Dark Possession

By J Thompson

For over 200 years, Sebastian has served his kind as the best tracker ever bred for the Enforcers. Until the night of his Taking ceremony. With his bonded, his mate, stolen from him, Sebastian drowns himself in sorrow and blocks everything from his mind but the need to hunt—desperate heart be damned

Aria was lost. Stolen from her love, tortured beyond reason, she felt the clutches of darkness suffocating her. And on the brink of that darkness was the sharp, painful edge of need for something she no longer had. She knows she needs to escape, to fight, but will it all be too little too late?

Can Sebastian find the drive to win back his fated? Can Aria use the last of her strength to break free?

Their desire to be together again should be enough, but the demons that haunt them threaten to tear them both apart for good.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bryant Street Publishing
• Release date: Oct 17, 2023
• ISBN: 9781094461281

J Thompson

J. Thompson is a USA Today Bestselling Author of Paranormal and Sci-Fi romance and a major fan of procrastination. Jenn has always loved history, so using her wild imagination and tying in her love of history and fantasy, she began a new adventure into the world of words. Weaving romance into old worlds and giving life to her mythical inspired novels is what Jenn does best, and she has a lot more planned in the future, including some hard assed demons. When she isn't bent over her laptop with the crazy writer eyes, you will find Jenn making jewellery, cross stitching and it doing paper crafts. Jenn is also an avid lover old skool skills like archery and sword fighting. Maybe a touch nuts Jenn is an author who believes wholeheartedly that people are good and that everyone deserves romance - even Hades. Keep up to date by checking out https://jthompsonauthor.com/

Book preview

1

CAN THIS BE REAL?

Four Years Earlier

Aria moaned as she moved. Every muscle in her body protested and ached. The bruises that covered her would remain long after their physical marks faded. She flinched as she tried to shift. She knew the drill by heart now. They would let her heal, and when they thought she was strong enough again, they would come for her—and the abuse would begin anew.

They had taken everything from her. Her captors had left nothing save for what was left of her sanity. It had been this way for so long, she could barely remember her life before.

Cracking her eyes open, she winced as sunlight filled her orbs, causing yet another moan to fall from her lips. Confusion filled her. She had not seen the sun in so long, she had forgotten what it felt like to have its warmth against her skin. The last thing she remembered was being left alone and cold in the crumbling room that had become her cage, awaiting her captor as she always did. Then nothing but screams and a red haze.

Pushing herself up and into a seated position, Aria finally had the courage to open her eyes fully. Colour greeted her, along with a warm breeze. Her vision slightly blurry, she realised her right eye was still shut, swollen from the beating she had taken. Even with that, she knew she was topside, in the human world, and no longer locked in that room. Somehow, she had escaped. Tilting her head back against the brickwork behind her, she let out a quiet sob. After so long, she was free—free to feel the breeze against her skin and the sun on her face.

Memories of before her capture blurred in her mind, fuzzy from age, but she remembered what it felt like to belong and not be owned. She remembered deep brown eyes that held warmth and love, remembered his soothing voice, yet she could recall little else. Her body spasmed from the pain that flowed through her, and she groaned, tears freely flowing down her face as she let the darkness come.

She was finally free.

2

SURVIVAL AT ITS BEST

Aria swept the cloth over the table and smiled at the customer, who politely moved their mug out of her way. No matter how often the tables were cleaned, they would always have that nasty layer of grease on them. That’s what you got in a small, back-alley greasy spoon whose speciality was bangers and eggs. But it suited her needs.

The hours were early, but she didn’t sleep much anymore, hadn’t since that first day she had been taken. How could she when every creak, every sound, kept her awake and brought back memories? Aria shuddered but kept cleaning. As soon as she finished one table she moved on to the next. She needed to keep busy. She couldn’t stop and let her mind wander, couldn’t let herself think. If she started to think, then she would revert to the scared female she had been before. That wasn’t an option. Not now.

Aria, order up, Colin’s voice shouted over the radio. Aria tucked the cloth into her apron and quickly headed over. Colin was a large man, but he was kind, even though he was fussy about how things were done. The way he spoke, it was like he was the head chef at a five-star restaurant. He preferred the food to be served straight away, no messing about. She had learned quickly, especially after watching him sack three waitresses in two weeks for ‘being lazy’.

He was a hard taskmaster, but she was grateful. He was the only one who had taken pity on her when she stumbled across his doorstep at 5am, dressed in only a nightshift and covered in bruises. He had simply cleaned her up and let her sleep until she was healed. No questions asked. Not even when she stated she had no ID or bank account.

