by Kate Baxter
She’d come to the conclusion that the only person she could rely on was herself. And that those around her who so greedily took of her generous and caring nature weren’t interested in reciprocating. So, screw everyone. She wasn’t interested in Diego’s false concern or anything else.
“It’s my business if it interferes with the safety of this coven.”
Sasha averted her gaze. The safety and security of the coven had been her responsibility for centuries. Ever since she’d proved herself to Saeed as formidable. Diego had since taken over the responsibilities she’d shirked. She couldn’t help but feel like a wild teenager who’d just been caught hanging out with the local drug dealer. Well, in her case it would be more like hanging out with the local crazed-predator-slash-assassin, but she wasn’t about to admit to anything. Likewise, it wouldn’t do her any good to behave like a teenager and further stir Diego’s suspicions. She needed him out of her hair about ten minutes ago. Ani was waiting for her to text and check in and Sasha seriously needed a few minutes alone to decompress and get her head straight. The berserker had approached her in plain view of hundreds of sets of eyes. Something as scandalous as that wouldn’t go unnoticed—or untalked about. Gods, she was so wound up she was making up words! Seriously, she needed Diego to get the hell out.
“Look, I’m being a good girl. Is that what you want to hear?”
Diego’s eyes narrowed and his lips pursed, painting the perfect image of disappointed parent. “It would be if that were the truth.”
Sasha rolled her eyes. She hated that Diego and Saeed held her to a higher standard than anyone else. Totally not fair. As though everyone else in the world was allowed to make mistakes and be forgiven, but if Sasha so much as stepped a toe out of line, she’d be as good as excommunicated. Banished and forgotten. Cut off without so much as an ounce of leeway.
“You know what? If you’re going to stand there and give me grief till the sun rises, you can do us both a favor and leave me alone. I’m in for the night so you won’t have anything to worry about. The precious coven will be safe from whatever nefarious things I’m apparently up to.”
She was too angry to feel any guilt about the fact that tonight, her wild extracurricular activities might actually have put the coven in danger. Too hurt to act anything other than indignant. Diego let out a slow breath and his posture relaxed as though in defeat. “If I didn’t care about you, I wouldn’t ride you so hard. You know that, right?”
Sasha snorted. “If you say so.” She was so over this conversation. Diego didn’t move an inch as she brought her gaze up to meet his. She held it as she forced a pleasant smile to her face and infused her voice with saccharine calm. “May the rest of the night treat you well, Diego.”
His expression fell like a deflated balloon. A twinge of regret tugged at Sasha’s chest and she forced the unwelcome emotion away. “May the rest of the night treat you well, Sasha.” He returned the formal words of parting and left without another word.
Sasha sank back onto the sofa and allowed her head to fall back onto the cushions. Unspent adrenaline pooled in her limbs and her unquenched thirst raged like wildfire eating dry grass. The berserker’s scent still swam in her head, an intoxicating aroma that made her mouth water and her body hum. He shouldn’t have smelled so delicious. He should have repulsed her instead of enticing her. She ached with want. Could still feel the grip of his strong hands at her hips and the powerful thrust of his hips as he drove into her. Her heart pounded in her chest and the influx of emotions that besieged her left Sasha weak and shaken.
She dragged a hand across her mouth and the point of one sharp fang pierced the skin near one of her knuckles, coaxing a drop of blood to form and run in a rivulet toward her thumb. She licked the blood away but it did little to sate her. Nothing but the berserker’s blood would calm the fire that raged in her throat.
Fuck.
The situation was beyond catastrophic. The tether was absolute. Unbreakable. The only thing that could sever it was death and if Saeed found out what had happened, Sasha was certain her soul would be freed from her body once again. A tether between a vampire and berserker wouldn’t be tolerated. And without her mate, Sasha would be doomed to spend eternity as one of the soulless.
Empty. Forever.
It was a fate of unimaginable suffering. A torture she didn’t think she’d be able to endure. If anyone found out about her bond with the berserker, they might as well do her a favor and run a stake through her heart. Because she knew without a doubt that she wouldn’t survive losing her soul a second time.
