Raven's Desires (Night Hunters)

by Reily, Aminta

  “Awwwww…Raven turned you down?” Shane teased.

  Kristian grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge. “Now why would you ask that?”

  “Well, I can feel the sexual tension there, Kristian.”

  “Screw you.”

  “Nope, Veronica has taken care of that for me. Many times. I think I found a person who enjoys sex as much as I do.”

  “Ever heard of TMI? If not, that was way more information than I needed to know.” Kristian took a swig of his water.

  “Where is Raven?” Veronica asked.

  “She’s taking a shower and should be down in a few.”

  “Well, tell her I’m sorry, but I have to go to work soon. I need to get back to the café to get my car and go home to get ready.”

  Shane stood from the table. “I will drive you to get your car.”

  “It was nice meeting you, Kristian.”

  “Nice to meet you also, Veronica. Have a nice night.”

  “You do the same.”

  After Shane and Veronica left, Elisabeth, his house keeper for the past sixty years came into the kitchen area to clean up the plates.

  The ninety-eight year old shadow demon did not look a day over twenty. Kristian had helped Elisabeth sixty years before, when she was being attacked by a werewolf. Ever since that day she had asked to be his house keeper. He denied many times but she would not accept no for an answer. When he left home and came to Meadville, Elisabeth tagged along with him. Over the years, she had become family to him. She came in every day to clean and cook dinner for them. Not that she had to, but she did. He paid her well over what any maid should be paid.

  A shadow demon who did not work under the Council did not get paid as he did as a hunter. Most demons, such as Elisabeth, had to work for a living. Most who had to work did something to upset the Council and were banned either for a short period of time or eternity. Kristian never tried to figure out what happened to Elisabeth to get her kicked from the Council. It had to be bad, but since she never brought it up or told him about it, he figured it was something that she didn’t want to discuss. He accepted her privacy. Most of the time the Council would make very harsh decisions over small things, and some people were treated unfairly. Most, like Elisabeth, moved on to make a normal life for themselves, working and living as a human.

  “Good evening, Mr. Blackburn.”

  “Hello, Elisabeth. How are you this lovely evening?”

  Elisabeth placed the plates in the dishwasher. “Everything is well this evening. What about with you, sir?”

  “Could be better, but I can’t complain.”

  “Aye. You know bad days can only get better.”

  Kristian sat at the counter table. He didn’t know why but they rarely used the dining room.

  “That is very true, Elisabeth.”

  “Do you want me to fix your dinner?”

  “Yes, also make an extra plate, I have company.”

  “Aye, Mr. Blackburn found himself a little play toy?”

  Kristian laughed.

  “No. Actually I found a new slayer who is also my mate.”

  Elisabeth turned to Kristian. Her eyebrow lifted. “Really? How is this to be? You are to be ma…”

  “Do not remind me of my future with my family, Elisabeth.”

  “But what are you going to do, sir? Your mate is something you cannot change. You have prior arrangements back in Rio de Janerio with your parents.”

  “I know, and I will handle that when the time comes. For now, I need to get this young lady to understand what she is, what we are and what will happen if she does not choose her path.”

  “There is nothing she can do but pick the path that has been laid out for her. This woman is the first of her kind. To be paired with a Night Hunter, a race that is dying quickly and needs all the help that the spirits will give them.”

  Kristian was always amazed with the way Elisabeth spoke sometimes. She had a different way of looking at life.

  “You are right, Elisabeth.”

  “Relax, sir, I’m sure that everything will be fine. Now, I’ll fix you and your mate’s dinner, then go clean up as quickly as possible and give you two the privacy you need.”

  “Thank you, Elisabeth. You are so helpful to me. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

  “You wouldn’t be able to get along without me.”

  Kristian couldn’t contain the laughter inside him. There weren’t many things that made him smile, but tonight he had his mate in his life and everything seemed to be going right.

