Thrice United

by Lauren Dane

  “One day in town, a man approached me and told me that a Simon Decatur Senior wanted to meet me for drinks and dinner at Galatoire’s. Who was I to turn down an expensive meal at a fine restaurant?” He shrugged.

  “Decatur told me that his son was seeing Elena and that he wanted it stopped. As the son was two years older, I was behind that plan one hundred percent! When I got back I watched her like a hawk. She wasn’t allowed to go anywhere alone, or that’s what I thought at the time.

  “But she came to me one morning in tears and told me and her mother that she was in a family way. Oh I was so angry! What would people think of her? Of us? I told her that her mother and I would have to think about it and that we would talk more later. I sent Elise out to her crazy sister’s for the day and called Decatur and told him.

  “The man flew into a rage and showed up at the house with that crazy lackey of his, Piven. He went into Elena’s room and said a bunch of stuff, some kind of wizard bullshit, and she asked him what he’d done.

  “He told her he’d cursed her.”

  At that, Simon, Alex and the boys all gasped in horror but Daniel just shrugged and went on with the story.

  “He told her that she’d better hightail it out of town right then. That if she ever told anyone about the baby being a Decatur, ever got in contact again with her family, that every last Charvez would die, including the she-bitch in her womb.”

  Daniel looked up at Holly. “You look like her. Your mom. Coloring is different but you have her features. Can I have a drink? I just signed my own death warrant, I need a stiff one.”

  Holly went to the liquor cabinet and poured him two fingers of scotch. She handed it to Con who gave it to Daniel through the circle. Daniel polished it off in several gulps and put it on the ground next to him.

  “So anyway, Elena looked crushed. My heart went out to her because despite being a slut, she was loyal and a Charvez and you know how they are,” he said to the men in the room. “She’d never risk any harm coming to her family or to the baby she was carrying. She packed up some of her things. He wouldn’t even let her leave a note. Instead he made her write one to the boy, saying she didn’t love him and had run off with some other guy. Decatur gave her some cash and I gave her all the money we had in the house, it wasn’t much, and then Decatur did something else to her, said it would disguise her trail, and Piven drove her somewhere and I never saw her again.”

  Holly was crying and Isolde was next to her, holding her hand. “That’s why she never let me use my gift. She was afraid he’d find me! And that’s why she didn’t save her own life, she chose to die over risking me or anyone else. My god! She never dated, she lived alone without anyone but me for twenty-four years and all because Simon Decatur Senior—what, didn’t like witches? I mean, what was his reasoning behind it? It’s not like it was fifty years ago. Teenage pregnancy wasn’t such a huge stigma that he’d curse my mother to a life alone without her family—so cruel—just to stop his son from looking bad. Would he?”

  “I don’t know, Holly. My father cursed another person, that’s an executable offense for wizards on the path of light. Worse, he placed a death curse on humans and witches, which makes the death sentence automatic. He wouldn’t risk that for any old reason.” Simon paced.

  “Well, we’ve got him. He’s trying to kill Holly because she could find out about the curse. But why didn’t he kill Daniel?” Nate mused.

  “He needed me to back up his story to the boy and to the family. I been around witches enough to know how to extract a promise. He said that as long as I never told the truth he wouldn’t kill me or have me killed. I don’t know why I’m telling you all this now, it’s my death, but I can’t seem to stop it.”

  Holly didn’t bother telling him about Rhett’s voice. Daniel told them about how after Elise tossed him out Senior had given him half a million dollars and a new identity and he’d moved to Vegas, where he’d been living for the last twenty-two years. He also told them about Piven calling three years prior when Simon found out about Holly and the most recent call.

  “We’ve got to confront him tonight!” Holly exclaimed and began to pace. “That bastard! My mother, alone and scared her whole damned life because of this! I will hear his reason why before he dies!”

  “Honey, while this side of you is delicious and sexy, I think we should do some planning first,” Rhett said and everyone else agreed.

