by Cat Miller
Derek emerged from the trees and Chase snarled, “Is this your savior? I’m not impressed.”
Derek ignored the comment and started walking away.
“Are you going to help me or not, Dani?” he grumbled. “I did what your mother asked against my better judgment. Now it’s your turn.”
“I’m coming,” she called. She kissed Chase quickly before pushing him back into his hiding place and catching up with Derek.
“I’m sorry about this but, it has to look real. I can hear him getting closer. Remember, you’re a sleepy prisoner. And remember he doesn’t know what happened with your mother. He has no clue you should be dead.” He apologized before lifting her over his shoulder. Dani let her arms hang limply to flop around as Derek walked.
She was going to kick Chase in the ass if she survived this. He had left his hiding place and was following their progress through the trees. She wanted to send him a telepathic reprimand but the possibility that the Rogue had a few telepaths that would pick it up forestalled her.
“Derek,” Darren’s deep voice reached out to them from woods. Chase’s outrage flowed to her on a breeze. Darren stepped into their path holding a weak Brandi to his chest. Derek stopped and lowered Dani to her feet. She leaned against him and hoped she looked as convincing as Brandi. Only Brandi wasn’t acting. It seemed like Darren has given her just enough Hypno to put out her flames but not enough to put her down.
“You claim not to care if she dies, but I know you’re lying.” Darren stroked Brandi’s cheek. A tear slid down her pale face. Derek stiffened. It was clear Darren told her Derek’s lie.
“I don’t care about your Master’s war. I don’t care about the Council or any of the rest of it. You want your freedom? I’ll help you get it. Give me my mate. I’ll give you yours and together we will work this out.”
Darren was so sincere, Dani almost felt bad for him. He still believed he had a chance at a life with her. She only wished there was a way to release him from his self-imposed half-bond to her.
“And how exactly do you propose we go about assuring my freedom and my mother’s release?” Derek asked and tightened his arm around Dani’s neck. Darren took a step forward.
“I propose we go in together and bring your Master out. We will take him to the Council and exchange him for immunity. We’ve both made mistakes. With the Rogue in Council hands and your mother free from him, we can all walk away. I’ll have the time I need with Danielle and you can take your mate and mother wherever you like.” Darren looked hopeful.
“Derek, I… It’s okay. Go save your mother,” Brandi slurred.
She raised her hand to reach for Derek. Dani let the surprise roll over her and tried not to react. She didn’t know Brandi had chosen her mate. It warmed her heart to know her sister chose love over their uppity family’s expectations. Derek could no longer keep up the pretense.
“Send Brandi over to me and I will release Dani.”
“No. I will walk to you and we will trade,” Darren demanded.
“Fine,” Derek stood his ground.
Chase was ready to leap from the trees. Dani send him comfort and patience. This had to play itself out. She didn’t know what was coming, but her mother would never have sent her into this if she believed Darren was going to get a chance to take Dani again. Darren came forward with Brandi and waited for Derek to release his hold on Dani’s neck. As soon as he did, Darren pushed Brandi at him and jerked Dani to his chest. He backed away quickly but he didn’t go far. He just held her and Dani could feel him shaking. He tilted her head back to look at her face.
“I’m so sorry, baby. I know I went about things the wrong way but I swear if you give me a chance, I’ll make a good life for us.”
Darren ran a hand through her hair. Dani let her eyes drift shut so he wouldn’t see the pity she felt for him. She listened to Derek checking over Brandi. He was assuring her in quiet undertones that he loved her more than his own life and this would all be over soon. They would go someplace safe and he would spend his life proving his love to her. Dani’s heart swelled with affection for the new couple.
A shrill voice cut into Derek’s vows to his mate. A tall woman with long, wavy, sable hair and dark eyes stormed toward them. She was beautiful and terrifying. Her expression held pure menace. Darren retreated a little further into the woods to shield Dani.
“How could you betray us this way? Is this how you repay us for teaching you to be a strong male? By stealing the power we deserve?” The woman screeched and her chest heaved.
