Lukas POV When I returned to the city, I went straight to Jace’s house, but no one answered. Not even his housekeeper, Mrs. Dunkan. I could smell Max had been here, although the scent was fading and days old. Where the hell had she gone? I jumped back on my motorbike and drove to Salvatore’s boxing gym. Nothing showed she had come here in the last week, so I went to her apartment and found the same smell I had breathed at Jace’s house. Max had come here not too long ago. However, the scent appeared and disappeared on the street, which meant she or someone drove here and left the same way. Fuck! She could be anywhere by now! I angrily removed my leather jacket and slapped it on the back of my bike. My hands flew in my hair, and I tugged at the roots, muffling a yell that threatened to escape my mouth. I was not an angry person… usually. It was something I had prided myself on. Not a lot of werewolves could say the same. It was in our nature to be impulsive, manipulative and posse
A young woman lay on the floor of my room, wriggling her body in pain. Her eyes were bloodshot, and I could see her temples and neck veins pop. She was dying—choking on blood.I crouched in the corner, urging my eyes to look away from the gruesome scene, but I couldn’t peel them off her. She looked pathetic, and it was all my fault.I hated myself.She had been the fifth victim they forced me to feed on to the point of death. Ventura then urged my blood down the woman’s throat and broke her neck. The vampire said they had to die with my blood in their system for their bodies to transform. All five subjects returned to life, only to die—confused, in pain, and alone.“I don’t understand why it’s partly working. The subjects came back but died soon after.” Ventura shouted with a bang of his fist on the steel table.My body jerked from the sound. I didn’t know how much more I could take. Those people died because of me. They didn’t want this, and neither did I. Michel executed five innoce
They moved me to a new room, and I pulled and twisted the padded collar installed around my neck. The staff connected it to a chain attached to the wall. No matter which way I turned it, it did not come off. The same restraints on my wrists prevented me from leaving the room or escaping.They chained me like an animal, and I felt wild and dangerous. The blood I had drunk from the first five failed test subjects flowed through my veins, and there was no longer any sedative to dull my senses.Vessels underneath my skin burst, and a warmth coursed through me like fire. This sensation wasn’t normal, and I attributed it to the excess blood rushing through me. I pulled again on the chains bound to my wrists and gritted my teeth from the exertion. Tiny cracks formed where the metal hooks were bolted on the concrete wall, but I wasn’t strong enough to tear them down and free myself.I knew I didn’t have long until Ventura returned, and I didn’t plan on welcoming him back.I stopped pulling wh
Death was all around me. I was the angel who appeared without notice and reaped the lives of everyone standing between me and the forest line.Everything had been a blur. I remembered tumbling outside a set of heavy, double doors. The fresh air hit my face, and each breath I took wasn’t quenching my thirst for it. It was nice to be out—to be free.I was standing outside a compound, and a little further ahead was the black mass of a forest.Sirens were ringing in my ears, and flashes of red lights had guards running everywhere around me. It took time before some of them noticed me, and when they did, they pulled their guns out and aimed.After that, I remembered nothing until I stumbled into the dirt and grass inside the woods. The wet medical gown clung to my body and was no longer a pale blue colour. It looked black under the moon’s glow.I dug my nails into the earth and slowly crawled until my head cleared. When I found my focus again, a river of tears pooled down my face. I was so
Jace POVI silently walked alongside the Harrington and Leigh Corporation president. I did my best to match his long and determined strides, wondering what kind of meeting we were heading into.Whenever the vampire congregation met, it was always an event. It didn’t happen often, and it only did when urgent matters needed to be settled. Lately, those meetings were composed of newly turned vampires, the death they caused, and how to control the situation so it wouldn’t come out to the public.Staying in the shadows was important to vampires, so any time a vampire made waves that would disrupt our livelihood, meetings like this one occurred.Although I was well aware of the dealings in those meetings, my father rarely brought me along with him, so it surprised me when he asked me to join him. I didn’t mind, but it was not an activity I was fond of.The last meeting with the congregation I attended was when my mother was “killed” by vampire hunters. The assembly had made an investigation,
I stayed under the warm water for what seemed like hours. Every time I went under the stream, the water pooling under me was dark brown and disgusting from the dried blood I was furiously scrubbing off my skin. My hair was the worst. It was matted with tree twigs and dirt. “A good thing my hair is black.” I scoffed, running my fingers through the strands to untangle them. When I was satisfied, I got out and patted myself dry. I returned to the bedroom and found a pile of clothes on the foot of the bed. Lukas must have brought them up. After all, I had arrived with only the soiled medical gown. I shook my head, thinking I had run into the forest buck naked with only a thin fabric to cover myself. I inspected my feet before putting on a pair of warm socks. The soles were still sore, but fresh pink skin covered the cuts. Next, I lifted my arms to pull the loose shirt over my head, and I was happy my ribs didn’t hurt anymore. Good. It meant I was healing. When I was ready, I followed
