by Rose O'Brien
Her hands were becoming urgent where she touched him, and he growled against her mouth. She arched against him in invitation, and he could feel her slick heat slide against his cock. A shudder went through his body as he tried to hold himself back.
He touched her face again and brought his mouth to her ear.
“What about protection? I know we didn’t use it last time. I’m clean, but—”
She stilled his words with two fingers on his lips.
“I can’t catch anything from sapiens, and you can’t get me pregnant.”
She ran the fingers she had used to shush him against his lower lip and he sucked them into his mouth, scraping lightly with his teeth and flicking his tongue over the tips.
A moan slipped from her luscious lips and she rose up, wrapping her arms around him again, hands clenching in his hair.
He positioned himself at her opening and slid in slowly, catching the ecstatic noises she made with his mouth. She arched, taking him deeper, and dug her nails into the muscles in his back.
A slow and sensual rhythm began between them. Her soft noises of pleasure urged him on, but he held himself back. She was trembling, and her soft cries grew more desperate as he increased his pace.
He caressed her face again and he brought her gaze to his, holding it.
She was so unbelievably beautiful in that moment. Platinum curls spread out over his pillows, her pale skin glowed in the moonlight spilling through the window and her eyes were deep pools in the darkness, somewhere between blue and black.
He still couldn’t quite believe that this stunning creature with her incredible strength and power had taken him into her arms, into her body. But he was beginning to suspect something. For all her strength, for all her power and despite the image she tried to project of being above it all, he knew the truth.
Alayna Blackwell was lonely, and she longed for love, just like everyone else.
He would give her that love without asking for anything in return. Like an offering of food left for some elusive wild creature, he would put his heart out there. If she took it, he would revel in the taking. He wasn’t ready to hope that she would offer him anything in return, but he couldn’t deny that he had imagined a future together on the other side of this case. Fear of something was holding her back from him. He didn’t know what was causing it, but he would stay by her side until that fear disappeared.
Her trembling increased and he let his body off the leash, giving her what she wordlessly asked for.
“Alex.” His name on her lips was a plea, a prayer, a question, and a cheer all at once. His heart squeezed at the sound of it.
Her inner muscles spasmed around him, and he came with her, pouring his release into her.
After a moment, he started to move off of her, afraid of crushing her with his weight. She pulled him back, wrapping her arms around his back and stroking his hair with one hand.
Alex relaxed into her, relishing the feel of her in his arms and loving the feeling of being cradled in hers. As his heartbeat slowed completely, he withdrew from her body and rolled to his side, pulling her against him, desperate not to lose the connection between them.
He felt wetness on his chest and saw her try to surreptitiously dash something from her cheek.
“Are you OK?” he asked. “Did I hurt you?”
He heard the note of panic in his voice and felt a little sick to his stomach suddenly.
“Don’t be silly,” she said, snuggling against his side, trying to pass it off like nothing had happened.
He lifted her chin until he could see her eyes, shimmering in the moonlight. Holding her gaze, he remained silent, giving her the space to tell him if she wanted.
After a moment, she cracked.
“I’ve never done this. I’ve never felt this,” she began, hesitating. “And there is something bad coming. I can feel it. It’s something horrible and it could rip us all apart. And I can’t do anything to stop it.”
When she was silent for a moment, he reached out and stroked her hair.
“We’re soldiers, so we know that feeling better than most, but everyone goes through that at one point or another,” Alex told her.
“I’ve lost people,” she said quietly. “More than I like to think about, but...this is different.”
“I know,” he said, stroking her hair slowly, rhythmically. “You just take it one day at a time, you stay honest with yourself and the other person, and you tell people how you feel about them, because there may come a day when you won’t get another chance.”
She was silent for a long time and Alex wondered if she had drifted off to sleep. Finally, she said, “You speak from experience.”
“You know I do,” he said.
Alayna looked at him.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“Don’t be. The last thing I want between us is regret or apologies,” he said, staring into the darkness.
Her silence was her answer as she snuggled against his side and slowly relaxed into sleep.
Chapter 19
Alex checked the magazine on the M-16 strapped to his chest. It was an old habit before a fight. He checked and rechecked his equipment multiple times before a mission. In addition to the rifle, he carried twin 1911s on his hips, a couple of flash bangs, his Ka-Bar knife, and a full medic’s loadout in a backpack.
He checked the extra mags for the 1911s that he had stashed in pouches on his tac-vest. They were loaded with spelled ammo that Burdock had given him. The fire mage stood next to him, moving through much the same pre-fight ritual he was. They were all loaded for bear and out for blood.
Burdock pulled something from his pocket and stared at it for a long moment. It was small and fit in the palm of his hand. A photo maybe? When he caught Alex looking, he glared at him and stuffed the thing back in his pocket.
“Time to saddle up,” Burdock growled, his eyes on the sky.
At the sound of rustling feathers and flapping wings, Alex looked up to see the flock of Lechuzas descending toward the clearing where he and the rest of the team waited. He watched as Ellie stood and strapped on a pack full of electronic gear. If there was any kind of security system at this hunting ground, she’d stroll right by it. Burdock was leading their smaller team and Alex was assigned to watch Ellie’s back while she worked her hacker magic.
