Almost Human

by Secret Cravings Publishing

  I reached the driveway that led to Mother’s home. I stared up at the house. This place had never held any happy memories, but now it sent shivers of foreboding down my spine. There was something wrong in that house.

  I strode up the steps of the porch. I’d also been practicing what I was going to say to my mother the whole way here. She was not going to take the news that Casey was still alive well.

  I didn’t bother knocking. I slipped through the door, closing it silently behind me. If Mother wasn’t downstairs I was going to do some snooping. I took a second to look around. Nope, no mother. She was probably sleeping off whatever spell she’d cast.

  I went to the living room and sat on the couch. If I brushed something truly powerful I might faint, and I would hate to die because I cracked my head on the hard wood. I closed my eyes, leaned back, and stretched my magic out, looking for spells.

  Every spell left behind a residue. I knew I was looking for an evil spell, but how evil? And what had it accomplished?

  My magic took me to the family graveyard in the backyard. The evil was so concentrated here that it choked me. It got caught in my lungs like smoke, singeing them.

  “Really, mother? The graveyard for doing wicked spells? How cliché.” I muttered to myself.

  The place had always given me the creeps. My grandmother had the bodies of our ancestors exhumed from Europe and moved here. She thought it would strengthen our spells to have them near, helping us.

  Personally, I believed that you should let the dead rest. But I hadn’t even been born when she’d made the decision, so I hadn’t had a lot of choice in the matter.

  I noticed that the dirt over one grave had been stirred. What the F? No one had been buried here since my father’s death. My stomach flip-flopped. This couldn’t possibly be good. My astral body stepped closer to get a look at the name.

  “What are you doing, Daughter?”

  I jerked upright, snapping back into my body. My mother glared down at me. She looked like hell. Her face was pale, with a slight sheen of sweat, like she’d been vomiting for a couple hours. Her irises were pitch black.

  If no one had died, then there was only one reason the dirt would have been shifted. I gaped up at her. A raising.

  “Mother, what have you done?”

  She shook her head. “Did you kill the vampires? Your sister?”

  I told my story for the second time that day. When I finished she was seething with rage. Red lightening flashed in her eyes, highlighted by the black irises.

  “I won’t kill my own sister. And as much as I’d love to kill her boyfriend for what he’s done to her, I won’t do that either. It would break her heart.”

  She curled her lip at me and spun away. “That bitch doesn’t have a heart,” she screeched.

  I covered my ears and glared at her before I stood. “Mother, we need to talk about what went down in that graveyard. What have you done?”

  She spun and delivered a punch that knocked me flat on my ass. Pain exploded in my jaw. I spat blood and a tooth on to the floor.

  She delivered a kick to my stomach and I rolled over, gagging. Fuck. She’d never hit me before.

  She wrapped a bony hand in my long hair and jerked. “I knew you were too weak to get the job done. You’re too sentimental. You’re lucky I’m not going to order her to kill you.”

  “Her?”

  “Sherra, the originator of our line. I raised her to kill those vampires, because I knew you couldn’t.”

  “You raised her yourself?”

  “Of course. A necromancer would never do it for me.”

  “Because you can’t raise witches from the dead without severe problems! Mother, there’s a reason only necromancers raise the dead. Witches don’t have the power. The zombies come back wrong. You’re lucky it didn’t kill you.” Though at the moment I was wishing it had. She might be my mother, but I owed my sister more loyalty.

  A wave of nausea rolled through my stomach. “God, and you vowed to protect humans, but you would have had to kill one to complete the spell.”

  She sneered at me. “Don’t be ridiculous, Daughter. I’d never kill a human. I raised her with a vampire.”

  My jaw dropped, and I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to get it closed again. “Do you know what kind of repercussions a vampire sacrifice would have on a spell like that? Do you know what you’ve done? You’ve created something virtually unstoppable, and you’ve unleashed only God knows what evil on this planet.”

  “It’s a myth that evil comes when a witch raises the dead.”

