Page 24 of Taste of Forever (Vampires of Sanguine #3)

Laith

“ H ow does his head not explode with all the blood rushing to it?” Cyan was slumped on the couch next to me, asking the important questions with a darakt cigarette between his teeth.

I stubbed out my own cigarette in the tray on the end table. “His ears release the pressure, I think.”

“I would’ve thought his mouth, the way he’s gasping for air.”

“True. His nose might start bleeding any second.”

“Hey! I don’t see either of you assholes trying this!” Des huffed from his inverted position on the stripper pole in the middle of our living room. “No one is tipping me either, which is extremely bad etiquette.”

“It has to be a good show to get a tip.” Cy slid his palms across each other in the make it rain gesture. “What exactly are you trying to do?”

“That hands-free thing Irina did the other night. She dared me to do it next time we came in and I couldn’t say no.”

“Well, you’ve been eating shit every time you let go, so…”

“Yeah I know, Laith! I might have underestimated the required leg strength, okay?”

Cyan chuckled dryly. “Never underestimate the squeeze of a woman’s thighs.”

I fought the urge to punch him. Not hard, just in the shoulder or something. Did he have to be such a smug asshole about being mated? So what if he was getting delicious blood, fulfilling sex, and emotional validation all the time? He didn’t have to rub my face in it.

“Speaking of.” He nudged my arm. Aw fuck. “Where’s your blood mate? That was her up in the loft at Pulse the other night, right?”

“Yeah.” It had been three days since that night.

Since Heather and I danced together. Since I got the sense that she was actually reluctant to leave .

I’d never seen her look so happy and in her element as she was on the dance floor.

She’d looked beautiful with the lights highlighting her features and the way she moved, so confident and uninhibited.

Despite the crowd, she danced like no one was watching.

And I couldn’t take my eyes off her, couldn’t resist being drawn to her. I never wanted the night to end.

“Well? Why isn’t she here?” Cyan pressed.

“She’s from the human world.” I’d said it as an excuse from the moment we’d met, but it was becoming less convincing with each passing day. “This stuff is weird to her. So we meet at the club for feedings. Talk and whatever. We’re taking it slow.”

Dusk was falling soon and I was meant to see Heather in a few hours. Maybe this is the time , I thought. Maybe she’s finally left him and is ready to be with me.

Before Cy could respond, Thorne cut across the room, his phone in hand.

“Inessa just called,” he said. “She found out where some cage fights are happening tonight. Let’s go see if Kalix is there.”

“Fucking finally.” Cyan got to his feet. “But you shouldn’t go, Thorne. You’re guaranteed to be recognized.”

Thorne’s eyes narrowed but he didn’t argue. “The two of you, then.” He nodded at me and Cyan.

“What, not me?” Des asked.

Thorne gave a long, appraising look at the upside-down vampire rotating slowly on the pole, desperately clinging with all his limbs.

“You look busy.” To us, he said, “I want updates every fifteen minutes. And don’t do anything fucking idiotic.

” He then spoke directly to Cy. “If you see him, don’t lose your head and try to be a hero tonight.

We’ve been working on getting him back for years.

Don’t fuck it up with one stupid action. Be smart.”

Cyan nodded. “I got it.”

Satisfied, Thorne brought out his phone. “I’m texting you the directions.”

Our phones chimed at the same time. “Shit, that’s deep.” I said, mapping the route in my head. “Is that even still in Sanguine?”

“The furthest possible point from the Heart, and right on our border with Shadowburn,” Thorne said.

“Probably also where most of the draitrium comes in now,” Cy mused.

Thorne nodded. “Saddle up, you two. It’s going to be a long ride.”

Our motorcycles raced across a dry, dusty landscape and reached our destination in just under three hours.

No matter what happened tonight, I’d be late to meet Heather.

I wished I had her number. Just one among many wishes.

Another being for Kalix to be alive, not too fucked in the head from his imprisonment, and back home with us.

The proximity to the Shadowburn Cliffs was palpable here. All the moisture in the air was replaced with a dry, desert-like heat. The faint outline of mountains in the distance didn’t belong to us, but to the dragon shifters.

Cyan and I had left behind our jackets marking us as Blood ‘til Dawn and wore nondescript clothes that were now covered in a fine layer of reddish-brown dust.

“At least we’ll blend in with the degenerates who live way the fuck out here,” Cyan muttered.

“All we need is the yellow eyes,” I agreed.

