Red Moon (16 page)

“Fine.”  She smiled shakily at her and then squeezed
Marshall’s waist.  “Thank you.”

He nodded.  “I’m going to speak to Tristan about this
right now.”

She shook her head and looked at him frantically.  “No,
do not Marshall.  I beg you.”

He frowned.  “Avery, he needs to know about this.”

“No he does not.”  She gave him a pleading look.
 “Please, Marshall.  Do not say a word to him about this.  It
will not end well - you know it will not.”

He glanced at Maya who gave him a small nod.  He
grimaced.  “I do not like this.”

Avery looked at him solemnly.  “Hendrick was drunk and
just being stupid.  I will stay away from him until he leaves Tristan’s
home.”

Avery took the pan of dirty water out the back door of the
kitchen.  She carried it a few feet away from the door and threw it onto
the frozen ground.  She stared up at the dark sky.  The stars were
out, shining brightly and the nearly-full moon was large in the sky.  She
turned around to go back in the house and gave a soft shriek of surprise. 
Tristan was standing in front of her, staring silently at her.

“My lord?”  She hesitated.  It had been three days
since the party and she had hardly seen him and had not spoken to him at
all.  There was something off about him.  He looked bigger and
stronger, his shirt sleeves were straining at his arms, and his usual dark
scruff was nearly a full beard.

She took a step towards him.  “Tristan?” 

She placed her hand on his arm, and let out another soft
shriek when he whirled her around and shoved her against the side of the
house.  He put his hands on either side of her head and leaned in until he
was almost, but not quite, touching her.  He dipped his head and inhaled
deeply.

“I can smell how much you want me, Avery.”  His voice
was deeper and rougher than usual and she shivered a little.

“Tristan, what’s wrong?”

He lifted his head and stared at her.  “The moon will
be full tomorrow.”  He said hoarsely.

She stared at him curiously.  The last full moon had
been during his trip to his mother’s.  She had questioned Maya about it
and Maya had shrugged.  “They didn’t seem much different to me,
honestly.  Marshall didn’t touch me at all, would not even hold my hand,
and both he and Lord Tristan seemed more restless but that was all.”

Maya had frowned, thinking back.  “They kept Sophia
away from me all day, I know they were working on teaching her how to control
the shift, and that evening they took her and Tristan’s mother and went
hunting.  They did not come back until the morning, and then all of them
slept the entire day.  Later, Marshall said that although he would never
hurt me during the full moon, Lycans who lived with humans always stay away
from them during the night of the full moon - just to be on the safe side.”

Now, she reached out and touched his shoulder timidly. 
“Do you – are you feeling okay?”

He grinned at her and she leaned back against the wall, a
little alarmed by his grin.  “I feel perfectly fine, girl.”

He stretched and she heard his spine crack loudly. 
“You smell so good to me, Avery.”

“My lord, should you be out here with me?”  She kept
her voice calm.

“Probably not.”  He stared hungrily at her. 
“Especially since what I really want is to bury my cock in you.”

Her stomach gave a nearly painful throb of desire and she
trembled visibly.  “Tristan, do not say that to me.”

“What?”  He dipped his head and kissed her neck. 
“Should I not tell you how I lay awake at night thinking about your
breasts?  About how perfectly they fit in my hands, and how much I enjoy
sucking on your nipples?”

“Tristan.”  She moaned.  Her hands twisted in her
skirt as she fought to keep from touching him.

“Should I not tell you how I lie in my bed each night and
think of reasons to have you sent to my room so that I can fuck you?  How
every time I close my eyes all I can see is your tight pussy sliding down my
cock?”

He kissed her neck again, growling softly, and then cupped
her breast in his hand.  She moaned and arched her back; her hands grabbed
his arms and squeezed tightly as he suddenly angled his mouth over hers and
kissed her hard.  She opened her mouth and let his tongue slide between her
lips, mewling softly as they kissed.

With a sudden groan, he pulled away from her.  He
stared at her, panting harshly as she leaned against the house, her legs
shaking madly.

“I’m sorry, Avery.”  He rasped.  “I should not
have done that.”

She nodded and took a few deep breaths, trying to slow her
racing, thudding pulse.

“Tomorrow is the full moon.  Go to your room now and do
not leave it until we go hunting tomorrow night.  Do you hear me, girl?”

