At Tensel’s place:“I am going to summon him now.” Damonq stated. He had taken her advice to rest for a while and was sure that this was the time to get rid of the darkness inside her. But Elina shook her head but didn’t look away from those brilliant eyes. Holding her breath. Fighting not to cry. Trusting him, not just with her life, but the life of her unborn daughter, a baby no one was going to want. But me, she murmured to the baby. No, us. We want you. We’ll take care of you and love you. She kept looking into Damonq’s eyes as she nodded slowly.His expression changed subtly. His lips softened. So did his eyes. “My woman is extremely courageous. I appreciate that trait in you. Thank you for giving me your trust. It will not be misplaced.”“Maybe you should ask him to bring Claire. If anyone would help us, it would be her. She can give blood again.” Elina mentioned“There is uncertainty in your mind, Elina. I can hear it in your voice. I would kill a woman if necessary, but I pref
“You’re pregnant? With Darkness’ child?” There was horror in Claire’s voice. “Elina, you should have told me. You shouldn’t have tried to do this alone.”“You were able to make certain the child is female?” Gary asked. His first question. He watched Elina closely, his strange eyes burning over her face.She nodded. “I didn’t think he would want a female as much as a male, and if we got away, he would lose interest. I don’t know.” She pushed back the few tendrils of hair falling around her face, showing them her exhaustion. “I honestly don’t know what I was thinking, I just acted instinctively. Something told me to do it and I did. I could at least control that.”“An extraordinary feat, especially considering Darkness would be using compulsion on you as well as forcing his will physically. Later, when you feel up to it, we will need to know exactly what his delivery system was like. Perhaps you can give us the image in your head. Or at least,” he added when she looked horrified, “give
The vile little parasites sickened Damonq. He found himself pushing emotion away. He hadn’t remembered how feeling could be both a blessing and a curse. The longer he worked, the more he felt for the child and the more he didn’t want to leave her alone. He had no idea how much time had passed but he was only a third of the way through her heart when light edged along the outside of it.He wanted to protest as Gary moved through the tiny child. She was barely there, just developing, but the healer had no emotion, no sympathy. He was what Damonq needed to be. Still, even knowing that, even knowing the child had to be vetted to discover whether she was a potential weapon Darkness could use, Damonq wanted to stop the healer from examining the baby. It took a tremendous amount of discipline to stay still and let the man do what he needed to protect the others.We must return to our bodies and be replenished.The healer’s light was dim, his voice the same, but there was a single weary note
“You think they might have done something like this to her? Impregnated her?” Claire asked incredulously. She was clearly shocked. “She’s fourteen.”“Age wouldn’t matter to a beast like Darkness,” Gary said. “They are incapable of feeling emotion. More than likely, she was terrified. Her terror would have given them the rush they needed. They feed on the fears of others. That’s why they torture before they kill. If she was very, very scared, they would have tried just to increase her fear.”Claire looked at her lifemate. He touched her cheek gently. “Go, find her,see to her. The moment the others come, I will aid you.”Claire nodded once, leaned down to brush the top of Elina’s head with a kiss and hurried out. Tensel looked after her and then sighed. You realize, Damonq, that many of the ancient supernatural may reject the idea of a child with any DNA from Darkness.I am very aware. Damonq knew he sounded grim. He felt grim. He was preparing to go to war with his kind, should they tr
Damonq and Gary burned several of the parasites and then moved over a few inches. The creatures had tried to embed themselves in her ribs to keep from being seen or removed.Darkness is a master devil, Gary pointed out. Not just a master devil, but one that is ancient and has schemed and battled his way to the top of the food chain. In other words, he is extremely powerful. For your woman to resist his compulsions and continue to fight him, she must be very strong. Once ancient blood flows in her veins and she is full like us, she will be even more so.Damonq waited to hear what Gary meant. Of course Elina would grow in power. Her gifts would be stronger. She would be stronger. Where was the ancient healer going with his observations?She will be turned when we take her blood and give her ancient blood. So much of it. You must do the initial exchanges. It will not be easy on the child, but as your lifemate grows in power, so will her daughter, Gary said.There is a child here, Liv, a
“You were gone so long. I was worried about you.” Elina muttered wearily. Damonq noted that she didn’t ask if they had been successful, only said that she was worried for him. He couldn’t remember a time someone had worried for him. He tucked her hand over his heart and took the wrist Ferro practically forced against his lips.It was difficult not to gulp the ancient blood. The moment he took it in, it began to work its magic, spreading through him quickly, infusing his cells and organs with rich, life-giving energy. He felt power rushing through him, filling him again when he’d been so spent.The moment Gary had taken his fill from Sandu, he rose. “I will return at sunset. We should be ready for a fight, Damonq.”“A fight?” Elina echoed. “What does that mean?”Damonq didn’t like that she sounded frightened. He closed the laceration on Ferro’s wrist and put his arm around Elina. “Thank you, healer. We will be ready.”Gary gave an old-world, slight bow and was gone, shimmering one mome
