by Pam Godwin
He was a hybrid. No longer human.
Roark had repeated those words and rubbed my back as I vomited my horror into the snow. Yes, Kip had already turned. Yes, I’d planned to kill him before I got the brainiac idea to save him.
But I couldn’t erase the memory of Salem’s incredulous stare and stiff posture after he watched me reduce the man into ashes. In that moment, I knew exactly what he was thinking. That would be him if he stepped into the sun. That would be him if I bit him.
I expected him to leave, to pack his shit, return to the safety of his utopia, and hope to never see me again. But he didn’t.
Silhouettes paced beyond the crack of the bathroom door. Salem and my fathers congregated in the connecting room, speculating the pros and cons of my bite. Michio did most of the talking, his words too low to carry into the bathroom.
A candle dripped on the vanity, dancing shadows across the cracked tile walls. Michio had carried me in here and filled the tub from the pipes, violating the hot water restriction. It required a lot of energy to heat the tanks, but he deemed this an emergency and demanded I take a bath.
I couldn’t hear Salem amid the murmur of voices, but my fangs were present. We’d tested the metamorphosis of my teeth over the past few weeks and discovered that any of my five senses could trigger the transformation. It was also subconscious. If I felt his touch while I slept, smelled him, heard him, my fangs formed. I didn’t have to be mentally aware for my body to sense him and react. It was a total mind trip.
The sound of Jesse’s voice drew my attention, and I leaned closer to the door, resting my forearms on the ledge of the tub.
“She would never agree to bite us,” he said.
Oh, fuck no. Who the hell even suggested that?
“She doesn’t need to bite us to test the theory.” Michio’s whisper sounded closer to the door. “Everyone in this room carries significant homoplastic traits of a hybrid and if…”
He moved out of hearing range, but I could guess the rest of that sentence because I’d already arrived at the same conclusion. Salem and my fathers might’ve been human, but they shared the same strengths as hybrids. And weaknesses. If I bit them, odds were they would turn to ash.
I slumped into the water, dipping my chin beneath the surface, and massaged my pounding head. My fangs killed hybrids. That would be useful in hand-to-hand combat. But I didn’t have venom in my blood or fangs, nothing to extract and use as a mass weapon.
The fangs meant fuck all. It was the unearthly connections that tripped me up. My bloodlust was linked to Salem. When I bit Kip, the venom in Salem’s veins reacted. How was Salem connected to the hybrids? How was I connected to Salem? I’d shared all of this with him and Michio while waiting for the bath to fill, but they didn’t have answers.
A knock sounded on the door.
“Dawn?” Jesse’s voice drifted through the crack. “How’re you doing?”
“I feel like I’ve been put in time-out.”
He grunted. “You were vomiting and shaking—”
Shadows moved in the crack, followed by Michio’s voice. “There’s food and tea out here. When you come out, make sure you drink both bottles of water. I want you to sleep—”
“Wait.” I sat up, splashing the water over the edge. “Are you leaving?”
“You need to rest.” Michio sighed, his tone softening. “I love you, and right now, my priority is your mental and physical wellbeing. Eat, get some sleep, and find us when you wake.”
Was it even time to sleep? The sun set around four o’clock. It was probably six now. But I’d been sleeping during the day with Salem. Except I didn’t today. I’d slipped away to see the sun.
“Okay.” I gathered my wet hair over my shoulder. “Love you, too.”
I considered letting the water out of the tub, but it was still warm. Maybe Salem would indulge in this rare treat with me. I waited for the retreat of footsteps, the dimming of voices, and the click of the exterior door. A moment later, he stepped into the bathroom.
He paused beside the tub, fingertips resting in the front pockets of his fitted trousers. The weight of his hands inched the waistband low enough to give me a glimpse of smooth skin and carved abs. Heavy stitching detailed the shirt that hung over his torso in shades of black. Thick leather cuffs encased his wrists.
I wasn’t the only one who’d acquired a new wardrobe from the resident seamstresses. The whole outfit accentuated his sleek muscles, dangerous power, and lickable fanged mouth. If those women couldn’t resist taking his measurements, dressing him up, and drooling over the sexy result, I didn’t blame them one bit.
