“Good try, but I can smell your blood.”
“Already healed,” I say as he runs towards me, and I grab my first dagger. I turn quickly to avoid his sword as I slice at his shoulder. He is too fast. Before I know it he is back in front of me and his blade is halfway through my side.
“You can do better,” he says as he starts to withdraw his blade.
“You’re right, I can.” I send a charged pulse his way and knock him over onto the grass. His sword is still clinging to my ribs. I do not waist my light trying to heal myself. I will need that for protection and offense. My Vampire blood will take care of my injuries. I pull the length of the sword back out of my body. With his sword in one hand and my blade in the other, I charge at him. I throw my dagger into the air. He smiles then leaps up off the ground and opens his wings outwards at the same time. He is going after my dagger. I let out a curse at my stupidity. He is smarter than Charles. I jump and give chase. When I see him stop, I see the silver flash in the moonlight. He searches for my location. When he spots me, he descends rapidly.
I mutter something foul under my breath. I have never fought in the air before tonight. He is right, I am not prepared. Drawing my sword crossways, I block his stabbing motion. When he comes back around, I have another dagger hidden in my hand. I swing with the sword and stab into his chest with my silver blade. He smiles at me before he starts to back away. I come towards him and do not release my grip. He hisses and growls. “This isn’t a game of tag so stop acting like it,” I say as I twist my dagger upwards for emphasis.
“Careful, love. You are about to breach my heart.” I look at my wound placement in his chest. He lied, but I realize it too late. His fist hits me hard over my head, and I topple towards the earth.
“Marion.” I hear Malachi call after me right before I see a flash of white. I am covered in soft feathers. I look up and see that Malachi has caught me. When I regain my composure, I order him to put me down. We land in the thick of some trees.
“Your head is bleeding and so is your side.” He goes to touch me but I pull away. “What happened?”
“Jacob is teaching me. It’s for the best that you leave.”
“It will take him a moment to find us. I see you are training in a dress, my favorite, if you do recall. The color is lacking.”
“Black is a color, my favorite, if you do recall.”
“I have to hand it to the guy. I never thought to put you in something strapless, easy to pull down and easy to lift up.”
“I dress myself. I’m a grown woman.”
“I have no doubts that you are indeed all woman.”
“Malachi, stop this. I can’t protect you from him if you continue on the path you are on. He will eventually find a way to kill you and not just banish you.”
“Death would be a release.”
I gasp at his words. Jacob is right. This is not like Malachi. I am about to give him an earful when Jacob lands beside me. “You all right? I didn’t mean to hit you that hard.” I nod, but I do not look away from Malachi. “You could have trained her better, you know?” Jacob says. “I have a lot to make up for and there is very little time.”
“Then let me help.” Malachi draws all six daggers from his wings and throws them on the ground.
“You’ll need those,” I taunt him.
“I told you that I would never touch you with my weapons.”
“But how will you fight?”
“I am a warrior, you’ll see.”
“Oh, so I guess that it is two against one.”
“I don’t believe the Demons will fight you in a fair one on one fight,” Malachi says before smiling wide to expose his fangs. “If I win, I get a prize.”
I almost choke on his words.
“What kind of prize?” Jacob asks.
“Nothing he can claim anymore,” I say as I leap into the air.
Chapter 14
Around four thirty, Jacob calls it quits, and we head to the house. My black dress still looks good but it clings heavily to my body by the wet blood that is soaked up by the fabric. I cut Malachi a time or two but nothing that would be considered a death blow. Just when I think I know Jacob’s fighting style, he switches it up on me. He did not fall for the sword and dagger trick again. I was able to stab his abdomen and leg and made a cheap shot to the kidney. I do have much more to learn. Malachi is supposed to work with us again. I cannot tell Jacob what happened when he had me alone.
Jessica covers her mouth with her hand when she sees the three of us coming down the hallway. Malachi goes to her, and Jacob and I go into our bedroom. “Let’s get you cleaned up,” I hear her tell Malachi before I shut the door. It’s not his blood that is all over him. It is mine.
