Ember Ch. 04

Frowning, Stryx released her. This was not how a Dragă was supposed to act.

Ember headed straight for the door. "I'm leaving," she announced. "You can try your caveman act on some other woman."

"You're not leaving," Stryx said, not sounding bothered at all.

"I'm leaving," Ember repeated. The sweatpants were laughably big on her, but she rolled up the ankles and rolled down the waist. Shoes were going to be a problem.

"You have no money. The mages know where you live. You don't have transportation. You don't have a phone." Stryx listed off reasons she wasn't leaving. Resigned to the fact that she wasn't coming back to bed with him, he got up and started to dress. She was glaring at him, so he added, "And we found out where your sister is."

Ember's head snapped up. "Where is she?"

"Jael knows. He's organizing the rescue for tonight."

"I'm going."

"Absolutely not."

"I'm going!"

"Are you trained for rescue missions? Can you use a weapon?"

"She's my sister!"

"We will bring her to you, here."

"I'm going!"

"It's too dangerous. You need to trust I know what's best for you. You might be okay taking a risk, but I'm not okay with you risking yourself or my men. There is another mage involved. You are not going."

A knock on the door interrupted their argument. "What?" Stryx bellowed.

"I brought some food and drinks for Ember," Ciaran's voice said through the door. "I thought she would be hungry when she woke up."

"Just lea—" Stryx started to yelled.

Ember crossed to the door and throwing it wide open. "Thank you. It was sweet of you to think of me. I'd rather have lunch in another room, if you don't mind," she said. "This one is stifling."

"Er, well, I.." Ciaran stuttered.

Stryx stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed, with a smirk on his face. Ciaran wouldn't disobey him.

Ember glared at him, then put a sweet smile on her face, and turned back around to Ciaran. She relieved him of having to decide between the two of them by taking the tray out of his startled hands, and shouldering past him. "I'm sure I can find a room with more air in it. Thank you again for lunch."

She looked down the hallway and saw a man standing at the bottom of some stairs. She marched straight towards him, and smiled. "Hi, is there a room I can eat lunch in nearby?"

Ember!" Stryx bellowed from the doorway of his bedroom.

She raised her voice. "Or maybe a place I can eat outside, with lots of direct sunlight?"

The man gave her the barest wink of an eye and tilted his head ever so slightly upstairs.

Ember marched up the stairs.

"Ember, return to me immediately!" Stryx shouted.

"Fuck off, cave man!" she shouted. "I'm not your pet!"

The man at the bottom of the stairs made a sound like he was choking.

Upstairs she found more men. How many men were in this house? Were there no women here? Did all these men think they were going to put her on her back and fuck her? She eyed a dangerous looking man with two swords strapped onto his back. Swords? Seriously?

He smiled as he approached her, pointed to another staircase, and spoke in a whisper. "Outside, all the way up." He continued past her to head down the stairs she had just come up.

There was a commotion at the bottom of the staircase, and she ran for the stairs that went led up.

"Get out of my way, Jael!" Stryx yelled.

"I thought you wanted to know when we found out —" Jael said.

"Move!" Stryx bellowed.

Jael laughed.

Ember made it to the top of the stairs, ran up yet another staircase and finally saw a window. For a moment she thought it odd the shutters were on the inside of the window, but remembered she was dealing with vampires. Of course the shutters were on the inside. Looking to make sure no one was immediately behind her, she opened them wide and sunlight streamed in, flooding the staircase.

She laughed as Stryx swore and bellowed for Ciaran. She headed for what looked like the front door, dropped the tray of food on a side table, and tried the door. Unsurprisingly, it was locked. She turned all the deadbolts and tried again. The door opened. She picked up her tray and walked outside.

The view was amazing. They were on top of a cliff, with no other houses in sight. With the number of staircases she had climbed, the house was built deep into the side of the cliff. There were another three stories to the house on top of the ground level. This place was huge. She heard more commotion in the house, and ran for the sun. It was afternoon, but she thought she'd have a couple hours before sunset. Stryx would have to keep his hands to himself until at least then.

