Darkness Binds Read online

  “Well, great. You send my woman to the bathroom when shit is about to go down. Just stay here.” Mike was up, out of the booth, and hurrying through the crowd to catch Gwen.

  “Shit on me,” Jordan muttered and followed. He only sent Gwen because the mage could take on anything. He wasn’t worried about a Silver Council enforcer. She was like the magical CIA, FBI, and police all rolled into one. And Mike was a druid and part of the DSF or the Diverse Special Forces, and paired with Gwen.

  Leanan, however, didn’t have any combative power. All her magic came through sex and had everything to do with pleasure.

  Mike held Jordan back as Gwen stepped out and shook her head.

  “We’ve got a problem,” she announced.

  “Is she in there?” Jordan already knew the answer.

  She shook her head, her phone on the way to her ear.

  A few seconds later, she said, “Come to the Taste. I need help figuring out what the hell happened here. We’re near the bathrooms.”

  There was a pause, she nodded, then slid the phone back into her purse.

  “What’s going on in there?” Jordan demanded.

  She rubbed at her face. “There was a struggle. I don’t know what happened, other than they didn’t go willingly.”

  “They?” Jordan demanded.

  “They,” she confirmed.

  Robert and Preston appeared beside them.

  “What’s going on?” Preston asked.

  Gwen nodded to the bathroom. “See what you sense in there. And a warning, it’s a mess.”

  “Anyone in there?” Preston asked.

  She shook her head.

  Preston slipped past Gwen, into the bathroom, and Jordan pressed inside, his mouth falling open.

  There was a bloody handprint on the counter, the same size as Leanan’s hand. The bathroom was trashed, a sign there had been a struggle.

  “What the fuck happened?” Jordan snarled.

  “Fuck.” Preston stepped back into the hall, dragging Jordan with him. “We all need to go to In Other News.”

  “Why?” Jordan demanded.

  Robert grabbed his arm and Preston’s. Then all of them were in some fancy office with Brent Shadows watching a redhead in a cubicle.

  “Who disappeared?” Brent asked without looking up.

  Preston spoke up, “A succubus named Leanan, an unknown witch, a Faery, and some kind of cat shifter. I only recognize Leanan’s essence. All I know is that there were four vampires in the bathroom. Whether or not any of the vampires were abducted, I have no clue.”

  “What the hell is going on?” Jordan demanded.

  Mike caught Jordan’s shoulder. “Calm down. Apparently, there’s some sort of investigation already underway.”

  The redhead stepped into the office. “Then we need to get to work now.”

  Brent nodded. “We have to make our own preparations if this is going to work.”

  “Damn it, what happened to Leanan?” Jordan shouted.

  Preston sighed. “This can’t leave the room, Jordan. We don’t want major panic out there, especially from humans.”

  Jordan grabbed Preston’s shoulders, staring him dead in the eye. “Just tell me what the fuck is going on.”

  Robert glanced at Preston and back. “People are being abducted by vampires.”

  “What the hell?” Mike asked. “And you haven’t told the whole Enforcer team?”

  “No, we haven’t,” Preston said. “For good reason. This is the type of shit that needs to stay quiet. We need to end it, then help those who were taken adjust to life after their ordeal.”

  Gwen caught Mike’s face. “Something like this is only ever trusted to a few of us. The wrong mages would use it to wipe out all vampires. You know as well as I do, not all vampires are the problem. I’m sure they’re looking for the right person to infiltrate the vampires.”

  “That would be me,” the redhead stated, then blew out a breath.

  One corner of Preston’s mouth tipped up. “Told you, Brent.”

  Her brow quirked as she directed her attention to the cocky mage. “What did I miss?”

  “Brent wasn’t sure you would agree to the story,” Preston answered.

  She glanced at Brent and swung her gaze back to Preston. “I’m all in. But he’s right. I need to feed from Brent before we go out there.”

  Jordan put a hand up. “Thought it was bad for vampires to drink from Others, and Brent is definitely Other.”

