Taste of Torment

CHAPTER ONE

(Sam)

Hearing a throat clear, I slowly turned my head and peered up at the fierce-looking vampire that was standing beside the sofa, glaring down at me. In addition to being my mate, Jared Michaels was my co-commander...and he didn’t look happy, which was totally understandable given the circumstances. He had clearly teleported into our apartment using his very impressive vampiric gift, and now I was in seriously deep shit. As Jared’s twin brother and fellow vampire, Evan, would say: busted.

I smiled awkwardly, knowing my expression was guilt-ridden. “I wasn’t expecting you home just yet.”

“Oh, well I can see that.” Even scowling, Jared was still unfairly edible. He had a dark, raw masculinity that was so overwhelming it could make a girl feel drunk.

I flashed him an apologetic smile. It had no effect.

“This isn’t the first time you’ve done this, is it?”

Lying would be pointless, considering that our bond would allow him to sense it – a bond that had developed when we were joined through a vampire Binding ceremony five months ago. Binding was so much more than marriage; the powerful bond that formed between the couple could only be broken by death, even if the couple no longer cared for each other. So, in addition to having a brail-like tattoo where a wedding ring might have been, I now also had an extra sense; it was solely focused on Jared, allowing me to know things such as his vitals, his thirst level, and his mood. I didn’t need the bond to alert me of his current mood – he was undoubtedly pissed.

Realising that he was waiting impatiently for an answer to his question, I quietly admitted, “No.”

He folded his arms across his solid, well-defined chest. “How long has this been going on?”

“Not long.”

“Define ‘not long’.”

I shrugged. “A week, maybe.”

“Unfuckingbelievable.”

His snappy comment had my snake, Dexter, lifting his head from where he was curled up on the rug. In the beginning, he hadn’t liked Jared at all. Thankfully, though, Dexter had gradually warmed up to him as he came to understand that Jared was as equally protective of me as he was. Still, Dexter would bite him in a blink if he thought Jared was any threat to me. That wouldn’t be good, given that Dexter’s preternatural venom could cause temporary blindness, mental disorientation, and then muscle paralysis. Two bites at one time could also cause excruciating pain followed by death. Sweet.

Wes, who was the Sire of the Grand High Master Vampire Antonio, had the remarkable gift of making his pictures come to life. When Wes drew an image of a snake on my arm, it automatically became a tattoo that could become a live snake. Dexter was a mix of a spitting cobra, a black mamba, a rattlesnake, and a garter snake. Wes had named the hybrid breed ‘Strikers’ due to how fast they attacked. An amazing thing about them was that they changed colour with their mood. At the moment, Dexter was jet black – which we had learned meant that he was alert and wary.

“I knew you were keeping something from me,” continued Jared, not in the least bit daunted by Dexter’s shift in mood and the possible danger. There wasn’t much that fazed Jared Michaels. “I just couldn’t figure out what it was.”

“Look, I’m sorry. It won’t happen again,” I promised.

“I would have thought you had better self-control.”

“So I had a moment of weakness. Doesn’t everyone?”

“How am I supposed to trust you when you pull shit like this?” A glint of amusement entered his intense hazel eyes, making me inwardly sigh in relief. I’d kind of expected the red tinges to his irises that marked him as a Pagori vampire to start glowing – it was something they did whenever he was angry, thirsty, or horny. Pagoris were the most powerful of the three vampire breeds, having incredible speed and strength. Unfortunately for them, they easily became aggressive and had a very strong bloodlust. “Answer me one thing honestly: did you find it by accident, or did you go looking for it?” My expression must have answered that, because he shook his head sadly.

“I just don’t like surprises,” I said defensively. Which was why I had searched our entire apartment for my birthday presents. I decided against telling him that I’d also found the other two gifts – it was bad enough that he’d caught me playing with my brand new PlayStation 6, which hadn’t yet been released in the human world, complete with the ‘Vampire Nation’ game.

Jared’s shrewd eyes narrowed. “You found the other presents, too, didn’t you?”

Crap. “I’m not comfortable with all these questions.”

Shaking his head again, he plucked me from the sofa. I instantly wrapped my limbs around him, melting into the kiss that he planted on my mouth. His deliciously spicy, masculine scent swirled around me, making me want to drag him to our bedroom and have my wicked way with him on the king-size bed that we’d moved here from his old apartment.

He pulled back, smiling, and ran a hand through my long, dark hair. “I can’t believe I’m going to have to teleport your presents somewhere out of your reach. All you had to do was wait another two weeks.”

I pouted. “You don’t have to teleport them away. I already promised that it wouldn’t happen again.”

His smile widened. “Yes, you did. But I’m pretty sure there are loopholes in that promise somewhere.”

I sniffed haughtily. “Fine. Be that way.”

