Читать книгу Bound By Blood - Elizabeth Valentino - Страница 7

Chapter 3

I seek refuge in a cave until nightfall. It’ll provide a safe place for me to repair my skin after my encounter with the sun. With slow, deliberate strokes, I use my blade to slice off the portions of flesh destroyed by sunlight. It had taken me five minutes, tops, before I had my coat and goggles secured, but that was long enough for serious damage. The only way for my flesh to repair itself is to remove the ruined pieces. This is in no way a pleasant task. At least Bryce was more concerned about leaving his brother behind than chasing me, so I didn’t have to run far to escape imminent death.

I hope the lycan leader comes to his senses and finds me before he heads back to his pack. Just because I don’t trust him doesn’t mean I don’t see the benefit of using him to achieve my goals. It will be nice if I can persuade him to cooperate with me. He’ll have to keep that collar on even if he does cooperate, though. The last thing I need to deal with is a furry lycan. That’s assuming he doesn’t kill me before I can talk to him.

My vision blurs from blood loss and fatigue. I’ll have to sleep if I’m to heal enough to hunt tonight. I need my strength to travel to Venice. I am forever grateful that my death and vampiric transformation granted me the ability to grow wings. It’s my gift from the Dark realm. They make getting around so much easier, though they tend to be a bit fickle and retract at the least opportune times.

I throw my jacket to the side. No need to get more blood on it. I also slide my goggles in the pocket for safekeeping. The steady drip of water on the stone floor will hopefully help lull me to sleep. With a groan I lower myself to the floor and snuggle into the dampness. I regret I hadn’t had the foresight to grab a shirt, so I wouldn’t have to lie here in the slimy filth coating the cave’s floor. As my eyes drift closed, I briefly mourn the loss of my heartbeat and its soothing rhythm.

If it helps me save my sister, it was worth the loss.

* * * *

“Wake the hell up, princess.”

The words filter through the fog of sleep, punctuated by cold, hard metal pressing into the tender flesh of my throat. I must have been in a really deep recovery sleep to not smell Bryce coming from a mile away. I slowly open my eyes to find Bryce, still collared and looking every inch the lycan warrior. He hasn’t killed me yet, but everything in his body radiates rage–and his eyes tell me if he didn’t have a purpose for me, I’d be dead.

“What do you want, Bryce?”

“Your little vampire friends are tracking you. Whether you live long enough to see them again will be determined by your next few answers.” Bryce rocks back on his heels, lifting the blade off my neck enough for me to sit up.

“I don’t have any vampire friends, dipshit. Do you really think I was sitting in a hotel room with your dead brother because it was fun? For the record, Evan was a good man who didn’t deserve what happened to him.” Briefly I consider getting my coat to cover up my exposed breasts, but decide not to. It isn’t worth getting stabbed over. Not like I haven’t been topless the majority of the time since I met him anyway.

“Don’t expect me to believe you really feel that way about my brother. I need to know more about this disease that killed Evan, and how he was infected.” A strange look crosses Bryce’s face. Still keeping the knife pointed at me, he snatches up my coat and throws it at me.

“Thanks.” I shrug into my jacket. “Now before I answer your questions, I have one for you. How far away are the vampires?”

“I’d guess we have about thirty minutes, so talk fast. The only reason you’re alive is because of something Evan wrote in that note. For whatever reason, he seemed to trust you. You better not have fucked with his mind.” Bryce rubs a war-callused hand over the sprinkling of fuzz on his shaved head. The mist of tears veiling his eyes is unmistakable.

“Considering the vampires after me, I’d guess more like fifteen minutes. Trust me, we don’t want to get into a scrape with them in our present condition. I haven’t fed in days, and I recently lost a great deal of blood after almost being mauled to death by a dumb wolf.” I dismiss Bryce’s snarl. “And you can’t shift, so basically we’re worthless right now.”

“What do you suggest, then?”

“I needed to be in Venice two days ago. Now that night’s fallen, I can fly us there and we can talk on the way–but only if you promise to stop threatening me with your little knife.”

“There is no fucking way I’m going anywhere with you. “ Closing his big hand around my throat, Bryce lifts me with ease and slams me hard into the solid wall of the cave. “Don’t play games with me, princess.”