Crossing into sunlight, she sat down and took a bite of a sandwich Ciaran had brought for her. Lunch wasn't anything fancy, sandwiches, chips, and a couple bottles of water, but she hadn't eaten since she'd been kidnapped, and she was starving. Yelling voices were indistinct at first, but became clearer as they got closer.

"It's a house, not a prison, boss. It's meant to keep intruders out, not people in." Idris said. "Don't blame Ciaran. You're the one that upset her, not him."

Stryx approached her, stopping in the shade.

"Come back inside."

"I think not," Ember said. "I prefer it out here."

Stryx blew out a frustrated breath. "Come back inside. I can't stay with you in the sun."

"I know." Ember smirked.

"You have no place to go."

"Thanks for pointing that out. Again." Ember stood. "I only stopped here to eat, and ask you one last time where my sister is. If you won't tell me, there's no reason for me to stay here."

"We're going to get her for you tonight," Stryx said. "We'll bring her back here."

"So you can keep her prisoner, too? So you can tell her she's property now? So you can have one of your men explain how her place is on her back under them, spreading her legs for them whenever they want her to?" Ember's voice rose as she threw his words back in his face. "No thanks. We're better off without you. You think you're better than the men who kidnapped us because you want to fuck us instead of whip us into submission?" She whirled away from him and walked towards the long driveway. "I'll find her without your help, even I have to get kidnapped and whipped again to do it!"

"Ember!" Stryx yelled. He tried to go after her, hissing in pain when he crossed into sunlight.

Ciaran grabbed him around the waist and swung him back towards the house. Jael and Alaric grabbed Stryx, making sure he stayed in shadow as Ember walked further away from him into the sun.

Ciaran ran after her. "Ember," he called. "Please, wait."

She stopped and swung around. "What? You've been nice to me so far, but I am not in any mood to put up with any more of this cave man, chauvinist, domineering crap!"

Ciaran caught up to her. "He's not always like he's been with you. He said stupid things. He didn't mean—"

"He said exactly what he meant," Ember interrupted, cutting him off. "Don't you dare apologize for him."

"You're right," Ciaran said, holding up his hands. "I can't apologize for him, that's something he's got to do for himself. But I can tell you he's been going crazy trying to figure out who you are, ever since you brought him into your visions, or wherever you were taking him."

"I'll figure out how to stop that from happening, right after I find my sister," Ember said.

Ciaran sighed. "I'm not saying the right things the right way. Please, let us help you find your sister and bring her back here." He held up a hand to forestall her protest. "Neither of you belongs to anyone. We don't think you are property, and no one is going to, er," Ciaran's dark skin flushed a darker color, "put you on your back under him unless you want them to." He raised his voice. "Isn't that right?"

Stryx's gaze was murderous, but he nodded once and stormed into the house.

Ember was torn. She wanted to be done with all this but she could use their help to find her sister. She decided she would stay here tonight, just for that reason. Now that she knew where the door was and sunlight would protect her, she could leave tomorrow and take her sister with her.

"If I go back in there, no one will touch me, and I'm going on the rescue mission," she said. "And no one will touch my sister, either."

"They're going over the plan right now. They'll be leaving right after that."

"Won't they burn in the sun?"

"The car windows are specially tinted, and they want to be ready to go in and get your sister as soon as possible. Stryx promised you he would get her for you, and he will."

"Okay," Ember relented. "I guess I need to hear the plan."

**********

Ciaran escorted Ember to a large conference room where Stryx and seven other vampires were sitting around a large table. One of them was typing on a computer, the rest of them, even Stryx, were wearing black tactical gear. All of them had a sword sheathed on his back, except for the man she had seen before, who had two. They also had guns, and wore armored vests over their chests and backs.

Karov clicked a remote and the lights dimmed. A huge TV screen came to life, showing a satellite image of a neighborhood. "That's the place," he said, making a circle around one of the houses.

"We'll have to do this quietly," Jael said. "He has neighbors, not close, but close enough. We can park here." He pointed, indicating an empty place off the main road. "We'll go in on foot from there. No guns unless absolutely necessary. I'll go in first and take out any sentries. The rest of you split up, half in the front, and half in the back. I'm guessing he's got a basement, or a sound proof room where he's keeping..." He looked at Ember.

"Musette," Ember said. "My sister's name is Musette."

