by Alanea Alder
She looked at him confused, but then realized her other hand was still down his pants. The entire front his groin was covered in that sticky substance she had enjoyed earlier. "Have you been coming this whole time?" she asked bringing up her fingers to lick them clean. She sighed happily, it tasted better than she remembered.
He swallowed hard; his lips were dry from where he'd been breathing through his mouth. "Yeah," he said, his voice hoarse.
Fighting back a giggle at his befuddled expression, she rolled on to her back and pointed across the room. "You should go wash up," she suggested smiling.
He shook his head. "I can't move, don't want to move, want to stay here forever," he panted.
"Well, at least get your pants off. When that dries, you will be one big itch."
Groaning, he swung his legs over the bed. When he started to stand, his legs didn't support him, and he fell to the floor.
"Are you okay?" she asked, laughing. Before she could get up to help, he was already pulling himself up.
"Don't you dare move out of that bed," he threatened. "Doc said you were to stay there until lunch."
"I fed. Look." She undid the sling and flexed her arm.
"Wonderful, now stay in that bed." On shaky legs he went into the attached bathroom, and she heard the water run for a few moments. A minute later he came out and gave her a flat look.
"What?"
"I've never had a mess like that before."
"You are welcome," she said and then yawned. Declan smiled and climbed back into bed with her. He dug out his phone from his pocket set an alarm.
"You must like naps," Kari said, closing her eyes. "This is your second one in two days."
He grunted. "We've had an eventful two days," he protested. He pulled her close, his nose rubbing the back of her neck. Smiling, she knew she wouldn't be awake much longer when he started to purr. She could see why Meryn liked having Declan to sleep with; he was better than any chamomile tea.
*****
When the alarm went off, they smiled at each other as they got ready for lunch. She washed her face and made sure her hair wasn't sticking up in every direction. They left the laboratory infirmary and headed to Magnus' living quarters.
"Are you sure it is okay for us to eat lunch here? I mean, I know that he is my boss, but I thought only royals were supposed to be on Level One."
"Well, there's a lot going on right now, so he's been meeting with Adriel, Aiden, and Bethy. I think he'd want you there to help with planning, which means I get invited since I'm your mate." He looked down at her with a boyish grin.
"You seem particularly happy about that. You also seem to be forgetting you have accepted an advisory role, so they may want you there too."
"Have you tasted Sebastian's cooking? I think I've eaten better in the past two days than I have in probably the past six years."
They walked in, and Magnus jumped up out of his chair. "Thank the gods you are well! When I heard what happened, I feared the worst."
Kari held up her hand. "I am doing much better. Declan allowed me to feed." Magnus nodded his understanding and kissed her cheek. "Please sit. We were just going over what we have lined up for the rest of today."
She watched as Rex looked over at his brother. Seeing Declan's goofy smile, he began to visibly relax.
Magnus opened up his portfolio and looked down his at his legal pad. "Kari has lined up a few interviews later for Declan. I have been called into a meeting with the full council, and I have asked Aiden to join me." He paused and looked up. "Kari, I think it would be a good idea if you were to sit in on the interviews with Declan."
Beth nodded. "That is a wonderful idea, Uncle."
"Why?" Declan asked.
"It might make some of the women more comfortable to speak if another woman is in the room," Magnus explained. "Plus, it will fulfill a sense of propriety about them being alone in a closed room with a man. Some were reluctant to leave their mates with Micah in the room, but were comfortable with the idea of a mated pair asking the questions."
Declan snorted. "That's archaic. Are they afraid Micah being in the same room would besmirch their mate's honor?"
Adriel shrugged. "That is the world we live in right now, the one we are trying to change."
Aiden turned to Magnus. "What can I expect from the council?"
"There is me as the vampire Elder of course," Magnus began. "Then we have Rex here as shifter Elder. Dagda Vi'Ilsimir is our fae Elder, and Alastair Primrose is the witch Elder. Dagda is a good man; we get along. He has a mate and a young child. His eldest, and the reason why the council moved to the city, is training to be a warrior in Éire Danu. I know Dagda expects great things of him."
