by Fel Fern
“The Rosewood Chalice,” Silas said.
Sergio nodded. “A couple of years ago, Lucius approached me, asking me if he could store the relic here in Darkfall. Lucius has never joined a coven for a reason. He’s the appointed guardian of a sacred chalice. His vampire maker was the same, and he wanted to pass the duty to you in the future?”
“What exactly is this thing?” Silas asked.
Lucius gave his life for him. Without his sacrifice, Silas wouldn’t have found Harley. The least he could do was fulfill the duty and purpose his Master wanted him to take up.
Sergio hesitated. “Lucius says it’s ancient. Some say it’s the cup Christ drank before his death. Others say it predates Christianity. I’m not sure if I believe it myself, but drinking from it supposedly grants supernatural abilities.”
Silas swallowed, not liking where this was going. Before Lucius found him, he’d been a skeptic of the existence of the supernatural. The signs were there. The Paranormal Wars came and went. The supernatural formed accords with the mortal authorities, but Silas never really believed until Lucius.
“Supposedly?” Harley asked, skeptical.
“Lucius has never really demonstrated its abilities,” Sergio said dryly. “Besides, back then, I’d thought nothing of it. I owed Lucius a favor, and helping him store an old cup sounded easy enough.”
“Michella and I told you someday it was going to bring us trouble though,” Alessio reminded him. Then he grunted, and really looked at Silas for the first time. Silas saw genuine emotion there—regret, sadness, and anger. “But Lucius was a friend to the pack. He helped us, when we first came to Darkfall and had no allies.”
Sergio nodded. “I agree. Lucius couldn’t have anticipated this happening to his fledging. I’m sure he wanted to take his time showing you the ropes, telling you about his duties, but I’m afraid time isn’t a luxury.”
Silas nodded. Harley wrapped an arm around his shoulders, telling Silas his werewolf mate would stand by his side, no matter what. He didn’t know what to expect once they left Darkfall. Perhaps, after running for their lives in the woods, Silas thought judgment and rejection awaited them. After Lucius’s death, things only seemed to get worse. Knowing he had allies, that Lucius’s friends would help him, brought unexpected tears to his eyes. Silas hastily wiped them.
“Thank you,” Silas said, meaning it.
“Don’t thank us yet,” Sergio reminded him.
“What’s the plan, boss?” Harley asked.
They discussed the plan for the next few minutes. Sergio summed it up. “Alessio will tell the pack what to expect. We’ll split to two teams. Get the townsfolk ready and prepare them. I’ll put most of the wolves on guard, while the second and smaller group will accompany Silas and Harley to the site where the chalice is.”
“Where is it?” Silas asked.
“Rubystone Tunnels. It’s an abandoned mining site at the foot of one of the Triplets,” Sergio explained. “Harley knows where it is. The space is cramped. A small team is sufficient and the less people who know the better. I’ll send Michella, the pack Gamma and my sister to your side. She knows the way.”
Silas nodded, liking the sound of that. “Sounds like a plan.”
“Then, meeting dismissed. We have work to do,” Sergio decided.
After the brothers left, Garret took his mate aside to tell him he’d be safer holding the fort, Harley and Silas headed outside. Trepidation, fear and excitement filled Silas.
“Terrified?” Harley asked.
Silas shook his head.
“I am,” Harley said, surprising him. Silas leaned against his shoulder, comforted by the size and warmth of him. Harley held him, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Big bad wolf like you, afraid?” Silas asked.
Harley laughed, and then his tone grew serious. “I saved your life once Silas. Met you, knew I wanted you because you’re mine to claim, but I can’t bear to lose you. It would kill me.”
Silas turned so they looked at each other eye-to-eye. He kissed the side of Harley’s jaw, caught his bottom lip with his teeth, and then kissed Harley slowly and tenderly, letting Harley know without the need for words Silas felt the same. “You won’t lose me. We’ll get through this. It’s going to hard. Those hunters will raise merry hell, but we’ll survive to see another day. Finally see where this is going.”
“I know where this is going. A good place,” Harley answered for him.
