Dying to Live Read online

  Abby bowed her head and Rosalie slowly stepped back until her pack had surrounded her, then turned and walked away. It was a smart, defensive move not to give a potential threat her back. Kudos for that, there was an intelligent dog in their midst. She had potential.

  Turning on her heels, Abby spun around facing me. “You are not safe here.” In a tender moment, she raised her hand and caressed my face. “We need to leave before there’s another incident.”

  The soft touch of her hand slid down my arm until she had entwined her fingers in mine.

  Who could argue with a delicate touch? I stood, following her lead as she escorted me out of the club and we raced out of the parking lot in her Antique Steel Blue 69 Mustang.

  “Are you suicidal?” she demanded, gunning the accelerator. “Because you almost got yourself killed back there and I didn’t sign up to babysit a death seeking vamp!”

  After all the fear that I had felt in the bar, her anger was soothing and it tickled my inner monster, teasing me for a small taste of what pulsed through her veins. As difficult as it was, I was careful to keep my hunger in check. There would be time to feed later. I could force a few more hours before my need became desperate.

  “God damn it!” she snapped. “Don’t just sit there and smile. Answer me!”

  I chuckled. “No, I’m not suicidal. Tell me of this treaty.”

  She rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. “It’s stupid, that’s what it is, but it keeps the peace so I won’t complain much.” She swerved around a slower moving car. “Not too long ago, a vampire came into town and had a few werewolves for dinner. I know you guys like their rich blood and all, but,” she curled her lips, “the wolves came back as mutant were-vamps and the pack had to put them down.”

  Now I understood the distrust back at the bar. A werewolf with the abilities and strength of a vampire could be a potential problem for our entire community, humans included. I couldn’t even begin to imagine the damage one of those monsters could create, much less a pack of them. That would definitely be a problem.

  “It wasn’t easy,” Abby added. “They lost most of the high ranking pack members trying to clean up the vampire’s mess. Rosalie was the most dominant member to survive, so she took control of the pack. What a mess that was!” She exhaled. “Natasha said you’re here to find the vampire, is that true?”

  “Well, yeah. I am.” I leaned against the window and watched the bright city lights speed past me, pushing aside the thought that finding Kaley Hightower was the equivalent of finding my own death.

  “Don’t sound so happy about it.”

  Abby had a sense of humor or a hell of a sarcastic side. I hadn’t decided yet. “I’m not,” I mumbled into the window, not turning to look at her.

  We sped along the highway into an area called Whiskey Flats, then traveled several more miles before she turned onto a dirt road and followed it to the end where a large gated house came into view. We were truly out in the middle of nowhere.

  “Here we are.” Abby hit the remote and the front gates creaked open, giving us access to a long, dark, narrow driveway.

  “Where is here?” I’ve been ushered out of the bar and halfway across town. I haven’t fed and I’m no closer to finding Kaley than I was several hours ago. I noticed that my hunger was directly related to my mood and something would give soon. Be it my hunger or my patience.

  “This is my home and the house of the keepers.”

  Keepers…I thought. Okay, my night just went from weird to wacked. I scanned the wooded area as we drove past it. Old, dense trees that formed a canopy against the moonlight, covered the grounds.

  “Keepers, huh? Keepers of what?” I asked, thinking that the weeds and vines had grown out of control. The area desperately lacked the human touch of lawn work. Obviously, the keepers didn’t keep a lawnmower and Mother Nature was reclaiming her territory.

  “The keepers of what you seek. You’ll understand, soon.” As she pulled into the large six-car garage, I saw a woman standing at the backdoor. She was dressed in a long, dark robe with the hood covering her head. “That’s Denton,” Abby pointed, turning off the car’s engine. “She’ll be our overseer tonight. Come on.” She closed the car door and headed inside the house.