The randy bastard ground himself against me. “Now you’re just making me want to fuck that attitude right out of you.”

“Smooth,” I teased.

He nuzzled my neck, breathing in deeply. “Unfortunately, being inside you and hearing you scream my name with that husky voice and that British accent will have to wait until later.” He had a thing about my accent, but I happened to really like his Californian accent, so happy days. “The guys are probably already at the bar.”

Thanks to vampire speed, we would be ready in less than ten minutes to meet with our squad to celebrate the completion of our most recent assignment, which had ended two nights ago. The gated community in which we lived was referred to as The Hollow. It housed vampires and humans, and contained plenty of stores, bars, and also a nightclub. It was situated on an off-the-map Caribbean island, surrounded by a tropical rainforest, and had a man-made beach in the centre for the residents to use. Antonio, his staff, and the legion also had access to the private beach behind his mansion.

Although I had been made a commander on my first night here, it hadn’t been the position I’d applied for when I arrived from London. Having been scouted by Antonio’s tracker, Sebastian, I had participated in the try-outs for a place in the legion. The majority of people there, including Jared, had thought it completely ridiculous for a female to attend. Although I’d passed each stage and was rare in being a Feeder – a vampire able to absorb and manipulate energy – I was denied a place. It was then that Antonio made me Jared’s co-commander. Jared’s issue hadn’t just been that I was female. No, it was also that I was a Sventé vampire – the weakest of the three breeds.

Although Keja vampires weren’t as strong as Pagoris, they were still powerful in that they were hypnotically beautiful. All three breeds had a preternatural allure, but Keja beauty was enchanting enough to bewitch people, ensnaring their prey. Also, like Pagoris, their vampiric gifts were often very substantial. Kejas were identifiable by their fangs and the amber tinges to their irises – tinges that glowed when they were angry, thirsty, or horny.

Sventés, however, couldn’t boast of much. Our vampiric gifts were mostly defensive rather than offensive, and we didn’t have super strength or a bewitching allure. Still, we were stronger and faster than humans and had incredible agility. We didn’t have visible markings – no fangs, no glowing irises – and our bloodlust wasn’t overpowering. All of that enabled us to blend well with humans, and therein lay our power. But the other two breeds didn’t perceive that as strength. To them, Sventés were inferior in that we were tame and too human-like as opposed to the ultimate predator.

Although Jared overcame his prejudice and wasn’t the narrow-minded arsehole he’d once been, the vampire community hadn’t been keen on me Binding with him. As Antonio’s Heir, Jared was destined to one day hold the position; to rule and protect vampires worldwide. As his mate, I would share that position as ruler. The vampires needed to be secure in the knowledge that their rulers could protect them. As such, having a Sventé as a ruler hadn’t been an attractive idea to them.

It was only the fact that I was very powerful as a Feeder – a gift that should technically only run in Pagori lines – that had stopped a riot from occurring. Instead, the guests had spent the week approaching the ceremony testing my patience and strength. Fate had decided it would be funny for me to be weak at the time. Yep, thanks to two vampire scientists, I had been gradually altering while at the same time weakening. No one had known how I was altering or what the bloody hell would happen. We had found out pretty quickly. The sociopathic scientists had been trying to create a hybrid – a mix of all three vampire breeds.

The wackos had also succeeded.

Thanks to them, I was now the only hybrid in the world. In addition to having the Sventé manageable bloodlust, I also had the hypnotic allure of a Keja, and the strength of a Pagori. Nonetheless, I was a Sventé at heart.

A side effect of this hybrid business was the new mercury tinges to my irises – tinges that glowed when, yes you guessed it, I was thirsty, angry, or horny. Jared swore they looked beautiful, but I personally believed he was talking tripe and I rather missed having normal eyes.

Some might think it would be fabulous to be a hybrid, to be so strong. But the very few of us who knew about it were all set on keeping it secret, coming up with bullshit reasons for the new mercury ring to my irises and my sudden increase in power. Everyone believed Antonio’s excuses as they had no reason not to; they trusted him. If they knew the truth, they might not be too comfortable with letting me live. After all, if hybrids became a breed in their own right, they would be stronger than the other three, messing with the current dynamics. Pagoris would lose their ‘throne’, Kejas would be knocked down a notch, and Sventés would be even more vulnerable than before. No one would like that.

Less than ten minutes later, Jared and I were ready to leave. Before going to meet with the squad, Jared unfortunately lived up to his word and teleported my presents out of the apartment and hid them somewhere. It was probably for the best. I was addicted to the ‘Vampire Nation’ game, so there was a high chance that I would have dug it out and played with it again before my birthday came around.

