“Tell me what you’re doing here,” she ordered.
Saxon didn’t know if he was more shocked or amused by the woman. Yes, she had a stake aimed at his heart, but he could break free of his binds and have the weapon in his hand before she touched it to his chest. Besides, she didn’t look strong enough to hold the weapon, let alone wield it.
The chocolate brown hair tumbling over her shoulders tickled his cheek as it fell in waves to her waist. Clear, arctic blue eyes held his as she lifted her delicate chin in a stubborn gesture. Her rosebud lips were set in a grim line of determination, and her thick eyebrows were knitted together. At around five foot four, she was a good eleven inches shorter than him.
If the shadows lining her eyes were any indication, she hadn’t slept in weeks. Her too-big sweater slid off her shoulder to reveal her collarbone, which stood out against her pale skin. She was so thin her cheeks were hollow, and the bones in the hand holding the stake were visible. The fast pace of her heart betrayed her steely look, but her gaze never wavered from his.
Despite her frail appearance, she was stunning, and he’d give anything to run his hand along the delicate contours of her face before caressing those lips with his thumb. Ever since he reached maturity and his purebred vampire instincts kicked in, he’d buried himself in more women than he could count to keep the demon within him suppressed, but none had ever left him as breathless as this tiny human.
Mortal and surrounded by Savages, what was going on here?
His surprise over her vanished as he realized this was not amusing. He was wounded, in a cabin in the middle of nowhere, and though she fascinated him, she was clearly working with his enemies.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“I’m the one asking the questions.” Elyse felt more confident now that she had the stake over his heart. If he tried anything, she’d kill him. The idea of it made her stomach turn, but she’d do whatever it took to save herself. “Why are you here?”
“I’m not sure why I’m here.”
“Don’t lie to me! I’m not in the mood.”
She may look like a good breeze would blow her over, but she possessed a ferocity he hadn’t expected. “I’m not lying. I was sent here.”
“By who?”
“A friend.”
“Are you here to kill me?”
“No.” Or at least he didn’t think he was. They didn’t kill humans, and Kadence would never lead them somewhere to murder someone, but then, Kadence hadn’t known what she was leading them toward when she told them about this cabin. “I don’t kill humans.”
She snorted. “Yeah, and I’m the Queen of England. You’re all monsters.”
“Not all of us. Why are you here with the Savages?”
Elyse clamped her teeth together. He may not be here to kill her—and she’d have an easier time believing aliens walked among them than believing that—but if he didn’t know why these vamps were using her, then she wasn’t going to tell him. He might decide her gift was one to be used and manipulated and imprison her too, or he might kill her to protect himself.
“If you don’t kill humans, then how do you survive?” she inquired.
“I can feed on someone without killing them.”
His gaze dipped to her throat and the tempting beat of her pulse. She’d be delicious. He didn’t have to taste her to know that; he could feel it in every fiber of his being.
“Don’t,” Elyse said sharply when she saw the direction of his gaze.
She pressed the stake into his chest, and Saxon winced. Under normal circumstances, she would have felt sorry for anyone or anything she harmed, but this was far from normal. She didn’t care if he wasn’t here to kill her; she would kill him before she ever allowed one of these things to feed on her again. Elyse suppressed a shudder at the memory of the one time it happened to her; the soul-crushing intensity of the pain was something she’d never forget.
“I won’t,” he promised though the fire in his veins had increased when he pictured sinking his fangs into her delicate throat. He’d been beaten, fed on by a Savage, and lost a lot of blood; he had to feed so he could replenish himself and finish healing. “I won’t drink from you, Elyse.”
Not unless you ask me to. He almost licked his lips at the prospect, but he suspected she might stake him if he did.
“I don’t believe you,” she said.
He realized he was never going to earn her trust while he remained tied up like a hog for the slaughter. In one swift motion, he yanked his wrists down. A loud scraping sound followed the movement, but before Elyse could react, he plucked the stake from her hand and rolled to the side.
Elyse scrambled away as Saxon pulled the couch five feet toward him before drawing his knees up to his chest and yanking the coffee table toward him. He tore through the bindings on his ankles and kicked them away.
She’d known the binds weren’t strong enough to restrain him for long, but he’d broken free in less time than it took her to inhale and stolen her weapon before she could blink. He tugged the sheets on his wrists free and tossed them on the floor while she scrambled back and leapt to her feet.
The open room at her back was the best option for fleeing, but even if it bought her a few precious seconds of life, she’d rather die. Instead, she darted to the right and around the couch Saxon had dragged across the floor. With her damaged and swollen feet, she felt like she was running on glass as she lunged for his jacket and the weapons stashed inside.
She’d never seen him get to his feet, but his hand fell on the coat before hers. Elyse almost screamed in anger when he yanked it away from her. Like every other asshole vamp who had walked through the door, this bastard was playing with her.
“Elyse….”
She didn’t wait to hear what he had to say, she turned and fled into the kitchen and toward the back door. She’d forgotten about the blizzard, but as soon as she flung open the door, she was slapped in the face by the reminder.
No! The wail of dismay echoed in her head as she gazed at the mound of snow before her. It was nearly to her knees already as it fell through the doorway and spilled around her feet. She danced out of the way of the snow, but it touched the toes she was certain she would lose earlier. Thankfully, her extremities didn’t show any signs of frostbite, but she couldn’t stick them in something cold again.
“Easy,” Saxon said from behind her and grasped her shoulder.
“Don’t touch me!”
Her scream was so raw and petrified that he released her as soon as he touched her. She backed away from him as she twisted her head to peer over her shoulder. She brushed at her skin before turning to stare at him with an expression that made him feel like he’d taken her puppy and thrown it off a cliff.
“Elyse—”
“Stay back,” she said as she tried to examine her skin again.
She didn’t see any blood, and she didn’t smell burnt copper; if he’d gotten any blood on her, then it wasn’t his. The chair skidded across the floor as she planted it between them while she backed toward the room she just fled.
Saxon held his hands up as he tracked her movements. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
She gave him a “yeah right” look as she dragged the broken chair with her toward the other room.