The Drierge Brothers [Blood Exchange 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Becca Van

  “What will happen if they get ahold of me?” Angelina asked.

  “Honey, don’t worry. We won’t let anyone near you. Just do as we say and everything will be fine,” Trey asserted.

  “You can’t be with me all the time. It’s just not possible. I know you will do everything within your power to keep me safe, but be realistic,” Angelina stated. “There will be times when we can’t be together.”

  “Angelina’s right, you know. There will be certain times when you have things to do and you can’t take her with you. It’s better if you teach her how to use her powers. At least give her some skills to be able to defend herself, and for God’s sake, teach her how to communicate with you. That ability may be the difference between life and death. Maybe teach her to throw a few fireballs and sparks,” Vlad suggested.

  Angelina was astounded. Of course Trey and Lucan had told her she would have powers, but she had been skeptical. To hear another telling them to teach her such skills both awed and humbled her. She remembered seeing sparks shooting from the tips of Lucan’s fingers as well as seeing him hurling what looked like fireballs, but she had been in so much pain and losing blood so quickly that she thought she had been hallucinating. She turned to Lucan to ask if she had truly seen that and felt him brush against her mind.

  She jumped at the unexpectedness of the light touch and then realized he hadn’t left her mind since she had first come back into their home.

  “Yes, baby, we really did those things,” he said.

  “I thought I was dreaming,” she replied and looked from Lucan to Trey.

  “No, honey, it was real,” Trey stated.

  “You didn’t speak,” she whispered and frowned. “You can communicate telepathically?”

  “Yes, angel, and so can you. Just think about what you want to say and use your mind to push those thoughts toward us,” Lucan explained.

  A few small words entered Angelina’s mind, and she closed her eyes, conjured an image of Lucan and Trey in her mind, and propelled the thought in their direction.

  “Can you hear me?”

  “Yes, baby.”

  “Yeah, honey.”

  “Ooh, this is just too cool. What else can I do?”

  “We’ll get to your training soon, honey. Just let us finish up with Vlad first,” Trey said.

  “Oh, sorry, Vlad,” Angelina apologized sheepishly.

  “No problem, youngin’, just remember you have to learn to block your mind as well. You don’t want all and sundry to hear your conversation.”

  “You could hear me?”

  “Yes, but you will learn to control your thoughts and block them from others. I could also hear your men’s replies since you haven’t yet learned that particular skill.”

  “How do I block you out then?” she asked.

  “Envisage a wall in your mind and build it up so it becomes impenetrable.”

  Angelina tried to see the wall in her own mind. Instead of bricks or a mirror, she saw her wall as a giant column of water. She nodded for Vlad to continue.

  “Make it as wide as it is high. Now make sure you keep it in place at all times, but if you want to speak to your mates, just picture them and then talk to them without using your mouth. Give it a try.”

  The wall of water stretched around her mind, and she reached out through the liquid barrier and tried to speak to her men.

  “Can you hear me?”

  “Yes, angel. You learn fast, and I like what you have used to make your wall. I would never have thought to use water. It does the trick nicely,” Lucan stated admiringly.

  “I’m very proud of you, honey. I don’t think you will have any trouble learning other skills required to protect yourself,” Trey encouraged.

  “Thanks, guys,” she replied with a sigh.

  “Very good, Angelina, I didn’t even hear a murmur,” Vlad said, “I need to be going. I have a few appointments before I can rest with the sunrise. It was nice meeting you, Angelina.”

  “You, too.” She hesitated, then asked, “Will that warlock come back for me?”

  “It’s hard to know what they intend. But yes, he may return,” Vlad admitted. “All the more reason to listen to your mates and practice as much as you can.” Vlad rose to his feet. “Trey, Lucan, I’ll be in touch.”

  Angelina blinked, and that quickly, Vlad was gone. She wished she had kept her eyes on him so she could see how he’d left. She turned to Lucan when he squeezed her hand.

