Claw Mark

by Lily Harlem

  I stared at the distant treetops. They were still, there was no wind tonight despite the time of year, and their spiky points were rigid pencil points. I peered at the blackness below them. The dark was menacing, a complete opposite to the fairytale whiteness and the glitter of the snow directly before me. The contrast made me shiver and matched how life could switch from deliriously happy to agonizingly impossible in an instant. Light to dark. Hot to cold.

  I filled the glass, drank deep and then turned.

  A sound rumbled through the house. A groan, a moan, a deep, satisfied expulsion of air.

  I froze.

  It had come from the room Isaac and Caleb used, at the back of the cabin and parallel to mine.

  I remembered their words earlier, when they’d been standing here, in the kitchen.

  “I want you now.”

  “Later. Hold that thought.”

  “I want to do more than hold a thought.”

  “I want that too, but wait, just a while. Let’s eat first and then we’ll have an early night.”

  So Caleb had kept his promise of an early night and now they were continuing what they’d started in the kitchen.

  An image of Aimery watching Ryle and me filled my mind. He’d loved to indulge the voyeur in himself. I’d joined him too, briefly, when we’d been to the basement at the Order and seen other couples, human and vampires, playing sex games, loving, coming, taking their pleasure without inhibition.

  Another groan rumbled toward me and I stepped across the living room, past the lazily glowing fire and stared at the door I knew they were behind.

  It suddenly became obvious why I could hear them.

  The door wasn’t quite shut.

  Perhaps in their haste to get to each other they’d forgotten to push it up properly. Or maybe like earlier, they’d become accustomed to my bedbound state and didn’t think it mattered.

  I knew I should turn away, slip back into bed and block out the sexy sounds with a pillow. Bury myself beneath the sheets and ignore them.

  But I couldn’t.

  Something compelling and desperate made me take a final step up the door and peer through the crack.

  The room was lit with candles, lots of candles, giving it a toasty glow and casting long flickering shadows. The men weren’t on the bed like I’d thought they’d be. Caleb was standing next to it. He had his hands linked behind the back of his neck and his face tipped to the ceiling, his eyes were closed.

  He was completely naked and the candlelight seemed to caress his smooth skin and tangle in his body hair.

  It was he who’d groaned and I could see why. Isaac was kneeling before him, his hands on Caleb’s arse cheeks and his cock deep in his mouth. He was bobbing backwards and forwards, a steady rhythm that swayed them both together and then apart. There didn’t seem to be a wild urgency about it, they were just indulging in something that felt really damn good.

  A tremble tickled its way through my body and my nipples tightened. It was certainly an erotic sight to see Isaac, with all of his brute strength, on his knees and gently pleasuring his lover.

  I slipped my hand to my mound and pressed over my newly fashioned knickers. Did I miss sex?

  It seemed I did.

  “Isaac, fuck, it’s going to be over too soon,” Caleb gasped, untangling his fingers and ruffling Isaac’s hair. “It always feels so amazing to be in your mouth.”

  Isaac pulled back and caught Caleb’s erection in his palm. He looked up at Caleb.

  There was such adoration and love in his expression that my eyes misted. I’d had that once, that love, that all-consuming desire to please and be pleased.

  “You know I’ve got the stamina to keep you coming all night, Caleb, if that’s what you want,” Isaac said in as soft a voice as I’d ever heard him use.

  “Fuck, yes, make me come, over and over. I’ll never get enough of you.”

  Isaac rose, kissing and licking Caleb’s navel and chest and the column of his neck as he went.

  When they were both standing, Caleb got busy with his hands, unzipping and pushing at Isaac’s jeans.

  Suddenly Isaac stepped sharply back and shoved off his pants. It was as if his patience had run dry. He stared at Caleb and gave a twisted smile. “Turn around and show me that sweet arse of yours,” he said in a gruff voice.

  Caleb obeyed instantly. He tipped himself over the bed, his hands supporting his upper body and his feet planted firmly on the floor. His cock, shiny with saliva, protruded up toward his belly.

