Unleash (Vampire Erotic Theatre Romance Series Book 6) (11 page)

Her eyes moved back to him, studying his lethal beauty.

He was large compared with Lilah, powerful and like a warrior, his broad thickly muscled build making her appear tiny.

His crisp black shirt stretched across his chest, the cut emphasising the breadth of it and how narrow his waist was in comparison. He had left the top few buttons undone, revealing his collarbones and a hint of his defined pectorals. Black jeans encased his long legs, almost as tight as a second skin, and his black leather boots wrinkled their bottoms, adding a twist to his appearance.

Only Snow would pair scruffy army boots with an expensive shirt, and keep them sticking out of his jeans too. Even Payne hadn’t gone that far.

Her gaze delighted in roaming back up his powerful legs and over his torso to his face. He shoved his fingers through his white hair, dragging the long strands out of his eyes. He was handsome but radiated darkness and danger. Alluring.

Enticing.

She blushed as she recalled how aroused he had been after taking her blood, his body hard and primed, because of her.

When he had bitten her, she had experienced an incredible surge in feelings from deep within her, heat that she didn’t understand and urges so wicked and dark that they had shocked her.

They still shocked her now.

So had her reaction when he had subtly pointed out that he lusted after her.

Images of him naked and hard had sprung into her mind, immoral fantasies about him stripping before her and then removing all of her clothes and touching her. Her throat dried out and she swallowed, trying to wet it.

Her body quivered as those images invaded her mind again, hotter this time, a vision of them naked and entwined, his powerful body braced above hers as he made love to her, kissing her and devouring all of her, body and soul.

Snow frowned again and scanned his surroundings, and she gasped. His gaze shot towards where she stood shrouded by her powers, invisible to his eyes. He inhaled deeply, his pale blue eyes darkened with desire, and he pushed away from the wall, coming to face her.

“Snow?” Antoine’s voice coming from behind her caused her to press herself flush against the wall to allow him to pass without brushing her and snapped Snow’s attention away from her.

Her heart pounded, legs like jelly and threatening to give out. She pressed her palms against the wall, clutching it for support. Her stomach fluttered, hot with forbidden foreign feelings. Arousal. Her master would be more than furious if he discovered she harboured desire for the vampire.

Antoine stopped in front of Snow. Lilah greeted him and then looked over the crowd to the happy couple. Javier was there with Callum and Kristina. Lilah beamed at him across the room, as radiant as Snow had said she was, and then weaved through the crowd to take the outstretched hand of her male.

Javier pulled her into his arms, bent his head and pressed a tender kiss to Lilah’s lips.

Wicked thoughts popped into her mind and she shoved them straight back out again, fearing where thinking about how Snow would kiss would lead her.

Into temptation no doubt.

She moved her focus back to Snow and Antoine. She had never been able to grasp how two brothers could look so incredibly similar in their facial features and their striking pale blue eyes, yet be so very different. Not just in personality either. Antoine’s dark chocolate hair was a complete contrast to Snow’s silvery-white, and Snow was taller than Antoine by at least two inches too, and more powerful in build.

Both of them looked like ancient warriors though, their years on earth gifting them with experience many never came to have, and there was a keen glint of intelligence in their eyes as they talked.

She focused on them so she could hear what had them looking as though they were ready to slay a dragon.

“Guard against her, Brother,” Antoine said in a low voice and she frowned at his profile.

They were talking about her. She edged closer, eager to hear what they had to say and desiring a better answer to the question she had posed to Snow earlier.

Did Antoine perceive her as a threat to Snow, or Snow a threat to her?

Snow had said it was both but she didn’t believe him. Snow felt he was a threat to her. Antoine felt she was a threat to Snow. She was sure of it.

Snow didn’t respond.

Antoine wasn’t going to allow his brother to ignore him though. He placed his hand on Snow’s left shoulder and squeezed it.

