Empire of Rust Complete Series

by V. J. Chambers

  Gabriel and the carriage driver set about pitching tents—one to use for the negotiation, and another to use for sleeping in case the talks went on for days. Gabriel urged Leah to get some rest.

  She was tired. She usually slept all the time due to her pregnancy, but she was too excited now. She retired to the tent and laid down, but she had no intention of going to sleep. She was going to stay awake until she heard Nathaniel’s voice. That was her plan. It was warm inside the tent, even with the flaps open, but not too hot. The warmth seemed to increase her drowsiness, and before she knew it, her eyes closed. When they opened again, she knew that she had fallen asleep after all.

  Now, after her nap, it was later in the afternoon. It was even warmer in the tent. She was a little sweaty as she sat up and stretched. She didn’t like the way it felt, and she worried about the way she looked. She wanted to look perfect for Nathaniel, so she thought she’d need to change her clothes and see to her hair, which was undoubtedly a mess after having been slept on.

  She crawled out of the tent.

  To her surprise, she saw that more horses had arrived and also another carriage. She couldn’t see anyone wandering about, so she had to assume that everyone was inside the other tent that Gabriel had erected.

  That tent was more a pavilion than the sleeping tent. It was taller and wider, and it didn’t have a bottom, so the floor inside was grass.

  Leah forgot about looking presentable in her excitement, and she crept forward towards the pavilion.

  As she got closer, she could hear voices inside.

  “As we’ve said,” said a man’s voice, “we won’t be discussing anything until we see the necromancer. He’s an important part of negotiations.”

  “Well, I haven’t seen Ezekiel either.” Gabriel’s voice. “How am I to know that he’s actually here.”

  “He is,” the first voice assured. “He’s in our carriage.”

  “And the necromancer is in the tent I have with me,” said Gabriel.

  Gabriel was lying. The necromancer wasn’t there.

  Leah wasn’t sure if she cared. This negotiation wasn’t important to her, at least she hadn’t really given it much thought. She’d only wanted to get back to Nathaniel.

  “Let us see him then,” said the man.

  “Let me see Ezekiel,” said Gabriel.

  Now, however, Leah was beginning to wonder. If the gypsies had the necromancer, it would make overthrowing the empire much easier. It would be a large benefit. And Gabriel hadn’t brought the necromancer. Whether that was because he didn’t intend to give him to them at all or for some other reason, Leah didn’t know. But she did know that Gabriel was lying. She needed to let the others know that as well.

  Still. She hadn’t heard Nathaniel’s voice yet. What if Nathaniel wasn’t there? For all she knew, it was only that other man in there with Gabriel and no one else.

  If she burst in to tell that man the news, would he even know who she was? She and Nathaniel had spent a lot of time alone, so she hadn’t really had a chance to meet his companions.

  It wouldn’t be worth it if she wasn’t taken away with them. Taken to Nathaniel.

  She bit down on her lip.

  “Listen,” said the other man, “one of us is going to have to give eventually, or this negotiation won’t go anywhere.”

  “You’re right,” said Gabriel. “I guess the question you’ll have to ask yourself is how badly you want a necromancer.”

  “Oh, don’t pretend that you have the upper hand here. We know what this Ezekiel is worth to you. We read the letter.”

  “You can read?” said Gabriel.

  “Well, Nathaniel can,” said the man.

  Leah’s heart leaped.

  “Right,” said Gabriel. “Nathaniel. I specifically asked to negotiate with you, and you’ve been quiet this whole time.”

  He was in there. Her stomach turned over. She couldn’t believe it. She was so close to him, only separated by a thin layer of canvas.

  “I wanted you specifically,” Gabriel continued, “because I thought that you and I had a connection. And I thought maybe you could explain to me what all of this is about.”

  “Hey,” said the other man. “Our business isn’t yours. We have reasons, and Nathaniel doesn’t have to tell you anything.”

  Leah lurched forward, her fingers brushing the canvas. She would go inside now. She would see Nathaniel, at long last. Her entire body shook.

  Someone cleared his throat.

  Leah felt an ache at its familiarity.

  “It’s true that we connected.” Nathaniel’s voice! “But my loyalties must always lie with my companions, and I cannot give away our secrets.”

  “I see,” said Gabriel. “Does this mean that you aren’t interested anymore? That you don’t want to study electricity with me?”

  And Leah burst into the tent.

  Gabriel turned. “Leah, what are you doing in here?”

  Nathaniel’s lips parted, and he gazed at her in wonder. “Leah?”

  * * *

  Michal found Darius looking out over the main square from one of the balconies in the mansion. She urged him to come along with her to someplace private. She couldn’t talk to him about this anywhere they might be overheard.

  Darius came with her easily enough, laughing as she hurried. “That important, is it?”

  She only nodded over her shoulder. She didn’t speak until they got back to their quarters.

  Once inside, she shut the door after them. “Darius, I have something I have to—”

  But Darius was unfastening her robe, planting kisses on her neck.

  She gasped. “No, wait. What are you doing?”

  He chuckled into her ear. “What kind of game are you playing, sweet one? You wanted this. You dragged me here for this.”

