I sat up with a jolt and looked around. I was on a pristine white sofa in a strange room. The pale, dusky light of dawn seeped through windows and a French door that did not obstruct the light with sheers or blinds.I saw Alexis standing at one of the windows, gazing out, his back to me. And then I saw that Monica lay opposite me on a hunter green velvet chaise. We were in her home. She slept, and although the sun crept over her porcelain skin, she did not burn. As my child she also had the ability to withstand the sun."She will awaken soon," Alexis said. "This one is very strong." I rubbed my head feeling as if I had a hellafied hangover. It had been a long time since I'd felt that way. "Ugh. I gotta get to BJ.""Samantha is awake and tending to her needs." Alexis turned and joined me in the living room where he stood with his hands clasped behind him.I shook my head. "Oh, Alexis, this is trouble," I said as I looked at Monica, my progeny, my child, my friend. "Why me? Why is
On the morning after the full moon, Paul came home. When I opened my eyes, instead of being in my bed, I found myself on our private patio, sitting in my husband's lap. The sun beat down on us warmly, and I flung my arms around his neck the minute I saw him."Baby! You're home!"He kissed me.I pulled back and held his face in my hands, studying him. He looked worn out. There were dark circles beneath his eyes, and his hair had grown more than would be humanly possible in the short time that we'd been apart. It now reached his shoulder blades, and I realized why he man-scaped his body hair—the change triggered hair growth."How many changed with the full moon?"He sighed. "Only about seventy of them, less than half. But Ran was one of them." I smiled in relief that at least he wouldn't have to endure another month of the torture. But the downside was that I would have to be without Paul.I kissed him and felt how much he had missed me. The large "reminder" of our time apart p
BJ looked up and patted her daddy's cheek until he gently kissed her hand. "What happened after that?" he asked in a much calmer voice. Hmm. Maybe I had better set the baby in his lap whenever I had to tell him news I know he wouldn't like. "Well, she admitted that she's wanted us to be lovers but that my 'many' lovers are always in the way." I rolled my eyes when I made the air quotes around the word "many."Paul was not amused. "Funny how she waited until she thought I was indisposed. She is one sneaky bi—"He glanced down at our daughter. "Individual.""Or else she's just not in control yet. We gotta give her a learning curve, too, honey. We're still on ours." He didn't seem to care. "And why is Alexis with her instead of with you?""Alexis says she's like me and that we're both powerful." After he'd returned home that night when she'd attempted to seduce me, Alexis explained that he intended to find out just how useful she could be to our cause. And then he said no more abo
He looked at Paul, and there was a hint of worry in Ran's eyes. "I'm not sure that I can do this. I want to …" He looked at me apologetically. "I want to eat her."Paul rolled his eyes. "Stand in line."I scowled at him."No really," Ran said anxiously. "I feel the vampire in her, and I want to damage it."Paul placed his hand on Ran's shoulder. "Stand down," he growled. Ran's anxiety began to fade. "Better?" Paul asked.Ran nodded in obvious relief. "Yes. Much." He looked at me apologetically. "I'm sorry, Kim. This is not as easy as one would think."I nodded in understanding. "Believe me, I know. But other than a desire to shred me to pieces, how do you feel?"He smiled. "Pretty damn good."The other members began to arrive. Frank eyed Ran with open hunger as Cyrene and Kaniji arrived together, which was still as curious as ever. Then Monica arrived and not surprisingly, Alexis was with her. Last to arrive was Tony. He made a point of ignoring Monica as he stood quietly b
We were missing something big here.Paul said that by the next full moon they expected to have the one hundred and ninety-six able bodies, which included Paul, Jason, and Tyler. "We could use a few months to gain control of the wolf," Paul said. "However, the army will be complete by the next full moon. I suggest that Malarias be made aware of our existence.""So soon?" Frank gestured to Ran. "You can barely control that one.""Just keep in mind that we are not targeting vampires but rogue werewolves," Paul said. "As long as you're not in the way, we don't need to control ourselves around you.""But," Frank whined, "I thought the wolves would be like our bodyguards.""That is what you're going to tell the Council," Paul said. "The Elders need to know that the Wolf Pack was created for the purpose of protecting the vampires in our sector. That's all you need to know. We have an agreement to create werewolves for the purpose of protecting the vampires that are in your territories.
