Undone (The Amoveo Legend)

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Undone (The Amoveo Legend) Page 21

by Sara Humphreys


  All eyes were fixed on the stranger. The man was massive—larger than any Amoveo man or Pete. His jet-black hair framed a familiar pair of eyes, which were locked on Pete. Marianna held Pete tighter and linked her energy signature to his as it ebbed and waned.

  Is that who this man is, she wondered? Is he death personified, coming to claim her mate?

  “Marianna.” Kerry was the first to break the silence. “I’d like you to meet Asmodeus. One of the Seven Princes of Hell—and Pete’s father.”

  “No time for introductions, I’m afraid.” He crossed the room in a swift blur and placed both hands on Pete’s injuries. Heat wafted from Asmodeus, and his hands glowed red as he cauterized the wounds and lifted Pete from Marianna’s lap effortlessly. He winked and said, “That will stop him from losing more blood, but let’s take him to see your friend, Olivia. Shall we?”

  “Oh my God,” Marianna breathed. “Of course.” She smiled and laughed through her tears. “Olivia can turn him.”

  Marianna scrambled weakly to her feet and took Pete’s limp hand in hers. She suspected that making Pete a vampire would cause problems, but she didn’t care. Demon. Human. Vampire. All of the above? It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered, except making sure that he survived—one way or another.

  Richard and the others eyed Asmodeus warily, but no one made a move to stop him.

  “If Olivia turns him, he’ll never be fully accepted by our people or the vampires,” Richard said quietly. “You’re opening Pandora’s box. He won’t belong in any world. Not human, Amoveo, or vampire.”

  “He’ll belong with me,” Marianna said firmly, as her eyes glowed. “He’s my mate and the father of our unborn children. After everything he’s done, we owe it to him to at least try.”

  “And here I thought you were a progressive and open-minded soul, Richard.” Asmodeus made a tsking sound as his eyes flared, and his voice dropped to a growl. “He will be more powerful than any of you can fathom.”

  Tramp barked, trotted to Marianna, and sat at her feet as they all vanished in a burst of fire and smoke.

  “I hope she knows what she’s doing,” Dante murmured.

  ***

  As the smoke cleared, Marianna found herself standing in the living room of Olivia’s private apartment beneath the nightclub. The muffled pounding of music could be heard faintly from above. Asmodeus lay Pete’s limp body onto the black leather sofa and stepped back. Marianna sat next to him. She lifted his head and cradled it gently in her lap as he moaned in pain. Tramp yipped and sat at Asmodeus’s feet, but he didn’t take his eyes off Pete.

  “Shouldn’t you call to your friend?” The words had barely escaped Asmodeus’s lips when the heavy wood and steel door flew open and slammed shut, seemingly by itself. Olivia whisked into the apartment in a blur of red and a gust of wind. Fangs bared, eyes flashing, she stopped short of attacking Asmodeus when she saw Marianna and Pete.

  “I’d ask you how you’re doing, but that would probably be a galactically stupid question.” Olivia’s nostrils flared as she breathed in the pungent aroma of blood. Her fangs retracted with a snap, and she glanced at Asmodeus as she straightened out the jacket of her navy Ralph Lauren suit and smoothed her red curls. “Do I even want to know who you are?”

  “Probably not,” he said as he looked her up and down and grinned. “But I know who you are—or more importantly—what you are.”

  “I know what you are too,” she said with a fang-flashing grin. “Demon.”

  “My son needs your assistance, vampire.”

  “Your son?” Olivia blinked and turned her attention to Pete. “I knew Pete had some demon blood, but royal demon blood… now that is unexpected.”

  “Please, Olivia,” Marianna pleaded. “It took me forever to find him… don’t make me live without him. You can turn him, can’t you?”

  “Shit.” Olivia sighed. She looked from Marianna to Asmodeus, and finally, to Pete. “Does the prince know about this? And what about your brother? How will he and the Amoveo feel about having a vampire mated to one of their own?”

  “I don’t care.” She ground the words out between clenched teeth, and her eyes glowed. “All I care about is Pete.”

  “We’re wasting time,” Asmodeus bit out.

