by Eva Brandt
“I might,” I said. “To summon a soul back from the Veil, you have to trade it with another soul. And I think I have just the soul to trade.”
Imogen Julius had been a thorn in my side long enough. It was high time I got rid of her, permanently. And if I brought back my old vampire friend in the process, that would just be the cherry on the cake.
Chapter Ten
Byron
“It seems to me that you’re perfectly fine now, Mr. Page. The curse is out of your system, just like we had hoped.”
I flexed my hand and forced myself to smile at Sister Ula. She had been very helpful since our stay at this haven had begun. Without her, I’d have probably died or at least lost my arm. But I didn’t believe her.
When I looked at my hand, I could still see the gangrene threatening to swallow me whole. I knew it wasn’t there. The black, dead skin was gone, replaced by healthy flesh. The pustules had also vanished, leaving behind no trace they’d ever been there. But there was still something bothering me, as if Roman Popovic had crawled into my bone marrow and refused to leave.
“Thank you,” I replied anyway. “We really appreciate all your help.”
“It is our duty to Mother Earth to be as helpful to her children as possible. You don’t need to thank me.”
“That might be, but even so, if you ever need anything, we’ll be happy to return the favor,” Xander told her.
Her gentle smile widened and I knew it was what she’d expected of him. I had no doubt that one day, this would come back to bite us in the ass. Sister Ula would take advantage of Xander’s promise, I just knew it.
The mere thought made my skin crawl. Moon help me, I needed to get out of here and back to the lair, before I did something stupid that endangered all of Xander and Imogen’s hard work.
Mercifully, now that she had done her duty, Ula had no desire to spend more time with us. She said one last polite goodbye and left the room without looking back.
Imogen and Ulysses were waiting for us outside. She had already been deemed healthy a few days ago and we’d only been waiting for my complete recovery, so that we could get out of here. “A clean bill of health?” Imogen asked, practically vibrating with anxiety.
“Yep. All clear. We can go home now.”
“Thank God,” she murmured. “I was going stir crazy here and there’s so much work to do.”
“It’ll be fine, Genny, you’ll see. Carlyle’s people are keeping an eye out and making sure Popovic doesn’t make any other movements. We’ve lost a lot, yes, but we can rebuild. The next time he tries something, we’ll be ready.”
Xander’s words reassured all of us. He was right. Our pack was strong and we’d been through tougher times. I’d been only a pup when Xander’s parents had died, but I still remembered the way we’d banded together. We’d refused to let our loss fracture us. The death of a pack member was always a bad blow for the union, but it would also be incentive. Tomorrow, we’d fight harder, be stronger, so that our pups would never suffer the way we had, so that our families would be safe.
While I’d been out of it, Xander had been making sure our union was safe, comforting them. Later, Imogen had helped and Ulysses had occasionally joined in, once I’d recovered enough. It was too soon to let go and maybe some of our pack members never would, but we had to believe that things would get better.
It helped that we had a more coherent plan of attack now. Xander was in advanced talks with other packs in an attempt to strengthen the bonds between us. Carlyle hadn’t mentioned it to the rest of the members of the Committee, but he was trying to support Xander’s initiative and organize a werewolf-only alliance.
This was the weapon we hoped to use against Roman Popovic, to get our revenge. Most importantly, this was how we would protect Imogen from that damn vampire. But to go through with that plan, we had to get home. And I was just as eager as Imogen to do that.
The haven was roughly twenty miles from our pack lair, in a fenced military installation built by the Committee specifically to accommodate shifters. It was pretty generous in size, but the gray walls had still made it seem suffocating.
No one had complained, of course. If not for this place, the pups and elderly would have been in grave danger. But still, we were all ecstatic that our forced stay here was finally over.
Outside, a few trucks were already waiting for us. Carlyle was there and greeted Xander with a polite nod. “Be careful, Alpha Brooks. We haven’t seen any signs of activity from the undead, but I have no doubt that they’ll return.”
