Dark War Chronicles Box Set One (26 page)

"Why?" He asked, his eyes sliding to Renee then back to the woman in front of him.

Tegan shrugged and threw her bag down by an empty chair. "Hell if I know, I was just told to come and here I am." She spread her arms out wide.

"Lovely, he sent you to watch me." Coran shook his head. "Well I guess it's better for Renee to have another female here anyways, maybe you two can bond or whatever it is that you do." He waved a hand between the two and let out a sigh.

Renee laughed. "He always this moody?"

"You have no friggin’ idea, give him a week and you'll see more mood swings from him than you'd see from any pregnant woman."

Coran’s eyes snapped to her and he snarled, his beast stirring. "Careful.” A phrase in Latin flew from his lips before he could stop it. Blood whore, something only used when Tegan pushed his limits too far. He went silent, waiting for her reaction, his eyes trying to meet hers through the sunglasses.

Tegan's face fell and she clenched her fists. "I'm going to bed." She stomped out of the room.

Coran closed his eyes, knowing he would have to apologize to her later after she was done hiding in Orion’s room.

"Was that Latin?"  Renee's gentle voice broke his guilt.

He nodded. "Yes, all three of us, Orion, Tegan and I speak it. I just called her something kind of nasty."

"Get your ass out there and apologize to her." Renee snapped. "You don't just call a woman a nasty name because she upset you. Gosh, and here I thought you were a gentleman."

He blinked a few times at her. "Trust me, she needs to gather herself before I go try to play nice." It was rare that he lost his temper with Tegan enough to call her a whore and it would eat at him all night. He forced himself to laugh, admitting to himself he loved the fact that Renee had the guts to push him around. "You know something? I think I'm going to enjoy having you here."

She smiled but the light didn't quite reach her eyes. The forced expression on her face made him reach across the table and cup her hand with his. He savored the touch of her skin, the gentle rhythm of her heartbeat against his hand calmed his beast from the earlier uprising.
Well, isn't that interesting.
"What's wrong?"

"Other than there's some psychos out to get me and I feel like everyone is hiding something from me? Nothing. Oh wait, I lied. I'm terrified." She glanced down at their hands and a subtle tremor shook her body.

He smelled tears in the air. No matter what century or species, he couldn’t stand a woman crying. It made him feel helpless. Scooting his chair closer to her, he wrapped his arms around her and held her. Breathing deep, he took in the scent of her hair. The precious human and soap smell that he loved, with no undertone of a beast like a lycan, no smell of blood or death like a vampire, and no reek of magic like the Fae. She smelled perfect to him.

"We're going to get through this. I won't let them get you." He whispered, running his fingertips through her soft hair. Even if he regretted the words before, now he knew he would fulfill them. He needed to figure out a way to protect her without letting his past get in the way. "As for us hiding something, everyone has their secrets. I bet even you do."

She titled her chin up to look at him and he met the tear glazed hazel eyes behind her glasses. Before he realized what he was doing, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. A feather light kiss, but when she relaxed against him he couldn’t keep from pushing further. Her lips parted slightly and he explored her mouth with his tongue.

Renee pulled back, flushed.

Coran grinned at her. "Let's just call it a night, yeah? You're tired, I'm tired, and Tegan is going to be bitchy until tomorrow."

"Yeah, yeah, good plan." She giggled and stood with him.

He watched her go upstairs and listened to the sounds of her moving about, probably going through her usual bedtime routine. Trivial, normal things for her, he was sure. By the sound of running water, she was probably washing her face and brushing her teeth. At some point she would be dressing for bed. He moaned at that thought, please let the fates be kind and not have her sleep naked. She didn’t strike him as the lingerie type, but that didn’t mean she didn’t sleep naked.

He closed his eyes, trying to figure out what fate was doing by tossing Renee into his path. Opening his eyes and taking a deep breath he headed up the stairs and into his room. Desire hit him when he saw Renee lying in his bed, the covers pulled up to her waist. He could see the white cami she wore and he relaxed a bit, but stood there unsure of what to do. All he wanted was to hold her close. His wolf tried to push him to the bed, wanting the same thing.

“Coran?”

