5. Special Delivery
The frustration of waiting for either a mystery horse or a shoe to drop had more than myself on edge. Julian may have been good at masking his emotions to everyone else, but I knew all his tells. The way his spine remained rigid, even when he smiled, and the way he brooded over whatever he scrolled through on his phone let me know he, too, felt the tension in the air.
Sex served as a pleasant distraction for both of us, and on the upside, I’d learned to control my strength a bit better during the act. As far as feeding went, I’d graduated to finding pledges in the mansion and asking permission without needing anyone there to stop me, which helped boost my confidence.
“You aren’t telling me something,” I said, watching Julian pace the room as I lay on the bed watching him. “You’re more agitated than usual.”
“I am used to doing something when there is a problem,” he admitted, coming to a stop and bending over the mattress to smile at me. “I have been thinking about checking with some of my contacts, and…” he paused, clearly having trouble putting it into words.
“You mean you’re used to being a SHADE officer.” I climbed onto my knees and walked myself toward him to hook my arms around his neck and set my forehead to his.
“Yes.” He breathed the word like releasing a burden.
“You can still do it, unofficially.”
“I can’t leave you.” He cupped my face and pulled away enough to meet my eyes, pleading.
“Yes, you can. Julian it’s okay to do what you need to do. You don’t have to babysit me every moment. Lydia is here. The others would come if you’re truly that worried. But I’m pretty safe at the estate. No one’s bothered me. Elsa has barely checked in on my work in the lab.”
After a bit more assurance, he began leaving the grounds for a few hours at a time, allowing me to explore, continue working the lab, and get to know some of the others that made their home here. When he left after breakfast, I often started with a walk in the gardens, having slathered on sunscreen and taken one of the anti-daylight charms Zoe had made for me.
“Good morning,” Merl’s deep voice startled me as I admired a set of sunflowers stretching taller than me.
“It’s not easy to sneak up on a vampire,” I said, guard up.
He held two steaming mugs of coffee, one in each hand, and the aroma of caramel and sweet cream tickled my nose, making my mouth water instantly as he held one out to me.
“I asked your friend Lydia what your favorite was.” He shook it slightly as I stared. “Go on. No charge.”
Snatching the drink, I shot him a suspicious expression before guzzling the best tasting coffee I’d had since I lived in Seattle.
“I order the beans from Brazil. They’re the finest.” He tipped his own cup up in a salute before taking a sip.
“Thank you,” I grudgingly said, turning back toward the sunflowers to indicate he could leave.
“I’m sure Julian told you I can’t be trusted,” he said, stepping so close to my side, the heat of his body and the scent of his blood made me dizzy. I refused to react, though, instead, taking another drag of the other elixir he’d gifted me.
“He isn’t wrong,” Merl said, undeterred. “My first priority is always my own interests. It’s how I’ve survived so long. Well, aside from the EOL.”
I glanced at him then realized the acronym was his elixir of life. I took another swallow of my double caramel latte as I assessed the arrogant bastard.
“Anyway, I have no reason to be your enemy. In fact, it makes far more sense to ally myself with you as I did Julian. So in the spirit of almost friendship, I wanted to let you know you have nothing to fear from me. It can get lonely here among the walking corpses, present company excluded, of course. Coffee and conversation serve both of us.”
I turned to face him and smiled sweetly. “Thank you for the coffee. Enjoy your day.” I shoved the empty cup against his chest, forcing him to grab hold, and walked back to the house.
Every couple of days, Merl would reappear whenever Julian was out and wherever I happened to be, with coffee or pastries. The man certainly had a way in the kitchen, I’d give him that. But I wasn’t going to be bought via my sweet tooth. On his fourth visit, I snatched my cinnamon roll and told him not to bother again. “You’ll just have to find company elsewhere,” I said, patting him hard on the shoulder and sending him tripping forward.
“I shall wait until you come to me then,” he answered with a smile. “Can’t blame a guy for trying.”
