Their Beloved Mate.

Maqual, The Guardian

“Are you even listening to me?”

“Uh? What?” Tazanna looked up and blinked at her friend. It was lunchtime and they were seated by their favorite table where they could gossip about anyone in the office without people hearing them.

Amber rolled her eyes, “really?”

“I- I am sorry,” Tazanna shook her head as she pushed her untouched sandwich to the side. “My mind is on a whole lot of things lately.”

Amber sat forward, “really? Like a new man or something? Girl, are you dating someone and I am the last one to know?”

Tazanna snorted. “I wish. It’s just that-” She hesitated before shaking her head. “You might think I am crazy.”

“I already think you are crazy, what’s new there?” Amber raised her perfectly shaped eyebrows.

“Right, but this is out of this world crazy, not the type of stuff that we usually do,” Tazanna told her friend. She needed to tell someone because she really did feel like she was going mental. As soon as she left her house that morning, she felt as though someone or something was sharing her mind, a presence that wasn’t her own subconscious. How do you even explain that without people putting you in a straitjacket?

“Well, come on! Out with it!” Amber stated.

Tazanna bit on her lower lip. Closing her eyes, she released a heavy sigh before a small chuckle escaped her. When she opened her eyes, her friend was staring at her with arms crossed. “ OK, here goes. Do you believe in telepathy?”

Amber was quiet for a bit, a small frown on her face. “As in talking to each other through your minds?”

Tazanna rested her eyes on the heels of her palms, her head bent as she shook it, “I know! It sounds like some Sci-fi movie crap. But do you think it’s real? I mean everything has to have some kind of truth to it, right?” She raised her head and looked at her friend. “Gosh! I sound crazy! I have even made you speechless.”

Amber shook her head, “no, no. What has brought this up?”

“What do you mean?” Tazanna asked her friend.

“Well, like you said. There is always something behind the truth but also the questions that we ask. So what happened to make you think that telepathy is real?”

Tazanna shook her head. She was not ready to tell her friend about her dreams or the fact that there was someone whispering in her head. Even then, she could still feel a presence in her head, a shadow in a corner that was watching her. It made her feel safe. And that was the reason why she did not take herself to a mental institution and got herself locked up. The night before, it was his voice that broke through the darkness that was surrounding her. “No, nothing. I think I am watching too many fantasy movies. Let’s drop it.”

Amber was quiet for a bit, studying her friend’s face with an unreadable expression on her face before she broke into a smile and chuckled a bit, “that must be it. I always tell you, ROMCOMS is the way to go!”

Tazanna rolled her eyes at her, “only because you’ve got a man to cuddle with when watching all that mushy stuff.” She glanced at her watch and stood up.

“I need to go. I have a meeting with your silver fox big daddy, so we can go over the presentation for Wednesday.”

“Oh yeah,” Amber followed suit. “I heard there will be a big shot coming for that meeting. Do you know who it is?”

Tazanna shook her head as she pressed a button to call the elevators before standing back and waiting. “All I know is I have to work my ass off, and Sam is making sure of that.”

“If you need help, hola at your girl. I might not be great at putting the presentation together, but I am good at bouncing off ideas.”

Tazanna leaned sideways and bumped shoulders with her, “that’s why I love you!” The two separated when they got to their floor, each heading to their own corners. Tazanna pushed her glass door open, finding the man they had been talking about by her desk.

“Sam,” Tazanna greeted him as she walked around the table and took her seat. “I thought I was meeting you in your office?”

“Here, there, what difference does it make?” Sam asked as he folded his huge arms and leaned back on the chair he was sitting on.

Tazanna glanced at the chair, in her head wondering if it could support the solid muscles that were Sam's. “No, not a problem. Let me just close the blinds so I can project on the wall.”

Sam gave her a curt nod, watching with his hooded eyes as she moved around, closing the blinds, and lowering the intensity of the lights before switching on the projector.

“Run me through it,” Sam ordered gruffly.

“Of course,” Tazanna replied. “So I was thinking of highlighting the different uses of the products, but instead of using celebrities as influencers, we use real families.” She turned to Sam. Usually, when he didn’t like an idea, he would stop her before she even continued.

“I am listening.”

Tazanna bit the inside of her lip, thankful that he didn’t kill it there and then. “I was thinking of using families with different make-ups. Single moms or dads with toddlers, a family of teens, a family of pensioners, and how this product can benefit each and every one of them. And because they also have other products in the same range, it will also give them a platform to advertise those others as well. But the main character will be the product they have highlighted in their brief.” She walked Sam through the presentation, the touchpoints, and everything that needed to be done.

Sam was quiet for a few seconds, before getting up and walking to the door. “Refine it, then send it to me.”

“Yes, sir!” Tazanna beamed. She had worked so hard on it, taking a gamble on something she had wanted to try but never really found the correct client for it.