Leaning back in the tub, I met his arctic eyes. “My fathers left you alone with their naked daughter.”
“We’ve been sharing a room for three weeks.”
“But they sleep on the opposite side of the hospital and don’t have to think about it.” I ran my palms over my thighs. “They knew you’d come in here after they left. Did they tell you to keep your hands to yourself?”
“No.” He perched on the edge of the tub and tested the water with a finger. “If they had, I wouldn’t have been able to give a convincing argument.”
He grabbed my hand and pressed it against the hard length in his pants. I tightened my fingers around him, and a torrent of heat rushed between my legs.
“After seeing your gorgeous ass in battle,” he said, low and gravelly, his cock twitching in my hand, “watching you expertly handle that bow, and knowing the most beautiful woman alive was nude and waiting one room away, it was all I could do to not shove your fathers out the damn door.”
My toes curled. His compliment on my weaponry skills meant more to me than his assessment of my looks. I’d trained my entire life to be as efficient with the bow as Jesse, and while I was nowhere near his level, I appreciated Salem’s praise.
“Sixteen hybrids are dead.” I moved my fingers to the button on his pants. “Most of them fell beneath the spike of a cannibal club.”
“Maybe so, but you were incredible out there, Dawn.”
My faced heated beneath his gaze. “Join me in the bath.” I peered up at him through my eyelashes, fumbling with his fly.
He caught my hands, his eyes smoldering and mouth parting. I wanted to lick the fangs that dimpled that devious, sexy-as-hell bottom lip. More than that, I wanted to bite that lip and suck the fuck out of it.
“We’re not having sex.” He stood and pulled off his shirt.
My stomach clenched. “Is this about what happened with Kip?”
“No.” He removed his pants, holding my gaze. “I’m faster and stronger than you. You don’t need to worry your pretty head about biting me.”
“Then we’re having sex.”
I didn’t want to beg, but his cock was right there, huge and long and beautiful. I never thought I’d stare at a man’s genitalia with such awe and hunger, but it really was a magnificent cock. Thick and hard and capable of giving so much pleasure, it was an extension of his allure, a symbol of the overwhelming effect he had on me.
He slipped into the tub behind me and positioned me to lie back on his chest and thighs. His mouth touched my ear, caressing my skin with a seductive breath. “Relax.”
Relax? With his erection sliding against my pussy? I reached between my legs and gripped his shaft. My inner muscles throbbed in anticipation as I positioned him at my opening.
His fingers shackled my wrists and pinned them at my sides. “Behave.”
“Why?” I ground against his cock, but there was no leverage in this position.
“If I make love to you, I’ll bite you, and I’ve already bitten you today.”
Make love. Did I hear him right? Did he even realize he said it? The question hung on my tongue, but I decided not to make a big deal out of it, afraid he’d tell me he didn’t mean it.
“You bite me multiple times a day all the time.” I angled my neck to see his eyes. “It’s just a sip.”
“Don’t move your hands.” He
released my wrists and trailed his fingers along my hips, drifting up my chest, his breath warm and erotic against my neck. “You had a traumatic night.” His lips brushed the sensitive spot beneath my ear, licking, nibbling, as he cupped and kneaded my breasts. “I’m going to make you come. Then you’re going to sleep and be peaceful.”
“What about you? I want to—”
His fingers slipped through my folds and penetrated me knuckles-deep. I moaned and dug my nails into the hard flanks of his ass, jerking my hips against the thrust of his hand. The water slapped the walls of the tub, his bicep flexing as he worked me into a panting, heaving puddle of lust.
He ground his cock against my ass, and his breathing quickened, the stroke of his fingers growing harder, sinking deeper.
“Ah, Salem.” I was primed and swollen, pulsing and ready to explode. “I’m there. Right there.”
He shifted his thumb, circling it against my clit, and I came undone. Electricity burst through my core and rippled through my body in sparks of scorching heat. I shouted his name, twitching and writhing and choking on my breaths.
