Sandman (Forbidden Love Series II Book 5)

by Danielle James

  She struggled against her attacker, whatever it was, kicking and screaming out.

  “Rachel!” Somnus’ voice called to her from somewhere far away. “Rachel it’s okay!”

  “Help me!” she cried just before it all became too much and her world went black.

  Chapter Eleven

  Somnus couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Rachel was flying through the house. Well, not really flying, but she sure as fuck was getting the hell out of there at warp speed. Speed that was much too fast for a mere human. When he caught her in his arms just before she would’ve run right out the front door, she fought him. Hard. He knew because he had the black eye to prove it. He could just feel the socket swelling and his pulse beating in his eye.

  A part of him had wanted to let her go, but he knew she would have run headlong into the streets of L.A. and probably got herself killed. She’d gone limp as he held her tight, and he knew she had hyperventilated until she’d passed out.

  Which meant he had only minutes to figure out what the hell happened.

  Lifting her gently into his arms, Somnus ground his teeth together. He was good and properly pissed, but he knew his mother and aunts would not have done anything to harm her. Not on purpose, anyway. But still, she was obviously very shaken by what they’d told her. “Mom!” he yelled as he gently laid her on the sofa in the living room. His entire family had found their way into the living room and were standing around like a crowd at a car wreck. “Mom!”

  “You don’t need to shout at me,” Azerial said from right beside him. He hated it when she did that. He could understand Rachel’s anger at him when he did the same thing.

  “What the hell happened?” he demanded.

  “Do not curse at me,” she warned him.

  Somnus immediately felt bad for even raising his voice. “I’m sorry Mom, but seriously? She was running outta here like the fires of hell were on her ass. What did you find out?”

  “We’re curious about that too,” Jacque said, moving in closer. “Everyone get back so I can make sure she’s okay.”

  Everyone except for Somnus backed up so Jacque could have a look at her. He was a doctor, after all. He touched her face, listened to her heart and her breathing, then smiled. “She’s fine. I believe she only passed out.”

  “I don’t blame her,” Frankie said from the other side of the room.

  “Again,” Somnus said, with no small amount of irritation. “What happened?”

  “She freaked out,” Frankie told him, “because we told her she has powerful lineage.”

  Somnus turned his head away from Rachel to look at his aunt. “What kind of power?”

  “Big three power?” Frankie said sheepishly.

  “Fuck me,” Somnus said, running his hand over his head. “Which one?”

  “We don’t know,” she told him honestly. “I would’ve asked, but she wasn’t having it. Any of it.”

  “Which is why we made the protection amulet,” Serena said, joining the conversation. Everyone had settled into the room, listening with rapt attention. “I thought she might react this way, so we made the amulet to protect her.”

  “It is a wonder you caught her,” Angel said. “She was moving very fast.”

  “I’ve never seen her move that fast,” Somnus admitted. “Not even in her dreams.”

  “It’s a survival mechanism,” Samuel added. “Fight or flight. She flew. And in the process, she must have accessed her power.”

  “We probably woke it up,” Serena said. “We went looking for it.”

  “That can’t be good for her,” Brea chimed in. “She doesn’t know anything about it or how to use it. It could be dangerous.”

  “Again, the amulet,” Frankie said.

  Somnus looked at the necklace around Rachel’s neck. It was made from black cord which was the perfect length to fit her frame. How his aunts knew what size to make it was a mystery. In the center, a small amethyst circled in silver wire hung from it. He knew his aunts had blessed it. “Will it protect her from her power?” he asked.

  “No,” Frankie told him. “Only from bodily harm by others. She’ll need to know how to use her power. Whatever it is.”

  “Can you teach her?” he asked.

  “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Frankie told him. “My nephew’s mate will be one badass chick when I’m done with her.”

  There was that word again. Mate.

  “I can teach her to fight,” Leigh offered with a smile.

