His whole body jerked as I flooded his body with the River then yanked it right back out of him.
He staggered, then braced his hands on his thighs panting for breath.
Stopping in front of him I waited for him to make the first move. When he did I sidestepped his lunge and backhanded him just like he had Angela before.
He fell back but caught himself before he went down. Tilting his head to the side rubbing his jaw he watched me closely as I circled around him.
“Not so cocky now are you Adan? What’s wrong? Not interested in a fair fight. I promise, I won’t do anything to affect time. This will just be me and you using our bodies and whatever weapons you might be carrying.” I hadn’t been allowed to bring any weapons since I’d been the one on trial.
He lunged at me again and we trade blows until he spun around and tried to land a kick to my head. Catching his leg, I shoved him back into the wall where his head hit hard with a loud crack.
Shaking himself, he came at me again. Too late I saw the glint of metal in his hand as his arm swiped across my chest. Pain lanced through me but I kept my focus on Adan. His hands came fast, jabbing and stabbing. It was all I could do to block his assault.
His knife sliced my side open and his lips curved with a triumphant sneer. “Look who’s not so cocky now.”
It was all the distraction I needed. That one moment of gloating allowed me to move in and take the knife from his hand. Before he even knew what happened I had one arm wrapped around Adan holding him up while my other hand held the knife buried in his gut. Twisting the knife, I dragged it up ripping him wide open to inflict more pain while he screamed in agony. Then I pulled it out and plunged it into his black heart.
I watched the knowledge of his impending death seep into his face as he stared back at me in shock. Holding his gaze, satisfaction filled me as the light faded from his eyes and his life slipped away. Adan would never take an innocent life again. I prayed to the Goddess asking her to watch over my son and let him know he would never be forgotten.
Angela called my name as Adan’s body fell to the ground at my feet. Turning to her voice I knew I’d never hear a sweeter sound or see a more beautiful sight than Angela running into my arms. I held her close, feeling her warmth and rejoicing in the knowledge that she was mine and I was hers. Nothing would ever come between us again. We were one, one heart, one soul, we were anai.
Epilogue
“So what you’re saying is you’re mated to a Goddess,” Doyle chortled making Dragon and Solomon laugh.
We were sitting on the back deck at Mike’s listening to the band inside and drinking beer. In the four months since Angela and I bonded, Solomon had slowly gone from bad to worse. He still took care of business but socially he was quickly becoming a recluse. None of us could figure out what was going on with him, but we knew something needed to be done, and soon. This was our attempt at bringing him back out of his shell.
“I’m only telling you what the Goddess showed me when I looked into her eyes through Angela’s in the Elders’ chamber. I didn’t really believe it then, but once Angela started shifting time on her own I knew I wasn’t mistaken. Angela and all the other conduits out there are direct descendants of the Goddess herself.”
“Does that mean Rachel is a conduit?” Solomon asked. He still spent a lot of time with Rachel but her presence no longer seemed to have the calming effect it once did.
I sipped my beer before responding. This was one question I dreaded too many people asking for fear that other time demons might react the way Adan did with Angela. “I believe she is, but unless she meets the right time demon her powers will never be awakened.”
“You really believe a conduit’s power can only be awakened by love?” Doyle asked.
“I do,” I told him. “It’s the only explanation that makes any sense when you look at all the facts. Besides, the Goddess would want a way to protect her decedents and ensure they weren’t misused for the wrong reasons. If conduits can only channel the River for demons who love them, there is less chance that the power they unleash will be used for evil.”
“I think he’s right,” Dragon agreed, then added, “And I think we should spread the word about his theory. That way when the time demons find out we might have another conduit living under our roof, they’ll come to court Rachel rather than abduct and rape her. The River of Time might be flowing freely once again, but not every time demon is strong enough to access it or wield its power. Many of them would still be interested in finding a conduit.”
“Of course now that Rook is an Elder and Angela is a time cop, other time demons might think twice about messing with Rachel, conduit or not,” Doyle remarked.
I snorted. “Time cop?”
“She does help you track down time demons that get out of line. At first I thought it was a bad idea, what with her lacking supernatural speed and strength, but then I sparred with her a few times.” Doyle just shook his head. “Her ability to slow us down gives her just the edge she needs to come out on top, or at least get away unscathed if she gets in over her head.”
“Does she miss her job on the police force?” Solomon asked, picking at the label on his beer bottle.
“Sometimes I think she does, but with the River flowing there are enough time demons getting into trouble to keep all of us busy. The other Elders and I are actually talking about enlisting help to keep things from getting out of hand. Our laws are no longer as stringent as they used to be, but we can’t have people going back to save Hitler’s life, or making sure he was never even born for that matter.”
“I’m sure you and the other Elders will find a suitable solution to the problem,” Dragon said.
The waitress came outside then with another round of beer and snacks, which Dragon had been quickly devouring. She was young with her blonde hair pulled up in a ponytail, and she was wearing short denim shorts and a Mike’s T-shirt stretched over her ample breasts. As she collected the empty bottles she batted her eyelashes and flaunted her cleavage in an attempt to get Solomon’s attention. When it was clear he wasn’t paying her any attention she shrugged her shoulders and went back inside to check on her other tables.
