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“That will change soon. Our shift ended about half an hour ago. Other enforcers will be coming into this area,” she bluffed.

  “Word is that your master has abandoned you and you’re weak. He took all the strong ones with him.”

  She masked her face, not happy to learn that the Vampires somehow had that information. It would be stupid to deny what they already seemed to know. “We don’t have a master. We call him a clan leader, and he always travels with some of his guards.”

  “Whatever he is, Decker Filmore contacted our council and has left the state.”

  Kira clenched her teeth, wondering what Decker planned to do next. Did he hope to bring Vampires in to start a war with the other clans, since he’d failed to get the GarLycans on his side? She really hated the bastard, but these two Vamps might be on a fishing trip for more information. She decided to keep bluffing. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Decker goes on trips often and speaks to lots of packs and nests. He’ll be back soon.” She didn’t look away from the Vamp in front of her as she spoke. “Not to mention, you take on one clan, you take on all of them. We’re not an easy target just because a small handful of our number went on a trip.”

  “That’s not what we heard.” The one to her left came a little closer. It was creepy because he didn’t make any sound when he moved.

  “That’s the thing about rumors. They usually aren’t true.” She turned her head to glare at him. She welcomed anger over terror and clung to it. “You need to leave, or within an hour you’ll have hundreds of VampLycans tracking you. That’s just from this clan. The other three will be contacted and they’ll join the hunt. My shift ended at sunset. I’d give it less than an hour before they’re sending an entire team out to see where I am, if they haven’t already done so. Just how far do you think you’ll get before dawn? They won’t stop until you’re found.”

  He frowned and glanced at his friend. She followed his gaze, the one in front of her obviously the leader. It made sense. He was the one with the slight accent, probably the older Vampire who had made the American into a suckhead.

  The European one spoke replied, “It’s convenient that your shift just ended.”

  “You smell me. I’m mostly human. Do you know what one of the down sides to that is? I can’t see well in the dark. I work the day shift. A few human poachers made a mess so it delayed me from going in on time. Use common sense and it will tell you I’m telling the truth. I’d be useless after dark since I have shitty night vision.”

  He didn’t look happy with that information, and it encouraged her.

  “I’ll be honest with you.” She decided to try a new tactic. “I don’t like Veso much. He’s kind of a jerk who isn’t exactly nice to me because my mother was human. If you killed him, just take him away with you. Dump his body far beyond our territory and bury him deep. He can go for days without being seen before it raises suspicion. Me? They don’t completely trust me. They’ll send enforcers to hunt me down. I won’t mention I saw you because I don’t want the treaty broken. You were given some bad information. It happens. Now you know the truth and can go before this gets out of hand.”

  The older Vampire smiled, revealing white fangs. It was chilling. “You’d just forget you saw us?”

  “As I said, I don’t want the treaty broken. I wasn’t around during the war between Vampires and Lycans, obviously since I’m way too young, but I’ve heard the horror stories.” She’d swear to anything if she could just survive. Of course, as soon as she got home, she’d tell the clan. Veso might be an asshole, they weren’t friends, but he had earned her respect for training her.

  “Shit happens.” She shrugged for effect. “Veso’s next shift starts day after tomorrow. That will give you plenty of time to make tracks. Mistakes get made. Lesson learned, and hey, you did me a favor because he was a pain in my ass. I won’t have to deal with him anymore if your friends killed him.” She hoped not.

  “I believe her,” the younger one announced. “She is mostly human. I can’t see them being any kinder to her than we would be. Humans tend to have little to no fidelity to the ones who own them.”

  Kira allowed the insult to roll over her without comment.

  The older Vampire’s smile faded. “How disappointing. I had planned on taking out this clan.”

  She kept her mouth firmly sealed.

  “I know.” His companion sounded depressed. “I was looking forward to slaughtering them. The full-blooded Lycans are so easy to kill it’s not any fun to take one down.”

