Page 70 of Madness Behind the Mask
Vlad narrows his eyes. His jaw tight, he shifts betweenus, no doubt knowing what’s on my mind.But unlike my soft heart of a son, Vlad understands the laws of nature. Just like a mother will leave her runtsto die, there is no point wasting resources totry tosave someonewho won’t survive.
“He stepped on a mine,” Vlad says.
I quirk a brow. “Good reflexes.” The guy looks military, shaved head, clear brown eyes if a bit pale, and I probably turned him for that reason, but there are a lot of humans I’ve sired recently, and they’ve all merged together.
But I don’t need to know his name to heal him. And he will thank me for it, convincing himself that I care despite not showing him basic courtesy.
Bringing my wrist up, I sink my fangs into my flesh. The sired’s eyes turn a muddy red as his hunger pulses quicker in the vein at his throat. The other sired around us shift with the same need to feed, like addicts sighting their dealer coming down the street.
But not one moves towards me or shoves another out of their way to be the first in line. Such rudeness will get them killed, and they have witnessed that enough to know I will not hesitate to kill them any more than I hesitated to turn them despite their screams. I have no patience for true addicts.
I beckon to Soldier Boy, and he falls forward out of Vlad’s grip, dropping to his knees in front of me as he lifts his head. I hold my wrist over his open mouth and let my blood drip down his throat. He swallows greedily as I turn my attention to Vlad. “Did you kill that girl?”
“I don’t know. I wasn’t able to check after I dropped her from the ceiling.”
“Mmm.”A whimper from below tells me my wrist has stopped bleeding, my natural healing having kicked in, but I do not reopen it to continue his feeding. He only needed a few drops to kickstart his own healing; I’ve been morethangenerous – not that Colton would agree.
Turning my head, I look forhim. “Colton.”
He tenses, his back to me as he talks to his wife. She’s covered in blood, having joined us in tonight’s fight. Her brown eyes find mine, a harsh glare within them. Slowly, my boy turns to me. “Yes, Father?”
“Go out and let word get back to the Death Hunt that the Shadow’s wards are weakenedfor another hour or so.”
Although I want Sau for my own, if she can’t survive this attack, she isn’t as strong as I thought, and it will be no loss to me.
“Yes, Father.” With a last glance at his wife, he phases away.
“The rest of you get inside.” No one hesitates, having waited for this very command. Within seconds, the yard is cleared until it’s just Vlad, Destiny, and I.
But when Vlad cocks his head at his younger sister, even she leaves to feast on the buffet Ihadprepared for our return. Unfortunately, it won’t be the celebratorymealI had in mind, but well,it’s still an open bar full of fresh meat.The humans that survive tonight willevenbe given thefantasticopportunityof becoming bloodbanks –those in ourgangwhofeed us in exchange for aposition at the kiddie’s table.
“Count how many we’ve lost and find replacements by the end of the week,”I say to Vlad. “Do you know who fought Myers?”
I was hoping hewould be at themainhouse, having dinner with the family, but no onecameacross him by the time we struck. Eitherwegotdamn lucky, orthe fucker hascome back with us. He is a shapeshifter, able to take another form, and he could be one of the sired(he can’t phase)inside my houserightnow. He’d have to becrazytohave returned with us, but reapers are rarely sane.
“Egrin said he saw Myers fall.”
“Is that right?”
I turn my head towards my house and inhale. I don’t smell a witch’s wine-like blood, buta shapeshifter canreplicate even that. Myers would’ve needed time to study Egrin though, and unless he’d planned to take his spot from the start, I doubted he would have bothered. We had been well on our way to slaughtering the entire Shadow Domain, having caught them with their pants around their ankles. Not once in the last thousand years hada sup made it past their wards without permission.
My lips curl at being the first mad enough to try it. Then again, tonight was twenty-five years in the making siring enough soldiers and keeping their numbers hidden from our enemies. We hit them hard and fast right after they changed shiftsto guard the portalacross town. Those leaving the warded area were fresh and those returning were tired. And the guards inside were toocarelessafter centuries of not being hit.
Utter fools.
Licking the witch blood lingering on my lips, I take a step towards the house. Vlad walks beside me. “Find him. If he doesn’t feed, bring him to me.” I cock my head to the side. “If anyone doesn’t feed, bring them to me.” Myers is the only one I’m aware of in the Shadow Domain that has the ability to shapeshift, but that doesn’t mean he’s the only one.
Vlad nods. Given I caught sight of him as he phased in, I know he’s not Myers. He might not agree with all I do, but he knows that this Family isonly strongbecause of me. To kill me is to kill it...until Vlad is strong enough to siregood-qualityvampires of his own.Colton might be my official heir, but we both know he won’t last.
Stepping inside the house,we head for the stairs. A solid door blocks them, and Vlad opens it for me to enter. At the bottom sits another door, solid wood and painted black.Both of them are soundproofed so the neighbors can’t hear our guests’ scream, and as Vlad shuts the door behind us, my pace quickens to the other.
As soon as I pull it open, terrified screams fill my ears, pulsing through my cock as the smell of fresh blood hits my nose. I inhale deeply as theband in the corner starts to play, violin bows moved by two naked bloodbanks who have their legs spread. Male and female vampires feast on their pussies, blood no doubt mixing with theirsaliva. The music jumps and stutters asthe two playersstruggle to keep their attention on their instruments.
A woman screams in front of me as she is held down on the ground by three vamps. They’re ripping her white dress to pieces. I left all the new food dressed so one, they stood out more and two, because tearing off the packaging is such a fucking turn on.
I watch them for a moment as one buries his cock inside her as his two mates feed on herwrists. Then he bites her neck, and I wait to see if he rolls over so another can take her up the ass, but when he doesn’t, I move on.
My eyes latch onto one of the snacks being attacked by a shirtless, ripped vamp. He has his hand wrapped around her throat and lifts her until her feet come off the ground. She claws at him as he laughs, terror making her blood sweeter, but then she kicks him in the balls. He drops her, gasping, and his mates laugh at him instead. A smile curls my lips as one of the female vampires quickly moves in on the girl, catching the fist swung at her face, then breaking her arm with a sharp twist. Spurned on by her scream, the group around her close in, and she is soon dragged to the ground and filled with multiple cocks and fingers.
