Chapter 6
Steven was upstairs checking every door he came across looking for the vampire who had tried to get inside their club. The last door in the hall was locked so Steven braced his shoulder against the wood before ramming into it. The door fell inward and he was abruptly splashed with water.
“Back demon, be gone!” an aged voice raged at him.
Steven shook his head and glared at the priest who looked like he’d just stepped out of a bad vampire movie. “What the hell?”
The priest slowly lowered his cross while placing his other hand over his heart as if he were striving off a panic attack. “You’re not one of them?”
Steven growled, “Last time I checked my teeth were normal.” He shook his head trying to dislodge some of the water droplets. ‘Normal for a cougar anyway,’ he thought to himself. He cocked an eyebrow, already knowing the answer before he asked it, “Have you seen any vampires tonight?”
The priest nodded vigorously, “Yes, I’ve been a virtual prisoner in this church for a few hours now. The apocalypse has started and the demons have risen!”
Steven sighed knowing this man would be a danger to himself, if he actually ran into a vampire, armed with water and a cross. He suddenly moved behind the priest, knocking him out for his own good. Gently picking up the unconscious man, Steven walked over to the closet and put him in there for safekeeping.
“Sorry Father, but your demons are trying to catch up with you.” He pulled a white robe off the inside hook and draped it over the man hoping the headache wouldn’t be too bad when he woke up.
Steven closed the door and made sure it was secure before turning around. He froze when he saw a girl standing behind him with a blank expression. She had the prettiest eyes he’d ever seen. They were framed by soft, golden spun blonde hair. His head tilted to the side in a feline fashion wondering why she was here. The girl suddenly raised a bat in her hand and hit him across the temple.
The man fell and Jewel stood there for a moment holding the bat before dropping it. She bit her bottom lip realizing she’d just done a very bad thing. When he’d turned around, she had already been in mid swing before it dawned on her that he didn’t look like the walking dead… as a matter of fact, he looked like he’d stepped out of God’s Gift to Women magazine.
“What are you thinking?” She blew her bangs out of her eyes, as she ranted under her breath. She came here to try to talk the priest into helping her think of a safe way to cancel her wedding and here she was drooling over another guy. It was bad enough she’d snuck into the church only to find herself in the middle of some freaky horror movie. She was used to being in danger but at least the bad guys she was used to didn’t have fangs.
Jewel blinked down at Mr. Yummy until she saw his chest rise and fall. “Thank God for small favors,” she whispered, glad she hadn’t killed him… but what now? He wasn’t one of the vampires and honestly, she didn’t have the first clue what to do with him. Panic enveloped her as she heard the sounds of fighting coming from the main hall.
“Come on,” Jewel whispered for self-motivation. “We gotta get him to a safe place. Why the hell is he here if he’s not one of them? Idiot!”
She grabbed the man by the wrist intending to drag him into the closet. She shrieked when his hand suddenly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her down on top of him.
“Just what the hell do you think you’re doing?” Steven asked.
Jewel looked up at him and felt fear shoot through her when their gazes locked on each other. Steven grunted uncomfortably when she scrambled off of him to retrieve the bat, her knee hitting right where it counted.
“Damn it!” he hissed. He didn’t have time to nurse his wounded pride, as two bloodsuckers blocked the doorway. “Oh goody, you brought another friend for me to play with,” Steven exclaimed, as he pushed himself up from the floor and jerked the bat-wielding female behind him.
The vampires attacked at the same time making Steven work extra hard to not only protect the girl, but keep himself alive as well. He quickly remembered why it was a bad idea for a were to fight a vampire alone… much less two of them. A burning sensation formed in his side and he looked down to see the fingers of the other vampire buried in his skin just below his ribs. He was lifted and thrown across the room where he hit the wall with a sickening crunch.
Jewel swung the bat hard when one of the vampires sprang at her then cringed as she felt the vibration of the impact shoot through her shoulder. The vampire’s head swung sideways and she could hear the sound of bones grinding as he slowly turned it back around to glare at her with blood red eyes.
“That’s gonna hurt in the morning,” Steven muttered through the haze of pain, and shifted his gaze when something shiny caught his eye.
