by Tina Folsom
“It’s too wide to jump over it,” Zoltan said, looking at Enya, whose eyes were wide. For the first time, he saw real fear in them.
“This is it,” she murmured, and slung her arms around him.
He put his hands on her shoulders. “No, it’s not. There’s another way.” There had to be. “We have to reach the tunnel that connects to the portal from the other side.”
“But how? How are we gonna reach it? We can’t just pass through who knows how many yards of stone wall.”
Zoltan blinked. “No, not through here. But parallel to this tunnel, there’s an older one. Its entrance collapsed years ago. But the exit on the other side is open.” He took her hand in his and pulled her back in the direction they’d come from. “This way.”
He let his eyes roam over the tunnel walls, looking for the spot where, years earlier, a parallel tunnel had caved in after an earthquake. The demons had never bothered excavating it, since they’d had another path to reach the caves that lay behind it.
Finally, he saw the formation of rocks that indicated the collapsed tunnel. He pointed to it. “Here.” They stopped in front of it.
“How thick is the rock here?” Enya asked.
“Three to four yards max.”
She nodded. “You’re fully Stealth Guardian now.” Her voice trembled, telling him that she knew the risk he was taking, not having tried going through walls before. “You can do it. Just think it, and it will happen.”
He nodded. If something went wrong, and he didn’t make it through the wall and into the tunnel behind, at least Enya would make it. “The tunnel is maybe a hundred and fifty yards long. At the end of it, turn right and you’ll see the entrance to the cave with the portal. If I don’t make it through, don’t wait for me. Just leave.”
She shook her head. “Not gonna happen.” She clutched his hand. “Let’s go.”
Together they walked into the wall, and to Zoltan’s relief, he didn’t feel any resistance. He didn’t bounce back, didn’t hit his head. He felt nothing pushing against him. A moment later, they were through. The tunnel before them was clear of any obstruction, clear of any lava.
Still holding hands, they sprinted toward the end of the tunnel, turned right, then ran into the small cave ahead of them. Enya slammed her hand onto the portal’s symbol, and a second later, it opened.
They jumped inside. Zoltan glanced over his shoulder and noticed the floor at the entrance to the cave giving way, falling into the ever-expanding stream of lava. Then everything went black. The door to the portal had closed.
He put both arms around Enya, then felt a faint vibration—the bomb to blow up the portal was exploding. But they were already teleporting. Zoltan felt Enya let out a sigh of relief.
“You did it,” Enya said.
“We did it.” He kissed her.
Moments later, he released Enya from his embrace.
The portal opened, and she stepped out ahead of him. Zoltan heard her gasp before he saw why. Two men and a woman Zoltan had never seen before were part of their welcoming committee comprising vampires and Stealth Guardians. Nevertheless, he recognized one of the newcomers immediately. Their gazes locked on to each other. The man visibly shook before his knees buckled.
35
Cinead didn’t collapse. Virginia was by his side, steadying him just in time, and he seemed to regain his strength quickly.
“I should have the whole lot of you locked up in a lead cell,” Barclay thundered. He glared at the entire contingent of the Baltimore compound, then pointed to the vampires. “And to drag our allies into this behind the council’s back… despicable! You’ll all have to answer for this.”
That one of the men he was accusing was his own son, Aiden, didn’t seem to matter much to primus, the head of the Council of Nine. Clearly, Aiden knew it, because he kept his mouth shut.
“So I guess somebody blabbed,” Enya said, tipping her chin up. She wasn’t afraid of anything right now. She’d just escaped certain death. Whatever Barclay and the council could do to her now was a slap on the wrist in comparison.
Barclay narrowed his eyes—by the looks of it, ready to douse her in a barrage of insults—but Virginia put a hand on his shoulder.
