Lissa Kasey - Dominion 3 - Conviction

by Lissa Kasey

  Not unless he became Pillar of water, and last I heard, Water lived in Cancun.” Gabe leaned against the wall and pinched his nose as though his head hurt, which was almost impossible for a vampire. A Pillar was the most powerful witch of the element. Seiran was Pillar of earth, but Kelly didn’t have enough training to even know the words to speak to become Pillar. “Not even a vampire could increase a human’s power.”

  “Maybe he’s hitting some height of power? Didn’t Sei’s abilities increase as he got older?”

  “Yes, but becomingPillar is really what changed him.”

  I really didn’t want to contemplate what would happen if Kelly became Pillar. Our fishbowl would shrink even more, and if someone threw harassment Kelly’s way I’d flip out. Gabe wouldn’t have the chance to buffer my anger. I thought of my gym buddies and wondered how much of a pounding they’d taken from me each time Sei had gotten some nasty attention. Padding and referees only helped so much, but one problem at a time. “Do you think it’s Roman?”

  “The Tri-Mega believes he’s dead.”

  “But you don’t.”

  “No.”

  That he was alive was something that terrified me. He’d almost taken Sei from us once, and if he was after Kelly now, I wouldn’t be able to keep myself from tearing him apart. Not even I was a match for a vampire. That bitter sense of helplessness filled me again. What good was being strong and smart if you couldn’t protect the ones you cared about most?

  Kelly

  “THISstorm blows, Sei.” “Figuratively, you mean?” The wind howled around the lodge.

  The fury of the water being tossed about had me bundled in the blankets, shivering. “Do you still suspect me?”

  Seiran tore off another piece of jerky for me and shuffled the cards. We were on our fifth round of War. We’d both won twice. But then neither of us was all that competitive when it came to cards.

  “Never did.” He glared at the closed door for the fiftieth time. “The sun will be up soon. I’m worried.”

  “They’ll be okay. They’re he-men. Here to protect us weak men.”

  “Huh?”

  I gave Sei a lifted eyebrow stare.

  “Gabe’s not like that.”

  “Jamie sure is.”

  “He’s a big guy. Used to being in charge.”

  “Does it ever bug you?”

  Sei shrugged. “Sometimes, I guess. But I yell at him

  when I see a lot of it. Then he gets all mad and brooding. Puffs out like a peacock.” I sighed, figuring no time like the present. “I had a vision while I was at the station. I touched the water, and it showed me a young man who looked sort of like you, in a tower, and he was dying. Then I saw the image of you being sick.”

  “A young man like me? Was he Asian?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why was he dying?” Sei didn’t look at me now; he just

  flipped through his many sketches as though searching for someone. “Something drained him. He was so tired….”

  “Hmm,” Sei mumbled. For the first time ever between us the silence felt awkward. It stretched into a few minutes until I did the only thing I could think of to restart the conversation. I confessed.

  “Jamie blew me,” I blurted out, waiting for the outrage and anger I was sure to receive.

  “What?”

  “Oral sex.”

  Seiran tilted his head like he was trying to see me in a different way. “My brother? I thought Jamie was straight.”

  “So did I, but he had—” I coughed lightly. “—skill.”

  “Oh!” Seiran frowned. “Does this mean you don’t want to be my friend anymore?”

  “No. Why the hell would it mean that?”

  “You said it could get weird on both sides.”

  Oh. I had, hadn’t I? “I don’t want it to get weird. But you’re my best friend, and I really like Jamie.”

  “So go for it.”

  “Seriously?”

  He shrugged. “Why not? Jamie could use a boyfriend. Maybe he would spend less time stalking me then.”

  “You do know he only does that ’cause he loves you so much.”

  “Yeah, but it feels weird.”

  Only to a guy who’d never had anyone before to take care of him. “So if you came home one day to find me and Jamie on the couch making out, what would you do?”

  “Other than watch a little, you mean?”

  “Seiran, I’m being serious here.”

  “Me too. You’re both hot. Why can’t I watch?”

