High Stakes and Vampires (Pandora's Pride Book 2)

by Annabel Chase

  Servers swarmed the table with platters of food and bottles of what I hoped was red wine.

  “You’re welcome to anything from the bar, but I would love for you to try my wine. It’s from my vineyard,” Justin said.

  “There are vineyards in Minneapolis?” Liam asked.

  “Two hours northwest of here,” Justin said. “Winemaking is my passion. I started after the Plague and have been obsessed ever since.”

  A server filled my glass with a dark crimson liquid and I inhaled the aroma of cherries and plums. I brought the glass to my lips for a taste.

  Justin watched me closely. “What do you think?”

  “Delicious.” It was.

  “I send Natasha a case every year for Awakening Day. You should encourage her to share.”

  “We don’t celebrate Awakening Day,” Saxon said as he placed a linen napkin on his lap.

  Justin looked gobsmacked. “You don’t celebrate? You can’t be serious. I don’t know any supers that don’t celebrate Awakening Day. It’s when we were finally free to emerge from the shadows and live fully in the world.”

  “It’s also when scores of humans died and demons overran the earth, so forgive me if I don’t whip out the confetti,” Saxon said.

  The two males stared at each other and I sensed a good old-fashioned pissing contest in the making. Time to intervene.

  “So, Justin, I’d love to hear more about your other ventures,” I interjected. “I bet you own quite a lot of real estate in Minnesota.”

  “Mainly in Minneapolis,” he said. “I’m also the chair of the real estate department of the largest law firm in the city.”

  Of course he was. “You must be a busy guy,” I said.

  His chubby cheeks puffed even further when he smiled, making his fangs barely evident. “Not too busy for good company.”

  At the vampire’s flirtatious words, I felt Saxon’s foot brush against mine and I couldn’t decide whether the move was accidental.

  “Who’ll be accompanying us to New Asche tomorrow?” Saxon asked in a clear attempt to divert the conversation away from my ‘good company.’

  “Howard and Stan will drive you,” Justin said. “Stan is the one who made the gruesome discovery. His girlfriend lived there.”

  My heart stuttered. “Is she…?”

  “She’s fine,” Stan said. “I was driving her home after a trip we took together, so she wasn’t there when it happened.”

  “Where is she now?” I asked.

  “Recovering from the trauma at my place,” Stan said. “She’s human, so she took it pretty hard.”

  I couldn’t imagine that level of devastation. Then again, after tomorrow, I wouldn’t have to. “You don’t mind going back?”

  Stan drank a mouthful of wine. “I’ve seen a lot of tough scenes and this one is definitely up there, but I also want to know what happened.”

  “We all do,” Justin said somberly. “I can’t have trouble like this in my backyard.”

  “What about the other enclave in St. Paul?” I asked. “Did you reach out to them?”

  “I sent an emissary,” Justin replied. “They’re as clueless as we are and neither one of us is comfortable with that feeling.” He gestured to my plate. “You should eat. My wine is known for its potent effects. You don’t want to drink it on an empty stomach.”

  “Now he tells us,” I mumbled. His words seemed to set off the alcohol in my system because my head started to feel fuzzy. I made sure to eat every scrap on my plate, not unusual for me anyway. The food was insanely good, as it often was with vampires. Their taste buds were as on point as their fangs.

  “These guys might look lame, but they have amazing taste in food,” Evadne said in a loud whisper. It seemed that the wine was having an effect on her too.

  Music filled the air and I realized that a live band had assembled on a stage in the corner of the restaurant just for us.

  “Care to dance?” Justin asked.

  I choked down a forkful of duck. “Normally I would,” I lied, “but I’m feeling a little woozy. I don’t drink wine very often.”

  “I’ll take one for the team,” Evadne said and I winced. Too much alcohol was only going to embolden her already bold personality.

  Saxon leaned closer to me. “As long as she doesn’t insult him, it’ll be fine.”

  “Oh, you’re reading minds now?” I teased. “I thought that was a fae trait.”

