Deadly Desires (15 page)

Her other half slowly shook his head back and forth. “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea, Marcy. If you ask me, he’s not necessarily one of the good guys, if you know what I mean.” Jason began to circle around the demon master.

“Good or not, it has to be done and I can’t do it.”

“Why not?” Jason still wouldn’t stop staring at Zepar.

“Because she’s pregnant,” Samael snapped. “Now do the change. We don’t have all night, and the faster my brother is out of here, the better. The last thing we need is someone coming to look for him.”

“Wait. Screw Zepar.” A smile came to Jason’s mouth, and he walked over and pulled Marcella into his arms. “I knew it. Ambrose said you would be and I believed him.” His mouth pressed against hers. “Marcy, this is wonderful news.” His attention went to Samael. “Congratulations.” His large arms crushed Samael into his chest. “We’re all going to have a baby. Yes!”

Donavon laughed and came over. “I’d hug you all, but I don’t think you want to get wet. I’m really happy. A baby is such a blessing.” He kneeled down before her. “May I?” His hand hovered over her stomach.

“Be my guest. Although I think it’s a bit soon to feel anything, Donavon,” she laughed.

“Oh, I’ll feel the baby’s energy. That’s more than enough.” His palm pressed against her stomach and the butterflies tickled her insides. “Oh yes. There it is.” He removed his hand and leaned his cheek against her stomach. So many times when they first met he’d done the same thing to detect whether or not she was telling the truth. He just knew things. She couldn’t keep the smile from her face as his hands locked around her hips and his face pressed against her.

“All right. There’s plenty of time for this,” Samael, said. “Let’s do the change.”

“Let Marcy stay with Ambrose and me,” Donavon begged. “I haven’t seen her in forever.”

She nodded to Samael and he smiled. “Okay. We’ll be back. Careful with her,” he warned.

Ambrose rolled his eyes and waved them away. “Come, lie on the bed and let us feel the baby. I want to see if I can feel his or her energy.” Ambrose flicked his wrist and Donavon was suddenly dry.

Marcella crawled onto the large bed as Jason, Samael, Dom, and Zepar left the room. Her men moved to both her sides and she rested against the pillow. It sure felt good to be back home, surrounded by her men. She’d missed Donavon so much lately. They’d hardly gotten to spend time with each other, and she missed that.

“Boy or girl?” Donavon asked Ambrose. The collector laughed as he moved his hand to hover over her stomach. “I think it’s too early to be for sure.” He paused and looked at Marcella. “Do you want it to be a surprise, or would you like to hear my prediction?”

“Oh.” She twisted her mouth as she went over the options. “What the hell, tell me. This might be fun.”

Ambrose pulled up her shirt and placed his hand on her stomach. As he closed his eyes, she could feel her heart accelerate. A smile came to his face, and she watched as his eyes moved back and forth behind his closed lids.

“Well?” Marcella asked, anxiously.

“A boy.” He laughed. “A very strong one at that.”

“A boy,” Marcella whispered. “You think?”

“He knows,” Donavon corrected. “Ambrose has yet to be wrong about anything. I trust what he says as if my life depended on it. If he believes you’re going to have a son, you are.” He smiled and maneuvered around Ambrose’s hand to kiss just above her hip. “Marcella, I’m so excited. You’re going to make an amazing mother.”

Her heart exploded in happiness. “Thank you, Donavon. I’m going to try my hardest.” She placed her hands on his face. “I’m so glad I’ll be able to bring him into a home with so much love.”

Ambrose laughed. “There’s plenty of that.” He lowered himself to lie down next to her. With caution, she watched as he picked up her left hand and ran his finger over hers. “Will you marry him this time?”

Her eyes went to where the ring usually sat. “You know about that?”

“I see how things are when you’re alone together. I know what lies in your heart.”

Marcella shook her head. “No. I will not marry him if it means losing all of you.”

The gold almost disappeared completely from Ambrose’s eyes as he narrowed them, curiously. “You think Samael would do that to you?”