Lu carried no weapons. They’d agreed that she’d shift when they arrived, after they’d all had a chance to get a handle on the situation.
He watched as Dumeril checked the grips of his kukris in their holster at the small of his back and Alayna checked that her throwing knives, whip and battle fans were attached at her belt.
Alayna had put him with Burdock and Ellie, explaining that if they found hostages, she needed a Spanish speaker and someone with medical training. As long as no one was critically injured, he would be fine. Even so, nervousness clawed at his gut and adrenaline poured into his bloodstream like an addictive drug.
His thoughts were interrupted as five of the large birds landed and folded their gigantic wings around them. One did a kind of hop-walk on clawed feet toward Alex. It nodded its head once, its large yellow eyes fixed on his. The creature unfurled its wings, and with four mighty pumps of its massive flight muscles, it was about six feet off the ground.
Alex turned quickly and noticed that the other five Lechuzas were doing the same thing. The creature’s taloned feet wrapped around each of his shoulders and upper arms. Air swirled around him, ruffling his short dark hair, as the creature flapped its wings and lifted them into the air.
The claws wrapped all the way around his arm, but the angle at which he hung was a little uncomfortable. Alex ignored it. They didn’t have far to go.
The treed landscape slid by beneath his combat boots. It was just after midnight on a cloudy, moonless night. They were unlikely to be seen by sapien eyes, even flying just a couple hundred feet off the ground.
Alex caught a glimpse of Alayna flying alongside him. Her platinum h
air streamed behind her in an undulating mass of silver and gold. She was dressed head to toe in fairy leather, jacket, pants and boots in inky black.
She looked like a witch out of a fairytale. The only thing missing was a broom. She was otherworldly, ethereal, powerful. And he was completely under her spell.
Glancing down, Alex saw a set of outbuildings, painted black, slide by beneath his feet. His brow furrowed. Texans never painted anything black. Anything inside would roast in summer. This must be the place.
As if reading his mind, the Lechuza carrying him squeezed his right shoulder to signal that the drop was coming up. He relaxed his muscles and when the birdman released him about fifteen feet off the ground, he hit the ground and rolled.
As he came up, his M-16 was in his hands, and he was scanning for targets. Alayna came to a landing a short distance from him, dropping gracefully to a crouch. The rest of the team were dropped from varying heights, rolling in near silence to their feet before joining them.
Alayna motioned for silence. They had their assignments. Everyone re-checked their equipment and formed up. They split into two teams. Alayna, Dumeril, and Lu were together and were assigned to eliminate any vamp targets. Burdock was leading the second team with Alex and Ellie. They were assigned to protect any hostages and secure any documents, computers or identifying information about who might be organizing these hunts.
The Lechuzas were the air support, assigned to watch the perimeter and eliminate any vamps that slipped past the ground team.
As Alayna and her team moved off to the east, Burdock signaled to Alex and Ellie that they were moving to the west, toward the buildings they had seen flying in. Chances were good the hostages were there.
As they moved over the rise, Ellie motioned for them to freeze, her eyes being the most sensitive in the dark. There were three vampires guarding one of the buildings, a low structure with no windows. Bingo.
Burdock motioned to each of them and pointed to a vamp, assigning one to each of them.
Burdock slipped forward silently. His gaze focused about fifty feet to his left and his body went tense and still. A loud pop of superheated air split the night.
The vamps all turned in that direction, turning their backs toward the team. They moved like liquid shadows; dark, silent and deadly.
Alex moved faster than he thought possible, closing the distance in what seemed like the blink of an eye. His Ka-bar made a wet sound as it cut the vamp’s throat, followed by a crunch as he shoved it through the spinal column. The body slumped in his arms. Then Burdock was on his vamp. He closed his fists around the vamp’s throat and channeled his fire into his palms, his mouth twisting in a feral snarl. The fire ate through the vamp’s neck in a split second, the head falling and rolling away.
Alex turned to see Ellie rising from the motionless body of her vamp, a shapeless shadow under her cloak. They’d managed not to raise the alarm.
Burdock drew his finger in a small circle on the wall of the building, cutting through the metal like a blowtorch. He pushed the small circle of metal in and looked through. Alex peeked through when Burdock stepped back, careful to avoid the glowing metal edges. A dozen people ranging from children to young adults were crowded into the dark, windowless building. No vamps, though.
“No hostiles. Twelve hostages,” Alex told them. “Let’s move on.”
They formed up and headed over a small rise. Ahead, there were two vamps dragging a teenaged girl between them. They were dressed in black; she was in torn jean shorts and tank top that had once been pink. Alex saw that one of the straps was ripped and dangling. His vision went a little red around the edges at the sight. Her long, dark hair hung in stringy clumps, hiding her face, but her posture said she was barely conscious.
Behind the trio was a male vamp. He was dressed for the outdoors, but it was expensive gear, and the vamp was just too polished. He looked like a rich boy on safari, white shirt tucked into khaki pants. Alex supposed that’s what he was, in a way. A really twisted fucking way.
