“Yeah, never… Until your spawn overtakes the underworld and you rule over me and my kind. What then?”
“I promise you’ll always have a seat by my side should you desire it.”
“Let me pass. She’s not safe out there alone.”
“I will give you an hour to deal with her. If you don’t return to me, I’ll take care of the problem myself, but mark my words, you will be inside me tonight whether you get rid of her or I do.”
She laughed through an evil grin and faded into nothing.
Racing through the front door and out into the streets of Velum Mortis, I only hoped I wasn’t too late and that something bad hadn’t already happened to Sydney.
19
Sydney
I ran through nearly barren streets and alleyways until my feet began to burn, all the while thinking of all the creatures that could be on me at any given moment. But still, I continued to run. Where I was going, I didn’t know, but I couldn’t stay there with Stellan and that woman.
The tree line became visible just about the time the faint scent of death caught my attention. Soft footsteps that were meant to match mine might have gone unnoticed had I not smelled whoever it was a moment before. Someone—a vampire, judging by the smell— was following me, and it wasn’t Stellan.
Ducking into a building that appeared to be empty, I slunk down in the shadows and waited for whoever or whatever it was to enter.
My instincts were right. A moment later, a tall man entered the room and smelled the air. His face wasn’t visible in the shadows, but his light hair gleamed in the faint light. I held my breath, hoping he wouldn’t find me, but an instant later he had me in his grasps.
Pulling me from my hiding place, his intense dark eyes stared at me, studying me for what seemed like an eternity before finally speaking. It took me a moment to recognize his voice, but once I did, relief washed over me.
“How are you here?” Lucien asked. “How is it you came to be in the city of Velum Mortis. Full-blooded wolves rarely travel here, let alone ones who are barely wolf. You couldn’t penetrate a portal if you had to. Someone brought you here. Who?”
“You knew what I was?”
“Of course I did. How could I not?”
“Well, I wish you would’ve enlightened me. I had no clue… Stellan brought me here.”
“And why would Stellan do that?” he asked, loosening his grip.
“The king sent him to prevent a pack of wolves from taking me. He apparently wants to turn me over to another pack of wolves, led by my sperm donor, in order to keep the peace.”
“That’s why Liam has been entertaining those wolves. Good to know,” he said.
“Please don’t make me go to the king. I just want to go home and forget any of this ever happened.”
“I will not be taking you to my brother.”
“If the king is your brother, why wouldn’t you take me to him?” I asked, perplexed by the nature of their relationship. “Surely, I don’t mean that much to you to betray him.”
“Because seeing my brother wouldn’t end well for me, so I won’t take you to him. More for my own preservation than yours, if you must know… I’ll take you back to the human realm, and I suggest you get as far away as possible if you want to elude the king. Change your name and alter your appearance as much as you can. I may be able to help get you on your feet elsewhere.”
“Thank you,” I said, not caring if I ever saw Stellan or Velum Mortis ever again.
“Come with me,” he said.
I did as he said and followed him outside and past the trees. The forest was eerily quiet and I wondered what might be lurking about that I couldn’t see.
He stepped close to me, and said, “You’ll have to hold on to me if you want to make it through to the other side.”
Holding his arms out, he looked down at me as if he might vomit at the thought of me wrapping my arms around him, but I did it anyway. Lucien had never been overly friendly with any of his staff, or anyone in general, so I wasn’t surprised to see him react that way. His body was firm, though lean, and the faint scent of death intensified. It only made me think about Stellan and how his scent was nothing like Lucien’s or any other vampire I’d ever encountered.
“You’ll want to close your eyes,” he said. “We’ll be there in just a few seconds.”
Closing my eyes, the cool air around us turned warm and my head spun slightly, despite my eyes being closed. A wave of nausea washed over me, but it quickly subsided.
A few moments later, he said, “Let go,” and pushed at my arms to get me to turn him loose. “You’ll find Edgington City about a mile that way,” he said pointing to his left. “I need to go back to Velum Mortis and finish up my business.”
“I can’t go back there alone. Those wolves will still be after me,” I said, more to myself than him in an effort to form a plan.
His nose crinkled, “Filthy beasts… No offense.”
“None taken.”
“Fine. I’ll take you somewhere you’ll be safe for a few days, but that’s it. I can’t be seen assisting you. Whatever I can do from afar, I will, but I can’t risk my brother finding out I helped you escape.”
“Thank you,” I said and followed him through the woods. “Why are you afraid of your brother?”
“I’m not afraid,” he replied, irritation coating his words.
“Sure.”
“I was sent away to live alongside the humans by my queen until I learn my lesson,” he said with a hint of sarcasm. “Punished for a crime I didn’t commit.”
“And you couldn’t explain that to your brother? I would think family could work through their differences.”
“My brother wanted me dead. I’m not sure which punishment is worse.”
“I guess it’s not so bad that I don’t have a family if I had one like yours.”
“My brother and I used to be close, but that ended ages ago. Long before the incident I was accused of. Stellan might as well be his true brother now.”
