Sweet Destiny (The Jessica Sweet Trilogy Book 3)

by Aliya DalRae

  M ason paced in front of his desk. Tas had called over an hour ago to fill him in on the events at Miss Sweet’s home. The only good news? Nox had finally shown his face and was cooperating fully.

  As if that situation weren’t enough for one night, the Soldier, Martin, stood at attention as he reported on a body he’d found at Horror Mansion. Viper was still out on patrol, so Merlin was the only Warrior left on premises. He sat in a chair facing Mason’s desk, searching the Undernet on his ever-present laptop.

  By Mason’s order, Martin brought the body of the indigent man to the Compound for autopsy. Having their own doctor on hand had become something of a coup for Mason, and he privately wondered why he had never requested one before. The Soldiers and Warriors were all trained in first aid and field emergencies, and their skirmishes with the ferals rarely turned deadly, at least not for Legion personnel. However, since the Sorcerers came to town, things had been different. Jessica Sweet’s presence had been a contributing factor as well, and based on current events, he didn’t see life quietening any time soon.

  So, having Allon in their ranks had become a necessity, one he’d fought the Primeval over and ultimately won.

  For the secrets he’d kept, the lies he had told, the Primeval would most certainly have put Allon to death without Mason’s intervention. Somehow, he had been able to convince the Primeval that the male’s sentence would be better commuted in service to the Legion for the entirety of his life. It was a compromise that suited everyone involved, most particularly Allon.

  “Sit down, Martin,” Mason said to the Soldier. He was young, this one, relatively new to Mason’s territory, and to the Legion itself. With blond hair and grey-green eyes, the Soldier had an air of confidence not often found in new recruits. He also had ambition. Mason wouldn’t be surprised to see him rise to Warrior sooner rather than later.

  The Soldier hesitated, then perched himself on the edge of the seat next to Merlin, who glanced up from his precious computer to stare at the Vampire next to him.

  Mason returned to his chair behind the desk and studied the two males before him. When he spoke, Merlin twitched before returning his attention to the device on his lap.

  Mason addressed Martin directly. “So, there was no sign of feral involvement, nothing but the footsteps in the dust?”

  “No, sir. I was careful not to disturb the pattern, and I took pictures and sent them to Merlin. They were little, sir, the footprints. Almost like a child’s.”

  “And the bite marks? These were also small?”

  “Yes, sir, the body was covered with them, like a pack of starving baby Vampires had attacked the man.”

  “Vampires don’t run in packs, Soldier.”

  “No, sir.”

  “But I take your meaning.” A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts, and Mason snarled. “Come.”

  The door opened and the good doctor, himself, walked in, manila folder in hand.

  “Allon, has the autopsy finished?”

  “Yes, sir, the preliminary tests, at least. I felt you would want this information as soon as possible.” Allon was well over a thousand years old—though he’d never confirmed exactly how much over—with greying hair and wrinkles that only the truly ancient among the race ever achieved. “May I?”

  Mason took the folder from the doctor and flipped through the contents as Allon continued his report.

  “The body was definitely exsanguinated, drained of its blood, but that was not the cause of death. It seems someone suffocated the man just prior to feeding upon him, though there were no marks to indicate the method employed. That, in itself, is odd for a feral kill—they tend to prefer their meals alive and screaming at the start. However, the bite marks are what I found most interesting.”

  Mason looked up from the folder. “How so?”

  “There were dozens of them all over his body. However, by measuring and comparing, they appear to have come from only two sets of teeth. Two Vampires did this, not an entire Brood. And sir, they are quite young.”

  Mason’s only reaction was a slow blink.

  “If I may, sir, I’m not convinced that ferals are the culprits here. I think we could easily be dealing with a pair of hungry children who have no guidance as to how to survive in this world. You are aware, I have some experience in this area.”

  “With Raven.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “So, we need to keep an eye out for a pair of kids wandering around my town accidentally smothering and draining people.”

  “Well, they are at least doing the draining.”

  “Okay. Let’s keep the smothering bit under wraps for now. Warrior level only.” Mason looked at the Soldier to ensure he understood. “I’m not convinced the kids are responsible for that part. They may just be taking advantage of some serial killer’s handy work, which is a whole different problem. Martin?”

  “Yes, sir.” The Soldier sat up straighter, if that was possible.

  “Form a search party. I want these children found and brought to me. Now, before they’re ruined permanently.”

  “Yes, sir,” Martin said, and sprang to his feet.

  “And Martin?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Go easy on them. I don’t want them damaged.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Y

  ou don’t need to baby sit me.”

  Nox raised his head from where it rested in his folded arms and regarded Raven. His breathing had evened out, his fangs completely retracted and the spark in his eyes had died down to his natural blue. The same sapphire blue as Nox’s own eyes.

  “Not babysitting,” he replied. “Watching after. There’s a difference.”

  “Seriously, Nox, you’re very breathing is scraping my last nerve. I swear, I’m not going to go all Incredible Hulk just because you’re not here to keep me from it. I’m calm. Irritable, but comparatively calm. And I would be calmer yet if you would just let me be for a while. I need to think.”

