Christian’s Coven 7

Ceri

He watches his mate from afar, unable to touch, hold, or claim the
man. Distance is Ceridian's reality, his torment. He exists outside

the vampire population, living with an unnatural craving that
seems to grow stronger whenever he is near Virgil—a man who
haunts his very dreams. Ceri feels more dead than alive as he

watches life go on all around him, but he is powerless against the
dark force keeping him chained to the shadows.

Virgil has never fit in. Not in Dante's coven, and not in Christian's.
He passes each night longing for the one man who refuses to

claim him, Ceri. He knows of Ceri's hunger, and he is desperate to
find a way around the man's flesh cravings. He is even willing to

sacrifice his own life to be with the vampire. And it may just come
to that as their bond grows in ways neither had expected. They
are plunged into danger, deception, and infinite pleasure beyond

imagining.

Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Contemporary, Paranormal,
Vampires/Werewolves
Length: 40,159 words

CERI

Christian’s Coven 7

Lynn Hagen

EVERLASTING CLASSIC

MANLOVE

Siren Publishing, Inc.

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CERI
Copyright © 2013 by Lynn Hagen
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62740-817-2

First E-book Publication: November 2013

Cover design by Emma Nicole
All art and logo copyright © 2013 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be
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All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance
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CERI

Christian’s Coven 7

LYNN HAGEN

Copyright © 2013

Prologue

The great kingdom of Neverlight Hall was the most powerful of

the lands. The Espelimbergos’ dynasty ruled for over three thousand
years. Although they were human, they had shifter servants to see to
their safety and warlocks to cast spells, keeping the kingdom safe
from anyone who wished them harm.

But not all was well in the kingdom. Queen Serentene

Espelimbergo wanted children. But she did not want her husband to
plant his seed in her womb. Serentene scoffed at the idea of having
sons who were weak with nothing more than human blood. She
wanted her offspring to be strong like shifters, powerful like
warlocks, and have the cunning intelligence of a demon.

After seeking out Nenya, the greatest warlock to ever walk the

lands, Serentene struck a bargain with him. She agreed to kill the king
in exchange for a powerful potion that would give the sons she bore
all the otherworldly qualities she felt was their right to have. Nenya
agreed to her bargain. But what the queen did not know was that the
warlock hated humans with every breath that he took.

He was so hate filled and jaded that he created the spell with a

dark heart, adding things that were wholly evil. Handing it over,

8

Lynn Hagen

Nenya told Serentene that her end of the bargain was to be met when
her sons turned of age.

She agreed.
After chanting the spell that Nenya had given her, she sought out

the one man whose reputation spoke of great power and unparalleled
strength. Serentene used her breathtaking beauty to seduce Panahasi
into sleeping with her—not once, but twice.

King Marsian Espelimbergo was filled with joy when his queen

gave birth to their first son, Christian. He was thrilled once again
when a few years later she bore him twins—Rhysdan and Ceridian.

The vampire race was born.
But what Marsian did not know was that the sons were not of his

loins. He raised them as his own, teaching them to be great men. On
the eve of Christian’s eighteenth birthday, Nenya visited Serentene.
He demanded his payment, but by then, Serentene had softened, her
sons showing her the greatest gift of all, love. She refused to kill her
husband. Serentene knew that she had been selfish when using the
spell so many years ago. Over the years she realized just how much
Marsian adored her and she had fallen in love with her king.

Enraged that she had failed to keep her end of the bargain, Nenya

gathered the other warlocks, starting a war in which the king and
queen were killed. Before his own death, Nenya cast one last spell. He
wanted the sons to suffer for their mother’s betrayal. Choosing the
darkest spell he possessed, Nenya sliced his very own daughter’s
throat, creating a curse for the sons of Serentene Espelimbergo.

He began to chant, reciting the spell as the shifters and

Espelimbergo sons stormed his castle. Nenya had enough time to
curse just one. He chose the vampire who had slept with his beloved
daughter, Victoria.

Ceridian.
As he was overtaken, Nenya poured Victoria’s blood into the

cauldron, sealing the vampire’s fate for all eternity. Since the

Ceri 9

abomination loved blood so much and had soiled his daughter, Nenya
cursed Ceridian with a craving of the flesh.

The keeper of the underworld sought out Ceridian, telling him

what Nenya had done. He also told Ceridian that if he revealed this
knowledge, the curse would intensify tenfold. The spell forced
Ceridian to consume flesh, making him the most feared vampire in all
existence.

The war lasted three hundred years, decimating the paranormal

population. In that time, Ceridian’s hunger for the flesh had grown so
greatly that Christian had to put his brother into a deep sleep. But
Rhysdan loved Ceridian so deeply that he did not want him to be
alone. He agreed to be put to sleep next to his twin. Christian swore to
Rhysdan that he would awaken the twins when he found a solution to
Ceridian’s adversity.

But a solution was never found.
Years turned into decades that turned into centuries. Two

thousand years had passed, and now in a time of technology where the
inhabitants of earth were tapping away on their smartphones or busy
driving in rush hour traffic, the mysteries of days long ago weren’t
even a fleeting thought.

No one remembered the battle between the otherworldly creatures

and warlocks. Most had forgotten the folklore, setting aside the
legends for a latte or the latest gadget. Those who did remember
thought the war only a myth to scare their young into behaving. A
handful remained who were there, witnessing firsthand the evil that
had plagued the lands. Just a few recalled the carnage left behind.

Warlocks all but vanished from the lands, killed by vampires and

shifters to stop them from casting ancient and wicked spells.

Neverlight Hall still stood, although now in ruins. The years had

not been kind to the castle that had once been the most majestic place
to live. But there was still one who walked the lonely halls, living in
the shadows to stop himself from eating his way through the scourge
of society.

10

Lynn Hagen

Chained to his curse, Ceridian Giordano Espelimbergo was more

dead than alive, enduring an existence he wouldn’t wish on his worst
enemy.

Ceri 11

Chapter One

It was the hottest night in fall, in Virgil’s opinion. The club was

packed, bodies pressed against each other like a wall of flesh. He still
wasn’t used to being here and Virgil didn’t like the constant noise
pounding in his ears. If one more guy patted his ass, he was going to
turn this place into a bloodbath.

Irritated, sweaty, and ready to find a quiet hole to crawl into,

Virgil pushed his way toward the front exit, cursing the bracelet on
his wrist. The prince had insisted Virgil wear one so he couldn’t pop
out of this place, treating him like some prisoner.

“Yo, Virgil!” August called out from somewhere close by. He’d

know that voice from anywhere. The vampire had been chosen by
Christian to pretty much babysit Virgil, be his shadow, and dog his
every move. “Wait up!”

He pretended he didn’t hear the guy as his feet carried him closer

to the door. If he could just make it to the exit, then he could hurry
outside and hide in the crowd out there, away from the pest. All Virgil
wanted was some cool air. He didn’t need a chaperone for that. Once
outside, Harley—the bouncer—would keep a watchful eye on him.

But being here was better than being at the Manor. There, Virgil

would have to look at Rhys, Ceri’s twin. That was just too painful of a
reminder that his mate didn’t want him.

Not even his brother, Ross, wanted to be bothered with Virgil. But

could he really blame the guy? Virgil had been in a dark place when
Ross mated Kenway, which made him take his aggression out on the
one man who loved him. He was still in that dark place and gave Ross
the distance the man had wanted, but god how he missed his brother.

12

Lynn Hagen

“Why don’t you stand with me?” Harley asked as Virgil

approached. The guy’s eyes were flickering behind Virgil, a smirk on
his face. The bouncer knew that August was looking for him, and he
knew that Virgil was running. “It’ll give you something to do besides
hiding from your sitter.”

He glanced over his shoulder and saw August heading straight for

him. Jeez, the man took babysitting serious as hell. The guy had a
determined look etched on his face—like if he didn’t stay glued to
Virgil’s side, he’d explode. “Only if you make August go away,” he
said quickly to Harley.

Harley gave him a cocky smile. “Ah, c’mon. He isn’t that bad.”
When Virgil gave him an oh yes he is look, Harley lifted his arm

and snapped his fingers, pointing directly at August. “Christian is
looking for you.”

Virgil watched August make a U-turn and head for the hallway

where Christian’s office was located. August was a nice enough guy.
He was just too clingy. Virgil felt like the man was suffocating him
when he was near. He didn’t like that. He wanted his own space to
breathe, not sit there and listen to the guy chat on and on about
nothing. “He’ll be back once he finds out Christian isn’t really
looking for him.”

Harley waved a pair of humans past him before replacing the

maroon rope that corralled the ones waiting to get inside. “That won’t
be for a while considering the prince isn’t here.”

Virgil took up post on the other side of Harley. That way he was

outside the building, feeling the breeze on his heated skin—and out of
August’s line of sight. He gazed down the row of misfits waiting to
get inside and wondered why they liked to party here. They had no
idea vampires existed and once they left the club, any memory they
acquired would be wiped clean by Harley.

He didn’t understand what made this place so special.
“That’s my girl you’re hitting on!”

Ceri 13

Virgil saw one human shoving at another. They looked like they

were about to go blow for blow. As he took in the odd clothes and
body piercings, Virgil knew that he would never understand humans’
elaborate wardrobe or why they felt the need to hide behind so many
piercings and makeup.

On second thought, yes he did. He had hidden behind his own

mask since he could remember, shutting down, holding the world at
bay, and refusing to let them in. He had even been mean to his brother
at times, just to stop him from getting too close.

“Watch the door, Virgil, while I take care of those two

numbskulls.” Harley left his side, making his way down the line until
he reached the disputing pair. The bouncer hauled them both out of
line, a female shouting to let her boyfriend go. A skirt that clearly
showed everything she was born with rose up when she lifted her arm
to punch at Harley’s shoulder.

The situation looked like it was getting out of control until the

bouncer pressed a hand over each man’s head and then they fell silent.
The female shouted some more, her face flushed in anger until Harley
pressed his hand to her forehead as well. Virgil watched all three
mutely walk away from the club.

One thing was for sure. Harley had an interesting job. He never

had to worry about things becoming too dull around here.

“I swear,” Harley muttered as he walked back over to where

Virgil was standing. “If he didn’t want his girl’s ass patted, why did
he let her come here with a see-through skirt?”

“He wanted to end things with her.” Virgil could see the man’s

intentions as clear as day. He was pretty good at reading people and
the human had purposely started that argument. His tone of voice had
been off, telling Virgil that he really didn’t care who patted the
woman’s ass.

Harley swiped his hand over another pair’s head who exited the

club, stealing their memories of anything otherworldly as he glanced
toward Virgil. “You think?”

14

Lynn Hagen

“I saw the way he was looking at her,” Virgil replied as he

mentally thrust into a male’s head who was leaving the club and then
quickly pulled out, disgusted at what he found. “He no longer wishes
to be her boyfriend and is going to use her attire for his departure.”

Harley erased the exiting male’s memory before shaking his head.

“I’ll never understand people like that. Why doesn’t he just tell her
it’s over?”

“Perhaps she isn’t the type to easily break up with.”
“Dramatic?”
Virgil dipped his head in a nod. “How do you so easily retain

everyone’s memory of what they have seen? Doesn’t your mind
become too full?” Virgil knew the technique Harley used and he
couldn’t fathom holding so much in his own mind. Only the strongest
among them could do this night after night. He just knew he’d go
insane if he had to man the door like Harley did. Harley not only took
the memories, but absorbed them until they finally, slowly, dispersed.

The large vampire shrugged. “It took a lot of practice and a few

psychotic episodes before I mastered scrubbing so many memories.”
He winked at Virgil. “Wanna try the next person?”

Virgil remembered the guy who had just left and shook his head.

“Humans have bizarre and disgusting things in their minds.”

Harley gave a deep and rich chuckle. “Yeah, they do, but not all

of them. C’mon, try the next one.”

Before Virgil could refuse once more, a guy walked out, Harley

nodding at him. If he didn’t do anything, the human would leave with
his memories intact. Virgil plunged into the man’s mind and searched
for any knowledge he had of vampires. He saw the guy talking with
the bartender, his eyes sweeping over the crowd of partiers. They
landed on Isla, one of Christian’s higher-ranking vampires. Virgil saw
the human witness Isla biting someone and was ready to snatch the
memory away, when he felt what the man was feeling.

It wasn’t lust or revulsion, but longing. A longing so deep, so

painful that Virgil gasped, the emotion vibrating inside of him,

Ceri 15

resonating down his spine. He knew that feeling all too well. He
carried it with him everywhere he went, drowning in it most nights.
Virgil wanted Ceri so badly that sometimes he felt as if he would die
from the pain of being separated from the vampire.

“Is he scrubbed?”
Virgil locked eyes with the human and he felt some sort of bond

snap into place. He couldn’t understand it, but they had become
kindred souls in that moment. “Yes,” he lied.

As painful as it was to carry those emotions, Virgil couldn’t bring

himself to take those haunting feelings from the man. They were his
and his alone. He knew he should. Christian would be furious if he
knew Virgil had let the man go without scrubbing him, but for the
first time in eons, Virgil had felt like he’d connected with someone.
There was someone else in this world who felt the pain of being
denied the person they wanted most.

“See, it wasn’t so bad,” Harley commented. “Maybe I’ll toss you

one or two more people tonight.”

Virgil wasn’t listening. He was watching the man walk solemnly

to his car before turning to look directly at Virgil. As the man opened
his car door, Virgil pushed one thought into the human’s mind.

It feels like dying a thousand deaths, doesn’t it?
The raven-haired stranger blinked, as if surprised to hear Virgil’s

thoughts, and then slowly nodded before getting in and driving away.

* * * *

After leaving the Manacle, Virgil spent time strolling through the

dark forest behind the Manor. He liked being outside, letting the night
fill him as he walked his lonely path. He could hear someone behind
him, following him, but not closely. Virgil also knew it wasn’t
August. The person giving him his distance while keeping an eye on
him was too well trained, too quiet, too respectful of Virgil’s need to
be alone.

16

Lynn Hagen

He was also trying to find a way to get the bracelet off. How

ironic was it that he had locked one on his brother’s wrist, only to
have one of his own now?

Ross would never know that Virgil had shoved his brother into the

demon realm for his very own protection. Virgil had been slipping
deeper into his own mind, his thoughts hostile, not very pleasant. He
didn’t want Ross anywhere near him for fear he would do irrevocable
damage to the man. But the worst part of slipping further and further
into madness was the pain. Virgil didn’t want to be this way. He
wanted to be loved, feel happiness, and be able to laugh.

He wasn’t sure why he had been born broken. He felt. Yes, he’d

made Ross believe he had no emotions whatsoever, but that wasn’t
the truth. The problem with Virgil was that he felt too much, too
deeply.

“I don’t mean to intrude on your quiet time, but I’d like you to

stay close to the Manor.”

Virgil was irritated that Logan was following him in the first

place. Although the shifter was giving him his space, he wanted to be
utterly alone. He understood that he was Ceri’s mate and that
everyone was borderline psychotic about his safety, but all Virgil
wanted was some stinking fresh air. Seriously, where could he really
go? He was surrounded by trees, trees, and oh yeah, more trees. With
the bracelet on, he’d have to hoof it. “I’m not stopping you from
returning.”

Logan gave him a humorless chuckle. “Nice try, but I don’t want

to face Christian if you disappear on me. You are his brother’s mate
and trust me when I tell you that he will torture me slowly over the
next one thousand years if I let anything happen to you.”

Virgil wished Ceri cared as much as Christian seemed to. He had

heard that love could sometimes be magic, but in Virgil’s opinion,
magic was nothing more than smoke and mirrors, an illusion for fools.
Even with that thought, Virgil knew he wanted to give Ceri his broken
heart.

Ceri 17

“Everything always seems dismal when it comes to love.” Logan

turned back toward the Manor. Virgil knew he should do the same,
but he couldn’t get his feet to move. He didn’t want to go back there
right now. “Either everything works itself out, or you pull a Romeo
and Juliet on his ass.”

“You are a really morbid guy.” Although his heart was bleeding

for a man who didn’t want him, Virgil had never contemplated
sending them both to their graves. That was just twisted, even for him.

Logan laughed bitterly. “You just might change your mind.”
“Hardly.” Virgil began to walk deeper into the forest, wanting to

get away from Logan’s strange ass. But the man wasn’t having it. He
grabbed Virgil by the arm, holding him back. Virgil turned, baring his
fangs.

Logan did not look impressed. “I’ve had bigger and badder

vampires threatening to take a bite out of me, Virgil. But nice try.”

“Get. Your. Hands. Off. Of. Me.”
“Then. Get. Your. Ass. Back. To. The. House,” Logan mocked

him. “Nothing you can do or say will make me let you wander further
away.”

Virgil yanked his arm free, glaring daggers at the wolf shifter.

“You are an asshole.”

Logan nodded. “Been called worse, but I’m not budging on this.”
“Problem?”
They both turned to see Christian standing there, the moonlight

directly behind him, giving the man an ethereal glow. He was the last
person Virgil wanted to see. “Yeah, Fido here won’t let go of his
bone.”

The prince’s face softened as if Virgil’s statement amused him.
“He’s all yours.” Logan scowled as he left Virgil with Christian.
“It isn’t wise to antagonize the man watching your back.”
“You mean babysitting me so I won’t run away.” Virgil began to

walk further into the woods, wondering if Christian would stop him.
The man didn’t. He kept pace with Virgil instead.

18

Lynn Hagen

“You probably do think of this as a prison sentence,” Christian

said. “But humanity would not be safe if something happened to you,
Virgil.”

“Why, because you think Ceri cares?” He scoffed, holding back

all the things he really wanted to say. He was pretty sure that even
though his safety was top priority, mouthing off to the prince would
get his ass handed to him.

“Yes.”
“Bullshit.” Virgil stopped in his tracks, turned, and faced the

prince. “He doesn’t love me.”

“I didn’t say love,” Christian corrected him as his dark eyes filled

with something Virgil couldn’t discern. They were dark, tenebrous,
and seemed to see right through him. “How can a man love anyone
else when he can’t even love himself?”

Virgil didn’t want to hear that. He didn’t want to know that he had

a snowball’s chance in hell of being claimed by Ceri. He didn’t want
to be here at the Manor. Virgil didn’t want to be at the Manacle.
There was just one place he’d ever felt safe, and that was at Ceri’s
home, in that rundown castle that haunted his dreams.

As the pain of abandonment mounted inside of him, Virgil felt

like tentacles of madness were wrapping around him. He was
reaching critical level and all he wanted was for the hole in his chest
to stop hurting. “I hate you,” he sneered at Christian. “I hate
everything about you and your family. I wish to fate that I had never
discovered who Ceri was to me. I curse the fucking ground all of you
walk on!”

Christian’s eyes were full of a sympathetic understanding. “I

know.”

Before Virgil could blink, he was standing in his bedroom. He

screamed at the top of his lungs, trashing his bedroom, shouting out
Ceri’s name and calling him every deplorable thing he could think of.
It hurt so badly that Virgil thought he would die from the pain. He

Ceri 19

ended up on his knees, rocking back and forth as he cried bloodred
tears.

He parted his lips to revoke Ceri’s claim on him, to severe the tie

for all eternity, but he couldn’t form the words. No matter how bad
things were, Virgil couldn’t find it in himself to give up. He had no
one, not one single person in this world, not even his brother.

Virgil was all alone and it seemed he was destined to stay that

way.

* * * *

Virgil opened his eyes, all sense of time lost to him as he glanced

around. He knew right away that he wasn’t in his bedroom. As his
eyes began to focus, Virgil realized he was lying on a bed of silk, the
sheer curtains drawn to one side. His eyes swept the room and he
knew exactly where he was.

“Show yourself.”
A breeze skirted through the crumbling windows as an owl hooted

outside, yet he still remained alone. There was no answer to his
demand. He lay back down, curling up and wondering if he was going
to wake from his dream. Virgil didn’t want to. He wanted to remain
here forever.

“Why did you try to evoke the deep sleep on yourself?”
“Because I would rather sleep for all eternity than spend another

moment without you,” Virgil whispered. He knew better than to get
up and look. Ceri wasn’t going to show himself. The man had built a
fortress between them and there was no getting through it. The
question was, why had Ceri brought him here? Why had the ancient
vampire stolen into Virgil’s dreams?

“I won’t allow you to do this.” Ceri’s deep voice slid through the

room like a serpent made of smoke. “I have taken the power of deep
sleep from you.”

20

Lynn Hagen

Virgil slammed his eyes closed, feeling the pain rip him further

apart. “I hate you,” he whispered. “You refuse to give me the peace I
want, to allow me to hide from the pain you yourself have given me.”

Virgil felt a light breeze brush his hair back, a warmth settle over

his exposed cheek. He didn’t want tricks or illusions. He wanted the
real thing. “Leave me alone!”

He was flipped to his back, barely able to take a breath before

Ceri appeared over him, his knees on either side of Virgil’s hips, his
hands on either side of Virgil’s head.

Dark, deadly, and scary, Virgil

was enveloped by an aura of supreme power.

The man was massive,

the points of his fangs touching his chin, his eyes wild, dangerous.
“We can never be together. You wish for things that cannot be.”

There was a raw ache in his throat from withheld tears as Virgil

reached up and slammed his fist into Ceri’s jaw. “You bastard!”

Ceri pinned his wrists, his eyes filling with such sorrow that Virgil

thought he would go mad. He shook with the brutality of the man’s
emotions.

Lowering his head, Ceri inhaled at Virgil’s neck, placing a light

kiss just below his ear. “I revoke my claim on you, Virgil Green. You
are set free from the man you hate.”

“No!” His loud scream resonated off the walls, echoing in his

ears, but the room was empty.

His stomach felt as if it was trying to

crawl out through his throat

as he realized that Ceri was gone and he

knew in his heart that he would never see the man again.

Virgil jackknifed out of his sleep, his heart racing as he glanced

around his own bedroom. Sweat soaked every inch of his body as he
curled into himself. That hadn’t been just a bad dream.

Ceri really had come to him and rescinded his claim as Virgil’s

mate.

* * * *

Ceri 21

“Is it done?” Marino asked the chameleon-wolf shifter when the

man’s eyes flickered open. Kell lay there looking like a clone of
Christian’s brother, Ceri.

Kell nodded, rolling his massive shoulders before sitting up from

the table he’d been lying on. “It is done.”

The man was the biggest goddamn thing Marino had ever seen.

He was even more massive than Maverick in his shifter form. He’d
come across the half breed while in Romania, and Marino knew he’d
struck gold. Kell had been hiding out there, running from his own
demons that screamed out for mercy. He wasn’t sure what the man’s
tortured misery was, and he didn’t care. Playing on the guy’s
weaknesses, Marino had talked Kell into returning with him,
promising the creature wealth if he did Marino’s bidding.

“Did he have any clue that you weren’t his mate?”
Kell shook his head. “None. He believed I was his Ceri.”
Marino’s goal was to destroy each Ultionem leader’s pack, coven,

whatever. The dissention amongst them was going to be beautiful. He
couldn’t get to Christian’s mates, but the ancient vampire’s younger
brother was just as valuable. When Ceri killed his mate and went
insane from guilt and grief, having to be put back into a deep sleep,
Marino would move in, destroying the coven.

They were all going to pay for Constantine’s death.
“Now,” Marino said a little too cheerfully. “On to the second

phase.”

22

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Two

Ceri paced the keeper’s chambers, wondering if this was another

failed attempt or if the creature would finally succeed in lifting his
curse.

“You must learn patience, young warrior,” the keeper said as he

moved to add something else to the brewing concoction. Ceri wasn’t
too sure about this. The room was filled with a putrid scent, the potion
bubbly and thick. It looked and smelled disgusting.

He was more afraid that it would make him grow another head

rather than remove the eternal craving that festered like poison inside
of him.

“The warlock who cast the spell was very powerful indeed. A

blind person who sees is better than a seeing person who is blind.”

What in the gods’ creation did that mean? Ceri remembered the

first time he’d met this strange creature. It had been back before his
deep sleep. The man had approached him, telling Ceri what the
warlock had done. He had been leery, but had listened, vowing the
man’s death if it was a trick. But talking to the keeper kept Ceri’s
head in constant confusion. So instead, he’d studied from the
creature’s ancient scrolls and books as much as he could before the
curse became too much to bear and Christian placed him in the
ground.

The knowledge he had gained was priceless, but neither of them

had come up with a solution to what Nenya had done to him. The
gods knew Ceri had poured through hundreds of scrolls to no avail
and had drunk more potions than he cared to remember.

Ceri 23

“I just want this wretched curse lifted. Do you know what it is like

to crave flesh?” Ceri’s stomach knotted when he thought of the
countless people he’d dined on. It wasn’t normal and he detested
himself every time the curse forced him to eat flesh.

“Not particularly,” the keeper answered. “He who is not satisfied

with himself will grow. He who is not sure of his own correctness will
learn many things.”

