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Oh goddess. This was more than lack of food, wasn’t it? It felt like she was drowning in a deep vat of honey. Shona tried to focus her gaze, struggling against the insidious sweetness invading her body, her brain.
Had he drugged her despite his avowal to the contrary?
His face was swimming in front of her eyes, and even though she felt alarm, she couldn’t express it. She was helpless to do anything but lean on him or she’d simply fall to the ground.
“Matteus,” she slurred.
“Yes, my dove?”
“Did you… did you spike my…?” Her brows furrowed, trying to make sense of what was happening to her.
Matteus’s mouth stretched into a smirk.
How could this be? They’d drunk from the same bottle of wine.
“I might have added a little something,” he huffed softly in her ear, his grip around her waist tightening.
She tried to break free but stumbled, even with his arm around her. Her head was so heavy her neck could barely hold it up. Vaguely, she was aware of being lifted, those sinewy strong arms holding her against his chest.
His vampire scent filled her nostrils, sickly yet intoxicating.
She didn’t want this… she didn’t, but nor could she resist it.
Valiantly, she tried to get a grip on her senses. “But… but… we drank the same…”
“Bloodrose Berry. Incredibly effective on humans,” his voice purred in her ear. “Totally inactive on vampires. You won’t remember a thing, but it will help you through the transition.” He gave a low, menacing chuckle. “And because of its disinhibiting effect on the victim, it will increase my enjoyment no end…”
“No… No….” She tried to struggle, tried to push him away, but he only bound her closer. It was like being drawn into the sweetest, most insidious web, bound by a thousand threads of sticky black silk.
And dragged down into darkness…
As they approached the turreted mansion, all lit up like a Christmas tree, Tor could see the land, the vineyard, the orchards and the mountains a sinister brackdrop. His sense of urgency increased, hands curling into fists at the sheer grandiosity. It could only be vampire. Tasteless shit.
The fact that Shona was being held here against her will made him want to smash the place down, brick by brick, until he found her.
He knew she was in mortal danger. It was like he could sense her spirit ebbing away from him.
He’d take that vampire and wring the life out of him, slam a stake into his cold, evil heart and obliterate him.
“Kat,” he asked hoarsely. “Once someone has crossed over, is there any way you can…”
Her features pinched. “I don’t know. I don’t know. But we’ll get there, I promise, before it’s too late.”
If only he could believe her.
As the hovercopter descended, Tor could see there were already black jeeps circling, trying to avert their progress, but the chopper pilot was Monster Special Forces trained, and managed to land in a small copse of trees close to the house.
They alighted, and were soon running through the undergrowth.
As they got closer to the house, Tor spotted winged forms against the sky. Katrina explained, “That’ll be the gargoyles averting the guards’ attention. Grayson and Tom are doing their best to access the chapel.”
“Chapel?”
She grimaced. “It’s been built for turning ceremonies, apparently.”
“Say no more,” he gritted out. “Let’s go.”
They skirted the fighting and ran around the back of the house, where they ran into Tom, one of Tower Security’s oldest most experienced gargoyles. “Grayson has captured a couple of henchmen, and he’s working on getting the chapel door code out of them,” he growled out, his walkie talkie at his lips. “Katrina and Tor are here. Over.” then he led them down a stairway.
