A Vampire's Soft Embrace

by Caris Roane

Devyn glanced outside. The property was situated in the hills north of the city of Sandismare. A small pine wood traveled the entire perimeter leaving room only for the front driveway and yard. He’d heard rumors that Rosamunde, part wolf, liked to shift and run laps through the pines for exercise.

  Rosamunde, the former Queen of Ferrenden Peace, was not at home. For that, Devyn was grateful. He didn’t want to be around another blood rose right now. Memories of Emily over the past week had kept him in a volatile, unsteady state. His temper had been quick and harsh. For the first time in a long time, he’d hoped for Invictus sign during his shift rotation, so he could take out his frustration battling the enemy.

  Stone returned and handed Devyn his drink. “You’re probably wondering why the hell I asked you here.”

  “Yes. I am.”

  He sat down opposite Devyn, his lips in a grim line. He held his drink in both hands and turned it slowly.

  Stone didn’t give speeches. He didn’t smile much. Not his style. He was taller than most every Guardsman Devyn knew. He had unusual green eyes and thick wavy black hair. He was a good ruling mastyr and radiated power.

  Devyn sipped his whisky and waited for Stone to break the silence.

  Finally, Stone took a swig then began. “Vojalie called me earlier this evening. It seems we have a new blood rose in Tannisford. Millerell, to be exact.”

  Vojalie was Emily’s mentor. No doubt Emily had talked to her about recent events.

  “We do.”

  Stone shook his head. “I’ve been trying to process what it means. On a practical, personal level, you must know once word gets out, every mastyr in the Nine Realms will want a shot at her. She’ll need protection. Or do you have an arrangement with her already? With Emily.”

  Devyn shook his head. “No.” The tips of his fangs glided in and out of his gums. He had to work to force them back. The thought of Emily with another mastyr had fired up his battle energy.

  Because he hadn’t been around her for a week, he’d learned to keep his thoughts contained. Now that Stone had spoken of all the vampires who’d be going after her, some of the former cravings and corresponding possessiveness returned like a fireball in his chest, shoulders, and arms.

  Devyn tossed his drink back. A thought occurred to him. “Did Vojalie ask you to talk to me?”

  Stone nodded slowly. “She did. But maybe not like you think. I’m not here to advise you. I need to determine if Tannisford is under some new kind of threat.”

  At that, Devyn sat up a little straighter. “What do you mean?”

  “I’d come to believe the appearance of the blood roses in the Nine Realms was a direct result of Margetta’s intention to take over our world. Now that she’s gone, I thought it was unlikely we’d have any more women show up with blood rose capacity? I guess you could say, I’m troubled. Given the nature of your report about this particular Invictus wraith-pair, especially the wraith’s level of power, the mist he could make, you can see why I have concerns.”

  Devyn shook his head. “It was only after Emily healed me and when I took her blood I was able afterward to battle the wraith. I hadn’t extrapolated a purpose. The wraith made a speech, though, about Mastyr Leonus and the dark fae, Mitrana, having sent this pair to destroy me. I don’t know why that would be. But the wraith spoke only of these two, not of a grand plan to conquer Tannisford or any of the other Nine Realms. Do you think the attack had a bigger implication than just this stated purpose?”

  He lifted his free hand. “I honestly don’t know. Let’s just say, we need to watch the situation. There will always be elements in our world that seek power for the purpose of domination. It’s the way of the Nine Realms, unfortunately. But that’s why we have our Vampire Guards and the Shifter Brigades, to always be ready. Emily’s rise to blood rose status could be a unique occurrence meant to help you and nothing more. Again, we’ll have to watch it carefully, see if Leonus and Mitrana, come for you again.”

  Stone then asked for Devyn to run through the attack sequence at Millerell once more. “Spare no detail.”

  Devyn took his time. Stone asked many questions, especially about the manner in which the Invictus pair arrived.

  At the end of the recounting, Stone asked a few more questions, in particular about time-pathing, then rose to his feet. “Thank you for coming by. Please stay in touch and let me know if anything else happens or if you think there’s something the Guard can do for you.” He then gave Devyn his private email address.

