Redemption: My Vampire Lover Part #2 (A Dark Realm Novella Series)

REDEMPTION:

MY VAMPIRE LOVER PART #2

(A Dark Realm Novella Series)

By Ally Thomas writing as Victoria Embers

Copyright 2013 Ally Thomas

All Rights Reserved.

Discover other titles by Victoria Embers at
myvampireloverseries.com
.

Cover design by Sable Grey featuring
Jimmy Thomas

SMASHWORDS Edition

Smashwords Edition License Notes

This Ebook is licensed for your personal
enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to
other people. If you would like to share this book with another
person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If
you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not
purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com
and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work
of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters,
places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and
are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events,
locales, organizations, or person, living or dead, is entirely
coincidental.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1 – Raphael’s Unexpected Delivery

Chapter 2 – Caroline’s Realization

Chapter 3 – Raphael’s Offer

Chapter 4 – Caroline’s New Sense and
Sensibility

Chapter 5 – Raphael’s Proposal

Fanged to English Translations

About the Author

Dedication

For a dark angel who spread his wings and
flew to Cat Heaven

Lucky Ninja (September 8, 2012 – January 21,
2013)

Acknowledgments

Thanks to all of
the new readers who read and perhaps reviewed Conquest (My Vampire
Lover Part #1). I was amazed at the interest the freebie generated.
As well, thank you for sharing your impressions about the first
story with me. Writing in the romance genre has been a fun, new
experience for me. I’ve already learned a lot! Special thanks to
Alexandra Anthony, Stephanie, Catherine Wolffe, Kellie, Mayrose,
Charidy, Amanda, Cathy V., Lisa W. Thanks to my beta readers and my
street team for their feedback and support.

Westley:
Hear this now: I will always come
for you.

Buttercup:
But how can you be
sure?

Westley:
This is true love - you think
this happens every day?

From the movie, The Princess Bride

EXPLICIT ADULT CONTENT WARNING

These stories are considered paranormal
romance with fantasy and erotica elements. They are for mature
audiences only. They contain adult language, violence, and strong
sexual content including some light bondage situations. All
characters depicted in these stories are 18 years or older. All
sexual activities are of a consensual nature.

REDEMPTION:

MY VAMPIRE LOVER PART #2

(A Dark Realm Novella Series)

By Ally Thomas writing as Victoria Embers

Note to the Reader

The first story, Conquest (My Vampire Lover
Part #1), which was published on November 15, 2012, is available
for FREE on Amazon and at other book retailers’ websites. That
story occurs eight months AFTER Caroline was kidnapped.

The second story, given here, is called
Redemption (My Vampire Lover Part #2). It flashes back to when
Caroline was first kidnapped by Raphael’s father, Lord Asmoedus and
placed in Raphael’s care.

Chapter 1 - Raphael’s Unexpected
Delivery

Author’s
Note: This chapter is told from Raphael, the hero’s point of view.
Each chapter goes back and forth, sharing the hero and heroine’s
point of view.

Eight Months Earlier in a realm far, far
away

“Who is that woman chained to my bed?”

Father didn’t miss a beat when I stormed
through the door of his study, unannounced. I thought he’d be
shocked by my absurd question or at least annoyed by the intrusion
of my 6’ 2” frame. He wasn’t, and that worried me. He was up to
something. Placing his journal on the massive mahogany desk, he
took his time to stuff the book and some papers in a drawer and
lock it. As he tucked the key in the front pocket of his red silk
vest, he buttoned his black velvet smoking jacket, retrieved his
pipe, tapped it a few times on the desk, and met my gaze, acting,
not the least bit surprised by the interruption.

“That woman is your new pet.” He shook a
long, bony red index finger at me and made his way around the desk
to settle on one corner. For a few moments, he stared at the wall
of bronze werewolf skulls he had collected, waiting to see if I’d
inquire about a few new additions. I didn’t take the bait. However,
I did notice one was female and one male. He made no distinction
between genders. A kill was a kill. If asked by a stranger how he
gathered his collection of trophies, he’d boast he had received
them all as tokens of appreciation for being such an honorable
leader which was a lie. Father had killed each and every one of
them in his sick games, games I refused to participate in. I may be
a warrior protecting the realm, but Father was a sadistic hunter,
one who needed to be destroyed.

Finally, he returned his attention to me. His
human eyes rolled over and changed to a blood red as his pupils
dilated, disappeared, and formed menacing glowing orbs. He thought
his monster face would scare me.

I didn’t flinch. “I don’t need a pet,
Father.”

“I handpicked her for you, my boy. I thought
you’d be grateful. When was the last time you got any golden pussy
like that? I ask you.” Snapping his fingers, a fire spark ignited
at the tip end of his index finger. He used it to light his pipe.
He inhaled deeply, taking a second or two to size me up until he
finally released a puff of smoke in my direction.

“I won’t play your games.”

“Oh yes, you will,” he snapped. “You’re going
to be on the field this year. That bitch is the cream of the crop.
She’ll perform well. I hear tell she’s a Livonian werewolf. And
guess whose daughter she is?”

I remained silent.

“You give up?” He asked. His eyes returned to
their more humanistic qualities as he situated his vest.

Immediately not wanting to hear anymore, I
crossed my arms and leaned slightly against the door frame,
refusing to answer or enter the room entirely. I also cocked my
right foot in front of the left, letting the steel toe of my black
leather boot smack firmly on the freshly polished wood floors.
Surely, that would leave a nice scratch for one of his staff
members to buff out later.

