by Scott, Talyn
“And Rock knows rogue hunters have recently been in this area.” All Donors were fair game to the vampire monarchy, not that they should be. And the werewolves would be flabbergasted if they found out how many werewolf Donors lived behind royal walls.
“What’s convincin’ you that our female was taken by rogues?”
Nothing. “Lovci would be idiots to come against your Pack this precise way, don’t you think?” Maestru lifted a shoulder and let it drop. “Common courtesies between factions keep down friendly fire.”
“With all due respect, Coven Master, I’m no’ lookin’ to hear a public service announcement and I’m no’ a fool.”
He pulled his phone out, calling his Commanding Vojak. Three rings sounded before a weary Qudir greeted him. Maestru said cheerily, “You’re on speaker with one of Rock’s trackers named Heath and your Master. How are you fairing this lovely mid-morning, Qudir?”
An impatient hiss and then, “My Master, I just went to bed an hour ago.”
Ignoring that. “Commander, the Pack is requesting our help with a missing mixed blood who was last seen on the local university campus. They insist the Dynasty’s involved.”
“Kash reported that intel sometime after three this morning,” answered Qudir with a yawn. “He found a halfling strung up inside Ryan's dungeon, whipped by a male youngling. She was enjoying herself. Case closed.”
“A werewolf in the dungeon?” Maestru shook his head. “I would have punished her myself, if I’d been there.” He sighed. “Youth and foolishness go hand-n-hand.”
“Yeah, Kash texted Bane and Ryan’s dungeon masters had the female ready to go when Bane misted to the club. She’s in Pack custody.”
“Good. Later, Commander.” Maestru ended the call. He hated having his time wasted, but that was a werewolf for you. “You heard him. Tracking is part of security. Why are you out of the loop?”
“I’m no’, Coven Master. Although we are grateful for Kash alertin’ us to our female’s mischiefs in the dungeon, she’s not the one who was taken from the university.”
“Then I’m sorry to hear that,” Maestru offered. “When it comes to stolen females, I have a heart, werewolf. But as I said, we’re pressed. Accept what we’ve already contributed and I won’t seek compensation for my Vojaks.”
“As a tracker, I have no authority to urge someone of your station to aid our Pack in this. I’ll be goin’ back to Scotland soon enough, a place where I do have said authority. So I guess you’ll be dealin’ with Rock then.” Heath’s look said everything: As head of security, Rock carried the Pack’s authority. And if he had a mind to, Rock could nag him in every way, annoying him by the hour until Maestru went ape shit. And Rock had a mind to, all right, considering Maestru and the werewolf had unsettled business between them that went way past Tatum and onto the subject of Dakota. “Very well, I’ll have Qudir contact you before this night fall, offering whatever assistance we can with this particular girl. Nothing additional, though. Qudir has his ways with our Dynasty, we’ll see if she’s inside any Donor holdings. You got a name?”
“Yeah, we got to her car afore any of the local authorities arrived.” He pulled papers from his back pocket. “Copies of her registration, it states her name and address. Nothing more than that, so we’re headin’ to her apartment complex. Word is - lots o’ partin’ going on there tonight. Senior members of our Pack will be there. We’re searchin’ for any clues to her disappearance, and for more of our mixed blood lasses unprotected by Pack. We understand Donors appear to attract one another. Subconsciously, that is. So they’ll also attract the dicks who hunt them. We’ll be ready for them. It’s time we let them know to stay away from our kind.”
They knew too much, and yet. “That’s not going to work, Heath.” Just when Maestru thought Heath was clever, he spewed inane crap. “No member of Lovci, rogue or otherwise, would hunt around Beasts. It’s the first rule taught at their academy. It’s not as if they cannot smell you, so what you’ll find tonight at most is half your quest. Maybe some females will turn up for your Pack to care for. But rogue Lovci? No. They’ll head elsewhere, coming back later when you’re not there, since you’ll peak their interests by your circling.”
“I want that girl found.”
And Maestru needed to find out if these hunters were indeed rogues. He exhaled slowly, rearranging his schedule in his head. Sure, he could do something. Since Maestru had a way of hiding his power and scent from the hunters, something he didn’t brag about to many, he could probably scope the party scene out and mend some fences in the process. “This one night, I’ll handle the girl’s hunt. Personally.”