  His lips were close enough that they practically brushed my cheek. “I guess it would be in poor form to dance since you just turned down our host.”

  “I think it would be a bad idea anyway,” I whispered. I glanced at the empty wine glass in front of him. “Saxon Hanley, did you drink an entire glass of wine?”

  He offered a lazy smile. “I didn’t want to risk insulting our host. It was only one glass. I’ll be fine.”

  The lame vampires ended up being more entertaining than I anticipated. Justin’s choice of music was as impressive as his menu and I was pleasantly surprised by Herb and Howard’s moves on the dance floor. I steered clear of Saxon, despite that constant tug of attraction. I felt like everyone could tell that we wanted to tongue tango and I certainly didn’t want Evadne to read my mind, not after a few drinks when my defenses were down.

  “Maybe we shouldn’t drink so much,” Tate said. “We have a tough day ahead of us tomorrow.”

  “Exactly why we should drink a lot,” Evadne said. “That’s how we get through the tough days.”

  “I’m with Evadne on this one,” Liam said, his words slightly slurred.

  “Write this day down in history,” Evadne said. “The werevamp and I are in agreement.”

  “We should call it a night,” Saxon said. “We’re leaving early in the morning and I need everybody in prime condition.”

  “In that case, you should’ve left Liam at headquarters,” Evadne said.

  “Hardy har har,” Liam said. “You should be careful or you might trip on my fangs on your way back to your room.”

  “Ha! You severely overestimate the size of your”—Evadne lowered her gaze—“fangs.”

  By the time we left the restaurant, a few more vampires had shown up and half the original ones had stripped down to their bow ties and trousers and were still shaking their rumps. We returned to our rooms in stitches.

  “I didn’t get it at first, but I can see why Natasha likes them,” Tate said as we entered our room.

  “Did you hear Abner order a rum and pop?” Evadne burst into laughter.

  “He kept asking me what kind of hybrid I am,” Tate said. “He couldn’t seem to grasp that I was only a witch.”

  My head swiveled toward Evadne. “Do you have a favorite part?”

  Evadne frowned and looked down at herself. “Boobs, I guess.”

  I smacked my forehead. “Gods, you are drunk, aren’t you? No, I mean vampire, wolf, or fae.”

  “This sounds like a fun game,” Tate said. “Too bad I can’t play. All witch, baby.” She pounded her chest.

  “I guess I don’t see them as three distinct parts,” Evadne said. “They’re all three kind of mushed inside me.”

  “That makes you sound like a casserole,” Tate said.

  “Or a sausage,” I added.

  “No, no one knows what’s in a sausage, whereas I know exactly which traits of each species I have.” Evadne straightened her shoulders in an effort to appear more sober than she was. “I like all of me equally.”

  Tate’s eyebrows shot up. “Really? There are no negative side effects that make you wish you were a full-blooded supernatural?”

  Evadne stared at her reflection in the mirror with exaggerated eyes. “I don’t know. I guess it would be better if I could manage a portal without risk or fully heal someone.” She paused. “But at least I’m not a measly half human like Callie. That would suck.”

  “Hey! There’s nothing wrong with being half human.” Maybe it was because of my drunken brain, but my lips suddenly loosened. “
According to my blood test, I’m a whole human, so there. Full-blooded, beeyatch.”

  Evadne and Tate exchanged confused glances. “You really are drunk,” Tate said. “You can’t be a whole human. You have too much magic.”

  “I know. That’s why Harmony got fired, I think. She was terrible at her job.” I shook my head ruefully.

  My companions grew quiet. “Harmony got fired because of a botched blood test?” Tate finally asked.

  “Well, Emil told me it was incompetence and swore it had nothing to do with me, but I think he was lying.” I peeled off my dress. “Come to think of it, they always seem like they’re lying. Is that normal?”

  “Abra is like a safe deposit box for secrets,” Tate admitted. “I don’t even question it anymore. It’s just how she is.”

