A New Meaning to the Night

Chapter Twenty: Enemies & Allies

Kellan straightened from the pillar and strolled towards her with a grin. "Hello."

Sam looked at him with suspicion and took a step back. "What's going on?"

 "It's very simple, really," he replied, changing directions and beginning to circle her. "I've been asked to make sure you're not hiding anything. So I just need to take a look inside that pretty head of yours, and then I can accompany you to dinner."

Her chin lifted and she stopped moving to stand her ground. "Absolutely not."

Interest flickered in his eyes, "I'm afraid I have to insist."

"If he doesn't trust me, then he doesn't trust me. I'll quit and he won't have to worry about it." She knew she should've been trying to seem cowed and scared, but she refused to hide the irritation and spite in her eyes. "No one is delving into my mind."

Kellan stopped moving and grinned at her. "I'm afraid it's not a matter of choice, Samantha. I can suggest that you allow me entrance, but either way, I assure you, I will get in whether you allow it or not."

"Damien, I—" She felt Kellan start to enter her mind and she sent up mental barriers immediately. "I can assure you, you won't," she snapped. In the blink of an eye, he had her up against the wall, pinned by her arms.

"I apologize, but this is going to hurt."

"Go to hell." The pain was sharp and unrelenting, but she clenched her jaw and pushed back just as hard. After it had gone on for twenty minutes, Sam's pupils became slits and her fangs appeared. She hissed at him and wished desperately she could cause his hands to burn, but no one knew she was a witch.

As soon as she'd thought it, he let go of her, his eyes widening in surprise. She shot across the ballroom, taking the opportunity, but cursed. Now was a fine time to find out that being a vampire meant she could do spells without speaking. He slammed her into another wall, his hazel eyes searching. "Let me in."

In response, she spit in his face. He grabbed her by the throat and leaned in close to her ear. "Samantha let me in."

Before she could respond again, that door Jacob had originally sent her through burst open. "What's taking so long? Have you finished?"

The second the door had opened, Kellan had crashed his lips to hers, surprising her enough that she didn't immediately push away. When Jacob spoke, Kellan pulled away and let her go, turning his attention to his king. "As you suspected, she's nothing but a half-vampire maid. Harmless."

Jacob sent him a narrow-eyed look. "I never told you to maul her."

Before Kellan could respond, Sam was sailing past the two of them. "I've never been more insulted in my entire life!" she announced, shooting Jacob a dirty glare. She didn't know why Kellan had lied, but she didn't wait around to figure it out. "I assume it will come as no surprise to you that I quit."

"Samantha, darling," Jacob turned to follow her, all charm. "I, of course, completely understand that you're upset. You must understand that as such an important man, I must take certain precautions."

Tossing an irritated look over her shoulder, she didn't bother to play the admirer as she allowed the mental barriers to go down. "And I suppose it never occurred to you to simply ask me before throwing me into a room with that...that jerk? I'm no longer hungry. Thank you for the invitation, but I'll have to express my regrets." She made it less than twenty feet out the doorway and down the hallway when she heard the shouting.

"Where the hell is she? Get the hell out of my way!"

"Meet me on the other side. There's a motel on the outskirts of Paradise, Heaven's Gate. Meet me there tomorrow night, ten o'clock."