Crimson Warrior (Onyx Assassins 3)

Those eyes, sharp and cunning and filled with a light that could brighten up the darkest situations at any given moment.

His body, crafted for killing and fucking.

And his spirit—pure mischief and laughter and levity.

Ransom was good down to his core, and anyone who didn’t fall for him instantly had some sheer willpower I simply didn’t possess.

Kissing him had nearly unraveled me, made me forget who I was and what I was there to do. Almost made me forget to mask my scent, bury my feelings, my truth. Because Ransom was a friend I couldn’t afford to lose, and the last thing he needed was to realize I’d secretly pined after him all these years.

“I get the trust thing,” he said, drawing me to the present. “If I would share my blood, it would have to be with someone I trusted. Someone I knew wouldn’t use it against me or use me for it.”

“Your circle of trust is very small,” I teased. “I was shocked I made it onto that list.”

His eyes flashed down to mine, molten blue and churning. The smirk shaping his lips made something warm flash in my core. “Was that an offer, Olivia?”

My lips parted open on a gasp, my mind reeling at his words. Ransom’s fangs dipping into my flesh, his lips sucking at the wounds, drawing my life into his. Goddamn him, my body went tight with the thought. With the image that played in my mind. His hands hauling me against him, caging me in, holding me tight as he drank and flicked his tongue out to seal the wounds.

I blew out a breath, willing my mind to settle, my body to calm, my heart to stop its racing. I must’ve been lost in my thoughts for a few moments because Ransom had returned to staring at the ceiling, his eyes contemplative.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” he whispered in the dark, and the confession sat on the tip of my tongue.

“Yes,” I said on the release of a breath.

Yes, I volunteer. I’ll give you my blood, all you have to do is ask.

Everything in my body, my soul, ached with anticipation. Could I survive it? His fangs inside my flesh, my blood on his lips? Could I remain hidden within his embrace even if it was merely a way for him to survive?

Yes, I could. It would be worth it. Keep him strong. Feel him against me—

“Good,” he said, nodding more to himself than me. “We should rise at first night to start the process of awakening the Hunters.”

A breath wrenched out of me, my insides curling in on themselves.

Of course…of course that’s what he was thinking.

Because we had a mission. An incredibly important mission that had nothing to do with my fantasies revolving around my best friend.

“Goodnight, Olivia,” he said, shutting his eyes.

“Goodnight,” I whispered and hoped like hell he didn’t hear the disappointment in my voice. Hoped like hell he didn’t notice me staring at him long after he fell asleep, wondering how the hell I’d gotten myself into this situation.

A situation that had me sleeping next to a warrior focused on his mission.

A warrior who’d claimed my heart without ever realizing.

7

Ransom

“Benedict?” I knotted the towel around my hips as I answered the phone. “What’s wrong? It’s the middle of the afternoon in Edgemont City.” Something had to be very wrong for him to be calling at this hour. All of the tension the shower had melted away came roaring back tenfold.

“Hey. Just keeping you in the loop, but we got hit last night.” He sounded like shit that had been run over and then pummeled again.

“What do you mean? How bad?” I opened the door to the bedroom in case this was something Olivia might need to know, but she was nowhere to be seen. I’d left our bed before sunset, so I could be out the door to run as soon as it was safe and hadn’t seen her since.

“The Sons took out the blood bank.”

I blinked slowly, hoping I’d misheard him. “You mean the one at the hospital, right? The one the humans depend on?” That shit was easily replaceable, but if he was talking about…

“No, Ran. I’m talking about Onyx Industries.” He sighed.

“Holy shit.” I sagged against the doorframe. “What kind of loss are we facing?”

“Two civilians on the day shift.”

“Damn it.” Our species was already dwindling, and losing two more was a tragedy. My chest constricted, and fury shot through my veins like liquid fire. From the hesitant tone Benedict was using, I knew he hadn’t delivered all the news. “What else?”

“They destroyed it all.”

I froze. “I’m sorry?”

“The supply we’ve carefully built to ensure at least three years of survival for every vampire in Edgemont territory is gone. Wiped out.”

I took a deep breath to steady my rioting emotions and strode to the closet, dressing as Benedict filled me in on the details. Guilt ate at me, ripping apart my insides with the precision of a thousand tiny daggers, cutting me to the quick. I should have been there, fighting off the biggest threat to our race, not playing house in the arctic with Olivia.