  I followed, noticing the marble floors and the custom artwork hanging on the walls. From the outside, this looked like a mediocre, middle class, large family home. The inside was nothing close to that. In fact, the artwork alone was worth a fortune and the custom woodwork that went into the house was spectacular. I followed Abby up the spiral staircase into her bedroom and Denton followed me.

  Abby took her top off and flung it across the room. I stared at her bare breasts, then looked away. I had gone down this road once and refused to travel this path again. I wouldn’t cheat on Tamara.

  “What’s the meaning of this?” I’ve heard of people seducing vampires just to be turned and I wasn’t going to play this game with her. I wasn’t going to take on a newbie. Hell, I was barely capable of taking care of myself. I had work to do and I needed to get home to my wife—a wife with a hell of temper lately.

  “I need to help you and you need to feed.” She slid out off her tight jeans, then using her foot, flicked them into the corner. “This couldn’t have turned out more perfectly if I had planned it.” She giggled, slowly closing the distance between us. “You enjoy having sex while feeding. So, let’s do this, Izzy Hightower. Call your beast and feed from me.”

  I thought about looking for the candid cameras that had to be secretly set up. This had to be a joke. No one in their right mind would have demanded such a thing, especially from a newbie like me. Our ability to control our hunger was minimal at best. We gain control over time and time was not something I had on my side.

  Shaking my head, I chuckled at her audacity. “No, that’s not going to happen. I can sustain my needs for much longer than you have patience.” Oh, by the Gods above, I hoped I was telling the truth.

  “We waste time,” Denton snapped behind me.

  The two women nodded in sequence and my hunger started to roar to life. I felt the beast within push its way to the surface. I felt the pressure of my eyes turning black, my fangs revealed themselves, and for the record, I hate that part. I’m not entirely used to it and always end up biting my lip. I felt my hunger forced to the surface and fought to keep it contained. I knew that once unleashed, I wouldn’t be able to control myself and I refused to be the one responsible for a blood bath.

  “Stop!” I heard myself hissing as my hunger rose. “Please, stop!” I went down on my knees, doubled over from the pain of fighting back my own demons. Trying to keep my monster contained, I yelled, “Don’t…do…this!”

  Denton’s voice echoed in my head. “She’s inexperienced…she’s too young, she may end up damaged if we continue.”

  As suddenly as the throbbing started, it stopped. Air easily flowed back into my lungs, not that I needed to breathe, it was still a living habit that I hadn’t lost, but my beast quieted. I knelt on the floor, shaking, sweat running down my face and stinging my eyes.

  Abby knelt in front me and tenderly caressed my face. “Why are you so difficult?” She leaned toward me, working her hand down my neck and past my chest. “What is your weakness?” she whispered as she kissed me.

  Images of Tamara flooded my mind. When I opened my eyes, I saw Tamara’s green eyes staring back at me and my world suddenly went still. Kneeling in front of me, she held her hand out to me and I took it. She led me to the oversize bed, my desires burned to touch her, to feel her touching me, and to be with her. She unbuttoned my shirt and slipped it off my shoulders, kissing my breast and teasing my nipple with her soft, familiar tongue. I fumbled with my zipper and she placed her hand over mine and guided me out of my pants. Tamara wrapped her arms around my waist and caressing my back, pulled me tightly against her naked body, fulfilling the only desire I’ve had since I left Florida.

  With a gentle tug, she pulled me onto the bed
. I fell on top of her and she kissed my neck, her pointed teeth barely scrapping against my skin. My defensives melted and I was willing and ready to have her claim my passion, to control my pleasure and to capture my euphoria.

  Her hand slid between my legs and my warmth welcomed her. I kissed her, running my tongue along her fangs, playing with her points. She kissed me back, passionately gripping my crotch within her hand. I froze. Something was wrong. Her Achilles heel had never failed me, until now.

  “Relax,” she whispered, “let me love you.”

