The Jaded Hunter

by The Jaded Hunter(Lit)

  Touching her on the side of the face, he ran his fingers behind her ear. Jaden looked at him in surprise. Tyr flipped her beneath him, stopping the wild stroking of her hips. Staying embedded and unmoving within her, he forced her to look into his eyes. She did so shyly, the confusion of his actions making her uncertain.

  Keeping his eyes trained on her, he kept his touch to her cheek. Jaden swallowed nervously, her eyes trying to move away but unable to. Slowly, Tyr began to move in measured strokes that pushed her core deeply in a shallow rhythm. Jaden again tried to speed their pace to a frenzied release, but Tyr stayed strong to his purpose. He knew she was trying to hide herself in the abandonment of her passion. He wouldn’t allow her to. He wanted her to see what she did to him, remember how he felt inside of her.

  Soon, the bittersweet pleasure built within her. Jaden lifted her hand to Tyr’s chest. Her eyes drifted close out of pure rapture. Tyr took her hand in his, lifting it to his mouth. He kissed her palm, licked the pulse at her wrist. Then, leaning over, he allowed her hand to drape across his shoulder as he leaned to drink from her neck.

  Tyr bit her gently, letting his mouth fulfill the second most urgent need of his body. Her life’s blood, warm and wet, entranced his sense. Jaden gasped in delight, her body brought to a straining pentacle of pain and desire.

  The motion of his hips grew stronger, the gentleness he was capable of like nothing she had ever known. It threatened to rock her soul, drown her heart. Her back arched, his lips broke free from her neck. Their bodies strained together, pulling and pushing, pushing and pulling until the tension and primal need took over and they were slaves to each other and their desires.

  Tyr rose up on his arms, delving with sweet surrender. Their voices sung out in primitive moans and grunts, their mouths fell open in silent screams. He pushed her to the edge of sanity, riding them both over the brink until they were falling into a river of pure emotion, pure desertion of reality. Jaden tensed, bucking up against him as he brought her to her peak. The sweet call of her body was too much for him and he soon joined her in earth-shattering release.

  In the immediate aftermath, their bodies trembled weakly, their minds joined, showering full of glistening colors. Jaden closed her eyes tightly, blocking out the sight of the handsome vampire. He had been so tender, so sweetly giving that her heart broke with it. He was nothing like she expected, nothing like she was trained to face. She was as helpless as a babe in his arms.

  Tyr withdrew himself from her body, easing on the bed next to her. Feeling her shiver, he beckoned the coverlet over them. Jaden began to sit up. Tyr reached out, stopping her firmly as he pulled her into the cradle of his arms. Seeing the wound purpling on her neck, he sighed and bit his finger to rub his blood over the puncture marks left by his teeth. Jaden shivered, feeling the skin close under his administrations.

  Jaden drank in the comfort of his arms. Her body still ached with melodious release and contentment. She felt his lips move over her neck, nestling her skin from behind. What was he doing to her? She shivered, wanting to cry out. Closing her eyes, she let him touch her. Her lips parted with a sigh.

  "I’m in love with you." Jaden froze. She was amazed the words had come out. She refused to move. She refused to breathe. She waited for the pits of hell to open up. The admission tore through her like a machete. Sick with herself, she tried to pull away. The emotion brought her no pleasure, for it could never be.

  Tyr stiffened next to her, his lips still affixed to her skin. He waited, the words rolling in his head. He didn’t dare believe them. Gradually, he pulled back to study her face. He expected to find her mocking ill-humor.

  "Jaden…?" he began but couldn’t finish. He wanted to believe her, but her actions didn’t back up the deployment of her words.

  Jaden knew what she had to do. Not meeting his eyes, she turned her face down to the pillow. She let her body soak in one last bit of pleasure before speaking.

  "Can you please go get my bag?" she voiced quietly. "There is something I have to show you."

  Jaden allowed her body to quiver. She breathed deeply, waiting for his answer, hoping he couldn’t read her intent. Tyr turned her face to his. There was something in the back of her jade gaze he couldn’t describe. His instincts told him to deny her the request. But before he could act on instinct, she spoke again.

  "Trust me," she whispered, her eyes begging him. She let him feel her emotion. Tyr nodded, against his better judgment. What harm was there in just retrieving her bag?

