“I am Lucius.” He was dark like Brindle. “I am at your disposal,” he said, bowing with a flourish then assumed his earlier position. Another man stepped forward.
“I am Klaus. I am glad to meet you. Welcome to the family.” He looked more like Sam with light brown hair that was shorter than the other men.
“I am Dean.” This next one reminded Lilith of Josiah. He wore a grin as he said, “I am willing to help you with anything you may need.” He gently took her hand and grazed the knuckles with his lips. She heard a deep growl from behind her and turned to see a murderous look on Sam’s face.
“Dean, stop antagonizing your brother with your dramatics,” Jonas said with a push to Dean’s shoulder.
Dean laughed as he looked at Sam. “He needs to lighten up. Always so moody and brooding.”
Jonas cleared his throat to bring the attention back to the task at hand. “I know all of this is very hard to believe my dear Lilith, so I brought some things to show you.” Dean handed him a large wooden box that had been sitting on the coffee table in the middle of the room. He slowly opened it and took out a stack of pictures. He hesitated a moment, a wistful look on his face, then handed them to her. Lilith leafed through them slowly, photos of two boys, then two teenagers and then two adult men. The last pictures were of a man and woman. Her parents. She felt the tears rolling hotly down her cheeks. She looked up and realized that she was suddenly alone with Jonas. “I didn’t even know them. I was so little. I remember my mother smelling of lilacs and her laugh. I remember my father carrying me on his shoulders but then it goes black.” She sniffed self-consciously.
“I know my dear. Your parents were taken much too soon.” He had tears in his eyes as well. Finally everything fell into place and she realized that the truth was right there in front of her. “I have many stories of your mother and father I can share with you. They met when they were 16 and fell madly in love with each other. Although our Clan welcomed your mother as your father’s mate, her family did not welcome him. It was very hard on her to leave them behind. When rival Clans found out that your father was alive and had married a witch, they were forced to leave the country for their own safety. They lived in Europe for many years until you were conceived.
When your mother found out that she was pregnant she wanted to have you grow up among her adopted family, our family. They had to change their identities but were able to settle back here with us. I am afraid those same evil Clans must have found out where your father was. Your mother’s people have never known about you. I know you do have an uncle on your mother’s side but after your parents’ death I stopped looking. Your mother had more powers than any ordinary witch did my dear and if you carry the powers, which I am sure you do, you will start displaying them soon.” He stopped talking to let it sink in.
“So you have been watching me my whole life?” She needed more. “Why not tell me who you were? Why not explain this to me a long time ago?”
“Because sweet Lilith, even though I believe some knew of you, many of the other Clans did not know of your existence. If I had gotten too close you would have been placed in great danger.” He said sadly.
“So keeping me here? Having me stay with you is putting your family in danger is it? Marrying Sam?” If she was to be part of this she wanted to know all the risks.
“Yes. But we are aware of what we are doing and prepared to do what we must. You were always meant to marry my son and be the Queen of our Clan. You were to be a part of our family no matter how it happened. There are over 20 dragons in our Clan that stand behind you as their Queen and will fight to the death if need be for you.” He sounded so sure of everything.
“This is just so much…” Lilith was overwhelmed by it all. I was alone but not alone all those years. Now I am part of a huge family and a world no one knows exists. Her thoughts came fast and strong, wave after wave of feeling rushing over her.
“I know you have just gained not only a fiancé and family but a Clan as well. And found out your true identity. I will leave you with your thoughts for now.” He stood up and hugged her, gently kissing her cheek before walking to the door. She heard it shut behind him and looked through the pictures once again. As the tears rolled down her cheeks anew, she suddenly felt warm hands slide up her arms. She knew instantly it was Sam. She turned and threw herself into those strong arms. She cried as she had not cried since the day she lost her parents. And he held her tightly, comforting her, his hands moving reassuringly up and down her back.
