I tensed and took a big gulp of blood. Had he heard my thoughts? Did he know about Dixon?
“The Youngling is a fool.”
My taut muscles relaxed. Right, he meant my ex. Not Dixon. Still Queen of Liars on that front.
Roland brought us a bottle of uncorked red wine and two glasses, pouring Fin a small taste. At Fin’s nod, Roland filled our glasses.
I swapped my half empty glass of blood for the wine, noting the label on the unfamiliar bottle. FFV, in Sonoma. “I wouldn’t take you for a California wine country kind of guy.”
Fin raised the glass in salute. “Actually, it’s my winery. This Cab is one of my favorites. It is quite French in taste and design.”
“Fair enough.” I took a sip. Oaky, nice and dry on the palate, the way I liked it.
Fin spent the next hour or so sharing stories of his wine making adventures in California and Europe, distracting me from my troubles. That is, until my inner sensor alerted me that the damn blooding hour drew near.
I polished off my glass of wine and slid off the bar stool, grabbing my purse off its hook as I moved. “I have to go.”
Fin stood. “Allow me to accompany you. The night is young. We have ample time for much merrymaking.” He bowed. “I promise to behave. Unless, of course, you wish otherwise.”
My lips curled upward. He really was cute and fun, and distracting from my breakup pain and my Dixon problem, but I didn’t have time for this. “See you later.”
I hurried to the bathrooms to discover both of them occupied. Shit. That left the darkness of my car in the parking lot. I took the back hallway, breezing past the Deep Freeze at a run without a look through that open door, lest my damn post-traumatic stress issue tried to rear its head. Too many horrible things had happened in there all because of Dixon—my brother was killed and turned while first Dixon then his partner Magnas the Dark One tormented me.
My chest tightened, and my heart rate accelerated. An acrid taste invaded my mouth, a sure sign I was going to lose it. I bolted down the hall to the back exit and burst into the night, running for my car, grateful for the wedge-heeled boots preventing me from twisting an ankle and face-planting on the uneven pavement and hard gravel.
It was several seconds before I ground to a halt, confused by my surroundings, by the empty lot shrouded in thick fog. What the hell? I made a quick three-sixty. I’d left the building on the wrong side. Bloody hell. I was alone.
Really
alone. Unease gripped me. I scrambled in my bag for my phone. Nine minutes until the blooding hour. How ironic. Nine vials. Nine days…
Around me the thick fog pressed ever closer like a suffocating shroud. The temperature dropped, and I shivered, my uneasiness increasing. I needed to retrace my steps, return to relative safety, but the whiteness around me obscured the way, disorienting me. Where was the bar and grill? I closed my eyes and listened.
The whoosh of water on my left. The roar of cars on my right. Goose bumps blanketed my skin—a presence behind me. I pivoted.
Dixon grabbed my throat.
“Hello, love. Miss me?” Dixon squeezed my neck.
Fuck.
Terror sped down my spine followed closely by fury. Another surprise attack? Hell, no. Training and instinct took over. I tucked my chin, crossed one arm over his to hold the bastard in place and proceeded to smash the smug smirk right off his face with a palm strike. A simultaneous knee in his groin made him double over and howl in agony. Best sound ever. I brought my elbow down on his bony back, nothing but pleased when he face-planted on the ground. I went for a kick to his side to break some ribs, and that’s when my luck changed.
Damn it.
Hands of steel grabbed my ankles and yanked, putting me on my ass and sending jolts of pain up my spine. I rolled and tried to scramble away but he held fast and had the nerve to grin at me through the bloody mess I’d made of his face.
“Leaving so soon, pet? But we’re just getting started.” He pounced on me and sank his fangs into my neck.
Shit, that hurt.
One long pull followed another and another as he drank. His cold energy slithered over me, pushing, prodding, digging into my essence.
You’re mine, little kitten. By my power, by my bite, you are marked. Again.
No, not again. I fought the pain and jerked upward to throw him off but he refused to budge, his nausea-inducing erection pressing against me. This was an all too familiar scenario with him and it needed to end, right the hell now.
I yanked at his head hoping to dislodge him then bash his face into the pavement—wouldn’t kill his ancient ass, but it would give me the upper hand—but weakness from his blood drinking set in.
Strength fled my muscles, and I went limp under him. Just needed a second to regroup…
I hate you. Bloody bastard.
