A Guardian's
Love
By Stein Willard © 2008
Disclaimer
The characters in the story are a product of my own imagination
and hopefully have no resemblance to any living persons or vampires
for that matter. But if it does it is entirely coincidental. Some
of the places mentioned are either fictitious and or adapted to
suit the plot of the story.
Sex: This story contains sexual content of a
graphic nature between consenting adult women, thus if you are not
18 years old and not allowed to read content of this nature, please
move on to other suitable stories.
Violence: Scenes of violence can be
expected.
Feedback: This is my first try and not being a
native English speaker, it's so much more challenging. Constructive
criticism is greatly appreciated, so feel free to drop a line or
two at steinwillard80@gmail.com .
PART THREE
Chapter 5
One moment she was lying on the cage floor and the next she was
held in a tight embrace. Her nostrils were almost immediately
assaulted by the scent of blood and she turned her face away to
press it into the warm body holding her. It was Jemima. Looking up
into her Jemima's face, she found the usually flashing blue eyes
soft and tender. Her mom was here. Everything was going to be
okay.
"I need to close the wound in your neck, baby. " With a quick
flick of her tongue over the oozing wound the blood flow stopped
and the wound started to close. She reached down to Inger's hands
and tucked the rope loose which held her hands together. "You need
to get out of here. I don't want you to get hurt."
Looking past Jemima shoulder, she saw two blurring shapes moving
around the warehouse. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw the
creature trying to slink away and pushed out of Jemima's
arms.
"We need to stop him, Mom." Jemima nodded and was gone so
quickly that Inger blinked repeatedly to clear the blurriness. She
heard a deep growl of hatred and stumbled to her feet. She needed
to help her mother. With her blonde hair flowing loosely, Jemima
was gracefully dodging the creature's claw, so fast; it actually
looked as if she was in two places at once. Her tall body was
supple as she ducked and sidestepped the creature's attacks. The
rest of the fight had stopped now and the only action was between
Jemima and the vampire.
This was the first time Inger saw her Mom fight and was
completely in awe by the power and agility Jemima possessed. With
her tall body encased in black leather, Jemima moved around the
renegade, successfully slipping in deep slashes with her elongated
claws, whilst staying out of the monster's reach. Inger could only
stare.
With spittle running down its deformed chin, the creature
reached for her but the space where Jemima had been a split second
ago was empty. She popped up behind the vampire and with glowing
red eyes she grabbed it by its wings and swung it through the air.
Before the creature could gain enough momentum mid-air to flap its
wings for stability, Paloma bounced into the air and grabbed the
monster by its throat, pulling it down until it crashed onto its
back. Holding him down by sitting on him, her knees pressing down
on his wings, Paloma grabbed his wrist and brought it to her mouth.
She ripped through the tough flesh with her fangs and sucked on the
monster's wrist.
Inger felt her stomach turn and quickly stumbled away from the
grisly scene.
"There are too many of us to defeat, Assassin. We will not rest
until all of you are destroyed." The monster grated out, but he was
powerless against Paloma's superior strength.
Paloma lifted her head and threw the wrist away from her as if
it was contaminated. A slow trail of dark red blood trickled down
the corner of her mouth and this time Inger lost the battle and
gagged violently. She was pulled against a soft body as her back
was stroked gently.
"Let it out, my baby." This time it was Tahlia, her black eyes
studying her worriedly. "He didn't hurt you too much, did he?" She
didn't wait for an answer, but pulled Inger tighter against her. A
deep shiver ran through Tahlia and Inger quickly looked up into the
eyes of her mother.
A single red tear ran down the Vampire Queen's cheek. Shocked to
see her strong and dependable mother shedding a tear, rattled Inger
and she reached out and wiped the tear away. She pressed her face
into Tahlia neck, overwhelmed by emotion.
<Don't cry, Mother. I'm not hurt. You came for me, like I
knew you would.>
Attuned to her lover's emotions, Jemima quickly walked over to
where her family stood. Her blue eyes looking intently into those
of Tahlia. Over the past twenty years, she had never seen Tahlia
break down. Luckily she was standing with her back to the creature
and Paloma. She didn't want anyone except them to be witness to
this private moment. Inger was holding on tightly to
Tahlia.
