by Eve Newton
Somewhat surprised by the question, I say, “There’s not much to tell. My mother was a hardworking but cruel woman and my father was weak. Preferred the easy way out. I had two older sisters and a brother, but they died when I was a baby and then I had one more sister who also died. Clearly not of good stock. I suppose the only reason I made it was because I wasn’t altogether theirs,” I shrug.
“Wow, that’s harsh.”
“It happened a lot. If the babies even survived being born,” I add, suddenly thinking of my own. Damn you, Constantine for spilling the baby beans.
“How did they die? Your parents.”
“I have no idea. I was turned and living with CK by then.”
“You never wanted to find out?” he asks in amazement.
“Not really, no. I wasn’t fond of them and that part of my life was over. I never even thought about them again. Oh, except maybe that one time when we headed back to England in 1066 but they would have been dead by then anyway.”
“Maybe Constantine knows. He seems to have every aspect of your life covered,” he says with a grimace.
“I doubt it. They weren’t of any interest to him. Tiamat might know I suppose.”
“Are you sure you want to go back to this Lance’s castle?” he asks, changing the subject.
“Do I want to go? No. Am I going to? Yes.”
“You should have let Constantine kill him.”
“I know,” I say sadly. “I wanted him to when he came to rescue me, but there wasn’t any time. As it was, he only just managed to get his ring off him to stop him from following us.”
“He took his ring? Is that what you meant by ‘being stripped’?”
“Yes. After he got me back to Italy, he wanted to return to Sibiu and kill him, but I didn’t want him to leave me. I couldn’t be alone again, so he waited and the longer he waited the more I needed him with me. After I came back to myself, I remembered the horror of killing your own. I wouldn’t put him through that.”
“Devon is right, again,” he says. “You are always trying to protect him. He doesn’t need it, but you do. Don’t be a fool, Liv,” he chides me in a CK-like tone, and I smile.
“One day you will understand, my love, it’s not as simple as all that.”
“It’s difficult then? Killing one of your own?”
“Yes, it can be emotionally difficult, of course, but there is also a physical pain that goes with it.”
“Even if you hate them?” he asks.
“Yes, you are still connected to them whether you love them or hate them.”
He frowns at me. I kiss him, slowly, deeply. He forgets about everything else and pulls me on top of him, hands in my hair to hold me close. “Let me make love to you, slowly,” he whispers.
“Yes,” I whisper back. He pushes me onto my back, pinning me to the bed with his weight as he continues to just kiss me in a way that makes me want to stay like this forever.
“I love you, Liv,” he says, before he drops his fangs and slowly pierces my neck.
“Drink slowly,” I order him, remembering how good it felt when CK took his time.
He groans in restraint of suckling deeply on me, but does as I ask. Soon, I’m aroused beyond belief. Drawing back, he retracts his fangs and resumes kissing me, but now sliding his hand down my side to pull my hips up towards him. Kneading my soft flesh in his strong grip, I feel a rush of desire and I want him, now.
I push us over, but he rolls us back saying, “Uh-uh. You said,” before he returns to his kisses that are driving me wild. Debating whether or not to just overpower him and take him, all thoughts go out of my head as he moves his mouth away from mine, down to my neck and across my chest to my breasts. Fangs down again, he nips me, drawing blood, dangerously close to the no-go zone. Only I don’t want it to be the no-go zone, I want him to bite me there, I realize in amazement and shame that my ‘sire special’ is now turning into a free-for-all. Not wanting to make the decision myself, I leave it to him to see if he will do it. To both my immense relief and disappointment, he doesn’t as he trails further down, fangs grazing my skin.
Now starting to lose control of himself, he digs his claws into me. I squirm in rapture as his mouth finally reaches my soaking wet pussy.
Lapping away at me, I wiggle closer to him and he groans as I come against his mouth. Flipping me over suddenly, he traces his hands down the backs of my legs, making me shiver at this touch. Catching me by surprise, he takes a bite out of my backside with a slow chuckle as I yelp. Hovering over me, legs either side of me, he trails his hands over my back. I feel the now familiar ripple of my Dragon moving across my back.
