“Kallias of Athens?” called a deep, thickly accented voice.
Rose turned around to look at the vampire approaching them. He stood directly behind her now, staring at Kallias with wide, black eyes. Long, curly, black hair hung over his forehead, almost hiding his thick, dark eyebrows that were currently creased with worry. He looked the way Rose imagined a billionaire would look. Perhaps it was his expensive, pressed suit or the gold watches and rings that shined against his dark skin. Or maybe it was that smug grimace he wore, his lip curled, as if he were disgusted by the less civilized people in the room.
“Osiris,” Kallias said, his tone clipped.
Rose recognized that tone. Kallias only used that tone when he severely disliked someone. Kallias disliked almost everyone, of course, but there some people he particularly disliked. Usually people who mistreated others or abused their power. Bullies. And something about this man’s presence screamed bully.
Osiris must have recognized the disdain in Kallias’s tone, too, because he suddenly took a step back. “I never expected to see you here,” he commented.
“Me either,” Kallias muttered. “So…how is your…business?”
Osiris scowled, as if it offended him that Kallias didn’t remember what kind of business he ran. “Hotels,” he provided. “And they’re doing very well.”
“Vampires own hotels?” Rose asked, frowning.
Osiris’s black eyes shifted toward her, and there was something about the way he looked at her—with a mixture of arrogance, disdain, and lust—that set her on edge. “Some of us prefer to make money through legitimate means.”
“I’m not a big fan of crime either,” Rose said, “if that’s what you mean.”
“I didn’t realize you lived in the Tomb of Blood,” Kallias said suddenly. “I thought you lived in one of your hotels with those humans that serve you.”
“I recently moved here,” Osiris explained. His lip curled, as if he were disgusted by his new home. “And those humans are called employees.”
“How recently?” Kallias asked with a suspicious frown.
Osiris’s nostrils flared, and he shifted his gaze toward the dance floor, his eyes narrowing. He turned back toward Kallias and Rose, and his shoulders stiffened as he loosened his tie. “Excuse me,” he said with a forced smile.
Then, he was suddenly on the dance floor, dragging a beautiful, well-dressed, brunette woman away from the vampire that she had been dancing with. She winced, clearly in pain, as he dragged her from the dance floor by her arm.
Even from a distance, Rose couldn’t help but notice that the woman smelled different from the vampires around her. “She’s human, isn’t she?”
“Yes,” Kallias said in her ear, “and she is bound to him.”
“Like I was to you,” Rose asked, “when I was human?”
“More like…how Phoebe was to Theron,” Kallias corrected.
Rose cringed as she remembered the relationship Phoebe had described in those scrolls: how Phoebe had loved Theron—practically worshipped him—even when he hurt her or treated her like a slave. She’d been helpless to his allure.
“What did I tell you about dancing with other men?” Osiris growled.
“I know. I know,” the woman cried, her voice soft and remorseful. “I didn’t mean to say yes, but he was just so attractive. I just couldn’t resist him.”
Osiris rounded on her. “You thought he was attractive?”
“He’s a bit possessive, isn’t he?” Rose commented worriedly.
“It’s a vampire thing,” Kallias explained. “Sometimes, when vampires have a blood bond with someone, they start to feel possessive over that person.”
Rose nodded in understanding. “Like animals do. With a mate.”
“Exactly,” Kallias agreed.
“It doesn’t make it right,” Rose commented.
“I never said it did,” Kallias said.
“Osiris,” the woman cried out suddenly. “Please! You’re hurting me!”
One moment, Osiris stood on the outermost portion of the dance floor, clutching the long-haired, brunette woman against him, and the next moment, an unseen force ripped him away from the human and flung him against the wall.
Kallias blew out a long, exasperated sigh, “Damn it, Rose.”
“He hurt her,” Rose said defensively.
Kallias spun toward her, his wide, brown eyes flashing with frustration. “What part of, ‘Don’t attract attention,’ do you not understand?” he growled.
“What part of, ‘He hurt her,’ do you not understand?” Rose countered.
Kallias sighed, “She’s a willing participant in the relationship.”
“In the abusive relationship,” Rose snarled. “Abusive is the key word.”
