Blood & Roses: Warriors of the Krieger (18 page)

The vehicle was a complete mess. The hood had
been clawed and the windshield broken. Blood saturated the driver’s
seat and steering wheel. I noticed there was a trail of blood that
led from the car to the side of the road. It disappeared into the
forest. My assumption is that the man who was driving this car was
now some Lycan’s dinner.

“Alright, get this cleaned up and take his
belonging to the station. Contact the victim’s family and let them
know,” I insisted.

The stretch of road we were standing on
wasn’t too far from the main highway into Port Royal. The
intersection was less than a mile from our location. Charity drove
past this road every time she had to work.

Ashby stayed behind to assist Bastian with
the crime scene. I made my way over to the estate to see two of my
recruits.

Instead of parking up by the mansion, I
stopped in front of the dorms. My two oldest and brightest
recruits, William and Brock, had been roommates since their first
day here.

“Brock, William,” I knocked heavily. “Open
the door.” I heard them scurry to get to the door and had to laugh
at their panic. The door flew open and the two of them looked
absolutely scared to death.

“Yes, Master Dragus,” Brock stepped forward.
His voice was a little shaky. “What…what can we do for you
sir?”

“I have an assignment for you two,” I smiled.
“You wanted field work, right?”

The both nodded and William smiled, “What did
you have in mind?”

“You will be on bodyguard duty for Ms.
Charity Harwood. She is to be protected at all cost. When you
address her, you will address her as Charity, nothing else. You are
not allowed to handle her unless she is in danger and I want a
daily report from you one hour before sunrise each day. Do you
understand?” I watched as they contemplated their job. It didn’t
take long before they were smiling.

“Yes, Master. When do we start?” William
asked.

“Tomorrow evening at dusk, meet me at her
residence. I will have her information sent over to you
tonight.”

After I left them at the dorms, my next stop
for the evening was the hospital. Two more victims were found, both
with Lycan bite wounds. Powle had found them on the west side of
the forest.

I walked up to the nurse’s station in the
I.C.U. and found Nurse Alice with her head hung low over a stack of
charts. She looked up at me and smiled, “Master Dragus, how can I
help you this evening?”

“How are the new patients?”

“Well, they are stable and sedated right now.
We’re waiting on one of the doctors to come and evaluate them.” She
stood up and walked around the desk. The nurse was rather nervous
and I could sense she wanted to talk to me about something in
private.

“Do you need to speak to me?” I pointed to
the end of the hallway, where there was a quiet corner we could
talk.

“It’s about Richard Somers,” she paused.
“We’ve had to keep him restrained. When he does wake up from being
sedated, he…um, he says things to the nurses that make them
uncomfortable.”

“What kind of things?” I demanded.

She tilted her head down as if she was
embarrassed, “He speaks demeaning words to the females, sexually
explicit words that I do not care to repeat.”

“You did the right thing by telling me. I
will send someone over to guard his room.” I patted her on the
shoulder and followed her back to the nurse’s station.

We were up to six patients, that we had found
who had been bitten by the Lycanthropes. Adam Castillo was still
missing and he was the one I wanted to speak with the most. He was
responsible for Charity’s accident and if he survived this, he
would be brought up on charges. Charity held a soft spot in her
heart for this hybrid, because they share the same ability.

I’ve seen it too many times over the
centuries. Most vampires usually befriend others who share their
special talent. The thought of Adam getting anywhere close to
Charity again had me seeing red.

In fact, the thought of another male getting
close to her, caused my blood to boil. Charity’s protection was my
main concern. I wanted her close to me or at least within my reach
at all times. She was mine and no one else’s.

That thought brought me up a little short. I
shouldn’t be thinking of her like that, because I sound like a
bonded male. Am I ready for a bonding ceremony with her? I have no
idea.

But the thought of letting her go out on her
own, caused me severe pain. She should never be alone. This is why
I am hiring both Brock and William.

Back at the
Krieger
Estate, I retired
to my room. Sunrise was a few minutes away. Before I climbed into
my bed, I e-mailed the Campeche Beach
Krieger
, requesting
they send a few of their men to help us out.

