Sever the Crown: Vampire Reverse Harem Complete Series

by Mysti Parker

  Charles lowered his voice theatrically. “Playing the part of chin-dimpled lawyer tonight is Yoga, aka, Zac Palmer.”

  “That’s Detective Zac Palmer,” said the human in question.

  “My apologies. Playing the part of chin-dimpled lawyer with a stick up his ass is Detective Zac Palmer.”

  I burst out laughing. It kind of hurt my still-tender ribs, but it was totally worth it. Even Zac chuckled. Charles looked plumb proud of himself, while Ashe seemed happy that I was happy. At least it helped ease the tension. In just a little while, I could very well be looking into the face of the only blood relative I had left. A relative who most likely orchestrated the murder of my mother.

  How would I react once I saw her? Could I control my urge to rip her face off and tear her head from her spine?

  We arrived about a quarter past ten, at a stonewalled estate about ten miles north of Faymont, Mississippi.

  “Shit,” Charles whispered.

  “What is it? Are we at the wrong address?” I asked, eyeing the valet or whatever he was standing at a crumbling guard shack. The iron gates were open, but on closer inspection, I realized the gates were gone. But not just removed. Hinges appeared to be ripped away. Jagged pieces of metal glinted in the headlights.

  “No, it’s the right place.”

  “We may have an issue,” Ashe said. “Are we supposed to have tickets or a secret password or what?”

  “I got this,” Zac said, handing the flyer to me. “When he asks, just hand him the flyer. That’s your ticket.”

  “Gotcha,” I said, smiling at the guard as he approached the car. He appeared to be in a rent-a-cop uniform that was a size too small, but when he leaned down to the window, his yellow eyes told me he was a vampire.

  “Ticket?” he asked.

  I handed the flyer over, swallowing hard as I tried to hold my neutral smile.

  He looked it over and shined an ultraviolet light on a corner of it, where a smaller version of the larger V symbol appeared.

  “All right, you can go on in. You’re late, though, so park wherever.”

  “Thanks.”

  He made a V sign with two fingers and put it to his chin. “To they who are truly served.”

  All the guys repeated it back, and I joined in for the last couple words. “...truly served. Okay, thanks.” I gave the guard a little wave and continued down the long driveway. “That was creepy as hell.”

  “Yeah, definitely.” Charles shifted in his seat. “Let’s go meet the TWATS. Park there.”

  “This far from the house?”

  “Yes, if we need to make a quick exit, we don’t want to be blocked by cars or people leaving.”

  Cars were parked in the grass all along the driveway. The place was packed. And the weird thing about it is that it looked like a rundown haunted house. It was huge, like you’d imagine a country estate might be. Many of the windows were busted out, and the ones in the lower level were boarded over. In the top level, they were just shattered glass and empty window frames.

  I backed into a spot at the end of all the cars, leaving Birdie at a diagonal facing the gate just in case. We quickly made our way to the house, passing overgrown flower beds and out-of-control rosebushes along the way.

  “If they want to make a good impression, they’re doing a shitty job of it,” I whispered.

  Charles and Ashe flanked my sides while Zac held the rear. Charles seemed as nervous as a squirrel sneaking into a dog pound.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked and gripped his arm to stop him.

  “He’s leading us into a trap,” Ashe said, pulling me behind him.

  “Stop it,” Charles whispered harshly. “This is not a trap. You have to trust me. I can’t say anything else right now.” He pointed to the bushes and to his ear, which I knew meant the possibility of bugs. And not the crawly kind either.

  “We’ll be fine. I have your back,” Zac said.

  Which usually meant he’d packed away some crazy-ass weapons that might obliterate everyone within a square mile if he so chose. I certainly didn’t want it to come to that.

  “It’s fine,” I said gently, urging Ashe onward. “Let’s go see what this is all about.”