  I sighed and said, “Probably won’t matter anyway. He didn’t let me return the favor, and he hasn’t been all that lovey-dovey since then anyway.”

  “So jump him. His balls are probably dark blue by now from all the babysitting he does. Show him he doesn’t have to stay that way. I’m all for that.”

  “Because you don’t want a babysitter anymore.”

  “Because, Jamie is my brother, and I want him to be happy too.” He flipped through his notebook, which was more sketches than notes on his medication. Seiran was a really good artist. One of the sketches toward the front caught my attention. It looked like the guy I’d seen through the water.

  “Who’s that?”

  Seiran flipped back and stared at the picture, a bunch of different emotions crossing his face. None of them good. “That’s Sam. Is he the one you saw in your vision? Is he dying?”

  Shit! “We should go find Gabe and Jamie. Yes, that’s the guy from my vision.”

  “Then we have to help Sam.”

  I jumped off the bed and grabbed my coat. “You have to come with me. I don’t want you here by yourself.”

  His eyes widened, but he got up and started pulling on his snow stuff. I packed a bag full of his and Gabe’s stuff, adding as much food as I could, along with Sei’s meds and notebook. If Sam was involved in this unwillingly, then it only meant Roman was controlling him, and they were both after Seiran. And that was so not happening again.

  Once we were both bundled up, we snuck down to the garage. The snow kept the early morning very dark and cold. No one seemed to be moving about, which was eerie. What about the other guests? Had anyone else been poisoned? Was anyone else even worried?

  We hurried across the snow-covered lot and ducked into the garage. Gabe and Jamie were going through gas cans. They both looked up when we came in.

  “What’s wrong?” Gabe asked.

  “You guys should be inside where it’s warm,” Jamie protested.

  I handed the packed bag to Gabe. “Did Jamie tell you where the sleds are?”

  “Yes, but it will be light soon.”

  “If you move fast you can stay in the cover of the trees until you get there. You need to head to Rabbit Five. Take Seiran with you. Neither of you are safe here.”

  “What are you talking about, Kelly?” Jamie demanded.

  Gabe just stared at me, like he was trying to read everything I wasn’t saying. But I was pretty sure he couldn’t get that deep into anyone but Seiran. “Okay.”

  “Gabe!”

  “I packed as much food as I could, and Sei’s meds. The map is on the top.” I pulled the map out and showed him how I had it folded to show the route to Rabbit Five. With the map, I had also tucked a note that told him about seeing Sam in a vision in the water and how he felt like he was dying, but he’d led us to the extra sled and left the keys behind. Maybe Sam’s power was water too, and that’s how he was connecting with me. I didn’t know.

  “You and Jamie should come too,” Seiran mumbled through his heaps of coverings.

  “We have to stay. Let people believe the two of you are still here. At least for a while. Get to Rabbit Five. Make them send help. We’ll follow as soon as we can.” Someone at the lodge had to be helping them. After all, Sei had been poisoned here. A few days sneaking about might give Jamie and me the time to flush them out while Sei and Gabe got help. I watched several bits of comprehension cross Seiran’s face. He looked at Gabe, then Jamie, then me.
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  Finally he turned back to Jamie and said, “Listen to Kelly, okay, Jamie? Keep him safe for me. Be safe too. We’ll send help.”

  Gabe grabbed two helmets and the bag I’d packed, then led Seiran out into the snow in the direction of the hidden sleds. For the first time in weeks I felt the same crushing fear I’d felt when I’d watched Matthew take Seiran from the parking lot of our building. That day Jamie had been shot, and I felt the whole world crashing down on me while I held my shirt to his chest to try to slow the bleeding to wait for the paramedics.

  Watching that car drive away with Seiran in it had been one of the hardest things I’d ever done. Now letting them go would probably be the best for them. But it didn’t stop the sense of dread that had already begun to rise.

  Jamie grabbed a few heavy gas cans, and we snuck them out to our hidden snowmobile. Gabe and Sei were already gone, headed through the stormy night toward safety, I hoped.