Tears stung at Sasha’s eyes but she willed them to dry. She was still far too raw to give the impression she had her shit together and said a silent prayer of thanks that the sun would soon be up to carry her away to the blissful oblivion of daytime sleep. Before she could escape reality, though, she needed to let Ani know she was all right.
Sasha shifted on the couch and fished her cell from her back pocket. She could have texted but she simply didn’t have the energy to type out answers for every question Ani would undoubtedly have. The sylph answered on the first ring. Eager much?
“What the actual fuck did I see tonight?” Ani’s incredulous tone coaxed a smile to Sasha’s lips despite her dire situation. “A berserker coming on to a vampire? Did the apocalypse start and no one told me?”
Incredulous with a dash of eager and a splash of alarmist. Sasha didn’t think she had the energy to deal with one any more drama tonight. It wouldn’t do her any good to lie about what had happened though, or try to gloss it over. She needed to confide in someone or she’d go out of her mind. Ani was the only person she could tell.
“He tethered me.” The words left her lips in a guilt-laden whisper.
She was answered with a space of silence in which she imagined Ani’s head exploding. “He what, now?” Her voice squeaked as it reached a decibel only werewolves could hear. Yup. She’d definitely short circuited.
“He tethered me.” Sasha still couldn’t believe it herself. “The berserker returned my soul. He’s…” Gods, was she really going to say it out loud? “He’s my … mate.”
Having her fangs pulled out with rusty pliers would have been less painful than making that admission.
“I’m coming over.”
Ugh. No. The last thing she needed was for Diego to blow a blood vessel over Ani hanging around the house. “The sun will be up in a few hours and I’ll be out. So it’s not like there’s going to be any gossip going on.” Honestly, Sasha didn’t think she wanted to give Ani any more information than she’d already given her. “I’ll see you at sundown tomorrow.”
“Fine.” Ani sounded put out but she’d live. “I’ll be there the second the sun goes down.”
And not a moment later, Sasha was sure. “Tomorrow.” Already the weight of sleep tugged at her limbs and eyelids. She felt like she’d gone through the wringer. She needed to rest. “Bye.” The word left her lips a little slurred as she ended the call.
Sasha couldn’t help but think that tonight was the beginning of the end.
* * *
Ewan’s brain was a dark mass of brambles, so tangled he barely had the presence of mind to put one foot in front of the other. He’d made a right fucking mess tonight. One that was bound to bring undue attention to his extracurricular activities. He couldn’t afford for Gregor—or anyone—to find out what he was up to. Not when he could practically taste his damn freedom. He snorted. Who was he kidding? After tonight’s spectacle, the only freedom he’d know was death.
There was no way he could keep what had happened a secret. Of course, no one had seen him drag the vampire into the bathroom. No one knew he’d bent her over the countertop and fucked her soundly. Ewan sucked in a breath. The memory of her soft skin and tight heat was a sweet torture he wanted to relive again and again.
“Did you hear the rumors circulating around the arena?”
Drew’s voice broke into the heated images of Ewan’s memories and he
scowled. “What rumors?” His gut knotted tight. As though he had to ask.
Drew glanced at Ewan from the corner of his eye as he drove through downtown. “There was a vampire there, watching. A female. Did you see her?”
He could lie to his cousin, but what would be the point? “Aye. She kicked up a bit of a stir.”
“You went after her, didn’t you?” Well, that was true enough. Though Ewan suspected not in the way his cousin meant. “I heard two shifters talking as I was leaving to get the car. They said you got right to business and put the fae down. When you were done, you headed straight for the female.”
The animosity between the berserkers and vampires was legendary. A feud that spanned centuries. No doubt any onlookers that saw Ewan approach the vampire assumed it was an act of aggression. He could only hope if Gregor found out, he’d make the same assumption.
Ewan cleared his throat. Drew would smell the lie on him if he wasn’t very careful with his words. “The vampires are becoming brazen.” Of course, he couldn’t speak for other vampires, but Sasha certainly wasn’t afraid. Of anyone or anything. Gods, that bravery heated his blood and only served to further spark his curiosity. “They’re not afraid of us anymore.”
