Silent Bite-A Scanguards Wedding (1001 Dark Nights) (4 page)

“I hope you’ll both be comfortable here,” Quinn continued.

“We didn’t really want to put Oliver out by taking over his room,” Ursula’s father replied, motioning to his surroundings. “But thank you very much. I’m sure we’ll be very comfortable here.”

“Excellent!” Quinn agreed.

“Once you’ve unpacked and freshened up, why don’t you come downstairs, and I’ll show you around?” Rose offered. “It’ll be chaotic in the next few days with preparing for the wedding, so I’ve had the kitchen stocked with everything you might need, and rather than have regular sit-down lunches and dinners, I figured everybody should just help themselves to anything they want. Don’t you think so too?” She smiled at Mrs. Tseng.

Ursula’s mother looked at her somewhat stunned, but then nodded.

Rose smiled. They’d agreed on this arrangement when discussing how to hide the fact from the Tsengs that neither Rose, Quinn, nor Oliver consumed any food. “It’ll be so much easier considering we’ll all have different schedules. What with the tent being built, the last-minute fittings for the dress, and whatever else comes up.”

“A tent?” Ursula’s father suddenly asked. “What for?”

Quinn stepped forward and put his arm around Mr. Tseng’s shoulder. “I’ll show you.” He led him to the window and pointed to the garden below. “We’ll have a large tent erected that will cover the entire backyard. The ceremony and reception will take place there.”

Oliver watched as Mrs. Tseng stepped next to her husband. “Oh, that sounds nice.”

Ursula nudged closer to Oliver, and he instantly pulled her against him, stealing a kiss while her parents looked out the window.

“It’ll be perfect,” he whispered into her ear, gently nibbling on her earlobe. “And afterwards, I’ll make you mine forever.”

4

He’d been watching the house half the night until Oliver emerged and left on foot shortly past two o’clock. He was alone. The blood whore wasn’t with him. She was still inside the house, together with her parents and two other vampires, as well as a human male.

He waited until Oliver had completely disappeared from his view before leaving his hiding place across the street and approaching the house.

It would take some planning to get to the girl, since she was still surrounded by too many people, two of which were vampires. Had they all been human, he would simply walk into the house now and snatch her. The humans would turn into collateral damage. However, the two vampires could be trouble.

But he wasn’t giving up easily. He’d continue to observe and find a weak spot. Like a tiger, he would lie in wait and watch his prey until an opportunity presented itself. Then he’d make his move and steal the blood whore right from under their noses. If the vampires who ran Scanguards thought they could put up rules for others but not live by them themselves, then he’d show them what he thought of that.

His gaze wandered to the windows on the upper floors. Some of them were still illuminated. He stood still and watched. Waited. He knew how to do that, how to stand silently without moving for hours. How to barely breathe so as not to make a sound. How to remain almost invisible. How to blend in.

Inside him, his hunger grew. Though it was impossible, he thought he could smell the blood whore’s blood from where he stood in the shadows of a lush tree. Yes, he’d missed that smell, that taste. He’d missed it while he’d been in rehab. While this crazy psychiatrist Dr. Drake had blathered about restraint and willpower as they’d sat around in groups to talk about how they
felt
about their addiction. Oh, he’d hated those sessions! But he’d played along because he knew if he didn’t, they’d never release him. It had taken a long time. Longer than for many of the other vampires. He’d been among the last group to be released from the underground cells at Scanguards, which had turned into a clandestine treatment center complete with daily visits by Dr. Drake and his hot little assistant with the enormous rack.

Shame that she was a vampire. Had she been human, he would have dug his fangs into her tits first chance he got. Instead, the prisoners had been fed bottled blood. Cold, lifeless blood. He’d hated that too. But again, he’d played along. All so they would release him.

And while he’d been suffering in his cell, fighting against his hunger for that special blood, fighting his urge to lash out at his captors, Oliver had been gorging himself on one of the blood whores. Well, not for much longer. Soon, she would be his.

I’m coming for you,
Ursula
.

* * * *

Oliver greeted Delilah, Samson’s wife, who opened the door for him.

“So we’ve got you back for a week,” she said smilingly and kissed him on the cheek.