  “Mmm, perfect,” Isaac said, stepping in behind him and palming his buttocks with one hand. In his other he held a small black pot and swiped some clear gel from it before tossing it aside. “Always so damn perfect. Ready and willing, just for me.”

  I shifted my attention to Isaac’s dark cock as he rubbed the gel on it. His erection was thick and bobbed heavily, the head was smooth and round and the shaft lined with bulging veins.

  “Yes, always ready, just for you,” Caleb said breathlessly. “Fuck me, Isaac, please, I can’t wait for it.”

  A low rumble rattled around the room. It was the growling noise I’d heard Isaac make before. I tensed, clenched my own arse cheeks and remembered what it was like to be taken in such an intimate way.

  Isaac aimed his cock at Caleb’s hole, parted his cheeks and pushed in.

  I’d thought he’d ram to the hilt in a wild, animalistic way. But he didn’t, he eased in slowly as though relishing every millimeter of Caleb’s body and feeling every tiny bit of stretch and give in his sphincter.

  Caleb moaned and I held in a groan of my own. I was turned on watching them. My clit was pulsing with the desire for stimulation and my pussy had tensed with a need to be filled.

  “Ah, yeah, I’m going to go so deep, make you feel me with everything that you are,” Isaac said, sweeping his hands up Caleb’s back to his shoulders and holding him firmly.

  Caleb let his head hang heavy. His willingness to bottom, to allow Isaac to take him, was so sexy. He was a huge guy too and between them their absolute lack of femininity made them all the more erotic to watch.

  Aimery’s handsome face suddenly flashed into my mind. I remembered him telling me about Pablo, his gay lover. I wondered if Aimery had been top or bottom? Both thoughts were arousing for me. Both made me miss him all the more. I’d do anything to have him back, to watch him the way I was watching Caleb and Isaac.

  “Oh, yeah, take me…” Isaac said and sank deep until his hips were pressed against Caleb’s buttocks. “Just like that, yeah…” He stilled and they both moaned at the satisfaction of their joining.

  Isaac withdrew, his cock become visible to me for a moment and then he slid back in, faster this time.

  Caleb grunted as Isaac hit full penetration, then he bucked backward as though wanting more.

  Isaac gave it, he pulled out again, forged in and suddenly the feral, frenzied fucking that I thought they’d start with began.

  Caleb was panting now, huffing, the air expelling from his lungs as Isaac barged into his depths.

  Isaac kept a tight hold of Caleb’s shoulders as he plowed energy into ramming in over and over. His hair was swinging about his face, a glimmer of sweat had appeared on his shoulders and curled over back.

  I pressed my clit and clenched my pussy. Their orgasms wouldn’t be long. I sensed they’d reached a point where nothing else existed except traveling that road to satisfaction and finding that point of bliss that would seal their love.

  I set up a small rotation on my clit, wondering if a little orgasm would stroke over me as they climaxed. I reached out and placed my palm on the wall, needing the stability.

  The bedroom was alive with Caleb and Isaac. Their gasps and grunts matched by the creaking of the bed and the slapping of flesh on flesh as Isaac slammed into Caleb with mounting urgency.

  “That’s it, fuck, I’m coming…” Caleb said, arching his back and straining his neck upward. His eyes were closed. “Fuck, yes, just there, tha
t’s it.”

  Isaac ran one hand up into Caleb’s hair, yanked his head back farther and pushed into him with such force they both staggered in their joined position.

  “Argh…yes…” Isaac cried. “Yes…yes…”

  Caleb’s mouth dropped open but no sound came out. He became utterly still for several seconds and then he pumped his hips. Long shots of cum burst from his cock and landed wetly on the bedcovers.

  A tremor overtook my body and I held my breath. My knees were weak and my stomach tense.

  “Yes, yes, yes,” Isaac hissed. A wild tremble besieged him then he dropped over Caleb, releasing his hair and hugging Caleb’s body into his chest. They both collapsed onto the bed with a grunt.

  “God I love you,” Isaac said, his cheek bunched on Caleb’s shoulders and his face contorted with pleasure. “I love you so much.”