True to his word, he didn’t approach me again. Strangely, I found myself anticipating him showing up around every corner with a treat and his over-confident car salesman attitude. Maybe I was going stir crazy.
One morning I woke to find the bed beside me empty aside from a note. Julian’s sprawling script read, Sam picked up a new scent trail in the forest near the tarmac. Am investigating.
I crumpled the paper and scrambled to get dressed so I could join him. I’d made it as far as the hallway when Elsa moved out of her office, blocking my way to the steps.
“I have information you may find useful,” she said, gesturing to her office.
Glancing back at the stairway, I decided I had better find out what she was referring to before finding Julian and Sam. So, I marched inside and took a seat on the edge of her white sofa.
“Julian has shared with me his involvement in the group known as MorningStar. He’s filled me in on your dealings with a certain psychic, Marcia Honeywell.” Elsa sat on the other end of her couch and snatched up a glass of what appeared to be fresh blood which she sipped like a fine wine.
“I see.” I had no words. For some reason, Julian telling her the details of what we’d been through felt almost like…a betrayal. But there was no reason to react that way, so I tried to shake off the feeling. “You have news about her whereabouts?” I pressed as she swirled the glass, watching me.
“Yes. I’d like you to meet my guest.” She gestured to the corner, and out of the shadows stepped a vampire I was all too familiar with.
Tomas, the major’s helper, stepped up beside Elsa as she sipped from her glass. I stood immediately, ready to fight, but he stood still, eyes unfocused.
“Refill my glass,” Elsa ordered and held out the now nearly empty cup.
Tomas lifted his hand to his mouth, ripped open his wrist, and tipped it over the crystal goblet, filling it with his blood.
“Enough.”
Tomas let his arm fall to his side, blood dripping down his pant leg as the wound closed.
“You glamoured him?” I asked, dumbfounded.
“I am five hundred years his senior. He’s practically a baby. Not even quite a hundred yet.” Elsa stood and slapped his cheek lightly. “Now, Tomas, tell Charlotte where Honeywell is.”
“She is in Nevada,” he answered.
“And what is she doing there?” Elsa pressed before drinking deeply.
“She is in hiding.”
I looked at Elsa. “At least she’s done coming after us.”
Elsa shrugged. “For now. She doesn’t feel powerful enough yet, perhaps. But she does enjoy revenge if what Tomas tells me is true. Which it is of course since he can’t help himself. Kneel.” She barked the command at him, and he dropped to his knees.
Words still eluded me, but I managed to whisper a thank you as I shifted my weight between my feet.
“Your father wants her for his experiments,” she said, setting her glass on the coffee table and walking toward me. “I’m thinking of having you do the honors. You would like that, wouldn’t you? A chance for your own retribution?”
I licked my lips as I thought it through, staring into her violet irises. “I don’t need revenge. I really don’t want any part of contributing to others being used as guinea pigs by my father. I can’t stop you from sending someone to get her. But I won’t be that person.”
Elsa stared at me so long, I began to fidget with concern. Then she smiled coldly. “I made a mistake by offering it as a choice. That’s on me. I will send someone else to retrieve her when I am ready.”
My shoulders drooped. The woman made me nervous.
“Just so we are clear on expectations, though, Charlotte.” She nodded toward the man kneeling on the floor then caught my gaze again. “When I tell you to do something, I expect it done. I may not be your sire, but I hold the highest office of any vampire. You see, back in my early days…well, I’ve never tolerated mistakes very well. I’m a bit of a perfectionist.”
I swallowed back the lump in my throat as anger flared. I was tired of people thinking they could order me around. “You are an elected official, not an empress.”
“Kill Tomas. Now.” The words slid into my brain, echoing slightly as they took hold. And before I could fully register what was happening, I’d stepped past her, gripped Tomas’ head with both hands, and yanked with all my strength.
I dropped the head I’d just severed immediately, vomiting beside it as Elsa sipped at her glass, considering what I’d done.
