His people had been the foremost experts on magicks. There had to be some book that explained the reality altering spell that was trying to control him. Had to be some reasonable, ordinary, supernatural explanation.
Except he couldn’t find any.
This was his reality. He knew all of it. It existed. Yet, Karalynn was right. There was a fog overlaying it, forcing him to think and do things that he would never do and think. This was all some kind of ill thought-out book. He couldn’t explain it. But, it was definitely happening. Someone was trying to manipulate him for their own ends and Damien planned to stop them.
This was all part of romance story. He accepted that.
Slade’s romance story. A bit harder to stomach, but still doable.
Slade’s romance story, where Damien would die at the end and leave Kara alone.
No. Unacceptable.
He’d fight that with every bit of his powers.
When he’d laid his hand on Kara’s stomach and realized that she might’ve been carrying his child, something cleansing had swept through him. His mate was his second chance. She’d been given to him by fate, sent from her own time to be with him. That wouldn’t happen if he was supposed to die. Kara wouldn’t be here if he didn’t have a future with her.
He would never leave her.
Damien wanted Slade dead. He wanted it so badly it still threatened to blind him. It wasn’t just the fog controlling his feelings. No, the hatred was very real. But, if he couldn’t kill Slade and have his mate, then there was no choice to make. He’d let Slade live and keep Karalynn.
Damien hated very deeply.
But, his love went even deeper.
He’d sacrifice anything to keep Kara’s curly head on his pillow at night. Slade had ruined too much of his life. The Vampire wasn’t going to spoil his mating, too. He wasn’t going to cause Damien to lose his Kara. If this was a book, then Damien was the star of it. He would control his actions.
After hours of fruitless searching to undo or explain why he was trapped in someone else’s fantasy, Damien had come home to check on his mate and bring her food.
Only to find her gone and this ridiculous note propped up on the bed.
She’d gone to the Vampire Isle. Alone. Except for those idiot humans, apparently, which was even worse than being alone. Madison was like a fainting goat. The slightest noise might send her into a complete incapacitating swoon. As for the male... Well, Damien just didn’t like any man near his mate. Not even one so useless looking. If the Vampires didn’t slay the boy, Damien just might.
And Karalynn would be lucky if she survived long enough to face Damien’s wrath. When To’kel caught her, he’d kill her. After which point, he may or may not turn her into a Vampire.
Karalynn would hate being a Vampire.
And that was the best case scenario, at the moment.
“Shit.” How could he possibly follow her?
If it was easy to get to the Vampire’s homeland, he would’ve gone there long ago to kill Slade while the bastard slept. Teleporting to the Isle didn’t work and no sorcerer could fly. It was impossible to swim there or use a boat, since it existed in some kind of magical dimension thing that not even Damien fully understood. So how could he come up with a...
Damien’s eyes narrowed.
Wait...
He didn’t have to think of a plan. His devious little mate had already given him one. A good one, too. Simple and direct. Damien appreciated simple, direct paths to his goals. He’d been stuck inside this fucking book, following someone else’s idiotic ideas for far too long. He wanted his freedom and he wanted his mate, and he’d take the quickest, straightest route to both.
He stalked downstairs into his office, grabbing up the phone and dialing the dragons’ lair from memory. He had no idea why he knew their number, but it saved him the time of looking it up.
“It’s Damien.” He said, flatly when one of them answered.
“You have a lot of nerve calling us here, sorcerer.” The voice was a venomous hiss. Probably Xim. They’d never been close. In fact, Xim’s annual attempt to kill him was almost a tradition. “You slaughtered Nestor over a human.” He spat out the word. “The dragons will see you dead, if...”
“Forget Nestor. He’s gone, and we’ll just have to somehow go on without him. This is about business. I want to hire you.”
“Ha!” He actually said “Ha!” like it was a word. “The Dragons would never work for a Wizard Warlock.”
“Really? Even if you boys could make... Oh...” Damien started up at the ceiling and did some calculations. What was the absolute maximum his magicks could create in an hour? “Twenty-six boxcars full of rubies? Big ones?”