  “Are you ready to open your mind and your heart to us, baby? You have to let go of everything as you know it and believe what you would deem impossible.”

  “Haven’t I already done that?” she asked in return.

  “To an extent, yes, you have. But you have so much more to explore and learn. Come, we will go into the basement and begin lessons,” Trey stated and helped her to her feet.

  Angelina stood at the top of the stairs in a doorway which had been concealed in the kitchen. She had watched as Lucan keyed in a code and the back of the pantry wall slid open to reveal the doorway. She shivered as she looked down the dark staircase, remembering her dream of moving cadavers. She pushed her fear and trepidation to the back of her mind and followed Lucan down the now-lit stairwell.

  She nearly laughed at what she had imagined their basement to look like. She had been totally wrong. The walls were made of bluestone, but there wasn’t an altar or coffin in sight. The room was well lit with fluorescent lights, and the concrete floor was painted a light-blue color. All in all, the basement was just like any other.

  Lucan halted in the center of the room and turned toward her. He brushed her mind with his, and she felt Trey come up behind her and place his hands onto her shoulders. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind of clutter. She knew she was going to need a clear head to learn what they had to teach her.

  “I am going to show you how to shoot sparks of electricity from my fingertips, angel, and then I want you to try. Okay?” Lucan asked.

  “Yes,” she replied.

  Angelina had expected him to literally show her, which he did, but he also showed her in her mind. It felt as if Lucan were gathering all the charged atoms in the air and pulling them into him, and then he pushed them out the tips of his fingers. It was an awesome sight and experience. The fine hairs on the back of her neck and arms felt like they were standing on end. She felt as if she were about to get a large jolt of static electricity, but that sensation waned as the blue jolts shot out of Lucan’s fingers to bounce harmlessly off the stone wall.

  “Did you feel that, baby?” Lucan asked.

  “Yes, but I still don’t know if I can do it,” she replied circumspectly.

  “There’s only one way to find out, honey. Take a deep breath and relax, then see if you can do it,” Trey suggested.

  Angelina did what Trey recommended then began to gather the charged particles from the air into her body. She felt her hair moving and wondered if it was standing on end. When she felt electricity pulsing throughout her frame and she didn’t think she could continue to contain it, she aimed for the stone and pushed it from her body and out her fingers. She laughed as blue sparks shot from the tips and seemed to be absorbed within the brick wall.

  “You’re a natural at that, angel. Do you know how fucking sexy you are when you laugh? I want you to do that more often,” Lucan declared.

  “I’ll try. I haven’t had much to laugh over lately, but I feel so connected to you both. It’s like I’m a part of you and you’re a part of me. I think I’ll be able to come to terms with everything soon,” she stated.

  “I love you, baby,” Lucan professed and then placed the tips of his fingers on her lips to prevent her from replying. “No, don’t say anything, angel. We still have too much to do, and if you speak of anything other than your lessons, we are going to end up in bed. And as much as I would love to spend time making love with you, the need to protect you is supreme. Now, let Trey teach you how to form fireballs.”

 
; Angelina turned toward Trey and gasped when she saw the heat in his eyes as their gazes connected. His blue irises were nearly indistinguishable from his pupils. The color seeped away, leaving huge black pools instead.

  “Your eyes…”

  “It’s okay, honey, they turn black when we change forms. Just concentrate, angel,” Trey replied.

  She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again with a snap as he shook his head. She felt him brush against her brain, and then he was literally vibrating the air in front of them, causing atoms to heat. He gathered those particles together until he had a ball of fire in his hand. He let her feel what he did, and she wondered why his palm and fingers weren’t getting burnt.

  “The ball isn’t touching my skin, honey. It’s hovering above it.” Trey answered her unspoken question. He flicked his wrist, and the flaming orb shot to the stone wall to be absorbed and disappear. “We’ve spelled the wall to absorb any of our powers so we can practice without getting hurt. Take a breath and see if you can do it, Angelina.”

