THIS TIME (The Grace Allen Series Book Three Paranormal Romance) (7 page)

The man
with the yellow hair picked up the pills.

“They
smell,” he complained, scrunched his nose. “This is what he has been tainting
her with? Lord, this blood is nothing short of poison.” He looked at the
vampire. “Could this sustain you?” 

“Fuck no!”
the vampire man flinched away and snarled again. “It does not sustain, it
taints.” He looked at his hand. “That blood would suck my newly-acquired soul
right out of my body. Get it the fuck away from me!” He stepped back, tossing
my filthy purse into the closet, he slammed it shut.

I felt my
body tremble as I looked out at my kidnappers. Shaking my head, I laughed, “My God,
who the fuck are you people?” I tried to pull out of the blonde’s grip. “What
the hell are you doing to us?” I was freaking out. I looked around at the huge
crowd of people and froze. “Who the hell is flying the plane?” I screamed.

The vampire
man approached. I hated that I appreciated his silver eyes and black hair. I
looked at his hand, he was holding a small, clear bottle. I pressed back hard
into the couch following him with my eyes. He stopped, his long legs almost
touching mine. I tried to move further back into the couch, smashing into the
blond man’s side. I glared at the bottle in his hands. “What the
fuck
is
that shit?”

He knelt
in front of me. “I’m sorry, Gracie.” He tried to place his hand on my knee and
I jumped. Pulling his hand back he frowned. “Please believe me, none of us
wants this.”

His alien
eyes seemed sad. He blew out a breath and shook his head. Slowly, he glanced up
at the men in the room and then down at the bottle in his hands. As if the
decision to torture me as he did Helen was a difficult one.

I pleaded
him with my eyes. He couldn’t mean to do to me what he’d just done to Helen.
She had information they needed, I had no idea what they needed from me. I
watched him war with himself and then, letting out another loud breath, he
looked up.

“
Do it
,”
he commanded, pushing back to his feet as the men yanked the seatbelt open. I
screamed as I was hauled off of the couch and braced back against someone’s
chest. My arms were pinned painfully behind me as my rump connected with the
floor. I bucked and thrashed as the vampire tried to straddle my hips. His
weight won out and I was pinned by two muscular thighs.

He used
his body to hold me, leaning down he held my face.

“Gracie.
Look into my eyes,” he softly pleaded and I squeezed my eyes tight and tried to
shake his hands off. “Please Grace,” his voice was calm, “
see
me.”

His breath
fanned my face as his voice rolled in my head. I felt a familiar warmth bloom
inside me and I slowed my struggles. His scent enveloped me and I caught my
breath. I opened my eyes and looked at him.

Oh,
God,
I know him. Somehow, I know him!

Something
inside me broke, cracking through the fog in my mind.

“
You?”
I whispered.

He let out
the breath he was holding and smiled sadly. “Yes, Sweet.” He braced his
forehead on mine and I felt a zing of awareness. “I am so very sorry. Please
forgive me?” I barely had time to register his words before he gripped a
handful of my hair and yanked my head back. I gasped and he shoved the bottle
of fiery fluid into my mouth.

ELEVEN

“You must
move me closer to My Lady!”

I rolled
my eyes.

“My King
will flay the flesh from your bones! I am his most valued servant!”

“Good Lord,
Helen, give it a rest, would you?” I drawled. She’d been screaming, non-stop
since we landed. “Obviously, they’re not going to listen.”

Turned out
the vampire wasn’t the copilot after all. He’d been hiding out in the bedroom
along with the rest of his band of kidnapping a-holes. They had grabbed Helen
the moment she entered the room. That’s why the flight attendant couldn’t keep
her eyes off the door. Tricky little hussy! And now I was cuffed to a chair. A
hostage. Helen was tied like a hog on the ground, and from the pounding in my
head, she was squealing like one too.

“The Dark
Prince commands legions! He will bleed your unworthy souls dry! He will cut the
cocks from your bodies and fry them up to feed to your mothers!”

“Helen! For
the love of…
What the hell are you saying
?” I goggled at her, shocked.

“You will
pay! You will all …” There was a juicy-sounding crunch and then Helen’s voice
abruptly cut off.

“She may
be sweet on the eyes, but she’s a banshee, that one!”

He was
tall, long brown hair flowed down his back in slight waves. He wore a t-shirt
and faded blue jeans. He’d look like a model for a
Visit California
ad
if it weren’t for the bloody baseball bat.

