Dirk turned to Casey, breaking his connection with the men. Using their mind link, he gave her instructions. There's a problem. I need you to stay right here. Don't move. Don't think. Don't do anything until I get back.
Casey nodded, nervousness showing in the firm set of her lips.
Dirk brushed a kiss across her mouth and silently moved away. He had to head the hunters in another direction. If he didn't, he knew the twins would make short work of them and the hunters wouldn't know enough to complain when two naked women accosted them in the middle of the woods.
Dirk couldn't let them walk straight to their death. He had to steer them away.
And he had to be quick about it.
* * * *
Casey watched Dirk disappear into a thick part of the woods. She crouched down in an effort to make herself small. She didn't know what the problem was but she was going to try to do what Dirk said. Besides, she didn't want to try to deal with those two fire-haired demons on her own. She was smart enough to know that she wouldn't win the battle.
Dirk had said there was backup on the way. She wished that whoever was coming to help would hurry up and get here. Casey was getting scared again. Without Dirk close by, she felt vulnerable.
“And with good reason, my sweet,” Connor whispered in her ear.
Casey sucked in her scream. Damn it, Dirk told you not to think, she scolded herself. She had let her guard down on her thoughts and Connor had zeroed in on her like a bat on an insect. Casey stood. Her insides were shaking but she managed to glare up at Connor. She gritted her teeth and kept quiet.
Connor lifted his hand and ran one long finger across her cheek. He tilted his head. His hair fell over his shoulder, silver in the pale moonlight. Casey tried to control her breathing as Connor's finger traveled down along her neck, then traced the ridge of her collarbone. But she couldn't keep herself from trembling when his hand continued down, his fingertip grazing the swell of her breast.
Connor cracked a smile. He stroked her breast through the material of her shirt. “You tremble beneath my touch,” he said, his voice low and hypnotic. His eyes traveled to the breast that he now cupped in one large hand.
Casey took a deep breath, willing herself not to show any expression. That had been the wrong thing to do. Her deep breath had only succeeded in pressing her breast against the hand that held it.
Connor chuckled low in his throat and began to tease her nipple with his thumb. Her fear and the friction of the material against her skin caused her nipple to bud.
“See,” Connor crooned, his fingers playing over her, “your mind fights but your body responds.'
Casey began to shake in earnest. She didn't want to issue a cry for help, didn't want to call Dirk back from whatever mission he was on but her body was betraying her.
Connor increased his ministrations, moving closer to her. “Listen to your body, my darling,” he said, lowering his head to whisper in her ear. “You shouldn't fight it. I am not human but we are all animals when it comes right down to it, aren't we? Let us act on our instincts and pleasure each other.”
Casey's breath shuddered through her. She closed her eyes and bit her lip. Tried to cause herself pain to combat the sensual response Connor had ignited in her body. She bit down hard, tasting blood.
In an instant, Connor tilted up her chin and swiped his tongue along her injured lip. “Mmm,” he murmured. Then his mouth was on hers in a hungry kiss.
Casey's instincts kicked in. She shoved at his chest and twisted her head away.
Connor allowed her to break away from him, chuckling again. “You will be mine, you know,” he said.
Casey wiped a hand across her mouth in disgust. “Over my dead body,” she spat.
Connor roared with laughter, clutching his sides. “How true, my sweet. Yes, it will be over your dead body because dead is what you will be when I turn you into my immortal mate.”
Casey's eyes widened in true horror. She pictured Connor draining her of her lifeblood, binding her to him. “I'd kill myself first,” she said. Adrenaline kicked in and she took off. Casey ran as best as she could, Connor's laughter echoing behind her. She had taken off in the opposite direction of Dirk, drawing Connor away from him. She stumbled, catching herself on a tree trunk. The bark was like sandpaper on her hands. She swallowed the pain and shoved off, running again.
She had to get away.
Away from the monster that she feared really did have the power to turn her into one of his own, draining her love for Dirk as he drained the blood from her body.
* * * *
Dirk stepped in front of a man with a loaded shotgun.
