by Kristie Cook
But seeing Vanessa touching him revolted me. The emotions—combined with Tristan’s intensifying power—started to weaken my resolve.
I can’t do this. I can’t hold him.
“You love him, Alexis. You can do this,” Rina thought.
I’m not strong enough. I’m going to lose him! I’ll kill us both.
“Use your love and your Amadis power. I told you. You are strong enough now.”
I didn’t understand why she couldn’t help, but once again I followed her instructions. With effort, I tuned out Vanessa and my emotions—all but my love for Tristan—and dragged my right hand up, palm out toward him. I focused on pushing the power through. That warm, soft ribbon, wider and stronger now, streamed through my body and along my arm and surged out of my hand. I felt it connect with his chest, right at the mutilated Amadis mark, penetrating into his heart.
I love you, Tristan. You and me together forever. That’s how it is. You and me, baby. Think of our love, Tristan. Think of your son’s love.
Tristan growled, the corner of his lip lifting in a snarl. I could feel the evil energy building inside him, gaining force to fight my Amadis power. And I thought it might be too late—I might already be fighting Daemoni.
So now what?
I couldn’t kill him. Even if I wanted to, he was virtually impossible to kill. The Daemoni had tried all their different ways and they couldn’t even take his heart. Because it belongs to me. Did that mean I could do it? Was I the only one? Is that what Rina meant after all? My stomach clenched into a sickened knot.
But even if that’s true . . . he’s Tristan. My one and only love. Mom was right. I couldn’t kill him. I would let him kill me first.
“Do it already, darling. Kill the little bitch,” Vanessa taunted. “Then we can finally be together. Oh, the things we will do . . .”
She draped herself around his unresponsive body. My heart squeezed.
Get your raunchy hands off him!
I hadn’t meant for her to hear me, to reach into her head. The idea disgusted me. But she laughed aloud as if I had. Appalled, I returned my focus to what mattered.
No, Tristan! Remember our LOVE. Remember Dorian.
His growl deepened and grew louder.
“We can have so much fun, now that she’ll be out of the way. Come on, lover, just do it,” Vanessa sang. Then her voice became a snarl. “Or I will!”
“Do it, Vanessa,” her brother shouted. “Fuck Lucas!”
“Shut the hell up!” I yelled.
The fury gave me the strength I needed to fight Tristan’s power. I turned my left hand on Vanessa, while holding my right on Tristan. I didn’t realize the extent of my power until I unleashed the electricity on her. She couldn’t handle it like Tristan could. She twitched and seized, her face twisted into a pained grimace.
“Easy, Alexis. We do not kill unless there is no hope. She is a soul that can be saved,” Rina reminded me.
Are you freakin’ kidding me? She’s ready to kill me!
But I knew in my heart Rina was right. Overwhelming love still filled my body, and I could feel a twinge even for the vulgar vampire bitch. I also knew Owen and the others wouldn’t let her kill me. I let off the current, and Vanessa collapsed, her once beautiful blond hair standing on end in patches, what remained only an inch long. Purple smoke rose off her blackened skin.
“You little—” she screamed. She lunged at me, but then she soared thirty yards backwards. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mom and Owen magically restraining her.
I paid for the distraction. In an instant, Tristan’s power pressed on me more forcefully than ever. I now knew exactly why they considered him the ultimate warrior. His power was unbeatable, literally able to squeeze the life out of somebody. It compressed my body into itself, squishing my bones as if they were made of putty. My chest pressed into my spine, my heart flattened, my lungs were about to collapse. My veins and arteries constricted, the blood flow slowing. My head felt like it would implode.
And I couldn’t bring myself to fight him. I couldn’t do whatever I needed to do to save myself. I couldn’t even think straight about it. I couldn’t save him, and I couldn’t kill him.
It’s happening. Evil is winning. He’s actually killing me.
All those times he’d been so worried about accidentally killing me and I’d never believed he would do it. Now he was. And I was letting him.
