Free Vampire Legacy (Book 4 of the Dragon Heat series) by Ella J. Phoenix

searching for something.
    “Wait, I think we found it,” one of the men said.
    “Is it here?” The other one asked, leading his horse back to the same spot.
    “Yes, but I don’t see them,” the first one replied, circling around the nearby bushes, just inches away from the water-witch.
    Damn the Soartas. Petran got ready to attack. If they searched a bit further they would not only find the women, but him as well.
    “Lady Natalia, are you here?” the first man shouted pulling back his hood.
    “Dimitri!” At once, Natalia stepped out of her hiding spot, followed by the other woman. “What are you doing here?”
    “Apologies for intruding, milady, but we need your help,” Dimitri replied, already dismounting from his horse. “Your chambermaid told me you were meeting the witch here.”
    Natalia seemed taken aback. “What is it of such urgency that would justify you breaking our code? You put us in extreme jeopardy by first coming here, and then shouting my name in the middle of the forest!”
    “Apologies again, milady,” the other man intervened. “But Milek asked us to come find you at all costs.”
    Milek? Petran’s eye went wide in shock. As in Ivan Milek, the leader of the draconian rebel army?
    “What happened? Is he hurt?” Natalia asked.
    “Has he been found out?” the water witch added.
    “No, milady, it’s his sister. Please come with me, I’ll explain on the way,” the man replied.
    Natalia glanced at the other woman. “Mother Nepú, I know our bargain was just for the potion to help my father’s health, but I have a feeling we could use your help tonight. Please, join us as well.”
    Mother Nepú stared at Natalia as if weighing her options, then nodded slightly. “I’ll come with you.”
    Both women climbed on the backs of the horses behind the riders, and galloped away with the draco, Dimitri and his companion. Petran didn’t have a horse but he didn’t need one to follow in suit. Contrary to popular belief, each vampire had his or her own individual abilities, developing according to his personal capabilities. His great-great-grandfather, Vlad Dracul, for instance, could read minds; his son, Vlad Tepes, The Impaler, was a master of telekinesis, hence his inclination to shove his enemies up on a spike. Petran’s talent was teleportation. While most vampires were able to teleport without breaking a sweat, very few could control the pace and the way in which their cells transported. Petran could not only cover vast distances in the blink of an eye but he could slow it down, and travel like the wind. So he stepped out of the shadows and let the familiar feeling of free fall overtake his senses. It was risky to follow them around in an unknown territory but there was no way Petran would not get to the bottom of this mystery called Lady Natalia.
     
    **********
     
    The two horses galloped along the narrow streets of the draconian village, then stopped in front of a brothel. They helped Natalia and Mother Nepú down then climbed the stairs into the two-story house with red doors.
    Petran was past the point of curious by now, we was dead on shocked. Beggars and drunks roamed these stinking streets either trying their luck at cards or spending themselves between the legs of prostitutes. What in Hiad was a lady of the ton like Natalia doing in a red light district like this one? More importantly, why was she associating herself with the leader of the rebel forces?
    With his mind full of questions, he materialized across the street from the brothel intending to follow them inside but just before the door shut behind them, Nepú suddenly stopped in her tracks and turned around.
    Petran jumped back into the shadows.
    The witch was definitely more sensitive than he’d anticipated having clearly sensed his arrival in the air. He’d have to be more careful.
    After narrowing her eyes in his direction, however, the witch turned back around and disappeared inside the building.
    A bunch of kids