Page 17 of Bound By Blood

Landon Creed

No one else was on the road at that time of night except for those who earned a nocturnal living. There were hookers on one corner and drug dealers on another, both of whom seemed to have a lot of business coming in tonight. The gutters were littered with garbage. Several streetlights had been shot out in order to hide the dealings going on below, and a couple of the shops had boarded up windows from having the glass shot out or broken. Landon even spotted a stray dog sniffing around the foot of a dumpster. He had always hated driving through this part of town, but at that moment, he was tempted to make a quick pit stop in order to feed the beast inside of him.

The drive to the diner was tense and awkward, and he still wasn’t sure what it was he thought he was doing. He hadn’t meant for her to discover him lurking in the shadows of her room, so he hadn’t been prepared for a confrontation. If he had, he would have fed beforehand. In the confines of his car, he couldn’t escape her scent, and memories of the way her blood tasted filled his mind. As did the memories of the way her body felt pressed up against his. He had to fight like hell to not let it show how much she affected him, shifting in his seat as he tried to fight off his erection.

Landon didn’t know how he felt about the fact that Carly wasn’t even remotely afraid of him. She should be afraid. He was dangerous, especially when it came to her. But instead, she challenged him, antagonized him, and he couldn’t deny that her pressing the knife to his throat was hot as hell and had really riled him up.

He also didn’t like the fact that he couldn’t seem to say no to her. She wanted answers, and while he didn’t blame her, he wasn’t supposed to give them to her. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to lie to her either. As much as he hated to admit it, she was now a part of his world. He was just going to have to protect her, no matter what it cost him. Even if it meant protecting her from his own father.

“Should I ask my questions now? Or do you need more time to come up with a believable lie?” Carly asked, breaking the silence that had filled the car from the moment they climbed into it.

Landon glanced over at her briefly, his grip tightening on the steering wheel. “I’m not going to lie to you, Carly. Ask your fucking questions if that’s what you want.”

She didn’t react to his harsh and clipped tone. Instead, she shifted slightly in her seat in order to face him further. “How many of you live in Gravesdale?”

“Eighty-six,” he replied truthfully.

She raised her eyebrow in response. “Eighty-six, huh? How do you know the exact number?”

“Because it’s my job to know. My father is the leader of our coven.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as his response had her mouth tightening into a thin line. “Drayton Creed is the leader of all eighty-six vampires.” It wasn’t a question, more like a dawning realization, but he nodded anyway in confirmation. “So, not only does he own half of the city with his piles of fucking money, but he leads the creatures who go bump in the night?”

Landon glanced over at her again, a smirk forming on his lips. “Half of the city?”

“He owns more? What, does he own parts that the rest of the city isn’t privy to?”

He was giving her far more information than he had ever given anyone else, and it really bothered him. Telling her all of this came easily to him. He just wished he knew why.

He shrugged his shoulders. “My father owns pretty much everything in this town, Carly. He is the one who runs it all, behind the scenes of course. But he has the Mayor in his back pocket. The police force too. How do you think we get away with everything we do?”

Carly blew out a breath, wafting her delicious scent in his direction as she turned her attention back out the front window. “He sounds like a dangerous man.”

Landon almost snorted in response. If only she knew how true that statement was. “You have no idea,” he muttered.

“So, what does that make you?” Carly asked curiously.

Pressing his lips together in thought, Landon struggled to come up with a response. He had never really put a label on what he did. He just did what his father asked him to do, and he did it well. “I’m my father’s second-in-command. His co-leader, if you will. If anything happens to him, I am the one who takes over.”

“Wonderful,” Carly grumbled, making the corners of his lips tilt up ever so slightly. “What does the second-in-command do, exactly? Bite unsuspecting women in the alleys?”

A deep chuckle emanated from the back of his throat as he ran his fingers through his hair. He pulled the car into the diner parking lot and parked in a spot near the entrance. “Only when we are hungry. Basically, I take care of all the dirty work my father doesn’t want to handle. The, uh, problems that need to be dealt with.”

A mischievous smile spreads across her perfect lips, confusing him slightly. “Oh, so you’re his bitch then.” With that, she climbed out of the car and practically strutted toward the diner as if she had won some kind of battle.

Landon glared at her retreating back for several moments before he climbed out after her. This girl was going to constantly push his buttons, he just knew it.

The diner had been in town for a long time, and it hadn’t changed much since it was first established. The booths still had the ugly red leather that creaked every time someone moved or sat down. The tables were solid wood but scratched, most likely from unruly children, and the counter was lined in an ugly tile that didn’t match the floor.

The two of them got inside, and he led them both toward a booth in the back corner. He knew she had more questions, and it would be out of earshot of anyone else. It was bad enough he was divulging a lot of the coven’s secrets to her, he didn’t want or need anyone else overhearing. Though, thankfully, there weren’t that many other patrons, considering how late it was. Or early, for that matter.

At the counter sat a homeless man sipping on some coffee, and Landon wrinkled his nose at the scent of him. He clearly hadn’t bathed in a very long time, and his stench mixed with the smell of grease and food, turning his stomach. Sometimes having a strong sense of smell was a curse.

A lone female trucker sat at the other end of the diner, scarfing down a large breakfast platter and a mug of coffee. She was a large, burly woman with close-cropped hair. Her shirt was torn at the sleeves, and she had a tattoo of a naked female on her bicep.

However, it was the group of drunk college kids that really bothered him. Despite the fact that Carly had clearly walked in with him, the guys had stared at her with their tongues practically hanging out of their mouths. They were so lost to the alcohol they had consumed that they hadn’t even cared when Landon glared at them in warning. If he wasn’t careful, there would be a bloodbath in the middle of the diner before the night was through.

The moment the two of them slid into the booth, the waitress rushed over with a couple of menus. She was an older woman with striking red hair and a kind smile. “Good evening,” she began cheerfully. “My name is Doris, and I’ll be taking care of you two tonight. Can I get you started with anything to drink?”