“It’s beautiful,” he murmurs in wonder. “You are just so beautiful.” Then he giggles in delight and says, “She’s following me, almost like she wants me to stroke her.”
“Really?” I say, reveling under his touch and his evident delight.
He pauses and then says shyly, “I was going to take you this way, but I’m not sure I want her watching.”
Despite myself, I burst out laughing and turn around. “Better?”
He doesn’t answer but drops his head to mine and takes me again in a perfect kiss that could last for days.
“Oh, Cole, I need you,” I murmur. “Please take me.”
Needing no more encouragement than that, he enters me slowly, with deliberate little pulses that send all of my synapses firing.
“Oh, baby. I love you. I need you,” he whispers as he finally thrusts all the way inside me. I arch underneath him in response. He takes a nipple in his mouth and bites down, with his regular teeth. Again, I want the real thing, but he doesn’t do it as he starts to suck, his tongue working in the same rhythm to his hips.
I come again and he stiffens but pulls out. “I don’t want to, not just yet,” he mutters.
Taking the opportunity to throw my weight around, I kneel behind him and push his head to the side. Dropping my fangs, I sink them slowly into him, drawing deeply on him. He pushes his hand up into my hair to hold me close and I bite a tiny bit harder. Releasing him, I push him down and turn him over.
“How much do you want me?” I say against his lips.
He growls, holding my head in place. “More than you will ever know,” he gets out before he forces his tongue against mine.
Wanting him inside me again, I push against him and he enters me with a tilt of his hips. He hits the spot perfectly. I move slowly over him. He sits us up, mouth never leaving mine, and I ride him to the point of no return. We come together, gasping into each other’s mouths as the pleasure takes us over completely.
We fall back to the bed together, but I stay on top of him, stretching out and getting comfortable with my head on his chest. Within seconds, I’m falling asleep again thinking this is getting ridiculous.
A loud knocking disturbs me. I hear Cole move over to answer the bedroom door. It is CK and Devon.
“She’s sleeping,” Cole says firmly as they come into the bedroom.
“Again?” Devon says worriedly.
“Look, she’s been through a lot lately. I say we just leave her for now.”
Happy with that idea, I stay still and silent, hoping they will go away.
“Dmitri is here. Downstairs,” CK says. “She wanted to talk to him, and he won’t wait all day. Wake her up.”
Still in a snarky mood then.
I sigh and open my eyes. “I’m awake. Just give me a minute to pull myself together.” I get out of bed.
I stalk to the bathroom and close the door. Stepping into the shower, I pin my hair up not wanting it to get wet and proceed to… well, not do anything except stand there.
Move, Liv, I tell myself, but still do nothing. I’m bone weary. I can’t say for sure how long I’m in the shower, but Cole comes in sometime after and finds me sitting with the water pounding down on me, head on my raised knees. I sit up suddenly as I hear him come in, followed closely by the other two, after his very loud “Christ, Liv!”
> He opens the shower. “I told you we should have left her,” he hisses at my sire, who grunts in appreciation of the fact that I am indeed not one hundred per cent on top of my game.
“No, I’m okay. Just get me some blood,” I say and pull myself up with the help of Cole. Devon hands me a towel, while CK shoves his wrist in my face.
“Drink.”
My fangs have already dropped, and I latch onto him like a starving child. With no end in sight, he pulls me to his chest and sinks us both to the floor as I’m drinking way more than I should. Not that it’ll kill him, as he regenerates way too quickly for that, but it won’t make him feel the best either. Leaning my head on his chest, I make a humongous effort to pull away. He breathes in sharply as I release him.
“Fuck, Lizzie. Are you okay?” Devon asks, worried.
Opening my eyes, as again they seem to have closed all on their own, I lean on CK to stand, saying, “Yes. I’m fine.” They all frown at my ‘fine’. “Let me get dressed and then I will go and speak to Dmitri.”
