Page 58 of Wicked Bite
I tossed the tree trunk aside and sniffed the air once more. That warm copper spice called to me, and I went for it, pumping my arms harder. Trees loomed over me, and I leapt up onto a low-hanging branch to get a better view of my prey. I jumped from one branch to the next, following the scent of the most delicious thing ever.
I stopped just at the top of a tree overlooking a small lake. The moon reflected on the glassy surface along with the few clouds dotting the sky. Just at the edge of the lake, a huge black bear tipped its nose to the water and lapped at the water, sending tiny ripples outward. The thick, fatty scent was heavenly and had me on edge. I leaned toward it trying to taste its flavor on the air. Maybe the blood would stay down this time… maybe not. I couldn’t remember what hadn’t worked. All I knew was I couldn’t stop myself. Nothing else mattered but the thirst.
A few yards behind the bear, deeper in the woods, a flickering light caught my eyes. Fire. It danced and flickered in the night, and the smell of burning embers mixed with the smell of my meal. On top of that, a scent I’d never smelled before. Something foreign, not human, and not animal. I didn’t know what it was, but it piqued my curiosity.
But first . . . snack.
I dove off the top of the tree, leapt across the water, and crashed into the bear. Thick fur and the smell of earth assailed my senses. A claw ran across my skin, scraping at it, but I didn’t care. Snarling broke the night as we tumbled through the trees wrestling for the upper hand. The bear was strong, but I was so much stronger. We twisted and spun across the ground, wrestling and beating each other. To the bear, this was life or death. To me, this was my next drink. When we came to a crashing halt, I pinned the bear to the ground on its side. It snapped its neck toward me, baring its teeth at me and growling. A roar ripped from its chest and drool flew from his mouth across the clearing. I bared my teeth at it and a hiss burned up my throat. I slammed its shoulders into the ground and forced its head back to the side. Even pressed to the ground, it still kicked its legs and tried to fight me off. I could feel its hammering pulse under my fingertips and smell its warm, earthy blood seeping from the scratches I gave it during our little tumble. I licked my lips. This time, I would drink him dry and quench the dessert in my mouth. This time, it would stay down.
As I leaned in to sink my fangs home, a high-pitched cackle drew me up short. I jumped back from the bear and held my arms out, ready to end whatever would try to take my kill. I hunched over about to spring forward and attack. Adrenaline pumped through my veins and I wanted to spring into action, but the girl in front of me was different than humans. Her hair was pulled back tight to her head, her makeup was dark around her eyes, and she had bright-red lips. A pleather corset was wrapped tight around her body with pants that were equally as tight.
“Ohhhh, a new little baby.” She sauntered out away from two other people at a fire. She kicked a log out of her way. It soared across the clearing and cracked against a tree. “See? I can do it too.”
I tilted my head to the side, studying her. She was strong. It showed in the way she moved and the flex of her muscles. I was looking at another predator. She took a step toward me, and I hissed in her direction, baring my fangs. She froze and giggled at me.
“Linda, come look at this,” she called over her shoulder.
“I’m busy, Mandy.” The girl at the fire rose and stepped over a body lying at her feet. The heartbeat was faint and slow but still there. I licked my lips and took a step toward it, ready to sink my fangs in.
The girl stepped into my line of sight, blocking the food from me. She swayed on her feet and slow-blinked at me. “Hey, that’s ours, and newborns aren’t so good with the tainted blood.”
Tainted what? I shook my head. I didn’t care. I wanted it.
I sprinted at the first one and grabbed her by the throat and lifted her up off the ground. I held her over my head and shook her. “Mine.”
The guy jumped up from his seat next to the fire and ran into me at full speed, knocking me to the side. I dropped the one I had by the throat and flew off my feet into a tree. The tree cracked and snapped under my weight. I crawled out from the wreckage and yanked the branches from my hair. A deep growl rumbled in my chest. How dare they come between me and what I wanted? I would kill them all.
The three of them rushed to line up against me just as the bear loped off.
Dinner . . . gone.
There was nothing left for me here. I didn’t care to fight. The only thing I felt was the pain of hunger and thirst hitting me at the same time. And they didn’t smell the least bit enticing. The human on the floor was nearly empty of everything. Mandy, the one in the middle, pulled a square object from her pocket and held it to her ear. It lit up bright against her skin, and I heard a voice on the other end.
Mandy never took her eyes off me. “Yeah, we got a feral one.”
I turned and ran into the night . . . hunting for more.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
ATLAS SAVAGE
Killing was an art—an art meant to be executed in the most inventive kind of ways. To some it was abhorrent, to me it was life, and there was only one way out. If I so happened to be that way out for some, then so be it. In the animal kingdom, it was kill or be killed. I had no doubt my time would come. My sins were many and my good deeds less. But if my King beckoned, I would answer every time. Because his loyalty and mercy would be answered with my own unwavering loyalty . . . forever.
Grayson had become a brother to me, and Moira had taken me in as a son. All of them accepted me for the true monster I really was. The King summoned me to his chambers, and I would go without fail. A monster on call for them all. I walked through the castle like a ghost. Courtiers scurried out of my way as I walked down the halls. They didn’t even make eye contact with me. It was for the better. Attachments were liabilities. To others, the castle might’ve been cold, but I called it home. The gothic architecture was calm and comforting to me. The candles kept it warm and the decorations for Christmas were officially in full swing, complete with decorated trees up and down the hallways. Garland whirled around every open beam and around every window. Lights were strung through, giving it that magical twinkling effect.
When I got to the King’s chamber, the guards didn’t look in my eyes. They just opened the door for me to enter. I strolled in and Titus stood behind his desk. It was a large wooden piece with carvings covered in gold leaf. Papers were stacked in neat piles on the tabletop along with books and pens. He wore black tailored pants, black shoes, and a perfectly fitted vest. But the thing Titus was well known for was his crimson floor-length velvet coat. It puffed up around his neck and hung loose on his arms. He had one hand on his hip while he rifled through his papers with the other. A cup of blood sat on the corner of the table, and I recognized the vintage from the scent. O-positive with a touch of cabernet mixed in, a vintage he favored in all his donors. Titus glanced up at me and his lip twitched into a smile. Sometimes it felt as though he was looking right through me with his ghost-like eyes.
“Savage.”
I inclined my head in a small bow of respect. “Your Majesty.”
He stopped what he was doing and faced me fully. The thing with Titus was that he could be in a room full of people or completely alone and he still made anyone feel like they were the only one there with him.
“Something happened to Grayson while he was gone.”
“Yes.” I didn’t lie.
He ran his hand through his long hair. “Dare I ask what?”
