Corrupt Cravings

by Jennifer Salaiz

  “I’m cruel, but I’m not that cruel. I couldn’t make you do it behind bars. Now, start the ceremony, my queen. We don’t have that much time.”

  Cutting her eyes to the dark angel, she swallowed hard and began to walk as far away from the cell as she could. “This will not be rushed. My followers deserve respect, and I will give it to them. The ceremony is not something I can just fly through.”

  Samael remained quiet, so she proceeded to go through the steps in her head. Knowing her vampire symbol needed to show, Marcella made a white gown appear to cover her body. One shoulder was covered by lace while the other was sleeveless. The low-cut top exposed the cross over her heart perfectly. Imagining her hair piled on her head, she could feel as it fixed itself the exact way she saw in her mind. The softness of a few loose curls hung down her back. Once her crown, dagger, and necklace were in place, her outfit was complete.

  “I can’t tell you all how surprised I am that you’re entrusting me with something so precious. You have my word that I will do everything within my power to keep your souls safe and to make sure they go where they’re intended. Donavon, I’m going to need to start with you because of your rank. Afterward, the vampires can go and then Aaron.”

  Donavon stepped forward until he was but a foot in front of her body. Already smelling the lavender, Marcella cut out the lights, making enough candles appear to give the area a soft glow. As if Donavon sensed what to do, she watched him kneel before her.

  Feeling heat rush through her body, she knew her collector was aware of what was about to take place. Fire ignited her eyes, and she knew they were glowing. A hollow circle like the moon began to glow brightly from her left arm, and with it, gold scripture projected out as if lying against an invisible screen.

  “Do not fear, my wolf mate. I shall make my vows to you, and if you feel the same for me, you can either repeat them or give me your word. I’ll shed my blood, and depending upon the way you feel, you can repeat the act. Are you okay with this?”

  “Yes, my queen.”

  “Look at me, Donavon.”

  His blue eyes widened as his head came up. When he turned, she noticed he stared at the shimmering gold words for her to read. Samael cleared his throat, making both her and Donavon turn in his direction. If she wouldn’t have already started the ceremony, Marcella would have chewed into his ass. As it was, she turned back to Donavon.

  This was it. Finding him made her whole, but something about carrying all the men’s souls really completed the act. It was time for the most important part.

  Chapter 13

  Donavon could feel his wolf practically purr deep down inside his stomach. Something monumental was about to happen, and it had nothing to do with the ceremony and everything to do with his connection to the one woman in front of him. After this moment, Marcella would be his queen, and he, her knight. The tingling that kept coursing through his skin ignited his senses until he could practically feel his skin vibrate.

  From his earliest years, Donavon had always wanted a purpose. Now he was about to get one. The alpha inside of him never felt satisfied with running an ordinary wolf pack. At the challenges Marcella gave him, he couldn’t wait to lead the shifter community. This was what he was born to do, and he could feel it all the way down to the soul he was about to hand over.

  Marcella pulled out the dagger that was hidden under her dress and stepped forward. He watched as she looked up at the lettering and quickly looked back down at him. “Wolf, you will now be part of me. The pull you feel toward the moon, you shall now feel for me. Our bond will link us. Do you vow to protect, honor, cherish, and love me for the rest of your days?”

  Donavon didn’t even have to think. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would do all of those things and more. “Yes, my queen.”

  The diamonds glistened in the candlelight as Marcella raised the dagger and sliced her forearm. Blood began to trail down the length, dripping onto the stone floor.

  “With this blood, I will do as you have promised and give my life for you. Eternally, we shall never be separated from this moment forth.”

  Donavon took off his shirt and held out his hand, honored to repeat the act. When Marcella handed him the small blade he drug the tip down directly over his heart. Warmth flowed down his chest as he kept his eyes connected to hers.

  “Your blood is my blood, my soul, yours. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you. At my darkest, you brought me light. My promise is to make sure you never lose yours.”