  Olivia nodded and knelt in front of Marianna and Pete. She picked up his arm and pushed the blood-soaked sleeve of his shirt to his bicep, exposing the tender flesh of his inner arm. “I know you said that you don’t care about what the other Amoveo think, and I can respect that.” She leaned both elbows on the couch and lowered her voice. “But what about Pete?”

  Olivia’s large green eyes latched onto Marianna’s as she searched them for the answer. Marianna’s heart caught in her throat because she hadn’t thought about that. All she thought about was herself—her feelings about living without him—but she never thought about how he’d feel living as a vampire.

  Pete groaned, and his eyelids fluttered open as he said something incoherent, and his body twitched.

  “Pete… please.” Marianna leaned close and brushed tender kisses along his forehead. Pete, she whispered his name as she touched his mind with hers. Please don’t leave me.

  “If I do this—” Olivia whispered intently. “If I turn him, then he is vampire, and his allegiance will always be to the Presidium. Mate or no mate.” She kept her narrowed eyes fixed on Marianna. “Having a vampire for your mate will be no less complicated than being mated to him as a human—probably more.”

  Olivia turned her attention to Pete. “Are you up for this, Mr. Hottie? Actually, you’re not that hot right now.” Her lips curved. “It’s more like Mr. Oh-Shit-I-Got-My-Ass-Kicked.”

  He struggled to speak, and his body shook with effort as two simple words rushed from his lips. “Bite me.”

  “The Presidium will have a fucking field day with this one,” Olivia said wearily.

  Marianna watched as Olivia bared her white fangs and sank them into the vein on the inside of Pete’s elbow. Her long, pale fingers gripped his arm like a vice as she drank deeply. Her body shuddered as she took one long last pull before coming up for air.

  Marianna noticed that for the first time, Olivia’s cheeks were pink, and her green eyes sparkled brilliantly.

  “Son of a bitch, that tastes great.” She gave Marianna an apologetic look. “Sorry. I don’t have live feeds often, and I’ve never tasted anything like this before. If he tastes this good as only half demon, I think that the pure demon blood would send me into a fucking pleasure coma.”

  Marianna reached out and grabbed her friend, who wavered on her knees and looked like she might pass out herself. Olivia shook her head and sucked in a few steadying breaths.

  “I’m fine. Just a little blood drunk, but it should pass in a minute. Damn.” She let out a whistle and gave Marianna a sidelong glance. “You two had quite the fun month at that cabin… I’ll never look at a snowmobile the same way again.”

  Marianna’s face heated with embarrassment as she kept her gaze fixed firmly on Pete.

  “Not trying to be a Peeping Olivia, but I can’t help it. Blood memories, sorry.” Olivia grinned as she sliced her own wrist with razor-sharp fangs. She placed the bleeding wound over Pete’s mouth and lifted his head as she let the dark, ancient blood flow into his mouth.

  Olivia looked to see what Asmodeus thought, but he said nothing. Tramp trotted to the couch, jumped up, laid over Pete’s legs, and let out a low whine.

  “There’s a dog on my sofa.” Olivia shook her head. “The only thing harder to get out than bloodstains… is dog stink.”

  Tramp growled, and his eyes burned red.

  “Excuse me.” Olivia sighed and rolled her eyes. “Hellhound stink.”

  Olivia removed her wrist from Pete’s mouth, and Marianna watched as the wound closed completely seconds after. The ivory skin of her wrist looked fresh and unmarred. Olivia stood wearily and sat on the edge of the coffee table as she pulled Pete’s sleeve back down.

  “Now,�
�� she said on a sigh, “we wait. He’d already lost a lot of blood before our blood exchange so… we have to wait and see. She turned to Asmodeus. “So what’s your story?”

  “Thank you for helping my son, vampire.”

  “It’s Olivia.” She zipped around Asmodeus and came up behind him in a barely visible flash. He didn’t move, but stood motionless with his muscular arms crossed over his broad chest, as he allowed her to inspect him. Olivia grabbed his head and tilted it to one side as she took a long sniff of the skin along his neck. Fangs burst into her mouth, and her eyes fluttered closed as she breathed in his exotic aroma.

  “Holy shit.” Olivia sighed as she released his head and stepped away in an almost drunken stupor. A smile curved her full pink lips. “You smell like the best fuck I ever had… and then some.”