Doyle shook his head in disbelief. “Okay, enough is enough. What is going on with you Solomon?”
Solomon looked up at him in confusion.
“Did you even notice that hot piece of ass practically shaking her tits in your face?” Doyle asked sitting forward.
Solomon glanced towards the back entrance to the bar and shook his head.
“Again I ask, what is going on with you Solomon. A few months ago you would’ve already had that girl twice with the way she’s practically begging for it. Now, you never go out, you never place bets, and you don’t even look at women. What gives?”
Solomon looked down at the beer bottle in his hand for a moment then set it on the table and said, “I haven’t had sex since Travali’s spell broke and our beasts were returned.”
Talk about your what the fuck moments.
Dragon leaned forward and rested his arms on the table. “Why not Solomon? Why would you go from having sex with at least four different women every night to not having sex at all?”
Solomon looked up at the sky like he was searching for answers, then he scrubbed his hands over his face and looked at Doyle. “Not a fucking word. Not to me or to anyone else. Promise me Doyle or I won’t say another word.”
Doyle considered him for a moment then agreed, “You have my word. I will not speak of this to anyone, not even you, unless you change your mind and decide you need someone to talk to.”
Solomon took a deep breath then said, “I’m not physically able to have sex anymore.”
“What?” Me and Dragon exclaimed at the same time that Doyle asked, “Are you saying you can’t get it up?”
“Shh, keep it down, would you?” Solomon demanded, looking around to make sure no one could overhear our conversation. “Look, I don’t know what’s going. Every time
I get close to a woman my dick gets hard so that’s not the problem. I can have all the foreplay I want as long as the clothes stay on. Once the clothes start coming off though, my fox goes ape-shit, my dick goes limp and all my hopes of actually having sex fly right out the window.”
We all looked at each other for a moment then Dragon asked, “Have you met anyone that might be your mate?”
Solomon shook his head. “Not that I’m aware of. Nobody stands out in my mind and my fox certainly hasn’t let me know he finds anyone particularly attractive.”
Dragon leaned back and sipped his beer. “Have you dreamed of any females? Sometimes our beasts find our mates and lead us to them through our dreams.”
“I’ve been having the same dream every night for months. It always feels like there’s something I’m supposed to do or find, but I never see any females in the dream.”
“Do you see any males?” Doyle asked with a grin. “You wouldn’t be the first shifter to mate someone of the same sex.”
Solomon glared at Doyle who just shrugged while Dragon and I tried not to laugh. We all knew it was possible for shifters to mate the same sex, but that only happened when the shifter involved already leaned in that direction to begin with.
“We’ll take that as a no,” Dragon said after a moment. “I believe your fox senses your mate and is trying to lead you to her. Why it’s taking so long...” He trailed off and shrugged his shoulder. “I would advise you to focus on your dreams looking closely at every detail no matter how insignificant it might seem. You could also try letting your fox have the reins for a while. Maybe he needs his freedom to hone his instincts.”
“I’ll give it a try, thank you for the advice My Lord,” Solomon said fisting his hand over his heart and bowing his upper body to Dragon.
Just then the band went on break making it possible for anyone with supernatural senses to hear the TVs spread around the bar. The TV closest to us caught all our attention when a reporter asked, “Can you tell us what happen Lieutenant Vaccaro?”
After weeding out the cops that had already been corrupted by vampires we decided Detective Vaccaro was the best person to take over Lieutenant Taggert’s old position. Since she had no family or close friends to speak of, we faked her death and moved her across the country to start a new life free of vampire mind control. From now on we would keep a better eye on the local police to avoid problems like this in the future.
“Late last night Quentin Andrews, the man convicted on all counts in the Red Light Vampire case was found dead in his cell having apparently hanged himself. He was due to be transferred upstate to the Mississippi State Penitentiary this morning...”
As the newscast continued Doyle snorted. “Yeah, like we’d let scum like Quen live the life of luxury in a human prison. They don’t torture their prisoners nearly enough.”
Setting my empty bottle down on the table I shook my head. “I still can’t believe he knew all about us and he was working for Travali the whole time he was partners with Angela. If it hadn’t been for him Rachel never would have met Kaleb or Danarius.”
When Dragon looked inside Quen’s mind he discovered that Quen knew all about our world and was hoping to become a vampire someday. He’d been cozying up to Travali for years by supplying him with girls for his brothels through Kaleb. On top of that he’d been grooming Rachel to be a prostitute since the first day he met her. Once she turned eighteen he began personally training her to please men sexually and planned to have her work for him at an escort service he operated here in the local area. His plans were spoiled however, when Kaleb met Rachel and thought she would be perfect for Danarius.
“He wanted to be a vampire, now he’ll get his wish. Too bad for him he’ll be locked in our dungeon for the rest of eternity,” Solomon said. The venom in his voice and the vicious glint in his eyes were both uncharacteristic, but Solomon took Rachel’s well-being very seriously. In the time they’d spent together he truly had come to see her as a little sister and he would make sure Quen paid for every second that Rachel suffered because of him.
