The Síochán Ch. 05

"Lucas!" Nathaniel roared furiously into the empty room. "You bastard! Come back here. Tell me what you mean by that!" But he didn't return and the vampire was left pacing endlessly up and down his little room, his flight instincts screaming at him to run and hide, his heart pounding with fear at just what the Síochán were using his Summer for.

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Summer knew she would end up asking Nathaniel for help. A quick study of Mnak demons was enough to know that she'd be able to take him down but it would get really messy and people would get hurt in the process. She had gone back to tell Lucas that but was unable to find him when she went looking for him.

So she went looking for Nathaniel. She cloaked her scent when she saw him once more in another little town, lounging in another bar, his beautiful face wearing a scowl that screamed at everyone to keep away. His head turned to the door the moment she walked in and they stared at each other for a long second before she walked slowly over to him at the back of the room.

Her heart thumped hard in her chest as his eyes slowly ran the length of her body, heat flaring instantly in their smoky green depths. He was dressed completely in black as always, as was she, but somehow it looked more spectacular on him with his raven hair. Her blonde curls kind of ruined the dramatic look he managed to achieve. She had tied her hair back at the nape of her neck and she wished she hadn't. It was an excellent curtain to hide her face when she needed it.

Nathaniel's body started aching the instant he scented her, long before he looked up to see her standing in the doorway of the bar. She had those damned leather boots on again, the ones that stirred his blood in so many different ways. Her angelic, innocent face was so at odds when compared to the sinful little body dressed in soft leather pants and loose black tunic. Innocence and lust all rolled into one, a heady combination. He was rock hard and struggling not to drool by the time she reached him. He managed to keep his expression completely neutral though. "Summer," he growled in greeting, signalling the barkeep to bring more drinks to the table.

She slid onto the tatty leather seat across from him in the dark secluded booth. A small smile flitted across her face and a hint of humour danced in her eyes. "Impressive the way you can control your expression, Nathaniel," she said lightly. "But you forget you're inside my head. Thank you for the compliment." Her lips twitched further when he growled again and looked away from her to sweep his gaze around the bar.

"If you could get inside the head of every man in this room right now, you'd find them all thinking the same thing," he countered gruffly, his eyes narrowing as he gave a pointed look at a few of the other men who were still looking much to closely at his Summer.

Soft tinkling laughter sounded across from him and his eyes travelled back to her. She took his breath away. Her angelic face, her sexy body, the sound of her laughter. Every single thing that was Summer Melrose called to him completely and he was lost the moment she was close to him.

The barkeep placed a couple of beers in front of them and then quickly retreated. "I told you not to come back, Summer." Nathaniel's tone held a weariness to it, as if he knew it was futile to warn her off.

She gave him a mock pout before smiling again. "Hungry?" she countered watching an expression of shock cross his face for an instant before he masked it and gave her a level look.

"I haven't felt the urge to feed since the last time we were together," he admitted quietly. He met her eyes. "That was two years ago," he added to give her an accurate time frame from his perspective. It was probably only days ago for her.

Summer smiled widely, sipping at the bitter brew in front of her before she leaned back against the cushion of the booth. "I did some research. Apparently my blood is very potent. Another good reason for keeping our identity a secret. Otherworld beings such as yourself may get ideas about how useful capturing one of us could be."

He snorted and sipped at his own drink. "You can't be captured," he countered, alluding to The Síochán as a group rather than her personally. "Why are you here, Summer?"

She sighed softly and leaned forward, resting her arms on the table between them. "Why do you want me to be here, Nathaniel?" she asked breathily, her body thrumming with raw energy at being so close to him. All she had to do was reach out her hand and she would be touching his skin. It was hard to resist the impulse but she didn't want to push him into a corner so he felt the need to retreat from her.

"Don't play with me, Summer," he growled loudly, a hint of anger crossing his beautiful face. She looked surprised by his accusation, sitting back again as a deep frown marred her expression.

