Thunderstorm, p.6
Thunderstorm, page 6
I nearly choked on my own saliva. “Wait . . . What?”
“You’re Legend, aren’t you? The firstborn son of Valerie?”
I nodded. I had never heard the name Valerie before. Was that my mother’s name?
She continued, “You are to be my mate, my true love, my better half, and keeper of my soul. It has been arranged before you were born. I can only marry one from Allemand and Christione’s line. I’ve waited for this day.”
“My mother’s name was Valerie?”
I had no memory of her. Rain had been so lucky. He was given the opportunity to remember everything about her, including the way she looked. The rest of us could remember nothing about her.
“Yes . . . Her name was Valerie. You didn’t know that?”
“No. Look, I don’t understand all of this . . .” I ran my hand over my long dreads and sighed.
Everything she was telling me was so confusing. I really didn’t understand why she needed me. She was much older and much stronger than I could ever be. I wasn’t a weak man, but I wasn’t so sure about being the man she wanted me to be. She was speaking about something that seemed to be prearranged. Was this my destiny?
“Rain’s destiny was to save us from the Préfet and marry whom he has chosen. If another Pureblood prediction had been mentioned, you and your siblings would’ve never managed to escape with Selene and Mortimer. Where are they now? Are they in the Palace?”
I had never heard my godparents’ real names either.
“No, Rain banned them from the Kingdom for his reasons.”
“I see,” she said with her voice dropping in disappointment. She had paused for a moment before she said, “You know that you were never meant to marry that horrible mortal . . . right?”
Chantal wasn’t meant for me, but how did Mirage know any of this? If she was kept here in the Caribbean under some type of magic, how in the world did she know all of this?
As if she could read my thoughts and me, she eased out of the bed and stood in front of me. My blood was running through her and she had transformed from the corpse that had been lying there dying into a perfect-looking young goddess.
“Do not be afraid of me, Legend. It’s okay not to have all of the answers. It’s also okay to be leery, but I want you to trust me. Wouldn’t you like to spend the rest of your eternity with me?”
MiMi made me quiver on the inside, far before I came face to face with her. She was the most beautiful, compelling woman I had ever met. From the moment she subconsciously contacted me, I was drawn like a moth to an open flame.
She reached for me and eased into my arms. Suddenly, I felt a jolt of energy surge throughout my entire body. The slightest touch from her was electrifying. I was completely consumed by MiMi’s power. As her lips touched mine, her hands ran over my dreads.
I swallowed hard and said, “Let’s get out of here. I have to get you to the Château.”
With her hand in mine, we fled.
CHAPTER 8
AZURA
I felt suddenly depressed over the next few days. Ever since I had come back from the club, I hadn’t been feeling like being cooped up in the Château moping around. There wasn’t shit else to do. Club Vaisseau was calling me to come back or maybe it was Claude calling me to come back. Whichever one, I wanted to run back and quickly. I had fight within myself. Nothing good could come out of me going back there, but I’d had so much fun. The Château was so boring.
I went over to the window and looked out while naked. I had gotten out of the bathtub. I was going to have to find a new hobby. I had nothing to do since I was no longer opening up the club every night. After doing it for so long, I couldn’t get used to not going down there. I felt almost back to normal when I went down there the other night. Life in the Château was so blah. I didn’t want to do Princess stuff with Queen Essence and I definitely wasn’t interested in hearing Rain rant repeatedly about everything that wasn’t going right. It wasn’t like he was doing shit about it.
I made up my mind. I was going to go back. I was going to have a great time. I was going to avoid Claude.
I showered, slipped into a red dress and pumps. I didn’t bother drying my hair. I let it look wild and curly. My thoughts had been scattered ever since running away from Claude.
It was as if I wanted to see him again; like had no other choice. Something was drawing me to him.
