Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
For almost two hours he’d watched all the guests arrive. Nobody noticed him standing in the shadow of a hedge on the other side of the street. They were too busy parading in their fancy clothes. More humans than vampires arrived for the event, many of the humans Chinese. Clearly, the bride had a large extended family, though none of her relatives seemed to carry the special blood. Even from across the street he would have been able to smell it, so attuned was he to it.
Human valets were parking the guests’ cars, and a vampire guard at the entrance door checked the invitations. Another vampire guard stood at the tradesmen entrance through which the service personnel, the waiters and kitchen staff, entered.
He’d dressed appropriately. In his black tuxedo he would blend in with the guests as if he belonged there. Only the vampires on the premises would know he didn’t. But soon they would all be in the tent at the back of the house, and the only one he’d have to deal with was the one guarding the entrance door.
The house was lit like a Christmas tree. It made it easy for him to watch the goings-on. When the living room started to empty out, he knew that the guests were taking their places in the tent. It couldn’t be much longer now.
He lifted his eyes to the upper floor. In one of the rooms, Ursula would be waiting, alone, while everybody else would be in the tent.
It was time.
Calmly, he crossed the street and walked up to the entrance door, out of sight of the vampire guarding the side entrance. The door to the house was open, but blocking it was a vampire guard. The guy didn’t know him, and that was his advantage.
He flashed a charming smile at the guard. “I hope I’m not late.”
The vampire motioned to the interior. “It’s going to start in a few minutes.” Then he nodded to him. “Your name? And your invitation please.”
“Michael Valentine,” he answered and reached into his jacket pocket. “Uh, and here’s my invitation.”
With a single swift move, he pulled a stake from his inside pocket and plunged it into the guard’s heart, before the man could even react.
The vampire disintegrated into dust. Michael turned to assure himself that the vampire guarding the side door hadn’t heard anything suspicious. There was no sound coming from the tradesmen entrance. Quickly he swept the set of keys, cell phone, and loose change that remained from the vampire into the bushes.
Unimpeded, he entered the house. Without hesitation, he walked up the stairs, when he heard the music in the tent starting. But there would be no ceremony. No wedding. No blood-bond.
I’m coming for you, Ursula.
“I think that’s our cue,” her father said when music came drifting up from the tent.
Ursula turned away from the full-length mirror in the guestroom and faced him.
He smiled back at her. “You look beautiful, Wei Ling. You’re a woman now. You make us very proud, me and your mother.”
“Even though I’m not marrying a Chinese man?”
“That was never very important to me.” He chuckled. “Now, your mother, that’s another story. But she’ll get used to it. Don’t worry about it.”
“Thank you, Dad.” She leaned toward him and kissed him on the cheek.
For a moment, she hesitated. There was so much she wanted to tell him, to confess who Oliver was and what he’d done for her. How he’d rescued her from a life in shackles. Her parents knew nothing of it. After her release from the blood brothel, Oliver and Scanguards had gone through great lengths to wipe her parents’ memories and done the same with everybody who knew about her three-year disappearance. But there were moments like these when she wanted to tell the truth, though she knew it would only lead to pain.
“I love you, Dad,” she whispered instead. “For everything you and Mom have done for me.”
Somewhat embarrassed, her father smiled. “Time to go and meet your husband.”
“I don’t think so!” A menacing male voice came from the door as it shut behind him.
Ursula whirled her head around to the intruder and almost tripped over her long red dress. Her breath caught in her throat when she recognized the man. Though she didn’t remember his name, she knew he was one of the former clients of the blood brothel. Leeches, she and the other girls had called them.
“What is this?” her father asked, outraged. “Get out!”
“Only once I have what I want!” the vampire snarled, his eyes now glaring red, and his fangs descending.
Her father gasped, but Ursula knew the vampire’s look all too well. He’d come for her blood.
“What are you?!” her father choked out as he moved in front of Ursula as if to protect her.
But Ursula knew her father was no match for the vampire. No human was. She squeezed past him, glaring at the leech.
“Oliver will kill you if you harm me!” she warned.
“He won’t catch us. We’ll be long gone by the time he realizes.”
At his words, Ursula shook her head in disbelief. No! He hadn’t simply come to attack her here and drink her blood, he was planning to kidnap her!
“No!” she screamed, but she knew that the music in the tent would prevent her scream from reaching Oliver’s ears. He would stand there at the podium, waiting for her in vain. Waiting, while she was being kidnapped.
“Now come to me, and I won’t hurt you,” the vampire promised, then added, “ . . . much.”
“Leave my daughter alone, you monster!” her father yelled and jumped toward him before she could stop him.
“No! Dad! No!”
But it was too late. With one punch, the vampire knocked her father clear across the room and into the wall, where he collapsed with a groan.
“Oh no! Dad! No!” She ran her eyes over his body. She couldn’t see any blood, but the impact could have left internal injuries. Inside her, anger and worry collided. “You’ll pay for this!”
The vampire chuckled, and the sound made her shiver in disgust. Like a tiger, he approached, setting one foot in front of the other. Slowly, as if he enjoyed this and didn’t want it to end too soon. Like a cat playing with a mouse.
Frantically she looked around the room for anything she could use as a weapon, but came up empty.
She was at his mercy now.
“I’ve waited for this for so long,” her attacker confessed. “All those days in my cold cell I was dreaming of this, of finding another blood whore. I’d almost given up.”
“Get away from me!” she warned again. “Oliver will kill you.”
A moan from where her father had collapsed told her he was alive. She cast a quick glance in his direction and realized he was trying to move, but struggled.
“Maybe,” the vampire hedged. “But only after I’ve gotten what I wanted.” He fletched his fangs and took another step toward her.
Like a cold fist, fear clamped around her heart. She could see it in his eyes now: the madness. He wouldn’t be able to stop drinking from her once he started. He would drain her.
Tonight, on her wedding night, she would die. And her father would have to watch helplessly.