  Somnus nodded. Most of his extended family had learned to fight by sparring with Leigh. And why not? Leigh was a dragon shifter and probably stronger than any of the vampires. Frankie and Serena would teach her to use whatever power she had, and the rest of them would welcome her into the family with open arms.

  No. She was not his mate.

  “Yeah. Uh, she’s not my mate,” he finally said.

  “No,” Gage agreed sarcastically. “Of course not.”

  “Shut up, Gage,” Somnus told him.

  “Hey, is that any way to speak to your king?” Gage shot back.

  “In this house, you’re my uncle,” Somnus reminded him.

  “And I can kick your ass,” Gage said.

  “In your dreams,” Somnus laughed.

  “Do you guys always act like teenagers?” Rachel asked, rubbing her eyes.

  “Yes, they do,” Brea told her. “How are you feeling?”

  Rachel sat up and shook her head. Somnus could see the struggle in her eyes. “I’m not sure,” she finally told them. “Did I dream that? Did I fall asleep?”

  “No,” Azerial said, finally speaking. “It was just a little too much information to take in all at once.”

  Everyone moved aside so Azerial could get closer to Rachel. Somnus didn’t want to, but he knew his mother was exactly what she needed to help her get a handle on things.

  “I don’t understand,” she admitted.

  “You will,” Azerial told her. “In due time. For now, let’s get you a glass of water and let you rest. You need time to process all you’ve learned today.”

  Rachel shook her head. “I want to go home.”

  Azerial looked at Somnus. “Then Somnus will take you home,” she announced. No one argued, not even Rachel. The finality of the goddess’ tone was convincing enough.

  Somnus nodded. He would take her home. He would stay with her no matter what. He would protect her from her nightmares and from herself if need be.

  “Frankie will go with you,” Azerial continued.

  “That’s not necessary,” Rachel told her.

  No, Somnus thought. It was selfish of him, but he wanted to be the one to be there for her. “I can take care of her,” he said.

  “I know you can and will,” Azerial said. “But you also have a job to do and someone needs to be with her at all times. We can’t risk her being alone, especially with a nightmare demon on the loose and dream gods disappearing. There’s too many variables.”

  “How did you kno—,” Somnus started. “Oh, never mind. You picked it out of my head.”

  “You were projecting,” Azerial told him. “We can all hear what’s on your mind.”

  Somnus felt a split second of pure horror. The things he had been thinking lately were not proper for his mother’s ears! And the nightmares? He didn’t want her to know that. When no one asked any questions, he said, “So, everyone knows...”

  “Yeah,” Gage told him. “But no worries, we’re here to help however we can.”

  “I don’t need a babysitter,” Rachel reminded them.

  “No, but you need backup,” Frankie said. “Besides, I want to go to the mountains. I hear it’s gorgeous this time of year.”

  “I will miss you, mon amour,” Jacque said, kissing his mate on the side of her neck.

  “I can come back if you need me,” she promised.

  “Do I get a say in any of this?” Rachel asked.

  Somnus looked at her, hoping she could see the pleading in his ey
es. He needed her to cooperate right then. So far, she hadn’t been very good at it.

  “Take Frankie first,” Azerial said.

  “Got my bag,” Frankie told her. “Packed it this morning.”

  “I’ll be back in a minute,” Somnus promised. He took Frankie by the hand and ghosted them both to Rachel’s home in West Virginia. Then he released her and ghosted right back to Rachel.

  “Holy shit, that was fast,” Rachel said, shaking her head.

  “Your turn,” he told her.

  “I don’t know about this,” she admitted. “Seems sketchy.”

  Somnus' family laughed as he wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close to his body. He tried to ignore the delicious way she smelled, or how perfect her body felt pressed against his own. Before his thought train went any further down those tracks and his family heard all the things he was thinking, and before Rachel could argue, he ghosted her back to her home.

