by Rae Foxx
“That’s what your mom said last night, wolf boy.” Tommy laughed. Not a second later, Howl turned and clocked him hard in the jaw, sending him back down to the ground in a heap.
“It will be morning before we know anything,” Howl said as if he hadn’t just cold-clocked a demon. “We might as well get cozy; I’ll make a fire.”
Howl gave Tommy one last glare before he stomped into the forest, the twins on his heels as they retrieved firewood.
“I’ll go grab some tents,” Tommy got up and flicked his cigarette in the direction of the army.
“Since when do you have tents?” I asked, jutting my chin out at him. “The last time you and I camped out, I spent the night alone in the tent while you slept in the van.”
He rolled his dark eyes and scrubbed a hand down his face. “You always assume the best in me, Ivy. I appreciate that."
"The best in you?" I asked, hands dropping to my side in confusion.
"Yeah," he grinned and leaned in, blowing the residual aroma of lust and hunger in my face. "You assume I assumed all that stuff, and that I am going to get these tents in some kind of legal way. It's cute."
Tommy grinned as my jaw dropped, the demon vanished in a poof of smoke before I could say anything. He was back as fast, three bagged tents and bags and bags of camping supplies spread over the ground behind him. I could clearly make out marshmallows, hot dogs, buns, chips and beer in the paper shopping bags.
"I don't want to know," I said, holding up my hand to stop him from detailing how he had robbed some poor family blind. I was going to pretend he had gone to some demon store to get all of these things. A demon camping store of all things.
Thankfully, Tommy smiled and slinked off to set up the tents, leaving the rest of us to set up camp.
Well, all but Mama who was still leaning against the trees staring at the army. Fine by me. We didn't really need her help anyway. With so many of us in a matter of minutes we had three tents, two fires, and a camp chair for each of us set up around what appeared to be a cook and build your own hot dog bar.
Even without cooking the suckers the smell was getting to me. It had been so long since any of us had eaten that I was sure we would gladly inhale the things raw.
“Wasn’t there a fire that night I found you out in the desert?” Howl asked, pulling two hot dogs onto a roaster as he shoved a third, uncooked, dog into his mouth.
"No fire, just lots of fucking," Tommy clarified, who was promptly peppered with raw hot dogs from both me and Finn. "But yes, we were camping if that's what you mean."
I froze, slimy, raw hotdog falling to the ground as the weird juxtaposition of my life smacked me upside the head. The night that Howl found me was the last night of my old life. It was the night I was mourning my hope of being accepted to college and bracing for a future of fry oil and Tommy's greasy, apparently demonic, hands all over me for the rest of my life. It was the night before Bloodwood and Nicky and Danvers. Before I knew anything about the real Mama, Oberion, and being the daughter of an original.
It was normal. Except that this was my normal now. Mates, and vampires, and wolves, and the whole needing to defeat my father to save the world. You know, normal stuff.
"It’s kind of perfect that my life would be capped by two camping trips." Different, but very much the same. "Except this time I'll be glaring into the yellow eyes of a different wolf."
"Just mind control her like you did Katarina and you'll be fine," Saxon said, throwing a stick into the fire and leaning back in his chair. The guy had drunk enough from me earlier to be satisfied for a while.
"Yeah, or use your daddy's blood. He had to have passed something down to you after being created by that witch."
"Kalensa," Mama inserted, coming up right behind us and making everyone jump. “Your father used to tell stories about Kalensa around the fire. It was so romantic to hear stories about your mate’s first wife." I didn't need to see the eye roll as she sunk into her chair. I could fucking hear it. "He did it to get under my craw. I know that for a fact."
"Sounds like a match made in heaven," I mumbled ignoring her as I put copious amounts of ketchup on my hotdog, that vampire blood in me salivating as though the stuff was blood.
“Tell us a good Kalensa story," Scarlet asked, mouth full of hotdog as she leaned forward eagerly, the twins staring at my mother with as much interest. "Might help us tomorrow seeing that it's her book that started all this shit.”
