by V Domino
He places his lips oh so close to mine but doesn’t kiss me, “I will get you your blood but I need you to pretend to hand me over for tricking her.”
Then he rubs his nose from the corner of my mouth to my forehead, inhaling as he goes before placing a soft kiss between my brows.
Yeah, he’s mine alright.
Family.
Family.
Family.
The word echoes in my head, rapidly repeating the curse of a title. This woman, she murdered our family.
My family.
Rory, Roxy and I let out feral screams. With red in our vision, we charge but the Hound brothers stop us.
"She wants you to attack mindlessly. That's not your family!" Draven yells at us as we fight their holds.
"I feel the kinship, Dray! Move or I will fight you!" Rory hisses in his face but our men won't budge.
"That may well be family but they will attack you and we don't know what they're capable of. What if you kill one of them by accident or you get killed?" Drug shakes me as he says the words.
I know he's right but I can't not do anything. I want that bitch's head on a spear!
The monsters begin charging us, but in unison. Drug and his brothers shoot their flames, creating a barrier between us and them. The monsters don't stop though, they leap high over the flames forcing the brothers to let us go and fight them off.
"To Merelda, sisters!"
We shift into Crows and fly high above the reaching hands of the monsters as Drug, Drac and Draven keep them distracted. We swoop low while dodging the orbs and stakes Merelda throws at us. Each time one of us is closer, we rip and tear at her scalp and hair but we can't find an opening to actually land and do some real damage.
I sweep low to the ground, coming up to her back when she turns and hits me with something like a block of ice right on my left wing. I shift into my cobra and slither with unnatural speed below another orb, ready to strike her legs but as I ready for the bite, something grabs my tail.
The delicate bones in a real snake would snap and break under the pressure the monster is using but my cobra's bones are almost like carbon fiber, practically unbreakable. I spin and strike the creature on instinct but let go before I actually kill the thing. Instead of fighting the beast, I wrap him or her, it's difficult to tell what the gender of the creatures are, and squeeze around its neck and arms. I use my muscles to cut off the blood flow to its brain until it passes out then I shift back to my natural form.
Everyone is fighting, the men hold off any more monsters coming at us while trying not to kill them, though I do see some laying still on the ground and my heart breaks. My sisters and Darren continue to fight Merelda, looking for an advantage while opening wounds on her but they heal almost as soon as they appear.
In a rage, I grab the horn of the unconscious monster at my feet and break it off near the skull. I hope that didn't hurt the person under the fucked up curse.
I turn back to Merelda and throw the horn as hard as I can at her back. The pointed bone sails through the air and I watch as it hits its mark on her lower back, leaving a gaping hole big enough for a fist to fit through.
I charge at her as she falls to her knees but Elsie's voice, unnaturally loud, screams at everyone to stop.
"Grandmother! I'm here and I have your betrayer!"
Everyone stops, including the monsters, who back up to Merelda.
Elsie stands at the door with a bleeding Mayfly at her feet. He looks like he's dead with blood and lacerations all over his face and back. Elsie has the most vicious look on her face and when her brothers move to her she blasts them back with an invisible force from her hand.
What the hell is happening? Did the potion wear off?
I run right for her and jump when she throws her hand in my direction. I feel the blast of energy flow beneath my body and Elsie's eyes widen as I land before her. She's no longer a little girl so I swing, aiming to knock her unconscious but her self-preservation kicks in.
She lets Mayfly's collar go and blocks my attack while giving me a few of her own. Some of our punches land as others miss their mark but we don't trade hits for long, in my haste to stop her, she uses her magic to drag Mayfly to Merelda.
"Noo! Elsie, fight her influence! Don't do this to your mate!" I scream as I land a blow to her stomach. She weaves her fingers as she doubles over and suddenly I'm wrapped tightly with invisible ropes.
