Pierced: A Wolf Shifter & Vampire Paranormal Romance (Vampires of Scarlet Harbor Book 1)

by Keira Blackwood

  “We’re not running,” Walter said.

  Charlie frowned.

  “Okay,” I said. “Then what’s the plan?”

  “Daylight will soon end,” Bennet said.

  “Wait, what?”

  “You slept through most of it, just as we did,” Bennet replied.

  “So she’s been out there, alone, with the kind of guy that Walter’s afraid of-”

  “I’m not afraid,” Walter said.

  “Not the point,” I replied, shifting my attention back to Bennet. “She’s been at the mercy of whoever attacked Walter and Charlie—vampires working for your King.”

  “Yeke,” Charlie said.

  “Okay, Yeke,” I replied. “All of this since last night, and you just let me sleep?”

  “You needed it,” Bennet said.

  “I-”

  “You wouldn’t wake,” Charlie said. “He carried you. Walter voted to leave you behind, so don’t be too hard on Bennet.”

  Walter shrugged.

  “Okay, fine,” I said. “But where is she now? It’s the King we have to take, right? So he could be hurting her as we sit here and debate who should be left behind?”

  “We’re as close as we can be,” Bennet said. “Beneath the palace grounds.”

  It was ingenious really. If they were able to slip past whatever defenses this Yeke guy had the night before, getting inside had to be a whole lot easier. But unlike everyone else on both sides, I didn’t have to wait until nightfall.

  I rose to my feet, and found my stance surprisingly steady. “Well it sounds like it’s the perfect time for me to find my friend. You guys can take on the bad vamps when you can go out-” Bennet grabbed my arm.

  “There are daytime guards as well. Military-trained humans without their free will. They will shoot you,” Bennet said.

  “Then we’d all be dead,” Walter added.

  “Okay,” I said. “But how long until sunset?”

  “About an hour,” Bennet replied.

  “And the plan?” I asked.

  “We attack at sunset,” Walter said.

  “That’s not a plan,” I countered.

  “I agree,” said Charlie. “But to be fair, attack as soon as possible is pretty much the same plan you came up with five minutes ago.”

  I nodded.

  With or without a plan, I was going to rescue Ashley. I had to. She was okay. While time dragged on, I clung tight to hope that my friend was alive, that this one act would end all of the violence, and that after this we could all live in peace. Too much to hope for? Maybe. But it was all that I had.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Bennet

  Spotlights shone down around the outer wall, a massive structure twelve feet high. The security on the compound was a strong deterrent against outside threats. But Walter and I had run these grounds long before Yeke had even stepped foot in Scarlet Harbor. We’d trained here. Been taught what it was to be a creature of the night, over the course of decades. We knew the compound better than anyone, including where all of the hidden cellars were located. So our assault didn’t even begin until we’d spent an entire day sleeping within those walls.

  When darkness fell, we struck. The guard was thinner than expected, only four between us and the house. The garden under which we had slept offered adequate cover to approach the first guard undetected. Before making a move on the sentry, Charlie and Walter went in opposite directions. Which left Hannah and me to deal with the first obstacle in our path.

  With steps as silent as my own, Hannah padded by my side. If the circumstances had been different, it would have felt just like the park. She held her head low, a predator ready to attack. Each movement showed her grace, obsidian fur blowing in the breeze. Watching her as wolf and human, I never lost that sense of awe I had felt when I had first laid eyes on her. And just like before, I looked forward to seeing more of what she was capable of.

  We crept between Japanese maples and the jagged needles of mature firs, toward the edge of the garden, toward the first guard. His back was turned, as he scanned the open yard beyond the trees. My blade slid through his chest as I sealed his mouth with my palm. There was little struggle before he hit the ground. Hannah dove at the downed vamp, teeth first. Before I could ask, she ripped the wire from his ear, and tossed the broken piece to the side. I smiled. He would live, but he would not alert the others. All death that could be avoided needed to be. These men were not our enemies. Not once the new Master took his rightful place—Walter.

