Soul to Keep Read online

  And yes, I’d volunteered to assist our Master by serving under his Alpha sister-queen in her nest, but when I agreed to move in to take on the members of ABO as feeders, I had no idea just how much those responsibilities would cramp the shit out of my style. Half the time, I felt like I had six demanding employees and six micromanaging supervisors. I couldn’t catch a fucking break.

  I vanished out of my restraints and over to my jeans that were draped on Moreland’s couch. I didn’t need to look up to see that we weren’t alone. I could scent my sister-in-blood-and-misery from a few miles away.

  “Tell your highnesses I’ll be right there,” I said.

  “I can’t leave without you.” I glanced up at the awkward tightness in Faeth’s voice. She was an easy six feet two in her natural form, but in the world of immortals she was still a baby vampire. Moreland and I were old.

  “Care for a beverage while you wait? I can have one of my boys fetch it for you,” Moreland offered. She wasn’t wearing much. Just a bra and the strap-on dildo she’d been teasing me with.

  “I’m fine. T, let’s go.”

  “Jesus. Coming.” I kissed Moreland on both cheeks—she knew I’d be back—then vanished after Faeth.

  I followed Faeth and her scattered particles, over space and a split second of time. We reappeared on a lawn somewhere out in the suburbs. Ellicott City, I figured. At least that’s where Ginger said she was going to buy Sam a house. Her special, precious baby. My other sister-queens were there, waiting in darkness, ass-naked, draped in diamonds. All my sister-queens, but Ginger and Camila. Omi’s cloak, the invisible barrier we threw up to hide us in plain sight from humans, shrouded the whole house and yard.

  “You’re fucking late.” Kina waved a black velvet box in the air. “Hurry up and strip.”

  “I was with Moreland. You could have joined us, you know. She always likes it when you come around.”

  “Oh, I know she does. Tell her next time. Strip.” Kina was my partner in crime. I got into the most trouble with her, but somehow I only seemed to get caught. Probably ’cause she didn’t have any issues with being on time for Ginger’s bullshit.

  I pulled off my shirt and tossed it in the bushes. “Is Ginger fucking late too? Where’s she at? This is her shindig.”

  “She’s inside with Sam. They wanted to do the unbinding in private,” Omi said.

  My eyes couldn’t roll hard enough. Five years ago, Ginger and Samantha couldn’t even stand to be in the same room together. But then Sam’s boyfriend almost murdered Ginger, and Camila wigged-out and made her a vampire instead of letting the rest of us heal her, and then Ginger needed a feeder. Long story short, Sam volunteered to feed Ginger and the blood bond made them the bestest of friends who completely forgot that they wanted to street fight each other with their Ticonderoga No. 2s in between classes.

  I focused for a second until I sensed Ginger and several others milling around inside the house. We all felt it the moment the unbinding was complete. Sam wasn’t mine, but her connection to Ginger, my sister and my queen, meant that all her feeders were in my blood, in our blood. I exhaled lightly as Samantha slipped away, then dug my nails into my palm to distract from the pain. The blood made everything clearer, made everything more intense, made everything worse.

  I tried, again, not to think of how ridiculous this all was, turning a perfectly healthy, twentysomething into a vampire just because. As I ditched my jeans for my ceremonial jewels, I tried not to think about how terribly rushed of an operation this whole shit show was. Just as I finished securing the chain around my hips, Camila appeared on the lawn.

  “We’re ready. Please follow me.”

  We got in our usual line of ceremony. Camila led Kina, who led Natasha, who led Omi. I followed with Faeth behind me, the strength of our blood, the powers of our makers determining who called the shots and commanded respect.

  Camila marched us right through the front door. The scene was familiar. The furniture in the open concept living/dining space had been pushed back to make room for a large table draped in a white cloth. If we did our job right, not even a single drop of blood would mar the pristine fabric.

