The Royal Flush (Knights of the Darkness Chronicles(Book Three))

by Simmons, D. N.

  “No, we wouldn’t do a thing like that. If anything, we might be able to find a tiger Pride for you to live with, but we would never send you to an orphanage.”

  “You’ll take care of me?” the child asked in a soft, tentative voice.

  Sergio nodded. “As a matter of fact, I know someone who will scoop you up right away.” He chuckled to himself as he thought about Madeleine and her nurturing ways.

  “Okay, I’ll go with you,” David said, feeling a little leery about going off with a stranger, but they had saved him, that much he remembered about the night before. And they were now feeding him, taking care of him and offering him a place to stay. Besides, he no longer wanted to live on the streets, eating out of garbage cans. Nor did he want to keep hiding from scary men who asked him to do nasty things. He felt a connection with them and decided to trust in them... he didn’t want to suffer anymore.

  “Good. Eat up and get some rest if you’re still tired.” Sergio held his hand out towards him. “My name is Sergio Giovanni, and those people over there are my family and friends.”

  He pointed to the others in the room then he proceeded to introduce them all to David.

  “Hello,” David said after the introductions. Everyone smiled at him, some waved. David continued to eat his meal until his plate was empty. Then he laid down on the soft, white sofa, curling into a small ball. They watched his tiny body undulate with his breathing as he slept.

  “Poor baby, he’s so frightened. There’s no telling the horrors he has had to endure,” Tatiana speculated, shaking her head. She sat down on the other sofa next to her husband.

  Xander put his arms around her, bringing her closer to him, kissing her lightly on her temple.

  “You are a beautiful woman and I would not be the man I am today if it were not for you,” he whispered softly into Tatiana’s ear.

  She tilted her head, whispering into his ear. “Darling, I would like us to go back to Africa where we first met... and made love.” She darted the tip of her tongue, teasing the inner shell of his ear making him moan.

  He gazed lovingly into her eyes. “That is a wonderful idea. We shall do just that.” He leaned forward, kissing her passionately.

  “Ah this lovey-dovey shit is making me homesick,” Devin said with a playful pout.

  “That’s right, your man is at home... sleeping the sleep of the undead,” Miranda teased.

  “Your man is probably doing the same thing... oh wait, he’s probably cooking breakfast for everyone as we speak,” Devin retorted.

  “He’s not my man,” Miranda protested, one eyebrow raised.

  “Well okay, boyfriend, object of your affections, whatever. You and Daniel are soooo in love with each other,” Devin said with a nonchalant wave of his hand.

  Sergio laughed. Miranda tossed him a heated expression.

  “Don’t look at me like that. Besides, he’s right, it’s so obvious. When you don’t know he’s looking at you, he looks and when he doesn’t know you’re watching him, you are,” Sergio said.

  “Daniel and I are just friends, we get along... that’s all,” Miranda protested in her defense as she tried not to blush.

  “Look! She’s blushing. I knew it!” Devin exclaimed as he pointed at Miranda’s reddening visage.

  “Get spayed,” she murmured with a roll of her eyes.

  “Don’t you mean, ‘neutered’?” he corrected.

  Miranda shook her head. “No, I was right the first time.”

  Devin growled and hissed as he curled his fingers into claws mimicking a cat. “Meow! Hsssss! I’d better watch it, this one scratches back.” He tossed Miranda his boyish smile.

  She looked at him, chuckled and rolled her eyes once more. “You’re lucky you’re adorable.”

  “Adorable and cute,” Devin winked. “Besides, it’s written all over your face, what you feel for Daniel. You should just tell him.”

  “Agreed,” Sergio added.

  “Don’t you start, Sergio,” Miranda said.

  “All I’m going to say is, if you like each other, say so already! Now I’m not going to say shit else on the subject,” Sergio said, his Italian accent thickening slightly.

  Devin darted another glance at Tatiana and Xander.

  “I’m so missing John right now,” he mumbled.

  “Geez, pull yourself together.” Sergio looked at Devin, one eyebrow cocked.

  Devin frowned. “I am together. I’m totally on top of things,” he said defensively, his chest extended outward.