Xim paused, his death threats giving way to shock. “Twenty-six boxcars?” That was more money that any supernatural being had ever paid them. Possibly more than any supernatural being had ever paid anyone. “Like boxcars for trains?”
“Yes. Ready and waiting for you today. All I need is a ride.”
Xim’s tone became an accommodating purr. “Keep talking, my friend.”
Chapter Seventeen
“You are defeated, creature.” Slade eyed Damien through the golden bars of the dungeon. “I have rescued my beautiful bride from your fortress from Hell and have taken you prisoner here in my impenetrable golden castle. Now you shall be executed and the vile Wizard Warlock race shall be wiped forever from the face of the earth.”
“Or so you’d think.” Damien smiled, evilly. “Except, all this had been my real plan, all along. For To’kel wasn’t the only one working with me to see you destroyed. You have just walked right into my elaborate trap, Vampire.”
Slade gasped as someone suddenly snuck up behind him and held a diamond sword to his manly neck. His eyes fell on Damien’s henchman with anger and surprise. “You!”
Eternal Passion at Sunset- Chapter Seventeen
The Vampire Isle looked more like St. Thomas than Transylvania.
Slade’s homeland was a tropical paradise, right out of a travel brochure. It was bathed in eternal moonlight, but that didn’t diminish the brilliant turquoise of the sea or the golden color of the beach. The castle sat on the edge of an alabaster precipice above the shoreline that Tanya must have copied from photographs of the White Cliffs of Dover. It stood up there, lights streaming out of its many turrets, illuminating the darkness and reflecting off the waves, like something straight out of the Magic Kingdom.
Kara pushed the wild curls back from her face, her eyes never leaving the insanely magnificent oceanfront property she’d almost been queen of. It was so beautiful that it didn’t seem real. Obviously, it wasn’t real, in the strictest sense of the word. But it was still there, right in front of her. Her feet sank into the pristine sand as she crossed the beach. Her gaze swung around the magical landscape, the warm breeze caressing her face and the gentle scent of jasmine filling the air.
Huh.
Kinda crazy that she much preferred the cobwebby Haunted Mansion Damien called home. Or maybe not so crazy. She’d always been the kind of girl who preferred horror movies to fairy tales. Who voted for the monster over the white knight and for the bad guy to get away in the end.
Her mouth curved. Of course, that didn’t mean she’d object to a certain sorcerer creating a nice little seaside chateau for them to summer in. Or maybe she could just make one herself, if what Damien said about her new superpowers turned out to be true. There could definitely be an upside to Damien’s “Surprise! You’re now a mystical sorceress and also my wife” revelation. She was still going to kick his ass, obviously, but things could work out okay.
Assuming they both survived past page 260, anyway.
“This land must be worth millions.” Eugene murmured from beside her. “If we were to build houses here, do you have any idea the money we could make?” Kara could see dollar signs flashing behind his monocle, but not the panic you’d expect in the eyes of someone so recently flown to another realm via Vampire. All i
n all, he seemed to be taking this whole thing pretty well, in fact. Maybe she’d underestimated Professor Boring.
“We’re not selling my lands.” Melessa sounded appalled. “Every scenic and valuable acre belongs to my precious Slade. Right, Fibos?” She fluttered her eyelashes over at her loyal Vampire lapdog.
“Yes, my lady. This is your rightful home.” Ever since he’d first laid eyes on her, Slade’s faithful follower had been one hundred percent Team Melessa. It was kind of insulting how thrilled he was to have traded-up on the royalty front. He was visibly relieved to have Miss America as his predestined queen, instead of an unappreciative, size twelve, book editor with a thing for bad guys. He actually bowed every time Melessa walked passed, utter worship on his face.
Whatever.
Kara rolled her eyes and looked over at the other four Vamp soldiers who Fibos had recruited to help her save Slade. They were typical members of the Vampire brain trust. Tall and muscular, with shiny hair and pirate-style shirts.
And they all watched Kara like she might spontaneously grow a second head, at any moment.