  Stone walked him to the front door. “A word of advice, Mastyr Devyn?” He opened the door, holding it wide.

  Devyn met his gaze. “Of course.”

  “I’ve been down this road and I know from experience it won’t be simple. But I do know what the most important thing is. Do everything you can to make sure Emily is safe. Really safe. It’s possible forces are at work here beyond our understanding and, yes, I’ve learned that from my wife.”

  Devyn nodded his understanding, crossed the threshold then lifted into the night air.

  ~ ~ ~

  Except for the first night, Emily had refused to weep over what happened after Devyn made love to her. Instead, she went about her life in the usual way, though she thanked the Goddess she’d been gifted with time-pathing abilities. More than once, while out in public, a mastyr vampire had come onto her. Each had shown the classic signs of craving and a need to possess. The only way she’d made her escape was by means of the continuum.

  It had been a week since she’d been with Devyn. She’d done a few household chores and now headed to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. When she discovered the cream in her fridge was sadly out-of-date, she decided a trip to the grocery store was much needed. She was reluctant to go, however. Was it her imagination, or were there more mastyr vampires in Millerell than usual?

  She donned jeans and a t-shirt, sprayed on a heavy layer of perfume to try to cloak her mastyr-pleasing scent, then headed out on foot. The April day proved to be perfect walking weather.

  She took clean fresh air into her lungs then flew to the local Millerell shop not far from the Wild Boar.

  There were enough villagers and farm-folk in the area to warrant several aisles, a fresh produce section, even a butcher. She was pushing her cart around the end of an aisle and had just brought a lemon to her nose, when a man appeared and grabbed her upper arm.

  Instinctively, she tried to pull away, but he held her fast.

  She realized at once he was a mastyr vampire, someone she’d never seen before. He had cruel black eyes, thick dark brows and a scar running down the entire right side of his face. His hair was black, wavy and shoulder length. It didn’t look clean. He had a strange smell that told her he was connected to dark fae magic.

  He spoke in a low voice. “Don’t make a fuss, Mistress, or I’ll snap your neck.”

  Because he had hold of her arm, she couldn’t use the time-path. The physical connection would have brought him with her and he could still do as much harm in the continuum as in real-time.

  She thought about contacting Devyn, but she didn’t want to do that. This was her life now. She was going to have to deal with her blood rose condition no matter what came her way.

  Once outside, she saw two shifters heading in the direction of the Wild Boar. She knew wolves loved a good fight and she recognized them as powerful members of the Tannisford Shifter Brigade. She called for help and the men came running.

  But the man was a Mastyr vampire and more powerful than she could possibly have known. He revved up his battle energy and let it fly. Both shifters got struck hard and were knocked to the sidewalk several feet. Each leaped to his feet immediately, but couldn’t retaliate since Emily had become the mastyr’s shield.

  He moved her backward along the street, never letting his grip lessen. She knew then he understood her time-pathing ability. As long as he had hold of her, he could control her.

  One of the wolves appeared to be concentrating, as in pathing with more of his fellow
warriors. A moment later, three more shifters flew swiftly from the Wild Boar. A fifth roared in on his Harley and laid it down on the cobbles to join the fray.

  The vampire had six shifters now, all coming at him. When he rose in the air, dragging Emily with him, the shifters rose as well.

  Emily levitated to keep her balance and to prevent her arm from being pulled from the socket.

  He kept aiming his battle energy at the shifters, trying to hold them off. But these men had seen a lot of war against the Invictus over the years. Each was a seasoned fighter.

  When two of the shifters whipped behind the vampire, the mastyr finally let go of her and she saw her chance.

  In that split-second, she slid into the time-path.

  Once there, she moved swiftly back to her home. She was safe, for the moment. She just didn’t know for how long and she was shaking badly.

  She drew her phone from her pocket and contacted one of the shifters who’d fought the mastyr. “Hey, Brim. Wanted to let you know that I’m safe. I’m going to contact Vojalie next to get some protection. She’ll know what to do. Were you able to capture the mastyr?”

