Betrayal (The Forever Series) (27 page)

Chrissie lets out a howl of rage as she attacks me. It catches me off guard as I thought she would back down. Stubborn fool. She gets one punch in and it revitalizes her quest. Sadly for her though, I’ve had enough and I blast her with Faerie magick, which knocks her unconscious before she hits the middle of the stairs with a sickening crunch. I look at each and every one of the Pack in turn, but all of them have their eyes lowered. “Anyone else think I’m not good enough?” I ask archly.

A chorus of “No ma’am,” is muttered and I nod briskly. I join Lincoln at his side and he is trying not to beam proudly at me. This is a serious business and it could have gone a lot differently if I was challenged without my Powers and full strength. No wonder he was
so fretful over it. I think these types of situations usually go on for longer as everyone just stands around not knowing what to do next. They must have expected more of a fight than that. Oh well, let this be a lesson: Don’t mess with the Queen. I am badass, if I say so myself.

“That’s enough,” Lincoln says mildly in my head. “You are supposed to be gracious in victory.”

Inside I am laughing my head off at him, as he is with me, but outwardly I remain completely calm and in control.

“Someone, please help her to her room,” I say, indicating Chrissie. “Make sure she is comfortable while she heals.”

I get shocked stares back and Lincoln gives me a tight squeeze.

“Do as your Queen says,” he demands, although I have a feeling I am missing something. Pack life is a mystery to me. As I am not really one of them I fail to understand their customs and Lincoln only really tells me what I need to know. Apparently, he fills me in
now, I was supposed to excommunicate her from the Pack.

“Nice heads-up, Wolf-boy, guess you forgot to mention that a bit earlier,” I say to him telepathically as he is still laughing at me.

“She has shown mercy to her challenger, and we will respect that,” he adds forcefully as no one has moved a muscle yet. With that said, they all spring into action, eager now to do my bidding and get back on my good side.

“I suppose we should stick around for a bit?” I ask him.

“It would be advisable,” he says with a smile.

“Okay, but not too long. You still owe me a date,” I say as I pull him closer to me by his t-shirt. “I am collecting.”

“Oh god,” he groans. “You have no idea how long I have waited to hear you say that. A couple of hours and then we’ll go.”

“And what can we do in this couple of hours?” I ask seductively. He doesn’t answer me, just kisses me urgently, walking us back to his office. We don’t even get through the door before he is tugging his t-shirt off and undoing his pants. He picks me up and pushes me against the door and I get rid of the pants. He growls as he can now feel my bare skin and in spite of our very public spot, he slams into me with not a second to waste. I am so ready for
him, he slides in easily and rubs my g-spot with the first stroke. He muffles my cries with his mouth, our impatience evident. I sense we are being watched, but that only fuels my excitement. He senses it too and turns the handle of his office door and we fall back inside, laughing as he bangs it closed. “Not sharing you, even indirectly,” he says as he speeds up. I come soon after that, as does he. We lie half clothed in each other’s arms on the sofa where we fell and he says, “So where do you want to go?”

I am surprised by his choice of topic. I thought we would talk about what just happened in the foyer. He seems to have forgotten all about it in the face of our pending date. I ponder it for a moment. I am feeling a little bit like I could eat proper food. I graze occasionally with bits of fruit or something light, but never because I need to. This is different. I want FOOD!

“Dinner,” I say, sitting up. “There is a lovely restaurant not far from the house that we could go to.”

“A restaurant?” he asks. “You want to sit there and watch me eat?” He laughs.

“While I do so adore your healthy appetite, my love, I am thinking about my own at the moment,” I say.

“I beg your pardon?” he asks. “You want food? You aren’t turning into Xerxei are you?” He peers at me closely, but relaxes when I don’t Shift.

“No,” I say. “I guess my body just needs some fuel after everything I’ve been through. I’m sure it’s just a one-off. But take advantage while you can,” I add with a smirk.

