Page 30 of Bitten Vampire (The Bitten Chronicles #2)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

James opens his mouth to reply, but the man who has been propping up the bookshelves glides forward first. Even at a glance he radiates danger.

He has dark hair and skin, is leaner and shorter than Valdarr, yet moves with the predatory ease of a seasoned fighter.

Anyone with half an instinct would mark him as lethal.

“James, you’re being unreasonable,” he says, voice cool. “Do you really think I’d let anyone near our liege without running a full background check?”

“But, Harrison?—”

“Do not interrupt me.” His tone could frost glass. “You’re acting like a child forcing a square peg into a round hole until the corners snap off. You can’t twist the facts to suit yourself.” He folds himself into a chair, leaning forward .

Simone mirrors him; she’s now wearing a smug smile.

“Besides, you are upsetting our liege.”

Now that Harrison has pointed it out, Valdarr’s expression is rigid. His jaw is clenched so hard he must be grinding his teeth down to nubs.

“Explain, youngest,” Harrison orders. “Start at the beginning.” His dark-blue gaze pins me. “Tell the truth, we’ll know if you lie. What happened the day you met the Grand Master?”

I glance at Valdarr for help.

“It will be okay,” he says gently.

I nod, throat tight. “All right. I was making Sunday deliveries. Food orders. One was for a house with a yellow door: Valdarr’s.

It was about four o’clock, broad daylight.

I knocked, left the takeaway, and returned a hoodie Valdarr had lent me the day before when I’d been soaked in the rain.

The door opened as I was leaving. A vampire I didn’t know took the food, grabbed me by the hair, and dragged me inside. ”

I swallow and rub the scar tissue on my throat.

“He pinned me to the wall and bit me. I told him to stop. I never gave permission to take my blood.” I draw a breath.

“I woke up in the bin, drove home, and the next morning my heart was beating, my lungs working. But at sundown the vampire magic kicked in—I died again. That’s how it’s been ever since. ”

I set the glass down and tap the rim to steady myself.

“I did my best to ignore the vampire thing; I was scared. I kept working days in the Human Sector and nights from home doing customer service shifts.” I never gave notice, just disappeared. I’ll have to email them. Focus, Fred. “I started losing weight, and House and I thought blood might help.”

“The house? You can talk to a house? That’s utter bullshit, the girl is barmy.” James throws his hands in the air and laughs.

“James.” Harrison growls. “Ignore him, please continue.”

“I drank blood for the first time about a month after I was turned, and a few hours later, it felt as though I were crawling out of my skin.”

“How did you get the blood?” Harrison interrupts.

“From House. The wizard’s house can take things—she sourced bags from a vampire warehouse.”

“Bagged blood?”

“Yes, only bags. I’ve never bitten anyone.

” I shoot James a glare. “I had so much energy that night, I ran down the road to test my abilities. It was amazing, but I lost track of myself. House sat near scrubland on the edge of the Vampire Sector. Looking for varied footing—or maybe guided by instinct—I crossed into vampire territory. Border patrol caught me, and they took me to their station, and Valdarr rescued me and brought me to a safe house, but by morning, I was human again. I was worried he might discover my strange condition, and I had Baylor and House to think about. So I jumped out of a window and went back home.”

“Baylor?”

I manage a small smile. “Baylor’s my dog.”

He nods. “When did you meet Clan Nocturna?”

“I met a member of their clan while searching for answers about my friend Amy and her husband, Max. They were killed after dining at One Bite Won’t Hurt?—”

“See? Poking around where she’s not wanted,” James mutters.

“But I didn’t meet the clan vampires until—um—I stopped a vampire from killing Crystal, one of their thralls. I drove her home.”

“She went into their territory without permission,” James pipes up again.

“She didn’t know,” Simone tuts, elbowing him.

I start to explain the visions—how it all began—but something stops me. I pause.

I can’t.

My instincts scream at me to keep the visions between Valdarr and me. So I shut my mouth—mid-sentence. He raises an eyebrow. I shake my head. He probably won’t like my keeping this from the clan, yet I have to trust my power, and right now it isn’t happy.

