Sage

by Talyn Scott

  “Will… not get away… from me!”

  Never!

  She turned around, dropping on her butt and crab walking herself into another corner. He walked to her in the human way, slowly. But his breathing came out wilder, more like a roaring purr. And those glowing irises of his flared out brighter than he’d ever seen.

  All for her, he realized. The Beta was preening for his female.

  Never again would she worry over vampires or any other creature touching her! Not after she witnessed his great power, the way he’d just protected her, and always would protect her.

  “For you,” he growled, placing the esophagus next to her feet.

  To his great surprise, she screamed until her voice failed.

  After that, she fainted.

  Still buried deep beneath his werewolf’s haze, Flynn plucked her from the floor and started seeing to her wounds. For it was his responsibility to care for her now. He spotted a terrible gash across her forehead that made him want to roar anew. But he held back that scream of rage while she was nestled perfectly against his chest.

  So he brought out his lengthened tongue and started bathing away the blood, licking the wound clean to inspect it. With each passing lick, he uncovered her pale skin, her pert little nose, and the cute bow above her upper lip. Afterwards, he moved lower to the sensual curve of her throat, uncovering the mark of a vampire.

  He stopped breathing for a long moment.

  No! he wanted to howl.

  Not just any vampire’s mark, Flynn realized by the way the fangs had punctured her — the angle very distinct, but a Dynasty Lovec.

  Forcing air into his body, he decided to forget this for now, and see to her health, comfort, and safety.

  Lifting her, Flynn carried his female over to the fallen vampire’s body — the one he should have tortured instead of merely ripping out his throat — and sopped up some of the Species blood to smear over his female’s forehead. This would heal her better than stitches, without scaring and within seconds.

  When he finished, his claws came down on the vampire’s neck, effectively decapitating him. There wasn’t any point in letting him rise, when all he’d do is hurt another.

  Then, Flynn wrapped his heavy coat around his delicate female, and carried her into the storm filled night to secure safe shelter.

  Chapter 9

  Roman heaved Sage back onto the bed, his body finally clean from a scalding shower. “Who… is she?”

  “Bestra’s sister.” Roman sighed.

  “She’s… grown now?”

  Roman gave him a look. “Is she grown? I took her against my bedpost right before you were brought in. Thanks, by the way, for cutting my evening short.”

  “What’d she… see?”

  “Oycher carrying you, for starters, not that it was so alarming, but I had to put her under compulsion and she hasn’t snapped out of it. Keeps drifting in and out.”

  “Heart sounds fine.” Oddly enough, her heartbeat was beating in time with Sage. When he took a breath, she took one simultaneously. This gave him an odd sensation, as though they were tethered.

  “Yes, her vitals are stable.” Roman leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. “Oddly enough, she stirs when you do.”

  “What’d you do… it?”

  “She was acting strangely the night you were brought in, kept pushing to take care of you, and, among many things, you needed to feed. Couldn’t have her lurking around for that.”

  Sage had no idea what she looked like, but the scent of her floating through the penthouse was nothing short of amazing, incredible actually. “Let… her take care of me, when she wakes up.”

  “And let her see you like this, all weak as a lamb?” Roman pulled the blankets over him, which was a new humiliation. Almost up there with the Lovec who used Sage’s weapon against him. “I’m sure that would rankle your Vojak pride.”

  He couldn’t concentrate much on his pride when his mouth was watering to taste her. “Bestra’s here? Don’t smell him.”

  “Actually, he was almost home but was called to Scotland to help fight an oddity.” A line formed across Roman’s brow, the only way Sage knew he was worrying over something.

  “What’s… going on in Scotland?”

  “A Hound of Cyn was spotted by the Scottish Werewolf Pack. This morning, the official report was sent out to Joint Factions around the world.”

  “Been there… done that,” Sage groaned. If he ever had to deal with one of those doglike monsters again, it would be too soon. He still recalled standing in the presence of Prince Volos, learning about the creatures who were bred originally in Italy. The monarchy there had created the hounds to rid the world of werewolves, but Volos’ father had ordered them slaughtered. In that order was a clause, though, in case war ever broke out again between the werewolves and the vampires. The Italian monarchy was required to keep one male and one female for future breeding. Unfortunately, the hounds had been set free recently, and on purpose.

