25. Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Five
Benji
W e left the city limits some time ago and the skyscrapers morphed into trees. Vlad was constantly on the phone getting updates from the various teams. Seemed like all hell had broken loose at every location Damyr owned.
Vlad hung the phone up and slammed his hand on the wheel. “Fuck!”
I eyed him warily. I’d only ever seen Vlad as cool and put together so this tense, angry version had me on edge.
“Sorry,” he gritted out. “It’s just Ronin has attacked everything . The warehouses, the clubs, nothing has been left untouched. We’ve got police combing the legitimate businesses and gangs trying to raid the warehouses. He’s attacking us on every front and we’re stretched thin. It’s only a matter of time before he does something that we can’t overcome.”
“What about the other Families? Will they not help?”
Vlad pursed his lips. “They’ll do what they can, but we can’t ask them to risk everything for what seems to be a personal vendetta against Damyr.”
That was a fair point. Still, I didn’t like that Damyr was being pulled in all these different directions. At some point, he was going to get hurt.
I turned to stare out of the window, watching the rain drops travelling down the glass and wondering what Damyr was doing. I’d never thought I would be so consumed by another person, but there I was, continuously thinking about him. In my head, I knew that was a major red flag. It was probably on the verge of co-dependency, but I couldn’t seem to bring myself to mind. It was as if all sensible thought patterns just disappeared around Damyr. He was what I wanted and that was it. To hell with everything else.
When I next sat down with Damyr, we were going to have a serious conversation about the future. I wanted to make this work, although how I was going to tell Maya, I didn’t know. But that was a problem for future Benji.
“Can I ask you something?”
Vlad looked at me, a curious brow raised. “Of course.”
“Being away from Damyr feels… alien. Every thought I have is around him and what he’s doing. Is that normal?”
“It might be because you’re human,” he said with a small shrug of his shoulders. “Vampire mates have the ability to connect telepathically so maybe, because you’re human, the mate bond is pushing your brain into overdrive.”
“Vampires communicate telepathically?”
“Only some. Damyr can send thoughts to everyone in his Coven because he’s the alpha, and mates communicate because they create their own bond during the mating process.”
Interesting. “So I wouldn’t have to be a vampire for that to work?”
His brows knitted together. “I don’t think so, but I can’t remember the last time a vampire mated with a human.”
“Oh. So, will mating with me work?” Doubt started creeping in at the thought that maybe I’d have to walk away from Damyr.
“Benji,” Vlad said warmly. “I have no doubt that if you are Damyr’s mate, the bonding process will work. It is easier when you’re the same species, there is less risk but the risk is still there.”
Okay, I could live with that. When I was ready, I guess I’d have to think about becoming a vampire. “Is there a good age to become a vampire?”
He chuckled. “My, you are full of questions today.”
“I’m just trying to understand. I’d ask Damyr, but he’s not here. You are.”
Vlad dragged a hand over his jaw line, the rasp of his stubble scraping against his fingers. “No, there’s no perfect age to turn, but we do have laws. You have to be between the ages of twenty-one and fifty.”
I guess that made sense. Turning children and older people wouldn’t be a sensible choice. “Can vampires have children?”
“It’s rare. Very rare. We can, but it takes time. They only come from mate bonds, and you already know how rare they are. So, most people adopt and raise human children and, when they are old enough, they are brought in on the big family secret. It’s then up to them if the want to turn or remain human.”
At least that meant I could look at children in the future. I wondered how Damyr felt about kids. I had always wanted some, but with med school and everything else, having them would have been too difficult. I always thought I’d have them when I was older though.
“Do you think Damyr will let me finish med school?”
“Benji, if you don’t know this already, you’re going to have that man eating out of the palm of your hand,” he deadpanned, and I had to chuckle. The picture of an overbearing Damyr giving into my demands seemed ridiculous.
“I’m not sure I believe you but thank you.”
