eyes. She'd never spoken to a vampire
before and she wouldn't be any time
soon if she couldn't get her tongue to
work.
She tamped down her first
instinct to grab the wooden stake she
always kept at her back. It wouldn't do
her any good anyway, seeing that she
didn't have it with her. Trainers had
drilled the 'stake first' mantra into all
their trainees, not that she ever did. The
last time she was around a vampire was
during the last attack, before all hell
broke loose. It wouldn't do to kill him,
though, especially since they were
supposed to be on the same side of the
whole Weed versus Bane feud.
“You don't have to be afraid, Ivy.
I have no intentions of hurting you,” he
said, finally releasing his hold on her
hand.
Her brain finally decided to kick
in and joined the party. “How do you
know my name?”
His voice rang out as he laughed.
It was such a joyous noise, and she hated
him at that moment for not being the
monster she grew to expect of his kind.
“I have these things called ears.”
He pointed to the side of his head. “The
satyr called you that when he left.”
“It hardly seems fair for you to
know my name when I have no clue who
you are.” She didn't know where this
courage was coming from, but she hoped
it lasted.
“My apologies. My name is
Hyong-zoo Lee, but please call me Zoo.”
He presented his hand, which she took
after a second’s hesitation. The coldness
of his skin shocked her, even though he
was just touching her a second ago.
She smiled and nodded politely
as she glanced around the bar, searching
for her friends. Athena was laughing it
up with the pack in the corner. Thane
was talking to a different woman, again,
much older than he was. And Garren sat
across the room, charming a few women,
if the lovesick look on their faces was
any indication. They were all so
involved in their own conversations, she
could be on fire and they wouldn't
notice.
“Well, Zoo,” she said, hopping
off the stool. “It was nice meeting you,
but—”
“I know who you're looking for.”
He was leaning in so close his cool
breath tickled her throat.
She pulled back in shock. Can he
read my mind? “What? H-how?” She
gawked at him with her mouth hanging
open.
Zoo smiled and pointed over her
shoulder to Thane. “Your friend isn't
very subtle in his quest for information.”
She sat back down and absently
took another sip of her Poison Apple.
Damn it. She struggled to keep a straight
face as she swallowed.
By the look of amusement in
Zoo's eyes, she failed. She assumed he
had the information she wanted, since he
brought the subject up, but he wasn't
saying anything. He just sat there,
sipping at his glass with a red liquid
inside. She didn't even want to think
about what it was. Of course, with her
track record with him so far, it was
probably just tomato juice.
Her impatience got the better of
her, so she turned her body towards him
and crossed her legs. “So...”
“So...” He swiveled around in
his seat, his knee grazing against her.
This coy game he was playing grated her
nerves. She didn't know how to drag the
information out of him. If Athena was
talking to him, she'd know everything by
now, including the mystery of boxers or
briefs.
“Well, are you going to tell me
or not?”
Zoo chuckled and reached out his
hand to slowly run it down the side of
her arm. “You have a lot to learn about
using seduction to get what you want.”
A shiver ran down her body from
his touch. He stopped at her hand and
curled his fingers around hers. “Come.
One dance before I give you what you
seek.”
Her body acted on his command
without hesitation, despite the protests
from her brain. He was still very
dangerous, but slightly charming. Quick-
tempered and unpredictable, vampires
were tolerated members of the magical
community— glad to have on the team
when at war with Eradicators, but not
wanted at the victory party.
Is he using some sort of hocus
pocus on me?
Zoo was the perfect gentleman
on the dance floor, keeping a respectable
distance between them as they swayed to
the music. She was sure he noticed the
nervous sweating of her palms and back,
but he didn't say anything.
“So, how do you know where
Prince Sebastian is hiding?” Might as
well get right to the point.
“Well, when you’ve been around
as long as I have, you learn things.”
“And
you’ve
learned
that
he’s…?”
Zoo laughed and twirled her
around like a ballerina. “You’re all
business, aren’t you? I will tell you after
our dance.”
