Tabitha’s knees began to bend and both ended up on the ground. Tabitha pushed her pants the rest of the way off with her feet, then pushed Grady back and ran her hands up his stomach, stopping on his chest so she could kiss around his belly button. It was when she bit down and drew blood that Grady growled, taking her by the arms, rolling her roughly to her back, and ripped his boxers off as if they were tissue paper. Tabitha smiled, then gnashed her teeth up at him. He got up on his knees and spread her legs, kissing her knee, then inner thigh, until he had her ripping the grass out by the roots. She dug her fingers into the soft earth as he brought her to very tip of ecstasy, then he raised his head sliding his body up hers, kissing every inch he could until he met her eye to eye.
“I want you so bad I can feel the heat about to burst from the inside of my very soul,” he said, then entered her.
She closed her eyes as her back arched up. His slow rhythmic action soon became a steady pace that matched the woman who was digging her nails into his back, and the growing orgasm was taking them into an uncontrollable twist of fate. Grady’s head went back and he yelled out, causing Duchess to start barking before joining in with her own style of howl. Tabitha gripped his back, wrapping her legs tightly around his buttocks, forcing him in faster and harder. His skin split apart and her fingers dug into slick black fur. Within seconds, they rolled, connected, changing into their beasts in the thralls of orgasmic bliss. Grady’s beast licked his mate across the snout, and the two laid there until their hearts calmed and beat as one. Tabitha rolled onto her side as Grady wrapped his massive form around hers, and the two fell asleep.
Danny was the first to wake in the cave. He was extremely surprised to be alive, brushing the dust off of his arms and inspecting for burns. The last thing he remembered was the dim glow of daylight echoing off the inside of the tunnel wall. Arnaud lifted his head, looking at the same place he was looking when he fell to the dawn. He looked over at Danny and smiled. D`nae squeezed Danny around the waist, and sat up. She stretched her arms up and brought them back down, scratching her head.
“I thought I would never wake up again,” she admitted, touching Danny’s leg.
“Ah cud nae stop keekin at the neuk, mesel,” Danny said, staring at the corner.
“A while back, Alasdair put a man outside and waited for the last second to close the door to the large room where I woke the next night, we all did. The last thing I saw was the breaking light hit the man and he burst into flames, screaming like I had never heard.”
“Why would anyone do something like that?” D`nae said, then remembered what Alasdair had said about his brother, and doing the same thing to Danny.
“Fit, luv? Ye hae an awful keek on yer face,” he asked lifting her chin.
“He wants to put you on a cross and let the sun do the same thing to you,” she said, as tears began to fill her eyes.
“Ah ken. Ah should’ve told ye aboot the tales o me faithers kin, an it gaes back much langer than Alasdair, mind ye. T’wur a great uncle o the twins that left oot fae Scotland, cum back the damned. Changit each it wur told, tae hurt he’s faither fur denyin him efter, ye ken, he becum like us.”
“So, did you know this was going to happen one day?” she asked, stepping in front of him.
“Ne’re believed ane word. Wish Ah wud hae paid me mind mair. Noo, Ah cannae member much at a’.”
“Alasdair is so old, do you think we can kill him?” she asked wrapping her arms around his waist.
“Ah dinnae, luv. But cum hell or high water, we’ll drive the feart o God intae he’s hert, if nae Grady’s wheels,” he smiled, rubbing his hand up and down her back.
The three made their way to the mouth of the cave and marveled at the beauty of the dark purple sky hanging over the bronze rolling hills of the badlands before them. The one thing they all noticed was the fact that Grady’s truck was nowhere in sight. He and Tabitha were barely waking up next to each other just outside the small town and still very much in each other’s arms, only now they were back in their human forms. Tabitha sat up like she had been shocked, and rushed to the truck.
“We have to get to the others,” she said, trying to put her shirt on.
“They happen to be grown, and highly capable of taking care of themselves,” he replied, walking up and wrapping his arms around her waist. “How do you deal with this sticky crap all over you?”
“One learns to deal with a great deal being trapped in a cage most of their lives,” she said, becoming still in his arms.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“Please, don’t be. I don’t need pity. I need what I have now,” she turned, looking up at him. “The past can only harm you if you allow it.”
“How is it that I have learned so much from you in such a short time?” he lovingly asked.
“I am your mentor?”
“Not hardly,” he replied, leaning down kissing her. “You’re what I’ve been waiting for all of my life.”
Tabitha stepped back smiling up at him, then turned and grabbed her pants. She went back, kissed his cheek and giggled, then hopped into the front seat of the truck. “They depend on us,” she said, closing the door, shaking her shoulders and feeling his words caress her like a warm blanket. They found the others walking down the dirt road not far from where they had left them. D`nae saw the smile on Tabitha face, and knew she had experienced something far greater than hamburgers. The moment the truck stopped, Tabitha jumped out and ran up, hugging D`nae around the neck.
“Wow, you look so happy,” D`nae laughed.
“Yes, I am.”
“We can be in Cortez before the sun sets, if we leave now,” Grady said sticking his head out of the truck.
