No matter how much I don’t like it, I follow Nikolai out. I’ll be leaving with him by my own two feet or dragged on my ass.

He stops just outside the passenger door of his yellow Maserati and holds it open for me.

Of course. His car is a flashy cock enhancer.

I stop and wait. I don’t want to give him any satisfaction for his false display of courtesy. We stand like this for two long minutes. Nikolai waits for me to sit, and I wait for him to get the fuck away.

When he finally relents and slams the passenger-side door, he strolls over to the driver’s side, granting me a small victory. I can open my own goddamned car door, thank you very much.

Before I climb in, our eyes meet across the roof and he smirks.

Prick.

My creator is a real asshole. He is turning me into the monster I am becoming and I can’t fight him. Despite what my heart and mind say, I have the inclination, the desire, to obey.

The dark expression on Arsen’s face as I left still haunts me.

Nikolai starts the engine and exhales. “I know how this must look to you, Sasha but—”

“Shut up. I have nothing to say to you.” I cross my arms over my chest. My eyes stay locked on the road as Nikolai pulls the car out of the compound.

“Let me be clear, I don’t have any intention of harming you. In fact, quite the opposite.”

I have to hold onto my anger because I’m terrified. And if I stop being angry, terror will suffocate me.

“And let me be clear. You are monster. A murderer. And because of some stupid vampire shit, I have to follow you home. But don’t mistake what I have to do with what I want to do.”

My stomach aches and my skin itches as though I’m fevered from the inside out. I’m not sure if it’s the upcoming change or my nerves but either way, I am total clusterfuck.

“Oh, little rabbit.”

“Do not call me that.”

“I never meant you harm. You lived because I let you. Now you’ve been given a great gift.”

“Lucky me.” I mock him and cross my arms again. “And others died because you let them.”

“You may judge now, Sasha. But soon, you will come to understand that the lion who hunts the zebra isn’t cruel. He is a natural predator, as are we. Humans constantly kill without thought or concern for the repercussions, especially for their own food.”

“Don’t call people food.”

“But they are.”

“Can we just stop talking?”

I hope the rest of the drive will be silent, but I’ve discovered Nikolai does only what he wants. I simmer in my own hate for the vampire beside me as he offers an explanation as to why he barged into Arsen’s compound and dragged me out.

“You don’t understand. You need to stay away from Arsen. You don’t understand everything he’s capable of. You don’t know everything he’s done.” A glance from me freezes his words only briefly. “I can imagine what you may be thinking.”

“Can you? Because it seems to me like you couldn’t give a damn about anyone besides yourself. Why else would you show up like you owned the place and demand me to come with you? You’re wrong. You can’t imagine what I’m thinking because deep down, you don’t care.” I huff, turning my head away from him.

When he doesn’t say anything back, I find his face in a deep scowl. His eyes flash in the highlights of the car, the squeaking of the leather on the steering wheel the only other sound joining the deep silence.

Suddenly, Nikolai pulls the car to the side of the road with a screeching halt, jerking it to a stop. His nostrils flare when he turns to me. “Fine. I’m done being nice. I tried reasoning with you but obviously you’re not having it. I want you to stay with me. I’ll give you anything you want. Just help me find a cure for what’s ailing the vampires.”

Disbelief along with knowing Nikolai to be a complete douchebag makes me laugh sarcastically. “What makes you think you have anything I want? I don’t care about riches or power. I’m not joining you. You’re an over-controlling asshole who forced me into a life I’d rather not have been in. So fuck your problems.”

The suddenness of Niko’s raised hand makes me wince. I expect a hit only to feel the soft brushing of fingers against my cheeks.

When I open my eyes, he’s smiling. “That may be how you feel now, but soon you will come to realize the truth of what’s going on.”

I hate myself for the comfort his touch brings me. I shouldn’t like his touch, shouldn’t feel anything but anger and fear. Instead, my emptions are becoming contradictions. His blond hair and the silver blue of his eyes have me hypnotized. But it is because my instincts are telling me to trust him? Or the bond between sire and fledgling?

But before I can react, he pulls the car back out onto the highway and continues the drive toward his compound.

* * *

The gravel crunches beneath my shoes as I step out of the car. There is no way I’m letting Nikolai get away with trying to win me over with his arrogant charm or this odd power he wields over me. His inhuman beauty is already causing enough of a problem.

My hand lays against the cool, yellow frame of the car, my eyes on the ground as I think about the dark look in his eyes and the softness of his fingers on my skin. Fondness for him warms my chest before shock weasels its way past it.

What the hell, Sasha?

Why am I feeling anything outside of anger for Nikolai? He’s an asshole. He’s a possessive, overly controlling, power-hungry dick. I clench my teeth in frustration. The crunching of Nikolai’s black, high-end boots brings my attention back to the very vampire I want to punch right in his pretty face.

“We should get inside. It’s cold out here.” Nikolai offers his arm to me like I’m his prom date. I’m quick to decline. He shakes his head and chuckles, turning to lead me into the dreary, gray building.

Members of Nikolai’s coven jeer and glare as we make our way through the room. Instead of cowering, I meet each glare with one of my own. I’m already bullied by one vampire. No way in hell am I being demeaned by another.

We walk down a dimly lit hallway until we reach a room at the farthest end. Nikolai opens it to reveal decor I didn’t expect. It’s upscale and surprisingly modern. A bed with deep, blood-red sheets is in the center of the room.

