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Eli loosened his grip.
“When I noticed the book she was copying from, I knew it had to be for you. I followed her here.”
He brushed his lips against my cheek in a mockery of a kiss. “Did you miss me?”
“I came to stop you before you hurt someone else.”
Eli laughed. “And how did you plan to do that?”
Every nerve ending in my body was primed to attack, but I tamped my anger down and looked at the ground like I was afraid of him. Not yet. I repeated it on a loop in my head until I had myself back under control. Now was the time to gather the evidence. Soon, I’d get my chance to wipe the smug grin off his face. I swallowed.
He released me, and I staggered on my feet. His gaze dipped to where I rubbed my throat, and his smile widened. With my pale skin, bruises were probably already forming.
“It’s not too late.” My voice was hoarse. “You can give me the potion and let everyone go.”
There was no chance Eli would hand it over, but thanks to the tiny device in my pocket, I was now on record sounding exceedingly reasonable.
He barked out a laugh. “I have a better idea.” Eli wrapped his hand around my wrist, dragging me toward the house.
As soon as we were inside, I catalogued the threats. I counted four vamps including Eli. The guy who had caught me outside now stood in front of a hallway. Maybe he was blocking an exit, but my money was on the human test subject being down that hall. The vamp had greasy hair and twitchy fingers, indicating he was freshly turned. That made him the least dangerous predator in the room.
I turned my back on him to face the two remaining vamps. They were steadier, a sick anticipation on their faces as they watched me. These two, I knew. One was Martin. Both had been part of Eli’s seethe when he’d set me up.
Kinsley sat between them on a threadbare floral couch covered in questionable stains. An abandoned house like this in the country served as a popular party destination for local teens, as the pyramid of cheap beer cans in the corner proved. Kinsley tried to stand, but Martin shoved her roughly back into her seat. From the tear tracks on her cheeks, she’d already figured out that Eli used her.
“You shouldn’t have followed me,” she whispered.
I met her eyes. “It’s gonna be okay.”
While the men made jokes about my survival odds, I triaged the threats in the room. I’d take Eli out first. Then Martin, followed by his buddy on the left. The young vampire would be a runner. I’d have to time it, so I could light the ring of gas outside to contain him. Before I could do any of that, I needed to isolate Kinsley and whoever they had stashed in a back room.
Show time.
Chapter SEVEN
“Let her go,” I pleaded, looking in Kinsley’s direction. “You have me. You don’t need her anymore.” He’d never let her walk out of this room, but I had to try.
Eli pushed me into a chair, a sneer marring his handsome face. “It looks like I’m getting two witches for the price of one.”
I met Kinsley’s gaze. She was no longer crying, which was a good sign. A hysterical person acted in unpredictable ways. This, I could work with. “Run the first chance you get and don’t look back.”
She didn’t nod, but her quick glance at the door told me she’d do it.
Eli bent down until we were nose to nose. “Neither of you are going anywhere.”
I directed my next words to Kinsley, but every one of them was for Eli. “I called the coven and told them where we were.”
“You stupid girl.” Eli’s face mottled with rage, and he backhanded me. My head snapped to the right, and my cheek throbbed. “Martin, go check.”
The vamp licked his incisors and eyed my bruised neck as he passed me. “Leave some for me.”
Eli chuckled. “Don’t worry. We’ll all get a taste,” he promised, like I was leftover pizza. He turned to the youngest vamp and pointed at Kinsley. “Secure her in the back room and bring out the old bat. If we’re about to be interrupted, we better test the merchandise before we pack up.”
As soon as Kinsley was out of sight, I breathed easier. With only two vampires in the room, this would be the easiest time to take them out. But if I struck now, I’d be signing my own warrant. Aleksei had made two things clear. One, Eli needed to use the potion on someone to seal his fate. And two, under no circumstances was I to be the aggressor. I leaned back in my seat and waited for the baby vamp to return with the sacrificial blood donor in tow.
He came back with a squirming body tossed over his shoulder. From this angle, all I could make out was pristine white tennis shoes and a generous denim-clad backside. They’d duct taped the poor woman’s arms and ankles and, from the muffled protests, her mouth as well. Eli pointed to the couch, and the baby vamp dumped her onto the open cushion.
“Shit,” I muttered as I got the first clear look at her face.