He glanced at the bed and then the ground. “Maybe it’s best I sleep on the floor again.”

She looked confused for a moment, but then smiled. “Don’t be silly. I don’t bite.” She patted the bed. “Come lay down.”

He wanted to come back with a witty remark, but his words failed him. He kicked off his shoes, scooted under the covers, and stared up at the ceiling.

“I want to thank you.” Renee’s voice made him turn to look at her. She lay on her side, watching him. “For everything.”

His breath caught as he studied her. She was beautiful and the warmth of her body next to his made everything feel perfect. Even his wolf was curled up and fast asleep. This was what he wanted every night, but he couldn’t. Not with her. “You’re welcome, Renee.” He rolled back over to continue staring at the ceiling. Listening, he could tell she started to fall asleep as her breathing evened out. Soon she was deep into the dream world and he let himself drift off.

A whimpering noise woke him close to dawn and it took him a moment to remember that the warm body beside him was Renee. He rolled over and rubbed her back in soft soothing circles, saying her name gently, hoping to wake her. Instead she rolled over and flung an arm and a leg around him. She nuzzled his neck, burying her face in his hair and calming instantly. He took a deep breath and reveled in her scent. He should have pushed her away, but he couldn’t. She felt like heaven in his arms and he was content with that for now. Later he would deal with the consequences. For now he held her and slept in her embrace.

Markus stood in the circle of the others, everyone covered by their cloaks, hiding. Always hiding. Soon they wouldn't have to worry about that. "The stone wasn't at the woman's house, but another problem has presented itself."

"Another problem? This just becomes more and more complicated." A woman spoke, shifting to allow the purple velvet of her cloak to catch the light. "What could possibly be keeping you from getting the stone now?"

"Hunters." The answer made the vampires in the room inhale sharply. "The wolves have confirmed that the second woman living in the house is a Hunter."

Silence filled the room while each vampire made their own assumption as to why there was a Hunter there. Markus cleared his throat. "We can only assume this means that the Hunters know something about this woman that we don't and sent someone to protect her."

"I thought you said she was a normal." The man to his left spoke. The dark green hood shadowed his face but Markus knew the voice.

"As far as my knowledge goes she is. If I find out differently then I will go in and rip the stone from her." Markus shrugged. "We have to follow our own rules, at least until Lucius knows we are in town." The rules set by the Originals were meant to keep peace, but the Circle took pleasure in bending them to their advantage.

Muttering and nodding filled the small room. "Is the tomb secured?"

"Yes, but there is a lock on it. All we know is we need someone of his blood to open it."

Markus knew that. He'd been there when Zaaren sealed the tomb. "Has anyone been able to hunt down any of his relatives? Are any of them still alive for that matter?"

"No one knows. He slept with a lot of humans and non-humans. Since he had a soul there's no guessing how many of them he might have gotten pregnant."

The Father never did understand the risks. A vampire with a soul could still procreate; once the soul was gone they lost that ability. It was the way the gods worked when it came to that gift. Markus refrained from rolling his eyes. "Once he is raised the scale will fall in our favor. But first we have to deal with the Hunters and get the stone."

"We await your next update then. Do not fail us, Markus. Though you are his favorite, we can still kill you."

He didn't fear them. They couldn't touch him and survive. He outclassed all of them. "We shall see." He disappeared, transporting himself back to the hotel.

Throwing off his black cloak, he snarled. How dare they threaten him? They would be nothing without his knowledge of the Father and the Originals. They were much too young to remember the riots and the final battle it took to lock the Father away. Zaaren would pay. He had led the Originals against the Circle and the Father, claiming it to be for the better of all. He would be the first Original Markus killed. He'd make sure of it.

Chapter Six

Renee woke slowly, coming up from a deep sleep. She realized she was wrapped around Coran and blushed. His deep rhythmic breathing remained unchanged as she untangled herself from him. She didn’t remember moving that close to him during the night, but apparently a warm body helped her sleep like a log. She got out of bed and let him sleep, not wanting to disturb the peaceful and untroubled look on his face. Even in such a short time, she’d learned that it was rare for him. Silently, she tiptoed out of the room and closed the door behind her.

