Undying Thirst (Crimson Coven #2)

21. Catalina

TWENTY-ONE

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I preferred Ren wanting me dead. I ignored him as I cuddled Binx to my breasts.

Ren laughed again.

What did he find so funny? I scowled over at him.

“Will you hold me to your perky breasts like . . . the animal?”

His smirk caused some unsettling dips to my stomach, and I wet my lower lip.

“Why are you smirking? And no, Binx gets special treatment.”

“Binx,” Ren repeated and choked on a laugh.

What was up with this vampire?!

“Ren, come help us compel the humans,” Asher shouted as he started walking out the door. He sounded irritated to the max. Something was going on, but I didn’t have the energy to wonder about everything century old vampires squabbled over.

“Little putty tat,” Ren said as he passed us. Binx’s body stiffened in my arms and a frightening sound escaped him. It sounded like a demon.

“Binx,” I chastised.

Ren’s eyes glinted with humor as he left. It was nice seeing the dimples, but not when he laughed at my expense.

I went to shut the door with my toe as I balanced Binx in my arms. The knot in my throat hadn’t loosened. I had missed the cat. I had thought he had perished in the fire since I hadn’t seen him since then. Now he was the only remnant of everything I’d lost. Bastien seemed on edge, too; he kept looking at the cat and then pacing from one end of the room to the other. I would have to keep an eye on him so he didn’t try to snap its neck from jealousy.

Settling on the bed, I placed him on my lap. “I’ll have to get Asher to order you a collar.”

He meowed like I’d just offended him.

I missed the sound of it. He always managed to sound grumpy. I pressed my nose into his neck and scratched his chest.

“God Binx. I’m glad you’re okay,” I breathed into his fur. Tears sprang to my eyes. “I don’t know what to do.” A purr started up in his chest. It comforted me.

Bastien knelt before me and touched my cheek gently. He lifted it off my face and into his mouth. Uh, okay.

Bastien hissed at the cat.

“No.” I stuck my finger in Bastien’s face. “No.” I repeated.

He tilted his head, but finally backed up, returning to his pacing.

A damp layer coated my cheeks, and I brushed the back of my hand against the moisture.

I should probably take a shower after . . . the events on the counter. A pleasured flush swelled through my body. Clearing my throat, I hopped to my feet to dash toward the bathroom. Bastien watched me with his head tilted. He’d smell my arousal. I picked up pace and slammed the door behind me, Binx in my arms. He wasn’t normally allowed with me in the restroom, but I didn’t want to lose sight of him in this mausoleum of a house. Nor to find him drained of blood when I finished bathing.

Sure, it was a little off-putting the way he looked at me whenever I showered, but I’d take his hyper focus now that he was back in my life.

I shot up in bed with a gasp. My eyes felt grainy and tired because I’d been in and out of sleep, and now I couldn’t see a thing. My heart jumped. My leg hit a hard form and I lunged to pat the mattress, but it was not Binx.

Bastien. In the depths of a vampire’s sleep. It was still morning, that’s why it was so pitch dark in here. I squeezed the bedsheet with a trembling hand and scooted off. Closing my eyes, I inched toward the door, using my memory to make my way.

Faint light came from down the hall, washing the pitch black away. I sighed in relief and snapped the door shut. It was deathly quiet. I crept down the hall.

The bottom of Asher’s long sweats dragged and I tightened the string as much as possible, but I still had to hold them to my waist. The big shirt fluttered around my arms.

It was absolutely silent. I padded down the steps as a light knock echoed on the door. I froze. Was another attacker here to end my life? I slowly approached to peek through the glass sliver bordering one side of the door.

A girl, dressed in a recognizable delivery service outfit.

Grabbing the door, I yanked it open so fast the woman startled. Wait a minute. I had opened the door. I peeked over my shoulder. No one was running out to stop me.

“Um, hi, I left your packages there. There’s a lot of them so I knocked.”