"Me, play with you?" she asked quietly, a derisive edge slipping into her voice. "Wasn't it the other way around, Nathaniel? When you came to my home that night? Didn't you come to play with me with no thought or care to what it would mean for me? You and then Frederick and finally 'them'? You accuse me of it and yet all of you have been playing with me for my entire life and now my death too." She stood up, staring down at him for a long moment before turning and walking out of the bar quickly.

It had been the wrong move coming to see him again. She would just have to find a way to fight the demon on her own. He wasn't willing to let her in and she didn't have the strength to fight him along with all the other Síochán and everything else. Summer felt suddenly weary, tired of fighting so hard to get others to see things her way. Who was she to even think that her way was right anyhow? Maybe she was wrong and everyone else was right?

"Don't go," Nathaniel breathed softly behind her, his arms sliding around her body, catching her in a tight embrace and pulling her back against his chest. He groaned softly as he fitted her curves against his aching body.

His touch instantly set her body on fire and she bit her lip as she leaned back against him, allowing him to hold her, feeling the evidence of his pressing need for her against her back. His mouth lowered to graze her neck gently, his tongue tracing her throbbing pulse lightly.

"You taste so good, Summer," he groaned softly. "You feel so good in my arms. I know I should let you go, stay away from you and yet, the moment you're close to me I lose all rational thought. You've cast a spell on me that I just can't break." He sounded almost angry about it even as his heart picked up a beat and he shifted his aching shaft against her, desperate for some release from the intense pressure he was feeling.

She allowed herself the luxury of being in his arms, savoured the liquid fire which sped through her body at his touch. He thought she had cast a spell on him? She had no idea what he had done to her, how he could make her crave him so thoroughly that he was all she could think about from one moment to the next.

She stood in his embrace a moment longer and then she pulled away and turned to look up at him. "Will you come demon hunting with me, Nathaniel?" she smiled, an impish expression crossing her face as she took in his sudden scowl and his muffled disapproval at her pulling away from him.

He frowned, irritated that they couldn't just go back to his room. The last time they had been together had been fast and furious. He wanted to spend all night stroking her soft white skin, running his mouth slowly down her body until he reached her magic centre and sipped at her sweet honey until she shattered against his mouth. He wanted to feel her soft lips circling his aching cock, to watch as she feasted on his body the way he had feasted on hers. His lips quirked in a little rueful smile as he watched amusement dance across her perfect features and knew she was feeling his frustration inside her head.

"What's my reward if I help you take out your demon?" he drawled smoothly, his eyes flashing with excitement when she laughed softly and shook her head at him.

"You have a one track mind, Nathaniel," she sighed with a wide smile. "We can discuss 'rewards' after the demon is dead. If you still want one and haven't been beaten to a pulp. It is a Mnak demon we're going after."

He stepped closer to her his hands coming to rest gently on her hips, still for a moment before he slowly began to stroke against her in a tantalising rhythm. "You forget I retain the knowledge and strength of the Síochán," he breathed softly.

"But you're not immortal," she countered with a little frown as she stared up at him. "Sunlight can still burn you and losing your head can still end your life."

His silence acknowledged her words as his fingers flexed on her hips tightly for a moment before they loosened and continued their gentle movements, moving ever closer to sliding more intimately against her. He watched Summer's eyes narrow, saw the glint of need in them and he smiled slowly as he ran his fingers against the molten heat hidden beneath the soft leather of her pants.

She gasped out aloud, her hips automatically grinding against him causing his nostrils to flare as he scented her arousal and his body to scream to be inside hers, loving her until she cried his name in ecstasy.

With a muffled groan Summer wrenched herself out of his grasp and smiled slowly, her breathing slightly ragged. "Tell you what. You take care of keeping your head firmly attached and I'll make sure I get you home before dawn, maybe leaving enough time to discuss this 'reward' you seem so intent on having?"

Her light, teasing tone had him laughing softly even as he bent his head and brushed her lips in the lightest, most tentative of kisses. If he kissed her properly there would be no demon hunting going on and he knew she needed to do this.

"So, are we walking to this demon of yours or are you going to spirit me away with your magical powers?" he teased with another soft laugh as he heard her suck in a deep breath against his lips and knew she was fighting furiously against her own need to have a little reward of her own.