Ceri was becoming increasingly agitated. Not only because of the

creature’s riddles, but because something was brewing. He wasn’t
sure what it was, but he could feel the malice in the air like a toxic
poison.

It could also be the swill he was inhaling.
He had an urge to go check on Virgil, to make sure the man was

safe, but Ceri also wanted to know if this latest concoction would set
him free, unbind the shackles tying him to a perversion he hated with
every fiber of his being.

Worse, if he told anyone the truth, his sickness would intensify.

Ceri was not willing to go there. Somehow the keeper knew what the
warlock had done to him, and he’d been looking for a “cure” since. So
far, neither had found one.

“You may not want to stick around.” The keeper added what

looked like figs to the cauldron. “This will take time.”

Gritting his back molars, Ceri reined in his need to wrap his

fingers around the man’s neck. The creature could have told him this
hours ago. “How long?”

“If you are in a hurry you will never get there.”
Turning on his heel, Ceri left the chamber before he did

something that would probably cause another curse to fall on his
head. He made his way to the human realm, perching himself on a
ledge as he looked over the city. Before he could even attempt to find
solace in the night, he saw two guys mugging a woman on the side of
a red brick building he was standing on. It was one in the morning,

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Lynn Hagen

late for her to be out here with her purse, advertising herself as a
damn victim.

When are humans going to learn?
In one fluid motion, Ceri stepped off the roof and landed as

quietly as a cat right behind the action. As Ceri stalked toward them,
he felt the familiar hunger begin to claw at him. It superseded his
thirst for blood and his need to breathe. Just like a thousand times
before, Ceri fought against the sickening curse, but he knew he was
powerless to curb it. In all this time, he hadn’t won a battle yet.

He reached out and grabbed one of the assailant’s wrists, bending

it back until he heard something snap. “Not a good night to be
prowling the streets, yeah?”

When the other man came after Ceri, he

hooked his ankle and

slammed the human on the ground. “I would advise you to stay down,
donate de sangre.”

Waving his fingers in front of the woman’s eyes, Ceri clouded her

vision, making her see the happiest memory she possessed. The
woman stood there, her eyes unfocused as he turned his attention to
the man whose wrist he’d snapped. He had silenced the scream with
his mind, stopping anyone else from coming to the human’s rescue.
“Do you have a god?”

The man ground his teeth together as he looked at Ceri in

puzzlement. Twisting the guy’s arm between his shoulder blades, he
leaned in closer, fighting the curse, feeling the sweat building like a
thick layer of grime over his skin. Knots formed in his stomach as his
muscles sang with tension. He didn’t want to bite. Ceri didn’t want to
know what this man tasted like…yet, the need was pushing him to
devour, to eat until nothing remained.

“Do. You. Have. A. God?”
“Yeah, man…yeah.” The guy licked his lips, a glint of hope in

eyes the color of rotten leaves. Ceri didn’t have to probe the man’s
mind. He could smell the decay in the stranger’s heart. Nothing was

Ceri 25

more noxious to him than evil. The stench filled his nostrils and gave
him a bad taste at the back of his throat.

“Then give him your last prayer.” Ceri opened his mouth, feeling

his fangs growing in length.

“What’s going on over there?”
Ceri’s head snapped to the side when he saw a black-and-white

patrol car sitting by the curb, the uniformed police officer standing
just outside the driver’s door, looking at them from over the hood.
Ceri’s sensitive eyes were partially blinded when the cop turned the
spotlight toward him.

Damn.
“This is your lucky night.” He released the human, letting him fall

to the pavement before he took off in the opposite direction. As soon
as he was out of sight, he faded from the city streets, heading toward
the Manor where he could be close to the one man he knew he could
never have, but craved with every breath he took.

When he arrived in the darkened woods at the Manor, Ceri tipped

his head back and dragged the essence of Virgil into his lungs. His
mate had been out here tonight, not long ago.

“I’m going to assume you aren’t here to send Virgil completely

over the edge.”

Ceri hated the fact that Christian could sneak up on him. He was

one of a very few who had that ability. Vampires were quick, a
natural talent they possessed. He supposed it was because nature—or
whoever had created them—made sure they could get away from
pitchfork-carrying mobs. But that was eons ago. Now the humans
were equipped with modern gadgets, things he still didn’t
comprehend.

What he wouldn’t give to return to simpler times. “I have not

contacted Virgil for months. I have made sure to cover my scent when
checking on him.” And that bothered Ceri. He wished the keeper
would find a cure because he was growing tired of hiding in the

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Lynn Hagen

shadows, allowing himself small glimpses of the man fate had chosen
for him.

Christian moved closer, as if trying to get a better handle on Ceri’s

reaction. “And you would deny your little impromptu visit this
evening?”

Christian’s accusation confused him. “This is the first time since

nightfall that I’ve come here,” he replied in a tone that was borderline
insulting.

Although he wouldn’t say that he and Christian were close

brothers, he’d stopped trying to push the man away. Lately, they were
even known to be civil toward one another. Not that Ceri had forgiven
the man for putting him in a deep sleep. But if the prince were going
to watch over his mate, the least Ceri could do was counsel his
tongue.

His sibling considered him for a moment before his eyes grew as

black as crow’s wings. “Virgil is not well. He says that you came to
him and revoked your claim on him, setting him free from the man he
hates.”

Ceri’s fangs extended as dark rage blanketed him. Someone was

going to suffer his wrath for this. Taking off from the forest, Ceri
headed straight for the Manor.

Ceri slipped into Virgil’s room, closing the door behind him. He

had been so furious with what Christian had revealed to him that he
hadn’t thought about what he would say once he laid eyes on the
handsome man. His mate possessed a rare beauty. Most would call
Virgil plain, mediocre at best. But the fools these days put stock in
thinness and model-gorgeous people who didn’t have an ounce of
depth to them.

It was true that Virgil was slim, but he had so many fascinating

characteristics about him that most nights Ceri found it hard to stay
away. The man was bold and brave, and Ceri respected those
qualities. Virgil also had a way about him, a quiet reclusiveness that

Ceri 27

made Ceri want to peel back the layers and find out who the man truly
was.

But not before he found a cure for his curse.
In a shadowed corner of the room, Ceri saw Virgil curled up in a

chair, his eyes lost, vacant of any true emotion. He knew that look
because Ceri wore it many times.

“You’ve come back to rip out my heart?” Virgil asked, his eyes

still looking at nothing, his tone indifferent. Where was he in his head,
what place had he escaped to? If someone had truly impersonated
Ceri, had deceivingly played a cruel joke on Virgil and revoked the
claim he had over the man, then Virgil was not mentally with Ceri. He
was hiding someplace deep and dark, a place where the vampire
would find comfort and solace.

Keeping his distance, Ceri moved until he was in Virgil’s line of

sight. “I’m told you had a visit from me tonight.”

Cold, dark eyes slid toward him and Ceri wasn’t sure if the man

even heard him. And if he did, was it registering? Knowing there was
just one way to communicate with the vampire, Ceri plunged deep
into Virgil’s mind, sifting through memories and emotions until he
found his mate huddled in a corner, his arms wrapped tightly around
him.

“It was not me,” Ceri said adamantly as his eyes swept over the

long length of Virgil’s raven-black hair. He hated that he couldn’t tell
the man the truth, the reason behind the lies, the cold shoulder, his
very rejection. No one knew what it was like to walk in Ceri’s shoes,
to feel his pain and loneliness. He couldn’t even take comfort in his
mate. “You were deceived, innocent one.”

Virgil turned, his eyes beseeching as he gazed up at Ceri from the

floor of his dark mind. His soft voice was strained as he asked, “Why
won’t you claim me? Am I that much of a monster? Do I disgust you
that much?”

Ceri felt the breath leave his lungs at the total despair in Virgil’s

eyes. “Monster?” His tone was bitter as he repeated the word Virgil

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Lynn Hagen

had used to describe himself. No one knew what it was like to be
hated, feared, and the all-around bad man—to hold empty dreams in
the palm of his hand because that was all he had. The road Ceri
walked was filled with sorrow and madness, cracking under his very
feet as he tried to leave the desolate existence that he was trapped in.
No, the true monster stood in this very room and went by the name of
Ceridian Giordano Espelimbergo.

He stepped closer, wanting to hold Virgil, to finally feel the man

in his arms when the curse reared its ugly head, making Ceri’s fangs
elongate, his throat growing tight as the hunger for Virgil’s flesh
became all consuming.

No! Ceri backpedaled, yanking himself free from Virgil’s mind.

As much as he wanted to stay here and convince his mate that he
hadn’t been the one who’d revoked the claim, that it had been an
imposter, Ceri knew he had to go. He had to leave before he did
something that was irreversible and would send his soul straight into
the pits of tortured agony for all eternity.

Taking one last look at the fragile body curled up tightly in the

wingback chair, Ceri disappeared.

* * * *

Virgil wasn’t sure what to believe. Maybe he was losing his mind.

He knew for a fact that Ceri had come to him and revoked his claim.
He had stared into those fathomless blue eyes and seen the truth. But
he had also seen the truth when Ceri had plunged into his mind and
said it wasn’t him who had visited Virgil.

Maybe it wasn’t him who was going insane, but Ceri. What if he

didn’t remember coming to Virgil the first time? It was a possibility.

“How you feeling?” Harley asked as Virgil stood next to him. He

gazed out over the sea of humans waiting to get in the club and he had
an urge to scream at them not to have a good time, not to act like
Virgil’s heart wasn’t shattered into a thousand pieces.

Ceri 29

“Fine.” He spotted the same stranger from the night before,

standing there huddled like he was trying not to be noticed. His raven
hair hung over his eyes, shadowing his face from everyone.

Come to me.
The man’s head lifted slightly as he glanced around, and then his

blue eyes settled on Virgil. He was standing three quarters of the way
down, in the midst of a bunch of rowdy college students.

Come to me.
The guy took a step forward, glancing at the line in front of him,

and then stepped out from under the rope and headed Virgil’s way. As
the man walked closer, Virgil crept inside the man’s head, still seeing
the longing inside of him. He could feel the anxiousness vibrating in
the man, a need to get inside the club. He wasn’t sure if it was to see
Isla again, but Virgil wasn’t going to deny the man what he craved
most.

Virgil already knew that feeling, and it left a black hole where his

heart should be.

“Hey, back in line,” Harley barked, but Virgil held up his hand.
“He can go in.” The stranger stopped in front of Virgil, cocking

his head slightly before the side of his mouth jerked in what was
supposed to be a smile, but fell miserably short.

“You know him?” Harley asked as he raised his hand, wiping

away the three men’s memories as they walked out of the club.

Virgil had no clue who the man was. But he nodded nonetheless.

Harley shrugged as if it didn’t matter to him one way or the other. The
bouncer was starting to grow on Virgil. He liked the guy’s
personality. Harley wasn’t bothered by much, making the man pretty
laid back.

Something caught Virgil’s attention across the parking lot and

beyond. He turned his head, his eyes scanning. It wasn’t something
he’d seen so much as a sudden, deep need to look.

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Lynn Hagen

As his eyes scanned the area, they landed on a dark figure

squatting low on one of the rooftops a few buildings down. Every
instinct in him said it was Ceri who was watching him.

Knowing it was fruitless, Virgil tried to get a lock on the man’s

mind, to communicate with him in some sort of way.

What he hadn’t expected was to succeed. He could feel his mate’s

presence heavily in his mind, almost like he was probing at Virgil’s
memories so he could get to know him better.

Why do you watch me from so far away?
The probing halted, Ceri’s presence growing silent. Virgil thought

the man had left him entirely until he sensed sorrow and anger that
was rolling through him like fire. It is best I keep my distance.

Virgil didn’t understand why. It frustrated him beyond words that

Ceri was being so tenebrous with him, not explaining a thing. He’d
sworn to Virgil that he hadn’t been the one who had revoked his
claim.

Was this even the real Ceri he was communicating with?

Slamming the door on his memories, Virgil faced Ceri in his mind.
When was the first time we met?

Virgil could actually feel Ceri smiling ruefully in his mind. You

tricked the alpha of the dogs into bringing you to me.

Which alpha?
Instead of answering him, Ceri showed him. But this wasn’t

Virgil’s memory. He was seeing that night through his mate’s eyes.
No imposter would have this memory. But what shocked Virgil was
the way Ceri had been watching him closely before he even revealed
himself from behind a thick column. His eyes scanned up and down
Virgil’s body and he felt a shiver vibrate between their minds and that
feeling hadn’t come from him.

You are my greatest strength and my ultimate destruction, Virgil.
What did that mean? And how did the man seem to make his

name sound so erotic? He pronounced it like va-gel. Virgil had

Ceri 31

noticed a thick accent the handful of times the man had spoken in the
past.

Taking a huge risk, Virgil pushed into the club, running toward

the second-floor balcony. He spotted Shelby and pulled him aside.
“Please, for my mate. I need you to take me to him.”

Shelby looked like he wanted to argue, but Virgil shook the man’s

arms. He was desperate and cursed the bracelet on his arm. Shelby
glanced around and then pulled Virgil down the hallway upstairs.
Once they were in one of the bedrooms, he grabbed Virgil’s hand.

“Show me where he is.”
Virgil wasn’t going to allow the man into his mind. Instead, he

told Shelby exactly where he’d seen his mate. The vampire dispersed
his molecules and flew through the night at lightning speed, landing
on the roof where Ceri was squatting. The ancient vampire hissed at
their presence, backing up so quickly he nearly fell over the edge.
“Go!”

“Not until you tell me why we can’t be together!” Virgil leapt,

nearly grabbing Ceri before the man moved quickly away. He could
see the blue in the man’s eyes bleeding away, replaced by a deep
crimson. Fangs that were longer than any vampire he’d known grew
in length until the tips were touching the man’s chin.

“Because I want to dine on your flesh!” Ceri took a step forward,

his moves resembling a lethal predator stalking after a fresh kill,
inhaling the air deeply.

For the first time in Virgil’s existence, he knew what true terror

felt like. Ceri looked demonic as he approached. His nails were long
and black, his expression hungry.

“We should go,” Shelby said with true panic in his tone.
Virgil was immobilized with sheer terror. There was something

horribly wrong with his mate. No vampire should have a deep need to
eat another.

Virgil tried to hold the menacing, predatory gaze that was

peering at him from behind the dark irises of his mate. A volatile mix of

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Lynn Hagen

adrenaline, rage, and absolute, marrow-chilling fear shot through Virgil
when Ceri kept advancing.

“No!” Ceri stopped moving, grabbing his temples as if fighting

some beast inside his head. Some part of Virgil’s mind was screaming
for him to run, to get away from the creature that resembled his mate,
but he couldn’t do anything but watch.

Before Virgil knew what was happening, Ceri slung himself over

the side of the roof. He raced toward the edge and peered over, but
there was no sign of Ceri anywhere.

Ceri 33

Chapter Three

“I say you chain him to a bed and then he can’t eat you,” Shelby

said as they walked from the upstairs bedroom. “You could claim
each other, and maybe that will stop him from munching on you.”

At this point, Virgil was willing to try anything. He just couldn’t

believe that his mate said he wanted to dine on his flesh. He knew
Ceri had some strange skin fetish. All the vampires knew about it. But
Virgil thought he was an exception to that rule.

Apparently not.
And people wonder why I’m so messed up in the head.
“Maybe you could muzzle him. Just give it a thought,” Shelby

said before he traipsed down the steps from the second-floor balcony
of the club. Virgil was more determined than ever to have a serious
one-on-one talk with Ceri. There had to be a solution to this problem.

He’d never allowed anyone to get close to him, until Ceri. The

ancient vampire was the only person Virgil craved to be next to. His
entire life Virgil had felt isolated and alone. It wasn’t something he’d
chosen for himself, but a feeling he carried with him, nonetheless.

“You must be very careful.”
The last person Virgil wanted to see was Christian. He knew

asking Shelby to take him to Ceri was going against the prince’s order
for him to go nowhere except with express permission.

But Ceri was his mate and he wasn’t going to take any flack from

the prince over this. Turning toward the railing,

his gaze drifted over

the sea of bobbing heads and swaying bodies. He didn’t know what
to say to the prince. Christian would know if he was lying, but
talking about Ceri was just too painful.

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Lynn Hagen

“He hasn’t learned to control what he is yet.” Christian leaned

his arm on the gold-trimmed railing, staring out at the people down
below. Virgil had wondered once or twice what it would have been
like if he was mated to the prince instead. Christian’s mates
seemed happy and they had two beautiful sons, Minzhe and
Matthias.

What would it be like to belong to someone who loved him as

much as the prince loved Yasuko and Minsheng? Christian’s head
slowly turned toward him, and for a hair’s breadth, he swore the
man knew his thoughts. There was a look in the man’s eyes that
said he understood Virgil’s pain, but Virgil highly doubted anyone
understood the chaotic thoughts he dealt with on a nightly basis.

“And what is he exactly?” Virgil turned fully to Christian,

feeling dread at what the man might reveal. He didn’t want to think
that Ceri was a lost cause. Virgil refused to believe that his mate
was going to be forever out of his grasp. For once he wanted to
know what happiness was and what it felt like to lie in Ceri’s arms,
knowing he was truly loved.

“A vampire who hungers for things unnatural.” Christian spoke

low, but so matter-of-factly. It was as if the prince just accepted
that his younger brother was broken. Virgil couldn’t accept it,
wouldn’t accept that fact. “But things always change, Virgil. There
is always hope and you shouldn’t give up.”

He held his wrist up for Christian to see. The ornately

decorated bracelet clung to his arm like a disease. “How am I going
to go to him if I am your prisoner?”

Christian’s eyes bore into Virgil. “You are not my prisoner,

Virgil. You wear that bracelet to keep you safe. If anything were to
happen to you, Ceri would be lost to me forever.”

Harsh, cold truth came from Christian. Virgil could see how

much the prince meant what he said. He worried about Ceri’s
mental state, yet no one was doing anything to help the vampire.
“Send me to him.”

Ceri 35

With a shake of his head, Christian leaned back from the

railing, his silky black hair swaying over one shoulder as he
glanced down at Virgil with stubborn eyes. “I would be handing
you a death sentence if I sent you to him right now. Patience,
Virgil. You must learn to have patience.”

He was all out of patience. Virgil had been waiting years for

Ceri to claim him, and the longer he waited, the lonelier he
became. It was like living in a world devoid of warmth. He was
growing colder and Virgil feared that one day he would be lost to
the madness that dwelled in the dark part of his mind.

“I’m going to pair you up with Harley. You seem to get along

with him better than August.”

Virgil didn’t want to be paired up with anyone.

The prince descended the stairs, leaving Virgil standing there

feeling as if he were going to shatter right there on the balcony. A
deep, maddening craving set in and all he wanted to do was be with
Ceri.

That’s all he wanted.
Turning back toward the crowd, Virgil spotted the man he had let

into the club. There was no doubt the man was human, but from the
way he was staring at Isla, Virgil could tell the guy was attracted in a
way he didn’t fully understand. What had Virgil morbidly curious was
why Isla didn’t seem to notice the wallflower.

A loud whistle carried up to Virgil, making him turn toward the

source of the noise. Harley was gazing up at him. He pointed up at
Virgil and then at the space next to him.

What am I, his fucking dog?
Virgil ignored the bouncer. He was quite content where he was. If

he couldn’t be with his mate, standing alone and watching the world
continue to revolve wasn’t so bad.

The word now shattered Virgil’s thoughts, making him growl low

as his head turned back toward Harley. He flipped the man off before
purposely looking away. Virgil was suddenly seized with an image of

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Lynn Hagen

Ceri stalking down an alley, heading straight for a human who was
slamming some woman into a brick wall.

His fingers curled around the railing, gripping it so tightly that his

fingers began to throb in pain. His body went rigid as he watched Ceri
grab the human by the throat, telling the woman to get lost. She wiped
at her busted lip, her eyes flickering between Ceri and the man who
had been attacking her.

Ceri’s tone was frigid as he shouted at the woman to leave them.

The woman took a step back, clutched her purse to her side, and then
took off. When his mate turned back around, there was no mistaking
the hunger he detected in those sapphire eyes.

“No,” Virgil whispered, his head shaking slightly as he tried to

reach out to stop Ceri. But it was just an image, like a black-and-white
movie playing in his head. The lone color he could see was the blue of
his mate’s eyes. His chest began to feel like a tremendous weight was
holding him down. Virgil wanted to reach out and comfort the man, to
let Ceri know that he wasn’t alone. “Please, don’t.”

Ceri stilled right before he bit into the human’s throat, gazing

around the alley as if he had actually heard Virgil’s plea. The hunger
slightly abated from his eyes as he reached into his mind and found
Virgil standing there watching him.

A feral growl ripped from Ceri’s lips as he slammed the door on

the image Virgil had been witnessing. The club came back into view
and Virgil felt his knees grow weak. The one thing stopping him from
hitting the floor was his grip on the railing.

Somehow, he’d gotten into Ceri’s mind. Virgil wasn’t even sure

how that was possible. Ceri had always guarded his thoughts, only
letting Virgil in when he chose to. But the image had come to him,
was shown to him. Virgil had done nothing but long for his mate. As
he stood there trembling from what he had seen, Virgil knew without
a doubt that the connection between him and the ancient vampire was
stronger. He could feel his mate stirring around inside of him and he’d
never felt that before.

Ceri 37

Steadying his nerves and legs, Virgil decided to join Harley. He

needed fresh air and something to preoccupy him. The thought of
what Ceri had been about to do was both frightening and saddening.

He hasn’t learned to control what he is yet. Christian’s words

rang in his head while he walked through the crowd, his mind still
searching, searching, searching.

* * * *

“How?” Ceri demanded as he paced the room in the underworld.

“How did he connect so easily? I hadn’t let him in, yet there he was,
watching me.”

And that was what worried Ceri the most. It was bad enough that

he was cursed with this sickness. There was no way he was going to
allow Virgil to witness what the curse did to him, made him crave.
After what had happened on the roof, Ceri was sure his mate already
looked at him like a sick psychopath.

“You have experimented with so many spells and potions that

there is no telling what has happened to not only your body, but your
mind.”

That was the first time Ceri had gotten a complete sentence that

wasn’t filled with riddles from the keeper. It figured it was very bad
news the man had spoken clearly about. “So you are telling me that
Virgil can open the bridge between our minds any time he chooses?”

“Your mate is more than meets the eye, Ceridian.”
Ceri really, really wanted to hit something.
He had been downing potions ever since the keeper had come to

him, knowing his secret. Now the man wanted to warn him about side
effects? A fist clenched around his heart as memories cascaded
through his mind of Virgil’s horrifying expression when they were on
the roof. Ceri had fought like he’d never fought before in order not to
taste his mate. The struggle had been so great that he had to throw

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Lynn Hagen

himself over the side of the concrete building in order not to take a
bite.

He couldn’t keep going through this. There had to be a way to lift

the curse. He had tried searching for the sorcerer who had placed the
curse on his head, but the man was nowhere to be found. The flames
of anger spread like acid through his blood when he thought about the
foul curse.

“Patience, dear Ceridian.”
“I’m all out of patience.” Ceri stalked toward the door, his arms

aching to hold Virgil, to claim him. He was so very weary of being
alone, of fighting this dark urge inside of him. Emotions were hitting
him from every angle when he thought of the life he was missing out
on, the closeness that—despite what he was going through—was
binding him and Virgil more tightly.

As Ceri walked down the dark corridor, listening to the screams of

the damned, he tried to come up with a solution. But none came to
him. He passed one cell and paused. The man inside looked vaguely
familiar, but Ceri couldn’t place him. He gazed into the man’s eyes
and knew there was nothing in them except the promise of a brutal
death and a pain so profound that those eyes alone would traumatize
anyone with an ounce of self-preservation.

Ceri turned his head away and found that he was standing back in

the keeper’s room. “What am I doing here?”

There was a scroll lying on the table, the keeper’s long and

withered fingers holding it open. “A great sacrifice was given for your
curse, Ceridian.”

Ceri cocked his head to the side. “Speak more clearly, old man.”
A wry smile tipped the side of the keeper’s mouth. It wasn’t a

pleasant look. “The sorcerer who cursed you used his daughter’s
blood in his sacrifice. The spell is very powerful. In order to reverse
it, you, my strong warrior, must make an equal sacrifice.”

Ceri 39

Ceri felt the room tilt sideways. The sorcerer had killed his own

daughter to place the curse on him? He knew the man was mad, but
he had no idea just how insane he truly was.

The one person Ceri cared that much about to sacrifice was—“I

won’t do it. I refuse to take my own mate’s life.”

Fragile shoulders shrugged. “So be it.”
This time when Ceri left, he didn’t hesitate and he didn’t stop to

gaze at any of the prisoners. He went straight to his home where he
destroyed the conservatory.

What the keeper was saying was beyond anything Ceri imagined.

He had to kill Virgil in order to lift the curse? No, he wouldn’t do it.
Instead, he did something he never thought to do in this lifetime.

