Deadly Desires (23 page)

“Marcella!” After a few seconds his eyes spotted her and he rushed over. Zepar caught sight of his brother and headed for him. “What the hell is going on?” A piece of cement crashed into the wall as Samael removed it from one of the injured bodies of the men plotting to kill her.

The explanation got caught in her throat. Ambrose didn’t mind taking over. “They were up to something. Ben came over to inform us that they’d been acting strange since they got here and we looked up and Marcella was walking toward them. I only saw the knife flying toward her for a split second before…” He trailed off, looking at the destruction.

“You did that,” Jason whispered to her.

“Yes. I was only trying to shield myself, but I guess I didn’t realize how powerful I have become. If they hadn’t been alone”—she shook her head—”I could have hurt someone more than them.”

Deep voices coming from Samael and Zepar pulled her attention. They held the man who’d thrown the knife a good two feet from the ground. His legs kicked as he fought them. A dark mist began to swirl around the brothers and Marcella stepped forward.

Their voices got louder as they increased the speed of their chant. Suddenly, the sword in Samael’s hand drove forward and the man was gone. A ragged breath came from her mouth and Marcella’s hand flew to her lips.

“They just sent him to hell,” Jason said, just as surprised as her. “Holy shit.” He looked at her and Ambrose. “Remind me not to piss them off.”

As they pulled up one of the other men, she turned and headed for her stairs. She couldn’t watch this. Her son kicked in her stomach and she held to where he’d made the contact. The crowd separated and Nayla stopped her and kissed her forehead. “They deserved this. No one will try to hurt you while we’re here. We won’t let them.”

She gave the vampire a tender smile and returned the kiss. “Thank you, Nayla.” Ambrose’s hand locked around hers and she peered up at him. “I have to go lie down.” Jason took her other arm and they were suddenly next to her bed. The formal dress she wore vanished and she put on her nightgown. The day was still young, but the power she’d used had drained her. If she was going to meet with the fey she needed rest. Lots and lots of it.

* * * *

Samael looked at his brother and shook his head, angrily. “What’s coming to them isn’t nearly enough.”

“Was smart of you to silence them eternally,” Zepar said, looking at him evilly. “They’ll never be able to blow our cover now.” They were both still in demon form. Standing there together, Samael could feel how their energy radiated out. Their evil auras had never been this thick before. He let the collector take over, noticing that people were staring. Zepar quickly changed over with him, too.

Marcella was nowhere to be seen. He scanned the crowd and leaped down off the broken foundation. With his hand he smoothed out the concrete and made everything appear as it had before Marcella had blown a hole in the flooring. “Everything’s okay,” he announced to the people standing there in shock. Lord only knew what they thought about the dose of power their queen had displayed. If anything, it’d shown them she was fully capable of protecting their souls.

“To Marcella’s room,” he told his brother, just as he disappeared. Ambrose was sitting on the edge of her bed while Jason paced. Samael rushed forward and lowered himself next to his queen. “Marcy, love, look at me.”

Slowly she opened her eyes, and he rubbed the hair back from her face. “Are they all gone?”

“Yes. You won’t have to worry about any of them again. I promise.”

Tears came to her eyes. “I could have hurt someone innocent. My gifts are too much. I should have listened to the priestess a long time ago and started making them my own. Now they’re out of control.” She yawned. “And exhausting.”

A grin came to his mouth. “You should rest while you can. We can go down somewhere to work on your gifts later if you want.”

“I’d like that.” Her eyes narrowed. “But I wouldn’t know where to go. When the High Priestess mentioned it before, my first thought was that I could practice in the dungeon.” She paused. “But I would tear this whole fortress apart.”

“I think you’re right.” Samael laughed. “Don’t worry.” He kissed her forehead. “I have the perfect place. You can wreak all the havoc you want and not a single soul will know it.”

