Up in Flames (11 page)

Eddie’s head met Lucas’s midsection as the rogue vampire charged him like a bull. The force sent both men back into a wall, and Lucas heard the drywall crack. He shoved Eddie off him, needing a moment’s reprieve, and was relieved when he sent the other vamp scrambling backwards. What neither man was anticipating was Lucas had managed to shove Eddie right into Walter’s line of fire. The Ranger shot off a close range round with his own 9mm, which was enough to slow Eddie down. And then, before anyone could react, Meredith flew up to Eddie and in one wide arc of her blade, cleanly removed the rogue’s head from his body.

Meredith stared down at the lifeless, decapitated body in front of her. The blade had clunked to the floor without her even realizing she let go. Lucas slowly walked up to his mate. “Babe, you okay?”

The eyes that looked up at him would haunt him for the rest of his life. It was as if no one was home. She just stared up at him as if she didn’t know him. She continued to stare at him for a moment and then he watched her face crunch up a bit, like she wanted to ask something. Her mouth moved a little, but no words came out. Now, he was beginning to worry. Gently putting both hands on her shoulders, he instructed, “Babe, you’re in shock. Nod your head if you can hear me.”

He watched as her eyelids fluttered a couple of times, and then closed completely as her knees gave out. He was quick to snatch her up, keeping her from landing on the bloodied, headless body. Around him his coworkers were gathering up all of Eddie’s goons, but he had more pressing things to do. He turned on his heel and walked out the back door. He took off at vampire speed to his truck, which was parked a mile away. He didn’t worry about being seen; it was well after dark and he doubted anyone was out. Besides, there had been a few vampires left outside for the sole purpose of wiping any human minds that overheard any of the commotion. Gently depositing his bundle in the front seat and strapping her in, he hurried over to the driver’s seat. His mate needed medical, and he was damn sure she was going to get it.

*****

For the next four days, Lucas hovered over Meredith like a mother hen. “Lucas, if you don’t back off and give me some breathing space, I’m gonna, I’m gonna…oh hell, I don’t know what I am going to do, but it won’t be pretty.”

He just grinned at her like a damn fool. She could huff and puff all she wanted, but when she had gone into shock after decapitating Eddie, he worried that she might never be the same. Dr. Weathers did a quick exam and then told him to take her home and stay near her, that she would draw upon their bond and the feeling of safety it provided to bring herself back out of it. And she did.

Now, day four of being completely house bound, she was ready to climb the walls. She’d had a small taste of freedom, and she wanted more.

Lucas held out his hand. “Come here, honey. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

She placed her hand in his and stood from the couch. “Where are we going?”

“Out back,” he responded evasively.

She followed him out the back door. Once outside, he brought her up beside him on the porch. He had a beautiful backyard. A small garden of flowers sat off to her left. A few trees dotted the perfectly manicured lawn, providing shade so even a vampire could enjoy the outdoors without worry. Then she spotted her surprise. A hammock had been hung between two of the trees. With a gentle breeze blowing, it was already swaying back and forth, just begging her to come check it out. She looked over to her mate.

“You put up a hammock for me?” she asked.

“No, I didn’t. I haven’t been able to leave your side since you scared a hundred years off my life. But I called in a favor, and here it is. Want to go check it out?” He knew there was no way she would turn it down.

She looked over to him with so much love in her eyes. Yes, this strong, handsome Ranger was hers for eternity. Yes, he was a bit overbearing at times. But she loved him with everything inside her. She nodded her head and clasped her hand with his as she stepped down off the porch. The sun was just starting to set, making for a pretty background.

They silently walked over to the hammock. She stopped and turned to face him. “I love you, Lucas Calloway.”

“Ah, baby, I love you too.” He quickly sat down on the hammock and braced himself with both of his long legs on either side of it. “Now come here and I’ll show you how much I love you.” Now that was an offer she couldn’t refuse.

