Darke

Tvv|wxÇàtÄ `tàxáM WtÜ~x Copyright © January 2009, Brenda Steele Cover art by Brenda Steele © January 2009 Amira Press Baltimore, MD 21216 www.amirapress.com ISBN: 978-1-935348-19-1 No part of this e-book may be reproduced or shared by any electronic or mechanical means, including but not limited to printing, file sharing, and e-mail, without prior written permission from Amira Press.

Chapter One The night was too humid. Sweat seemed to pour down from my forehead. It ran into my eyes and made them burn. I pressed tight against the alley wall while sticking to the shadows and praying they wouldn’t find me. My only advantage was that I had no scent. They had bred me that way, and I counted on my experiences with their cruelty to help me escape. As I reached up to brush away the moisture, I willed myself to move, to put as much distance between them and me as I could. They were fast. But I was faster in the right conditions. “Come back, Bella, come back.” I could still hear my father calling my name, demanding I come back when I decided to escape all those years ago, and I hadn’t stopped since. Or at least I wouldn’t have if the Lycarn hadn’t caught me. Sucking in a deep breath, I stepped out of the alley into the steel-hard chest of one of my enemies. “She’s here,” he called over his shoulder. He tried to grab for my arm, but I dropped to the ground and rolled away. After pushing up to my feet, I took off for the third time that night. Screams followed in my wake as I threaded my way in and out of the crowds lining the sidewalks. From the scratches to the pavement, I knew they weren’t screaming over me, but over the two-hundred-pound wolf chasing me, or it could have been the other Lycarn in his seven-foot-tall werewolf form. I wasn’t going to look back to verify it. I kept moving. I had been on the run a long time and hadn’t fed for two nights. Still, I pushed my body harder. Soon, the humans blurred, and I zipped between them, blowing hair across a face here, unbalancing someone there. Real trouble began when the colors around me faded. That’s when I knew I was beginning to lose control, when I was sure no one was safe. I wept as I ran, pleading, praying for mercy. In seconds, though, the hunted became the hunter. A car rolled to a stop at the corner ahead, and I slowed, but not soon enough. I slammed into the vehicle, a sweet, candy-apple red Ferrari. My hips dented the fender, and because of my having fallen forward, my sharp nails scraped the paint clean off. “Oh, hell no!” The driver jumped out of the car with no regard for whether I was okay at all. “Look what you did to my ride, you bitch,” he ranted. “Who’s going to pay for this?” Candy-apple red faded away to a dull gray. I turned my head to take in his appearance. “Human,” I muttered. “My favorite.” I grinned, flashing my fangs. “I’m afraid you’re going to pay for it.” I sprung on him, which landed us both flat on the ground. I sank my fangs deep, and soon the rich, delicious blood that I needed to survive flowed into my mouth. I took long drags and fumbled with his pants to get them unzipped. I spread my legs in preparation for what I had always craved at the same time as blood—sex.

Before I could get us both undressed, a strong hand wrapped around my neck and yanked me backward. The Lycarn had caught me. Too late, I remembered they were on my tail. When my hunger went beyond a certain point, nothing else mattered. He had changed back into his half-human, half-beast appearance, and he flung me across the street. Cars swerved to avoid hitting me. I stood then went at him. He was keeping me from my meal. As I advanced on my attacker, I glanced at the human. He was fading fast. “See what you did, Bella?” the Lycarn growled. “You don’t deserve to be free. Come home, where you belong.” “Home?” I shrieked. “That’s not my home. Locked behind bars like an animal.” I narrowed my eyes and extended my hands in front of me, ready to tear into him. “Like you and all your kind should be.” “You’ll pay for that.” I shook my head. “I think not.” Even a little blood in my belly gave me strength. My hearing perked up. I heard the others coming. Their paws pounded the ground, and the heavy panting caused their tongues to hang from their mouths. Beasts! They were the ones who should be experimented on, not me. He closed the space between us, latched onto my arm, and dragged me close. I tried to bite him, but he ducked out of the way and forced me around so my back was to him. He moved a hand up to lock my jaw in his powerful grip. He knew that he was better off not letting my teeth pierce his skin. I tried reaching behind him to grab the back of his head, but he was too tall. I settled for shredding the sleeve of his shirt and kicking back at his kneecap. He roared in pain and sent me flying. I gained my feet, then shook my head to clear the fog. The other Lycarn were getting closer, minutes away. With renewed determination, I attacked for the second time. This time, I got the advantage and slammed the Lycarn to the ground. He tried to throw me off, but I dug my nails deep into him and bit his shoulder. “No!” he screamed. I had sealed his fate. The Lycarn died faster from my bite than even a human would have. I drained him and left the human. He would not live long. With my hunger assuaged, the madness eased. My human compassion returned, and I wept. Two more deaths at my hands. I wanted to die, but no matter how many times I had tried by my own hand, I lived. The shot was fired before I could run. The drug burned into my back, and its effects spread over my limbs in seconds. This was their way to contain me, at least for a little while. But maybe this time would be different. I had killed one of their own. Maybe now, they would put me out of my misery.

**** They led me in handcuffs into the courtroom. I didn’t bother to break out of them. I mean, what was the point? If they were going to sentence me to death, then it would all be over. Not that I was fully alive. I wasn’t sure what I was. As I marched into the room, I glanced at the sea of faces. A few humans had been allowed in, but most were angry Lycarn. All seemed to be looking for my blood to be spilled. Tall windows stretched from the floor to the ceiling on the left side of the room, but someone had covered them with a heavy black tarp. The judge had been unwilling to hold my trial at night when it was safest for me, yet he had conceded to not barbecuing me on the spot. A tremor passed through me. I hoped the tarp was secure. I might be a morbid person after all that had happened, but I had no wish to die in such horrible pain. Across the aisle from where I was placed, three Lycarn stood with stiff backs and hatred aimed at me in their eyes. I glared back, just as mean and not one iota intimidated by them. After all, they had made me as I was, cursed for eternity. A door opened nearby, and I faced the front of the room where a huge desk was the focal point of the room. The chair beside mine scraped, and I looked over to find a human in a dark suit. He flashed a smile at me. I let my gaze move to his neck, darkened with blood rushing to his face. I licked my lips, and he shivered. “I am your representative,” he whispered. “You don’t look like a lawyer.” He shook his head. “I’m not. I’m a scientist, actually. You can just call me Lemuel. Don’t worry. I will get you out of here. You are the victim, not some dead Lycarn.” I didn’t have much faith in him. By now, the Lycarn numbers were overwhelming. Many humans believed the day was coming when the Lycarn would drastically change the way things were done on Earth and enslave humans. I agreed, but didn’t think on it too much. No beast would enslave me. “All rise!” a bailiff shouted above the hum of voices. “Hear ye, hear ye, the District Court of the United Americas is now in session, the honorable Judge George T. Stanley presiding.” At once the room went silent, but only until another door opened and a human judge walked in. Then the room exploded with howls of anger from the Lycarn. I thought there might be a riot, and tested the bonds of my handcuffs. The metal felt breakable, but I didn’t push it. I had no psychic ability to open locks like vampires did in the movies. I used my strength alone. My strength and my other issues were more than enough to get me by. The judge slammed his gavel on the desktop until it broke, and then the gavel head toppled over the desk and skittered across the polished floor. Still the noise continued. Who was

going to come in and tell the Lycarn to shut the hell up or they would be arrested for contempt of court? I dropped into my chair and swung my booted feet up onto the tabletop. The judge and his bailiff gave me scathing looks that I returned with matched fervor. Lemuel was sweating, and he mopped his neck while he took in the pandemonium. I let my eyes drift closed, and I breathed in the scent of his blood, made so much richer when it pumped fast throughout his body. “Okay, okay. We’re not going to have a real trial here.” At Lemuel’s announcement, I opened my eyes and sat straighter. He had moved to stand atop the table. Go human! I chuckled. He swallowed hard so his Adam’s apple bobbed, and then he continued. “I propose a solution that will satisfy both the humans and the Lycarn. The humans want civility, a fair trial for one that used to be their own and—” “And we want to know what the Lycarn were doing with a human locked in that place they set up for those two Drels anyway!” someone called out. I knew what they were referring to. The building where the Lycarn had made me what I am had also been the prison for Draco and Ryuu, two Drelconian lords and twins. On many a night, my screams had blended with the screams of at least one of them, and my guards had delighted in telling me all about how their ambassador had enjoyed making one of them her lover—a tortured lover. I felt sorry for him. But they had escaped. I hadn’t. Lemuel’s voice cut across my thoughts. “That’s for you to investigate on your own. I’m here for her.” He pointed at me. “I propose that you rule that she be exiled from Earth, never to return again. I know of someone who will fly her out of here and drop her on another planet far-enough away that you will never hear from her again. That must be enough. What do you say to that?” The room was silent. With my acute hearing, I didn’t pick up a sound beyond their breathing. If the Lycarn didn’t agree, I knew I would die today. There was no other alternative. I didn’t belong with the humans or the Lycarn.

Chapter Two I woke with a jerk, and fought to shake off the effects of the dream I had just had. Or the nightmare. In it, my father lay dead at the hands of some unknown alien on a planet across the galaxy. I prayed that it wasn’t true, that we would find him and bring him home to Shale where he belonged. I ran a hand through my hair, then swung my legs over the side of the bed. I felt a small hand on my back. “Darke? Are you okay?” Ness’s voice was somewhat thicker from sleep, but still high and sweet—innocent no matter how many times we had had sex. I sighed. “Yes, I’m fine.” I tried not to snap, but irritation got the better of me. Regret that I had brought her along gave me a sour attitude. Oh, I had made it clear to her, of course. She was my bed partner, nothing more. A companion to meet my needs while I was on the journey. She had volunteered, even suggested her role to serve me. She was beautiful, as all Drelconians were. Who was I to turn her down? After I had slipped into a shirt and boxers, I moved toward the door. “Going for a stroll around the ship.” I slammed the door behind me before she could offer to join me. I wanted to be alone and knew my mother would rise before noon. She slept longer these days, and I knew it was depression caused by not having my father around. Determination to find him made me grit my teeth. As far as I knew, we were the only ones on board the ship, along with the pilot, Pierre. My mistake came through loud and clear when I heard growls coming from one of the rooms. Two Lycarn stood guard, with their arms crossed over powerful chests. Damn! I had no idea they were so huge. I had heard rumors of them being seven-feet tall, but this was ridiculous. They looked half-human and half-beast. Their teeth appeared to be more deadly than a Drelconian’s. I stopped. “Who are you guarding? What are you doing here? I hired this ship.” They chuckled. One of them deigned to answer. “And you assumed Pierre would not pick up another fare? Stupid you. He will do anything for money. His kind always does.” I paused at that. “His kind. I had always assumed he was human. You’re saying he’s not?” The Lycarn was finished with me. He hadn’t admitted to who was behind the door growling like they were in intense pain. I couldn’t force them, nor could I take them both on at once. Besides, they were probably right about Pierre. I’d learned right off that he would do anything for money, especially after he had charged me an exorbitant sum to pick us up in the middle of nowhere when my ship went down with electrical problems. My first time off Shale piloting a ship on my own and I’d fucked it up. It hadn’t helped that my mother wanted to coddle me over it—Ness as well.

I shook off the memory, continued down the hall, and turned right. The one thing the Lycarn didn’t know was that Pierre now owned one of the Drelconian ships, because he had traded for it to take my father away. I knew this vessel top to bottom. I could slide through the ducts and find my way to that room without their knowledge. I slipped inside an empty room and crossed the floor to the duct in the corner. I hated to damage the screws, but I had no choice since I had no tools. So I willed my hand to heat up. There were limits to being only half-Drelconian and half-human, but controlling the temperature of my body was not one of them. I couldn’t shape-shift or blow fire, but I could withstand any level of heat or fire. My uncle, Ryuu, believed that I would one day be able to shape-shift, because I had manifested so many of the Drelconians’ characteristics, but I had given up hope on it long ago. I was who I was, and I had accepted that. The screws melted and dribbled to the floor. I removed the grate and peered into the opening. It would be wide enough for me to crawl through. The openings had been made wide enough for the Drelconians to maneuver through it in their snakelike form if necessary. Even more compact than the dragon form, it was still larger than my build. Soon I had navigated my way to the ceiling above the room where the growling had come from. I looked down, and my breath caught in my throat. She was lovely. Her raven’s-wing hair was thick and luxurious. It extended down her back in waves and made me want to bury my hands in it while I guided those full lips to mine. I had to shift to ease the pressure off my cock, which had swelled in my boxers upon sight of her. I had made no noise, but she looked up to where I was. Her eyes, wide and deep pools of cocoa, seemed to bleed out into the white and turned dark so that they were all black. I flinched. I’d never seen anything like that. Yet, the change didn’t turn me off. I wanted her all the more. My inspection continued down her slender body, encased in black that did not disguise the small breasts, narrow waist, and rounded hips. I almost panted like one of the dogs outside her room. My head spun with a desire to eat between those curvy thighs. How sweet she would taste. “Come here to me,” she demanded suddenly. She was looking right at me. “I’m hungry.” She took a deep breath and blew it out on a purr that arrowed straight to my hard dick. “Human,” she breathed. Before I could react in any way, a knock sounded at the door. She turned away from me, and I let out a sigh of relief. I might have wanted just sex, but she had desired more. My life’s blood. “Hello, Bella.” The man who had just entered was human. I didn’t recognize him. Here was another person on board I hadn’t been informed of. I would need to speak with Pierre. Why the hell did I pay for use of the ship for the next thirty days if it was going to be a damn circus up here with so many different species?

Bella grumbled but didn’t move toward the man. I was surprised to find she was chained in place, and my anger grew at a woman—no matter what species she was a member of—being treated this way. The human strolled closer, but not too close. “How are you?” “Why did you come?” she demanded. “You did your good deed. You had my life spared.” The man smiled. I thought his eyes had strayed to her breasts, but I couldn’t be certain from my angle. “I had to be sure they would drop you off and come back to Earth. Otherwise, they could just kill you, come back, and say the deed was done.” “What do you care?” She cried out in pain and rubbed her stomach. “Did you think to provide me with sustenance?” Her tone implied he was an idiot. His face reddened. “I thought maybe I could—” “Fool!” “Be nice, Bella.” He inched closer. I had a feeling that was a bad idea. “I read your file.” He extended a hand. “I was surprised the Lycarn let me see it and that they didn’t destroy it.” Her obvious annoyance faded, and I knew in an instant that she was like a spider ready to lure its prey into the web. I slid my hand down my leg in search of my favorite weapon, but remembered I had strolled out here in only boxers. Embarrassment hit that I had also chatted with the Lycarn in my underwear. Damn! “Come here to me, Lemuel,” she called. That same lure she had seemed to cast over my mind seemed to reach out across the space between them and pull the man close to her. Maybe it was no lure. Maybe it was the fact that she was so damn beautiful, so sexy. Her mouth opened, and sharp fangs extended just past her bottom lip. I found myself unable to utter a word or even to move when she ran a hand over the front of Lemuel’s pants. She boldly grabbed hold of his erection and stroked. I could almost feel her stroking me. As if she knew my thoughts, she pulled him closer and glanced up at me before she curved her head to Lemuel’s neck. “They expected you to die,” she whispered, so low, a human would not have heard. I picked it up clearly. “You don’t care about my bite?” “I want you. There’s nothing else for me,” Lemuel responded. Could she have hypnotized him? And me? She unsnapped his pants and shoved them until they settled around his ankles. Her pants followed, and I caught a glimpse of dark curls at her apex. I licked my lips. She kicked away her clothes and hoisted herself onto his body before wrapping her legs around his waist.

I could have cried out, and perhaps I did when his cock sank into her wet pussy at the same time she sank her teeth into his neck. She moaned while she drew on his blood. A thick line of it rolled out from the side of her mouth and coursed down toward her chin. Lemuel gripped her hips and drove himself forward, ground deep inside her. and growled his pleasure. But the loss of blood weakened him. He sank to his knees, and she followed him down, straddled him, and rode his cock for all he could give her. I couldn’t help myself. I twisted my hips and reached inside my boxers to my cock. I stroked it while I watched, and my climax roared close to the surface. After a while she sat up and looked at me. Something in her eyes made me frenzied in my desire. I pumped my cock harder. She moaned like she was encouraging me to do it. Her hips rocked her lover, although her attention was on me. “Make me come,” I whispered despite myself. “Harder,” she demanded. In perfect rhythm, we stroked together. She lifted her knees, which gave me a better view of Lemuel’s cock gliding into her pussy. She was so wet that I was almost salivating. She leaned back and licked her mouth clean. I wasn’t satisfied. I couldn’t come. Anger filled me. I wanted to touch her, to taste her. I must be going insane. She screamed her orgasm seconds later, but I was still frustrated. The door burst open, and the Lycarn walked in. One of them blocked my view while he commanded her to move back. She obeyed and turned away from me. I felt abandoned, alone with my needs unmet. In disgust and anger, I went back to my room and dropped on the bed. With my eyes closed and an arm slung over my eyes, I felt Ness reach across to glide her hand over my stomach. She came to my rigid shaft, and without me saying a word, she pulled back my boxers and buried my cock inside her pussy. I did all I could not to think of Bella, to give Ness the courtesy of seeing only her. But all black eyes and luscious curves filled my mind as I shouted a tormented release.

