Den of Sorrows (The Grey Wolves #9)(19)

In three days’ time, the fae will go to war with the vampires. The Canis lupus will not be a part of the battle. The fae have insisted that they are more than capable of eliminating the vampires without our help. As much as the Alphas hate to miss the opportunity to rid the world of that scourge, they have agreed not to participate. It is not in the nature of the wolves to let another supernatural race face such a peril alone. But the wolves petitioned the high fae council about the vampires five years ago with the same dilemma and the fae did nothing. At this point, it is not the wolves’ problem. 
1502 A.D. in the ninth month, the twentieth day. It has been a fierce battle and the fae have finally prevailed in culling over half of the vampire population. They believe the vampire king was one of the fallen, though his body has not been found. Though he was a powerful foe, his army fell quickly to the high fae magic, and the fae did not believe there could possibly be any survivors.
Peri growled in frustration. It had been a waste of time. The documentation didn’t confirm or deny Sincaro’s death. It was simply speculation. Speculation was about as useful as an intoxicated pixie.
“I’d like to say thank you for taking your time to look up the information, but that would imply it was helpful,” she growled to Wadim.
He shot her the finger over his back causing her lips to twitch. She actually liked the historian, and his tee shirts were something to look forward to. Peri flashed from the archive room and reappeared in her bedroom where her mate was currently lying, shirtless, in their bed. She removed her own clothes with just a thought and then slid into bed next to him. She wouldn’t have long to be with him before she’d have to begin shuttling the wolves to Little Rock and begin preparing for battle.
She closed the distance between them and sprawled her body across his warmer one. His arms immediately wrapped around her, pulling her tightly against him.
“Welcome home, beautiful.”
His voice was rough with sleep and entirely too sexy. “It’s good to be home, no matter how brief.”
Lucian rolled and she was suddenly beneath him. He pressed a kiss to her lips and then pulled back to look at her. His blonde hair fell forward brushing her face. He smelled amazing, as usual. It didn’t matter if the man was sweaty from a good workout or fresh out of the shower, he always smelled incredible.
“Are you trying to tell me you won’t be staying long?” His silver eyes flashed mischievously.
“Duty calls,” she said in a near whisper. Only Lucian had the ability to make her lose her breath. He alone could cause all thought to slip away from her mind and replace it with him, only him. He filled up her senses. He was all she could see, hear, smell, touch, and taste. Lucian’s body lowered and settled firmly against hers, causing her eyes to flutter closed.
“Then I suppose we’d better make the most of it,” he said softly against her neck as he pressed a kiss to the spot where his bite was located. Her skin flushed as blood flowed quickly through her body. Peri’s pulse jumped as his hands gripped her hips.
“Don’t you want to get some rest?” she asked, practically panting like someone who’d just sprinted as hard as she could for a hundred yards.
“I can rest anytime. What I can’t have anytime is you. So I will take you when you are here.”
“You know you aren’t the only one who needs. I need you. I don’t like being away from you anymore than you like being away from me,” Peri told him as she traced the contours of his masculine face.
“I know that, beloved. I have no doubts about your feelings, wants, or needs when it comes to me. I also know that just because you are mated doesn’t mean all of the responsibility you’ve carried all these centuries suddenly disappears. It simply means that you no longer have to shoulder it alone.”She felt her eyes fill with tears. No one had ever cherished her the way Lucian had. No one had ever made her feel so incredibly necessary, as though life would not go on if she did not exist in the world.
“Even if we were not bonded, my life would not go on if you were not in this world,” Lucian said, having heard her thoughts.
They were quiet for a few moments as they stared into each other’s eyes. Then with whispered words caressing her skin, Lucian showed her just how necessary she was to him.