  Mistake number two, she would never say let me, she would say, give me this. I pulled away and looked at her. It was Tamara’s face looking back at me all right, it was her lips curled into a smile, and it was her perfect, flawless skin glimmering in the light. It was too perfect of an image staring back at me. Her scar was gone.

  She leaned toward me. “What’s wrong, my love?” I watched her hand slowly move up my thigh as she whispered, “Give me this.”

  I raised my eyes, examining her face again and without a doubt, her scar was right where it was supposed to be, adorning her right cheek. I kissed her, playing with her fangs and she froze, not moving a muscle, acting as she had always reacted. Perhaps my hunger was playing tricks on me or perhaps I was finally losing my mind. She parted my wet lips and slid a finger deep inside me. A moan escaped my throat as I willingly opened myself up to her pleasures. Slowly my passion built, I needed more of her. I wanted more of her. Running my tongue down her neck and over her breast, I gently nibbled her hard, pink tip, taking her breast into my mouth. Suckling it and teasing it, my free hand cupped over her other breast, fondling it, squeezing it and pinching her erect nipple. Hard.

  With a speed that surprised even me, I pulled her into a sitting position and shifting behind her, wrapped my arm around her neck in a tight headlock. “Who the hell are you?” I demanded.

  “My love, why do you do this?” She raised her hands up in front of herself, where I could see them. “Why do you fight when there is no need?”

  “You’re not Tamara!” I squeezed, feeling her neck crushing in my grasp.

  “You’re right,” she gasped for air without fighting. “Izzy, let me go and I’ll explain.”

  Her request, more of a not-to-be-disobeyed order, pierced through every muscle and even though I refused to let go, my grip loosened from around her neck. My body burned with an invisible fire to obey her.

  “You’re a very strong-willed person. It took me a while to get inside your mind.” She scooted off the bed, leaving me naked on my knees. “As I said earlier, we are gatekeepers. We,” she pointed to Denton, “are only a small fraction of the power that lives in this house.”

  I shot her a nasty look. I was surely in trouble if these women turned on me. “What the hell just happened?”

  “No need for deceptions anymore,” Natasha, the woman who ordered the rum and coke at the bar said, entering the room. “If you want to find Kaley…”

  “And get home to Tamara…” Abby continued.

  “Then you will let us help you.” Denton finished their thought.

  It couldn’t get any worse, could it? I was naked in front of strangers whom one in particular, demanded I feed from and now they were finishing each other thoughts. I couldn’t possibly get myself in a more awkward position, could I?

  “Well, what…” Natasha started.

  “Do you…” Abby jumped in.

  “Say?” Denton finished in perfect harmony again.

  “Stop!” I yelled and the three women looked at me simultaneously. This was quickly turning into a bad Jerry Springer episode. “All right.” I let out an exasperated groan. “I’ll help you, but you can’t do that to me. If you start a sentence, you must finish it yourself.” I didn’t even know it was possible for vampires to get headaches, but I felt a doozie coming on. Spinning my legs around, I plopped on the edge of the bed, resting my elbows on my knees, clutching my head. “What do you need me to do?”

  Both Abby and Natasha spoke at the same time and I glared at them, stopping them in mid-word.

  “You have established a relationship with her. You should take it from here,” Natasha said, bowing her head at Abby.

  Shaking my head, I rolled my eyes. “Can we get on with this?”

  Abby sat next to me, taking my hand in hers. “What you need to know is that Katherine saved our kind and we are indebted to her. That is why we’ll help you find Kaley.” She shifted on the bed to get a better look at me. “I have certain powers that I can use to help you find her.”

  Well, if nothing else, I was headed in the right direction. Luck finally shone through. That’s progress.

  “For instance,” Abby continued. “I get glimpses of the future and with that I can help you find her. Do you understand so far?”

  I raised my brows in confusion. “No, but it doesn’t matter.” I slid my hand out of her grip and waved her on. “I’ll catch up.”

  “To help you, you must carry my blood in your veins, which is why I need you to feed from me.”