When I step into the shower, I do so alone. The water washes away my blood, and the faint scars appear. I know I will be completely healed when I drink blood. I will have human blood tonight. I do not wish for Jacob to know how Malachi covered me with his body and raised my dress up as his hand slid up my thigh. He softly rubbed my abdomen and dipped the tips of his fingers into my panty line before he came to his senses. I am ashamed because I did not tell him to stop. I do not know if I would have. I touch the place on my skin where I felt his hard shaft buried into my thigh. I moan as I slip my hand between my legs and close my eyes.
“What are you doing in there?” I jump at Jacob’s voice. “Would you rather be alone or should I join you?” He has the curtain open watching me. I make room for him to step in and join me. “You need blood,” he says as he sees my body.
“I crave human blood, male,” I say.
“I will have Nadia and Phillip come to our room.” He closes his eyes and opens them quickly. “They will be here in an hour. They are sleeping and need to shower.”
“How is it that you are able to do that?”
“It’s like an orchestra in my mind, and I am the conductor. When you are a stronger, older Vampire, it will be no problem for you. Now like I asked, what were you doing in here?” I go to touch him but he stops me. “That wasn’t it. It wasn’t me that you were touching.” He sits on the tile bench and stares at me. I place my foot up on the bench beside him. He does not make it very long before I am slammed against the tile wall, and he is inside me. I definitely won this one. He does not have time to bring me to climax. He takes me so hard that I feel pieces of tile shatter behind my back before they fall to the floor at our feet.
This is exactly what I needed to relieve my stress and to get my mind focused back onto Jacob. As he is about to finish, I bite his shoulder and place a small amount of pleasure hormones into him. He does not say anything. I do not think he noticed. He devours my mouth as he pumps several more times. We finish washing off and get dressed. I comb my hair and wear it wet to the dining hall. We are late enough as it is now.
When we enter, there are about twenty people seated at the table. Jacob and I stand. I notice several men that I have seen over the years. Ethan was a former knight who befriended Jacob and never betrayed him to Arthur. Gerald and Harrietta are here, as well as George, Rebecca, Jessica, and Malachi. I am introduced to David, a Fallen, and his mate, Erin, and also Vampires Trevor, Lucas, Aaron, Stephen, and Keith and Kelly, who are just about sitting on top of each other. The last Vampire is female and I notice Jacob look away from her as he says her name.
“This is Shayne.” She smiles politely enough at me, but her gaze moves all over Jacob’s body. Oh, she definitely knows my husband. Jacob takes my hand as I tense up and get ready to pound in her pretty little face.
“These are the Demons who are leading our cause.” Okay, he got my attention by saying that.
“Why will you align yourselves with us?” I ask.
“Not all of us are evil. Sure, we are made Demons because of our misdeeds but one can reform, even the damned. My name is Marcus. This is Ashley, James, and Gary.”
“How do I know you are not traitors?” I ask as I feel Jacob squeeze my hand.
“Love, they
have given up a lot to be here. Please do not insult them.”
“It’s okay, Jacob. I expect her to question our loyalty. You are right, we are traitors, but to Lilith and not to you,” the man introduced as Ashley speaks. “I am new to being a Demon. My crimes are unforgivable. I am here because my loved ones still walk this earth. I do not wish to see them perish in the eternal flames. I will not fail you.” I nod my head at him.
“I’ve given Malachi detailed plans for upcoming changes to be made for the estate. He is in charge of the battle plans.” I listen intently as Jacob continues with his commands. He informs everyone about Charles and Arthur and to sound the alarm if anyone spots them. He also warns Malachi and Gerald that their lives are in danger. Lilith will try to take them to torture the information as to where Charles’ bones are located. Malachi does not flinch. He orders one Demon and one Vampire to protect each man. I do not think that Jacob is totally trusting of the Demons either.
