“Crap. I might have made it too strong for you. Give me your hand again.”
I drowsily reached my hand to her. It felt kinda like I was underwater, just floating around. Then, a little jolt and my bliss vanished. “Hey, why’d you do that?” I whined.
“Sorry, Wyn. I want you to be happy, but not so buzzed you can’t function like yourself. Not tonight.” Her mouth set into a grim line.
Was this Ball more important than she let on?
She glanced across the hazy room. “Look there’s Satinka, let’s go say hello and get the 411 on what’s going down here tonight.”
I followed Mel through the crowd admiring the assortment of costumes, a wild mix of vampire styles from the classic Victorian top hat and caped Dracula to Rice’s Lestat to the modern leather clad urban fantasy style vampire. Even a few Steampunk outfits mingled in the crowd…along with every vampire style in between. Quite a few young Goth girls wore short pixie style outfits along with classic Goth styles of the 90s—long flowing crushed velvet gowns with laced up tops and batwing sleeves.
I was surprised to see many authentic “costumes” from the 1800s and earlier. They had to be worth a fortune to collectors. I wasn’t surprised to see real vampires wearing them. Guess they didn’t like to throw things away. Hmmm, no wonder so many of them were ridiculously wealthy, they probably had the foresight to hang onto things knowing they would probably be worth a lot of money someday.
We reached Satinka to find her flanked by two werewolves and two vampire Guardians. She spoke with a man who emanated power. He wasn’t a vampire but something extremely powerful magick-wise. He had his own entourage of guards standing close by. I could tell they belonged to him because they all wore matching costumes decked out with gold and purple sashes around their waists matching his sash, though his was much more elaborately displayed with what I assumed to be his family crest—a shield with a flying dragon.
I was curious to find out who he was but whispering questions to Mel was a big no no considering most Others would be able to hear me.
Once Satinka and the man finished speaking, polite introductions were made. He was Regalado, a representative from the High Council of the Others. An event such as the Vampire Ball always required at least one council rep to be in attendance. I also learned he was a wizard. No wonder power dripped off him.
His dark chocolate brown eyes swirled with golden fire as he assessed my power level. Obviously he found me lacking because I was quickly dismissed and his attention went elsewhere. He left our little circle and sauntered through the room like he owned the place.
Fine by me, I had no desire to play along with a power pissing contest tonight. I didn’t have much to play with anyway. I wondered how much power I’d have if not bound repeatedly by so many spells. If someone went to all the trouble to bind me, over and over for many years, from reaching my true power level, then there must be something truly worth hiding. I shivered, not sure if I wanted all that power. Over the years I had wished to be more like Mom and Grams in the magick department, but maybe I couldn’t handle it. Not now, not all at once. I should have grown up with it, growing into it like a normal witch and learning as it increased. Now, once unbound, it would probably hit me all at once, which would probably be a disaster.
As I stood contemplating the crowd Mel pulled Satinka aside. I felt a pop and realized Mel had cast a spell bubble around her and Satinka so no one would hear what they said.
A tingling at the back of my neck made me looked up to the balcony. Malone stared down at me. I couldn’t help myself and smiled at him, to my surprise he smiled back. He was dressed in full Victorian finery with a hint of steampunk. A long black frock coat came almost to the knees of his striped trousers, accented with metallic buttons and a few added buckles. His blood red cravat matched his waistcoat. It was adorned with a wicked looking cravat pin which appeared to be a skull, a book and a key formed together in an intricate yet miniscule design. A fancy top hat, a walking cane, and gloves completed his outfit. I even spied the silver chain of a pocket watch dangling from his waistcoat. Where some men would look foppish or flat out ridiculous, he looked delicious.
I excused myself from the preternatural crowd and made my way through the partygoers toward the stairs. I met Mike just as he descended the last step.
“Annie, you look breathtaking.” His gaze raked over me making me feel exquisitely exposed as they lingered on my breasts then made their way down my skirts.
