Silenced (3 page)

Her holiday wasn't going as planned.

Willa's purple scarf lifted from her neck as a soft breeze swept through King's Court. 

"Miss," a male voice called, breaking Willa from her thoughts. 

She turned to him.

"You dropped this," he said, smiling as he handed her the purple scarf. She hadn't even realized it had flown off.

"Thank you," she said, wrapping her scarf around her neck and tucking it into her gray pea coat.

"No worries," he said. “Glad to help a beautiful lady.”

She smiled up at the tall stranger. He was older, maybe in his late thirties, with black hair styled in a pompadour. He had kind blue eyes that almost made her too afraid to look at him straight on. Before she knew it, she was holding her breath, as if frozen.

He snapped a picture of her on his cell phone and nodded. "Good girl," he whispered.

Willa stood there like that for a few moments before she came to her senses. 

Her heart raced as she gasped for air.

What did he do to make her freeze like that? 

Who was that stranger?

She shivered, pulling her coat closer as she looked around for him.

Magic.

Good girl.

The words repeated inside her head, haunting her as she rode the tube home.

“I
HATE YOU,” Katya shouted from the loft at the top of the stairs. "How could you do this to me?"

Nude, with long blonde hair cascading over her shoulders, she was stunning when angry. Her pert nose reddened as her eyes narrowed at Kristoff Dargaard. For two years, he'd thought her Russian accent was charming. Now he wished she would shut up.

Folding his arms across his bare chest, he gazed at her, indifferent. Yawning, he decided it was best not to ignore the young woman who knew most of the passwords to his accounts.

That’s what I get for sleeping with my assistant.

"Listen to me, Katya. I know what you did. I don’t take kindly to spies."

She threw a bottle of wine at him. “I told you I wasn’t a spy!”

Kristoff sighed, watching the bottle come straight toward his head. As if in slow motion, the bottle soared across the room to him. He sidestepped it.

Effortlessly.

He cringed at the sound of the bottle crashing to the floor, splashing his bare feet with the red liquid.

When she went to break his cell phone with all of the proof of her treachery, he darted up the stairs at lightning speed. Kristoff snatched his phone from her hand and grabbed Katya by her hair. Within seconds, he tossed her over the rail.

Her scream was so loud that he almost let her fall. She grabbed his hands with both of her own. She gripped him tightly, afraid to fall twenty feet to the marble floor of his Charleston manor.

The five-foot-eight woman was, at least, one-hundred and thirty pounds, but he held her mid-air as if she weighed nothing more than a rag doll.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Stop! You're hurting me!" She grabbed his hand while he held her in the air by a fistful of blond hair. “I’m sorry!”

"Are you done?"

Lips trembling, she looked up at him with tear-filled eyes. She nodded. 

"Y-y-yes."

"Good," he said, lifting her back over the polished brass railing.

When he set Katya back on her feet, she ran to gather her clothes. Leaning against the rail, he watched her stuff her black heels in her bag and slip on tight jeans and a purple sweater, and ballet flats. She kept glancing at him as if to make sure he wasn't coming after her.

Kristoff contemplated walking over there, taking her by her waist and making love to her once more on his down-filled white blanket. 

He'd miss Katya's sweet mouth and even more delicious blood.

The puncture marks from his fangs were stark against her white skin. He'd need to take care of the marks and her memory before she left.

When she finished packing and dressing, she stood there, silently, waiting for permission to leave. Tears streamed down her face.

Kristoff strode over to her and collected her in his arms. “I know it wasn’t your fault.”

“He made me do it,” Katya wailed. She sobbed into his chest, clinging to him like a child being taken from her parents.

She loved him.

Too bad he didn't love her back. His heart belonged to another.

"Will you forgive me?" Her tear-filled bright blue eyes stared up at him.

Kristoff smoothed her hair. She didn’t even know how dangerous the situation was. He wondered how many of Lukas’ agents watched him at all times, waiting for him to slip up and reveal the truth.