Drew turned to face him. “Is anyone afraid of us anymore?”
Ewan snorted. Drew had a point. Without the backing of the Sortiari, were the berserkers any more threatening than any other supernatural creature that inhabited the earth? Gregor seemed to think they were but that was the disillusionment of ego. Sure, they sat atop the food chain due to their strength, cunning, and ability to heal from any wound. The only way to kill a berserker was to sever their heads. That made them damned near invincible. But they weren’t gods. Without the Sortiari’s power, they were just one more faction living among the masses. Ewan held no misconceptions as to what they were and likewise, what they weren’t.
Gregor would be wise not to fall victim to his hubris. Then again, when did their self-proclaimed king ever listen to reason?
“Did you speak to her?” Drew’s curiosity about the vampire wouldn’t be easily quashed. Ewan swallowed down a territorial growl. For some reason, his cousin’s interest caused his hackles to rise.
“Aye.” There was no point in denying it.
Drew’s eyes widened. “What did you say?”
Ewan shrugged a casual shoulder. “Asked her name.”
Drew broke out in disbelieving laughter. “Holy fuck! Gregor’s going to shit a brick if he finds out.” Drew continued to stare as a space of silence passed. “Well? Did she give it to you?”
Ewan nodded. Again, it would do him no good to lie, but he wasn’t thrilled about divulging any detail about her to even Drew, who he trusted implicitly. “Sasha.”
Drew let out a low whistle. “Pretty damned cordial, aren’t you? Jesus, Ewan. Why didn’t you just ask her out for dinner while you were at it?”
Ewan rolled his shoulders. He’d cut dinner out of the equation and gotten right to dessert.
“What else did you talk about?”
Ewan didn’t appreciate Drew’s amused tone. There hadn’t been much time for talk as he’d been preoccupied with getting Sasha’s ass bare as quickly as possible. “Not a damn thing.” That at least was the truth. Whatever else happened was none of Drew’s—or anyone else’s—business.
“I don’t have to tell you this isn’t good.” Apparently, Drew had taken it upon himself to state the obvious. “This sort of attention…” He gave a rueful shake of his head. “Gregor’s going to know.”
He wasn’t wrong. Ewan had been so careful the past several months to keep his bouts in the battle arena a secret. A feat in itself considering Gregor’s uncanny ability to know what every member of their clan was up to at any given time. All of that hard work and secrecy was shot to shit thanks to Sasha’s seductive charm. Ewan had never wanted anything like he’d wanted her. She’d drawn him like a magnet and he’d had no choice but to give himself over to her pull.
“Aye.” Ewan was only capable of monosyllabic grunts of agreement. If he let himself dwell too much on it, his temper would get the better of him and that certainly wouldn’t do him any favors.
“What are you going to do?”
Ewan didn’t miss the worry in Drew’s tone. “He won’t know you’re involved. I’ll make sure.”
Drew let out a visible sigh of relief. “You know I’ve got your back—”
“I know.” Ewan didn’t bother to let him get to the “but.” He wasn’t a complete asshole. Ewan never expected for Drew to take the fall with him if they ever got caught.
“So…?” Drew grinned. “Do you think she’s dangerous?”
Without a doubt Sasha Ivanov was the greatest threat to Ewan’s existence. And that was saying something considering the battles and creatures he’d fought. Whether or not she posed a threat to the rest of his clan was yet to be seen.
“As dangerous as any vampire.”
Drew laughed. “Given the chance, Aristov will turn the tables on us and have his revenge.”
Ewan would never admit it, but some part of him believed that Mikhail Aristov was entitled to his pound of flesh. “Would you blame him?”
Drew shrugged. To agree was as good as treason.
Centuries ago, a vampire lord and his dhampir child had caused so much hurt. And instead of meting out his justice on those two, Gregor had decided to declare war on an entire race. With the Sortiari’s backing, he was unstoppable. The berserkers’ strength coupled with the Sortiari’s purpose had made them a formidable force that had nearly eradicated the vampire race. Had Gregor managed to kill Mikhail Aristov centuries ago, they would have been successful. But Mikhail was stronger than anyone had given him credit for. And now, the fledgling vampire race thrived. A species returned from the brink of extinction. Mikhail would no doubt crave vengeance just as Gregor had. When would it stop? An eye for an eye, for an eye, for an eye.… Until there were no more vampires or berserkers left on the face of the earth.
