Virgin Blood Bundle

by Riley, Alexa

  “Don’t even think about running away from me. That story is getting old around here.” I smile up at him, thinking I could spend forever just like this.

  “I never want to go anywhere.” I trail my hands up his chest into his dark short hair. “I just don’t want more people getting hurt because of me. What if he comes after you and—” He cuts me off with a kiss so deep and sweet that it makes my whole body come alive. I moan into his mouth and wrap my legs around him. The pleasure of the night before floods my mind and I want to do those things all over again.

  I’ll never leave you. His words float into my mind. That’s going to take some time getting used to. And I’ll never leave you, I send back without having to use words. Our connection is already so deep, and maybe that’s because it was there long before we knew it.

  He nips at my lip before he leans back and pulls me up with him so I’m straddling his lap.

  “He’ll come,” I say, knowing this for a fact. I woke up with a fear that I might have brought Gordon right to Bishop’s doorstep. Then I remembered I wasn't alone any longer. Whatever’s coming, Bishop and I will face it together.

  “I don’t blame him. I wouldn’t let you go either.” He gives me a cocky smile.

  “Bishop, I’m serious.” His hand comes up to my chin to make me look at him. He always wants our eyes meeting.

  “I know, and I’ll deal with it. It’s better he comes here, and besides, this is long overdue.”

  “You’re going to kill him.” For someone who doesn't want anyone else to die, I don’t say a word in Gordon’s defense.

  “I should have done it a long time ago, but there’s always an order to things. When the council found him again he slipped away and has only come closer now.”

  “When we moved here?” I ask, and he nods.

  “Gordon has always been a little crazy. Even before he was turned, he craved the darker things in life. Some men relish the power of evil.” He closes his eyes for a moment, shaking his head.

  “You’re powerful.” I can feel it and I don’t know if it’s because we’ve mated now or it’s an aura he gives off. It’s not only power but it’s strength and protection, too.

  “Some people would say I am.”

  “But it’s not something you asked for or wanted,” I finish for him.

  “Correct. I took on the role to oversee the area and have other leaders report back to me.” He shrugs as if it’s no big deal that he’s some kind of vampire leader. “I knew that my intentions would stay pure, and that doesn’t always happen with vampires.”

  “Gordon told me he worked for the government. He said he was doing what he had to for the greater good.” I feel shame that I didn’t see through it all even if he was using mind tricks on me.

  “Don’t do that, love.” Bishop leans in and brushes his lips against mine. “This isn’t on you. You were only a child when he took you and he played with your head. Trust me, I know. His powers don’t work on me and he had me fooled. The only greater good Gordon strives for is his own.”

  “Is that why he hates you? Because you could see who he really was?” I ask, because that’s the moment he finally lashed out at me. Even with my mind clear now, I’m still shocked he struck me. He’d never hurt me in all the time I was with him. I think on some twisted level he does care about me, but not in a fatherly way. I’m a prized pet to him and nothing more.

  “I took something from him that he wanted, so he tried to do the same.”

  “He took me from you.”

  “You were no secret back then. I was young when I knew Gordon. Everyone knew I was looking for you and I made no secret of it. That was until I realized it could be used against me. I never thought…” He lets out a deep growl. “I never thought that he would start killing women who could potentially be my mate. I think he knew all of them weren’t you. Your hair, those eyes, and this…” He leans down, kissing my birthmark. “It’s all one of a kind. He just enjoyed antagonizing me and letting me know he was hunting you. Every time I got close to him he’d disappear again.” His drops his forehead to rest on mine. “I think when he found you his plans changed and he thought it better to turn you against me. He tried to make you hate me, but Gordon never understood mates. He thought they made vampires weak.”

  “I don’t feel weak. I did when I was with him. I felt lost and unsure of everything,” I admit. “He doesn't understand the power of mates because they make you stronger.”

  To have someone at your side who is your other half and who would stand by you forever is beyond powerful. That could never be weak. I’m more alive now than I’ve been in my whole life.

