A Bevin Hero [The O'Hagan Way 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour ManLove) (2 page)

When he was long gone, I still couldn’t get my body to work, frozen to that spot. I know it might have seemed cowardly to have that reaction, but I couldn’t help it. I’d never been so scared in my life. Hell, going through the portal to take out the human farm the demons had outside Paris and rescuing the captives there wasn’t anywhere near this scary.

Because I was all alone. And there was so much to consider. Would anyone believe me? I didn’t have any proof. And I couldn’t just go throwing around accusations. People had known this warrior for centuries maybe, and I was brand new to the coven.

Either way I had to tell Rylan. The traitor had been out of sight for a good five minutes now and my body still wouldn’t listen to me.
Just take one step. That’s it. One step towards the palace. He’s not lying in wait to kill us
, I told my margay over and over again. But I knew the truth… It wasn’t the cat in me that was scared. He was all instinct and fire.

It was the human in me that knew I was four foot eleven and not even a hundred pounds dripping wet. That warrior could crush my skull in his hand or crumple me up and use me as a basketball.

I heard voices coming from the back exit of the warriors’ compound and that finally snapped me out of it. I took off for the palace and promptly fell ass over head. My muscles had all locked up and tightened with how long I’d held myself in pounce position, body tense and ready to go. I shook it off, though not running anywhere near my normal pace.

As I thought over how to tell Rylan what I knew, I let my margay get me home on autopilot. Which turned out to complicate my life just a little bit more.

“Rian, Ronan, ya get to see your first margay your first day here,” Sean called out.

I realized I hadn’t run towards the palace but to the front of the vineyard where planting was going on. Brian and Banning had a lot of help since there was so much to do. I knew their brothers Sean and Shane always worked with them, but Finn and Fergus were helping as well, taking a break from their normal job of furniture design and making.

The other two sets of twins lived in Greece, and I’d not had a chance to meet them. Apparently Rian and Ronan were visiting. I filed it away for later and turned to head back to the palace, annoyed I was led off course, but my cat wouldn’t let me. Odd.

Then I inhaled and actually paid attention. My
god
it was heavenly. What was that? I followed the scent of some combination of strawberries and hazelnut butter, which was like my favorite, until I was five feet away from the most stunning man ever… And either he had a twin or I was seeing double.

“Ya be a cute little one, aren’t ya,” he cooed as he dropped to one knee so his height wasn’t so imposing. “It’s alright. We’re not going to hurt ya. We’ve never seen a shifter before.”

“That be a real man, Rian,” the other one said as he cuffed his brother. “Stop baby talking to him like he be a kitty.” Then he looked at me with the same piercing silver eyes Rian had.

“We’re not used to how to act around shifters. We know ya understand us but are ya more instinct like a natural cat or do ya want us to act like ya be a man standing in front of us with fur?” Rian asked.

“He can’t answer, gobshite,” Ronan drawled. “He’d have to shift back and—” His eyes narrowed at me as his fangs came out and he moved closer. “Shift back
now
.”

Rian went to turn to him and his fangs popped out as well and he looked at me with wide eyes. “Mate.”

“Aye.”

I turned back, moving my hands over my groin just so I could quickly tell them what was going on. “I’ll be back. I have to find King Rylan. But I’ll be back.” I shifted again and took off, not able to process any of this, but at the same time, reeling from the information I had which was more important than my own mating. Lives were at stake.

They shouted at me to come back but I couldn’t. Not yet.

I still wasn’t running at my best, muscles hurting, head throbbing, heart aching to be running the
opposite
direction of my mates. But more than that, I think the fear I’d felt earlier had used up whatever adrenaline I’d had stored in my body or something and now I was just wiped. Or maybe it was still the fear of what was going on weighing on me?

Either way, I just know I normally run much faster than I was right then. I didn’t go back to the tree and get my clothes. I didn’t have time, and honestly I wanted to get back to the safety of the palace. I shifted back when I got to the main doors, identifying myself to the guards.

“Lord Bevin, why are you naked?” one of the fae warriors, Zion, asked me as he stared over me appreciatively. “Is this your way of saying you finally submit to my advances and you want sex?”

“What?” I gasped, suddenly feeling not just unclothed but like really
naked
and that type of thing doesn’t normally bother shifters. “No. What?”

“He doesn’t know you like him, I bet,” Vega, a vampire warrior, chuckled. He glanced at me with lust. “Honey, we
all
like you. Any one of your guards or the warriors would
love
to have some alone time with you.”

“I met one who wouldn’t. He’d kill me if he got the chance,” I blurted out and slapped my hand over my mouth. Fuck!

“Who?” Vega growled as he grabbed my arm. “Did he hurt you, Bevin? Tell us.”

“No, I have to speak to Rylan first,” I mumbled, pulling away. “I shouldn’t have said anything before speaking with my King.”

“Okay, but just give us a name so we know not to let him in,” Zion implored.

I opened my mouth to do it and then shot a look at Vega. “I’m sorry, no. You seem like a good man but he could be your friend. I must speak to Rylan first. He’ll decide what to do. It will only take a few moments.” I darted away before they could argue with me. I understood their concerns, and I wouldn’t want to be in the dark about any of this either, but I couldn’t just be running my mouth.

Especially to other vampire warriors who would know the traitor.

I looked first in the dining hall because it was when Rylan normally took lunch. He wasn’t there. Then I thought maybe he took
lunch
so I checked his rooms. Nope. If the palace wasn’t drenched in his scent because he was always running all around, I could focus on him and pick up the trail but it wasn’t that simple.

Next I went to the throne room where he received formal visitors. He wasn’t scheduled to have any but sometimes it was just fun to hang out in the coolest room and sit on the throne. I knew because we’d gotten drunk and done it after the new palace had been built. Not that I’d ever tell anyone Rylan and I could be silly like that.

