Visibly, Kenna started to tremble, and one of Julius’s arms snaked around her back, crushing her breasts against his chest, his grip on her hip tightening, even though his movements never picked up in quickness, and slightly, he tilted his head back. He spoke words we couldn’t here, but it was obvious. He was ordering her to let go.
Her hands grasped his shoulders, and he kissed her softly.
Julius lifted her and let her body slide against his once more.
Kenna nodded rapidly, her expression complete euphoria.
He captured her mouth again as it started to slowly drop open.
My breath seized as Julius lifted her just a little more than normal, and thrust harder than before, Kenna’s quivering body going rigid. Even from here, I heard her muffled scream. And, still, he raised her again and pumped up into her just a little harder, his own body shuddering, his shout joining hers as he seemed to lose his control, slamming them together for a final thrust, his hand fisting in her hair to keep their mouths together, his other hand gripping her hip brutally. His knuckles were white as Kenna’s fingernails dug into his shoulders, their bodies jerking against one other, and their tongues most definitely tangled even as they yelled one another’s names into the other’s mouth.
“Christ,” Randor muttered quietly, sounding a little breathless.
Heck, yeah. I was so there with him.
Even though we absolutely shouldn’t have been witnessing this, it was undeniably beautiful. Julius could have crushed her, she was so damn tiny, but even as they lost control together, they held one another with need and absolute tenderness. Their hands groped to hold the other tighter and closer. Kenna’s arms wrapped around his neck to crisscross and grab his shoulder blades, and Julius’s massive arms enveloped Kenna’s bitty frame, crossing behind her back to hold her shoulder and hip, their kiss consuming.
It was…breathtaking.
Slowly, their kiss ended, their chests expanding as they sucked in air, their heads falling to one another’s shoulders, faces in toward the other’s neck, still grasping one another.
I blinked and rubbed at my eyes, mumbling, “Well…”
Randor chuckled quietly and slapped my knee. He jumped to his feet in a limber movement.
My brows began to pucker. “You’re leaving?”
He jerked his thumb over his shoulder, toward the window. “Show’s over. I need to go.”
I tried not to pout. “You sure?”
I was pretty sure his cheeks were more flushed than when he had arrived, his eyes like fire on mine. When he spoke, I froze solid—any pout disappearing. “If I stay, you won’t be able to watch them.” He lifted a finger, pointing behind me. “I’ll have you pinned to that tree, and we’ll be making our own show.”
My mouth bobbed, like an idiot.
Speak, dang it!
He waited. Waited for me to argue. To ask him to stay.
I choked, not able to say a word.
He winked and walked into the woods. “Night, Susan.”
“Night,” I whispered.
I glanced at a pair of sunglasses inside the boutique where I was outside standing. They were cute, pink tinted and small, perfect for my petite features. I peered up at the sign on the building I was standing in front of, memorizing the name so I could come back when I wasn’t on duty to purchase them. The one thing Kenna and Juliet didn’t do enough was shop, so today wasn’t so bad—since I definitely loved to shop.
I may have a minor addiction to new things.
No shame here, though. My wardrobe was all mine.
I looked good, and I knew it.
I paid enough for my clothes that I had better look good.
My attention altered back to my prey. She was laughing with her mom inside the store across the street, holding up a dress that was totally made for Juliet. But true to my friends nature, she shook her head and made her daughter put it away, pointing at a pair of jeans instead.
I chuckled quietly and popped a piece of peppermint gum into my mouth, the mint flavor tantalizing my taste buds. Kenna was fighting a losing battle where Juliet was concerned. My old friend could be as stubborn as a mule when she was determined.
I blew a bubble and watched it pop, startling a few humans walking by. “Sorry!” I hurried to state, my cheeks flushing. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
The little girl holding her mom’s hand peered out from behind her mom’s leg. She was as cute as a button. Maybe six-years-old. Pretty brown eyes stared at the gum packet in my hand. “Can I have one?”
