The Chosen (10 page)

She sat there, mouth hanging open as their eyes locked. He was inches from her face—his blue eyes boring into hers. Memories of earlier assaulted her again, and she blushed. She licked her lips, his
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eyes dropping and watching the act. Her body tingled, every cell in her body alive with desire. She shouldn’t be aroused by a man who kidnapped her, but she was…really aroused.

She swallowed as she remembered their intimate time together.

His large hairless body pressed against her own, his gentle fingers running over her heated flesh. Warm liquid slid out of her swollen pussy, and she hated herself for her lack of control. What was wrong with her?

She moved farther up on the bed to put distance between them. He inhaled and closed his eyes, a deep rumble coming from him.

“It’s hard to control myself when you smell so good.”

What the hell was he talking about? Smelled good?

“Before you tell me what’s going on, I need to make a phone call.” She stared at him, his half-lidded eyes making her hotter. He sat down on the bed, his stare intense and knowing.

“Your cell phone is back at my apartment.”

“Don’t you have a phone here? I have to let someone know I’m okay.”

“This is the safest place for you to be.”

“I still want to make a call. Am I a prisoner here?”

He ran a hand over his face and looked at the ground. “Will you let me explain everything to you before you make your call? If after I’m done you still wish to leave, I’ll take you home myself.”

“I have to let my friends know I’m okay. I came with two of them, and they’ll be worried.”

“I’ve already informed Adrik, and he will tell your friends.”

“Who the hell is Adrik? No, I want to call them myself!”

“Please, just hear me out first.”

She looked up at him and breathed out deeply. This was probably going to be the best he offered, and she didn’t want to push him. He could be a psycho for all she knew, probably was since he kidnapped her. She would play along, though, for now. She stared at him, anguish and longing filling his face. Why couldn’t she hate this man?

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She wanted to hate him so badly her chest hurt, but when he stared at her with those emotions flashing across his features, it made it difficult.

“Okay, start talking.”

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Kayla stepped out of the club, the chilly night breeze stirring the hair around her face. She stood next to Kaleb as they waited for the valet to bring the truck back. Kayla stayed at the club for several more hours searching for Lana. She never found Lana, and that put her in a panicked state. After she asked several people if they saw her, Adrik showed up. His eyes were downcast, as if he couldn’t bear to look at her, and that pissed her off even more. He told her Lana was with the owner of the club and she was fine. Kaleb demanded to know what was going on, and she didn’t miss how Adrik’s face had gone red with rage. She still didn’t know where his anger stemmed from, and it tore her in two.

As the valet pulled Kaleb’s truck to the front of the club, she looked back at the club. She didn’t feel right about leaving Lana, but Kaleb and Adrik both said she was fine, and she trusted both of them deeply, even if Adrik abandoned her. She hadn’t been able to get a hold of her on her phone. What was the point of having a cell if she didn’t answer it? Kayla still fumed as she got into the truck and they left the club.

* * * *

“Pl-please don’t hurt me.”

The human female stared up at him with big gray eyes as tears ran down her cheeks.

“Shh, it’s okay. No one’s going to hurt you.” Lord D looked down at her as she cowered on the floor by his feet. Several of his minions
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had been searching for the
prophesied female
and brought back this woman. He knew the
prophesied female
was in Stone Brooke, could feel the underlying power coming off of her. They needed to find her fast, though, before others caught on to what they were doing. He knew the Blood Breed had to have figured out by now what they were doing. Their damn king wasn’t an idiot and would catch on sooner or later, especially if they read the local paper.

He stared down at her, crouching down and running his hand over her dark hair. She whimpered and flinched away. “Love, stand up.”

“Wh-what?”

“Stand. Up.” He emphasized the words, already feeling his nerves running thin. She stood and took a few steps back. He didn’t think she would be stupid enough to try and run again, not when his minions stopped her the last time and she saw their fangs and black eyes.

“Take everything off.”

She whimpered again, looking around as if someone would actually help her.

“You have nothing to fear. No one will harm you. Haven’t I already told you that?” His anger started to rise steadily at having to continuously repeat himself. “If you don’t remove your clothing, I’ll do it myself.”

Her eyes grew wide, and fear poured off of her. She was afraid he would rape her. He might be ruthless, a prick and an asshole, but he wasn’t a rapist. “Now,
please,
remove your clothing.”

When he found out those females had been killed, he was furious.

He killed the minions who committed the crimes, not one to condone unjustified killing, especially when they were defenseless humans. He just wanted to find the prized female and be done with it.

The female tentatively removed her clothing, looking around at the males who were leaning against the walls. She cried the whole time, finally getting down to her bra and panties. Her breathing was fast, and her heart pumped erratically. He walked toward her, and she curled into herself. He didn’t bother reminding her she wouldn’t be
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harmed, but then again, she had been ripped from her home and thrown in the snake pit, so to speak. He knew they looked like monsters to her. Hell, they were monsters.

He walked around, looking at every piece of her exposed flesh and searching for the key to all of this. He stopped in front of her, grabbed her arms, and pulled them out to the sides. She looked like she was on the verge of passing out but managed to stay upright.

“You don’t have what I’m looking for.” He dropped her hands and called for his minions to come near. She started crying again and wrapped her arms around her stomach. His minions eyed her like she was the prized hen. “You will not touch her! She will be returned to her home the same way she came here. Am I clear?”

His minions stared at him, confusion and a ting of anger resonating off them. Their minds were working, wondering why their horde leader wasn’t letting them feast on the small, weak human. He never condoned the killing of humans, let alone human females who were so much weaker and smaller. As always, they cursed and grumbled but did as he ordered. They knew if they crossed him, the consequences would not be pleasant.

