Kindred (Kindred, Book 1)

by Nicola Claire

  You see, even though Maximilian is an evil bastard I wouldn't trust as far as I could throw him, he had given me 48 hours and he would abide by that, or as close to it as he could. We may not have had an accord, a blood binding agreement, but a vampire is, among other things, true to his word, when a challenge has been set. It's something so deeply within them, from centuries of having to survive against mankind's pursuit of them. Without a strong sense of morals, albeit deeply cruel and sadistic morals, at times, they would not have been able to survive. Wiped out before the Reformation no doubt.

  Jock continued to summarise the plan for tomorrow. “They will be met by your ghouls, Michel, at the wharf?”

  “Yes. I will also have some of my own nearby to relay information on their progress to us. They are outnumbered, but they will delay their march into the city as best they can.”

  “Where will we meet them?” Enrique this time.

  “Here. We can contain them quite well within this building, minimise their spread throughout the city.”

  “It is not the city that you should concern yourself with, mio caro. Protecting innocents is a waste of your time.”

  Why didn't it surprise me that the bitch would be old school. Michel simply inclined his head and replied in an even tone, “It is my city, dolce.”

  She smiled a sickly sweet smile and continued to stroke his hair. “As you wish, mio caro.”

  I was getting a bit sick of all this lovey-dovey endearment crap going back and forth between them, it really wasn't doing any good for my foul mood. It was high time to enter into this conversation, I was never very good at being just a spectator.

  “We'll also have the Taniwhas.”

  Everything went dead quiet, you could have heard the old proverbial pin drop, it was so still. Not a vampire moving, breathing, you know their preternatural calm, but thrumming behind it a foreboding sense of threatening power. Oh great. I reached into my jacket to feel the familiar shape of my spare stake to calm my rapidly climbing heartbeat.

  “Whatever do you mean, Lucinda?” Michel's eyes pierced mine in a not at all friendly stare. I forced myself not to swallow and took a steady breath in while never looking away from the challenge in his deep blue and indigo swirling eyes.

  “They have agreed to fight along side me.” I thought it best not to say along side us, I had a strong sense that that would not be welcome for some reason. I hadn't realised that there was bad blood between the Taniwhas and vampires, but obviously something was not quite right in this room right now and I didn't want to chance my luck.

  “Your hunter has been doing things behind your back, mio caro,” she said it in a teasing purr, but the undercurrent of tension in the room ratcheted up a notch or three.

  Michel abruptly stood and the Sanguis Vitam rolling off him was unfathomable.

  “Leave.”

  The vampires were a blur as they streaked out the door, I stood to leave as well, assuming the command was for all of us, but Michel growled, “Not you, Lucinda. You stay.”

  He stalked toward the door and shut it swiftly then waved his hand in a movement in the air, power rippled from the motion outwards around the room. He had sealed us in, nothing we said, or did – and I swallowed deeply at the thought of that – could be heard or felt outside these walls.

  I was trapped. And the vampire before me was not happy.

  Chapter 14

  Yes or No

  Michel turned slowly from the closed door and looked at me. He visibly calmed himself with a deep breath in. He didn't need to breathe to survive, but sometimes that old familiar feeling of it could be a balm, I suppose.

  “You should take more care, ma douce. Alessandra does not like competition. She would consider it a joy to take issue with your impertinence.”

  Of all the things he could have chastised me over and oh I knew he was chastising me, I hadn't expected that. Even the use of his pet name for me again, did not assuage the slight ball of fear I felt at the look of him. His eyes were blazing the most incredible purple, a colour I was only too aware of as being a sign of his barely controlled power.

  He stalked closer to me and came to rest not a bare foot away. The smell of him in the closed space between us was heady, I fought to keep myself under control. Now was not the time to lose it with a very angry vampire in front of me.

  He suddenly reached up and stroked my face with the backs of his fingers on his right hand. “What have you done, ma douce? Entered into an agreement with the Taniwhas?” His eyes flashed as he said Taniwhas, but were soon back to just a deep blue with flecks of indigo. He was controlling himself well.

