Imperious (On Hold)

Light

Punching the gas, I bypassed a Honda civic, blowing the doors off the piece of shit. “Come on grandma, get off the road and back to your knitting.” Needless to say, I was pissed. I had been stuck behind the old bag for six and a half miles, and Bella was waning. She stirred next to me, and I nearly totaled the stolen truck in my haste to check on her. Her eyes opened, but they didn’t focus on anything specific. “Water,” She mumbled, and I reached into my pocket and pulled out the glass bottle I’d retrieved at the torture facility. Pulling to the side of the road, I lifted her head from where it was leaning on my shoulder and pressed the glass to her lips. They parted eagerly, and her hands came up to hold the bottle closer to her. Nervous chuckles crept from my mouth, and eventually turned into full blown relief laughs. Bella ignored me and continued to suck on the bottle, pulling away only when there were a few drops left. And then she smiled at me.

            The dark woods parted to reveal a well secluded fortress, its stone walls long encased in thick vines and relentless moss. The windows looked like pieces of the sky, reflecting the moon and stars in their black depths. I opened the heavy wooden door and felt Duke condense behind me. The anger that radiated from him was as thick as steak, and as hard to ignore as a malus with a blowtorch. Although to be honest, my own feelings matched his; the file we had retrieved from the torture facility had riled us both up.

            Immediately the smell of fresh blood hit me as I stepped over the threshold and I felt D sway from the force of his hunger. He grit his teeth and stalked away to his room, the slam of the door rattling the floors. I followed the scent to the medical room and saw Aaron fruitlessly trying to sew a puncture hole in Bella’s stomach. The human looked out of it, her eyes were closed and her head had lolled to the side. Aaron didn’t look much better than when she had left; his hands shook and purple bags dominated the skin under his eyes. But there was life in those eyes, finally a light back in my brother.

            “You must be thirsty. You should go lay down. I’ll call Kat and-” “No!” Aaron’s voice rang out in the room, and the human stirred. He lowered his voice, a hard look in his eyes as he stared my way. “I will not do that to her.” “Do what? Save yourself from starvation? Keep yourself from wasting away?” He looked away, his eyes purposely skipping over the botched sewing job he had done. “I can’t.” His voice was a broken whisper. “The last time I even mentioned feeding, it scared her. I can’t do that to her. I can’t bear to see that look in her eyes again.” I walked over and put a hand on my brother’s shoulder. “Aaron, you’ll hurt her if you don’t feed yourself. I know you think drinking will hurt her, but if you don’t you will hurt her. You know I’m right.” His eyes hooded over, but he nodded. “Good. Now go find D and go to a blood bar. I’ll make sure she’s okay.” Aaron nodded again, his eyes on his female. With on last longing look at her he left the room.

            D and I evaporated to the nearest “blood bar”, which was considerably far. The neon sign read ‘Iron Mask’ and had painted blood dripping from the letters. It was old, constricted, and damp. But it was the best place for any Obiri to get blood.

            Walking inside, D and I skipped the sign in sheet and the bouncer at the front. All Obiries, especially ones like D, Zeke, and I, were welcomed without question. We bypassed a group of scantily clad humans begging for any male attention, and another group of men throwing drunken punches. D led me to the back, opening the door to the ‘restricted rooms.’ Humans thought it was for employees only; Obiries knew it was for us.

            “What can I get you boys?” “Two Bloody Marys.” D handed the female a fifty and turned to me, ignoring the Obiries lustful stare. I snorted; D had never liked women of any species since his wife and child had died six years ago. At first he wouldn’t even talk to one, not even drinking from another female Obiri’s neck. It was me that had helped him back on his feet, literally beating sense back into him. He thinks that he owes me, but he doesn’t. Not by a long shot.

            “We have a problem, Aaron.” D’s hard voice shocked me from my thoughts and I turned my full attention to him. He pulled a folder from his jacket, and his eyes told me to keep it DL. My brows furrowed as I pulled out the sheets.

           Virtus + Potestas + Regis + Inca + Tyrannus

                   Mort + Acer + Gladius

          Gratia + Honor + Ictus + Lacrima + Procella

                   Proficio + Servio + Siccus

            “These are the names for the Royal Families...” I trailed off as I realized something. “D, why are some off these names crossed off?” His eyes became colder, harder. “Because those are the ones that the malus motherfuckers have already killed.”