Forsaken Hunger Page 7

  Frantically, Saden searched for the community Blade had spoken of. The cluster of houses was set slightly apart from the rest of the rural neighborhood, with Gabriel at its center. He swooped closer to what had to be Vincent’s house, though it was cloaked in some sort of guise. A shroud of shadows to conceal it from outside view. He’d seen the like before from Vampyres who could use their aethra to manipulate light and dark.

  Two cars were parked in the driveway and two more by the curb. Saden resumed his true form by the SUV and touched the hood. The engine was still warm. Gabriel’s car. He sent a bolt of Drakonem energy through the engine to fry the wiring.

  A high-pitched scream came from inside the house then was cut off abruptly. Saden ran forward almost blindly, the guise thickening to completely obscure the structure of the house, and felt his way along the exterior. When the cold, smooth surface of glass met his touch, he shattered it and jumped through. The guise didn’t extend to the interior, but none of the lights were on. He called forth a huge ball of blue fire that lit the entire room before petering out. That split second gave him enough time to make out two Vampyres crowding in on a human male and another wrestling with a female farther away.

  Saden kept the Drakonem power buzzing just beneath the surface within him so that his eyes glowed with it. It gave away his position but also allowed him to see the outlines of everyone in the room. He snatched one of the Vampyres wrestling with the human male and hurled him across the room. In the next moment, the human caught him on the jaw before he could react and aimed a gun at him. Saden knocked the gun out of his hand at the same time the second Vampyre hurled himself at the human. They went down hard in a tangle of arms and legs.

  Saden grunted as the first Vampyre slammed into him from behind. He twisted on the floor, drew a knife from his belt then flipped them over. The Vampyre cried out when Saden pinned his hand to the floor with the blade, then fell silent when Saden punched him unconscious.

  A body was thrown somewhere to his right, marked by the crashing of a piece of furniture. Saden recognized the bulky frame of the human as it slumped awkwardly over broken planks of wood. He spun in a low kick that tripped the second Vampyre then took him out as well.

  Light spilled down from the hallway upstairs where Gabriel held Mckenzie trapped in a firm hold. In front of them at the top of the stairwell stood another Vampyre with Cherri’s limp body hanging from one of his shoulders.

  Mckenzie struggled in Gabriel’s grip until she caught sight of her mother. “Mom!”

  Saden looked over to find Daneya fighting with the third Vampyre over control of a knife between them. At Mckenzie’s shout, she lost focus and turned around. It happened before Saden could move. The Vampyre’s hands jerked at the sudden release of tension and the blade was plunged into Daneya’s side.

  Saden saw red, his only instinct to kill the man that threatened her. As Daneya hit her knees, he charged only to crash into Blade’s solid form as his friend appeared suddenly in front of him. Blade tossed him to the side then took out the Vampyre in one blow. When Saden tried to charge again, Blade grabbed his trench coat and shook him violently.

  “Get Daneya,” Blade yelled. “Get her out of here! I’ve got the others.”

  Saden watched in a haze of anger as Blade ran to the stairs. His hands trembled as he gathered Daneya in his arms and carried her out of the house. He laid her gently in the back seat of the compact Volvo parked behind Gabriel’s SUV. She was fading in and out of consciousness from loss of blood. After stripping out of his coat, he ripped off his shirt and pressed it to her side. It appeared as if the blade had missed any vital organs, though he couldn’t be sure. He had to examine the wound more closely.

  As he glanced back at the house, he saw Blade running out to meet him with Cherri thrown over one shoulder and Mckenzie at his side. Saden took Cherri and sat her in the passenger seat while his friend urged the girl into the back with her mother.

  “Where are you taking them?” Blade asked.

  Saden thought quickly as he jumped into the driver’s side. He couldn’t risk taking Daneya to a human hospital. Gabriel wouldn’t give up that easily. “My house.”

  Blade nodded then cursed when a shot rang out. He clutched his arm then looked back to see Vincent standing in the doorway of the house with a gun trained on him. “Get going. This won’t take long.”