He slid his fangs from my neck and chuckled. “I know. But you know what they say. The other side of that coin is love.”
“In your dreams, undead asshole.” I shoved against his leather-clad chest to put some space between us, quashing the panic at the thought he’d marked me again. One more mark and… I refused to complete the thought.
My fire power awakened, keen on frying this jerk, but I tamped it down. I could fight with him, bloody him up a bit, but I couldn’t kill him. If he died I had no chance at all to find Faith and Kai and save them. God only knew what Dixon’s minions would do to them if he failed to return. Wait. I knew. My friends would die. Horribly.
Dixon licked the wounds on my neck, his warm tongue sending the wine in my belly careening up my throat in a bid to escape. “You taste like heaven.”
I swallowed hard, letting the acid burn fuel my anger. I lashed out to wipe the perma leer off his ugly face, but he dodged and stood. He even had the nerve to offer me a hand up which I ignored. Screw him, I’d help myself up.
“Despite your tantrum tonight, you’re such a good princess. You’ve done well with my command.”
Tantrum? What I wouldn’t give to burn him to ash right about now. “Yeah, yeah, nine vials. Nine o’clock. I got it. Now you hold up your end of this deal.”
“Oh, I am, kitten, I am.” He whipped out his cell, swiped the surface, and held it up to me.
Another picture of Faith and Kai seated on the floor in that nondescript and darkened room. Pale hands gripped them by their hair, stretching their heads to the side. My stomach somersaulted. Bright red bite marks decorated their exposed necks.
My fury skyrocketed at the sight, and my fangs erupted. “You bastard!” I tackled him to the ground and struck at his neck. Frustration tore through me as he held me off with an iron grip on my shoulders. I snapped and hissed at him.
“Oh my, my, my. Such long fangs. They’re beautiful, my pet.”
Rage drowned out my common sense, and I let my fire out to play. I grabbed his head. “Fry, asshole.”
He flipped us. My back and head slammed onto the pavement. My vision blurred and my power stuttered and died. No damage done to Dixon. Pity. His eyes glowed silver, trapping me, his energy burrowing deep, crawling through my insides like spiky snakes. I choked down a pained cry, wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
“Remember your place, kitten. I own you. You’re mine to mark, to turn, and…” He swiveled his hips, mimicking sex, making me gag. “You’re mine to use however, and whenever, I see fit. Now be a good pet and drink your next vial. Two minutes to go, by the way.”
“It’s in my bag. You probably broke it.” I planted my heels in the ground and bucked. “Now, get off me, you bloody wanker.”
Dixon trapped my arms overhead and leaned down, his black lips all too close to mine. “I do so love it when you speak my language.”
“I. Said. Get. Off.” I smashed my forehead into his nose. Blood spurted. The asshole howled. I threw him off and scrambled to my feet, dizzy as hell, head pounding. I swiped my face with the back of my hands, wiping blood away from my eyes.
Dixon growled, the first sign of anger I managed to get out of him since this whole horrible nightmare had begun days ago. “Payback is
my
bitch, little kitty. Remember that. You wi—”
A black blur tackled Dixon, flying him high into the surrounding fog.
What the hell? “Jonas?”
Silence save the slapping of water against the nearby pier and the rush of traffic on the Embarcadero. If not Jonas, then who had flown—literally—to my rescue? No one knew my location, and, in my anger at Dixon’s surprise attack, I hadn’t even thought to call for help.
My gut seized, and I doubled over. Nine o’clock. Oh, hell. I scanned the ground for my bag. There, two quick steps away. I ran and skidded to it, hitting the ground hard on my knees. I dug for the vial with shaky hands, ripped out the stopper, and downed the contents.
Revulsion flooded me. I clamped a hand over my mouth to keep the blood in my gut, where it sowed Dixon’s evil seeds. Assuming the bastard kept his word, it would give my friends another day of life. That was what mattered. Them. Not me.
Four more vials, four more days to go. The fog parted in front of me. I kept my gaze on the ground, the gravel speckled with blood. Dixon’s and mine. “It’s done, you pathetic bat. Now go away.”
Fin strolled through the opening in the wall of fog, as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “Ouch. Quite harsh. Names hurt, you know.”
I gaped. “You?”