“Messy. But acceptable. You may leave.”
I zoomed past her and back to our rooms where I shredded my outfit and jumped in the shower to scrub off what I’d done. I was still there when Julian came back and slipped in to join me.
“It wasn’t the demons,” he said, pulling me so my back was against his front. “But I’m afraid the scent belonged to Tomas.”
I cringed at the name, and hung my head.
“Charlotte?” Julian asked gently, turning me to face him even though I refused to look at him properly. “What’s happened? Did you see him?”
Telling him, though difficult, helped sooth my guilty conscience.
He pulled me against him, resting his chin on my head as he rocked me. “It’s alright, my love. I’m sorry I wasn’t here. I’m sure Elsa thought she was doing you a favor, though she had no right. I will speak to her.”
I pulled away, finally looking up at him. “Favor? Glamouring me to kill?”
Julian pressed his forehead against mine. “Her mind is twisted, Charlotte. She couldn’t fathom the idea of not wanting revenge. I am so sorry.”
“I want to leave this place,” I said, crying again without producing actual tears.
“We will. As soon as the threat of the Demons is behind us. I swear it.” And Julian’s mouth met mine, seeling that promise.
“Demon energy has been detected in the woods surrounding the estate,” Elsa said by way of greeting one morning as Julian and I sipped our own coffee in the sitting room.
I looked up to find her violet eyes set on Julian as she stood with regal posture in a beautiful black suit with a coat trimmed in ivory that curved around the floor at her feet like a train. The collar stood at attention framing her head then dipping into a low V that showed the curve of her breasts and buttoned to her waist in the front. It was quite the fashion statement. She hadn’t sought me out since Julian had “spoken” to her about forcing me to kill Tomas. I supposed this was good enough reason for her to do so.
“They are watching,” Julian agreed, sipping his coffee, and pulling me closer with an arm around my shoulders. “My people detected their scent as well.”
His people were Sam and Lydia in this case. I knew because he’d informed me a day ago of the trail they’d found in the woods.
“It is only a matter of time before they make a move. I suggest we have a plan in place,” Elsa continued. “I’ve asked Merlin to join us for brunch.”
Merlin? I repeated to Julian through our bond. My jaw dropped. Could she mean…Merl? Merl was THE Merlin? I shook myself to try to focus on the demon issue but was only partially successful. I’d drunk from Merlin’s veins. I’d rebuked his attempts to bring me coffee. Julian knew—no worked with the most famous wizard to ever live? I’d assumed he was only a legend. And he’d made the vamp mobile…
“And Kayora?” Julian inquired mildly as his grip tightened slightly.
Elsa remained still in that way that vampires had, though I’d somehow missed out on when I was turned. Only her eyes gave anything away as they flashed with something so fast, it was impossible to catch it, even as a member of the living dead. “I haven’t heard from her in decades. Meet us in my quarters in an hour. Charlotte, bring any information you’ve gleaned from your work in the lab that might be useful.”
I watched her sweep from the room like a queen, though I supposed she was close to one in her day. A scary, bloodthirsty one from what I understood.
“Yes, it’s him. No, that doesn’t change anything. You should still keep your distance,” Julian announced, as I pulled away so I could turn to look at him, then changed the subject. “Have you found anything?”
Elsa had requested I focus my research on learning whatever I could, scientifically speaking, about the demons and the way they manipulated energy, i.e., their magic. I’d taken to making sure my father wasn’t present when I was busy at my own little station I’d set up in the furthest corner from him. Lydia hadn’t been happy about my avoidance but agreed it wasn’t her business and answered truthfully when I’d asked about his work habits.
“Not a lot,” I admitted, spinning the ring on my finger. “But I did find a signature unique to their magic left behind for a few minutes after they finish using it.” What I didn’t add was that I was able to do so by studying Zoe’s portals since they matched those of the demons whose DNA we’d been given by our father as children.