  When Brim responded that he’d vanished just like she did and by the way how had she done that, she lied. She told him it was a trick Vojalie had taught her. Brim would believe that, Vojalie being as powerful as she was.

  Brim let her know to call if she needed any of the Brigade men again then signed off.

  Emily could breathe now. It had helped just to hear Brim’s voice.

  But who was this scarred mastyr who carried the stench of a dark fae? Had he been watching for her? Had he known she would be at the store? Worse, did he know where she lived?

  Time to contact Vojalie.

  Emily had already told Vojalie about her newly arrived blood rose abilities. She’d shared with her how she’d saved Devyn’s life because she’d fed him. She’d also relayed what happened after Devyn defeated the strange, powerful wraith, how he’d taken her back to his house. She might not have shared the intimate details, but she’d spoken of Devyn’s guilt about Kyle.

  Vojalie had counseled her to be patient where Devyn was concerned. He was still grieving. Yet now, with an evil mastyr after her, Emily wondered if patience was even an option. A vampire like this one could no doubt force a bond with her. She shuddered thinking about it.

  Vojalie said she would come to Emily right away, she just needed to arrange a sitter for her toddler, Bernice.

  As Emily waited for Vojalie, she stood in her sitting room, her gaze fixed to the backyard. Her cottage was situated near a stream and a well-cared for woodland that ran several miles in both directions east and west. A number of houses had been built next to the woods forming a loose community of artistic fae and elves, even a few trolls.

  Vojalie’s voice was suddenly in her head. Are you ready for me, my dear?

  I am. Emily was grateful for the warning.

  Vojalie, who could both teleport and make use of the time-path, appeared a few feet in front of her. She greeted Emily warmly by taking both her hands then kissing Emily on each cheek. “Are you okay?”

  Emily nodded briskly. “I am now, but it was frightening at the time.”

  “Be well and don’t worry. You and I will figure something out.” Vojalie turned in a slow circle. “I’ve always loved your home. It’s romantic and artistic. It suits you. Has Mastyr Devyn been here?”

  “Yes, a few times, but not since Kyle’s death.”

  Vojalie looked up. “Oh, and these windows. Look at all the stars.”

  Emily followed her gaze. The sitting room had a skylight that met a full floor-to-ceiling bank of windows. She had designed both the sitting room and the master bedroom to have a view of the night sky. Creating the proper sun-shielding shutters had been no small feat. But a very talented troll architect-builder had created a unique shuttering system that covered every inch of glass once the sun started to rise.

  Vojalie pivoted to face away from the windows and gestured with her hands to the sliding doors. “I take it you cordon this room off completely during the day.”

  “Not at all.” She told Vojalie about the shutters.

  Vojalie smiled her approval, then addressed the difficult subject at hand. “Don’t worry, Emily. I’m going to create a special mist for you. I believe it will keep you safe in your home.” She was silent for a moment as she held Emily’s gaze. “Did I ever tell you you’re one of my favorite students?”

  Emily was never more surprised. “No, though I find it hard to believe.” Emily was acquainted with most of her fellow, time-pathing students. She was part of a group of lovely women, each more talented than herself, of that she was sure.

  Vojalie sat down in the chair facing the windows and the view of the garden. “Well, that’s one of the reasons. You’re self-effacing, but not in a negative way. It’s part of your charm that you tend to see so much good in others. So how long have you been in love with Devyn?”

  The sudden change in subject brought Emily dropping to sit on the chair adjacent to Vojalie. She released a heavy sigh. “A long time.”

  “He’s very handsome and something more. Davido used a word to describe him. Yes. Vibrant.”

  Emily thought for a moment. Of the two brothers, Kyle shone in social settings. Devyn was much more somber. Yet, as she considered him, Davido was right. Devyn carried an internal energy with him, part mastyr and part his own personality. He loved to get things done. Kyle loved to play.

  She’d enjoyed Kyle.

  But she’d fallen deeply in love with Devyn.

  Vojalie inclined her head toward the windows then shifted her gaze toward the garden. “Will that do?”