“I have read many books, and met many people, and some of them spoke of angels. It is said they can be deceitful.”

That hurt her because it was true. Angels were more than capable of deceit, especially to gain the trust of those they targeted, immoral humans and demons in particular. They were taught to charade as creatures familiar to their targets in order to get close to them, judge them, and then eliminate them.

A weight settled in her stomach. There was no need for her to feel guilt about her actions. She hadn’t come to Snow in order to win his trust and harm him, not as his brother suspected. She had come to help him.

She ached to reveal herself to them and make Antoine see that she meant his older brother no harm, but there were too many powerful vampires in the room. If she stepped out of the shadows, they would probably attack her, although she didn’t fear for herself.

She feared that Snow would attack them if they sought to hurt her.

She had seen his noble streak in action many times. He was often quick to defend females or those weaker than he was. The vampire was a contradiction, a walking paradox. The embodiment of war and peace in one being.

“Guard against her, Brother,” Antoine repeated, his tone harder this time, a warning to Snow to heed his words. “Do not trust her.”

Snow knocked his brother’s hand off his shoulder and red ringed his irises. “She will not harm me. She has helped me twice now. I will not listen to your words about her. Do not judge her until you have spoken to her yourself. I accept responsibility for her and anything that may happen while she is in my care.”

Her heart leaped into her throat and fluttered there. Snow had defended her. A blush climbed her cheeks. He had no reason to believe in her, and to not believe or do as his brother had asked. Antoine had looked out for Snow for centuries now, always having his brother’s best interests at heart. She had expected Snow to choose his brother over her.

Snow huffed like a beast and pushed past Antoine, who caught his arm and stopped him.

“I am sorry. I did not mean to anger you,” Antoine whispered in a voice laden with shame and concern. “I will meet with her if you wish me to and I will see if she is worthy of the trust you have in her.”

Snow shirked his grip, the red around his irises more prominent now. “I will be in my room if anyone needs me. I just need a few minutes alone. Relay my apology to Callum and Kristina.”

Antoine nodded and Snow left, heading through the crowd.

She wanted to follow him but she knew that she was already pushing it. She didn’t want Snow to find her gone from his room, but she had to return to her home before her master found her gone too.

She closed her eyes and focused, and when she opened them again, she stood on the white battlements. The clouds were thick below her today, concealing the world from her eyes. A tinge of sorrow touched her heart, born of a longing to return to Snow and tell him she had to leave rather than just disappearing from his life again. He would be upset with her.

But so would her master if he discovered her gone and realised where she had been and what she had done.

She turned away, intent on returning to her quarters, and came face to face with a tall, beautiful dark-haired male.

Her master.

His pure white wings furled against his back, blending into the white armour that covered him from neck to toe. He held his helmet under his left arm and snatched her wrist with his right hand. She winced as he twisted it around, revealing the scabs that marked her pale skin.

His amethyst eyes darkened and locked with hers, and shame made her lower her gaze and turn her face away from him.

Her eyes widened when she saw her final white feather turning black and she tried to break free of his grip, her heart beating wildly. No. She shook her head, causing her long black hair to sway against her shoulders, and tears filled her eyes. No.

She struggled against her master, spreading her right wing at the same time, hoping she had been mistaken and it was a trick of the light. She couldn’t lose her final feather.

Her master tightened his grip on her wrist and her bones burned from the pressure, sending pain shooting along her arm and to the tips of her fingers. She cried out and many angels stopped to stare at her, disgust in their eyes.

None held more disgust and darkness than her master’s eyes though.

She couldn’t bring herself to look at him and see his feelings when she could already sense them. They tore at her, bringing more tears and a desire to beg for his forgiveness and another chance.

Doing so would only make him more ashamed of her.

He had given her a thousand sins, one for each feather in her wings. She had committed the first sin and the final, and borne the shame of the rest. She had doomed herself.

