Undying Hate~ Book Three

“You said before you were committing treason. What did you mean by that exactly?” Sylvie had already guessed the vampire guards’ commitment to protecting her had something to do with it. Still, her insomnia craved conversation—anything to keep the ache of missing her mates away.

The crisp night air made her shiver, but the screams of the turned in the distance froze her blood.

Shan scooted closer, letting the moonlight illuminate her face as she spoke, “A small group of the King’s guard and the people never accepted Hayes as our ruler. The Fates didn’t destine it, and the people didn’t want it. So Haye’s claim— in our minds at least— is illegitimate.”

“But he’s still King.”

“That he is,” Mila whispered, sitting crosslegged and resting her chin on her hand propped on her knees. She reminded Sylvie of Rosie a little bit, and the gesture made her even more homesick.

“He had a few strong guards that preferred his rule over his fathers, and they killed many of us. Once we saw what was happening, some chose to flee, and others lived hidden in plain sight.”

“But you would’ve had to do things not to be discovered, right? You kidnapped shifters.” Sylvies breathing quickened as Deacon looked away. So it was true.

“Yes, but we also fed them more than we were supposed to and sent healing salves whenever one was injured. There’s only so much we could do not to risk death, but we did try, my q- Sylvie, I’m sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologise to me, but I think there might be some issues when we get home.” She rubbed her arms and blew out a frosty breath. It was really fucking cold, and none of the vampires generated body heat, so she was basically screwed.

She curled her chest over her thighs and hugged beneath her legs, hoping to retain some heat from her scant clothing when a thick fabric draped over her shoulders. She looked up to see Brodi in a singlet, his thick tactical jacket now wrapped around her. Smiling, Sylvie slotted her arms through and did up the zipper. Immediately the night didn’t feel so hopeless, and she stared at the sky.

“What was it that you said about the prophecies?” she asked no one in particular, but Shan answered.

“The Fates used to speak to the Fae about important events that would come to pass, and the Fae would write them down. Then, when we-” she sighed, clearly uncomfortable with the turn in the conversation. “When we captured Kol, we found a diary in his pocket that shared visions from the Fates. Prophecies of a creature healing the division. At that time, no one knew what it meant, the division yet to happen, but now it makes sense. And seeing your marks just proves to us that this creature must be you.”

As if a weight dropped from the sky and slammed into her chest, Sylvie’s body grew heavy, her chest squeezing. No matter what she did, it seemed Fate always had a way of catching up with her. So much for free will.

“It’s not her,” Kol grumbled, eyeing them on the cold ground from his perch. “Look at her. She’s weaker than all the species combined.”

Brodi stepped forward and slapped him upside the head with a hard thwack, and Sylvie just clenched her jaw, turning her face away. It wasn’t something she hadn’t said to herself many times. It was just shit to know her husband’s father didn’t approve of her nor think she was worthy of anything worthwhile.

“A kindred bond hasn’t occurred in a century, and now she’s here with not one, but three?” Mila said in disbelief. “How can you be so delusional? And rude!”

“Perhaps being your prisoner has something to do with that,” Kol snapped back, baring his row of sharp teeth. Like father, like daughter.

Mila bared hers right back, but the stiffness of her posture, when she turned around, proved he had won the argument. Sylvie sighed and stared up at the old Fae. It was particularly frustrating sitting between ancient beings and looking around the same age physically. She assumed she wouldn’t grow old after finding out she wasn’t human, but she was also the first of her kind as far as she knew.

“So...” she chewed the inside of her cheek and sat up a fraction straighter when she noticed Kols’s hard stare. Definitely more like Kerensa than Kian.

How Kian managed to turn into the man he was baffled her beyond belief. “How long have you been here then?” When he didn’t answer, she crossed her arms. “How long have the Vampires been shifting to Earth?”

“It’s impossible to know exactly,” Mila murmured, scooting closer. “But we think the human’s awareness of our existence in movies and legends is because of our earliest visits. Our parent’s generation was not careful, and many towns developed superstitions after seeing our nature. Now we’ve been reduced to sparkly, sexy characters in books.”

She pouted at that, and Sylvie pressed her lips to stop a laugh. The blush that crept us her cheeks was hot enough to keep her warm. The problem was the stories and spicy shows weren’t wrong. These vampires, and the one she called a mate, were sexy... sans the sparkles.

