Page 13 of Short, Lethal & Claimed

“It’s only going to get worse.”

She really didn’t think that she could handle much more of this, Jill thought as she reluctantly parted her lips and beganpulling at the straw. That was followed by gagging when the cold, thick, metallic liquid hit her tongue. Remembering all those horror stories that she’d heard about bloodlust over the years from her father and a few vampires at the Sentinel compound, Jill forced herself to swallow.

Within seconds, she felt warmth spread through her stomach, chasing away the nausea before it spread throughout her body, taking away her pain with every mouthful of blood that she forced herself to swallow. She barely managed to get out the sigh of relief when she felt a surge of energy spread up her spine, down her limbs and to her fingertips as a tingling sensation spread through her gums before destroying her last hope that this was all just a bad dream.

She felt a slight shift in her teeth before she felt two sharp points tear through her gums so quickly that she barely had a chance to register the pain. Slowly exhaling, Jill ran her tongue over her teeth and swallowed hard when she came across the first fang. The second one had her hands clenching into fists as she opened her eyes and found herself looking at the asshole.

“The fridge has been stocked with blood,” Logan’s henchman said, pulling the cup away as his gaze flickered to his right.

Jill followed the move and noted the camera had been fixed. That was followed by watching his gaze flicker to the thick metal cuff wrapped around her ankle before his gaze met hers. She watched as his eyes flickered silver, letting her know everything that she needed to know.

He wanted to press the button, but he couldn’t, not as long as Logan was watching.

That was good to know, Jill decided, keeping her eyes on him as she stood up, watching the way that his gaze flickered to the camera before focusing back on her as she stepped into the bathroom, dragging the chain with her. When he didn’t move tostop her, Jill closed the door behind her, absently noting that the chain fit beneath the door.

She didn’t bother locking the door since she knew that it was pointless. Instead, Jill took in the large bathroom, from the oversized soaking tub in the middle of the room to the large shower in the corner and the black marble-topped vanity sinks while she searched for any signs of a camera. When she didn’t see any, she made her way to the sink, the sounds of her chain sliding against the tiled floor accompanying the move and…

“What the hell did he do to me?” Jill found herself wondering as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing.

She just…

She just needed a minute, Jill thought, placing her hands on the counter as she closed her eyes and slowly exhaled. She could handle this, she told herself with a firm nod as she tightened her hold around the counter and opened her eyes. For a moment, she stared at the pair of silver eyes staring back at her before she slowly parted her lips and-

“Oh, God…” Jill mumbled hollowly as her legs threatened to give out when she spotted two white fangs in her mouth. Closing her eyes, Jill took a deep breath before she slowly exhaled and nodded her head once because she could do this. After one last deep breath, Jill opened her eyes and took in the proof that Jill Williams was finally gone.

Her long hair that had once been a deep red was now a dark brown, almost black, and ended with light curls. Her once alabaster skin that refused to tan no matter how many hours she’d spent by pool when she was a teenager was now a golden tan. And her blue eyes? Jill wondered as she watched the silver in her eyes slowly fade away, revealing intense green eyes similar to the ones that had been haunting her dreams for the past two years.

They were gone.

For a moment, Jill stood there, wondering if they did this to her. She released her hold on the counter to move her hair out of the way, looking at her roots for any signs of her red hair. When she didn’t find any red hair, Jill leaned closer to the mirror and looked at her eyes for any signs that she was wearing contacts. She blinked her eyes slowly and when she didn’t feel anything, she focused on her skin. She searched for uneven streaks on her face, neck and arms before she pulled the emerald nightgown away from her body so that she could look down and-

Quickly came to the decision that something went very wrong with her transition. For a moment, Jill stood there, staring down at the breasts that were definitely bigger than they used to be. She’d never heard of anyone changing during a vampire transition, but that was a problem for another time.

Right now, she had other things to focus on, like getting the hell out of here. With that in mind, Jill dropped her hand away and decided to have a better look at her new accommodations. She glanced back at the bathroom door, and when Logan’s henchman that she’d affectionately nicknamed Asshole, didn’t break down the door, Jill shifted her focus to the drawers in the bathroom sink.

Jill quickly checked the drawers and when she didn’t find anything, she checked the medicine cabinet, the shower, and finally, the closet, only to find everything empty. Debating her next move, Jill glanced back at the bathroom door only to take in the chain running across the tiled floor that ended with the metal cuff attached to her leg and decided to have a better look.

After one last glance at the door, Jill placed her foot on the edge of the large tub and shifted so that she could get a better look. When she didn’t see anything promising, she reached down and carefully grabbed hold of the metal cuff and slowly turned it around, looking for a keyhole or anything that she could pick only there was nothing. Biting back a curse, she ranher fingertips over the smooth metal, searching for where the cuff opened only to realize that it was part of the latch where the chain attached to the cuff along with several wires, taking away any hope that she’d had of prying the cuff off her leg.

That didn’t leave her with a lot of options, Jill thought as she reluctantly dropped her foot to the floor and found herself focusing on the bathroom door. The first thing that she was going to have to do was get past Logan’s henchman. She still wasn’t sure what he was yet, but she’d figure it out as she went. Right now, her biggest problem was Logan.

Slowly exhaling, Jill made her way back to the bathroom door, and after a slight hesitation, she opened the door. As she made her way back into the large bedroom, she noted that Logan’s henchman was nowhere to be seen as she took in all the changes that had been made while she was locked in the closet. The battered nightstands had been replaced along with the chair and all the damage to the walls had been fixed. Still wondering about that, Jill made her way to the bedroom door so that she could have a better look at her new prison.

“Done wallowing in self-pity already?”Logan drawled from wherever he was watching her as she stepped into a large living room.

“For now,” Jill said absently as she took in the empty room from the black shades that matched the ones in the bedroom, the large staircase to her right, and the kitchen on the other side of the large living room before she shifted her focus to what she was really hoping was the front door and couldn’t help but wonder something. “Where’s your henchman?”

“Gray?”Logan asked, sounding amused.“He’s going to be busy with something else for a while. I’m afraid that you’ll have to survive without him.”

“I’m devastated,” Jill said dryly as she made her way past the stairs and headed for the door only to sigh when the chain stopped her before she reached it.

“You really didn’t think that I would make it that easy, did you?”

No, she didn’t, but she had to try, Jill thought as she slowly turned around and took in the cameras in the room watching her every move. “What is he?” Jill asked as she glanced back at the camera above the door.

“Planning on killing him?”Logan asked, sounding bored as she shifted her focus to the hallway on her right.

“Yes,” Jill said as she moved to head down that hallway and was taken by surprise when the chain suddenly went lax. Curious about that, Jill moved to head towards the door again only to have the chain pull tight.

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