Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 59151 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 296(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 197(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59151 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 296(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 197(@300wpm)
“None of your concern.”
His gaze narrows on me in a way that creeps me right the fuck out. The word death appears in my mind as I follow Lucas into the lobby. If this is a psychic gift compliments of the change, it could be more helpful. Because there’s a whole lot of death happening around me. The poor security guard. And still, it’s all I can do not to drop to the floor and start licking up his blood. Such a heady scent. It’s delicious. My hands start shaking, and holding myself back is not easy. Thank fuck I filled up on the blood bags upstairs.
“Was that all you were asked to tell me?” asks Lucas. “That he wishes me to pay him a visit?”
A scowl twists Christos’s face, and his huge hands curl into fists. “It’s an order, not an invitation.”
Lucas nods and smiles.
“Look at you. You look like shit.” The other vampire laughs mockingly. “My how the mighty have fallen.”
Despite my heightened senses, I can barely track Lucas when he moves. He is little more than a blur. But suddenly he’s standing beside the other vampire, his hand stained red, and in it there’s a…oh fucking hell. It’s his heart.
Christos folds to the floor, his chest a bloody ruin. He didn’t have time to react to the attack. Lucas was just that damn fast. The male’s remains lie there for no more than a moment before his body turns into a pile of ash.
“Holy shit,” I mutter, stunned.
Lucas pulls a handkerchief out of his coat pocket and proceeds to wipe the ash from his hand. No other trace of the vampire remains. I’m not sure what shocked me more. The quick and brutal murder, or the pile of ash that’s all that remains of his body. Both, probably.
And with the way information is flooding my mind, it is hard to know what to freak out about first. Me wanting to lick blood off the floor. Lucas displaying superpowers. Or the way my whole life has hit the wall and gone splat. He’s already threatened to make me deader. Will he rip my heart out, too, if I displease him?
“You killed him,” I say, just making conversation. “Tore out his heart.”
Lucas tucks the handkerchief away. “Yes.”
“I, um, I think I’m going to be sick.”
His expression turns pained. “Vampires do not get nausea, Skye. We certainly do not vomit. Would you please show some decorum?”
My gaze is drawn back to the blood, and the dead body of the security guard, and the piles of ash that was Christos…and oh man. “Why did you kill him? Was it because of the guard?”
“Partly because he followed me here and killed the security guard. The guard was an employee of Thorn Group, and therefore, should be considered under my protection. And such reckless killing cannot be encouraged. But mostly because he was disrespectful.”
“He was so much bigger than you, but you just…”
“Yes.” His mouth skews with amusement. “Strength isn’t always about size.”
I frown as I consider his words. “Helena is not going to be happy.”
“There’s little I can do about that right now. This is one body The Thorn Group is going to have to bury. Because we have somewhere we need to be.”
The Boulevard Hotel is one of the oldest-running establishments in Hollywood. Though, its glamor days are long gone. There’s more than a faint air of disrepair in the worn carpet and faded wallpaper. A woman is busy on her cell behind the reception desk. She doesn’t even spare us a glance as we make our way toward the bank of elevators. There are no guests hanging out in the lobby. Given it’s nearing midnight, most normal people must be in bed.
I should be home asleep by now. Not that there’s anyone to miss me. It’s been a while since I shared my life with a special someone (besides myself, of course). Since Jason broke my heart and dumped me for a thinner version of me who had more of an upward career trajectory. And you can bet he told me all of this to my face. What a dick.
But prior to this evening, lousy exes were the sort of thing topping my list of woes. Along with other ordinary everyday details. Like figuring out how to both pay for new tires and my rent. How painfully mundane. Attacking people to drink their blood didn’t even rate a mention.
Lucas ushers me into an elevator, inspects the control panel, and presses a button for a subbasement level. The lowest you can go. A small smile curves his lips at the accomplishment. Which would be cute if he wasn’t a complete psychopath. “Stay close and keep your mouth shut. The family that runs this place is not our friend.”
The death of the security guard and removal of Christos’s heart has shocked me into submission. For the moment, at least. No amount of violent television or film prepared me for actually seeing a dead body and witnessing someone’s death. Or second death. Lucas didn’t even hesitate about killing him. This world I have entered is really a lot.