The Vampire's Surprise - Stormy Glenn Page 0,47

us up with some sort of drug that knocked us out. I think it interfered with the bond."

"It's still there, rajaaka." Dmitri knew why Quinn sounded so upset. "I promise you."

He hugged Quinn for another moment before escorting him to the darkness of the thick trees. Once he thought they would be hidden from prying eyes, he pulled Quinn back into his arms and then looked at the others who'd gathered around. "Sire."

"Dmitri, my friend." Marcus patted him on the shoulder. "I am glad to see you, but we must go. Those who held us have discovered we escaped. I fear they are after us."

"Not to worry, sir." Dmitri smirked. "I brought backup."

He put his fingers to his lips and let out a whistle that pierced the night air like an arrow through Jell-O. More vampires came out of the shadows—a lot more—including Louis, who walked over and bowed to both Marcus and Nikolas.

"Sires."

"Louis," Nikolas said. "Is Jon—"

"Locked in the penthouse with Etienne, your mother, the kids, and a unit of enforcers."

Nikolas's shoulders slumped with obvious relief. "Thank you."

"How did you know where we were, Dmitri?" Marcus asked. "We don't even know where we are."

"You're about five miles outside of town, on the east side. We're not far from the docks," Dmitri replied. "Dr. Webster told us where you were."

Marcus's eyes narrowed. "And how did he know?"

"He heard rumors of a rogue compound out this way and gave us directions." Dmitri kept one arm wrapped around Quinn's waist—keeping the man pinned to his side—as he turned and gestured to the vampires forming a line behind them. "Louis and I brought in a few others to help us rescue you."

"Good plan," Marcus said before glancing over his shoulder toward the fence. "We need to go."

"No, sir," Louis said. "We need to end this."

"Louis is right, sire," Dmitri said. "We can't leave these people out there to be a threat to you." Or Quinn. "They need to be dealt with."

"You can't do that."

Dmitri glanced at the woman who'd been hovering at the edge of the group when she spoke. She looked slightly familiar, but it was the green eyes that really caught him. He'd seen those same green eyes in his rajaaka.

"This is Mara," Quinn said. "My mother."

Dmitri's eyebrows shot up. "Your mother?"

"She helped us escape."

Dmitri still wasn't sure how he felt about the woman, especially considering she'd fobbed her kids off on Quinn every time.

"She has to come with us, Dmitri," Quinn said. "The guy who kidnapped us is after her, too."

Dmitri frowned as he glanced down at Quinn. "Just who did kidnap you?" It would be nice to know exactly who they were up against.

"I'm not exactly sure." Quinn turned to look at his mother, but didn't leave the shelter of Dmitri's arms. "Mom?"

"His name is Wilson Chambers," Mara said. "He's my father."

"Councilman Chambers?" Nikolas asked.

"Your father?" Marcus shouted at the very same time.

"Who's Councilman Chambers?" Quinn asked.

Dmitri's jaw clenched. "He's a very bad vampire." And he was stunned that his rajaaka was even remotely related to the man. Chambers was akin to a vampire boogeyman. "He wants to take over the vampire world with him as the supreme ruler and humans enslaved as cattle."

Quinn's upper lip curled back. "He sounds delightful."

"He's a horror," Mara whispered. "He needs to die."

Dmitri tightened his arms around Quinn when the man gasped. "What makes you say that?" He wasn't sure he believed that the daughter of Chambers would want the man dead. "Why do you hate him so much?"

"He killed my rajaaka." Mara's voice grew cold as she spoke. "I always knew my father was a little off, but I didn't realize how insane he really was until I met Quinn's father and got pregnant. I thought my father would be happy that I'd found my rajaaka, but he was horrified. He swore he'd kill them both if I didn't give them up, so I did. It was the only way to keep them alive."

"Wait," Quinn said. "Rogue vampires killed him."

Mara nodded. "My father sent them."

Quinn let out a little sob and turned his face into Dmitri's chest. Dmitri leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of Quinn's head before glancing at Mara again. "Explain about the other children."

Mara's shoulders slumped. She glanced down at her fingers as she twisted them together. "You have to understand, I am a pureblood vampire. My lineage can be traced back centuries. My father likes to use me to barter for power. He's introduces me