"Yeah," Evan said, his food forgotten in his lap. "If we are going to beat the ass off her creation we need to know how she created him--"
"That is what is in the book. But I supposed I could tell you one story," Mama smirked in that 'I'm playing with you' way and straightened out her pressed, but dingy cream-colored pants. I wanted to ask her how she conjured a new outfit every five fucking minutes, but at the same time didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing she’d taught me something I could actually use.
“Kalensa was born a druid, a child who was shunned with a hunched back and a thick tongue that stopped her from speaking right," Ivory began, adopting that airy horror story voice and pulling the focus of everyone. Well, everyone but me. I was moving on to making s’mores if I was going to survive this. "In her loneliness, she called to the gods for help and an evil spirit rose from the earth one night when she was trying to mix up herbs to cure herself. The evil spirit heard her plea and they struck a deal."
“What was the deal?” Scarlet asked, leaning forward in her chair so that it balanced on two legs and almost toppled into the fire.
Mama paused, her smile stretching to a grin as horrifying as what she said next, "To gain beauty and acceptance she had to remove her uterus while it was fertile and bury it underneath a tree.”
"Her uterus!" I shrieked, the s’more I had been making falling to the ground. I was going to be sick. "You have got to be kidding me. This isn't a real thing. Tell the story Mama."
“I am. She used her magic to complete the deed and bury her hopes beneath a yew,” Mama continued, I cut her off.
“Ew is right,” I repeated.
Mama rolled her eyes and said, ‘fucking idiot’ under her breath, before continuing, “Not ew, Ivy. Yew. It’s a tree in Ireland. Old as fuck. Her uterus is still buried underneath that tree. They say on the full moon, you can still see Kalensa in her red-stained dress there, crying for what she gave up--to save herself from a life of shame.”
“What did she get in return?” Finn asked, all of the boys leaning as far forward as Scarlet in interest. Well, Mama knew how to control a crowd. I was doing my best to pretend I didn't care, but even I wanted to know the answer to that. That woman should’ve gotten some solid return on an investment like her innards. Damn.
“She got what she wanted," Mama said, popping a marshmallow in her mouth and leaning back in her chair. "Her spine was straightened. Her tongue and mouth were made whole. And she was gifted with not only enhanced druid magic but the power to make spells and cast them. She was the original caster. That’s why they say she started writing everything down. Druids relied on spoken word. Kalensa was the first to make a spell book.”
“Thank you, Kalensa for the deep shit we are in tonight,” Owen said around a mouthful of hot dog and everyone gave a dry laugh. No one was really happy with how true that was.
“They may have been gifts, but her deal left her without a uterus, without the ability to have a baby. So she sought out a mate, hoping her magic would allow her to somehow bear a child. I think she didn’t want to be alone. She found Oberion, and well, you all know that story..." She drifted off and I sat up. This part I did know. It was part of the few classes I had actually been able to make it to this school.
Thank you Saenger!
Old man was good for something.
"Doubt they told you all of it," Tommy chimed in after flicking a bun into the fire. “Like what she had to give to the evil spirit, and how the demons came to be from her misplaced pride."
I
must have missed that day in history class. But so had everyone else. We all turned, stared slack jawed at the demon who was pleased as a prick with a bottle of lotion over having pulled everyone's focus.
"The deal was that the evil spirit would take the soul of the one she loved most, in this case Oberion. That's why he was dying, and she had to do more than make him drink some wolf blood to keep him from being devoured in her deal."
"That's some creepy ass stuff there," I said, Tommy nodding in understanding. Once again everyone else looked confused.
"Some think Kalensa and Oberion were the basis for that story, a twisted version given to mortal children," Mama said as I sat up straighter.
"Really?" She nodded in acknowledgement. "So what did she do to keep Oberion’s soul from her deal?"
"She called upon my grandfather first," Tommy said, his eyes reflecting the color of the fire and making all that creepy demon smoke even creepier. "She tried to make a deal with a demon in exchange for his life, he took it, a life for a life. He stayed with her during the ceremony, drinking in her essence until the full moon.”
