FATED BLOOD (The Twisted Destiny Saga, #5)
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Epilogue
Thank You!
Other Books in the Series
FATED BLOOD
THE TWISTED DESTINY SAGA
BOOK FIVE
FRANCA STORM
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
FATED BLOOD. The Twisted Destiny Saga (Book 5)
Copyright © F. J. Gale (2014). All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the author.
Cover Design by F.J. Gale (www.fjgale.com)
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Prologue
A flash of white lightning split the black sky in two and a ferocious roar of thunder reverberated around her. The night was black, darker than she’d ever known. But she could see just fine, just like it was day. There was no difference now and she couldn’t recall why. She couldn’t recall anything. There were no memories; everything around her was hazy. All she could focus on were the shrill female screams up ahead and the scrape of heels on the abrasive ground of the alleyway.
They were running from it. The monster. It teased them, catching up to them in a flash of supernatural speed and then letting them go; letting them run some more. It was playing with them; a deadly game of cat and mouse. But it was no cat; it was a predator of the most ferocious kind. It possessed no remorse, no sense of consequence. And it wasn’t driven by the need to feed; the basic need to survive. No, it only wanted one thing. To kill. It craved the euphoria of having a life in its hands and ripping it away with its immense power that it wielded over all mere mortals, humans.
Cora had been following it for hours through the night. She didn’t know why. She couldn’t explain it. All she knew was that she couldn’t leave it.
She gasped as the monster stood before the women in another flash of incredible speed. It held its helpless prey against the wall with little effort; a single hand to each woman’s chest. They struggled, but their efforts were futile. Now the monster had them in its clutches their fates were already sealed.
She watched as it squeezed the life from the redhead’s neck. It growled with satisfaction and a blissful cry ripped from its throat as its first victim crumpled to the ground.
It took its time with the blonde one. Its hands caressed her breasts and whispered seductive words that immediately silenced her. Compulsion. Cora watched in surprise as the blonde licked her lips. The monster kissed her ruthlessly, its hands running up her thighs and sliding underneath her short leather skirt. As the blonde writhed against it, throwing her head back in pleasure, the monster buried its face in her neck. She bucked against it wildly as an orgasm ripped through her. The monster tasted its own release and its claws raked down the blonde’s arms, drawing blood. So much blood. She didn’t get the chance to cry out as her eyes glazed over and the monster released her with a satisfied sigh.
And then it turned around. Fangs dripped with blood. Its features were contorted almost beyond recognition. It smiled at her as it flicked back its silky ebony hair.
Cora screamed.
The monster was her.
CHAPTER ONE
“Ryan, look at me,” Jada gasped, her claws biting into his biceps.
He hissed and pulled out. “On your knees,” he commanded.
“Ryan--” she started to protest.
“On. Your. Knees,” he repeated, cutting her off.
She made a disgruntled growl and begrudgingly complied, climbing onto her knees and pushing her ass into the air. Despite her protests, she couldn’t deny him anything. The pull she felt to him was too strong. Whatever he wanted she gave him, just to be near him. He came to her every night, but it still wasn’t enough. She wanted him with her all the time, but he wouldn’t give her that. The only thing he would give her was mind-blowing sex. They didn’t even talk anymore. It had been that way for the last three weeks. Since her.
She moaned as he slid his index finger along her soaking wet slit. She smiled to herself as she heard him growl in appreciation. And then he plunged his cock into her in one sudden thrust, burying himself inside her right to the hilt. She screamed. He didn’t waste any time being gentle. He never did anymore. He fucked her hard, his claws digging painfully into her ass. He was merciless; his thrusts brutal and his grunts were almost painful. A powerful orgasm ripped through her and she collapsed onto the bed as wave after delicious wave of pleasure crashed over her. Ryan didn’t stop. He kept fucking her for several long minutes before he suddenly pulled out with an angry groan. He hadn’t come. Yet again.
He collapsed onto the bed beside her with a frustrated sigh and before she could reach for him, he turned away from her onto his side.
“Ryan,” she said gently, stroking his arm.
He tensed under the contact but she didn’t pull back. “Don’t,” he murmured.
“Just talk to me, Ryan.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” he muttered.
“You’re hurting, because of what happened to Cora.”
At the sound of that name on her lips, he bolted off the bed and yelled over his shoulder, “Don’t say her name!”
He snatched his boxers off the floor and pulled them on quickly.
“Why do you come to me when you’re only thinking about her?” she asked.
Ryan spun around angrily. “Because, it’s the only time I feel anything. It’s the bond thing between us. Okay?”
“But it’s not enough? Not what you had with her? You feel the loss of it since she…died?”
As Ryan slid on his jeans he saw the hurt on her face. But he just couldn’t find it within him to reassure her, to take it away. He didn’t have that anymore. He didn’t have anything.
“What do you want from me?” he thundered.
“You!” she screamed back. “I want you, Ryan!”
“I come to you. We fuck. You get off. Is that not enough?” he asked as he snatched his shirt off the floor and pulled it on.
