Gabriel

I wait for Ava to fall into a deep sleep. Sliding out of bed, I notice a trace of chocolate on her lips. Kissing it away, I find her lips are ironically sweeter. Glancing at my watch, I see it's nearly midnight, and I'm due to meet Alexander at one in the morning like we always had. Staggering into the tent, Gladys who was wearing red lipstick, now has pink lip marks on her mouth, neck, and above her chest.

"Someone had a good night, I see."

"Yes, Leslie leaves tomorrow morning, and I had to say goodbye. The poor girl told me she'd leave her husband for me. I told her I was not the settling down type, and she told me she was, and she settled in on my face!"

"So, you enjoyed eating out this evening?"

It took her a minute, and she gawks at me, punching me in the arm, and defensively tells me, "Gabriel, don't you dare kiss Ava with that filthy talking mouth."

I chuckle and look at her for a moment and nonchalantly say, "I am not the one who's been exercising their tongue this evening on a helpless nurse."

I have to dodge the punch, which nearly sends Gladys tumbling to the floor in her drunken state my quickness allows me to prevent her from hugging the tent floor with her face.  I steady her as she sways to keep her balance.

"Let's get you to bed Miss Hastings."

Helping her onto the cot I kneel in front of her as I remove her heels she says, "Thanks again for these heels."

Gladys yawns, she sleepily asks, "Gabriel was Ava alright tonight? Did she have any problems?"

"Ava was just fine this evening.  I healed her with drops of my blood as soon as we left the medical tent, when I kissed her. I couldn't help myself; I refused to let her suffer another minute of discomfort."

Gladys scrunches up her nose in disgust, and I remind her "Gladys, blood and vampires go together; it's the price you pay for immortality."

She defensively snaps, "Oh, don't get your panties in a twist; blood doesn't bother me, well, unless I am drunk and a bit nauseous."

"You're serious about this, aren't you?

Yawning widely, she says, "Damn, straight I am! We'll talk tomorrow."

"Gladys, I would not trust myself to turn you, I have an underlying fear I might not get the process correct and kill someone I care about deeply."

She smiles at me and sleepily says, "Don't worry, we'll figure something out, and I also care about you too, even though I have tried my hardest not to."

She winks, rolls on her side, and whispers, "Good night, Gabriel."

"Good night, Miss Hastings."

I stop by the medical tent to update Mikhail and Tatiana.

"Hello, I wanted to thank the both of you again. Ava is feeling well and sleeping soundly for now. I gave her my blood when I kissed her earlier; it was only a few drops."

Mikhail then sits at the desk and asks, "Do you mind if I ask you a very personal question, Gabriel?"

"I consider you a friend and I have not had many of them in my 600 years, you are free to ask me anything you like."

Tatiana sits on top of the desk, and I observe how Mikhail's hand instinctively moves to her leg gently squeezing her thigh, and lovingly intertwines his hand in hers.

"How do you keep control of your thirst you're craving for blood?"

As he asks this he stops and adds, "This is a war there is so much blood everywhere."

"I have conditioned myself and compared to most all the others I have met of my kind the urges I have do not seem to be consumption of blood, well not in the way most think of vampires."

Mikhail raises an eyebrow, a gesture I've recognized this as his prelude to discussing or inquiring about challenging topics.

He pauses, inquisitively asks, "If not in the manner typical of most Upyr, how exactly do you mean?"

Tatiana squeezes his hand looks at him and suggestively points her eyes downwards. Mikhail laughs and then smiles and says, "So it is safe to assume you eat your stakes raw as well?"

Mikhail shoots me a stern look, but it doesn't take long before we burst into laughter.

This causes Tatiana to roll her eyes and mutter "Men," even as she walks off with a smile.

He then says, "In all seriousness, I completely believe one's sexual preferences cannot be confined to narrow-minded ideologies. Whether it's sex before marriage or, between individuals of the same gender or any other combination, these expressions of love and desire are as natural as breathing."