“That’s when he shifted for the first time and ate her.” Owen moved his legs around and I watched him almost reach for Scarlet’s hand but then retracted it as quickly.
“Yep,” Mama agreed like the fact that my father ate his first wife wasn’t a big deal. “Your father visited that tree a few times, trying to see her--make his apologies for, you know, chewing on her guts and bathing in her blood, but she wouldn’t appear for him. He tried to make me help him conjure her once, but that was far-fetched, even for me.”
“Kalensa created the first Fae, as well," Finn cut in throwing a marshmallow into the fire with such confidence I was sure that was what he thought you were supposed to do with the things. "At least, that is how the story goes. When she first received her powers, one of the first things she did was to attempt to bring the same beauty into others that she thought she had gained in herself. Then, we were like fairies that fluttered among the flowers, drinking nectar and bathing in the water from lily pads. We lived in harmony with nature. She had kept us as pets and used her spells and energy to turn us into men. Beautiful men to appease her. It didn't turn out as she had hoped, and we left her side in shame for what we had lost. What we thought we had lost."
“Saenger never taught us that,” I said and he pressed his lips together.
"Because he doesn't know, honeybee. Such are the secrets of our kind. Each brand of magic has their own connection to the woman."
Finn was connected to Kalensa. Howl was a descendant of my father, a far, far, far away descendant--thank the gods. Tommy was the demon Kalensa summoned to help her. That only left Saxon. We all turned to him in expectation, the guy shifting in his chair and clearing his throat in preparation.
“Our story is more horrific," he began, but I cut him off.
"Nothing is more terrifying than burying uteruses, trust me."
He shook his head and plowed on, "Once the fairies began to leave, she changed another in her rage, but he didn't wish to stay. She attempted to force him, to create a love spell that would keep him there. In her desperation she forced him to drink the blood that was dripping from an injured animal. The spell backfired and instead he became one of the undead, the first undead. The one whose blood Ivy was given to save her life. He became powerful, fueled with a power she didn't understand and couldn't combat. He was stronger than her and in her jealousy she killed him, instead of dying he lost his wings and transformed into a human. A human with no heartbeat. No breath in his lungs. But yet, he lived, his veins carried him and he thrived on drinking from humans. And that is my creator, or creator of Katarina. He was the first vampire. It’s all in that book, all in Kalensa’s book because she is the origin of us all in one way or another.”
"Man, she fucked us all over," Evan said, giving his brother a high five for some reason. Those two must have already had one too many beers. Good plan for the night before the end.
Or the beginning.
I stood, not able to listen to another horror story of the paranormal beginnings that all of them didn’t seem fussed about.
Blood, death… Uteruses. I swallowed. It was horrifying, but it all made up the world I had been thrust into. Made up the people that I had come to love.
Made up everything that would live or die by the war that would come in the morning.
I was ready for all of this to be over.
I was going to do everything I could to make it end the way I wanted.
And then, I would probably plan another camping trip that wasn't shrouded in death.
We all deserved that.
Chapter 16
They all laughed and joked behind me, telling stories by the campfire the same as the army below me did. Little dots of light that stretched for miles. Miles of people that we couldn't hope to defeat.
But we sure as hell were going to try.
That's what my super powerful Alpha was saying as she growled at the crowd as we stood there for what felt like hours and I steeled myself for the ultimate battle.
At least it felt like hours. The fire had been extinguished and everyone else had gone to bed long before Finn had made his way over to me, his hands winding around my belly as he pulled me against him, his head against mine,
"You come to look at our future destruction with me?" I teased as we both stared, he let out a very dainty sigh.
"You are underestimating yourself--"
"Oh, I didn't say it was our destruction," I clarified with an almighty lie that he saw right through. "Just destruction."
"Uh-huh," he chuckled, pressing a kiss against my temple, holding me close enough that I had the distinct impression that he may not have come here to size up an army with me.
