Love Me to Death (Underveil) (33 page)

“Using only your mouth or your hand this time?”

A cocky smile caused his dimple to show. “Baby, this time, I’m going to use my whole body.”

Her mind and her newly immortal body rejoiced, anticipation zinging through her, as he moved down, kissing a hot trail from her breasts to her navel to the place where she needed him most. And after she’d come twice, as prescribed, he finally covered her body with his and pushed his hard, hot length inside her, filling her completely, but only making the longing stronger.

“Yes,” she murmured. “Nik, please.”

He lowered onto his elbows and took her earlobe between his teeth. “Tell me what the markings say.”

No. Not this. Not now.
She wrapped her legs around his waist and angled up to take him deeper and fill the ache. He reacted with a gratifying thrust. She groaned, and he did it again. Soon, he was pumping into her in a rhythm that was sure to put her over the edge, their sweat slicked bodies sliding against each other as he twined his fingers into her hair. She unwound her legs from around his body and dug her heels into the bed, meeting his thrusts, and right as she reached that edge, he stopped.

What the hell?
She thrust up and he didn’t react. Opening her eyes, she found him staring down at her. Sweat beading on his forehead, expression grim.

“Tell me,” he said, voice strained.

“After you sleep.”

“Now.”

“After we finish.”

“Now.”

An involuntary tear trailed from the corner of her eye down her temple. He brushed it away with his thumb. He deserved to know. Maybe they could take up where they left off later, depending on how he took the news. “I’m pregnant.” She straightened her legs, half expecting him to pull out. Instead, he remained perfectly still, hard and hot inside her.

His brow furrowed. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.” When he didn’t respond, she added, “You don’t look happy.”

“I’m confused. This is physically impossible. How do you know?”

“Stefan read the glyphs…and I’m late.”

When he still didn’t react, her heart ached like it had shattered. She didn’t know what she had expected, but this wasn’t it. She felt helpless pinned beneath him, his body still inside hers. She needed to get away.

And then he moved: a long, slow withdrawal, followed by a strong push back to bury himself deep inside her. A beautiful, brilliant smile lit his face. “You have just made me the happiest man on this planet. Or any other, for that matter.”

Her head reeled. The man never failed to surprise her. Good thing they had centuries, so she could get a chance to figure him out. “Really?”

He thrust again, harder this time. “Really.”

Twining her fingers in his hair, she pulled him down for a kiss, and he increased the tempo of his body and kissed her like he’d die if they stopped. She raked her nails down his back, and he groaned, then froze. “I can’t hurt you, can I? I mean, the baby and all.”

She almost laughed, but bit her lip instead. “Only if you stop.”

“Well, we can’t have that, can we?”

She dug her heels into the mattress again and met him thrust for thrust until the bed creaked like it was going to break apart.

She needed more. Something else, but he needed rest.

“Do it, Elena, I can’t hold out much longer. Bite me.”

He knew. Her fangs elongated, and she arched up, burying them in his skin, his rich blood filling her mouth, and she came instantly. He’d made good on his promise to make her see stars.

“Yes,” he groaned. His body stilled as he pulsed inside her, riding his own waves of passion while her orgasm seemed to stretch on and on, pulling her fear and anxiety away with it as it started to fade.

“Nik,” she whispered, tremors finally easing.

“Yes, say it again.”

“Nik.”

“Once more.”

“I love you, Nikolai Itzov.”

His gold eyes seemed to glow as they bored into hers. “And I love you, Elena Arcos.”

He rolled off and pulled her against his hard body. Never had she felt this relaxed and complete. This man, this child, this world. If they survived the next few days, they had a real future. “I thought Slayers didn’t love.”

“So did I.”

Chapter Thirty-Two

T
he woman in the vision had black hair and gold eyes. Her face showed no fear whatsoever as a man in a uniform like Claude’s lit the wood piled beneath and around her. She didn’t struggle against the chains, nor did she cry out as the flames danced all around the stake to which she was bound. “Forgive me, Queen Tatiana,” the man said, backing away.

Shit. It was Nik’s mother.

Elena rolled over in the bed and ran her hand over Nik’s smooth chest, and he smiled. “Again, so soon? You’re relentless.” He shifted to face her. “I like it.” His smile faded as he studied her. “Something’s wrong.”

“Yes, I…” How do you tell someone his mother is going to be burned alive? She swallowed and took a deep breath.
By being straightforward and putting it out there.
That’s what she would want were the tables reversed. “I had a vision. Your mother’s name is Tatiana, right?” He didn’t react, but she already knew the answer. “She is going to be…” It was harder than expected. “Fydor is going to…” Another breath. “I saw her burning at the stake. I’m so sorry.”

Deliberately and slowly, he sat up and swung his feet over the side of the bed. “I must go.”

She mirrored his motions. The floor was cold under her bare feet. “I’ll come with you.”

“No!” His response was so immediate and forceful that she flinched. “You will stay here where you’re safe.”

His reaction didn’t surprise her, but it rankled just the same. Charge tingled in her palms. She closed her eyes and willed the current to subside. Seeing the past with Vlad’s “gift” had given her a much better understanding of his Slayer mentality, and she knew the best way to deal with him was to not strip him of control.

