by Tara Brown
I can't fight the tears, "I am so sorry. It was my fault."
She looks disgusted, "You killed him? Why?"
I shake my head, "I didn’t kill him." I stroke her head and tell her all about Momma Holt in Blackwater Bayou.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Hanna
I smile, thinking about him. The way it felt for him to wash my hair when we were at Roses training together. The way his eyes looked when he saw me again, for the first time this time. He had to pretend he didn’t know me and love me. I tilt my head back and scrub the conditioner out. I open my eyes to his smile.
"You owe me something that I feel you have owed me for some time." He speaks like he's discussing the weather.
A naughty look crosses my face, "Would it be wrong if I undid the bracelet and took advantage of you."
His look matches mine. He nods pleasantly, "Please do."
I raise an eyebrow and hold the wrist with the bright glowing bracelet up. I fake like I'm going to, making him take a deep breath. I frown, "You look nervous."
He nods, "I don’t want to hurt you."
I laugh.
He continues, "Because then you'll become the beast and hurt me."
I laugh harder. I run my hands over my body once more to ensure the soap is all gone and click the clasp. He jumps me. His cock is instantly hard. I giggle as the heat and frenzy fills us both. The sound of my giggle frightens me. I'm scared of becoming the beast too.
He lifts me in the air. The cold-water handle water gets bumped making the water freezing. I cry out. He walks out of the running shower and carries me to the bathroom counter. Still holding me, he swipes everything off and sits me down on the cold hard counter. I squeeze him with my thighs and pull him into me. His body against mine, drives my feverish Siren rage.
His mouth crashes on my nipple. I gasp and reach down, grabbing for his cock. He's already thrusting when I touch it. I laugh again. I guide him to me, opening my legs more. When he pushes himself inside of me, I cry out, orgasming with a few strokes. He is bucking wildly. The mirror behind me crashes. He's slamming me into the wall. My legs are probably crushing him I'm squeezing so hard. I orgasm a second time. His teeth sink into my nipple. I scream as my hands rake his back. He cries out and lifts me off the counter. He spins and slams my back into the wall. I moan, but his lips muffle it. I bite down on his lip. I'm resting on his thighs almost and arching my back. It’s the weirdest position, but it's amazing. He is rocking in and out of me so hard, when I come, I lose control of my arms and almost can't hang on anymore. He rams into me savagely, lifting me back up in the air. My back, dragging up the wall, stings. His hard body against mine is rough and brutal. He pumps harder, moaning and breathing into my hair. I feel his legs twitching and buckling. He adjusts his grip and flashes us. He throws me down on the bed and plunks down next to me. I snap the bracelet back on and laugh. I'm lucky I never crushed the shells while I was holding it.
He winces, "Did I hurt you?"
I nod, panting and gasping for air "Yup."
He takes my hand and kisses my bloody knuckle, "You bloody well hurt me too. That was brutal. When you came, I feared you might rip my cock off."
I laugh and kiss his lips, "Bracelet on from now on?"
"Yeah. Your back is bleeding." He points to the blood stained sheets behind me. I roll over. He looks horrified, "Oh my god, it's covered in blood. I think this is why Siren's don’t mate other Sirens often."
I whimper a bit when he pulls out the first shard.
"You did amazing with Jonathan." He says.
I look back, "You did too. Lorri was right. Without you we never could have finished him off. You tracked him."
He smirks. I stare at his lips and pray I have at least one full lifetime of him.
Aimee
She is a sobbing mess. The pain I've caused her is killing me. Her face hasn’t changed since the story start. She won't meet my eyes, "Did you know?" She asks quietly.
I shake my head, "Not until he did it. Momma Holt gave me everything. Every stolen glance, every moment he had with me in it. She showed me the way he saw me and how he felt every time." I could throw up I'm so sickened by it all.
"You never loved him?" It's more of a statement than a question.
I bite my lips. I know that it's not a true statement. "There was something. We made out all the time. I cheated on Aleks all the time. Shane too. I couldn’t stop myself. I know there was something. He made me feel like someone I think I might have been happy as. He was an amazing man who sacrificed everything for everyone else."
Tears stream down her pale cheeks, "I loved him. He was crazy and weird but he was my dad. I never got to tell him that." She looks at me with her black eyes glistening like pools of despair, "Do you think he knew? I never told him."
"He knew." My heart is broken. I clutch the white feather in my hand selfishly. I never told her about it. I can't part with it. I know I should, she has nothing from him. But I can't. I hate myself for it.
"I can't believe he's gone." I can see the sparkle in her eyes. I know she is wondering who she can push to bring him back.
"Ari, we need to talk about something else."
She looks at me and shakes her head, "I need to be alone Aimes."
I put my hands on her belly, "I made Dorian a promise I have to keep."
Her black eyes grow wide. I suck before she has the chance to stop me. I suck hard and fast. She pushes at the same time and knocks me out.