  “Thinking is the last thing you need to do, my brother. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. I know you said you wanted to remember everything, but I can still take it away. Do you really think you will be happier with these memories in your mind?”

  “The worst has passed, with your help. If you make me forget, eventually the memory will return, or someone will remind me, and the pain will be fresh again. It wouldn’t be safe for anyone nearby if I were to experience those memories anew. You know I’m right.”

  Nox stood and began to stretch but stopped when his head connected with the ceiling in this confounded space. A low growl escaped his throat as he rubbed his skull. “Why is this even a room?”

  Raven made a sound, it’s meaning nothing that Nox could discern, then said, “Go, make yourself comfortable. I’m not going anywhere and trust me. You’ll know if I need you.”

  “You’re feeling that as well?” That strange sensation of shared emotions Nox had only read about.

  “Go, Nox. I’ll be fine.”

  Nox looked uncertainly to the door and Raven gave a weak laugh.

  “You’ll be fine,” Raven assured him. “The Legion is under the impression that you may not have been entirely responsible for your actions. Mason wants to talk to you, that’s all.”

  Nox hesitated still, unsure if his brother was giving him the whole truth. Not that he doubted the Legion’s lift on their shoot-to-kill order—he was still breathing, after all—but the whole situation with Fuhrmann continued to boggle his mind. The Sorcerer’s suggestion had been so complete, so real. Even now, it was difficult for Nox to differentiate between what had been planted in his brain by magic, and what was, indeed, his own brand of wickedness.

  He had never considered himself evil, the idea of murder had always been distasteful to him, which made his lifelong imprisonment so difficult to understand. Still, Fuhrmann’s suggestions had supplanted his own thoughts. And the fact remained that the Sorcerer would not have been a
ble to do that if Nox hadn’t held at least a grain of malevolence within him. The whole thing had him doubting his own morals.

  None of this, however, would help his brother in the here and now.

  “You need me, I’ll know,” Nox said tapping his chest to indicate the sensations they had alluded to earlier.

  Raven nodded. “If I need you, everyone will know.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  N ox poked his head into the kitchen, hoping to find it empty. He didn’t know what he planned to do should he encounter one of the other Vampires, but Raven was right. Staying in that cramped space with his emotionally volatile brother was doing neither of them any good.

  He stood in the cellar doorway, listening intently for movement within the house, seeking a safe place for his retreat.

  “Shut the damn door,” Raven yelled, and there was nothing to it. Nox stepped boldly into the kitchen and pushed the door closed behind him. Strange, but leaving the confines of the tiny cellar and entering the spacious kitchen—it left him feeling trapped. With the female and the humans in the next room, and two of the three males on the porch, there was no escape for him.

  He’d had no intention of revealing himself tonight. A quick, silent good-bye to what might have been and he was off to gods-knew-where. Someplace far away from the Legion, the Primeval and from human girls who put strange ideas into his head, both literally and figuratively.

  Speaking of Jessica, her screams had subsided. He reached for her mind, not sure if he could touch her from this distance, and was surprised when he heard her whisper aloud, “Nox.”

  Are you alright, love? he sent. Are you injured?

  Oh, Nox! What have I done? It had been weeks since he’d felt her thoughts in his mind, and it was like a salve to his weary spirit. Had he really missed these silent conversations? Apparently, more than he realized.

  You survived, love. You survived.

  But at what cost? Her thought was laced with so much pain it felt like needles in his brain. He ignored the sensation and reached out to her the way only he could.

  The Shifter sacrificed himself to protect you. Had he not, you would most certainly be lying dead in his place.

  It should be me, she cried. It should be me! I would never ask anyone to do this. Not for me. Never for me!

  That’s the thing about love, Jessica. You don’t have to ask. When you’re loved as much as you are, people offer themselves up without a thought. Trust me on this. I’ve read about the subject extensively.

  Oh, Nox.

  Nox chanced a glance out the window. Jessica was still on the ground, still holding the body of her former lover. Her mourning was apparent to those around her, but her thoughts were still with Nox.

  How is he? she sent.

  He’s resting. It was all he could think to say without adding to her distress.

  Does he hate me? This thought coming to him felt small, like that of a child desperate for a mother’s love. He had experience in that area as well, though it was not from a book.

  He’s hurting, love. You understand.

  Can’t you make him not hurt anymore? Can’t you take it away? Make him forget?

  I’ve done the best I can with the parameters he’s set. He doesn’t want to forget what you’ve done, and really can you blame him? All I could do was put a lid on his emotions and take away his desire to kill, which was no small feat, love. His urge was quite great.

  Well, he got what he wanted there, didn’t he? Nox heard the sob in his mind as he watched her through the window, clutching the body closer to her, her shoulders shaking with the power of her grief. He had nothing to say to that. In truth, his brother’s beast had committed only half the murders he’d intended this night.

  You need to give it time, love. It’s too soon to process all that’s happened.

  I don’t know how to do this, Nox. I’ve screwed it all up.

  That you have, love, that you have. But you’ll handle it as you have everything in your life. One moment at a time.

  I’m so tired of handling things Nox. Why can’t it ever be easy? NO! Wait! Please!

