31. Harlow
HARLOW
I t took me roughly a half-hour of stumbling around in the dark streets of the fort’s fourth level, but it was worth it. Explicit story hour at the Raining Star Bar is way better than I expected.
My glamour necklace from Aidia came in handy.
The last thing I need is for someone to recognize me.
I’ll just listen to a few stories while Henry is out sulking, and I’ll be back before he even knows I’m gone.
I feel a little guilty, but I think Aidia will forgive me for the frivolous use of her gift when I have stories to bring her from the Mountain Haven storytellers themselves.
I used as little magic as I could, just changing my appearance enough to not be instantly recognized. I made my hair a honey-blonde, my eyes a dark brown, and my face slightly rounder.
No one in the bar has given me a second look, even the men at the table next to me, one of whom I recognize as one of the guards who was stationed in the room for the consummation ritual last night.
If a man who watched me come so hard I broke an ancient sigil doesn’t recognize me, no one else in this bar will.
I sip my wine and glance around the room at the array of auras. Lots of Divine blessings are represented. The current storyteller, a hearty woman named Nicolina, looks to be in her fifties, with a bright golden aura, long, dark hair, and a smooth, confident delivery .
According to the man at the table next to mine, who quietly complained to his friend when she announced what tale she’d be telling for the night, this is a frequently requested story.
The tale reimagines the Drained not as soulless, bloodthirsty, gray-skinned-beasts, but as handsome, playful huntsmen who just happened to occasionally sip some blood. Like the huntsman from the tales of Stellaria—the Deathless. Men born of both realms—who didn’t belong entirely to either one.
I was inclined to agree with the man beside me that it sounded silly before she started, but the moment she opened her mouth and began to speak, she had my full attention.
“Rayleen ran as fast as she could through the dark forest, branches and vines tearing at her nightdress and auburn hair. Her heart pounded. She knew what she was doing when she baited him, but now that she’d slapped him and run off, it was only a matter of time until he caught her and claimed her.”
A chorus of whistles and whooping goes through the crowd.
Nicolina grins and holds up her hands to silence them.
“Rayleen paused for a moment just to listen to hear how close he was. But there was nothing but the breeze blowing through the boughs above her. So she turned and ran again. A moment later, she was tackled to the dirt, the wind knocked out of her.”
The storyteller pauses again while the crowd cheers and clinks their glasses.
“She was flipped onto her back to look up into Victor’s angry eyes.
Do you have anything you’d like to say to me?
But Rayleen just bit her lip and shook her head.
She was surrendering to him completely, not using her chance to opt out, and he was thrilled she’d finally agreed to be his.
He shoved her nightdress up and found her already wet and aching just from the chase.
He fucked her roughly with his fingers, pinning her to the ground by her neck. ”
The room is so quiet, I feel like everyone must be able to hear my pounding heart. But when I glance around, auras flare all over the bar. Everyone is just as excited as I am.
“He pulled his fingers out and shoved them into her mouth, making her gag, holding his hand there to remind her that he was fully in control now,” Nicolina continues.
“Then, he unbuttoned his pants, grabbed his thick cock, and plunged it into her. They say you could hear her keening wail of pleasure from a mile away, but Victor showed her no mercy. He was eager to claim her and the faster she came, the sooner he’d be able to make her his.
He fucked her savagely, dirt and gravel digging into the tender skin of her back, his hand squeezing her throat as he felt her climax growing imminent.
Rayleen started to panic from the lack of air and the awareness that they were being watched from the shadows by many other people.
Victor ripped her dress down the front so that everyone could enjoy the show. ”
I clench my thighs together, remembering how hot I’d felt when Henry ripped my slip during the ritual.
“He bit her nipples and cut off all her air, until her pussy was leaking, clenching and unclenching. Then he finally let go. She drew in a deep breath and her release hit her like a storm. Wave after wave of pleasure washed over her as she convulsed. Victor kept his pace, and right as she was reaching her thigh-trembling, back-arching peal, he sank his fangs into her neck and began to drink, and a second orgasm hit her. She screamed and cried and clawed at his back, the pleasure driving her half-mad until finally Victor buried himself deep inside her and found his release.”
The crowd applauds and shouts lewd encouragement to the fake lovers, and Nicolina waits for them to settle before continuing.