She looked at him with wide, seeking eyes. She draped her arms around his neck and stood on her tip toes to bring her lips to his. It was tentative at first. Just a brush. Before she could draw back, she found herself against him and Sam was kissing her with such force and passion she could barely breathe. He lifted her easily into his arms and carried her to the bedroom. Our bedroom.
She knew deep down that this was meant to happen. If she was honest with herself she could say she knew from the first time she spoke to Sam. The moment he told her she was in danger but that he could protect her. He set her down beside the bed, letting her body linger against his as she slid down till her feet touched the Persian rug. He pulled back for a moment, his smoldering gaze locked on hers as he smoothly lifted her shirt over her head. Lilith’s hands instinctively went to the bottom hem of his shirt and he helped her to pull it over his head. She ran her hands across his chest stopping to circle little scars here and there. Sam pulled her into his arms and reached his right hand around to unclasp her bra with a flick of nimble fingers. As it fell away she could feel the warm heat of his body pressed against her own, her nipples grazing his smooth chest. He gently closed one hand around her right breast and bent his head to take the nipple between his hungry lips. Gently he grazed it with his teeth. She threw her head back with abandon, a deep moan his reward. He stood back up to take her mouth again as his hands made quick work with the zipper and button of her faded jeans.
“God you are beautiful.” Her hands went to the zipper on his jeans. He stopped her—“let me.” Lilith slid back on the bed, rising to kneel expectantly. He slowly unbuttoned his jeans and slid the zipper down. Hooking his fingers in the sides of his boxers he lowered both to the floor. Sam looked to her with a playful grin while she took in the full expanse of his body. He was all muscle, not an ounce of fat. Chiseled like the statue of David she had seen in an art book once. His body was tanned even though it was fall. She looked back up into his eyes and her heart skipped a beat as he leaned toward her. He put his arms on either side of her bent knees and proceeded to crawl like a predator across the bed, forcing her from her knees, legs outstretched, back onto her elbows. He grabbed her ankles and pulled her to him. “First these have got to go.” He slipped his fingers into the narrow sides of her panties and with a small swift pull ripped them completely off and flung them behind him.
“Hey, I liked those.” She said with a crooked smile, a giggle in her voice.
“Yeah? I’ll buy you some new ones.” His lips grazed her chin, her neck, her stomach before slowly disappearing into the warmth between her thighs. He nipped and kissed and teased until she was writhing with pleasure. And need.
“Please.” She whispered. He slowly slid up her body, the heat emanating from him onto her glistening skin. As he looked down into her face, he caressed her body leisurely with one free hand. She threw her limber legs around his waist. Two can play this game. She broke away from his kiss to passionately lick and nip the side of his throat. She then pulsed her hips upward, seeking his hard manhood. He could not resist the invitation and they both cried out with ecstasy as their bodies came together. All the want, all the loneliness, was forgotten in this moment and Lilith arched her back into the waves that crashed through her body. She felt Sam follow with a cry and a shudder. He slowly moved in and out of her relishing the warmth of her as he grazed the back of her legs with his nails running them up and down. He reluctantly rolled from on top of her but could not bear to leave
her yet. He kept one arm cradling her waist as he nuzzled her neck with his nose.
“No words can say what this means to me Lilith. To have your trust, for you to give yourself to me. Now rest. These next few days will likely be stressful for you. It will be the first time you will see the true nature of our Clan, of your people. You need to be ready for that.” He gathered her closer, protectively.
Quietly and hesitantly she asked, “Will I be ready? What’s going to happen now?”
“We will marry and we will have children to ensure our Clan does not die out.” He said in a whisper.
Without warning the door to the bedroom was kicked open and in burst three strange men. Behind them was the man from the woods, Damon.
“Well we meet again my dear Lilith. Now, you will listen very carefully and you will come with me.” He face was a mask of evil intent. Lilith shrank further into Sam’s strong arms.
