“Sorry, I’m in a hurry.”
When he reached for me, I flashed a few feet out of his grasp and turned. “Don’t even think about putting your hands on me, you little fanghole.”
He gestured to my gown. “Whose blood is that?”
“My cycles are heavy.”
“Johan?” he called out. “Johan!”
I set the bottle against the wall. The chairs were painted white, and I couldn’t be certain of the material. Lenore probably wouldn’t be dumb enough to have impalement wood in her house.
“Raven?” Niko closed in from an adjoining room and gripped his sword. “What’s happening?”
“A slight accident upstairs.”
“Johan better be alive,” the Vampire snarled.
But he wasn’t, and that was a problem. If I let this guy live, he would tell Sparrow who was behind the killing. Sparrow would harm Hunter in retaliation, and I couldn’t let that happen. I wanted to get that across to Niko without alarming the Vampire, but he must have sensed a change in my energy because he was already moving to block the opposite entranceway.
When the Vampire lunged at me, I flashed out of reach. The slit in my gown allowed me to move freely, but I kept stepping on the damn dress.
The Vamp erupted with anger. I pirouetted, dodging a fatal blow. His fist smashed into a nude statue, the penis skittering across the floor. He trudged toward me, hands clenched, a scowl marring his ruddy face.
“I bet that’s coming out of your paycheck,” I quipped, picking up a few pieces of stone from the floor. I pelted him in the head, trying to rile him up so Niko could see his emotional light. Vampires had no personal light he could detect, but he had the ability to see strong emotions.IfI could get this guy pissed off enough…
I grabbed a vase of roses from a pedestal and hurled it at him. He batted it with his arm, and pieces of glass sprayed in every direction.
So much for flowers.
I flashed across the room and yanked a painting off the wall. Then I flashed behind him and brought it down over his head. He swiveled with his arm extended, and I dove to the floor, rolling out of the way. My momentum came to a jarring stop when he stepped on my gown. The Vampire removed the frame from his shoulders and flung it across the room.
Fearing he would stomp on my chest, crushing my ribs to smithereens, I did the only thing that sprang to mind. I reached up and pulled my dress open, exposing my bare breasts.
He blinked, casting a salacious gaze. “I’m gonna— I’m…”
Niko flashed to his side and brought down the sword. Because of the angle, the head didn’t come all the way off. Blood splattered across my legs.
“You need to finish it,” I groaned, watching the Vamp reach for his head. “Hurry up. I can’t look at him anymore.”
Niko raised his sword and completed the kill. The head thumped against the floor, and the body lingered for a few seconds before hitting the ground with a sickening thud. My stomach turned, and if it hadn’t been empty, I would have decorated the marble floor with breakfast. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever become impervious to the sight of a man losing his head. At least with other Breeds I didn’t have to, and maybe that was my handicap. There was always a faster and cleaner way for me to do the job. Even with a Mage, I could simply pop out his core light and smother him with a pillow if I wanted. Vampires were becoming my least favorite kill.
The Vampire’s spirit rose from his body, holding his head in his hands. “You killed me!” he screeched. “I can’t believe you did that!”
I pretended not to notice him. “I hate to admit it, but now I finally understand why Spooky never wants to kill people or be around when we’re doing it.”
Niko’s eyebrows rose. “You see him?”
I narrowed my eyes at the cretin who was still ogling my breasts. “Run into the light, Casper. If you don’t go now, you’ll be stuck here forever, carrying your head around like a cheap purse.”
He muttered something unintelligible before vanishing.
I breathed a sigh of relief. “He’s gone.”
“That kill was too easy,” Niko said. “I expected a fight. What made him hesitate?”
I looked down and noticed my dress had moved back in place. “I distracted him with my enchanting smile.”
Kneeling, Niko wiped his blade on the dead Vampire’s pants before returning the sword to its sheath. “There’s no one else down here. I checked every room and made enough noise that someone would notice me and say something. Are there any upstairs?”