“I don’t know,” Marcella whispered.

“Samael loves you,” Ambrose said, starting to smile. “I don’t think he’d hurt you because of vows. When a couple takes the step of marriage, it’s because they accept each other for who they are. Samael knows you wouldn’t give us up.”

She gazed at Donavon. “You never tell me how you feel about anything. How do you view this situation?”

The shifter rose to his elbows. “The way everything is going down. It’s supposed to, Marcella. All of this is meant to happen. How it ends or what transpires along the way, I embrace with open arms.”

“You’ve come so far.” Marcella shook her head, stunned. “You used to be the most possessive, stubborn person I had ever met. Now…” She laughed. “You’re so accepting of our lives. It’s amazing.”

“I remember dying for you in the past. It wasn’t a fast death. In those minutes I can remember wishing things between all of us had been different. The regret I had was extensive. We used to all fight each other all the time. I won’t make the same mistake again.”

He paused and ran his fingers across the lowest part of her stomach. “If your relationship with Samael goes as far as marriage, then I will be happy for both of you. As long as you are allowed to still be with us, of course.”

Marcella closed her eyes at the need Donavon was stirring within her. With Zepar in her fortress though, she wasn’t about to risk having them come back and find her in a sexual situation. He may have seen her life completely, and knew how things were, but she wasn’t going to let him witness it firsthand.

“I should go check on them.” She sat up and pulled her shirt down. “I want to make sure the change goes over smoothly. I know Jason is fully capable of turning him, but I don’t trust Zepar to not try to do something stupid. If he does, I want to be there.”

Ambrose grabbed Donavon’s hand. “We’ll go with you.” She nodded and imagined them in the room where she’d done the changes before.

Darkness came into focus and candles flickered all around her. The wind was downright forceful. Samael came over and held her against his body as the strength increased by the second. Bright light started spinning at the ceiling. It was so intense that Marcella buried the side of her face against Samael’s lower chest.

Jason yelled words toward the light, and they were nothing like the ones she’d used. She wasn’t sure where they came from, but she knew his collector was guiding him. As he lowered, she watched him slide a dagger down the demon master’s chest. Blood oozed from the wound and Jason’s tongue reached out and tasted it. Once again he stood, reciting words of the old religion. The blade sliced down Jason’s arm and he put it down to Zepar’s mouth.

Bolts of lightning shot down to random spots of concrete in the circle, and the sight made Marcella jump. What had they done? Jason’s eyes were burning fire as he held Zepar’s gaze. She looked up to Samael, for the first time scared of their situation.

“What’s happening?” She yelled up to him.

Samael’s mouth opened and then closed as his eyes went back to his brother. “I don’t know.” His words were carried away by the whipping winds. Jason stood as Zepar’s body went rigid. The demon master clutched his hands into fists and screamed out so deep that it sounded like the roar of Jason’s dragon.

“What’s happening?” Dominic rushed over. “This isn’t like the other ones. I can feel a difference in the air.”

“He’s too evil.” Ambrose’s collector eyes were glowing as he stared at Zepar. “Jason will never be able to cleanse him alone. He’s not powerful enough. Truthfully, I’m not sure any of us are. His body will reject the change. Tonight, Zepar dies.”

Visions of their doom hit Marcella hard. If Zepar died, she knew his father wouldn’t stop until he figured out the source. And just as easily as Zepar had tracked them down, so would the Devil, himself. The wrath he would bring upon the fortress would be the end. There was no way she was strong enough yet. She needed more followers. More time to develop her powers.

“No!” Marcella’s hand instinctively went to her stomach. She would not lose her baby. Not again.

Screams continued to echo off the walls. Zepar tossed and turned, clutching his stomach. It was as if Jason had poisoned him. There was really no difference. Until she figured out a way to save his life, he would be eaten alive by Jason’s blood.

She looked up to Samael and stepped away. The wind forced her to the right, but she held her ground. “Ambrose, Dom.” She reached for them. “We’ll give our blood, too. Together, with Jason’s blood, pray we’re strong enough to cleanse him.”

