The Warrior Vampire(12)
“If I’m not mistaken, you’re late for a training session, Luz.” Paul’s deep voice resonated with a rumbling growl. “José is waiting for you in the basement.”
A cold lump settled in the pit of Naya’s stomach. Out of all of the tribal elders, José was particularly sadistic. She’d trained with him when she was an apprentice and the bastard had gotten off on inflicting as much pain as possible. One of these days, she’d turn the tables on him, just to see if he could take what he dished out. A shadow of apprehension passed over Luz’s expression, seeming to echo Naya’s thoughts. José was an asshole and Paul knew it. Gods, how she hated tribal structure.
“Paul, you should let me train Luz.” Naya chanced a look straight into the chieftain’s eyes. “I can teach her just as well as José can. Probably better.”
“Cállate!” Paul ground out with a slash of his hand. “Naya, you’re not here to give orders. Luz, get your ass down to the basement. Now.”
Luz took off at a trot, reminding Naya that no matter how cocky her cousin acted, she was still very young. And Paul could be downright scary when he wanted to be. “I’ll be down as soon as I’m done here!” Naya called after her cousin. No way was Naya going to let Luz take José’s abuse all afternoon without backup. Naya might not be a great wingman when it came to partying, but in a combat situation she was the best wingman you could get.
“You coddle her,” Paul said with a disdainful curl of his lip as he turned and led Naya out of the foyer. “In the end, you’re not doing her any favors.”
“José is a bastard and you know it. The least you could do is assign her to another instructor.”
Paul pretended to ignore Naya, which was nothing less than she expected, and she didn’t waste her breath by trying to bait him into answering. If Paul wanted to ignore you, nothing short of poking him with a hot torch would get his attention. As she followed the high-and-mighty chieftain to whatever room he’d planned on meeting in, Naya couldn’t help but wonder what the place looked like before the large house had been renovated to accommodate office space. It had probably been beautiful in its time, the floor plan open and inviting, furnished with gorgeous turn-of-the-century pieces. But now the rooms were too small, the hallways dark and foreboding, and the staircases sinister. Shadows dwelled in every corner, the light not quite penetrating, and the doors that led to the other office spaces were closed and locked, making Naya feel more than a little claustrophobic. She hated coming here, hated it right to the marrow of her bones, and Paul knew it. He’d made her come here to exercise his control over her. To remind her that no matter what she thought to the contrary, she was nothing more than a tool at the elders’ disposal.
He took her to the back of the building and into the largest room besides the attic and basement. This was where the tribal elders met, made decrees, and decided the fates of their people as if they were all too stupid to think for themselves. Seated at a half-moon-shaped table, backs straight and expressions severe, were the rest of the elders. Naya tripped on her own feet as she walked through the door, and her jaw dropped in shock. What were they all doing here? A gathering like this only occurred when there was big business to discuss or if someone was in deep shit. And since Naya couldn’t remember any big business coming up that pertained to her, she had to assume that the elders had gathered because she was about to get her ass kicked. So not good. Her heart raced as she took a seat opposite the gathering of males. Did they know about Ronan? Holy shit, she hoped not.
* * *
For the second time in the past twelve hours, Ronan woke up feeling like he’d been ejected out of the business end of an elephant. Though his mind was clearer now, he still couldn’t remember what had happened the night before. She’d said that he’d told her he needed to protect her. From what? Had he known she was his when he tackled her to the ground last night? Was something after her? After them both? Fuck. She’d knocked him out and walked right out the gods-damned door. He had no idea where she was. He might not know anything about her, but she was his mate. She’d tethered his soul to hers. And it was his responsibility to keep her safe.
His muscles twitched involuntarily, causing his concentration to flag as the realization that he was still bound overcame him. Ronan tensed as he pulled the chains securing his wrists to the headboard. He inhaled sharply at the bite of pain. Though the silver had weakened him, he should have been able to at least bend the frame with his physical strength alone. So either his devious female chained men to her bed on a regular basis or she’d fortified the frame with a magical enhancement to prevent him from breaking free.