Draitrium was a mineral found only in the dragon shifter territory of Shadowburn.

When refined and processed, it allowed vampires to walk in daylight with minimal harm.

Most took it as eye drops, with regular use turning the irises a sickly yellow.

The shit was highly addictive and had ruined the lives of hundreds of vampires.

It also made the dragon shifters rich off of us.

Thorne wanted drae gone for good, but it was also the basis of our longtime alliance with the dragons, who had been our only support against the werewolves and the angels. Untangling ourselves from them would be a long, complicated process, and not without some violence.

“Where are these fights supposed to be happening?” I looked around us before checking my phone again. This was a desolate area with not much to see except some run-down buildings, a dive bar that also appeared to be a strip club, and some rusted-out, abandoned cars.

“There.” Cyan pointed to a structure that looked no bigger than a standalone closet and started towards it.

“Are you sure?” It reminded me of those outside toilets that humans used to have. “The directions are so vague.”

“The directions say it’s under Temkra’s bones,” he replied, like that explained everything.

“Okay?”

Cyan huffed in impatience. “It’s how Marrowers talk about home deep underground. These buildings are entrances to Marrower tunnels.”

“Oh! Right, knew that.” I wasn’t close to many Marrower vampires, but Cyan was.

They were not only nocturnal, but also had a strong preference for staying underground.

All vampires found comfort in living below the earth’s surface.

It was the safest place away from the sun, after all, but Marrowers took it to a whole other level.

“Let’s go.” Cyan swung open the rickety door that looked like it was moments away from falling off the hinges.

I followed him in and, once the door shut behind me, we were thrown into a pitch blackness that was disorienting, despite my eyes being used to low-light environments.

“Are you concerned about any of your Marrower buddies recognizing you?” I shuffled through the downward sloping tunnel, keeping a hand on the dirt wall to ground myself.

“No, I don’t think Drace or any of his kin come out this far.” Cy’s voice came from a few feet ahead of me, and I was slowly able to make out his shape in the darkness. “Wrestling is a big part of Marrower culture, but this sounds a lot more extreme.”

“Yeah.” My foot hit a rock and I stumbled with a curse. “Shit! Yeah, this has to be crazy to be all the way out here and wrapped in such secrecy.”

Cy grunted out an agreement. “They definitely don’t want Blood ‘til Dawn knowing about it.”

Eventually the tunnel widened and a faint glow of light came from ahead.

Dozens, maybe a hundred or so, heartbeats and the murmur of a faraway crowd reached my ears.

We came to an open area with lanterns and dim incandescent bulbs hung along the dirt walls.

A grizzled old Marrower sat on a stool against the far wall, blocking the entrance to another tunnel where the noise was coming from.

“You boys lost?” The Marrower’s lower fangs were long enough to scrape past his upper lip as he eyed us suspiciously.

“No, sir.” Cyan went toward him, unhurried and confident. I did my best to copy his movements and demeanor. Despite being younger than me and fairly new to adulthood, Cyan knew how to talk his way into, or out of, any situation.

Me? I usually ended up putting my foot in my mouth.

“We’re looking for some action on these fights. You got an entry fee?” Cyan asked.

The old Marrower blinked, his pupils tiny in the dim light. “What fights you talking about?”

Cyan chuckled before I could say anything stupid. “All right. That much, huh? Better be worth it.” He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a fat roll of currency. The Marrower and I watched him count out some bills before holding them out. “Will that cover it?”

The Marrower took the colorful stack of money and counted it out himself before stuffing it in his shirt pocket.

“Betting tables are immediately on your left. Drinks are fifty a piece. Hope you brought your own drae. We’re not responsible for any ill effects if you buy it from someone inside.

Hand over your phones.” He held out a dinner-plate sized palm.

“Phones?” I blurted. We were already late on our fifteen-minute check-in with Thorne.

“No video, audio, or image recording is allowed.”

“Just do it,” Cyan muttered, placing his phone in the Marrower’s outstretched palm.

I reluctantly did the same and the Marrower moved aside, sweeping his hand toward the tunnel.

“Thanks,” Cyan said, his teeth a little gritted.

I gave a nod to the Marrower and followed Cyan through. “Shit,” I said over his shoulder.

“Yeah.”

The noise at the other end became louder, funneling through the tunnel and echoing all around us. I clasped Cyan’s shoulder and squeezed in a show of support. If I wanted to be annoying I would have held his hand, but now was not the time. Tensions were high. We needed to be alert and focused.