Xander

The punching bag went flying as Xander exerted some power on his next punch. He was in the gym of the hotel trying to find something to do to get the anxiety out of his system. Even though he had fed well, he still could not shake the thought of his beloved being in danger. And the fact that he didn’t even know where she could be was not helping. His fangs dropped at the thought of any danger she might face.

Closing his eyes, he calmed his body.

“Fvck this,” he hissed as he pushed the punching bag aside and walked away. If he was back home, he would have gone for a hunt or he would have sparred with his brother or some of the warriors. But he couldn’t do that here, not if he still had to keep the pretense he was a human.

“Brother,” Dustin’s voice traveled the distance.

“I am so wound up, Dustin,” Xander replied back through the link, not hiding anything from his brother.

“I am on my way. I will arrive in the next three hours,” Dustin reassured his brother. “Have you met with the guardian?”

“Not yet,” Xander replied as he made his way to his room, ignoring all the lustful eyes of the women and the envious glares from the men.

Standing well over six feet, with toned muscles and a face that rivaled the Greek gods, as well as the unnatural aura that belonged to the vampires, the humans could not help but be attracted to him. Now, if he was in the right mind, or if he had not known of the existence of his beloved, he would have taken a woman or three to his room and ravished them to his heart’s desire. Not that they would have been able to appease his hunger, but they would have provided temporary release before he headed back home and used one of the many mistresses that he kept.

Thinking of all his mistresses, he groaned a bit inside. Now that they have found their beloved, he will have to get rid of all of them.

Once a beloved is found and marked, it becomes impossible for any man to cheat. Doing so can cause immense pain, not only to the man but also to the woman he cheats with. Because the beloved is honored above all women, she is protected from feeling pain. And because the pain is excruciating, it is said that some have gone crazy because of it. Once females know a man has found their beloved, they stir clear of them.

“Stay safe, bro,” Dustin’s voice cut through into his mind.

“Travel safe,” Xander replied before breaking the connection. He made it to his room, going straight into the bathroom. After discarding his clothes, he stepped under the jet of cold water. As a vampire, his body temperature is usually lower than that of a human. Unless the vampire had come from a fresh hunt, then his temperature would be the same as that of a human. Taking the cold shower didn’t feel the way it would have felt for a human or his brother whose temperature is always a bit higher than that of a human.

For Xander, the water was just right at the right temperature.

“Sire, a guardian is here to see you,” Oden, his personal guardian’s voice echoed in his head.

Xander turned off the water before stepping out. Reaching for the towels, he wrapped one around his narrow hips while the other he placed over his shoulders. Making his way into his room, he reached out to Oden. “Let him come in. I am dressing.” He walked into the closet as the door was opened. Choosing a pair of sweatpants and a vest, he made his way out of the walk-in closet.

The first person he saw was Oden before his gaze traveled to the man kneeling, his head bowed and a fist over his heart.

“You may rise, guardian,” Xander stated as he walked to the sofas and sat. “Please, join me.”

Maqual stood up and followed the prince behind. He waited until the prince was seated before he took his seat. As was per custom, he could not speak or look up until told to do so, so he kept his gaze lowered.

“Rise your head and speak freely, guardian. We are far from home and I am not very big about all the decorum,” Xander smiled at the man, as he accepted a glass from Odem.

“Thank you, Your Highness,” Maqual raised his head to finally look at the Prince Xander of the Vamps. He had left his home a long time ago when Xander was but a child, but now here he was fully grown. Maqual could feel the power radiating from him from where he had sat, a power that clung to him like a second skin, and no matter what he uttered with his mouth, Xander’s power would always demand respect. Just like his father, King Nero of the Vampires.

Xander laughed, “not big on titles either. Xander will do.”

Maqual, knowing it was impossible for him to do that, inclined his head.

“So you have been guarding my beloved?” Xander asked.

Maqual nodded, “I have, Your-sir.”

Xander smiled with a nod. “How long?”

“Eighteen years now. I was placed with them when she turned three and I have been with them ever since.”

Xander nodded. That would mean The High Priestess had known about her for eighteen years. “And throughout that time, have there been any attacks on her, apart from the one she had last night?”

Maqual’s eyes jumped at the prince.

Xander laughed, “I know it was you who aided me with the name of our beloved. The High Priestess told me about your visit as well, so we are all good.”

Maqual nodded, “this was the first attack. For the first time, I felt something dark and evil trying to get to her.”

“Yes, it was rather unpleasant,” Xander’s eyes swirled with grey as he thought back at the attack on his beloved. Taking a deep breath, he focused on Maqual. “Do you have any idea who it might be and why they are attacking now?”

Maqual blinked at him. “You and your brother are about to ascend, and she is your queen. Destroy the queen, you destroy the kings.”