  "Where is it?"

  "There," she pointed, shading her eyes beneath lashes with a delicate sniff, "in the prison cell."

  Tyr rose up on his arms, crawling over her from the bed. Her soft vulnerability confused and elated him.

  Jaden was aware of his scar as his forearm passed by her face. Gulping, she couldn’t keep from watching the play of his nakedness as he crossed over the bedroom unashamed. Jaden sat up, crawling quietly off the mattress. Her feet were softened by the plush carpet as she touched the floor.

  Tyr walked boldly into the stone chamber. His eyes scanned over the stone. Seeing her bag in the far corner, he leaned over to pick it up.

  "There is no--" His words were cut off by the latching of the iron door behind him. Tyr dropped the bag, spinning around on his heels. He heard the stout locks sliding into place. He narrowed his eyes in disbelief, not even trying to push his way out. He was trapped, naked. Inside her words echoed like a jeering irritation, Trust me. I’m in love with you. He was a fool to have ever dared to hope.

  Jaden stared fixedly at the locked door. Her breath came in pants through trembling lips. Tears fell silently from her eyes. Her knees weakened and she fell heedless to the floor. She had done it. Tyr was trapped within.

  Crawling back on her hands and knees, she didn’t bother to hide her nakedness as she huddled into a corner. Her limbs shook with fear and regret as she wrapped her arms around her legs. Only at the last minute had she seen the prison door and decided to trap him inside the stone walls. She knew what he would find in her bag. She wanted him to find it.

  Jaden waited a breathless eternity for his anger to show itself. Her gaze bore into the iron door until her vision blurred, waiting to see if he would break free of the prison. But the door didn’t move and inside the cell was dead silence.

  * * * *

  Island of Delos, Cyclades

  "My queen," Shiva bowed low to the ground, lying almost prone at Vishnu’s feet. His words were muted and precise, clipped short from unnecessary lengthiness. Lifting her hand regally, Vishnu silently bid the knight to stand. He did easily, showing no effort in his slender, lithe body as he hopped up to his feet. He stood at attention, his dark gaze steadily forward, not looking Vishnu directly in the eye.

  Vishnu lounged back on the dark blue and green silk trappings of her large rectangle bed. The silk of her robes hugged along her skin, blending into the silk of the coverlet. Her look was soft and inviting, not at all like the heartless queen that presided within the council. Leaning absently on her arm, she glanced at Amon in the doorway. She beckoned him in with a brief, sultry smile.

  Amon entered, taking his place at her feet on the bed. He leaned over to hide part of her body from view as he lay in front of her. Vishnu absently patted Amon’s bald head, rubbing her fingernails idly over his flesh, to trail over the breadth of his naked black-gold shoulder. Amon rested comfortably in his white linen loincloth, preferring the simple garb to modern day embellishments and well aware of the aura he put out by showing the sinew in his chest and legs.

  Shiva waited patiently for his orders. His body didn’t move. Vishnu sighed, rolling onto her back. Her arms drifted above her in the air, as she lazily commanded Shiva, "Speak, my knight."

  Shiva nodded curtly one time before answering, "The hunter Alan MacNaughton’s men have been seen wandering in Mykonos. It is possible they are looking for the entrance to council chamber. My bound one has reported their presence during the human day tour he
re on Delos."

  This brought Vishnu’s attention back up. She pulled onto her arm, sharing a humorless glance with Amon.

  Composedly, Amon asked, "And MacNaughton himself?"

  "I have not seen him," Shiva responded. "But I follow his men in hopes of locating him. If he is on Mykonos, I’ll find him."

  Amon nodded. Turning his eyes to Vishnu, he said, "Tyr has not yet arrived with the dhampir. And he has not sent word of her."

  "Do you suspect--" Vishnu began, only to finish through their minds, Ragnhild?

  "No," Amon answered aloud. He turned his eyes back to Shiva. "Not yet. There is no reason to believe he would’ve betrayed us."

  Are the rumors true then? Vishnu thought to Amon. Has Tyr marked the dhampir? Has he slipped?

  He would be a fool, Amon answered.