My brain turned to pulp, my body boneless and humming with tingles. Fuck, that was good. So good I couldn’t imagine living without it.
When I caught my breath, I lazily rolled over to face him. “Your turn—”
“No.” He captured my mouth in a gentle kiss, leisurely licking, his tongue plunging and rubbing against mine. Then he kissed a path across my cheek and whispered at my ear, “I never thought I’d live to see the dawn.” He cupped my jaw and held my face inches from his. “Absolutely breathtaking.”
My heart skipped. This man and his words.
“You have no idea how happy you make me.” He guided my cheek to his chest and stroked my hair.
“You make me happy, too.” Impossibly so. I didn’t want to lose him.
His cock was still hard, but the water was cooling, and he was already moving to pull the plug. We dried off. I drank the bottled water and picked at the roasted radishes and nuts. Then we blew out the candles and curled up on the small mattress in our makeshift room.
Boards covered the window to prevent light from sneaking in. Layers of wool wrapped us in a tangle of shared body heat. Thanks to that delicious orgasm, my muscles were loose and languid, my insides uncoiled. Calm. Drowsy. Peaceful. Exactly how Salem wanted me, the generous bastard.
I think I love him.
“You’re coming home to Alberta with me,” he breathed against my hair.
My eyes popped open, unseeing in the dark. What about my fathers? The Resistance? My fangs? How well do I even know you? “Are you telling me what to do?”
“You’re coming home with me?”
“You can’t just raise the pitch of your voice at the end and make it a question.”
“So it’s settled. We leave tomorrow at dusk.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Despite the satisfied state of my body, sleep didn’t come easily. When I finally succumbed, slumber was as restless and wary as my thoughts. I drifted in and out of consciousness, obsessing over my confusing feelings about Salem, my purpose as Eve’s daughter, and where to go from here. A few hours later, I gave up on the nap and untangled my limbs from Salem’s warmth.
He rolled to his back, and his shadowed hand reached for my face, tenderly caressing my cheek. “Do you want to talk about it?”
A conversation was exactly what I wanted. With the three people I trusted most.
I rose from the mattress and pulled on my clothes in the frigid darkness. “I’m going for a walk.”
The bedding rustled with his movement.
“Alone,” I said. “I can’t think in the presence of all your…sexiness.”
He laughed. “Now you know how I feel.”
Dressed in a simple shirt and trousers, I shoved on the boots and buckled my mother’s dagger to my belt. “I won’t be long.”
I left him with a kiss full of promise and made my way through the lower level of the old hospital, sans fangs.
The maze of corridors stretched into darkness, and a strange odor emanated from some unknown source. Maybe mold in the peeling wallpaper? Or rotting wood beneath the chipped linoleum floors? I snagged a candle from a wobbly table and lit the wick.
The flame cast an eerie glow through the graffiti-painted hall. Aphids are near spanned one wall from floor to ceiling, the drippy words faded from twenty years of wear. I turned the corner, shivering at the array of messages spray-painted in hurried handwriting.
They will hear you.
Have you seen my little girl?
I didn’t want to die.
I’d encountered a lot of desperate graffiti in my travels across North America, all chilling reminders that the world had plunged into ten kinds of crazy when the virus hit.
Broken hospital equipment and the rusted metal bed frames lined the corridors. No people. It must’ve been around ten o’clock. Most of the residents would’ve been tucked into their rooms for the night. Ten of my soldiers would be patrolling the perimeter of the camp, ready to come off their eight-hour rotation.
Up ahead, one of my men stepped in from outside and stomped the snow from his boots. When he spotted my approach, his posture straightened, shoulders back, and head lowered. “Ma’am.”
“At ease, soldier.” I closed the distance. “Are my fathers out there?”
“No, ma’am.” His bearing relaxed. “They came in about twenty minutes ago. Check the meeting room.”
“Thanks.” I headed toward the west wing of the L-shaped building.