Sylvie cleared her throat and turned to avoid the knowing stares of Brodi and Shan. Deacon and Mila were scowling at Kol, so at least they couldn’t read her like a book.

“Why didn’t your kind just... I don’t know... take some humans back here with them to boost the human population?”

“We tried,” Shan replied, darkness in her tone. “None survived. We have to plan our transport through his portal to once a month to stop dying ourselves.”

When Sylvie’s face fell, and a confused frown furrowed her brows, Mila continued talking. “I know it’s a lot, and what we’ve participated in is unforgivable, but we were just trying to survive. To protect the little kindred bonds left and live long enough to see them someday return.”

The night air grew colder as the group sat in contemplative silence, the strange whirring, snapping sounds of what Sylvie assumed to be insects serenading them.

The swirling force of gratitude slowly built into her chest until she could no longer hold back her emotions. Her voice cracked as she started her sentence, but with a short cough, she tried again.

“Why did you help me? After all this time hiding in plain sight and doing bad things to survive, why did you choose now to commit treason?”

Mila’s mouth parted as if she refrained from using an exasperated expression while Shan only chuckled. “We’re the Queen’s guard, Sylvie. Hayes never wed, and we were forced to take on other roles, but we are and always were protectors of the Queen.”

She kept going even as Sylvie’s breaths came out shaky.

“And while you’re here, we will commit our duties till our last breath.”

“What- why... you’re coming with me, right? To Earth?”

Shan’s mouth opened and closed as if uncertain what to say next while the others looked at her with tight expressions.

Before any of them could claim they were staying to die at the hands of Hayes, Sylvie stood up. “I order all of you to come with me to the Earth realm.”

“But our people-” Deacon said.

“From my home, we can start planning to save them, but I need your help. You’re the ones who know everything about this place. Even more than Elias. He will help you too.”

She smiled softly, her head when Mila’s eyes widened. “You haven’t met him?”

“Not since I was a child. He left without saying goodbye.”

“Did you know him back then?” A sad thread of jealousy hit her, and she crushed it as she sat back down on the freezing stone. “Were you friends?”

Mila’s eyes opened even wider, a feat Sylvie didn’t think possible. “No, of course not, my Queen. We just trained together occasionally. I would never-”

“It’s okay, Mila. You don’t have to defend your childhood relationship with my husband.” Her eyes welled, and she laughed bitterly at the realisation that was the first time she had referred to him as her husband to another person.

The vampires shuffled slightly as she lay on the stone and curled into a ball, their bodies all around her with just enough room for her to roll over. They certainly took their role as Queen’s guard very seriously. Sylvie sniffled and thought of her mates, her lovers... her husbands as she fell into an eventful sleep.

Sylvie slinked across her mates’ naked bodies, all limbs, lips and wandering hands, taking them into her mouth or stroking them curled in her palm. In return, they traced fire across her glittering skin with their heated fingers, too far to plunge anywhere meaningful.

Her body ached and called for her mates as she was drawn up across rigid, muscled torsos, and her lips were pulled into needy kisses. Each moment the intensity of the kisses changed.

First, soft, tender kisses wet her mouth, and she opened it wider to let her tongue mesh with it.

Then, a hard, controlling kiss accompanied by a firm grip on her ass and back.

Finally, one of tentative questioning, which she answered with her own passion.

The dance of taking control and releasing it was familiar to her. She sighed deliriously as her mates took her through sensations of bliss and relief. She was so happy to be back home and safe. Next time she went out, she’d take a weapon. No way she’d be left unawares again.

Her eyelids were heavy, almost too heavy, as she tried to see better in the dark den of sex she entered, but it was no use, she instead used touch and sound to draw her nearer to her goals. The dark timbre of her mates’ voices whispered sweet nothings as she tuned into the sensations—their touch.

“Open your legs, Princess.”

“Open your mouth, Kitten.”

“Sylvie... Open your eyes-”

Sylvie’s eyes snapped open along with a sharp inhale. The burn that settled in her chest and between her legs only amplified her embarrassment as she spied Brodi’s knowing look, his head peering over his shoulder at her panting form sprawled on the ground.

“Did I-”

He shook his head abruptly and turned away, cutting the question and conversation short. Nevermind. She sighed and rubbed her face cursing the still-dark night. Then, closing her eyes again, she begged for dawn and the promise of home.