Being the head of PR for an entire race could be challenging at times, but Kristoff was seemingly made for it. He was the face of the Vampire Nation. With ivory skin, sandy brown hair, and ethereal green eyes, the majority of the human population saw his beauty and accepted him. 

"I forgive you," Kristoff said. He took her face into his hands and gazed into her eyes. The ethereal green and hazel of his eyes flickered into a dark red as he worked his glamor on her. “Now, you’ll forget everything involving my estate and me. You’ll forget what you saw in my office yesterday, won’t you?"

Katya nodded, wiping her tears as she slung her bag over her shoulder and left his room in a stupor that would last for a few hours. When she came to, she'd remember nothing of the two years she'd been Kristoff's assistant and lover.

He stood at his floor-to-ceiling window and watched for her to leave in her red convertible. When she sped away, Kristoff flopped onto his bed. He picked up his phone and deleted the email he’d received, the one that would have sent Lukas flying down to Charleston within hours of hearing of it.

A new email from Josef caught Kristoff’s attention.

There was an attachment.

He hoped it was good news. Kristoff needed something to lure him out of his foul mood.

His eyes widened as he stared at the picture on the screen.

Big blue eyes under dark lashes looked back at him. A bright smile almost warmed the coldness of his heart. Jet black hair framed the face of the goddess on the screen. Pale skin sprinkled with delicate freckles and full lips the color of carnations stirred something in his belly, a feeling he hadn't experienced in a long time. 

Willa Avery.

Kristoff swallowed, renewed feelings resurfacing as he gazed at her beauty. His hopes were confirmed. The email was real. Willa Avery had returned from wherever it was that she had vanished.

The one woman he had loved.

The girl he had lost.

.

“A
ND WHERE HAVE you been, little Willow?" Gemma waited in the kitchen dressed in nothing but boxer shorts and a bra.

Drew stood behind her as bacon crackled on the small stove.

The smell turned Willa's stomach, making her cover her nose with her coat's sleeve. 

Animal flesh. Disgusting.

"Why do you care?"

Gemma grinned, giving Drew a nudge. "She's always so moody."

"I'm not moody." Willa rolled her eyes at Gemma, trying not to think about how much she envied her perfect body and beautiful blonde hair.

No amount of magic could fix Willa’s thin frame. None that she wanted to dabble with that is.

"I just assumed you wouldn't be back until after your holiday," Gemma said, licking a spatula of batter. "Who spends their holiday at home? Drew and I had plans. You’re lucky I’m wearing any clothes at all."

“Hello, Willa,” Drew said, his eyes fixed on Willa’s bosom as she took off her coat when they should have been looking at his girlfriend.

Gemma looked back at Drew and whispered.
“She probably spent the last few nights with that pretty mixed girl. Doing whatever lesbians do when they’re alone.”

Drew shot an interested look at Willa that made her roll her eyes in disgust.

Willa's brows furrowed as she stalked to her bedroom at the back of the flat. She wished she had somewhere else to go. Her full-sized bed was neatly made, a stuffed bear gifted to her from her nieces on top of the lavender comforter.

She pulled her vintage suitcase from under the bed. As she stuffed her favorite bag with essentials, she wondered where she would go. Anywhere would be better than being in the same breathing space as the roommate from hell and her ex-con, drug-dealing, chain-smoking, eyes-wandering boyfriend.

Gemma knew how to pick a winner.

An idea popped into her mind. She took out her cell phone and Skyped an old friend. 

More than a friend, she called her cousin, Stephanie.

"Holy hell. Is that you, Willa?"

Willa grinned at Stephanie's charming Charleston accent. The one time Stephanie had visited her in England since moving to the states, all of the blokes loved her southern drawl. They’d never guess that Stephanie was born and raised in the English countryside.

One hundred years ago.

"It's me," Willa said. She peered closer at Stephanie's image on the screen. "You cut your hair!"

"I did," Stephanie said, primping her short blonde bob. It made her small brown eyes look bigger. "I needed a change. After having the girls, I was desperate for a fresh new look. You're looking good.
Pale
...but good."

Laughing, Willa packed her highest pair of heels and zipped the suitcase closed. She didn't care if she forgot anything. It would be just another excuse to shop.

