Page 73 of Stripped

“This is so good,” I said, scooping up a final bite of homemade ice cream and shoving it in my mouth. I was beyond full but it would have been a crime to waste that last bite of ice cream. Poor Julie and Zane chose not to have any, apparently sugar had some crazy weird effect on them. I couldn't imagine not being able to have sugar. “Can everyone in this village cook better than five-star chefs?”

“You're sweet,” Iris said. “Zane is one of the better cooks in town, not everyone can do so well.”

“I made the ice cream,” Zeke said. “Why are you talking about Zane?”

Iris patted his hand and gave him a look that had him shaking his head, but smiling fondly.

We were at Axel and Julie's small log cabin having dinner with them and Zane and his parents. We were going to have a viewing party of the yoga video before we posted it online.

“And it is delicious,” Iris said. She'd been the life of the party, cheerful and chatty, getting everyone laughing and involved in the conversation. I thought I was charming, but she was charming to infinity.

Axel pushed back his chair and stood. He reached for the dishes and we passed them over. I helped him carry them in. I moved to the sink, ready to get down to some dish washing, but Axel stopped me with a hand on my arm.

“Leave it,” he said. “We can get them later.”

The others had moved to the living room, or stepped into the living room, since their place was just one big room, and Julie had plugged the USB device into the television. The couches were full so I went to sit on the floor, but Zane grabbed me and pulled me onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around me, his breath warm against my cheek, and I let myself relax into him. Let myself enjoy how good it felt to be held by him.

Julie hit a button on the remote and the video came up. Julie and I had edited the two videos together and had decided to cut the early scenes and use the video after Mitch had left and I'd stepped in. It actually was helpful to have me there demonstrating moves for the less experienced viewers.

I'd seen the video before, so I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open when a crash from the front porch sent Axel and Zane to their feet. I was toppled off Zane's lap, but I managed to land on my feet.

A man rushed into the room. He was wearing a suit and his hair was slicked back. In any other situation, I would have thought he was a nerdy, accountant type, but he was growling and had huge fangs. He rushed toward Julie, his focus unbreakable, until Axel clotheslined him and brought him to the ground.

Vampires don't need to breathe, so he was back on his feet in an instant. Axel punched him so hard he flew across the room and hit the wall. Anyone else would have slid to the floor in a life-less heap, but the vamp landed on his feet, stretched his neck and charged Axel, who was now standing shoulder to shoulder with Zane. “Get the guns,” Axel shouted at Julie.

I moved to stand next to Julie. I doubted I could do much, but it made sense to protect the pregnant lady. Iris stood next to us, and her husband joined the boys who were now fighting the growling, scratching vamp.

Julie sighed and marched into the kitchen, Iris and I following close. The kitchen was empty. Had the vamp been stupid enough to attack the alpha's house alone?

Julie disappeared into the pantry and returned several minutes later with three guns. “Tranquilizer guns,” she said. “Axel's a pacifist.”

She didn't immediately take the guns to Axel, though. She grabbed a kitchen chair and broke off the four legs, the broken ends ragged and sharp. She handed a stake to Iris and one to me. She kept the other two for herself and picked up the guns. “Keep an eye out,” she said. “In case there are more.”

She marched back into the living room and stood to the side of the fighting men. She laid all the weapons down, except for one gun. She waited until the vamp was staggering, free of the men who were fighting him. Then she lifted the gun, pointed and shot. The vamp froze, his eyes turning an unearthly shade of white, before falling forward onto his knees and then onto his face.

“Damn it, Julie,” Axel said, still breathing hard. He faced his wife, but anger was nowhere in his expression, only relief and worry. “You should have stayed out of it.”

“I was never in any danger,” Julie said. “I was incredibly careful.”

Axel swore and shook his head. “You're going to be the death of me, woman.”

“We'll have to wait for him to wake up to find out why he was here,” Zane said.

“Once you're dead, you won't care.” We all spun at the words to see another vampire, this one a woman in a red dress, walk into the room.

Iris grabbed me and shoved me behind her. Julie tossed the guns to Axel, Zane, and Zeke. She lifted her stakes, one in each hand and got into a fighting stance, her pregnant belly low to the ground.

“Why don't you humor us?” Iris said. “Tell us what the hell you're up to before you kill us.”

“We need a leader and we need revenge on those who killed our last three leaders. Whichever vampire kills Julie and the pack alpha becomes the new coven leader.”

“How many are gunning for the job?” Zane asked.

The vampiress shrugged. “I didn't ask. As soon as the announcement was made, I hurried up here to be the first in line to win the game.”

She roared and charged right for Axel. These vamps either had inflated ideas of their strength or they were desperate. Axel shot her before she got close to him. She twitched once and fell.

“Are they trying to kill you or committing some weird ritual suicide?” I asked.

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