Midnight Eternal

by NJ Cole

  At first I didn’t know what she meant, but my body did and my fangs came out. I tried to get them to retract, but she wriggled under me, arching her back. The new position showed me her mating mark, and in the center, it was almost like a place opened specifically for my fangs.

  I had a thousand reasons…good reasons…why I shouldn’t do this right now. I’d gone over them in my head, with Gabriel, and with her even, but I couldn’t seem to think of even one in that moment.

  “It’s dangerous!” my brain screamed, seeming to come to its senses. “You could kill her!”

  “She wants this, you want this, your child needs this...it’s right,” something within me argued, and its voice reverberated throughout me, deafening anything my brain could come up with.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered, looking into my love’s eyes before feeling the toxin drip into my mouth.

  “I love you,” she breathed, gazing back into mine.

  “I love you, too—eternally,” I replied, closing my eyes and sinking my fangs into her chest at the same time I came into her body.

  She didn’t yell, or scream, or fight, or cry. She did, however, become still…deathly still.

  I pulled back and looked at her. Her eyes were closed, and it might have looked like she was sleeping except she hadn’t moved a muscle, not even to breathe. Before I could scream her name or call for Gabriel, there was the sharp intake of breath. She still hadn’t moved other than that, but that was to be expected.

  According to the few people we’d talked to, the paralysis lasted around three hours. I’d stay here with her the entire time. Biting her had been purely impulse, leaving me without the help of my family. I knew someone would be in to check in on her soon, though, and I could always call for one of them if I had to. I turned my attention back to Bec, who was breathing slowly.

  “Bec, my beautiful girl, I don’t know if you can hear me, but I’m right here. I’m right here.” I kissed the two droplets of blood that came from where I’d bitten her, though it didn’t look that much like blood. It was more pink and watery than thick and red.

  I brought my lips to her forehead and kissed it tenderly, then kissed her eyelids in hopes she could at least feel me there. I was shocked when they fluttered open. I’d always assumed it was total paralysis, but I supposed that since her chest was moving, the involuntary muscles must still be working. Her heart was still beating, as well, though if the genetic alteration actually worked, she soon wouldn’t need it.

  I hated that I didn’t know what was happening. My plan was to call Gabriel if something went wrong, but how would I know if something actually was going wrong?

  I looked back into her eyes to see if I could tell if she was in distress. Perhaps she could communicate with me that way. “Bec, I’m here with you. Can you see me?” Her eyelids fluttered. “Babygirl, if you can see me, blink your eyelids.”

  I was so busy watching her eyelids that I didn’t even notice her lips move. “I can see you,” she whispered.

  I sat back in shock. “You can speak?”

  “I can now,” she replied, turning her head toward me. I watched her body shift and she started to move slightly. “I couldn’t at first. I couldn’t move at all, but now I can…I think.” She struggled to move. It was slow, but she was no longer paralyzed. I wasn’t exactly sure how much time had elapsed since I’d bitten her, but it had been nowhere near three hours. It had probably been closer to fifteen minutes.

  “Oliver, I don’t think it worked. You’re going to have to bite me again.”

  It just didn’t seem right that I would have to bite her again. I knew what Bocaj toxin did to animals, including humans, and although I was a bit weak, mine should have disabled her for hours. I looked back at the place I’d bitten her and was shocked. The bite marks were nearly closed and only had a small amount of fluid leaking from them. I say fluid because it wasn’t blood—it was clear, like mine.

  Her heart was beating, but more slowly than it ever had. If she was Bocaj, it wasn’t necessary any longer, but was probably functioning for the same reason she was breathing: out of instinct and habit.

  How would we know if it had worked? It seemed a stupid question, but what would the difference be between this and when I came inside of her and she had Bocaj characteristics? Maybe that’s why she hadn’t been paralyzed. She hadn’t been human when I bit her, she’d been mostly Bocaj anyway. The question was, could Bocaj toxin transform a Bocaj? It seemed a question for Gabriel and the rest of the family.

