Vampire Apocalypse #2 Cataylst (10 page)

“What secrets do you have left to hide,
Kahlahandra?” Will said softly, his hand touching the top of her
head. There was no compulsion in his voice, but Kahli still shifted
like there was. Her name falling from his lips felt like a
caress.

“Nothing you won’t pry out of me,” she meant
it to be light and joking, but it wasn’t. It was the crux of the
problem. There was a difference between offering and taking.

Will took her hand when it flopped down on
the table. “You don’t have to do this now. We can wait.”

“No, we can’t. I left a trail of blood behind
me. I wanted to get out of there so badly that I didn’t think of
what I left behind. Will, I have to go back and get Cassie and
Cole. And—”

He cut her off, “And the rest of them. I
know.”

“There’s only one way to do that.” She looked
up into his eyes.

He shook his head. “Not tonight. Sleep. If
you still want to—”

“I don’t want to, Will. I’ll never want to. I
have to. There’s no other way to undo what the King has done, and
after this, there’ll be no way to undo what you’ve done. It’s a
necessary evil.”

“I see,” Will flinched and withdrew his
hand.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Kahli wanted to
scream and yell, but not at Will. It wasn’t his fault. Her voice
softened after a beat, “I would have wanted to tell you everything.
I would have wanted you to know me, but over time. Doing it this
way, it’s like spilling everything out all at once. You’ll see
everything. The good and bad,” she smirked sadly, “But it’s mostly
bad.”

“I know,” he breathed, “I feel the same way.
There are things I don’t want you to know, not yet
.” Thing’s
that you won’t fully understand even when you see them. I’ve kept
things from you, things you won’t forgive me for doing.
His
heart sank at the thought and he looked away from her.

Kahli quietly sat across from him, watching
his face. Will looked nervously around the room. His gaze drifted
from his hands to the walls and finally lifted to meet Kahli’s
emerald eyes. She smiled at him, “There’s no point in waiting, you
know. Actually, if the risk with the King is that serious, we
should have done it already.”

Will’s eyes locked with hers. The endless
blue pools were hypnotic and she couldn’t look away. There was
something broken about him, something that called to her. “I
know.”

“Then, why wait?”

“We shouldn’t,” Will replied and stood. He
walked in front of her and swept her hair away from her neck.
Everything from her soft skin to her scent drove him crazy and now
she’d know just how much he wanted her—and why he couldn’t have
her.

His hands cupped her face as he leaned
closer, his eyes focused on her lips. Will breathed lightly, his
warm breath slipping over her skin. Kahli’s body was rigid. The
King had torn apart her neck when he drank from her. The memory
shot through her mind and it took every ounce of self-restraint not
to fight Will.

But he already felt her pulse accelerate and
her nervous stomach twist. Will took her hand in his, leaving his
other palm on her face. Looking into her eyes, he said, “There’s no
going back. Are you sure?”

Kahli shivered even though she wasn’t cold.
Will’s fingers slipped down her cheek and rested on her shoulder,
just below her neck.
That’s where he’ll bite me. That’s where
he’ll drink
, she thought.

Cassie’s words came flooding back, roaring
through her ears like the girl was standing there saying it.
Drinking is like sex, the two are connected.

“Will?” Kahli breathed his name. Every inch
of her body longed for his touch and he hadn’t bitten her, yet.
Would it be worse? Would she be able to control herself? She didn’t
know how to ask. It was something she hadn’t thought of and she
didn’t know how to deal with it. “I, uh...” she took a deep breath
and tried to say it. “I’m kind of attracted to you.” Kahli felt
Will’s lips pull into a smile as she said it.

“And...?” he prompted, as if he already knew
that part.

“And, I wanted to know if things will
change?” She spoke close to his ear, softly, feeling the warmth of
his cheek next to hers. She didn’t want to move. She didn’t want to
expose the flush that colored her face. “Right now, I try to stay
away from you. Will I be able to decide what I want after this? Or
will it be decided for me?”

Will pressed his face against hers, hugging
her, feeling her body against his. “I won’t force you to do
anything you don’t want to do.”

“How can I know that?”

