by C. G. Powell
“Can we get some breakfast first?” Mae’s stomach became unsettled at the thought of hand to hand combat with Alexis. Vampire or not, the bitch scared the hell out of her.
“That sounds like a great idea. I can’t think on an empty stomach,” Meredith chimed in.
Alexis threw her hands up in the air. “What a bunch of fucking little cupcakes you two are! How am I supposed to get anything done if you’re going to waste my time eating?”
Alexis was sitting at the kitchen table brooding while they ate. Meredith was looking exhausted from staying up all night and Mae was not anxious to start any lessons with Alexis. “I need to get on her good side or the next few weeks are going to be unbearable,” Mae thought. “Alexis, how long have you known Meredith and Beck?”
“Well, I met Aidan first about thirty years ago. He and I dated for a couple of weeks, but it was Beck that I was attracted to. Meredith was a friend of theirs and on the Witches Council, so we’ve known each other for far longer. It was not until I almost killed Aidan that Meredith and I became friends.” She leaned back in the chair and put her hands behind her neck only inches away from the rifle strapped to her back.
Mae was startled by the sound of her cell phone ringing. It was Beck, so she answered it quickly. “Hello, handsome, I hope you’re calling with good news.”
“I am just wrapping things up here, I have one more phone call to make then I will be on my way back home. Is Alexis there yet? I need to talk to her.”
Mae handed the phone to Alexis. “Beck wants to talk to you.” She was feeling jealous, like there was something secretive going on between them.
“’Sup Beck? We were just deciding what to start with, hand to hand or stopping bullets.” She talked to him with a certain ease and confidence that Mae found lacking.
“Start with stopping bullets, I will be home soon and will work with her on hand to hand. Make sure to use the rubber bullets. I do not know how well she can heal herself yet and I do not want any accidents happening in my absence,” Beck told Alexis.
“Roger, rubber bullets. Is that all you have for me?”
“It is for now.”
Alexis handed the phone back to Mae and pursed her lips. “Your boyfriend sure does know how to spoil a good time,” she sneered, getting up from the table, removing the rifle from her back and unloading it.
“Mae, I just wanted to let you know I will be home in about three hours. Let Meredith know and ask her to find you some clothes to spar in.” He needed to teach her to protect herself, but he also longed to be close to her and this was a way to accomplish both.
“With whom am I going to spar?” she inquired, hoping it would not be Alexis. She scared the crap out of her.
“You and I are going to spar when I get home. I need to make this last call so I can get out of here. I love you, Mae,” he paused waiting for her response.
“I miss you, Beck, bye and be safe.” Once again, she missed another chance to tell him she loved him too. She folded the phone and hung up. “Meredith, Beck wanted me to let you know he’ll be home in about three hours and to find me some sparring clothes.” Mae’s heart longed for Beck and three hours still seemed like an eternity.
“Alexis you only have an hour to work with her before she has to get ready for Beck’s arrival.” Meredith sounded hurried as she gave her orders.
~~~***~~~
Beck called Nikola with Mae’s DNA test. The experiments that he was currently running would be to benefit humans, witches, and vampires alike. A method for merging all of the races for good, to prevent anymore fighting and to allow all three races to evolve and take their places among the stars and their ancestors. It was not until the end of their conversation that Beck realized the mistake he had made in telling Nikola of Mae’s DNA results. “The prospect of tainting vampire genes with witch’s blood is enough to start a war among us, Beck. If word gets out about it, she is as good as dead.” Nikola’s words kept replaying in his head on the entire flight home.
~~~***~~~
“Are you ready Mae?” Alexis shouted across the lawn, carefully aiming her gun filled with rubber bullets.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Mae answered, focusing her energy into a parabola at the coming projectile. It was harder than making walls or shields and its swiftness made her adrenalin rush every time she heard the sound of the bullet leaving the gun. Mae could stop a rubber bullet, but only if she knew where it was coming from. Could she be quick enough if the shooter was hidden from view, using real bullets, which were faster than the rubber ones? The bullet dropped to the ground twenty feet in front of her.
