Chapter 13


    I suddenly felt like someone had just dropped a bucket of ice-cold water over my head. The vampire


    was hard as he rubbed himself against me, and his lips caressed my neck. Damn it, was I slowly losing


    my mind? Did he just hypnotise me? Use his mour?


    I pushed him off me, which required a lot more self-control than I’d expected. My mind was racing, and


    the world around me was spinning.


    “Thanks, but I’m fine,” I said, my voice hoarse. My core was throbbing with need, and I was so turned


    on. He must have used his abilities to weaken me. That’s what vampires did when they wanted to drink


    from someone.


    d was in the club and I had to keep an eye on him. It was the main reason that I was here. The


    vampire looked baffled and pissed off, but I didn’t care. Secondster I grabbed my drink, remembering


    I had my knife with me.


    Last year, I’d killed a vampire who’d turned small children into half-breeds. He was vile, and a lot of his


    victims hadn’t survived. As soon as I’d showed Tristan the corpse, he’d given me a lot more than I’d


    expected, so I decided to invest in a selection of knives afterwards. I’d never regretted spending money


    on them.


    I was surprised to learn that Oldman had managed to ship our weapons to Dimitry’s house, but my


    sword wasn’t in the package that came from Kiev.


    “Don’t you want to taste an ancient?” the vampire asked, grabbing my hand. “I guarantee you’ll enjoy


    it.” Then electricity raced down my spine. My panties were soaked as I wiped a bead of sweat off my


    forehead. I had to take a deep breath to gain control of my bloodlust. I had a job to do, and this damn


    vampire was distracting.


    “I do, but not the ancient who’s using his abilities to make me want to bite him,” I spat and then walked


    away.


    d was talking to a beautiful blond Russian, whose dress was barely there; you could almost see her


    arse. He looked exactly like his photograph: older, taller, and probably wiser than any other vampire in


    here.


    Karina was sitting across from me. I’d only just noticed her, she was talking to another shifter and


    winked at me when our eyes met. She was wearing a fitted ck leather dress, and she looked bloody


    gorgeous. All the human men were eyeing her. I just wasn’t confident enough to wear things like that,


    especially with L around. He was disrupting everything, and I had to ignore the way I felt about


    him.


    I sat down at a table and sipped my cocktail, not taking my eyes off d. He shook hands with a few


    other vampires, even the one who’d tried to hypnotise me earlier, but luckily, he didn’t talk to him for


    long. I was a little worried that my cover had been blown.


    Sometimeter Karina vanished, most likely following her own subject, and I was still stuck in the same


    spot. The craving for blood returned again, and my fangs extended. I was surrounded by so many


    vampires, and it wasn’t really helping matters. Before I’d met L, this had never happened to me


    before.


    Men kept approaching me, trying to flirt, but it just irritated me even more. I sent them all away, nearly


    growling that I wasn’t interested. This whole world was new to me, and it was difficult to know how I


    was supposed to act in certain situations. I’d been anonymous before, possibly because I’d always


    looked like a vagrant. d kept his eyes on the women who were performing. He kept taking small sips


    of his drink, and I wasn’t sure what it was—most likely blood. Ten minutester, he pulled out a


    cigarette and then asked the guy next to him for a lighter. The human pointed at the door and d


    stood from his seat, appearing annoyed.


    It surprised me that he smoked. Vampires didn’t have the same cravings as humans, but the other day,


    Marco admitted that he, too, was addicted to cigarettes, or maybe it was the whole act of smoking. I


    wouldn’t know. I’d never smoked a day in my life as a supernatural. Right then, I had no other option


    but to follow him outside the club. When he stopped nearby the busy road, I pretended to be with a


    group of girls who were trying to hail a taxi.


    d didn’t end up smoking that cigarette after all, he was just staring ahead. Was he waiting for


    someone? Time was ticking, and something felt off. Maybe he knew I was here. Maybe each one of us


    was being watched. A cold shiver crawled down my spine as I stepped out of the way, trying to think on


    my feet. There was a small takeout shop next door, and I decided to blend into the crowd of Russians


    who were queuing to go inside. The group of girls had already left, and I didn’t want to look suspicious.


