Crimson Groves (31 page)

My thoughts bounced back and forth like a volleyball game, occasionally landing in the sand. I felt gross, muddled. Regardless of whether Tyler really was having a change of heart, I could never be close to him again. He’d be lucky if I found forgiveness and sent him on his merry way. Of course, he could make that a whole lot easier if he’d just help me get this stupid necklace off! After all, he was the one who put it on in the first place. Maybe Bronx would just take it off. Yeah right, when pigs fly.

Tyler got up and grabbed a towel hanging on the wall. He tossed it down at me. “Your clothes are still in the closet. Bronx wants you to change into the red dress and gold sandals.”

“What the hell am I dressing up for?” I looked up with raised eyebrows, mouth open.

“I don’t know, please just do it. Please.” He turned abruptly and went for the door. I watched the back of him all the way. He glanced back, hand on the doorknob, eyes glistening with more information than he’d revealed yet, and winked again. Yep, he was up to something all right, but was it going to get both of us killed?

23

Aggravated

I REMAINED SITTING IN THE BATHROOM, my mind swarming with questions like too many goldfish in a small round bowl. How was I going to get out of this mess? Tyler was definitely up to something. That much I knew for sure. But what could it be and could I even trust him? After how bad he’d backstabbed me, how could I even consider putting my trust in him again? I guess that makes me a glutton for punishment. Or a glutton that wants to get the hell out of this mess.

Only he can remove it.
Damn it! How was I going to convince Bronx to remove the stupid necklace so that I could get my powers back and then kill him? That wasn’t going to be easy—yeah sure, more like impossible. But what if Tyler could remove it? I mean, he was the one that put it on. And if he could, how the hell was I supposed to make him take it off? If I even thought about using my advanced senses, it backfired and sucked away my energy. Oh fun stuff, I tell ya; fun stuff indeed.

I was stuck being Bronx’s “ball-and-chain,” so to speak. Ha ha! At least I was still cracking jokes. So what did Bronx mean when he’d asked the group of ancient vampires in suits to
infuse the necklace with a power so great that the one who wore it would be powerless?
Were those old vampires Enforcers? Actually from what Stone had told me, that group of old vampires matched the description of the Head Council. So did the Head Council use magic? Or was it just one of their powerful gifts?

Why would they use their powers or magic against me? The only law I’d broken was not coming straight to them once I discovered my special gifts. But come on! Give me a break! I’d had quite the distraction! If they were working with Bronx, then where were they now? Why hadn’t Bronx mentioned them? Why would they help Bronx keep me from using my powers?

Abby, you’re the most powerful vampire I’ve ever seen.
Stone’s words rippled through my mind. Was it possible that the Head Council was afraid of me? But if so, why wouldn’t they demand that Bronx bring me to them? Unless they didn’t know about me—they didn’t know Bronx had me. What if Bronx wanted my powers to defeat them? He was going to use me to bring down the Head Council! Stone was right!

There was a loud knock on the bedroom door. It opened a crack. “Abigail, are you ready?” Bronx pushed the door further, poked his head inside like a turtle popping out of its shell.

Well I guess I was in more trouble now. I stood up cautiously, very afraid. “Um, no.” My voice sounded small and crackly, even to me.

In a swish of movement Bronx stood in front of me. I didn’t even see him walk in. He was just there—black suit, black-buttoned undershirt with the top few buttons missing. The exposed part of his chest looked like a sheet of white ice, pale, slick, and shiny. His eyes formed tiny slants as he glared. He backhanded me across the face so hard that I stepped back twice to regain my balance. Blood dripped from the corner of my mouth. I licked it, tangy and wet. I drew out my fangs without thinking. Deep growls vibrated in waves out of my throat. “You’re a jerk!” My voice was much bigger, defiant; I felt a pinch of nausea. The necklace! I was so angry, my focus was fuzzy, my perception weak. I knew it was the freaking necklace compromising my senses. Geez, that thing worked fast!

