water where it disappeared. He didn’t so much as
blink while she caressed him beneath the surface.
“No,” I
whispered, giving the illusion I was mouse-like. “I’m sorry. I was only doing
what my boss asked. I’ll leave.”
“What is your
name?”
“Becky,” I
replied with my go-to alter ego.
“Becky, join
us in the pool.” His tone brooked no argument. This was a man accustomed to
getting what he wanted, when he wanted, without question.
Was someone here going to cause a large enough scene
to merit my mother dropping me in Vegas? There could be an Air witch out in the
desert readying to level the place with a tornado for all I knew. But the fear
and anger the witches put off made me want to try to help them first.
“ Pookie .” One of the women purred into the male’s ear. “Don’t you have enough?”
“Never.” He swam out of her arms,
gliding through the water toward me like something out of a SyFy original movie.
I took a step
back, earning a predatory glint in his dark eyes. Vampire . He had to be. Calling on
Death magic, I sent a tiny pulse out for any dead within the vicinity. There
were three.
The male
emerged from the heated water, one menacing step at a time. His nudity should
have made him less of a threat. But the dense build combined with a vampire’s
natural magnetism made him the biggest threat in the room.
He snatched the
towels out of my hands, tossing them to the ground with careless regard. Then
he clutched my fingers in his cool grip. I hesitated as he drew me closer,
calling on Water to increase the empathic link between us. And then I pushed
all of the power I could get at into him.
“What are you
doing here?”
His lips
spread into a wide smile. “I’m about to take off your shirt, little Becky.”
That wasn’t
going to happen. “But what are you doing here with them?”
“We’re having
a little meeting,” he said with an irreverent shrug. The vampire ran an icy
finger over my arm. “Take off your clothes, and you can join us.”
“She’s just a
stinking human,” one of the female vampires snarled. “You already lost one of
them because you were distracted.”
He held my
gaze. “Susan, please take care of Frederica.”
Susan—the
satisfied member of the vampire’s trio—punched the second female across the
cheek. “Frederica” sailed out of the water clear across the room. The resulting
crunch into the far wall was either the surface caving or a bone breaking. I
didn’t hide my revulsion for the brutality.
“It’s all
right,” the male said. “You won’t remember it.”
I edged away,
but his fingers dug into my wrist. My body responded with a powerful shudder.
I’d once been at a vampire’s mercy. I couldn’t let that happen again.
He slid his
hand up my arm to the hem of my borrowed polo shirt. I stiffened. He really did intend to take off my shirt! What if
I’d been a helpless human? Nyx’s knickers! Vampires were the worst sort.
A startling
surge of energy bubbled against my consciousness. I concentrated on the aether until I narrowed the origin down to the redhead—a Fire witch. Of course. Fire witches were often hot under the collar. They were certainly the most
aggressive of the schools.
Should I give
her a silent warning that I wasn’t as helpless as I seemed? What did she intend
to do with her power? If it were only a fireball to the vampire’s head, I’d be
foolish to interfere.
“Get away from
her,” the Fire witch said in a delivery that matched the fury kindling in her
eyes. “She’s innocent.”
“We’re all
innocent,” the vampire said.
“You aren’t.
Send her away.”
“Or what?” He sneered at her, and
then shot across the space too fast to follow. The result was his arm snaked
around the Fire witch’s throat. The other slipped into her towel’s part. His
invasive intent was plain for all to see. Whispering in her ear as a lover
might, the vampire said, “You can’t hurt me.”
The
blink while she caressed him beneath the surface.
“No,” I
whispered, giving the illusion I was mouse-like. “I’m sorry. I was only doing
what my boss asked. I’ll leave.”
“What is your
name?”
“Becky,” I
replied with my go-to alter ego.
“Becky, join
us in the pool.” His tone brooked no argument. This was a man accustomed to
getting what he wanted, when he wanted, without question.
Was someone here going to cause a large enough scene
to merit my mother dropping me in Vegas? There could be an Air witch out in the
desert readying to level the place with a tornado for all I knew. But the fear
and anger the witches put off made me want to try to help them first.
“ Pookie .” One of the women purred into the male’s ear. “Don’t you have enough?”
“Never.” He swam out of her arms,
gliding through the water toward me like something out of a SyFy original movie.
I took a step
back, earning a predatory glint in his dark eyes. Vampire . He had to be. Calling on
Death magic, I sent a tiny pulse out for any dead within the vicinity. There
were three.
The male
emerged from the heated water, one menacing step at a time. His nudity should
have made him less of a threat. But the dense build combined with a vampire’s
natural magnetism made him the biggest threat in the room.
He snatched the
towels out of my hands, tossing them to the ground with careless regard. Then
he clutched my fingers in his cool grip. I hesitated as he drew me closer,
calling on Water to increase the empathic link between us. And then I pushed
all of the power I could get at into him.
“What are you
doing here?”
His lips
spread into a wide smile. “I’m about to take off your shirt, little Becky.”
That wasn’t
going to happen. “But what are you doing here with them?”
“We’re having
a little meeting,” he said with an irreverent shrug. The vampire ran an icy
finger over my arm. “Take off your clothes, and you can join us.”
“She’s just a
stinking human,” one of the female vampires snarled. “You already lost one of
them because you were distracted.”
He held my
gaze. “Susan, please take care of Frederica.”
Susan—the
satisfied member of the vampire’s trio—punched the second female across the
cheek. “Frederica” sailed out of the water clear across the room. The resulting
crunch into the far wall was either the surface caving or a bone breaking. I
didn’t hide my revulsion for the brutality.
“It’s all
right,” the male said. “You won’t remember it.”
I edged away,
but his fingers dug into my wrist. My body responded with a powerful shudder.
I’d once been at a vampire’s mercy. I couldn’t let that happen again.
He slid his
hand up my arm to the hem of my borrowed polo shirt. I stiffened. He really did intend to take off my shirt! What if
I’d been a helpless human? Nyx’s knickers! Vampires were the worst sort.
A startling
surge of energy bubbled against my consciousness. I concentrated on the aether until I narrowed the origin down to the redhead—a Fire witch. Of course. Fire witches were often hot under the collar. They were certainly the most
aggressive of the schools.
Should I give
her a silent warning that I wasn’t as helpless as I seemed? What did she intend
to do with her power? If it were only a fireball to the vampire’s head, I’d be
foolish to interfere.
“Get away from
her,” the Fire witch said in a delivery that matched the fury kindling in her
eyes. “She’s innocent.”
“We’re all
innocent,” the vampire said.
“You aren’t.
Send her away.”
“Or what?” He sneered at her, and
then shot across the space too fast to follow. The result was his arm snaked
around the Fire witch’s throat. The other slipped into her towel’s part. His
invasive intent was plain for all to see. Whispering in her ear as a lover
might, the vampire said, “You can’t hurt me.”
The
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