He didn’t seem to mind. His excitement took
precedence over the condition of his precious treasures in his
finely decorated office, or the floors for that matter. Father and
his schemes. He and his brothers – my uncles whom I refused to
claim any relation to other than we were all a part of the same
underworld known as the Dark realm - acted like six-year-olds when
it came to the Season of the Games or they figured out some cunning
ploy to irritate the Golden realm, the latter plan, which usually
ended up being remarkably stupid, or one some person, mainly me,
had to clean up. My patience thinning, I sighed and observed
him.

My father was one of the seven lords of the
Dark realm, and he was a demon like all his brothers. He was called
Asmodeus, a Latin word meaning ‘king of demons’ that he preferred
to be called because 1) he thought it meant he actually was King of
the Dark realm which he wasn’t and 2) his brothers had put him in
charge of recording all their adventures whether they were true or
not. It was a task he prided himself on even though he had yet to
print the first story. Scribbling down notes in between smoke
breaks seemed to be his approach.

I was looking forward to the day when the
real King of the Dark realm, Sarif would ask my father where the
book was.
That
would be fun.

Until then, playing the part instead of doing
the work was my father’s past time. He delighted in dressing up
like a scholarly gentleman on his way to a speaking engagement in a
dark three-piece suit with matching vest, top hat, tails and pointy
leather shoes, despite his thick purplish red skin, two inch
frontal horns he hid with his hat, and an assortment of face
piercings given to him every one hundred years marking his
birthday. With all his pomp and circumstance, my friend, Orlando
and I had given him another name we used quite often when
discussing his latest idiotic idea. It fit my father better and was
much easier to say. Asshole.

“Ralph, my boy, I snagged old Lycaon’s only
daughter. It was so simple. In my disguise I dreamed up – not this
of course – I was a … Well, never mind. Anyways she came right up
to me. It was so easy. I fear she’s not terribly bright, but that
won’t matter. I’m sure she’ll do well in the games.” In between
puffs on his pipe, Father produced a series of wide grins that
showed off a mouth full of yellowed fangs.

“My name is not Ralph,” I uttered through
clenched teeth.

“You know what I meant, Raphael.” He
pronounced my name with a grand amount of sarcasm and disgust.

“You kidnapped the Werewolf King’s only
daughter? The Princess of the Golden realm? And you want her in the
games? Tell me you cleared this with one of your brothers?” I
rarely indulged in listening to my father’s ridiculous schemes, but
this one was beyond insane if I had my facts straight about who the
woman was. Immediately I cursed the fact that my father was not as
well read as I was or he’d know his Lunar mythology. He won’t be
getting a kill this round, not if I could help it.

“Nope. Don’t need them on this one. Our city
is hosting the games this year. I have news for my brothers. We’re
going to win. And you, my boy will lead that werewolf into the
games.”

“I have my dragon, Father. I don’t need a
werewolf.”

“That dragon has seen better days. He’s
missing most of the time anyway. Besides a werewolf will give you
an edge, a sexy edge. I’ll give her a warm welcome if you decline
to. I bet she tastes delicious.” He roared with laughter as a ring
of smoke rose above his head.

“I realize Sarif is busy, but you at least
notified Mammon about this. Didn’t you?” I attempted to bring him
back to reality with my subtle threat. His comments were
revolting.

“No.”

“Belphegor then?”

“No.” He threw his hands up in the air.
“Honestly where is your spirit of adventure? I have it in me
because I write about it every day.” He thumped his chest with
pride. “I suppose you do not. You’re a pale-face hybrid. Plain as
vanilla. With no imagination. Why did I get such a useless
son?”

“You don’t have to make this personal,
Father. I may be simply a vampire, but I’m also a warrior of the
Dark realm. I serve to protect others and keep the peace. I don’t
need to look for adventure. You find enough ‘adventure’ for me to
clean up as it is.”

“You are such a dumb brute,” he said. “You
think being a warrior makes you important among us, demons? You’re
a fly on my ass. That is all!”

Refusing to get into a shouting match with
him because the door remained open, I held my tongue. Instead, I
shut the door to his study and assumed a calm, yet defensive
position. Hearing his lack of love for me always reminded me that
my chosen path was the correct one. I didn’t want to be the man he
was. Not now. Not ever. I didn’t want to rule the Dark realm in the
condition it was currently in. Things needed to change.

His passive aggressive nature tempted me to
lose my temper, but I wouldn’t do it.
He
was the one who
lacked imagination. Instead, I straightened my back and legs,
crossed my arms, dug my nails into my well-toned biceps, and glared
down at my father. Given his short stature of five feet, it was
easy to do. It pleased him to remind me of my lineage. He may be my
demon father, but my mother was human and I favored her ancestors,
not his or that of his brothers. He delighted in reminding me of
that.

I had the same bright blue eyes, pale
complexion, and shiny raven black hair as my mother did. From her
journals and letters, I had obtained, she dreamed about my growing
up to overthrow my father someday and becoming a ‘great divine
warrior’ as she phrased it. One day I would have revenge because my
father was the reason I could no longer see my mother. He had
banished her to the Beyond. I had yet to discover if she was alive
or dead. If she was dead, there would be Hell to pay. That I
knew.

Father’s voice brought me back to reality as
my nerves gnawed a hole in my stomach. “I don’t have to run every
single idea by my brothers. All I have to do is create some havoc
for the werewolves now and then. They’ll love this plan. When
opportunity comes knocking, what am I to do? Look away? I think
not. And what better opportunity than kidnapping Lycaon’s daughter?
She’s a peach, my boy. Not the brightest star in the cosmos, but
she’ll make a terrific pet. Fuck her well or else.”