Foolish. And a waste of fucking time.
Drew pulled into the driveway of the run-down apartment complex in the Valley Gregor had claimed as their temporary home base. The place was a total shithole. Big enough to accommodate the fifty berserkers currently occupying the city. The remaining two hundred fifty berserkers were strewn around the world, stationed at various locations by the Sortiari.
Gregor’s group was the first to break their bonds. One by one, the remaining cells had followed suit. It wouldn’t be long before they were three-hundred strong in L.A. and ready to wage war against Aristov’s meager numbers. Ewan scrubbed a hand over his face. Gods, was there to be no end to the fighting?
“Pray the gods show you favor that Gregor hasn’t gotten wind of what went down tonight.”
Ewan’s hand froze on the door handle as he turned to face his cousin. “There are no gods. No fate. No mysterious hand that guides us. We’re either fucked or we’re not. And we won’t know until we walk through that door.”
Ewan got out of the car without another word. He’d know soon enough if the gossip had reached Gregor’s ears. Ewan had no more fucks to give either way. Because he was already thinking of how to track Sasha down.
He had to see her again.
CHAPTER
5
“For how much longer are you going to give that piece-of-shit vampire, Saeed, quarter?”
Ian Gregor’s gaze slid to the side for the barest moment. Gavin, his cousin and second in command, shifted uncomfortably in the passenger seat of the beat-up Subaru they’d stolen a few months ago. Ian hated to be questioned. He expected those under his command to do two things: keep their mouths shut, and obey. He demanded unwavering loyalty.
“As gods-damned long as I want to,” he barked. “You have a problem with that?”
Gavin cleared his throat. “No.”
“Good.” Ian’s gaze narrowed as a sleek Audi R8 pulled into the driveway. Fucking vampires and dhampirs never did waste an opport
unity to flaunt their wealth. They were frivolous, extravagant creatures. Self-serving and vain. The world would be a better place without them in it. And Ian planned to make sure not a single one of them survived to populate the earth.
A female exited the car and headed toward the house. Vampire. Another one of Mikhail’s fledglings? He couldn’t help but wonder to which coven she belonged. She could be one of Saeed’s, but Ian wouldn’t put it past the vampire king to be populating L.A.’s thirteen covens with as many new vampires as possible. Fortifying their ranks and building their strength one abomination at a time. Gregor rolled down his window and inhaled deeply to commit her scent to memory. His brow furrowed. Another scent mingled with hers. Reminiscent of one of Ian’s own. Interesting …
Who was she? Newly turned, that much was certain. Then again, weren’t they all? Fledglings created as a result of Mikhail Aristov’s ascension to power. Ian’s lip curled. Only one other creature plagued his existence more than the supposedly “unkillable” father of the resurrected vampire race. If things went according to plan, all of the thorns in Ian’s side would soon be removed. Permanently.
At least one vampire had the good sense not to break faith with a berserker. Several months ago, Ian had been in Seattle searching for a particular fae. An enaid dwyn. A soul thief. This particular one was the slave of a crafty mage by the name of Rinieri de Rege. Ian’s plan had been to take the mage hostage and use his slave as bait to lure his true target out of hiding. His strategy had been thwarted, however, when he learned that a vampire, Saeed Almasi, had also gone to Seattle in search of the same fae.
Ian let out a disgusted snort. Vampires were ruled by their insufferable mate bonds. Tethers as they called them. It overrode common sense and reason. It was their greatest flaw and at the same time, their greatest strength. Saeed’s tether with the soul thief had changed the course of Ian’s plans, though thank the gods, it hadn’t completely derailed them. He’d helped to free the fae’s soul from slavery and in return, Saeed had agreed to bring his mate back to Los Angeles. Close to Trenton McAlister and right where Ian wanted her.