"We are all fine, Mother."
Tahlia nodded slowly.
"If we were a few seconds late, he would've killed you." A pain
flash crossed the beautiful features. "I can not afford to lose
either or you. You are my life."
"But he didn't and I'm okay. You and Mom came to rescue
me."
There was a deep groan and they turned sharply. The vampire's
head was lying a few feet away from them and Paloma was wiping her
mouth with the back of her hand.
"He was Mecredi's son, Jonah. If he was turned into a vampire, I
believe his father was too. Let's get out of here before we find
out." Paloma dragged all the body parts on a heap and set them
alight.
^^^^^^^^^^
Tahlia swung Inger in her arms and using preternatural speed
they were at her grandparents' mansion in a matter of minutes.
After reassuring James that she was OK, she quickly undressed and
stepped into the shower.
Outside in the hallway, Tahlia turned to Paloma, her black eyes
expressionless as usual. After the meeting with the Consortium she
had hoped to have spent some time with Paloma, chatting, but before
they could even start, Jemima had alerted her to Inger's capture. I
was great to have had her oldest friend with her when they went to
rescue Inger. It had felt like old times again.
"You have always looked out for me. This time you have helped me
save my daughter. Please accept my gratitude for your
help."
They looked at each other for a long while, before Paloma
stepped forward and pulled Tahlia into a tight
embrace.
"We promised our mothers that we would look out for each other.
Besides honoring my promise, I did it out of love. I love your
daughter, old friend. Please grant me the permission to court
her?"
With the words out of the open, the two women looked at each
other. Tahlia's black eyes bored into Paloma's silver ones, but
still no one broke the growing silence.
Finally Tahlia nodded.
"Good." She turned to open the bedroom door. "Firstly, as long
as you don't hurt my child, because if you do, I will have to hunt
you down and we both don't want that to happen. Secondly, it will
not always be easy for me to see you with Inger and I might react
to it at times. Bear with me. I will inform Jemima about your wish
to court Inger, allow her the chance to act and react like a
mother. She loves Inger very much and might have misgivings about a
union between the two of you."
Paloma nodded and stepped closer. She touched her right hand to
Tahlia's chest, right over her heart and Tahlia's eyes widened.
This was such an Old World gesture, one which held a deep binding
promise.
"I promise to look after her always and to love her for as long
as I draw breath."
Tahlia turned the doorknob and stepped back.
***************
Inger lifted her face to allow the water sprays to caress her
face. Her thoughts went back to the events of the night and she
gingerly touched the spot where the vampire had pricked her skin.
There was only smooth skin now, but still a shudder went through
her body. She reached for the towel and with it wrapped around her,
she strolled into her bedroom only to come to a quick stop. Sitting
on her bed was Paloma, her silver eyes looking calm but
intense.
"Your mother let me in, but if I'd known you were in the shower,
I would've waited a while longer."
Swallowing hard, Inger nodded.
"It's OK. If my mother let you in, she must've had a good
reason." They were alone in her bedroom and just the thought of
having this sexy dangerous woman in such close quarters, made her
heartbeat accelerate. And it made her act stupid too. She turned
away from Paloma and dropped the towel slowly. Inwardly she was
glad for all the hours she'd spent in the gym over the past four
years. Her body was taut and evenly muscled.
She grinned slyly when she heard Paloma suck in her breath. When
she turned to face the vampire she found the silver eyes roaming
hungrily over her body, moving from her long legs up to her face.
When they made eye contact, the silver eyes were almost translucent
with desire.
Inger felt the heat pooling between her legs at the raw lust in
Paloma's eyes and she felt the heavy compulsion in her mind
ushering her towards Paloma. She felt as if her legs had a will of
their own as they carried her slowly towards the bed. She shrieked
when Paloma's hand shot out and she was pulled onto the lap of the
vampire, a cool hand cupped her twitching mound.