Suddenly my body tensed with the feeling that someone was watching us. Sitting forward I focused my attention on the tree line not too far from the deck. The others noticed my distraction and began reaching out with all their senses searching for trouble like I was.
“A fitting end for a man of Quen’s moral fiber,” Danarius commented, coming out of the shadows where I’d been concentrating my search.
“Damn vampire,” Doyle swore. “Always the party crasher.”
Danarius came closer then walked up the stairs and leaned back against the wooden railing across from Dragon. The need to spill his blood burned through me like wildfire. I wanted nothing more than his death but I had to look at the bigger picture. Since Travali’s death there hadn’t been one body dumped on the beaches behind Myths and Legends. There had also been fewer attacks on our people worldwide from vampires and not even Doyle could find trouble in New Orleans.
“This is starting to become a bad habit for you Danarius,” Dragon told the vampire.
“It’s difficult to approach you in that castle you call home. Your sorcerer’s wards are nearly impenetrable. Out here or even in Forbidden Fantasies you are more readily accessible.”
“You could try calling, or I’m sure you could find some other way to contact me and set up a meeting if you wanted to talk.”
“Perhaps,” Danarius agreed. “I’ll consider that next time. For now I’ve come to give you a peace offering.” He gestured to the trees and another vampire materialized with Ivanna bound and gagged at his side.
The closer they came I expected to feel the effects of her pheromones, knowing she had to be terrified of what Dragon would do to her, but there was nothing. Not even when she was pushed to her knees at Dragon’s feet did I feel a single twinge of lust in the air.
Raising an eyebrow I looked at Danarius who grinned back at me and said, “She will never incite lust again.”
Dragon stared at her for a moment with fire in his eyes then asked Solomon to open a portal into one of our cells. Once Ivanna was pushed through the portal and it closed behind her Dragon asked Danarius, “What do you want?”
Danarius looked back at him and shrewdly said, “I want continued peace between our people. Beyond that, I want to be part of the new leadership I see forming in our world. I am not the only one who thought Travali went too far with his plans. There is a growing consensus that some form of ruling body is needed to prevent the type of catastrophe he would have caused. From what I hear, many of the old councilors who sided with you on important matters plan to attend the annual tournament scheduled to take place at Supernova next month. I want to be there as well.”
Dragon and I had already discussed this possibility. Neither of us liked Danarius, but he was now the leader of the largest group of vampires in all the worlds combined. Dragon glanced at me, asking what I wanted him to do. Even knowing it was the right thing to do for his people, he would tell Danarius to go fuck himself if I didn’t agree to this.
“Where do we stand Danarius?” I asked the vampire.
“As far as I am concerned our business is finished. Your insult has been repaid and unless you wish to have further hostilities between us, I have no quarrel with you Sa’jon Ruk.”
I held his gaze for a moment measuring his sincerity then inclined my head to Dragon. I would rather see Danarius dead, but he had the strength and intelligence to make a good leader. We needed someone like him in charge of the vampires if we wanted continued peace in our world.
“We’ll plan on you being there. We can work out the details once you’ve made an appointment through my secretary.” Dragon told Danarius, grinning when the vampire’s eyes flashed black for a moment.
Danarius left without any further discussion and the band came back on stage. Before they started playing again the singer announced, “Diane is in the house again!”
The crowd inside cheered wildly.
&n
bsp; “For those of you who don’t know about Diane she’s a local girl with three children who nearly became homeless a few weeks ago. Then a certain psychic sent her over the border to buy a lottery ticket and she came back a millionaire. Now she spends her days and money helping others who work hard but can’t ever seem to get ahead. If you know anyone who fits that description, send them her way. She has an office at the homeless shelter on Ninth Street and she wants to help.”
There was more clapping and cheers from the crowd then the music started playing again.
While we talked and laughed I thought about how much our world was changing. New leadership was taking root as corruption and greed were being wiped away. Would those we put in power today pass the test of time, or would they too one day betray the people who count on them most?
The annual tournament had once been a way for shapeshifters to show off their strength and skills. Over the years it had grown to include nearly every supernatural race in existence. It was a weeklong celebration of physical battles, magical duels, and political maneuvering.
Between the usual grudge matches, Danarius lurking in the shadows and the old councilors scheming their way back into power, this year’s tournament was shaping up to be the most exciting one yet.
* * * * *
Later that night as Solomon slept...
Here I was again on the same street, in the same town. Going by the old stone buildings and the narrow road winding between them, I would guess I was somewhere in Europe. It was late at night or early morning when everything was quiet and there were very few lights on in the windows.
The sense that I needed to be somewhere, to find something, was stronger than ever but I still had no idea where or what.
Taking Dragon’s advice I stripped down to let the fox out and once he was free he immediately began trotting down the road. Stopping now and then, he lifted his nose into the air to take in the scents and listen for anything that didn’t belong. Then he’d continue his trek farther out into the countryside away from the homes and businesses crowded together in town. After several miles he turned left onto a dirt driveway that led to a small house surrounded by lush green trees and beautiful gardens.
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