He gave a wicked smile seeing a staff with a huge crucifix on top leaning against the wall only inches from him. Grabbing it, Steven rammed it through the chest of the vampire moving in to finish him off. He rushed forward and pushed the butt of the staff into the wall, leaving the vampire to hang there.
“Guess there’s something to the saying, ‘death by crucifix’ after all.” He leaned on the stake to slow his breathing. Breathing sucked when you had broken ribs and a hole in your side.
Not wanting to take any chances, Steven reached for the vampire’s head and twisted his neck. Hearing a loud crack followed by a scream, he looked over his shoulder to find the other vampire backing the girl up against a wall. When she turned her face away from the vampire, he saw the soft skin of her neck and knew the vampire was looking at the same thing.
He wasn’t much protection in the shape he was in, and getting lucky twice in a row was probably out. Smelling the girl's fear, he made a quick decision as his anger surfaced. Stepping from his human form, Steven released his beast, landing on all fours and growled.
The vampire was grinning madly, as he pushed his body against the sweet-smelling snack, until he heard a very loud growl behind him. Turning his head, he stared into the golden-eyed gaze of a cougar. It was like watching fire burning violently within ice. Before he could react, the cougar pounced, knocking him to the floor and across the room hard enough to make his fangs rattle. When he got up, the cougar was gone along with the girl.
Jewel was too afraid to blink as she tried to decipher what the hell had happened. The cougar had attacked the vampire, knocking it away. Then the thing had lunged at her. She knew she hadn’t blinked… so how in the world was she now being carried by a man through the church so fast that the scenery was changing a mile a minute? Instead of teeth and claws, she’d found herself swept up in strong arms.
They were clear on the other side of the church before he slowed down enough for her to struggle. One swift kick and she was sliding to the floor, landing on her knees in front of him… facing him… and this time he didn’t have a stitch of clothing on.
Steven walked over to the wall and leaned back against it. The hole in his side was already starting to heal but he’d lost a lot of blood in a very short time. It was hard to keep his animal caged when it still felt threatened. Sliding down the wall, he held his hands over his injury while giving her a moody glare. The blood from the head wound she’d given him was bleeding down his temple into his eye.
“I don’t know which is more dangerous, you or the damn vampires.”
The girl looked at him with a lost expression for a moment before getting up and running away from him.
“Wait!” Steven called out, then snorted in contempt. Why the hell should he worry about her? She’d obviously been doing fine up to this point.
“So, hang out naked in churches often?”
Steven turned his glare upward at Dean and gave him the finger.
“Oh, baby kitty doesn’t like to be teased,” Dean mocked, then leaned down, pulling Steven up by his arm. “Come on, I’m sure one of the choir boys has a robe that would just fit you.”
“You’re a sick fuck, you know that?” Steven asked, feeling light headed.
Dean snorted with amusement. “I must be, because I’m here.”
Steven allowed Dean to take him down to the lower level of the church, where Quinn was waiting and blowing smoke rings in the air.
“Unless you’re here to have yourself purified, you’d better have a good explanation for not having your clothes on.” Quinn stated, to override the shock of seeing his little brother hurt.
Steven shrugged, “I decided to scare the shit out of an old priest upstairs by streaking through the halls.”
“He got caught with his pants down by another vampire,” Dean translated with a smirk.
“Go to hell!” Steven growled.
“Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt and burned it,” Dean said, with a serious expression.
“Did you get him?” Quinn asked, with a dangerous tilt to his voice. He wanted the vampire who’d hurt Steven to breathe through its neck.
Steven shook his head, “No, I was too busy saving some stupid woman from being bled to death by one of those freaks.”
Dean frowned, “A woman?”
“Yeah,” Steven answered. “She ran off just before you got there.” He pressed his palm against his temple to stifle the pain but it didn’t help that the room was spinning. His eyes widened, “The vampire that was trying to kill her got away!” he turned to go back but Quinn grabbed him by the shoulder.
“I think you’ve done enough,” he growled, knowing his brother was hurt worse than he’d first thought, because he wasn’t making a whole lot of sense.
Dean sighed heavily and shoved a white robe at Quinn. “Get this on him. If what Steven says is true, she might still be in danger. I’ll go check it out.”