“I know,” Xander replied. “But that doesn’t have to be a bad thing, does it?”
He didn’t say anything else. Carlyle understood the underling meaning of the words. They wouldn’t go into more detail, not out in the open, where everyone could hear, but they didn’t have to. The promise was there and it would stand.
Carlyle turned toward Imogen and shot her a quick smile. “Do take care of your mates, Imogen. I look forward to seeing you again. I hope our next meeting will be under better circumstances.”
“I’m sure it will be,” Imogen replied. “Thank you for all your help.”
“It was my pleasure, I assure you. Shifters have to stick together in these trying times.”
“Even so, we appreciate it more than we could ever say,” Ulysses offered.
“And of course, if there’s anything you need, at any time, we’ll be happy to help,” I added.
The words were almost identical to our exchange with Sister Ula, but the reaction was entirely different. Carlyle laughed. “I already knew that. Off with you now, before I get offended by all the formality.”
Xander and Carlyle shook hands one last time, and then, we all got into the trucks. Together, we started the drive home.
There were a few other cars with us, driven by other members of the pack. The road was rough, but the jeeps made good time anyway, and before long, we’d reached the edges of our pack land.
From there, we decided to go on foot instead of taking the cars. As helpful as the Committee had been, we didn’t want the outsider drivers to go further into our territory. They would leave in their cars and we’d stay in contact, but it was time to put some distance between us.
The moment we were out of the trucks, everyone—with Imogen’s exception—shifted. She wasn’t daunted. “Thank you and have a nice trip back!” she shouted at the drivers politely. “We’ll be in touch.”
In the wake of their departure, Xander howled, gathering everyone around him. Many members of the pack were already back at the lair, but those who were here responded to his call eagerly.
Together, we started running, heading toward our home. Imogen easily kept up with us, even if she wasn’t a shifter.
The trip did wonders for my state of mind. By the time we reached the lair, I felt far more clear-headed. At first, my paw still hurt a little, but with every step I took, the pain seemed to dissipate. And when I finally walked into the cave, the weight of my anxiety vanished as well.
We hadn’t won the battle with Popovic, but we hadn’t lost it either. We would always mourn our dead, but we wouldn’t let their sacrifice be for nothing. And we would protect the most important thing in our life—our family, Imogen.
Turning toward Ulysses, I shot him a determined look. “Today,” I mouthed.
Ulysses nodded. “Today.”
Xander agreed with us, but we still couldn’t jump into it immediately. There were so many people to greet, to reassure, to organize. But Xander didn’t let any of it stop him. He directed each person in the right place, spoke to the elders again, and reminded everyone that they were safe here.
It still seemed to take forever for him to finish. By now, Imogen had started to look a little tired, although not in a physical way. She just leaned a little more against us and I got the feeling that the overbearing nature of certain pack members had begun to suffocate her.
She’d done so well over the past few days that it had been easy for the
others to disregard her injury. But we hadn’t forgotten. I’d have cut my own arm off if it had spared her any kind of pain, but for obvious reasons, that wasn’t an option.
When we finally escaped to our quarters, Imogen closed the door behind us and let out a sigh of relief. “I’m happy to be home, but that was a little exhausting.”
“I think we can all agree on that,” Ulysses replied with a tiny smile. “Besides, it’s not the lair we all missed most.”
And it wasn’t. It might have grated on us to be in the Committee haven, but what we’d actually lacked was the ability to bond, to kiss, to touch properly, like we’d wanted to. Imogen and I had been sick, and Ulysses and Xander incredibly busy. Besides, even if werewolves weren’t private people, none of us liked the idea of sharing our most intimate moments with the humans.
But we were back home now and that meant we could let go and finally be together. Throwing all caution to the wind, I pulled Imogen into my arms and brushed our lips together.
At first, the kiss was gentle, almost kind. I still remembered seeing her fall and I wanted to protect her. But Imogen had always had her own mind and refused to let me hold back.
