Blood Descendants (Vengeance and Venom #1)

Chapter 4

“ Y ou’re really not even going to attempt to find a replacement for you?”

I don’t bother looking up at Dannika as I continue stuffing my clothes into garbage bags. “Maybe if you and Kylie pick, you’ll actually like whoever ends up in room three.”

I hear it as she snaps her mouth closed. Dannika never was very direct. Never would she expect me to call her out on her obvious dislike for me. I’ve lived here for two years now, and she’s never breathed a friendly word in my direction.

I don’t know what the hell I did to get on her bad side, but now it doesn’t matter.

“I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend,” she says as she crosses her arms over her chest, raising her chin.

“Fiancé,” I correct her, finally looking up at her from beneath my lashes. I turn and begin stuffing my shoes into a box. There’s not much of anything left in the room now.

“I don’t know that I believe you,” she says, though her tone doesn’t sell her words. “You haven’t dated anyone since that sleazeball who cheated on you with the girl across the hall. And now you have a fiancé?”

“You think I tell you anything?” I ask as I scoop the last of my things into the last empty box. “You’re the most judgmental and critical person I’ve ever met, Dannika. This day couldn’t come soon enough.”

“You’re so full of bullshit,” she says in a defensive huff.

And it’s so incredibly satisfying when there’s a solid knock on the door just then. Dannika’s eyebrows raise slightly, her head whipping toward the door.

I don’t fight the satisfied smirk that takes over my face as I step around her and pull the door open.

My heart skips two beats when I open it to reveal Ares standing there, as promised. Out of fear? Probably. Out of shameless appreciation? I’ll never admit it.

“Sorry I’m early, Vengeance,” he says in a low, cool tone. I see him note Dannika behind me for the briefest moment. “I couldn’t wait any longer.”

My heart then decides to relocate into my throat when he takes a step forward, and his hand wraps around my waist, low, intimate. He pulls me toward him, and he presses the hottest, sweetest kiss to my forehead.

My entire body lights on fire at every tiny point of contact, and within half a second, every bit of me feels consumed.

I look up at him to see his gaze fixed on Dannika. “You’re right, this place is a shithole.”

He has no idea how perfect his words are. Dannika picked this place, and it was she who decorated it and picked all the furniture .

A single, annoyed sound escapes her. I turn to see her simply shake her head.

“Ares,” he says as he steps forward, extending a hand to her. “Lana’s fiancé.”

“I don’t see a ring,” Dannika says as she just looks at Ares’ tattooed, extended hand.

Something cold and predatorial shifts in his eyes. Doubt and fear prickle along the back of my neck. I slide my hand into his extended one, wrapping it around my waist.

I just might die of a heart attack tonight.

I might hate Dannika, but I don’t know that I want to see Ares rip her to shreds. I get the impression that’s possible.

“Everyone knows the best diamonds come out of Russia. The best in the business also happens to be a former KGB smuggler. You know how to motivate a man like that to work faster, I’m all ears.”

Every bit of color drains from Dannika’s face. She swallows once. She looks Ares over, taking in the layers of black, the tattoos peeking out from all the edges of his clothing, the metal in his ears and nose.

I wouldn’t dare talk back at him, either.

“I’m keeping your deposit,” she says, her words tight, the pitch slightly too high. She turns and walks into her bedroom and shuts the door.

“She’s a real treat,” Ares says, glaring death at her door.

“You have no idea,” I say just a little too softly.

He looks down at me, and I’m surprised to find intensity and real annoyance there. His left hand curls into a fist.

“Come on in,” he says instead of walking into Dannika’s room and doing something violent and supernatural .

I was so caught up in Ares I didn’t even notice the team of three beefy guys standing out in the hall behind him.

“What’s yours?” Ares asks as they file inside.

All I have to do is point and direct. The three guys grab box after box, hauling them to the elevator and down to the truck parked below. And Ares doesn’t just stand there. He loads up the heaviest of the boxes, hauling them out.

It’s all done in less than half an hour. Two years of my life here, packed up and removed in less time than it takes me to run one load of laundry.