  This last was not for him. The Shifters had approached her, prepared to take their kinsman home.

  He watched as she clutched the body tight to her breast, listened as she argued with them, both mentally and vocally. Not yet were the words he heard her repeating silently. Not yet…

  The giant, rusty-haired Vampire was on the ground whispering to her. When she finally released the man in her arms, she sent her thoughts to Nox in a scream.

  Help me Nox! Make it all go away! But she knew as well as he did that she was the one person on the planet whose memories he could not manipulate.

  Chapter Fifteen

  O nce I had relented, all I could do was watch. The folks from the Clowder lifted Malcolm from the ground, from my very arms, and carried him to the waiting van. Inside, however, I was screaming, begging for Nox to do something.

  Malcolm’s absence left me cold, like icy spikes were assaulting my body. I sat on the ground, reduced to a mere observer, as those strangers drove away with one of the best friends I’d ever had.

  I knew that now. Knew that the cat who had shown up out of the blue all those months ago had given me a kind of silent friendship I would never find in another person, human, Vampire or otherwise.

  A memory floated through my mind, one of feeling safe when King Kat was around. I remembered laughing at myself. What on earth did I think that little cat could do to protect me, when my life was so full of powerful, dangerous creatures out to do me harm? Well, tonight he showed me, and he died for his efforts.

  People are forever telling their loved ones that they would die for them, to protect them, but so few are ever put to the test. Malcolm had never said the words to me, but actions speak louder, right?

  I was freezing. It took Harrier wrapping his arms around me, lifting me from the blood-soaked earth, for the depth of the cold to register. Icy tremors started in my middle and rocked my body. I wrapped my arms around Harrier’s neck as a fresh wave of misery washed over me, through me.

  Tas and Perry stood guard on the porch. When Harrier opened the screen door, Tas nodded to give us the all clear on entering the house. Apparently, Raven was tucked away in the cellar, sleeping off his brain whammy.

  Harrier carried me into the kitchen, and Nox was the first person I saw, standing by the window. Our eyes locked and he smiled, telling me silently that he would be there as long as the Legion Warriors allowed it.

  A flurry of movement behind him interrupted our communication. Piper and Alex rushed to my side but stopped dead in their tracks when they saw me. Or maybe Harrier gave them a look. He was good at giving looks that had people changing their minds about things.

  “I’m okay,” I choked, and signaled to Harrier that it was fine to put me down. He relented, but fortunately kept a firm arm around my shoulders, as my legs weren’t as steady as I thought they would be. Alex and Piper were there in an instant, pushing my uncle aside as they moved in to replace his support.

  “Malcolm?” Alex whispered in my ear. I shook my head, and they both hugged me tighter.

  “Oh, Jessica,” Piper cried, tears of her own mingling with mine as she pressed our cheeks together. “I’m so sorry.”

  We stood like that for a long time, them holding me up, consoling me as only your best friends can. But the events of the night had taken their toll, and I had to sit, to lay down, something.

  “I have to…”

  “Let’s get her upstairs,” Harrier said, sensing my needs through our “family connection.” I agreed, and we all made our way to the stairs, though I couldn’t help a sideways glance at the cellar door. I wanted to feel bad about what I had done to Raven, about how my cheating was the reason for him going full blown beast on everyone. For a while there, I did.

  But now that I was here, in my own house, surrounded by family and friends? All I could see was the look on Malcolm’s face when he to
ld me he loved me, the blood on his mouth as he gasped his last breath. And the look in Raven’s eyes when he promised to end me.

  Chapter Sixteen

  N ox retreated into the adjoining room the moment the humans descended upon Jessica. She needed them, and he would only be in the way. However, he’d forgotten about the female. A prickling sensation on his neck told him he was being watched and he turned to find her staring at him from the corner.

  With less caution than he thought she should have shown, she approached him and said, “It really is uncanny. You look remarkably alike.”

  “We’re twins.” A brilliant response, though it prompted a hearty laugh from her as she walked past him to close the door between them and the kitchen.

  “You’ve a gift for stating the obvious,” she said, and he liked the way her voice glided over the words. “I’m Rachel, by the way. Jessica’s…Harrier’s sister. The big guy with Jessica,” she added when Nox shrugged.

  “Come, sit with me while they get Jessica settled,” she said, gesturing toward a comfortable-looking sofa in front of a small fireplace. The fire in the grate was dying down. What certainly had been cheerful and inviting now seeming sad, a fitting picture for the house’s current mood.

  He sat stiffly where the female, Rachel, indicated, flinching when she sat next to him rather than in one of the cushy—and distant—chairs in the room.

  “I can’t tell you how grateful I am, we all are, that you were here tonight,” she said. “If not for you, there’s no telling how many might have died.”

  Nox looked around the room, taking in the rustic décor and the beige carpet that looked brand new. “Isn’t one too many?” he asked.

  She cocked her head and narrowed her eyes at him, the doubt in her expression forming an acidic knife that stabbed at his very soul.

  “I’m sorry to be so blunt,” she said, “but given recent events, you can imagine my surprise to hear you express any sense of value for life.”