  Something flashed behind her eyes. A tender smile formed on her face as she sunk to the ground before his kneeling form. “Kiss me.”

  The whispering words brought his lips to the softness of hers. Upon contact, light exploded behind his closed lids, and he felt a comforting heat push against his insides. So smoothly he felt his soul leave him. He expected to feel empty afterward, but all it did was make him feel more connected to Marcella.

  “I promise to do right by you, Donavon. You can always depend on me. I’m here for you whenever you shall need me.”

  “And so am I. Do not forget that, my queen.”

  Donavon helped Marcella stand. As he turned to step out of the way, he nearly plowed into the line that had formed behind him. He couldn’t help but smile as he walked over to Samael, Dom, and Ambrose. They rested close to the cell by Jason.

  “Welcome to the family, for real, my brother.” Dominic slapped his back.

  “It feels good. To finally have a family, I mean.”

  Jason’s hand fisted Donavon’s shirt, jerking him forward. “Listen to me. You didn’t see what I did. You have to let me out of here. Don’t let them put the queen back in this cell.”

  The pure terror and panic in Jason’s stare left Donavon unable to break their eye contact. “Look deep inside of me, Donavon. See what I saw, what I did.”

  Images exploded in his mind at Jason’s words. Marcella kept coming at him, hitting and kicking. All Donavon wanted to do was feel her bones crunch between his teeth as her blood poured into his mouth. The intensity at which a voice begged him to finish her off left him frozen.

  As her flesh was torn between his teeth, Donavon felt a beast inside of him roar. At first he thought it was his wolf, but it hit him that what he was feeling was Jason and his beast. The dragon. Horrified, he tried jerking his gaze away from the collector, but it wasn’t until Jason turned away that he was able to break free.

  “Don’t let me kill her, Donavon.”

  Air wouldn’t come. It wasn’t until Ambrose touched Donavon’s shoulder that he was able to stop the fire blazing in his lungs. Speechless, he watched the master vampire reach through the bars and grab Jason. Usually calm, Ambrose turned cold, his gaze nothing but empty.

  “You shouldn’t be able to project images to anyone but collectors. You grow stronger, my dear friend, but so do I.” Ambrose pulled Jason closer until all that separated their faces was the iron bars. “What I’m about to attempt is virtually impossible for any paranormal creature, but with you, I must try. This has got to end, Jason. And it ends now.”

  “What are you going to do?” Jason’s shaky voice sounded desperate.

  “I’m going to bend your mind to my will. Look deep into my eyes.” Silence lasted only a few seconds before Ambrose continued. “This fear you have is out of control. Your dragon does not hold power over you. When he comes, you will submit to no one but our queen. She will be the only one you take your orders from. When you see her, the cravings will only be minimal. You will love her and protect her with your life. Now repeat what you just heard me say.”

  Jason’s face was devoid of all expression. The trance he was in left Donavon stepping forward. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

  “I will guard and obey the queen. My dragon does not rule me.”

  “Good enough. Now repeat after me. I do not want to eat the queen.”

  Jason opened his mouth, but nothing came out. The sound of the fabric in Ambrose’s fists tore. �
�Say it, Jason.”

  “I do not want to…eat the queen.”

  “And so you shall not. When I say the words, you will sleep. After an hour, you will wake and make love to our queen. You will fulfill your deepest fantasies, and she’s going to love you for it. Everything will be fine from that moment on. You will uphold your vows to honor, cherish, and love. Repeat that, Jason.”

  “Honor, cherish, and love.”

  Ambrose nodded and turned to look at all of them standing behind him. Samael looked about as shocked as Donavon felt. His brother was smiling.

  “Dominic, get in the cell. I’m going to need you to carry him to the bed.”

  The door opened, and Ambrose turned back to Jason. “Remember what I said. When you wake, your dragon will have no more power over you. You’ll hear him, but you will not be tortured by his commands. In one hour, you shall wake. Now sleep, my collector, friend.”

  Jason’s eyes closed, and he dropped on command. Dominic caught him before he hit the floor and carried him to the bed.