  Across the open expanse of grass, there was no sign of any others. The guard from the door was gone. As were those who had walked the perimeter. Charlie stood by the open back door, waving to us. And for the first time, I considered the thought that this might actually be easy. Most that would defend Yeke were out hunting us, or on other missions. And many that had been sent had already been dispatched by my brother.

  We crossed the yard, Hannah as my shadow. No alarms were sounded. Nothing.

  “Took you guys long enough,” Charlie whispered. “Come on.” He went through the door, and we followed.

  Two unconscious guards laid against the walls. Walter was already inside.

  Racing to catch up, we reached the great room. In the center of the Oriental rug, a pile of unmoving guards by his feet, was Walter. His red eyes sparkled with delight. The full length of his blood-coated fangs shone in his wicked grin.

  “Having fun yet, Bennet?” he asked, before sucking the last drops from the heart in his fist. It seemed he had not allowed them all to live. The strength he would gain would assist in our fight. Still, Yeke's guards were not our true enemies.

  Charlie raced down the far hall, likely after a guard that we’d missed. I considered following, but left him to it. My brother's progeny was capable. Walter had trained him to be so.

  “You should spare them,” I said softly to my brother, with a glance down to the vampires at his feet.

  “They chose the wrong side,” he said, and dropped the heart to the floor.

  An anguished cry echoed down the empty hall. It was the way that Charlie had run. Walter was the first to rush after. I followed, Hannah at my side. Past the closed doors to the throne room, and around the corner we ran. Until we reached the stairwell, where we found Charlie.

  He was on his knees, knife to his throat, red eyes full of fury and fear. Vampire and human guards alike surrounded us, all dressed in black.

  The quiet was gone, replaced by stern voices barking commands. It all happened so fast. My face was pressed down into the thin rug that ran the length of the hall, a heavy boot holding me in place. I heard the voice of my brother, the fury as he fought. Until he too fell to the floor.

  My arms were pulled behind me, but my attention was focused on her. All I could think about was Hannah. I struggled to free myself, pulling with all my might against the restraints, but it was no use.

  “Shift.” A deep voice commanded. The black she-wolf darted away, then dove back and snapped her teeth down on the guard’s leg. He cried out. And more came.

  A collar clamped around my neck, attached to the binding on my wrists. All I could do was watch.

  “Run, Hannah!” I yelled, before the boot came down hard on my jaw.

  She struggled. She fought, tearing hands that reached too close. I wished that she had run when we had first met. Just as I wished she would now.

  It took five of them with batons, each blocking her way, before Hannah, too, was collared. Had we never met, she may have been spared this fate. Yeke may have never known of the shifter in Scarlet Harbor. She'd brought light into my life. I'd brought death into hers.

  It had taken fifteen to conquer four. But defeat against greater odds was still defeat. We were dragged by our collars back down the hall. Hannah first, then Walter, Charlie, and last me. I could see nothing but the hardwood and marching, black boots as I was dragged by my neck. But I could hear the footfalls, the struggling against bonds. And though the bastard that pulled
her collar continued to command it, Hannah did not shift.

  The heavy wooden doors opened, and we were forced into a line on our knees. Side by side, we awaited our fate.

  On the dais, Yeke kneeled in front of his gilded throne. He wore his leather strips, his battered metal plates. He was as fearsome as ever, radiating power, though he looked only at the girl. The scowl was there, the anger boiling beneath the surface, but it was tenderness he showed as he held her chin.

  The blonde beside him wore a short skirt, tall boots, and low-cut shirt. She was filthy, fresh from the soil. Dirt was caked in her blond locks. Yeke dipped a cloth into a basin of water, then gently wiped the brown from her face.

  Hannah growled.

  “A lot of trouble you’ve caused,” Yeke said, keeping his eyes on the girl, “sons of Ulfhednar.” His voice was uncharacteristically even. Was it the girl? Clearly the calm before the storm. Unnerving.

  I looked to my comrades, to Hannah. There were eight guards in the room, two stationed behind each of us. There had to be something we could do. I wouldn’t let her be killed. Not Hannah. Not while I had strength to fight. If only I could remove the chains.