“Mother, how did you get free?” Derek walked toward her but stopped when Brandi refused to move with him. Dani didn’t blame her. The woman wasn’t making any sense.
“I knew you were up to no good so I followed you. It just doesn’t matter how many times you are punished, does it? Why do you insist on disobeying us?” she asked with a growl.
“Us? You have never punished me. Let’s get out of here and we’ll talk about this later.” Derek tried to smile and he turned his body to introduce Brandi.
“This is my mate, Brandi. You’re going to love her, Mom. I want you to come with us. We’ll find a safe place and make a real home for the three of us. We need to leave now while the Master is down,” Derek pleaded with his mother. She completely ignored the reference to her son’s new mate.
“You knew that bitch was drugged! You knew and you let him feed on her?”
“Mom, please calm down. I needed the opportunity to get to you. He can’t hurt you while he’s unconscious,” Derek explained.
Derek’s mother began to laugh. The sheer insanity carried in the woman’s incredulous cackle made the hair on the back of Dani’s neck stand on end. She heard movement behind her and knew Chase had moved in to prevent Darren from making a run for it. She doubted he would have used all of his Hypno on Brandi.
“Oh, my boy, as intelligent as I know you to be, it amazes me that you still don’t understand my relationship with your father.” She attempted to still her maniacal laughter.
“You are just as gullible as the foolish purebloods. They believe they are above the rest of us, especially us poor mixed-breed creatures.” She laughed again.
“Mom, you’re human, not mixed.”
Derek sounded like he was speaking to an unreasonable child.
“Is that so? Yes, I guess you would believe that. The rest of the world did, even your father. You see, when I met your father he thought I was just another human piece of ass he could screw and move on. When in actually my father is as much a vampire as yours.”
Derek shook his head in confusion.
“Yes, love. I am just like you. I suppose that actually makes you more like three quarters vamp, doesn’t it? Well, anyway,” she waved a dismissive hand, “for some reason I didn’t inherit any vamp traits except for a touch of mind control. I don’t even need to drink blood. My human mother died in child birth. My father was trying to hide his dirty little secret so she was alone when she went into labor. My father paid a vamp couple that couldn’t have kids to raise me. He didn’t want me ruining his reputation. But that’s a story for another day.”
Dani watched Derek struggle to comprehend what his mother was confessing.
“You know none of that matters to me, Mom. We can leave this all behind and be a family. Come with me now.” Derek held out his hand.
“You aren’t listening, dear. I’m not leaving and neither are you. You have work to do. This is my show. Your father is a puppet. David has been basically asleep for over twenty-five years. He thought he could dismiss me. I believed him when he said he had to end our relationship because of a bonding agreement made by his parents. But he lied. He met that Vaughn bitch and bonded with her in secret. He dumped me and mated with that mousy little psychic. So I used his sad little power against him and ruined his whole world. I tried to bring his mate out in the open so we could steal her precognitive power before she died. David wouldn’t give in to me entirely as long as his mate held his s
oul. So, I killed her.”
During the mad woman’s speech Brandi was backing toward Dani and Darren. She tugged Derek along with her a step at a time. When his mother admitted to the murder of Brandi and Dani’s aunt, they both gasped. This seemed to remind the mad woman that she wasn’t alone with her son. Poor Derek looked ready to explode.
“You said you were mated and it didn’t stick. You told me he turned you away,” Derek reminded her.
“The mating part is true enough and it did fade. I did some research and it seemed on the rare occasion your father’s particular talent appeared the only bond they could maintain was the first. But, I haven’t been pining for him all these years. Oh hell no! I’ve been off spending his money while he works on the plans I programmed into his little brain. My telepathic control only works on select individuals. It works like a charm on David and I believe that could be due to our bond. You, on the other hand, no dice, I had to threaten and beat you into submission.”