She wrapped her arms around my neck and pressed her body against mine, emanating an almost suffocating heat. When I broke the kiss, she let out a sharp, dissatisfied growl that made me wonder if she hadn’t been secretly a werewolf this whole time. “Don’t stop. I don’t want to be afraid anymore.”
I didn’t want to be afraid either. The first time we’d tried to claim her, it had gone so poorly that I couldn’t help but feel apprehensive. But I believed in this. I believed in us. We were soulmates. We couldn’t let that damn demon keep us apart forever.
“Bedroom,” I croaked out.
She smiled at me and slid out of my arms like smoke. When she let go of my hand, it felt like a physical blow. But it was a pain I embraced and a reminder of why we were doing this.
Xander and Ulysses were just as shaken. When Imogen led the way to the bedroom, we followed her, hypnotized by her silent footsteps, by the fall of her hair, by her sweet perfume.
Ulysses had said she couldn’t be a demon, but at that moment, she struck me as dangerously seductive as an incubus. I happily fell under her spell. I belonged to her, body and soul.
She climbed into the bed, already undoing the buttons of her shirt. We followed her example. None of us spoke. The air was thick with an unidentifiable tension. We all instinctively knew that what was going to happen here today would change our lives, so words were unnecessary.
We finished undressing first and joined Imogen in bed just as she threw her pants down onto the stone floor. She was topless, her bare breasts exposed to our greedy gaze, her nipples already peaked in arousal. She was still wearing her necklace and her earrings, and the sight of my fangs on her never failed to reassure me. When she spread her legs, I could see the moisture already gathering on her panties.
She was beautiful, so fucking perfect. Our eyes met, and for a few moments, I just stared at her, paralyzed by the intensity of her gaze. I saw myself in her soul, our futures entwined into a perfect link. There was fire, passion, fear, pain, but most of all, love. I craved it all so much that it scared me.
But Imogen had already said she didn’t want to be afraid and I’d silently agreed with her. I blinked and the moment was broken. “Come to me,” she told us—and we did.
We’d had sex plenty of times since we’d met. After she’d first arrived at the lair, we’d taken refuge in physical pleasure, because we hadn’t known what else to do. But this time, it was different. This time, the depth of what we were doing went beyond simple contact, physical or otherwise.
Xander was the one to kiss her on the lips again, but I didn’t mind the fact that he’d taken over from me. I bent over Imogen and cupped her breasts in my hands, gently massaging the beautiful globes. Meanwhile, Ulysses crawled between her legs, admiring the sight of her bare, wet cunt.
He didn’t say anything, but his eyes were glowing with a demonic, sharp light. He shot her a quick smirk and reached for her pussy, sliding two fingers into her channel.
She let out a breathless moan, arching against me and Xander. Xander only broke their kiss for a few seconds, but she didn’t need more time. “Please… Please, more! Claim me.”
Her voice held an edge of desperation, even if we’d just begun touching and kissing. She wanted this as much as we did, if not more, and her need fueled mine, dragging me deeper into a vicious circle of desire.
Xander crushed their mouths together again, while Ulysses buried his face between her legs. Imogen’s next cry was muffled into Xander’s kiss, but it was just as beautiful and hypnotizing as before. Guided by it, by her desire, I started licking every inch of her I could reach, tracing her curves with my tongue. Her skin felt like hot silk underneath my touch. I couldn’t get enough of this, of her, of everything we were and would always be.
We all took our time with her, Ulysses eating her out and fingering her, Xander devouring her mouth. I continued to explore the rest of her body, finding every single erogenous zone she had, even the most unlikely ones. I loved the tiny sounds of surprise she made when I kissed her elbow or stabbed my tongue into her belly button.
Another image flashed through my mind, and I couldn’t help but wonder how she would look like pregnant with our pups. We hadn’t really talked about the possibility, since we’d jumped into this bond a bit. We’d have to fuck her in our third form for our semen to take and we hadn’t even shown her that yet. But there was plenty of time for us to have that conversation and to build a family. For now, I wanted us to focus on ourselves.