Finally arriving at our destination, we found six of the squad gathered at the long bar, ordering drinks. Damien, Salem, Butch, Stuart, and Denny were making a huge fuss of David, who had proven to be the most valuable member on this particular assignment – they were like a football team, ecstatic with a player who had ‘scored the winning goal’. The youngest of the squad was actually the strongest; David’s gift was to produce a psionic boom that could cause such extreme pressure on the skull that it totally overwhelmed the brain and led to a temporary coma.

“It wasn’t all me,” I heard David say as Jared and I approached. “We’re a team. Plus, if it wasn’t for Butch, I wouldn’t have got close enough to the building to get inside.”

That was true. Butch used his ability to negate or deflect anything that came at him to produce a shield and protect David – being so powerful meant that David was always an immediate target. When the others turned to Butch and made the same fuss of him, he smiled and nodded. One thing I had noticed about Butch was that his crooked grins never quite reached his eerily dark eyes. Whether that meant he wasn’t good with emotion or that he was simply a sociopath that experienced none, I wasn’t sure. Given how creative he could be with his kills, it could very well be the latter. But I didn’t have much room to judge.

Noticing Jared and me, they all turned and greeted us with pats on the back. Yeah, they thought of me as one of the boys. I wasn’t sure whether to be offended or touched. Even out of work hours, they all called me ‘Coach’ rather than Sam. Of course, that didn’t stop Damien dishing out a compliment purely to annoy Jared.

“Coach, you’re looking good.” Seeing the murderous glint in Jared’s eyes, Damien’s dark skin paled slightly, but he was still as amused as always by Jared’s degree of possessiveness.

Groaning at Damien, Salem nudged him. “Maybe you should astral project onto the dance floor before you say something else that will endanger your life.”

Damien snorted. “No way. The last time I left my body alone with you bastards, I got back to find myself naked with some of Chico’s thorns stuck in the cheeks of my ass. My body didn’t wake up for, like, three hours.” Chico’s gift allowed him to release poisonous thorns that caused a victim to temporarily lose consciousness.

“Where is Chico?” I asked. He was usually at the centre of the group, since he was kind of like the ‘chief’ in a social sense.

Denny flashed me his dimply smile – he had the most adorable baby-face and guiltless blue eyes – and pointed to a spot behind me. “On the dance floor.”

Turning, I saw Chico dancing with Jude. The female Sventé had remained at The Hollow after we had helped her get justice on a criminal organisation that had been snatching human babies and selling them to vampire couples. One of those babies had been hers. On becoming a vampire, she had tried hunting the people responsible but hadn’t gotten very far all alone.

I noticed that the final three members of the squad – Max, Reuben, and Harvey – were standing near Chico, talking with members of other squads. There were, all in all, ten squads in Antonio’s legion. I also noticed that my best friend, Fletcher, was dancing with his boyfriend, Norm – both looked more like they were hyperventilating. Spotting me, they waved. Fletcher also happened to be mine and Jared’s personal assistant. And I absolutely loved the camp sod.

The energy in the place and the almost electric atmosphere was affecting Dexter, who was now in his tattoo form once more. I could always sense his mood without even looking at his colouring. Right now, he was feeling energised.

“No Evan?” Stuart asked.

I shook my head. Being Jared’s twin and a fellow commander, Evan often joined us to celebrate. Lately, though, he hadn’t been his usual playful self and had taken to brooding. He had been in a foul mood since the day after the Binding ceremony when all the guests had left. One of those guests had been a consort of one of the High Masters. As Bran was actually gay but simply too private to announce it publically, his female consorts were nothing but a smokescreen. Evan had been pursuing one of those consorts, Alora.

Evan had actually seen Alora in a vision long before he met her, thanks to Luther whose gift of precognition allowed him to make others have a vision of their own. Evan had been waiting impatiently for her to finally appear in his life. It had been obvious to everyone that she wanted Evan. For whatever reason, however, she had resisted him. I’d asked him about it several times, but he refused to speak of it – even to Jared.

Threading his fingers through mine, Jared pulled me close and gestured to the dance floor. “Come on.” I followed him despite that dancing with Jared was never a good thing. Why? Because it was more like foreplay, and no one was as good at foreplay as Jared. Swaying and grinding his body against mine, he fondled and caressed and teased, but none of his touches were invasive. He didn’t need to have any part of him inside me to make me so ready for him that the feel of my own clothes was pissing me off.

In no time at all, the entire squad was plastered. Vampires could only get drunk by drinking the blood of intoxicated humans. Some of those intoxicated human females had approached Jared – which was dumb of them really, considering my homicidal tendencies. But Jared never drank from anyone other than me, and vice versa. Despite that I was sober as a judge, I felt drunk from Jared’s teasing. Of course he thought that was hilarious and was very pleased with himself. So I bit him.

