Bloodlust

Taken

— VENICE —

The men stormed into Liam's house by force. I watched them break off the doorknob like a pencil.

That was when it officially dawned on me that these men in black were also supernatural creatures. Hunters, probably, since Marvin called them.

My blood boiled at the thought. Liam only protected himself against Marvin's attack. Marvin posed more of a threat to me and other humans than Liam did at this point.

This entire situation was just so wrong. I knew something terrible was going to happen to Liam and that left my gut loaded with guilt.

"You're coming with me," Marvin snarled from behind me.

As I turned around to mouth off at him, a pair of steel bands wrapped around me and jerked me off the ground. Marvin through me over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes.

"Put me down!" I shrieked, flailing my arms and legs. "Marvin, put me down!"

"No!" he snapped. His hand sailed across my ass in a crisp spanking that made me hiss. "They can hear you. Now, shut up."

My heart throbbed angrily in frustration and uncertainty. Liam was about to get hauled off by the vampire authorities, who would probably kill him. I felt such a strong conviction to at least try to stop that from happening.

"Let me go, right now!" I yelled.

"Stop screaming or I'll find something to fill that mouth with," he snarled.

"You're disgusting," I gasped, revolted.

"I'm saving your life, dumbass—"

"Hunter Alvarez," a deathly calm, deep voice called from behind us with some kind of accent.

Marvin halted in his tracks. I tensed from where I hung over his shoulder. When I tried to lift my head to glimpse who it was, Marvin turned so that I was facing the house.

"Is this the human girl?" rumbled the same accented voice.

Shit.

Even I knew that wasn't a good sign. He must have told them about me.

What the hell did he tell them?

Marvin remained silent. The force of his brain trying to think of a way out of this blanketed me in a fresh sense of fear.

"Leave her alone," growled another masculine voice that blasted my skin with goosebumps. "She knows nothing."

Liam. I took a deep breath through my nose.

"She doesn't know anything," he said in the most chillingly firm voice. "Leave her alone."

"Bring her here," thundered the first voice.

Marvin sighed. "I'm sorry, Venice." His body lurched forward into motion.

"No, no," I started to panic. "What are you doing?"

"I warned you," he hissed at me. "I fucking warned you and you never goddamn listen."

Tears spilled down my cheeks. Marvin was taking me to them. He was going to hand me over on a silver platter, without any hint of a fight.

I'm going to die.

Marvin stopped walking and placed me on my feet. His hands gripped my upper arms, holding me against his chest like a shield.

My eyes blinked rapidly to clear the moisture obscuring my vision. Liam was held between two of the men and his hands appeared to be held behind him.

The third man stepped toward us and leaned down, peering into my eyes. They were a frosty blue color with a tiny black pupil. His breath reeked of dead fish.