  Kristian looked up when Raven made her way down the stairs.

  Elisabeth placed a plate of food in front of him and one beside him before walking out of the kitchen. He looked down at the roasted chicken, baked potato, and green beans. He never enjoyed food that much but Elisabeth kept cooking for him day in and out, helping him to feel as human as possible—which was funny, since he had never been a human a day in his life.

  Unlike a lot of vampires he knew, he was of the purest of breeds. Back to his great-great-great grandparents. They were all full-blooded vampires. There weren’t many of his kind anymore. So many people were falling for humans that they turned to mating outside the race. Over the centuries, hybrids where born and the bloodlines died out.

  Not that full blooded female vampires were a big thing with him. His parents, now that was a different story. They didn’t even want him to have sex with a human without protection. It wasn’t like a vampire could knock up any random human. It took something special with that human for her to be able to get pregnant. No one could tell his parents that. They would never accept having a hybrid grandchild. His parents were so…so…he didn’t know any other word but racist towards humans, the very humans they fed on to keep them strong. He wondered how they would feel about him having a slayer, half-human, African American mate. Oh boy, this was going to be fun.

  “Earth to Kristian.” Raven’s lovely voice brought him back to reality.

  “I’m sorry. I spaced out there for a moment.”

  “Yes, you did.”

  “Here.” Kristian pointed to the seat next to him. “Have a seat.”

  Raven swept her black hair behind her ear before sitting down.

  “My maid made dinner. I hope you like it.”

  Raven looked down at the plate then back to him.

  “It looks delicious. But I’m not really that hungry.”

  Kristian smiled at her. She was hungry, just a little shy about eating in front of him.

  “Awww, if you don’t eat it, it will hurt Elisabeth’s feelings. She’s so sensitive about her cooking.”

  Raven sighed then opened the napkin to retrieve her utensils. Kristian followed suit and decided that they would eat first and talk later.

  * * * *

  Raven finished off the food, which she had to say was perfect. Man, Elisabeth was an awesome cook. She would have to thank her the moment she saw her.

  The silent dinner was somewhat awkward. She and Kristian had played a very dangerous sexual game upstairs and now they were acting as if it hadn’t happened. After her shower, she told herself that she would make it harder for him. She could not deny the sexual need that had built between them. There was something about Kristian that made her believe they would end up together.

  Again, the rational part of her brain had shut down and the part where it did not make any sense spoke up. The bad part of this was, she did not feel weird about it. She knew she should be asking herself why she felt this way about a complete stranger or why she didn’t walk away from this feeling, because it really didn’t make any sense. Her mind said get the hell out of here, but her heart, —her heart beat with a different rhythm now. Her heart knew that things in her life were falling into place. The headaches, Kristian, and now all she needed was to find out about the voice in her head that said a slayer is born. What was a slayer, and what did that have to do with her?”

  “Now it is you who is staring off into
space.”

  Kristian’s voice made her look at him and smile. “Geez, can a girl have time to herself?”

  “Not really. How about we move to the living area? I don’t think the kitchen area is a great place to speak about what we have to talk about.”

  Raven lifted an eyebrow. “Oh, so now you want to talk after such a quiet dinner?”

  “I’m sorry. I was gathering my thoughts about this conversation.” Kristian rose from his chair and she followed him. “It’s not like it’s something you can just blurt out to a hum—I mean you. Some people may take this information and think I am some crazy man and try to lock me up for a very long time.”

  Raven heard him speak but her eyes were on his backside. Nice broad shoulders. Long silky hair that hung to his shoulders. She had never been into men with longer hair than hers, but Kristian had that beach boy look and it looked damn good. All she had to do was reach out and touch.

  “Are you paying attention to what I’m saying or just thinking about touching my hair?” Kristian turned around to stare at her with those baby blue eyes.

  “I was paying attention.”

  “Oh really? And what was the last thing I said?”