Chapter Three “Don’t you leave me here, you bastards!” I chased after the ship, tried to put on my extra speed, but to no avail. The heat was unbearable. I stumbled over a stone and fell on my face. I lifted my head in time to see the ship disappear over the horizon. I had thought at least the half-dragon would have compassion, that he wouldn’t let the Lycarn dump me out in the middle of nowhere. After all, it was not my fault that the human died. Lemuel knew the risks. He had read my file, knew that one bite would seal his fate whether I drained his blood or not. Tears stung my eyes, but I blinked them away and stood on unsteady legs. This world was full of greenery—trees and plants I had never seen—but the temperature had to be seventy or eighty degrees. I preferred closer to forty. “At least the assholes dropped me when it was just about nighttime,” I said, trying my best to keep my chin up. I sniffed the air in an attempt to determine whether civilization existed nearby. Nothing floated in on the wind, nothing but miles and miles of plants and trees. Well, at least I would have some covering before sunup. Although I did want to find some type of solid shelter. I did not relish a beam of sunlight cutting between the plants to give me a burn. Besides, when I let myself sleep, it was pretty hard for anyone or anything to get me up again. I might end up barbecued if the wind shifted the foliage while I was out of it. With no other options, I began trudging west. I glanced up in the sky every half hour or so in hopes that the ship would return, but the sky remained stubbornly barren except for a single, odd-shaped yellow moon. It would have resembled Earth’s moon except that it looked like a good bit of it had crumbled away, which left me to wonder if it would ever crash into this planet. Not that I knew crap about science. I had been walking maybe a couple of hours with no relief in the landscape when an itching started on my arms and face. I scratched like a madwoman, and then stopped walking. If I was out in the elements, every time I began to itch it was because the first rays of sunlight were inching into the atmosphere around me. But that was impossible. A two-hour night? As I glanced back over my shoulder, I clutched my chest. If my heart had beat at this rate when I was human, it would be thundering right about now. The light of this planet’s star was coming up fast. I took off, zipping from tree to tree, plant to plant, looking for sufficient shelter. None of the nearby foliage was thick enough. A half hour ago, it had been. Too late to turn back. With the sunlight behind me, I ran in a straight line, leaped over fallen logs, and scrambled around trees. Twice I fell and got caught up in vines that seemed determined to kill me. Finally, on the horizon, I saw my salvation. Mountains. With the last of my strength, I poured on the speed. The ground began a steady incline. My clothes were soaked with sweat. My hair stuck to my neck and forehead. Then I spotted it. A cave. Because my life didn’t have enough drama in it so far, I had to jump into the shelter in the nick of time. Only my ankle was exposed to the danger I had to escape.

I howled in pain as my skin burned. I drew up my leg, which forced me back to the far wall. The cave wasn’t deep. I watched in horror as the light followed me inside. It crept across the dirt floor. “Please. Please,” I muttered. And then it moved on, past the cave’s outer walls until it advanced no farther. I let out a pained breath, my throat dry. I felt the telltale signs of hunger. The orange light faded to gray, and my eyes twitched. From having watched the change in the mirror, I knew they had turned all black. My fangs extended in readiness to draw my next meal, but I was all alone, trapped. There was nothing else to do but to sleep and wish for a miracle. **** The flapping I heard must be my imagination. I stretched, but found the space around me limited. My muscles ached. I wanted to fall back into a deep sleep, but the flapping didn’t lessen. It drew closer. My stomach churned. Without thinking about it, I ran out of cave into the open air. I breathed a sigh of relief. It was night time again. I wondered how long I had been sleeping, but it wasn’t important. What was important was the thing nearby that would be my meal. I scanned the sky above me, and there it was. I could see at night better than most humans could see in daylight. Problem was, with my hunger active, I could not tell the color of the beast, only that it was a dragon. And from the scent of it, a shape-shifting dragon. I sniffed again. Different from the man in the vent who watched me fuck Lemuel, and different from the female dragon whose scent I had also picked up on board the ship. Still a shifter, though. Hunger surged through me. I rushed to level ground when it was overhead and leaped high into the air. I couldn’t fly, but I could jump. I extended my nails and exposed my fangs. As I made contact, I bit down, but the scales wouldn’t let me bite through. The experience was like biting steel, painful and pointless. Remembering that he was a shape-shifter, I figured that if I could get him down to the ground, I could somehow force him to change back to his humanoid form. Then I would feast. I wrapped my arms around his neck and dropped my weight over him. He only rolled in the air, taking me with him, and he roared, breathing fire. My head spun. If he didn’t come down soon, I would fall off. I poked him in the eye. He screeched and dipped. Fortune smiled on me when he hit an outcropping on the side of the mountain. We both went tumbling down, rolling head over feet until we came to a stop. He changed, my hunger took control, and I leaped on him and sank my fangs deep. “Oh, yes,” I groaned. I fumbled over his naked body, not caring who he was or where he had come from. He wasn’t hard. Tears stung my eyes. I sucked his blood harder. He didn’t fight me at all. It was like his strength had already been depleted.

A roar sounded overhead, and something slammed down on the ground behind me. Before I could react, something came down on my head. Spots danced before my eyes, and then I lost consciousness. **** Watching her as she lay there, I hoped that no one noticed how hard it was for me to take my eyes off her. Her blouse hung open a little at the collar so that I could see the beginning swell of one breast. Her skin was pale, so creamy white. Probably because she hadn’t seen the light of day in a very long time. I moved nearer to speculate on her history. Pierre had said the Lycarn wanted her dead but didn’t share why. Having heard what a brutal race they were, I was at once on her side of the matter. We had had to drop her off in compliance with them. After all, we had not wanted to cause an incident. All the time, I prayed she would be okay until we returned. Pierre had dropped Bella on the planet and then had flown out to a remote outpost where the Lycarn wanted to be left. We couldn’t seem to get back fast enough. Pierre strolled up next to me. “Don’t do it, chéri.” He grinned, his smile friendly, but in his eyes was a warning. We’d always thought him strange and different, but had no idea who or what he was. He kept to himself and only showed up when called for a ride. I frowned. “Don’t do what?” He nodded his head toward the woman still lying unconscious on the ground, shaded from the sun with a tent I had erected. “Her. She’s not for you. Beautiful, no?” “Beautiful, yes,” I admitted. “But deadly.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and tilted his head downward so his straight blond hair fell over half his face. “One bite from this one will mean your death.” “Hm, you mean she’ll drain me.” “No.” He stooped and pushed aside her blouse to expose more of her breast. I was about to stop him when he uncovered a tattoo. In fancy script, it said Bella Donna. Belladonna was a perennial herbaceous plant. Another name for it was deadly nightshade. He’d learned as much from his mother. The name fit Bella. Had she been born this way, or had someone made her this way to honor her name? And what kind of mother would name her “Bella Donna” in the first place? It seemed cruel. Pierre scratched his head as if he was trying to figure out the answer as well. “Her bite is poisonous. Even if she didn’t drain all your blood from your body, the poison would end your life.” The information shook me to the core. How then would a woman like her ever find a longterm companion? I glanced up to see Ness speaking with my mother and wondered. I had thought to send her home because having sex with her never fully satisfied me. I had no idea what my problem was. A woman as kind and gentle as Ness should have been perfect—was

perfect to let my mother tell it. But my heart remained cold to her, to any woman, and I didn’t know why. I turned away to continue mapping the location of a nomadic group I suspected had my father, when I heard a growl. The next thing I knew, Bella had come to and moved with lightning speed to my mother. In seconds, Bella had her pinned to the ground, and her teeth were sunk into my mother’s neck. “Her bite is poisonous.” Pierre’s words replayed in my mind, and it was like the entire world slowed to a crawl. I had taken a single step when Pierre got to her and hauled her off my mother. Ness had been knocked away, and my mother’s head had thumped the ground so hard that she lay unconscious. While Bella fought Pierre’s hold and screamed that she had to feed, I dropped to my knees to lift my mother in my arms. Two puncture wounds lay side by side on her neck. And already she had gone pale. She was going to die. What would I tell my father? “Ness, come here,” I commanded. She moved to obey and dropped down near me. I passed my mother to her. “Care for her. I don’t want her on the ground. Understand?” She nodded. With my lips pressed together and my eyes narrowed against the glare of the sun, I unhooked the snap on my side pocket and withdrew my kukri, gifted to me by my father when I was thirteen. I stood then and flipped my weapon from one hand to the other. Bella would die for what she had done.

Chapter Four I woke up chained to a bed. I recognized the metal, strong enough to hold even me. Just like everyone else, he hated me now. But it was just as well. While I wanted him just as he wanted me, it could never be. If I had lain with him, he would die just like the human, who I now knew was his mother. He would never forgive me. The rickety wooden door opened, and Pierre stepped in. In vague snatches, I remembered what he had said to me, to calm me. That he could be my source until we located Darke’s father. I shivered at the dragon shape-shifter’s name. His name fit him, or maybe I liked it because I was a creature of the darkness. “Well?” I called out to Pierre when he didn’t move from the door. “Come to me.” He grinned. “You are a lot like him. Commanding, arrogant. You should be friendlier, like me.” “I don’t care about that,” I told him. “I want to eat.” “You care.” He moved to the side of the bed and stared down at me. I wondered if he could see inside my head. But I had no secrets. I didn’t care. “You do, ma belle,” he insisted. “It’s what makes you so miserable. You are cursed to be alone, but it’s not what you want. You long for companionship, as do we all.” I turned my head toward the wall and hoped he would go away. He sat on the side of the bed. My fangs grew out. Tears filled my eyes. “You should go.” “Écoutez. I mean, listen. I can feed you and not die. On this trip, you will feed only from me, and you will be allowed to go free of these chains. If you try to attack anyone, I will allow him to kill you.” “Who the hell do you think you are?” I screamed. “He’s in charge. He’s paying you.” “But he wants an excuse not to kill you.” I turned back to face him. “Why? I killed his mother.” “You attacked his mother.” Pierre ran a hand along my stomach and lifted my blouse to stroke my skin. I wanted it to be the dragon shifter, but I spread my legs and grew wet anyway. He leaned down and kissed my belly, teased it with the tip of his tongue. “I healed her.” My eyes widened so much they hurt. “You? Who are you?” “The question is what am I.” He opened his mouth wider, and I saw the fangs. I gasped, and he chuckled. “Oui, I am a vampire, from a planet of vampires.” He waved a hand and sat up. “But that’s not important right now. What is important is your feeding and your . . . satisfaction.”

I was at a loss for words. He took it as consent and began to undress me. When I was naked, he paused to admire my body. I felt no shame at all. My sexual desires seemed to have been heightened because of whatever the Lycarn had done to me. I lifted my knees, and Pierre rested a palm on my thigh. He slid higher but took his time until the tips of his fingers brushed my pussy. I groaned and closed my eyes, but I wanted to understand him better, to somehow learn more about myself through him. “The sun doesn’t bother you.” “No. Somehow, I have adjusted, over many years, to its light.” Jealousy washed over me. “And you heal instead of killing with your bite?” “No, not with my bite. With my blood.” He lowered his head to my pussy and kissed me there. “Surely, you are more interested in what we are about to do than in my healing abilities?” I yanked at the handcuffs with all my strength, but they held. “I am interested in both. Come here. Just enter me. I don’t need sensual lovemaking. I need to be fucked. Show me what you have for me, and let me taste this rich blood of yours.” He chuckled and stood to undress. “Very well.” His clothes followed mine on the floor, and he stood there a moment so I could take in the sight of his body. His build was long and wiry, thin but fit. His cock stood out, hard from his body, ready for me. I hurt my wrist trying to grab for it, but my movement was limited. He climbed on the bed between my legs and positioned the head of his cock at my opening. I bit my lip and lifted my hips to get him inside. “Do it!” “Chérie, you need to learn about love.” He sank deep into me, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, pressed his thighs with my heels, and willed him to push harder. Soon we had a rhythm going, our hips grinding together and apart. Pierre’s cock glided along my slick walls, and my pussy muscles milked him. Their strength, their ability to tug and work my lover on the inside of me, was thanks to my cruel captors on Earth. Pierre seemed to lose all reason for a while at the experience. He leaned forward and offered his neck. I bit down. The blood was not as warm as I liked it, but it was delicious. The thick substance filled my mouth, and I swallowed before drawing on him for more. Just as Pierre had said, he didn’t get sick. He didn’t grow pale or stop pumping. I thrashed on the bed beneath him and rocked my hips to get him deeper. I groaned with pleasure when my orgasm began to build. “Mon dieu, you squeeze me tight, chérie. I could fall in love.” I sucked harder, filled my mouth, swallowed, and pulled back. “Don’t.”

“What the fuck is going on here?” Darke yelled when he walked in the door. His eyes looked yellow and black a second, and then they were a normal human’s eyes. I wondered if he could shape-shift into a dragon, considering that he is half-human. Darke withdrew the curved weapon he had drawn on me earlier and held it at the ready. “Get off her, Pierre.” Pierre, in the throes of sexual pleasure, didn’t appreciate anyone interrupting us, even if it was the man who was paying him an exorbitant month’s wages. He bared his fangs and hissed at Darke. The half-Drelconian stumbled back but stood his ground. He gasped. “What the fuck? You’re a vampire! I knew you had healed my mother, but I thought it was magic. Not this.” His tone was accusing. Pierre looked back at me, stared into my eyes, and I felt myself lose focus. All I was aware of was his cock as it drove into me, of the pleasure I derived from it. Soon we both cried out our release, and I lay spent on the bed, breathing hard. Pierre climbed off me with his usual calm. He grabbed a towel and, with no shame at all in front of Darke, began to clean himself up before he put his clothes on. “She’s willing to take your deal,” Pierre told Darke. Darke’s eyebrows knitted. “What deal?” Pierre unshackled me, and I sat up to rub my wrists. Enjoying the feel of Dark’s gaze on me, on my breasts, my apex, and my legs, I made a point not to put my clothes on right away. He wanted me, and while I had climaxed once with Pierre, I craved doing it a hundred times with Darke. I should have been drawn to my own kind, but I wanted him, the half-human. Maybe that was why. What I had lost was inside him, and he did have a powerful whole package going for him. I licked my lips as I watched him. He flared his nostrils, apparently still hating me for the attack. “What deal, Pierre? And why the hell did you let her loose?” Darke held his weapon ready to slit my throat. I knew he could never move fast enough to do it before I killed him, but I didn’t want him dead. Pierre moved to the door. “She has agreed to let me be her food source.” Darke sneered. “And apparently her fuck-partner.” “They go hand in hand with her.” Pierre gave a light wave as if there was no tension in the air. “I have to make a quick run. I will be back before the next phase in the search.” And he was gone. I sat there on the side of the bed and waited for Darke to speak or to make a move. He was breathing hard and just stood, not moving a muscle. I had the feeling he was trying to get control of himself.

Finally, he said, “Put your clothes on.” I grinned. “Why should I? You like me naked.” “I want you dead.” “Your mother is alive.” He grumbled. “No thanks to you! If Pierre wasn’t here or he wasn’t a healing vampire. . . .” I didn’t miss his emphasis on the healing as if it was my fault that I was what I was. “I can’t help what I am or what I do. When the hunger comes over me, I lose control. Most of the time, there is warning to choose my meal, like just now when I could take Pierre’s blood. At the time, you stopped me from drinking that other man’s blood, so I was starving again when I woke. My favorite is human blood. I couldn’t help myself.” “Spare me the lesson on your habits.” He unbent himself, stretched, and drew my eyes to his wide shoulders and broad chest. His cargo pants hugged his hips and muscled thighs. They served only to define the bulge of his cock. He was hard as a rock. “I have no interest in you, and whatever agreement Pierre made—to feed you, was it?—you can forget it. I have a mission that will not be sidetracked by some whoring black widow vampire.” I burst out laughing at the name and got a shock. I didn’t know when the last time I had laughed was. The ends of his lips twitched, but he didn’t give into it. I stood up and strolled over to him. He fingered the pocket where he had stashed his weapon but didn’t draw it out or move. I pushed my breasts against his chest. He caught his breath. My nipples hardened and caught on the buttons of his shirt pockets. It might as well have been a caress. I moaned and tilted my head back. I took his hand and pushed it between us until his fingertips brushed my clit. I whined for more. Darke shoved the folds aside and took hold of my wet clit between his fingers. He pinched gently, and I cried out. I gripped his shoulders, an action that sank my nails into the taut flesh. He squeezed again, and I fell against him. My climax raged throughout my body. My fangs, which had retracted, slid down. And while I shuddered from head to toe, I positioned my mouth at his throat. “Damn it, I want you,” he groaned. “Right now.” His voice snapped me out of it. I shoved him back so hard he hit the floor. While he sat there stunned, I turned and scrambled into my clothes. “What the hell?” he grumbled as he stood and brushed his clothes off. “I didn’t take you for a tease.”

“I’m not, you idiot!” I rushed over to the door, dragging my fingers through my hair. “Did you take Pierre’s words lightly? I cannot fuck without biting!” He paled. “That’s right. I just saved your life. Now, stay the hell away from me!”

Chapter Five I can’t say that I wasn’t jealous, knowing that Pierre got to fuck her every time the damn wind changed directions. Or it seemed so. She had an insatiable appetite. I wondered how Pierre could live if she bit him at every turn and sucked his blood. Only later did I realize why he had to “make a run” after each time they had had sex. He had a donor, or a few, somewhere who replenished his blood, I guessed. Of course, since we hadn’t found any inhabitants yet on this planet, and the small row of rundown buildings where we had camped looked to have been abandoned years ago, his runs were driving up my expenses in gas for the ship. “Darke.” My mother moved up next to me as I searched the hills with binoculars. “Son?” “Yes, Mom? How are you feeling? You should sit down under the tent and keep yourself hydrated.” I tried to lead her back to the tent, but she resisted. “Don’t treat me like an invalid. I’m well.” She frowned at Bella. “I don’t like her. She nearly killed me. Why are we bringing her along?” I sighed, frustrated because I had explained everything to her before. She wanted to annoy me until I asked Pierre to dump Bella somewhere else, anywhere but near us. The problem with that was, I didn’t want Bella out of my sight. “We need her, Mom. The information I have is that Father is somewhere in these mountains, but that the inhabitants here when you can find them aren’t the friendliest or the most civilized. I have only Pierre to fight with me if it comes down to that—” She put her hands on her hips. “And what am I? Chopped liver?” I flicked an eyebrow up at her and got a smack on the arm for my rudeness. She had taught me many of Earth’s quirky sayings, but I had never heard this particular one. It had no relevance that I could figure out. “Mom, please,” I began. Bella strolled up in her brassy way that had me panting with desire. I had serious issues. “If you are afraid of me, Harmony”—she bared her teeth in an attempt to threaten my mother—“how will you be of any help to Darke when we face the creatures up there?” My mother fingered her knife much like I tended to do with mine. I put a hand on her shoulder and turned to Bella. “You’ve already been told to stay away from my mother. Isn’t Pierre keeping you occupied enough?” Her beautiful eyes flashed at me, but she smirked. “Jealous much?” Frustrated and, yes, wanting a taste of her like she freely gave herself to Pierre, I took her arm and almost dragged her out of earshot of the others. When we came to a large-enough rock that she could sit on, I pushed her down on it. “What the hell is your problem? You

want me to give the order to get rid of you? From what I’ve heard, you murdered a Lycarn and were let off easy by being exiled. Why can’t you be grateful?” Her eyes bled to black, and she hissed at me, but I stood feet apart and arms crossed over my chest. I was not intimidated in the least. When I didn’t respond, she calmed and looked away across the valley below us. “Grateful? I should be grateful that the Lycarn savages made me like I am, tormented me, made me . . .” She seemed to fight tears, and then hatred replaced the misery that had etched her lovely face for a second. “I killed one, but I would slaughter them all if I could. “They made me like this. I was human.” I gasped. “Human? You’re kidding. I just assumed you were another breed of vampire like Pierre.” She shook her head, the misery back. “No, I wish. To heal instead of killing.” She closed her eyes, her face tilted up as if she basked in sunlight. The broken moon cast some light. Everyone could see well in the darkness except my mother. At least I had that going for me, that I had the eyes of the dragon. My eyes also allowed me to see how Bella’s nipples were outlined by her thin blouse. My cock shifted. Before I thought about what I would do, I reached for one breast, flicked the material aside, and stroked her soft skin. “I want what you give him.” She moaned, then arched her back to push her breast into my palm. “I want nothing more than to give it to you.” Glad that my back blocked her from the others’ view, I stared at her as her lips parted in ecstasy. I let the tiny puckered tip brush over my palm, and I had to fight not to come in my pants. “Let me take you in one of those caves and fuck you.” The words were almost a command, but I waited for her response. “And when I bite you, then what? You still don’t get it, Darke. For me to be alive, others must die—every time I feed. I don’t mince words. I learned to be hard very early on in my experience with the Lycarn. So, when I say I would just as soon kill every one of you as look at you, you’d better believe me.” “Funny, I don’t believe you,” I told her without hesitation. She shrieked and slammed her fist against the rock. “Then you’re a fool. You forget what I did to Harmony.” My anger at her actions returned to crowd out my lust. I wrapped my fingers around her neck. “No, I haven’t forgotten. Nor have I forgiven you for that.” She grunted, but made no attempt to try to move my hand. A laugh behind me caught my attention. We both turned to look. We saw Ness smile shyly at Pierre and offer him a plate of food. I glanced at Bella. She rolled her eyes. “He doesn’t eat food.”