Epilogue

All the Rangers were gathered in the conference room, including the new additions. Meredith had decided after running from Eddie and his goons for almost two years, to make it her goal to ensure no other woman, vampire, or human, would have to endure what she’d had to go through. And even though Lucas still wasn’t totally on board with the idea, Walter had welcomed her with open arms into the Ranger division. Her boss had partnered her with Lucas, knowing he wouldn’t get a decent day’s work out of his second unless his mate was partnered with him.

Meredith’s joining the force hadn’t been the only major change within the Ranger division. Bethany, Adam’s auburn-haired mate, had taken the turning and finding out she was the life mate to a vampire very well. She, too, wanted to contribute, and after finding out that even though Eddie and his goons were gone, her ex-boyfriend, who had originally given her to Eddie to pay off gambling debts, was still unaccounted for. The force had also learned that Eddie’s dealings went much deeper than they’d ever suspected. He had been involved in human trafficking with a group that was still very much at large. Bethany had been surprisingly full of information once the transformation had taken place, and she had been able to assist the Rangers in five arrests already. But there was so much more to do.

Lucas looked around the room and grinned. Just a few short months ago the Rangers had been an all-male unit. Now, they had both Bethany and Meredith working full-time, and Walter’s mate, Sissy, and her sister, Betty, occasionally came in to help with paperwork. And Susan turned out to be an asset also. After witnessing Eddie and his boys in action, as well as the fight that took place right before her eyes, there was no way to hide the fact that she now knew there were real vampires out in the world, and they were not just characters in novels. Walter could have easily done a mind scrub on her, making her forget everything, but she and Sissy had developed a friendship. He just couldn’t take away his wife’s friend. And deep down, his gut was telling him that Susan would not betray his trust. That she was meant for something bigger. Only time would tell.

Walter took a few days to figure out what to do with her, and it turned out she wanted to stay involved with the group and help out if she was able to. He put her to work at the front desk, answering the telephone and doing light paperwork, just to see what she was capable of. So far she got along with everyone and had maintained complete silence on the fact that her new employer was a vampire.

Walter walked up to the front of the room and addressed the group. “Good morning. I know we have added some new members over the last few months, but I am adding one more. My brother has decided to join us and is relocating from Wyoming.”

Right on cue, the door to the conference room opened and a man with a strong resemblance to Walter walked through. Tall, at least six foot four and broad shouldered, this man looked like he could knock down a building without even breaking a sweat. The man closed the door behind him and then stopped, crossed his arms over his barrel of a chest, feet spread shoulder-width apart.

Walter looked over and acknowledged his brother. “I was just telling the team about you. Gang, I’d like you to meet my brother, Nathaniel.”

Nathaniel barely gave everyone in the room a short nod before glaring over to his brother. “So, just how long has my mate been working for you? And since when do humans know our kind even exist?”

Walter seemed visibly taken aback for a short moment due to his brother’s abruptness, before the pieces of the puzzle arranged themselves in his head. “What are you…oh shit, Susan is your mate?”

Books by Alice Brown

Published with JK Publishing

Vampires Among Us

A Special Gift – Book Two

Texas Vampire Rangers

Up in Flames

Dragons of Dragonose

Co-authored with Lady V

Sapphamire

With other Publishers

Vampires Among Us – Book One

The Music Box

We would love to hear from you!

Website: Alice - http://AuthorAliceBrown.com

Email: Alice - [email protected]

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Excerpt from Sapphamire

Dragons of Dragonose Book One

By Alice Brown and Lady V

He quickly did up his tie and headed downstairs to his waiting date, Amberlynn. He glanced around, but Natasha was nowhere to be seen. He stopped one of the guards walking past and quietly inquired as to the whereabouts of his new assistant. They quickly informed him that she had been pulled away temporarily and had sent a message down that she would join him in just a few minutes. Groaning inwardly, he offered his arm to his date before entering the room. All the elders stood as he and his date entered the formal dining room. “Please, be seated and enjoy the great food at Dragonmire Castle!” He walked around to the head of the table, seated his date on his left side, and took his own seat.