Quinn nodded and helped Steven into the robe while Dean vanished up the stairs. Within minutes, the headless body of the vampire dropped like a stone over the banister at the top of the stairs.
Steven felt even weaker when Dean came into view without the girl. “Where is she?”
Dean shrugged, “I found the vampire trying to sneak out an open window. My guess is he was intent on following her.” He smiled, “Good thing I stopped him.”
As relief flooded Steven, so did the darkness.
Dean smirked when Quinn caught Steven and lifted him in his arms, “And the vicious lion returned to being the sacrificial lamb.” He glanced from the bloody boy in the white robe to the huge painting of Jesus on the cross and knew he would have to protect Steven or the vision would come true.
*****
Envy raised a hand to rub the back of her neck. Something that felt like small puffs of air were tickling her there… it was sending swarms of goose bumps across her shoulders.
Her eyes snapped open and she blinked several times at the laser stars surrounding the bed. Memories… and what memories they were, bombarded her waking brain and she refused to turn around knowing it was Devon Santos snuggled up behind her.
She frowned at how quiet it was within the room. The only thing that was missing was the music she’d heard before falling asleep. Why had the music stopped? How long had she been asleep? Had the club closed and locked her in with the sex guru? Her lips twitched at the thought.
She knew she had to get up but that didn’t mean she wanted to. Her eyes started to close again enjoying the warmth surrounding her… and the warmth nestled between her legs.
Her eyes shot open again in denial and she thought really hard for a moment on what she was feeling. A deep blush turned her face into a cherry when she realized Devon had fallen asleep while still inside her and from the feel of it, he wasn’t completely soft.
She’d never fallen asleep still attached to a man before. Knowing she would have to untangle herself somehow, she wondered if she could do it without waking him. Reaching up, she took hold of the headboard in both hands and very slowly, inch-by-inch, she pulled herself up.
Envy almost groaned when every inch of him slid out of her with enough friction to make her hot all over again. She moved across the bed away from him trying to make it feel like she was rolling over in her sleep. When Devon rolled onto his stomach and reached for her in his sleep, she scooted off the bed so quick he didn’t even feel her movements over his own.
She stood there in awe for a moment when she turned around to look at him. The cover had slid partially off, leaving his entire left side uncovered. He was beautiful in every way.
Long powerful legs were attached to the firmest ass she’d ever seen. His skin was flawless and the star machine was shining through the mirror to cast several partial constellations across him. He looked ethereal… like some kind of fallen angel with his dark hair splayed across the pillow and laying tantalizingly against his neck.
She frowned wondering if he brought women up here often. It bothered her to think that others had seen the perfection she was looking at now. Jealousy was an emotion Envy wasn’t very familiar with and it bugged her to think she had been jealous twice in the last twenty-four hours.
She wondered if this hadn’t been a mistake, although she’d have a hard time regretting it. Maybe she wasn’t cut out for the one night stand scenario… three month stands maybe… and even that made her twitch.
‘What the hell am I doing?’ she asked herself silently.
As mad as she was at Trevor, she’d always had a steady boyfriend since the eleventh grade. Trevor had actually been her shortest relationship, lasting only three months… all her other boyfriends had lasted at least six months or longer. That said, a lot considering she’d liked Trevor the best out of all of them.
Despite what she’d said to Chad earlier about multiple boyfriends, she’d only had sex with a couple of them. One she’d been with for ten months… and of course Trevor. Bottom line was that this was her first one night stand, though she would never admit that little secret to anyone.
Thinking about Trevor had her frowning. Looking away from the sex god named Devon; she started a frantic search for her clothes on the dark floor.
Finding her panties first, she held up what was left of them and had a flash back of them being ripped off her. Just the memory of it… the sound of the lace tearing, the snap of the elastic as it gave way made her thighs clench in pleasure. God she’d loved that.
Glancing back at Devon, she decided he was a very, very dangerous liability to her plans of self-preservation. She wasn’t going to give him a chance to break her heart… because he could do it very easily if she let him. No, she’d stick to her guns this time and not date just one person… not trust them… not love them.
Trevor was the last one she had trusted and look where that got her…. lied to, played, and single.