  He came along begrudgingly but kept himself between Charles and me. We stepped onto the porch, where a flickering lightbulb buzzed from a shattered glass fixture. The front doors, like the gates, had been busted in. A sheet of plywood that may have boarded it up sat propped against the siding. We stepped across the threshold into a foyer scattered with leaves. Candles in rusted sconces on the wall provided enough light for Zac to see, thankfully. Above us, stars twinkled through holes in the high ceiling above the stairs. To our left, an usher dressed in a toga opened a large wooden door. He had fang marks along his arms.

  “Welcome,” he said in a breathy whisper. His eyes were glassy and bloodshot. His breath reeked of alcohol. He offered his wrist to us. “Here, drink, take what is yours.”

  Charles took the initiative and held to the man’s wrist. He turned the scarred arm over until he found a relatively clean spot and bit in. The man sighed like he was about to have an orgasm. Charles let go and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

  The man offered his hand to me.

  “Oh no, I’m full from my human here,” I said, patting Zac’s shoulder.

  Zac nodded demurely, making the V symbol on his chin like the guard had done. The toga guy imitated the gesture and waved us in.

  We made our way into the crowd, finding a clear spot toward the back of what appeared to be a huge ballroom with a dais at one end. Candles were scattered about. Their yellow light danced across the people gathered here. The smells were almost overwhelming. Blood, expensive perfume, starched suits, leather shoes, and enough alcohol to blow up the place. I’d never been around this many vampires before, at least not that I could remember. It was beyond surreal.

  Zac leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Good thinking back there.”

  “Thanks.” I had just gone with my gut on that one. Otherwise, I was clueless about what we were expected to do and say.

  On the dais, some bald guy in a bright blue suit was finishing up a speech about how well the economy was doing. “Our job rate has never been better. Homelessness is almost a thing of the past throughout Mississippi. All of this because of one woman who knew that the key to our survival and success is to accept the hierarchy of things.”

  The crowd all chanted, “Fangs rule.”

  “And teeth drool?” Ashe whispered.

  A female vampire in front of us gave him the stink eye. He stood up straight and scratched his Colonel Sanders goatee with an appropriately solemn frown.

  A male vampire beside her nodded at Zac. “What’s his blood type?” he asked me.

  “Lawyer,” I answered.

  The guy grimaced and turned back around.

  On the dais, the blue-suited guy continued. “Everyone, please give a warm welcome to our magnanimous, benevolent, selfless ruler, Her Majesty, Queen Ravana!”

  My gut twisted in that familiar hunger brought on by vengeance, but I had to suppress it. I gripped my ugly beige mama purse in a white-knuckled death grip. Charles and Ashe both sensed my agitation. They stood on either side of me and held my arms in a firm, yet inconspicuous grip.

  And then suddenly, there she was. I caught a glimpse of blonde hair bound in a ponytail, but the crowd started cheering and waving their arms, and I couldn’t get a good look at her. I tiptoed, and through the breaks in people waving their blind allegiance to a monster, I saw my mother’s only sister. She wore a tight black dress and a strand of pearls. Behind her, five guys filed onto the stage and stood there, their feet wide with their hands folded in front of them.

  “Her mates,” Charles whispered, scowling.

  None of them looked familiar to me, but Ravana resembled my mother. Her eyes, her nose, the high cheekbones, her build. The only thing missing was warmth. Kindness. Love. Oh yes, she smiled and waved and shook peo
ple’s hands and all those things a seasoned politician does at a rally. But she lacked that thing that made my mother the kind of queen people had apparently died for—my mother had cared. Even the few times I had seen her speaking to random strangers, I could see that she cared. As little as we had while on the run, she still donated to homeless shelters and fed stray cats.

  Ravana, on the other hand, radiated cold-hearted callousness, all wrapped up in a pretty, smiling package.

  “Please, please, hold your applause. I can’t stay long, I’m afraid. I have a flight to catch. But I had to pop in and tell you all how proud I am of you. We’ve had so many new investors over the past few months. Thanks to you”—she pointed into the crowd—“Councilman Davis, for securing our human interests in Love, Georgia. And to Clan Representative Templeman. Without you, we wouldn’t be celebrating our tenth homeless shelter closing in Mississippi this year. For a special treat, after the rally, we’ve provided fresh, never-bitten flesh just for you to feast on. Just remember to check for those with brands on their inner thighs. Branded flesh is to be left alive. You may venture anywhere in the home to feast or fuck to your heart’s content. My assistants will help you with that. Please, do enjoy the rest of the evening here in my dear sister’s former home. I know she’d want you all to relax and partake of the night’s festivities.”