  “It’s the nature of the job,” Evadne said. She fell backward onto the bed and bounced. “There have to be secrets and lies.”

  “Why? We’re not secret agents,” I said. “We operate out in the open.”

  “But we lay low because we’re targets,” Evadne said. Her arms flopped over her head and smacked the pillow.

  “Now I’m going to lay low,” I murmured. I curled into a ball and fell asleep much more quickly than I anticipated, probably due to the effects of alcohol. When I opened my eyes, I was standing on the edge of an unfamiliar bridge overlooking a rushing river. A lone figure stood in the middle of the bridge, peering into the water.

  “Saxon?”

  He turned to face me. “You’re here?”

  Slowly I walked toward him. The evening air was cool enough to raise the hair on my arms. “Are we doing the dream thing again?”

  He smiled wryly. “I think you’ll find that you’re doing the dream thing again.”

  “Where are we?”

  “One of my favorite places.”

  “Yes, but where?” I pressed.

  A sad smile touched his lips. “It isn’t a real place. I imagined it when I was younger and I like to come here in my dreams.” He hesitated. “You looked beautiful tonight. I wanted to tell you that when we were…awake, but I knew it was a bad idea.”

  I stared at the moonlit water. “I can see why you like to dream about this place. It’s so peaceful.”

  “I don’t dream about it often enough. I think it was the alcohol. It calmed me enough to have good dreams.” He grinned at me. “Really good dreams.”

  Heat warmed my cheeks. “I don’t know why I ended up here again. I’m not willing it to happen or anything. I don’t even understand how I’m doing it.”

  “I think it’s our connection,” he said. “Something draws us to each other.”

  “You feel that too?” I hadn’t wanted to say it out loud and embarrass myself in case it was just me.

  “Believe me, I feel it more than I want to.” His blue eye sparkled in the moonlight while his green eye remained drenched in shadow.

  “You’re allowed to have feelings, Saxon.”

  “True. It’s the not acting on them that makes them difficult.”

  I cocked my head. “What would you do if you could act on them?”

  He glanced away, smiling. “I think you know.”

  “We’re in a dream, right? Can’t we do whatever we want in a dream? No one’s watching.”

  He turned to face me. “Callie, as much as I want that…Don’t you think it would create issues in our waking lives?”

  “What happens in dreams stays in dreams,” I said. It reminded me of an old slogan that my father told me that had once been associated with Las Vegas.

  Saxon looked down at me. “I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize our professional relationship. That’s why the rule exists in the first place. We’re a team.”

  “And how would this hurt us?”

  “What if there’s a fight and I have to choose between helping you and helping someone else? If we’re involved, I’m going to choose you and maybe that’s not the best decision for the team.”

  “I don’t think acting on our feelings would change the outcome. I know I’d still choose you, regardless of whether we’ve ever kissed.”

  His gaze was so intense that I could feel my insides burning. “It isn’t a lack of desire, Callie. Trust me.”

  Trust me.

  Trust no one.

  “There are things I feel like I should tell you,” I said.

  His gaze darted around the bridge. “Not here. Not now.”

  I laughed. “We’re in a dream, Saxon. What could be safer?”

  He took my hands in his and squeezed. “I want to be sure first. Whatever it is, can it wait?”

  I nodded. He was right. What if this was the result of some vampire plan? Just because we’d managed to meet up in a dream before now didn’t mean vampire influence was out of the question.

  “It can wait,” I said.

  He released a hand and brushed a strand of hot pink hair from my brow. “Sleep well. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Chapter Nine

  The drive to New Asche took an hour and forty minutes. With each passing minute, the tension in my body increased. I knew we were about to bear witness to a nightmare and I didn’t feel mentally prepared. As we drew closer, memories of my father and Leto came rushing back to the forefront of my mind and I started talking up a storm just to silence the scenes in my head.

  “A little quieter for those of us within earshot,” Liam said. “Some of us are hungover.”

  “I think all of us are hungover,” Evadne said.

