Author: N. L. Hoffmann
Category: Vampires
Go to read content：https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/n-l-hoffmann/page,6,534269-demis_at_stake.html
The man nodded. “Allen called to let me know, panicking because she was pregnant. He said he’d delivered the baby and was taking it to the hospital. He’s new, not used to being a werewolf.” He looked at the floor, ashamed. “I accidentally changed him.”
Shaking my head, I sighed. “You should be put down for that.”
He blew out a breath. “I know. I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”
“Good thing.” Troy lifted the gun and squeezed the trigger before I could stop him.
The werewolf staggered back into the wall and slid down it, blood blooming on his left shoulder. “Fuck! It burns!”
“It’s silver. Of course it does!” Troy spun around to glare at me. “What the fuck were you thinking? He’s a damn werewolf.”
“We need answers. Something else happened here. He can help.” I ignored Troy’s glare and walked over to the werewolf, crouching down. “Unfortunately, even if we get that out, it’s already started to leak into your system. You’ll be dead within the hour. Tell us what we need to know, and I’ll put you out of your misery so you can be free of the pain.”
He clenched his teeth and groaned, “I can’t believe this is how I die.”
I couldn’t believe Troy shot him. At least not yet. I knew if he accidentally changed someone that meant he wasn’t being careful. Which made him dangerous. We couldn’t have new wolves running around the city. There was no one to keep track of them. It was so frowned upon, most pack leaders had a law about changing someone. It had to be agreed upon by the pack so they could all take care of the newly changed wolf.
I gripped his jaw so he’d look at me. “What’s your name?” I asked, gazing into his dark eyes.
He blinked several times, getting dizzy from the silver poisoning his system. It was working fast. At this rate, he may not even have an hour.
Swearing, I snapped my fingers in front of his face, his glazed eyes trying to focus on me. “What do you know about what happened to your brother?”
“I don’t know. The scent is strange. I’ve never smelled anything like it before,” he mumbled, head lolling back, eyes closing.
Growling in annoyance, I let him fall back to the floor. “You shouldn’t have shot him.”
Troy shrugged. “Too late now.”
“Obviously.” Shaking my head, I aimed the gun at the werewolf and shot him in the head.
AS THE SUN STARTED to set, we decided to get dinner before we began hunting for the vampire. We chose a small pizza place near Allen’s apartment. That whole thing did not go according to plan. It was hard working with someone else when they had different methods than you did. Seth and Blair were also shoot first, ask questions later. Whereas Ruby and I tended to take our time and get answers. I just wanted this damn night to be over with so I could get Troy out of my way.
Wiping my hands on a napkin, I grabbed my soda. “I guess we can start down at the park closest to here.”
Shrugging, Troy nodded. “Sounds like a plan.” He stared at me for a few long moments. “Hunting with you is different. You’re focused and always have a plan, but you have communication issues. You should have let me know you wanted to talk to him.”
“You didn’t give me a chance! I was trying to question him, then you decided to shoot him.” Seeing other patrons looking our way, I lowered my voice and leaned across the table. “If we’re going to work together, you need to allow me to get information first.”
“Sometimes they don’t want to give answers.”
“He was calm.”
Troy shrugged again. “Whatever. He’s dead now.”
“All because of you. Bastard.”
Laughing, Troy grabbed my hand. When I tried to pull away from him, he held tightly, reminding me of the moment with Cathal. “Your hands are so small and delicate. It’s hard to believe you have the heart of a killer.”
Shaking my head, I yanked my hand away. “Well, I do. Make sure you remember that.”
Leaving the restaurant, we started walking toward the park. The moon was out, the sky clear. It was a really nice night. Too bad I had to spend it hunting down a vampire who seemed to be intent on spying on me.
As we entered the area, I saw people walking or running through the park. Why they chose to come out at night was beyond me. Had I not been in the business, I would be at home, safe.
I shivered, the feeling of being watched overwhelming me. Which wouldn’t surprise me because I was sure it didn’t take vampires long to hear about the werewolves. Some of them may even be hunting us in groups. It had happened before.