“Stop calling me princess, you archaic cave man! I have a perfectly good name. It’s Mila, so use it.” My tentative thread of self-control snaps. My hand whips out of its own accord and slaps a stinging blow to Bryce’s stubble-coated cheek.

“I swear to god, woman, you have all the sense of a male in mating season.” With a final shove, Bryce releases his grip.

My vampire sense goes on high alert in seconds. “Shit! Well, thanks to you and your pig-headedness, we have six bad ass vamps about a minute out. I hope you have a lot of weapons stowed in those tight leather pants, because we’re going to need them.”

“Taken care of. I thought you vamps were supposed to be hyper-observant?” Bryce shoots me an annoyed look as he kicks a khaki duffle bag with his heavily booted foot. “If you don’t die during this fight, I will extract answers from you in any way necessary. Preferably with pain.” Tossing me a shotgun and a few DMSO grenades, he straps on a belt loaded with grenades and arms himself with a semi-automatic handgun and a sword.

DMSO still makes me a little twitchy handling it. It’s one of the few things that can kill a vampire. If enough of the toxin is released inside the body, it will break down the blood cells at a rapid rate and cause a vampire to bleed out in a matter of minutes. This is why the smell of garlic freaks vamps out, because DMSO has a distinctly pungent, garlicky smell.

“Will you unlock this fucking collar?” Bryce demands, tugging at the offending hunk of metal.

“I wish I could. The coven leader never allows anyone to make keys for the collars, in case anyone has a change of heart. Steele trusts no one.” I cock my gun and pick up the shotgun. I’m a little more optimistic now that we’re both armed.

“Then we are royally screwed. You look like something the cat dragged in, and I’m only at half strength with this goddamned silver on me.” Bryce’s face sets in hard planes, void of even a hint of emotion. He is pure, lethal warrior and a dangerous beast, even without his fur and fangs.

“We’re out of time to think. They’ll be here in about thirty seconds. We should let them come to us here in the cave, so we can keep them from surrounding us.”

“For the record, that is a lousy plan–but we don’t have time for anything else.” Every one of Bryce’s muscles is tensed beneath his tight black t-shirt as he waits for the vamps. “Oh, and princess? Don’t go getting killed. I still need answers.”

Bushes rustle outside the cave’s opening, silencing my snide remark. Leveling my gun, I let my surroundings fade and focus completely on the task at hand. Vivid violet eyes shine through the darkness–the eyes of turned vampires, just like my own. They move into the cave. The dim light of Bryce’s lantern illuminates six flawlessly beautiful creatures.

They all have fang marks embedded in their necks. I don’t think this will make them sympathetic. They are completely under Steele’s control. Steele is a pure-blooded vampire with ambitions, not a man you can betray and survive. Turned vampires serve the purebloods, in exchange for protection and food.

Maybe I can manipulate their easily controlled minds. As a human I had minor mind control powers. They were strengthened during my transformation. “Hello brethren, what can I do for you tonight?” I ask with a subtle, friendly push at their minds.

“You know why we’re here–and don’t call us brethren, you traitorous bitch,” Declan, the general of the turned soldiers, snarls. He gestures to the others in a silent command. “Steele wants you back in one piece, but beyond that he doesn’t care what condition you arrive in.” With a nasty smile for Bryce, Declan holds up his camera phone and snaps a picture. “Won’t Steele be pleased we also found the lycan leader?”

“You seem confident you’ll live long enough to see Steele again,” I say, keeping my shotgun aimed directly at Declan’s forehead. “Let’s end this stupid chatter and just get down to what you came here for.” My statement is met with six guns cocked and aimed in my direction.

“By the way–nice hat, Declan.” I squeeze the trigger and fire a shot straight through his top hat. The shot blows his head into pieces. Bryce, following my lead, opens fire on the vamps. He’s dangerous despite the silver collar, and at this point–lycan or not–I will take his assistance. The remaining vampires explode into angry rage, rushing us.