“Allow me.” As a member of the council, she had the same voting rights as Barclay and Cinead. “Yes, somebody blabbed, as you call it.” She motioned to Samson and Amaury. “As you know, Blake is good friends with Wes. He couldn’t wait to tell him what you all were planning. In fact, he sounded a bit jealous that you didn’t need him to join you. And since you, Enya, had asked Wes and Charles about a miracle cure for a demon named Zoltan, well, it wasn’t hard for him to put two and two together. So, when he got home and I asked him about his day, he told me about your idiotic plan, even saying he was surprised the council authorized it.”
Barclay huffed. “Yes, imagine our surprise, since we never got to vote on this.”
“I take full responsibility,” Enya said. “I talked the others into it. It’s not their fault. I made them do it.”
Before Barclay could respond, Zoltan stepped forward. “It was my idea. Therefore, I take the blame. Do with me what you want. But spare Enya and the others. They did what they thought was right.”
Barclay looked at Cinead.
For the first time, Cinead spoke up. “And was it right?”
Zoltan turned his head to look at him. He nodded. “It was. We defeated them. All three vortex circles flooded with lava. They’re destroyed. And the portal we carved and which brought us back was rigged to explode behind us. I heard the explosion. The demons are imprisoned in the Underworld. There’s no way out for them. And no way for the demons currently topside to return. They’ll be easy pickings. We’ll chase them down and kill them, until none is left.”
“We?” Cinead asked, and looked Zoltan up and down, scrutinizing him as if seeing him for the first time. “So you have no regrets having destroyed your own kingdom? It is your kingdom, Zoltan, isn’t it?”
Zoltan nodded. “Yes, and I had no choice but to destroy the Underworld. I did it for Enya and our unborn child.”
Gasps came from the three council members, and Enya instinctively took Zoltan’s hand. They were in this together, and whatever punishment they would receive, she would take her share to lighten his.
“Is that true?” Barclay asked, looking at Enya.
“Yes, Primus, I carry Zoltan’s child.” She turned to Cinead. “Your grandchild. You must have guessed it already. I saw the way you stared at Zoltan when we arrived. You saw yourself in him, didn’t you? You already know that he’s your son. He’s Angus.”
Cinead’s lips quivered, and it took a few seconds before he had the strength to speak. “I didn’t dare hope.” He looked at Zoltan. “Not after Winter told me that he was a demon. In my mind, I buried him then.” He shook his head. “I buried you because I saw no hope. No way of redemption for you.” He lifted his hands as if wanting to reach for Zoltan. “Yet you stand before me, the aura of a Stealth Guardian surrounding you. And I don’t understand how it happened. How you were able to cast out the demon.”
Zoltan leaned toward Enya and put his hand on her flat belly. “My child saved me. My child’s virta gave me back my real self.”
Enya smiled at him. “He has all his Stealth Guardian powers back, and his blood is red now. There’s no demon left in him.”
Cinead nodded to Barclay and Virginia. “A word.”
While the three stepped aside to talk quietly to each other, Enya’s brethren came closer.
“We thought we’d lost you,” Hamish said, and pulled her into a quick embrace. Then he looked to Zoltan and squeezed his shoulder. “Both of you.”
“Yeah, what happened down there?” Aiden asked.
“Enya saved my life,” Zoltan said. “I got cornered by the traitor’s partner, Tamara. She attacked me just as I went into another convulsion.”
When the others stared at him, confused, Enya explained, “Zoltan turning back in
to a Stealth Guardian came with spasms so bad that I thought he was dying. The second wave hit him down in the Underworld, gave him all his powers, but practically incapacitated him while it happened.”
Zoltan took her hand and squeezed it. “You came just in time.”
Behind them, Quinn piped up, “And the vortex circles and our portal? You sure they all blew up and were destroyed?”
Zoltan chuckled. “Yeah, about that. Do you think you were overdoing it a little on the explosives?”
Quinn shrugged. “Maybe I added a little extra just to make sure.”
“Yeah, you did,” Zoltan replied.
Enya smiled. “In fact, the explosions were so powerful that the tunnels started flooding with lava. Cut off our route to the portal.”