“Hoots! Ye hens can yack in the wheels. Ah’ll be mair then ready tae get oot o this dry lochless land.”
“Where’s Duchess?” D`nae asked about the time the dog jumped out of the truck. “Come here, baby,” D`nae said going down on one knee. “It’s moomoo, remember? I love ya, girl, and I’ll find momma, I promise.”
Duchess stood there looking at the three vampires that held the scent that hurt her owner, but yet also held the scent of something she knew. D`nae looked and sounded the same, but the scent was confusing her. It was only when D`nae put her hands up to her cheeks and started saying, ‘wanna give me sugars’ then covering her face that the dog started wagging its tail. “Wanna, ya wanna? Give moomoo some sugars,” D`nae said in a childlike voice, cracking everyone up. Duchess took a few steps forward and D`nae saw the recognition on her face. She pursed her lips, made a yummy sound and Duchess was on her. D`nae landed on her back with Duchess covering her in wet slobbery kisses. D`nae burst out crying and laughing at the same time. Danny slapped Arnaud on the shoulder and threw his head back, joining in on the laughter. He was happy to see a real smile back on her face, and his thoughts returned to getting her mother back. Tabitha went around and got into the back, waiting for the others to pile in. D`nae and Duchess played all the way into the backseat.
“I’ve missed you too, girl,” D`nae said, turning her head away to keep from taking a lick right in the mouth.
“She will now know the scent of her enemy from the scent of her friends,” Tabitha said, reaching into the bag of dog food. She gave Duchess some, then popped a few into her own mouth.
“Hey, what ya doing, hun? That’s not made for people,” D`nae explained, smiling at her.
“That’s what I tried to explain, but she really likes it,” Grady snickered looking in the rearview.
“And what the hell is all this white stuff back here?” D`nae asked, causing Tabitha to choke. “Are you okay?”
“We mated while eating sweet bread,” she said smiling, as if it were a topic that everyone talked about.
D`nae scooted up and leaned on the front seat. “You’ve been teaching my girl a few new tricks, Grady?”
“Oh man,” he replied, rubbing his head. “What can I say, we have an animal attraction.”
�
�And he had some really sweet little round breads,” Tabitha added, petting Duchess on the head.
The truck erupted in laughter, except for Grady and Tabitha, who was unaware that it was her statement that had set the others off and turned her mate blood red. They drove into the night, Grady shaking his head, knowing he would have a whole world to teach the woman that his beast already loved, and his human self was quickly falling head over heels for.
* * *
Tammy woke with pain in the side of her head where Alasdair had hit her, but frankly was surprised to wake at all. She was also surprised to be in the big bed that she had seen him getting out of the first night she woke as a beast of the night. Immediately, she pulled the covers down, finding that the robe was still firmly in place.
“I have done many a thing, but I have never taken a woman while she was unconscious,” Alasdair said with his back to her, sitting in his chair. She pulled her legs up and placed her hand on the side of her face, growing angrier at the fact that he was so arrogant that he could just storm in and pop her, then sit there like it was no big deal.
“Next time you put your hands on me, you better kill me, because when I wake up I’m gonna be a whole lot more pissed than I am right now,” she stated calmly.
“I haven’t the strength to argue. The last of my boys has taken your place.”
“My place?”
“We will be leaving this place soon,” he said, turning to look at her. “I will not strike you again, you have my word.”
“That’s what my late husband used to say, but it never stopped him when he was angry. Can I ask you something?”
“Of course,” he replied, sitting back in his chair.
“You said we would be leaving?” she asked getting off the bed, walking around to sit down in the chair opposite him. “Are you going to try and kill my child?”
“I wanted to use her to get to him, but I had no plans on harming your little girl. She touched a piece of my heart that had been stone for longer than I care to remember.”
“That would be my baby. She is a kind person, Alasdair. Can you not let the past be the past, and learn to grow from the future?”
“Danny Gilmore will die. I assure you this.”
“Why?” she asked more sternly. “For a crime that he had nothing to do with?”
“You do not understand,” he said about to stand.
“Please, Alasdair. Your heart was broken. You know the pain, yet you’re so will to do the same thing to D`nae. Should she hunt you for the rest of her days, becoming an old hard stone of a creature like you?” she asked getting to her feet.
“He was my brother!” he stood yelling. “And she was to be with me forever.” Then he sat back down.
“Hasn’t there been enough? Don’t you want something better than all of this? I can see the bloodshed on your hands when I touch you. I will stay with you, Alasdair. I have nothing to go back to.”
“And that too is now my fault,” he said putting his head in his hands.
She slowly made her way to him, and then kneeled in front of him, placing her hand on his leg. “But I forgive you.”
Alasdair looked down at her with the same amazement that her child had washed over him. He reached out and brushed her hair off of her shoulder, then stood and left the room. Tammy laid her head in the seat of his chair, and began to cry. Her daughter was all that she had left in the world, and her heart was breaking knowing she would never be able to face her again. She put her fingers to her mouth, and the tears fell faster. When Alasdair came back in, sorrow filled his features. She was curled in a tight ball on the floor with her head in the chair, crying so hard that she didn’t even hear him enter. He set the tray containing the two glasses of dark red fluid on the small table, then went and knelt down by her feet.