“I’ve been researching Soul Eater,” Julian said, setting down his mug. “There is some lore surrounding its existence dating back to medieval England. Clearly, both I and Elsa were busy elsewhere at the time. But since then, the title has been dormant.”
“I know someone who was in England around then,” I said, staring pointedly at my own coffee, which I still drank every morning out of habit despite craving the amazing lattes Merlin made.
“It’s not worth the price.” Julian’s stern voice didn’t have the effect it used to on me.
“What if it is? What if Merlin has knowledge of it? What if…what if he helped create it or something?” I’d tried, but I couldn’t recall the sword having the same signature that the demon’s magic did. And I’d been able to counter it. It made sense it was from our own dimension since it certainly wasn’t from theirs.
“Then he sold it to a demon and that should be enough reason not to trust him,” Julian said, taking my cup from my hands and setting it by his so he could inch toward me, enveloping me in his bergamot scent that curled my toes.
“You aren’t playing fair.” I grinned, unable to help it as his hand slid over my thigh, and he leaned in close.
His answer was a kiss that stole my breath and every dissenting thought in my brain.
We have a little time before the meeting, he purred in my head.
“Mmm hmm,” I mumbled, wrapping my arms around his neck and scooting into his lap.
Julian zoomed us up the stairs and to our suite, where he kicked the door shut behind him and tossed me onto the bed before diving in after me. I laughed as the mattress bounced. But in moments, my mouth was otherwise occupied, and my clothes were torn from my body.
It’s going to be obvious what we did when we show up in new clothes, I complained.
Good.
My protests halted as his fingers dipped between my legs to be sure I was ready. And as always, it seemed, I was. Opening myself to him, I lifted my bottom from the bed and hooked my legs around his hips. When he drove inside of me, the world around us fell away, and that feeling of oneness, of rightness, of pleasure beyond thought filled the moment.
“I love the sounds you make when we come together,” Julian whispered in my ear before dragging his elongated fangs down the curve of my neck to my breastbone and sinking into my flesh.
Being a vampire didn’t eliminate the erogenous feel of his bite. If anything, the sensations were so intense they bordered on that thin line between pain and ecstasy. Digging my nails into his shoulders, I arched up to meet him as his speed and strength brought us both quickly toward release.
I didn’t want it to stop, but I knew we didn’t have much time. So I used my own strength and flipped us over, seating myself completely over him and rocking my body like the vibrator he often provided with his tongue or finger.
Gripping my hips hard enough to bruise even my vampire flesh for a moment, Julian’s normally schooled expression shattered into the vision of a wild, untethered beast. The blood he’d drawn from me, fresh from my breakfast, stained his lips which had drawn back over his teeth. I reveled in the sense of power I suddenly possessed as the tension coiled in my core, building toward an eruption I could no longer suppress.
He reached up to grip my breasts, his thumbs slipping over the hardened buds of my sensitive nipples as I threw my head back, ready to shatter.
“Oh gods, Julian,” I screamed, unable to keep quiet and thankful for the soundproof wards on his doors.
I flipped my torso forward as I tumbled over the edge of sanity, sinking my own fangs into the crook of his neck as he held me sealed to him by the hips for his own climax. The deep grunts of satisfaction made me smile as I licked the double wound I’d left to close it. It would have healed on its own, but we both enjoyed the intimacy of the act.
The knock sounded as I was still rocking slowly over him, wanting to savor the moment. I hissed in response, which surprised me as much as it apparently amused Julian. He lifted me off of him and rolled over me, kissing me as he climbed from the bed. In seconds he had me covered with a blanket and had pulled on his pants, forgoing his shirt. It was fine with me, as I loved ogling his perfectly chiseled abs, broad shoulders, and pecs. He pulled a hand back through his hair, making his dark curls fall instantly back into place before tugging open the door.