My heart fluttered just then, and I missed him. It was stupid to miss someone who had proven he hadn’t really cared as much as I thought he did, but the heart wants what it wants sometimes. And sometimes, your heart can be wrong. This was one of those times, I tried to convince myself.
“Tell me, little wolf… Why is that your heart quickens at the mention of Stellan?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Of course, you do… It did it again just now… Stellan…” he said, cocking his head as if he were trying to hear something. “There it goes…”
“Stop it,” I said, shaking my head. “I cared about him. Thought he cared about me, but apparently, I was wrong.”
“Tell me,” he said. “What did he do?” His eyebrow cocked and the corner of his mouth turned up like if anything I told him was going to be the most entertaining thing he’d heard all day.
“He told me I was his mate.”
“That’s impossible,” he said. “You’re not entirely human.”
“So I’ve been told… He promised he wouldn’t take me to your brother, but after one meeting with him, he came back ready to hand me over. And then she showed up to claim him. I should have known the things he said to me were too good to be true. He probably told her the same things he told me. ”
“She who?”
“Some witch. Can’t remember her name, but it sounded silly.”
He began to laugh from deep within his belly and nearly doubled over as he gripped his sides.
“What’s so funny?”
He continued to laugh, but finally stood up straight and appeared to be trying to compose himself.
“And you think…” he said through jagged breaths as he wiped at his left eye with the back of his hand. “I haven’t laughed like that in ages… Stellan would likely rather cut off his own cock than ever come close to that witch bitch.”
“She said he agreed to be with her,” I said, looking away from him. The
words coming from my mouth tasted bitter. “That he owed her.” I wondered what the two of them were doing while I trekked through the woods, hoping to get to safety and to forget that vampires and witches and wolves ever existed in the first place.
“Do you know how long Theodona has pursued him? Decades, maybe longer, and not one time has he ever entertained the idea. I’d heard he agreed to it in order to save the queen, but she was stupid to think she’d ever collect on that debt, especially if what you say is true and you are his mate. No force in the universe could compel him to sleep with her after he’s found you.”
“I don’t know what I am anymore.”
The truest truth that ever did truth… I’d gone from being a human with no family and few friends who struggled to make ends meet, to a half-wolf who was being stolen away to be forced into breeding with an alpha of a pack I didn’t even know existed, to the mate of a vampire who promised me the world, all in the span of a few of days.
We continued in silence for a while until the lights from the city became visible through the trees. I recognized the area we approached as the dog park I’d dreamed about taking a dog to someday if I could ever get my shit together enough to care for one. My tiny apartment was only a few blocks away, yet I couldn’t go there. I couldn’t risk it with the Mathis pack likely still trying to find me. There’s no way they wouldn’t have eyes on my home.
“You can’t go home,” he said matter-of-factly. “That’s the first place anyone will look for you. I also can’t let you crash at my place for reasons I’ve already stated. A hotel, perhaps?”
Under normal circumstances, I could probably go to Sabrina or Tonya for help, but I didn’t want to put them in danger. The men who had tried to take me were dangerous, and they didn’t seem above taking out witnesses. I couldn’t risk it.
“I lost my purse somewhere along the way. I don’t have any cash or my debit card,” I said, realizing that that would be a whole other headache I’d have to deal with soon. I was truly helpless and I didn’t like the way it felt. My life had been shitty and my choices taken away from me more times than I could count, but once I’d gotten out on my own and away from all that bullshit, I’d been proud of myself for trying to pull myself out of the muck. Sure, I wasn’t well-off, but I was surviving. This felt like going back to square one.
“I suppose I could put you up somewhere for a few days until you get things sorted…”
“Thank you,” I said, embarrassed that I needed the help in the first place.
We approached a small motel a few minutes later and it didn’t take long for Lucien to get me a room. It wasn’t luxurious by any means, but it was clean, had a bed, and I was reasonably sure no one could find me there.
“I’ll check in on you in a few days,” he said after he’d shown me inside. “Lay low in the meantime.”
“Lucien,” I said just as he placed his hand on the door knob. He stopped, but did not turn to face me. “Why have you always helped me? Don’t get me wrong, I truly do appreciate it… I’m just curious.”
“Because you’ve always seemed alone in this world… I know a thing or two about that,” he said and opened the door, closing it behind him as he left.
I wondered just what it was he had been accused of and whether or not he was innocent, but I was determined not to dwell on it. I had my own things to dwell on and all I really wanted to do was take a shower and go to sleep.
And I’d managed to do just that, but sometime after I dozed off, a knock came at the door, startling me from my slumber.
20
Stellan
She couldn’t have gotten far.
The moment I had gotten outside, I’d picked up Sydney’s scent and followed it to the edge of the city and into the woods. The forest wasn’t safe for her. There were too many things that dwelled there that would make a snack out of her, and that was the best thing that could happen to her. There were other beings that would do far worse if they got ahold of her.
