Page 19 of Craving Darkness

“Cut the shit, Syn. What the fuck is wrong with you?” It took all my control not to walk over to the woman and knock the small glass out of her hand as she ignored me to fill it a second time.

After downing the second shot, Syn finally turned to face me, her shoulders squared back as if preparing for a fight. Instead of shouting or demanding I leave, she surprised me by simply waving a hand dismissively.

“Always so dramatic with you, Val. You really should let me take some of that tension from your shoulders. I’m rather good at massages, you know.”

I strode forward until I was a foot away, making her tip her head back to look at me. “You threatened Kallista.”

She scoffed and folded her arms over her chest. “Is that what the little human told you? I did no such thing. I simply told her the truth.”

“You told her that if she didn’t turn herself over to bloodsucking sociopaths, she would be responsible for the deaths of everyone else.”

“Well, yes. It’s the truth, is it not?” She cocked her head with a smirk. “No one else has to get hurt, Val.”

“No one except Kallista.”

“Correct.”

“That will happen over my dead body,” I growled as I clenched my fists next to my sides. I was ready to ride back over to the mansion I had driven by earlier and slaughter every bloodsucking vampire in the place. I hadn’t intended on doing anything to them if they left Syn and the other women alone. But that was before I learned what they had planned. Now that I was aware and knew precisely where they lived, I was more than willing to destroy them all.

“Why are you so determined to protect the human, Valen?”

From her tone, I knew she was baiting me. She knew Kallista was my mate, and she just wanted me to spell it out for her. I wasn’t going to play her little game, though. “She has done nothing wrong, Syn. She doesn’t deserve this. I promised to protect her, and I will.”

“You stupid, stupid man!” She threw up her hands and spun around to pace across the room before coming back to stand toe to toe with me. “You don’t need her. I swear to you, you won’t even remember her after she’s gone.”

“I need to know she’s alive and safe.” My anger was making my tone harsh, while hers was making her sound brittle and desperate.

“Valen,” she pleaded, placing her hands on my chest, making my whole body feel cold with revulsion. “Why won’t you see? I just need you to give me a chance.”

I stepped back out of reach and watched as her jaw ticked with the fury she was unable to mask completely. “It will never happen, Syn. You have always been a friend. But if you continue to push this, if you continue to put your employees at risk, whatever friendship we had will be over.”

“You don’t want to make an enemy out of me, Val. Not when I had hoped we could one day be so much more,” she warned.

I stepped back and turned to move toward the door. I placed my hand on the knob and paused before leaving. “Tell the vampires to back off and leave Kallista alone. She is under my protection, and that will never change.”

Without a backward glance, I pushed through the door and headed toward the entrance and my warehouse loft where my mate waited. It didn’t escape my notice that there were several vampires standing around the parking lot. Nor did I fail to see the ones situated along the route back.

Chapter 13

Kallista

Iwasn’t sure how long I stood there staring at the closed door to the lift. My heart felt wrecked. I knew he left because of how angry he was that Syn had shown up unexpectedly to confront me after he told her to back off. But it was the way he left that hurt. I shook my head, knowing that I had no choice. I needed to leave this place. Not just the loft that he had me stashed away in, but the strip club and the city.

I glanced toward the elevator door, knowing that was the way I needed to exit. I was about to turn back toward the couch where the bags that held the clothes he bought me were, when something caught my eye. With tentative steps, I inched closer, trying to determine what it was. Once I was standing over the piece of paper wedged just under the metal door, I realized that Syn must have pushed a note under the door. She just wouldn’t give up.

Frustrated at everything, I bent down to retrieve the note, ripping it a little in the process since it was really stuck under the low bottom edge of the door. The note was simple, just her saying she thought I would like my things. I let out a huff because she wasn’t wrong. I just hated that she would do anything nice for me at all. I didn’t want to be grateful to her.

I looked up at the panel next to the door and bit my lip, contemplating if I wanted to push that button. I doubted it would be a trap, not after all the time that had passed. But nothing could make me trust her after the threats she had already thrown my way. Not to mention her very obvious jealousy when it came to me being in Valen’s warehouse apartment, a place she wasn’t welcome.

I pushed the button to call the elevator and open the door. I stepped back, holding my breath, then let it out with a relieved sigh once the open space revealed nothing but my backpack. It was the one I had used the last year of high school and one of the only things I took with me when I ran away from home.

I quickly snatched it up and then pushed the button to close the door panel, not wanting the elevator to remain open. The thought of it had a shiver running down my spine. I didn’t care for the idea of an open space that I couldn’t see into from the sitting area.

Once I had the door closed and my bag in hand, I hurried back over to the couch and placed it down. “Everything better still be inside,” I grumbled to myself as I spread the fabric open to reveal what seemed to be a completely untouched bag with my belongings inside. My street clothes were folded neatly on top, exactly the way I had left them.

I dug around underneath to locate my wallet and the keys to my small apartment, not that I planned on going back to that place, ever. At the very bottom were my shoes, a simple pair of flats that I wore daily. They were beginning to look a little worse for wear, but they were my favorite pair, and I was super happy to see them. I didn’t know if Valen had included any shoes during his shopping spree, but it wasn’t as if I were planning on keeping any of the stuff anyway.

I set my backpack to the side and finally took a long look at all the shopping bags he’d tossed on the floor. I squeezed my fingers together in indecision. I shouldn’t look. I wasn’t going to keep anything. Then curiosity won out, and my hand darted for the first bag, hauling it into my lap. My fingers met silky fabric, and I gasped at the blouse I pulled out. It was so soft and pretty, exactly what I would have chosen for myself if I’d been able to.

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