  “I know you’re angry and hurt for your mom, but Rhett is right. My father is a really strong wizard and Piven is strong and insane. We can’t just barge in there. He keeps his cadre of loyal wizards living with him at his house. We have to have a plan or we won’t make it five steps into the hall,” Simon explained, appreciating how Rhett and Nate protected his daughter.

  “What then?” Holly cried out.

  “We need to get him away from the house. It’s his magical center of power and also where his power base is people-wise. If we can get him into a containment circle much like this one, only charged so that use of magic in it wouldn’t work, then we could question him.”

  They planned on getting him to the Decatur mansion that next evening, where some members of the Keepers of the Accord, the wizard police, would be waiting to hear Senior’s confession. Holly had just wanted to kill him but that would have left her father vulnerable to a death sentence as well.

  “Rest up, darling. Tomorrow night is important and dangerous and you’ll need to be ready when you go up against my father.” Simon kissed her on the cheeks and he and her brothers all went upstairs to sleep, refusing to leave the house until the next day when they’d all go to the Decatur mansion to implement the plan.

  Some of the Charvezes went home for a while and others ensconced themselves in guestrooms or on couches and cots that Con conjured up for them. They left Daniel in the containment circle with a blanket, pillow and some food, and knowing he was safe in there and in there only, he was in no hurry to go anywhere.

  Rhett and Nate said their good nights and followed Holly upstairs to the master bedroom.

  * * * * *

  Once the door was closed Holly slowly removed her clothes and walked naked over to the bed. She would grieve for the life her mother could have had later, but for now she needed to reconnect with Nate and Rhett, remind herself why it was so important to be alive and fight.

  She sat at the foot of the bed and opened her thighs. She slid fingertips up her legs and lightly touched her pussy, over her mound and belly. She cupped her breasts in her hands and flicked her thumbs over her nipples and a wicked smile curved her lips when she watched both of them yank their clothes off.

  But instead of rushing over to her, Rhett grabbed Nate and pulled him tight against his body and began to kiss him.

  Holly watched, getting wetter and unbelievably turned on, as the kiss became one of those raging inferno kisses of teeth and tongue and lips. Rhett’s hands were on Nate’s ass, pulling him cock to cock. Nate growled as they pushed and pulled past Holly and ended up on the bed, first with Nate on top, then Rhett. Café au lait skin against olive complexion, the rough ropes of Nate’s dreads falling over and against the ebony silk of Rhett’s hair.

  Holly watched for long minutes as they thrust against each other and continued to kiss. It was a thing of intense beauty, the two men muscled and powerful, bodies sliding and grinding against each other. After she couldn’t take it anymore, she pulled her braid loose, walked on her knees to where they were and pushed a hand between them and sighed when she felt the pre-cum that had made them both slick. She wanted to watch until they made each other come and she promised herself she’d do just that when this whole thing was over but if someone didn’t push inside of her in under three minutes she’d expire.

  Nate snaked out a hand and pulled her down flat on her back. “Hello, sweetness,” he purred.

  She didn’t know if she had finally seen how much they desired her or if it was part of the transformation but she felt like a goddess and she couldn’t s
top herself from writhing a bit as his voice stroked over her like a physical caress. “Your voice seems more powerful now,” she said, breathless.

  “Now that you’re a vampire the bond is even stronger. You’re more sensitive to your mate. Mates,” Rhett said and she could tell that he worked his voice for her benefit because her back arched and her toes curled in delight.

  They both laughed. “I think that one night we’ll have to make her come over and over with the voice,” Nate said.

  “Hmm, maybe you’ll be the ones I use the voice on,” she said, her words projecting sex. Both of them groaned.

  “Oh yeah, that’s the ticket. Holly, you were dead sexy before but your voice is really good,” Rhett moaned.

  “So fuck me already,” she said with a laugh.

  Suddenly she was astride Nate and he was lowering her down onto his cock. “Oh yessss,” she hissed as he filled her up.

