by L.H. Cosway
Tegan exhaled tiredly. “Apparently the magical families are down with the whole incest fandango. In fact, they favour it to keep their bloodlines pure.”
Well, that certainly explained why Ethan didn’t want to enrol the sorcerer’s help.
No one spoke for a few long moments before Cristescu broke the quiet. “A number of my people didn’t manage to escape the bombs tonight and have perished. As a mark of respect, I’m not going to act on this until the morning. Tonight, we rest. Tomorrow, we will devise a plan to kill Theodore once and for all.”
I had to admire his determination. In fact, it was a relief. Theodore needed to die, so we could all get to work restoring normality and bringing peace to the city. The sooner we could start on that, the better.
Ethan strode from the room, and Tegan followed him out. When I looked down at Alora I found her asleep in my lap with her head resting on my shoulder. I carried her to my room and laid her down on my bed. When I started to undress, I found a piece of red plastic buried in my shin and grimaced.
I’d been injured so many times over the years that my body was starting to get used to certain levels of pain. Clenching my jaw tight, I pulled the plastic out of my leg and managed not to make a sound even though I kind of wanted to swear up a storm. I tossed the plastic onto the floor and grabbed some bandages from the main bathroom. When I returned, I found myself staring at the piece of red plastic, suddenly recognising where it came from. It was a piece of the glowing red “Crimson” sign that used to hang over the front door of the club.
The place was ground zero now.
It was funny how, for so many years, I imagined blowing that building up in my head, fantasised about how satisfying it would be to see a club full of vamps burn. Now it had happened, and I didn’t feel satisfied at all. I only felt a mixture of sadness for the lives lost and relief that we’d managed to get out of there alive.
Tegan
In the bathroom adjoining Ethan’s room, I stripped down to nothing and stepped inside the shower. He was already in there, his forehead leaning against the expensive tile, his hand braced on the rail, holding his body up. I rested my head against his back. He was so tall that my face barely met his shoulder. Some of his tension fell away when I pressed my lips to his skin, and one of his back muscles twitched in response.
I glanced down and saw the debris that had been stuck to our bodies washing away down the drain. I had scrapes and cuts all over, and they stung when the water touched them. Even with a vampire to whisk me away from the explosion, I didn’t avoid all of the blast.
Then I noticed a slightly pink tinge to the water. There was a small gash on my arm that was bleeding. Ethan’s body went frighteningly still.
“Fuck, Tegan,” he whispered, his breathing harsh.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realise I was bleeding,” I said, moving to leave, but he stopped me.
“Don’t go. Stay and drink from me. You are hurt.”
“Remember we said we weren’t going to do that again?” I tried to remind him, even though my mouth was already watering. While my mind was determined to quit, my body hadn’t forgotten the addictive pleasure of his blood.
Ethan whipped around shockingly fast and then his lips were on the wound on my arm, his tongue licking away the last remnants of my blood. I moaned from the feel of it.
“I know what we agreed, but we can also agree that tonight has not been an ordinary night? I need to be with you as deeply as I possibly can. I need to feel you drink from me, to heal you, to be in control of this one little thing.”
“You’re in control, Ethan,” I murmured as I ran my hands through his hair. “Don’t let Theodore undermine you. That’s what he wants.”
Ethan’s face turned angry. “He blew up my club! Of course I’m not in control.”
My gut instinct was to get away from him when he was like this, but I didn’t do that. Instead, I stayed and kept touching him.
“A club is a club. You can always open another one. It’s inconsequential. Theodore is obviously running out of ideas, and resorting to using bombs when he has so much magic is the act of a desperate man. Surely, you can see that, right?”
The anger in Ethan’s features dissolved. “Yes, I see that.” His strong hands slid along my neck. “Lumina mea, you are wise beyond your years.”
“No, I’m not. It’s just easier for me to see clearly because I’m not letting anger cloud my vision.”
Ethan penned me in with his arms, pressing into me until my back was flat against the tiles. Drops of water trickled down his perfect torso, distracting me from the conversation.
