Chapter 9

LUNA

I chuckled darkly as my female hid her face against my throat whilst the vampire I'd become close acquaintances with enjoyed his meal he'd arrived with. Slowly I introduced my princess to the patrons of my club. A little at a time, and when I sensed her becoming overwhelmed, I'd call for Gailie to take her upstairs or out for a nighttime walk.

Before we'd come down, I'd dressed her in one of the modest dresses she favored, for her comfort but also to keep others from staring at her. They all feared me too much to trespass where they didn't belong. Yet that didn't mean I wouldn't resort to bloodshed to keep and protect my beautiful princess. I'd warmed her bottom for her insolence before we'd arrived in the club.

The Old Hag would continue on long after I left this realm. My mother had disappeared without a goodbye, and I didn't think about her often. But on occasion an unaccustomed weakness would hit and I'd wonder what she'd think of what I'd created in the hundred and fifty years she'd been gone. The power I'd taken for myself to make the Paralese Hag a position to be coveted.

What would she think of the human woman I'd claimed? Would she find Ivory's innocence a weakness? Mother would probably view me as weak for loving a human or really anyone. Love was a vulnerability that we'd never allowed. And I did love the princess seated on my lap where she belonged. I worshiped her countless times. Loved her in our bed slow and sweet in ways that made her breath hitch and she came apart with gentle sighs and clenching muscles.

My gaze scanned the room at what I'd created. There would be no one to pass it along to. Yet one day I'd hand it down to a newer generation. Unlike the Hags of old, I wouldn't be alone when I retired. I wouldn't disappear into the darkness to live a hermit life until I grew tired of my existence. My princess would always be by my side. She was my everything, I'd admit that even as it made me open to attack. No one would dare take me on, though. I'd made an example of too many in my past.

I turned to glance at Lucian to find him down and his dinner being carried away. He delicately wiped a small drop of blood at the corner of his thin mouth.

"You may let your female know that I'm full," he said in a smooth cultured tone.

Vampires were too damn pretty for my liking. They were the aristocrats, flush with wealth gathered over centuries. Unlike the books of humans being turned, Vampires were born. Educated at the finest schools. They were all perfectly beautiful.

Ivory lifted her head and shyly turned to look at Lucian. As entitled as Vamps were, they were respectful of bonds. Mates of others were strictly off-limits. Maybe that was because most of their species searched centuries to find their beloveds and some never did.

"I'm shocked you'd allow such a beauty to mix among the masses."

"I am as well. But my princess spent so much time in isolation I wanted to make sure she experiences as much as possible."

While I didn't like sharing my female with anyone, I'd learned that her previous treatment had hurt her, stifled her growth. I may be possessive of her time and body, coming from a long line of females we treated women—no matter the species—with respect. For the most part, I still had needs that needed to be fulfilled to keep living or whatever it was I did. The women Gailie had given me in the past were always cruel and entitled, spoiled by their treatment. Or they were bad people, hurting others for no reason other than greed.

I understood the need to dole out pain. But I didn't understand greed, the materialism of the human world. Yes, I had more wealth than I knew what to do with, but I didn't need it. We were wood and straw cottage people, we didn't require much in life other than the fear that fed us. I'd made my surroundings a bit more extravagant than my ancestors, but I did understand the importance of appearance.

"How is the search for your beloved going?" I asked with a smirk.

He'd been chasing a specter for years; she was always just outside his reach. It amused me how she seemed to slip through his fingers time and again.

"You know quite well how it's going. I've never seen such a wily woman. It's as if she senses when I'm too close. Her scent doesn't tell me that she's anymore than an ordinary human, so I'm frustrated."

"I'm sure." I turned my head to kiss Ivory's cheek. "Lucian's mate is elusive."

"What does a mate do?" she asked.

Lucian leaned forward to rest his forearms on his knees. "Mates are what most of us search for. Soulmates. A person perfectly created by fate for you alone."

