The Vampire & the Reporter (5 page)

“Afterwards they looked at me, smiled… and bowed, like it w
as part of
a
performance. Then they just disappeared… vanished. I spent most of the night looking for trap doors or projectors, somet
hing to
explain it
, but there was nothing.” Cecilia looked at her expectantly as if
she could provide an answer
.

“Perhaps we should leave. This is nothing at all like I expected,” Kyra suggested.

“
Yes,
I am su
rprised by what took place last night too but t
h
ere are still six days left, and
I’d
like an opportunity to experience t
his “journey” to its fullest to
find out what’s really going on here.”

Chapter Four

“I take it your morning was productive?
” Dumitri materialized behind her as she looked out the parlor window. Kyra started at hi
s sudden appearance even though
she’d expected him, somehow knowing he
would seek her out eventually.

“I would like to leave,” she stated, not turning to face him. “You may have charmed all the others with your macabre journey crap, but I
sure as hell don’t want any part of it
.”

He
sighed as if bored with the
suggestion.
“You know I cannot
allow this.”

His answer didn’t surprise her. Kyra
watched an animated conversation below be
tween the two Brits and briefly and
wondered what it could be about before refocusing on her own dilemma.

“Why?”

“Because you belong with me
,
in time you will understand
.”

“Excuse me if I don’t believe that, so is everyone else bein
g held captive or does the d
istinct honor belong to me alone?
”

There was a long pause before Dumitri spoke again. “
You are not a captive.
Come with me. I w
ish to speak with you someplace where we will not be interrupted
.”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”
Kyra
still couldn’t bring
herself to look at him. She knew her resolve would be lost if she did. She couldn’t explain it, but the man… creature… whatever he was, wrecked havoc on her senses. She wasn’t herself around him, had proven her lapse by givin
g herself
to him
last night
.

“You test me with your denials. Our destiny is together. It has been written since before our births. All that is
left is for us to complete the
bond
ing
.”

“And if I don’t want that? I have a life back in
Chicago, complete with friends…
and William.” She’d almost forgotten him in all of the madness. A twinge of guilt washed over her.

“You will not mention him again,” he raged, whirling her around in a swift motion that left her head spinning. “Do you wish this man’s death?”

“Of course not,” she replied breathlessly, staring
up into the storm that was his eyes.

“The
n you will submit to me fully.”

“I… I can’t…” she protested as he swept her up in his arms, cradling her as if she
were a child.

“You must and you will.”

With supernatural speed, he moved
. It seemed only seconds had passed before they were inside a room in the depths
of the castle. At least she thought it was the bowels, although its exact location was blurred by their speed of travel
she’d had the distinct impression they were traveling down. The
darkened interior obscured any view she might have of what was in store for her.

“You ar
e one of the Worthy.”

He settled
her onto a soft surface.
A bed. Her pulse
quickened.

“The only true mate to a vampire.
My true mate.
”

She
inched away from the sound of his voice feeling behind her to avoid an unexpected drop off
.
“
Vampire? Wow, you’re really trying to sell the whole package aren’t you? Well the dark brooding thing you have down I’ll give you that much, but you’ve come on just a little too strong with the whole seduction of the unsuspecting tourist bit.
”

“This is no game Kyra.”

“All right, all right, for the sake putting an end to this experience. Let me just say you’ve stumbled onto a gold mine here. You’ll have everyone on Team Edward beating down your door for a stay, and I’ll even write a banner review…just stop this right now,” her voice waivered at the end of her speech.

S
ilenced yawned.

“How is
you know nothing about your heritage?”
he asked softly.

He was closer. How was that possible, she hadn’t felt any movement? “You know, I’m having a hard time trying to hold a conversation in the dark you want to hit a light or something?”

“Your family has never talked to you about the Worthy?”

She remembered hearing the French man say something about it earlier. Wh
at the hell was it supposed to mean
? Worthy of what? Even if she had an idea of what he was talking about Kyra didn’t feel inclined to answer especially since he insisted on talking in the dark. If the ploy was meant
to unnerve her it was working.

“
Your kind was made for mine. You, specifically for me.”

