Page 80 of Of Blood and Smoke

Hanging onto Josiah’s forearms, I told him, “Something was strange with my coffee, and I went to ask her if she saw anyone near my desk?—”

“Oleander,” Micha cut in. “Your skin may get irritated. Did you get any in your mouth?”

I licked my lips, searching for traces of coffee. “I don’t think so. What’s oleander?”

“A poison that can stop your heart.”

Shock washed through me. She’d wanted me dead. If I’d drank the coffee, I would’ve been. None reached my face, as faras I could tell. It looked like the majority hit my pants; and like I’d never be able to wear this shirt again. My world felt like it was careening out of control.

“Some got on my stomach,” I said. “I need to get this off.” I plucked at my shirt, careful not to touch the brown-stained satin.

Josiah snared my hand, his rings bumping against my knuckles. “Micha, please relocate that.”

He didn’t indicate what “that” was, but I knew it was my coworker.

My two new security guards strode into view, having been stationed outside the elevator down the hall. “Stay with us,” Josiah ordered them.

We’d assumed I was safe within the confines of Micha and Josiah’s inner offices. Christina worked almost exclusively for Josiah, other than handling occasional tasks for Micha. Micha dealt mostly with finances, and oversaw the other managers located in different departments of the company.

Not many people ever came in here, other than the four of us. It’d been obvious to me Christina had an issue working with me, but I’d had no idea her hatred ran so deep she’d try to kill me.

I’d been assuming the danger would come from another creature similar to Josiah and Micha if at all, not the beautiful but rude blonde I worked beside every day. It was apparent the guards had thought the same way.

“Additional guards are now by the entrances and elevators,” Micha told the man by my side as he slipped his phone inside his jacket pocket.

“Very good,” Josiah replied.

Anger was set in the firm line of his lips, and I shivered, thinking of what lay ahead for Christina. “What are you going to do to her?” I asked.

“She tried to kill you. What do you think will happen?” he snapped.

Between Brett and Christina, the bodies were piling up. What would happen when the people he called the Ancients started coming for him? I hadn’t expected danger from the people I saw every day, the people familiar to me or that I trusted on some level. What if something else happened?

It’d been shadowy figures in dim alleyways, a person lying in wait around a corner. Someone hiding in my closet until I got home, lurching through the door and grabbing me. That’s what I’d pictured. Not Christina, and not Brett.

“I didn’t think Christina disliked methatmuch,” I said to Josiah, as he led me into his office. We crossed through his torture chamber and entered his private apartment.

“I always thought danger would be from someone I didn’t recognize, like a mugger.” I glanced up at Josiah as we went into the bathroom. “Where do you get oleander from?”

He helped me out of my blouse and wet a washcloth, handing it to me after rummaging through the cabinet under the sink. “Multiple places,” he replied, after a moment. “She’ll be questioned, and I will find out.”

Wiping the washcloth over my skin, I said, “She told me she was your favorite.” I met his eyes.

He sneered. “Never.”

“What did she mean by that?”

“I used her a couple of times.” He grabbed the cloth from me and unbuttoned my pants before smoothing the rag over my lower abdomen. His gaze flicked up to mine. “Usedher,” he emphasized.

My stomach clutched. “What does that mean?” The way he was circling the soft cotton along my skin caused a low ache to knot in my core.

“It means I forced her immobile and unconscious and drank from her wrist.” He pulled himself up straight. “I detest bagged blood and was hungry. She was willing. You know what I am, Della.”

Unable to move or be aware didn’t strike me as “willing,” but I let that go. He was a demon and vampire, after all. I couldn’t forget how I met him—he’d paralyzed me, too.

“Do you still sneak into women’s bedrooms at night?” Wincing, I waited for the answer.

His arm shot out so fast I was suddenly squished between the counter and his torso, his hand snugly around my neck. His thumb brushed the pressure point at the base and I glanced up at him, my mouth sagging. “It's only you, Little One,” he growled at me. “It will only ever beyou. Do you dare doubt me?”

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