by L. E. Wilson
That didn’t sound like such a bad idea.
Problem was, he didn’t know if he’d be able to help it. Even now, he could sense her near proximity, and his instincts were screaming at him to go back there and make her his. Completely.
And that, he would not, could not, ever do.
Sighing, he checked the clock. They were making good time. Pending any issues, they should arrive at the airport about an hour before sunrise. They’d hang out there for the day, locked in the hanger, and then board the jet at sunset and fly throughout the night back to Seattle.
A sound coming from the back of the vehicle startled him from his thoughts.
“What was that?” Nik asked. Turning the radio down, he listened.
Aiden stopped singing. “What? I don’t hear anything.”
But Nik was already out of his seat and walking towards the back. “Just keep driving. I’ll be right back.” As he neared the bedroom where Emma was sleeping, his skin started to prickle.
Wtf?
Reaching for the doorknob, he stopped before opening it and stood perfectly still, listening. All was quiet for a moment, but then…there it was again.
Flinging open the door, he charged into the bedroom. His eyesight perfect even in the dim light, he searched the room.
Emma was writhing on the bed, whimpering. The smell of her fear came off of her in waves, and his fangs punched down hard as he prepared to protect what was his.
Dropping into a low crouch, his eyes darted around the room, searching frantically for whoever or whatever was threatening her. Seeing nothing unusual, he slowly straightened up and focused again on the bed. Emma was flailing around now, her whimpers turning into more of a keening, the blankets twisting around her seeming to upset her even more.
Flashing over to the bed, Nik tried to wake her from the hold her nightmare had on her.
“Em! Wake up…” Gently grabbing her wrists, he tried to still her thrashing.
“Emma! Wake up, sweetheart…” She was twisting around frantically under the blankets, so Nik let go of her wrists and grabbed the comforter, giving it a good yank and pulling it out from under her.
Finally free, Emma shot up in the bed, crying out and shoving the remainder of the blankets off of her.
“Shh..shhh…it’s ok, Em. It’s me. It’s Nikulas. It was just a dream, sweetheart.” He didn’t touch her; afraid she would freak out more. Instead, he tried to soothe her with just his voice. “It’s ok. You’re safe.”
***
Caught up in the nightmare, Emma felt the monsters holding her down, smelled the putrid smell of them, and panicked. She tried to fight her way free, even though she could feel her flesh tearing where they were biting her.
The big one finally pushed the others aside, dropping down hard on top of her. Bloody saliva dripping from its mouth, it grabbed her wrists and slammed them into the ground on each side of her head, holding her down as it violently bit her, sinking its fangs into the flesh right below her collar bone. Sucking and slurping at her blood, it humped her obscenely, trying to work its way under her skirt without letting go of her wrists.
Emma tried to scream, but the weight of the thing on top of her prevented her from getting enough air. She felt its grossly swollen member pushing at her entrance through her underwear, bruising her, and tears rolled down her face.
She felt herself weakening from the loss of blood. They’d bitten her all over, shoving their cocks at her, humping her and each other as they fed, and throwing her around like a rag doll. Refusing to give up, she gulped in a breath, and gathering the last of her strength, tried to twist away from its probing member.
She felt her wrist bones cracking as it squeezed them in response to her struggles, and she let out a raspy scream as it renewed its effort with even more enthusiasm than before. Her strength fading rapidly, she screeched in agony as another snuck in from the side, twisting her leg roughly out to its mouth, popping her knee and ripping into her calf…
Suddenly, she wasn’t being held down anymore.
Sucking in great gulps of air, Emma blinked rapidly and looked around, trying to get her bearings in the dimness of the room. Grabbing the front of her shirt, she looked for the blood she could still feel spurting out of her, but there was nothing. Her bones throbbed with the phantom pain of past injuries, and she felt tears running down her face.
Raising her head, she sniffed and wiped at her eyes to find Nik on one knee on the side of the bed, his pained eyes frantically searching her face.
She looked around the room to see that they were alone, and then gave him a small, watery smile, whispering hoarsely, “Sorry about that. Bad dream. I have them a lot.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” Nik looked terrible, almost like he’d been there with her.
Emma just shook her head and looked down at her knotted hands.
He reached out and covered them with his own, stilling her fidgeting.
“Please talk to me,” he said. “Maybe it will help.”
She gave a snort of disgust. “I doubt it.” At his hurt expression, she added, “But thank you.”
“Did they rape you?” he blurted out suddenly. He looked as shocked as she was at the question at first, even though he’d been the one to ask it.
But then a look of determination came over his face. “Emma? Did they rape you?” When she didn’t answer, he demanded, “Answer me, goddamn it.”
“No!” she burst out, and then more calmly said, “No. Not for lack of trying, but…no.”
He sagged visibly with relief, and then took a deep breath. “I’m sorry…I just needed to know.”
Turning her hands in his, he held them as he told her, “I’m sorry you were hurt, Em, I’m so sorry.” A steely edge came into his voice. “I don’t know what these ‘monsters’ are that you’re speaking of, but if we ever see them again, rest assured they won’t live to hurt you again.”