Behind her, Isabelle staggered into the hallway before falling onto her butt, chuckling.

“Wow!” Oliver exclaimed and walked toward the toddler. “She’s walking!”

“Yes, she started last week, and every day she gets more secure on her two feet. I think she might be able to walk at your wedding.”

He stretched his arms toward Isabelle and lifted her up. “You mean she could be our little flower girl?”

“Just in case, I bought her a cute pink dress so she’s got something appropriate to wear. But don’t tell Ursula yet, because I don’t know whether she’ll be walking well enough by then.” She stroked her hand over Isabelle’s dark hair. “I had no idea that hybrids grew up so fast.”

Isabelle beamed at her, flashing her tiny fangs.

“Oh, no, Isabelle! What did we talk about? No showing of fangs! Just like we practiced. There’ll be a lot of humans around this week, and we don’t want you to expose us, do we?”

Isabelle dropped her lids and closed her mouth, clearly understanding her mother’s words.

“Now try again,” Delilah encouraged her.

The toddler parted her lips and flashed her mother another grin. This time no fangs showed.

“Perfect.” Delilah kissed her on the cheek and Isabelle reached her arms out to her.

Oliver released her and handed her over to her mother. “I’m sure she’ll do perfectly fine.” Then he changed the subject. “So, is Samson home or is he at headquarters?”

Delilah motioned to the back of the house. “He’s in his private office. Drake is here. And so are Gabriel and Zane. Samson said to join them when you arrive.”

“Thanks.” He turned toward the long wood-paneled corridor leading to the back of the house.

“Oh, and Oliver,” Delilah called after him, “I prepared the newly renovated guestroom in the attic for you. That way you won’t get woken by Isabelle.”

He looked over his shoulder. “Thanks, Delilah. Hope it wasn’t too much trouble.”

She made a dismissive gesture with her hand. “No trouble. We love having you here. Samson misses you.”

In many ways, he missed Samson too. For over three years, when he’d still been human, he’d worked for the owner of Scanguards as his personal assistant. He’d been his eyes and ears during the day, watching out for him while he slept, trading shifts with Carl, his vampire butler. Oliver sighed heavily. He missed Carl. They’d been friends despite the fact that they couldn’t have been more different. But Carl was gone.

Oliver pushed away the sad thoughts and knocked at the door to Samson’s study.

“Come!” Samson’s voice came from the inside.

He turned the knob and opened the door, then closed it behind him. Samson sat at his massive desk, while Dr. Drake, Gabriel, and Zane lounged on the sofa and the comfortable armchair.

“Hey, Oliver, you’re just in time. Dr. Drake just arrived to give us an update,” Samson greeted him and motioned him to sit.

With his short black hair, his hazel eyes, and an imposing over-six-foot frame, Samson was every inch the boss. He was the founder of Scanguards, the national security company that provided bodyguards to celebrities, politicians, and other wealthy individuals and organizations who could afford their services.

Opposite him, Dr. Drake, the only vampire psychiatrist—and one of the only two vampires trained as medical professionals in San Francisco—looked scrawny and lanky. Oliver had always found him an odd sort, though Samson and several others at Scanguards had used his services at one time or another.

“Great!” Oliver took a seat on the couch next to Zane. “Hey, guys!”

“Hey!” Zane ground out, clearly not happy to be in the same room as Drake.

He’d once been forced to attend a session with the psychiatrist and apparently not enjoyed it. Not that Oliver could blame the bald vampire. Zane wasn’t one for
soft
things, emotions and the like. He was a lean, mean fighting machine, even though Oliver had seen glimpses of a softer side inside him when he’d first met his mate, Portia, a young hybrid. But at the moment, none of that softness was apparent. Zane looked as if he wanted to kill somebody.

“I think it was too early to let them go,” Zane now bit out, looking at Gabriel for reinforcement.

Gabriel stroked his chin with his hand, contemplating his answer, then pushed a strand of dark hair, which had come loose from his ponytail, behind his ear. Oliver couldn’t help but stare at the large scar that ran from his ear to his chin, a souvenir from the time when he’d been human. While the scar was ugly, there was something intriguing about Gabriel that made him an imposing figure who could drive fear into anybody.

“Dr. Drake gave everybody the all clear,” Gabriel replied.