Emptying my clip into Declan’s still-moving body, I obliterate his already-deceased heart. He collapses in a tattered heap of flesh inches before he reaches me. His blood pumps over the ground in a pool. The vampires try to revive their fallen leader, letting their own blood flow into him. I throw my shotgun to the ground and pluck a grenade from my pocket. Pulling the pin with my teeth, I run toward the group of vamps. My foot slips and I slide through the pools of slick blood. As I slide close enough to Declan, I shove it into the gaping hole my bullets had left in his stomach. I roll up and sprint back to avoid getting too much of that shit on me when the grenade explodes. On my way toward the back of the cave, I catch the handle of the shotgun with the toe of my boot, flick it up, grab it and start shooting again. Bryce has lost his guns and slashes away at two vamps with his sword, while one writhes in death throes at his feet.

A sick, dull pop sounds behind me as the grenade detonates and flings chucks of vampire over me. The stench of blood permeates the stagnant air inside the cave. My insides quiver and my fangs lengthen. I struggle to fight my primitive side as the beast inside threatens to emerge and turn me into a mindless killing machine.

A bullet bites into my shoulder with a searing sting, causing the rage to rise further. The smell of blood is overpowering. My fangs lengthen fully as I let my weapons clatter to the ground. I leap onto the vampire in front of me and sink my fangs into her jugular. The red haze of bloodlust has me firmly in its grasp. My second adversary jumps on my back, fangs snapping.

“Mila! Tuck your fangs back in and use your weapons, or I’ll kill you myself! I won’t risk you getting out and killing humans on a blood high.”

Bryce’s voice filters through my haze, clearing my head a bit. With great reluctance I pull my fangs from the limp vampire’s neck, pull another grenade from my pocket, force it into her open mouth and pull the pin.

Snatching up the dead vampire’s blade, I bring my elbow back hard enough to knock out the fangs attacking me from behind. As the grenade detonates it sends another shower of bloody vampire bits. The sickening smell of garlic grows stronger, gagging me. Luckily it has the same effect on the vamp I’m fighting, giving me a brief moment to run him through. With a twist of my wrist and a shot through the head from Bryce, the body falls to the floor. I shove in another grenade and pull the pin. Bryce does the same with his final opponent. Confident we have killed them all, I flee the cave and the stinging DMSO. Bryce will just have to catch up.

* * * *

The instant the cool night air touches my skin and soothes away the toxin’s sting, I realize I was shot more than once. Blood flows freely from multiple stab wounds. Perfect. A little light-headed, I sink to the dry, cracked earth and drop my head into my hands. A hand on my shoulder startles me. Grabbing my gun, I turn, prepared to blow the head off anyone left standing.

“Put the fucking gun down.” Lowering himself to the ground next me, Bryce pokes at my wounds none-too-gently. “Well, at least you didn’t die. While I wrap these up, you’re going to answer my questions.” Not waiting for me to agree, he strips off his shirt, showing off a nicely muscled chest with several tribal tattoos wrapping around his torso. “How and where did you meet Evan?”

“Steele had us locked up in a cell together. Your brother was a little more diplomatic than you, and we started talking. Ow! You don’t have a nurturing side to you, do you?” I know it’s bad for my “tough vampire” front to complain over a few tugs on a bandage, but I don’t give a crap right now.

“Not toward heartless vampires. Can you start a fire using your vampire voodoo?”

I’m a little concerned by the blade Bryce waves in my direction. “It’s merely a parlor trick, but yes, I can do it. Why?”

“I need to dig the bullets out.”

“Don’t worry about sterilizing the blade. That takes time I don’t have. Once you’re satisfied with your questions and if you don’t want to kill me, I have to be going. I have places to be before sunrise.”

“Why are you even answering them at all? You could at least give me a good fight, especially now that you’re armed.” The wrinkle of thought in his brow softens his features. I can finally see the family resemblance.

“I wasn’t born a vampire, and I never wanted to be a vampire. As a matter of fact, I fought them for many years. My fangs came from an unfortunate accident while I was trying to save my sister from Steele’s clutches.” I touch the fang marks embedded in my neck. They’re a constant reminder of the monster I’ve become.

“Yes, well, now you’re a blood sucking monster.” Giving the bandage another firm tug, Bryce begins to hum.

“What the hell? Are you humming Britney Spears? You totally don’t look the type.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Bryce growls. “I’m going to start digging out the bullets. If you try to bite me, you’re a dead vampire.”

“Jesus, your brother got all the nice genes, didn’t he?”

Bryce scowls at me and shoves the blade deeper into my shoulder than is probably necessary. “How exactly did my brother end up dead in your motel room?” Bryce digs his finger into my wound and pulls out the first bullet. “Do you feel any other bullets?”