  It was becoming clear why VampLycans hated Vampires. She masked her expression to hide her dislike of them. They spoke of committing murder in the same tone as some discussed the weather. It left her wondering just how many of their nest had invaded the territory. It would take a lot of them if they honestly believed they could win an all-out battle. She wasn’t about to ask them questions to figure it out.

  “We’ll leave.”

  She breathed a bit easier.

  The older Vampire smiled again. It looked downright evil.

  “But…correct me if I’m wrong, Chris?” He glanced at the younger one. “I do love my Shakespeare. Young lovers running away together to start a new life sounds much more believable. No one would look for us at all.”

  Her hope of surviving plummeted. She tensed as she waited for Chris’s reply. The asshole laughed.

  “That’s so true. They’ll chalk it up to them having a steamy affair. And what would be the fun in leaving without spilling some blood?”

  She cringed. “No one would buy that in a million years. Did you hear me when I said Veso is an asshole? We don’t get along and everyone knows it. He hates humans. I’m more than half.”

  “You’re a pretty woman.” The older one stepped closer, staring down at her. “I’d have an affair with you.”

  Her stomach revolted and she almost dry heaved at the thought of him touching her.

  “Yes, I like that idea.” The older Vamp narrowed the distance between them too. “Your clan will believe you ran away with the VampLycan. Two lovers on the run.”

  “You should believe what I’m telling you. I’m considered off limits by all the men. They don’t want to have weak babies with me. It’s that pesky human blood of mine. I’m good enough to work patrol but nothing more.”

  “I didn’t say he had to mate you.” The Vampire with the accent leered at her. “You’re very fetching, and I know I want to fuck and suck on you.”

  “Thanks,” she managed to get out. “But no thanks. There’s one problem with your lover scenario. I’m so human I can get pregnant without being mated. No VampLycan would take that chance. They also see me as too fragile to want to sleep with. To Veso, I’m about as sexy as that tree behind me.”

  “I don’t believe that.” The older Vampire leered at her breasts, and then suddenly reached out, grabbed her badge and tore it off, the chain snapping. “Any man would want to fuck you.”

  They were going to kill her anyway. “Cold and clammy isn’t my thing.” Her chin rose as she glared at him. “You’d be smarter to go with my plan. They’ll know something is wrong if I disappear. Veso would rather die than end up with someone like me as his lover. He’d rather hump a tree. Everyone knows that except you.”

  Chris laughed. “She’s got spirit, Master.”

  “That she does.” His eyes appeared black in his white face. “Do you know what a thrall is?”

  “I’m immune to hypnotic suggestion.” She immediately regretted admitting that but it was too late. The idea of him attempting to persuade her to do anything sexual seemed too sickening.

  He suddenly lunged and gripped her throat.

  She could breathe but he had a firm hold. Kira didn’t struggle because she could feel his sharp fingernails digging into her neck. He’d rip skin open if she pulled away.

  “I’m five hundred years old,” he hissed. “Do you know what that makes me?”

  She bit back her first reply of him being a conceited asshole
. “Stronger than younger Vampires.”

  “That’s correct.” He leaned in and she smelled his breath. It wasn’t pleasant and he’d fed recently, judging by the strong stench of blood. “It doesn’t take much of my blood to turn someone.” He stared at her with those two evil black eyes, the white of them stark. “But they’re left weak if I’m not generous. It’s how we take brides or create very loyal soldiers. They aren’t strong enough to survive on their own and it leaves them very susceptible to mind control. That immunity you claim would be gone and I could bend you to my will.”

  “My master already owns six brides,” Chris chuckled. “He’ll have one for every night of the week if he adds you to his collection. You don’t have one with her coloring yet.”

  She was really starting to hate his “child”, or whatever he was to the older Vamp. The meaning was clear though, and she’d heard that some of the older Vampires kept a small harem of female lovers. It was said they were near slaves to their masters. Now she knew why they’d take that kind of treatment from a man. They literally had no choice.

