Xander's Claim (Maura's Men) Read online

  Xander’s

  Claim

  A Maura’s Men Novella

  By

  Stella Williams

  This book is a work of fiction. References to real people, events, establishments, organizations, or locales are intended only to provide a sense of authenticity, and are used fictitiously. All other characters, and all incidents and dialogue, are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real.

  Copyright © 2013 Nisha Franco

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 1494233020

  ISBN-13: 978-1494233020

  DEDICATION

  I dedicate this book to all my readers past, present, and future.

  CONTENTS

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I’d like to thank my husband for providing the necessary atmosphere and understanding my long nights at the computer, my sisters for helping me brainstorm the Maura’s Men series and for always pushing me to follow my dreams. Major kudos to Brian Lacey for taking my scattered vision and turning it into a work of art; the cover art is more then I could have imagined. I’d also like to thank my parents; this book would not have been possible without your support and encouragement.

  1

  MacDonald Estate, Scotland 1968

  “I can’t live like this,” Shane whispered to Xander as they stood waiting for Maura to make her usual grand entrance.

  “We’ll talk about this later,” Xander hissed as Maura strolled in with Claude at her side. He had fresh scratches on his back and the hardened expression that meant Maura hadn’t been easy on him. Not that Maura was easy on anyone. She dismissed Claude with a flick of her wrist. Maura’s caramel skin was flawless and youthful despite her advanced years. No one knew exactly how old she was, but her regal attitude combined with her references to the birth of the Persian Empire put her at an age well before the birth of Christ.

  Maura’s ink black curls were pulled back into a long braid that reached the curve of her lower back. It swung tantalizingly above her round bottom as she crossed the room. Her hips swayed seductively with each step she took. In any other circle Maura would draw looks of admiration but Xander felt like he was going to lose what little sustenance he had managed to obtain on his brief scouting mission.

  When Xander had first met Maura he had been admittedly intrigued by her and had figured it was her beauty that had held him captive those first few months. It wasn’t until the true horror of Maura was revealed to him that he had tried to rebel. He thought he could take her himself but despite her lithe womanly figure she had the strength of over a hundred men. Her beauty had been the death of them all, Maura’s greatest strength and only weakness. Maura could care less about jewels and money, what she wanted was eternal youth and beauty. Even as vampirism slowed the aging process it didn’t erase it completely. Maura made up for what vampirism lacked by draining beautiful young women of their blood and young men of their souls.

  Alexander, or Xander as Shane had nicknamed him, was the oldest of the five men she currently kept as her slaves. He was tall and had a warrior’s build that had made him somewhat unpopular with the ladies of his day, but made him perfect for Maura. She needed a protector as well as someone stocky enough to withstand her abuse, both physically and mentally. There had been one before him but once he had shown signs of aging he had disappeared without a trace. No one knew what became of him, and everyone was afraid to find out.

  Maura had no tolerance for the “old and the ugly” as she liked to say. Felix had come along shortly after Xander, a dandy of the courts. He allowed Maura access to people of power. Felix was the hardest to read for Xander. He didn’t seem to detest Maura as much as Xander, Claude and Shane but at the same time he didn’t seem to enjoy being in her presence much either. Maura seemed to like collecting her men in pairs because next she acquired Claude and Owen.

  Claude had been a burgeoning industrialist; his family owned a small but lucrative oil field, and he’d had big dreams of making a name for himself in the big apple. Claude had been a womanizer even then, so it wasn’t long until he fell into Maura’s clutches. Of all the men, Maura called for him the most when she was in her worst of moods. No one knew Owen’s story but of them all he actually seemed to enjoy Maura’s presence. He had even brought his younger brother Philip into Maura’s lair. Xander was sure Owen and his brother had their own private circle in Hell reserved just for them.

  Shane had only come just recently. He was Maura’s expert on the new free love movement. She had lured him with funding for his experiments with the effects of LSD but once he’d found out she was kidnapping young women from the study; he’d made the mistake of confronting her. She had killed him, turned him, and made it impossible to continue his research and his free thinking ways.

  Xander could only have described Shane as a lost puppy during his first year of servitude under Maura. He’d tried to maintain his scientific mind, but nothing he could do could prepare him or help him cope with what his life and work had become. There was no way such a free spirit could survive her brutal domination for long. It was one of the things that had finally forced Xander’s hand. He couldn’t deal with Maura and her destructive ways for much longer.

  “Owen, you will take Philip to find a few morsels. I’m feeling a little parched,” Maura said.

  Xander hated the way she lingered on the S sound. His fangs being larger then hers he knew it wasn’t a matter of speaking around them.

