Gods & Monsters: The Gods & Monsters Trilogy Book 1 Page 10

  She straddled him and her fingers tangled in his hair before he could react. He knew these were the results of her hunger; she was only securing his neck to her mouth—similar to a lion preventing their prey from fleeing.

  Still, it was a very sexual position. He had to concentrate on not losing control, but he only pulled her closer. She felt so good in his arms. She was soft, and her sweet scent tore at his morality. He wanted to taste every inch of her—be inside her.

  He loved her already, though. He couldn’t do that to her or himself. David forced himself to stop pulling her closer and gripped her shoulders to prompt her to stop feeding.

  A growling noise rumbled in her chest. It briefly made him think of a baby kitten, growling as it guarded its food. As cute as the thought was to him, a more dominant side took over his actions. She was a predator. But so was he.

  He let out his own growl to chastise her. The aggressive sound caused her to whimper, but he wasn’t backing down. Squeezing her shoulders again, he finally felt her submit.

  She abruptly stopped sucking and removed her fangs. The adorable stare she greeted him with as she licked her lips pushed back his need to dominate her. He reminded himself that she’d only just learned of what she was. Her entire life had been turned upside down in the small amount of time she’d been awake.

  “I’m sorry,” she said.

  He nearly kissed her pouting lips as she tilted her head slightly. She was giving him puppy eyes. He’d seen several of the wives use it on his friends but never understood why they caved to their demands.

  Well, he knew now. He wanted to give her the world, but somehow he overcame her charm.

  “It’s all right. You did well.” He rubbed the remaining droplets from the corner of her mouth with his thumb. She still gave him that look, but she seemed more innocent than the women he’d seen using this tactic.

  She sighed with a sort of intoxicated gleam in her eyes. “I felt hungry.” Her gaze locked with his, and she gave him a dreamy smile. “You growled at me.”

  Definitely innocent... and maybe a little drunk, he thought. Her innocence along with her reactions to him and his blood made her a more dangerous opponent.

  “I did.” He chuckled. “You need to focus now. We have a lot to talk about.”

  JANE WAS DROWNING in the dark blue pools of David’s eyes and right now, she didn’t care about her doomed fate. She’d heard him say they had to talk, but she just wanted to touch him.

  She moved her hand from his neck to the side of his face. He reacted by shutting his eyes and tilting his face toward her palm. He smiled again, and she couldn’t stop herself from smiling back. Everything felt perfect until she suddenly thought of Jason. With the picture of her husband’s face looking back at her, the veil of ecstasy lifted.

  Jane quickly took in her current situation, noting the pair of strong arms holding her. Arms that belonged to David. It felt right to have him hold her so close to him. She wanted to wrap herself around him. Even their current embrace, straddling him, wasn’t enough.

  Oh, God, I’m straddling him, she truly realized. She was betraying Jason.

  She jumped off his lap and backed up, holding her arms out to keep him away.

  “Sweetheart,” David said softly, “please stay calm. I will explain everything to you.”

  “Don’t talk to me!” she shrieked, panicking because everything inside her said to go back to him. “I’m not your sweetheart.”

  She almost regretted yelling—it hurt her heart to see his devastated expression, but this wasn’t right. This wasn’t her. She wouldn’t cheat on Jason. She wasn’t even mad that he called her sweetheart. In fact, she liked it.

  “Fine, I will try not to call you that, but you need to give me a chance to explain.”

  His pleading made her resolve weaken. If he came closer, she didn’t think she could stop herself from touching him or begging him to call her something sweet again. She wanted to be all over him and that was wrong.

  “Just leave me alone! I don’t want to talk about it right now. Oh, God.” She pressed her hand over her eyes. “Jason’s going to hate me so much.”

  David’s shoulders dropped, and she hated how it looked to see him that way. Everything about David told her to trust him. A part of her whispered he was truth and safety, but her logical side disagreed. She had just met this guy. He was a vampire, and he’d changed her into a blood-sucking monster.

