Dragon's Oath: A Paranormal & Urban Fantasy Romance (House of Quercus Book 1)

by Eve Laird

  I walked straight to their table before one of the other serving wenches had a chance.

  “Yes, sires, what can I get you?” I asked, making my voice as impassive as possible.

  I didn't want them to know they were the first Fallen I'd ever seen - except for myself, of course.

  The first spoke before even looking at me.

  “Well, let's see...” he looked at me, and I watched his confidence falter.

  “Oh!” He'd realized that I was an Angel within just seconds.

  “Gentlemen, it appears this is the first Fallen female you have also met?” the Vampire puffed up his chest with pride.

  “I am both relieved and dismayed to see that not all under Heaven is known to you.” he grinned, and the tips of his fangs dented his lower lip.

  “Careful there, good sir, or your pride may cometh before a very long fall. In fact, I’d stake your reputation on it,” said the Angel, grinning.

  “I've never met a Fallen female before,” the first one babbled.

  “I'm Oliver.” he said, and went to shake my hand, but I stiffened.

  “Apologies, but if I greet you in the way of the Guard, my... um... current landlord will not be pleased,” I said, indicating Terrin with a glance.

  “Please do not be offended, Brother. It is of great comfort to me to meet more of my kind,” I said, and chanced to smile.

  He grinned back.

  “I understand.”

  Then he spoke more loudly.

  “Yes, three cups of mead for me and my companions, maid. And find out what the kitchen has today.” he nearly bellowed.

  I bowed as I spoke.

  “Of course, sirs, right away.”

  By the time I'd returned, we had all regained our composure, and managed to have two conversations at the same time, speaking so quickly and quietly that the humans would not hear, and then loudly for what we wanted them to hear.

  “Did you enjoy the stew?” I asked, loudly.

  “Yes,” Oliver said.

  “Are you safe, Fallen?” he whispered.

  “Are there any more?” the second Angel asked. “Do you need our assistance?”

  “I'm fine. Thank you for your concern. No, I am alone. I am working here due to a misunderstanding, but will be leaving tonight.”

  I spoke louder.

  “I'll check right away, sir.”

  As I gathered their plates the Vampire spoke faster than I ever could have.

  “They are travelling to the House of Quercus. It is a reputable safe haven for all Other Natured. I have listened to these two, and believe their words, and I intend to leave with them at sundown. You would be much safer, Fallen, if you were to join us,” he said, shifting in his seat.

  “I’ve overheard the conversations held here. The landlord intends to sell you to Borin, a whoremonger, sitting in that corner. See? He's leaving now,” he pointed.

  I recognized the name from serving Borin and his companions earlier.

  No matter how deftly I tried to avoid their touch, their hands tried to grab me every time I served them. The fact that it was the same man that Terrin had bowed and scraped to came as no surprise. I now knew exactly what went on upstairs in this inn. I assumed that having Borin visiting this place regularly was a great way for Terrin to move along some of the girls he'd managed to blackmail and bully into working here.

  I brought the plates back to the kitchen.

  Dain, the cook, gruffly told me that the stew was finished for the day - if I wanted some, I would have to make it myself.

  I turned to leave, but Terrin blocked my exit.

  “Come with me, girl,” he said, and led me out the door to the back of the kitchen, where I'd watched the staff work last night.

  “Your penitence is paid and you'll be leaving now,” he said, leering at my breasts again.

  I held myself straighter, pointing them directly into his miserable face.

  Take a good look, you ass, I thought.

  “About time,” I said.

  He led me down the step and into the backyard just beside the stables.

  “It will be a pity to see you go, girl. There is one last duty I would require of you before you leave, however,” he said, and started to unbutton his breeches, when a voice came out of the dark.

  “Now, Terrin, the deal's already been done. If you wish to do that, you'll be paying me.” Borin's voice came from behind me.

  “I don't think so,” I said, steeling myself for what was to come, turning around to see his face in the light that spilled from the noisy kitchen.

  “I don't care what you think. I own you now, so I'll tell you when to think, never mind what to think,” he sneered, and the back of Borin's hand met with my lip.

  An instant later, my fist had broken his nose, before I turned to grab Terrin by the hair as he tried to return to the safety of the inn's kitchen.

  “Grab her!” Borin growled, and a pair of rough hands wrapped around my neck.

  “Release Terrin.” he snarled.

  I twisted the hold I had on Terrin’s greying hair, who whimpered in pain.

  Very satisfying.

  I did it again.

  The grip on my throat tightened, so I left Terrin go.

  I still resisted fighting unless absolutely necessary.

  “You'll be returning my daughter's clothes before you leave.” Terrin whined.

  “She won't, Terrin. Be about your business now. Our deal is done.” Borin said as he towered over the landlord, ensuring that Terrin did what he was told.

  “Close the door when you go back into the kitchen.” he commanded.

  The light faded as the door clicked shut.

  Absently I wondered where all the people were who had been scurrying around here last night were doing this fine evening.

