by Anna Zaires
Neither of us breathed as the contents of my uterus came into focus on the display screen. At first, I couldn’t see anything other than a blur of movement, but it very quickly became apparent what I was looking at – a set of arms and legs moving about, a torso and a head.
A baby.
My baby.
I turned my head, horrified and intrigued. “Why is it bouncing up and down like that?” I asked Sam.
He smiled. “Your baby has the hiccups,” he said gently.
I have a vampire baby in me and it has the hiccups. The goddamn fucking hiccups.
For what seemed like the thousandth time that day, I buried my face in my hands and cried.
FORTY-FOUR
I didn’t want a baby. I definitely didn’t want Ryan’s vampire baby. I had always been so careful when I was with Jared. It’s funny, sometimes it feels like you can do the right thing your whole life, but it doesn’t matter, because fate is waiting there patiently for you to fuck up so it can stick a demon baby inside you. I was past the point of denial, past the point of suicide. Now I was just pissed.
I refused to speak with anyone but Sam from that point on. I was too angry with Ryan, and too scared of Ivy. None of us had slept. I had changed into clean clothes, washed the gel from my stomach. And then it was time to leave.
There was no question of where we were going. It was simply assumed. Sam and I walked slowly to his car and got in, followed by Ivy and Ryan. Nobody spoke, except to give basic directions. We dropped Ryan and Ivy off at a nearby field, where Ivy’s chopper was waiting.
And we drove back to Pasadena.
FORTY-FIVE
I checked my phone when we were back on the interstate. Missed calls and texts from Evie, asking where I was. I was listening to a string of panicked voicemails when she called again.
“Hello?” I answered emptily.
“Happy Birthday,” Evie said. “Did you get cold feet? I thought you’d be here by now.”
It’s my birthday today. How did I forget that?
“Something happened,” I replied wearily.
“What happened? Did Ryan talk you out of it?”
I wish. “I’m pregnant,” I said numbly. What was the point in denying it? She would find out eventually when she came back to look for me.
There was a long silence. I had an idea why. Evie was probably trying to figure out who I had slept with.
“Ryan,” Evie spat. “What did he do to you?”
“It didn’t mean anything,” I said weakly. I sounded pathetic.
“This was consensual?”
I didn’t answer.
“You worthless sucker,” Evie hissed. I fought back tears at the hatred in her voice. “I can’t believe I trusted you. You lost your soul the day you Turned.”
“It didn’t mean anything!” I pleaded. Lost my soul? “Please, you can’t do this to me. I need you. You have to help me fix this!”
There was a long silence.
“Evie?” I asked into the static.
“You stay away from me, you hear?” She was so angry. “And Jared. Don’t you dare try to call him. You don’t deserve him.”
“What do I deserve then, witch?” I was sobbing.
“I wish they had just killed you.” Her voice was heavy; she sounded old. “More than anything, you’d be better off dead.”
“Wait!” I cried. “What are you going to tell Jared?”
“The truth!” Evie yelled. “You cheated on him, and you lied to him, and you’re never coming back for him. Because this is it for you!”
The line cut out. She had hung up on me.
You’d be better off dead. As usual, she was right.
Don’t cry don’t cry don’t cry–
I started to sob; great retching chokes that racked my entire body. Sam pulled off to the emergency lane and shut off the engine.
“You’re not better off dead,” he whispered. So he had heard everything. He pulled me close to him and repeated those words over and over again. Maybe he was trying to say them until I believed them. It didn’t work, but it did make me feel a little less alone. At least he was still my friend. Maybe my only friend left in the whole world.
“I’m so sorry,” Sam said, his voice breaking. He rubbed his big hands in circles on my back as if I was a child. “You deserve better than this.”
But it didn’t matter what I deserved. Life was cruel. Life was relentless. Life didn’t care about pathetic creatures like me.
After a little while, I calmed down. I was too tired to cry anymore. Sam wiped my cheeks dry with his fingers and pushed my hair out of my eyes, his forehead still resting lightly on mine.
