Perilous Partnership (47 page)

Alain glanced at Constance, who nodded her approval. “I‟ll come by and check on you in a couple of days. Call me if you need anything before then.”

Jean nodded, and Alain cast the displacement spell, sending them to the landing outside Jean‟s apartment.

“The first thing I‟m doing when I‟m well enough is fixing these wards,”

Raymond grumbled as Jean unlocked the door and helped him inside.

“You‟ve been saying that for a year,” Jean laughed.

“This time I mean it,” Raymond said, leaning on Jean as they walked inside to the couch. He sat down, careful of his injured arm, and sighed deeply. “Mon Dieu, it‟s good to be home.”

Jean kissed Raymond‟s forehead. “It‟s good to have you home. Do you need anything? A blanket? Something to eat? To put your feet up? I don‟t want you to overdo it and end up back in the hospital.”

“I‟d like a bath,” Raymond said. “I smell like antiseptic, and I feel like I have at least a centimeter of dirt caked on my skin from where the wall fell on me. And then, yes, something to eat would be nice.”

Jean hurried to help him into the bathroom, determined to do everything he could to make the transition home and Raymond‟s recovery as smooth as possible.

260

Ariel Tachna

“JEAN, knock it off,” Raymond said, summoning a glare for his lover. He had been home for twenty-four hours, and Jean had not stopped hovering yet. “All I need now is for you to sit down next to me and hold me close. I‟ve missed being in your arms.”

Jean hesitated a moment before settling on the couch next to Raymond and cradling him tenderly in his embrace.

Raymond hummed happily, resting his head against Jean‟s shoulder. “Tell me what happens now,” he said.

“What do you mean? You rest and get well.”

Raymond lifted his head, meeting Jean‟s eyes. “With the Aveu de Sang.

I‟ve been around vampires long enough to know there‟s a ritual of some sort surrounding it. Tell me what will happen.”

Jean closed his eyes. “That‟s up to us. There‟s a ritual that‟s usually followed, but the Aveu de Sang is usually a somewhat public affair, in the sense that there are witnesses and that sort of thing. We don‟t have to abide by that ritual because our Aveu de Sang is only for us.”

“If you want that ritual, we could ask Alain and Orlando to be our witnesses,” Raymond offered. “They already know, and they‟ll keep our secret.”

“The magic that creates the bond will be no more or less powerful because of the ritual. Just look at Orlando and Alain. I doubt Orlando even knew there was a ritual. He certainly didn‟t follow it,” Jean replied. “I don‟t need it.”

“I don‟t need witnesses, but I want as much of the ritual as we can manage with just the two of us here,” Raymond insisted. “Rituals are important. If one exists, it exists for a reason, even if only to impress on the people involved the seriousness of what they‟re doing.”

“We need to decide what I‟ll use to mark you and where we‟ll do it,” Jean said. “The location usually isn‟t in question, but since we want ours to be private, it can‟t be on your neck.”

“On my back,” Raymond said immediately. “Cover the mark of my shame with the mark of my joy.”

“There is no shame in your scar,” Jean insisted, though he knew he would never convince Raymond of that.

“Then cover the mark of my past with the mark of my future,” Raymond said. “Either way, that‟s where I want it.”

“That takes care of half of the question.”

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“What do vampires usually use to mark their Avoués?” Raymond asked.

“It varies from vampire to vampire, but it‟s usually something that will leave a mark others will recognize, not simply as the mark of an Aveu de Sang, but whose mark,” Jean replied. “Orlando used the signet ring he took from his maker after Thurloe was destroyed.”

Raymond considered. “Your medallion,” he proposed. “If ever a symbol defined you, that would be it. The mark of your rank, the very thing that brought us together. If anyone does see it at some point, they will recognize immediately whose Avoué I am, but more than that, it is the symbol that defines our relationship.”

“Are you sure?” Jean asked. “The medallion is not small. It‟s a good ten centimeters across. That‟s going to leave a painful burn.”