Okay. It was time to go. They needed to make it to the Paris family house and away from this bitch before she had a chance to test her mind control on the rest of them. Brandi was still too weak to run on her own, so Dani and Chase would have to help her. Dani had the feeling Derek was going to need a minute to sort things out in his own head.
“Come with me now, Derek. After you’ve been punished, I have a job for you,” she demanded.
Two blacked-eyed freaks appeared out of the woods as if they had just been waiting for her word. They must have drawn the unlucky mind control cards. They were planning to take Derek with them whether he liked it or not. This was a really bad time for her telepathy to go on the fritz.
Dani sidestepped Darren to grab Brandi’s arm. Brandi was not at full power and these guys didn’t look the type to give a shit that she was just trying to protect her mate when she interfered. When Dani came into view, Derek’s mother hissed.
“You! You stupid bitch! Just like that other Vaughn bitch, David just had to have you. The only damn thing I can’t control is David’s obsession with you. Well, that ends now.” She pointed to Dani and bellowed, “Kill her!”
Oh shit! This was really bad news. Derek grabbed Brandi and forced her to the ground so he could cover her body with his own. The sound of objects whizzing through the air made Dani turn to run. Her telepathy and telekinesis were useless at the moment but she could run like hell. Dani heard things flying past her as she weaved in and out of the trees. Something embedded itself deep in her left arm and she staggered. The sound of heavy footsteps made her move faster but she didn’t get far before she was tackled to the ground.
Dani landed on her side with a huge weight on top of her. She was waiting for the attack to begin but it didn’t. She opened her eyes and realized Darren was on top of her. His hot blood ran over her but his eyes watched hers. Dani shifted and he slid to his side. She tried to sit up, but he pulled her back down into his arms.
“Not yet. Not safe,” he wheezed.
Dani could hear the sounds of a fight nearby. She looked down to find a three inch tree branch protruding from Darren’s chest. He was still focused on her face. Blood was beginning to seep from his mouth. He had taken the strike meant for her. Tears filled her eyes. This was a fatal injury. There was too much blood loss to get him help in time. The branch had ripped through his body. She knew she shouldn’t care after everything Darren had done to her. She should be glad, but Dani just wasn’t built that way.
“I don’t deserve your tears, baby.” He brushed fingers over her cheek and carried the tear to his lips.
“Do you think one day you can forgive me? I will rest easier if I know you can at least try?” His eyes begged her for absolution.
“I forgive you now, Darren.”
She wrapped an arm around his side and stroked his back. Her other hand traced the long scar down the side of his face. The blood flowing out of his chest slowed to a trickle, but he smiled.
“I may not have lived in your arms, Danielle, but at least I’ll have the honor of dying in them.”
Darren rested his spiked blond head against her shoulder and drifted away.
TWENTY FOUR
It was a hell of a time to be useless! A fight breaks out and Sparky has to duck and cover. At least she was starting to feel less groggy. Missiles were flying through the air and Derek pressed Brandi into the ground. Fearing that was the last chance she would have to speak with him, Brandi confessed the depth of love in her heart.
“I know this is a really bad time to say it but, I love you. I love you so much, Derek.” Brandi turned her head to press a kiss against his cheek, “We will get through this. Our plan still stands. That is, if you still want to be with me. We will find a little house and make a comfortable life. I won’t let them take you away from me.”
She hugged him tight. Derek didn’t respond. He was watching his mother flee the area while her minions did the dirty work. Out of the corner of her eye Brandi saw movement. Chase came out of the woods behind the killer vamps. Silently he crept up to them, carrying a huge branch. He took aim and swung away at the head of the largest male. The thud of wood meeting bone echoed through the trees and made Brandi a bit queasy.
The sound distracted the second male and Derek leapt at the chance. He was on his feet and delivering a round house kick before Brandi could blink. The extra time it took to get up gave the bad guy time to gather himself and defect the kick by grabbing Derek’s leg. Derek used the guy as leverage and swung up his other leg to connect with the guy’s head before he fell to the ground and rolled back up to his feet. The two males bounced around like prize fighters in the ring, trading punches and kicks.
