“Don’t make me rip out your throat, Trates.”
Urian choked on his laughter as he saw the raw fear his father’s wry threat wrung from Trates, who quickly excused himself so that he could put as much distance between himself and Stryker as possible. Not that he blamed him. His father was in a rotten mood, and had been for the last few days since Tannis had announced her intentions of tying herself to a worthless bit of Apollite trash.
In fact, no one wanted Tannis to marry Erol. Especially their father, and this engagement party was thoroughly pissing off everyone.
Even though she was a full-grown woman who was fully developed thanks to their Apollite curse that had her appearing the same age as a human in her late teens or early twenties, she was still only twelve years old.
As her father, Stryker couldn’t get past her real age, and the fact that had they not been cursed, he would still have a few more years with her at home. Which was why he was insisting on a long engagement. Something that had left his daughter, her future groom, and Tannis’s future in-laws complaining.
Aside from their father, Urian and his mother seemed to be the only two who agreed about the long engagement. But then Urian hated Erol. He was a massive beast of an arrogant bastard, and they had a long history of fighting between them.
Then again, Urian had a long history of fighting with most everyone.
His mother sighed as she hugged Urian’s arm. “I can’t believe I’m losing another baby so soon.”
“I’m sorry, Mata.” He jerked his chin toward his father, who was sharpening a knife while glaring at Erol. “Though I’m thinking if Solren has his way, there won’t be a wedding. Maybe just a wedding feast…”
She laughed. “There are times when I simply adore your solren, Uri.” Patting his arm, she stepped away as if she knew her human blood tempted him in spite of his deep love and respect for her. She adjusted her cloak higher around her neck. “So … who here has your fancy?”
Urian felt the color rising in his cheeks at a question he always dreaded. Especially since it made his stomach rumble from hunger. It seemed ever his destiny to starve. Even though he was in a room full of walking meals. But there wasn’t anyone here who would feed him.
“Haven’t found anyone yet.”
“You’re still not being fed?”
He didn’t miss the note of panicked fear underlying her question. It was a secret he and his father had intentionally been keeping from her … and everyone else. The fact that his father had a handful of loyal men he forced to bleed so that he could bring their blood to Urian in bladders or cups. While it wasn’t the same as eating the way Apollo intended Apollites to feed, it kept Urian from starving to death.
The one advantage to it was that it left him a bit edgier than the others.
Leaner and meaner, as the humans would say. Because he was perpetually hungry, his senses were sharper. His powers stronger—more focused. And he was always angry and looking for a fight.
Except where his mother and sister were concerned. And of course the goddess. But that was simply because he knew Apollymi would rip out his throat if he ever showed his temper around her.
Luckily, Tannis called his mother away at that moment and saved him from having to answer as his sister took her home for the small meal she’d prepared for their mother to eat. Since their mother was the only one here who required food, Urian, Tannis, Paris, and Davyn took turns cooking meals for her.
Apollymi always made sure she had vegetables, fruits, and fresh meats. And they took it as a source of pride to make sure their mother was well cared for.
And protected from any threat.
Restless, Urian drifted through the crowd in the dark hall where many of their community had gathered to celebrate his sister’s news and feed. Which meant the hall was quickly turning into an orgy, so parents were covering the eyes of their smaller children and rushing them home. No doubt that was really why Tannis had called their mother away. They were all careful to keep their human mother separate from any of their “parties.” Aside from the fact that the way they ate tended to horrify her, as a non-Apollite she could easily find herself someone’s prime course—and the witness to Urian’s first massacre, as he was rabidly protective of his mother and sister to a frightening level. While his father might sharpen the knife, Urian was a little too quick to use it.
Another reason no one would feed him. His temper was quite legendary among their people already.
As were his powers.
Davyn staggered over to him. By the glazed and dazed appearance of his eyes, it was obvious he’d been feeding quite a bit already and was more than a little blood-drunk. Licking his fangs, he smiled as he draped himself against Urian’s back and rested his chin on Urian’s bare shoulder. Because they’d grown up together, he alone held no fear of Urian.
Or much of anyone else.
“Hey, brother Uri. Sure you don’t want to join us?” His hand drifted a little too far south, toward the hem of Urian’s short chiton.
Urian laughed as he extricated himself from Davyn’s hug and sloppy grope. “You’re a little too happy, Dav, and Paris doesn’t share. Believe me, I know. I still have a bruise from the last time I hogged too much blanket. Given the ass-whipping I took from that, I’d hate to think what he’d do if he found his boyfriend draped all over me.”
Davyn tsked. “I know you’re hungry. Don’t you get tired of drinking reheated blood? Wouldn’t you like someone fresh to eat?”
His breathing turned ragged at an invitation that was extremely hard to say no to. Every part of him was attuned to the scent of Davyn’s blood. To the hunger inside him to feed.
However …
I won’t be an asshole.
Not to his brother.
And definitely not to Davyn, who would be horrified if he were sober. Davyn would never act like this if he weren’t high from the bloodlust. Paris should have known better than to have fed him and left him alone to find his way home. It’d been a stupid thing for his brother to do. Davyn was too young and inexperienced to have been abandoned in a crowd where someone could easily prey on him.
“Tell you what, Davy. Let’s find Paris, shall we?”
“Ooo, three of us, frolicking. Good idea. I like that even better!”
“Yeah.” Urian draped Davyn’s arm around his shoulders and led him through the crowd to hunt for his twin.
Yet the sight and smell of the others feeding while he was starving and this close to a willing donor … it was torture. And it made his stomach rumble with need. Not to mention, other parts of his body reacted with a disturbing hunger of their own that he didn’t even want to contemplate.
“Where did you leave Paris?”
Davyn was almost unconscious.
Urian had to shake him awake. “Davyn! Where did you leave my brother?”
“In a room.”
Oh, that was so unhelpful. Had Davyn been sober, Urian would have slapped him. Instead, he sighed in irritation. It was a good thing Davyn was the only friend he had or the temptation to gut him would have been harder to resist.
Unsure of how to best handle this, Urian decided to find his brother Theo, who had taken his wife and children home the moment the first set of clothing had started coming off. While Theo was far from prudish and had been known to participate in some of the most lascivious parties ever thrown—as had Theo’s wife, Praxia, prior to their marriage—Theo’s eldest child was a daughter and he was extremely protective of her virtue.
Not to mention, Theo’s home was the closest to the hall so it made sense to head there first and start with him.
After Urian’s insistent knocking, a barely dressed Theo answered the door with an annoyed frown. Given his brother’s state of dishabille and the redness of his throat, Urian would say Theo had been in the midst of his own sexual encounter with Praxia.