“Any last burning goodbyes you’re wanting to offer?” Ares asks as the movers head out with the last of the bags.

“Nope,” I answer honestly. Dannika can go rot in her room forever. Kylie hasn’t been home all day, but there’s no love lost between her and me either. “Let’s get out of here.”

I don’t know who the show is for when Ares takes my hand in his and leads me out of the apartment. He doesn’t bother to shut the door behind him as he exits.

I may be going into shock. I don’t know what to say as he takes us to the elevator. He doesn’t say a word as we ride the elevator to the ground floor. But he doesn’t let my hand go even when we’re alone. He only tightens his hold when the doors open, and we walk out the front doors.

His grip is firm. Yet, somehow, it doesn’t feel threatening.

It feels… Fuck. What is that? Protective?

But my line of thought is immediately disrupted when he crosses the sidewalk and goes straight to a matte black motorcycle parked at the curb. He grabs a helmet and extends it toward me. “Let’s go home, Vengeance.”

“That’s yours?” I ask, my voice shaking just slightly .

“The third greatest love of my life,” he says as a rouge smile crooks the corner of his mouth.

I take a deep breath and accept the helmet. I pull it down over my head. He steps forward, taking care as he latches the buckle and adjusts it for me.

He offers this wry, coy smile that makes all of my insides liquify.

“Hold on,” he says as he turns and straddles the bike. He sifts in the seat, clearly making room for me.

The organ in my chest is trying to find a quick exit. But I clench and unclench my fists just once before I climb onto the back of the bike.

Hesitantly, I put my hands on Ares’ hips. He’s not a man you just touch casually. The man is named after the freaking god of war, and he looks it.

But as he fires up the bike, the engine snarling to life, he hits the gas just slightly. My arms wrap around him in a death grip, my face buried into his back.

I swear his chest rumbles just slightly with a chuckle. But he throttles the gas, and we take off down the street.

There’s insane traffic, but you wouldn’t know it existed as Ares weaves his way through the lanes. I finally dare open my eyes, watching as thousands of people fall behind us, as familiar landmarks come and go.

And I realize I’m going from the worst apartment in Sutton Place to the Upper West Side.

And not just the Upper West Side.

Ares slows, and I find a moving truck parked in front of one of the oldest and most historic buildings in New York City. Without hesitating, he guides the bike down into the underground parking at the back of the building .

“So, you obviously didn’t go destitute when you cut ties with your father,” I say after I’ve climbed off the bike and pulled the helmet off. I hand it back to Ares, who secures it on the bike.

I realize then that he never wore his own helmet. But maybe vampires are wreck-proof.

“Not exactly,” he says vaguely. But he doesn’t elaborate as he heads straight for a door. I follow after him, memorizing my surroundings as I go.

We walk into a long hallway. The floors are covered with elaborate tile. The walls are crisp, fresh white. There are a few doors that branch off here and there, utility closets and maintenance access.

But finally, we break into a gorgeous lobby.

A chandelier hangs overhead, and instead of crystals, it looks as if it’s crusted with diamonds. The ceiling is a beautiful dome with elaborate detail carved into the moldings. Two large, arched windows give us a view of Central Park. A set of gleaming elevator doors sits positioned across from the desk where an older man stands and crosses to us.

“You the ones moving into 8A?” he asks as he slides his hands into his pockets. He has to be well over sixty years old. His fully gray hair matches his fully gray mustache. But there’s a confidence in his step that makes me think in his younger years, he was more than capable of handling himself.

“Yes, sir,” Ares answers. And something in my view of him shifts just a bit when I note the respect he gives the doorman. “I’m Ares Hunt. This is my fiancée, Lana.”

“Pleasure,” he says. He’s eying Ares, and I can’t exactly blame him. My new fake fiancé looks like he should be making shady deals in Harlem, not moving into multi-million dollar apartments like it’s no big deal. “Name’s Lazlo, but most just call me Laz. You need anything, just let me know.”

