Hunter Hunted Ch. 15

Chapter Fifteen

A Curse Lifted and A Wish Granted

Mira lifted her hand, holding it out to Hunter. She smiled as she felt him take it to come and stand next to her instead of behind her. "The wish I have is for him."

"Mira, no," Hunter interrupted. "What about Lineal or your daughter?" He lifted her face so that he could look into her eyes. "Don't waste your wish on me."

Mirage's smile grew wide as she stared into his eyes. "You don't even have a clue of what I am going to ask, Hunter. So do me a favor and shut the fuck up." She rose on tip toe to kiss his lips, almost laughing at the startled look on his face.

Aphrodite laughed. "That's one thing I've always loved about you, Mira. Mouthy and crass as hell."

Mira shrugged her shoulders. "It's part of the charm. My wish has to do with Hunter's parents. He wants to find his heritage and I want to help him."

Aphrodite smiled at Hunter and then slowly walked toward him. "This won't hurt," she said as she lifted her hand to touch his face. Hunter flinched, but then forced himself to hold still. He could feel the warmth of her hand and then a strange tingling heat ran through his conscious and then deeper.

She hummed, her eyes closing, concentrating upon whatever she was seeing in her mind. A tiny smile touched her lips and her gorgeous blue eyes opened, her hand going to his shoulder and squeezing gently. "You're not from this planet."

Hunter nodded. He'd know that from the people who'd raised him.

"Hang on," she said as he went to turn away. "I'm not finished. There's a portal that you must cross to find your sister."

"I...I have a sister?"

Aphrodite nodded, watching as Hunter smiled. "You will need to find your way to Daring Castle, Hunter. There you will find your sister and her husband. Her name is Katrina. She too, is lost and looking for who she is. You and Mirage will be welcomed there."

"Katrina," Hunter said slowly and then nodded his head. "How do we find this portal?"

"Talk to Dianna. She can direct you to the person who will find the way to take you there." She stepped back, nodding to Bia and her husband. Mirage had ignored the man and she still refused to acknowledge him, even when Bia spoke once more to her.

"We will not intrude upon your life again, Mirage. Live well and die happy."

Mira nodded but turned into Hunter's arms, smiling only when Aphrodite smoothed her hand down her back. When her hand cupped Mirage's ass, Mira jumped, reaching back to grab her wrist. "Hey, it was your idea," Aphrodite said with a leering look.

"Behave yourself," Mira growled, hearing Hunter snicker.

"If you two would like to be alone..." he said solicitously.

Aphrodite winked at him. "I think you two will have some work to do when we leave." She waved her hand at the men who stood dumbly outside the bright white light. She pointed her finger, making it look like a gun and she made noises like a gun going off, watching as the men fell to the ground. The only one that was missing was Taylor Braxton.

"Dammit," Mira growled, looking around the area, ducking out of Hunter's arms to search behind the tall stack of coffins that hadn't been loaded into the train. As the bright white light and the three deities disappeared as quickly as they had appeared, they could see that the train was still there, still full of the orange drug. "Where the hell did he go?" She held her hands up in the air as Hunter came to her side once more.

Hunter was still shaking his head at what Aphrodite had said to him. "Why did you do that?" he asked Mirage.

"Do what?" she hedged.

"Give me your wish, Mira, you know what."

"You want to find your family. I know how important it is to belong to someone, to know there is someone there that cares about you. I wanted you to have that too."

Hunter reached out and took her shoulders, forcing her to turn and face him. "That isn't all."

"No, you know how I feel about you." She met his eyes, letting herself melt into the heat and emotion she could see in them. "I love you, Hunter. You know that."

His smile was wide and he dipped his head. "Thank you," he said after kissing her gently. "I've never had anyone do anything so wonderful for me."

"Anytime," she said with a grin. "Especially when you thank me so nicely."

"And here I thought you loved me for my body."

Mirage slid her hand down his back and over the curve of his ass, grabbing the hard curve. "Yeah, well there's that too."

Hunter chuckled, letting his forehead drop down against hers. "I love you, Mira. You are my reason for living."

He bent to kiss her again and then flinched when Dianna and Beast, along with Kit, Lelia, Tinman and Mage rushed onto the small platform in front of the train. They looked around, seeing the men left unconscious on the ground, the coffins and the long silver train.

Mirage growled but pulled free of Hunter's arms. "You didn't happen to run into that asshole Braxton, did you?"