  She rolled her shoulders and shook her arms and hands out, relaxing her muscles. She inhaled and used her mind to vibrate the unseen particles. She could feel warmth in front of her as the molecules near her now-upraised hand began to heat. She moved them faster and faster and gathered them near her palm. The ball which formed above her skin wasn’t as large as the one Trey had made, but she was proud of the fact she had succeeded in the task. She flicked her wrist and watched as the orb disappeared into the wall.

  “That was fantastic, honey, but I want you to try it again. Let’s see if you can make a bigger sphere this time. You just need to wait a bit longer before you aim and fire,” Trey said with a smile.

  Angelina tried again and again until she could use her two new powers without having to think about the process. By the time she thought they were finished, she was utterly exhausted.

  “There is one more skill you need to learn, baby. Once you’ve mastered that you can rest,” Lucan stated.

  “What?” she asked.

  “You need to know how to block. These three skills will keep you alive if the need arises,” Lucan declared.

  “Okay,” she replied. “Show me.”

  “It’s pretty simple, baby. Just imagine the wall in your mind but surrounding your body instead. No one else will be able to see it, and nothing should be able to penetrate it,” he explained.

  “Will a shield of water keep out electricity sparks?” she queried.

  “I’m not sure, but let’s find out,” Lucan suggested. “Trey, shoot me.”

  Angelina hoped like hell the shield worked. The last thing she wanted was for Lucan to be injured. No sooner had she completed that thought than blue sparks shot toward Lucan. The sparks seemed to wrap around him without touching his body, then dissipated into nothing.

  “Using shield of liquid works better than mine, baby. I was rather surprised by the results myself. I expected the sparks to continue in a never-ending circle since they were being absorbed by water,” Lucan said and took her hand to lead her from the basement.

  Angelina was warmed by his praise, but privately, she hoped like hell she never found herself in a situation where she would have to use her new skills.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Trey and Lucan made Angelina practice daily and introduced more skills for her to get a handle on. She learned how to break her body down into dust like particles and move between small cracks and though the air with ease. She also learned how to make her body float and travel through the air.

  She didn’t cringe when she fed from her mates now. In fact she looked forward to it. They had made it a part of their love making, and to her it was just a part of their sensuality and passion.

  It had been over a month since Vlad had told them what the dark warlocks’ goals were, and she was beginning to think she was safe because they hadn’t tried to get to her again. Well, not that she knew of, anyway. She was sure if the opposite were true, Lucan or Trey would have told her.

  In the past few weeks, she had organized to complete the lease of her apartment with her landlord and had also moved her things into her mates’ house. She was glad she hadn’t seen Mark when she was at her old home with her men. The memory of her weird neighbor trying pointing a gun at her still made her cringe. She hadn’t mastered how to wipe thoughts from a human mind, but she knew she would eventually. She had also typed up a letter of resignation to the school for the blind and sent gifts for each and every one of the children she had taught. Her previous life was wrapped up efficiently, and she now embraced her new world.

  Down in the basement, Angelina went through the moves Trey and Lucan had wanted her to learn in what had become her nightly routine. They were a mix between karate, tai chi, and another martial art called tae kwon do. She was moving a lot faster now than when she had started out, and thanks to her men, she knew she would have a better chance defending herself if the need arose. She concentrated on perfecting her moves, and when she had them down pat, she picked up the pace.

  “I’ve got it.” She laughed exuberantly and spun in a circle with happiness. “After weeks of practice everything has finally clicked into place. I can’t wait to show Lucan and Trey.”

  Her men would soon return from feeding. It was very rare they left her alone, but it had been several days since they had answered their bodies’ needs, so she had urged them to go. Just as Lucan had left, Vlad had called Trey to meet them at his house. She had no idea where that was, but she didn’t mind having some alone time.

  She stopped her whirling and took a deep breath. She had had enough for the present and wanted to shower and change before her men came back.

