by Kimber White
“Do you know how to defeat them?” my brother asked.
Zendra looked at me. I slid my hand in hers. “I only know their power,” she said. “I don’t know how many they have on their side. I don’t know who they all are.”
“But you know what they’re after,” Payne said. “That may be all the weapon we need. Zendra, thank you. I know what it’s cost you to stand up to these people. I want you to know that I consider you part of the Wolguard family. Please know that we’ll do everything in our power to keep you safe.”
I locked eyes with Payne and gave him a silent nod of gratitude. A lump formed in my throat. I wanted to take Zendra’s pain away. I wished I could have been there with her and slayed her monsters when she first stood up to Olen and his ilk. I hoped what happened today would be the first step in making her feel truly safe again.
“Thank you,” she said. “I’d like a moment alone with Edward now if that’s all right.”
Erik and the rest of my family looked to me.
“Go see if Olen has anything else to say,” I said. “We need to know what else he knows about the Ring and this Daedra. Like where they’re holed up, for one.”
“He won’t know,” Zendra said as the rest of them moved toward the door. “Olen is an outcast to them too now. He swore he’d deliver you and me to them. He failed. Fae don’t give second chances. If you want more information from Olen, you’ll have to extend your protection to him as well.”
Payne looked grim, but nodded. He shut the door behind him, leaving Zendra and me alone for the first time in days.
When she turned to me, she had tears in her eyes.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I told you the truth, but I left so much out. If I had…”
“Stop,” I said. “Zendra, I don’t care. Maybe I should, but I don’t. You’re alive. You’re here...and you’re mine.”
She let out a cry and came to me. I folded her in my arms. “I was so scared.”
“You never have to be again,” I said.
“I love you,” she said, looking up at me.
My heart swelled. We should be impossible. She was Fae. I was a shifter. But, as I looked into her eyes and felt her pulse beating against mine, nothing else mattered. I smiled and tilted my head toward hers. Her lips felt like heaven as I kissed her.
She was mine. Now and forever. I would claim her in this world and the next if she would have me.
When we parted, I gave her a wry smile. “I just have one question,” I said.
“Yes?” she said, breathless. Her lips were swollen from the kiss and my cock stirred thinking about all the other ways I wanted to touch her.
“So how does a Fae go about getting a divorce?”
She started to smile. Movement at the doorway stopped her. I put a protective arm around her as I felt the alarm in Erik as he came in.
“She won’t have to,” he said, his tone grim. “What?” I said.
“Olen’s dead,” Erik said. “We just found him. I don’t know how he did it. He had a knife. He cut his own throat. Could he have cloaked it?”
Zendra’s jaw dropped. “I mean...I suppose...Gods...he knew he was already a dead man. When the Ring finds out what he did. And he couldn’t go home.”
Erik came closer. He looked from me to Zendra. “It means your free, Zendra. I’m sorry for what happened to you. I didn’t get a chance to say it before. It’s not just Wolfguard who’s sworn you an oath. You may not have your family anymore, but you have ours. The Kalenkovs. If you’re loyal to Edward, we’ll kill for you if it ever comes to it.”
My heart burst as my brother took Zendra by the hand. She wouldn’t stand for it. She threw her arms around my brother and hugged him for all he was worth.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Zendra
“This is yours?” I gasped. A week later, we stood at the water’s edge. Lake Michigan stretched before us, vast, blue, fathomless.
“Well,” he said. “I mean, I don’t own the lake.”
I smiled. “Not the lake, silly.”
“I own forty acres,” he said. “From this post, past those dunes, through the woods all the way to the edge of that outcropping, you see.”
I followed his finger. The beach gave way to dense woods on one side that rose to a hill. “My brother Erik owns the next plot over. It was a gift from our uncle when he went back to Russia. I never really thought about living here, but I don’t know, I thought you might like it.”
“It’s magnificent,” I said. “I didn’t know there were places left like this that hadn’t been built up.”
Edward smiled. “This is Michigan. Wolf shifter paradise. Wait until I take you to the Upper Peninsula.”
It was nearly dusk. A warm summer breeze came in though the lake was still cold. I could see the moonrise already, full and bright.
Edward was in his element here. I could see it. His skin was hot where he held my hand and I could sense his need as well as if it were my own.
“I’ll wait for you,” I said, laughing.
“Come with me,” he said.
“Are you sure?”
“I’ve been dreaming about it,” he said.
I took a step back. As the waves crashed before us, I took down my hair and dug my toes into the sand.
