Original Sin (The Order of Vampires 1)

“Hey.” She tucked her legs under her dress. “What’s gotten into you?”

“I’d rather talk about what I can get into you.” He leaned over her, his hand riding up her thigh to her hip. He crowded her until she fell back onto the grass.

As his lips reached for hers she turned her cheek away. Only then did her nose twitch at the unfamiliar scent of his skin. “You smell different.”

Birds flocked to the sky, forming a cloud of sparrows above the trees in the distance as if startled from a tree. She squinted at the horizon as a figure appeared. A woman.

“Grace?”

“Ignore her.”

“Anna!”

She pushed at Adam, attempting to sit up. “Something’s wrong.”

He caught her chin, turning her face back to his. “I said, ignore her.”

“Anna, get back to the house!”

She looked at Adam. Something wasn’t right.

Grace shouted again, “Anna, run! Now!”

A shiver chased down her spine and Adam breathed out a clipped laugh as a vicious growl ripped through the air. Grace’s frantic screams erupted as something launched at Adam, tackling him to his back and snarling like a beast.

Annalise screamed, her eyes unable to see what had him. She bolted to her feet as some sort of animal flung his body violently, and so fast she could only scream in horror.

“Adam!”

Grace plowed into her, turning her away and forcing her to look in her eyes. “Come with me!”

She tried to pull her head out of her grip, but she wouldn’t allow it. “We have to help him!”

“No, Anna! We have to leave, now!”

Tears welled in her eyes. “He’s being attacked!”

A hiss that could only come from a mountain lion, ripped through the air accompanied by a putrid snap.

She’d been nine when she first visited a hospital. She’d been climbing a tree at the park and lost her footing, falling almost thirteen feet to the ground. Her tibia had snapped in half on impact. And that was the snap.

“Get her out of here!” Adam shouted.

“Oh, my God,” she whimpered, pulling at Grace’s wrists. “Let go of me!”

“I’m sorry.” Her face tightened. “Sleep.”

The world softened and when she opened her eyes she was in Adam’s bed, again, questioning what was real and what was a dream.

“You’re awake.” Grace sat at the foot of the bed, watching her.

“Déjà vu.” She pushed her hand away and scowled. “Where’s Adam?”

“I know you’re confused, but you left me little choice.”

Her eyes narrowed. Not good enough.

“I’m sorry! Adam insisted I get you out of there.”

“He needed our help!” Who knew what sort of primitive first aid they practiced here. “Where is he?”

Grace moved closer and placed a staying hand on her leg. “I promise, it’s not as bad as it seemed. Adam’s fine.”

No one could escape an attack like that unscathed. She saw whatever that was tackle him to the ground and heard it tearing him apart. Her hands shook as she remembered the sounds of bone snapping.

“You’re in shock.”

“I’m not in shock,” she shivered. “I have to see him.” Why wasn’t Grace letting her up?

“Because you’re still weak and I don’t want you to hurt yourself. I know you’re confused by what you saw, but Adam had every right to attack. Touching another male’s mate is against our laws.”

Her fingertips tingled as her vision blurred. She fought off whatever was happening to her. “What are you talking about?” Frustrated that they seemed to be talking about different things, she snapped. “Something attacked Adam!”

Grace drew back. “Oh, no. Anna, that wasn’t—”

A loud crack shook the house.

Grace winced. “He’s here.”

“Wh—”

The bedroom door flew open, Adam’s bulk filling the cavity. His shoulders heaved and his clothes were torn to shreds. “Did he touch you?”

What the hell was going on? “Who?”

Grace stood and held her hands up in a placating pose. “Adam, she thought he was you.”

The muscles of his jaw bunched and flexed. “Leave us.”

“Adam—”

“I said leave us!”

She rushed from the room leaving Anna alone with a man who appeared far from sane. The door closed and he rotated his shoulders, his breathing paced but labored.

“Adam, you’re scaring me.”

“I can smell him on you.” He ripped his tattered shirt off his back, throwing it to the floor and snarled.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she practically cried. “I feel like I saw something totally different from whatever you and Grace saw.”

He twisted to face her, his fists clenched at his sides. An angry scrape ran down the side of his ribcage that needed medical attention.

“You’re bleeding.” Blind stupidity had her rushing to her feet.

“Stop!” Something shifted in his eyes and she froze. Seething rage seeped from his pores.

“I just want to help you,” she whispered.

He tipped his face away from her view. “You’re safer there.”

She frowned. None of this made any sense. “Adam, what was that out there? What attacked you?”

Peeking at her through his fallen, sweat dampened hair, he studied her with piercing eyes. The longer he looked at her, shoulders lifted with visible tension, the more she questioned what she saw.