"Magic," she sighed softly, quickly surveying the area and taking a moment to ease the drunk human male, who was watching them intently from a corner close by, into a light, harmless sleep. Satisfied they were unobserved, she shielded them both in a cloak of invisibility and stepped back into Nathaniel's eager embrace. He stole another quick kiss as she whisked them both to the deep forest location which was home to the Mnak demon.

Nathaniel cursed loudly when they appeared right in the heart of the demon's forest lair, just as the enormous black beast was about to impale a struggling witch with his body. Summer had released the cloak of invisibility.

The woman screamed loudly as the demon spun around, dropping her to the hard dirt, instinctually sensing the danger behind him. Glowing red eyes whirled in fury at being interrupted, a guttural roar hissing out of the large snout with dripping fangs bared.

Nathaniel automatically dived to the left as Summer dived to the right when the Mnak demon charged straight at them. "A little warning would have been nice," he ground out harshly, shooting the little blonde a withering glance.

Summer swerved away from the demon's grasping claws, barely keeping out of his grasp as she tried to see around him to the witch lying on the ground. "Someone kept me distracted," she retorted loudly as the demon roared in frustration. "Mucked up my carefully planned timing. When you have a moment, Nathaniel?" She had to duck behind a tall pine tree to avoid the demon's next swipe.

The vampire blurred so fast he appeared to disappear only to appear on the back of the demon, razor sharp talons piercing the beast's neck. Summer vanished, reappearing beside the witch, sighing with relief when she saw the woman was still alive, though unconscious. She slipped quickly into the other woman's mind, located her coven and transported her directly there.

It took less than a second to get the witch to safety. That was all the time it took the demon to dislodge Nathaniel from his back and send him flying through the air crashing into the trees. A loud, frustrated hiss sounded from the vampire as he caught a branch to halt his flight and swung agilely back onto his feet.

Summer was already intercepting the demon, who was enraged to the point of insanity as it followed Nathaniel. She managed to score a few good kicks to its torso before its spiked tail whipped around and took the legs out from underneath her. She went down on her back, the wind temporarily knocked from her lungs.

"Witch!" the demon hissed with a guttural growl, his throbbing member pulsing obscenely from between his legs.

Summer cursed loudly. She'd chosen to mask her Síochán scent with a witch scent again. The stupid demon thought he'd scored himself a new prize!

A loud chuckle behind the demon distracted it for a moment.

"She is that," Nathaniel laughed loudly. "But she's already spoken for." He was plunging his talons into the beast's back even as he was speaking, trying to wound it enough for Summer to regain her balance. The demon roared in agony and tried to turn around to get at his attacker.

"If you're done having your rest?" Nathaniel grunted when the spiked tail connected with his side in a crushing blow. He struggled to keep his talons ripping into the demon's insides. The tail spiked him again and he hissed in pain.

Summer pulled a ragged edged broadsword out of the air and plunged it deep into the demon's torso. Impaled both front and back, it shrieked in fury, lashing out frantically as it fell to its knees.

She pulled a second broadsword from the air and tossed it to Nathaniel. He was closer to the beast than she was, the length of the sword keeping her further away from it. He caught it easily with his free hand and arced it through the air with deadly precision.

They both moved as one, stepping back as the demon's head toppled cleanly from its body and it fell to the ground in a spray of black, acrid smelling blood. Summer danced back a little further to avoid the disgusting smelling stuff which was coming more in her direction as the demon toppled forward.

Nathaniel sank to his knees, dropping the sword to the ground and clutching at his injured side even as he began wiping his hand against the loose grass around him. The demon's blood coated his hand and it smelt revolting.

"Let me see," Summer said quietly, waving her hand in a graceful arc, removing the blood he seemed almost rabid to get off his skin. She sank down to her knees beside him and pushed up his tunic to look at his wounds. The skin on his side was red and angry but already healing.

"I just need a moment more," he growled softly, shivering slightly as she gently ran her fingers along his side, tracing the rapidly healing scars. He tried to distract himself from what her fingers were doing to his body. "Where's the witch?" he asked.

