“It’s a secret.”
“Yes, it is. Now go to your father.” For the first time Vex saw a man standing outside of a car. He knew he was a demon, instantly. He rose and faced the woman, who was human. “You and my daughter are the same,” she said.
Vex tilted his head. “She’s an eternal?”
“If that’s what you call it. All I know is that her gifts are great. Whatever you saw is the truth. Whatever she told you will come to be, or is.”
A shuddering breath left him. “I owe her more than she’ll ever know. Thank you.” Vex turned to see Trace walking back over. He made his number appear on a card and handed it to her. “Call me if you ever need anything. And I would like to hear more about your daughter’s gifts, in time. But right now I must find my mate.”
She nodded and headed back to her car. Trace walked over, and Vex noticed he didn’t look good at all. “Get in the car. I know where Melody is.”
“What? How?” Trace jumped in the car, and Vex explained the happenings between him and the little girl. A smile was on Trace’s face for the first time in a long time. He actually looked like he felt a little better.
If Melody was in West Palm Beach, Florida, or would be, they were going to be there to find her. The tires squealed as he headed back onto the highway. He pushed the car to lightning speed, masking his view from anyone who might see them. The time had come. Next time he stopped, it’d be in the same place Melody was.
Chapter Fourteen
Vex and Trace’s voices were the only things keeping Melody sane. She was sure she hadn’t talked out loud in days. The lack of emotion or response to Leon kept her from lashing out and getting him angry all over again. It had taken almost a week after they’d left Louisiana for her to learn to keep her mouth shut. More bruises and a busted lip later, she refused to acknowledge him at all. Although it made him mad, it didn’t get her hit.
“Look at the water and the color of the sky, Mel. Isn’t it beautiful?” Leon had gotten into a habit of mindlessly talking to her. The response wasn’t expected, and for that she was thankful. If it were up to her, she’d tell him to stick the water up his ass and rotate.
He walked around to the large, sliding glass door and stared across the white sand beach. The way he had her positioned and tied to the chair was directly in view of the damn water. She hated it. Had hated it, for the last few hours.
“I think after dinner you and I should cuddle on the back porch swing, what do you say?” He turned to face her. The blank stare she gave him obviously wasn’t what he was looking for. Leon walked over and kneeled before her. The light blue sundress he’d dressed her in lifted over her knees as he wedged himself between her legs. “We can light the tiki torches, and have the sound of the waves crashing in the distance as background noise for our romantic evening. It’s a very picturesque vision in my mind, if I do say so myself. Just you,” he trailed his hand down the length of her face, “and me. The way it’s supposed to be.”
Melody stared straight ahead. His touch continued, and she tried her best to numb out the sensations of his fingers crossing her lips.
“Tonight’s our night, Mel.” He stood and she tried not to tremble against the disgust she felt. Pain raced through her abdomen and she closed her eyes over the discomfort and nausea. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten much of anything. With Leon feeding her, she could hardly stomach the food.
Vex’s last words filtered through her mind. He was in Florida, and on his way. Neither of her mates had really said much after that, and that had been over a day ago. Hope was diminishing. Even if they did make it to the state, knowing the way Leon changed his mind at the drop of a dime, they’d probably be leaving before Vex and Trace even got close to them.
“Leon.” The thickness in her voice had her clearing it. He looked at her surprised.
“Welcome back. What is it, sweetheart?”
She hated that she had to break her resolve, but the queasiness was getting worse the longer she waited. “I’m hungry.”
“I haven’t ordered dinner yet. You’re going to have to wait.”
Melody looked down. After a moment of silence, he walked out of the kitchen with a banana and a bottle of water. As he peeled it, Melody could feel her mouth watering. The hunger was quickly taking over everything.
The first bite had her moaning at the taste. The second bite was her undoing. She paused mid-chew and felt her eyes grow big. She was going to be sick. The jerking against her binds was useless. Leon backed up, as she got sick all over herself.