  Chapter 4

  The Human Realm, 1714

  “At last, a moment to savor my latest purchase.” Borin said, as he reached and touched the trickle of blood that had formed on my lip.

  It would be healing already, too quickly for a human. I'd have to split it again to avoid detection.

  “Release her,” he commanded the towering man who had dared to put his hands on me.

  You’ll die first, I thought.

  Later, I'd be shocked at how easily the thought had come, and how happily I would have been to perform the act.

  The man complied, and Borin moved me out of the light.

  “Come, Fallon - that's your name isn't it? I heard the women talking about you.” he laughed, and pulled me towards the stables where I'd spent the night before.

  “Let's get to know each other a little better,” he said, grinning.

  As he reached the stable doors, he turned to his travelling companions who I now realized were his henchmen.

  “Come, boys - did you think that I would not share the fun?” he asked.

  A rowdy laugh filled the air, and I knew that once we were inside the stables that I would be the only one to walk out again.

  I allowed them to push me inside, the quicker we were all in, the quicker I could kill them without being seen.

  I walked backwards, knowing that once I had my back to the wall, no one could try to attack from behind.

  They all walked in, laughing and patting each other on the backs, one even straightened his hair.

  As soon as I felt their presence, I heard the stable door close shut.

  We were not alone.

  I could not control the instinct, and I heard the briefest of rips as the blouse gave way on my back to let my wings loose.

  There would be two big rips in the back, now.

  The men were only shocked for a second, before they heard a voice from the door.

  “Gentlemen, you have forfeited your lives. No one will miss you, not even your wives or children... Especially not your wives or children!”

  The Angel's words were true, and came as enough of a distraction for the Vampire to break the necks of three of them in the time
it took the other Angel to dispatch two more.

  I lunged for Borin, seeking to claim my own vengeance, and that of the other females who had been attacked, and traded, and raped.

  The Angel, Oliver, claimed Borin's dagger for himself and grabbed him before I could.

  “I cannot stand by and allow you to become a killer,” he smiled ruefully at me.

  “You, like me, may be Fallen, but it must have been only recently, there is still a pureness within you - I can sense it. Killing in this way would tarnish you and I would not see that happen - especially for a thing such as this,” he said, and glowered at Borin.

  The whoremonger’s eyes widened as he watched his tunic darken in the moonlight around the spot where his dagger had found its home, deep within his chest.

  Borin went to say something, but the words never came, his mouth moving soundlessly, like a fish out of water.

  I watched, detached, as his life ended, not feeling the slightest remorse for him or the others.

  The Vampire and the other Angel moved the bodies into one of the stables before the Vampire checked his horse.

  Oliver approached me.

  “Are you alright?” he asked, concern etched onto his face.

  “There's no time for that right now, Oliver,” the second Angel chided.

  “We need to be leaving before someone else happens along,” he said.

  The Vampire led his horse out of the stables.

  “It's a pity, I really liked this horse. I bought it a few weeks ago from a merchant who was down on his luck. Oh well... I suppose I can always get another,” he said, wistfully.

  I could hear his voice outside.

  “Go on then, horse. Go.” he said.

  I heard a sharp smacking sound before the horse galloped away.

  I was dazed and entirely furious, but despite that I let Oliver take my hand to lead me out of the stables.

  “Wait!” I shouted, remembering where I had stashed my uniform.

  I raced back to the floorboards, kneeling to retrieve my clothes, and the money given to me.

  “Fallen, now is not the time for prayer, we must go.” Oliver said, trying to get me to leave.

  “Do not touch me.”

  The words came through gritted teeth.

  “I must collect my things.”

  I pulled out the leather pouch, and my uniform, before lifting both and stalking out of the stables.

  The chatter coming from inside the inn continued, unconcerned that the landlord had believed he'd sold a young woman to a brothel. Most inside did not indulge in the darker services that the inn offered, but by going over the threshold they still enabled it to continue.

  I wanted to burn the place to the ground.

  The other Angel and the Vampire were already some distance away, but I took a moment to empty the bag that one of Borin's henchmen had over his shoulder.

  The contents, like the dead man, were hidden behind the far wall of the stables. The bag, now full of my uniform and the coins given to me by the Vampire were over my shoulder as I ran to catch up with the others.

  “My name's Asher,” said the Angel.

  “We did not have the opportunity to properly introduce ourselves earlier,” he added.

  We shook hands in the way of the Guard, my hand clasping his forearm as he did with mine.

  “I'm Vita,” I said simply.

  “Not Fallon then?” the Vampire's wry voice was full of sarcasm.

  “No. But, I do not know what you are called?” I said as I tossed his purseful of coins to him.

  “And this is yours,” I added.

  He snatched the bag from mid-flight, in that rapid way of Vampires.

  “He's Lucian,” Oliver said.

  He'd just caught up with us.

  “And, I'm Oliver.” he smiled.

  I'd already known that, as he'd introduced himself earlier, but I supposed he wanted to remind me since a lot had happened in the meantime.

  “Pleased to meet you, Vita,” Lucian said with the smooth tones that I'd learned were usual for Vampires.

