Flynn, Joyee - Victor [Marius Brothers 4] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove)

by Joyee Flynn

  “What’s done is done,” I said just as softly as I started up the car and threw it in drive. I needed to get him somewhere safe and dark so I could tend to his wounds. “Just get some rest and I’ll help you.”

  “What’s your name?” he asked, his eyes drifting closed.

  “Victor, Victor Marius.”

  “Mmm, the name is as beautiful as the man.”

  I glanced away from the road then and saw the smile on his face. His breath evened out, though he still seemed to have trouble getting air in, and I knew he was asleep. Just looking at his face, I knew all I wanted to do was hold him and take care of him forever. I pushed the speed limit as I drove the hour and a half to Providence, which was the closest major city from where we were.

  I was so fucked!

  With shaky hands I pulled out my cell phone and called the only person I knew who wouldn’t laugh at the irony of my situation and would help me.

  “Micah? I need you, little brother,” I said after clearing my throat a few times to keep my overwhelming emotions at bay when he answered.

  “Victor? Are you okay, man?”

  “No, no, I’m so far from okay I’m in another fucking country.” I chuckled. It was either laugh or cry at that point, and I wasn’t a person who cried, like ever.

  “Something go wrong on the mission?” he asked, concern in his voice that almost boarded on panic. “Are you hurt, brother?”

  “Yeah, something went wrong, very, very wrong, but I’m not hurt.”

  “Victor, talk to me!” Micah exclaimed, sounding frustrated. “I’m in Ireland, man. I can’t read your mind. Tell me what’s going on!”

  “C–Can you ask Riley if he’s ever heard of a person being half d–demon?” I stuttered out, thinking that was my best course of action. “Ask him if that’s even possible.”

  “I’ve never heard of it, but Riley’s healing Caleb. I’ll ask him when he’s done.”

  “What happened to Caleb?” I asked, someone else’s drama pushing mine to the side for a moment.

  “He’s fine. It’s a long story, but the scars have been there a while.” Micah sighed. “Why are you asking about demons, brother?”

  “I found my mate,” I whispered trying to collect myself to explain the rest.

  “That’s great, but I don’t get—”

  “He’s half demon, or he says he is.” I cut him off, not wanting to hear the congratulations. I filled him in on everything that could happen, rambling quickly before I lost the nerve.

  “We’ll figure this out, Victor,” Micah said firmly. “I’ll get Riley right now, and we’ll come home, okay? I’ll also call Damian. I know he’s not on a mission currently.”

  “You’ll tell him what’s going on though, right? I mean, I’ve already half mated to Malachi and feel the pull of the bonding. Anyone involved can’t hurt him, Micah. I think it would kill me to lose him already.”

  “I know, Victor,” he answered softly. “I’ll talk to Mother and Father as well, the troops will arrive to help. You don’t have to go through this alone, and it means a lot to me that you called.”

  “I knew you wouldn’t laugh at me.”

  “None of us would laugh at something like this,” Micah replied firmly, and it sounded almost as if he was pissed that I thought otherwise.

  “I–I wasn’t sure since I can be such a prick,” I said quickly. “I’m not really all here right now, ya know?”

  “Yeah, I hear you. Let me talk to everyone and we’ll meet you back home. Text Damian where you are when you find a place to crash.”

  “Thanks, Micah,” I said, making the relief I felt clear in my voice. It didn’t seem so overwhelming when I knew my family had my back. Plus Riley was a medical genius, if anyone could help, he could. We finished up saying good-bye and hung up. By that time we were almost to Providence, and I checked on my mate. Christ, I had a mate. And I’d taken this mission because I was pouting over being alone while everyone else found theirs.

  And then it hit me. If I’d not taken this mission, another warrior would have found Malachi and probably would have killed him for being even half demon. Fear ran through my body as the realization of how close I could have come to losing my mate. I’d listened to what he’d told me about being only part demon, but I really didn’t lower my weapon until after I’d realized we were mates.

