***
It took Blythe a whole three cups of coffee to be excited about meeting Alexander Wang in the flesh. He had agreed to do her dress, so she had sent in her measurements a whole three months in advance and he had worked his magic. Now they had reached the fractious day. She stood on a raised platform in the dressing room in the back of an inconspicuous boutique in downtown Portland. Her mother sat on the couch a little off to the right, sipping champagne with a smug look on her face.
Alexander burst through the double doors, his long sleek hair flying along behind him. Blythe’s eyes went wide. It was her turn to be star struck.
He raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at her. “Ah. Just like I thought.”
Blythe looked down at the sleek, white dress she wore, then at the image of herself in the mirror. She had pulled her long, bleached blond hair back into a sharp ponytail, her ears donned with white gold hoop earrings. Her skin looked splotchy, but the dress. Oh the Dress. Her heart fluttered at the thought of what Caius would think when he saw it. She hoped he’d cry. Was that sadistic? That she hoped he’s be so overwhelmed with emotion on her wedding day that he would cry tears of joy like so many men do? “I know it’s beautiful!” She was failing at her attempts not to sound like a fan girl.
He gave his head a little shake, then bent over, his fingers fiddling with her hem.
Blythe heard the distinct sound of a camera flash.
“The length is off…. One inch here…” He set to work on her hem, on her neck line, on the sleeves, on the back.
Blythe’s mother leaned over, as if his every move was an educational opportunity. She emptied her glass multiple times, going for another every single time.
As he worked. As the cameras flashed. As she responded to his requests and questions, Blythe couldn’t help but think about Caius and how she had gone to bed angry at him the night before. Wasn’t there a rule against that? They weren’t even married and they were having married fights. Her heart fluttered in her chest as she was anxious to fix things.
But when she had finished her fitting, gotten her moleskin diary autographed and finally made it back home and up into her room, nothing but an empty-unmade bed greeted her. With a sigh, she put down the bag that contained the vintage boots she had purchased (impulse-buy) and sat down on her bed, wondering where Caius could have gone.
Part three
Of course it was about the marriage. It had to be about the marriage. Caius ran through the night, blazing through the forest, until he came to the plateau where he had been with Blythe only a little over twenty-four hours before. He couldn’t deny the stress of the situation. It was more than sex, or Blythe or a cigarette could alleviate. He needed to be alone. To phase.
He stood up, his full height reaching all of seven feet, and extended his arms to each side of him. Every phase was like a new body. And yet he hadn’t done it for years. He had renounced that life decades ago, had run from home with the intention of never dealing with his murderous father again. He thought he could renounce his heritage and for a long time, that his parents had let him do this. No contact.
Almost fifteen years and no contact.
Then the deaths. It had his father’s mark all over it. His giant heart pounded against his rib cage as he let his arms fall down in front of him. Unwelcome memories of a childhood he had long since forgotten folded into his mind. There were so many carcasses like that. Hundreds.
It was sick. Shameful.
And it was happening again.
A warning.
One principle no shifter could break: You must marry within your blood. A lifelong mate of human blood, a child, half human, half shifter, would pollute the line. It would dilute it. Preservation was the ultimate aim. A non-negotiable.
Caius knew good and well that he was breaking this, but he didn’t think they would come for him. But they did. They had been for months on end. He just hadn’t noticed.
It was a warning.
“Caius!”
His eyes went wide at the sound of Blythe’s muffled cry. He shook his hairy head. He had been out too long. Knowing Blythe, knowing how she overestimates her capabilities and constantly feels the need to save everyone around her, it was no wonder that she came looking for him.
“Caius!” The cry came out more desperate this time.
The roar of a bear followed. The crack of snapping trees cut through the air.
Caius’s heart stopped. His father.
He launched into a sprint, his own roar echoing in the trees and the distant mountains. He followed her scent; the essence of his wife through the night.
Another roar shot through the night towards him, his father answering his call.
Blythe’s pained screech shortly followed.
Caius couldn’t get there fast enough.
He rammed his entire body into the brown and gray bear that had cornered his fiancé. His bones ached under the strain, his brain bouncing around in his head as he tackled his father to the ground. Almost immediately, his father began to change. His hair fell off to reveal raw skin underneath as layers and layers of flesh peeled off of him.
Caius followed suit, the slightly orgasmic feeling of reassuming his human form overcoming his entire body. He trembled in every inch of his bones as he collapsed onto the ground and into the pile of fur and flesh that greeted him. His teeth fell out, growing back almost instantly. He spit the blood out of his mouth as the bones of his skull broke and reformed, disintegrating and growing all at once.
“Father.” He croaked.
The man in front of him stood to about six feet. His thick head of hair had begun to gray and his skin, tough and laden with wrinkles, stretched tight along his naked body. He shook his head. “I must say. I am deeply disappointed.”
“You have no right…” Caius began as he approached Blythe’s motionless body. She looked impossibly peaceful with the moonlight shining on her pale skin.