I could escape. The window of leaving came much sooner than expected.

“Can you give me a ride?” The words burst free. But Binx . . . where was he? I gritted my teeth and focused on the driver. Carrying a cat would make being on the run difficult.

The girl’s eyebrow furrowed, and she looked behind me at the expensive house. She scratched her head.

“Uhhh.”

I took a deep breath and relaxed my shoulders and let a smile spread. I didn’t have to fake a blush because my face burned from the adrenaline pumping through my veins.

“I just forgot all of my things and it’d be embarrassing waking him up.” I shuffled from foot to foot. “You know how one-night-stands go.”

Her eyes widened and understanding pinched her expression. She scanned me from head to foot. Taking in the oversized sweats, the messy puffed up hair, and sleep riddled expression. She looked down at her electronic wristwatch.

“My next delivery is toward downtown, but that’s as far as I can take you.”

I must look as freshly fucked as I felt.

“Perfect.” I reigned in my nerves and took a deep breath, trying to act nonchalant.

I took one step out of the house. The sun fell onto my skin, but it was still chilly. I curled my toes into the rough cement, then took another step and froze.

From here, I could see the dent the dead woman’s body had left in the flowers.

If I ran away . . . the other vampire would find me.

Panic squeezed my chest. That would be worse than this. I shuffled in place and cleared my throat.

“Wait,” I said, rushed. Her eyebrows furrowed and she kept looking over my shoulder and into the lavish Manor. “Can I just borrow your phone to order a ride?”

She turned back with a frown, digging into the chest pocket of her blue work vest, and handed it over unlocked. I tapped on the login for my email. I sent a quick email to my lawyer, informing her of my passing as if I were a ‘relative’. I was going to do it from the computer they got me, but the faster I did it the better. Even as my fingers flashed over the screen, I understood my decision would leave me with no choice. There was no turning back. A terrified thrill caused my hands to shake, but I saw no way out of my situation. It was best I disappeared in the ‘human’ world. She would inform everyone . . . my agent, my insurance agency . . . my brother. A knot formed in my throat.

I logged out and handed the phone back. My breaths came out in short gusts. Standing here, I’d worked myself up until my pulse fluttered like butterfly wings.

“Thanks and sorry for the change up.” I held my breath, so my panic wouldn’t be excruciatingly obvious to her.

My decision . . . I wouldn’t turn back.

“No worries, the morning after is always super awkward. I get you.” The worker slipped it back into her vest and she retreated toward the delivery van idling outside of the gates. The multitude of boxes on the floor stared at me mockingly. I didn’t have the energy to bring them all in. I turned and closed the door on the bright sunlight, sealing my fate.

I’d chosen.

Each heartbeat tried to punch through my chest.

I’d never get to see Peter again.

The excruciating pain in my lungs tightened. It felt like I was having an asthma attack, but I hadn’t had one ever since they’d fed me their healing blood. Whenever they fed me, it served as a balm on my weak lungs.

I crumpled to the floor and thumped my head on the door. This was safest for Peter.

A shaking sob left my lips and I hugged myself.

“You made the right choice to not run off.”

I gasped, slamming my elbow on the door with how fast I jolted.

With a grunt, I bowed forward, palming my elbow.

A brunette stood over me in yoga pants and a nylon, form hugging shirt.

Hoisting myself off the floor, I straightened to find that she was extremely fucking tall. Two heads over my average five foot six and a half inches.

I searched her face. She didn’t have the smooth porelessness I was used to seeing on vampires, and her chest moved up and down in rhythmic breaths.

“You’re human.”

“I am,” she drawled in a thick southern accent. “I’m glad you chose to stay. Tackling you would have been embarrassing. I’d hate to get on your owners’ bad side.”

Owners?

I wanted to exclaim and ask what she was talking about but it didn’t seem the most important question to someone I’d never met.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Maddy, Talia’s human.”

She said it with such ease and pride. Talia, the female vampire that Asher sired?

