“Arturo!” Dakar barked at his lieutenant. “What is the matter with you? You look dazed. Wake up, man!”
“Yes, my liege, I’m sorry.” Arturo gave himself a shake. “So, what is the plan?”
“Lord Kardis has given me a second chance at Verano’s assassination. I had to claim the right of Damacian’s Sword in order to gain this second chance,” he said with a prideful inflection in his voice.
Arturo gasped. “Damacian’s Sword! But that meant…”
“Yes, and I sent the puffed-up fool to the fires of Hades forever. Kardis had chosen a new champion in my absence—can you imagine such a thing?”
“No, I can’t!”
“Quite right. But Lord Kardis changed his mind and reinstated me. Still, there is the matter of the task at hand. Marcus Verano must meet his final death. He must not be able to rise again. If I fail this time, Arturo, Kardis will sentence me to execution—and all those closest to me.”
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Arturo shuddered at the implication. He would die too, if Dakar failed. All right then, failure was out of the question. “You have a plan in mind then, to kill the vampire?”
“Not yet. It will take time to formulate any plan that is foolproof. Marcus Verano is more powerful than Kardis ever suspected, plus he is surrounded by vampires and mortals who regard him as some kind of vampire demi-god. But even gods have been known to fall from grace…”
“And he has instituted a
code of honour
that could work to our advantage,” Arturo said with a deal of sarcasm.
“Yes, the vampires who follow him have sworn not to kill the mortals they feed from—
but make no mistake, Arturo…” Dakar still could not quite eradicate the memory of being held in Marcus’ arms hundreds of feet above the earth, and how Marcus had shown no compunction whatsoever about dropping him to his death. “…Marcus Verano is a killer. He may show compassion to mortals, but his enemies cannot expect that same consideration.
When we go against him we must be fully prepared—and we’ll need reinforcements. Send out a message to those demons among us you can trust and who have the stomach for fighting. Only the strongest will do, Arturo.”
“Yes, my liege.”
“And we will have to recruit from among the humans. It will take a little time to get a sufficient number of them in my thrall, to do my bidding, but of course, I can do it.”
Arturo smiled. “Yes, indeed you can, my liege.”
“Now…” Dakar popped the metal button at his jean’s waist and pulled down his zipper. “Fulfil your other duty to me.”
“My pleasure,” Arturo murmured. He dropped to his knees in front of Dakar and gripped Dakar’s flaccid cock at the base. He lapped at the head then licked and sucked his way up and down the prodigious length, bringing the shaft to an almost instant hardness. He moaned as he savoured the copious pre-cum that spilled over his tongue.
As dangerous as his job might well soon become, Arturo would definitely remember this moment as one of the perks that made it all worthwhile.
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Tommy had a ‘movie date’ with Roger and Micah, something he wouldn’t have believed possible six months ago. Going to see a horror movie with two vampires. Weren’t they the very subjects of most horror flicks? And here he was getting ready to meet two of them outside the movie theatre. Tommy gave a half chuckle as he stood in front of the bathroom mirror, rubbing a little gel between his palms, then running his fingers through his blond hair, spiking it into the style Andrew liked.
“I wish you were coming with,” he said, turning to look at Andrew who was leaning on the bathroom doorframe watching him get ready. “You like a good movie now and then.”
“The operative words there,
édesem
, were ‘good movie’,” Andrew said with a slight smile. “What you and your aficionados of horror are going to see tonight could hardly be described as good.”
Tommy stuck his tongue out at Andrew. “What’s Hungarian for snob?”
“
Sznob
,” Andrew replied dryly.
“Oh, almost the same. Well, that’s you—when it comes to movies anyway.”
Andrew stepped behind Tommy and put his arms round his waist, his chin on Tommy’s broad shoulder. “
Szeretlek
, Tommy.”
“Love you too,” Tommy said, pressing his taut butt into Andrew’s crotch. “So what are you goin’ to do tonight?”
“Marcus wants to talk to Joseph and me about future problems with Dakar. He wants to have a plan of action should Dakar try another assassination attempt.”