  Raven thought for a moment then giggled. “You said that you wanted me to suck your—”

  “Don’t finish that statement unless you are prepared to do just that,” Kristian jumped in.

  “In your dreams, buddy. You will never know what it feels like to have me.”

  Raven rolled her eyes and walked past him. She yelped when a hard smack came across her butt.

  “Did you just spank me?” Raven turned to face him while rubbing her butt. She hoped to sound just a bit annoyed, but she knew he could feel the heat that was boiling inside her. All he did was spank her, and she was acting like a horny teenager. Wait! She was a horny teenager. She was nineteen, but that did not make her any less horny than the rest of her classmates.

  It wasn’t like she didn’t try to find a boyfriend to have sex with, even with her parents not approving, but no boy ever really did it for her. They were just that, boys. Maybe it took someone like Kristian to give her what she needed. Sadly, she had challenged him, but she could never give herself up to him so freely.

  It took a moment for Kristian to speak. “I did spank you, and to tell you the truth you deserved it.”

  Raven saw Kristian go to a bookshelf on the far side of the room. The room was beautiful. The floor was lined with a patterned dark brown carpet. Two small tables, each with a lamp, sat on either side of a brown leather couch and a small coffee table. A picture of a boat hung on the wall behind the couch. The room was somewhat small compared to the rest of the house but in all it looked so homey.

  “And why would I deserve to be spanked?”

  Kristian pulled a book off the shelf, flipped through a few pages then placed it back. He did that for several books.

  “Not going there with you, little girl. I know what you want and if you want to play this little cat and mouse game, we can. Just remember that this tom cat always catches the mouse.” Kristian pulled another book off the shelf. “Ah, this is it.”

  “Over confident are we?”

  Kristian shook his head. “Not one bit. The fact that you enjoy being chased is the amusing part to me. Just know that if I want to make love to you right now, there is nothing stopping me.”

  Kristian sat on the couch beside her.

  Raven rolled her eyes at him again. If he wants to think that way, so be it.

  A knock came on the door.

  “I’ll get it!” Raven heard a female’s voice yell.

  “Are you expecting someone?” Raven asked as Kristian still flipped through the old book that he held in his hands.

  “Yes,” he said while still not looking at her.

  “Mr. Blackburn—Councilman and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Solomon,” Elisabeth announced from the door.

  Kristian grasped her wrist, pulling her to her feet as he stood. Elisabeth moved from the doorway and Raven would never forget the feeling that curled up inside her when the man and woman appeared in the room. The man was tall, very tall with skin that looked as if he had not seen daylight in many years. His short black hair looked good against his transparent skin. He had on black pants and a black silk shirt. He moved with grace as they walked up to them.

  The female. Thatwas a different story. Her skin wasn’t as pale as the man’s, but they both projected the same thing. Danger. The female had long, very long red hair. The color seemed to glow under the lights. Her green eyes seemed to penetrate Raven’s soul. She had on a green silk dress that touched the floor. The color brought out her eyes more. Her hair was up in some type of bonnet style that she’d never seen before. Around it were different types of hair accessories. Never had she seen something so beautiful.

  “Welcome to my home, Councilman Arthas and Mrs. Solomon.”

  “It’s a pleasure to be here,” Arthas said.

  Raven could not help but shiver at the sound of his voice. It echoed as if they stood in a very large room. She’d never heard anyone’s voice so deep and dangerous sounding before.

  Kristian let go of her hand to take the woman’s hand. In some way that made Raven jealous, but she held down the jealousy.

  “And you, the lovely Jana. So very good to see you again.”

  “Yes…” the woman’s voice floated into the air just as the man’s voice had. “It’s been a long time since I have seen you, my dear Kristian.”

  Kristian kissed her hand then released her.

  “Are you going to introduce us to this…” the female licked her…her…well to Raven, they looked like fangs, similar to Kristian’s. But unlike Kristian, looking at this woman’s fangs made her a bit edgy. “Beautiful female?”