“Do you?” I released her and watched as she covered her breast. I wanted to rip the blouse off and leave her bare to feast my eyes on her. She stood, and her hip brushed my thigh. Cognizant that she’d done it on purpose, I clenched my jaw. “Still being a fool, Darke,” she said in passing as she headed toward the others. My mother served me my plate. Ness continued to sit beside Pierre. I considered telling her to come and sit with me, but I felt that would be unfair to her. Maybe she had picked up on my lust for Bella and was trying to move on. Of course, it would be a mistake for her to put her heart into him. He would just leave when the job was over, and from the looks he cast Bella’s way, he was just as consumed with her as I was. “You know, ma belle,” Pierre said to Bella, “I have my theories about you.” She leaned back, her elbow was propped on a rock behind her and her long, lithe body called to me. “What are those?” She tried to appear like she didn’t care, but she did. I noted the alert light in her eyes. Pierre scratched his head. “Over near the Eagle Nebula, there are a few worlds where the inhabitants are sickly. The scientifiques developed medicines to help. The main ingredient in this medicine is vampire blood.” He scratched his head again and seemed embarrassed but didn’t redden in the cheeks as one would expect. “I donated my blood to this cause. I am ashamed to admit that once when I had crashed my ship, I donated to the highest bidder.” A sense of satisfaction came over me. I shouldn’t feel it, but something told me Pierre’s next words would dropkick him hard off the pedestal Bella had put him on for saving her life. I fought to keep the smirk from my lips. “What highest bidder was that, Pierre?” This time, he did redden. Bella glanced at me, and her eyes narrowed. I could almost see the wheels turning. She too knew who the bidder was. She clenched her hands into fists. “Do tell, Pierre!” He tugged at his collar. “Ce n'est pas important, chéri.” Ness laid a small hand on his wrist. I frowned at her, and she moved it. “Go on, Pierre. Just say it.” “The Lycarn,” he blurted out. He reached out to take Bella in his arms, but instead he grabbed at air. She had moved too quickly and was now on my side of the campsite. “I’m sorry, ma belle. I did not know they had such dark intentions for my blood. I would never have—” “Oh, you damn well would have, Pierre. Don’t lie about it. You’d do anything for money, and more so for a ship. We’ve already established that!”

My mother gasped and pressed a hand to her mouth. She glared at Pierre, and even sweet, forgiving Ness inched away from him, her eyes on the ground. I let my smirk show, but Pierre’s expression didn’t change much. He sat quietly as if none of it mattered. He still had that slight friendly look on his face, which pissed me off. The anger didn’t last long after Bella leaned toward me and whispered in my ear. “I know how we can have sex. At the next nightfall when I am strongest, you’ll have me.”

Chapter Six The caves were too few, too shallow, and too far apart for us to make regular use of them as we travelled over the mountains. Therefore, Darke had instructed us to use the tents. The ship had been left on flat ground at the base of the mountain. Day after day, we had no sightings of creatures beyond our little group and no evidence that anyone had ever been here. I questioned Darke’s information, but he refused to believe that he had been misled, and his stupid mother acted like he was a damn god or something, which pissed me off more. Although I was hungry, I starved myself to wait until the next nightfall. Thoughts of Darke’s body filled my mind while I rested in the day. With intense hunger, I’d also be wild with lust. I intended to clamp onto his hard body and get my fill. For a moment, I wondered if Darke would fuck me while Pierre fed me, but dismissed the thought. The two acted like rivals for the most part and probably wouldn’t cooperate with any satisfaction for me if I had them at the same time. My body knew when the sun was about to go down. Even more so when I had to sleep outside under the tent. I was able to get little sleep from all the itching of my skin, but this day, the itch turned into white-hot pain. I opened my eyes to find the tent no longer covered me. It must have been blown away by the heavy wind from the storm. I screamed in the waning light of the sun and crawled blindly to find shelter. “Oh, fuck,” I heard Darke cry out. The next thing I knew, he had thrown a covering over me and laid his entire body over mine. “It’s okay, baby. I’ll protect you.” A tremor went through me at his gentle tone, and the healing began. The burning of my skin eased, and the skin renewed. Darke’s hands slid up my sides as he checked to be sure I was covered. This was not the time to get off on his body, but I was on fire for a whole other reason than being cooked to death. I wanted to lie under him all day and night, and I fought not to push my ass into his groin. From the twitching going on behind me, he was having just as hard a time. A scream rent the air, and Darke went still. “What the hell is that?” I tried to look, but he pushed me down. “Stay here, Bella. I promise I’ll be back.” I heard the click as he unsnapped his pocket. Whatever was out there, it had gone after his mother. He would never stay to protect me with her in danger. I didn’t blame him at all, but I still felt lost, and hated who I was all the more.

Metal striking metal reached me, followed by grunts of pain. A roar of an unknown beast sent shivers down my spine. When all went quiet, I heard someone walking toward me, unsteady and falling at intervals from the sound of it. I hadn’t prayed in a while, but I prayed Darke was okay. Someone yanked away the covering, and I screeched in fear. But the sun had gone down. The light faded fast over the horizon. The itch eased. Ness sank down on the ground. It had been her who uncovered me. Blood covered her blouse. I rushed over to her and took her shoulders. “Where is Darke?” She blinked up at me, and I shook her. She winced, and I let go, not feeling guilty about hurting her but figuring I should not make her condition worse. The gash on her face closed, but this left dried blood, and she let go of her stomach. I assumed there had been a cut there too, but she had healed. However, Darke was different. He was only half-Drelconian. Did he have healing abilities? “Where is Darke, damn it!” “Here!” he called. I rushed over to him. His half-human blood had been spilled and made me dizzy with hunger. My fangs came down. I licked some from his arm. A hand came around my waist and then a shackle. Pierre cuffed me to a tree. I screamed as I tried to get to Darke. “You should not have starved yourself, chérie,” he grumbled. It was the first time I had ever seen him irritable. Blood stained his clothes, too. “What was it? A creature or something? What did you fight?” I screamed. “Let me go. I’ll track it.” “The only thing you’ll hunt is me,” Darke muttered. “Sorry, Bella, you stay there for now.” “Then what good is she!” Harmony cried as she came into my sight. She was the only one without blood stains. I guessed Darke had hidden her somewhere to keep her safe. I jerked at my bonds to no avail. “Mom, not now.” Darke looked weak, and he swayed forward. Pierre caught him. “Heal,” I demanded. “Not so easy for him,” Pierre commented. “His blood does not replenish at the rate of the pure dragons.” Pierre laid Darke back and bit into his wrist. He tore Darke’s shirt open, and I cried out at the gash in his side. Pierre let his blood spill into the wound. At a snail’s pace that drove me out of my mind, the two sides of the gash knitted together. Darke’s breathing slowed to normal. “Well, at least we know we’re not on the wrong track.”

“How?” I demanded, licking my lips, partly for the blood I was seeing, partly for his massive chest. He held up a scale. I couldn’t tell the color. “Dragon? Silver?” He narrowed his eyes at me. “Golden. My father is a golden dragon.” And then it hit me. The dragon I had attacked when I had arrived. But since they had pulled me off the man, they would know that it wasn’t him. I hadn’t cared at the time what happened to him. “Where is the dragon you stopped me from draining?” All eyes turned to me. Pierre’s eyebrows went up. “What dragon?” “The shape-shifter I was trying to drink from when someone yanked me off and knocked me out. He was a dragon.” “What!” Harmony screamed and came at me. “You bitch! You knew what we were here for, and you never said anything.” Darke hurried over and pulled his mother back from me. I had been ready to feast if she got too close. He turned angry eyes my way, and I felt alone again, hated as usual. “Was he a golden dragon, Bella?” I looked down at the ground. “I don’t know. I was starved. I cannot see color when I am. I just know he was flying, and I jumped up to him. When he fell, he changed back, which allowed me to drink his blood.” “Fuck!” Darke spat. “Also . . .” He released his mother and forced my chin up. I tried to attack, but was shocked at his strength to hold me in place. “Also, what?” he demanded. “Also, he seemed like he was already very sick and weak. I’m guessing he had your strength or more, but he couldn’t get me off him. He didn’t even try. I thought he might be ill already, before I bit him. What did you do with him? Didn’t you recognize him as one of your own?” Harmony was the first to speak. “No. After we got you settled, he was gone like he’d never been there in the first place. And he didn’t look like a Drelconian. His features were haggard, and his hair was chopped shorter. Drelconians’ hair grows too quickly to be cut, and it’s always black unless they have lived on Shale for a period of time. That would turn their hair white.”

“Perhaps it was some new type of dragon shape-shifter, although we’ve never heard of any,” Ness offered. I shook my head. “I know blood, even without tasting it. I can pick up the differences in scent. He smelled the same or almost the same as you do. He was Drelconian, without a doubt.” We all sat there in silence for a while. Well, everyone but me. I grunted at intervals, because my stomach was killing me. I was starving. I couldn’t think straight. Through the roar in my ears, I heard Darke’s words. “It looks like we’ve found the golden dragons at last.”

Chapter Seven She lay still on a pile of blankets, breathing heavily. She was indeed different from Pierre. I never saw his chest move as if he took a breath. I had instructed him to feed her but not have sex with her this time. He had been resentful, but she had agreed. She wanted to try her idea, to let me take her while she was shackled to a tree. To be so open about sex, to negotiate it in such a cold way should have put me off, but it didn’t. I glanced down at my cock. Rock-solid and extended into my pants leg, because I ached for her. Bella’s body would heal itself after she had replenished her blood supply, faster than any human. I should be ashamed for offering Ness to replenish Pierre’s blood, but she hadn’t seemed disgusted by it. I had the feeling that she was awed by him, and I hadn’t slept with her for a couple days. I wasn’t sure if I ever would again. I had to have Bella. At least once. “Are you going to stare at me or put that thing inside me now?” Bella said in her bold way. “You are not ladylike in the least, are you?” She grinned. “You’ve got ladylike.” I knew she was referring to Ness. “You want something wilder to awaken the beast in you.” I chuckled and dropped to my knees. “Is that right?” She nodded. “Is it safe to eat you?” I unsnapped her pants and pulled the two sides apart. The zipper lowering sent shocks of sweet anticipation throughout my body. Her eyes widened. “Eat me?” “Yes, you’ve had a lover go down on you before, right? I want to lick your pussy and want to know if that is safe or if you are poisonous there as well.” Anger licked at my insides, but I pushed it away. I couldn’t change what she was. I would have her, though. “O-Oh.” She ran her tiny pink tongue over her lips. I rubbed my cock through my jeans, and her gaze rushed to follow the movement. “No man has ever done that to me. I normally just take what I want, riding him while feeding. But no, only my bite. Not even my kiss is poisonous.” “Good.” I winked. “You’ll enjoy this.” “You’re not very humble-like.” She smirked.

I burst out laughing. “I’m a prince. What can I say?” I shrugged. “Truth is, I have much of my father’s blood in me. The Drelconians are seriously arrogant.” I didn’t want to talk about what I had and didn’t have of my father’s heritage. It had smarted all my life that I couldn’t shape-shift like the others. I had been teased by those same Drelconians who thought they were superior by pure blood. Still, I had gotten a little of my own back when I had been placed in command of them all the day my father and uncles launched their attack on Orel-X Four. The memory that it was my plan that had led to my father’s ordeal gave me pause. I stopped midway through undressing Bella and reared back on my heels. In my struggle to wipe away the torment that I was the cause of my mother’s broken heart, I dropped my forehead into my hand. “Darke.” Bella nudged me with her knee. I didn’t respond. She nudged me until I glanced up. She seemed surprised at what she saw in my face, but she didn’t comment on it. “Forget everything. Forget the mission and the people counting on you. No one exists but me.” She wiggled her hips and grinned, the points of her canine teeth a touch longer than the rest. I nodded. Yes, forget the mistakes and the shortcomings. Just focus on this luscious woman who made me pant for her the second I laid eyes on her. She should disgust me for what she was, for what she had done to my mother. I should hate her, and I did dislike her, which surprised me. But not just because of my mother. Because she made me crave her when I should be focused on my mission. I slid her pants down, allowing my hands to slide along her rounded ass. Her skin was so soft, and the pungent scent of her pussy had my mouth watering. I kept her ass high off the ground while I kissed along her inner thighs. I leaned in close and ran my tongue from the bottom of her sweet pussy to her swollen clit and left the area damp. I blew on it, and she cried out her delight. “You like that, Bella?” I watched her thrash against the cuffs. Her fangs came down, and she bit into her bottom lip. A spot of blood beaded there, but she sucked it off, which gave truth to the claim that she never had sex without biting. I saw her cream flow from her moist center, so I stiffened my tongue and ran it up into her pussy. She screamed. I worried someone would disturb us, but no one did. They all knew what we were doing. Shame hit me, but I pushed it away selfishly. Pierre had had her. This was my turn. “Do it again. Do it again!” she demanded when I withdrew. I licked her from bottom to top, and took hold of her clit between my lips. I sucked the small bud into my mouth and milked it. She squirmed. I had to tighten my grip on her hips to keep control. She fell flat on the blankets, her chest rising and falling. “Darke, it’s too good. Does every man know about this?”

I pinched too tight, angry that she would ask about other men at a time like this. But the sting seemed to heighten her ecstasy. She didn’t dare question me again. I squeezed her thighs and pierced her with my tongue, lapped her delicious come until I thought I would release in my boxers. I barely held on. My cock wanted out of my pants and into her tunnel like nobody’s business. But I maintained control, letting the ache increase until I was weak from needing her. I tilted my head to the side, pushed her ass cheeks apart, then glanced at her. She lay with her eyes closed and trembled from head to toe. I stuck out my tongue and circled her asshole. She came, hard and loud. Her thick cream dripped down from her pussy to her ass, and I licked it off. She cried and gave me more, and I kept eating. I couldn’t get enough. She was so good. Finally, when I couldn’t wait another second, I yanked my pants open and pulled my cock free. **** The moment his tongue touched me, I felt like I was going to die of pleasure. The sensations came close to the intense thrill of drinking blood. I lost all control of my body, and what I had told him to do, to forget everything, happened to me. For that moment, he was my world. His tongue did things I had not imagined possible. When I came, he actually licked it off my ass, and I came a second time just from that. Staring at him, I drank in his sexy body as he began to remove his clothing. He unbuttoned his jeans and shoved the material lower. His cock sprung out, and I bit down into my lip again. Oh yes! He is better than feeding! He knelt above me and lifted his shirt over his head. His chest muscles tensed, and I moaned wanting to run my fingers over him, to sink my nails into that taut skin while I rode him. But no, I wouldn’t be riding this time. Darke had complete power over me. Whatever he wanted to do, he would, and I just had to lie there and take it. He seemed to read my mind, and he grinned taking his cock into his hand. I followed his movements with my eyes while he pumped his cock all the way to the thick head and down to the base. He watched me with eyes that shifted to black and yellow. How could he think he couldn’t shape-shift with eyes like that? I didn’t worry about it. What I wanted was in his hand. I wanted it in mine, and surprisingly, in my mouth just like he had eaten me. I wanted to suck him, to make him cry out and come like he had done for me. “You want this?” he teased. I licked my lips. “You know I do. Darke, put it in me.” “Not yet, my love.”

My love. My heart shifted in my chest. That was a slip of the tongue. I know he didn’t like me, but I soaked up the false emotions from it all the same. No one loved me before I ran away from my abusive father seven years ago, and it was for sure no one would love me now. “You want to torment me?” I frowned. He shook his head. “No, baby. I want to know how much you want me.” I hesitated to mention Pierre, but it was for damn sure, Darke was a better lover, much better. Or it could be that Pierre had never licked me between the legs and ate me like I was the most amazing meal he’d ever eaten. No, Pierre would not enjoy my flavor above blood. That might be what appealed to me about Darke. He was both a mythical creature and human, what I craved almost as much as blood. My humanity. “I’ve never known a lover like you,” I admitted. “Your mouth is incomparable. Will your cock be better? I want it, Darke, more than anything right now.” “More than anyone?” He was jealous of Pierre, just as I thought. “Way more!” He positioned his cock at my opening and pushed my folds open. When his shaft sank deep, stretching me with its thick girth, I came a third time. He seemed barely able to maintain control himself at our joining. His nostrils flared, and his chest muscles expanded. He tucked his chin close to his body and closed his eyes. When he went still and didn’t stroke, I complained. “Give me a moment, Bella. Your pussy is so snug, so right, I’m trying not to come too soon. Ah, you feel good.” I wrapped my legs around him and tucked my heels against his ass. He eased back until only the head rested inside me. My teeth chattered with anticipation. He shoved his hips forward. His dick plowed deep. I screamed and came in a succession of orgasms that didn’t seem to be able to stop. Darke pumped in and out, grunted, and squeezed me. He flipped one of my legs up over his head to rest on his shoulder. My hips twisted a little to the left, and he withdrew, guided his cock to coat my ass, and pushed in there. My world went out of focus. The scent, the sounds of our bodies slapping together, drove me insane. After a few more grinds, Darke shouted his release like he was howling to the broken moon and then fell down on top of me. We laughed together, and he wrapped his arms around me to tuck me tight to his body. All the while, he whispered promises of there being much more where that came from.

