Bigger problem? So was I.
Never mind I already had two blood slaves, as his tongue licked the side of my neck, the energy sparking between us exploded into a colorful light show of lust so bright, I knew the entire coffin had to be glowing. We were sure to get busted, but I didn’t much care at the moment. Inside my body, it was the same. Rainbows, unicorns, puppies—the best orgasm I’d ever experienced.
One after another, the orgasms kept bursting under my skin. Emotions tore through my chest with an intensity that left me shaking all over again. I felt what Rad felt, and it was joyful, intoxicating chaos.
Happiness, excitement, lust...
Love.
Those last two were killers. One playing with my heart, the other my body, and neither of which I had an ounce of control over. A concentrated warmth flooded my chest and the light seeping under my lids intensified with it. For half a second, with Rad holding me close and his lips trailing fire over my skin, I swear I experienced Heaven.
And then he blew it all to hell.
His lips nuzzled my ear. “Kali, I need to tell you something.”
Hell’s blood. Rad was about to brush against a pain much too raw to discuss in an evil vamp’s coffin. Too deep to discuss, period. “Not. Now.” Come back, I mentally called to the light and the warmth. Please, come back.
No dice. Heaven was gone.
“This is important. About us and what happened…before.” He licked my neck again. “Damn, you taste so good. Smell good too. Like chocolate pastries and vanilla ice cream.”
I’m so not vanilla ice cream. Jeez. “That’s the blood, Rad. I’m infected, remember? The human in you is now addicted to…” I swallowed hard. “Me.”
The coffin lid flew up and Nudra, angry but smug at finding our hiding place, pointed a bright silver sword at me. “How charming. Radison Beaumont and Kalina Dolce making out in my coffin.” His gaze locked with Rad’s. “She is a prize, isn’t she? I can’t wait to have her alone myself.”
Rad’s free hand moved but Nudra pinned the point of the sword against my heart. “Snap those fingers and she dies.”
He kept his gaze on Rad, but spoke to me. “Get up, my dear.”
The sword point bit into my skin through the shirt. I pushed against Rad’s chest, signaling him to stay put. Finagling my other hand hidden behind my backside, I touched my fingers together. Nothing. No magic anywhere.
No wooden stakes either. Ugly, here we come.
Nudra took my hand, guiding me out of the coffin. All the while, he kept the sword trained over my heart and his gaze locked on Rad.
There was only one thing to do. I fake-fell over the side of the coffin, swiping the silver knife from Rad’s pocket. Nudra’s sword drooped for a second as he automatically tried to stabilize me.
Shifting my weight, I fell into him, and having mastered Bambi eyes long before Disney did, I gave him my best innocent look. “I’m so weak.”
“Of course you are. The new blood slaves have drained you. You need more of my blood to make you strong again.”
“I need your blood, all right.” With one swift motion, I stabbed the vamp king in his heart with the silver knife. Wouldn’t kill him, but it startled him enough, I had time to yell, “Stake!” at Rad.
He snapped his fingers, causing the willow torture table to fly into a million curly pieces. Lucky for us, Nudra’s anti-magic spell was only on the house’s structure, not contents. Solid branches flew through the air, and the moment I snagged one, the warm sensation came flooding back to my chest.
Nudra swung the sword at my neck. I ducked, dragging the knife down with me and cutting him from heart to belly button. His eyes went wide and he stumbled backwards, blood and guts spilling a trail. The smell of his blood filled my nose.
One good thing about not being human? Vamp blood reeks.
The sword sailed toward my head. Too late, I threw up an arm, knowing I would lose it, but thinking in that split second it was better than losing my head.
Nothing hit me. Rad flew out of the coffin, blocking the sword before it made contact. It clattered on the stone floor, Nudra’s face showing fear for the first time. “I’m your master, Kalina Dolce. You cannot murder me.”
Even when nauseated, drained of blood and wearing nothing but a wet, muddy T-shirt, I still have standards. “Nudra, by the order of the Bridge Council, I hereby…”
With vamp speed, he swept my legs with his. I fell hard, but my aim was true. I nailed him square in his already bleeding heart with the willow stake.
Just before he went poof, I smiled into his astonished vamp eyes. “My name is Kali Sweet and I’m nobody’s blood slave.”
Nudra disintegrated into a pile of ashes and the stake bounced to the floor.
Both of us breathing hard, Rad and I looked at each other. “We make a good team,” he said, reaching down to help me up.
“We are not a team.”
I swayed on my feet, adrenaline leaving as fast it came. He swung me up into his arms, ignoring my weak protests. “The band and I are throwing a Halloween party tomorrow night downtown at the Blackstone.” His lips quirked and it was a good thing no icebergs were in the near vicinity or I would have drowned. “Wanna come?”
I blame Nudra’s blood for what happened next. The warm sensation in my chest intensified and maybe, just maybe, the polar ice cap there melted a teeny, tiny bit. But not that much. “No.”