Without arguing, which was a close to impossible feat, she padded to the bathroom and pulled on her clothes. He couldn’t stop her from going, so feuding with him was a waste of time and energy.

He was still naked when she returned to the bedroom, pacing like a caged lion. Leaning against the doorframe, she watched him until he stopped abruptly and ran his hands through his hair. “I need your help,” he said.

Well, what do you know?
He came around to reason a lot faster than expected. “Okay.”

“I need you to go find me some clothes. Mine are destroyed for the most part.”

So much for reason. “I’ll do it if I can come with you and help you get your mother out of there.”

“No.” He opened the door and disappeared into the hallway.

Well, that worked great. Yeah. Awesome. Way to be reasonable, Nik.
She sighed and followed him. No sign of him anywhere, but as she neared the great hall where she had first arrived, male voices fell silent, and in an old-fashioned gesture, Vlad stood. Two men dressed in brown, hooded cloaks seated at the table also rose. Empath vampires. She intentionally calmed her emotions. Surely Nik wouldn’t teleport out to save his mother naked.

“One would hope not,” Vlad said.

“Do you know where he is?”

He closed his eyes, then after several moments, shook his head. “None of my staff have seen him… Oh, wait.” He smiled and opened his eyes. “My cook thinks he has a nice ass.”

She wasn’t sure whether to be amused or jealous, but she knew to keep her emotions in check. “So, he’s in the kitchen?”

“Was. Would you like to join us?” He gestured to the two men at the table, who like him, were still standing.

“No, thank you.” She didn’t want to join them. She wanted to join Nik before he zapped out on a suicide mission to rescue his mother.

He gestured to the chair to his right. “Please sit. What we are discussing involves you.” When she hesitated, he held his hand out. She could totally see him fitting in centuries ago in a more formal society. “Please, Elena. He cannot ‘zap’ anywhere without me. The entire mountain is secured to where no one can teleport without possessing something of my person.”

And what the hell did that mean? “I teleported to go get him out of that cell.”

“Yes, you were in possession of something of my body.”

His blood.

“Yes.” He wiggled his fingers and she placed her hand in his. With a gentle tug, he pulled her to the chair next to him. Once she sat, the others did, too, which was weird, but oddly flattering.

“Several of the Underveil factions have already mobilized. Sending the dungeon prisoners as emissaries was an excellent idea.”

It had been Aleksi’s idea. Elena wondered how she was faring. Her chest ached when she thought of how she’d found her tied to the bed, coated in blood. That memory, though, didn’t present an alternative interpretation of Fydor’s character thanks to Vlad’s gift of seeing the past with unbiased clarity. Nothing but rage and fear of Borya colored Fydor’s actions, which in some ways helped. Discovering any sympathetic or redeeming traits in the man would make it harder to do what she had to do.

“Most of the Underveil factions have mobilized and will be poised to strike once it’s dark,” he continued. “The wood elves and some of the shifter groups are still siding with Fydor’s revolutionist movement, but the rest have taken up arms for the resistance.”

“Have we heard from the light elves yet?” the hooded vampire to his left asked in a monotone, expressionless voice. Her father had been an empath, but he was always charming and animated—at least around her he had been.

“No, but I’ve known Dalra and Leione for over six centuries. They will join us.”

The other empath spoke with the same odd lack of expression. “They have always remained neutral and apart from the rest of the Underveil factions. Don’t you expect they will simply avoid the conflict altogether like they have in the past?”

Vlad leaned back in his chair, arms folded across his chest. “No. There is too much at stake this time.” Then he smiled, fangs barely visible. “Besides, Fydor made a very stupid mistake where the elves are involved.” His smile broadened into a grin, exposing his sharp, deadly fangs, and Elena shuddered. “He kidnapped and imprisoned Dalra the Warrior’s only daughter. The light elves’ days of being passive, uninvolved observers are over. Taking Fee was declaring war. Had he destroyed her, the Slayers would have been obliterated.”

Nik, wearing something that looked like a monk’s tunic, burst into the room. “Let me out of here, Dalca.” His gaze flitted to Elena and stopped on the two vampires to Vlad’s left. Immediately, his shoulders dropped to a more relaxed stance as he reigned in his emotion. “Please.”

“Join us, Nikolai. We were discussing strategy for tonight. The factions are converging on the Slayer fortress at this moment and plan to launch an attack sometime after dark.”

“I plan to launch an attack right now,” he said, not moving. “How do I teleport out?”

Squawking and racket from the other door cut off Vlad’s response. The bird lady from the barn trotted into the room and stopped short, out of breath. “The avian flock is joining the battle on the resistance’s behalf. So are the light elves,” she said. “And Fee the Alchemist requests a key to teleport.”

Pose still relaxed, Vlad arched an eyebrow. “For what purpose?”

The woman’s jerky, nonhuman movements made it hard for Elena to take her seriously. “She has business with the Uniter.” Now
that
she could take seriously. Maybe this crazy plan would work after all.