“You don’t look too bad yourself.” Ooohh, was I flirting? You bet. Maybe I should tone it down; we were supposed to be here in a semi-professional capacity. “I am kinda surprised you came, this doesn’t seem like your type of scene,” I said as I glanced around at all the vampires.
He grinned. “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”
“Right.” I laughed politely even though I didn’t find it too humorous.
He sobered. “I had to come, it’s part of my new job description as head of the P.I.T. Crew.”
I gasped. “When did that happen? Did something happen to Conally? Are you still going to be the lead detective?” What would I do without him in the field with me?
“Conally’s fine, just decided it was time to retire. He’ll be announcing it officially next week. And yes, I will still be the lead detective. Flint doesn’t have the budget to hire someone else to be Captain, though unfortunately I don’t get the title yet. I still have to go through the ranks, now I’ll be Sergeant Detective. No one wants this job anyway. A lot of the guys on the force think the P.I.T. Crew is a bullshit X-files type office. A joke. So screw ‘em. I get a great pay raise, a new title, and I get to keep doing what I love, being lead Detective.” He looked very pleased. “We’re adding a couple new detectives though, pulling them from other areas. A couple humans have made it clear they know more about the paranormal crimes than what they officially put in their reports, a couple are Others. One is a vampire. I’m not thrilled about it but we need someone with knowledge on vamp crimes, especially right now.”
“That’s great, Mike. I’m glad it’s a win/win situation for you.”
Just then the band started up and he led me from the loud ballroom out into the lobby. He looked to his right and eyed the stairway.
“Let’s go down there; I would like to talk to you in a more private setting.”
My heart sped up and my body tingled with excitement. What did he wish to speak to me about privately? I followed him down the stairs. A sign pointing to the left directed us to the restrooms but the other way led to a few closed doors. He walked over to one and tried the handle. Locked. The other one he tried was not. He held the door open for me and I walked into an office.
I glanced around the sparsely furnished and dimly lit office. It didn’t look used very often. The desk was clear, no papers or other personal possessions anywhere.
I turned to look at Mike. “So why did you want to talk to me all alone?” I asked, playfully trying to keep the mood light.
“It was getting loud out there and I wanted to apologize about yesterday in my office…” he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “I hate crowds. I really hate crowds filled with them.” He sneered slightly, and I bristled.
“You mean Others,” I said flatly.
“Vampires. They give me the creeps, I get this tingling…” he broke off like he realized he’d told me something personal about himself.
So there was more to Mike Malone than meets the eye, the Detective was a bit of a sensitive. “Do you only feel the presence of vampires, or do you feel others as well? Do you feel different around me?”
He smiled sexily. “I definitely feel different around you Annie, but it has nothing to do with you being Other. It has everything to do with you being a woman.”
“Cut the crap, Malone, you know what I mean,” I said seriously.
He sobered slightly. “Sorry, no I don’t really feel any of the strange vibes from any Others, except vampires and demons. Occasi
onally, a Were will set off my internal detectors, but that is rare.”
“Well that explains why you couldn’t tell who on the team is human and who is not since none of them are vampires or demons. Just so you know there’s a witch, two weres, and one shapeshifter wear FPD uniforms. And you know there are Others in the office working dispatch and doing clerical stuff, right?”
“Yeah, I know who all of the Others are in the P.I.T. crew, but I didn’t know there were Others on the force that are not part of the crew.”
“So this internal tingle thing you have…is that what led you to be part of the P.I.T Crew?” I asked hesitantly. I knew this could become a touchy topic real quick.
He looked at me like he was ready to come clean about everything. “That’s one reason.”
“And the other reasons?”
“I’ve had this radar for as long as I can remember, but I didn’t really know what it was when I was a kid. I’d get these weird feelings from people sometimes. It creeped me out, but I didn’t know what to do about it. One night when I was a teenager I felt it real strong, but I ignored it… until I heard the screams.”
