Bitter Blood (Blood and Moonlight Book 3)(30)

And it f*cking infuriated Aidan. A hard rumble slipped from him. Werewolves weren’t meant to be chained up.

Vincent’s stare cut his way. “You doing all right, wolf?” His eyes swept over Aidan. “Or are you about to go all beast again?”

Aidan was back in the form of a man, and his control was holding, for the moment. He’d only lost it and shifted into a beast back at the ME’s office because he’d been so shocked.

Paris would never want to be a vampire. He wouldn’t want to live this way.

“Don’t worry about me,” Aidan gritted out the words. Worry about yourself because I still owe you a reckoning. He and Vincent would never be f*cking friends. Enemies by blood.

Enemies until death.

I’ll never forgive him for what he did to Jane. The vamp needs to get his ass out of my town. Aidan flexed his fingers. “The way I see it…” He took a step closer to Vincent. Jane and Annette tensed, and he could feel their stares on him. “Only a vampire could transform Paris. I know of two vampires in this town. Jane and…you. Since Jane didn’t do this, well…” Well, I think you’re the tricky bastard who did. Maybe Vincent had been the guy setting up all of the little tests for Jane.

Why? Because he wanted to see just what another born vampire could do?

Or maybe because he was just a crazy f*ck who needed to be put out of his misery?

“It wasn’t me,” Vincent said, voice flat. “I haven’t been near your pack in days. Not near them, not near Jane. I was—” But he broke off, looking away.

“You were what?” Jane called.

Vincent glanced over at her. “I was waiting for you to come to me.”

Aidan wanted to rip out his heart. “Not happening.”

“I can help her, in ways you will never understand. I can—”

“Forget me,” Jane ordered him flatly. “Help Paris.”

As if on cue, Paris let out a low groan.

“I can put him under again,” Annette said. “I can—”

Vincent locked his fingers around Paris’s jaw. “Do you want to live?”

Aidan stepped forward. The bastard needed to damn well be more careful with his friend—

“Yes….” A broken hiss that came from Paris.

Vincent looked back at Aidan. “He wants a fighting chance, so that means none of us will take his head, agreed?”

Why did everyone keep f*cking looking at him when they said that?

Vincent turned back to Paris. “It’s not going to be easy. It’s—”

Paris lunged toward his throat. His teeth scraped over Vincent’s neck and he—

Drank. Guzzled.

Vincent just let him. Didn’t even fight and then…

Paris vomited blood. All over Vincent. Vincent slowly rose. He turned to Jane. Glared. “Now where have I seen that shit before?”

“Hun…gry…” Paris gasped out the words.

“Yes, well, we all get that,” Vincent muttered as he swiped at the mess on him. “I guess we shouldn’t have started at the top of the food chain.”

“Bagged blood?” Annette whispered. She was standing near the wall, watching Paris with wide, haunted eyes. “Will he be able to take that?”

“We’re about to find out.” Vincent whirled away and marched from the room.

And Aidan found himself stepping closer to his friend.

Jane caught his arm. “Aidan, don’t.”

“I’m not killing him,” Aidan said. His control was back and holding for the moment. He needed to talk with Paris. To try and understand just how this had happened. His claws were out, but the fury of the shift didn’t fire Aidan’s blood. He paced closer to Paris, but stopped about five feet away. “Paris.”

Paris didn’t look at him. He let out another low, desperate moan.

“Who did this to you?” Aidan demanded. “Who changed you?” How? Aidan hadn’t even thought it was possible for a werewolf to change into a vamp. He’d never heard of a transformation like that one.

Mostly because…vamps weren’t given the chance to bite werewolves. When a werewolf encountered a vamp…our normal MO is to end them.

His gaze slid to Jane and Aidan swallowed. Normal doesn’t count with her. Right then, Aidan couldn’t think of the changes that were occurring within his own body. He had to put Paris first. He’d deal with his own shit later.

I just changed into a wolf, so that means…no matter what else is happening, I’m still an alpha. My beast still has power. And he’d use that power to help his friend.

Paris’s lashes lifted. He stared at Aidan, and there was zero recognition in his gaze. Just…hunger.

“Who. Did. This?” Rage fisted around Aidan’s heart.

Paris lunged toward him, snapping his teeth, but the chains held him back, stopping Paris before he could get anywhere near Aidan’s throat.

Jane’s hand curled around Aidan’s.

Paris’s stare turned toward her, and the bloodlust—it seemed to burn even brighter in his eyes. He began to salivate as he stared at her. “Need…”

The one word was far from human. More like the beast that Paris couldn’t be any longer.

“Step back, Jane,” Aidan said softly.