by Joyee Flynn
“Your mate?” Damian asked, his eyebrows shooting up to his bangs. While I had shoulder length chestnut wavy brown hair, Damian the same color but curls, he kept it about ear length and a cut in a popular shaggy style that looked like he needed a haircut.
“He’s my mate, Damian.” I nodded. “No matter how it came about, I’ve accepted it and him. He’s really great, brother. I told him he reminds me of Patrick, that almost innocent curiosity that you just want to nurture.”
“You? Nurture? Has hell frozen over?”
“Have I been such a bastard of a brother that you’d say that to me?” I asked, taken aback at the low opinion my brother had of me.
“No, Victor, not at all. You’re a fantastic big brother,” Damian answered, surprise written all over his face as he took the two steps to me and pulled me into his arms. “You’re just not what I’d call a warm and fuzzy person, brother. You’re a great teacher, an awesome role model to follow as the oldest, and fiercely protective of all of us. Don’t ever doubt we love you with all our hearts.”
“They why did you say that?” I asked again as I pulled out of his arms, searching his face for answers.
“You’re just not who I’d go to if I needed to talk about my feelings.” He shrugged, and I involuntarily shuddered at the idea of talking about emotions. “See? You just shook with fear at the idea of talking about feelings, Victor. I think I’ve proved my point.”
“But I’ve still been a good brother, right?”
“Yeah, Victor, you’ve been an awesome brother always. I wouldn’t be here if you weren’t, okay? Where’s all this self-doubt coming from?”
“I’m not sure I’m going to be enough for him,” I whispered, meeting Damian’s eyes. “He’s lived in a cave all of his life, Damian. Do you get what that means? I had to show him how to use a spoon to have soup. Hell, I had to tell him what soup was, ginger ale, bread, too. Malachi’s never had anything but raw meat in his life.”
“Once we get this all sorted out, it won’t be just you, Vic,” Damian said, using the nickname I hated. It always reminded me of Vicks VapoRub and made me feel like I was taking medicine. But it had the desired effect, and I smirked at the little shit head. “Just think how mother and Marian will fawn all over him and help him. I mean look at how they’ve helped Pat, ya know?”
“Good point. I just don’t want to fail him after everything he’s been through.” I sighed. He gave me a sympathetic look as we decided what we wanted. I quickly called it in, and we went into my bedroom.
“He doesn’t look like a… demon.” Damian snarled that last word as he sniffed the air.
“Calm down, Damian,” I warned as Malachi bolted up in bed at the disturbance. I turned to him with my hands up in surrender. “It’s okay, baby, this is my younger brother. Your scent just threw him.”
“O–okay,” Malachi stuttered, fear written all over small face. Originally I thought he had hair the color of mine, but it had been decades of dirt. When we got him all washed up, he had light strawberry blond hair that shined. It was longer, almost down to mid-back, and needed a trim badly. He eyed Damian over, who had calmed down. “Hi. I’m not a full demon, I swear.”
“No, no you’re not,” Damian whispered as he moved closer to the bed. “You don’t smell as sour as real demons do. And you don’t have the blood red eyes, but you are pale white like they are.”
“But I hate them, I really do,” Malachi said firmly, his gaze darting to mine. “I told Victor I would tell you where they are and help you get the hostages out.”
“Let’s start easy,” I replied moving to sit on the bed next to him. “I called down for some more soup for you since you liked it, okay? You need to have some more of my blood now, and we’ll talk while we eat.”
“Okay,” he nodded enthusiastically as he crawled onto my lap and straddled me. I shot my brother a scathing look when he groaned at the sight of my naked mate’s hot body.
“He’s naked, and he’s cute.” Damian shrugged as he went to grab one of his bags. “I brought some of Patrick’s clothes I snagged from the clean laundry pile downstairs so he’d have something to wear. So don’t get pissy with me.”
“Fine, but you can wait in the other room,” I said pointedly, moaning when Malachi licked my neck. Damian left, and I focused solely on my mate. “Take what you need from me, baby.”
