Dimitri bade him enter and the blond vampire joined them.
Gabriel gave them both a respectful nod before saying,
“Everything is ready.”
Dimitri nodded. Turning his attention back to Kerstyn, he kissed her brow before he cupped her chin.
“Promise me, you will not leave this room,” he said, his voice low, husky, and stern.
“Again?” He nodded and she whispered, “I promise.” Kerstyn dropped her gaze, unable to face the storm of emotion that swirled within the diamond depths of his eyes. She noticed tears had begun to gather in her eyes when the carpet began to grow blurry.
He tilted her chin up, but she refused to meet his gaze. Dimitri leaned down to take her lips. Their kiss was soft, slow, and sweet. It seemed to last forever and, yet, it was over too quickly. Dimitri pulled away and crossed over to the door. He paused before Gabriel, who swiftly fell upon one knee, his head bowed, his right fist over his heart.
“Awfully formal,” Dimitri noted.
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Gabriel’s wide shoulders rolled with a shrug. “It seems appropriate.”
Dimitri nodded, a mask of cold, deadly calm settled over his face. “I trust you will keep her safe.”
“I swear to you. I will protect her with my life and be honored to surrender my immortality so that she may live.”
“I pray it will not come to that.” Dimitri clapped Gabriel’s shoulder. “You are a good man.” He glanced over his shoulder, his diamond gaze briefly touching Kerstyn’s deep, blue eyes. She opened her mouth, not knowing what to say. Should she wish him good luck or tell him to be safe or… He dematerialized before she could speak and pure, cold dread washed over her, the ugly feeling settling in her bones and seizing her heart.
“Would you like a drink? I sure as hell need one.” Gabriel’s voice sounded as if it was coming from a great distance. She stared at the vacant spot where Dimitri had just been standing, vaguely noting Gabriel coming to his feet. The vampire exited the room, leaving the door open. Kerstyn slowly stepped to the threshold. Swallowing hard, she tried to fight back the emotions that gathered like a tornado in her heart. She swayed and had to lean against the doorjamb for support.
“You aren’t going to faint again, are you?” Gabriel asked from down the hall.
Kerstyn tore her gaze from the empty carpet and took in deep breaths, slowly inhaling, counting to ten, then exhaling.
“No, I'll be fine.” She shook her head, banishing her anxiety.
“Did you say something about a drink?”
He gave a half smile and waved her to follow. Kerstyn made her way down the hall, her legs feeling weak.
“So, how long do you think Dimitri will be gone?” she asked.
Gabriel shrugged as he stepped over to the bar situated in the left corner of the suite’s living area. “Could be a few hours.”
“Hours? Damn. I might have a heart attack by then.” Gabriel analyzed the bar’s options before reaching for a bottle of Belvedere vodka. He poured a shot for Kerstyn before pouring a glass of Hennessey for himself. He came to join her before the picturesque view from the wall of windows.
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Kerstyn blindly accepted the small glass Gabriel held out to her. Her eyes were focused on the street below. The rain had driven most people into the various hotels and casinos, but there were some who still hurried across the sidewalks: girls clinging to each other for support as they slipped in their stilettos and laughed, while men exchanged high fives and boasts as they came in and out of the casino doors, and couples huddled together beneath their umbrellas.
Kerstyn’s mind suddenly cleared as she realized she could never go back to her old life.
“It’s true,” she whispered.
“Hmm?” Gabriel hummed as he sipped his drink.
“The cliché.”
“Most clichés are clichés because they are true,” he said.
Kerstyn gave a short sigh.
What a damn good statement
, she thought.
“Which cliché are we discussing?”
“Ignorance is bliss.”
Gabriel blinked hard and then followed Kerstyn’s gaze to The Strip.
“Almost a month ago, I was like those people down there: going about my life knowing nothing of vampires or witches outside of the silver screen. Everything was simple, boring. Never in a million years would I even dream about being so far removed from that world.
Now, standing here, I can really see the division between the human world and…”
“The realm of darkness,” he finished when Kerstyn’s words failed.