He was proud of his home. When he had decided about eight years ago to access Earth through one of the portals on his home world, Dragonose, he came with the belief that finding his mate would be a rather easy job. Then again, he had come under the assumption that only humans resided on this planet. Now, he knew both assumptions were incorrect. The king had granted his request to leave, only requesting that Blain keep the knowledge of the Iceland portal away from all others. That was an easy promise to make his king. Since then, he only got called upon by his king when the Raptorians grew bored and decided to start a fight. The king would then send out an emergency distress call to each and every one of his dragons, expecting them to return home immediately to help defend their world.

“Ms. Clayton, where is she?” Councilwoman Kristin, who was a pixie, inquired in an almost frightened voice from the other end of the table.

“She was pulled away to tend to some business before joining us tonight. She shall be along shortly.” He certainly hoped so, anyway. It would look so much better for her if she were sitting next to him.

“Does she please you?” another council member questioned.

“I’d rather wait to discuss the business involving Ms. Clayton, at least until she is in attendance to hear it for herself,” Blain replied with a bit of a sting to his words, then he picked up the small glass sitting at the top of his plate, swallowing the liquid, and enjoying the burn. His guests watching him, quickly followed, all except the vampire in attendance. She had her own goblet of fresh blood sitting at her plate. He heard several “ohs” and “ahs” as his guests enjoyed their pre-dinner treat.

“Delicious!” Councilwoman Hazellette, who was a witch, exclaimed in delight as she ran her tongue across her lower lip. “What is this drink called, Blain?”

He couldn’t hold back his smirk or his chuckle. His guests were not going to see the humor in his answer as he did. “Dragon Piss.”

Total silence descended upon the room for about ten seconds before the double doors were flung open, and a beautiful redhead sauntered into the room. She was wearing a black evening gown that glittered in the light; it was a one shoulder strap ensemble, and he immediately spotted the slit that ran all the way up the side to her hip. She walked up to him with such a regal air that he knew she was the envy of the females in attendance—his own date included.

“My apologies for being late, sir,” she stated when she reached his side. He immediately jumped up to pull her chair out for her.

It was a good thing he didn’t need to speak at that moment, because he suddenly found that his tongue wasn't working as he gazed down at her in awe. He had only thought her beautiful when they met earlier today. But now? Now she was absolutely stunning. She put his date and her short red cocktail dress to shame.

“May we proceed now?” Councilwoman Hazellette snapped out.

Yep, let the envy begin, ladies.

“Yes, Councilwoman Hazellette, I apologize if I was the reason for any hold up,” Natasha quickly replied, seeming to know already that Blain was without words at the moment. He suddenly didn’t give two cents about this dinner. And he certainly didn’t give two cents about this Council harping on his mate. All he wanted was for everyone to get the hell out of his castle so he could spend some time getting to know her.

“You…” he started, but his little mate was quick to cut him off as she leaned in close to him and whispered in his ear.

“Please forgive me for being so late, but there was a very important phone call I had to take.”

“Ah…of course,” he stuttered out, gracing her with a smile. He was getting ready to tell the battle-ax of a witch that she needed to show his mate respect, and that would not have gone over very well at this point.

Leaning back in her seat, Natasha graced him with a gentle smile. His heart did a quick leap into his throat before plummeting down to his groin.
Oh, good God, was she perfect.
One of the elders broke into his deep thoughts as they repeated the earlier question.

“So then, are we to believe Natasha pleases you, and can handle whatever you throw her way?”

Natasha sat silently, but fuming inside. How dared they? This was a paid position, but then again, they had choreographed her numerous forced matings, thinking that it would surely bring on her powers, all the while knowing these “potential” mates were little more than animals.