Outside stood a short and stocky man with a nervous yellow aura and a clipboard. He wore blue overalls and a matching hat that read DEB. I doubted it was his name so much as a strange acronym.
In seconds, I’d tied a satin robe over myself and joined Julian at the door, not bothering to hide my own messy locks. The man with the hat glanced at me, eyes sliding from my head to my breasts, clearly loose beneath the robe and he blushed before looking back to Julian. At the look on my fiancé’s face, the man blanched and took a step backward, Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat.
“Can we help you?” I asked, shouldering Julian aside so I was between them in case he decided to kill the poor guy for checking me out.
“Yeah.” He shifted his weight, took a breath, and tried again. “Yeah, sorry to disturb you nice folks, but I have a delivery here for a Lieutenant Julian Carver?”
“What sort of delivery?” Julian asked, back to his stoic self.
“Well, see, it seems you put the order in months ago, but you know, it’s hard to get things through with all the red tape. The address you originally listed on the requisition belongs to a house that’s…well, it’s deserted and roped off with crime scene tape.” The guy glanced toward me for help, blushed again, and went back to speaking to Julian. His heart pumped so fast, I found myself salivating.
“What. Is. The. Delivery?” Julian punched each word out as though the poor man was stupid.
I elbowed him lightly in the ribs. “You found us anyway,” I offered with a smile, noted the tiny nametag pinned to his shirt and nearly covered by the strap of his overalls, “Stan.”
“Yeah. This is Lieutenant Carver’s official residence, and since he—you’re the one that put in the request, I brought her here.”
“Brought who?” I pressed, becoming impatient enough myself to debate using glamour.
“The unicorn.” Stan waited, clutching his clipboard as he glanced between us, both frozen on the spot.
It was my mother’s unicorn. The one Julian had bribed her with to get her to come to the island in the first place. She’d always wanted one, and he’d come through. But it was too late. She’d never get to see it, much less know it.
My heart sank to my feet as I fought the blood tinted tears that wanted to break through at the thought of her murder. I didn’t want to frighten the poor man into a heart attack.
“Thank you,” Julian said, taking over with his debonair smile. He switched places with me to sign the clipboard, which seemed to relieve Stan.
“Where is she?” I asked as he handed a copy of the receipt of acknowledgement to Julian.
“They wouldn’t let me bring her inside, so she’s in the back,” Stan said, removing his cap to wipe the sweat off his brow and revealing the pointed ears of an elf. “Don’t worry though, she won’t go anywhere. She scented the empty house, so if you all were in there at some point, she’ll keep within a mile or so.”
She’d been meant for Mama, but I supposed she would have scented myself and Zoe at the very least. Did that mean she was imprinted on us or something? I squinted at the writing on the upside-down clipboard. DEB apparently stood for Department of Endangered Beasts.
“Here, Mrs. Carver.” Stan reached in his pocket and handed me an apple. “That ought to guarantee her loyalty.” I opened my mouth to correct him on my name but stopped myself. I kind of liked the sound of it.
“Oh, and don’t be startled if she shows up unannounced. Unicorns can instantly portal themselves within a mile of whomever they decide is a companion.”
“What if she picks someone who doesn’t mean well just because they have an apple?” I asked, vision turning scarlet. I blinked away the red in my eyes, but Stan had shrunk away from me already, sticking his hat back on as he hit the wall opposite our door.
“No! No way. We are here to protect animals. That’s why we vetted the good lieutenant. It’s why the paperwork took so long. I swear.”
I bit down on the inside of my cheek and nodded. “Thank you, Stan. But maybe this isn’t the best place to keep a creature like that after all.”
Julian spoke over me, “Thank you for the delivery.” He pulled some money from his pocket and handed it to Stan, who licked his lips and took off.
“Why did you do that?” I asked, turning on him. “Mama’s gone, and what am I supposed to do with a unicorn at the vampire estate while demons are after me?”
Julian gave a wicked half-grin. “I have a hunch she may be the horse we’ve been waiting for.”