Embrace Me At Dawn (28 page)

“
That’s it,” Bram said. “She’s burning up. Ice, pop back to your cave and bring Sabelle here. I’ll call for Aunt Millie. We may need them both.”

Why would Sabelle and Millie come? The thought confused Anka, but the need to get away from Bram and closer to whomever smelled so luscious wracked her. Sabelle and Millie… insignificant concerns now.

Moments later, Anka was vaguely aware of Ice disappearing, of Shock cursing, of Lucan peering at her with concern marring his brow. And of that musky, male scent teasing her nose and slowly driving her mad. It shoved all else aside.

“
What do you mean, Morganna’s done something to her?” Lucan demanded as the need inside her began blazing so hot, it burned away her senses.

“
Hmm
.” She tried to sniff him. Was he the one she desired? Too many competing scents. Too much searing desire for logic. “Come closer.”

Instead, Bram pushed him away and forced everyone else out of her space. “Anka, how are you feeling?”

“
Don’t touch me.” She flinched. “It hurts.”

Bram held up his hands where she could see them both. “What are you feeling?”

“
Ache.” Stringing two thoughts together hurt terribly, too. “Need help.”

“
Of course.” Bram raised his hands to cup her shoulders. She lurched back before he could touch her, and he lowered them without any contact. “What sort of help do you need?”

“
Please…” To her own ears, desperation laced her pleading voice. “Now.”

“
Of course, love. What do you need?” Lucan murmured softly.

She trembled, the fever raging in her body. Only one thing could ease her now. “Sex.”

~ ~ ~ ~

Her response impacted his chest like a boxer’s blow. The air left his lungs in a
whoosh
. That one word made his heart stutter. And his jaw drop.

Beside him, Marrok coughed to smother his own laugh. Damn if that didn’t rub Lucan the wrong way.

“
This bloody isn’t funny!”

“
I know, mate. Sorry.” Ice tried to keep a straight face. “Her response was so, um…bloody unexpected.”

That was an understatement. In the century he’d been Anka’s mate, Lucan had always known when she wanted his attention. She had little ploys, like wearing a shorter skirt to dinner, or letting the strap of her negligee fall off her shoulder as she sent him a coy glance from their bed. Sometimes she’d simply kissed him until he’d lost all thought. But never had she verbalized her desire, let alone blurted it like that.

Shock growled at him, and Lucan ceased that thought. Bugger, he hated the bastard for being able to read his mind and promptly resumed thinking about another one of his favorite fantasies: Shock chained and gagged, being boiled in acid, his skin falling off slowly, layer by layer, as he screamed in horrific agony.

“
Fuck off.” Shock shook his head, and Lucan was fairly sure if he could see behind those ridiculous sunglasses, there would be some eye rolling as well.

“
None of this is helping her,” Bram snapped at them. “Go now, Ice.”

With a nod, Ice ducked out of the room. A pop and a jolt in the next moment told Lucan that the wizard had gone to collect his mate.

Caden sidled closer, staring at Anka. “What the devil do you suppose is wrong with her?”

“
No idea.”

But there had to be something Morganna had done to make her nearly mindless with this need. He swallowed. No way to deny how badly he wanted to be the one to fill it. And her.

With a meaty, outstretched hand, Shock reached for Lucan’s throat. He ducked out of the way at the last moment, mentally replaying a vision of Shock being decapitated over and over. He rather liked that fantasy, too.

“
Stupid fuckwit,” Shock grumbled, then turned his attention to Anka.

“’
Tis much like what Olivia endured, which led to our mating,” Marrok said. “The fever, the need.”

Bram shook his head. “But quite different, I suspect. Rather than magic forcing the hand of an untransitioned witch trying to glean power from her mate, this is something more sinister. I doubt it’s a coincidence that she’s fallen into this state so shortly after seeing that ancient bitch.” He leaned down, putting himself eye level with Anka. “Talk to me. You saw Morganna, and then what happened?”

She reared back, her face wrinkled with distaste. “You smell…wrong. Go.”

Bram cast Shock a confused stare. The lumbering git clearly had no idea what to think either and shook his head.

“
We’ve got to help her,” Lucan insisted.

“
Is she your responsibility anymore?” Shock bit out. “Last time I looked, she was your
former
mate.”

“
We’re going to argue about this now, when she’s been hit by something we don’t understand that’s hurting her? Maybe we should waste the time to whip out our cocks and compare sizes, too.”

“
Fuck you twice! I don’t need this shit. I don’t need you—any of you. I’m taking Anka home.” Shock scooped her up in his arms, and she looked so delicate against the hulk of leather striding across the room.

“
Wait,” Bram called. “What if she’s not strong enough to make the trip? Sabelle and Millie will better know how to care for her, but we must figure out what’s wrong first. I’ve never bloody seen this. It can’t be a human ailment; we know that. But I’m at a loss—”

“
There’s a first,” Shock sneered. “You’re often clueless. Sabelle and your dotty aunt can’t tell me anything I can’t bloody figure out for myself.” The big wanker turned and looked Lucan in the face. “If she needs sex,
I’ll
give it to her. All she can handle and more.”

