Love Mark

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CHAPTER 1

AMIRA

STICKY HEAT SEARED ACROSS AMIRA’S skin as she snaked silently through the trees, watching the vampire envoy make an agonizingly slow trek across the jungle. Nerves pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.

To make matters worse, there was still no sign of him. She hadn’t seen him since he vanished into the human realm two months ago. The overwhelming urge to pace plucked at her thighs, but she kept her legs still.

He will come.

He had to. She’d been watching the leader of the vampire envoy for months. He wasn’t the type to leave anything up to chance. He’d always accompanied the tankers. This time would be no different. Especially on this trek—which would be their last before the winter rains washed the roads away. The road wouldn’t be viable for another six months. She couldn’t let him disappear to find another.

It will go as planned, she reminded herself, but the words didn’t stop her fists from tightening at her sides in worry.

Too much rode on this. On him.

She’d been tracking the vampire envoy to be certain he was a True One. The vampires who were born to this world, not made. As a hunter of supernatural beings, she’d come across many great imitations. But this one, the one with the amber hair and musical laugh, was the key to her sister’s survival.

The first of the tankers slinked past her on enormous, cogged wheels that stood double her height and wider than at least three village houses. She’d known of the vast technology of the realm beyond the portals, used that knowledge to prepare her plan, but seeing it in front of her again made her gasp with awe.

“Oi,” the nasally voice of the vampire who drove the third tanker drew her attention. “The cogs are sticking.”

By a hunter’s curse, the winter rains started a week too early, making the ground wet. The resulting mud caked between the metal cogs, forcing the tankers to jerk as they inched forward. Making them too slow. She needed at least two of the tankers in the portal before her trap detonated or else her plan would go to shit.

“Eeez jus’ mud,” another shouted back with a mouth that sounded like it was filled with rocks instead of teeth, “kick it into gear an’ it’ll pass through.”

The tanker revved and picked up speed. The other tankers followed behind it. Good.

At the change in pace, a figure appeared in the distance, jogging alongside the last tanker. Amira watched the vampire, tall and built like the tanker next to him, come into view. Her shoulders loosened and a small chant of celebration went through her head.

He had come. Perhaps this day wasn’t so cursed after all.

Even from this distance she could tell how much stronger he was than the others. He had enough muscle to be. Through his shirt, they rippled as he motioned his men forward. The sight filled her with as much awe as it did dread. His muscles may have been nice to look at, but they would prove a hindrance if it came to physical combat. He’d easily thwart her plan.

Her best chance was to catch him by surprise.

The vampire spoke on a talking device, seemingly unaware of the tanker’s new pace or more importantly, her presence.

Even better.

She needed him distracted so she could take him down.

“Congratulations?” His deep voice rumbled across the air as he spoke on the device nestled against his ear. “Sure, but your mating is putting me in a tight spot. After this delivery, I’m going to have to take up bank robbery for a living.”

She couldn’t hear the person on the other side, but she didn’t need to. She only hoped whoever it was kept him talking long enough for her plan to fall into place.

Amira twisted to the portal opening in time to watch the first of five tankers enter, then tilted her gaze to the ground where she’d place three lightning bombs at the portal opening.

If she’d set them right (which she did), the detonation would set off a catastrophic chain of events that appear to be from a freak accident. The explosion would shift the plate that gave the portals stability and cause an electric current to ripple through the entire envoy rendering them inert. The aftermath would be chaos. The chaos would provide her enough time to abduct the leader.

Tucking her bottom lip between her teeth, she eyed the portal from her distance, but from her vantage point she couldn’t see much. She’d covered the dug soil too well to see the progress of the fire trap.

It will work in time.

Just as long it went off before the effects of her masking potion wore off. Masking potions disguised her in both sound and smell, but its short lifespan had her thumbing the empty vial on her side belt.

She should’ve purchased two from the alchemist just in case. Her elden mother had taught her better than this. Now she had to wait with antsy feet and hope its effects held so the vampire in front of her remained unaware of her presence.

Not likely, that.

Vampires of his kind—the True Ones—had better instincts than the vampires of her world. The alchemist wasn’t sure the masking potion would keep him unaware indefinitely. He warned the vampire’s instincts might break through it. “It’s best not to get too close too long, just in case.” Otherwise, he might start to feel her presence like someone hovering close to him in the dark.

