by Rhys Rowlyn
“Nyla! Wake. The. Hell. Up.” Joey slaps the floor in frustration and I jerk a bit, trying to hang on to consciousness.
Tara squeezes my hand, and I hear her sobbing quietly. I glance her way and offer a weak smile. “Nyla, please take some of the water and the rest of the bread.”
“It’s fine, baby. It will be what it will be. Don’t worry about me.” I turn toward her, meeting her eyes. “I want you to make me a promise.”
“Anything.” Tears stream down her cheeks, and she draws in a shuddering breath.
“Survive and have the best life ever. I know it’s not legal, but you can have everything I have if I don’t make it. I want you to use my money to go to college and never go back to the life you had before.” My eyes drift close, and I breathe deeply. I am so weak, it’s taking everything I have to speak.
“I promise, but you’re going to be here to make sure I do. Please be here. I need you to be here,” Tara begs.
Blackness takes over, and I don’t have the energy to fight it any longer. I hear the girls yelling my name but don’t have the strength to respond.
“Nyla, stay with us. I hear something. Someone is coming. Don’t go. Just a little longer,” Joey cries, but I can’t acknowledge her. I hope she’s right and someone is coming for their sake.
Peace comes over me, and I feel as if I’m floating. I would like to comfort the others, but it’s beyond me at this point. The darkness is so enticing, I really just want to give in. A door opens somewhere, and I am lifted into someone’s arms. Whoever it is seems very upset, and I want to tell them it’s going to be okay, but can’t open my eyes.
He’s begging me to drink, and I feel hot liquid sliding down my throat. With a burst of energy, I suck on the source and swallow more of the liquid down. I don’t know whose arms I’m in, but for the first time since I was taken, I feel safe. I allow myself to give in to the darkness and know no more.
Jean Pierre
I’ve been awake now for a week and am amazed at all the changes that have occurred over the last few centuries. Things are so different, and I wonder if I’ll ever acclimate to this new world. Bram assures me I will, and I trust he’s right. Needing to feel useful, I’m in the basement with the prisoner they have stashed here.
This man has apparently kidnapped several women around town, and one of the girls was under Cassie’s protection. Normally, I don’t involve myself in human drama, but in this instance, I’m making an exception. Besides, this crazy fellow has proven to be interesting and difficult to crack. I always have enjoyed a good challenge.
“Do you have any family?” Sitting back in my chair, I have an arm slung over the back as I watch him carefully.
The man smiles but doesn’t reveal anything. “I’m sure you’ve met my parents. There’s no one else.”
Cassie comes bounding down the steps and rounds the corner. Her gaze narrows when it falls upon the man chained to the wall. “How are we doing tonight, Kyle?”
Kyle perks up, sitting up straighter in his chair. “Why, if it isn’t Miss Cassandra. You know I have a blonde pet, but for you, I’d be willing to have another.” The man leers at Cassie, and I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself and feeling a strong urge to punch him.
Cassie merely smirks at him, not concerned in the least by his insinuations. She steps within a foot of the man, and I reach out to pull her back, but she shakes her head. “I would imagine you would, Kyle, but right now, I need to ask you about your cousin Richard.”
Kyle’s heart rate increases and his pupils dilate, but he holds his ground, trying not to reveal any emotion. “I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
Cassie turns toward me. “Let’s go.”
“Wait! Where are you going? You don’t know anything!” Kyle shouts at our retreating backs.
We mount the steps, leaving behind the screaming man, and find André, Fleur, Bram, Giles, and Phillipe at the top of the stairs. Cassie nods, and everyone except Giles and Phillipe head out the back door toward the garage. We pile into Cassie’s truck, and she quickly starts the engine and backs out onto the street.
André tenses, and I shake my head as Fleur rubs his arm in an attempt to calm him. I’ve rode in one of these new automobiles several times and don’t understand the fear Phillipe and André have of them. I find them exhilarating and a very efficient means of transportation. Much better than horses. I really hated horses.