I didn’t know where I was going, so I let my feet guide me until I found a path in the forest and followed it. It led me to a small lake. It seemed like the one I had seen in my dream. How was that possible? I shook my mysterious thought from my head and spotted a big rock bordering the bank and the water. I went to sit on it, then looked at the rippling lake, which was gently hitting the shore, and found the scenery peaceful. It helped clear my mind from the trauma inflicted on me while imprisoned in the Noctua compound. My body sagged, and I hid my face in my hands. What exactly happened when I escaped? Was Michel really dead? Many questions flooded my brain, drowning me in guilt and shame. I couldn’t lose control like that again. Ever. “My whole life is fucked up,” I huffed and dropped my chin over my folded arms. “I wouldn’t say that,” Lukas answered. He propped himself beside me and stared into the distance. “You have people who care what happens to you. Mortimer and Beatrice
I rolled to the ground and quickly got back on my feet. When I looked up, Lukas was standing above me. The setting sun behind him created a halo of orange, pink, and gold around his imposing black frame, making me almost squeak.After our second round of sex, we returned to the cabin, and I confessed everything to Bea and Moe, who had arrived. My compulsion ability did not surprise them, and they immediately covered me in a hug. Their action melted away the icy fear of their rejection and made me feel more at peace with whom I was becoming.I was still high on sex and adrenaline, so I asked Lukas if he wanted to brawl a little with me. I hadn’t trained in weeks, and I could feel it in my restless body that I needed a good workout—other than kicking my boots off with a hot Alpha male.“Use his height to your advantage!” Shouted Moe from the porch. “Stay low.”Moe was happy to watch and offer comments as he scrutinized our dance on the dirt path. He kept repeating that I needed to focus
I was high from meeting the director at the children’s home. My discussion with the director yielded interesting facts about the home and its desperate need for funds. The government provided what it could, but the man running the establishment informed me it wasn’t enough. It didn't surprise me. More and more children came into their custody, and they had difficulty finding foster homes. I elatedly accepted the director's promise to inform the board members and send me the paperwork in the coming weeks after discussing my plans to donate money and what I would like to help them with. My interest in funding couldn’t have come at a better time. I barely saw the car ride pass; I was already pulling up the small dirt road leading to Lukas’s cabin in the woods. Lexie stayed there for the moment while Lukas crashed either at his house or at my place. We had taken the habit of coming over there for dinner every two or three days to keep Lex company and to unwind. I was the first to arri
Two months laterMy finger pressed the intercom button of the police precinct.“Yes?” The robotic-sounding voice asked.“It’s Max. I have a Talulah Townsend for processing.”“Someone will be down shortly.”Talulah had broken parole and hadn’t attended her mandatory drug test. She had been my easiest catch of the week. I only had to drive down the drug strip to find her with a needle stabbed in her arm, half passed out from the shot. She was younger than me, and it broke my heart to see her like this. Oh, the joys of getting back into the trenches, I thought. I was doing my best to return to my everyday life.The back door of the station opened, and Officer Dan and a colleague walked out to take the skip. When the woman was in custody, Dan removed her cuffs to return them to me.“I heard you were back on the job. Christ, Max. You really scared the shit out of me when you stopped showing up here! They told me you probably took a vacation, but I know you. Your job’s your life.” Dan said
The wait was killing me. My leg impatiently shook when I sat on the waiting chair. The lobby under the justice court building was brightly lit and warm. I had never been in that section before. If I didn’t have Moe guiding me through the separate hallway that brought us here, in the basement, I would have never suspected there was a place specifically designed for vampire laws. The fact that I was meeting the congregation was the least of my problems. My mind was on Lukas, whom I had not seen since the fight with Ventura. Jace didn’t want me to see him and had given me very few updates on his health, but the one news that kept bothering me was that the broken ribs were more important than we initially thought. Some had pierced his lungs and had caused damages that Jace feared Lukas would have issues healing correctly. I felt terrible because it was my fault Lukas got hurt. If I hadn’t jumped in the fight, maybe things would have ended differently for all of us, and maybe Lukas woul