Aria had never needed anything like that before. She had never left Helvetia, so she never needed them. She owed Colin, but she knew his kindness wouldn’t last if she didn’t pull her weight. So, she worked all the hours he needed and never complained.

Here you go. Would you like any sauces with that? Aria asked. It was the standard question and had become automatic to her now. A harsh contrast to how she started life.

She had been born into a world that differed from the one she now resided in. Helvetia was not on the same plane of existence and was home to a multitude of different paranormal races. It was created long ago when humans had declared war. Giving her kind and others a haven.

Aria was a succubi female, one of a few, and from what she had witnessed, one of many that had been taken from their homes and trafficked. It was also one of the reasons why she never returned home after escaping. She wouldn’t be accepted, not now.

Vampyres, in their pursuit of the perfect feed, had discovered that succubi females’ blood was like a drug, ten times more potent than marijuana and with the bonus of an aphrodisiac. So, they coveted it, but in their quest for the ultimate high, they were destroying the females. With as little as four bites, a succubi female would become addicted to the very bite she fought against. This addiction would become so severe that it would trigger the female to turn, becoming dangerous to all.

If this happened, the female would need to be put down. It was the law of her race. Aria didn’t want to be put down, so once she had crawled from the portal, she went the opposite way, needing to put as much distance between her and her old home as possible. Plus, she needed to hide from her captors. She didn’t doubt they had been looking for her. No female had ever escaped before. Her memories were so fuzzy of the time she lived there she could barely remember names, never mind faces. Well, except for brown eyes, like chocolate.

So, Aria hid and pretended to be human. She ignored her body’s wants and needs. She ignored everything that set her apart as different. Just tried her best to blend in.

Moving on to the next table, Aria tried to stop her thoughts from going back over the events of the past. It was easier said than done.

Aria, take this to table four and then you are done for the day. Molly is here for her shift, Colin’s voice called out as she passed the dirty dishes through the small hatch to the kitchen.

Will do, Colin. Thank you. See you in the morning, Aria answered, delivering the plates quickly and then heading towards the back of the building. She quickly hung up her apron and walked out of the backdoor.

Another thing Colin had done was give her use of the small outbuilding. It had been turned into a small dwelling at some point in the past. It was small, cold, and dirty, but it was a safe place for her to rest. But she couldn’t rest today. Errands that couldn’t be ignored were on the agenda. Errands that couldn’t be missed or put off. It was something she had never been prepared for in the succubi world. No, everything had been given to her, and she had taken that for granted.

She hated having to go out and hated feeling like everyone was watching her. The only thing that went in her favour was she only ever ventured out in the day. She never left the safety of her small home at night, not when that risked encountering the vampyres. She would rather die than ever go back to being their slave.

After changing from her plain black skirt and white blouse into a pair of faded baggy jeans, a loose hoodie and a jacket, Aria slipped a large, baggy hat over her head. All she needed to do was go to the small shop a few streets away and then to the pharmacy. She would get what she needed and be back before anyone could take notice of her. She needed her medication. Whatever the vampyres had done to her had not turned her. No, something else had happened to Aria. Something a lot more frightening.

She wasn't a killing machine bent on death and destruction like she had been told as a child—the stories told to keep naughty children in line. Instead, it was something different, almost like she was a powder keg, filled with a need she knew she could never satisfy. If she opened that box, there was no way in this world or her own that she would be able to close it again.

Four years she had managed to survive. She was strong. Stronger than she ever was before.

Yet she questioned how much longer she could keep this up.

3

CHANGE IS FOR THE GOOD

Sebastian had his eyes closed, but he knew it was Cooper who had stomped into what was now his office and thrown himself down on the chair on the other side of his desk. He knew because that male never closed his mouth. Ever. He was always talking.

So, Seb… Cooper started, but without even opening his eyes, Sebastian had his hand raised, halting the warrior’s words. Slowly, Sebastian opened his eyes and looked at the other male. Like most succubi warriors, he was big, only he was the tallest out of them all at over seven feet in height, with the muscle to match. With his grey eyes and dirty blonde hair, he was also a good-looking bastard, and didn’t Cooper know it.

Please tell me you came in here to inform me you have more information from the vampyre, Sebastian sighed. Cooper was supposed to have dealt with Gabriel back at the vampyre mansion, when they had rescued Constance, but instead, he had brought the vamp back to their own compound for a more intense questioning.

Cooper was not only an excellent tracker, but he was also very adept at getting information. Both him and his blade.

I have, Cooper stated, as he slowly unwrapped a sherbet lemon he had pulled from his pocket. Cooper also had a sweet tooth. He was full of random, useless information.

