Page 10 of Crimson Mourning

“Like I said before,” Lawrence sighed and placed his forehead in his hands. “Damon and I were evenly matched. It would have been one hell of a fight. Where my brother erred is he considers himself a lion. But even the majestic lion is no match for the intelligence and strength of the mighty elephant.”

My eyes began to close out of weakness. The blood loss was too great, but I needed to hang on. Hang on for my beloved.

“Get some rest my love, I will come check on you later.”

“At least seal my wounds, Lawrence,” I whispered. “Don’t let me bleed out.”

“That’s not an ability I have, Cassie. You know that. But, I’ll have one of my human healers come attend to those wounds. Once you’ve rested, I’ll be back. We have a lot to discuss.

“Thank you,” I said in a voice inaudible to anyone other than a vampire with enhanced hearing.

“Get some rest. I’ll be back later.”

Lawrence walked out of the house. In my weakened state, it took every ounce of strength I had to gain my bearings. I had to find a plausible way to escape. Lifting my head off the pillow would be too much, so I didn’t bother to try. Lawrence was right. I needed my strength to take advantage of any opening I could create to escape, but first my heart had to slow. It wouldn’t stop racing, and with each pump, a blast of blood would flow through my system and out the open wounds I had.

My life was slipping from me. I had to hold out hope that my beloved would be coming for me. That he was amassing forces to get me back. It was the only thing I could hang on to. I know I said I would rather have my final death than be without my husband, but this was not the way I wanted it to happen.

A single tear fell from my right eye. If my destiny was to face final death here, then I would do it with some dignity still intact. I would still be pure, untouched by the virus. Though I was alone, he wouldn’t be. I would still be Damon’s mind, body and soul. My eyes closed and I fell into darkness.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

DAMON

There was no doubt in my mind who stole Cassie right out from under me. Before I ripped his backstabbing head from his shoulders, I would force him to answer the question. Why? Lawrence was calculating, cold and he knew me better than I knew myself. But the reverse was true. He’d seen the times people crossed me. If it was a minor offense, I could forgive it on some level. But the few and far times between when one of my own crossed me, it was utter annihilation.

All of it was planned, down to the final detail. He knew when to strike and how. He knew I would be greatly offended by sending human thralls to destroy me. He probably counted on me losing my cool. If they succeeded in bringing about my final death, then he would win an easy victory. But if they didn’t, he would have a contingency plan in place. Which meant, I needed to think like he did. I couldn’t lose my cool, even as my muscles quivered and heat flushed through my body. I needed to find him, and by the drops of blood Cassie left behind, I didn’t have much time. In a final act of disgust, I kicked the head of the thrall who would rather die than betray his master, and climbed intomy heavily damaged car. Putting it in gear, I sped down the road until a few moments later, I was in front of Crimson’s.

The bass heavy music blared in my ear drums and pounded my chest as I moved through the club and to the back. The humans and vampires were mixing and mingling on the dance floor as they intertwined in a sea of skin, blood and fangs. Some were clearly from the human resistance, as they were bound and gagged in the center of the floor. It was always a fun treat to join someone to the elite who didn’t want to become one while in their human form, only to watch as their new vampire state exposed them to delights and feelings of pleasure they could never imagine. Two things a youngling wanted to do when they first joined the elite. The first was drink. The second was fuck. Joining the elite ramped up everything, including the younglings sex drive. Without blood, they’d ravage the first human they saw, so it didn’t pay to be a human bystander. It did pay to be a vampire in the vicinity though, as the youngling would bang the hell out of the first partner they could find. As enticing as fucking newly made vampires till dawn was, I had only one insatiable desire.

I reached the back and pounded on the door. The voice behind it was muffled but demanded the password. Only a few were allowed beyond its borders, but I was one of them.

“Open the fucking door, Christoph” I demanded. “Before I burn this building to the ground.”

I had no time for games. The door slid open and I passed through. The guards waiting behind it motioned for me to lift my arms so they could search me. After satisfying their duty and finding nothing of consequence, they slipped the blindfold over my eyes. I grew weary of the pomp and circumstance, since this was the second time today someone tried to limit my vision on the way to the council. I knew the rule; my father was the one who put it in place. No one was allowed to see the code punchedinto the keypad to gain access to the inner chamber, unless they were a voting member of the council. Since I was the newest clan leader, not even I had unfettered access.

A delicate hand attempted to tie the blindfold in place and I instantly recognized the scent. The music was loud, and the guards were too busy preoccupied with what was happening on the dance floor.

“Michelle,” I said low enough for only her to hear. “Leave me a little space to see.”

Her breath caught in her chest.

“I…I can’t,” she whispered. “The council would never let me join the elite if I violated the rules.”

“They took Cassie, Michelle,” I pleaded. “Please.”

She was my only option, and time was of the essence. I knew she wanted me, even without my vampire senses I could tell. The furtive glances she cast my way whenever we entered the same area. The way she played with her hair when we spoke. Any other time, I would never encourage the poor girl, but I was desperate. Every second wasted was precious. Lawrence had plans, and I needed to end them.

“Please, Michelle,” I repeated. “Do this for me.”

Michelle kissed my neck but subtly left the blindfold lopsided, giving me just enough space to see.

“He’s ready,” she said to the guards and walked away to resume her familiar duties as one of the guards punched in the code.

Five-one-four-two-zero-two-two.

With a whoosh, the metal door opened, and the guard escorted me down the hall to the council chambers before removing my ineffective blindfold.

CHAPTER TWELVE

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