Page 24 of Forsworn By The Vampire
"But you don't see it that way. I know that. But being mated...it isn't the same thing, Jamal."
My lips twisted into an ugly smile as the fight suddenly drained out of me. "Isn't it? All I'm doing is trading in one set of chains for another. She's not my mate, Kenya. She fucking owns me now. I can't survive without her. Can't drink from anyone else. Can't fuck anyone else. She holds all the power over my life." I sank into the chair again, letting the truth sink in. "Fuckme."
"Jamal..." Kenya came out from behind the desk to squat down in front of me, her hands on my knees. "From one brown-skinned person to another, I get it. I totally do."
I knew she was trying to commiserate, but shedidn'tget it. Not really. Kenya hadn't been born a slave. She'd never had to spend her days working in fields until every muscle in your body screamed until you thought you'd never be able to stand straight again, your hands were blistered and raw, and your throat was like sandpaper, only to get beat for not picking fast enough and have to do it all over again the next day. Only this time bloody and bruised. She never lived off one meal of mush a day. Was never torn from her family. Never saw her sister raped over and over again by the white man who'd bought her like a piece of cattle. "I was gonna leave," I confessed. "I was finally going to be free."
She leaned back to look up at me. "What? When?"
"Right before all this happened," I told her. "I was packing a bag. I was fucking out of here." I knew my face was covered with all of the pain and regret that was tearing through me by the way she was looking at me. "I was about to be free, Kenya. For the first time in my fucking life. I was going to befree..." I choked on the words as a sob wracked my body.
Chapter 14
Talin
Seattle, WA
The raven stared at me with one beady, black eye. I tried to ignore her, but it was kind of hard, even though she was on the other side of the living room perched on her owner's shoulder.
Golden topaz eyes turned my way, and the warlock whose shoulder she rested on raised his hand to ask the woman speaking to him to pause a moment. He was dressed all in black. The only color coming from those strange glowing eyes.
"I'm not her owner," he told me. "I'm her friend. She's here because she chooses to be."
I glanced at my aunt, the person he had been speaking to. But she gave me no indication by word or expression how I should respond to his comment. As a matter of fact, her face was carefully blank. I couldn't really blame her. We were all semi-terrified in his presence. The power emanating from him while he spoke calmly to the high priestess of our coven was intense. I couldn't even imagine what he was like when he was angry.
And now we knew he could read our minds. What the hell kind of warlock was he?
"I'm sorry," I told him. "I meant no disrespect to either of you. And I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation," I included Aunt Judy here.
"It's all right," he told me. "Talin, was it?"
I nodded and he continued, "Many people make the same mistake."
The female vampire beside him with the dark hair and green eyes much like my own laid a hand on his shoulder in a possessive gesture. I smiled at her, trying to ease the tension, and after a moment, she smiled back, an apologetic look in her eyes.
The bird was still staring at me, and I raised my pierced eyebrow at her in question. She made a sound like a deep gargle into the warlock's ear.
"She wants to know if she can play with your eyebrow ring," he told me.
"Uh..." I had no idea how to respond to that, either the bird's question or the fact that he could understand what she was saying.
"Cruthú," the female vampire--Shea, I think her name was--scolded the bird. "You don't have to play with every shiny thing you see." She turned her green eyes to me. "She loves to play with my earrings." Then she shrugged. "I guess what they say is true."
"Um," I eyed the large bird. "I don't know that I want that beak so close to my eye."
The warlock, Jesse, laughed. "I was only telling you what she wanted, so you wouldn't be startled if she suddenly decided to visit you. I didn't want you to think she was trying to peck out your eye." He scratched the bird's feather-covered neck. "She likes you. Probably because you remind her of Shea."
"I seriously can't keep her away from me," Shea said, but although she tried to sound annoyed, a smile teased her lips and affection shone from her eyes when she looked at the raven on her mate's shoulder.
Everyone's attention was on me, and I fussed with my white, long-sleeved T-shirt and the dark gray vest I wore with my jeans, making sure it covered my chest so as not to draw attention to it, even as I tried to look like I wasn't being all fidgety. I found vests were a great addition to my normal ensembles. They provided additional layers and coverage without being too hot in the summer and not too cold in the winter. They're kind of my signature look now.
But I needn't have worried. After a few amused looks, everyone went back to paying attention to the conversation that was back in session between Aunt Judy and Jesse. My entire coven, except for Angel, was in Seattle visiting the coven here, led by Keira Moss. Even Alex had left his new mate, hoping he and Alice could talk to the warlock who had saved their lives and had blood ties to them.
Their vampire mates were in attendance also. It made for a packed apartment, but the view over the city from the ceiling to floor windows behind me was breathtaking.
As the warlock went back to what he'd been saying, I glanced around at my Seattle witch cousins. Keira stood beside Judy, her arms crossed over her chest and her dark head tilted as she listened. Her mate, Luukas sat in the chair beside her, but one hand rested on the back of her thigh, rubbing his thumb against the soft material of her yoga pants. He was the master vampire here, and his power also swirled throughout the room. But there was something else, something I couldn't quite put my finger on, that was strange about him. Whatever it was, it frightened me. Like maybe he wasn't quite stable. But that was impossible, right? How would he have power over so many vampires if he wasn't right in the head?
Shaking off the thought, I let my eyes wander over the others. Luukas's brother--Nikulas--the blond with the Hollywood good looks and easy smile, and his strawberry-blonde mate--Emma--who had horrors I couldn't even imagine deep in her hazel eyes. The vampire in the hoodie--Aiden--who looked like some sort of middle-Eastern prince with his dark looks and bright gray, laughing eyes. His mate, Grace, had the most gorgeous, long auburn hair and pale skin. She also called him "dude" a lot, which he pretended to hate but I think he secretly loved. As I watched, he made a face and reached behind him, adjusting the hood of his hoodie. A small face peeked over his shoulder, little black nose twitching, before it disappeared again inside the bed it had made for itself in the vampire's hood. I wanted to take a closer look to see if it was what I thought it was but didn't know if Aiden or the thing in his hood would appreciate me interrupting its nap.
