Fear the Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #9)(13)

He had the pleasure of watching her turn a sickly shade of gray before he was headed back down the hall and entering the lead-lined cell. Closing the door behind him, Gaius halted to savor the moment.

Was there anything sweeter than the rich scent of warm, female blood? Or the sight of his prey struggling in helpless terror?

A smile curved his lips as the female strained against the shackles chaining her to the wall. She turned her head from side to side, able to hear his arrival although the room was too dark for her human eyes to see him.

“Who’s there? What do you want with me?” she rasped, the frantic beat of her heart like a siren’s call to Gaius. “Talk to me, you perverted freak.”

Compelled forward by his sharp-edged hunger, Gaius used his powers to light the lone candle set on a stool in a far corner. The flickering flame was barely noticeable in the vast darkness, but it provided just enough of a glow for the female to see Gaius’s approach.

Her lips parted to scream, but cupping her face in his hands, Gaius peered deep into her wide eyes.

“Shhhh. Look at me,” he purred, capturing her gaze and easily ensnaring her mind. He wasn’t as talented as some vampires in enthralling humans, but the female readily succumbed to his power. In a heartbeat her face became slack and her muscles eased until her arms hung limply at her side, the heavy shackles forgotten.

“What is your name?” he asked softly.

“Farah.”

Her voice was too high with a harsh American accent instead of Dara’s husky, singsong voice, but Gaius grimly blocked out the reminders that this female could never fill the empty ache in the center of his heart.

“Pretty, but from this night forward you will be known as Dara.”

“Dara,” the female obediently parroted.

“Yes, and I am Gaius. The man of your deepest fantasy.”

Instantly, her eyes darkened with a mindless devotion, her lips parting on a soft sigh. “Gaius,” she breathed.

“Very good,” he commended, his hands tightening on her face as he guided her down to her knees. “Now you will demonstrate just how pleased you are to be reunited with your beloved mate.”

With the obvious skill of a professional, the female had his pants unzipped and her lips wrapped around his erection. Gaius groaned in approval, closing his eyes as he dredged up memories of his beautiful mate.

All too soon he was reaching an intense orgasm that had more to do with physical release than actual pleasure and, shoving one hand into her long hair, he yanked her upright. She made no move to fight him as he angled her head to the side and with one smooth strike had his fangs buried deep into the flesh of her neck.

He heard her low moan of arousal at his bite but, ignoring her writhing body, he drank deeply of her blood. He grimaced as the warm liquid slid down his throat. There was no taint of drugs and alcohol, thank the gods, but the taste was flat on his tongue.

Still, he drank deeply, only halting as he felt her heart flutter in warning. It had been too long since he’d enjoyed feeding straight from the vein and the sensation was intoxicating.

Later, he would find a surrogate for Dara who was more pleasing to his taste buds. Then he could take full pleasure in draining this one dry.

Catching the sound of approaching footsteps, Gaius extracted his fangs and released his hold on the female. Boneless from her sexual reaction to his bite and her sudden drop in blood pressure, the female sagged against the chains that were all that kept her off the floor.

Not that Gaius noticed.

The woman was forgotten as he straightened his clothing and turned toward the door. He already sensed the reason for the witch’s untimely approach.

With a brief rap on the door, Sally pressed it open, her gaze flicking toward the unconscious prostitute before meeting Gaius’s sardonic smile.

“Our guests have arrived,” she said stiffly.

His nose flared at the stench of dog already tainting his lair. “Curs?”

The witch didn’t look any happier than Gaius. But then, why should she? Curs didn’t like magic-users any more than vampires did.

“A matched set.”

Gaius frowned. “I beg your pardon?”

She rolled her eyes. “You have to see it to believe it.”

Not about to play guessing games, Gaius brushed past her to step into the hall. “Bring them to my study.”

“What about the whore?”

He glanced back at the female, who hung from her shackles like a broken doll. “She will remain here.”

Sally wrinkled her nose. “But . . .”

“If she dies I will see to her removal,” he interrupted in impatient tones. Humans were annoyingly squeamish when it came to corpses.

“Charming,” Sally muttered.

Without bothering to reply, Gaius headed down the stairs and into the small library he’d taken as his study.

Not that he would ever consider the long room lined with shelves and furnished with a walnut desk and two matching chairs as more than a temporary place to conduct his business. Once Dara was returned to him, he would take her back to their vast palace hidden among the hills of Italy.

His lavish home possessed a library that was twice the size of this entire house and filled with thousands of precious books that dated back to the invention of the printing press. That did not even include the fragile scrolls that were kept protected in his vault.