Jack scowled. It had been a theory that had made sense to him and left him with an option to act on. If his bite had been affecting Ryoko’s mood, he could just stop, and everything would go back to normal.
“I don’t know,” said Jack. “Feeding seems like so much more than just drinking blood.”
“Of course,” said Mira. “It is more, and it goes both ways. You’re affected by those you feed off of as well. You become invested in them as people, over time, just as you would in any relationship. It’s as intimate as sex and made all the more significant by its necessity.”
“What’s wrong with getting invested in people?” asked Jack. “Isn’t that just the same thing as caring about them?”
“Yes,” said Mira. “But stop to consider the type of person Ryoko is. She has such tragically low self-worth. You might care about her more than she cares about herself. Maybe she’s afraid of that? She might be worried about you making sacrifices for her when she doesn’t feel like she deserves them.”
Jack exhaled slowly, feeling a complicated mixture of pain and sadness in his chest. He shook his head, knowing that he needed to focus on finding the water nymph and saving the island. If he didn’t manage that, they’d all be in trouble.
CHAPTER 28
“Alright,” said Jack. “You’ve given me a lot to think about. But for now, I guess I should take you up on your offer. I’m assuming you already took one of the anti-enthrallment potions?”
Mira nodded slowly, letting her eyes linger on his. Their relationship had come full circle, and yet somehow, it still felt like she held the power whenever it came to this kind of intimacy.
“I’m ready whenever you are,” she said. “I am, of course, yours for the taking, dearest Jack.”
The tone she spoke the words in was mischievous in a way that almost inversed their meaning. Mira leaned back on her elbows across the towel, brushing her long, golden hair to the side and exposing the nape of her neck.
She watched him as he slid in closer to her, taking slow breaths that emphasized the movements of her chest. Jack had to climb over her to get into position, and his body reacted as his crotch grazed across Mira’s thigh.
“Ready?” asked Jack. He let his lips brush against the sensitive skin of her neck and felt her flinch as though he’d just tickled her. She nodded her head and looped her arms around his chest.
Jack let his fangs drag across her skin for a second or two first. He felt her shudder as he teased her, and then his resistance broke. He plunged his fangs into her neck, taking a deep drink of her blood. It was sweet, with the same bubblegum-flavored undertone that Jack had noticed the first time he’d tasted it.
He had her pinned down on the towel, but Mira held onto him in a manner that almost seemed possessive, like she was still capable of vying for control. She took fluttering, pleasured breaths, writhing underneath him like an inexperienced teenager in the middle of her first orgasm.
She tasted incredible, and it forced Jack to consider what she’d said about the connection of feeding going both ways. Was it a coincidence that Ryoko, Katie, and Mira seemed to have the best-tasting blood out of all the women he’d bitten? It would be a suspiciously convenient one, if that was the case.
He drank as much as he felt like he needed, and then forced himself to stop. As soon as his mouth left her skin, Mira pressed her own lips tight against his, heedless of the few remaining drops of blood still there. She’d been a vampire once, and Jack suspected that it wasn’t something that would ever give her pause.
She pushed her tongue into his mouth and curled her legs around his waist. Jack was shamefully aroused, as was usually the case immediately after he fed. He groped at one of Mira’s breasts, grinding into her with as much effort, if not more, than he would have put into actual sex.
They continued like that for a minute, dry humping on the beach like horny teenagers, hesitant to take things further. Jack finally came up for air, trying not to notice how lewd she looked underneath him, with her cheeks flushed, and her hair messy in that “recent make-out” kind of way.
“Jack,” she said, in a sensual voice. “Are you not going to finish what you started?”
Jack grinned and glanced up at the boardwalk.
“We’re not exactly in private right now,” he said.
“That didn’t stop you from feeding off me,” she said.
Mira’s hand went to the zipper of his jeans, slowly pulling it down. It felt like as much of a tease as anything could, and Jack let out a small groan as she used her thumb to unhitch the button. Her hand immediately began caressing his hard arousal through his boxers.
