Page 1 of Vampire's Bite

1

Cordelia

Massimo moved so close to me that I could see the saliva gathering at the tips of his fangs and count each gray hair that resided on his temples. "Your time is up, Cordelia. What is your decision?" he asked in a menacing tone. We both knew what the answer would be, after all, they hadn't left me much of a choice.

It was either Gran's life or Rook's.

Just one hour ago my biggest annoyance in life was dealing with Milo. We had enjoyed a nice meal together until I decided to fill him in on my job as a vampire feeder. He’d completely lost his shit and rebuked me in front of several onlookers, which had been more than a little humiliating.

At least I knew where he stood. I didn’t have to like it, but I unfortunately had to deal with it. Because Milo’s opinion mattered.

Then, a vampire tried to attack me in the pizzeria bathroom. Luckily, I had Rook’s dagger and flashed it just before the vampire reached me. He had run away like a puppy with his tail between his legs. Unfortunately for me, he wasn’t the only one who planned on attacking me.

There would always be others, just one I never expected to turn on me.

Milo and several other vampire hunters had tracked me down, followed me to the bus stop, just like I’d always heard these things happened. Although I couldn’t have guessed what they wanted from me. That was…certainly a surprise. A bit insulting, too. They’d quickly surrounded me and “explained” that they needed my help in capturing and killing Rook, the vampire prince.

Surprisingly, Massimo was a member of the mob. He had given me an ultimatum and I hated him for trying to make me choose between Rook and Gran. However, I knew that there was no way I could live with myself if I sacrificed Gran and Nurse Jo. I had to choose them because I knew in my heart that Rook and Cross at least had a chance to defend themselves. Any other choice meant Gran and Jo were just sitting ducks, waiting to be executed. There truly was no other logical option.

As much as it rankled, I forced the words out. "I choose my grandmother and her nurse," I said through gritted teeth.

If I could somehow warn Rook, he and Cross could prepare accordingly and be ready for whatever the vampire hunters had planned. Doing this had to buy me a bit of time, a reprieve and maybe I could figure a way to get word to Rook.

A satisfied smile spread across Massimo's face. "Very well then."

I wanted to knock the smug grin off the bastard’s face, but that probably would’ve been about the worst possible idea. Then he would kill me, Gran, Jo, and Rook, Cross, anyone in his path. Even the “good guys” had flaws. Even if he didn't kill me I would at least be beaten for my insolence. That was just the kind of man, or rather, vampire, that he was. If I was going to make it through this the last thing I needed was to be injured.

He turned to his fellow hunters. He wore the arrogance of a man in charge, a man who was probably double crossing them, plastered across his face. "Get Cordelia in the van. We'll take her to a safe place until we can lure Rook out." Safe place. Hah. I'd been taken before and Rook had been able to track me down, so I had to hope that the same thing would happen again.

As soon as Massimo gave the orders, Milo pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped the screen a couple of times. Within seconds, a black windowless van came careening around the corner. If the street hadn’t been quiet there would’ve been casualties because he’d cut the corner and used the sidewalk as roadway. I was surprised that the tires hadn't screeched as he did so, but the only noise had been from the engine.

For a split second, I had thought maybe it was Rook and Cross coming to rescue me. But then reality set in as another masked man got out of the driver's seat and my flicker of hope faded into a flame of despair. These guys weren’t even creative. They might as well have painted something about free candy on the side of the van.

Rook and Cross would never have driven something so sketchy though. If they'd been coming to rescue me it would have been in a SUV or something similar, probably one that cost more than a year of college tuition as well. Those guys only ever wanted the best. Knowing his concern for my safety it would have been bullet proof as well. I used to think he was paranoid. Now I'm starting to realize that I was just naive.

My gaze wandered over the black metal rectangle and I realized that the license plate was missing from the front, all the van had was one of those temporary paper plates sitting there instead, the ones they give you when you first buy a car and have to wait for the real thing. If these guys were actually trying to disguise their identity then I was fairly confident that the number written on it was fake.

The driver must have sensed my hesitation because after wrenching the sliding door open he walked over to me. "Get in the van willingly, or we'll know you're lying about your commitment to helping us," he instructed as he jabbed a finger in the direction of the van. I could feel his smirk, like it was another entity in this horrible night.

I stood with my hands to my side, allowing the hunters to do what they felt necessary, feeling fairly confident that they wouldn’t harm me. Yet. What good would a hostage be if she couldn’t speak or walk? The thought that they wouldn’t retaliate with violence produced a sliver of boldness within me. And a new bit of hope to replace the one that has turned to despair.

"I'll do what you say, but at least give me a moment to text my grandmother's nurse to let her know that I won't be home as planned." Hopefully, they’d be accommodating. This was the best chance I could think of to notify anyone that something was wrong.

He thought for a quick second before saying, "Fine. But make it quick."

I slowly retrieved my cell from my back pocket, trying to think of a way to tell Jo that I had been taken against my will. She had to get in touch with Rook for me, but I couldn’t come right out and say that. The hunters would surely screen every word I wrote. And if I wasn’t careful, no matter what I promised, they would retaliate against Gran and Jo.

The longer I took to unlock my phone, pull up the app, find the right number, and type out the message, the antsier the hunters became. They hovered over me, watching and pretending otherwise until, finally, they'd waited as long as they were willing. "Hurry up. Finish, now," the masked driver demanded as if suddenly he was the guy in charge of this whole operation.

I quickly tapped out a message to Jo. If only I could’ve texted Rook under the guise of texting Gran’s nurse, but they were far too watchful. I couldn’t take the risk. I could only hope that Jo was more adept at reading hidden clues than I was at typing them.

Hello, Jo. I won’t be home as intended. Please take care of my grandmother to the best of your ability. I'm sorry to put you in such a precarious situation.

I intentionally made the text formal and brief and with the words precarious situation I had to hope that she would understand or at the very least get the sense that something was definitely not right, signaling her to contact Rook. Normally, I’d write a book, or better yet, call. Maybe a short text was out of character enough to tip her off.

As soon as I hit send, the man in the mask violently shoved me into the van. I tried to hang onto whatever bit of my dignity that remained, or at the least, my balance, but no such luck. I flopped into the back of the van like a fish suffocating on a dry beach.

The hard metal floor dug into my back as I tried to roll so I wasn't stuck on the uncomfortable bit, not that any of it was particularly comfortable. A chill ran over my skin as the coldness of the metal seeped through my clothing to my skin. It was only compounded by one of them grabbing my wrists and putting metal handcuffs on me, as though I was going to jump out of a moving vehicle. As much as these guys seemed to detest me because I didn't think vampires were inherently evil, they also apparently thought I was Jason Bourne or something and ready to make a miraculous escape.

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