Dianna shook her head. "I can't believe it. You two were so busy playing grab ass you missed him again?"

Beast yowled, shaking his big furry head.

"Shut up, fur ball or I'll make you a into an area rug." Mira turned, slamming her fist into one of the empty crates still lined up along the end of the platform. "Son of a bitch!"

"How the hell does he do it?" Hunter asked, shaking his head and grabbing Mira's hand to check her knuckles. "Aphrodite wasn't here that long, was she?"

"Aphrodite?" Dianna asked, her eyes wide. "What was she doing here?"

"Lifting my curse."

"Your curse was..."

"Lifted, yes. I guess Hunter's vow of utter devotion and willingness to share my fate was enough to make Bia shut up and listen for once. My skin is no longer poisonous to the human mind."

Dianna reached out, her hand trembling only slightly as she reached for the Mirage. The tips of her fingers brushed over her skin and she pulled back, holding her breath and closing her eyes. Mirage had braced for the buzz of the madness even though she'd witnessed the poison lifting from her skin. When Dianna eyes opened in shock, Mira actually managed a smile.

"See, told you."

"There's been something I've wanted to do since the first time you got mouthy with me, Mira." Dianna stepped forward and Mira braced, waiting for fists to fly. She wouldn't fight back, she'd been a mouthy know-it-all and deserved what Dianna was going to give her.

But when she felt Dianna's hands grasp her shoulders, dragging her into a hug that brooked no arguments, an actual tear stung in her eyes and she returned the embrace. It was only when Beast wrapped his huge arms around them both, lifting them into the air that Mirage protested.

"Watch it furball," she growled. "I bruise."

Hunter chuckled and waited until she was free before tugging her back into his arms. "I guess now is as good of time as ever," he said, glancing down into her bright blue eyes. "Dianna, Aphrodite gave Mirage a wish, anything she wanted."

"Wow, where's the dancing boys and the gold?" Dianna joked.

"No dancing boys or gold, she used the wish for me."

"I'm afraid to ask," Kit teased.

"We are going to find out who my parents are and find my sister."

"You have a sister?"

"Yes, but we have to travel to a different planet and Aphrodite said you'd be able to summon some kind of portal that would take me there."

"Take you where?" Dianna's eyes were shrewd and she only nodded at Hunter's answer.

"Daring Castle."

"Where?" Kit asked.

"You remember Layna and Tynan Stavaros? Layna's father and Grandparents are from Daring Castle."

"Would Layna be..." Hunter began, unable to finish.

"Your sister? No, her mother is Lily Tremaine, the vampire that caused all of that trouble a few years ago, Hunter."

"But you'd be able to get me there?" he asked.

"Get us there," Mira interrupted. "You aren't going through any portals or storming any castles unless I'm backing you up."

Hunter grinned. "Yes dear," he answered with a fake long suffering sigh. He oomphed when her elbow found his stomach, digging in. "Can you get us there?" he asked, rubbing his abused abdomen.

"One way or another. But you'll both have to apply for a leave with Shadow. I don't think he'll mind. He has a couple new recruits he was waiting to place with seasoned team leaders anyways."

"So when?" Hunter asked eagerly. Now that he knew he had a sister, he was eager to begin.

"Not until after we find Taylor Braxton," Mira answered for Dianna. "We cannot allow him to get away with what he's doing, Hunt."

"I'll put the request in with Shadow," Dianna said. I don't think he'll have any problems okaying the time off."

"Just don't get too used to the new recruits," Mira said. "Hunt and I will be back."

Dianna looked to Hunter, her eyes unsure. "Yes," he said with a small smile. "We'll be back."

"Okay, then," Kit said, slapping her palms together. "Let's round up these men, get the coffins open and alert Shadow for another twenty some zombie girls and find us a scumbag."

"Don't forget the load of orange drug in the train. If the R and D lab can't figure out what is in this with that amount, they are really getting slow."

"R and D?" Mira asked, confused. She'd been with ASP a long time but she'd never heard of that department.

"Research and development," Dianna said. "It was Shadow's new idea. He's trying to develop a cure as well as a preventative for the orange drug before any of the vampires that work for ASP can be infected. He's got some of the biggest eggheads in the world working for ASP now. They are already talking about an improvement for out blasters that will make them smaller, easier to carry and have more firepower."