  Owen nodded at Maura before making his way out of the room. Xander hated to admit that he relaxed a little at the thought of those two being off the estate for awhile. Owen may have no conscious but at least he was more well adjusted then his brother. Philip was a little off and spent most of his days locked in his room. He only answered for Maura and Owen.

  “My lady,” Xander said, approaching Maura but she put a hand up to stop him.

  “Shane will be next. I’m afraid Claude has had his fill,” she said.

  Xander shot an apologetic look at Shane. It took all of Xander had to do nothing as Shane made his way to Maura. Xander fought the anger building inside him as he watched Maura devouring Shane with her black eyes. Maura was truly without a soul, and those eyes were a dead giveaway. In the past when she had mingled among humans she had to have used some magic to make her eyes the sultry caramel brown they had been when Xander had first encountered her. A wicked smile graced her full pouty lips as he took her awaiting hand.

  “My pleasure as always,” Shane said cheerfully but the tense way he held his body belied his true feelings. Maura was well aware of that fact, but it only heightened her arousal. She gripped his hand tightly letting Shane know that she was itching for whatever fight he had left to try and resist her will. Her grip felt like it was going to break his hand, but Shane refused to flinch, refused to show her she was hurting him. Shane prayed silently that he survived this encounter as Maura led him down the stairs to her chambers. He had to survive in order for the plan to work.

  As soon as Maura disappeared with Shane, Claude collapsed to the floor. If anyone other than Xander had been in the room, he would have held on longer, at least until he got to his room. “Curse that wretched whore,” Xander said helping Claude to his feet. He checked the hallway before dragging Claude’s deadweight to h
is room before the others were back to see him in his weakened state.

  “I just need a moment,” Claude said when Xander put him in his bed.

  “No, it can wait until you are better,” Xander said, but Claude shook his head.

  “I think she knows we aren’t under her spell anymore. She was much worse than usual,” he said, barely above a whisper. He was so weak.

  “You don’t have the strength. You need more than a minute to recover. A whole night won’t have you fully recovered,” Xander said.

  “But Shane, she will kill him with the mood she is in. He hasn’t acquired his full power as a vampire yet,” Claude said, and Xander cursed.

  “Fine, we will go forward with the plan,” Xander said and left the room. He needed to take extra precautions with both Claude and Shane weakened by Maura’s sexual deviances. One thing about the plan hadn’t changed; Maura would die, even if he had to give his own life to accomplish it.

  Forty Years Later…

  “Alright everyone, let’s wrap it up for the day,” Professor Felix Aiken called out to his team. A group of twenty students all nodded and went about the daily clean up of the site. Felix had tried his best to keep the team from getting too far with the dig, stalling as best he could. No one could find Maura’s corpse. It would garner too much attention, and way too many questions.

  When Alexander had drained the last of her blood, her body had shriveled and become disfigured, her fangs jutted awkwardly from her skull. Lucky for Felix, being an expert on the MacDonald estate and its lore, he was first pick to lead the excavation. If only he could stall his eager volunteers long enough for funding of the excavation to run out, only then would Maura’s grave be safe once again.

  Felix took a moment to look out around the grounds. In a way it was fitting that Maura be buried here. It was her favorite property. Modeled after the famous Stirling Castle it fit with her delusions of being royalty. Although there was only one main building to the estate the original owner had been paranoid enough to not only build a wall around the grounds but also create a network of tunnels that suited Maura’s nocturnal lifestyle perfectly.

  The house above had been normal enough to fool any passing visitor but it was the tunnels and rooms below where all the depravity had occurred. It was the few remains of dungeons and torture devices that had been unearthed that kept the estate in the spotlight. Everyone wanted to know if there was any truth to the rumors.

  If only they knew the truth. They couldn’t ever know the truth which is why Felix was so dedicated to his task of keeping his inquisitive students from uncovering what the world was undoubtedly not prepared to handle. The frosty weather had provided a convenient and natural impedance to their progress.

  Most of the students enjoyed the leisurely pace that Felix had set for the dig. All but Declan Murray, he was a particular thorn in Felix’s side. Even now he was glaring across the site at Felix, obviously upset because the day had been called early. Felix pretended not to notice, but he had his eyes on Declan, sooner or later his eagerness to complete this excavation might get him in a lot more trouble than he had bargained for. Felix sealed the envelope containing news of his progress with the dig. He would mail it to Alexander first thing tomorrow. It was nearly time for them to rotate posts, but Felix wasn’t ready to step away from everything just yet.

  Declan Murray fought back his frustration with Professor Aiken’s lack of urgency. Could he not see that they were on the brink of a significant discovery? As soon as Declan had read about the secret passage found under the MacDonald estate, he knew that there was significant history to be discovered and possibly even treasure. The MacDonald estate had an interesting history, with stories equally as disturbing as Dracula’s castle, but from a much earlier time. There were many folk tales about young women being lured there by handsome young men and never being seen again, rumors of shadowy figures and screams in the night, it was the stuff of horror stories and history gold.