  Chapter Twelve

  One minute she was standing in the Knight Estate in Los Angeles, California, and the next she was at home. On the other side of the country! She'd thought to fight Somnus about ghosting her there, but she didn't have time. Not one oppositional word burst from her mouth before the deed was done. It was like blinking her eyes. Now that she stood in her own home, safe and sound, all her apprehensions fizzled out.

  "Well, that's the way to travel," she said, quickly moving away from Somnus. The heat of his body seeped through her clothes and it was making her think things she didn't want to think.

  "I told you so," he smiled.

  Rachel huffed. "I have work to do."

  "Nice place," Frankie said, sitting on her sofa. "I've been waiting patiently for, oh, I don't know, about three minutes now."

  Rachel turned to her and gave her an apologetic smile. "I told you, this isn't necessary."

  "Nonsense," Frankie said, uncrossing her legs and standing up. "I needed a little vacation."

  "I can take care of myself," Rachel muttered under her breath. "Would you like some tea?"

  Frankie shook her head. "I'm good, thanks."

  Oh, that's right, Rachel thought. Frankie was a vampire. She drank blood. There was no blood hanging out in Rachel's fridge. Where did she expect to get it from? Her heart started to pound in her chest. Surely, she didn't think...

  "I can hear your brain working," Frankie told her. "And no, I have no intention of feeding from you. I can only feed from Jacque anyway."

  "But you're here and he's there," Rachel reminded her.

  "I know," she nodded. "I fed this morning and if I need to again, I'll just have Somnus take me home for a few."

  "You can't drink blood from a bottle?" Rachel asked her. She'd seen Somnus do that. Or had she? That bottle was just as full when they walked away as it had been when he first brought it to his lips. He’d held it, but he never took a drink.

  "No, I can't," Frankie told her.

  "Do we really need to talk about this right now?" Somnus interrupted.

  "Don't you have work to do?" Frankie asked. "The sun is setting and you have other charges. Go, Dreamweaver. See to your job and then come back here. Rachel will be safe with me."

  Somnus shifted from one foot to the other as if he were trying to think of an argument, but in the end, there was none. He nodded at Rachel and then disappeared.

  Rachel stared at the spot where Somnus had just stood, her dream god, before turning her attention back to Frankie. "Why can't you drink from a botte? I thought that's what vampires did these days. Is it an allergy or because he turned you?"

  Frankie laughed, sitting back down and patting the cushion beside her. "Come, sit down and I’ll tell you whatever you want to know."

  Even though Rachel thought she knew enough about vampires, there had never been any in her life before now. She wanted to know more about them. She wanted to know more about Somnus, too. He intrigued her in a way she couldn't explain. It went beyond his stunning good looks, and more than the way he smelled. There was something about the fierce look in his eyes and the way he wanted to protect her. The way he treated his family and respected his mother. All those things and more. She decided to go ahead and sit down. "You're not doing another spell on me, are you?" she asked.

  "Not unless you ask," Frankie said. "I would like to look deeper and see if I can find the root of all that latent power you're hiding, but not at the price of your comfort."

  Rachel shook her head. "Tell me about the blood. Why you can't drink it."

  "I'm one of those vampires that can only survive on the blood of my mate," Frankie began. "Mating. for a vampire. is very intense; and so much more than a typical marriage. In fact, a vampire can be married and not to their mate. But when or if they meet their mate, that marriage will crumble."

  "Then why would they get married?"

  "Because they want someone to spend their lives with. Because they love that person. But a mate is different. It's far more than love. A vampire's mate is their perfect other half. The one soul that completes them. The one person the vampire cannot live without. If a vampire lives for eternity without ever meeting his or her mate, it's not a big deal. However, once they cross paths, it's all the vampire can think about. He wants to protect her, take care of her, drink from her... And once a mating is completed, the vampire will die if they’re ever separated. Some can still drink donor blood, but most don’t want to. It feels like cheating."

  Rachel digested this information for a minute. "Has Somnus met his mate?"

  Frankie smiled. "Why would you ask that?"