Anything more on the females that were sold? Sebastian pushed. Anything else on the one that escaped? Sebastian felt sick inside at the thought of the females being subjected to the vampyres’ lusts and feeding. He felt anger, deep, resounding anger, at the fact they were betrayed and sold by the very people who were supposed to protect them.

Michael had betrayed not just the females but the whole race, and for that he deserved the end he received, but a part of him wished he could bring the bastard back to life just to inflict more pain on him.

They were slowly uncovering the true depth of his betrayal. Under table deals with the vampyres and lycans, crossing lines that, if word had gotten out, would have started a paranormal war between all the factions. It was still a possibility, but they were trying to perform damage limitation as much as possible.

The more they investigated Michael’s activities for answers, the more questions they had. It had made the new queen angry when it became apparent that he had not only sold the succubi females but had had a hand in the brutal facilities that were experimenting on the paranormals.

Constance had been in quite the unladylike rage, but then again, Constance was no ordinary queen. She had been welcomed by the race and they loved her for her honesty and strength.

Sebastian, though, felt the betrayal as a personal insult. Not only had Michael taken their females, but he had also taken Sebastian’s female. Aria had been his. They had both known it since a young age. Sebastian had always watched over her, making sure she was safe.

Yet the day of their bonding ceremony, somehow her, and the ladies that were escorting her, had vanished. Taken from the palace with no sign of who or what had stolen them. Sebastian remembered the pain that swept through him when he was told. It had felt like his soul had withered and died. He should have questioned Michael more, but he had been too overcome by grief.

He loved Aria with everything he was, despite the years that had passed. He’d spent years combing the streets in search of her, fighting anyone or anything that stood in his way. It had taken Dominic to bring him out of the darkness, yet it was always there, lurking beneath the surface, waiting to be unleashed. Even now he refused to give up hope that one day he would find her again or get word. The not knowing was what hurt the most. He had accepted his failings for not doing his sworn duty. That was something he could and would never forgive himself for.

He couldn’t confirm the name of the female that escaped. Apparently, he was only the front to the business. He was called the master and was who Michael liaised with, but he wasn’t the brains behind it. Hell, that vamp is off his tits. He’s spent the last few years high as a kite on a selection of drugs and blood, Cooper stated, his voice calm as he chewed the sweet. Yet Sebastian knew he felt the same rage that filled him. All the enforcers did. Forgetting a select few that had perished with Michael, every enforcer within the succubi ranks had pledged their loyalty to Queen Constance.

Right, anything else? Sebastian looked at his hands. His stark bonding marks were dark against his skin—a testament to how deeply he loved Aria. The bonding marks had appeared almost instantly after they were intimate—something that should have waited until after the ceremony. Technically that was. Most couples didn’t want to wait. Aria’s had matched his own.

Just a warning.

What warning?

The usual: danger, we are messing with forces we can’t handle... blah, blah.

Is he dead? Sebastian asked, hoping he was. The last thing he needed was to go back to Dom and inform him that the vamp was still alive. That male had somehow had the balls to sink his fangs into the queen, Dom’s mate. He was already dead. He just hadn’t realised it yet, and when Dom found out… well, it wouldn’t be pretty.

No, he’s tied up nice and pretty in his cell. I wanted to offer him as a wedding gift to Dom. Cooper grinned. I didn’t get a card, so thought this would be okay.

Sebastian smirked slightly and shook his head. You are a fucking nutcase. You know that, Coop?

Oh yeah, course I do. It’s why you all love me. Right, I’m off to the kitchen. Cooper stood. Torture is such hard work. Gives me the munchies it does.

With that, the male left, leaving Sebastian once again alone with his own thoughts. The female that had escaped stayed on his mind. Regardless of who it had been, the escape had happened four years previously. Could a lone female have survived on the streets for that long? And if so, why hadn’t she come home?

Questions that couldn't be answered filled his mind. He hated the not knowing. He hated feeling powerless.

Standing, Sebastian smoothed out his shirt. He would meet with Dom, and then he would have the enforcers training again. If the vamp was right, then they would have to be ready, and ready they would be. Dominic had given him free rein with the training, and he would be changing things up a bit. There were changes happening, ones that Sebastian welcomed.

He grinned at the prospect. He may have to train them, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t have fun whilst doing it.

4

WEDDED BLISS

W oman, get your fine backside back into this bed, Dominic growled out without opening his eyes. He had reached across to take his mate into his arms, and all that met him was empty space and cool sheets. He could hear her in the next room, but that