There was a sick gleam in the vampire’s eyes. Anticipation, Alex realized, a sick feeling twisting in his stomach.
The two handlers shoved the girl to her knees. The hunter stepped forward and gripped the girl’s dark hair in his fist. He sniffed deeply, taking her scent into his lungs and savoring it.
Alex saw his eyes go red and fangs descend. The predator was coming out to play. The girl screamed in horror when she saw the change. Her terror echoed off the trees, just a few yards away.
“I’ll be seeing you soon, sweetheart,” the hunter said softly, almost sweetly. “Now, run as fast and as far as you can.”
The girl started crying through her screams. She scrambled to her feet, her sandals slipping in the wet grass.
The hunter smiled at the two handlers.
“She’s going to taste so good,” he told them.
Burdock turned to look at Alex and mouthed “mine.” Alex nodded.
Burdock’s face relaxed into concentration, as he pulled on his power from that place within him. He held up his hands toward the vampires, who were watching the tree line where the girl had disappeared.
Three balls of blue fire, as intense as an acetylene torch, flew toward them as fast as thought. They didn’t so much burn as vaporize into hot embers.
What was left dropped to the wet grass, charred chunks with a few guttering blue flames licking over the surface and patches glowing like coals in the darkness.
Burdock swayed for a moment beside Alex, and he put a hand out to steady him.
“That one cost,” Burdock said. “But it’s worth it.”
He gave the signal, and they started forward again. It was impossible to tell how many handlers and hunters were out here tonight. The Lechuzas said that it varied week to week.
Burdock read his mind when he said in a low voice, “Let’s try to take one alive and see if we can get him to tell us their numbers and locations.”
They all nodded as one.
***
Alayna, Dumeril, and Lu moved silently, just inside the tree line, toward the group of vampires and sapiens. There was a group of six handlers, three vampires that Alayna identified as hunters, and three sapiens.
The sapiens were all young-looking, probably less than twenty years old. One was female, the other two were male. Their clothing was torn and dirty and they only had flimsy sandals covering their feet.
The vampires standing around them were talking and laughing like they were at a fucking tailgate party, and Alayna felt the rage rising within her. She pushed it down and silently pointed at Lu and then the human captives. She pointed at Dumeril and then the handlers. She pointed at herself and indicated the hunters. Then, she held up a hand to wait.
Her whispered voice began to weave the spell she had chosen. It was a little flashy and would probably give away their presence, but she was tired of sneaking around. It was time these scumbags knew the pain and fear they caused their victims. And she was going to bring it to them tenfold.
As she finished her spell, she moved her hand in an arc and flames sprouted from the ground around the group of vampires and humans. Alayna relished the looks on their faces as their surprise turned to fear.
Lu, in her hulking, furred form, leapt the six-foot flames easily. She slung her overly long arms back and forth, knocking several handlers and hunters aside. She had one sapien over her shoulder and another slung under her arm in a matter of seconds. One of the handlers had managed to grab the third sapien, the girl, and had a gun to her head. Lu shook her head, and leapt the wall of flames, carrying the other two hostages to safety.
Alayna created a gap in the flames, and Dumeril rolled through, a dazzling light spell flying from his fingers and blinding the handler holding the hostage. With blurring speed, he was on the guy in seconds, his kukris biting in the vampire’s flesh as the hostage sagged to the ground.
Alayna walked slowly through the flames, feeling them lick her skin, but causing no damag
e. The fire was hers and obeyed only her command. She knew that she looked like an avenging demon walking through those flames, and she saw the fear in the eyes of the hunters.
The remaining handlers and hunters were frozen in place, weapons in their hands, as they stared at her. As she moved through the wall of flame, she bent and removed her whip from her boot, letting its length coil out and drag behind her in the grass.
Dumeril moved, and another handler fell to the ground under his assault. For just a moment, she wished she had Alex and his marksman’s aim. But she couldn’t risk having him with her. She was not entirely sure she could make objective decisions if she was worried about his safety. So she’d sent him with Burdock and Ellie, hoping they wouldn’t run in to any trouble.
She turned to the four remaining vampires.
“Who the fuck are you?” one shouted.
She didn’t answer him, but snapped out a spell and hit the group with a blast of electricity that bounced between the four vampires, bringing them to their knees as their screams filled the air.
“How many of you are there?” she asked them, trying to keep her voice under control, even as she wanted to scream and tear them all apart.
There was stunned silence from the group. The remaining handler spit a mouthful of blood that landed near her black leather boots.
“Wrong answer,” she said through clenched teeth.
She hit them with the electricity again and tried not to enjoy seeing the pain they were in as they writhed on the ground. She refused to feel sympathy for these monsters. They had been about to hunt those people down. For fun.
“I’ll ask one more time. How many?”
One of the hunters shot to his feet and lunged at her. She caught him with a bladed fan that took half his face off. His blood arced through the air and splattered against her leathers. He fell to the grass gurgling.
“Oh, god. We were just having a little fun. Please, don’t hurt us,” one of the hunters begged.