Rad looked pained. “Kali. Please.”
I shook my head, then laid it against his naked chest. Damn but he smelled good. Not in that weird blood slave way, but in a nice warm, human male way. “Just take me home, Rad.”
He did. And the next day, he brought me coffee. Nothing else. Just coffee. Rang the doorbell, left it on the doorstep.
I was due at the Bridge office at seven that evening to give them my report on Nudra. Forget I’d gone against orders and killed a vamp king, once they found out I had three blood slaves, I was doomed. So on the drive downtown to the Bridge office, I took a detour.
The party was in full swing on the tenth floor outdoor terrace of the Blackstone, costumes as plentiful as beer and groupies. For once, my short skirt, thigh high boots and red cape looked completely appropriate. Hone and Renee waved at me from the bar while Chaos Demons music filled the air.
I located Rad, standing alone on the edge of the terrace, staring out over the city. I sidled up to him, hoping the city lights and dark expanse of the lake would calm my racing heart.
They didn’t.
He gave me a goofy grin and the polar cap heart inside me melted a fraction more. “You came.”
I shrugged, trying for nonchalance. “This was the lesser of two evils.”
He grabbed a nearby guitar and held it up like a peace offering. “Want to hear the song I’m working on?”
At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to feel Rad’s music ripple across my skin. I moved closer to pick up the smell of warm, human male. It was there and so was that look in his eyes. Hunger, passion, desire.
Peace offerings. More dangerous than a wooden stake any day. “Yeah,” I said, wild human emotion clogging my throat. “I’d love to.”
About the author:
Misty is the multipublished, award-winning author of the Witches Anonymous and Super Agent series. In her teens, she lost an aunt to breast cancer and recently had a childhood friend go through a double mastectomy. While working in public health, Misty managed a breast and cervical cancer screening program for uninsured women, and is a strong advocate of early screening and self-breast exams. For more information about Misty and her books, including the upcoming release of Revenge Is Sweet, the first novel in her Kali Sweet Series, visit www.readmistyevans.com, like her Facebook page, and follow her on Twitter.
Sian’s Solution
Dale Mayer
Act natural. Act natural. The mantra repeated inside Sian Tallant's mind. It might have rattled on endlessly for all the attention she paid to it. How could you act natural
if you focused on being natural?
Besides there was nothing natural about what she was doing today.
The security gates to the blood processing warehouse loomed ahead. She had a two-week contract living and working down here with two more horrible days left to get through. Not that she'd be here to finish it off if things went according to plan.
At over 300 feet below the surface, the temperature was warmer than she'd expected. Ideal for the blood donors, though. She stifled a sob. Poor Taz.
Three hours and ten minutes
The stone-faced guard watched her approach. She swallowed. Hard. Her fingers clenched on the small purse jammed into her lab coat pocket. She'd never been checked... yet. Straightening her spine, she gave the oversized, black suited vampire a brief smile. Cold and assessing, his narrowed gaze stared at her as she passed. Her back crawled until she turned the corner out of range of those frigid eyes. She shuddered. These past weeks, her nerves had gone from a controlled calm to a she-was-being-watched-every-moment-of-the-day edginess. If anyone found out what this group was doing, well...it would be bad...for everyone.
Coming here had been risky. Yet, she'd had no choice. Taz had to be saved.
Sian strode down the pristine white hallway. White tiles on the floor. White tiles on the ceiling. White paint on the cement walls. She winced. The color failed to put an innocent spin on the dark activity going on inside.
Crossing to the second hallway, she checked her watch. On time, as usual. Good. Everything had to appear normal. Everything. Descending to the last heavy metal door, where the carved stone walls started, Sian steeled herself for what was to come. With a deep breath, she tugged it open and stepped through. The smell assailed her first. Warm, metallic with a faint antiseptic overtone. She hated it. Despised her fellow vampires for creating this nightmare but had no way to change it. Not today. Not alone. The operation was too damn big.
Three hours and four minutes
The offices lined the far side of the cavernous room. In the second one, at the far left, her desk waited for her, groaning under the waiting stack of lab reports. The other desks were empty. Shit. Rounds had started without her. Picking up a pad of paper, she grabbed her pen, then hurried out to catch up to her coworkers. Walking through the rows of hanging bodies to where the group had started discussions, she avoided looking at the many faces staring down at her. So much pain. So much loss. Human loss. Vampire gain.
It was almost over. Thank God.
As she caught up to the others, the team leader, Dr. Magnus, was saying, "We need to increase the dose for #376. His vitals are holding, but his last series of tests came out deficient again. It's the second time we've tried to correct this. We'll give it one more attempt. If that doesn't work, we'll move him to the medical center and make a final decision then."
