Blood Trinity

A Total-E-Bound Publication

www.total-e-bound.com

Blood Trinity

ISBN #
978-0-85715-450-7

©Copyright Carol Lynne 2011

Cover Art by April Martinez ©Copyright January 2011

Edited by Claire Siemaszkiewicz

Total-E-Bound Publishing

This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved.
 
No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Total-E-Bound Publishing.

Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Total-E-Bound Publishing.
 
Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

Published in 2011 by Total-E-Bound Publishing, Think Tank,

Warning:
 
This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers.
 
This story has been rated
Total-e-burning.

Neo’s
Realm

BLOOD TRINITY

Carol Lynne

Dedication

For all my readers, thank you for your continued support.

Chapter One

A noise woke Kern from a restful sleep. He instinctively reached over to Haig’s side of the bed but met with only the cold sheet. Kern balled his hand into a fist and slammed it against the empty spot where his mate should be. How long would Haig continue to punish him for mating with a vampire?

Kern didn’t even remember fucking and biting
Audric
. He’d been under the sadistic control of Richard, the last of Francois
LaMont’s
chosen minions, at the time. No, that wasn’t true.
Audric
was the last of the coven. It was a fact Kern had reminded himself of several times over the previous hours.

When he’d woken in the steel-lined underground chamber with a nude, and recently mated,
Audric
at his side, Kern hadn’t understood. Neo, his boss, had been the one to inform him of what had happened. Kern’s immediate response was to ask for Haig. It had also been
Neo’s
job to tell Kern Haig had been unable to handle the knowledge that Kern had mated with another.

Kern’s first inclination had been to get angry with
Audric
. He’d jumped to his feet and started yelling at the small vampire. The only thing that had calmed him was
Audric’s
reaction. Instead of defending himself,
Audric
had rolled himself into a ball, obviously awaiting the first blow. Suddenly Kern yearned to soothe the small, red-haired man with haunted green eyes.

Hours later, Kern’s heart had still been torn in two directions. The circumstances behind the mating had bound him to
Audric
. Although love hadn’t come instantly, Kern’s protective instincts had started to grow the moment he’d bitten the scared vampire.

Even now as he lay alone in a bed he’d shared with Haig for over four hundred years, he longed to check on
Audric
.

A noise outside his bedroom got Kern’s attention. He jumped up and crossed the room, hoping Haig had finally come home. Nude, he walked into the living room. The sun was coming up and the room was bathed in a soft pink glow. Unfortunately, that seemed to be all that was in the room—no Haig.

The noise sounded again, and Kern finally realised it was coming from the guestroom.
Audric
.
Kern raced to the bedroom, prepared to risk his life to defend the vampire. When he opened the door, Kern was surprised to find the room empty and the bed still made. He glanced at the windows and realised
Audric
hadn’t even drawn the curtains.

Closing his eyes, Kern tried to zero in on the smell of his new mate. He knew it would take some time to acclimate his body to the addition of
Audric
into his life, but within days
Audric’s
scent would forever be imprinted on Kern’s wolf.

Kern’s gaze went to the closet. What the hell? He closed the curtains before opening the closet door. Although
Audric
was only around five-foot four, sleeping on the floor of the closet couldn’t be comfortable. He bent down and ruffled
Audric’s
tousled red curls. “
Audric
?”

Audric’s
eyes sprang open. The look of fear in their green depths was something Kern would never forget.

“It’s okay.” Kern held up his hands. “I just came in to check on you.”

When
Audric
seemed to relax a bit, Kern sat on the floor. “What’re you doing in here?”

Audric’s
head tilted a fraction to the side. “Sleeping?”

“Why in the closet? The
blinds’ll
keep the sun out if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Audric’s
eyebrows drew together. “I’m used to sleeping in the closet. It’s where I’ve always slept.”

The admission angered Kern more than he could understand. “They wouldn’t even give you a bed to sleep in?”

Audric
shook his head and scooted further into the closet. “I had a bed, but it was always safer for me in the closet.”

Kern stood and held out his hand. “I won’t let anyone hurt you. Come.”

Audric
slowly rose to his feet on his own, keeping his hand far away from Kern’s offer of help. His gaze seemed riveted to Kern’s nude body. When Kern tried to cover himself,
Audric
spoke. “Did your mate return?”

