by Jane Jamison
“I’m sorry?”
The smile widened, yet she didn’t sense any warmth behind either his smile or his eyes. “Are you looking for the owner, Denise Willowby?”
“Yes. I mean, no. I was just going to buy some cupcakes.” She tried to return his smile but found she couldn’t. What was it about him that made her skin crawl? Why was he so pale?
“Then cupcakes you shall have.” He whirled around, walked a few feet in the opposite direction, then stopped when she didn’t follow him. “Come along. Denise is in the back of the shop right now. I can show you the side door. If you knock, I’m sure she’ll open up and let you buy your cupcakes.”
“Oh, no. That’s okay. I don’t need them.” She pivoted on her heel, eager to get away from him.
“Stop.”
As though she’d lost control of her feet, she turned back and faced him. The icy-cold gaze locked onto her. His smile died. She tried to shake her head, to refuse him anything, but couldn’t. Fear leapt to her throat, making it hard to breathe. Yet when he reached out his hand, she walked toward him, her legs stiffly taking her to him.
He took her hand, and another bone-chilling wave rushed through her. “Come with me.”
His black eyes darkened even more. She wanted to pull away and silently cried out for help, but no sounds came out of her mouth. Instead, she followed him as he led her around the corner of the building and into the alley.
“You’re not from around here, are you?”
Celia didn’t try to speak. She sensed that he didn’t really want an answer. Instead, he spoke to keep her under his charm. She wanted to struggle, to fight, but he held her, keeping her from fleeing. Her heart pounded as he backed her against the brick wall. The stench from a nearby Dumpster made her stomach roil, and she wondered how the alley could be so dark in the middle of the day. It was like the man had brought the darkness with him.
He laid the backs of his fingers against her cheek. “You’re very pretty. But you already know that, don’t you? But did you know that your real beauty lies deep within you?”
She shuddered as he leaned forward and put his lips to her ear. Where were the men? Silently she called to Aiden, Trent, and Steve.
Please, help me. Find me.
“Ah, I can’t wait to taste you.” His cold breath hissed against her ear.
Her gaze dropped lower, making him laugh. “No, my sweet. I don’t want to press my lips to your pussy. I’d much rather taste the life force flowing inside you.”
What does he want with me?
“How about a little taste? You know, just to tease me before I take you home and feast on you.”
No! Steve! Aiden! Trent! Help!
The man skimmed his teeth along her neck, making her try to jerk away from him. He lifted her arm and brought her wrist to his nose. He sniffed, his eyes closing then opening to glance sideways at her. The obsidian orbs glittered with hunger.
She closed her eyes, unwilling to look into his any longer. At once, she was terrified yet resigned to her fate. Whatever her fate was.
She inhaled as a sharp pain jabbed into her arm and raced up to her shoulder. Squinting her eyes, she let out a small cry. Her body shook, not a mere tremble but violent shudders that left her weak. A warm trickle started at her wrist and slid down her arm.
Her mind grew fuzzy, and she welcomed the release from the pain and the fear. But the release didn’t last long.
A howl of agony, a howl that wasn’t hers, erupted as her arm was dropped and two hands grabbed her by the waist to keep her standing.
“Celia, open your eyes. Come on, darlin’, look at me.”
Steve? She tried, but her eyelids were heavy. Instead, she let out a moan.
“Celia, open your eyes. Listen to me.”
Aiden? But where’s Steve now?
She groaned and tried to control her eyelids again. Although it took a lot of strength, she managed to peek through her half-lidded eyes. Aiden held her one arm while Steve slipped a hand around her waist and rested her other arm on his shoulder.
A man’s strangled cry jolted her, and she looked back over her shoulder. Trent held the man high in the air using only one hand. The man kicked out but couldn’t find any purchase. Trent shook him, making him emit a strange, animallike growl, then threw him to the ground.
“Trent?”