She nodded. “I felt the shift the other night, at your club. I knew when I turned my back on an old friend and came to join Dimitri that my life would never be the same. I was okay with that.”
“Was?” Gabriel stressed the word before taking another drink.
“I am,” she corrected, “but it wasn’t until this very moment, looking down on the world I once belonged in, that I realized just how different and how far removed I am from it now. I really could never go back.”
“Would you want to?” he prompted.
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Kerstyn shook her head, her eyes moving from the scene below to the shot glass. Taking a deep breath, she downed the vodka.
“Smooth,” she said with a light cough.
“You needed something straight to start with,” Gabriel said.
“No. I mean no, I would not want to go back. I would not trade the stress or the worry and fear I currently feel for anything. But,” she turned to Gabriel, “why are you being so…nice?”
“Nice?”
“Yes. Since I have been working for you, you have barely spoken to me. Honestly, you seem to avoid me. Do you really hate humans?”
He finished his drink and headed back to the bar. “I’m not into talking about myself,” he said curtly. “I was just trying to be…hell, I don’t know.”
“Well, thank you for listening.”
“Want another drink?”
Kerstyn nodded. She knew she would get next to nothing out of Gabriel. He was not about to offer up his life’s story like Gannon had and sometimes Kerstyn had to wonder how two men, who were so opposite could ever be friends. Gannon was warm despite the hard mask that he wore while acting as a guard. He was talkative and willing to share. Gabriel, on the other hand, was quiet and always with a stern expression.
“Thank you,” Kerstyn said, slowly walking over to the bar.
“What would you like next?”
“I’m not talking about the drink.”
Gabriel’s light green eyes turned up from the bottles.
“I know you are doing this, babysitting me, for Dimitri.”
“It is the least I can do for him,” he said, before turning his gaze back to the liquor.
“I hope you don’t mind me asking and feel free not to answer.” She smiled at his snort. “But, you are an outcast, owing no allegiance to any clan. So, why are you doing this?”
Gabriel visibly tensed. The muscle in his cheek twitched as his soft green eyes turned black, the darkness consuming even the white of
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his eyes. The air around him crackled with power and Kerstyn took a shocked step back.
“Dimitri,” Gabriel said, his voice that of a demon’s, “rescued me from a life worse than death. For that, I owe him everything.” His eyes slowly faded back to normal and he cleared his throat. Taking the Hennessey bottle up, he uncapped it and took a sing. “Enough with the questions.”
Kerstyn nodded. She full heartedly agreed. Gabriel was dangerous. His memories were dark, tortured. His mind was like Pandora’s box and she knew to leave him well enough alone.
“I don’t want you to think I hate you.”
Kerstyn blinked hard. Then blinked again. “What?”
“I don’t hate you.” He took another large gulp. “I just…shit.
I’m not good at any of this: small talk, friendship, or relationship crap. I hate humans for their weaknesses, but I don’t hate you.”
“Well…thank you,” Kerstyn said, not knowing exactly how to respond.
Gabriel’s gaze frantically searched the liquor bottles. Though the Hennessey tasted good, it would do nothing to drown his memories.
He needed something stronger, the one thing that could get a vampire drunk. Silver Moon. And, of course, there was none in this bar.
The knock on the door drew his attention. He probed the hall with his senses. Gannon. He nodded to Kerstyn and she crossed the room to open the door.
“Hey,” Gannon greeted her with a warm smile. Kerstyn smiled back. “He hasn’t snapped at you or tried to bite your head off yet?” he teased.
“Nope, just…pleasant conversation,” Kerstyn answered.
“Pleasant? Interesting.”
“Is there a reason you’re here?” Gabriel demanded as he sat the bottle down.
“Yes. Changing of the guard. And you have some business waiting. Someone just hit a jackpot of about forty thousand and the scout you sent to Colorado is back with some insightful information about a certain―” Gannon stopped when Gabriel’s hand shot to his chest. He knew Gabriel carried the photo of the woman in the breast pocket of his blazer.
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“Thank you, Gannon. I trust you will keep Ms. Ingmar out of trouble.”
“You bet,” Gannon replied as Gabriel brushed past him.