“No. You need to rest,” CK says. “You said I’m your proxy; I will deal with this. Just tell me exactly what you want from him.”
Oh, no, matey, I am not letting you get away with pushing me out of the loop on this.
“No,” I say instead. “I already know Dmitri, remember? We go way back. I will handle this.” I move unsteadily to my wardrobe. I sift mindlessly through some clothes until Devon steps in and hands me something appropriate.
“Thank you,” I mutter.
“I think you should let us handle this, Lizzie. You already appointed us, and we know what you want from him. We can do this. Just go back to bed.”
“No, thank you. I am fine,” I say. I pull the dress he handed me over my head and turn for him to zip it up, which he does. Stepping into some shoes, I make my way to the door and head downstairs to my sibling waiting for me in my office. They follow me, mumbling something about something, but I’m too focused on trying to get my head straight for this meeting. What the Hell is wrong with me?
As soon as I step into my, very airy, office, I come to a bit and greet Dmitri like an old friend. Which I suppose he is, in a way. I met him about five hundred and fifty years ago. Yet another of CK’s BC boys – as I like to call all the ones he turned during the ‘Before Christ’ years – this one turned around 5BC. Thankfully, he is nothing like Lance. We met in 1453, when Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks. Both of us fighting for our sire’s side. Oh, yeah, I was pretty kick ass with a weapon back in the day, but more on that later.
“Viviana,” he greets me with warmth and a kiss to each cheek. “You look… different.”
“Hello, Dmitri. Yes, this is how I normally look.”
“Interesting choice,” he points to the gaping hole and I giggle.
“Redecorating. It is good to see you again. It has been too long. But please, call me Liv now.” I pull Cole to my side and say, “This is my husband Cole, and this is Devon Savant.”
He shakes hands with them both and says, “Hm, indeed, Liv. We should pay no mind to our sire and meet more frequently. Nice to meet you both.”
They nod.
“I would like that, especially as I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Oh? It wouldn’t have anything to do with your new position in our community, would it?” he asks coyly.
I give him a wide smile. “Actually, yes. Please sit.”
The three have been watching this pleasant exchange with suspicion and then relief that one of us isn’t going to try to kill the other.
We sit, while CK glowers at us, and the other two watch carefully.
“May I begin by saying congratulations,” he says, inclining his head gracefully.
“Thank you. It has all been quite sudden, but now that it is here, we need to act. Quickly.”
“I agree. I assume you are looking for a new Council from what Constantine has said?”
“Yes. I need people I can trust.”
“Well, I am honored that you thought of me. Although, I have a terrible feeling that Lance may have, how do you say, stuck his oar in already?”
I laugh into my hand at that one. “Yes, somewhat.”
“I can only assume that is not acceptable to you, under the circumstances.” He scowls at Constantine. I’m somewhat surprised that he has been apprised of that whole situation. Then again, I have no idea how close he is to his other charges, so I have nothing to go on.
“Off the record Dmitri, I want you to be the Ambassador for Eastern Europe. However, I am going to offer it Lance first so that I can gain control of his magick bearers. I then intend to kill him, and you will then have your rightful place.”
“Ah, the Romani. A loyal bunch. You will find it most difficult to turn them.”
“I know. But I will. I, we, are going to see Lance tomorrow at Castelul Negru to start the ball rolling.”
“You are going back? To Castle Black?” he asks in horror.
“Yes,” I say warily, wondering just how much he knows and why.
“Do you think that is a good idea? I was there when we pulled you out of that dungeon. I don’t think you should go back,” he says forcefully.
I look stunned as CK growls, a very low feral noise, deep from his throat. Flicking my eyes to him, his face is, as always, unreadable. Looking back at Dmitri, his has gone the same. Like sire, like charge, indeed.
“You were there?” I ask hesitantly.
“It is of no consequence,” he mutters.
Oh, where have I heard that before? Infuriating beasts, the pair of them.