Chapter Eight I woke to a creature’s scream that sounded like someone had just hacked off its foot. With caution, I peeled open the tent to find that it was night. I stepped out and searched the sky. All was in darkness. Even the moon was hidden behind clouds. “Follow it!” Darke yelled from somewhere nearby. I climbed the steep incline ahead of me and was surprised that on the other side was a short drop and miles of flat ground. Relief flooded me to see it, although I had to wonder how we missed the inhabitants of the mountains since we’d scoured it from top to bottom. Pierre and Darke, chasing something that I couldn’t make out, came into view below me. That was odd given that it was like daylight out here to me. It seemed as if the thing was made of darkness. It moved like black smoke at a frightening speed into the trees. The men followed close behind, Pierre almost floating above the ground. Darke disappeared into the trees and, a second later, came flying out to smack his head hard on the ground. The creature leaped on his chest and pummeled him. “No!” I stumbled down the loose rocks and closed the distance between us. Without a thought to my own safety, I ripped my nails across the thing’s back and tore open its leathery skin. It howled and swung an arm that when it made an impact with my stomach, felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to me. Bent in half, I balanced myself on one hand and willed my body to heal faster. The creature came at me. Behind it, Darke fought to get to his feet. The creature sent me rolling in the dirt a second time. Darke’s cry of “no” echoed mine when he had been hit. Through blurred vision, I watched helplessly as he fought the beast. Black eyes and black skin with two-inch-long curved claws that tore into my lover with ease were all I could make out with any clarity. Where was Pierre? As if on cue, another creature roared and the foliage parted. Pierre fought the second creature, and from the looks of him, he wasn’t faring much better than we were. We were in big trouble. A feminine scream rent the air, followed by a dragon’s roar. Darke threw himself on the beast’s back and put him in a full nelson. I was doubtful he could hold it. The thing would make a Lycarn look like a five-year-old girl. Knotted muscle bulged against Darke’s hold, but he didn’t lose his grip. He gasped. “Bella, please help my mother and Ness. Please.” I didn’t want to leave him, but I had no choice. He wouldn’t forgive me if I didn’t at least try to help the women. I spun away and headed toward the campsite. I wasn’t in the throes of hunger this time, so when I saw the dragon who hovered in the air and clawed the black creature, I knew it was a golden dragon. This one wasn’t ill.

I zipped up the hill and climbed over to the other side. Two dragons fought the beast, but the smaller was less skilled. The creature dodged the blows of the second dragon. I recognized Ness. Not far away, Harmony lay on the ground with her jaw clenched and pain in her eyes. She was a strong woman. She didn’t cry, but from what I could see, her leg was broken. A deep gash extended along the side of her face. I stopped dead before reaching her. The blood. I snapped my teeth together several times. “Can you get up? Find shelter?” I called to her. “Help me, damn it!” she screamed in a panic. “I need to get to my husband.” I stared at her and then turned back toward the golden dragon. This was Draco? The creature jumped into the air, landed on Draco’s side, and dug its claws in between the scales. Draco’s howl of pain let me know it had penetrated the hard barrier. So its claws were stronger than my teeth. “Bella!” I swung back to Harmony. “I can’t. You’re bleeding. If I come over there . . .” “Fight it! I can’t lose him again. I can’t.” When she cried, with great splotchy tears, I couldn’t deny her. I desired to know what it was like to love someone with that intensity or to be loved with that much fire. Such a thing seemed like a fairy tale. I swallowed hard, then hurried over to her and hauled her to her feet. She cried out in pain. My vision hazed over, but I fought it. I had never won out against the hunger before, so I didn’t hold much hope for this time either. “You’ll never be able to help him,” I told her. “Your leg is broken, and even the dragons are having a hard time with those creatures.” “We have to try.” She hopped along on one good leg beside me with her arm slung around my shoulders. When we drew nearer to the battle in which her husband was engaged, he glanced over at us and his nostrils flamed with fire at Harmony’s condition. I imagine he had further terror seeing me with fangs extended as I fought my own battle not to finish her off. Draco roared. He blew out fire that didn’t faze the creature one bit. In midair, he shapeshifted into some hideous, snakelike creature and wrapped himself around the beast. Somehow, he manipulated it to the end of his powerful tail and lifted it into the air to come smashing down on the ground. At last the black creature was dead.

Before I could sink my teeth into Harmony, Draco changed to his humanoid form and ran over to us. He snatched his wife out of my arms and shoved me backward. I sat on my rear and hissed at him as I took in his nakedness. He glared. “Stay behind me, Harmony. I’m not too tired to kill this vampire.” “Draco, wait!” Harmony cried out. I noticed she didn’t say I was a friend or anything else that would make him pause. He launched himself on me, but he hadn’t yet healed from the attack. Besides, I was faster. I dodged his body and moved to clip him. He fell hard on his back, and I landed on top of him. I caught his wrists when he would have tried to punch at me. My muscles ached with trying to hold him. Daring to take my eyes off him long enough to tease Harmony, I bared my teeth. She screamed for Darke. “Bella Donna, let him go!” I looked around to find Darke, none the worse for his fight, and Pierre, who looked like he could use a pint or two of blood. I released Draco. He jumped to his feet and would have come at me again if his son didn’t step between us. “Father, she’s an ally.” Draco didn’t appear to be convinced. I moved out from behind Darke to take in his father’s nakedness again. Darke frowned and blocked my view. “Mind putting some scales over that, Father?” I thought the older dragon would laugh at that or at least smile. His jaw tightened, and scales shimmered over his private parts. He spun away and flexed his shoulders. “See to your mother, Darke. And get the hell off this planet. As you’ve seen tonight, it’s not safe here.” He headed toward the low hill where Darke and Pierre had been fighting. “Draco!” Harmony’s anguish tore at me. It must have torn at him as well, because he stopped, shoulders stiff, head held high. Harmony grabbed a hold on Darke’s arm and hopped to Draco. She touched his back, and he cried out like she’d stabbed him. I imagined he craved her more than anything, but I didn’t know why he was denying himself his wife. Darke hadn’t shared all the details. I assumed it had something to do with his experience in the facility that I had been locked in on Earth. “Let me put it to you this way, Father,” Darke began. “You either leave here with us, or we die here with you.” Draco spun around, almost knocking the two of them off their feet. He reached out to catch Harmony. She stumbled against his chest. His mouth hovered above hers, and I struggled with my desires just watching them. “You don’t understand what you’re getting yourself

into,” he snapped. “These creatures hunt for food every twenty nights or so. And when they come out, they come in droves. You see how hard it was to defeat three. Imagine hundreds all at once. Those three were scouts. In two days, it will be night twenty. The only reason I survived was because I could fly away from them. Yet, here you are, Darke, with your motley crew. Two vampires, you, and your mother, all unable to fly. That leaves only Ness.” He mentioned poor Ness with disdain, as if she hardly counted because she’d gotten her butt kicked early in the fight. It was a good thing that she healed quickly. Darke was stubborn. “My resolve is firm, Father. You can be responsible for all our deaths or leave with us. It’s your choice.” Angry, Draco blew out a breath and ran a hand through his hair. He glanced down at Harmony, who looked at him like he had hung the broken moon. “Fine! But you’re responsible for your mother, Darke.” He roughly passed Harmony to Darke and climbed over the rocks in the direction we had trekked to get there. “You’d better be prepared to move fast. Two nights only.” My head filled with visions of hundreds of those creatures, and we had taken many days to get here because of me not being able to travel in the daylight. Maybe I would be the next one to die if they left me behind.

Chapter Nine With the day approaching fast, I had to think of something to do with Bella. I would not leave her behind, and we could not afford to lose the daylight hours. Ness could fly my mother to the ship, and Pierre would be fine in daylight, but my father couldn’t carry both me and Bella with the height he’d have to fly to get over the high peaks of the mountain. That left us on foot for most of the way. I could send Bella with him alone, but I didn’t trust that nothing would happen. For all I knew, my mother would convince my father to kill Bella. Or try to, and she would drain him, leaving my mother with a broken heart. As it was, I would have to figure out how to convince my father that my mother was not better off without him. While I contemplated what to do with Bella, my father pulled me aside from the others. “What’s her story, Darke? Why do you let her travel with you? She’s not like Pierre, who can walk in the daylight.” I narrowed my eyes on my father. I’d missed him. I hesitated to admit what Bella had gone through. I knew little of her story anyway. “She was experimented on. Pierre thinks his own blood, or one of his countrymen’s blood, was used to make her the way she is. She was born a human, on Earth.” My father’s eyes widened. “Who did this to her?” I looked away to the steep trail ahead. I pretended to concentrate on not falling over the rocks, but I was pretty athletic and had no trouble. I couldn’t think of a way to avoid answering since my father stared at me, so I told him the truth. “The Lycarn experimented on her. They made Bella a vampire. Her bite is poisonous. One prick of her fangs and you’re dead.” Draco let out a string of curses. “I don’t doubt they also raped her. Probably repeatedly.” My throat went dry, and my eyes blurred. I stumbled. My father caught my arm and waited for me to right myself. “I never thought of that.” I looked over at Bella. Her expression told me she had been listening. I’d forgotten that she had a heightened sense of hearing. I checked Pierre, but his back was to us. I had noticed Pierre hadn’t fed from Ness before I sent her off with my mother and wondered if Pierre ever lost control like Bella did. I turned my attention back to Bella. Had she been raped? Was she so coarse and mean, so cold to others, because of what the Lycarn had done to her? Compassion welled in me for her plight, but the hard fact was that she could never take a permanent lover, could never get married unless it was to a vampire from Pierre’s world or Pierre himself. I didn’t want him to have her, but I couldn’t have her either. Even if she did make Pierre a long-term lover, he’d always have to feed her if she chose not to kill. How many people had the Lycarn allowed her, pushed her, to kill?

She crossed over to my side, and Draco moved ahead of us. He had been a family man, all about his people. Now he was a loner. He held himself stiff, and I could almost feel his pain and loneliness. Bella must be that lonely, another life destroyed by the Lycarn and by humans. “Don’t,” Bella muttered. I looked down at her. “Don’t what?” Her lips tightened. “I see your compassion for me. Don’t bother. You’ll just give yourself agony. What I am is what I am. I’ve accepted it.” “Have you?” I reached out to touch her face and stopped myself. If my calculations were correct, by tomorrow night her hunger would be at a high. Fuck! And Pierre had not fed himself. “Why didn’t Pierre replenish his blood? He lost a lot in that fight with the creature.” She shrugged. “I don’t know. Seems like he’s punishing himself or something. I think he feels like he shouldn’t have taken this job, like he abandoned his motto of make the money, and move on to the next job.” I clenched my hands at my sides. “You seem to be getting to know him rather quickly.” “Jealous much?” She rolled her eyes. “He’s quiet. It’s only during sex that he’s chatty. He’s a weird one.” “Said the—” “Shut up.” She punched me. I rubbed my arm and checked the sky. “What am I going to do with you?” She tapped the tent rolled up on my backpack. “I sleep in there. Why not roll me up in it? If you make sure to cover all parts of my body, you can carry me. Think you’re strong enough?” I grunted. “I can carry you. You’re pretty small.” I took this as a good excuse to examine her curvy body, which called to mind what it had been like to fuck her. I wanted to again, and I intended to right after she fed. But maybe that would have to wait until we returned to the ship. Before we pulled out, I would need to talk to my father about the golden dragon Bella had seen. On one hand, I hoped she was wrong and there was not a golden dragon who seemed to have fallen ill. That would mean Orochi hadn’t stopped with his experiments that had caused the deaths of so many of the Drelconians in the past. On the other hand, I knew my

father and his brothers worried about my other uncles and the rest of the golden dragons. To know they were safe was paramount. “What about breathing, Bella? You can’t have your face sticking out, and this material is heavy. I know for a fact that you breathe like a human, unlike Pierre.” She offered me a sensual grin and threw me a kiss. I wanted the real thing. “You’ve been watching my chest, Darke? Don’t worry. I can go a long time without breathing. Hours.” I blinked at her but took her word for it, and we stopped to unpack the tent. In minutes, I had her rolled and secure like a mummy and strapped to my back. I worried until the sun rose, so I stopped to check her over. No scent of burning flesh permeated the air. Soon we arrived at the ship, and I rushed ahead of the others to get Bella inside. She fought against the holds, ripped at the tent to get free. I knew without seeing her eyes or mouth that she was in the grip of hunger. “Pierre,” I shouted when she was free. “Hold on, baby, he’s going to feed you.” She surged to her feet, threw off the last of the shredded material, and hissed at me. “I don’t want his blood. I want yours! Come here, human!” I held up my hands, palms down. “Baby, calm down. I’ll get you fed, but you can’t hurt anyone. Try to control—” She slammed into my chest and sent me hard to the floor at the same time that something shook the ship. I flipped Bella over and held her to the ground. She screamed. Another explosion hit the ship. “Brace yourselves, mes amours. We are under attack.” Pierre’s voice came over the loud speaker sounding like he was ready to cry. This must be déjà vu for him, just like the last time when his ship had been destroyed and he, my father, and my uncle had crash-landed on Shale. The ship sagged to one side, and Bella and I slid toward the wall. Before I could gain my feet and hold her, she wrapped her fingers around my neck and yanked me off my feet. Slammed against the wall, I gasped for a breath. My lover bared her fangs and closed in for the kill. “Don’t, Bella,” I gasped. “Baby, fight it. I know you don’t want to kill me.” My lungs burned for air. She tilted her head to the side and sniffed. “Mm, you smell so delicious. Why should I care? Why should I fight the hunger to save you?”

I stared at her in disbelief. “You’re right. Why should you?” With a knee to her hip, I sent her flying backward, but with the tilt of the floor, she slid back down to my feet. I hauled her up by her collar. She slit my arms with her sharp fingernails in the struggle to free herself from my hold. My skin healed each time she sliced me, but not without pain. I winced. Slinging Bella around until her back faced me, I braced us both when another hit on the craft tore a hole in the hull just above us. The engines that Pierre had tried to ignite failed, so that we were sitting ducks in the field where we had landed days earlier. I didn’t have more than a millisecond to react to the breach. Even then, it was too late. A man dropped down through the hole and squeezed off a round of the gun in his hand. All the world was as if in slow motion. I looked down at my chest and was shocked to see the shimmer of golden scales, but the bullet cut through them before they had settled into place. The tiny silver projectile passed through my skin into my heart. Bella screamed when I sank to my knees, as the blood she craved was spreading over my chest. I blinked once, and all went black.

Chapter Ten Harmony I woke up to find my husband looking down at me with anguish in his eyes. Even with so much worry and so many years that had passed, he looked the same as he did when I first met him. Powerful and strong, sexy and handsome. My heart beat faster, and I had visions of the many times we had made love. That thought brought to mind what Shannon had told me of my own husband’s experiences being imprisoned on Earth, experiences that were related to her by her husband, Ryuu. The Lycarn ambassador had forced him to have sex with her the entire time he had been her prisoner. Not just a woman forcing herself on a man, but a beast, rough and cruel. She had destroyed what I thought could never be separated from him—his pride, his confidence, his being a Drelconian lord. I pushed myself to a sitting position and winced at the pain in my leg. Yet, it was dulled. Someone must have given me painkillers. “Draco?” He would have turned away, but I reached out for him with tears in my eyes and desperation in my voice. “Don’t, please Draco. I hate being without you. I can’t do it.” “Harmony . . .” His tone held the same agony. At least I knew he still loved me. “And I can’t come back. I’ve betrayed your love.” “How is that? By being a prisoner?” I wouldn’t let his arm go. To shake me loose, he would have to shove me and make me fall. He sank to the bed, a resigned expression on his face. My proud lover sobbed, his head bowed. “She made me come, Harmony. I am ashamed. She did it often, stroking me. And after she did that, she would hurt it just for fun. The process seemed to go on and on. It did go on. All because I healed instantly.” He ran a hand over his face. “I can’t forget.” “And I won’t give you up.” I inched closer to him. My breast brushed his arm, and he stiffened. “I will follow you, if you try to run. I’ll hire Pierre as my permanent pilot.” I tried to grin but failed. All I wanted was to cry. “I’m a rich woman. I can keep him paid the rest of my life.” Draco’s eyes widened “With my money?” This time I did smile. “What’s yours is mine, right?” He didn’t answer. I reached beneath his arm and stroked his cock. It hardened and grew under my hand. He groaned. “Harmony, don’t.”