Hamish gasped. “Then how did you make it out?”
“There are advantages to having grown up in the Underworld,” Zoltan said. “I knew every corner down there, and I knew of a tunnel entrance that had collapsed years ago, but I knew the tunnel behind it was still intact and led to the portal…”
“And with Zoltan’s powers intact, we just passed through the stone wall and got out on the other side. We reached the portal with only seconds to spare.”
Manus and Logan shook their heads.
“Gotta hand it to you,” Manus said, and looked at Enya, “when you want something bad enough, you do whatever it takes.”
“Don’t we all?” Logan asked.
Everybody laughed. Then Enya looked at the vampires. “Samson, Amaury, Quinn, Ryder, I don’t know how to thank you guys. You risked so much for me, for us.”
“That’s what friends do,” Samson said.
“Thank you,” Zoltan said. “One day, I hope to be able to repay you for what you did.”
Samson shook his head. “Friends don’t have to repay friends. We’re just glad we could help.” He motioned to where the three council members were talking quietly. “But I’m not the boss here.”
Moments later, Barclay, Cinead, and Virginia rejoined them.
“For today, I suggest you all get cleaned up and get some rest,” Barclay said. “But this isn’t over. That goes for all of you. Do we understand each other?”
All members of the Baltimore compound nodded.
“Good,” Barclay said. “Well, I guess that concludes the official portion of our visit.” His expression relaxed, and a grin spread on his face. “You guys did it, you really did it! I don’t know what to say.”
“How about congratulations?” Virginia suggested.
Cinead nodded. “Well done, all of you.” Then he took a few steps closer until he stood in front of Zoltan. “Well done, my son.” His eyes were filled with myriad emotions. “I don’t know whether I’ll ever get used to your name, but maybe you’ll allow an old man to call you by the name he gave you when you were but a wee bairn.”
Enya noticed Zoltan swallow hard. “Nothing would give me greater joy…” He hesitated for a second. “Father.”
36
There was an inquiry before the Council of Nine, but in the end, Zoltan destroying the Underworld for good and risking his life doing so outweighed all bad deeds he’d committed as a demon. The members of the Baltimore compound were scolded for acting on their own and without the council’s approval, yet no punishment was levied on any of them. The vampires who’d been crucial in the destruction of the Underworld returned home after a talk behind closed doors. Their alliance remained intact and was stronger than ever. For once, things had worked out for everybody.
Another thing had also come to light: the reason why Enya had gotten pregnant even though she wasn’t bonded and therefore considered infertile. In the council’s archives, Cinead had found old scriptures warning Stealth Guardians never to copulate with demons. According to the writings, a demon’s semen initiated the same chemical response in a Stealth Guardian as a bonding: the Stealth Guardian became fertile instantly. Enya conceiving had been inevitable.
Zoltan opened the door to Enya’s private quarters and entered. He wasn’t used to simply walking through it yet. It would take a while until he’d be comfortable with all the changes his body had gone through in the last few days. At the same time, he finally felt whole. There were no more migraine attacks, no more lingering doubts. He was a Stealth Guardian, and virta was coursing through his veins now, making him yearn for his mate more than ever before.
“You’re back.” Enya rose from the sofa, stifling a yawn. She wore nothing but a pink see-through negligée. “How is Cinead?”
He approached, never taking his eyes off her lovely form. “He’s happy, I think. Though when he showed me a portrait of my mother, I noticed tears in his eyes. I didn’t call him on it. Didn’t want to embarrass him. I still don’t really know him.” He shrugged. “I put my hand on his shoulder, and I think he appreciated the gesture.”
Enya smiled. “Over time, you’ll get to know him better. He’s a good man.”
“I can feel it when I look at him. I hope I can live up to his expectations.” Zoltan sighed. “I was evil for so long. I hope I can be good for even longer.”
Enya reached for his hands and pulled him to her. “I’ll make sure of it. You’ll never have to worry about slipping back into evil. I’ll always have your back.”
