Eternal Seduction (Darkness Within #1)

She wiped the saliva from her nose with the back of her hand as she eyed the creature. “Were you talking to me?”

The wolf shook its head back and forth.

Had she been sitting anywhere else in the world she might’ve had trouble believing what she saw. However, considering she was surrounded by vampires, dragons and walls of writhing body parts, she gave in rather quickly. “You can understand me?”

He nodded.

She reached up and patted his head, surprised by the soft, silky texture of his fur. “Do you know where Kerestyan went?”

He leaned down and nosed the blankets above her crotch then straightened and stared at her, tongue hanging out of his large mouth.

She grinned. “No. I’m sure if Kerestyan was there I’d know.” She laughed out loud, remembering exactly what she and Kerestyan had done the night before. “In fact, I’m positive.”

She looked up when she heard Trinity’s loud laugh and the torches at the other end of the room lit themselves. “Kerestyan had to go back home and deal with some unruly children.”

“Is everything all right?”

Trinity nodded as she stepped through the one doorway that’d been there last night, a big smile across her face. “Yeah, he just has to do his job.” She motioned behind her. “I put some shampoo and soaps in there more befitting a female.” She inclined her head towards the large armoire as she approached the end of the bed and leaned against the left post. “I also brought you some jeans and shirts to fit your new, shapely body.” She blew a raspberry at the wolf. “And I see you’ve been properly introduced to the illustrious Mr. Syn.”

Logan scrunched up her nose when the wolf licked a slobbery trail up her cheek. At least she’d been correct when she’d designated the wolf’s gender as male. “Yeah, I thought he was the one telling me to wake up at first.”

“Give him a few hundred more years and he might just be able to.” She pointed at Logan’s lap. “By the way, he was trying to tell you Kerestyan went home.”

Logan looked down at the blankets covering her lower half and chuckled as understanding struck. “I get it, like home base. Very smart, kind of crude, but smart none the less.”

Trinity plopped down on the edge of the bed. “Syn spends a lot of time with Odin, so you can probably imagine all the wonderful things he’s been taught.”

“Who’s the teacher?” Logan laughed. She reached up and rubbed both of Syn’s ears, to which he responded by flopping his heavy black body across her lap. “Did you show Odin how to fall off the couch without hurting himself when he tries to lick his balls?” She took the way he wiggled on his back and nipped playfully at her hands as the canine version of yes.

Trinity tautly slapped his large chest, filling the room with a chorus of hollow thuds and happy panting. “Wow, he really likes you. I haven’t seen him like this for a long time.” She caught his snout between her hands and kissed his nose. “What is it, Syn? Why do you like Logan so much?”

He rolled out of Logan’s lap and rubbed the top of his head all over the pillows next to her. Then, without warning, he lunged at Trinity, who shrieked as she fell off the bed onto the floor with a heavy thud.

Logan couldn’t do anything but laugh as he bit down on one of Trinity’s boots then shook her leg until he’d pulled it off, sending a silver dagger skittering across the stone floor. Syn, with the dagger firmly between his teeth, jumped back up on the bed next to her and sat back down.

She was still laughing when Trinity picked herself up off the floor, grabbed her boot then reassumed her place on the bed. “Well, that was unexpected.” She slid her shoe back on before she pushed at Syn, who gently rested his jaw on top Logan’s head.

Trinity wrinkled her nose at him. “Really?”

He responded with a noise somewhere between a growl and a yelp then flopped back into Logan’s lap. He nudged his head under her hand and let out what sounded like a sigh.

Logan scratched the beast’s humongous head and looked over at Trinity. “What the hell was all that? Were you going to kill me or something?”

She laughed as she retrieved her blade from Syn’s mouth and slid it back in her boot. “No. Apparently Kerestyan told him to protect you, and he intends to do that very thing.” When Syn barked, Trinity leaned forward and patted his massive paw. “I’m sure you’ll do your Master proud.”

Logan stared between Syn and Trinity. “He’s Kerestyan’s?”

