"Quiet!" her mother snapped. "My daughter speaks out of turn, but the question is the same. You turned the human?"
"She was not entirely human, as you well know." My attention shifted to Xavier. "But yes, she survived the transition and is my queen."
Silence reigned in the chamber for several breaths. I looked from one leader to the next, giving everyone time to absorb the information.
"Then I suppose congratulations are in order," Luka said, nodding to one of his guards. The man grunted, and stalked back to the wolf door, and hauled a scrawny man through the opening.
The human was thrown into the center of our circle, where he collapsed, no doubt from the weight of the shackles at his wrists and ankles. Those things could bring down a full werewolf, let alone a mortal.
"Consider him a wedding gift," Luka announced. "We found him scouting the perimeter of our den this evening."
"My lord?" Benedict asked, already stepping forward.
"Go ahead." It was too much of a coincidence not to be connected to the other attacks.
The man looked around the chamber with hard eyes. No fear. No trepidation. No common sense.
"Were you seeking to harm?" Benedict asked, his voice deceptively soft.
"Not by my standard." The man glared up at Benedict through the oily strands of his unwashed hair. His clothes appeared in good condition and were a tactical brand I recognized.
"He's not lying," Benedict said with a scoff. "But he's creative with the truth."
“He knows who you are," Jocelyn noted, moving forward only when her mother gave a nod of agreement.
"Do you?" Benedict asked, his focus solely on the human. "Do you know who I am?"
"I know enough."
"A smart ass, huh? This should be fun." Benedict slipped a knife free and twirled the dagger in obvious threat. "Are you part of the organization that's been targeting royals?”
"I've been sent to deliver a message." The human looked at me with a sinister smile.
"Well, since you came all this way." If the man courted death, I had no problem introducing it to him.
"Your days are numbered." The human glanced around our circle slowly. I would've been impressed by his bravery were I not dumbfounded by his sheer stupidity. Any one of us, including Patrick, could end his life with a flick of a wrist and a honed blade.
“How generic,” Xavier sighed.
"Again," Benedict noted, "he's not lying, so he believes it."
"We will no longer live beneath you or allow others —" his attention snapped toward Patrick — "to make agreements on our behalf. You do not speak for us."
"And who do you speak for?" Benedict asked.
"Those who no longer fear you."
Jocelyn stared at Benedict's exposed forearms, then shook her head back at her mother.
Interesting. "And now that you've delivered your message?" I asked, already thinking of the thousands of ways Hawke could to pick someone apart.
"What you've done is an abomination." he surged against his bonds, but the metal was made for creatures far stronger than he. “She will not be allowed to live!"
Lyric. Whatever group he was a part of somehow knew about Lyric. I bared my fangs, but before I even stood, the man began to shake and foamed at the mouth, falling to his side in a heap.
"Shit," Lachlan muttered.
The sharp scent of poison filled the chamber, and the human’s heart ceased to beat.
Benedict dropped to his haunches and placed two fingers at the man's neck. "He's dead," he confirmed.
"Cyanide. I can smell it," Luka growled.
"Have to give it to the guy. At least he was committed," Xavier said with a slow clap.
"Who would be stupid enough to know about us and not fear us?" Jocelyn asked, her eyes narrowing at Benedict. "Maybe you're broken."
Benedict stood to his full height, which was at least twelve inches taller than the witch. "Excuse me?"
"My eyes are brown," she said loudly.
"Jocelyn!" Genevieve chastised, her knuckles going white on the arms of her chair.
Benedict held out his arm where the words my eyes are brown were now tattooed in scrolling feminine font. "Do not test me, little witch."
The temperature in the chamber dropped ten degrees, and Genevieve rose to her feet.
"Benedict." I gave him a soft but firm warning. We had enough enemies coming at us from the outside. We couldn’t afford to fracture from within.
Jocelyn lifted her chin, revealing a set of lilac-colored eyes just a shade or two lighter than her hair. "You're an ass."