  Declan’s family had originally come from the village just south of the estate, so he had grown up hearing the tales of the MacDonald estate. The most interesting and exciting of them were those of the lady of the manor, how she never seemed to age, and neither did the young men she kept in her presence. It was these family tales that had Declan dreaming of the fountain of youth. Declan had hopes that this passage would lead to the famed fountain, and possibly other more tangible treasures. Reluctantly Declan started packing up his things. If the excavation didn’t start progressing soon, Declan just might have to take matters into his own hands. He smiled at the thought of discovering the fountain all on his own, without having to share the glory. Would he drink the water or just bottle it up and sell it to others who thirst for a little more to life? Two more days and he would surely find out.

  2

  Shane cautiously entered the study where Xander sat reading what appeared to be an intense letter, judging by the furrow of his brow. If it were any other night or for any other reason Shane would be a lot more comfortable with approaching him but tonight was anything but usual. It was the anniversary of their freedom. The night Xander, Claude, Felix, and Shane had risen against and defeated Maura.

  It was usually a night of reflection and private celebration, as well as a night of mourning. All of them sharing stories about their lives before Maura had taken control of them. Tonight, however, was different. Tonight, Shane would be embracing his new life, moving on for the sake of love.

  Shane was taking a major risk by asking Xander to accompany him on a double date with Molly and Cat. In any other circumstance Claude would have been the better choice. He was a serious ladies man, as demonstrated multiple times in the years Shane had known him. Claude was also quite the chauvinist and was not the person Shane could see making small talk with two modern women. Xander wasn’t much better of a choice in that regard, but he at least wouldn’t be as outright rude as Claude could be.

  “Do you need something,” Xander asked looking up from his reading. Shane smiled trying to act casual.

  “I have a proposition for you,” Shane began, but Xander put his hand up stopping him mid sentence.

  “I’m not interested,” Xander said, and Shane sighed.

  “You don’t even know what I was going to ask,” He protested, but Xander only shook his head. Folding the letter, he stood putting it back in its envelope before locking it in his personal drawer of the desk.

  “I don’t have to. I know you much too well. You are nervous, meaning it’s something I won’t agree to easily and tonight I am feeling rather disagreeable,” Xander said and left the room. Shane took a deep breath and followed.

  “It’s just one night in the company of two amazing women. You have already met Molly, and her friend is a really nice person,” Shane said trying not to wince at his little lie about Cat. Cat was a nice person you just had to get passed a few quirks first.

  “I can smell your desperation, but you know my policy on dealing with outsiders, especially with women,” Xander said and stalked up to his room.

  “Did I hear mention of women?” Claude asked making his presence known.

  Shane rolled his eyes before smiling. Xander was a lost cause but Claude wasn’t one to turn away a chance to mingle with women.

  “Together forever? Is this girl serious?” Claude laughed earning a glare from Shane.

  “Watch how you talk about my girlfriend,” Shane growled, and Claude just shrugged. Shane had just finished explaining why he was looking for a vampire to double date with his human girlfriend and her friend.

  “So is this friend some beastly brute or is she just desperate? I can do desperate,” Claude said.

  Shane instantly regretted asking Claude to come along. He had tried his best to get Xander to come, but out of the three of them Xander was definitely the least willing to take a chance on love. It was an old story that despite their closeness Xander had never shared. Claude had stepped in after overhearing Xander’s adamant refusal and since it
was the last minute Shane hadn’t had a choice.

  It was either bring Claude along or disappoint Molly. Besides, maybe Cat was just the medicine Claude needed. She was tough and sarcastic and wouldn’t put up with his egomania. Shane knew exactly how much Cat was dreading this double date but, like Cat, he would do anything for Molly. The night was definitely not going to be boring.

  3

  “I never thought together forever would ever be literal,” Molly gushed, stars in her eyes as she performed the last of her pre-date ritual.

  “Molly, I love you, and Shane is awesome, but are you sure this is a good idea,” Cat asked her best friend since middle school.

  Molly glared at her in the mirror before setting down her hairbrush. Her auburn hair flowing perfectly straight over her delicate shoulders. In school Cat had been the only person not to tease Molly about her ginger curls with matching freckles. It was how they had become such good friends. Molly and Cat had been misfits together.

  A twist of fate and a change of county lines had put Molly’s new foster home and Cat’s neighborhood within the richest and whitest of school districts. Cat had been happy to finally go to a school that gave her choices as far as academics and took full advantage from day one. Yet, despite everything good that came with the change, Cat had been forced to scare a few people in order to make life bearable.