But my death would leave the Amadis without hope for another daughter. It would leave Dorian without a mother. And it would leave Tristan—if there’s still soul left that would even care—to live out his existence knowing he’d killed me.
I’d promised him several years ago I would never let him do that to himself. I would never let him have to live with that. I would never let him kill himself over it. This is Not. Going. To. Happen!
There was only one thing to do. I prayed.
Dear God or Angels or whoever is listening, please help me. You are so powerful, and I can’t do this without you. I need you. He needs you. I offer myself as a tool. Use me however you need to. Just please save him. Please save Tristan.
A voice answered in my head, and it didn’t belong to Rina. This voice came as quiet as a whisper, yet I could feel the immense power reverberating through it.
“We are here for you, dear one. His soul is already ours, Alexis. Nothing can change that. But until we bring him home, his soul needs protection against the Demons. We have already given you what you need. Use the powers we have gifted to you. This is our plan for you. This is your purpose.”
I didn’t know who spoke, who answered—God or an Angel or perhaps my own inner voice—but I understood. I knew then what I was made to do. My purpose in life, just like Tristan had said. I was never meant to be normal. I knew it all along, despite all the lies I told myself, despite the ruses I attempted to make life normal. But that was never really me. That wasn’t Real Alexis. I was Amadis. More than that. I was Amadis royalty. The books, a daughter, eventually leading the Amadis . . . those were part of my duties. But Real Alexis was created to be the fierce protector. My main purpose in life was to defend souls from evil.
And Tristan’s was my first.
“NOW, Alexis. You can do it!” Rina’s voice roared in my head.
I won’t let you do this to yourself, Tristan! I yelled into his mind. We will WIN!
I struggled against his power, panting and sweating with effort. I heard Rina and Mom praying. A rush of otherworldly power washed over me, poured over my skin, and seeped into my pores, filling my body with strength and force. I gathered all of that force, pulled it from every cell in my body, and directed it through my hand to Tristan’s heart, focusing only on the power the Angels had given me and my love for Tristan.
I know you’re in there, baby. We can beat this together. We can do this. Please, Tristan. Come back to me. Stay with me!
My thoughts escalated as desperation grew. I pushed with every bit of strength I had. And I watched as the scars around his heart began to dissolve, and the fire in his eyes dimmed.
That’s it, baby. Come on. We can do this. You love me. You want to be with me. You and me forever, Tristan!
His hold on me weakened. I continued pushing the full strength of Amadis power on him.
Love, Tristan. You WANT to love. You LOVE me. You LOVE Dorian. We love you. We need you.
DON’T.
LEAVE.
ME.
AGAIN!
One beat of my heart passed, and his power released me.
I felt instantly free. His body convulsed violently, and a painful moan replaced the growls. Then he fell to his knees as I kept Amadis power focused on him. The skin around his heart smoothed, and the Amadis mark, now whole, began to brighten. The fire in his eyes died and then disappeared.
The now hazel eyes, full of pain and regret and love, penetrated my own eyes.
“Alexis,” he whispered. I took a half-step toward him.
“NO!” Vanessa screec
hed, making me freeze, the sound more terrifying than a long-nailed finger scratching against a dark window. “Get her! Get them both!”
She ran at me. Chaos erupted as everyone responded. The Daemoni sprang toward Tristan and me. The Amadis protectors fought them back. Vanessa, still at least fifteen feet away, jumped and flew through the air toward me. She moved so fast, just a blur of white and black. I didn’t have time to react. Just as she came close enough to feel a rush of air on my neck, she suddenly flew sideways. Her back cracked against a post supporting the balcony, and the steel vibrated with a twang as she crumpled to the ground. My eyes wide with terror and surprise, I swung around to see whose force had saved me. Tristan’s hand still faced toward her.
He lithely jumped to his feet, and in martial-arts style, he turned, seemingly in slow motion, his power hitting the Daemoni one at a time as his hand swung around in an arc. One-by-one they fell to the ground, and then they each disappeared with a Pop! The storm overhead rapidly shrunk, then vanished.
