I raced around the bar, heart pounding. If a human walked in right now, they’d be freaked out to see the unconscious giant on my floor. I needed to get him behind the bar, stat.

  What the hell I would do with him then, I didn’t know.

  Quickly, I grabbed his wrists. When my bare skin touched his, energy shot through me, more power than I’d ever felt. It brought with it the most horrifying sense of familiarity.

  I recognized him.

  Or at least my body did.

  Still, I had no idea who he actually was. I shoved the shivery feelings aside and dragged him behind the bar. As I heaved him into the shadows, I used my weak seer sense to learn what I could about him. Normally, I’d consider that an invasion of privacy. Now, it was only smart. I needed whatever info I could get out of this guy, and even though I wasn’t a proper seer, I could still glean something useful. And oddly, when I touched him, my power felt a bit stronger than normal. I could see more clearly.

  For one, he really believed the story of which he was accusing me. I looked just like the woman he was hunting, and she’d locked him in a tomb five years ago.

  Two, he was immortal, so he’d survived in that tomb for four years before gaining his freedom. No wonder he was a little off his rocker. That would make anyone crazy.

  And three, he was the most powerful vampire I’d ever met, and I knew the original Vlad the Impaler. He had massive strength and speed, along with the ability to compel. Worse, it seemed that he could make people feel terror and pain with just a touch.

  Holy fates, that was awful.

  How the hell was any of this possible? If he really was as powerful as he seemed and so damned angry with me, I didn’t stand a chance.

  My mind raced. I could kill him now, while he was unconscious. It was the only smart thing to do.

  And yet, he was unconscious. No way I could kill him. I’d done some questionable things in my past, but nothing like that.

  Shit, shit, shit.

  Surely he wanted something more than my death. I could give it to him.

  Desperate, I reached out with my power. It was weak, especially since I’d used the burst to disorient him, but I was able to get a hint of something.

  A secret society. Their shadowy faces hovered at the edges of his mind, both threatening and annoying at the same time. Annoying because he was so powerful that nothing ever threatened him…except the mystery woman who’d somehow pulled one over on him. Either way, the secret society had something of his that he wanted very badly.

  As I rested my hand on his wrist, I got another hint of something.

  Connection.

  I didn’t understand it, but my seer sense was telling me there was something here that I couldn’t see. Something more.

  Even stranger, I was getting the strongest sense that I needed to go with him to this place. There were answers there, or maybe answers with him.

  But that made no sense. My life was pretty much an open book.

  Or it had been, until now.

  I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something here I needed to figure out. Something about him. It was the most gnawing curiosity.

  Who was he? Who was he to me?

  He shifted, and the magic in the air changed dramatically. With incredible speed, he leapt upright, fully conscious.

  “Shit.” I scrambled backward, too far away from the potion bombs to grab another. “You should still be unconscious.” I should have had hours, damn it.

  “Treacherous, just as I expected.” He prowled toward me with the grace of a lion about to devour its prey.

  “Duh. You’d just said you were going to kill me.”

  He reached me, stopping just before making contact. I’d backed all the way up to the liquor shelves, and we stood so close that I could feel the heat of his body.

  I shivered. “Get away.”

  “Or what? You’ll kill me?”

  “No. I don’t do that kind of thing.” Well, I did, but I only killed demons and other one-hundred-percent evil beings.

  Which he was. Mostly.

  “Oh, yes, you do,” he murmured, his blue eyes searching my face. “And five years ago, you tried to kill me.”

  2

  Drakon

  * * *

  I stared down at the woman who had haunted my every waking moment for the last five years. It was her.

  Finally.

  My Bride.

  The one woman fated specifically for me, meant to end the centuries of loneliness. Meant to end my immortality. The scent of her was divine, her blood ambrosia. Just standing near her felt like pleasure.

  And five years ago, she’d locked me in a tomb, leaving me to rot for eternity. I’d escaped only in the last year, and I’d been on the hunt for her ever since.

  She was more beautiful than I remembered but just as treacherous. I hadn’t realized she could disorient with a touch—that was an incredibly rare power, and one I should have seen coming. She’s proven capable of the impossible, after all, when she’d pulled one over on me—no one had accomplished that in centuries. No one except her.

  For that, I respected her as much as I hated her.

  Confusion flashed in her eyes as I studied her. Either she didn’t remember her actions or she was an incredible actress.

  My money was on the latter. Prior to her misdeeds, I hadn’t known her long, but it had been long enough to learn how skilled she was at deception. I’d never met another like her, and my initial infatuation had lowered my guard.

  I wouldn’t make that mistake again.

  “You’ve got the wrong girl, I swear.” Her beautiful brown eyes flashed with frustration, and her full lips pinched.

  I’d never tasted those lips, and as much as her existence enraged me, I still couldn’t keep my eyes off of them. Off of her. Her golden hair swept over her shoulder, and her luminous skin made her appear to glow. Her tall, lean form was built for battle. Though she dressed like a man, I found I liked it.

  “Oh, I don’t have the wrong person.”