Kallias raked his hand through his hair. “There’s nothing we can do.”
“There’s plenty we can do,” Rose corrected.
“Osiris!” the woman yelled, running to his side. “Are you okay?”
Osiris shoved her out of the way as he climbed to his feet, obviously sore after being thrown into a wall and falling to the floor. His black eyes narrowed murderously at Rose, and within less than a second, he crossed the space between them and snatched her up by the throat. “It was you, wasn’t it?”
Kallias jerked Osiris away from Rose and flung him backward. Rose fell back against the wall, pressing her hand against her throat as it throbbed in pain. She watched as Kallias quickly stepped between Osiris and Rose, shielding her.
“She attacked me,” Osiris snarled. “You can’t stop me from retaliating.”
Kallias took a threatening step toward Osiris. “Oh, I assure you: I can.”
Osiris took a step back. “It was her. I know she did it.”
“And how would you know that?” asked a familiar, female voice.
Rose didn’t even have to look. She recognized that voice immediately. That breathy, strangely accented, lilting voice. It was Kara. Kara stood directly behind Osiris, locks of blue and black hair falling over her bare shoulder as she tilted her head to the side, her piercing blue eyes narrowing dangerously at Osiris.
Osiris turned toward Kara, his jaw tightening. “I just do,” he growled.
Kara lifted an eyebrow. “Then, you have no proof?”
“I can smell her power,” Osiris growled. “I know it was her.”
Kara laughed. “I find it hard to believe that this baby vampire attacked you without even touching you,” she lied, “and I think Aaron would, too.”
Osiris scowled at the veiled threat. He stepped toward Kara. “Really?” he growled, baring his fangs at her. “Because I think Aaron would want to know what kind of freak you brought down here.” He shot a disgusted glare at Rose.
“Oh, yeah. You abuse your girlfriend, but I’m the freak,” Rose muttered.
Osiris’s black eyes widened, as if Rose had just confessed to a crime.
“Shut up, Rose,” Kallias growled between clenched teeth.
“No. Say what you want, Rose,” Kara disagreed as she stepped past Osiris. “You have every right to speak your mind.” Then, she spun on her heels and pressed the sharp tip of her dagger—that no one saw her retrieve—against Osiris’s neck. She smiled at him. “And there’s nothing he can do about it.”
Osiris glared murderously at Kara. “Get that off of my throat.”
“I will,” Kara said, her voice lowering into a growl, “when you back off.”
Osiris didn’t move. “I don’t take orders from you,” he growled, his lip curling in disgust as he stared down at Kara. There was something unspoken there, as he sneered the word you, as if he had wanted to insult her specifically.
Kara’s lips curved into a smirk, which only seemed to make him angrier. “I am the second-in-command here. I can use that authority…if I need to.”
Although the music continued to thud lowly over the speakers, a hush seemed to fall over the room as the hundreds of vampires that crowded the room turned to watch
them, suddenly very interested in what Kara was saying.
“What does she mean by that?” Rose whispered to Kallias.
“She can kill him,” Kallias said quietly. He gestured toward the other vampires with a tilt of his head as he added, “Or she can order them to kill him.”
Osiris glanced around the room, and his arrogance seemed to instantly deflate. He clenched his jaw. “That won’t be necessary,” he grunted.
“Good,” Kara said, smiling at him, as she lowered her dagger.
Osiris shot another murderous glare at Rose, and then, he turned toward his human girlfriend. “Come, Lauren,” he snarled. “Let’s go up to our room.”
She nodded eagerly, hurrying behind him as he headed toward the door.
Kara glanced back at the rest of the vampires as she returned her dagger to her belt. They all quickly returned to their—somewhat indecent—activities, as if vampires nearly killing each other was a common, everyday occurrence here.
Then, Kara turned back toward Rose. She stepped closer, and then, she reached up and brushed her fingers against Rose’s bruised throat. “Does it hurt?”
Rose shivered as Kara’s fingers brushed lightly over her neck, raising chill bumps on her skin. “Not much,” she said, blushing. “It’s already healing.”