  Saden heard a few more shots go off as he directed a sliver of Drakonem power into the ignition. The car rumbled to life and he hit the gas. He sent another burst of power at the hinges on the metal gate bordering the community and rammed the car through it. When Mckenzie screamed from the back seat, he flicked his gaze to the rearview mirror and saw her staring back at him with wide eyes.

  Forcing calm into his voice, he said, “It’s okay, Kennie. I’m not going to hurt you. Your mom calls you Kennie, doesn’t she?” When no response came, he switched tactics. “My name’s Saden. I came to protect you and your mom but I need your help. She was badly hurt. Do you see the wound on her side?”

  This time, Mckenzie looked down and nodded.

  “I need you to press the shirt into it. You have to stop the bleeding. Don’t worry about hurting her. She can’t feel it right now.” He kept one eye on her and one on the road as she followed his instructions. “Good girl.”

  After a while, Mckenzie looked back at him. “Who are you?”

  Saden hesitated, not quite sure what to say. “I’m someone you can trust. I know that’s probably hard to believe given the circumstances, but you’ll just have to take my word for it.”

  Surprisingly, the girl didn’t argue. He pulled onto the highway and gained more speed.

  “I think we’re being followed,” Mckenzie said.

  Saden saw two cars coming up fast behind them in both lanes. Before he could think of a strategy, a column of blue fire blazed across the road between them and the encroaching vehicles. Tires squealed on the pavement and he watched first one, then the other car swerve wildly off the road. He sent a silent thanks to Blade who was apparently flying above them.

  “That was your friend, wasn’t it?”

  Saden frowned. “It was. How did you know?”

  “His eyes glowed when he created fire. Yours were glowing too but they aren’t anymore.”

  A corner of his mouth lifted at the girl’s deductive reasoning. “His name’s Blade. You can trust him, too.”

  Nothing more was said for the remainder of the trip. Blade was waiting for them outside when they reached the manor. He took Cherri while Saden got Daneya. Saden carried her to the master suite on the second floor and laid her down on the bed. In the adjoining bathroom, he soaked several washcloths in warm water then grabbed a first aid kit from below the sink. He set everything on the comforter beside Daneya and began cleaning her wound. Although the knife hadn’t punctured her organs, the cut was deep and her blood loss critical. She would die if he didn’t do something soon.

  Healing her with his power was the only option.

  As with the fire, the power came directly from the piece of Serrakus’ soul within him. Use of its healing qualities was strictly forbidden, in the field or otherwise. Drakons were only permitted healing through their masters. It was how the Drakonem could torture their Drakons for days or weeks at a time then send them directly on an assignment afterwards. Serrakus would sense it the moment Saden tapped into the power to heal Daneya. Fortunately, the Drakonem wouldn’t be able to determine who was being healed. If asked, Saden would simply tell him he’d used the power on himself.

  Saden pushed aside the material of Daneya’s tank top and flannel bottoms then gestured for Mckenzie to come closer. “Get on the bed, little one. I need to heal your mom and it’s going to sting a bit. Hold her arms to the bed.” He placed Daneya’s wrists above her head then guided Mckenzie’s hands over them. “She’s going to fight for just a minute then it’ll be over. Can you handle that?”

  Mckenzie’s face was pale, her face streaked with smears of her m
other’s blood. Tears shimmered on her long lashes but didn’t fall. She firmed her lips and nodded once bravely.

  Saden called the healing power forth and directed it at Daneya’s injury. A white glow bathed the area and slowly seeped into the open flesh. He cupped his hands over it and concentrated on willing the power to mend the torn muscles. When Daneya started to writhe, he pushed down lightly, grateful that Mckenzie was able to keep her cool and hold her mother.

  It was done quickly.

  Saden sat back and inspected the pink, puckered scar that resided where the gaping wound had been. It was the best he could do. Only Drakonem were able to regenerate the skin fully before it could harden to scarred tissue. Which was the reason why Saden’s body wasn’t a disfigured mass of scars by now.

  “Is she going to be all right?” Mckenzie whispered.