“You want food?” he asked quietly. “Some blood, maybe?”
I shook my head.
“I didn’t know it was your birthday,” Sam said sadly. I didn’t reply.
I fingered the thick bandages on each wrist and sighed. A few more minutes before Sam found me and my plan might have worked. Now we would never know. I wasn’t stupid; I knew Ryan would never let me out of his sight again. Not until he got this thing out of me alive, anyway.
We continued our drive west. Bright city lights flickered in the distance. I didn’t know what city it was, and I didn’t care.
A few hours later, Sam asked me again. Food? No. Blood? No.
“I can hear your stomach rumbling,” he pointed out politely.
“I’m probably being eaten alive from the inside.” I was short with him; I was sick and tired and plain worn out.
That shut him up until evening fell and he pulled into a drive-thru Burger King just outside of town. He ordered a cheeseburger and fries and set them on the seat next to me, along with a fresh baggie of human blood he had retrieved from the icebox in the trunk.
“Please eat something,” he implored. His eyes were so kind, so caring. How could I refuse? And yet I did. I turned my better–off–dead eyes outside and ignored my body’s pleas for nourishment.
Because I thought, maybe if I didn’t eat, if I didn’t feed the baby, then it might die. Maybe we both would.
And the nightmare would finally be over.
THE END
About the Author
Jessica Roscoe is a pseudonym for USA Today Bestselling author Lili Saint Germain. Jessica writes about all the things that go bump in the night—especially vampires. She grew up on a steady diet of Buffy and Supernatural and has met Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki no less than three times. If you’re a real paranormal buff, you’ll understand how freaking cool this is—or how seriously Jess takes her stalking duties.
As Lili, she writes dark, disturbing romance that lacks vampires, but still has plenty of bloodshed. Her #1 bestselling Gypsy Brothers series was created in a serial format – quick, intense episodes released frequently with some wicked cliffhangers. The Gypsy Brothers series focuses on a morally bankrupt biker gang and the girl who seeks her vengeance upon them. The Cartel series is a prequel trilogy of full-length novels that explores the beginnings of the club, to be released in 2015 by HarperCollins.
Jessica quit corporate life to focus on writing and so far is loving every minute of it. Her other loves in life include her gorgeous husband and beautiful daughter, good coffee, Tarantino movies and spending hours on Pinterest.
She loves to read almost as much as she loves to write, and has equal love for both her paranormal and her dark romance writing!
Learn more at www.lilisaintgermain.com
Find her on Facebook, Twitter, or the Vampireland FB Page
Dragon’s Chase
by Mina Carter
Paranormal Protection Agency: Book Seven
He’s found his mate. But can he convince her that he’s her man?
Working for the Paranormal Protection Agency has never been boring, but shadow-dragon Duke didn’t expect to meet his mate in the line of duty. He certainly didn’t expect a warrior every inch his match, or for her to slap him across the ass with her tail and take off across the city.
With Baron on a very personal protection detail, Duke has to fly solo on the pair’s investigation into the warlock who nearly killed Baron’s mate. Just one problem, his mate is working with the warlock. So, dead or alive, he has to bring her in…
She found the one thing she didn’t want. Her mate. Now she needs to get rid of him before he ruins her mission…
Sleeping for centuries has it’s drawbacks, Chase knew that going in. What she didn’t expect was to wake with a Warlock’s spelled collar around her neck and to find her charge, the Queen’s daughter, in a cage. Vowing to free them both will take skill and strength and she doesn’t need the distraction of a hot as hell male dragon trying to make his claim on her. Even though her heart aches to complete their joining, she can’t. Not yet.
The mission, or her heart. Can she have both? Or will she need one to complete the other?
CHAPTER ONE
Some dragons had all the luck.
Tucking a strand of hair the wind had blown across his face behind one ear, Duke watched his brother helping a diminutive female—his new mate, Honor Croft—into a waiting cab.