  “All I asked was a simple job from you, Pierce.” Yeke’s voice raised only slightly as he said my name. Then he turned back to the girl and continued his gentle strokes of her face. “Now I have to do it myself. And you get to watch.”

  Panic rose in my gut. I struggled to stand, but I was held still by my restraints and the guards at my sides.

  “Bring me the wolf,” Yeke commanded.

  All eyes were on Hannah as two guards pulled the chain around her neck. She slid forward even with her legs locked. She growled, though the muzzle on her face made her threat as idle as any I could muster.

  “Hannah!” I yelled. “No!”

  “People say you couldn’t kill him,” Walter said, drawing Yeke’s hatred in his direction. The King rose to his feet. “Everyone knows that he’s still alive out there. The true KING.”

  The blonde locked eyes with Hannah. I struggled to free my hands. If only I could dislocate my thumb, maybe I could free myself. Maybe I could-

  “SHUT YOUR FILTHY MOUTH!” Yeke barked, the monster within boiling at the surface. His chest heaved, digging the leather strips into his wide, tanned pectorals. Eyes of fire, Yeke's fangs grew long. His fists balled. Any minute it would be over. Any minute he'd attack. I needed more time. The metal dug into the tops of my hands as I pulled at my restraints.

  “If I spoke a lie it wouldn’t hurt so much, would it?” Walter continued. “But everyone knows you’re weak. Every-”

  Yeke lifted my brother into the air, with both hands around his collar. The King growled like the berserk beast that he was. Walter only smiled, body hanging limp in his shackles.

  “I’LL SHOW YOU WHO’S-”

  Yeke looked down at his chest, dropping my brother to the ground. Walter collapsed to his knees and looked up at the King. All eyes were on Yeke. A small mark on his white shirt grew into a large, crimson circle.

  “Wh-” The King attempted to speak.

  Yeke turned, as the small blond woman stabbed him again.

  “You have to destroy the whole heart or they just get right back up again,” she said. “I guess that’s we now. And if I drink it, will I really get his power?” She looked at us, an excited grin revealing her newly formed fangs.

  Everyone watched, guards and prisoners alike as the blonde, the once inconsequential girl, drank from the heart of King Yeke Mongul of the Chesapeake Region.

  She dropped the blade, and heart, then straightened her back. “Release them,” the girl said. Our Master said. Dirt covered her hair, her innocent face, her once-white dress. Blood as red as her eyes dripped down her chin, and stained the entire length of her fabric that covered her.

  And just like that, the girl we'd come to save had saved us. Power rolled off of her in waves, the newly-turned vampire who'd killed the King. The guards wasted no time in obeying their new Master. First my hands were released, then my neck.

  I looked to Hannah, and to my Master who's arms were wrapped around the she-wolf’s furry neck.

  Walter rubbed his wrists. Charlie rose to his feet.

  “What. The. Literal. Fuck,” Charlie said. “Is that the right way to use the word ‘literal?’ I always get that mixed up.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Hannah

  Nearly as quickly as I'd shifted, Bennet wrapped his coat around me.

  “Thanks,” I said, and smiled up at him. He smiled back, and I returned my attention to the friend I’d thought I’d lost. When I saw her on the dais, when we’d been collared and chained, I’d been sure all of our lives were over.

  “I see it now,” Ashley said, raising her brows at Bennet then back at me. “Night-time boyfriend.” She winked and I couldn’t help but smile. It was still her in there, though it was hard to believe when I looked at her. After what she had just done.

  “You were at Scott’s,” I said. “What happened to you?”

  “It was kind of crazy,” Ashley said. “And horrifying. But I finally met my destiny, and became the vampire I was always meant to be. A phoenix rising from the ashes of, well, my old life I guess.” She pointed to the long, sharp fang that stuck out of the side of her smile. How she could smile in the face of all of this, I had no idea.