The phones and computers, however, I’m not too keen on. I find it very strange to be able to instantly communicate with another. I don’t like them and have found people to be too preoccupied with the things. Bram has given me one, and they are trying to teach me how to use it, but I’ve only made a call or two and haven’t seen the benefits as of yet.
Bram takes his cursed device out and makes a call. “Hollis, it’s Bram. He reacted to the cousin’s name. We’re on our way to the property now.” Bram pauses. “Yes, it’s south of Hopedale. I’ll text you the coordinates. We’ll meet you there.”
Turning in his seat, Bram ends the call and instantly sends a text. “The wolves are on board. They said it would take an hour or so for them to reach us. We should be there a good thirty minutes prior, depending on traffic.”
“Could someone tell me what is going on? I take it we’ve got a lead, but I’d love to know what’s happening.” I was in the basement for a while and have no clue why we are suddenly racing across town.
“We finally decided to revisit his parents.” Cassie glances back and meets my gaze before turning back to face the street. “It was hard to do before because the police had them under surveillance, but we caught a break today. Two half-breeds arranged to be on watch. I used compulsion to find out if there were any other family members and if they owned properties. This is a distant relative, and he owns land in St. Bernard parish, so we took a chance.”
Very smart. I’m impressed with her ingenuity. “He definitely reacted. How did you locate the property?”
“I hacked into the parish records and got the plats for it.” She shrugs, and I wonder what she means by hacking. Did she break down a wall or something?
“Hopefully we’ll find them. I can’t imagine what those poor girls are going through.” Fleur leans her head onto André’s shoulder, and he links their fingers together.
I was surprised but happy to learn that my brother, André, had a mate and that Fleur is nothing like her ancestor. Roseline was a bitter, mean-spirited bully. Fleur is sweet and loves André, which is all that is important. Bram’s mate, Cassie, is a bit more aggressive and independent, and I’ve taken a strong liking to her. She is honest and very straightforward. They keep telling me I’ll find my mate soon, but I’m not looking forward to it. Even though the other two are nothing like their counterparts, I worry mine will be.
Catherine was not a pleasant person. I truly hated her. By the end of the journey here, I rarely spoke to her, much less spent any time around her. She was too busy entertaining the sailors, and I was fine with it. I was not looking forward to helping her set up her new life, and in a way, I am glad of the curse in that it saved me that pain in the arse.
We arrive at a gated dirt road in the middle of nowhere, and I believe if I were going to kidnap girls, this is where I would hide them. I jump out and break the lock, swing the gate open for Cassie to drive through, then hop into the back of the truck and bang on the roof. She drives down the rough road until we see a beat-up metal building in the distance and she stops the truck. I jump out and race down the lane until I’m about five feet from the shack, and I stop. The stench of death is permeating from the building. Cassie joins me and gasps, her face paling.
She rushes in before I can stop her but quickly backs out. “I believe we’ve found the cousin. He’s dead, and it appears he’s been that way for a while.”
“Any sign of the girls?” Fleur gags, pinching her nose with her fingers.
Cassie shakes her head, glancing around. “No, but there has to be another buil
ding close.”
We fan out and search everything. I come across a worn trail at the back of the house and shout for the others. We follow it into the woods and come upon another shack, and a scent like no other hits me.
Drawn to the building, I burst in and find her in a cage, barely breathing. Her heart is beating so slowly and faintly, I barely can hear it. She is moments from death.
“Nooo!” I race to the cage, rip off the door, and climb in to take her in my arms. I must save her.
I tear my wrist open and drip my blood into her mouth. After a few drops make it in, she grabs my wrist and actively sucks from my wound. I hold her tighter against my chest, all rational thoughts leaving my mind. I can only focus on her.
“That’s it. Take all you need.” I look up from the woman and find six pairs of eyes staring at me. “She’s my mate.”
“Let me help you get her out of this cage.” Bram reaches in, but I growl. He quickly backs away and holds his hands up. “I will only help you get out of the cage, then I’ll give her back to you.”
I take a deep breath to calm myself and pull my wrist away, then gently hand her out. Bram takes my mate into his arms. I crawl out of the cage and immediately take her from him.