  "Shiva," Vishnu said aloud so the knight could hear her. Her face became pouty, her lips pursing seductively. Her hand found its way back to Amon’s head. "Leave the others to look for MacNaughton. Go to the homeland of your old friend. Gather him back to us and make sure he has the bloodstalker with him."

  "Yes, my queen." Shiva bowed, leaving immediately amidst a flash of his ghostly skin.

  When they were alone, Vishnu pulled herself to sitting and clipped, "I do not trust Ragnhild. Bid Osiris to find this Alan MacNaughton and discover who has been helping him. We cannot allow this insolence to go unpunished. We must know who is betraying the council."

  Amon nodded in agreement. Laying his head into Vishnu’s lap, he said, "Aleksander and Hades are near. I’ll send orders to all three. Tyr is a good knight. He has never betrayed us before. If he has not come it is because it is not safe to do so. I’ll have the knights watch the docks and report as soon as he arrives."

  "So be it," Vishnu said quietly as she leaned over to press her lips to Amon’s. Her hands slid over his cool cheeks in a tender caress. Before she kissed him, she whispered, "But don’t speak of it to the others. Not until we know more. I have a feeling the truce of this council is about to run its course."

  * * * *

  Island of Mykonos, Cyclades

  "Where is she, Mack?" Rick sat forward in his chair. The bright sun bounced off the walls of the whitewashed hotel and the blue waters of the swimming pool, stinging his sleep deprived eyes. His sockets were sunken into his face from a night spent watching the water for signs of a boatman. The boatman hadn’t come--again. "Are you sure your source can be trusted? I fear we may be getting set up for a trap."

  "Yes," Mack answered forcibly. He did not feel as confident as his word sounded. He too was beginning to have doubts, though Pietro assured him it was only a small delay. Thinking of the old vampire, he scratched the scab forming on his arm beneath his white hotel robe. Pietro had nearly drained him last night, leaving him weak and dizzy. Taking his drink off of the table next to him, he finished the straight scotch with one gulp. "Trust me, Rick. I have it on the highest of vampire authorities."

  "But how can you know?" the man persisted, his voice rising slightly in his ire. He was growing weary of Mack’s lack of emotion when it came to rescuing Jaden.

  "Because I know," Mack hissed, leaning forward to the young man with a scowl. "Listen to me. This goes nowhere. The vampire council is on the verge of restructuring. They are falling apart."

  "What does this have to do with Jade?" Rick questioned sharply.

  "Nothing," Mack said. He twisted his fingers wildly into his hair in frustration. Rick was taken aback by the man’s nervousness. His eyes narrowed, watching him carefully. "It is just that everyone is backstabbing everyone. Take my word for it, the information is correct. Tyr and Jaden will come here. When they arrive, we must be waiting. We will only have one shot at this. If we fail, Jaden dies."

  Rick leaned forward, placing a hand on Mack’s arm briefly before letting go. Under his breath, he whispered, "We will be ready."

  "Good, good," Mack whispered, returning to his old calm. Rubbing the back of his neck, he leaned into the lounge seat. "But, if something should go wrong and she can’t be rescued. You know what you have to do. We can’t allow the council to take her alive. It would be hell for her."

  Rick couldn’t answer. He refused to conceive the possibility.

  "Rick," Mack warned. "It’s important that you realize what they will do to her. She knows all the locations of the safe houses. She knows how we do things, where we hide, who the men are."

  "She won’t tell," Rick said.

  "Once they get inside her head, she won’t have to tell," Mack said. "Promise me that they won’t take her alive. It is what she would want."

  "Yes," Rick whispered. He understood the order perfectly. "I promise."

  "Very well," Mack answered, sure the man knew what had to be done. Jaden couldn’t be allowed to go before the tribal elders. Mack had no way of knowing how much she really knew about his business. If the council could get inside her head and dig out all her secrets, his whole organization--his whole plan--would be lost. Closing his eyes, he ordered, "Now go and get some rest. You look like crap. I’ll meet you in my room an hour before dusk."

  Rick stood. Walking slowly back to his room, he knew there was nothing else he could do at the moment but go to sleep and wait for another night to fall.

  Chapter Twelve

  Jotunheimen Mountain Range, Norway

  Her fingernail split into two jagged pieces, as she withdrew her pinkie from her mouth. She spit the broken nail onto the floor. Paying no mind to the ripped edge left, Jaden began chewing nervously on the next one. Guilt plagued her, gnawing her stomach raw. She couldn’t eat, could barely sleep, and had scarcely enough inclination to keep the fire burning hot.

