by R. E. Butler
* * *
Traz left the SUV idling at the curb in front of the club with a quick “thanks” to Temple, who agreed to drive it around to the garage. He was through the front door and down the hall, bursting through the door into the reception area.
He glanced at Angie and Rage as he jogged by. “Let us know if we can help,” Angie said.
Traz nodded at them, hustling down the hall to the elevator. Cyrus was outside of their chamber, his face grim. Entering his chamber, Traz sucked in a sharp breath when he saw Avery on their bed. Her skin was ashen, her eyes ringed with dark circles.
Cella was sitting on the bed next to her. She rose to her feet and faced him.
“Tell me everything,” he said, moving to the bed and stroking Avery’s hair.
Cella explained the events of the night, from the first interview to her discovering that six humans had been actively not feeding vampires to collect an undeserved paycheck.
Avery’s skin was cold and clammy. Traz gently pushed her upper lip to expose her fangs, and found her gums had receded a bit, her fangs elongated like she was starving. Letting out a growl of frustration, he opened one of her eyes and found her irises an odd, dull gold.
“Get me some SyBl,” he ordered.
Cella went to the mini fridge and pulled out a bottle, twisting off the cap. Traz put his hand on Avery’s neck and lifted her slightly, then worked the lip of the bottle into her mouth. He tipped it, letting the chilled contents slowly splash onto her tongue. Her mouth filled with SyBl, but she didn’t swallow, so Traz put the bottle on the nightstand and rubbed her throat, coaxing her muscles to work. She swallowed loudly and then coughed, sending a spray of red droplets into the air. Gasping raggedly, she clawed at him as her eyes opened and her gaze darted wildly before settling on him.
“I’ve got you, love,” he said.
She wheezed, her nails digging into his shoulders. He brought the bottle to her lips again, and this time she swallowed on her own. He helped her sit up. She reached for the bottle, but her grip was weak, so he held it for her. She drained it quickly, then fell back to the bed, making weak, mewling sounds. He’d never seen anything so odd. Mind racing, he accepted another bottle of SyBl from Cella and Avery drank it. But nothing about her symptoms changed. Her eyes were still sunken, the irises dull gold, her skin still clammy like she was ill.
“I think she needs real blood,” Traz said.
“I’ll call someone down to feed,” Cella said.
Shaking his head, Traz lifted Avery into his arms. “That’ll take too long. I’ll take her up to the club and find someone she can feed from.”
“We’ll come with you,” Cyrus said. “To watch your back so you can concentrate on her.”
“Thanks.”
Cyrus held open the chamber door for them. Cella hurried ahead and pushed the elevator call button. They were out on the floor a few minutes later. It was late in the night, the club’s patrons trickling out as dawn would soon be coming. Traz scanned the club, looking for white shirts, and spotted a male standing near the dance floor.
Cella put her hand on Traz’s arm. “Not him. He already fed tonight, so he’s not going to be able to give her enough if she’s really needing a solid feeding. Go get set up in a booth, I’ll be right behind you.”
Traz nodded and strode along the edge of the dance floor to the large room where vampires fed from humans. Traz hadn’t used a booth in years, then again he hadn’t gone into the club to feed in a while, either. Cella would send someone to him for feeding when he requested it, and he’d feed in his office, or if he was busy, he’d use bagged blood from the blood bank.
Walking into the small booth, he sat on the padded bench and arranged Avery on his lap. She moaned and then wheezed, her lips turning gray.
“Baby,” he whispered, his voice rough, “I’m so sorry. I should’ve been here.”
Cella and Cyrus appeared with a human female between them. “This is Casey. She hasn’t fed anyone tonight.”
Cyrus set a stool in front Traz and Avery, and Casey sat, offering her wrist. Traz was too focused on Avery to make small talk, so he simply bit the female’s wrist and worked it between Avery’s parted lips. Nothing happened for a long moment, and Traz worried if he’d been too distracted to cut her wrist deeply enough for the blood to flow, and then Avery jolted in his arms like she’d been hit with a bolt of electricity, and inhaled sharply. Her eyes squeezed shut and she took a long draw on the female’s wrist, her features tightening as she fed.
Traz smoothed the hair from Avery’s face. “I don’t understand what happened,” he said with a low voice. “How could she not know she was growing weak?”
“You can ask her when she’s well fed and coherent,” Cyrus said.
“I’m really sorry,” Cella said. “I noticed she was looking fatigued, but she wouldn’t take a break. She said she felt like something was wrong and she needed to figure it out.”
“Humans not feeding in the club is hardly worth her passing out from exhaustion,” Traz said. He was simultaneously proud of his beloved and pissed that he wasn’t there to ensure she was safe. He would have watched her closely and made sure she was taking care of herself. “But I don’t blame you, Cella. Avery’s stubborn. I can imagine her wanting to push through, even to her own detriment.”
Cyrus folded his arms. “She realizes your lives are tied together, right? Her harming herself potentially harms you.”
The human female cut in. “I’m feeling a little lightheaded.”
Traz worked his finger between Avery’s jaws and freed her wrist. He closed the wound with a swift lick and thanked her. Although Avery still looked ashen and exhausted, she looked better than she had before she fed.
