Dangerous Sacrifice (The Harcourte Vampyre Society Book 6) Read online

  ∞ Chapter Thirteen ∞

  When Jolie hit the ground, she was cradled in Jacques’s arms. They rolled, and he was very gentle with her. When they stopped, she was in his lap.

  They both focused on their mate as he tore into Selene.

  It was apparent who was in control, and it wasn’t Flynn. At that moment, much to the horror of the Irish council, he was destroying the woman who tried to hurt his mate.

  He had her pinned to the ground, and he was digging through her body with claws and fangs.

  It was bloody.

  Violent.

  And Rinnon at his finest.

  As the families around them gasped in horror, Jolie and Jacques simply let him do his worst. They’d pushed, and this was what you got when you pissed off a demon.

  Rinnon was dangerous, and when provoked, he’d destroy. As he took Selene apart, he was careful not to end her life. He wanted maximum pain inflicted on her body.

  She begged.

  She wailed.

  She was practically hollowed out by the time he stood over her body. The sight even grossed Jolie out. Flynn, Rinnon, and the tattoo were a deadly combination.

  Here was the proof.

  Jacques helped Jolie to her feet. As they approached their mate, he was covered in gore. He looked more like a crazed animal than their detective.

  A lot had happened in the last couple of months.

  As Flynn stared down the rest of the council, he was focused on Liam.

  “You tried to hurt my family,” he whispered, only it came out like a boom of darkness and lightening.

  Everyone jumped.

  “You shouldn’t have tried to touch them. I will punish you for that.”

  Liam began begging.

  He couldn’t let them kill everyone.

  “What are you?” he asked, as he was compelled to fall to his knees. Without being able to stop, he was crawling toward the ruined mess on the ground.

  All the while, Selene whimpered and begged to be put out of her misery, and to death.

  “I’m your worst nightmare, and I’ll make you pay.”

  Liam began shaking as he fought not to be placed on his back beside the gore that was once Selene.

  He couldn’t stop it.

  “You set us up. You thought us lambs to the slaughter. Now I’ll show you what slaughter looks like.”

  “Please.”

  “Down!” he hissed, and every vampyre there dropped to their knees but Jolie and Jacques.

  Glancing over at his mates, he snapped his fingers. The gore was gone from his body. Flynn didn’t want that filth touching them. Selene wasn’t worthy to bleed on Jolie’s boots.

  “My love,” he whispered, holding out his hand. “Did they hurt you?” he asked.

  “Jacques caught me. I’m not even dirty.”

  He was glad.

  Jolie went up on her toes and kissed him. As soon as she was in his arms, she slipped into his mind.

  ‘You can’t slaughter them all. It will bring the Tueur here.’

  He was aware.

  ‘I’m in control, Jolie. I simply wanted them to know that they can’t touch us. There’s nothing like a little fear to motivate the undead.’

  Flynn set her free.

  “Jacques, are you okay?” Flynn asked.

  “Yes, I am. Do you want me to put Selene out of her misery?” he asked. “Or are you going to finish her?”

  “I saved her for my demon.”

  Jolie and Jacques knew who he meant.

  Before either could make a comment, Vanth appeared, and must have been summoned. There were two sets of flutters from the invisible wings, and then Vanth’s giggle.

  “You remembered, Master. I love Irish blood.”

  “She’s yours, Vanth. Eat her here. I want them to see what they’re playing with when they come at my family.”

  Vanth moved toward the downed vampyre.

  “What of him?” she asked, pointing at Liam. “Do I get him, too, or is he your snack?”

  Both Jolie and Jacques glanced over. They really hoped he wasn’t going to eat the man. When Vanth did it, it was gross.

  To watch their mate do the same thing?

  Yeah, it would really be nasty.

  “I wanted him right next to the buffet so he could see what deceit and trickery would get them. He’s not going to die…well, not today. Tomorrow is another day.”

