Page 63 of Bite of Sin

My stomach churned, feeling her body trembling. Was the water really that frigid? I didn’t process temperature the same way she did, but the water here never got cold in the summer.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

She raised her arm to hit me, and I growled in annoyance, grabbing her wrist to stop her. She jerked back, slipping away from my grip. I rubbed my fingers, realizing they were greasy. She had some type of oil or lotion on, making it harder to keep a hold of her. She got two steps before I wrapped an arm around her waist, crushing her chest to mine.

“Calm down,” I gritted out. “What the hell is wrong?”

“You’re going to kill me anyway,” she screamed. “Just get it over with.”

I stared down at her, but she refused to look at me. “Why would I—”

A new scent caught my attention, and I stilled. Kali was still struggling, but I locked my arms around her waist, not caring if any of her hits landed. I sniffed, whipping my head around. It was blood. I was sure of that. There shouldn’t be any humans in the area. But this scent…was so good. Sweet. Kali had stopped fighting me and was shifting her body. She lifted one of her legs, but I focused on the smell, not really caring when she tried stomping on my foot.

The scent of this blood was strong. So damn addicting. Everyone’s blood smelled slightly different, and I’d never come across one so potent. One that I instantly craved. I closed my eyes, and when Kali shifted again, I blinked, the realization slamming into me. I wasn’t sure whose heart was pounding faster, mine or hers, as I reached up and fisted her hair, tilting her head back and exposing her neck.

Her eyes finally met mine, and the truth was written all over her face. Terror flashed in her gaze before I lowered my head, running my nose up the side of her throat. The scent surrounded me. Engulfed me.

“Not fucking possible,” I breathed out.

“Zan—”

“Human,” I hissed, still in disbelief. “How the fuck did I not catch this? You’ve been here for days.”

She didn’t answer, her body shaking as I inhaled more of her scent. She had masked it somehow. The water had washed off whatever it was. Before I could question her further, I saw her raising her arm out of the corner of my eye, and ice filled my veins, catching sight of a fucking stake. I let go of her waist, twisting away fast enough that she couldn’t hit my heart.

Instead, she stabbed me in the lung. Pain spasmed through me, and I fell to my knees, gasping. I didn’t even need to breathe to survive, but the burning pain of the stake was still agony from such a deep stab. I grabbed it, yanking it out. By the time I looked back up, Kali was at the top of the steps, disappearing from view.

Chapter25

Kali

Oh my fuck. This was bad. So fucking bad.

I kept running, crossing the road and getting farther from the beach. My eyes darted around as I tried to think of where to go. I wanted to go back into the city where Warner was. But I wouldn’t get a foot inside Impulse without the vampires smelling me. The door to the tunnel was in front of me, and I slowed down, whipping my head around.

There was nothing else here. No buildings or forest. Just a long stretch of road and cliffs. I wasn’t even sure which way the trees were. If I ran either way, there was no place to hide. He’d catch up with me before I could get away. The necklace hit my chest as I ran, reminding me that he had another way to find me, even if I did escape. I could go through the city and get out through the car like I had the other night. My heart stuttered.But what about Warner?

There were other humans here. Maybe the vampires wouldn’t take much notice, especially with Zan’s necklace warning them off. It was the best choice I had. I couldn’t save Warner if I didn’t get out myself.

I lunged forward, ripping the door open and slamming it behind me, making sure to engage the dead bolt. I reached for the wall, feeling around because I couldn’t see a damn thing. My chest was heaving, and I sucked in breaths as I carefully made my way down the stairs. A few seconds later, I flinched when there was a thunderous noise that echoed through the tunnel. Zan pounded on the outside of the door again, and I hoped the door held.

The disbelief and betrayal in his eyes when he smelled my blood was seared into my brain. Anger was mixed in there too. If he caught me, I was so fucked. I knew he’d want to kill me, but yet when I’d gone to stab him, a small nagging voice had me feeling guilty. Which should absolutely not have happened. This life was kill or be killed. That was especially true in a vampire city.

Keeping my hand on one wall, I got to the bottom of the steps and started running. Water was still dripping off my clothes, and my boots were heavy and wet, but at least I hadn’t lost the stake when I hit the water. My lungs begged for me to slow down, but I pushed forward until my feet hit something hard.

“Shit,” I hissed.

I fell forward, my knees slamming into the rough cement steps. I caught myself with my palms, pain jolting through me. I climbed back to my feet, my knees stinging as I began racing up the steps. My left knee was much worse off, and I gritted my teeth, refusing to slow down. It was hard to tell, since I was still soaking wet, but I was pretty sure I busted skin and was bleeding. Which was fucking great.

I made it to the top and blindly searched for the dead bolt I’d heard Zan close when we came down here. I finally found it and quickly unlocked it, pushing the door open before stumbling into the street. I glanced around as I began running again, noticing a few vampires. One of them turned their attention to me until his eyes fell on my chest. He turned back around, acting like I wasn’t even there. Nice to know that this necklace was good for something.

My injured knee was forcing me to limp slightly as I ran, and I pushed forward, trying to remember which way to go. This part of the city was new to me, and I hadn’t learned the roads yet. I turned down one street, muttering a curse when I saw it was a dead end. Spinning back around, I crossed to the other side, heading down another street. After two more turns, I recognized where I was and turned again, heading toward my escape route.

Until a figure popped out from behind a corner. I didn’t have time to stop and slammed right into him. Fear lit through me, my stomach knotting painfully when he gripped my upper arms to keep me in place. I forced myself to look up, my breath locking in my chest when I met Zan’s gaze. He looked just as terrifying as the night I first met him. Fury swam in his eyes, his face hard and cold.

“You thought you could outrun me in my own city?” he murmured, his voice lethal. “And as a human? You didn’t stand a chance.”

He didn’t wait for a response before he bent down and threw me over his shoulder. His arm banded tightly around my thighs, and he strode forward. I braced my hands on his back, the blood rushing to my head from being upside down. My struggles didn’t faze him in the least as he walked briskly down the streets, and I soon realized we were heading to Impulse.

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