13. Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Thirteen
Micah
“ D o not doubt my dedication to you,” I growl. I kiss her fast and hard. I hate the look of devastation on her face. “Maddy was very important to me. She turned our lives around that night forever.”
“What happened next?” she asks, her expression easing.
“We evolved,” I say dryly. “We met other vampires and shifters. We saw another way of living that could be just as satisfying. We found other sources of blood to survive. I started to hone my skills and channel them into other endeavors, such as business. Making money is always fun. Plus, we got bored quickly. Building something from the ground up gave us a purpose and goals to achieve. The problem with making friends who weren’t vampires or shifters was we had to watch them grow old and die. There was so much death even though we weren't the ones killing them.
“Constantly having to move can be tiring. After a while, we would make a game out of it. We used several different methods to pick where to go next. We couldn’t stay in one place too long anyway. Humans get suspicious when you don’t age or change in any way. It’s a little easier for shifters. You change slightly over the years. One night, I met two dragon shifters who became my friends, and soon after, they met Maddy, too. We spent many nights at their house. It was so nice not to have to act human. They were powerful, but then they had children. Dragons have always been hunted. Some think they can steal their power. Some believe they have mountains of gold. They stopped using their magic to protect their children and lived as humans would.
“Maddy and I loved their kids, especially Maddy. She would spend hours playing with them. Our friends unfortunately lost their lives to hunters who were shifters. That is how we came to raise Saphira. Bishop, her brother, was with us frequently also, but Laken remained behind. They thought it was safest to separate.”
“Saphira knew Maddy?” Daisy asks, her hand covering mine.
“Maddy raised her with a little help from me. Saph loved her as a mother, and Maddy would have burned down the world for her. We showed her the world and how to protect herself. Most dads read you bedtime stories about magic. We were the magic, and I taught her what weapons to use to cause the most damage. Maddy taught her self-defense and where to hit a man to incapacitate them. She was ten when we started her lessons.” I hate thinking about the past; it’s difficult to remember the night it all went to hell. “Saphira was a teenager when Maddy was taken from us.”
“She was killed?”
“Maddy met a man. He was human but wasn’t her mate. I think she was lonely. We weren’t always together. Sometimes we would travel separately, and there were things she needed that being best friends with her brother couldn’t give her. She knew he wasn’t the one. She claimed he was nice and treated her with respect,” I grit out.
“Did he know she was a vampire?”
“She said he didn’t, but in the end, that was why she was murdered.” I cross my arms.
“How did he overpower her?” she asks.
“The most vulnerable time is when you are with someone you trust. She was in bed with him. They had just finished having sex, Maddy was cuffed to the bed, and ten of his friends burst into the room. He had the whole thing set up. She trusted him enough to tie her to the bed. She was naked and vulnerable. She could have broken it if the bed had been wood or had a weak frame. She also had let her guard down; she wasn’t expecting to defend herself and was too wrapped up in a man who wasn’t worthy of her. She must've been so shocked and couldn’t use her influence.” I sit up abruptly, dropping my elbows to my knees, my hands cupped over my mouth. Fuck, I hate reliving it.
“How did you find out what they did?” Daisy moves close, rubbing my back.
“She didn’t come home. She always came home. If she spent the night away, she called. If she was states away, she called at the end of each day. We were always considerate of each other. We knew many things could happen. We are not easy to kill, but as I learned, it can happen when you least expect it. I searched for her. I knew the man’s name. I tracked her scent to his place.” My fingers turn white; my grip is fierce. “They were there. All eleven of the men who took her from me,” I say gutturally, my throat closing.
“Oh, Micah,” Daisy whispers, sliding her arm around my back and dropping her cheek to my shoulder.
“I saw it play out through his memories. I saw them take her head off and burn it in the fireplace. My sister’s wide eyes staring at me through his mind. The gift of seeing other’s memories didn’t seem like such a gift. I was brutal. I tortured them. I took off their fingers and then their toes. I prolonged the pain. I mind fucked them and made them tell me every detail of what they did to her. I had them recite it as I cut off their dicks. I chained the man who started it to his bed, just as they did her. I took away their will to move so they could do nothing to stop me. They couldn’t fight or scream. I showed them what vampires can do when they aren’t blinded by trust. I was covered in their blood by the time I was done. They were human and weak. There was only so much torture I could do until they died.” I drop my head, raking my hands through my hair. “For the first time in many years, I drank human blood straight from the vein without permission. I drank every drop.” I dig my fingers into my scalp and then drop them in disgust.
“I found out where they buried her body and dug her up. I wanted to bury her with honor. I burned the house down with the bodies of the men in it.” I turn to her. “I was so close to losing myself, to saying fuck it and going on a killing spree. She kept me grounded, so when she was gone, I lost myself.”
“What stopped you?”
