Tristan stood in the doorway, the rising sun washing him in gold. She had forgotten how gorgeous he was. His hair was longer and more tousled than she had remembered, and the black stubble on his chin gave him more of a rugged look. His black on black look still screamed mysterious bad boy.
Her jaw dropped; she felt it, and she couldn’t seem to get it to close. Tristan chuckled, a deep rumble, and in a blink, he was standing in front of her. His warm breath puffed against her face, and her knees went weak. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close, holding her against his lean body. “Vampirism suits you,” he breathed, running a finger along her high cheekbone and down her neck, sending tantalizing chills over her skin.
“It’s really you,” she squeaked, lost in his glorious black eyes. “You came back.” Her heart was in her throat, thumping erratically, and all she could do was gawk at him. Every place he touched there was a spark, as if fireworks were igniting along her skin.
Tristan smiled down at her. “Of course I came back.” He leaned into her and pressed his lips against hers. Her lips heated, her skin sizzled, and she kissed him back with urgency. Time stopped in that moment as his lips worked over hers. In the back of her mind, she knew this was wrong—dangerous even—but she didn’t care. All she wanted in that very moment was to lose herself within his arms, feel his body pressed against hers, taste his lips …
Suddenly searing pain exploded in her legs, and her knees buckled. Erin’s eyes flew open, and she screamed. Someone grabbed her hands and pulled them behind her back, and the pain spread. It was blistering, as if she was burning alive. The heat spread over every inch of her body. Tristan let go, and she fell to the ground, flailing about and writhing in pain.
“Take her,” he said. “Lock her up with the other one.”
“Tristan,” Erin screamed. “Tristan, make it stop.” Someone grabbed her and hauled her up to her feet. Arms slipped under her armpits and began to drag her away. She had never felt a pain like this. Not even when she was human and Tristan was using the pain through the soulmate bond to control her. She expected to see flames burst up from her skin at any second.
He grinned, and his eyes flashed red. “You haven’t gotten any smarter, I see. Did you really think I’d just let you walk back in after you betrayed me to that …” His lips curled into a sneer, and his skin flushed as red as his eyes. He looked above her, to the thing that was dragging her. “Get her out of my sight, and shut her up.”
Erin hadn’t thought it was possible, but the pain became more intense. It was as if someone was stabbing her with hundreds of burning stakes all at once. The screams ruptured from her lungs like a broken dam, and then the pain took her over; everything grayed and then faded to nothing.
CHAPTER 6
“Could you hurry it up?” Amelia asked for what must have been the millionth time. Josh had been poking around for hours now, and although he was keeping most of the pain at bay, it still hurt like hell. After a close examination of her injuries, Josh had confirmed that Tristan had broken fifteen bones in her body, as well as fractured twice that many.
Josh looked up from her leg and rolled his sterling silver eyes. He smirked and said, “We could just let you heal naturally if you prefer.”
Amelia groaned, long and loud. Josh had been trying to keep the conversation light, and it was starting to drive her crazy. Every time she questioned him about Mitchell, he simply ignored her, refusing to confirm or deny if he was dead, although the sinking feeling in her stomach and the lack of a connection was confirmation enough.
For the first hour or so, all Amelia could do was cry, but then she kind of figured she was allowed, given that she was certain her soulmate was dead, and he was never coming back. Vampires don’t get second chances.
Once her tears had dried up, she realized that she was in a brick room, chained to a hospital style bed. The room had probably been used as a cold storage room at one point in time. There were no windows and no furniture other than the bed, a white plastic lawn chair that Josh sat in, and the large television screen that showed Megan, chained, beaten, and unconscious. In the center of the ceiling was a fixed light bulb with a dirty looking string as a pull cord with no fixture.
After surveying her enclosed surroundings, Amelia had managed to hyperventilate herself to the point of passing out. She had never been good with small spaces, and this was almost like being locked in a closet.
When she finally came to, Josh was still working at mending her bones, and he had given her what he called a ‘magical valium’ to take the edge off and help her mind from thinking that the walls were closing in on her.
