Working Class Vegas Vamp is a free urban fantasy serial, usually publishing on Tuesdays. It is unedited and subject to change. If published later, it may differ significantly, and will probably include additional material. Typos and English errors are likely; feel free to leave a comment or write me at am {AT} amscottwrites.com (revised as a standard email address. Pesky bots!) Available for a limited time only!

Haven’t started yet? Chapter 1: https://www.amscottwrites.com/2024/10/29/working-class-vegas-vamp-chapter-1/ ‎

Chapter 15

“By the burning daylight, I thought I’d have another day.” I placed the tablet on his desk. “Thanks for your help, but I don’t want to put your people at risk. Is there a discrete way out of here?”

“Several.” He shook his head. “But you won’t be taking any of them.”

That was ominous. So much for promises. I slid towards the bedroom. “I see. Found a way to retrieve your niece after all, did you?”

“Yes.” He smiled. “But it’s not what you think. It’s time for a conversation with Theoden, rather than a battle. If he really believes the prophecy, he’ll want to help.”

“In a way that leaves him in charge.” I didn’t stop moving away, even if I had little chance of avoiding the wolf in this confined space.

He nodded, but didn’t chase me. “Of course. He’s a predator, just like me. He won’t give up power willingly. If he’s not a true believer, but merely hedging his bets, he’ll make you work for it. But enough of his people believe in the prophecy that he can’t work against you or he’ll lose everything. He turned you ‘unbound’ for a reason. Either there’s something in that prophecy that he wants to happen, or enough of his people believe you’re the queen that he had no choice.”

“He probably considers himself king.” My lip curled. A personal relationship with Theo turned my stomach. He was a gorgeous man, no doubt of that, but he’d demand complete subservience. I’d never, ever put myself into that position again. “Where are we meeting?”

“At our clubhouse. He’s agreed to meet the two of us with a single vampire as backup. My pack will surround the clubhouse, of course. He’ll have personnel just outside the club’s fence. But with just four of us, we should have mutually ensured destruction.”

I snorted. “You still have a greatly exaggerated view of my abilities.” Confronting Klaus Theoden seemed like suicide.

“No.” He smirked. “I have an accurate view of my abilities. If I’m not mesmerized, I can easily take out two vampires. Even Theoden.”

I had my doubts. “And how do you avoid mesmerization?”

He smiled grimly. “That’s your job.”

“Again, you have a greatly exaggerated view of my abilities. I’ve never attempted to mesmerize another vampire. I don’t know if I can. Especially one like Theo. Probably any of his vampires have more experience than I do. Theo can move faster than the eye can see, too.”

“He’s a challenge, but I’m sure I can take him out.” The Alpha’s eyebrows rose. “But I’m also sure about you. I’ve never felt the kind of…persuasion you emit from any other vampire. Most vamps find me impossible. Theoden’s tried, but I’ve never allowed him to capture my gaze, so I don’t know if he could succeed. I highly doubt it. But despite actively avoiding your eyes, I still feel compelled to please you. It’s disturbing.” He grimaced.

“I imagine so.” This man was in charge of a large werewolf pack and a major company. Being coerced into protecting me, a non-pack member, must be unnerving. “I’m not trying to compel you in any way. I can take care of myself.” I could still run and leave Vegas behind. Just because the Alpha didn’t think it was possible didn’t mean that was true.

“By running? Won’t work. If Theoden doesn’t find you, another vamp will. You’ll end up fighting, eventually. Do it now, while you’re strong, not after you’ve been on the run and end up starving. Take the fight to Theoden, now.”

He was trying to compel me, and that wasn’t going to work. But he also had a good point. I sighed. “I’ll give it a shot.”

“No.” He growled. “There is no try, only do.” Grimacing, he shook his head. “Seriously, if you have doubts, you’ll fail.” He met my gaze. “You can do this, Charlene Flammen. You absolutely can. But you must believe in yourself and your abilities. If you don’t, believe me. I know you can defeat Theoden. I’m positive you can win and I’m betting my life and my niece’s life on that.”