"So, what do you have on your mind," I whispered, fully aware I was currently being as stereotypical as I could be. Finn chuckled in my ear, giving me a few more kisses before he leaned closer, nudging my hair out of the way so that he could nibble on my ear lobe. I shivered underneath him, I don't know what it was about my ears, but the things were like a one-way ticket to horny town.
"Finn," I moaned again, but the guy didn't stop.
"We need to be disguised," Finn said, his voice breathy in my ear, the pressure of his groin against my back growing. "They are all too close. I can scent them from here.”
I could smell the mixture of creature scents, yes, but as I peered around his torso, they were hundreds of feet away, minding their own zombie-eyed business. I doubt even if we stuck a fan behind Tommy's stinky ass they would know we were here.
"But they are--" I began, gesturing toward the army before Finn cut me off.
"Not them," he cast his eyes back, toward the other two tents that Mama, Scarlet and her entourage had vanished too. Tents that were conspicuously placed away from mine. Mine that was already lit up, the shadows of muscled men cast against the canvas sides.
"Oh."
"It's our last night," Finn whispered, pushing my hair back before pressing his lips against the hot, tender flesh. "I want to spend it with you. We all want to spend it with you."
My breath shuddered and Finn took the noise as a confirmation, immediately waving his hands and breathing some melodic chants as he wrapped our location in a veil, barely noticeable to the naked eye except for a shimmer here and there, letting me know where the boundaries were.
“Alias will know this Fae magic when he sees it. It’s a pure magic, unlike the power those beings down there have--it is unadulterated. He will know. I have no doubts.”
“If you say so.” I shrugged one shoulder, pretending to listen, even though my focus was on the men that were now dancing before the tent, clearly trying to get my attention.
He closed the distance between us. “I say so, honeybee. Now, let’s enjoy the night to the fullest.”
I closed my eyes as he leaned over, kissing my collarbone and giving it a nip that sent shivers over my skin, and made my knees for
get how to stand. Which was fine as Finn was already scooping me up, his arms holding me tight against him as he carried me past the fire, past the tents that were now shimmering under his control, and right to the zippered flap of my own personal cabaret.
Finn kissed me again, tapping his toe against the canvas which was thrown open by three men who were all clad in their underwear, smiling. Waiting.
I couldn't help but smile. This tent was full of more tents. Tents within a tent. I swallowed, the need between my thighs already pooling and flooding with desire. God, they did a good job of driving me crazy.
"My rose," Saxon said, getting to me first and scooping me up from Finn's arms. He didn't even protest, he gave me one last kiss and let the vampire carry me away to the nest of sleeping bags and blankets that they had made in the middle of the floor. All of the bags had been unzipped and piled on top of each other, blankets and pillows lining the sides and bottom so that as Saxon laid me down, there wasn't a shadow of the forest floor.
No rocks in my back, no rouge pine cone trying to work its way up my butt. It was just soft, beautiful blankets.
"My rose," Saxon continued, hovering over me, his fingers fluttering against my hip bone, each tap turning my desire up another notch. "I owe you a thank you. You saved my life; you gave me years with you." I tensed, not wanting to put a dampener on his hope.
I don't know about years, considering we were on the eve of a battle.
"No matter what I get with you, I will treasure it all," he continued on, his fingers moving from my hip to run down my hair. Such a gentle touch, but it was bringing that lightning feeling right back to the surface. The soft fingers that were now running over my bare legs, over the palms of my hands weren't doing much to help that.
"Just as I treasure you." And I was officially melted into a puddle of goo. I opened my mouth to say something, but he captured my mouth with his before any words had a chance to form from the gasps of emotion.
He kissed me as he had the first time, his lips moving in time with mine as his hand trailed down my shirt, moving down to the long hem where he gripped it, knotting it in his fingers and pressing the seams against my skin. Tiny points of pressure that counteracted the softness of his kisses. Pressure that grew as his grip against the fabric tightened, as he pulled, and with that vampire strength, he ripped the shirt off my body, fabric ripping and cast aside like nothing but ribbons.