Testament to the heavy shit that had just gone down, events that included a horde of Red Caps and a crazed warlock trying to kill the girl the PPA had been paid to protect, heavily armed guards surrounded the vehicle, watching everything around them closely. As a group, they breathed a sigh of relief when Baron slid into the vehicle next to his mate and shut the door. As experienced as all the guards were, they were still a little wary of the big dragon. They were around both brothers.
Duke paid them no mind, transferring his attention back to the new couple, just visible through the windows of the cab. His brother was one lucky bastard. Not only had he saved the day, but he’d gotten the girl as well.
Finding their soul mates had been on both brothers’ minds since they understood the difference between little girl and little boy dragons and now Baron had found his. He could hold her in his arms, keep her safe, and Duke was as jealous as all hell.
Of course, Baron would probably have appreciated not dying first. Duke sure as fuck would have preferred not to watch his brother breathe his last breath, broken body bleeding out onto the concrete beneath his feet. But true love conquered all…. That’s what they said, and the gamble Duke had taken when he’d made Honor eat the rarest ‘diamond’ in existence; a Dragon’s Tear.
It had worked, the lucky son of a bitch had been healed and now Baron and Honor were on their way to a safe-house where Honor could be protected. And practice making little baby shadow-dragons if the twinkle in Baron’s eye was anything to go by. Which left Duke to track down the murderous bastard who had tried to kill his brother’s mate, and find the she-dragon who had taunted and teased him until he didn’t know up from down.
A she-dragon. His mate. He’d been so surprised that he’d almost fallen out of the sky. Then she’d slapped him across the ass with her tail and run away….
Duke’s lips compressed into a thin line. Oh, she’d pay for that. He just had to find her first.
Crouching, he gathered the energy within himself, holding it deep inside as a rolling mass of chaos. It built, simmering like inferno-heated champagne as the bubbles tried to escape at high velocity. His scales tried to push through his skin, and his bones ached with the pressure of holding the change back. With a roar he leapt into the air and let it all go. His dragon-form exploded out from his body like some nightmare-inducing jack in the box.
The roar deepened as his throat changed, and he snapped his wings out to their full spread. A soft click sounded deep in his throat a second before a gout of flame lit the night sky. Beating his wings, he took no more than a few seconds to reach the top of the Croft building. He circled it, using the tiniest of air currents to glide in a graceful loop.
Guards scurried over the roof, looking like ants to his non-human vision. Heat rose from them, bringing the scent of blood and soft flesh to his nostrils. Instinctively his mouth watered. So soft and crunchy…most humanoids made great snacks.
As if sensing his thoughts, the guard on the corner turned and looked at him, his eyes flashing amber in warning as an earthy scent hit Duke’s nostrils. Werewolf then. Yeah, not so good if the snack was more than capable of clawing its way out of your belly through your ribcage. Talk about aggressive indigestion.
Movement at the corner of his eye got his attention. Turning his head, Duke spotted Iliona—his boss— motioning him to land. He lifted his wing and banked sharply in mid-air, scattering the guards below. Heavy wing-beats kept him hovering in the air just above the human woman, her arms folded and hair whipping about her face as she waited for him to land.
The instant he touched down with a claw, he called the change and folded his dragon-form neatly back within the man. A roll of his neck reset the shirt across his shoulders, his clothes thankfully reappearing when he made the change back to human, and he took the last few steps to stand in front the Paranormal Protection Agency’s head honcho.
As always, she wore a smart business suit. No skirt this time, but pants, and her jacket hung open. Two things caught Duke’s attention. The ornate pendant at her throat pulsed with power, pulling at the dragon part of him. Pretty and powerful, such a trinket was everything the creature loved and his fingers itched with the need to reach out and touch it. He resisted, curled them into fists at his side as he flicked a glance down at the Glock in the holster playing peekaboo through the open edges of her jacket. The fact that she packed heat to match the sheathed knife the other side made him blink. It was serious when the boss came out on site fully armed.
“Nice landing. So glad you didn’t squash me.” Iliona’s lips quirked, but the level stare from the big, silent guy behind her warned Duke what would have happened had it even looked like the petite woman would get hurt.
