Blood at Stake (Warriors of the Krieger Book 2) by Theresa Hissong Page A

me.”
    “We were just talking,” I said, wiping
frantically at more bloody tears.
    “Yeah, girl stuff,” Charity shrugged, giving
Dragus her sweet, perfect smile that I knew melted him in those
heavy, black boots he wore.
    Ashby rubbed his fist over his heart and
swore under his breath, before slumping down into my office chair,
pulling me as he went. “You scared the hell out of me.”
    “This mate stuff is weird,” Charity rolled
her eyes. “In Hawaii, I was startled by a spider, and Dragus came
into the living room with weapons drawn for battle, just from
feeling my panic for half of a second.”
    “It gets stronger,” Dragus admitted, giving
Ashby a knowing look. “The bond. It’s like we are one, and I felt
Charity’s panic. It scared a hundred years off of my life.”
    “You’re a vampire, Dragus. You can’t scare
years off of your life,” Charity scoffed, rolling her eyes and
handing me several tissues to wipe my face. “You can go now. We are
okay.”
    “Why don’t you come home?” Ashby asked,
softly.
    “I need to work,” I said, pointing to a
stack of paperwork.
    “Dragus and I have to run to Valencia County
to pick up some new warriors that will be starting the training
program. I don’t want you to be alone,” he said, kissing my
temple.
    “I’ll be fine,” I promised. “I’ll need a
ride home, though.”
    “I can have Adam or Brock swing by whenever
you are ready,” Charity offered. “I’m heading home for the night to
finish unpacking.”
    “If you don’t mind?” I smiled. “I don’t have
my car.”
    Dragus and Charity left the office to give
us some privacy, after promising to send someone to drive me home.
Ashby buried his face deep in my auburn curls and inhaled my
scent.
    “I’ve never been so scared in my life. I felt you. It hurt my chest.” He followed the statement up by
pulling my hand to the center of his chest, just to the right of
his heart. I rubbed the spot softly until a soft rumble vibrated my
fingers. He liked when I touched him.
    “It makes me feel better knowing you’d feel
me if I was ever hurt or in danger,” I admitted.
    “I’ll always save you,” he promised, cupping
my face. “I’ll always protect you.” His hand was so large that my
head felt like a doll’s in his palm.
    “I know,” I whispered.
    “Let Adam or Brock pick you up and take you
back to the estate,” he said, kissing me softly. “I’ll be home an
hour before sunrise.”
    “Okay,” I smiled. “Be careful and come home
to me.”
    “Always,” he promised, and after a lingering
kiss, walked out the door.
    Charity had me admitting that I was in love
with him, but I wanted him to say it first. I wanted the big
warrior to confess his love. I knew he already cared for me by his
actions. The fact that he didn’t send me away to break the mating
bond had to count for something. Right?
    Most of the night, I sat in my office and
worked on the necessary things that needed to be done. Jackson
brought me a drink halfway through the night and even the blood and
wine mixture didn’t settle my nerves.
    I cleaned up my desk and turned off the
lights on my way out to the main club. The doors were already
locked. Jackson was helping sweep the floors and security was there
to walk the females out to their vehicles. I sent a quick text to
Charity asking that she send someone to pick me up at the back of
the building.
    I left Jackson to lock up and stepped
outside to wait for my ride. The weather was nice, there was no
wind and the stillness of the night ended up being my worst
enemy.
    Because I didn’t scent the humans who were
there to take me. A prick of pain hit my neck, and I reached back
to grab at whatever it was. My fingers touched something cold and
hard. A dart? An involuntary hiss escaped my lips as I felt a
numbing sensation spread throughout my body.
    “Damn!” I spun and tried to run, but the
sedative rushed through my system at an alarming speed. I fell to
one knee,