I notice Jacob’s breathing is increasing, and he is having a hard time focusing. Maybe I should not have bitten him and let him walk in here with a time-released orgasm. When he looks me up and down, I know that he understands what is happening to him.
“The sun will be up soon. Go rest and recharge,” he says. Some people leave right away but others linger to discuss the operation in more details. Jacob’s pants are stretching in the front, and he is forced to take a seat. I come up behind him as he is listening to Ethan talk about the old days. I place my hands lightly on his shoulders and lean over to suckle his ear lobe. I slowly squeeze my injection site to release the hormones more quickly and to disperse them throughout his body.
“Everyone, please leave now,” he grits through his teeth. Several more people scatter towards the door. His warning is not enough. Malachi, Gerald, Ethan, and Shayne are all that remain in the room.
“Jacob, what’s wrong?” Ethan asks.
“I will not warn you again. If you choose to stay then you choose to watch. I am still on my honeymoon.” Jacob abruptly stands, and his chair flies against the wall. He grabs me and lifts me onto the dining room table. He is unbuttoning my shirt and his hands are inside my bra. His mouth covers mine, and I kiss him back. I find it erotic.
I unbutton his shirt as I see Gerald leaving. Ethan is no longer sitting in his seat. I slide his shirt off as he rips my buttons open and pulls my jeans down my thighs. When he lays me back onto the table, I see Malachi and Shayne are still in the room. Jacob frees himself from his pants and is about to take me.
“Jacob, wait,” I say.
“They had their warning. Let them watch. It would do them both some good.” I feel Jacob push his way inside me as I hear the door open. Shayne walks out, but I make the mistake of looking in Malachi’s eyes as my body is rocked back and forth lengthwise as I am now making love to my husband. He closes his eyes and shuts the door behind him as he leaves.
“I’m sorry. I should not have injected you before the meeting.” I am close to tears as I remember the look on my former Guardian’s face.
“Don’t apologize for anything you do. Now let me show you just how thankful I am.” This time he goes extremely slow with my body. For someone who is about to explode, he shows great restraint. When I finally open the door to leave, Malachi is standing on the other side. He does not look at me. “I need to get my folder,” he says as he brushes by me and into the room. “Took you long enough. You may be too worn out to fight. It’s a good thing I pleasured you so many times as my prize for catching you that you know how to run with weak knees.”
Jacob slams him so hard into the wall that the chandelier rattles and falls to the middle of the table. “If you do not show Marion the respect that she deserves then you are forbidden from these grounds. You can treat me however you wish, but if you ever speak to her again in this manner, I will see to it that you never lay your eyes on her again.”
“You should show her some respect, throwing her down on the table in front of everyone. At least I savored her body for myself only.” Jacob raises his fist.
“No,” I say. “What happened in here is my fault. I enticed him to take me here. He could not control himself. Malachi, you should not speak in matters that you do not understand. I am available for his pleasuring anytime he wishes, and he is mine for the taking as well. We are Vampires. With you being a Fallen, I would think you would know the ecstasy of sex. You should try it again.” Jacob releases him from his stronghold. My words are enough to crush him. I will make him hate me if necessary.
He grabs the folder from the table. “Marion, just so you know, Jacob may not have taken Deborah to your bed, but he can’t say the same about Shayne. How long ago was that exactly and how many times did she lie with you?”
I grab Jacob’s arm before he can reach out to strike him. “I know all about her,” I lie to Malachi. “We have no secrets.” He leaves the door open, and Jacob and I leave for our bedroom.
I am about to start a conversation with him when I notice Nadia and Phillip sitting on the couch. I bite my lip when I see Phillip. He is tall and has the broad shoulders I find so attractive. He is also blond and has green eyes.
“You must be Phillip. I’m Marion. It is so nice to meet you.” He stands up to greet me and kisses the back of my hand. Jacob sounds off a warning. Good, he knows I like him.
