Claimed: Blood Ties

by Cathryn Fox

  Without making a sound she padded from the bedchamber and made her way into the hall. She cautiously glanced both ways before moving to the winding staircase. Hugging her thin linen dress to her cold body, she moved swiftly down the stairs. At the main landing, she turned her attention to the front door. She couldn’t escape. She had nowhere to go. No one to turn to, and the sun, it was too high in the sky. She also knew Grayson was out there somewhere, searching for her signal through his psychic connection to her. Everything inside her told her that Mikel, a man whom she still had a hard time fathoming, was more than simply her dream man, he was the epitome of strength and power and would protect her with his life. But why had he kept his real existence a secret, and only come to her in her sleep?

  Shades had been pulled over all the windows blocking out the stinging rays of sun. She glanced into the massive rooms as she passed by the doors. One room, with rows and rows of books lining the walls, caught her attention. She moved inside the library and walked to the bookshelf searching for clues to her many unanswered questions. She studied the binding and was somewhat disturbed to discover how many books there were on vampire history. Her stomach churned. Dari fought off the shiver that threatened to make her body convulse.

  She moved to the desk and glanced at what appeared to be some type of journal. The pages had yellowed with age. Pulling out a padded chair she sat down, turned her attention to the book and began reading.

  Soon minutes turned into hours as she absorbed the information. Some passages had to be read a second or even a third time as her mind struggled to understand what she was. Finally, the pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place. The sunlight, the inhuman strength, the ability to feel things others couldn’t.

  Why had all this information been kept from her? A rush of anger tore through her and fired her blood.

  She didn’t need to turn around to know Mikel was there watching. She felt his presence long before he spoke. Her spine stiffened, her stomach knotted.

  “Dari?”

  With rage stirring her soul and urging her on, she swung her head around and came face to face with Mikel.

  She clenched her jaw and worked to keep her voice steady. “It’s all real.” Her voice dripped with ice.

  He glanced at the book before her and stepped farther into the room.

  “It’s real,” she said again, as though repeating the words would help her come to terms with it all.

  Mikel pulled a chair away from the wall, positioned it beside Dari and sat next to her. His hand reached out to comfort her. She noted how he touched her with fierce possessiveness. His hands were soft, comforting, drawing her into a cocoon of warmth. His caress worked some mysterious alchemy on her soul. Feeling her resolve begin to melt, she quickly recoiled and moved out of his reach. She needed answers. Needed to know why he would keep this from her.

  She watched a muscle in his square jaw tighten. “Yes, Dari. It’s all real,” he replied soberly.

  She gave an angry shake of her head. All along she had thought vampires were simply folklore. How foolish of her. Feeling emotionally battered, she lowered her gaze and spoke into the open book. “The dream, the baby, the battle.” She tipped her head up, slowly. Her eyes grew wide as she met his glance. “Grayson.”

  “I’m sorry, Dari.”

  His apology fueled her anger. “Sorry? You’re sorry. All this time you kept this knowledge from me and all you can say is you’re sorry. Why would you do that?” Dari stood up so abruptly her chair went flying backwards. Hugging herself to stave off a shiver, she paced the room.

  “I had to keep it from you, Dari. For your own protection. Once you knew what you were, you would no longer be able to suppress the vampire in you. Eventually it would have grown stronger and you would have been detected. I watched over you and protected you the best I could from afar. But last night I must have stayed too long. I gave away your location, and I will never forgive myself for putting you in danger.”

  Her mind suddenly filled with memories of being awakened by Wallis. She shook her head. “It wasn’t you, Mikel. It was Wallis, a new member of the commune. He knew what I was and sold me to Grayson.”

  “Bastard,” Mikel cursed under his breath. “I’ll kill him.”

  “It’s too late for that. Grayson has taken care of him already.” Dari swallowed the lump lodged in her throat. “You have no idea how lonely I’ve been, Mikel. How I longed to have a family, to be loved.”

  Mikel stood and took two steps to close the distance. “I do know, Dari. I’ve spent my entire life as an outcast too, longing to love you the way you needed to be loved.” The fine lines bracketing his eyes alerted her to his weariness and to his own pain.

  Her vision clouded as water pooled in her eyes. Her heart thudded erratically and her legs weakened beneath her. When she wobbled, his large hands spanned her waist and drew her close. Frustrated and confused, she lashed out at him, pounding her palms on his chest. “I should have been told, Mikel. I should have been told…” Her voice trailed off.

  He held her, cradling her in his arms, letting her work her anger and frustration out on his chest. Once her energy drained, he took hold of her hands and placed them at her sides.

  Thumbing her tears away, he tipped her chin and traced the pattern of her face. The minute she looked into his gentle eyes, her heart leapt with the love she felt for him. His touch exploded her senses and she found herself leaning into him. God, it felt so good to be held, really held for the first time.

  He dropped a soft, tender kiss onto her forehead. This time she allowed her resolve to crumble. Her heart tightened and ached for him. As though moving of their own volition, her hands closed over his.

  “And what about your protection, Mikel? You had the knowledge. Could you not have been detected?”