“I have every right. I own your blood more than you do. You cannot marry her.”
Caius set his jaw. “And what’s your noble plan? To kill every living thing until I comply?”
The man shrugged. “It’s a start.”
“I won’t let you do that.” Caius said. “And I’m marrying her. I don’t care what you say.”
“I’ll kill you.”
Caius’s eyes went wide.
His father slinked towards him. “Don’t think I won’t do it. I offed your mother when she got creative.”
Caius’s heart dropped. He wanted to cry out in a rage. While he was out shirking his heritage, he had failed to protect his mother from this monster. His father continued to speak, hundreds of words flying out of his mouth, but Caius couldn’t register any of it. He was seeing red. His blood boiled hot, coursing through his veins and fueled by the thick adrenalin that filled every organ inside of him.
I could kill him.
I could kill him.
I could…
And just like that, Caius took the final step, closing the distance between the two of them. His hands wrapped around the man’s neck easy. He had a good four inches in height over him. The man trembled at his touch, but Caius found it almost pleasurable. He deserved it. If anyone needed to be murdered, it was him. His body slowly grew limp and lifeless, before he slipped right from between Caius’s hands.
Panting, Caius turned his attention to his wife. He caressed her smooth face with his hand, then pressed her fingers into her neck. There was a pulse. She was alive.
By the time he had lifted over his shoulder, his father had assumed his true form again. He lied there, a beast in the mud.
Caius hadn’t murdered a person. He had slayed a monster.
***
Blythe’s eyes flipped open. She shot up in her bed, her hands patting the sheets next to her.
Caius?
But he wasn’t there.
In his place was a small piece of paper lying on his pillow. It read:
“Happy Wedding Day.”
Blythe smiled. Somehow, she had managed to reunite with her mother, solve a murder mystery and get married… all in ten days. She checked her watch: 7:47 AM. With a gasp, she swung her legs over her mattress. She was already late.
BONUS
SAVED FOR THE VAMPIRES
By Rachel William
Chapter 1
As the lights came up in the movie theater, Laura stood up, a low moan slipping from between her lips as she stretched her hands out to either side of her. A yawn pushed it's way out of her mouth, then her lips, one bigger than the other, set into a lazy smile. It was the end of yet another great date. “So ice cream after?” She asked as her man, Roy Benson, stood up, handing her purse.
He raised one of those perfectly sculpted eyebrows. “I don't know how you can even think about food at a time like this.” He replied, his smooth voice heavy with humor.
Laura rolled her eyes. “Oh come on. It wasn't that scary.” She replied.
He cocked his head to one side and opened his mouth to respond, but was cut short by a teenage couple trying to get by. Laura scanned the young blond with her halter top and high rise shorts, a smirk dominating her face. She glanced at Roy, who had the same amused look in his eye and the two collapsed into laughter as soon as the woman-child had climbed down the rest of the isle.
“You have quite the stomach for these things.” Roy replied as he guided her down the row.
Laura giggled her way out into the isle, turning to shoot Roy a teasing glower. “That is incredibly ironic coming from you.” She replied.
He pursed his lips, giving her a questioning look. “And why is that?” he asked, placing his hand on the small of Laura's back.
Laura felt her stomach lurch at the sensation of his touch. A chill ran down her spine as every time he touched her always felt like the first time he had ever touched her. She leaned into him, stopping just short of resting her head on his shoulder as they made their way up the isle and through the doors. It took everything in her not to split her lips and let out a short purr. “Because you're one of the most mysterious men I have ever met.” she replied, glancing at this midnight hair, his pale skin and his dark eyes. Today, the rims were slightly red, as if he hadn't had a good night of sleep in a while, or was suffering from an acute allergic reaction. The first time Laura had noticed that, it troubled her, but she had more than gotten used to it in the months that they had been dating.
Roy waited until they had stepped into the cool, October night before responding to that. He dragged her off to the side, holding both of her hands in each of his, and stared right into her eyes. He did this every once in a while; stood right into her eyes without saying anything. She thought it was a bit strange at first, but she had had more than enough time to grow accustomed to it, and, in fact, sometimes it felt more intimate than the deepest kiss. “I beg to differ. I actually think I am quite transparent.”
Laura laughed at this, as he trailed his hands down her curves, resting them on her hips. “See that's the thing about people hiding things: they never really notice how much other people pick up.” she replied, her green eyes wide with expectation. They had reached the inevitable moment in the night where they were bathed in the calm aura of the stars and the moon, not really pressed for reservations or a movie to see and having nothing to entertain themselves with but each other. It was time for him to tell her something new about himself. Over the course of three months, they had been through her exhaustive list of life experiences, shitty apartments and less-than-exciting working class jobs.
But instead of telling her something useful about himself, he drew her in for a kiss. Laura furrowed her brow when her lips met his, a flash of agitation shooting through her mind... right before the embrace got a chance to melt it. She released a deep sigh as she pressed her body against his, paying attention to the way his hard muscles burrowed into her curves. Their lips danced together, his hands slipping underneath the pink blouse she had gotten for half price at Bloomingdale’s. She reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck, pressing herself still closer to him until she could feel his manhood into between them, slowly growing harder and harder....
