Fountain of Beauty

by Meraki P. Lyhne

  Fountain of Beauty

  The Cubi: Book 4

  By

  Meraki P. Lyhne

  Fountain of Beauty

  1. edition

  Copyright © 2017 Meraki P. Lyhne

  ISBN 13: 978-87-997289-7-8

  Cover design by Jay Aheer

  www.simplydefinedart.com

  Edited by Laura McNellis

  www.alternativedits.com

  Find more about the author

  www.merakiplyhne.com

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without written permission except in the case of brief quotations included in critical articles and reviews. For information, please contact the author.

  This book is a work of fiction.

  That means I made shit up. All of it.

  Daniel’s Kingdom was born to the threat of war that he, Seldon, and Caledon don’t have the experience to deal with. But his Kingdom has an ally far more experienced, and with this ally comes hope of a brighter future.

  In the meantime, Daniel has to stay hidden and leave the problems to the ones capable of handling them. He needs to focus on learning and growing along with his new Kingdom. However, responsibilities to his people prematurely force Daniel out of hiding and into the spotlight.

  The only problem is, his enemy has counted on that.

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Author Bio

  Chapter One

  C aledon watched as Daniel and his dad left for the store early in the morning. He still marveled at the rate the young Halfling grew, but not nearly as much as he did at the growth the cub had managed to spur in the old Incubus, Sire Seldon.

  Or rather, Grand Sire Seldon. Mere months earlier, Seldon had stood naked in his bedroom and grumbled under his breath at the order to take in and train an Untouchable. And now he was the right hand to that very same Untouchable who in turn had become their Prince.

  Caledon had always seen greatness in Seldon’s future, but he’d never seen that position as a possibility. From the first time the muscular Adonis had caught his eye, Caledon had made it his goal to make the green-eye excel. He’d been a diamond in the rough. To stay with that analogy, Caledon had finally decided to remove the diamond from the coal, thinking there would be no other way of making him shine. So he’d made him a Sire of the House of Training in House Three. Caledon’s latest attempt to polish him was by placing the Untouchable in Seldon’s care, hoping the successful and engaged trainer could learn something new.

  And learn something new he had, indeed.

  Caledon had always suspected Seldon to be softer than he’d let on while doing his job as head of House Three’s breeder training facility. From the first time he saw Seldon laugh at that dinner party, he’d always thought he saw the potential for something more than being a trainer. Daniel had trained Seldon as much as Seldon had trained the cub, and the best part was that it had happened gradually despite their clashing heads.

  Now they were lovers—the really sweet kind of lovers. Caledon had never guessed that a master and slave relationship could evolve into romance, and definitely not anything like the two shared now.

  His heart warmed at knowing they also wanted him to take part in it. But Caledon still feared that Daniel wasn’t ready. However much the young human-raised Halfling had evolved, love was still a complex matter to the young Cubus’ heart. They didn’t have to go back far to see how that human idea of monogamy had made jealousy rear its ugly head when Seldon had topped Caledon. Monogamy in Caledon’s eyes was a social construct to make sure that everyone knew who legally fathered a child. In Cubi society, that was a given because it was simply the Incubus who had overdosed on his own and the mother’s doses before having sex with her.

  Since that incident, the young Prince had pushed himself, maybe as much for Seldon as for Caledon. But being eight hundred years old meant that Caledon had seen just about every nuance of human emotion, and Daniel was far from ready for Caledon to take a permanent place in the threesome.

  It didn’t matter. Caledon had said he was patient, and he was. But he yearned for the opportunity to love them both and be loved by both.

  Daniel and Lord Roardon turned a corner and disappeared from Caledon’s line of sight. Caledon turned away from the window and looked at the stack of papers in need of his attention. So much had to be done, and Caledon knew the young Prince well enough to know that he didn’t have the experience to see it all through or even consider all that had to be done.

  But he had certainly stepped up lately, and the dedication he brought to saving his human dad’s store was a mere glimpse of what focus he’d bring to his Kingdom once matured and ready. Until then…

  Caledon plopped down on the couch and reached for the top file. Seldon would join him shortly, and they’d work their way through what came from the Grand Council. Finances, housing, Cubi movement, updates on the soldiers, and preliminary plans for dealing with the hostile humans.

  Seldon joined him with the rest of the pot of coffee they’d had with Daniel and Roardon. Once he’d emptied his hands, Seldon scooted closer and laid a sweet kiss on Caledon’s lips.

  Caledon’s heart fluttered. One day he hoped to be kissed like that with Daniel present, too.

  “What are today’s assignments?” Seldon asked.

  “Getting a few key Minglers up to speed. You have at least fifteen phone calls to make, but this one should probably be in person.” Caledon handed Seldon a file.

  Chapter Two

  T ake pride in what you do with your own two hands. Seldon had once told Daniel that, and now he knew what it meant. Since his dad’s death three weeks earlier, Daniel had taken it upon himself to save the business the man who had raised him had built from scratch.

