Sever the Crown: Vampire Reverse Harem Complete Series

by Mysti Parker

  Marlowe knelt next to me and placed his hand on my belly. I looked up and met his tear-filled eyes. “Maybe we have something to look forward to.”

  “We do.” I wasn’t sure how, but I knew instinctively that I was pregnant. I couldn’t have been happier in that moment. Or more terrified. “I hope she has your eyes.”

  “And your hair.”

  “And your heart.”

  Marlowe shook his head and rubbed his thumb across my bottom lip. “Oh no, I hope she has her mother’s heart. The heart of a queen who rules with love and courage.”

  I melted into his arms, and he kissed me tenderly as we clung to each other.

  A soft knock sounded on the door.

  “Come in,” I called out before Marlowe got up and helped me to my feet.

  Zac walked in. His gaze landed on Marlowe’s and my clasped hands. “You okay, Wren?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Congratulations,” he said with a smile.

  Marlowe glanced at me. “Thanks. Looks like we’re going to be dads.”

  That seemed to take Zac by surprise. His smile grew wider. There wasn’t a hint of jealousy between them.

  “How about a nice hot bath for our queen?” Marlowe asked.

  “Hmm,” Zac said, glancing between Marlowe and me. “I have a better idea.”

  Thankfully, my shower was roomy enough for the three of us. The men undressed me, taking their sweet time about it. They kissed, licked, and sucked their way down my body as they went. I stepped into the shower, letting the hot water ease my tense shoulders. They undressed and joined me. Zac stood in front of me, while Marlowe stood behind. I rested my arms on Zac’s shoulders while both men soaped me up.

  Then Zac stepped back, pulling me with him. The water drenched his dark hair before he got behind the stream and let it rain down on me. With both hands, he smoothed the water from his hair, and I almost came just from watching my gorgeous fifth mate. My thriller. The man with whom I’d shared this ride since the beginning.

  A little water pooled in his chin dimple, and I licked it out.

  He growled and cupped both my breasts in his hands while Marlowe’s hand slid between my legs. His fingers slipped inside me and plunged deeper until I had to wrap my arms around Zac’s neck to remain standing.

  Zac kissed me then. His tongue sparred with mine while Marlowe removed his fingers and grasped my hips with both hands. I jutted my ass toward him.

  “That’s right,” Zac said and squeezed my nipple between his thumb and forefinger. “We can make you forget everything for a while.”

  Marlowe kissed the back of my neck and buried his cock in my pussy. “God, you feel amazing. Doesn’t she, Zac?”

  “Damn right.” Zac leaned in and gently bit my earlobe. “How does he feel?”

  “Good,” I moaned and closed my eyes to experience how uniquely Marlowe filled me. “So good.”

  Each one of them felt different—and amazing—inside of me.

  “I love watching him fuck you. Can you come for us?” Zac reached down and flicked my clit with one hand while squeezing my nipple with the other.

  “Just keep doing what you’re doing, baby,” I said, my cheek pressed against Zac’s. The rhythm was perfect. Zac timed his clit and nipple stimulation just right as Marlowe fucked me from behind. My men could read my body cues like a book. And I loved them so much for that and a million other reasons.

  “She’s almost there.” Marlowe sped up his thrusts, getting a little faster and harder with each one. It didn’t take long for an intense orgasm to tear through me. Marlowe followed soon after, roaring as he came inside me.

  I hadn’t come down from my high before the men flipped me around. Zac plunged his cock into me while Marlowe took over flicking my clit and squeezed my other nipple.

  “Holy sh – ” I cried, but Marlowe devoured my lips with a hard kiss.

  When he pulled back, he peered around to watch Zac fucking me. “Fuck her like you mean it.”

  “Like...what...you...see?” I stammered between thrusts.

  “Oh hell yeah. We need to do this a lot more often.” Marlowe tilted his head to one side, exposing his neck. The invitation was clear. My fangs dropped, and I bit into Marlowe’s neck, swallowing down his deliciously spicy blood while Zac fucked me until my head spun. Zac came, and I came apart around him, letting go of Marlowe’s neck. My screams of pure, primal pleasure echoed through the bathroom.

