“I know you’re talking, but all I can hear is mooing.” His smile broadened at that, and I swallowed hard. I wasn’t sure if he meant that my blood was like milk, or that I was just a piece of meat, but either way, it wasn’t complimentary.

Behind me, I heard Violet’s laughter, and she had closed in on me. We were in a room full of people, though. Even if everyone was enamored with them, they wouldn’t be able to ignore me kicking and screaming.

And Lucian wouldn’t dare bite me, not with all the witnesses. Vampires didn’t exactly hide who they were, but they didn’t want it broadcast on the nightly news, either.

This was the only thing I had going for me, and if I stood my ground long enough, somebody would notice me.

“You’re plotting an escape.” Lucian sounded amused. “I’d love to see how that turns out.”

“I’m not here alone,” I said, and Violet giggled behind me. Lucian glared at her, cutting the sound short.

“Maybe not, but your knight in shining armor isn’t here to protect you,” Lucian said with unnerving certainty.

“How do you know that?” I asked

“Because he’d already be here if he were!” He reached out to touch me, sliding one of his repulsively long finger nails down my cheek, and I jerked my head back, terrified of what would happen if he drew blood. “Jumpy, are we?”

He wanted to eat me, and I definitely did not want him to. He was much stronger, faster, and probably even smarter than me. The only thing I had was the room full of people and Milo, so I had to utilize them before it was too late.

I bolted out into the dance floor. Someone grabbed at my dress, and I assumed it was Violet, because Lucian seemed too smart to cause a scene like that. The fabric ripped in the back and I felt a breeze through my panties. If I hadn’t been running for my life, I would’ve been mortified.

With one magical leap, I managed to jump on the nearest platform. It was about two feet off the ground, so it wasn’t that impressive, except I’m 5’3” running through a crowded gay club with a torn dress and a vampire on my tail.

Milo was on the next cube over, though, and I yelled his name, hoping to catch his attention, but he was making out with the saucy little number dancing with him.

I leapt from one platform to another, and Lucian hissed behind me. Landing roughly on the platform, I started falling into a guy, but then Milo caught me with startling ease and grace.

“What’s wrong?” Milo gripped my arm.

“He’s here!” I shouted.

“Who?” Milo scanned the floor

Before I could answer, he snarled, and I knew that he’d spotted Lucian and Violet. His eyes narrowed and his pupils dilated, and I could see him transforming into attack mode. There was something incredibly primal and rather terrifying about it.

“Milo!” I yelled when his hand gripping my arm got painful. I broke his concentration, and his eyes snapped back down to me.

“We have to get out of here,” Milo said. Underneath his new confidence and strength, I saw genuine fear.

Still holding onto me, he jumped off the platform, and I heard some disappointed boo’s from the crowd about his departure. We had made it most of the way to the door when I saw Jane kissing one of the girls in her lesbian sandwich. In all the panic of trying to get out of here, I’d almost forgotten about her.

I thought about leaving her behind for her safety, since vampires were chasing us. But they might have seen her come in with us, so I grabbed her hand. She looked like she wanted to slap it away, but Milo was dragging us, and she saw him shirtless, so she went with it.

Milo yanked us outside. I tripped over my feet, and I wanted to let go of Jane so I could just hang onto to him and concentrate on walking, but Lucian had definitely seen her.

“Why are we rushing? I’m gonna break a damn ankle!” Jane shouted.

“You’ve got to hurry up!” Milo insisted.

His strides were so long and fast that it was impossible for me to keep up, and I finally fell to the ground. I barely had a chance to scrape my knee and he was pulling me to my feet again, making my arm scream.

“Milo! You’re gonna dislocate my shoulder!” I winced.

“Your shoulder can be fixed,” Milo growled, and his nostrils flared. “Dammit, Alice. You’re bleeding.”

“It’s your fault.” My knee was dappled with little drops of blood. My leg hurt to walk on, and I was already slow to begin with. I looked behind us, expecting Lucian to be a few steps back, but there were only other club goers on the sidewalk. “They’re not behind us.”

“Then they’re in front of us.” Milo stopped sharply, and I almost fell again. I could see in front of us, and I had no idea what he was talking about.

“What in the hell is going on?” Jane demanded, her voice edged with panic.

“We have to get to the car.” Milo picked me up and threw me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. I yelped in surprise, but I didn’t protest. “Jane, you have to keep up. If you can’t, I’m leaving you behind.”

“What are you-” Before she could finish, he was moving again, this time even faster than before. He had grabbed her hand and yanked her forward.

Milo jumped over the guardrail into the parking lot, and Jane scrambled much less nimbly behind him. He scanned everywhere, searching for any sign of them, and I could feel his ragged breathing. He wasn’t hurrying enough to be short of breath, so it had to be because he struggled with the scent of my blood.

Even if Milo saved me from Lucian, he wouldn’t be able to save me from himself.

We had just about reached the car, and I thought we had really made it. Out of nowhere, Lucian appeared, leaning against the drivers’ side of the Jetta. He grinned at us, and Milo tightened his grip around me so much it hurt, but I was too scared to complain.

“Who is that?” Jane asked, and if she had it her way, she wouldn’t be running from him.

“Just go away!” Milo shouted.

“You know, you’ve only succeeded in scenting the air,” Lucian told him. “It’s the same thing they do with sharks. They bait the water with blood to attract them, and it puts them in a frenzy. Did you know that?”

“Please just move,” Milo said through gritted teeth.

“How are you feeling about now? A little frantic yourself?” Lucian took a step away from the car, towards us, and Milo tensed up more.