Kara dropped her hand and stepped back. She looked at both of them—Kallias then Rose. “I don’t think anyone saw anything, but just in case,” she paused, her brows creasing in worry as she stared at Rose, “just lay low, all right?”
“We will,” Kallias agreed, not waiting for Rose’s response.
Kara nodded, giving Rose another concerned look. “Be careful.”
Rose watched as Kara disappeared into the crowd of vampires. In a matter of seconds, Kara was on the dance floor, dancing with yet another woman.
“I can’t keep doing this,” Kallias growled from beside her.
Rose turned toward him, frowning. “What do you mean?”
“I thought it would be easier now that you’re a vampire, but it’s not,” Kallias said. “You’re still just as reckless as you were when you were human.”
Rose watched him, noticing the way his brown eyes darkened with frustration, the way his fists clenched at his sides, the way his muscles tightened. And beyond that, she felt it: his anger, his pain, his exasperation. His emotions flowed through her, nearly as powerfully as her own emotions did, and her gut twisted with dread as she realized what they meant: that things were not the same between them. Not anymore. “I knew this fight would happen eventually.”
“Do you understand how much danger you’re in?” Kallias asked. “You’re not in human society anymore, Rose. The same rules don’t apply.”
“He hurt her,” Rose said. “I couldn’t just stand by and watch.”
Kallias stepped closer to her. His long, brown hair fell around his face as he leaned in close enough for her to feel his breath on her face. “If you can’t handle seeing a vampire hurt a human,” he growled, “you’re in the wrong place.”
She swallowed. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“You’re in a vampire colony, Rose,” he whispered. “Look around you. We’re surrounded by vampires. Vampires that kill humans every time they feed.”
Rose nervously swept her gaze around the room.
“Anyone in this colony could kill you,” Kallias added.
Rose glared up at him. “I don’t care. I still can’t just watch while…”
“That’s the problem!” Kallias interrupted. “You don’t care!”
“The problem?” she repeated hollowly.
“There was one thing I didn’t want to do, and that was to watch you die,” he said in a tired, broken voice. “And that’s exactly what you made me do.”
“I died to save you,” Rose said quietly.
“I didn’t want you to save me! I wanted you to save yourself!” Kallias snarled. His heart raced as the words spilled out of his mouth, the words he’d been thinking for weeks. “And it’s becoming clearer and clearer that it’ll happen again. I’ll have to watch you die again. But this time, it will be permanent.”
Rose stared at the floor as he spoke, pain burning in her chest. “So, you want me to stop trying to save everyone?” she asked quietly. “Is that it?”
“Yes!” Kallias said, letting out a short laugh. “That’s exactly what I want!”
She looked up at him. “Don’t ask me to be someone I’m not.”
He froze, stunned by the soft, pleading tone of her voice and by the sight of tears in her bright blue eyes. “I’m not. Rose, I just want you to be safe.”
“This is who I am, Kallias,” she sighed. “You used to accept that.”
“That was before I had to watch you die,” Kallias said softly, sadness and pain flashing in his brown eyes. He looked away, his shoulders slouching. “I thought it hurt when I watched Phoebe die, but… I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone. Even her.” His voice broke. “It killed me to see you die.”
Rose’s eyes softened with sympathy. “I’m sorry.”
Kallias shook his head. “I’ll be back in a minute. I need a drink.”
Rose watched as he turned away to walk toward the bar, something inside of her shattering at the sight. “Since when do you sugarcoat anything?” she asked with a sad smile. “Don’t worry about my feelings. Say what you’re thinking, like you always do. You don’t need a drink. You need time away from me.”
Kallias froze at those incredibly sad words. He turned back toward her. “I love you, Rose,” he sighed, “but sometimes, loving you is…exhausting.”
“I know,” she sighed, nodding, “and I’m sorry for that.”
He stepped closer to her and cradled her face in his large, strong hands, wiping away the single tear on her cheek with his thumb. “I just need a minute, okay? I’ll be right back,” he said, his voice softening. “Please…just…stay safe.”
She nodded. “Okay,” she sighed, “I will.”