“And you
call
us
evil,” I watched him approach, anger settling behind my tongue,
“Did you kill her?” I frowned at him as I gazed at the bat. Thick blood dripped
from the rounded tip as it dangled from his tanned fingers.

“
You
are not evil,” his voice was deep and smooth, “at least not
entirely
.
And no, my dear, Grace. She needed to be silenced, so I silenced her.” He sat
on the floor in front of me, crossing his legs. His feet were bare. He leaned
forward gripping the bat across his knees. “You should not look so worried. She
is a demon. She has suffered much more than a mere bump on the head, believe
me.”

I shook my
head, I was so sick of this shit. “Are you
all
completely fucking
insane? My name is
Alice White
and there are no such things as demons!”
I glared. I could feel my adrenaline rise.

He lowered
his brows. “…And there are no such things as
vampires
?” He challenged.
He rose to his knees, looking into my eyes. “Or how about elves?” He tucked his
hair behind his pointed ears.

I sucked
in a shocked breath and cringed back almost knocking the chair over.

What
the fuck?
He was an
elf
.

I gawked
at him, noticing for the first time the subtle differences in his features.
They were all very sharp. His nose, jaw and even his eyebrows were made of
straight lines. He was slender and willowy but very well-muscled. His skin was
flawless and his hair looked almost too soft. I closed my eyes, sucking in a
slow steady breath.

“This
can’t be real,” I grit through my teeth.

He gently
laid his hand on my knee and I jerked as his warmth penetrated my skin. I
opened my eyes and looked at him, feeling the heat intensify, I watched his
beautiful face as a calmness began to radiate from his touch.

“The world
you think you live in is a lie,” he whispered close. “You are a great being,
Grace. You have powers that could help you, but first we must rid you of that
black taint and keep you secluded from the influences of Lucifer. He is
not
your husband, my dear friend. We are not the enemy. No matter how angry you
become in the next few hours, we will all remain your friends.” He stood. As
soon as his hand slid from my flesh, the feeling of comfort fled. I shivered as
snakes of anger slithered back into my soul. “We will be moving again soon.
More comfortable arrangements are being made.”

I looked
at the baseball bat in his hands and then my eyes met his and I glared. “My
husband will come for me, and when he does, all of you are going to be very
sorry.”

The man
shrugged. “Perhaps, Grace. Perhaps.”

He tossed
the bat to the floor and strolled casually from the room.

I tugged on
the cuffs, my head pounding. I needed my pills back. I shifted and tried to
knock the chair over. I rocked to the side and felt the legs slide.

“Shit!”
I yelled as my side
smashed onto the hard floor, my head bounced and I winced. We were in some sort
of warehouse or maybe an airplane hangar. I had no idea. I only knew that these
people were crazy and I had to get back to Lu.

 
They think
Lu is Lucifer?

These
people were out of their minds which made my situation even more dangerous. I
had to somehow get away. I shuffled, scooting close to Helen. She was hurt
pretty badly if the blood on the floor was any indication. It pooled around her
head like a halo and I shifted closer, gaining ground.

“Helen,” I
whispered. Her mouth was slack and a pool of saliva had formed to mix with her
blood. I stared at it. It seemed a lot thicker than normal and sort of brownish,
but then again I had never seen this much blood spilled before so what the hell
did I know.

“
Helen!
”
I tried bumping her with the side of my head but it was no use. She was down
for the count. “Damn it,” I mumbled.

“What are
you up to?”

“You have
got
to be kidding!” I sighed. My head lolled as I was pulled back to a sitting
position. “Thanks,” I sneered at the man from between my teeth. His hands worked
quickly, untwisting my clothing and covering my legs.

“You can’t
leave, Gracie,” he shrugged his shoulders, looking regretful.

“Obviously,”
I snorted, glaring at him through my lowered lids.

“I’m so
sorry.” He pulled out a chair and sat across from me.

I watched
him move, my blood zinging with heat. His shoulders were very broad. I smiled
to myself as I noticed how his t-shirt pulled tightly across his arms. This one
I could have fun with. He watched me.

“Well,” I
began, “I sure hear
sorry
a lot, but somehow I don’t think any of you
are sorry for the right reasons.”

He lowered
his eyes, when he looked up again they glistened with unshed tears. They were
odd eyes, like ancient metal mirrors. The same as the vampire only his weren’t
silver. I shook my head at that. God, that man
wasn’t
a vampire. They
were just trying to scare me.

