Not Another Vampire Book (11 page)

Her
head snapped up at the facetious drawl.  Perfect pink lips parted as she gaped
at him.

Damien
shifted uncomfortably under her astonished stare.  The joking comment had been
really
abnormal.  Not at all like his usual self.  It had come from someplace new
inside of him.  Someplace that seemed different from his usual words.  He
didn’t know what to make of the remark, either.

Kara’s
smile returned, again.  Genuine and filled with relief.  “You’ve got real
potential when you act out of character, Vlad.  You should ignore the script
more often.  I think you could come up with better lines.”

More
meaningless words, but at least they seemed like praise of some kind.  He
nodded and held out a hand to her.  The woman spent half her time sitting on
the ground.  “We need to speak about some things.”  Hopefully in English.  She grasped
his palm and Damien held onto it a beat longer than necessary.  His thumb
caressed the back of her hand as he reluctantly stepped away.  “I have
questions.”

“Me
first.  I need to be sure of something.”  Kara gazed up at him.  “Why do you
live here?”

His
head tilted, not expecting that.  “What do you mean?”

“I
mean, why don’t you move someplace less morbid?”

“Not
all of us feel the need for ruby bedroom sets in our
castles
.”  He
snapped, sensing some criticism in her remarks and lashing out instinctively.

“Oh
please.”  As usual, the woman was unfazed by his temper.  “That’s just Tanya
being her usual subtle self.”  Karalynn waved it aside and focused on him
intently.  “Look around and be honest.  Do you seriously
like
this
place?  The truth.”

Damien
blinked.  This ridiculous exercise was important to her.  He could tell.  The
woman was so weird that he halfway suspected the Vampires had pawned her off on
him as a secret weapon.  Testing him for weaknesses.  So why was he willing to
play along with her lunacy?  Why did he never stay angry at her for more than a
moment?

Once
again, he shied away from the answers to those questions.  Examining them too
closely would lead straight to his downfall.

Instead,
he sighed and began studying the space, pretending that he’d never even seen it
before and trying to form an opinion.

Actually,
she was right.  The furnishings were oppressive.  Dark and dreary and covered
in cobwebs.  Did no one clean?  Sometimes servants came and went, but Damien
was never clear on their schedules or from where they appeared.  He hadn’t
hired them, had he?

His
brow furrowed with that foggy memory.

Why
did so many things suddenly not make sense when Karalynn pushed at him?

“Do
you like this room?”  Kara prompted, tensely.  “
You,
Damien.  Just you. 
Think
.”

“No.” 
He said.  “I don’t.”

Kara
let out a shaky breath.  “Thank God.  Thank
God
you can see through some
of this craziness.”

He
snorted at her vehemence.  “I had no idea interior design was so important to
you.”

“It’s
not.  It’s…”  She shook her head.  “Do you know the reason why your home looks
like this?  The reason it’s decorated in a way that you don’t like?”

“No.” 
He finally admitted, glancing around, again.  “I never thought about it.”

Kara
nodded.  “Well, I
do
know the reason.  The reason why sometimes you have
a walking stick and sometimes you don’t.  The reason your scar moves around
your face.  I even know your sister’s name was Amalie.”

Damien’s
jaw sagged.

“You’re
stuck in the
Matrix
, Neo.”  Kara nodded as if that made perfect sense. 
“Sit down and let me tell you about the publishing world.”

The Vampire Isle had never seemed so beautiful, yet Melessa’s
innocent beauty rivaled the Golden Palace for splendor.

Her radiant smile lit the eternal night with
radiantness.  Slade spent his days surrounded by the unequaled beauty of the
Vampires.  His furniture was made from the finest Rubies and his castle from
the purest gold, but he knew that in this angelic human he had found his real
treasure.  In two short days, the Council of Elders would sanctify his
Eternal-Bonding and then… he would never let Melessa go

Eternal
Passion at Sunset- Chapter Five

“I
know it wasn’t technically Slade’s fault, exactly, but I completely blame him
for this whole thing.”  Karalynn paced back and forth in front of the mantle. 
“He just has this annoying ‘
ick
’ about him that makes him such a handy
target.”

“I
agree.”  Damien stayed perfectly still, his eyes sliding over the exposed
length of Kara’s legs.  He sat in a red leather chair, waiting for her to
explain her abilities, while a fire burned in the fireplace.  July or not, the
hotel was always drafty and cold.  Karalynn had a point about that.  She was
pacing around so the flames backlit her miniscule skirt, letting him see every
inch of her thighs.

Slade
would do anything to have her back.  Risk anything.  Truthfully, Damien didn’t
even blame the Vampire for that.  The woman was unique.

Dangerous.

Damien’s
tongue ran over the edge of his teeth as he stared at her bare ankles.  She
wore a golden chain around one that caught the firelight as she walked back and
forth on the Oriental rug.  They’d moved into the hotel’s main sitting room. 
He usually didn’t pay a lot of attention to his surroundings, but Kara asking
him if he liked the bedroom made him more aware of all the décor.  Why did the
hotel look this way?  He must have bought it like this, because he never would
have chosen any of this furniture.

