by Sofia Daniel
“This is the academy’s main entrance,” said Raphael.
I folded my arms across my chest. “Let’s go in there and wait for Dracula.”
“Won’t someone see us?”
“I can erect an invisibility bubble inside the building,” I replied. “Anyone walking past won’t notice our presence.”
“Like that strange knocker did in the basement?” asked Raphael.
“Exactly.”
The wildflower meadow consisted of grasses that stood up to four feet in height combined with purple and pink flowers. We moved through the vegetation on our hands and knees, using the stalks as cover. A mix of floral scents wafted through the breeze, making the crawl somewhat bearable.
As we approached the gatehouse through the trees, I noticed four sets of chakras through the stone walls. “It’s occupied.”
“By anyone powerful?” asked Gates.
We all turned to look at him.
“You’re one of them, aren’t you?” He sat on his haunches and raised his broad shoulders. “When I was sneaking through the tunnels, I heard them talking about gauging the power of others and thought you might be able to do it, too.”
“It’s all about the size and brightness of their energy.” I narrowed my eyes and scanned the chakras through the wall. “One of them is going to cause us trouble, but the other three should be easy to defeat.”
“How do they die?” asked Raphael. “I saw a hunter walking around with half her head sliced off.”
I chewed my bottom lip. The onion woman hadn’t specified ways of killing hunters, but maybe that was because she didn’t know. Captain Tanar had mostly focussed on methods to alert vampires of their approach during the day, and we learned basic self-defense and fitness—all the better to make us retreat.
“We’ll have to experiment.” I lay on my belly, watching the colossal chakras of the Radite pacing the interior of the gatehouse.
“What do you mean?” asked Raphael.
“I think they have multiple lives.”
“Like cats?” asked Gates.
“More like they’ve stolen the life forces of frumosi.” I wrapped a hand around a clump of dandelions and pulled them out. “So, if you kill them once, that’s one life gone.”
“Bloody hell,” muttered Dante.
“That can’t be right,” said Nero.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“No creature can survive decapitation. Or if it can, then you can destroy the head and let the body flounder about until it falls down a ditch.”
“We don’t have weapons.”
Gates shouldered off his backpack and let it clink to the ground. “Raph and I found a few items when we explored the castle.” He unzipped the bag and pulled out a cutlass that looked like it had been stolen from the set of Sinbad the Sailor. “This looks sharp enough to take off anyone’s head.”
Nero clapped his back. “Good man!”
Gates beamed.
I pulled myself to my feet and walked through the wildflowers toward the hut.
“Where are you going?” asked Dante.
“To lure them out.” I glanced over my shoulder and winked at my crouching boys. “The last thing I want is to have to hide out within walls and floors stained with blood.”
They all gaped at me as though I’d gone mad, but they continued crawling through the grass. I hurried forward and stepped onto the road, where I dusted off my borrowed black dress and cardigan.
Several feet later, I reached a narrow oak door. Next to it was a window obscured by curtains. Before I even got a chance to knock, one of the hunters drew back the curtain and peered out at me. I gave my fingers a flirtatious wave.
The door swung open, and a white-haired man stood in the doorway. From the way his chakras extended to the edges of his physical body, I guessed he was the Radite.
“Good evening,” I said.
“Hello.” The Radite’s gaze roved up and down my form. “You’re Alicia, right?”
“Lord Radu sent me down here.”
“Why?”
“He’s too busy to play with me.” Pushing out my chest, I ran my hands down my sides. “Apparently, I’m a distraction, and he wants to focus on the battle ahead.”
The male’s brows rose. “Our Lord will tend to your needs after his victory. Did you try asking Renée? She usually steps in when he’s too busy to satisfy his women.”
“I only like men.” I pressed both palms on his chest. “Like you.”
He wrapped his hands around my wrists and gave me a gentle shove. “I’m not into feeding play.”
“What makes you think that’s what I want?” I said.