I felt the sexual tension between us on that dance floor. I wanted desperately to forget my lustful thoughts about Claude because I didn’t believe in love at first sight at all. I considered lust at first sight, most definitely. Lust was supposed to be something that I could control and something that I could redirect down another path. When it came to Claude, I was losing my self-control. This had never happened to me.
I headed to Club Vaisseau as soon as I was dressed.
• • •
Claude was leaning up against the bar as soon as I entered through the front doors. He was talking to a curvy, chocolate-skinned mortal with a voluptuous ass. She was wearing a catsuit and it showed off all her assets. She was working the hell out of that outfit. She was flirting with him and flipping her hair. She was quite delicious-looking. Jealousy filled me for a split-second as I had thoughts of sucking her blood until she became lifeless, but then it went away.
I wasn’t going to worry about her. Shit, she could join us if she wanted. All thoughts I had about ignoring him went out of the window. Claude couldn’t take his eyes off me as soon as I walked past him. I made up my mind the moment we locked eyes that I wasn’t going to go to him. I was going to make him come to me. I floated across the dance floor, taking in the stares from all the other men that wanted me, too. Sexy mama in the catsuit was doing her thing and I was watching her.
Liquor, sweat, blood, and sex were all around me and I didn’t mind it. Their energy turned me on. I was starting to enjoy what was going on in that club. It was better than sitting in the Château with nothing else to do.
Claude couldn’t stop staring at me. I could feel his eyes penetrating through me. He wasn’t going to let me walk up in his club and stroll on by him as if I hadn’t seen him. That was a no-no in his eyes. Without warning, he was upon me, with his hand on my arm roughly.
He pulled me against his body and said with his lips grazing my ear, “Don’t tell me you came here to dance without me.”
I trembled in his arms. He felt it because a slight smirk graced his face. I replied, “You seem to know what I want, so you tell me what I came here to do.”
With those words, he took me up the spiral staircase. There would be no running away from him this time; I didn’t want to run. I wanted to see what was going to happen next between us. He took me to one of the biggest private soundproof rooms.
Immediately, he leaned down and kissed my shoulder. I moaned and allowed him to put his hand around my throat. Instead of choking me, he kissed me tenderly. He eased the straps of my dress down. The dress fell to my feet, exposing my naked body. He reached around and cupped my breasts. His hands were full as he took my nipples between his forefinger and thumb. He squeezed.
Claude turned me around roughly and pressed his lips to mine. As our mouths opened up for one another, our tongues danced. Palming my ass, I was at his mercy. Soon, his fingers were exploring the folds of my pussy and I rocked against his hand to show him that I didn’t wear any panties in case something like this happened.
A look of pleasure took over Claude’s stern face and as his finger explored me, I moaned. Suddenly, Rain’s face flashed behind my closed lids and it startled me. Rain was using his power.
Fuck! He knew where I was and whom I was with.
“Stop,” I muttered against his lips, trying to pull away.
He pulled me back toward him. “I won’t stop, Azura. Forget that I’m the leader of the Ravens. Forget about Rain. Forget about Pigalle Palace. I’m on fire for you. I want you. Azura, you’re what I need. Don’t you need me?”
With each word, I melted in his arms. “Don’t stop. . .”
I unbuckled his pants and he turned me over, pushed me up against the wall. When he entered me, my whole body submitted entirely. He fucked me deep and hard. I screamed to the heavens. He felt as good as I thought he would. Something about Claude had me hypnotized and I almost felt as if I were summoned to him. He made me want to belong to him for eternity.
As soon as our hot steamy sex was over, I attempted to dress quickly.
“Not so fast,” he said, beating me to the door before I could walk away so quickly. “You can’t walk up in here, fuck me, and then leave me.”
I snapped at him, “I can do whatever I want.”
He chuckled. “I don’t operate that way, sweetheart. Stay a little while. I want to introduce you to the Ravens.”
“I’m not going anywhere near those rogues.”
“What are you afraid of? They won’t harm you.”
