He didn’t move a muscle.
“Tell Daddy to drink.”
“Okay. He can hear me well.”
She kept silent, waiting for him to do something. Dear Lord, had the poison killed him already?
Then, as if by some minor miracle, his mouth convulsed. He started lapping at the offered blood, drinking in as much as he dared. Her heart pulsed, forcing the blood from the wound and into his body, hopefully counteracting whatever poison Zakara had injected into him. Unfortunately, her pussy convulsed in a strange way, a hot erotic feeling swirling in her belly. No, she told herself. You can’t orgasm now. Drake needs you too badly. Normally when he’d bit her, the same thing happened. Her body apparently didn’t know the difference.
“Daddy says he’s had enough of your blood. He says we have to wait for your blood to cure him.”
“Are you sure?”
“Daddy says yes.”
The sucking stopped, and she pulled her arm away. “I guess all we can do is wait.” She looked to the others fighting Zakara’s minions, all dark blurs flying before her sight. Her heart roared as she desperately tried to make out the figures.
The only one she could see was David. She looked to him. Hopefully, some shred of the real David existed beneath the gothic veneer and he could hear her.
“Help them, David! If you love me like you say you do, you’ll help defeat Zakara!” she screamed into the den of darkness lit only by the golden glow of the fire.
Indecision wavered in his eyes as he looked from her to the melee and back to her. “I don’t want to defeat her,” he shouted back and stormed over to her, crouching low. “I will be her king.”
Christine grabbed David by his lapels. “Don’t you understand? She’ll never give you that title because she eats and breathes control. If you become king, you’ll supersede her, and she won’t tolerate that.”
His expression dropped. “She promised me.”
“She’s the daughter of Satan! Her promises mean nothing.” Christine brought him closer away from the madness. “Help Drake, the baby, and me survive this.”
The twisted mask he wore disappeared, almost as if the true David reappeared. “I do love you, Christine, and I always have.” He looked to the others.
Nicholas, Raphael, and the girls had some of the vampires subdued and killed the others. Zakara was alone and defenseless.
“It’s time for retribution,” Raphael warned in a deep, even tone. “You need to pay for all the evil you’ve committed.”
Zakara’s cold, calculating gaze shifted from each vampire she’d created, mired down in her own menace. “You’ll not destroy me, for I am the daughter of Satan. He will not allow that to happen.”
“This is one bond he’ll not be able to break, bitch,” Nicholas snarled. “You’ll be entombed for all eternity.”
Her eyes widened. “How dare you speak to me in this fashion? I’ve created all of you, and just like that blond lump over there, I’ll destroy all of you.”
With a rolling snarl, Nicholas was the first one to leap onto her form and sink his teeth in. The others followed suit. Zakara writhed underneath their biting. Her shrieks echoed through the cavernous space. “Stop it! Get off me!”
The vampires flew all over the place as she pushed them away, their bodies landing in heaps.
“Don’t let them take the last sip,” Drake croaked from the area around her knees. “Whoever takes Zakara’s death into themselves will suffer her fate as well.”
She swung her attention to Zach. “Get them to stop. Someone will be destroyed when they take the last drop of her blood.”
Before Zach could move, David stood and strode over to the weakened Zakara. She stumbled and wove her way in a circle with rivulets of blood running down her body, staining the gauzy white material of her dress. “That’s it, my minion. Give me your blood so I might survive.”
David said nothing, continuing to stare at his maker. Instantly, Christine knew what he was about to do. “No, David! Don’t do it!”
David disregarded her plea and swooped down into Zakara’s neck and sank his fangs into the ashen flesh. Locking his mouth onto her, David drained the last drops of her blood. Zakara croaked a bit as David drained her of life, a dark ring spreading from his lips through the rest of his body like the blackened roots of a tree.
Zakara grew limp like a forgotten dishrag. He dropped her body to the floor and spat on her. David twisted his head toward Christine, a smile crossing his lips. “I love you, Christine, and I always will.”
