Beneath the Dust (Force of Nature Book 4)

by Amber Lynn Natusch

  “Who else would I put up with all night?”

  The way she stared when she asked the question made me think better of answering honestly.

  ***

  “Tell me again why we have to do this now?” I asked Merc as he donned a suit coat. When he turned to look at me, his hair all tied back and smooth, he looked so much like his father that I took a step back. Noticing my retreat, he frowned.

  “I understand your unease, Piper, but it must be done. Once I am officially the vampire king, I will make it policy that there are no more formal parties—or coronations. Does that help?”

  No.

  “Yeah, I guess so. It’s just—I don’t trust anyone at this point, and you’re in a position of great power now. That makes you a target.”

  “I am now, and have always been, a target. All of us have—yourself included.”

  I couldn’t argue his logic, so I avoided it. “Walk me through this again,” I said, flopping down on his bed. I tried not to notice how his eyes widened at the sight of me there.

  “We will wait until all the vampires have arrived, then I will claim my place as king of our kind. They will all pledge fealty to me, and then, for all intents and purposes, it will be done.”

  “And if one of them doesn’t?”

  He pinned cold eyes on me. “They die.”

  “Well that’s one way to motivate them,” I said with a nervous laugh.

  “As it is meant to.”

  Silence stretched out between us for a beat too long, and I got up to leave.

  “Piper,” Merc called, stopping me by the door, “I want you to stay close to Knox this evening.”

  “To Knox? Really?” I asked, equal parts surprised and confused. He nodded. “Why?”

  “Because if I am to be a target, I don’t want you anywhere near me.”

  I swallowed hard. “But—”

  “I need you to do this for me, Piper. Please.”

  A ‘please’ from the vampire king. Something I’d never heard from his father.

  “Okay. I’ll keep my distance.”

  The relief in his expression was plain. “Thank you.”

  I walked over to the bedroom door and opened it. “You look really handsome in that tux,” I said before stepping into the hall, “but I much prefer what’s underneath.”

  With a wicked grin, I winked before slamming the door and running down the hall. Merc was so stressed that I’d just wanted to break the tension, if only for a moment. But in doing so, I wondered if I hadn’t created a different kind altogether.

  The kind that might send him down the hall after me.

  ***

  “You ready for this shitshow?” Kat asked as she stepped into my room.

  “Hell no, but it’s hardly like we have a choice.” I struggled to zip my dress, and Kat soon came to the rescue, closing the back of my black sequined gown. I turned to thank her, and my jaw damn near hit the floor.

  Kat had never been a big fan of dressing up—had never felt the need to play by the vampire king’s soirée rules—but that night, she seemed to have had a change of heart.

  “Holy shit, Kat,” I said, gaping at her body-skimming silk dress. It was like something out of an old-time movie, glamorous and elegant and classic. Understated, but not. The deep teal made her eyes even more stunning. And the deep V in the front—daaaaaamn. “Did you just have that thing lying around somewhere?”

  She shrugged. “Jase and Dean got into online shopping mode, so I let them pick something out.”

  “But you hate dresses.”

  Another shrug. “I hated the vampire king and his parties,” she said. “But Merc…I can put on a dress for him. Just once.”

  I couldn’t hold back my smile. “And what a dress it is. You’re going to have to watch your back—your front, too. Half the pack will be cozying up to you in that thing.”

  “Doubtful. Once the rest see the beating the first one that tries anything gets, they’ll behave. Most of them are much smarter than they look.”

  My smile widened. “And Brunton?”

  A scowl overtook her expression. “That one has a death wish. I can’t decide if he’s ballsy or insane. Perhaps both.”

  “Or maybe he’s something else entirely,” I argued, closing the clasp of my bracelet.

  Kat ignored my comment. “We should go downstairs. I want to be there when the guests arrive. Knox and Drake are working the entrance to make sure nobody has nefarious intentions. I want to lurk so I can be there if asses need to be kicked.”

  Cold trickled down my spine. “Do you think someone’s will?”

