bowed their eyes and waited in silence.
“She’s ready. Have you prepared?” After they agreed, the witch gestured toward Alice.
The two human witches joined Alice in the center of the room.
“Am I?” Alice looked around, her mind racing over the possibilities. All the warnings flooded back, playing in everyone’s voice. They all said the same thing. Don’t do the spell. Maxwell, Sarg El, Amarok, Matthias.
Her fingers felt around her wrist. No tracking watch. No panic button. No blood charm. Morrigana thought she could survive. She could survive. Breathe.
A spider dangled from a string of webbing above them.
Alice watched it a second. Was that the same one? They were in a basement. Could be a house spider. Familiarity wrapped around her. It was the death spider. No. I won’t die today.
The witches each took one of Alice’s hands and laced their fingers around hers, drawing her attention away from the spider to the more pressing danger.
Blood Relic Page 17