  “I only reconfirmed an old alliance, Michel. This is my city too.”

  A brief smile fluttered across his lips and then was replaced with a more firm expression, but I got the feeling that the storm had passed, he wasn't going to lose his temper with me now. Thank God.

  “You are always so full of surprises. I should not have expected otherwise. Shifters?” He let a little laugh out. “First you make me sell my soul to the ghouls and now you bring Taniwhas into it. Do you have no care for my reputation at all?” The smile was back, a mock look of shock on his face. I couldn't help it, I smiled too.

  And then I pushed him away. “What was all that power crap about? You didn't even stop her!”

  He looked aggrieved. “Surely you understand the necessity for me to remain impassive, implacable, in front of equals of my kind?” He took a step toward me, but I mirrored the action with a step back. His face fell, followed by a return to his usually well controlled mask of calm. “You are mine, Lucinda and as such you do not have a right to challenge me or my guests, nor do you receive special treatment just for being my kindred immature Nosferatin.”

  “Immature?” I spluttered. How dare he?

  “You know what I mean!” Equally as outraged, the anger returning to his features, the power starting to accumulate around him. “You are not considered mature until you turn 25 and come into your powers in full, until then, you are a servant and nothing more.”

  “Damn you, Michel! I am no-one's servant!” I actually glared at him then. Without even thinking about what I was doing, I pulled my spare stake out of my jacket and took a step towards him.

  Purple eyes flashed at me as he moved so quickly I didn't even see the blur. Instantly he was behind me breathing down my neck. “You mean to use that on me, my dear.”

  I swirled around to face him with the stake half raised. He'd gone, moved somewhere else. I spun in a 360 trying to see where he was. Nowhere. I was alone in the room, or so it seemed. I slowly glanced up at the ceiling, I did not want to see him doing a bat impersonation, but you never know. Nope, not there. After a full minute of looking about me like some demonic bubble head toy, I gave up and lowered the stake.

  Instantly he was in front of me, I swear, just appearing out of thin air. He thought he had me, I could tell. He wore that smirk, you know the one that says: You gave up? Silly little girl. But he hadn't counted on the years of play fighting with the Taniwhas. I sprang forward and just as the realisation hit him I noticed a look of surprise, but I had already slid between his legs feet first, before seeing anything else register on that beautiful face and came up behind him, stake resting against the back of his suit jacket, not piercing material or skin, but digging in all the same. Hell, even I was surprised at the move. Go me.

  Of course that sense of triumph didn't last long. He vanished and reappeared over my shoulder, one arm around my upper body pinning my arms, the other stroking my head and hair, his fangs against the softest part of my neck sending shockwaves of pleasure down my body. “If you want me dead, my dear, I suggest you follow through when you get the chance, I will not lower my guard again.” His voice was pure silk, teasing my senses. I struggled against his hold. “Tsk, tsk, you do not take losing well, do you, my little hunter.”

  “I. Am. Not. Your. Little. Hunter.” My voice was even, strong, despite my heartbeat thrumming through my en
tire body. He would have been able to hear it, he certainly could feel it in the pulse at the base of my neck where his lips rested and his fangs lightly dug in.

  He laughed at that, a throaty masculine sound I felt right through to the depths of my being. “You are feisty, I shall enjoy our joining immensely.”

  Now, I know to a vampire, this little exchange we'd been having, had been nothing but a bit of fun, something to make the blood pump, to get the juices flowing, so to speak. And it was abundantly clear to me right now, from the feel of Michel's hard length against my body, that he was enjoying this immensely, but I was really angry with that last comment. So much so, that a sense of real calm had stolen over me, shielding me and hardening my heart.

