The Unmaking (The Rayne Whitmore Series Book 1) Read online

  “So, you’re here to collect on that debt now then?” Selene asks, perturbed. It’s clear that she doesn’t like this vamp.

  “I won’t deny that my motives are not simple, but I will say that through my blood that I shared with that little girl that day became a desire to help protect her. Both of your parents loved you and I want their legacy to live on. If you do not believe my story, you can even ask that friend of Jason’s, his business partner. He will verify that I saved you,” she shrugs.

  “I lost something once too and a little girl’s smile gave me hope again. As I said, I knew your father and I think that he was a good man. You Rayne, have more potential than you know. It’s unusual for one that I’ve given blood to to have a bond with me after so many years. When I felt your power that night, I was confused. Then, I heard Namen Young’s name and knew that you were in danger. I’ve been slowly infiltrating his people for years now, trying to stop him, but I need more help. There are others in other states where he is planning other things that I have allied with working on the inside opposing him. You can’t even begin to know what he’s planning to do and it could ruin us all. Even though he deserves justice for what he’s done to your family, if I help you get stronger, this can no longer be a quest for revenge. Priestess, I will need your assistance too.”

  “So what is it that makes him so unstoppable? What is he trying to do?” I ask.

  “From what I’ve learned, Namen has been working his plan for over fifteen years. He has been building up an army, so that he can overthrow the government.”

  “To what end?” Selene asks. “I mean, we’ve all heard it before, the bad guys want to rule the world, but what’s his end game?”

  “Maybe his end game is the world, but right now, he just wants America, the strongest country militarily and technologically. He wants all of our kind to reveal themselves, to start a new government with us at the top.”

  “And what about normal humans?”

  “They’d have the choice to turn or become slaves.”

  “To turn? I don’t get it.”

  “He has been doing experiments on children, trying to change their DNA. Apparently, he’s had one or two successes.”

  “Okay, stop. Let me get this straight. Namen wants to be high ruler of the U.S. and take over the government so that all supernaturals can come out of the woodwork, which in itself may or may not be a bad thing. The problem is he wants to force every human to make a decision on becoming awakened or becoming slaves. He probably found out about my father’s weapons and thought they’d be a threat to his plans, when my dad wouldn’t deal, he had my family murdered. If that’s the case, if my dad had dealt, he probably would have had them killed anyway because once he realized what Namen’s true goals were, he could have just made more weapons. Namen’s also been taking the kids, via the lamia, and testing on them, the failures he’s been using as demon food,” I summarize as I sit down due to my headache becoming worse.

  “There are a million things wrong with this plan of his,” Selene speaks up.

  “Exactly. Everyone cannot be awakened; it is just not the natural order of things. We vampires for one depend on humans for life and companionship. I’ve been ordered by my family to end him and it’s going to be harder even for a vampire like me if he keeps getting all these power boosts and alliances.”

  “What kind of power boosts are we talking about? While Rayne was asleep, you called Namen the soul stealer. Please don’t tell me that it means what I think it does,” Selene says, worried, now pacing.

  “You’re damn right. He’s using dark, no, demon magic in order to steal souls of other witches. When he does that, he gains a fraction of their power. It allows his to increase. He is a necromancer by birth but with his ambition and willingness to deal with demons, he has become a witch that can use earth magic, elemental magic, healing, and many other gifts that should not be his to claim. ”

  Selene stops in her tracks and covers her mouth. “Oh my God.”

  “What is it?” I ask, leaning forward.

  “Then, you’re wrong on your timeline. He hasn’t been doing this for fifteen years. He’s probably been doing it for hundreds.”

  “Shit,” the vampire says, now pacing back and forth, rubbing her braids.

  “What are you saying Selene?” I ask, feeling as though I got lost somewhere in the conversation.

  “I’m saying that if he’s this proficient at demon magic or even forbidden witch magic, then, he’s probably been transferring his own soul into other witches in order to sustain his own life. He could be at least 500 years old then. It’s because demon magic has a deadly cost and the user usually doesn’t live longer than a couple years because demons come to collect their souls after being used for an extended amount of time.” Selene bites her lip and then snaps her fingers as if having an epiphany.

  “I bet that he’s been feeding these demons other’s souls as payment to keep himself alive. He has probably gone through thousands of trial and errors when learning how to control his new powers and keeping himself able bodied enough to do something with them. If you said that he’s gotten stronger exponentially over the past couple years, then it must be due to something on the witch’s calendar. He’s aiming for a specific date isn’t he?” Selene guesses.

  “Dies sol solis cado ex divum,” the vampire says grimly.

  “Meaning?” I ask.

  “Roughly: The day the sun falls from the sky. It is prophesized that an eclipse will black out the sun and that the boundary between our world and the other planes will be at its weakest. He will be able to move his armies and if he is truly in league with demon kind, they will break the plane and walk the earth in numbers not seen in thousands of years. Once they’re here, I don’t think they’re going back.”

  Selene lets out a big breath and plops down next to me. “You need to contact Diana.”

  “What’s going on?” I ask.

  “We need to find out just how much time we have, and see if they’ll be of any help.”