  Finally, we toweled off and lay down naked on my bed, with me on my side, sandwiched between mates three and five. My thinker and thriller. Two of the five loves of my life.

  While Marlowe spooned up against my back and pressed light kisses across my shoulder, Zac brushed my hair from my face and searched my eyes. “How do you feel?”

  I smiled and pressed my thumb to his chin dimple. “Lucky. So very lucky.”

  Awhile later, I woke, got dressed, and gently shook them awake. “It’s time to issue a challenge.”

  They both grinned up at me.

  Marlowe sat up and stretched both arms overhead. “It’s showtime.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Zac

  Wren stared confidently into the camera, which broadcasted live on VTV, the epitome of royal grace and poise. It was only her who stood behind the camera, a last-minute decision, to send the message that she could crack heads all on her own. A fact no one who knew her should ever doubt.

  "Ravana Delacroix, you usurped the throne you're sitting on by having your own sister, Queen Bronwen, murdered,” she began. “You lie. You cheat. You game the democratic monarchy in your favor. Under your rule, it's you who chooses who lives and dies, which is why you created an underground bunker for your chosen ones when you tried to end the world. There's an entrance in Senator Kinky's mansion in the ballroom if anyone doesn't believe me."

  Her yellow eyes flashed dangerously, not a contact or wig in sight to hide behind. She wore black pants and a black long-sleeved top that clung to her shapely form, as if she were in mourning—for her mother, for all she'd lost. But her day of reckoning was almost here.

  "I am Queen Bronwen's daughter, and your crown is mine, which is why I'm challenging you to a queen versus queen tournament. A fair tournament, and Queen Eleanor of the Northern Clan will officiate. Twelve o'clock noon at my mother's mansion. Seven hours from now. It's time to end this war once and for all and for me to take what is rightfully mine. See you real soon, Auntie." She sliced her determined gaze to Ashe who stood behind the camera, and he ended the live feed.

  Wren sagged a fraction as soon as the cameras went black. "Was it terrible?"

  "No," Ashe said firmly, his fists curled at his sides. I imagined he wanted to swing the final blow at Ravana himself, but he'd never let that honor slip from Wren.

  I crossed toward her and dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “You were appropriately terrifying.”

  Charles propped both feet on the bunker’s living room coffee table and winked at Wren. "The woman's stewing in her own piss right about now. You did just fine."

  "Your mom's throne room was a stroke of genius,” Hawk said, Killer asleep in his massive arms. “Ravana’ll have to scope the place out first and then prepare accordingly for the holes in the roof and sunshine coming through them."

  Marlowe looked to me. "You have the sun-proof white robes ready for everyone?"

  "Everyone including the Knights,” I said. “I even got them dry-cleaned so some poor sucker won't get too close to Charles and pass out."

  "Hey, I smell fucking amazing, like a goddamn Christmas tree." He raised his arm, sniffed his pit, and winced. "Okay, a Christmas tree dipped in prison toilet vodka. I must’ve got too close to Ravana’s caged humans and probably stepped in their filth. Why didn't someone tell me I stunk?"

  "We did," the four of us insisted.

  Wren just laughed, such a happy, relieved sound that this was almost over. "Speaking of, we still need to rescue them when this is done. In the meantime, go. All of you. Ge
t some sleep. Clean up. Whatever you need to do in the next seven hours to be ready."

  Ashe blinked at Charles. “Toilet vod—” He slapped his forehead. “Oh, shit.”

  “What?” we all asked.

  “Edgar. My sister’s iguana. He loves to hang out on her toilet in her apartment, but…”

  “But?” Hawk urged.

  “I…” Ashe glanced at him and then toward the doorway, possibly gauging how fast he could run. “I should probably go get him.”

  Hawk stalked toward him. “All this time and you—”

  “I’ve been a little busy, Dr. Dolittle,” Ashe said and backed toward the doorway. “I’ll take care of it.”

  “Right now,” Hawk commanded, following him out on his heels. “You better hope he’s still alive.”

  Shaking their heads, Marlowe and Charles kissed Wren’s cheeks and then filed out. I strode up to her, and without a word, we clung to each other as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Because it was now, and it felt perfect.