  The powerful fae’s gaze was fixed outside. Emily followed her sight line. “Oh, that’s so beautiful. And you’ve created pink and green swirls of mist.”

  “You can see it? Good. I thought you might be able to.” She glanced around. “And I couldn’t help but notice you tend to favor these colors.”

  ‘Tend’ was right. The entire sitting room was themed with pale pink and a soft moss green. Her mentor had surprised her yet again, one more reason she’d made Vojalie her role model.

  Because of Vojalie’s thoughtfulness, Emily found herself sharing things about Devyn and her love for him. She even told her about the navy wool coat, the snowflakes and attacking him with a kiss before she’d ever met him.

  Vojalie put her hand to her chest. “I do so love a good romance.”

  Emily couldn’t help but smile. Vojalie was in love with one of the ugliest trolls Emily had ever seen. She’d been married to him forever, a famous troll, whose age no one knew, by the name of Davido the Wise. Emily had met him once. The man’s troll charisma was off the charts. She was pretty sure, if given the order, she would have followed him to the moon and beyond.

  “Do you have any advice for me about Mastyr Devyn?”

  “Me? Heavens, no. Every romance must take is own course. All I will say is be courageous.”

  There it was again. Vojalie preached courage as the real mission in realm life. For a moment, Emily wondered if she’d shown any kind of courage at all in her relationship with either Kyle or Devyn. She should have broken up with Kyle years before she even got engaged to him and she should have pursued Devyn like a dog after a bone.

  She offered Vojalie some tea. But Vojalie begged off. She was training Holly today, one of her other time-pathing students.

  Vojalie stood up, her hands on her hips, her cream tunic flowing over purple flowered tights. “I wish you every happiness, Emily. I do.” She glanced around the room one last time. “I may have to talk to Davido about building me a studio at the northeast end of our property. I’m loving this arrangement.” She met Emily’s gaze. “Be well.”

  Then she was gone.

  Vojalie was amazing.

  So, courage it was.

  Chapter Five

  Back at his house, Devyn strove to calm down. Once he did, he turned Stone’s words ov
er and over in his head. ‘Make sure she’s safe. Really safe.’

  Stone spoke from experience. He’d even lost control and nearly beat Rez to death. Apparently, Rosamunde had gone to the Wild Boar in search of a vampire to feed. She’d built an extra supply and needed relief. In fact, if rumor had it right, she’d gone specifically in search of Rez to take care of her.

  Knowing now what it was like to smell the scent of a real blood rose, he understood how impossible it must have been for Rez to do anything but agree to her invitation. Devyn would have done the same thing in Rez’s shoes, especially if, like Rez, he hadn’t been aware of her connection to Stone.

  He twisted the cap off a beer then moved to sit at the island to think about the whole damn thing. The question that rose foremost to his mind was the same thing Stone was wondering about: Why was there suddenly a new blood rose in Tannisford?

  Stone believed the Nine Realms no longer had need of them.

  Was it possible Emily’s rise to blood rose ability portended something unexpected?

  He thought back to the wraith, how strange the man had seemed, unlike any male wraith Devyn had ever known before. His power level had been extraordinary. Was he an aberration? Or something new in their world they were likely to see more of?

  The greatest mystery of all, however, was the simple truth he no longer had pain, not even after a week. He was, however, beginning to feel the need for another draw, which brought up a very different issue. Would the two feedings he’d had from Emily, one from her wrist and the other her throat, sustain him indefinitely against his chronic blood starvation?

  He marveled all over again and rubbed his stomach. He hadn’t fed in seven days which was an incredible length of time between feedings for a mastyr. The demands of his body had required daily draws from his stable of doneuses, sometimes more than once a day.

  He didn’t want to go back to the incessant stomach cramping he’d endured for decades.

  For that reason alone, he was tempted to hunt Emily down, maybe keep her chained up somewhere just to feed him.

  As his thoughts turned toward her yet again, he wondered if she was safe. He didn’t know what he would do if any harm came to her. He lived with enough guilt as it was because of Kyle. But if Emily was ever injured, or worse, he thought he might lose it.