Antithesis: The Vampire Alliance Book Three - FIRST DRAFT COMPLETED

Antithesis Chapter 27: Eve Blakethorn-Sullivan August 2013

Eve Blakethorn-Sullivan, August 2013

The fountains have been kept in working order and Pat has them turned on, even at night. With my vampire eyes the falling water looks even more perfect in the moonlight, as it cascades from marble sculptures and sends shimmering liquid crystals into the air to reflect the starlight. Reaching down from my perch on the marble rim of one fountain's basin, I swirl my fingers through the water, disrupting the surface even more and sending my own ripples out to do battle with those caused by the jets.

"It is beautiful here, I can only imagine what it would have looked like when the gardens were properly tended and the house was at its most opulent."

"I was stunning, even I can admit that," Tul tells me, "I didn't see much of the house but I used to play in the garden as a boy. The head gardener boxed my ears more than once for being here when I shouldn't have been. Mr Mason was a truly terrifying man until I grew taller than he was. After that he decided as he hadn't taught me respect in fifteen years of beatings, he probably wasn't ever going to manage to teach me any discipline."

"How much of a trouble maker were you as a boy?" Looking up from the glittering water, I try to imagine him as a child. "You'd said you skipped school and spent your time basically misbehaving with other servants children but just how much of a miscreant were you?"

Lying back on the marble plinth and staring up at the night-time sky Rob chuckles, "If my mother hadn't liked Mary so much Keep would have gotten his parents dismissed more than once. His poor father was forever promising mine that he could straighten him out. Requesting a job for him was his last attempt at creating a useful member of society. It was all an act though, boredom I reckon. After he started working for me Keep became a truly upstanding member of society."

"Yes, well, once I started working for you there wasn't much time left for boredom. You created quite enough trouble all on your own without me needing to." The response is not unkind, there's no bitterness in it at all.

"Can you remember that time you snuck into the kitchen garden and stole a load of carrots Mason was about to harvest? You fed them to the horses." There's more to Rob's amusement than simple enjoyment of his reminiscence.

"That was you," Tul argues in mild indignation, "you fed them to the horses and you blackmailed me into stealing the damn things in the first place. You swore you'd tell my father that you'd seen me knocking the heads of Mason's roses if I didn't do exactly what you wanted for a month. After the carrot fiasco you had me attempt to steal cakes from the kitchen and I got caught. I didn't even get through the door. I was beaten for that you know. We were six and I was already taking your beatings for you. I'm lucky we barely had anything to do with each other as children, seriously, you got me into more trouble that month than I ever would have done myself."

Smiling, I wonder about the past, a past I hadn't existed in. "It's hard to imagine you as children. You had such different childhoods to me." Had they been cute children?

"Eve," Blake's arrival interrupts my speculation and Rob and Tul straighten, tense and defensive. Blake senses their animosity and shifts uncomfortably. "I'm not here to start a fight. Actually I'm here to apologise. I shouldn't have said what I did yesterday. I miss Rachel. I know that isn't an excuse but I don't even know what happened to her except that she died in a Senate facility. It was her choice to go and she knew the risks and I shouldn't hold her death against you." Blake's ice blue eyes meet mine, "You've been through enough and I wanted you to know that I am sorry about what I said."

"Everyone says things they shouldn't when they've been hurt. Ask Tul, he probably has a catalogue of stupid things I've said in the last five years." Standing, I take a tentative step towards Blake, holding out my hand, "Let's start again, shall we. Hi, I'm Eve Blakethorn-Sullivan, I'll be staying here for a period of indeterminate length."

"Hi," Blake responds taking my hand in a firm shake, "I'm Blake Farrah. I'm head of the security team here at Norham House."

"I'm pleased to meet you Blake," the words are only a very slight lie as I disengage my hand from his.

He laughs, seeing straight through the minor falsehood, "Well I hope that by the time your indeterminate stay draws to a close you might actually mean that." Blake turns back towards the house, returning to whatever job his role as head of security requires he complete.

"Come on," Tul prompts, taking my hand as he tries to distract me from Blake's retreating back and my ever present guilt over Rachel. "We were going to go back to the moors. It's another clear night; it'll be nice out there away from everyone."

This time we walk rather than tear headlong onto the moors. It's nice, strolling through the wilderness as if we had no cares. It's so quiet out here. Night-time animals keep it from being absolutely silent but don't make it anything less than peaceful. An tawny owl hoots overhead and I look up at the swooping creature, my gaze meeting the reflective discs of the predator's eyes. It feels familiar, the predator circling above us.

As I gaze at the bird above I smile and ask, "Do you know what the scientific name for the Tawny Owl is?" When Rob and Tul shakes their heads I continue, "Strix aluco. We're named after an Ancient Roman, blood drinking, demon who in turn was named after a genus of owl. Now here we are, all of us nocturnal predators right down to that bird searching for a meal. I think I prefer owls to bats."