Tatiana surprises me and adds, "No one should be judged for their choices in the realm of intimacy, as each person's journey is uniquely their own. Everyone deserves the freedom to explore and enjoy their own path without fear of judgment or condemnation, especially in the privacy of their bedroom."

As she finishes saying this, she coyly looks at Mikhail, and I notice a very wicked grin spread across his face.

I can't help but smile, and think how much I enjoy their company. "I couldn't agree more."

"Let's hope Ava has a peaceful night's sleep and the spell remains effective.

"Are you leaving now to meet with Alexander?" Mikhail asks, gesturing for Tatiana to come and sit on his lap.

"Yes, I'm planning to meet Alexander to find out any news he might have, and also to see if he's interested in joining my adventures."

Mikhail gives me a reassuring warm smile and says, "I'll periodically check in on Ava while you are gone. Safe hunting, Gabriel."

The night remains covered in darkness, the clouds shroud the moon. I can reach our meeting spot in minutes, even though it's nearly an hour away. I hear Alexander when he's about three miles out. Upon seeing me, he extends a hand, which I grasp, pulling him into a hug.

He laughs, saying, "I appreciate the hug; I wouldn't have initiated it myself since I did have a rather large crush on you."

"Oh, so, does this mean someone else has caught your eye?"

"Indeed, he's amazing, and that is sort of why I'm here. I'm leaving with him next week for California. He is a wine farmer, and he was here checking on his family in Italy. We met, and it was instant chemistry."

I can see the happiness in his eyes, and it makes me glad to know he has found love.

"I am so very happy for you, Alexander. What's his name?"

"His name is Frederick, but I call him Fred. He took the news of me being a vampire very well. He was pleased that I could defend myself if necessary. He's as tall as you, perhaps 6'5", and muscular from years of farming. He has no family in America so we will have no one to judge us.

"I'm thrilled for you, and since you have my New York address, send me a postcard, and I'll come out west with Ava."

"Ava? I was under the impression her name was Ana?"

"Well, it is, and it isn't—it's a tale for when we meet again."

His expression changes as he says, "Gabriel, I came to warn you that the Germans are planning a big move on France. They have brought in additional reinforcements and planes. From what information I could gather, it should happen by Friday or Saturday night, and in the best-case scenario, that's three days. I tried to gather more intel, but they have this under wrap."

"Thank you for this information. I will pass it along. I'm just about to start a clean-up sweep. Would you like to join me?"

His face lights up as he excitedly says, "Hell, yes! One last time."

As we make our way towards the German encampment, it's well past two in the morning. Ever since learning of Ava's rape and torture, I've become more vigilant and, honestly, less empathetic towards the opposing side. Tonight, I act swiftly, ruthlessly delivering death to anyone whose thoughts disturb me without hesitation.

Alexander, noticing my newfound ruthlessness, abandons his reservations; innocence has never been his concern. I aim to have many men surrender or meet their end by daybreak, ensuring I'm by Ava's side when she awakens. The blood of the men I've drained revives me and gives me enhanced abilities and sheer brute force beyond measure.

We come upon a group of ten men camped out away from their base as lookouts. I motioned for Alexander to wait. The men are talking, and I overhear one of them mentioning reports that close to 2 million Jews had been killed from their last reports. The men begin to laugh and cheer at this news.

Alexander hears this, and I see the rage fill him as it does me, and together we take those men out in seconds. Neither of us fed from them; the evil in them was in their blood, and the thought of it was disgusting. We advance onto the main camp and Alexander, and I lose track of our tally of the fallen; few opt for surrender when faced with the alternative.

By around four, we've dismantled several planes and weapons, estimating our combined efforts have accounted for the demise of at least a hundred men. Unlike other times we had ventured out together, I had no remorse that I might have taken an innocent life.

Heading back to base, I said goodbye to Alexander, wishing him and Frederick well, and reminded him to stay in contact and remember to send a postcard.

I discover Mikhail and Tatiana deeply absorbed in a game of chess when I enter the medical unit Mikhail's concern is evident when he sees me covered in blood, but I quickly reassure him that neither Alexander nor myself were harmed. After I relayed the news of Germany's incursion into France, he thanked me and mentioned he would update the other regional witches.