  She sauntered over to the door, teal silk sliding over her curves with every step.

  “The war may be at a standstill for the moment, but some beings are still frightened. And frightened beings make poor decisions,” was all she said before she disappeared into the hallway, leaving me with an impending sense of dread.

  I hurried to catch her, nearly running into the massive grizzly bear outside my door. Grizz growled his irritation at having to go at all and, given his furry form, clearly had zero intention of putting on a suit like I’d told him he had to. Instead, he grudgingly escorted me outside and over to the property’s entrance where Drake and Knox stood, the former scanning guests for magical weapons or potions or whatever it was he was looking for, and the latter grilling vampires to make sure they had no ill intent toward the vampire king—no assassination attempts planned.

  Witnessing their efforts didn’t help loosen the knot in my stomach—especially when I saw who all was in that line. Vampires I’d long hated and never trusted stretched beyond the protection of the property, waiting to enter. Waiting to pledge their fealty to the new king.

  My anxiety spiked at the thought.

  “Change of plan,” Kat said, grabbing my arm. “We need drinks.” She hauled me off toward the backyard, which had been elaborately (or magically) set up to look like a ballroom outdoors. Chandeliers seemed to hang from nowhere, lit by God only knew what. Wood floors and ornate furniture occupied the entire yard, stretching out into the darkness beyond. It was stunning—like a fairy tale.

  But those didn’t always end well.

  The knot in my stomach tightened again.

  “Here,” Kat said, thrusting some pink concoction into my hand. She watched as I downed it in one swallow, then handed me another. “I figured you were going to need this…”

  “I just need this night to be over.”

  “It’ll be easier once Merc is publicly declared the vampire king, but he’ll never be safe, Piper. There’s a reason his father was such an asshole.” She paused to swallow back her drink. “He had to be.”

  I let those words settle in my mind, not liking the implications at all.

  “Ladies,” Dean called, looping his arms around our shoulders, “you’re looking lovely this evening.”

  “Move it or I rip it off,” Kat replied, shooting daggers at him.

  “You can dress her in fine silk, but she’s still all cracked leather underneath,” I said with a laugh.

  Dean dropped his arm, smiling all the while. Kat smirked at him in return.

  “I think the guests have all arrived,” Jase said as he joined us. “Hopefully, we can get the formalities out of the way ASAP.”

  “You seem as excited about this as I am,” I said. He shot me a sidelong glance, then nodded.

  “I don’t like having everyone here.”

  “We didn’t have much of a choice since Piper torched Dad’s house.”

  “You two need a drink,” Kat said, grabbing two tumblers off a passing tray. “I’m not going to make it if everyone’s this edgy.”

  They threw back the drinks in agreement.

  I looked back toward the front gate to find the pack all congregated, Knox in the middle of them. He kept looking over to me, his gaze sharp and focused. I wondered if he was reading them the riot act.

  “I think we are all set to begin,” Drake said as he walked towa
rd us. Much to my surprise, Liam was at his side. “Everyone checked out. No magical weapons. No blades. No guns. And everyone passed Knox’s polygraph test, so we should be all set.”

  “Unless the fey queen slashes through the veil and starts shit,” I said, reaching for another drink.

  “Or the fey king,” Kat added. She shot Liam a sideward glare, then clinked her glass to mine and put it to her lips.

  “I believe I have dealt with that possibility, but with the fey royals, one can never be too sure,” Drake said.

  What a sobering statement that was.

  I looked across the outdoor ballroom to find Merc talking to someone I didn’t recognize. He gave him a curt nod, then made his way to the center of the space, where Jase and Dean soon met him. Jase quieted the crowd before speaking.

  “As you all know by now, our father, the vampire king, has fallen. And though we don’t yet know who the responsible party is, he or she will be brought to justice.” The crowd reacted with a civilized level of enthusiasm. “Mercenary is next in line to rule us unless someone here can show just cause as to why he is unfit to do so.” Silence permeated the crowd until Knox touched my elbow and I yelped, startled by the gesture. My cheeks flared with embarrassment as all eyes fell on me.

