Unraveling Selena, Marisa Maichel [13 ebook reader TXT] 📗

shhh,” Uncle Soren cooed. “I’m here now. Shh. It’s all right.” Mitra mumbled under her breath, still whimpering.

“Keep the arm on the stump for at least an hour,” Louis said. “Toby, go to the kitchen and heat up a glass of blood. What’s your favorite type, Mitra?”

“O positive,” Mitra whispered.

“Heat up some of that, then, and give it to her. She needs lots of blood, and lots of rest. Keep her in one of the rooms.”

“My room,” Uncle Soren said quickly. He carried her up to his room.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE- SOREN’S POV AND MITRA

I purred as I carried my wounded mate up to my room. My heart broke for her, but she was here with me now.

“I should have been more vigilant,” she said. “I should have accepted my fate. I should have accepted you. I should have been there for Ellis.”

“Hush,” I said. I held her arm up to the stump while it reattached and healed. Toby brought me a couple glasses of blood for her. I held it to her mouth while she drank. I noticed that her chin-length black hair was stained with vampire blood.

I held her arm there for an hour and thirty minutes, praying that she’d heal quickly. Vampires are instinctually protective of their mates, especially if said mate is a female. She is still weaker than me, even if she was my age, she’d still be weaker than me.

I fluffed her pillow, covering her with the white Egyptian cotton covers. She was still crying softly, but was not as traumatized. I kissed her as she fell asleep.

“Sleep well, my love,” I said. I stroked her cheek. “Beautiful.”

I woke up first the next morning. I could hear Reese snoring in the next room, muttering in his sleep. No doubt Mordecai was with him. My brother often checked on my nephew in the middle of the night, slipping in when he couldn’t sleep. He often left before Reese woke up, or if he didn’t, he was usually angry or upset about something.

Reese pretended not to know this, but we all knew he did. I slipped into my memories of first seeing him, a chubby pink wriggly baby vampire in his mother’s arms. He was a beautiful sight, much like my own son when I first saw him, all pink with a tuft of dark hair.

I purred, thinking of my next child. The one I would eventually have with Mitra. If she wanted children at all. I knew that a lot of women today chose not to have children for several reasons, all founded.

My belly tightened as she shifted in my arms. Her arm had healed completely last night, although she’d have a scar where it was torn off. I would kill whoever had harmed her.

As I buried my nose in her soft breasts, I inhaled her scent. Woody and earthy, along with all the other scents a female vampire has. One in particular caught my attention. The scent of her womanly parts.

I moved my hand down her flat belly, undoing her denim shorts. I was not surprised to find a pair of cotton panties underneath. I lifted them up for a peek, then my wrist was grabbed. Mitra had woken up, and was glaring at me.

I sighed, letting go of the cotton and moving up hand up to her side. Her gaze slid from my eyes down to my chest, her hands moving along my big arms.

“You like my big arms, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

I rolled on top of her. “Do you like my big chest and my potbelly?”

“Yes.”

“Do you like my yellow eyes and my long hair?”

“Yes.”

“Do you like the shape of my ass?”

“Yes.”

“Do you like my trunk-like legs and big feet and hands?”

“Yes.

“Do you like my broad shoulders?”

“Yes. Do you like my thin figure?”

“Yes, I do. Very much.”

“Do you like my short black hair and my dark eyes? Do you like my tan?”

“Yes. I like every bit of you, Mitra Dearwood. I can’t believe you’re only two hundred years old. I like your tiny hands and feet, I like your muscular arms and legs, I like your firm ass and soft breasts, I like your neck and your chin, I like your delicate nose and full lips. I also like your big mouth.”

“My big mouth is why my best friend is dead.”

“Don’t feel bad, honey. They would have attacked you, anyway. It’s us they’re after, and I…I’ve been around the reservation. I’m sorry. It’s my fault you were attacked, not yours.”

Tears sprang into her large eyes, and I covered her completely. Seeing her small frame beneath my large one only fueled my instincts and improved my fragile male ego. My belly tightened as I stared into her beautiful eyes. I noticed small flecks of green and yellow. Multi-colored eyes. Rainbow eyes. Stunning and deep. Sparkly, full of intelligence and pride. Now filled with sorrow, because of me.

My heart twisted as I looked into her eyes.

Reese

My heart leapt as I heard sobbing coming from Uncle Soren’s room. No doubt it was Mitra. I got up and turned on my stereo, then I took a long, hot shower. I scrubbed my skin raw, washed my hair until it squeaked, and shaved my chin. I noticed a happy trail growing on my stomach. I wondered if Sarah would like that.

I studied myself. I had armpit and leg hair now. I knew that Father had some, too. I looked at my hair. For years I’d kept it in a gothic emo style, my bangs cut in a sharp razor style. My hair had been cut before last year’s Holiday Ball, and it was finally growing back. My hair grows more slowly than most natural-born vampires. I studied the white tips, finally appearing again.

I’m allergic to most hair dyes, so that wasn’t an option. I thought about that. I thought about Grandfather, who’d been born a human, changed into a vampire by Alexander. He’d been bitten when he was about fifty, yet I never saw any white or grey hairs on him. His hair was still the same bright red it had always been.

I turned off Avenged Sevenfold, keeping the towel wrapped around my waist. Mitra had stopped crying, and Uncle Soren was talking to her. My insides ached as I thought about Sarah. What she had been through. What she was going through. Was she really okay?