“Your punishment has been decided. You will judge the vampire for his sins,” her master said, his tone as dark as his eyes and his wild long black hair.

His grip loosened and his voice lightened, gaining a touch of sympathy and what she might have believed was affection once, before she had come to know her master better. There were none like him in her realm. None so vicious and just, or revered.

A judge, a jury, and an executioner in one.

Everything she had just become for Snow.

“It is the only way to save your soul now.”

S
now’s head whipped around as the owl hooted, capturing his attention.

It flew overhead and he grinned, released his mother’s hand, and ran after it. She called to him but he kept running, small legs and arms pumping, struggling as he hit deeper snow that reached his knees.

The owl began to drift away from him and he ran harder, pounding through the snow as quickly as he could manage, intent on keeping up with it and catching his prey. Papa would be so proud of him if he caught the owl, proving he was growing now, able to fend for himself already even though he was only fifty years old.

The ragged white mountains of the valley loomed around him, their cragged faces bright despite the moonless night. Stars blanketed the inky sky above him, and multi-coloured ribbons streaked across the dark canvas. Mama had taken him out on a walk so he could see the lights dancing in the sky more clearly, without the glow from the fires around their homestead drowning them out.

He breathed hard, wading through the snow, managing to keep up with the owl that lazily flapped its broad pale wings and glided onwards, deeper into the valley.

Snow laughed and reached for the bird, fingers grasping the air. If he were bigger, he could use the power in his legs to leap from the ground to capture it. He wasn’t big enough to jump very high, although he had vaulted from the rickety staircase in the castle and landed on the grey stone floor below without injuring himself. He was getting stronger every day.

Mama had fretted and scolded him for leaping from such a height. She had made Papa scold him too, but Snow had seen the secret pride in his father’s eyes.

Hues of blue, green and pink blazed across the sky above him, dancing on an unknown breeze, recapturing his attention. He almost fell into the snow but managed to keep his footing and focused back on the owl, determined not to allow the beautiful aurora to distract him again.

“Snow… do not run too far!” Mama. She was fretting again but he didn’t heed her. With a mischievous smile, he kept tracking the bird. He would be alright. He always played in the valley at night and he would catch the bird before the castle was out of sight. He wasn’t allowed to go out of sight of the castle. Papa had once put him over his knee because of that and Snow’s backside had smarted for days. Lesson learned.

The owl veered right and Snow turned on a pinhead, his eyes locked on his prey. The cold bit at his fingers and face, the only parts of him that his pale furs didn’t cover. The bottom of his thick coat, and his trousers and boots were already sodden from his running through the snow and growing cold.

He had to hurry and catch the bird before he ended up wet through. Mama would certainly scold him if that happened. She fussed over everything.

He smiled at that.

Papa told him she fussed because she loved him very much.

He loved her very much too, and he had decided that he would keep her safe and protect her as his father did. Nothing bad would ever happen to his mother.

The owl drifted down and landed on one of the branches in a dense copse.

Snow hunkered low and crept towards it, his pale furs allowing him to blend into his environment. His mother called again. He continued to sneak through the snow, edging closer to the bird. He had to catch it. He wanted Papa to be proud of him.

Could he climb the tree unnoticed to seize the bird?

It took flight and Snow huffed, annoyed that it had sensed him. He would do better next time.

The owl flew out over a flat stretch of ground and he followed it without thinking, running through the shallower snow with ease.

The ground creaked, a dark terrifying sound that echoed around the mountains.

He stopped and looked down at his feet. The snow dropped away and he plunged into black icy water. It invaded his lungs and soaked his furs, freezing his skin. He flailed, kicking his legs and trying to reach the surface of the lake. His furs weighed him down and it took all of his strength to break the surface.

He scrabbled for purchase at the edge of the hole, his short claws unable to dig into the diamond hard ice. His throat burned and he coughed up the water and tried to keep struggling, but the cold stole his strength and he couldn’t claw his way out with his furs so heavy.