“Prissy! You don’t ask strangers that!”
I laughed outright and waved the mom off. “She can have one. It’s okay.” And, truly, with a nickname like that, she could have the whole pack. Stupid mother. I handed the little girl a stick, but added, “Don’t swallow it, okay?”
“Okay.” She grinned great big, showing two missing bottom teeth. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, hon.”
I smiled as mom and daughter walked away, the little girl bouncing with happiness inside her soul. I never fed off the young, even though some Light Elves did. They were normally so full of light energy they stood out like beacons, just as she did. The mother may be stupid with nicknames, but her daughter was more than happy to be by her side.
My grin was still in place when I glanced up, searching for my target.
Kenna was standing toward the windows of the shop now, eyeing a blouse while Juliet had moved farther back into the clothing store, talking with the sales person. I snickered, seeing the pair of jeans in her hand she had pointed to before. Exactly as I had predicted.
But my smile instantly faltered when I saw two Elf power signatures enter from a back door. The exact way Juliet was heading, the sales person showing her where the dressing rooms were. Juliet wasn’t a babe, but she wasn’t old enough to naturally look…and she was weak. My friend had the weakest power in the Light realm, the most fragile of us all.
And the two power signatures hiding behind a wall weren’t weak.
They weren’t the most powerful either, but they sure as hell could take down Juliet.
My feet were moving before I knew it, my phone at my ear.
We were in the gosh darn city, no forests nearby. Randor wouldn’t be able to get here in time. I was going to have to engage. When he answered, I was already barging into the store, the glass door flying back and whacking a circular clothes rack. “Randor!”
I ignored Kenna’s wide-eyed glance as she saw me race by.
“What’s wrong?”
“It was the wrong target!” I shouted, hearing my friend scream from the back room. “Call Samuel. His mate is in danger. We’re downtown.”
“Fuck!” he bellowed. “Stop, Susan. Do not enga—”
“She’s my friend! Screw you.” I hung up and shoved my phone in my pocket, racing toward the back door. I shoved the clerk aside, watching the power signatures the entire time. The weakest of the three—my friend—was being carried by another. “Crap!”
I slammed the back door open and skidded to a halt, tiny pieces of asphalt skidding across the alleyway. I growled quietly at the two masked figures shoving an unconscious Juliet into the back of a car. “Hey!” I bellowed, walking straight toward them. “Why don’t you pick on someone your own age.” They were older, their power ringing of many years on this earth.
One jumped into the backseat with Juliet’s limp form, the other shooting their hand out. Right at me. Light power surged through the air, rocketing the litter on the ground directly toward me.
I threw up my own hands, creating a barrier of power against the violence aimed at my person. I barred down when their power hit mine. My feet skidded against the ground, almost tripping me, as I shoved against the invisible barrier even more fiercely. To any human, it would have looked like a person posing with their hands in the air and feet spread, but the kidnapper’s power was eating away at mine—just a little stronger than me.
Kenna raced o
ut behind me into the alleyway, her eyes frantic. She wasn’t prepared for the assault. Her body flew into the air, tossed backward at least twenty feet before she landed heavily on her side. Her body rolled until she came to a dead stop. Her face lifted, smeared in dirt, repeatedly blinking in a daze.
All while the dang kidnapper jumped into their getaway car and sped away.
My arms fell in exhaustion. I dropped to my knees.
I stared where the car turned, squealing out of the alleyway. Gone from sight.
A black wooden door blasted off the store next to us.
I held perfectly still as the original Dark Elf stepped outside it.
Power vibrated around his being in dangerous waves, the ground beneath my knees trembling in crashing wakes. His black eyes found his daughter picking herself up on shaking legs, his gaze scanning over her before he altered his attention to me. His voice shoved against my chest like a sledgehammer, knocking me flat on my back. “Where is my mate?”
