Page 54 of Witch Unbound
I should be having fun, but the squirrelly feeling in the pit of my stomach refused to quit. The fact that there was nothing I could do about it made it worse. The lack of control and the lack of solutions grated.
“You okay?” Bramble joined me in the kitchen.
I’d never seen her dressed so casually in thick leggings, floppy sweater, and boots. Her purple hair was pulled back in a messy plait. Her only concession to makeup was a ring of kohl around her stunning violet eyes.
“Cora? You okay?” she asked again.
I shook my head. “No.”
“Jasper?”
“Yeah.”
She sighed, looking crestfallen. “I wish there was something I could do to help.” Her lips thinned. “That fecking blood witch coulda told us it was a one-shot deal.”
“It’s not her fault, but it feels good to have someone to blame.”
“What you need is a distraction. That, in there”—she jerked her thumb toward the lounge—“is the perfect one. Hot guys. Hot girls.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “I can take Wren back to the mansion for the night if you guys need some alone time.”
I chuckled. “Thanks, but no. We’re good.” My hoo-haa had no willpower at the moment and could not be trusted to behave. “I just need a minute to shake off this feeling.” I massaged my breastbone with my knuckles. “Fucking mystical indigestion.”
“But you still feel him, right?”
“Yeah, I do. He’s out there, just not here where he should be, and—”
The doorbell rang.
I looked to Bramble.
“Are you expecting someone?” she asked.
“Nope.”
We hurried into the lounge just as a gust of cold air drifted in through the open front door. Rune had his back to me, and beyond him on the threshold stood a vamp I’d foolishly hoped never to see again.
Vlad stood on the porch, long, totally stereotypical coat flapping behind him. His dark hair whipped about his pale, chiseled face, and his piercing dark eyes looked straight over Rune’s shoulder and locked on me. A hint of crimson flared in their depths, and needles of pain lanced through my neck as my body recalled the invasion of his fangs. Terror spiked my pulse for a moment before I was able to wrest control of my emotions.
This was my territory. My home.
“You’re not welcome here,” Rune said coolly.
The frosty, unwelcoming tone was uncharacteristic of my mate but apt under the circumstances.
“You’ll come with me,” Vlad said to me.
“No,” Tor said.
Vlad ignored him, his focus still on me. “Do you not speak for yourself?”
That rankled. “I can speak for myself just fine. What do you want with me?”
“Your witches have been unsuccessful in finding the original. If he’s made more ice wraiths, he’ll be lying low and gathering his strength. While we appreciate your efforts, the fact remains that you do not have the skills required to track him. We can find him, but our time here is limited and so we require strong bait to draw him out. Your blood will make a powerful lure. He will not be able to resist it once he scents it.”
Okay… “Then take some of my blood.”
He smiled thinly. “It must be fresh, pumping from the vein when the scent hits the air.”
Why did he have to look so gleeful about that?