  Robert turned to Amelia. “I hadn’t considered that factor. Amelia, if this is too much, we’ll find someone else.”

  Her eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Nope. No one else. Let me do this. I’ll deal with the consequences. Victoria came back from full-blown addiction to Other blood. I can do the same too, if necessary.”

  “There is a possible work around,” Brent said.

  Amelia shook her head. “We don’t have time for that. Besides, if I’m to go undercover, I need to learn to deal with Other blood on my own.”

  Robert paced away and came back. “I should have thought this through.”

  Amelia got in his face. “Stop treating me like a child. I managed to come through everything I went through with Yuri Slovik and becoming a vampire. I can handle this burden so we can find the people involved and put a stop to it. Finding another suitable vampire would take too long.”

  “You’re right,” Robert answered.

  “I can’t tell a soul that Leanan is just gone?” Jordan pushed his fingers through his hair. He wasn’t sure what to do without her. She was the only reason he was stable. “I can’t lose her.”

  Mike gripped Jordan’s shoulder. “We’ll fix this. In the meantime, we’ll find you someone.”

  “Just find her. I can’t lose her,” he insisted.

  “We will,” Amelia assured. “What does she look like?”

  “I know her,” Brent said.

  “Yeah, but you’re not supposed to know anyone if we go in there, right? You want to be unassuming. Which means I need to know who this woman is.”

  Jordan scrambled to pull his phone out and brought up a picture of Leanan on the couch with his guitar. “This is her.”

  She met Jordan’s eyes. “I recognize her.”

  “You do?”

  She smiled. “She’s always at your shows.”

  His brow pinched. “I’m sorry. I don’t recognize you.”

  She lifted a shoulder. “Haven’t been going long. Only been twenty-one about six months.”

  “How will you get her out?” he asked.

  She held his gaze and calm flowed through him. It didn’t make sense with what she said. “I’m not sure what we’re walking in on yet. I’ll find a way.”

  “Thank you,” he answered, as if that was the only possible solution, though something in his brain said it was all wrong.

  Brent caught Preston’s arm. “Whatever you learn, send to me. Please. First, Amelia and I need to take this next step. Alone.”

  Robert touched Jordan’s shoulder. “I’ll take you to my office. We’ll take care of this, and I’m going to let you listen to what will happen, hoping I don’t have to wipe your memory later.”

  Jordan nodded. He would keep quiet if it meant he might be able to help.

  Chapter 4

  Amelia turned to Brent, who took a step toward her. She got lost in the deep blue orbs that flickered and glowed with an inner fire she had only seen once before.

  “You sure about this?” His voice trembled with power.

  “I’m not turning back. We’re going to find who’s behind the abductions and put a stop to them.”

  “I want you to delve into the memories. I need you to see what happened when I was a blood slave. What they meant to do. You need to understand, Amelia.”

  “You can stop me from drinking too much if I can’t?” she whispered.

  Nodding, he closed the distance. “If it comes to that, I will.”

  “What about the
bond?”

  “Not until you understand. Not until you see my darkest secret. Then, we can talk about a blood bond.” He touched her face, running his thumb across her cheek. “It’s a step I won’t make lightly, Amelia. If you hate me after this, I won’t have you bound to me.”

  Arguing would get her nowhere closer to what she wanted. And there were too many lives at stake to waste time. She leaned up and he guided her to his neck. She struck, her teeth piercing flesh.

  His blood tasted of magic and chocolate, and something rich, savory. Images flickered through her mind.

  He’d been so young, late teens. A thick iron collar chained him to the wall in a massive underground throne room.

  Beautiful, pale creatures watched him with hunger. He stared at nothing, wishing he were anywhere else as one spirit whispered to him, telling him what was coming.

  An ancient evil, worse than the oldest grand demon. The first vampire was created when the entity was summoned and his essence had entered his blood stream, tainting a druid, making him something else.

