Once Upon A Midnight... (The Firsts Book 9.5)

by C. L. Quinn

  Chione sat on the sand, as heated as the water still rolling against it, her shoes off, the fingers of one hand drawing light patterns in the dry sand.

  Beside her, Donovan watched the slim fingers moving sand back and forth. Hours ago, they’d filled the sky with that same sand, but now his mate pushed it around in circles that only spanned a few inches.

  “Remarkable night,” he said.

  “Ummm.” Chione was distracted.

  “What is it, babe? I know you well enough to know that something big is on your mind.”

  Chione faced Donovan, her hand still, her eyes bright in the glow of the slowly decreasing magic-lit ocean.

  “Yes, I am thinking of something big.”

  Her eyes dropped to Donovan’s lap and he grinned.

  “Oh. You want to play with the new vampire-ramped-up toy.”

  “I really do. This has been an incredible visit, but I find that I need you more and more.”

  “I feel the same way. But baby, I know why you want to ride me several times each night, other than mind-blowing orgasms and that we love each other beyond reason.”

  Chione’s smiled lessened, just a little. “You know?”

  “I know. Babe, the child will come when it is ready. I want you, always, you know that. But it’s all right. Our baby is just waiting for its grand entrance.”

  “You’re right, of course. Still, I cannot wait to meet him or her.”

  “Me, either.”

  “Donovan…” Chione stood and pulled her lace dress over her head. “Come into the water. Remember that night in Seattle after we first got back from Brazil?”

  God, did he! He didn’t think he’d forget even if he did live the thousand or more years Chione said he would. She’d taken him into her mouth and used some of their earth magic to blow him almost out of the water.

  “Come with me.”

  He watched the most beautiful woman on earth run into the sea naked. Using his newly mastered vampire skills, he was beside her, naked too, and propelled them deeper into the water.

  “My turn, though,” he told her, and dived below the water.

  Chione treaded water as long as she could with Donovan’s tongue and fingers driving into her, tugging the hyper-ready clitoris to stiffness while he caressed the sensitive skin beside it. She had to admit he had learned how to use vampire speed with his tongue to excite her so much that her entire body seemed to vibrate. God, she wasn’t going to get a child this way, but she would never, never, turn this down.

  Barely breathing, she gave in and let him take her all the way to heaven, the spirit amulet around her neck that all first bloods wore to channel their power, glowed, becoming visible on its own. She couldn’t think right now with Donovan’s tongue working its way to her breasts, but something in her mind stored the memory that her spirit amulet wasn’t supposed to do that when she was just having sex.

  Tamesine closed her own wound and shoved Claude away from her. “Enjoy the pain.”

  Marc smiled. His woman was the gentlest person in the world…it was amusing to see her try to be even a little cruel. He’d been told that she had a pretty awful past, had hurt people then, and although he’d seen glimpses of her past in their spiritual journeys after they met, he still had trouble imagining it.

  If he could take this trouble from her, he would. He’d take the weight of the world before he’d let anyone or anything upset her if it was within his power. This was a case where it wasn’t.

  But when she walked back to where he waited on the single bench against the opposite wall, she dropped down and reached for him. This, he could do. This was what she needed most right now. Marc held her, his hands roving over her strong back before they pressed her into his shoulder.

  “Beautifully done again.”

  “Yeah. I intend to be more vicious with the feedings, less careful. But I know that this man has tentacles. Although that doesn’t worry me, it makes me more cautious because of who he could hurt. I really want to end his life.”

  A noise to the side of the room made both Marc and Tamesine look up. A nervous looking man held a tablet up, recording their candid moment.

  The next second, Marc sat alone on the bench as Tamesine was gone and now stood in front of the nervous man, the tablet computer in her hand.

  “Go,” she said quietly, the threat obvious, and the guy ran up the stairs. She looked at her mate.

  “I don’t know how he thinks that we’re going to let him live when this is finished. Is Koen here?”