“Hey! Get a room!” an old, scratching voice cut into their embrace.
Laura broke away from him, jumping at the sound of the same man coughing at him.
“This is why I hate coming down town.” he mumbled in a dark voice.
Laura rolled her eyes. “But all the cheap sketchy theaters are downtown.” she replied in a whiny voice.
He shook his wide, smiling in spite of himself. “The things I would do for you.” He mumbled as he took her hand and led her down the street.
Laura swept the street with her gaze. She always loved the way the city looked at night, the moonlight trickling down into the city, bathing the glass buildings with its silver glare. It was as if a deep silence had descended over New York, drowning the city in profound calm; the odd siren or insane man punctuating the moment, reminding them all that New York was still alive. “Say that again.” Laura murmured, looking up at him. A smile stretched across her face, as, for the umpteenth time, the words, “I love you,” came to mind. They banged against the barrier that was her mental filter, begging to be uttered out loud. But it wasn't the right time yet. After three months of seeing him at least three times a week, after countless meaningful conversations and enough dinner dates for them to have tried out every single restaurant in the city; after a hundred moments like this, Laura still didn't feel ready to tell him what she truly felt.
She furrowed her brow as she gazed, because there was just something about him; about the way he looked at her like he could see right through her; about the way he spoke, as if the words she heard were only a small percentage of everything he could have said; about the fact that she had only been to his apartment once, had never slept over in it, and had only ever seen him at night, that told her it was probably wise for her to hold back.
And, just like that, they entered into the point of the evening where she began to doubt his feelings for her.
He swung her hand. “What are thinking about?” he asked as he raised her hand to his lips and planted a kiss on it.
Laura shrugged. “Oh nothing.”
He chuckled at this. “And why don't I believe you?” He asked, shooting her a sidewards glance.
Laura giggled at this, “Maybe because I'm lying?” She replied in a teasing voice.
He beat his hand against his chest, her eyebrows mashing together as he feigned insult. “Why do you hurt me so?” He cried.
Laura's laughter rang through the night. “Oh my God. Stoppit!” she cried.
But he just drew her in for another kiss. “It's impossible how much I like you right now.” He mumbled with his lips still sitting on hers.
Laura's heart lept with delight. “Don't say things like that.”
“Because it makes you feel uncomfortable?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.
Laura shook her head. “Because then I might believe you.”
He sighed. “And here I was thinking I had finally burst through your walls.”
Laura glowered at him. “Says the most mysterious man the on the planet.” She retorted.
He shook his head, a joking gleam in his eye. “See, you keep saying that, but I don't know what you mean.” he replied.
Laura laughed. “One of these days, I'll break you.”
He turned to her, an earnest look in his eyes. “Oh please don't.” he replied, taking her hand in both of his.
“On one condition.” She replied.
“What?” He asked turning his attention back in the direction that they were going in.
“Buy me ice cream.” she replied, tagging a little giggle to the end of that sentence.
He nodded. “Okay. Okay. You convinced me.”
Chapter 2
Laughing, Laura took the first lick of her ice cream cone. “Oh this is really good.” She murmured. She then tipped it towards him. “Do
you want some?” She asked.
Roy smiled, but shook his head. “No I can't eat anymore.”
Laura glowered at him. “That's funny. I don't recall seeing you eat at all.” She replied as they stepped out of the ice cream shop and back into the night.
He placed his hand on the small of her back, a small gesture that made her feel so much more protected as the night was getting darker and darker. Laura's stomach lurched, but it wasn't because of her ice cream cone, or the fact that she was actually out on a date with a man who looked like he had just walked off of a Calvin Klein billboard. There was something about the silence on this street in Alphabet city, just beyond the park that housed heroine addicts just a decade ago, that made her want to cling to Roy. As if having read her mind, he pulled her closer, wrapping his arm firmly around her shoulder. “Oh this is great.” she whispered.
“Can we walk through the park?” He asked as they approached one of the many entrances.
Laura shrugged. “I mean, it's not my favorite thing to do at midnight, but since you bought me ice cream, I guess I can make an exception.” She replied.
He shot her a rueful smile. “Oh you'll have fun. I promise.” he replied as he drew just far enough away from her to grab her hand and lead her inside.
Despite practically being yanked into the other side of the gates, Laura's pace slowed. She darted this way and that, her eyes picking up everything from the shadows the leaves made on the dank earth to the sounds of rustling, no doubt caused by the movements of insanely large rats, or other animals that could probably give her diseases. Nevertheless, they went deeper and deeper inside.
VAMPIRE:Vampire Guardian Series: Paranormal Mystery Vampire Alpha Male Romance (New Adult Contemporary Paranormal Royalty Fantasy Romance Collection)) Page 51