  Jane squeezed her head with both hands. She couldn’t stop thinking. Her mind always thought everything through a hundred times. Among all her chaotic thoughts, two sides screamed at her: one told her to just jump into his arms while the other insulted her for even looking at him.

  Jane pulled her hands down and stared at his eyes. It felt like her heart was begging her to give him a chance, but she rarely let her heart have what it wanted. She didn’t want to—she wanted the opposite—but she closed her heart up tight in a box.

  “David,” said a man as three knocks sounded from the door. “Arthur needs to see you.”

  The door opened to reveal a man she briefly remembered seeing earlier.

  “I’m a bit preoccupied,” David said.

  The man gave David a knowing look. “He needs to speak with you. I will keep her company while you are gone.”

  Jane was relieved at the request, but at the same time, panic coursed through her at the thought of David leaving her sight.

  She pushed through her fear and kept her eyes on this newcomer. She could feel David staring but refused to look at him. If she did, his deep blue eyes would paralyze her, and she’d beg him to stay.

  “Fine,” David relented with a harshness she didn’t expect from him, but when he turned to her again, his tone was even. “Jane, this is my friend and comrade, Gawain. Will you be all right with him while I go speak with Arthur?”

  “Yes,” she said, lowering her gaze.

  David did not immediately leave, but after a few seconds, he let out a frustrated breath and exited the room.

  Tears pricked at her eyes, but she was accustomed to pushing them back. It made them burn more, and caused a deep ache in her throat, but she managed to not show her grief.

  Yet, even closed away, her heart felt his withdrawal and cried for him to come back. It was hard to process such a strong attachment to a stranger, and even though she had denied her heart many relationships, this new feeling of loss was destroying her. This was why she never let anyone in.

  “Like he said, my name is Gawain.” He reached out for her hand.

  She looked up and held out her hand. “I’m Jane.”

  He surprised her by lifting her hand and placing a kiss on the back of it. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Jane. Why don’t we sit and chat a bit? David will be a little while.” He led her to the chaise by the window.

  Hearing David’s name caused her to flush. Part of her felt embarrassed for how she had been all over him and the other part was saddened that she’d pushed him away. She tried to hide her reaction from his friend. Her eyes burned from the aching in her chest, but she was more embarrassed by her teenage reaction. She was a grown woman for God’s sake, but just hearing his name had her blushing?

  A finger under her chin forced her to look at the grinning man next to her. “Don’t be embarrassed, love. Your reaction to him is normal. Let me explain everything, all right?”

  “What about David?” She didn’t know why she even asked.

  “Don’t worry. He will be back, but I think it’s best that you hear this from someone else.”

  “Okay.”

  Gawain smiled. “I know you must have a thousand questions, so I shall go far back. I am sure that you have heard of the fallen angel, Lucifer?” She nodded. “Well, when he fell from Heaven, he wasn’t alone. Although Lucifer did not have any part in the creation of the first Earthly immortals, he is important to the story.

  “Now there were other angels who wanted revenge against God. Since they cannot reach him, they chose to t
arget the human race.

  “You see, angels and demons do not have the ability to directly harm a human. Every human, even immortal, can be influenced to do good or bad, but the fallen and demons wanted to inflict physical pain. They found a way by creating the first of Earth’s immortals. They gave their new creations great strength and immortality. This was not meant to happen in the world we live in. They were created out of hate. These new immortals were ruthless and life was chaos for mankind. Villages were destroyed, lives were lost—it was complete hysteria, which was their aim. God was heartbroken for what was happening to humans, but the laws were set. He would not allow His angels to stop these earthly demons because they were once human. His angels could fight Fallen and creatures from Hell, whom created these monsters, but they were difficult to catch. Most were once angels themselves, so it was easy for the Fallen to hide from Heaven’s warriors.