“The weaker ones always want more power, and they’re not ashamed to use their wiles to get it.”
I shrugged. “It’s my stomach that hurts.”
The man paused, and his tongue darted out to lick his lips. “You didn’t feed at dinner.”
“Alexandru was going to let me suck him off, but we got interrupted.”
His nostrils flared. “If you just want a bit of spunk to fill your belly, I’d be happy to oblige.”
“Not here.” I leaned forward and whispered into his ear. “When I’ve got a dick in my mouth, I like to play with my clit.”
He gave me an understanding wink. “Let’s take a walk. I’ll feed you behind that oak.”
The man introduced himself as Michael and said he had been part of Radu’s army since the turn of the twentieth century. He wrapped an arm around my waist and cupped my ass with his bare hand. As I walked toward the oak tree, a pang of guilt struck my heart. This was going to be cold-blooded murder.
“Do you know why there aren’t many female Radites?” he asked.
“No.”
“It’s the feeding play,” he said. “Some of them get too greedy and try to absorb a man instead of taking enough for them both to have a good time. They end up getting absorbed themselves.”
“I’m not interested in your chakras.” I reached down and cupped the bulge in his crotch. “But I’ll probably use my magic to make you cum faster.”
As we reached a sprawling oak, he chuckled. “Use your mouth for the first round, and I won’t—”
Wind rushed past my ear, making me spin. It was Raphael, brandishing his cutlass. I staggered back, giving him space to attack.
“What the—” Michael raised his hand. Energy flared from his palm, catching the blade before it struck.
White light raced through the short sword toward Raphael’s hand. Releasing the blade, he leaped back several feet and disappeared into the grass.
Nero approached from behind and swung a sword at Micheal’s neck. It hit an energetic shield with a clang.
“What is this?” The hunter shot a ball of magic into Nero’s stomach, making him fly back several feet. “An ambush?”
As I rushed to Nero’s side to inspect the damage, a dire wolf leaped over my head and wrapped his jaws around the man’s throat. Light streamed out from Gates’ jaws, and Michael roared with fury. In the distraction, Dante pierced him through the belly, making him double over.
Nero raised his head. “I’m fine. Check on Gates.”
Tendrils of magic wrapped around the snarling wolf, and panic spiked through my heart. If this male was anything like Justine—
I rushed forward and grabbed a fallen cutlass. “Gates, get off him.”
The dire wolf twisted away and ran off into the grass.
A rough hand grabbed my arm and yanked me around. I stared into the furious, green eyes of another hunter. Behind him, two other hunters held infrared weapons.
The one holding me snarled, “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”
“Let go!” I turned back to the fight.
Dante and Raphael continued swinging their swords at the hunter, who erected barriers to block the blows. Nero flew at his belly and slashed him across the middle. Light flared from the wound and closed up.
“You little bitch,” s
narled the hunter. “I’m taking you to our lord.”
“Fuck off!” I lashed out with my tendrils, wrapped them around his soul star, and yanked.
A string of chakras—white, violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red—flew out into the trees and exploded like fireworks. The hunter’s grip on my arm loosened, and he fell into the grass, a whitened husk.
“Shit.” The last thing I needed was to create a display anyone could see from the castle.
The other hunters backed toward the gatehouse, their hands in the air.
“We don’t want any trouble,” said the smaller one.
The larger one nodded. “If you want to keep those vampires as your pets, neither of us will tell the higher-ups.”
“You think this is about my wanting a harem?” I spat.
They exchanged puzzled looks.
The smaller hunter raised a pistol. Its thicker-than-average barrel flared with light. I whipped out my magic and pulled his chakras from his body. He stiffened, and all the color leached from his skin and hair.
“S-stop doing that!” the remaining hunter yelled. “Just tell us what you want, and we’ll give it to you. There’s no need to kill us all.”
“There is.” I wrapped my magic around his soul-star and dragged out their chakras, making him topple into his dead comrade.