Tommy widened his eyes in alarm. “Why does he want to involve you in this?”
“Because I asked him if I could help, Tommy. I owe Marcus and Joseph my life—you saved me from the fire where I would surely have met my final death had you not found me, but even then the silver poisoning would have killed me if Marcus and Joseph had not given me their blood to overcome it.”
Tommy shuddered and he turned in Andrew’s embrace to tighten his arms around his lover. “Don’t think I’ll ever forget that time. But grateful as I am to Marcus and Joseph I still www.total-e-bound.com
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don’t like the idea of you getting mixed up in some sort of counterattack against a freaking demon!”
“Dakar is powerful, but his weakness is his over-inflated belief in himself,” Andrew said, his lips brushing Tommy’s cheek. “But he is cunning and will certainly use underhand methods against us. For example, what he did to you, he may try a similar ploy again.”
“So while Roger, Micah and me are kicking back at the movies, you three are going to be working on strategies?” Tommy shook his head forcefully. “I’m gonna cancel and go with you. If you guys are planning dangerous stuff I want to know what it is.”
“Tommy…”
“No arguing, Andrew. Roger and Micah should be there too—in fact, the whole gang should be involved. Shit, we’ve all got something valuable invested here. Don’t they know what’s going on?”
“Yes, they do…” Andrew kissed Tommy’s lips tenderly. “I am happy you consider me valuable, Tommy.”
“You know I do.” Tommy groaned, feeling Andrew’s erection press against his own stirring cock. “You’re just tryin’ to change the subject…”
“Have I succeeded?”
“If you mean, do I want to jump into bed with you, yes, you’ve succeeded.” Tommy gave his watch a quick peek. “I do have an hour before I meet the guys, but Andrew, I don’t feel good about this meeting. Promise me you won’t agree to anything rash.”
“I promise, but Marcus and Joseph never do anything rash, Tommy. That’s why they have survived for centuries longer than most vampires. They have beaten the odds in battles against the Wizard Brotherhood, the Dark Forces, and they have faced demons before.”
“Right, but still—”
“Ssh… come with me…” Andrew took Tommy’s hand and led him to their bed. “You said you have an hour to spare. Let’s not waste it.”
Despite the euphoria that making love with Andrew always brought him, Tommy still didn’t feel good about his lover’s meeting with Marcus, and he said as much to Roger and Micah while they waited in the movie complex foyer for the next screening.
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“It’s not that I don’t think Andrew can handle himself in a tough situation—he’s already proven to me he can—but
demons
, guys. Shouldn’t we be included in whatever they’re planning?”
“Oh, we will be,” Roger said. “At least Micah and I will, and Marcus’ other loyal vampires. I don’t think Marcus wants to endanger you mortal guys.”
“Well, darn it…” Tommy wondered what Ron, Chris and Joey would think of that. He guessed they wouldn’t want to be left on the sidelines when their vampire lovers could possibly be in danger.
“We know what you’re thinking,” Micah remarked with a grin.
“I
know
you know,” Tommy said a deal more abruptly than he’d intended. “Look, I also know we
mortals
won’t be as strong or as quick as you guys if it comes to a fight with these demons, but we’re not wimps either. Even Joey… I bet for all his fey ways he could be a tough little fucker when the chips are down.”
“But fighting demons is a whole different game,” Roger said, rubbing Tommy’s shoulder affectionately. “We know you’d jump in if Andrew was in danger, and that’s the problem, quite frankly. The demon that possessed you now knows what he’s up against. If he plans on coming at us again, he knows he’s going to need help—a lot of help.”
“What kind of help?” Tommy asked.
“A small army, I’d guess. More demons, humans he has under his control, more demons…”
“Demon spawn, “Micah added.
“What the heck is that?” Tommy asked.
“Half demons, born of demon and human,” Micah told him. “Not quite as lethal as the real thing, but pretty formidable in a fight.”
“Strangely enough we have a friend in Rome, Constantine, who is half demon, half human,” Roger said. “For a while there he was on the side of the bad guys, until he met Gustav, a mortal, and fell in love, then couldn’t go through with his father’s plan to rule the world through the papacy.”