His stare was intense as he looked at me. “Your friends could have died tonight if I had chosen incorrectly. Theodore has taken Rebecca. You should be just as angry as I am.”
“Yeah, maybe I should, but getting angry isn’t going to help. It’s not going to help me think clearly enough to get Rebecca back.”
I trailed a finger down his wet abs, lingering just above his pubic bone, a question springing to mind. “How could you not tell which heartbeats were human and which were vampires?”
Frustration marked his features. “Theodore had spelled them silent. There might as well have been ten dummies presented to me, for I could not hear or scent a thing.”
“Oh. Well, I’m glad you guessed right. And I’m glad Lucas jumped in front of the bullet meant for Amanda.”
“He owed her that,” Ethan whispered, his eyes now focused on my chest and my rapidly hardening nipples. Even amidst chaos and tragedy, he still managed to turn me on.
“Yeah, he did,” I whispered back as he picked me up and pulled my legs around his waist. He reached behind him to turn off the shower before swiftly sliding his cock inside me. I shuddered at the exquisite invasion. He carried me to the bedroom, our bodies wet, him still seated deep inside me. When he lowered me onto the bed, he began to thrust his hips, moving in and out, torturously slow.
Then he rose to his knees and used his thumbnail to cut a line down his wrist. I was too lost in the sex to tell him no, and when he held it over my lips and a single drop trickled out, I couldn’t help but lick it up with my tongue. Even that one drop filled my body with a maddening sense of pleasure. I felt my scrapes and cuts healing already.
I licked the blood away from his skin, not allowing myself any more than that, and then pulled him down for a kiss.
When he came inside of me, he whispered endless declarations of love, and I fell asleep wrapped in his arms. I woke up in the middle of the night, which was something I didn’t normally do. My stomach grumbled loudly. I was absolutely starving.
Sneaking downstairs, I prepared a grilled cheese sandwich, devouring it almost as soon as it came off the pan and burning my tongue in the process. Rummaging through Ethan’s cupboard, I found an array of fancy condiments that I presumed belonged to Delilah. I began experimenting, making grilled cheese with truffle oil, grilled cheese with cured bacon, grilled cheese with balsamic vinegar, grilled cheese with pesto, eating them all ravenously. I’d never been hungrier in my life, but I put it down to almost dying.
By the time I was finally full, I sprawled out on the couch in the living room, too stuffed to make it back upstairs. Alvie was the first one up in the morning, and he laughed when he found me half asleep on the expensive sofa, which probably cost more than all the beds I’d ever owned combined.
“What are you doing down here? Did you and lover boy have a tiff or something?” he asked in bemusement, tying the belt on his black silk kimono.
“I got hungry in the middle of the night, ate too much, and fell asleep. Don’t tell anyone. It’s embarrassing.”
Alvie chuckled, shaking his head as he went to the kitchen to make coffee. I sat up, and a strange feeling washed over me. I felt exhausted and full of energy all at once. Well, that was what I got for stuffing my face like such a pig last night. It was way too many carbs.
My stomach let out an audible gurgle and then queasiness took ove
r. Oh no, I was going to vomit. I raced up the stairs to the bathroom and slammed the door shut. Seconds later, I was crouched over the toilet bowl, heaving every scrap of those grilled cheese sandwiches back up.
A few minutes later, my stomach finally calmed down, and I splashed water over my face to freshen up before brushing my teeth. I thought I might have a temperature. Or maybe I was just hungover? I mean, I did drink an awful lot at Ethan’s party, and it didn’t matter how expensive the alcohol was; it all felt the same the next morning.
There was a knock on the door followed by Ethan asking, “Tegan, are you alright in there? I heard you throwing up.”
“I’m fine. Just really hungover.”
There was a smile in his voice now. “Ah, well, I’ll make you up a good cure, shall I?”
“Depends on what it is.”
“Raw eggs and tomato juice,” he answered, and I groaned.
“Jesus, are you trying to make me sick again?”