Heeding the alchemist’s advice, she kept her distance and crouched amongst the trees, blending into the foliage and studied the vampire like she’d done so many times before.

His wide cheekbones, roguish stubble, and keen eyes widened in joy as he spoke into the talking device. Even by hunter standards, he’d be considered beautiful. Especially when his full lips spread into an easy smile. She’d never seen him this at ease.

Generally, he walked as if he needed a full body rub down. And when he spoke, the vampires around him fell in line, or scurried to avoid his wrath.

Today, the person on the talking device made him softer somehow. Soft was a better look on him.

“Hold on…” he said. The vampire sprinted away from the portal.

No! She needed him near the entrance to make his disappearance seem like part of the accident.

“Can you hear me now?” Perhaps the person on the phone could, but she couldn’t over the cogs turning the tanker’s wheels.

She had to ensure everything went to plan. Rising from her hiding place, she moved closer.

“That is not necess—” He froze, then his vampire eyes, darkened to the color of coal and flickered in her direction.

She held in a gasp and steadied her hand on one of her daggers but kept still. If he discovered her, she’d lose the advantage of surprise. But she’d fight to the death to take him anyway. The fate of her sister depended on it.

His nostrils flared as he took in his surroundings, then he raised his fist. The remaining tankers rolled to a stop. The jungle went silent.

Amira glanced at the portals again. Any minute now…

When she turned back, his eyes were directly on her.

Shit.

She ducked, embedding herself in the lush greens.

The vampire sniffed the air and stepped closer toward her, then sniffed again.

He could smell her. His instincts were breaking through the effects of the masking potion.

Amira held her breath and watched for any sign he’d recognized her presence. He must’ve known she was there. The predator behind his eyes lingered on her as if he could see her even if his host did acknowledge it. The vampire took another step and leaned in.

Against her will, her heart spiked. She clenched her chest and willed it to calm down. Having her heart go out of control would force her metabolism to burn through what was left of the masking potion.

The predator glanced at her again, almost as though he was working his way through her anonymity.

“Oi.” The driver of the furthest tanker stuck his head out a small circular window, distracting the vampire stalking toward her.

She used it to her advantage and moved backward, tucking into the thick foliage of the jungle.

The leader lifted his hand, demanding the driver’s silence. He wasn’t settled in his inspection of the jungle. Amira kept still and held her breath as the vampire’s gaze whipped around, searching for her. After a moment, the vampire’s shoulders dropped as he picked up the talking device and motioned the tankers forward.

 “Nothing. My mind sometimes plays nasty tricks.”

Careful not to make a sound, Amira sighed in relief.

His amber gaze traced the jungle again, lingering in her vicinity. So far, she was all but invisible to him, but not for long. She was running out of time.

The heavy engines of the tankers started up again, casting thick puffs of exhaust behind them as one by one, they went into the portal, disappearing as they crossed.

Still no detonation.

Her trap hadn’t worked.

The vampire’s stocky frame flanked the last tanker as he spoke on his talking device. Amira’s gaze flickered to the portal a final time. The latch hadn’t come down and the second to last tanker was almost through.

She couldn’t let him leave.

She had to take him down by hand before he crossed over. Grabbing the hilt of her dagger, she unsheathed it and made her move, but stopped.

The metal plate used to bolster this portal’s stability sank into the earth, locking the tanker into place.

Finally.

A loud rumble shot from the engine as it revved but didn’t move. Several vampires exited to check the cogs and the wheels for malfunction. The tanker was fine, but they wouldn’t realize it until it was too late.

Burning plastics scented the air as the low hiss of flames burned its way through the small tunnel she’d dug near the portal.

She flattened against the damp earth as the detonation sequence started but kept watch on her mark. As soon as it went off, she needed to grab him.

“I have to go,” he said to the person on the talking device, then paused. The plate under the last tanker exploded, sending electricity and hot metal projectiles through the air, slicing into his shoulder.

Then another explosive went off. The vampires around it dropped. The earth shook under her belly. The aftermath was grim. The cargo was destroyed, and the vampires in and around it were dazed with injury. The current wasn’t strong enough to incapacitate them. Worry crept up her spine like a poisonous slug, but Amira stayed her worry.

They would heal soon, and this was her only shot at getting the vampire she’d been tracking for months.