Why
didn’t he remember coming to live here?

The
entire room was decorated in various shades of red and tarnished gold.  Heavy
velvets and fraying tassels abounded.  The wallpaper looked like insects
skittering, but you couldn’t really see too much of it since the walls were all
covered in weapons.  Swords and shields and medieval maces were mounded in
ostentatious patterns.  In the corner, his raven, Lenore, was perched on a full
suit of armor.

No. 
On his own, Damien never would have decorated his home like this.

So
why did it look this way?

The
question swirled in his mind again, and he tried to push it aside.

Despite
the arsenal displaced on the walls and the heavy, dusty fabrics, Kara insisting
that this sitting room was the least creepy spot in his home.  She’d chosen it
as the place for their talk and Damien wasn’t going to argue.  All things
considered, getting her away from a bedroom wasn’t such a bad idea.

His
gaze lingered on the curve of her hip.

She
made him think distracting thoughts.

“Wait,
you don’t think Slade can find us here, do you?”  She glanced over at him and
Damien quickly averted his eyes from her body.  “With like Vampire GPS or
whatever?”

On
average, he understood about one in three words she spoke.  “Slade can’t find
this hotel.  I have it shrouded with my powers.”

That
didn’t mean the Vampire would stop hunting for them, though.  Slade would have
had to be an even bigger idiot than usual to give this woman up.  And it was
impossible to be a bigger idiot than Slade usually was.  With the aid of
Karalynn’s stolen belongings, he’d be scouring the globe for his lost queen.

Bastard.

Kara
looked relieved by the news that Slade was temporarily stymied.  “Good.  Thanks
for helping me dodge him, by the way. 
Again
.  Tanya’s created a male chauvinist
pig for her leading man.  I was seriously worried that he’d club me and drag me
around by my hair next.”

Gods,
her hair was lovely.

 Since
she’d brought it up, Damien’s gaze went to her amazing head of curls. 
“Vampires are vicious.”  He murmured, imagining the coffee colored strands
sliding through his fingers.  “You should avoid Slade.”

Damien
wasn’t about to let an opportunity to badmouth that bastard pass him by. 
Although, he’d never heard of any Vampire abusing their Eternal-One, he’d also
never heard of an Eternal-One refusing her mate before, so he couldn’t predict
how those morons would react.  If he found her, Slade could force Karalynn to
the Vampire Isle against her will.

Something
unexpected twisted in Damien’s chest at the thought.  Something that was nearly
a feeling beyond his burning need for vengeance.

This
woman was definitely dangerous.

He
cleared his throat, trying to get himself back under control.  “If you see
Slade, tell me immediately.”  Because, then Damien could fulfill his plan and
vanquish his foe. 
That
was all that really mattered.

Killing
Slade.

Having
vengeance.

“Oh,
trust me.  If Golden Boy shows up, again, you’re gonna hear about it.”  She
agreed with a scoff.  “I should start carrying around garlic and holy water.”

“Garlic
doesn’t really work on Vampire.  And they drink holy water.”

“They
drink
holy water?”

“Of
course.”  Everyone knew that.  “It keeps them alive.  Well that and the blood.”

Kara
sighed, loudly.  “I hate it when writers start screwing with the established
mythology.  I mean, I get that you can take things and make them your own, but
vampires should have rules, ya know?  Stable, time tested rules, that everyone
can get behind.”  She shook her head in disgust.  “Can they go in the sun or do
they just sparkle?”

“They
will burn to dust in the sunlight.”  He hesitated.  “Except occasionally they don’t,
for some reason.”  He didn’t understand how they could sometimes break the
rules like that and walk outside during the day.  It was frustrating.

Kara
rolled her eyes.  “Yeah, I have a good idea how they manage that trick and her
–probably fake-- name is Tanya St. Clair.”  She headed over to his chair and
sat down on the ottoman in front of it.  “Okay, look.  What I’m going to tell
you is the truth.  I’ll sound insane, but I swear I’m not lying.”

“Oh,
I believe you.”  Damien had ensured her honesty with that water he’d given her
earlier.  He checked the clock on the mantle and saw that the drugs should have
taken effect by now.  She might be immune from his mindreading powers, but no one
could resist the truth herbs.  A few secretly sprinkled into her glass and the
woman was incapable of lying to him for several hours.

The
drug was harmless.  Its only downside was a slightly hung-over feeling the next
morning.  It also worked on absolutely everyone, no matter their species.  He
would discover if she was a really Vampire spy within moments.

Being
a sorcerer still had its perks.

Kara
leaned forward, the firelight adding red highlights to her halo of curls and
Damien nearly groaned.  The woman had no idea how much he wanted her or she
wouldn’t be sitting like that.  She was killing him.

He’d
never expected to feel anything but disgust towards Slade’s bride.  Where the
hell was this unexpected desire coming from?  Why was he letting his prisoner
wander around, distracting him with her presence and softness?  Damien never
let emotions get in his way, because he didn’t have any.  So why was he
hesitating to do anything that might intimidate this woman or make her stop
talking to him like they were… friends?

