Endless Chase (18 page)

Katya didn’t think it could be done. Her papa had thought it might be possible, if the hybrid was male and the human was female. He’d tended to be a bit chauvinistic at times, but she’d love him anyway.

Hostility hit her like a sledgehammer as she passed through the open doorway and entered the study. All of them stood there, a solid force against her and any who threatened them. Blythe gave her a tentative smile, but Cassidy watched her carefully, 92

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tracking her movements as she came farther into the room. Katya was glad to see that none of their children were around.

Lucian had his arms wrapped around Delight, while Laurel Rose looked almost as if she were restraining her husband. Stefan eyed her like the predator he was, ready to pounce if he thought she posed any immediate danger to his mate. Zane was alert as he stood beside Sophia. The redheaded ex-reporter looked as if she had a million questions she wanted to ask, but kept silent. Johanna and Cristofor stood in front of the fireplace, a united force, the lord and lady of the castle.

What had she expected? They hadn’t come to any changes of heart overnight. She was still the enemy.

Not giving them time to speak, she went on the offensive. “The attack will come tonight.”

“How do you know?” She faced Cristofor, who radiated sheer power. Whether it was natural or for intimidation, she couldn’t be sure, but it sure as heck was impressive.

“Because I called him and told him you were all leaving tomorrow. The number I have for him is within the country so I know he can mobilize.” Zane swore and Stefan looked as if he were on the verge of attack. The walls seemed to pulse and shift as the vampires struggled to control their rage.

She was aware of everyone in the room, but kept her attention focused on Cristofor.

She didn’t look at Chase, couldn’t bear to see the anger and betrayal etched on his beloved features. She’d made her choices and there was no going back. “This is the only way to end this. You know that.”

Cristofor sighed. “Unfortunately, you are correct. I would have liked some time to send the humans and the women to safety.”

Katya felt Chase’s blast of anger of being lumped in with the women and children.

Johanna snorted. “If you think I’m leaving you to face this alone, you’ve got another thing coming.”

“We humans can take care of ourselves,” Cassidy pointed out.

“You have children and a wife.” Cristofor raked his hand through his hair in sheer frustration.

Katya regretted they were here, caught up in the crossfire of this bloody war. She honestly liked Blythe, who was kind and seemed less hostile than the rest. The comparison to her mother popped into her head. That’s who Blythe reminded her of.

Not in looks, but in the way she interacted with her children and her family.

“And they’ll be fine locked in the safe room in the tower. Blythe knows how to use a gun if she has to.” Cassidy turned to his wife, who nodded. Resting his hands on his hips, he faced the Dalakis family. “I stand with you.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Chase stated firmly, speaking for the first time since they’d entered the room. Katya shivered at the hard tone of his voice.

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“What do you know?” Stefan snapped at her, all business, his patience obviously at an end.

“Not much.” Katya removed her crossbow and backpack, setting them both on the floor at her feet. “The attacks are always different. This Vasili is smart.”

“Vasili?” Zane crowded next to Stefan, making certain Sophia was safely behind him.

“I only have a first name. He seems to be the one the rest of them answer to.” She crouched down and dug into her bag, pulling out the wooden box. “They fear him.”

Standing, she strode to the table and opened the box. She loaded the vial into a pressure syringe. “You need this vaccine, otherwise you’re more vulnerable than the humans are. One dose of that sedative they have and you’re out like a light.”

“And we should trust you, why exactly?” Stefan prowled closer, a predator circling possible prey.

“Because you have no choice.” She baldly stated the fact. Katya knew what she had to do. It wasn’t something she was particularly looking forward to, but it had to be done. It also went against everything her papa had ever taught her.

“Keep your defenses up at all times, Katya,” he’d warned over and over. “The only one you
can truly trust is your chosen mate, and then only if there is deep love and commitment.”

“I’m sorry, Papa,” she whispered under her breath. “Stefan, you are the strongest here.” The other men started to protest but Katya raised her hand to silence them.

