by Kate Bonham
Hallec growled and I could see his shift begin, bright copper eyes shining through. I stepped forward, to intercede if necessary.
“Is that the king’s head on the floor?” he asked under his breath, his own copper eyes shining in response to the intensity in the room.
“Things are a little chaotic,” I told him. “I need you to keep your pack at bay for a little while until I can sort the situation.”
Ferenc knew he could trust me, so he nodded, but he looked around the room. Mae was standing by the wall, looking down at the floor. I wanted to go to her, but I also knew I was probably the last one she wanted to see right now.
“Mae?” Ferenc moved closer to her.
Slowly, she looked up, her bright amber eyes still prominent. Ferenc stumbled back to the door.
“Híbrida.”
His native Spanish accent was strong as he muttered the word over and over. They’d never seen a hybrid, and there were only a few people who had ever claimed to have seen one. Personally, in all my years, I had never seen one either, but I knew the stories.
“Ferenc, please,” I put my hand on his shoulder. “I’ll call you to explain at a later time.”
Ferenc nodded, seeming to gather himself. “Do you need me to bury the body?”
“Yes,” I heard Hallec say. He’d left Amabelle’s side for a moment and came to where we stood. “I need you to burn the body. No trace is to remain, do you understand?”
Ferenc nodded, and dragged the headless body out of the room. Hallec turned to me.
“I need you to run,” he said. “If there’s even one bit of evidence he was here, and knowing my father, he would have told his brother, they’ll come after you. Not to mention his advisors and guards did not join him today, but they are close by.”
“You’re the King now,” I told him. “It’ll be you ordering my death.”
Hallec was silent, because he knew the gravity of the situation, but he also knew I had protected his daughter. I could see the difficult decision weighing on his mind. No one was going to know about Amabelle and Mae, which meant, I was going to be running from the lycans for killing a King. Not even the Nosferatu would protect me, because I’d broken the laws.
“What of Mae?”
“She can come back to London with me, we can figure it out from there.”
“She’s not lycan anymore,” I said. “She’s a hybrid, and you have no idea what that entails.”
“Nor do you.”
“No, but I do know someone who does.”
Hallec nodded. “Okay.”
“I’ll protect her, I promise.”
Hallec nodded again. “I know you will, if it were to be anyone, I’m glad it’s you.”
I knew he wasn’t talking about the protection. I knew he was talking about what Mae and I did for her to turn hybrid. He was giving me his approval, but he had to know there was no way we could be together. Not now.
I wouldn’t put her into the life of being on the run because I knew I would have to do that for the rest of my unnatural life.
She deserved better than that.
“Okay, you guys need to go before my uncle gets into town.”
I moved to Mae who was still out of it. When she looked up at me, her eyes were still amber but I could see the veins of red spilling to her iris.
“I know you’re hungry,” I told her. “Come on, we need to get out of Romania.”
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“Sweden. I have a friend who can help us there, and she can explain more about the hybrid history.”
“How did I become one?” she asked me. It was an honest question, and one I know she deserved the answer to. I took her up the stairs, to the bedroom she had been staying in to get away from the chaos below.
“I’ve never met one before, but my creator told me about them,” I told her. “She has met them before, because she’s the oldest female Nosferatu in the world.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
I bent down, in front of her sitting on the edge of the bed and waited for her to look into my eyes. Once she did, I could see the misery, the confusion and the sadness in them.
I did that.
I put her in this situation and for what? So, I could give in to my feelings? I was an asshole.
“When you allowed me to bite you, your blood was infused with the blood curse of mine. When you kissed me, that blood may have gotten into you, and the determining factor was, it was a new moon last night. The only phase of the moon that allows Nosferatu to be created, other than being born one. Because you already had that lycan blood in you, you didn’t turn Nosferatu, you became a hybrid, or so I assume.”
“How did you know that had happened though?”
“Your amber eyes.”
“And that’s a hybrid thing?”
I nodded. “Copper eyes are generally royal lycans, and normal lycans tend to have honey-colored eyes. Your eyes are a mix between copper and a Nosferatu’s red.”
“What does it mean for me?” she asked, her voice wavering. The reality of the situation hitting her. “Will I do bad things?”
“No,” I said, putting my hand on hers. “No, you’re not a bad person, Mae, but I don’t know much about the traits other than the eyes and how it can happen. Let me take you to someone who can help you.”
Mae didn’t move for a little bit, but eventually, she nodded and slid off the bed to the floor. “Okay. Let’s go.”
I took her hand and felt the coolness to it. She’d always been so hot that it was a big change, but I could also feel her shaking.
“Mae…are you hungry?”
I turned to face her, and I could see the red taking over. Jesus, did she eat food still or did she only drink blood now? I had no idea and it was still going to take a bit of energy to get to Sweden to Cassia who could help me.
“Okay,” I said, trying to ease her anxiety. “It’s okay, come on, I’ll find you some blood.”
“No,” she said quickly, looking to my neck and back to my eyes. “I—I don’t want that blood. I want yours.”