I grabbed my throat, trying to breathe. “She’s gone.” And I swallowed my gum. “They took her.”
Haven Resort was a clusterfuck of a mess—it deserved the curse word. While there were Light Elves running around with direct orders from Julius to investigate the Light Elves who had kidnapped Juliet, there were twice as many Dark Elves here who were furious and frightened (of their ruler.) The Dark Elves were just finding out that Juliet, a Light Elf, was their ruler’s mate, hence their anger that he had kept the information from them.
But they were more frightened than anything.
And deservedly so.
I had never felt power like this.
I knew my own ruler had it, but he kept it tucked away.
Samuel didn’t give a crap right now.
When he took a step, the resort shook under us.
When he breathed, the air vibrated around us.
When he shouted…Elves ran in fear…and the foundation of the property shifted.
One section of the resort was already demolished.
What was even more terrifying was that Julius had indicated Samuel was keeping his power under control for how furious he was. Like, he had only let a spark of it out to get his people moving. I had taken a few steps away from Julius at that point, understanding just how powerful the original Elves were. I was tremendously grateful I wasn’t mated to either one of them.
I sat on the sofa inside the Light Elves den, a designated location inside Haven Resort for Light Elves to converse with their ruler if need be. Randor sat directly next to me, massaging my left arm where Samuel had stepped on it in the alleyway demanding to know who the kidnappers were. Of course, I hadn’t known.
My arm was a smashed up mess but was slowly forming back into a normal roundness.
I stilled when Samuel and Kenna walked into the room, the couch shaking underneath me. Julius peered over his shoulder from the window he had been staring out of, the glass cracked from the constant vibrations. My ruler shook his head. “We haven’t heard anything.”
Samuel slammed the door shut. A rafter overhead creaked and splintered.
But it held. Thank goodness.
The Dark Elf narrowed his eyes on my ruler. “You knew something like this might happen.” He tilted his head toward me, but his eyes never left Julius. “That’s why she’s been spying on us for the past month.” Black brows furrowed. “Tell me who it is that took Juliet.”
I didn’t open my mouth. Apparently, my sleuth skills needed refining.
Julius didn’t say a word, only holding the Dark Elf’s gaze.
“Tell me.” A quiet, quiet order.
“It is Light Elf business.” Very soft words. “We are taking care of it.”
Even softer words. “It stopped being Light business when my mate was kidnapped.”
Kenna’s lips thinned and she took a step toward her mate. But Samuel slammed a hand down on her shoulder and jerked her back by his side. The division was clear when she didn’t try to move again. Instead, she used her words. “Julius, you need to tell us.” She swallowed, her throat constricting. “There’s something you don’t know.”
Julius turned to stare at his mate fully, not stopping her from her Dark Elf duty. “What is it?”
“Other than my love, my life, being taken by your people?” Samuel spewed in disgust.
“Yes.”
It was so quiet in the room when the Dark Elf didn’t reply.
Randor’s hand stilled on my arm…when Samuel’s chin trembled.
No one missed it.
All five of us in the room silent, unsure what to do.
Dark Elves didn’t cry. Not openly, anyway.
They rejoiced in the people who did cry, their energy feed.
Julius took a tentative step forward, his attention solely on the Dark Elf now. “Tell me.”
His voice, when it came, was whisper soft and hoarse. A sure sign he was keeping himself together by a thin rope. “Juliet was right. About the Blood Tree.” His breath shuddered, his entire frame vibrating where he stood. “She’s pregnant.”
I sucked in a harsh breath.
A Light Elf might be immortal, and be able to withstand torture, but her body could still abort the baby if too much trauma were issued. It wouldn’t take a lot either, not with the ways you would torture an Elf with impenetrable skin—only so many holes in the body to use. And right now, it was as if the baby was human, easily killable.