“So, what
kind of monster are you?” I smirked. “I’ve already met a vampire and an elf,
and Helen here gets to be a demon.” I leaned forward. “Let me guess, you’re
some kind of Incubus?” I winked. “Say yes,
please
?” I sat back as a
blush crept up his tan neck.

I sneered
at his reaction and then smiled as he frowned, his brows coming together to
form and angry line.

“I’m not a
monster, Grace.” He looked at his hands. “Well, I guess I am,” he laughed. “All
of this is my fault after all. Lucifer would never have taken advantage if I
hadn’t hurt you.” He looked up at me. “Oh, God, Gracie. I am so, so sorry! If
you were back in your right mind, you would probably want to kill me even more
than you do now.”

“I doubt
that,” I said, glaring. “You took me away from my life. My husband.” I was
fuming. “I’m sick. He’s the only one who keeps me sane,” I gritted through my
teeth. “You people need to be punished and then swiftly committed.”

“No.
Lucifer is playing a sick game, Grace. He’s wanted you for longer than any of
us could fathom. He wants your power for his own, and now, thanks to me, he has
you.” A tear slid down his cheek. “I wrapped you in a pretty bow and delivered
you to his feet.”

“I think
you’re all sick in the fucking head,” I growled. “What are you trying to
achieve by taking me away?” I jerked in the bonds. “Why did you feed me that
poison?”

“It wasn’t
poison. It’s just water, blessed by a priest.”

“Bullshit!”

He looked
angry. “No! This is
real
, Grace!” He got right in my face, and then he
snarled and pulled a flask from his pocket. “See?” He took a big pull from the
contents. “No choking. No vomiting up blood,” he shouted.

“That
proves
nothing
,” I said, shaking my head in disgust. “Do you think I’m a
total fucking moron?” I shouted.

“Take a
sip, Grace, but don’t get mad when you choke.” He held the flask out toward me.

“I’m not
drinking that!” In the past few hours I had thrown up enough blood to scare me
to death. I thought I was dying at one point. “You could have faked that
swallow. I’m not stupid.”

He let out
a frustrated growl.

“Fine,” he
sighed, then, holding the flask high above his mouth, he poured. The clear
liquid splashed onto his face as he drank it down. I watched, mesmerized as the
fluid ran down his muscular neck. His golden skin looked so smooth. Tiny drops
slid, following the contours of his muscles to slide into the opening of his
shirt. I licked my lips.

“Satisfied?”

I smirked,
admiring his wet chest.

“Not by
half.” I licked my lips again. He was too tasty and I suddenly wanted a bite.
He did things to my stomach. Made things low in my body swirl and dance with
heat.

“Drink,
Grace.”

“I don’t
know what you hope to prove,” I sighed and opened my mouth.

“I’m so
sorry.” His hand shook as he poured a small splash into my mouth.

The second
the first drop hit my lips, I was on fire. I screamed. Hot liquid, like acid,
slid down my face, searing my skin as it flowed. I jerked as smoke billowed
from my scorched flesh.

“
Fuck
!”
I roared and frantically tried to spin out of the chair. I spit and snarled,
spray splashing my skirt. I screamed again as my leg began smoking.

The man
lunged and ripped the fabric off. I gasped and spit more fluid onto the floor.
Panting, I glared at him. The desire to rub my body all over his had been
quickly replaced with a fierce need to see him tied to pole and beaten.

“Do you
believe now?” The man sat back down.

Tears
streamed from my eyes as the pain slowly subsided.

“What the fuck?”
I panted and coughed, trying to slow my breathing.

“You’ve
been tainted, Grace. We are trying to help.”

I glared
at him through my tears.

“Leave me
the fuck alone!” I screamed, coughing.

He stood.
“You’re going to come back to me, Gracie,” he said, “I’ll never leave you. Not
as long as I still breathe.” He turned to go.

Something
dark coiled around my heart and squeezed. “Then you won’t have long to wait,” I
laughed as my blood chilled. “That pretty flesh won’t be so nice to look at
when my Lu comes for me.
You will suffer
, I promise.”

He looked
stricken. His brow lowered. “I’ve already suffered, and I see no real end.”

I smiled,
raising my chin. “You
should
suffer.” I spat.

“You might
regret those words one day, Grace.”

He
shrugged his shoulders and left without looking back.