Aiden nodded. "I've heard of them both. I know that they've worked with my father on many occasions."
Magnus flipped a page and was about to begin speaking again when the door flew open, and a tall, lanky man with dark brown hair and wild expression entered the room. His hazel eyes zeroed in on Bethy. "You're pregnant!" he screeched.
Her face lit up, and she jumped up out of her chair. "Tarragon!" She raced around the table, and just as she was about to reach him, her foot caught one of the chairs legs, and she lurched forward. Both Tarragon and Kuruk caught her before she hit the floor. Tarragon began to shake uncontrollably. "You're pregnant! What are we going to do?" he howled in despair.
Tarak walked up behind him to help prop him up. "It will be okay. We can get through this," he said encouragingly.
Bethy wrapped her arms around the twitchy man's neck and hugged him close. "It's so good to have you home, Tarragon."
He returned her hug, a gentle smile on his face. He pulled back and looked her in the eyes. "You're well?" He looked over her, confused. "You're not in the process of healing, there's no bruises?" Perplexed, he looked around.
Gavriel cleared his throat, and all eyes went to him. He waved at Tarragon.
Tarragon's face cleared. "Ah, yes. You're mated now, I remember. He looks like the kinda chap that can keep you from harm. Maybe this won't be so bad. I've learned a lot more healing spells, but if I had known you were pregnant..." his voice trailed off.
Tarak chuckled. "We would have never seen you again. You would have been holed up in some dusty library in Storm Keep, looking up spells for infants."
Tarragon paled. "We need a NICU."
"And why would we need a neonatal intensive care unit?" Bethy asked.
Tarragon just gave her a look as if to say 'why wouldn't we need one with your child?'
Magnus waved a hand at him. "Arrange for whatever you need or whatever you think you may need or whatever you think you could ever possibly need for any and every worst-case scenario you can imagine," Magnus ordered. Tarragon looked relieved.
"You can add the NICU to my laboratory. Evidently, it's becoming this city's infirmary," Broderick said sourly.
Magnus winced. "We have never really needed an infirmary before. The only person who ever got hurt was Bethy."
"Maybe we should have one," Bethy suggested. "I mean we have shifter children here now; I'm sure they will get into tumbles. Plus, you never know what may happen. Declan and Kari both needed the facilities recently, and Dr. St. John has expressed an interest in maintaining an infirmary here."
Tarragon swayed looking ill. "What if her child is like her? What if we have to do it all over again?" he asked. Kuruk paled and started shaking his head. He looked over at his brother. Tarak wrapped an arm around Tarragon and steered him out of the room. "Let us go enjoy a celebratory drink," he suggested.
Tarragon's eyes were still unfocused. "Yes, right, celebrate. A drink would be lovely, thank you." He was still trembling and shaky as the door shut behind them. Kuruk, with one hand on Bethy's shoulder, steered her toward her chair.
Magnus continued as if the poor healer hadn't just had a nervous breakdown. "Next, I have a surprise for Meryn."
"A surprise?" Meryn asked, perking up.
"Yes, I heard you refer
to something, and I realized I do not think we have one here. I believe you, Nigel, and Neil were talking about an Xbox." He grinned.
"You didn't?" she whispered.
Magnus nodded enthusiastically, and Sebastian came into the room with a wheeled cart. Stacked high were three unopened Xboxes. Meryn squealed and launched out of her chair. She ran over to Magnus and began peppering his face with kisses. He began to blush furiously and tried to fend her off her affection. But to anyone watching, it didn't look as if he were trying very hard.
"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She raced to the cart and began looking over the boxes. "We can play online now, and you got us headsets and extra controllers. We can kill zombies all we want!"
Magnus chuckled. "I am glad that you are feeling better Meryn."
Declan saw her eyeing the Xboxes and raised an eyebrow, she shrugged. They'd find out soon enough.