    I felt drops of rain as they fell on my face, the temperature was decreasing, and I was just about to call


    Dimitry, when a split secondter, I saw Ramona and L walking up to d. I was shocked to see


    them here, asking myself why the hell they were approaching my subject.


    Ramona smiled, then leaned over to d and whispered something in his ear. I was furious and baffled


    at the same time. This was definitely not the n, and they were going to ruin everything. Pretty Boy


    seemed a little apprehensive, but a momentter, he shook hands with the vampire. My heart started


    thumping loudly inside my chest. I dragged my hand through my hair, wondering what the hell was


    going on.


    I needed to find Karina, but she probably wouldn’t have a clue why Ramona and L were talking


    to my subject. It seemed to me that he knew them well.


    The tiny voice inside my head told me I needed to head back to headquarters and speak with Dimitry


    straight away. Maybe L was following another order, but that didn’t make sense. I would know


    about it otherwise.


    I started pacing around, watching them, wondering what the hell I was supposed to do right now. They


    appeared to be having an intense conversation. d didn’t seem happy, he kept shaking his head, and


    Ramona continued talking like she was trying to convince him to do something or go somewhere.


    L kept ncing around, and for a moment, I thought he spotted me inside the takeout, but I


    quickly hid behind someone. Soon, it started raining, and when I nced back, I couldn’t see them any


    longer. I left the shop in a panic. When I finally spotted them again, Ramona, L, and d were


    crossing the road. They were heading towards the town centre.


    Anger was pumping through me at that point. I felt betrayed that no one had filled me in on this new


    n. For some reason, I decided not to call Dimitry right now. Those two were up to something, so I


    decided to follow them, anyway, thinking that they were going to lead me somewhere in the end.


    N?vel(D)rama.Org''s content.


    I pulled up the hood of my sweatshirt from beneath my leather jacket and ran to the other side of the


    road. I just had to remember to keep a safe distance. It was my first mission of this kind, and I didn’t


    want to screw anything up. L was much more experienced, but I didn’t trust Ramona at all.


    Minutester, the rain started pouring from the sky. Cars were speeding down the road as I followed


    the three vampires. Not once did they nce behind, and the entire time, my heart was pounding like a


    drum inside my chest. I normally trusted my intuition, and this time, I was getting a strong feeling that


    the warlock’s daughter was near.


    I carried on walking until it seemed as though they had vanished inside the park. As I approached the


    unlocked gate, I realised that they must have gone inside. The chain was broken, but there was no


    living soul around.


    By that time, I was soaked and miserable. I followed the path to the main entrance to the park, getting


    lost a few times. It was getting cold, too. Finally, on the edge of the park, my senses picked up another


    creature—a warlock.


    I didn’t want to stop, convinced that the creature had nothing to do with why I was here, so I continued


    walking. Finally, after half an hour, I caught up with them, but L had disappeared somewhere.


    They had just reached the industrial area and entered one of the red brick buildings. This was


    then; I pulled out my phone and dialled Dimitry’s number.


    Several secondster, I realised I had no signal and my battery was running low. This was strange,


    because the phone was fully charged just before I’d gotten inside the taxi. The streets in this area were


    I truly didn’t think this could happen right now. I waited and waited, and there was still no sign of them


    after another half an hour. I had to go and check out what was inside. I couldn’t return to headquarters


    just yet.


    Many times in the past, I’d been in situations where I was on my own, fighting a group of werewolves or


    vampires. This wasn’t new to me. I was aware of the risks, itching to get inside that building. It took me


    a few minutes to go over the pros and cons.


    Maybe I was risking everything, but I didn’te all this way for nothing. I ran along the side of the


    building until I came to a set of rusty old doors. The entrance was obviously locked, and my magic was


    fading. My energy could melt metal, but right now, I had to get inside the old-school way.


    As I’d predicted, there was a fire escape on the side of the building, so I climbed up, all the way to the


    top floor. I was soaked by the time I slipped inside a small broken window. I found myself in a long


    corridor. This must have been some kind of factory, an old ce that had been abandoned for some


    time.


    The smell of blood was growing intense at that point, and a dull pain began throbbing in my head.


    Vampires were in the building, at least three or four. I sensed them somewhere on the lower level.