I was as hard as a rock, but I could wait a little longer. I needed to make her come first, to see her unraveling in our arms, to feel her pleasure rising around us. I needed to show her, once again, how much we treasured her. Maybe we hadn’t gotten the chance to court her properly, but that didn’t mean we didn’t value her. In time, we’d make it up to her. We’d teach her our ways and give her all the love she could possibly need.
That decision guided my hands, my lips, each and every one of my touches. I raked my claws over Imogen’s oversensitive skin, careful to not draw blood, but stimulating her nerve endings in a way only a shifter ever could. I nibbled on her nipples and on her fingers. Meanwhile, Ulysses continued to suck on her clit and tease her pussy. Xander alternated between kissing her and joining me in exploring her breasts, her throat, and even her hair.
The scent of her arousal was increasing more and more as she surrendered to our touch. She writhed, moaned, and cried out underneath us, and the sounds she made were as addicting as her taste. My beast strained against the faltering remnants of my control, begging to be let out. But I held back. It would happen. We would claim her today. But not yet.
When it came, Imogen’s orgasm was both gentle and devastating. It flowed over all of us like a tidal wave, the web of pleasure we’d built around her dragging us along into her haze. We didn’t come, but it was a very close thing, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to be patient any longer.
Imogen’s body shook in the aftermath of her climax. Maybe we should have given her a little more time to recover, but we had our limits. Ulysses lifted his head, licking his slick lips. As he moved back, Xander pulled Imogen upright and into his lap. In one single thrust, he slid inside her.
As always, Imogen eagerly accepted him into her body. “Xander… Yes! More…”
Even if she’d just come, she tried to move into his thrusts, to impale herself on his hard cock. But he didn’t let her take over. “Don’t worry,” he growled in her ear. “We know exactly what you need, Genny. Just be patient.”
She must have believed him, because she stopped moving and allowed him to do whatever he wanted. Ulysses and I waited, watching as Xander took his pleasure in our mate’s body. Soon, it would be our turn. He would be the one who would start the claiming process. In some ways, his part was the hardest, because he needed to bu
ild the foundations of our connection to Imogen. Ulysses and I would take over after that, but everything needed to be done right so that Imogen wouldn’t have to shoulder the weight of it herself.
In some ways, humans had a heavily romanticized view of mate bonds. The truth wasn’t as simple as they’d made it out to be. Imogen might be our soulmate, but every connection needed work, and ours was no different.
Some species had described the connection as a thread, and in a way, that was true. The thread did exist, allowing the mates to communicate with one another. But a true mate bond went beyond that. It was like a lair, a refuge, a cave hidden deep within our hearts. It wasn’t just a method of talking to each other. It was a shield, one we built through our own feelings and determination.
There was just one problem with that. Treading the shadowy path of a soul was very difficult and only a person of great strength could do it. The first time around, Xander had left it up to me, and I liked to believe I’d have succeeded had the demon not intervened. But it wasn’t just about me, Xander, and Ulysses. The claiming could fail if the intended mate—in this case, Imogen—didn’t trust her lovers. That was why our courtship period had been so important, to make sure we could all truly open our hearts to one another.
For the moment, things seemed to be going well. Xander moved in and out of Imogen at a steady pace, all the while murmuring comforting things in her ear. The words themselves weren’t what mattered, but his Alpha voice slid into her mind and her heart just like his cock slid into her pussy. “You’re perfect for us,” he said, and if she hadn’t believed him already, she definitely would after today.
They shared feverish kisses and desperate caresses. They were so beautiful together that I had to dig my claws into my thighs to keep myself from reaching for them. Ulysses took my hand, winking. “Soon,” he mouthed.
I shot him a sheepish smile. I knew I had to wait just a little while longer, but I felt like I was beginning to suffocate. If I didn’t claim her in the next couple of minutes, I’d snap and lose control.