  “Fucking amazing,” Samael whispered. “No one is supposed to be able to do that. It’s not right. I love it.”

  Confused, Donavon shook his head. “I thought all vampires could do something along those lines?”

  Ambrose laughed. “No. Vampires can affect your emotions, maybe wipe or place a memory in your head, but no one can permanently change the way a person thinks or what they believe. All we can do is maybe make you think something that will influence your views. We can’t bend your state of mind.”

  “And that’s what you did? You took away his fear. You fucked with the wiring of his brain?” Donavon looked at him. For the first time, alarm of the vampire took over. If Ambrose could make Jason completely disregard the fear he constantly lived in, what was he really capable of? That was a question he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer to.

  “You can say I tried. We won’t know if it worked or not until we get back. Marcella looks to be almost done. I want for us to be out of here before Jason wakes up.”

  “But what if you gave him brain damage or something?” Dominic said, locking the cell behind him.

  “The boy isn’t far off to begin with,” Samael spat. “If it didn’t work, nothing will happen. He’ll be the same mess he is now.”

  Donavon sighed in relief. Marcella would lose it if anything happened to her other half. Not that he was starting to like the guy or anything because, really, he didn’t. Well, maybe a little, but not enough for it to count.

  A bright light flashing through the dungeon told him the queen had just taken another soul. Turning, he watched as the last vampire stood before her. The blood pooled around the queen’s feet, almost making his knees give out. Her already pale skin looked ghostly as she brought the dagger back down over her skin. Multiple cuts covered her forearm. It looked like the more damage her body took, her healing decreased considerably.

  “Jesus!” Dominic hissed. “Samael, is she supposed to be this bad off?”

  “She’s going to have to learn the hard way. The smart thing would have been for her to take her vows once, and then pass the dagger down the damn line. At least she’ll have plenty of time to recuperate.”

  Donavon looked at him, stunned. “Is an hour going to be long enough? You forget Jason has plans for when he wakes up.”

  “She’ll be fine. The wounds will all be closed, and she’ll regain more of her blood by then.”

  Noticing Marcella was finished, Donavon quickly went to her side. She was in the process of hugging a few of the ones who had grouped around her.

  “You okay?” he whispered.

  The smile she flashed him was one that spoke for itself. On the inside, she was radiating. Donavon could smell her happiness, it was so thick.

  “I’m beyond amazing.”

  “Good,” Samael cut in. “It’s time for you to go back to your cell. We’ve already taken up enough time here. When we return, we’ll pick up where we left off and hold a celebration. Does that sound good to you?”

  “The celebration does. The timing stinks.”

  “Can’t be helped, my queen. Now, off you go.” Samael swept his arm out toward the cell.

  Marcella threw him a dirty look and turned to Donavon. “You have no idea how happy I am to have a piece of you inside of me.”

  Smiling down at her, he reached out and pulled her close. “Is that right? Well, I’m honored to be inside of you.” Donavon leaned down next to her ear. “Should it turn me on when I say that? I am so fucking hard just thinking about what I plan to do to you when I get back.”

  Marcella pulled back and looked up at him. “Then you better hurry up and come.”

  Come. Fuck yes. He was definitely going to be doing a lot of that when he returned. If he returned. Shit. That was the last thing he needed to think about. There was no if about it. With negative thoughts came negative powers. He would be back if it was the last thing he did.

  “I’ll miss you and see you soon. I think Ambrose wants to talk to you before you go to the cell.” Donavon kissed her head and stepped back, allowing her to go to the vampire. Marcella turned and let Ambrose lead her away from everyone. As he watched her getting further away, he prayed he’d make it back. For the first time, he was going into a fight caring about the outcome. It sure as hell wasn’t something he was used to.

  * * * *

  As Marcella listened to Ambrose explain about what he’d done to Jason, she couldn’t help but fight to focus on his words. The room kept swaying, making her feet shift beneath her. Vertigo was getting worse with every second that ticked by. Even though her bleeding had already stopped, she couldn’t seem to regain enough of her strength. The fact was she’d lost way too much blood.

