a knock at

shoulder. “If I wanted to be

lior?” It was a man’s voice

gel. “I have seen you before, during the battle of the ill-named Armageddon,” he began to smile wit

eered. “Rele

n stepped around Elior. “And

el held out a hand imperiously. "Y

. “This man tried to kill your m

ll her mother, but only one of them had been winged. “Oh, f-k,” she

ose. “No,” he angled his head and squinted at her as i

meyer’s daughter, and Ashlynn Cohen, now,” he added, firmly. Ashlynn glanced up at him, her jaw falling loose at the appropriation,

sed. Die, then, if you are so determined to do so, idiot girl, maybe that will free m

o that daylight flooded the room, sparkling off the broken glass shards like

feet.” He picked her up, carrying her with ease out of the door before settlin

begun to shake. “Th

hin. “This will do,” he decided drawing her in after him. He closed the door. The room was identical to the one they had just left, except its window glass was intact, rather than shattered

er mate the man who had tried to kill her mother during the battle of Armageddon, which had resulted in her mother d

ther to her death, then, yes, that was Cael,” he eased his arm und

as distraught,” she murmured, her eyes h

to sleep,

she sai

uation with Cael is complicated, and we will be together unti

t hurt to keep her bed warm with the vampire in the interim, and he was such a delicious and talente

s an agreement." He pressed his lips to the

hen the door opened, hitting a

londe hair pulled back in a scalp-torturing ponytail, and a black satin trench coat belted tightly at the waist. Her legs were clasped in a

very shabby in comparison as she pushed the tangle of her hair back

clothes,” the woman

pilled across the thick red and gold carpet, picking up and reflecting off fin

woman continued.

ad to be an improvement over the stolen clothes and pyjamas and more decent than the top

and tossed a box at Ashlynn. It land

shlynn opened the

ings.” She draped them over the foot of the bed with more respect than she

. If he liked stockings, and she liked the man, she would happily wear them for him, just to find out exactly how much he liked them. There were many uses for stockings, she added to herself. She could always tie t

ment, her expression unreadable. “No.” She was dismissive with the answer

ren amongst vampires – biological children, and those the v

“We are not friends. You do n

e are,” Ashlynn held her ha

trouble. He does not

rouble. I am happy to just f-k him stupid, if that keeps things less troubl

the sound out dubiously.

kno

of the Others are not. Elior keeps the order, keeps the humans calm, and protects the Other world. Without him, the humans will

he window in the other room. I am seriously just here for a ride home. And to ride El

ross the room, pausing in the door. “In any way. Someone will bring you food,”

e closed door, the vampire was gone. “Friendly,” she mut

garter belts and thigh high stockings. “For someone who disapproves of me f-king her daddy, she sure outfitted me for seduction,” sh

rom her escape attempts and the car accident, and carpet burn from her interludes with Elior.

uspect that Ashlynn’s blood probably held the same properties as her mother’s did. How much o

ual appetite, and that couldn’t be faked. Her blood might be a perk, and a reason

re Wingless, how had they found her when she had been warding herself religi

g her eyeliner and apply the magnetic eyelashes, because the vampire who didn’t like her had provided them. She batted her eyelashes at herself. “Sexy barely-

r than little dresses and high heels, but it was cute, she decided, even if it was impractical. And very, very sexy. “I thin

rogrammed in the numbers that she re

His tone w

y,

breath. “Ashlynn

she smirked as she stepped into the elevator. She selected the ground floor. “This is my new phone, so

ou were already on your

Elior to drop everything in o

with violence, so much so that her mind blanked, and she groped for the close

wall as a tangle of limbs and sn

t of her met her eyes in a sightless stare that was explained by the fact that his head was facing the wrong way for his body. A trickle of sp

oice was urgent. “Wha

tless eyes. “The vampire embassy is under attack from humans in black

hi

d, falling to his knees. The vampire’s eyes were entirely red, and his mouth and chin and the front of his expen

out, and he turned his head in her direction. His movement w

to her feet and propelled her back towar

eding,” she

mself. “I liked this

e saw the blonde who had brought her clothes snap the neck of

curtains torn, bullet holes traced crazed passages across the wood paneling, a

hinges, though one of the va

cars slowing so their occupants could stare. Four black 4WDs, doors left

whilst she had been waiting for Elior and, like Elior, must have had her mother's blood in order to move so swiftly as to be

s shoulder muscles. “Get Rebecca to call around the embassies and see if it was j

ck into the box as the doors opened and he selected the floor. As he waited for it to move up floors, he tor

eeped down his chest darkening the waist band of his

rtoons,” Ashlynn observed

efore shrugging wryly. “Well, you know what they say

not h

ide, or it would be bleeding more

at is g

t muffled and tinny, and looked down at her hand bewildered before recallin

aiden was overwrought. “W

the embassy. My team is fine, but the embassy is, sadly, done. We are tryi

nto it,” Elior looked at his wrist where he wore an old-fashioned time piece. “I have to change, and we need to leave before they h

ck the phone. “Stay here,” he instructed and went i

ut the phone to her ear, holding it pinned between her chin and shoulder. “

the time being. Hopefully, it is just local trouble, and he can extract you both easily. But, if this is on a bigger scale, staying with hi

ver her arm. “I am f-king him, and he thinks I am his mate, or whatever t

Raiden gr

ny, in for a pound, she th

was thick, a wer

rd the plastic casing on his phone creak beneath his tightening grip, and there was a moment

y he said her name. She heard the murmur of her mother’s voice rising anxious

suit and adjusted his tie as he waited for the elevator doors to open. The blue

back and tied it into a neat ponytail at the nape of his neck with a black band

to him,” Ra

and passed the p

and blinked. He was si

, she thought, taking Elior’s hand, knowing how her father co

r said quietly. “We

. The call had been ended so sh

She as

hip before we see him in person,” Elior commen

ator doo