Lover's Betrayal: Misfits of the Lore Series (21 page)

The reminder of Maddy helped Kaden focus. “I’m sorry for what happened to her.”

“I know it’s not your fault. The person who did this to her is still out there and I want to find him. Whatever I can do to help, I will.”

“You should go back to Vegas,” Kaden pronounced abruptly.

“I will go where I damn well please.” Reysa’s emerald eyes were turning red. She stalked closer to Kaden, their bodies only inches apart. “Maddy was my friend too, and I will find her killer either on my own or with your help. I will not stop until the SOB is dead. I will destroy anyone who gets in my way, and that includes you.” She stepped back.

Kaden missed her lavender scent as she stepped back away from him. He desperately wanted to follow her. Reysa’s eyes had returned to that exotic jade. He had to admit, he found the red equally attractive and lethal.

Kaden shook his head, trying to focus and ignore his unusual hormonal reaction to this dangerous stranger. “I don’t mean to offend your female sensibilities, but I don’t need another death on my conscience. Maddy loved you and if you died, then I would have failed her again.”

“This isn’t about you and your emotional issues. Get over it. This is about my friend who was butchered. I owe it to her and to her sister to bring her killer to justice. I owe it to all of my fellow misfits who follow me. I protect my people and if I fail, I do what I can to make it right. I will not hide in my club just so you sleep better at night. Accept the fact that I am not going anywhere. Frankly, it looks like you’re not going anywhere anyway, so I don’t think you have much say in this. I’m working with your mother and her wannabe king of immortals.”

“Ah, so you have met Lucian? I take it you’re not a fan either?” Kaden asked.

“His delusions of grandeur are quite amusing. He thinks his little council of cronies can control all immortals. I wonder if the wine and pasta have gone to their heads. I’ve never seen such ignorant arrogance. It’s cute in a kind of GI Joe way.”

Kaden laughed until his voice was hoarse. Olivia stood there, stunned. This woman was going to make things interesting. She already managed to put Kaden in his place and chopped Lucian down to size. “You know, Reysa, I think I love you,” Olivia smiled.

“Me too.” Kaden’s expression became more serious. “Me too,” he whispered.

III

“I need to get out of here, now!” Kaden bellowed. After listening to his mother and Reysa discuss one empty lead after another, his patience was at its end. He had been bound to this wall for what felt like an eternity while everyone else was looking for the evidence that would be the key to his life or his death. Feeling this helpless while his fate was left in the hands of others, most of them who wanted him dead, was too much to bear.

“I know this is hard for you, my son, but please just give us a little more time.”

Kaden roared in fury as he tried to rip his chains from the wall. He did not want to fall apart, especially in front of Reysa, but the pressure was overwhelming. He was like a caged beast on the brink of madness. Being caged brought back painful memories he had worked so hard to suppress. They were resurfacing and suffocating the life from him.

Olivia hated to see her child in so much pain. He was sweating profusely as he struggled again his chains. His pallor was ghostly, his breathing labored. He continued pulling at his chains even as his skin bled. It was like he could not feel the pain. He was blinded by his need to be free. Kaden was fighting himself and fighting his fear. Olivia feared he would not last in this room much longer.

She wanted nothing more than to free him, but she knew Lucian would never agree. She would have gladly traded places with Kaden and taken away his torment. She could see how hard he was struggling to keep it together. Kaden hated to show weakness and Olivia knew that it hurt his pride even more to show it in front of Reysa.

Reysa looked equally upset at seeing Kaden in this condition. Olivia watched as the exotic warrior reached out to Kaden. He snarled at her like an animal, but she showed no fear as she gently cupped his cheek with her right hand, and rubbed her left along the top of his head in a calming motion. Olivia watched in awe as Reysa somehow managed to calm the beast within Kaden. He was responding to her soothing touch. No one had managed to calm Kaden before when he lost control, but this stranger’s touch was the miracle elixir.

Reysa eased herself and Kaden to the ground as she continued to run her fingers through his hair gently massaging his scalp. “He needs blood,” Reysa stated. Olivia looked around the room, but there was no blood in sight. Before she could call out to the guard to provide some, she heard gentle sucking sounds. She turned around and saw Kaden feeding from Reysa’s wrist.