Renee padded down the stairs and into the living room where the television flickered, pausing at the sight of Tegan, wearing her sunglass indoors, again. Even though the afternoon sun shone through the windows, it wasn’t bright enough for them. "You must feel bad-ass with those glasses on. You remind of Cyclops, you know? From the X-Men? Do you have a power like his if you take them off or something?"

The other woman started to chuckle. "I gotta say that's not the normal question I get. I have a sensitivity to light." Though the subtle hesitation in her voice told Renee that Tegan was lying. Of course, that seemed to be the story with everyone around here.

"That must suck."

"You have no idea." Tegan pointed the remote at the TV as Renee walked further in towards the other recliner.

Renee sat down and put the footrest up. "So what are you watching?"

"I set the DVR to record every episode of
Dancing with the Stars
and the boys have yet to figure out how to turn it off.” Tegan snickered and hit the play button.

"Can I ask you something?" Renee turned sideways in her chair to face Tegan.

Tegan raised a brow and shrugged. "Is it as personal as the sunglasses question?"

"Kind of. What did Coran call you last night? I saw the way you looked afterwards, I'm surprised you didn't deck him before bursting into tears."

Tegan went still, concentrating on something, but the theme music came over the speakers and she came back to life. "He called me a whore, but that's not important. Look, hot guys, no shirts, drool worthy."

Renee didn't appreciate the way she avoided the problem, but laughed and turned towards the screen, pushing away the nagging feeling. One of the guys on the show led a female dancer across the stage. Renee ignored the female and stared at the bare, glistening chest of the man. "Holy cow, look at those muscles! I just want to run my fingers over his chest." She made a low moan in her throat and made Tegan laugh.

"And he isn't the best, wait until you see the Latino guy, gah, he's so gorgeous you just want to lick him. And when he turns his ass to the camera." Tegan fanned herself. "Wait, wait, wait, here he is." She waved to the screen, almost falling out of her chair.

True to her word, the male dancer led his partner down the staircase with ease and between his rock hard abs, his shoulder length black hair, and caramel colored skin, Renee could barely keep herself from drooling over the man. With each guy and new dance they cheered with the crowd, hoping for the hottest to get the highest score. Smiling, Renee noted that with every comment and moment drooling over the men, Tegan relaxed a bit more.

Coran woke, missing the warmth of Renee's body pressed against him, wonder where his human went. He paused at the thought. When did she become his human? He needed to put a stop to any attraction to her. His head shot up at the sound of cheering and laughing from the living room. Tegan and Renee, at least the two females were getting along.

Standing at the bottom of the stairs, Orion leaned against the wall, watching the women with his brows drawn together. Coran came up next to him. "Jealous?"

"Who me? Over some ballroom dancers? Never, they're probably all gay anyways." He shrugged and motioned to them. "What's got me is that Tegan is full on laughing. Like her and Renee are good friends."

"Is there something wrong with that? I thought you wanted her to be happy." Coran stretched while he studied the women. Renee's face lit up every time she laughed. Which only made her look more human, more innocent. They both clapped enthusiastically at the end of a dance followed by lively chattering about the dancer.

"Do you want someone else to make Renee happy?" Orion asked, his voice cold. "Or do you want to be the one to make her laugh like that?"

Coran raised a brow at the bitterness in Orion's voice. "I don't have any attraction to her, Fae.” He couldn’t tell if he was lying to prove a point to himself or Orion. “And it's pathetic when you get jealous over a woman. Especially since you know Tegan doesn't swing that way."

"I'm starting to think Tegan doesn't swing any way." Orion grumbled.

"Come on now, we know that's not true. I think she just got tired of Lucius threatening or killing anyone she was interested in." Coran chuckled, his eyes still on Renee as she giggled with Tegan.

Orion nudged him. "I can tell that you like her and the need you have to protect her is obvious."

"It's because she's human, an innocent human." Even with her powers he figured she'd manage to convince herself that her ability did not exist once this whole mess was over. "You know that innocent humans don't do well in our world." He recalled the damage he had seen in his dreams and memories thousands of times and shook his head. "I don't want that for her."