  The floor felt like it was falling away from me. This place had been my mother’s home. That’s why Charles had been so upset when we arrived. My mother had lived and loved and welcomed her subjects into her home. And these bastards had completely defiled it.

  The crowd was cheering again, and all I could see were brief flashes of Ravana leaving the stage with her mates filing out behind her.

  I started for her. Ashe and Charles held me back. Zac stepped in front of me.

  “Let me go,” I whispered, trying to struggle free without causing a ruckus. “I can end this.”

  “No,” Charles said. “Not here. Not now. You’re not strong enough yet.”

  “Then why the fuck are we here?”

  Chapter Six

  Charles

  “Follow me,” I muttered, keeping a tight grip on Wren since she looked like she was about to make flesh soup of anyone standing between her and Queen Ravana. Couldn’t blame her, but now really wasn’t the time.

  The crowd was already pushing against us on their way out of the ballroom and into the rest of the mansion. We swept along with them, and then I led Wren and her two shadows into a semi-dark corner on the side of a giant staircase.

  “We’re here to memorize faces,” I told them, my voice low. “These vampires—”

  A loud moan erupted from somewhere near the front door. I glanced over my shoulder and saw a flash of boob. This place was going from zero to orgy fast, a good thing in any other setting. Cult orgies just didn’t do it for me, though.

  “These vampires and the humans here are easily manipulated,” I said, turning back to my audience of three. “We can use them to do our own manipulating.”

  Ashe crossed his arms. “You thinking about starting your own cult?”

  “Who isn’t these days?” I asked. “Mine will involve sex robots on spaceships, obviously. Maybe a few tentacles. Oh, and getting your own action figure, because why not?”

  Yoga blinked. “What?”

  “What?” Ashe asked, giving me a look like I was nuts.

  Wren’s eyes flashed. “Focus.”

  I jerked my thumb over my shoulder at a guy with powdery yellow skin who wore an expensive suit. “See all the suits, the money? We can use them.”

  “Use them.” Wren shook her head. “Charles, if I get involved in all the same games as…her, how would that make me any different? I don’t want to lie and cheat and kill my way to the throne like she did. Except her.” Her face hardened into vicious lines, all of them deadly but gorgeous, and I was glad I was on her side instead of against her. “I will definitely be killing her.”

  “Look,” I said, leaning in and lowering my voice, “all I’m saying is these people will believe anything we tell them if we sell it well enough.”

  Ashe shrugged. “Okay, what are we selling?”

  “A choice.” I reached into my jacket and pulled out five yellow happy face buttons, the kind with sticking pins on the backs of them to attach to clothes. These, though, had a black disc on the back as well. Keeping one for myself, I passed the others out, one to everyone. “The button is a camera.” I pulled mine apart to demonstrate, then pinned the happy face to my jacket and pocketed the disc. “The red switch on the disc part snaps a picture. Let’s split up and take as many pictures of people’s faces as you can.”

  Yoga frowned at the happy face button in his palm. “How is this offering anyone a choice? I still don’t get it.”

  “We’re not splitting up,” Ashe hissed.

  “It will look more natural that way,” I said. “I go with Wren; you two go with each other.”

  Wren eyed me as she pinned the button on her dowdy dress. She looked like a Sunday school teacher, not that I knew anything about church, but church Wren made me think just as unholy thoughts as regular Wren did. “Why do we need pictures of people’s faces, Charles?”

  I turned at the sound of a squeal and did a double take. Some human woman was doing a handstand over a vampire lying on the floor she was sucking off while another vampire fucked the human’s upside-down body while yet another bit into her branded thigh while masturbating. Seemed like there were easier ways to have a foursome. Too acrobatic for my taste.

