The Roman Catholic doctrine defined purgatory as a place or state of suffering inhabited by the souls of sinners who are expiating their sins before going to heaven, or an intermediate state after death for soul purification. If Sadie hadn’t died, was she still living? Maybe this was purgatory.
Gifted with the beauty of gorgeous men.
She opened her eyes and realized she lay on the dining room table, a pillow under her head. Vampires surrounded her; and her, the blood demon, lay spread out on their table. Might as well season her right up for dinner.
“Ahh, she lives,” Adam mumbled.
She slid her gaze over to him and narrowed her eyes. “What is your problem with me?” She sat up and let her legs dangle over the edge of the table. “Why am I up here?”
“We lifted you up for examination, to ensure nothing was hurt. You’ve now passed out twice,” Chayton told her.
“For two different reasons,” she added. “Firstly, I was attacked and left for dead. Secondly, you just shared with me I’m not alone in the world and I’m some kind of supernatural creature.”
“There’s nothing super, trust me,” Adam said.
“Seriously, what is your problem?” she asked and climbed off the table.
“Whoa, wait a minute.” Chayton took her by the arm. “Don’t rush off to defend yourself just yet.”
“Adam, cool it,” William ordered. “Play nice or leave.”
“Fine,” he said and crossed his arms over his chest. “She’ll be just like the others, though. She’ll figure out what we have to offer and want only for herself, just like the others.”
“Don’t you dare presume to know me before you’ve even had a chance to meet me. You know my name and nothing else.” She didn’t know Adam from anyone else here in this room but he had some vendetta against her.
Why?
Because she was a female, or because she was a blood demon?
“Hell with this.” Sadie picked up her messenger bag and held out her hand. “You said I could leave and I’m going. Where’s my cell phone? Who has it?”
William let go a huff of breath and crossed the room to where she stood. He stopped just in front of her and took her hand in his. “Come with me before making any decisions.”
“Where are we going?” She looked around the room and then realized Malik had left. “Where did your supreme leader take off to?”
“He has business to deal with, including what to do with the one who attacked you,” William answered and tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. “Walk with me.”
She sighed, relenting to William and with each step, went further into their home. The hallway, where Adam hid before, held portraits of different faces at different stages of life. There were pillars that held vases, doorways to different rooms, and at the end of the hall stood three statues. In the distance, she couldn’t tell who they were, but as they drew closer, she realized they were of William, Charles, and Adam.
“You had statues made of each of you?” she asked.
“No, we did not, the covenant did,” he answered.
The statues had the men all dressed in armor, Adam and Charles wielding a shield, and William a sword. It was like looking upon a moment captured in time. The figures were made of white stone, but the features were perfectly crafted.
“There’s a story behind this?”
“Yes,” he answered.
“Would you share it with me?”
He nodded. “There was a treaty signed on August 2, 1795, the Treaty of Greenville. It was between the Western Confederacy and the United States, ending the Northwest Indian War. On October 27th, the United States and Spain signed the Treaty of Madrid.”
“It established the boundaries between Spanish colonies and the United States,” she added.
He smiled with a nod. “Precisely.”
“You three fought in this war?”
“Yes, but not with the humans. We fought the same war but against other vampires. We led the colony here to victory. The troops were under my leadership, and I was under Malik.”
Her brows rose. “You’ve been alive for a long time. You’ve witnessed so much, lived through centuries of change. How?”
“With careful consideration as to who we share our lives with. Come, I have something else for you.”
She held on to his arm as he led her into the library. She gasped and took in two stories of wall-to-wall books. She imagined this was how Belle must have felt when Beast gave her his library. There was a ladder on two of the walls to climb. Both had wheels and she imagined sliding from wall to wall, squealing with laughter. In the middle of the room sat a large wooden desk with four chairs, one on one side, three on the other. On top of the desk sat a beautiful Tiffany inspired lamp.
“All of this is yours?”
“It is ours,” he answered. “And if you love books, then it’s yours as well.”