"No harm done there. I only pick up on the lies." He winked at the woman, then walked back to take his place.
I dismissed Conclave as an ill feeling took hold in my stomach. Our enemies weren't just organized. They believed they had the upper hand, which meant they were either incredibly foolish…or right.
Either way, I couldn’t ignore the clawing demand in my blood for my mate. I needed to see that Lyric was safe and the estate hadn’t been breached. We took the cell phone Luka had acquired off the would-be attacker and got the fuck out, leaving Luka to deal with the corpse.
“What are you thinking?” Lachlan asked after we’d wended into the courtyard of the estate.
“Nothing good,” Benedict answered, ripping a hand over his hair.
“Agreed.” At least the bond that connected Lyric and I relaxed slightly now that we were both in the same space, but I felt the rebound coming on. There would be a price for being away from her for even that hour, and already my body was demanding payment. “And he knew about Lyric, which means they have inside information.”
The light, joyful laugh I loved more than life sounded from the end of the courtyard, near the rose garden. Lyric was near. My entire body went tight, and my fangs descended.
“Why warn us?” Lachlan mused, stroking his fingers over his beard. “Why not bite down on that cyanide pill the moment the wolves caught him? Do you honestly believe he wanted to deliver that message?”
Lyric walked at the edge of the garden with Avi and her bodyguard, Olivia, and I saw the exact moment she caught my scent. Her head snapped toward me, and I didn’t have to see that far to know that she was smiling.
“I’m less worried about delivering his little threat than I am about the fact that he was dedicated enough to follow through with the poison rather than let himself be interrogated,” I muttered as Lyric came closer. “Fill Ransom and Hawke in, then tell Ransom to get what he can off the cell phone.” The guy wasn’t just a pretty face, and if there was intel on the device, he’d get it.
With that order given, I walked straight toward my mate.
“Oh no,” Avi said, wiggling her eyebrows at Olivia. “He has that look on his face.”
“What look is—Oh.” Olivia put a hand to her throat.
Lyric’s smile only grew as I approached, not bothering to slow my speed as her breath came in little puffs of steam.
“Mine,” I growled, sweeping her into my arms. She looped her arms around my neck and kissed me, but even that contact wasn’t enough. Fuck, I could feel her hunger.
We weren’t going to make it to the bedroom.
There was no fucking way I was going to let anyone catch even a glimpse of her skin, which meant I needed to get her inside now.
I carried her into the residence, kissing her with every step. Each swirl of her tongue was hotter, each whimper brought me closer to taking her to the ground, and then she nicked my bottom lip with her fang and licked the tiny cut.
“Fuck,” I moaned, pushing open the nearest door. My senses told me we were alone in the…music room? Yep, that was a piano in the corner. A quick thought later, the door was locked, the windows covered, and my hands were up her dress, holding her by her perfectly round, delicious ass.
“You were gone forever,” she whispered, running her tongue over the shell of my ear.
“I hurried back,” I promised. All the bullshit that happened at
Conclave could wait until later. Being inside her was something that had to happen now. “Fuck, were you wearing this when I left?” Her coat hit the floor, and her panties were next.
“You’re wearing too much, now,” she purred in my ear.
Our mouths met in an openly carnal kiss, and I backed her toward the piano. Her hands went to my fly, and my cock sprung free, hard and swollen as I sat on the piano bench, bringing her into my lap.
“Is it always like this?” Lyric asked, bracing my hips with her knees and yanking her dress out of the way. “Like this insatiable need that only burns hotter every time I see you?”
“For mates? I’ve heard it only gets more…intense, but our control might improve.” Hell, yesterday I’d carried her out of the dining room in full view of the dozen or so nobles in town for audiences.
“I’d settle for just a little control,” she whispered, stroking my cock from base to tip.
I groaned and sank two fingers deep inside her. “Control. Is. Overrated.” I punctuated each word with a thrust of my fingers, curling them at her G-spot and working her clit with my thumb. “You’re so fucking hot, so wet for me.”