  “Yes, it was possible. I took measures and equipped my castle walls with shields, but it was still possible.”

  She sniffed, as her tears dried. “Why didn’t you bring me here? Why couldn’t we be together here, protected in your castle?”

  His nostrils flared as he shook his head. “Because it is dangerous. Our signature is stronger when we are together, thus enhancing our chances of being found.”

  She raised one brow and inquired, “And now, can we not be found?”

  “Yes. We need to prepare for that.”

  “How?”

  He got quiet, thoughtful for a moment. A clear indication that he didn’t have the answer to her question.

  She glanced at his desk, back at the book. “It says here when two mature Nallie join as one, body and soul, with their true soul mate, they are gifted with special powers.” Lifting her glance, she narrowed her eyes. “What special powers?”

  As though he had every passage memorized, he walked back to the desk, keeping her anchored to his side, and turned the pages of the book. He pointed. “Here it says that some can shapeshift and some are gifted with exceptional strength.” When she opened her mouth, he answered her unasked question. “Greater strength than you have now, Dari.” She nodded in understanding and waited for him to continue. “There are even reports of some being able to move through crowds with such incredible speed, they can travel undetected. This is why the government set up a task force to kill our kind. We were nothing more than Grayson’s puppets put on Earth to do his bidding.”

  “And when two Nallie combine blood, they are gifted with the ability to transcend time but death is a possible price?”

  “Yes, from what I understand the energy created is extremely volatile, and can burn and destroy everything in its path, including the creators of the energy.”

  Soft footsteps heralded Ayden’s arrival. She turned to face the doorway and spotted Ayden entering the room. His eyes were soft, curious, as he glanced around taking in the scene before him.

  Dari walked over and stood before him. “Thank you for rescuing me.”

  He smiled and touched her arm. She felt all the tension drain from her. “How d
o you do that?” Perhaps the ability to drain away tension was also another special power. But he couldn’t possibly be Nallie. Literature spoke of only two children being rescued.

  Ayden answered her question with one of his own. “Do you feel any different, Dari?”

  “Yes,” she admitted.

  “Now that you have seen the battle and know what you are, your powers will begin to grow stronger. But that also puts you in grave danger.”

  “I understand.”

  Ayden glanced at Mikel. “You two need time alone. I will leave now and when I come back I’ll bring clothes for Dari and together we will all work on a strategy to defeat Grayson.”

  Chapter Six

  Ayden had increased the power of his mental shield before he left Mikel’s castle and made his way back to his own house in the village. He took his time, pacing his steps as he sorted through matters. Now that Dari and Mikel were together, under the same roof, they would begin to mate, and he hoped their mating would aid them in developing the ability to block their signatures as all other Nallie on his planet had learned to do.

  Centuries previous, a band of Nallie had learned to protect their thoughts from Grayson. During the chaotic battle that Dari so vividly remembered, those Nallie had found the perfect opportunity to flee Earth. With Grayson assuming they’d all been killed, they had no fear he’d go searching for his lost puppets. Ayden, along with a handful of others had traveled to Kelan and colonized. Only a few years back, they had learned Dari and Mikel had survived the battle.

  After making his way to his small room in the village, Ayden positioned himself on his floor, crossed his legs and closed his eyes, focusing his mind on the journey ahead. For the next few minutes, he sifted through time and space. He needed to go back home, talk to the council, and regroup while he gave Mikel and Dari time to acquaint themselves with one another. Soon he felt his body shift, and when he opened his eyes he found himself in his quarters on Kelan.

  There his soul mate awaited his arrival. His heart swelled with love when her warm familiar scent curled around him. Her dark hair was pinned at the nape the way he liked. Her dark almond eyes smoldered with passion and love as they met his. Arms spread, she rose from her seat when he appeared.

  “Ayden, I’ve missed you.” Janaa swung her sleek arms around his neck and kissed him with all the love inside her.

  There was no need to tell her of his adventures, or any of the details, for she had been in his mind the entire time. Experiencing everything through him, with him.

  Pressing his hips to hers, he kissed her in return, matching her intensity and passion. He inched back and whispered into her mouth. “And I’ve missed you, my sweet.”

  Ayden rained kisses over her neck as his hands eagerly palmed her supple curves. His voice dropped an octave as desire stirred in his blood. “I crave you, Janaa. Crave to be inside you, to make love all night long, but first I must present my findings to the council and ask permission for you to travel back to Earth with me. Dari needs you.”

  Janaa finger-combed Ayden’s hair and gave him a warm, loving smile. “Yes, I thought the same thing.”

  Ayden linked his fingers through hers. “Come, my sweet, let us take care of this business quickly so I can make love to you as I’ve longed to do.”

  Hours later, after Ayden had updated the council on the situation, he stood in the great council chambers and asked permission for Janaa to accompany him, explaining that he would need Janaa’s assistance to accomplish his mission, and Dari would need her help and support in order to come to terms with her newfound knowledge.

  Caddarick, one of their noble battle leaders stroked his fingers over the long, fine white hairs on his chin. “You both must work quickly and bring them home to us. Failure is not an option.”