Lucan reined back his thoughts on that topic, including the murderous urges making fury spread like fire in his veins. He forced himself to send Shock a placid smile. “She’s a warrior of the Doomsday Brethren, not your mate, either. Not your responsibility. Bram, what do you think is best now?”

In Shock’s embrace, she keened in sharp, howling tones and started pulling at her clothes, scratching and rubbing at her skin.

“
We’ll let Sabelle and Millie look at her when they arrive. Then we’ll decide. For now, Lucan is right. Anka stays here.”

“
You think you’re going to fucking make me leave her in your care?”

Bram cocked his head and looked at Shock like he was a barmy nutter. Then again, he was. “I can restrict your ability to teleport Anka away and kick your stupid arse out of here. Or you can stay and play nicely with the others. What’s it going to be?”

“
Cock-sucking twit.” Shock stiffened, as if he were ready to set Anka down to free his hands up to throw punches. But he didn’t. “She needs me.”

“
That’s very possible,” Bram conceded.

Did that mean Bram meant for Shock to take Anka upstairs, remove her clothes, and— Lucan shut off the thought immediately. The stab of pain that went with it hurt too much to continue that contemplation. Yes, he knew Anka warmed Shock’s bed, but being so near,
hearing
it, would devastate him.

“
Yes, that’s exactly what I mean, you pathetic fuck,” Shock clarified.

Anka cried out again, the sound rife with frustration. She kicked and flailed, grabbing at the buttons on her pants and shoving at her black tank. “Help!”

As she grabbed a handful of her shirt, she scratched her way up her abdomen. Blood seeped up from the open wound, a little pool of crimson against her pale skin. She shoved at one of the straps of her top and ended up scratching a deep path down her arm. Blood quickly ran to her elbow. He was done asking questions or permission. Instead, Lucan lunged forward and grabbed Anka by the wrists.

“
Stop.” He commanded her in a voice that brooked no disagreement.

She stilled instantly, before heartbreaking tears leaked from her eyes, wetting her cheeks. “Help!”

“
I want to, love. What can I do?”

She began panting and twisting her arms, her body flailing helplessly. “Touch. Me.”

Fuck, he wanted to. So badly. He felt Shock’s stare on him, and their gazes connected. As Anka cried more, Shock looked willing to defend his right to Anka, like a dog pissing on a fire hydrant. Lucan swallowed back his bile. Anka came first. The argument could last longer than Anka had, given the severity of the spell affecting her. He would concede to Shock ten times over so that she could live. They could fight another day. A world without Anka? Unthinkable.

He leaned up in Shock’s face. “Take her upstairs. If she needs sex, give it to her. Fix her, whatever it takes.”

“
Damn straight,” Shock snarled, then spun away with a still squirming, screeching Anka, pleading for him. For help. For sex. After his exit, an eerie hush settled over the room.

Bram clapped him on the back. “As hard as that must have been, you made the right choice, mate.”

Absently, he nodded. Logically, yes. Inside, he felt as if he’d signed away his right to Anka forever. Like he’d permanently shoved the sun behind thick gray clouds with his own two hands. Like he’d never know warmth or light or happiness again. But if that’s what it took to keep her alive, he’d endure it. If she died, though… He’d make it his mission in life to hunt Morganna le Fay down and murder the bitch in the most horrific way possible.

Duke and Mason excused themselves under the pretext of following up with the BBC and any local news authorities to see if any word of Morganna’s attack had leaked out. The Wolvesey twins were, for once, somber. They promised to teleport themselves to Swansea and keep watch over the rest of the females. A few had expressed interest in learning to fight physically, in case the Anarki came calling. All the wizards had agreed, and the twins had already spent a bit of time working with the ladies to start them on the basics. Marrok said he would tag along to help.

Caden threw an arm around Lucan’s shoulders. “How about I take you to The Witch’s Brew and get you sloppy drunk for a few hours?”

“
No.”

His brother looked over to Bram, silently begging for a little help. Bram shrugged.

“
Come on, brother,” Caden tried to coax. “You don’t need to stay for this. After a pint or ten, you’ll no longer give a shit about anything.”

“
I’m not leaving her until I know she’s all right.” He swallowed, knowing it would rip him open and tear out what was left of his heart to listen to her give her body to that bastard, to hear her cries of pleasure as Shock took her. But if he gave Anka what she needed to be well again, Lucan was willing to endure any agony, hear every one of her torturous sounds, just to know she’d come back whole.

Bram sighed, then nodded. “Let’s sit. Get comfortable.”

“
And drink.” Caden shoved him to a sofa in Bram’s office then poured a bit of liquid into a crystal glass. It was amber, dark and aglow as the light hit it, like the color of Anka’s eyes when passion overtook her.

And Shock would be seeing that soon. He would be pulling away her clothes, taking her mouth under his, covering her body with his own, then shoving his cock— He couldn’t finish that thought.

Lucan slammed back the alcohol. “Another?”

Caden glanced at Bram, who nodded. Then his brother brought the decanter over and poured another glass full of the booze. Hell, he hadn’t taken the time to taste it. Didn’t know what it was. Didn’t care. Didn’t pause before he swallowed the rest of the glass again without another thought.