Page 35 of Queen Takes Checkmate
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Isat up sharply, my senses immediately reaching out into the night. Rik jerked awake from a light dose. “What is it?”
“I've called a new Blood.”
“Good. We could use the help.”
My lips quirked, and I couldn't resist teasing him a little. “I hope you like her.”
His eyebrows rose but all he said was, “If you like her, then I will too.”
“I do. She's a phoenix.” His eyes tightened slightly, making me ask, “What?”
“The phoenix is always associated with the sun.”
I blew out a sigh. “Shit. I didn't sense anything off about her.”
He settled back against the headboard and drew me against him. The rest of my Blood lay tumbled on and around the bed like we'd just had a drunken orgy. Which, yeah, we had, pretty much, though all we'd drunk was blood. That was some powerful shit.
“I wish at least one of us was fit enough to act as sentry.”
Someone tapped lightly at the door. “Your Majesty?” Winston called softly. “You have a visitor. She's adamant that she needs to see you.”
“Thank you, Winston. Vivian, come in.”
Shaking his head, Rik let out a grunt of disgust. “That's why I will never trust anyone not Blood with your safety. Winston means well, but he should never have allowed a stranger into your house.”
The door opened and the woman from my dream stepped into the bedroom. She looked the same, though her hair didn't seem to be living flames. She shot a hard look at Rik that caught me by surprise. “Some alpha you are. She doesn’t even have a nest.”
Rik's voice rumbled so low that my bones vibrated. “As you see, all her Blood are here. We'll die to the man to keep her safe, so there's no need for a guard at the door.”
“I'll die to the woman too.”
He relaxed against me and gave her a nod. “Then you're welcome, Blood. Our queen needs you desperately.”
She stepped to the edge of the bed, weaving her way carefully around downed Blood. “I don't do men. Not even alphas.”
He snorted. “Good. I don't do women, other than my queen.”
She searched my face, her eyes softening with reverence. “I'd rather not do any women but our queen, either, but if you order me to fuck one of your queen sibs, I will.”
I nudged Daire with my foot to get him to move aside. Even in a heavy sleep, his chest vibrated with a low humming purr that deepened a moment as he shifted to his other side. I held my hand out to her. “In House Isador, no one is ordered to fuck anyone. Not even me.”
She planted a knee on the mattress and took my hand. Her grip was firm, her palms calloused from wielding the swords on her back. “You should know that Ra is my father. My full name is Vivian Helios, but I changed my name to Smoak when my power emerged.”
“Would you rather I call you Smoak then?”
Eyes round, she cast a quick glance at Rik as if to say,“is she for real?”“My queen can call me whatever the fuck she wants. You don't care that Ra sired me?”
“When the Great One sends me a Blood, who am I to question Her gifts?”
Rik wasn't so easily persuaded. “Do you have any ties to him that we need to worry about? Have you taken his blood recently?”
She grimaced as if he'd rubbed her nose in something foul. “Not since my cursed birth. He doesn't give his blood to anyone, especially his children. He sired me by rape, and I haven't even seen him for nearly five hundred years. Fuck Ra. I'll swear my life to House Isador in a heartbeat. If you manage to eliminate his taint on this earth, then I'll fucking worship the ground you walk on.”
“I already do,” Rik said mildly. “We all do.”
Vivian let out a long, soft breath that tugged on my heartstrings. “I can see that. I don’t know why it wouldn’t be the same for me, as long as you and I come to an understanding, alpha.”