  I wished I could shake her. Or beat some sense into her. “Bullshit. Evil followed the power you used. I can feel it. It contaminates you.”

  “Enough. I want you out of my house. I disown you.”

  She pulled me to the door by my hair while I struggled to get her to release me. Whatever demon tainted her left her stronger than before.

  She opened the door and hurled me out. “I’ll gut you if you come back here, traitorous whore.”

  I laid on the porch for a second and contemplated the deep shit we were all in before pushing myself to my feet. I almost fell right back over. I caught the porch rail and managed to keep myself upright.

  When I was sure I wasn’t going to bust my ass, I made my way down the steps.

  My magic was still sensitive from my psychic tour of the graveyard, so I felt it before I hit the bottom step—that feeling that I was not only being watched but it was close by. Yep, another fucking vampire. This day was riding to hell in the express lane.

  I pulled a knife from my belt and approached the abandoned Harley sitting at the end of the driveway. The vamp owned a damned fine bike, but he wasn’t anywhere near it.

  I glanced at the bushes and thick trees in the yard. Too many hiding places. There were at least ten places he could jump me from. Too bad my powers couldn’t give me a better fix on his location.

  A gigantic hand wrapped around my wrist and I suddenly didn’t need my powers to find him. The vampire ducked under my arm and pinned it behind my back.

  “Ouch, asshole. Can you be careful? I’ve had my ass handed to me twice in less than twenty-four hours. I’m not feeling so hot and I’d like to use that arm again.”

  He pulled me out of view of the house and swept my feet out from under me, following me to the ground. He stripped me of my knives like he’d been present when I’d dressed. He removed the final knife from my hand and released me.

  “I’m not here to hurt you.”

  I turned over on my back and glanced up at the vampire. Holy shit. He had to be close to seven feet tall. He was covered in black from head to toe, literally. He wore a leather jacket over a sweatshirt, the hood of which cast a shadow over his face, hiding everything but his mouth and jaw.

  I propped myself up on my elbows. “Then you could have, oh, I don’t know, said something. Maybe as an alternative to jumping me.”

  His mouth curled into a cruel little smile. It was the kind of smile that could make grown men run screaming, and I couldn’t even see his eyes. “Witches aren’t exactly known for listening first and killing later.”

  He had a point; I hadn’t planned on letting him speak. “All right, so now that you’ve got my undivided attention, not to mention all my weapons, what are you going to say?”

  He jerked his head toward the house. “I felt the demon come through. Thought I’d come check it out.”

  “How did you feel that?”

  “You felt it, too. Everyone with even a tiny bit of power felt it. I bet even some humans did. However, I’m connected to it, so I could locate it.”

  I frowned. “Connected to it?”

  There was that cruel smile again. “It’s a long story. The short version is evil is a part of me. I’ve done some naughty things. It’s tainted my soul. Or taken it, I’m never quite sure.”

  Great, a vampire with some added evil. That was what the world needed.

  He held a hand out to help me up. “Get
up, we’ve got work to do. We have to stop not only the witch she raised, but also the demon she brought with it. You’re going to need help, and someone with experience. I’m Dagger, by the way.”

  I smacked his hand out of the way and stood on my own. I brushed the dirt off my knees. “What kind of a name is Dagger?”

  He smiled. “One I’ve gained over the years. I’m good with a knife. Besides, it’s so much cooler than my given name. Not to mention easier to say.”

  He pushed the hood off his head. He had a pair of mirrored, black sunglasses covering his eyes. His spiked, black hair stuck up at odd angles because of the hood. “Do you know where the zombie is going?”

  “Alaric’s house, to complete its mission to kill my sister and all the brothers.”

  He snickered and lowered his head. “Me coming to Alaric’s rescue? He’s not gonna like that.”

  The breeze ruffled my hair. The vampire’s head snapped up. He stepped forward and cradled my face in his hands. He licked the corner of my mouth and I gasped. He took advantage and slipped his tongue into my mouth, exploring it thoroughly. His mouth had the distinct taste of vodka and…butterscotch candies?

