I couldn’t satisfy my curiosity without putting her at risk, and that was a danger I was unwilling to accept.
“You know exactly what step three is,” I muttered to myself. “Forget about her.” If I could successfully compel her, I needed to walk away. I would provide her a new cello and see that she was never hired to play at another vampire function.
I glanced at my Rolex, relieved to see the cocktail party would be over soon. Minutes ticked by, and Thea didn’t appear. After being alive as long as I had, time rarely registered with me. But waiting out here for her was a different story. I moved closer to the door. I wouldn’t usually invade her privacy, but tonight was far from ordinary. After all, I’d just revealed the existence of vampires to a mortal. That was a decent justification for crossing the line. As I suspected, no sound came from inside. It was deadly quiet.
Maybe she was right. Maybe I’d gone insane during my extended break from the world. Perhaps I was breaking too many rules, but I couldn’t ignore the dread tugging my hand toward the door. I’d nearly given in to my weakness when I managed to get a hold of myself.
I was not going to interrupt a lady in the toilet.
But before I could step away, I heard a faint slurp. Instinct flared inside me, and I inhaled deeply, catching another scent drifting in the air. I’d missed it before, too intoxicated by Thea’s presence to realize I’d led her to another vampire. There was no time for second-guessing myself. My fangs extended instantly as I burst through the door.
Thea stood in the middle of the room, her body angled between the door and the stalls. Relief washed over me when I saw she was alone, but it was short-lived. Her eyes widened as I came into view, but she didn’t move or speak. Frantic energy poured from her, and instinct took over. I bounded toward her, needing to place her within reach. But as I came closer, a drawling voice called out from an open bathroom stall. “These ones are taken.”
I swiveled toward the vampire, placing myself between him and her. “I don’t think so.”
“Look, they’re not familiars, and the hors d’ oeuvres are seriously lacking here. I thought I was going to die of boredom.” He released the woman in his arms, and she slumped, unconscious, to the floor. Her head hit the toilet with a crack. “If you don’t mind, mate.”
He prowled toward me, obviously intent on finishing Thea off as well.
“I do, actually, and I’m not your mate,” I growled.
He smirked at me. I resisted the urge to take his head off. Barely. Tension gripped every muscle of my body. A low rumble started in my chest as I prepared to attack.
“Whoa!” He stopped and held his hands up. “I didn’t know.”
“Know what?” I spit the words at him but didn’t wait for him to respond. “That it’s bad manners to dine on a mortal at a party? Or that it’s illegal to drain one in public?”
“This is hardly public–”
I cut off the pitiful excuse. “Or maybe you simply didn’t realize who you’re speaking to.”
The vampire’s throat slid as he studied me. It was clear from his immaturity that he was young. He hadn’t been born a vampire, either. While plenty of purebloods flouted the rules, he wore no gloves at a party full of witches. That either meant he was turned or stupid. No pureblood would be caught without them at an event like this. None of us would take that risk. I considered asking him who his sire was. Technically, they should be the ones to deal with this mess.
But instead of falling into line, his eyes narrowed. “You’re one of them,” he said. “A filthy pureblood. You think you can just order me around?”
“I know I can,” I roared.
“I don’t give a shit who you are, granddad.” He charged toward me, another smirk twisting his lips.
He might have a hang-up about purebloods, but I was older and faster. Only his body shifted along with that cocky smile. He never made it a step closer to Thea. My gloves were off before he even blinked. One second I closed my fingers around his neck. The next his head was in my hands. His body swayed for a moment before crashing to the floor and leaking blood on the tile. I dropped his head next to the rest of him.
But I didn’t care about him or the mess killing another vampire–even a fledgling jackass like him–could cause. Whipping around, I reached for Thea.
“Are you okay?” I asked as she began to tremble. Soon tremors racked her whole body. Her face tipped up to answer me, but when she opened her mouth, an ear-splitting scream tore from it. I pulled away from the piercing noise. “Well, your lungs seem to be working.”
The cry finally died on her lips. She stared at me, then looked at the bloody remnants of the man who tried to attack her. “You killed him.”
“I did,” I said smoothly. She’d seen me do it, so there was no point debating the matter. Plus, it wasn’t like I could charm her into believing otherwise.
“Why?” She spoke so softly I wasn’t sure she meant to say it out loud.
I answered anyway. She was clearly in shock, so I tried to be gentle. Unfortunately, I was out of practice. “Because he deserved it,” I said in a gruff voice. “Do you have a problem with that?”
She considered for a moment before she slowly shook her head.
I blinked in surprise. The response caught me completely off guard after her scream.
“Do you tear heads off often?” Her head tilted as if she was really looking at me for the first time.
“Only when–”
“They deserve it,” she finished for me.
She was taking this remarkably well, but I suspected when the adrenaline wore off, she wouldn’t be so calm.
“Now, will you finally let me escort you home?” I struggled to make it sound like she had a choice. If I had to throw her back over my shoulder and lock her up at my place, I would.
“He’s dead.” She licked her lower lip. It glistened in invitation, and I looked away. “Why do I need to leave now?”
I raised my hand and pinched the bridge of my nose, wondering if she ever ran out of questions. “Because I’m a vampire.”
“I kinda figured that out when you, uh, ripped off his head.” She shifted on her feet, but, despite seeing what I was capable of, there wasn’t an ounce of fear on her face.
“And that doesn’t bother you? Because–and I realize this might be counterproductive to my plans–it should.”
She lifted her chin a little. The small act of defiance tugged at me. Thea was brave. “You said you wouldn’t hurt me.”
She obviously had zero survival instincts.