Duke lifted an eyebrow and jerked his chin at the man behind her. It was Granite, one of her lovers. He didn’t look around for the other one, Calcite. If the Gargoyle brothers wanted him dead, he wouldn’t get any warning of an attack. Just swift, brutal, and bloody violence before he could shift and turn the tables on them. “With tall, stony, and silent in attendance? I doubt you’re allowed to get so much as a paper cut.”
She laughed, the sound rich and full, and turned to pat Gran’s arm. “Yeah, but it’s adorable, isn’t it?”
“If you say so.” Duke didn’t venture a further comment. No one in their right mind would refer to either of the stone brothers as adorable.
He looked around as a way of changing the subject. The rooftop appeared to be devoid of either Red Caps or that bastard warlock Sellers. All that remained of the drama that had taken place less than an hour ago was the altar in the center of the roof and a strange scorched spot right about where the little dragon’s cage had been. “What have we got here? Did we pick up any of them?”
“No.” Iliona shook her head, instantly back to business. “They’d gone before we got here.”
Her expression was less than impressed as the pair approached the altar. Duke scowled. Not the sort of thing the casual shopper could pick up at a local supermarket, it had obviously been custom-made. Just looking at the writing on the side hurt his eyes.
Instead, he concentrated on the scorch-mark, and frowned. Squatting down, he traced a fingertip over the faint swirls. The pattern had been scored right into the concrete and the pattern looked familiar.
“Looks like they used some sort of teleport spell….”
“Yeah,” Iliona agreed. “But not one we’re familiar with. Most don’t leave marks and these look like—”
“Burn marks.” Duke supplied and stood. “Dragon-fire. He had a dragonet, a small one. Not sure if it was a shifter or not. It was fully draconic. Never seen anything like it.”
“Duke Queenmaker, there’s a lot you haven’t seen yet.”
A new voice, male and with a resonance that rolled along Duke’s skin like treacle broke in. He turned, all his instincts on alert. Noth
ing human had a voice like that.
A man stood behind him. As tall as Duke, he was on the skinny side but the battered leather jacket, black t-shirt and jeans couldn’t hide the fact the guy was corded with the sort of lean muscle that didn’t need a gym to maintain. His dark hair was cut short, the top mussed into scruffy spikes and light eyes watched Duke with amusement.
“Duke, let me introduce Ris....” Iliona stepped forward as though to head off any trouble, her gargoyle shadow right behind her. “A new Seer to join us.”
Seer. Duke’s lip curled back into a sneer but before he could say anything, Ris spoke. “Decided whether to roast me yet?”
Duke shrugged, not fooled by the affable exterior. This guy was less human than Duke, but exactly what flavor of supernatural Duke didn’t know. Yet. “Depends. What did you call me?”
“What? Duke? Your name…remember?” He shot a glance at Iliona, as though sharing a joke, but Duke wasn’t playing.
“No.” He folded his arms. “The other part.”
“Queenmaker? But that’s your name too. Or did you take one hit too many to the head today?”
Duke growled, his patience already tested. “No, I don’t have another name. Just Duke. That’s it.”
“No, no. That’s not right. It’s definit—” Ris trailed off in confusion, his gaze drifting out of focus for a second. Duke gritted his teeth, recognizing the signs of a Seer delving into a different timeline. Then the Seer’s eyes crossed and he looked discomforted.
“Shit…yeah, sorry, Bud. It’s too early for that. I was so sure…. No harm done though, eh?” Ris held out his hand, an affable smile over his face. “Oraris, most call me Ris. Pleasure to meet’cha.”
Duke’s gaze shifted, looking behind Ris. Another Seer, a female, stood in the corner of the roof, animatedly talking to thin air. It was anyone’s guess who she spoke to, and when. He sighed. This was what pissed him off about Seers. Even when supposedly on a job, it was hard to keep their attention on the job in hand, rather than one from next month. It was enough to make him want to punch any Seer in the face.