  “So like I said, everything should be fine between you two now. If it’s not, maybe I can try again when I get back.”

  “Thank you, Ambrose.” Leaning forward, she meant to kiss his lips when she felt herself instead pulling at his shirt so she didn’t end up falling on her face.

  “Okay, enough being strong. Shift and feed from me. You need more blood. You lost way too much.”

  As she shook her head, he began unbuttoning the black long-sleeved shirt. “Don’t argue with me. If you don’t feed, I’m going to get upset.”

  “Maybe just a little.” Marcella let her collector go as she called to the vampire inside of her. Feeling the change complete, she felt even weaker. Fire raced down her throat as she craved what her body needed.

  “You all wait for us upstairs,” Ambrose called to the vampires. As they all filed out of the dungeon, Marcella almost couldn’t wait for the last one to shut the door. At the sound of the lock settling, she felt herself launch forward until her legs were wrapped around Ambrose’s waist. His lips crushed into hers, and she kissed him hungrily.

  “Do it, Marcella.” He pulled back and whispered.

  Not waiting, she plunged her fangs into the skin of his neck. A moan poured out of both of them, and Ambrose only tensed for a second. At the taste of his sweet blood, she gripped onto his back tighter. Fuck, he tasted good. Strong. At the realization, she tuned into the power. Her eyes snapped open as she continued to feed and stare forward, entranced.

  Strength returned tenfold until Marcella was shaking in his arms. Breaking the suction of her lips, she let her tongue trail across the wounds. “You’ve been holding out on me.” She whispered the words in his ear and leaned back to look at him.

  “It’s time for us to go,” Samael called from a few feet behind them. Ambrose let her down, but she didn’t turn her gaze from his.

  “We’ll talk when you return.” With that said, Marcella changed back into her collector and walked to the cell. Telling Dominic she loved him, she gave him a quick kiss before he locked her in. For endless minutes, Marcella made each of them promise her that they would go through with her plan. It was Samael who came to her after the men disappeared from her sight.

  “I just wanted you to know that I’ll
watch over everyone. Don’t worry about anything while you’re in here. Just rest and relax. We’ll be back before you know it. Please don’t be mad at me because of this. Just know that I care about what happens to you.”

  As Samael started to walk away, Marcella reached for the bars. “Wait!” What she was going to say? Hell, she didn’t even know. Too many things wanted to come out at one time. He slowly turned around to face her. The panic she felt only lasted for a few seconds. He smiled, and time slowed until all she saw was him. Without saying a word, he bowed his head and disappeared. Even though no words were spoken, she somehow knew they’d just shared something so much more than words could have expressed.

  Marcella walked to the bed but didn’t make it halfway there before Jason sat up, gripping his head. A groan poured from his mouth.

  “Man, I got the worst fucking headache. I feel like my brain’s been scrambled with a fucking egg beater.”

  “Really? I’m sorry.” Looking around the enclosed space, Marcella noticed there was only a bed, a shower, and a toilet. The cell was only about a quarter of the size of her room.

  “I’m going to wash this blood off. It shouldn’t take me long, Jason.”

  “Man, I can’t believe I slept through the ceremony. I’m so sorry. I justI was talking to Ambrose, and then I guess I somehow fell asleep.”

  “It’s okay. Don’t worry about it.” Marcella let her dress drop to the floor. Reaching out, she turned on the water. While she let it warm, she noticed Jason staring at her with his mouth parted. “What’s wrong, Jase?”

  “I. Nothing. Nothing’s wrong.”

  “You sure? Maybe you should face the wall so you don’t see me. I wouldn’t want you to have too much trouble with your dragon.”

  Shaking his head, Marcella watched him move a few inches closer. “I think I’ll be okay watching. I mean, if that’s fine with you. You can tell me to turn if you’re uncomfortable.”