I head for the showers to clean off the evidence of tonight's deeds before anyone sees me in this state. Now, sitting on the bench as I wash, blood from my body and the hot water relaxes me. My mind wanders to the events that occurred here with Ava, and this has me hard, and I could use the release. I stroke myself, wishing to be next to Ava. I want to be inside her and feel her wrapped around my cock. I squeeze my cock harder, thinking about her around me, but I am stopped before I truly get started. I hear footsteps.

I wrap a towel around my waist to try and hide my current situation. Peaking my head out of the building, I see Ava walking in this direction. I reposition my towel I now at least have my cock covered fully.

Ava enters with a small bag holding her sanitary napkins.

She freezes when she sees me. "Gabriel, you're showering again?"

I give her what I assume to be a smile, but I am sure it comes off as a grin of guilt, and I jokingly say, "Yes, I am a dirty boy."

Ava blushes, and I grab her by the waist, causing her to yelp and giggle as I toss her over my shoulder. Her blood's aroma is strong and so close to my face, increasing my desire exponentially.

"I was out on patrol and got extremely dirty I am about to wash up. Would you care to join me?"

She nods and softly bites her bottom lip; she has no clue how incredibly seductive she can be at times. I start the shower, allowing time for it to warm up, and walk towards Ava.

She is removing her sanitary napkin and in a frenzy she's filling the bin with paper towels to conceal it.

I catch her off guard as I spin her around pulling her towards me, kissing her as I pull my oversized shirt over her head in a sweeping motion. My mouth meeting her breasts, I run my tongue over one and my fingers on the other, gripping and sucking with a small amount of force enough to make her moan and grab my back.

"Ava, you have no clue the effect you have on me" A desperate moan sounding more like the deep purr of a lion leaves my lips, and she nervously bites her bottom lip again only adding to my lust.

Her hair is up now, exposing her neck. I kiss and press my lips into her neck, focusing on that sensitive area where it meets her clavicle. I am moving to grasp her ass, and a small sound of breathless surprise fills my ears as I squeeze it firmly. Her breathing and heart rate increase as I remove her panties. She steps out of them, and I place them to the side.

Without thinking my hand reaches for her ass again, but this time both my hands find her cheeks, and squeezing them I lift her and pull her against my chest. Our eyes meet and she blushes. My actions are quick and made in desperation. I kiss her mouth and pull her into my kiss it is the most forceful I have ever been with her, and I hear her heart racing.

I tilt her chin up and ask. "Is this okay, my love?"

She takes a deep breath and nods yes, but then she says. "It will always be, yes, Gabriel."

"That is music to my ears, but I will still always want to know you approve, at least until you feel comfortable enough to be the one who initiates these actions. You are my everything, and I will always place your needs above all else."

I try to harness my lust and calm myself.

She shakes her head as if my words are heard for her to believe then she meets my eyes and softly whispers, "It is still hard to believe I am lucky enough to have you love me. I truly love you, Gabriel."

She presses into my mouth quickly, and our tongues meet, and hers is now full of more intense passion and confidence. Keeping her in my arms, I continue kissing her beautiful lips.

She grabs my shoulder and tilts her neck. Does she know what she is asking? Of course not, but for a moment, my fangs pressed against my gums with intense pressure. I readjust her so that her breasts are more accessible for my touch and as I do my towel falls to the floor.

I believe she'd forgotten about her menstrual, but I feel it warm on my stomach, and my cock stands up to greet her ass. She must feel this and innocently rubs against it. I gasp! Does she know she's killing me right now? First the neck, now her small plump ass. I groan, in desperate agony wanting nothing more than to take her right here and now.

I walk to the shower and try to sit her down, so she is not facing me. I need to retrieve my boxers, but my plan doesn't quite work because she turns right as I place her on the bench. Her face is now very up close and personal with my overstimulated erect cock. Her face turns the shade of her former self's fiery red hair, and at first, she darts her eyes from me, I quickly apologize and start to turn, but unexpectedly her hand reaches out for me taking my wrist, and my body stiffens.