“Really?” He could see she was getting excited. “Yes. Now get some sleep. You have quite the day ahead of you. Donavon and Dominic should be back soon, and I think us men should all have a meeting. I’ll have Ben and Nayla come up here with you as protection. Sound all right?”

A smile came to her face and stayed there, even as her eyes shut. “Sounds great.”

“Good.” He couldn’t help but nuzzle her neck. The smell of her skin comforted him, and he pushed himself to break away before he crawled in the bed with her and never got out. He motioned for the men to head to the balcony so she could be in peace without their voices disturbing her.

A chill whipped through the air. Winter in South Texas was in full swing. It had to be in the low forties and was still supposed to drop to the midtwenties by tonight. Samael felt the wind rush through his hair and he groaned. He was getting tired of it blowing in his face lately. Zepar lit a cigarette and Samael really studied his features. They looked a lot alike. Would Samael resemble him even more if he cut his hair, or would it actually set them apart?

Roughness greeted his hand while he trailed it over his cheek. Yeah, it was definitely time for a change. The door shut behind Ambrose and the vampire wrapped his jacket around him tighter. After Samael was sure Marcella couldn’t hear them, he started. “What happened in there should be a lesson learned. It’s dangerous to have people in here when their souls have yet to belong to any collector in the house. Donavon was responsible for them, but he has work to do. He can’t watch over everyone and still go out and recruit more. It’s up to us to keep our eyes peeled. Whenever Marcella is not in her room I want her watched at all times. If there are too many people and you’re having a hard time keeping your eye on everyone, project your own shield around her. Whatever you have to do to keep her safe.”

“I still can’t believe they’d actually try to kill her, surrounded by so many of her followers. Even if they would have succeeded, didn’t they know we all would have torn them apart?” The hoodie Jason made appear around him shadowed his face in the dim grayness.

Ambrose shook his head. “The motive wasn’t to kill her. It was the baby they were after. I felt it the moment I zeroed in on the weapon. The traces of energy coming from the knife still had remnants on it from the man who threw it.”

Ice water rushed through Samael’s veins. “The knife was rather low when I saw it coming toward her. I had that impression, too.” Pressure pushed against his chest and he couldn’t stand the thought of how close they’d come to losing his son. If Marcella hadn’t reacted as fast as she had, things could have turned out different.

“This goes higher than the man who threw the knife,” Ambrose said, quietly. “Those three were working with someone. The question is, who? We need Donavon to really watch who they bring in. We can’t afford for this to happen again.”

“I’d like to know who it was.” Samael felt the heat engulf his upper body from his anger. It got in his suit and was confined by the half trench coat he wore. He was still dressed from the meeting, and now due to the concrete Marcella had destroyed, he was covered in dust. For some reason he was uncomfortable in his own skin. It wasn’t just the hair, or the need to shave. It was deep within him. He couldn’t wait until his son was here. Or he could at least see him and know he was okay. “All right, I’m off to wash up. I’ll be down in twenty minutes. Keep your eyes open for Dom and Donavon to come back. Let them know we’re having a meeting, and to not go anywhere.”

The men nodded and he headed toward his room. Lights turned on at his command and he stripped off his clothes. He walked to the restroom and stared at the big mirror. Now, what could he do with himself? Although he hated change, this was a long time coming. There was no more hiding what or who he looked like.

“Marcella, my queen.” The soft caress stroking down Marcella’s face had her eyes fluttering open. It took a few seconds for her to figure out why Nayla was waking her up. The blonde vampire’s green eyes were but inches away. She was lying down right next to her. “The fey are coming. I can sense their presence not far away.”

“Oh. Right.” Aching settled in her hips and Marcella groaned as she scooted off the bed. She walked to the restroom and started brushing her teeth. As she focused on getting the taste out of her mouth, her hand started moving in its usual routine. Every time she woke up she always made some of her special tea. It’d taken a while to get the ingredients down right, but she’d drunk it enough to replicate the flavor perfectly.

