Several of the vampires left in quiet protest at this point but Treyne made no objection.
The bonded couple left as well.
Treyne then gestured to Aaron, asking him to bring the next case forward. But Aaron smiled and said, "A blessing is requested for the baby Jenieve."
Treyne rose. "A blessing? Tonight? I didn't know."
He was actually smiling as he moved back down the steps, leash in hand. Jenna followed after him quickly.
By the time she reached the clearing with Treyne,, a human woman and her bonded vampire arrived with a baby in her arms. The Treathen mist swirled in a soft glow around them. Jenna knew that children were rare among long-lived vampires of any commune, but here was a child, half vampire and half human, apparently even more rare.
The vampire leaned down and kissed his woman. She smiled up at him, her large dark eyes glittering with happiness.
Treyne drew close and took the baby in his arms.
"So beautiful," Jenna murmured.
He smiled and rocked the infant. The words he spoke swelled Jenna's heart. "We are blessed as a commune to hold this precious life in our keeping. The young, so rare among us, are given this night to the community for training and protection." He glanced out at the vampires. Many had drawn close. "Will you succor this child?"
A resounding "We will" rose high into the air from everyone present.
Jenna was moved as Treyne leaned down and kissed the small forehead. The infant squirmed, then settled back into her slumbers. He gave the baby back to her parents. He put a hand on each shoulder, "May the vampire gods protect what has been given to you. Go, and be well as a family."
Jenna recalled her harsh words to him, that he knew nothing of family. She realized that all these vampires had once had parents. But she thought it sad that most would never birth children. Something in the genetics made it difficult to conceive.
The parents turned away from Treyne and received the well-wishes of the commune.
Two hours later, after more complaints were read and judgment dispensed, Jenna was sobered but not in the way that Treyne had thought she might be. He had believed that she would be put off by what she found here tonight. Instead, she understood Treyne so much better, as well as the world in which he lived and ruled.
What really troubled her was that she had come away from the experience admiring him more than ever, even wondering what would happen if she were to forge a Treathen bond with him.
TREYNE MOVED CAREFULLY down the stone stairs. Most of the vampires were also leaving the cavern, so he wasn't too worried about being observed in his weakened state.
Shit, he needed blood. Even his vision was paring down. How long had it been? Or had Jenna's presence added a layer to his need, robbing him of his strength?
He had no idea what Jenna thought about all that had happened, but she was definitely pensive. She even had a frown between her brows. Good. Maybe she would be sufficiently disgusted to keep her distance from now on, to stay away from all vampire territories. She had certainly been exposed to the worst of his kind, the violence and the prejudice.
But the unexpected arrival of the baby had also affected her. He'd seen her smile when the baby was brought close. She must have known that vampires procreated, but perhaps not. There wasn't a lot of communication between his commune and the citizens of Prescott. Vampires lived on the fringes and were best known by those who attended the vampire raves.
He moved slowly into the hallway leading to his rooms. His feet were like lead and he regretted the distance he would now have to cross. As soon as he returned to his office, he would need to summon one of his donors.
Once well into the deserted hall that led to his suite, he stumbled and might have fallen to his knees, but her arm was suddenly there. "Lean on me," she said quietly.
Imagine, a vampire leaning on a weak human?
He draped his arm over her shoulder. "I need nourishment," he said.
"Blood," she whispered, her eyes on the stone pathway.
"Yes."
She said nothing more, but supported him the rest of the way. He directed her into his office, to the chair behind his desk. He slumped into the seat. He shouldn't have let himself get this weak. What the hell had he been thinking?
He looked up at her, but she wasn't looking at him. Her gaze was directed at a stained-glass piece on the desk, suspended on a standing wrought-iron hook. It was one of his favorites, made up of glass cut in a way that gave an appearance of red and gold rain, slanted at an angle because of a strong wind.
"I made this," she said, frowning. She even lifted a finger to point at it. "But I don't remember you ever buying this?"
"I had one of my servants get it for me. I didn't want you to know."
She met his gaze. "Why did my knowing or not knowing even matter?"
"Because of how much I was feeling for you, how much I admired you."
She glanced around the room, her gaze moving from one object to the next, to his collection of books, to the artwork on one wall, to a large collection of ancient maps opposite. "You have wonderful taste."
"Thank you, but you seem surprised." He could hardly keep his head up.
"I suppose I am. I've let my prejudices rule all my thoughts about your kind."
His kind.
She rounded the desk, her fingertips trailing over the wood. She drew near his chair, then without even asking permission she crawled into his lap and flung her hair away from her neck. "Be gentle. I've never done this before."
His intake of breath was sharp and sudden. "You should leave, Jenna. This won't help anything and why would you offer?" She smelled like the sweetest flowers, and he salivated. His fangs emerged, sliding from their deep grooves. He felt the movement into the upper bones of his face. He was breathing hard, his gaze pinned to her neck.
She slid her hand behind his neck and tugged. "Because I'm a fool, of course."
The lamp sat behind the stained glass and colored her throat with lines of red and gold.