  Kristian laced his fingers with Raven’s. She was sure that if he had any type of powers he could feel just how uncomfortable she was right now. The woman kept staring at her as if she wanted to eat her. Literally. Raven eased closer to Kristian in an effort to get away from the freaks in front of her.

  “Yes. This is Raven Nowles, my mate.” The way Kristian said mate, whatever the hell that meant, must have meant something. The female sighed and looked away. “Raven, this is Councilman Arthas and Jana Solomon. He is what we could call the president over the eastern coast.”

  “Nice—nice to meet you,” Raven said then extended her right hand.

  Arthas took it first and she shivered at his touch. He reeked of danger and death. She resisted the urge to wipe her hand on her pants when he let go. The woman then took her hand and even though the woman seemed dangerous, Raven did not see any dangerous signs. No, this woman wanted—ewwwww—she wanted her! No…no…no! Not going to happen. Raven snatched her hand away from woman.

  “Awwwww, Kristian, your little mate doesn’t want to play with me.” The woman’s voice sounded sad, but Raven was not buying that crap.

  “Well, you know you are here to try to explain to her what’s going on, Jana, not to seduce her into your bed.”

  Raven looked up at Kristian. No matter what they had to say, she did not swing that way, and if anything they were going to say involved her between another chick’s thighs, that was not something she wanted to experience.

  All three of them laughed and Raven knew that they had read her mind.

  “Could you not be inside my mind? That’s kinda rude.”

  “Well, dear, you were projecting so loudly we couldn’t help but sneak a peek of what you were thinking. Also…” The woman moved closer to her. “Don’t knock it until you try it. I could do things to you that no man would ever dream of doing.”

  Like what? What could another woman do to her that a man couldn’t do? As interesting as that sounded, she never wanted to find out.

  “Have a seat,” Kristian said, while sitting down on the couch with her.

  Jana and Arthas sat on the other smaller sofa next to the bookcase.

  Raven knew it was rude to stare, but she
could not take her eyes off of them. Deep down she knew they were vampires, but the rational part of her brain would not let her believe it.

  “So, what’s everyone here to talk to me about?” Raven broke the long silence.

  “Raven, dear, you already know what we are. Don’t you?” Arthas spoke first.

  Raven looked at Kristian for a moment then back to Arthas and Jana. Yes, she kinda had a guess on what they were, but would they think she had lost her mind if she came right out and said it? Maybe she had imagined the fangs. She always liked scary movies and watched them frequently. Maybe they manifested themselves inside her mind to make her think she saw fangs. Or the werewolf that Kristian killed. Raven took one more look at the three staring at her and shook her head. She could deny it all she wanted. but she knew that there were four people in this room and only one of them was human. Her.

  “Not to sound crazy, but you are vampires.”

  Arthas sat up in his chair.

  “Very good. We are vampires, but we like to be referred to as Night Hunters. Vampires are so last century.”

  “Night Hunters? Vampires? What’s the difference?”

  Arthas snarled at her and she saw the woman place her hand over his.

  “We, Night Hunters, are more civilized than regular vampires and other demons. Our race of hunters is more than just vampires. We are made up of werewolves, demon seekers, shadow demons, and many many other non-human beings in this world. What makes us different is that we set out to destroy those who want to destroy humans. There are many demons who want to take over the world and destroy humans. It seems like a great thing, but what would this world become if it was run by demons?” Arthas stopped talking to watch her for a moment. “No guesses? Well, my dear, it would be a hell dimension. We have many hell dimensions already and I doubt that we need more.”

  “So in other words, you are the good guys?”

  “Yes, we are. Not only us, but there are gods that are higher power than we are—”

  “Wait, can I ask the typical vampire question before you continue?”

  Arthas frowned at her but nodded.

  “Can you go into the sun? Do you ever age? See yourself in mirrors? Garlic…fact or fiction? Would that kill you?”