  “Do you think you’re strong enough to walk?” I asked, tracing her mating mark, making her gasp and smile.

  She bit her lower lip. “I feel really strong, even stronger than when you asked a minute ago.” Sitting up, she put her legs over the edge of the bed and stood. It was a bit shaky, but within two steps she was walking fine.

  I wrapped my arm around her waist and we walked onto the back patio side by side. Whatever they were talking about stopped.

  “Oliver! Bec!” Caroline said, surprised to see us together. “Is everything alright?”

  I had no idea if it was. I’d just bitten my mate…the love of my life. We had no idea if the baby had made it and hadn’t even spoken of it. I knew it was on her mind, though, as it was on mine. We didn’t even know if the transformation had worked. The answer to Caroline’s question, however, was “yes,” and that was because we were together, and together everything was alright.

  Bec was holding out her arm for Caroline. “Will you please take this out. I don’t think I’ll be needing it anymore.”

  Caroline nodded and smiled, though I could see tears in her eyes. Like us, she was going to mourn the loss of a the child if we did lose him or her. She assumed that removal of the IV meant Bec had stopped trying.

  Gently, she took it out of Bec’s arm but gasped when a small amount of clear fluid oozed from the place it had been inserted.

  “What is it?” Gabriel asked, coming over to us in concern.

  “We wanted to talk to you about something,” I said, not able to contain the smile on my face. “Bec and I just made love…”

  “‘Bout fucking time!” Shane interrupted, causing everyone to burst into laughter.

  I chuckled, too. “Yeah, you could say that, but it was different this time. I uh, I injected her.” I pointed at the two nearly healed puncture wounds in her mating mark.

  “When?” Gabriel asked, confused, though there was excitement in his voice.

  “About fifteen…twenty minutes ago,” I said, looking nervous.

  “Why isn’t she, uh…isn’t she supposed to be paralyzed?” Caroline asked.

  Bec’s face fell. “We’re not sure it worked.”

  “She was paralyzed for maybe fifteen minutes. It was spontaneous. She asked me to…and I don’t know, we were upset about the baby.” I cringed at the use of the word.

  “I just wanted to give it a chance,” Bec whispered.

  “And she asked me to bite her. It’s the only thing she’s ever asked of me, and I couldn’t deny her.”

  “Slow down, Son,” Gabriel said. “So you and Bec were making love and you bit her?”

  “Yes, right here.” I touched her mating mark, making her gasp and me tingle. “It bled at first. I kissed it actually. She went very still, but then a few minutes later, her eyes opened, and then she was able to speak and move not long after that. How do we know if she’s Bocaj? What if she just has the characteristics like she does when she drinks from me or like when we made love in the past?”

  “How do you feel, Bec?” Gabriel asked, turning to her. He took her hand and looked at the mark from the IV, which had nearly healed.

  “Better. Every moment I feel stronger and stronger.”

  “Is that how you usually felt when, well…after Oliver came inside of you?”

  She bit her lip. “No, I’d feel full of energy instantly, then it would slowly decrease. This seems to be increasing more and more.”

  “Like you’re changing
,” Caleb said to Bec, walking over to us while stating what I was thinking. “How was it with little girl?” he asked Payton, who was leaning down whispering to her.

  “It’s so hard to say. It was very different. First, she was in really bad shape physically, as in, had she not been full of Bocaj come she’d have been dead. Of course, I didn’t know that was why until recently. And she was also paralyzed. She didn’t move for about an hour after I found her. I assumed that meant they were with her two hours, but I suppose it could have been longer or shorter. She had some broken bones that healed right away once she went through the change, as did the rest of her physical damage. It’s the emotional damage that she’s still working on, which is why I never really pushed her to talk about it. Besides, up until now, it wasn’t important.”

  “I think that we just need to give it a bit of time,” Sydney said. “I know you two made love…”

  “Twice,” I interrupted.

  “Twice,” she smirked. “And that usually makes Bec feel stronger, but as she said, it does wear off, and lately it wears off faster. Why don’t we just enjoy the afternoon sun, see what happens, and in an hour or so, see how she feels? If it didn’t work, then we can try to figure out what to.”