“Alek…” Her breaths came faster, and she rocked her hips against my hand, chasing her orgasm. Her thighs tensed, and she released my dick only to spear her fingers through my hair as she kissed me long and deep. I captured her scream in my mouth as she came in waves around my fingers.
I slid my fingers from her slick pussy and replaced them with my cock, driving up hard before the last ripples of her orgasm passed.
Here…this was where I could breathe, where I was in her so deep that we branded each other’s souls with more than just the mating marks.
“Feed,” I ordered her, leaning my head to the side as my fingers dug into her hips, pulling her into my thrusts so I could take her harder, deeper. Making love to her was always exquisite, but now that she wasn’t as breakable, we were relentless in our need. I’d always be stronger than she was—that was simply a matter of age and power, but damn if she didn’t keep up stroke for stroke, demanding her fill.
She struck at my throat, her fangs sliding into my vein with a pleasure so sharp it raced down my spine with the force of a tidal wave. The sound of her moan pushed me over the edge, and I came over and over with each pull of her mouth at my neck. Fuck yes.
My body and blood were within her, driving her toward another climax, and the second she sealed the cuts from her bite, I gripped her hair, yanked her head to the side, and struck.
Her cinnamon flavor burst over my tongue, and she came instantly, sucking me deep as we shuddered again and again.
I lapped my tongue over the punctures as we came down.
“Mmm.” Her head fell against my shoulder, and she kissed my neck before letting out a long sigh. “Do you have to go back to being all big and bad and broody tonight?”
There was only an hour or two before sunrise, and until Ransom hacked into that phone, there was nothing else that could be done tonight. Nothing but hold Lyric.
“I’m all yours.” I kissed her lips softly as she lifted her head.
“You don’t have anything more important to do?” She quirked an eyebrow at me.
A wicked grin shaped my lips. “My love, there is never anything as important as doing you.”
Except keeping her alive.
16
Lyric
“Can’t you reschedule?” Alek’s voice was pure gravel as he tangled his fingers in my hair.
A warm shiver danced down my spine, my every instinct purring at the simple touch. It had been like this for days and days. I’d wanted Alek on a near insatiable level when we were mated, but since I’d turned? The hunger for him had mounted to an all-consuming high. I’d never get enough of him. Never stop wanting him, craving him, needing him. Loving him.
“I’ve rescheduled twice already,” I said, sighing as he ran his nose along the seam of my neck. I arched into his body, my instincts roaring to grip his shoulders and walk him back to the bed we’d nearly broken just hours before. “And after all the meetings I missed when I first came here…” My voice trailed off as I slid my hands over his strong chest.
He felt warm and electric under my fingers, and I couldn’t believe how much had changed since I’d first been brought here. Then, I’d thought I’d stumbled into a nightmare and was desperate to escape. Now? God, now I knew fate had always been propelling me toward Alek—all the moving, the foster families passing me from one state to the next, it was all to be here. To come here and find my mate, something I never knew existed but felt so wholly right. My soul complete, thriving, stronger than it ever had been.
“I have meetings,” he growled, planting soft kissing along my jaw that made my knees weak. “And after the attack…I don’t like the idea of you going out without me.”
I leaned into his touch, smoothing my hands over his broad shoulders and reaching up on my tiptoes to capture his lips. His arms snaked around my waist as he hefted me to his level. I kissed him slow and hard and deep, losing myself in him. In the sounds he made when I trailed my tongue along the tips of his fangs. The way his grip tightened when I flicked my tongue along the roof of his mouth. The way he moved without breaking our kiss to lay me on the bed behind us.
“Alek,” I groaned, arching beneath him as he settled between my thighs. I’d donned a pair of jeans tonight, and usually I’d grumble about the barriers between us, but tonight? I needed the extra seconds to clear my head of all the things I wanted to do to him. “Please,” I said, and he paused his teasing of my neck. “I understand you worry, but don’t you trust—” I stopped myself before I said one of his Assassins’ names, the men who’d become my protectors, my friends. While I knew Alek understood my affection toward his brood was completely platonic, it wasn’t a good idea to say another male’s name while sprawled beneath my mate. “Your Assassins,” I said instead. “They won’t let anything happen to me,” I continued. “Plus, I’m vampire now. Stronger. Less breakable.” I used all my newfound strength to propel him to the side, flipping our positions so that I straddled him.