A few minutes later, I entered what had once been a hospital conference room. Illuminated by several kerosene lamps, Roark and Link bent over a long table covered in maps. Empty bottles of Bushmills held down the corners of the drawing they were discussing.
Link’s wrinkly bald head popped up, his smile partially obscured by a grizzly beard. “Hey there, Mini Evie.”
“Hey yourself, old man.” I set the candle on the table. “What are you looking at?”
Roark lifted an arm, a silent invitation to dive in for a hug.
I pressed against his side, slipped my hand around his broad back, and stared down at the map of the Yukon Territory. A trail of X’s followed the Yukon River and marked paths north and south.
“You’re supposed to be resting.” Roark kissed my head.
“Couldn’t sleep.” I traced the scribbles on the map. “You’re going to look for the mansion?”
“Aye. Salem drew his route from Alberta.” Roark roamed a finger along the map, his accent deep and tired. “To his end point here. We’ll start with his directions since the hybrids that chased ye and Jeremy made a complete haymes of yours.”
Link folded his arms across his chest, black eyes pointed at me. “You didn’t seem too confident about the path you took through the woods.”
I studied the map and shook my head. “No, you’re right. The mansion could be in any direction from this point.” I tapped the shaded area on the faded paper and pulled my hand away. “I don’t want to go back there. Just let it go, Da. We’ll—”
“Feck no.” Roark’s eyes hardened into emeralds in the soft light. “Those fangers held ye for ten bloody days, and I want to know why.” The snarl in his accent and tension in his jaw told me he didn’t just want to interrogate them. He intended to kill them. “Ye and Eddie will take half of the soldiers with ye back to the dam.” Roark glared at the map. “The rest will come with us.”
Us meaning all my fathers. They never traveled without one another.
The thought of returning to the dam without Salem produced a stabbing ache in my chest. His demand to bring me home with him was one of the reasons I couldn’t sleep. I should’ve outright rejected the idea of going to Alberta, but I hadn’t, and that confused the fuck out of me.
“Where’s Michio and Jesse?” I asked.
“Ye just missed them.” Roark glanced at the door. “They should be in our room.” His eyes narrowed on my face
. “What’s wrong?”
“I need some advice.” I stole a glance at Link and returned to Roark. “Can we talk? In your room?”
“That rings of boy trouble.” Link smirked. “This is why I never had kids.”
I flipped him the finger.
“Den’ know wha’ you’re missing, ye ugly dosser.” Roark slapped Link on the back.
“I’ll take your word for it.” Link’s chuckle followed us into the corridor.
A short walk down the hall led us to the room my fathers shared. The door stood slightly ajar, illuminated by the soft glow within.
“Father Roark?” One of the female residents poked her head out of the room across the hall. “Can I trouble you to help me move my mattress? There’s a draft, and I’m having a hard time sleeping.”
Her silk robe slipped off her shoulder, and she didn’t bother adjusting it. She didn’t try to hide the perusal of her gaze up and down his body either.
Disgusting. The girl wasn’t much older than me and was more than capable of moving a mattress by her own damn self. I gave her the stink eye, but she didn’t notice. She was too busy eye-fucking my dad.
“I’ll just be a second,” Roark said to me and stepped into the woman’s room.
If she touched him… Ugh. It wasn’t my concern. I spun, shoved through the door of my fathers’ room, and slammed to a stop.
Michio held Jesse against the wall, breathing heavily, chest to chest, with his face buried in Jesse’s neck. Both were fully clothed, but Jesse’s hands were between them, gripping, stroking, and—
I gasped, stumbled backward, and ran into the door.
They flew apart, and I dashed toward the corridor.
“I’m sorry.” Fuck, fuck, fuck. “I should’ve knocked.”
In the hall, I shut the door behind me and slumped against it, cursing my stupidity. I pressed my cold fingers against my flushed cheeks and startled when Roark emerged from the room across from me.
Hands on his hips, he squinted at my expression. “Ye look mortified. Wha’ did ye—?” His gaze floated to the door behind me. “Oh.” A smile struggled to break free on his lips, and he rubbed a hand over it. “They were supposed to wait for me.”