Ceri reached out for Christian.
His brother appeared in the archway, his dark brow high in the air

as he looked around the room. Columns were smashed and lying in
ruins, equipment was overturned or demolished. The telescope that
Marsian—the man who everyone thought created the vampire race—
had prized lay in a thousand pieces.

“You wish to speak with me?” Christian asked, ignoring the

obvious destruction of the room.

Ceri braced himself. He wasn’t used to asking for help, and

especially not from Christian. But he could only see one outcome in
all of this. If he couldn’t control his urge, killing Virgil, then Ceri
knew he would follow right after, ending his own life. But before
then, he wanted to bind Virgil to him, to know what it was like, even
for a fleeting moment, to be one with someone other than himself.

“You have to chain me down so that I may bond with my mate.”

Ceri used to think love and family was for fools, a softening of the
heart, a chink in one’s armor. Those emotions were a liability he had
always scoffed at. When his twin, Rhys, had mated Nathaniel, Ceri
thought him weak and pathetic. He wanted to kill Nathaniel, not
because of his drug habit, but because he was a threat to Ceri and
Rhys’s bond. At the time, Ceri didn’t understand love, didn’t

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Lynn Hagen

understand the intimacy and trust between mates. He still didn’t to
some degree, but he knew in his heart that he would do whatever it
took to keep Virgil safe.

In contradiction to that thought, Ceri wanted to feel Virgil, to bite

him, to bond, and fates willing, not eat him.

Christian gave a slight bow. “You know I would do anything for

you, brother. But can you tell me”—Christian looked as if he were
grappling for the right words—“how this skin fetish came about?”

They had never really talked about it. Ceri couldn’t. If he opened

his mouth and said a word, the craving would intensify tenfold. He let
everyone believe that he was just a psychotic vampire who liked the
taste of flesh.

If they only knew the truth.
“I ask this one favor of you, brother, without any reason I can

give.” Ceri moved over to the stone arch window, looking over a
landscape that was no longer familiar. Everything about this place
was unreal. The walls were solid, the floor sturdy, but it was no
longer his childhood home, no longer a place of comfort. It was his
self-inflicted prison.

The palace stood in ruins high in the Carpathian Mountains, a

majestic view that neither stirred his soul nor took his breath away.
The palace was still, to this day, covered in a mist that fooled the
hiker or scientist who ventured this way. They had an impulse to turn
around, to go another route when getting too close.

“When?” Christian asked.
“Tomorrow night.” Ceri turned from the window. “Can you bring

him here?”

Christian gave a humorless chuckle. “I think he would race across

the waters to be here with you.”

Ceri had no doubt. He knew the man was more than eager to be at

his side.

If only life had turned out differently.

Ceri 41

“Thank you.” Ceri gave Christian a slight bow before turning back

to stare outside, wondering if he wasn’t making the biggest mistake of
his life.

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Lynn Hagen

Chapter Four

“He wants you to do what?” Dante stared incredulously at

Christian as he ran a hand over his short hair. The man stood in
Christian’s office, wearing one of his expensive suits, looking as
immaculate as ever. “Is he insane?”

Christian stared at the coven leader and wondered if maybe the

man wasn’t right. His younger brother wanted Christian to chain him
down so he could claim his mate. He’d never heard of such a thing
but knew he would do it in hopes that it cured Ceri of his need for
flesh.

But deep down, Christian’s gut was telling him that something

darker was at play, that all was not as it seemed. He wanted answers
before he chained the man down. “I’m going to see the keeper.”

“You are more likely to come away with a headache than

answers.” Dante shoved his hands into the pockets of his slacks as he
headed toward the door. “But let me know if you can decipher
anything that creature says.”

He knew Dante was right. Only once or twice did Christian get a

straight answer from the man in the two thousand years he had been
going to the underworld. But he had to give this a shot.

It just seemed strange to him that Ceri hadn’t developed his taste

for flesh until he was a fully grown man. If this was something that
was deep inside of him, wouldn’t he have been born with this
anomaly? Ceridian had an uneventful childhood, nothing out of the
ordinary.

Walking the corridors of the underworld, Christian ignored the

tortured screams. He entered the keeper’s chambers and came up

Ceri 43

short when he spotted Panahasi standing there, speaking in a subvocal
tone.

Every instinct inside of Christian wanted to lash out at the man, to

curse his very existence for denying him and his younger brothers. He
thought of how long he’d known the demon leader, how often they
had interacted, and yet the man had withheld that vital piece of
information. A kind of cold fury settled in his gut as he turned on his
heel and walked away.

As he rounded a corner, the keeper appeared. “Closed eyes are

now open, I see.”

“That is not why I came here.” If Panahasi came around that

corner, Christian was going to light into the man. He didn’t want any
excuses about why the demon had lied to them all. There was nothing
he could say that would excuse his deception.

“No, you seek answers I cannot give.” He moved slowly forward,

his dark, piercing eyes eerily glowing. “Silence must remain or
tenfold will be the pain.”

Christian rolled his eyes. He had hoped he could get a straight

answer, but it seemed the keeper was not in the mood to indulge him.
“But you know the truth,” he pointed out.

“I am the unseen. The knowledge inside of me is bathed in

darkness. But the answer is clear, if you know where to look.”

Christian pressed his fingers into his eyes, counting to ten to stop

himself from screaming in frustration. This was Ceri’s life they were
talking about, not some random stranger. When he looked up,
Christian found himself alone in the corridor.

Feeling a humungous headache coming on, Christian disappeared,

making his way to Dante’s. It was odd how he had lived his life with
just Christo at his side, and now he was finding himself confiding in
the coven leader more and more. Yasuko said he needed to make
friends. That wasn’t something Christian had plans on doing, but
Dante seemed easy to talk to and he was a good man to have at one’s
back.

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Lynn Hagen

And if the man turned around and betrayed him, Christian would

just kill him. He relayed what the keeper had told him.

“He’s talking about memories,” Dante stated like it should have

been obvious.

They both stopped talking when a blond walked out of one of the

rooms, gazed at Dante with pretty brown eyes, and then walked away.

“Another friend?” Christian said, a knowing smile pulling at his

lips. The man loved his twinks.

Dante smirked at Christian and said, “It sounds to me like,

whatever is happening to Ceri, you can’t talk about it out loud—hence
the whole ‘silence’ thing.”

Christian searched his memory for the time period when Ceri had

started craving flesh. They had been young adults at the time. The
Great War had just broken out between the nonhumans and the
warlocks and everything was in chaos. Christian became frustrated
when he couldn’t grasp the connection.

“It’ll come to you.” Dante clapped Christian on his shoulder. “But

until then, maybe you should reconsider chaining your brother up.
Just how safe could Virgil really be?”

Christian wasn’t sure. He knew he would do whatever Ceri

needed him to do. The question was, would Virgil survive?

* * * *

Virgil had never been more terrified in his life. Well, that wasn’t

entirely true. There was a part of him that was thrilled that he was
going to be claimed, but he knew the risks involved in getting too
close to Ceri. The man had already shown Virgil that his hunger for
flesh was greater than his need for a mate.

He wasn’t even entirely sure why he stood here in Ceri’s home,

listening to the sounds of chains rattling as Christian and Rhys
chained Virgil’s mate to the bed. He wasn’t permitted to enter until

Ceri 45

the prince told him it was time. So Virgil stood by one of the windows
that overlooked the beautiful mountain.

When Christian had come to him and told him of Ceri’s plan,

Virgil wasn’t sure what to think. Hadn’t Shelby suggested the same
thing? At the time, Virgil had thought the young vampire crazy. But
now he saw that his mate had been thinking along the same lines.

But what had prompted the sudden change of heart? What made

Ceri decide that he wanted to claim Virgil? The man had been
running from him for years. Suddenly Ceri wanted to be with him?

Apprehension filled his gut when he heard Rhys shout something

unintelligible. It was a hiss and a curse rolled into one. Had Ceri
bitten Rhys? Reaching up, Virgil rubbed his temple, wondering if he
wasn’t being sentenced to death instead of being claimed. Why
couldn’t he be normal, Ceri be normal, the world not such a
complicated and desolate place?

Virgil knew in his heart that he wasn’t wanted at the coven.

Everyone looked at him with either pity or fear. They had heard what
he’d done to his brother, Ross.

A small voice in his head whispered that Virgil was jealous that

Ross had found his mate—that the man was going to leave him.
Maybe there was a part of him that wanted to punish his brother for
finding happiness when Virgil was so lost.

Pressing his shoulder into the cold wall, Virgil watched as thick

clouds slid past the moon, covering the planet before moving past. It
was so peaceful here. He wouldn’t mind staying on a permanent basis.
He didn’t even know what was going to happen if this plan
succeeded. Virgil wasn’t foolish enough to think everything would be
fine, that Ceri would suddenly be cured.

He couldn’t help wishing for another life where he and Ceri didn’t

have so many obstacles to overcome, where they could actually be a
happy, blissful couple. He knew he shouldn’t curse fate for what was
handed to either of them, but at times, Virgil wanted to shout to them
that he was tired of feeling so dejected and alone. He was tired of

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Lynn Hagen

trying to find his way in life. And he was especially tired of being
denied the one man who brought solace to his soul.

Heavy footfalls sounded behind him. Virgil tensed, unsure if he

could actually go through with this. What if Ceri lost control and
killed him? It would end Virgil’s suffering, but he knew his mate
would be filled with guilt over what he’d done.

Rhys moved into his line of vision, his jaw tight as his eyes

dropped down to Virgil. He could see the love the man had for his
twin in the vampire’s eyes. But there was also a torment in the blue
depths that Virgil hadn’t seen there before. “I don’t like this plan.”

“Why?” Virgil crossed his arms over his chest, trying to shield the

chill from entering him. “It won’t be you who dies if this plan fails.”

The tendons of Rhys’s neck stretched taut, the muscles in his arms

bunching. “No, it won’t be. But do you think for one moment that
Ceri won’t suffer a thousand deaths if he harms you in any way? My
brother may be a lot of things, but he cares for you, Virgil. He
wouldn’t be doing this if he didn’t.”

Slowly shaking his head back and forth, Virgil sat on the floor,

hanging his head between his knees. “I won’t back out, Rhys. I’m not
going to refuse him.”

Virgil knew that if Rhys tried to stop him, he would fight the man

tooth and nail. The vampire was much larger than him, his body built
with hard muscles, but Virgil’s will was stronger, more powerful.

Rhys might be one of the Triad, but Virgil was ready to kill Rhys

if he had to. No one understood the connection he had with Ceri.
Virgil couldn’t explain it. It was like he was suffocating under a
pillow, crying out for one last breath, slowly feeling his life slipping
away until the pillow was lifted. Ceri was the person lifting that
pillow, giving Virgil the very breath he needed to live.

If his mate wanted to be chained down so he could claim Virgil,

then that was exactly what was going to happen.

Ceri 47

Rhys’s eyes looked over toward the entryway to Ceri’s bedroom,

making Virgil look as well. Christian stood there, his hands in his
front pockets as he studied Virgil. “Are you sure about this?”

Rising to his feet, Virgil nodded, even though his insides were a

quivering mess. His stomach muscles were knotted so tightly that
breathing became uncomfortable. He could feel himself trembling as
he waited to see what the prince was going to say.

“This is insane,” Rhys said in a tone of pure objection. “If he kills

you, Virgil—”

Christian removed his hand from his pocket and held it up. “This

is Ceri’s wish. He knows the risks and consequences, Rhys. So does
Virgil.”

Rhys growled as he turned, gazing out the window that Virgil had

been looking out of moments before. Virgil’s breath caught when the
prince waved him over. He moved with legs that felt weighted down.
This was what he wanted. Virgil had been desperate, dying for Ceri to
claim him. He had stayed up most days, curled into a ball as the pain
of not being with his mate consumed him. But as he approached the
prince, Virgil felt as though he were going to faint.

Bending at the waist, Christian cupped Virgil’s chin, his dark eyes

gazing intently into Virgil’s. He dropped his arms from around his
waist, fisting his hands at his side as the prince studied him.

“If at any time you wish to flee, no one will blame you, Virgil.

What you and Ceri are about to do is very dangerous. His hunger for
flesh is growing stronger and I can’t guarantee your safety.”

Virgil was tired of everyone looking at Ceri as a monster. He

knew the man had unnatural cravings, but he was still a man who
suffered just as deeply as Virgil did. He was still a man who should be
able to smile instead of frown. Ceri was still a man, not a monster.
Steeling his spine, Virgil stood ruler-straight. “My mate wants to
claim me, Prince. I will not flee or disgrace him in any way.”

But that doesn’t mean I’m not scared to death.

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Lynn Hagen

A muscle twitched at Christian’s mouth before he released Virgil.

He stepped up beside the prince in one smooth movement before both
entered the room. His heart thudded violently enough to hurt when he
saw the thick chains wrapped around Ceri’s arms, each chain secured
to an anchor in the wall on either side of the headboard. He felt rage
arc through his bloodstream.

“It angers you to see him this way,” Christian said. “But trust me

when I tell you how necessary it truly is.”

Virgil knew this, but seeing his mate chained up like an animal

made him feel a bone-deep fury. His mate’s head was resting on a
pillow, his eyes gazing up at the ceiling. The man’s fingers curled into
fists and Virgil could see the wall of muscle that was his chest, rising
and falling rapidly.

Christian moved away, but Virgil could see that he hadn’t left the

room. His body turned into a shadow as he settled into a dark corner.
He was acting as security. But was it for Virgil’s safety or Ceri’s
sanity?

His eyes roamed over Ceri’s naked form, taking in the thick,

strong, and muscular legs that were bared to him. They were golden
tanned with a dusting of dark hair. His heart jerked when Ceri’s thighs
twitched. His eyes slowly slid to the V on either side of the man’s
groin and then to an abdomen that was sculpted and firm. His mate’s
chest, arms, and shoulders—Virgil swallowed. Muscles that were
golden as well roped his body. Virgil’s fingers were aching to touch.
It was odd for a vampire to be so tanned, but he had seen a few who
looked as if they had bathed in the sun. Two of the annihilators had an
olive complexion.

The sculpted body flexed and Virgil’s eyes snapped to Ceri’s face.

He had avoided looking at the man’s cock. Virgil was nervous enough
as it was. Knowing he was about to lose his virginity was daunting.
He hadn’t the courage to see what lay between Ceri’s legs, not yet at
least.

Ceri 49

Sapphire eyes stared back at him. They were indefinable yet

somber. The man didn’t say a word as Virgil’s eyes explored. The
long, black hair that was usually tied back tightly lay lose around the
man, like a fan of silkiness. Again, Virgil’s fingers ached to touch.

When getting ready to come here, Christian had given Virgil a

simple cream colored tunic. He hadn’t understood at the time what he
would need it for, but now he saw the reasoning behind the prince’s
request. In one fluid motion, Virgil reached up and released the clasp.
The soft fabric pooled at his feet, leaving him standing there naked
and vulnerable.

“Come to me.” Ceri’s voice was a soft whisper that floated to

Virgil and caressed his skin like a light breeze. He shivered where he
stood before taking a step forward. The chains rattled as Ceri’s arms
tensed. His eyes slid down Virgil’s body in a heated expression that
had Virgil growing hard.

“Come to my bed, innocent one.”
Walking in slow, jerky movements, Virgil stopped at the edge of

the bed. He crossed and then uncrossed his arms, his eyes glancing
toward the man’s feet.

“You will have to come to me, as I am incapable of taking

control.”

Virgil cleared his throat and then pushed up onto the high bed,

crawling until he was at Ceri’s chest before he settled back onto the
heels of his feet. Ever so slowly, Virgil lifted his eyes until they were
gazing at one another. He leaned a bit closer, his brows creasing when
he saw the glassy look in Ceri’s eyes. Turning, he spotted Christian.
“Did you drug him?”

“Not drugged,” Christian answered. “The keeper gave him a

potion that would…tame his craving for a few hours. But do not
become relaxed, Virgil. He is still a very dangerous man.”

He turned back around, his soul weeping for someone who was

fighting so many inner demons. Their first time together shouldn’t be
like this, but Virgil knew he wouldn’t, couldn’t deny Ceri.

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Lynn Hagen

“I am well aware of what is going on,” Ceri said, drawing Virgil’s

attention. “I will not forget what we have done together, innocent one.
My mind is not clouded. Only my craving muted.”

“Why?” Virgil asked, unable to stop the question. “Why are you

willing to chain yourself up to claim me? What has changed?” His
voice sounded desperate. Virgil’s worst fear was that Ceri was dying
or something just as horrifying. If that were the case, Virgil knew he
would join his mate. He refused to live a life without Ceri. Even
though he had been doing just that, at least Virgil knew Ceri was
somewhere around. Death was final and Virgil couldn’t live with the
loss.

“Come closer.”
Virgil pressed the palms of his hands on Ceri’s chest, leaning in.

He was careful of the man’s mouth.

“Because I want to know, if only for a small measure of time,

what it feels like to be with you.” Ceri’s voice dropped low, heated,
stroking over Virgil’s senses with an intimacy he hadn’t expected.

Virgil reached up and wiped at his cheek, pulling his hand back to

see that it was wet.

For the first time in his life, Virgil was crying.

Ceri 51

Chapter Five

Ceri yanked his arms, trying to reach his mate, to wipe away the

pain that was sliding down his cheeks, but he couldn’t. He was
chained to the wall. “Release me.” He growled the words at Christian
through clenched teeth. Turbulent clouds of anger were gathering
over the lightning of his anguish.

“I cannot.”
Ceri slammed his arms forward, the chains cutting into his flesh,

sending blinding strikes of pain through his upper body. “Release
me!”

A gentle hand caressed the side of his face, warm fingers

cascading down his cheek. “It’s okay.”

Ceri felt the curse trying to break free from its temporary prison.

He knew his time was running out. His face tightened in torment as he
stared at his mate. “I did this,” he whispered in sorrow. “I created the
very prison I live in.”

Virgil dipped forward, pressing his lips to Ceri’s quickly before

pulling back, his chest rising and falling rapidly, his pupils dilated.
Ceri slammed his arms forward again, desperate to touch, to hold, to
caress.

“We don’t have much time.” He dropped his head back, blinking

up at the ceiling as he tried to calm down, to cage the curse for just a
little while longer.

Please don’t let me lose my humanity and kill him.
Without prompting, Virgil slid his leg over Ceri’s waist. He

straddled Ceri, his hands still resting on Ceri’s chest. Turning his
head, Ceri looked Christian right in his eyes. “Leave us.”

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Lynn Hagen

The man didn’t move.
“Get out!”
Virgil turned toward Christian, his fingers curling into Ceri’s

flesh. “I know the risks. Please.”

Christian hesitated and then bowed his head slightly. “I’ll be right

outside.”

As soon as Christian was out of sight, Ceri gazed up at his

beautiful mate. He at last understood why Rhys was willing to
sacrifice their bond as twins to be with Nathaniel. It was as if the veil
over his eyes had been lifted and Ceri saw for the first time in his two
thousand years someone who mattered more than his very own life.
His heart threatened to rip through his very skin as it beat faster,
harder with emotions he’d never experienced before.

Ceri was starting to rethink this plan. From Virgil’s hesitation and

skittish eyes, he surmised that the man had never lain with anyone
before and he didn’t want his mate’s first time to be like this. “I
cannot show you the ways of lovemaking, Virgil. I am chained to the
wall. For this, I apologize.”

“Can I just do what feels right?” Virgil ran his hands over Ceri’s

chest, leaning forward as he pressed soft kisses over each pec. Ceri
had to grit his teeth. His cock was so hard, so aching with need that
his control was quickly slipping away.

The man moved further down his body, his tongue and lips sliding

sensually over Ceri’s heated skin. He panted, his fists tightening as he
watched, his stomach jerking from the feathered touches. It was a
combination of finally being with Virgil and knowing how innocent
the man was that had him tensing every muscle in his body. His mate
was exploring him and Ceri wasn’t going to stop him.

The man’s touches were torture. His fingers uncurled as he arched

his back, his legs opening wider to accommodate Virgil’s body that
was still sliding downward. His cock rubbed along Virgil’s leg,
making Ceri hiss with heated pleasure. If Virgil stopped now, Ceri
would know the true meaning of madness.

Ceri 53

Kissing his navel, Virgil glanced up at him under the fall of his

dark lashes. Heat shot through Ceri’s body from the look, spreading
across his sensitive skin, threatening to burn him alive. Ceri groaned
deep in his throat, a harsh, wordless snarl, when Virgil’s lips grazed
over the head of his cock.

“Take me into your mouth.” Ceri’s teeth gnashed together, his

thighs straining as he lifted his legs, planting his feet firmly on the
bed as he gave Virgil more room. “Taste what you are doing to me.”

Lithe fingers wrapped around the base, squeezing his cock tightly

as Virgil opened his mouth wider, engulfing the head. He watched
Virgil swallow, his lips sealing around the flesh of his shaft. The
sweet, sweet scent of Virgil’s arousal flooded the room. He was just
so damn beautiful.

His mate’s dusky eyes darkened with desire as he took another

inch, his tongue licking and exploring. Fighting not to thrust his hips
seemed worse than fighting the curse in that moment. Ceri summoned
every ounce of restraint he possessed. Virgil continued to taste him,
his moves stilted, showing just how little he knew. But Ceri was
enjoying everything the man was doing to him.

Virgil coughed and then pulled back, his eyes gleaming with

unshed tears. He gazed at Ceri’s erection and then wrapped his lips
once more around his cock.

The man was out to kill him.
His arms automatically tried to reach for his mate, but the chains

rattling in his ear reminded him that this was not a normal coupling,
that he wasn’t fully in control.

Virgil slid from the bed and Ceri thought he was going to walk

out. Could he really blame the man? Who would want to have sex
with someone chained—“What are you doing?”

Virgil grabbed the chain on Ceri’s right arm as he said, “I can’t do

this…not like this, Ceri.”

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Lynn Hagen

In the blink of any eye, Virgil had his arm unchained. How, he

wasn’t sure. Christian and Rhys had made sure the steel was wrapped
so firmly around him that not even Ceri could break it.

And he had tried.
Using his free hand, Ceri reached up and worked the chain until

his left arm was free. He turned, getting to his hands and knees as he
took in the naked man standing there like frightened prey. The curse
slammed into the cage it was confined to, making Ceri’s fangs
lengthen a bit. “That wasn’t a wise move, Virgil.”

“I’m really starting to think that it wasn’t,” Virgil said with a

shaky breath, but stood his ground. “Do you want to eat me?”

“Badly.” Ceri moved off the bed, stalking slowly toward his mate.

The vein in Virgil’s neck thumped hard against his flesh as he
watched Ceri approach. “But not in the way that you think.” He
scooped Virgil off his feet and laid him on the bed. He knew he was
pressed for time and loath to rush things between them. The one thing
he had imagined doing was spending hours exploring his mate’s body.
Even though the keeper came up with a temporary solution, it wasn’t
foolproof. At this very moment Ceri was fighting not to take a deep
bite out of the man.

But—hell, just to experience a moment of pleasure, to be able to

touch…

“Are you afraid, precious one?” Ceri moved until he was caging

Virgil in, keeping him between the bed and Ceri’s muscled body. If
he had to give a great sacrifice in order to lift the curse, then he knew
that his time with Virgil was limited. There was no way he was going
to kill his mate, so his only other option was continuing to live in the
shadows, watching Virgil from afar.

And since this was going to be the single time he had with the

man, Ceri was going to make sure he did it all. The potion was a one-
time deal. The keeper had told him this and Ceri had agreed, knowing
this would be the first and last time he could be with his mate.

Ceri 55

“I’m not afraid,” Virgil finally said. “I was, but if you kill me,

then at least I had the chance to be held by you.”

Ceri stilled. “You would give your life just to—” He glanced

away, feeling unworthy to have someone as selfless as Virgil. Ceri’s
hands were soaked in blood from killing so many. His very soul was
probably doomed to the underworld. Until Virgil, he hadn’t cared if
he lived or died. He was on a destructive path, his emotions locked so
deep inside of his soul that his humanity had started to bleed away.

He was still self-destructive, but now—Ceri glanced down at

Virgil. So trusting. Yes, now he cared.

Virgil reached up, cupping Ceri’s face, his dark eyes filled with

unfathomable wonder. “Claim me before the potion wears off.”

Reaching for the lube that he had placed on the table by his bed,

Ceri uncorked the bottle. His emotions felt raw and near the surface as
he oiled his fingers before placing them at Virgil’s untried entrance.
Lowering his head, he pressed his lips to his mate’s neck, inhaling his
masculine scent as his fingers entered the man’s body.

Virgil hissed as his fingers curled into Ceri’s shoulders, his nails

biting hard into his flesh. Ceri breathed in quickly and then let it out
slowly, fighting—Oh, god how he was fighting not to bite. The urge
wasn’t as strong as it had been on that rooftop, but it wasn’t as dull as
it had been before.