“I should return in about an hour,” Gabriel said to Kerstyn.
Pausing before her, he gave a slight bow and exited the room.
“Pleasant conversation?” Gannon said with a teasing smile.
Kerstyn rolled her eyes. “I caught a glimpse.”
“Of?”
“The real Gabriel.”
“Real as in the vampire or the man?” Gannon asked.
“Both.”
She laughed when Gannon choked on his surprise.
“Do your eyes turn all black when you go vampire?” Gannon could only nod as he continued to cough.
“Interesting. Dimitri’s go all white. I guess that’s because he’s a pure vampire while everyone else isn’t,” she mused.
“I’m impressed. Gabriel opens up to no one.”
“He said he doesn’t hate me,” she added.
“I already knew that. So, would you like another drink?”
“Another? How did you know I had one?”
“Well, you’re holding an empty shot glass and I can smell the vodka on your breath.”
Kerstyn snapped her mouth shut. Gannon had walked past her and was now standing behind the bar taking up Gabriel’s vacant position.
“I’m going to take your silence as a 'yes'.”
She nodded.
“Have you had a pineapple upside down cake before?’
“I thought you were making drinks not baking.”
Gannon chuckled, “It is a drink and I will assume ‘no’.”
“A pineapple upside down cake as a drink? Sounds good.” He nodded and set about fixing her drink.
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Kerstyn came to the sofa, pulled her cell phone from her back pocket, and set it on the glass coffee table before taking a seat. It was barely twelve-thirty. Dimitri had only been gone for thirty minutes.
With a groan, she brushed her hands through her hair. This was going to be the longest night of her life and she would need to tell Gannon to keep the drinks coming.
The entire table began to vibrate as her phone went off.
Kerstyn took up the phone. Her heart jumped as she thought it might be Dimitri calling.
Reading her caller I.D., she sighed. It was Denise. Brushing her finger over the flatscreen of her phone, she answered, “Hey, Denise.”
“I broke up with Bobby,” Denise said, her voice shaking with sobs, “And he took my car, leaving me at this rundown bar alone.”
“This isn’t a good night―”
“Please, Kerstyn. Can you pick me up?”
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The wind swept across the desert; the rain had yet to reach the battlefield. This flat stretch of landscape was miles from civilization.
Isolated. Desolate. Perfect for the bloody, ruthless, no-holds-barred battle that was about to take place.
Dimitri materialized before his enemy. Awe filled Ven’s eyes as another emotion flickered beneath the surface, an emotion the demon within Dimitri loved. Terror.
“Hello, Ven,” Dimitri greeted.
“Dimitri Arsov,” Ven spat.
“Gray is a more suitable color for you, do you not agree? After all, you are not the true king of the Volkov Clan,” Dimitri taunted.
The surprise in Ven’s eyes and expression was quickly consumed by fury and hate. “That can be changed.” His fangs grew to long razor-like points as his eyes darkened to a soulless black. Leaning down, Ven opened a long, black case, removing two swords. “As is tradition,” he tossed one sword to Dimitri, “we will battle with blades.” Dimitri caught the weapon. It had been too long since he held a broadsword. The weight felt familiar. He ran his finger down the edge of the blade, a line of blood following, flowing down to drip on the hand he had wrapped around the jewel-adorned hilt. The sword felt right in his hand. The vampire within him roared as the anticipation of the battle warmed his icy blood.
Lightning strobed above, lighting up the menacing, dark clouds while thunder shook the ground.
Ven raised his sword stepping into a battle stance, “Let’s get this over with.”
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Dimitri’s chuckle was low and he shook his head. Ven had always been overconfident and prideful and tonight, those two qualities would be his downfall.
“I will be the one who decides when this fight will end,” Dimitri vowed.
Ven snorted, “You honestly believe you have that kind of power.”
Ven closed his eyes and unleashed his senses, reading Dimitri’s power grid. He smirked, unimpressed by what he found. For a pureblood, Dimitri should have more strength. Then again, Ven had witnessed Dimitri’s battle with the Red Order hunter centuries ago. The ancient vampire had been severely injured, which could account for his lack of power.