“What?” I followed her gaze, expecting to find Arys with a blood whore again. A shock of platinum hair revealed otherwise.
Shaz was standing in a crowd near the dance floor. A tall, raven haired vampiress was draped all over him. With an arm hooked around his neck, she leaned in close as if whispering in his ear. Her actions weren’t casual or friendly. From where I stood, her intentions were pretty clear.
Adrenaline hit me so hard it took my breath away. I was shocked. I was also dumbfounded with jealousy. My body temperature spiked with my pounding pulse, and I felt faint. What the fuck?
“I don’t know who that is.” I tripped over my tongue as I tried to form words. “I mean, I recognize her from around here, but I don’t know who she is personally. And, I don’t know why she’s so touchy-feely with Shaz.” I knew that I didn’t friggin’ like it though.
“Well if I were you, I’d be doing some finding out. And, I wouldn’t be nice about it.” Jez was just speaking her mind, like always, but I don’t think she knew what an influence she was sometimes.
I wasn’t going to go raging over there like an irrational idiot. At least I wasn’t until I watched the tramp trail her hand down Shaz’ back to his jean-clad behind.
Ky’s hand on my wrist stopped me in my tracks. “Wait! Give him a chance.”
Like the gentleman that I knew him to be, Shaz grabbed her hand and stopped her mid-motion. He shook his head. I could see his lips moving. She looked amused. Maybe he felt the weight of my stare or perhaps he had caught my scent, but he turned abruptly, meeting my eyes. With barely a word to the vampiress, Shaz made his way through the crowd toward me. She was unaffected. Like any vampire, she simply moved on to another potential playmate.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm my pounding heart. The territorial urge to cut that bitch’s head off was tough to combat. My wolf raged at the thought of another woman all over my mate. I stopped and considered how much stronger Shaz must be than I am, to put up with Arys.
“I thought you ladies were going out dancing.” Shaz took my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “What brings you all here?”
“Didn’t expect me, huh?” I nodded in the general direction he’d just come from. “I can see that.”
“What? No. It’s not like that, Lex. She’s a vampire looking for some action. You know how they are. I told her I wasn’t interested.” Lifting my chin with a soft touch, he kissed me lightly. “Would you have thought the same thing if that had been a male vampire? Because you know those bastards are just as bad.”
I fought back the urge to pout openly. “Don’t tell me you don’t like the attention.”
He laughed and ran a hand through his perfect hair. “Of course I do. I’m a hot-blooded man. I’m not dead.” He grinned and kissed me again.
I changed the subject entirely. I was embarrassed by my reaction. “Actually, we’re meeting Kale here. He’s cleaning up a little mishap for us. Zoey killed a man outside a dance club. I panicked and called Kale.”
Shaz frowned and glanced at Zoey. I could see him thinking something similar to what I had. She was a loose cannon. “You’re sure nobody saw anything?”
I nodded and sighed. I was ready for the night to end. “Pretty sure. As soon as Kale gets back here with Ky’s truck, I think I’m heading home.”
“Want me to come with you?”
I inclined my head toward the feeding vampire at the next table. “I’ll be fine. Someone has to make sure there isn’t too much of that going on. You know, I’m starting to consider selling this place to Starbucks or something.”
“I doubt that would change a damn thing.” Shaz chuckled and pulled me in for a warm hug. I sank into his embrace, wishing I could block out the sights, sounds and smells of my environment.
He was probably right. This place was never going to be anything but a vampire den of sex and blood. Thinking I could change it had been ridiculous. At this point I felt like I was merely trying to survive it. That belief was confirmed when a scream rang out and a loud crash followed. I scowled and closed my eyes, counting backwards from ten.
“That’s my cue. Come say goodbye before you leave.” Shaz was gone, a blur of blond hair and black attire.
“Is it always like this?” Kylarai was incredulous. “How do you put up with it? It’s so … skeevy.”
“It really is,” Jez chimed in. “If you’re not here for fangs or fucking, then it really has little to offer.”
It shouldn’t have surprised me when Zoey shrugged and said, “It doesn’t seem so bad to me.”