"I'll be in town soon. I need a break. Could I stay with you and the girls? I haven't seen them in ages."

"Of course! I just redid the sunroom. It's gorgeous this time of year. We need to catch up, girl. Just give me a holler when you find out when your flight lands. Kate, Chloe and I will scoop you up. You won't believe those two! Twelve going on twenty-two!"

Willa nodded, already feeling much better. 

"Thank you, Stephanie."

"Anytime, love!"

Willa glanced out her window. 

The smell of something familiar caught her attention as she watched storm clouds glide across the sky outside her balcony window.

She noticed something was different about her room. A plain, white envelope lay on her pillow.

Reaching to open it, she heard Gemma let out a loud yelp from the other room. A thud that followed gave her a start.

She froze at the sound of Gemma's wail of pain. 

"You stupid slag,” Drew hissed through what sounded like clenched teeth. “Who have you been texting behind my back?"

"Calm down, Drew. It's my mum. I swear. She has a new number, and I haven't saved it in my phone yet!"

"Lying whore."

More thuds.

Crashing dishes.

Cries.

Willa grabbed her bag and locked her bedroom door.

Tiptoeing to the corner of her room, she sat on the floor.

Fear took over. Fear of what she could do. Fear of Lukas’ assault on her body. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to control her breaths.

The air around her started to sizzle as red hot power sparked from her hands. She rubbed them together, willing the rage within to calm and cease.

For a split second, she'd contemplated storming out of her bedroom and making Drew wish he'd never laid eyes on Gemma. 

She'd do it. 

If she had the courage.

If she wasn’t so broken.

Don't get involved when it isn't your business. Always weigh if it's worth exposing yourself, Willa.

Her mother's words brought fresh tears to her eyes.

She snatched the envelope off her pillow. She needed something to take her mind off the commotion outside her door.

"Willa Avery. You and three guests are invited to Lord Dargaard's Estate in Charleston, SC for the annual Summer Solstice Ball. Cocktail attire only."

Willa's face paled.

Lord Dargaard
.

“Kristoff,” she whispered. The invitation was his response to her email. He wanted to see her.

Tears pooled in her eyes. This was her chance to not only create an alliance against a common foe but to reclaim her place in his heart.

Did he even know that she was forced to stay away from him for almost a century?

She closed her eyes, pressing the invitation to her chest. The ball was tomorrow night.

Who put that envelope on top of her pillow?

The realization came to her and her lips curled into a knowing smile. The man in front of the tube.

Good lord, he was quick.

Willa’s eyes opened to give her room another scan for any more clues. That scent in the air became even more familiar.

A vampire had been in her room. At least, this time, it was one of Kristoff’s associates. The front door of her flat slammed closed, and silence followed.

A quick closing of her eyes sent a thread of magic outside to check if she was alone.

Gemma was a genuinely confused woman. She left with Drew.

Willa couldn’t blame her. Only years ago she’d done the same. She followed her abuser around the world, desperate for any shred of kindness he was willing to offer. She’d never be that weak again.

Willa shook her head and pulled her cell from her pocket.

“Everything okay?” Zoe sounded as though she were out of breath.

“What are you doing?”

Zoe cleared her throat and lowered her voice. “Daniel is here. What’s going on?”

“We are going to Charleston, South Carolina.”

“Are we now? I’m always up for an adventure. When are we going?”

Willa sat at her computer and searched for flights. “Tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll be ready,” Zoe said.

“Good,” Willa said, tapping her nails on the white desktop. Her power started to settle to a low hum, slowly climbing from her fingers to her wrist in red tendrils of light. “I hope you’ve been practicing your Casting skills. We have work to do.”

Zoe’s little chuckle sent shivers up Willa’s spine. Delicious ones. “You know I have. I do love it when you talk
dirty
.”

S
UN SERUM 99.

The cure.

Well, that’s what the humans were calling it, but Kristoff knew better. There was no cure for the curse that afflicted the vampire race. No going back to being a carefree human lord with the most beautiful fiancé in the world.