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"Thank you for your help," I say as I stand up to leave and head back to Boston emptyhanded.
But the vampires of Salem suddenly look like they have other plans.
"Hang on a second there, witch," the blue-eyed one says as the blonde vampire puts his hand on my shoulder and pushes me back down into my seat. "I don't think we're quite finished with you yet."
A sudden rush of panic runs through me.
"Do you want more coin?" I ask as I look around the tabletop for something else I can turn into silver.
"Nah, we're good on coin for now, but thanks. Wearea bit thirsty though."
"What?" I ask in horror.
I look around the pub and notice that it's mostly empty now, aside from a bartender who glances at me quickly and then walks away. It's clear that this small clan of vampires runs this place.
"You can't possibly want to feed on me," I say nervously. "There are plenty of humans in Salem for you to bleed dry."
"True," he says. "But there aren't manywitches."
"That's not true," I say combatively. I don't mean to throw the coven I met under the bus, but I need to make it out of this town alive, and I'm all alone here.
"Let me rephrase that," he says. "Thereareplenty of witches in Salem, but they're a bit, shall we say,prickly.It's harder to get to a witch when she has a coven around her all the time. But you—well, you're here all alone, and that's makes you so delicious."
"You can't drink my blood," I blurt out. "I belong to the Boston coven, and feeding on a coven witch has some serious side effects. You'll regret it."
They don't believe me. I can see it in their mocking expressions; that they just think I'm making up excuses to save my own ass. And they aren't totally wrong.
"We just want to keep you around a little longer, pretty witch, so we can enjoy your blood as a little late-night treat. We'll let you go in the morning. Just relax."
My first impression of these guys was that they were shady but not dangerous. Now, I'm beginning to think that they're both. I lift my hand to cast a spell that will subdue them so I can escape. But before I can mutter an incantation, the vampire sitting directly across from me catches my eye. Suddenly, my limbs go limp. I'm both weightless and sinking at the same time. I feel like I am stuck inside that state of being not quite awake yet but also not quite fully asleep. And I realize almost immediately that I am being glamoured. The problem with a vampire glamour is that by the time you realize it's happening, it's already too late. There is nothing I can do to stop it or break free from it.
I sit there quietly staring at him, unable to tear my eyes away, lift my hand, or stand up. I'm a prisoner now, and there's not a damn thing I can do about it. From what I know about vampire glamours, this clan could keep me stuck in oneforever, and by the time Sybil, Elspeth, and Isla realize I've gone missing, they'll have no idea where to search for me. Even if they track me down here, this motley clan will keep me well hidden. This is the worst possible situation. Why didn't I tell anyone where I was going?
Because I knew they would try to stop me, and I thought I could handle all this on my own.
But now I'm sitting here in a pub, staring into the eyes of a deviant vampire like I deer in headlights, and waiting for the glamour to subsume me. After that, I'll follow their orders, and the only thoughts in my head will be the ones they put there. I'll forget that I'm a witch altogether or that I have any powers that can help me escape.
But when the glamour has taken over all but my forehead, I notice that the redheaded vampire's face has changed from a smirk to a grimace of terror. I watch in as one of the knives on the table floats into the air and plunges into his eye socket. In my peripheral vision, I watch the other vampires get up from the table and scatter.
The glamour doesn't wane, which means the vampire who cast it isn't dead. He might lose an eye though. I wish I could turn around and see what is going on. I wonder if I'll have a steak knife in my eye in a matter of moments too. It's not like any of these terrible vampires are going to do anything to protect me from whatever is at the root of this attack. In fact, the one who cast my glamour gets up and runs away too, screaming as he pulls the knife out of his eye socket. At least he was punished for glamouring me.
I sit there in silence, waiting for whatever will happen to me. As the glamour takes its hold on me, I'm hit with the sudden, desperate need to sleep. But just before my eyelids drop shut, I seeTreyton. He cups my face in his hands and I can see the devout look of protective fury in his glowing eyes.
"It's okay," he says as he gently lifts me into his arms. "I'm taking you home now. You're safe."
At that, my eyes close. I fall asleep to the sensation of being carried out the door.
16
TREYTON
Ibring Blair back to my own apartment so I can watch over her until the glamour wears off. She is essentially completely helpless in this state, so taking her anywhere else is out of the question.
I can't help but sit and stare at her as she lies in my bed. I muse over her beauty, even in her currently disheveled state, and ponder what Vanessa said. Iamin love with Blair. It's undeniable now.
The thought of what those vampires would have done to her if I hadn't gotten there in time makes my eyes burn. Thankfully I found her before they were able to lay anything other than a glamour on her.
When she wakes up from the glamour, I plan to tell her that I love her. It's long overdue. In hindsight, I should have told her that the moment I first saw her, during our first secret meeting as informants, although I probably would have sounded insane. But now, I need to smooth things over between us, and I'll start by admitting that I don't want to be without her. Then, she won't have to question my affections or intentions.