She nodded. “Syn is a Servio, too. He’s, damn,” she peered up at the ceiling through narrowed eyes, “he has to be at least nine hundred years old now. Unfortunately, the city of New York has strict laws about wolves as pets, so when K took over he had to leave him here. He’s usually with Odin but it would appear he’s been given a duty. I hope you didn’t want to go anywhere alone.”

Logan considered the monstrous lump of fur in her lap. She’d never had a pet before, and she had to admit, even though it was probably only the silky black fur, he did remind her a little of Kerestyan.

She ran her finger over the velvety fuzz just above his nose. “Are you going to follow me everywhere I go?” When he nodded and licked her fingers, she smiled at him. “I bet you get tired of me really fast.”

He sat up and stared down at her through steely blue eyes that were unbelievably expressive for a dog. He whined a sad note then licked her chest just above her left breast before resting his head on her shoulder.

Without her even asking the question, Trinity answered. “He says you’re in Kerestyan’s heart, so you’re in his, too.”

Logan wasn’t sure how to respond to that. With the realization she’d made last night in regards to her feelings for Kerestyan, she felt like she should be able to smile and accept the words for what they were…but she couldn’t.

At least, not yet anyway.

She wound her fingers back into Syn’s soft fur and focused her attention on Trinity. “So what’s the plan? Do I get to go wander around the castle now?”

Trinity shook her head, her ponytail swinging wildly with the movement. “Nope. I talked to Dad earlier and we’re going to skip the wandering part and go right into training. I figure you’d probably like to get back to New York as soon as possible, so I’ll tour you around the castle during the parts where it’s a lot of me talking and you listening. That sound good to you?”

Logan nodded. Getting her feet back on familiar ground sounded more than good to her. Not to mention who that ground lead back to. “Works for me.”

“Good.” Trinity reached out and shook Syn’s tail. “Mr. Syn, would you be so kind as to go tell Alfred that Logan and I will take our breakfast in the courtyard, please?”

He jumped up and looked between Trinity and the door, and then snapped his jaws together a few times.

“Yes,” she sighed. “You can eat with us, too. We’ll meet you out there.”

Syn jumped off the bed and bolted towards the wall across the room, but just before he would have clobbered himself against the stones a doorway appeared.

Logan cocked her head and stared at Trinity. “The wolf can make his own doors, too?”

“Yes, he can. And look,” she motioned to the opening, “he even left it there for you.”

“That’s all well and good, but what happens if I’m in here alone and I want to get something to eat?”

“First off, the chances of Syn not being at your side are slim to none. He’s about as loyal to Kerestyan as Odin is.” She stood up and walked over to the armoire. “Second, if for some reason he isn’t with you, a door will appear. Consider the castle a living extension of my Dad, it knows what you want and need as much as he does.” She tossed a pair of jeans and a dark green t-shirt on the bed, followed by a bra, underwear, socks and a white pair of tennis shoes. “And if for some reason a door doesn’t appear, then you don’t really need whatever it is you think you do.”

Logan eyed the clothes. “I take it you want me to get dressed?”

Trinity folded her arms over her ample chest, which was propped up by a light blue corset, and then shot her a playful glare. “Not yet. I want you to get your naked ass out of bed and come over here so I can turn you into a Servio. Then you can get dressed and we’ll go eat the best pancakes and sausage you’ve ever tasted.”

Logan arched a brow. “You realize that isn’t hard to accomplish, right? Unless, of course, they’re made of New York trash, because then they won’t taste any different than the pancakes I usually eat.”

“Even if Alfred did make them out of garbage, they’d be the best damn garbage cakes you’ve ever tasted. Now, are you going to keep stalling, or can we do this so at least one of us can eat the greatest pancakes the world has ever known?”

Busted. Logan flipped back the covers and stood up. “Can I have one last meal first?”

Trinity’s mouth dropped open, her face a study in disgusted jealousy. “What the hell did Kerestyan do to you last night?” She gasped rather loud. “Oh my God! Are those his fingerprints?”