“Be careful what you do. The more power and strength you use, the sooner you will become frail. Is that what you want?” His voice was taunting. I wanted to slap him, crush the bones in his face, but his words kept me frozen, pathetic.

I couldn’t afford to get weak again and not have a blood source to replenish my strength. Lily would be waking up soon, but her body would not be ready for another feeding. I was still undecided about taking blood from Tyler—against his will of course. So I did the best I could to regain my composure and calm myself down. I looked away from Bronx—because if I kept looking at him I was going to crack—and stared at the doorjamb. Until I found a way to get this necklace off, I needed to act…well…human. The one thing I’d thought I wanted more than anything, and now twice I’d had that wish come true and regretted it, wanting my vampire life back again. You always want what you don’t have. So true!

Bronx grabbed my arm tightly and pulled me out of the bathroom. I followed because I had too. He turned around scowling down at me, wrinkles lining his forehead. “Five minutes. I will be back in here to get you in five minutes. You better be ready!”

I swallowed hard, hoping to get that imaginary heart out of my throat, and nodded—slowly up, even slower back down. A cold swish of movement and he was gone, door shutting behind him. Lily stirred around on the bed. I walked past her in human steps, back toward the bathroom, stopping at the closet just before it. She stirred again, letting out a deep sigh. I looked back her way. Her eyes were open. She smiled at me with one of those real pretty, charming smiles. I smiled back in a much shallower version, I’m sure, and got to work looking for that red dress.

“Abby?” Lily called out. “Abby.” I glanced back at her again. She was sitting up, back supported by two fluffy pillows against the wall, her beautiful brown hair a complete mess from sleeping on it. “What are you doing?” He face was full of curiosity.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” I pulled the only red dress I could find from the closet and held it up. “I’m supposed to put this on?” I stomped over to the bed, then tossed the dress on the mattress next to Lily. “Bronx wants me to change into this! God I wish I had my powers. I would give him a piece of my mind!”

Lily reached over and grabbed the dress, its soft satin material folding neatly over her fingers. “Only you could wear that and get away with it.” She giggled and then tossed it back on the bed. “At least it’ll cover your boobs.”

And that was Lily bringing a positive point to light. What in the hell was I dressing up for, anyway? The reason for even putting this dress on was a complete mystery to me. What was Bronx up to?
Be ready in five minutes.
Oh no, it had probably already been five minutes. He’d be back to get me in any second. Unless I wanted to get bitch-slapped again, or worse, I needed to change into this stupid dress.

I peeled off my disgusting, dirty clothes and realized I’d need to clean up with a sponge. Blood and dirt stains were all over my skin. I used my advanced senses, unthinkingly, to flash into the bathroom, find a washcloth and soap, dampen it, and then scrub my body as rapidly as possible. Flashing back to Lily and the bed where the infamous red dress waited, I felt a wave of exhaustion and nausea come over me. Just great, here I go again. I desperately needed more blood, but that was not an option, so I pushed forward with putting the dress on.

I squeezed into it, literally, and was thankful Lily helped me. The dress was short and tight, with a tank-styled top and a low back line.

“I hate to say it, but you look hot,” Lily said, her voice soft and exhausted. She was still recovering from the blood loss and needed to rest.

“Lie back on that pillow.” I gently pushed her backward. “Don’t force yourself to do anything else until you have your strength back.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Please just listen to me.”

She looked at me with small, lazy eyes and nodded. “Okay.”

I walked back over to the closet and fished out the gold sandals. They were kind of chic and I actually liked the wedged heel. They fit perfectly. “Look, you may be my only blood source and I need you to be strong.” I turned around to face her. “I don’t want to drain you. I won’t. If you don’t rest, then I don’t drink.”

She nodded, eyes filling up with tears. “What are we going to do?” she asked, her voice cracking. She inhaled a huge, shaky breath. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

“I’ll get us out of this. I’ll find a way.” I ran my fingers through my hair. It was still a little damp. “Don’t worry about anything except resting.” My voice sounded both confident and believable, even to me. And I had no idea where it came from.