He ushered them out of them room, wanting to be alone with the female. She continued to cry and sank to the floor, her knees pulled to her chest and her head low. He crouched in front of her, and she cried harder. “All will be well, little one.” He stroked her dark hair as she cringed away from him. “What’s your name, beauty?”

She didn’t answer, and he lifted her chin with his finger. “Your name?”

Her eyes were closed, the wetness of her tears making streaks down her skin. She slowly opened her eyes, the blue of them so striking and bright. He continued to stroke her hair as he stared at her.

Soon she wouldn’t remember any of this.

She took a deep breath. “Sighla. My name is Sighla.”

“Ahh, Sighla, such a beautiful name.” He placed his hand on her forehead, her skin warm and smooth. He projected pleasing and
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calming emotions into her mind, and her body visibly relaxed. Her eyes started to close, and she swayed to the side slightly. He closed his and searched her memories for her time spent here and anyone relating to his kind. He plucked them out of her memory, one by one, until nothing of this encounter would remain.

He gently laid her on the floor and brushed her hair away from her eyes. She was a striking female, beautiful and innocent. It really was too bad he couldn’t have enjoyed her a little bit, but he never mixed with the humans in that sense. He liked females that could handle his rougher…appetites.

He stood, walked over to one of the couches, and grabbed a blanket off of it. He wrapped her small body in the throw and called for his minions to return. He reminded them once again she was not to be touched or harmed and ordered them to take her back to where she lived. They were smart enough not to speak or complain about his command because if they had, he would have taken his anger and frustration out on each and every one of them.

* * * *

Lana sat on the bed and waited anxiously for Aleksei to tell her what the hell was going on. She bit her bottom lip and wrung her hands together.

“Well?”

He sat there just staring at her, not moving or speaking. “What do you know about folklore?”

What a strange question to ask. “What does this have to…?”

He held up his hand and cut her off before she could finish.

“Please, just humor me. What do you know specifically about vampires?”

She would have laughed at him if not for the fact that she saw and felt those wicked-looking fangs in his mouth. “I don’t know, I guess
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as much as anyone else does. I don’t sit and read up on it or anything.”

If he said he was a vampire, she was making a run for the door.

Maybe he was in a cult of blood drinking people who wanted to be vampires. That would explain the teeth, but what about the rest of him? His eyes had been so black, but then again contacts could have achieved that. His body grew bigger and more muscular, but maybe that had just been a trick of her eyes—her body going into shock from fear.

He shook his head and closed his eyes before opening them and staring at her again. “Okay, I’m going to tell you some things that are going to sound unbelievable, but just remember what you saw tonight.”

She nodded. The images of his massive body huddled in the corner came rushing through her mind. “Don’t even tell me you’re a vampire. There are a lot of things that could cause the things I saw tonight.” She inched a little closer toward the door. The bed was huge, and her movements didn’t seem to do anything except alert him to the fact.

“No, not a vampire…so to speak.”

“What do you mean? People aren’t vampires.”

“You’re right,
people
aren’t vampires, but Blood Breeds are.”

“Blood Breeds? Is that some kind of cult?” Panic swelled inside of her, and she looked toward the closed door. He held his hands up in a gesture of surrender as he inched his body closer to hers.

“Be calm. Let me explain before you jump to those absurd conclusions.”

His thickly accented voice did something to her that made her want to do whatever he said. She didn’t want to make him angry, so she willed herself to act calm as she thought out an escape route. Just one big lunge and she could make it to the door and run as fast as she could. What would she do once she opened the door, though? Where would she go? She didn’t even know where she was.

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“Go ahead then.” Her voice was raised, but she made herself appear calm.

“Everything I’m about to tell you will seem like a fairy tale, but it is all the truth, whether you accept it or not.” He ran his hand through his hair and looked down for a minute before bringing his eyes back to hers. “My name is Aleksei Draukowski. I am a Blood Breed of the royal blood line—the King of my kind. My kind originally came from Russia, but as times progressed, families branched out to different countries. We are not too different from your species, although our differences are quite grand.”

“What kind of differences?” She was surprised she was able to sound calm. This was an absurd conversation she was having, and she should be running and screaming in the other direction.

“Well, for instance, we have
gifts
unique to each Blood Breed.

Mine, for instance, is that I am able to read minds—able to see a person’s whole existence in a matter of seconds.”

“Can you read my mind?” She didn’t know why, out of

everything he told her, that was the one question she wanted to be answered. Of course she didn’t believe him and his absurd story, but curiosity caught the better of her.

“Just snippets here and there, but I really have to be focusing to hear your thoughts, and even then I can’t always pick them up.”

“Huh, what else?” She sounded sarcastic. It was clear in her voice even if she hadn’t meant for him to hear. He looked at her, his face showing that same stoic expression he always held.

“Well, our life spans are immeasurable. We are faster, stronger, and our…diet is different. We require different nutrients to survive.

We are not able to tolerate sunlight, either.”

“Your diet is different? What do you mean you can’t tolerate sunlight?” Her hand flew to her neck as she waited for him to say what she already suspected.

“We drink blood. It gives us the required nutrients we need for our species to survive. As for the sun, it will kill us on contact.”

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“Blood?” She stared at him with shock, and even though she didn’t want to believe what he told her, the small wound on her neck told her otherwise. Forget the whole sunlight thing. He actually talked about drinking blood. People weren’t vampires, and they didn’t drink blood, not sane people, anyway. She was in a room with a crazy man, and she needed to get out right away. He continued talking as if this was all so normal, as if he had these conversations all the time.