  “Justin’s the best host in the Twin Cities.” Howard parked the Escalade on the outskirts of town and Stan turned to address us.

  “We need to walk from here,” the vampire said. “The roads aren’t really passable.”

  He wasn’t exaggerating. My breath caught in my throat as I exited the Escalade. It looked like a giant fire-breathing monster stomped straight through the town and leveled everything in its path.

  “Holy hellfire. No wonder there were no survivors,” Saxon said.

  “None that I saw or smelled anyway,” Stan said. “I had my girlfriend with me and she was hysterical, so I hightailed it back to the city and told Justin what I saw.”

  “It doesn’t look like anyone’s been here since it happened,” Tate said. “Are there no police or fire departments in neighboring towns?”

  “It’s not like the days before the Plague, at least not out here,” Stan said. His gaze flickered over Tate. “Not that you seem old enough to remember.”

  Saxon strode forward and surveyed the landscape. “Fan out and look for signs of survivors and any evidence of what might have happened here, no matter how small and insignificant.”

  “My money’s on dragon,” Liam said.

  “Dragons don’t attack like this,” Tate said. “They’re as rare as sightings of Saxon with alcohol.”

  “He drank last night,” Evadne pointed out.

  “Still not voting for dragon attack,” Tate said.

  We spread out and started picking through the rubble. It was difficult to tell what the buildings had been. I wasn’t even sure whether I was in a residential section or commercial section of town.

  “Are we certain this was a supernatural event and not a tornado?” I heard Tate ask as I crouched beside a flattened building and examined the debris.

  “There’s evidence of incineration and no reports of weather abnormalities in the region,” Saxon replied.

  I blocked the images that seemed to want to force their way into my head. Images of what this town had been prior to its destruction.

  “What kind of Plague demon might’ve caused this?” I wondered out loud. Three thousand people dead. A town destroyed. No wonder they were worried about the release of Tefnut’s soul. The goddess could destroy the entire world if her mood was foul enough.

  “Take your pick,” Evadne said. She kicked a concrete block out of the way to try and clear the path. “Any number of them have the ability to wreak havoc like this. That’s w
hy it’s so important that we find them and kill them.”

  I peered across the rows upon rows of fallen buildings. Days ago, over three thousand people had been here.

  Not anymore.

  Evadne kicked another concrete block and her leg came to an abrupt halt. “Hold on. I hear something.” She listened intently and I followed suit.

  “I hear it too,” I said. “It sounds like a heartbeat.” It was faint and slow, but still beating.

  Evadne shot me an annoyed look. “You can’t possibly hear that.”

  “I think I see something,” I said, pointing to the rubble further to the right. “There.”

  Evadne got there first with her combined werewolf and vampire speed. She immediately began pulling away debris until an arm appeared. I waited anxiously to see whether the victim was alive. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until she lifted a figure into her arms and I opened my mouth to shout for joy.

  He was badly injured and I could barely see the color of his clothes thanks to the amount of blood caked on them. Evadne didn’t seem interested in the blood, probably because it was a couple days’ old. I recalled Liam and Saxon mentioning in Bones Crossing, Nevada that they weren’t drawn to stale blood.

  “He’s breathing.” Evadne carried him to a patch of grass and placed him on the ground.

  “Here’s water.” Tate appeared by her side and thrust a bottle of water into Evadne’s hand.

  “Do I look like Florence Nightingale to you?” Evadne handed the bottle back to Tate.

  “Actually, yes. You have the ability to heal others,” Tate said.

  Hesitation flickered across the tri-brid’s features. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. He looks too far gone.”

  “You have to try,” Tate said.

  “I don’t have to do anything.” Evadne pushed up her sleeves. “You can play nursemaid. I’m going to hunt.”

  I looked at the unconscious survivor. “I think our best clue is right here. If we can wake him, maybe he can tell us what happened.”

  Evadne sprinted down what used to be the road, seemingly disinterested in my suggestion. I looked skyward when I noticed Saxon’s shadow pass over us as he flew overhead for an aerial view of the town.