Vance gives me that very smug, somewhat condescending eyebrow arch he’s perfected over these many long centuries he’s lived.

Emit does his wolfish grin, as he confidently struts toward me, definitely looking every bit as barbaric as they swear he is.

I guess I have a lot of time to see it for myself, now that I’ve signed on for forever.

As Leiza hurries by, Emit plucks Jasper from her arms, cradling our baby to him.

Our baby.

I can’t seem to find anyone else who will raise him, because everyone is scared Arion will kill them if they take away his chance to be a father.

I can’t fault them for that.

I’m not ready to be a mother, but it doesn’t look like that matters much at this point. He’s mine. To be honest, I’d probably kill someone if they tried to take him.

Unless it was his mother.

Possibly his father.

I feel sorry for his father if he ever does come back, because he’s going to have to share him with the four who’ve already claimed him as their own son.

“Ovaries all over the world are exploding,” Anna says on a wistful sigh, while staring at a cooing Jasper tucked against the savage. “And it looks like the fun is finally starting.”

She disappears, not elaborating on what she meant by that.

My monster grooms start circling me very suddenly and subtly, and my eyes narrow as all four of them smirk in my direction. I turn in place, ensuring I keep an eye on each of them.

“What’re you doing?”

“Being romantic,” Arion assures me, as he pockets his hands, and leisurely continues his circling with the others.

“This is predatory,” I counter.

“We’re monsters,” Emit says unapologetically.

“And you’re getting very turned on, so stop pretending you don’t love it every time we are predatory,” Damien inserts, as though he’s calling me out.

“I wouldn’t say every time,” I’m quick to argue.

Vance runs his hand over the back of his neck, keeping a cool and calculated look in his eyes.

Arion’s fangs protrude, and his eyes turn black, while he smiles like the wicked vampire he is.

All the betas and omegas who’ve come to our wedding are whimpering and moving back, giving us a wide berth.

Emit’s eyes glint with the wolf, as a subtle, barely noticeable growl rumbles in his chest.

Damien’s eyes fog over with a barely-there white hue, teasing me with how close to the surface his monster is.

Pheromones pulse through the air, and my own lips tug in a grin, as they continue circling me.

“Little monster, now you’re all ours,” Damien says, just as Arion lunges.

A giggle is ripped out of me, as the vampire steals me. It’s both terrifying and, well, just terrifying, when he moves like a streak of lightning.

“What the hell are we doing?” I shout, twisting to wrap my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. “We still have the reception!”

I start clinging like a crazy girl when I realize just how insanely fast we’re going, because the vampire doesn’t have seatbelts.

“Leiza, hold my baby,” I barely hear Emit say.

“You like having fun, so I figured we’d play a game of chase,” Arion says against my ear, sounding way too damn amused.

A wolf howls from somewhere behind us, letting me know the others are giving chase.

Arion zigs, zags, and weaves through trees, while a forest swallows us. I start realizing where we are, and I jerk my head around, seeing the steep cliff up ahead.

“Arion, don’t you dare!” I shout, damn near panicking.

The vampire skids to an abrupt halt, stopping inches from the edge of the cliff. As if Anna’s been torn from my body, she’s launched out of me, screaming as she falls over the cliff.

I stare, with some humiliation, as my monster’s scream echoes and continues on.

And on.

And on…

Okay, now it’s just annoyingly cartoonish.

Arion shoots me a dry look, as if to say the same, and I shrug. I’m so tired of my monster embarrassing me.

A crash has my attention jerking over to see a dead tree collapsing to the ground, as Emit shakes his head in wolf form. He snarls at Arion, and then those wolf eyes turn smug as they move to me.

Vance drops down from a tree, landing in a mild crouch, while his hands stay in his pockets.

Damien turns visible next to Emit, casually leaning against a standing tree.

“Game’s up, Vampyre. You may be fast, but there are three of us,” Vance drawls. “And I’m not too shabby on my own.”

Turning my head, I watch Arion’s lips curve in a devious grin. A sense of dread fills me, and…the vampire leaps.

I try to scream, but the sound gets lodged in my throat, as my stomach and heart collide on their way to join the trapped scream. The world plummets all around me, as Arion’s hold on me tightens.

Arion’s unrepentant, diabolical laughter drifts up, and I barely catch a glimpse of the other three leaping over the edge. We land with a somewhat jarring hit, but Arion launches us forward, racing away before the others can catch up.

“Fucking fast vampire!” Damien shouts from somewhere way behind us.

They’re right.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. At least I know what ride I’m on these days.

 

 

EPILOGUE (Part 2)

 

ANNA

 

Thirty years later…

 

Screams pierce the air, and I smile to myself. I put the head on the body just so they could see her scream so pretty. It’s such a fun sound.

“Violet’s going to get mad at us,” the triplets tell me on a bored sigh.

Caroline must be showing Idun something very entertainingly awful, given that terror in her scream. It’s delicious.

“She said she doesn’t want people afraid,” the triplets drone on.

I remember when there was just me and a wall of dildos. I miss those days.

Now the kraken has eaten all the ducks, and the world has come to an end.

Or something like that.

Oooh! My hair looks perfect!

When I get the body back, I’ll wear it like this for the boys. They only wanted to play with me once, and I barely got any time with them.

Violet’s scared of me. Still. After all this time.

Sighing, I turn to face the screaming monster once more, hoping she gets brave enough to make a move so I can prove myself again.

“I wish Violet would give me the body. She’s so damn greedy with it. There’re so many things she’ll never do without my help,” I tell the screaming half-bodied woman.

She heaves for air, and then her scream starts anew. Caroline must love the screams as well.

Moving through the wall, I go to inspect the vengeful Simpleton, who is unlike all the others. Even Bobo has grown sympathy for Idun already.

I rather prefer Caroline. She knows how to harbor a grudge, unlike Violet.

Violet loves you or finds you irrelevant. Nothing in between. Which means no anger.

And no fun.

Caroline’s face isn’t one of enjoyment though, when I stare at her. At least I don’t think so, but what do I know? I do know she tastes like misery and burden, also a heavy dose of self-loathing.