She whispers, "No Gabriel sit with me."

I sit next to her, and I hear her heart racing as I pick up her hand and kiss it softly.

"Lalka I can get my boxers I do not want to make you uncomfortable."

She shakes her head no, leans her head on my arm, and buries her face into my chest and then she awkwardly moves to embrace me, but she is too small to wrap her arms around me.

"Gabriel hold me," she says in a breathless whisper.

I wrap her in my arms and then tilt her chin up to me, and our eyes meet she doesn't breathe, and I realize it is in anticipation of my kiss. I softly press my lips against hers and she sighs a sweet almost inaudible moan. I run my fingers through her hair. I begin to passionately kiss her, and she returns my feverous desire the moans are now more audible, and as I run my hands up and down her back she reaches for one of my hands and places it over her heart.

She does not meet my eyes when she says, "Do you feel that?"

"Yes, I do would you like to stop now?"

She shakes her head no, and the next few things are a whirlwind of senses and emotions. She pulls me to her to continue kissing me. I lean down to meet her lips and she moves her leg over me and straddles my leg and her mouth leveled with mine as she sits on my leg.

Our hands explore each other. One of mine finds her ass and I can't help but squeeze it pulling her closer to me, my other hand is tangled in her hair softly holding her head while our lips meet in a fervent collision, then part, longing to reconnect, each craving the other desperately.

I try not to focus on the warmth and slick feeling on my leg, but I know her blood is touching my body, and the thought alone is maddening.

Her hands grasp my face, her body rising from my leg causing her to press against my hard cock. I feel one drop, and then a second as her blood hits my leg. It takes every ounce of control, I have not lay her on this bench and lose myself between her legs.

I envision this with me stroking myself as I make her orgasm my tongue lapping against her and dancing on her clit until she is shaking and shuddering until she is overcome by waves of orgasms. I feel as if I might explode, this is not a feeling I am accustomed to; I take care of my needs when they arise.

"Ava" I try to pull away and her lips find mine and her hands now entangled in my hair grasp my head. "Oh Lalka, please."

She is lost in our kiss, and she moans "Yes, Gabriel it is yes."

I feel my cock now against her ass as she moves in the rhythm of our kissing. I stop resisting and I lose myself in her, giving in and becoming consumed in her lips, overwhelmed by her moans, the fast heavy pants her breath makes in between our kisses. I cannot contain my moans any longer and they build to a low deep desperate sound that turns into a moaning growl as I resist every instinct in me.

"Ava, I want you; I want you so badly."

I place her hand on me, and I expect this to bring things down a bit, but her hands begin to explore my cock and I am frantic, I am at her mercy.

She slowly moves to the side and peers down, watching her hand as it explores me. I take this moment to soak in her beauty. Ava tilts her head, and I seize this moment to kiss her neck, running my lips ever so softly across her ear, and I say, "Ava you are so beautiful I love you more than life."

A combination of my words and the warmth of my breath on her neck cause her to moan lustfully. This new sound sends me over my limit. Holding her in my arms, about to sit her down, she locks her legs around my waist and begins kissing my neck. I am helpless. A 5-foot-4-inch girl has beaten me, and I am hers to do with as she chooses.

I feel my cock reaching its limits, and I cannot recall a time I orgasmed without physical stimulation, but this might be a first. She feels me pressing against her, and when she pushes her ass against it; that is my breaking point. I softly stand her on the floor and guide her to the bench sitting her down. She is looking at my cock now her hand reaching out and one finger lightly tracing the veins down my shaft.

I'm about to drop to my knees to kiss her up her legs in hopes of being allowed to taste her just one time. Absorbed in this moment I don't notice the footsteps heading our way until Gladys enters.

"Oh, sweet mother of fucking baby Jesus Christ, I didn't need to see that thing; Holy HELL get out of here, God-Damnit Gabriel, this is the women's bathroom!"

I stand, and she covers her eyes after seeing my engorged cock.

Gladys yells, "Have you seen a doctor about that? Is that even normal?"