  Knowing what my blood did to Tamara, I shrieked, “Oh no!” I stood, pushing her away, but she placed her hand on mine and I froze, unable to move. The last thing I needed or wanted to find out is what, if any, reaction my blood would have with her.

  “It will not be as you think. I will not have any hold on you, per se,” she assured. “However, you will not be able to take from me unless I sanction it.”

  They obviously didn’t know my body or me very well and they certainly didn’t know that everything seems to work in reverse for me. “Are you crazy?” I grabbed my pants and slid back into them. “I can’t guarantee your safety. If you truly posses these powers, my hunger will stop at nothing to take them from you.” Finding my shirt, I finished dressing.

  “Let us worry about that,” Natasha interjected. “We have a plan for that, too.”

  “You seem to have a plan for everything,” I sneered, plopping on the bed. I picked up one of my boots, forcing my foot down the shaft until it settled comfortably on the insole. “What about a plan for the unexpected? Have you thought about that, too…the unexpected?” Without waiting for a response, I looked heavenward and let out an, oomph as I pulled on my other boot.

  I wasn’t sure how I was going to get anything accomplished around this trio of weirdoes. It was a stupid idea to send me, a newborn, into the field to find Kaley. I didn’t even know what I was capable of yet. I rubbed my hands against my face in frustration. This had to be the stupidest, most absurd idea Katherine had ever come up with, and I was stuck in the middle of it. I looked up and stared at the impending squad of volunteers. I fell against the bed, my knees dangling off the mattress while I stared at the ceiling. I may as well accept all the help I can get. “Fine, I’ll do whatever it takes.”

  No sooner were the words out of my mouth than Abby jumped on top of me, straddling her legs around my waist. Gradually, bending forward, her long hair tickled my face as she exposed her neck and moved closer to my mouth. Staring into her purple eyes, I saw the swirl of golden flecks dancing with an innocence I hadn’t felt in a long time and the entire thing felt wrong. “I can’t…I can’t do this.”

  “No, but we can,” Denton answered.

  Instantly, I felt the pull of magic and my eyes turned black. Everyone sees them as black, but I see through a red filtered lens. It’s too weird to explain so you’ll have to take my word on it. I felt my fangs lower. My hunger forcing to emerge, but this time, I didn’t fight it. I let it rise, giving in to it. Abby continued moving closer and I wrapped my hands around her neck, gently pulling her to me. The sudden momentary fear she oozed when I pulled her closer to the mouth of the beast, jolted my urging and I lost complete control. God help her now.

  Her artery pulsed with a heavy beat, every contraction called my name, enticing me to feed. Closing my eyes, focusing on making this a pleasant experience for her, I repeated, enjoy the moment and feel no pain, as I drove my fangs into her nec
k, being careful to avoid her artery. No need to drink from the main tap when another one would do. Her sweet blood flooded me with images of Tamara. Memories of us making love, and feeling the tides of ecstasy that her pleasure washed upon my shores. For a brief moment between when the alluring smell of blood flows from its host and encapsulates my senses to right before it hits my tongue, my world has purpose and I knew where I belonged. In that miniscule moment, everything in this screwed up world made sense. This is the thing that I lived to do—drink and drink deep.

  I took in her morning dew scent as I sucked her sweet nectar into me, filling an empty void with warmth. Her blood swelled in my mouth, the thickness easily flowed down my throat, coating everything with its delectable metallic element. Her blood surged through me with immense power, and I sucked harder and deeper, falling into the power she contained within the illusion of her frail human body.

  My mind traveled to places that even in my wildest dreams I could not have comprehended. I witnessed the creation of Katherine’s obsession with the Council, when they targeted her family and newborn daughters and I saw their demise. Unknown to her, Katherine had truly obliterated their bloodline. Killing the last of their strongest members, the Council floundered aimlessly, regarded as radical religious fanatics that no longer merited attention.