Sobs escaped and she let her head fall back, feeling completely drained. “You poor thing. Why do you have to be so stubborn? You went way too long without eating.” Fabric brushed across her body and she looked down at a towel he was holding. “Let’s get you in the shower.” Leon untied her, and carried her to the small bathroom.
The sound of water filled the air and he stood her up, clothes and all, into the tub. The cold had her shivering, instantly. Although she wasn’t restrained to the chair anymore, her hands were still bound. Those restraints never came off, anymore.
“I’m going to take off your dress.” His fingers pulled at the bodice and Melody held her breath. He’d given her showers before, but not once had he touched her indecently. She prayed this time would be the same.
The weight of the dress hitting the bottom of the bathtub was loud. Warm water kicked in just as Leon turned it off and wrapped the towel around her, tucking it in between her breasts. He hadn’t even used soap, but she wasn’t complaining. The last thing she wanted were his hands touching her. A plastic cap of Listerine was placed to her lips and she swooshed it around and spit it into the bottom of the tub.
“You’re running out of clean clothes, Mel. I guess now that we’re at a place with a washer and dryer I should probably try to clean them. I’m not sure how long we’ll be here, but I want to be prepared to leave at any given time. Let’s go see what you have left.”
Again he lifted her. She was so tired of him carrying her everywhere. She could walk, dammit. Well, a little. The weakness in her legs had increased from lack of use.
As they rounded the corner of the dark room, movement from the living room area caught Melody’s eye. She looked but it was gone just as fast. Leon flipped on the light and stood her next to the bed. Everything in her wanted to walk back to the door and look down the hallway.
“Well.” Leon held up a black sundress, and a pair of shorts. “Sundress, it is. Guess you’re out of shirts.” He pulled the towel off and sighed. “Great. Now I’m going to have to undo your arms. You fight me...” His hand brought her face up to look at him. “Just don’t fight, okay? I don’t want to have to hurt you, again.”
Leon paused and took in her body. “Such a pity you even have to put clothes back on.” His hand lifted and hovered over her breast, but never made contact. “Tonight,” he whispered. “It has to be tonight. I’m tired of waiting and fighting this need.”
Melody swallowed hard and turned around so he could undo the binds. Just the thought that his hand would make contact with her skin almost made her sick again.
“Did I tell you to turn around?” Leon’s hand gripped her hair hard and he pulled her nude body into his. His chest pressed into her back and his lips moved level with her ear. “I tell you what to do. Maybe I’m not ready to untie you yet.”
“Please,” she whispered. “I think I’m going to be sick again. I want to lie down.”
Leon’s grip loosened. “Next time, tell me that before you turn your back. I don’t like you just dismissing me.”
She nodded, and prayed he would hurry up and dress her. Aching from her shoulders nearly brought Melody to her knees. No matter how hard she tried to lift her arms to put them in the dress, they wouldn’t respond. Leon doing it for her caused her to cry out at the locking sensation. It only made him angrier.
“You did this,” he growled. “Quit crying. If you would just stop using your gift to contac
t those mates of yours, then all of this would be fine. We could have been happy, Mel!” He pulled down the dress to cover her body and jerked her hands behind her back, fastening the belt. The moment Leon swept her into his arms and they spun around, she and Leon both froze.
Vex and Trace stood there, their eyes glowing a bright white. Black mist swirled around their feet. The pure evil and rage projecting from them had Melody in awe. She couldn’t move, or speak, yet all she wanted to do was rush and throw herself in their arms.
Fingers gripped into her shoulder and thigh. Leon’s body began to hum underneath her, and she remembered the last time that had happened. Harvey had been toast. Out of panic, Melody instantly started thrashing her body. Leon glared and grabbed her hair, letting her legs fall down to the floor. The impact had her crying out. “These men are who you want?” Leon jerked back hard, and Melody screamed out against the pain. “When I kill them, and they go back to Hell, you know it means neither one will come back, right? Not for a long, long time.”