  “I love you too,” Caleb panted.

  Quickly I retreated into the living area. If Isaac chose to look from that angle he’d possibly see me.

  Shit, what had I done?

  If I’d felt guilty watching them kiss, then this was a terrific crime and I was a terrible, perverted person.

  I turned and ran lightly back to my bedroom, slipped between the sheets and pulled them up and over my head.

  Maybe I should go to sleep and never wake up. Perhaps that would be the best thing that could happen to me.

  Chapter Eight

  The next morning snow was falling heavily and as I waited for the men to return from wherever it was they went each dawn, I stared out of the kitchen window.

  The silent snowflakes danced around one another in their graceful slide to the ground. After my fretful night I found them calming, soothing, and I enjoyed watching their endless patterns. It seemed to cleanse the part of me that had tossed and turned in my bed as I’d torn myself up with self-loathing.

  I put a pan of water on to boil and plucked a teabag from a large stash in one of the cupboards. Neither of my hosts drank coffee, which suited me well. It wasn’t my drink of choice, too bitter. I liked my cup of tea.

  The log shed had a layer of snow on its roof at least two feet deep. I was still enchanted by the whiteness of snow here, the pure unadulterated, virginal color it landed as and stayed. In London snow had turned to gray mush within minutes of hitting the floor, slush we’d called it, mucky slush.

  A movement to the right, in the tree line, caught my attention. I leaned over the pan of water and peered closer. Was it what I thought it was?

  Yes, it was!

  A large wolf was ambling through the shadows.

  I rubbed at a growing patch of condensation on the window and moved the bubbling water off the heat. With a better view I could see the beast had the same black and gray shades on its coat as one of the pair that had chased Elfrida.

  “The Carlton Pack!” The thought hit me with an explosive burst. “Of course.” I stared at the creature padding along, sniffing the ground and weaving in and out of the skinny tree trunks. It looked perfectly comfortable and at ease with its surroundings.

  Its surroundings, here, in the Canadian Rockies.

  The Carlton Pack was the reason Aimery and Ryle had chosen this destination. Despite the danger from their century-old enemies they wanted wolf scent to disguise my trail.

  I stared at the darkness the wolf had disappeared into. The dense forest was a black as night where the thick branches blocked out the watery winter sun.

  I put the pan back on the heat and instantly the water bubbled. A small splash touched my arm. I frowned and poured the liquid over my teabag then glanced back out of the window.

  Caleb was jogging through the snow, from the same direction the wolf had vanished into. He wore jeans and boots, again no top. His hair was messy and disheveled.

  He slowed to a walk, pushed his hand through his hair and then adjusted his jeans that sat low on his lean hips. Low enough so the angle of muscle at the base of his belly was in sharp definition.

  I couldn’t help but admire his chiseled body and sculpted abs. He really was a fine specimen of a bloke.

  He approached the cabin and I strode to the front door, pulled it open.

  “Wolf,” I called, pointing at the forest. “I’ve just seen a wolf.”

  “It’s okay,” he called, grinning and not increasing his pace. He banged up the steps, stooped and discarded his boots then walked barefoot into the cabin.

  “I don’t understand,” I said as the scent of cool air mixed with the smell of fresh male sweat swirled around me. “I really don’t, how come you’re not scared of attack?” I paused as he pushed the door shut. “How come you don’t get attacked? Is it because…?”

  My words trailed off. I wanted to ask if he could turn into a wolf. I’d seen that kind of thing in the movies before, read about it in books. But was it real? Would he laugh at me and tell me that grief had fuddled my mind? I was beginning to wonder myself if I was connecting dots that just weren’t there.

  “That wolf you saw could never attack me.” He shrugged. “So please stop worrying about the wolves, Bea. They’re protecting you, not out to hurt you.” The softness of his face slipped. “Not like her, not like them. They only want to hurt you.”

  “You mean Elfrida?”

  “Vampires.”