  Shaking my head, I faced Wren again. “So we can find the person we’re going to offer this choice.”

  “Which is…?” she asked, perking an eyebrow.

  I lowered my voice even though the orgy was in full swing now. “Die or help us get closer to the queen without her knowing.”

  Three stunned faces looked back at me.

  “Off you go now.” I shooed Ashe and Yoga away and took Wren’s hand. “Meet back here in thirty minutes. Got it?”

  “Nope,” Yoga said and checked his watch. “I’m still lost.”

  Ashe sighed loudly, and I could feel his glare piercing my back as I turned, leading Wren away from the side of the staircase.

  “Just thirty minutes,” Wren called back to them. “How much trouble could we get—” She glanced at me and pushed out her lips into a sexy pout. “Never mind.”

  “Trouble’s my job.” I shrugged, leading her past the foursome, and pressing the switch on the camera’s disc to take all of their pictures.

  She stared at the four of them and wet her lips with her tongue. My tattoo fired up like a starving beast, an exact echo of the heat in Wren’s eyes. The smell of blood and sweat saturated the air. Though the news of this being her mother’s home had rattled her, this orgy turned her on. A lot. Not only was she hot, but she was also dirty. I could get behind that. As we walked toward the other side of the entryway past more fucking and biting, I let my gaze roam over her ass. I could get behind that too.

  “Trouble might be your job, and yet no one hired you to do this…whatever it is we’re doing here.” She bit her lip as we passed a male human submitting to a female vampire by kneeling in front of her, arms behind his back, and head bowed.

  “Being yours is also my job.” I wiggled my arm at her but not enough to reveal my flaming tattoo underneath my jacket sleeve. “Or have you forgotten?”

  “No. No, I haven’t forgotten that.” She ripped her gaze away from all the sex and smiled then, a full one that lit up the entire mansion but that I claimed as mine, at least for right now.

  While taking pictures along the way, I led her toward another wing of the mansion, away from everyone else, the path familiar even after all these years. Outside a dusty tapestry hiding a pair of weathered oak double doors that had once gleamed a polished brown, I pulled up my spine and prepared for the downpour of memories on the other side.

  “Okay, now there’s no one around to take pictures of. You’
re going to have to fill in some of my holes about this plan of yours while we’re alone,” Wren said.

  I snorted because apparently I had the maturity of a twelve-year-old, and Wren laughed, too, with a shake of her head.

  “Okay, so I walked right into that one, didn’t I?”

  “I will gladly fill in some of your holes.” I took her hand and squeezed as I swept the tapestry to the side. We walked through the doors, and I wished I could prepare her for what was inside. It wouldn’t be easy. For either of us.

  It was pitch-black inside, but I could still see the emptiness. Dead leaves rained down from small holes in the high ceiling. Some had collected on chandeliers hanging above, but most lay scattered across the floor and crumbled under our feet. It was so still and quiet that it was like walking into a tomb.

  Instead of looking at what was on the far side of the room, I turned to Wren to see if she recognized where we were, but she was studying me instead. She stepped closer, and I could feel her need vibrate through the air and charge up my dick.

  “You’ve been thinking about it, haven’t you?” She moved even closer. “I know what you did while you were downstairs at your house.” She dragged her top lip up my jawline to my ear, making me shudder, while she slid her hand down my abs to my jeans. “I could feel the pulse of your orgasm, the slide of your hard cock against your tattoo while you came in your hand,” she whispered. “I wanted to be there with you.” Her hand sank lower to my dick pressing against my zipper and squeezed. “To watch.”

  I groaned as I reached for her, my fingers sinking into her soft flesh as they slid to the back of her neck. “For you, the door’s always open. And you don’t have to just watch.” I dragged her to my mouth and kissed her roughly until she moaned.

  She rubbed herself against me while she worked to get her hands into my jeans. And when she did…fuck. The first stroke of her fingers nearly made me come. I groaned into her mouth, demanding with my kiss that she keep going, that she never stop.