A loud pounding at the door sent chills crawling up my spine. Bronx came in, tongue dancing across his lips and eyes glistening in the faint light of the room, loaded with expectations. “You look more beautiful than I imagined, Abigail.”

I swallowed the lumps in my throat and went to him with heavy steps. My body cringed as his arm slid across my back and wrapped around me. His suit jacket was crisp, pressed, and new. “Your natural hair looks much better on you,” he said. “Thank you for changing it back for me.” Did anyone catch the weather report this morning? Did they say something about hell freezing over?

I bit my tongue as he led me out of the room, down the hallway, and through the living room. I tugged at the bottom of my dress hoping to lengthen it, but no such luck yet. Those hideous gargoyle statues watched me, followed every step I took. Remind me to shatter those things if I get out of this mess. Candlelight flickered around me, casting tiny shadows on the walls. A scent, vaguely familiar, fluttered across my nose. I licked my lips, tasting something or someone from my past, my recent past. It was definitely not human. It was stale, dead, empty. It was a vampire.

Bronx pulled me tighter into him as we entered the dining room. I felt the vibrations of muted laughter inside his chest, like tiny hammers trying to beat their way out. A wrought-iron chandelier with lightbulbs that looked like candle flames hung from the ceiling, radiating subdued light, illuminating the body of the mystery vampire lying helpless on the table below it. Massive silver chains held his arms and legs. His back was to me, dark hair matted, tangled, and bloody. His black pants were ripped up, clumps of dry blood scattered around what was left. His shirt was covered in blood. I had no idea what color it used to be. Six oversized iron-looking chairs were organized around the rectangular-shaped table. Tyler sat in one backing the wall, his face blank, eyes steady. He wore a black suit similar to Bronx’s but his undershirt wasn’t black, it was red. Why were they dressed like the Head Council? I had a bad feeling I was about to find out.

Bronx turned right, dragging me along with him. He pulled out a chair, diagonal from Tyler, and pushed me down into it. Then he moved to the head of the table, standing tall and proud with a big, brilliant grin. I looked away, fear of the unknown clawing through my veins. I stared at the poor, helpless, imprisoned vampire just a foot or two away from me. Those silver chains shouldn’t be holding him down like that. We’re not affected by silver. But as I’d already learned the hard way, we are affected by magic, powerful magic wielded by one of the Head Council. But what did this vampire have to do with Bronx wanting my powers?

His scent—where had I smelled it? I knew him from somewhere, but where? The mystery was raking on my nerves. Bronx stood like a statue, a crap-eating grin plastered across his face. That was raking on my
last
nerve. I would have loved to slap that grin right off of him and then throw these magic chains around his neck and pull until his head popped off. Yeah, I was really in the position to do that—not! One can still dream though.

Bronx finally broke the silence. “This night is a special night for all of us. A turning point for vampires and whom they will call their leader. Most everyone in this room will benefit from this new ruling. And I will see to it that the one who tried to prevent me from rising as king will painfully perish from his existence.”

I assumed that the “one whom tried to prevent” Bronx from becoming the king was this poor vampire chained to the table. I felt sorry for him and wished with all my heart that the necklace would fall off so I could get my powers back. If only that would happen, I could save this vampire and destroy Bronx. But wishful thinking had done nothing for me yet. I didn’t expect it to start now.

I looked beyond the prisoner and locked eyes with Tyler. He kept looking down at the vampire on the table, then back at me, eyebrows raising and dipping. He was trying to tell me something, but I didn’t understand. Bronx was still talking, distracting me. “…I will rise up and those who serve me shall be allowed to live. Those who oppose me, well, let us just agree that we all know what will happen to them. We are about to witness it right here. A true sacrifice and powers beyond that of what anyone could conceive will sanctify me as the king above all others…”