“Thank you, Laz,” Ares says. He offers Lazlo a small, polite smile and slips his hand into mine.

There’s that hurricane again.

“Nice to meet you,” I offer, remembering my manners as Ares turns us to the elevator. It dings before Ares even presses the button, and the three movers step out, giving Ares a nod before they head back out to the truck.

This building is old. Older than most that surround us. But as we take the elevator up eight floors to the top level, it doesn’t shake, doesn’t creak or squeal. It’s as smooth as any brand-new skyscraper. It opens to reveal a hallway with brilliant white walls and glossy white floors.

I follow as Ares pulls a set of keys from his pocket. He stops at a door marked 8A and slips one of the keys off the ring. “Welcome home, Vengeance,” he says as he extends it to me.

That fucking name. It sends a wave of goosebumps washing down my entire body. I’m embarrassed to take the key in case he notices them. I don’t want him seeing the effect he has on me just by calling me a nickname.

My fingers close around the key, and I’m careful to avoid skin contact. If he notices me acting weird, he doesn’t make it obvious. He simply pushes open the door, already unlocked for the movers.

I step inside, and utterly freeze.

There’s no way this is the right place.

I try to hiss Ares’ name to call him back, to tell him he’s accidentally unlocked the wrong apartment. But the words are trapped in my lungs.

And Ares strides in without hesitating .

It’s the most beautiful apartment I could ever imagine.

The floors are a perfect walnut color, and even though I can tell they’re old, they’re gorgeous. White walls climb above me before they meet a ceiling crisscrossed with beautiful beams the same color as the floor. White pillars hold up an arch that separates this space as the entryway. Beyond that, there is a massive living room. Huge windows look out over Central Park.

“Lana?” Ares calls as he looks over his shoulder back at me, his brows furrowing just slightly.

I just blink, taking it all in, my mouth slightly agape.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, taking a step back toward me.

I take a breath, but still, words don’t come for a moment. I take it all in. The immaculate and obviously brand-new furniture. The paintings hanging on the wall. I’m floored by the beauty of it all, and I can barely see any of the space.

“You bought this place?” I ask, my words not wanting to work. “This… this is ours to live in?”

I feel him studying me, but I can’t look away from the most beautiful space I’ve ever seen. “Welcome home,” he simply says again.

Finally, my feet find life again. I take a step inside and then another, followed by another.

“This is…” I say breathlessly as the room opens up. It’s lovely, simply put. Cozy couches and plush armchairs in the most modernly cozy way possible. Heavy drapes frame the truly massive windows, displaying the nearly dark night. And outside, there’s so much green.

Green comes at such a high price in this city. And we have endless amounts before us.

“A housekeeper will be coming in twice a week,” Ares says as he walks down the hall. He opens a door, looking inside. And I get the feeling that he hasn’t really looked around yet. “A cook will come in twice a week as well. You have any kind of food allergies?”

“No,” I reply automatically before what he actually said sinks in. “Wait. What? A cook?”

Ares nods and wanders farther down the hall. He opens another door. “You like to cook?”

“I don’t even really know how,” I confess without thinking. “But you’re just going to have someone come in here and cook for us? Do you even eat food?”

Ares turns back toward me slightly, an eyebrow raising. “Yes, I eat food, Lana.”

Huh. It never would have crossed my mind that a vampire would still eat normal food. Guess I should have expected that. How would one ever sustain a body like Ares’ on blood alone? That kind of physique takes a serious protein intake.

I follow after Ares, taking in the apartment as I go. Off the living room, there is a huge dining room with a modern table and ten chairs. Attached is a kitchen that nearly makes me want to learn how to cook. The hallway stretches beyond that, and next, I find a library with high-end leather furniture occupying the space. Beyond that, there are two large bedrooms and a bathroom with some serious amenities in between them. Next, we find a home gym that makes my mouth water. And finally, a ridiculously long walk later, at the end of the hall, is the last bedroom.