“What’s going on?” Oliver asked, tossing a questioning look at his colleagues.

Dr. Drake sat up straighter. “As I was starting to elaborate, we terminated the rehab program. Scanguards did a fabulous job at rounding up all former clients of the blood brothel and bringing them in.”

Zane snorted, his boots scratching loudly against the wooden floor. “I don’t need you to tell me that we’ve done a good job.”

Samson gave Zane a reprimanding look. “Let him talk.”

The bald vampire leaned back and folded his arms over his chest. Oh yeah, Oliver could tell Zane was pissed. And he wasn’t one to sugarcoat his opinions. If he didn’t like something, he’d let you know. He and Zane had butted heads more than once. Nevertheless, he liked the guy. Zane’s gut feeling was better than anybody else’s. And in a fight, he was lethal.

Drake cleared his throat. “Well. Some of the patients were doing better than others. I believe it was a matter of willpower and motivation. Some responded to positive reinforcement better, and those were the ones we released a few weeks ago. I understand that Scanguards is still keeping an eye on them?”

Samson nodded and motioned to Gabriel.

“That’s right,” Gabriel answered. “But there has been no erratic behavior. All of them seemed to have integrated well again.”

Drake nodded. “Good, good. And with the drug, so to speak, out of their reach, it’s certainly made things easier.”

The drug. Yes, the blood of all the Chinese women who’d been held at the blood brothel was indeed a drug to vampires. Highly addictive, utterly delicious, and producing a high. Oliver could only imagine it. He’d never gotten high from Ursula’s blood, because they were taking precautions. He only bit her after she’d climaxed, because an orgasm diluted the potency of the blood for a short time.

“Yes, they’re all back at home. All but Ursula,” Oliver said almost to himself.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” the doctor said. “Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!”

“Thank you!”

“Can we get on with business?” Zane interrupted.

Drake looked as if he wanted to roll his eyes but refrained from doing so. “Last night we released the remaining vampires in our care. They’ve proven to us that they are strong enough to fight the temptation and have conquered their addiction. They’re all clean now. I don’t believe we’ll have any more problems with regards to this issue.”

“Proven how?” Zane shot back. “By sitting in some stupid group sessions, babbling about how they felt?”

Drake narrowed his eyes. “Yes, by talking about their feelings, which is a proven psychological tool.”

“I’ll give you a tool. A stake is a tool,” Zane muttered under his breath.

Samson rose. “You know as well as I do that we couldn’t simply kill those men because of their addiction. We had to help them.” His gaze drifted to Oliver, and Oliver instinctively knew what his boss was thinking of. Samson had helped him when he’d been in the gutter, when he’d been an addict and running with a bad crowd. He’d given him a chance to lead a productive life instead.

“I have to agree with Samson. We had to help them,” Oliver added. “They are our fellow vampires. If we don’t help them, who will?”

If Samson hadn’t helped him and given him a job, he wouldn’t be here now. And if Quinn hadn’t saved his life by turning him into a vampire when he lay dying after a car crash, he would have never known what love was.

Zane clenched his jaw. “I just hope it won’t come and bite us in the ass one day.”

Oliver caught Zane’s gaze and for a moment, their eyes locked. Was Zane’s concern valid?

5

“You have
four
bridesmaids?” Her mother nearly gasped at the revelation.

“Yes,” Ursula replied, using her fingers to elaborate. “There’s Portia, who’s married to Zane. She’s a little younger than I. Then Nina who’s married to Amaury. And Maya, Gabriel’s wife. Plus Lauren. She’s a good friend of Portia’s and I like her a lot.”

Still, her mother kept shaking her head. “No, no. That won’t work.”

“But, Mom, those are my friends. Besides, they’ve already got their dresses.” Ursula looked across the table to her father, who had his head buried in his newspaper. He dropped it slightly and shrugged. “Dad,” she pleaded.

“That’s your mother’s domain. You know I don’t get involved in women’s business.”

The frown on her mother’s forehead deepened as she rose from the breakfast table. “Don’t you have any other friends? Anybody from college?”

“What’s wrong with those friends? You haven’t even met them yet. How can you be against them?” Ursula felt herself get defensive. Her mother often had that effect on her.