It was a beautiful, perfect moment, one Damonq would never forget and would treasure for all the rest of his time. Elina in his arms, holding her against him while she melted into him, making them one.He kissed his way down her throat, his lips tasting her soft skin, finding her pulse beating, beckoning. His own pulse quickened in response. Matching hers. Finding that exact rhythm.It was so beautiful. Moment by moment. Each brush of his mouth. His teeth reacted, lengthening while his body hardened more, becoming a savage ache. Now his blood thundered in his ears and pounded in his cock. Deliberately, he scraped his teeth back and forth against her skin right over that sweet sound of her heart so it beat into his mouth.She gasped. Moaned softly. Music he’d never heard but found he loved. He needed more. He scraped his teeth a second time. She moaned again and moved restlessly against him, pressing her lower body into him. Her hips rocked subtly so that her belly rubbed enticingly o
STORMThe air was gentle and cool outside, good for sunbathing. I stretched my legs out, and twinkled my toes, finding it funny that I was out here at Justin’s swimming pool, having the time of my life whilst there at the outside world-for this is what it seems like, like I was just in another world here-people were looking for me, hoping to get some bounty for capturing me. Yikes! What was taking my friends so long though? Did Kaden refuse to see them? Had he believed the reports about me? Well, I don’t think so. Yes. Even though I had just known Kaden in the space of a week or so, I could tell that he wasn’t fickle and easily bought over by some rumors. He just seems like the kind of person that would trust a little bit of more investigation into the fact. Or was that all in my imagination? For my sake, I hope it is not true. I hope that Kaden had taken Justin and Lucy in, and that the reason why they aren’t here yet was because there was a hitch in movement, or that things were ge
Storm could feel her heart pounding hard, but it was more out of excitement than fear. She should be afraid, the bird was a true raptor, but it was magnificent. It had black eyes! Round, shiny, very intelligent black eyes. She stared at it for two full minutes. That wasn't normal, she was certain. Very slowly, so she wouldn't startle the creature, she backed across the room to the desk where she kept her phone. Still looking at the bird, she googled the images of the bird, biting her lips intermittently as she waited.Strangely, the bird was observing her just as intently, an intelligence in its gaze as it watched the phone beep occasionally. When the page opened, Storm glanced at the image of the harpy eagle. The eyes were round and shining with intelligence, but they were not black. The eyes in the picture were a bright amber with a black pupil. She let out her breath slowly. Something was wrong with her bird.‘You aren't blind, though, are you?’ She sent the words, not even kno
After Storm was done eating, she thanked Kaden, and let him have the plates when he stretched his hands to collect them. To hold herself from jumping on him, and demanding that he put her out of her sexual misery, she stood up from the bed and sauntered to the window to look at the forest, and clear her immoral thoughts. He had joined her to eat, and for each time his mouth had closed over a morsel of food, she had jerked subtly, as if the mouth was closing over her twin orbs. In a large oak tree, plenty feet away from her, a bird flapped its mighty wings, drawing her attention. A smile swept past her lips when she became aware that she could sight its distinctive features. She was not the same Storm of a month ago. She was different now, considering the amount of trainings she had submitted too.The bird had a round facial disk with a very pronounced ruff. It wasn't an owl but it was large. Very large. The unusual bird could easily weigh at least twenty pounds. She stared at it
Storm walked into Kaden's treehouse and was immediately struck by how it seemed larger than usual. The wooden walls, which should be plain and simple, were adorned with colorful murals and hand-painted designs. One wall even showcased a sprawling mural of a sunset over a peaceful lake, with vivid oranges and pinks blending into each other. And another wall had a charming depiction of a forest, complete with playful animals like squirrels and birds, all brought to life with bright, cheerful colors.The room was filled with natural light that filtered through the large windows, which had been decorated with flowing curtains in soft, earthy tones. The curtains swayed gently in the breeze, adding a sense of movement to the scene. The wooden floor was covered with cozy rugs that added warmth and comfort to the space.A large, comfy bean bag was positioned in one corner, surrounded by soft pillows. Next to it was a small bookshelf brimming with colorful books, their spines lined up neatly