“Way to go, Mae!” Alexis smiled, knowing she had done her job in less than an hour. She motioned for Mae to follow her on to the patio. “We’ll work on this some more later. I want to see you stopping real bullets by the end of the week.”
Meredith was yelling across the lawn for Alexis to wrap things up. She had orders from Gemma to make Mae beautiful before Beck got home and after spending an hour chasing bullets, Mae was in dire need of a shower for starters.
They could hear the sound of the helicopter landing. Beck was finally back and Mae rushed onto the patio, waiting for him to debark. Meredith helped her get ready for his arrival as per Gemma’s orders. She was wearing a white sundress that she purchased the day before with beautiful roses etched on it and cute, strappy white sandals. As soon as she saw him climb out, she ran to greet him, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him. His arms slipped around her waist, pulling her close, his mouth encompassing hers with urgency as they lost themselves in each other for that moment. They pulled back and gazed into one another’s eyes as the blades of the helicopter stopped moving.
“Get a room already!” Alexis yelled from the patio when they resumed their kiss.
“I think we have been caught. I have missed you so much, my love,” Beck whispered in her ear, his warm breath on her neck sending blood rushing to her core.
“I missed you, too,” she whispered back as they headed for the house, his arm around her waist while they walked. Mae felt as if her heart would burst with joy now that he was home.
“Hello Beck, good to see you again.” Alexis held out her hand and shook his.
“It is good to see you too. I have not told Aidan of your arrival so he will be surprised when he returns from Dublin later today. He chose to drive back instead of flying,” Beck explained, making their way into the house.
“Can I borrow the helo? Meredith and I wanted to fly up to Shannon for the rest of the day and do a little shopping,” Alexis inquired.
Beck knew the real reason for their trip. It was to give he and Mae some private time. “Are you going to fly it yourself or do you want a pilot?”
“You know I love borrowing your big boy toys; of course I’m going to fly it myself,” she declared assuredly, winking at him.
“Just try and bring it back in one piece this time,” Beck laughed.
Alexis smiled and hugged him like a teenager borrowing her dad’s car. “I will do my best, and for the record, it wasn’t entirely my fault. Aidan let go of the aircraft’s stick when I wrapped my lips around his,” she offered, feigning innocence.
Beck laughed out loud at her comment. “At least I do not have to worry about that happening again. You girls have fun.”
Soon they were gone, leaving Beck and Mae alone for the rest of the day. “You look beautiful, Mae. Is this one of the dresses you bought yesterday?”
“Yes, Gemma and Meredith did a wonderful job picking out clothes for me. I take it you like?” Mae asked, doing one of Gemma’s model poses as she sucked in her cheeks.
“I would like it better if it were crumpled on the floor of the bedroom.” He raised his eyebrows and winked, then put his arms around her waist.
Mae grinned and hugged his neck, “Would you now, Mr. Worthington?”
“Yes, I would, Miss Fletcher. First you need to learn self-defense.”
She backed out of his
arms, “Oh my freaking God! I’m so sick of all the self-defense crap. Can’t it wait until tomorrow?” she grunted.
“No it cannot wait, so go get changed and meet me in the gym,” Beck commanded.
Mae was less than thrilled to be in the gym. Her only consolation was the fact that she and Beck were alone. Beck was standing in the center of a matted floor, shirtless in a pair of black martial art pants and swinging a couple of wooden swords around when Mae approached. “Are you ready to get this over with? Because I sure am,” Mae said in a disgruntled voice, approaching him on the mat.
Beck handed her one of the swords. “I thought you would enjoy this. You did say you studied Tahtib and I figured it would be better than letting Alexis teach you.”