Warmth grasped both of her hands. As the three of them stepped into the circle, Marcella felt her feet sweep out from underneath her. It was as if they’d stepped into hurricane-force winds. The men held on to her tight as they fought their way forward. Jason looked up panicked.

“Pull up Zepar and cut our arms, Jason. He needs to drink from all of us.” The men held on to her as they all lowered. Zepar’s eyes were wide as he stared into her.

“I’m dying,” he yelled. “You’re trying to kill me?”

“No.” She paused. “But I will unless you heed my words.” An unknown force led her and flashes of Zepar took over. He was quick to turn his back on people, but that had to end. “If I save your life, you make me a promise, right here, before God himself.”

He stared up and her, and then into the light. “What do you want?” Agony laced his voice. “I’ll do anything. I don’t want to die.”

“You belong to all of us now. Do you understand that, Zepar? You can never betray a single person’s blood that will run through your veins. If you do, God will see your sins. Your evil will be minimal with your collector. Not enough to take away your position as master, but it will change you. From him, you will face your consequences if you turn away from us. I give him that right.”

Zepar looked toward his brother. He paused, but nodded. “I accept.” His body jerked as another round of pain took over. “Do it!”

Stinging raced across her arm as Jason got to her. One by one, Jason lifted Zepar to their wounds. He drank as if his life depended on it, and it did. Marcella knew in the pit of her stomach that this was going to work. Their blood was unstoppable. Once Zepar changed over, and Samael and Donavon took their turns, together, they’d be the finger of God.

The emotions that rushed through Samael were indefinable. He couldn’t believe his brother had submitted to Marcella’s demands. Zepar was his father’s most loyal servant. Now where would he stand? Would he be able to pretend like none of this had happened? He wasn’t sure if this was good or not. Sure, it was great to have Zepar be a part of them, but if he so much as screwed up on either side, he was fucked. Samael didn’t envy his life for a second.

A bright light flashed throughout the room, and Jason’s head slowly lifted. His brother had taken a good half hour to give into death, but once he did, the process went pretty fast. The wind immediately died down, and he watched Marcella collapse into Dom and Ambrose’s arms. Samael rushed through the circle, glad the ritual was finally over.

“Marcella,” he scooped her into his arms. “I can’t believe you did that.” The wound on her arm was already healed, but blood covered her shirt and jeans. He held her tightly to his body. “You know when you mix yourself in the ritual how draining it is on you. Fighting the wind for so long was more than you should have put yourself though.”

“Our son’s life depended on Zepar being alive. It had to be done, Samael.”

Time stopped as he looked into her eyes. Could it be true? Just imagining himself being a father to a boy that would lead in his passing, was all he’d ever wanted, and everything he never thought he’d have. A daughter would have been a blessing, but a boy. “My son,” he whispered. “How do you…”

“Ambrose.” She smiled. “He told me.”

His gaze connected with the collector. Ambrose smiled, knowing he’d just found out. “Thank you,” he mouthed to the former vampire.

Tattoos began to race down Zepar’s arms, but Samael continued to stare at Marcella. Love overwhelmed his heart. There was so much he wanted to say, and nothing that he would have been able to express. She needed to know of his love, his commitment to her and their child. He just wasn’t sure where to start, or what he could do to prove the amount of his devotion. Nothing seemed like enough.

“Let’s go see our new collector.”

Samael didn’t want this moment to end. Reluctantly, he put her down and let her pull him to his brother. Zepar stared at his arms in amazement. “If I had known this was possible, I would have bowed before you long ago.” He looked up at Marcy. Everything about his aura was different. So much pureness pulsed from him that it scared Samael. God, he hoped while his brother was in demon master form that this much good didn’t radiate through him, or else they were all in trouble.

“I’ve never felt so…” He looked down, puzzled.

“Good,” Marcella suggested.

“Is that what it is?” Zepar laughed. “I guess it’s not so bad.” He fell back and rested his hand over his heart. “I think I could get used to this.”