Great. I don’t want to know who or what he uses that for. I scoff. The smell of scented lavender candles mixes with what faintly smells like alcohol, sex, and of course, Nikolai assaults my nose the moment I step into the place.

Odds are he’s entertained quite a few “guests” in his room. The thought makes me want to wretch. Yeah, who knows how many of the vampire biker chicks he has in here on a nightly basis. Probably a few human girls, too.

Nikolai takes off his jacket and hangs it on a rack in the corner. The muscles in his back ripple underneath the tight material of the black shirt he wears. His shoulders are broad and well-defined against the low-cut collar of his shirt. I didn’t think he was someone who cared about muscle definition, but he’s got enough to show that he does.

Nikolai is anything but safe, and I can’t forget that, no matter what this stupid bond between us tells me. He refuses to tell me exactly what he meant about Arsen but I know just from the aura around him that Nikolai is just as, if not more, dangerous than Arsen. Maybe this is one of the things drawing me toward him.

A slight snicker only a few feet away from me alerts me to the closeness of his proximity. His eyes are half-closed, his fangs sitting over a coy smile.

“Here’s how this is going to go. You’re going to help me find a cure. Somehow you cured me. I want to know how. In exchange, I’ll do exactly what I said. I’ll give you a seat of power right next to me when we push Arsen and his coven out of the picture. Anything,” his fingers hold my jaw as he leans into my face. “And I mean anything is yours. You have only to ask.”

I avert my eyes to the floor, making him laugh at my weak attempt at defiance.

“I’ll leave you to get cleaned up. I know it’s been a long night for you and I have some business to attend to.” He makes his way out, stopping only for a moment. “Oh, and if you should think about leaving, I wouldn’t. Not everyone in the coven is as . . . understanding as I am. You wouldn’t want to get hurt.”

I flip him off, earning another laugh. Seriously? Did he just offer to give me some time to get cleaned up and then threaten me?

Despite his warning, I search the room for any means of escape. I have to make it back to Arsen to understand what’s going on. The window is out of the question. Not only is it blocked by metal bars but beyond them, there’s nothing but a straight drop to a cold, unforgiving tar-covered lot.

Calling the police wouldn’t help because they probably wouldn’t believe me and would likely get annihilated if they tried to take on a whole coven of narcissistic vampires. Plus, I’m quickly becoming something I don’t fully understand. I’d be labeled a potential threat as well.

I sit down on the swiveling chair next to Niko’s desk in the corner of his room. Angry tears join the fearful ones as I think back to Arsen.

The gentle strength in his voice as he told me he claimed me as his own echoes in my mind, sending a slow burn through my belly. He’s the same as Nikolai. A vampire. And from the sound of it, they’re bitter rivals only focused on getting rid of their competition. I’m just the poor victim stuck in the middle of a vampire turf war.

Taking out my phone, I stare down at the glowing screen. Unlocking it, I scroll through some old photos before all of this madness. The smiles of my friend Jackson and I look back at me. Those days of pure innocence are long gone.

Determination to escape enlightens me, and I walk over to the door, opening it as quietly as I can. This asshat of a vampire is not keeping me locked up like I’m a prisoner. This princess is going to save her damn self.

Thankfully the hallway is empty and quiet despite the not-so-muffled sounds of wild sex going on in the other rooms. Nikolai’s probably entertaining one of the other vampire chicks I’d seen as we walked through this place. Blech.

Hugging the wall as closely as I can, I creep around the corner, ducking into a broom closet when a rather good-looking, buff vampire walks by with his arm slung around a well-endowed blonde in clothes so tight, they are probably screaming to get off of her. After they pass, I continue sneaking down the stairs, stopping to survey the main room.

There are a few vampires lounging around, appearing bored. Some sit on old couches, sucking face and drinking while others vie for the attention of their one-night stand of choice.

My eyes fall on Nikolai in the corner, his feet propped up on a glass coffee table with a cigarette hanging from his pointer and middle fingers. On either side of him are two very attractive women, each trying her best to win his attention only to be ignored. At least until he leans over and gives a deep kiss to the one on his left.

I roll my eyes. Business to attend to, he says? Must be nice to be a rich playboy who can get what he wants whenever he wants.

“Hey.”

I spin around to see another one of the vampires I’d glared at staring back at me with hungry silver eyes. “What’s a sexy little thing like you doing out here? Thought Nikolai took you to his room for the night.”

My heart beats fast as I try to get away from him only to be grabbed and pulled against his chest. The commotion draws Niko’s attention and from one second to the next, he is up the stairs and slamming his fellow vampire against the wall.

“You are never to touch what’s mine. Do you understand?” he asks. The severity of his voice sends shocks of fear up my spine. The other vampire nods and drops to the ground. “Good.”

Once again, I am taken by the arm and led back to Niko’s room. He pushes me inside and slams the door behind him, the sound making me jump.

“I told you, didn’t I? Not everyone here is as understanding as I am. The next time you want to try something as stupid as sneaking out, I’d rethink it.” He strolls over to where I stand with my back to the wall. He prowls toward me like a lion stalking its prey, and a fission of unease snakes up my spine. “I can see it’s going to take a bit more to keep you under control but no matter. I’m a pretty patient vampire but don’t think this means I won’t exert my authority. You’re mine, Sasha.” He runs a finger down my neck and glares into my eyes, his features harsh. “Like it or not, you’re mine.”