  Vanth began working on the woman’s hand. She crunched and munched her way up Selene’s arm. Everyone there gasped in horror as the vampyre on the ground screamed in pain.

  Being eaten alive had to suck.

  “Now maybe you’ll be more than happy to accommodate us,” Jolie said, leaning against Flynn. She could feel the darkness receding. Her mate was back.

  ‘I am, baby,’ he reassured.

  “What do you want?” Liam asked, as he was forced to watch one of his family being consumed. It was a horrible sight, but he couldn’t stop it from happening.

  “We don’t want anything from you. We told you that we were just passing through,” Jolie stated. “We will be leaving your lands soon.”

  The man hoped so.

  This kind of power here would be dangerous to all of them. It would bring so many undesirables to their home.

  “We didn’t know,” he whispered, as Vanth began on the second arm. The vampyre was wailing in pain. “Had we known you were Rinnon, we wouldn’t have bothered you.”

  Flynn knew that was true.

  “Let this be a lesson learned,” Jolie stated. “We didn’t want to hurt anyone. We didn’t want this fight. You brought it upon yourself by setting us up. You wanted to hurt us for being here.”

  “We didn’t.”

  “Truth,” Jolie said, knowing the man wouldn’t be able to lie.

  “We wanted to punish you. We voted, and it was unanimous.”

  She thought so.

  “Should I kill them all?” Flynn asked, rolling his neck. The bones cracked and popped. It was so loud that it could be heard over Selene’s screams and Vanth’s chewing.

  “Please don’t,” Liam begged.

  Jolie knew Flynn was setting them up to be safe. “We’ll let you live if you stay away from us until we leave.”

  “Honestly, we thought you were the ones using the black witchcraft.”

  He couldn’t lie, so Jolie listened.

  “Someone is?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  Jolie leaned against her mate. “If I see anyone, I’ll let you know. Jacques, can you get Liam’s contact information?”

  He grinned. “I can. Do you want it written in his blood?” Jacques sent laughter into their minds.

  ‘Really?’ Flynn asked. ‘Are you insane?’

  Jacques replied. ‘It sounded so very Dirty Larry.’

  ‘Dirty Harry,’ Flynn corrected. ‘I don’t know who the hell Dirty Larry is, and I don’t think I want to either.’

  ‘Whatever.’

  Jolie was amused.

  Her mates were simply being her mates.

  “If we find anything pops up, we’ll let you know.”

  Liam stared up at her. “That’s it? You’re not going to slaughter all of us?” he asked.

  “We didn’t come here to kill, Liam. We begged Selene not to challenge us. You brought her death, and the death of the seven guardians, on yourself. We would have left here in peace had you not pulled this.”

  “I think I believe you.”

  “I have no reason to lie. If I wanted to kill all of you, Rinnon could do it with very little effort. We’re not hiding. We’re passing through.”

  Okay, that was totally a lie, but they had the moral high ground on this one. They’d been set up.

  “So if we leave you alone, you won’t bother us?”

  “I give you my word,” Flynn said. “If you come near us, I’ll slaughter each and every last one of you, and my demon will snack on your bones.”

  “And the brains. I really like the squishy
bits. Penises are tasty too.”

  They all stared at Vanth.

  “What? They are.”

  Jolie started laughing. “She’s your demon. I’m not going there. If you didn’t teach her the difference between eating dick and ‘EATING DICK’ that’s not my problem.”

  Flynn grinned, his fangs slowly retracting into his mouth. The oppressive feeling of death began ebbing away.

  “I think I missed that lesson. It was a long time ago. She may need a refresher.”

  It was easy to see that Flynn was now calm.

  The second he buried Rinnon deep within him, Selene released her last breath.

  “Vanth, get a doggie bag to go.”

  “There’s a doggie too?” she asked, looking around. “Can I eat him for dessert?”

  Flynn explained.

  “Oh, silly humans. Why would you make a bag out of a doggie?”