  One was still alive.

  “Has it bred?”

  “No intel on that,” Roman said, “but the creature is stirring up long dead werewolf legends. All the locals around Weremiasma are hunting again. The whole smoke and fire thing is at work, you know?”

  “And then the… tourists will go.”

  “To get eaten.” Roman winced. “But we have other things to discuss before you conk out on me again.”

  “My attack has… nothing to do with our mercenary connections.” He was beginning another wave of destruction and healing, the wracking pains starting back up in his stomach. “This was all on the books.”

  “Problem is,” Roman pointed out, “your commander knows.”

  “Yeah, about that, Oycher’s keeping his mouth shut.”

  “But I don’t understand why.”

  “Remember that… Madrignano, Italy mission Bestra and I took with the others to free one female.”

  “For ten million, it’s hard to forget.” Though none of them kept the money.

  “Turns out, Isladora was Oycher’s Bride.”

  Roman whistled. “Gives the whole fated thing new meaning, doesn’t it? How nature puts one of you in just the right place, at just the right time, but in the worst possible circumstances.”

  “Yeah.”

  “But how did Oycher find out?” Roman pressed. “I haven’t slept for worrying since he dropped you off. I don’t relish the thought of Volos clawing my head off in front of court. Mercenaries are frowned upon, you know?”

  Not that any of them counted themselves as mercenaries. They didn’t work for evil, and never kept the money they earned from illegal but necessary missions.

  “He said… he’d known for a while.”

  “If one knows, Sage, others do, too. So it’s only a matter of time before we’re — ”

  Sage reminded, “We’ve been this close… before.”

  “Your commander pulled memories from my head, specific ones.”

  “Shit.”

  “Why would he do that?” Roman’s phone sounded. “Why would he know to do that?”

  “I didn't want to tell you… that the Lovec who blasted me — ”

  “Knows about us?”

  “About me.”

  “Ah, hell, Sage!”

  This meant they would all fall like dominoes.

  Roman answered his phone with gritted teeth, his fangs sliding down. “Bestra, listen…No, no, she’s fine.” He started pacing in front of the window, his hand gesturing while he spoke. “Just so you know, I’ve already claimed her and she’s agreed.” He held the phone away from his ear, waiting until Bestra stopped screaming. “Then kill me when you see me, but she might have something to say about that. No, I haven’t told her about what we are, or what she is for that matter. But I will.” He held the phone away from his ear again, an earsplitting hiss reached Sage, so he pulled a pillow over his head.

  “Too bad you claimed her, Roman,” he mumbled into the crisp linens. “I�
��m aching to have… her, too.” Sage didn’t even know what she looked like, but his dick was as hard as stone from her scent.

  “Listen, Bestra, enough about your sister. What’s done is done. And though she’s the most important thing in my life, all of use have an urgency. Yes, someone within the monarchy knows.” A long pause, and then, “I’m setting up our normal meet without you and Sage; the rest of us will form a game plan within the hour. Yes, I know the drill.” A long, exasperated sigh. “Of course, you’re right as usual. I’ll send her back to Captiva Island, when dawn breaks.”

  “Don’t send her back,” Sage rasped, exhaustion creeping in.

  “Just get some sleep, Sage,” Roman said as he left the bedroom. “We need you.”

  After Sage finally drifted into a fitful half-sleep, his mind wandered to the past where pain of a wholly different nature wrenched his heart, searing his mind with the flames of death.

  Knowing where this was leading, he tried to focus past the agony, past the images flicking through his mind.

  I don’t want to do this!

  I don’t want to see this!

  Not again, never again, but he couldn’t stop this nightmare any more than he could change the tragedy that had rocked his family decades ago…

  ‘You could be helping.’ Sage said to Elissa as he hammered another nail into the plywood.