  “The Immortals? Don’t waste your time. They won’t help.” The vampire barks a laugh.

  “How can you be so sure?” I ask.

  “I just know. Anyway, if you do, contact them away from here. I am not allowed in their presence.”

  “What do you mean? And just who are you anyway? You seem to know so much about me, but you haven’t even told us your name.”

  “It doesn’t matter why, it’s unimportant to what’s going on right now… My name is Zara Drake.” She bows with one arm across her chest, upper body perfectly parallel to the ground.

  “You can’t be serious right now,” Selene interrupts, putting her hands over her face. “You are a Drake?”

  “I am. So you must know what that means then priestess.”

  “Well I sure as hell don’t, so why don’t the two of you stop talking above me and fill me in,” I say, snapping on the both of them. My heart begins to pound wildly and Zara gives me a look that says cool it. I forgot that we have a blood link now and that she’d be able to feel my heart beating, my emotions changing.

  “I apologize, Rayne. Allow me to continue. My family is pureblood. I was born a vampire over three hundred years ago and am the youngest in my line. Each line of purebloods possess special gifts. My family is known especially for our extraordinary talents,” Zara tells me, clearly trying to explain without explaining.

  She doesn’t want to tell me what her ‘talents’ are, that much is clear. “I myself am an Enforcer for the Nine. The Nine are the original pureblood families that all who are of the blood originate from. They call me the Blade of the Night.”

  “Yes, or the Crimson Princess. No wonder why you had no chance Rayne. This one was a trained killer before she could even speak,” Selene jabs.

  “Do not pretend that you come from an innocent upbringing witch. We all do what we must to protect our own. I do not kill on order unless it is necessary, and I have done more to protect each of your kind
than you will ever be able to accomplish. The last thing you want is to make me angry. I haven’t fed in a week,” Zara warns, and as if to prove her point, her eyes become redder.

  Purebloods didn’t have to feed the way that turned vamps had to, so if her need to feed was threatening her, it must be because of stress. They could even eat normal food on a regular basis. It didn’t sustain like blood, but it helped them keep up the human charade and push blood cravings away. They could also walk under the sun with no restrictions unlike made vamps that can’t manage durations of sunlight longer than forty five minutes and that is during times when the sun isn’t high in the sky. It weakened them and could also mean death if they weren’t careful. Summertime must be hell.

  “Would it help if you fed just a little from me then?” I ask, the words fumbling out of my mouth before I even realize it.

  Selene smacks her lips and rolls her eyes, clearly not liking this one bit either, but knowing that my offer is a practical one. Our blood link may become more profound, but that would also mean she’d know when I was in danger, and that could help save my life.

  “Don’t worry Selene, even though Rayne here has grown incredibly attractive, I can feel the love between you two. I will behave myself,” Zara promises.

  “That means you won’t glamour her or me ever.”

  “If I see you as friends or allies, you have my word on that. I will not force my will upon you.” Then, she continues, “Rayne, a feeding can be a very sexual experience, but I don’t want it to be something uncomfortable for you. Open your mind up and do not try to struggle because then, you may trigger my need to kill. Priestess, why don’t you hold her hand,” Zara suggests.

  Selene scoots on the bed next to me, while Zara crouches down before me. We lock eyes for a second before I blink and turn away. For her to be over three hundred years old, she doesn’t look a day over twenty three. I wonder when she stopped aging.

  “Thank you Rayne for your blood. Now, are you ready?” I nod slowly and grip Selene’s hand tighter as Zara gently grabs my wrist and turns it up towards her. Her fangs elongate, sharp and intimidating. I swallow hard. With one last glance at me, she unhurriedly brings my wrist up towards her mouth and licks a small x as if to signal to me where the bite will occur, then, my skin breaks and she catches the runoff with her quick tongue.

  My breath catches as tiny surges of pleasure ripple through my body from the pheromones in her saliva. As she sucks my life force from my vein, I try to force a moan back down my throat, but as my head falls back, the sound escapes my body and I find myself not caring how much blood she takes from me. With each suck of her lips, pulses of pleasure ripple through me. How can feeding feel so much like great sex?

  As my mind goes cloudy, somehow I find Selene’s lips. At first, she’s hesitant, obviously not comfortable with the circumstances, but sure enough, her lips press harder against mine as I open my mouth to let her sweet tongue in. My tongue roams, enjoying the feel of her soft lips. I bite gently down on her lower lip as Selene presses closer to me, rubbing her hand through my hair. Zara slowly, purposefully continues to feed from me as the feeding sparks the flames of my growing desire. Then, far, far too soon, it’s over.

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Zara closes my wound with her saliva and smiles at both of us, who are now breathing heavily.

  “I didn’t take much, but you’ll need to eat and drink something just in case since it was your first time.” Then, she looks at Selene slyly. “You know, a feeding mixed with magic and sex is absolutely the best feeling in the world.” She winks then leaves the room, searching for food for us.

  “Oh my, now that was something,” Selene says, surprising me.

  “Yeah, it was,” I agree, pulse pounding down low.

