Page 40 of Bite of Sin

“Sit down,” he ordered, nodding to the couch across from him.

Crossing my arms, I moved slowly, sitting down where he’d motioned. He leaned back, and I bit my tongue, knowing my gun was literally on the other side of the cushion. I was rigid, wondering what he wanted. This was the first time he’d directly talked to me since the night I got here.

“This is becoming a problem,” he said gruffly. “I’m keeping your secret and lying to my brothers.”

My eyes widened, and I glanced at the door.

“It’s a soundproof room. No one can hear us.”

His words had me looking back at him, and I didn’t like what I was seeing. He didn’t want to keep my secret anymore.

“If you help me get this necklace off, then I can just leave—”

“That’s not an option anymore,” he cut me off sharply. “You’ve learned too much. How this place operates. The weakness of new vampires. And after what Gia just told you…there’s no way I can let you walk away now.”

He sounded almost sorry, but the resolve on his face proved he was telling the truth. Panic smothered my chest, and I scrambled to think of a way to get out of this.

“How much longer until you run out of that lotion?” he asked, his pointed stare staying on me.

“How do you know what that is?” I asked hoarsely.

He scoffed like I’d insulted him. “Humans are easy to interrogate. We know more than you’d think. How much longer until you can’t mask your smell anymore?”

“Not long,” I muttered. I had enough for maybe two weeks if I used it sparingly.

“I’m going to turn you.”

I leaped off the couch, terror shooting through my veins. “No the fuck you’re not.”

He stood up, only the glass table separating us. “It’s the only way. Unless you want to be killed. Because that’s what is going to happen when they find out you’re human. I can turn you, and you can go on acting how you’ve been. And I’ll know our secrets are safe since you’ll be one of us.”

He sidestepped the table, making his way closer to me, and I stumbled back until I hit the wall, holding up my hands. “Wait. There has to be another way. Please.”

I just needed to keep him talking until I could get closer to my gun. It was a soundproof room. I could shoot and stake him without anyone hearing. I could try to leave. But what about Warner? I couldn’t just leave him. Fuck, my mind was racing, and Pax lost patience as he stalked toward me.

“You can entrance me,” I nearly screamed just as he stopped in front of me. “Make me forget about it all.”

He froze, studying me closely. “You have access to that lotion. And I doubt you’ve been surrounded by vampires for nearly a week without precautions. I bet you have hawthorn coursing through your system right now.”

“I do,” I admitted. “But I’ll give it all to you. And I’ll stop taking it. You can even search my room. How long does it take to get out of my system? A couple days?”

“Five days,” he replied quietly, looking deep in thought.

I sucked in a breath, calming myself since it didn’t look like he was going to attack at any moment. It didn’t matter if he took the hawthorn from my bag. I had another way to keep from being entranced, but that was something he didn’t need to know.

“Please,” I begged, letting my voice crack. “I’ve lost everything. Don’t take my humanity too.”

“Fuck,” he mumbled. “Fine. We’ll try it your way first. But I’m warning you—if you do anything to try to leave before then, there’s going to be a problem.”

“I won’t,” I promised.

“I only turn people who want it,” he said quietly. “I wouldn’t enjoy if I had to do it to you. But I’d do it without hesitation to protect my family.”

I stared at him in confusion. “I thought vampires didn’t care about anyone but themselves?”

“Partly true. But if you had a special bond with someone as a human, then that stays with you even as a vampire. It doesn’t usually happen unless you’re around that human after you turn.” He sat back down on the couch, and I relaxed a fraction. “I will do anything for my brothers. They mean as much to me as they did when we were human.”

“But you care about my choices, and I mean nothing to you,” I pointed out.

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