She caught a glimpse of Garren,
glaring at them from a table full of
women trying to get his attention. He
was mouthing something, but she had no
idea what it was. She was so distracted
trying to decipher Garren's message, that
she never noticed Zoo leaning in until
the base of her neck tingled from the
touch of his lips.
She gasped and pulled away, her
heart pounding.
The smile that he wore since he
sat next to her vanished. “I'm sorry. I
don't know what came over me, but you
just smell so... delectable.”
“Yeah.” She forced a laugh. “I
get that all the time.” She stepped back
to put some much needed space between
them. “I thought you guys couldn’t feed
off witches. Something about our magic
making you sick.”
Zoo chuckled, regaining his
charming composure. “That’s true, but
you might be worth the pain.”
Oh, that makes me feel so much
better.
“Don’t look so scared. We don’t
need to kill to feed, and most of us
don’t.”
“Most?”
This
wasn’t
new
information, but the way he spoke made
the little hairs on the back of her neck
stand on end.
He settled his hand on her waist
and slowly brought her closer. With his
other hand, one of his fingers trailed a
path
down her temple, along her jawline
and down the curve of her neck, causing
a shudder to roll through her body.
“Don’t worry. You’re safe with
me.” His dark eyes captured hers and
held tight. Despite what he said, he
looked like he wanted nothing more than
to eat her up.
Breathing suddenly became a
foreign concept. She swallowed, trying
to compose herself to reply when she
was yanked sideways by her elbow.
Garren gripped her arm and
pulled her behind him. She stumbled into
him but didn’t protest his caveman
gesture. Zoo was starting to creep her
out. But she still needed him to tell her
where the prince was hidden.
Wanting to ease the tension
before Garren bruised her arm, she
smiled and introduced the two men.
“Zoo knows where we can find
Prince Sebastian and was just about to
tell me, weren’t you?”
Zoo broke the stare down he was
having with Garren and his eyes flitted
over to her.
His features softened as he
smiled. “Of course.” But before he could
say another word, the screeching noise
of sirens rang throughout the club.
All movement stopped.
“Clear out. Banes have breached
the wards,” a voice called out over the
speakers. A heartbeat later, chaos
reigned. Every person scrambled for the
nearest exit, knocking anyone in their
Garren wrapped his arms around
her in a protective cocoon and headed
for the exit, next to the bar. She tried to
find Thane and Athena as she was
pushed toward the door. Zoo was right
behind them as they managed to shove
their way through the crowd to the chilly
night air. All around, people were
fleeing, either by flight like the faeries or
by charmed transporters, which were
extremely expensive and hard to come
by. Too bad we couldn’t afford to buy a
couple of those from Irene.
After a moment of chaos, there
was… nothing— no signs of Eradicators
raiding the club. Maybe it was just some
curious teenagers wanting to check out
the presumable-empty place.
The night air chilled her skin
where Garren wasn’t touching her. His
arms tightened around her. She felt safe,
until his protective embrace started to
crush her. “Did you lead your boyfriend
and his friends here?” The accusation
reached around her throat and squeezed.
She jerked out of his hold and
stepped back. “No,” she said, her voice
thick with emotion. Regret seemed to
play across his face but it was quickly
replaced with a sneer. It was going to
take more than wearing a cocktail dress
to earn his trust back.
Zoo hovered over her, glaring at
Garren. The last thing she needed was an
overprotective vampire hanging around.
“Thanks for the dance, but I need
to find my other friends and get out of
here. Could you tell me where the prince
is now?”
Garren remained next to her,
puffing up as tall and intimidating as he
could make himself. By the smile on his
face, Zoo seemed amused by Garren's
posturing. She rolled her eyes.
“Pioneer Park.” He said and then
took off.
Where the hell is that? She tried
to run after him to make sure she heard
right, but he was gone. Just like that.
“Well,” she said as she walked up to
Garren. “Maybe by this time tomorrow
night, we'll have the prince and I'll be...
kissing... him.” Bile rose in her throat.
A broad smile spread across
Garren's face and his body slumped into
a more relaxed stance. “That's right, how
could I forget? Hey don't worry,” he said
as he put his arm around her shoulders.
“A
little
necrophilia
never
hurt
anybody.”