“Thank you,” Malachi whispered before sinking his fangs into me. I tried to keep my body under control as he drank, careful not to touch him. He drank about two pints before he raised his head and licked the bite closed. “Why didn’t you touch me like last time?”
“Because that would wear us out again and we have company,” I answered, kissing him gently. “Don’t ever think I don’t want you, baby. I had trouble controlling myself, and you can feel that I’m hard.”
“Is it bad that I like that you had trouble not taking me?” He giggled as he licked my neck again and squirmed in my lap.
“No, but it makes you a dirty little mate.” I chuckled as I moved him off of my lap. Malachi kept laughing as we got him something to wear from the pile Damian had put on the bed before leaving. We’d just entered the adjoining living room to both of the bedrooms when there was a knock at the door. I grabbed my wallet and tipped the guy before pulling the cart in.
“When I’m better I can have more than just soup, right?” Malachi asked as we got settled at the table. “I mean I like the soup, but it would get boring after a while.”
“Yeah, it would.” Damian snickered as he took a bite out of his burger.
“Yes, you can eat whatever you like when you’re better,” I answered my mate then realized that might not be the best idea giving him carte blanche. “Within reason of course. I’m not sure what your idea of good food would be.”
“I didn’t like eating the raw animals, Victor,” he whispered as he blew on his soup, not looking at me.
“I know that, baby,” I said gently as I put my hand on his thigh. “And I don’t mean to make you feel bad, it’s just after the kiss I figured I should check. I hope that’s okay?”
“No, I get it,” he replied, giving me a weak smile. “So, what can I tell you about the demon’s lair?”
Damian was great, asking all the right questions to help us narrow down the location. Then he helped Malachi draw out how the cave went and which section was which. Our main concern was where the hostages were and if there was a back escape route.
“You’ve turned into a fine warrior, baby brother,” I said when they were done, bursting with pride. “That was exactly how I would have handled everything.”
“Oh, um, thanks,” he replied, his cheeks heating up. “Nice to hear from someone with eight hundred years experience on me.”
“How old are you?” Malachi asked, looking confused, and I wasn’t sure how to explain it to him if he didn’t know how to count.
“We figured you’re about twenty-five, right?” I said gently, waiting for his nod before continuing. “I’m about thirty-six times that old.”
“I–I don’t get what that means,” he answered. Yeah, smart move, I didn’t want to confuse him with hundreds of years, but let’s explain it in multiplication. Idiot.
“He’s really fucking old, just leave it at that for now,” Damian snickered as he patted Malachi on the shoulder. I sent him a grateful look, to which Damian gave me a wink. “We can put it into perspective for you after you’ve learned to count.”
“Oh, so Victor told you how stupid I am,” Malachi said, his face falling.
“No, he didn’t say anything about you being stupid, Malachi,” Damian said firmly, holding up a hand for me to keep quiet while he handled it. I snapped my mouth shut and gave him a chance, not liking it one bit. “He told me you’ve lived all your life in these caves you told us about. I can’t think they have the best school systems in there, and there’s no reason for you to look so ashamed, okay? None of this is your fault, and you’re family now, so we can help you learn.”
“Thank you.” Malachi smiled at my brother. And the realization of how well Damian handled it hit me like a knife in my heart.
“You’d be a much better mate for him,” I whispered before I’d realized I’d said it out loud. My eyes felt itchy, and I knew tears were forming, which made me feel even worse.
“I disagree,” Damian said, shaking his head. “He needs someone who he can feel safe with and who better than the most dangerous Marius brother? I may be more patient than you are, Victor, but you’ve got a reputation he’ll need to fit into our world.”
“What do you mean?” Malachi and I both asked as my mate reached for my hand. He squeezed it gently, and I pulled him onto my lap out of instinct to be close to him.
