temptation is to surrender.”
—Caine Deathwalker
I put Ringo on the living room couch in my glorified cabin. The vamps had been chased out, but the place still smelled of peppery parchment. I would have offered him some of my clothing but he was several sizes too big. I went to Craig’s room and returned with some of his things. The dead slayer-in-training was beyond caring. Anything important he’d left behind, Vivian could return to the man’s mother.
Ringo put the spare clothes in the floor, by the couch. “I’ll put those on after a morning shower, if you don’t mind.”
I got Ringo an extra blanket, one not covered in his own blood, and a pillow. “I’ll let Vivian know you’re under the roof
Though with her dhampyr senses, she ought to already know.
I added, “Don’t piss her off; she’s been through a lot and no one will say anything if she kills you.”
He nodded once. “Got it. Anything else?”
I nodded. “There’s a severed arm in the freezer. If you get hungry, don’t eat it. I need it for something. If there’s no other food in the fridge, order out. I’ll pay for it.”
He nodded again. “Got it. Maybe I’ll just crash and go out for pancakes in the morning.” He adjusted the pillow under his head, settling more comfortably, and covered up with the blanket.
“Probably best.” I killed the lights and made sure the doors were locked, then headed down the hall toward my own room. I went in, expecting to see Colt. His bag was gone. Nine-year-old Colt had been delighted to share a room with his dad. Apparently, sixteen-year-old Colt thought that was kid stuff. He’d grabbed his things, opting for more privacy. I understood but worried; he’d been so shaken earlier.
Returning to the hall, I knocked on the door across from mine. No answer. I stuck my head in and saw Colt’s bag, plus half a pizza peeking out of an open cardboard box. There were a couple of two-liter sodas on the dresser, but no Colt. I hadn’t seen him in Craig’s room. That left the bathroom or Vivian’s room.
Despite earlier traumas, protests, and guilty recriminations, I wondered how likely it was I’d find them together, engaged in carnal acts of a wanton nature. On one hand, I wanted to applaud Colt’s initiative and his manly conquests. On the other hand, I saw complications arising that spelled heavy melodrama ahead.
As a father, I felt torn.
What to do, what to do…?
Golden eyes opened in the back shadows of my mind. My inner dragon stared at me. His thoughts poured in over a smirk. Don’t blame the girl. Once you’ve gone dragon, you’re forever on the wagon. A dragon snack and you can’t go back. A dragon a day keeps the…
Shut the fuck up and go back to sleep.
Try to help someone… He humped at me and closed his eyes.
Colt, I could understand. He was a teenager with an inner dragon going through puberty. Hormones human and dragon were involved. Bouts of insane self-indulgence were to be expected. But Vivian was a mature woman with a grip on propriety—though her lack of judgment showed that she’d slept with me of all people. And then I remembered feeding her my new godly blood.
Damn! Could I have addicted her? Is there even a support group for people hooked on divine blood?
I had a sudden mental image of Vivian riding Colt like a bitch in heat, stabbing him with a stake at the height of ecstasy so she could lick the wound.
Decision crystallized. I formed a two-prong plan. First; confirm what I suspected. If they were in her room playing cards, and I burst in with accusations, I’d look stupid. That had to be avoided at all costs. Word could get around. Second; if they were doing what I thought, there was only one thing to do: hand the whole mess off to Selene.
I activated my Demon Wings tattoo and strolled down the hall to the outside of her room. Drawing a deep breath, I processed the air with my dragon-nose. I also listened. As quiet as they might try to be, my more-than-human senses would pry out the truth while I hid behind magic. I smelled hot, sweaty sex. I heard groans and gasps, and the slap of flesh against flesh. It had to be early in the fuck; a demigod-dragon and a dhampyr were bound to break furniture once they got going. I knew this from my own experiences with both Vivian and Selene.
Like a shadow, I slipped away, going back to my room. I went in and closed the door, dropping my magic spell. I looked up toward the Red Moon I couldn’t see, extending my sense through the building, a different kind of stretch for my new power.