She nodded her head firmly and by the time she had settled her mental rant, she’d found all of her clothes and put them on… except the panties. Thankfully, they’d been skimpy enough to fit in the small pocket of her skirt beside the taser.
Turning full circle, she made sure she had everything before facing her next dilemma. She didn’t know whether to go out his bedroom door or take the elevator back down to his office. With the absence of the music, there was a good chance she was locked in the club whether she made it to the front door or not.
Not knowing what was on the other side of the door, she picked up her boots and headed for the elevator, stopping mid stride when she noticed the keypad instead of an up and down button.
She wanted to stomp her foot. How the hell was she supposed to know the pass code to use the elevator? Maybe it was the number of girls he had trapped in his bedroom. ‘Fine,’ she mouthed silently, knowing this was more her fault than it was his… she could have said no.
‘The door of shame it is then.’ Slipping out his bedroom door backwards with her boots still in her hands, Envy softly shut it and bent down to put her feet in her boots.
Michael opened the door to Warren’s office and they both stepped out into the hallway and stilled. Both men jerked their gazes toward the girl in front of Devon's door. Michael leaned back against the wall, watching her with an amused twinkle in his eyes while Warren made himself comfortable leaning in the doorway.
After the seriousness of the conversation they’d just been having, they so needed this distraction. Michael looked over at Warren and gently nudged him in the arm.
Warren couldn’t help but grin when the girl yanked too hard on her boot and stumbled back a few steps. Her muttered curse almost made Michael give away their position. When the girl bent over to tug again on the offending boot, her hair fell away from her neck.
A deep frown marred Warren’s expression when he distinctly saw Devon’s mating mark on the girl’s skin.
Envy did a silent cheer and stomped her foot on the floor. Believing she was actually going to get out without being seen, she stood upright and squared her shoulders.
She jumped and released an embarrassing squeak when she saw two men standing in a doorway down the hall watching her. Biting her bottom lip for a moment, she lifted her chin defiantly and walked straight up to them. Seriously, what could they do? Throw her out?
“Can you tell me where the stairs are? I need to get home and get some sleep.” she asked, giving them both a look, as if daring them to say anything about her sneaking around on their precious third floor.
“Does Devon know you’re leaving?” Warren asked curiously, while Michael gave her a very seductive look. The smell of fresh sex was something of a turn on for him and this girl smelled heavily of it.
“Okay, everything is taken… care… why’s she still here?” Nick demanded from behind Warren and Michael. He took note of Michael’s stare and growled. Damn vampires. He blanched when Michael had the audacity to turn his head and wink at him.
“Um, excuse me… way out of building… today,” Envy exclaimed, starting to get a little scared.
Every one of these guys could be a model for Calvin Klein but there was also an air of danger that accompanied their sexuality. Thankfully the door at the far end of the hall opened up and Envy glanced over her shoulder, sighing in relief when she saw Kat emerge from a stairwell.
“Envy?” Kat asked and looked past the male gathering. “What are you still doing here? Is everything okay?”
Envy tried to stay calm while under the scrutiny of the other three men and forced herself to simply walk up to Kat instead of tackle her. “What time is it?”
Kat smiled knowingly, “It’s four in the morning, and we just closed,” she answered, silently cheering that her plan to get Envy and Devon together had worked.
‘Thank god for small favors.’ Envy thought to herself, then asked, “Do you mind if I use the phone at the bar to call for a ride?”
Kat nodded, “Sure, I’ll walk you down. If you’d like, I can give you the five second tour.” Kat opened the door for her, giving her brothers and the vampire an accusing glare over her shoulder for scaring Envy.
“Who is she?” Michael asked, knowing Devon never took girls into his bedroom.
Nick grinned, “She’s the new bartender and from the looks of it, she’s off limits.”
Warren chuckled, “I can hardly wait for Devon to wake up and find his missing bride.”
Michael pouted, “She’s Devon’s mate… such a shame.” He suddenly perked up. “It could be that she doesn’t know the old boy has mated her.”
“So?” Warren inquired with a raised eyebrow.
“So, that means I can flirt with her just to piss him off,” Michael finished.
Warren snorted, “Yeah, remember what happened last time you attempted to flirt with his date? He was ready to eat your manhood like a sausage.”