Vlad plucked a hair from his head and gestured her over. “Deliver this to Fee and thank your flock leader. Tell him King Nikolai is honored by her decision.”

The woman left immediately without words of parting.

“I am not the king,” Nik said.

“Yes, you are. Fydor usurped the throne by committing a crime, and we all know it.”

“I abdicated. He obtained it rightfully because of my mistakes.”

“Yes, Nikolai. You made errors, but only because your father was brutally murdered along with his best friend.
My
dear friend. His claim to the throne was illegitimate. It’s time for you to make things right.”

“Which is exactly what I plan to do. Let me out of here.”

The cloaked vampires shifted in their chairs, clearly uncomfortable. Vlad clasped one on the shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. “You are not in the mindset to do this at this time, Nikolai Itzov.”

“Fydor plans a human massacre. A large-scale one. I fear it will be initiated today.”

“Doubtful, if he plans to execute the queen tonight.”

Nik’s brow furrowed. “How did you know that?”

“He can read my mind,” Elena answered, rising to go to him. Which also meant Vlad knew what she planned to do to stop Fydor. So far, he was keeping that to himself, which was good.

She met Vlad’s amused gaze.
Sneaky devil.

“Just so,” he said, with a wink.

He pulled away from her. “This can’t wait. A surgical strike on Fydor and the rescue of the queen is critical. I can do this and prevent the human massacre and a full-scale attack on the Slayer fortress by our resistance.” He stood very still, tension practically rolling off him in waves from his dark hair to his bare feet. His attempt to hold his emotions in check had him close to cracking.

“Take the Uniter with you,” Vlad said.

He answered without even considering it. “No. Absolutely not. If you can read her mind, then you know exactly why. There is too much risk for her.”

“You underestimate her.”

“You underestimate
me
,” Nik answered.

“How about letting me weigh in on this?” Talking about her like she wasn’t in the room was infuriating.

“No,” Nik snapped.

Hands on hips, she collected herself for several reasons. Not only did she not want to set off the two empath vamps, she didn’t want to set Nik off, either. He’d just been through a horrible ordeal, and he was being asked to give up control and concede he needed help, neither of which were easy for him.

“She doesn’t need your approval. She has her own powers and can go without you,” Vlad observed.

“I won’t allow it.”

Enough.
Elena gripped the edge of the table. “Is Chauvinism 101 a required course for all Slayers, or is it reserved for royalty?”

Both of his dark eyebrows shot up. Other than that, he remained still.

“I can teleport out of here any time I want, Nik, but
you
can’t. I’ll give you half an hour to make up your mind whether or not you want me to take you when I teleport to the fortress.” With that, she marched out the door to go get her sword from her bedroom.

Her vision blurred through the tears she refused to shed. She was trying, she really was, but he needed to meet her halfway. When he was ready to treat her as an equal and stop acting like a royal ass, she’d be more than happy to talk to him. As soon as she got what she needed from the elf, she was out of here, with or without him.

N
ikolai knew he was being a prick, and possibly giving Elena cause to hate him, but couldn’t risk losing her or his baby. Just thinking about her carrying his child made his heart beat faster . No. She would stay here with Vladimir Dalca where they both were safe.

“I would like some more suitable battle clothes if available.”

The three vampires didn’t respond, not that he expected the two empaths to do anything. Freakish creatures, but invaluable in battle. They fed off the opponents’ fear or fury and were unstoppable. Sadly, that carried over into everyday life, so they had to be contained to this mountain where their interaction with other species, especially humans, was limited.

Dalca reached for a goblet on the table in front of him. “You spoke of mistakes you’d made. You are about to make the biggest one of your existence.”

“I can’t allow her to put herself and our baby in harm’s way.”

“Which is exactly what would happen if she remains here. We will all be in harm’s way. She’s the key to ending the war.”

Part of him knew he was right, but the other part wasn’t willing to take the risk. “I couldn’t bear to lose her.”

“Based on her thoughts, you very well might have lost her already.” He took a sip from the goblet and put it back on the table. “Your markings do not say that the Uniter will rise from the ashes of death by a warrior’s hand, only to be locked away for her own good, thereby denied the ability to dethrone tyrants and anoint kings.”

“This is bullshit.”

“Yes, it is.” He closed his eyes and then stood. “Evidently, there is some unusual activity in the forest on the south side. You two are needed to see your units secure the castle. Go now.”

Both vampires stood and wordlessly left the room.

With a crook of a finger, Dalca signaled to the woman in the corner. Without hesitation, she crossed the room to stand before him. His eyes darkened, and she smiled as he loosened her hair and ran his fingers through it.

“It’s a funny thing about fated mates. I’ve never had one, so I can only relate what I’ve heard from those who have been more fortunate than I.” He unbuttoned the woman’s blouse and slipped his hands inside, but his gaze was on Nikolai. “One’s weakness is the other’s strength.” The woman moaned, and he whispered something in her ear that caused her to moan again. “Your strengths, Nikolai Itzov, are bravery, honesty, and fighting skill.” He sat in a chair, pulling the woman into his lap. “Elena Arcos’s strengths are compassion, intelligence, and an uncanny ability to think analytically.”