  Time flipped by. Several years. Vampires would sip from him. Some went mad with power, slaying everything they could before they were slaughtered. Others lost their minds, muttering in the corner.

  A man, not a vampire, but he was something different, almost ethereal, walked in and cut the chains holding Brent to the wall. “You’ll have to fight for your freedom. Without your hidden talents, we won’t make it out alive now. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it before sunset.”

  “Food?” Brent asked, afraid to stand. He had been too long without food.

  “Of course.” The man pulled a small loaf of bread from his pocket and a flask. “Please hurry. I should have started with that.”

  Brent scarfed it down as another dark-haired man joined them. “We need to hurry. Sun is almost down.”

  The first man nodded. “I’m Reance. This is Toryn. Your father came to me. He’s very worried about you.”

  Brent couldn’t remember anything.

  “Kalbrenthis, are you ready?” Reance asked.

  Magic surged, power filling his limbs as the spirits sang. He sprang to his feet and walked through the cavern as vampires rose for the night.

  He held out his hands, drawing on his saviors’ fire magic, pushing it through the room.

  Wails rose as a dark shadow formed around Brent, an unearthly sound whispering through his voice as he screamed in an ancient language. The spirit who’d been feeding him information provided a boost to his magic, showing him how to use Reance and Toryn’s magic.

  The vampire who brought Brent to the cavern walked toward him. Flames flickered up her robes, but she wouldn’t catch fire. Inuala smiled. “I’m one of the few who still have magic, and I’m immune to fire.”

  “I’ll change that,” Reance shouted, stepping past the flames as he brought a golden sword down toward the woman with white hair and black eyes.

  Brent held up his hand, and Reance froze as the spirits took hold of him. Brent took the blade and swept his focus to Inuala. She too, froze.

  He pierced her heart before slicing off little pieces of her flesh, letting her blood flow freely. Her flesh may not burn, but her blood did. Finally, she died, screaming that Crom Cruach would have his revenge.

  Crom was worshipped as a god, but was far worse. He was an ancient monstrosity who could make the vampires far deadlier than anything anyone had seen before. And he wanted to walk in the world.

  On the way out of the castle, Brent slaughtered every vampire they encountered. He continued the practice for three years.

  Coming back to herself, Amelia withdrew her fangs, pricked her tongue, and sealed the punctures. Then she stumbled back.

  Brent guided her into a seat before backing away. “I slaughtered all of them. Then for years, every single vampire I came across died by my hands.”

  “You were a slave for years, Brent. You were used. You have every right to hate vampires.” She swallowed hard. “How can you stand to be around me?”

  “You haven’t changed all that much, Amelia. Some of the vampires I slayed deserved worse. Some did not. Many of the vampires weren’t part of the coven by choice.” He sank to his knees before her. “I’ve killed for no reason other than a vengeance I had already taken.”

  “Brent, I saw through your eyes. I get it. And that was two centuries ago. You understand we aren’t all like those particular vampires.”

  “What if my blood drives you crazy?” he whispered.

  “Do you believe it will?” she asked, taking his hands.

  He scooted closer, looking into her eyes, and shook his head. “No. But there are still dangers to face with my blood. You will lose yourself to the rage and magic at some point.”

  “Rage and magic?” she whispered.

  He blinked, his eyes shining. “My blood acts like a gateway for some vampires. Spirits can sweep in, not permanently. If you react too strongly after drinking from me, my blood can enhance your emotions, your strength. I’ve only seen snippets of you destroying your enemies.”

  “The future?”

  He nodded, his eyes boring into her. “Forgive me.”

  “Don’t need to. You’ve done what we needed to ensure we finish this case. If you’ll have my blood, I want you to drink.”

  “You don’t understand. I think this is a new version of that same cult. I don’t ever want to hurt you.”

  “You won’t. Now drink.”