  Since Bill died, Daniel had learned a lot about hardware. Chas was great, and the Changeling really stepped up and took the reins when Daniel needed him to. So did Roardon who, as a House Lord, had plenty of experience keeping things in order. He had taken over some of the office work, which he could do while hiding the color of his eyes, and Daniel felt grateful for him.

  So did Daniel’s mother, it seemed. The two had certainly grown a bit closer, and Daniel didn’t know if it was love or desperation to soothe the ache after Bill’s passing that made her feed Roardon. For the latter to be the case, Susan had to understand something about the Cubi mentality, because wouldn’t she feel ashamed or like she was cheating since her husband had died not so long ago?

  In the end, Daniel left his mother’s business to her while he focused on working at the hardware store.

  They’d managed to keep two employees, but the income had dipped enough for Chas, Roardon, and Daniel to have to work on one or two normal salaries. Didn’t matter, they made do since they stayed close, and apparently a fortune came with becoming Prince of the West Kingdom. The House of Nol-Beaudon. Daniel gave all his salary to his mom to keep house. The Royal Guard had purchased a house just down t
he street to stay in, and it doubled as a place to feed.

  Rosadin and Heimli had left the week before to work on the ideas the Grand Council and Daniel had agreed upon. So far, the first task was to make twelve Cubi famous. Daniel had already been sent magazines and cutouts with the new and rising stars. Sometimes he still felt the sting of having said no to being one of the faces on those magazines, but his place was no longer in the human spotlight. It was on a throne. And right then, his throne was in danger.

  A few of Daniel’s friends from school had been by the store to complain that he worked all the time. Jared had asked if Geodin, or Samantha as he knew her, would come by again. He’d bragged about the hottie who went all hot and slutty on him and fucked him raw, and Daniel wanted to slap him for disrespecting the Grand Lady. But he’d come to understand the cultural differences and why Rosadin was so happy she fed from women.

  A shipment of assorted tools had come in that morning, and Daniel worked in the storage along with a human to repack and put it all on shelves. The tasks Daniel had once tried to get around when going to work with Bill were no longer as tedious as he’d thought back then. Bill had tried to teach Daniel what Seldon had ultimately managed, and Daniel pretended Bill watched him work and felt proud of him.

  “Daniel?”

  Daniel looked up, finding Roardon in sunglasses on the ramp out back.

  “Hi, what’s up?”

  “You hungry…for something?”

  “I could eat. Seldon came by about an hour ago.” Daniel left it at that, figuring Roardon could put two and two together. At least that would leave the human employee clueless.

  “I have to go buy printing paper. Someone left an empty box on the shelf, so we thought we had more than we did.”

  “In that case…” Daniel rubbed his hands together.

  Roardon smiled. “Pizza with extra cheese?”

  “No anchovies.”

  “Got it.” Roardon nodded curtly and left.

  “Where did you find that guy? He’s awesome,” Eric said.

  “Yeah, he is,” Daniel said, hauled the tools onto a cart, and pushed it into the store.

  * * * *

  Seldon stood in front of Daniel’s old high school, watching the mill of young people. He tried to picture Daniel as one of the careless young men jumping around, teasing the girls, laughing, and goofing around. Not too long ago, Daniel had expressed missing that. Missed fooling around and doing stupid stuff. Seldon smiled at the thought of where his attempt to meet the teenage boy halfway had landed them—on the floor, both wet and covered in flour, and making out.

  Daniel made him feel young again. It looked like Caledon felt young around the Prince, too. The past week had been wonderful for the three of them. Daniel wasn’t completely open about his insecurities, but he did show it so that Seldon and Caledon could take countermeasures. They’d even talked about it being solely because Daniel had been ripped away from everything he knew and shoved into the arms of Seldon, and when Jonah set the ball rolling, Daniel had been ripped from Seldon and shoved at Caledon.

  With the biggest changes in his life, they were his life raft. Seldon feared that it was true because then their relationship was just a short-lived infatuation disguised as love in Daniel’s brain chemicals. Maybe the intimacy during feeding was just what kept it alive in him?

  Now who’s insecure? Seldon scoffed at himself and walked into the school. He found the office and waited for the two students to be done talking to the woman behind the counter. He was there looking for a Mingler, and the woman was hot enough to be her.

  “Can I help you?” the woman finally asked, and Seldon stepped up to the counter.

  “Yeah, I’m looking for a Sophia Clark.”

  “You’re talking to her,” the woman said, smiling. Seldon tipped his sunglasses to reveal his eyes. “Sire,” she whispered and looked around, but they were alone.

  “I need to talk to you somewhere private.”

  “Just a second.” She went to the door of an office built into the corner of the room. Behind the glass walls, an elderly man sat and worked. Seldon didn’t hear what she said, but she was apparently only delivering a message because she returned immediately. “This way.”

  Seldon followed her out into the busy hallway and into a small room with a conversation table. It certainly wasn’t big enough to be called a conference table.

  “Is this about me losing track of one of the Halflings?” she asked, her nervousness clear.