It's beautiful. Beams crisscross the ceiling. A sparkling chandelier hangs from the ceiling. Those heavy drapes frame the stunning arched windows. The bedroom is placed in the corner of the building, offering stunning views of the park and the impressive buildings down the side road. A king-sized bed dominates the center of the room, an ungodly amount of pillows piled atop the fluffy comforter.

Off the bedroom, Ares wanders into a ridiculously large bathroom, and I follow.

“A tub?” I gape. There it is, a massive and immaculate clawfoot thing in the center of the room, right in front of the window. I’ve lived in five different apartments in New York throughout my life, and I’ve never seen a bathtub in one.

“Not bad,” Ares notes, though he doesn’t have nearly as much wonder in his tone as I do.

There’s also a huge two-person shower, double vanities, and a separate toilet room. And branching off of the bathroom is a walk-in closet that’s the size of a small boutique shop.

It’s also stocked with a decent-sized collection of men’s clothes. All of them are black, with the exception of a few white t-shirts.

“Okay, I know I might be kind of stupid, because you laid it out fairly clearly,” I admit as I look at all of Ares’ clothes hanging in the closet. They’re accompanied by several of my bags sitting on the floor, waiting to be unpacked. “But it didn’t really cross my mind that we’d be sharing a bedroom.”

I feel too embarrassed to look at the man who could probably walk into any club and get any woman he wanted to go home with him. Ares might be terrifying looking in some ways, but he’s also quite possibly the most beautiful man I’ve ever laid eyes on.

And I’m maybe just a little scandalized at the thought of sharing a bed with him.

“I don’t sleep much,” he says instead of making it more awkward. “So, it won’t be a problem. The bed is yours. When I do have to sleep, I’ll do it somewhere else. The bed in the next room over looked halfway decent.”

“It looked like the most comfortable bed I’ve ever seen in my life,” I point out, finally able to look over at him with his reassurance. I give him a look. One that says I’m beginning to realize he’s a rich man who has never slept on anything less than resort-quality bamboo sheets.

He simply shrugs with a faint smile.

“You don’t do anything halfway, do you?” I ask as we wander back out toward the hall. The movers walk through the door again. I realize then that they’ve already put some of my things in the primary bedroom. It’s so big and so stunning I didn’t even notice the stash of my things.

“It’s all part of the show,” Ares says as we walk back down the hall. He crosses the kitchen and opens the fridge. But, of course, it’s empty.

“Well, why the hell does it have to be so big?” I say softly as I look around again.

“Cause we’re planning to fill it up with kids, remember?”

My eyes snap back to him. He looks at me with those dark eyes of his. “That’s going to take some getting used to. And maybe test my acting skills. I’ve never really been sure if I wanted kids, to be honest.”

“At least we have that in common,” he says. He turns to a cupboard, and I’m surprised it’s fully stocked when he opens it. He grabs a glass and fills it with water. He sets it on the counter in front of me and nods to the barstool. I pull up a seat, and he leans forward, his elbows resting on the gorgeous marble. “We need to make a plan. We have to do this smart, or Augustus is going to know something is wrong. I’m not looking to put you in any more danger than necessary. ”

“You always this gallant?” I ask as I grab the glass and lift it to my lips.

“Trust me,” he says as he crooks that signature, small smile of his, “thinking of me as gallant would be a mistake.”

“I don’t know,” I reply as I set the glass back down. “You look like a hardass, and you can talk the talk sometimes, but so far, you’re not nearly as terrifying as I thought you’d be.”

A true smile curls on Ares’ lips and embers spark in his eyes just for a moment before they flare brilliant, blood red.

A curse escapes my mouth as I shove my way back from the counter, knocking the barstool right over.

“Don’t ever forget what I really am, Lana,” he says. There’s still a smile on his lips, but there’s a real warning in his tone. “Just because I have good control now doesn’t mean you aren’t the best smelling dessert I’ve ever come across in my life.”

My face feels hot. I know I must be blushing, probably brilliant red. How the hell am I supposed to interpret that?

“Okay, fine, you’re a terrifying vampire,” I say as I pull the chair upright again and slide back up to the counter. “I won’t forget that. Now, what’s the plan, Venom?”

