whisky in her face. Before she can react, I take off for the door, slamming into a wall of muscle as I make it to just in front of the staircase. I push off of it and try to dart around it but find myself caught in another pair of strong hands.
“Clarabelle, what is going on?”
I look up into Aaron’s deep blue gaze but shake off the hypnotic effect. “Let me go! I have to go!” I struggle to keep from crying.
Aaron lifts my arm, looking at the gashes and drying blood. “What happened? Talk to me,” he demands.
I shake my head, yank my arms from him, and run for the door again.
“Clarabelle, you can’t leave; they aren’t going to allow you to leave knowing what you know,” he begs me, gripping my arms again.
But I am too upset, too scared of the vampires in the club to listen, and shake him off of me. I have to get away—from them, from him. He brought me into this world of his, told me he’d protect me from Siannon, but he didn’t.
My heart shatters as I flee past the bouncer, tears streaming down my cheeks. It is then I realize I didn’t drive myself, and I’d have to grab an Uber or a taxi. Running from the club parking lot, I watch the cars fly by through my haze of tears. I scan the cars for a cab, or a bus, anything that will take me away from the psychopath who wants me dead.
Chapter 9
I can’t figure out what happened between sending Clarabelle upstairs and me getting up there. Of course, Theo had come to speak to me, reminding me that she shouldn’t be left on her own downstairs—not only could she end up in trouble with the staff, but she could wind up being harmed by another guest who wouldn’t be gentle with her. I hadn’t even considered that, so I was grateful for Theo’s intervention with Eldridge. Eldridge had merely been doing his job: making sure the humans upstairs don’t figure out what is going on below them in the BDSM part of the club.
“Is she going to be a problem?” Theophilus follows my gaze toward the door. “We can send someone after her to wipe her memory if need be.”
“No, I’m sure that she’s not going to be. We discussed this, she agreed to be my submissive, I just… I don’t understand what’s happened. She was up here, for fuck’s sake! What would cause her to run from here in tears?”
Theo shrugs. “I don’t know, nor do I care. I simply want to remind you that if she doesn’t go through with the collaring ceremony, you will need to wipe her mind. If you do not, Lucius will send someone else to do it, and they will not care what damage it does to her. Understand?”
“Of course. I’ll go find her and bring her back.”
I hurry out to the parking lot, climb in my car, and start down the street in the direction I’d seen Clarabelle run. Three blocks down, I see her on the opposite side of the road, so I drive past her and do a U-turn. I pull into the parking lot, turn off the engine, and get out. Slowly, I approach her like she is a scared animal.
“Clarabelle.” I say her name in a soft and calm voice. “Clarabelle, please, come talk to me.”
She raises her head, and her face is blotchy from crying. Her tearstained cheeks eat at my heart. “Go away.” Her voice is a husky whisper.
I move toward her and gently gather her to me. She keeps her arms crossed but doesn’t try to pull away. “Please, tell me what happened?”
She sniffles into my chest. “Siannon. Attacked me.” She raises her gaze up to mine, giving me an accusing look. “Why is she allowed to do that? Why is she allowed to behave that way? We were right there, in front of other humans! Nobody stopped her. Nobody did anything!”
Her words are lightning strikes to my heart. I’d left her unattended, and Siannon had gotten to her. For that, I deserve every harsh word she is spitting at me. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t … I never thought she’d hurt you in front of others. I shouldn’t have left you alone. I swear I will never do so again, Clarabelle.” I pull her closer, holding onto her for dear life, as if she will push away and run from me at