Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Lila
Iwatch as a drop of blood wells on the pad of my finger, but when I hold it out to place it in the gun, I find that the stoic Saxon has been replaced with a nostril flaring, fang baring, red-eyed monster.
The sight alone sends my heart rate soaring, and my fight-or-flight instincts feel like they are about to take over.
My blood! Fuck! I would have thought a being who drank blood every day would have better control than this, but when he starts to pant, my immediate instinct is to pull away.
I try to move my hand so it’s not too close to him, because I’d rather not become Saxon’s lunch, but before I can, he has my hand in his vicelike grip.
I struggle in his hold, but he growls and I freeze.
Fuck. This is not going to end well.
I watch his movements intently and can see a slight shift in his eyes.
“Lila, you need to move away from me very slowly, and I need you to leave the vault and range. Once you are in the corridor, I need you to run as fast as you can and find Xavier. Tell him you are my blood rose, and he will know what to do,” Saxon says through gritted teeth, and I can see him physically struggling to hold himself still, even though he’s holding onto my hand.
His body is practically vibrating, and his shape is getting blurrier the longer we stand here.
My instincts are screaming at me to run as terror courses through my body.
He drops my hand and I do as he says. I desperately want to run, but I’m almost a hundred percent certain that would trigger his predatory nature and cause him to chase me. Maybe any other day, that would be appealing, but not when Saxon’s barely hanging onto his last ounce of control.
My shoulder burns again with another attraction mark as I slowly back away, not turning my back on the violently contained man in front of me.
Of course I’m turned on by how he looks, and I’m surprised the mark didn’t appear on my shoulder the minute I saw him.
Why has it appeared now? Is seeing his primal side what triggers my vampire kink?
That brings my number to four. Fucking hell.
How does one juggle dating four men? I think I might need to call Dr. Phil for this one.
My fascination with vampires started long ago and only grew with each movie or paranormal romance I read or watched, but reality is somewhat of a kick in the face.
This guy in front of me is a lethal, bloodsucking machine, and he has caught my scent.
My ridiculous sense of self-preservation can’t decide if she wants to throw herself at him and offer up my neck in sacrifice, or if she wants to quietly pee her pants and leave the room, the smell of urine marking my trail.
I feel myself pass through the barrier and he disappears from sight, but I know he can still see me, smell me, and sense me, so I don’t dare turn and run just yet.
Step by step, I cautiously move across the cavernous room.
My hip bangs against the control console, but I contain my hiss of pain and slide my way around it, wishing that I had activated the gun already, but nope, that didn’t happen because apparently my blood smells good enough to make this highly disciplined man go berserk.
Seriously, what the fuck is up with my luck?
I guess I need to be grateful that the fuck me hormones weren’t misbehaving as well, otherwise I probably would have thrown myself at him instead of backing away calmly.
Although, there is still time.
I internally sigh at myself. My life is in danger, but yet I’m thinking about getting laid. There is something seriously wrong with me.
I finally make it to the sliding door and push the button to open it. It slides quietly to the side and I step through, watching as it closes swiftly behind me. A roar rattles the door as I turn and race toward the elevator, pushing any button on my watch and shouting into it.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Call Xavier,” I instruct, but I get a fucking message.
“The warlock is on another call right now, please try again later.” What the fuck?
We have an answering service on an alien ship?
My heart is racing, and my legs are moving as fast as they can.
As I get to the elevator, I slide to a stop and slam my hand down on the call button.
Thankfully it arrives within seconds, and I hop on just as another roar echoes down the corridor.
Fuck, with his speed, he will be here in seconds.
“Come on, you stupid, slow-ass, Driving Miss Daisy door.” It closes quickly, separating me from the rampaging, bloodsucking, sexy man, and I breathe a sigh of relief.
I try to control my heart rate so I don’t pass out and attempt to think of solutions.
If I can’t find Xavier, who is going to protect me?
I’m assuming he’s not just going to stop the moment I’m out of sight because the constant, albeit sexy, roar echoing through the hallways tells me I’m right.
Think, Lila. Think.