  So not only was I grateful I’d volunteered for the mission, it made me realize that I’d figure out a way to forgive Malachi. It wasn’t as if he injured me or rejected our mating. He’d done it to secure his survival in his eyes, and while it wasn’t what I’d have done, I wasn’t a small half demon facing a very large warrior.

  If nothing else, I decided I needed to hear him out about his past and where he came from. Maybe knowing what he’d been through would help my anger at what had happened go away. I wasn’t sure if it was the best plan, but it was my current one.

  Chapter 2

  I got us to Providence and found a Marriott for us to stay at. At first the lady at the check-in counter seemed put out that I didn’t have a reservation, but her tune changed when she saw my platinum card. Amazing what having money can do sometimes. I booked us a suite with an adjoining bedroom for Damian that was by the back exit. Then I parked the car, slung my bags over my shoulder, and quickly carried Malachi in, praying no one would see us.

  It wouldn’t be good if a human saw me carrying in an injured man who was barely clothed and covered with my jacket. Thankfully, we made it to the elevator and then the room without anyone seeing us. Malachi slept the entire time, his breathing still labored.

  I called down to room service, ordering soup and lots of bread along with ginger ale, thinking that would be easy on his stomach after everything he’d been through. They agreed to send it up in an hour, and I figured that gave me enough time to at least get Malachi cleaned up and settled into bed.

  Then I texted Damian where we were and the room number. I got almost an immediate reply that he was already at the airport waiting for his flight. Lastly, I called the local blood bank we owned, relieved there was one close. The coordinator I spoke with was a vampire and said he’d send a courier to deliver lots of blood. I wanted Malachi to drink from me and get strong vampire blood, but I would need to refuel.

  “Malachi, wake up,” I said as I shook his shoulder gently.

  “No! Don’t hurt me,” he screamed as he thrashed about and tried to hit me. I grabbed his flailing arms gently as my heart tore open. What had my mate suffered for him to react this way just from me trying to wake him up?

  “Malachi, baby, it’s okay. It’s Victor, we’re at the hotel,” I whispered in his ear as I pulled him into my arms. “You’re safe. No one’s going to hurt you ever again.”

  “Victor?” Malachi asked, as his eyes fluttered opened. I saw the recognition of who I was cross his eyes as he settled down and smiled up at me. “Did you just call me baby?”

  “Um, yeah, sorry about that,” I answered as my face flushed with embarrassment. “I’m feeling strange new things for you since we’ve been mated.”

  “Sorry,” he whispered, and I saw the tears form in his eyes. “You hate me, don’t you?”

  “No, I don’t hate you,” I answered honestly as I carried him into the bathroom. I sat him down on the closed toilet lid as I ran a bath. I’d made sure to get a room with a large garden tub so he could soak in a cool bath when his skin had to be on fire from the burns. “I’m trying to see things from your perspective, I really am. But this isn’t easy for me either, okay? I decided on the drive here that I would keep an open mind and listen to you when you tell me what’s happened to you. I figure if I know that, I can maybe forgive you for mating us.”

  “That’s very big of you,” he whispered. I glanced over my shoulder to see him pulling at one of the many holes in his pants, if the scraps of material could even be called that. “I was in a lot of pain and just kept thinking that I didn’t want my mate to kill me. Next thing I knew I was apologiz
ing and bit you. It wasn’t some long, thought-out, convoluted plan. I swear, Victor.”

  “I believe you.” And I did. It was obvious he’d been mistreated, beaten, and starved. Add to that I found him almost burning to death in the sun. His brain couldn’t have been working at the highest level when I met him. “Let’s just focus on the present and work together to get you better, okay?”

  “Okay,” he said softly, glancing from me to the tub. “What is that?”

  “The bathtub?” I asked, confused, but then I understood. Malachi had lived his entire life in a cave; he wouldn’t know what most things were. “You use it for bathing. I’m filling it with cool water so we can get you cleaned up but won’t hurt your burns. Then we’re going to tend to your wounds.”

  “Why are you being so nice to me?”

  “I’m your mate.” I shrugged, not knowing what else to say. “It’s my job to take care of you.”

  “I don’t know how to take care of you back though,” Malachi said softly, apprehensively.