Inger gasped at the intimate touch, her eyes fixed on the large
hand covering her naked sex. This was unexpected, too fast and
unbelievably erotic. The hand was lifted slowly and Inger stared in
total fascination at the slick smears on the Vampires strong
fingers. When did she become so wet?
"You need to put on clothes quickly before I forget my honor and
ravish you." She pressed her lips against Inger's cheek and
loosened her grip. "I haven't been with anyone for over 500 years."
Swallowing hard, Inger nodded and scrambled off Paloma's lap.
Whatever made her think that she would be able to handle Paloma?
The woman was obvious too much for her, mentally as well as
physically. For the second time tonight she felt like she was going
to be eaten alive by a vampire. With the towel wrapped tightly
around her body, Inger finally had enough guts to turn and look at
Paloma. This time the vampire was looking at her with such a
heart-numbing sad look. But the look only lasted less than a second
before the silver eyes went blank again.
"I am not one of those women you can flirt and have a hasty romp
with in the backseat of your car." In one fluid movement she was on
her feet and walking slowly towards her. "I have lived long enough
to know when I want something and I have also learnt not to look a
gifted horse in the mouth when I am presented with the opportunity
to take what I want." Inger shivered when Paloma touched her
naked shoulder and a strong electric current ran from her shoulder
to settle in the pit of her stomach. "Unless you want what I want,
don't ever try to do what you did tonight. I will seduce
you and take you to my bed. And when I'm done with you,
you will never ever be able to look at another woman ever again,
because your body will crave my touch. And my touch
only."
With a final look at Inger's exposed legs, Paloma stepped back
and closed her eyes briefly.
"Hurry up and get dressed. The others are waiting for us in the
boardroom." With that said she walked to the door and let herself
out.
Still shivering, Inger stared at the closed door for a few
seconds before she fled to the bathroom and closed the door firmly
behind her.
**************
Paloma could feel Tahlia's black eyes following her as she
crossed the boardroom to take a seat at the table. On the way to
the boardroom she had bumped into Rafina which explained the mugs
of steaming coffee on the table. The subtle taste of Inger's
ill-concealed fear was still lingering in her mouth and she was
glad for the coffee to mask the taste. How was she ever going to
get past the fact that Inger feared her more than she liked her?
Looking up she found Tahlia looking at her with those unblinking
black eyes of hers. Jemima was standing a few feet away chatting to
Michael while Pierre was sitting quietly looking deep into his cup
of coffee.
He worried her. His loneliness was growing. Genevieve had
disappeared while she was still underground, but biting Gillian had
brought her up to speed with almost all the information she had
been missing over the past 500 years. Losing a woman such as
Genevieve, she was sure, would've broken any man. Even a powerful
Royal like Pierre. She had known Genevieve very well. A sweet,
petite redhead with a heart of gold.
Whereas she and the Royal Vampires had crisscrossed the globe
fighting and killing, Genevieve was the one they all came home to.
The one who reminded them never to let go of their humanity and to
distance themselves from their kills. She was Pierre's life and for
him to have survived four hundred years with out her - without a
mate, was just because of his strong sense of duty. He knew that
the Race needed him and that was the only reason he hadn't walked
into the dawn - yet.
<I am worried about Pierre. His will to live is fading
slowly.>
Tahlia nodded and turned her head slowly to look at
Pierre.
<We will have to find a way to help him manage his
anguish before he goes to ground.>
The door to the boardroom opened and Inger stepped in. As if on
cue all the others took their seats. Jemima pushed a mug into
Inger's hand, her blue eyes was tender and everyone in the room
could feel the waves of comfort that came from Jemima. Inger smiled
weakly at her mother before scanning over all the occupants in the
room.
When they made eye contact, Paloma once again felt the fear the
young woman was trying so hard to hide. She quickly picked up her
cup and took a sip to hide the grimace that came to her lips.
Having filled in the others of what happened earlier, Tahlia
turned to Paloma.
"What did you find out about the slayers and their
vampire?"
Paloma gently placed her cup down.