He grabbed Silas’s hand, and began leading out of Garret and Bo’s property. Their house, Silas saw, was in a quiet residential neighborhood near the woods. Harley led him out of Garret’s yard and into the dark. This time, Silas didn’t feel fear or dread.
Harley moved with surety, as if he knew the forest. Silas wasn’t surprised. Here, the werewolves of Darkfall Mountain knew the trees and dirt like old friends. It was their territory—theirs to protect and guard from unwanted intruders. Harley didn’t lead them far, just a couple of feet from the house, so Garret and Bo wouldn’t hear them.
He pushed Silas against a tree, reminding Silas of the time Harley offered to quench his hunger by offering his own neck. Above them, the night sky was a net of stars. The moon rose above them, still bloated, providing their dirty deeds brief illumination.
Silas moaned, not caring how loud he sounded, as Harley pinned his wrists above his head. The sturdy wood dug into his back, making Silas aware of his position—trapped delicious between a tree and his domineering mate. The thought made him hard. The bulge in his jeans didn’t need to convey his mood to Harley because Silas knew Harley smelled his arousal.
“You’re wearing too many clothes in my opinion, vampire,” Harley remarked.
“Likewise, werewolf.” Silas grinned. “I want to see some skin. Run my hands all over those yummy muscles. Mine.”
Harley chuckled. “The last fuck before the scary battle, huh?”
“No. Not the last, but the first of many.”
That made Harley pause. His gaze grew darker. Intense. “You’re fucking right.”
“Enough talking. Strip. Please?” Silas added.
Harley let Silas’s wrists go and tugged off his shirt in annoyance. Silas licked his lips. “More.”
“Demanding vampire.” Harley unbuckled his belt. “Do you want me to tear those off clothes off you? Bo’s going to be mad, he’s picky about his stuff.”
“No way.” Silas stripped in hurry. Everything they did was. Silas just couldn’t wait any longer. Once they were both nude and touching skin-to-skin, Silas pulled Harley to him. Harley took control, restrained his wrists and plundered his lips. Silas’s head spun. Wouldn’t stop spinning, even as Harley drew back, grin on his lips.
“Impatient, aren’t we?”
“Damn you. Look who’s talking,” Silas threw back. He felt the press of Harley’s erection, long and thick against his belly. “Come on, big guy. Make us both fly.”
Complying, Harley reached for Silas’s member. He looked amused when Silas mirrored the gesture. Harley matched Silas for every stroke. Slow to fast. Rhythm picking up until both of them were panting.
“Give it to me. Your release,” Harley said, voice harsh. He pinched Silas’s tip. Silas exploded on his command, his cum spilling over Harley’s fingers. He shuddered. Pleasure assaulted his body, making him slump against the tree. Silas fought to snap back to reality, to return Harley the favor, but Harley grabbed his fingers. “I’ll finish in you.”
Harley didn’t ask, the demanding wolf, but Silas liked that just fine.
“Come fuck me, handsome,” Silas purred.
Harley turned him, so Silas’s front touched the rough texture of wood. He shuddered when he felt the press of Harley’s steel-hard member pressing against the entrance of his ass.
“Hands pressed against the trunk,” Harley instructed.
Silas obeyed, laying his palms flat above his head. He spread his legs to balance himself.
“Baby,” Silas whined, shocke
d when Harley smacked his left ass cheek. The sting made him squirm and woke his limp cock back to life. Christ, that was fast.
“Behave, vampire,” Harley chided.
When Silas thrust his ass at Harley, Harley gave his buttocks another whack. Silas moaned in frustration. That made Harley chuckle. Harley’s lubed fingers found his crack a second later.
“You brought lube along? Planned this, didn’t you?” Silas asked. He didn’t need to face Harley to know his dominant mate was grinning.
“Of course. Going to make this ride memorable.” After spreading a generous amount of lubricant in his asshole, Harley nudged a finger in, silencing Silas. “You going to take me in you, baby?”
“Fuck yeah. Hurry it up.” Silas knew he sounded needy, but he’d take any comfort he could get, especially when tomorrow might mean their death or victory.