  "What about you?” I asked. “What are you going to do now?"

  "I'm too anxious to sleep. Too distracted to concentrate on anything except…”

  I lifted an eyebrow. "Except?"

  "Want me to beat you at chess?"

  “Okay, that wasn’t where I thought it was going.” I laughed and held her tighter, betting she’d keep surprising me day after day. “You think you can take me?”

  “Oh, I know I can take you.” With a grin, she led me toward her bedroom where a chess set was stashed at the top of the closet.

  For the next several hours, Wren routinely took out my queen. I didn't even let her win. It was the confidence boost she needed, however small, and maybe even a micro strategy for the coming war. Plan ahead, be prepared to be struck unaware, and dominate the game board anyway.

  At eleven o’clock, we were ready to go.

  Wren stood in her white cloak by the front door while holding Archie and scratching him behind the ears. "I wish we could take you with us, little monster kitty, but we don't take good boys into battles. Just don't eat Killer, okay?"

  Archie glared at the poodle tucked in Hawk's arms, his loud purr offsetting the threat.

  “Is the iguana settled in? And properly secured, I hope?” Marlowe asked.

  “Yes, Edgar is fine,” Hawk said. “And fed.”

  Ashe laughed. “Oh yeah, he’s set up in a luxury aquarium in Hawk’s mini-zoo bedroom, complete with a heat rock and a hula woman statue.” He turned to Wren. "You have the poison I gave you? Because I have more."

  Wren patted her cloak. "Got it, the scepter, black armor underneath, and a few more things literally up my sleeves."

  The rest of us did, too, armed all the way up to our fangs, I suspected.

  A giant grin broke across Charles's face, full of confidence I could feel in the powerful pulse of my tattoo. "We're ready."

  "We are." Wren's eyes gleamed as she set Archie down and secured the hood over her head. "Let's go kick some queen ass."

  We marched out into the daylight silently. There was nothing left to say since we'd been planning this from the very beginning. Even me. And it would all be over soon in the way it was supposed to end. The sun scorched down, and I could feel its heat through the cloak but it didn't burn. Handy thing to have. I hoped Ravana couldn't get her hands on one in time, but that was likely wishful thinking.

  When we arrived at Queen Bronwen's old mansion in a long caravan with the Royal Knights behind us, it appeared that no one was there yet. We walked inside, and the absolute quiet pressed in. But when we opened the door to Bronwen's old throne room, something sparkled from on top of the throne seat. Beams of sunlight shot through the room at all angles like lasers, some reflecting rainbows on the—

  "The crown," Wren whispered, her hard stare glued to it. "Just sitting there."

  Hawk brought out his gun and cocked it. "She's here."

  "If only it could be so simple that all I had to do was pick up that crown and wear it…" She took a few steps closer, the rest of us keeping pace as we scoured the room. "There's something else there."

  "It wouldn't happen to be her head, would it?" Ashe asked.

  "No.” I strode toward it, then slowed, the hairs on my arms rising in alarm. “The crown's moving." Or rather, something was moving on top of it. Giant, hairy red spiders skittered sideways across the crown and glared with too many blood-red eyes.

  "Satan's Sister spiders," Marlowe muttered as he came up next to me. “I did some digging, and their venom is powerful enough to kill vampires if enough is used, I think it’s what Hawk and Zac were injured with at our last battle."

  Ashe came closer, nodding. "I've heard about these. They make for powerful poisons, but they're rare."

  “That’s a giant nope from me.” Charles drew back, his face paling as he looked anywhere but at the spiders. "Wait, Satan had a sister? Well, I don't have to ask if she was hot or not."

  Wren peered closer. "What happens if I reach out and take the crown?"

  "I wouldn't.” Ashe grabbed her cloak and dragged her back a little. “Not only are they deadly, but they're also super aggressive."

  A dark chill crawled up my back with too many legs, watching with too many eyes, but only some of them belonged to Satan's Sisters. Someone was in here with us.

  Leaves rained down from above and skated across the floor, but that was the only movement in the rest of the room. Shadows darkened the corners, but they appeared empty. Except for us, the whole room was empty.