  “Sorry! No objections here. Everything’s good. Carry on…”

  Dean laughed at my outburst. Jase shook his head. Merc’s eyes sparkled with amusement.

  “What about his bond to the—magical girl?” a man called out. Though his tone was respectful, I couldn’t help but notice the edge to his voice when he referenced me.

  Clearly not a fan.

  “The bond was severed when the vampire king died,” Jase explained for his older brother. Merc remained as silent as the day I met him.

  “Any other objections, or can we get on with this?” Dean asked. It was clear that any further questions would be unwelcome at best. The crowd caught his drift.

  “Then let us proceed.” Jase muttered something in a language as old as time while everyone looked on. All the while, I waited for something exciting to happen—like a lightning strike or sign of some sort that Merc had indeed assumed his father’s role—but nothing did. When Jase was finished, he bowed low to his brother. Dean followed suit, and soon the entire crowd of vampires had dropped their heads in reverence to their new leader. Even Knox and the pack showed their respect by bowing right before they broke out in a combined howl. It wasn’t dignified, but it spoke volumes.

  I wondered if that had been the subject of the talk Knox was having with them before the party started.

  The vampires lined up based on rank among their kind. The elite approached Merc and his brothers first, followed by the enforcers, then the ‘commoners’. Everything seemed to be going off without a hitch for the time being, so I let Knox lead me away to join the pack.

  “I think the hard part is over,” he said in my ear, “but we have other matters to attend to.”

  “Like what—"

  My words cut short when I looked over at the procession and found Sylvia, the backstabbing cunt of vampire heiresses, standing near the front of it.

  “What the fuck is she doing here?” My words were a near growl. Kat was at my side in a flash, and Knox went on high alert. He hadn’t really had the pleasure of meeting the bitch who had betrayed us—the one who’d enabled Kingston’s control over Merc and the subsequent attack on the pack’s home. He’d only seen her once, at the former vampire king’s party.

  When I’d nearly burned her to death.

  “All the vampires were required to attend this evening,” Kat said, stating the obvious. “Even ones all but banished from the community.”

  “Remind me why she’s still breathing?”

  The pack, sensing my anger, started to form a circle around us, ready to fight off some unknown enemy.

  “I guess Jase hadn’t had time to kill her before Kingston came for us in Alaska,” Kat replied, “and the dead king wasn’t done with her yet…”

  “I’m done with her. Maybe I can finish what I started once this is over.”

  As if she’d heard us talking about her, Sylvia turned to look at us over her shoulder. Instead of the haughty expression I expected to see, I was met with one of fear.

  “It looks like she’s afraid of that very possibility,” Knox said, following our collective gaze to the vampire in question. “She looked nervous the second she set foot on the property.”

  “Want us to go flank her and drag her back here once she’s done kissing Merc’s ass?” Brunton asked. I shook my head, but he made his way over there anyway. He joined her as she stood next in line to swear fealty to Merc.

  “It’s strange seeing her like this,” I said, almost to myself.

  “Do you prefer her haughty bitch face?” Kat asked, finishing off her second or third drink.

  I shook my head and turned to Drake and Knox. “She didn’t set off either of your radars when she came in, did she?”

  “She possessed nothing of concern to me,” Drake replied. “Not a hint of magic anywhere on her person. No weapons to be found.”

  “I had it a little harder,” Knox said, “since her treachery got her tongue cut out by the dead king, but even a nod or head shake can set off my lie detector. She didn’t.”

  “Okay…” I looked back at Sylvia just as she stepped up to Merc and bowed her head.

  “What’s wrong?” Drake asked, taking hold of my arm.

  “I don’t know,” I said, taking a step toward where Merc and Sylvia stood. “Knox, did you ask her if she meant Merc harm?”

  “Yes.”