We all stood there in the stillness, breathing heavily, looking around to make sure they all disappeared. I could hear every single heart pounding with adrenaline. Then we let out a collective sigh of relief.
Tristan turned back toward me, agony all over his face.
“Alexis,” he whispered again.
I ran for him and jumped into his open arms. He held me tightly as I kissed him all over his face, and he kissed me back.
“I love you, Tristan,” I gasped between desperate kisses and tears. “I love you so much.”
He squeezed me against him. “I love you, Lexi. So beautiful and brave. Ma lykita.”
I held his face in my hands and looked into his eyes, and they filled with love, the gold flecks sparkling brightly.
“I’m sorry, so sorry.”
I placed my finger over his lips. “It wasn’t you. And it’s gone. It’s just you and me now.”
His lips found mine and kissed me with fervent love. Then we just looked into each other’s eyes as I held his face in my hands and stroked his cheeks with my thumbs. I felt a light rippling under my right thumb. Something changed in his skin.
“Oh!” I continued stroking and then kissing the scar stretching diagonally across his cheek. It gradually dissolved away, and he shuddered when it had completely vanished. I did the same to the one around and under his eye, and it, too, dissolved. I erased the one on his chin and kissed him all over his beautiful face, each little scar disappearing. I slid my hand over his cheek. No icy ridges. Nothing but soft, velvety skin. “They’re gone. The scars are gone!”
Keeping one arm tightly around me, he rubbed his other hand over his face. He smiled warmly.
“The dark magic is gone,” he said. “Gone for good, because of you. You saved me again.”
I threw my arms around his neck.
“We save each other,” I said. “We need each other.”
He nuzzled my hair and murmured, “Yes, my love. Our souls are bound together. Forever.”
Chapter 23
“Owen, take care of this.” Rina waved her hand at the destruction as we headed up the stairs and into the house. The shield had already been replaced, and the Amadis protectors had walked beyond it and disappeared, except for a raven-haired vampire who was Julia. She remained at the shield’s edge. Whether she stood guard or simply waited for Rina, I didn’t know.
Owen rubbed his hands together, as if they were cold, and he then thrust them out in front of him. The pieces of the balcony and screen flew back together. As we stood back and watched, he made the movement again toward the glass doors, then we went upstairs, and he repeated with the interior—the furniture, the walls, and the kitchen island returned to looking like new. I had to snap my jaw shut, amazed at what I’d just witnessed. As if everything else today is perfectly normal. I snorted to myself.
“The bedroom, too,” Mom said. I cringed and stared at the floor in embarrassment. Owen seeing it was bad enough. Now Mom and Rina, too?
“Don’t know why I should bother,” Owen muttered as he headed into the bedroom.
Tristan squeezed my hand, and a guilty smile tugged at the corners of my mouth. I wondered why Tristan hadn’t had him fix it before. Perhaps, like Owen, he didn’t see the point of it.
Rina sat in the chair and motioned for me to sit on the couch. Tristan sat next to me, not letting go of my hand, and I felt a pull of energy through my arm and into his. He strengthened his goodness with my power. Knowing I could do that for him felt strange yet comforting. I gave his hand a squeeze with my own.
“May I?” Rina asked Tristan, holding her hand out to him. He reluctantly let go of my hand and took Rina’s. She closed her eyes for several long moments, her face tense with concentration. I held my breath as she assessed him. Finally, she relaxed, and a smile spread across her face. “Excellent, Tristan.”
He let go of her hand and picked mine up again, kissing the back of it before clasping it between both of his. I pushed my energy into him, knowing what he needed.
“Thank you,” he murmured, and I had a feeling he meant that for both Rina and me.
Rina looked at me with her large, mahogany eyes. Less than two weeks ago, both she and Mom could have nearly passed as my daughters. Now we could all be sisters, rather than three generations spanning over a hundred-and-fifty years. But Rina’s eyes would almost give her away. Not for her age, but for her wisdom.
“You have waited a long time to hear your story, no?” she asked.
“Way too long,” I said. My stomach fluttered with anticipation.