He tensed as his fingers stretched his mate, his other hand

strangling the sheet, but he didn’t pull away. This was his one shot at
being with Virgil and he was going to fight tooth and nail to complete
their mating. Was it selfish on his part to bind the man to him,
knowing they would never be like this again?

Yes. But stopping this, them, was now impossible. Only the gates

of hell opening up and swallowing him whole would take Ceri from
Virgil at this moment.

“Ceri.” Virgil whispered his name on a rush of warm breath that

shed light in a small part of the darkness that Ceri lived in. He slid his
free arm under Virgil’s shoulders, drawing the man close and burying

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Lynn Hagen

his face in thick, black hair. Ceri closed his eyes, wishing…just
wishing.

The craving surged, stronger than moments before. His fangs

lengthened even further as he felt his eyes turning crimson. He took in
quick, shallow breaths as he pulled his face away from Virgil.

“Your eyes.” Virgil reached up, but Ceri pulled his head further

away as he removed his fingers from his mate’s body. “It’s wearing
off, isn’t it?”

Ceri could only nod, keeping his lips tightly sealed. Oiling his

cock, he pulled Virgil’s legs over his arms, scooting the man closer.
Virgil didn’t protest, didn’t say a word. He didn’t have to. Everything
the man felt was in his beautiful eyes.

He was willing to die in order for Ceri to claim him.
That wasn’t acceptable. Lining his cock up to the tender hole, he

began to inch his way inside. Slick, snug, hot. He breathed out slowly
through his nose, his eyes falling on his mate’s face, branding the
look of pure pleasure streaking over Virgil’s features into his
memory.

His mate took every last inch of him, his tight ass gripping him

like a fist, bathing him in wondrous heat. He hissed sharply as he
finally bottomed out. Virgil’s head rolled backward, exposing his long
neck as he let out a lengthy groan. Ceri pulled back, and then delved
deeper.

He knew he probably looked demonic at the moment. His blood

was rushing like hot, molten lava, summoning that part of him that
was primordial male. He picked up his pace, knowing his control was
slipping as fast as the hands of time themselves.

He fucked Virgil hard, fighting the need building inside of him to

bite. He wasn’t sure at this point if it was the curse or the vampire
side of him wanting to claim what was his. Ceri couldn’t take that
chance. His mouth watered feverishly, even as the pressure built in
the base of his spine, signaling his coming release.

Ceri 57

Ceri snarled when Virgil pulled him closer, holding his feral gaze

as his slim fingers stroked his cheek. “Claim me,” he begged. “I don’t
care if we can’t be together. I want to belong to you.”

He roared in agony as he denied the one thing he wanted as well.

He was denying them both, but had no choice. It was already foolish
of him to ask Virgil here in the first place. He was risking Virgil’s life
and Ceri’s very sanity.

He dropped his gaze, refusing to look at the pulse in the man’s

neck as he drove deep into the man’s body. His cock plunged into the
heat, every nerve ending he possessed feeling as if it were on fire.

A shout tore from his lips when Virgil sank his fangs into the flesh

just above Ceri’s heart. He grabbed the headboard, his nails growing
thick as he tore a large chunk of iron from the frame. Virgil drank
deeply, his lips greedy on Ceri’s chest.

Virgil released him, throwing his head back as he cried out, his

ass milking Ceri’s cock as he came. He felt like he was lost in time as
he watched his mate fall apart in his arms. This was it, the only time
he would ever witness such wonderment, such raw passion.

Quickening his moves, Ceri found his release as his head swam

and he shouted, pistoning his hips at lightning speed. His mind went
dim when a bloody wrist was shoved at him. Ceri threw himself from
the bed, landing on the floor in a crouching position. His head tilted
back as he inhaled the metallic scent deep into his lungs.

Slowly, his head lowered as his gaze targeted the source of blood.

The craving inside of him came crashing back into his body tenfold.
Rising to his feet, Ceri stalked toward the bed, his fangs now so long
that the tips touched his chin. His nails were long and thick, ready to
shred—a blur whipped past his line of sight before Virgil was
snatched from the bed, and then Ceri stood alone in his room. He
threw his head back and roared. The haunting sound not only
conveyed his raging hunger, but the tormented agony of being without
his mate, alone once again.

And this time, it was forever.

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Lynn Hagen

* * * *

Panahasi grabbed his chest, staggering sideways as he felt red-hot

rage fill him to overflowing. It was suffocating him to the point he
couldn’t breathe. Panahasi was Life, yet felt Death creeping into his
very foundation, taking root as Jaden’s black claws latched on to him
with an unseeing hand.

Ceridian.
In that one tormented cry, his son had just unleashed so much

pain, so much anguish that he had freed Jaden from the underworld
where he had been imprisoned.

Ceri had freed Death.

Ceri 59

Chapter Six

Virgil lay on the couch in Christian’s office, a thick blanket

covering him. The prince had come into the room and gotten Virgil
out of there before Ceri could attack. He kept berating himself for
such a stupid move. Virgil knew his mate was fighting against the
urge and yet he had shoved a bloody wrist in the man’s face,
desperate for Ceri to claim him.

And now look at him. He lay here feeling as if someone had

punched a hole in his chest and yanked out his heart.

“What happened?”
Virgil glanced up to see a man who was so handsome it stunned

him. The guy had to be close to seven feet tall, a nice build, and black
hair to his shoulders that he tied back. “Who are you?”

His long strides brought him closer to Virgil. “What happened to

set Ceridian off?”

Virgil pushed himself up into a sitting position, squaring his

shoulders. “I don’t even know you. Why should I tell you anything?”

Suddenly, calmness swept over him, like he was standing under a

warm shower, his muscles relaxing. The protectiveness and hostility
hadn’t gone away, just eased to the point he wasn’t ready to fight for
his mate to the bitter end.

“I am known as Panahasi. I don’t wish Ceridian any harm, young

one. I just want to know what set him off.”

Virgil tucked in his lower lip, his eyes falling to his hands. The

guilt surfaced once more, eating away at him. He wanted to go to
Ceri, to comfort him, but he knew showing his face would only set the
man off further. “It was me.”

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Lynn Hagen

Pulling his slacks up an inch, Panahasi knelt, resting his arms on

his knees. Even in a squatting position, the man towered over him.
“How?”

“That’s personal.” He wasn’t sharing his intimate moment with

his mate. Not for this guy. Not for anyone. It might not have lasted as
long as he had hoped, but the memory was his to cherish, no one
else’s. He could still feel Ceri’s hands touching him, his lips brushing
over Virgil’s neck. His skin felt hot where his mate had slid his hands
over his body.

Virgil felt a heavy weight in his chest, missing his mate already.

He wanted to run to Ceri, to beg the man to keep him. The reason for
their separation was obvious, but that didn’t stop him from hurting so
badly that he felt like he was withering away to nothing.

“You have no idea what has just happened, Virgil. You must tell

me. I can promise you that I wouldn’t ask if it were not of utmost
importance.”

Virgil didn’t trust the man. He didn’t even know him. For all he

knew, the guy could be Ceri’s enemy, wanting information to hurt his
mate. “Then find Ceri and ask him yourself.”

Long fingers curled into fists as the man’s brows pulled tightly

together. Virgil had never really feared anyone before—except his
mate when Ceri was trying to take a bite out of him—but this man
screamed danger. His features darkened and Virgil felt like he was
being pulled into the man’s eyes. No, more like sucked into them.

“I want to know what set him off.” He heard the fury beneath the

razor-sharp command. The guy hadn’t raised his voice. As a matter of
fact, it had dropped to a deadly, deep pitch.

Virgil shook his head, trying to clear his mind. He mentally

reached out for Ceri, fearing Panahasi. What Virgil saw through his
mate’s eyes chilled him to his bones. “No,” he whispered, placing a
shaky hand over his mouth to stop the scream that threatened to burst
free.

Ceri 61

“Where is he?” Panahasi moved closer. “I can’t get a fix on him.

Tell me where he is so that I can help him.”

“Promise me.” Virgil could hear the desperation in his voice. It

had come out strained and low. “Promise me you aren’t out to hurt
him.”

“I am the Demon Warrior leader. If I hurt your mate, you may

have my life.”

Virgil was stunned to his core by the pledge. Why would Panahasi

say something like that? Just how well did he know Ceri? He had
heard of the demon leader. Virgil didn’t know him by name, just by
reputation. Those who spoke of the leader said he was no one to mess
around with, that he had powers even greater than the original
vampires. Virgil wasn’t too sure how much of the gossip to believe,
but as he stared into Panahasi’s eyes, he could tell the man was
sincere.

“He’s in a place filled with many stone cells, eating…” Virgil

swallowed hard. He couldn’t even finish the sentence. “Please, help
him.”

“The underworld,” Panahasi murmured before rising to his feet.

He turned, heading for the corner of the office. Turning, he glanced at
Virgil. “If you ever need help, just call my name, young one, and I
will be there. You have my word.”

Again, the man threw him for a loop. Virgil didn’t understand

why the man was willing to help him and Ceri. He just crossed his
fingers that he hadn’t sent the man to kill his mate.

* * * *

Sitting out on the back picnic table, Maverick gazed at the forest

beyond. He still had the chills from the dream that had shaken him out
of his sleep in a cold sweat. It was always a fifty-fifty shot that he
would understand them. Most of the time his dreams made absolutely
no sense until what he dreamt came to pass.

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Lynn Hagen

But this dream…
Sighing deeply, Maverick tilted his head back, wondering if he

should say something or not. He couldn’t change the path of the
dream, no matter how much he intervened. Even if he told Christian
every little detail, every little scene that had played out, things would
still unfold as destiny had planned.

“Why do you keep showing me this shit?” he asked the dark

clouds slipping past the moon. “Like I don’t already have enough crap
on my plate.”

The Ultionem was still trying to capture Kenyon. He and Christian

were still trying to figure out why Panahasi was letting the man slip
through the demon realm without killing the bastard. They were also
still trying to deal with the fact that someone had broken into Dr.
Sheehan’s office and stolen all the files he had in there. Thankfully he
was smart enough to back everything up on his computer. Still, those
were files that Maverick didn’t want anyone to have.

“One of those nights?” Cecil asked as he moved in close, resting

his head on Maverick’s shoulder. “Maybe I can help.”

Turning his head, Maverick pressed a kiss to his mate’s temple.

“You’re helping just by sitting here with me.”

“Oh,” Cecil said. “It was one of those dreams where you’re not

allowed to say anything.”

Maverick loved that his mate was in tune with him. The guy knew

to back off when it mattered the most. He knew his mate could be a
pain in the ass to most people, but Maverick cherished every day he
had with Cecil.

“No, I can talk about it.” He slipped his arm around Cecil. “I’m

just not sure that I should.”

“Does it have anything to do with what’s going on with the

vampires?”

“And then some.” Maverick crossed his ankles, gazed down at his

feet, and then cocked his head to the side. “Things are about to get
ugly, Cecil. Real ugly. Promise me you won’t stray far.”

Ceri 63

Cecil ran his fingers over Maverick’s, giving him a wicked grin.

“I know when I can fuck up, and I know when to chill. From the way
you woke up in a cold sweat, my ass is sticking around the house.”

There had been a niggle in the back of Maverick’s mind for years

telling him that there was a war coming. He hadn’t fully understood
why or who it would be between. It was just a feeling deep in the pit
of his stomach. But after his dream, he now knew why fate had sent
him to that alley the night Panahasi and Ceri had confronted each
other.

But god help him, he didn’t want to know. He didn’t want to get

involved. The only thing Maverick wanted was peace in his small
town—for the world to leave him and Brac Village alone. But that
wasn’t going to happen, not when he’d seen something that impacted
him directly.

Pressing his mouth to Cecil’s mahogany hair, Maverick inhaled

deeply as his eyes closed, whispering, “I love you, Cecil. Always
remember that.”

“I love you, too.” Cecil turned his amethyst eyes up at Maverick.

“It isn’t that bad…is it?”

If that dream was anything to go by—“Yeah.”

* * * *

“I said to scrub his mind, not attack him.” Harley hauled Virgil off

his feet, pulling him away from the human he was trying to pulverize.
Christo grabbed the human from the ground, scrubbing his mind
before pushing him toward the parking lot.

“That son of a bitch is a sick puppy!” Virgil shouted as he

struggled to get free. “He needs to be drowned in a vat of acid.”

Harley set him on his feet but kept his hand on Virgil’s upper arm.

He wanted to race after the human and finish what he’d started. The
thoughts he had seen in that man’s head were enough to give even
him nightmares. “How can you just let him go?”

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Lynn Hagen

“What did you see?” Christo asked.
“Take a look for yourself.” Virgil didn’t even want to say out loud

what he’d seen. It was just downright disturbing. Christo turned, his
face growing still as he plunged into the man’s head. Within seconds,
his eyes darkened.

“See, I told you.”
Christo began to walk toward the parking lot, going after the

human. It would serve the guy right if Christo tore him to pieces.
Virgil just hoped it was a slow and painful death.

“Okay, the curiosity is eating me alive. What did you see,

shorty?” Harley asked. Virgil shuddered as he wrapped his slim arms
around his stomach.

“He hurts kids,” Virgil whispered before turning to Harley. “Wipe

that from my mind, please.”

Harley looked stunned. “You want me to go into your mind?”
To invite a vampire into one’s mind was not a privilege given

lightly. Men had died from invading another person without
invitation. Virgil had never let anyone in—no one except Ceri. “Just
that memory, Harley, nothing else.”

The vampire gave a nod before probing on the outskirts of Virgil’s

mind. Before he could get in, Virgil felt a violent force rear up, a deep
and resonating snarl filling his mind as Harley flew backward,
crashing into the humans who were at the front of the crowd.

Never allow anyone into your mind!
Virgil swallowed when he heard just how angry Ceri was. “But

you’re there.”

A loud hiss.
Okay, maybe he shouldn’t have pointed that out. He showed Ceri

the memory he was trying to get rid of, and in seconds, it was gone.

You are forbidden to ask any other man for help. Do I make

myself clear, Virgil?

Ceri 65

Wow, Virgil had never heard him this angry before. He’d heard

him threaten to eat Virgil, but aside from the strange craving, this was
the first time Ceri’s anger had been directed toward him.

He didn’t like his mate being angry at him.
“A little possessive, aren’t you?” But Virgil couldn’t stop himself

from smiling at the thought. It was twisted, but he liked that Ceri was
ready to kill anyone who came near him.

You have no idea, innocent one. If that vampire touches you

again, I’ll gut him where he stands.

He had no idea what his mate was talking about. Virgil had been

standing next to Harley when the man went flying, and then his mate
was there in his mind. Virgil remembered Panahasi coming to the
office, going after Ceri because his mate had been in the underworld,
eating…Where are you?

Virgil stumbled a few feet back when Ceri took hold of the

memory Virgil had of Panahasi. He could feel the man’s rage
vibrating inside of him, threatening to choke him from the noxious
taste.

Ceri, stop. It hurts.
Instantly, the anger was gone.
And so was Ceri.
Christian came outside, his eyes landing on Virgil before dropping

to Harley who was pushing himself to his feet.

“What was that?” Harley narrowed his eyes at Virgil. “Were you

just toying with me so you could throw me into the crowd?”

“That was Ceri warning you to never touch his mate again,

physically or mentally.” Christian stepped next to Virgil. “I would
take his warning seriously, Harley.”

Harley turned a bit green. It looked strange considering how big

the man was, but the guy looked like he was ready to pass out. “Shit.
Then why did Virgil ask me to wipe his mind?”

“I did?” Virgil asked. He didn’t remember asking the guy to do

anything like that.

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Lynn Hagen

“Yeah,” Harley said sarcastically as he stopped some guy from

leaving the club. “Next time ask Jersey or Buck. I like my throat
intact.” He ran his hand over the human’s head, allowing him to pass.
“I don’t want that guy dining on my flesh.”

“Dude, that sounds so gross,” someone said from the front of the

line.

“Shut up,” Harley replied as he stuck his hand out and wiped the

guy’s mind. “Mind your own business.”

“What?” the guy asked. “I didn’t say anything.”
Harley rolled his eyes and turned back toward Virgil. “Stand next

to me, but don’t even breathe my way, trouble.”

Ceri 67

Chapter Seven

“You can’t just go sucking on anyone’s blood,” Harley teased as

they stood in the men’s room at the club. The guy might be kidding
around, but Virgil could see the worry in the man’s eyes. “That’s
what probably gave you the stomach ache.”

Virgil wasn’t sure. He only drank crimson—a cocktail for

vampires who didn’t have the taste for a vein. Most drank the
concoction like humans drank wine. But people like Virgil drank it
because Ceri would more than likely kill whoever Virgil drank from.

No, not kill. His mate would disembowel them while they were

still alive. It was a good thing Virgil didn’t want to drink from anyone
but his mate. “I’m not sure, Harley, but it really does hurt.”

“I’m going to get Christian.”
Reaching his hand out, Virgil grabbed Harley’s muscular arm. “I

don’t want to make a fuss when it is probably nothing more than a
bad batch of crimson.”

Harley looked down at the hand trying to wrap around his large

biceps. “Please stop touching me before Ceri decides to slice my nuts
from my body. I rather enjoy sex.”

“Having sex with your hand doesn’t count.”
Harley looked at Virgil like had just grown two extra heads. “Oh.

My. God. Virgil Green just made a joke. I think the world is coming
to an end.”

Virgil walked over to the sink and turned the tap on, splashing

some water on his face, gritting his teeth as another wave of nausea
overtook him. Patting his face with paper towels, he turned back
toward Harley. The guy was standing there still looking at Virgil

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Lynn Hagen

strangely. “Oh, come on. It was one witty remark. Stop looking at me
like you’re waiting for my hair to turn to snakes.”

A devilish grin spread across Harley’s face. Virgil liked Harley.

He was the first person in Virgil’s life that made him want to smile.
The guy didn’t seem to be affected by too much, always having
something sarcastic to say. The vampire just sort of rolled with the
punches. There was just something about the man that made Virgil
want to let down his guard.

“Feeling any better?” Harley reached out and shoved the door

closed when someone tried to walk in. Loud curses could be heard on
the other side. Harley just kept his hand pressed to the wood as he
looked at Virgil for an answer.

“My stomach is settling.” Somewhat. But Virgil wasn’t about to

be sent to the Manor where all he would do was stare at the four
walls. He didn’t want to be stuck in this bathroom any longer, either.
Maybe some fresh air would do him some good. The club seemed
rather stuffy tonight.

“I still think I should let Christian know just to cover my own ass.

I’m hanging with Ceri’s mate. Do you have any clue how intimidating
that is? You get a scratch and there goes my balls.”

Virgil raised an eyebrow. “You seem awfully focused on your

testicles. Maybe Buck can man the door for a little while longer while
you go work off some of your pent-up energy.”

The man grunted as he opened the bathroom door. The music

came flooding in as a human glared at Harley, walking past him.
Virgil assumed he was the same man who had tried to get in just
moments before. “As long as you’re vertical and have your eyes open,
I’m all over you like sauce on a noodle.”

“What does that even mean?”
“Just get your ass back to the door.” Harley cleared a path as he

walked. Those who didn’t move were politely shoved aside. Okay,
there wasn’t anything polite about it. Harley just reached out and
pushed their shoulders. One guy even landed on his ass. He glared up

Ceri 69

at Harley but swiftly looked away when he saw just how big the guy
was.

A thin sheen of sweat began to form on Virgil’s forehead and

upper lip. He reached up and wiped it off. Someone needed to crank
up the air conditioner with this many bodies packed in one place.

“Thanks,” Harley said to Buck who was wiping a few guys when

they approached. Harley was the only vampire who Virgil knew could
man the doors all night without looking a bit frazzled. Not a lot of
vampires could hold so many memories at once. Buck looked like he
needed a drink by the time Harley waved him away. Virgil wasn’t
sure how the man did it. Some of the humans had some really
degenerate thoughts.

“Whoa!” Harley said loudly as he grabbed Virgil, stopping him

from hitting the pavement. Vertigo struck him hard, making his mind
haze over. His balance was lost when he stepped out the door. “That’s
it! I’m getting Christian.”

Virgil didn’t argue with the man. Something was definitely wrong

with him. He’d never passed out before in his life. It was a frightening
feeling. His pulse began to beat erratically, his stomach threatening to
rebel.

He heard Harley shouting at someone to man the door, and then

the man was carrying him to Christian’s office. “I swear, I better not
catch any shit for helping you.” Harley hurried down the hall that led
to the prince’s office. The lights overhead were a blur, the yellow
incandescent bulbs hurting Virgil’s eyes.

“Put him over there.” The prince pointed toward the couch on the

other side of his office. “I’ve already summoned the physician.”

The room spun and Virgil reached out, trying to steady himself.

He grabbed nothing but air. Why couldn’t the room stay in one place?
Closing his eyes, Virgil took in a deep and steady breath.

“He’s here.”

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Lynn Hagen

Virgil opened his eyes when he felt a warm body sit on the edge

of the couch. He was staring at a complete stranger. This wasn’t the
man who tended to the vampire race. “Who are you?”

Warmth filled the hazel eyes that were staring at him. He could

tell right away that the guy was human. “I’m Doctor Sheehan. Can
you tell me what’s going on with you?”

Just as he was about to speak, another round of nausea hit him. He

swallowed hard, trying to hold back.

“He’s Ceri’s mate,” Harley said.
Dr. Sheehan looked at Harley as if he were waiting for the man to

say more. When Harley kept staring, the doctor released an
aggravated breath. “I don’t care who he is mated to. My first and only
concern right now is my patient. Now will someone tell me what is
going on with him or do I have to do a full body exam along with lab
work? Trust me, that is going to take too much time when all I need
are his damn symptoms.”

Virgil blinked at the man. For a human, he sure had a set of balls

on him. He groaned. Now Harley had him using that word. He
watched as the doctor pulled on a pair of exam gloves before he began
to check Virgil over.

“Nausea and cramping,” Virgil finally managed to say when he

was able to talk without feeling as if he were going to vomit.
“Dizziness, too.”

“Hmm.”
What did that mean? He lay there while the doctor examined him

and then drew some blood. The guy was very thorough. Harley
stepped out when the doctor got a little more personal with the exam,
but the prince stayed. The guy was decent enough to turn around,
though.

Virgil became increasingly worried as the man checked him over.

He wasn’t saying a word. The human just kept giving Virgil a warm
smile.

Ceri 71

Something inside Virgil began to hum to life and he knew it had

nothing to do with whatever was wrong with him or what the doctor
was doing. His chest felt heavy as his mind opened wide.

“No!” Virgil said loudly just as Christian moved in rapidly,

pulling the doctor off the couch and hurling him toward his desk.

Ceri stalked through his mind like a caged beast and Virgil could

feel the man gearing up to attack. No!

Who dares come near you with such familiarity?
“He is the wolf pack’s doctor,” Christian said out loud as if he

knew exactly what Ceri was going to ask Virgil. “Your mate is feeling
ill.”

“No.” Dr. Sheehan removed his gloves, tossing them in the trash

next to Christian’s desk. “Your mate has a bun in the oven.” The
doctor turned toward Christian. “Who are we talking to?”

Virgil lay there in such stunned disbelief that he hadn’t even heard

Christian’s response. His world came to a skidding halt. Suddenly it
became harder to breathe, his heart beating too fast.

What does he mean? Ceri’s questioned whispered through his

mind.

“Are you sure?” Christian looked just as stunned as Virgil felt.

The man stood there staring at Virgil, his eyes slightly larger than
normal. He’d never seen the prince anything other than calm and in
control. The shock in his eyes only escalated Virgil’s already fast-
paced heartbeat.

“I’ve been doing this for a long time.” The doctor walked back

over to Virgil, pulling the skin under his eyes down. “If he were half-
vampire, I would be able to tell by the changing of his eye color. But
there is no mistaking my diagnosis. I’ll need to get his blood back to
my office, but I know I’m right.”

What is he talking about!
Virgil curled into a ball, wrapping his arms around his stomach as

the ramifications of what the doctor said hit home. He said that I am
going to have your child.

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Ceri’s presence stilled, as if the man’s muscles had locked up on

him. Virgil thought it very odd that he knew this, could feel it inside
of him. Never before had he heard of anyone being able to do what
Ceri was doing. Vampires could probe the mind, and only the very
old and strong could talk mentally with another. But he actually felt
Ceri, as if he were sharing a body with the man.

A child?
Giving his back to the men in the room, Virgil tried his best to

curl into himself so tightly that he would disappear. He heard the door
open and then close, whispering, and then nothing.

He reached up and wiped at the tears that were spilling from his

eyes. Any other time, this would have been strange enough, but what
if the babe…Virgil’s shoulders began to softly shake.

Do not cry, innocent one. A warm feeling brushed over Virgil’s

cheeks. He could hear the pain in Ceri’s voice, but that only made him
cry harder.

