Bound in Darkness by Cynthia Eden Page A

died long ago. He’d left it, broken and bloody, in that pit where the vamps had tortured him. 
    Besides, it wasn’t like he was slaughtering the innocent. The world would be a far better place with one less bloodsucker on the streets.
    He reached for his whiskey. Barely felt the burn as the liquid slid down his throat.
    One more down…thousands to go.

Chapter One
    She was being hunted. 
    Allison Gray had felt the unseen eyes on her for days.  Ever since she’d left Alliance, Nebraska, and begun this crazy journey. 
    Ever since she’d started to change.
    Her hands fisted as she slid through the crowd inside Blood Bath. Blood Bath?  Jeez, just what kind of name was that for a bar?  Nestled near the Cascade Mountains, the bar was like the rest of the small town—pretty damn scary. 
    Allison found what she hoped was a private corner. One hidden by shadows.  She’d never expected this town—not here. The tiny spot of Lost, Oregon, was filled with folks who looked like they could— and would —kill at the drop of a hat.  She’d been told that she had to journey to this town. That she’d find the answers to all her questions here.
    Her breath eased slowly from her lungs as her gaze swept around the bar. As always these days, she was aware of the strange ache in her gut. Hunger, one that just couldn’t be satisfied with food.  No matter how much she ate, she stayed hungry.
    And her senses—they were in freaking overdrive. So many scents burned her nose.  Alcohol.  Cigarettes. Cheap perfume. Sex.  Blood.
    Her nostrils flared.
    Blood shouldn’t smell good. But, lately…the scent had started to—
    “ Well, hello, pretty lady…”
    She didn’t start in surprise. She’d known the big biker was heading her way. The guy with tribal tattoos that covered his arms and shaved head. A dozen piercings penetrated his face. And…the guy had blood under his fingernails. 
    She was betting that blood wasn’t his.
    “You all alone tonight?” he asked as he closed in on her.
    Allison kept her chin up.  Elsa, the witch who’d found her, had promised that Allison would find a guide in this bar. A protector who would help her on the rest of her journey.  Elsa had said that her guide would come to Allison immediately.  The witch had also told her that he’d be the strongest guy in the bar.
    Allison could sure use some strength to help her out. Especially since she didn’t have any of her own to speak of at that moment.
    She licked her lips and studied the guy before her. Big, check.  Definitely strong, but…
    But he scared her. His eyes were hot, almost feral as they slid over her body. 
    Allison realized she should say something.  “Uh…I’m…waiting for someone.” 
    “Don’t have to wait no longer.” He reached for her hand. Pulled her up against him.  Allison was barely five foot three, and this guy towered over her.  “I’m right here, baby.” 
    Laughter followed that comment. The guy had friends in this place—a lot of them by the looks of things.  And they were all watching her now.
    Why weren’t there more women in the bar?  Allison counted two in the whole place. Her and a chick who was— leaving .
    Okay, that wasn’t good.
    She put her hands on the biker’s chest. “Are you…are you my guide?”
    He laughed, a hard burst of sound that grated in her ears. “Oh, yeah, baby, I’ll guide you all right.” His hands dropped to her ass. “I’ll guide you all night long.”
    Crap.  This guy wasn’t him.
    The biker was pulling her even tighter against him now, and she was trying to get away but she wasn’t strong enough.
    Story of my life.
    She hadn’t been strong enough to save her family.  Hadn’t been strong enough to stop the death.
    Not strong enough to—
    “Let her go.”
    The voice was low, but it cut sharper than a knife, and the hard order pierced through the laughter in the room.
    Because she was staring up at the brick wall of a biker’s face—a face that