He arches an eyebrow at me, and the smile pulling at his lips tells me he likes the nickname I’ve just bestowed upon him that’s complimentary to my own.

“I think it’s a fairly across the board thing that family is going to have a million questions when you get engaged,” Ares moves on. “Considering we’ve known each other for,” he checks the incredibly expensive looking watch on his wrist, “twenty-two hours, I think we need to take a few days and get our story straight. I need to know your story, you’re going to need to know mine. ”

The idea of having to tell Ares my story makes my skin go cold.

But he’s right.

If we’re going to sell it that we’re in love, that we’re engaged, we need to know each other.

I can do this. To get Ophelia back.

“Okay,” I finally say. “We’ll play twenty questions over the next few days.”

“More like a thousand questions,” he says, arching an eyebrow at me. “But yes. We need to go talk to your boss, get you some time off. And tomorrow, we need to go pick a ring.”

I can’t help but smile and shake my head as I look away. “This is just so damn weird. And it’s all just moving along at lightning speed.”

“For what it’s worth, you’re handling all this about a million times better than I think anyone else ever would.”

My eyes slide back to meet his. “You think so?”

He nods his head. “For starters, you learned vampires exist, and you haven’t tried to stake me or run away. You haven’t called the cops. And a vampire just begged you to pretend to be his fiancée and move in with him. And you’re here. If I didn’t know any better, I would almost say you were meant to be a part of this world, Vengeance.”

He holds my gaze for a long moment, neither of us saying a word. And I realize that there are two parts to Ares Hunt: the hard, dangerous, terrifying, near-mafia heir to the city and the man who is protective of a woman he doesn’t even know yet and says all the right words at just the right time.

“Maybe you could explain it to me now?” I break the silence. “Your world. I saw fangs and people all zoned out and put two and two together. But any of the details, I have no idea yet.”

“Okay, I’ll explain it to you, but then that’s it for tonight. It’s been a fucking day. You need to get some sleep.”

Two sides. Venom and valiant.

I don’t know if I’m tired. I’ve been running on adrenaline, disbelief, and pure stubbornness today. He’s not wrong, though, a breaking point is probably not far off.

“That’s the last of it, Mr. Hunt.” I nearly jump out of my skin when his voice comes from behind, back toward the bedroom. The movers all walk out into the kitchen, barely looking like they’ve broken a sweat after all their trips back and forth with my things.

“Thank you for your help on the short notice,” Ares says as he walks over to the man. He pulls out his wallet and extracts some cash. I don’t catch how many of them there are, but I see they’re all hundreds. He hands the money off to the man, who gives Ares an appreciative tip of his head before all three of them disappear out the door.

I follow Ares back to the living room. He settles into one of those expensive looking chairs, and I lay down on the couch after I kick my shoes off.

“I don’t know how vampires came into existence,” Ares admits. He sits there, both feet on the floor, both hands resting on the arm rests. He looks powerful sitting there. Dangerous. “Some kind of evolution. A curse. A science experiment. I don’t know. But I do know we’ve been around a long time. Some of us are old.”

“How old?” I pry. My curiosity is running wild now, despite the terrible, impossible subject of my curiosity.

“Hundreds of years,” Ares says .

I blink hard and wonder if I need to clean my ears. There’s no way I heard that right.

“The oldest Born I’ve ever met was over four hundred years old,” Ares elaborates. “Augustus himself is over eighty years old but doesn’t look a day over forty.”

“So, you stop aging at whatever age you die and— what did you call it? Resurrect?” I ask.

He nods. “Like I said, I was twenty-six when I died. I’ve been twenty-six for six years.”

“So, you’re really thirty-two?”

“I guess,” he says. “As I told you, you create more Born with a vampire father and a human mother. Once a woman Resurrects, she can’t have any children.”

“Of course,” I say, annoyance dripping from my tone. The gender unfairness of the world doesn’t stop at being human or vampire.