I will find a way—
“To do what?” Virgil shouted as he slammed his fist into the back

of the couch. “You can’t even be here to comfort me! I’m carrying
another life form inside my body and the father—” Virgil shoved his
fist into his mouth to stop the scream from escaping.

What if the child craved flesh like his father? What if…He

smashed his eyes closed, shoving at Ceri’s presence, pushing the man
away as he closed the door between them, shutting the man out.

He couldn’t deal with all of this right now. The last thing Virgil

needed were promises they both knew Ceri couldn’t keep.

* * * *

Ceri pulled out of Virgil’s mind, his body numb, his thoughts

scattered. He tipped his head back and dragged in a lungful of air, still
scenting Virgil’s warm and welcoming aroma. He wasn’t even sure
how he was able to feel his mate as if the man were right there in his

Ceri 73

arms. But as he stood there, Ceri felt the longing grip him like a hand
that was trying to squeeze his very heart from his chest.

A child.
Never in over two thousand years had Ceri thought of fathering a

babe. Especially after the keeper had come to him during the Great
War between vampires and warlocks, telling Ceri of the curse. He had
resigned himself to walk the earth alone. But now he ached for what
Virgil offered, a place of solace, a warm heart, and a family.

And you called Rhys a fool for wanting such nonsense, calling him

weak. Ceri scoffed at himself for most of the things he had said to his
twin regarding love and family. If only he had known that fate would
place those treasures just outside his reach.

He had to find a cure now more than ever. It was tearing him in

two that he couldn’t be there for his mate and that agony began to fuel
a rage building inside of him.

Leaving Neverlight Hall, Ceri stormed through the underworld,

seeking out the only person who had half a chance of curing him.
“Keeper!”

The withered creature was standing behind a lectern, gazing at a

book as Ceri entered the man’s chambers. “I need a cure, now!” He
felt like he was going raving mad from the need to be with his mate.
Virgil needed him and Ceri couldn’t go near the guy for fear of dining
on his flesh.

“I do not want to hear of great sacrifices,” Ceri stated evenly. “I

have sacrificed enough for simply laying with a harlot. Nenya had no
idea what a loose woman his daughter truly was.” His hand came
crashing down on the desk, sending scrolls and jars flying. “I
shouldn’t have to pay for that!”

“Your mother was the catalyst who bargained for what you have

become.”

Ceri had no clue what the creature was talking about. For once,

the man was speaking clearly, yet Ceri was still confused. What did
his mother have to do with his curse? As far as his memories reached,

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she was a beautiful and gentle woman who loved her sons more than
life itself. She was the greatest queen who had ever ruled a kingdom.
His parents’ death in the war had shattered Ceri.

But learning who his true father was, the man who had sired him,

had gutted Ceri. Marsian had been a great man, a true hero in Ceri’s
eyes. He didn’t want Panahasi to be his father. The man had taken
advantage of Serentene Espelimbergo and then abandoned her and her
offspring.

He still hadn’t found the demon leader. Ceri wanted to have an

up-close talk with the man about visiting Virgil. He wasn’t sure of the
demon’s motives, but there was one thing Ceri was quite certain of.

If Panahasi went near Virgil again, he would unleash his curse on

the leader.

Frustrated that the keeper couldn’t help him, Ceri sought out his

twin. The one thing he never understood—but was forever grateful
for—was the fact that the craving never seized him when he was with
his siblings. Rhys and Christian were the only two people in existence
whose flesh he didn’t want to eat.

If only Virgil could be counted among the safe.
Rhys walked out into the backyard of the Manor, meeting Ceri in

the dark woods. His heart twisted in his chest when he saw the
contentment on the man’s face, knowing it came from being mated
and a father—the very same things Ceri had but couldn’t touch.

“Had I known,” Rhys began, sympathy and pain slipping into his

eyes. “I’m so sorry, Ceri.”

“We were once very close,” Ceri said, gazing at the man who had

known every single thing about him, had been his very breath back
then.

“We still are, brother.” Rhys moved closer, laying his hand on

Ceri’s shoulder. “I loved you more than my very own life, and
nothing has changed. It matters not to me what you have become.
What matters to me is who you are in here.” Rhys thumped Ceri’s
chest. “Nothing can ever tarnish the love I have for you.”

Ceri 75

Raising his head to meet Rhys’s eyes, eyes that mirrored his very

own, Ceri spoke in a tone that conveyed the loss of a family he would
never know the joy of interacting with. “Give me your oath, your
word of honor as my twin, as an Espelimbergo that you will protect
my mate as if he were your very own. Protect my child as if he was
born of your very loins. Enter into the Jurasacro Sagromento with
me.”

Without hesitation, Rhys extended a fingernail, sliced the palm of

his hand, and then scored Ceri’s chest, right above his heart. He
pressed bleeding flesh to bleeding flesh. “As your twin and a man
who holds honor above all else, I give you my solemn oath that the
ancient vampires, the first and second born in a long line of a majestic
race, will protect your mate and babe with our very last breath.”

Ceri felt the sacred oath sizzle through his veins, snapping into

place as it sealed itself. If Virgil died because Rhys broke the oath, his
twin would perish right along with Ceri’s mate.

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Chapter Eight

“I want you to be his bodyguard,” Christian said to Harley as they

stood outside the office door. “I don’t want anything to happen to
Virgil. Do I make myself clear?”

Cupping his hands in front of him, Harley gave a slight bow. “Just

one question.”

Christian nodded.
“Am I going to come away from this alive? I mean, if I have to

touch Virgil, you know, to save him or something, will Ceri
eviscerate me? ’Cause you know I’d do anything for you, Prince. But
I’m not sure dying because I accidently poked him in the arm is on
the top of my list.”

A smile twitched at the side of Christian’s mouth. “Just try your

best not to hand him a tissue when he sneezes.”

Harley grunted as he took up a post just outside the office door.

Christian was bemused at the vampire. He’d known Harley for many
centuries, but he’d never seen him like this. Christian could tell that
the vampire liked Virgil. “No, Harley. I want you at his side, not
outside his door.”

Turning, Harley grabbed the handle and then looked over his

shoulder. “Please don’t tell me that includes going to the bathroom
with him.”

“Everywhere,” Christian made perfectly clear. “If something

happens to Ceri’s mate, this city would become a bloodbath, and that
is just for starters.”

Harley gave a solemn nod before entering the office and closing

the door.

Ceri 77

Christian pressed his fingers into his eyes, feeling tired. So much

was happening all at once and he didn’t know how to help his brother.
This was one truly fucked-up situation.

A loud thud filled the hallway, making Christian turn. A vampire

was staggering toward him, blood covering his face and body.
Christian recognized him as one of Dante’s coven members.

He moved to the man’s side, easing him down until the vampire

was resting on the floor. “What happened?”

The guy’s eyes were wild, unfocused as he clung to Christian.

“Bloodbath,” he cried out hysterically. “They’re all dead. All of
them.”

“Who?” Christian demanded as he grabbed the man’s face, trying

to make him focus. When the vampire didn’t speak, Christian plunged
into his mind. What he saw had him praying where he knelt. The
vampire’s memory was a bit grainy, but Christian could see Dante’s
coven being slaughtered where they stood by an unseen force. They
just dropped, their throats torn and ragged. But he didn’t see anyone
committing the murders.

“Dante.” Christian’s fingers gripped the man tighter, shaking him

slightly. “Where is Dante?” His voice was strangled with fear,
assuming the worst for the coven leader.

“Prince?”
Christian glanced up when he heard his third-in-command’s voice.

Isla stood there, looking confused.

Everything in Christian went numb as he gazed back down at the

vampire who was now lying lifeless in his arms.

Christo appeared in the hallway, and then a few more of his coven

members, all looking at him worriedly.

Lowering his eyes, Christian whispered, “Dante’s coven has been

completely wiped out.” Loud gasps filled the hallway as Christian
pushed to his feet, anger suddenly alive in the air, turbulent clouds
gathering over lightning. A bone-deep fury rolled in his gut.

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Pushing past everyone, Christian walked through the club to the

back door, walked outside, and then took off through the night. He
flew fast and hard, his molecules reforming right there on the
expansive front lawn of Dante’s home.

The house was engulfed in flames, the fire reaching the sky, a

massive inferno whose heat was almost too much for Christian, even
at the distance he was standing. He could hear windows exploding
and saw red embers blowing free to float toward him.

Sirens were getting closer and Christian knew he couldn’t stay for

long. But he couldn’t seem to move. His eyes filled with hot, angry
tears as he watched the once-magnificent home turn to charred
remains, the vampires inside turning to nothing more than ash.

Christo appeared next to him, a swift intake of breath as he

gasped.

As Christian stood there watching the night light up from the fire,

he swore to himself that whoever had done this was going to beg for
death for centuries to come.

* * * *

News reached Maverick of what had happened to Dante’s coven.

He was stunned beyond words. He’d dreamt that there was a war
coming, but never in his wildest imaginings would he have thought
that the coven would be wiped out in seconds. The only thing that the
dream had revealed to him was carnage, and not even who the people
were that had been slaughtered.

He dropped down into his chair, covering his mouth as he stared

at Zeus who was sitting across his desk. The man’s expression was
inscrutable, his eyes studying something on Maverick’s desk as a tic
began in the side of his jaw.

“The entire coven,” Maverick said out loud in a low tone that

revealed just how truly shocked he was. He knew Christian had to be
devastated and probably bloodthirsty at this point.

Ceri 79

“We need to gather the leaders.” Zeus stood. “Someone is

responsible and that someone needs to be found.”

Maverick might have thought that Christian needed to get the

stick out of his ass and loosen up a bit, but he respected the man. He
had to do something. The person responsible couldn’t be allowed to
get away with this. If they did, then there was no telling who would
be next. He cared for every single person in his pack and Maverick
would protect them with his life.

The two walked out of the Den, Maverick’s eyes sweeping over

the foyer, wondering just how much things were about to change. He
heard the babies in the den playing, pool balls cracking, and a video
game in progress. There was noise coming from the hallway that led
to the kitchen as well. Everything seemed so normal, yet nothing was
right now. Their world was changing and there was nothing Maverick
could do to stop it.

“Where are you heading?” Cecil asked as he walked out of the

den, gazing from Zeus to Maverick.

Cupping Cecil’s jaw, Maverick bent at the waist, whispering in

his ear, “Remember the dream?”

Cecil nodded.
Placing a kiss on the man’s jaw, Maverick stood. “Then you

remember your promise.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Cecil said as Maverick and Zeus left

the house. They mounted their bikes and headed toward the highway
that would take them to Christian’s. Maverick couldn’t stop thinking
about Dante. He didn’t know the man all that well but had had a few
conversations with the coven leader over the years. From what he
could see, the man had cared deeply for his members.

Slaughtered and then set on fire.
That was such a horrific way to go. The anger at anyone pulling

something like this with any coven, pack, or anything else began to
mount inside of him. Maverick was already dealing with Hunters
invading his village. He wasn’t sure who to trust when it came to his

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residents. Spies were living amongst them. There was no doubt about
that.

He wished he knew who the spies were because Maverick would

hang them from the town square to serve as an example to anyone
else who wanted to betray this village.

They turned onto the highway and Maverick pushed his

motorcycle past the limits, wanting answers and to find out who they
were going to kill. Christian was going to get his retribution.
Maverick was going to make sure of that.

Zeus kept pace, his bike roaring next to Maverick’s as they

zigzagged around cars and trucks, eating up the distance. He could
have just had one of the fey shimmer him to Christian’s, but Maverick
needed the head time. He needed to work things out and to calm
down. He knew as well as anyone that decisions were a bad thing to
make when high on emotions.

The Bluetooth in his helmet chirped. Reaching up, Maverick

tapped it on. “What?”

“Dad!” Melonee screamed hysterically into the phone. He could

hear chaos in the background, people shouting as Melonee’s voice
filled with tears.

“What’s going on?” he asked as he narrowly missed rear-ending a

box truck. The driver shouted out the window and flipped Maverick
off, but he ignored him.

Melonee screamed in a tone that chilled Maverick’s heart.

“Someone shimmered in here as soon as you left and kidnapped
Xavier!”

Maverick lost control, his front tire hitting the back of someone’s

blue compact car. He flew from his motorcycle, both man and
machine skidding across the unforgiving highway at a fast rate of
speed until his body slammed into something solid and knocked him
into a semiconscious state.

The sound of his headset crackled in his ear. Blurry visions swam

in and out of focus. His body went numb. He heard murmuring and

Ceri 81

then the word Xavier became a little clearer. Maverick was chanting
his grandson’s name over and over again.

Kidnapped.
Maverick let out a soul-piercing scream when the numbness made

way for the all-consuming pain that wracked his entire body. He had
to have been going eighty when he laid his bike down. Zeus appeared
in his line of sight, his jaw tight, his features grim. The alpha held
Maverick’s neck steady as he removed the helmet.

“Don’t move.” Zeus set the helmet aside. “Your thigh bone is

sticking out of your pants and you have a nasty twist to both your
legs.”

He just needed to shift. All Maverick had to do was let his wolf

free. But there were too many humans standing around, speaking
hastily into their cell phones, looking at him with pity and finality, as
if he weren’t going to survive.

“Just get me somewhere so I can heal.” His body was starting to

go numb again and Maverick knew that wasn’t a good sign. He was
losing circulation in parts of his limbs, and if he didn’t shift soon, he
would lose the use of them permanently.

Zeus shook his big, bald head. “It’s a little more complicated than

that, friend. You have a large piece of metal running through your
arm.”

“My bike?”
“Totaled.”
Maverick took in a deep breath, regretting it when his entire chest

felt like it was on fire. He gritted his teeth, fighting the sweep of
nausea overtaking him. “Someone kidnapped Xavier. Just get me
someplace I can heal!” He pulsated with anger and rage, the air around
him pure darkness churning with endless echoes of pain.

“Use my van,” someone said from over Zeus’s shoulder. “You

don’t want to go to a human hospital,” he added under his breath.

“Don’t move him!” someone else shouted, but Zeus was already

picking Maverick up, carrying him toward a white van. Red-hot pain

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exploded inside of him as Maverick’s head swam before everything
went black.

* * * *

Christian shut down the Manacle, making every single coven

member return to the Manor. Three of his own coven members had
been found dead, their throats torn out. Until he could figure out what
was going on, Christian wanted his coven someplace more secure.

“That’s everyone,” Christo said as they both returned home.

Christian paced in the living room, his hands tucked behind his back.
He felt rage arc through his bloodstream at what was happening.
Feeling helpless was not something he was accustomed to.

“I want the annihilators guarding the Manor. If anyone gets in

here, kill them without hesitation.” Christian was not taking any
chances. His mates and sons were downstairs, along with his nephew.
Virgil was in his room, Harley at his side. He wasn’t sure why
someone was targeting covens, but fuck if he was letting anyone have
his.

“Maverick’s here,” Logan said as he entered the living room,

Maverick walking in behind him. The alpha glanced Christian’s way,
and then around at the room.

“I suppose you heard what has happened?” Christian asked as

Logan closed the doors when he walked out. “Have you contacted the
other leaders?”

Pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head, Maverick nodded. “I

have.”

Christian took a seat, running his fingers over his jaw. “We have

to figure out who is doing this. We aren’t even sure it’s covens that
they are targeting. They could go after packs next.”

“Maybe we should talk somewhere a little more private,”

Maverick said. “Someplace more secure. How about we go
downstairs?”

Ceri 83

Cocking his head, Christian’s eyes swept over Maverick’s

towering form. Never in all the time that he had known the alpha had
the man asked to go downstairs where Christian’s family was housed.
It was an unspoken rule in any leader’s home that the family living
area was off limits. Christian had never asked to go into the upstairs at
the Den, or any other place that Maverick’s pack slept or gathered.
They had always met in Maverick’s office.

Christian glanced over at Christo who was staring strangely at the

alpha. His second-in-command was thinking the very same thing that
Christian was.

Who was standing there impersonating Maverick Brac?
Christo moved to the door, opened it, and whispered low while

Christian stood, acting casual, making sure not to alert this person that
he knew he wasn’t the real deal.

“It’s such a shame that the fey village was wiped out. Don’t you

think?” He kept his movements subtle, his pacing to a minimum.

“Yeah, it is,” Maverick answered. “I still think we should talk

about this in a more private setting, Prince.”

Now Christian knew something was amiss. One, it had been

Dante’s coven that had been attacked, not the fey village. And two,
Maverick would rather have his tongue cut out than refer to Christian
as Prince.

“I just have one question,” Christian said, as the doors opened and

the annihilators walked in, looking fully militant as they stood there
blocking the only exit this person had to escape. “Who are you?”

The person impersonating Maverick turned toward Christian, a

cold and evil smile on his lips before he spun on his heels and
slammed into the men blocking his way. Christian had never seen
anyone just bowl through four large vampires before.

Taking off after the person, Christian reached out to grab him

when someone shimmered in, grabbed the fake Maverick, and both
shimmered away. Christian shouted out his anger as he started to
change into his original form, the anger inside of him boiling over. He

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was going to find out who was behind all of this, because Christian
would die before allowing anyone to harm his family.

* * * *

Panahasi pivoted on his foot, spinning away as Jaden tried to

impale him with the sharp end of his sword. He had to stop the man
from leaving. Jaden had already destroyed one vampire coven and
was threatening to wipe them all out.

“You have no idea how much I’ve enjoyed plotting the death of

your beloved race,” Jaden sneered as he circled around Panahasi. “I’ll
see them all dead. You should have never had me caged in the
underworld. I can feel the pain and agony of your people and it tastes
so sweet on my tongue.”

Pulling the two knives free that he had hidden, Panahasi twirled

them in his hands before scraping the razor-sharp blades together,
filling the dark field with the sound of grating metal. “You won’t taste
if for long when I slice that tongue from your mouth.”

Jaden swirled his sword in front of his body, his feet dancing to a

rhythm only Death could hear. Panahasi matched him step for deadly
step. It wasn’t even about winning, but keeping the man here,
stopping him from killing any more of Panahasi’s people.

“Your love of those bloodsuckers will be your demise.”
“And your hatred of me will be yours.” Panahasi and Jaden began

to battle, blade striking blade, metal clanking and sliding across the
other’s surface as Panahasi fought fiercely to save an entire race that
he himself had created.

Ceri 85

Chapter Nine

Ceri glanced at the vials in his hands. The keeper had warned him

that if he kept taking this stuff, he would lose his mind. Like I need to
worry about that. The potion to suppress his cravings was not meant
to be taken like some cold medicine. It was powerful, potent, and had
a side effect of insanity.

He set the glass containers on the table in his bedroom, staring at

them before walking away. He needed to weigh what he was
contemplating. Although Ceri wanted to be with his mate badly, did
he want to risk his very own lucidity? If he went mad from taking the
potion, what good would he be to his mate and child?

The thought once again struck him so hard that a fissure felt like it

was opening up inside of him. He was going to be a father. That
thought alone scared him. Even if he found a way around this
wretched curse, what did he know about being a parent? Marsian had
been a good man, teaching Ceri and his brothers well, but—Ceri
shook his head, feeling the pit of his stomach tighten.

He sat in the chair by the large brick window for hours, his chin

resting in his fingers, staring at the clear liquid that could give him
stolen moments with his mate and drive him over the very edge. He
didn’t move a muscle as Rhys walked into his bedroom.

“Dante’s coven has been completely wiped out and a few

members of Christian’s were found murdered.”

“Virgil?” Ceri asked as he sat forward. He knew his mate wasn’t

dead. The connection was still there and growing stronger.

Rhys walked to the window and gazed out. “He is at the Manor

with the rest of the coven, a bodyguard assigned to him. This is just

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the beginning, brother. I can feel it in my bones.” He turned and
began to walk away. “I just wanted to make you aware of the danger
that is mounting.”

Ceri made a deep grunt in the back of his throat. “Danger has been

mounting since the day of our births.”

“Very true. But in this day and age, having our race exposed to the

human world could be cataclysmic. These are no longer times when
they would carry torches and rally outside our castle, Ceri. The
weapons they have are of mass destruction.” Rhys disappeared.

Humans would know the meaning of mass destruction if one hair

on Virgil’s head was harmed. Ceri was called a lot of things, but when
it came to his mate, forgiving was not going to be one of them.

Pushing from his chair, he walked toward the table, gazing down

at the temptation. The need to be near his pregnant mate was
overwhelming. Ceri traced the vial with his fingers, thinking of how
much Virgil had suffered already and how scared he must be right
now, with child but without his mate.

Ceri spun, knocking everything from his dresser as he roared, a

fine tremor unfurling inside of him. He didn’t need the potion to go
mad. He was doing just fine getting himself there on his own.

Grabbing two vials from the table, he uncorked them and downed

both bottles. Fuck chains. Ceri wanted to hold Virgil in his arms,
unfettered. Throwing the vials aside, he headed out.

Ceri appeared just outside Virgil’s bedroom. He opened the door,

seeing Harley stand to attention. The vampire moved closer to
Virgil’s bed, his eyes watchful, mistrusting. “Christian didn’t tell me
you were visiting tonight.”

Visiting. Ceri despised the fact that being with his mate was

considered visits. “Get out.”

The vampire steeled his spine, his shoulders rolling as he shook

his head. “How do I know you are the real Ceri?”

Ceri did something he’d never done before. He pulled another into

his mind, showing him just a minute portion of the things he had seen

Ceri 87

and done. Harley’s eyes widened, his chest expanding and contracting
rapidly as sweat began to build on his skin—and that was just from a
small peek into what Ceri had lived through.

“Leave us,” he said a little more softy, hating that he had to prove

himself in such an invasive manner. He never wanted anyone to see
the horrors that he’d seen or feel the pain that he’d felt. It hadn’t been
intentional what he did to the vampire, but it was the only way to
show Harley that he was the real Ceri.

Harley hurriedly left the room, closing the door behind him. Ceri

turned, watching his mate as the man slept. His body was covered by
a sheet, robbing him of a wondrous sight. “Open your eyes, innocent
one.”

Virgil turned over, his eyelids fluttering open. Ceri could tell that

it took a moment for the man to realize that he was standing there.
The look of utter surprise made the side of Ceri’s mouth twitch in
what seemed to be a smile. It had been so long since Ceri had one of
those that he wasn’t quite sure.

“Are you here to eat me?” Virgil asked as the sheet pooled in his

lap. Ceri gave a low growl at the man’s state of nakedness.

“Oh, yes, I am.” He moved closer to the bed, shedding his clothes

as his eyes drank in the man’s alabaster skin. Pulling the sheet from
the bed, Ceri stood there gazing at such perfection. His eyes
immediately dropped to Virgil’s stomach, wondering what the man
was going to look like swollen with his child.

Heat simmered in Virgil’s dark eyes as a blush suffused his pale

cheeks. Ceri was taken completely off guard when a chuckle bubbled
up from his throat. It was a foreign sound to his ears. He remembered
laughing when he was younger, the sheer joy in just one smile. But
those days were so long ago that he had forgotten just how good it felt
to let a smile spread across his face.

“You’re even more handsome when you smile.” Virgil gazed at

Ceri like Ceri was his entire world. “You should do it more often, and
not because you are about to eat someone.”

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A burst of laughter tore from Ceri’s chest at Virgil’s attempt at

humor. What was happening to him? Was it the potion, or the fact that
he was finally standing by his mate without the curse rearing its ugly
head? He felt it deep down inside of him, but it was well contained.

“Much better.” Virgil grinned up at him and Ceri’s heart was

beating like a drum against his chest. He had a feeling that it had been
too long since Virgil smiled himself.

Slipping into the bed, Ceri placed his hands on either side of

Virgil’s waist, pulling the man close, brushing his fingers over his
mate’s cheek. Virgil’s hair was obsidian darkness, his skin as pale as
the moon, and his breath that brushed over Ceri’s neck was like a
night breeze that blew softly through Ceri’s open bedroom window.
He lowered his head, ghosting his lips over Virgil’s, coaxing his mate
to straddle his lap as Ceri knelt there.

The man’s mouth was pure heat that seared every inch of Ceri’s

skin as he licked at the unseen flames. Lithe fingers skimmed over
Ceri’s broad chest before his mate entwined them behind Ceri’s neck.

Bringing his mate closer, Ceri pressed his hand into the man’s

slim back, drinking in the feeling of having him so close. This was
what he was willing to go mad for. This was what Ceri longed for
every single night. He wanted this closeness so badly that he was
willing to trade his sanity just for the chance to hold the man, to
caress his soft skin, and to taste the milk and honey of his mate’s
body.

Head rolling back, Ceri groaned when Virgil began to place small

kisses along his neck and shoulder, exploring him with such an
innocent touch. He didn’t have to worry about the potion making him
insane. Virgil was out to kill every brain cell Ceri possessed.

His lips brushed over one of Ceri’s nipples, the tip of Virgil’s

tongue flicking out, ripping a moan from his lips. Ceri curled his
fingers tighter around his mate’s waist, his cock so full and hard that
he wasn’t sure how long he would be able to hold out.