Trent heard her. Strange amber eyes stared back at her, and long, fang-like teeth filled his mouth. She let out another cry, trying to understand what had happened to Trent. How had his eyes changed color? And his teeth? Was she seeing things?
Aiden and Steve hurried with her toward the street, giving her no chance to look at Trent again. She walked unsteadily between them until, at last, they made it to the pickup. Picking her up, Steve waited for Aiden to open the door then pushed her onto the seat before him.
She blinked, trying to keep her vision focused. A crowd of onlookers had started gathering around the truck and extended to the entrance of the alley. Angry faces mixed with pitying looks.
“He’s not one of ours, Aiden. He came a week ago, but he hasn’t caused any problems.” The deep voice of the man leaning against Aiden’s door sounded regretful yet still held an edge of challenge to it.
“I don’t give a damn. He’s in your town, which means he’s your business. If anything worse had happened to her, we’d have the entire pack here in a matter of minutes.”
“Look, Aiden, there’s no reason to threaten us. We’ll handle him our way.” The challenge of his tone was stronger now.
She hadn’t seen him get in, but Trent was in the backseat. He grabbed the back of Aiden’s seat and pulled himself forward. She let her head fall to the side and blinked to try and focus on Trent. Why were Trent’s fingers red? Why did his voice sound funny? Garbled, like he had something in his mouth.
“He got off easy this time. But if I hear of him hurting anyone, from Forever or just passing through, he’ll have me to answer to.”
The roar of the pickup cut off the angry murmurs of those standing around the vehicle. Aiden turned toward her to look in the rearview mirror.
He looks angry. Is he angry with me? But what did I do to cause such an uproar?
“Take it easy, Celia. You’re safe now. We’ll be home in a few minutes.”
Home? Yes. I want to sleep. But we were going on a…
She moaned and rested her head on Steve’s shoulder. Sighing, she let the peaceful darkness overtake her.
* * * *
Celia pushed to a sitting position and looked around her. The bedroom was huge and filled with sturdy furniture. A large flat-screen television set hanging over a fireplace dominated one wall with a love seat facing the screen. The huge bed she rested on was covered with a luxurious bedspread of purples, gold, and silver. The bedposts rose upward for several feet while a step pushed against the side offered an easy way off the tall-standing bed. She used the step and walked over to the double window covered with brocade drapes. Candles on both the hanging chandelier in the middle of the ceiling and the wall sconces lit the room. If she didn’t know better, she would’ve sworn she’d been transported to a castle.
Pulling the drapes aside, she searched the area and knew from the flat land and the barn several yards away that she was still in Texas. Since she knew it wasn’t Sandy’s home, she had to assume that she was at the men’s home on the Lonesome Range Ranch.
She lifted her arm and stared at the bandage wrapped around her wrist. Without warning, the memory of the cold man who’d taken her into the alley came rushing back. She backed away from the drapes and scanned the room again. Was she wrong? What if she wasn’t on the men’s ranch and instead in the cold man’s home?
Although her legs shook from weakness and the pain in her wrist didn’t cease, she whirled around and headed for the large door. She held her breath and was relieved when the door opened easily. At least she wasn’t locked in.
Drawing in a steadying breath, she pulled the door open an inch and pe
eked out. A long hall, dotted with several doors, led to a staircase of polished mahogany and wrought iron, reminding her of Aiden’s home. But she had to be careful until she was sure.
Taking care to be quiet, she opened the door and tiptoed down the hallway toward the stairs. If she could get out without getting caught, she’d find her way back to Sandy’s home one way or another.
She took the first step, biting her lip to keep her teeth from chattering. Halfway down, however, she heard a voice that filled her with relief.
“We shouldn’t have left her alone.”
Aiden. Thank God.
“Who knew a trip to Shatland would turn out to be dangerous?” Trent’s voice was tense.
Celia blew out a breath and hurried down another few steps before Steve’s words brought her up short.