“Vampires can’t feed from other vampires unless they are mated,” Olivia noted.

“I’m a half breed,” Reysa acknowledged. “Those rules don’t apply to me.” At least Reysa hoped those rules did not apply, but this was the first time another vampire had fed from her. She eased Kaden back. He watched her with eyes that looked truly satisfied. He did not speak, but he grabbed her wrist and gently licked the mark of his bite, sealing her skin again. He continued to watch her closely as she stood up to talk to Olivia. Her limbs were shaky as she approached Olivia. She tried to convince herself that Kaden just took a little too much blood, but her body was on fire with a need that Reysa had never felt. This was dangerous territory. She took a deep breath and regained her focus although her composure was still shaky.

“I don’t know what his deal is, but he definitely won’t last here much longer. If your bureaucrat bodyguard won’t set him free, then I will.”

“How?” Olivia questioned.

“I know a charmer. She could undo those shackles and I can dematerialize him out of here before anyone was the wiser.”

“You could dematerialize with another person?”

“With several, actually, although it may take a little longer.”

Olivia knew Corinne would be jealous to hear about Reysa’s abilities. She could not help but wonder what else this warrior could do.

“No!” Olivia and Reysa turned to see Kaden staring at them. His color had returned and his eyes were razor sharp. The beast was controlled again, at least for the moment.

Kaden stood and faced both women. “It’s too dangerous. If Lucian found out you helped me, and he would find out, you would end up in just as much trouble as I. Don’t risk your freedom for me.”

“I’m not scared of Lucian and his council of minions. You’re innocent, but it won’t matter if we don’t get you out of here. You won’t last much longer.”

Kaden knew it was true, but his pride would not allow him to admit such weakness. He hated that this woman’s opinion mattered so much, but he could not deny it. She may have seen that moment of weakness, but he would not allow her to witness another. “I have survived worse than this. I don’t need your help.” Kaden realized how silly his words were, considering it was Reysa who nursed him back to sanity not long ago. He needed her to be safe, and what she was planning was too dangerous.

“Did you forget your little meltdown a few minutes ago?” Reysa inquired. “You certainly needed my help then.”

“I would have handled it. I was just hungry.”

“A few minutes more and you would have been crying like a baby. Maybe you were hungry. Babies do cry when it’s time for a feeding.” Reysa knew she should not antagonize him, but she hated when men could not graciously accept a woman’s help. Kaden was like all the rest. He would rather pretend that everything was under his control than admit she helped him.

Kaden was furious. He wanted to strangle this enchanting, sexy warrior and then kiss her senseless. What! Kaden was horrified by his own thoughts. He reminded himself how much Reysa was annoying him at the moment. He concentrated on his anger and pushed his wanton desire aside. “You give yourself way too much credit. What a hero complex you have. I don’t need rescuing from a woman who runs a Las Vegas whorehouse. Thanks for your help, but why don’t you be a good madam and get back to your girls?” Kaden hated being so harsh, but he needed Reysa to be safe and if making her hate him was the only option, then he would take it.

Reysa recoiled as if Kaden had slapped her. His words stung, but they inflamed her more than upset her. She slowly walked over to him, betraying no emotion in her face. She wrapped her fingers tightly around his neck and squeezed, sapping all the breath in Kaden’s lungs. “You want to call me a whore? Fine, but don’t you dare insult my girls. Now, I’ll be back in a jiffy with my charmer. She and I will rescue your pathetic alpha male wannabe ass. Once again, the mighty vampire Kaden will be saved by the whore. I wonder if there will be anything left of your pride after this is all over?” Reysa vanished a second later leaving Kaden with Olivia.

“How could you speak so cruelly to her after she helped you?” Olivia questioned. “You’re lucky she is still willing to help you. Most women would have let you rot.”

Before Kaden could respond, Reysa reappeared with a stunning child that looked to be about five years old. “I thought it would be more amusing to have a child rescue your sorry ass.”

“Tatiana, my love, can you release those bonds?” Reysa spoke the words as she used her hands to explain. Kaden watched as the young girl followed the motion of Reysa’s hands. He realized the little girl was deaf.