“What the hell?” the man said, raising the barrel of the gun. He quickly lowered it, realizing that Dirk was a man and not something to be hunted.
“You have to turn around,” Dirk said, noting the second man coming up behind the first. The second man kept his gun up, level with Dirk's stomach.
The first man laughed. “Who you think you are, boy?”
Dirk racked his brain for the appropriate answer. “A.T.F.”
“What say?”
“Alcohol, tobacco, and firearms?” The man looked at Dirk, confusion wrinkling his forehead. Dirk sighed. “I'm a federal officer.”
The change in both men's demeanor was instantaneous. Both shouldered their guns and started backpedaling. “I get 'cha,” the first one said. “We'll just be going.” They turned and moved off at a quick pace.
Dirk took a deep breath and started back the way he had come. As he moved, he sought out Casey's mind.
Dirk's heart skipped a beat. She had blown her cover. Connor was after her.
Dirk kicked into high gear, moving fast and not caring about moving silent. As he blasted through the trees and brush, he dug through his pack, pulling tools out of it and shoving them into his back pockets.
Battle awaited.
* * * *
Drake and Holt moved through the darkness. Drake's heart was stone cold. He had made sure that the young male vampire's remains were nothing but charred bone and now he was ready to do some major damage to the rest of the Clutch.
Holt walked steadily, his axe held in one meaty hand. “I smell them,” Holt said, his voice low and deep.
Drake could sense them too. They were getting closer.
“This way,” Holt said, turning off the trail that must lead to the mine.
“You sure?” Drake questioned.
“Yes.”
Drake followed Holt's instincts. He was probably right. Though dawn was approaching, there was still hunting time left in the night. The Clutch wouldn't be returning to their lair just yet.
The two began moving more slowly, not wanting to alert their prey too soon.
* * * *
Casey was out of breath. She'd lost all sense of direction. Her hands burned like fire and her face stung from the slaps of tree branches as she barreled through the woods, heedless of the damage she was doing to herself. She stopped and bent over, struggling to catch what little breath she had left in her lungs.
Something moving through the trees caught her attention. It must be large, she thought. She heard running footfalls and branches breaking in its path. It was a short distance away, ahead and slightly to the left of her position. Her first thought was that Connor had found her. She tensed to run.
Casey, come to me. It was Dirk's voice in her mind, their connection reestablished. Relief washed through her and she took off in the direction of the sound. Moments later, Casey burst out of the brush and right into the clearing where the twins rested. She had traveled in a wide circle.
“Look at that,” Bobby Sue said, rising from the ground. She began to move toward Casey.
Dirk appeared from out of the trees on the other side of the clearing.
Casey's heart leapt. “Dirk!”
Bonnie Lou was already on her feet, lithely crossing the clearing in Dirk's direction. Bobby Sue stopped her advance on Casey, turning her attention to wha
t her sister was doing. Casey's eyes widened as the twins approached Dirk like two prowling felines. She caught Dirk's eye.
No matter what happens, his words echoed in her mind, stay there. Don't come near me. Dirk broke contact. Casey wrung her injured hands. What was he planning?
* * * *
Dirk dropped his pack behind him, freeing his hands. “Come here, you bitches,” he said with a smile.
The twins both hit him at the same time, knocking him to the ground in their fervor. Dirk landed on his back, the wind knocked out of his lungs for a moment.
Hands ripped at his shirt, shredding the cloth. Fingernails scraped his flesh, leaving burning trails across his chest. He managed to take one deep breath before one of them covered his mouth with her own, sliding her tongue inside as she moaned. He dug his hand into her hair, returning the kiss, sucking her tongue. The taste of her made him wince. The other pulled at his jeans, her fingers scrabbling at his zipper He could hear her whine, the zipper fighting her.