I conjured the white wolf in my mind. I threw my head back and closed my eyes. When I opened them, Edward’s wolf was there. His brilliant blue eyes glinted as he waited for me.
I took a breath and let the light go through me. Then, I took a step. His wolf was almost twice the size of mine. Power coursed through him.
His need to hunt burned strong. I let out a howl and he sprinted toward the tree line. I followed but knew he would have to hold back to allow me to keep up. Tonight, I didn’t want that. I wanted to feel the full force of his power and all that it held.
Edward knew. We reached a clearing deep in the woods. He caught the scent of a deer and gave chase. I waited.
His howl reached me, letting me know he’d caught up to his prey. The wind picked up. All the wild things were out tonight, it seemed. As if they meant to bear witness to the new magic we would create.
Finally, my Edward came back to me. He took two steps on four legs, then shifted, rising to his full height. His muscles glistened with a thin sheen of sweat, making him glow in the moonlight.
I shifted too. I felt light gathering at the tips of my fingers. I became it. Flying to him, I enveloped Edward in stars. He threw his head back and laughed.
“Come to me,” he whispered.
I did. Settling, I came back into myself and took Edward’s hands. He was tall. Strong. Beautiful. Primal. Mine.
He slid his hand to the back of my neck, tilting my head so he could kiss me. Desire flooded my senses. My nipples peaked.
“You’re wonderful,” he said.
“So are you.”
Then, there was no more need for words. Edward lifted me off the ground. I straddled my legs around his waist, loving the feel of his rigid warmth.
I was so ready for this. My juices coated us both as he laid me gently down in a pile of leaves.
“I want to look at you,” he whispered. And so he did. I arched my back, offering myself to him. Edward’s smile and sultry growl nearly undid me.
“Will it always be like this?” I asked. “The wanting?”
He leaned down to kiss me and trailed one finger between my breasts then all the way down. I gasped as he dipped two fingers inside me, playing me like an instrument.
“It will be,” he said. “Because we were born for each other.”
Yes. It was the truest thing I knew.
Edward spread my knees flat. Later, we might take our time with each other, exploring every curve. For now, we’d been apart for far too long.
I was free. But Edward had captured my heart.
He entered me slowly at first, letting me feel each sinful inch of him. He filled me so completely. Sighing, I rose up, lifting my ass off the gro
und.
Edward flipped me over with dizzying speed so I straddled him.
“I want to watch you,” he whispered. Smiling, I let my hair fall forward, brushing Edward’s chest and shoulders. I found my rhythm and my desire built higher and higher.
He felt so good. So right. My wolf. My man.
I threw my head back as my orgasm hit me like a tidal wave. Edward gripped my hips, holding me in place.
“It’s ours,” he whispered and I knew what he meant. I screamed with pleasure, knowing there was no one but the wild things to hear us. I had become one. Edward and I. We would claim this place together. And there was a different claiming yet to come.
As I floated down, Edward was ready. I slid off of him and knew exactly what to do. I had been born for this. Yes. Primed for it. My burgeoning need took hold.
I went down on all fours. From the corner of my eye, I watch Edward ready himself. My man, yes, but he’d let just enough of the wildness out so his eyes glinted.
“Yes!” I gasped, as if my body weren’t answer enough.
Edward slid into me. If anything, he’d grown even bigger. The pleasure of it made the light gather in my core again. The stars swirled around us both this time.
Edward’s wicked laugh sent a new rush of heat through me. Gods, how did he do that? With just a look, a laugh, a touch, and he had me quivering for him. Yes. He was right. It would always be like this.
Edward’s thrusts came faster. I felt his own wave building. I rested my weight on my elbows, bracing for the crescendo.
When it came, heat and light exploded outward. Edward’s seed filled me. My magic joined with his and I came again too. Hard.
I gathered my hair to one side; new desire throbbed at the base of my neck.
It was time. It had always been time.
Edward needed no further invitation. He leaned far forward, driving himself even deeper. It was perfect. It was just what I needed. Then, I felt his teeth graze the tender spot at the base of my neck.
“Yes!” I cried out.
Biting down, Edward marked me. I felt an instant of pain then a wave of pleasure that made me soar right along with him.
We were one. He was mine. I was his.
As Edward crested down, he pulled me against him, cradling me to his chest. I slid a hand to the base of my neck, tracing the outlines of his mark. It had already begun to heal into a thin crescent. Pleasure shuddered through me as I touched myself there.