Emma had no doubt.
***
Squeezing her fingers one last time, he stood up to leave, because he wanted to stay. “I’ll let you try to go back to sleep. We should make it to the airport by sunrise, and we’ll hole up there for the day, then fly to Seattle at sunset.”
Emma came up on her knees, grabbing at his hand again with both of hers. “Please don’t go! Please. Please, stay with me Nikulas. Just for a while?”
Nik paused by the side of the bed. There was nothing he wanted more than to stay with her. He would love to crawl right into that bed with her and touch her until she had nothing on her mind but him.
Glad she didn’t have his night vision, he rubbed the heel of his free hand over the ever-present bulge in his pants, trying to ease the sudden discomfort there. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”
She sat back on her heels, unaware of how her shirt rode up to the top of her thighs, and let go of his hand. “Of course not. Forget it. I’ll be fine.”
Nik watched her nightshirt flirt around the tops of her thighs as she leaned over to take a sip of her water she’d grabbed from the fridge earlier.
Fuck. Me.
But the pain of his erection became bearable again when he noticed the marks on her smooth legs.
He met her eyes as she peeked up at him, and then looked back down at her legs.
She followed his gaze, and quickly pulled the blanket over herself, hiding her scars from his view. “Never mind, it’s ok. You can go. I’m going to try to get back to sleep.”
Nik needed to leave. He needed to say goodnight, turn around, and walk out. Instead, he stood there, the image of more of her ravaged skin seared into his brain.
Without a word, he sat back down on the side of the bed and bent over to unlace his combat boots, setting them neatly by the nightstand. Standing back up, he put a knee on the bed and leaning over, straightened the blankets around Emma, tucking her in. Crawling in next to her on top of the blankets, he curled himself around her as she scooted down, throwing a heavy arm around her and tugging
her into the curve of his body.
He had no words as he lay there holding her, breathing her unique scent, listening to her heartbeat slow as she eventually relaxed and drifted back off to sleep. Even after she was completely out of it, he stayed with her, keeping her close. He didn’t want her to wake up alone again if the monsters came back.
After some time, he felt the RV come to a stop and knew they must be at the hanger. He heard Aiden activating the steel shutters and locking up, then walk back to one of the sofa beds and boot up his laptop.
He should get up and grab a bag out of the fridge, then crash on the other couch, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave the side of the tiny warrior he was protecting.
His last thought as he felt the rising sun pulling him into his own slumber, was that although he may not ever make her his in truth, he would always protect her, even if it was only from her own mind.
Chapter Fourteen
Emma came slowly awake, but didn’t open her eyes right away. Instead, she lay there, enjoying the feeling of warmth and security wrapped around her, until gradually she became aware that it wasn’t just a blanket in the bed with her.
Bit by bit, the memories of the night before came back to her, and her eyes popped open to find the warmth she was enjoying was a large, muscular arm holding her tightly against a hard, male body.
Nikulas.
He lay behind her cocooning her in the blankets, breathing so slowly and softly she had to hold very still to hear him.
He hadn’t left her. A small smile played around her lips at the thought, even as she warned herself not to read too much into it. He’d probably just taken advantage of being able to sleep in the more comfortable bed.
With a sigh, her smile faded. She wondered what time it was? With the windows covered, it was impossible to tell, although she supposed it wasn’t yet sundown if he was still asleep.
As tempting as it was to stay in bed, her bladder had other plans for her. Might as well get up and take a shower, and maybe grab something to eat. Catching a yawn behind her hand, she decided a good tooth brushing was in order also.
Carefully, she started to squirm her way out from under Nik’s arm. She didn't know if he’d wake up or not, but she’d rather not take the chance.
With a soft grunt of protest, he half-heartedly tried to pull her back to him. She stopped wiggling, waited a moment, and then tried again, this time making it off of the bed.
Pulling on her old, blue robe, she grabbed some clean clothes and quietly let herself out of the room. Peeking out into the main compartment, she saw Aiden lying prone on one of the couches, hugging his laptop like a lover.
Locking herself into the small bathroom, she took care of her most pressing need, then started the shower while she brushed her teeth. She bathed quickly and efficiently, not one to waste time luxuriating in the hot water. Getting out, she briskly dried herself and dressed in some comfy, black yoga pants and a green, long-sleeved knit top. She’d forgotten to grab her comb from home, and not seeing another laying around, made due by using her fingers to untangle her wavy hair. She was going to look like a wild woman when it dried, but she supposed there was no help for it.
Exiting the small room, she laid her folded nightclothes by the door to the bedroom and tiptoed in her socks past Aiden to the fridge. She grabbed a Fuji and took a big bite of the sweet apple while she perused the rest of the contents. Blood, blood, or fruit. Hmmmm.
Closing the fridge, she leaned back against the counter while she ate her apple. She was curious as to where they were, however, she didn’t think she could figure out how to work the locks to get out even if she wanted to.
And remembering Nik’s warning from the night before, it probably wouldn’t be a good idea anyway.