Two more women walk in as I wrap the towel which had fallen to the ground around myself the best I can. I look at Ava telling her, "I love you, Lalka; I will see you later today, my love."

Surprising me she stands, completely nude, her body's beautiful. The perfection is highlighted by the early morning sun's rays, entering through the small windows high on the wall, she hurries to me, and motions for a kiss.

Of course, I oblige, and Gladys hollers for my immediate departure.

I didn't think things through very well and left my clothes in there, and as I was about to ask for them, I saw Gladys's freckled arm toss my boots and bag of clothes out of the door.

I now have a crowd of men heading to the men's showers, and the air fills with cheers and applause, and I hear Vinny yell, "Whoa, Lu's about to do the walk of shame, or should I same fame."

Another guy says, "Damn Lieutenants out making early morning ops."

Another guy I know from Hell Squad yells, "Hey ladies, anyone else need a shower, buddy?"

Gladys responds with a "Fuck off, McMullen, I know what's under your kilt, and you can keep that horrid Haggis to your-damn-self or one of the sheep back on the farm."

The men begin to burst out laughing, and this allows me time to make my escape. Walking off I can't help thinking that's the best Scottish accent I've heard in a long time. Damn, near sounds just like him.

I dress in the men's shower room and head to my side of the base; still with a slight erection, my mind is consumed by this morning's events all day until another feeling takes over; an uneasy sense that something is off.

The next fifteen hours fly by, and I'm surprised, and honestly relieved when I discover Ava's menstrual has ended. As I walk into the tent, Gladys is snoring, and Ava peeks out of the blankets and smiles, seeing me. She pulls open the blankets, inviting me in.

I undress to my boxers, and when I get in bed, she's nudging herself into me, and I whisper, "Will you sleep on top of me?"

She looks confused, but I pull her on top of me and position her the way Ana would sleep. She lays there for a while. It's so familiar and comforting that I find myself dozing off, but ten minutes later, she slides off me and curls up with her head on my chest inside my arms and wedges a small leg over mine. I smile and think so, this is my Ava's position. I kiss her head, and we both sleep soundly.

Distant growls awake me, and what sounds like a large dog fight. It's almost dawn, and I dress and dash to the noise a few miles into the tree line in seconds. I have seen a few live werewolves in my lifetime, but they are a very seclusive bunch; they form packs. What I arrive to find is very surprising; a Nazi soldier surrounds two relatively small werewolves, and a man dressed in a lab coat observes things away from the crowd. He is yelling for them not to kill them!

He is demanding that they suppress them with the tranquilizers; one of the men raises his voice and yells, "We don't have any more left."

I've seen all I need to and in a flash. I've removed one of the soldier's daggers, a Schutzstaffel given to Hitler's top-ranked authority. I slit his and the three others' throats.

I have the dagger to the doctor's neck. I ask him in German what he is doing out here. I don't need a verbal response. He's thinking of his plans to experiment on the werewolves. I plunge the dagger into his neck to the hilt so its tip sticks out the other side.

The werewolves shift, they are just young teenagers, which explains their smaller size.

"What are you two doing out here? Are you okay?"

It takes a moment, and in Russian, the boy says. "Thank you, Sir; my sisters and I are trying to make it safely."

"Is there more of you?"

He motions, and three small girls come forward from the trees, handing them their clothes and they quickly dress.

"I am the base commander here, and I can guarantee you safety and food."

The boy is about to say something, and the teenage girl talks over the boy, saying. "Thank you; yes, that would be a blessing."

She scoops one of the little girls up, and her brother grabs the other two.

I take them to my tent and have food and water brought to them. They eat as I conduct my morning meeting.

The youngest eats a bit, she then crawls on my newly replaced bed, now just a cot. She's asleep before the others finish eating. I sit at the table and talk with the two oldest.

"My name is Marika, and this is my twin brother Marc; we're thirteen."

She points to the next oldest and says. "That's Nina; she is seven, and this one on my lap is our sister Natalia; she is four, and the baby is Nelya; she's two."

"I'm Gabriel. Can I trust that all of us will keep each other's secret hidden for now?"