Heath couldn’t help but gape. “You, Coven Master?”
“Shocked, I see.” For the second time, Maestru slid his phone from his pocket. “I’ll find out what I can, and if I happen to come across any of your mixed bloods, I’ll let you know. Have Bane arrange a rendezvous with Qudir when he calls. You Beasts may be staying away from tonight’s party scene, but you’ll need to be on the ready.” Once more, he phoned Qudir. “For anything.”
“I can ask for nothing more. You have my gratitude, Coven Master.” Heath misted away.
“Qudir,” he spoke into his phone, “soon you’ll be hearing from Bane. For tonight, grab Oycher and you two throw on hoodies and jeans. We’re crashing a college party. You have plans? Change them.” Maestru pinched the bridge of his nose. “Just fuck girls at this party. Seriously? You find any female less than three-hundred years of age too young for you. I get that you enjoy experience, man, but you’ve grown far too picky in your old age. You’re unmated. Pussy is pussy. Uh, huh. Well then, take one for the fucking team, Commander. Does it sound like a request to you? Oh, and grab some vodka and beer. Red Bull, too.” Maestru had to laugh. “Why? Damn, you are truly out of touch with the humans. Everyone knows ‘booze in hand’ turns party crashers into honored guests.”
Chapter Four
Noonday sun had nothing on Blythe’s beaming smile. Last night, whatever Rock whispered over her when he placed a single kiss to her forehead soothed every nerve in her body. She never experienced weightlessness, such as that, even when she was drunk off her butt. The next kiss he pressed against her cheek, the lightest of touches, was a tender move that ended up knocking her out cold. The control he brandished over her body should have frightened her, yet she was more than grateful for the first restful sleep she’d had in…she couldn’t remember.
No nightmares tormented her, either.
A slow breath left her, peace rolling over her in languid waves. She wasn’t underground. Her ankle didn’t have a chain attached to it. And instead of spending the day with a stunning maniac intent on erotic punishment, she would be in her husband’s loving arms. Everything else Blythe was determined to forget until she had to face it again. One day was what she would settle for. Just one day where she and Sixten could pretend everything was normal, mundane. That they had a solid relationship unfettered by anything or anyone.
Maybe they could make love on their private beach without someone trying to kill them. Probably not. But a girl can dream.
“My closet,” she said, stepping out of her deep walk-in and tossing her clothes on the bed next to her new boots.
“Yes, your closet.” Sixten arched a flaxen brow. “Are you out of room already?”
“Not yet.” Blythe pulled on her clothes. Sixten stopped what he was doing, riveted on her. Flashing him a smile, she finger combed her hair after adjusting her top. “It’s silly considering everything that goes on in my life – our lives.” With a shrug, she continued, “I just…I feel like I’m finally home. Honestly, I’ve never felt that way before, even in childhood. Why am I telling you this? You know how insecure I’ve been. Now, I have roots.” They met in the middle of their bedroom, his powerful arms enveloping her. “Six, I know it’s not the physical walls of our home safely surrounding me, but you.”
“You see.” His hand slipped behind her neck, rubbing gently. “I wa
s all up for this romantic conversation, ready to explain how I feel the same way – at home with you. But you said walls surrounding me, and all I can think about are your walls,” he leaned down and whispered against her throat, “surrounding me. Hmmm, you are so beautiful. Smell delicious.” Wet fangs scraped her throat, not breaking skin.
Her mind prickled, palms beginning to sweat over thoughts of his hunger. Apprehension of him losing control warred with anticipation for his intoxicating bite. In her mind, she couldn’t win. “For lunch or for other?”
“That would be a two-for-one.” Fingers thrust through her hair, winding strands around his fingertips. Small nibbles trailed across her chin. “I’m famished and horny. Hell, I’m beyond horny. I’m on fire and I have to go to work.”
That put a kink in her normal-day-with-Sixten plans. “You don’t have to go to work, do you?”
“Technically, no.” A stronger nip, this one neared her jugular. “I can sweep us away, traveling the world – hiding.”
“Hiding?”
“Don’t like the idea of hiding, my wife?”