“Look, don’t take this personally, but I will never hang out with your minions. They are out of control. You’d better get them in line before . . .”
“Before what?” He smirked. “I’m not afraid of you or your siblings. King Rain can try to enforce the stupid rules all he wants. I don’t give a shit. You know you want to see what real freedom tastes like. Come and join us, Azura. We would love to have you.”
I must’ve been under Claude’s spell because I didn’t protest any further. I was off to meet the Ravens.
CHAPTER 9
AZURA
It was dark inside the room except for a group of candles in each corner. This room was one that I used to know all too well. I’d had plenty of threesomes and orgies in here. It looked entirely different with the red velvet walls and black carpet making the room seem darker. The brood was talking and laughing amongst them. I counted about fifteen bodies; all who appeared to become silent, once they realized Claude wasn’t alone.
“I want you all to meet Azura,” Claude announced.
“Princess Azura,” I corrected.
“Excuse me . . . Princess Azura,” Claude said with a smile.
I felt their eyes. They didn’t speak as they stared.
To fill the silence, Claude said, “She is a friend of mine and she is welcome here.”
The brood went right back to talking, but now their eyes were piercing through me. No matter what Claude said, I wasn’t welcomed and they didn’t care what title he gave me. I wasn’t to be trusted.
Claude took my hand and led me over to the next room. It was once my godparents’ office, but it was now what looked like his bedroom. Instantly, I wished I wasn’t there anymore. What was I getting myself into? Claude’s eyes were filled with lust. I wanted him, to be close to him and to feel his dick pressed up against me, but I also wanted to feel safe and content with his presence. I didn’t want this to be our last time hooking up, but it was going to be.
His smile was radiant as he smiled down at me. When he laughed, his whole face lit up. He didn’t seem like he was the leader of something so dark, something so evil that they were indeed the most feared creatures in all of Paris.
Reading my thoughts, his smile faded. He didn’t like what I was thinking. To switch up the mood, he went back to doing what worked best with us, sexual desire. Claude stared down and admired my curve-fitting dress that revealed a tempting amount of cleavage.
“You’re so beautiful, Princess Azura. You deserve to have the best things in life . . . But, not without me . . .”
“That’s so sweet of you . . . But, let’s be real here for a moment: I could never fall in love with a blood-sucking monster like you,” I said.
He looked amused at how serious I was being. He took in my features and my natural elegance as he placed both hands gently on my face.
“You have this rare aura of light. I’m so curious. I don’t want to hurt you. You’re too beautiful and delicate to mistreat.”
Something sparked from within me. It was something I hadn’t felt in a very long time. No one had ever spoken to me that way.
Was this the feeling Rain spoke of? Was this what love felt like?
I suddenly became envious of Claude. My new life wasn’t the way I wanted it to be. I didn’t mean to spend the rest of my eternity in the dull Château, doing whatever Rain told me to do.
“It must be kind of cool to live the way you do. You’re able to do what you want and when you want,” I uttered.
“If you ever get a chance to live the way I do, you will find that it is the greatest feeling. I’m sure you love living in luxury and having people wait on you hand and foot. But, it feels like a punishment being told what to do and what not to do. Where to go and where not to go . . . Am I right?”
I was afraid to reply, afraid to reveal that I hated the invisible shackles that seemed to be on each of my ankles, but I didn’t have to say a word. I was enticed by the inferior creature before me. He was so ruggedly handsome. He was fighting for a cause that I found to be ruthless and pointless, but I had seen a glimpse of the real in him. That’s what had me at that moment. Yet, he intimidated me by the way he stared at me. It was as if he was trying to pierce open my body to see into the very depths of my soul. That scared me.
Suddenly, he snapped his fingers and a mortal was thrown into the room. She fell at his feet with her hands tied in front of her. She was naked, scared and shaking. She cried as he lifted her onto her feet. As he held her body in front of his, he stared at me.
I stared at him, wondering what he was going to do with her.