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. I made the mistake of reaching out and touching his hand, he grabbed it and held on. The images hit me hard. A vampire attacked a pretty young girl and another drank from a beautiful older woman. His sister and mother. I tried to let go but he wouldn’t release my hand. The pain, the horror ripped through me. I felt everything he had. The vampires were killing them. He knew instinctively they were vampires and before he realized what he was doing, he staked one with the handle of a giant wooden spoon that had hung on the wall. The other one got away. His sister lived, but his mother did not.
I cried out as his pain from so long ago hit an unbearable high, he seemed to come out of the memories and released me.
“Anwyn, I am so sorry. I forgot you could see it, feel it. I’m sorry, God the horror and the pain. I just gave it all to you didn’t I?” He reached out but stopped afraid to touch me again. He backed into the desk and sat down on the edge with his head in his hands.
My Goddess! The pain, no wonder he hated vampires so much. “I’m so sorry, Mike. Why didn’t you tell me? Your mom, your sister…Your sister’s still alive now, right, she’s okay? Where was your dad?”
“My dad was at work, he was a cop and yeah, my little sis is still alive and happily married with two kids. She lives down in Florida now. Figured all that sun would maybe keep the vampires away. My dad retired several years ago and moved down there with her. He’s enjoying the fishing and his grand kids.” He smiled sadly.
“You should have told me why you hate vampires so much. It was during the Hysteria wasn’t it?” The damn Hysteria ruined and destroyed so many lives all thanks to a bunch of power hungry vampires and Others who thought it was a good idea to let humans know they existed. Like the witch hunts, the burning times from before hadn’t proven that was a bad idea. But, no, they thought a new, modern generation of humans could handle it.
The Hysteria proved humans hadn’t evolved much. Of course, neither had the Others.
“Yeah,” he said into his hands.
“You know I lost my dad to vampires at the end. At the last battle. The rogues had the humans all riled up. No one knew what was going on, the riot started and there was this group of mercenaries, humans killing anything that moved. My dad’s team tried to get them out of there, but as soon as they realized vampires and Others were on the police squad the mercenaries decided to wipe everyone out. My dad was shot and while he was down rogue vampires finished him off.”
“Then how can you still be close to them?” Mike sneered.
“Humans played their part in his death too, Mike. Can I shut myself off from the world and hate everyone? It’s unrealistic. I understand your hate, but they are not all bad.”
“They all drink blood. They are monsters designed to kill humans.” His snarl looked ferocious.
I had not realized his hate ran so deep.
“And humans are designed to kill animals and each other. Doesn’t mean we all do.” Stubborn man.
“Anwyn, I’m sorry I can’t look at them the way you do.” He glanced at me then stared at the floor.
I touched his face gently and made him look at me. “Mike you can’t carry pain and anger around with you forever. Believe me, I know. I dragged it around with me for a long time. I lost both my dad and my mom that night. Even though my mom still lives and breathes, she’s not the same. But I can’t change it, and I can’t hate everyone for it. I just have to accept it. I took this job to try and prevent other kids from growing up with this pain and anger. Isn’t that why you took this job too? You know we have to fight the bad guys and take help from all the good guys we can, right?”
“Yeah,” he muttered.
I caressed his strong jaw. Goddess, he was a beautiful man. And more complex and tender than I had thought. I took off his top hat and laid it on the desk so I could run my fingers through his wild wavy hair. The move startled Mike and he look at me with a puzzled expression on his face for a moment before heat flared in his eyes.
As soon as I saw the flames in his eyes my body responded. A burning need rose inside me, an ache suddenly needed to be filled.
Mike’s expression changed into one that promised deliciously wicked things. Hot damn.
I pressed my body between his legs and leaned in to kiss him. His arms wrapped around me and pulled me closer as his mouth covered mine with intense kisses. He coaxed my lips apart and pushed his tongue inside me, demanding my tongue dance with his.