If she thought for one minute that she was going to delve deeper into the strange world of The Wicked Kiss, she had another thing coming. That would be enough for me to break out the ass-kicking all over her.
“Well, as long as I’m here I’m going to check this place out.” Zoey abandoned her chair and perused the crowd eagerly.
I opened my mouth to argue when Jez fell into step beside her. She waved off my protest. “I’ll go with her. It’s all good.”
As I watched the two of them disappear into the mass of people, I officially gave up. Fuck it. Zoey was a grown woman. If she wanted to play with vampires, who was I to stop her? However, the next time she lost her mind and slaughtered someone, I wasn’t doing a damn thing to help her.
I took a seat at the table with Kylarai and focused on conversation with her rather than the circus going on around us. I could only imagine what she was thinking. By the time Kale arrived about twenty minutes later, I’d worked myself into a nice frenzy. I couldn’t recall ever being so ecstatic to see him.
He too was accosted by women as he passed through the throngs of humans trotting back and forth to the bar. The difference was that his women were human. Kylarai watched the blood whores with their bitten necks and barely-there outfits, and I could see her grow cold. I don’t think she ever realized what Kale was really up to when he was here. Now she was seeing it with her own eyes, and I felt like she was judging all of us. She definitely didn’t need to know he was killing again.
After shaking off more than a few admirers, Kale reached our table. My, wasn’t he a popular choice among the ladies? I flushed hot at the memory of his bite; I knew one reason why they liked him so much.
He hesitated before taking a seat next to me. I had to quell the instinctive urge to lean away from him.
Placing Ky’s car keys in the center of the table, he greeted us both with a smile. “No worries. It’s dealt with. But, there is an ugly bloodstain on the floor in the back that’s going to need new carpet.”
“I guess Zoey can pay for that.” Ky’s voice was laced with bitterness. “But thank you, Kale. It was nice of you to help.”
“I owe you one,” I added, flashing him a look that I hoped portrayed my gratitude.
“I’ll put it on your tab.” With a wink, he nudged me playfully. “Now give me the keys to my baby. I trust you took good care of her.”
I had to laugh because I knew him too well. “I’d bet a thousand dollars you examined every inch of her before you even came in here.”
“You’ll never know for certain.”
I passed him the keys quickly, trying to avoid having our hands touch. It didn’t work. His fingers grazed mine, and I gasped as his power called to me. His slightest touch had awakened my hunger for him. Sitting there with Kylarai made it hard to deny how right she’d been when she’d told me that I was as power-hungry as any vampire.
I jerked my hand back and busied myself by checking the missed calls on my phone. One from Veryl. No big deal. He could wait. When I looked up again, Kylarai was watching us intently.
Kale stood up, looking flustered. “I’m going to take off. I have something to take care of before sunrise.” Kale turned to Kylarai, forcing a smile though he had to feel the tension. “Goodnight, Kylarai. I hope the rest of your night is better.”
I was relieved when he bailed out of the club incredibly fast. Before my nerves could settle, Kylarai fixed me with a pens
ive look and tapped her nails on the table top.
“So, what’s going on with you and Kale?”
My heart plummeted like a stone to my stomach. “Nothing. Why do you ask?”
She didn’t believe me. “You’re all twitchy around him. Like you used to get with Arys before you could admit you were attracted to him. I’m not a vampire, and even I can sense the energy running high between you two. Are you sleeping with him?”
“No!” That was a little too forceful. “No. I’m not. He’s my friend. We work together.”
Her gaze dropped to the table, and she pursed her lips. “But, you want him. Don’t you?”
My mouth went dry, and I struggled to swallow. I didn’t know how to answer that without telling a lie. I wouldn’t sit there and lie to my best friend. I was many things, some of them pretty awful, but a liar was not one of them.
“Sometimes,” I heard myself say. “But it’s complicated, Ky. It’s bigger than physical attraction. It’s deeper than that.”
“Power stuff, right?” She looked skeptical.
“Yeah. Something like that.” I couldn’t make her understand something I had yet to understand.