Her scent grew stronger, indicating that I was closing in on her, but it abruptly stopped like she had vanished into thin air, but maybe she had. If something had attacked her, her scent wouldn’t have dissipated like that. She had to have gone through the veil, but that meant a vampire had assisted her. Without hesitation I focused my energy and slipped through the veil and into the human realm a moment later.
As soon as I was on the other side, I picked up her scent and followed it toward Edgington City. Movement to my right caught my attention and I altered my course. Taking off as fast as I could, I raced toward whatever had made the noise.
The shape of another vampire approaching me came into view just before we crashed into each other, taking a few trees with us as we crashed to the ground. Springing to my feet, I bared my teeth, ready to tear into the other vampire.
“I’m not who you need to be worried about,” he said. His face coming into focus.
“Lucien… What are you doing here?”
“I figured it was only a matter of time before you’d come after her.”
“What have you done with her,” I said, raising my voice.
“Relax. She’s fine. I put her up in a room at a place not far from here. You’re welcome, by the way.”
“What were you doing in Velum Mortis?”
“None of your business.”
“You aren’t allowed in the City of the Dead. You betrayed your brother once, and you’ll do it again.”
“I didn’t betray him.”
“You wanted to be king.”
“Of course, I did… And if it weren’t for me, the fae would have killed us all. If I hadn’t unleashed the beast that dwells within, Liam would never have gotten close enough to defeat the fae king. But once he did, no one seemed to remember that I paved the way or that I lost my mate in the battle. No, they only cared about King William and his heroic efforts, as if he’d single-handedly defeated our enemies. So, yes, I was bitter, and yes, I wanted to be king because for some fucked up reason, I thought the distraction would be enough to get me through mourning her, but I did not betray my brother.”
“Take me to her,” I commanded as his words echoed through my mind. The thought of losing Sydney the way Lucien had lost Gianna almost doubled me over in pain, but I forged ahead. How he was still walking after losing her amazed me.
“Fine,” he said.
Knocking lightly on the door, I hoped she would answer so I could explain everything to her.
A moment later, the door cracked open. Her eyes, red and slightly puffy, met mine.
“What do you want?”
“I need to explain things.”
“No, you don’t. Leave me alone,” she said and closed the door.
“Syd,” I said, raising my voice. “Don’t shut me out over a stupid misunderstanding.”
A moment later, she opened the door again, this time wider. She peered up into my eyes, searching for something in them.
“A stupid misunderstanding? Is that all it is to you?”
“Yes. What would you call it? If you’d listen to me, you’d hear the truth, but you’d rather cling to a false betrayal than to hear me out.”
“Spill it, then.”
“I made that bargain with Theodona five years ago, fully expecting not to fulfill my end of the deal. The queen’s life was in danger, and Theodona had the means to help us. It was the only way she would agree. She’s been obsessed with me for years because of some ridiculous notion that we’ll produce an offspring that will take over the world. I never intended to sleep with her, and I don’t intend to now. And I was not going to leave you with Liam. I was going to take you to him and prove to him that you’re mine.”
“How do I know that’s the truth?”
“You have to take a leap of faith and trust me.”
“I want to,” she whispered. “But I need time. I’m so exhausted by all of this. I don’t know left from right or my ass from a hole in the ground anymore.”
“I understa
nd… You’ll be safe here. I need to take care of something anyway. Why don’t you rest and I’ll come back to you in a little while?”
“Okay,” she said, hunger in her eyes. Her words said she wanted to be left alone, but that look and the way her heart quickened told me not to stay gone long.
Gathering her into my arms, I bent my head and claimed her lips with mine, kissing her hard and deep. Her fingers trailed up my neck and to my hair, gripping hard.
I pulled away a moment later, and said, “I’ll be back soon.”
She nodded and closed the door, the lock clicking into place.
I traveled deep into the woods, moving along cautiously, listening for any sign that I wasn’t alone, but only silence greeted me. And that silence grew, becoming dark and foreboding as I approached my destination.
A trick to keep outsiders away, no doubt. There was nothing dark and foreboding about the witch Theodosia. She was Theodona’s sister, but the two couldn’t be further apart in personality and kindness.
“Theo,” I called out when I reached the edge of her land, but I was met with nothing.
I proceeded forward until I heard the crack of a twig. Turning toward the sound, I came face to face with the witch, but she didn’t look pleased to see me. She looked strikingly similar to Theodona, but her face was softer and her eyes always seemed so kind.
“Stellan,” she said. “What have you done?”
“She’s been to see you?”
“Oh, yes… You should be carful out here. She left only a few minutes ago, and is on her way to find you. I’m surprised you didn’t run into her.”
“She was supposed to give me an hour. I’m not surprised to see she lied about that, but it doesn’t matter anyway. I’m not giving in to her.”
“Be careful. She’s determined and that alone makes her capable of more than you could ever imagine.”
“I need your help,” I said, desperation coating my words.
Into the Storm (Vampires of Velum Mortis Book 2) Page 12