Vlad went to answer but the car lurched, as if the brakes had been slammed. The sound of metal crumpling hit my ears and then we were flying trough the air, rolling until we hit the ground with an almighty thud.
My head hit the dashboard and a high pitched ringing filled my ears. I blinked. There was glass everywhere. The trees were upside down. No. that was me. I was upside down.
“Vlad?” I croaked. I couldn’t see him. My vision was foggy and there was a dull ache behind my eyes. That would be a concussion. I tried to take stock of my other injuries but I couldn’t sense anything too serious. Couple of broken fingers and my chest hurt where the seat belt had dug into my skin. Bet that would be a hell of a bruise later.
The passenger door was ripped open and Vlad crouched into view. “I’ve got you.”
Blood trickled down the side of his face from his temple, but I couldn’t see any open wounds. Benefit of being a vamp, I guess. Super quick healing time.
He supported my weight and then unbuckled my seat belt. I fell from the seat and Vlad placed me down gently. “I’m going to call Dam—”
Something barrelled into his side, and he flew out of my view. “Vlad!”
I tried to move my head but it felt heavy, like it was full of stone. Glass crunched beneath someone’s feet as they moved slowly. Instinctively I wanted to shout for help but I knew that whoever this was, felt way too convenient for them to have just happened upon the car accident.
Flashes of colour went hurtling around the car. I couldn’t process it. They moved too fast and made me feel nauseous. There was a loud groan and then the ground shook.
“Vlad?”
Feet stopped outside the door. Feet clad in expensive loafers not the combat boots Vlad would have been in.
The owner of the shoes crouched down towards me, and I got my first look at the mystery man. Long silver white hair and bright red eyes. Sharp nose, sharp jaw, sharp gaze.
“It’s nice to finally meet you, Benji.”
That voice, I knew that voice. “Ronin?”
He wrapped his hands under my shoulders and pulled me from the wreckage as if I weighed nothing. “Do you know what a Ronin is?”
My body felt broken. I didn’t think it was, just shook up a bit, but I couldn’t muster the energy to roll over, let alone escape. And where was Vlad? I looked around and spotted a body laying still on the floor. Oh God, was he dead?
“Don’t worry, I’ve just knocked him out,” Ronin said, answering my thoughts. Jesus, this guy must be something if he could disarm and pacify Vlad in seconds. What would he do to me? Probably best not to find out.
Ronin dropped his weight on my hips, his thighs straddling my waist, and I hissed as the movement jarred my body with pain.
“I understand what Damyr sees in you, Benji.” He leant closer, burying his hands in the dirt by my head. “You’re quite beautiful, and that mouth…” He swept his thumb across my bottom lip. “That mouth in something else.”
There was a wicked gleam in his eye that I found unsettling. Fear traipsed its way up my spine as his gaze roved over the contours of my face. I could feel it like a physical thing, slithering over my skin like a snake.
“To answer my earlier question, a ronin is a samurai without a master.”
“And that’s you?” I asked casually, trying to keep the fear from my voice.
“Of a fashion.” He kept tracing my bottom lip. His thumb going back and forth, back and forth, over and over again. The repetition was maddening and I was tempted to see if I could bite his thumb off. “My master died and left me to wander. Your precious Damyr killed my brother and left me with no one.”
“You’re a Morley.” Damyr had never mentioned Edwin had a brother. It was a long time ago, perhaps he’d forgotten.
His smile widened. “Yes, I am. Silas Morley at your service.”
“What now, Silas? What do you want with me?”
“With you, Benji?” he taunted with a pout. “Nothing. You’re just a means to an end. As is the tank of a vampire over there. It’s not personal, I just need you to get to Damyr.” He leant closer, bringing his mouth to my ear and dropping his voice to a whisper. “First though, I’m going to make him suffer until he begs for death, and then I’m going to let him watch everything he loves burn to the fucking ground.”
Then he lifted my head and slammed it to the ground. The last thing I saw was the venomous rage in his ruby red eyes before I surrendered to the blackness that had been waiting to claim me.