    Once I got to the stairs, I removed my knife from my pocket. Blood stains were everywhere on the floor.


    The windows were covered with metal panels, so I decided to check out the entrance to my right. It was


    arge open space; my eyes were slowly getting used to the pitch-ck darkness.


    Someone giggled and panic dug its ws inside my gut. I couldn’t sense anyone in here, and yet I


    wasn’t alone. My stomach dropped when I saw someone to my right. It wasn’t just one person, there


    were several of them, and they were all pure vampires—ancient ones.


    I saw the glint of a de, but I crouched down, and at the same time, stabbing one of the bastards in


    the foot. He roared out in pain, and then a short spasm of electrical current jolted through me. At the


    same time, someone grabbed me, and pain exploded in my ribcage. This strange energy prated


    me from the inside, and it made me so weak that I thought I might pass out.


    “We have been waiting for you, dear half-breed,” someone spoke, and I saw small circles of smoke to


    my right. Another vampire with a cigarette, or maybe I was hallucinating? I saw d standing next to a


    very old silver-haired vampire when the lights came on. d was the one smoking, staring at me with a


    mixture of curiosity and annoyance.


    I kept breathing in, trying to figure out if I’d been stabbed, or if this was some sort of spell they’d used to


    disable me. My breathing wasing in short ragged breaths, but I couldn’t see any blood. They were


    definitely using magic on me. I didn’t understand how they were able to do it, until a warlock stepped


    forward. I’d never seen him before and hadn’t noticed him earlier, only sensed a presence.


    “What the hell do you want from me? And where is Ramona?” I shouted, trying to move, but pain


    started pulsating around my temple. The elder vampire walked towards me. He must have been in his


    mid-fifties when he was turned, and his silver hair was slicked back. He was dressed in a stylish suit,


    and expensive shoes. I noticed his cuff links. They were filled with magic so strong that the energy was


    taking my breath away.


    “Ramona made a deal with us, we are just about to free the girl in exchange for the immortal half-


    blood,” the ancient said, smiling and smoothing his jaw.


    What about L? Why did he agree to it, and what half-blood was he talking about?


    “She stinks of fae,” the warlock said. “There is something wrong with this one, master.”


    I tried to yank my arm away from the vampire who held me, but it only made the situation worse. The


    exaggerating pain spread to the other side of my ribcage, and my knees went weak.


    “Leave her, Gordon, this one is very special, and we don’t want to damage her. I can smell her energy;


    it’s delicious.” He turned his attention towards me. “What are you?” the ancient asked, staring into my


    eyes. I didn’t want to look at him directly, but it was already toote.


    A split secondter, I was ready to reveal everything—the whole truth about myself.


    “I don’t know what I am, half-vampire and, possibly, half-fae. My memories were taken from me when


    my maker abandoned me four years ago.” I exined as much as I could, wanting to please him. The


    craving for blood hit me all of a sudden.


    “Hmm, interesting, someone made her this way. She was supposed to die, but she survived,” the


    ancient said, releasing me from a hypnotised state.


    I nearly passed out, kneeling on the ground. He’d just usedpulsion on me, and I was prepared to


    tell him anything he wanted to know. Now I understood why ancients were so dangerous.


    This had been a trap and, I’d walked straight into it. That bitch, Ramona, must have known I was


    following her.


    I counted at least five vampires in the room, plus the warlock. They were all much older than me and


    undoubtedly more experienced, too.


    “How do you know that?” I asked, trying to ignore the pain that was making me so weak. I wasn’t going


    to pass out, I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction. The vampire in front of me was special, and I needed


    to be closer to him. Maybe he had the answers to all my questions.


    “I can sense your strength. Marvel, taste her, but be careful. She could hurt you. I’ll let the councillor


    know we are ready for ransom,” the ancient said, sounding pleased. My pupils dted as I tried to


    figure out which vampire was Marvel.


    The blood of an ancient vampire could transform me, and I was waiting for them to approach. Then


    something or someone hit me on the back of my head, and I went down like a sack of potatoes. Then


    darkness began shading my vision.


    “You fools, she’s too precious! Achilles, taste her, measure her strength. In a few hours, we shall know


    if Armadil’s experiment survived.”