Her relationship with Damien must have been front page news in the Vamp Herald today. To the Vampires, Kara was some kind of sideshow attraction now; a creature to behold with a mixture of frightened pity and horrific curiosity. Kara had the almost irresistible impulse to yell “Boo!” just to see if they’d scatter in terror. So far, they’d kept a nice safe distance between her and them, clearly anticipating some kind of attack. If not from her, then from Damien.
They were terrified of her “husband.” God knew, he wasn’t the most popular fella anyplace in this make-believe world, but to the Vamps he was like the boogeyman or something. They honest-to-God whispered his name. She made a mental note never to tell him that, though. It would just go to his head.
Good thing they hadn’t gone for the traditional wedding. Aside from that damn raven and maybe some of his beloved spies, Damien’s side of the church would have been pretty empty.
And she needed to stop thinking about the stupid idea that they were married, because…
“Witch?” Fibos got as close to her as he dared and adopted what he must have thought was a conspiratorial tone. “The secret entrance to the dungeons is over there in that wall.” He pointed to one of the massive slabs of alabaster stone. “That is where they’re holding King Slade.”
Why would anyone build trapdoors in their own dungeons? It just didn’t make any sense. Although, you’d think she’d be passed the point of trying to find logic between the covers of this book.
Kara shook her head in general annoyance and made her way through the ankle deep sand. The rock surface looked smooth to her, but what did she know about hidden doorways? She doubted Fibos would make a mistake about anything involving his precious Commander-in-Chief. Besides, there were bigger problems with the plan. “You’re sure that the other Vampires are going to side with us, once they see Slade’s free, right?
It still seemed sketchy to pin her hopes on people wanting to keep that dumbbell in charge of their country.
“Yes. Once we’ve freed our glorious king, the rest of the royal guard will rise up and help us to crush To’kel.” Fibos assured her as if reading the doubt on her face. “Our people love our beloved Slade.”
“Uh-huh.” Somehow, she still wasn’t convinced. Her best hope was probably someone killing To’kel quickly, forcing his men to scatter and causing his whole plan to collapse. Either that or some kind of magic spell. Kara was becoming a big fan of fixing problems via magic spells, all of a sudden. Well, not ‘all of sudden.’ It started right around the time she started dating a sorcerer.
Funny how that worked.
“Of course, our loyal subjects will help us free Slade.” Melessa chimed in. “They know what sort of kind and benevolent leader he is. And handsome. With our genes, can you imagine how incredible our children will be?”
Karalynn was so sick of listening to Mel’s prattle. The girl talked constantly. Mostly about herself. And Slade. And their epic love story. Picturing the two of them procreating was just the final straw. Bad enough she had to read all those love scenes, in the first place.
Kara rounded on the book’s useless heroine, poking a finger into her chest. “Number one: Keep your voice down. Number two: I don’t think genes have been discovered, yet. Three: You’ve never even seen the oh-so-handsome Slade. And four: Once you have kids, your waistline goes kaput. Think about that, before you start buying baby furniture.”
Melessa’s eyes widen in horror, her gaze going down to her teeny tiny midsection. “Really?”
“Yep. Just ask Scarlett O’Hara.”
“But, then none of my dresses would fit!”
Eugene sighed loudly, his fingers coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose. How he managed to do that without disrupting his monocle was anyone’s guess.
Fibos ignored the byplay. He pushed on an innocuous group of rocks and a narrow slit opened in the stone wall. He and the other Vampires pulled on either side of it, until the rock walls slid apart revealing a doorway. Very Fellowship of the Ring.
Inside, there was a long hallway filled with atmospheric dripping sounds and flickering torches attached to the stone walls. Because, --sure-- everybody left unattended torches burning 24/7 in their dungeon. How else could you find your secret exits?
Hopefully, her mother had been wrong and rolling your eyes didn’t get them stuck like that, because Kara was pushing the limits of how far they could go without spinning right around in her skull.
Fibos stuck his head into the dim corridor, his eyes narrowed like something out of a ninja movie. “Okay.” He stage whispered. “It looks clear.” He gave an elaborate hand gesture, motioning his men forward.
The four of them went slinking in behind him, their heads darting around, diamond swords jabbing at the shadows.