  Apparently, she still didn’t get it.

  Jolie snorted. “Again, she claimed you as owner. You need to teach her, not me.”

  “Vanth, take the remains and go home.”

  She grinned, winked, and then was gone.

  Liam was able to stand, but the rest of the family wasn’t. “I give you my word. I won’t bother you.”

  “Good. Then you have ours that we’ll leave in peace and not kill any more of your people,” she stated.

  “Can I sniff you?” Liam asked Flynn.

  “Uh, why?”

  That was an oddly inappropriate request from anyone, let alone a vampyre who had tried to kill them.

  “I want to see if you’re really…”

  He cut him off. “If you say his name, he’s coming back, and he’s not as nice as I am.”

  The man nodded. “Please?”

  Flynn moved toward him, unwilling to let the vampyre near Jolie in case it was a trap. As he stood there, Liam sniffed him.

  “It’s him,” he whispered. “I can smell old Ireland on you. It’s in your blood.”

  “Well, your master says not to fuck with us. I’d listen if I were you.”

  He bowed and backed up.

  Jolie saw this as their perfect moment to leave. They were going out on a high note, and that was likely a damn good thing. For now, they were safe.

  Flynn swept Jolie up in his arms before they crossed the field, heading toward their SUV.

  “I really love my mates,” she offered. “They’re the sexiest men in the world.”

  “You just dig the demon in me,” Flynn teased.

  “You better believe it. I have my detective, my guardian, and my demon. This is pretty damn good. I picked up another man along the way.”

  At that thought, they both growled.

  Jolie giggled. “You know what I meant, and that wasn’t it,” she stated.

  “Behave,” Flynn whispered, nipping her neck. Then he opted to be honest. “I do have an issue,” he said, nuzzling their woman as they climbed into the SUV.

  “What?” they asked together.

  “Whenever he comes out to play, there are aftereffects that we have to deal with.”

  Jacques glanced back at his mate. “What are we talking about?” he asked.

  “I have to burn off this energy. I really need to get to bed and take my mate.”

  Jacques was good with that.

  “To the victor goes the spoils?” he asked.

  Jolie stared at him. “I’m not a trophy,” she admitted. “That’s not exactly flattering.”

  Flynn sank his fangs into her neck, and Jolie moaned.

  “I’m a trophy. Take me home and polish me.”

  Flynn choked on Jolie’s blood. Setting her free, he glanced up at his other mate.

  “You heard our woman. Get us home.”

  Jacques didn’t hesitate at all.

  He wanted to burn off some energy too, and this was the first mating since their kiss. He was curious what was going to happen.

  Flynn whispered through his mind. ‘So am I.’

  That said it all.

  * * * H a r c o u r t e * * *

  New Orleans

  Private Residence

  Tommy Gress was more than happy to spend his time curled up with the vampyre beside him. Being mated had turned out to be the most spectacular thing. Camille was a treasure, and he couldn’t imagine living without her.

  He hoped he never would.

  As he rested beside her, she was dead to the world. In the next room, the child he’d adopted as his own was with death too. As they slept the deep rest of their people, he thought about their lives.

  He was a cop, but as of late, he wasn’t enjoying it.

  Without Flynn, it lacked the luster he’d come to love. When Flynn had left Philadelphia all those months ago, he’d felt the same.

  Without his partner, being out in the field wasn’t as much fun. In fact, it sucked.

  He had some choices to make. For Christmas, Jolie had given them a shitload of money to build their own home behind the plantation.

  At first, he thought that was a good idea, but now that the Tueur was hunting his best friend and the vampyres he’d come to love and respect, being alone in a house didn’t seem wise.

  They could be a target.

  From here on out, he needed to think about his mate and their child. In fact, he was trying to get Camille pregnant so they could have a baby together.

  Living with the rest of the family seemed…safer.

  Yes, he was human.

  Yes, he liked privacy.

  Still…

  He liked his mate living more.