Micah chuckled at Tommy’s wide-eyed expression. “It’s all unbelievable, we know, Tommy, but after what you just went through, you have to admit it’s all really possible.”
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Tommy groaned. “Guys, it seems
anything’s
possible, and as hard as it is for me to get my head round some of this stuff sometimes, I know the danger is real—that’s why I don’t want to be left out. I want to help!”
“Okay, okay…” Roger glanced quickly around the crowded foyer to make sure no one was eavesdropping on this strange conversation. “We’ll talk to Marcus and Joseph after the movie. Just get a grip for the next couple of hours.”
Andrew smiled as he accepted another glass of an excellent red wine from Marcus then walked over to stand by Joseph in front of the fireplace.
Joseph touched his glass to Andrew’s. “It would seem Tommy is not at all happy about this meeting,” he said with a rueful smile. “He is very protective of you.”
Andrew nodded. “He feels he should be a part of anything we plan against Dakar and Kardis, especially as it was his body Dakar inhabited in order to infiltrate our ranks.”
“Tommy is a brave young man,” Marcus said, joining them. “He faces danger every day in his line of work, but I’m afraid even he would not be able to defeat a demon in mortal combat.”
“I have tried to tell him that.” Andrew shook his head, remembering Tommy’s aggrieved expression when they’d had words about the situation. “I had hoped that Roger and Micah would be able to persuade him to back off.”
Marcus chuckled. “According to the message Roger communicated to me, Tommy feels that our respective mortal lovers should be given the opportunity to help us. Impossible, of course, but I admire his eagerness to defend you, Andrew.”
“He is a wonderful man,” Andrew said quietly. “I am honoured by his love for me.”
“Well, we must ensure that he and our other mortal friends are kept very safe when we take on Dakar and his demon cronies.” Joseph’s smile was wicked. “Of course, we have many crafty ways of keeping them out of the danger zone. Ways they will never even be aware of.”
Andrew nodded his understanding, then said wryly, “We will only have to deal with their resentment when they realise what we’ve done.”
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“But they will be safe, and in the end that’s all that matters.” Marcus refilled their wine glasses and gestured that they sit in the tall wingback chairs by the fireplace. “I have it on good authority that Dakar has returned, this time in his own form, and is actively seeking recruits for his next campaign against us.”
“You know this already?” Andrew asked with surprise.
“It helps to have a demon on our side,” Marcus said. “I contacted our friend Bernard in Rome who in turn spoke with Constantine. Constantine, who is half demon, told Bernard that demons everywhere are excited about what happened between Dakar and Kardis.
Apparently, Kardis was ready to execute Dakar for his failure to assassinate me, and had already replaced him with a new champion.”
“No love lost there,” Andrew remarked.
“None, but Dakar is nothing if not cunning. He has managed to get Kardis to give him a second chance, and is here even now, working on a plan to bring me, and all vampires loyal to me, down. Retribution not only for our success in foiling Kardis’ power play attempt to place a demon on the papal throne, but also for Dakar’s own humiliation at our hands.
Constantine will keep me apprised of further developments as he hears them.”
“A useful man to know,” Andrew said. “But are you sure you can trust him? He is a demon, after all.”
“He owes Marcus his life,” Joseph told him. “And he loves a mortal for whom he almost gave his life. So yes, we think he can be trusted.”
“He is also a tad sharper than most demons, partly due to his human mother, I would guess,” Marcus continued. “In my opinion, demons have proven themselves to be notoriously slow-witted at times, a characteristic that gives us an advantage, of course.”
Andrew smiled. “Slow-witted?”
“Yes, but one cannot overlook their slyness, nor the easy way their loyalty swings back and forth. Constantine says that some demons see Kardis’ leniency towards Dakar as weakness. Apparently there is a faction eager to take Kardis down. This can only work to our advantage. If the demons are divided in their loyalty it could prove to be their Achilles’
heel.”
“Do we know who Kardis’ rival is?” Andrew asked.
“No name has yet been mentioned, but would it be so much of a surprise if it was Dakar himself?”
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