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Julian brushed some of my wayward hair from my face. “It’s a sound plan except I don’t want you near them.”

“What you want and what’s best for everyone else are two different things,” I argued, crossing my arms.

“You’re right.” He dipped his head. “We need a lure.”

“It has to be me. They already got my scent earlier. Would that bring them back if they started looking for others?”

Julian considered this. “I believe it would. And I think I know how to confuse them long enough for you to act. Let’s go hunt some vampires. Care for a ride?”

I blew out a breath and contemplated Julian’s open arms. Vampire wasn’t my preferred way to travel, even with Julian, but it was fastest. I jumped into his arms and held on as he zipped out into the night.

We arrived at the steps of the vampire estate in minutes. It seemed fresh blood enhanced Julian’s abilities. He set me at the top and to the side so that he could police all access points, then turned away to face oncoming danger. All I noticed were crickets chirping and a cool ocean breeze that pushed my hair from my shoulders.

“I’m going to use the magical bullhorn now,” Julian said. “The second I do it, start your mind-bending. Don’t wait. Just repeat it until I tell you to stop. Understood?”

“Wait. What is it you’re going to do?”

“Spill your blood.”

Before I could flinch, Julian tore open his wrist and held it out to the night.

I wanted to scream or protest, but he’d given me an order, and I couldn’t screw this up. I swallowed my anxiety and closed my eyes to focus. I pictured the vampires coming down the steps earlier, and Carmichael biting my hand. “Do not harm anyone,” I said, pushing my magic through the words. “Only feed with permission and do not take more than you need.”

The woods around us came to life with the sounds of hissing and leaves crunching. Something hard collided on my right, but I kept my eyes squeezed shut and repeated my commands.

“Keep going. It’s working!” Julian yelled. “They’re coming in waves.”

I pictured the wounds on Michelle’s neck and what it would have taken for Carmichael to put them there when Julian had been so careful with me, healing the marks when we were done. “Do not harm ANYONE,” I commanded, stronger this time, picturing Carmichael then recalling my father’s death. The blurry figure of the vampire who’d torn into him sharpened into an image of a pale blonde man, eyes cold as ice, and I gasped. Carmichael. He’d ripped my father’s throat out.

Or was that my brain mixing things up?

“Keep. Going.” Julian said with difficulty.

My eyes snapped open. Reality couldn’t be worse than what I’d just seen. I shouted my commands over and over like a chant as chaos reigned around me. Julian moved so fast I could catch only tiny bursts of blue as he fought off one vampire then another. The vision of a shadow fell over me, and I spun around, looking up to find a female with long black hair scaling her way down the wall toward me, looking more like a monster than a woman.

“Don’t hurt anyone,” I said to her, and she stopped inches from my head. “Only feed with permission and only take what you need.”

Slowly, her fangs retracted, eyes melting from crimson to a soft brown and dark veins fading below the skin. She dropped to the ground before me, taking in her surroundings like she didn’t understand where she was.

Julian spun me to face him. Once again, his hair was disheveled, and his clothing was ripped. Various injuries closed on his torso and arms.

“You did it,” he said.

“We did it,” I amended with relief. Then I turned back to the wide-eyed woman behind me, so petite I towered over her in my heels. She no longer felt like a threat at all.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Pandora.”

“Pandora, tell me what happened tonight,” I said, threading some gentle magic behind the words to prompt her to speak.

“I came to the meeting.”

“What meeting?” Julian asked, stepping up beside me.

“It was for the new vampires support group. Those of us who’ve been turned in the last year meet here once a month.”

“Okay,” I said, impressed that such a thing existed. “Did you drink or eat anything at the meeting?”