Merelda cackles loudly as she leans over to deliver a killing blow to Mayfly with a curved dagger. Just before the blade reaches him, Mayfly rolls to his back, Nymph features on display.
He pushes off the ground while gripping her upper arm and her hand which clutches the dagger. With the loudest and most gruesome snap ever, Mayfly rips off Merelda’s arm from the elbow like it’s a chicken bone. While she screams in pain, he slams the dagger into her chest and then head butts her so hard it sounds like a pumpkin being smashed on the ground.
Elsie lets me go and runs for Mayfly as Merelda falls to the ground with her legs bent at odd angles. Mayfly gives Elsie a golden looking stone covered in blood and quickly she begins chanting in a language the Witches use.
I forget the monsters around us until they begin to groan and howl which makes me jump a foot in the air. I need a fucking vacation.
"Are you okay, Black?" Drug pulls me to his chest and growls at the monsters who seem to be in pain. I don't reply or do anything other than grip Drug's torn and bloodied shirt, my body is weak and the spot where ice hit me is taking a long time to heal. I just want to sit, drink some good whiskey and never move again.
The monsters start to really howl and some drop to the ground writhing in pain.
"What's happening!" I scream at Elsie.
"She's releasing the curse on these people!" Mayfly shouts back as he guards Elsie's back. Who knows what these creatures will do to stop the pain despite the fact that she's trying to help them.
"Oh my fangs! Look!" Roxy shouts jumping up and down in Drac's arms as he tries to use his body to protect the little China doll.
I snicker in my mind at the sight but I quickly suck in a sharp breath when I look at what she's pointing to. The monster near her and every one of the monsters closest to Elsie, begin to vibrate so fast while flakes and dust fall from them. Just like the movie Silent Hill, the grotesque exterior of the beasts fall away and out of the ashes rises Blood Crow from ages gone by.
Generations of Crows stand and look at their hands and bodies. Some touch their faces while others sob in relief. I don't want to look around, I don't want to hope but I can't stop myself from searching the small crowd for the two faces I remember from my childhood memories. Two people I thought didn't love me or my sisters enough to stick around.
"Ronny?"
My heart beats out of my chest at the familiar voice coming from behind me. I'm shaking as I grip Drug tighter to me, afraid to turn, afraid to see the one whom I've needed all these centuries.
"Skunk?"
I spin at the name I haven't heard since I was a babe and standing before me, looking haggard and wasted, is my father.
I fall to my knees and cover my mouth but nothing can hold back the broken sob that wracks my body, shaking my ribs with so much force it becomes painful.
"Papa?" My voice is barely a whisper but my father hears it nonetheless. He staggers in place like my childhood endearment has hit him just as strong as my nickname hit me. Drug rushes over to him and catches him, bringing him to me.
I should stand and hold my father. I should scream with delight and wrap my arms around him but I don't. I've been in need of my father's arms for so long, in need of a hug from him. I think he knows because he drops to his knees and wraps me in the most tender hug I've ever received.
My sisters tackle us to the ground and hold us with sobs filling the air.
"I never thought I'd see you girls again."
My father's voice is hoarse but to me, there's no swe
eter sound.
Elsie drops to her hands and knees as Mayfly holds her hair back.
I'm going to check on Elsie, Black.
I mentally tell Ronny as I leave her and her sisters to the reunion they deserve. I know what it's like to have your family reunited. Having my sister back with us is more than I could have ever hoped for. I know my parents are gone but having Elsie brings them back too and I'll forever be grateful for that.
Drac and Draven run beside me and we stop near our sister who is retching in the grass. The stone Mayfly used is glowing brightly with multiple colors and Merelda violently shakes beside it.
Not giving a shit about the fluids on the ground, I drop next to Elsie as our brothers hover over Merelda, ready to strike if she comes to.
"That was a stupid and brave thing you did, sister," I grind out. I know she did it to save the Crow ancestors but Merelda is an unspeakable monster and losing Elsie would have killed us. And since we can't actually die, it would have been a tortuous existence.