I wake to the sobs of Ari and the consoling voice of Lucas. I don’t open my eyes. I know she is going to hate me. I just listen to the heartbreak in her cries. I deserve to hear ever second of it. I clutch my feather.
Lucas tries to reason with her, "Baby. Aimes is your best friend in the whole world. She's the sister you never had. Christ she's the sister I never had. She would never hurt you on purpose, never. If she swore to keep you safe and alive to your da...Dorian, she just kept that promise. We don’t know what the baby could do to you. We don’t know what happens when Fae have a baby with Nephilim. I'm not willing to risk it."
"B-b-but I'm immortal." She sniffs.
"So was my aunt. My cousin lived and my aunt didn’t. There is something not right in the soul of a baby that never came from god."
She cries into him. His shirt muffles it. I open my eyes and look at them both. I wink and end up in Sam's room. He isn’t there. The bathroom light is on. I tap the wooden door, making it swing open slowly. In case he's in there.
He isn’t but, I take a step back. My hand comes up to my mouth. He's there suddenly. I see him and then I don’t and then I do. He's holding a towel in front of himself. I point to the bathroom, missing his nakedness. Well trying to miss it. I shake my head, "Someone has been murdered in there."
He pauses and moans his answer, "Welllllll, no. Uhm. Me and Hanna…"
"Oh god, stop. I don’t want to know. That’s a lot of blood. I just wanted to talk. I'll come back." I wink. My heart does the controlling.
I look out over the Nærøyfjord and sigh. Sam is there within seconds.
"We tried having no bracelet sex. It wasn’t like some filthy weird kinky thing. It was just rough."
I look back at him and scowl, "What makes you think I want to know that, firstly. And secondly, dude, I chose this place to be alone."
I look over and see Aleks strolling up to us, looking confused.
Sam laughs. I sigh.
"I saw Luke."
I look at Aleks but I can’t say anything. Nothing wants to come out. My heart is broken and having one of his lectures isn’t going improve things for me.
"She is pissed but she'll come around."
Sam sits beside me, "What's happening?"
"Aimee took the baby out of Ari."
Sam's nose scrunches up, "Oh wow. How? Where?"
Aleks pauses with a confused look on his brow, "Well. I guess. She did the suck thing and she ate it."
Sam gags.
I gasp
and swat Aleks, who is hysterically laughing. He is never as easy going as he is being.
"I hate you guys." I laugh too. I don’t even know why we're laughing. It's sick and gross. "I never ate it. It was like a spirit abortion."
Sam puts a hand out, "Stop. I'm sorry I told you about the bracelet sex. I give, please. Stop."
I laugh again.
"She'll pass the baby. Calm down. You know you saved her from whatever little monster Lucas put in there." Aleks says through the tears rolling down his cheeks. He's officially lost his mind.
Sam punches Aleks in the arm. Aleks is still laughing.
"You're both sick." I shake my head in disgust.
They laugh harder.
I frown, "She hates me. I got Dorian killed and killed her baby and you two assholes are laughing. Why are you laughing?"
Sam shakes he laughs so hard, "Aimes. Babe. Come on. It's crazy. Think about what you're saying. You sound nuts."
I pout and wink back to Marcus's. Ben is in my room. I frown, "What's going on?"
"Giselle. She isn't into me at all. Like being serious and shit." He sulks and sighs. I pull his huge body into mine and hug him.
I feel weird about bringing it up but it's better to clear the air. "Aleks told me what happened."
He shakes his head, "She thought he was coming in to join in. She actually thought we were going to have a three way." I cringe.
"I got mad and we never finished. I just left. I was so pissed." He pulls back and grins, "You wanna help me out?"
I snort and shove him, "No. Wanna cuddle?"
"Spoon?" His grin makes me almost say yes.
I shove him again, "No."
He shrugs, "I gotta try."
We climb on my bed and he wraps his arms around me. I look up at the ceiling, "Did you talk to Luke?"
He nods, "Yup. He's so relieved. Ari's sick still but she's coming around. The poison was in the baby I guess. Lillith and those bad witches did something to the baby. Ari could lose the baby and live or have the baby and then die. You saved her. Don’t feel guilty."
"I do though. I can't help it. I feel sick. She begged me not to."
He squeezes and kisses the top of my head, "Aimes, you saved her."
"I got her dad killed too. Worst friend ever."
He kisses the top of my head and smells my head when he does it. "No. You're the best friend ever. You sacrificed your friendship to save her life. You made her more important than yourself."
Lorri bursts in, "We gotta go. That place in Ireland is an old castle. Lillith is there with Phillip and Trist. He turns eighteen at sunset." I jump, startled. She looks at us and shakes her head, "I don’t even wanna know."
Ben laughs and kisses my head, "You're a good friend. You always have been. Well maybe not so much during the whole Shane and Aleks era."