  Jamie and I returned to the lodge, took any remaining things of ours from their room, and retired to ours. It wasn’t until he was inside and had eaten a sandwich that he spoke. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  “Other than the fact that someone’s trying to kill Seiran again, you mean?”

  “It could just have been food poisoning.”

  His glass-half-full attitude was seriously starting to piss me off. Didn’t he just live the same few months that I had?

  My look must have said something because he dropped down on the bed and sighed heavily. “Will it never end? Why can’t he have a normal life? Or even a life where people just leave him alone.”

  The reason was pretty simple. And solvable. “Andrew Roman is alive.”

  Jamie said nothing. His expression said he’d suspected it all along.

  “Sam has been trying to do the right thing. What if someone, like a vampire, was making him do otherwise?” Sam had been bitten by a vampire before and forced to harm Seiran. In the end, he had actually helped Sei escape with Gabe. “Maybe Roman controls him now. I saw him in the water on the counter at the ranger station. He was tired. Dying. He said the storm would die when he did.”

  “But he shouldn’t have any power. His family isn’t Dominion. We checked.”

  “The Dominion has been wrong before.”

  Jamie flipped the lock on the door, then stripped out of his clothes. He went into the bathroom and checked the water, which was still running. “Cold, but it’s better than nothing.” He shut the door. I stripped out of everything and dug out a pair of flannel pajamas. The lack of heat was already chilling the building. I did not want to freeze to death when I could have prevented it by not sleeping mostly nude.

  When Jamie came out he was wearing just his boxers, though it was a different set than what he’d worn last night. Had it only been last night?

  He crawled in beside me, huddling down beneath the blankets.

  “Maybe we should grab the blankets from Sei and Gabe’s room too. Just in case the weather gets worse.” “We’ll do that later tonight. Get some sleep.”

  “I remember how you made me sleepy last night.”

  He laughed, the sound sexy as hell. “This time I’m just too tired to get it up. Sorry.”

  I sighed and curled up against him, glad I had the human furnace to keep me warm. Once my head hit the pillow, instead of dreams, I walked into a world which I now recognized as Sam’s. He struggled through the snow. The storm ripped energy out of him. And though he never showed me Andrew Roman, he nodded his agreement that this was all part of that greater scheme. Sam did what he had to because he had no choice. That free will had been taken from him. He reached the wooden steps of a tower and began to climb, heart sluggishly pounding, telling him that death was coming soon.

  The dream shifted. Just before I awoke again, I saw a sled moving through the rising morning light, ducking around trees and flying at top speed. I knew it was Seiran and Gabe because I felt the snow pelting them. When I saw them reach the large outpost of Rabbit Five, I wanted to cheer. But the sun was up, and Gabe needed shelter. Seiran ushered him inside, and once the door was closed to the blowing snow, I lost all sight of them.

  I stretched and shifted, feeling Jamie like a solid mass around me. When he slept, he was down for the count. The pale light of the room, from the nearly snow-covered window, made him look younger than I knew him to be. I wondered if age was an issue for him. Or if he just wasn’t willing to do more because his brother and I were friends.

  I’d always felt protected by him. After the last attack on Sei, when I’d gone off to find him, Jamie had yelled at me for it afterward. Telling me I could have been hurt. His words had been harsh, but felt more like concern than actual anger and distrust. This trip had them both. Maybe I just really didn’t know how to read him. Did anyone? The better question might have been would he let anyone?

  The man needed someone to keep him from stressing so much over his little brother. There were four of us now. We could share the responsibility. And contrary to popular belief, I was no pushover. I decided at that moment to take Seiran’s advice and jump him.

  I shoved the blankets down a little and reached for Jamie’s stiff body. He always felt like a brick wall, solid muscle, bulky and big. But I would almost bet my subscription to Surf’s Up that he would be one huge knot of wrongly wound nerves. Beginning with his large calves, I began massaging the stiff muscles like that was all that mattered in the world.

  By the time I’d gotten to his lower back, he’d rolled onto his stomach and was moaning with pleasure. “Where the hell did you learn that?” he asked, though it came out sounding like “Wad a he d u urn tat?”