Amira flossed through the trees, holding tight to her dagger as she crept up behind her mark. He was much taller up close, standing at least a head above her, but with him unawares, she had a chance. He bent over to pick up the talking device gouged in the dirt. When he rose, she placed the sharp blade under his chin and gave him a simple warning.

“Don’t move.”

The vampire fought against her. If not for the injury on his shoulder, he might’ve flung her over it. Instead, she used her weapon to her advantage, pressing it into his neck until the tip bubbled with blood. He stilled.

“I said, don’t move.”

“Who are you? What do you want?”

Silence was her best weapon here. She scanned the jungle, looking for the others that were sure to come. Thankfully they were busy dealing with the inferno engulfing the last tanker.

“Is it money?” he asked. “I can give you plenty.”

Vampires were all the same. No matter if they were the True Ones or not. They thought they could buy themselves out of any situation. But she needed to keep him distracted.

“Interesting, that. Don’t you owe debts? Isn’t that what you told the person on the talking device?”

“That’s only a wager between siblings. I come from means. Anything you need, I can provide it. I am called Gustav. I don’t hail from here.”

The skin under her dagger sizzled. So, he was susceptible to one of the many poisons she’d dipped her blades in. Maybe it would make him fight less.

“I have given you my name. What are you called?”

She rolled her eyes. So, he thought he could order her around as he’d done with the rest of the vampire envoy? Not this time.

“No, no, vampire. Only I ask the questions here.”

“Fair enough. Ask away.”

She had no real questions for him. What she needed was a heavy rock to knock him out. He was still too spry to go with her willingly.

“What are you here for?” she asked, to keep him occupied while she searched for something heavy enough to bring him to his knees.

“I’m only passing through.”

“Interesting, that. These lands are restricted. You do not have permission to cross.”

“I didn’t realize that before I came, but I’m here now and we’re almost through. We can come to a bargain. Whatever your needs are, I can have them met.”

She held in an incredulous chuckle. Could he be more typical? Just like a vampire to think with his assumptions instead of the organ inside his skull. She shifted backward, bringing him with her as she searched the ground with her boot.

“What do you think I need, vampire?”

“The needs of everyone, no matter their kind. Food, water, money, shelter…”

She dug her toes in the earth. Ah. There.

Just under her foot, a rock large enough to crack his skull wedged in the dirt. She kicked it loose and leaned for it, but only succeeded in digging her blade deeper into his neck. She’d have to let him go or else she’d kill him.

“Whatever your needs are, I can provide.”

She lowered her blade enough to kick the rock within reach and grab it.

When he turned to face her, she swung as hard as she could. The rock met its mark and his large body staggered back.

“I don’t bargain with vampires.” She hit him again. This time, he swayed until his knees buckled and collided with the earth.

“You’re all the same, you. Too much ego to think we’d need anything from you.”

She pushed him backward. His amber eyes went unfocused, dazed, until they closed. The rock in her hand left a bruise on the side of his face, but his body was already healing him. It wouldn’t be long before he regained consciousness. She didn’t have much time.

On either front, she realized, glancing over her shoulder.

The flames of the tanker were nearly out. Soon, they’d count their injured and search for him.

She needed to work fast.

From her belt, she pulled out her long rope and looped it around his ankles, binding his feet together to make it impossible for him to run if he woke before she got him back.

Once his feet were secure, she pulled the slack across her shoulders and fastened it into a makeshift harness.

He spoke, but his words slurred as if she’d filled his mouth with the mud caked between the tanker’s cogged wheels. Amira yanked him away before the others could hear him.

As soon as they were out of range, his words were better.

“Where are you taking me?” he asked, fear eclipsing his voice. The same fear she’d heard too many times.

She remained silent, forcing her guilt away. She’d come too far to turn back now. Too many people relied on this. Her sister relied on this.

He was a True One, she assured herself. He would be sturdy enough; her ministrations wouldn’t kill him.

The vampire under her tried to yell, but only succeeded in garbling sound in his throat. A quick glance back revealed his barely conscious state.

It would be over soon.

“You don’t have to do this,” he said.

Unfortunately for him, she did.

“Yes, I do.” She tightened her grasp and hauled him away.

Author’s Note: If you’ve read Love Game, you know Gustav doesn’t play around. If Amira was able to take him down, he’s certainly met his match! I originally wrote this scene from Gustav’s point of view. Head over to the Love Mark bonus content section to check it out.