  Rhett was behind her, cock against her back. “You remember what I promised? Tonight’s the night, honey. I’m so sick over almost losing you and then you scrying and this whole plan for tomorrow. I want to make this a true threesome,” he whispered in her ear and she heard the top of the lube open up.

  “Yes, oh yes,” she moaned as she felt two slicked fingers stroke over the rosette of her anus. “I want your cock in there, Rhett, please.”

  “Holy shit. If you don’t fuck that tight little ass, Rhett, I’m going to,” Nate moaned as Holly’s pussy rippled around his cock.

  “Hold your horses, Nate, I’m not going in cold. Let me stretch her a bit,” Rhett mumbled as he pressed those lubed fingers into her and scissored them to loosen her. “That’s it, honey, relax.”

  Nate’s clever fingers played at her nipples and clit, keeping her just on the edge of climax, and at last Rhett pulled his fingers out and he took his cock in hand and guided himself against her.

  Murmuring gentle sounds, he urged her to relax and bear down as he pushed the head of his cock into her.

  “Ow!” she cried out.

  “Shhh, honey, you need to relax and bear down, I promise that once you do that, it’ll be better,” Rhett said in a shaking voice.

  “Better make it quick, I’m gonna blow,” Nate added.

  Holly did as Rhett told her and indeed it worked and he was able to continue to press his cock into her. Once the burning sensation passed she could feel the pleasure in the fullness of it.

  She was so hot and so tight that Rhett thought for a moment that he was going to come before he even got halfway inside of her.

  The way she was writhing, impaled between them, and making low moaning and whimpering sounds in her throat was only pushing both men closer to climax.

  “Now! Oh god, both of you, fuck me now!” she cried out, caught in a web of their erotic torture.

  It took a few strokes but soon as one man pulled out, the other pushed in, see-sawing into her body in rhythm.

  Holly couldn’t think. All she could do was feel, allow herself to drown in the overwhelming sensations of all of those nerve endings being sparked. She was surrounded by flesh and instead of feeling claustrophobic, it felt comforting. When Nate’s hand went back to her clit it only took just the smallest of touches to set off the chain reaction of her orgasm.

  On and on it roared through her in wave after wave of extreme pleasure. Her eyes were open but she saw nothing. She could feel the vibrations of Nate’s roar as he came and of Rhett’s long moan of her name but she didn’t hear. She only felt. Her body was part of a machine made up of the three of them. Slipping, sliding, thrusting, together that way they created a sexual engine.

  She felt herself being lowered to the mattress and moments later a warm, wet cloth cleaned her up and she allowed herself to be ministered to, unable to let go of the ripples of pleasure still moving through her.

  “Now that’s what I’m talking about,” she mumbled dreamily and curled up against Rhett and sighed when Nate settled in behind her.

  Chapter Ten

  Fed and dressed and steeled as much as they could be against what was to come, they stood and went over the plans once again. Simon took the boys back home and Con would shimmer Holly in first and then Nate and Rhett. Aidan had already been put in place with Alex in the house, awaiting Senior’s arrival, and Simon and Alex would create the containment circle before Senior got there.

  Several members of the Keepers of the Accord were placed strategically around the house so that they could hear the confession.

  Nate was not happy that Holly was going first but she wouldn’t hear it any other way. “Look, it’s going to be a matter of seconds until you are both there with me. It’s my fight, I’m going first. For my mother and the life he stole from her.”

  Nate had tried for several more minutes to change her mind but Rhett already knew it was a lost cause and finally just interrupted and said so. As long as they were both at her side, they’d make it work. They had to. Throwing his hands up with a sigh, Nate gritted his teeth.

  “Damn it, Holly! I am an FBI agent. Can’t you trust me to do this for you? You don’t have the training for this. You could get hurt. Or worse.”

  “Nate, I do trust you. But this man ruined my mother’s life! I have to be there when he gets taken down. I swear to you on my life that I will let you do the leading and the work. I don’t want to get hurt and I respect your training. Please, please don’t make this about stuff it isn’t. I’ll choose you if that’s what you’re asking. I’ll stay here. But I want to be there. For closure.” Her eyes were sad and the anger drained from him.