Her door opened and she washed out the toothbrush and made it disappear. A light blue formal gown appeared on her body and she loved the way the color looked against her skin. At the crown settling into place, her outfit was complete. She’d only just picked up her cup when Marcella turned and caught sight of broad shoulders in a suit, and dark hair.

Samael faced her and the tea almost fell to the floor. He looked so much like his father that she had to blink a few times to convince herself that she was mistaken. She walked into the room to get a closer look.

God, he was so heartbreakingly beautiful that it took her breath away. His hand reached up and ran through his clean cut, eye-level hair. The day’s growth that she’d come to know him by was completely gone. He was clean shaven and looked ten years younger. The transformation was shocking. “Do you like it? You seem…unsure.”

Marcella opened her mouth and closed it. She swallowed hard and looked as her men and Zepar appeared behind him. “I love it. It’s just unexpected. You’re—”

“Fucking hot,” Nayla said from across the room. They all glanced at her. “What? Take that as the deepest compliment I could give. I like girls. I don’t ever find guys attractive. But Samael…wow.” She started fanning herself. The pink on her cheeks was a clear indication that she wasn’t lying. Her body was really reacting to him. “I should go.” She practically ran from the room and Ben followed.

“What Nayla said.” Marcella laughed. “Seriously, you look unbelievably…amazing. Like one of those guys you only see in magazines. If the fey weren’t almost here I think I’d ravage you.”

“Mmm.” He walked up and placed a kiss on her lips. The men laughed behind them. She loved how they were so close these days.

Marcella took a drink of her tea and studied all of them. They appeared as though they were waiting for something, but she had to be imagining it. She focused back on Samael. “So what brought on this change?”

He shrugged. “I just needed something new I guess. I’m glad you like it. I wasn’t sure if you would. I know I look a lot like my father. It can’t be easy for you.” His eyes looked pained, and Marcella couldn’t help but want to set him at ease.

“It’s not your father I see when I look at you.”

“What is it then?”

She took his hand. “I see the father of my child. The man who I was made for.” Her heart began pounding. “A man I love dearly.”

The tea was lifted from her hand, and Samael laid it on the dresser. “That kind of goes along the lines of why I wanted to talk to you. I know it’s probably a lost cause to ask, but I can’t help it. I’ve wanted to do this now for months. The way it should have been done from the beginning.”

Slowly, he lowered to one knee and grabbed both of her hands. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked down at him. “Marcella, I love you more than anything in this world. My will to live is only because of you. The day you disappeared from my life, I died every day after that. It wasn’t until you were back that I knew I’d never be able to lose you again.”

We’re meant for each other, and yes, we could spend the rest of our lives just the way we are and I’d be more than happy. But my heart only beats for you and our child, and there’s nothing more that I want than to be able to call you my wife again. Please say you’ll give me a second chance as your husband.” He paused. “Marry me.”

Tears streamed down her cheeks and her eyes lifted to her men and Zepar. Did they know he was going to do this? From the huge smiles on their faces, she had a feeling they did.

Marcella pulled her hand up to wipe the tears. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you. Again.” She laughed as he stood and held up her ring. As she watched him slide it on her finger, she saw that this one was slightly different, but just as beautiful.

Lips crushed into hers and cheers erupted in the background. Marcella couldn’t stop the waterworks. The moment was perfect with the support of her men there. Samael’s mouth lifted from hers and Jason swept her into his arms. “Nothing could make our family more complete. Well”—he looked down at her stomach—”once Micah is born it’ll be more so, but for right now, this is perfect.”

“Agreed,” Dominic said, walking up. “Congratulations, you two. This is a long time coming. I’m happy the moment is finally here.”

“So you’re all okay with this?” Marcella took turns hugging and kissing her men.

Donavon nodded. “Yeah. We all agree this is meant to be.”

Arms cradled her from behind and Marcella leaned into Samael’s chest. “So, when’s the big day,” Ambrose asked, smiling.