I kept at it. “I don’t pretend to know what you’re feeling, my love. But I know I love you with all my heart. I know without a doubt that I can make you feel good. I’m willing to spend the rest of my life showing you, helping you to heal mentally.” He didn’t fight too hard when I unzipped his pants and reached inside. His cock twitched in my hand when I wrapped my fingers around it. I ran my hand from the base to the tip and back again. He caught his breath and growled. “You shouldn’t.” “I should.” I pushed him, with little resistance, to his back. “Your leg,” he said in a half-hearted attempt to put me off. I leaned down and covered his shaft with my mouth. He grabbed hold of the bedpost and growled low in his throat, just as he had done that first night we made love. I checked his eyes, and just like I remembered, they shifted colors. Running my tongue along his stiff erection, I savored his flavor, remembering how good it was to drink from him. With the ease of practice, I let him slide deep into my throat. I sucked but not hard. He’d had rough. He needed gentleness now. He needed my love. Releasing him, I rained kisses down to his tender sacks and gave them attention as well. I licked each ball and sucked them one at a time into my mouth. Draco’s hips rocked. He stroked my hair and cried out my name. “Mm, Harmony. Suck me, please, my love. I need you.” My heart constricted and then I was flying, with joy threatening to burst out of my chest. I took him into my mouth and stroked up and down. Increasing the pace, I sucked harder. He took my head in both hands and pumped into my mouth. He slid down my throat. I caught hold of his balls and massaged them. They drew up higher. Draco blew out a breath. “I’m coming, Harmony. Baby, drink me!” His come burst into my mouth and filled it to overflowing. I swallowed the thick, salty liquid as fast as I could and drew on him for more. When I had drained him, I released his shaft, gave it a last kiss, and sat up. He sat up, leaned forward, and carefully placed me higher on the bed. “I’m so glad they put us together. I love you, Harmony. Forgive me. If you’ll have me in spite of what I did, I’ll never leave your side again.” I grinned at him. “One blow job and you’re mine again? Damn, I’m good.” The old arrogant eyebrow rose, and humor sparkled in his eyes. “Oh no, wife. That was only the beginning of my healing. You have a lot of work to do. After I have eaten you and

pumped you full of my seed until you pass out, then I will see about getting us free from these foolish rebels.” I giggled like a schoolgirl. “Well, one must have one’s priorities straight.” **** I woke chained in a cage like an animal. When I glanced down, I was surprised to see the bullet that had penetrated my chest lying atop my skin and covered in dried blood. Had I really been shot and had healed from it? Never before had I exhibited such extreme healing. I had a few scars from deeper cuts to prove it. Although I had always healed to some extent, the medical arts staff on Shale had assured me any fatal injury would be just that—fatal. I did not have full Drelconian abilities. But they had been wrong. My body had pushed the bullet out. An ear-piercing scream jarred me from the wonder of my body to remembering that the last time I had seen Bella, she had been in bondage to extreme hunger. And she had just cried out somewhere nearby. Whoever had taken us had not deigned to let her feed. I stood up, ignoring the clink of the bullet falling to the cement floor, and strolled over to the bars to test their strength. “Hey! Anyone out there?” I yelled toward the door. “Hello?” The door opened, and a man stepped inside. He ducked his dark head beneath the top of the low doorframe and stood watching me in silence. The confusion, the questions that rippled over his features, must be mirrored by my own. I had to blink a few times before I realized this was not my father. “Who are you?” he demanded. I ignored the question. “You must be one of the Drelconian lords.” I took in his waistlength black hair braided down his back, his broad shoulders, blue eyes, and perfect features. He was a few inches taller than Draco, though, but he could not deny the relationship. “I asked you a question,” he growled, coming to the bars and gripping them in his hands. “Your nephew. Which uncle are you?” His eyes grew wide, and then he sneered. “A half-breed. Half-human. Draco’s brat, no doubt.” He spat on the floor, completely unlike the dignified lords I had been learning about all my life. Ryuu had always been down-to-earth, the expression my mother had taught me years ago, and Tav was just quiet. But I had assumed all the rest were like my father—a little snobbish and they wouldn’t be caught dead doing some of the things Ryuu did. This guy fit with the snobbery, but to spit in disgust was odd. “So, you hate me because of my mother?”

He eyed me in silence for a while before he spoke again. “I hate you because you’ve got human in you. Stupid, weak humans. I would kill them all if I had my way.” “Well, you didn’t succeed in killing me, as you can see.” I put a finger through the bullet hole in my shirt. “Now, if you’ll let me go, I can see to my people.” He laughed. “Your people? You mean your parents, that weak little dragon woman, and the vampire?” My head felt like it would pop. “Vampire. Not vampires?” Maybe he didn’t know Pierre was one. He’d kept us in the dark a long time. “One. A woman. Sexy as anything. Maybe I’ll enjoy her before I put a stake through her heart.” I rushed over and reached between the bars, but he stepped back before I could take hold of him. I gripped the bars so hard my knuckles turned white and my fingers ached. “If you touch her, I will kill you.” He burst out laughing. “Why are you holding us? We’re your people.” “You’re not my people, and Draco abandoned us long ago. He made it clear that he cared more for that bitch he fathered you with than about his family.” He turned away and crossed to the door. With his hand on the knob, he cast me a dark look that let me know our time was limited. “Don’t worry. You’ll be out of here in no time.” His laughter continued until the door clicking closed cut off the sound. I would need to find a way of escape. And when I did, I would have to find someone to sacrifice. Shame washed over me for the thought, but I knew I would do it. I was going to find someone for Bella to feed from. I paced for a good hour before someone else stepped into the room. The man looked human. He smelled human. But how could that be if, as far as we knew, no humans had left Earth other than to live on Orel-X Four—and that base had been abandoned? “Who are you?” I asked when he set a tray of food down near the bars. He cast a resentful look at me and turned away. “Another one. One of them, aren’t you? I’m John.” At that moment, Bella let out another heart-wrenching cry. The yell and the crash following it made John jump. I sniffed the air. He did smell human. I had found Bella’s next meal.

Chapter Eleven Her eyes were coal black and looked like she couldn’t possibly see out of them, but as I ran hunched over and low so no one would see me approaching her cage, they followed my movement. She was a predator watching and waiting to make her strike. The crash I’d heard was from someone breaking through the wall that led outside the room she occupied. What pissed me off was that in doing so, they had exposed her to daylight. There were burns on her lovely face that hadn’t healed. I wanted to choke someone for it, but I had already broken every moral code that had ever been instilled in me from a child. I had knocked John unconscious, and right now, he lay on the edge of the settlement until I could lead Bella to him. Residual to whatever changes had taken place in me over the last few hours was increased strength. I forced the lock on Bella’s cage and pulled it open. She lay on her back with her head to the side. Now that I was up close, I realized that all she was able to move was her eyes. She was fading fast. Her chest didn’t move. I stooped down to check her pulse and couldn’t find one. I had no idea if her chest had always moved without a pulse or pumping blood, but I let it go because she was alive. The buttons on her blouse were all torn off, and her pants were opened and low on her narrow hips. Fear gripped me. “No. Please no. Baby, did someone . . .” I couldn’t bring myself to say it. My uncle couldn’t have followed through on his threat, could he? Swallowing my panic, I lifted her in my arms and held her close, but not so close she would find the energy to bite me. We made it to the end of the line of simple square buildings, and I was surprised not to find a sentry or guards flying overhead to patrol the area. Maybe the golden dragons weren’t worried about invaders. When I paused at the end of the street, I peered at the sky. Two full moons. Both red. This was not the planet where we had found my father, but I remembered seeing a blue planet a quarter of a light-year away from the one where we had tracked Draco. I had wanted to explore here. Now that I had the chance, I wanted to be anywhere else. In the place I had left the man—I had dispensed with thinking of him by his name to cut down on my guilt—I laid Bella down and moved the guy over to her. She didn’t take him. I supported her head and put her mouth to his neck. Very slowly, her lips parted, her fangs descended, and she bit down. She drew on his life blood and moaned. To my disgust, I grew hard listening to her. Her hips rocked, and I stroked her belly, wanting nothing more than to strip her and sink my cock to the hilt in her tight pussy. But I resisted. I still didn’t know if my uncle had raped her, and I would not make it worse if he had. ****

I tried blinking away the last of the itch in my eyes now that I had fed some, but it wouldn’t quite dissolve. I hadn’t drunk enough. This man, whoever he might be, was sick. His blood was bitter. It wouldn’t affect me, but I couldn’t take what I needed. Darke helped me to sit up, and I shook him off. “Get away from me, dragon,” I growled. He frowned. “What’s your problem, Bella? I just saved your life.” “And what? I owe you?” I sneered in hopes of disgusting him. I leaned into the light so he could see fully what I was with the blood staining my mouth. “You stupid man! You’ve sacrificed him for me.” I jerked my head in the direction of the man lying dead beside me. “How do you think you’ll feel in the light of day? Justified? No, you’ll hate me for what I am, because I’ll never be human. I’ll never be like you! I’d just as soon rip your throat out as his.” My words sunk in. His nostrils flared. “So you have no feeling for me at all.” “None!” “You cold bitch!” “Go to hell.” He raised a hand as if he would hit me, but he didn’t. My eyes bled. The wounds on my face hadn’t healed. I needed blood. Rich, healthy blood. On my haunches and balancing with my clawed fingers digging in the dirt, I sniffed the air. They smelled like humans, but there was that spice, that sickness in their blood. All of them were the same. But there were also Drelconians here. Their blood was rich and healthy. I would find the bastards that had laughed at me while I burned in the sunlight, and I would drain them. Darke reached for me, his expression telling me he had figured out my plan. I knocked his hand away, shoved him on his ass, and ran. I stiffed the air again. Fifty yards, on the next street. I was sure of it. The evil man who called himself Ketu had tried to force himself on me. He had underestimated my remaining strength. He would pay with his life. I tore the door off its hinges to find a one-room house with a small twin-size bed in the corner. Ketu occupied it, lying atop Ness. Her legs were wrapped around his waist, and his disgusting cock was buried inside her. From her moans that I had heard before barging in, I’d say the sweet innocent was a phony. She was a dirty whore. I leaped from the floor to the bedpost, balancing there and hissing at them both. “You know you will die tonight?” Ketu’s arrogance didn’t lessen. He thought he could take me from the smirk on his face. Ness screamed. “Please, wait, Bella.”

I ignored her and launched myself at Ketu. He tried to kick me away, but the intense hunger had taken control. I had no mercy, no sense of right and wrong, just the craving. In seconds, he was dead, his throat destroyed. My hunger was satisfied, but I turned to Ness anyway. I had hated that she got to fuck Darke any time she wanted. Yet, she threw herself at first Pierre, then the dead dragon at my feet. Not that I was sexually faithful in this cursed form. Jealousy had no real reason to it. I landed on her chest. Her arms grew into dragon’s legs, but I pinned her down with my bare feet and laughed at her. “I am at my strongest when I’ve just fed. You’ve already proven what a weak little whoring bitch you are. You don’t deserve Darke.” “And neither do you.” I spun around to find him in the doorway. Before I could react, he was across the room and shoved something into my stomach. I screamed at the burn and fell off of Ness onto the floor. “What did you do?” Another Drelconian appeared in the doorway. “Don’t worry, darling. Just a little something to calm you. You won’t die.” He grinned, but there was a coldness that matched my own in his eyes. “I am Orochi, Drelconian elder and supreme leader of the golden dragons.” My eyes widened. I looked at Darke. His expression was grim. He didn’t say anything but turned and left the house. Two other Drelconian men stepped into the house. One sobbed at finding Ketu and lifted him in his arms to carry out. The other sent me across the room with the back of his hand, then lifted my weakening body and slung me over his shoulder. I was going to be locked up again. And this time, I didn’t doubt they would kill me. **** They chained me to a post in the middle of the square, at the center of their settlement. I peered at the sky. No light shone on the horizon. The nights here were longer, but I didn’t doubt that eventually the sun would rise, and I would die. Whatever drug Orochi had convinced Darke to shoot into my bloodstream had me subdued. Anyone could come along and do whatever they wanted to me. Of course, “convinced” was probably not the word I should use for Darke. I had told him he didn’t matter, that he was just another meal like everyone else. I imagined he also didn’t take it too well to find out his companion had been screwing every dick she could get her hands on. He should have let me end her, too. Harmony came up to me, hobbled and on crutches someone had fashioned from wood. She looked like she might spit in my face, but she didn’t.

“So, they let you out of your cage. Did you do what your son did? Pledge allegiance to the supreme leader of the golden dragons?” Her lips tightened. I continued to antagonize her. “Did you forget the sick dragon I found on that other planet? Where do you think he was going? How did he get there?” I paused, waiting for her to answer, but she remained stubbornly silent. “My guess is he was like me, an experiment Orochi wasn’t happy with. He was dumped over there to be eaten by those creatures. A Drelconian, one of their own. You know they hate humans. And it looks like all loyalty has gone. What do you think they’ll do to you, Harmony?” Her face reddened. The gash on her jaw had been sown, but she wasn’t a healer, and she hadn’t been beautiful before the injury. The scar would make it worse. I hated her and everybody else. I was surprised when tears filled my eyes. I tried to blink them away. “Shut up!” She shoved me, and my back thumped the post, but I didn’t get hurt. I waited for her to admit what she wanted. I knew there was something. “You want him.” I looked up at the sky, whistling. “You’ll have to be more specific, Harmony.” She sighed. “You want Darke. I know you do. He told me about what you said, that he doesn’t matter to you, that he’s just another meal. But in his anger, he missed the fact that you didn’t kill him. You left him unhurt and went after Ketu.” I shrugged. “A favor returned. Nothing more.” She shook her head and glanced around. No one paid us any mind. They probably thought she hated me as much as they did. She was just another person stopping by to torment me until the sun came up. “You don’t fool me,” she whispered. “I know you want him. I saw it in your eyes when you never stopped looking at him the whole time we were on that other planet.” “I was feeling a little peckish.” “Don’t lie to me,” she screamed and then lowered her voice. “Look, I’m not an idiot. My husband loves his people with all his heart. He had been desperate to find the golden dragons. Now that we have, he’ll do whatever he needs to do to form an alliance with them again. Even if that means allowing for . . . Orochi’s experiments.” She looked bitter. “The people here. You’ve noticed them. They look human. I think maybe they’re descendents. Anyway, I heard that they are all sick.” I rolled my eyes. “I know this.”

She smacked me. I hissed at her, but she didn’t back down. “Bella, you help me, and I’ll help you. I figure eventually they’ll turn on me, and Draco, well . . .” She gestured to her face, and tears spilled down her cheeks. “I don’t expect he will love me long with these beautiful female dragons around.” “Why should I give a shit about that!” She looked like she would hit me again, but I opened my mouth, giving her a clear indication that I would make contact with her flesh if she dared. She lowered her hand and grumbled. “Darke is half-human. Do you really think Orochi will accept him here? He won’t. He’ll find a reason to kill him, either openly or by ‘accident.’ I want my son alive. So, what I want to know is, will you help him? Will you take him away from here?” I eyed her. Her shoulders shook, and she fought not to sob so loud someone would notice. “Him. What about you?” She shook her head, sniffing. “Draco isn’t ready to walk away from them again, and I’m never willingly leaving him again. He’ll have to throw me away before I will go.” Wondering what I would do, what I could do being outnumbered and saddled with the responsibility of a man who wasn’t about to leave his parents behind, I fell silent. Harmony had dropped her pride to come to me on the off-chance I wanted Darke enough to do her a favor. She seemed not to think about the fact that I could hardly force the man to get what I wanted from him. My guess was, she hoped I’d convince him to leave, and that he would then kill me for killing his uncle. I wanted another chance at that rejection. “Okay, I’ll do it,” I told her. “Get me out of these cuffs, and I’ll get Darke to safety.”

Chapter Twelve I stood across the street in the shadows, watching her until the settlement died down and most people had gone back to bed. They were confident that she had no allies here, that no one would help her to escape. I imagined that they had also set their clocks to wake up just before sunrise to watch the show. I told myself that I wanted her dead, but I had met Ketu, and there had been no love lost between us. My father, on the other hand, was heartbroken. This was one more thing in his life of pain, it seemed. I glanced up and down the empty square, then I crossed to her and stood close so that my body brushed hers. Her chest rose and fell, which caused her nipples to grazing my chest through the thin material of her blouse. I tried to remember if she had worn a bra before, because she didn’t have one on now. Then I remembered Ketu. “Did he rape you?” No warmth eased the bark of my words. “What do you care?” “Come on, Bella. Don’t start feeling sorry for yourself now.” I snatched her chin up and resisted kissing her. “Did he or didn’t he?” She appeared to wrestle with whether to issue a scathing remark or to just tell me the truth. Truth, I hoped, won out. “I tried to smash his nuts. It’s a wonder he was in any condition to fuck Ness.” She rolled her eyes. “Oh, yeah, your people heal.” I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing over her ramming her knee in my uncle’s nuts. One thing was for sure, she gave as well as she got. She took the twitch of my lips for hurt over Ness. “It’s better you found out what a whore she is now, rather than later. You know, before you fell in love with her.” Her wide eyes didn’t fool me. She was asking a question of her own. “Well?” she demanded. “Well what?” I cupped the side of her breast and leaned back a little so I could run my thumb over her nipple. She moaned. I pushed her shirt wider to examine her breasts. They were small, but perfectly shaped and high. I ran my hand down between us and cupped her mound. She arched her hips toward me and squeezed my hand between her legs. “Are you going to do me here, or release me and we can go somewhere else?” I didn’t answer. Nor did I move. I was so worked up just being near her, I had to concentrate on breathing to keep from shooting out into my pants. Some insanity made me stroke her face, trace her soft pink lips, and then point my finger at her mouth. “Suck it!”

She gasped and turned her head. “You know I can’t do that.” I grasped her chin and forced her head back. “Do it, Bella.” She swallowed a few times and then opened her mouth. Her fangs were there but not extended. Trembling, she took my finger in, and all I could see was her mouth wrapped around my cock, her taking it deep and sucking me off. I sagged against her, let my erection press into her stomach. She moaned but kept sucking. When she drew back to run her small pink tongue over my fingertip, I was lost. I pulled my finger from her and reached up to shatter the lock in my hand. She gaped. “How did you?” “It happened when I got shot. Something opened in me, inside my head, and extended to my body.” “I knew all along you could shift,” she breathed. “Your eyes were shifting from the first time I saw you.” I didn’t address what she said. Instead I broke her ankles free and changed into a dragon. The world seemed suddenly smaller, but that might have something to do with the fact that my ass had just expanded and I’d gained a couple tons of weight. Offering my knee to Bella, I waited, and she climbed on my back. I blew out a breath of fire for a sigh and growled too loud. She laughed, patting my neck. “Someone needs practice. If you drop me, I will kick your ass.” “You’d break your foot,” I grumbled. I stretched toward the sky, and we were suddenly in the air. My powerful wings pumped the air with small effort. It seemed being a dragon came without effort. I was born to it, I thought with wonder. Yet, even as wonderful as it was, I couldn’t wait to find somewhere safe to make love to her. She had lied. I know she lied about me not being important to her. The fact that she had sucked my finger without biting me meant something. And I would spend the rest of the night proving it to her. **** We couldn’t land soon enough. When Darke found a green spot, open for him to land in his dragon form, but comfortable enough for lovemaking, with grass and trees, I jumped off his back and landed on my feet. He dropped like a bomb and changed to yank me into his arms. “Are you crazy? Are you okay?” He examined my body, his concern getting waylaid by my bare breasts peaking through my open blouse. I found myself just as unsettled by his nakedness. He had torn out of his clothes when he shape-shifted.