"Musette." Jael continued. "Don't kill anyone if you can help it. Depending on how good the mage is we might need them to find him. I'll deal with the mage when we get to him, then we can figure out what to do with his men."

"The mage on the boat had a team of four with him, one was to pilot the boat, but we should assume at least four men in the house," Stryx said.

"What can I do?" Ember asked.

All eyes turned to her.

"I'm going." She glared at Stryx, silently daring him to contradict her. "Don't try to talk me out of it."

A muscle ticked in his jaw where he was clenching his teeth. "I'm done talking about it." His eyes were furious as he glared back at her.

"We'll see about getting you some gear but I think most of our stuff is going to be too big for you." Idris interrupted their glaring contest. "Have you ever fired a gun or swung a sword?" When Ember shook her head no, he sighed. "Stay behind us at all times. Don't get in front of us or block our swing."

Ember nodded. "I just want to be there for my sister. I'm sure she's terrified, and probably hurt if she's going through the same thing I did. And he's had her longer." Tears welled but she pushed them back. She refused to cry and give them an excuse to leave her behind. She was not weak.

"I'll try to pull up blueprints while you're en-route," Karov said, clicking the remote to turn the lights back on.

"Load up the cars then and we'll head out as soon as you're geared up." Stryx strode towards her on his way out of the room. He veered towards her instead, and caged her against the wall before she thought to run. His eyes were completely black, and his fangs were fully descended. He fisted a hand in her hair, and pulled her head to the side, exposing her throat.

"No!" Ember screamed at him.

"Oh shit," Idris muttered.

Before anyone could move, Stryx had his fangs in her neck. He let the venom flow.

A warm sensation of pleasure that made her knees weak washed over her, then a suction that made her feel dizzy. She tried to fight it, but her senses were overwhelmed. Shemoaned and sagged against him. He'd fed from her before, but not like this.

He grabbed one of her thighs and lifted her leg, wrapping it around his waist. He stepped between her legs as he pinned her between the wall and his body, feeding. It was dangerous to get between any vampire and his chosen prey, but pulling Stryx off his Dragă when he was pissed, possessive and had his fangs in her neck so deep ran a high risk of injuring her. No one touched him as he fed.

With his fangs firmly sunk into her neck, he released his grip on her hair and lifted her other leg, wrapping it around his other side, and pushed against his hips against her as he sucked. He was hard, and he badly wanted to sink deep into her, even though he'd just fucked her.

An ache burned in her only he could douse. He drank deep, taking her blood in huge swallows. Still feeding, he moved his arms to support her weight as he lifted her from the wall and carried her through the house into a dark room with a couch, and sat down, cradling her in his lap. He still fed. He wanted to feed deep enough that she would sleep through the time he was gone. She would accept what he'd done when he showed her he had brought her sister to her.

Her eyes fluttered shut and she was in a deep sleep when he finally stopped feeding, breathing hard and feeling invincible. He stood, covered Ember with a blanket, and turned to find his men watching him, their expressions ranging from smirks to angry, to the disappointed look on Ciaran's face. "Problem?" Stryx snapped.

"Not yet," Ciaran said, turning to leave.

None of the other vampires said anything.

"Then let's go."

**********

Stryx and his men climbed into two SUVs, and drove out of the garage, following the winding driveway that led down and around the property to the main road. Alaric drove, Xenos sat beside him, and Idris sat beside Stryx in the back. The interior of the car was absolutely silent.

Stryx knew they were shocked by what he had done to Ember, but his protective instincts were working overtime, and just the thought of her in danger drove him into a rage. The idea of her coming on this rescue mission with them, sister or no sister, had him losing his mind. He didn't want her anywhere near another mage ever again, and if that meant he had to take steps that would make her angry with him, he was fine with that.

He closed his eyes and let his head fall back against the headrest. He could still taste her blood in his mouth. It was intoxicating, but as he reveled in that feeling, he felt something else. Something strange that constricted in his chest. What was that? Guilt? Regret? Remorse? He had never felt anything like it before. He was in line to be King, could be King now if he wanted to. Riordan hadn't been seen in nearly a millennium, but until Stryx knew for sure he was gone, he would not take his place as King. Even without the title, people did what he said, when he said it. He didn't have to give reasons or explanations. He just had to give orders.