If they were fighting for love and their future, than shouldn’t they express their affection for each other the way they knew how? Didn’t someone once quote that sexual intimacy was the path to spiritual development? Silas knew his identity, his reason for living when Lucius picked him as his student. After Lucius’s death, Silas didn’t know his purpose anymore, until Harley came. Without Harley, Silas didn’t know how he’d summoned the strength to take up the responsibilities Lucius left him.
His petulant remark earned Silas another spank on either cheek. The sting combined with the anticipation of Harley breaching him made his prick thicken against the bark.
“Don’t be crude, Silas. I thought you had better manners than that.”
Silas sniffed, pretending to be offended. Harley slid a second slick digit in, and then curled. Silas moaned. Scissoring and finger fucking him, Harley spread Silas for his easy access. Harley nudged his cockhead in. Despite the slight burn, Silas willed his ass muscles to pull his mate in.
“Fuck, baby. You’re so tight.”
Harley gripped Silas hips harder and went deep until his balls touched Silas’s still stinging ass. Expelling a sigh, Silas closed his eyes. Harley buried inside him always felt so right.
For a moment, Silas took everything in. The kiss of the night air, insulated by Harley’s warm body pressed against his, the sounds of nature around them, and the smells of sex and musk. Picture perfect, despite the fact the fight for their survival would begin the next day. Pain and loss, fear and trepidation awaited them. Again.
“This is worth it,” Silas said with surety.
He remembered how Harley leapt off the edge of the waterfall, trusting Silas would follow. Harley would follow him to the ends of the earth if need be. The thought warmed his heart and insides. He was one lucky son of a bitch. Silas wished Lucius could see him now. Would he be proud Silas didn’t cave or surrender?
“Damn right.” Harley didn’t speak. He didn’t need to. They let their bodies do the talking.
Harley moved, dropping to a steady rhythm. Silas raked his nails across the tree, marking it. He imagined the next time he’d leave half-crescent marks on, like a territorial cat.
It would also be nice to have a house out here, so close to the woods where Harley could run freely in wolf form, and where they could do some dirty things outdoors. Lucius didn’t leave Silas hanging. Silas had access to his Master’s bank account. Damn it, he was doing it again—planning for an uncertain future.
Think about the present, Silas.
“Thinking?” Harley asked, rasping. Silas made a sound that passed for a “yes.” Harley continued, “Means I’m not doing my job.”
Silas forgot about everything else except Harley’s body colliding with his. Harley reached for his cock, and began sliding his fist up and down Silas’s shaft. He drove into Silas with more force, going deep and faster. A scream of fierce pure pleasure tore out of Silas’s throat. That seemed to rile Harley up. Harley shifted the angle of his hips and slammed right into Silas’s sweet spot.
Eyes widening, Silas gasped. He dug his nails into the wood. Harley aimed for his prostate repeatedly, his hand movements on Silas’s prick more frantic. This time, they came together. Silas threw his head back and let out a shuddering moan. He saw stars as pleasure numbed his body once more. Behind him, Harley let out a triumphant growl as he emptied his load inside Silas’s ass.
They stood like that for a moment, recovering their senses, with Harley pressed up against him like a blanket. Silas pressed his cheek against the wood, comforted by Harley’s muscled arms.
“Fuck, what a ride,” Harley said.
“Exactly my thought,” Silas replied.
They would have stayed that way to, if Harley didn’t gently pull away.
“Come on, to bed. We have a long night ahead of us tomorrow.” They put back their clothes. Lacing their fingers together, they headed back to the house.
Chapter Seven
Harley restlessly paced in the living room of Garret and Bo’s tiny house. Outside, the late afternoon sun stood out against clear blue skies. Two more hours until sunset, until Silas rose and the hunters would start their assault—according to some of their pack spies. After Sergio placed Darkfall on lock-down, their best covert wolves instantly set out to watch for their upcoming enemies.
According to them, the Order of the Knife assembled some kind of mini army. Once they realized they couldn’t follow Harley and Silas down the fall, they must have head back and reorganized. Now modified trucks mounted with machine guns were heading their way. Harley swallowed, not liking the odds. He continued his brooding and pacing, wearing the living room carpet beneath his feet.