I wink us to the living room. He gags, shooting me a fierce look, "Dude. Warning."
Grinning, I snap my eyes at him and walk over to where Lucas is sitting. "I'm sorry."
He shakes his shaggy dark head and stands up. "You've got nothing to be sorry for. You made the right choice for her. She'll see it one day." His green eyes sparkle, "I owe you big time."
"Getting fixed anytime soon? Cause I don't want to do that again."
He grins, "Already done."
I whisper, "You got neutered?"
An offended look crosses his brow, "I'm a man, not a dog. What the hell?"
I punch him in the arm, "You know what I mean. It's all the same surgery. Ask the vet next time you're there."
He grabs my head and pushes it down. I back up laughing.
"What's up with you guys? Everyone is laughing and enjoying themselves lately. Something's up?" Lorri crosses her arms and stares me down.
I look around. The tension's cut. Even Marcus has pants on. The kids are gaming and the house feels content.
"Jonathan is dead." Giselle says as if that is the obvious answer. Like we are too stupid to see it. "That’s been a pretty big deal to everyone. Aimee killed him. That’s pretty much the most important thing to happen yet."
I narrow my eyes and look around.
Sam is beside me, "Henry." He whispers.
Marcus snaps his head around, "He's cast something on us." He looks down at his pants and mutters, "I'll kill him."
Giselle points at the pants, "No, that’s an improvement. I was about six seconds away from tackling you with a garden hose."
Shane laughs, "You were pretty funky man."
Ben looks around, "Where is Henry?"
"He left obviously. After he cast the happy cloud over us." Lukas snorts.
"ENOUGH!" Lorri shouts.
We all snap out of it.
She froths at the bit, "We have to get out of this house."
Everyone but Ari comes into the room one by one. Lorri looks at Marcus, "Stay here in happy land with the kids and Ari, if you want to."
"I'm not staying." My head swings around to see Ari in military boots and skinny jeans.
I swallow hard. She meets my eyes and then turns away.
Lorri looks at Luke. He shakes his head, "She should stay."
Ari shoots him a look. "You don’t get to have a say in every aspect of my life Lucas."
Aleks steps beside Luke and puts a hand on him, "Take a breath." He whispers.
Luke shakes his head and mutters, "Let's just go."
Lorri holds up her phone. I grab Giselle and Shane and Ben and wink fast.
"That was awkward." Shane says. I nod, "Super." I point up the bright green hill, "We're going this way. If she is doing the magic now, she's outside. She's stronger outside." I remember Henry saying that once.
Hanna and Sam wink up to us. "I sent my dad and Roland a text. They're heading to Marcus's right now. To stay with the kids." Hanna says quietly.
I glance at her and catch Marcus in my peripheral. He's beside Lorri and slightly pissy looking.
"He came?"
Hanna nods, "He's pretty mad about the lab."
"I feel bad. I just couldn’t think of another place."
Sam laughs, "He just wants to kill some people."
Shane points up to the wall around the castle, "Well I guess that’s lucky. Look."
"Frig. Reinforcements."
Lorri growls, "Where did you think they all were. The whole army is here. I have a slight fear that the stupid snow globe was glamour and she hasn’t ever really left here. I am not sure she was ever in Alaska." I don’t say anything but I have a terrible fear Jonathan was telling us the truth. The only thing stopping her from taking over and destroying everything was Jonathan.
Aleks shoots Lorri a glare, "Thanks for the heads up."
She shrugs, "Wouldn’t have helped. I have the Asian Roses and the African Roses coming now. The European ones are already here."
"I feel like the Power Rangers." Ben mutters and phases mid air.
I laugh, "You totally stole that from my lips."
He sniffs at me and runs up ahead. He hides in the bushes. I look around and try not to let the beauty of it all overwhelm me. We are at a huge brick and stone castle with a wall all the way around it and turrets. The extensive grounds lead up into the hillside, which turns into a thick forest. It's stunning and everything is emerald green.
"This castle is built on a forest the Fae believe is guarded with magic. They believe it's where the Fae originally came from. If Lillith is evil, she tricked the strongest of the Fae just to be here." Marcus says skeptically.
We follow Ben into the woods and look around.
Lorri starts the lecture, "The army is inside. Shifters, Fae, Witches, Vamps, Nephilim and god only knows what else. There will be no Ari, Aimee, Hanna and even the succubuses aren’t like Giselle. But everything else exists inside of there. This is the real deal." She points to a turret, "The other side of the castle is where everyone else on our team is hiding in the woods. I don't think Lillith is expecting us. They will likely think Jonathan has finished us off or tri
cked us once again. If we catch them off guard we should be able to take them down before the sunsets completely. We move in five minutes. Aimee, Aleks, Sam and I are going for the Shifters. Be right back. Don’t move."
Confusion fills me, "We're going for the shifters?"
She looks distant. "We are since Henry joined the ranks of the deserters."