  That was important to him. Instead of forcing her to leave the safety of the sanctuary, when the family came back together again, they’d stay with them.

  Being in the hidey-hole that Camille had set up wasn’t bad, but he missed the bigger house.

  As he lay there, thinking about their future, their doorbell rang. Tommy immediately grabbed his gun and scanned the area. Thankfully, he had some of the shared gifts.

  They weren’t as strong as Flynn’s abilities, but they’d help him in a bind.

  He could feel a vampyre at his door, and then he left.

  That didn’t feel right.

  They were under at the moment, and no one was supposed to know where they were.

  Not even the family was aware of Camille’s hidey-hole.

  Hell!

  Jolie didn’t even know.

  He debated on waking his mate, but then again, he didn’t want her hurt.

  Damn!

  This was tough.

  Opting to head to the door alone, he flicked the safety on his gun. Taking a page from Flynn’s book, he was packing silver. It was simply a safer option when dealing with the things that went bump in the night.

  With the Tueur floating around, he wasn’t taking any chances.

  At the door, he scanned again. No one was there. As he moved closer, trying to avoid the sun coming through the windows, his bare foot encountered something.

  It appeared to be an envelope containing something.

  Grabbing it, Tommy holstered his gun. He didn’t understand any of this.

  Someone had found them, and now they were leaving notes? It was odd.

  Removing it from the envelope, he scanned it.

  ‘Detective Gress,

  We have a message for you to pass on to Jolie Harcourte and her mates. If you do, we’ll leave you alone. If you don’t comply, we, the Tueur, will take your family. You wouldn’t want that to happen. If you aid Jolie Harcourte, we’ll make you pay.

  Please pass on this following bit of information to them. We now have her brother, Alexzandre, and he will be exchanged for her life. If we don’t hear from her, he will die.

  Again, comply, and you will be safe.

  The Tueur.’

  Tommy’s heart began pounding in his chest. The idea that his family was in danger frightened him, but the idea that Flynn’s was also marked made this choice hard.

  They’d been told not to cont
act them unless it was dire, and this fell into that scenario.

  Tommy headed toward the drawer in their house to retrieve the phone Flynn had given him. Turning it on with shaking hands, he took a picture of the note.

  Typing a quick message, he felt horrible for even sending it to them. He knew how he’d feel in that situation, but he didn’t have a choice.

  How the Tueur would know if he sent it or not was beyond him, but what choice did he have?

  His finger hovered over the button for a few seconds. Then his choice was made.

  “I’m sorry, Flynn,” he whispered, as he waited for the message to send before turning it off.

  Then like a good mate, he headed in to wake up his family. They were going to have to move.

  The Tueur had found them, and he didn’t doubt they’d slaughter them to make a point.

  Tommy wasn’t willing to let that happen.

  Not to the loves of his life.

  ∞ Chapter Fourteen ∞

  Arriving back at the house, Flynn had already had quite a few sips from his mate. It wasn’t easy to hold her in his lap and not want to taste her. The need was beginning to overwhelm him.

  Call it obsession.

  Lack of control.

  Whatever.

  Either way, he was too tempted by the scent of her skin, the sound of her breathy little gasps, and the way she tasted across his tongue.

  It was incredible, and he’d never want to live a second without any of that.

  As Jacques pulled them into the garage, both men were out of the SUV pretty fast. Jacques held open his arms as his mate approached.

  Flynn knew it was time to share.

  Tossing Jolie, he had the utmost faith in his mate. Neither would ever let her fall.

  Jolie gasped. As she landed in his arms, Jacques found her mouth with his.

  She could tell he was just as wild and just as ready for them to mate. His body shook with need, it rippled in lust, and his fangs were already piercing her lip.

  Flynn led the way.

  Inside the kitchen, they found Vanth munching on something they didn’t want to identify. With her, it was best you didn’t ask. She didn’t make a comment, simply because she knew they were in the process of mating.