Drake stood off to the side as he watched the mated pairs interact. As Decebel’s third, he’d been asked to assist in the war against the vampires and, naturally, he’d obeyed. He would never admit to his Alpha that it was difficult to be around the group—this group. They seemed to always be the ones called on for such missions because all of them were mated. But he…well…he wasn’t. It was hard enough that he had spent so much time in the Serbia pack while it had been under the control of a crazed alpha obsessed with killing Alina and Vasile. Drake couldn’t talk about the things many of them had endured at the hand of their old alpha. Since Decebel had taken over, he’d been able to hide what Thad’s leadership had caused in some of the males of his pack. Not only was it degrading but memories remained that no wolf should ever have to carry. Add to that the fact that, at a century old, he still hadn’t found his true mate, and things were pretty dark in his world. Some days he truly considered defecting, becoming a lone wolf, just to get away from all the laughing, touching, and loving.
Like any male of his species, he longed for the day he would meet his true mate. There wasn’t a day that went by that he didn’t think about her. He didn’t have a face to go with his thoughts, or a voice, or smell, or anything. Those were all things he wondered about, of course. Drake longed to know what color her hair would be and how it would smell. He wanted to see if her mouth had full lips or smaller thin ones. Were her eyes large and round or more almond shaped? Though truly none of that mattered; he would want her regardless of what she looked like. And he was sure he would think she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He also wondered what she would think of him. Would she find him attractive? Would she be able to see past the stains that his previous alpha had left on him?
Drake’s gut clenched and his wolf stirred restlessly. The familiar darkness that was a part of who he was scratched and clawed at him. It tried to gain more ground every day. He fought it back, trying to hold on to his sanity so that he would not go feral. He wasn’t sure what was causing it, but for some reason in the last nine months he felt as though the darkness was growing stronger at a much quicker rate than it had before…before what? He didn’t know. 
Vasile and Alina stepped into the room and silence descended drawing Drake back from his thoughts.
“Peri, Alston, and Nissa” —Vasile motioned to the fae who were standing to his right— “will be flashing us to Little Rock, Arkansas. They’ve found an empty warehouse where we will congregate and from there decide our next move.”
Drake watched as the three high fae spread out and the others began placing their hands on one of them. Decebel motioned with his head for Drake to join them. He made his way over and placed his hand on Alston’s arm. He didn’t feel comfortable touching one of the female fae. Touching any female seemed to bother him. There was only one he wanted to touch and be touched by. Drake gritted his teeth together, willing himself to push away the thoughts of the mate he didn’t have.
Suddenly the world was sucked away from them—they were weightless, and then a breath later, they reappeared in a large room with a concrete floor, steel walls, and a twenty-five foot ceiling. Drake released the fae and stepped back. Like the other males in the room, he immediately began evaluating the situation. Where were the exits? Were there any potential hiding places that could conceal a foe? Were there any foes? The usual things that every male of his species did when walking into new territory.
Once everyone had arrived, they formed a circle with Vasile, Alina, and Peri standing in the center. He waited, like the loyal soldier he was, for instructions to be given. Drake didn’t know where that thought had come from. He’d never begrudged his place in the pack. In fact, when Decebel had asked him to be his third, and one of his warriors, he’d been pleased. But lately nothing seemed to be enough. Nothing made him content. He was as restless as a caged lion. So far he’d been able to keep it concealed from the others, but the feeling was getting worse. He knew his Alpha was going to pick up on it sooner rather than later. Drake also knew that Decebel wouldn’t hesitate to end him if it became necessary. It would hurt him to do so, that was the kind of Alpha Decebel was. But he would do it nonetheless, and for that Drake was unbelievably thankful. If he lost it, if the darkness took over and his wolf went feral, he wouldn’t want to live as a monster. He made a promise to himself in that moment that, if it all got to be too much, he would talk to Decebel.
Decebel hooked an arm around Jennifer’s waist when she immediately tried to leave his side as they flashed into the warehouse. She glared up at him. He simply shrugged at her. He’d warned her that she would not be leaving his side, and he’d meant it.
He ignored her attempts to loosen his fingers but couldn’t ignore the well placed elbow she jammed into his side. He grunted and heard her chuckle in satisfaction. His mate had a mean streak, and the ridiculous thing was, he liked it. Decebel was pretty sure Jennifer had messed up his head in some fundamental way.