Page 32

Amari

I t’s quiet on the ride back to Wintermoon.

Carla shifts in her seat beside me, looking up nervously every few seconds.

We’re both covered in Ackley’s blood, the metallic scent filling the SUV’s interior.

Even Damon stays silent in the front seat, probably reflecting on everything that’s happened and eager to get back to his mate.

Once we cross the bridge and enter Wintermoon, Bobby immediately stops.

This is as far as he can go. Damon nods to Bobby and exits the front passenger seat.

Bobby looks at me in the rearview mirror, and I give him a nod.

He pops the trunk, and I climb out, rounding the SUV to retrieve a large duffle bag packed with fresh clothes.

I’m at Carla’s door the moment it opens, ready to hiss at her for being so damn independent all the time. She climbs out with her tote bag in hand, and I snatch it away roughly. She stiffens at my reaction.

I don’t mean to be so harsh with her, but I’m so angry and frustrated right now that I can barely control myself.

My rage isn’t directed at her—it’s at Ackley, at Alexis, at every radical who wants to use her and her children like lab rats.

But my anger comes out sideways, spilling onto the woman I’m desperate to protect.

Damon walks around the SUV toward us while I approach the driver’s side to talk with Bobby.

He immediately bows his head to me and starts to kill the engine, but I hold up my hand to stop him.

“No, Bobby, escorting me won’t be necessary,” I tell him.

I’m not going to my cabin on the Community Lands.

I’m staying with Carla tonight and for the foreseeable future.

This woman is a walking accident and needs someone by her side who will make sure she’s properly taken care of.

I’ll be damned if I let her get hurt again.

“I want you to assemble a special team in Detroit. Get into Brookstone and Blackburn Enterprises and find out what Alexis is planning to do with Carla’s blood sample.

Don’t try to retrieve it—she’s expecting that.

Just watch and observe. I’ll use the data you provide to come up with a strategy to stop whatever she’s planning. ”

Bobby nods and immediately puts the SUV in drive, then makes a U-turn, heading back across the bridge. Carla hangs her head as Damon approaches us.

“Carla...” he starts, but she shrugs and quickly shakes her head.

“No need for the lecture, Damon. I know I fucked up. I should have listened to you—all of you. And look at me now. I feel like a fool.”

“Carla, no one’s beating you up about this,” Damon says, and I snort. Carla looks up at me, her eyes full of shame.

“I...I think I’m going to go back into the shadows,” she murmurs, so quietly that without vampire hearing, we might have missed it.

“No, Carla...” Damon starts, but I grab her wrist and pull her against me.

She looks up at me with those soft, innocent green eyes.

She looks so worn down. I want to get her cleaned up and put her to bed, just hold her for the rest of the night.

She needs to feel loved, wanted, and I want to be the one to provide that.

“I’ve got it, Damon,” I say, pulling her close. My suit is covered in blood, now drying and sticky, but she clings to me anyway. The warmth of her body, the trust she’s giving me right now when I truly don’t deserve it, means everything.

Her scent—that sweet, peachy aroma—is partially masked by Ackley’s blood, but it’s still there, still pulling me in like a siren’s call.

I want to wash every trace of this night from her skin, erase the memory of his fists against her face, replace it all with something better, something worth remembering.

Damon smiles when he notices Carla relax against me, and he takes a step back, adjusting his suit.

“Let’s regroup at the station in a couple of days. I’m going to alert the king and queen about what’s happened. We need to come up with a plan. Now that Alexis has Carla’s blood, I’m sure they’re going to try to ramp up their efforts to infiltrate?—”

“The first thing you need to do is fire anyone on the island that shows even a hint of suspicion in their scent,” I interrupt.

“And while you’re doing that, I’ll make sure there’s extra security at the border.

I’ll start implementing those drones and AI systems I discussed—set up that sensor network around the perimeter. ”

Damon smiles and nods. I wrap a protective arm around Carla, keeping her close.

“And don’t worry about Carla. She’s not leaving my side.”

Damon nods, and Carla looks up at me like she wants to say something snarky, but she’s too tired to argue.