With a sharp shake of his head, Kern tried to ignore the pain in his chest at the question. He moved to pull the covers down on the spare bed. Dressed in one of Kern’s T-shirts,
Audric
looked so young and small. The vampire was nothing like Haig in body size, yet Kern felt a stirring in his groin just by looking at the man. What would it feel like to hold such a fragile-looking creature?

Audric
gasped, drawing Kern’s attention away from his thoughts. Once again
Audric’s
eyes appeared transfixed by Kern’s cock. Kern started to make an excuse for his condition, but decided it would be better to be honest with his new mate. “Haig and I don’t wear clothes around the house. It’s the way we were raised. It’s the way we’ll continue to live. You’ll have to get comfortable with it if you hope to become part of this household.”

“You want me here?”
Audric
asked with a hopeful expression on his boyish face.

“Whether I want you here or not
isn’t
really a question anymore, is it? You’re my responsibility now, and I never run away from my responsibilities.”

Without another word, Kern strode towards the window to make sure there were no gaps in the blinds. He glanced at
Audric
once more before leaving the room and closing the door securely behind him.

On the way to the kitchen to make his breakfast, Kern grabbed his phone from the table. He opened the refrigerator and removed one of the thawed steaks he’d set out two days earlier. With any luck, the meat would be spoilt and he’d get sick.

Before taking his first bite, Kern called Haig’s phone again. “Please answer,” he begged. He sighed when the call went directly to voicemail. “It’s me again,” he began. “Baby, I know I have a lot to apologise for, but I can’t do that if you won’t talk to me. I’ll understand if you need some time, but please at least call me?” He started to hang up, but put the phone back to his ear. “I love you,” he whispered before closing the phone.

What would he do if Haig never forgave him? Kern couldn’t imagine a life without his lover and best friend. His fingers went to the scar running from his forehead to his throat. As he traced the path, he was once again reminded of everything Haig had given up to be with him.

Kern wondered if Haig had gone back to his old pack in Ireland. There was no doubt Haig could fight for his birthright and win, but would he really do it? Replacing the current pack Alpha would mean walking away from Kern forever.

With a sigh, Kern dropped his hand to the table.
I deserve no less for what I’ve done.
He’d broken a bond of over four hundred years because he’d wanted to prove to Neo he could be counted on even when it came to fighting vampires. Haig had tried to tell him it was a fool’s mission, but Kern had gone anyway. What he hadn’t told Haig was his reasoning behind the action. As much as he loved Haig, he’d spent his entire life in the man’s shadow. Even at Le
uve
del
Regno
he was known as Haig’s mate first and a guard second.

How stupid he’d been to worry about such trivial matters. His marriage to Haig was more important than anything else in the world. Kern knew he’d gladly spend the next four hundred years making it up to Haig if only his mate would give him a second chance.

His gaze went to the closed guestroom door. What was he supposed to do with
Audric
if Haig returned? Kern knew the other man’s presence would be a constant reminder to Haig of his infidelity. Unfortunately,
Audric
was already bound to him. To deny the physical bond of the mating would torture Kern and his wolf until the day he died, but maybe he deserved to be tortured.

Kern returned his attention to the bloody steak in front of him. Although he didn’t have the stomach for it, he needed to eat. With a shake of his head, Kern set the plate on the floor. He quickly shifted to his wolf form and consumed the meat in five determined bites.

Shifting back, he carried the plate to the sink. He started to leave it for later, but changed his mind and washed it. Haig hated a messy house. Kern grabbed his phone from the table. A large part of him doubted Haig would call, but he wouldn’t give up hope entirely.

On his way back to bed, Kern quietly opened the door to the guestroom. Once again the bed was empty, reminding him he and Haig weren’t the only ones suffering from his mistake.

He stepped into the room and opened the closet door. He considered carrying
Audric
back to bed but stopped himself. What
Audric
really needed was to know he was safe. After a few moments of consideration, Kern pulled a pillow off the bed and lay as close as he could get to the small man.

