by J. N. Baker
The Chosen were never meant to rule, I wanted to tell him.
“I don’t know, Josh,” I said instead, turning away from him. “I just have this feeling Baldric won’t—or can’t—let go of all this.” Or me.
“Bridges to cross when we get to them,” Josh said into my hair, kissing the back of my head. “First things first, we kill the man who ripped our world apart. And maybe Alec for good measure.”
A slow grin spread across my face. “I get William, you get Alec.”
Josh easily turned me so that I was straddling him, the hard length of his now fully erect cock rubbing against my core. “And then I get you.”
Josh lifted me just enough to sink back into me one last time before we had to clean up and head back to the castle.
After finding a small river to wash ourselves in, Josh headed back to the kingdom ahead of me so as to not cause suspicion. Probably wouldn’t have gone over so well if we both skipped our happy asses back at the exact same time.
Josh was hesitant to leave me alone in the darkness, but he knew I could take care of myself if need be. I appreciated that, despite his innate need to protect me, deep down he did know I could handle my own. He knew I’d been through hell and back—a few times. He just wanted to keep me from going again. And I loved him for that.
Heading in the direction of Baldric’s castle, I slowly made my way through snow-covered fields, trying to time it so I returned no less than thirty minutes after Josh did. The longer the better.
“You should not be alone,” a familiar voice rasped. A voice that seemed to be less and less raspy with each of our meetings.
I turned to see Kaziel stepping through the darkness, glowing yellow eyes meeting mine. Were its eyes smaller? The shadow creature gave me no more than a simple nod in greeting.
“Clearly, I’m not alone,” I said, motioning to it. “You always seem to be just a call away.”
Kaziel didn’t comment on this, instead it stepped closer. “You are still with the dark one.” It wasn’t a question.
I leveled my gaze with the creature. “Aren’t they both dark? I’m simply with the less dark of the two…for now,” I added, and it was the truth, because no matter what Baldric said, I wouldn’t remain with him forever. Josh and I had a plan.
“So, you have chosen a side then?” it asked. “You will serve the dark one now?”
I paused, choosing my words carefully. It wasn’t long ago that Kaziel was working for William. Then again, he’d jumped ship pretty quick to join Team Zoe. The shadow people wanted to find redemption and they would follow whoever they thought would give that to them. Kaziel and its little merry band of misfits apparently thought I was that someone.
“I serve neither,” I finally answered. “I have chosen to do whatever is best for this world and everyone left in it. If that means killing William, then I will do it. If it means killing both of them to end it all, then I’ll do that too. Whatever it takes.”
The creature nodded. “Good. Then you are far wiser than we ever were. For too many centuries, my kind believed it had to choose one or the other. We thought there was no other choice—until you. You have shown us there is another path. Though there are those of my kind that have yet to accept that.”
“Those still following William?”
Again, Kaziel nodded. “We have served both the dark one and the evil one since the fall of the Chosen.”
The evil one? After what I’d learned of William, that was a fitting name for him.
“When did you work for Baldric?” I asked. William had never mentioned it before. Though there was a lot William had failed to tell me. No, not failed. That made it sound accidental. Refused. There was a lot he’d refused to tell me.
“We served the dark one—Baldric—after the fall of his kind,” Kaziel answered. “He was the first we served. We tried to help him find and destroy the evil one. We were with him for many centuries before switching our allegiance.”
“The ‘dark one’ wasn’t doing it for you guys so you thought the ‘evil one’ would somehow be better? The one who literally made a deal with the Devil for more power?” I couldn’t stop the level of sass in my voice. I mean, really?
The creature narrowed its definitely smaller eyes at me.
“As I said, our kind believed those were our only options. We thought our salvation had to come through that which led to our demise. You must understand, salvation is all my kind seeks. We have been in darkness for far too long. We would do just about anything to get out of it. When we did not find what we sought through years of servitude to Baldric, we believed we had no choice but to turn to William. And yet, we found no redemption with him either. Only further damnation. But that is a story for another night, and one I will tell you. You have my word. Tonight, however, I have come to warn you.”
A large part of me wanted to push to hear the rest of Kaziel’s story now. I had a feeling it would be important. I also had a feeling he wouldn’t tell me and as much as I trusted the creature, I didn’t really want to push it. “Warn me about what?” I finally asked.
“William’s power grows stronger.” The fact that the creature dropped “Lord” from William’s name brought me a great deal of satisfaction. Though I’d be even happier if it continued to refer to William as the “evil one.”
“Are my friends okay?” I asked, my mind going to Annie and Cody first and foremost, a small thread of panic rushing through me. I didn’t think William would hurt Annie, seeing as he thought she was his mate. Unless he found out about her and James.
“It appears so. One of Lylan’s followers has been spying for me.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “You have a double agent?” I wasn’t sure why that shocked me. After all, the shadow people had served William as spies. Not to mention fancy castle builders.
Kaziel nodded, hood fluttering in the cool breeze. “William has many new followers, nearly as many as Baldric. My informant believes they are preparing for another battle. William has already asked Lylan if they would fight for him but Lylan is holding firm to his no fighting rule.”