Cella disappeared and returned a few moments later with another human, this one a male. Avery fed for a little while, and then she disengaged her fangs and licked his wound closed, pushing away his arm with a deep sigh.
“Sweetheart?” Traz murmured.
She opened her eyes slowly. They were mostly back to the beautiful blue he adored, but with tiny pinpricks of gold still visible. “I’m... stuffed.”
He chuckled and hugged her. “Tired?”
“Very.”
He thanked the human male, and when he’d left, he looked at Cyrus and Cella. “Thank you for sticking by me.”
“We’re family,” Cyrus said. “You’d do the same for either of us.”
Nodding, Traz rose to his feet and carried Avery out of the booth. “I’m going to put my beloved to bed.”
“If she’s still tired when she wakes she can take the night off,” Cella said, as she and Cyrus fell into step behind them.
“I’ll keep you posted,” Traz said.
Avery was asleep before he walked into the chamber. He laid her on the bed and stripped her, climbing in next to her and curling around her. He buried his face in her neck and held her close. The fears he’d pushed aside while she fed surfaced once more. She’d worked herself to the point of exhaustion, which meant she didn’t recognize her strength was fading. She’d have to be more careful in the future.
“You gave me quite a scare tonight,” he said, kissing her neck.
She murmured something unintelligible, and he smiled, closing his eyes and inhaling her sweet scent. When they woke, he’d talk to her about tempting fate.
For now, he’d be thankful that she hadn’t been alone, and he’d been able to help her through this.
Chapter Seventeen
Avery woke up starving and dizzy. SyBl didn’t take the edge off her hunger, so Traz had asked Cella to bring a human to their chamber. Once Avery had fed, the real blood making her feel energized and not so crazed, she’d realized how detrimental her behavior the night before had been. She sat on the unmade bed and fiddled with the edge of the blanket.
“I’m sorry.”
She could feel how unhappy Traz was through their beloved bond, and it made her heart hurt.
He rubbed the space between
his eyes with his thumb and sighed. “I know, love. I’m sorry too. You scared the hell out of me.”
“I scared myself,” she admitted. She thought back over the previous night. “I was already tired from using my lie detection powers. But when I was certain those women were lying, I tapped into the compulsion power, which I’d never used before. I should’ve let Cella do that and given myself a break, but all I could think about was that I needed the coven to be safe.”
“A few humans not feeding vampires isn’t all that serious,” he said.
Her eyes stung with emotion. “I could feel it though. They were gaming the system, and they were willing to share that information with others. It would have grown, spreading like a disease through the food, infecting everyone.”
He sat next to her on the bed and put his arm around her. She leaned into him, letting out a sigh. “I get it. If you’d just used compulsion without already being exhausted from using the other power, you would’ve been fine. You probably leaned into the compulsion power a little too hard and it sapped your strength. I want to say thank you for caring about the coven enough to root out the people who weren’t doing what they’re supposed to. But I also want to tell you not to put yourself in danger like that. Nothing is worth your safety.”
“Because we’re tied together. I feel like an ass.”
He cupped her face and she looked at him. “Not just because our lives are connected, but because you’re precious to me. I was mad at myself for not being with you last night. I would’ve insisted you take a break. I would’ve helped in any way that I could.”
“I shouldn’t have pushed myself. It was like once I got into the lie detecting, I couldn’t really stop.”
“Powers are like that in the beginning. You’ll get better at handling them, and you’ll learn how to read your own body so you know when to ease up. Now that you’ve fed, I wanted to see how you were feeling.”
“Better. Normal.”
“Excellent.” He scooped her up in his arms and strode to the bathroom. He turned the shower on with one hand and then kissed her. “I’ve got an idea on how we can celebrate that you’re feeling better.”
“You have the best ideas.”
* * *
“I have an idea,” Traz said as he held open the elevator door for Avery.
She wiggled her brows. “I loved your last one.”
He chuckled. “Well, anytime I can get you naked it’s a good idea, but that’s not what I was thinking.”
She leaned against the wall as the doors slid shut and the gears whirred, lifting the cab. “So what’s your idea?”
“I was thinking that you and I could work together with the food.”
She straightened. “Really? But what about your regular work?”
“Cella’s been wanting to give up the food manager position ever since she took it over. Now that we have upgraded the SyBl delivery trucks, I can hand off duties related to that to someone else—Temple or Ven probably—which would free me up for other things.”
The elevator slowed and then stopped. The doors opened and she and Traz walked out. “Are you sure you want to do that though?”
She followed him to his office. He shut the door and faced her.
“Never been more sure of anything.”
“Is this because I passed out last night? You shouldn’t change your whole job because I got into some trouble with my power.”
“It’s not that. At least not entirely.”
She sat on the small couch against the wall and he joined her. She wanted to work with him. She hated being apart. But how much could he enjoy talking to humans and dealing with them? It hardly seemed like a good use of his talents.
“Then what is it? I messed up last night with my abilities, but it won’t happen again. I don’t need you to upend your life for me because of one mistake.”