I felt a thrill shoot down my spine and settle in my crotch. This was not the time or place to be thinking about what I was thinking, but she was so damn tempting. I never wanted to say no to her. My mouth opened to say no but in seconds it was covered with hers, and she wrapped her arms around my neck. Instinctively I picked her up and held her against me, deepening the kiss. She ground herself against my body, her tongue frantically tangling with mine.
Her hand ripped at my shirt, leaving it hanging by threads as my chest was unveiled. Surprised, I pulled from the kiss and looked down. Her eyes were a deep red, the Nosferatu in her overpowering the lycan. I could feel my own hunger clawing from the inside, hunger because I knew how goddamn good she tasted, and a different kind of hunger that I knew we had no time for now.
Knowing she was going to need her strength, I moved my head to the side, offering up my neck. The strike was hard and fast, and as I felt her teeth sink into my skin, I felt the blood trickle down my chest. I could feel my passion for her climbing as she gripped onto me for dear life as she took in her fill of my blood.
Goddamn it felt good. She felt good. It felt right to have her in my arms, drinking from me, just like last night had felt right as I fucked her senseless in the cave.
I wanted her so damn bad right now but there just wasn’t time. Her fucking parents were downstairs, never did I think I would fear parents again but right now, Hallec was in a damn bad spot.
He, by lycan law, would need to hunt me down for killing a King, and I’d be put before the Council of Elders, of which, Fenneck’s brother was the Elder for the Lycans. I’d be killed, ripped to pieces in seconds if they caught me, but he was also my friend and he knew I’d only done it to protect his daughter, and well, okay, that wasn’t the only reason. I was not going to let that psychopath near my girl.
My girl.
Shit, when did she become my gir
l?
Her mouth pulled from my neck and she looked at me, the blood dripping down her chin, her eyes a fiery red, and I instantly felt myself pushing her forward to the bed. She stopped me, somehow her strength had increased, and she pushed me back to the wall, her hands at my belt buckle, yanking it off me. She somehow had gotten my pants down and was now caressing my cock. Her mouth crashed down onto mine, the blood still on her tongue.
My cock sprang to life as she squeezed it between her hands and began to stroke it. I was losing my battle of wits as I felt the sparks course through my entire body, filling my veins with some kind of alpha infusion.
I had to claim her, I had to have her underneath me, on top of me, I didn’t care, I had to have her in every way I could. I pushed off the wall and wheeled around so that she was slammed against the wall. She arched her back in pain before looking at me with those red eyes and biting her bottom lip. The fangs extended past, pink from the blood in her mouth.
I yanked at her pants, splitting them in two as I tried to get access to those pink lips. There was going to be no foreplay tonight, she was going to be fucked senseless again and I was going to get her to Sweden before Fenneck’s boys came for vengeance.
I slid my cock over her pussy lips, delighting in the fact she was wet already. Finding the spot, I pushed into her. Mae’s mouth formed an O as her eyes tipped back into her head. No time to stop and delight, I began to thrust, hard and fast, into her as I sought an explosive release for the both of us.
With every thrust, she was slammed against the wall, over and over again but she clung tighter to me, her legs wrapped around my waist like tentacles. I put my hands out beside her on the wall for leverage as I pounded into her depths.
Her fingernails dug into my shoulders as I felt her pussy tightening around my cock, squeezing it for dear life. I continued my assault on her as she began to let out gasps louder and louder. I managed to get a hand up off the wall and I put it over her mouth as I felt her spasms become more prominent. Her breathing was now labored as she screamed into my hand. I continued my thrusts into her as she began to calm down, the spasms not as hard, but I only gave her a few seconds to recover before I pounded into her again and again, waiting for my own to come.
Mae moved her hair to the side, revealing that damned sexy neck, the vein in her neck pulsing. I couldn’t hold back, I struck her, sucking up the blood as I pounded into her. I made a mess of her neck but I knew it would heal.
I felt the oncoming release, pulling from her neck, I slammed into her, over and over again until I felt the first pull.
As I came into her, I felt her hold onto me until I could rest my head against the wall, still inside of her as I felt my energy bounce back. Slowly, I let her down, until I was sure she could stand on her own, I didn’t let go.
“So, let’s go to Sweden.”
I looked at her, noting her messed up hair, bloody neck and chin, and could have laughed if the situation weren’t so serious.
“You’re going to need new clothes.”
“Oh yeah,” she looked down at her half naked body. “So are you.”
“Only thing is,” I said. “I live here and have plenty of them. Do you have any spare clothes left?”
She looked to me. “I do, but I hate wearing it.”
“Too bad, get dressed. We have a long run ahead.”
◆◆◆
I waited for her to come down to the forest where we agreed to meet. It shouldn’t take this long to get dressed, and it had me worried. Do I go back inside?
Just as I had resolved to do that, I saw her appear before me. A vision in a long violet colored dress that fell to just below her knees. It had three quarter length sleeves, showing off those wrists which knew how to work my cock into a frenzy. Her shoes were flat and a shade lighter than her dress. When I finally looked up at her, I could see she was uncomfortable.
“You look stunning.”
She smiled slightly. “Thank you.”
“You don’t like it?”
“No,” she replied. “I just don’t do dresses.”
“Then why do you have it?” I asked, genuinely curious.