Ceri 89

“You taste salty,” Virgil said as his eyes rose to meet Ceri’s. “But

good. I like the way you taste in my mouth.”

He shuddered at Virgil’s words, unsure if his mate knew what he

was doing to Ceri. The slow burn inside of him was growing hotter at
the little nips and licks. Grazing a hand over Virgil’s head, Ceri
watched as the vampire licked around his nipple, sucked it into his
mouth, and then bit down gently. His skin hummed with the
pleasurable sensations.

Suddenly Ceri felt Christian just outside the door. That wasn’t

something he should normally be able to do, but he could feel the
hesitation stopping Christian from barging in.

He is safe. Ceri pushed the thought into Christian’s mind. No

harm will come to him.

Christian nodded, but assigned Harley to stay right outside the

door, telling the man that if he heard anything distressful, to get Virgil
out by any means necessary.

Ceri sucked in his breath as Virgil reached out to him, the tips of

his fingers tenderly grazing Ceri’s jaw. Heat spread out from that bare
contact, flooding Ceri’s neck as he splayed his hand along the
sensitive skin below Virgil’s ear and around to his nape.

Virgil twisted against him and Ceri knew the man needed his

touch, for Ceri to fuck him, to relieve the yearning pit of exquisite
need throbbing inside his mate. His mate was like a flame of sensual
teasing that was stealing Ceri’s very breath.

“Patience.” He denied Virgil what he wanted, making his mate

whimper. “Not yet, innocent one. But soon. Real soon.”

Virgil watched with darkened eyes as Ceri moved from him,

going to his knees then laying his mate down on pillows that were
beneath his mate’s shoulders and head. The man looked up at him, his
eyes glittering with arousal, making a low growl rumble in Ceri’s
chest just to see such a captivating sight.

“You know what I want,” he told Virgil, his voice rough, his cock

aiming for his mate’s lips. Virgil trembled, his eyes betraying his

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eagerness to give Ceri what he wanted. Virgil licked his lips slowly
then allowed Ceri’s cock to push slowly between them.

“Beautiful,” he growled, feeling Virgil’s hand going to his own

cock, his fingers pulling at his erection. God, he wanted to do that for
Virgil. Wanted to pull at that pretty cock. Watch his flesh darken,
harden further.

His mate’s mouth was sucking firmly, his tongue rimming the

flared head, fingers massaging taut balls with firm strokes. Virgil’s
mouth was a sucking, licking demon of pleasure as he lapped at the
pre-cum spilling from Ceri’s cock, suckled his sensitive head and
caused a deep groan of need to echo in Ceri’s chest. He could feel his
fangs lengthening as spikes of desire shot higher and higher inside of
him. It drove him to push a little further, to show Virgil what intimacy
was all about.

His mate’s hands gripped Ceri’s cock as he moaned around his

flesh, licking him, suckling at him as he fucked Virgil’s mouth, his
cock tightening, throbbing. He pushed his cock to the back of Virgil’s
throat, waiting for his mate’s reflexive swallow to squeeze the
sensitive tip before retreating and fucking into him again. His hands
clenched around the strands of hair he held captive, holding his
mate in place, watching his glistening mouth take him with each
stroke. He couldn’t stand it. His body was alive for a change, his
cock so sensitive, so desperate for release he felt as if he was
burning from the inside out.

His hips arched, his cock pressing to Virgil’s throat as he felt his

release wash over him. Lightning shot through his scrotum, up his
spine, arching his body as the first pulse of his seed shot into his
mate’s mouth.

“Take it all,” he whispered breathlessly as he felt Virgil swallow,

felt his tongue dance over the exploding tip as he shot into his
mouth again.

And still he was hard.

Ceri 91

With an animal grunt of lust, he came down on Virgil,

positioning his pelvis between the man’s thighs and yanking the man
toward him by his hips. He moved his hand around Virgil’s bottom
and slid down to lightly rub at the tightness of his mate’s entrance,
sending the scent of the man’s desire flaring into the air. Ceri used the
spittle from his mouth to ease his fingers inside his mate.

The sounds Virgil made fed the hunger but they also fed the

protectiveness. He let his mate catch his breath before taking his lips
in another kiss, but this time he gentled himself. This time, he used his
tongue to tangle with Virgil’s.

His mate’s hands gripped frantically at his shoulders, but he had

no intention of rushing this. He intended for the waves of pleasure to
lap at the man before consuming him, before turning his mate into
passion and heat, surrender and demand.

Ceri groaned deep in his throat, a harsh, wordless snarl as he

slid two more fingers into Virgil’s body without warning. Ceri started
to move in a steady rhythm, making sure to nail Virgil’s gland as
often as he could.

“Ceri!” It was a scream. Virgil’s hands fell to the sheets, clutching

wildly as he rode the pleasure, his eyes rolling to the back of his head
as his neck muscles strained, showing Ceri that beautiful pulsing vein
that he didn’t dare go near. His mouth watered for just one small taste,
but Ceri tore his eyes away. Even though he had taken a double dose
of the potion, he wasn’t going to tempt fate.

“Shh,” he gentled, stopping to give his mate a little tenderness. He

kissed his brow, his eyelids, his cheeks, and finally his lips. Indulgent,
slow, undemanding. Until his mate’s breathing was calmer and those
obsidian eyes were no longer wild. Then he started moving his fingers
again. He pulled all the way back out and then pushed back in,
fucking Virgil with his fingers for a few more strokes before pulling
his hand completely free.

Ceri leaned down, sucking at his mate’s hole, wetting it with

enough saliva to lubricate the man. It wasn’t as good as the salve he

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had used the first time they had been together, but it would have to
do.

Rearing back, Ceri groaned his mate’s name, his hand touching

damp hair, the other holding Virgil’s hip as he pushed inside,
groaning as Virgil’s body enveloped him in its tight, wet heat. Inch by
inch Virgil’s flesh gave. Inch by inch the coil of heat that had
exploded through his body just moments before began to mount again.
Gritting his teeth, Ceri eased back, growling at the incredible pleasure
from the friction of Virgil’s flesh against his.

“Ceri.” He saw Virgil’s hips jerk, the muscles of his abdomen

tightening as his body tensed, his legs moving until they were
wrapped around Ceri’s waist.

Ceri leaned forward, pressing his lips to his mate’s temple as he

glided a hand over the man’s stomach. He closed his eyes and said a
prayer, asking the gods to keep his mate and unborn child safe in
these chaotic times. Ceri was trying his best to crawl out of the
desolate hole he had lived in for so long, to find happiness once again.
He didn’t like being so damn miserable. He wanted to laugh, to smile
like he used to.

“Te quiero, Va-gel.” Ceri felt something inside of him crack,

splintering open the darkness that had lived within him for so long,
allowing some light into his heart and soul. He grinned against
Virgil’s temple, feeling tears prickling at his eyes as his hand
continued to smooth up and down Virgil’s stomach. “Our babe.”

Virgil’s breath hitched as his arms wrapped tightly around Ceri’s

neck. “I’m scared.”

Kissing his way down Virgil’s shoulder, Ceri thrust his cock

deeply. He groaned at the sheer pleasure of being inside his mate, of
sharing this time with the man. “I know.”

He wanted to promise that he would be there, that he would hold

Virgil’s hand through it all, but he had never uttered a promise he
couldn’t keep, and Ceri wasn’t going to start now.

“Just promise me you’ll be there for me, if only in my mind.”

Ceri 93

“That I can promise you,” he said as he reared back, grabbing

Virgil’s hips as he pistoned forward, watching as his mate writhed
and groaned beneath him. Soon, Ceri was fucking Virgil with passion,
ramming his cock hard and deep into his mate’s ass. His cock tingled,
aching for release, his balls drawn and tight.

Wrapping his arms around Virgil’s thighs, Ceri lifted the man’s

ass a little higher and jetted into him, his mate shattering as his cock
exploded and he cried out Ceri’s name.

Ceri threw back his head, and with a primal bellow of Virgil’s

name, his seed flooded his mate’s still-shuddering body. His thrusts
slowed until he was kneeling there with a heavy sheen of sweat
coating his skin. Ceri hated this part, feeling as if he were abandoning
his mate when he pulled free and slid from the bed.

The potion wasn’t as strong as it had been when he first arrived

and he didn’t want to ruin what they just shared if the craving began
to claw at him. His mate lay there, his head resting on his arm as he
watched Ceri dress. Before he left, Virgil gazed up at him, his eyes
filled with understanding, but regret.

“I love you, too, Ceridian.”
It took every ounce of willpower he possessed to walk out,

leaving his mate behind.

* * * *

Marino sat in a dingy alcove of a restaurant in the human realm. It

was a low, redbrick building that looked like it had seen better days, a
battered neon sign proclaiming the restaurant’s name hanging over the
big window, a few of the letters burnt out.

Marino soon forgot the dingy interior when the man he’d been

waiting for walked in, his broad shoulders filling the doorway before
he walked with confident strides toward the table Marino was seated
at.

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“Marino Malone?” the guy asked in a tone that said he had sized

Marino up and deemed him nonthreatening. If the man only knew.

“Please, have a seat.” He waved his hand at the scarred wooden

chair across the table from him.

Twisting the chair around, Sebastian took a seat, the wood

groaning like it was ready to buckle. Not so much from the shifter’s
enormous weight, but from the poor shape of this entire
establishment. “I’m not here to eat. You said you had information for
me.”

To the point. Marino liked that. He wasn’t in the mood to

entertain. Reaching into his jacket, he pulled out a single piece of
paper with a solitary name and address scribbled on the white sheet.
“I’m told you never found the person who murdered your best friend.
Cyrus, wasn’t that his name?”

Sebastian’s nostril’s flared, his light-grey eyes turning dark like a

storm brewing on the horizon, ready to unleash its powers. “No, I
haven’t found the person responsible yet.”

Oh how Marino wished he could draw this out. Kell was doing a

poor job at getting his hands on the vampires’ mates. Marino was
ready to kill the man and be done with him. But this…he wanted to
chuckle in glee as he tucked the paper between his index and middle
finger, handing it over.

“What’s this?” Sebastian asked as he took the paper, unfolding it

and staring at the name.

“That, my new friend, is the man who is responsible for Cyrus’s

death.” Marino grabbed his glass of water, glancing at the lipstick
stain that was still clinging to the rim. He set the glass back down,
turning his nose up in disgust. How did this place stay open?

“You just have a first name.” Sebastian tossed the slip of paper

back at Marino. “What good is that to me?”

Marino had to fight not to reach across the table and teach the

arrogant wolf shifter some manners. But he held back, gritting his

Ceri 95

teeth as he smiled. “If you go to the address on the paper, you’ll find
that there is only one Maverick living in that cozy little town.”

Marino had already taken care of the welcoming sign that stood

just outside the town limits. He didn’t need Sebastian Brac seeing the
name of Maverick’s village. That would ruin everything. He wanted
Sebastian to kill the arrogant alpha wolf before the two found out that
they were brothers.

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Chapter Ten

“Very peculiar,” the doctor said as he examined Virgil. “I’ve

never seen anyone’s gestational period move so rapidly. I mean, even
though you are a vampire—” Dr. Sheehan shook his head. “It’s like
you are already in the second trimester and it has only been three
weeks.”

Christian moved a little more closely, looking over the doctor’s

shoulder. Virgil had an urge to cover himself from prying eyes. Didn’t
the guy believe in privacy? He was wearing his underwear but still
felt very exposed.

“What does this mean?” the prince asked the doctor. “Is it

something we should worry about?”

Virgil wanted to know the same thing. His first thought was that

Ceri was different, his unnatural hunger might have been passed on to
the baby, making him grow in ways that he shouldn’t. Virgil could
feel his heart beating a little faster as he waited for the doctor to
answer the prince.

“I’ll have to take him back to the Den to do an ultrasound. I want

to make sure that everything is okay. I also want to do some more
labs.” The doctor stood, turning toward Christian. “Can you bring him
there?”

“Now?” Christian asked.
Closing his exam bag, Dr. Sheehan shook his head. “I heard what

was happening, but I can assure you that Mr. Green will be safe while
I run the tests.”

Ceri 97

“He now goes by the name of Virgil Espelimbergo and his safety

will be in the hands of his bodyguard and my annihilators. I won’t
take any chances with him.”

The doctor snorted, which was a very odd sound coming from

someone who was supposed to always remain professional. Virgil had
never heard the vampires’ doctor snort before. “You can call him
Suzy and assign him one hundred bodyguards for all I care. My only
concern is for Virgil’s health and the well-being of his unborn child.
Have him in my office this afternoon.”

Virgil stared slack jawed at the doctor. He had never heard anyone

talk to the prince in such a no-nonsense tone before. The doctor had
handed out the order and then began to walk from Virgil’s bedroom,
not waiting on an answer. Virgil actually wanted to smile at the man’s
boldness.

“He better be glad he is so good,” Christian said as the bedroom

door closed. His eyes flickered over to Virgil and he could tell the
prince had something on his mind.

“What?”
“You are worried that the child will have Ceri’s cravings.” It was

a blunt statement. Virgil didn’t want to admit his fear out loud. He felt
he would be betraying Ceri if he did. But what else could explain why
the baby was growing so fast?

“Do not worry, Virgil. I’m sure the doctor will find the reason and

it will be a very simple one.”

The words came out of the prince’s mouth, but Virgil could see

that even Christian was worried. It was in his eyes. He knew the man
was just trying to comfort him. What was he supposed to think?
Already his stomach was bulging like he was further along than he
should be—not that he knew what he was supposed to look like at any
given stage in this pregnancy.

“I want to go to the doctor’s office.” He needed to find out what

was going on. He needed to know. Virgil just wasn’t sure what he was

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going to do if he found out—he closed his mind on those thoughts,
stopping himself from worrying before he knew what was happening.

The prince walked to the bed, pulling a key from his pocket, and

then reached over, removing Virgil’s bracelet. He should have been
happy that he finally had the dreaded thing off, but that was secondary
to his worries about the babe.

“I trust you won’t try to go anywhere.”
Where would he go? The only place that interested him was

Ceri’s, and right now he knew that wasn’t an option. If his mate didn’t
take the potion, then he would try to eat Virgil. “I’m not going
anywhere.”

“Try to get some rest.” Christian headed toward the door. “I’ll

send Harley in to sit with you.”

Like that was going to help. At this point, the only thing that

would calm his nerves was the doctor telling him everything was fine.
Taking in a deep breath, Virgil turned to his side and closed his eyes,
waiting until it was time to go take his tests.

* * * *

Ceri grabbed his temples, trying to block out the voices that were

whispering in his head. He couldn’t make out what they were saying,
but the constant buzz of voices was getting louder, like a beehive
where the bees were multiplying by the thousands. He spun around,
his eyes searching for the shadow he could have sworn he’d just seen,
but no one was there.

“Pull yourself together.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“It’s nothing. No one is here to kill you and no one is in your head.”
But no matter how much he tried to convince himself that it was the
potion, not him, Ceri felt as if he were slipping further and further into
madness. He cocked his head, listening, swearing he heard someone
walking through the halls of his home. He moved from his bedroom,
following the sounds that were growing increasingly louder.

Ceri 99

Ceri came to a stop when he spotted someone standing in the large

dance hall that used to hold the most extravagant parties. It was
nothing more than an empty space that had overgrown vines and
forgotten portraits on the wall. “Who are you and why are you in my
home?” He growled out the question, ready to kill whoever had
thought they could just walk in here and glance around.

When the man turned, Ceri sucked in a deep breath. Standing

there as regal as ever was Marsian Espelimbergo. His features were
youthful, before he’d grown old, before he had been slaughtered right
in front of Ceri’s eyes. “No, it isn’t really you.”

The buzzing in his head grew stronger, making Ceri pound his

fists into his temples. None of this was real. None of it. A bitter laugh
filled the room, chilling Ceri.

“You are a failure as a brother and mate, Ceridian. You don’t

deserve to be a father. You took that girl’s virtue and now you’ll pay
the price for the rest of your life.”

“I took nothing!” Ceri shouted to the voice. “She came to me,

seducing me. Victoria wasn’t pure! She knew many men even before
coming to my bed.” When it came to sex, gender had never been a
factor with Ceri. He’d known that Victoria wasn’t pure. It didn’t
matter to him. He had been young and eager to bed such a beautiful
woman. But he shouldn’t have to pay for one romp for the rest of his
life.

Ceri felt his original form emerging as a sinister laugh echoed off

the walls in the large, empty room. “Lies. Your child will be born just
as perverse as you.”

Ceri dropped to his knees, screaming out his tortured worries.

That was exactly what he was afraid of. He was terrified that his child
would crave flesh, wanting to devour the ones closest to him. “Please,
no, not him,” Ceri begged as his shoulders shook. “Not my babe. I
will give you my life, my very soul if you make sure he doesn’t
inherit the curse.”

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“You heard the keeper. A great sacrifice must be made. If you will

not kill your mate, then your child will do.”

Shooting to his feet, Ceri threw his head back, roaring as his

original form emerged fully. He was two feet taller, his skin a
purplish hue. His fangs rested on his chin, his nails were now black
claws. He still had his power of reasoning, but the madness was trying
to steal that away.

No matter what Ceri was experiencing, he vowed that no one was

killing his child or mate. He would eat whoever even dared go near
them.

“It is all in your head.”
Pivoting around and dropping into a crouch, Ceri hissed when he

saw Panahasi standing there before him. He leapt, wanting to tear the
demon apart. He wanted the man to know the pain that was a living,
breathing monster inside of him. Ceri wanted Panahasi to pay for
abandoning him and his brothers.

The demon moved swiftly away, spinning to move out of Ceri’s

reach. “Enough, Ceridian! I am not your enemy.”

Ceri didn’t want to hear that. He didn’t want to listen to all the

pretty little lies this man had conjured up to excuse what he had done.
No, he wanted the man dead at his feet. “You seduced my mother,
planting your seed into her belly, and then walked away as if my
brothers and I were nothing more than—”

“Don’t say it,” Panahasi warned in a tone that was little more than

a whisper. “Please, Ceridian.”

“I curse the day I found out that you are my father!”
Ceri felt his entire body lock into place, his heartbeat slowing

until it barely beat. His eyes grew wide as he gazed at Panahasi who
was standing there with tears running down his face. “You weren’t
allowed to know.”

And then Ceri saw nothing.

* * * *

Ceri 101

Virgil arched his back and let out a bloodcurdling scream as he

felt the connection between him and Ceri sever. It felt like someone
was using a razor, cutting away Virgil’s very heart. Dr. Sheehan
grabbed him, trying to hold him down as he convulsed, his body
jerking around so badly that he just knew his bones were going to
snap.

“Hold him down!” the doctor shouted at someone as Virgil felt the

loss so deeply, so profoundly that he shut down, crawling to the
darkest corner of his mind where he wrapped his arms around his
body and curled into a ball, crying for a mate who had just died.

* * * *

“You broke your word,” the primal source said as Panahasi

dropped to his knees, staring at Christian, Rhys, and Ceridian’s
lifeless bodies that were lying on the floor at his feet inside the void.

Panahasi’s sobs wracked his body as he grabbed Ceridian,

cradling the man in his arms as he rocked back and forth, pressing his
cheek to his son’s face. He loved them all, but it was Ceridian who
had been the most broken, who had needed the most love and care.
And he hadn’t been able to do a thing, just sit back and watch as his
son suffered greatly.

Lifting his head, Panahasi shouted, “You create me as Life, yet

you punish me when I father a race of beings! Who holds you
accountable? Who reins you in when the decisions you make kill my
fucking children!”

“Tell me why I shouldn’t wipe them all out.”
Lowering his son, Panahasi stood, his leathery wings shooting out

as he shifted into what he was born as. Talons as sharp as the finest
blades grew until they were twelve inches long. A row of deadly teeth
emerged, his skin turned crimson as a tail grew four feet in length.
Horns burst from his scalp, his body contorting into the likes of which

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no one had ever seen. He was Life, his genetic makeup containing
every creature ever born. “If I combine forces with Jaden, we can rip
the very fabric of time, destroying everything that you have created,
and in turn, killing you.”

Panahasi was past the point of caring. He was tired of being held

back from his beloved race. He was sick of having to bow down to the
primal source’s every command. If he had to wipe everything out of
existence in order to stop it, then he had no problem rolling up his
sleeves and kicking ass.

“What would you sacrifice in order to keep your race, to remove

the curse on your own son’s head? What would you give in return to
cage Jaden for all eternity?”

No, the question should be, what would Panahasi be willing to

lose. He thought of Casey and Drake, the two men who were the very
beat to his heart. But he also thought about the lives of the vampires,
how they had their own mates, their own families. There were
thousands of them, trying to create a happy home, make a living, and
wanting nothing more than to be left the hell alone. Was he willing to
deny them just to be with his mates? Yes, he was, but he knew in his
heart that he wouldn’t be that selfish. He was Life. How could he
sentence so many to death?

He had already lost the fight with Jaden and the man was running

free somewhere. But Panahasi knew he couldn’t go after the man. The
primal source wouldn’t let him free until Panahasi made a selfish
decision.

But he couldn’t be selfish. Not when so many lives lay in the

balance.

Reaching out to his mates, Panahasi filled them with all the love

he held in his heart for them before lifting his head, bracing his
shoulders, and steeling his spine. “I give you my life.”

“Agreed.”

Ceri 103

Chapter Eleven

“Get off of me,” Maverick said with a deep snarl as he sat on the

side of the bed. He had shifted and healed, but his right arm still felt
stiff and it brought him a shooting pain whenever he lifted it too high.
The metal had shattered bone, making it all the more difficult to heal.

But he couldn’t stick around. He had Xavier to find. He had

already called in every favor owed to him and found out that it had
been Kenyon who sent the elf in to kidnap Xavier. Maverick was
going to peel skin from bone when he got his hands on that human.

Ruttford and Adam were already losing their minds. They had

been out searching for him since he was taken. Xavier’s fathers hadn’t
given up finding him, neither had Maverick. He was going to get his
grandson back. His dreams hadn’t revealed that his grandson would
be taken.

“How am I going to take you to the demon realm if I don’t touch

you?” the elf that Zeus had summoned asked in exasperation. “I know
you are one pissed-off wolf right now, but I do need to at least grab
the zipper on your jacket.”

Pushing to his feet, Maverick held back a grunt of pain. He wasn’t

trying to be a prick to the elf, but he didn’t like to hurt and he sure
didn’t like someone he loved being taken from him. Keegan grabbed
his upper arm and shimmered them into the demon realm.

Maverick stood there, trying to get his bearings as Keegan

shimmered away. The first place he needed to look for Kenyon was
the Melting Pot. He had been told that the human liked to frequent the
place. Maverick still needed to ask the demon leader why he had

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allowed the bastard to roam free, but that was if he found the guy. No
one had seen Panahasi in a week. Even his mates were worried.

“Are you Maverick, alpha of the timber wolves?”
Why did he have a feeling he was going to regret answering that

question? Glancing over his shoulder, Maverick saw someone who
matched him in height, which was a very rare thing for him. He
turned around, sizing the guy up. He saw two men standing behind
the guy, watching Maverick closely as the scent of timber wolf
invaded his lungs. The guy screamed alpha, but so did Maverick’s
scent. He wasn’t easily intimidated and he wasn’t going to start with
this guy. “Who wants to know?”

But he was cautious.
Maverick had seconds to brace himself before the man standing in

front of him attacked, his well-muscled body slamming into him. He
used the backward momentum to roll both of them, giving him a
chance to get back on his feet. But his reprieve didn’t last long.
Whoever this guy was seemed to have a hard-on for Maverick. He got
right back up, his massive form barreling forward once again.
Grabbing him around the waist, Maverick drove them both into the
building, slamming the guy’s head against the bricks.

Maverick took one to the kidney before he slammed one fist into

the guy’s jaw, and then another. He moved with incredible speed,
bringing his elbow down between the man’s shoulder blades, ignoring
the searing pain from his injured arm.

Maverick got in another shot to his gut, and then the guy pivoted

on his heel, connecting his fist to the side of Maverick’s head. The
guy was good, but Maverick hadn’t gotten his ass handed to him in
over three hundred years, and he wasn’t going to have it handed to
him now.

Entwining his fingers together, Maverick created one large fist

with both his hands and brought it down on the man’s neck. He then
grabbed the guy by his jacket and threw him out into the street.

Ceri 105

The guy rolled, and then bounced right back up, charging him.

Who was this guy and what beef did he have with Maverick? He was
wasting Maverick’s time—time he needed to find his grandson.
Running to meet the guy, two large bodies clashed, sending them both
sprawling.

The guy began to shift, his timber wolf emerging. Maverick stood

there, momentarily stunned by the sheer size of the stranger’s wolf. It
just wasn’t possible that the wolf standing in front of him matched
Maverick’s timber wolf size. Maverick was the biggest timber wolf
ever born.