  “Yes,” he mused. He lifted his muscular shoulders and watched as she moved around him slowly this time. “That sounds about right.”

  “You are the Demon of Lust,” she said through a shuddering breath. “Sweet Jesus, what do the others smell like? I almost had an orgasm from one whiff.”

  “Belphegor, the Demon of Sloth, smells like shit, so I doubt you’d be getting any orgasms from him.” The smile that played on Asmodeus’s lips faltered, and his eye glowed bright red as he lost his patience. “I’d be happy to school you further on the rest of the brotherhood at another time, but it’s time for me to take my leave.”

  Marianna stroked Pete’s hair as she gave Asmodeus a weary smile. “Thank you.”

  Asmodeus bowed his head and vanished in a cloud of smoke.

  Chapter 18

  The sweet and familiar scent of peaches and vanilla filled Pete’s head as he emerged from the deepest sleep of his life. As the fog lifted, he heard the distinct rhythm of three heartbeats.

  “Pete?” Marianna’s melodic voice surrounded him. “Can you hear me?”

  Pete’s eyes flew open as the bloody memories of his encounter with Artimus swamped him. Images flashed through his mind. Marianna trapped beneath Hayden as he attacked her. A massive bear claw slashing him to pieces. Artimus’s head being blown to smithereens. Marianna passed out on the bed.

  Then… darkness.

  “Marianna,” he shouted as he sat up in the bed and reached for her instinctively.

  Well, he’d meant to sit up in bed, but instead, he found himself clinging to the ceiling above an unfamiliar bedroom.

  “What the fuck?” Pete looked frantically around the room beneath him. Another memory crept in—he had told Olivia to bite him. Apparently, she did.

  “I guess it worked.” Olivia elbowed a concerned Marianna and waved to Pete. “Come on down from there, and have something to eat.”

  Bewildered and more than a little embarrassed, Pete let go of the ceiling and landed silently on two feet, as sure as a cat. Wearing only sweatpants, he slowly stood to his full height, keeping his gaze intent on Marianna, who looked at him through wide brown eyes.

  “What happened?” He didn’t move, unsure of exactly what was going on.

  “Drink this,” Olivia said as she held out a coffee mug.

  Pete didn’t take it at first because he was too busy filtering out the array of sounds and smells. The ticking of the clock on the other side of the bedroom sounded like it was inside his head instead of twenty feet away. He could hear Tramp’s panting from the living room, and the three heartbeats he heard were coming from Marianna and the babies in her womb.

  The world was brighter, sharper, and louder than it had ever been before. He didn’t think it would be possible, but Marianna was more beautiful. His body hummed with power—and he was starving.

  Whatever was in that mug smelled like bacon, eggs, and French toast all rolled into one. Pete snatched the mug from Olivia’s hand and sucked back the warm liquid like his life depended on it. Warmth rushed through his veins, and power surged.

  He swiped at his mouth and held it to Olivia. “More.”

  “I’m your maker, not your mother.” Olivia smirked and walked to the door of the bedroom. “There’s a full pitcher of blood on the dresser, and if you need to warm it up, the microwave is in the kitchen.”

  “Olivia?” Marianna looked nervously from Olivia to Pete. “That’s it? Don’t you need to do vampire training or something?”

  “Not right now.” Olivia smiled, baring her fangs. “He’ll have to be trained for the first year of his new life. As his maker, he’s my responsibility, but you two need time to get reacquainted. He didn’t try to rip your throat out when he woke up, so he’s not suffering from a bad turn.”

  Pete’s eyes widened. “I’d never hurt her.”

  “I didn’t think you would, but until the change is complete, we never know.” She lifted a shoulder. “Usually, when someone is changed, they’re the same person they were before. If you were an asshole as a human, you’re an asshole as a vampire. A good guy is a good vampire… usually.”

  “Right.” Pete swallowed and flicked his gaze to Marianna. She stared at him wide-eyed with her hands on her belly. Clad in a simple tank top and yoga pants, she looked more gorgeous than ever, but the look on her face brought him pause. Was she afraid? Of what he’d become? The truth was that he didn’t really know what he was. “I’m not exactly the usual vampire though. Am I?”