  “We’ll figure that part out later,” I replied with a gentle smile. I reached back and turned off the water. Then I started to undress but froze when he gasped. Glancing at him, I saw his mouthing hanging open. “Malachi?”

  “I’ve never been with anyone sexually before.”

  “You won’t be with anyone but me, ever.” I snarled, my possessive instincts kicking in. “I’m more than enough man to please you.”

  “I can see that,” he replied as he licked his lips and stared at my chest. I groaned as I finished stripping. My mate was going to be a handful, as he was inadvertently seducing me already. Just seeing his little pink tongue dart out and lick those plush lips had me hard as a rock and wanting to sink my cock in his tight virgin ass. His eyes went wide after I stepped out of my jeans. “Is that for me?”

  “I don’t think we’re at that stage yet,” I answered carefully, not wanting to hurt his feelings. “But it’s because of you if that helps. I’m drawn to your body and like the fact that no one has ever touched you.”

  “What’s it liked to be kissed?” Malachi whispered as he glanced up from my cock to my face. Oh fuck, I wanted to shoot my load right then. How could someone so obviously innocent be so sexy at the same time?

  “I’ll show you one day,” I replied in a husky voice I barely recognized as my own. Shaking my lustful thoughts away, I focused on getting my mate healthy. He was in no condition for the type of sex I liked, if ever. “Let’s get you cleaned up. I ordered you some food, and blood’s coming.”

  “Y–you aren’t going to make me drink from someone else, are you?” he asked, his eyes going wide in fear. “I–I can’t do that, Victor. They tried to make me drink from humans and hurt them, but I wouldn’t.”

  “No, it comes in a bag from donors,” I answered after taking a few deep breaths. I was filled with rage at the idea of demons using my mate in their sick and twisted idea of fun. “I’ll drink the blood, and you’ll drink from me. You’re injured and weak. You need the strength my blood will give you.”

  “Thank you,” Malachi said, turning away from me, but not before I saw the tears in his eyes. I realized I was probably the first person to ever be nice to him. While it hurt me, it might have been a blessing in disguise. I wasn’t known for being the nicest or most patient man. If fate had mated me to someone who expected a lot or was high maintenance, we both would have been screwed. That didn’t mean I didn’t hate that Malachi had been through such horrors, because I did.

  “You’re welcome,” I replied as I gently took off his shirt. I gasped at what I saw. He was covered in bites, bruises, and gashes.

  “They’d give me animals to drink from since I wouldn’t hurt the humans they brought and then bite me.” He explained, carefully not meeting my eyes. Animal blood could keep us alive in a pinch, but a straight diet of it could drive us insane since it was a different genetic makeup. “Sometimes I think they tricked me and fed me human blood from jars in the cave, but I can’t really be sure. They liked to hear me scream and cry out when they drank from me.”

  “It had to be human blood. We can’t survive on animal blood alone,” I whispered gently. Helping him stand, he leaned on me heavy as I pulled at his pants. They pretty much came apart in my hands and I added getting him some clothes to my mental checklist. Again I was glad I was in a nice hotel since I could call the concierge and ask them to pick some things up. “We’ll get you all better, baby. You won’t have to live like that ever again.”

  “What about me being half demon?” he asked as I lifted him into my arms. “How do I survive in your world when people will want me dead?”

  “I don’t know, but I’ll keep you safe,” I answered honestly. I stepped over and slowly sat down in the tub. Shit, it was cold! Malachi’s body felt if it was on fire, hot pressed up against my skin, so the cool bath water felt like ice on the other side of me.

  “Oh god, it hurts,” he cried out.

  “I know, baby,” I cooed as I lowered him in all the way. “Just breathe through pain and it will get better. I have to clean your wounds quickly, and if the water was warmer, it would hurt your skin.”

  “Okay,” he panted, his midnight blue eyes going wide as he stared up at me with complete trust. I could see the pain written all over his face, but his eyes told me he knew to believe me.

  “How old are you?” I asked as I grabbed the wash cloth and soaped it up. I hoped anything would distract him from his injuries.