"Bats are very much the mascots of darker vampires, the cruel ones who messed with Stoker enough to have him write a story and the ones who follow the cult which grew out of that. Owls though, I like owls." Tul's eyes follow the bird of prey overhead, just as mine had, and his irises reflect the moonlight just as the owl's do. "You though, I'm not sure you're the owl type."

"He has a point," hands grip my upper arms as Rob pulls me back against his chest. "I think you're more of a vixen." His tongue runs up my throat, sending a shiver down my spine.

"I can see where this is going, you know." Understanding their intentions doesn't make me pull away. "Seriously, you lured me back out here for sex?"

"Oh, no, not at all," Tul denies, shaking his head as he closes the distance between us, his body pressing against mine. "That implies that luring was necessary." He takes my wrist, pulling it to his mouth and my breath catches as he kisses the place where my slow pulse beats under my skin.

I can feel Rob grinning against my throat, no doubt breathing in the increasing fragrance of my arousal. "This is a break remember, a holiday. We aren't evil vampires manipulating a virgin to her ruination."

"No," my teasing tone is amused, "because you already did that."

Rob ignores my banter, "We've spent so much time struggling, being what we have to be rather that simply what we are. Just for one night wouldn't it be nice to enjoy what we are and not worry about everything else?"

Gazing back up at the still hunting owl I understand what they crave. "You just want to be vampires. You want to be primitive, driven by basic needs, vampires. You want to feed, fornicate and scream your exultation at the stars."

"Don't you?" enquires Tul as he lowers his mouth to mine, nipping my lower lip hard enough to draw blood. Sucking the temporary wound he almost purrs at the taste of me and my body reacts instantly to his pleasure, trembling and aching with sudden need.

A moan escapes me and they don't need any more encouragement than that. Rob's arms lock around me and his hands snake up my front to curve around my breasts. The moan becomes a gasp as he squeezes the soft mounds and my nipples peak against his palms. "So," he whispers, his breath warm on my skin before he briefly sucks my earlobe, "don't you want to feed, fornicate and scream your exultation to the stars?"

My mind is growing fuzzy, with Rob behind me and Tul in front, both of them intent on seducing me. Even one-handed Tul unfastens my jeans in less than a second. As his hand slips into my trousers his irises brighten, his fangs lengthening, "You aren't wearing underwear."

"No," I confess, a little embarrassed, "our bags were packed by a man and therefore spare underwear and my hairbrush are both missing in action. And my last pair got torn so I can't even wash them." Rob winces but says nothing. "Pat loaned me a hair brush, but having already asked her for clothes once in my life I decided just to do without the other. Make the most of it."

"I intend to," Tul growls as he kisses me hard, demanding I open to him in every way possible. His fingers explore the folds of my body, stroking the nub from which heat and desire radiates, sending a fiery flood from my core to consume my body. The heat is unrelenting as my insides clench delightfully at his touch.

Rob unbuttons my blouse, his fingertips lightly brushing my skin as he opens the garment. Where he touches me electricity sparks across my skin, burning deliciously. As Rob slides the material of the shirt off my shoulders my pulse speeds and I press back against him, desperate for his touch, desperate to feel his body against mine.

"Oh," I moan and I know exactly what I want to be. With them I know what I am and I'm alright with it. "I want my life in you, I want your life in me, I want to drink and fuck and I want you both to make me scream."

"I like your interpretation of primitive vampirism," Rob murmurs right before he buries his fangs in my throat. With the familiar warmth of his venom hitting my blood stream heat spreads from where he draws on me with slow, seductive pulls. He holds me more tightly against his front as the buzz of my blood courses through his veins.

Tul presses against me, reacting to what Rob and I feel. His tongue flicks over my fangs, spilling his blood onto my own tongue. Sucking hungrily I take as much of my sire's blood as I can before the twin wounds heal and Tul repeats the process, this time massaging his tongue over mine. He spreads his blood over my taste buds and his flavour, spice and wood smoke, drives me wild with lust and with anticipation for what will follow. Rational thought fades, dismissed by sensual physical contact and the erotic link which ensures we can feel each other's desires as well as our own.

Craving more I reach up, gripping the collar of Tul's t-shirt and tearing it open with a satisfying rip. He pulls his hand from my jeans just long enough to shirk of the tattered remains of his top. "Jeans too," I pant desperately, on the verge of tearing them off him just as I had his t-shirt. "Rob, you too." I need to feel their skin against mine, I need their proximity. I need to know that we're together on the most basic level as well as through all the complicated crap.

Normally I'd enjoy seeing my men strip but tonight I barely look at them as I concentrate on removing my own bra and jeans as quickly as possible. I barely manage to kick my clothes away before I'm once again trapped between two hard, male bodies. Two very hard, male bodies.

Tul slips his hand between my thighs again, his fingers pressing into me. "You're so desperate and that's making me..." He doesn't finish, choosing instead to taking my hardened nipple into his mouth, flicking his tongue over the sensitive end before sucking. Another lightning bolt shoots through me from the place Tul torments my breast to the heated place between my thighs.