  So, this was how it really was? I had no choice in this, he had decided it for me and to top it all off, he thought I was nothing but an annoying immature problem to boss around and command at will. I felt hollow inside. In all my previous imaginings of working alongside Michel, I had never considered this depth of betrayal. It had never crossed my mind that he would be so cold, so mechanical. Stupid. Stupid. Me.

  I turned abruptly from him and he surprisingly loosened his hold, letting me go. I ran to the door of his office. I had no intention of remaining in this room with him, my heart trampled all over the floor. Before I could even get my hand on the handle, he spun me around and pressed me against the wood of the door. His body moulding into the length of mine, warmth wrapping around me and surrounding my senses, his smell making my mind go to mush.

  “Wh... what are you doing?”

  “What I should have done a long time ago,” he husked and his mouth met mine in brutal possession.

  His skin was hot against me, his fingers holding me rigid at my sides. Slowly his tongue parted my lips and I tried to turn my head, he growled and brought his hands up to my face, caressing the sides and turning me back towards him. I couldn't think, I could hardly breathe, he felt so good, so right, but I so did not want to give in to him. He was the enemy after all. But my body was on automatic, I felt slightly removed from the scene playing out in front of me, and then he gently bit my lip and the flood of sensations that that brought was overwhelming. I whimpered and his body responded to that sound, pushing closer, lips moving from mine to cover my face and neck. Without even realising it I had moved my hands up to his hair, feeling the silky length of it through my fingers, revelling in the shine that glinted in the lights of the room.

  His mouth found mine again and this time I didn't fight it, I let him in and gave every ounce of myself back. He groaned against me, pressing his leg between my thighs. I had no idea where this response of mine was coming from, where this hunger and need originated, but I couldn't deny it any longer. I couldn't fight it any more. And I couldn't get enough of him. I was practically crawling up his body, clutching at him, devouring him with an intensity that would have shocked me if I paused to consider just who I was doing this with. He met my demand with one as fierce as his own. Stroking my sides and kissing my ears, neck, face, and upper chest. I couldn't feel a spot on my entire body where he did not reach me.

  I had never felt this level or strength of longing before, this need so deep it felt a part of my soul. I'm not a prude, I've had boyfriends in the past, mainly when I was a teenager back on the farm. Rolling in the hay has featured in my youth, but nothing, nothing, compared to this. I felt as though I would simply die if I didn't get closer to him.

  Michel swiftly picked me up and carried me to a large couch in the corner of his office and lay me gently down onto it. He just stood there a moment and gazed down on me, devouring me with his look. The need I felt, reflected in his eyes. He licked his lips and knelt down beside me, then began kissing my neck, my clavicle and towards my breasts. His fingers finding my nipples through my shirt, making them rise with one swift tease of his thumb, swiftly followed by his mouth and tongue through the thin material of my top. I arched my back towards him, but he continued to move his hands down my side exploring through my clothes with those deft fingers, distracting me from my movements.

  He reached the bottom of my skirt and brought his hand back up under it to rest on my rear, kneading with his fingers through my tights. His eyes, when he returned from investigating my breasts, were alight with purple swirls, deeper than I had ever seen before. I experienced a moment of panic which faded as soon as his lips found mine again. His upper body pressing me into the couch, his hands stroking, kneading in places they really shouldn't have been, but were crying out for his touch anyway.

  When he started to remove my tights I felt a sense of clearness break through the fog of my desire, snapping me awake, reluctantly from a blissful dream. I started pushing against him, at first unable to make a dent, he was so strong and too aroused to notice, but I managed a half-hearted plea. “Michel, stop.”

  He didn't, but kept kissing and nibbling and stroking. I almost let him keep going as I swiftly returned to that haze of pleasure, but a small part of me was still trying to take back control and I managed a much firmer, “Stop!”

  He heard me that time and pulled back, the desire and lust in his eyes flabbergasting. “Stop?” he asked breathlessly. “You could not be so cruel, ma douce.” The accent undeniable. But he didn't make a move to come closer, his hands stilled at my sides, his face flushed.