“Mrs. Lanning will not – “

“I will speak with Mrs. Lanning.  Stay in your room for
the day.”  He said harshly.

“Tristan, I do not understand why.”  She gave him a
confused look.  “You said before that you could control the shift, even
during the full moon.”

His nostrils flared and he stepped closer to her again.
 “That was before you denied me the pleasure of fucking you.”

She swallowed hard as he gripped the back of her neck and
leaned his forehead against hers.  “Go to your room and stay there until
we have gone hunting.”  He gave her a pleading look.  “Promise me –
please girl.”

She nodded and a look of relief crossed his face. 
“Thank the gods.” 

He hesitated and then kissed her again, his lips cold but
his mouth warm as he licked at the inside of her mouth.  He squeezed her
breast roughly and then pushed away from her, standing with his back to
her.  “Go, girl.  Now, before I change my mind about fucking you.”

Avery turned and bolted into the house.

* * *

The wolves had worked together quickly to take down the
frightened deer.  The smallest one sniffed curiously at the dead deer as
the large grey wolf grinned and panted at her.  He nudged her towards the
throat as the others joined her.  They began to tear into the flesh of the
deer, growling and snarling as they fed.

The wolf stepped forward to join them and then hesitated. 
He turned and lifted his large head to the sky, staring rapturously at the full
moon as he inhaled deeply.  He caught a scent in the air, one that raised
his hackles and forced a low growl from his throat.  He turned and slunk
into the darkness of the forest, not noticing when the small, cream coloured
wolf left the deer and followed him.

* * *

“Gods be damned.  I hate that woman.  This is
ridiculous.”  Avery grumbled to herself as she picked her way carefully
through the trees.  Once the Lycans had left to hunt, she had left her
room and began to help the others with dinner.  Mrs. Lanning had sent her
out after dinner to pick berries.  She had heard that Victoria favoured
the berries, which were ready to be picked only when the weather had turned cold,
and she had chosen Avery to leave the warmth of the house and search for them.

She hadn’t even bothered to protest and ask to wait for the
morning.  Mrs. Lanning had been in a mood for days and a part of her was
glad to leave the house.

The night was cold and she could see her breath as she
walked deeper into the forest that surrounded Tristan’s home.  The full
moon was huge in the sky, so bright that even through the trees it provided
enough light for her to see easily. 

She glanced up at it, wondered briefly if Tristan was still
hunting, and then shook her head with disgust.  Of course he was still
hunting.  They wouldn’t be back until the morning.  She stumbled over
a root, nearly falling flat on her face, and she forced herself to pay
attention to her surroundings.  The sooner she could find the berries, the
sooner she would be back in the warm house.

She squinted through the trees, searching for the bushes
that Laura had described to her.  Concentrating, she didn’t notice the man
until she was almost upon him. 

“Good evening, child.”

She looked up, stumbling back and screaming breathlessly.

He held up his hands and smiled encouragingly at her.
 “I’m sorry, child.  I did not mean to frighten you.”

She took a deep breath, waiting for her runaway heartbeat to
slow down as the man took a step towards her.

“Tell me, child.  Do you live in the house that sits
just on the edge of the forest?”

She took a step back, her brow furrowing a little. 
There was something off about the man.  He was dressed in a suit, his long
hair braided neatly and she stared curiously at his hands.  They were pale
and his fingers were slender with long nails.

“Why do you ask?”  She took a second step back as he
moved closer.

He shrugged, smiling easily at her.  “I am lost and
hungry and seek shelter for the evening.  Perhaps you could take me to
your home and offer me solace?”

“It is not my home to offer.”  She said shortly.
 The hairs on the back of her neck were trying to stand up and her pulse,
which had returned to a normal pace after her scare, was speeding up again
sending the blood pulsing through her veins.

“That is sorry news indeed.  I am very, very
hungry.”  He suddenly grinned at her and she reeled back at the sight of
his long, sharp fangs shining in the moonlight.

“Leech!”  She hissed at him and turned to run.

Before she had taken more than two steps he was on her,
pushing her back against a tree and pinning her there with a terrible, inhuman
strength.

He sniffed her neck delicately and frowned.  “I smell
Lycan on you, child.  It is offensive.”

“Get off of me!”  She pushed at his body, fear
threading through her when it was like pushing against a rock.