“You don’t even come.”
He growled low in his throat. “We’re not talking about that.”
“You won’t even look at me when we make love.”
He scoffed. “Make love? You and I have never done that. We fuck. That’s it. I thought you enjoyed it. If you don’t, please fucking let me know.”
“I do, but--”
&n
bsp; He shrugged on his leather jacket and pulled out a pair of sunglasses and slipped them on. He turned back to her. “I thought so.”
“Ryan!”
Throwing up his hands, he bellowed, “I don’t have anything more to give you! Understand that!”
She started to cry. Oh, fuck this bullshit. He turned away and without looking back, he bolted from the room, slamming the door behind him.
***
Nathanial watched from the shadows as Ryan rushed out of the guest room where Jada was staying. He’d only made it a few steps down the corridor before slamming his fist into the wall. A pained roar ripped from his throat. Nathanial had never heard anything like it. It cut right through him.
Ryan slid down the wall, collapsing to his knees as he broke down. His broken sobs echoed down the deathly quiet corridor.
Nathanial heard him murmuring Cora’s name in sorrow. And then Orion’s. He wanted to go to him, to comfort him, but he knew better. Ryan wasn’t ready for that yet. He’d come to know him well. Ryan dealt with things on his own first. He’d seek help when he was ready and Nathanial would be there for him when he did. But until then, all he could do was keep a close eye on him. Aside from his personal feelings towards him, there were also his duties as King of the Dark Realm. So far Ryan hadn’t shown any sign of weakness outwardly. They’d completed the coronation ritual two weeks ago, effectively cementing peace between wolves and vampires in the realm—something that hadn’t happened for two centuries. Ryan had been strong and decisive in his new role as Wolf King of the Dark Realm. But Nathanial knew that he was just going through the motions. He was keeping busy. In the human realm he had been working non-stop to relocate all of the wolves who had been under his care for so long at the wolf compound. With Michael and Luca now on their side there was no longer any threat against them so they could return to their lives. Unfortunately, many of the packs’ homes had been destroyed during the height of Michael and Luca’s threat against them. Ryan had enlisted their help to rebuild them. Given their supernatural abilities the work had been completed quickly. Now the compound was empty. Ryan and his pack had returned to their homes outside the compound and, Ryan, to his biker bar.
But despite the stability that Ryan projected to the wolves under his command, to their subjects in the Dark Realm, Nathanial knew that beneath it Ryan was drowning. He’d lost his son and his wife on the very same day. He never took his sunglasses off—even on the darkest of nights. He was shielding his grief beneath them. Nathanial had seen him remove them once when he’d thought no one was watching and he’d seen the exhaustion in his eyes, the prominent dark circles. He didn’t sleep; that much was obvious. He didn’t shave anymore either. His normal five o’clock shadow had grown into an unruly beard. And his hair was a wild mess—barely washed most of the time, except during meetings of the court. Yes, he was right on the edge. And Nathanial was there in the shadows, always watching him, to make sure he didn’t fall over it.
He and Michael had postponed their investigation into the odd bond between Ryan and Jada. For one, Ryan needed her right now; some relief. And secondly, they had refocused all of their efforts on finding Orion and that evil bitch, Oriana. Marella and Shaye had joined in the search. But despite the immense reach that all of them had, they hadn’t found any concrete leads. There had been a couple, which had turned out to be nothing but false hope. Nathanial knew that Ryan had secretly been ripping into his contacts in the human realm in his own search. His friend, Josh, had been at his side and managed to prevent him from taking things too far. Thankfully, it had saved Nathanial from having to get involved. The wolf seemed to have an inexplicable calming effect on his Alpha, saving Nathanial from being forced to use a heavy-handed approach to keep Ryan in line.
Losing his son had been hard enough. And then with Cora’s death, the bond between them had been broken and left him as such. Whenever a mating bond as strong as what the two of them had had was broken, it left a hole in the surviving mate—an unbearable emptiness. Nathanial knew that Ryan had convinced Luca to lift his magick over Jada’s room so he could go to her. And he hadn’t stopped him. Ryan didn’t know that he was aware that he was coming to her every night. He allowed it because Ryan needed it. He needed to feel something. Unfortunately, his grief over Cora’s death was unwittingly weakening the connection between him and Jada. He’d heard enough of his and Jada’s fights to know that much.
After several minutes, he watched as Ryan climbed to his feet and pulled out a flask from his leather jacket pocket. He took several large gulps and then stowed it away before releasing a heavy sigh and walking off down the corridor, to make his way back to the human realm.
Nathanial shook his head sadly and then turned away.
CHAPTER TWO
Luca sat by her bed, stroking her silky black hair gently. He missed the sight of her beautiful blue eyes. They were closed. They had been for the last three weeks. There had been no change in her condition. All he could do was wait. He wouldn’t accept defeat. He wouldn’t give up hope; not like Ryan had. His brother wouldn’t even come to the vampire mansion to see her. It was that whole age-old vampire versus werewolf rivalry—he couldn’t bear to think of her in that way. Sure, he was close with the ultimate vampire—Luca’s father, the Vampire King. But when it came to the woman that he loved it was different for him. It had been his damned call! He’d given me the go ahead to do it!