“Oh, I sure will,” he says. “Watching you eat something would make me the happiest Wolf in the land.” He circles my tiny waist with his big hands to make his point. “Way too skinny.”

“Then why do you love me?” I pout at him in jest.

“Because to not love you would be to die,” he says dramatically with a fake swoon. I bash him playfully and he grins at me.

“Bedroom,” he says to me and off we Astral, intent just on each other.

Two hours later we Astral off back home after trying to regain Pack morale. Chrissie was still out, probably will be for a while yet. Faerie magick isn’t to be taken lightly and quite frankly I shouldn’t have used it. I am not schooled enough in it to be throwing it about. But it re-established my position and everyone just seemed happy that I was showing my face.
Baby steps. I tell CK and Cole of my planned date and neither are very happy.

“You can’t go out on a date, what will people think?” Cole asks.

“They will wonder who is the gorgeous black-haired girl he is with,” I say smartly and Shift to my Dark Fae persona, Aeval.

Much arguing later, I am starting to get a headache and nothing has been resolved yet. They accept I need time with Lincoln, reluctantly, but they don’t see why we have to go out. I try yet again to explain to them I promised him and the arguments start again.

Chapter 17

Buckinghamshire, England, September 2013 - Jess

Jess sits on the terrace as it is getting dark. She stares at the vial full of blackened marigolds that she took off Liv the other day. She kept them. She has no idea why or what to do with them, but it is quite clear they are full of poison as they shrivelled up and died in this blackened state. She taps it on the table and stands to go back inside, gripping it tightly in her hand. Maybe if she crushed them up and put them in Liv’s blood it would make her ill again. Or better yet, kill her. Unfortunately the woman is nearly indestructible. She stops outside the library doors and peers inside. She is in there arguing with her husbands and Lincoln. She has three of the sexiest, most gorgeous men on the planet at her beck and call so why does she still need Devon? Why can’t she just let him go? The whore. Jess sees she has Shifted, but thankfully not to Elizabeth. It is just too painful. Jess wanted to kill her the other day for doing it right in front of her. She wishes she hadn’t followed them upstairs, but she wanted to know what they speak about when they are alone together. She was unnoticed as Liv was still ill and Devon has no bond to her. She sat outside the door and listened to them fucking. No, that’s wrong, they weren’t fucking. They were making love. He was making love to her, seeing to her completely and he was in Heaven. She heard it in his voice. It had ripped through her like a red-hot knife, but she sat and waited. She was burning with curiosity about what they would speak of. Their words are etched into her brain for eternity. She will never forget what he said to his sire. She had listened to them making plans to meet in the clearing and she had gone herself to confront them. However, she had forgotten about both her husband’s and his sire’s tendency to turn up early. She had been on time, but they had already started and she hadn’t heard a word of what they said. Devon had sent her away and it had been a long time later when he came to find her. She sighs and turns from the doors. She will find another way in. She comes face to face with Liv as she spins on her heel. No, not Liv. Other Liv. Her hair is longer and lighter, her eyes are a brighter green and her boobs are much, much bigger. She is smiling at Jess so she smiles back as she places the vial of marigolds between her breasts for safekeeping.

“Those are mine,” Other Liv says as she reaches forward and plucks the vial out of Jess’s cleavage.

Jess grabs her hand, but she snatches it away quickly. “No, they are mine,” Jess says. If Other Liv wants them they must have something about them that she wants to keep hold of.

“Uh, no,” Other Liv says firmly. “I didn’t make the suggestion she use them out of the goodness of my cold, dead heart.” She places them in her own cleavage and while Jess has never delved around another woman’s boobs before, the prize will be worth it. She steps forward boldly to take them back, but Other Liv grabs her hand quickly. “Brave, aren’t you?” she asks. “You don’t even know what to do with them.”

Jess just shrugs. No she doesn’t, but she will find out. “Care to share?” she asks.

Other Liv laughs in delight.
“Oh no, little girl. That’s way above your Power-grade. This however, not so much.” She pulls out a clear vial, a bit bigger than the one currently nestled between her breasts and hands it to Jess. Jess takes it curiously and peers into it. There is a clear liquid in it, slightly more gloopy than water. “What is it?” she asks.