The thing about Sventé saliva was that it could spark the ‘blood donor’ to have an orgasm if the vampire drank from them for more than ten seconds. Despite that I was now a hybrid, that hadn’t changed. I counted to eight before releasing him, but the damage was done – he was as horny as I was and more than ready to fuck. About bloody time. “I take it you’re ready to leave now.”

His lopsided smile had me smiling back. “You’re a tricky bitch, aren’t you? I can respect that.” He teleported us both to the living area of our apartment, where we instantly dived on each other, kissing wildly. A few seconds later, we froze. We weren’t alone. Breaking apart, we pivoted to find Antonio and Luther sitting on the sofa, blushing and avoiding our eyes.

A blush stained my own cheeks. Like Jared, I was fighting to contain a laugh. “Er…What a pleasant surprise.”

“Sorry to intrude,” said Antonio with a forced cough, still looking everywhere but at us. “As Luther and I knew you would be returning home soon, we thought we would wait here. Rest assured that we will not be doing that again.”

It took everything I had not to laugh. “You can look now.” Finally the two Kejas met our eyes, still extremely embarrassed. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but why are you here?” Usually when Antonio wanted to speak with us, he simply waited until the daily meetings he held at dusk in one of the conference rooms at his mansion. The fact that it was now approaching dawn made it even stranger for him to come to us.

“This is not about an assignment. It is a personal matter.”

I exchanged an uneasy look with Jared.

“Do not be alarmed. It is not bad news.” The Latino-looking vampire’s huge dark eyes were filled with reassurance. He was a very calming person to be around, which I wouldn’t have expected from the ruler of all vampirekind. He was a very elegant, graceful, and collected individual. Luther, his Advisor, was just as elegant. They couldn’t have looked more different. Whereas Antonio had dark shoulder-length hair, Luther looked…well, like Gandalf from Lord of the Rings.

Jared retrieved two breakfast stools from the kitchen for us, and then gave Antonio a questioning look.

Once we were seated, Antonio took a long breath. “I’ll get straight to the point. I have decided to step down from my position as Grand High Master.”

My brows flew to my hairline. “Say again?”

“I’m tired, Sam. I have had this position for a very long time, and I’m tired.” He sounded it as well.

“You’re kidding, right?” asked Jared. I sensed that he was feeling as incredulous as I was.

“I would like to step down and spend more time with the people I care about.”

“You mean Lucy, don’t you?” I quite liked the brunette. Lucy was one of the humans on the island and was also one of Antonio’s vessels – a human who fed him and only him. I’d noticed that Antonio had shed himself of his consorts and vessels until there was now only Lucy.

“In my early years, I was as ambitious as Jared,” Antonio told me. “And I fought hard for this position. Then I put everything I had into it, neglecting many of my own needs. At first, I avoided relationships because I wasn’t prepared to divide my time and attention. After that, it was because it seemed that I was surrounded by people who were not so much attracted to me but to the idea of being with the Grand High Master.”

“Are you planning to Turn her?” Jared’s shock was still pulsing in the air.

“Yes. I plan on Turning Lucy and Binding with her. But it means I have done everything the wrong way around – Binding after I stepped down rather than before. Ruling without a mate for support can be a very lonely life. I saw that you were headed down that same route, Jared, and I did not want you to make the same mistakes that I have.”

I quickly realised something. “You played Cupid, didn’t you?”

Antonio tilted his head, stifling a smile. “Perhaps. It is not why I offered you a position here as a commander, Sam. You are here because you deserve to be. But I confess I had hoped that if I forced you and Jared to work together, you would grow close. You seemed to be exactly what he needed, just as he seemed to be what you needed. And I was right, was I not?”

“Sneaky.” Jared ran a hand through his hair. “None of this means you have to step down yet.”

“No, but I wish to. As I said, I’m tired. I wish to retire, to no longer have to worry about the lives of others and to instead concentrate on my own. Do you have any idea how long it has been since I have seen the outside world? Being who I am, my life was always at risk, and I have had to remain on the island. I do not want that anymore, and I do not want it for Lucy. You two are more than capable of ruling. The vampire community has totally accepted both of you, has confidence in your ability to lead and protect them. The question is…are you prepared to take on the responsibility?”

It was more than a mere responsibility and, in truth, I didn’t feel at all ready. It was a huge step to take. Yes, I’d known it would happen one day, but I’d envisioned it happening centuries down the line, not now. But how could I place Antonio in a position where he had to remain ruler at the cost of his own happiness? He didn’t deserve that. “I’m in.”

Jared’s shock still hadn’t eased in the slightest. I could sense through our bond that beneath that shock was a slither of unease. I would never have guessed that he would ever have any reservations about stepping up when the time came. Yet, that unease was there. With anyone else, I would have said that was perfectly natural. But it didn’t fit Jared in this situation.