She finished her apple and tossed the core in the trash. Planting her hands on her hips, she looked around for something to occupy her time until the guys woke up. Didn’t Nik say something about books? Oh yeah, they’re back in the bedroom. She doubted she’d be able to concentrate on anything, but it was worth a shot.
Sneaking past Aiden again, she scooped up her dirty clothes as she quietly opened the door and let herself back into the room, closing it again behind her.
Nik was right where she’d left him, hugging an armful of blankets in lieu of a warm body.
Spotting a few books in the nightstand, she squatted down to check out the titles. There seemed to be one of every genre by every current popular author. She grabbed a mystery she hadn’t read before, and sat down on the floor in the corner to peruse the first chapter.
***
Two hours later, Nik suddenly sat straight up, leapt off the bed, and flung open the bedroom door. Hastening out into the sitting area, he passed by Aiden, who was just waking up himself. “Where is she?”
Aiden twisted around, causing a loud chorus of snap, crackle, pop to run up his spine. “Who?”
“Who? Emma! Who the fuck else would I be talking about?” Long strides eating up the length of the RV, he checked all the seats and then the door to see that it was still locked.
“How should I know? She’s your witch. You should be watching her.” Rubbing his hands over his face, he shuffled into the bathroom to wash up. Winking at Emma as she appeared in the bedroom doorway, book in hand.
“I’m not a witch,” she insisted to his back.
Nik’s head whipped towards the direction of her voice. “Where the fuck were you?”
“I was right next to you, if you’d bothered to look around before charging out here bellowing at poor Aiden.” She waved the book she’d been reading at him.
Now that she’d been found, he felt like a complete and utter idiot for going off all half-cocked like he had. And she was right. If he’d paused a second, he would have sensed her there. He’d had her blood. And just from that small amount, he would be able to find her anywhere within a mile radius. What the hell was the matter with him?
However, as far as he knew, she didn’t know that yet, so he tried to defend his actions. “No. You weren’t. I think I would have noticed.” Running his eyes over her form-fitting clothes with approval, he added distractedly, “And I was not bellowing.”
“Yes, you were!” Aiden called from the bathroom.
Scowling, Nik shot a dirty look at the closed bathroom door. He kept his face blank as he gave her another once over, before he abruptly turned away without another word and walked over to the fridge. He needed to feed before he trusted himself to be anywhere in the near vicinity of her, without hauling her back into that bed and forcing himself on her. Ripping the fridge door open, he grabbed the first bag he found and threw it in the microwave, then stood there watching the countdown impatiently.
Sitting down cross-legged on the empty couch across from Aiden’s with her book, Emma watched him banging around the kitchen area. “Looks like somebody woke up on the wrong side of the coffin.”
He ignored her as he reached into the microwave and grabbed his breakfast, shaking it up to even out the heat. Snagging the tip of the bag with his teeth, he ripped it off and spit it into the trash, then upended the bag into his mouth, chugging it down like water.
Emma wrinkled her nose as she watched him.
Finishing that bag, he grabbed another and warmed it up, chugging that one down too, before grabbing a water and turning to face her. “Did you eat?”
“I had an apple. You drink water?”
Ignoring her question, he frowned at her. “You need to eat more than that.” Opening the cabinet, he rifled through the contents. “Can I make you something? There’s oatmeal, soup - would you like some tea?” When he got no response, he stuck his head out to find her watching him with an unreadable expression on her face. “What?”
“Why do you care whether I eat or not?” she asked.
Why did he care? He was acting like a goddamn mother hen for Christ’s sake, but he just couldn’t seem to help himself. “Uh. It’s just that we’re going to be getting on the plane, and t
he flight’s going to be pretty long.”
“I can’t eat on the plane? Don’t they usually have a little kitchen?”
Closing the cabinet, he mumbled, “Yeah, probably.”
Emma was silent a moment, and he was afraid to look at her for fear of what he’d see. She was probably laughing at him. But then she said, “Actually, if you wouldn’t mind grabbing a pack of that oatmeal…that sounds really good.”
He grinned widely at her before he caught himself, and casually turned back to the contents in the cabinet. “Sure. No problem. Long as I’m right here anyway.” Grabbing a bowl, he read the instructions on the box, and then dumped in the oatmeal and the required amount of water. Throwing it in the microwave, he checked the back of the box again, and then set the time.
Emma was watching him curiously. He could only imagine what she was thinking. One minute he was kissing her like his life depended on it, and the next he was brushing it off as an overreaction to the bloodlust. Then, he gets her here and sends her right off to bed, only to come running when she wakes from a nightmare. He tells her it’s not a good idea to stay with her afterwards, then ends up sleeping next to her all day. He wakes up in a horrible mood, grumbling at everyone, and ten minutes later couldn’t be happier just to fix her some oatmeal.
He was starting to think they had it all wrong about females being the crazy ones.
Aiden sauntered out of the bathroom in cargo pants and his ever-present hoodie right as the beep went off announcing her food was ready. Throwing yesterday’s clothes on his bed, he wandered up to watch Nik stirring her oatmeal. “I don’t know how anyone can eat that mush.” Wrinkling his nose, he eyeballed his friend. “You know, you’re going to make someone a fine wife someday, mate.”