  “Oh.” He’d thought that she was coming to get him because she wanted him. She did want him, but it hadn’t been on her mind. She put her hands on his shoulders and tried to push him back. “This wasn’t what I—”

  He cut her off by capturing her lips with his.

  Cold pleasure cut through her. His tongue was wet and cool, and his lips were full and thick. All thoughts of whatever she’d intended to say fled from her. Instead of pushing on his shoulders, she grabbed on, tugging him close, melding her body into his.

  He make a satisfied noise, deep in his throat, and kissed her harder.

  She struggled to collect her thoughts. There was something she needed to tell him. Something important, and what was it?

  Darius broke the kiss, but his face lingered close to hers. “I think about you all the time, you know. Whenever I see you approaching me in this robe, all I can think about is getting you out of it.”

  She touched his face. “Darius, I have to tell you…” What did she have to tell him? Oh! Right. Yes, about Gabriel.

  He peeled her robe over her shoulders, baring her to her navel.

  She felt the air against her breasts, felt her nipples tighten. She shivered. “You remember that we spoke to Gabriel about negotiations?”

  “You are so beautiful,” he whispered, and his voice was heavy with desire.

  The sound of it made her excited. She clenched involuntarily between her legs. She gasped. “Darius, please, I need to talk to you.”

  He ran his fingers over one of her breasts, caressing its roundness, circling to touch her nipple.

  Delight burst through her. She moaned.

  His other hand on her other breast. Both her nipples stimulated. And then his mouth closing over first one and then the other.

  She couldn’t think. He was driving her out of her mind. She threw her head back. She sighed. She basked in how pleasant it felt.

  He kissed her neck again. He ran his tongue over her sensitive skin, and then she felt the scrape of his teeth.

  She felt tight all over, like a cat tensing for a pounce. “Darius…” she breathed.

  He opened her robe the rest of the way, and his finger
s danced over her hips and belly. They ran over her thighs, then eased to the center of her, to the place where all the pleasure converged.

  And she was panting, writhing, going to pieces against his strokes. She felt full and swollen and slick.

  He lifted one of her legs and pressed her back into the door.

  She groaned, feeling out of control, out of her mind.

  Suddenly, he was inside her, and she hadn’t even seen him remove his clothing, but he was naked against her, all of his dark, cold skin bare, and she was running her fingers all over every inch of it, and he was filling her up, sliding deeper into her and then sliding out, and his mouth was on hers, and her breasts were rubbing against his chest, and everything was bright and bursting and beautiful and sweet—so, so sweet.

  His teeth sunk into her lower lip.

  She made a strangled noise—half pain, half pleasure.

  Darius growled, pounding himself into her faster. Deeper.

  She grabbed his hand and pushed it back between her legs, forcing him to stroke her again.

  He did. His fingers were exultation.

  She closed her eyes, but lights were flashing, and her body was convulsing around him—against him. His teeth went deeper into her. His cock did too, and she felt pierced in both places as she jerked and twitched and exploded—everything was ecstasy.

  But then it was over, and they collapsed against the door, tangled together, kissing each other, sighing together.

  Suddenly, Darius pulled away from her.

  She opened her eyes.

  There was blood on his mouth.

  He reached out and touched her lip.

  It throbbed.

  He held up his finger. It was smeared with red.

  Oh. Her legs were trembling, but she wasn’t sure if it was from sex or fear or both. She touched her own lip, saw the blood there.

  He bit me. He really bit me.

  “Shit,” muttered Darius, turning away from her.

  * * *

  Nathaniel couldn’t believe it. Leah wasn’t dead. She was standing in front of him inside this pavilion, wearing a fancy dress like noblewomen wore. Her hair was slightly mussed, and it made her look adorable and sweet, like he’d just woken up with her—something he’d never really gotten the chance to do, even though he’d promised her that they would.

  He hadn’t meant it at the time. At the time, she’d only been another girl in another town. There had been so many girls. Nathaniel found them and fucked them and moved on. It was the way he did things. He sometimes missed a certain girl, but there was always a fresh one waiting at the next village. A consolation prize, he often mused.

  Leah was different now, though.

  She hadn’t been different at the time that he was fucking her. He often spun stories to girls about bringing them with him, about being together forever. They seemed to like it, and he liked indulging in the fantasy as well. He knew that he’d never bring any of them on the road with him, but it made for a pretty story, and it made it more likely that they’d spread their legs for him. Whatever worked.

  But then Nathaniel had been utterly sure that she’d been killed by revenants, and that changed everything. Suddenly, he was responsible for her death, and she took on a completely different role in his imaginings. Instead of simply being some girl that he’d had a good time with, she was now a tragic figure. And Nathaniel began to muse that perhaps Leah had actually been the love of his life. Which, of course, made it all the more tragic that she was dead by his own actions.

  But she wasn’t dead.

  She was alive, and she was standing right in front of him. And now that she was alive, he wasn’t sure if she really was the love of his life. Looking at her, even if she was adorable, he wasn’t sure if she was the only woman he’d want to be with for the rest of his life.

  How the hell had she found him?

  “You’re not dead,” he said to her, and it sounded like an accusation.