  My gaze dropped to her slender neck where the pulse beat frantically. The blood that raced through her veins tantalized me, and I knew she’d taste as divine as she looked. Desperate desire thrummed through me, and I couldn’t stop glancing at her neck as my fangs throbbed.

  Born vampires had fated mates, while turned vampires had cursed mates. But there was only one of me—the First.

  And I had a Bride.

  MacKenna Carraday—there was no mistaking it.

  She pulled at my decayed soul. Fate was a cruel mistress to deliver one such as her after all these years.

  She was everything I’d ever wanted, and yet my Bride had tried to assign me to an eternity of torture. The years in the tomb had been pure hell. Over and over again, I’d slowly starved, unable to die and yet unable escape. Nightmares still haunted me, an unacceptable weakness.

  My anger simmered, beginning to rise to a boil.

  “You want something,” she said. “I could feel it when I touched you. And I can help you get it. Just leave me alive.”

  “You are correct. I do want something.” My gaze swept down her form. “Two things, actually. Your assistance with a problem, and your death.” I tilted my head, studying her. “Perhaps I should return the favor that you performed for me and bury you alive.” Even as I said the words, they felt like ash in my mouth.

  Now that I was here, I found the idea of killing her to be less appealing than before, though I would still do it. I had to if I wanted to survive. Her death was the only way for me to escape the vicious trap of having her for a Bride. From the moment we’d met, we’d become bound together, fulfilling the Bride Prophecy. She haunted my every waking moment. Being away from her caused excruciating pain, so bad that I sometimes couldn’t move. It felt like being entombed in granite.

  The Oracle at Kavina had told me that the only way to rid myself of the feeling would be to destroy the one responsible for my fate.

  Her.

  But now that I was faced with her once again, I could barely stomach the idea. I’d spent centuries as a cold and cruel force of power, ruthlessly pursuing whatever I wanted. And yet, the idea of killing her twisted my stomach.

  What the hell was wrong with me?

  If I wanted to live, I would have to break the bond with my Bride. Failing that, I’d succumb to the second, unavoidable part of the prophecy: falling in love with her would strip me of my immortality. I’d never let that happen, so killing her was the only option.

  But first, I needed her help. The Oracle had convinced me that my Bride was the lone person who could help me with the task I faced. My only friend in the world had disappeared while I’d been locked in that damned tomb, and I was determined to save him. Not because I cared for him—I cared for no one—but I owed him. I’d committed many crimes in my life, but I never let a debt go unpaid.

  “You said that you could feel there was something I wanted,” I told her. “Are you a seer?”

  She nodded. “Best you’ll find.”

  That had to be why the Oracle had said I’d need her. I had the ability to compel others—all except my Bride, though I’d attempted it—but the people I was after had found some way to protect themselves from compulsion.

  This gave Mac a skill that was very applicable to my needs.

  Having her help would also give me more time to find out why she’d imprisoned me, a question that had haunted me for five years. I shook the thought away.

  “You’ll come with me to a weekend house party hosted by a secret society with no known name,” I said. “They are immensely powerful, and every so often, they open up their ranks to new members. This weekend, they are hosting a series of deadly competitions that will allow them to vet potential candidates. Those who survive will be allowed to join. I have been invited, but I’ve no interest in joining them.”

  “Then what do you want?”

  “One of the members—I don’t know which—has something of mine, and you’re going to use your seer power to help me get it back. Normally, I would compel them to speak, but the society possesses powerful magic. They’ve somehow created a spell that protects them from my power.”

  “So we participate in the competitions, but we’ll really be hunting for info?”

  “Exactly.”

  “What was stolen from you?”

  “I’m sure you can figure that out. You’re a powerful seer, after all.”

  “Yeah, of course.” She nodded. “I could be a huge asset, and I’ll help you if you promise not to kill me. I’ll even prove my innocence while we’re there.”

  “Impossible.” My voice was rough as gravel. “This isn’t a matter of mistaken identity. I can feel your magic. I can feel you.”

  And fates, how she pulled at my withered soul. I’d felt nothing but the most superficial emotions for centuries, but she tugged at something deeper.

  She swallowed hard, and my eyes dropped to her throat. I could see the pulse there, and my fangs throbbed.

  I’d never tasted her, of course, but I wanted to. Desperately.

  I stepped back, fighting the urge.

  Normally, I took what I wanted, anything and everything. I was ruthless. Selfish. I liked myself that way. And yet, with her—it would be unwise. Incredibly unwise. I didn’t want to lose control.

  I needed far more from her than the pleasure of her blood, no matter how divine it would be. Eventually, of course, I would have it, but not now.

  “Have you proper attire?” I swept my gaze over her derisively.

  “Attire?”

  “For a formal party. It will be a weekend of events, and you’ll need to fit in.”

  “No, but I can get some.”

  “I’ll have them sent to you. We will depart tomorrow in the afternoon.”

  Hope flashed in her eyes.

  “Don’t think you’ll be able to escape me,” I said, leaning close. I touched her arm, pleasure singing up my own as I fed a bit of my magic into her and inhaled her glorious scent. Those beautiful brown eyes went wide as she felt me mark her. I hadn't done it five years ago when we’d first met—I’d barely had a chance. Now, I knew how vital it was. “I’ve scented you. Marked you as mine. I will be able to track you anywhere, so the opportunity to run has passed.”