“Who the hell are you?” Maverick asked, his body aching from

the numerous blows he’d taken. His slipped his leather off. If the guy
wanted to attack, then Maverick would dance with the bastard, but he
didn’t want to ruin his leather. It was a gift from Cecil.

The wolf just stood there, snapping and growling.
“You killed his best friend,” one of the men with the stranger said.

“Now you will pay.”

Okay, Maverick had killed quite a few foes over the centuries.

“You’ll have to be a little more specific.”

He kicked his boots off next. It didn’t matter to him if he had to

strip naked right here on the streets. He was going to take on the
monster standing in front of him and tear the son of a bitch to pieces.
But he wanted answers first.

“Cyrus Caro, Sebastian Brac’s best friend. Deny it all you want,

scumbag, but Sebastian knows the truth.”

Maverick’s head swiveled around as he stared at the large timber

wolf. His mind was trying to put things together, to make sense of
what the guy was saying, but…“What did you say his last name is?”

“Caro.”
“No, his.” Maverick pointed at the wolf who was slowly

advancing, his light-grey eyes filled with murder. “What is his last
name?”

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“Brac.” The man’s tone was hostile. “What difference does that

make?”

He turned toward the wolf again. Cousin? Uncle? Nephew? He

wasn’t sure. His father only had one brother and Maverick knew who
Horace was—Sloane’s father. He also knew that Sloane was his only
cousin. “My name is Maverick Brac. My father’s name is Silas. How
are you related to me?” he asked the wolf.

“Silas is your father?” the guy standing on the sidewalk asked, his

eyes slightly larger as Maverick gazed at him intensely.

“Was,” Maverick answered as his eyes kept flickering back to the

beast in front of him. “And I don’t know who lied to you, but I have
never met anyone named Cyrus Caro.”

“Marino Malone gave Sebastian your name.” The guy moved

closer, his menacing steps not impressing Maverick. “Why would he
lie to us?”

“What are you, a moron?” Maverick asked, sliding his claws free

when he saw Sebastian getting closer. Brother or no brother,
Maverick wasn’t letting anyone attack him. “Ask anyone on these
streets about Marino Malone. He’s as bad as a bad seed gets. I doubt
even his own mother wanted to claim him as her son.” Maverick
grabbed his jacket and boots, turning his back to the advancing wolf.
“I have a grandson to find and I don’t have time for this bullshit. Go
see my beta in Brac Village and plead your case with him.”

A deep chuckle sounded from the man who had been talking to

Maverick. “The sign outside your little town states that you live in
Brat Village.”

He was going to kill whoever had changed the town name on the

sign.

“I assumed we were going to meet up with some twink.” The guy

chuckled even deeper.

“Do I look like a twink to you?” Maverick walked inside the

Melting Pot, leaving the men outside. He jammed his feet into his
boots and then slid his jacket on. Finding out he had a brother was

Ceri 107

mind blowing, but right now, he didn’t have time to figure all the shit
out. He had lived this long without the guy.

“Ah, Maverick Brac.” The owner of the Melting Pot approached.

“Are you here to dine with us tonight?”

“I’m looking for Kenyon.”
Malcor grunted. “Figures. That man is nothing but trouble. He’s in

the back booth. But do me a favor and take him out back before you
decide to tear this place apart. I’ve had to do too many repairs lately
now that Panahasi has gone missing. It’s like the Wild West out
there.”

Maverick stilled. He knew that Panahasi hadn’t been seen in a few

days, but he didn’t know the man was assumed MIA. He figured the
guy was taking a much-needed break. Pushing that concern aside, he
walked to the back, laying eyes on the bastard who had orchestrated
his grandson’s kidnapping. Without saying a word, Maverick grabbed
the man out of the booth and hauled him by his collar toward the back
door. Kenyon fought like a madman, but Maverick was done playing
games.

He slammed the guy into the building, wrapping his hand around

the man’s throat, placing a lethal claw at the man’s stomach. “Where
is my grandson?”

“Gone,” Kenyon said without an ounce of remorse. His blue eyes

held nothing but pride and hatefulness as he stared Maverick right in
his eyes. “I sold him and those files that were stolen from the doctor’s
office. I don’t think he is even in the country any longer. You savages
will be exposed. The whole world will soon find out you
abominations exist and every last creature will be slaughtered!”

Maverick threw his head back and howled as he pulled Kenyon

away from the building and then with superhuman force, knocked him
back into the bricks. The sound was audible as air whooshed out of
Kenyon’s lungs. “Who did you sell my grandson to? Who?” He
slammed the man’s head back so hard that Maverick scented blood.
“Who?” He did it again.

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“Ask Marino!”
All evil cowards turned to pussies when faced with death. Kenyon

was no different. For all the shit he had done and all the smack he had
talked, the human stood there in front of Maverick, his eyes wild.
They were filled with a knowledge that he wasn’t going to walk away
from this alive.

And he would be right.
The rage that Maverick had kept contained until now unleashed

itself as he drove Kenyon into the wall over and over. The man turned
into a rag doll in Maverick’s grasp, but he continued to use the man as
a battering ram, as all the fear, all that hate he felt for those who had a
hand in taking his grandson bled out onto this human.

When Kenyon slumped to the ground, his open eyes unseeing,

Maverick turned to see Sebastian and his men standing at the end of
the alley, watching him. Maverick’s chest was heaving, his claws
extended as he growled at them before turning on his heel and
walking away.

* * * *

Someone kidnapped Xavier. Keep your eyes and ears open. Big

Bad Wolf tells me that M&M had a hand in it.

Cecil waited for the reply when he was finished typing.

Yasuko and Minsheng are going crazy. They swear Christian is

dead. Virgil in coma-like state. Nathaniel is trying to invoke the deep
sleep because he says Rhys is dead. They all say that the bonds with
their mates have been severed. I don’t know what is going on. Dante’s
coven was burned to the ground, Dante and vampires slaughtered.
Someone is impersonating other people.

Ceri 109

Cecil turned away from the laptop, tapping his chin. Maverick had

told him that Marino Malone had something to do with Xavier’s
kidnapping, and he was determined to use the network to find his
grandson. He had used the website Nero had set up for all mates to
login to when they needed help. He kept up with alerts on his cell
phone. He’d just finished talking with Shelby when a message popped
up from Drake, Panahasi’s mate.

Top Dog gone missing. Haven’t heard from him in a week.

Worried sick. Keep me informed of everything going on. Want my Top
Dog back. Demon realm a zoo right now with Top Dog missing.
Demon Warriors working around the clock to keep order.

Xavier was missing. Panahasi was missing. Christian and his

brothers were presumed dead. Dante’s coven had been wiped out.
Someone was impersonating others. What was going on? Maverick
had told him that a war was coming, but damn. Whoever was behind
all of this had hit hard and fast.

Cecil planned on keeping his word and not leaving the house, but

that didn’t mean he couldn’t play an active role in finding Xavier and
Panahasi. All mates were keeping their ear to the ground. All mates
were also active on the website. Jasper, Zeus’s mate, had reported that
the Hell Hounds were being spotted left and right. Even Theo,
Nazaryth’s mate, reported that the Winged Beasts were hitting the
streets hard, trying to keep the Hell Hounds from taking over Pride
Pack Valley.

Cecil just wished the Wood elves had modern technology so he

could find out if anything was going on over in their village. He knew
Iam was now the leader and would help if the man asked.

Maybe he could get the guy a cell phone. They had to see that

keeping in touch was imperative right now. He’d suggest that to Ahm,
but until then, he kept his laptop open and prayed things didn’t get
any worse than they already were. Grabbing his cell, Cecil tried to

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call Maverick. With all the chaos breaking out everywhere, he wanted
to make sure his Big Bad Wolf was okay.

When the call dumped into voice mail, Cecil’s heart began to

hammer in his chest. If anything had happened to Maverick, he knew
he wouldn’t survive. The man was every single breath Cecil took. He
felt the tears prickle his eyes, as he said a silent prayer that Maverick
was brought back to him, before turning back to his laptop and
alerting everyone on the website that he couldn’t get in touch with his
mate.

* * * *

Dr. Nicholas Sheehan walked into Virgil’s bedroom, Melonee on

his heels. He wasn’t sure what was going on with Ceri’s mate, but the
man had been unresponsive for over a week. It was almost like the
vampire was in a coma. He couldn’t even get the man to feed, and
that wasn’t a good thing considering how quickly the unborn child
was growing. Virgil now looked like he was in his third trimester.

He just simply didn’t understand what was going on. How could a

child grow that fast in the womb, and it had only been weeks, not
months?

He had brought Melonee along with him to give her something to

do. Her mates were out searching for Xavier, along with Maverick.
They hadn’t wanted Melonee out there searching, putting herself in
danger, so Nicholas had made her his temporary assistant.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” she asked as she glanced at

Virgil. “I’ve never heard of anyone using fey blood to heal a vampire
before, at least, not like this.” She waved a hand at the banana bag
Nicholas had set up for Virgil.

He had taken some of the blood he kept on hand on at the Den and

a donation from Melonee, infusing her blood into the bag. He hadn’t
taken much, but he was hoping the enriched fey blood would be like a

Ceri 111

booster for Virgil, giving him and the babe added nutrients they both
desperately needed.

At this point, he was willing to try anything. He was determined

to save both vampire and child. “I’m not sure, Melonee, but we have
to try.”

Her eyes gazed over Virgil’s small form, her jaw set in

determination. Nicholas couldn’t even begin to imagine the hell she
was going through but admired the strength she was exhibiting. Her
head bobbed in a nod. “Whatever it takes, we will save both of them.”

Nicholas knew about her debt to Ceri. But he had a feeling this

was about more than just trying to pay the man back for saving her
brother-in-law, Fire, from the bookies. There were two lives at stake
here and Nicholas and Melonee were determined to find a way to save
them both.

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Chapter Twelve

Ceri wasn’t sure what had happened. He had felt like he was

dying, like a fist had been wrapping its anger around his heart,
squeezing hard. Never before had he felt such pain. And that was
saying a lot considering how he lived. Panahasi had been standing in
front of him, the two arguing, Ceri ready to kill the man.

And now he was in the room alone, lying flat on his back, staring

up at the vaulted ceiling.

He could feel something different about him but couldn’t quite put

a finger on it. A niggle began to form in the back of his mind, telling
him to go check on Virgil. But Ceri felt like he was waiting on
something. He just wasn’t sure what that something was. He was
almost afraid to move for fear of that pain returning.

“You are free of your curse. A great sacrifice has been given.”
Ceri knew that voice, but when he glanced around, he didn’t see

the keeper anywhere. Fear seized him as the creature’s words sank in.
What sacrifice? He hadn’t given anything.

Virgil.
The baby.
Ceri rolled to his feet, his head swimming as he staggered a bit.

What sacrifice had he given?

Panahasi. The word whispered through his mind, as if the keeper

were telling him a secret. Had Ceri offered the demon leader up at the
cost of Panahasi’s life?

Ceri needed answers and there was only one place to find them.

He moved swiftly, heading deep into the demon realm. As soon as his
molecules reformed, he glanced around at the utter chaos. His eyes

Ceri 113

widened at the large creature moving across the street. The thing had
to be at least twelve feet tall and the size of twenty men combined.

“You shouldn’t be out here,” someone said from the doorway of a

brick building. “Crypt is on the troll for victims. If he gets his hands
on you, it’s over.”

Ceri glanced at the decoratively engraved sign that declared this

place Malcor’s Melting Pot. “Where is Panahasi?”

The man shrugged. “No one has seen him. It’s like he just

disappeared into thin air. Now that he isn’t here to protect the city,
every bad guy who had feared the man is surfacing. You better take
cover.”

Ceri watched the stranger slip back into the building, sealing the

door closed. Turning back around, Ceri took off to the Manor. He
wasn’t sure what was going on, but he needed to check on his mate.
The rest of the world was just going to have to fall apart.

As soon as Ceri appeared, he noticed that Christian’s place, too,

was in chaos. Just what in the hell was going on? He moved beyond
the large black door that sealed the downstairs from invaders, moving
toward Virgil’s room. The glass-and-gold-trim walls were nothing
more than a blur before he stopped outside his mate’s bedroom door.

Taking in a deep breath and praying that his curse was actually

lifted, Ceri pushed the door open and was stunned to see how frail
Virgil looked. He lay there in bed, wrapped up tight in a sheet,
looking lifeless. The doctor was there, and so was Melonee.

“What is going on?” he asked as he moved to the bed, gazing

down at his mate. “What is wrong with him?”

“You, Rhys, and Christian couldn’t be contacted. The other mates

swore the prince and his twin brothers were dead,” the doctor
answered as he shook his head. “Virgil went into a coma right around
the time that Yasuko and Minsheng went a little crazy.”

But Ceri hadn’t died. He couldn’t remember where he’d been after

Panahasi had shown up, but he hadn’t died.

Had he?

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“We’ve been supplying him with blood. I had Melonee add some

of her fey blood and it seems to help keep him and the baby sustained.
I’m at a loss of what to do.”

Sitting on the bed, Ceri took a deep breath, waiting for the craving

to slam into him. His entire body went rigid, steeling himself for what
he knew would come.

But nothing happened. Ceri waited, praying that the keeper was

right and that his curse was lifted, gone for good. His tongue ran over
his fangs, but they were at normal length. Although he was worried
for Virgil and the babe, his heart was beating normally, not raggedly
like when he was about to feed and devour.

Reaching out, Ceri brushed aside Virgil’s long raven-black hair,

his fingers breezing across the man’s cool skin. Instead of wanting to
eat his mate, Ceri had another strange, foreign urge. He wanted to curl
around Virgil and pull the man into his arms, holding him close for
the rest of eternity.

“Do you know why the babe is growing so rapidly?” the doctor

asked.

“The keeper seems to think that since I drank so many potions

over a long period of time that is why the baby is developing so
quickly.”

“Can you get into his head?” the doctor asked. “Can you find him

and bring him back? If you can’t, I’m afraid he’s going to remain like
this.”

Leaning forward, Ceri placed a kiss on his mate’s forehead before

entering Virgil’s mind.

* * * *

“Mi corazon, why are you huddled here in the dark corner of your

mind?”

Virgil didn’t trust that voice. He had felt Ceri die. Felt it to his

core. This was just another trick his mind was playing on him to stop

Ceri 115

him from going completely insane with grief. “Because you’re not
really here.” Virgil pulled his legs in tighter. “Go away. Stop torturing
me.”

The figment gave a low, soft chuckle, making Virgil’s heart hurt

for what he no longer had. “I am very real, innocent one.”

“No,” Virgil said, refusing to believe the lie. “Just leave me in

peace.” He had already cried until no more tears would come. Virgil
didn’t think he could cry any more. But he found his cheeks becoming
wet as his body wracked with pain. He wanted Ceri, his mate, the man
he hadn’t even gotten a chance to know. And now he was all alone.

A warm, solid hand touched his face, making him look up into

sapphire-blue eyes. “You must come back to me, Virgil. You must
come out of this trance you’ve put your physical body in. The doctor
said it isn’t healthy for you or our child. It’s killing him.”

If Virgil was going insane, then he was glad it was with the

memory of Ceri. He never wanted to be apart from the man again. “I
don’t want to go back to the real world. I want to stay here with you.
Please don’t leave me.” Virgil reached out and clung to the man,
holding on so tightly that he was barely able to breathe.

A strong hand soothed down his back, making Virgil cry even

harder. “I am never leaving your side, sweet one. You are now stuck
with me.”

“How?” Virgil asked. “The craving.”
“Is no more.”
Now Virgil really knew he was dreaming all this up. A curse

didn’t just magically disappear, did it? Maybe he was just hoping so
hard that his brain was giving him what he wanted, placating his
manic mind.

“Come, Virgil. Leave this place and come back to me.”
Taking Ceri’s hand, Virgil allowed his mate to lead him to the

fringes before he paused. “I don’t want to go back there.”

“Do you trust me?”

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Virgil nodded as he bit his bottom lip. “With everything in me,

but this isn’t real.”

“Then let me prove to you that this is very real.” Ceri tugged on

his hand once more and this time Virgil stepped back into reality. His
eyes fluttered open, staring up at the doctor who was flashing a
penlight at his pupils.

“Are you with me, Virgil?” the doctor asked. “Do you understand

what I’m saying to you?”

The loss of his mate hit Virgil as he came fully back. Why had he

allowed the figment to trick him? He had been safe from the world in
his mind. He had been content in the quietness, ready to live out the
rest of his miserable life there.

“He’s not responding,” the doctor said. “We have to get him back

or you’ll lose the baby. The strain is taking a toll on the fetus. Virgil
has to feed.”

Virgil started to slip back into his mind, hoping—no, praying that

Ceri came to him once more.

“I’m losing him,” the doctor said in a frantic tone. “Virgil!”
“I said you were stuck with me.”
Virgil’s eyes snapped open when he heard Ceri’s voice. He turned

his head, afraid he was just hearing things when he saw his mate’s
face. Ceri moved closer, placing his hand on Virgil’s belly. “You
need to feed, mi corazon. Our babe is growing quickly and requires a
hearty diet.”

“He would do a little better if you let me put an IV in him,” the

doctor argued.

“There is no need,” Ceri answered, his tone telling all that he

wasn’t going to budge on the matter. “My mate will get all his
nourishment from me.”

“But we don’t know if that is safe,” the doctor retorted. “You

yourself said the keeper isn’t sure what the baby will be since you
drank all those different concoctions over such a long period of time.
I’m not even sure your blood is safe for your mate to consume.”

Ceri 117

Ceri pulled Virgil from the table, enveloping him in a wall of pure

muscle and warm flesh. He had to fight not to cry again. Only this
time it would be tears of joy that Ceri wasn’t dead, that he was here,
holding Virgil. “Do you know what it was like to have to watch my
mate from a distance, to know he was getting his sustenance from a
source other than me? I can finally touch him, hold him, and I’ll be
damned if someone else will feed him!”

“Oh, get over yourself.” The doctor marched around the table, his

features set in stone. “I’ve had to deal with men more stubborn and a
lot scarier than you. Paranormal creatures don’t frighten me. Men
acting like idiots and endangering their mates is what scares me. Just
because you have fangs and are one badass vampire doesn’t mean I’ll
back down. Now put Virgil back on the bed before you force me to
put my Doc Marten right between your butt cheeks!”

Virgil glanced up at Ceri and he could tell the man had no idea

how to take Dr. Sheehan. Virgil sure didn’t. He was scared the man
would go through with his threat if Ceri tried to leave. Virgil just
wasn’t sure who he was scared for. “Put me down,” he said as he
looked over at the doctor. “I think he means business.”

“Fine,” Ceri spat as he lowered Virgil. “You can place the needle

in his arm. But I want you to check my blood. If nothing is wrong
with it, then I never want to have this conversation again.”

“I swear to god, alpha stubbornness is going to be our downfall

around here.” Dr. Sheehan pulled a long pole over to Virgil, placed a
blood bag on the hook, and then turned toward Virgil. He winced
when the doctor wrapped a band made of rubber around his arm,
cleaned his skin with a small cleansing towel, and then shoved the
needle right into his arm.

Fuck, that hurt!
Ceri growled at the doctor. The doctor ignored Virgil’s mate. He

wasn’t sure what to make of the two and he knew Ceri was trying to
figure the human out. His mate just stood there, watching everything
the doctor did, but didn’t say another word.

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“It’s going to take a while for that bag to empty. I’m going to

leave you two alone. Don’t even think about removing that needle.”
The doctor gave Ceri the stink eye before leaving the room.

“He is a very strange human.” Ceri scratched at his chin. “I don’t

know whether to like him or kill him.”

Turning toward the man who held his heart, Virgil gazed into

Ceri’s sapphire-blue eyes. “How is the curse gone?”

A veil covered Ceri’s eyes as he turned away. Virgil reached out

and caressed Ceri’s arm, taking pleasure in the simple fact that he
could touch the man. He wasn’t feeling all that well, his stomach
cramping a bit, but Virgil needed the closeness, craved it like he
craved air. “You don’t have to tell me.”

Ceri rested his hand on the one Virgil had placed on his arm. “I’m

not used to being this close to anyone. I’ve lived my life in the
shadows since coming out of my deep sleep, Virgil. It’s a strange
sensation to be able to touch you without…”

The man didn’t have to finish the sentence. He knew what Ceri

had been about to say. The ancient vampire no longer needed potions
to be with Virgil. He no longer wanted to eat him either. Now that
they could be together, the moment was awkward. Virgil didn’t really
know Ceri, not personally. He just knew the man was his mate and
fucked like a dream. He also knew that Ceri had been battling the
urge to take a bite out of Virgil.

So now what? He could no more see Ceri sitting in a recliner in

front of the television than he could see him on the floor playing
with a toddler. Ceri was a strong warrior. The man was going to
want to do warrior things, not get stuck by Virgil’s side, burping a
baby.

“And you would be wrong,” Ceri said in a low tone. “I’ve seen

the ugly side life has to offer. I used to scoff at my twin for
wanting something as mundane as a family. But now that I have
that in the palm on my hand, I can see nothing else.”

Ceri 119

“Stop peeking into my mind,” Virgil said a little testily. He

wasn’t sure why he was being cranky, but he knew he wished the
cramps in his belly would subside.

Ceri shook his head, gazing at Virgil strangely. “I didn’t. Your

thoughts just floated through my head.”

“That shouldn’t happen,” Virgil said. “I’ve never heard of

anything like that happening before.” He started to say something
else, but a severe cramp doubled him over, making him curl into a
ball as he cried out. Never in his life had he felt pain like this.
Virgil was ready to beg the gods, anyone, to relieve the all-
consuming agony racking his body.

“I think I need the doctor.”

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Chapter Thirteen

Ceri shot out the door, grabbing the doctor, who was standing

there talking with Melonee, by his arm before slinging him back
into the room. “Fix him!”

Dr. Sheehan began to move toward the bed. “Let me get my

wrench.”

“He’s in labor.” Melonee stood there with wide eyes. “The

baby is coming.”

Ceri had battled warlocks in the Great War. He’d survived two

thousand years of deep sleep. He prowled the streets, ridding the
world of vermin who preyed on the innocent. Ceri had even lived
with a flesh-eating curse that challenged his humanity and he had
won.

But watching his mate scream in pain scared the shit out of

him.

“I need to get him back to the operating room at the Den.” The

doctor turned to Ceri, his face a mask of fear and determination.
“Something is terribly wrong.”

“Ahm!” Melonee shouted. Seconds later, the Shadow elf

appeared, glancing around and taking the scene in. His eyes landed
on Virgil.

“What do you need me to do?” he asked without hesitation.
“Get us back to the Den, preferably my operating room.” The

doctor grabbed the bag of blood that had been feeding Virgil before
Ahm shimmered them all into the very room Dr. Sheehan had
specified. The man began to work quickly as Ceri laid his mate
down on table.

Ceri 121

“Out of my way, everyone!” Dr. Sheehan shouted.
Ceri took a step back, feeling utterly helpless. He watched the

doctor work at a fast and steady pace. Melonee jumped in, assisting
the man with whatever order he barked out. Ceri and Ahm just
stood there, watching.

It was on the tip of his tongue to threaten the doctor if Virgil or

the baby died, but he knew it was a foolish move to threaten the
man working hard to save both lives.

But he could think it.
“And Bryce wants to have another child,” Ahm said with a

snort. “No thanks.”

Ceri tore his eyes away from his mate as Virgil stopped

screaming, his eyes fluttering closed. “Have you found the person
responsible for everything that has been happening?”

“We have it nailed down to a chameleon-shifter that Marino

talked into doing all his dirty work. His name is Kell. That’s as
much as the Ultionem could find out.”

Chameleon-shifter. That was who had visited Virgil, pretending

to be Ceri when he revoked the claim. It hadn’t worked since it
wasn’t Ceri himself who spoke the words. But he wanted to get his
hands on the creature. “Where is he?”

“We tracked him as far as the demon realm, but lost him.”
Ceri turned back around, watching closely as the doctor worked

diligently. He stood there for what felt like forever, beginning to
think that things were turning for the worse when he heard a high,
squealing cry.

“Even the mightiest of us fall when our children are born.”

Ahm clapped Ceri on the shoulder. “Congratulations.”

Ceri clenched his jaw and fought hard against the lump forming

in his throat. He would cut off his hands before he allowed one
single tear to fall in front of these people. But even as the words
formed in his mind, Ceri began to step closer. He wasn’t sure what
he was going to find. The baby had grown at an alarming rate,

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being born in weeks instead of months. What if the child was
malformed, or carried the curse? Even though Ceri was free of the
cravings, his child had been conceived when it still had him in its
grip.

“Oh…my,” the doctor said, his back to Ceri as his arms

continually moved. Ceri wasn’t sure if that was a good sign or not.

“What, what is it?” he asked, almost afraid of hearing what the

doctor had to say.

