In the Beginning...

by Calle J. Brookes

  “Anyway...what does your birthday have to do with why you took me?”

  Stubborn kitten. She would learn. “My people have lived in this area for centuries, and only recently have we noticed members of our families disappearing. Over the last thirty years or so, more than eighteen hundred Dardaptoans have disappeared. Some we know exactly what has happened to them. That is why your family was targeted.”

  “You think we have something to do with vampires disappearing? Maybe they went into the sun and fried!” She jumped to her feet, dislodging her cousin’s dog.

  “We don’t fry in the sun. In fact, we like the sun. We are highly susceptible to the cold. But we’ll get into that later. Come here.” He stopped her mid-pace with one hand. Pulled her toward the couch, ignoring her resistance. He wanted to smell her, to feel her close. “I know you and your sister have had nothing to do with it.”

  “So why us, then?”

  “Because your family is responsible. Your grandfather specifically, and we suspect some of his sons.”

  “No!” She pushed against his arm. “My grandfather is a dick, but my uncles wouldn’t hurt anyone! And neither would my dad!”

  She loved them, it was quite obvious. How was he ever to tell her that if they found her father and uncles were involved in her grandfather’s activities, they would be tried and executed in the Dardaptoan court? Perhaps that would best be something he kept to himself for a while. “We do have proof of your grandfather’s activities.”

  “His, maybe. But not the others. And I want to see the proof of Grandfather’s involvement.”

  That had him hesitating. The images and videos they had of Leo Taniss’s involvement were horrific, full of torture and suffering. And death. He wasn’t certain he wanted those images in his Rajni’s head.

  “Well? Can I see it or not?”

  Her eyes were directly on him, determined. “I would prefer you not.” “Why? Is it faked?”

  He shook his head. “No. The information came directly from his laboratory.

  I found it myself some thirty years ago.”

  “Then why can’t I see it?”

  “Because your grandfather is responsible for what amounts to genocide.”

  Her eyes widened. “What do you mean? I know he’s not a nice person, but genocide?”

  “He experimented on, and murdered, hundreds of my people, kitten. Probably thousands. Genocide is the cleanest term for it I can think of. And I don’t want you seeing the things he’s done. I don’t want those images in your head.”

  “If it’s true, I can handle it, vampire.” She ran a hand over the silk scarf tied around her waist, playing with the gauze absently. Her fingers were long and thin, feminine. Nails broken and ragged from fighting him. Guilt filled him once again. His female had bruises. Bruises he’d caused, and had no difficulty seeing on her arm and wrist.

  He covered the marks on her skin with his hand. He lifted her arm to his mouth and brushed his lips over the marks. “I am sorry. For these.”

  “You’re sorry? Then let me go home. Let me take my cousins and my sister and go back to our lives.”

  “I cannot do that. Not now. You must know that.”

  “How am I supposed to know anything? So far you’ve kidnapped me, hurt me, forced me to drink your damned blood, and now you are telling me I am a vampire and my grandfather a monster. About the only thing I believe is that my grandfather is a monster. Everything else is the stuff from fiction.” Did she know her eyes, those green eyes so like her grandfather’s, pleaded with him?

  Aodhan was a warrior first and foremost, like the Adrastos family had been known for over the past centuries, but this was his Rajni. His female. The one woman meant for him of all the females born through the centuries. What could he do to make her happy, other than send her back to the life she’d had before him?

  He lifted her onto his lap before he even realized he’d moved. She fought for a moment, then settled passively against him. That had him frowning. He wanted her fighting, wanted her feeling secure enough in her safety to protest what he did that she didn’t like. He slipped his arms behind her waist and just held her close for a moment.

  She trembled against him but didn’t pull away. He ran his hand up her spine then down; again and again. “It isn’t fiction, kitten. And I am sorry it happened in the way it did. Had it been ideal, we would have met, courted even.”

  “That’s ridiculous.” Her words were muffled in his neck, but he heard her.

  “People don’t court anymore.”

  “So I understand. Pity; they should. Perhaps that is what you and I should do?” Aodhan ran the idea through his head for a few moments while she lay against him. “Perhaps we should court, until you are comfortable with me.”

  “I think you’re insane. I don’t want to court with you. I don’t want to be with you. I don’t want to be on your damned lap in your damned hotel.”

  “I know you don’t. But do you really want to go back to your family now? You will need to feed on blood regularly. If you do not know what you are doing, you could hurt someone. Probably likely with your fighting skills. You are best off right here with me, for now.” It was manipulative of him, but he knew those were the right cards to play with her. She had tried so valiantly to protect her sister. She would extend that same fight and protection to the rest of her family. “I can teach you and ensure you are safe.”

  She pulled back to look at him straight on. “I would never hurt my family. Would never feed from them like an insect! The very thought is disgusting!” He lifted her off his lap and sat her on the coffee table in front of him. “Very well then. I will simply court you until you change your mind.”

  Chapter Eight

  He was going to court her. That thought kept running through Mallory’s mind while she sat with Emily, Josey, and Mickey in the private sitting room for the rest of the afternoon. He was going to court her, and he sounded absolutely serious about it. What was she supposed to do?

