Authors: Alice Sweet
Ivan frowned
, “
Well I guess we will never know then.”
Autumn
frowned at Ivan and smacked his arm angrily, “Stop being so negative, I am trying to work my way
through
this, be logical.”
Ivan looked at her surprised
, “
Be logical? Well, nearly all of our food supply is gone, and we are hiding in the forest near the funeral pyres to avoid captu
re. If you hadn’t awo
ken when you did, we would have died within the next few days.”
“How long have I been asleep?” Ivan stared off at the piles of burning bodies and did not respond.
Autumn
snapped
, “
How long have I been asleep?”
“Nearly a decade
,
”
He admitted at once.
She
looked at him disbelieving now and shouted, “Ten Years! What? No way. I was supposed to sleep for one maybe two months, ten years, no, not ten years.”
Autumn
frowned looking at her mate
, “
How long has it been since you’ve eaten?”
“Nearly a year,
”
he admitted.
She
hissed, “Are you serious? We can survive that long?”
Ivan frowned deeper, “You have not eaten for ten.”
She
frowned, “W
hat?”
He
furrowed his brows
, “
I tried to feed you, as many ways that I could but your body would not take it.”
Autumn
knitted her brows then, “Why do I feel so good then?”
“I think that you are drawing it
in
from the energy around you.”
She
nodded
, “
Well at least we won’t die love.
”
Ivan nodded looking somewhat relieved, and
Autumn
continued
, “
So why didn’t you just drink from me over the last year?”
“I couldn’t, even when I had my delirious spells. I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
Autumn
stepped closer looking worried, “Delirious spells?”
Ivan looked upset and terribly uncomfortable now
, “
I couldn’t help myself; I thought you were
talking to me. Telling me to…”
Autumn
tilted her head trying to understand his incoherent ramblings.
Then she broke into a devilish smile, “What did you do to me while I slept love?” Ivan would not meet her gaze though and
she
smiled gently and slid her hands up his torso and he tightened under her touch.
Autumn
did not stop though, as
she
stepped closer pinning him to a tree and then began kissing him softly on his neck, and said huskily
,
“What did you do to me while I slept love?”
He
groaned under her roaming hands then and
Autumn
smiled wickedly then and repeated her question
, “
What did you do love?”
Ivan sucked in sharply and replied worriedly
, “
I tried to bond with you.”
Autumn
smiled widely
, “
Like a regular vessel or the way that the eye does?” Ivan did not answer and
she
huffed, “I need you to trust me the way that I trust you love.”
Ivan replied sounding ashamed now
, “
Both.”
Autumn
smiled
, “
Both?”
Ivan closed his eyes tightly and nodded, and then
she dropped her hands and he
began to back pedal, “I only tried
the other way once, I was crazed
though, I never would have done it otherwise.”
“I might have actually been talking to you love.” Ivan finally looked up at
her
and she smiled back, “It’s been ten years for me as well.” Ivan eyed her cautiously, and
Autumn
smiled even wider
, “
What was it like love?” Ivan huffed and
she
smiled again this time playfully teasing him, “Well?”
He
huffed, looking agitated, “Warm.”
Autumn
smiled wider, “Can we do it again?”
Ivan seemed take
n aback by her words, “What?
Now…
Here?”
Autumn
beamed
, “Yes
,
no time is better than the present.” Ivan frowned still trying to determine if she was serious his eyebrow arched high watching her closely.
Autumn
slid her
hands up his chest asking, “
Don’t you love me?”
Ivan
looked at her surprised and
whispered, “Yes I do.”
Autumn
smiled and leaned in
to ki
ss him and then stopped,
listening to the sounds coming from the forest behind them, as she said, “Yes I am guessing that you must
have kept
me safe for ten years.” Ivan looked at her confused now, and he
was just about to ask
when
Autumn
replied
, “
I think I know why I finally woke up.” Then she turned towards her guests putting herself in between Ivan and them.
There were nearly thirty of them
,
but only three vessels and Ivan was instant
ly growling
. The men stepped out watching them closely;
Autumn
did not recognize any of them thankfully. Ivan tried to step out but
she
blocked his advance speaking
first, “May I help you gentlemen with something?”
A
larger male spat out, “W
e want the eye.”
Autumn
frowned, “Why do you want me?” The man’s eyes enla
rged and he stepped forward,
she
matched
his movement. A
few more stepped forward
,
at her step
,
and
she
repeated her question, “What do you need me for?”
The male clarified, “You are awake?”