  “I think his mind tricks quit working on me when we moved here. I know this sounds crazy, but I think being closer to you made me stronger. It wasn’t working anymore and I started to see the reality of what was around me.”

  Bishop lets out a deep breath. “I think you might be right. Over the last year I’ve changed. I was more on edge and I thought I was losing my mind and that my end was coming. Maybe it was, but my dreams of you were clearer than ever and you felt closer. I thought I was going to meet you on the other side and I was ready to go.”

  “No!” I gasp, unable to think about him dying. I hate the idea of him no longer being here. His words are dark but tell how much he needs me. Maybe it’s wrong of me to like that, but I don’t care. The idea of never getting to be with him, even if only for one night, is too painful to think about.

  “It’s not going to be only one night, love. I promise you that. After so many years of dreaming of you and never finding you, I thought maybe you’d already passed and were waiting for me on the other side. I wanted to be anywhere you were, even if that place was death.” I close my eyes and absorb his words. “You feel that, don’t you? I’ll follow anywhere you go. You’re mine, Loren, and he won’t take you from me again.” I open my eyes and a tear slips free. I can feel just how deeply he loves me. Bishop kisses it away and I know he feels everything that’s inside me now.

  All those times I gazed at his picture I was so unsure of what was happening to me. I didn’t know what it was because I’d never experienced it before. But this whole time it was love.

  “Make love to me,” I say against his mouth as I lean in for another kiss. His mouth meets mine for the briefest of moments before he pulls away.

  “I should have known,” he growls, flipping me over onto the soft mattress, but he’s gone from the bed before I can try to grab for him. I watch as he dresses so quickly I can’t make out what he’s doing. “He’s coming. I thought he’d regroup, but it looks like he is striking as fast as he can. I should have known never to try and predict the insanity of a man like Gordon.” He kisses me again before I can respond. “I would tell you to stay put, but I know you won’t and I can’t lock you away like he did.”

  I dress quickly in one of Bishop’s shirts. It hangs to my knees, but I want nothing to do with the dress that is stained in my own blood from when Gordon hit me. I don’t want anything from that past life to ever touch me again.

  I take Bishop’s hand and he leads me out of the bedroom.

  “Is he alone?” I ask, knowing that Bishop will be able to tell.

  “Most of his people were taken out in the explosions. I called for a sweep to be done of Gordon’s home right before I entered to find you.”

  I bet Gordon was the first one out of there and he left his men behind. I have no doubt if something happened like that here, Bishop would be the last man out. The two of them are night and day.

  When we get to the bottom of the stairs I look over to see everyone from last night with the exception of Dove and Juliet. My chest warms that they’re all here to lend a hand in what’s about to happen.

  “I can’t believe the dumb fuck came alone,” one of the twins says before shooting me a wink. “I’m Erik, by the way.” He points to his brother. “That’s Ezra. I—”

  “We—” Ezra cuts in.

  Erik shakes his head
at his brother. “We wanted to thank you for helping Dove get back to us. We’ll never be able to repay you for what you did. Welcome to our family.” They both smile at me, and I nod.

  “It was the right thing to do,” I tell them, needing no thanks. “I should have gone with her.” I think back on that moment and I know even if I left then it wouldn’t have stopped all of this.

  “You’re here now and that's all that matters.” Bishop pulls me into his side and kisses me on the top of my head. He lingers for a moment and I know he’s breathing me in.

  The tall brunette vampire Ravana is smiling at us. “I guess that makes you my aunt then,” she says, and I look up at Bishop, unsure of what she means. Are they related?

  “It would,” he agrees with a small chuckle.

  “Shall I do the honors?” Valen asks. I can sense that he’s human and it has to be my mating bond with Bishop. “It’s my job, after all.”

  “Don’t remind us, slayer,” Kane says. “I know you’re hiding in the hall closet,” he adds with a growling shout out of nowhere, glancing towards a door that's a little ways down the hallway.