“Your tears melt my heart, and I can do nothing to change your pain,” he softly said reaching out before putting his hand back down on his own leg.
“You can let them be happy,” she sobbed without raising her head.
Alasdair thought about telling her about Danny and his thoughts on the change in her child but left it alone. He stayed silent for a few minutes, then whispered, “He shall live.” Then he started to get up when she turned and wrapped her arms around his waist, lying her head on his chest. He paused, holding out his hand, then gently laid it on her back. He stroked her hair until her sobs stopped, and she was quiet in his arms. He reached over and picked up a glass, handing it to her then picked up his own. They drank together with no words being exchanged; him holding her, and Tammy sick with loss. Alasdair had given up a two hundred year old grudge at the soft pleas of the mother of the woman who had first softened his heart. He would let them find the remains of what they would think of as D`nae’s mother and he would take her far away, disappearing from the world that he once ruled.
He chose not to mention that D’nae and her companions would be coming through something that he couldn’t stop, even if he tried, but it would give him time to prepare for their departure. He left her momentarily, going in to draw her a warm bath, then left to find her more appropriate clothing. Tammy had no room to enjoy the silky feel of the oils that he had added or the scent of roses that lifted from the bubbles which wrapped around her body. Alasdair tapped on the door, then opened it just enough to see that she was down in the water.
“These should fit. I’m sorry I have no undergarments, but in time you will have everything your heart desires.”
“All but the one thing,” she replied with furrowed brows, turning her head so he couldn’t see as the crimson tears began soaking her cheeks again.
Alasdair lowered his head, telling her he had things to do, but would return before the coming dawn. She heard the bolt on the outside of the bedroom door slide into place when he left, and she sat up, rubbing the washcloth on her face.
“I’ll play your little game, you son of a bitch, but when the time comes… when the time comes.” She reached up and touched her face, thinking what he could have done to her child, knowing so much about her, that her anger rose to a point where a peaceful calm took over and the knowledge of Alasdair’s payback would come soon enough.
* * *
Danny was taking his turn at driving, and the scenery had changed from a land of nothing but rocky hills of sand and weeds to one of lush green forest that towered to the very bottom of the black star-filled sky. The roads got narrower the higher they went and the drop-off looked more like a bottomless abyss to a swirling world of endlessness. Danny rolled his window down and whistled. “Ye dinane be wantin tae hing oot this side o the windae. Holy Mairi Meither o Christ, ane slip,” he laughed, making a crashing hand motion on the steering wheel, with sound effects bubbling from his lips.
“I’m gonna be sick. I ain’t kiddin’, I hate being this high up,” D`nae admitted glancing out the window. “Oh shit, Danny, you’re too close to the side!”
“Nae luv, tis a wee road. Whaur wud ye hae me gae?”
“Oh shit, oh hell. I’m gonna have a heart attack,” she said, looking out the window again. “I can’t breathe.”
“You’re the walking dead. You can’t have a heart attack,” Tabitha said, looking at her very serious.
D`nae looked over and chuckled out.
“You can go a great time without breathing, too,” Tabitha added, raising her right brow.
“Okay… can we take Valium?”
“I do not know what Valium is, but you can have some of our bag food. It’s very tasty,” she smiled, titling her head, while running her hand down Duchess’ back.
“This doesn’t bother you at all, does it?” D`nae asked, getting little more than a shrug of Tabitha’s shoulder.
“There’s a small community not far up where we can stop for a while,” Arnaud suggested, twisting around from the middle of the front seat, looking right at D`nae.
“I agree, I wanna stop!”
“We don’t have time,” Grady said never looking up from his n
otes that were spread out from the dash to his chest.
“Like hell we don’t. They sleep when we do and can only do so much in one night. I want out of this damn truck. I have to pee,” she claimed.
“But…” Tabitha started to say.
“Hush, I already know that part. Please, I just need a break from this feeling of plummeting over the fuckin’ edge, Grady!” Then she threw herself into the seat, looked out by mistake, and slammed her eyes closed.
“Duchess has been in here for some time, and I do need to pee,” Tabitha spoke up, winking over at D`nae, who reached out and took her hand.
Arnaud smiled back at D`nae, pulling his lower lip down, showing her that it was getting to him just as much, and he was ready to put his feet on solid ground as well. D`nae smiled back with true gratitude in her eyes, not only for him wanting to pull over and even acting like it bothered him, but sticking with them, leaving Alasdair and his ways. They would go in strong, because no one knew how many people or creatures that he had under his control, be it by power or money, but adding one more to their side helped even the odds, if even in a small way. Grady becoming one of the dark world was the most ironic. He served as an agent for years, fighting the very thing that he had become. Agents Against Dark Forces would either have to change their way of thinking, or come after one of the best agents they’d ever had. The point of his dedication was to stop the crimes committed by the dark side. Had they not been on the wrong side of the law, they too would still be alive, but he now faced the same prejudice that he once freely gave out.
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