A shudder whispered down Sian's back. Since when had 'make a final decision’ become a euphemism for pulling the plug permanently and killing a man? Keeping her gaze on her clipboard, Sian refused to let her eyes reach #376's face. She'd made that mistake on her first day. She'd been naive enough to think that studying, memorizing the human suffering would help her get these people out. Instead, those faces, twisted under their plastic casing, permanently haunted her psyche. Realizing the enormity of the problem had grounded her in reality.
She'd come for one person. Not thousands. She couldn't help all of them. Not right now. Later. Oh, yes. Later.
Three hours
The team moved ahead of her, discussing various cases. Sian followed. Tubes moved in and through each of the sealed units, carrying nutrients in and wastes out. Small computerized units determined the correct amounts each person needed and kept detailed records of the outgoing waste.
Her scientific mind could appreciate the simplicity of the system. That the group who'd been cruel enough and evil enough to put the system in place, and to pull the necessary supply together were her own people, astounded and horrified her. Acceptance would never happen.
Vampire and human relations had come a long way. Societies lived apart. Treaties governed all economic and social behavior between the two. Mixed relationships were a sticking point, frowned on by both sides. Obviously not everyone was on board. This...manufacturing system only went to show how much her people had learned from those they secretly considered cattle.
Bastards.
Sian finished rounds with her teammates laughing and making Halloween jokes around her. She hadn't forgotten what day it was. And didn’t need the reminder that it wouldn’t be the intimate celebration she'd originally planned. She kept a smile on her face, even managing to come up with a small laugh of her own, while her heart ached. Checking the time, she excused herself and headed back to her piled high desk. The lab reports needed to be checked, cases needed to be flagged and notes needed to be added. In other words, everything had to stay normal. For a little while longer. Her gaze landed on the photo on her desk. Taz, his back turned to the camera, held her in a close embrace. Had it really been taken at his birthday party barely over a month ago?
Two hours twenty-five minutes
Soon. Bending her head, she tried to refocus on the stack of reports. And failed miserably. Anytime now, the first stage would begin. She rubbed her sweaty hands on her lab coat. Her nails itched to lengthen, the tips vibrating as instinct told her to stay alert, wary. She'd done them in a deep golden color before coming here. For Taz. It was his favorite color to match his favorite saying, "Pure gold, just like you."
"Sian. Can I get your help back here, please?"
Shit. Her shoulders hunched. Anytime had become now. She was not ready for this.
Spinning around, Sian saw Dr. Harvard waiting at the back door. Nervous, yet knowing he couldn't have any idea of her plans, she closed the file in front of her. The acids in her stomach awakened. "On my way." Brushing her hair back, she pulled the mother-of-pearl hair clip out of her pocket and swept her hair up out of the way. The delay didn't help settle her nerves at all.
Please let this work.
Her stomach acids sizzled as she approached the door. With several steps to go, her nostrils flared. Death. Disease. Body fluids. Walking into the room, she could hardly see what the problem was for the staff crowding around a single bed.
Please let it not be. Not yet. It was too early. Her heart swelling against pain to come, Sian worked her way to the front of the crowd. Taz lay on the bed, his plastic casing open, his stunningly muscled body nude for everyone to gawk at. She reached out to see if he was alive when her arm was grabbed from behind.
"Don't touch. We don't know what's wrong with him." Dr. Lawrence dropped her arm to stare down at the barely alive man. "He's new. Just over four weeks. His vitals are off. Blood count is low, dangerously low, and he's not breathing properly. Whole system failure in progress."
Sian gulped, closing her eyes briefly. Surely Taz was big enough for the dose of medication she'd given him. That had always been her comfort. Big, uber healthy Taz. Indomitable Taz, brought low by a predator he hadn't seen coming.
Please let the dose be right. Her heart seized. She loved this man with everything she had. To think she might have inadvertently killed him through the act of trying to save him was too much.
"Hey, are you alright. You look a little pale."
Her eyelids popped open. Pale? She was a fucking vampire. Dead people wore her color every day of the year. She bit back her scathing comment. Normal. Everything had to remain normal. Mustering what little control she could, she said to the woman who'd spoken at her side, "I'm fine. Just a little tired."
"Have you feasted this morning? I know you've been working hard helping us out. As much as I need you here, I can't have you end up as a patient causing us more work. Go. Get a snack." Dr. Harvard nudged her shoulder.
Stumbling backward slightly, Sian breathed a sigh of relief. She couldn't help Taz at this point. Nor could she stand there silent while they worked on him.
Two hours and five minutes
Washing her hands afterward, she sneaked back inside the medical center. Two steps inside, she halted. Her snack threatened to revolt. Taz had been moved to a gurney. Dr. Lawrence pulled the sheet up over Taz's head and dropped it.
Sian's heart stopped. She stared down at the still form.
"Sian. Good, you're back. You missed all the action. Unfortunately, it's pushed us for time. Take this trolley downstairs to the cooler. The orderlies will deal with it later."
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