This evening, I would be at Charity’s home to
grovel at her feet and apologize for the way I acted. Ashby was
right; I have no right to tell her what to do. It’s all about a
compromise. I just hope she will understand the two guards that
will be following her around.

Charity

Vampires get hangovers too.

I tried to open my eyes, but it hurt like
hell. Rolling over was almost impossible, because I was pressed up
against something hard. Had I fallen out of bed and slept in the
floor? I moaned then rolled over onto my stomach. It took me a few
seconds to realize I was still in the bed and not on the floor.
Forcing my eyes open, I saw a blurry figure lying next to me in the
bed.

“Aah!” I jumped up off the bed and landed in
defense mode. I looked like a pajama clad ninja, standing there,
glaring blurry eyed at my attacker. My eyes struggled to clear then
I realized what my back had been pressed against. I stood up
straight and took a deep breath. “Dragus! How the hell did you get
in here?”

He simply laughed and twirled a very familiar
key ring around his pointy finger. “You may have great security,
but if you leave the key to your room on the kitchen counter, it
won’t do you a bit of good.”

I turned around a sat on the edge of my bed.
My head hurt like it had been used as a drum, but this silence was
killing me more. I didn’t want to talk to him, because I was still
mad.

“I’m sorry
mi amado
,” he whispered.
Soft hands stroked my bare shoulder. The spaghetti strap on my
camisole had fallen down and left a small part of my back
exposed.

“I’m mad at you and you’re being nice,” I
huffed. “I don’t like it. I
want
to be mad at you.” Before I
knew what was happening, Dragus had scooped me up in his massive
arms and kissed me. I struggled in his arms; hitting his massive
shoulders with my fist. Damn, he is strong. I felt him smile before
he deepened the kiss. His need was evident and I had no strength to
fight him.

Our lips parted and I tasted his musky scent
as it blew over my face. His tongue searched greedily for mine as
we fell back across my bed. I had to pull back slightly so I could
take a breath. “Why are you here?” I pressed my lips to his just
one more time.

He rolled over and sat on the edge of the
bed, “The Lycanthropes are attacking. Just like Adam had told you.
They’re hunting vampires and the ones that have been bitten are
attacking humans. We’ve stepped up patrols in the city and have
called in reinforcements from Campeche Beach to help search the
city.”

“How many are missing?” I asked.

“So far there have been twelve missing person
reports filed,” he sighed. “Six more are in the hospital being
evaluated.”

“Well, I talked to Kai,” here goes nothing.
If he didn’t like it then we were going have round two here in the
bedroom. Dragus nodded for me to continue. “She is working with the
other witches to make up a potion for us to try.”

“Good, the doctors at the hospital are
working around the clock to work on anti-venom as well.”

I couldn’t believe he was letting me do this,
without arguing. His understanding melted any anger I had for him.
For some reason, I was beginning to understand his concern. I
scooted over and place a hand on his shoulder and leaned my cheek
against his cold leather coat. He leaned back and let me wrap my
free arm around his waist.

“Okay, if you’re willing to work with me,
then I’m willing to work with you,” I sighed. “How dangerous is it
out there? Do I need to take precautions?”

“What’s with the change of heart?” he
laughed.

“I call it more of a compromise,” I
shrugged.

“Of course,
mi amado
, the Lycans have
been attacking in town and outside of the city as well. We found an
abandon car about three miles from here. There were Lycan claw
marks on the door and vampire blood at the scene. The civilian has
not been found.” He turned and placed a hand on the side of my face
and dipped down for a quick kiss. “Your safety is my first
concern.”

He paused and looked like he was getting the
courage up to say something else. I was skeptical, but held my
tongue. He was right, my safety came first, and he was only looking
out for me. I could live with whatever he suggested until this was
over.

“Go ahead and tell me what you want to say
Dragus,” I closed my eyes waiting for him to speak. He wrapped his
arms around me and bent down to whisper in my ear.

“I’ve hired you a set of personal
bodyguards,” he chuckled.

I gasped and then reigned in my hostility,
“If that is what it will take to keep you from worrying, then I’m
fine with the guards.” Dragus laughed so hard the walls shook. I
let him hold me briefly then sighed, “I’m starving and I’m still
hung over. Are they going to drive me to the R.C.?”