  The table itself was surrounded by all the necessary players. Sam’s father and his lover, both vampires. Omi’s wife, Mary. Also a vampire. And Virginia, Estella, Loni, DeeDee. Vampire, vampire, vampire, and vampire; carefully selected by our Master to help complete the ceremony. A group of demon-made beings whose blood would fill Samantha’s veins with enough power to make her a bloodthirsty, immortal, shape-shifting telepath, but not strong enough that even I couldn’t beat her ass if the situation called for it. An upgrade with conditions, for sure.

  The only humans in the room, and the only people I was happy to see, were Amy and Danni, old feeders of Camila’s who’d offered hours of entertainment when they lived in the ABO house. I would’ve snatched them both up for myself if Camila hadn’t had first dibs.

  I waved a little hello since the room was all tense and somber because we were about to drain a twenty-three-year-old girl of every drop of blood in her body, but Amy squealed her hello and Danni waved back. If they weren’t there to serve a very specific purpose, I would have asked them if they wanted to party afterward.

  Cleo was there too.

  I didn’t have many ex-lovers. I had current lovers and lovers I hadn’t slept with in a while. And dead lovers. Cleo and I had had more than our fair share of fun. So much fun it was hard to pretend that Moreland was filling her Mistress shoes, even harder to pretend that I didn’t miss her. But Cleo was like ultra married, and to a human, who just happened to be our Master’s daughter. And they had a kid. Yeah, ex was definitely the proper title. She looked at me, her expression neutral.

  Filling in for Dalhem? I asked over the telepathic link that connected us all.

  Yeah, she replied with a slight nod. Some shit came up.

  Then she cut me off. She had some of my blood in her since I’d been there to help with her rebirth, but she had Camila’s blood in her too. I couldn’t override that.

  Once we took our places around the table, Ginger led Samantha into the room. Sam was naked, but she had a robe on, which made sense since her dad was there. I could smell both their tears, though Sam’s red-rimmed eyes were clearly obvious.

  Ginger helped Sam onto the table before she addressed us all. Camila and Dalhem had helped her rehearse, I was sure.

  “We come together this evening to guide our sister and friend, Samantha Grace Phillips, through her rebirth. Samantha understands the monumental weight and permanence of her decision and your presence here tonight affirms your pledge to assist Samantha, and those from which she feeds, as she becomes acclimated to this new life. Samantha, do you have anything you wish to say before we begin?”

  I glanced down, waiting for her response and noticed how sobered her features had become. She was ready, even if it was still a terrible idea.

  “Nope. Let’s do this.”

  Ginger smirked. That was the Sam we all knew. Blunt and to the fucking point.

  “Very well. Is there anyone among us with any words for Samantha?”

  “Speak now ’cause we can’t undead her,” I threw out. That got a few chuckles. Mostly from Amy. Camila and Ginger both glared at me ’cause they had to do everything as a couple. “I’m kidding. God.”

  Of course I felt a little bad when Sam’s dad started sniffling. “I just want to say I love you, sweetheart.”

  “Thanks, Dad,” Sam mumbled back. They had their own issues.

  Ginger nodded with a tight smile before she continued. “Our Master—with our Master’s blessing, we shall begin.”

  I wanted to say something along the lines of “Let’s eat,” but I could tell Ginger was about to fight me so I kept my mouth shut and took my place at Sam’s right thigh. Omi stood beside me, cradling Sam’s tanned wrist in her palm. Kina would take her neck and Natasha her other wrist. It was overkill. One of us could have drained her in no time, but usually t
he heart stopped before the human was completely empty. And then there’s the fact that a whole human worth of blood at once could lead to blood sickness if you weren’t careful, and this way was faster and safer for Sam.

  There was a pause. I caught Faeth’s eyes across the table. I could hear her heart thud an extra beat ahead until it matched mine. We leaned forward together and moved the black satin covering Sam’s body, shifting it just high enough to keep it from obstructing the artery. Then Ginger told us to begin.

  Faeth practically dove in, all fast and hot. I had to duck a little to the left to keep our foreheads from smacking together. My fangs sliced into Samantha’s skin with ease and blood flowed into my mouth. I couldn’t describe the taste. It wasn’t a flavor or even an aroma. It was life itself. Pleasure. Release. Growth. Awakening.