"You should go." He trembled now, and the thought of taking her blood aroused him. He pushed his erection against her hip. "But if you choose to stay, I won't be able to control what happens. And when I take your blood you will want to be with me as well."
But she kept tugging on his neck. "I'm starting to feel it too, Treyne, so please just take what you need."
He cried out, then struck swiftly. He withdrew his fangs from her neck and settled in to suck from her vein. He surrounded her with his arms and kept her still.
She moaned, her hand rubbing over his thick pecs, his shoulder, and down his arm.
Nothing had ever tasted like this, like the finest elixir ever made. As he swallowed and the sustenance hit his stomach, power flared through his body along with his need, great, desperate need.
He drank for a long time, but once his hunger was at least partially sated, his desire rose.
He stood up, pushing her onto his desk so that she was on her back. He stripped her, and the sweet smell of her sex was another heady scent. Then he removed his own clothes while she watched, her eyes at half-mast, her lips swollen.
He sat back down on the chair, pulled her hips toward him, and leaned in to lave her damp lower lips, French kissing her deep until he was thrusting into her. She moaned and thrashed. The taking of blood had a magical element that worked a human body, pushing toward a climax.
He wanted to bring her to orgasm now, then he would take more blood.
He felt her body begin tugging deep as he drove his tongue faster, and a moment later she was crying out, her hips rocking into his face, her fingers in his hair, then stroking his face, touching his tongue as it moved in and out of her.
The orgasm went on and on until she screamed at the ceiling and shouted incomprehensible things.
When her hips finally settled down, he lifted up to look at her. She was wild-eyed and breathing hard. "That was incredible," she whispered again.
"I'll give you every
thing, Jenna, but first, I'm taking more of what I need."
She nodded and her head fell back. She turned, exposing her throat. She must have supposed he meant to take from her neck again, but he had a much more satisfying idea in mind.
JENNA WAS IN a state of euphoric shock. She could think of it no other way. When he'd taken her blood, though the initial strike had hurt, a wave of pleasure had followed swiftly, flowing from the top of her head, down her entire body, even to the bottom of her feet.
The orgasm. Oh, dear God, the orgasm had gone on and on.
Now he would take her blood again.
And she was so ready.
She felt his tongue low, but not on her bare clitoris. She shifted to look down at him and saw that he was licking a line up her groin, pushing against her skin with his tongue.
He then lifted up and slapped two fingers against the same area. His fangs were still heavy in his mouth, dripping with saliva. He licked her groin again.
Her body was still a cauldron of need and as her loose mind began to make sense of his intention, she cried out. She thought the sound she made might have distracted him a little, but he was staring at her skin, waiting. He slapped his fingers against what she knew was a deep vein.
She panted now. Then she felt it, deep inside. Her vein rose for Treyne, pushing toward the surface. She thought he would strike immediately. Instead, he placed one arm over her lower abdomen and with his vampire strength pinned her to the desk.
With his free hand, he slipped two fingers inside her well. Her hips arched, but the viselike arm kept her from rocking. He began driving his fingers in and out of her, getting her ready.
Then he leaned down and struck deep. It stung, as before, but just as quickly he withdrew his fangs and the sucking began.
Again, a wave of pleasure flowed over her, so that her body gripped his fingers as he thrust into her. She was so close, even though he'd just begun pleasuring her.
He sucked hard at her groin and she felt her blood leaving her body. She lay back against the wood and savored all of it, that she was trapped, that he sucked from her body, that he teased her well with his fingers, that pleasure flowed.
She moaned and her head rolled back and forth. "Treyne," she whispered. "I'm so close again. How wonderful this feels."
He sucked harder and thrust faster so that her body began to tighten. Pleasure began to streak through her clitoris, to flow in a strong, heavy wave into her well, getting caught up in more sensation as he thrust faster and sucked harder still.
She was screaming as the orgasm reached a pinnacle so that she was pushing against the wood with her hands and grasping every last bit of sensation.
When at last the pleasure drifted away, she lay still. He withdrew his fingers and slowly rose to stand upright, eyes closed.
She looked at him through half-closed lids. His lips were red with her blood, his chin as well, but he looked amazing, maybe even more muscular than before. His pecs looked larger, his arms as well. His cock was upright reaching almost to his navel, a sight that caused her to clench all over again.
He took several deep breaths and his neck arched. His nostrils flared.
When he opened his eyes, he met and held her gaze. He moved between her legs, positioned his cock, grabbed her hips, and pulled her toward him. He began to push inside, still holding her gaze. His lips were parted and in his eye was a look of power and of mastery.
She grew wet for him all over again. He rose up and caught the backs of her thighs to position himself. He thrust hard now, his abs undulating as his hips flexed.
Each thrust rocked her entire body. She wondered what this felt like for him.
TREYNE HAD NEVER experienced this, not once in the course of his long life. He had known her blood would be special, but he had not thought he'd feel as though his muscles had turned to iron. His cock was a powerful rod that pistoned inside Jenna. She was wet, and as his thrusts grew quicker, she tightened around him and began moaning.
"Oh God," she whispered, panting.
His balls grew tight but he wanted her to come again as well, hopefully at the same time. He moved faster and held his release just offshore.