As soon as she gripped the handle, Beck swung and she blocked. It was not long before they had gotten into a rhythm, she could almost anticipate each of his moves before he made them. Her speed was faster than ever and he soon quit holding back and swung full force, shattering both swords into splinters when she tried to block him.
“You are far better than I thought you would be,” he commended while disengaging a couple sets of metal swords from the wall. “These are traditional, ancient Egyptian battle swords called sais’. You hold one in each hand and use the small blades on each side to block,” he said, handing her a set of swords.
The blades looked sharp and she didn’t like the idea of getting hit with one, especially knowing the immense strength behind it. “I’m scared to use these, Beck,” holding the blades out in front of her, between her finger and thumb, as if they were something grotesque.
“Do not be. After what I just saw with the wooden swords, you are more than ready to use sais’. I will start slowly and let you set the pace, okay?”
“Okay.”
Once again, they swung at each other, it seemed like second nature to her. Something about the sais’ made them feel like they belonged in her hand. Beck started to increase his speed and force, but she matched his every move. They were like an ancient forgotten dance, moving in rhythm to the music of the blades singing as they hit each other. The world around them suddenly blurred and Mae found herself flat on her back with Beck on top of her, both of them breathless. The one sai she had left in her hand was pressed firmly at his neck and a small trickle of blood dripped on her. She withdrew her blade from his neck and slid it across the floor. The sight of his blood overwhelmed her with erotic thoughts as his legs straddled her hips. She was on the edge of losing control when he leaned closer and kissed her softly on the lips. She licked the blood off his neck where the wound had already healed and wanted more. His hardness began to press against her and she could feel his pulse pounding.
He got off her quickly then helped her up. “How did you learn how to fight that way?”
“I don’t know. It was like I could sense your every move before you made it. I’m so aroused right now, I can’t think straight. Licking the blood off your neck was almost orgasmic,” she confessed, still out of breath from sparring.
“You are not the only one randy at the moment. You almost made me cum, that is why I got up so quickly. I think we could both use a shower and some lunch. Then we can spend the rest of the day in bed.”
“Why did you stop?” We were both on the edge of sexual bliss,” she pointed out.
He hung his head down and squeezed her hand in his. “I almost lost control of myself Mae and I can be a real monster when I lose control. I just do not want to hurt you,” he admitted.
Mae grinned at him and raised his chin so he could look at her. “Beck, can’t you see, I am a monster too. I wanted to drink from you. It wasn’t enough just to taste that small drop of blood that was drying on your neck. I wanted to wrap my legs around your waist while you fucked me so hard against the wall I could feel my bones giving way.”
Beck was surprised at her explicitness. “I just do not want to be an animal when I am with you. I love you Mae,” he told her, looking into her eyes.
Mae could see into the depths of his soul, his declaration too honest to remain unacknowledged any longer. “I love you too,” Mae admitted, finally voicing what her heart had known for weeks. It felt like a heavy burden lifted.
Beck smiled, “Do you truly mean that?” He pulled her into his arms and held her like she might escape or change her mind if he let go.
“Yes. I mean it. I’ve been in love with you since we first drove here…I just couldn’t bring myself to admit it to you,” she sighed, glad to finally let him know how she felt.
They laughed as he swung her around. “This is the happiest day of my life! At least until you marry me,” he corrected himself.
His eyes sparkled with joy which made him even more appealing, as he put her back on her feet. “Baby steps, Beck, baby steps,” Mae softly reminded him. There was so much more she wanted to know about him.
True to Beck’s word, they showered, lunched, and spent the rest of the day in bed. They just lay in each other’s arms, exhausted from several hours of unbridled love making. Mae thought about what Gemma said “Ask him about Helen.” She debated the thought, wondering if this was something she wanted to know the answer to.
“Mae, is there something wrong? You seem to be lost in thought.”
She inhaled deeply and blurted out, “Who is Helen?”