  “Yes, actually, but you didn’t lose him, he was picked up by a hunting party.”

  “Oh, thank God,” she said, placing a hand over her heart. “So he’s with the Cubi now?”

  “Yes. How much have you heard from the Great House lately?”

  “Nothing, actually. I got an email telling me to stay put and not to contact them unless it was an emergency.”

  Seldon nodded, thinking it was a decision made to not cause panic among the Changelings and Minglers outside the Great House.

  “I’m sorry, Sire, what is your name?”

  “Seldon. I claimed Daniel to train as an Untouchable.” He left it at that for now, since he had other business there.

  She blinked. “Raise as an Untouchable?”

  “We didn’t know he was a Halfling before the blood tests came back. But I’m here to know how many other Halflings there are at this school.”

  “Two more.”

  “Did Daniel know them?”

  “Yes, he’s in class with one of them. Was. May I ask, where is he now?”

  “I’m here because I need the addresses on the other two Halflings.”

  “Can I bring them to you tonight, or do you need them now? I can’t just rummage around their files like that, not during school hours.”

  “Tonight at seven, please come to Daniel’s mother’s house for dinner.”

  “Thank you,” she said, rubbing her neck.

  “How’s your hunger level? You manage while here at school?”

  “I’m seeing one of the teachers. He’ll meet me in the boiler room in an hour.”

  Seldon smiled, nodding. “Okay. See you tonight.”

  “Yes, Sire. And thank you for letting me know.”

  Seldon left the school and headed for the Royal Guard’s house. It was a two-story five-bedroom family house just down the street from Daniel’s and closer to the store. Since buying the house, the Guard Lords had secured it with cameras and whatnot.

  Seldon and Caledon were Daniel’s eyes and ears while he focused on hiding, reading, evolving, and working in his father’s store. Seldon was so proud of how the boy had stepped up. Roardon shared his thoughts and discoveries, and Seldon felt, or rather hoped, that Roardon had forgiven him for the early Empowerment. The Lord had certainly taken on a more friendly tone with him since they’d escaped the Great House.

  “That you, Seldon?”

  “Yes!” Seldon answered from the foyer.

  “We got news, and you and I have work,” Caledon said.

  Seldon found him on the couch in the media room with a laptop. “Okay, what’s up?”

  “Nol-Elakdon is on his way. Grand Lady Geodin is coming here, too, and we need to buy another house and get furniture. Apparently, this little suburb will, for the next few months, be the Royal gathering center of the West Kingdom, and we’re going to be swimming in Cubi. We’re going to need to find breeders. And lots of them. The soldier in the basement isn’t enough.”

  Seldon had completely forgotten the soldier who had stuck to the side of the train. “Shit. Why not buy an apartment building or a hotel?”

  “To stay close to Daniel, but that would be—” Caledon stopped talking and looked off in deep thought.

  Seldon left him to it and went into the kitchen for a soda. Two purple-eyed men stood by the window—one unpacking a box, the other stuffing envelopes.

  “And you are, Sire?” one of them asked.

  “Grand Sire Seldon, My Lord.” Seldon bowed his head at the
m.

  They both stopped their work, turned to face him, and dipped their heads in respect. Purple-eyed bowing to him? That was a first.

  “Forgive our directness. We are Nol-Beaudon’s Royal Guards. My name is Guard Lord Levidon, this is Guard Lord Chrisdon.” Levidon shuffled through a stack of envelopes. “Grand Sire, this ring has been fitted to you. You must wear it on your right index finger to show that you feed on men.” Levidon handed Seldon a beautiful, sturdy gold ring with a green gem in it. Seldon noticed that Levidon wore a black ring with a purple gem on his right hand.

  “Wow. Why?”

  “We all must,” Caledon said, holding up his right hand. He wore a gold ring with a purple gem very different from the House Lord ring he usually wore. That ring, Seldon noticed, no longer adorned the Lord’s beautiful hand. Seldon looked at the Lord’s sly grin. Why so sneaky? “It’s a Grand Order so that we may recognize each other or make ourselves known without having to tip our dark glasses in public.”

  “All Cubi outside the Great House will be sent a ring to wear within the next week. Have you acquired the addresses of the Halflings?” Levidon asked.

  Well, Seldon knew lots of things were changing since the rest of the Royal Guard was arriving in Daniel’s little suburb, and it pleased Seldon to get to see the faces of the rest of them, too.

  “No, the Mingler will arrive tonight at seven for dinner and bring the addresses then. Are they to wear a ring as well?”

  “Not yet, no, but the Mingler will be instructed of the changes. And since she is a respected person in this community, we need her eyes and ears.” Levidon went back to work, leaving Seldon with thoughts on why the Guard Lord’s ring was black. Maybe because it matched his beautiful full hair and neatly kept full beard. That was all man right there, and Seldon couldn’t believe he was getting hungry after having gone to feed Daniel only four hours earlier.

  “Stop ogling the Guards, Seldon,” Caledon said. “Never thought a man in uniform was you.”