“Love books? Are you serious right now?” She let go of his arm and headed toward the closest bookcase. Stories from authors she had never heard of and familiar pieces by Hemmingway, Lovecraft, and Poe. “It has been my lifelong dream to be a writer.” She turned back to face him. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
She let her fingers travel over the spines of the books as she walked further into the room. Finding a book by Jane Austen, she dropped her messenger bag and pulled it from the shelf. She opened the cover, and, on the inside, it was inscribed.
To William
With Love, Jane
She gasped and turned back to him, slack jawed. “You met THE Jane Austen?”
He chuckled. “Yes, once long ago.”
She shook her head and put it back onto the shelf. “This is unreal,” she whispered and continued along the row of books. She glanced over her shoulder to him and found him watching her with intent. His eyes never left hers and he smiled.
“What is it you see, William?” She wasn’t sure why she asked the question, but it was out there, and now she was curious. If blood demons were the sustenance for vampires, did he want her for her blood? Maybe he was genuinely curious about her.
“You’re beautiful, Sadie,” he answered.
She huffed and shook her head. “I have been told many things, William, but beautiful wasn’t one of them. I have curly red hair that more often than not, has a mind of its own. My complexion is as white as a ghost, and don’t get started on my too big boobs for my frame. I’m tall, with long legs, and I apparently intimidate most men. So please, don’t humor me with calling me beautiful.”
A breeze whiffed around her and she gasped as William stood over her, his hand tilting her up. Her breath hitched in her chest and she took a step back. William followed and pressed her back into the wall of books.
“Your hair is like the morning sunrise. It’s beautiful. Your skin is that of porcelain. Your breasts,” he paused, and his eyes roamed the length of her body, then slowly back up again. “Are exquisite. I would like nothing more than to see you naked, my face between your tits while you ride my cock.”
Swallowing a lump in her throat, she released a frenzied breath. “Oh God,” she whispered. Her knees weakened for a different reason this time. Her body warmed and a heat grew between her legs. She was on fire for this man and he had only used his words. What would happen if she allowed him to touch her?
She wanted to run her fingers across his face, his chest, his abs, just to feel him. Everything inside her was alive, her senses on high alert. Was this what it meant to be the concubine for a vampire?
“Sadie,” he whispered. “May I kiss you?”
She licked her lips and focused her attention on his. She nodded, then said, “Yes,” in a soft voice.
William’s lips parted and she saw a glimpse of his fangs, then she turned her head.
“Wait.”
“Do you need me to back away?” he asked.
“Your fangs,” she said and looked at him. “Do they hurt?”
“They can, but I promise not to use them on you until you ask me to.”
She raised her brows. “Until I ask you to?”
“Yes. When you give yourself to us, and I mean all three of us, it would only be then that we would feed from you.”
“At the same time?”
“Yes,” he answered. “I promise, Sadie, you will want it. But don’t worry about that right now. Please, I would only like to kiss you, if you’ll let me.”
“Okay,” she told him and looked into his eyes. Her heart slammed in her chest and she wondered if he could hear it.
“I can feel your essence, Sadie. It’s so strong,” he whispered. “Your scent is overwhelming.” He tilted her head up a little more and slanted his lips across hers.
She wasn’t sure how a vampire kiss should have felt, but it wasn’t like this. William’s lips were soft like velvet. The kiss was short, and he pulled away, then rested his forehead to hers.
“Please, let me taste you with my tongue.”
She swallowed and whispered, “Okay.”
William groaned and pressed his lips to hers once more. This time, his tongue slid across her lips and she opened her mouth for him. He dove inside, seeking submission from her while his dominant aggression claimed her body. He possessed her with his mouth and seduced her with his tongue. It was almost too much.
He slid his hand to her neck and cradled the back of her head, then fisted his free hand into her hair. He tilted her head to the side and feathered his lips across her cheek to her ear.
“You are a stunning woman, Sadie. Never believe otherwise.” He licked her earlobe, then brought his lips back to hers.
She wanted to submit to this man right here and now. William was like molten lava pouring out of an iceberg that had been frozen for years, longing to erupt. She would strip naked and allow him to take her on the desk in the library. She slid her hands up around his neck and held on for life. If he would take her blood, she was almost willing to give it over to him…almost.