"Can't hate eggheads trying to make our lives easier." Hunt turned Mira and nodded toward the tracks. "Braxton could have only gone one of two ways."

"Left or right?" she asked with a grin.

Hunter glanced up and down the tracks, seeing the almost complete darkness outside the light of the platform. To the right, the darkness didn't seem as absolute. "Right."

Mira jumped carefully onto the tracks, only looking back when Dianna called her name. "Whoa, where do you two think you're going?"

"Shhh," Mirage said, holding her finger to her lips. "We're going scumbag hunting." She didn't wait for Dianna to argue with her, only for Hunter to land at her side and then they were trotting up the tracks.

Kit laughed, patting Dianna on the shoulder. "Even without the curse, she's going to be a handful."

"Yeah, and every time I call her on it, she tells me to respect her elders." Dianna chuckled and then smacked Beast on the arm. "I guess we're going to have to get used to them being gone anyway."

He yowled and then gave her a big furry, Wendigo grin.

"Funny, Beastman, very funny." And then she led the way to the first of the coffins.

* * * *

Domino sat straight up in bed, his eyes wild as he gazed around the room. "Selena!"

Callista sat up next to him. She let her hand rest against his pale chest, caressing him gently. "She's gone, Dom. You're dreaming again."

He glanced over at her, his eyes losing their wildness as comprehension dawned in them. "I'm sorry," he apologized, his voice cracking just a bit. "I didn't hurt you?"

"No," she said, her beautiful blue eyes gazing at him worriedly. "I just wish you'd tell me about the dreams, Domino. It might help them to go away."

Dom shook his head and then reached for the edge of the blanket, pulling it away from his naked body. Her eyes roamed over him, admiring the firm, lean muscles that he made no move to cover up.

"It's not sunset yet," she said, glancing at the clock next to the bed that they shared.

"I know. I just need...something," he finished lamely, barely glancing back at her as she let the sheets fall to her waist. Going to the antique wardrobe that stood against one satin covered wall, he pulled a long, black robe out. He tugged it over his shoulders and belted it snugly against his firm abdomen. "I'm going to my office, Cal."

When the door closed behind him, she threw herself back against the pillows, slamming her fist into the thick comforter. "Damn that bitch. She's still wrecking my life even now that she's dead. I knew I should have done the work myself." Then she grabbed for the blanket, tugging it up and above her ears, letting sleep take her once more.

* * * *

Domino's mind was racing as he made his way silently down the wide staircase. He easily maneuvered past the spots of sun that shone onto the floor through the sheer draperies on the windows, going into his library where darkened drapes took away even a hint of the dangerous rays

The dream bothered him even more than it should, considering how many times it woke him from a sound sleep to screaming into his pillow. He just couldn't get his mind past her last day; her last moments of life when she'd pushed him out of the way, saving him from the stake that had been going to end his life.

He tried to forget how she'd looked, her mouth open with a groan of pain, her beautiful face going even paler as her blood began to flood out of the wound. He'd gotten to her as the first burst of flame had coursed over her. When he'd tried to pick her up, to rock her in his arms, to beg the gods to bring her back to him, it had been way too late. His hands had gone through the perfect ash replica of her, scattering them to the wind.

The rage had taken him and he'd turned on the man who'd had the gall to try and stake him, instead, taking the life of his beloved. He'd pulled the man's head from his shoulders, heaving it against the brick wall of the house where he and Selena had been tricked into going. He burned the place to the ground, watching with haunted eyes as each story collapsed in on itself until the final flame burned out.

He'd wanted to walk into the sunlight after that, his entire reason for living gone with her loss. He would have if it hadn't been for Tynan Stavaros, Nick's cousin. Tynan had found him as he stood, watching with haunted eyes as the first pale rays of the sun had made there way across the ground toward his feet. He'd fought him, finally covering him with a dark cloak and forcing him into the house.

Domino's rage had been fierce but Tynan's friendship had been fiercer, forcing Dom to calm, to think of what he was doing. Dom had, but he'd still hadn't thought of a single reason not to walk into the sunshine. It was something he longed to feel once more, the warmth of the sun upon his icy extremities, watching as they burst into blue flames, licking over his skin, taking him to where he could be with Selena once more.

The dreams of Selena's last moments were bad, but the ones like he'd just had were worse. He'd been making love to her, the powers of the incubus flowing through them, doubling the amount of pleasure both had felt with every kiss, every touch. When he'd gone to push into her, her eyes had gone wide, her mouth opening with a scream of pain. Then she'd been ash and his body had fallen right through hers, to land upon the rough ground.