  I jerked away from him and he tightened his grip on my face a second before he reluctantly released me.

  “What the fuck did you do that for?”

  A sly grin curled his lips. “Sorry, poor impulse control. You’re hot and afraid. Combine that with the smell and sight of blood and it was too much, especially when the breeze blew the scent in my face. You’re a good kisser, by the way. If we had time we could—”

  “Don’t finish that sentence. Not unless you want a knife in the heart.”

  He leaned forward and whispered in my ear. “You don’t have any knives.”

  He stepped back. “But don’t worry about that. I’ll give them back to you when we reach our destination. Now get on the bike.”

  “What?”

  “You need a ride and I’ll need backup to kill this thing. Get on the fucking bike.”

  I trudged toward the motorcycle and muttered. “Imagine, going in with a vampire as backup. It sounds like a bad plan.”

  “Well, I don’t feel good taking you as backup either.”

  I turned to him when I reached the bike. “Do you have a helmet for me?”

  “Honey, I don’t even have a helmet for me. I’m pretty much looking to get into a crash and kill myself. You’ll have to hope I don’t do it with you.” He straddled the bike.

  I glared at him for a split second before I mounted the motorcycle and wrapped my arms around his waist.

  “Could you put those hands a little lower? Maybe get a little massage going?”

  “Don’t be gross, just drive.”

  “Whatever you want, honey.”

  Chapter Six

  We rolled to a stop on the street in front of Alaric’s house.

  “You got any kind of plan, huntress?”

  I shrugged and got off the bike. “I figured I’d break in and talk to Casey. She can warn the boys and get them to skip town.”

  Dagger chuckled. “You ever tried breaking into a vampire’s house? Super hearing gives us the advantage, and the brothers aren’t exactly known for being heavy sleepers.”

  He nodded at the cobalt blue muscle car parked across the street. “The Dodge Charger is Fallon’s car. Only met the man once, but I get the feeling you can’t sneak up on that fucker.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest. “For your information, yes, I have broken into a vampire’s house before. Granted, none were as old as these, but I’ll manage. And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t give me you’re unsolicited friendly advice.”

  I turned and walked toward the house.

  “Okay, I hope they ask you why you’re there before they kill you. I’ll wait here for you to die. Think they’ll let me have a taste of you?”

  I ignored the bastard and kept walking. “Stupid, blood-sucking jackass.”

  I tiptoed up the porch steps and glared at the doorknob. I didn’t have any lock-picking tools. I could force the door open with little effort, but a lot of noise. On a whim I tried the doorknob. Surely they locked their doors during the day?

  The door swung inward. Wow, guess not. But then, vampires didn’t have to worry about armed robbers or axe murderers. They could take on any psychopath who doomed himself by stepping into the house.

  Doomed. What a terrible way to put things as I was about to waltz over the threshold. I took a deep breath and stepped in anyway. I had to warn my sister.

  I shut the door behind me as silently as possible and tiptoed to the stairs. I crept up and prayed to the gods that they wouldn’t squeak.

  When I reached the second floor landing, I breathed a sigh of relief. No loud, creaky stairs. It was a miracle in a house this old. I glanced down the hall. All was clear, except that the second door was open. I’d have to be extra careful not to wake the room’s occupant.

  I slinked to the door and peered in. Fuck, of course it would be Alaric’s room, because the universe was trying to kill me. He lay on his stomach, spread eagle in nothing but leather pants. His peaceful face was turned toward the door. He didn’t snore, which was another tally in the perfect column.

  No. He was not perfect. He was an evil, blood-sucking leech. I nodded, took a deep breath, and skulked past him. I reached my sister’s room and cracked open the door. Light from the hallway hit Casey’s face. She groaned, rolled over, yanked the pillow out from under Misha’s head and covered her face.

  My heart pounded. He was going to wake up and see me standing there. He moaned, but made no move to take the pillow back or get out of bed.

