It Happened One Bite Read Online Free PDF Page A

under the covers and was asleep within moments. However, Blaire wasn’t quite so fortunate. Just as her eyes drifted closed, she heard a loud crash from belowstairs.
    “Damnable cat,” she muttered as she rolled over and punched her pillow in frustration. Between the snores that were already erupting from Brannock’s mouth and the crashing objects that fell when the cat ran through the dining hall, Blaire would be incredibly fortunate to get even an hour of sleep.
    Just as the castle quieted and the cat finally lay down to rest, a loud bellow came from the bowels of the castle. Blaire glanced quickly over at Brannock, who still slept soundly. Her imagination must be playing tricks on her. Out of nowhere, her brother kicked her shin with all his might. Damn it, she’d never get to sleep at this rate. She slid from beneath the counterpane, shrugged into her wrapper, and then slipped out the chamber door.
    The ring around her neck caught her attention momentarily, as the glow seemed to fade and brighten like the cadence of a beating heart. She tucked the ring back beneath her night rail and started down the stairs.
    She’d brew a cup of relaxing tea to help her sleep. That was all she needed; an enchanted sleeping draught ought to do the trick.
    ***
    A tingling began first in James’ toes and fingertips. He cried out in pain because the tingle was more like being jabbed by the sharpened points of hundreds of needles as his limbs came to life. He hadn’t felt pain in decades. Actually, in over two centuries, not since he’d been human. But he was feeling it now. And it was none too pleasant. He’d like to think that he had blood rushing to his extremities, but that was highly unlikely. Damn if he wasn’t unusually parched. A thirst tugged at him like none other had before. He needed to feed. And he needed it soon.
    He glanced around himself, unsure of where he was. The dark room that held him was so black within that he couldn’t even see his hand when he was finally able to raise it in front of his face. He tested his limbs gingerly as they slowly came to life. He blinked his eyes open and closed. Of course, the darkness was all he could see. But it felt good to open them, which was more than he could do earlier. A definite improvement.
    He wished he knew how he’d come to be in this bizarre place. He rolled to a seated position and groaned loudly as he unbent his long body. He leaned against the frigid stone wall behind him and laid his head on his knees.
    After a time, his eyes began to adjust to the surrounding darkness, and James smiled when he was able to make out a door. Freedom. Thank God.
    James rose to his feet but nearly stumbled under his own weight. He clutched the wall to steady himself. Had he been drugged? Just one more sin to add to the mounting list of injustices the coven had placed upon him.
    On weak legs, James slowly made his way across the cold floor and grasped the door handle. He tugged, only to find it locked. That shouldn’t have been a surprise, but it was disheartening just the same. Not that a locked door could keep him trapped. All he had to do was pull it from its hinges.
    He yanked on the handle, but it didn’t move an inch. He slammed his shoulder against the wood, but he didn’t even hear a satisfying crack. For God’s sake, how weak was he? Then the most glorious sound he’d ever heard reached his ears. Footsteps came from the floor above him. He looked up. “Hello?” he called. The footsteps stopped. “Hello?” he said again, resting his head against the door. If he was loud enough, perhaps the person could hear him. “Please!” he yelled one final time. “I’m trapped. Please let me out.”
    The faint voice of the female he’d heard earlier trickled like rain down to him in the darkness. A bump and a muffled curse word reached his ears, which brought a smile to his face. The lass did have an interesting vocabulary. He’d teach her a few more colorful words if