“No,” his voice held a whisper of disgust. He
stood and removed his jacket. “I want you to only drink from me, no
more human blood, unless it’s necessary.”

Well, wasn’t this just a jackpot waiting to
happen? Warrior blood made AB positive taste like muddy water.
(Yeah, I remember drinking muddy water. It’s gross.) I felt a ping
of pride as I thought about him pledging himself to me, and I
wanted the same for him.

“And I, shall be your only blood source,” I
purred. He nodded and as with custom, Dragus offered himself to me
first. Vampire customs have been in place since the beginning of
time. Those who pledge themselves to each other have to obey the
traditions. Even though I was up with the times, I still honored
the rules. Women always feed first, as a sign of respect and males
fed last. Women vampires are held highly in the eyes of the males.
Of course, there are those, like Romeo who don’t respect women at
all.

I tossed Dragus over onto his back and
straddled his waist. One long passionate kiss later, I sank my
fangs into his awaiting jugular. His hands automatically grasped my
hips as he pushed his hardened length up toward my core. My hands
found his dark nipples nice and tight. I pinched them between my
fingers and added a tug for good measure. Dragus’ primal growl
echoed in my head as I released him.

There was no time to close his wounds before
he had me pinned underneath his massive body. Unfortunately, I had
to send him a silent message; reminding him that we were both due
to work soon. Oh man, I wanted sex with him in a bad way, but would
have to wait till later. Being head
Krieger
, he was on call
from sunset to sunrise, six days a week. My job had me working only
five days a week, but being the owner, I had a more lenient
schedule.

“As you wish,
mi amado
,” he shrugged.
“I still owe you a new robe. Maybe I will go shopping for you
tonight.” He winked at me and eyed my neck hungrily. “Am I
forgiven?”

“Take my vein, Dragus.” I pulled my hair up
over the pillow and giggled when he nuzzled into my neck. His cool
breath raised bumps on my arms as he bit into my vein. Each time he
fed from me, I felt my insides swim with pleasure. Now, that we
have committed to each other, it felt right. My mind was telling my
heart that this was what made me whole. Dragus had made me
complete, the dream from so long ago finally made sense. Akalika
was right; Dragus was my eternal soul mate. I wrapped my arms
around his back and kissed his shoulder. He released me and wiped
his tongue across my wounds.

Oh my God, I’m falling in love with a
warrior.

“
Mi amor, mi vida
,” Dragus whispered.
He pressed those cashmere lips to mine and I melted. My Spanish was
enough that I recognized what he said; my love, my life.

I could totally relate. We had a connection
that was unique. I don’t completely understand it because it’s
complicated, but I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I love the
warrior in my bed. So, I repeated his vow, “
Mi amor, mi
vida
.”

After a little playful teasing in the shower,
we both headed upstairs to meet my new bodyguards. The first looked
like he was pulled off the cover of a surfer magazine. Short blonde
hair and an above average build, but don’t let that fool you; he
was all muscle, not a teaspoon of fat on his body. Brown eyes that
looked like milk chocolate and thick eyelashes a woman would kill
for.

The second was a big ole cowboy, complete
with white Stetson hat. Whoboy, he was easy on the eyes. Almost the
size of Ashby with hair the same color as Lydia’s, but cut super
short. He sported a beard with what looked about a day’s worth of
growth. Super tight jeans sculptured his assets quite well. Look, I
may be spoken for now, but I can still look. Dragus gave me a hard
stare and I knew I was busted. I sent him a silent shrug and an
apology. He smiled and introduced my new bodyguards.

“Charity, this is Brock and this is William.
Gentlemen, this is Charity Harwood. You have been given your
instructions and I expect you to adhere to your contract.” His
voice reminded me of the
Nachtmann
that had almost assaulted
me in my own home a couple of weeks ago. William immediately tipped
his cowboy hat toward me and Brock did the heart over the chest
bow. I wondered if Dragus trained them not to touch me unless
otherwise necessary and explained my first names only rule. I
stifled a laugh and glanced over at Dragus as he looked sternly
into their eyes.