Beck sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. His long silence let her know that this was something he would rather forget altogether. He finally broke down and told her the whole story from beginning to end. Mae felt completely betrayed; tears flowed down her face as her heart broke.
“Get out!” she screamed at him, still naked in his bed.
“Mae, calm down. Please, I love you more than life itself. I chose you Mae, not Helen,” he pleaded.
“How can I trust a man who would trade my existence to use my body for another? Now get out!” Mae demanded, throwing one of the priceless figurines from the nightstand at him.
He dodged the statue, backing towards the door. “Mae, I beg you.” Tears were streaming down his face, the pain of their raw emotions filled the air.
“I never want to see you again!” Mae screamed at him, throwing his engagement ring at him then slamming the door in his face as he exited the room.
Beck leaned against the door crying. His anger at himself overcame him and he punched a hole in the wall, screaming in anguish. Mae sat on the bed curled up with her arms wrapped around her knees. She cried so hard she felt gutted, and to make things worse, she was feeling empty in his absence. She was alone with no one to talk to, not even the housekeeper to lend an ear. Nausea overtook her suddenly, causing her to run to the bathroom.
~~~***~~~
Aidan walked into the gym where Beck had been breaking and punching things for the past hour. Beck’s hands had been broken and rebroken so many times; they looked like they’d been through a meat grinder. He was just about to hit the concrete wall again when Aidan grabbed his friend from behind and stopped him.
“What in the hell happened? I was driving up the road and got hit with a wall of emotion so painful, I had to stop the car before I wrecked it,” Aidan told him.
Beck sat down on a stack of mats, his eyes red and swollen, trying to explain everything to Aidan. “She said she loved me!” he whimpered as if in a trance.
Aidan raised an eyebrow in confusion, “I thought that was a good thing.”
“It is, but then I told her about Helen and now she never wants to see me again.”
“Where is she now, Beck? I need to check on her.” Aidan was still reeling from the onslaught of emotions from Mae and Beck.
“I left her in my bedroom. You have to do something Aidan, I love her.”
Aidan left Beck to find Mae, not knowing what he was going to say to her, but sure it was not good for her to be alone. To his relief, he could hear the helicopter land. Meredith and Alexis rushed into the house. "Aidan what in god’s name is going on? Alexis almost crashed the helicopter as soon as she
got near the house!" exclaimed Meredith.
"Beck told Mae about Helen and she didn’t take it very well. I just got in a few minutes ago and heard Beck screaming at himself in the gym. He is an absolute mess right now. I was just going to check on Mae, but then I heard the helicopter. I think she would rather talk to you than another man at this moment."
"I will check in on her, you stay with Beck. Alexis can you put a bubble around the house before they take down a plane," Meredith advised.
“It looks like they’re on one side on the house, so I’ll keep the bubble on that side. That way the rest of us can have some peace and quiet on the other side.” Alexis sat on the couch and started to weave her spell.
Meredith made her way to Beck’s bedroom where she could hear sobbing through the door. She knocked first not wanting to intrude. “Mae, its Meredith, may I come in?”
Mae didn’t answer her, so she knocked again. “Mae, if you don’t answer me I am coming in anyway,” Meredith threatened, using magic to unlock the door.
“Come in,” Mae conceded softly.
Meredith opened the door and sat on the edge of the bed next to her. She put her arms around Mae in a motherly hug. “Want to talk about it?”
“How could he, Mere? How could he take my life from me?” Mae had cried so much, the tears no longer came as she desperately tried to analyze her situation.
“Mae, you have to understand. Beck had no control over any of this and neither does Helen. They were destined to be together a long time ago. They didn’t choose for Helen to come back in your body. He has been in love with Helen for over thirty five hundred years and then you came into his life and turned it upside down. He loves you Mae, and not because Helen is trapped inside of you. I have never seen him so happy. The only thing he is guilty of is not telling you about Helen sooner, but he was afraid that you would leave if he did. So he decided to keep it a secret until he thought you were ready.”