I gulped. “No pressure. Just do something you’ve never done before, perfectly, or a young woman and the pack Alpha dies. Right.” Because I’d survive that disaster—not. But he had a point. I’d been successful as a vampire because I was persuasive. I’d thought it was my natural, somewhat bitter charm. But evidently, that was incorrect. It was my ability to mesmerize. Which was disturbing on several levels. I should be in control of my efforts and aware of my abilities. Maybe if I’d stayed longer after turning, I’d know more. Or more likely, they’d have fed more fairy tales and I’d be firmly under Theoden’s control. Perhaps my ability is why Theoden never attempted to mesmerize me.

“Char, I’m not joking.” The Alpha’s words brought me out of my whirling thoughts. He met my gaze. “I know you can do this. The odds are definitely in your favor.”

I broke his stare, uncomfortable with his previous admission of my abilities and his unknown abilities. “Mixing your fandoms?

He put a finger under my chin, pulling me back to his almost glowing eyes. “For a good cause. You just threw off my best attempt at mental persuasion, one that’s a hundred percent effective in my pack, and about ninety-eight percent outside of it. I’ve never tried it on Theoden, but I’ve compelled other vampires to leave pack members alone.” He nodded once. “Between the two of us, we can do this.”

Uncomfortable as it was, I held his gaze, hoping that his certainty defeated my doubts. Since he’d successfully commanded vampires, we had a chance. A decent chance, even. “Okay. We can do this. When are we meeting?”

He spun, not breaking my stare until his neck stopped turning. I winced. That looked painful, but I hadn’t been trying to control him. Maybe he was correct about my abilities, because I couldn’t imagine faking that move.

He looked at his watch, a rather massive military-style stainless steel timepiece. “In thirteen minutes.” He took the tablet off the desk, tapping and swiping, then handed it back to me. “That’s a diagram of the clubhouse. We’re meeting in the ballroom, which is completely empty except a few decorative tables along the sides. As you can see, there are exit doors on the north side, two doors to the hallway on the south side, an exit on the west, and two doors to the kitchen on the east side. The kitchen has exits on the west and east, plus and door to the lobby, bar, and the dining room. There are exterior exits on the dining room, bar and lobby, of course.” He pointed at each feature, his words over-enunciated and sharp. “The kitchen has a stairwell to the upper level. That level contains meeting rooms over the dining room and kitchen, with offices over the ball room. There are several emergency escapes on that level and roof access in the middle and near the east and west sides of the building. Questions about the building?”

“No basement?”

Shaking his head, he swept the diagram away. “No. There are escape tunnels. The exits are in the kitchen cleaning closet and behind the bar. Both have hidden, coded key pads, but if you need to use those, we’ve lost already.” He brought up a map of the entire compound. “I’ve marked escapes from the ballroom. But again, we’re going to win, not run.”

The Alpha was now carefully avoiding my eyes, looking at my forehead or mouth. That should give me confidence, but instead, I felt more alone than ever. He was an ally, not a friend, and once he had his niece back, he might not even be that. If Theoden released the girl—and I didn’t know if that was possible—the Alpha might turn on me. He seemed honorable, but I had to be alert to every possibility. “Okay. We’re winning. Do we know what that looks like? Am I taking over the vampires? Theo’s business? His tower? I’m a working class vamp, not a CEO.” I’d rather not set foot in that place again. But I might have to.

“At least the vampires. The rest, I don’t care about.” He slashed his hand through the air. “If you take Theoden’s entire business, I can help you find your feet.”

I sniffed. “For a percentage, I assume?”

A wry grin. “Of course. You should never trust people who do everything for free. They’re getting a reward somewhere. Usually, a much larger one.” He turned towards the door. “Come on. We want to get there early.”

I followed him upstairs and into one of the big black SUVs, already running outside the garage. He drove efficiently, parking behind the clubhouse and turning towards me. “When you act, move fast with full force and intent. No doubts, no half-measures. Overwhelming force wins battles like these. We’ll worry about the war later.” He bounded out of the vehicle.

“What war?” Maybe whatever threat worried Theo. But the Alpha was right; nothing but the present mattered. Before I’d gotten out of the car, he was holding the back door, a keypad flashing green. He shoved his phone in his back pocket and the SUV key fob dangled from his front right pocket.