“This makes no sense.” She shook her head in denia
l, gasping as he encircled one ankle in his large warm hand
, dragging her
back across the distance she’d gained. The feel of something soft encircling where his fingers
once
were
had Kyra jerking for freedom with fervor.

“What are you doing?” She managed to sit up as her second ankle was bound. A
hand pressed against her flat abdomen, pushing her back onto the surface.

“No!” she protested, as each wrist suffered the same fate as her ankles. The bonds were secure but with enough slack to allow her slight movement in her limbs.
She was trapped, with a man who seemed to be taking this Dracula thing just a bit too far. Left with little choice she did the one option available to her. Kyra inhaled deeply then let loose the loudest scream possible. At first she expected to feel his hand covering her mouth but when that didn’t come she continued her shrieking.

Should I gag yo
u as well to gain your silence?
H
e was in her head again.

Oh God, no
, Kyra’s mind wailed, even as she willed herself to calm down.

“Answer me, Kyra.”

“No, I don’t want to be gagged
.”

“Good, then you will listen to me
. No one can hear you we are.
”

Of course not. “Just so you know you’re doing the exact opposite of building trust at the moment,
” The retort slipped out.

The gentle rumble above her caused her body to tense for several seconds before she realized he was laughing.

“I’m
glad one of us is enjoying ourselves
,” she muttered.

“Trus
t me, my dear, before the
night is over you
’
ll experience pleasure beyond your wildest imaginings.”

“I doubt that.”

“
Don’t try to
distract me with
your obvious challenge. Should
I
remind you of the pleasure you
gained from me last night
?”

“I thought I was dreaming.”

She could almost hear his shrug. “We both know that was not the case.”

She felt silly trussed up and arguing with him in the dark. “Do you mind turning on a light or something?”

“Since you’ve asked so nicely
,
meu dulciuri
, of course I will.
” The words were barely out his mouth before one wall sconce, and then another illuminated the darkened room, until it glowed with several of the antiquated flaming lights.

“How did you…” The question trailed away as she slowly took in her surroundings. There were no windows, or door for that matter. With the exception of the torch-like lights and ill-placed swords, the dark stone walls were bare. In fact, she lay on what was the only bit of furnishing in the room. It was a bed of some sort, not quite as large as the one in the room she was given but still roomy enough for two people. Her gaze traveled the length of her bound wrist, up the constraining material to the metal chain at the opposite end.

“I haven’t done much here because I know how particular women are about decorating.
In fact I thought I still had several more years before bringing my mate here.
”

“
Your who…” Her next words trailed off but were
r
eplaced
with a
scream that had Dumitri plugging his ears.

Kyra thrashed as a hovering Dumitri secured a gag around her mouth. She stared up at him in wide-eyed wonderment. There was nothing holding him in place. She was sure of that, yet he levitated over her as if it were a natural
everyday
occurrence.

“
Let’s try this again.
As I said before, you are one of the Worthy,
a race of people that are both
human and vampire. Capable of fully mating with a vampire
and creating life.
It is through you that I’ll
be able to walk uninhibited in the daylight and will know complete joy.”

This is joke, I’m
human. I would know if I were something else
, she ranted mentally knowing he would be able to hear her, as unbelievable as that still was to her.

“To all but your true
life
mate
that is what y
ou appear to be. Now that I’ve found you, I can unleash the
dormant part of your genetics.”

And what if it’s not what
I want
?
I’m happy with my life as it is. I don’t want to be a vampire.

“I realize
this is hard for you to take in. I
wish there was some way
I
could make it easier for you accept.”

I will never accept it
, never accept you
.

Kyra watched as some unreadable emotion flashed over his eyes before the
feral look took hold causing them to glow the same way
she’d witnessed the night before.

“I am sorry
you feel that way because you will be mine
Kyra, make no mistake about it
.
”

Without s
o much as a touch from him,
she
heard the shredding of fabric
and stared in bewilderment as her clothes pulled from her body.
Dumitri’s eyes glowed even brighter as the ruined material was tossed across the room, leaving her
exposed to
him.

The predator in him roared in triumph as his conquest lay helpless before him.

Please, Dumitri, I don’t want this
.

“Even if I wanted to, there is nothing that can be done to change our destiny,
meu dulciuri
. You must submit to me fully.”

I won’t
.