  Rhett looked at Nate with one brow raised and Nate sighed. “You really should bottle that up. No one else in the world could have made that argument to me and won. But you. Stay behind me and Rhett and do what you’re told. Okay?”

  She smiled and went on tiptoes to kiss his chin. “Okay.”

  Holly waited while Con got Rhett and Nate in place and took his place with them.

  The house was quiet but Holly felt the tension in the air as Senior arrived with Piven and an argument ensued with Simon. Holly stood at the top of the stairs, just out of sight, and listened.

  “I’m going to give you one last chance to tell me what happened with Elena, Father,” Simon said.

  “You know what happened, I told you twenty-five years ago, I told you again three years ago and I’m telling you again today. She was a whore, she got knocked up by some loser and took off with him. She probably had ten kids off him and lives in some hovel in the middle of nowhere.”

  Holly’s eyes narrowed but Nate squeezed her shoulder to keep her still.

  “How about this? You knew that she and I were seeing each other secretly. You went to Daniel Pilotte and conspired to keep Elena and me apart. But that didn’t work, did it?”

  There was a long silence and Simon continued. “Yes, you should look worried. Shall I go on? Yes? All right then. When you found out from Pilotte that Elena was carrying my child you rushed over there and you cursed her and forced her to get out of town. You bastard. You placed a death curse on her and she ran for her life and the lives of my child and her family. You paid off Pilotte and you’ve lived knowing that you utterly devastated Elena Charvez’s life as well as my daughter’s and my own. What I don’t understand is why?”

  “Come on, sir, let’s get out of here, you shouldn’t have to take this!” Piven said urgently to Senior.

  “Oh yes, turn tail and run, Father. That’s what you do best, isn’t it? Were you so scared of a fifteen-year-old witch who had a gift with healing that you ruined her? I’ve always known you were ruthless but I had no idea you were cruel.”

  Holly stood and waited but heard nothing. They hadn’t gotten him into the containment circle yet or her father would have used the code.

  “You have no idea what was at stake,” Senior said at last.

  “So tell me!” Simon yelled. “Come on over here and face me like a man and tell me why the hell you did it because I can’t understand it! Tel
l me why you had my daughter killed the night before last while you’re at it.”

  “She didn’t turn up at the morgue, Simon. Don’t lie to me. I’m guessing that those breed vampires made her into one of them.” Senior made a derisive snorting sound and Rhett narrowed his eyes at the slight. “Breed” was a derogatory term for vampires who were made instead of born.

  “You still took her life as a human. She’ll never see another sunrise because of you and I’ll know why!”

  “You know you can’t record my voice, don’t you, Simon?”

  “There are no recorders or cameras on trying to capture your confession, Father,” Simon said.

  “I can tell you’re not lying. And it’ll just be your word against mine if you try to push this. She can’t testify, she’s not alive anymore.”

  Man, these wizards were some kind of people! Holly couldn’t believe that she wouldn’t be able to testify against him because she was a vampire! Jerks!

  “Just tell me already!”

  Holly could tell the plan wasn’t working. He wasn’t moving from wherever he was at and if he didn’t, they couldn’t put him in a circle. She chewed a fingernail as she considered what she’d do.

  “She was just some girl from a family below our status. She trapped you, Simon. You’re so stupid sometimes. Your emotions never were very disciplined. She trapped you into getting her pregnant so she could get married into our money and our family. I wasn’t going to risk your future for some slut.”

  “She wasn’t a slut! She was good and kind and compassionate and I loved her. She wasn’t capable of that kind of behavior,” Simon said angrily.

  Holly turned to Nate. “I know I promised to wait but please! Nothing is happening down there. Let me go.”

  Nate’s eyes widened and his face hardened. Rhett banded his arm around her waist and she leaned into him. “Please.”

  Rhett looked at Nate over the top of her head and Nate exhaled agitatedly. “Fine. But stay behind us or I’ll kick your hot little ass, got me?”