Kara puffed out a long breath and stalked in after them. God, she missed Damien. Not just because he was hot, and smart, and protective, but because he got her. They just understood each other so well. He would completely sympathize with her frustration towards these morons. If he were here, he’d mutter some snarky put-upon comment to make her laugh and she’d feel… safe. She always felt safe with Damien and she needed a little bit of security, right now.
She had a bad feeling about this whole thing.
It was a trite line, worthy of good ol’ Tanya, but there was no other way to describe her increasing anxiety. Kara still believed that saving Slade was the only option open to her and she knew that Damien couldn’t be around when it happened. Not if she wanted Slade to survive his liberation, anyway. But, the farther she went into this whole ‘Heroically Free Slade by Herself’ deal, the more her feeling of unease grew.
Melessa was a dingbat. No surprise there.
Dimwitted Vampires made bad partners. Kara had certainly anticipated that.
There were some missing steps to her rescue plan. She’s was aware of that, too.
But, this feeling was… more. Bigger.
Crazy as it sounded, it seemed to come from the book itself.
The more Kara pushed forward, the greater the pull against her became. She could feel something watching her as they neared the end. Something that wasn’t going to just let her rearrange the plot without a fight. Something beyond the words on the page wanted to drive the action. Like in Terminator, when all the machines became self-aware, it seemed as if Eternal Passion at Sunset was devising ways to stop Kara from completing her rewrites. Like it was concerned with goals of its own.
Well, it was in for a big damn fight, because Kara would fix the damn finale of this book. This SkyNet crap didn’t work for Schwarzenegger and it wasn’t going to work…
Wait. Kara frowned. Didn’t the machines win in Terminator?
“This way, Witch.” Fibos hissed, cutting of Kara’s thoughts before she could exactly remember why the cute guy from Aliens went back in time. She refocused on the Vampire and saw him and the rest of the c
ast of True Blood scampering along, close to the moldy wall ahead of her. Their super stealthy bank heist maneuverings were pretty pointless, though, considering the sound effects from the rest of the party.
“Oh my God!” Melessa’s voice reached an octave only dogs and zombies could hear. “Did you see that? It was a centipede as long as my arm!” She shuddered and pressed closer to Eugene. “Oh, the trials I must go through to save my heroic Slade from this degradation.” Her eyes cut around the stone hallway searching for more insects lying in wait. “Don’t let the bugs touch me, Eugene. Remember, I’m a queen.”
“Believe me, this entire day is not something I’m liable to forget.” Eugene muttered. “Say, do you think your father will still let me do his bookkeeping, even though we’ve broken our betrothal? His account is worth…”
“Shut-up.” Kara ordered. If she wasn’t afraid of drawing even more attention, she would have dug the flashlight out of her purse and threatened to zap them both with it. It was like the whole incursion was being carried out by fifth graders.
Up ahead, Fibos led them down another maze-like hallway. Typical that Slade’s palace would be built on top of the Temple of Doom. They did seem to be getting somewhat closer to the jail part of the dungeon, though, if the moans and screaming were any indication.
Kara frowned as they moved forward, her eyes scanning the prisoners trapped inside the various cells. Some of them were listlessly slumped on the ground. Some of them were crying for help or shouting threats. Some of them looked dead. “Okay, seriously. Who are all these people?” She demanded, horrified by the medieval conditions.
“Enemies of the crown.” Fibos ignored the Vampiric misery all around him and headed down the row of cells. “I imagine King Slade is in isolation. He’s too powerful for this kind of containment.”
“You mean, you guys always keep them here like this?”
“Of course.”
Kara couldn’t imagine anything worse than being here in Vampire jail. What was wrong with these people? Damien sure didn’t keep prisoners like this. When Damien took her captive, he’d given Kara whatever she asked for. A safe place to sleep, trips to the Wild West Show, incredible orgasms… The man had honest-to-God battled dragons for her. How dare the Vamps call Damien a creature, when he was such a good man and they had rats and corpses in their basement? The Vampire Isle seriously needed some prison reform.
Not Another Vampire Book Page 28