“Fight amongst yourselves later. There’s no time for male posturing. Stefan is the strongest mentally. Even I can sense it.”

She faced him, squaring her shoulders. “You know you can read me if I let down my guard.”

“I can read you regardless.” Stefan’s arrogant response set her blood boiling.

Her fists clenched at her sides. She wanted to yell at him, scream at all of them.

They had a warning, a chance her parents never had. Swallowing back her anger, she managed to reply. “Don’t count on it, vampire. I was taught how to guard myself by the best.” She felt him probing and gave him a mental shove to make her point. His eyes narrowed. “You can waste time on macho crap or you can take what I offer.”

Taking a deep breath, she dropped her mental barriers. Stefan sprang, seizing her mind in an iron grip, probing deeper than she’d ever thought possible. He spared her nothing. Pain rocketed through her and she clasped her hands over her ears. Blood pounded heavily in her temples and she feared her head might explode with the pressure.

Katya fell to her knees, her legs no longer able to support her. She thought she heard Chase yell, but she couldn’t be sure. Pain was her world, cold and unrelenting, as her entire life played out before her, flickering scenes of great happiness, fear and death.

She began to shiver and her teeth began to chatter. Cold. She was so very, very cold.

“Stop it!”

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She didn’t know who was yelling, but she wished they’d stop. It hurt her head even more. Strong arms wrapped around her. Heat. Blessed heat seeped into her cold skin. It occurred to her that her head no longer hurt quite so much. She felt Stefan withdrawing and instinct took over. She gathered her energy and shoved him from her mind, erecting her barriers at the same time.

She heard Stefan grunt as she curled herself into a ball. She felt battered and bruised, physically and mentally. That was not an experience she ever planned to subject herself to again. Not for anyone.

Gasping hard, she managed to pry her eyes open. “Are you satisfied?” She felt something wet on her upper lip and swiped at it with her hand. It came away red.

Great, now she had a nosebleed, but at least she was still alive.

Stefan stared down at her, his legs braced and his hands clenched into fists at his side. He nodded and reached for her.

She automatically jerked back, not wanting him to touch her, and hit something solid. Chase. His arms were wrapped tight around her. How had she not realized that?

Katya allowed herself to wallow in his strength, his care, but just for a moment. There was work to be done and when this night was over, she would leave Chase to his life and return to what was left of her own.

Slowly, she eased from his arms. They tightened briefly before setting her free.

Perversely, Katya wished Chase had put up some kind of protest, but his arms fell away as she rolled to her side. Gripping the side of a chair, she pulled herself upright. Sweat rolled down her temple and she pressed it against her shoulder, swiping it away as best she could. She needed both hands to keep her upright.

“Jesus, you’re bleeding.” Chase was by her side, holding a tissue to her nose.

She was grateful it was only her nose that was seeping blood. For a while she’d thought her head would truly explode. “It’s nothing.” Taking the tissue, she rubbed it against her nose and sniffed.

Everyone was watching her. “Well?” she said.

Stefan stepped forward and rolled up his sleeve.

Bitterness filled Chase as all the vampires stepped up to be vaccinated one by one.

As one of the
humans
, he stood by in silence and watched. For once in his life, he wished he were like his brother-in-law and his sister. Heck, he wouldn’t even mind being a hybrid vampire like Katya. He’d noted almost as soon as he’d set eyes on Katya that her forearms and hands were healed, not even a scar remaining to remind her of her desperate flight through the window. That was something positive.

The attack on Katya’s mind had been swift and brutal. He’d never witnessed anything like it in his life. Chase had always known that Stefan could be ruthless, but this was beyond anything he could have imagined.

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His own skull throbbed and he wasn’t sure if the headache was totally his or partially remnants of Katya’s experience. Like a faint echo in his brain, he’d felt what she was enduring. But what he’d felt was only a fraction and it damn near debilitated him.

