by Quell T Fox
“How much did you tell her?”
“Just the basics. What we are and that we think she is one of us. That’s it.”
Maddox nods his head slowly. “There is so much more to say, I don’t even know where to– “
“Are you dangerous?” It’s the only thing I feel I need to know right now. Am I in danger?
“Not to you.” Maddox’s dark grey eyes flicker with pride. “But to others? Absolutely.”
“Why not to me?”
“Because you aren’t a threat to us.” It’s Lenny that answers, reaching over and pulling my hand from my lap, taking it into his. “Because you’re one of us.”
“He’s right. We mostly mind our business unless there is a threat. We live our lives normally. The strangest thing that occurs is, unfortunately, what you happened to walk in on.” Callan’s smoky voice sends a shiver through me, or maybe that’s my nerves from my mind going back to what I saw.
“About that. Why was that happening?” I dare to ask. An unsettling feeling sits in my stomach, either this answer will make it better, or it’ll make it worse.
“Lenny told you what I am. It’s what we do. Vampire 101. We need blood to survive.”
This arrogant fuck is never going to change. Not even under these circumstances can he pull his head out of his ass.
“But why now? Why Callan?”
“I have to do it once a week to– “
“I know that! But why out in the open? You wanted me to walk in, you wanted me to find you! I know it. Why else would you do that? Do you know how traumatizing that was for me?” My voice is loud, finally some of that built up negative emotion is coming out. It feels good.
“Is that true?” Lenny sounds shocked, betrayed even.
“Of course it’s true, he’s an arrogant fuck. Did you really think it was an accident?” Alec chimes in, and once again I’m surprised at how deep and rugged his voice is. He should talk more often… naked.
I need to get laid.
“It was taking too long. All of this was taking too long. No one could find the right time to talk to her, everyone was so caught up in the good times and not wanting to scare her away. It was all or nothing. I made a decision as the Superior.”
“We had a plan, Maddox! We agreed that I would talk to her about this. Do you not trust me enough to do that? What the hell, man.” I feel bad for Lenny, he truly sounds hurt over this.
“And stop it with the Superior bullshit. You can’t just start pulling that out of your ass when you haven’t used it for years. We’ve been dysfunctional for as long as I remember, don’t start walking around like you suddenly wear a crown because of her.” Alec points a finger at me, and I wish he was using it for something else.
I am seriously losing my mind. These guys are going to be the death of me. Literally, at this point.
“You need to earn our trust back and prove to us that you are the leader we need.” Callan speaks quietly. I’m sure this setting is making him uncomfortable. He doesn’t like confrontation, I know that much, but I am proud of him for speaking up nonetheless.
“You all feel that way?” Maddox looks around the table, everyone nods their head slowly, until he gets to me.
“How the fuck should I know? I don’t even know what that means.”
Maddox runs his hand through his hair, but every piece falls right back into its perfect place. He takes a deep breath before starting his explanation.
“We,“ he motions to everyone around the table, “are all part of what is called a Circle. It’s what our kind do. It’s like a pack, a family. We form when we are younger, when we start to come into our powers. Sometimes people fall in line together naturally, sometimes people are forced in by families for a higher power. Either way, it’s how it is. The ‘leader’ is called the Superior – me. The person that was chosen, not by someone but by nature.” He glances at Alec subtly. If I hadn’t been staring at him, I would’ve missed it.
“It’s a normal thing for our kind that appears after some time of being together. We all fall into our place, the Superior manifesting naturally. Each Circle has a certain number of men, the average being three, but there have been a few with up to seven. I think even one of nine. Aside from the Superior, another part of the Circle is the One. The final puzzle piece, the one that brings everyone together, bringing everyone to their fullest potential. The one that closes the Circle. Most Circles are closed when the individuals are around twenty, with the start of the Circle forming around puberty – when most come into their powers.”
“Okay, so how do I come into play?”
“You are our One.”
“I don’t think so. I’m just a normal human.”
“I don’t think you are. Ever since the first time I saw you, I felt something from you. There is more to you than any of us know. I was unsure if you were aware and were hiding it from us out of fear, or if you were truly unaware. I am certain that you belong to us.”
“Belong to you?” Friday McKay doesn’t belong to anyone.
“He doesn’t mean it like that.” Lenny whispers to me, making my temper turn down a notch, but only just so because I won’t belong to anyone. “You belong with us.” He shoots Maddox a look.
“Say that I am, what does that mean?” I ask.
“It means that we will finally be complete. We can close our Circle.”
“Our kind wait for this moment, it’s what we grow up knowing. Like how humans feel about getting married, this is what we look forward to.” Lenny explains. I like his tone better than Maddox’s.
“So you all came from families like this? Wait, so when you say family, do you mean like good friends, or like a giant orgy?”
“It’s more than that. We already are a family. We all have known each other for a very long time. We love each other in our own way, but you will bring us more. The relationship part of it is usually a given. The One is always a woman, and usually is in a very loyal relationship with all of her men. The only time that is an issue, is when a group is forced together. When it doesn’t happen naturally, the connection isn’t there.”
“You’re telling me that I have to be in a relationship with all of you?”