“It’s ok, Alexa. I’m not mad. I just wanted to know. It’s not like he and I were a serious item anyway. You’re part of his world. I’m not. And honestly, I’m glad for that.” She gave the interior of the club a once over before grimacing. “Really glad.”
Chapter Ten
I was so lost in myself that it was hard to feel anything but numb. Fear had given way to readiness. I just wanted to get this over with.
My knuckles were white as I gripped the steering wheel. The car wasn’t even moving. Arys watched me from the passenger seat, and I could almost hear him wondering how precarious my control was. I needed to remain calm and do whatever it took to keep Lena safe.
After a lengthy argument, Jez and Kale had decided that he would stake out Lena’s apartment, and she would join Shaz, Arys and me. Shaz sat in the back with her, the two of them silently watching anyone and everyone who went in or out of the restaurant and lounge that marked the address we were given.
“Ready?” I asked, receiving silent head nods in response. The clock on the dash read five minutes until midnight. Taking a deep breath, I shoved my door open and prepared to face the scum that could threaten someone as innocent and sweet as Lena.
The breeze caught my hair, tossing it in my face. I was dressed for a fight, in jeans and a tank top. I didn’t have any weapons other than my own personal arsenal. I felt naked without a little something extra, like a good sturdy stake for a security blanket.
My senses were blazing, running on high alert. I could feel them inside: two vampires. I had a feeling there were more than that. I thought of Kale, alone at Lena’s. I worried that we’d left him outnumbered.
At such a late hour, the restaurant was near empty. The real party was happening in the attached lounge. Occupying one large table at the far end of the restaurant were our two vampires. Neither of them were what I’d been expecting.
They sat together facing us, on one side of the table, a man and woman. He was middle-aged in appearance but felt like he’d been a vampire for a very long time. Long, straight dark hair and dark eyes, he was formally dressed. He regarded us with a cool, calculating expression that filled me with ice-cold trepidation.
The woman at his side was tall and thin, a model’s body. Her auburn hair was piled on her head and pinned with several gold clips. Her brown eyes fell upon me like I was the main course at a feast. Her off-kilter gaze reminded me of the vacant stare of a serial killer, the look of one truly unstable.
She merely gave me a passing look, though; Arys held her attention. The way she looked him over before licking her lips told me enough. I didn’t get the feeling this was their first meeting.
“Arys Knight … how long has it been? I remember like it was yesterday.” She turned a smug smile on the rest of us, but her gaze was locked on Arys.
“Not nearly long enough, Claire. Don’t waste time with phony chit-chat. What the hell are you doing in my city?” Arys’ tone dripped venom, and when he refused to take a seat, I followed his lead.
“Come now.” Claire gestured to the chairs across from her. “We can sit and discuss this rationally, can’t we? The faster you cooperate, the faster we can be on our way.”
The fury flowing from Arys was palpable. Gripping the back of the chair in front of him, he squeezed so hard that the metal groaned. “Start talking or we walk.”
The grin faded from Claire’s face, and she became stone. “And, kill your human friend so fast? As much fun as I recall you were to play with Arys, this is business. Don’t disrespect me.”
Jez and Shaz shadowed Arys and I. They remained quiet, but I felt their tension. They were ready for anything. I wasn’t sure what to expect. The vibes I got from the two vampires made my skin crawl.
“Then get to the fucking point.” Arys glared down at her with such hate in his eyes. “If you don’t want to play, start talking.”
Claire’s brilliant smile was suddenly pasted back in place. She was genuinely enjoying this whole ordeal. “You let your dog kill Harley. That put a little damper on business. A blood ring doesn’t operate quite so smoothly when one of its founding members and suppliers is suddenly murdered. Maxwell and I are here to give you the chance to make things right.”
Did that bitch call me a dog? Or did she mean Shaz? It didn’t matter. We’d both killed Harley, and this skank was going to shit talk us like we were common animals. I bristled as anger flooded me.
“What do you expect me to do about it?” Arys was flippant. “Harley’s business is none of mine. I want nothing to do with it.”