Amelia gritted her teeth against the pain as Josh pushed down on her leg, holding the bone in place, while he infused the area with steamy power. She could actually feel the bone piece together under her skin, and it wasn’t pleasant.
“Why are you working with that monster?” Amelia asked, her voice coming out as a growl. She just couldn’t wrap her head around the idea of vampire hunters working with a vampire, especially a psychotic one like Tristan. But what she really wanted to know was why. What was he getting out of this little alliance?
She hadn’t expected a response; it wasn’t the first time she had asked the question, but this time Josh shocked her when he grunted, “Common goal.”
That really hadn’t been the answer she had wanted, and she laughed bitterly. “Yeah, you both want to make sure my life is ruined.” Josh put more pressure on her leg, and Amelia let a whimper slip out from the pain. She bit her lip hard, trying to hold in a scream.
“Tristan is helping us find a way to break the bond,” he said hesitantly. He cut her a look as if he was trying to figure out if she was going to freak or not, and when she didn’t, he smiled. “Not just for you, but for everyone. We’re going to break the curse.”
“Why are you letting him screw with your mind?” Amelia spat. He couldn’t really believe that, could he? “Tristan killed my family out of revenge. Can’t you see how psychotic he is?” Tears bit at her eyes as the memory of her parents’ savage death surfaced. She blinked fast, fighting against the brutal images that crowded her mind and the tears that tried to slip from her eyelids.
Josh’s skin rippled and red flushed to his cheeks. “Don’t try and put this on him,” he snarled. He took his hand off of her leg and sat back in the chair. Anger contorted his striking face, his chiseled jaw twitched, and he yelled, “You created us! You’re the one who wanted the curse to end! You chose this, Amelia, so stop trying to put it on someone else.”
“Are you stupid?” The words fell from her mouth before she could stop them. Created them? As in created a bunch of vampire hunters? Maybe he was just as insane as Tristan. She rolled her eyes and laid the sarcasm on thick. “I’m sorry, but I think I’d remember creating a bunch of vampire hunters.”
“Dammit, why can’t you remember!” Josh stood up, knocking the chair over with a clatter.
What was Tristan doing to him? Amelia couldn’t understand how he had such a hold on Josh. She knew this was probably not the best time to provoke him. She was tied to a bed. She still had a few broken bones, and she had no magic, but she couldn’t stop her snarky retort, figuring that if he was going to kill her, he would have already. “You’re delusional.”
Maybe she should have tried just a little bit harder. In a flash, he was leaning over her; a skull with florescent eyes took the place of his normally tanned skin, sexy jaw, and amazing sterling silver eyes. “I can see what you’re thinking,” he said, his voice deep and gravelly. “It is a curse. At one point, you knew that. You believed it.” Boney fingers encased her shoulders, and he shook her forcefully. “Wake up, Amelia. Mitchell is manipulating you. He’s the monster, not me.”
“Josh, you have no skin,” Amelia whispered, in a scared and small voice. She tried not to shudder, but she couldn’t stop it. It raced through her body and with it, goose bumps formed on her skin.
Almost instantaneously, his sk
in materialized, and he released her. Disgust etched onto his face, and he breathed, “Sorry,” before turning his back to her.
She watched his shoulders rise and fall with deep, regulated breaths as he tried to get himself together. When she noticed that his balled hands had relaxed and the color had returned to his knuckles, she said, “They are not monsters. Eric … Angelle … Erin … they’re my friends, my family.”
“Funny how you didn’t mention him in your little list.” Josh walked over to the chair and sat it upright, and slid into it. “He’s not really your soulmate. This is all a spell, an illusion. But even if he was, would it matter? You loathe him. I can see it in your eyes.”
Amelia let the words hang in the air for a minute. An illusion. Not really your soulmate. You loathe him. Eight months ago, she would have agreed with every word. But did she still believe it? Dammit! Don’t let him get into your head! A voice in the back of her mind scolded. Even if Mitchell is dead, he’s your soulmate! You love him, and he loved you.