“Halfway there already.” Maddox mumbles under his breath and I shoot him a look of death.
“Friday, we are not telling you that you have to do anything. We will not force you into anything that you do not want to do. I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we want to explain everything to you and let you make your own decision. This will never work for any of us if we all aren’t on bored. If you are our One, then you will choose us.” Callan’s voice is so soothing and calming. I want him to lull me to sleep. Odd thing to think about right now, but hey, welcome to my life.
“Why do you think it’s me?”
“It’s a feeling that we’ve all had. Maddox knew right away, then Lenny and then me.” Alec stays quiet but after that little thing in his room, I have an inkling that he feels the same way. I felt something from him. “We’ve had a lot of things going on, as you can see, we are all at each other’s throats most of the time. But whatever happened after the club, we woke up the next day and we all felt different. Felt like the old us. We went out together, we had fun together. I think the connection really started then. Between all of us.” Callan explains
“And you fucked the Superior,” Maddox chimes in, “and that brings the connection tighter. Normally they’re the last one – to finish closing the circle – but since none of us were really taking that seriously, we were just having fun. Am I right?” He waggles his eyebrows at me, and I almost leap over the table to smack him across his arrogant looking face. “But to answer the part of your question that Callan ignored, no, we were not all born from families like this. We were all born from humans. Low life, shitbag humans.”
“How does that happen?”
“Think of it as a defective gene.”
“Heeey, I’m not defective!” Lenny whines, Alec and I
both roll our eyes.
“The gene could pop up anywhere. Someone hundreds of years ago could have the gene that is passed down from ancestor to ancestor before it finally manifests. None of us are pure bloods anymore. I doubt there are any left at all, to be honest.”
“What are you exactly?”
“Supernaturals. Paranormals. Magics. Specials. There are so many names, take your pick. We just aren’t human.”
“Call me what you want, baby. Just don’t call me late for dinner.” Lenny’s remark is followed by an exaggerated wink that makes me shake my head.
I get what they are saying, and oddly enough it makes sense. Though it’s hard to wrap my head around. Yet, something in me is telling me that I should believe them, which is also making me think that I’ve lost my mind.
“How can this shit be real?”
Maddox shrugs. “No idea, Beautiful. But it is.”
“I don’t think that I am anything but human, I’ve never had anything happen to me. I definitely don’t have any powers.”
“That’s not really something that we need to worry about right now. We have ways of finding out, and we can do that, if that’s what you choose. Right now, I think we should finish this discussion and give you time to figure out what you want to do.” Callan is the voice of reason, yet again.
“How much time do I have?” Everyone’s gaze turns to Alec, including mine but only because everyone else is doing it.
“If one of us leaves, we can never close our Circle.”
Lenny shoots forward, “but you said!”
“I said what I needed to say to keep you from worrying. Something a good Superior would do.” He shoots Alec a look, who isn’t paying him any mind. Lenny sits back, with a grumpy look on his face and crosses his arms.
“Alec, I highly suggest that you take this into consideration. We have waited a long time for this, and I know–we know, that you have dealt with a lot, but this is something we all need.” Callan explains. I think his voice would make me do anything he said. It’s like magic.
Alec leans forward, places his folded hands on top of the table, twiddling his thumbs. His jaw twitches and he takes in a deep breath. He looks up to me, his twin golden eyes meeting mine. “I’ll give you a week.”
CHAPTER 9
Friday
After an excruciatingly exhausting day, I am finally able to lay down in bed. Alone. I have to admit, I do miss Lenny, but I need some space. Too much has happened over this past week, it’s amazing to think it’s only been a week. Just one fucking week and I find my boyfriend cheating on me with the blonde bimbo, my car dies and I decide to take off with these four random guys that I am now finding out are some kind of supernatural beings. And that I could be too!
I look to the corner of the room, the trolley packed with my bags still sits there and I’m unsure what to do with it. Should I unpack, should I leave it? What am I doing? I have no idea…
I know that this is crazy. I know that I should be questioning this more, that I should be running as far away as possible. But why aren’t I? Why am I comfortable here? Why do I want to stay? And it’s more than a place to rest my head, I couldn’t care less about that. It’s something more. Something inside of me that is pulling me to these guys, pulling me to stay. Alec said I had a week, but I feel like I’ve already made up my mind. Not one part of me wants anything other than this. I want to be a part of this, whatever this is because I’m not sure if I fully understand. And maybe I never will, but it doesn’t matter. I want it. I want them.
So I slept with two of them already. Fine. But to be in a relationship with them all? That is what’s scary to me. Fucking I get, it’s for fun. No emotional attachment needed. But commitment to four guys? How does that even work? Won’t they get jealous of one another? Won’t I get sick of them all? That is a lot of work. One guy is enough to take care of but four? That’s the part that I need to think about. I know that I want to stay, but I can’t be rushed into a relationship with them. Will things still work if we aren’t in a relationship? I probably should have asked. That’s what I need to know. I need that answered and then I’ll be able to think about this more clearly. For now, sleep.
***
“No, I don’t want to do this anymore. She’s just a little girl!”