  “He’s upstairs with Xavier.”

  “Let’s get him down here. There is somewhere we need to go.”

  Nodding, Marc was up the stairs.

  Tamesine walked over to Claude, who, with the new blood infusion, was barely coherent. “You were right. One day, we will meet for the final time. Enjoy the days you have left.”

  Claude watched the beautiful face above his waver, then disappear. Vampire movement, he knew it well. As every cell fired off, he tried to move beyond the pain and let himself enjoy the fact that he finally would be the superior being he knew that he was always meant to be. Another round of pain blew into his mind and he couldn’t process any information again. Just before it did, he realized what she’d said. It was precisely what he expected. Which is why he was set to disappear forever.

  “Take off all your clothes now, please.”

  Marc knew exactly what she wanted, he was in desperate need, too. He did as he was asked and stood, naked, erect, waiting, on the isolated beach halfway between the house that Claude had drawn them to and Koen’s villa.

  “Purge him from my mind and body,” Tamesine told Marc, now naked herself, and pushed him onto the sand. It was cool against her skin, but she planned to warm them both up.

  Her thighs on each side of his, she slid back and grabbed the tip of his cock gently with her teeth.

  “I need you inside me, and I need to drink. I fear this ugly event is corrupting me,” she said as she pulled away. “I am hungry for you, as much as ever.”

  No other words needed spoken as Tamesine slid back up Marc’s body, her tongue and fingers lingered, then struck, hard and fast, her teeth buried in his neck. While she drew his life-giving blood into her, he positioned her on top of his cock and drove into her. With wild abandon, they moved against each other in a dedicated desperation, hard and fast, to an explosive orgasm as Tamesine pulled her teeth from Marc.

  Sitting fully upright, the glow of the sea outlining her naked body, Tamesine lifted her arms and stretched to the sky.

  “You are perfection, my mate.”

  Marc bucked Tamesine off and rolled on top of her.

  “My turn,” he said, and licked her neck before he bit.

  Tamesine forgot all about Claude.

  Merry had all but three of the screws out of the panel. She’d been careful about placement because they didn’t want the panel to come loose until it was ready to come down completely, so the remaining three were on the upper corners and in the center of the top of the panel.

  “Amazing work for a florist. You wield a mean bra clasp.”

  “Motivation. I want that dinner.” And perhaps to see if this weird relationship they’d begun might have a future.

  “It’s going to happen.”

  “I think so, too. This last screw in the center is nearly out. Taggert, be ready to help me capture the panel. It’s probably pretty heavy and I’m not sure that I can control it when it comes down.”

  “I’ll be ready. We don’t want it banging, or our jailer will be in with that damn automatic rifle. Just, hold onto me so that I don’t drop you.”

  “That’s the plan.”

  Several moments later, Merry stopped moving.

  “Okay. Just a few turns and the last screw is out. Ready?”

  “Ready. Be careful.”

  Keeping one hand on the panel, she turned the screw six more turns and it backed out enough that the weight of the panel pulled it free. Merry dropped
the clasp and grabbed the panel.

  “Whoa.” It was a solid sheet of quarter-inch thick metal, and she tipped a little, but she managed to keep it from crashing to the floor. Immediately, Taggert lowered her, placed her feet on the floor and grabbed the panel from her.

  “Thank God,” he whispered. “Something finally went right in this clusterfuck.” He leaned it against the wall and came back to Merry. “Great job. By the way, just in case you misunderstood, you have also been a wonderful thing that went right.”

  He picked her up and swung her around.

  “Victory,” she said into his ear. “Get me back up there so that I can see what we uncovered.”

  She could feel him nodding. With a quick hoist, she’d gotten good at this already, Merry was back against the wall and let her hands explore the darkness. She moved her fingers around the perimeter of the vent cover.

  “It’s big, Taggert, big enough for us to crawl into. It has…” She felt around the edges again. “There are only 6 screws holding it in, and I’m sure they’re not as long as the ones from the panel. I’m ready to work on them right now if you are.”