I nodded because it would have to be. He kissed me again. "I'm sorry, honey.""Why doesn't Alexis bother my wolf?" Ran asked when Alexis had finished buttoning his shirt.Alexis offered the answer. "Because I have already proven that I'm not interested in dominating you. I have let you guide me when it comes to living in your home and dining on your donors."Paul seemed to consider his words and shrugged as if the explanation was as good as any.Ran stood on shaky legs. "Then I would prefer not to return to the compound. I'd prefer my own home, and Alexis can accompany me just as before."I began to really wonder if Ran enjoyed Alexis' company … or maybe he just wanted to keep an eye on his body. If the tables were turned, I'd do the same thing.Paul looked at Alexis and nodded his agreement, seeming to come to the determination that Alexis was fully capable of taking care of himself.Alexis and Ran went out the door, and before Paul could follow, I stopped him. "Now is as goo
I went upstairs and waited for Paul's arrival. I heard his motorcycle five minutes before I saw it. He smiled at me as if he had had no doubt in the world that his plan would be a success. We returned to the lower level arm-in-arm. It wasn't long afterwards that the room began to fill with several vampires, very old vampires. The atmosphere seemed to change with their arrival. It was as if they filled the world with too much other-worldly matter, as if they brought a piece of limbo over with them. I didn't like the feeling because it was foreign and empty—much like the soul of the average vampire."Alexis," a male Elder said. He stared without emotion at Alexis, who now stood in front of the Council table. The man looked rather young although his skin was ivory. His hair was like a black bowl crowning his skull, and his blank, black eyes made him look like a Roman extraterrestrial. "Faris," Alexis said. "Will you ever learn?" Faris asked."Learn when there is no lesson to be
"I might surprise you," Paul said."Your only importance lies in your usefulness, Alpha. If you do not wish to be useful, then you and your wolves will cease to exist.""The Neratomay does not control the Wolves," Paul said. "You don't give me orders. But if you make a request … then I might honor it."The Ran-thing seemed to be at a loss for words. It regarded Paul, no doubt taking in his fearless stance. In the blink of an eye, the Ran-thing transformed into something formed of smoke and fire, and it gripped Paul by the throat. It didn't look like Ran any longer, yet it still had a recognizable human quality. Its teeth were real enough and so were the eyes that resembled red hot coals. I reached out to push it away from my husband, but my hands went through it. Where was Ran's body?"You think yourself stronger than us, werewolf?""Smarter," Paul growled, his face turning red with the strain of having his neck gripped by a demon fist. "Because now you just lost your allies."
"Are you ready, my love?" Alexis asked."I'm not sure," I said. "She's still so little."Alexis kissed the dark curls at the top of our daughter's head. "Tiye is strong enough to travel back to our realm. We've been here a year. Don't you miss home?""Yeah, but a year here is only like five minutes in the Above," I said."More like a few weeks," Alexis said. "The Ladies are anxious to meet their new niece."He gently lifted his sleeping daughter, tucking her blanket carefully around her body. She had just turned three months old and was as round and plump as a melon. Her thick, curly hair was sure to be as wild as mine was when I wasn't wearing the plaits that Oni put them in. She looked like us—my brown skin with Alexis' nose and Mona Lisa smile.Alexis had named her after an ancient Egyptian Queen who was the deity of light. Leave it to him to name his daughter after an angel and a queen.He carried her outside and stood on the porch staring out at a vast sea made by his own h
Paul smiled and relaxed. I led him to the study where Alexis was waiting. Alexis nodded in greeting."Alexis, thanks for agreeing to this meeting," Paul said.Alexis gestured to a throne. "Please, have a seat."Paul looked at the throne and sat. "Mmm, comfy."Alexis moved the other two thrones to form a triangle, and we sat."We saw the gathering video," Paul said. "We didn't know we were being filmed," I said."I figured as much," Paul said. "But you made a good point when you said that one supernatural group cannot rule over another. My Werewolf Council has been meeting for the last few days. We don't want a war with the Neratomay.""And we do not want a war with the Werewolves," Alexis said.Paul nodded. "We have been in discussions with the Alliance of the Supernaturals, and I expressed King's beliefs that if we do not work together then we will all fall together.""That's right," I said."After a lot of negotiation, the Alliance would like to extend an offer for you to
Ran continued. "We asked the Wolves to coordinate their attacks with ours, and that is all they agreed to do.""But what about the carnage that occurred in Epic Cu?" The Councilmember asked."Are you for real?" I asked in irritation. "There were hundreds of Rectors at that gathering! All it would have taken was for one of those Rectors to snap Alexis' neck before he could summon King to close the portal to the Underworld. We had to take out the Rectors and luckily the Alpha aided us or—well we wouldn't be here and you'd still be kissing the ass of your demon master!"Alexis put his hand on mine but Ignacio smiled in amusement. Will you be quiet! Cyrene snapped silently in my head.When has that ever happened? I snapped back.Ladies, Alexis interrupted. Now is not the time. My love, try to be more…diplomatic.Fine, I replied."We won that war by any means necessary," Alexis said, his voice annoyed. "We don't appreciate your line of questioning. Do you want to go back to the way