She wipes at her mouth and chuckles at me, "You need to remember, Drug. I'm not the baby you once knew. If I can stop someone from hurting those I love I will always dive in, no matter the threat to myself."
I mime wringing her neck but smile all the same. She's definitely a Hound, stubborn and bullheaded.
I look over to Mayfly and see nothing but admiration in his gaze as he brushes hair back from my sister's face. He will still need to prove to us that he will love and fight for my sister but I think he has proven himself today. Although, brothers like us will need daily proof no matter how long we live for.
"What happens now?" Drac asks with a lip curled in Merelda's direction. She continues to convulse but there's no sign she'll stop.
She can be killed now but in order for her to stay dead, we'll need to wait for the full moon. Until then, she will need to be encased in glass. It'll keep her energy enclosed until then. Her power is in the stone, it will leave the stone and find someone new to inhabit when her spirit is no longer living."
"Drug?" Ronny's voice stops me from commenting that Merelda is no Disney character and she should be kept in a coffin or something.
I turn to her voice and smile at her. She looks incredibly shy and it makes me want to tease her but I know this is overwhelming for her. Shit, it's overwhelming for me.
"Drug, this is my dad, Amos Crow. Dad, this is my mate, Drug... Hound."
Her father doesn't blink an eye at hearing my last name, the name of their mortal enemies, he just grabs my hand and pulls me in for a hug. He's a lot stronger than he appears. I can feel all his bones beneath his skin and I cringe at how hard I've hugged him. That would be just great if I broke this man's back after just meeting him.
We pull apart and he clears his throat. His voice is terribly cracked and broken as he speaks but I can hear the sincerity in each word he speaks.
"Thank you for fighting for my daughters. I didn't want to attack them and I will forever be in your debt for protecting them."
"Well, sir, I'm not built to lie so I'll be honest. I was mostly protecting Black Bird. Your other daughters are whack jobs, sir," I say this with a chuckle amid punches from the sisters but their father just laughs at it.
"Thank you nonetheless." He claps my shoulder as Rory and Roxy introduce him to my brothers.
Ronny jumps in my arms and buries her face in my neck. I hold her close and despite all the horrors we've faced, I laugh and nip her earlobe. This is my place. I belong here with my Black Bird. I want to spend the rest of our lives in each other's arms, making each moment count to make up for all the moments that didn't.
I put Ronny back on her feet as Elsie stands and holds a hand out to Amos. It's tense for a moment but Amos has no anger for my sister. He ignores her hand and wraps his arms around her.
"Thank you for freeing us. Thank you for sacrificing your mate, I know it was a ploy but the risk was there nonetheless. You have me in your debt, True Witch."
"No, Amos. You owe me nothing. If you want to repay me, do it by making up for lost time with your daughters. The pain they've carried is as heavy as your own. I wish I could bring back every person Merelda killed."
Darren comes out with a large crate filled with packs of blood, passing them out to the fifty or so Blood Crows still coming out of their metamorphosis-like state. Each Vampire takes the packs with graciousness that you wouldn't expect. You see, I grew up in a time where witches, Vampires and Werewolves were hunted and called evil but after meeting Ronny and her sisters, I see how wrong that was.
In any race and family, no matter the realm, there are always those who break the rules of the moral compass. But looking at the ragtag of people around me, enemies coming together, it's clear that not everyone wears a crown of sin.
"Are all these people part of your family?" I ask Ronny as I watch people reunite with loved ones.
"I don't know any of them. My father says that my mother really did die while fighting Merelda when she took him so we won't be seeing Mother in this life." Ronny wipes at her eyes as she tells me this. I know she's holding her emotions in.
I top her chin up to look at me, "It's okay to break, Black Bird. I'll find ways to put you back together in the end."
