I saw someone else move out of the corner of my eye. It was Di’s assistant, Jep, and he had his teeth bared as he was ready to spring. Without thinking, I dropped Di in a heap on the floor and called for a butcher knife from the kitchen. As soon as it appeared in my hand, I threw it, lodging it into the vampire’s chest. He fell back against the desk and down to the floor, where he cried out in pain. He clutched the knife’s hilt and tried to pull it out, but it was lodged deeply into his chest cavity.
“No! Jep!” Di, realizing what shape her assistant was in, quickly crawled over to him and tried to help him, but it was no use. “Help me, Amos!”
I looked at my grandfather and he looked confused and in awe all at the same time. He just stood there staring at Jep and Di on the floor and made no attempt to move.
Rolling my eyes, I stomped over to them and grabbed a hold of the knife, pulling it clear from the vampire’s chest. In the same movement, I flipped the knife around and had it under Di’s throat. She stiffened and opened her mouth in fear.
“Please, Emelia,” she whispered.
Xander and Camille came running in the room at that very moment and came to a complete halt within a few feet of me.
“Oh, shit!” Camille exclaimed.
“Get. Away from her,” Jep panted, holding his closing chest wound. He was trying to get to us.
My other hand changed into my dragon’s claw and I pointed it at him.
“Try me, I dare you. After what you did to me…”
“You’re marvelous,” Di took a gulp and said. “Don’t you see? You’ve used powers from all three supernatural species in the span of a minute.”
I narrowed my eyes and pushed the knife further into her throat, making her back up.
“You have no idea what you’ve done, you selfish bitch. Because of you, I’m…”
All of a sudden I felt nervous, like I needed to get out of that room. I didn’t want to run away as much as run toward something. Or someone.
“Oh, shit…”
It couldn’t be. Another? No. No way was there another.
The knife fell out of my hand and I took several steps back, my eyes locking with Xander’s in an apology. It wasn’t my fault, but I couldn’t help but feel guilty. I had another mate and he was here. A vampire for my newly awakened vampire side.
“What’s the matter?” Xan asked and took a step toward me. He held out his hands toward me but I shrunk back.
“I’m so sorry,” I gasped and took off running around him and out the door.
Chapter Fourteen
I ran down the hall toward the front door. The moment I made it into the foyer, the door burst open, shattering in splinters and I was swept up in a pair of tattooed arms. Dark red eyes stared down at me before lips descended down onto mine in a searing kiss.
Before I had a chance to wrench myself away, Xander was there, doing it himself. He pulled me from the vampire’s arms and threw me toward Amos, who was standing there, watching the whole thing unfold.
“She’s mine!” Xander growled and swiped his dragon claws at the new man.
Xan was fast, but the new guy was faster. He ran at Xan, shoving him into the wall with a sickening thud. Before the dragon had a chance to respond, the vampire held both of his arms against the wall in a strong hold. Xander strained his arms, but was unable to break the vampire’s grip. He screamed in annoyance and anger, but nothing would move the vampire.
The vampire bared his fangs and hissed deeply, moving his face closer to Xan’s. “She is mine, dragon. I know it as easily as I know my own name.”
I jerked out of Amos’ hold and shoved at the vampire’s shoulder, making him turn his attention toward me. “Stop it!” I screamed. “Both of you!”
The vampire let go of Xan, and Xan immediately jumped at the other guy, but I stepped in between and shoved them both back. They barely even noticed I had pushed them apart, their angry eyes turned on each other as they moved back toward each other, growling and hissing.
“Stop!” I screamed. I turned toward the new vampire. “I’m sorry, but I can’t be your mate,” I told him. He immediately stopped his pursuit and stood up straight, his confused eyes locking on me. Hot tears filled my vision and I made no attempt to wipe them away. He reached for me, but I just backed away and shook my head at him.
“Emi, I…”
Xander reached for me too, but I couldn’t be with him either at that moment. I needed to get away from everyone and everything. My emotions were all over the place and I didn’t trust them. So I did what anyone would do in my position. I ran.
I ran out of the house and up the coast, hugging the rocks that ran along the oceanfront until I felt I had gotten far enough away from it all. I stopped, seeing a stretch of barren sand and carefully made my way down the rocks to the beach below. The coarse grains of sand felt good between my toes as I walked toward the rolling waves.
Water was always so peaceful, so calming. I didn’t realize it until Xan and I arrived at the beach house and I got to sit near the ocean every night.
So much had happened and I felt like I was never going to catch up. How could I? I reached inside with my thoughts and my dragon nudged against me sympathetically. She loved Xan as much as I did, but she felt for me and the fact I had two other mates out there I couldn’t claim. At least I knew I had her on my