Her attention was diverted to the appearance of yet another man dragging a struggling and hissing Brindle. “Let go of me you son of a bitch!” She screamed.
“What do you want here Damon?” Sam said as he took this distraction to remove himself from Lilith’s hold and deftly stood, pulling up his jeans to afford him some modesty.
“Why everything, Sam.” Damon was nothing if not cryptic with his reply. The three free henchmen lunged forward and grabbed Sam. He threw punches and kicked out but only managed to take two of them down before reinforcements arrived. They grappled him to his knees in front of Damon, who wasted no time and nailed Sam in the face with a crack. Lilith scrambled from the bed and threw on her jeans and shirt. No time for underwear. She looked desperately around the room for a weapon. But before she could arm herself, Damon was in front of her. With a sneer he announced, “We are leaving.” His grasp was like a vice, hurting so much she was temporarily disarmed. She felt a sharp sting across her face and realized he had slapped her. He then began to drag her to the door. Provoked by the slap, she let loose with every ounce of fight she had, landing a solid kick on his shin. Seeing him wince gave her a little satisfaction in the moment.
“What about this one?” The henchman holding a still-fighting Brindle inquired.
“Bring her too,” Damon commanded. Lilith and Brindle locked eyes and they knew—they were in deep shit. She looked over to see her beautiful, courageous Sam in a heap on the floor, blood on his face, and Lilith prayed he was still alive as a shiver coursed through her body.
The two women were dragged outside and burlap bags slung over their heads. Then they were picked up like sacks of flour and thrown into the back of what Lilith figured was a pickup truck. She could smell smoke, pungent burning wood. The next thing she knew they were moving.
Chapter 2
Thank God they took off those horrible suffocating bags! Lilith breathed a deep lungful of air and surveyed her surroundings. There wasn’t much to look at. The bed she had been unceremoniously dumped on smelled musky and dirty. There were no other furnishings in the room. It was completely bare except for a tattered braided rug that had seen many filthy boots. The dust and cobwebs looked like they hadn’t been disturbed in at least 10 years. Where is Brindle? She rubbed the drying tears from her eyes and peered into the dim room. She was alone. Bruised from being in that awkward position the entire drive, she rubbed and stretched her aching limbs. There arms had been tied behind their backs after they were thrown in the truck.
She was relieved that her hands were no longer tied and that she wasn’t chained to the bed. She walked to the lone window and pushed back the sheet that someone had nailed up as a makeshift curtain. Her frown deepened when she saw that the window had bars over it so that there was no chance of escape.
Lilith peered past the bars to see what she could of her surroundings. Unfortunately all she could see were trees and forest. Wherever they were, it was high in the mountains. She could tell by the way the trees seemed to get shorter and shorter the further in the distance they were. There was no movement outside the window that she could hear or see. Everything stood still. She thought it odd that she couldn’t even hear any birds or crickets. It was like everything had been frozen in place. She went to the door and tried to open it but screamed in frustration when she found it was locked—she knew it would be but had to try.
Lilith sat back down on the musky bed defeated and just waited. How had she come to this when just two days ago she was debating on even going to that cabin? How did her life go from zero to 60 in those few hours? And where is Brindle? She started to panic a little and swung around when she heard the door fling open. It was that same sneering, evil face from the cabin, the one that had drug her from the safety of Sam.
“Damon.”
“Ah. So the beautiful woman at least has a good memory. Unfortunately this will probably be an experience that you would rather forget.” His menacing tone sent chills up Lilith’s back.
“Where is Brindle,” she demanded with more courage than she felt.
“That little hellion? Oh don’t worry, she is fine. Julian would skin me alive if anything ever happened to her.” His sneer turned even uglier as his beady eyes seemed to penetrate her. It was as if he was thinking of something else and somewhere else entirely. He snapped his head back to look at her. “Good thing Julian is not coming here. He might want you for himself. Seeing as how Sam killed his mate and all.”
“What?”