She squeezes her eyes closed, pushing tears free from the confines of her lashes as she drops her face to my chest. Her body shakes as I rub her back, soothing her while she lets the emotions out. Sometimes, breaking for a moment makes you stronger. It releases something deep inside your soul and makes room for those that deserve a spot in there. We just need someone to keep us grounded while it happens.
"It's okay, Black. I got your pieces."
The full moon will be upon us tonight and soon we will stand beneath its brilliant glow. Merelda has been held in a painful slumber filled with torture on her powerless body. This evening will bring an end to her reign of terror and bloodshed.
I've spent time with our father and bringing him up to speed on life as it is now. He's a big fan of pepperoni pizza and definitely loves the smartphones.
It was hilarious to see him hiss and snarl when I first showed him the screen with moving pictures. He kept looking behind it as if there was someone there. Showing him new things has been a delight.
Right now, we're standing cloaked as we watch cars pass by on the road. He's been standing on the street watching them pass through him with nothing but wonderment on his face.
Come on, Pops! I want to show you the ice cream parlor. The owner is Fae and she always has the best frozen blood," Roxy says while clapping her hands. We each share dad throughout the day and now it's Roxy's turn. I've mostly brought my dad here because he just loves the cars that drive by. He even tries to race them like he's a little kid. Seeing him smile and find fascination in everything I've taken for granted is the best thing I've ever witnessed.
He kisses me on the cheek before leaving, "See you tonight, Skunk."
"See ya, Pop."
Once he leaves, I focus on Drug and his energy before siphoning myself to him. He's been out with his brothers showing Elsie around but we spend the evenings together every day. It's been a good few weeks getting to know him and learning who he is when we're not searching for talisman and fighting evil witches with chips on their shoulders.
I've learned that he's an incredible chess player who can beat any one of us in under five moves. I learned that his favorite thing to eat is any kind of red meat, big shock I know. He also has to sleep on his right side or he won't be able to fall asleep. His favorite time of day is right before the sun wakes up and just as it dips below the horizon.
The past few weeks have been wonderful and some of the best memories were made recently.
I arrive in the alleyway where we first met. Drug is leaning up against the brick wall of a building as he smokes a cigarette. Yes that's right, Drug likes cancer sticks. Although, I doubt they'll be able to hurt him in any way since he's a fire breathing Hellhound and all.<
br />
"Hey girl, you come here often?"
Gah! Did I mention he has a thing for corny fucking jokes? Well, he does and they're stupid every time. Also, he's been watching movies from the nineties and I think he's definitely found his whole personality there. Works for me since he's so devilish with that body and rod of his.
Just kidding... sort of. I really do love this man. His rod and bod are just a bonus.
"Yes, I do actually. You see, this is where I'm always finding Roxy. The humans have some very ominous stories about her since the eighteen hundreds. She's been dubbed The River Crow," I say it low and creepy like I'm telling a scary story to a bunch of camp kids.
Drug chuckles and wraps an arms around my waste, "I don't really care about your pink haired sister. She cut me with that fucking spiked ball and chain of hers and said 'oops.'"
I laugh at that. Roxy is a total savage and the stories about her are definitely warranted. The humans have been afraid of the large Crow that targets men who slink through the dark, harboring bad intentions for the clueless women they follow.
"Okay, so what are we doing here then, Drug?"
It's the afternoon and people will soon wander what two people are doing in the alley. As if reading my thoughts, which he didn't because I now have a block on him when I don't want him reading my head, Drug smiles and pushes me up against the wall.
"Cloak us, Black Bird."
I do and he runs his nose up the column of my throat before dipping his tongue into the two puncture marks on my neck. They haven't gone away but it's like they're connected to my labia and every time he touches them, my body comes alive with sexual desire.
"I want you, here where we first met." I moan when he grinds his hard cock against my stomach, our jeans blocking the heat of his delicious skin.
"When you first shifted here, I was instantly hard for you. You are the most sinful and beautiful creature I have ever seen."