  “Damn it, Kane, now they’re going to come out!” Ezra yells at him as he throws up one of his hands. I glance between them all wondering what they are talking about.

  “I don’t understand how she doesn't think I know exactly where she is at all times,” Kane responds, but I think more to himself than to Ezra. The closet door opens and Dove and Juliet pop out.

  “He’s here,” Bishop says, walking towards the front door and taking me with him.

  “Back in the closet,” Ezra tells the girls. I don’t turn to see if they do as they are told, but I hear a door close. “I’m going to enjoy spanking her ass later for that,” he mutters to his twin. They are both mated to her, and I wonder how something like that works. I think I’d be crazy jealous to share Bishop.

  “You will never have to,” he whispers in my ear, reading my thoughts. “I belong to you alone.” I glance over at him. How can it only have been hours that I’ve come to really know him but feel as if he’s been a part of me my whole life? Because I have. As you have been in mine. His words float through my mind and I know he’s right.

  “Bishop!” Gordon yells, and my attention is snatched away from my mate.

  I watch as he comes walking out of the darkness towards us. I’ve never seen him look so out of sorts. The moon is high and bright, lighting up the night. The man I once called Dad looks nothing like I remember. Gordon always wanted everything in order and things had to be in their place. He was always dressed perfectly, but right now I would have thought he went rolling through the woods. He might not look his impeccable self, but he does look deadly. The splatter of blood across his dirty white button-up shirt makes him look even more sinister. How could I have not seen who he really was sooner?

  “Give me my daughter. She belongs to me,” he demands, pointing to the ground next to him. His eyes come to mine and he snaps his fingers. “Come here.”

  “No,” I tell him. “You don’t control me anymore.” I stand up straighter.

  “You choose him over me? Your own father?” he yells.

  “You’re not my father,” I remind him. “You took me and put me away to use as some kind of weapon. I was never yours.”

  “I saved you.” He actually sounds offended now as his eyes snap to Bishop. “She would have died in that place. You’re lucky I got to her first before someone else did.”

  “I thank you for that, Gordon. You did save a little girl that day. As any person with a shred of compassion or care for another should do.”

  Gordon laughs at Bishop’s response. “They are weak. Why are you always protecting them?” He glances back to me. “Even Loren.” Bishop growls so deep and loud I can feel the sound pass through my body. Gordon doesn't heed the warning. “She was weak, but I still cared for her.”

  “What did you plan to do with me?” I ask, still not understanding that part. “Were you going to kill me? You could have done that when you found me that first day.” I can’t stop the crack in my voice as I try to be strong. I know he used me and doesn't even love me. I’m not sure he can understand that emotion, to be honest. Now that I look back with a clear mind, I can see it all.

  “Those eyes. You looked up at me and I’d never seen something like them before. I’d never wanted a mate, then I saw Bishop’s. Not all vampires are lucky enough to find one, as they say, but Bishop was graced with one that was so different. I could feel how pure your heart was. Why would the fates choose such a mate for him? I didn't much care for that, so I took it for myself.” He smiles. “Then I wanted him to know I had it and that I’d made it love me and hate him.”

  My head drops down. “It,” I whisper. I know everyone heard me. Vampires always do, but it doesn’t matter anymore. His plan didn’t work and I raise my head and look at Bishop. He’s been quiet this whole time.

  “I wanted you to say or ask what you needed to,” he responds, answering my unasked question of why he’d been so quite. “I’ll always give you what you need or want, love. You know this.” I give him a smile because I do know that.

  “Did you come here alone like this to die? Has it all become too much? I know the pain and longing for a mate,” Bishop says, and my heart hurts that he had to wait so long to find me.

  I look back to Gordon who has a smirk on his face. “I always have a plan.” He gives a small shrug. “There is one thing I do love about the idea of mates. They’d do anything for one another, and I do mean anything.” A chill runs up my spine and Bishop steps in front of me. I have to peek around him to see what’s going on. “Have you ever heard of the Grim Reaper?”

