Aurelio shook his head. “No, four.”
Kaippa shrugged and pulled the tie from his hair, letting the smooth black locks swing around his shoulders. “I met them at a local pub. It was their idea to come back here.” He raised his nose into the air and lifted his eyebrows, appearing incredibly pleased with himself. “They’re quite forward, and I can assure you, they had a lovely time at Chateau Kaippa.” He lowered his head and gave me a smile that screamed sex.
Hekla poked her head back into the room, glared quickly at Kaippa, then looked back to me. “Titus is able to walk. Let’s get out of here.”
Aurelio hurried out to help Hekla.
I pushed Kaippa into the wall again, lightning sparking over the backs of my hands as I gripped his throat. The scent of scorched flesh brought up my own vicious grin. “That’s only because you are doing something to them.”
“It’s called being fabulous and irresistible.”
Giving him one last push, I strode from the room. I hugged Titus quickly, then handed him over to the biggest of us—Lucus and Baccio—who helped him downstairs. They bumped a painting of a racehorse from the wall, and Aurelio caught it.
“Coren.” Hekla jerked a thumb toward a room across the hall.
I crept over to join her as she spied from the doorway. Four women, ranging in age from twenties to early forties, lounged on antique velvet couches and across another four-poster bed. They were in various stages of undress. One by the window wore only a bra and black jeans. Another that appeared to be dreaming happily lay in a tee shirt and a thong, ass-up in the big bed. They all seemed happy, but that was bullshit.
I walked in despite Hekla muttering warnings. “I can get you all out of here if you want to go.”
The oldest of them sipped red wine from a crystal goblet. “Why would we want to leave? Kaippa is an absolute god in bed. I’m happy to share.”
“Well, damn,” Hekla murmured.
The woman gestured toward her hair with a lazy hand. “There’s snow on the roof, but a fire in the furnace, darlings.”
Hekla clapped a hand over her mouth, a laugh-cry coming from her.
I shook my head. “You’re sure? You’re all good with the whole…” I gave them a slurpy, bloodsucking sound.
“We’re fine, honey,” the twenty-something on the couch said. “Move on.”
“All righty, then.” I followed Hekla out of the house.
“What a bunch of maniacs.”
“Yeah, that was weird. I think we should still try to get them away from Kaippa. Don’t you?”
Hekla nodded. “But maybe after you slay the demon dragon.”
I whimpered. “God, can we just not talk about it now? I need a second to absorb the horror. Hey, what was up with you staring at Kaippa in the hallway?”
Hekla choked, and I patted her back, one eye on the guys as they helped Titus into the Volvo.
“Let's head to my place, okay?” I said to Lucus, who nodded. A smear of blood marred his sharp cheek, and the emerald strands of his hair caught the light.
Picking at her cuticles, Hekla looked at her clogs. “I have a problem with Kaippa’s back.”
“What? I’m sorry, his back?”
She crossed her arms and watched the trees swaying in the plantation’s front yard. “Yep. It’s. It just. It swoops down and curves out a little and then.” She held her hands out to show the width of something—maybe his ass?
“Are you okay? Did Kaippa throw some weird glamour at you back there? What are you talking about?”
Exhaling, she blushed furiously. “I have an issue with his lower back. That’s all. That’s it.”
“Oh. My. God. You’re hot for him.”
Hekla smacked me. “No, I’m not. I just enjoy looking at his lower back. That’s it.”
“And that’s not a sign of being attracted to someone.”
“He is a murderer, Coren!”
“A murderer you want to bang.”
“Ugh!” She threw up her hands and walked away.
“Hekla. Okay. Walk away. But we are going to discuss this later.” I huffed a laugh. I couldn’t believe it. My best friend was in love, or at least lust, with a vampire.
She jerked her car door open. “I’ll only talk over a lot of wine.”
“Yeah. A crap ton.” I put my helmet on and started up my bike.
Driving away from the plantation, I wondered what other awfulness waited for us. I’d suggested going to my place so we could keep an eye on Titus for a while, thinking that was the best spot for now.
Until I pulled up and saw a small crowd of angry men with guns.
7 Hekla
Hekla steered her precious Volvo down Chickering Road, hands sweating on the wheel and hopefully not ruining the leather. Aurelio sat beside her in the front passenger seat, his gaze set on the side mirror like he worried the demon wyvern whatever thing was on their tail. Baccio and Lucus held Titus up between them. In the rearview mirror, Titus looked white as flour, but it seemed Lucus was maybe healing him because the fae lord’s eyes were narrowed like he was focusing.
“You didn’t send that text to me about relaxing, did you?” Hekla asked.
Titus’s face contorted with confusion.
“Yeah,” she said. “I didn’t think so. Stupid vampire.”
Baccio’s dark glare pushed into the rearview mirror’s rectangle. “Why are you humans so susceptible to vampires’ influence? What is it about them that attracts you? They have no lure. They look like death.”
“I am not susceptible to anything.”
Baccio raised an eyebrow.
“I’m not here to answer all your questions about humans.”
Baccio turned his head to look out the window. “No matter what your body might tell you about the vampire, remember what he has done. He murdered scores of my kind. Young ones. The old. He had no mercy for any fae.”
“The Mage Duke’s spell controlled Kaippa during the wars,” Lucus said. “The vampire, although vile and certainly not innocent, had no choice but to obey his master’s orders while he wore that ensorcelled ring. Though Kaippa
