CHAPTER 1
“I’d like for you to come with me to myhome.”
Mia glanced over her shoulder at David as hestood in the doorway of her room. She’d known he was there beforehe spoke; his inherent woodsy scent of earth and trees was oneshe’d become increasingly familiar with these past few weeks. Shehated that his scent sent shivers of anticipation down her spine,hated that she’d come to rely on his steady presence in herlife.
Over the past seven years, the only oneshe’d had to rely on was herself, and she liked it that way. Or atleast she had succeeded in finally convincing herself that was theway she liked it. She didn’t want or need someone else in her life.Caring for another only led to heartbreak, and she’d had more thanenough of that in her lifetime.
Mia rubbed her hands over her arms beforeturning back to stare out the window. The snowfall the previousnight had left a white coating across the acres of lawn below her.There were castles smaller than this mansion with its sprawlinggrounds and seemingly endless, rambling rooms. There was plenty ofspace in this place for the vampires who resided here while theytrained to destroy those of their kind who killed humans.
If a purebred vampire came here fortraining, it was more intense than what the turned vampsexperienced. If the purebred passed the training, they would beable to join Ronan’s men afterward. The turned vampires whofinished their training would be on their own after, but they wouldbe better prepared to spot and destroy the vampires amongst theirkind who killed for pleasure.
Mia had been staying at the trainingcompound ever since she’d been rescued by David and the others fromthe warehouse where she’d been held captive. David and his familyhad come to the warehouse in search of their loved one, Vicky. LikeMia, Vicky was another purebred vampire who had been imprisoned sothat other vampires could pay to dine on their blood.
Goose bumps broke out on her flesh asmemories of what had happened in that warehouse danced across hermind.Easy. Deep breaths, she told herself.
Closing her eyes, Mia struggled against thepanic threatening to pull her into its bleak depths. Before she’dbeen captured and taken to the warehouse, she’d gotten so muchbetter at controlling the attacks. Ever since she’d been heldprisoner, controlling anything had become much more difficult forher again.
Lifting her hand, she pressed her fingertipsagainst the glass in an attempt to center herself in the now. Shetook another deep breath to fight off the vise grip crushing herchest. Despite the cold glass against her flesh, sweat slid downher nape. Opening her eyes, she took in the serene world beforeher.
One, two, three, look at the tree,she instructed.
She had no idea when or why she’d everstarted doing the rhyming thing when she felt the panic closing in,but for some reason, it helped to calm her. At least it helpedsometimes. She focused on the skeletal tree in the center of thelawn with its branches swaying in the breeze. Blobs of snow droppedfrom its limbs to create dents in the snow on the ground. Keepingher gaze on the tree, breathing slowly in through her nose and outthrough her mouth, the pressure in her chest gradually eased.
David remained where he was, watching Mia asshe gazed outside. Her shoulders were set rigidly; he detected theincreased beat of her heart as she battled the demons haunting her.He would do anything to slaughter those demons for her, but shewouldn’t let him get close enough to her to do so.
His gaze ran over her slender form. She’dput on weight since she’d been saved from that building, but hercollarbones still stood out against her ivory skin, and theborrowed jeans and sweater she wore hung loosely on her smallframe. Vicky had recently cut Mia’s sleek, nearly black hair into abob just below her chin. He’d been surprised Mia had sat andallowed Vicky to do it, but he’d realized that, as Vicky worked,she was careful only to touch Mia’s hair and nothing else.
Mia inhaled a jerky breath and lifted herhead. In the glass, he saw the powder blue of her eyes before sheturned her head to look at him over her shoulder. His breath caughtas those eyes landed on him. The gentleness of her features beliedthe steel rod of strength he knew ran down her spine. With everypassing day, she grew lovelier as she healed further.
His pulse quickened as he resisted theimpulse to stalk across the room and take her into his arms.Touching her was a sure way to get her to shut down completely onhim though. She’d made improvements while here—she was friendlierand not nearly as skittish as when she’d first arrived—but shestill went out of her way to avoid anyone’s touch.
When they’d discovered her in the warehouse,Mia had thrown herself into his arms. It had been the last timeshe’d willingly touched anyone for any length of time. He couldstill recall the feel of her body shaking in his embrace. Her boneshad pressed against his palms as he’d held her, trying to ease theterror she radiated.
The image of her in that warehouse, chainedto a wall and covered in bite marks, flashed through his mind,causing his hands to fist. Her skin had been raw from those marks,red and swollen to the point where it had hurt her to lie in bedfor over a week after she’d been brought here. He’d sat in a chairbeside her bed for many nights, listening to her whimpers as she’dtried to get comfortable and wishing he could go back to thewarehouse to slaughter every vampire that had been there all overagain.
A purebred vampire such as Mia should havehealed faster than she had after she was freed, but because of hersevere blood loss and the amount of abuse she’d endured, her woundshad lingered for weeks after.
He could still see the faintest hint of bitemarks marring the skin around her neck. A human never would haveseen them, and maybe most other vampires wouldn’t see them anymore,but he did.
His fingers dug into his palms, pulling backskin. He took a deep breath to calm himself as Mia turned to facehim. She couldn’t see him grappling to maintain his control. Itmight frighten her, and that was the last thing he ever wanted todo to her.
Over the past few weeks, he’d developed morethan a passing suspicion as to what she was to him. He couldn’t gether out of his head, the smell of her followed him everywhere, andwhen he wasn’t with her, all he wanted was to see her again andknow she was safe.
He’d been around enough mated vampires torecognize the signs of what happened to one when they stumbledacross their mate. There had been many women in his life; none ofthem had ever kept him as riveted as Mia did. He’d be a fool to tryto deny the changes in him and his growing need for her. David hadconsidered himself many things over the years, but a fool was notone of them.
If they didn’t complete the mating bond, itwould only be a matter of time before he lost control of himself.He had to get her to open up to him more, somehow. He had to knowfor certain if she was his mate or not, and he had to gain hertrust. He didn’t know how likely that would be as she’d keptherself as untouchable as the clouds in the sky behind her.
But then, maybe his mind would remain fullyintact, and he would retain control if the two of them didn’t getany closer. His friend Liam hadn’t started to completely unraveluntil after his relationship with Sera became more intimate. Heknew Isabelle had tried to push Stefan away, and it had nearlydestroyed them both, but he had no idea how much their relationshiphad progressed before then.
Maybe if he didn’t deepen his bond with Mia,he wouldn’t go mad. However, it would mean he’d have to leave herin order to put some distance between them, and all he wanted wasto feel her against him and know what she tasted like.
Even as he thought about leaving, he knew hewouldn’t be able to walk away from her. He had to know she wassafe, and though this place had more security than the White House,he trusted no one else to protect her as fiercely as he would.
Which meant it was only a matter of timebefore he did lose his mind. The looming probability terrified him.He wasn’t a control freak by any means; he liked being a little outof control. It was one of the things he loved most about sailing,knowing that even though he had control of the helm, the sea couldtear it all away from him in a second. There was something freeingin that knowledge.
However, there was nothing freeing inknowing he could snap and force a bond on Mia that she may notwant. He’d rather stake himself before he ever harmed or scaredher.
She’d already had far more than her share ofcrazy and abuse in her life; he didn’t want to bring her more, andthere was a good possibility he would. Liam had nearly forced thechange and the bond on Sera. David had sworn that could never behim, but he was beginning to realize he’d been wrong.