“I’m fine.” I wiggled my breasts for his pleasure. “I can’t fly, but I can jump as high as you were flying just now.” He stared in awe. “Tell me more about yourself, Bella. Tell me everything.” I clammed up, but he wouldn’t let it go. He dragged me down to the ground and pulled me onto his lap. I kept my mouth pressed closed, but he teased my belly and made me lay with my back against his chest while he lay down with a hand tucked behind his head. This felt right. “My mother died of cancer when I was twelve,” I admitted. He squeezed me around the middle. “I guess in so many ways, she was our whole world. Neither of us could function without her.” I shrugged. “I flunked every class possible, and he . . .” Darke sat up and pushed a hand inside my blouse. He caressed my breast, causing sensations of pleasure to steal my concentration, while he nibbled my earlobe. I thought he had let it go, but he didn’t. “What about him? How did your father react to the loss?” I wrenched myself from his arms and stood up. “What are you, a psychiatrist? Damn. Am I supposed to let the healing begin by talking to you?” He didn’t answer, nor did he try to touch me. I was somewhat lost without his touch as well. I grumbled as I stared at the starry sky. “He tried to beat his memory of her, out of me.” “Oh, no, Bella. I’m sorry.” He stood up but I held him off with my hands raised. “It’s not a big deal.” “It is,” he insisted. I smirked at the tenderness in his eyes. “Well, now you know why I’m such a bitch. It has nothing to do, or little to do, with what I am. I was already hateful before the Lycarn cornered me on a street one night. I think they had been following me a while. They knew I had no one.” I glanced at Darke. “I’d run away when I was fifteen, lived on the streets. The usual thing.” He closed the space between us and encircled me in his arms. I didn’t fight him this time, enjoying the warmth of his arms, if only for a while. We couldn’t be long-term lovers. I’d screw up and bite him, and then have to live with it for the rest of however long I was going to live. The Lycarn had said it would be pretty long. I wasn’t exactly dead, but not living in the normal way either. Darke lowered his head toward mine. “Give me a kiss, Bella.” I pushed him back. “Are you out of your mind? Do you have a death wish?” Fear shook me.

“You lied.” His eyes narrowed on my lips. A man like him would enjoy kissing. With soft full lips like his, why wouldn’t he? I wanted to taste them in the worst way, but I wouldn’t give into it. He ran a finger over my mouth, tempting me. “You said I’m nothing more than a meal.” “Darke, stop.” I sagged against his chest. “You can’t be this broken up over your uncle.” Pinning him with a glare, I reminded him of what a demon I was. “You do remember that I killed him, in cold blood. Just a few hours ago. And when the sun comes up, I’m dead. Don’t be stupid. Unlike me, you’ve lived the life of a prince.” “How do you know?” Resentment colored his beautiful eyes. “Haven’t you?” He murmured under his breath. When I stared, he spoke louder. “I guess I have. Yes, I’ve lived a life of privilege, and when the time came for me to follow in my father and my uncle Ryuu’s footsteps, leading my people, I like to think that I did well.” One of my eyebrows rose. “But?” “But I am incomplete. Or I was.” He grinned. “You, being a pain in my ass, have pushed me to uncover my dragon side at last.” Throwing his head back, he exposed his throat. I licked my lips but looked away when he met my eyes again. “Damn, how liberating that is. To fly like we just did? I never imagined it was that good.” “I can’t take credit for putting a bullet in you.” “But fighting with you distracted me so that someone else did.” He cupped both sides of my face and held me in place. I shivered, enjoying his touch too much. “Now, my night beauty, give me another thrill. Kiss me.” “Darke.” He covered my mouth, took my bottom lip, and sucked it. I groaned. From habit, my fangs came down, but I fought to keep control of myself. Not easy when he pushed his long tongue into my mouth and twirled it with mine. I hadn’t been kissed before. Not before the experiments and certainly not after. Clinging to him, I drank in the goodness that was Darke. I could go all night just tasting his warm mouth that grew hotter the longer we kissed. After a while, he drew back just a quarter of an inch and ran that snakey tongue over my fangs, careful to avoid the sharp points. I gasped at his boldness. He chuckled low in his throat, and the laughter turned to a predatory growl. His lips parted. His teeth were two rows of sharp white daggers. I fell back.

“You’re not the only one who has sharp teeth.” He squatted in front of me while I sat on my rear staring up at him. With a flick of his fingers, he separated the two sides of my blouse to uncover my tattoo. “Tell me about this,” he commanded. My heart pounded. What a rush, a turn-on when he was exhibiting the dragon. He had been arrogant and commanding all along, but right now, I could come with this half-beast teasing me. “My mother was foolish enough to name me Isabella Donna. After the Lycarn gave me the poisonous bite, they thought it would be funny to tattoo me with ‘Bella Donna,’ like the poisonous plant. Weird, huh?” “That’s behind you.” He moved around me and encircled my waist. When he slid one hand down to unbutton my pants, my heart kicked up a notch. My zipper was lowered, and he inched his hand inside past the barrier of my panties. He caught his breath. “Mm, seems someone’s wet for me.” “How can I help it? You’re naked.” I pressed against his body. “And your cock is poking my back.” “I’d like to poke it somewhere else.” I hissed and rested my head on his shoulder. “I’m not sure about this, Darke. The last time you had me chained down. I smell your blood. Each time I am sexually excited, I am instantly hungry for blood. I want you in every way. But—” “But you don’t want to hurt me?” “Darke.” To my shock, he kept one hand buried in my pussy and lifted the other to his mouth. His sharp teeth sunk through the skin at the side of his hand, and he winced. Thick red blood bubbled into his palm. My mouth went dry, and my eyes shifted. I would have ripped his arm off to get at his wound, but he held me off with a strength I hadn’t experienced in anyone, even the Lycarn. With my head held in place on his shoulder, he lifted his hand above my mouth and let his blood drip inside. I let it fill my mouth without swallowing, wanting only to savor him. Not just the life-sustaining liquid, but Darke himself. While I swallowed a little at a time, Darke shoved my pants down over my hips, and I kicked them away. He wrapped an arm around my waist and hoisted me higher along his body. Without his guidance, his rigid cock glided into my pussy. Starbursts of absolute ecstasy rocketed through my body.

He pumped deep inside me and pulled back. Just the friction of our bodies slapping together sent me over the edge. I came in seconds, but Darke didn’t stop. He squeezed my mound and played with my clit. I screamed another orgasm. “Don’t stop. Don’t stop,” I chanted. He lowered me to the ground to stand on my feet and then bent me forward. Flipping my shirt higher, he caressed my ass, smacked it once and traced the contours of it until he came to my tight hole. Memories of his mouth there licking me sent shivers over my back. I wanted it again. He sank to his knees. “What do you want me to do, Bella?” “You know, damn it.” “Tell me.” I shuddered, fighting for control. “I want you to lick my ass.” “Your wish is my command.”

Chapter Thirteen I had left them all the first chance I got, especially Bella, knowing she needed to drink from me to survive without killing someone. I had stolen one of the smaller ships the golden dragons had landed on that horrible planet where we were. Now, I was ashamed, but I had considered it the best for all. Except . . . I craved her. Watching him fuck her, drop to his knees, and lick her tight petit ass made me hard. Hidden in the trees, I unzipped my pants and pulled my cock free. Sex had been très bon with her. I wanted more. I wanted to take her from him. In silence, I moved closer, dropped to my haunches and ran a hand the length of my shaft while his tongue circled her ass. From my position, I caught every shiver that rocked her small body. Every moan that escaped her throat went through me. She bucked and pushed back against his mouth. He held her hips and ate her like she was the most incredible meal. I had never sampled her in that way, but found myself imagining it was my tongue teasing her. My name falling from those pink bow lips. Pink. He had fed her? Impossible. He would die if she bit him. Jealousy raged in me, but I couldn’t stop watching. I rested my upper back on a tree and pushed my hips forward the moment he shoved his cock into her ass. She shouted “Yes, harder!” and I ground forward, squeezing and tugging my dick. It was me pumping into her, fucking her harder until she pleaded with me to stop. But I wouldn’t. I owned her. She cried out. I heard my name on her lips, and my come exploded into the brush. No, into her cool body, filling her. I sighed my satisfaction, and where they now lay curled into each other, he lifted his head to listen. Biding my time, I backed away to wait. Soon my lover would join me on my home world as my wife. **** I ran my fingers over Bella’s nipples and reveled in the feel of the taut buds beneath my palms. She moaned. I had kept my cock inside her, never wanting to separate from her again. I was pathetic, I knew, but I was also lost. She was what I didn’t know I was looking for. “Bella.” “Hmm?” She sounded sleepy, but I had noticed that if it was night, she didn’t sleep no matter how little rest she had. How we would function together, I didn’t know, but I would try. I wanted to tell her that I thought we could make a go of it, but I hesitated. Maybe this wasn’t the right time. Not with everyone against her, and expecting I would let her burn. I sighed. I couldn’t broach the subject just yet.

“I smell water. I think there’s a lake nearby. Do you want to bathe in it?” She chuckled. “You mean do I want you to fuck me in the water?” I laughed. “That too.” She nodded, and I let myself slide out of her. We both groaned in protest. I clutched her close and shifted forms to leap into the air. She made a little “oh” sound. “You’re getting good at this.” “You make me good.” I bit down on a grumble. I hadn’t meant to say that. I did not want her to know how lost I was for her. Despite everything she had shared and all we had done together, there was still a certain coldness in her voice. She didn’t want to risk being hurt. At least I hoped that was the reason, and not that she couldn’t love me. Love. Was I really talking about love here? So soon, so suddenly? I hesitated to explore that line of thinking. She didn’t respond to my words, and I didn’t expect her to. I was relieved when she didn’t. The lake was less than a mile away. We set down on the bank, and I watched as she tossed her shirt away. “Ready?” Her eyes were still all black. I felt in my body that my blood had been replenished. The wound had healed. I wanted to feed her again. It had been a turn-on. I took her hand and led her into the water. She followed, docile like she wasn’t the wild, independent woman I knew she was. I took her by her tiny waist, curving her body to my groin. Her skin was pale, but soft. I ran my hands over the smooth surface, caught the rigid tips of her breasts in a pinch. Her lips parted, and her head went back. I washed her first and then myself. When the water was too chilly causing goose bumps to pop out on my body, some instinct made me raise my body temperature. She cried out. I jumped. “What is it, baby? What’s wrong?” She moved back from me. “Too hot. The water is too hot!” I couldn’t believe the loss I felt. We were opposites in the most extreme sense. She couldn’t take the heat, and I couldn’t take the cold. How the hell were we going to come together? Rather than give in to melancholy, I lowered my temperature and fought off a shiver. “Okay, maybe the water wasn’t such a good idea. I’m sorry.” She didn’t answer but spun away and headed back to the bank. She used the shirt to dry her body. While I was a ways off and her back was to me, I tested my fire and blew some down over my body. The beads of water were gone in an instant.

I moved up behind her. She stood looking into the trees. “Did you hear something?” she whispered. “No.” I sharpened my teeth, bit my wrist, and offered it to her. She gasped. “Darke, don’t do that.” “Eat, Bella.” She licked the blood and whimpered. “I want to bite you. I drink better through my fangs. Darke, why do you keep risking your life to feed me? You don’t seem to get that I’m a monster. You can’t trust a monster.” Despite her complaint, she sucked until my wound closed. I laid her down on the grass and, sitting between her legs, just took in her beauty. So pale, so perfect, I could have her captured in a painting and lose myself daily watching her. Damn, I was getting sappy. I lifted her legs and watched her pussy open. I licked my lips when her come coated her entrance for me. When I ran a finger in the thick wetness and sucked it off, she squirmed. With my thumbs, I parted her folds to examine her clit. Swollen and distended, it tempted me. I scooted back and lowered my head to have a taste. She yelped. I imagined the bud was tender, but I latched on anyway and sucked it between my lips. I loved turning her on. Tremors rippled over her thigh and stomach muscles. I sucked harder, pulled back, and flicked the bud with my tongue. More come descended. I lapped it up, running my tongue along her labia, dipping inside her, and then teasing her thighs with little nips. When I stopped, she complained, but I couldn’t hold myself anymore. I had to have her. I sat up and readied my cock. I was so hard it ached. I roved the head over her wet opening. She bucked to get me inside, but I held off until I thought I would come before I sank into her. I couldn’t have that. Pressing at the pink entrance made my head slide inside. I gasped. She felt like heaven. I eased in a little deeper. She lifted her head to look at me. Her eyes glowed. The look freaked me out a little, but I wasn’t giving her up. This glowing woman was all mine. I sank to the hilt and paused. My breaths heavy and noisy in the dark night, I waited for a return of my control so I wouldn’t release in her. I had to hold her hips still, because she tried to wiggle to get me to move. “Just a sec, baby.” “Come on, Darke. Fuck me, now,” she begged. Even her sexy voice drove me insane. I had no choice.

I took her hips in a firmer grip and pounded in and out of her. Her screams of “Yes!” sent birds to flight and produced an answering growl from an animal nearby. I couldn’t stop now if I tried. My balls slapped her ass while I drove in. Her bouncing breasts mesmerized me. So did her pink lips. “Bella, my love. Baby, I can’t get enough of you.” Her back arched up off the grass. Lying flat on top of her, I thrilled in the feel of her nipples grazing my chest hair. I exploded inside her, my come too warm, but her cry of joy and the contraction of her pussy muscles didn’t lessen. We pounded together for a few minutes longer with aftershocks. At last we slowed our thrusts. I kept her beneath me, stared down into her eyes, and wanted to dominate her. She gave herself to me, but there was still a defiance there. My time with her would come to an end. The only time I had cried in my life was the time I had fallen from the back of one of the young dragons as a boy and broken my arm. This would be the second, and I fought with all my might not to give into it. **** I eased out from under Darke and didn’t bother picking up my shirt before I strolled into the dark woods. I knew Pierre was there. And if Darke hadn’t been so distracted by making love to me, he would have known as well. Not far into the brush, Pierre stepped out of the shadows. “Bon jour, mon amour.” I rested my hands on my hips, a tad annoyed that his eyes feasted on my naked body. I liked being lusted over, but something inside wanted it to be Darke. That was foolish. Pierre was the one for me. Maybe not my first choice but what I had to work with. “You watched us.” He didn’t deny it. Nor did he apologize. I looked down at the ground. “You also abandoned me when I needed you most.” “You’re alive.” “Darke would never—” “I am not Darke, bébé. I will not die if you bite me.” He had to remind me of that, of course. To be sure I wasn’t under the illusion that Darke and I could have a future. I resented him for it. “If you must know, I do not do well in captivity, which is what the golden dragons seemed to want. I stole a ship to return when it was safe. To get you.” Me. Not Darke and the others. Just me. Pierre had enjoyed what we had. He had more than once whispered in my ear that we could leave them and travel the worlds together. I had never responded. And I didn’t want to now. “Why do you have a French accent when you claim to be from a planet of vampires?”

His expression morphed to boredom. “You assume the French language began with humans.” My eyes widened. “My people have long travelled the galaxies, having extended life lines and all.” He turned and walked deeper into the woods. I followed. This was news to me. What else did we assume originated with us, but didn’t? How many other aliens had visited Earth in disguise? Maybe those visits from Pierre’s people were what started all the legends on vampires in the first place. “Now what?” I demanded. “You think I should come with you? I wanted to try working things out with Darke.” Pierre turned. The coldness in his eyes shocked me. I had thought he was a friendly person. Was it indigenous to vampires? His warmth had been a mask. “Do you think that one evening of sucking his blood, when you’ve obviously already fed elsewhere, proves you’ll be able to do it forever?” I looked away. “He’s a healer. He might not die.” “Whose blood did you drink, Bella? It couldn’t have been any of the humans on this planet. I smell the sickness in them, the bitterness of their blood. That leaves a shape-shifter. Is he alive?” Anguish choked me for a while. Not for what I had done to Ketu, but for what it meant regarding Darke. I wanted to be with him, but I couldn’t. “I ripped his throat out.” “That’s not why he died, and you know it.” I hung my head, defeat making my cold heart even colder. “Let’s go.” He touched my cheek with chilly fingers. “Now you’re talking sense. You won’t regret it. I promise.” I already do.

Chapter Fourteen “Father, you can’t be serious. Orochi and his followers don’t give a damn about anyone. All he’s done is make more people sick, enslaved these humans, and given them a death sentence.” While I argued with my father, my mind was consumed with thoughts of Bella. She had left me, and I knew it must have been Pierre who came for her. Damn it. How could she go with him after he, just like the golden dragons, had let her starve? All to save his own ass, no doubt. “Darke, you don’t understand,” my father began. I shook my head. “No, you don’t. It is this kind of backward thinking that led to the deaths in the first place.” Out of nowhere, my mother moved in close to smack my face. “Don’t you speak to your father like that, Darke.” Clenching my jaw, I grunted, but said nothing more. My father and I glared at each other. When had he become so soft? Or maybe he had always been that way. Blind to everything but his intense love for his people, to be near them, to bind together as one no matter what. Even if they were all headed over the side of a fucking cliff! “What about you, Darke?” he demanded. “Bella killed your uncle, and you don’t give a fuck.” “Draco!” My mother frowned at him. “She was getting what she deserved, and you just let her go free. I can see it in your eyes, son. You love her.” I turned my back on him and ran my hands through my hair for the hundredth time. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.” “You disrespect me. You disrespect your mother.” I spun to face him. “You were quick to back Orochi to have Bella killed for what she did. Orochi has killed thousands more, has poisoned all these humans. You didn’t say anything about it. Where’s the justice in that? Bella defended herself. Ketu tried to rape her.” “Lies!” “Open your damn eyes, Draco,” I shouted. The door opened, and we fell silent. One of my other uncles walked in, whose name I couldn’t bring to mind and didn’t try too hard to remember. His eyes held the same coldness

that Ketu’s had. Was this my heritage, cold-blooded dragons who would do whatever they wanted, were so arrogant and dominant, they looked down on every other race? How could his human wife stand by and watch how he and the others treated her people? My uncle stood in the doorway watching us and then stepped inside. “I need to talk to you, Draco.” His eyes shifted to me and then to my mother. “Alone.” Draco waved a hand. “Leave us.” I ignored the command, but my mother stood on tiptoe to kiss him and then dragged me toward the door. “Come on, Darke. I need to speak with you, too.” I rolled my eyes once we were on the street. “Mom, don’t start. I’m never going to agree with Father, and I don’t know how you do.” “I don’t.” She sighed and began to walk along the street. I followed, waiting to hear what she had to say. “Darke, I am terrified of what’s happening here. She nodded her head toward the house we had just left. “Your uncle’s wife is with Orochi now. Did you know that?” I stared. “What do you mean?” “I mean Orochi decided she was pretty enough for him, so he took her. No one stood against him. Not even her husband. I don’t understand. I remember all these men, the lords, when they visited Earth. They were hard and uppity, but they weren’t evil. Do you know what I mean?” She went on before I could answer. “Now, it’s like their souls have died. I know Orochi doesn’t have any magic or whatever, but it’s like he’s stolen their humanity. Dragon-ity?” She chuckled, and I grimaced. “Agreed. But I have no ship and no men.” I stopped walking and glanced toward the large whitewashed building at the end of the block where I had heard that Orochi lived. Inside was a communication system that I could use to contact Shale. Yet, what point would it serve? Most of the adult silver dragons were dead or possessed by symbionts. We had Ryuu, Tav, and Ladon. But I was reluctant to risk their lives, when they had each found happiness with their mates. “In truth, Mom, who are we to tell these dragons they cannot live as they do?” “Except where they enslave my people.” I nodded. “Yes, except that.” Harmony took my hands in hers. “I care about what’s happening here with my people. But I care more about you and your father. Orochi has made it known that he considers you no better than a human, Darke. He will kill you, or worse, experiment on you. I think his desires have morphed from looking for a way to strengthen and repopulate your father’s people. He’s insane. I can’t risk you.”

