United. (Book 5 of the Lupus Antiqua Series)

Abby stretched luxuriously in her bed. Like Endymion had cast a spell on her, she had indeed slept incredibly well after his first session.

It was a technique called memory mirror, which she hadn't told him yet. She would need to explain it fully before they did it again. It was better for him to know all the risks.

She sat up and then paused. Her senses were telling her something was up. She stood, not bothering to worry about her white nightgown or her sleep mussed hair.

She stepped out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, ignoring Endymion and looking out the window. The meadow and forests looked normal. Peaceful.

"What is it, Abby?" He grabbed her arm and she realized he'd been trying to get her attention.

"Something is coming." She murmured, eyes still on the outside. He paused and released her.

"What is coming?" He asked softly.

"I don't know yet..." She trailed off. Almost imperceptible to anyone at all shadows began to creep in from the tree line that weren't natural to it. Her eyes widened.

"Hell's bells! Endymion you need to hide! Now!" She insisted urgently.

"Why..." He was asking just as a woman appeared in the kitchen with them. She was tall and willowy. He skin had a slightly blue/green tinge to it. Somehow it didn't make her look sickly. It made her look...shimmery.

Her eyes were slitted, like the snake creatures her bloodline was descended from and gleamed yellow from beneath long lashes. Her gaze narrowed in on Endymion and Abby felt a shiver of fear in her spine.

"Natalie. Hello." Abby managed to get out. The graceful woman arched a perfectly groomed brow at Abby and grinned in a predatory way.

"My, my, little Abigail. Don't you look wholesome in your virginal little gown?" There was a refined mockery in the woman's voice that set Abby's teeth on edge.

"Why are you here, Natalie." She took a deep breath and corrected her tone. "How can I help?" Natalie turned her back to Endymion ignoring him and Abby felt relief fill her.

"I'm here for our shifting serum, dear." Natalie answered like it should be obvious. A fission of fear went through Abby again, but she nodded and snapped her fingers. A large bag full of vials of the serum appeared in her hands.

"Here you are." Abby said, summoning a smile.

"Our thanks." Natalie said. She glanced back at Endymion and grinned again. "What interesting company you keep now a days, Abigail. Is he your consort?"

"Yes. He is." Abby lied. She hoped the woman wouldn't see through her. Hoped her subterfuge would be enough.

"Too bad. He looks delicious." With a dark chuckle, she vanished. Abby looked out the window. The extra shadows had not vanished. Natalie wasn't gone yet. She was out there, watching.

"Endymion, I swear I'll explain, but I need you to kiss me." She whispered, mortified but knowing it was the only way.

"What?" He asked, confused but also intrigued.

"And you need to kiss me like I'm oxygen and you're suffocating. She's watching and she needs to believe I have a claim on you. Please, believe me." She begged him, pleading with her eyes, but careful to keep her body language casual.

His gaze heated and he stalked towards her, picking her up and sitting her on the counter. He tilted her head back, fisting his hand in her hair and slanted his lips over hers kissing her like he wanted to devour her.

She had only wanted to protect him, she hadn't expected her own reaction to his kiss. Her body lit up like a firework and she pressed herself into him, kissing him back with everything she had.

What she lacked in skill she did not lack in enthusiasm apparently. He growled at her response to him and kissed her more deeply, his other hand resting possessively on the small of her back, burning through the thin cotton of her nightgown.

When he finally pulled back they were both breathing hard. She touched her lips gently. Were they as swollen from his kisses as they felt? No, but she felt forever changed.

"That was..." She whispered.

"More than I meant to do...you...you are a desirable woman, Abby." He stated, still staring her down like he wanted to keep going and do more. She blushed bright red.

"So are you. Very desirable, I mean." She whispered awkwardly.

"Abby. What happened?" He asked gently. She gulped.

"Natalie. She's an Anguis." Abby whispered. His eyes widened.

"They still exist?" He sounded shocked.

"Yes. Their coven is small, and extremely secretive. But thriving by all accounts." She murmured.

"Is it true?" He wondered.

"Is what true? Their origins?" She asked. He nodded. "Yes. There was a true witch, a daughter of one of the water covens. She loved to explore underground water reserves, and in her explorations, she stumbled across a Naga. Half human, half serpent.

Some people think they are demons, others think them divine. No one really knows. They don't interact with the world if there are even any left.

As the story goes, the True Witch and the Naga became besotted with each other and went to bed together. She was pregnant soon after. The combination created powerful and dangerous offspring. The Anguis.

The women have siren voices, and love nothing more than to torture and feed from men. They live underground, even more removed than I am because they tend to give into temptation.

She noticed you, though she pretended she didn't care. If she thinks you're mine, she's less likely to try anything." Abby murmured.

"Anything such as..."

"Hypnotize you with her song and lure you out some night when I'm not awake." Endymion raised an imperious brow and held up his hand, allowing his nails to turn into the claws of his wolf.

"I'm not exactly helpless." He pointed out.

"I know. But she is dangerous to anyone she sets her sights on. Natalie is particularly vicious."

"Don't your laws prevent her from being a danger?"

"Up to a point. They are not only True Witches. They are also Naga. Enough that they can't pass for human without the shifting serum I make for them. They are only partially bound by True Witch law.

What governs their other side, is unknown. Base instinct maybe. Or perhaps the code of a race of beings no one knows anything about anymore.

Be vigilant, Endymion. You're in danger if she shows up again."

What Abby didn't say, was that Natalie wasn't supposed to arrive for another week. She'd come early, and Natalie did nothing by accident. She was too calculated for that. Had the Anguis somehow learned of his presence here? Had he been marked as prey?