Opening up my senses, I scanned the area for anything unusual. I could tell Troy did the same thing. Suddenly, he grabbed my hand and grinned.
“We should look like a couple on a walk, not like hunters.”
Hesitating, I finally agreed, allowing our fingers to intertwine. It felt weird at first, but then I started to like the warmth of his hand. I laid my head on his shoulder as we strolled through the park.
“See? Not so bad.” Troy chuckled when I turned to look up at him, eyes narrowed. “What? You know you like this. You can’t be a hunter all the time.”
“My whole life has been about hunting. When I was younger and in training, no one could know what we did, so we kept to ourselves.” I frowned. “People thought it was weird that we were always together, but we managed just fine, I suppose.” I pressed my lips together, realizing I was telling him too much.
Troy chuckled. “Don’t stop now. Let’s get to know each other.” When I didn’t say anything, he pointed to himself. “What about me? Thanks for asking.” In spite of myself, I chuckled. “Well, I grew up with my dad, who died when I was eighteen. It was my very first time on a hunt. Two vampires jumped him. By the time I made it over to him, he was dead.”
I looked up at him in surprise. “I’m so sorry. That had to be really hard.”
He shrugged. “It was, but it made me want to hunt even more. Before, I wondered if I should just go off to college, but after that, I was determined to kill the bastards myself. I went a week straight without much sleep or food.” He shook his head. “I came close to dying myself, until a lady at a local restaurant saw me shuffling by and gave me some food, telling me to rest on a cot at the back of the restaurant. Best sleep I’ve ever had.”
Smiling, I looked at a couple huddled by a tree. She laughed as he tried to feed her an ice cream cone. They looked normal. We kept on moving, taking notice of the ones dressed in dark clothing. They appeared harmless, so we continued.
We walked around a bend that took us deeper into the woods. Troy stopped and turned to me, backing me into a tree
“What are you doing?” I asked curiously.
Troy ran a hand down the side of my face, brushing my hair back behind my ear. He leaned down, gently pressing his lips to mine. I sighed, closing my eyes as a calm swept over my body. His hands gripped my waist, pulling me into him as he deepened the kiss. I moaned, placing my arms around his neck.
He kissed my face, moving down my neck. I moaned with pleasure, urging him to continue, but he suddenly froze.
“Demi?”
“Hmm?” I hummed, brushing my fingers along the back of his neck.
“What the fuck are those?”
I looked at him, seeing his gaze in my neck. Reaching up, I felt the two marks from Cathal. I shrugged. “I don’t know. I probably got hurt.”
“Those look like fang marks.”
“If they were fang marks, don’t you think they would be deeper?” I demanded, shoving him away. “Mind your own business.”
When I turned to walk away, he grabbed my arm, pulling me to him. “Don’t walk away from me. I want you, Demi. Don’t deny this connection. I know vampires seem appealing, in a deadly kind of way, but you don’t need that kind of trouble. I can give you everything you need.”
I pulled away from him and placed my hands on my hips. “I don’t like vampires, and if you felt like there was a connection, you wouldn’t have been hi
tting on that girl earlier.”
“I knew it! You’re jealous.”
“Fuck you!” I shoved him away, storming down the path.
I could hear Troy swearing as I walked around the corner. He would catch up soon enough.
When I saw a shoe sitting in the middle of the path, I stopped, looking around. It wasn’t there a second ago. Slowly, I crept toward the trees, hearing a snap of a twig, pulling my gun out at the same time. When someone grabbed me and yanked me into the woods, I tried to scream, but a hand covered my mouth. I struggled, attempting to dislodge whoever it was, but they kept moving, dodging my attempts.
“Calm down, beautiful.”
My eyes widened when I recognized the voice. Cathal. Once he felt my body relax, he released me, turning me around to face him. He grinned, flashing his fangs.
“Out hunting, sweet one?”
When I just stared at him, he sighed. “You have to get used to me at some point. By the way, don’t look down. There’s a body.”