He had a plan. He just hoped that Casey could understand. He hoped that he could bring himself to carry it through. It wasn't going to be easy. One at a time, he would destroy the twins. Then, it would be Connor's turn. Dirk cloaked his thoughts. The one clawing at his jeans to get to his dick was going to have to wait her turn. He jerked on the hair of the one who was devouring his mouth, pulling her back. “You. Down there,” he said, shoving at the other's head with his free hand. “You watch while I do her. You'll get your turn.”
The one at his crotch rose up, her eyes flashing. “You better leave some for me, Bonnie Lou,” she said, scooting a few feet away.
Now Dirk knew which one was which. He chanced a glance across the clearing at Casey. Her eyes were wide, both hands clasped to her mouth. What he was doing was hurting her. He could see it. A stab of pain shot through his heart. He sent one thought, strong and pure, to her. I love you. Trust me.
Then he turned back to the job at hand.
He pulled Bonnie Lou back down to him, capturing her wicked mouth with his own. She moaned into him, throwing one leg over him, straddling his waist. He buried both of his hands in her hair, gripping her roughly. She began to rock her hips against him, wetting his stomach with her juices.
Dirk felt the burning hunger creep into him again. He pushed the hunger, and the urge to bite, away. Dirk used one hand and snaked it under his hips. His fingers worked a wooden stake out of the back pocket of his jeans where he had hidden it. There was another in the other back pocket. He drew the stake from underneath him and hid it alongside his waist.
His hand came back up and Dirk jerked her head away from his mouth. “If you want to fuck me, do it right,” he growled.
Bonnie Lou sat up and slid her hands down to his zipper, fingers flying.
Dirk had her right where he wanted her.
* * * *
Casey's eyes stung with tears. Dirk had said to trust him. She was trying but it wasn't easy while watching him with that bitch. She knew that he loved her, their bond sealed when he had taken her virginity. But. She couldn't watch any longer. Casey turned her back on the scene in the clearing, only to come face to face with Connor Fagan.
He grabbed her shoulders, turning her back toward the clearing. Moving one hand up to grasp the back of her neck, he forced her forward. “Let's get a closer look, shall we?” he said into her ear. “I wouldn't want you to miss anything.”
Casey struggled but it was no use. Connor was just too strong. He shoved her in front of him, not stopping until they were a few feet away from Dirk and Bonnie Lou. Casey clenched her teeth as Connor held her in place. “Look at them,” he said. “Does it make you want, make you need?”
Casey breathed deep, willing herself not to cry. Her eyes locked with Dirk's. One word entered her mind, his voice, soothing and strained at the same time. Trust…
Bobby Sue stepped in front of Casey, blocking her view. “Connor, I need you,” she said, her eyes smoldering with lust.
“Not now,” he barked.
“Where's Mitchell then?” Bobby Sue whined, her eyes dropping to Casey's. “I need to be fucked.”
A bitter taste welled up in Casey's mouth. Such vile creatures.
“Mitchell won't be returning, I'm afraid,” Connor said in a lilting voice.
Casey stiffened.
“Why?” Bobby Sue asked.
“Dirk over there has destroyed your little playmate.”
Bobby Sue's lower lip quivered for an instant. Then her eyes lit with a hellish fire.
Connor's hold on Casey suddenly disappeared.
“Here, my pet, take your revenge by taking his playmate,” Connor said, shoving Casey into Bobby Sue's arms.
* * * *
Drake froze at the edge of the clearing. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. There were five people in the clearing, only one of them a Raven. Three women—two of them naked and most definitely vampiric, one other looking like she had been through a cat fight. Drake was unable to tell on which side the clothed woman was—human or vampire. Then there was the male. Tall and powerful, Drake knew right away that it must be Connor Fagan.
Dirk was currently underneath one of the naked females and from this vantage point, Drake couldn't tell if Dirk was in his position by choice or by chance. The clothed woman, who must be the woman who had disappeared, was in the other naked woman's arms and Drake could tell that it was not the place she wanted to be.
Dirk was their main concern though. Holt, who was crouching beside Drake, literally radiated an aura of hatred. “Plan?” Drake whispered.