Storm’s mind kept conjuring up provocative images, as she and Kaden walked hand in hand around the clan. The kiss they had shared in her room still tingled on her lips, still kept heat in her blood, still made her hunger for more. She inhaled sharply when Kaden turned and stared at her, his eyes brimming with the emotions that she was sure was playing out in her own mind. For a second, she feared that he might have peeked into her dirty mind, but then she remembered that they were not bonded yet, not in that sense. It brought her swift relief which came with a coating of abashed-ness seen in the coloring of her cheeks and necks, something that wasn’t lost on Kaden who was battling to hold on to his honor. He cussed at himself for closing her lips with his earlier, knowing what could happen from there. But she had been speaking, and her luscious mouth had been like water in a desert land; he had been parched so much that he couldn’t have been able to help himself. And now, the stirr
All through the week, Storm only concentrated on the books Kaden had given her, or rather on the first book she had collected from the pile. Jutul had done the same, concentrating on the second book he had picked. Both had only taken breaks when they wanted to eat or when they wanted to train with Casper for an hour. To assuage Kaden’s caveman jealousy, all the reading had been in the dining downstairs, and yet they weren’t close enough to whatever the books were on about. They weren’t close to the end either, and the transcribers were doing a poor job, despite Jiraq’s input sometimes. It was then that Storm had learnt that Jiraq wasn’t done with the book either. ‘What are you doing with one of the hardest books in the pile?” had been his first question when she had solicited for his help. He had gone ahead to pick up a smaller book, written in English, for her and Jutul to start with, but she had declined—she had grown attached to the old book. And she had vowed to bring it to a fi
Storm groaned tiredly; under the full weight of the knowledge she had been absorbing for the past four hours. Kaden had been true to his word, and with the help of Jiraq, had bundled more than thirty books which smelt of oldness into her room this morning, just before she dressed for school. “For those written in old language, Jiraq was kind enough to let you have his transcriber, so that you can better understand it. You can check them out after classes today.” Kaden had said, when he had stepped into her room with a fellow whom she knew went by the name, Micheal, Liam’s younger brother. She had found out right after Liam’s recuperation weeks ago, about the wicked action on the young fellow who didn’t look a year older than her. The first book on the pile had gotten her attention after the duo had left the room, and picking it up, she had decided to peek at a page, then return to her preparation for school. But a page had turned to two pages, and then five pages, until school was
Storm was chatting with Lucy and Justin, in their phone group , around a time when she should be sleeping, when she heard her name being droned in her ears. “S-t-o-r-m” She furrowed her eyebrows, and looked around the room she shared with Kaden sometimes. There was no one. The voice sounded familiar, and until she felt the eeriness in the room, she didn’t know who it was. The vampire.She got up from the empty bed, and sauntered toward the door, needing to get to Kaden as soon as possible, but the door wouldn’t budge. She stamped her foot on the floor out of frustration, as fear suddenly took root in her mind and body. Where was he when she needed him? Why hadn’t he spent the night with her? She wondered, never minding that she had been one to ask they sleep on separate beds tonight, after he had returned from his meeting with his people, after she had returned from seeing her friends off with Lent. The voice called for her name again, and she shuddered before she could help it, h
There was a stark naked silence in the room after Jutul’s declaration. So stark was it, that Storm felt her ears ringing with deep silence, deep silence and an unclothed unbelief. They were lying? If she didn’t know of Jutul’s gifts, she would have berated him for speaking against her friends. But she knew. She knew he was telling the truth—there wasn’t a need to lie. And she still was finding it hard to believe. Lucy and Justin had planned a lie, and had come to convince them of it? All for what? To gain information on what was going on in the clan? Was their school even on break? Then, the silence was broken by Kaden’s voice which had descended to a certain chillness that informed Storm that her mate was angry, very angry, at being made a fool of. “Lent, place a call to the school’s authorities, and find out if the school is really on break…” Lucy’s dark laughter interrupted his statement, and brought Storm’s attention to her. “So y’all would rather believe Storm’s newest friend
Of course they wouldn’t. Storm thought, looking at Lucy squarely for the first time since she had entered the room. Her friend was still bubbling in age-old anger, and was still carrying a grudge against her.And since, Storm knew she couldn’t do much about it—because what Lucy was demanding was unattainable—she let the latter think that she wasn’t bothered by it. It would help with them leaving earlier. Having seen what exactly was at play here, what evil forces were at play here, she wasn’t about to risk the lives of her friends. She wasn’t about to have their blood on her head, because she wanted them to be included in every facet of her life. It was better they thought she was against them; it was better they believed that she didn’t value their friendship.“So, why are you here, Lucy?” She schooled her face to a cold aloofness, unfazed when Justin let out a cuss word, whilst darting a glance between Lucy and her. There was a minute silence, where Lucy scanned Storm’s features;