Ember would come to know her place. She was his Dragă, and the bond was already more than halfway formed. She no longer had a choice. She belonged to him, and the sooner she accepted that, the easier her life would be. If he'd had her one more time before she had pulled that stunt, running into the sun so he couldn't get to her, he would already have completed the bonding. How dare her run from him. He didn't mind a good hunt, but for her to run just to be disobedient? That was unacceptable.

She was so pliable when he had her under him— why couldn't she understand that's where she belonged? And inside her—that's where he belonged. Maybe that was it. He would just have to spend more time with her under him, show her how good he could make her life if she just accepted her place. She would resist at first, but that's what bondage was for. He could feel himself getting hard just thinking about having her at his mercy, or having her on her knees. The next time he had her, he would feed her his blood, and the bond would be eternally in place. That would calm her down.

When he brought Musette to her she would be his again.

The SUV stopped. Stryx opened his eyes. Night had fallen while they drove. Xenos, Idris, and Alaric all opened their doors and got out, still without saying a word to him. This little rebellion of theirs would have to be put down, too. They had no standing to judge him for anything he did. He opened his door and got out.

They had stopped some distance from the mage's house and went the rest of the way on foot and still in complete silence. Jael was holding up night vision, infrared binoculars to his eyes, scanning the area. "Two guards outside, they circle the house every twenty minutes. No movement inside. It looks like no one's home." He put the binoculars away. "The guards just went around the corner, come on." He led the way across the property, to a stand of trees near the house. "I'll just be a moment." He disappeared.

"I want to be him when I grow up," Alaric said.

"That's assuming you'll ever actually grow up," Idris retorted.

"Hope is eternal," Xenos said.

Idris grinned. "Hope maybe, but he's pretty hopeless."

"Hey!" Alaric protested. "I might grow up one day."

"It's not like he doesn't have the time," Stryx said.

The playful mood dissolved, the bantering stopped, and the men went silent. The sudden shift from teasing to stillness left an uncomfortable tension among them, broken only when Jael waved at them from the house. He had the two guards on the ground, gagged.

"How does he do that?" Alaric asked. "I never even saw movement."

"He's an assassin. You're not supposed to see him move." Idris pointed out.

"There's good news, and there's bad news," Jael said when they joined him. "The good news is, that although the house is warded, these two can get us in. The bad news is the mage left and took the girl with him a half hour ago."

"Where did he take her?" Stryx demanded.

"They don't know," Jael replied. He raised a hand as Stryx started forward his face murderous. "They don't know. She's gone."

Stryx drew his arm back and punched the wall.

"We should still go in," Idris said. "Maybe there's something inside that can tell us where they went."

Jael hauled the guards to their feet. One of them opened the back door, and let everyone in. "Are the rooms warded too?" Jael asked.

The guards shook their heads.

The vampires split up and made short work of searching the house. Idris found the hidden entrance to the basement and descended the stairs. The place was meant to be a prison, and the scent of blood was in the air. The basement room contained a cot, a threadbare blanket, and restraints. A small table held empty vials. Idris picked one up and sniffed it, but he couldn't identify what the vials had contained. There was no telling with mages, but it probably wasn't anything good.

The scent of blood was coming from the restraints. Idris picked them up, and found a small smear of blood on the collar. The blood smelled delicious, and called to something primal in him. Idris touched a finger to the smear and then to his tongue. A wash of sensations over came him. Pain. Strength. Fear. Courage. Despair. Longing. Green eyes, blonde hair, and a face that reminded him of Ember. This must be Musette, her sister's blood.

He wiped his finger across the blood smear and touched his tongue again. Something in him roared to life. Venom flooded his system, and the scent of her blood intensified. He could track her, just like Stryx had tracked Ember through the city. He bolted up the stairs.

**********

"Ember." A woman's gentle voice called her name in her mind.

Who are you?

"I am Selene. Wake, Ember. Come to me."

Did the mages take you, too?

"Not this time."

Where are you?

"Not far. I will show you the way."

"You're trapped in this house, too? Are you a prisoner?"