The door opened and he scooped me up into his arms. “Come, my darling, get some rest and you’ll be right as rain.”
“What I don’t get is how your blood hasn’t healed up all my ailments. I think I might be developing a resistance,” I whined.
“One does not develop a resistance to vampire blood, especially not mine. Besides, you only had a drop.”
A minute after Ethan tucked me in bed, Delilah came strolling into the room without knocking.
“Brother, I was wondering if I could have a word with you …” she began but trailed off when her eyes locked on mine. Her posture went stiff as she gaped at me.
“Of course, what is it you want to speak about?” Ethan studied her curiously.
“What? Um, never mind,” she hurried to my side. “Oh, my God, Tegan! Oh, shit!” she swore as she ran her hand over my sweaty forehead before turning back to Ethan.
“How could you be so foolish?” she hissed.
“Delilah, don’t take that tone with me. What has you so riled up?”
“I thought your senses had been bettered, not dulled, brother. Are you so blind that you can’t see? Look at her, see how she sweats, see how her skin is tinted with a blush, how she practically glows all over?” Her hand moved from my face to my chest. “Hear how two hearts beat instead of one?” she whispered.
A headache came on. I had no idea what she was going on about, but Ethan seemingly did. He gazed at me and so many emotions passed over his face; shock, fear, anxiety. By contrast, those were followed by joy, wonderment and awe. Then so much love and tenderness filled his eyes as he smiled the biggest smile I’d ever seen.
“What’s going on?” I asked, my headache getting worse.
“You’re pregnant,” Ethan beamed.
Okay, it was a good thing I was already lying down because now I felt like I was going to faint.
13.
Finn
“Please tell me you’re joking,” I said, rubbing my tired eyes and staring at Delilah like she’d grown two heads.
She carefully spooned a lump of sugar into her teacup, Ira sitting beside her. Gabriel and Alvie were on my side of the table, both wearing identical expressions of shock.
“I know a dhampir pregnancy when I see one. The foetus develops fast, and Tegan’s showing all the signs. The two of them have been fucking like rabbits anyway, too in love to use the proper protection, so this is the obvious outcome. Although I had thought my brother would be a little more careful. He knows how dangerous it is for a human to become pregnant with a vampire’s child. He allowed himself to get lost in his connection to Tegan instead of keeping his wits about him.”
“But Tegan’s not entirely human,” Gabriel interjected. “She’s half-witch and she has incredibly powerful magical blood. Surely that will help give her a better chance of surviving the birth.”
“Here’s hoping that’s true,” Delilah replied, and I couldn’t take it any longer. I had to broach the ugly subject nobody wanted to bring up.
“Has she considered aborting it?” I asked in a low voice, and Alvie let out a quiet gasp. Delilah stared at me like I just spit in her teacup.
“No, she hasn’t … considered that. But it doesn’t matter anyway. An abortion poses the same amount of danger as childbirth in this particular case.” She lowered her voice. “And a word of warning. Don’t go around saying anything like that in front of my brother. Children are, um, a touchy subject for him.”
“Ethan has had several children in the past,” Gabriel explained, and I was surprised he knew this since they’d spent most of their lives estranged from one another. “All of them died.”
“Oh,” I muttered, looking away. “Poor bloke.” I never thought it could actually happen, but I felt sympathy for a vampire.
A moment later, there was a knock at the front door, and I used it as an excuse to escape the awkward tension my big mouth created. I finished off the slice of toast I’d been eating and stuck the other in my mouth, because, you know, I was a growing boy who needed his energy.
When I opened the door, I found a tall, dark-haired man standing on the step. He wore a suit, and his blue eyes were intense. One thing was for certain, he was a warlock, and a powerful one at that.
There was no point pulling out a weapon when the person you would be aiming at had magic, so I simply stood there and waited for what he had to say.
The man closed his eyes, and a little shimmer swept over his face before he opened them again. “Finn Roe, it’s a pleasure to meet you. May I come inside?”
Impressive as it was that he could just magic up my name, I lifted a hand to stop him from passing over the threshold. “State your business first.”