  Samantha came immediately, jerking in our grasp. But we had her, holding her legs down to keep her from flopping on the table, and cutting herself on our fangs. Not a drop was to be wasted. Her moans filled the room though. The smell of her juices filled my nose. Her wet pussy was only inches from my face.

  The flow continued to a trickle, a final taste.

  Then Cleo called it.

  “She’s done.”

  I’d lost myself somehow to the haze, it was so much at once, but I knew I had to close the wounds and step away. Sam’s heart had stopped. She lay still, her tan skin starting to take on a pasty yellow hue. Death had her, but not completely. Cleo quickly surveyed the tablecloth. It was clean. Then she instructed Mary to continue.

  Mary gently took Samantha by the back of her head and chin and opened her mouth. Virginia stepped forward, dagger ready, and slit her wrist.

  Ginger flinched.

  I watched for a moment as blood practically poured down Sam’s throat. She took some from Loni next, but it wasn’t until Deedee stepped up that Samantha’s heart started up again. Her lips closed lightly on Deedee’s wrist, and she was feeding completely on her own by the time it was Estella’s turn to top her off. Instinctively, she sealed Estella’s wound, then opened her eyes.

  We all braced ourselves. We were created from demons after all. These things could go wrong.

  She blinked and then squinted against the bright lights in the room. She tested her fangs with the tip of her tongue. Sam was agitated, but more so by the audience than the hunger that I knew had to be clawing at her stomach. She turned to her dad first.

  “I’ll call you tomorrow. You can go.”

  No fucking clue why the man hesitated (or even why he showed up). All that was on Sam’s mind was feeding from Amy and Danni, and then all that would be on her mind after that was fucking Amy and Danni. Her father and his lover didn’t need to stay.

  “We’ll all go,” Omi suggested. I didn’t wait for a second cue. I kissed Sam on her cheek, welcomed her to the family, and then I was gone.

  ❖

  My pixie dust particles didn’t even make it back to the waterfront before Camila was in my head, reprimanding me like I was a teenager.

  Back to the house now. We need to speak to all of you.

  I changed course and appeared back in our Highness’s royal apartment. Kina was already there, jeans on, pulling a T-shirt over her head. The rest, but Ginger and Camila, followed a half-second later, and started shedding their diamond adornments the moment they hit the carpet.

  I joined them, until I remembered that my clothes were still in the bushes back in suburbia. “Shit.”

  “Here.” Faeth tossed me my clothes.

  “Nice. You’re the best.”

  “Yeah.”

  “So, what the fuck’s happening now?”

  Camila was inside all of our heads a moment later, the same sense of dread filling her voice. Don’t worry. We’ll keep this brief. She joined us too, Ginger at her side.

  “We know you have important places to be,” Ginger said.

  “Or just fuckin’ to do. I mean I’m up to my eyeballs in Samantha blood. I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who wants to sweat some of this out,” I said.

  “Well, I will keep this brief then. Your clit has places to be. A few days ago, there was an incident down at Texas U. One of Mary-Anne’s feeders was kidnapped. She was snatched right before sundown, so they were able to find her quickly, but she wasn’t okay.

  “Of course she wasn’t. She was kidnapped,” I said.

  “And possessed.”

  “What?” Kina asked, shocked enough for the rest of us.

  “When they found her, a demon had a hold of her and they had to perform an exorcism.”

  “But that’s—How?”

  I didn’t understand why Kina was so confused. A demonic presence got a hold of her. They kicked it out. Party over.

  “The exorcism almost killed her,” Ginger explained. “This wasn’t some piddly weak demon their girls summoned with a Ouija board. This demon was trying to stay.”

  “And they have no idea who took her?” Omi asked. I could tell she was already formulating a plan. Though these girls weren’t ours, and if the vampires at TU couldn’t figure it out, that meant it was a Dalhem problem, not a sister-queens of ABO problem…soooooo I didn’t really understand why we were still talking and not fucking.

  “They couldn’t track a human scent. Since they got Jessi back a few of the other girls in the Kappa chapter say that they feel like they’re being followed.”