  “I don’t know.”

  “Did you go through your transition? Or have you always drank blood?” I asked, not knowing how to deal with the fact that Malachi could be underage. He looked so young, but we all did until at least our first century.

  “I didn’t always drink blood, no.” He gasped as I washed his legs. I’d sat him down on the seat in the bathtub, figuring it would be easier to tend to him. I was starting to regret that decision as he leaned against the side of the tub, spread out for me as if a buffet of untouched flesh. “I went through my transition. It was a long time ago, maybe about halfway through what I remember living?”

  “Okay, so that might make you around twenty-five to thirty years old,” I answered after a moment, doing the math in my head. “We go through our transition during puberty. I had mine at sixteen. So figuring that your first memories were around five, halfway through your life would put you at that age range.”

  “Is that old?” he asked, tilting his head to look at me.

  “Compared to me it’s not.” I snickered. But then I realized something else. “Have you ever been taught numbers, Malachi? I mean, do you know how to read or count?”

  “No, I don’t know anything,” he whispered and looked away from me. “I learned to talk from hearing the demons in the cave. I grew up hearing snippets of information about what I was and what they are to figure out that I was a freak and that’s why they abused me.”

  “You’re different, you’re a miracle really,” I said, reaching out to cup his cheek. He looked back at me then, his eyebrows drawn together as tears ran down his cheeks. “No matter what, no one has the right to treat you badly, okay? It’s not your fault you were born this way, and it’s no one’s right to base their opinion of you based on that.”

  “Even you?”

  “Yeah, even me,” I nodded, understanding what he was saying. He was worried how I’d treat him since he was only half vampire. “I’m a warrior. My whole job is based on killing demons, Malachi. It wasn’t personal when I found you, okay? You smelled like a demon.”

  “But you listened and gave me a chance,” he replied with a weak smile. “You gave me a chance to explain.”

  “I’m glad I did.” And I realized it was the truth. No matter how we’d gotten there or what Malachi was, he was my mate, my other half. He was mine, and I’d take care of him from now on. Starting with this bath.

  “Do you think you could ever want me?” Malachi asked after several quiet minutes while I gently but quickly cl
eaned him up. “I mean, want me as a mate and not as a pity case?”

  “You’re not a pity case,” I growled, regretting it when he flinched and pulled away from me. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths before opening them up and focusing on him. “I feel bad for you at the hand you’ve been dealt in life. But yes, I do want you, and it’s just not time yet to explore that. I’m not here because I pity you, baby. I’m here because I’m your mate and you need me.”

  “I’m glad you’re here,” he said after a minute. I washed his hair, trying desperately to ignore his appreciative moans as I worked. “I’ve never done that to my head.”

  “Fuck.” I hissed as I was filled with rage again. How could someone who was at least twenty-five have lived without ever washing their hair? The thought caused me to shiver involuntarily. “Do you like it?”

  “Yes, it’s like heaven. I didn’t know my body could ever feel so good.”

  “You can adapt to the world outside the cave, Malachi,” I said more to myself I think than him. It scared how much help my mate would need in the coming months. In some ways he was like a wide-eyed toddler, exploring a whole new world. In other ways he was a full grown man, case in point, the erection he had as I washed between his legs. I admit I was taking more time washing him there and then his ass than was needed, but I couldn’t help myself.

  “I like you touching me there,” he moaned, spreading his legs wider for me. “I’ve never felt such desire before.”

  “Something I promise to explore later,” I replied, clearing my throat and moving on to rinse him off. I hurried up, getting all the soap and shampoo off his battered body. What kind of asshole lusts and taunts an injured man like that? Oh wait, that would be me.

  “Promise?”

  “Yeah, I don’t think I’m strong enough to say no to you,” I whispered in his ear, getting a shiver from him as I lifted him into my arms. After drying us both off, I laid him down in the bed and got him covered with a light sheet so not to agitate his skin. I kept the towel wrapped around my waist, not bothering to get dressed since I figured we’d be napping soon. There was a knock at the door, and I almost patted myself on the back how well I’d planned out room service.