“But you and your followers will continue to fight?” I asked.
“For you, yes. My followers and I will fight for you until our dying breaths. Though we are few. I have only twenty that have joined me.”
Twenty mind-controlling shadow people seemed like a hell of a lot to me.
“How many does William have?”
“Over a hundred.”
I struggled to swallow. I’d seen what the shadow people were capable of firsthand when Kaziel gathered a group of the creatures and together they made an entire flock of Sythen eat themselves to death. It was one of the most disgusting things I’d ever witnessed—and I decapitated people for a living. The last thing we needed was to go against a hundred of the creatures.
“Then let’s hope Lylan remains a pacifist and stays the hell out of the battle,” I said. That was if Kaziel’s informant was right and a battle really was coming our way. I was hoping that was a big if. We didn’t need any more lives lost over this damn ancient feud. The sooner William died, the better.
“I will warn Baldric and have him send out extra guards for the time being,” I told the creature.
“That is not all,” Kaziel said and I sighed.
“Of course it isn’t.”
“If he is preparing an attack, I fear William will try to come for you first,” Kaziel warned, its yellow eyes scanning the darkness like it expected the “evil one” to show up any moment. It was disconcerting to say the least. “Without Lylan’s help, he needs more power and he knows the power you possess. With you, along with his greater numbers, he would stand a chance to defeat Baldric.”
“I will never fight for that soulless monster again,” I growled.
“He can find ways to make you. You must stay out of his clutches, Zoe,” Kaziel said, grabbing my hand. “And you should be cautious around the dark one. His intentions might have started out pure, but now darkness
consumes him nearly as much as it does William. If you are not careful, he will drag you down into the depths with him.”
I looked down to where our hands met and my own began to tremble. The hand that was once gray and rough was now almost…human. It wasn’t much different than my own, aside from the long black claws still protruding from the tips of each large finger.
I yanked out of Kaziel’s grip. “What is happening to you?”
“You are,” it replied. “You are happening to all of us.”
And then the creature turned, disappearing in the shadows, leaving me with more questions than answers.
So, basically a typical night in my life.
By the time I reached the castle gates, exhaustion had overcome me. Multiple rounds with Josh and a little bloodletting, on top of a night of very little sleep, preceded by The Best Night in the History of Nights in Zoe’s Fucked Up Life would do that to a girl, immortal or otherwise.
Not to mention my conversation with a certain shadow creature. My fingers still tingled where I’d touched it—him?
“You look dog-tired,” Lindsay said as I entered the main room.
“Nice choice of words,” I replied around a yawn that I was too tired to cover. “My walk turned into a run.” Or a quick, mind-blowing romp in the woods. But she didn’t need to know that, even if she did know Josh and I were sneaking around behind the king’s back. The fact that her nostrils weren’t flaring to life hopefully meant I’d successfully removed Josh’s scent from my body. “I’m going to go crash until dinner.”
“Do you need me to draw up a hot bath first?”
After that ice bath I’d taken in the river followed by the long journey back through the snow, I seriously considered taking her up on the offer. With a sigh, I ended up waving her off. “No, with my luck I’d fall sleep in the tub and be the first Chosen to find a way to drown. I’ll see you at dinner.”
Moving away from Lindsay, I dragged myself down the numerous hallways until I reached Baldric’s chambers, which were blessedly empty. On top of that, there was already a fire crackling in the fireplace, so I didn’t have to shiver myself to sleep—because Lord knew I was too damn tired to make one myself.
I crawled into the massive bed and wrapped the numerous blankets around me, body still humming from Josh’s fiery touches. And the memory of his touch—his kiss—lulled me into a deep and restful sleep.
But it was short-lived.
I wasn’t sure how long I’d actually been asleep in Baldric’s bed before I felt hands on me or, more specifically, one hand. Because the second one was metal.
Baldric’s fingers stroked my cheek, his prosthetic hand resting on my bicep. But it wasn’t the cold bite of metal that sent a chill creeping into my body, it was the way he was looking at me. His face was hard, his mostly black eyes boring into me.
I squinted up at him. “What?”
He shifted so his metal hand was pressed into the bed beside me, digging into the sheets in a way that gave me an eerie sense of déjà vu. I’d been here before—without actually being here. I froze, heart racing as Baldric bent over me, his long black hair cascading around my face as he pressed his lips to mine.
The kiss wasn’t long, nor was it deep—both of our lips staying firmly closed—but it caught me off guard, nonetheless.
“You are stunning,” the king said as he pulled away from me, just as he’d done in my vision. The one where I’d seen myself in Baldric’s clutches. The one William had told me would surly come to pass. And it had.
It was the one thing both Baldric and William agreed upon: the visions always came true.
Though Baldric had told me the outcome could be changed, that life could always be preserved. Did that mean my life could be saved even as Josh drove a dagger through my heart?
I didn’t see another outcome in that vision.