“You’ll have to trust me. Just like I’ll have
to trust you not to spill my secrets across the court and get me
killed as soon as we walk through the palace door.” He sucked in a
ragged breath and said, “You’ll always have a choice with me,
Kahli.”

She pulled back and looked into his eyes,
melting in them, wanting him in ways she shouldn’t. Kahli leaned
forward and pressed her lips to his, softly at first, teasing and
tasting him with gentle flicks of her tongue. Will’s hands slipped
down her back, feeling her curves under his palms. When she pulled
back, he held his hands on the small of her back, pinning her
against him.

Kahli’s heart raced harder and faster than it
ever had in her life. She nodded her consent and tilted her head to
the side, letting her long red hair slip behind her shoulder.
Will’s hands slid up her back, pressing her closer, holding her
tighter. His mouth kissed hers gently, before trailing kisses to
her neck. For a moment, he hesitated. Kahli could feel his ragged
breaths, the longing within his body. Kahli pressed her eyes closed
when she felt the tip of his fang scratch across the surface of her
skin. It made something unexpected shoot from her core and fill her
body.

She shivered and gasped at the same time.
Will didn’t move. He didn’t bite her and for the first time, she
realized that she wanted him to. She wanted to be his. There was
something wrong with her. After all this time fighting to be free,
Kahli handed herself over the first vampire she saw. Her nails dug
into his skin and she pulled Will’s head down, tugging his dark
hair.

Will’s lips pressed against her throat,
giving her one delicious kiss at a time. Kahli’s head was swimming
with thoughts she couldn’t control. Will teased her, nipping her
neck, but he didn’t pierce her skin. Kahli felt something within
him, an emotion that she couldn’t identify. In a moment, she’d know
what it was—she’d know what he was thinking. There would be no more
doubt, no more wondering about him. They’d belong to each other in
a way that shouldn’t have been possible.

Just as Will’s control snapped and he opened
his mouth to sink his teeth into her neck, something outside
exploded. Before anything happened, Will yanked Kahli and spun with
her in his arms away from the sound. Breathing hard, they looked at
each other. Will’s blue eyes were wide. He blinked once and the
lust was gone. It took Kahli another moment to collect herself.
When the second crash came, it was enough to make her body forget
what happened between them.

Will grabbed Kahli’s arm and screamed, “Go!
We have to go! Now!” Another blast shook the floor and chunks of
concrete fell from the ceiling.

Will shoved her toward the door just as part
of the wall caved in. Rock slid down and dust formed a powder cloud
that filled the room. Kahli gasped for air, glancing back over her
shoulder. “Will!” she screamed, trying to see him.

Before she could go back, the side of the
hill collapsed. A massive opening appeared. Earth and sunlight
poured in like rain. Kahli was momentarily blinded. Holding her
hand to her face, she tried to block the sun to see what was
happening. As everything settled, she could see someone standing
there, right at the rim of the hole. He was a slim black shadow
against a blinding array of light. Kahli’s eyes couldn’t adjust to
the light fast enough. Before she knew what was happening, there
was a flash, and suddenly a handcuff wrapped around her wrist. It
was connected to a chain. The man above yanked the chain hard.
Kahli fell forward, one arm was nearly ripped out of its socket, as
she was pulled from the blown-apart safe house.

“Better hold on, dear,” Reggie shouted down
to her, as he hoisted Kahli up. A pleased grin covered his face, as
the girl reached the top. Kahli yelled and kicked, but she mostly
just tried to keep her arm attached to her body. When she reached
the top, Kahli clung to the ground trying to ignore the screaming
pain in her arm. Tears filled her eyes. The pain wouldn’t stop. He
dislocated her shoulder pulling her out like that. Kahli tried to
slam her shoulder into the ice to pop it back in place, but Reggie
lifted her like a lost object and turned her back and forth
examining her in the sun.

He tutted and shook his head, “Someone has
been very naughty. Was it young William or someone more royal?”

Kahli screamed, kicking at him wildly. The
pain in her shoulder made her vision fade at the edges. “Put me
down!”

Reggie laughed in her face and handed her to
Thomas. Then, the graceful vampire turned and called down to Will.
“Thanks for keeping her for me. She looks pretty good, with the
exception of that ghastly scar. You’ve been a naughty boy, William.
I’ll settle up with you another time,” he lowered his voice and
said dryly to Thomas, “assuming he’s still alive down there.”