“Her voice in my head.” I shake my head. “I hear her talking to me when I have those dark thoughts, and I see her hurt expression in my dreams on the day she died. I would picture Saphira, too. She still doesn’t know the whole story. She was devastated when she died.” It was a very dark time. “Two other people saved me: Quinn and Heath.”
“Quinn mentioned you worked together.”
“I decided to use my gifts for something better, something good. I’ve seen so much hatred and abuse, not only from humans but shifters, too. It was partially about protecting our world; the more shifters and vampires abuse their power, showing themselves to humans, the risk of our exposure rises. The goal was to kill the shifters and vampires who were out of control or who abused humans, even though humans killed the one person who truly loved me, dark and damaged parts and all. I thought Quinn and Heath would be ideal partners.”
“How did you meet them?”
“I watch and listen. I witnessed the anger Quinn showed with his fists. You can tell a lot about someone by their body language and the rage in their eyes. Heath had already made a name for himself as being pretty ruthless and cold.” I smile, remembering their reactions to my proposition.
“So you thought those kinds of men would work for my cause,” she says dryly.
“Yeah,” I chuckle. “Heath wasn’t hard to convince. He had been struggling for a while to find his place in the world, to find his purpose. His approach was, why the hell not? Quinn was harder to sell on the idea. He needed the details, everything it would involve. I think in the end the money was an incentive, but also having a place he could belong. They became much more than coworkers. We spent twelve years working together, living together, and spending all our downtime together. We shared everything.”
“I’m glad you had them.”
“I was, too, but the work we did wore on us. Looking into the eyes of your own kind and killing them is difficult. It was easy for me to do it to the ones who raped and abused. The worst killings were the ones who lost their minds because of not having a mate. It doesn’t happen as often to shifters. Vampires are more susceptible. We can live forever. That is a long fucking time to live alone without the other half of their soul.” I squeeze her thigh. “Love, it’s late. You need to sleep.”
“I want to hear more,” she says.
“I’ve lived a long time. I can’t tell you my life story in one night,” I drawl. I haven't talked about this shit so openly to anyone, and the emotions that come with it are uncomfortable to sit with. She surprises me by pushing on my shoulders and straddling my lap.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers, pressing her forehead to mine. We take a moment to breathe together. I clear my throat and she sits up. “I like learning about you.” I grasp her hips.
“I’m glad, but I haven’t been a good mate. I need to take better care of you.” I caress her with my thumbs and feel something in her pocket. “What’s this?”
“Oh, I forgot.” She digs it out of her pocket and holds up a bracelet. “Sally seemed really sad that I didn't steal something of hers. I knew she was expecting it, showing up with so many on her wrist. This one seemed like the most expensive.” She shrugs and drops it in my palm.
I let out a rough breath. “Love, you surprise me.” I toss the jewels to the coffee table. “She is going to be incredibly happy.”
“I want them to like me,” she admits. “I think Sally and I can be friends. I hope to get past my jealousy and be the same with Saphira.”
“They will fall in love with you,” I whisper.
“I hope so,” she says. Her words hold a heavy meaning. She wants my love. “Tell me more.” She rocks her hips as she scoots forward.
“How am I supposed to concentrate when you move like that?” I’ve been holding back my demon. I want to taste her blood again, have her soft body under mine, taking my cock.
“Sorry.” She sits further back on my thighs. “Better?” She smiles.
Fuck, she is adorable.
I cup the side of her neck. “The night we met, I was on the edge. I have waited so fucking long for a mate. Someone who was mine and mine alone. I have had thoughts recently that the end was near, that my years on this earth were coming to an end. I was one of the vampires who would have to be taken down because I lost it; I was slowly losing it.” I squeeze my hand. “Then I smelled you. You do not understand the depths I will go to keep you. You were the reason I hadn’t gone completely over the edge. I was waiting for you.”
“Micah,” she rasps, her smile wobbles.
“I don’t care if you have scars on your body or you steal. The tattoos turn me the fuck on, and the coin under your skin signifies how loyal you are. I don’t give a fuck what kind of an animal you are or the animal’s reputation. If you were a spider or snake, I wouldn’t care. You could kill someone, and I would help you cover your tracks. I am dedicated to you. We don’t have to know everything about our pasts. We have time. As long as we are together, nothing else matters.” I yank her forward, and her chest hits mine. I run my nose up her neck.
“You are so fucking sexy. I love your body and the desire I smell coming from it when you are near me.” I grip the front of her neck and lick her pulse. “I will be demanding while I fuck you. I will give you orders which I expect you to obey. I will move you to the position I want, fuck your pussy how I want. I expect you to listen if I tell you not to move your arms. I will never cause you any pain. If you need to stop, say your word.” I bite the underside of her chin. “There is always a possibility I will turn you. Your blood is too delicious, and I may not be able to stop. If you are scared, tell me now. I will fuck you and try to restrain myself from drinking from you.” I suck her skin once and pull back. “Decide,” I demand.