  Rachel shrugged. "I saw him with a bottle of blood. He raised it like he was going to take a drink, frowned, and then put it back down. He never did drink it."

  "Perhaps he has," Frankie told her with a twinkle in her eye. "I wonder who it could be."

  So did Rachel. Suddenly she wanted to do bodily harm to whoever this bitch was. She wanted to find her, punch her in the throat, then toss her off a bridge over some obscure river in the middle of nowhere. How messed up was that? She was fantasizing being violent to someone she'd never met. Change the subject. That was a good idea. "Tell me about your family," she suggested, turning sideways and tucking her feet underneath her. "They all seem so... normal."

  "They really are," Frankie said on a laugh. "The guys are just overgrown permanent teenagers."

  Yeah, she could see that. Especially with the pranks and constant banter. "How do you put up with that all the time?"

  "It's not so bad," Frankie told her. "The guys are immature, but they're great. Any one of them would give their lives to protect anyone else in our family. It's grown so much over the years. At first, it was just the guys in the band. Sebastian wasn't a musician, but he was the PR guy for them. Then Angel met Brea."

  "She's the redhead, right?" Rachel asked, completely engrossed in the story already.

  "Yes. When they met, supernaturals had just started living out in the open, and she had some reservations about them. Angel convinced her to stay at their home and plan a party for him. While she was there, he somehow managed to piss her off, then win her heart all over again."

  Rachel could see Brea having a clichéd redhead temper.

  "Then Sebastian. Lord, the things Jessica put him through. They met at a bar right before Jessica took a job for Angel. She was, and still is, their accountant. She’s also my best friend. At the time, we were roommates. Sebastian wanted no part of having a mate, but Jessica is scrappy and she tortured him until he admitted he loved her. We managed to get ourselves in some trouble, and that's when I met Jacque. I didn't stick around though. I left town, convinced I wasn't good enough for him."

  "Did he come looking for you?" Rachel asked, leaning forward.

  "He tried, but I ignored all of his messages. I wanted to call him, to see him, but I was so sure he would be better off without me, I just kept away. It wasn't until a few years later that I came to my senses and went back.

  “Of course, while I was hiding, that w
as when Rebel met Leigh. She's a dragon shifter with all kinds of power. Rebel was stalking her for all intents. Needless to say, their relationship is special. When they mated, she shared some of her dragon magic with Rebel. Now he can go outside during the day, eat food, and even shift into a dragon if he needs to.

  “That was when Antonio died. They missed him so much, and Jacque was convinced that he could hear him calling for help. When a necromancer showed up on their doorstep, Jessica called me. That's how I ended up going home. We pulled our magic to do a spell to let us talk to Antonio, but it was a lot of magic and we ended up bringing him back for a short time. As it turned out, Macy, the necromancer, was his mate. She died, but so did he, again. Now, they're together in the Heavens.

  “During all of that, Gage realized that Serena was his mate. Great, right? Except Serena's mother had promised her at birth to a Fae prince on the other side of the world. Gage had to reveal that he was King, a fact he really didn't want anyone to know, in order to have Serena.

  “That was about the time Samuel got sick. Before that, he'd been the human-vampire liaison at the local police department. Jacque found cancer in his brain, though. He chose to be turned, and that was how he met Azerial. She'd been watching over us for years, but she couldn't stay away from Sam.

  “Rebel and Leigh have a daughter, Toni. Angel and Brea have a daughter as well, Jade. They’re both grown and mated. And of course, you've met Somnus.” Frankie drew in an exaggerated breath and smiled. “I think that about rounds it up."

  Rachel had listened intently, devouring the information that Frankie was freely giving her. Some of it would be common knowledge if one knew where to look, but some of it was clearly private. She trusted Rachel, she realized. Frankie trusted her, and Rachel vowed to herself to never break that trust.

  “I know you won’t,” Frankie told her, patting her knee and standing up. “And no, you weren’t projecting, you said it out loud.”