A Blood Seduction (Vamp City #1)(78)

But nothing happened.

Instead, a blinding storm of fear and fury roared through her as her pants and panties were wrenched off, as the man who'd taken them pulled a thick, distended c**k from his own pants.

He was going to rape her. They all were. Terror hit her in a blinding rush, and she struggled, kicking out, missing.

And suddenly her would-be attacker flew backward, slamming against the wall. Was that her doing? But she'd barely formed the thought when the man who'd been groping her br**sts disappeared just as suddenly in a yell of outrage and pain, and the crunch of bone.

She hadn't done that.

The last of her assailants released her hands and leaped up, ready to take on whatever had attacked his comrades.

Only one thing moved that fast. A vampire.

Free at last, Quinn rolled over, away from him, the room spinning sickly as she struggled to crawl away. Slowly, she pulled herself to her feet, wanting her clothes, but choosing escape instead. She stumbled toward the back door, her head pounding, her heart threatening to beat out of her chest.

Behind her, the sound of battle continued, the crack of bone, the cry of pain. Of death. Silence.

And suddenly cold hands gripped her shoulders, shoving her back against the nearest wall. She lashed out, struggling against a grip five times stronger than the Traders' had been.

"Quinn."

A familiar scent filled her senses - that intoxicating scent of almond liqueur. Arturo.

The relief hit her hard, weakening her knees. Tears burned her eyes. But when she would have reached for him, his hold on her shoulders tightened, a punishing grip. She blinked back the tears, her vision clearing, only to be assaulted by his face inches from her own, by the fury in his eyes. Clearly, he hadn't forgiven her for escaping.

She wanted to yell at him that she didn't need this right now. She was shaking, the adrenaline of the attack ricocheting inside her, trying to find a way out.

He gripped her chin, his cold fingers biting into her cheeks as he forced her to look into those furious eyes. "What game are you playing?" His voice radiated with barely leashed violence.

What game? How was she supposed to answer that? It was too much. She was shaken, hurting, naked. The tears started to slide down her cheeks. "I found . . . Zack." Her voice caught on the last.

But Arturo wasn't sparing her an ounce of sympathy. His grip on her only tightened, painfully so. "You have power. Loads of it. When I found you just now, your eyes were glowing with it."

She just stared at him and began to sob.

"Answer me!"

"If . . . if . . . I had power, don't you think I would have stopped them?"

For long moments, he didn't say anything, but she felt his grip on her jaw ease. Then he was pulling her into his arms, holding her tightly against him where she so badly needed to be. She clung to him, burying her face against his neck, as the storm of tears swept through, leaving her beaten and exhausted.

Finally, when the storm had passed, she pulled back, swiping the moisture from her cheeks, horribly embarrassed. Naked, crying, helpless - was there anything she was missing to make her humiliation complete?

The vampire's hand slid down her hair. "We need to talk."

A sigh trembled out of her. "I'll tell you everything I can, but it's not much. If I have power, I don't know how to access it." She met his gaze, willing him to understand. "I tried, Vampire. When they had me pinned, when he was unfastening his pants, I tried to push him away. I tried."

He gripped her face with gentle hands this time. "Shh. You're safe now."

"Did you kill them?"

"Yes."

She nodded, bowing her head again, needing her clothes.

As if she'd spoken the thought aloud, he released her and went to fetch them, then helped her dress with quick, clinical movements.

As she sat on the floor and pulled on her boots, she looked up to find him watching her, frowning. "I saw Zack. He's in the gladiator camp."

A look of disgust crossed his face. "And I suppose you were planning to ask them to let you in?"

She returned her concentration to her boots, choosing not to answer that derisive question.

"Do you know how many would have raped you? And drank your blood? They'd have killed you!"

Boots on, she rose and met his gaze, knowing there was desperation in her own. "Help me get him out of there. Please?"

But all she got was a scowl in return. "You ask the impossible." He clasped her arm in a steel grip and steered her through the front door, where his yellow Jeep sat.

The last hope that he might still help died as he shoved her into the front passenger seat, then drove off, gripping her wrist to keep her from escaping again.

Quinn turned away, her elbow on the window opening, the wind raking her hair back from her face as the tears once more began to roll. He refused to bend. And she'd lost this fight one too many times.

Deep within, her soul withered, crumbling, as the last hope of saving her brother slowly died.

Chapter Seventeen

Quinn's head pounded, her heart cold and aching, as Arturo led her up the steps of Gonzaga Castle and into the grand foyer. She should be terrified to be back here, but she felt nothing. Empty.

She'd failed. Cristoff would never allow her to escape a second time. And Zack would soon be dead.

The castle once again streamed with music and laughter, the foul joyousness of a savage and dangerous race.