  “I have an older sister who’s a massage therapist. She used to practice on all of us, and I was so intrigued, I asked her to teach me.”

  “I shouldn’t be doing this. I have to make sure Sei is safe.”

  “How are you going to do that? No radio, remember? He’s fine. I saw him through the snow. They arrived at the station about an hour ago.”

  “That’s some crazy power you have there.”

  I kneaded his beautiful shoulders, pulling another moan from him. “I don’t get what’s going on at all. My powers have never worked like this before.” I tapped him on the side. “Turn over so I can do the front.”

  “Not a good idea,” he told me.

  “Just do it.”

  “You’re really bossy.”

  “Look who’s talking.”

  Finally he rolled over, cheeks flushed, and I immediately saw his problem but swallowed back the smile. His cock was hard beneath his boxers. In fact, the fabric strained to hold it, forcing him to curve and almost letting it poke out the top. Damn, I so wanted to taste that. But I ignored it, like any good masseur would, and began again with his ankles and worked my way up.

  “This is really embarrassing,” Jamie said, though he didn’t try to pull away or move more than what I told him to.

  “It’s supposed to be relaxing.”

  “It feels good, but I don’t think I’m relaxing.”

  “I’ll just have to work a little harder then.”

  He sighed when my hands skipped from his huge thighs up to that sculpted eight-pack that was chiseled out of his stomach. I gave each muscle its due, counting in my head the time before moving on to the next. When I reached his pretty pecs, I worked my palm into the flesh. The hair rubbing beneath my hand went right to my cock.

  “You need to stop waxing. You can’t be that hairy.” I wanted to roll against him, feel that hair tickling my chest.

  He frowned. “I’m a bear. Seiran would think it’s gross.” “How often does Seiran sleep with you?”

  Jamie looked offended and lost for words all at once. “Right. Stop waxing, please. I like a man with hair.”

  He closed his eyes and seemed to sink into the feeling. I even massaged the muscles of his face and scalp. When I finished he almost seemed to be sleeping again, since his breathing was so deep and slow.

  Finally, I bent o
ver and did what I’d been waiting to do since that night in the cabin when the storm first hit. I sucked one of his mocha buds into my mouth. Swirling my tongue around it, I tasted the salty sweetness of flesh and man for a while before moving to the next. The pebble hardened, and Jamie moaned lightly beneath me.

  “You shouldn’t,” he said. “We shouldn’t.”

  I wasn’t turning back now. I had to see the whole deal. If all I got was to suck him off, that was just fine with me. His amazing bronze skin was so chiseled and sweet flavored, I felt like butter on a hot metal slide. I couldn’t help but be drawn further and further south.

  The boxers had to go. “Please tell me you don’t go full Brazilian?”

  He flushed.

  Damn. I eased the fabric off his hips, watching his cock break free in a hard triumph to nearly reach his belly button. Wow. That was going to be hard to swallow, literally. Like his arms, the veins jutted in heavy lines down his shaft. The whole thing looked more like man art than any cock I’d ever seen.

  I began with the tip, figuring I’d work my way down. The bulbous head barely fit in my mouth.

  Jamie made a protesting noise. “You don’t have to.”

  “I sure don’t, but I’m going to.” He was almost as wide as my fist, dark bronze in color, like always-flushed cheeks on a suntanned face. Though there were no tan lines, so the color had to be natural.

  His balls rested against him like a huge apple, darker in color than his cock, tight and obviously ready for more. I reached down to feel the heavy weight of them, juggle them in my fingers, applying soft pressure and soothing caresses. He groaned, making me smile and lick around his huge dick.

  He was uncut, with thick foreskin, which was odd because the Dominion were religious about circumcision. They were always about controlling men when they could.

  “Your mom didn’t….”

  “No. It was my father’s one demand. If he had been alive when Sei was born, Sei wouldn’t be circumcised either.”

  I teased the skin, enjoying the salty, male taste. Having never been with an uncircumcised guy before, I didn’t know if it was a good thing or not, but Jamie’s hips twitched. “Good?”