  I silently shut the door. Fuck. I was a dumb ass. Of course the boy toy would be in there with her. I kept my annoyed sigh to myself. What now? It wasn’t as if I could talk to Alaric.

  I’d go get Dagger and make him talk to them. From what he’d said they didn’t get along, but it was better than me trying to get a word in. I spun around to head back out but came to an abrupt halt.

  Alaric frowned down at me from less than three feet away.

  My slowing heart redoubled its pace. “No chance you’re a sleepwalker?”

  He smiled. “Nope. Now, are you going to come quietly, or are you going to wake the house? My brothers wanted to hunt you down. Imagine their joy if they find you right here.”

  I went for the knife at my back and found nothing. “Fuck, that leech didn’t give me back my weapons,” I muttered.

  His grin widened. “Perfect.” He jerked his head toward his door. “My room, get moving.”

  I stepped around him while he eyed me like I was prey. Could I make it to the front door? There were a few tables I could put in his way, but he could probably jump over them without much effort and I’d have to make it down the stairs first.

  But giving up and going into his room wasn’t an option. Not unless I wanted more holes in my neck.

  Alaric seized my upper arm in a bruising grip and I jumped. He jerked me to him and pressed his lips to my ear. “Don’t run. The chase is exciting. I’m faster and stronger than you, and I’m famished. I only took a taste of you last night. I haven’t fed. You’d never make it to the door, and I might hurt you accidentally for trying.”

  His grip loosened and he ran his other hand through my hair and released a shaky breath. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  We walked to his room, his hand still on my arm, as if he didn’t trust me not to run. Hell, I didn’t trust me not to run. I wasn’t raised to be compliant, and I got the feeling that I was about to become the midday meal.

  He shoved me into his room and I stumbled against the bed. He shut the door silently and turned to face me.

  I stood and backed around the bed, away from him. “Alaric, I have to talk to you. I came to warn you.”

  He stalked me slowly, waiting to strike. “We can talk later. After.”

  “After?” My voice came out high pitched and squeaky and I cursed myself.
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  “You know what I crave, witch. Tasting your blood made me hunger for you, ache for you. Should I tell you what I’m dying to do to you?”

  “No.” The word was almost a shout compared to our lowered voices.

  He stopped walking toward me, and ran his hand slowly down his chest. “I want to feed from you. Strip you buck naked. Tie you down—”

  “No, no tying down again.” But my pussy creamed at the thought.

  He took a deep inhale through his nose and slid his hands under the waistband of his pants. “I smell your need. Let me sate you.”

  Yeah, why not? My libido purred.

  Alaric sprang forward, closing the distance between us in three strides. He wrapped his arms around me, pinning my hands. I gasped as his lips crashed over mine, hell bent on possession. His tongue thrust into my mouth. God, he tasted good.

  He backed me up until we tumbled on to the bed. He skimmed a palm across my nipple and I arched against him. His hand trailed farther down my body.

  I broke the kiss and he moved his mouth to my neck.

  “Alaric, stop. This is not what I came here for.”

  “Just a taste.” He ran his tongue up my throat and sighed. “A little taste.”

  He slipped his hand into my panties and rubbed my clit. The breath exploded from my lungs. His fangs pierced my throat. After a brief sting, the pain faded away and a blinding wave of pleasure lit me up like a Christmas tree. He drank from my throat in long, desperate pulls while he played with the bundle of nerves between my thighs.

  I threaded my fingers through his hair and pulled him closer. Shove him away. What kind of a person lets a vampire drink from them? He took another long drink from my throat. I started to feel dizzy, and still he didn’t stop.

  I moved my hands to his shoulders and tried to push him away, but he wouldn’t budge. “Alaric, you’re taking too much.” God, he was going to kill me.

  Shhh, be easy. I won’t hurt you. His mind whispered inside of mine. He took one final draw from my vein before he pulled away.

  He braced himself on his forearms over me. “Are you okay? I was a little crazed.”