Amelia opened her mouth to spit out her thoughts when she was interrupted by a knock at the door. “Am I interrupting?” Tristan asked, pushing the door wide open. He looked between Amelia and Josh with a smirk and then stepped into the room, and patted Josh’s shoulder. “Don’t take it personally. Amelia just likes to fight, but I’m sure you can break her in.” Josh mumbled something incoherent as Tristan scanned Amelia over from head to toe. “Did you show her yet?” Tristan asked.
“I’ve been busy trying to put her back together,” Josh snapped with barely controlled hostility.
Tristan’s eyes flashed red, but he never took them off Amelia. “Show me what?” she asked, hating the quiver that she heard in her voice. She had never felt so vulnerable before. Not when her parents died. Not when she met Mitchell. Never.
Tristan took a deep breath, most likely smelling her fear, which only made her shake more. His fangs popped down, and he darted towards her neck.
Amelia screamed. She couldn’t help it; it just came out. She glued her eyes shut, expecting the pain, but it didn’t come.
“You almost killed her last time,” Josh growled. Amelia pried one eye open to find Josh pinning Tristan against the wall by the neck. “I won’t let you feed from her again.”
“You’re walking on a very thin line,” Tristan snarled. Amelia opened her other eye. Tristan wasn’t fighting at all, and that made her stomach twist in knots. He had never seemed to be the passive kind, and watching him stand there, as if he was actually submitting to Josh, well, it freaked her out—just a little—and she started squirming, trying to loosen the restraints.
“You can play your little mind tricks on Cole, but I know what you are, a filthy bloodsucker,” Josh hissed. “Cole will see it, too. She’ll get into his head, and she’ll break your hold.”
Squirming was useless, and well, it hurt like hell. The magical chains bit into Amelia’s wrists and ankles, and she could have sworn that with each movement she made, they tightened. And on top of that, Amelia had never in her life been as confused as she was at that very moment. Listening to them right now was like listening to someone reciting riddles. Except, these riddles didn’t make sense. She knew they were referring to her, but the rest of it … well, she might as well been listening to someone speak in German. Her brain just couldn’t, or maybe it was that it wouldn’t, comprehend any of it.
Tristan laughed. It was a twisted kind of sound, full of mirth and cynicism, and it slithered over Amelia, turning her stomach and chilling her bones. “You really believe all that garbage, don’t you?” he said to Josh, but he sneered at Amelia. “She’s not your creator, and Mitchell really is her soulmate. That piece of trash didn’t make you. She doesn’t have the power to pull that off. It’s a myth, a legend, a ridiculous fairytale to help the baby hunters sleep at night. And she’ll kill you the first chance she gets.”
Amelia didn’t see Tristan move, but he must have, because all of a sudden Josh was flying through the air. He hit the wall, bounced off, and landed face first on the ground. He didn’t stay down long. In a blink, he was back up, but to Amelia’s horror, he kept his eyes cast down, refusing to look at Tristan as he slithered back over to Amelia’s bedside.
“Don’t you get tired of leading these fools on?” Tristan asked Amelia, taking Josh’s seat and leaning back, letting his arms hang over the plastic armrests. “You finally let Eric go, and now you’re messing with this one?” He winked at her and leered. “I’m guessing Mitch doesn’t take care of all your needs.”
“What does it matter anymore?” Amelia asked, and choked on a sob. “You’ve already killed him. Why don’t you just finish it and kill me, too? That’s what you want, isn’t it?”
“Killed him?” Tristan asked, raising both of his eyebrows. He looked completely befuddled. “Josh, what is she blabbing on about?”
Amelia’s heart hammered in her chest. She wanted to scream and cry all at once. She eyed Josh as he shuffled back and forth. “I may have insinuated …”
Tristan threw back his head and let out a deep roar of a laugh, cutting Josh off. “That’s rich.” The laughter in his eyes made Amelia grit her teeth. “You really thought I’d kill my good friend, Mitchell, without making him suffer first?”