  “As time went on, Heaven and Hell grew more hostile with each other. Just as God loves us, so did the angels who remained in Heaven. While many of Heaven’s angels located and destroyed the fallen and demons responsible for these monsters, more immortals were created on Earth. With God’s law, the angels had no way to stop these monsters. The human race stood on the brink of destruction.

  “After some time passed, Lucifer suggested an idea that would bring order. Even though he is Lucifer, he was angry that not even he could control these beasts who ran free over the world. He suggested Heaven create its own protectors.”

  Jane sat wide-eyed, listening to this great tale. “But he’s Lucifer. Why would he want to help humans?”

  “Yes, but there is no evil without good. No Heaven without Hell. Balance is necessary, and Lucifer knew that. God agreed that only Heaven’s own immortals could bring balance but warned Lucifer to not create his own immortals. Lucifer agreed, and so a group of angels selected humans to gift with immortality.

  “I am sure you have heard myths of different gods: Greek, Roman, Norse, and so forth?” She nodded. “Well, they were the first of Heaven’s immortals. They had great strength, speed, and, of course, they were immortal. The Titans and other monsters from mythology were the creations of fallen angels and demons.

  “To maintain that immortality, they needed to feed on the blood of humans. The earlier immortals had already instilled beliefs of human sacrifice among humans, but Heaven’s immortals knew that their purpose was to protect us, so they were more careful with their feedings. Food of the gods is what they used to say. Humans believed it was some magical substance and didn’t realize the gods were simply feeding on human blood.”

  “Why did the new immortals have to feed from humans?” Jane asked. “Why not just make them strong and immortal?”

  Gawain smiled. “Power changes a person, Jane. They needed a reason to protect mortals. Same as a shepherd who guards his flock.

  “Now, in the beginning, Heaven’s immortals were successful. They defeated much of the evils that plagued our world. An example would be the Olympian gods defeating Titans. They did a tremendous job, but after a while, they grew bored of their duty. The evil ones continued to populate the world by either creating or breeding, and Heaven’s immortals began to want more for themselves. They began to create their own immortals to take over their duty.

  “It was disastrous. Newer stories of monsters like vampires, sirens, and many others started to spread. Heaven’s immortals did not take responsibility when their creations ran wild. Many of these newer immortals were as terrible as those created by Hell and Fallen. This upset God. Not only did the original, evil immortals start to regrow their numbers, but these creations and offspring from Heaven’s immortals were just as bad. He punished them all by cursing them to darkness.”

  “Like real vampires?”

  “Exactly. Humans assumed these were new monsters, but they were the same. Some were simply more monstrous than others. Don’t get me wrong, some were physically different than what you might think of a classic vampire to be, but they were basically the same. Just more diluted and more crazed than the originals. It gets very complicated but focus on the fact we are all a result of either demons, Fallen, or Heavenly angels. Those immortal creations made via the same process that David made you. They also bred with other immortals or sometimes their creators.”

  “But they’re all cursed?”

  “They are cursed to darkness. If they sinned or created more immortals by breeding or turning, they would damn themselves to Hell. This is what Lucifer desired all along. He must have known they’d fall to temptation. His collection of immortal prisoners still grows to this day.

  “Wow. So they’re all cursed, but not all are damned to Hell?”

  He chuckled. “Right. We label them all Cursed, and those sentenced to Hell, you will often hear them referred to as Damned. Now, let me get back to the story. Since Earth had even more monsters roaming the lands, God chose one of his archangels to create a new protector. The archangel Gabriel was chosen. He had to select mankind’s most noble man and gift him with not only immortality but also the combative skill of his creator. Gabriel chose Arthur.

  “Arthur was meant to destroy Hell’s immortals and maintain order over all immortals. Just as there are good and bad people, there were good and bad cursed immortals. Some wanted to earn God’s forgiveness; they work for Arthur to earn it.

  “Anyway, Gabriel is said to be very wise. He proposed the idea that Arthur be allowed immortal companionship. God agreed to his proposal and Arthur was instructed to choose and create eleven companions to aid him as well as a personal companion—a wife. Each of these selected would not suffer from the curse.