Cassie breaks the locks on the other two cages and lets the remaining girls out. One is clearly a wolf, and the other must be the human Cassie has been searching for.
“Tara, you’re going to be all right now.” Cassie offers a hand to the girl in the cage next to my mate’s. She is a small-framed, young-looking girl with dark-brown, shoulder-length hair. It looks as if the ends are a dark blue, which is very odd. I sniff the air and she smells human, but I’ve never seen hair that color on one before.
“Cassie. Oh, Cassie, thank God you found us. We wouldn’t have lasted much longer.” Tara falls into Cassie’s arms, sobbing. “Is Nyla dead? Please don’t let her be dead. She refused to eat or drink and kept giving her supplies to me and Joey and then Joey wouldn’t eat hers. Said she was tougher than us.”
I brush the hair off my mate’s forehead, staring down at her. She looks nothing like her predecessor, and if what the girl is saying is true, she doesn’t have any of her ancestor’s self-serving traits either.
“Joey! Joey!” Everyone looks toward the door as a large man, who is clearly a wolf, steps into the building.
“Daddy? Daddy!” Joey jumps into his open arms and buries her face into his neck, her body shuddering with sobs.
“There, there, my girl. You’re safe now.” The man nods at Cassie, his eyes bright with unshed tears.
We take the women out of the shed and into the clearing. They are dirty and look half-starved, but all are alive.
I nod toward the man, and Bram mouths, “Hollis, alpha, and her dad.”
Hollis pulls Joey away from him, looking her up and down. “Joey, why didn’t you just break the locks and get away?”
“That asshole Richard knew what I was and lined everything with silver. I couldn’t touch any of the cage. Speaking of him, I’m guessing he’s the corpse I’ve been smelling. Rotten in life and in death.” Joey wrinkles her nose, stepping out of her father’s arms.
“I’m not positive, but I believe he’s the dead guy in the trailer.” A young wolf walks up, pointing his thumb in the direction of the first shack.
“Wilder!” Joey runs into his arms, and he squeezes her tightly, swinging her around.
Wilder kisses her head, giving her another squeeze. “Thank God we found you, little sis. As annoying as you are, I’d never want anything to happen to you.”
An older wolf walks up and hands Joey and Tara each a bottle of water. Both guzzle it down.
“We need to find somewhere close for Jean Pierre’s mate to go through the change,” Bram says. “She’s probably going to start soon, and I don’t really think it’s a good idea to have that happen while in a vehicle, driving down the road.” He looks at the building with distaste, and I know I don’t want to bring my mate back in there.
Tara looks from Nyla to me with wide eyes. “What’s going to happen to her? She’ll be okay, right?”
Cassie pulls the girl into a side hug, smiling reassuringly. “She’ll be fine, and changing her into a vampire was the only way to save her life, but it’s not easy. She won’t remember any of it, but it’s not pleasant to watch.”
“We have a property about fifteen minutes from here. It’s only a hunting camp, but it’s isolated, and no one will hear her screams.” Hollis hits his hand with his fist. “I can’t believe that son of a bitch had my baby only miles from our property and we didn’t know it.”
Joey grips her father’s shoulder, shaking her head. “Dad, we only come here a couple times a year. There’s no way you could have known we were here.”
Cassie pulls Hollis off to the side. “Before we go to the other property, what do you want to do with Kyle?” Cassie glances back at Tara and lowers her voice to barely a whisper. “Also, Tara is under our protection, but how do we handle her knowing about us?”
Joey straightens her spine, bowing her chest out. There is fire in her eyes. “Tara is part of my pack now. She stays with me.” She pokes her finger in her chest. “Nyla and I made a vow to protect her at all costs. Besides, there’s no way you can wipe her memories. A full moon happened a couple nights ago, and I was too weak to prevent myself from changing. She knows everything.”
“Kyle shall be handled under pack law. You do not harm an alpha’s daughter and not be dealt with.” Hollis puts his arm across Joey’s shoulder and hugs her to his side. “And if Joey says she’s part of our pack, then that’s what she is.”