  She was right; it really was the only thing to do, so I lay with Bec in my arms, enjoying the sun and pretending, just for a moment, that everything was going to be alright. I imagined that the change had taken place, that the child had survived the paralysis and was still growing inside of her, and that she and I would be together forever.

  Chapter Eighteen

  butterfly

  I might be a Bocaj or I might still be human, just with Bocaj characteristics. I might be pregnant or I might…no, I wouldn’t even say it. The one thing I knew for sure was that I was Oliver’s mate. That was for certain. For a while I wondered if he’d want me, but I never doubted if I wanted him.

  I still wasn’t sure if I was his submissive or not, though. We hadn’t even talked about that, but there were much more urgent matters than our sexual fantasy life.

  The problem was, no matter how urgent, we weren’t going to be able to get answers right away. There were a few things we did know. I was feeling stronger rather than weaker, and I could tell you that the moment Oliver bit me, there was this warmth that spread throughout my system. It made me so sleepy my entire body relaxed and wouldn’t move, but when it wore off just a few minutes later, I had never felt more alive. That feeling only continued, and it was incredible.

  Lying in his arms was wonderful, as well. I’d planned on falling asleep, but I really wasn’t tired. Oliver did look a bit tired, however, and I recalled what he’d said about not really eating or taking care of himself while I’d been staying with his parents. I knew just what he needed.

  I sat up and held his hand. “You look so tired,” I said, pulling him to his feet. “Why don’t we take a walk on the beach and you can get some extra nourishment?”

  He knew exactly what I meant because he stood and smiled at me.

  “Do you feel strong enough? I don’t want to put you in danger until we know for sure if the transformation worked.”

  I started to tell him that I was fine but Payton stood up and stepped between us, her back to me. “Bec is right, you do look tired.” She stepped closer to him and put her hands on his shoulders before running them down his biceps. The movement caused something inside of me to boil. I watched, frozen, as a Payton opened the top few buttons of his shirt.

  “Payton! What are you doing?” Oliver questioned as he took a step back, his chest now exposed.

  “Well, Bec pointed out how tired you look. I know I have the nourishment you need, and she’s in no condition to give it to you.” She mimicked his steps, and as he moved back, she moved forward, staying close. Not even conscious of what I was doing, I also followed their movement, keeping my proximity to Oliver, and in turn, Payton.

  I knew in my head that she was a member of the family and a Mistress, whom I should treat with respect, but her words and actions had me feeling like fire was coursing through my body.

  Oliver seemed confused, too, and stepped back once again. “Payton, I’m not sure what you’re saying.”

  “I’m saying, Oliver…” she responded, moving even closer to him and placing both hands on his chest, “…that we can find a quiet place and I’ll spread my legs so you can dine until you feel strong again.”

  It was about when she said the words ‘spread my legs’ that the low rumble started coming from my chest—I couldn’t help it—but when she moved her hand slightly and touched his mating mark, I lost any control I had left. I felt a primal rage come over me. My entire body tensed and I let out a feral roar. Payton spun around and dropped to her knees, putting her hands up defensively.

  Her motion confused and disarmed me, and the smile on her face caused me to pause. I swallowed once, twice, only then noticing the intense amount of what I thought was saliva in my mouth. It wasn’t.

  Oliver was staring at me with his jaw dropped. Payton stood slowly and moved away, her smile morphing into a smirk. “Never mind, I see that Bec is quite well enough to take care of you herself, and, judging by those fangs, it looks like the transformation worked just fine.”

  “Fangs?” When I spoke, I felt them—fangs had emerged from behind my teeth. Payton no longer appeared to be a threat to me, so they disappeared somewhere inside my mouth.

  Oliver pulled me to him and held me tightly. I ran my hand over his mating mark, feeling the need to reclaim him. Though I realized Payton really wasn’t a threat, I couldn’t help myself. I kissed his lips softly, and in response, he pulled me close to him and crushed his mouth against my own. “It worked, you’re mine,” he breathed, pulling back just an inch but keeping his lips on mine.