“I can’t feel him,” she said softly, and tears started to sting at her eyelids again. But just as quickly as they came, a thought hit her that made the tears dry up. She glared at Josh. “Seriously, doesn’t it bother you at all that the only way I’ll talk to you civilly is by using magic on me? Why don’t you take these chains off, and see what I really think of you.”
“Amelia, the chains and the charms are for your protection,” Tristan said, and patted her hand. “We can’t have you hurting yourself until it’s time, now can we?”
Okay, so that didn’t make any sense, Amelia thought, as she scanned Tristan who was clearly enjoying her confusion. Why would she hurt herself? If she hurt anyone, it would be one of them. “Why do you want to break the bond?” she asked.
“Mitchell doesn’t deserve the power you give him,” he said simply, as if it was a well-known fact, and then he shifted his gaze to Josh, who was now standing on the other side of her bed glaring furiously at Tristan. “Thanks for borrowing her magic,” he said. “It worked like a charm.”
Amelia’s eyes darted back and forth between Josh and Tristan, and a sense of dread filled her. There was something here, something that she just wasn’t getting. She could see something that resembled understanding floating around her brain with a great big look at me sign, but no matter how hard she tried to read it, she just couldn’t. It was as if it jumped back, just out of reading distance, every time she was close. Her gut was telling her she should be upset or scared even but, oddly, she wasn’t.
“What does he mean you borrowed my magic?” And why am I talking to them as if we are old friends? She shot Josh another glare as a strong scent of cotton candy drifted up her nose. “Will you stop it!” she shouted, suddenly understanding the strange calm that had settled over her.
“I don’t want you to re-break any of your bones,” Josh said, and squeezed her hand. Amelia wished she could jerk away from his touch. “You need to calm down.”
“What I need is some damn answers!” she shouted, because, really, a straight answer would have been nice right about then. It was as if they were talking in circles, but none of those circles fully connected, they just curved and twisted around each other.
“I used your magic to lift the spell you had placed on the bond between Tristan and his mate.” The words rushed out of Josh so quickly that Amelia almost missed it. Almost.
All the circles collided together with a brain-numbing intensity, and right then Amelia thought she was going to be sick. Erin, a voice in her head whimpered, and panic clenched at her throat. She squeezed her eyes shut, and right then, she actually wished that Josh would use that infuriating charm on her, because imagining all the things that Tristan could, and most likely would, do
to Erin through the bond wasn’t something she wanted to see.
Amelia racked her brain trying to remember what she had read about borrowed magic. From what she could remember about it, it was supposed to be painful. A witch had to merge their own power with the victim, and then drain off the needed energy until the spell they were trying to lift was broken. Depending on the complexity of the spell, it could feel like you were dying while it was happening. And Amelia didn’t remember any of it. Her eyes snapped open and landed on Josh.
As if reading her mind, he whispered, “The pain from your injuries masked the process. And, well, you weren’t completely lucid.”
“I would love to know how you make these men grovel like this. Frankly, I don’t see anything that amazing,” Tristan mumbled, eyeing Josh as if he was crazy.
Amelia opened her mouth to spit out something that she was sure she would regret, but she didn’t get the chance. Josh beat her to it. “Shut up, Tristan,” he seethed through clenched teeth.
Tristan raised a brow. “Josh, I think it’s time for you to take a break. Cole has been itching to help with her.”
Josh puffed out his chest, as if he was trying to make himself look bigger, and he narrowed his eyes to a ferocious glare. “I’m not leaving her.”
“I’m not asking,” Tristan said evenly. He stood up and started towards the door. “Get out, Josh, and send Cole in.”
Josh looked down at Amelia, and all the fight in him vanished. “Just try to do what he says,” he whispered, his voice was thick with emotion. “If you don’t fight him, he’ll be okay.”
Amelia looked at Josh, and for a minute, she almost wanted to comfort him and tell him that she’d be fine, but thankfully, she bit her tongue on the words. He’s the enemy, she reminded herself again, and she forced herself to look away from his sad puppy-dog eyes.