“Vic, no one fucks with you, man. You’re a force to be reckoned with,” Damian answered slowly as if choosing his words carefully. “But you’re also probably the most respected warrior of we have. You’ve been dedicated to our race for what? Eight hundred and fifty years? If anyone could get our world to accept a half demon, it would be you.”
“Thank you,” I said with a smile after a few moments thought. “I never thought of it like that, and that’s nice of you to say.”
“I don’t get it,” Malachi whispered as he curled into me. “What does that mean?”
“He’s saying since you’re different that my reputation will scare people into behaving and not treating you badly.”
“I’m used to people treating me like shit.” He shrugged as he tilted his head to look up at me. “I don’t care about any of that anymore because I have someone who wants me now. Nothing else matters to me except being with you, Victor.”
“Thank you,” I said against his lips as I leaned down and kissed him. I mean, what else was there to say to a statement like that? I was at a loss for words as my heart filled with joy at his declaration. I knew it was too soon for us to be in love, but him saying basically he was totally and utterly devoted to me like that was the next best thing.
“You guys will be just fine.” Damian chuckled, gesturing to how we were sitting there wrapped around each other as if it was second nature. I smiled as I realized my baby brother was right. We would be just fine—after we overcame some obstacles. The demons were first on my list.
Chapter 4
Damian and I had decided to head out a few hours before dawn so that we’d make it to the bluffs just after the sun was up. The main goal was to catch them when their power was at their weakest. Secondly, if things went bad, they couldn’t chase us out into the sunlight.
I’d arranged for a wake-up call and breakfast to be sent to my baby. He listened intently as I explained how to tip the guy with the money I left for him and sign the slip. Malachi didn’t know how to write, but I taught him how to at least scribble a line that could pass for a signature. He learned incredibly quickly, which gave me hope of his adjustment to life outside the cave wouldn’t be that hard for him.
We’d slept for a few hours wrapped around each other after Damian and I set up our plan of attack. I also made sure my little mate drank from me since he really needed his strength. Then I’d sucked down several bags of blood to replenish my supply and gear up for the fight. Damian had drank a couple of them and then arranged for another delivery tomorrow from the coordinator of the blood bank.
It had been much harder to leave my mate than I’d ever thought it would be. I understood now why most warriors slowed down and took fewer missions after they were mated. It felt like half of me was two hours away back in the hotel room.
“Good thing you got to bring toys, huh?” Damian asked as I slowed down the rental car a few miles from where the cave was. Since I got dropped off by the warrior jet, I was able to bring supplies with me. I had a trunk full of weapons and ultraviolet ammunition.
“This is true.” I chuckled as I parked, and we got out. The sun was just peaking over the horizon, so we timed it out perfectly. We’d had to take a ferry to the island off the coast, and it worked out that they had them running around the clock. “Though we’ve got some pretty kick ass gifts for dealing with demons.”
“Yeah, but there’s only so many I can hold still at one time.” He shrugged as we loaded up as much gear as we could carry. Damian’s gift was the ability to literally hold someone mentally hostage. He could freeze someone’s motions or make them unable to move from about ten yards away. But he was right—he could only hold four or five at a time. “But your fire works, too. But if there are more than ten in there, we’d be in serious trouble without the guns.”
“True that,” I replied, seeing my brother’s point. I closed up the car, and we headed out on foot, making as little noise as we could. They might have been down for the day, but you still don’t alert the wild animal that you’re going in for the kill. We covered the area quickly as we both made sure to have grenades at the ready before we started scaling down the wall.
The plan was to throw some ultraviolet grenades in to flame up whatever demons we could. If the hostages were human, it wouldn’t even hurt them more than slight retinal burning if they looked at them. If they were vampires, well, they’d have a slight sun burn, but that was much better than the alternative of being stuck there.
We were able to scale the bluff in less than half an hour, so the sun was up and shining right in it. I took the lead and walked into the cave, being careful to stay in the sunlight. Damian joined me as we pulled the pins out of several grenades and threw them. We booked it back to the entrance just as they went off and the screaming started. Moving back into the cave but again staying in the ray of light, Damian knelt down and positioned his rifle.