“No.” A gasp left her when he bit the tender flesh behind her ear. “You know I don’t want to live my life that way, especially if it means going underground.” A tremor traveled her body.
“Then I must contribute to my Coven, yes?”
“Hmmm, yes,” she answered despondently. “But I just came back to you.”
“I know, yet I owe them a great debt, angel.” His hands glided down, clenching her ass. And she swore she lifted twenty feet off the ground, lost in his touch. “Coven members worked in conjunction with their natural enemies for you. They risked torture and final death from our Dynasty Empire for that ruse Sayer aided us in, all the while dedicating their inherent abilities and time in finding you while maintaining their regular duties. They’ve watched over you non-stop since your extraction from that Dynasty monster.” He hissed in the way of agitated vampires, and goose bumps dotted her skin. “They’re exhausted. If they go to work today, then I can, too.”
She said sadly, “I didn’t mean to sound selfish. That’s not what I was going for. I just want you.”
“You are not selfish, Blythe.” Fangs punched down. “You want the same thing I want, to spend the day in bed, as well as on other horizontal surfaces, with your mate.” He leaned back, pursing his lips in thought. “Though I really do enjoy you against the shower wall, angel, vertical has its moments. Deep moments.” She grew wet, and he parted his lips, panting through his fangs.
“So mind stalker’s babysitting me again?” she asked. “I swear you always put Oycher on duty so he’ll tell you every thought I had.”
“No Oycher today,” he replied solemnly. “We need all senior Vojaks on full duty, and my options are minimal since I don’t trust the Vojaks-in-training, our younglings, around you. You’re hot and you know vampires are attracted to all things pretty. I don’t think they have enough self-control, as far as you’re concerned. And I’m still working on fully trusting your guards against these rogue shifters. Sure, in groups they can hold them off for a while, but kill them? Nah.”
“Six, when you say younglings, those vampires I saw look like grown men - beyond grown men.” A careful finger traced her ebony eyebrow since his claws had erupted, and her body softened in all the best places under his simple skill. “It’s ridiculous.”
“Are you checking them out?” Another hiss escaped him, rushing breath hitting her ear. “Qudir can’t afford to lose any more Vojaks, Blythe. In the future, think about what you say to me.”
“As if I want anyone else,” she groaned, bringing her lips to his, but he turned stone still. “Wait a minute.” She narrowed her eyes, realizing he hadn’t confessed everything. “All the Vojaks are working, you trust no younglings to guard me, so that means… werewolf.”
“Not just any werewolf, your mate will guard you.”
“You’re my mate. I need time to adjust to Rock being more than a friend,” she argued hotly, pressing her palms against his leather-covered chest. Brutal weapons iced her skin. She pulled away, finding those blades infused with alien ore abhorrent. In a way, she still sensed that golden chain Gianni placed around her ankle. Without a doubt, she knew Sixten’s blades were of similar metal.
With a raised brow, he took her hands, circling his thumbs inside her palms. “And you’re mine, for always, stop thinking like a mortal. It’ll be easier on you to realize that you will never have a human life again.”
“How can you want this?” She backed away, pulling from his grasp and feeling for the bed behind her. Right as Blythe’s knees gave out, she ass-planted on the edge of their mattress. In her soul, she realized Rock was hers, but things were moving far too quickly. And as far as she was concerned, the worst thing that could ever happen would be her losing Sixten. His jealousy knew no bounds. “You’re so possessive of me, wanting to kill Ryan half the time or younglings you think I eye-nailed. Your list of threats is endless, so, in your mind, what’s different about Rock?”
“He’s the only one capable of turning you fully immortal – extending your life to match mine, and possibly taking away your Donor status, though we’re uncertain about your blood change until your transformation happens,” he said on a fervent whisper. “It didn’t take long to realize that I’m so grateful, Blythe. You have no idea how I welcome him to mate you.”
Customary society frowned on what he proposed. She was uncomfortable with the idea of it, that sort of lifestyle, and she really didn’t understand how it all worked. Her throat tightened when she said, “You’re forgetting that there’s another way of making me immortal without mating Rock.”