“It would grow back,” Michael offered with a shrug.
“You two are sick,” Nick informed them and walked into his room, slamming the door behind him.
Warren and Michael looked at one another for a moment before giving each other a high five.
“Good one,” Warren praised. One of his favorite things about his best friend was his twisted sense of humor.
Michael’s grin widened. “I’ve been around a few hundred years… I know how to gross out some people.”
“Next time, come out of the closet and tell him you’re bi-sexual… that’ll get him going,” Warren offered, knowing it was a long running joke between them and a huge lie.
He’d been picking on Michael for years because Michael seemed to attract men just as well as women. And the fact that he turned both male and female down only made it look worse on him.
Michael placed a hand over his heart and his eyes got really big. “Warren, how dare you insinuate that I’m so cruel as to make your homophobic brother even more wary of me? He has to find out on his own.”
“He already thinks we’re sleeping together,” Warren stated.
“Um, no offense but eww!” Michael exclaimed, making Warren laugh.
“I can still hear you jackasses!” Nick shouted through his door. His lips hurt from the strength it took to keep from smiling so, now that no one could see him, he grinned. He had to admit that for a vampire Michael was all right… though he’d be damned if he would ever admit it to fang face. Besides, if what he’d read in Malachi’s journal was correct, then Michael wasn’t a normal vampire at all.
Michael chuckled and patted Warren on the shoulder. “I’ll see you tonight.”
“Now you’re sounding like a vampire,” Warren teased, knowing the sun didn’t bother Michael because of the bloodstone he was wearing.
There were only three items in the world that could make a vampire immune to sunlight, Michael’s necklace and Kane’s earring, both with a blood stone embedded within them. Damon held the other bloodstone, but Warren wasn’t sure what form it was in because he’d never met him and Michael refused to talk about him.
“That’s what happens when you keep me up all night,” Michael accused.
Warren could only nod and wave as Michael walked silently down the hall toward the stairs. He didn’t understand how Michael kept that good sense of humor, not with the mess the vampires were in right now. Someone in the city was breeding soulless vampires.
Unlike with the jaguars or the cougars, the vampires usually didn’t run in a group, at least not once they turned a certain age and learned enough about their kind to be wary. They didn’t trust each other at all, therefore never turned to each other for help. It was more like every vampire for himself and most had no qualms about stabbing each other in the back.
Most vampires were dark twisted creatures. They were just as strong as shifters, but they also had powers that shifters didn’t. It was no wonder Michael would turn to him when he really needed help, which wasn’t often. But Warren knew the favor would be repaid in a heartbeat, if it were needed.
It was a shame Michael and his brother had started a sibling rivalry around the same time Kane had disappeared. It was times like this when Michael could use the strength of a vampire he trusted.
*****
Kat was sitting on a stool next to Envy while she made her phone call.
“Hey Kriss, is Tabatha around?” Envy asked, then slowly frowned in disappointment. “Damn,” she breathed softly, “Of all days, she has to get called in. No, it’s nothing. I’m down here at Moon Dance and need to get a ride. I’ll just call a cab. It’s no big deal.”
She was quiet again for a moment then smiled. “Really? You’d come all the way down here? I’d owe you a big one.” She laughed, “Thanks Kriss, I’ll see you in a few.”
Envy hung up the phone and smiled at Kat. “My friend Kriss is coming. He’ll be here in a little bit. It shouldn’t be long if you want me to wait outside. You don’t have to sit with me.” She gave Kat a friendly smile, “I know it was a long night.”
“You’re coming back this evening, right?” Kat asked, completely ignoring the dismissal. She wanted to know everything she could find out about this girl. She suspected if Devon had anything to do with it, then Envy would be around from now on. Besides that, she simply liked her a lot.
Envy grinned and nodded, “Of course I am. This job looks like it’s going to kick major ass in tips alone.”
“Good, I’d hate for us to lose our new bartender,” Kat stated, then leaned her elbow against the bar. “So tell me, who’s Kriss?” With her superior hearing, she’d heard the male voice on the other end of the phone during Envy’s conversation and wondered if Devon had another rival for Envy’s affections. Not that it would matter because she knew just how stubborn her brother was.