  “Mal, what do you think?”

  Think about what? She tuned back in to the conversation flowing around her. “Oh. I think we have to play along. For now.”

  What other option did she have? She couldn’t physically fight him. At least, not for long. He was too damned big and too damned skilled for that. Probably more skilled in martial arts than her brother, as well. She couldn’t shoot him she didn’t have a gun, and wasn’t sure she’d be able to, anyway. Despite what he’d done to her.

  And with them keeping her and her cousins in separate parts of the building, they couldn’t orchestrate a viable escape plan without gathering some seriously more information. Still, he could do his damned courting and she could follow along. Maybe lull him into a bit of complacency?

  “Play nice. No matter how hard it is. At least until we find out what is truly going on.”

  It left a sour taste in her mouth, but what other option did Mallory have?

  He came for her a few hours later, breezing into the sitting room and drawing her attention immediately. He wasn’t alone, but he stood out above the others. And not just because he was physically larger, stronger. There was something else about him, that she couldn’t identify. And she didn’t think it was only his arrogance.

  He held out a hand for her to take, and though it galled her, she did it. Play along. Just play along.

  Those words went through her head repeatedly as she stood. She looked back, her eyes meeting her sister’s identical ones. Mickey felt the same, she could see in the younger woman’s eyes. Mallory looked back at the man who held her hand.

  How was she going to get through this?

  ***

  Aodhan knew she was humoring him. How could he not? He didn’t trust her easy capitulation. How could he? His woman had a warrior’s heart and she was just strategizing before making her next attack. He kissed her cheek before he thought the action out, and then forced himself to ignore the instinctive gasp and withdrawal she made.

  Of
course she would pull away from him. He’d kidnapped and terrified her, and after what she had experienced as a young woman, she would be nervous of a strong male who was so obviously physically attracted to her.

  “Are you ready to return to our suite, kitten? I have a present waiting for you.”

  “Cab fare back to Denver, perhaps?” Her words were low enough that only he heard.

  “Now why would I send you to Denver when I would miss you too much? No, a warrior’s woman is best kept close to his side.”

  “I’m not your woman. I’m your kidnappee. Or hostage. Whatever you want to call it.”

  “You’ll adjust in time.” He led her from the sitting room, holding her warm hand in his. For such a strong female, she felt so delicate. He must take care of her. Caring for others besides his one sister was not something he was strong at. He was a fighter, a warrior. His family had been such for centuries. No, he was not full of the tenderest of emotions. He wasn’t sure he was up to the task. “Did you enjoy your time with your family? Reassure yourself they were safe and well?”

  “They aren’t safe and well. They are hostages. We all want to go home. Are you planning on keeping us here indefinitely? That may be hard to do. My family will be searching for us. We will be missed if we haven’t been already.”

  “We’ll deal with that issue when we come to it.” Aodhan was monitoring the Taniss family. Security was his job and he took his position seriously. And he had a man on the inside of the Taniss compound. Matthuin was a cousin of his, and an Equan or head of the Lycurgus House. He was also uniquely gifted in being able to disguise himself as whatever Kind he wanted to appear as. His chameleon characteristics ensured that no human would even suspect him of being what he was. Or even see him.

  Matthuin had been sent to the Taniss vacation compound well over a week ago, and had been reporting to Aodhan on the comings and goings of the Taniss for that entire week. The other male had told Aodhan that the kidnapping had been realized, but that the Taniss men hadn’t yet reported it to the human authorities. That from what was being heard on the compound, Rand and Jason Taniss his female’s twin brother and her youngest uncle were handling the kidnappings themselves.

  An odd reaction for a human family, in Aodhan’s experience. Curious. “Yet why have they not reported you missing to the police? They have noticed you are missing. Do they not care?”

  She stopped, jerking on his hand. “They care. What that means is that the family is letting my brother and uncle look for us. And when they find you, they will most likely kill you for what you and your friends have done. They probably didn’t report it to the police because they don’t want any questions when you disappear!”

  Aodhan threw his head back and laughed. Then laughed again. “Kitten, there is no way a set of puny human men could ever make me disappear! I am the best warrior my people have ever seen! Just ask the historians of my people! Read the stories and legends of what I have done!” He pulled her into his arms as he stopped laughing and spun her around quickly. “Yes! The goddess has chosen me a mate with a sense of humor! Human men, indeed! Your brother would be so foolish to try to take you from me!”

  “He’ll kill you. And I will watch!” She hissed the words at him and he wondered if she realized how the tiny fangs she now possessed changed her speech. So pretty, those little fangs. She pounded on his back with a fist. “Let me down!”

  “Not yet. I’m enjoying holding you close. I’ve waited centuries to do just that, after all.” Her chest was pressed to his and at the angle he held her he could look directly into her green eyes. What he wanted was for her to wrap those long legs of hers around his hips and then let him taste her. His hand dropped to the globe of her ass and he squeezed. “You are beautiful. Perfect in every way. I want to hold you forever.”