  When I didn't answer or pull him closer, he rose quickly and stepped away. He turned and walked to the far wall, as though he couldn't bear looking at me. I felt momentarily hurt until his husky voice, slightly broken, said, “You had best straighten yourself up if you wish no further pursuit of this pleasurable activity tonight. The sight of you lying there so ready, so inviting, is too much even for my self control, my dear.”

  I hesitated briefly and then quickly sat up and brushed myself down. It took a bit of straightening, things had gotten a little twisted and out of place, but I had myself looking respectable by the time he turned back around. There was still a purple glaze in his eyes, a slight flush to his features. I dreaded to think what I looked like.

  He stood still and looked at me, a rueful smile on his face.

  “Your anger has long been my aphrodisiac, ma douce. There is nothing more desirable than a woman who can stand up for herself. You are beauty personified when in a rage. I would not have you any other way, but you must take care,” - he chuckled then- “not only from my fervent advances, but from those like Alessandra, who would devour you in a much more unpleasant way.”

  I swallowed. I couldn't find a coherent sentence in my head, my emotions were tumbling so beautifully inside my mind. He walked over, all sensual glide and lithe movements. I licked my lips before I could help myself. He groaned as he knelt in front of me and reached for my hands.

  “You want this as much as I do, Lucinda. It calls to you too. Why deny it, we are meant to be together.” Husky, inviting, reeling me in.

  “I am not your servant, Michel.” I was unbelievably relieved to have found my voice again and didn't even mind that it cracked a little at the end.

  He stroked my face, my neck. “Your scent calls to me, ma douce, like a beautiful wine.”

  “That isn't an answer, Michel.”

  “I wasn't aware you had offered a question.”

  “Why do you call me your servant and then tell me with such passion we are meant to be together?”

  He looked me in the eyes, his own blue and indigo, forcing out the deep purple of before, but haunts of the colour remained. “I am what I am, Lucinda. We vampyre are extremely territorial. The exchange with Enrique and even Alessandra to a certain extent, had all but released the beast within. You could never be my servant and my heart knows this, but my vampyre mind does not acquiesce so easily.”

  My heart skipped a beat. My throat was suddenly dry. Was this even happening? Part of me knew I should be addressing the I shall enjoy our joining immensely bit, but a stronger part was simply pushing that aside. The part that purred and reared its head in longing when I looked into his
eyes.

  “Of course, we could make things so much more uncomplicated, ma douce.”

  “Uncomplicated?” Did I really want to know?

  “You could join with me now and even as an immature Nosferatin you would warrant respect from my guests and equal standing in the room. Your protection would be assured.”

  “And no doubt your powers would come into their bonus straight away?”

  “Yes. I would be the most powerful vampyre here. But you would be safe.”

  “Would I have my powers?” I couldn't believe I was actually contemplating this after everything we had just been through, there was still so much I didn't understand and time was running out. I felt a little panicked at the thought.

  “No.” He looked sad, I'm sure it was just for show. “Your powers would not arrive until your 25 birthday.”

  I just stared at him, but he went on not fazed. “Of course, it may also be enough to dissuade Maximilian from his claim and prevent him from starting war on our lands. He would be a fool to come against me when I have a Nosferatin at my side.”

  I chose to ignore the a Nosferatin part and concentrated on the rest. “Do you really think that that would stop him? He's just off our shores and gone to a lot of trouble. It would be embarrassing for him to step down, wouldn't it?”

  “He would be a fool to continue, but yes, it would be unlikely he could step down, so far along this path already.”

  “There's one more thing you haven't mentioned, Michel. I would be as weak as I am now.”

  “You are not weak, ma douce!” he interjected.

  “You know what I mean. If things go wrong I wouldn't be able to protect myself, not as well as if I had my powers anyway. He could still kill me.”

  “I would not let it happen!”

  I reached up and stroked his face, that beautiful face so full of conviction and something more, something that I had not allowed myself to see before, but refused to acknowledge even now.