  His answer turned to a sharp gasp. He lurched forward and caught himself before toppling onto Daneya. Scorching pain ripped through his being, consuming him whole in the blink of an eye. It felt as if claws of flames were tearing him apart from the inside. His thoughts scattered, breath evaporated until there was nothing except living agony.

  Then it was over.

  Saden came back to himself slowly, his senses returning from behind a fog. Serrakus was not pleased. Saden had no doubt that was a mere taste of what was coming to him for daring to use his power to heal. That was another day, however.

  “Are you okay?”

  He stared blankly at first at the true concern written on Mckenzie’s youthful features. It had been so long since someone had expressed that emotion toward him that it took a second to gather his thoughts. “Yeah,” he rasped. “It’s nothing.”

  “It didn’t look like nothing,” Blade commented from the doorway.

  Saden scowled and turned back to Mckenzie. “Your mom’s going to be fine. She’s just tired. In that closet over there, you’ll find some clothes.” The belongings of his mother he hadn’t had the heart to throw away. “Why don’t you pick out something for you and your mom to sleep in. I’ll be right back.” When the girl nodded, he took the supplies back to the bathroom with Blade on his heels.

  “You healed her, didn’t you?”

  Saden readied strips of gauze and a needle and thread. “Sit down. I’ll take a look at your wound.”

  “Saden—”

  “She was going to bleed out,” he snapped. “I had no other choice.”

  Blade glared at him then shook his head. After taking off his trench coat, he sat on the toilet lid and rolled up his shirt sleeve. “I’m surprised Serrakus didn’t demand you go back immediately.”

  Saden wiped the bullet wound in Blade’s upper bicep with one of the washcloths. His friend was lucky. It’d gone clean through without hitting the bone. “He’s probably too busy playing with his newest toy.” He wasn’t going to mention the phantom but from the look of fury that sparked in Blade’s eyes, he didn’t have to.

  “Son of a bitch!”

  “We’ll help him soon, I swear. Right now, I need you with me.”

  Blade grumbled a few more choice words for their Drakonem then inclined his head. “I know. I’ll do what I can for you. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Don’t use that shit.”

  Saden paused in pouring alcohol onto a cotton swab. “Again? You do this every time. It’s only antiseptic.”

  “It hurts.”

  “Quit being a baby.”

  “I got your baby right here, asshole. You better not touch me with that, Saden. I’m warning you… Aaah!” He flinched exaggeratedly when Saden daubed the swab over his wound.

  They both turned at a giggle from the other room. Mckenzie was watching them, holding a white gown in her arms. The trepidation she’d held earlier seemed to be gone. She clucked her tongue while shaking her head.

  Blade gaped then furrowed his brow. “Hey, no comments from the peanut gallery.”

  Without skipping a beat, she shot back, “Want me to kiss it and make it better?”

  Saden covered his laugh with a cough. The girl definitely had her mother’s spirit.

  “Are you hearing this?” Blade asked him in mock offense.

  “I’d take the offer.”

  “Thank but no thanks. She’s as mean as you are.”

  Mckenzie shook her head, mumbling, “Sadness,” as she walked away.

  When the girl was out of earshot, Blade’s lips curved in a smile. “I kinda like her. She’s got spunk.”

  Saden grunted and finished cleaning the injury, then started on the stitching. “How was Cherri?”

  “She’s fine. Got a nasty bump on her head, though. I put her in one of the guest bedrooms downstairs.”

  “And Vincent Condretti?”

  Blade grinned. “He won’t be straight shootin’ any time soon. Other than that, he’ll be all right. How did you know Gabriel was going after Daneya, by the way?”

  Saden told him about his new assignment and the files he’d found in Gabriel’s house.

  Blade let out a low whistle. “I don’t like it. Serrakus has to be up to something. It’s against the rules to send us out after people from our pasts.” There were too many complications. Too much liability in personal vendettas. Drakons had to be objective on their missions. Otherwise, they could lose sight of their only purpose—to serve their masters.

  “Whatever it is, I’ll handle it. I can’t back out now. Not with Daneya and Mckenzie involved.”

  “And what do you plan on doing with them?”