Then he watched her body roll in a powerful undulation and she began to scream. He held on to her and his orgasm shot through him in a series of hard releases that felt like lightning rushing through his cock. Pleasure exploded as he continued to move, and just when she was settling down he could feel that there was more to come.
"Hold on, Jenna. We're not done yet."
She looked up and met his gaze. Her eyes widened as he thrust and released again, which brought her so that she was crying out as if in agony yet writhing as she came again and again.
When he was fully released and she had relaxed against his desk, he eased her legs down to dangle off the side. He was still connected to her and looked down at his cock. She was bare so that it was easy to see and savor the sight of himself, still partially erect and buried inside her.
His heart hurt suddenly because he knew one thing: This could not happen again.
JENNA SAW A look of pain and of sadness seep into Treyne's beautiful blue-green eyes. She reached a hand up to him but he just looked at her. She could read his thoughts, though. Hell, she shared his thoughts, how hopeless this was between them.
Slowly, he withdrew from her, leaving behind a rush of cool air over her heated flesh. She had never felt so empty.
"As soon as you're dressed and comfortable, I'll take you to your car."
That's right, she was still parked on the street outside.
"Okay." But she stared up at the ceiling. The same grooves had been carved in his office as were in the commune's entrance. Very beautiful.
She had learned so much tonight about Treyne's vampire world, just not enough to make a relationship with him possible.
He brought her a soft cloth and pressed it between her legs.
Damn, he was thoughtful.
Fifteen minutes later, after having cleaned up, she was driving home alone, her Glock on the seat beside her. The last thing he'd said to her was, "Just stay away from the Halloween rave. Dagrith has made a point of being there every year. He'll probably claim another victim."
She had met his gaze. "And you won't intervene."
He shook his head. "And I've told you why I can't."
"I understand."
And she did, but that didn't mean she had the smallest intention of avoiding the rave, because the monster who had abducted her sister might be there.
Chapter Three
THE NEXT NIGHT, at eleven-thirty, Jenna drove to the rave located in Treyne's territory. She gripped the steering wheel hard just knowing that Master Dagrith would be there.
Yeah, she was in over her head.
But if she had a chance even to see Britt, if not rescue her, she had to try.
The rave was held in the same location as the weekly raves, in the long, barnlike building Treyne had constructed on behalf of his commune. He had wanted a safe place for his vampires to meet humans, and the toughest vampires managed the events in order to keep his fellow vampires in line.
She could hear the live band as she walked from the gravel parking lot in the direction of the front doors. Carved and lit pumpkins lined the walkway. Stalks of dried corn had been fashioned into scarecrows. Orange mini-lights were strung everywhere, creating a festive appearance. Everything a Halloween rave should be, at least from the human perspective. She doubted the vampires cared much about the festive appearance.
A number of male vampires hung around the entrance, no doubt checking the new arrivals and looking for willing victims.
She recognized a couple of them from Treyne's seat of power and wasn't surprised when almost as one all the vampires moved away from her. She wondered if she still carried Treyne's scent or if her appearance the night before, wearing the collar and being led by the leash, had set her apart as belonging to their master.
It hardly mattered. She wasn
't interested in any of them. Treyne was who she cared about, but she couldn't have him.
As she moved inside, a wave of heat flowed over her, a result of a couple hundred bodies dancing wildly on the wood floor. The music was loud, conversation impossible. She headed to the bar on the left. The crowd of vampires parted for her, just as they had near the door, so that she could sit down on a stool. She took a place at the far end where she could watch everyone who entered the building.
She knew what Dagrith looked like. Treyne had described him once as being taller, bigger, with blond hair and black eyes, so she knew what she was looking for.
She wore black leather, head to toe, and carried her Glock in the pocket of her coat. She checked it now but she wasn't reassured. Vampires moved fast, as Treyne had already proved. But if she sat at the bar, waited for Dagrith, then drew her gun the moment he crossed the threshold, she'd have a chance.
Under vampire law, though, if she killed Dagrith here, she'd be subject to Treyne's laws and not those of Prescott-based law enforcement.
And yet she didn't care.
She ordered a club soda and cranberry juice.
She sipped.
She waited.
"WHAT DO YOU mean Jenna is at the Halloween rave?" Treyne stared at Aaron, his master of the judgments and one of his more trustworthy servants. "You saw her?"
He sat at his desk in his suite, going over the complaints he would need to address the following night, but dammit, now he had a much bigger concern.
Aaron nodded. "Yes, master. The human Jenna was dressed all in black and didn't remove her coat. I smelled gun oil on her. I came as quickly as I could."
Treyne closed his eyes. He knew why she was there, but he couldn't believe after all that he'd shown her, after what he'd told her about Dagrith, that she would be so foolish.
Worse, what would he do if Dagrith became aggressive toward her? He couldn't interfere, not without breaking territorial laws. And yet . . .
For a moment, as he stared at his desk, her scent wafted up to him. It had been barely twenty-four hours since he had taken her blood, then taken her in this exact spot. And the hours after had been some of the most miserable of his life.
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