Glancing over his shoulder, Dr. Sheehan grinned widely. “You

have twins. One must have been hiding behind the other when I
performed the ultrasound on Virgil.”

Twins. Ceri felt as if he were going to pass out. An

overwhelming sense of protectiveness and pure pride enveloped
him as he asked, “Boys or girls?”

“One of each.” There was delight in the doctor’s tone when he

spoke, a happy lilt that made Ceri feel a bit better.

“What about Virgil?”
The doctor shrugged. “As far as I know, he doesn’t have a

twin.”

Ceri was getting really agitated with the doctor’s strange sense

of humor. “My mate,” he said with a growl. “How is he?”

The doctor didn’t answer, just kept right on working. Ceri

stepped next to the man, seeing the gaunt look on Virgil’s face.
Only vampires who were starving or near death had that boney,
pallid appearance. He didn’t need to hear the answer.

Virgil was dying.
“I’m trying,” the doctor said with grim determination. “But he’s

bleeding faster than I can stop it.”

Without thinking, Ceri bit into his wrist, pressing the bloody

flesh against Virgil’s mouth.

“But we don’t know—”

Ceri 123

“He is dying! At this point, I do not care what I have to do to

save him.” Ceri used his other hand to pull at Virgil’s chin,
opening his mate’s mouth.

“You’d be better off dripping that in here.” The doctor was

clamping some organ, his mate’s belly wide open. Ceri moved his
wrist to Virgil’s open wound, letting his blood drip directly into his
mate’s body. This was a vision he could have gone the rest of
eternity without seeing.

“Give as much as you can,” the doctor said, “while I work on

stopping the bleeding on my end.”

Ceri reached out to his brothers, showing them in his mind

what was happening, conveying to them with urgency that Virgil
might not survive. He didn’t like the idea of anyone else feeding
his mate, but to hell with his pride. Virgil’s life was at stake.

Rhys and Christian were there in a matter of minutes, both

opening a vein to feed Virgil as Ceri began to whisper words he
had seen in one of the keeper’s scrolls. He had never dealt with
spells or incantations before, but he was willing to try anything.

“The bleeding is slowing,” Dr. Sheehan informed him. “But

he’s not out of the woods yet. The babies did some damage with
their abnormal growth.”

Licking his wrist closed, the brothers, along with Ahm,

watched Dr. Sheehan close Virgil. He looked so weak lying there.
Ceri wanted to pick the man up and hold him. He had even tried
finding Virgil in his mind, but the medications that the doctor had
given his mate made everything he saw foggy and distorted.

Melonee wheeled over a small cart with a clear, plastic bed on

top. Ceri moved back from the table where the doctor was stitching
Virgil to see two small babes swaddled and lying close to one
another. One was wearing a blue blanket, the other pink.

“Say hi to your son and daughter,” Melonee said. “Maybe

getting to know them will help you while Virgil heals.” She leaned

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in closer. “He’ll be fine. Fate wouldn’t put you two through hell
and then take Virgil from you.”

Ceri raised his eyes, staring at the fey woman. “Your debt is

paid.”

“I didn’t help to repay my debt. I helped because it was the

right thing to do.” She lifted the blue swaddle from the bed.
“Here.”

Ceri stared at the bundle. “What am I supposed to do with

him?”

Rhys grinned as he pulled Ceri’s arms up and then said, “Just

make sure you don’t let his head bobble around.”

The instant his son touched his arms, Ceri felt the darkness

inside of him shatter into a thousand pieces. He ran a knuckle down
the boy’s cherub cheek, vowing to himself that he would protect
his family at any cost.

Christian took Ceri’s son as Melonee handed him his daughter.

His heart tripled in size as he stared into her sapphire-blue eyes.
She was the most gorgeous vampiress he had ever seen. He was
terrified he was going to drop her. The only thing this moment
needed to make it perfect was for Virgil to be awake and sharing it
with him.

He glanced over to where the man slept, saying a silent prayer

that his mate pulled through.

* * * *

Virgil’s eyes slowly opened. It took a moment to get his

bearings. His head was a bit groggy but he made out that he was in
his bedroom. The last thing he remembered was the intense pain in
his abdomen. Virgil reached down to smooth his hand over his
rounded belly, only to find it flat and bandaged.

His heart skidded to a halt when he realized that he was no

longer pregnant. Virgil was terrified to get up and find out what

Ceri 125

had happened. He remembered the doctor saying there was
something terribly wrong with him.

Had he lost the babe?
It felt as if his heart were being pulled out of his chest until he

turned his head. Virgil had to blink twice as he stared at Ceri lying
on his side in the bed with him, fast asleep.

And he had two bundles tucked close to his body. Virgil could

feel a hard lump constrict in his throat as he reached over, pulled
the blue blanket down, and saw a tiny face. He then reached over to
the pink blanket and did the same.

Two babies?
Ceri’s eyes flew open as he bared his fangs until he saw that it

was Virgil who was touching the infants. The baby in the blue
blanket turned his head, his lips seeking out Virgil’s finger. He
gave it to him. Tiny teeth bit into his finger as the baby began to
suckle.

A strong, warm hand reached over and cupped Virgil’s face.

“How do you feel?”

Virgil moved closer, giving the baby in the pink blanket his

other finger. “I don’t think I’ll be running a marathon, but I don’t
feel like death warmed over anymore.”

Ceri’s thumb brushed over his cheek as Virgil glanced down at

the infants. “Twins?”

“It does run in the family,” Ceri said. “We have a son and a

daughter.”

“I kind of figured that from the blue and pink blankets.” His

heart beat a bit faster when he saw that his daughter had Ceri’s
eyes. His son’s eyes were closed, so Virgil couldn’t see them.

“What do we call them?” he asked.
“I’ve been thinking about that,” Ceri admitted. “How does

Nicolina Luciana Espelimbergo and Nevarez Lucio Espelimbergo
sound to you?”

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Virgil glanced down at his son and daughter, mulling the names

over in his head. “That’s quite a mouthful considering my name is
simply Virgil Green.”

His eyes snapped up when Ceri gave a booming laugh. The

sound was deep and rich, making his mate look like a totally
different person as the smile transformed his face into something
majestic. “Your name is Virgil Espelimbergo and we could simply
call them Jessica and Jim if you’d like.”

Virgil shook his head. “No, I like Nicolina and Navarez. It kind

of fits them.”

Someone knocked and Ceri’s eyelids dropped to slits, the

sapphire-blue irises slowly moving over to the door. Now that was
the look Virgil was used to seeing—dark and deadly. His mate
moved from the bed, his walk predatory. His entire frame filled the
door when he answered it.

Virgil scooted even closer to the babies until he saw that it was

Dr. Sheehan who had been knocking at the door. With all the
craziness going on, Virgil wasn’t taking any chances.

“I brought a wrench with me this time,” the doctor said as he

smiled up at Ceri. Didn’t the guy have any sense of self-
preservation? Virgil couldn’t understand how the doctor seemed
unfazed by Ceri, when everyone else wet themselves around the
fierce vampire. “I need to check on my patients.”

Virgil didn’t get what the man meant by having a wrench. He

didn’t even bother asking either. It was hard enough for him to
keep his eyes open, let alone have a conversation with the doctor
by the time the human was done examining all three of them.

He watched the doctor talk quietly with Ceri before he left the

room. Striding back toward the bed, Ceri crawled in, pulling both
babes toward him as Virgil closed his eyes. He could tell that
anyone who came near their son and daughter was going to have to
get through Ceri first. The man might have mellowed just a hair,
but the glint of ancient vampire was still there, alive and breathing

Ceri 127

and ready to be unleashed on anyone who looked the wrong way at
their children.

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Lynn Hagen

Chapter Fourteen

Maverick watched as Sebastian talked with his men. He didn’t

trust the guy. For all he knew, the timber wolf could have been the
one who orchestrated Xavier’s kidnapping and was sticking close
by to throw him off his grandson’s trail.

He trusted no one right now. There were some similarities, but

not enough to convince Maverick that Sebastian was his brother.
All he knew was that he was wasting time. He needed to find
Marino and get some answers. Maverick’s worst fear was that he
would never see his grandson again, but he was hitting one dead
end after another.

Turning away from the three men, Maverick pressed his cell

phone to his ear when it rang. “What did you find?”

“A lot,” Nero answered. “According to the DMV, the picture

they have on file for his driver’s license is the same guy you
snapped a picture of and sent to me on your phone. He is definitely
Sebastian Brac. Yes, he is. But that doesn’t tell you if he is a good
or bad guy. No, it doesn’t. His credit score is good, his finances
aren’t an issue. The guy is loaded. He’s squeaky clean, Ricky.”

“No criminal records? What about his personal life?” Maverick

glanced over his shoulder to see Sebastian staring at him. He didn’t
give two shits if the guy heard his conversation. He wanted to
know who this man was that was willing to stick his neck out to
help Maverick. Not many men did that for a total stranger and he
wanted to make sure he wasn’t being played.

“Okay, now that I have the socially acceptable aspects out of

the way, let’s talk turkey. The guy runs the Cyrus pack out of

Ceri 129

Virginia. From what I could pull together, he lost his best friend to
a murder that has yet to be solved. Micah has a buddy there and he
talked with the guy. His friend says you can’t get anyone more
fierce or loyal than Sebastian. But that’s just hearsay. Yes, it is.”

“Thanks, Nero. I owe you one. Call me if you find out anything

else.”

“Will do, Ricky. And you can pay me back by finding Xavier. I

miss the little guy.”

So did Maverick. “I’m doing everything possible, Nero. How’s

Cecil doing?”

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot. He’s going ballistic because he can’t

get a hold of you. He sent word over the mates’ website that you
were missing. Yes, he did.” Nero chuckled. “I think you need to
call him.”

Shit. Maverick had been so busy with Kenyon, and then

Sebastian, that he’d totally forgotten to call his mate. “Gotta go.”
He hung up and dialed Cecil, but his mate didn’t answer. Maverick
left a quick voice mail that he was fine and still tracking down
leads.

“So, how did I check out?” Sebastian asked, letting Maverick

know that he had heard the entire conversation.

“A little too clean in my opinion.” He shoved the phone in his

pocket. “Have a nice life.” Walking away, Maverick told himself
that he didn’t need any new friends right now—especially a brother
he hadn’t even known he had. Until Xavier was back under his
roof, everyone was under scrutiny.

“Ditto.” Sebastian turned, heading in the opposite direction

with his men. Maverick made it out of the demon realm, gazing
around the city and wondering how he was going to find Marino
Malone. If it took until his last breath, he was going to get Xavier
back. And Marino Malone was going to die for going anywhere
near his grandson.

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* * * *

Ceri quietly closed the bedroom door before moving through

Neverlight Hall, gazing over the repairs that were being made. The
restoration was going to take some time, but he wanted a place
suitable for his mate and children.

There was no other place he wanted to raise Nicolina and

Nevarez than in the home he had grown up in. Ceri had even
managed to talk Rhys into moving in with his mate and son. He
was still getting used to life without the curse. He was also getting
used to not doling out justice to those who deserved it.

Right now, he had more important things to occupy his time.

His children and mate were his number-one priority.

“A family seems to be just what you needed.”
Ceri walked toward one of the windows, gazing out over the

mountain, taking in the full moon. “It would seem.”

Christian moved over toward him, standing close. “How much

have you changed?”

Cocking his head, Ceri looked at his older brother. “For Virgil

and my children, plenty. For everyone else, I will remove their
hearts from their chests while they are still breathing. Why do you
ask this?”

“Because”—Christian turned fully to face him—“I will not

have Dante’s death or his coven’s go unavenged.”

“Do you know who slaughtered them?”
Moving a few feet away, Christian gazed up at the ceiling, his

shoulders stiff. “No, but when I find out, nothing will keep that
person safe. We still have to see to the matter of a chameleon-
shifter named Kell. I’m told he is a half breed. He carries wolf
inside of him. We can start our search in the demon realm.”

“Give me a few days,” he replied. Virgil still wasn’t one

hundred percent better. Ceri wasn’t going to leave his mate with
the children to go hunting until Virgil could manage without him

Ceri 131

for a day or two. Even then Ceri wasn’t going to leave his mate
defenseless. No, he hadn’t changed that much. He would still gut
anyone who even thought of hurting what was his.

“I’ll be waiting for you to show,” Christian replied. He had a

dark gleam in his eyes and Ceri could tell the man wasn’t going to
rest until Dante’s death was paid in kind. Ceri had no problem
pursuing those responsible.

Once Christian was gone, Ceri walked back into the bedroom,

smiling when he saw that Nicolina was wide awake, staring up at
him. He wasn’t sure if she knew he was her father, but her quiet
contentment spoke volumes.

Carefully picking her up, he held her close, amazed that this

small person had come from his loins. She stared at him with sharp
intelligence, even though she was just a few days old. He wasn’t
sure what those potions might have done to his children, but so far
the doctor had given them a clean bill of health.

“You’re going to spoil her.” Virgil opened his eyes, watching

Ceri from the bed. “I can see already that she is going to have you
wrapped around her finger.”

And his mate would be right.
“We should get them puppies.”
Ceri cocked his head as he readjusted Nicolina in his arms. He

was getting better at holding them, after a brief rundown from his
twin. Ceri knew he had a long way to go as far as parenting skills,
but he was pretty sure the babes wouldn’t hold his lack of
knowledge against him. “I don’t understand why.”

Virgil shrugged. “I’ve seen humans do it and the children look

quite happy.”

Neither of them had a clue what they were doing, but Ceri

knew both of them would fumble through this. For Virgil, he
would do anything the man asked because he finally had a slice of
what his twin cherished so much.

Family.

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At home, Ceri was going to try and give Virgil and his children

what his parents had so lovingly given him and his brothers. He
had once enjoyed life, until the war. Ceri wanted to remember what
is was like to laugh and love again. He had grown angry and
violent, but that wasn’t who he was.

Unless someone was foolish enough to come near his family

then he had no problem showing them that Ceridian Giordano
Espelimbergo was the meanest, fiercest vampire to walk the earth.

“Puppies?” Ceri thought about what his mate wanted. There

was plenty of room in the castle for two small puppies. He had
heard that they were great watchdogs if they chose the right breed.
There was a German shepherd at the Manor named Mango.
Christian’s children and Rhys’s son seemed to adore the dog and
the dog seemed just as happy with the children.

Handing Nicolina off to Virgil, Ceri grabbed Nevarez from the

crib, gazing at the strong lines of the boy’s jaw. He was going to be
a ruler one day, Ceri could tell.

There was just something about being mated and having a

family that brought out a softer side to Ceri that he wasn’t even
aware he had. Walking over to the bed once more, Ceri sat down,
leaning over to give his mate a kiss, conveying to him just how
much the man meant to Ceri. “I love you, Virgil.”

The man smiled at him, something he was certain Virgil hadn’t

had enough of in his life. Ceri planned on changing that. “I love
you, too, Ceridian.”

* * * *

Placing the babes back in their nursery, Ceri came back to their

bedroom, taking Virgil’s hand in his, whispering his lips across his
knuckles. His mate didn’t say a word as he slowly disrobed and
then settled between Virgil’s legs. Thank goodness Virgil had

Ceri 133

taken the birth control shot the doctor had offered him because
there was no way he would be able to deny his mate.

Ceri lubed his fingers and then moved them underneath Virgil,

sliding his thick fingers into Virgil’s ass as he kissed his way
around Virgil’s neck. His skin felt as if it were on fire, his body
aching to be filled by his mate’s thick cock. He groaned at the
delicious burn as his mate stretched him wide.

Just as he thought he would die if his mate didn’t fuck him,

Ceri rose above Virgil, the head of his cock lodged against Virgil’s
entrance. “I’m going to fuck you,” he said right before one hard
plunge buried his steel-hard erection into Virgil’s body to the hilt.
Virgil shouted and Ceri stilled, staring down at Virgil with tender
eyes.

Virgil dug his nails into his mate’s chest, breathing past the pain

as his mate cupped Virgil’s face. “I’m going to claim you tonight, my
love.” He looked like he was fighting for control as his body shook
with apparent tension.

“Do you know how long I’ve been waiting to hear those words?”

Virgil asked as the pain tore through his lower half and then eased.
Virgil’s body was once again on fire for his mate. “Claim me.”

His mate’s expression turned tender as he leaned forward and

kissed Virgil slowly, softly. Virgil whimpered into the man’s mouth
as he arched into him, his nipples brushing against a wall of hard
flesh. His mate’s hips began to move, Ceri’s thick length stretching
Virgil wide as he pulled back and then thrust inside of Virgil.

Ceri broke the kiss and then buried his face in Virgil’s neck. “Son

of a bitch,” he whispered as he slid his hands under Virgil’s buttocks
and lifted Virgil a little higher. A rumbled growl vibrated in the
vampire’s chest as Ceri leaned back onto his legs and stared down at
Virgil. “Shit, Virgil, shit.” His hands pulled free and he glanced down
to see his hand smoothing over Virgil’s stomach, and then his fingers
were at Virgil’s cock.

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Lynn Hagen

Virgil threw his head back and cried out his mate’s name. That

seemed to be some sort of trigger because Ceri’s thrusts deepened
with a wild growl sounding in the room. The pressure was building
again, only this time it felt volatile. Virgil grabbed for him and Ceri
fell forward, taking Virgil’s mouth, sending Virgil to the brink of
madness. Virgil’s legs came up and tried to wrap around Ceri’s waist
but the man was too damn thick, so all he could do was leave them
hanging on his hips as his mate rode Virgil hard.

“Mi amor,” Ceri moaned. The heat built higher, hotter. Virgil’s

body was inflamed as they slid along each other.

“Ceri,” he cried the man’s name. Ceri glanced down at Virgil, and

his expression was dark, feral, making Virgil lick his dry lips as his
fangs slowly elongated. He was in heaven. He shook beneath his
mate’s hard stare, so aroused now, pushed so far past reality that he
just didn’t give a damn. “Bite me.”

Ceri grazed the points of his teeth over Virgil’s shoulder and

Virgil clutched the back of his head. “Do it.”

“Hold on to me, baby.”
Virgil’s hands gripped his mate’s shoulders as he felt the thick

length of Ceri’s cock press deeper inside of his body. “Ceri, please.”

“I love hearing you beg.” Ceri’s voice was strained, sounding as if

he was holding on to one last thread of control.

Virgil forgot what he was thinking as the delicious burn filled

him, reminding Virgil that Ceri was deep inside of him. He writhed
beneath the vampire as Ceri leaned back, his eyes going to where their
bodies were connecting.

“Looks good, doesn’t it? Me sliding in and out of you like this?”

he asked. Virgil looked up to see his mate watching him. They were
in the throes of sex, yet he could feel his skin blushing with heat. Ceri
gave a soft chuckle. “So pretty.”

“My body, I can’t take it. Please, Ceri, please.” He convulsed

underneath the man, fighting for release.

Ceri 135

Ceri began to fuck into his ass, hard deep lunges that had Virgil

crying out his name as he felt each thrust stretching him, caressing
him. Ceri pushed him headlong into a flight to ecstasy, his cock
powering into Virgil, filling him, stroking the already blistering heat
higher.

Virgil’s stomach tightened, rippled, convulsed, and then his eyes

widened as his vision blurred. The muscles of Virgil’s ass clamped
down onto Ceri’s cock as he exploded. He twisted beneath his mate as
mindless pleasure tore through him.

“Virgil…god…baby…” Deep, hard, his thrusts quickened as

Virgil felt spurts of cum deep inside his ass. It triggered another
explosion that left Virgil gasping, fighting for breath as he writhed
underneath his mate’s powerful body.

He whimpered as he closed his eyes.
“Oh no, innocent one. I’m not done with you yet.”
Virgil’s eyes snapped open. He couldn’t believe his mate was still

seated inside of Virgil, still rock hard.

He pulled his cock from Virgil’s ass, turned Virgil over to his

stomach, and then slid back inside.

“This time we take it slow.”
Slow was good. Virgil wasn’t sure he could take the all-

consuming fire that had just ripped his body apart. Ceri’s hands slid
over his back, and then he leaned his muscular frame over Virgil to
lay soft kisses down his spine. Virgil moaned. Feeling Ceri’s hands on
his body, his cock pushing deep inside of his ass was like heaven.

He had thought they didn’t have a future together, that Ceri would

forever be lost to him. Now all he wanted was for his mate to make
love to him for the rest of Virgil’s life. The thought was insane, but
true. He was still blown away that he’d given birth to two beautiful
babies. Virgil felt a protective need hit him hard, knowing he would
die to protect not only his mate, but his precious babes as well. They
were his entire life, all he had, and Virgil would hold on to to them
with a hard grip.

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All thoughts fled when Ceri eased him onto his hands and knees.

He trembled in pleasure when Ceri reached under Virgil and gripped
his erection, stroking Virgil’s cock as he rocked back and forth, his
shaft grazing over nerve endings.

“Your body fits me so perfectly,” Ceri said as he nipped Virgil on

the shoulder.

Rocking his body back and impaling his ass on Ceri’s shaft, Virgil

lost himself in the sensual desires heating up inside of his body. He
wasn’t sure if slow and torturous was any better than fast and
explosive.

It seemed no matter how Ceri took him, he made Virgil burn on

the inside. But this buildup was slow in coming. It felt as though it
were a slow-burning fire, eating away at Virgil’s sanity as he thrust
back, groaning at the feel of his mate’s thick cock filling him.

“That’s it, mi amor. Take from me. Take whatever you need.”

Ceri’s hand began to move faster on Virgil’s cock as his thrusts
deepened, becoming quicker.

Virgil clawed at the sheets, his legs spreading a little wider, his

hips rotating as Ceri plunged inside of his ass. “Make me come, Ceri.”

The man gave a low growl as he sped up, his cock pounding into

Virgil’s body as he released Virgil’s cock and grabbed his hips
instead. He lowered his shoulders, rocking his head back and forth,
trying his best to just let go.

He cried out when Ceri’s fangs sank into his skin. The connection

had already been there, deeper than either thought possible, but now
that he was fully claimed, their minds seemed to become one. He
could see everything that Ceri had gone through, the pain he had
suffered, and the longing the man had felt every time he had glanced
Virgil’s way.

They were bonded in such a deep way that there was nothing in

Virgil’s mind that Ceri couldn’t see. He was exposed to the man, all
his sins and sorrows laid out for his mate to see.

Ceri 137

Ceri licked the wound, whispering in Virgil’s ear, “Never again

will you feel alone.”

Just when he thought he would go insane, Virgil’s body shattered,

his mind reeled, and his heart sped up so fast that he became dizzy.

His mate howled from behind Virgil, his movements becoming

uncoordinated as his seed filled Virgil once more. He gave a few
more thrusts before slowing, his breathing ragged.

Ceri pulled Virgil up and into his arms, nuzzling his neck as soft

purrs rumbled through his chest. Virgil fought to breathe normally as
his mate slowly pulled his softening cock from Virgil’s swollen ass.

Something settled inside of Virgil, destroying the darkness he had

felt for so long, and he knew in that moment that Ceri was the savior
Virgil had always known the man to be.

* * * *

Kory Kendrick came to a stop when he spotted a man lying

facedown on the ground. He glanced around the woods but didn’t
see anyone else. It wasn’t every day that he ran across someone
taking a dirt nap. He wasn’t even sure if he should bother the guy
or not. He looked pretty comfortable lying there covered in leaves.

“Hey, do you need some help?” he asked as he scented the air.

He couldn’t tell if the guy was human or other. Stepping cautiously
closer, Kory nudged the guy with his toe. “Hey, are you all right?”

The guy didn’t move. Oh! What if he was dead? Well, that

would explain him not answering Kory. He dropped to his knees,
hoping like hell he wasn’t touching a corpse. That would be too
gross.

He grabbed the guy’s shoulder, using his shifter strength to turn

him over. The napping man was pretty heavy. Kory gasped when
the stranger fell to his back. His face was covered in burns that
looked so nasty that he felt a bit queasy just looking at the guy. The

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Lynn Hagen

man was as white as a sheet and his features gaunt. There was no
telling how long he had been out here.

Ew, he had touched a corpse!
He was about to stand and get away from the thing when

blackened eyelids flew open. Kory shrieked and tried to run, but
only managed to fall on his ass. He tried to get his bearings, but the
corpse flew at him, pinning him down before opening his mouth,
revealing sharp fangs. “For this, I am truly sorry.”

Kory screamed as the vampire bit into his neck, his voice

echoing in the woods as his vision blurred.

He knew he should have taken a different path.

THE END

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lynn Hagen loves writing about the somewhat flawed, but

lovable. She also loves a hero who can see past all the rough edges to
find the shining diamond of a beautiful heart.

You can find her on any given day curled up with her laptop and a

cup of hot java, letting the next set of characters tell their story.

For all titles by Lynn Hagen, please visit

www.bookstrand.com/lynn-hagen

Siren Publishing, Inc.

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