Vampires Among Us [Vampires Among Us 1] (Siren Publishing Classic)

over her head.
    “I know, love, he’s here. I can feel him.” He could also smell him, the stench of rage and anger clear in the air. The pungent odor was even overriding Erica’s scent of fear and anxiety.
    “How very astute of you,” a voice called out from the darkness.
    Erica felt all air leave her lungs. There was no lighting in the room, and she felt very frustrated, knowing both Kevin and Shawn had perfect eyesight in the darkness, but she was unable to see anything.
    “Erica, I am very disappointed in you, rolling around in the sand with your lover. I must say I enjoyed the show though. You certainly never displayed that passion with me, although I guess I never gave you the chance. Always did like it rough and hard,” the voice continued. Erica tracked the sound of his voice and knew Shawn must be standing near the doorway. Kevin’s arm was still wrapped securely around her, letting her know he would do what he had to in order to keep her safe.
    “Shawn, you know your days are numbered. Do you have some sort of death wish?” Kevin growled from her side.
    “She is mine!” Shawn roared, and in the next instant Erica felt something sharp press against her throat. It was a knife, she realized, as she felt her head being jerked back by a handful of hair and the knife pressed against her throat.
    “Don’t,” Shawn warned, against whatever Kevin was attempting to do. Erica had felt him shift on the bed, but had no idea what he was trying to do. “One more move, and I’ll slice her throat from ear to ear,” Shawn snarled in warning.
    Shawn leaned down to Erica and sniffed her. “You reek of your lover, whore. I grow tired of watching you with him. You belong to me, now and for always, and when I get you home, I am afraid I am going to have to punish you for being so naughty.” He seemed to hesitate for just a few seconds, although Erica had no idea what he was doing, since she couldn’t see anything. “What is this?” he hissed, and she knew instinctively that he had spotted the two small almost invisible marks on Erica’s neck. “You let him mark you? You bitch!” he roared in fury.
    One minute Erica felt her hair being pulled out while Shawn ranted at her. The next, total bedlam broke out in the small bedroom. Erica heard glass breaking, and then suddenly the knife was no longer pressed against her throat. Another second or two and she no longer felt the hand that held a fistful of hair.
    Now that she was free, she immediately gulped in a lung full of air, her lungs burning as she realized she had been holding her breath while Shawn held the knife at her throat. Even though the knife was no longer at her throat, she still couldn’t see anything, making her afraid to move. Judging from the noise, there was movement all around her, as she heard grunts and a few groans. A cold chill hit her as she suddenly realized Kevin’s arm was no longer wrapped tightly around her. She stretched out her hand to feel for him on the other side of the bed. It was empty. “Kevin?” she called out softly, panic clearly in her voice.
    Someone flipped the light switch over by the door, suddenly bathing the room in light. Kevin was immediately in her arms, filling her with words of endearment while throwing a calming atmosphere around her. “It’s okay, I’ve got you,” he crooned as he gently rocked her in his arms. He glanced down at her and realized that the flimsy nightgown she had on did very little to cover her. He reached around and pulled the sheet off the bed and wrapped it around her.
    “Where is he?” she whispered in a shaky voice.
    Kevin buried her face in his shoulder, and then motioned to Marshall to remove a staked Shawn from the room. He was currently lying on the floor at the end of the bed with a wooden stake through his heart.
    Kevin held Erica’s head tight against him so she wouldn’t see anything going on around her. “It’s over, baby. He is never going to hurt you again.”
    “You guys okay?” Marshall inquired from the bedroom doorway after removing the staked vampire. He had taken him out of the room and then handed him over to the other VCTF members that were waiting.
    Erica jerked her head up from Kevin’s shoulder. “Marshall, I thought you were still in Brazil? How did you get here? How did you know?” Erica’s mind was spinning as she attempted to figure out what had just transpired. Although nothing made sense, she was damn grateful that somehow Marshall had