Page 38 of Craving Darkness
I gripped the hand that was still bruising my thigh under the table and jerked it off of me. I turned to Bradley, not even attempting to hide my eyes from him or anyone else who chose to look. “If you ever lay your filthy hands on me again, I will cut out your heart and feed it to the guard dogs.” With those parting words, I lifted my chin and walked from the room. I didn’t fight when the guard grabbed my arm again and just gritted my teeth against the pain.
I wanted to use my ability to escape, but there were too many innocent people in the house. I would practice alone tonight, then, in the morning, I would do what I needed to.
Chapter 26
Valen
No one had actually retrieved my motorcycle from the warehouse, so I was stuck riding inside the SUV that Crispin had rented for the trip. I gave directions as we headed to the other side of town toward the vampire nest. Knowing who the Master was shed a whole new light on the entire situation.
I took the drive to explain what I knew about the vampire. When I had described his face the way I last saw him Crispin cursed.
“I’ve had a run-in with him before.”
“Is he someone we have to worry about?” I was thinking of the way vampires had abilities, not to mention their level of Power. If a vampire were strong in Power, they could literally force other vampires into submission without lifting a finger. It was why those who were higher up on the scale ended up in the vampire monarchy structure. Or even the Council, which was the governing body over all vampires.
Crispin snorted. “Not even remotely. His Power is mediocre at best. The reason why he has so many followers and has become a Master is because he is charismatic, and he makes big promises to vampires who have been turned away from other nests or who just don’t like falling in line with the law. He’s a wannabe gangster who is still stuck in the old west and believes laws are suggestions that he can ignore.”
“How did you know to give your men earplugs?” It was something I had wondered about since they’d shown up already prepared.
“I didn’t. But I always have supplies ready, just in case. You never know what kind of situation you’re going to walk into when you are the vampire version of the police.”
I grunted and drummed my fingers on my bloody jeans. I was a fucking mess. My shirt was torn, and my jeans had a Siren-sized bite taken out of them. I also still had the goddamn manacles attached to me. The chains were piled on the floorboard at my feet, and I wanted nothing more than to toss them out of the window.
The car slowed down and turned into a parking lot. One glance told me the driver had pulled up to a hardware store. “Fuck, I’m going to owe you for decades for all your help.”
Crispin grinned. “I’d accept, but I think I owe you far more than I could ever repay. There were quite a few close calls in that ring. Without your help, I might be nothing but brittle bones in an unmarked grave.”
I shook my head. “You know that isn’t true. For a human, you did pretty damn well holding your own.”
“Well, I’ll call us even then.”
I turned to look at him, to really take a close look at what he had become in the last almost thousand years since I’d seen him. The way he carried himself was someone full of confidence in his abilities, and he knew he was more than capable of following through on whatever threat he made to his enemies. I’d always hated vampires and thought of them as little more than rats in the dark, looking for a human to suck on. But looking at Crispin and the men he had brought with him showed me a different side to vampires that I hadn’t seen before.
“So, you’re a Councilman? Before that, you were the King of this region?”
Crispin grimaced but nodded his head. “I wish I could say I had a choice, but I had neglected my duty for long enough. Vampirekind needed me to step up into the Council role, so I finally did. It helped that my mate was pregnant at the time, so we would have had to move to the island anyway.”
“The mythical vampire island,” I mused. In all my wanderings, I had never come across the sanctuary.
He grinned. “I can take you if you want to see it. Do you think your mate would enjoy a tropical vacation after this is all over?”
I nodded thoughtfully. “She probably would. I am still getting to know her, but from what I had gathered so far, her parents kept her on a pretty tight leash.”
The car door opened next to me, and the vampire Sentinel held up a shiny new pair of bolt cutters with a grin. “You ready to break your chains?”
“More than,” I grunted and shoved my hands towards him. It didn’t take but a minute and the manacles dropped to the pavement with loud clangs. I reached down to grab handfuls of the chains and tossed them out, too. The vampire frowned down at the pile of metal.
“You shouldn’t litter.” I knew he was right, but I had already left my mate in the hands of a monster for far too long.
“After I get my mate back, I promise to come pick them up and toss them in a recycling bin.”
He inclined his head, took one last look at my mess, and then backed away, shutting the door. I heard the trunk open, then slam shut, and finally, we were back on the road. We were nearly there. I could feel my heart beating harder and faster at the prospect of the upcoming confrontation. I knew Crispin had a job to do, but if I had the chance to end that man for good, I wouldn’t hesitate. I should have completed the job the first time, and then none of this would have happened. There was a lurch in my chest at the thought that I might not have met Kallista if the vampire and Syn weren’t involved, but as much as it pained me to think that I would have missed out on meeting her, at least she would be alive and well.
I felt Crispin’s stare as we turned the corner and onto the street where the nest was located. I glanced at him briefly before turning back to watch for the house. “What is it?”
“You remind me of someone. I noticed it right away, but the longer I look at you, the more I see it.”
I looked back at him, noticing the look of contemplation as he studied my features. “Well, tell me about it later. We’re here.”