  She gave up on escape. Tyr hadn’t lied. The cave that extended out past the wooden door was as dark as it had to be long. It twisted and curled in strange erratic patterns, a virtual maze of underground tunnel systems. She had taken a candle and lighted it in the fireplace before braving the darkness. The candle glow reflected eerie patterns onto the jagged rock walls and uneven floors. She managed to find a small room with Tyr’s blood supply stored coolly inside and even some fruit for herself. But whenever she tried to move past it, a breeze would blow the candle out and she would be trapped in a tomb of darkness, forced to crawl her way back into Tyr’s home.

  Working a third fingernail the same as she had the first two, Jaden stared at the iron door. Restlessness came from within, the strange psychic link unbreakable between her and her prisoner.

  She tapped her bare feet silently on the edge of the bed. She couldn’t rest, knowing Tyr was in there. He was so quiet, never speaking to her when she called. If not for the link of emotion between them and the steady stream of animosity that flooded her from behind the door, she would have thought him dead.

  Days passed with him locked inside the prison. After hours of worry, she finally relaxed enough to believe he couldn’t escape the stone. Her bag was trapped with him. She knew he must have already dug through it, finding the file she hid from him. After careful deliberation, she decided it didn’t matter. That if he read it, it would only fuel his anger and help her cause. Once she dared to ask him to pass her clothing through the food bin in exchange for some of his own. She was rewarded with a snort and silence.

  Purposefully, she hadn’t fed him, letting the blood hunger settle deep in his blood, making him ravenous with need until the red rage overtook him and he couldn’t think straight. Already she could feel him pacing the length of his prison like a madman.

  It is only fair to end this way, Jaden thought. She remembered her father, helplessly brought low by her doing. Continuing, she vowed, Justice will be done.

  Jaden gulped, hearing the scraping of nails against the iron door. That must have been what awakened her from sleep. She swallowed nervously. The sound became more insistent, fevered. She crawled from the bed, tugging anxiously at the hem of her white T-shirt. Chills ran up her spine and she hesitated. Her course was set and she wouldn’t back down.<
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  Closing her eyes, she stepped forward. The scratching stopped. She could feel the beast within. Gone were all coherent thoughts, leaving nothing but the hungry monster. She reached out. Her hand touched the cold iron. Smack! Tyr hit the door from behind, making Jaden jump back with a start. The door vibrated loudly but didn’t open.

  Calming her racing heart, she again moved forward. Coming close to the door, she refused to touch it. Lightly, she called, "Tyr?"

  Nothing.

  Again, she tried, "Tyr, are you listening? Are you hungry?"

  A paper slid from underneath the door. Jaden caught it up. The frightened brown eyes were very familiar. Quietly, she whispered without looking at the back, "Sydney, 103, 1984."

  The photograph slipped out of her shaking fingers. Shame welled within her, thick and choking. Her entire body quivered. Tyr would be good and mad with only those photographs as company the last week. And his bloodlust should be near the point of insanity. It was time.

  Jaden stood, taking a deep breath. She lifted her chin with a bravery she didn’t feel inside. Her eyes closed, her hand lifted to the latch. The wild pounding she felt in Tyr’s heart heightened her own. She wavered with all the jittering of a leaf ready to fall dead from the tree, clinging to one last moment.

  "Forgive me," she whispered as the latch slid out of place.

  * * * *

  Tyr’s eyes wildly rolled about in his head. Hunger chewed at his insides. His body started to turn on itself as his skin grayed and sunk into his frame. He was too proud to beg Jaden for blood, too proud to ask for release. He’d held off longer than most of his kind, of that he was certain. An uncanny sense of betrayal and deceit kept him focused in the first days until the need for blood became so strong he was reduced to a pacing animal.

  His jaw worked violently, the tempting perfume of Jaden’s blood moving outside his door to torment him, along with the soft rhythm of her deceitful heart. The hated memory of her gentleness of emotions--all of them a lie--was cold comfort in a barren cell. And her declaration of love, so taunting and tormenting to his damned soul! It was unforgivable.