All Luca had been able to think about since the events of that awful day was the way he’d made love to her in his bed just hours earlier. It hadn’t been just fucking. She’d been there with him. As much as she’d tried to deny it, he’d seen it for himself. He’d felt it. He wanted nothing more than to take her again, to give her the love that she deserved.
“Luca,” Michael greeted as he walked into the room. “Any change?” he asked.
Luca looked up and shook his head sadly.
“Nathanial said that this is the first time that a vampire has ever turned a non-human. The normal two or three days doesn’t apply. It’ll happen,” Michael told him.
“She’s not completely dead—not like a human would be in her condition. Can you feel it?”
“Yes. White energy. It’s confounding. It shouldn’t be possible.”
“I know,” Luca murmured as he planted a soft kiss on her forehead. “She’s special.”
“When she wakes up he might want her back, Luca,” Michael warned.
Luca scoffed. “He hasn’t come to see her once in the last three weeks.”
“He’s not vampire. He just sees her current state as death. But when she wakes his perspective might change.”
“Their bond is already broken.”
“Perhaps.”
Luca’s gaze snapped to his. “You don’t think so?”
“The way he grieves for her would suggest that it is not broken on his end, only hers.”
Luca thought about it for a moment and then he snapped, “I am her Sire!”
Michael folded his arms across his chest and scrutinized him. “You wish to use that influence to affect her choices?”
Luca breathed a heavy sigh. “No. It won’t be…real, if I do that. Same as compulsion.” He climbed off the bed and approached Michael. “Anyway, you didn’t just come here to ask me about her. What do you need?”
“Nathanial wishes you to go to your brother tonight. He has a lead on his son’s whereabouts and Nathanial would like you to use your compulsion to help Ryan get the answers that he seeks.”
“Why didn’t he contact me himself?”
“Because you are blocking his ability to communicate with you so you can spend all of your time here with her with no interruptions.”
“Where is Josh? I thought he was keeping an eye on him while he’s in the human realm?”
“Busy dealing with a dispute among a wolf pack at the edge of the city. He’s miles away.”
“Fuck. Fine,” Luca said with an exasperated sigh. “Where is this supposed lead of his?”
Michael looked at him intensely as he revealed, “Infernus.”
Luca’s eyes were wide with disbelief. “You’re serious?”
“Have I ever been anything else?”
“Kristoff’s club?”
“The very one,” Michael responded with amusement.
Luca growled. “You find this amusing? After what happened the last time Kristoff and I were in the same room together?”
Michael chuckled. “It will be quite the reunion, I’d imagine. I wonder if he’s still with Amelia.”
Amelia. That whore. “Don’t speak of her.”
“A beauty though.”
“Yes. But in the end, nothing but a common whore.”
“I think you were more insulted that Kristoff was able to seduce her in spite of your infamous skills in that area. I don’t know why you expected her to be true to you. What vampire is?”
Agitated, Luca waved his hand at the bed and said, “She will be.”
Michael scoffed. “You’re kidding yourself. Perhaps later on. But initially she’ll be like any other newbie—craving blood and sex.”
“And I will be here to satisfy both hungers.”
“I’m sure that will go over well with Ryan.”
Luca hesitated. Shit, that asshole is right as usual. “Look, I have somewhere to be. Get out. I’m not leaving you in here with her.”
Michael held up his hands in innocence. “Not my type.”
Luca rolled his eyes. “Sure. Just keep in mind that, as her Sire, I will know if anyone comes within a couple of feet of her. I will feel any change in her immediately.”
“I know how it works, you fool,” Michael said as he opened the door.
Luca ushered him out of the room. He looked back at her quickly and then left, locking the door behind him.
CHAPTER THREE
As Ryan approached Infernus he patted the stake in the holster at his hip. They weren’t actually his—the holster or the stake—they were Cora’s. Had been Cora’s, he corrected himself. She was dead. Dead. Even if that dumbass, Luca, couldn’t accept that, he could. It had been three fucking weeks. A turning didn’t take that long. Her body must have rejected it—the white magic in her or something. Nathanial had told them that it had never been done before. He’d been against it from the moment that Luca had suggested it. He’d been concerned about the consequences. But when Ryan had given the go ahead—in a moment of major fucking weakness—he’d allowed it. Ryan had no doubt that if it had been anyone else other than him, Nathanial would never have allowed it. He was the Vampire King—he had his rules for a reason. I should have respected that. I should have listened to him. Because all it had brought him had been false hope. And he couldn’t bear it. And so he kept telling himself that she was dead. It was why he hadn’t been to see her at Luca’s mansion. Seeing her would cause him to lose control and he was already half-way there as it was.