Brandi started crawling away and immediately drew the bad guy’s attention. He still had a target to kill and his first priority was to search out the target. Brandi was female and the right size, so he lunged for her. That was the end-all for her mate. No more fighting fair. He leapt on the male and snapped his neck with a sharp twist and a crack. His lifeless body hit the ground and was forgotten.
Derek strode to Brandi and lifted her to her feet. He checked her from head to toe for injuries without a word, then pulled her into his arms and kissed her. Brandi felt every bit of love he felt for her in that kiss. That close, she was able to feel him within her again and she couldn’t wait until she was able to feel him all the time. Derek was confused and hurt by his mother’s confessions, but above all, he had been terrified he would lose Brandi. His family had done her family so much harm. He feared she would hold it against him.
“I love you. We will get through this,” she repeated her earlier promise when Derek released her lips.
A noise to the left had Derek on the defensive. Chase and a blood-covered Dani came toward them. Brandi’s shock must have shown on her face because Dani raced to reassure her.
“It’s not my blood. Well, some of it is, but not too much,” Dani explained.
“We will have to come back for Darren’s body. He gave his life for my mate. The least I can do is ensuring he receives a proper final resting place.” Chase ripped a strip from him shirt to fasten tightly around Dani’s injured arm.
“Well. Well. It looks like we missed the party, guys.”
A voice came from behind Brandi and she started. Derek pushed her behind him and glared at the new comers. Dani squealed and ran at the male. He caught her mid-air and smiled widely while he gazed into her eyes.
“Now there’s a sight I’ve missed. How are you, Angel?” Cayden hugged her tight until she hissed at the pain in her injured arm.
“I’ve had a rough day, if you must know. And as soon as I’m over it, I’ll be getting in the line of people waiting to kick your ass. Where the hell have you been?” She kissed his cheek.
“Could you please remove your hand from my mate’s ass and speak to her from a respectable distance.” Chase was seething just a bit. No male wanted to see his mate in the arms of another. He knew Dani wanted only him, but Cayden still missed her deeply.
“Sorry, man.” Cayden placed Dani’s feet on the ground and smiled down at her from his impressive height.
“I’m looking forward to that ass whipping. I’ll definitely pencil you in. As for where I’ve been, I have some friends to introduce to all of you.”
Cayden nodded and dozens of people appeared from all around them. One really huge guy stepped up next to Cayden and looked curiously at Dani. He wore head to toe black and his duster waved a bit in the wind.
“This is Hawk. He’s the unofficial father of all these hoodlums.”
Cayden pointed a thumb at the skyscraper of a male. He even looked down at Cayden. The others laughed at Cayden’s paternal description of the big male. The circle tightened around them and Derek pulled Brandi back against his chest. He ran suspicious eyes over every face in the group.
“You don’t need to worry, man. I would never hurt Brandi. She’s like a little sister. I used to hide her dolls and pull her pigtails,” Cayden said when he noticed Derek’s discomfort.
Chase came forward to embrace his oldest friend in a back-thumping man hug. Dani was walking around the circle of strangers and inspecting each person she passed. Brandi could identify two thirds of them as clearly vampire and the rest seemed human, but not.
A blonde sidled up next to Cayden and crossed her arms over her chest. She was cute with pale ringlets and strikingly bright blue eyes. Her all black fatigues fit like a glove on her long lean body. With a raised brow, the chick glared at Dani. Oh, now that was interesting. It seemed Cayden had a new friend.
“We found a few more friends on the way in. I think these are buddies of yours.” Cayden nodded to Derek.
The crowd parted and a small group pushed in. Karrie and Nate stood out in front. Brandi didn’t know the rest, but Derek did and he left her to go shake hands and welcome them. They were ex-Shades that had defected with Nate and set up camp nearby to wait for a chance to catch up with Derek. He was the strongest of the group. They were looking for his guidance as to where to go and what to do next.