Vex laughed, and the evil was evident in his tone. “Same goes with you, Leon. When you die, you are going to Hell this time. You, my friend, will have to work your way up to get back here, and I doubt that will be for hundreds of years. You see, we’re already masters. We’ve put in our time.”
“But I’m not going to die. Both of you are.” Leon eased to the back door, and pushed it open. Vex stalked toward them, and Trace followed. Melody couldn’t ignore how pale Trace looked. It worried her.
Darkness was almost upon them. The lights decorated along the pier leading down to the beach, were already on. Melody’s hair blew into her face from the wind, but she was so focused on making her legs work that it was only a minor annoyance.
“Let go of our mate and quit hiding behind her,” Vex growled.
“I’m never letting go,” Leon yelled. “She was mine long before she was ever either of yours.”
Melody pulled against him, trying to break free. Leon’s grip left her hair and wrapped around her throat.
“She’s sick, Leon. I saw you cleaning her up. If you loved her, you wouldn’t be putting her through this.” Vex advanced fast. She watched both of her men break off to the side, as if trying to surround him to keep him from going either way.
The sand was suddenly beneath Melody’s feet. Waves crashed loudly behind them and she stared across the deserted area surrounding them.
“Don’t tell me how I feel. I was taking care of her. If it weren’t for you, we’d be living happily, just the two of us. She would have come around! I know she would have.”
Melody shook her head wildly. “No, Leon. I wouldn’t have. It wasn’t like that between us. Ever.”
Water rushed past Melody’s ankles and she tried to look down, panicked. Still, Leon pulled her back. Vex’s advance stopped, and he was suddenly gone. Melody searched the beach looking for him. Trace was still there, and his eyes never left her. By the second, he got closer.
Before she could focus on what was happening, she felt herself falling toward the water. Leon’s grip loosened and she slid through, falling over to the side. With her hands still tied behind her back, it was impossible for her to push herself up. Water rushed across her face, and Trace was suddenly pulling her into his arms.
Salt water burned the back of Melody’s nose and throat. She coughed, and almost threw up from the amount she’d taken in. As Trace carried her to shore, she could see Vex standing behind Leon with his arm around his throat. So many thoughts went through her head as she took them in. It didn’t matter how well you knew someone. Some people had sides to them you never saw until a breaking point appeared. Both Vex and Leon were at theirs, and she knew this wasn’t going to turn out well.
***
Vex slammed Leon’s head under the water, wanting him to see how it felt to fight for air. That was exactly the feeling he’d experienced once he realized the immortal had taken his mate. Leon pushed against his hand, but Vex didn’t budge. Just when he thought he’d had enough, he pulled him up and let him gasp for air.
Coughing filled the air and Vex leaned forward, lowering his voice. “You know why she’s sick, Leon? Because she carries our child. Mine and Trace’s,” he hissed. “Mine. Not yours.” Vex submerged his head back into the water and let him thrash a bit more. Pressure pushed against his legs and Vex felt them slide out from under him.
Leon came up and threw his hands in the air. The wind picked up violently, and a deep yell came from the immortal’s mouth. Bolts of electricity shot down from the dark sky and Vex stared at them stunned. He threw out his hands just as Leon sent a blinding light his way.
Pressure hit his glowing energy right in between him and the immortal. The fight over whose power was stronger was a life or death struggle. Vex knew he couldn’t give up. He had never dreamed what Leon was capable of, but as he felt it firsthand, he knew he was going to be in trouble if he didn’t think of something fast.
Vex closed his eyes and reached deep within. Vibrations were shaking his whole body. The little girl had shown him that eternals were capable of so much more than he could imagine. His eyes slowly opened and he looked down at his feet. This whole time, he, Trace, and Melody had been tapping into immortal powers, but they weren’t immortals. They were eternals. Their real powers stemmed from darkness. Vex lowered one of his hands and groaned at the sheer will it took not to let the arm fighting Leon’s power snap backwards.