As he laid there, Kern’s body started to react to the nearness of his new mate. He longed to hold the frightened man and assure him everything would work out. “Damn.” He shifted to his wolf form and crawled to the closet threshold before settling down again. Something would have to be done with
Audric
before Kern broke his vows once again and took the vampire to his bed.

* * * *

Even in his deepest sleep,
Audric
could feel Kern’s presence beside him. It shouldn’t have surprised him to open his eyes and see Kern just outside the closet, but
Audric
hadn’t expected to see the handsome man in wolf form. He stared at the tan and black wolf in confusion.

He wondered if he’d ever understand were creatures. How could a man have an animal inside him?
Audric
ran his fingers through the thick pelt. Where was the skin he’d mapped with his eyes earlier? If the wolf was now on the outside, did that mean the man was now
inside
?

The wolf moved, pushing his muzzle against
Audric’s
hand.
Audric
moved to scratch the stunning creature behind the ears. He’d had a dog when he was a boy so the affection came naturally, but knowing the animal was also his mate more than freaked him out. He ran his hand to the wolf’s chest.
“Kern?
Are you in there?”

The wolf gave a low growl before shifting. In the blink of an eye,
Audric’s
hand rested on Kern’s heavily muscled chest. It took him several heartbeats to still the wandering digits as they skimmed across Kern’s pebbled nipple. Gods, but he longed to take the small dark brown disk into his mouth.

With his eyes still closed, Kern moaned again and directed
Audric’s
hand towards his hardening cock. “I knew you’d come back to me,” he mumbled.

Audric
jerked his hand back, realising the truth of the situation. “I’m not Haig.” He sat up and moved to the back corner of the closet.

Kern opened his eyes and sprang to a squatted fighting position. It seemed to take him several seconds, but he eventually recognised
Audric
. “I thought…” He shook his head as if to clear it. “I’m sorry.”

The disappointment in Kern’s eyes cut
Audric
like a knife. He knew Kern had mated him while under Richard’s control, so why did the honest apology hurt so much? He’d been stupid and na
ï
ve to think Kern would actually welcome his touch.

“You don’t have to be sorry. I know it wasn’t your choice for me to be here.” He swallowed the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him. Just once he wished he could find peace. It was more than obvious he wouldn’t find it living with a man who saw him as a mistake. Maybe it would be better to put some distance between them? “Who should I speak to about feeding?”

Kern got to his feet. “I don’t know. Neo, I guess.”

Audric’s
gaze went to Kern’s flaccid cock. Even soft, the man was more than impressive. “Okay.” He looked down at the overly large T-shirt he wore. “Do you have something I can put on until I find a way to get some clothes?”

Kern nodded and walked out of the room.

Yeah
,
Audric
thought,
he can’t get rid of me fast enough.
He crawled out of the closet and stood with his back against the wall.

Kern came back into the room and tossed a pair of sweat pants and a shirt towards
Audric
. “
Those’ll
have to do for now.”

Audric
caught the clothes. “Thanks.”

Kern stared at
Audric
for several moments before turning back towards the door. “I’ll be in my room if you need anything else.”

“I won’t.”

Kern’s spine straightened at the comment, but he didn’t turn around.

As soon as he was alone,
Audric
quickly stripped out of the T-shirt and dressed in the borrowed clothes. Perhaps Michael had something that would fit him? He stuffed the shirt he’d slept in under the pillow along with his dream of ever being welcomed by Kern and his mate.

Audric
didn’t announce his departure because he doubted Kern cared either way. It was obvious Kern had only invited him into his house out of obligation, so
Audric
doubted the man would give a shit if he found other accommodations.

* * * *

With a groan, Haig knocked the ashtray away from his forehead before sitting up. The barstool under him teetered slightly before settling.
Fuck.
How much had he drunk? His mouth was beyond nasty. He moved the empty glass aside and wiped the thick funk from his tongue with a napkin that read
Puglisi’s
. Haig sighed. At least he was only a block from the rundown hotel he currently called home.

He got to his feet and walked on unsteady legs to the front door. He’d spent four weeks in a drunken fog of his own making and was no closer to figuring out what the hell to do than he was when he’d come to the small seaside village. It didn’t seem to matter how many times he told himself Kern had been under someone else’s control, Haig was still only one of two mates Kern now possessed.