“What are you saying, Mom?” She sniffled. “I arranged to get Bella free if she would then convince you to leave. You got to her first, and I had hoped that with her leaving, you would follow. I know, just like your father said, that you love her.” “Can we leave my love life out of this?” I spat. “She’s a murderess, a creature. Nothing more.” “If that were true, you wouldn’t walk around here looking like someone had handed you your heart sliced and diced on a platter.” “Nice imagery.” “Thanks.” She puffed out her cheeks and blew the breath out watching Orochi’s house, and the two shifters leaning against the wall out front. With their arms crossed over powerful chests, they looked bored. They each watched when women strolled by, human or Drelconian, the lust plain in their eyes. “I want you off this miserable planet before you get whatever that other guy had.” “What about my father?” She blinked away tears. “I want him safe too, because I think Orochi will try to kill him and cover it up. He’s the oldest of the lords. I don’t think Orochi would get away with murdering him openly. He’ll find a way to make it look like an accident. Either way, I’m staying by his side, even if it means both our deaths.” “Mom.” “Listen to me, Darke.” She seemed to spot Ness coming out of one of the smaller houses at the same time that I did. She wore a simple dress that gave her that innocent air. Even after her true nature had been uncovered, she pretended to be something she wasn’t. I touched my mother’s arm. “I have a plan, Mom.” “Darke.” “Trust me.” I winked at her and moved past to follow Ness. When we were out of sight of the other houses on the street and headed into the trees, I called out to her. “Ness, can you wait up for me?” She stopped and spun around, her face going pale. She was beautiful, her white hair hanging loose about her face and reaching rounded hips. I remembered the many times I had ridden her, had emptied myself inside her. I didn’t have the skill that my full-blooded Drelconian

family did. The men could keep a woman from getting pregnant, but I didn’t begin to understand how to do it. I had to thank fate for not allowing her to get pregnant. Then again, maybe she had the ability to stop it. A woman like her wouldn’t want to be tied down with children, although I had assumed she wanted a half-dozen hatchlings like all the Drelconian women. I walked up on her and tugged her into my arms. I kissed her mouth, hating it. “Baby, I’m so glad you’re okay. I’m sorry I doubted you. I found out what a monster my uncle Ketu was. He had tried to rape Bella.” I cupped her head to my shoulder. “I hope that your experience with him wasn’t too horrifying.” “Oh.” She pulled back. “Yes, well, I slept with him willingly.” I waited for her lie. “Because I heard how they felt about you. I thought I could somehow change their mind, you know, seduce them.” Them? Damn, how many men had she slept with since she’d arrived? My guess was she hadn’t gotten to Orochi yet. “I understand.” I caught hold of her chin and lifted it. If I had any lingering questions, it was there in her eyes before she masked it, the conniving. How had we not seen it all these years? How had we assumed we were such a perfect race that none could be inherently evil? That might be what blinded my father and the others all these years. “Ness, I want you to do me one more small favor. If you’re up to it?” She smiled and widened innocent eyes. “Of course.” “I want you to seduce Orochi. Get into his house, into his bed.” I paused, wondering how I would ensure her loyalty. I remembered that Ness loved Shale, but she also dreamed of visiting Earth. Like most of us, she had a fascination with humans. “I was thinking that when this is all over, we could go to Earth.” She squealed. I pressed a hand over her mouth. “Easy. You help me get this done, and I’ll take you there.” I didn’t mention to her that there was an embargo on Drelconians traveling to Earth. I banked on her not having heard about it since our focus had of late been on finding my father. “Will you do it for me, baby?” Curling against mine, she ran her hands around me and squeezed my ass. “I’d do anything for you, Darke.” Her eyes flashed yellow and black. “Will you seal it, right here, right now?” I hesitated. “Seal it?” She nodded. “Yes, silly.” She pulled back, unbuttoned my pants, and slipped her hand inside to take hold of my cock. I suppressed a shudder. If Ness was the innocent she pretended to be, she would have cried at me asking her to fuck someone as old as Orochi. But she hadn’t even blinked over it. What had I seen in her? “Well, Darke?”

“Okay.” I spun her away and led her deeper into the trees where I hoped no one would stumble onto us. I couldn’t help comparing what I was about to do with what had happened between Bella and me. Technically, since Bella had left me, we weren’t together, but then we had not been exclusive until I had insisted on it. Ness stripped to reveal her slender body with nary a flaw, but she could not compare to Bella. I shoved my pants low enough for my cock to spring free and positioned myself between Ness’ legs. She moaned—a conditioned response—before I had touched her, let alone entered. I sucked in a deep breath and paused. “What’s wrong, lover?” I smiled, forcing what I hoped was a seductive expression on my face. Fortunately, it didn’t take much to make me hard. “Nothing, just admiring the view.” She simpered. I closed my eyes to imagine Bella, but opened them with a jerk of my head when that proved the wrong move. Just get it over with, Darke. I shoved my cock into her. Her pussy, made to pleasure a man, gripped my dick and seemed to stroke it. I clenched my jaw to bit off a growl of pleasure. This wasn’t right. I wanted Bella. Clearing my throat, I braced my hands on the ground at either side of Ness’ hips and drove deep. She locked her heels on my ass. Angry that I had to resort to this, I drove her hard and fast. She cried out her orgasm, but didn’t let me go. “Come, Darke,” she demanded in a cold voice. “Empty out in me.” I swallowed. My balls tightened. Fuck, I was going to come. I closed my eyes. Her pussy was like a glove drawing on my cock. I couldn’t help myself. I released with a shout and anguish. The satisfaction I experienced with Bella wasn’t here now. When I withdrew from Ness, barely noting her smug smile, I was left empty and wanting. I stood up, shed the rest of my clothing, and transformed to a dragon to fly until I dropped exhausted to the ground.

Chapter Fifteen I stole from Pierre’s bed and enfolded a thick robe around me. Stepping into the garden at the back of his house, I took in the night sky. Darkness. Always darkness on this world Pierre’s people called Fleuve de Sang—River of Blood. And there was plenty of that. Blood. In the plants, in the ground. Everywhere. Even their vegetables and fruits had a bloody juice to them. I lived off the stuff, but I found the idea of blood in things like peaches disgusting. I had been here for two weeks, and I hated it. “Bella.” Pierre stepped out behind me. “Where did you go?” I closed my eyes. He never let me more than two feet away, and he followed me and wanted to know what I was thinking at all times. I was suffocating. “Pierre, this isn’t working out.” “No!” He whirled me to face him. “No, don’t say that! I’ve given up everything for you.” “I never asked you to. You said we would travel, but all you seem to want is to sit here on this . . . this world!” He glanced around us, eyes wide and questioning. “You want to leave Fleuve?” “Didn’t you?” I shoved his arms off me and strolled out into the garden, where I winced every time I unearthed the liquid in the dirt. “You left to pilot. You said yourself you hadn’t returned for forty-three years. And now because you have me, it’s okay to remain locked in this dungeon? I hate it here, Pierre!” “You mean you won’t be happy anywhere without him,” he shouted. “Him! Always him. Every time I touch you, I feel it. I hear your thoughts.” I whirled around. “What? You can read minds, and you never said anything?” “I didn’t think it was necessary.” I turned and stomped back to the house. “I’m out of here. I don’t care who the fuck I have to kill. I’m getting off this planet, and I never want to see you again.” He wasn’t going for that tirade. He followed behind me and pulled me to him. “You don’t mean that, chéri. Where would you go? Who would feed you? Him? You would kill him in one day.” “You don’t know that!” “Face the truth!”

I stared at him, tears in my eyes. Each time I grew hungry, I had told myself that I would rather starve than feed from him again, if it meant intimacy as well. But I couldn’t beat the hunger. Not once. I lowered my gaze to the floor. He drew me into his arms. “I know what you do,” he whispered. “I know you think of him, and you use your fingers to bring yourself to climax. I hear you shout his name when you come, inside your head. Even when we’re together, you do it. I hear as if you spoke it aloud. I accept that.” I glanced up and looked into his eyes. When had he come to love me or was it obsession that he would accept that I cried out another man’s name? Would I be the same if I was with Darke and he thought of Ness? I liked to think I’d have more self-respect, but I wasn’t sure. I needed Darke. “I have to go, Pierre,” I mumbled. He gripped my shoulders so tight it hurt. “Bella, love him enough to let him live.” “I can’t.” My knees gave out, and we sank together to the floor. He rocked me in his arms. I sobbed, wishing for the coldness of heart that I had seen in Pierre’s countrymen. “Pierre, I would rather die of starvation and see him once more, than to live a lifetime without him.” **** I don’t know what woke me from my rest, but when I opened my eyes it took a second to remember where I was. The small ship that Pierre had stolen when the golden dragons had captured his. Relief flooded me when I remembered that he was taking me back. Within a few hours, I would see Darke. No wonder I couldn’t sleep. I sat up and swung my feet to the floor. In my peripheral vision, I noticed something floating past the window. I looked out to find chunks of space trash and frowned. People weren’t happy just dumping on their own planets. They had to extend it to space. And then I saw something that if my blood were not already cold, it would have driven it there. A piece of the junk had a familiar symbol on it. A dragon. That dragon imprint was what had been painted on the side of Drelconian vessels. A warning went off in my head. I ran out into the hall and jetted toward the bridge. When I burst past the sliding door, Pierre was reaching for a small panel of buttons that I knew to be weapons control. Trying to impress me with his knowledge, he had gone over them when we were flying out to his planet. What almost took my already shallow breath away was that beyond his window was a clearly marked Drelconian ship. Pierre was about to destroy it, although it looked like someone had done a great job of disabling it themselves.

“Pierre,” I screamed. “What are you doing?” His hand paused, and then he curled his fingers into a fist before drawing his hand back to his side. “Nothing. I was about to hail that ship. It’s Drelconian, isn’t it?” I rushed to his side. “Yes. What’s going on? Has it been attacked?” Parts of the hull had been torn away. The ship leaned to one side, and the engines had obviously failed. I prayed life support had not as well. Dropping into the copilot’s chair, I swallowed to clear the lump in my throat. “Did you hail them? You know who is on there. You sense it.” His eyes narrowed, and his jaw tightened. “Tell me!” “If he were dead, you would have no reason to leave me.” He moved his hand to the weapon control again. I forced myself to remain calm, to infuse my voice with as much venom as I could to bring my point home to him. “If you fire one shot, I won’t leave you. However, I will remove your fangs and let you starve until you’re a sunken shell. I may be a knockoff from the original, but don’t forget. I’m a hell of a lot stronger than you. I can thank the Lycarn for that, at least.” He turned to stare at me, his eyes wide. “You would do that?” “Without hesitation.” We docked alongside the other ship, and I hurried to open the hatch to pass through. I expected Pierre to be right behind me, but the steel door slammed shut. I ran to the communications panel on the wall and punched in the code to hail Pierre. “Pierre, where are you? This ship is dead. I need to move anyone here to your ship. Pierre?” For a long time, there was no answer, and I thought maybe I wasn’t getting through. After all, this ship had taken on a lot of damage. But then Pierre seemed to think better of ignoring me. He wanted there to be no mistake whatsoever. “Désolé, mon coeur. I’m sorry. If you won’t stay with me, then you can die with him. Look at that, a pickup is needed. Gotta go.” Just like that, he was gone. And moments later, the lighting failed. The communications panel went dark. My feet came up off the floor, and I had to hold onto rails that ran along the sides of the wall to make any progress down the corridor. This ship from the outside seemed to be four times the size of the one Pierre had piloted. Having two levels and being twice the length, it might take me a while to search for Darke, especially with no lighting and little to no gravity.

I knew that it would be a matter of time before the air ran out. I could hold my breath for hours, but that wouldn’t help Darke, and it was likely the temperature would kill him first. As I walked along the corridor, pulling myself into each room to search it, it occurred to me that Pierre could have been misleading me, letting me think that Darke was on board. He could just have left me on an abandoned ship to starve a few days until I came to my senses. I hoped that wasn’t the case. I continued my search for twenty minutes, finally coming across the bridge. The room was empty. Empty of living men anyway. Two Drelconians lay dead on the floor. I didn’t recognize either of them. When I found Darke, he lay strapped to the bed, still and barely breathing. I shoved off from the wall to float across to him. I touched his hand, and the chill in his fingers worried me. “Darke? Baby, wake up.” He didn’t move. I fought my way to the wall panel and pressed a series of buttons. Nothing. No power at all. If someone didn’t rescue us soon, we would both die. I strove to get to Darke again and entwined my legs with his while looping my arm through the straps. At least we would be together to the end. “Darke,” I whispered. “I love you.”

Chapter Sixteen For hours I hovered near the ceiling over Darke’s bed. I breathed very little, wanting to save all the air I could for him. He never opened his eyes, and every so often, small puffs of white smoke rose from his nostrils. He was freezing. I cried. Teardrops fell down from where I was to his chest. I could not even warm him with my body. I was useless. “Darke,” I called out to him. He didn’t respond. How I longed to have Pierre’s ability, to read Darke’s thoughts, to know if he cared for me just a little or if he thought I was a monster. A blue line of light passed over the room. When it came again, I knew something was up. The ship rocked a little and then steadied. I waited rather than leave Darke in hopes that someone was here. But whoever had arrived must have had scanners to pinpoint where Darke was. They came quickly. A hand shoved the door panel open farther, and two men stepped into the room. I didn’t move. They were dressed in bulky silver suits with helmets over their heads. From the looks of the tube leading to the helmet, I knew they had oxygen inside there. I thought of attacking them for it to give some to Darke, but I waited. If they meant him harm, I would shred them. One of the men shined a light into my eyes, and I hissed as I moved backward. He fell into the other man. “What the hell is that?” I pushed off the ceiling to land on Darke’s bed. I grabbed hold of the straps holding him down before I floated off again. “If you are here to hurt him, you will die.” I bared my teeth to show I meant business. “A vampire,” one of the men muttered. The other nodded. “She’s protecting him.” The man held up his arms and came closer. I bent my legs in preparation of shooting off the bed at him. “Whoa, easy. I’m not trying to hurt him. I am Darke’s uncle. I’m Ryuu. This is Stone, another Drelconian. We’re here to save Darke, not hurt him. You must know he needs to get warm, and he needs oxygen fast.” I didn’t move. “Let me see your face.” “There’s no time.” “Your face!” I shouted. He pressed a button, and his helmet opened. For a second, I thought it was Draco, Darke’s father, but then I noted the white hair. He was Draco’s brother without question. I released the strap and let myself float to the ceiling. I watched as they got him unstrapped and put

oxygen to his mouth. Ryuu glanced up at me. “Will you come? We have to get him on our ship to warm him.” I nodded. “Yes, I won’t be away from him anymore.” Ryuu didn’t question my declaration. He and Stone led the way back to their ship. The moment I stepped through, I was hit with a heat wave that sent me to my knees. Damn, they liked it hot. While I tried to catch my breath, a woman came strolling along the corridor. Human. I breathed in the scent of her blood and closed my eyes. “A cage,” I shouted. They all looked at me like I was crazy. “I need you to lock me up. I’m nearing my time of feeding.” I glanced at the woman. “She’s looking like lunch.” Ryuu barreled past the other man holding Darke. “Get him to Ladon. I’ll handle this.” Ryuu took my arm none too gently and directed me down the hall. A guard stood outside a door, and he stepped aside to let us pass through. Beyond the door was a small room with a cot, a toilet, and a sink. Prison, it looked like to me. I walked on unsteady legs to the cot and sat down. Having spent so many hours in antigravity, I felt like I needed to learn to walk all over again. My body was too heavy. I didn’t turn to look at Ryuu, but I knew he was still there. Three or four beeps sounded, and then a shield came up between us. I wanted to cry again, but I resisted. “Take care of him,” I begged. “I’d like to know when he’s awake.” “You’ll be the first one to know. I promise.” I passed the time first lying on the cot and then pacing. When the hunger increased to the point of discomfort in my stomach, I tested the force field. The shock held a bite to it. I nursed my wound in the corner on the floor. The outer door slid open, and there he was. My breath caught in my throat. I tried not to think of feeding and only to take in his beauty. I wanted to scream out that I loved him. The color in the room bled out. I wept. Darke rushed up to the panel where the controls were to activate the force field. I put my hands out. “No, Darke. You can’t.” “I can.” He lowered the shield and walked in. Dropping to his knees he held out his arms. I focused on his neck but forced my eyes away as I fell into his embrace. “Just before I blacked out, I told myself that if I was rescued, I would tell you the truth.” I shuddered, ran the tip of my tongue over his skin and mumbled, “What truth?”