His blue-gray eyes flared at the show of power, though I knew he’d let me move him. “Stubborn queen,” he growled, his fingers sliding up my sides, teasing, torturing as he slipped them under my shirt. He cupped my breasts, rolling and pinching my nipples over the lace of my bra. I rocked over him, feeling his hard-as-granite length through my jeans.
Maybe I didn’t need to have my final meeting with my advisor.
Maybe I didn’t need her to hand me my doctorate.
Maybe nothing mattered but this—Alek’s hands on my skin, his scent in my nose, the way he made me feel powerful and alive and cherished—
“Alek!” I snapped, half-tease half-growl as I hurried off of him and across our chambers. My speed had increased a hundredfold, and I was still getting used to the powers, but Alek? He merely smirked, tracking my movements with the stealth of a predator. “No,” I said, a smile on my lips as I raised a warning hand for him to stay back.
He stopped in his tracks, his eyes churning with challenge.
“I love you,” I said. “But this is the meeting where I get my doctorate.” We’d decided on a small, simple degree exchange over the alternative—walking across a stage during the day. Luckily, tons of students elected to be mailed their diplomas or grab them themselves from campus. It didn’t always have to be a ceremony, but I at least wanted to say goodbye to my advisor, who’d helped me throughout this endeavor. It was likely I’d never see her again, given my newfound role in life. A soft sadness prickled in my chest for the life I was leaving behind, but the future? It was more golden and glorious than I’d ever dreamed. And it was filled with something I’d always wanted—a family. Love. Unconditional and beautiful. “I worked half my human life for this,” I continued, and the hard line of his jaw softened. “I want to close this door with the knowledge that I saw it through, that I earned it. And hopefully, all my studying wil
l come in handy.”
He smiled, tilting his head. “You should be proud,” he said. “I am beyond proud of you. And you’re always…handy,” he said. “You don’t ever need to doubt your worth in my court.”
I nodded. “I know I have worth as your mate, Alek. As your queen. But I want to bring more to the table.” I blew out a breath. “I was speaking with Julian the other day, sharing research as we talked about whatever was on that bullet to keep Lachlan unconscious for so long—”
A low growl cut off my words. Maybe it was the wrong time to bring up the attack, seeing as I was trying to convince him to lessen his control, but I’d never keep anything from him. I raised my brows at him, silently asking him if I could continue. He gave a slow, firm nod.
“Anyway, I was the one who brought it up. I can’t remember which text it is, but I’d come across something in my studies of ancient secret societies who used to experiment with plants and tonics for heinous purposes—whether that be to increase their own physical strength or weaken others. Mainly it was tested against humans, naturally, but some of the effects seemed similar to what Lachlan endured.” I sighed, hating that I’d dismissed the information as just another power-quirk of the group. “Julian was trying to help me track the text down. We’re close. And if I can use my knowledge to help find it, maybe we can find the group, or a similar one copying it, who is carrying out all the attacks.”
Alek visibly swallowed, then took one tentative step toward me.
When I didn’t tell him to stop, he took another one and another until he stood right before me. He sank to his knees, taking my hands in his, and the sight of him there made my entire body tremble. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you,” he said, his voice so much softer than usual. “But I’ll spend the rest of eternity ensuring the fates know how much I’m grateful for being paired with a mate I’m not even close to worthy of.”
Tears filled the backs of my eyes, but I shook my head and bent until we were face to face. I took his in my hands and held his gaze. “Not above,” I said, shaking my head. “Equal. You. Me. Always.” Not that I truly believed I was his equal, but I knew he’d argue if I told him how amazing he was.
Crimson Covenant Page 19