Cassie holds her hands up, grinning. “Fine by me. We can’t kill the bastard without going feral, so you are more than welcome to his crazy ass. Send some sentinels over to the house, and I’ll tell Phillipe to let you have him. As far as Tara goes, as long as she’s safe, that’s all that matters to me.”
I hug my mate close to my chest, gazing down at her lovely face. She has smooth, light-caramel-colored skin with high cheekbones and plump pink lips. Her lashes fan out on her cheeks, and when she opened her eyes briefly after tasting my blood, they were a light amber. Her dark silky hair falls in a thick braid down her back.
“She’s gorgeous and reminds me of someone.” Fleur kneels beside me, smiling down at my mate.
“It’s probably that actress from the new series based out of New Orleans. Nyla is a stunt double. She told us she recently moved back to work on the series but has worked with stars like Halle Berry,” Tara says, but I have no idea what she’s talking about or what a stunt double is.
“Nyla.” Her name rolls over my tongue like a caress, and I smile for the time since finding her.
Nyla
I squint an eye open and look around but have no clue where I am. Thinking back, I search my mind for my last memory.
Cages! Joey and Tara! I search the room for them and find several strangers circling the bed I’m lying on. They are all smiling and looking at me expectantly.
“Mon Cheri, you’re awake.” A dark-haired man takes my hand in his and kisses my knuckles. “Don’t be afraid. Could you please open your mouth? You need blood.”
Wrinkling my brow, I open my mouth, and a cold plastic bag is shoved in it. It’s strange, but some of the weakness I’ve felt for what feels like forever goes away.
“That’s it. Now I shall give you another.” He takes the empty bag away and replaces it with a full one. My eyes widen as I begin to feel normal, better than normal.
I sit up, and he takes the empty bag from my mouth.
A blonde-haired woman peeps over his shoulder, grinning at me. “She’ll probably need another.”
I lean back, narrowing my eyes on the two. “What is going on?” I wonder where my friends are and who these people are.
“Nyla, you were almost dead when we found you. And to save you, I had to change you.” The man smiles softly at me, and I’m inclined to smile back, but I frown instead. “
I know this is going to seem unbelievable, but you are a vampire.”
Gasping, I cover my mouth with my hands. Did he really just say vampire? And he just threw it out there, no easing me into it. I remember my shock when Joey turned into a wolf and later told us there were such things as vampires, werewolves, and witches, but now this dude is telling me I am one? I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose, not knowing how I should react.
“Oh, wow.” I hold my hands up and look at them. They look normal. I stare back at him. “I don’t feel different.” My head tilts, and I hop off the table to stand in front of a mirror hanging on the wall. “I look the same.” I open my mouth and find fangs, then quickly turn around with a gasp, covering my mouth with my hand.
“I know this is a lot to take in, and we don’t change people randomly, but Jean Pierre didn’t have a choice.” The blonde smiles encouragingly. “Oh, and we do exist, but we’re not monsters and don’t kill people.”
I glance at the dark-haired man, and the air seizes in my lungs. He is beautiful. He’s tall, over six feet by a couple inches, and muscular with dark-brown hair tied back at his nape. What really catches my attention are his dark eyes. They are fathomless but seem to glow with an inner fire. My mother always said we could tell a lot about someone by their eyes, and if that were true, this man had depths I could only guess at. I don’t know why, but I move toward him as if my body has a mind of its own.
He reaches out and takes my hand, then links our fingers, and I feel as if I can take a deep breath.
“Mon cheri, it will be all right,” he says. “I will keep you safe.”
“But why?” I can’t figure out why I feel as though this man will keep me safe or how know in my heart I can trust him.
“You are my mate, and I will do anything for you.” He brings my hand to his mouth to kiss my knuckles, and I shiver.
Whoa, wait a second. I’m his what? “I can’t be your mate. You’re a vampire. Joey said wolves had mates, but she never mentioned you having them.” I look from the man to the woman, furrowing my brow. “Speaking of Joey, where are she and Tara?” A pang of guilt assaulted me for taking so long to find out if my friends are safe.