Maxwell was especially quiet. A tiny smile pulled at his thin lips. Something about him just wasn’t right. He hadn’t done a thing or exerted any power, but I was sure he was the real threat of the two of them. My discomfort grew as a sick sensation crept through me.
“Arys, honey. We just want what’s rightfully ours. You’d want the same, would you not?”
“Money?” I asked, struggling not to address the dog comment.
Claire looked at me like I was a child asking a stupid question. “Money is useless to us. We want only one thing.” She paused for dramatic effect, and it took all my strength not to roll my eyes at her. Looking from me to Arys, she looked far too happy. “Harley’s killers, of course.”
Arys laughed bitterly. “Come on, Claire. Be realistic.”
“Oh, but I am.” She peered at him, wide-eyed and sickly sweet. Leaning in close to Maxwell, she pressed her lips to his cheek and purred, “Isn’t that right, baby?”
“Wait,” Shaz spoke up, a growl lacing his words. “This is some vengeance scheme because of a dirtbag like Harley? You’d threaten an innocent life over that?”
Claire let her gaze wander over Shaz, but she dismissed him almost instantly. Her eyes found Jez, the only naturally born shifter among us. “Give us the leopard instead, and we’ll consider it a fair trade.”
I was all fangs. The bitch was crossing the line already. I felt Arys’ touch, light on my mind. He wanted me to stay calm. I was trying. Instinct told me that these two were far more dangerous than they appeared. The more of my friends that they threatened, the greater my need to fight back.
Arys leaned down over the table, getting in Claire’s personal space. “The leopard is not a bargaining chip. You know damn well that I won’t hand my wolves over to you. So get the hell out of my city.”
Claire leaned forward on the table, her face a mask of malevolence. “You have something, and I want it.”
“Why? Because of Harley? Is this really just business? Because I know there are many people who would love to fill his role. I know you Claire, you’ll take any opportunity to buy your way to the top.”
She met Arys’ challenging glare with one equally furious. “It’s a good thing you’re pretty, Arys, because love has turned you into an idiot.”<
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The tension in the room became unbearable. It was stifling, making each breath a struggle. I couldn’t shake the feeling that somebody was going to snap soon, quite possibly me.
Arys nodded knowingly. “This is about Harley’s power in Vegas. You think handing his killers over to the rest of the blood ring will work in your favor. The two of you aren’t fit to fill his shoes. You’re delusional to think that will work.”
Claire laughed openly at Arys, and I felt uneasy. This wasn’t going well at all. Something inside me insisted that this was all wrong. Why would these two leave Lena unwatched if she was the only pull they had over us? Even if they had someone else watching her, it just didn’t make sense. She was their leverage. Why not bring her? Something wasn’t adding up.
“Arys, you have no power here. Our intent is none of your concern.” Maxwell spoke for the first time, drawing everyone’s attention to him. His voice was low and even, holding the same sense of mystery as the rest of him. He was packing serious power. It scared me.
Maxwell seemed to stare right through Arys. His pupils dilated ever so slightly, and he flashed fang when he spoke. “You seem to be under the assumption that you have room to negotiate. We’re not here to bargain, merely to state the terms. Hand over the wolves.” To me he said, “Give yourself up willingly, and we don’t kill the people you care about.”
I couldn’t speak. I could barely breathe. This wasn’t what I’d expected to hear.
Claire looked spitefully at Arys, but she gestured to me. “Be grateful we’re only demanding something you already have in your possession. We could have come demanding virgins and children. You remember how much I like virgins.”
A twisted grin crossed her face. With one brow raised, she smirked at Arys. A sudden flash of images moved behind my eyes like a strobe light as Arys’ memories swam up from my subconscious. I was battered with visuals of his past, the torturous virgin deaths Claire spoke of. The two of them together … and so much blood. I fought back a shriek, one hand going to my head. It disappeared as fast as it had come on, leaving me shaky and confused. For a moment I thought I might be sick.
Blonde & Blue (Alexa O'Brien Huntress Book 4) Page 10