She laughed, turning amused green eyes on him. "According to you, right in front of you," she quipped lightly, running her hand higher up his body, feeling his hard muscles contract as she stroked his chest. His nostrils flared and he grabbed her hand and very gently removed it from his body before he was tempted to take her on the forest floor beside the rotting corpse of the demon.

"She is," he growled, pressing a soft kiss to her captured hand. "But I was referring to the other one." His wounds were completely healed so he rose quickly, pulling her with him, keeping an arm loosely wrapped around her waist.

"I sent her home to her coven," Summer answered looking around the lair slowly. She felt a huge feeling of relief deep inside her. She had managed to stop anyone being hurt by the demon and Nathaniel's wounds had healed quickly.

Nathaniel kissed the side of her neck as he stared at the demon. "What are we going to do about him?"

She sighed softly and leaned against him as she waved a hand and the lair and demon vanished along with the swords.

"Why didn't you just do that in the first place?" Nathaniel grumbled slightly irritably. It would have spared them both the pain the demon had inflicted on them.

She laughed softly. "Where is the fun in that, Nathaniel?" she asked lightly "Plus there was the witch to consider. Couldn't risk her seeing some Síochán antics, could I?"

She didn't want to admit that she had been so distracted by his kisses that she had actually taken them too close and had been reacting instinctively rather than logically from that moment onwards. Or admit that if she had simply vanquished the demon with her Síochán powers then there would have been no need for him to come along with her. She gazed up into his face and saw his eyes narrow sharply.

Nathaniel stared in her eyes and smothered down a sigh. He knew she hadn't really needed his help. He knew it when Lucas first mentioned it to him. As long as the demon was isolated from prying eyes there was no need for Summer not to use her powers to quickly bring it to heel. As always the Síochán manipulated and lied to him. He was surprised his usual anger didn't surface at the thought and then he did sigh.

How could he feel anger towards them when he had known all along what they were up to? There had been the chance that the demon was in a public place which would have required his help. In truth, he would have come with Summer anyway, even knowing that the demon was in its own lair, because he had wanted to see her, to be with her again.

"You truly are a witch," he growled quietly as he bent his head and captured her lips in a slow, drugging kiss. His heart pound loudly in his chest and his body harden instantly as she surrendered completely to him. "Reward time," he whispered against her lips, opening his mind to her so she could see exactly where he wanted her to take them.

Summer smiled with pleasure as she got the dimensions of the room correct this time and brought them to stand beside his double bed in an instant.

Nathaniel twisted immediately, toppling her laughing onto the bed, landing on top of her and keeping her pinned beneath his hard body. "You were looking way too smug there," he chuckled lightly, dipping his head to the side of her neck and inhaling deeply at her scent. He groaned softly and pressed his body hard against her. "How do you do this to me?" he asked huskily.

Summer sighed with pleasure, pressing her body against his, wrapping her arms around his neck and threading her fingers into his long, silky hair so she could drag his mouth to hers. "How do you do this to me?" she whispered against his lips, her tongue coming out to lick slowly over his bottom lip, forcing a deep growl from his throat.

His lips parted immediately and he was sucking her tongue inside , tangling it with his own as he took over the kiss. She tasted so good, so intoxicating. She really was a witch, his own personal little addiction which he was unable to fight against. He broke the kiss and raised himself up until he was kneeling between her parted thighs, his hands sliding slowly down the outside of her leather pants.

He smiled wickedly as his fingers grazed the top of her boots, his body starting to throb painfully hard. His fingers trailed lower until he wrapped one large hand around the back of her left calf and raised her leg high in the air, until he draped it against his shoulder. He slowly stroked down the soft leather his eyes glinting darkly. "Now these, I most definitely like," he said huskily. "There is something so deliciously kinky about them which is so at odds with your angelic little face."

"I can always keep them on," Summer laughed lightly, her eyes glowing with her arousal, her stomach doing tiny flips at the heated expression in his eyes. She'd wear anything he damned well wanted her to if only he kept looking at her like that.