Chapter 26
Chapter
Twenty-Six
The vampire General sprang over the brown wolf, the jump poised and agile. The rushing wolf halted, earth spraying under his giant paws, and turned around, nostrils flaring.
A slight chill ran down my spine as the vampire waved the wolf over. My legs couldn’t move fast enough to get to them in time. I wasn’t sure how to fight the General, but I couldn’t let him hurt one of my own kind.
I took a sharp breath as realization hit me. The wolf wasn’t like me.
But life was a life, regardless of the species.
The wolf rushed full force toward the vampire. But the vampire had planted himself firmly on the ground, with wide legs and open arms. Baring his canines, the wolf pounced at the General, but the vampire twirled in the last moment as if dancing, making a full circle and sidestepping the animal.
The vampire General caught the wolf by the neck, his iron arms wrapped around its throat. The wolf let out a painful howl and wheezed when he couldn’t take his next breath.
I had run as fast as I could, but I was going to be late.
I did a double take as silver-haired Torin, covered in blood, materialized behind the General, who stiffened as soon as he felt Torin’s presence.
Torin grabbed the black chain of the General’s choker, and after pulling him away from the wolf, Torin tossed the man a few feet away as if he weighed nothing.
I was almost there, breathless, and slowed down to a walk now that the wolf’s life was not in danger and Torin had the upper hand.
Having landed on his butt, the General gaped at Torin in disbelief, but then he recovered and narrowed his eyes at him. The vampire said something to Torin, who took a threatening step forward. The General did a weird crab walk backward.
Torin’s chest rose and fell rapidly, and his crimson eyes radiated fury. The General must have reconsidered his approach because he stood and yelled at his people, and they retreated to their cars.
“Don’t follow them,” Torin shouted to his warriors.
Strange. The Alpha didn’t want to chase them and tear them apart, sending body parts back to the vampire Queen? That was Torin’s usual approach in a battle. Had the time Torin and I spent together made him softer and more considerate?
His gaze swept the open field, and when it settled on me, I blinked, and Torin stood in front of me.
“Wow. How’d you move so fast?”
His bloody hands cupped my face, and I suppressed my protest. Torin was in his full vampire form and was on edge. He must have been suppressing his instinct to finish off the vampire General.
“I can be very fast when I’m motivated.” Then he grabbed my shoulders and pulled me into a tight hug.
I was sure his bloody clothes left stains on mine. Instead of complaining, though, I embraced him tighter, letting him know with my body that I was okay.
“What did the General tell you to make you so angry?” I asked and pulled away to look at Torin.
He released me reluctantly and pinched the bridge of his nose. “That the vampire Queen won’t be thrilled to hear about you being by my side.”
“Then why didn’t you tear him apart now so he couldn’t relate the news? I’m not a proponent of killing, but…hypothetically speaking,” I said.
Torin was ruthless when it came to my protection, but he chose to let the General live. Why?
I pursed my lips together to stop more questions from escaping my mouth.
“Because she already knows about you, Anna.”
“That we’re mates?”
Torin took a sharp breath, and I stepped back, startled at the truth.
“Yes, that’s why I stayed away from you for so long. I thought I could protect you, but the vampires won’t leave us alone,” he said in a thickening voice.
Torin’s hands went limp to the sides of his body. For a moment, he looked so defeated that I wanted to hug him again, but that gnawing feeling that the man hid secrets from me overtook my brain and kept me away.
How did the vampire Queen find out about us being mates? Even I was unsure Torin and I were mates until he invaded my dream realm recently. Did the Queen know even before I did? How was this possible?
The longer I stayed around Torin, the more my world spun out of control with secrets and questions. I didn’t even bother asking him now. Not only did I not want to push him further, especially after another attack on the princess, but he wouldn’t volunteer any information anyway.
When he lifted his gaze to me, Torin’s eyes flashed as if his vampire fought his human form from returning. The vampire won.
One of his men approached, and the Alpha instructed him to burn the bodies. His men were quick to clean up the mess. Silence fell over the field, absent from the rumbling of approaching cars. The snapping and popping of the burning flesh were the only sounds echoing around us.
Small flames danced around the open space, away from the trees. The ashes carried by the wind reached me, stinging my throat. I coughed, and Torin frowned.