“I’ve heard a bit about you. Human Pet to Crimson Coven.”

“You’ve heard about me?” I poked at my chest as if it wasn’t obvious.

She grunted and pulled open the front door and started dragging the packages into the house. She hugged the last box to her chest and kicked the door shut with her toe.

“You’re the human they took to Crimson Nights. Talia is extremely curious about you, almost fixated and I have not seen her focus on something like that for a few decades. All vampires view us humans as less than them, there are a few here and there that are sympathetic like Talia, but the Crimson Coven?”

She grimaced as she hugged the last box then turned to walk down the hall leading to the kitchen. “They’re hard core. The only one known to show empathy is the priest, but from what I hear, even he struggles with his apathy default setting.”

“Oh.”

I picked up my pace to keep up as she returned to the kitchen with even, wide steps.

“But you’ve not only gotten their attention, but you’ve also become their Pet.” She looked over her shoulder and wiggled her eyebrows up and down. “And they don’t want to kill you for betraying them? Crazy props to you.”

“How do you know about that?” My lips felt numb. She spoke of it so easily, as if it hadn’t affected my entire life.

She dropped the box on the granite counter where I’d been thoroughly licked yesterday.

“Word has spread. The gossip is gossiping since yesterday. If it’s true, you’re one lucky human.” Instead of focusing on the offended anger, I reigned it in. She seemed to know what she was talking about.

“Is there a way to get them to release a Pet? With zero . . . killing?”

She froze from cutting a knife through the tape. Her eyes rounded on me and she scoffed.

“You should be grateful they’ve chosen you. There is no human they’ve ever taken as theirs. The only one woman they’d entangled themselves with that wasn’t a quick fuck was the woman that ‘will not be named’ according to Talia.”

“Imogen,” I said grimly.

“I don’t know her name. Talia said it was safer for me unless I wanted to meet a quick end.” She shrugged. “Human to human, you need to be careful with how you speak to vampires, especially ones that have just taken you in. They value loyalty above all else. One hint that you’ve betrayed them and they’ll come after you before you know what’s going on.” She snickered. “I’ve seen it, trust me, it doesn't look like a walk in the park. They’re big on torture.”

“Oh,” I muttered, wrinkling my nose. The attacker’s head falling off his body flashed in my memory.

“Anyway, if you need anything from now on, just let me know. I’ll get you hooked up. I already ordered you some clothes. And get me a list of everything you enjoy eating.” She grinned. “I have to thank you for that, I was selected because I was a chef before Talia chose me. Now I get to feed you.”

“You’re talking about it like it’s some honor.”

She popped the top of the box open and met my gaze.

“Are you kidding me? I’m servicing the Crimson Coven Sires. One of the most powerful vampire groups on the western side of the United States.”

My lips parted.

“What makes them powerful?”

“You’re that brand new?”

I tugged the island chair and plopped down.

“Girrrrl, they’re a group of six incredibly powerful vampires who’ve collectively sired hundreds of vampires. All who are allied under them. They have an army at their disposal. From what I’ve heard, that woman brought them together and made them a powerful force. Her little experiment went as far as making other vampires attempt to form large Covens, but there have been very few successes.”

She said six . . . so including Imogen before she left.

“To put it frankly, you are one well protected human. And just a heads up, you would have never crossed the gates with that delivery driver. The place is surrounded with guards. They compelled them to protect the manor and you, with their life.” She snapped her fingers. “I also wouldn’t leave without protection. You’ve been perceived by other vamps. Other Coven Sires are waiting for a reason for Crimson Coven to have a weakness. There’s even a movement for it, so be careful when dealing with other vampires. They will come after you just to get at them.”

I sat back, blown away in the worst way possible. “And they won’t destabilize centuries of peace for one human woman, so your best bet is to just stay put and do what they ask you to.”

That was why the other guys weren’t sure who had Ren, so they’d had to tread with caution.

Dread settled in my belly.