  “I think she pushed her aura on me while feeding from you. Behave herself my ass,” Selene says trying to sound incredulous, but not succeeding.

  “I think she was just teasing you for being so uptight,” I tell her, already seeming to know her personality.

  “You may be right, but I know vampires, and they’re always up to something. Don’t get too sucked in by her charm. She’s comes from a powerful line and we are absolutely disposable,” Selene warns.

  I remain silent as I think about what I just learned and how Zara had apparently saved my life when I was a young child. Did I really have that much impact on her way of thinking? Did her glamour on me help me to be as fearless as I am today? Maybe I owed much more to her than I knew. Whatever the case, I need to know more about this tattooed vampire.

  After a short while, Zara comes back to the room and tells us that the food she prepared is ready. I have to travel down the stairs and around to a hallway to get to the kitchen. She has some expensive Moscato on the glass table with three filled glasses. I take a seat in a black cushioned chair under dim lights and look at the food as Zara sets it in front of me. Selene takes the seat next to me and Zara serves her as well.

  She baked some tilapia with baked potatoes and broccoli. I thank her for the food and hesitantly dig in as I feel her watchful eyes on me. It isn’t anything like my cook at home used to make, but it isn’t what I expected either. I find myself eating faster than normal, realizing how drained I feel. Then, I top it off with the wine before I look at Zara once more.

  “So, can you tell me what the point was in almost killing me, instead of just telling me what was going on?”

  She sets her own drink on the table after taking a long sip, then grabbing the bottle and topping it back off. “I needed to know where your skills were. If you knew that I was not going to really kill you, then you wouldn’t have fought me seriously. I needed you desperate so that you could reach for more of that power inside of you. And it’s just like I suspected, the Immortals taught you how to fight, how to survive most situations, but they didn’t teach you how to truly use your power, they didn’t teach you how to call for it or what sets you off. You are expected to learn that on your own.”

  “And how do you know so much about the Immortals, Zara Drake?” Selene asks curiously. Hell, I’m curious too, but I already know that I won’t be getting a real answer from her.

  “We purebloods have long known the Immortals. After all, we both share a common bond: extreme longevity. You could say that we are cut from the same cloth,” she simply says, sounding as if she’s open to this conversation, but truly isn’t. I’ll have to watch what she doesn’t say more than what she actually reveals.

  “So, have you ever met them? What about someone like Rayne?”

  “Ah, I have much that I could tell you, but I am not ready to share my entire background with people I have just officially met. When the need arises, I will tell you what’s important. The only thing that is important right now is that we need each other or else we will both not only fail in our personal goals, but we will fail most of the world too,” Zara says with a sense of finality that I’m not about to argue with.

  “I’ve already made my decision to go after Namen, that hasn’t changed. Just remember that trust is earned vampire and even though I want to like you, I not let my guard down so that you can screw us over,” I tell her.

  “You will learn to trust me Rayne. Both of you will,” Zara promises. “And I will keep you safe; you have my word on that.”

  We shall see.

  ◊◊◊

  Finally, we drive home. Altogether, the whole ordeal lasted about fourteen hours, so it is about four p.m. when we get back. I am still a little sore so my shower lasts a lot longer than usual as I let the hot water pound me. When I get out though, the water isn’t the only thing that wants to batter my body. Selene ends up giving me a rough session of lovemaking that concludes in both of us having to shower again. It is nice to know that even when the world is going to shit, I can still find time for an orgasm or two, or four.

  Sleepily, we lay next to each other, my head on her chest, enjoying the rhythm of her beating heart. “I need to call Anubis,” I yawn.
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br />   “Not now. Thirty minute nap,” Selene mumbles, rubbing my scalp, nearly making me purr.

  “Mm, okay, but just thirty.”

  “Okay.”

  Three hours later, I finally reach Anubis.

  “I assumed you would call me sooner.”

  “I was busy.”

  “Jaxson told me what happened. I’m not happy about it.”

  “Not my fault Anubis. Besides, Jaxson said they were being hostile on your territory anyway.”

  “Not that. The fact that he skirted my orders and met with you. I’m not a child that needs protection, or my second sneaking behind my back.”

  I laugh. He may pretend not to like it, but he clearly appreciated the fact that his pack would go out of their way to try to protect him.

  “What’s so funny?” he asks.

  “It doesn’t matter. Look, the reason why I called is because I have some information that might change your mind about Namen Young. Are you familiar with the name Zara Drake?”

  He’s silent for a second. “The first name, no, but if you’re talking about the Drake vampire clan, then yes, I’ve had some dealings with them.”

  “Good or bad?” I ask, not wanting bad blood between potential allies.

  “They are a vicious bunch, but only if you cross them. I have no quarrel with them.”

  Good. I proceed to explain the situation to him.

  “So, he had been trying to use my father in the same way that he used yours. Now that he knows that I’m special, he wants to control me so he can control my pack. Rayne, if that happens…”

  “You don’t even have to say it. I saw what your pack did to the others, remember.” I shiver thinking about it.

  He grunts and mumbles something to someone in the background. Then, he rattles off an address and I commit it to memory.