With his finger, he traced the side of her neck. He grabbed her hair and tilted her back toward him roughly. Without wasting any time, he jammed his sharp fangs against her skin. I could hear the sound of her flesh tearing. He sucked her blood greedily, not caring that he was about to kill her. I watched him as he watched me while drinking her blood. Suddenly, the girl’s body went limp and he loosened up his hold on her. He pulled his fangs out and I watched her body fall to the floor with a loud thud.
He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand as he continued to stare at me. His eyes were light-electric blue, almost looked silver as he glared at me.
“I should go,” I said quickly, but once again, my attempt of escaping him was cut short.
“Come here.” His voice was commanding and profound. He wrapped his arm around my waist. “I didn’t give you permission to leave.” His words sent shivers down my spine as he continued to stare at me. One of his hands tried to touch my lips, but I cringed back. “I won’t hurt you,” he promised. “My world can be gorgeous if you let me show it to you.”
I froze. I wasn’t shocked by his invitation. I was surprised by how quickly things had been happening between us. For some reason, I suddenly felt safe, there with him.
What was he doing to me? What was he doing to my mind?
I moved my eyes from his eyes because they were terrifying me. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to escape him.
“Look at me,” he demanded.
He quickly snapped my face toward him so that my eyes were once again on him.
“I would like to get to know you,” he continued with a more gentle voice. “You’re interesting. I don’t find many things interesting, but you . . . you’re intoxicating . . .” As I was about to refuse him again, he interrupted me, “I’m not a man that takes no for an answer,” he warned.
A part of me felt like I was at a crossroad. I felt guilty for being there and I was held liable for flirting with the possibilities of what I could be with the enemy. Claude could sense my loneliness and pain and he was using that against me. It was evident that I really didn’t want to leave because I was still there staring into his eyes.
I could picture us making sweet passionate love, but I also could see all the lives he took in a blink of an eye. These two dangerous paths, yet two possibilities, and two entirely different fates could leave me fighting my family.
Without thinking any more about it, I let him take my lips. I was so wrapped up in his kiss that soon we were sprawled out across his bed, giving into every desire imaginable. Claude was taking over my body and it felt so good. I didn’t think about the mortal lying dead on the floor either. I only concentrated on the way he was making me feel.
CHAPTER 10
RAIN
Five more bodies had been found dead in the alleys of the Red Light District. It was all over the news. I was beginning to hate watching the news. Every other day another body was added to the count. Speculations were swirling around that they thought wild wolves had attacked them. Humans were funny. Wolves? There were no wild wolves in Paris—only blood-sucking vampires. No person had lived to witness to any vampire accounts, but how long would it be before one slipped through the cracks?
As my confidantes and personal servants delivered more unwanted news about Azura going to Vaisseau behind my back as I suspected, my head swirled with ways to start putting things back in order. I used my telekinetic powers to see that Azura was sleeping with the enemy. The Ravens were filled with so much hate and it made me angry that my own sister had betrayed me, yet again.
Two nights in a row, Azura was drinking, dancing, and in Claude’s bed. That had me outraged.
“Has Azura returned yet?” I asked Essence as she entered the living room.
“Not yet. Legend hasn’t either,” she replied.
I was also awaiting Legend’s return so I could see what it was that Mirage indeed wanted. In the meantime, I did a little research in the library.
While reading the book that was encased in glass in the center of the room, I discovered that it traced our family’s history back to the Prototypes of Egypt. Alaina and Neve were Allemand’s parents, vampires bitten by bats, but they weren’t born that way. Syria and Fabian were also vampires that had been bitten by bats, Christione’s parents. Evan and Mirage were a brother and sister who had been bitten by bats when they were twenty years old. Unable to deal with their blood thirsts, they had their first feed on their human family. Syria and Fabian took them in so they could be around other vampires. Since Evan and Mirage had no one to marry, it was promised that Evan and Mirage would be able to marry any descendants of Allemand and Christione.