“The size doesn‟t matter,” Raymond insisted. “Symbolism is important in rituals. Can you think of something you could use that would represent you as well?”

Jean had to admit he could not.

“Then get the medallion. We‟ve waited too long to do this already.”

Jean shook his head. “Come into the bedroom. Location is as important to a ritual as the words or symbols. Where better to consecrate our relationship than in the bed where we regularly make love?”

“And will we be making love there again soon?” Raymond said with a grin.

“Most certainly,” Jean replied, “just as soon as you are mine.”

Raymond‟s grin broadened. “Is that part of the ritual?”

“Actually, it is. Once the brand is done, the witnesses leave the newly bonded pair alone and guard the door while the vampire feeds,” Jean explained.

“As you can guess, that inevitably leads to making love.”

Raymond rose to his feet, taking a moment to ensure his balance before starting toward the bedroom. “Then let‟s go.”

“Can you get undressed by yourself?” Jean asked Raymond.

“I can get the buttons undone, but I‟m not sure I can get my shirt off over the cast without help,” Raymond admitted.

Jean helped Raymond ease his shirt off his injured arm. “Can you do the rest while I gather a few things we‟ll need for the ritual?” Jean asked.

“Are all Avoués naked when they‟re marked?” Raymond teased.

“Yes,” Jean said, “to make sure there is no deceit. If you had your shirt on, no one would know if you already bore my mark. While I know you would never do that, part of the ritual is for one of the witnesses to proclaim the future Avoué unmarked.”

262

Ariel Tachna

Raymond shrugged, toeing off his shoes and removing his trousers. “It‟s a good thing we won‟t have witnesses then, since I‟m not unmarked.”

“It‟s not the same,” Jean replied immediately, stopping Raymond‟s undressing and pulling the wizard into his arms. “Serrier only marked your body, and it was a surface mark. The magic of the Aveu de Sang will mark both our souls.”

“And does someone verify that the vampire is similarly unattached?”

Raymond asked.

“The magic of the Aveu de Sang only works once,” Jean reminded Raymond. “A vampire cannot complete the ritual if he or she has already had an Avoué, living or dead. I‟ll be right back.”

Raymond sat on the bed in the soft light filtering through the closed volets and wondered if perhaps he was making a mistake becoming so embroiled in such a ritual-bound society, but he reminded himself that Jean had broken precedent after precedent to have Raymond at his side. Their Aveu de Sang would not bind him to anything except Jean because no one else would know about it. Jean returned a few moments later with a handful of candles that he lit and set at strategic places around the room.

Always sensitive to the ambient magic in his surroundings, Raymond felt the shift as soon as the last candle was lit. Stepping outside the circle, Jean undressed as well and hung the medallion that proclaimed his rank around his neck. “Normally the person presiding over the ritual would ask who brought the Avoué to be claimed,” Jean said.

“Raymond Payet,” Raymond replied immediately. “I bring myself to this place for this ritual with the full and honest intention of joining my life to yours for the rest of my time on this earth.”

Jean swallowed down the lump in his throat. “Then the presider would ask who intended to claim this man.”

“Who would bind with me?” Raymond asked, adapting the words to the absence of officiant or witnesses.

“I would,” Jean said, stepping inside the circle. Raymond‟s breath caught as he felt the surge in power. “Then the officiant would ask the witnesses to confirm that the future Avoué was unmarked.”

Raymond stood and turned slowly, so that Jean‟s gaze could caress every inch of his body, verifying that the only marks on Raymond‟s body were those left by Jean‟s fangs other than the scar on his back. “I bear no claim but yours. I want no marks but yours.”

Jean lifted the medallion over his head, starting toward the candles.

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“Put it on my back,” Raymond said. “I can heat it far hotter, far more quickly than you can with a candle.”

Jean hesitated for a moment before acceding to Raymond‟s request, centering the medallion over the scar that paralleled Raymond‟s spine. “When you‟re ready.”

With unsteady hands, Raymond picked up his wand, pointing it over his back. “Chauffez.”