An infrared beam filled the air.
“What are you?” snarled Micheal.
I tried wrapping my magic around the Radite’s soul-star chakra, but it wouldn’t budge. A growl of frustration reverberated in the back of my throat.
Dante slashed at the man’s belly. Before the wound could heal, Nero flew past and cut the man through the middle, making him spew multicolored light. I wrapped four tendrils of magic around Michael’s chakras and pulled.
“What are you doing?” He lashed out with a tendril of magic that sent me flying into the oaks.
A gust of wind whizzed by, and large hands caught me in the air.
“Careful,” said Dante. “He’s difficult to kill.”
“We’re doing it the wrong way,” I muttered.
Raphael and Nero whizzed around the man at vampire speed, cutting and slashing at his body, but each wound knitted together within seconds.
Dante wrapped his hand around mine. “Do you have any other ideas?”
My gaze dropped down to our joined hands, and I remembered how Radu had held onto Renée and Justine while making his more powerful attacks.
“Raph, Nero,” I shouted. “Retreat.”
Micheal turned around and bared his teeth. “You betrayed Lord Radu for three worthless vampires?”
“Why did you call us back?” said Nero. “Raph and I were building up to a final attack.”
“Hold hands.”
With a frown, Raphael grabbed my hand, and Nero grabbed his.
Micheal took a step back and widened his stance. He erected a dome of protection around his body. “When our lord discovers your treachery, he will parade you before every hunter, and we will all feast on your flesh.”
All three of the boys’ magic coursed through my veins. I felt Raphael’s woody energy, Nero’s fire, and Dante’s water. A naked Gates rushed in and held Dante’s hand, adding the faintest trace of earth. I set aside the implications of this and focused on Micheal.
Raising my chin, I said, “I’ve killed your allies, and I’ll kill you.”
“You can try,” he sneered.
I whipped out our combined magic like a cobra, shattering his dome. Before he could react, I wrapped the power around his throat chakra, making it explode into a cloud of blue sparks. Michael’s eyes bulged, and he lashed out with a tendril of magic.
Without my meaning to, a barrier of fire appeared in its path. Flames traveled along his tendril and into his solar plexus chakra. I wrapped a thick tendril of my magic around one of the swords and slashed it across the Radite’s neck. The man’s mouth opened in a silent scream, and his head flew into the oak. His body fell on the ground, thrashing as though trying to douse the pain.
“What the fuck just happened?” said Gates between panting breaths.
“We combined our magic.” I turned to Gates. “All of us did.”
He raised his shoulders. “I’m just a werewolf.”
I let go of the boys’ hands. “Let’s retreat to the gatehouse and work out how you managed to add your energy.”
“What are we going to do about this lot?” he asked.
I closed my eyes and spread flames over their bodies. If I could take a better look at Gates, maybe I’d be able to pick out the werewolf magic from his chakras.
Chapter 19
With the help of the boys’ combined magic, the bodies burned within minutes, leaving blackened patches in the wildflower meadow. By now, the dawn sun rose well above the horizon, drenching the boys in sunlight.
Despite the dire situation, I took a moment to soak in their masculine beauty. The sun made the ends of Nero’s dark locks shine indigo and warmed his gorgeous copper skin. It brought out the peaches and cream in Raphael’s pale complexion and reflected golden highlights in his eyes that reminded me of polished jade.
Dante tilted his head to the side and gave me a crooked smile. His skin was darker than Raphael’s, ivory bordering on beige, but warmth shone in his blue eyes, which took on an electric shade compared to their usual arctic.
“Anything the matter?” asked Dante.
“We’re all standing in the sun.”
“It’s hard to believe I’m not burning.” He glanced around the meadow. “The colors are more three-dimensional than they are in the frescos in the palace.”
Nero wrapped an arm around my shoulders and steered me toward the gatehouse. “Let’s settle in before the next batch of hunters come running.”