He bowed low, arms wide. “At your service, Princess.” He straightened and extended a hand.
I let him pull me to standing. Dizziness took my head for one hell of a spin, and I clung to Fin’s arms until it subsided. The pain from bashing Dixon’s skull left me with one hell of a headache. Sticky blood dampened the back of my head. Where was my speedy vampire healing? Maybe that damn, bloody potion was messing with my chemistry.
Of course it is. He’s weakening you. Preparing you.
“I’m so screwed.” Oops. Hadn’t meant to say that out loud.
“Indeed.” Fin put his arm around my waist, supporting me as we started to walk. “Now, care to tell me why you’re drinking those vials and mucking about with Dixon?”
I ignored Fin’s prying question about Dixon, and he didn’t press for an answer after I made some unfeigned pain sounds and leaned against him, letting him help me limp back to the parking lot.
We stopped by my car, and I tilted my head at Roland’s Brasserie. “My jacket is inside. I can’t…”
He settled me on the hood of my car. “I know. Wait here.” He sped away at vampire speed, a dark blur I didn’t bother to track. He returned in mere seconds, jacket in hand.
I slid off the car and let him help me into it, wincing at the soreness in my back. I’d grown accustomed to my speedy healing. I sure missed it now. “Thanks, Fin.”
Our eyes met, and I put the double entendre in my expression, thanking him for more than the coat.
His eyes crinkled. “My pleasure.” He produced a bar towel and a handful of towelettes from his coat pocket. “May I?”
I nodded, and he wiped Dixon’s blood from my face. Moist towelettes first, dry, warm towel second. “There, all better. Well, mostly better.”
The alcohol scent from the towelettes stung my nose. I touched my cheek. “Good enough to get me in my house without too many questions?”
He tucked a chunk of my hair behind my ear, an intimate gesture I allowed. After all, the man had just cleaned my face like I was a baby with messy food face and saved me from my nemesis. “Rina, his scent is all over you. His bite mark has not healed. If Stella—or any other vampire—is at your home, you are doomed to discovery, I’m afraid.”
“Well, crap.”
His fingers trailed over my hair then he blinked and shoved his hands in his long coat. A Chesterfield, quite like the one Jonas favored. “I can go home with you. Fly you up to your room.”
He shifted from one foot to the other. If I didn’t know any better, I would have sworn this cocky vampire suddenly felt a bit unsure of himself.
I pondered the foggy sky overhead. “That might work.” I had a back deck, doors, and keys. If we parked on an adjacent street and came in the back way over the houses behind mine… “Yes, let’s do it.”
~ * ~
We entered my room undetected by Stella or anyone else in the house. A quick GPS check showed Mark and Ren home, along with Stella. Fin threw some kind of vampire barrier around my room to hide us from Stella while I texted the boys to get their exact location in the house. Fortunately, they were playing a loud video game with Stella on the first floor.
I let out a relieved breath. “Between your handy magic curtain and that war game, I think we’ll be okay for a while.” I waved a hand at my room. “Make yourself at home. I need to shower off the stink of Dixon.” I grabbed some yoga pants, T-shirt, and fresh bra and panties from my dresser and bolted for the bathroom.
I couldn’t get out of my sullied clothing fast enough. My fingers trembled, the shock of another encounter with Dixon keeping me off-kilter. I hated to admit it, but the shrink at Doc Scott’s clinic was right. I needed to face—and talk about—all of my demons, both large and small. Of course, I had to survive Dixon’s blackmailing scheme for that to happen.
I shoved my shaking body into the shower and turned the water up as hot as I could stand it, pounding away his stench, wiping out the memory of his body touching mine, his hands groping, his erection grinding against me. Hatred for Dixon hammered me hard, and I punched the tiled wall—wishing it were Dixon’s smirking face—crying out in pain at my own stupid action.
The banging of my bathroom door meeting the wall made me jump. Then Fin opened the shower door, fangs bared, eyes glowing black and prepped for dangerous, protect the princess action.
“Get out,” I shrieked, scrambling to cover my breasts. I whipped around, giving him my back and glared at him over my shoulder. “I’m fine. Just, you know, upset.” I flexed my fingers, lucky I hadn’t broken any bones.
Fin’s fierce expression shifted to amusement. He gave me a slow once-over, the murderous heat in his eyes shifting to desire.