  “That was a very dangerous test,” Caleb chuckled from somewhere behind me.

  “You would have stepped in and helped me,” Payton grinned, moving close to him and kissing his cheek.

  “Maybe,” he teased, “but like Shane, I do like me some hot girl fights!”

  The look she gave him told me that he’d be paying for that comment later, and I wondered if I’d see the return of the chastity device on Wednesday at Verde. That’s when it hit me, would I even be going? Oliver and I were back together, that was for certain, but I’d removed my collar, and as much as I wanted it back, it probably wasn’t that simple.

  Oliver must have sensed something was wrong because he lifted his lips from mine and kissed my forehead. “Wanna tell me what’s wrong?”

  I shook my head, fighting back the tears. It was all so overwhelming. I’d just found out that I was a Bocaj, and that I’d be able to be with him for the rest of our lives. But there I was worried about being his submissive when I should have been worried about the baby, which made me feel terrible.

  Without a word, he took my hand and pulled me in the direction of the beach. Walking toward the water, he stopped in the cabana and sat in a chair, pulling me onto his lap. He was quiet for a long time, his chin resting on the top of my head. “Is it the baby?” he finally asked.

  I nodded, though that wasn’t entirely true. “I just…I feel strong and not so tired, and I wonder…”

  He silenced me with a kiss. “Let’s enjoy today, celebrate your change, then later, we can worry about that. There are doctors we can go see that aren’t far from here—Bocaj doctors.”

  I sighed when I heard his words. “There’s something else, though, isn’t there?” He lifted me and turned me around so I was facing him.

  “Yes…it’s…” I swallowed. “It’s…”

  “Your collar?” he answered, lifting my chin.

  I bit my lip. “Yeah. I’m sorry I took it off. It’s just that I…”

  “There will be consequences,” he interrupted. “If you want it back, that is.”

  “I do!” I said, hugging him tightly, thrilled that he wanted me to have it.

  “Good, then let’s start figuring out a way fo
r you to earn it back, and perhaps on Wednesday, I can collar you in front of everyone at Verde.”

  “I’ll do anything,” I said, truly meaning it.

  “Anything?” he smirked.

  I stood and started walking down the beach. “Let me prove it.”

  Feeling more alive than ever, adventurous, and wanting to please my Master, I followed my nose down the beach. I could hear, smell, and sense Oliver only a few feet behind me, but I didn’t turn around, needing to show him that I could take the lead.

  As we rounded the corner, the place he’d taken me that first afternoon we’d come to Sunday brunch came into view. This time, though, as I’d expected, it wasn’t vacant. Shane sat in one of the chaise lounge chairs with Sydney between his legs, earning herself a snack. His eyes opened wide for a moment when he saw me, and even wider when I smiled at him. “We’re just about finished,” he groaned, “then the place is all yours.”

  “Stay,” I smiled before turning my back on him and facing Oliver. I wish I could have seen the look on Shane’s face when I removed my clothes, giving him an unobstructed view of my ass.

  “Are you still hungry, Master?” I asked, moving slowly toward the chairs, leaving an empty one between Shane and the one I chose to sit on.

  “Starving, babygirl,” he said, then looked at Shane and Sydney. “Are you sure you’re comfortable here?”

  I smiled. “I’m sure.” Shane was rubbing Sydney’s hair, and though he glanced at me occasionally, he was focused on her.

  The exhibitionist in me liked the idea of being watched, and apparently it made me wet, because Oliver was moaning as he lapped up my juices. My orgasms came fast and frequently, and before I knew it, he was smiling up at me, the exhaustion gone from his face.

  He continued coaxing climax after climax from my body as I lay on my back, knees falling to the sides, moving back and forth with each stroke of his tongue.

  “Oh, fuck, like a butterfly’s wings. I get it now,” Shane moaned, fisting Sydney’s hair. I noticed he was watching my legs move as I arched my back and came once more.