  She shivered and had to remember he could rip out her throat if she jerked away. She didn’t heal the way a VampLycan could. The process wasn’t as slow as a human’s but close. Too much blood loss would kill her.

  “She does have pretty eyes, doesn’t she, Chris?”

  “Blue is my favorite color.” The Vamp inched even closer.

  The master turned his head and Kira sucked in a deep breath, happy not to be smelling his last meal anymore.

  “I could give her to you. Is she pleasing enough? I prefer them a little more beautiful.”

  “I wouldn’t kick her out of my bed, Master.”

  “I shall give her to you.”

  Kira had heard enough. She’d rather die than become some bloodbag’s sexual plaything. They were so intent on staring at each other with those creepy smiles, almost as if they were lovers sharing some sick joke, that she was able to slowly lift one leg without their notice. Her fingers tugged at the bottom of her pants and then wrapped around cool metal.

  The shock alone might keep them off her ass for a few minutes. She had the advantage of knowing the area. One shot would be all she’d get off before they realized she wasn’t defenseless. She wouldn’t make it far but hoped they’d be so enraged that they’d kill her outright. It beat becoming the newest member of some Vampire harem, left at the mercy of some jerk who’d turn her into a blood whore. Her father would track the bastards to avenge her but it would be too late.

  It was instinct to want to hurt the one who held her but the younger Vamp would be weaker. She hoped that was the case, anyway. A master would want to protect his creation and that meant he’d make sure Chris was okay before he gave chase. At least in theory.

  “Um, hello?” She drew the master’s attention as he turned his head to peer at her. “Did you turn him, by any chance?” Confirmation would be good.

  “Yes.”

  “Great.” She lifted her arm and shoved the barrel of the small handgun under Chris’s chin, firing as soon as it made contact.

  The sound of the bullet expelling hurt her ears and surprised them all, even though she’d been the one to pull the trigger. Chris was thrown back as blood splattered her face and skin where her shirt didn’t cover her. It was warm and wet.

  The hold on her neck loosened as the older Vampire gasped. She fell back while firing again, seeing an opportunity to take advantage of the master seemingly frozen by witnessing his creation hit the ground. Two bullets tore into the master’s chest.

  She’d barely glanced at Chris as she rolled to her feet, rushing headlong into the woods, but the younger Vampire had been a gory mess, and she’d managed to nail the older Vampire. Her aim had been off; she’d meant to target him in the face but she’d been falling at the time.

  Three bullets were left. She dodged trees, wondering just how long she had before they gave chase.

  A screeching scream pierced the woods and it compelled her to run faster. The anguished sound implied she might have done more damage to Chris than she’d thought possible. Years of training had given her the ability to take in details quickly and retain them. What she’d seen of the younger Vamp hadn’t been pretty. She didn’t load her guns with standard bullets but instead ones designed to blow apart on impact to cause maximum damage.

  Most of Chris’s jaw had been destroyed. It wasn’t a big loss if he wasn’t able to tear into her throat with his fangs. That would take a few hours to heal, since he couldn’t bite anything.

  She turned her focus on where she was headed instead of what had just happened. The river was half a mile away. It might be her only chance at survival. She could hold her breath for at least a minute under water while the rushing current helped her put distance between herself and the bloodbags, and it would hide her body heat from their night vision.

  The crack of a branch snapping from behind was the only warning before a heavy weight slammed into her back.

  Pain exploded through her body where the Vampire impacted, then again when her chest struck the ground. He was heavy and she fought to breathe. Her limbs were shaking as she attempted to push up and roll him off. The gun wasn’t in her hand anymore.

  “You’re going to suffer,” the master warned before his strong hands rolled her over to face him.

  Fangs stabbed into the side of her throat and Kira screamed. The pain lasted only a few seconds before the numbing agent of his saliva dulled it. His jaw clamped down tighter and she knew it wouldn’t take long before blood loss killed her.