He walked away, then, heading toward the bar, leaving Rose alone in the middle of the dark, crowded room. Rose exhaled slowly and glanced around, raking her fingers through her long, red hair as she looked for something to do while she waited. She certainly didn’t want to dance with anyone—especially not considering the over-sexualized way these vampires seemed to dance. So, she glanced, instead, toward the tables in the corners of the room, looking for an empty chair. She blushed as she noticed that the two vampires at the first table were feeding from each other and…quite possibly having sex, Rose realized, as she noticed the way the woman was rocking sensually against the man. She quickly averted her gaze, blinking as she tried to get that sight out of her mind.
That’s when Rose noticed the beautiful, blonde woman who sat at a small, round table in the darkest corner of the room. Thick, blonde curls framed the woman’s sweet, feminine face, and her short, blue dress rode up her thighs as she crossed her legs beneath the table. Rose recognized the woman. It was the woman she’d seen Kara kissing earlier. The girlfriend of the vampire that Aaron had killed. Elise. That was her name. Rose walked over to the woman’s table.
As soon as Rose reached the small round table, wedged in that dark corner of the room, Elise’s gaze shifted from the dance floor to Rose, as if she’d been aware of Rose’s approach the entire time. Her blue-gray eyes assessed Rose curiously, slowly traveling down Rose’s body. As she lifted a wine glass full of thick, crimson liquid to her mouth, her thin, pink lips tilted into a small smile.
“Hi,” Rose mumbled awkwardly. “Do you mind if I sit?”
Like the wine that Kara had sipped earlier, the red liquid in Elise’s glass smelled faintly of blood, and it left faint blood-red stains on Elise’s lips as she drank. She leaned forward, her small, petite body bending gracefully and delicately, and she grabbed the chair on the other side of the table. She pulled it close to her, until the chair clanged against her own chair. Then, with a mischievous gleam in her blue-gray eyes, she patted the seat
of the chair. “Sit.”
“Umm…thanks,” Rose stammered, glancing nervously at the chair that set much too close to the vampire. She sucked in a deep breath for courage, and then, she timidly sat down in the chair. Despite her best efforts to sit on the edge of the seat, the vampire’s arm still brushed against her. “Elise, right? I’m…”
“You’re Kara’s friend,” Elise interrupted. Her thick French accent caused each word to sound soft and sharp at the same time, delicate and heavy.
Heat rushed to Rose’s cheeks as she remembered that intense kiss that she’d watched this woman share with Kara. “I think acquaintance would be a more appropriate word, at this point,” she corrected, shifting nervously in her chair.
Elise tilted her head to the side, her yellow-blonde curls falling to one side as she studied Rose with those stormy eyes of hers. “If you say so.”
Rose swallowed uneasily. “I’m sorry about your loss.”
“My loss?” Elise repeated bewilderedly. “Oh. You mean Lafi?”
Rose glanced down at the bloodstains on Elise’s sky-blue dress. “Yeah.”
Elise shrugged and sipped her blood-spiked wine. “Lafi dying is not really a loss to anyone. I admit that it upset me at first, but I’m fine now.”
Rose frowned. “It’s been an hour, at most.”
Elise set her glass on the table. “And I feel better already.”
“Oh. Good,” Rose mumbled, her frown deepening, “I guess.”
A flash of electric blue caught Rose’s eye, and she glanced toward the dance floor. In the middle of the room, about twenty feet away from their table, Kara danced with a beautiful woman with short, brunette hair. Kara held the woman casually as they danced, her arms draped around the woman’s hips, her face nuzzled in the curve of the woman’s neck. Her hair shielded her face, like a curtain of inky black and electric blue, as she danced. Rose found herself watching the seductive movement of Kara’s body, the sensual sway of her hips, her mesmerizing gracefulness. It occurred to Rose that there was something very sexual about the way Kara moved, something so intensely seductive about it.
At that exact moment, almost as if she could sense that Rose was watching her, Kara lifted her head, her piercing blue eyes shifting upward to meet Rose’s gaze. A smile curved at her lips, and her cornflower-blue eyes sparkled with amusement. She held Rose’s gaze shamelessly, and then, she winked at her.
The Tomb of Blood Page 25