Didn’t he know if you told somebody not to do something that was the first thing they did? Sure enough, there was a man lying in the grass, holes in his neck, face pale. When I widened my eyes at Cathal, he shook his head, holding up his hands.
“It wasn’t me.” I rolled my eyes. He frowned. “I don’t murder everyone I come across, you know. I already fed tonight. You’ll be happy to know that I let them live...this time.”
“Demi! Where the fuck are you?” Troy shouted, walking right past where we stood in the woods.
Cathal leaned in, his warm breath tickling my ear. “He shouldn’t be touching you. I get jealous.” He glanced down at the body. “There is something else out there, hunting, but I can’t tell you any more now. Your hunter friend will be returning, and I wish to avoid a confrontation. I wouldn’t mind snapping his neck, though.”
I glared at him. “I can fuck who I want.”
“Such foul language for such a beautiful mouth.” He laughed softly, pulling a scrap of paper from his pocket. “You must meet me at this address tomorrow. Come alone. I will tell you all you need to know about the wolf’s murder, as well as this one.”
“You’re the one doing it. I know you are. You can’t just go cold turkey,” I hissed.
Cathal moved up to me, pressing his body against mine. My breath caught at his proximity. “What is cold turkey?”
“It’s...” I shook my head “Never mind. I don’t have time to explain it.”
I turned to look at Troy as he passed by again, calling my name. When I turned back, Cathal was gone. I looked at the piece of paper in my hand and shoved it into my pocket, stepping out of the woods.
“I found a body!”
Chapter Nine
Troy leaned over the body, examining the wounds. The person’s arms and legs looked to have been bound, but the bindings were nowhere to be found. Frowning, he looked up at me. “Didn’t you hear me calling? Why didn’t you respond?”
“Sorry. I was farther back in the woods. I thought I’d heard someone,” I lied.
“You could have been killed.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m a hunter. It’s part of the job.”
Huffing, he stood up. “I’ll call the others. I think we need to sweep the area for vampires.” He took out his phone and pushed someone’s contact. “By the way, we’re not finished talking about those marks on your neck. You will give me an answer, or I’ll bring it up to Seth.”
“Asshole.”
He chuckled. “You love it.”
“Not really.”
He walked away as the call connected. “Hey, it’s me... We found a body at one of the parks... We’re sweeping the area for vampires... Okay... Sure.”
When he hung up, he shoved his phone into his back pocket. “Go grab that shoe, then help me drag this body away from the path.”
I rushed out and snatched up the shoe, then returned. We dragged it farther into the woods so nobody would stumble upon it. We’d probably report it later, but we didn’t need the cops around the park right now. They would be a distraction, preventing us from taking out a vampire if we came across one.
Once we deposited the body in what we deemed a safe area, I looked around. Cathal said he had more to tell me. I wondered if it was a trap. Could I trust him? Should I? He could have drained me dry at any point, but he didn’t. That had to mean something, right?
Shaking my head, I rubbed my temples. I should be ashamed of myself for hiding this information from my family. If they ever found out, they might never forgive me. Why the fuck was I keeping it from them anyway?
Troy walked over to me, placing his hands on my shoulders and looking into my eyes. “Are you okay? You seem a bit...off.” His gaze then went to my neck. “Tell me what happened there, Demi?”
I sighed. “Nothing. Just let it go, okay?”
He nodded, lips in a tight line. “Sure...after I tell Seth about it.”
“What right do you have to get into my business?” I narrowed my eyes. “Maybe I have a thing for vamps sucking on my neck.”
Troy glared. “You’d better not.”
“What will you do about it?” I threw up my hands. “Oh, right. I forgot. You’ll run to Seth.” I pulled away from him, stomping toward the path.
Grabbing my arm, Troy pulled me to him. “I like you, Demi. A lot. I don’t want to see you make a mistake. Let me help you.” He kissed me softly.