Ventura’s fingers tightened around my neck, and I struggled to breathe. “There goes that defiant hiss again. You’re becoming quite the little vampire. You sound just like one,” he said with a growing hatred. “Do you know how much trouble you’ve been giving me? You killed my small human army of hunters who would do my future bidding. I had a chance at a surprise attack on the Harringtons, but you blew it! You were unsuccessful at making more of yourself and serving me. Why shouldn’t I just snap your pretty neck and be done with it? All my troubles would die along with you.” My hands instinctively circled around his forearm to remove some of the pressure. When I saw black spots everywhere, my grip on him lessened. I couldn’t break free, and I thought this was the end. Surprisingly, Ventura let go and grabbed the front of my vest, dragging me on my back to where Lukas and Jace were. “Pathetic girl,” Ventura spat as he dropped me beside my mates. “It doesn’t matter. Everything I need to
I stopped my VW Beetle in front of an old abandoned warehouse on 9th Street. Many were in the sector, but just as the letter said, I knew exactly which one it was. The run-down name of the company was barely visible, but the logo of an owl still showed, reminding me of the Noctua sigil. I could be wrong, but this building seemed the right one.I opened the car door and walked to the warehouse, looking for an entrance. They barricaded all the entries with pieces of wood and chains. I groaned and trudged along the exterior to find another way to gain access. When I was about to retrace my steps and search for another building, I spotted a broken window on the second floor.“Great,” I mumbled exasperatingly. “As if I do parkour in my spare time.”There was a ledge on the lower window, and I noticed a gutter installed on the wall close to it. I pulled up my sleeves and lightly ran for a jump to get a high start. I climbed the downspout until I was at level with the ledge, and I swung my bo
I strolled down the street, taking in the nightly smells of the city. After some time, I stopped and took a deep breath. The neighbourhood was silent, and only the distant sound of car horns honking reminded me that life went on while I was away. The last time I stood in front of my apartment complex, I was drugged in a cab and kidnapped. I hurried along the entrance and pushed the glass doors open. The trek up the stairs was quick, and I walked to my door to unlock it. In the two weeks I was gone, nothing had changed. My apartment had been left untouched, and the little possessions I had left were still in their place. I was surprised. I thought the vampires would have ransacked my home to find any information on me. I opened my mini-fridge and pulled out the last remaining beer bottle. I reflected on Jace, Lukas, Moe and Bea's plan as I sat. They wanted to draw out Ventura from where ever he was hiding, and the only thing they thought would succeed was to resume my life. Ventura
Jace POVI watched Max from afar. She was a small thing compared to the tall vampire she called Moe. She had been with those two since their return to the cabin, and it slightly irritated me to have to share Max with two other vampires—one werewolf was enough.“You’re doing that thing again. Stop it.” Lukas called from behind.I turned around and smugly slouched. “What exactly am I doing?”“I’ve known you for years, Jace. I know all your telltale signs. You know something that you haven’t told anyone. Spill.”My friend’s amber eyes darkened menacingly. He knew whatever I was holding back was about Max. I sighed and pressed a hand over my face. Lukas was an annoying dog but had good intentions. He wanted to protect Max as much as I did.“I knew the congregation had released Ventura before coming here.”Lukas watched me from a distance. His face was becoming red, but I ignored it. Why was Lukas getting angry with me?“When were you planning on telling us?”“This morning, but I didn’t thi
Lukas and Jace’s kisses lingered on my skin before I stepped under the water. It washed away their scent on my body, and I sighed. My fingers trailed the length of my neck and hovered over my swollen lips. They still tingled from Lukas and Jace’s bites.I remembered when Jace told me to go on top of Lukas. I had never had sex with two men at the same time, and when Lukas filled my dripping wet pussy, and Jace stretched my ass with his dick, I almost forgot how to breathe. The feeling I had in the pit of my stomach was dreadful, yet exciting.The sensation had been odd and pleasing. My skin shivered with need and all the dirty things I wanted the three of us to do. I had the loves of my life in me, and each thrust and withdrawal had me wanting, almost begging for more. I couldn’t seem to get enough of them. Their cocks filled each cavity perfectly, and their rhythms were in delightful unison. It was even more thrilling when Lukas and Jace gave me the reins, and I could choose the beat.
Lukas POV The smell of Max’s arousal woke me. I had been lightly asleep but was now fully awake, and my dick painfully swelled inside my boxers. I didn’t want to act on her scent because I didn’t know if she was excited for me or for Jace, who was inconveniently sleeping on Max’s other side. I needed to change my mind. Anything was better than thinking of everything I wanted to do to Max. I thought back to what had happened before I went to sleep. After furiously running in wolf form, I returned to the cabin and found Jace waiting beside Max’s sleeping form on the bed. He had gotten here much faster than I wanted, and I despised every second of him brushing his light fingers against the pale white skin of her bare legs. No amount of yelling and violent disagreements could remove Jace’s bond with Max. She was as much his as she was mine. Jace and I both made our claims, and the rest was history. We would be there for our mate, but Jace and I would need to have a more profound discu