Sudden wild winds circumvented the cave and whirled the dust all around them, extinguishing the fire. Howls and shrieks sound all around, making everyone’s ears hurt. Bits of rock flew, hitting anyone in their path.
“David!” she cried out blindly in the unnatural windstorm, clutching both Zach and Drake at the same time.
As fast as the wind came up, it died down, the dust and bits of rock settling. She blinked. What in the hell just happened?
“Drake?” She patted his face. “Please, wake up.”
He didn’t move.
“We’ve got to get you out of here,” Zach said in the eerie silence. “I don’t like the way this feels.”
Raphael and the others rushed over to her. “How is Drake?”
Tears, hot and scorching, rolled down her cheeks. “I don’t know. He won’t respond.”
Raphael shot her a serious look. “Did you give him some of your blood?”
She nodded.
“Good. That should hold him until we get him to Dr. Levin.”
They picked up Drake’s body and proceeded to carry him out of the cave.
She leaned against Zach. “I’m so frightened for him.”
“He’ll pull through this, ma’am. You’ll see.”
Christine sniffed. “I don’t want to lose him like I’ve lost David.” She lowered her head. “What became of David?”
“Don’t know. Let’s look.”
With his acute vision, Zach located his old haversack and dug around inside. Lying at the bottom was a flashlight. He pulled it out and turned on the light.
Christine gasped. David stood before her, carved out of gleaming stone, a perfect effigy. “What in the hell happened to him?” She walked over and touched the cool rock.
Zach shrugged. “Your mate would know.” He rapped his knuckles against the statue. “Darnedest thing I’ve ever seen.”
He lowered the beam to the floor. Zakara’s form remained outlined in the same fashion except she appeared like in sweet repose, complete with a sword on her chest.
Christine shivered. “Get me the hell out of here.”
Epilogue
Drake seemed to recover quickly with the help of Dr. Levin. Thankfully, he’d told the baby to let Christine know to give him blood to counteract the deadly poison.
Days flew by, and she managed to fulfill her promise to Zach about a better life. During Drake’s recovery, she explained how Zach helped her through her capture. Drake listened intently then asked to see Zach.
When Zach entered Drake’s bedroom, she could read the fright in his eyes. He asked Zach few questions, and, satisfied with his answers, Drake welcomed Zach to the coven and hired him to run Berserker for him. When she asked why, Drake explained that he wanted to spend more time with her and the baby.
She yawned and stretched. Drake lay asleep next to her, his golden back in his line of vision. “Drake, I was thinking—oomph!” she cried out as a horrific pain swept across her utterly swollen belly.
Drake jerked awake. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I was thinking—” Another pain crossed her midsection, cutting her words off.
He laid a hand on her contracting belly and smiled. “I think you’re in labor, hun.”
He grabbed the phone next to the bed and quickly dialed Dr. Levin’s number. From Drake’s end of the stilted conversation, she imagined what questions the good doctor asked.
“Her contractions are very clos
e together.” A pause. “Not sure.” He looked to her. “Dear wife, how long has this been going on?”
“Just started,” she snapped as another pain rippled across her. “I think this baby wants out.”
“Just started,” he repeated into the phone.
She looked at his hands. If she weren’t mistaken, she detected a slight tremor. Could it be this big, hulking Viking was a tad bit nervous? He shouldn’t be. He’d had other children after all.
“Okay. We’ll be waiting.”
Drake shut off his phone. “The doctor’s on her way, but she told me to be ready in case the little one comes before she gets here.”
She gulped hard. “Let me guess. Since this is an accelerated pregnancy, there’s a chance you’ll have to deliver the baby.” He nodded. “Okay then, let’s go.”
* * * *
Just a Dr. Levin predicted, little Gaelorn Haaken arrived before she got there. Drake was just as calm and knowledgeable as he delivered their son. Like any nervous father, he counted all the fingers and toes, making sure everything was where it should be.
