Dire Cravings

Chapter 1-3

Be realistic.

Yes. She needed to analyze the situation. Assess the facts, and distinguish between what was real and what wasn’t. She’d been forced to go on vacation. Chose to go to Alaska of all darn places. Everyone in her camp had been killed by men who looked a lot like vampires—and not the ones that sparkled and fell in love with teenage girls. Ones straight from a dark horror movie. Like the one Josh Hartnett was in. Weren’t they in Alaska, too?

Olivia knew she wasn’t dead. There was too much pain involved for death to be the answer. Unless you’re in Hell, Liv. Hell was for bad people. She wasn’t bad. Even if she’d been called vicious in the boardroom, she wasn’t bad. She was a realist. Dear Lord, please understand that every claim I denied was because it wasn’t worth the risk. What if this were her penance for all the claims she’d rejected?

That’s just silly. She needed to be practical. Start by opening your eyes and assessing your situation via visualization. Right.

Olivia opened her eyes and found she was lying on plush blankets. In a bed. And if she weren’t mistaken, the walls were made of rock. A woman stood off in the corner, talking to another woman, who pointed in her direction. The taller of the two had midnight black hair and violet eyes, the color vivid and flawless. The woman was a natural beauty. The other woman was of Spanish descent, her hair a dark brown to match her whiskey-colored eyes.

“She’s awake, Cassandra,” the shorter of the two women said.

Was I rescued?

“Where am I?” Olivia croaked, her voice strained from dehydration and lack of use.

“You’re safe. Would you like some water?”

“Yes, thank you.”

The other woman who wasn’t Cassandra nodded and walked out of the room.

“Blue asked that I get you bathed. Do you feel up to it?”

Olivia didn’t feel up to anything, but she found it odd that no one seemed concerned about what had happened to her. Or at least they hadn’t asked yet.

“I’m Olivia.”

“Cassandra. The woman who just left is Elena. We’re here to help you. Blue has gone to speak with my brother and his mate.”

“Who’s Blue?”

“He’s the one who brought you here.”

“The Viking?” Olivia blurted.

Cassandra smiled and nodded.

Elena returned with a glass of water, and Olivia took it, guzzling it a bit too quickly. She coughed until her chest hurt, and her dry lips split. The metallic taste of blood flooded her mouth, and almost made her gag.

“Go easy. You’ve been out a while, and from what Santos told us, you were running for three days. It’s a wonder you’re alive.”

Wasn’t that the truth. The cardio had paid off.

“Yeah, you wouldn’t believe the crazy s**t that’s out there in the woods.”

Elena giggled, and Cassandra glared in the other woman’s direction.

“Elena. Manners.”

“Yes, sorry. We understand you ran into a bit of trouble and your campmates were slaughtered.”

“Yes, by vampires if you can imagine it. Although, I can hardly believe it. Cannibals are more accurate. They were drinking their blood. And their eyes…they were red.” Olivia suppressed a full body shiver. Now that she was safe, her mind and her body were starting to digest all that had happened. Scary s**t. Gruesome stuff, and too much blood. Straight out of a slasher flick for sure, only worse.

“I’m going to get an escort to the private baths,” Elena commented.

Olivia took in the room more acutely and realized she was in some sort of cave.

“What is this place?” she asked Cassandra.

“It’s home to our people.”

“You mean like a commune? Are you in some sort of cult?” The woman wasn’t dressed in a cult-ish fashion. She wore tight jeans and a tank top, and Elena wore a maxi dress.

Elena grinned before motioning to someone out in the hall.

Cassandra said nothing.

Olivia was about to ask another question when two large wolves appeared in the doorway.

“Oh, hell no. Those are wolves.”

“Demon and Daar, this is Olivia,” Cassandra introduced. Like they understand.

“Um, yeah. Hi.” Olivia waved. She’d run from one crazy train, only to enter another. She was grateful for the save, and she wasn’t about to mock their way of life. If they were used to living with wolves, who was she to argue? She may be from the city, but she wasn’t a fool to assume she’d make it out of the Alaskan wilderness alive without a guide. If Blue had found her, he would be the one to take her back to civilization. She’d file a report for the campers, leave out the vampire parts, and go on about her life as if everything were back to normal.

“The private bath is this way.”

Olivia took her time standing. Her feet throbbed, and her bones protested, and Elena, who seemed the friendlier of the two, helped her as they made their way down a lit pathway.

“Are we inside a cave?” Olivia wondered.

“Yes. You’re safe here. Watch your step. And you can lean on me if you’d like.”

“Thanks, and sorry.”

“For what?” Elena asked.

“My unappealing aroma. I figured if I rubbed mud all over myself it would mask my scent.”

“It would have if you were completely naked. But with clothing, the scent of the fabric is easy to pick up.”

“Good to know.”

It was on the tip of Olivia’s tongue to ask about her attack, but as she followed the two women and their pet wolves down the corridor, she changed her mind. I’m suffering from mental exhaustion. What was peculiar was Elena’s response. She must be talking about the large wolf that chased me. Yeah, that was it. Had to be. There was no way vampires were real. Not a possibility whatsoever. If there were vampires, her job as a risk analyst would have included that. It would have been a part of her schooling. Being attacked by a vampire was a huge risk.