  Justin laughed from across the room. “On the bottom is more like it,” he stated under his breath while flashing a knowing glance at Devin.

  Sergio chuckled but shook his head. “Arg! This conversation just took a turn for the worst.”

  “What is it with you and homosexuals?” Adrian asked Sergio, genuinely curious. “I mean, you’re hot, but I seriously doubt every man on earth is pining for you.”

  “See, that’s where you’re wrong. I don’t have anything against homosexuals. I just don’t want to hear about men together that way. I’m sorry,” Sergio replied as he stretched his long legs out in front of him.

  “How is that not homophobia?” Justin asked.

  “To be homophobic, I’d have to be afraid of gay people, or hate them, I don’t. It’s just when it goes sexual, I don’t want a mental image of two hairy, naked guys humping each other. Try not to hold it against me, I can’t help it… I’m all for the ladies,” Sergio explained.

  “I won’t hold it against you.” Adrian shrugged. “I still think you have a touch of homophobia.”

  “Well,” Sergio smiled mischievously as he held his hand up, his finger and thumb only a quarter inch apart. “ …maybe a little,” he confessed.

  “I thought as much.” Adrian laughed as he approached Sergio, reaching down taking him into his arms, playfully attempting to kiss his cheek. Sergio squirmed out of his grip, sprinting across the room, laughing. The others in the room laughed at the high-spirited high-jinx.

  “Don’t try that shit again!” Sergio warned, chuckling.

  “Now who’s the pussy,” Devin teased.

  “Hey you… hush it,” Sergio pointed at Devin who was laughing boisterously.

  “Damn, you’re a jiggy bastard, aren’t you?” Adrian asked marveling at Sergio’s speed and agility.

  “When I have to be,” Sergio replied giving Adrian a sideways glance.

  “Relax, you’re not my type anyway,” Adrian said, chuckling.

  He walked to a comfortable white chair, plopping down lazily. Sergio smiled as he returned to his seat.

  “All right, enough of this tomfoolery,” Xander said, everyone with exception of his wife looked at Xander, perplexed. “What?”

  Adrian smirked. “Dad, who on earth says ‘tomfoolery’ these days? What century are you in right now?”

  “Adrian, be nice to your father… he is old and British,” Tatiana said, smiling devilishly.

  Xander looked at his wife. “You are the one who is supposed to be on my side!” he smiled.

  “Oh, I am… did you not hear me defending you?” She smiled coyly.

  “Yes, my dear… and what a wonderful defense it was,” Xander said sarcastically then patted his wife lovingly on her thigh as she giggled.

  “I’m just saying,” Adrian slouched in his chair getting more comfortable.

  “To answer your question, son, I’m sure there are plenty of people that use that term frequently,” Xander said.

  “Were they born in this century?” Warren asked, teasing Xander as well.

  Xander looked at him, one eyebrow raised. “I knew that you and Adrian were going to ‘gang’ up on me. It’s nice to see that you two have worked out your differences.”

  “Yeah, we did.” Warren nodded.

  “Don’t feel bad, Xander… Elise still says ‘shenanigans’,” Sergio chuckled. “I find the word funny and still appropriate based on people’s behavior. Just like this shit we just went though, tha
t wasn’t anything but over-indulgent, rich people shenanigans.”

  They all laughed as they couldn’t help but agree.

  When the laughter died down, Justin felt it was the perfect moment to say something to Tatiana. He approached her, kneeling in front of her.

  “I know I said this last night but I really want to thank you for saving my life, Matron.” He kissed the back of her hand.

  “It was my duty and my honor.” She leaned forward, kissing him on his forehead. “And you are most welcomed.” Justin looked up at Tatiana, smiling before he returned to his seat.

  “Man, I still can’t get over the fact that we met Darian’s Master!” Devin said, breaking the silence.

  “You know! After seeing all that Darian could do, I had no idea that he even had a Master!” Justin said mimicking Devin’s excitement.

  “His Master’s heart attack-inducing fine! I mean he’s the type of hot that makes you wanna slap your mama!” Devin said.

  “Why would you want to do that?” Xander asked curious about the phrase.