He drew back to look into my eyes. The world was a gray blur behind my tears. He stroked my cheek, his eyes so gentle that I cried harder. “I love you, Bella.” “I’m so sorry I left you, Darke.” I sniffled. “You have to get out of here. I can’t help myself. I love you. I need you, but we can’t be together. I don’t want to kill you.” He lifted me in his arms and carried me over to the cot. We lay down together, with him crushing me to his chest. I couldn’t break away without hurting him. Still, I felt his strength. I wasn’t sure I was the stronger of the two of us. “We’re not going to be separated again, Bella. I was on that ship because rather than follow my plan to save the sick humans and to take Orochi out of power, I was consumed with thoughts of you. I called my uncle to come and bring whoever he could get to help, but I set out to find you.” His words ran together in my hearing. I heard his blood pumping through his body. “Darke, I’m starving. Please.” “Feed, baby,” he coaxed me. “Go ahead. It’s okay. Everything is okay.” I opened my mouth, unable to hold out another second. And then an alarm went off. Red lights flashed everywhere. The ship must have taken a direct hit, because Darke and I fell over the side of the cot. Before we could right ourselves, an explosion went off outside in the corridor. The door slid open, and Darke and I looked up to find a Drelconian in the doorway. Yet, this was no ordinary dragon shape-shifter. His eyes glowed blue, and there was a definite drop in the room temperature with him present. As we rose to our feet, the man opened his mouth. Darke, thinking he was about to shoot fire at us, jumped in front of me. The temperature in the room dropped again. That’s when I knew this creature wasn’t about to shoot out fire. He was going to release a cold blast. Darke growled low in his throat, and his eyes shifted. There wasn’t enough room in the narrow space for him to shift into a dragon. I pressed a hand to his chest to hold him back. Just when the man let loose a cold wind, I blocked it from reaching Darke. I tilted my head to the side and grinned. “You know. You look like lunch.” With my hunger driving me, I shot across the space in a blur and latched onto the man’s neck. He didn’t get another chance to attack before his blood filled my stomach. When he fell down dead and drained, I looked back at Darke and expected him to regard me in disgust. He held out his hand as he came forward. “Good. Now, let’s get out of here, see what else we’re dealing with.”

We made it to the bridge in time to roll head over heels as the man Ryuu had introduced as Stone actually transformed to a dragon and took the whole front of the ship into a nose dive. Ryuu moved like lightning to catch the woman I had seen earlier in the hallway, before she could fall. Darke grabbed hold of a railing and clasped my hand. The ice-breathing shifters smacked their faces on the floor before they righted themselves. Stone, realizing his mistake, shifted back into his humanoid form, his body shimmering with scales. One of the enemies blew fire at Ryuu, and he whipped the woman behind him. He charged his attacker and they locked hands, arm muscles bulging in their fight. Another man was about to attack the human, and Darke stood to go to her, but she cast an odd look the man’s way. My mouth dropped open when the man began to cry out in a high-pitched voice and brush at his body. “Get them off me. Get them off me.” Darke turned back to me. “Damn, she’s good.” I nodded. “Who is she?” He winked. “My auntie. Shannon.” We didn’t have time to talk. The ice dragons were attacking. We were outnumbered, and the ship seemed to be out of control, headed straight for a planet I recognized as the one where the golden dragons had taken us. I had to wonder, was this going to be a three-way fight or two against one? That is, if we survived the crash.

Chapter Seventeen I was poised for battle at Ryuu’s right side, Shannon on his left. Bella was next to me, and Ladon and Tiam beside her. The ruin of our ship lay behind us. Ryuu was the first to speak. “What are you going to do, Zu? I can’t believe you would attack your own people this way.” Zu sucked his teeth. “I am no longer under your rule, Ryuu. None of you.” He tipped his head in the direction of the other ice dragons. “We’re stronger and more powerful than you are. We can kill you where you stand.” “Like hell you can,” I barked. “Zu, you’re a traitor.” He sneered at me. “Half-breed!” He glanced at Ladon. “Come with us, Ladon. I can hear the voice of the symbiont in you. Join us. We’ll even let you bring your wife. We need more bodies.” I had to hold Ladon back from planting a fist in Zu’s face. Ryuu interrupted. “I do not want to kill my own.” Zu nodded toward Bella. “That didn’t stop her from killing one of my men. From the look in her eyes, she’d kill all of you given half a chance.” I moved to stand in front of Bella. “You don’t look at her or talk about her.” “Fuck you,” Zu growled. “Stop this!” Shannon moved to stand in the midst of us. Ryuu’s eyes bugged. I imagined he was freaking out that she was too close to the enemy. Zu raised his hand to grab her, but Shannon only blinked, and the man’s arm locked in place. “Now,” Shannon continued, “what is it you want, Zu?” He didn’t answer, but Shannon nodded at intervals. I glanced at Bella. “She’s talking to him in his head. Every year she gets more powerful. It’s scary. If she ever turns bad, we’re all screwed.” Shannon looked at her husband. I knew they were discussing everything. Ryuu spoke up. “The humans come with us to Shale. It may be that in the same way the planet healed the silver dragons, it will heal the humans. But that means Orochi’s experiments must stop permanently.” Zu glared. “We could not care less about the humans. Their bodies are not strong enough for us, and we don’t need them sick. What of the Drelconians?”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and grabbed hold of my uncle’s arm. “You cannot be negotiating for turning over our people to them. You know what’ll happen. They’ll be merged with the symbionts. You can’t subject them to that.” Ryuu faced me. “How many years has it been, Darke? How many since the golden dragons left us? They will never change. They’ll never come back to our fold. Orochi will keep leading them, keep enslaving others. Not to repopulate, but to manipulate. I won’t let that go on, not even to save the golden dragons.” For a while, everyone was silent on both sides. Zu waited patiently for my decision, as if I had any real clout in this discussion. “Ryuu, don’t you realize you’re making them stronger? Giving them powers they never had?” Ryuu nodded. “But the symbionts have one goal in mind, to give their people the ability to leave Orel-X Four. That’s why they need strong bodies to merge with. That’s why they want more Drelconians.” Ryuu slapped a hand down on my shoulder. “The way I see it, we can either kill the golden dragons—because that’s what it will come to—or we can give them to the Desert Ice.” Tiam cut in for the first time. “And if anything accidentally on purpose happens to Orochi in the process of this little conflict, so be it.” No one answered that suggestion, but it was clear that we all agreed. **** We had crash-landed a few miles south of the settlement where Orochi and his followers lived. If we thought we would swoop down on them unaware, we were sadly mistaken. They waited for us under cover of darkness, in the trees. And the battle was on. I had thought it might be two groups against one, but I never imagined we would be allied for the time being with one of the groups. I tried to keep Bella near me while we fought, and as she blew by me attacking an enemy with her claws and teeth, I watched her. She was a real force, flitting about like she was floating on air and never seeming to tire. I questioned for the millionth time whether she and I could make it. I had been ready to let her bite me earlier, to die for her. And I knew that I would make the same decision if it meant taking away her torment. The next guy she fought was stronger than the first. He backhanded her, and she flew into my chest. I flipped her around behind me, repositioned my kukri, and plunged it into my enemy’s heart. He slumped to the ground, dead. “Hey!” Bella put her hands on her hips. “I had control of the situation, Darke.” I shrugged. “I couldn’t let him get away with hitting you.”

She jerked me into her arms and kissed my lips. The move was unexpected and pleasurable. It surprised us both. She drew back, her eyes wide. “I didn’t realize I was going to do that until I did it. I don’t kiss.” “I’ve noticed.” “It could have been dangerous, Darke. I’m sorry.” I tightened my arms around her and allowed myself a brief nuzzle against the soft skin of her face and neck. “Don’t apologize. I don’t know how much time we have, but I want every second to count.” She grinned. “Getting mushy on me, baby?” “I can’t help myself. Bella, I love you.” We kissed again. Her eyes, which had gone all black when she fought and had cleared when we hugged, went all black again the more we kissed. I had the feeling it reminded her of feeding. “Let’s go, Darke and Bella.” Ryuu jogged past, headed toward the settlement. I took Bella’s hand. This was it. We would face my other uncles and Orochi. We picked our way through the brush, and I thought of what Ness had done for me. She had gotten me into the house so I could call Ryuu and then distracted Orochi long enough for me to get a ship, but then she’d decided to stay behind. I wondered if he had made her a better offer. Not that I cared too much. The street leading to Orochi’s house was dark, darker than usual. We could all see well at night, but a black mist lay over the area. I rubbed my eyes and blinked. “What the hell?” Ryuu moved up beside me. “He’s released some agent into the air, to dull our eyesight. I can’t see a thing.” “I can.” I turned in the direction of the ones who spoke. It was both Shannon and Bella. “Baby, you can see?” I asked Bella. She grasped my hand. “Yes. Whatever it is, isn’t affecting me. There are men at the side there.” From the sound of rustling clothing, I thought she might have pointed. At my confused grunt, she was more specific. “About twenty yards away on the right. Two men.” Ryuu called to Shannon. “And you, honey?”

“I sense them,” she admitted. “Bella is right. There are two there. And inside the building behind them, I hear the thoughts of three more and a fourth. Orochi.” Someone stole up in the darkness behind us. I was about to attack, but Shannon stopped me. “Wait, it’s your parents. I’ve been leading them to us.” Draco came into my limited sight holding my mother close to his side. “Darke, I’m with you. Whatever you decide.” I nodded, relief flooding me that they were both safe and that my father had come around. Ryuu touched my shoulder. “Okay, Darke. You’ll have to trust your lady’s eyes, and I will trust my wife’s abilities.” I balked. “What do you mean?” “It’s likely that whatever Orochi released in the air, it affects only our kind. That means, those guys are just as blind. But it doesn’t lessen their strength. So, Shannon will make them believe they cannot move, while Bella will bring them down.” He sighed. “Bella, don’t kill them. We have to stick to our agreement.” “Meaning leave some bodies for the Desert Ice.” I grumbled. I didn’t like Ryuu’s plan, but if we were going to do this, it was the only way. The men were a good match for Ryuu and me. We’d make too much noise attacking them. Bella and Shannon were a better choice. I gave in. “Fine. But, Bella, be careful. If anything happens to you . . .” She kissed me. “It won’t. I promise.”

Chapter Eighteen Shannon and I approached the men. We hunched low in case they could see us. I thought it odd that if she could sense who was there all the way inside the building, then she could have paralyzed them without moving closer. When we were some way away from Ryuu and Darke, she took my hand to stop me. I thought she would speak to me out loud, but I freaked when her voice filled my head. “Ryuu and Darke will be listening harder since they can’t see. I wanted to come with you, because I wanted to tell you not to worry.” “What?” She put her fingers to my lips. “Just think it. I’ll read your mind.” I blinked at her. She was amazing. Again, I wished I had the mind-reading power that Pierre had. “I’m not worried,” I thought. “We can take these guys, no problem.” She shook her head. “No, I mean about Darke. You’re terrified of staying with him, of killing him. You won’t. Trust him. Trust your love for each other.” I snatched my hand out of hers and spoke aloud. “Stay the hell out of my head, and mind your own business. What I decide about Darke is between me and him. Nobody else. You should have learned long ago not to invade people’s privacy. I didn’t appreciate it in Pierre. I don’t appreciate it in you.” I moved closer to her. “Don’t forget my favorite meal is running through your veins, and I wouldn’t think twice about replenishing myself with you.” Shannon jerked her head to the right. From the look in her eyes, I thought she must be listening to something in her head. She focused on me again. “My husband has heard you. He doesn’t like the threats, and neither do I. I may be human, but I’ve got my ways. I can take care of myself.” To demonstrate, she made me think she had set a fire at my feet. I hated heat. It hurt at a much lower temperature than a human could withstand. I backed away. “Point taken.” We turned our attention to the guards and made short work of them. When we were ready, she contacted Ryuu and Darke, and we burst through into Orochi’s house. I paused on seeing Ness wrapped sensuously around Orochi. Two other men looked ready to spring. Orochi appeared to be bored by it all. “Well, look what we have here, Ness. Guests.” Orochi offered a welcoming smile. Bored with it myself, I sprang forward and took out one of the guards. The confidence on Orochi’s face drained away.

He shape-shifted to his dragon form and took out a couple walls in the process. The ceiling began to crumble. Ryuu moved to save Shannon from being crushed, but Orochi swung his tail and bowled through us. I jumped above the blow, but Darke and Ryuu fell to the floor. Seeing a chunk of stone about to land on Shannon, I darted to her and whisked her out of the house. She gave me a grateful look, but I didn’t stay still for long. I wanted to take down Ness. Ryuu and Darke could take care of Orochi. Ness ran out of the house on foot. I began to chase her, but the other guard grabbed me. I whirled on him and would have drained him dry if Zu hadn’t pulled me off him. “Save the body, damn it,” he growled. I lifted my head and wiped blood from my lips. “Too late. He’s as good as dead.” I glanced down at the man who had gone pale and looked like he was at death’s door. But as I watched, he grew redder, and heat seemed to suffuse his body. I jumped back out of reach of it and gaped. He wasn’t dying. He was healing. After some moments, he stood up, but Zu blasted him with cold air. The guard went still, and Zu picked him up to toss over his shoulder. “That’s the last one. We gathered the humans and put them on one of Orochi’s ships.” He tipped his head in farewell, turned, shifted, and was gone. I spun around and searched the area for Ness but couldn’t find her. Something told me she had her plan of escape laid out all along. The innocent Ness would not show her face again. Good riddance. By the time I returned to Ryuu and Darke, Orochi lay on the ground dead. Darke pulled me into his arms and held me close. “He’s gone, baby. It’s finally over.” “Yes, and the ice dragons have also gone. They took the last host body, and they loaded the humans on a ship.” I swallowed. “Darke, I have good news.” He kissed me. “Save it for when we’re alone, and I’ve had a chance to heal. Every muscle in my body aches.” I glanced at Ryuu. He seemed already well. Darke might be able to shape-shift now, but he still healed slower than the others. “Okay, let’s get back. I can’t wait for us to talk.”

Chapter Nineteen I lay in Darke’s arms while we reclined in a tub full of bubbles. The water was as cool as Darke could stand. He ran his hands over my breasts and trickled water on my nipples. I moaned. “Darke, we should talk.” He turned me around to face him and kneed my legs apart. “Talk later. Sex now.” I laughed. “You Tarzan, me Jane?” He wrinkled his nose as if confused, and I remembered he had never been to Earth, although he was half-human. I wanted to take him there. One day I would—and I’d show him my hometown. I moved back a little to reach between us and take hold of his cock. It was stiff and long, making my mouth water. Licking my lips, I wanted to take him, to taste a man for the first time in that way. I squeezed the thick head between my fingers, and he groaned. Kissing my way down his body, I thrilled in his flavor. I had never thought I would enjoy any taste other than what I lived on, but Darke was a nectar in his own way. When I reached the water line, I held my breath and slid beneath the surface. I took him into my mouth and drew on his shaft. He jerked. Salty precome coated my tongue. I sucked harder. Darke pulled me up. “What are you doing, Bella? You can’t just stay down there.” I grinned. “Of course, I can. I want to taste you. I’ve never had that before.” He stared in awe at me. I looked away. After a few moments, he stood, taking me with him. When we had stepped out and dried ourselves, he led me into the bedroom and guided me to the full-size bed. We lay facing each other. “I think I need to admit to you what happened after you left.” His voice sounded choked, and he seemed afraid. I took his hand and kissed it. “It’s okay. I’m so sorry that I left you, Darke. I didn’t want to hurt you. I thought that only Pierre could feed me and not die. I was worried about biting you.” His eyes narrowed. “And now you’re not?” I shook my head, grinning like an idiot, happy and in love for the first time in my entire life. “No, I bit one of the shifter guards, and he healed. I think that you would heal, too. Then again, you’re only half-Drelconian. Oh goodness, I thought we were home-free.”

He drew me closer. “Bella, I slept with Ness after you left.” I frowned. “Didn’t you hear what I said, Darke? I might be able to bite you, but now I’m not so sure.” “Bella!” “I don’t care, Darke. Do you expect me to leave you again? I love you. I’m not running away. If I have to starve to death, at least I’ll be yours.” He stroked my cheek. “And I feel the same way. Don’t you get it? If I have to die of poisoning from your bite, at least I will be here with you.” “We’re morbid.” He laughed. “Yeah. Pretty much.” He rolled me to my back and positioned himself over me. “I want to be inside you.” I didn’t protest. He lifted his body and ran a hand down my belly to cup my mound. Pushing back my folds with his fingers separating, he made my clit stand out, swollen and aching for attention. “Hm, look at that.” I panted. “Darke.” He ran the head of his cock over my clit, teasing, making me arch my hips. Darke dipped his head into my wetness and pulled back to run it over my clit again. I moaned. “Let this last forever,” he pleaded. I closed my eyes, knowing they were black. “I can’t. Darke, I love you.” “I love you.” He lowered his head to my mouth and kissed me. One of my fangs pierced his lip. I couldn’t open my eyes to see the reaction. He plunged his shaft into my pussy. I cried out, encircled him with my legs, and together, we gyrated our hips. The hot sensations threatened to make me faint. I dug my nails into his back. He winced but didn’t slow his thrust. The friction of his shaft sliding up my passage until his pelvis bumped mine, then withdrawing, made me gasp for breath. He was big, more satisfying than any man I had been with. He filled me, stretched my pussy walls, and coaxed my muscles to clench onto his shaft and never let go. The rumblings of my climax had me shivering despite how hot his body was. I ran my hands down his back to grab hold of his ass. I dragged him upward. He growled, that sound that let me know he was more than human, that he was a beast. A beast I wanted never to get enough of.

My orgasm flattened me, took most of my energy. I called out my lover’s name, and before I knew what I was doing, I sank my fangs into his neck and pulled on his life source. His blood was rich, richer than I had ever tasted. Even better than a full human’s. “Feed, my love,” he rasped. Tears filled my eyes at the sound of his voice, weak and seeming to come from a long way away, but I relished every drop. I couldn’t stop. His hot come exploded inside me, burning hot. I cried harder and drained more of his blood. When I was full, I relaxed, lying there with my head turned away from him, not energized from feeding but drained, because I had just killed the man I lived for. In my mind, I ran over all the ways I could die, and I chose daylight. I would take Darke’s body with me into the sun, and I would turn to ash pressed close to him. Sobs wracked my body, but the grief of loss would be over soon. We would at some point come into the light of Shale’s star. Then I would die with Darke. Sniffling, I rolled to face him, and whispered, “I love you, Darke.” I opened my eyes to find him growing redder, his skin going from ashen to healthy. He watched me with a wide grin on his face. “I love you, too, baby.” The End

TuÉâà à{x Tâà{ÉÜ Brenda Steele loves all things out of the ordinary. She writes to gratify the cravings of her own sexual drive, and then for her dear readers. Hopefully, the two won’t be far apart and all who read her work will come away satisfied. Look for her hot “My Lover” series and the continuation of her “Accidental Mates” series.