Slinging my backpack on, I joined him and we stepped inside. Four chandeliers sparkled, but bright LEDs on the ceiling lit the space. It was probably one-hundred and fifty feet long by seventy feet wide, with sandy beige walls above dark wood wainscotting. Wide light wood planks covered the floor, shimmering with a sealant. Small occasional tables flanked the room, and logo mats discretely wiped guest’s shoes at each door. A light floral scent mostly covered the chemicals of industrial cleaners.

We moved to the center of the room and faced the lobby doors. Rather than wait in silence and let my fears take over, I’d ask questions. “This might be an odd time to ask, but what is your name, anyway? Calling you ‘the Alpha’ takes a lot of time in my head.”

He almost barked his laugh. “I didn’t realize you didn’t know. My mother would have my hide for such poor manners.” He turned to face me and bowed. “Aleksander Karski at your service, milady. Call me Alek, with a ‘k’ on the end, not a ‘c.’ He pronounced his name with a bit of an accent.

“Lovely to officially meet you, Alek.” I held out my hand, and rather than shaking it, he brushed his lips over my knuckles. A surprising gesture, but one that felt authentic. And hot. But I didn’t have time for nonsense. “And your niece?”

“Irene Karski. My sister never married Irene’s father.”

I shrugged. Did anyone care about that anymore? I didn’t. “Does she have a middle name?” Middle-naming a child was a great way to get their attention.

“Ah.” His brows rose slightly. “Zivia. Officially, she’s Irena Zivia Karski.”

I nodded. “That will help, thank you.”

“Of course. But we can experiment with Irena’s issues later. Theoden must be your primary concern.”

A whoosh of air, the doors banged, and Theo was in front of us. “I’m happy to be Ms. Flammen’s primary concern.” He practically purred the words, while attempting to loom over us. Since he was only four or five inches taller than me, it really didn’t work.

“I’m sure you are.” I crossed my arms and frowned at him. “I—”

“Where’s my niece?” Alek hovered over both of us, quite effectively. “I set this meeting up to get my niece back, healthy and whole.”

Alek had told me—no, implied—that Theoden found us and insisted on the meeting. Maybe the enemy of my enemy wasn’t on my side after all.

“You thought I set this up?” Theo ignored the wolf, sniffing while staring down at me. “Hardly. You’ll come back eventually or you’ll die.”

My frown turned to a scowl. “Let me make something crystal-clear to both of you. You don’t own me. I’ll walk into the sunrise before either one of you control me.”

Theoden’s snarl had nothing on Alek’s. “You will not.”

I put a hand on Alek’s chest and shoved him back. “I don’t answer to you.” Turning to Theo, I repeated the same sentiment, but slower. “You don’t own me. You may be able to capture me temporarily, but that’s all it will ever be. Captivity. I won’t be your plaything, I won’t be a figurehead for your religion, and I won’t be at your beck and call. Is that clear?”

Theo smiled. “Oh, but you will. I made you. I own you.” He took a step back, then another. He met my gaze. “Come, Charlene Flammen. Now.”

At the snapped order, my foot lifted, and I slammed it back down. I reinforced my mental refusal. “No. Release Irena, now.” I copied his tone.

He leaned forward, then scoffed. “No.”

“Yes, or your people die.” Alek shoved his phone in front of Theo’s face. “My pack has every one of your people in cuffs or in the sights of a high-powered rifle. Release my niece, fully, or they all die.” He paused, then growled, “Now.”

“You’re a dead man.” Faster than I could see, Theoden had a hand around Alek’s neck.

“So are you.” A shot blasted, deafening in the empty room.

Theo and Alek staggered. Theo’s hand clenched Alek’s neck, and red bloomed below Theo’s armpit, around the muzzle of the pistol in Alek’s hand.

Mutually ensured destruction, indeed. I wasn’t getting caught in that trap.

I ran.

***To be continued***

Working Class Vegas Vamp Copyright © 2024 by AM Scott. All Rights Reserved.

Cover by Achlys Book Cover Designs