  Chapter Nine

  She didn’t want to believe him. If she believed him, what was next? Mal tried to ignore the hot male hand on her butt and the feel of his heart beating against hers. His neck was so close, and she could see the pulse beating just beneath the skin. Could smell the blood beneath his skin.

  Could smell it and want it. Had he been right? Would this all-consuming need for blood cause her to hurt her family? She was strong and determined and if she turned on one of her cousins or her little sister Rebecca, would they be able to fight her off? Probably not. Especially with the martial arts she knew. She really was going to be a danger to them, wasn’t she?

  She closed her eyes as the smell of him flooded her lungs. She pressed closer. “I can’t do this.”

  “Do what, kitten?” His tone was sly, but she refused to look at him.

  “Suck your blood. It’s gross. It’s wrong.”

  “It’s who you are now.” His hand tightened on her butt, and the other skimmed up her spine and wrapped around the back of her neck. “Are you trying to tell your mate that you need to feed, kitten?”

  She shook her head, but they both knew she was lying. She needed something from him. “No! Let me go!”

  “Is that what you really want me to do? What your body is crying out for is perfectly natural between mates, my love.” How was she supposed to ignore the satisfaction in his tone? His hand was firm on her neck, guiding her closer to his throat. She didn’t need any more encouragement than that. She nipped him, then sank her fangs deep into his skin.

  Tears ran down her cheeks, but she kept her grip on him firm. Why had he done this to her, and what did it mean for the rest of her life?

  Mallory closed her eyes as she continued to drink from him.

  ***

  Aodhan felt her tears and knew she hated what she was doing, what he had done to her, but he still thrilled that his female was in his arms where she belonged. His hands were gentle as they stroked her back, her hair. He gradually lowered her until her feet once again rested on the floor, but he was careful not to dislodge her where she fed. “Take what you need from me, kitten. It is mine to gladly give.”

  She sighed as she pulled her mouth away from his neck. “I hate you.”

  “I know. But that will change in time.” He smiled, then dropped a kiss on her mouth, taking the small drop of blood that hung in the corner of her lips for himself. “Did you get your fill?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it. Ever.” Her words were fierce and her nails sank deeply into the skin on his arm. “You’ve made me a monster. I’ll never forgive that.”

  “You are not a monster, kitten. Not at all.”

  “Prove it, then. If you can.”

  Chapter Ten

  “So how do I court her?” Aodhan asked the question of the one female he trusted to be completely honest with him.

  “She thinks we’re the monsters? What about her grandfather, then?” his little sister Aureliana asked. Temper was evident in the eyes that were similar to Aodhan’s. She had no love for any of the Taniss family, and she hadn’t been happy to learn her new sister-in-law was Taniss’s granddaughter. He hadn’t dared introduce the two females yet. It would take Auri a while to accept his Mallory’s heritage. He and his sister sat in the private sitting room reserved for members of their family.

  “I sense she has no love for him, either. She is so frightened, Auri. Terrified of me, but more so of herself. How do I help her? How do I make her...”

  “Love you?” Auri asked, kicking her foot against the leg of his chair. “She’d be stupid not to. And she’s your Rajni unless you’re mistaken there so shouldn’t it be done by now? Isn’t that the way it works?”

  Auri was younger than him, having just turned 400 in the last decade, and had yet to find her own mate. Aodhan just hoped his future brother-in-law was strong enough to recognize Auri’s strength and perceptive enough to recognize the tenderness she often hid beneath a tough exterior.

  “It is not working that way. She has been hurt so deeply, and fears men. And I took her from her home, hurt her, terrified her. Changed her into… ”

  “What she sees as a monster. I get it, brot
her. I think you need to teach her that none of us are truly monsters. Let her see the softer side of you, and of our people in general. Familiarity might soften her view toward us. Unless she’s completely stupid, she’ll eventually see we aren’t really all that different.”

  “I am a warrior, Auri. How am I supposed to show tenderness?”

  “Oh, I think you’ll manage, somehow,” Auri said. “In the meantime, what are you doing about her family?”

  “Watching them for now. Investigating her father and uncles, still. She is adamant that they wouldn’t have anything to do with harming our people. Seems to really admire and respect them. She does not speak the same of her grandfather. According to Rydere and the others, the same is said for her sister and cousins. All insist their fathers and uncles would not hurt anyone.”

  “Do you believe them? Is it possible the bastard kept his...side dealings...away from his family?”

  Aodhan thought for a moment of the videos he had watched, of the evidence he personally had collected against Leonard Taniss. None had any hint that any of Taniss’s sons were involved. Yet. It was entirely possible that Leo Taniss had kept his sons out of his murderous dealings with Dardaptoans. For his female’s sake, and her cousins’, he hoped so. Still, if the second generation Tanisses were innocent, that made what Aodhan and the others planned to do to Mallory and her sister and cousins even more reprehensible.

  “How do I make up what I have done to her?”

  Auri stared at him for a moment, sadness and longing on her face. “Just love her, brother. As you would if she had been any other female chosen for your Rajni.”