“I’m Roman. My granddaughter, Tegan, must have told you about me, no?”
Not a warlock then, not even a really powerful one like I’d thought. A sorcerer.
“Uh, yeah, she did.” I glanced over his shoulder and down the street. There didn’t seem to be anyone else around. I considered telling him to wait outside until I consulted with the others, but there was really no point in that. I doubted a closed door would be much of an obstacle to a man like this.
“Come on in,” I said, stepping out of his way. “I’ll go and tell Tegan you’re here, but she’s been sick this morning so she might not be up to visitors.”
“That’s quite alright,” Roman replied. “If she is ill, then don’t bother disturbing her. I came because I need a couple of volunteers. Today I will endeavour to take Emilia Petrovsky from Theodore, and I will require the help of at least two able-bodied men. I also sense that there is an elf staying on the premises. Am I correct?”
I narrowed my gaze at him. “You might be.”
“We will need her, too. She was the one Michael Ridley had been holding hostage, yes?”
“Do you always speak in questions?”
“I do when I require answers,” he said, staring at me blandly.
I let out a sigh. “Yeah, she’s the one Ridley kidnapped. What do you need her for?”
Roman smiled now. “She will be our decoy.”
At this, my expression hardened. “I don’t think so.”
“Trust me. She won’t come to any harm.”
“Alora’s not being used as a decoy,” I stated firmly, and Roman’s lips curved in a smile.
“Ah, now I see why you’re protective. She’s your significant other.”
“What she is to me is none of your business.”
“Well, if you want this to work, we’ll need her,” Roman said, all matter of fact as we entered the kitchen. I made some quick introductions. Gabriel and Alvie both stared at him like they were meeting a celebrity while Delilah gave him a cordial smile. Roman took a seat at the table and explained that he needed to retrieve Emilia in order to break the barrier spell she’d cast around the city. I informed him of Rebecca’s recent abduction, so he altered his plan slightly to include rescuing her also.
“What do you think you’re doing here?” came a voice, and we all turned t
o find Cristescu standing in the doorway glaring at Roman.
“I’m sure you already know,” Roman replied evenly. “You can hear everything that is said under this roof.”
A deadly silence ensued. Was that true? I wasn’t sure I liked the idea of Cristescu being able to hear everything I said when he wasn’t in the room.
“Get out.”
“I’m here to help my granddaughter, and you, too, for that matter. Please don’t allow your petty insecurities to get in the way.”
Cristescu looked like he was trying to calm himself down when he replied, “The last twenty-four hours have been eventful for us, sorcerer. You’ll excuse me if I’m highly strung.”
Roman wore his bland expression again. “Of course.”
Another God-awful silence fell. I decided to break the tension when I spoke, “Right, well, I’m going upstairs to talk to Alora. If she agrees to be your decoy, fine. But if she doesn’t want to, I won’t let you force her.”
“Very well,” Roman replied, and I headed upstairs.
I found Alora in my room getting dressed. I put Roman’s plan to her, expecting her to be too scared to be a part of it. She surprised me when her jaw set determinedly, and she insisted on helping. Maybe she wasn’t such a damsel in distress who needed my protection after all. There was grit to her, and I suspected some of it was related to her need for revenge. Theodore and Ridley were close, and killing Theodore meant the man who stole two years of her life lost his most powerful ally.
When we were ready to leave, instead of using a vehicle, Roman cast a spell to transport us to our destination. I felt like I’d just woken up from a dream when I opened my eyes and saw that we were no longer at Cristescu’s place but crouched behind some trees outside a large family home.
It was a cookie-cutter house surrounded by dozens of similar homes. It was also in an area where only humans lived. Camouflage, I guessed. Theodore wanted to blend in with the crowd and make himself harder to find.
I saw Roman whispering in Alora’s ear, giving her instructions, and while I couldn’t hear all that he said, I understood why he wanted to use her when I spotted Michael Ridley standing guard at the front door. My protective instincts kicked in before my gaze lowered.