  Dirt and grass imbedded in her fingernails as she clawed the cold ground, searching for the gun. He had her pinned flat, too strong to shake off. Every second he fed made her weaker.

  Her thumb brushed cold metal and desperation kicked in.

  He seemed too focused on draining her dry to pay attention to her movements when she clutched at the barrel. It took precious seconds to figure out where the grip and trigger were. A wave of dizziness distracted her focus but she wasn’t ready to die. Her arm felt as though it weighed a hundred pounds when she attempted to lift it.

  I’m dying. Blackness threatened and the panic that swept through her drew the last bits of her strength, but she got the barrel against his body and fired.

  She pulled the trigger over and over. The loud noises and the Vamp jerking from the impact of the remaining three bullets tearing through him slightly roused her. His fangs tore free of her skin before he slumped.

  It was difficult to focus as another dizzy wave passed through her mind and the world began to spin. The heavy weight covering her didn’t move. When she pressed her hand to his chest, she guessed she’d gotten his lungs when she’d shoved the barrel against his ribs. The absence of breathing registered, along with the fact that he’d heal in a matter of minutes.

  Kira had two choices. She could lie there until he recovered enough to finish her off when his wounds mended or do what it took to survive.

  She pushed again but she was too weak to shove him off.

  Fuck! Her eyes opened to stare upward. The full moon finally peeked from behind the clouds to glow brightly in the night sky. The sight was beautiful…

  She made a decision.

  She turned her head, even that slight motion difficult as her lethargic mind tried to shut down. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips. They felt really dry all of a sudden and she took a deep breath as she drew on whatever strength she had left. She found the right spot as she stared at the Vampire’s white skin.

  She didn’t possess fangs but her teeth bit deep as she pressed her open mouth against his throat. A part of her was revolted as she realized what she was doing.

  The taste of blood slowly trickled into her mouth from the shallow wound but it encouraged her to bite harder. She wasn’t about to forget anything he’d said about what she’d become if he didn’t give her enough blood. It gushed out of him as she tore into his throat, almost choking her. Her stomach recoiled as she
swallowed but she ignored it and began to suck, clamping her teeth down harder as her lips sealed around the wound.

  More blood poured from him and she was hopeful that some of those dormant Vampire genes of hers would finally kick in.

  Some of the lightheadedness faded and she actually felt his body shift a little as she continued pushing on him with her hands. He slid more and she rolled them to their sides with the help of her leg once it was free of his, bracing it on the ground. She released his throat and shifted lower, the scent of his blood strong in the air.

  The bullet wounds started to weep a lot of blood and she knew he was recovering, that his heart had started beating faster. Her time was up.

  She rolled the other way, releasing him. Her hand fumbled and she found the handle of the knife. It stuck in the sheath but she managed to get it free.

  The Vampire gasped a deep breath just as she savagely plunged the knife into his chest. It took a lot of effort and the last of her strength to pierce bone.

  It embedded deep and he stopped breathing, going limp under her.

  She tried to remove the knife. Decapitating him would keep him down for good but her hands trembled and the strength wasn’t there. The blade seemed stuck. She tried to twist it to inflict more injury to his heart but it wouldn’t budge. She had become too weak. He’d start to heal around the blade and just pull it out when he became conscious. Time wasn’t on her side.

  It was a struggle to get to her feet but she managed to do it. She stumbled with the grace of a drunk in the direction of the river. Spots appeared before her eyes and she knew it was a sign of pending loss of consciousness.

  Each second counted as she kept going. The sound of the river became her only focus as she bounced off trees in her haste to reach it. Every step was difficult but she kept putting one foot in front of the other. The Vampire wouldn’t be down long.

  The trees thinned enough to let her see a black mass ahead and she found the strength to jog slowly.

  A shriek pierced the night behind her. The Vampire was obviously furious and probably coming after her again.