Awakening (6 page)

He hung up and replaced his phone. Everyone stared at him.

“For fuck’s sake,” Endelle said, “You’re as bad as Merl here with the flirting and getting it on with the ladies.”

Duncan felt the tenor of the room shift as Luken met Merl’s gaze and Merl glared back. Trouble in paradise? Pretty typical, though. Luken was definitely
the man
. But here was Merl, with all his Third Earth power, buddying up to Endelle.

Gideon said, “I have to take off, Duncan. I’m training Militia Warriors in the workout center with Jean-Pierre. The Borderlands are besieged these days.”

Duncan nodded, his throat tightening all over again. Gideon gave him a crooked smile. “Glad you made it,” he murmured, then turned on his heel and headed out.

He watched Gideon go, wishing he could rejoin the Militia Warrior ranks right now. Instead, he couldn’t deny that he was being pulled a different direction entirely, one that involved Third Earth.

He was about to offer up information to Endelle straight out, but right then a strange scent wafted in his direction. It smelled like someone had planted a garden and worked the earth right in the middle of HQ, which made no sense. Without understanding why, he had to find out what that scent was.

“Excuse me,” he said.

He moved past the group, his feet in motion before he’d formed even one rational thought.

Endelle said, “Where the hell is he going?”

When he reached the double door to the hall, he pushed both open at the same time and was nearly knocked over by the same scent. And that’s when his mind fumbled all over itself and his groin heated up. He closed his eyes and drank it in, his mind now full of bright, sparkling lights.

His vampire hunger called out, needing that scent, craving it until he was hard as a rock, making the front of his kilt bulge.

But what kind of scent would do that to a warrior, except a woman’s sex?

His fangs thrummed, then descended to sit low on his lips. All that he was as a vampire came forward in that moment, full of need for blood and sex.

He heard Endelle call to him, but he was in motion once more and his hearing had numbed out. His dick led the way and he was so on board.

He reached an intersection of another hallway. Turning to the right, he stopped, because the scent emanated from a woman sitting on a bench. She was bent over, her head in her hands.

Rachel.

Rachel was the source of the scent?

But what went through his head overwhelmed him:
Rachel hadn’t left. She was still here. She’d waited for him.

~ ~ ~

Rachel had her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands because she couldn’t stop shaking.

It might have been completely normal because of what she’d just been through, but how would she know? The sudden appearance of the wreckers told her she’d been a hair’s breadth away from being killed then and there.

If Duncan hadn’t shown up to warn her, or if she hadn’t responded to his suggestion to get them both the hell out of there, yeah, she’d be dead. She wasn’t sure about Duncan, because it seemed to her the wreckers had been looking straight at her, aiming
for her
.

When she’d folded him to the HQ landing platform, she’d sat down on the tile and held him in her arms for a long moment. Militia Warriors had come running.

She’d always had a connection to Duncan, but something was going on with him that she didn’t understand. She knew Warrior Jean-Pierre had been working to bring his emerging powers forward, but what she’d felt from him was more power than she’d ever known him to have.

What did it mean? And why had the wreckers come to kill her?

She had so many questions, and no answers. But as soon as Duncan recovered, she planned to have a long talk with him.

Suddenly, a scent reached her, something she’d never smelled before and which seemed really out of place at Militia HQ. She was smelling some kind of ale, very dark and rich, and brewed with cider and spices.

With her eyes still closed, she dragged air into her nostrils and got lost in what for her brain became an entire symphony of sensation. All sorts of feel-good began racing through her veins, a combination of euphoria and an intense physical pleasure that caused chills to race down her shoulders and over her breasts, pulling her nipples into tight peaks.

What was this?

But the sensation didn’t stop there as it continued to work down her abdomen and lower until she was clenching hard, dizzy, and ready to attack the next man she saw.

“Rachel?”

She knew that deep gorgeous voice and it came from right in front of her. She opened her eyes and because her elbows were still on her knees, she saw Duncan’s fierce battle sandals first, then the sexy leather of his black kilt that had always given her a rush.