Julius dropped his head and stared at the ground. He rubbed his palms against his face, giving the Dark Elf a moment to compose himself. He stared at the carpet beneath his feet for a full two minutes before he gazed back up. His voice was void when he stated, “We believe it was Juliet’s parents who took her. They were furious when the Blood Tree declared Kenna a Dark Elf, and they didn’t keep their opinions quiet, either. And when I found out you two were mated, I couldn’t put her parents in the ground. So we had people watching them inside the Light realm.” He flicked a finger at me. “We had Susan watching Kenna. We never thought they would attack their own daughter.”
Samuel didn’t blink. “Did they take Juliet back to the Light realm?”
“No.” He shook his head. “They haven’t come through the gate.”
“So they’re here. My guys should be able to find them easily.” Samuel’s nostrils flared. He cracked his neck. “You should have told me about them. I knew she had issues with her parents, but she never told me anything.”
My lips thinned, but I opened my mouth. “It’s probably her dad running the show.” I held perfectly still when all eyes found mine, intense and furious. “I think he hit her when they made her leave the Light realm. Her mom wouldn’t do it, but her dad…,” I ground my teeth together, “he is as bad as they come for Light.”
Kenna blinked, her tone shaking. “No wonder she never let me meet them.” Samuel didn’t stop Kenna this time when she rushed to her mate. She buried her face into his chest while he held her close. “We have to find her. We have to find my mom.”
I watched as Julius, Kenna, and Samuel walked out the door and closed it behind them. My own chin trembled, and I shook my head. “This is all my fault.” A tear slipped down my cheek. “I wasn’t fast enough. I wasn’t strong enough.” My brown gaze moved to Randor and caught in his blue eyes. “She’s my friend. I don’t have many of them.”
I froze for all of a heartbeat when his strong arm enveloped me in a blur, pulling me closer against him. He held the back of my head and kissed my forehead. “It’s not your fault, Susan. I promise.”
I cried gently against his chest and gripped his soft cotton shirt in my fisted hands. “It is. There was this little girl, and I was distracted. If I had been paying attention to my job, this might not have happened.”
He hushed me gently, and crooned, “Mmm. You might be right.”
My shoulders hunched in, and I sobbed. “You’re not supposed to say that!”
One of his hands ran up and down my back in a soothing gesture. “You
did say it first.”
I pounded once on his chest. “You. Are. Such. A. Jerk.”
His chest vibrated against my hands. He was laughing quietly. “And, yet, you still like me better than any other man.”
I sniffed. “You’re not supposed to say that either.”
“Perhaps.” His lips brushed my forehead again. “May I tell you a secret, Susan?”
I perked up, tilting my head back. Tears dried on my cheeks as I stared into his fascinating blue eyes. “Yes.”
His grin was slow. “I still like you better than any other woman.”
My lashes fluttered as I blinked in shock. “No, you don’t.”
“Yes, I do.”
“No.” I shook my head slightly. “You really don’t.”
“I really think I would know.” Randor still wore that cocky grin, and he brushed his thumb over my cheek, smearing any remaining tears. “You just weren’t ready for me.”
I stared. “Huh?”
“You might still not be ready for me.”
“Give me a break.” A thought occurred, and I stuttered, “B-but you sleep with other women all the time.”
“And you sleep with other men. That’s merely a night’s pleasure.” He shrugged a shoulder and then tapped my forehead. “When I take you for the first time, I want all of you. Not just the physical. Every night and every day. Forever.”
My thoughts jammed against each other, all battling to be the first to spew past my lips. I choked on a stunned laugh, my brows furrowing. “Is that why you never play your flute?”
White brows lifted. “And how would you know that?”
I might have blushed. A little. “I asked around.”
His lips twitched. “Yes, that’s why I don’t play my flute. I’ve found the woman I want to be with.” He tipped his head down and brushed his nose against mine. “In fact…I may have destroyed it after your Blood Tree.”
My jaw dropped. “What?”
Blood Tree: Silver Edition Page 15