  “It’s an expression, that’s all. I was at the movies one time, and some chick said that about that hot actor Chad Pitt, and it was funny as hell, so I just started saying it,” Devin confessed.

  “Ahh,” Xander sighed, still not understanding, “youth.”

  “Not to mention, it’s such a mean thing to say. Shame on you, Devin,” Tatiana chastised.

  “Hey! I didn’t think it up. You guys are making me feel bad,” Devin said, frowning.

  “Good,” Warren smiled. “You should.”

  “Okay, I’m sorry. I now see the error of my evil ways and I don’t think I’ll be using that particular phrase in the future. Happy?” Devin looked at the others.

  “That’s more to my liking,” Tatiana nodded.

  “Okay, okay, okay,” Devin made an offhand gesture. “Well anyway, the man is gorgeous. I wonder how old he is.”

  “He looks to be Egyptian,” Tatiana speculated. “It’s in his bone structure and the exotic shape of his eyes.”

  “Darian is over sixteen-hundred years old. There’s no telling how old his Maker is. But I’m guessing by the air of arrogance that he had, I’m willing to bet he’s a few more centuries older than Darian, maybe even a millennia or two,” Warren said.

  “Yeah, you’re right about the arrogance part. I could tell he was looking down on us. Especially when he asked that question, I could tell he was waiting to see which one of us answered,” Adrian said.

  “He probably would have kicked our asses had one of us answered,” Justin said.

  Nagesa snorted. “Speak for yourself. I don’t plan on getting my ass kicked so easily.”

  Adrian chuckled. “Ditto. Besides, it was vampire business, let them deal with their own shit their own way. Still, I wonder how they met.”

  “So Darian and his Master, Kysen, have intrigued you?” Tatiana asked.

  “Well Mom, it’s kind of hard not to be intrigued. The vampires I’ve seen pale in comparison to him and Xavier, even John appeared to be stronger than the usual vampire I see around town. When we were in Russia, I saw Xavier rip the heart clean out of a wolf’s chest in a fraction of a second. He scared his other attacker to the point where he tried to flee, but I killed him. But it was then that I saw what a strong vampire could do to a shape-shifter, and it was unnerving,” Adrian said thoughtfully. “Now, don’t get me wrong… I know for a fact that a strong shape-shifter could totally annihilate a vampire weaker than they are, but I’m just saying, I’d never seen it the other way around… know what I mean?”

  Xander studied his son. “I have seen the power of older vampires. I have met vampires older than Darian who do not possess the intensity of his aura. He and his are quite formidable. But I do believe the little lady in their lives has the upper hand.”

  “As she should,” Rachel and Tatiana said in unison.

  “Natasha is a special kind of human,” Warren smiled. “I remember the first time I met her. She was scared out of her mind. Her ability was brand new to her and she was relaying to me the vision she had about those serial murders Matt and I were trying to solve. She was so sweet and so willing to help.”

  He reminisced on their first meeting then his expression grew serious. “She was attacked by the wolf when we were in that warehouse. He sliced her wide open and she would have died had Darian not saved her life. I should have never allowed her to join us, but then again, I didn’t expect to luck up and find the killers so quickly either.” He shook his head. “Nah, I still think it was bad judgment on my part. I’m just glad that she survived.”

  “He shared his blood with her?” Devin and Justin asked at the same time.

  “Yeah, it looked like they both enjoyed it. I can see why those mobsters wanted to sell supernatural blood on the black market. I’m glad you guys took care of them,” Warren said, nodding to Adrian, Nagesa, Devin and Sergio.

  “You helped,” Adrian said, smiling.

  “Glad that I was able to,” Warren said then he continued his thought about Darian. “But I think it was that moment when Darian and Natasha fell for each other. Then again, I could be wrong.”

  They continued to talk about other things more lighthearted for several hours; some even took naps to pass the time away.

  Devin’s stomach began to growl. “Okay, I’m hungry and ready to eat,” he declared.

  “Now that you mention it, I am, too,” Justin agreed.

  Xander playfully rolled his eyes. “Very well, we will order something to eat.” He called for the human servant and ordered food for all.