  “You’re sure you’re not too tired?”

  “No. I’m exhilarated.”

  “I can do it, then. We just need to find the clasp.”

  After a brief search on the cold tile, Taggert proclaimed success. “Got it.”

  Fifteen minutes later, the vent cover, considerably lighter than the sheet metal that Claude had placed over the vent to block it, came off in Merry’s hands. She gave it to Taggert and returned to the hole high on the wall. Warm air felt good on her skin as she leaned in.

  “I can see some light, just slightly, about 20 feet down on the same side. If you can give me a push a little higher, I think I can get up there.”

  “I guess that’s the best plan. I’d hoped that I could leave you in here safe, get out, take down our armed guard, and let you out of this room, but I don’t know if I can get up that high.”

  “I’m lighter weight than you, too.”

  “By a significant amount. Okay, but Merry, be careful, be quiet. You can’t let him see or hear you.”

  “I won’t.” She hesitated before she tried to crawl into the vent. “If something goes wrong, Taggert, I want you to know that you’re the best date I’ve ever had. Actually, the best I’ve ever had.”

  She felt his hands on her buttock, his fingers caressing her intimately. “Ditto,” He finally said. “I’ve never really connected with people very easily, but you, my Christmas surprise, you are easy to connect with. Gentle, warm, smart, beautiful, sexy as hell.”

  “Wow. I guess I’d better get us out of here. I’ve a lot to live up to.”

  “No risks, Merry. I mean that.”

  “Yes, daddy. Hoist me up.”

  With all his strength, Taggert lifted the woman he was beginning to care for up as high as possible before he cupped each of her feet and pushed her the rest of the way into the vent.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Fine,” Merry answered, quietly, afraid that her voice would reverberate through the metal to the man outside their door. “I’m going toward the door.”

  “Okay. I’ll be right here.”

  “You better be. Wish me luck.”

  The disembodied voice that wavered above his head was unsettling. Taggert hated letting her take point on this. His macho hero orientation made it almost unacceptable, but he knew there was no other choice. Now, all he could do was wait for her to come back to him. That they had gotten this far, though, was encouraging. Maybe they really would get to have that dinner soon.

  Although the vent was made of sturdy metal sheeting, it still flexed, so Merry had to be especially careful not to let it do so under her weight. As she crawled along, she couldn’t help an ear-to-ear smile. They were going to get out of here. They were going to live! She looked forward to actually seeing and meeting Taggert in the light of day and perhaps to get to know each other.

  He’d called her his Christmas surprise. He had no idea how little she herself had connected with men in her life. Mom’s boyfriends had been assholes, every damn one of them, so Merry’s romantic ideas had shut down from very early in her life. For her, men were not reliable, all they wanted was to get into your pants, and then use you until they got interested in the next pretty face or hot ass. That had been her experience. But something told her that this man was not like that. Their sex had been satisfying and shared, warm, and although they were not in love, it had felt loving.

  She was inches from the next vent, light coming into the darkened tunnel, the first she’d seen in two days. Carefully, she kept low and slid forward, her eyes scanning the hallway outside the door of their prison. No one was in sight. Straining to look beyond, she still did not see anyone down the long corridor of buzzing fluorescent lighting. So their guard did not stay outside the door. God, if only she could somehow get down there and get the door open before he came back. Unfortunately, she was going to have to try to break the vent out and that would create a lot of noise.

  Still, there was hope. She was out of the room.

  Before she went back, Merry decided to continue down the vent to try to get a better idea of where they were and if there might be something or someone who could help them. She could see another vent ahead at about the same distance as the first one. When she arrived in front of it, and peered down, she determined that it looked like a worker’s break room. They were in an office building? Maybe. But since it was the Christmas holiday, there wouldn’t be anyone around that might help them. This room was as empty as the hallway.

  Glancing right, she continued to the next vent. It came off a fancy office, nice desk, big comfy sofa, windows all along the back. It was dark outside. Again, the room was empty.