  I opened my mouth to retort that not all vampires wanted to hurt me, only one, but I didn’t, something else was more pressing. “Caleb,” I said. I needed some answers before I went crazy. “Aimery and Ryle, they talked of a pack of dangerous wolves that lived up here, in the mountains.”

  “I’m sure they did.” He kind of scoffed.

  “The Carlton Pack, have you heard of them?”

  “Yes.”

  “Really?” I touched his arm. Despite the fact that he’d just been outside topless his skin was as warm as ever.

  “Yes, really,” he said, “Their den is about five miles away, west of here.”

  “That close?” I asked.

  “Yes.” Caleb walked into the kitchen area.

  I followed and watched as he set about making himself tea.

  “So do you think the wolves that come around here, around the cabin, are from the Carlton Pack?” I asked.

  “It’s complicated,” he said, “But originally yes, they’re from the Carlton Pack.”

  Now I was getting somewhere. “How is it complicated?”

  He turned and his eyes held a sadness to them. “It just is.”

  “Tell me.”

  He glanced downward, at the floor.

  I sensed he wasn’t going to speak so I reached for my tea wondering how to worm information from him. My curiosity was burning me up. There was another layer to Caleb that I needed to reveal.

  As my gaze slipped past the window yet another movement caught my attention.

  “Caleb,” I said, “look, there’s a wolf, a different one to the creature I’ve just seen. It’s a different color.”

  Caleb stood next to me and gave a little sigh. “Beautiful isn’t he?”

  “Well yes, he is…but also deadly.” I recalled the scar Ryle had on his tough skin, marked by a wolf in Russia. If he’d been human he would have been killed in the attack.

  “I love the red streaks in his coat, so regal,” Caleb said.

  The wolf was coming closer; its huge paws sinking deep in the snow and puffs of hot air steaming from its mouth.

  “He’s coming towards the cabin,” I said.

  “You’re quite safe, Bea. He won’t hurt you the same as he won’t hurt me.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “You’ll just have to trust me on that one.”

  I frowned, the half admittance, the riddle, had annoyed me, but as Caleb had just said, the wolf was indeed stunning and I took a moment to appreciate him through the glass.

  It was right up at the log shed, sniffing around the base. I could see that his eyes were a beautiful amber and glistened with keen intelligence. His face was huge, its jaw and neck thic
k with muscle. The streaks in its fur ran horizontal with its spine giving the impression that smudges of rust-colored pine bark had basted it as he’d hurtled through the forest.

  “What’s he doing?” I asked. “Looking for food?”

  “No, he’s well fed, look at the size of him, he’s pure power.” There was wonder in Caleb’s tone. “He’s checking the place out, reading the smells in the snow like they’re a book, finding out what’s happened here, who’s been here since he last inspected it.”

  “Which was when?”

  “Yesterday morning. A routine check of territory at dawn is standard for wolves.”

  Of course it is.

  I was about to ask about territory but when I opened my mouth the creature paused and looked up at the window.

  Its gaze locked on me.

  My heart rate picked up. Being noticed by something so intimidating and ferocious was disconcerting. The last time I’d been this close to a wolf I’d thought I was about to by drained dry or mauled to death.

  It didn’t blink as it flicked its attention to Caleb.

  For a moment the wolf seemed to soften and its posture lost a fraction of its stiffness.

  Caleb did the same, reaching out to the counter, seemingly for extra support as he sagged a little.

  Now I knew it was not the first time the pair had encountered each other. I could almost feel the history between them, sense a mutual trust or respect or maybe even affection. It hadn’t been my imagination. That wolf and Caleb were bonded but were they bonded as men as well as creatures?

  As quickly as the wolf had appeared from the shadows he disappeared, slinking around the side of the log shed and then to the back of the house. I strained my neck to see him but could see nothing but a fog of white.

  I gulped. The whole experience had stoked my inquisitiveness further but also made me believe Caleb when he said the wolves wouldn’t hurt me.

  The door to the cabin slammed and a cool breeze wound around my ankles and up to my neck. It really was seriously cold out there today. “Isaac?” I called, moving from the kitchen into the living area.