  ‘I scored eighteen pints of blood to tide us over.’ She made a face, no doubt recalling what bagged blood tasted like. ‘If you knew how difficult I found that little hunting spree, you’d realize I’ve already helped a great deal.’

  Sage couldn’t help but smile. ‘Okay, no hammering for you.’ At least, only one window remained.

  She cupped her eyes, her troubled gaze as brilliant a green as his. ‘The storm is still hours away from Captiva.’ Crossing the porch, she kicked at the leaves whirling in from another strong gust of wind. ‘I hope the humans who’ve chosen to ride this out know what they’re doing.’

  ‘They don’t, stubborn creatures that they are.’

  When Elissa stayed quiet, he hammered in the last nail, then tested the plywood by pulling with his immortal strength. ‘Should hold well enough.’

  ‘Sure…well enough,’ she echoed, plopping down on a rocking chair.

  ‘I’m sorry, love.’

  ‘There’s nothing to be sorry for, brother.’ She tucked her hands in her sweater, leaning her head back and closing her eyes. ‘You’re not the one keeping him from me.’

  ‘Poor, Elissa.’ He placed the hammer on top of the ladder and misted to her side, nearly losing the bottom half of his leg as he did so. ‘Whoa, I don’t suggest we mist until this passes.’

  ‘Don’t worry.’ A small line formed between her platinum-colored eyebrows. ‘It’s not as though I have anywhere else to go.’

  Sage knelt, threaded her hair behind her ears, and cupped the feminine version of his face. ‘Love him while he’s on this earth, but from a careful distance. Stop wasting these moments of your life saddened.’

  ‘You have no idea how I feel! You’ve never loved, Sage,’ she argued. ‘Unless you’ve never told me.’

  ‘I have not.’ He admitted, catching a palm frond before it hit her. ‘But you know the rules as well as I do. You cannot admit your species to the humans, nor can you change one over whose heart beats with life’s vitality.’

  ‘But if I told him, if I could change him and keep him with me always, we would be happy like Mama and Papa.’

  Elissa had discovered her human last year on a scorching summer day. Since then, the mortal had owned her heart, yet another vampire of the monarchy staked a claim on her. ‘Speak of this no more, Elissa, lest Edik will hear of this.’

  Suddenly, her face paled.

  He knew that look. Sage spun on his heel just in time for black wings to fill his vision.

  ‘Too late,’ came Edik’s voice. He landed in front of the porch. A testimony to his strength, Sage realized. The Lovec could withstand gusts of wind reaching past forty miles per hour and still extend his wings. ‘I trusted you, Elissa.’

  She stood, though Sage wrapped an arm around her torso, pulling her behind him. ‘Speak to my sister with respect.’

  ‘I will give her the respect she's given me.’ He snapped his wings shut, the wind from that simple movement blowing back Sage’s hair. ‘Which is none, apparently.

  ‘You claim me as your chosen bride,’ Elissa said, trying to push away from Sage, ‘yet I never agreed.’

  Edik looked affronted. ‘Why wouldn’t you agree?’ He brought his gloved hands to his great chest. ‘I am a male of wealth, station, and unequivocal power. What more can a female find and desire than what I am? You will reside with me in Prince Volos’ court, an honor of which most females only dream.’

  Elissa’s voice softened when she said, ‘Edik, that’s not my dream.’

  Black flames erupted in Edik’s eyes, the Lovec releasing that unequivocal power of which he boasted. ‘I have the scent of your human now.’

  ‘No!’ Elissa roared, her power suddenly sweltering against Sage’s back, but he held her firm, wouldn’t allow her to lay a hand on Edik in a rush of anger that promised only her pain.

  ‘He’s a deadman, your human.’

  Although Sage was Vojak, a force in his own right, taking down a Lovec was nearly as difficult as taking down Prince Volos himself. Rarely had anyone lived to tell about it, at least in the vampire world. And considering Sage was about to stand between a male and his female, odds weren’t good. But for his sister, he would die a thousand deaths. ‘You know I cannot allow you to kill any human, Edik.’

  Edik stopped at the top of the steps, bared his fangs, and hissed a clear challenge. ‘Are you speaking as a Vojak or as her brother?’