“Of course, it is not so offensive that I won’t drain you.”
 He grinned.  “I am so terribly hungry.”

She opened her mouth to scream as he lowered his face to her
neck but he clapped one strong, cold hand over her mouth.  She screamed
against his palm as he sunk his fangs into her throat and began to drink. 
He suckled loudly at her neck as she kicked and struggled.

He released her neck with a loud pop and she stared
terrified at him as he licked her blood from his lips.  “You taste
delicious, my child.  Perhaps it’s because you’re a Red?”

He leaned in but before he could latch on to her neck once
more, there was a loud snarling and the vampire was torn away from her. 
She sunk to the ground, staring with wide eyes at the large grey wolf that was
standing protectively in front of her.

The vampire climbed unsteadily to his feet and hissed at the
wolf.  “Lycan!  Leave now and no harm will come to you.”

The wolf howled loudly and Avery clapped her hands over her
ears, wincing.

The vampire licked his lips nervously, glancing quickly at
Avery, before turning back to the Lycan.  “It is only one human.”  He
said plaintively.  “Give her to me and I’ll feed quickly and leave your
land.  Do we have a deal?”

The wolf crouched low to the ground and bared its teeth in
response.  Avery watched in horror as Tristan launched his body at the
vampire.  The vampire flew across the ground and grabbed the wolf’s rough
pelt.  He threw Tristan into a tree, and she screamed as he collapsed on
the ground in front of it.  The wolf howled with pain and anger and leaped
to his feet.  With a loud snarl he dove onto the vampire and pinned him to
the ground.  The vampire screeched as Tristan bit deep into its
throat.  With another loud snarl, he ripped the head of the vampire from
its body. As the vampire’s body and head burst into ash, Tristan raised his
snout to the sky and howled piercingly.

Avery closed her eyes as tears slipped down her
cheeks.  There was a soft popping and then Tristan was crouching beside
her.  He cupped her face and she opened her eyes and smiled weakly at him.

“Shh, my love.  You’re safe now.”  He tugged her
to her feet and she rested against the tree, staring silently at him.  He
wiped the tears from her cheeks and turned her head to the right and then to
the left.  He frowned at the blood-ringed holes in her neck and surprised
her by dipping his head and licking the blood away.

He shivered with delight at the taste of her blood before
staring solemnly at her.  “How do you feel?”

“Okay.  Are you hurt?”  She tried to smile at him
but it came out more as a grimace. 

He shook his head and then kissed her, softly at first, but
it quickly turned into something else.  She kissed him back, wrapping her
arms around him and stroking his naked back as he pressed her up against the
tree.

He pulled his mouth away and checked her neck, frowning when
he saw that the holes from the vampire’s fangs were still there.

“You’re not healing.”

“I will.”  She murmured.  Tristan was staring at
her with that same hungry look from last night and despite the fear still
running through her from the leech attack, she could feel the slow cycle of
heat starting in her belly.

“My lord, I should not be around you right now.”  She
whispered weakly.

“Perhaps not.”  He replied.  He ran his hand down
her body and grasped her dress in his hand.  He pulled the edge of it up,
pushing his hand underneath it and trailing his fingers along her smooth
thigh.  She stared wide-eyed at him as he stroked the front of her thighs.

“Open your legs.”  He demanded.

“Tristan, you told me to stay away from you.”  She protested.

“Open them.”  He worked his fingers between her thighs
and pushed.  She opened her legs and moaned when he immediately began to
rub her clit. 

He kissed her hard on the mouth, his tongue pushing between
her lips and stroking hers while he shoved one hard thigh between hers and
forced her legs open further.

“You taste so good, my love.”  He whispered against her
mouth.  “You smell good; you feel good.”  He wound his fingers
through her hair and yanked her head back.  He kissed her throat, licking
and sucking gently before he moved his hand and easily slid two fingers into
her warm wetness.  She cried out, her hands digging into his back, and he
grinned at her.

“I love how quickly I can make you ready for my cock.”
 He whispered as he buried his face in her throat and inhaled
deeply.  He pushed her dress up around her waist, and she whimpered as the
cold air washed over her naked skin.  Before she could start to shiver,
his body was covering hers and he was raising her thigh around his hip.

He entered her with one smooth motion, both of them groaning
in unison as he filled her completely.  He began to fuck her with long,
slow movements, watching her face as she panted and moaned.