"Are you feeling better?" Bethy asked Meryn.
Meryn stayed facing the games. "I'm okay. But, like, your city sucks."
"Meryn!" Bethy exclaimed.
"It does. I thought it would be all Lord Of The Rings, but it's more like Resident Evil.
"Resident Evil?" Aiden asked.
Meryn pushed the cart so it was behind her chair and sat down. Smiling, she patted the boxes. "Yeah, it has this evil corporation zombie feel where there are shadows, and the shadows want to eat me."
Kari stilled; that was the feeling she'd had before she had gotten dizzy. As if something watched her from the dark.
Kari watched as Ryuu moved quickly. One moment he was in the corner, the next kneeling beside his charge. "Why do you describe it like that?" He watched her face intently.
"I don't know," she admitted. "But the dark never bothered me before coming here."
He stood, looking first at Kuruk and then Sebastian, both men nodded. Ryuu looked down at Meryn. "If you would excuse me for a moment denka, I will be back momentarily." He quickly walked out of the dining room.
Meryn just stared at the door. "He left me," she muttered. She hopped down out of her chair and started to leave, but the door wouldn't budge. "He locked it!" She put her ear against the door and then spun to face the table, a look of disgust on her face. "And soundproofed it."
Aiden shrugged. "It's like he knows you or something," he said, his lips twitching.
Magnus, Adriel, and Declan all exchanged looks. Kari could understand exactly how they felt. What could possibly chase a squire as powerful as Ryuu out of the room?
After a couple minutes, Ryuu walked back into the room and took up his usual position behind Meryn without saying a word. Meryn got up on her knees and turned in her chair to face her squire. "Well?" she demanded.
"Well what?" he asked civilly.
"You know what I'm talking about. Why did you leave?"
"I just had to contact someone; it is nothing denka."
"Don't tell me it's nothing. You locked the door and soundproofed the room."
"And how would you know that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Fine!" Meryn sat back down in her chair. "But you have diaper duty for forever," she threatened.
He smiled softly. "Of course, denka." He bowed at the waist, his hand over his heart.
"Speaking of babies..." Aiden glared at Meryn. "Did you ever get Sascha out of jail?"
"Yeah, it was easy peezy. I updated their system; so he was released yesterday." She smirked. "But that wasn't before Colton got me a copy of his wanted poster."
Aiden groaned. "Of course he did. I swear we won't have any units when we get back. They are going to kill each other."
"Consider it training." Meryn looked back at Ryuu. "Can I have some more pudding?"
Magnus put his fork down. "Meryn, normally, I would give you anything you wanted, but I am really concerned about your dietary habits. Eating pudding for a week cannot be healthy. Do you not need vitamins, vegetables, meat, anything else?"
Meryn shrugged. "Nothing else tastes good."
Ryuu placed a bowl of pudding in front of her with two pills. "At least take these. They are the vitamins that Broderick has created. They contain everything that a shifter or human could need." Meryn quickly swallowed down the pills and picked up her spoon.
Magnus sighed, watching Meryn, a concerned look on his face. Shaking his head, he turned to Declan. "To entice more of the women and some of the men to attend the interviews, I have arranged a chamber here on Level One. I know my people; most of them would accept doing the interview if only to say they had been to Level One."
"I am sure that will help enormously, thank you." Kari smiled at Magnus.
"I just hope that everyone you speak with today is mated of their own accord."
"Me too," she murmured.
Declan bumped her shoulder with his. "It will be fine."
I hope he didn't just jinx us.
CHAPTER TEN
Kari, for the most part, stayed in the background. She took a seat off to the left behind Declan and allowed him to do the talking. He knew most of the women, and he gently coaxed answers out of them. When he smiled, Kari could see the result in the women. They relaxed, took deep breaths, and answered his questions without hesitation. Kari was willing to say at least seventy percent of the interviewees were mated as true mates, but the remaining thirty percent had been arranged matings, and that bothered her.