“We shouldn’t have taken her with us. Not without knowing.”
“If anything, Steve, this proves she’s not ready to know.” Aiden’s tone was hard and firm.
She could almost see Steve shaking his head from the sound of his voice. “I don’t know. Knowledge is a good thing.”
“Knowledge is only a tool that can be used for either good or bad,” responded Aiden.
“I can’t believe you two are having a philosophical discussion. She has to know soon. We know she’s the one, and she knows it, too. At least she can sense it. Why else would she have submitted to us so easily? Although she hasn’t said she’ll stay.” Trent cleared his voice.
“You know mates can’t ignore the connection. The bond’s stronger than morality or shame or anything that could get in the way of our being with her.” Steve muttered something else under his breath that she didn’t understand.
“This isn’t getting us anywhere. We have to tell her soon, if not today.”
The men grew quiet after Aiden’s statement. She could hear the sounds of ice clinking in a glass and someone crossing the room.
“How the hell could we have known about the rogue vampire? Shatland’s usually very good about keeping others out. You and Trent helped broker the deal a long time ago.”
A vampire? Did I hear them right? Or am I still asleep and having a nightmare?
Celia didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. The cold man’s black eyes came to her and, once again, she felt the chill emanating from his body. If anyone ever looked like a vampire, he had.
“Let’s just be happy it wasn’t worse than it was. I hate to think what could’ve happened if we hadn’t found her when we did.”
“Aiden’s right. Let them take care of their own vampire problem. We need to focus on Celia. What are we going to say if she wants to know what went down?”
A vampire. Holy hell, that’s really what they said.
Celia took the last few steps to the bottom floor and followed the sound of their voices down the hallway to the doorway into a large study. Bookcases covered every wall except for the window. She glanced at the window, took in the land spreading away from the house, and then stepped farther into the room.
“Celia.”
Trent was out of the leather armchair and dashing toward her. Aiden remained where he was, leaning against a bookcase, while Steve rose from behind the oversized desk and moved toward her.
“Stop.” She gripped the doorframe.
“How are you feeling? We brought you to our home to take care of you. Sorry about having to scrap the picnic, but under the circumstances…well, we wanted to give you time to rest.” Aiden let his gaze run the length of her then back to her face.
Trent held out his hand. “Please, Celia, have a seat. You look like you’re about to pass out.”
She shook her head then let Trent take her hand anyway. The shock of the current that always came when she touched them surged through her and, in her weakened state, almost brought her to her knees. With Trent’s help, she made it to the love seat and dropped on the end cushion.
Steve covered her hand as she gripped the end of the love seat. “Do you need anything? Water? Maybe something stronger?”
She met his gaze dead on. “I want to know what the hell happened to me.”
The men checked each others’ reactions, and Aiden moved in to close their ranks. “Maybe that should wait for another time.”
“No, Aiden, I need to know now. I don’t understand. How did I end up in that alley with that strange man?” She lifted her arm. “How did I get hurt?”
The men gathered around with Trent on one side and Steve on the other side. Aiden sat in the leather easy chair and set his glass on top of a marble table.
“What do you remember?” Aiden’s narrowed his eyes and waited for her to speak.
“I–I’m not sure.” Did she even want to remember? Or was it better to leave the memory hidden in the gray mists of her mind?
“Do you remember getting out of the pickup?” Trent took her hand and squeezed it.
She could see herself slipping off the seat and heading toward a bakery. “I wanted to get some cupcakes for the picnic. As a thank you for going to all the trouble.”
“Then what?” Again Trent squeezed her hand.
She dropped her gaze to the floor and forced the memory to the front of her mind. “The bakery was closed, so I started to go back to the truck. But this man…” She couldn’t stop herself from shaking.
Steve turned her toward him. “Celia, I want you to listen with an open mind. What we’re about to tell you will seem crazy, but it’s true. That man who took you into the alley? He’s not like other men. He’s a—”
“A vampire.” The shocked expressions on their faces almost made her laugh.