“You have been very patient, I know. And now that you have your full Amadis power, everything will be revealed. There will be no more secrets.”
Finally.
Rina sighed. “Unfortunately, I must ask you to wait a few days longer.”
What? Are you kidding me?
“I can wait a little longer for that, but we’re anxious to see Dorian,” I said.
“I understand darling, but Sophia and I must return for a debriefing with the council immediately. This is not over. In fact, it has only begun. The council must be made aware of everything that has happened and discuss our future. I ask that you give us, what do you say, a head start? A couple of days to bring them in. Can you wait until then? And we will tell you everything as soon as you arrive.”
I sighed with resignation and nodded.
“Besides, you have a few things to take care of here first,” Mom added.
Rina gave me a grateful smile and nodded. “Yes, that is correct. You and Tristan, with Owen’s help, need to prepare to start a new life. Tristan, you have a plan for A.K. Emerson, no?”
“I did,” Tristan said, “but it included destroying her house in Atlanta. Is it still unsafe there?”
Rina pursed her lips for a moment. “No, the situation there is under control, but I would rather not lose that property. It may be useful for us.”
Tristan nodded and considered other solutions. Anxious about the demise of my author’s life, I reached for my pendant, for the calming effect it gave me. I gasped, my fingers feeling only the bare skin of my chest. Tristan’s head snapped toward me.
“Mom, please say you took off my necklace in the back bedroom,” I said. Tristan disappeared.
“I don’t see it,” he called from there.
“No,” Mom said. “I know you don’t ever take it off.”
“Oh, no. Not good!” I jumped to my feet and frantically searched around the family room, not able to remember now exactly where we’d been when Tristan and I went all Mr. and Mrs. Smith on each other.
“It’s not there,” Tristan said, now back in the family room. Mom and Rina exchanged a meaningful look with each other and then with Tristan.
“Maybe when we flew off the balcony?” I asked. Tristan, Mom, and Rina disappeared. I heard them outside on the ground. I tried flashing, too. I did it! And, sucking in air, I fell on my butt when I appeared. It really was disorienting to be in one place and s
uddenly somewhere else. Owen laughed from the balcony, and I shot him a look.
“You’ll get used to it,” Mom said, lifting me up.
I walked around a portion of the yard as we each sectioned off areas to search. I could see every blade of grass in twenty different shades of green, little bugs of all shapes and colors, and the tiniest specks of dirt and sand. But no necklace or pendant.
“We have four sets of the best eyes in the world. We have to find it,” Tristan muttered.
“Owen, can you summon it?” Mom asked.
I looked up at Owen, wondering why he hadn’t tried by now. He waved his hand, and I looked around, I guess expecting it to be flying through the air or something. But there was nothing. He shook his head. Mom’s and Rina’s shoulders slumped.
“It’s nowhere around here,” he said with a shrug.
He obviously didn’t understand its importance. Mom and Rina seemed to understand, though. In fact, it seemingly held more significance to them than it even did to me. Once again, they traded pointed looks with Tristan. They all seemed as upset as I felt over its loss, but I was sure for different reasons. To me, the pendant was Tristan’s first gift to me, made by his own hands, and it had served as a lifeline at times. But their expressions gave me the feeling it was more than just a pretty piece of jewelry. I rubbed my bare neckline, feeling partially naked without it.
“Don’t worry. We’ll find it,” Tristan promised with a squeeze of my hand as we went back inside.
“As I was saying,” Rina said once we were settled again, “we will hold council in three days, and you both will need to be there. Make a plan for Ms. Emerson, Tristan.”
“I have it now. We still submit the photos to the media, announcing her marriage to her son’s father. Then they go to Greece for a honeymoon.” Tristan winked at me, and I could barely follow the rest. I was happy to know that hadn’t changed with the Ang’dora. Even if it made me stupid for a moment or two, I didn’t ever want to lose that effect he had on me.
“Very good. Three days, no more.” Rina stood up, but then she paused, looking at me. “We will keep your new gift a secret for now.”