Caspian? But would he be a match for the military trained Saxon? Maybe in his kraken form. At this point, my mate is my best option for protection because I doubt his beast would allow Saxon to get close when he’s all vamped out. He said he was going for a swim, so hopefully he’s still at the pool.
I program the location into my watch and press the floor number.
The elevator takes me to the right place, and I don’t waste any time getting off and stripping as soon as the door opens.
I’m almost naked by the time I hear another roar.
Holy fuck, I can hear him already. The elevator opens only onto this space, but maybe there’s a set of stairs somewhere on this level.
Either way, he’s coming, and I think my luck might have run out.
Kicking off my shoes, I remove my bra and panties, not wanting to lose them when I shift, and pray that this works.
Doing what Caspian told me, I picture my shifted self in my mind, and I feel my body change as the magic flows over me with surprising ease.
Not waiting for the change to finish, I throw myself into the water.
Caspian? I scream through our telepathic bond, but he doesn’t respond, and my heart sinks with worry.
He’s not here.
Fuck.
I am so not equipped to deal with this on my own, but I’m all I’ve got.
With no one to talk to, questions begin running through my mind at a rapid pace.
What am I going to do? I don’t know how long Vilaxians can hold their breath. Is he going to come in after me?
My finger has stopped bleeding, and if there is any blood, it’s now being dispersed in this giant pool. Let’s just hope Nikos’s friend Sweet Pea doesn’t find my blood as tasty as Saxon obviously thought it would be.
I dive deep into the bottom of the pool, hoping that even if he can hold his breath indefinitely, his body can’t withstand the pressure at this depth.
Swimming through the reef that teems with life, I look around.
I can’t decide where to go or what to do.
There also seems to be no sign of the Aquilian shifters, so maybe they are out and about on the ship for a change.
I might just go and hide out in the cave at the bottom of Nikos’s place.
Maybe his sister, Nixie, is there and we can hang out until Saxon has snapped out of his predatory self.
I just need something to distract me until this is over.
Now that I’ve calmed slightly, I propel myself along with my tentacles. It’s kind of weird but also fun and fast. Before I know it, I’m shooting up the tunnel and surfacing in Nikos’s pool. Pulling myself up onto the platform, I drag in fresh air and feel my gills automatically seal as I dry off.
My heart is still racing after my close encounter with Saxon, and I find myself having the same thoughts as I try to digest what happened.
I’m not sure what to do. Is this a one-time thing where once he’s gotten the scent of my blood out of his system he will go back to normal?
Or is this a permanent state and he’s going to hunt me to the ends of the galaxy?
My sex starved body is telling me to turn my ass around and let him impale me with whatever he wants to.
You know, fangs or cock or tongue. I’m really not fussy, but the sensible, values her life side of me is telling horny me to fuck off.
We don’t want to die today. It’s seriously like those cartoons where there’s a devil on one side and an angel on the other.
I try to reach Xavier again, but he’s still on another call. I’m about to try calling Caspian to find out where he is, because his kraken would protect me from the vampire, but I hear voices in the living area above me.
“What are you doing here, Saxon?” I can hear Nikos’s grumpy tone echo down into the cavern. “Why are you in my home?” I look upwards and realize that this pool links to the top through a shaft with a set of stone steps that circle up the wall. If they look over the edge, they will see me. Shit!
“Lila is in your pool. You have her. I want her. Give her to me now,” Saxon growls, and I hear Nikos click his tongue at him in admonishment.
“No, Saxon. Caspian told me we do not kidnap and ravish females anymore. You must invite them to have sex.” I can’t help but smile as Nikos repeats the words that Caspian scolded him with.
“I also do not think she would want you to drink from her when you are in such a frenzy. Go away and come back later.”
“You dare to wave a weapon at me?” Saxon sounds outraged. Maybe it’s his dick. With Nikos, you can never know for sure, but I wish I could see what is going on.
“You are not thinking clearly, and when you do, you will be upset if you hurt Lila.” Nikos doesn’t raise his voice, he just states his opinion in a matter-of-fact way.
A roar echoes down the tunnel. I don’t think Saxon is impressed with Nikos’s logic.
“What is that racket?” A cute, tinkling voice joins the conversation. “What are you doing in our home, sanguinista?”