“Humph, well, no matter. It has been decided. We are going,” I say quite rudely, then smile apologetically.
He smiles back, a forced one, and says, “I accept your offer. I will keep it to myself once word gets out about Lance,” he spits the name out, “and I look forward to you finishing him off once and for all.”
“Wonderful. Thank you so much for coming here to meet me today. I would, under ordinary circumstances, have come to you, but we have a lot to accomplish in the next few days.” I stand, as does he, and we shake hands.
“It is not a problem. I have some recommendations if you would be interested,” he adds slyly.
My eyes light up, knowing that I will incur the wrath of my sire. I say, “That would be great. Thank you. Email me a list and I will take it under advisement.”
I can feel CK’s eyes boring into me, but I ignore him and turn to Devon. I say quietly while I remember, “Please, can you ask Esther to go find that other chair.” He snickers behind his hand as he bids Dmitri adieu.
“Goodbye, Dmitri.”
He nods once and with a swift goodbye, CK grabs his arm and Teleports him out. I am slightly surprised that he is unable to accomplish this himself, but then I think back, and it is only the oldest Vampires who can do this, gaining the ability at well over two thousand years old. My own Astralling ability has come to me as a part of my Dragon package. Which leads me to believe that it must be a very recent addition to Lance’s bag of tricks.
CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN
“Well, that went well,” I say brightly, even though I just want to go back to sleep. Glancing at the clock, I see it is now a little after 1 PM. Time for another nap, I think. Telling Cole and CK that I’m exhausted, I swirl off and climb into bed after taking my shoes and clothes off. My head hits the pillow and I’m out for the count.
I wake up some time later next to Devon. I blink in surprise and sit up, realizing I am also in his bed.
“How did I get here?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I found you in here,” he shrugs.
Oh, that’s right, I do seem to remember Astralling in here, as it was closer than my own room.
“Shit,” I mumble as I climb out of bed and get dressed.
“Lizzie?”
“Mm?”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Pardon?” I ask in a huff at being spoken to so rudely.
“Why are you so tired all the time?” he asks as if I’m stupid.
I shrug. “It’s been a tough couple of days. I’ll be fine.”
“Stop saying that you will be fine! You clearly aren’t fine. And another thing, I don’t think you should be going to Lance’s like this.”
I shake my head at his concern, “Don’t worry about it, about me. I’m…”
“Fine!” he interrupts in a huff. “I am worried. We all are.”
“Don’t be. Look, I’m going to go find Cole. He needs me around, not off sleeping all the time.” I give him a foul look, as I realize that I’ve just admitted to being worried myself.
He grabs my hand as I turn to leave. “Don’t go. Not yet,” he murmurs, pulling me to him and kissing me softly.
I lean into him, enjoying having him hold me. Our bond lights up under the simple intimacy.
“We still haven’t talked about what happened in Tuscany,” he says suddenly.
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Well, I do. What the fuck, Lizzie? He punishes you? As in actually, not in a joking kind of way?” he asks softly.
“It’s complicated.”
“Well, uncomplicate it. Does he hurt you?”
“No. It’s nothing like that. He dragged you into it as it was the only way he could think of to get back at me for something I said and did, without him compromising his newfound principles. I’m sorry, it’s my fault you had to go through that. But it backfired on him and I don’t think he will try it again.”
“Yeah, I’d say. I’m surprised he took it with such good grace when you broke ‘the rules,’” he chuckles.
I laugh quietly. “Me too, but I don’t mean that.”
Having caught his interest, he stares at me intently. “What do you mean then?”
I sit heavily on the bed and debate whether to tell him or not. It isn’t anything to do with him, but I want to talk to him. I want to be here with him, so I open up. “I don’t think he realized how much he would hurt me by asking me to betray you. When I felt your pain, he felt my own and it caught him off guard how much it hurt him. A lot. Not that he would admit it,” I say ruefully. “But we are all connected now in ways that we weren’t before. We are a true family and we feel each other’s pain, and the opposite. We really feel it instead of just having a sense of it.”