One by one, the vampires admitted that they had mated to the men in their lives because of what their families and their mate's families had arranged. It had been a way to bring families together to form alliances and to keep their bloodlines pure. Kari made notes of all those that had admitted to arranged matings, and as she suspected, most of them had taken place on the levels that were obviously gearing up against Magnus.
They were on their last interview of the day when the hairs on the back of Kari's neck stood up. The woman who entered looked at Declan as if she already knew what his body was capable of.
"Hello, lover," the woman purred. "I would say you wanted an afternoon tryst, but we have an audience, or are you into that now?" she asked.
Kari simply began to tap her pen against the clipboard in front of her. She saw Declan wince at the sound.
"No Trish, that's not why you were called down here, you should know that. Magnus is interested in knowing who had matings arranged by their families."
Trish shrugged. "Mine was an arranged mating. I was not going to waste my time sitting around waiting for Prince Charming, and my family needed an alliance. The DuBois are doing fairly well, so I agreed. If I ever do meet my mate, I can always move on," she said flippantly.
Kari stared at this woman oozing apathy and immediately felt sorry for any future mate she would have.
Trish looked at Declan. "I have missed our nights together. Even if I am mated, you know I would not say no if you came knocking."
Declan fidgeted in his chair and cleared his throat. "Yes well, you are mated now and so am I. Even if I weren't, you know I don't mess around with mates."
"Too bad, my mate is not half as good as you are in bed."
Kari took a deep breath as the pen she had been writing with snapped when she clenched her hands. She watched as Declan's hand gripped his chair arm in response to the sound. "Well, that is all we needed to know. Thanks Trish."
Trish leaned forward as if to plant a kiss on Declan's lips. Before Kari realized what she was doing, she was standing beside her mate. She placed her clipboard in front of his face. Trish stood and met Kari's eyes. She smirked. "I do not mind having my leftovers being used by someone less fortunate."
Kari literally felt her blood pressure spike. Just as she was about to reach for Trish, Declan grabbed her around the waist to hold her back. Trish waved and shut the door behind her.
"That bitch!" she hissed.
Declan grimaced, releasing her. "Now Kari."
She spun to face her mate. "You knew who she was when she was scheduled for the interview. You saw her name on the list, and you
did not prepare me?"
Declan scratched the side of his head. "I didn't think it would be that big a deal."
"You did not think it would be that big a deal?" she repeated.
Declan just stared at her. "I mean, I knew it was going to be a big deal," he backpedaled at her tone. "But I didn't know how to tell you," he rephrased his sentence.
Kari crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot. "How many women on this list have you slept with?"
Declan gulped. "I didn't sleep with any of them after they mated."
"How many of them have you slept with Declan?"
"Thirteen."
"Thirteen! Declan that is almost half of today's list!"
He winced. "I've been here a long time."
She took a deep breath. "You know it is not the fact that you slept with them. It was the fact that we would be doing interviews with them, and you never told me this could happen. She completely disrespected me. The entire city knows I am your mate, and because I was not prepared, she got away with treating me like a second-class citizen. I cannot afford for her to set this kind of precedent. What sort of message do you think that sends?"
"I'm sorry, Kari, I really am. I just didn't think of it that way," he admitted.
"No, you did not, and because of that, you are sleeping on the couch. No claiming sex for you."
His mouth dropped open, and he stared at her in shock. He looked so ridiculous she almost forgave him. When he started to say something, she bopped him on the head with her clipboard. "Couch, Declan." She sat down and made it look as though she was looking over her notes when, in fact, she was just trying to get her temper under control and not laugh at his desperate expression.
Declan dropped to his knees in front of her. "Kari, please! I never meant to hurt you. I guess I didn't think things all the way through. Please don't deny me as your mate." Declan begged.
She was trying to figure out what he was talking about when the door flew open. Nigel skidded to a halt in front of them. "Declan, why do you have your walkie-talkie off? We've been trying to reach you. You have got to get to Level Six. Warrick's family has gone bonkers. I think they're going after Avery!"