Revelation of Blood (29 page)

“What if I say no?” I asked, crossing my arms
defiantly over my chest.

“The girl dies,” Weston said with a smile.
“I’ll let my friend here rape, torture, and dismember her.” He
leaned closer to me and whispered gleefully. “I hear he especially
likes skinning young, beautiful women, so he’s sure to have a great
time with your friend.”

I swallowed thickly, terrified for my best
friend. I knew I had no choice; I had to save her and would do
anything they asked to insure she walked away from this. After all,
she was taken because of me. It was my fault she was in this mess.
My eyes slid apologetically to Archer’s and he spoke quickly in my
head.

“
Tell them you need time to think it over.
Tell them to give you until nightfall tomorrow. That’ll give us
time to come up with a plan. I’m not letting them take you, Skye.
I’ll die before that happens
.”

I closed my eyes and sighed as I hung my
head. Archer was gambling with Nikki’s life and that worried me.
After a minute, I gazed back up at Weston and chose my words
carefully. “I need some time to get my affairs in order. Will you
allow me to have until sundown tomorrow? I’ll do whatever you need
me to do, but you have to promise me you won’t hurt Nikki any
further. No feeding, no drugging. She is to be treated as your
guest from now on and not a prisoner.”

Weston laughed and the other Dark Ones joined
him. Nikki visibly stiffened with fear and shrank further back into
the booth seat. My heart ached at the sight as my mind ran wild
with the different possible acts they had afflicted upon her during
the three days they’d had her in their custody.

“Until you’re mine, I will do as I please
with the human,” Weston laughed. To drive his point home, he took
Nikki’s wrist and brought it to his mouth. She didn’t scream or
move, just watched with detached acceptance. I growled loudly as
his fangs slid down and I flashed out of the seat. Archer, Hagan,
and Hunter immediately flanked me and growled out a warning as
well.

“On my life, if you put one fang in her and
I’ll make sure you don’t live to regret it, Weston,” I seethed.

“Threatening me will get you nowhere,” Weston
chuckled then slowly snaked his tongue out to lick the underside of
Nikki’s wrist.

“Neither will pissing me off,” I rumbled, my
fists clenched tightly down at my sides. I was itching to fight and
it took all my control to refrain.

Weston stared at me for a long moment and I
met his gaze unwaveringly. Finally, he sighed and dropped Nikki’s
wrist. “Very well, but hear this. If you think you can trick me,
Skye Morrison, you can’t. We have over two hundred Dark here in the
city committed to our cause, and they are not afraid to fight for
me.” My brow furrowed deeply as I listened.
What the fuck is he
talking about
?
Cause
?
What is this
?

“
I don’t know, cion
,” Archer answered
me silently, “
and that worries me greatly
.”

“You will meet us at the Mesa Ranch Private
Airstrip at nine tomorrow night and you will come alone,” Weston
said. “Bring anyone else and I’ll make sure one of the two hundred
men I’ll have with me kills them.”

“Please allow one of my children to escort
her,” Archer quickly spoke up. “Mesa City is a long way from Austin
and the human will need a ride home when you release her. It will
put Skye at ease knowing her friend is being taken care of.”

Weston frowned at Archer and took a moment to
consider his proposal. “I’ll allow one child. Who do you
propose?”

“My son Lochlan,” Archer answered, motioning
his hand to the second floor bar. Hagan’s brow furrowed
incredulously and he looked at Archer as if he’d lost his mind.

Weston craned his neck up to briefly watch
Lochlan as he distractedly served blood to the Dark VIP crowd. His
lips broke out in a wide grin and he chuckled as if he found the
suggestion amusing. “Very well, Day Walker. Your son Lochlan may
accompany the girl. No one else, am I clear?”

Archer nodded his head once and Weston turned
his eyes back to me. “Bring nothing with you. You will be given
clothes and other requirements once we land. Do I have your word
that you will cooperate tomorrow?”

I swallowed thickly and glanced over at
Archer. He was staring hard at Weston and would not meet my eyes.
Sliding them over to Nikki, I took in her pale skin, bite marks,
and trembling form. I had to get her away from them. “You have my
word, Mr. Ley,” I said clearly, meeting his eyes. “Do I have yours
that you will not harm my friend between now and nine tomorrow
night?”

Weston smiled and nodded his head. “You
do.”

“Now that you’ve gotten what you came for,”
Archer growled, “I’ll ask that you leave my club and take your
friends with you.”