“Let’s get inside the car,” he said, and I followed him to where he had parked. “I only saw the hunter leave your side at the last moment and I almost lost it.”
When we both sat inside the SUV, Torin reached for me and pulled me onto his lap. The cool steering wheel pressed against my side—its circular shape a stark contrast to the heated flesh of Torin’s muscular, hard body.
“Torin, there isn’t enough space. What…”
I must have protested half-heartedly since I made no attempt to stop Torin’s hands from roaming over my curves. Each touch left a trail of searing heat that made me squirm.
He buried his head in my chest and inhaled deeply like a man starved for oxygen.
His short breaths slowed down as if soothed by my scent.
I patted his head, running my fingers through his long black locks, and his body relaxed a little beneath me.
Torin craved physical touch with his mate while emotionally, he built walls around himself.
“I have to tell you what I learned from the hunter leader. He’s after a book called The Book of Thoradis. Have you heard about it?”
He pulled his head away from me and shook it.
“Okay, get ready. It’s a long story,” I said, and he chuckled while weaving his fingers through my hair.
Was he even paying attention?
“Thoradis was the god of knowledge and writing, and allegedly, he authored the book of magic spells, rituals, and names of power. Names of power were words so powerful that anything was in one’s grasp if uttered correctly.
He was a god of both vampires and werewolves,” I said and shivered as Torin slid his fingers down my throat and neck, leaving hot sensations I liked too much.
A smirk played on his full lips, partly amused and seductive.
“The god married the Moon goddess, and, in her honor, he built the Celestial Hall of Truth, which is believed to be underground somewhere…”
Torin’s fingers traced my mouth and casually traveled down my breasts. He cupped one, and his thumb and forefinger teased the taut nipple over the material of my clothes.
I took a deep breath but couldn’t stop the small moan escaping my throat.
His hands continued their exploration of my body as if his fingers created a sensual map that only he could navigate. I fidgeted, only to feel Torin’s erection digging into my thigh.
I cleared my throat and said, “Thoradis and the Moon goddess couldn’t have kids, so they put their knowledge of absorbing divine power and turning a person into a deity with immortality into a book.
The Book of Thoradis. But the book disappeared and is believed to be in that underground temple they built. ”
Torin placed a small kiss on the crook of my neck, and I shivered.
“Torin, this is hardly the place and time.” I tried sounding serious, but instead, my voice came out as if I had pleaded for more.
“I don’t care if the whole world is burning around us, Anna,” he said against my neck, his hot breath tickling my skin. “I was so afraid something happened to you that I can’t let go of you now. I have to feel you to know you’re okay.”
“I’m okay,” I said, but Torin didn’t make a move. “You can touch me later.”
His fist bunched my hair with a commanding presence, yet the gentleness of his pull soothed me. I tilted my head back to give him access to my mouth, yielding to him for his sake and sanity. Then he crushed his lips over mine as if he couldn’t wait any longer.
Torin took control over the kiss, and I let him. The taste of him was like a potent cocktail of masculinity and raw desire that left me wanting more. His kiss was a firestorm of passion and other emotions, and I didn’t mind burning.
Our tongues entwined, exploring each other.
With every shaky breath, I found myself sinking deeper into Torin’s snare.
His arms wrapped around me like steel bands, pulling me closer into his body.
He pulled his head away from me, but his embrace only tightened, signaling his need for continued contact.
In the thickening air of the enclosed space, I knew that our relationship was all about insatiable raw hunger and silence.
When he finally released me after his fill, Torin deposited me back on the passenger seat, but he still hadn’t returned to his human form.
I cleared my throat. “So that’s what I was taught about the book, and I thought it was all a myth. But since the hunter is after this powerful book, there must be some truth to it.”
Nodding, Torin started the engine, and we buckled up.
I stared at him. That was his only response? Having people interested in this particular book couldn’t be a good thing. Its power could destroy a world or make one immortal in the wrong hands. Was this what the hunter leader wanted? Immortality?
I opened my mouth to ask him about the book when he spoke first.
“I’m texting Alexander,” he said, pulling his phone from the glove box. “We haven’t gotten to the halfway mark. We’ll return to our pack territory for the night. Tomorrow morning, we’ll drive to the kingdom.”
Our pack territory? I exhaled loudly.