And as she leaned back, her gaze became fixed on what she couldn’t mistake as anything other than a profound erection.

Oh, sweet Creator.

At the same time, the scent that now rolled off Duncan kept coming at her, deepening the pleasure between her legs.

He lifted her up and pulled her into his arms so that all his wonderful hardness was pressed up against her.

She put both hands on his face, loving the sight of his fangs on his lips. Gone were all the fights that had broken them up over the years. All she felt right now was her constant affection for him as well as a raging desire to jump his bones.

“Duncan.”

He angled his head as he slanted a kiss over her lips. And as soon as she parted for him, he drove his tongue deep, setting up a rhythm that matched the solid grind of his hips against hers.

His scent, his nearness, his muscular warrior body made her forget her surroundings completely.

He picked her up, moving her away from the bench and pushing her against the wall.

Good idea,
she sent.

He grunted in response.

And as she engaged with him, an awareness of his power returned, vibrating over every inch of her skin and flowing through her bones.

Somewhere in the distance she heard Luken say, “What the hell? Where did they just go?”

Then Endelle, “They’re right there, dumbfuck. Duncan has her pinned against the wall and he’s lifting her skirts. Oh, yeah, this is going to be good. Higher, Duncan. Now, just lose the kilt. Fold it the hell away.”

All those words spoken in sequence, forced Rachel to draw back; she and Duncan were being watched.

She pushed at him but he didn’t budge and he kept reaching for her lips. He grunted heavily and that’s when she knew he was completely out of control, lost in some kind of caveman state. He was on the verge, so how was she supposed to stop him now?

She hit his mind hard with,
Duncan, we’ve got an audience. Endelle can see us. You have to stop.

He didn’t seem to hear her as he slid his lips to her throat and began to suck at her skin over the vein.
I need to drink from you. Now.

Oh, God. Duncan.

She knew he was close to sinking his fangs and if he did, there was no way she would be able to stop either him or herself. So, she did the one thing she didn’t want to do, and added resonance to her telepathy, then shouted into his mind, “
Let me go
!”

“Aw, fuuuuck.” He pulled back, holding his head in his hands. “That hurt.” Resonance combined with telepathy caused a mountain of pain.

Rachel’s cheeks flamed as she turned toward the others.

Luken said, “Oh, there they are. Hey, wait. Why couldn’t we see them before and … why is Duncan showing fang … oh, you’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

Endelle shook her head. “They’ve got the
disease
.”

Luken waved a hand in their direction. “But he’s only a Militia Warrior.”

Endelle shook her head. “Not anymore. He’s become a Warrior of the Blood. And just to be clear, you’ll need to train him.”

“Fine,” Luken said. “Whatever, but I think I’ll meet you folks at Antony’s villa. I’m heading back to the landing platform now.”

Endelle laughed. “That would probably be best because who knows what’s going to happen next.” Endelle even waved a dismissive hand as he marched away, turned the corner and disappeared from sight.

To Rachel, Endelle said, “Is that it? You going to keep your man in pain? I was enjoying the show.”

Rachel rolled her eyes.

“Come on, Madame Endelle,” Merl said, taking her by the elbow and coaxing her in the opposite direction. “I think these two need to talk and even you can’t fold straight out of here without setting off all the alarms.”

Endelle grimaced, but she turned in Merl’s direction and moved into step beside him. When their voices faded as they headed around the corner, Rachel could breathe again.

Duncan hadn’t moved very far away. He held her gaze, shaking his head repeatedly. “Shit,” he said softly. “I’m sorry I lost it, Rachel, but the way you smell … ”

“I know. And you have a bizarre but extremely erotic scent as well.”

At that, his thick brows rose and he held her gaze. The man had the most gorgeous green eyes. She never tired of looking at them. “I do?”

“Uh-huh. Like spicy ale and it gets me
everywhere.
”

He relaxed a little and moved close again, connecting his hips with hers. “Whatever this is, it’s still on me.”

“Endelle seems to think this is the
breh-hedden
.”

He stared at her for a long, long moment, his nostrils flaring, the tips of his fangs still showing. “Jesus H. Christ,” he whispered. “I thought that was a Warrior of the Blood thing.”