The sight of Katya falling to her knees, her hands covering her ears as a silent scream parted her lips, was something that would haunt his dreams for the rest of his life. At that moment, he hated Stefan. If Chase had the power, he would have ripped Stefan’s heart from his chest with his bare hands. He’d never felt so violent in all his life.

Like a man possessed, he would have done anything to protect Katya.

But all he could do was hold her and yell at Stefan to stop.

Thankfully, he’d done so, but Katya had already paid the price. Chase sensed the difference in her. Some part of her had closed itself off. He felt her emotional and mental withdrawal. Which was crazy because there was no way they could have that kind of connection.

Like a volcano ready to erupt at any second, he stood by as Katya gave them all shots to protect them. She was calm and confident, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened, as if her mind had not been brutally invaded.

Jealousy seeped through his soul that Stefan was the one to experience her mind and her memories and not him. Chase rolled his shoulders, trying to relax, but it was no use. His thoughts and emotions were a jumble.

He was moving as Katya gave the final shot to his sister. By the time he reached her side, she was already packing away the empty vials, stowing them in the pack that was never far from her side. She looked at him, her face void of any emotion.

Unable to stand it, he grabbed her arm and began to tow her from the room. She shook him off. “What are you doing?”

“We need to talk,” he managed to get out from behind his clenched teeth. His head throbbed, but he ignored it. He had more important things to worry about.

Katya glanced back at the family, who were all watching with varying degrees of concern and interest. “There’s no time.”

They’d have to make time. He couldn’t go on like this for another second. “We’ll be back.” Wrapping his hand around her wrist, he tugged her toward the door. He felt her dragging her heels, but she followed.

He didn’t go far. Down the hall and into the formal dining room, the door slamming shut behind them. Spinning her around, he pinned her against the door and swooped down to meld his lips against hers.

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Katya barely had time to breathe before Chase’s mouth ground against hers. Teeth clinked. He cursed, pulling away and tilting her head to one side before slamming his lips back down on hers. Her lip split against the violent onslaught, a second of pain before it was lost in the swirling emotions powering through her. She tasted blood and desperation and need.

Responding immediately to the exploding passion between them, she hooked her right leg over his thigh, needing to get closer. Pelvis tilted, she rubbed herself against his erection, reveling in the fact that at least this hadn’t changed. He still wanted her.

There was no way to hide the hard length of his cock pressing against the zipper of his jeans or the desperate way his hands moved over her body—touching, squeezing, caressing.

She had no idea what would happen tonight. Death waited beyond the doors, but here, here there was life. She needed to reach out and touch it, take a piece of it for herself.

His fingers speared through her hair, digging into her skull as he tore his lips from hers. She moaned in protest, already missing the pressure and the heat of his mouth against hers. “Now,” he gasped. “I’ve got to have you now.”

Not giving her time to respond, he kissed her again, his tongue dueling with hers.

Katya felt the wildness springing to life within her, pushing aside her calm, cool logic.

There was no time for this. An enemy was almost upon them. It was stupid. Crazy.

It didn’t matter.

Blindly following instinct, she ran her hands over his powerful shoulders and thick biceps. Having him inside her was the most important thing at this moment. It didn’t matter that his family was just down the hallway. It didn’t matter that they viewed her with suspicion and dislike.

She’d brought trouble their way. Intentionally.

But none of that made any difference. Not now. Not with Chase’s arms around her and his lips melded with hers. There was only heat and need.

Easing up slightly, he ran his tongue over her upper lip. He captured her lower lip between his teeth, nibbling softly. “I’m sorry,” he whispered as he touched the tender spot where the skin had been broken by the violence of his kiss.

“It doesn’t matter.” She squirmed to get closer, plastering her breasts against his chest. Her nipples were so tight they ached. The pressure helped, but not much, and soon it became more of a torture than a relief. They had way too much clothing on.

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He kissed her jaw, forehead, cheeks, even her nose. Hard, hot kisses that enticed rather than soothed. His teeth scraped the slender column of her neck, making her groan with need. Her fangs elongated, pressing down past her lips.