Turning away, I frowned, coming up with a quick lie. “I went to a vamp club earlier to see if I could find out anything. I flirted with one guy, hoping to score some information. He got a little too close.”
His face immediately reddened, fists clenched. “You went into a vamp club alone?! Fuck, Demi. Do you have a death wish? That’s dangerous. No hunter would dare go into one of those places without backup.”
I shrugged. “It was just for information. They didn’t know I was hunter.” This lying thing was coming far too easy for me. Smiling, I patted his cheek. “Don’t be so concerned.”
He gestured to my neck. “Seems like it was a close call. He could have taken a bite out of you. Hell, he almost did! All he had to do was feed you his blood and you would be one of them.” He took his hat off and ran a hand over his hair. “You’re going to give me a heart attack one day.”
“Troy, we just met. I don’t have to answer to you.”
Frowning, he nodded. “You’re right. Let’s go hunting.”
KICKING THE VAMPIRE in the stomach, I grinned. This was what I wanted. I needed to let off some steam. I swung out, a stake in my hand, heading directly for his heart. He grabbed my wrist, stopping me an inch away from his chest.
“Good try, honey,” he chuckled, shoving me back.
Coming at him again, I grabbed my gun from the back of my jeans, shooting several wooden bullets in his direction. He managed to dodge two of them, but one struck his arm.
Swearing, he hissed at me, showing his fangs. “Bitch!”
“That’s what I’ve been told!” I kicked him in the face, forcing him back a couple feet.
Using his vampire speed, he ran behind me, wrapping his arm around my throat. I stepped on his foot, then elbowed him in the junk. When he bent over to hold himself, I kneed him in the face. Grabbing another stake from my coat, I drove it into his back. He screamed, falling to his knees.
When he fell onto his side, I kicked him over, driving the stake deeper into his back. I stomped on his chest, shoving it all the way through until part of it stuck out the front.
I stood over him, panting, watching the light disappear from his eyes. Troy came up behind me, out of breath. “You got the bastard?” I nodded, smiling. “I just shot the fuck out of mine.”
“That’s no fun. I played a little bit.” I walked over and grabbed the vampire under his arms, dragging the body into the woods. “We’ll have to eventually pick them up so we can burn them at another location.”
Nodding, Troy rushed over to help me. “Seth is on his way. He g
ot two of his own. Found them attacking a girl in an alley.” He dropped the vampire’s arms and placed his hands on his hips. “Shit, I’m about done for the night.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s two in the morning.” He came over to me, pulling me into his body with one hand. “Want to go have some fun after this?”
Laughing, I leaned away from his kiss. “I thought we just did that?”
He pulled me closer, kissing my neck and running his tongue over the wound there. “I want a different kind of fun. All this fighting is giving me a second wind. I want to fuck you so hard you cry out my name. Interested?”
I gasped at his crude words, my body shivering. “You’re bad.”
“Want to see how bad?” He waggled his brows and gripped my ass, hard. I could feel his hard length pressing against me. I opened my mouth to say yes, but I heard someone clear their throat. Glancing over, I saw Ruby grinning.
“Right over a dead vampire? Have some respect!” Ruby shook her head, looking down at the body. “I’m guessing my sister did this one?”
“How do you know?” I asked, yelping when Troy pinched my ass.
“Because he looks pretty beat up. You killed him before he could actually heal. Troy looks like the type to just get the job done.” Ruby walked over to the vampire he killed, nodding. “Yep. Two shots to the chest, no other damage.”
I could feel Troy’s hand moving over my ass. “Meet me in my bedroom tonight?” he whispered.
I grinned. “I think I have plans.”
Troy laughed, heading out of the woods. Ruby looked at me with wide eyes. “Girl, he has the hots for you. First Jesse, now him. You have a selection of men!”
Shaking my head, I started out of the woods. “No, I don’t. They’re players.”
“So, just get a taste. Enough to satisfy the bitch in you.” Ruby laughed when I raised an eyebrow at her.
“Who’s a bitch?” Blair asked once we came out of the woods. She had hands on her hips, looking around the park.