The Neratomay flashed themselves away once they were outside of Epic Cut. The Supernaturals carried away their dead and injured, and what was left inside of Epic Cu was blood, gore, and ash. Paul left with his pack, and Ran, King, Alexis, and I flashed back to our villa where King fell in an exhausted asleep.Alexis and I watched him with pride. "It could have gone so much different," I whispered."No." Alexis continued to gaze at King's small sleeping form. "Not if we understand King's true potential—this is the way it was meant to be."It was time discover the fallout so we turned on the radio and television. Many countries were in a state of emergency based on what had happened over the last several hours. News outlets and radio stations made announcements that people should stay indoors because there were reports of wild, strange beast attacks. Videos of humans turning into Vampires and using impossible speed to attack the beasts clogged the Internet. Supposed experts in the s
I moved from zombie to Wraith, pushing them through the portal and trying not to think about those they had possessed.The Wraiths will take you…Oni had said.I saw Alexis keeping King in the light flowing from the portal, but the portal had grown smaller.It was working!King was closing the portal to the Collective!As I zapped zombies and Wraiths, I noticed with surprise that the Supernaturals were fighting with the Neratomay to kill the zombies! When they ganged up and killed a zombie and the wraith left the zombie's body, I was able to zap the Wraith and send it back where it belonged."Aleawdat 'iilaa alealam alsuflii!" I chanted loudly along with King. Although I didn't understand the words, I could repeat them exactly.Then Ran, who still stood sentry beside me, began repeating the words. Alexis joined our chant, and that portal began shrinking even more.The larger Wraiths became bottlenecked trying to squeeze up and out of the shrinking portal. They were so freaking g
I stared at the center of the pentagram where so much power was streaming through to seek out vessels, as if that power was a thinking, conniving being. It infused its targets with power so they could fight for it. And Alexis thought that my son should face that? My little boy?"Alexis, he's just a baby!""He is a demon!" he said sternly. "He only pretends to be a baby because that's what you need, Kim. You have to know that it has been many years since our son was a baby."The way King talked to the Wolf Council, the way he seemed to understood so much and so easily, the way he commanded attention whenever he spoke. I didn't want my child to fight this battle, but Alexis and King both knew this was what King was meant to do.Alexis released me and turned toward the pentagram. He raised his hand and began pulling power from the portal in the center, pulling so much that he glowed with the unnatural light that the energy emanated.Paul squinted and stepped in front of me, preventin
Alexis raised his hand. "We learned the truth, secrets that have enslaved us all!" Alexis' nose began to bleed. He stumbled and swiped at the blood angrily and then raised it to show everyone. "Secrets that prevent me from speaking these truths. But you see! You see!"Ran glared out at the group. "We know, even if we can't speak it. But if you can read it in our heads, you will know this secret, too!"The pain was so sudden that I could not have taken a step. I couldn't even see! Buzzing filled my brain as instead of a dozen bees, hundreds of them seemed to fill my head. I had expected it and thought I was prepared, but there is no way to be prepared when someone is inside of you filling your brain to bursting!"Kim!" Paul shook me.I tried to open my eyes then realized they were open. I couldn't see!"Build your wall!" Paul shouted. "Build it now!"I tried to imagine the bricks—white bricks. White…but I could only see black vapors!Then Alexis was inside my head cutting through
I smelled Alexis and Ran, but so had Paul. He was already heading toward them. When we finally met up, I dropped Paul's clothes on the ground before him. He changed quickly back to a man while I stared up at the castle where more Neratomay than ever attempted to enter Epic Cu."Once we're inside we cannot flash ourselves out," I said.Paul narrowed his eyes. "You'll be trapped inside?"Alexis frowned, but Ran and I nodded.Paul slipped his shirt over his head and peered at the castle. "We can blow this bitch up.""Blowing up Neratomay won't kill us," Alexis said. "Not unless our heads are severed or our hearts pierced.""Why does this castle remind me of Hogwarts?" Paul asked.I smiled. "That's what I thought!""How do we enter?" Paul asked. "That entrance is a hopeless bottleneck." "You could enter through the front door once we're inside," Alexis said, pointing at the opening four stories up. "That's how we exited."Paul licked his lips. "I can make that jump.""Not as a
"You're behind this, aren't you? Somehow—"His head exploded. I flinched at the spray of gore. When it turned to ash, I brushed it off me."Which one of you did that?" I asked."He searched my head," Alexis replied."Well, warn a sister next time," I said.Then I felt a loud buzz in my head, and across the room another Elder's head exploded.This created more bedlam and screaming from Council members who flashed themselves away or who sought the aid of another Elder."Do you feel that?" Ran asked."I don't feel anything because these people are screaming and hollering so loudly," I said.They were the most cowardly individuals I had ever seen. These powerful Vampires sat here crying like wusses! The very Council members and Elders who had tortured and murdered other lower level Neratomay could only hide and cry when they met a foe they couldn't overpower. They were the very definition of bullies!Ran turned to me. "It's Paul.""Paul? How…?""I can still hear him from my tim