Marc says, "That sounds like a perfect plan; it allows us time to relax.

"Do you mind me asking how you all ended up here?"

Talking in English, Marika says, "My English is poor, but the babies do not speak this language. They do not know our parents, our pack, everyone; all were killed."

"I'm so very sorry. Where are you all headed?"

Marc looks down at the floor and Marika answers. "We don't know."

"Do you know of family members who might have lived somewhere else, like a cousin?"

Marc sadly says, "No, we all stayed together."

Marika reverts to Russian and says. "We hid in the root cellar, and my mother threw a rug down and pulled the kitchen table over it, and she and my father ran from the house screaming for us to make the men think we were missing. It took us two days to wedge the table enough to get out. I can't talk about the rest."

"That is completely fine. Will you five feel comfortable staying here? This is my tent, and it's one of the biggest. I'll have my desk moved to another tent."

Marika looked at Marc, then said, "Yes, and thank you so much. Just until we can figure something out."

I called one of my men in and told them to bring four more cots and blankets and whatever else he could find.

"We have these two bags with clothes and some personal items, but we didn't want to carry too much because when we shifted, the girls had to carry them."

"The girls, how did they keep up with you two?"

"Nina rode on Mark, and Natalia rode on me with Nelya under her pinned down."

"You are all brilliant and brave, and I will ensure you are safe here."

That evening I tell Ava about how I rescued the children last night, and how their entire family and small village had been killed.

She insists on meeting them; Ava and I carry cookies and milk to the children. She couldn't believe how they had been able to be so brave. I thought if she only knew how brave she was, but it's for the best, she doesn't.

So far, Mikhail's spell has been working; I pray it holds. Ava was thrilled to meet the children, and before we'd left, she had Nelya on her lap, snuggling her.

As we left the tent, Ava looked at me and said, "Gabriel, we have to take care of them. We have to protect them."

There is a sense of urgency in her voice, and I reassure her we would.

Ava fell asleep in my arms like last night, but I couldn't sleep. I felt uneasy, and I decided to see Mikhail and Tatiana. I tell them about the children and Tatiana's eyes light up, and she plans on visiting them in the morning. Explaining that they are werewolves causes Mikhail to become worried.

"Werewolf bites are deadly to your kind, Gabriel, but I'm sure you know this."

I didn't tell him I only found out two hundred years ago. We speak about my uneasy feelings, and he agrees something is off. After hearing he had the same unease, I left and went to my comms specialist and had him radio a few other bases, but no one else had any worries. I put us on high alert and readied Hell Squad. I radioed for additional flybys and had our ground-to-air defense ready flack cannons.

I might be overthinking things, but something didn't seem right. We hadn't had any wounded for a day, things had been too quiet. Ava spent most of the morning with the children. She brought them over to the medical unit with Tatiana. Mikhail was working on a spell that looked like a chemistry experiment more than magic and asked for a vial of my blood.

He looks up and softly whispers, "Tatiana got one of her feelings before you arrived, and I would like to check the safety of the barriers I keep up around this area."

Surveying the area, he explains, "These are invisible shields, minor in form, designed to protect against gunfire and similar threats."

I didn't hesitate to donate my blood, but it reacted violently when it came into contact with his work. Mikhail's expression shifts from the calm, collected demeanor of a physician to one of concern, yet he remains in control of his emotions.

Tendrils sprouted from his hands, rapidly expanding and ascending. Watching the tendrils of blue, ethereal air materialize, twist, and turn, my concern intensified. I observe as he works the air, and a cloud materializes before us.

Mikhail's eyes turn white, his hands still in motion, and the tendrils shift to red as he opens his eyes. Casting the tendrils to the ground, he begins to walk away from the tent, wielding his magic openly.

Tatiana turns pale as she rushes towards Mikhail, chanting and placing her hands on his arm. With each step he takes, the tendrils he conjures grow threefold, forming a shield that envelops the children, Ava, myself, him, and Tatiana. A blue force field now surrounds us, providing protection.

The thunderous roar of engines shatters the stillness, intensifying with each passing moment.