The four of us piled into the cool, dark building. A large desk stood at one end against the stone wall and a mini kitchen at the other, complete with a kettle and refrigerator.
As soon as the door clicked shut, I whirled on Gates. “Let’s take a look at you.”
“What you see is what you get.” He swept his hands down his muscular chest. Dark hair spread beneath his collarbone and covered his abs, narrowing to a wide strip that appeared thicker in the dip of his abdominals.
I licked my lips at the sight. Gates was rough and ready compared to the elegant sophistication of the Stryx brothers.
“Not your body.” I placed my palms on his warm, hard chest and backed him into the wall. “I want to see what’s inside.”
His brows drew together. “What will you do?”
“There was an exercise in class where Radu and the other hunters checked our bodies for black spots.”
“Black what—”
“Patches of magical manipulation.”
His frown deepened. “I don’t follow.”
“She’s talking about vampire mesmerism,” said Raphael, his voice small.
Dante and Nero strode to the kitchenette end of the gatehouse. Nero unscrewed a flask, releasing the delicious scent of freshly-brewed coffee. He sniffed its contents, wrinkled his nose, and tightened its lid. Dante opened the mini-fridge, pulled out a carton of orange juice, and examined it as though it might explode in his hands.
Rolling my eyes, I plucked the carton out of his hand, stuck the straw through the foil, and pressed the straw to his lips.
I turned back to Gates, who stared at the boys as though they were aliens. “In the TV shows, they treat lycanthropy like a virus or some kind of infection.”
“Right.” He frowned.
“What if it’s a magical manipulation?”
“Like memory loss?” asked Raphael. “I’m not sure magic could change a person’s shape, though.”
“It can.” I told the Stryx brothers how Justine had used her magic to transform three werewolves into joints of meat.
Gates raised both palms. “Wait a minute—”
“Does he need to be naked for this exercise?” Dante asked me.
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“I don’t think so.”
Nero threw Gates’ denim outfit at his feet. “Get dressed, then. Once we’re free of Radu, we’ll buy you some underwear.”
Gates shook his head. “Werewolves don’t need—”
“What if changing your magic can stop you from transforming every month?” I asked.
“Do you think you could?” he asked with a lilt of hope in his voice.
“Let me take a look.” While Gates stepped into his jeans and pulled them over his hips, I closed my eyes to focus on his chakras. “I won’t touch your existing energy unless I find something strange that needs pulling out.”
“And if you transform him into a werewolf?” asked Dante from the other side of the room.
I cracked an eye open. “You three can hold him down, can’t you?”
Nero shook his head. “It’s one thing to throw a werewolf across a room but another to stop him from snapping at your fingers.”
“He’s right.” Dante slurped at his carton of orange juice. “We should wait for a better time to tinker with Gates’ magic.”
My shoulders sagged, and I rested my head on the werewolf’s broad shoulder. “It took the three of us to subdue that Radite.”
“We’ll do better next time.” Dante opened the fridge and pulled out more cartons of juice, and walked around the room, handing them out.
“That guy wasn’t even one of the more powerful ones.” I took a carton of apple juice. “I’m not sure why, but when Gates joined hands with us, I felt a surge of power. If I can find a way to unlock our full potential, we might just have a chance against Radu.”
“Maybe what we need is time.” Nero pierced his carton with a straw.
“Which we don’t have,” said Raphael.
“Alright,” said Gates. “Take a look at me and try not to change anything.”
Closing my eyes, I cast my gaze down his body and found silver threads bundled around a red chakra at his tailbone. “I’ve found something strange in your root chakra.”
“Already?” Gates asked. “What does it do?”
“It’s the one with the deepest connection to your physical body, best aligned with the earth element and is related to feeling secure,” said Nero.
I reached out a tendril of magic to the red ball of energy, but one of the silver threads lashed out and slapped me away. “Hmmm.” I frowned. “There’s a blockage there that doesn’t want you bonding to anyone.”