  “Of course I’m not dead.” She took a step towards him.

  He held up a hand to ward her off. “I saw you there. The revenants were everywhere.”

  “I got away from the revenants. I’m here now. I came to you.”

  Gabriel looked back and forth between them. “You two know each other?”

  “You know her?” said Nathaniel.

  Gabriel furrowed his brow and focused on Leah. “Wait a second. If you knew that Nathaniel was going to be here, is that why you were so keen on coming along? How do you know him anyway?”

  Nathaniel turned to Leah as well. “How did you find me? Why are you here?”

  She gazed at Nathaniel, and he could see the confusion in her eyes. “I’m here to find you. You said that we’d be together.”

  “I didn’t tell you to come running after me,” said Nathaniel.

  “Would you stop yelling at my wife?” said Gabriel.

  Nathaniel swung around. “Your what?”

  “Maybe you could stop yelling in general.” Gabriel folded his arms over his chest. “I think it would be better if we all sat down and had a nice, calm conversation to sort all this out.”

  “How can you have a wife?” said Nathaniel. “You don’t even like women, do you? Or do you like both cocks and cunts?”

  Leah hurried over to Nathaniel. “It doesn’t matter, Nathaniel. We’re together now.” She grabbed his hands. “Let’s go. You and me. It’ll be just like we planned. He doesn’t have anything to negotiate with anyway.”

  “Leah!” said Gabriel.

  Nathaniel pulled his hands away from her. “Look, Leah, when I said the things that I said—”

  “What’s going on between the two of you?” said Gabriel.

  Leah was crestfallen. “Don’t you want us to be together?”

  Gabriel pointed. “Listen, is he the one who—”

  “I thought you were dead,” said Nathaniel. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”

  Leah drew herself up. “I’m pregnant, you asshole.”

  * * *

  Darius staggered away from Michal, the taste of her blood still on his lips. He wanted to wipe it away, to be disgusted, but he licked it off, savoring it. He thrust his bloody fingers into his mouth, sucked them clean. She tasted better than she smelled. She was like a sweet dessert, intoxicating and delicious, and right now, he wanted to turn and take her again. Bite her again. Taste more of her. Taste all of her.

  He clutched the top of his head, feeling panicked.

  This was it, then. He was a monster after all, and he was going to give in to all of his horrible desires and destroy everything that he’d grown to care about. It was all falling apart, and he was powerless.

  She touched his back.

  He turned on her. “Get away from me,” he rasped.

  She took several steps backward, and he saw fear on her face. She hadn’t looked afraid like that since their first night together.

  He hated himself for making her feel that way. He picked his robe up from the floor where he’d flung it before making love to her. He swirled it around his body. He started for the door. If he wasn’t near her, then he couldn’t hurt her again.

  “Darius, wait,” she said.

  He ignored her. He flung the door open and stalked outside.

  “Darius!” she called after him.

  He just kept walking.

  He walked through the halls of the mansion, down stairs and turning corners. He walked across the foyer, through the main doors of the mansion, out into the square. Other people were moving to and fro there, going about their business. When they saw him coming, they moved out of the way, their eyes flashing with fright.

  He looked up at the sky and clenched his fists.

  He stayed like that for what seemed like a long time. Minutes ticked by, and all he did was watch the clouds and try to drive the desire for his own wife’s flesh from his mind. It was useless.

  “Darius.” Her voice.

  He looked down from the sky and saw her ne
xt to him.

  She put her hand in his. Her hand was small, and she smelled tantalizing this close. But he was used to her smell, to her touch. He’d controlled himself thus far. He did it now, almost out of habit.

  “Come with me,” she murmured.

  He let her lead him away. They walked past the mansion, down behind the banquet hall and to the place where they had spent their first night together. They went through the grove of trees and out onto the flat rock that looked out over the ocean.

  “We shouldn’t be alone together,” he said.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” she said. “It’s already healed.”

  He furrowed his brow. “What do you mean?”

  She stuck out her lip for him to examine. She was right. It was healed already. There was no sign of a bite, not even a scab, not even a scar.

  He walked out to the edge of the rock. “Why are you healing more quickly?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “I think I’m becoming more like you. You can heal, just like the revenants.”

  He turned to look at her. “I don’t want you to be like me. I don’t want anyone to be this way.”

  “It’s okay,” she said, approaching him. “I’m still me. Touch me. I’m warm. My heart is still beating. I’m not a necromancer. Don’t worry.”

  He didn’t touch her. He looked back out over the water.

  “I wanted to talk to you about something before, but we got distracted.”

  “There’s nothing to talk about.” He sighed. “I need to leave, to get far away from here, from you. I’m not good for you, Michal.”

  She was next to him in a second. “Don’t you dare.”

  He looked down at her. “If I hurt you, really hurt you, I would never be able to live with myself.”

  “It’s not easy to hurt me anymore,” she said. “And besides, I trust you.”

  “You shouldn’t.”

  “But I do.”

  He sighed.

  “Darius, we have worse problems.”

  He laughed bitterly. “What could possibly be worse than this?”

  “You remember the conversation we had with Gabriel, where he told us that the gypsies wanted to trade you for that Ezekiel man?”