  “Amelia—”

  She caught his face and forced his gaze to hers. Maybe it was underhanded, but he said he wanted her, but he kept holding her away, so she’d play dirty. “Brent, I still feel your magic inside me. It’s like adrenaline on steroids and meth. I feel like I could do anything. And if Robert believes you can hide your power, I’m going to screw that up the second I drink from you in public if I react this way every time.” And she did feel his magic rushing through every cell. It wasn’t hard to imagine her using his power to destroy her enemies. Still, she kept it bottled up, holding onto it, forcing it down.

  “Amelia, do you understand what happens when a vampire bonds to someone?”

  “Yes. It’s not all that different than werewolves and their mates. I’ve been around that all my life. My parents, remember?”

  “True.”

  “And Consuela and Declan. I lived with them for a while. I got to know Victoria and Lincoln. I get it, Brent. I know what I want, and I want you.”

  “Why me?” he whispered.

  “I’ve been drawn to you from the very moment I saw you. You say you were waiting for me. Well, here I am, ready to have you. I’m tired of chasing, tired of being pushed away. If you want me, take me, all of me.”

  He shook his head. “How can you want me with what you just learned?”

  Is he dense? Or is the problem what I am? “Is it me? Do you not want to be bound to me? A vampire?”

  * * * *

  Brent wanted to be bound in every way to Amelia. And she had a point. Being bound was the best way for her to find balance. But all those visions of their end still plagued him. How was he supposed to tell her he dreamed of one or both of them dying after falling in love?

  “There’s no going back from this. You aren’t thinking this through.”

  Her eyes filled with tears and she blinked fast. “Fine.” She stood and stepped past him.

  He shot to his feet and pulled her against him. “I do want you, the bond, everything. I’m only afraid of what you’ll think of me before this is over.” Or worse, losing her before it was all over.

  “Then drink,” she whispered, lifting her wrist to her mouth and piercing her flesh before pressing the wound to his mouth.

  His eyes locked on hers as he fell into her thoughts, dreams, and desires. Her essence filled him. The bond twisted them together as shadows rose around them and whispers from the nearby spirits joined the breeze in the room.

  “Brent,” Amelia murmured, pressing tighter.

  He took one
last taste before releasing her arm and swallowing. Then her mouth crashed over his, her tongue sweeping in.

  Every last ounce of resistance broke as he lifted her and placed her on the desk before sliding his hands up her thighs, under her skirt.

  Breaking the kiss, he caught her gaze. “Tell me you need me, Amelia.” He needed to hear it from her lips.

  “Yes, so bad.” She trailed her fingers down his chest and abs, to open his pants. “Please, Brent.”

  He ran his thumb over her damp panties and nipped her bottom lip. “Don’t beg. I’ll give you what you need.” His mouth crashed over hers as his fingers slipped underneath the thin barrier.

  Her wet heat was heaven. He found her clit, and she made a needy sound that made him harder, if that was possible.

  “I’m ready.”

  He slipped two fingers into her and pumped in and out.

  Her head fell back with a moan. “I’ve waited too long,” she growled, opening his pants and sliding them down enough to pull his dick out. Her grip was firm as she stroked. “No waiting, Brent.”

  “Then bite.” He pulled her mouth back to his neck. Her fangs pierced skin as he slid into her. Amelia was the first vampire he allowed to bite him since he’d been held captive. It was an act he’d hated, but loved when it was her teeth in his artery.

  She gave him her desires, her wants, her need as her fingers tangled in his hair. His grip locked on her hip, holding her on the edge of the desk as he thrust into her. Her ankles hooked around his hips as she pulled him tighter.

  He drove into her faster, needing her to come undone. Sliding his hand under her shirt, he gripped her breast, pinching her nipple. She sucked harder, and he thrust faster until the desk rocked, scooting with the power.

  She let him in, all the way in, and opened her walls to him. Her emotions crashed over him. Love, so strong, so powerful, that he’d denied for too long. He gave her the same emotion back.

  Her walls rippled, squeezing tighter, and she came with him. Amelia licked at the wounds, healing the punctures before sitting back to lock gazes with him.