“Ah. So Mr. Good and Noble hasn’t told you everything. Well I imagine this he would leave out seeing as how he is the culprit in the tale.” Damon seemed to be taking great delight in her obvious confusion.
“I don’t believe anything you are saying to me.” She couldn’t believe anything like that. It would mean she had been lied to and misled by the people she had just come to trust. The new family she had longed for.
“Oh and why is that? Because I kidnapped you and brought you here?” At her glare he laughed. “Isn’t that the same thing that Sam did to you? Didn’t he keep you prisoner in his little cabin? But you look at me with hatred and choose to take him to bed.”
She cast her eyes away, knowing that what he said was true. How could I sleep with someone I didn’t even know? She shook her head desperately trying to clear her thoughts. She didn’t have time for this guilt right now. Lilith needed to get the hell out of this room. Sam is nothing like this Damon. Damon exuded evil and cruelty that made her shudder just being in the same room as him.
“You are nothing like Sam. I may not have known him long but I can tell he is a good person. I knew from the first moment he touched my arm that we were meant to be, it was a true connection. It is written in the stars, so to speak. Something I do not see in you. What do you want with me and where is Brindle?” This last she screamed at him, unable to quiet her fury any longer.
“What do I want with you? Well, see, Julian is looking at you as the solution to his problem. You see, he is without a mate and since Sam took his, well, he plans on taking Sam’s mate in return. What he has in store for you I do not know in detail. I just know it is something that you will not enjoy and Sam will suffer from it.”
“And what do you get out of all this? You don’t strike me as the type to ‘help a brother out’.” It was her turn to sneer.
Lilith’s bravado was short-lived as the dark look he gave her traveled the length of her body. When his eyes met hers again she saw that now familiar evil shadow on his face. “He promised us a piece of the action.” At her look of horror he laughed and walked up to her. His fingers reached out and roughly pinched her cheek before she could back away. “We will have lots of fun in the next few days while we wait for Julian.”
She pulled back from his touch and backed away. “You are disgusting and vile. You will not get away with this. You cannot touch me if I am with child already. I know that at least. And where is Brindle?” She would not let him forget.
His laugh resounded off the walls giving it an even eerier quality. “First of all, I don’t give a shit about those stupid
laws the smaller and weaker Clans go by and second Brindle is fine. Right now she is in my bedroom tied to the headboard.”
“You’re pitiful and sick.” She spit her revulsion as far as she could. She watched as the driblets splattered onto his forehead. I shouldn’t have done that… Lilith started backing away as he immediately advanced on her, hand raised as if to strike.
“We will finish this later my dear.” He snorted vilely as he spun and strode from the cabin. She heard the lock click back into place as the door closed.
Lilith paced the confines of the small room. She needed to get to Brindle but she didn’t know how to get out.
Chapter 3
While Lilith plotted in her small filthy room, Brindle finally released herself from the nylon ropes that bound her to the antique headboard of Damon’s bed. She tiptoed slowly across the expanse of the chamber, stopping every moment or so to listen for any sign of her captors approaching. She knew where they held Lilith. They had been stupid enough to remove her head covering before they locked her away, allowing her the chance to see Damon drag Lilith to a small log cabin on the edge of the looming forest.
She managed to evade discovery and ran as fast as her long legs would carry her to the cabin door. Upon entering, she was stopped cold at what she saw. Standing in front of her was a ghost.
“Why are you here? How did you get away?” The man turned to her and glared.
“I knew you were low Julian but this is hard to believe even for you.” It was his voice— Brindle knew it was really him—long lost Julian. She didn’t know how he could be alive, but she was going to find out.
“Ha! What do I care what you think?” He sneered at her.
She looked away but not before she saw a pained expression cross his face. “You used to.” There was a sadness in her tone she could not hide.
Romance: Scifi Romance: Mated by the Alien (Abduction BWWM Paranormal Romance) (Interracial First Contact Space Romance) Page 18