Disgusted by that thought, she
jammed her elbow into his ribs as hard
as she could.
“Ow. I was kidding.” Garren
held his side, no longer laughing, as they
walked toward the car parked beyond
the fence about a hundred feet away.
Goose bumps raised on her arms
from the chilly, night air. Rubbing them
with her hands really wasn't warming
her up.
Next time I dress like a hooker,
I'm wearing a jacket. I don't care what
Athena says.
She scanned the area as they
walked for any signs of Thane and
Athena, or danger lurking in the
shadows. The clicking of her heals
echoed off the brick buildings.
“Do you have to make so much
noise? You’re broadcasting our location
to whoever's out there.”
“I'm sorry, but these boots
weren't made for stealth.” She tried to
take lighter steps, but it didn't help much.
“Psst.”
They both stopped in their tracks
as they scanned the area. They were the
only people outside as far as they could
see.
“Psssssst.”
The noise came from the other
side of a railroad car. She pulled Garren
with her as they stalked toward it. They
stopped a few feet from the shadows, not
trusting completely that whoever was
trying to get their attention was friendly.
Squinting didn’t help to see in the
shadows.
“Will you just get your ass back
Once they were submerged in the
darkness, Ivy could make out the shapes
of Athena and Thane.
Athena didn't move as she
surveyed the area separating them from
their car. She sniffed the air. “There's
someone out there, probably your
buddies.”
“They’re not my… Whatever.”
Ivy sighed. What was the point in
defending herself? Athena was most
likely trying to get a rise out of her,
anyway.
“Can you do what you did
before? You know, with the stone?”
Garren asked. They all huddled together
against the train car. She shivered
despite the extra warmth from the shared
body heat.
“Good idea. Let me get…” She
smacked her chest a couple times. “Oh,
that’s right, I’m not wearing it because it
didn’t go with this ensemble,” she said
through clenched teeth. Although she
couldn’t see it in the darkness, she was
sure Athena rolled her eyes.
“I thought Eradicators can sense
each other through the mark,” Thane
said. “Can you fee
l if they’re out there?”
“Sorry. Not with you guys
around. But I think we should assume the
worst.”
There were too many dark hiding
places to really know where or how
many lay in wait for them.
“Should we split up and make a
run for it?” she asked.
“Good idea. I'll stay with Ivy,” a
deep voice said from behind her.
She jumped, barely cutting off a
rising scream. “Damn it!” she hissed as
she spun around to see Zoo. She could
just make out his silhouette in the dark.
“I thought you left.”
“I had to make sure you were
safe.”
“Well, you almost gave me a
heart attack.”
Athena smacked her arm. “Can
we get out of here now? Garren and I
will go first, then Thane and Ivy. Your
friend can watch your back from here.”
She wanted to argue that she and
Zoo weren't friends but decided not to
waste her breath. Athena thread her arm
through Garren’s as if they were taking a
leisurely evening stroll.
Bright
evening
stars,
oily
asphalt, and death lurking in the
shadows. How romantic.
Garren and Athena made their
way across the lot and then around the
corner of a building without any
problems. She strained to hear any sign
of trouble after they disappeared from
sight. After several minutes passed with
no screams or sounds of a fight, she
assumed they made it safely. Hopefully
their ease of escape meant Athena was
wrong about someone lurking about, but
the knot in her stomach didn't go away.
“Come on, Ivy, our turn.” Thane
tugged at her elbow as he stepped into
the open.
Her feet didn't move, but as soon
as the moonlight shone on Thane, the
urge to protect him moved her forward.
His magic wasn’t effective fighting any
Eradicators who might attack. Her loud
footsteps made it impossible to listen for
any signs of approaching danger. The
uncomfortable feeling of being watched
prickled at the back of her neck.
“Pick up the pace,” she said.
They raced around the corner and nearly
collided into two men. Light from a
faraway street lamp cast their faces in
shadow. They were big, bulky and not
what she wanted to face at the moment.
“Hey, Ivy,” said Kyle. “You
almost fooled me with the new look, but
your voice gave you away. You look hot,
by the way.”
Fear
squeezed
her
chest,
pressing on her lungs until breathing