Without leaving the room, I felt as if I were flying into the dawn sky. This felt like my bi-location spell but in this case, the edges of my vision weren’t blurred. I saw clearly in all directions.
I can’t help it—I have to love myself even more.
My mind flew at the speed of thought, taking me through the Red Moon itself, to Selene’s mansion. I ghosted through her dungeons: torture rooms, holding pens for exotic lifeforms, dissection tables, and reached the ground floor. Still ascending, I sought out our master bedroom.
I found her there, naked, posed before a full-length mirror, looking over her shoulder at her ass. She turned to face the mirror and passed a palm over her stomach, feeling for a baby-bump that still had to be months away.
Unless there’s something about goddesses giving birth I don’t know. Wait! I don’t know anything about that at all.
I pushed a thought at her. Selene.
She hopped through a turn, staring. Caine! Don’t do that. You scared me. From her flaming checks, it was embarrassment she felt, not fear.
I smiled to myself, then wiped it away in case she had some special way of seeing my mental projection.
I need your help with Colt.
There was a crimson wash of blinding power. I couldn’t see her or the room for a long moment. When the light passed, I was back inside my body, with no split awareness. I stood in my room with Selene in front of me. She wore a sheer, red-lace lingerie slip with thong panties, all of it gauzy and immodest.
I leered approval.
“You still find me attractive, don’t you? You’re not growing bored?”
“Who could be bored with you? You add insane to sexy like no one else.”
“But you’re taking another wife, and for her, you’re giving up all your sluts.”
“I haven’t agreed to that at all!”
“You forget, I live outside linear time. I know you will. You’ll have to struggle with the decision awhile since your penis is involved, but in the end—”
“I don’t want to hear this. It’s Colt’s sexual conquests we need to deal with, not mine.”
“Oh, that! He’s following in his father’s footsteps. His dragon is maturing. Wild rutting is to be expected. As long as he doesn’t get too attached, it’s not a problem.”
“Vivian’s got a lot to commend her. Colt could get attached easily. It’s his first real love.”
Selene gave me a rather scary smile. “It won’t be a problem. Again, I live outside linear time. I know.”
“What do you know?”
“I can’t tell you. Bad things sometimes need to happen for the greater good.”
I felt ice creep over my heart. “Nineteen-year-old Colt hates my guts. He says I let someone he cares for die. Someone I should have been able to save. Am I taking the heat for your machinations? In the future, will Vivian die on the Dragon World?”
Selene suppressed her smile, staring at me with enigmatic, red-crystal eyes. “Define die.”
“That’s why you don’t care if his first crush is Vivian. She won’t be around long enough to take Colt away from you.”
“A good mother plans ahead for her child.”
“So, Vivian will die. And knowing you, you’re going to say I have to let her. That the future needs her sacrifice.”
“It does. I’m not lying. Just as certain events shaped who you are and who you will be, the same is true of Colt. For him to fully embrace hate, he needs this. Altruism takes you only so far. In the coming war with the Unzar, the flawless enemy, he needs a dragon�
�s rage in his belly. That’s why you have to bear up under his anger, and let things happen. The future is born of past traumas. It can’t be helped.”
I’d be more convinced if it wasn’t an insane goddess telling me this.
I narrowed my eyes. “I notice that in all your scheming, you somehow remain free of any blame from Colt.”
“Of course. He needs his mother. I can’t have childish temper weakening our bond. He needs to be able to respect one of us, and you, well, do I have to say it?”
“I fully understand, but I think I hate you a little anyway.”
Even as I said it, I knew it could set her off, and I might have to fight for my godly life. For once, I didn’t care.
She closed the distance between us, a sultry smile on her face, and shed her lingerie slip. It fluttered to the carpet. Her bare breasts thrust toward me, emissaries of peace. “If you need to get it out of your system, we can have a hate fuck.”
I shook a finger in her face. “Don’t think I can’t see through such an obvious manipulation—but, just this once, I’m going to let you get away with it.”