“You’ll have to ignore him. Vampires are the jealous type. Come, we will go into the other room for some privacy. Don’t worry. We’ve been together so long that we seek other people to join us in our bed. I’m sure married women have propositioned you before.” He nods as I lead him through the double doors and turn to close them. Nadia’s mouth is hanging wide open.
“Marion, this is a dangerous game you are playing. I could kill him for even touching you.”
“Fine, then, he won’t touch me. But I know that you want kill me so I plan to touch him plenty. I can’t promise you that I won’t get him aroused; you know to sweeten the blood. Isn’t that what you told me you used to do? Now you’ll know how it feels not to be the only man in our bed.” I slam the door shut as he runs towards me. I mentally lock it tight with my mind.
“I don’t want you to get into some kind of trouble. And I would like to keep all my man parts.” Phillip looks worried. He probably should be.
“He’s the one in trouble. No harm will come to you. Now take off your shirt and lie on that bed.”
He hesitates. “I could force you, but you will taste better if you comply without mind control, and trust me, you will want to remember this. He starts to remove his shirt and then takes off his pants as well. I take off what remains of my ripped top. “Remember, I can touch you but you will not touch me, you will not have sex with me. Can you obey my rules?”
“Yes,” he whispers as I pounce on him. He is quick to arousal, and I drink fast from him. All I need is Jacob’s imagination in order to drive home my point. I know that he will find a way in here. When I am full, I dress in a new outfit while Phillip lies on the bed catching his breath. Jacob comes storming out of the armory and throws Phillip out of our bed. He must have come in from the tunnels to breach the room. I anticipated his attack on my sweetened drink so I gave Phillip some of my blood. I also did it so I could call him to my side whenever I wish.
“You have no right to intrude. Do not touch him again.”
“The hell I don’t have a right.”
“He did not touch me, as you requested. Really, you should be one to talk about my jealousy watching you drink.” He marches up to me and smells my skin.
“I never once removed my clothes to arouse a female blood donor.”
“But you can’t say the same about screwing Shayne in our bed. Tell me, was that more than once?”
His silence answers my question. I walk over to the window and open it.
“Marion, please, we need to talk about this. It was right after you died. I was at a loss. I was not behaving like I should. I thought you were gone.” I grow angry. His words are only m
aking things worse.
“I guess you couldn’t wait until I was cold and buried before you replaced me. Why did you even bother to bring me back? She’s beautiful, Jacob. Clearly she loves you. She is here for you even now, to size me up and see if she can steal you away. You couldn’t even look at her.” I climb out the window and fall to the ground. He leaps out after me and lands right in front of my face.
“Don’t go,” he begs me.
“It’s almost light. I can feel the sun rising. You cannot follow me. Let me go.” I break his hold on my arm. Remembering something else that Malachi said, I turn to ask him. “What did he mean when he asked you how long ago that was?” I watch Jacob’s Adam’s apple rise and fall as he swallows. “You wanted to talk, so talk,” I remind him.
“When you left with Malachi after the first committee meeting, Shayne came to my house once again…”
“You mean our house,” I interject.
“Yes, our house. I was hurting and dying inside because I knew that he was going to make love to you. When she offered me comfort in her arms, I sought it. When the time came to move to the bed, I couldn’t go through with it and I made her dress and leave.”
“Go back indoors. I need some time alone. I’ll be at the hotel.”
The sun is relieving the shadows across the lawn. “You do not need to be alone. I will call and have the staff remove the mirrors from the room. Keep the blinds closed on the windows.”
“Send Malachi to guard me.”
“I will send David.”
“No one but my Angel,” I say. Jacob stands in front of me. I smell his odor burning into my nostrils. “Go inside now.”
“No, not until I know that we are going to be okay.”
I cup his face in my hand. “You know I love you. You cannot keep things like this secret from me. Shayne is here for you now. Find your comfort there once again.” Tears are welling up in his eyes. I push too far, but he hurt me. I leave before I see the first tear fall to the ground.
Steal Me From Heaven Page 22