He shook his head. “It’s not about you working yourself into an exhaustion. Beloveds often work together. Cella and Cyrus can’t do it all, and they need help revamping the check in process for the food, and there will always be a need to hire people. I’m a tech guy—I’d love to be part of this, and not just because I want to spend time with you.”
“What do you think Cella will say?”
He shrugged. “She’ll probably throw the keys to the office at us and run away.”
Avery laughed. “I can feel how much she wants to be done with the food. But didn’t she want the food manager to be someone other than a vampire? Because the humans feel more comfortable with one of their own kind?”
“That was the original take. The last food manager was human, but she got scared when the club was bombed and Harmony was kidnapped, even though she wasn’t in any real danger. The consensus was that humans preferred having a human food manager because that person could empathize with them. But since Cella took over, no one’s quit because there wasn’t a human to handle things. In fact, things have been going much better with her in charge.”
Avery looked at her beloved. He was so serious. So sexy.
So very much hers.
She laid her hand on his cheek. “I love you.”
“I love you too, sweetheart.”
“I think it would be wonderful to work together. As long as it’s okay with Mishka and everyone else, I’m all for it.”
His eyes brightened and he kissed her. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“What, I’m going to turn down sharing an office with the sexiest guy on the planet?”
He gave her a wolfish smile. “We’ll have to christen the office.”
“Yes, please.”
He gave her another kiss, then stood and pulled her up. “Let’s go talk to Cella and Cyrus, and make sure they’re on board with our plans, then we’ll present it to Mishka.”
“Sounds good.”
They left the office and headed to the reception area. Avery smiled at Angie behind the desk. “How’s your night so far?” Avery asked.
“Great. How are you feeling?”
“Much better. I’ll be more careful.”
“Well, we all make mistakes learning about our abilities. I was messing around with partial shifting when I first learned how to shift. It’s the ability to only transform one part of your body—like making claws grow from your fingertips or your fangs erupting. I was in class and tried to make my claws come out and accidentally shifted the whole way. Scratched up the desk, ruined my outfit. And I got detention on top of it.”
Avery laughed. “That’s pretty funny. I guess I don’t feel so bad.”
“At least you weren’t stuck in your shift for a few hours while the teacher yelled at you. And then your parents.” Angie shook her head.
The door behind them opened and the sound of claws on tile made Avery turn to see who was coming behind them. A man and woman walked through the door, and a little dragon hopped along next to them.
“You must be Avery,” the man said. “I’m Bellamin and this is my beloved, Kelly, and her dragon, Aram.”
Avery shook their hands. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
The dragon sat on his haunches and let out a little burp which caught fire.
“Aram!” Kelly admonished. “Sorry, he just ate, and he tends to gulp down his food and beg for more.”
“That’s okay,” Avery said. “I had a golden retriever as a kid that snarfed her food and then burped a lot. He’s adorable, I didn’t know there were real dragons like this.”
“He’s unique,” Kelly said.
Avery held out her hand and Aram sniffed it and then hummed, tilting his head so she could pet him. His scales were smooth and warm, and he purred as she stroked him. “Adorable,” Avery said.
“We wanted to welcome you to the coven,” Bellamin said. “Kelly and I moved into a chamber a little while ago, but we’ve been leaving right at sunset to go to the storage facility and work.”
“What’s the storage facility?” Avery asked.
“It’s where Mishka keep
s his collections—mostly books, but lots of other antiquities and interesting things. If you’d like to check it out sometime, just ask. I’m the curator and Bell is part of the security team,” Kelly said. “We’re on our way there now.”
“I’d love to check it out sometime,” Avery said.
“Let us know,” Bellamin said. “You’re welcome anytime.”
They said goodbye, and Avery watched them leave, the little dragon prancing next to Kelly like a show pony.
“Isn’t he the cutest dragon?” Angie asked.
“He sure is,” Avery said.
“We will be in the food office for a bit,” Traz said. “There aren’t any interviews scheduled for today.”
“Okay, have fun,” Angie said.
Traz and Avery headed to the food office, where Cella and Cyrus were sitting behind the desk, their heads together. Cyrus leaned away from Cella and smiled.
“Hey, guys.”
“Hi,” Avery said.
“How are you feeling?” Cella gave Avery a hug and then returned to her seat.
“Much better. I’m sorry if I freaked you out.”
“It’s okay, I shouldn’t have let you get so exhausted.”
Traz and Avery sat in chairs across from the couple.
Cyrus started to rise from his chair.
“Hold on, Avery and I want to talk to both of you,” Traz said.
Cyrus gave them a curious look and sat. He took Cella’s hand and said, “What’s up?”
Traz explained his desire to work with Avery in the food office. The couple stared at them in surprise once he’d finished speaking. Avery looked at Traz with her brows raised. “I think you shocked them.”
“I guess so,” Traz said with a laugh.
Cella blinked rapidly a few times and then chuckled. “Sorry, did I hear you correctly? You want to take over the food office? Like take it over, take it over?”
“Both of us together,” Avery said. “Traz can work on the security upgrades and I can deal with the humans.”
“I’ll be there to make sure she doesn’t overwork herself with her abilities,” Traz said, “and you two can get back to your regular jobs.”