Page 27 of Hell to Slay

Once it was open, my body didn’t hesitate, even though my mind rebelled. This was my new reality now if I wanted to avoid attacking random people on the street.

All my hesitation faded as soon as the first wash of ruby red liquid coated my tongue. It tasted flat and strange, but still revitalizing, tempting, and impossible to resist. My fangs came out even though I had no use for them.

As I drank, power suffused my body. I felt stronger, more alert, and definitely calmer. I took a huge gulp of air, and it was like I could taste the food Jax had prepared from air alone.

Hudson’s hands fell on my shoulders, rubbing them and pulling me back against his chest. “That’s it, Mel. We want you topped up on magic in every possible way before our mission.”

“Exactly,” Jax said. “So, time to eat.”

I gulped down the last of the blood, then sat down at the table with a strange buzz. I felt wonderful. Like I was finally… complete somehow.

“Is this how it always feels?” I asked in a daze, my tongue feeling foreign in my mouth after having that blood coating it.

“Did they give her witch blood?” Jax asked.

Hudson nodded as he began filling a plate, but he answered my question out loud. “The first few weeks are like that, killer. Bloodlust is more dangerous in the beginning, until you get used to controlling it. But they also sent along appetite suppressors, which will help.”

“They expect us to stab each other?” I asked. Before, the healers had been the ones to administer the shots to the guys.

“I’ll stab you if you want.” Nico’s big frame filled the doorway, and from the corner of my eye, I saw Jax stiffen.

Hudson put a plate of food in front of me — piled highest with bacon. I set upon it first, still feeling buzzed after that blood.

I expected the normal food to taste bland and boring after the magic flavor of blood, but it was just the opposite. I stuffed my mouth full of bacon, and the simple pleasure overwhelmed me. A small moan might have escaped.

“Did you—” Hudson started.

“No,” Jax said. “It was like that in the beginning, remember?”

“I remember,” Nico rumbled, his back to us as he filled a plate.

“I guess it takes time to get used to all the heightened senses,” Hudson said.

Jax sat beside me with Hudson beside him, still protecting his brother in every way he could. Which meant Nico got the seat across from Jax, between me and Hudson.

Jax studied his plate, never lifting his eyes. My heart ached for the two of them, and I kicked Nico under the table. He shot me a glare, then took a giant bite of waffle. For a few minutes, no one said anything, as we shared a meal as a coven.

If things were better between Nico and Jax, I might actually get used to enjoying this. I could imagine years and years of domestic bliss ahead of us. Maybe eventually, Jax would teach us all to cook like him, so he didn’t get stuck with it every time. Unless he wanted to, of course. I was more than happy to leave him to it.

But before we could get there, we had a lot of work ahead of us.

“What’s the plan?” I asked Hudson.

“After our shared reservoir is topped up, we’ll give you a little vampire training and then take our suppressants.” His lips quirked up in a smile. “Then we’ll arm ourselves and head for the threshold. Despite everything that’s happened, we still have the DHA’s go-ahead to do this, so no one should try to stop us.”

“And only six months before our fellow vampires suffer the consequences,” Jax added.

“Plenty of time for us to get in and out again.” I reached over and squeezed his forearm. “Did your cousins make it back home?”

Their twin cousins had been instrumental in sneaking us into Lughnasa so we could do the ceremony in front of everyone and show them that vampires could partake in our most sacred ceremony, proving vampires were still witches first and foremost, despite the changes to their — our — bodies.

“Ichiro and Jiro are on their way back to Sacramento thanks to the Foster coven,” Jax answered, sparing me a quick smile. “I should’ve just teleported them.”

“I’m sure the DHA wanted eyes on them every step of the way,” I muttered.

Teleportation would’ve made the DHA nervous that Jax might drop the twins somewhere they could cause more trouble. Especially considering one of them was a vampire, and the DHA had locked up every vamp they could find, except us.

At least we knew that the twins were safely on their way out West, where vampires weren’t treated as guilty until proven innocent. Not that innocent was even an option in this region any more, thanks to the power-hungry directors heading up the DHA.

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