“Anyone could see us out here,” Jack pointed out.
“Which only makes what we’re doing that much more fun,” said Mira. “Besides, the sun hasn’t finished setting yet. You still have a few minutes, if you know how to be quick.”
Her hand felt amazing. Jack was about to drop his objections when Mira sighed, and deftly hooked one of her legs around his. She rolled at an angle, flipping him underneath her. Her lips tuned up into a self-satisfied smirk, and then she reached up and pulled the edge of her v-neck down far enough to expose both of her breasts.
She wasn’t wearing a bra, and the hem of her shirt did amazing things to her pale, plump breasts. Jack felt an awestruck growl escape his lips as Mira pressed her bosom into his face. His hands shot to her jeans and started pulling them off her. She helped, wiggling her hips and butt with cute little movements that had the added effect of making her breasts sway from side to side.
She placed both of her hands on his chest, and then began grinding her crotch against his. She still had her panties on, and she let the anticipation build to an almost unbearable point as she rubbed herself on him with gentle, teasing movements. The smile on her face told him that she knew exactly what she was doing.
“Aren’t you the one who mentioned being quick?” asked Jack.
He reached a hand toward her panties and slid a single finger into the waistband. Mira grabbed him by the wrist and pinned him. He could have overpowered her so easily, if he’d wanted to. But he could tell from the look in her eyes that even if he did that, she’d still somehow be the one who came out on top.
“Remember, my sweet Jack,” she cooed. “Remember how much you’ve learned from me, and remember how much I still have to teach.”
Mira slid her panties aside and lowered herself down onto his shaft, biting her lip and keeping her eyes locked on his. The pleasure was almost more than Jack could handle. He tried to reach up to grab Mira’s breasts, as though to use them as something to hold onto against the wave of sensation. She kept his wrists pinned where they were and slowly began to move.
She knew how to move. Christ, she knew how to move. It was almost unfair how good it felt to lie back and let her ride him. Mira didn’t drop all the way down immediately, instead pivoting her hips back and forth, as though testing the condition of a car’s shifter.
She gave him the full experience. It was more than just what she was doing with her hips. Her breasts bounced and jiggled like something out of a teenage boy’s fantasy. Her hair blew to the side in the wind, a blonde flag marking the location of true feminine perfection.
When she finally bottomed out, so to speak, she pressed herself against him entirely, letting her naked breasts mash against his chest. They were both still mostly clothed, but Jack could easily feel the tips of her incredible pink nipples through his thin t-shirt.
She pumped herself up and down on his shaft. The pleasure of her tightness was incredible, and he could only compare it to pulling on a glove that stretched to perfectly fit one’s hand. She kissed his neck, sucking and biting on the spot she would have bitten, had she still carried that impulse. She let her lips close on his earlobe, pulling downward as their bodies connected in ways that made lewd noises.
Jack finally got his hands free and immediately took hold of her buttocks. But in a very real sense, it was already too late. She’d
won. He pulled her down on his shaft hard as he thrust upward once, twice. Three times. He didn’t make it to four, and groaned as he unloaded.
Mira kissed him and ran her hands through his hair, seemingly unconcerned that she hadn’t found her own release. She even seemed a little pleased by it, and Jack suspected that her goal might have been to prove to him just what she was capable of.
“See,” she said. “The sun hasn’t even set completely yet.”
“That…” Jack took a breath. “That was…”
“That was me,” she whispered. “And don’t you forget it.”
He wanted to stay there, just like that. Mira felt so soft and warm against him, and it was a sensation that went deeper than the surface. He cared for her, and knowing that she cared even more deeply for him made him feel a variety of hard to ignore feelings.
“I have to get moving,” he said, a touch grudgingly. “The island can’t handle another storm.”