“Rayleen lay there, feeling the warmth of his venom coursing through her along with a newfound need for more of him. Victor gave her no time to recover. He withdrew and shoved her legs wide for the onlookers to see and announced her as his claimed. Rayleen didn’t stop him.
She was eager to do anything to make him happy and excited to see whether he would use her himself or if he would share her with others, because her night was just beginning. ”
Nicolina lifts her arms, and the crowd claps and cheers as she bows.
Imagination is not something that my family ever tried to cultivate in me, unless it was imaginative ways to kill someone and make it look accidental. I’m amazed at the creativity of these women and the bold way they tell scandalous stories so casually.
I’m hardly inexperienced, but it’s one thing to read something in the quiet of your room and quite another to perform it.
The guard at the table beside me nudges my arm. I almost jump out of my skin for fear I’ve been found out, but he just passes me a basket .
“What’s this for?” I ask.
“Tips for the teller,” he says, nodding to Nicolina.
I’m at the end of the row of tables, so I toss a few coins into the basket. When Nicolina steps off the small, raised stage, I stand and hand it to her.
“Sweet girl, you look pale,” Nicolina says, touching my cheek in a gentle maternal way.
“It’s just a story. Like the ones a man tells when he wants to get you into his bed.
They’re just to excite and entice. They make the monsters seem less monstrous.
They remind us we have survived and endured enough to find pleasure.
You are a sweet thing to be here alone for this. ”
I purse my lips. “I’m not as sweet as I look.”
She tips her head back and cackles. “Well, if that’s the case, that gentleman at the table beside you is known to be not very sweet either. I’ve heard rave reviews from the ladies. He’s always here for this particular hour. I think you’ve caught his eye.”
Sure enough, when I glance back at the table, he’s smiling at me in the cocky, knowing way of men who have no clue who they’re dealing with.
“Thanks for the tip, Nicolina,” I whisper as I walk back to my seat.
“I don’t think we’ve met before,” the man says as I slink back into my seat.
I watch him over the rim of my glass as I take a sip of wine. “I’m sure you’d remember if we had.”
He cocks his head. “I’m sure I would.”
I hold out my hand. “Eve.”
“Brennan.” He takes it and presses a kiss to my knuckles. It’s a bit over the top, but he’s clearly counting on me being a woman who loves a romance story, so I guess it makes sense.
“And what do you do, Brennan?” I try to sound playful instead of bored.
I know he’s a guard. I vaguely remember Gaven mentioning his name, but he’s reported so many things to me in the past few days, it’s all a bit jumbled in my brain. The fact that I know the name and face means that he must be somewhat important.
These next few moments are critical. I need to make a quick and accurate study of him. Fortunately, I’m attuned to the mercurial nature of men.
The fastest way to learn a lesson is to incorrectly assess a threat. I’ve made it a point to only pick fights I can win. My father has taught me many things, but none so vital as how to size up an opponent.
Brennan is drunk. His aura is dark purple. He’s blessed by Elvodeen. Most of the hunters seem to be blessed by the Divine of Strength, and that alone tells me a bit about how to get to him.
“I’m a hunter. I guard the walls.” He looks so proud of himself.
“Oh,” I say, forcing a smile. “There’s so many of you out there all the time.”
He frowns. “I’m actually a group leader.”
I feign embarrassment. “Oh? So you are in charge of a few men? I’m afraid I just don’t understand the hierarchy.”
It’s just dismissive enough for him to want to prove himself.
Brennan takes an exaggerated look over his shoulder, like he’s worried he’s going to get caught sharing something important, then leans in close. “I lead a group of twenty men, and we handle very dangerous assignments.”
“Like venturing into the woods?” I suggest.
He scoffs. “Like guarding a Drained we caught.”
My shock is genuine this time. “Caught?”
He leans in and offers a cocky smile. “A new evolution of them. They call it a Breeder.”
“I don’t understand.” I try to think back to when I was at home talking to Kellan. I don’t remember him ever mentioning an evolution of the Drained.
However, there have been five breaches in the last six months at home. There were only two breaches all of last year. Something has changed.
Brennan glances around us again. “I really shouldn’t talk about it out in the open, but I have a room upstairs for the night. A little privacy would surely loosen my lips.”