I remembered that I was now a hybrid. Maybe that was the reason for the sudden appearance of the hair on my belly and arms? I looked into my reflection in the mirror door. My yellow eyes were brighter, my skin rosier, not as pale. My nose was still beak-like and large, but straighter somehow. My lips were redder and fuller. My collarbone was less prominent, as was my Adam’s apple.

I was fuller, less thin. More muscular.

I undid the towel and found some clean underwear in my dresser, jumping when Shadowfang bit my ankle.

“What was that for?” I demanded of the cat. He puffed his tail off and stalked off, purposely showing me his backside.

“He’s mad,” said Mishka, jumping onto my bed. “But I’m not allowed to say why. Neither are the kittens, so don’t bother asking them.”

“If I don’t know the problem, how can I fix it?”

“He wants to tell you himself. By the way, it’s morning. Breakfast time. And Toby still hasn’t fed us.”

“Go bother him, then.”

“I can’t. His door is locked. And Spencer can’t get in, either.”

“I thought he moved into Spencer’s room?”

“They got into a tiff last night and Toby went to his old room.”

“I’ll talk to him.”

As soon as I reached my friend’s door, I knew something was wrong. I heard muffled screams from inside, and Spencer appeared, looking worried. I kicked down the door. What I saw would give anyone nightmares.

Toby was dangling from the ceiling by a rope, cloth stuffed into his mouth so he couldn’t speak, his wrists and ankles handcuffed and tied together. Tears ran down his dark cheeks, and he looked at us pleadingly.

I jumped onto the bed and bit the rope with my teeth. Toby dropped. Spencer tore the rope binding his ankles and wrists, trying to tear the titanium handcuffs off. I took the cloth out of Toby’s mouth. The moment I did, he started crying.

“Baby,” Spencer whispered, holding Toby. He rocked him back and forth.

“What happened?” I asked. Toby pointed to his throat to show he couldn’t speak. He pointed to the mirror, then picked up a lock of his own long black hair, then pointed to me.

“Are you saying Other Reese and Torrance did this?”

“What happened?!” Father demanded, entering the room. His mouth opened when he noticed the rope dangling from the ceiling, I explained that Other Reese and Torrance had come in, and explained how we’d found Toby.

Father was furious when I was finished.

“They terrorized my best guard?” he said dangerously.

“He’s not your guard anymore,” Spencer said firmly. “Toby, I forbid you from doing any more guard work.”

Toby nodded hurriedly, more tears falling from his eyes.

“I need to talk to Other Mordecai,” Father said. “Can you two handle this?”

“Of course,” I said. I shot Uncle Soren a quick text.

My uncle flitted into the room. I again explained what had happened, and Uncle Soren’s eyes got dangerously narrow.

“There’s going to be murder,” he said. “Toby is like a son to me. I taught him how to read and write. We’ve saved each other’s lives countless times. Toby, I swear to you, I’ll find the people who did this, and they’ll die for it.”

Toby shook his head.

“It was Other Reese and Torrance,” I told Uncle Soren. He grimaced. Toby shook his head again.

“It was Bartimaeus’ clan,” Spencer said. “He’s telling me now. Bartimaeus’ clan is from the same universe as Other Reese’s.”

“But there’s girls in his clan,” I said. “Girls and guys live on different planets in his universe.”

“Strange, but not impossible.” I looked up at Other Mordecai, who was sadly looking down at us.

He’s grown, I thought.

“Toby, I cannot tell you how sorry I am on behalf of my son. I don’t know why he’s doing this. Please, give us a chance to find him and Torrance.”

“You can handle Other Reese. Torrance and the rest of them are ours,” said Uncle Soren.

“Fine. That’s fine with me.”

“Baby,” Spencer muttered. Toby had slumped in his arms. “Baby, I’m so sorry, this is my fault. I should have been here. I should not have let you be alone.”

Toby shook his head again. He pointed at Other Mordecai, then to me.

“He’s saying that they would have done it anyway,” I said.

“Maybe, but they would have chosen someone else. I’d rather it happened to me. Toby, I’m so sorry.”

Toby shook his head again.

“How long were you suspended?” I asked. He held up five fingers.

“Five hours?!” Uncle Soren raged. “Un-fucking-believable!”

Other Mordecai actually burst into tears. “I’m so, so sorry,” he said.

“How did no one hear it?” I asked. We all looked at each other. My stomach dropped when I realized that indeed, no one had heard a thing. I’m a heavy sleeper, but Uncle Soren isn’t.

Spencer continued coddling Toby. He carried him to his room, where Toby fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

My father called for more guards, and he prepared an investigative team.

“This is unusual,” he said, “because he looks exactly like Reese. He also answers to Reese. Possibly has a scar on his chin. He’ll be with another vampire with a German accent and long black hair. His name is Torrance. I give you permission to kill him, but do not kill the one who looks like Reese.”

With that, the investigators set off to find them.

I studied some more, careful to study Calculus and Psychology hard. Even though my grades were perfect, they needed to stay that way.

Other Mordecai occasionally came to check on Toby. Toby had woken up around one in the afternoon, jarred awake by nightmares from which Spencer gently cooed away.

The cats got their litterbox changed and fed and watered by