Weston chuckled and motioned his head to the
other Dark Ones around the table. “This establishment is far too
tame for my tastes anyway,” he flicked a wrist as Jonas and Lyric
pulled Nikki out of the booth.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Nikki,” I said gently
as she passed me. “Everything is going to be okay, honey, I
promise. This will all be over soon.”

“How sweet,” the Dark One who threatened to
dismember Nikki laughed as he followed them out.

Archer, Hunter, Hagan, and I watched the mass
exodus of Dark as they all piled out of the club.

Archer whistled to Pádraig and spoke to him
silently. “
Close down the club. We’re done for the
night
.”

“
Sir, it’s only ten
,” he answered
silently. “
Are you sure
?”

“
Do it, Pádraig
.”

Hagan began arguing with Archer about Lochlan
escorting me and Archer sighed heavily as he cut him off.

“I understand your concern for her, warrior,
and I even appreciate it, but now is not the time for this
conversation. We’ll discuss it at length back at the house.”

Jameson approached us and Archer began
barking orders at everyone. “Hunter, inform the dancers that their
shift is over. Tell them they will be paid for the full night.
Hagan, please make sure every last Dark One gets the fuck out of my
club, and quickly. Jameson, use your phone and call our neighbor.
Have him meet us at the house. Skye…” Archer looked down at me then
and his angry face softened considerably. “Stay by my side,
baby.”

Everyone dispersed as Archer grabbed my hand
and dragged me to the VIP bar. “Aoife, tell everyone to get this
place cleaned up on the double. I want to leave in ten minutes.”
Aoife nodded her head and flashed downstairs to talk to Nola,
Quinn, Trey, and Thorin. Archer then turned to Lochlan and met his
questioning gaze. “You and I need to talk, son.”

“I heard,
athair
,” he said solemnly.
“Wha’ever you need, sir, I’ll do it.”

Archer sighed heavily and pulled my body
tightly against his. I rested my cheek on his chest and gently
stroked his back. “
What are we going to do, Archer
?”

“
The only thing we can do, baby,”
he
answered silently, as he cupped my face and tilted my chin up to
meet his eyes. “
I can’t lose you
.”

The drive back to Archer’s lake house was
intense and fast. He drove his Lamborghini like a bat out of hell,
but everyone that followed us stayed close. When we arrived, I
spotted several motorcycles and cars already parked to the side of
the driveway and recognized Dean’s Harley among them.

“You called Dean?” I asked, surprised.

“I had Jameson call him,” he explained as he
parked. “I figured Dean would be more receptive to the request that
way.”

“So, that’s what you meant by neighbor,” I
ah-ha’d as I opened my door.

“I couldn’t take any chances speaking freely
at the club,” he said, taking my hand as we waited for everyone to
park and join us. “The Mausoleum might be bugged. I’ll have Gunnar
and a tech crew sweep the entire building and its surroundings, as
well as the telephone lines, tomorrow morning.”

Once everyone gathered, Jameson told us he
had Dean and his pack wait for our arrival in the back by the
pool.

“Good thinking, Youngblood,” Archer nodded
his head before addressing the group. “No consuming blood while
Dean and his pack are visiting. They already hate our kind and we
need their help if we have any chance of saving both Nikki and
Skye. Is that understood?”

Everyone agreed and we followed Hagan into
the house. Archer and I went to greet the wolves as Aoife flipped
on the house lights and Trey got refreshments ready. Dean and
several members of his pack were seated on the lounge chairs and
stood as Archer unlocked the French doors.

“Jameson said it was urgent,” Dean rumbled
worriedly as he stepped inside and walked up to me. He pulled me
into a brief, tight hug before letting me go and studying my face.
“Are you okay?”

“No, I’m not,” I shook my head and sighed.
“The Dark One that was in your bar the other night, Weston Ley, he
kidnapped Nikki and is threatening to kill her if I don’t go with
him and help him with something.”

A fierce growl ripped itself from his chest
as his eyes flashed to Archer’s. “This happened tonight?”

“Nikki St. James was kidnapped three days
ago,” Archer explained as Dean’s wolves filed in behind him.
“Weston came into my club tonight with the girl and demanded to
speak to Skye.”

“You should have seen her, Dean,” I
whispered, the horrors of her state evident on my face. “She was
pale, had bite marks all over her, and…and they drugged her with
something.”