  The group conversed while waiting for their food to arrive. Finally, the human servants returned, covering the buffet table with platter after platter of delectable foods. The hungry shape-shifters formed a line at the table. David smelled the succulent aroma of the cooked meats and sat up instantly. Quickly he climbed off the sofa, running towards the line.

  “Back of the line there, little cub,” Devin teased with a chuckle. David looked at the end of the line, pouting. He started slowly towards the back when Devin laughed, his hand darting out, grabbing David by the arm. “Come on,” he said as he made a space for the child to squeeze into.

  David looked up at Devin, smiling.

  “Thank you,” he said revealing missing teeth.

  “It’s cool.” Devin helped him make his plate, they all ate greedily cleaning the platters completely.

  After finishing their meals, the shape-shifters lounged on the furniture, drifting off to sleep. David managed to snuggle into the crook of Devin’s bent knees. Devin looked down, smiling at the boy before falling asleep himself.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Kysen awoke and looked at Darian resting in his arms and smiled. He kissed him tenderly on the forehead before climbing out of the bed. He walked to the curtains, opening them wide. The sun was setting and the sky was a reddish-blue, soft rays of light still shone over the horizon. Kysen approached the bed sitting on the edge beside Darian. He brushed a few strands of jet black locks from his child’s face, fingers gently stroking his cheek as he spoke softly to his lover, bringing him awake.

  “Darian… Darian, my love, wake up or you’ll miss something very special,” Kysen said over and over until Darian gradually opened his eyes.

  Darian’s eyes fluttered open and he looked up at Kysen, grinning then his gaze shot over to the exposed window. He sat up straight when he noticed how light the sky was.

  “Oh my God!” he gasped breathlessly, amazed by the miracle. He rose from the bed making his way towards the window. He stared at the sky he had not seen in over sixteen-hundred years.

  Kysen chuckled, pleased with his gift. “You are no longer a complete servant to the night.` You are still vulnerable to the sun and must sleep at first sunrise but when the sun in not present and the sky is still blue, you may enjoy it.”

  Darian turned to Kysen, a tear trickled down his left cheek.

  “Thank you,” he whispered
softly, humbled by his new ability.

  Kysen rose from the bed, strolling over to him, his hand coming to his fledgling’s cheek, his thumb wiping away the tear.

  “Love me,” he whispered seductively. “Keep me inside of your heart that is all that I ask of you. I never want to be apart from you as we were before.”

  Darian nodded. “Everything has changed in my life and I want you to be a part of that, Kysen. Know that you are always welcomed.” He looked down at his hands, chuckling gleefully as he gazed at the daylight rays reflected on his skin. “This gift that you have given me,” he looked at Kysen, shaking his head. “I cannot”

  “You have.” Kysen leaned forward, kissing Darian passionately. When he pulled away, he placed his hand on Darian’s shoulders, turning him towards the window.

  “Watch,” he instructed.

  Darian smiled as he watched the sun set. A multitude of colors blanketed the horizon and they stood there together watching the darkness fill the sky.

  “You will be able to digest some human food, such as raw liquids without the aid of blood as well as some soups, but I wouldn’t recommend it. The evacuation process is revolting,” Kysen informed with a shiver of disgust.

  Darian laughed outright. “I don’t even want to imagine you in such a state.”

  “Good, please don’t try,” Kysen smirked. “Come, let us shower.”

  He took Darian’s hand leading him into the huge gold and tan marbled bathroom. They stepped into the open shower, and Kysen adjusted the temperature so that hot steaming water poured from all six sprouts. He rubbed soapy oil over Darian’s body, lathering him completely. Darian allowed Kysen to bathe him, relishing the sensation of his Master’s strong hands over his skin.

  Kysen embraced Darian, pulling him closer. The two shared another passionate kiss.

  “I almost don’t want to let you go,” he said as he released Darian.

  Darian chuckled. “I see.” He placed his hands on Kysen’s shoulder, turning him around. “Allow me.”

  He massaged the oil over Kysen’s muscular body, rubbing his hands over the plump firm mounds of Kysen’s buttocks then farther down over his powerful thighs and calves. Kysen smiled wickedly as he turned around quickly to face Darian. He looked down at him, a wolfish grin spreading across his lips.