As we kissed passionately I pushed at his coat and vest trying to find a way to undo his pants while he fumbled with the lacings of my corset top. Unfortunately, our nineteenth century attire proved very cumbersome. He finally got frustrated enough he picked me up and deposited me on the desk. He pushed my long skirt up around my waist with one hand while he furiously tore at the opening to his trousers with the other.
Once his hard cock sprang free he stopped for a moment to look at me.
“My God Annie, you’re so beautiful.” He took in the old fashioned black garter belt and lace top stockings. I had updated them with a thong; Mel had tried to convince me to go sans panties. There was no way I could go without any underwear at all so at the last moment I had slid a black lace thong over the garters. The thong he now yanked at to get out of the way.
I helped him get it off and leaned back on the desk to give him a better view of what I looked like minus the little strip of black lace.
He licked his lips and smiled in a way that was so utterly male and filled with sexual promises my body began to thrum with energy and desire. I wanted him, I wanted this beautiful man to be on me, in me, taking me to heights of pleasure I had only dreamed of.
I grabbed him by his coat and pulled him closer to me, close enough his erection teased my hot opening making me tense in anticipation. But he didn’t enter me. Instead he leaned over and kissed me.
So tender and sweet and full of promises, I sighed and melted into him. The friction of our heated bodies added more fuel to the fire blazing between us and soon the kiss became deeper and more passionate.
I gasped against his lips as he thrust his hips forward plunging his thick erection into me in one smooth motion. His breath came out as a moan of ecstasy when he slid all the way inside me, stretching me as my body struggled to accept his size. It only took a few brief moments for me to join him in ecstatic pleasure.
I leaned back on the desk and pulled him to me, needing him closer. I thrust my hips up and out to meet his, encouraging him to go deeper into me. I wrapped my heels around his hips and buried my face into his chest. His scent filled me, his manhood thrilled me, he was inside me, and I still wanted more. I wished we could be completely naked together, our bare skin touching everywhere, letting us connect even further.
As I held him tight, my body began to respond to the exquisite caresses of his cock inside me. I t
ightened around him and let the wave crash inside me, through me, out of me. I cried out as I came and within seconds he followed my lead. I may have started first but we finished together in a beautiful blend of orgasmic shudders and quick kisses.
The coupling had been fast, beautiful and full of heat and comfort.
As I came out of my love drunk-daze a thought popped into my head. “Mike, I read you, your memories. I saw them as visions.”
His sated look turned troubled. “I’m really sorry, Anwyn, I was caught up in my memories and let my guard down forgetting for a moment you could see them, feel them. I didn’t mean for you to feel pain.” He pulled away from my body and tried to tuck himself back into his Victorian attire.
“You let your guard down, which means you let down the shields you were trained to use.” I sat up on the desk smoothing my skirt down. “All this time I figured you being able to shield was just another cop thing, like cop-face, because almost all you guys do it. I rarely get anything from any of you. I’ve never even felt a twitch from you before, at least not until tonight. Who trained you?”
He didn’t look like he was going to tell me. I wasn’t surprised. He hadn’t exactly been forthcoming about anything else up to this point.
“My uncle, Markus.”
“And let me guess, he’s a hunter.”
“Yeah, I guess it runs in the family. My mom’s side. Not everyone inherits the ability. My mom knew nothing about it. Maybe if she had…or if I had known before the attack… but Markus was never around, it wasn’t until the funeral he found out I had the ability.”
“Come on Mike; don’t go thinking about things that can’t be changed again.”
His eyes looked so haunted. He was a million miles away. I touched him softly to bring him back to this world. He looked blankly at me for a moment then a flicker went through his eyes and he was back.
“You’re right. I just wish Markus would have been around when I was younger, trained me from the beginning when I was a kid like he did with my cousin Tony. Of course, the only reason he trained Tony was because vampires killed both of his parents.”
Hex and the Single Witch (Vehicle City Vampires) Page 17