Dom went to the small fridge, reaching in and pulling out a special bottle. It looked like all the others but only he could tell the difference. Pouring himself a full glass of the thick blood, he took a healthy gulp, letting the special properties to flood into his system. The blood had been taken from an alcoholic who'd been well into his cups. The alcohol running in his veins a stronger proof then any straight alcohol could.

Plain alcohol wouldn't numb the pain, but this alcohol filled blood went straight through his body to his head. It not only numbed the pain but made living with Selena's loss a bit easier to handle. It was a dangerous brew, easily addictive and he was normally careful about how much he would imbibe, but today, for some reason, the pain was worse.

He took the bottle with him and went and sat behind his desk. Reaching out, he took the small picture he kept of Selena on his desk, turning the portrait so that it lay face down. He didn't want to see her, he didn't want to feel her eyes on him, disappointed in his actions.

"Why did you have to leave me, Selena?" The cry was ragged and echoed in the emptiness of the big room, no answer forthcoming.

In the corner of the room, a small figure stood from the sofa that Domino had placed there where he could enjoy the fire as well as see to read.

"Who is it?" Domino rasped harshly, not wanting to deal with either of the maids if they'd come in there to goof off a bit.

Arielle stepped closer to the desk, staring in fear at the man that Nick had called a friend. Would he hurt her like that other vampire had? The thought of being held down, of being ravaged the way the other vampire had done had her voice cracking. "It's me, Arielle."

"What are you doing in here?" Dom growled, though he knew he was scaring her.

"I woke and Nick was still sleeping. I didn't want to disturb him so I thought I...would...read," she managed to gasp out, taking a huge step back as he came around from his side of the desk. "I hope I'm not interrupting." She nodded at the bottle still in his hands.

"Oh, where are my manners," he said, holding the bottle up. "Like some?"

Arielle didn't even glance at the bottle. "No, thank you," she said primly. "I'll go back up to Nicky now." She tried to turn, to make a quick escape, but despite the amount of alcohol laden blood he'd already consumed, Domino was still faster than she and he quickly trapped her wrist in his hand.

"No, please don't leave. I'd love to find out what Nicky sees in you. He's so overprotective at times, isn't he?"

She felt as if he were reeling her in like a fish, his hand tugging at her until she was almost pressed against his body.

"You do smell delicious," he said, lifting his head and breathing deeply of her scent. "But there isn't much of you." His eyes moved over her body, clad in only the thick white terrycloth of the robe she'd found on the door to the bathroom.

Arielle felt panic grow in her gut, twisting her stomach mercilessly, especially when Dom dropped his head and she felt the rasping of his super sharp teeth against her neck. "No," she whimpered, pulling uselessly at her arm. "No, don't hurt me."

"Oh, sweetheart, I wouldn't hurt you," he growled. He concentrated for a moment and she felt a surge of pleasure, shocking, swift and intense, flood through her.

"W...what are you doing?" she panted, pushing at his chest with her free hand. "I belong to Nicky."

Dom lifted his head, his dark eyes boring into hers. "You want Nicky?" he asked, then she heard Nicky's voice and saw him, her wrist still trapped but it was Nicky's hand that held her, not Dom's.

"Oh," she gasped and threw herself at the black robed garbed Nicky. "I was so scared," she whispered against his chest.

"There's nothing to be frightened of, sweetheart. You know I'd never let anyone hurt you."

She watched as Nicky put down the bottle of blood he held in his hand and then took the book out of hers, leaning against the desk to pull her against him. She went more than willingly, her arms going around his neck, her hands playing in the long hair at his nape. "I know, but you weren't here, Nicky." Arielle glanced around the room, her eyes confused. "Domino was here," she said, tipping her head as she looked up at him.

Then she felt another surge of passion and pleasure and forgot about what she was saying, instead, tugging at the neckline of his robe, wanting to touch his cool flesh. She forced it down his arms, stopping only because he refused to let her go long enough to slip it off his hands. Her lips moved against his neck, his taste strange on her tongue.

A glance showed her Nicky's face above her, his eyes closed in pleasure, his head thrown back to give her all the room she wanted to pleasure him. "Nicky?" she whispered, and for just an instant, she was no longer in his arms but in Domino's his dark head thrown back, his dark eyes closed in pleasure.