Fire burned his palm as he held it facing toward the water. The heat that surged through him gave off the impression of home. He knew that sensation like nothing else. It was liquid lava pouring through his veins. He jerked his hand forward and pushed the core of his body out. Orange light intertwined with white from his other hand and connected with the bright ball in the middle. The mixture exploded back in Leon’s direction. He gasped as he watched the immortal go up in flames and incinerate.
Vex took a ragged breath. He couldn’t believe what he’d just done. He turned to Melody and Trace, and raced toward them. Tears streamed down her face, and Trace handed her to him. “Shh.” He held her tightly while she sobbed into his chest.
“I never thought I’d see y’all again.” Her hands were untied, but were like dead weight at her sides. Vex leaned down and kissed her head, the length of his fingers buried into her hair.
“There was no way we were ever going to stop. Trace and I would have spent the last of our days scouring the earth in search of you. You’re our life. Our whole existence.” He cradled her face. “I love you, Melody.” She peered up at him, and winced as she lifted her shaky fingers to his cheek.
“I love you, too.” He lowered his mouth to hers and tightened his arms around her and Trace’s bodies. When he opened them, they were right where he wanted them to be: In their bed at the new country house, where the three of them had spent over a week mating. The place where their child was conceived. As he stared into her eyes, he placed his hand over her stomach.
What he had told Leon was the truth. He could feel the energy of the child in his very soul. As he looked at the woman who’d completely turned his life around, he couldn’t stop the love that exploded in his heart. She was their love. Their life.
Their dark hunter.
Epilogue
Melody laughed as she looked around the large table at her father’s house. She had to admit, meeting Helix for the first time stirred emotions she never could’ve prepared herself for, but now that she had spent months getting to know him and his mate, she couldn’t have been happier.
Christmas was in full swing and she looked across the table at the long line of men. Some of them had mates sitting across from them. Others didn’t. They were lined up by rank. Vex sat closest to Helix. Then Trace. After them sat Nigel, and then Nikolai. She’d yet to meet the other ones. From what she heard, though, there were hundreds of eternals coming forward out of the wood-work.
Her hand pressed against her growing belly and she smiled as the baby kicked. A loud knock had Vex j
umping to his feet. “I’ll get it.” He glanced over at Melody and she slowly stood. The heavy door swung open and Dray’s laughter filled the room. The black suit he wore looked all too familiar. She could still see Vex wearing the same thing.
“Mel!” Dray unlocked his arms from around Vex and held them out to her. She’d never really known him while she was hunting or getting to know her mates, but since he’d taken over as master, he was spending a lot of time learning from Vex.
She came over and threw herself into him. “The baby grew since the last time I saw you. Look at that.” His hand spanned over her stomach. “Amazing. So much can happen in such a short amount of time.” Dray looked up and glanced at the table, nodding to Trace. “What’s for dinner? I’m starved.”
Melody led him over. “You can sit by me.” She patted the chair and he nodded. As everyone went back to eating, she turned toward him. “So tell me about your life. How is being a master treating you? Are you using the new gifts Vex is teaching you?”
He laughed. “They’re working great. I was so lost at first. I couldn’t believe it when I saw the badge.” He shook his head, laughing. “Reining in all the demons after the mess they made of the city was hard work. But I finally got them all situated. Some stepped up and tried to test me.” An eyebrow rose. “You can say I knocked them on their ass. They won’t be doing that again, that’s for sure.”
Vex shook his head and laughed. “How’s my club? Malcolm holding down the fort, while you’re tending to business?”
“Sure is,” Trace said. “He’s my right-hand man. But I keep my eye on him. I think he had a hell of a time accepting that I was his master. I’m pretty sure he’s over it now, but I still stay cautious. Sometimes I don’t know what to think about the looks he gives me. Time will tell, I’m sure.”
Their Dark Hunter (Masters of Darkness) Page 16