I sensed her studying me from the corner of her eye, but remained silent.

"Do all of you have mates?" Her question was filled with so much hope.

I wondered if she was as attached to me as I was to her. Did she feel that undeniable connection I'd had since she became mine? Even as powerful as I was, I didn't have the strength to ask the questions I wanted to. Whispering three little words should be so easy, yet they froze on the tips of my bifurcated tongue each time I went to say it. Maybe the words were what she needed to know that her place with me was permanent.

"Some species, no, they're very much like humans. With mates it's so much more intense. It's a connection that's soul deep. A mate makes your blood sing. Makes dormant hearts awaken. Some of us search the entirety of our long lives and never find them. We always roam with the feeling that a piece of us is always missing. It's painful for some of us." He picked up his wine glass, taking a sip. "Once a bond begins to form, some of us are unable to be away from our mate without madness and agony. That connection is the only thing that will ever bring us peace." He lazily leaned back into the plush cushions of the couch.

I could see the wheels turning behind her eyes. The questions she wanted to ask, but feared the answer. She was much freer when we were alone to play twenty-questions. I rubbed her back in small, soothing circles, and savored the weight of her resting against my chest. Her sweet vanilla and sandalwood scent filled my nostrils. No matter where she was I could find her just from the aroma of her skin.

What would I do if she didn't return the obsession I had with her? I'd keep her anyway. I'd already told her there was nowhere she could go to escape me. She knew what I was capable of and remained with me. Ivory had all the opportunities to walk out the front door and keep going. She had free access to my accounts for anything she needed. One trip to the bank and she could clear out everything I had, and go on the run.

But she remained. Even seemed happy when I returned to our quarters after taking care of business. The nights I came home covered in blood, she silently took my hand and led me to the bathroom. She'd draw us a bath, and she'd slip into the hot water, cradled against my chest. With a single word she would spread her luscious form across our bed. She never hesitated to give me what I wanted.

How would I go back to my existence without my female in it? That thought was unacceptable. Every inch of her belonged to me. I would destroy anyone and anything who tried to take her from me. I'd wage war on the entire city of Paralese. No one would be safe from my wrath. The strength of my rage building at just the implication that she'd leave or be taken from me brought my larger and more lethal form to the surface.

Soft lips caressed across my cheek, and I glanced at her to find worry darkening her beautiful green eyes.

"Are you okay?"

"Hmm, I have my princess, what would be wrong?" I hugged her, feeling her curves conforming around my hands and her soft flesh teasing the hollows between my fingers. It brought to mind the way her body cradled mine. My body hardened and I realized the moment she noticed her cheeks flushed. I smirked at her as I shifted her to place her full weight on my cock.

A throat cleared and I jerked my attention to Lucien to find him silently chuckling, and attempting to hide his grin with the rim of his glass.

"I'm jealous, Luna. Does having a mate tame the rage or just make it worse?"

"Both," I answered honestly and heard Ivory gasp. Not the best way to tell her, but I wouldn't lie to her–about anything.

Did she feel the pull of the bond? One that I'd never assumed I'd have. Hags didn't have mates. We lived a solitary life with our only focus on the suffering. A mate would be a distraction, but it was one I craved. Maybe I hadn't known what it was the night I met her. That had quickly changed the more time I spent with her. That odd obsession with protecting her and the discomfort I had when being away from her even when that was the distance of only a few floors.

I'd never craved a mate because it was an impossibility, or so I thought. Could mates for Hags be a secret, just like the Trans ones? The epiphany hit me. Some searched their entire lives for mates just to never find them. The pull could also be ignored, was that what the females of my line had done. Pushed it aside in honor of tradition. I wished there was someone trustworthy to ask. I'd simply have to figure it out on my own, if Ivory was fated to be mine I wouldn't regret that. She'd come to me for a reason; destined to find her way to my bed.

With the blood on my hands and my purpose, why would fate allow me to have a mate and actually find her. What had I done to earn Fate's favor?