  I scrunch my face, trying to recall what I know about the Grim Reaper. Is it real? Maybe not, but vampires are real after all, so who knows?

  “I know of him,” Valen answers. When I look over at his mate, she looks as surprised as everyone else. Except Bishop, who looks calm and knowing. “What of him? There’s no one here for him to collect. In fact, if he were here I think he’d come for you.”

  “Unless…” Gordon pauses, looking straight at Bishop. “I told him you took his mate. That you didn’t like not having power over him so you found a way to control him.”

  “He has a mate?” Kane asks, shaking his head in disbelief.

  “He can’t, he’s older than any of us. He would have gone crazy by now if he hadn’t found her in all this time,” Bishop throws out.

  “Does anyone really know what the Reaper is?” Valen says.

  “You have a knack for getting in over your head,” Bishop adds with a long sigh.

  “You shouldn't play with things you know nothing about, and no one knows shit about the Reaper,” Valen throws in.

  “Who the fuck is the Reaper?” one of the twins says to the other. I can’t tell which is which now.

  “The Grim Reaper is the personification of death. He comes to collect the souls of those whose time has come. There are many different stories surrounding him.” A soft female voice says.

  “Dove,” Ezra and Erik bark at the same time. It looks like they came out of the closet.

  She ignores them and goes on. “I think Bishop is right. You’re in over your head if you’re playing with the Reaper. If anyone here has been dodging death, it’s you.” Dove takes a step forward and Ezra grabs her and pulls her back to him and his brother. “I can tell you this: in most all of the stories people try bribery or tricks to ward him off, but it never works. I think you’ve bitten off more than you can chew.”

  Everything goes silent as if the world stops moving when Dove finishes speaking. The breeze of night is gone, along with the distant sounds of the crickets. Bishop moves before I know what’s happening and turns to cover my body with his. I feel the ground give a small shake as if something hard lands on it, followed by a loud snap.

  “Where’s my mate?” rumbles the deepest voice I’ve ever heard.

  There’s a sound like a tree
branch breaking in half and I feel Bishop lean back. He lets me go a little to turn to face the voice. When I look up, standing there is the biggest man I’ve ever seen in my life holding Gordon like a rag doll. He drops Gordon's body to the ground like a limp cloth, and I can see that his neck has been snapped.

  “I thought the Grim Reaper had a scythe,” Dove whispers loudly, pushing her glasses up her nose.

  My eyes flash to the giant ax he lifts off the ground and sets to rest on his shoulder.

  “You really don’t want me to ask again,” he says, and I’m shocked into silence.

  Chapter 10

  Bishop

  I hold Loren behind me as I look into the black eyes of Death. He’s big and he’s scary, but I see something in him that I could feel in myself.

  “He was lying to you and you know it. Your mate isn’t here,” I say as I take a step towards him.

  “Bishop,” Ravana says in warning from behind me, but I ignore her.

  “The pain you feel right now is exactly what was inside me before I met my Loren. I hoped for death every day so that it would either put me out of my misery or bring me closer to her.” He doesn’t move, but I see the line between his eyes relax slightly as I speak from my soul. “I know that right now there isn’t anything you wouldn’t do to find your mate. But you know Gordon deceived you and you know that she isn’t here.”

  A beat passes and he lets out a breath before lowering his ax. “He said that you would know and I believed him.” He shakes his head like he knew it wasn’t true but he didn’t want to admit it to himself.

  “We owe you a debt of gratitude for killing him for us. And I want to repay that.”

  The Grim Reaper looks up at me hesitantly. “How is it you think you can help me if you can’t find my mate?” he says as he looks around the room. “Everyone in this room looks to have formed bonds. What is it you could offer me that I can’t obtain on my own? I’m the Grim Reaper, Bishop. There’s nothing beyond my reach. Even now I know everyone in here and yet you know nothing of me. Only whispers that are shared in the dark by people who are afraid of me.”