  She scowled, and I could all but feel her desire to curse. I stepped back, needing fresh air. She smelled so divine, like a misty morning by a country river, that it was making my head spin.

  “What’s your name?” she demanded.

  “You know my name.”

  “I really don’t.”

  I wouldn’t humor her ridiculous games. “Just be ready when I come to get you tomorrow.”

  “Okay, but I—”

  No longer able to stand in her company without pulling her close, I teleported, vanishing into the ether. I could escape her presence, but I knew her face would continue to haunt me.

  There would be no escaping our fate.

  3

  Mac

  * * *

  Shocked, I stared at the empty space.

  He hadn’t even used a transport charm. And now he was gone, but that wasn’t the craziest thing.

  Holy fates, he was planning to kill me. Like, definitely-for-sure murder me.

  The way he’d looked at my neck…

  I shivered.

  It didn’t matter how powerfully beautiful he was—he was pure, terrifying darkness. The deadliest threat I’d ever encountered. And I’d just made an absolutely ridiculous deal with him because I was actually a pretty crappy seer. I was going to get to that party and find myself screwed when my wonky powers didn’t behave. And I still had no idea what he was looking for. Info of some kind, but about what, I hadn’t a clue. Still, whatever he was after, I’d try to help him as long as that would keep me alive.

  “Are you all right?” Quinn’s voice sounded from the far side of the pub, and I turned. My friend approached from the hall that led into Guild City, his stride sure and confident. He was nearly as tall and broad as the bastard who’d just left, but Quinn’s attractiveness was more wholesome. With his auburn hair and kind eyes, he just looked like a good guy. Fortunately, the leopard shifter actually was a good guy. I didn’t make time for any other type.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” I could have told him about my problems, but I just wanted to get out of there. “Long day. See you later.”

  “Sure, but—”

  Whatever he said, I didn’t hear. I was already hightailing it for the back hallway that led to Guild City. The narrow corridor was dark and lined with shelves full of liquor bottles. While it was meant to look like storage for the pub, in reality, it was the secret entrance to our even more secret magical city.

  At the back of the hall, I stepped through the portal that would take me home. The ether sucked me in and spun me through space, depositing me in the magical realm that existed right in the middle of London.

  It was after midnight there as well, so the tunnel that led through the massive walls surrounding Guild City flickered with glowing lights. The eerie golden glow illuminated my way as I hurried through and into one of Guild City’s main squares.

  Our walled town had been formed hundreds of years ago, a secret refuge for the supernaturals of London. Ancient narrow streets twisted and turned, surrounded on either side by old Tudor buildings. A massive wall circled the city, dotted every so often with a guild tower. There was a guild for each type of magical species, from the witches and shifters to the seers and sorcerers. Long ago, the guilds had protected the city from the safety of their towers. Now, they were more like social and governmental organizations.

  Quickly, I cut through town toward my own tower, hurrying down the cobblestone street and past the ancient edifices. The architecture was all stone and wood and white plaster Tudor buildings, relics from the Elizabethan era. Despite the age of the buildings, the glittering windows revealed glimpses of modern life. The shops were full of magical and modern items alike—mobile phones next to potions and computers alongside quills.

  The city and its streets were too small for cars, but motorcycles and mopeds were popular. I owned neither, but didn’t need one for the short distance between my tower and the pub.

  I passed a bar with tiny tables crowded onto the sidewalk. A group of witches sat around one, shrieking and laughing at a drinking game. Mary, unusually pale with pink hair, caught my eye and waved me over. “Mac! You’re just what we need. Come liven this party up!”

  The other witches hooted their agreement, waving me over. It was rare that I saw the witches out on the town—they often preferred to throw parties in their guild tower. I attended a lot of them, mostly to pull pranks that they would later return.

  “Thanks,” I called out, wishing I didn’t have the vampire on my mind. I’d much rather be partying with the witches. “But next time, maybe.”

  They booed me as I passed, and I just grinned. Mary seemed to be able to tell that my smile was fake, and concern flashed on her face.

  Finally, I reached the narrow alley that led to my guild tower.

  I couldn’t believe I’d told the vampire that I was an excellent seer. Ha. As if. I wasn’t even in the Seers’ Guild because I was so weak.

  I belonged to the Shadow Guild—the guild for misfits and weirdos.

  It was the best place in the world, but it also proved that I was going to be screwed when it came time to help him infiltrate the secret society. What had I been thinking?

  That I needed to be able to buy myself some time to prove my innocence. And that he had answers. To what, I couldn’t say, but my wonky powers had been strong enough to tell me that he knew something I wanted to know, and my curiosity was raging.

  Finally, I exited the narrow alley into the courtyard in front of my tower. Each guild tower was fronted by an empty space, and generally, shops lined the street opposite the courtyard.

  Not the case with us. Our guild hadn’t even existed until earlier this year. As a result, we were located in a quiet part of town with no shops.

 

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