  “Vita,” Oliver said.

  “That's a beautiful name. Life.”

  “Yes,” I rolled my eyes.

  “It means Life.”

  Every trainer in the Angelic Guard had made the same association when first meeting me... and about how it was ironic, since I was being trained to be a ruthless killer for the Guard.

  “We'll continue to that ridge over there,” Asher pointed into the distance.

  “Then we will fly to the House of Quercus,” he turned to me as we walked. “Assuming you are well enough to fly, Vita? I would have asked first, but seeing how your wings look so glorious, I just thought...”

  I'd forgot they'd even unfurled.

  I rolled my shoulders as I flexed them, stretching one out its full length before repeating the action with the other.

  “They're fine. I can fly.”

  Lucian interrupted.

  “And, don't worry about me. I won't be asking one of you for a lift. I can follow from below,” he said.

  He fixed his bags across his body.

  “I'll have a good enough trace on you now to sense where you are.”

  “Good,” Asher spoke again, and I could see why he'd been disguised as the Lord and not the squire; he was a natural leader.

  “Although, Lucian, there is some distance that crosses water. So, you'll just have to be carried across that. There's nothing else to be done about it,” Asher said.

  Everyone chose to ignore what Lucian said next.

  I'd never heard swearing quite like it before, even if it was spoken so very smoothly.

  Oliver looked around.

  “I think we're safe enough here to take flight. We should go soon, as there is a fair distance to cover before daybreak,” he said.

  He was right, the flickering lights from the village were small dots now - they'd see nothing from here.

  It felt good to stretch my wings, and with a quick nod to each other, the three of us ascended into the air. The sensation of the cool air against my wings as I went higher was as exhilarating as always. Without consciously intending, we flew in formation; Asher, as expected taking the lead position. I positioned myself behind Oliver, putting him second, and myself in third.

  I didn't know if it was best for me to go to this House of Quercus, but I would certainly travel for tonight with these males. In reality, I knew couldn't stay in that village, and I knew I would at least be safe with these beings.

  Well, relatively safe, I thought.

  At least I didn't have to worry about accidentally revealing my true nature - they knew what I was; and being Fallen they must have assumed I did something terrible to be Cast Out. Then again, the two of them were also Fallen, and I had no idea how they had come to be in the same situation.

  It seemed unlikely that we all were Cast Out unfairly.

  We changed positions in our flight formation to give Asher, a rest and I caught a glimpse of Oliver's face as he took the lead position.

  He was grinning like a child. His hair was whipping back away from his face and there was a sparkle in his eyes. Like me, he felt completely at home in the skies. I loved the feeling of soaring high above the land. The fact we were under cover of darkness made no difference to us - it was purely for Lucian's benefit. If needed, we could fly above the clouds so the humans would not see us during the day.

  Since it was nightfall, and even though Lucian said he could trace us, we still flew lower than the Angelic Guard typically would.

  I marveled as we approached each village. The lights and the trails of smoke that rose were picturesque scenes of yellow shimmers and grey wisps.

  Since Oliver was the lead, it was he who redirected our path slightly, so Lucian could avoid having to race through the village square. By the time the next three villages and a larger town had passed, it was my turn to take the lead.

  After a questioning look, Asher gave me the nod and I fe
lt my lips grin at the thought. I didn't know where we were going but I would lead us directly in the same direction until I was told otherwise.

  Even though I wanted to go faster, I wouldn't increase our pace as I didn't know the full speed that Lucian could run.

  An hour later, Oliver moved beside me, pointing downwards, and then towards a small lake that reflected the moonlight like a mirror. He flew alongside as we descended and I tried not to keep staring at him. He really was in his element and that smile was just infectious.

  Lucian met us as we landed and we were all slightly breathless.

  It had been quite a distance, indeed, and I was guessing that we weren't near this House of Quercus yet.

  “Surely my Fallen Three aren't tired?” Lucian said smoothly, failing to hide the breath he was trying to catch.

  “Tired? We're going slow because an old Vampire such as yourself couldn't actually keep up with even the slowest of the Angelic Guard,” I goaded him playfully.

  “Oliver, how far away are we from our final destination, do you suppose?” I asked.

  His grey eyes met mine.

  “Another couple of hours, I'd wager. We were given directions and a map by a shifter from south of Boston. Not far, now,” he said.

  Asher interrupted.

  “This was a good place to take a short break because there's a large expanse of water at the other side of that mountain.”

  He pointed further along in the direction we were already going.

  “This is a good time for you to take your lift, Lucian. So, who'll it be?” he grinned.

  Lucian's lips formed a line.

  His Vampire ego had been bruised.

  Severely.

  “Vita, my dear, I would not ask a female.”

  He bowed to me as I grimaced at him.

  Chapter 5

  The Human Realm, 1714

  “Let's just get one thing straight.” I pointed at each of them.

  “That self-righteous male attitude is not welcome. I am... was... a highly honored member of the Angelic Guard. I do not need you acting as if I am some glass bauble that will break.”