He was there with Queen Magdalena, Elder Dawson, and Alpha Caven.
Shit!
I quickly blocked my mind as I’d been trained to do long ago so no one could read my thoughts. It was something margays were taught, along with the warriors, it seemed, if the traitor hadn’t been found.

“I know I said keep it casual around the palace but this might be a little much, Bev,” Rylan drawled as I slid to a stop after having darted into the room.

“I’ve been searching everywhere for you, your majesty,” I panted, gasping for air. “We must speak
immediately
. I beg you.” While I knew Queen Magdalena preferred everyone call her
your highness
, we were raised different and our King was addressed with the common title of a ruler. Honestly, Rylan could give a shit if we just called him Ry, but there were people present, and to gain other paranormals’ respect, he
had
to have it from his own people.

“What’s going on, Bev?” he asked in a concerned tone, walking closer to me as I approached him. I turned when I heard a crash in the hallway. Shit. Were we being attacked? Had someone found out I’d been listening and pursued me?

“I know who the traitor is,” I said in a volume way below normal hearing level. “I heard them on the phone calling Dubois.”

Of course, Elder Dawson and Alpha Caven heard me too because their heads snapped in my direction. I ignored them though, not sure what was in the hallway, possibly coming for me.

“He’s going to go for Damian Marius or Dr. Johnson to prove himself to the demons. They want a few fae to test how to drain magic so they can disable the Queen. They’re trying to get plans for the palace, Ry. They’re coming for us and soon. I know where Osvaldo Diaz is,” I rambled at the same level.

“Don’t say another word,” he said quickly. “This conversation needs to be more private.” He glanced at Caven who was shaking at the idea of demons going after two of his brothers-in-law.

“Shit,” I hissed. “I’m sorry. I just don’t know—” I started to say when there was another noise in the hallway. Rylan seemed oblivious to it and so did everyone else. Was I just freaking out?

“I’m calling a High Council meeting. You will tell us everything there.” I nodded, knowing it was an order and it wasn’t like I had a choice. Obviously Rylan didn’t think anyone would doubt me. Oh goodie. I hoped that to be true. He stepped over to his mates, who had been watching all of this curiously, as he pulled out his phone.

I heard the door open and before I could even turn around I was surrounded.

“Ya ran from us,” Rian snarled as he moved one arm around my waist.

“Ours,” Ronan hissed in my ear as his arm went around my chest. Then they sank their fangs into either side of my neck as their hands moved to my groin. I cried out in shock and pleasure as they drank deeply from me. Holy sweet mother of mercy! This was what it felt like to be bit and drank from?

Not that I actually wanted this now, naked, in the throne room in front of most of the leaders of the coven. But hot
damn
it was fun! My cock filled so fast it almost hurt and then got firmer than I could ever remember it being. Rian stroked it while Ronan squeezed my sac. I came harder than I thought possible. Ronan moved his hand to help Rian, so I didn’t just shoot all over the floor, instead over their hands and my stomach.

And still they drank, deep swallows of my blood. It felt like hours, but I knew all this probably happened in less than thirty seconds. They were just drinking so fast and my reaction to them was instant.

The whole time I was climaxing, stars flashed behind my eyes and I couldn’t focus on anything other than what I was feeling. Hell, I heard sounds in the distance but I couldn’t even make out what it was. But then when the pleasure ended my vision didn’t clear and I realized what was going on.

“Stop,” I breathed, comprehending I was dizzy and with two of them the blood loss was too much. “Please. Stop. Too much.”

I finally caught one clear voice as Rylan came into my blurred view as he hit Rian in the stomach so his fangs didn’t rip out of me. “Get off of him! You’re going to kill him!”

Seconds later Rian and Ronan were gone, injuring my neck slightly when they were pulled off of me. I started to fall but Rylan caught me before I hit the marble flooring. He sat on the floor with me and with the way I was lying I saw Rian and Ronan kneeling in front of us being restrained by a few guards.

“Jon,” I whispered.

“What? Don’t talk, Bev,” Rylan cried as he held his hands to my neck. “Where the
fuck
is Riley?”

“Jon,” I said again. I saw Rian and Ronan had heard me and they snarled. I’m not sure why they had that reaction or what they thought was going on but the whole thing was bizarre. Then suddenly Caven was in front of me.

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” he asked, his look meaningful.

“Jon is—” I started to say, trying to clarify, but I couldn’t get it all out before the darkness took me under. I was going to die by my mates’ bloodlust and I never even got to tell them fully what I’d learned. And all I had wanted to do was take a break from work and enjoy the day.

Rian

I watched in shock as our mate raced away. “The little shite just ran from us.”

“The fuck he is,” Ronan snarled as he took off. I jumped to me feet and was right behind him.

Nothing like a good chase after the mate to get the blood pumping. Riiiight. We vamoosed like a flash, incredibly fast for vampires. Honestly we weren’t warriors… But we could have been. We were as tall as some warriors, six three apiece, but we weren’t as broad in the shoulders and didn’t bulk up like them.

But we were the speediest fuckers around. We’d raced Rory before and only been seconds behind him. That was crazy fast for vampires.

There was something more going on than just our mate running away though. Why say he’d come back if he just wanted to ditch us? I couldn’t help but try and figure it out as we pursued. Maybe someone was chasing
him
in the bad kind of way? Like they wanted to hurt him. I felt me hands shift into claws at the idea. We would fucking
end
anyone who would try for our mate.

God, there was so much adrenaline coursing through us. We were confused, giving in to the most basic need for our mate,
chasing
him, which as predators appealed to us, and once we got him we’d be victorious. Hell, I was hard already.