“You knew?” Aiden offered her the whiskey glass he’d held but hadn’t taken a drink from since she’d walked into the room.
She shook her head, both refusing the drink and denying that she’d known. “I didn’t until just now, when I heard you talking about him.”
Trent glanced at his friends. “And what do you think? Do you believe us?”
She wanted to say no, wanted to laugh at the preposterous idea, but she couldn’t. Even if she hadn’t heard them talking, she could tell from their faces that they were serious. If she hadn’t experienced what had happened in the alley, she wouldn’t have believed them. But she had. Even now she could feel the man’s cold touch.
“Yes. I believe you. He had control over me. Like he’d dived into my head and taken over.”
“He used mind control on you to lure you off the street and into the alley.”
As outlandish as it sounded, she knew Steve spoke the truth.
“Is it over? Can he still control me?” She shivered at the idea. The vampire had stolen not only her wonderful day with her men, but her sense of security as well.
“No. It’s over.” Aiden glanced at the others as though wanting their agreement.
Standing, she pushed away their attempts to help her to her feet and crossed over to the window. She clutched the windowsill to keep her balance. Taking a deep breath to steel her resolve, she confronted them. “Spit it out. What else are you keeping from me?”
Chapter Eight
The men stared at her, their expressions suddenly passive. Celia cocked an eyebrow and closed the distance between them. “Your silence says a lot, but it doesn’t tell me everything I need to know. Did you know a vampire was around here?”
“Not that one.”
Aiden punched Trent on the arm and glared at him. “What he means is that we didn’t know that vampire was in Shatland or we wouldn’t have left you alone in the truck. We’d never let anything happen to you.”
For a man who’d been her biggest source of irritation, Aiden had changed into a man who cared for her more than she’d have ever believed. Each look he sent her was filled with love. She swallowed and concentrated on keeping her mind off Aiden’s rugged good looks and on the subject at hand.
A vampire in Texas? That was the last thing she’d have ever thought she’d see. But the bandage on her arm reminded her that it was
true. “Not that one. Meaning there are others?”
Trent glanced at Steve then Aiden before speaking. “Yes. There are other vampires in these parts.”
She had to sit down again. Either that or her legs would give out, and she’d wind up on the floor. “How many? And why here? And why doesn’t everyone know about them? I’d think the appearance of vampires would grab the media’s attention.”
Steve cleared his voice and became the spokesperson for the men. “Vampires have always existed. They’re very good at hiding in plain sight. It’s as much for our sanity as it is for their self-preservation. Think about it. If people knew they existed, how do you think they’d react? We’d have hunters out shooting anyone that looked the least bit like a vampire. Accidental shootings would be the least of our worries. Can you imagine what the military would do? They’d use them as spies, assassins, and anything else they could think of.”
“How long have you known a vampire was here?” If they’d known, why hadn’t they told her?
“Like we said, we didn’t know about this one. He’s a rogue, an outsider to his own kind. The others are law-abiding citizens who don’t prey on people.”
Who would’ve thought she’d ever be talking about vampires? Real, undead monsters. “You never answered my question. How many are there? Are there any more around here? Close to home?”
“Shatland has more of them than Forever. In fact, Shatland’s first citizens were vampires who were searching for a place to call their own. A place where they could be safe even if they did show others what they were.”
“So the whole town is made up of vampires? Oh, hell. I remember the people in Shatland glaring at us then surrounding the truck. Were they vampires, too? But how could they be vampires and walk around in the daytime? Wouldn’t they burn up in the sun?”
“They have so-called normal people there, too. But Shatland is a kind of mecca for supernaturals. A lot of the stories and myths surrounding vampires are just not true. Like thinking the sun will burn them to ashes or that they don’t have a reflection in a mirror. If they want to, they can go out in the daytime. Some simply prefer not to.”