  As Jase asked Sylvia the same question he’d asked everyone else, I took another step closer. Kat, Knox, Drake, and the rest of the pack followed. She replied with a nod and a graceful bow, but there was a stiffness to it—a rigidity I just couldn’t ignore, even if I didn’t know why. Without hesitation, I started running toward her, my heart racing wildly.

  “You are excused,” Jase said, his eyes boring holes through her.

  She nodded once again before turning to find me in the crowd, a tear trailing down her cheek. Then her fear quickly gave way to anger. Before any of us could make sense of her behavior, she ripped open the bodice of her dress to expose a sleekly-crafted bomb unlike anything I’d ever seen before. One that would have been easily overlooked under the wire boning in her dress.

  And with the mere press of a button, she set it off.

  Chapter Eighteen

  I screamed “NO” as loudly as I could, throwing my arms up to ward off the blast, but I moved too slowly. Anyone behind me or in my periphery was spared. But everyone else felt the full brunt of the bomb.

  The rancid smell of burning and death was everywhere, and I struggled to stand against the ringing in my ears. Fire was burning brightly, the only light cutting through the smoke in the yard. I screamed for Merc and Jase and Dean, the memory of the attack at the lodge so clear in my mind that I almost wondered if I was dreaming.

  And then I heard the cries of the wounded and knew that I wasn’t.

  “Piper!” a voice called. I struggled to hear Drake over the din, but I did—and he sounded hurt. I followed his voice through the wall of thick grey around me, tripping on the wounded and dead along the way.

  I couldn’t get my bearings—had no clue which way I was headed—but I knew I had to get to him. The sense of urgency and need drove my every step.

  “Piper! I’m over here!”

  I rushed toward that voice, colliding with others in the melee. I shoved them aside, rushing toward my target like I was tethered to it. Like nothing else mattered. Because it didn’t.

  Only him.

  “I’m coming!” I yelled, picking up my pace. I could hear shouting in the background—shouting that seemed directed at me—but I ignored it. I was almost there. I could save Drake.

  Suddenly, a figure took shape in the smoke before me, standing straight and strong.

  Thank God he’s okay…r />
  I reached my hand for him, my heart in my throat, but before I could touch him, I was ripped away by a brutal, painful force. I flew through the air, crashing to the ground hard. Anger like I’d never known tore through me. I wanted to see who had dared to interfere.

  I wanted to rip him limb from limb.

  With a muttered order, the smoke cleared, swirling up into the air until it was nothing at all. Hovering over me was Grizz, his brown eyes murderous. But they weren’t for me. They were for the man off in the distance. The one I’d been searching for.

  And it wasn’t Drake.

  The fey king looked back at me and smiled as he stepped through a slash in the veil between our worlds, then disappeared. The second he did, my mind cleared and reality settled in. Grizz seemed to sense it and helped nudge me to my feet. I was in a sprint toward the carnage in a heartbeat, screaming for Knox and Merc.

  “Piper!” Knox shouted, running toward me.

  “Where’s Merc?” I asked, fear in my shaky voice.

  “This way!”

  Knox dragged me to the epicenter of the blast. I could see where Merc and his brothers had been standing when Sylvia blew herself to bits. There was nothing there but scorched earth and ash.

  “No…” I gasped. “No, no, no, no…”

  “Merc is all right,” he said, taking me by the shoulders. “He and his brothers must have ghosted just before the blast.”

  It was then that I truly took in the gory sight around me. Bodies—some intact, some not—were strewn around the yard. Blood and ash were everywhere. Merc and his brothers were helping wounded vampires feed off some unharmed pack members, their wounds healing as I looked on. I started toward them but was stopped cold by Kat’s empty voice.

  “Where’s Brunton?” Knox and I turned to look at her. What I saw in her eyes made my hair stand on end. “I can’t find Brunton…”

  The stench of burning flesh was so thick that I wondered whether the wolves could even track him by scent—provided there was anything left to track at all. He’d been standing next to Sylvia; he’d have taken the brunt of the blast. Staving off my fear, I called his name while trying to use my magic to find him.