  He sighed heavily. Honestly, he hadn’t thought that far. All that had mattered was getting them to safety. “I’ll have to keep them here until I’ve dealt with Gabriel. They’re not safe with the DCM unit.” Saden ignored his friend’s eloquent expression. Convincing Daneya that he was her best bet would be next to impossible. And with good reason.

  If Serrakus found out he was harboring her, the Drakonem would recall his mission in an instant. Cherri, Daneya and her daughter would be on their own and Gabriel would find them again. However, the alternative was out of the question.

  He thought back to how close he’d come to losing everything earlier. If he’d killed the Vampyre who had stabbed Daneya, it would’ve been game over. Serrakus would have sensed the death at his hands immediately and sent warders to take him back. “Thanks, by the way,” he said in a low tone. “For stopping me.”

  His friend needed no further explanation. He simply dipped his head in acknowledgment.

  Saden dressed Blade’s injury then put away the supplies. There was still one unfinished detail to take care of. “The car I used—”

  “I’m on it,” Blade said as he picked up his coat and strode out of the room.

  Saden followed him out and strode to the other end of the hallway where he grabbed a few toiletries from his bathroom then towels, sheets and an extra comforter from the linen closet. When he returned to the room, he put everything on the foot of the bed. “Why don’t you go into the bathroom and clean up,” he said to Mckenzie. “I’ll make the bed.”

  Mckenzie hesitated briefly then took what she needed to the bathroom.

  Saden gently placed Daneya in the armchair next to the bed before replacing the stale sheets with a fresh set. Nothing in the room had been changed or used in sixty years, much like most of the house. It had never even occurred to him that it might see company again. To him, it was a tomb of memories he foolishly clung to. The only happiness he’d ever known. It felt strange yet good to bring life back to its empty walls, even if it was only temporary.

  Running water from the shower came on as he was changing out the comforter. After laying Daneya between the sheets, he checked her forehead. She was running a slight fever and her ashen face contrasted sharply with her burgundy hair. It would take her at least a few days to regain her health.

  Carefully, he peeled off her blood-stained shirt and tossed it to the floor. Her skin underneath held more color, tawny and smooth in the glow of the overhead light. He found himself mesmerized by the subtle curves of h
er body. Without thought, he ran his fingers down the column of her neck and over the shallows of her clavicles. She was incredibly soft, her warmth inviting. Unlike any female he had ever experienced.

  Not that he’d had many of those. Experiences, that is. His first had been decades ago at Blade’s insistence, and had turned into nothing short of a disaster. He still recalled every detail of that night. The prostitute had called herself Candy, cheap and false like the rest of her. She’d been patient, though, and more than willing to be his first. He’d known the motions of his role. Known what to place where and how to position his body. Yet when the time had come, he’d been too nervous to take control.

  He hadn’t wanted to hurt her.

  She had eventually taken over but that’d only made things worse. Saden had felt humiliated at his failure. Trapped in the role of submissive, as he had been so many times in the past. He’d ended up running away, ashamed of himself, his past and the bleakness of his future.

  Saden knew Blade’s intentions had been pure. To show him that sex didn’t have to be painful or a power struggle for dominance. Yet, that concept had been too new for Saden to grasp. Several years later, he had tried again with better results. Had even found perfunctory satisfaction in his release. That was far from the pleasure he knew should be there, however.

  Far from the beauty he saw before him in Daneya’s body.

  He traced her defined ribs, the palm of his hand brushing the swell of her right breast. Gooseflesh rippled over her skin in response to his touch. Her nipple was rosy and puckered in the cool air. He slid a lock of her hair to uncover the other breast. It was ample and firm and would probably fit in the palm of his hand. The bend of her tapered waist was enticing, pronouncing her small rounded belly. He slowly drew down her flannel bottoms. The patch of hair covering her most private part was almost black and, for a moment, he was tempted to run his fingers through it to see if it felt as soft as her skin.

  When he trailed his hand down the side of her thigh, something happened that hadn’t occurred in longer than he cared to remember. He grew hard in the confines of his jeans and a yearning began to coil deep in his groin.