“I don’t like that you’re stepping down,” he told Antonio. “I think you’re easily capable of ruling for a hell of a long time, and I can’t imagine you not being Grand High Master. But…I committed to being your Heir, knowing this would eventually happen. If this is really what you want, I’ll support you.” He took my hand. “We’ll support you.”

The smile that spread across Antonio’s face was one of relief. “I would like for the Coronation to take place in two months’ time, if that works for both of you. This will give me time to tie up any loose ends.”

I nodded. “Sure.”

“Luther will serve as your Advisor, just as he has served as mine.”

The Gandalf lookalike smiled. “It will be an honour.”

“Sebastian will serve as your tracker. He will be as loyal to you as he has been to me. And do not forget that you will need to appoint yourselves an Heir at some point. It does not have to be immediately, but you will have to choose one eventually. And choose wisely.”

I wasn’t what anyone would call ‘wise’, so that would be where Luther and his advice would come into play.

“The tradition for the Coronation is that only the High Masters and any immediate friends and ‘family’ attend. The rest of vampirekind will watch via V-Tube.” That was basically the vampiric version of YouTube that could be accessed using the V-net, which was the vampiric version of the internet. “In a few days, I will announce the upcoming Coronation. For now, both of you get some rest.”

Once both he and Luther had left the apartment, I blew out a long breath and twisted in my seat to face Jared. “Well, that was unexpected.”

“And that was an understatement.” He scooped me from the stool and brought me to straddle him. “I can sense that you don’t feel ready for this yet.”

“It’s scary,” I admitted. There was no judgement in his hazel eyes, only understanding. “I can coach and command a squad of ten, but lead all vampirekind?” In vampire years, I wasn’t quite four years old. That wasn’t really much experience at this life to have such a high position. “I didn’t envision this happening so soon.”

He cupped my throat with both hands. “You can lead. You can do anything.” He gave me a soft, lingering kiss and slid his hands into my hair. “If you need more time, just say the word and I’ll talk to Antonio about it. He’ll understand. This isn’t showing weakness. It’s showing that you’re taking this as seriously as you need to take it.”

Unbuttoning the top buttons of his shirt, I snaked my hands under Jared’s collar and rested them on his broad shoulders. “I can’t ask Antonio to wait any longer to step down. Not after seeing how tired he is of all this. He’s been on this island for so long.” Every Grand High Master that had ever been appointed had remained concealed in order to be safe from any assassination attempts. “He deserves to have a life of his own. He hasn’t had one for a long time, has he?”

“No.” Jared trailed kisses along my jaw. “You’re a good person.”

“Say again?”

He chuckled at the disbelief in my voice. “Oh you can be merciless, ruthless, and vengeful. And we both know you’re downright crazy. But you’ve got the biggest heart. And it’s mine. All mine.” His gaze blazed with a possessiveness that made me roll my eyes. Smiling, he gave me a pointed look. “Hey, don’t think I haven’t seen your reaction when another female comes anywhere near me. I really thought you were going to drown Joy in the pool that time. It was a shame that you didn’t.”

Joy had been Jared’s consort once-upon-a-time, and she hadn’t taken it too well that he’d ended his consort ways for me. When he’d been swimming in what I called ‘the bat pool’ – it was shaped like a bat with outstretched wings – outside Antonio’s mansion last week, she had taken to strutting up and down the side of the pool in the skimpiest bikini imaginable.

Coming upon the scene, I hadn’t been a happy bunny. She was constantly trying to get his attention, pathetic though it was. Before I’d even thought about it, my energy whip had been in my hand, I’d wrapped it around her twig-like body, and then plunged her into the pool. It had instantly become clear that anger management classes might be a good idea for me, because I’d kept her under the water for almost a full minute. In my defence…“If she wasn’t binging on slut-flakes, there wouldn’t be a problem.”

What annoyed me more than Joy’s antics was the knowledge that she’d once been his consort; that she’d touched him, that she’d had him inside her. I hated it. And she knew that I hated it, thought it gave her some kind of power. But it was truly difficult to hate her because she was so pathetic it was honestly saddening. It was impossible to feel anything other than pity for this girl who had absolutely no self-respect.

Off that irritating subject…“Are you going to tell me what’s bugging you?”

Jared’s brows drew together. “What do you mean?”

“You seem uneasy about something.”

“I just wasn’t expecting this so soon. It’s the shock, that’s all.”

Our bond told me that that wasn’t a lie, but I had the feeling there was more to it than that. Choosing to let it go for now, I said nothing. If his sense of unease didn’t shift, we’d definitely be revisiting this subject.

He nipped my chin playfully. “There’s one thing we’ll find really hard about ruling: confining ourselves to The Hollow.”