  Ayden stood firm, legs spread, hands braced at his sides. “Failure is never an option,” he assured Caddarick. “Together we will succeed and reunite Mikel and Dari with their family.”

  “You cannot let Mikel know who you are, Ayden,” he said. “Not until he has learned to block his signature and shield his thoughts. If Grayson ever captured Mikel, he’d surely discover our colony through him,” Caddarick said, repeating and reaffirming what Ayden already knew in order to emphasize just how critical this was.

  “I understand.”

  “Very well then, Janaa may accompany you.”

  • • •

  Night had closed in on them as Dari filled the huge marble bathtub with hot water and eased herself in. The heat felt soothing against her tired body and her battered emotions. She glanced out the window and stared at the bright stars twinkling in the dark night sky. Did life exist on those distant stars as well? In less than twenty-four hours, her life as she knew it had shifted. It was not easy to discover a whole other world existed outside the one she had known.

  Her thoughts traveled to her dream man, Mikel. She could feel him, in her body and in her mind. Now that they were in close proximity, the bond between them grew stronger with each passing moment. The sense of belonging filled her with warmth. He was inside her head, calming her, helping her come to terms with what she was.

  She could not hold on to her anger toward him and had let go of it many hours ago. Mikel had only done what he thought was best for her. And for that, she had to forgive him. It gave her comfort to know how deeply he cared for her, and to the extent he’d go to in order to protect her.

  A soft tap on the door pulled her from her musings. Mikel. Her heart clenched in her chest as she shifted in the tub. She’d never had anyone dote on her quite so much. He’d barely left her alone for a minute since she’d discovered her true nature.

  “May I come in?” His deep voice played down her spine arousing her feminine desires.

  “Of course,” she called out.

  Mikel eased the bathroom door open. With him, he carried a steaming mug. The scent of fresh herbs and spices reached her nostrils. She inhaled the enticing aroma.

  “I thought you’d like something hot to drink.”

  His thoughtfulness warmed her. A fine tingle worked its way through her blood stream as she perused him. Her lip caught between her teeth as need spread like wildfire through her body. His dark hair hung forward, gray eyes bored into hers so deeply, he ignited a flame of passion in the depths of her womb. He stepped farther into the large room. His corded muscles bunched and relaxed with his easy movements. Her lips itched with the need to taste him, her body ached to join with his.

  She smiled up at him. It was the first genuine smile she’d had in a very long time. When Mikel smiled back, his dark gaze held her captive and she nearly liquefied in the tub. She reached out and touched him, still unable to believe he existed outside her dream world.

  “Yes, Dari. I am real,” he teased, just like he’d been doing all day in an attempt to lighten the tension.

  She accepted the drink and leaned forward to take a sip. Water and suds slid down her body, exposing her breasts to Mikel.

  She didn’t miss the lusty groan in the depths of his throat as his gaze panned her naked flesh.

  It thrilled her the way he wanted her.

  “This tub is huge, Mikel. Would you like to join me?”

  He cocked one brow, the same way he always did when he entered her dreams. “Like you even have to ask.”

  After he took her drink from her and placed it on the edge of the tub, he made quick work of his clothes. Before he slipped into the water with her, she took a moment to admire his nakedness. Her eyes left his and journeyed down, taking pleasure in his wide shoulders, tapered waist and thick, hard cock as it clamored for attention.

  She gestured with her hand and her body and soul reached out to him. “Join me.”

  Sitting across from one another in the sudsy water, he reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face. Her eyes slipped shut as his rough fingers stroked her cheeks. She’d never felt so loved, so cherished, or so protected in her life.

  “Mmm,” she purred
. When she opened her eyes and met his glance, the dark intensity in his gaze made her breath catch.

  The need to be together consumed them both. Sexual energy leapt between them and seeped into their bloodstream, demanding to be sated. The ache to lose herself in him made her body quake.

  She moistened her lips and rolled her tongue around her dry mouth. She yearned to feel skin against skin and to feel his thickness inside her. “Mikel, what will happen if we make love?”

  His eyes caressed her with heat. He pitched his voice low and ran his fingers up her legs until he was a hairsbreadth away from her quivering pussy. The exquisite pleasure made her tremble.

  “We will enhance our powers.” As his breath fanned her face, her lashes fluttered shut, her head lolled backwards. He kissed the side of her neck and drew a deep breath. Dari knew his needs and desires matched her own.

  She too drew a sharp breath and widened her legs in a silent invitation. The pull between them was much stronger in the real world. The primal urge to mate ruled her every emotion, controlled her every action. She tipped her head forward, to look in his eyes. He took her breath away and it was all she could do to find her voice.

  “Is that such a bad thing?” She breathed the words into his mouth. God, she needed him with every fiber of her being. She longed to make love to him outside her dream world.

  His finger grazed her clitoris, eliciting a gasp from the depths of her throat. “It will increase our signature thus increasing our risk of detection.” His ragged voice deepened with dark desire. One finger found her wet opening and dipped inside. She gasped as he stroked her sensitive spot.

  She lifted her ass from the tub, forcing his finger in deeper. “Then perhaps we should stop,” she said, instinctively knowing it was impossible. The pull was too strong for either of them to curb.