The child nodded and walked over to Kaden. She smiled up at him with silver eyes that were filled with kindness and innocence. Those eyes were the same color as her hair, which was braided down her back. The child possessed a unique beauty.

Tatiana touched Kaden’s wrist where the shackles bound him to the wall. She closed her eyes and Kaden’s right hand was released. The child repeated the motion and released the shackles on Kaden’s left hand and his ankles. Within minutes, he was free.

Kaden, with an open hand, touched his fingers to his lips and then extended his hand outward, signing “thank you.” The little girl’s face beamed momentarily, melting Kaden’s heart. She signed “you’re welcome” and ran back to Reysa. Reysa narrowed her eyes, looking at Kaden incredulously. Before Kaden could gloat over Resya’s shock, she and the child disappeared.

Reysa returned a few minutes later. “I think it’s time we get you out of here, unless you really want to stay.”

Olivia knew Kaden was too stubborn to thank Reysa, so she did it on his behalf. “Thank you, Reysa. We appreciate all your help with this.”

Reysa touched Olivia’s shoulder and then Kaden’s, and the three of them disappeared.

Lorenzo knocked on the door and then strolled into Lucian’s office before he could respond. The office was pitch black except for a small desk that barely illuminated the space the papers lying in disarray. Lucian was not sitting at the desk. Lorenzo used his senses to locate Lucian in the corner. His vibrant blue eyes were the only light to penetrate the shadows of this tiny space.

“Hiding in the dark won’t change anything, my friend.” Lorenzo flipped the light switch. Lucian growled, but did not stop him. “We have important business matters to discuss, but if you need to talk to me as a friend about Olivia, we can start there.”

Lucian never spoke of Olivia to Lorenzo or anyone else. For years he refused to utter her name and even now, the thought of discussing her felt forbidden, yet he wanted nothing more than to unburden himself. He could trust no one more than Lorenzo: his best friend, who stopped him from destroying his life when he lost Olivia all those years ago. It was Lorenzo who found him in an alley in Madrid -- starving, crazed, and lashing out at everyone who approached him. Lucian could not even remember how he ended up in Spain, never mind that deserted alley, but he remembered Lorenzo towering over him. His father had sent Lorenzo to find him.

Lucian’s first instinct was to attack, but he was in no condition to take on the illusive Lycan. Lorenzo easily tossed him around like a rag doll until he finally stayed down. Lorenzo, in his annoyingly calm manner, lifted him up and carried him to an apartment. When he awoke, he was back in Sorrento, cleaned and dressed with a pitcher of blood waiting for him. Lucian downed the blood immediately, satiating that painful hunger which had nearly driven him to madness.

As he fed, his strength returned. He tried to escape, but there was no window to open or door to run through. He was trapped. He punched, scratched, and tore at everything around him, but there was no escape from this prison. Despite the amenities, he felt like a jailed beast. Vampires hated to feel confined. A coffin was the last place one would find a vampire. That was just another myth passed on by ignorant humans.

It was believed that the first vampire was a gifted human with psychic ability who was buried alive. He had spent weeks underground before he was able to free himself. This torment led to madness and when he finally escaped, he became a starving mindless beast. He went on a killing spree, leaving countless bodies behind. He drank the blood of his victims and increased his strength to something inhuman. He also terrorized many women, passing along his bloodthirsty gene from generation to generation.

Lucian did not quite believe the story, but he could certainly understand the fear of confinement. He could not help but think of Olivia’s words as she confronted him about Kaden’s imprisonment. He had imprisoned many throughout his career with the Council, but he learned to desensitize himself from the dread that such confinement caused. Besides, most arrested were guilty and deserved this punishment and more. The innocent did not deserve this torture, yet this was the Council way and he pledged to abide by it. Some days he really hated his job, but the Council, in many ways, saved his life. It gave him a focus, purpose, a means to move beyond his pain and do something to help all immortals.

A few days with Olivia and he was lost and confused again. His perfectly constructed orderly world was crumbling. Could he survive losing her again?

“Lucian!”

Lorenzo’s firm tone helped Lucian regain his focus. “Sorry. I was thinking about that time when you found me in Madrid and locked me away in that prison.”