  ‘Both.’

  Sage gave his sister a look that she clearly read. Elissa shook her head no, her lip quivering, because she knew Sage just signed his death warrant. He slipped her the keys to the truck, wrapping her trembling fingers around the cold metal, as Edik stepped a booted foot on the porch.

  Sage raised his chin a fraction, expecting her to obey his unspoken command. If he could fight off Edik long enough, Elissa could get to the truck.

  ‘So apprehend me, warrior.’ Edik shoved Sage hard enough to send him headlong off the porch. Not before, however, Sage snagged Elissa and took her with him.

  ‘You’ve not yet killed.’ Sage righted them before hitting the sand. Elissa immediately ran for the truck. ‘There’s time for you to calm down.’

  Edik bolted over the splintered balustrade, but instead of charging Sage, he took off for Elissa.

  Sage rushed towards her, only to see the Edik’s right wing snatch Elissa in a brutal hold. She screamed as Sage whipped a flying blade and struck the corded strength of Edik’s nape. Elissa brought up her fist, keys protruding from her fingers, and gouged Edik’s left eye.

  He dropped Elissa to the ground.

  ‘Go!’ Sage screamed at her while gripping Edik’s closest wing with his be-clawed hands and yanked with the great power of his birthright.

  As Elissa made it to the truck, Edik crashed backwards with Sage landing on his chest. ‘Mine!’ he bellowed, reaching a hand toward Sage’s truck as she floored it, the tires spinning on the wet road. ‘Mine!’

  Sage pulled out his Stavz, readying to commit the ultimate infraction to save his sister, but Edik’s great wing shot forward and knocked Sage unconscious long enough for Edik to give chase.

  When Sage cleared his clouded vision, he saw nothing but black wings spread before the line of trees adjacent to the road. He panicked. What was that he scented over the great gusts of salty wind?

  His nostrils flared.

  Elissa’s blood!

  ‘No!’

  Fighting to keep his balance, Sage scrambled forward, his body tilting to the side with every lift of his knee. But with each desperate breath, he pulled more and more of Elissa’s blood into his lungs.

  Sage’s heart
stuttered when he first spotted the wreckage. ‘What have you done, winged bastard?’

  ‘I never touched… the truck.’

  ‘Yet this is entirely your fault.’ The front of Sage’s truck had slammed into several Royal Palms, and surprisingly the windshield had shattered.

  ‘I would never kill her!’

  ‘But you would kill the one she loved,’ Sage hissed, his vision threatening to wink out once more. ‘Same thing!’

  When he pushed past Edik, who was now standing stiff and pale, Sage found his sister’s slumped form behind the steering wheel. Gently he eased her back. ‘Hey, Elissa, talk to me.’

  Not a sound from her lips, not a hint of movement stirred from her body.

  ‘Come on, sister.’ He studied her carefully. ‘You can do better than that.’ With a large gash across her cheek and another on her shoulder, she would be fine. After all, she was a vampire. ‘These aren’t fatal.’

  Edik’s hand cupped Elissa’s face. ‘Then why isn’t she breathing?’

  Another gust of wind whipped across the island, the outer rings of the hurricane spinning closer to shore, shaking the truck. ‘We must get her to the house.’

  Edik’s face contorted with something Sage couldn’t decipher, didn’t have time to think upon. ‘But she’s not breathing!’

  ‘She will.’ Gently but swiftly, Sage lifted Elissa from the truck, carrying her in his arms though his legs nearly gave way from the wind combining with his dizziness. But he held tightly, would not drop his sister for the world. ‘Go head of us; shield us with your wings!’

  Edik obeyed, forging a clear path to protect Elissa, and Sage trudged forward with her securely in his arms. Only ten yards away from the house, however, another gust, stronger than the last, roared across Captiva Island, bending palm trees and lifting brush into swirling twisters.

  When he picked up speed, a Elissa’s silky hand curved over his cheek. Though when he opened his mouth, to speak over the high winds, she brought a bloody finger to her mouth and shushed Sage.