“I knew I should have killed him,” Dean
growled angrily.

“Why don’t you boys have a seat,” Trey called
out from the living room as he brought in a tray filled with
glasses, beer, and bottles of liquor and set it down on the coffee
table. “You can have something to drink while we discuss.”

Dean nodded his head to Zephyr and the wolves
spread out around the living room. Quinn and Pádraig brought in the
six chairs from the kitchen table so everyone would have a place to
sit as Dean grabbed my hand and pulled me into the living room with
him. He sat us on the sofa and Archer sat on the other side of
me.

“Skye, you already know Zephyr, Dylan, and
Primo,” Dean said, motioning to the men with his head. “I’d like
you to meet Sayer, Thatch, Fitz, Cage, and Trigger.”

My eyes took in each impressive man as I
studied them. Sayer had assisted Dean in rescuing me from Amun and
Martin when I’d been kidnapped and tortured but I’d never met him
before. He was tall and well-muscled with full sleeve tattoos and
long black hair. His skin was tan and he appeared to have strong
Native American ancestry.

Sliding my eyes to Fitz, the first thing I
noticed about him was his striking grey eyes. They almost looked
like liquid silver and contrasted strongly with his tall green
Mohawk. He was covered in colorful tattoos as well and sported
several facial piercings and gauged ears.

Thatch smiled widely at me when I looked him
over. He seemed oddly out of place among these rough bikers. Thatch
was pasty pale and wore a long sleeved shirt under a black vest.
His black rimmed glasses did their best to hide his gorgeous green
eyes and his hair was short, brown, and neatly styled. I glanced
over at Dean questioningly before skimming my eyes over the next
wolf.

Cage was by far the most muscled and mean
looking man in the room. His presence was practically electrifying
as he calmly studied my vampire family. I couldn’t figure out why,
but I suddenly wanted to know everything there was about Cage. He
looked like a MMA/UFC fighter and he had the tell-tale cauliflower
ears and scars above his eye to prove he scrapped and often. His
dark blond hair was long and pulled back into a man bun and his
corded arms and bulging neck were covered in shaded gray tattoos.
Cage was a good looking man and I would have bet anything he had a
harem of willing women at his beck and call.

When my eyes glanced over at Trigger, I
noticed he was staring at me hard. His brown eyes looked like they
had seen a lot of shit in the twenty-five plus years he had been on
this earth and I wouldn’t have doubted that he’d killed a man
before. He was oddly beautiful with his military haircut and hard
face. Trigger’s hands were heavily calloused and stained black with
grease; I guessed he was probably a mechanic by day. He arched one
brow as I studied him and I arched one back.

“You like what you see, vampire?” Trigger
drawled.

“Actually, yes,” I answered truthfully as I
got comfortable on the sofa, sandwiched between Archer and Dean,
and crossed my legs.

His thin lips slid into a smile before his
eyes found Dean’s. “I see why you like her, boss.”

Dean smiled as he rested his arm behind me on
the back of the sofa. Archer stiffened and I reached out for his
hand and laced my fingers with his.

“So, someone fill me in,” Dean said as Trey
stood and began going around the room with the beverage tray.

I explained everything that had happened
between the last time I saw him and now. Dean growled lowly a few
times, but managed to maintain his temper for the most part.

“That bloodsucker didn’t tell you what they
want from you?” Dean asked and took a long pull from his beer.

“Nope,” I sighed. “Whatever it is, it has got
to be serious for them to go to all this trouble to get me,
though.”

“I’m not letting her go without a fight,”
Archer said as he sat up, rested his forearms on his knees, and
looked over at Dean. “I’ve insured that one of my most powerful
assets against the Dark race will be escorting her tomorrow, but
I’m still going to need help if we have any chance against Weston
Ley and two hundred Dark Ones. You know I wouldn’t come to you
unless I had no other option, Cruz. The Faithful are back in
Ireland and I can’t gather enough Day Walkers to fight on such
short notice.” He paused for a moment as he glanced at Dean’s
wolves. “I’m asking you to help me save my mate and the girl she
considers her family. This will be dangerous and there is a good
chance someone could die, but without your help, I fear we have no
hope of saving both Nikki and Skye. If Skye attacks before Nikki is
removed from the situation, Weston will not hesitate to kill her.
And if he sees anyone besides Skye and Lochlan at the rendezvous,
Nikki dies. ”