“Yes, but everything is changing and didn’t you hear what Endelle said? You’re a What-Bee now. And I’ve felt your power. You’ve changed.”

He stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. “I was ready to take you, right here against this wall. And I would have if you hadn’t shouted into my head like that.”

She leaned up and kissed him on the lips. “I almost let you. But why couldn’t the men see us? Endelle could, but not the men.”

Duncan frowned slightly. “I must have missed that part.”

She touched the sides of his fangs because he hadn’t yet fully retracted and she was still achy between her legs, wanting release.

For a moment, she got lost in Duncan, in being this close, in his new scent that kept her wanting more. What would it be like with him now, when this thing was on them both?

She shivered.

“What was that?” His voice sounded almost gravelly as he leaned close and kissed her temple, her cheek, her ear.

“Just thinking about possibilities.”

His erection stroked her, pushing at the juncture of her thighs through her cotton dress. She moaned and again that same sensation rode her body like a wave of power that kept crawling over her skin. But it felt good and she kept it flowing between them.

She heard footsteps.

“Someone’s coming.”

Duncan stopped and eased back once more, but Rachel held onto him, the odd power still creeping over her and over Duncan as though she was surrounding him.

Luken appeared at the end of the hall. “Hey, are you two still there? We’re waiting for you at the landing platform.” His gaze skated up and down the hall and side-to-side, searching.

In that moment, Rachel knew for a fact that Luken, with so much essential power as a Warrior of the Blood, really couldn’t see them. “Duncan, we’re invisible to him.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Oh, I think it’s exactly what’s happening. Now watch Luken’s expression.” She began to let the power recede and as soon as it uncovered Duncan, Luken’s brows rose and he made eye-contact with Duncan.

More receding and Rachel watched him shift to meet her gaze.

Of course with the pair of them attached as they were, Luken’s next gander went to the joining of their hips. He quickly looked away. “Can you two break this up? We need you at the villa.”

He then headed back down the hall and once more disappeared from view.

“See what I mean?”

Duncan nodded. “Okay, that was really weird and you were doing it, weren’t you?”

“Apparently, I was.”

At that, he smiled. “Looks like I’m not the only one with something
ascended
going on.”

Rachel knew he’d said it exactly right. This was an ascended thing and Duncan wasn’t alone in his emerging powers. But she couldn’t think about that right now. If she did, she’d get really upset because for a long time now she’d rejected the general use of preternatural power, believing it wasn’t the right way to live.

And now this.

Duncan released her completely. “I’ll need a minute.”

She nodded, fully aware that he couldn’t be walking around HQ with his kilt bulging across the groin.

When he finally guided her back to the landing platforms, with his hand pressed protectively to the small of her back, a mounting sense of anxiety began to grow within her.

“You’ll need a security detail,” he said, as they entered the large, hangar-like room that held the platforms. Several Militia Warriors arrived looking battle weary. All of them eyed Duncan and nodded to him in greeting.

“What are you not saying?” she asked.

“The Third Earth woman who held me in a trance wants you dead. She wasn’t after me when she sent the wreckers to Mortal Earth. She was after you.”

Duncan had just confirmed what she’d suspected all along.

~ ~ ~

Once at the villa, Duncan let Rachel go. He could feel her distress like an ache at the back of his neck. Maybe he’d been brutal to tell her straight out about Yolanthe’s intentions, but she needed to know.

He wasn’t just worried about Rachel, however. He had things he needed to say to make sure Endelle and her elite fighting force, the Warriors of the Blood, knew exactly what kind of situation they faced.

Standing in front of the French windows that overlooked the back lawn, Duncan glanced around at the gathered Warriors of the Blood, at Antony Medichi with his dark Italian look and at Marcus, who stood near Luken and looked unusually serious.

Kerrick, the warrior with the pure white wings, leaned close to Jean-Pierre, talking quietly to the brother. Jean-Pierre still carried a slightly French accent and wore a lavender brocade
cadroen,
remnants of his heritage
.