  “The eleven would be allowed to create an Other to remain their companion, as well. Had only Arthur been allowed a wife, there would be little doubt that the rest of us would succumb to the same lure evil had to offer. If we followed the rules given to us, we would remain in God’s good graces and free of the curse or damnation.

  “Since Arthur was considered most noble, he was given greater power than the rest of us. Arthur had to be able to take us out should we fall. Our Others, which are our wives, were not cursed, but to keep a rein on them, they must also stay in darkness or they feel very weak.”

  “When you say they’re cursed to darkness, that’s where the vampire part comes in?”

  “Yes. They are prevented from entering sunlight. God’s light. If they do, they suffer severe damage or death. We are the exception. Our wives will not die, but they feel lethargic. We Now, back to Arthur. He was changed and given the task to select eleven men. They are myself, my younger brothers Gareth and Gaheris. Then there is Tristan, Bedivere, Kay, Bors, Geraint, Lamorak, Percivale, and Galahad.”

  Jane knew those names from somewhere. When she realized why they sounded familiar, she smiled brightly. “Knights! King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table!”

  Gawain laughed. “Yes, the very same.”

  “I don’t believe it,” she whispered. “I always loved those stories. You guys were my favorite legends besides Greek myths.” She squeezed his arm, which made him laugh. “This is crazy. I feel like I’m meeting a superhero. Wait.” She looked back up. “You didn’t say David’s name.”

  “No, David is not one of the eleven. He is the younger brother of Guinevere, Arthur’s wife. He was the most skilled and bravest soldier in the kingdom when Arthur wed Guinevere—even we were no match for him. But Arthur was instructed not to choose him. He was also instructed not to choose Lancelot, Arthur’s close friend at the time.

  “Arthur learned of Lance’s infatuation with Gwen, but he never believed it was possible for Lancelot to betray him so greatly.

  “Guinevere had already been granted immortality, but she was no match for Lancelot when he went to her chambers and forced himself on her. Lucky for her, David had been coming to visit her stopped him from doing anything. They fought, but they both received fatal wounds during their fight.”

  Her heart pounded a little harder and her eyes burned. G
awain squeezed her hand. She knew he didn’t understand what bothered her, and she would not tell him. She sucked in a fresh breath and looked back up.

  Don’t think of it, she thought quickly.

  Gawain studied her face for a moment and finally smiled. “Gwen held David and prayed for help. When Arthur and I arrived, we knew there was little to be done; he was dying.

  “Now, we were not as close to David as we are now, but he was still Arthur’s brother-in-law. Arthur could not bear to watch his wife suffer the loss of her brother, so he called out to Gabriel, begging the angel to appear and save him.

  “Gabriel heard the call and appeared before us, but he explained he could not help David. However, when it seemed David’s final moments were near, another appeared. This angel was Michael. The angel knelt and began speaking to David. He told David he was being blessed by God. Michael said his skill in battle would be added to David’s already impressive fighting abilities.

  “David already surpassed us, so now he would exceed all made immortals. There would be a great sacrifice for all of this, though.

  “Just as we were granted the right to immortalize our companions, David was told he would have the same. Only, he would not come across her until it was time for her on Earth. Michael said he was not given knowledge of when this person would cross David’s path, but he implied David was in for a significant wait.

  “David asked how he would know, and Michael promised him that his heart would tell him. He also said she would have abilities unlike any other immortal, and with them, she would be able to save the world from darkness. But until she crossed his path, David would have to remain alone. He has been without a companion until now.”

  “But he changed me,” she said quickly. “What about the woman he’s been waiting for all this time? Isn’t she like his soul mate?”

  Gawain took her hands in both of his. “Love, he’s been waiting for you.”

  DAVID SCOWLED AT ARTHUR as he shoved open the back door and exited the house.

  “David, calm down,” Arthur said. David stomped out into the middle of the yard. “It’s better this way. She is too emotional right now to hear this from you.”