  “So why are they all bowing and staring at you?” I asked. Every vampire was on his knees, looking to Ashley. The body of the barbarian had been left on the floor where he had fallen, all but forgotten. There was a quiet intensity in the room that didn’t seem to affect Ashley at all. But it made my hair stand on end.

  “Hierarchy, baby,” she said. “And I’m tops.”

  “This is for real?” I turned to Bennet, who remained on his knees just like everyone else. He nodded.

  Ashley, Queen of Vampires. It must have been a dream come true for her.

  “I'm going to need an underworld crash course,” Ashley said, looking over her newly-claimed subjects. “I know some stuff, but I'll need advice, being new and all.”

  The men in black who'd held us in chains stared at her, emotionless, like robots waiting for orders. Bennet's eyes remained on me. Charlie looked at Ashley the way he had my cheeseburger. While Walter remained cold and unaffected.

  “Blondie and Skinny, you two are a team, right? Tell me if I've got it wrong,” Ashley said.

  “He's my sire,” Charlie said. “I'm Charlie.”

  “Nice to catch your name this time,” she said, and winked at him. “Oh, and I almost forgot,” she said to the room, and stepped up onto the dais and raised her hands out to the sides. “I'm Ashley King, your uh, new Queen.”

  “How about you, Skinny?” Ashley asked. “Name, please.”

  “Walter.” There was no amused grin this time, only a sour stare.

  “Guess what, Walter,” Ashley said. “You just got hired.”

  His jaw tightened, but he said nothing.

  “Oh, and Hannah's boyfriend is free to go. There's no bounty on these guys or anything. And anyone that touches my bestie wolf, harms, threatens, or whatever she doesn't like, then he dies,” Ashley said with a wide grin. “This is going to be epic.”

  Walter and Charlie stayed, while Ashley dispersed the guards. I hugged my best friend one last time before saying goodbye for the night. It was strange to leave her behind, the one I'd come here save. But Ashley didn't need saving. And somehow I knew that she'd be okay. I'd make sure of it.

  I was truly happy for her. She’d gotten exactly what she’d always wanted, a fate I used to think was only fantasy. But if anyone could find a way to become Queen of Vampires, it was her.

  The moon shone bright in the clear, night sky. And the men in black watched Bennet and me go. It felt good to be out of the mansion, better once we'd passed through the gates and left the grounds.

  The breeze lifted the edges of Bennet’s coat, revealing my bare thighs. It pulled the thin fabric of Bennet’
s grey, tattered shirt tight against his sinewy chest, and bit at my cheeks. Bennet kept close to my side, and brushed his cold hand over mine. The gentle contact traveled through me, and made me smile. I laced my fingers with his, and leaned closer as we walked.

  “You should have your shoes,” Bennet said as we stepped out on the blacktop driveway, just past the gate.

  “I don't mind having bare feet,” I said. “I'm not ready to go back in there.”

  “Wait just a moment,” Bennet said, and kissed the crown of my head. The wind blew, and he was gone. Before I could protest, he'd returned, with both my clothes and my shoes.

  “Thank you,” I said, and slipped on my favorite blue flats. I took the neatly-folded pile of clothes into my arms, and we continued walking.

  “Now what?” I asked Bennet.

  “Now it’s finally over,” he replied, and met my gaze.

  “That’s a good thing,” I said. “I know. I don’t want to have to look over my shoulder and wonder when the next attack is coming.” It was true. Knowing the thrall were gone was a relief. So was the protection that Ashley had offered. “But?” Bennet asked, sensing that there was more. And there was.

  “But I don’t want to go home alone to my dorm room,” I said. “It's going to be weird not having Ashley there. And now that it’s really over, your job is over too.” I left the rest unsaid, because it was hard to admit even to myself. Bennet wasn’t a shifter. What if he didn’t feel the same pull as I did? What if I was the only one that felt I’d found my mate? Did vampires even have mates?

  “Hannah,” Bennet said, then stopped and turned to me. He looked me in the eye and pulled me close. “What we have isn’t because I was charged to look over you. My need for you is beyond mere duty or desire. I want to spend every night by your side, running with you in the woods.”

  “I’d like that,” I said.