Now that was an extremely good point. I bit my lower lip. “I really don’t think I can do it. For one thing, I’ll go crazy – or, at least, I’ll go crazier than I already am. But for another thing, I like the life we have now. I like being a commander, going on assignments, protecting people, and whipping the living shit out of dickheads.”

He laughed. “Yeah, I’d miss that too. So maybe we should make some changes.”

“Go against tradition?”

“Face it, baby, we’re not much for rules, are we? So we’ll come up with new ones. We can’t become different people. If we do, we’ll run the risk of drifting apart.”

That was true. “I’m liking this idea of making up new rules.”

Keeping me tight against him, he stood upright and urged me to curl my legs around his waist. “Later. Now I’m going to fuck you until there’s not a thought in your head except how hard you want to come.”

Sounded like fun.

At dusk, Jared and I headed to Antonio’s mansion for the usual meeting that was held for the commanders. Strolling inside the conference room, we found Antonio seated at the head of the table with Sebastian and Luther sitting either side of him. His personal guards and two pit-bulls were standing unobtrusively in the background, as usual. But the other commanders were strangely absent. Instead, there were two vampires that didn’t belong inside The Hollow: one male Sventé and one female Sventé. Both were very familiar and a long way from their home in London.

The cute, tiny brunette leaped from her seat, dashed around the table, and was suddenly hugging me so tight that I was worried a rib would crack. Not the most affectionate person in the world, I awkwardly returned the hug, patting her back.

Entertained by my discomfort, Jared smiled. I take it you know her? Thanks to Antonio’s ability to impart power – thus allowing vampires to develop additional gifts – Jared had three gifts: teleportation, electrokinesis, and telepathy. He wasn’t able to read minds, but he could hear any thought that was directed at him. Antonio had once rewarded me with additional power as well, and I’d developed a second gift. But the ability to Merge wasn’t a gift I liked to use much as it wasn’t exactly comfortable to join your body with someone else’s.

Quick warning: the girl is like the energizer bunny, I told Jared. Pulling back, I went to speak, but she beat me to it.

“Oh my God, it feels like it’s been years since I last saw you! How are you doing? I’m doing just fine. You look absolutely amazing! I heard through the vampire grapevine that one of your Binding presents was the Keja allure. In my opinion, you didn’t need it, but it must be nice having it. Oh and I love the mercury ring in your eyes! I’m so sorry that I missed your Binding. My brother will explain why.”

Everything had come out in a rush in the sweetest voice filled with excitement and optimism. See what I mean? I could easily pick up on Jared’s amusement. Ordinarily, someone like Ava would annoy the shit out of me. But there was something very endearing about this female. “I’m great, thanks.” I turned to Jared, who was clearly holding back a laugh. “Jared, this is Ava Sanchez. Ava, this is my mate, Jared Michaels.”

As I’d expected, Ava had the same response to him that every female did: she went jaw slacked and wide-eyed. I couldn’t really blame her. His alluring eyes demanded a person’s full attention, practically took them hostage. It was impossible not to wonder just how it would feel to run your fingers through his short, tousled chestnut hair, or to skim your hands over his tall, perfectly sculpted body.

Most males would relish and bask in that kind of attention, but Jared hated it. He resented the fact that he got his looks from his deceased twisted mother. Also, it annoyed him that much of the reason females flocked around him was that he was Antonio’s Heir. He didn’t find being wanted for his looks and position particularly flattering. Although I’d repeatedly told him that he had more to offer than this, he didn’t agree. He didn’t see himself clearly.

To Ava’s credit, she snapped out of her daze quicker than most did. “It’s nice to meet you. It was wise of you to choose Sam as your mate – she’s the best.”

“I can agree with you on that,” he replied.

As the pit-bulls, Achilles and Nero, dashed to my side, I gave them a quick stroke before meeting the gaze of the smirking dark-haired male seated next to Sebastian. “Can’t say it’s particularly a pleasure to see you again, Cristiano.”

“Now that’s not very nice, is it,” he said, amused. The bloke wasn’t bad as vampires went. In fact, he was relatively decent and was extremely protective of his sister, Ava. He had actually helped me on a number of occasions back when I’d lived in London. But he was also a taunting prick who lived to annoy people just for the fun of it. He could actually be quite charming, which I had learned the first night I met him when I was still human. As his expression turned nostalgic, I had the distinct feeling that he was remembering that night.

I could sense that Jared was a mixture of suspicious and agitated by the way Cristiano was looking at me with such familiarity. Glaring at Cristiano, Jared spoke to me. Tell me nothing happened between you two.

Nothing happened…exactly.

Define ‘exactly’.

I’ll give you the long version later. The short version is that he once kissed me and he…drank from me. I felt jealousy and anger zoom through Jared, which was understandable since drinking blood was an intimate and sexual act for vampires.