Mira shifted, leaning back on the towel. She fixed her shirt to cover her breasts properly, but she was still basically bottomless. Jack felt his excitement stirring again, despite the fact that they’d just finished. It was the look she had on her face, confident, challenging, and teasing.
“Be safe,” she said, simply.
Jack nodded to her and squeezed her shoulder. He started to put his pants back on, and then wondered if there was even a point. His boxers were closer to a swimsuit in function, but his jeans had pockets, which he would sorely need. He pulled them up, and then started off toward the buoy that Mira had pointed out. It would be a pain for him to swim out that far, especially now that the sun had basically set.
He had a thought, and then jogged down the beach. The paddle board rental stand was no more, but there were a few scattered pieces of evidence of its former existence in its place. A paddle board was one of them, along with a long, double-handled paddle that had gotten stuck in the sand.
He took both and headed into the surf.
CHAPTER 29
The beach was eerily calm, with only the sound of the waves crashing into the shore providing a background ambience over the silent night. Jack winced slightly as he reached waist, or rather, loins-deep levels in the water. It was really cold, and the cool night air wasn’t doing him any favors, either.
He gulped down the breath potion, hoping it would be enough to give him the advantage he needed. He also dunked himself completely under before climbing onto his paddle board, knowing that it would be better to acclimate himself now, rather than while fighting the water nymph. The water made his clothes hang a little more heavily on his frame, but it wasn’t unmanageable.
Using the paddle, Jack slowly made his way out to the buoy. The sun had set completely, and it left him feeling a little anxious over the occasional shadow that he could see weaving through the water underneath him. As he reached the buoy, he stopped to look around the surrounding ocean.
He didn’t see the water nymph anyway, at least not until he glanced down into the water directly below. The sky had cleared up enough for the stars to come out, and their illumination pierced deep enough into the ocean for Jack to see the unmistakable form of a beautiful, azure, young woman.
She spiraled as she surfaced and hurled herself into a spinning somersault reminiscent of a jumping dolphin. Except, no dolphin looked like this. Her blue skin took on an alien quality in the light of night, taut and glistening with beads of water. Her breasts bounced, and then seemed to hang in place for a fraction of a second as she reached the peak of her jump. Her hair spread out in a wet arc during the flip, spraying water onto Jack’s face that tasted sweet as it touched his lips.
“Hey,” he said. “Can you hear me?”
He wasn’t there to talk to her. But it was hard to not want to at least try, especially as he saw her resurface. She floated on her back, which showed off her large breasts and long, toned thighs. She leaned forward, sitting up in the water as though it were no more than a few inches deep, and let out a clicking, inhuman laugh.
“I can’t let you keep doing what you’ve been doing,” said Jack. “You’ve been hurting people. Killing people.”
He felt a little hypocritical as he spoke the words, but he forced himself to keep going.
“If you can understand me, then please,” he said. “Leave Lestaron Island. And don’t come back. This isn’t a good place for you.”
The naked nymph floated closer to him. She reached her hand out in his direction, her thin, purple eyebrows pushing up, and wordlessly asking a question. Jack scowled, but took the chance, and placed his hand in hers.
The water nymph flipped him into the water with a single unceremonious pull. Jack heard her clicking laugh as he kicked to tread water. He got one of his hands back onto the paddle board and pulled his head above the water’s surface. The nymph repositioned herself in front of him and pressed her naked body against his.
She kissed him before he could stop her. It was only a normal kiss for a split second before Jack could feel water flowing into his mouth and forcing its way down his throat. He resisted the urge to panic, and instead cast Shadow Form.
It was a bizarre sensation to use it while having a part of a supernatural creature, even if it was just a few ounces of water, inside of him. The water nymph let out a wild, panicked screech, like that of a child discovering real pain for the first time. Jack only stayed incorporeal for long enough to place himself back on top of the paddle board before materializing again.