Dr. Levin arrived just in time to cut the cord. The minute the baby’s connection to her was severed, Gaelorn let out a wail that would deafen any human’s ears. The doctor cleaned the baby up and handed him to Drake while she finished up with the birthing procedures.
Once everything died down and the doctor left, Drake slid into bed next to her with Gaelorn in his arms. Taking his left arm, he wrapped it around her shoulders and pulled her closer. “He’s beautiful, Christine. The best present I have ever been given.” Drake looked at her with concern stamped on his face. “There is something I’d like to ask you.”
She had prepared herself for this question for the last few weeks. Ever since he’d recovered, he had never asked her anything about the time before her kidnap. “Okay. Shoot.”
“Why were you at the abortion clinic?”
Her spine turned rigid. Time for the truth. “I went there because I thought you didn’t want me or the baby. I could go away, but the baby would be a constant reminder of you.”
His hold tightened. “Why didn’t you go through with the abortion?”
She snuggled into the crook of his arm. “Because I knew I was being too hasty. It’s not like I don’t believe in abortion, but maybe, because I had created this wonderful little being, I couldn’t destroy him.” She turned her head up. “Also, it was because I’m in love with you.”
His smile lit up the darkened room. “I can’t tell you how long I’ve been waiting to hear it.”
“You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to say it.” She twisted the three-carat diamond on the third finger of her left hand. They’d married at the justice of the peace when Drake regained his strength, then declared a marriage bond in front of the coven members, covering both human and vampire fronts.
Drake got up from the bed and laid Gaelorn in his cradle next to Christine’s side of the bed. “I’m so glad you resigned your job. I couldn’t stand the thought of you going out and fighting criminals like that. I’d never get any rest.”
“Lou wasn’t exactly thrilled when I turned in my resignation, but he’ll get over it.” She paused. “What really blew him away was the fact I told him I was marrying you.”
His blond brow lifted. “Why?”
“Because we hadn’t known each other that long. He said I was crazy and it was doomed to fail.”
Drake laughed. “What a numbnut.” He removed his clothes and slid in next to her. “Have you given any thought about what I proposed earlier?”
She inched closer to him. “I haven’t come to a decision about that yet, Drake. I don’t know if I want to become a vampire.”
He nuzzled her ear. “I’ll tell you what. I don’t want your answer right now, but by the time baby number five comes along, I’d like to have your answer.”
“I’ll think about it.”
He kissed her cheek. “Keep in mind I’ll be tempting you until then.”
“Hmmm, I think I’ll let you.”
THE END
www.tracylranson.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tracy L. Ranson has always had a dream to write books, as well as give enjoyment to others. Her love of writing stemmed from a love of history instilled by her father. Instead of reading normal children's books to her and her siblings as children, he would always have a history book ready to read. As Tracy grew older, she would read them and really lose herself in the past, especially the medieval period.
Tracy loves the Vikings so much, she married one! Her husband is of Norwegian descent and looks typical of what a Viking would look like with the tall height, deep muscle build, and high cheekbones. She is trying desperately to get him to pose for covers, but he still resists.
Tracy started out with a degree in Engineering and worked in the field for seven years before she realized what her first true love was romance writing. Since 1997, she's written eleven books with quite a bit more coming! She lives in the Midwest with her husband John, three cats, and two dogs. Each of them, in their own way, inspire her writing.
Also by Tracy L. Ranson
Siren Classic: Bloodborn 1: Prince of Night
Siren Classic: Bloodborn 2: Prince of Shadow
BookStrand Mainstream: Pirates of the Mist
Siren Classic: Caribbean Splendor
Siren Classic: The Warlord’s Woman
Siren Classic: Desire’s Promise
Siren Classic: Knightly Seduction
Available at
BOOKSTRAND.COM
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Ranson, Tracy L. - Prince of Darkness [Bloodborn 3] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 20