CHAPTER 15

“Cassie,” Cole ran up behind her, no longer
trying to hide that he was different than the rest. Cassie turned
quickly, a look of relief on her face. She was in the sitting room
inside of the maiden’s chambers. He wasn’t supposed to be there,
but no one was where they were supposed to be. It was enough that
Cassie noticed and started looking for other things that were
amiss. She found plenty.

Hurrying to her brother, Cassie said, “You’re
right. Nothing’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

“I see that. Our guards are gone too.” Cole
glanced about to make sure they were alone.

“I know where they went,” Cassie licked her
lips and looked around nervously. Even though there was no one to
throw Cole out, she still felt vulnerable out in the open, like
they’d be caught at any moment.

As if he could read her mind, Cole put a hand
on her shoulder, “They have eyes and ears everywhere. This is as
good a place to talk as any. Where are the guards?”

“It looks like most of them are with the
Queen. When I was in there, her guard was tripled in size. They
surrounded her like a wall. She was more, uhm,” Cassie’s eyes
flicked up trying to choose the right word.

“Crazy than usual?”

Cassie nodded, “Yeah. Pretty much. It wasn’t
like she expected me to attack her or anything, but she gave the
distinct impression that she thought her little lap dogs were
chewing her face off.” Moving to one of the massive windows, Cassie
peered outside. The ground sparkled, glinting white in the
sunlight. She sighed deeply, pushing her hair out of her eyes. “She
asked about Will out of all people. Will, Cole!”

Cole frowned and looked over her shoulder.
There was movement outside, which was unusual. Guards appeared at
new posts outlining the property. “Sophia seems to think the threat
is outside these walls.”

Cassie watched the guards on the grounds
below. Annoyed, she uttered, “Then she must be concerned about
someone else, because Will’s no threat. If anything, he went after
Kahli to help her.” Cassie couldn’t hold the smile on her lips
anymore. She turned to her brother and asked, “Do you think Kahli’s
still alive? I couldn’t bear it if she weren’t. I owe her my life.
I wish there was something I could do to help her.” As she spoke,
Cassie wrapped her arms around her middle. Her gaze landed nowhere,
she saw nothing as she spoke. It was the distant gaze of someone
who’d experienced loss and didn’t want to go through it again.

“Maybe we can,” Cole said, ignoring her pleas
that Will was innocent. There was something about Will that he
didn’t like, and it wasn’t the fact that the guy had free-reign
over the palace. It wasn’t that he moved amongst the girls in all
states of undress either, although that angered him when he learned
it early on from Cassie. There was something else. Something was
wrong with Will. Cole could feel it in his gut. Will was the
Queen’s pet, her personal toy, and anything he had to say—anything
Will did—was not in their best interest. Why would it be? He was a
vampire for godsakes.

Cassie glanced up at him. “What are you
thinking?”

“I’m not sure yet,” he glanced back at her.
“Anything else happen with the Queen?”

“No,” she answered, shaking her head. “She
asked about Kahli, the King, and Will. She wanted to know where
Will was. Apparently, going missing right now automatically damns
you in her eyes.” Cassie paused for a moment and then added, “If
you hadn’t told me what the King did, I would have had a huge gap
in my memory. She would have gone nuts, well, crazier than
usual.”

He nodded in agreement, “What did the King’s
chambers look like? Did she fight?” By she, he meant Kahli. Cole
couldn’t picture her going quietly, but this wasn’t normal. The
King wasn’t supposed to take girls into his room, and he certainly
wasn’t given an open tap on virgin blood.

Cassie grimaced remembering the fresh stains
on the floor, the way the blood had seeped into the carpet and
turned brown. “It looks like she fought back. Things were broken,
turned over. There was so much blood. I think he must have killed
Missy and Gene before Kahli got there. No one has seen them or
found their bodies. It’s not like them to go missing this long.
Even on the day of the Purging, they were up with the rest of us.
If they were here this morning, they’d be chattering with the rest
of the girls about the Pairings.”

Cole shifted his weight and pushed his
fingers through his hair. “About that—”