September Moon (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #8)(99)

The rush of power was intoxicating. How could I have forgotten how amazing we were as a trio? Together we created a delicious circuit of energy, all giving and taking in succession, growing the power to head-swimming heights.

I feasted on Shaz, drawing on his lust and shedding his blood. He offered me his neck, the way I had offered myself so many times to Arys. It empowered me, making me the one in command. There was danger in that kind of dominance.

The tangy taste of him stirred my guilt. I might never be able to do this again. It could be far too dangerous once I was a vampire. For a split second I considered blurting everything out. But Arys’s hand on the curve of my hip kept the words from coming.

Rather than risk breaking the spell that held us, I threw myself headlong into it, seeking to lose myself completely. Closing my eyes, I focused hard on the many sensations: the salty taste of blood in my mouth, the insistent pressure of Arys’s hands on my body, and the musky scent of wolf.

Together we worked as one, setting a pace that came naturally. As Arys claimed my body, thrusting slow and deep, I stroked Shaz with a hand while running my tongue over the bite mark marring his skin.

As the hours passed, we were satisfied several times over. They each claimed me, making me theirs as only those two men could. When at last I lay exhausted between them, it was almost sunrise.

It felt safe there in my bed with Arys and Shaz. Safe enough that I fell into a fitful slumber. My system had worked out most of the whiskey, though what remained held me in a state of dreamless sleep. For a while.

I came awake a few hours later, my mouth open in a silent scream. The only thing I remembered was red reptilian eyes. A wave of nausea racked me. I couldn’t tell if it was a hangover or the thing Falon had given me sitting like a lead weight in my core.

A glance at my lovers revealed Shaz to be passed out beside me, snoring softly. Arys was rolled away, his face buried in the pillow. I moved carefully, trying not to disturb either of them as I left the bed and fetched my robe.

Coffee did nothing to make me feel any better. However, it too would soon be taken from me. So I made a cup, snickered at the snoring leopard sprawled across the couch, and returned to my room where I stood near the window, watching the day through a tiny slit in the blinds.

I’d been overly sensitive to sunlight since Arys and I united as twin flames. Soon, it would be a deadly foe. I stared out at the golden light, refusing to look away even when it made my eyes tear up.

“Can’t sleep?” Arys spoke softly, drawing my attention.

“Bad dreams, I think.” I blinked a few times as my eyes readjusted to the darkened interior of the bedroom. “You?”

“I don’t sleep much these days.”

The silence fell, heavy and oppressive, launching us each into tortured thoughts of what was to come. I was torn between fleeing into the wilderness with my tail tucked between my legs and bravely striding onto the FPA property, ready to face the sword that dangled over my head.

“You can do this, right?” I asked, tentative and cautious, not wanting to appear as if I was doubting him.

Arys rubbed a hand through his mess of short, black hair. There was a storm brewing in his eyes. “Yes. I’ve had a lot of time to accept it was coming.”

“That doesn’t mean you’re ready.”

“I will never be ready.” He was thoughtful for a moment before saying, “I know you’ve seen inside me. I know you’ve seen the way I hunger for your final moments. Please don’t hate me for that.”

I was tempted to go to him, to throw myself in his arms and hope to find comfort. There would be no comfort now, not from anyone. If I were to go to him, I would crumble. And I needed to be strong.

“Arys, I could never hate you.”

“Lilah hates Salem. And I wouldn’t doubt that it goes both ways. That’s what it does, a bond like ours. It destroys.”

“Lilah is weak.” Bitterness laced my tone. “Salem too. Instead of learning to exist together, they have done nothing but imprison themselves. We’re better than that.”

“Are we?”

Arys’s question hung suspended without an answer. Our time together had indeed been a rollercoaster of ups and downs. The conflict had brought us to some very dark places. It had hurt those linked to us. Shaz and Harley were prime examples of that. But we were still willing to fulfill the purpose of a greater good. If we gave up now, then all of that suffering would have been for nothing.

“We are,” I declared. “Tonight we prove it.”

I sipped the hot coffee, savoring every drop. If my stomach hadn’t felt so queasy, I would have devoted the rest of the day to my favorite foods and drinks.

I noticed that Shaz’s snoring had come to a stop. When had that happened? Cracking open his eyes he sat up and frowned.

“Is there something you two want to tell me?”

* * * *

Several hours later we sat in the kitchen with Jez and Jenner. The sun had just set. It hadn’t been easy to say goodbye to the light. I’d drank up as much of it as I could though every second of warmth was plagued by the sense of great loss. The clock was ticking away the time I had left, and I couldn’t help but be painfully aware of every second.

“It’s going to be fine, Lex,” Jez assured me though her green eyes sparkled with worry. No amount of prodding could convince her to stay behind. She insisted on accompanying me to the creepy old hospital. “You have to call Kale. He needs to know.”