Bloodlust

Safe Room

— VENICE —

While Liam chased Rob out of the bathroom, I turned off the shower and hurried out. My legs trembled under my weight like a baby deer learning to walk again.

All I could think about was who this Ptolemy person was. Rob seemed shaken.

And how did someone just pop by for a visit? The man literally had an army of very scary, very strong hybrid monsters.

Wrapping a massive fluffy towel around my body, I hurried out to the bedroom.

Liam was already pulling a pair of jeans up his legs as I entered the room. His gaze flicked up at me, dark with concern.

"What's happening?" I asked. "Who is Ptolemy?"

Liam sucked down a deep breath and shook his head. "He's a Princep."

My eyes probably bugged out of my head as I choked on my spit. "A Princep? As in, the Princeps who hired Hunters to kidnap us?"

"I'm afraid so, yes."

I felt like puking. There was a man here, on this property, who wanted us dead or tortured, at the very least.

Is this when I die? How many times do I get to think that before it actually happens?

"What do we do?" I squeaked. "And how the hell are you so damn calm right now?"

Liam crossed to me and placed his hands on my bare, damp shoulders. My heart climbed into my throat.

"We will figure it out," he said. "Whether that means fighting or making peaceable amends, we will figure something out. I won't let them hurt you, Venice. You have my word."

My lips pursed. I didn't want him to make me that promise.

If something happened to him, it was pretty much inevitable something would happen to me. I would never blame him for that, especially not after all we'd been through, but I didn't want him to hold himself solely responsible for my safety.

"Can't we just hide?" I asked, grimacing. "I mean, I know that's the cowardly thing to do, but it's like I'll be much of a help in fighting ancient freaking vampires. Also, how do we know that he knows we're even here? Maybe it's a trick and he just wants to know if Rob is hiding fugitives."

"Rob is trying to determine now if he came alone," he explained. "That will tell a lot. If Ptolemy is here alone, he is likely only here to assess Rob's forces. If he has come with some forces, he may be ready to attack. But it's safe to assume his unexpected visit isn't a coincidence."

I blew out a breath. I didn't see how we could escape this. We were talking full-scale war, crossbreeds going to battle with vampires.

"Well, the crossbreeds are badass. They can chew up a couple of vampires, no problem. Right?" I added nervously.

Liam shook his head, biting back a tiny smile. "In theory, although they aren't infallible. One vampire can't take on a crossbreed alone, but four or five with weapons . . . that's a different story."

His words left me shuddering. I tried to suppress the panic ballooning in my chest but I didn't have a single optimistic thought of how this situation would end.

"It's going to be okay, baby," Liam said softly, tipping my chin up. "Trust me."

"I do. I just feel like going to war isn't going to end well for anyone. I wish we could just go on the run again."

"We can't run. At this point, there would be no safe place for us. And if I do not fight alongside Rob and his family, I will marked as a traitor to them. They're the only allies we have."