  “So we’re packing up the Mystery Machine and heading down Texas way?” I asked.

  “No. Dalhem has sent a few extra vampires down to keep an eye on things, and we’ve gotten some help from adult feeders in the area. But Dalhem has asked that we start being a little more vigilant while he tries to get to the bottom of this. Our blood bond is powerful enough to know when something is wrong, but I think we’ve all become a little lax when it comes to really paying attention to their comings and goings. I—”

  “Isn’t that the point though? We’re not supposed to follow them around. They feed us, they live their lives, ’cause the plan and all th—”

  “Tokyo, Jesus. Will you shut up for one second,” Ginger snapped at me.

  “What the fuck is your problem?” I responded on instinct, my growl coupled with my words.

  “Red—” Camila tried to intervene, but it was too late. Her wife was all fired up for no fucking reason.

  “No,” Ginger said. “I was gonna save this for later, but we’re gonna talk about it now. You knew how important tonight was. You knew exactly what I needed you to do. You knew exactly what time you had to be there, and you knew exactly how long it was to take, and what Sam was going to need after and you fucking agreed.”

  “Don’t do that. Don’t act like we have a choice. Like I can say no to you or your highness,” I said to Camila ’cause really this was all her fault.

  “You did have a choice, Tokyo. And you accepted,” Camila replied. There was so much I could say to her, but I didn’t. Not like I had the floor or anything because Ginger dug right back in.

  “Dalhem gave you a choice to join this nest and watch these girls and give them everything they need. You made a pledge to them and a pledge to us. Do you have a problem with that all of a sudden?”

  It didn’t matter what I said. At the end of the day, Ginger was more powerful than me. I could try to fight her on this, but I would lose. So I had to take her talking to me like I was a fucking child even though I was over one hundred years older than her. I had to listen to her embarrass me in front of Faeth, Natasha, and Kina, my actual friends, ’cause even though I wanted to slap her in her stupid face it would get me nowhere, but under our Master’s scaly heel.

  I dug my fangs into the inside of my lip. It was the only way to keep my mouth shut, but still that only worked for a second. “I don’t fucking like you.”

  “I don’t like you either right now. I need someone to volunteer to stay near the house until this situation clears up. So why don’t you go first? Maybe if you actually spend more than the thirty minutes a week i
t takes you to fuck and feed from the girls actually in the house, you might be reminded of just how important they are to us and how important we are to them. Go. Do bed checks.”

  “Fine.”

  “But put on some clothes first. None of the girls need to wake up and see you standing naked—”

  Before she could finish, I vanished to my rooms. Before any of my sister-queens could see the hot blue tears streaming down my face.

  Chapter Three

  Jill

  When things quieted down, I made my way up to my room. Portia, my roommate, was there, talking to her boyfriend on video chat. She hated having me around during their virtual coitus, and I hated hearing it when I was trying to sleep so I made my way to the study lounge. Next year, I’d have to make chapter vice president at least to get my own room. I’d have to play up my administrative skills to even get nominated, but something had to be done. I needed my own space. I’d thought about dropping a major and possibly graduating early, but I wanted these degrees, and I wanted to see things with Alpha Beta Omega, the institution, through. Even if I could live without its members.

  I knocked out my homework, but the focus was still there and Portia was still awake. I thought about texting my best friend, James, but when I saw the time on my phone I knew he was asleep. On top of choosing to serve the brother-kings of Omega Beta Alpha, he was the star player on our university’s football team. Practice was enough to wear him out. Frat activities and feeding his vampire had him in bed hours before me every night. I pulled out my presentation online for my Human Sexuality class. If Dr. Miller didn’t get me the help that I needed there was a possibility I’d have to rework the entire scope of the project.

  I looked at the assignment sheet. And then I realized I wasn’t alone. Our sister-queens all had their own scents. Light and faint to humans, apparently, but I realized that if you were actually paying attention, it was easy to pick them out. I made it a point to recognize their unique perfumes. I smelled citrus. Tokyo was lurking in the door. Not saying anything.