I dropped my hand to where she couldn’t see, her view obstructed by her tits. The back of my hand slid inside her panties. Curling my fingers, I gripped the sheer material and gave it a savage jerk. The side ties ripped. Her thong came away in my hand, leaving her fully exposed, and grabbing my shoulders for support as she was jerked into the air by the violence of my pull. She landed back on her feet, leaning against me. From her expression, I’d surprised her again.
Nope. She lives outside linear time, remember? For her, this is all right on schedule.
I brushed away distracting thoughts.
“Still think a hate fuck is fine?” I asked.
“It will be.” Her smile taunted. “Hit me with your best shot!”
Putting my hands on her hips, I picked her up and turned us toward the bed. I slammed her so she bounced twice on the mattress. A squeal escaped her. “Don’t think I’m going to let you enjoy this,” I said.
She half-lidded her eyes, dimming their red crystal glow, and a lamp on the nightstand turned itself on. Feigning shyness, she looked aside, using a cupped hand to hide her vagina, and a forearm to shield her breasts. “Y-you’re going to force yourself on a pure, innocent girl?”
“I surely am.” I dropped the glamour of clothing I’d been wearing and, one at a time, toed out of my loose-tied boots. This was a hate fuck all right but my cock didn’t care. Tenderness and love could play another day. This was just about rough sex with everything else striped away—a kind of cleansing of the palette.
I crawled onto the foot of the bed. Walking on my fists and knees, her legs inside mine, I moved above her like a stalking beast. With my face just above hers, I settled my weight onto her body, knowing her dragon-born strength wouldn’t have a problem, unfortunately.
Still she looked aside. “Please, don’t hurt me! I’ll do whatever you want.”
I glared, my anger a flame in my guts. “Yes, you will.” I felt the strangest premonition that this act of lust would be the best sex I’d ever had. And that just made me madder.
I took the thong I still gripped and held it up, unfurling the torn material. “Look at me!”
She flinched, the cute little bitch, putting her heart into the role. Her face turned toward me, eyes open wide. Her irises were red pools deep enough to drown a man’s soul. I placed the gauzy red material over her eyes and used the ties to bind it as an improvised mask.
“There, now you can see the color of blood wherever you look.” I said this like it was a bad thing. The point of the thong underwear pointed to the top of her head. I didn’t want anything getting in the way of her mouth, which needed to service me.
I climbed further up her body and sat on her tits. My engorged cock rose like a god in front of her veiled eyes. I leaned forward, lifting my ass to get my cock alongside her pale face. I wagged myself, bitching-slapping her with the head of my cock. The smack on her cheek sounded loud. I meant it too. This wasn’t about holding back. I continued to smack her face, using the hits to punctuate my words.
“Tell me you’re my slut.”
“I-I’m your…slut.” Her trembling voice caressed, a bare whisper, as if true fear smothered her.
Good acting.
Smack! “Tell me you’re my fuck toy.”
Her voice came out stronger. “I’m your fuck toy!”
Smack!
“Now beg to suck my cock, bitch!” I swung him over and brought him down to her lips, rubbing them as she spoke.
“I…I want to suck your cock.”
I shoved it in, the rest of me hanging over her head and the pillow. My head bumped the headboard. The tip of my cock bumped the back of her throat. I felt her muscles swallowing to help me bend down her throat. The angle was awkward. It would have worked better with her head hanging off the end of the bed, me standing over her.
Fuck it. Why not.
I pulled out, shifted to her side, and dragged her around, repositioning her like some soulless hooker. I went to the foot of the bed. Standing, I inserted once more, watching her throat swell as my erection choked off her air. I gripped her tits, pinching her nipples, tugging hard as I moved my hips, fucking her face.
“You like that, don’t you bitch? I can tell.”
Pretense aside, I thought it true. She had enough power to blast the whole state into a deep crater if she wanted. All the women I fucked were strong. I liked not being able to break them. Usually.
