A Blood Seduction (Vamp City #1)(15)

"The master wishes you fed," the woman, clearly Latino, said in accented English. She had the broad face of a South American Indian and wore a drab, plain servant's dress. "I have brought you eggs and toast. You must eat."

"How?"

The woman set the tray on the washstand, then turned to Quinn and began digging at the knot that held one of Quinn's wrists.

"Thank you, Ernesta. Are you . . . a vampire . . . too?" Her mouth didn't want to form the word any more than her mind wanted to accept that such a creature could possibly be real.

But the woman didn't laugh or smile or correct her in any way.

"No. I am one of his slaves."

Quinn really wished she'd laughed. "How long have I been here? It's still dark."

"It is always dark in Vamp City." The woman looked at her as if she were a moron. "Vampires shun sunlight. Even through clouds they can burn."

So, what, they'd figured out a way to enthrall the sun? "I thought vampires were a myth," she muttered.

"That is what we want humans to think."

"We?" Quinn looked at her in surprise. "I thought you said you weren't a vampire."

"I am something else." The rope came loose, freeing Quinn's wrist. As Quinn bent her arm, the blood rushing through it in a swift ache, Ernesta moved to her foot and the knot there. "Something equally impossible for a human to accept."

"May I ask what?"

The woman's smile didn't reach her eyes. "No." Moments later, one ankle was free.

Quinn lifted her knee slowly, easing the stiffness in her leg. "Can you at least tell me how this place exists?"

The woman glanced at her, her dark eyes enigmatic. "In 1870, the sorcerer Phineas Blackstone created a city just for vampires. A city where the sun never shines."

In 1870. And that's exactly what it looked like, wasn't it? A world created in 1870 . . . a duplicate of Washington at that time . . . left to rot and decay for over 140 years.

"But . . . where is it? Another planet or something?"

"No, no, no. It exists precisely where the original lies. One on top of the other, duplicate worlds. Duplicates at first. No more. The outside world has changed. And this one has moldered."

"Can the vampires get out? Into the real world?"

"Of course. At least, they could. They traveled freely between the two worlds, living here, hunting there when they chose. Until the magic began to fail." As she talked, Ernesta moved to Quinn's other ankle, freeing it, too.

Quinn moved her legs, closing them, groaning at the stiffness. Why was Ernesta untying her? The vampire must not believe she'd try to escape. Which was his mistake. Or maybe he was simply convinced she wouldn't be successful if she tried.

"Now the vampires are trapped by the failing magic," Ernesta continued. "If another sorcerer is not found soon, one to renew the magic, all those caught in Vamp City will die." She shook her head sadly. "But there are no more sorcerers. They are all gone."

All would die? Quinn's breath trembled. She had to find Zack and get out of here before that happened. She frowned as a thought occurred to her. Was Vamp City's failing the reason she'd started to see it outside her window at home? Were the two worlds starting to bleed together?

"Do you sometimes see the real world from here?"

Ernesta looked at her with surprise as she moved to untie her second wrist. "No. But the sunbeams break through sometimes. A vampire died out front just a few days before your arrival. None use the front door now."

So they must expect the sunbeam to break through in the same spot again. Is that what the beams do? Of course it is. She knew that from her own experience - the vision that kept appearing right in front of her apartment window.

When the rope at Quinn's wrist came free, Ernesta stepped back. Quinn slowly sat up, easing stiff muscles, then reached for her jeans. "Can humans ever leave Vamp City?"

A shadow crossed the threshold, freezing her in place. Ernesta glanced at the door. "Master."

The vampire. Her heart shot to her throat. Was he back for another bite?

Quinn struggled into her jeans with shaking hands, then slid off the bed on the side farthest from the door, fumbling to pull the jeans up over her hips as her captor stepped back to let Ernesta exit the room. Slowly, casually, he propped his shoulder against the doorframe and watched her.

She met his gaze, lifting her chin, trying to hide the quaking fear that was threatening to sweep over her again. She hated this place. Hated it!

His gaze slid leisurely over her like a predator assessing his next meal. "You ask if humans ever leave Vamp City, cara. The answer is no. A vampire may play with his food, but he never sets it free."

But what did she expect him to say? If humans did manage to escape, he'd never admit it. And it didn't matter. She'd find a way. Even if she had to be the first, she'd find Zack and get them both out of here.

He didn't move, just stood there leaning against the doorjamb. At least he looked normal again. No fangs, no white-centered eyes. Dressed all in black, he looked like a dark angel, the collar of his shirt open, revealing a vee of gold-dusted skin. He was good-looking, she'd give him that. Really good-looking. Too bad he was an evil monster.

His eyes drifting closed in visible pleasure, he tipped his head back. "Do not fear me, cara." Slowly, his lashes lifted, and he pinned her with a gaze that, thankfully, was still dark, still normal. "I have come to make amends."