“I have one in my thigh,” I say, indicating my left thigh, which is still pouring blood. It seems when you’re a vampire you lose the ability to form clots. Eventually the flesh just grows back over the wound, but not if there’s something foreign stuck inside.

“Do you want to take your pants off? Or do you want me to cut a hole in them?” Bryce is starting to look a tad uncomfortable with the situation.

“Would you mind helping me get them off? I don’t have any others and I need to preserve these as much as possible.”

“Are you sure you don’t just want me to cut a hole?”

“What, are you afraid to see a naked vampire? I assure you, I look the same as a human female.”

“Jesus, all right. Unsnap them and slide them down as far as you can get them.” Bryce clenches his hands into fists a few times before kneeling in front of me and pulling my leather pants down to the tops of my boots. He hesitates briefly before placing his hands on my thigh. He carefully avoids brushing my violet boy-shorts with his knuckles. “Okay, now answer the question about my brother.”

“Steele injected him with a disease. His intention was to wipe his memory and send him back to your clan. He wanted to wipe you out. Your clan is the largest, and the greatest threat to him.” I groan as the phone’s obnoxious ring interrupts the night’s serenity. That would be Steele.

“I’m not convinced you aren’t working for him.”

Men. I push Bryce’s hand off my thigh the moment he gets the bullet out, and limp toward the cave and my jacket.

“Where are you going?” Gun drawn, Bryce quickly catches up with me.

“You can listen in on my conversation with Steele and see how much we’re in on this together.” My gag reflex kicks in as I approach the open mouth of the cave. “Don’t you just love the smell of garlic and blood in the evening?” The phone stops ringing, only to start up again immediately. Steele is a persistent fucker, I’ll give him that.

“Jesus, you’re pouring blood everywhere. Sit your ass back down. I’ll get your damn phone,” Bryce grumbles, before sloshing through the various vampire bits decorating the cave’s floor.

“Aren’t you the gentleman,” I call after him. This whole night has gone screwy. First the embarrassment of a lycan sneaking up on me, then fighting off a horde of vicious vampires, thus further pissing off Steele. Now I’m sitting out here practically naked, with a grumpy wolf man who thinks I killed his brother. This is so inconvenient; I just want to find a way to save my sister. I’m so close I can taste it. Once I locate that book, I can plead to whichever god or goddess is listening. Now that I’m a vampire I have something they want. I guess that’s one thing I can thank Steele for.

In an effort to stem the flow of blood I stick my finger in the bullet hole. This does nothing but hurt like hell. The world begins to tilt and fade to black around the edges.

“Hold on there, princess.” Bryce’s hand slips behind my head and shoves me back into a sitting position. “What the hell is the matter with you?”

“I’ve lost too much blood. Just tie off the wound on my leg. I’ll sleep this off and be fine in a few hours.” Keeping my eyes open and focused is proving too difficult, so I let them flutter closed.

“God damn it, I’m not waiting for you to heal for my answers. Fuck me,” Bryce swears.

With a whole lot of effort on my part I peel first one eye open and then the other. I can’t tell for sure, but I think despite all his swearing he’s at least a little concerned for me. I can literally watch the conflict in his eyes as he accepts the only way to get his answers. A shudder of disgust reverberates through his entire body as he lowers his neck toward my mouth.

Unable to control myself, I open my mouth. With my last ounce of strength, I sink my fangs into the delicious juncture between his neck and shoulder. As the first mouthful of warm blood coats my lips and flows down my throat, my strength renews. An unexpected sensuality wraps around me, rocking me all the way down to my toes. With my face buried against his warm skin I feel safe, which is something I haven’t felt for a very long time. Bryce’s blood is like nothing I’ve ever tasted. Its intense power hums through my veins like electricity. My whole body begins to respond, heating and tingling in more places than my veins.

It takes every ounce of willpower I possess to pull myself away from his intoxicating elixir. Even more difficult is pulling away from the warmth of his body. Carefully removing my fangs, I sweep my tongue over the puncture wounds in a reverent caress. The shudder flowing through him doesn’t feel like disgust to me, but perhaps it’s just wishful thinking. Meeting his dark, dangerous gaze, I whisper “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. Now about my brother...”