  Angelina reached the top of the stairs and placed her hand upon the door handle. The metal felt different, and she pulled her hand back. All of a sudden, she didn’t like the feel of the house. It was no longer empty, but she knew Trey and Lucan hadn’t yet returned. They would have let her know. She sought them out with her mind and immediately wished she hadn’t been able to connect with Lucan. He was busy feeding from a young woman, and she felt jealousy pierce her heart. She knew they needed to get their nourishment from humans so their blood didn’t deplete too much when she fed from them, but she didn’t like that he was feeding from a female. She withdrew and gulped in air to circumvent her pain, and then she reached out for the door handle once more.

  She cried out when the heavy wooden door flew open and connected with her wrist. She hadn’t been fast enough when she pulled back. Excruciating, white-hot pain stabbed deep into her bones, and she knew her wrist was broken. She also realized, given enough time, it would heal on its own and she would be able to use it again.

  She jumped backward, landing at the bottom of the stairs with an agility she hadn’t known she possessed. The figure at the top of the stairs smoothed his hand over hair streaked with silver, then straightened the lapels of his tuxedo.

  Angelina stared at the dark warlock, George Kite. He had finally come for her.

  He descended the steps and stalked toward her. She backed away and covered herself in her invisible shield, hoping and praying it was enough to prevent him from harming her. She watched him warily and kept stepping back until she could go no farther. She bumped into the cold, hard stone wall and stayed still, waiting to see what he would do.

  The bastard grinned at her, and then he began to mutter under his breath and waved his hand at her. She gasped as she felt her invisible shield begin to wrap around her, constricting her body in a tight vise.

  Angelina concentrated on gathering the electrodes in the air and pulled them into her body. When she felt like she was fully charged, she flicked her wrist before her shield pinned her body and sent the spark out toward him. She screamed for Trey and Lucan in her mind and watched as the warlock went hurtling through the air. He came to a bone-jarring halt as his body connected with the stone wall, and then he laughed and rose to his feet again.

  “I see you have been practic
ing. I’m glad. I love a challenge. I hate it when it’s too easy to take what I want,” George stated.

  Even though she’d thrown him, she was still wrapped tightly in his hold. “You’d better get out of here. They will kill you,” Angelina said in a quavering voice. “They can try.”

  “Why are you doing this?” she asked, trying to distract him so she could figure out a way to get out of his stranglehold.

  “Because I want everlasting life, of course. What warlock wants to face death when they have learned so much? I have ruled over my minions for quite a few years now, and I want to keep them under me for the rest of their natural lives. When they are too old and decrepit to serve me I will cast them aside for new servants. My superior species will rule the earth. I want your blood, woman, and you are going to give it to me.”

  “I don’t think so,” Angelina muttered and dissolved down to the smallest of dust molecules. She streamed through the air and up the stairs.

  She was almost at the door when it slammed shut. She didn’t let that stop her. She slid through the cracks and materialized in the kitchen. She punched in the code and watched as the open panel swept across the entrance and closed with an airtight seal. She was about to run to the front door and leave the house, but she heard evil, raucous laughter echoing behind her.

  She turned around slowly and faced her nemesis. She didn’t know how he had escaped, but there he stood, his face contorted with rage.

  “You didn’t think you could get away from me that easily, did you? Come now, you are only a novice. You are no match for one such as me,” he taunted.

  She gathered herself and moved the air in front of her rapidly. She didn’t bother to lift her hand, because that action would have warned him what was to come. She saw the shimmer of heat just before she collected the hot molecules into a flaming orb and hurled it toward him with her mind. He tried to dodge, but he wasn’t fast enough. She caught him in the shoulder, and he howled in pain and fury.

  She didn’t see it coming, but something slammed into her and pinned her to the front door. The air in her lungs left in a whoosh, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get oxygen back into her depleted lungs. Pinpricks of light formed before her eyes, and she thought she was about to pass out. Just as she closed her eyes to the inevitable, she felt them coming to her.