Maybe it’s the clan.

Maybe it’s James.

Maybe it’s something else entirely.

I don’t know. But I do know one thing—I can’t tell them about the visions. Not yet.

“Why bother saving the girl?” Simone asks, leaning forward. She sips her drink, chin in hand, eyes intent.

“Because it was the right thing to do. Not helping her felt wrong.”

She nods.

“You all believe this crap?” James sneers.

Harrison ignores him and presses on. “And then?”

“I drove Crystal home and made sure she was safe, but a Clan Nocturna vampire started shouting that I had bitten her. I told him to check the wound—it wasn’t mine.

I’d rescued her, not attacked her. He wouldn’t listen.

I threw a knock-out spell at him. The other vampires blocked my car, chased me, and that’s when some shifters stepped in and saved me. ”

They all stare at me.

Ah, right.

“Shifters?” James scoffs. “So now we’ve got shifters in the mix as well. Any other derivatives you’ve forgotten to mention? Did you stab them too?”

“No, I did not,” I snap, reaching for my glass. My mouth is dry, so I take a gulp of blood—then grimace at what I’ve done.

To my surprise, it doesn’t taste awful. The blood has no taste of chemicals; this is different, fresher.

Some spell must keep it that way. Whatever it is, it works—it’s…

pleasant. I hum into the glass, then set it down.

No point guzzling while everyone looks at me as though I’m the biggest monster in the room.

“So… the shifters were kind,” I continue. “They let me go. Their Alpha’s mate removed a spell Clan Nocturna had thrown at me, and I went home. Then I learned there was a warrant for my arrest. They had declared me rogue and told everyone to watch for me. And then… assassins attacked.”

“And you killed them,” James says sharply.

“No. The—” I stop; I can’t say Beryl’s name. “The wizard’s house stopped them,” I say at last. “The house… killed them.” Mentally, I apologise to House.

“She’s lying,” James snarls.

I raise my hands. “Fine. House didn’t kill them, and neither did I. But I’m not telling you who did. I promised. Valdarr knows. You’ll have to trust him—it wasn’t me . Even if it had been, they were assassins.”

“Lying, bitc?—”

“James. I will not tell you again.” Harrison growls.

“Yes, leave her alone,” Simone says. “Whether she stabbed them or not is hardly the point, is it? Gods, you are such a dick.”

I clear my throat. “The following morning, the Ministry of Magic attacked House. Valdarr rescued Baylor and me from the humans, and now I’m here. You all know what happened today.”

Silence settles over the room. “I can leave, if you would prefer,” I add more quietly. “If you think I’m unsafe to be around, I understand.”

“You are not leaving, and James, you are not making this into a problem. Let it go,” Valdarr says firmly. Then, to my interrogator, “Did Fred lie?”

“No. Apart from protecting her mystery friend, everything she’s said is true and matches my inquiries. And today she acted in the clan’s defence.”

“I’m glad we’re all on the same page,” Ralph says.

Valdarr clears his throat. “Now, we need to discuss something else… something personal.” There is a shift in the room. An alert stillness to him. “My mate.”

“What?” Simone blurts. “You’ve found your mate? A true mate? A fated mate?”

“There hasn’t been one in generations,” Tony mutters.

“I know,” Valdarr replies. “I’m more surprised than anyone.”

He’s staring straight at me .

Why is he staring at me?

Now everyone’s staring at me.

I shift in my seat. “What’s a fated mate? I mean, I’ve read enough fiction to guess, but…”

“It’s like a soulmate,” Simone says, eyes wide.

“Exactly like a soulmate,” Valdarr confirms. Then softly, almost reverently, “Only rarer. Stronger. Permanent.”

My mouth goes dry.

He doesn’t say it, not yet. But the way he’s looking at me?—

Then he gives me one of those beautiful smiles that steals my breath. “You are my fated mate, Fred. You. Are. Mine.”

The table erupts. Everyone shouts at once.