“We’re getting off track here,” Ares replies with a hint of annoyance. “Some of the rumors about vampires are true. We do have to have blood to survive. We do crave it. We’re faster than humans, immeasurably stronger. We’re predators.”

“And humans are your only prey?”

“I don’t crave blood from anything but,” Ares acknowledges. “We’re immortal, but as I told you, we can be killed.”

“You said the sunlight thing wasn’t what I thought,” I encourage.

He nods. “Once a vampire, your eyes stay dilated, always. It’s what allows us to see in the dark. My vision is about ten times better than it was when I was still human, and I had twenty-twenty vision. But because of the dilation, we’re nearly blind when the sun is out. It’s damn painful. ”

“What about sunglasses?” I ask. And almost as soon as I voice the thought, I feel stupid for asking.

“They help,” I’m surprised when Ares gives me the answer, and it’s simple. “I have custom ones I’ve had made. But trust me, it’s still uncomfortable. We still far prefer the night.”

“Those curtains aren’t going to be open much during the day, are they?” I ask as my eyes go to them.

“Sorry, kitten,” he says, his voice a purr. “You won’t be getting a whole lot of sunlight in this place.”

“How many vampires are there in the world?” I ask. My brain is tumbling through a million questions. I don’t have time to dwell on such a mundane issue as sunlight in my new home.

Ares shakes his head, a hint of a smile pulling on his mouth again. “No clue. Not that I travel that much, but I’ve met a few other Born here and there throughout the world. Here in New York City, though? I’d guess there’s a hundred or so of us.”

That’s actually shockingly few, considering there are nearly eight and a half million people in this city.

“You said the Born are one kind of vampire,” I shift my thoughts. “What other kind is there?”

“The Bitten,” he says, and I detect a bit of a sigh in his voice. “If a vampire drinks from a human and takes too much blood, but not quite enough to kill them, the vampire venom takes over when they’re in that weakened state. They’ll change. They aren’t as strong or fast as a Born, and they’re not immortal. They still age as usual. But their existence is problematic.”

“Why?” I question.

“They don’t tend to have very good control, at least not in the beginning,” Ares continues. He crosses one ankle over the opposite knee. “As I’m sure you’ve already put together, the numbers aren’t in favor for vampires. Exposure is a real danger. The Bitten can’t control their urges very well, so they put all of us under threat. But then there’s also the Debt.”

I don’t even know what that means, and I already don’t like the sound of it.

“The Bitten have a debt to whoever sires them,” Ares explains. “If I created a Bitten, they couldn’t help but obey every little command I gave them. They’re unfailingly loyal. They’ll do anything for their sire. They don’t have any control.”

“They’re basically slaves,” I say. Pity fills me, but also anger. The power balance is so damn extreme.

“Yes,” Ares admits. “The Debt eventually wears off. It might only last months, but more often, it lasts years. So, because of all these issues, the creation of a Bitten is extremely frowned upon.”

You hear stories. Fairy tales, horrors. Not that I ever thought vampires were real, but I always thought vampires could just make more vampires by biting them.

Turns out they can make more. But they’re astronomically less superior.

“What else?” I ask, even as it finally hits me. I feel all the adrenaline burn out of my system. The curiosity has mostly been sated. Now, I’m just exhausted from being awake through the entirety of last night, and now it’s getting late again.

“I’m sure there’s more,” Ares says. “But that’s all the basics for now.”

“Okay,” I say, groaning a little as I sit up. I’m exhausted. And I plan to make good use of that gym in the morning. “I think you called it. That’s enough for today.”

He fixes those dark eyes on me for a long moment, studying me as if I’m something interesting and complicated. “You’re still not freaking out. You’re okay with all of this?”

“Okay with it, no,” I state as I stand and turn toward the bedroom. “But I always knew the world was bigger than me. The proof I’ve seen tells me it’s pointless to fight against the facts. Adapt or die, right?”

“Right,” he says softly.

“Goodnight, Venom,” I say as I continue down the hallway.

“Goodnight, Vengeance,” I hear him call after me.