  “Where did the Knights go?” I demanded, bringing out my gun.

  “Shit,” Charles said, whirling around. “They would never just up and leave. Ever.”

  He barged toward the doors, but Wren stopped him with a simple, “Don’t!” The tension in the room climbed until the air crackled with it.

  One of Ravana’s Royal Knights appeared in the doorway. Two more joined him, and then two more until they filled it. They were dressed in black cloaks I suspected blocked sunlight. Black against white. It really was a chess game.

  They heaved a war cry and charged.

  Fuck. This had turned into an ambush.

  Ashe and Marlowe ducked Wren behind the throne, but well away from the spiders.

  Hawk and I darted to opposite sides of the room and took cover behind marble pillars by the walls. We armed ourselves with two guns each and shot bullet after bullet, taking down as many as we could, but Ravana’s Knights kept coming in crushing waves. Behind the cover of another pillar behind me, Charles whipped out his cell and started shouting into it about where our Knights were. Whatever he heard from the other end drained his face to the color of his cloak.

  Damn it. Something had happened to our Knights, but they’d been right here.

  Ravana’s Knights kept coming, dozens upon dozens streaming into the room. When one splattered dead, three more would pour in and take his place.

  Hawk shouted something over the gunfire, but I couldn’t make it out. He'd stopped shooting and was gesturing toward Wren, but she, Ashe, and Marlowe were also taking out Knights from behind the throne.

  And then I noticed something. The Knights weren't dodging behind the pillars for cover. One other thing too—their gooey remains started flickering here and there so fast that if you blinked, you'd miss it.

  Doreen. Ravana was cheating out of her goddamn ass by using that witch Doreen. All we were doing was wasting ammo on an illusion.

  In the middle of the throne room, a purple portal appeared, and out stepped Queen Eleanor with a bucket of popcorn and 3D glasses pushed up on her forehead. Five men flanked her. Her harem. One of them, a man in a wheelchair, lifted his arm and pointed to Ravana’s Knights. His lips moved, and then everything except us froze. Completely still as if caught in a photograph. Her mate must have been part warlock or something.

  "—fire! Cease fire!" Hawk shouted, then blinked toward the middle of the room, realizing what had happened.

  Then with a vic
ious scowl on her face, Queen Eleanor shouted, "Queen Ravana, do you think I’m stupid? I can see everything with the cameras installed in here so I can officiate. This is against the rules, and you know it. It's queen against queen, army against army, not one queen wasting ammo against a witch. Not your mates keeping Wren’s Knights outside where the witch portaled them. Not all this while you hide."

  "She's a fucking coward," Wren hissed, standing up from behind her throne.

  Nodding, Eleanor swung around to face Wren, a conniving grin growing across her face. "Which means you get to cheat all you want, sweetie. Give that bitch hell. This whole thing is being broadcast live on VTV. I’ll send my Knights in if I see you need help. And I will be watching closely."

  As soon as she said it, three more portals appeared, held open by the witch triplets, and our Knights barreled inside covered in white cloaks, their guns already searching for targets.

  Queen Eleanor's mate muttered something else, and the battle renewed. She and her entourage got the hell out of here through their portal.

  While the witch triplets held their portals open, they cast fireballs at Ravana's supposed Knights, which tore through them and made them disappear into a cloud of glittery pink smoke. But more were coming. Real ones. Their footsteps pounded outside the throne room, coming closer.

  I quickly reloaded.

  A half second before Ravana’s real Knights poured inside, Doreen appeared at the side of the room, her crazed glare aimed at her triplet children.

  “One kid’s dead. Now three to go,” she yelled.

  The triplets turned on her and pelted fireballs at her. Then Ravana’s Knights arrived, and the whole place erupted into chaos.

  While I shot bullet after bullet at the black-cloaked Knights from behind my pillar, Doreen flung something in the air with a mad cackle. Red glittery lights exploded toward the back of the room toward Wren. I didn’t risk a look, though, because bullets zinged much too close. Like us, Ravana’s Knights seemed to be wearing body armor, but there were other ways to bring them down. Like head shots, and then dragging them close to remove their armor and deliver a final kill shot to the heart.