"It's not good. The vampire we killed tonight was the son of
Columbus Mercredi, the founder of the Servants of Redemption. What
I got from the vampire was that both Mercredi and his son were
turned by Drake. Acting on his advice they managed to capture a
vampire to serve as a blood cow." She saw the looked of shock and
horror on the Joan's face.
"How did they capture him?" Paloma saw Jonas reaching out and
taking Joan's hand.
"Her. It's a vampiress. I believe they ambushed her and they are
still keeping her captive somewhere in Italy. Probably at their
head office in Naples. What we don't know is how many others she
was forced to create. We will have to destroy the vampiress."
Paloma looked from Tahlia to Jonas and then to Pierre.
After centuries of hunting and killing their own kind, it had
never become easier. The three Royal Vampires nodded curtly. They
will have to do it together. The others in the room must've sensed
the weight of the decision that the four master vampires had to
make and kept quiet. Tahlia broke the silence.
"With his son destroyed, I believe Mercredi will be coming for
us. I left one human alive to take a message to whoever they are
reporting to."
Michael cleared his throat softly. "We can use that to our
advantage."
"How?" It was Inger. She had been quiet until now, sipping from
her mug and throwing nervous glances Paloma's way.
"If Mercredi comes there's a good chance that he will bring the
vampiress with him. We will have home ground advantage and can
organize an operation here."
"Why do you think they are keeping her alive?" Pierre looked up
from his mug, his blue eyes expressionless as he waited for Paloma
to answer his question.
"After centuries of killing innocents, a vampire's blood becomes
diluted with every kill and they start to loose some of their
powers. Such as the power to shape shift to and from human form.
The vampire will also have trouble to blend in with the shadows as
he will be followed everywhere by a hideous demonic stench which
will warn humans of its presence - thus robbing them of
sustenance."
The room was deadly quiet and Paloma turned to look at Inger and
found her looking at her. The blue eyes held a look of stark
horror. Paloma quickly looked away not wanting to see the fear in
Inger's eyes again.
"A vampire, such as the creature we destroyed today, will need
the fresh blood of a full-blood Royal clan vampire to resuscitate
its failing powers. Mercredi must've found a vampiress of pure
heart and soul." There was a small silence. "One of
ours."
Frowning suddenly, Jonas sat up straight. "The only vampiress I
knew who would fit that description is …was …" His
voice trailed off, but all the others, including Pierre, knew
exactly what he was going to say.
All the eyes in the room sought out Pierre's, who shook his
head.
"I have questioned each and every servant in the household more
times than I can remember about that night. They all remember
seeing her being staked through the heart and left to die in the
flames." His blue eyes were almost pale with anguish as he relived
the memory. "She would've contacted me if she was alive, but she
didn't."
Tahlia nodded. "Pierre has a point. Let's stick to our original
plan. We lure Mercredi here and free the vampiress."
The three Royal Vampires came to their feet and left the room
with the rest of them following in their wake.
Outside in the lounge, Inger felt a hand on her shoulder and
knew who it was before turning to face her. Paloma's silver eyes
were looking back at her. It was quite late already and she wasn't
sure if she was up for another mentally draining session with
Paloma.
"Could we talk for a while, please?"
Looking at the big grandfather clock in the lounge, Inger's
shoulders dropped. It was one o'clock and she was very
tired.
"I can hardly keep my eyes open. Can't it wait until tomorrow?"
Paloma nodded and stepped back, her eyes unreadable. "Yes, you
must be very tired. I will see you tomorrow?"
With a surprisingly gentle smile, she walked over to where the
other vampires were standing. Juan had also joined them
now.
She was about to leave to go to her bedroom when she overheard
Michael talking.
"We've had successful trials with the drug. Of all ten vampires
we've injected with the serum, all of them had been able to walk
about during daylight hours." Before she could eavesdrop further
she felt Tahlia's eyes on her.