With my cunt gripping his fingers each time his thumb strokes over the swollen nub of my clit my passion ignites his hunger, a hunger that would devour me if given the chance. I squeal in surprise as he grabs me, forcing me down amongst the heather. Tul nudges my legs apart, forcing me to expose myself as I tremble on the ground.

With my wet entrance revealed to the night sky and my breasts heaving I feel vulnerable, but with Rob and Tul it is a good sort of vulnerable. I'm defenceless, they could do anything they want to me, but I trust them implicitly and that evokes a wanton desire which urges me to spread my thighs wider and to moan as the summer breeze caresses my exposed flesh. My body throbs, desperate for their attention.

"Evie," Rob's voice is rough with desire, "Keep," he groans, unable to vocalise the hundred cravings flooding his body. Grinning, Tul presses his fingers into me again, then, with his gaze alight with lust, he pulls his hand away and offers his fingers to Rob. I watch in fascination as Rob licks and sucks on the proffered digits, tasting me on Tul and causing both me and Tul to groan in response.

Desperate need coils deep inside me, the need to be taken and to be sated. I want to be satisfied in the two most very basic ways a vampire can be satisfied. "Rob, your blood," I demand, my words rough with my desire. He kneels beside me, his fingertips trailing briefly over my lower lip. His finger slips into my mouth and I bite, shivering as the first drop of his lifeblood slips over my tongue. It's not enough though, and I grip his arm, tugging his wrist down.

He growls as I bite him, but the sounds is filled with need. "Feed," he urges, "take as much as you want." His gaze locks with mine, intensely silver as he watches the rapture in my expression. I love him so much; my heart swells with it, aching with each beat because I adore him so deeply. I don't know how I survived his loss, the concept is incomprehensible. "Love you, Eve," he answers in response to the rush of my emotion.

Tul answers the other of my needs, manoeuvring his body over mine. "Love you, Evie," he breathes too, sparking the second wave of breathless adoration. In response Tul slides the tip of his solid cock along the length of my slit, gathering my wetness before he pushes slowly into me, stretching my walls around his swollen manhood. He thrusts deep into me as Rob's blood electrifies my veins and my back arches, my body reacting of its own accord to the onslaught of pleasure.

"Harder, deeper," Rob demands, lost in the thrill of our joining, and Tul complies. My fangs slip from Rob as I give in to the compulsion to vocalise my ecstasy. Every cell in my body thrums with our joint pleasure, our joint power and the pulsating heat spreading from where my womb throbs as Tul buries himself in my warmth over and over and over until I can't take any more.

The world blurs and until there is nothing beyond the sensation of our union. Rob's lips claim mine, his tongue searching my mouth with deep strokes as every movement Tul drives all of us towards climax. With fire on my skin and my mind fogged with the need for satisfaction I moan and buck automatically, meeting Tul's thrusts as Rob's hand once again cups my breast, rolling and squeezing a nipple until I scream with the exquisite torment.

My muscles contract, my skin flushes, my body spasms as the coils of torturous joy unfurl in my womb. I can hear cries of release, screams of pleasure as we climax. Tul floods me with his seed as Rob comes against my side, yelling my name, Tul's name, the Lord's name.

Devastating waves of release are controlling every movement of my body, rippling through me over and over until I beg for it stop. Tul relaxes on top of my, nuzzling into one side on my neck as Rob kisses the other. I pant, breathing heavily, unable to move as every limb feels like jelly. "That was..." I start, but there are no words to describe the encounter. "Thank you."

Tul chuckles at my gratitude, "No. Thank you."

After we finally catch our breath Rob looks skyward, "Owl's gone," he murmurs softly, "probably scared off by the noise."

Laughing I look up at the stars too and I realise how much I love it here. "We should come here more often."

"The moors or Yorkshire in general?" enquires Tul, watching me curiously.

"Both, I think." Does my confession surprise them?

"Would you move here, once everything is resolved?" Rob requests, his finger tips trailing lazy patterns up my arm.

"Would you move here?" I ask, "Either of you, when you've spent so long avoiding coming home?"

Rob considers, looking out over the moor and then back at us. "I'd come home, if Johan would give the house back. Norham House was always supposed to be mine, it was passed down through my family and part of the reason I never came back was because I'd failed to do any of the things my ancestors would have required of me. I had no wife, no heirs, no prospects to help maintain the estate. Now? I have a beautiful wife to bring home." He grins at Tul, "and more. What you said yesterday was true, we could make something of the house and my family would've respected that. It's taken a century to be able to say it but yes, I'd come home."

Nodding I turn to Tul, waiting for his answer. He takes longer to decide, frowning while he sorts through a twisting mess of confused emotion. Eventually he shrugs, "I'd never move back to the cottage, but I figure that's not much of a problem. Living in the main house? Well that's a daunting prospect," he meets Rob's speculative gaze, "but I think I can handle it." Smiling he asks, "So that's the plan? Defeat the Senate, come back to Norham House and create a life here, the three of us?"

"That'd be my plan," Rob agrees, "peace, home, love, it'd make a nice change."

It would make a nice change, if it were possible to achieve.