My baby brother was an awesome shot, something we both teased him and bragged to others about. I had a semi-automatic ready with extra clips in my pocket ready to go. I was a Beretta man myself and felt naked without them when I was in the field.
The fun started as we could see a few burning figures screaming while others tried to get away from the fire. In a way it was like we had torches deep in the cave now and could see what was going on. Damian took the first few shots, landing his home in the targets. I saw a small group of battered looking figures huddled in the far corner and was glad none of the engulfed demons were going for them.
Two demons decided to their best chance was to take us out and rushed us. It was a stupid plan because we were standing in the sunlight and had guns that would take them out before they could even reach us. Sure enough, I fired off several rounds into each one before they even got within ten feet of us. They screamed and started to burn from the inside out. I kept them in my peripheral vision as I focused mainly on the figures deeper in the cave.
“We’ve got enough light from the flames to see,” I said to Damian, giving the signal that we were moving forward. He nodded as he stood up, keeping his rifle to him so he could look through the scope. Normally we wouldn’t be so concerned with accuracy, but with hostages, we needed to make sure we were hitting the right targets.
We took out three more that were trying to flee somehow, not that they could leave the cave and not burn up in the sunlight. But survival can make us all do strange things at times. Damian took up position at the right side while I did the left and glanced around the corner.
“You got them all,” a man croaked out. I glanced down and saw that I was almost on top of the survivors, and it seemed the man was right. All the demons were a pile of ash. “I’m second in command of the Providence coven. If you could allow me to use your phone, I can call and get us all out of here. You’ve done more than enough, warrior.”
“Victor Marius,” I said as I shook the man’s hand after he stood up. “This is my brother Damian. Are all the hostages like us?”
“No, we’ve some humans here, too,” he answered with a sigh. “I’m Reggie Marks. We’ve got a guy in the coven who can wipe memories, so we can sedate them, heal them, wipe the memories, and set them somewhere with what seems like amnesia.”
“We don’t handle that
side of the mess.” Damian shrugged and then shook Reggie’s hand. “However you feel it best to handle is fine with us. We just need you to report all of this to the council so they know we didn’t leave loose ends and just bail.”
“Of course.” He smiled warmly. “Thank you for saving us. You are truly a credit to your family.”
“Thanks, our parents like us.” Damian snickered, always the wiseass. “I wonder if you saw a half demon while you were in here? We had word that he escaped, and we’re looking for confirmation.”
“Oh, you’re talking about Malachi,” Reggie said as his eyes went wide. “Y-you’re not going to hurt him are you? He was born that way. I heard all about his birth, how he turned out that way. He’s a sweet boy, he’s not like these soulless monsters I assure you.”
“No, we’re not going to hurt him,” I answered as I exchanged a look with my brother. “But anything you can tell us would be most helpful. I found him yesterday, and he led me here to help you all.”
“I know he would if he could find help.” Reggie smiled as I led him to the cave entrance so we could make the call. “He’s your mate, isn’t he?”
“How did you know?” I asked, trying to school my features.
“You looked scared when your brother brought him up,” Reggie answered as he touched my arm. “I’ll tell you everything I know. He’s lived a hell that cannot be put into words and will need a lot of love to recover.”
“I’m doing the best I can,” I whispered as my eyes started to itch again.
“That’s all any of us can ever do, son,” he said with a smile, and part of me wanted to ask how old he was.
Reggie looked like shit, which was understandable where he was and what he’d been through, so I couldn’t really tell his age. But it wasn’t that often I found vampires who were older than me. So I had a feeling I really was older and just seemed or looked younger to him. Either way, it just made me smile. He was nice and trying to help, let him think he was older if he wanted.
He finished up the call, and we started to form a plan. Reggie’s coven was going to bring the supplies to get the survivors out of the cave and up the bluff. I was worried about the humans given that their whole world had been turned upside down. But they seemed to realize we wouldn’t hurt them and stayed calm.