“You know what will happen if you do that.”
“I’ll find someone… I’ll move if I have to.”
“And you think we won’t find you? Keep giving her the serum and we’ll keep giving you what you need.”
“She’s my only one.” The words push their way through the sobs.
“She gets the serum and she will be safe; you stay supplied. That’s the deal. It isn’t hurting her, just… fixing her.”
“I–I…”
“Do we have an agreement?” The stern, male voice asks.
“Yes.”
“Good. Now I’ll see you again in a month when I drop off the next shipment. You know where to go to get what you need.” The sounds of muffled cries fill the otherwise silent house.
Boots thump down the stairs and a moment later the door opens and closes harshly.
***
I wake up on my own, still alone. The sun is peaking through the curtains and I feel like I slept way too much. I can only imagine what time it is. My head feels groggy and heavy, my body is stiff. I must have slept like a rock. I stretch my arms and legs as far as they will go, my shoulders and back pop and damn does it feel good. I look down and realize that I’m still in Lenny’s clothes. I could really use a shower and fresh clothes. I get out of bed and walk to my bags. I take the one off the top, untie it and peak in. Yay! Comfy clothes. I pull out a t-shirt and a pair of maroon joggers. Can’t find undies, don’t care. The sports bra that I pull out will have to do, cause I’m feeling lazy and not in the mood to dig for anything else.
I open the door and walk down the hallway through the kitchen and to the bathroom, spotting no one. Anxiety rises up, thinking that they left me. Or maybe they’re all in a room together and Maddox is feeding off them. A shiver runs up my body as I close the bathroom door behind me and lock it. I get undressed, but before I step into the shower I quickly bounce over to the door and unlock it. Just in case someone needs to pee, you know, I’m trying to be nice. It has nothing to do with hoping someone will join me in the shower, cause that’s just not right. Nope. Nothing like that at all.
I turn on the shower and it warms almost immediately. I step in and stand under the spray, letting the hot water run down my skin. The heated water relaxes my body for a few moments before I decide to wash up. I look to the shelves and realize the only bottles in here belong to one of the guys. The hotel samples are nowhere in sight. Eh, it’ll have to do. When I pop the cap, I realize that this belongs to Maddox.
I wash my hair first and then my body. The smell brings me back to the other night when he was buried deep inside of me. My lower belly pools with heat as I throw the thought from my mind. Now is not the time to be a horny bitch. I have serious stuff to think about. I can’t let their hotness and the fact that they’re good in bed sway my decision. Or should I? If I’m going to be with someone, they should at least be good in bed and hot, right? Check and check. Kind of shallow, I know. Oh well. But in this case, it’s not just a someone, it’s four someones. Four times the fun, four times the pleasure… or four times the annoyance. What else would I need for a good relationship? They need to be faithful. But how can I ask them to do that, if I’m not? Not really. If I’m banging four guys, shouldn’t they be able to be with whoever they want? It only seems fair. The thought of them being with anyone angers me, which shocks me.
Okay, new subject.
Ugh. Why does my life have to be so damn difficult?
I realize that I’ve lost myself in my thoughts and I’ve been in here for a long time. Uninterrupted at that, doesn’t seem right. I figured Lenny or Maddox would have come in here for something. I turn the taps to shut the water off, pulling a white towel from t
he hook on the wall and dry off. I wrap it around me tightly.
When I walk out of the bathroom, there is still no one around. I walk down the hallway towards my room, eyeing Maddox’s completely closed door. I turn into my room and pretty much jump out of my skin. I drop the dirty clothes that were in my hands and a small shriek comes out of my mouth before my hands clamp it shut. I’m just grateful that the towel stayed on. He doesn’t deserve to see these goods.
“What the fuck!” Maddox stands from my bed, a cocky smirk on his face. He’s dangling car keys from his finger. “Come on, we’re getting lunch.”
“Lunch? I haven’t even had breakfast!”
“Then you can have breakfast, I’m having lunch. It is lunchtime, anyway.” I give him a blank stare, I am hungry, but I just don’t know if…
“Lenny is coming.”
That’s what I needed to hear. I look at the outfit I chose and then back at Maddox who looks hot as fuck, as always. In his dark fitted jeans and white t-shirt that is showing off every damn crevice that his muscles create. “You’re Beautiful, you can wear whatever is comfortable.” The sincerity in his voice is different. Not something I usually hear from him. It warms my heart, but I’ll be damned if I’ll admit that out loud. He doesn’t deserve my niceness after what he did.
“Wasn’t planning on it anyway.” He snorts a laugh, clearly not believing me. He turns the corner, calling for Lenny to hurry up. Lenny dashes past my door and I pop my head out in just enough time to see him run by Maddox and slap his ass so hard that it makes a loud cracking sound and I suddenly fear for his life. Maddox stiffens and points a finger in his direction. “You’re going to pay for that you little shit.” Lenny winks at me as I roll my eyes.
I pull the bottom bag from the pile, causing them all to fall over. I let out a growl. I’ll deal with that when I get back, I guess. I open the bag and pull out a pair of flip-flops and quickly get dressed. I grab my purse and head to the kitchen.