“Because I know it’s beautiful, and I wanted to have something pretty. I don’t know why I brought it with me on my quest to find Bastien but I did.”
“Lucky too,” I replied. “Come on, we have no time to waste.”
Seven
Mae
Sweden
We stood in the middle of nothing, just a lake to the side of us. Sweden had been stunning, I’d always wanted to come here but never had the chance, and now we stood here, and Bram surveyed the area in front of us.
“Uh,” I said. “What the hell are we doing?”
“Just be patient.”
I looked back to the lake and waited for Bram to figure out what the hell he was trying to figure out. It was so placid, and there was a fog over it which I couldn’t believe was real. That’s when the surface began to ripple.
“Bram…”
“Just a minute.”
“Bram…there’s something in the water.”
He turned and pushed me behind him. The water broke on the surface and a woman smiled up at us.
“Bram, it’s been too long.”
“Soraya,” he relaxed a little, but I could feel the hairs on my neck go up as I saw the woman climb out of the lake, completely naked, and walk toward Bram. They kissed each other on the cheek and suddenly I felt a white-hot rage come over me.
“Who’s your friend?” she asked, looking to me. Her perfect blonde hair clung to her body, covering her nipples but doing nothing to hide the fact she was big breasted. She was slim, her waist tapering down into an hourglass shape.
“This is Mae,” he said. “We’re here to speak with Cassia; we’re in need of her aid.”
“In trouble again, Bram?”
Soraya came to me, with a smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mae.”
She held out her hand for me to shake. I took it and shook her hand before pushing back my anger.
“Warm yet cold hands,” she cocked her head to the side. “That’s intriguing.”
Bram moved back to my side. “Can you let Cassia know we’re here?”
“She knows, and you know she knows.”
“I’ve no time for games, Soraya.”
“You know what she wants,” Soraya said. “All you need to do is apologize to her.”
Bram rolled his eyes but instead of arguing with the girl, she returned to the water and disappeared beneath the water’s surface.
“Cassia,” Bram said to nowhere in particular. “Please, I beg of you. I need your aid. We’re in danger out here.”
Nothing.
“Cassia, I am sorry for walking away, but you know why I had to do it.”
“What’s going on?” I asked him.
Bram looked to me, doubt on his face, like he wanted to tell me something, but he also didn’t want to tell me.
He turned back to nowhere. “Cassia, I beg you. I will do anything if you help Mae.”
Suddenly, there was movement in front of us. Out of nowhere, a large mansion appeared in the middle of where there was a hell of a lot of land.
“What the fuck?” I gasped looking over at this grand mansion.
Bram took my hand and led me toward the front door. We climbed up the few stairs to double doors, white marble doors. Before we could knock, the doors opened, and we were greeted by a man dressed in red.
“This way, Mr Norwood,” he said with a bow. “Your guest may rest in our entertainment room.”
I wanted to protest but Bram turned to me quickly, and I was instantly assured. “I won’t be long.”
Nodding, I looked to the man in red who opened a door to the left and I walked inside. Bram and the man headed off and left me alone in the room. It was decorated in a modern yet historical fashion, the chaise lounge didn’t look comfortable at all but it was an immaculate purple color. The curtains were dark and
drawn, but the lamps littered around the room gave it enough light. A wall of books was off to one side, with a large piano sitting off to the other side, a large rug underneath it. I moved over to it and placed my hands over the keys.
Bastien had taught me to play when I was twelve, and by the age of sixteen, I had mastered quite a few songs, but music hadn’t been my passion. I did enjoy playing though. I started to play a Debussy classic, soon getting lost in the song, that I didn’t realize the door had opened and I was now not alone.
“You play beautifully,” a woman said, with a smile on her face but it didn’t meet her eyes. The deep red eyes that told me she was a Nosferatu. “Where did you learn?”
“My stepfather,” I said. “He taught me when I was young but I haven’t played for a long time.”
“Ah,” she said, taking a seat on the chaise. “I’ve only ever heard someone play as beautifully as that on two occasions before, and one of them was Debussy himself.”
“You knew him?” I asked.
She nodded. “I did.”
“Who was the other?
She was about to answer when Bram appeared in the doorway. His eyes shot to the woman and then to me.
“Come, Mae, Cassia wishes to speak with you.”
“Oh Abram,” she smiled over at him. “It’s so nice of you to join us again.”
Bram didn’t respond, instead, he grabbed my hand and led me down the hall he’d gone down before.
“Who was that?” I asked him. He slowed down and turned to look me in the eye.
“Her name is Phaedra,” he told me. “She is very old, and very strong. She has a power over people, and she’s someone protected by Cassia. Stay away from her, yeah?”
I nodded. “Was she your lover? She seemed excited to see you.”
“Never, but she wanted to be. Come on, Cassia doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”
We walked up a flight of stairs and down a corridor until we came to a door. Bram opened it and he led me inside.
A woman with blonde hair sat behind a desk, her hair was piled up on itself in a messy, yet stylish bun. She was immaculate, from her face to the top she wore. I didn’t think she looked like a Nosferatu Queen, more like a stylish lawyer or something.