The metal glowed white-hot, the smell of searing flesh assaulting their noses. Jean held the medallion for as long as he could, feeling the magic of the Aveu de Sang slam into place. The moment it did, he let the metal circle fall from his hand, drawing Raymond into his arms. “With this brand, I claim you as my Avoué. I bind myself to you for as long as you live. Let no one challenge our bond.”

The pain was intense, different from when Serrier had marked Raymond‟s back. His eyes watered, every nerve in his body shouting in protest, but he pushed the pain aside, seeking the awareness Alain had promised would be there. It took a moment, but then he felt the unfamiliar presence in his mind, not an invasion as he had feared, but a companion. “It worked.”

264

Ariel Tachna

“I KNOW,” Jean said, turning Raymond in his arms. “I can feel you.” He touched his hand to his heart. “Here.”

Raymond smiled, sliding his good arm around Jean‟s waist and pulling the vampire‟s hips closer to his. “There‟s somewhere else I want to feel you,” he said huskily.

“And where is that?” Jean teased, rubbing his groin against Raymond‟s, feeling the beginning of his lover‟s erection.

“Inside me.”

Jean groaned. “Don‟t tempt me. I can‟t very well tumble you onto your back right now.”

Raymond trembled at the bolt of desire he felt through the fledgling bond.

“You just bonded with a wizard, remember?” he said with a grin. Bending to pick up his wand, he pointed it down his back. “Soulagez.” The spell was not as effective as if someone else had cast it for him, but it worked well enough.

“Now you can tumble me onto my back.”

Jean almost asked if Raymond was sure, but he realized with a jolt of surprise and pleasure that he did not need to. He could feel the decrease in pain and the increase in anticipation humming through their bond. He backed Raymond toward the bed, stopping when the wizard‟s back—the unmarked side—hit the post of the bed frame.

“I will certainly take advantage of that,” Jean promised, “but not yet.” He kissed his way down Raymond‟s neck and across his collarbone, lingering on every bruise and scrape that marred his wizard‟s skin. They would heal; he just had to remind himself of that frequently, since the sight of them also reminded him of how close he had come to losing his lover forever. Working his way lower, he licked at the already tightening nipples, feeling Raymond‟s reaction through their bond.

“Bite me,” Raymond begged, arching his back in offering.

“I will,” Jean promised, sucking on one taut peak before moving to the other, “but once I start, I won‟t be able to stop, and I have other things I want to do with my mouth first before I start biting you.”

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Raymond moaned in delight as Jean paid homage to his nipples. He had always been exquisitely sensitive there, but every sensation seemed heightened now. Perhaps it was the Aveu de Sang; perhaps it was the length of time since they had last made love and everything else that had happened in that time.

Whatever it was, Raymond hoped it would not fade anytime soon.

With one last lick to each pink bud, Jean worked his way down Raymond‟s abdomen, tracing the lines of muscle on the body that looked like it belonged to an athlete rather than a researcher. The marks there were more on the order of healing bites, bringing a smile to Jean‟s face as he kissed each one. He would open them again or leave others, but not yet. Not when he could smell the musky fluid leaking from the tip of Raymond‟s cock.

Raymond‟s good hand tangled in his hair, pushing him lower. Jean went willingly enough, but he dodged his lover‟s intended target, nuzzling the curls around the base of Raymond‟s cock and the iliac crease that tempted him so fully. Unable to resist, he bit lightly into the fold, the flavor of Raymond‟s love and lust exploding onto his tongue. He did not doubt what he was feeling through their bond, but he had a millennium of experience decorticating the flavor of a lover‟s blood and only a few minutes with the bond.

Drawing his fangs back up had never been so easy. He wanted to take Raymond in his mouth; his fangs would hurt his lover. Those two thoughts were all it took, rather than the force of will it had always required before if he let his fangs drop too soon. He took his time licking his way up the long shaft, starting at the base and making his way to the mushroomed tip that peeked out of its foreskin. Closing his lips around the flap of skin, he pushed it down, revealing the sensitive glans.