“I’m sorry,” I said, my tone somber.
“Losing a sibling is painful, but I’d imagine losing a child would be worse, and that’s what would happen. Once you agree to what they want, they own you. And that ownership extends to your children. They aren’t trying to rebuild the population because they care. They are doing what is necessary to ensure their own survival. Right now, children are a rarity, especially among us. Once we’re gone, they’re fucked.”
I crinkled my forehead, giving my brain time to filter through the information. Things were worse than I could have possibly imagined. Ending the debt to Zagan was going to be hell, but doing so in this reality would be almost impossible. I put the glass to my lips, blocked off my nose and throat, and downed the shot in one gulp. I closed my eyes and drew in a nose full of fire-laced air, blinking several times to clear the tears from my eyes. I sniffed, clearing my throat, and plopped the glass down on the tabletop as I met his gaze.
“Now that is some fucked-up shit.”
“I’m glad you think so.” He nodded his approval, leaned forward and downed his third shot. Then he lifted the bottle and refilled both of our glasses. I had a feeling Carter kept the good stuff on hand for special occasions, and there was nothing like a dram of whiskey to calm frayed nerves.
This time, I didn’t hesitate.
I popped back the second shot and welcomed the warmth that spread through me.
Currently there was nowhere to run and no place to hide.
I was well and truly screwed.
Chapter Two
Despite having luxury accommodations, I slept like shit.
Blessedly forgotten nightmares from my past returned hard and fast, reminding me of why I sought refuge in the arms of my lover each night before I succumbed to sleep. Disco always took me to beautiful places when I slumbered, entering my mind to redirect my thoughts to more pleasurable things instead of the hell that was my childhood after my parents were killed. With him, I was no longer afraid to close my eyes. In fact, I had started to welcome the evenings spent in his embrace.
I tossed and turned on the queen-sized mattress as the hours passed. Each time I woke in a cold sweat, terrified that the dreams were real. After I came to awareness, I told myself it would all be over when a new day greeted me. I had suffered this misery before and survived before Disco was a part of my life. I knew I could do it again without his assistance.
When I finally passed out cold, it was due to sheer exhaustion.
I woke the minute the sun’s beams drifted through the glass wall, lighting my eyelids with shades of pale orange and yellow. I stared at the ceiling as I came to awareness, trying to figure out what in the hell I was going to do.
Carter wouldn’t let me leave.
He truly believed he was showing me the light.
I pulled at the crunched cotton material at my throat, rubbing my fingers against the tiny tattoo created from Disco’s bite. Carter and his crew hadn’t seen my mark and, if I could help it, they wouldn’t have the opportunity. These people lived life to the extreme. Their very existence relied on it. If they discovered I was not only claimed by a vampire, but that I was also a necromancer beholden to one, my life expectancy was sure to take a nosedive.
I ground my teeth, wishing I could grate something else together instead.
I bet Zagan was having a good old-fashioned laugh at my expense, the rotten demon bastard. He’d known exactly what he was doing when he made our deal, took the amulet I’d procured killing a child vampire, and sent my ass forward through time. Admittedly, I was never good at eating crow, but this went beyond any sort of good-humored joke.