Page 115 of The Vampire's Thirst
“Only one. Like I said, my vision was brief. I have no control over it when it decides to pull me out.”
Denim opened her tablet. “As Brae said, plans are still rough. Speak up with ideas or refinements. We want you to be comfortable with your roles.Capiche?”
Jace brushed her palms together. “Tyr had Logan search for a building plan of the house where Celene is being kept. Neither guy knows why I wanted it. Anyway, the computer wiz came through.”
Denim continued reading the plan. “I used it to come up with this step-by-step. Here we go. First, since I manipulate weather, I’ll lay down a thick fog around the house. Second, Margo will take out communications. That’s her gig. Third, we attack. Brae will be first through the front, using mind control if she spots a guard. I’ll come in behind her and next Chiara. At the same time Brae hits the door, Indigo, you’ll take the rear. That should be the kitchen. Smack down the first guard you see. Lizette follows you with her Bengal tiger. Margo, you come in behind them to keep eyes on the situation. Shout out a warning if necessary.”
Indigo punched the air with her fist.
Denim clasped her ponytail, pulling it tighter. “Chiara, how’s your training going? We know you haven’t worked long with your witch, but you were already strong. Thing is, you’ve got shit going on that could dull your abilities.”
“I’ve only worked a few times with my trainer, but I’ve gained a lot of control. You’re right. Dax is on my mind day and night. But this is a chance for me to do good. If I can’t save him, I want to help someone else. I’m good to go. I’ll be spot on when the time comes.”
Braelyn’s glass clinked when she set it on the table. “Okay, Chiara. When you come in the front, go after any guard still standing. Jace, you’ll be last in the main door. Your sole mission is to locate Celene and get her to my SUV. Skyler, same job as Jace, but you’ll go in the rear. Fin, you’re in charge of the outside. The first thing you’ll do when we get to the site is to call in your wild animals to stand guard. Nobody sneaks in behind us.”
Braelyn tapped her wrist. “Most of us have D-chips thanks to our mates. Jace, since you don’t have one yet, ride in my SUV to the operation staging area. Stick with me if things go to shit. I’m your way home. Chiara, same deal. Since you don’t have a device, glue yourself to Denim, who’ll drive the second vehicle.”
“Got it,” said both women in unison.
Braelyn held out her glass for Margo to pour more wine. “When we hit the guards, we go at them fast and heavy. We cannot engage in a prolonged hand-to-hand. We’d lose. Clear?”
Everyone nodded.
Braelyn checked her watch. “Let’s give this some thought until tomorrow. Bring questions and ideas about your role in the action. Our target rescue date is in three days. Between now and then, work with your trainers to perfect your gifts. We need to be at peak performance.”
Jace stood. “I have something to say.” She ran a finger around the edge of her wine goblet. “You don’t really know me or Celene, but you’re willing to risk your lives for us. No words can tell you how I feel. Thank you is too mild. But thanks anyway. I’ve had friends before, but none like you. Raise your glasses, ladies. ‘Some ships are wooden ships, but those ships may sink. The best ships are friendships and to those ships, we drink.’”
Glass clinked to glass.
“We are coven.” Braelyn moved to the center of the room, motioning the women to stand close. “We are strong and will prevail.” When they looped arms over each other’s shoulders, the floor buckled, the walls shook, and the room spun.
“Hot damn,” said Indigo, her lips curving into a smile, her eyes sparking with that hyper-awareness Braelyn had seen before. “Rock my world.”
Braelyn took a deep breath, sensing the spirit of the Blood Coven, each woman’s individual gift, and their solidarity.
When they broke, Indigo pumped her fist in the air. “Now, let’s smoke ’em. Kill ’em. Suck their hearts out. Rip their heads off.”
When everyone gasped, the witch flipped her long curly black hair over her shoulder and scrunched her brows. “What? You know you’re thinking it.”
Denim tapped her wrist. “Three days, ladies. Practice. Plan. Perform.”
****
Later, Dax couldn’t figure out if he was awake and remembering or comatose and dreaming. Either way, his memories were disturbing but true.
Dax laced up his leather breeches, tugged up new boots bought from his earnings at the O blud den, and slipped a white linen shirt over his head, leaving it untucked. A smile curled his lips. He was what he was meant to be.
The eighteen-year-old had taken an unprecedented action. He had approached a Scion Firebrand from his dead father’s stronghold to offer a proposition—coin earned from his whoring if the male arranged a guide for an Awakening ceremony. The warrior argued Dax was too young. Most Aeternals celebrated the rite between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five. Too young and he could die. But Dax would wait no longer. He had seen his stepfather ogling Bounty in a way that gave him dark chills. The time for them to run was now.
His father’s old friend came through on his promise. Dax reported to the cave as directed, fed from a female vampire while he fucked her, and opened his mind to his guide. The experience nearly killed him as powers exploded into him, sending him flying into the cavern wall, his heart stopping, crimson fluid leaking from his ears and nose, his lungs devoid of air. He passed out for days. But he awoke, his life forever changed, his powers those of a mature vamp.
Proving his strength had multiplied tenfold, he shadowflashed from one dark spot to another in the cavern. His speed was blurring, and he already communicated telepathically. His skills had the guide’s mouth agape and his eyes wide. He claimed never to have seen such power in a male so young.
When thirst gripped him again, his guide brought in a new donor. Dax took her pussy and her vein with his pants around his ankles. No use taking off all his clothes. He was likely to repeat this action frequently in the coming year. Hell. He probably shouldn’t wear clothes at all.
His thirst quenched and his sex drive momentarily satisfied, Dax sneaked into the O blud den, not revealing he had completed his Awakening. He would save the news for a surprise. In the meantime, he had to resolve how to care for Bounty and himself once they ran.
In his room, Dax flung himself onto his bed. Though the Awakening had been grueling, his wounds had closed. He showered, washing off the blood which caked his flesh and clothing.