“See you both in a couple of days,” Damon says, and with that, he vanishes in a flash with his vampire speed, probably eager to get back to his fated mate.

When this is over, I’ll need to make more of an effort to meet his woman. Damon’s glow, the way his heart beats steadily—I envy it. I look down at Carla, realizing I need to be softer with her. She’s ready to give up on everything, and I can’t let her do that.

Carla breaks away from me and starts heading into the forest, leading the way to her cabin. She looks back at me from time to time, quiet as I keep pace with her, remaining a few steps behind. I can feel her children itching to come out of the shadows, eager to comfort their mother.

Their eyes peek out from time to time in the darkness. I smile at that—seeing how warm they are with their mother does something to me. I wish I could carry her, but I know she’d fight me the entire way.

The path to her cabin winds through the woods, the branches overhead casting shifting shadows.

Despite all she’s been through tonight, she moves with a quiet dignity, her back straight, her chin up.

Even covered in blood, even with her heart broken, she carries herself like royalty.

This woman is something else—a queen without a crown, a goddess without worshippers. Except for her children. And now me.

When she reaches the top of the stairs, Carla finally breaks.

She puts a hand to her mouth, crouches down on the porch stairs, kicks off her shoes, and just lets go.

I stop a few feet away and let her cry, but fuck—I just want to hold her, absorb her pain.

I know how much this date meant to her, how badly she fought for this moment, only to find out she was being used. I want to kill Ackley all over again.

Her sobs tear through me like knives, each one a physical pain I can’t ignore.

I’ve heard the cries of thousands over the centuries—victims, lovers, enemies—but hers cut deeper than any I can remember.

Something about her vulnerability, about this moment of raw despair, makes me want to destroy anything that’s ever caused her pain.

But I’m not done with my bloodlust. I plan to take down that radical bar before it’s all over, feeding on anyone stupid enough to be inside when I enter.

Her children slowly step from the shadows, surrounding her.

Tofi is there, her burgundy body faintly visible, along with Niko and his intricate patterns.

I smile when I finally see Moria and Kemnebi crawling around me, joining the others to comfort Carla.

They huddle over her, trying to absorb her pain the same way I want to.

“I’m so stupid. I—I’m sorry, babies. I just wanted to feel.

I wanted it so bad.” My dead heart breaks for her.

I try to take a step forward, but they look up and hiss at me—even Kemnebi does it, warning me to keep my distance.

I smile and step back, letting them take care of her.

Moria climbs onto her chest, and Carla wraps her arms around her, sobbing uncontrollably.

I don’t know how long we’re out here—minutes, hours—but I wait patiently. Seeing her hurting is killing me.

“Oh, Moria, you look so happy. You’re glowing,” Carla finally says when she pulls back. Moria climbs down and joins Kemnebi’s side. It looks like Moria’s grown over the past couple of days. Carla giggles through her sobs, wiping her tear-stained face.

“Who did you catch?” she asks, then giggles again.

I look to Moria and Kemnebi, and he starts to send me images of their hunt for lost souls stuck in limbo.

I know Kemnebi feeds on rodents and other pests, but whenever he finds a lost soul, it’s like a delicacy, and he grows every time he catches one.

Looking at Tofi and Niko’s size, along with some of the others, I start to piece together why some are bigger than others.

Kemnebi sends me images of how he and Moria have been bonding, mating, being alone.

He’s been teaching his mate how to hunt lost souls in limbo, catching one for her and letting her feed on it.

I smile at him. I look up to Tofi, who’s got her eyes on me, sending me images of taking care of Carla—bathing her, putting her to bed, holding her until she falls asleep.

I nod, bowing my head to her children, watching as they retreat into the shadows.

Carla wipes her face and sniffles, then stands and holds out her hand for her tote bag.

I laugh lightly at that. Is she serious right now? She really believes I’m going to hand her the tote bag and just let her go into her cabin and sulk?

Now she’s insulting me. I narrow my eyes at her, then walk past her, purposely bumping her shoulder as I take the steps up to her cabin porch and approach her door, turning the knob and stepping inside. I snicker when I hear her scoff and storm up the steps, following me inside.