The
questions came at him again, louder than ever, and he nearly cringed at what
they implied.

“I’m
not from around here.”  She began in a conspiratorial whisper.  “I mean, I am
from Chicago, but not
this
Chicago.  I’m from the
real
Chicago.” 
She hesitated.  “In the future.”

Damien
stared at her.

She
bit her lower lip.  “And it gets even weirder, because this whole thing…”  She
waved an all-encompassing hand.   “All of it.  It’s fake.  It’s a book,
actually.  A romance novel.  A terrible one.  You’re a character in it, at the
mercy of this really horrible plot and lousy dialogue.  Which I know is bad
news, but it’s true.  Somehow, I got stuck in here with you, when my elevator
fell.  I need to get home, only my building has vanished and I don’t know how. 
So, if you could help with that
at all
, I’d be
super
grateful.”

The
truth herbs had obviously not taken effect, yet.

Kara
frowned when Damien remained quiet.  “I can prove it.”  She reached over to
grab a blue book of some kind from the table where she placed it earlier.  “See
this?  This is
Eternal Passion at Sunset
.”  She handed it to him.  “This
is the book we’re somehow living inside of.”

Damien
had no idea why he was humoring her, but he flipped it open and scanned the
contents.  “Most of these pages are blank.”

“I
know!  The chapters keep appearing as we go along.  We’re up to number four
now, see?”  She leaned over to find the page for him.  The woman was either a
consummate liar or deranged, but she smelled incredible.  Damien fantasized about
licking the honeysuckle scent from her skin as she shifted closer to him. 
“Slade’s supposed to be meeting with his Vampire buddies, mooning over Melessa,
but instead he’s never even
met
Melessa.”

“Who’s
Melessa?”  Damien was pretty sure that wasn’t even a name.

“Melessa
is his
real
Eternal-One.  Didn’t you and Slade bother to find out the
name of the girl you were stalking?  She lives in that house.  It was
her
engagement party.  It’s just dumb not to know that.”

Damien’s
head tilted.  Why did that suddenly seem so logical?  Why
hadn’t
he
known the name of Slade’s Eternal-One beforehand?

Kara
sighed.  “Anyway, Melessa’s this gorgeous, perfect, fairy princess of a girl
who any guy would just love to vamprically bond with.  She’s the one both you
boys want.  Real Eternal-One material.”

He
gave his head a clearing shake.  “So you believe that Slade will forego his
mating with you to possess this Melissa woman, instead?”

Impossible.

“It’s
Mel-
essa
and yeah.  Absolutely he will.  And then, he’ll leave me
alone.”

Damien
snorted.  For centuries, every woman Slade met had wanted him.  They flocked to
his side, ripping off their clothes in anticipation.  And now the Vampire’s own
Eternal-One was trying to foist him off on another girl.  It was surely only
temporary, but Damien still relished it.  If for nothing else, he owed Kara for
the pure enjoyment the irony provided him.

Kara
missed his smirk.  “We just gotta get those two lovebirds back together and
everything will be hearts and rainbows for them.  Then, you can kidnap Mel or
whatever stupid plot-point Tanya has up her sleeve.  We’ll
all
be happy.”

Damien
took in her earnest face.  He couldn’t imagine Slade being so blind as to
choose another bride over Karalynn, but then it didn’t pay to underestimate the
shortsighted, arrogance of the Vampires.  Slade never questioned his divine
right to do whatever he chose.  Perhaps he thought he could have two women.

Regardless,
Damien certainly wasn’t going to encourage Kara’s relationship with the
son-of-a-bitch.  She’d just start nagging to go back to the Vampire all the
faster.

“You
don’t want Slade?”  It seemed almost impossible, but he had to be sure.  “You
aren’t here spying as some kind of Vampire plot?”

“Of
course not!  I’m here because I thought you’d help me get away from that
jackass.” 

“And
I will.”  It delighted him to ruin Slade’s wedding plans, just on general
principles.  But, more… Damien really wanted the bride for himself.  He’d
wanted Kara even before he’d known she was Slade’s.  He’d seen her
first
,
as a matter of fact.  When she took off that bizarre woolen cap and shook out
her incredible curls, lust plowed into him like a freight train.  Damien had
never experienced anything like it in his life.  And now she was in
his
house, talking to
him.
The girl was just a means to an end, but she was
his
means to
his
end.

Kara
baffled him, but he wasn’t in hurry to let her go.

After
being alone for centuries, simply having Kara’s voice in his house was a
remarkable experience for Damien.  Having someone to talk to was amazing. 
Besides his raven and the random servant sightings, he’d been alone since the
Vampires slaughtered his sister.  Weeks went by where he didn’t speak a single
word out loud.  Suddenly, he had this human woman who filled up the huge, empty
space with her vibrant energy.  It was seductive. Irresistible.

Karalynn
Donnelly, like all grand destruction, lured her victim willingly to his doom.