Blooded Mate

Chapter 27 - The Marked Motel

Right out of the Reyn household, Jan set a furious pace running through the woods. He wanted to be out of wolf territory before the sun came up.

"Jan! Wait!"

His brother was right on his heels, but Jan ignored him. When he slowed to get his bearings, Ivan crossed him, blocking his path. Jan bit down a curse and side-stepped him.

Ivan's grumbling carried on the wind as his footsteps picked up again behind him. Something about an ox with deaf ears.

Jan did not care. He would stop only when they were far away from the odious wolves.

Just as the night sky began paling on the horizon, he arrived at the wrought iron gates of a walled residential community. To the rest of the world, it seemed like a closed-off affluent neighborhood. But to people like him, the entire estate was known as a marked motel.

A man in a suit stepped out of the square security office next to the entrance. His mossy, old wood scent marked him as a vampire.

His eyes ran over Jan, taking in his disheveled state, but he did not ask any question. Which was just as well, as he would not have gotten any answers.

The allure of a motel such as this, as opposed to a regular hotel, was that it was designed to cater only to vampires. And the staff were trained not to pry into the business of its limited clientele. Jan's people were very prickly about their affairs.

"Lobby is straight ahead, sir," the man said, pressing a button on a fob.

The large gates whirred as they opened, sliding on rails to the side. Since it was rare that any client who could afford the services here would ever arrive on foot, there were no side doors built in the low brick wall.

Before Jan entered the motel, he advised the man. "Expect two more."

Ivan had fallen behind on the way here, and the last he had seen of Louie was at the Reyn household.

"I'll go find them if they don't show up by nightfall," he told himself as guilt pricked his conscience.

Walking up the street, a red dot on a tree trunk caught his eye. Followed by another and another. Of course, an establishment like this would have a security team to protect its guests. Ivan had the same: a vampire detail during the night and a small human army to cover the day.

The 'lobby' was a little chalet with more glass than walls. The road split into two, circling and leading away from it on the other side. No one could enter or leave the gates without being seen.

Inside, a long curved desk occupied half of the room, facing a little seating area for guests. Behind it, two identically dressed ladies with perfect updos and too much make-up smiled as they checked him in. Dirtied as he was, both pairs of eyes behind the reception grew to saucers when he gave his name and black-gold card.

"We're very honored to have you with us, Mr. Skyvar," one repeated, a touch breathless. "If you need anything- anything, no matter the time - don't hesitate to call. It'll be our pleasure."

"I'll show you to your villa," the other said, rounding the front desk to stand beside him. She missed the scathing look from her coworker.

"Please arrange for dinner to be served in my room. Stale," he added when he saw the smiles widen at his initial request, nearly outshining the chandelier. They dampened a bit after that, but not by much.

Had he not clarified that, Jan was confident the two humans would have laid themselves on a tray to be served as his meal.

The receptionist led him to a white golf cart parked in front of the chalet and hopped in after him. As she drove him to his assigned accommodation, she never stopped talking.