“Undead vampire?” Lowering himself to his knees, he pushed her skirt high on her thighs, settling between them. Sixten’s normal, cocky smile was far-gone, his face full of concern. “I want you to live, not as an Undead.” He shook his head until blonde strands slapped his forehead. “Never as an Undead, Blythe. Their lives are far-removed from a Species vampire. Ah, angel, you have no idea. You haven’t been around Undead enough to understand. A life like that would change everything for you. Everything.”
Placing a kiss on her thigh, he pleaded, “And I know I’ve told you countless times, but I’ll say it again and again: The sound of your beating heart anchors my tormented soul. I’m half caged. You bring my two halves together into the semblance of a whole. Every minute I’m near you, the living you, I can drop certain defenses. I love you, but there’s so much more between us. We are destined for one another. Always have been.”
She cupped his rough check, dark blonde stubble grating her fingers. He turned, pressing a kiss against her palm. “Blythe, now, I take every step with you. The other half of my soul is you. And I’ve never hidden the fact that I’m a selfish bastard. So, yeah, I’m not giving up any part of you. I want you the way you are. And barring any impending emergencies, anything horrifically unavoidable, I’ll be damned if you’re not keeping your heart!”
“I can’t make that decision for myself, then? Kash wouldn’t do it if I were to ask him?”
Distinct pain crossed his face. The floor shook beneath her and a porcelain bowl skated off her nightstand, knocking her earrings under the bed. “Grave circumstances change decisions, making them drastic. For now, your circumstance isn’t the gravest, why jump ship?”
“I’m an idiot.” She ran her hands down her face, hiding from his alien intensity. “That was hurtful and childish. I’m edgy, certainly confused.” The rumbling eased, the house settling once again. “This has to be hard on you, too. Six, I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted,” he groaned, placing his ear against her chest, listening to her heart flying out of her ribcage.
“So, you’re truly asking me to mate Rock?”
“When left with no other choice, yes, I’m imploring you to mate Rock.” He stared up at her, his chin against her chest, fangs piercing his lower lip. “It’s a gift for the taking, Blythe, a logical path. We stayed u
p the entire night ironing things out. He wants the same thing I want: the best for you.”
“I’m in love with you. If I mate Rock – whatever that entails – I’m smart enough to know that binds us for an eternity. An eternity is a long time, Six.”
“Yes, it is.” He skimmed his hands up and down her thighs. “An eternity together is what I want from you.”
“You’re still keeping something from me.”
“You have no idea what you would be up against if something were to happen to me. And although this isn’t our darkest hour, certain Habaline adversaries are still out there, fixated on what they think I can do for them,” he admitted, squeezing her hips. “Possibly, if I were to believe a certain freak, my biological father is calling for me. Remember, I killed Rave, his son. What do you think he’s going to do when he finds his reincarnation of Cain? You’ve seen some of my power.” He drew in a deep breath, releasing it slowly. “Imagine the source of that power bringing me to heel.” Sixten lifted his hands in a helpless gesture. “Not good.”
“I can’t bear the thought of anything happening to you, don’t even say it.”
“Think that times a thousand, the pain I felt when you were missing. If I went missing, too, if something happened to me,” he said, going back to his original thought, “without Rock’s claim our Coven Master might be forced to turn you over to the Dynasty. You can feed any Royal, Blythe. Think about it. You’re precious for so many reasons, even dangerous ones. What’s wrong with more than one male cherishing and protecting you? The alternative? Once again, you may become a glorified slave to another. Maybe the next Dynasty Vampyr is more dangerous, his tastes extremely… uncomfortable for you. I’m sure you wouldn’t be surprised to find that they’re all known for dark sex, the dangerous kind.”
“I can’t think about your Dynasty right now. As far as you disappearing, that would shatter me. I cannot describe how I would feel over losing you. Even so, women survive loss all the time. Though the thought makes me sick, give me some credit.” She leaned away from him, her heart still thundering. With her funky blood, her physical draw, Blythe didn’t stand a chance in an immortal world without a powerful immortal male backing her up, and it sucked to admit that, even to herself. Her history spoke volumes. At Sixten’s clucking tongue, she snapped, “Okay, I’ll admit that in an immortal world, there are serious holes when true white knights aren’t around.” When he stopped clucking, he delivered a breathtaking half smile. And she still got the sense that he was hiding something majorly important.