“Oh calm the fuck down,” Bo complained.
The human sat on the living room couch, reading a magazine. It took a good while of the morning for Garret to convince his mate to stay at home. After resorting to threats, Alessio and Garret finally convinced Harley to see to his mate instead of helping out the pack.
Harley knew why he’d been ordered to stay here. He would be more of an annoyance than help in his anxious state. Besides, they had a point. Silas was vulnerable during daylight hours and Harley didn’t trust anyone else to watch over his mate.
“I’m trying,” Harley muttered. “This entire thing just sucks.”
Not to mention he was exhausted. Harley didn’t get much sleep last night, although Silas slept like a log in his arms. Once this storm blew over, Harley would lock Silas and him in his bedroom for days, only heading out for food. Maybe they’d even go on a vacation. Stay in some cozy inn and do all the crazy and sappy couple activities that were available at night.
The thought made Harley smile.
“You and the vampire are good together,” Bo observed.
“Yeah?” Harley asked. “Do you think the pack would accept him?”
Bo would know about being an outsider. The human came to Darkfall initially with his former lover, who turned out to be a psychotic bear shifter. He met Garret, and together, they got out of the chaos relatively unscratched, but it took time for the pack to welcome Bo in. On general principal, the pack was leery of outsiders, but they eventually learned to accept Bo and respect the spunky human. Harley hoped the same for Silas.
“Sure. Silas is good people,” Bo said, nodding sagely. He looked more serious now. “I understand where he’s coming from. When I came here I was shit scared. Silas’s situation is worse. He’s still recovering from the shock of losing his Master and meeting you. Then there’s this chalice.”
Harley slowly nodded, thinking about Bo’s words. He knew Silas’s Master had been more than Silas’s mentor. The guy picked Silas from the streets and gave him a second life. Harley was also aware they were intimate. It bothered him a little, but the guy was dead and Harley was here. It didn’t hurt his conversation with Silas the night before swelled his ego.
Harley had prodded Silas about Lucius, and asked him about their relationship the night before.
“It’s hard to describe,” Silas had admitted, then he grabbed Harley’s arm, his eyes determined. “Don’t start thinking you’re some kind o
f rebound guy. You’re not. You’re my mate Harley. We might have met in terrible circumstances, but what we have isn’t temporary. It’s special. Something most people dream of, but can never have.”
Those words silenced Harley. He’d always known the vampire was deep.
Then Silas grew a little red. “You’ve made me feel things I’ve never felt before. With you it’s always heat and fire, and I suspect the flames between us won’t go out anytime soon.”
Harley’s train of thoughts shattered when his aggravated wolf woke inside him. He snapped his head toward the windows, and began moving toward the line of weapons he set down on the coffee table.
“Harley? What’s wrong?” Bo asked, keeping his voice low.
Harley was checking the rounds on Garret’s shotgun when they heard it. Engines rumbled in the distance, far from the residential neighborhood, but near the town center. Then the sound that made Harley’s heart stop for a second. The “bratatat” steady rumble of a rapid-fire machine gun.
“They’re not supposed to arrive until much later in the night,” Bo said in between rounds.
Harley anticipated the worse. He slung the shotgun over his shoulder, and tossed another at Bo. The human smelled of fear, but Harley knew he wouldn’t buckle. Garret’s mate was made of strong stuff, just like Silas.
“Come on, help me get Silas. Then I want you to head to the underground bomb shelter under City Hall.”
Bo made a disgusted noise. “Where the human town residents are all holed up?”
“We don’t have time to argue,” Harley said patiently. Besides, if Bo had a single scratch on him, Garret would skin Harley alive.
He strode to the guest room where Silas slept. His mate lay tucked on his side, dead to the world until later. Damn it, Harley had to transport Silas to safety. He used the blankets on the bed and with Bo’s help, wrapped Silas up in a sausage roll. They headed to the garage and loaded Silas into the trunk of Bo’s car. There was no helping the rough handling, because one touch of the sun could literally burn Silas.