She did a good a job on my cock; I felt my first eruption approaching.
Pulling out of her mouth, retreating, I grabbed her by the hair and pulled her into a sitting position. I dragged her on the bed and positioned her on hands and knees, facing the headboard. I pushed her face down into the bedding and lifted her ass high and moved behind her on the bed. I widened the space between her knees, adjusting her position.
“There,” I said. “Now you look like a proper bitch.”
“Caine, where are you going?”
I gave her an evil laugh. “You know where I’m going. You see ahead in time, remember?”
“But you haven’t lubed my ass. It’s going to hurt.”
Let it.
I spit on her anus a couple times. “There, happy?”
Without waiting for an answer, I positioned the mushroom head of my cock and pushed slow, without relenting. Balls deep, I invaded her bowels. “You know, I think I have grown longer than I used to be.”
Selene made no comment but tightened her muscles rhythmically around me, giving encouragement. Not that I needed it; I still had fire in my guts and a full, new day waiting to be consumed.
My inner dragon opened golden eyes in my head, watching. He roared approval as I pounded Selene’s ass—like this was his victory.
She gasped. “So full! It makes me feel so close to you.”
I kept pounding, feeling my first orgasm on the way.
Happy to oblige.
THIRTY-ONE
“Tormenting the weak is great
therapy! Just not for them.”
—Caine Deathwalker
A few days later, I used my Dragon Voice spell on the marina manager, so she’d accept Granny’s bill payment from me and forget that fact. Ringo looked a lot better. He strutted with his old swagger and wore his biker leathers again. Putting him to work, I had him steal Granny’s car and sell it to a chop shop, not wanting her disappearance to draw attention to us. He came back with groceries.
Good man.
Kain returned from Anubis’ world with the second version of Zahra, whom Gloria adopted at once. Zahra no longer spoke with Bastet’s personality on display but I had to believe that the cat goddess could look out of Zahra’s eyes whenever she wanted.
Kain detailed a few of the amazing bug-battles of the Red Centipede Rider. I got the idea I should get her a Saturday morning cartoon series to voice-over.
Kids will love it.
Kai
n confessed to taking a run at her with a sword and getting soundly beaten after what he described as a whirlwind passage of arms. “I’d have done better if her bouncy breasts weren’t so damn distracting. They’re her best weapons, I think.” He laughed about failure where others like myself would have made excuses. His charm wouldn’t let me hate him.
Kain and Gloria headed back to L.A.
Kat and her Pride moved out as well, renting adjoining lofts overlooking the Red River, in the Shreveport downtown market district.
A few more days passed as Selene and I pretended we didn’t know about the illicit affair that had caught up Colt and Vivian. I enjoyed seeing her guilty embarrassment when we were all together. That expression changed to one of deep troubling as she mailed off Craig’s stuff to his mom. This loss rode her when Colt wasn’t around to distract her.
Our last day at Cross Lake, I sat at the dining room table. I had Cinnamon Coco Squares and milk in my cereal bowl. I found no toy prize in the box. Manfully, I pressed on with breakfast, refusing to be crushed.
Someone has to set the example.
Colt sat across from me, a bowl in front of him as well. He also had orange juice. Playing domestic goddess, Selene forced the toaster to disgorge burnt toast, not quite taking her sword to it.
“Just scrape off the black part,” I said. “The toast will be fine with butter and jam.”
She took a butter knife out of a drawer and we listened to scrape, scrape, scrape.
Vivian cooked herself some eggs at the stove. I noticed Colt glancing at her possessively, his inner dragon peering out of his eyes.
“Feels just like a real family,” I said.
“We are your real family,” Colt said.
“I know, but it feels like I have two kids now: a son and older daughter, and a bun in the oven.” I looked over at Selene as she rummaged in the fridge for the jam.
“Strawberry or grape?” she asked.
I smiled at her. “You pick, my precious.”
“How come there’s no boysenberry?” she asked.
It saw you coming and ran off would be my guess.
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