“Why don’t you sit down,” Antonio suggested with a smile, his eyes warm.

Having exchanged greetings with him, Sebastian, Luther and the guards, Jared and I took seats opposite the two Sventés. Jared draped a possessive arm over the back of my chair, staring hard at Cristiano. Every muscle in Jared’s body seemed coiled to strike. Not wanting him so tense, I patted his thigh. It didn’t seem to help. He briefly massaged my nape, but didn’t otherwise react.

Cristiano gave Jared a respectful nod. “My name’s Cristiano Sanchez. Ava is my younger sister. We shared the same Sire as Sam, and we were once all part of the same nest. I took Victor’s place as leader of the nest after Sam killed the bastard here at The Hollow.” And Victor really had been an absolute bastard.

“Why didn’t you attend the Binding?” asked Jared. Most of the vampire community had attended the ceremony, particularly any leaders, Masters, and High Masters.

“It wasn’t out of any disrespect. Two other vampires had wanted the position of leader. A voting was held and I was eventually pronounced leader, but there were still some who were sour about it. I knew that if I left the nest before my position had been properly established, one of them would have taken it while I was gone.”

“And your position has now been accepted and established?” Jared began gently playing with my hair in a very possessive move.

“Yes.” Cristiano’s gaze slid back to me and his smirk returned. He probably got a kick out of the fact that he’d once drunk from the Heir’s mate.

That was when Jared spoke to him very matter-of-factly. “If you don’t stop staring at Sam like that, I’ll gut you open right here and I’ll truly enjoy it.”

Cristiano lost his smirk, and I didn’t blame him. Jared had a well-earned reputation as someone who wasn’t to be fucked with. Although he could be playful, loyal, and respectful, Jared could also be ruthless, pitiless, and kill without blinking. I’d seen him in battle-mode, watched him destroy other vampires without a lick of conscience. Just his presence alone was enough to intimidate those around him; he exuded confidence, power, and authority.

“Cris, could you please refrain from antagonising these people?” groaned Ava, shooting apologetic glances at everyone. “We need their help, remember.”

I arched a brow. “Our help?”

“Cristiano,” began Antonio, “tell Jared and Sam why it is that you and your sister are here.”

Cristiano straightened, suddenly solemn. “Although I didn’t go to your Binding, three of my vampires did. Afterwards, they called me to say that they were going to spend a couple of weeks in New Zealand with some vampires they had met here and befriended from Quentin Foy’s line.”

Quentin Foy had been recently appointed High Master vampire over New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, and all the little surrounding islands after the previous High Master had betrayed Antonio and tried to take over The Hollow.

“The problem is I’ve heard nothing from them since then.” Cristiano shrugged helplessly. “Their mobile phones are all switched off and my psychic connection with them has turned…fuzzy.” All Sires have links with their vampires, though they weren’t anywhere near as strong as the type of bond that came from Binding with another vampire.

I frowned. “Fuzzy?”

“It’s like I’m picking up static. Occasionally I sense their thirst, but that’s as good as it gets. All I know for sure is that they’re not dead. Something’s not right. As you know, Quentin’s extremely territorial and rarely grants permission for anyone to step foot on his territory. But getting in touch with him to ask for that permission would be difficult since it’s not as if someone like me would ever have a High Master’s personal number.”

“From what I know about him,” began Jared, “Quentin’s a luddite. He hates most forms of technology and doesn’t use phones.”

“That is why they need an escort,” Antonio said. “They need someone to take them there, make sure Quentin doesn’t feel threatened, and help them find their vampires.”

“And you want those escorts to be us.” Jared didn’t veil his irritation. “With all due respect, Antonio, I think it would be easier to send Sebastian to investigate the matter and find the vampires.”

When Sebastian didn’t object, I cast a glance at him. Although his peppery black hair was slightly obscuring his expression, I could see that the Keja’s penetrating eyes were eager and willing.

“You are right. Sebastian could indeed find them. But I have a bad feeling about this, Jared.” Antonio’s usual calm expression was anxious. “It could be nothing, but something about it feels wrong. Luther is also uneasy. My instincts have always served me well, and I have learned not to ignore them.”

I was curious enough about the situation to want to agree to Antonio’s request, despite that Cristiano, who was again smirking at me, would undoubtedly be a pain in my arse. Though he was like this with everyone other than Ava, he’d always taken extreme delight in irritating me for some reason. It wouldn’t take much to push me into conjuring my energy whip and slashing his face with it.

As if he sensed my reservations, he said, “You might not like me, Sam, but let’s not forget that I saved your life. And I looked out for you during your time with Victor.”

Jared looked at me. “Is that true?”

Yes, but I wasn’t about to go into the specifics of the situation until Jared and I were alone. I simply nodded.