  As she turned to go back to their room to report her findings to Taggert, a man walked into the office below. Staying still, she watched as he went over to a hidden refrigerator and pulled a tall can of beer out. Popping the cap, he dropped onto the big couch and released a sigh. He glanced toward a table beside him and lifted a cell phone from the glass top.

  After hitting autodial, he smiled as he answered someone’s hello on the other end of the line.

  “Peg, hey, baby. Yeah, I’m stuck here for a few more days. What? Nah, I wish I could be there with you for Christmas too, but you know my boss. He wants it, it better happen or heads roll. Yeah, he’s an asshole, but the payday is sweet. You got a Christmas gift for me?”

  The man unzipped his pants and shoved his hand inside, the fingers moving under the denim. “I sure got one for you.”

  Merry averted her eyes. That, she did not need to see!

  He continued to aggressively massage himself as he spoke. “I gotta take care of two people for Claude tomorrow, then stow the bodies. Shame, too, you’d like the guy. And the girl is something. We could get a nice foursome going. Yeah, I know how much you like groups. We’ll go to Avery’s New Year’s party. He always has couples who like to swing. Listen.”

  The guard really went at it now, his hand moving back and forth quickly, and held the phone close as he yelled into it when he came. Puffing, he grinned. “That’s what you’re missing, baby. I’ll be home soon. Yeah, love ya, too.”

  Ugh! Of all the moments she would have to remember, this man beating himself off was almost more unwelcome than hearing him confirm what Taggert had said. No matter what, he planned to kill them. She had to get back.

  It didn’t take too long to get back to the vent that had no light coming from it.

  “Taggert,” she whispered.

  “Here. Back down, feet first, I’ve got you.”

  Once she was on the floor, Taggert held her much longer than she expected. She pulled away and he dropped his arms.

  “He’s planning to kill us. Tomorrow, regardless of what happens with the asshole who kidnapped us, his orders are to kill us.”

  “I had no doubt. These people are ruthless. So, we have to g
et out of here. What did you find?”

  “The next vent leads to the hallway outside of this room, then there’s a break room. The one past it leads to someone’s business office. The guard has been using it to sleep, drink beer, and…never mind. Here’s what I think. We make sure that he’s in the office, maybe when he goes to sleep. Then I head the other direction and kick out a vent. There’s a chance he could hear, but it’s far away enough that I think I can do it without being discovered too soon. Then I go for help. What do you think?”

  “I think that’s our best option. So, we wait until he goes to sleep, and we do this.”

  “Yeah.”

  It could go wrong, Taggert thought. The guy could hear the noise and know that they were up to something. But she’d be safe. If she got moving, got out of here, at least she would be safe. It was a good plan.

  Eight

  Claude no longer just choked down Tamesine’s blood. He’d moved to actively desiring it, so he now grabbed her arm and drew hard. What a waste, she thought, since he would be dead as soon as possible.

  The conversion was happening quickly for Claude. Partly because he had already had some of her blood earlier in the year and his body recognized it. Mostly because her blood was extraordinarily powerful. Changing him was definitely the low point of her life. To give someone like him immortality and possibly one or two minor first blood talents was just unacceptable.

  He’d be finished sooner than most. He would be vampire made from the blood of one of the most powerful vampires ever known.

  Tamesine knew that he could do a lot of damage.

  But this was Christmas night, and it was all about family and the children. Xavier had agreed to stay behind to watch Claude so that all of the parents could be there tonight with the first blood children’s first Christmas celebration.

  It was a perfect night. Crystal clear skies arrived tonight ahead of Santa Claus, bringing beyond-brilliant stars in a sky built of moondust and magic. When Tamesine and Marc finally joined everyone else down at the beach, she was pleased to see that they’d moved the Christmas tree out onto the sand. On the ground, near the tree, the children sat together listening to the story of Santa Claus, beautifully told by Eillia.