<This is not for your ears, little one. Not yet that
is.>
She quickly turned and left the lounge. At the door she turned
to look back and felt the air explode out of her lungs. Paloma was
staring at her with such an intense expression of longing in her
eyes, but she quickly shielded her eyes and turned away to listen
to what Michael was saying.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
After Michael and Joan had left, accompanied by Jonas, Juan and
Pierre, Jemima came to sit next to Tahlia where she and Paloma were
sitting, sipping coffee. Paloma felt the pang of envy when she saw
the possessive way Tahlia looked at Jemima. Looking at Jemima, she
groaned inwardly, perfectly understanding Tahlia's infatuation.
Dressed in black pants and a tight-fitting white shirt she was
any woman and man's dream. She was taken back to the year 29 BC,
when she'd stumbled upon Tahlia and a young woman in one of the
animal fodder sheds. Tahlia's mother, Grinolde, was worried when
her daughter hadn't returned home in time for lunch and had asked
her to go out and look for Tahlia. After having looked everywhere
possible she'd turned to the royal fodder sheds which were situated
near the walls of the Emperor's castle.
The first stall was empty and she had impatiently pushed open
the door to the second stall only to be brought up short. There in
the thick fresh hay, she'd found Tahlia with her head buried
between the legs of the most beautiful blonde girl with vivid blue
eyes. Shocked by her intrusion, the pair had quickly jumped up and
sheepishly pulled on their clothing. Catching them in the act had
stunned her, but she wasn't really shocked. She had suspected for
quite a while that Tahlia, despite of her unbelievably good looks,
were attracted to girls and she was always found in the presence of
a beautiful girl or two. But seeing her like that with another
woman had rattled her a bit. Mainly because she too had been
suppressing her attraction to woman for the past few years and here
Tahlia was, fearlessly living out her life.
When she had focused her attention on the girl, she'd felt her
blood run cold. Aurora. Caesar's goddaughter. What did Tahlia get
herself into this time? She could get her head chopped off for what
she was doing with the noble woman. And then it struck her that the
girl was staring at Tahlia with absolute adoration in her beautiful
blue eyes.
The exact way that Jemima was looking at Tahlia now.
"You seem to be far away, Paloma." It was Jemima and Paloma
snapped out of her reverie. Jemima's blue eyes were studying her
calmly. Grinning, she took a sip from her coffee
mug.
"I was thinking about the first time I saw you. Nearly two
thousand years ago."
A black eyebrow curved upwards and Tahlia placed her mug on the
coffee table in front of them. Her black eyes had a subtle warning
in them. Jemima on the other hand had a mischievous
smile.
"And?" Looking at Tahlia, she took her lover's hand in hers and
squeezed it until Tahlia's piercing gaze moved away from Paloma and
the black eyes were focused her. "Tell me everything. It is good to
have someone who can serve as a reference to Tahlia's
childhood."
Paloma cradle the mug in her hands for a few seconds before she
started to talk."It was in 29 BC, a year before we were converted
to vampires. Grinolde, that's Tahlia's mother, asked me to go look
for her. After having looked in every crook and nook of the city, I
decided to go look for her in the Emperor's animal feed sheds. To
my surprised I found her there with you. All I remembered from that
day was the color of your eyes and the way you looked at Tahlia."
She took a sip from her mug. "You looked at her the same way just a
few seconds ago."
"How?" Jemima asked softly, stroking Tahlia's strong
hand.
"Like she was the only reason you existed - with adoration and
trust."
Jemima lifted Tahlia's hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly.
"She is the reason I am existing. Or what do you say,
baby?"
At the sound of the endearment, Tahlia grinned and came to her
feet.
"I think it's time to call it a night. There is enough sleeping
places here, feel free to pick anyone you like." Uttering a hasty
'goodnight', Jemima hurried after Tahlia.
The minute they were out of sight, Paloma sighed deeply and
placed her mug in the table. She knew what they were going to do
for the remaining hours before dawn break and she felt the
loneliness creeping up towards her chest, almost choking
her.
<Go to her.>
It was Tahlia's voice and it sounded soft and tender.
Paloma hesitated. Inger was scared of her and would surely kick
her out of her room.
<I know my daughter. Go now.>
Paloma came to her feet and slowly made her way down the hallway.