Her cabin is nice, a cozy space. I make a mental note of that, so I know how she’ll like her home when I take her out of here. She’s not going back into the shadows, and I’m not leaving without her. She’s coming with me. She’s staying with me.

The cabin reflects her personality—practical but with touches of beauty.

Handmade quilts draped over simple furniture, dried flowers hanging from ceiling beams, small treasures collected and displayed with care.

A home built with love and attention, not just a place to exist. This isn’t just shelter; it’s her sanctuary, her first real home after centuries in the shadows.

Yes, I’m fucking unhinged right now, and she made me this way.

Those beautiful green eyes, those pretty lips, that delicious-looking curvy ass of hers.

And that goddamn peachy scent. She has no idea how feral I was earlier.

Killing and feeding on Ackley was child’s play compared to what I wanted to do tonight.

I wanted to paint the entire block of that diner red with blood and fuck her in front of everyone.

I want the world to know who she belongs to. She’s mine.

Mine.

I don’t give a shit if my heart never beats for her, I’m keeping her. I’m losing my goddamn mind right now. Carla is my madness, and I don’t want to let it go.

“What the hell are you doing, Amari?” she says, stepping inside and slamming her door shut. “No, you’re not staying. I’m?—”

I’m right in front of her face, just inches away before she can blink, dropping her tote bag to the floor while still holding onto the duffle bag packed with fresh clothes.

“I don’t want to fucking hear it right now, Carla,” I say, my tone warning, and she gasps, staring up at me. “I’m staying. Now, where’s your bathroom so I can get cleaned up?”

She swallows nervously and points to the stairs.

“It’s an attached bathroom in my room,” she murmurs, and I grin at her. She’s submissive. That’s interesting, but I can tell she’s not submissive for just anyone. She needs a man strong enough not just for her, but for her children.

I am that man.

I grin, turning away from her and making my way up the stairs, noticing how her room is a mess from getting ready for the date, and I instantly get jealous all over again.

Ackley’s blood runs through my veins, and still, it’s not enough.

Carla follows me up to her bedroom, and I grin at her as she watches me move the clothes from the small chair by the bathroom door and set my bag down on it.

“You’re really staying?” she asks, staring at me like I’ve lost my mind. I grin at her.

“Isn’t it obvious?” I snap, loosening my tie until I’m able to pull it off, then I unbutton my jacket.

Carla pulls off her cardigan, and my eyes fall right to her ass as she walks past me over to the laundry basket.

There’s a linen closet next to it, and she opens it up and pulls out some towels and washcloths.

I immediately approach her, taking them out of her hands and going into the bathroom, becoming jealous all over again from the mess.

I can tell she put a lot of work into getting ready for this date.

I’m going to make her work even harder for me.

She starts to move away, but I grab her wrist, pulling her into the bathroom with me. She struggles at first, then just gives in, letting me pull her inside.

I quickly turn on the shower, then unbutton my jacket and pull it off, kick off my shoes, and start unbuttoning my shirt. I grin at her, watching her eyes linger over my body as I undress right in front of her.

“Take off your clothes, Carla,” I command, and her eyes widen as she stares up at me. I raise an eyebrow at her once I pull off my cufflinks and remove my shirt, then pull my undershirt over my head, exposing my bare chest to her.

The bathroom light illuminates my skin, revealing the centuries of violence etched into my body.

Scars that never fully healed, even with vampire regeneration.

Marks from battles, from hunts, from the countless times I’ve faced death and walked away.

My body tells a story of survival, of power, of endurance.

And now, all of it—all of me—is focused on her.

“Do it now, or I’ll do it for you. I’m cleaning you up, then I’m putting you to bed.” My words come out almost like a growl. It’s not how I want to be with her—rough and forceful—but with Carla, she needs a man to dominate her.

Her lips part to say something back at me, but then snap shut.

Her hands move to her sides, lifting up her dress, exposing her pretty black panties.

I grin, keeping my eyes on her as she curls her fingers around the thin straps, then bends over, pulling her panties down and stepping out of them, doing as I commanded.

I run a hand over my face, looking at her pretty bare pussy, wondering if she shaved for that asshole.

This is going to be a long night.