Other Liv shrugs and says, “A type of poison. Put it in her blood and it will get her out of your way for a bit.”

Jess licks her lips cautiously. How does this woman know she wants Liv gone? “It will kill her?” she asks hopefully.

“No, she, like me, is a true immortal. It will subdue her for a while though,” Other Liv says.

“I don’t want her subdued!” Jess says. “I want her dead.” She realizes that at this point she should probably shut her big mouth. She doesn’t know this woman, and she sure as shit doesn’t trust her.

“Now, now,” she says. “If she were dead, your sire would mourn her for eternity. A little time out will make him yours for a while.”

Jess thinks about that. As much as she doesn’t want to admit it, Other Liv is right. Devon would mourn her forever and she might as well just walk away forgotten. “What’s in it for you?”

“Ah now, that isn’t your concern. I have my plans and for them to succeed I need her out of the way,” she says.

Jess is crazy curious, but she knows better than to ask. “Why come to me?” she asks instead. “How did you know I wouldn’t go running straight to her?”

“She is your sire’s sire. I know how strong that bond is and I can see theirs is particularly unbreakable. You are bound to be jealous, especially as it seems your sire has no bond to you,” Other Liv says.

“How do you know that?” Jess asks, slightly worried about where this woman is getting all of her information from.

She shrugs and to Jess’s shock Shifts to Elizabeth right in front of her. “I’m done here. If you will excuse me, I have a date.” She gives Jess a smug look and is about to saunter off when Jess stops her.

“You,” she whispers. “It was you. How long have you been coming here to fuck my husband?” she snarls as the pieces all fall into place.

“Oh, about six months or so,” Other Liv says glibly.

Six months? Jess feels sick. Her stomach churns as she takes that in. He has been lying to her and to everyone for six months about this. She knows now that it wasn’t Liv she saw that night with him on terrace, but Other Liv. She came here and Shifted to Elizabeth and Devon didn’t resist her. He didn’t tell her to go to Hell, he fucked her instead. And then again and again. The bile rises in her throat and she is sure she is going to throw up. This can’t be happening. Other Liv is watching her with interest. “Oh, you are a jealous little thing, aren’t you?” she says with delight.

Jess shakes her head to clear it. After the initial shock of this news it has dawned on her that her sire has
Substituted his own and everybody knows that Liv has enormous issues with that. She can blow their relationship apart, as Liv will never forgive him for this. Never. A tiny part of her, that she wants to squash, doesn’t blame her. It is pretty vile what Devon has done, but she loves him and has already forgiven him. Liv won’t. She will see this as a massive betrayal and Jess wants to be the one to tell her. But not yet. After their little pissing contest, it will look petty and planned, and not to mention if Devon finds out she was the one who told, he would kill her.

“What are you thinking?” Other Liv asks her. “You have gone awfully quiet.”

Jess scrambles to think of something. No way is she telling of her real thoughts. “Nothing,” she says casually. “I was just surprised why you come here to fuck my husband when you have your own identical one.”

Other Liv sniffs and says, “Your Devon is still so passionate and adventurous and spontaneous. My Devon lost all of those traits a long time ago.”

“And I am sure you had everything to do with that. So you decide to come after mine and do the same to him? I don’t think so,” Jess says.

“How do you plan on stopping me?” she
asks, her blue eyes cold and hard.

“He will come to his senses,” Jess says. “He will dump your ass as soon as he has gotten over the fantasy of you. That’s all you are to him.”

“As he is to me,” Other Liv says. “If you think you can hurt me, you have no idea who you are messing with.”

Jess stares at her for a long time. She is nothing like Liv. She has no real emotions,
nothing at all about her that would suggest they were effectively the same person. The only thing they have in common is that they are both manipulative whores. “What is your ‘me’ like over there?” she asks and has the satisfaction of catching her off guard.