He didn’t risk standing up, instead lying across his modest vessel flat on his stomach. The water nymph attacked him, but with an approach that still felt more playful than truly violent. Water shot up into the air in wide streams before crashing down on him. A wave flipped the paddle board over, but Jack clung to it tightly enough to be able to twist it back over without suffering more than some water up the nose.
As the water fight progressed, he risked a glance back toward the buoy. It was barely visible against the horizon, and Lestaron Island was also a surprising distance away. She was taking him out into the ocean, again. This time at night.
The difference was far more pronounced than Jack had been expecting. He felt sure that he would never set foot on land again and immediately began wondering why he hadn’t thought to use an actual boat, or bring a bottle of water, or take a dozen other random, preemptive measures.
He was moving, coasting along a current born from the water nymph’s magic. When he saw their destination in the distance, he wasn’t surprised. It was the same place she’d taken him last time. The small, coral atoll island, hidden of Lestaron’s coast.
“Hey!” said Jack. “What’s the point of this! What do you want from me!”
Two gouts of water sprayed upward from either side of the paddle board, coalescing into an upright female figure in front of him. There was an instant where the water became a person, much in the same way Jack assumed that there would be a similar moment for him when he used Shadow Form, to an observer. He stared at the naked nymph, struck by her cruel beauty. Amazed by how cute and girlish her perky, purple nipples could look while belonging to a creature that had caused immeasurable harm to his community.
She made a clicking noise that was different from her normal laugh. Jack shook his head. She made the same exact noise again, and then twice more, before taking on an exasperated expression and dissolving back into the water.
Jack’s paddle board reached the island’s shallows. He stepped off of it and onto the sand, seeing no real option other than to spend some time on the tiny stretch of land, trying to figure the situation out. A buzzing noise greeted him as he stepped onto the beach, and he realized what all the odd lumps on the ground were.
There were at least a dozen bodies, all of them waterlogged and slightly bloated. Flies flew thick in the air, enjoying a veritable buffet of human decay. The smell was bad, and the salty ocean scent behind it only made it worse.
Jack felt his stomach turning. It hadn’t been easy to accept the
deaths of so many people to the storm, but the idea of them having been swept out to sea was a good deal more palatable than the reality. He glanced across the bodies, which were all in random, twisted positions across the sand. He saw someone he recognized, and felt an icy dread stab him in the gut.
Sheriff Carter had died with his eyes open. He’d lost his hat, his jacket, his gun, and his shoes. He looked like he should have been at home, settling in for the night with a good book after a long day of policing the island that counted on him. Instead, he stared blankly upward at stars he couldn’t see, as dead as a person could be.
“Fuck,” muttered Jack. “God fucking dammit.”
He crouched down next to Sheriff Carter, quickly closing the man’s eyes with his fingers before he lost the nerve. He heard footsteps crashing through the water and turned around to see the water nymph approaching him.
“Why?” asked Jack. “Why bring the bodies here? Why kill these people in the first place? Just what is it that you’re trying to accomplish?”
The water nymph frowned, and then shook her head. She took a few shy steps forward and then pressed a finger against Jack’s chest. She let it stay there for a few seconds, the tip creating a fresh wet spot on his t-shirt. Then, she pointed at herself, and then back to Jack again, and then back to herself.
“No,” he said. “We… are not the same.”
He steeled his resolve, knowing that he wouldn’t get a better chance to make his move. Jack cast Spectral Hand and extended six shadow tendrils from his shoulders, which he immediately used to ensnare the water nymph. He had her by both wrists and ankles, and by the neck. He reached his physical hand into his pocket, but she dissolved an instant before he could bring his plan to fruition.
“Come on!” he shouted. “You’ll kill these innocent people, but you won’t even face me head-on?”
Of course she would. It made sense, if he viewed her as the creature she was, rather than the girl she appeared to be. The water nymph materialized in the water out of Jack’s reach, arms folded, expression heated. He chased her into the shallows, not daring to go any deeper. Each time he made an attempt to grab her, she would repeat her little trick, dissolving into water and escaping.
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