Zoltan put his arms around her and lifted her up, bringing her head level with his. “I’m counting on it.” He walked toward the bed. “Are you very tired?”
She chuckled. “Never too tired for that.”
“Am I that transparent?”
“I can feel your hard-on. It’s a dead giveaway.”
“Can’t blame a man for reacting like that when his wife greets him dressed in nothing but a flimsy negligée that leaves nothing to the imagination.”
“Would you rather I greet you dressed in battle uniform?”
“I’m not complaining, just explaining.” He gently laid her on the bed, then began to undress, until he stood in front of her without a stitch.
He noticed Enya run her eyes over his naked body and lick her lips.
Zoltan grinned. “I’m glad you’re not a woman who plays coy. With you I always know where I stand.”
“Playing coy is for amateurs.”
Without another word, he lowered himself over her, pushing her legs apart in the process to make space for himself. With one hand he shoved her negligée up to her waist, while he balanced his weight on the other.
Enya put her hands on his hips, drawing him closer, until his cock nudged at the entrance to her body.
“Hmm,” she said. “I’ve been thinking of this all day.”
“Of this?” He plunged deep and hard into her.
“Yesssss!”
“That makes two.” Whenever he was away from her, even if it was only for a few hours, he longed for her. Longed for this special connection, for the way they shared their life force, their souls with each other.
Sex had taken on another dimension. It was more intense, gave him more satisfaction, more joy, and more happiness. Being with Enya was fulfillment he could have never dreamed of. Every touch was magic, every movement part of a sensual dance that they only danced with each other. A dance that was theirs, and theirs alone. They had no secrets from each other any longer. Because they were one.
Overwhelmed by his love for Enya, Zoltan called to his virta and allowed it to pour into her, to fill her body, her every cell, until her skin shimmered golden, and waves of orgasm after orgasm shook her body.
“I love you,” she murmured between moans. “Zoltan, you’re mine, all mine.”
“I’ll always be yours. Your master and your subject. You’re my queen and my slave, my mistress, the only woman who’ll ever rule my heart.”
And nothing would ever change that.
37
Seven months later
Zoltan rushed into the mini medical center at the Baltimore compound just in time to see Leila press a tiny bundle into Enya’s arms.
“It’s a boy,” Leila
announced, and looked over her shoulder. She smiled. “What took you so long?”
“Killing a few stragglers,” Zoltan said, and rushed toward the hospital bed Enya was in. Over the last few months, he and the other Stealth Guardians at the compound had made sure the demons who’d been topside when the vortex circles were destroyed were taken care of. His dagger was stained with their green blood, and soon the day would come when every last one of them was dead.
“My son was early, huh?” he said with pride as he reached the bed.
Enya’s long hair was sweat-dampened, her face glistening, yet she wore a smile. “He’s got brown eyes.”
She met his gaze, and Zoltan kissed her. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here, babe. I’m sorry you had to do this alone.”
She chuckled. “I’m glad you missed this. It was kind of messy, and Leila handled it much better than you would have.” She looked to where Leila was drying her hands. “Thanks, Leila, for everything.”
“I’ll leave you guys alone.”
A moment later, Zoltan heard the double doors close behind her, but he was already looking at his son. His healthy baby boy. He exhibited the aura of a Stealth Guardian, and already had a full head of dark hair.
“We’ll name him Angus, if you’re all right with that,” Zoltan said.
“Your father will like that.”
Zoltan brushed his knuckle over the baby’s rosy cheek. “He’s perfect.”
“He looks like you.”
“Maybe the next one will be a girl and look like you.”
The baby suddenly gripped his finger and pulled it to its mouth, trying to suckle on it.
“Looks like he’s hungry,” Enya said. She tucked on her gown to free one breast, but the baby turned impatient and started crying.
“Hey, Angus,” Zoltan cooed, “you’ll get fed in a second.” He reached for him so Enya could open her gown in the front. But the baby kept crying. Zoltan stared at his son. “Oh my God.”