Autumn
smiled and looked down at her body, “I am pretty sure that I am.” The man nodded and then they looked at ea
ch other for a solution to their
problem.
She
asked Ivan inside his head,
Why are they here?
Ivan responded aloud, “They came to take your body.”
Autumn
as
ked him inside his head again,
what
were they planning on doing with i
t?
Ivan growled, “Drain it.”
Autumn
nodded, “A
nd now?”
“Likely the same thing if they can get it.”
Autumn
huffed, “Just Let them try.”
“Don’t tempt them,
”
he growled back.
Autumn
smiled mischievously
, “
Why not?”
Ivan huffed, “
Autumn
please.”
“I won’t start unless they do.” Ivan nodded and then the man nodded and backed away from them slowly. The remaining men backed away slowly though surprisingly the
humans seemed more reluctant to leave.
Autumn
smiled and stepped forward letting a low growl escape her lips.
Autumn
watched as they finally backed off. Then
she
asked Ivan, “Why
are the human’s
interested in me?”
“
You are the
only female breeder remaining.”
Autumn
frowned, “Really?”
Ivan nodded, “Yes.”
Autumn
frowned, “So they want me to turn them then?”
He
nodded, “Or
to
use your blood to cure them.”
Autumn
frowned again, “Good idea.”
“You would let them drain you for that?”
“Well not drain me but at least give them a bit so they could try for a cure.”
Ivan growled his disapproval, “They have already taken some while I slept a few months ago. You are their cure.”
Autumn
huffed
and replied, “They are our people’s main food source, Ivan. Why did you let them leave?”
Ivan nodded
, “
They would need to drain you for months possibly years to repair the damage to their species at this point. Most importantly we do not need them, and no one will stop them from draining you if you fall.”
Autumn
snapped, “
Aside from you, yes I know but i
f I fall it will be because I want to fall. And I won’t do that unless you do.” Ivan huffed his disapproval again as
Autumn
continued her tirade, “I will pull an
Isisa
in a
heartbeat
.”
He
replied coolly, “We are not bonded, you will be fine.”
Autumn
snapped again, “Try telling that to my heart
,”
she patted her heavy chest and added, “So if you value my life then please stay out of the line of fire.” Ivan huffed, and
she
continued lying, “I trust no one the
way that I trust you love
, so co
ver
my back from now on alright?”
He
tightened his jaw and replied with a raspy tone, “I will try.”
Autumn
frowned her heart tightening more and more, “Well I am not happy about this either, I want nothing more than my life to go back to normal and live a long peaceful life, tucked away with you. But that just isn’t in the cards.” Ivan stared back at the woods listening for any sign that the men might be returning. Ivan’s mind searched as deep as he could into the trees to be sure that they were gone, as his mate turned away from him, deep in thought.
Autumn
stared at the burning bodies behind them again, the sorrow building inside
of
her and she frowned; “Now I know why
Isisa
kept him alive though.”
Ivan frowned, “Mirth?”
Autumn
replied, “No Gregory, he would be useful for us right about now.”
“Gregory never met
Isisa
.”
Autumn
frowned, “When was Gregory born?”
“About a century after
Isisa
died.”
She
snapped, “Then Mirth did not take power until then?”
Ivan frowned, “What? No the transition was near seamless, about ten years after
Isisa
died Mirth and I took out the council and he took the throne.”
Autumn
frowned, and then cursed, “So wh
at changed then? Each time I awo
ke things get worse and worse. And if Gregory is not the one pulling me through it all then, could it be me?”
She
tried a different path then, “Did Mirth seek you out?”
He
replied, “No Serena was there when
Polina
turned me and then
Polina
disappeared and a few months later Mirth came for me.”
Autumn
frowned, and Ivan continued, “Serena lost her mind soon afterwards and attempted to kill me. After that she admitted that she had killed
Polina
. Mirth locked her away then and kept her alive only to utilize her abilities.”
“You were turned, I thought you were born.”
“
Yes I was born,
Polina
turned me and I awoke a few days later in this body.”
Autumn
frowned then “How does birthing happen then? I mean if I wanted to turn someone?”
He
answered, “You bite them and they change from human into one of us.”
Autumn
frowned, “So I can change anyone then?”
Ivan nodded, “Yes but all of the breeders are females so they tend to choose males to feed from. That process has worked well for us since only human females can start the fire in male vessels bodies.”
She
frowned, “That does not sound like breeding that sounds like spreading an infection.”
Ivan retorted
, “
The bitten retain memories and in some cases abilities of the people who birth them. There are multiple strands but they all begin the same.”