Standing from the bed, Baldric moved to the window as I knew he would, staring out into the endless night we were all prisoners to. “The ocean cliffs are a beautiful sight, and not even they hold a candle to you, my queen. How was your walk?”
Stunned into silence, I could do nothing but stare at his broad back. When I didn’t respond, Baldric returned to the bed and sat next to me again. Those blackened eyes smiled down at me in a way that made me uneasy. What the hell was going on?
Baldric leaned down and kissed me once more.
Shaking myself from my shocked stupor, I shoved him away. “What are you doing?” I asked, scooting to the middle of the bed to put space between us.
“Enjoying what should be mine,” Baldric purred, his eyes getting impossibly darker. “But you are not mine, are you?”
“What?” I needed to change the subject and quickly. “Look, we need to talk,” I rushed to say. “William is planning something.”
He arched a brow. “And you know this how?”
“An old friend told me.” I wasn’t about to tell Baldric about Kaziel or the other shadow people who chose to fight for me. Better to keep that card close to my chest in case I needed to use it against him one day. “They said William is amassing a small army.”
“Is he now?” Baldric asked, rising from the edge of the bed and moving through the room. That’s when I realized the fire had all but gone out. But I didn’t think that had anything to do with the chill in the room. “And where did this ‘friend’ find you, pray tell?”
“T-they found me during my walk. They’d been waiting to give me the message. I thought you’d want to know so we can prepare.”
Baldric stopped at the foot of the bed, bending over it to meet my eyes. I forced myself to hold his gaze, my blackened heart hammering against my ribcage.
…darkness consumes him nearly as much as it does William, Kaziel had told me. I was pretty sure I was staring into that darkness now.
“Was that before or after you spread your legs for Josh?”
The air left my lungs and I struggled to draw in more.
Baldric smirked and I knew he knew. “So easy to read…”
With timing that was too perfect to be mere coincidence, Josh knocked on the large wooden door before opening it. “Olive said you wanted to speak with me?”
Josh’s gaze went from Baldric, to where I sat on the bed, and then back to the king. His eyes narrowed as he closed the door behind him. “What’s going on here?”
“Nothing,” Baldric said, straightening. “We were just having a little chat about how you have been fucking my bride behind my back.”
Unlike me, Josh’s face was unflinching, revealing nothing. Though I noticed how his jaw ticked, fists clenching at his sides. The tension in the room mounted.
“Do you deny it?” Baldric asked, taking a menacing step in Josh’s direction.
Those icy eyes found mine. “No.”
Baldric was on him in a second, slamming Josh into the nearest wall, forearm pinned beneath his jaw. Josh didn’t fight back. He didn’t react at all. But beneath that calm exterior, there was a storm brewing, I could feel it.
I rushed toward them, grabbing Baldric’s other arm and trying to pull him off Josh. He whipped his arm out, planting that metal hand into my sternum and shoving me to the ground. I thought I heard Josh growl.
“How stupid do you think me?” the self-proclaimed king roared, eyes pinning me to the stone floor. “Did you not think I would smell him on you?”
“Please, Baldric,” I started, “I’ll do anything—whatever you want. Just don’t take him from me. I love him.”
He snarled at my words and then threw Josh to the ground beside me. “You do not think I know that as well?” Baldric said through his teeth, his nostrils flaring. “You were supposed to be mine.”
The door flew open and Josh and I were back on our feet. Felix and Olive stormed into the room, swords drawn.
“My king?” Olive said, scanning the room. “We heard shouting.”
“Get out!” Baldric bellowed, spit flying from his mouth. “Out!”
The vampires c
ouldn’t get out of the room fast enough, slamming the door behind them, leaving the two of us alone with the seething king. Yep, we were dead. Or, at least, I hoped it would just be death. The alternative was terrifying. After all, there were far worse things in life than death, especially at the hand of a scorned king who tended to hold grudges.
Baldric took a deep breath and blew it out, rolling the tension out of his shoulders as he stalked away from us to sit on the foot of the bed. Josh and I risked a glance.
“I have known about you two since you arrived here,” Baldric said to the dark room. “The second I saw you together in that tent, I could feel the mated bond you shared. It was palpable. A bond like that cannot be broken, not even in death. I would know…”
His voice softened and I knew he was thinking about Sera again. He was always softer when she was on his mind. Maybe Baldric—the real Baldric—really had died when she did.
“The strength of your bond is why you were able to break through the glamour I placed on him,” Baldric continued, back still to us as he motioned to Josh. “A normally impossibly feat. I meant what I had told you before: I knew you were not Sera from the beginning. And yet still, like a fool, I had hoped. It only took that first kiss in front of the teleport to know it could never be. You may look like my Sera, but you are not her. I feel nothing for you. Absolutely nothing.”
It was at this point Baldric finally turned to face us, his eyes finding mine. They weren’t quite as dark now. “In fact, looking at you—being around you—brings me only pain. You remind me of everything I have lost. Of what I will never get back. There were many times I thought of killing you and ending the suffering you bring me. But I could not get myself to do it.”