The clearing of a throat caused her to gasp and she pushed at William’s chest. “Shit,” she whispered, realizing they were getting carried away. She walked to the front of the desk and stood behind the pair of visitor chairs.
William chuckled and took a step back.
Across the room stood Charles and Adam. Both men had a look of hunger, maybe desperation.
Charles took a few steps forward. “I see you’re into libraries. Ace, I love books as well, doll. How about I read you one at bedtime?”
She smiled and swiped her thumb under her bottom lip, removing the residue of the kiss shared with William.
“Umm,” she whispered. “I might like that.”
“Why are you here?” Adam asked and crossed the room to where she stood.
Sadie stepped back past the chairs and butted up against the desk. “Because you brought me here?”
“No, why are you still here? What is it you want, Sadie?” Adam asked. “Are you looking for us to be your vampires or are you looking for a quick fix?”
“She’s not a blood whore,” William growled. “Watch yourself, Adam.”
Adam was in front of her before she could consider another move. She gasped, but she wasn’t scared. She looked at William, then back to Adam.
“What do you want?” she asked, slight panic in her voice.
“That’s what I want to know, Sadie. What is it you want?” Adam asked.
What was it she wanted?
Did she even know?
She wasn’t sure, even now. Adam stepped closer and leaned into her space. He was a beautiful man with specs of gold in his hazel eyes. His lips were slightly full, and she wanted to kiss them, even with him being an asshole.
He must have had his reasons, but why?
“Tell me,” he growled. “What is it you want?”
She gasped at his words, then began to ramble. “I want to know who I am and where I come from. I want to know who my father is, or was. I want to know how I fit into all of this, and most of all, there’s something inside me I do not understand that came alive the moment I was surrounded by all three of you. I don’t know what it is, but I feel like I need you, all three of you, to find out.”
Adam’s features shifted from angry and bitter to soft and maybe desire? He leaned in closer and inhaled, then closed his eyes.
“Do you smell that?” he asked.
“What—” she started to say when Adam cut her off. He placed a gentle finger over her lips.
“Ace,” Charles answered, and he flanked Adam’s side.
On his other, William stood, and he stared into her eyes. “Yes.”
“It’s desire, Sadie. We smell your desire, your longing for us. Don’t deny it.”
“I wasn’t going to,” she whispered and took his hand. She opened her mouth and wrapped her lips around his finger. Running her tongue along the length of his index finger, she closed her eyes and moaned.
“Fuck me,” Adam whispered.
She opened her eyes and let his finger go. Charles moved to the side and she grinned when he adjusted himself through his pants.
“I would say I’m sorry, but I’m not.” She pressed her hands against Adam’s chest, and he took a step back. “If it’s okay with you, I need a minute to breathe and figure out what it is I need and want to do.”
“Understood,” William said and grabbed Adam by his arm. “Let’s give her some space.”
Adam cleared his throat, turned, and left the room.
“Was it something I said?” she asked.
Charles shook his head. “No, love. He’s a galah. He’ll come around.”
“Galah?” she asked.
“A damned fool,” Charles answered.
William tilted her head once more. “You’re beautiful, Sadie. Adam is upset because you not only called him on his bluff, you stood up to him.”
“So, he’s a bully?”
“No, not quite a bully. He’s been hurt in the past by other potential blood demons to fit in our family. But you know, it’s his story to tell. Why don’t we leave you to the library for a while? When you’re ready to eat, we’ll have something made for you. If you’re tired, you’re welcome to retire to your room.”
“And if I want to leave?” she asked.
“Then we’ll walk you to the door. But please understand, if we let you go, we’ll have to remove the last few days of memories you’ve had.”
She frowned. “What?”
“We cannot let you go into the world knowing what you know now and remain safe. It’s one of our rules to keep our world safe from humans. You didn’t know of our existence for a reason.”
She nodded. “I guess that makes sense. I’d like to hang out in here for a while?”
“Of course. Come on, Charles. We’ll check in with her later.”
Charles waved to her and said, “Hooroo.”
She grinned. Sadie knew she’d need to learn more Australian talk if she were to remain here in this house, but was that what she truly wanted?