Jared’s gaze drilled into Cristiano. “If you saved Sam’s life, then I’m grateful to you for it. So we’ll escort you to Quentin’s territory and ensure your protection. But you need to understand one thing: whether you helped her or not, if you keep staring and smirking at her, I will kill you and I won’t fucking care.”

Cristiano nodded, again dropping his smirk. Very wise of him.

Antonio relaxed into his chair. “In that case, prepare the squad. You should all leave in an hour.”

Ava gave me a small but genuine smile. “Thanks so much. We appreciate it.” She really was sweet. I had to wonder how she and Cristiano could possibly be related.

After debriefing the squad, Jared and I made a pit-stop at our apartment to top up on NSTs, wanting to be at full strength. Otherwise known as Nutritive Supplemental Tonics, NSTs were a mix of blood and other vitamins.

The second we arrived in the kitchen, Jared expectedly began interrogating me. “Now that we’re alone, you can tell me what the deal is with that guy, Cristiano.”

Having retrieved a couple of NSTs from the refrigerator, I handed him one and then leaned against the counter. “I was still human when I met Cristiano. It was back when I was a student in college. My friends and I often went out to the local student bar. Vampires love student bars because most students are eager to have fun, like getting drunk, and aren’t fussed about memory gaps – all part of getting rat-arsed, right? So if they wake up feeling weak with a vague recollection of flashing irises or fangs, they’re simply going to blame the alcohol or believe their drinks were spiked, just like I had.”

I paused to take a long gulp of my honey-flavoured NST. “One night in the bar, I met Cristiano. He laid on the charm, but I’d just come out of a relationship and I wasn’t in a kissing-perfect-strangers frame of mind. So he left me alone. But there was this bloke who kept pestering me. He made me feel really uncomfortable and kept trying to kiss my neck. I couldn’t shake him off. Then he tried dragging me outside into the alley. That was when Cristiano appeared again. He acted as if he was my boyfriend and he’d been looking for me, and I played along. He got me away from who I just thought was a creepy bastard, which I was totally grateful for. His payment was a kiss.”

Jared’s growl wasn’t a surprise. When I hesitated, he pressed, “Go on.”

“Obviously the kiss had just been his way of getting close enough to bite me” – another growl from Jared – “but I was so plastered that the brief sting didn’t ring any alarm bells. He explained to me after I was Turned that the vampire who’d harassed me was known for throwing parties that included human ‘party favours’. In other words, I’d be laid on a table and the vampires seated around it could simply lean over and drink from me any time they wanted until I was totally drained of blood.”

“So he really did save your life.” Jared swallowed the last of his Cola-flavoured NST and slung the bottle in the bin. “He said he looked out for you, too.”

“He did. So did Ava. You know I escaped from Victor a couple of times. They both played a part in helping me. Of course, each time I was tracked down and brought back to the nest, Victor was beyond pissed. The last time I did it, he almost killed me. But Cristiano managed to calm him down and insisted it would be more beneficial to the nest if Victor stuck to the original plan and allowed me to live and serve him.”

Jared stuffed his hands in his pockets. “What I don’t get is why Cristiano did all this. I mean, he doesn’t strike me as the gallant type.”

I fisted a hand in Jared’s shirt and pulled him close. “He’s not. He took his payment afterwards each time.”

“You mean he drank from you more than once?” Jared asked through gritted teeth, placing a hand on the counter either side of me to cage me in. “Not that I can blame him. You taste fucking amazing.” He delivered a sensual lick to my neck. “But I hate him for doing it. I hate him for touching you. And I hate him for kissing this mouth I love. Every inch of you is mine.”

And those words were as near to romantic as Jared’s were ever likely to get. But I didn’t care that he was emotionally awkward or that he found it hard to articulate how he felt. He made it clear that he cared for me in other ways; he protected me with a ferocity that I wouldn’t have thought possible, would kill or die for me without hesitation. When his attention was on me, it was an undivided attention that was so intense it was both intoxicating and disorientating. It was hard to grasp, to comprehend, that I could really mean that much to someone.

When he swiped his thumb across my bottom lip, I nipped the digit lightly. “There was never anything between us.”

“I think he wished there had been. I don’t like the way he looks at you.”

“You don’t like the way any bloke looks at me.”

He gave me one of his lopsided grins. “Of course I don’t.” He gripped my hips possessively and held me flush against him. “I don’t like anyone fantasising about this body that’s all mine.”

I curled my arms around his neck. “Yours? I don’t know about that,” I said playfully.

His crooked grin turned devilish. “Then I guess I’ll have to claim it all over again later so you remember exactly who you belong to.”

“I can’t see that you have any other choice.”

Chuckling, he scooped me up and kissed me hard.