“I'll take the one on Dirk. You take the one on the woman. Then, we'll take the male together,” Holt said gruffly, his voice barely above a whisper.
Both men tensed…
* * * *
Casey felt the fangs enter her neck like two hot nails, driving deep. She struggled but couldn't break the hold Bobby Sue had on her. Casey's vision started to dim. Bobby Sue was attached to her neck like a leech, sucking deeply. Darkness crept into Casey's mind. A strange buzzing filled her head. Her legs felt like water. They started to buckle. The wet sucking noises grew louder, filling Casey's world. She thought of Dirk, wishing that they had had more time.
Then Casey's world went utterly black.
* * * *
Dirk's mind reeled. Bobby Sue lowered herself to the ground, carrying Casey down with her, her fangs buried in Casey's neck. Bonnie Lou, oblivious to the bloodletting, still fumbled with Dirk's zipper as she sat straddled over his hips. Dirk closed his hand tightly around the stake and raised it, adding his other hand for strength. “Look at me, bitch,” he said, his voice dripping venom.
Bonnie Lou looked up.
Dirk saw surprise register in her eyes a millisecond before he drove the stake into her chest all the way to her backbone with one blow.
A large shape loomed above them.
In the next second, Bonnie Lou's head was gone. Dirk jerked sideways, shoving the collapsing body off of himself. He looked up to find Holt standing above him, his axe dripping blood. Holt nodded, then turned away.
* * * *
Connor had seen them coming from the edge of the clearing, one wielding a hand axe, the other a wooden stake and hammer. With blinding speed, Connor pulled Bobby Sue from Casey and threw her toward the one with the stake. He lifted Casey's limp body from the ground and cradling her in his arms, he exited the clearing in the blink of an eye. As he moved through the brush, nothing more than a blur, he searched for Casey's heartbeat. It was there, but faint. He was going to have to finish turning her. He picked up speed, heading for the mine, knowing full well that the Ravens would follow.
Connor would welcome them.
Then, he would feast.
* * * *
Drake was shocked when the male threw the redhead at his feet but that didn't deter him from impaling her while she tried to scramble away. He hammered the stake home right dead center of her full breasts, pinning her to the ground.
Holt was there a moment later, doing what he did best. Before Drake could wipe the sweat from his eyes, Holt had severed the head.
* * * *
Dirk shoved to his feet, his heart pounding. The scent of blood filled the clearing, making his incessant hunger rage. He needed a transfusion. Soon. Before he gave into his newfound need. He stepped over Bonnie Lou's head and was by Drake's side in an instant. He looked down. Bobby Sue had also been dispatched.
“The male,” Holt said, weighing his axe in his hand.
Dirk whirled in a circle, his eyes searching. “Where's Casey?”
* * * *
Connor entered the mine and made his way to the back of the entrance chamber. He carefully placed Casey on a rock ledge, laying her on her back. Her breathing was shallow. Her heartbeat slow and thudding. She'd last for a bit longer.
Connor chastised himself for allowing Bobby Sue to drain her almost to the point of death. He had so wanted to savor the sweet, innocent flavor of her blood once more. As he lit two candles, he sighed. Maybe there was enough for him to drink a small draught so that he could commit her taste to his memory before it became overly tainted with the stale essence of vampire.
Connor ran his hands over his face. He was tiring. Dawn was coming. And it had been a very eventful night. But there was no rest for the wicked and he had visitors coming. He dropped his hands and took a deep breath. The tang of coal oil filled his nostrils, making him grimace. He had been a bit too lavish with it this time, coating himself thicker than usual. He reeked of it. Some things were necessary though. He put it out of his mind and turned his gaze on Casey's supine body.
* * * *
Dirk had only taken enough time to retrieve the blowtorch and igniter from his pack before setting off at a full run for the mine. Drake and Holt followed, the three of them crashing through the brush.
When they reached the mine, Dirk didn't hesitate. He burst inside, Holt and Drake right behind him. “Fagan!” he said, his voice echoing through the chambers.
Dirk The Savior - Book 3 of the Raven Series Page 12