  “Nope. Actually, it’ll be interesting to see what effects your demon blood has on you as a vampire.” A grin cracked her face. “Okay, kids. He’s got a full supply of blood and should be fine for right now. Besides, it’s daytime, and I’m fucking exhausted. By the way, don’t be surprised if you can’t sleep. You’ve been asleep for two days while the change took place, so it’ll take you some time to get used to your new system.”

  “Thank you,” Pete murmured.

  The women watched as he took the pitcher from the dresser and drank greedily, directly from it. He never dreamed that blood would taste good—hell—good didn’t cover it. It was fan-fucking-tastic. He drained the pitcher dry and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

  “I should’ve known,” Olivia said through a laugh. “You’re that guy who drank milk right out of the carton when nobody was watching, weren’t you?”

  “Sorry.” Pete gave them a sheepish grin and placed the mug and pitcher on the dresser. His face grew serious, and his dark eyebrows furrowed. “Thank you again, for saving my life.”

  “Yeah.” Olivia sighed. “Well, I didn’t save your life… I changed it. You and Marianna will stay with me over the next few weeks while you get used to our world. You’ll register with the Presidium records keeper and be introduced to the members at their next meeting. If I had to make a bet, I’d say that they’re going to want to recruit you as a Sentry.”

  “One of their soldiers?” Marianna asked. “Aren’t they executioners?”

  “Sometimes,” Olivia said casually. The concerned look on Pete’s face caught her attention. “Relax, big guy. They aren’t a kill squad or anything. They’re basically vampire cops.” She rubbed her neck and closed her eyes wearily. “We’ve got ground to cover, and you’ve got a lot to learn, but right now, I’m going to my room.”

  The door clicked shut as Olivia left Pete alone with Marianna. An intense hunger gnawed at him, and it kicked into high gear as Marianna’s familiar scent filled his nostrils. He closed his eyes as he took in the distinct aroma, and suddenly, a pair of fangs burst into his mouth. He ran his tongue along the smooth surface, but winced as he drew blood when he touched the sharp points.

  Marianna gasped. “Are—are you still hungry?” she asked in husky whisper as her heart rate picked up a notch. The seductive beat filled his head and made every single inch of him hard as stone. “I could get more from the kitchen, if you’d like.”

  “I’m most definitely hungry,” he murmured. “But not for food.”

  A split second later, in a blur of flesh, he was across the room and had effortlessly scooped Marianna into his arms. Her brown eyes shifted into the dark, glowing eyes of her clan, a
nd her lips parted on a sigh as she linked her arms around his neck.

  “What did you have in mind?” She arched one dark eyebrow, and her lips curled into a sexy grin.

  “Something like this,” he murmured.

  In a rush of wind, he laid her out on the bed and stripped the sweatpants from his heated body. Pete settled his body over her and kept himself raised with his hands pinned on either side of her head. He stayed there for a few moments, taking in every curve, every gorgeous inch of his mate.

  Pete linked his pinky finger beneath the strap of her top and pulled it down, baring her neck and the beautiful curve of her shoulder. He trailed butterfly kisses along the smooth skin as he pulled the other strap down and tugged the top to her waist. He cursed softly as he took in the sight of her bare breasts.

  Marianna threaded her fingers through his short hair as he brought one caramel-colored nipple into his mouth and suckled. She moaned and held him as he lavished attention on her sensitive breasts.

  He moved further down, but lifted his head when he reached her belly, and placed a sweet kiss there before dragging her pants from her body. The knowledge that his children were growing in her womb made him love her more than he thought possible.

  Marianna lay naked and wanting, looking at him through hooded eyes as he kissed his way over the curve of her hip, wanting to taste her. The bruises and swelling from Hayden’s attack had faded from sight, but Pete wanted to make sure he washed that day from her memory.

  She sighed contentedly as he licked and kissed his way up her body and finally settled over her again. Her skin felt like warm silk beneath his lips, and the sound of her heartbeat surrounded him. He captured her mouth with his and tangled his fingers in her long, dark hair.

  He lay there, kissing her and reveling in the touch of her tongue along his. I love you, Pete. Her voice touched his mind and heightened his pleasure. There was something wildly erotic about joining her body and her mind.

  He broke the kiss and gave her a wicked grin. I want you on top.

 

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