“He’s my best friend’s roommate. I’ve known him for years and he tends to be a bit protective of me and my friend Tabatha. Lucky me, because that got me a ride home,” Envy smirked.
“He loves Tabatha to death and everyone knows it, but they’re not dating because he’s gay. The last guy that hurt Tabatha ended up in the hospital with his spleen ruptured.” Her eyes hardened for a second at the memory knowing Kriss had beaten her to the asshole. Okay, so Kriss wasn’t the only one protective of Tabatha.
“He sounds violent,” Kat stated with a worried expression. A ruptured spleen would be nothing compared to what Devon would do to the guy if Envy were hurt.
Envy shook her head, “Kriss can hold his own but he’s not the kind to go around starting fights. He works at that male strip club Silk Stalkings.”
Kat nodded, “Classy place.”
Envy shrugged, “He’s very picky about where he works and Silk Stalkings is his kind of place. He’s the best dancer I’ve ever seen, has great manners… and makes me wish he weren’t gay.”
Kat had to laugh, “Hun, we always wish the gay ones were straight.”
The buzz of the doorbell rang loud in the quiet room making them both jump. Envy smiled and slid from her seat, following Kat who had to unlock the door.
When Kat pushed it open, she could only stare at the Greek God standing on the other side. Holy hell, Envy hadn’t been kidding about the wishing he wasn’t gay part. When their eyes locked, her knees went weak.
“Hey there, I’m Kriss.” When the beautiful brunette just stared at him like she was in a trance he tried again, “I’m here to pick up Envy.”
Kat’s lips parted as she watched Kriss raise a perfect eyebrow. “Um… oh yeah… uh… Envy, you’re ride is here.” She didn’t even turn around to say it. The whole time, she was silently damning the fact that he was gay.
She glanced toward Envy so Kriss couldn’t read her lips, “What a waste,” she mouthed soundlessly.
Envy laughed as she walked toward the door, “Thanks for coming to get me Kriss.” She rose up on her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek then chuckled when Kat leaned heavily on the door.
“No problem,” Kriss said and ran a hand through his blonde hair. “We need to get going though. I’ve been awake almost twenty-four hours and I'm starting to feel a little drunk; even though I swear I haven’t had a drop all night.”
“All right,” Envy said and smiled at Kat. “I’ll see you tonight.”
Kat nodded and returned Envy’s smile. “Okay, seven sharp… don’t be late.”
Envy shook her head. “I won’t,” she said then leaned in closer. “It’s okay, Kriss has that effect on every woman he’s met,” she whispered.
Kat stood at the door and waited until Envy walked out then locked the doors behind them. She tilted her head to the side as she watched Kriss walk. “What a waste,” she finally said out loud, now that Kriss couldn’t hear her.
“Kat my dear,” Michael said behind her. “May I ask who that was?”
“That was Envy Sexton, our new bartender,” Kat responded without even flinching. She’d grown up getting used to Michael sneaking up on her and it no longer fazed her.
Michael shook his head smelling the feline’s arousal. He filed the name away having seen the mating mark on Envy when she’d bent down to put on her boot. He was surprised Devon had let her leave. Jaguars were very possessive spirits, though none of these four siblings had ever chosen a mate… until now.
Smirking at the way Kat was still watching the car as it pulled out of the parking lot; Michael thought to have a little more fun before he disappeared. “No my dear, I was talking about the god wearing the muscle shirt and the jeans so tight you could bounce a cinder block off of his derriere.”
Kat rolled her eyes then glanced at him, “You’ve already tried that remember? You’re not gay.”
Michael sighed, “I can’t get anything past you anymore. You take all my fun away.”
“That’s my job… tend bar and take your fun away,” Kat said, as she blew him a kiss and headed back upstairs.
Michael watched their little matchmaker until she was out of sight. He reached behind the bar and grabbed a bottle of Heat, pouring himself a full glass. Stepping back to the glass door, he wondered just who the man was that had come to collect Devon's mate because he certainly wasn’t drinkable… nor was he human.
The glass stilled then lowered as he felt someone watching him… he could feel it in every cell of his body and wondered if it was his brother Damon. The movement of a shadow on the roof of the building across the street caught his attention but before he could focus on it, the shadow vanished.