My love. My mate. Fae and wolf. Impossible. And yet, destined since the beginning of time.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Edward
“You’re sure it’s safe here?” I asked.
Zendra paced at the water’s edge. In the month since I’d claimed her as my mate, Zendra and I had started construction on a new house on the east end of the property.
I’d taken a new role at Wolfguard along with Zendra. Now that we knew who and what the Ring truly were, we had a fighting chance of putting a stop to their endgame.
It could take years. Decades even. But, for the first time since we’d discovered their existence, we had the Ring on the run. And it was all thanks to Zendra and the risks she’d taken.
“I think so,” she said, then her voice broke. “I don’t know. What if it’s too late?”
“It’s not too late,” I said. “And you’ve done everything you could. All of our operatives and intel says the same thing. The Ring has retreated. We don’t know for how long, but it’s safe now. We were right to wait a little bit so we could be sure.”
“They could be dead. They could be hurt. I have no idea what they’ve faced on the other side…”
I took Zendra’s hands to try and calm her. I brushed a thumb over the ring she now wore. It was an amethyst to match her eyes surrounded by a ring of diamonds. I’d given it to her the morning after I marked her the first time and asked her to be my wife.
“Kalenkov,” she said. “I’ve never had a last name before.”
“You’ll have mine,” I’d said. “You’ll have everything I have to give.”
Now, it was time for me to give her this. We waited until she was truly sure Daedra and members of the Ring weren’t tracking her anymore. The threat was always out there, but now we had strength in numbers with the full protection of Wolfguard and the Kalenkovs at our backs.
There was another reason as well. I knew it the moment it happened. I knew it before even Zendra did. But, one night, two weeks ago when I marked her for the third time, her magic changed. My seed took root. Even now, I could sense the tiny life growing inside of her. My son. Half Fae. Half wolf shifter. I didn’t know what powers he would have, but he’d been conceived in love and light. Somehow, someway, I knew it would work out as it was supposed to.
“Come on,” I said. I pulled the small gold disk out of my pocket. My half of the medallion. Zendra had decided to leave it with me until the time was right to try and join it with the half she now carried.
Two halves of a whole. Just like us.
“Hey,” I said. “I’m the one that should be scared. What if they don’t like me?”
Zendra’s face fell. She rushed to me. I got my arms up just in time to embrace her.
“They’ll love you,” she said.
“Let’s find out,” I said. “The sun’s about to rise.”
It was. Pink and purple bands streaked the sky. I handed my medallion to Zendra. She took it. Slipping her half out of her pocket, she looked at them both.
A wave of fear went through me. The last time she’d come close to harnessing this power, it had sucked the air from my lungs. Maybe we should wait until after the baby came. If Zendra got hurt…
“It’s okay,” she said, reading my thoughts. That was part of us now since the marking. She was with me, all the time. Making me more than I had been alone.
“Okay,” I said. I took a step back. “I’m ready whenever you are.”
Nodding, she held both halves of the medallion up. Already, light began to swirl around her, casting her in a purple glow. The Clavia wanted to be joined, just like we had.
My wolf was ready. Olen was long dead, but there was a chance he’d sent someone after Zendra’s family. If they didn’t come through alone…
Zendra’s eyes glowed as she joined the two halves together. The light grew so bright, it blinded me for a moment. Then, beside Zendra, it was as if she’d harnessed a rainbow. Her hair blew back and something moved in the light. I shielded my eyes to try and make it out.
It was a shadow in the shape of a man. Then another. Then another. Then a woman. They walked hand in hand.
Zendra dropped the medallion in the sand and fell to her knees, crying out. I went to her.
As suddenly as it appeared, the rainbow was gone. Slowly, I rose, bringing Zendra with me.
There were four of them. The woman looked so much like Zendra, but with deeper lines in her face. The man beside her had purple eyes like his daughter. He was almost as tall as I was and had jet black hair.
“Father!” Zendra’s voice broke. She ran to him.
Liall looked from me to Zendra, shock coloring his expression. But, when his daughter fell into his arms, nothing else mattered.
I took a step back. Sobbing, Zendra hugged her father, then her mother. Her two brothers were as identical as Erik and I were.
“Are you okay?” she asked Zendra. “I thought we lost you. How…”
“I’m so sorry,” Zendra sobbed. “I didn’t know what else to do.”
“Where is Olen?” her father asked. Sweat poured off of him. His breath came in quick pants. I had the sense he’d gone into the portal fighting. Could it be that no time had really passed for them?
Zendra looked back at me. Light started to gather around his fingertips.
“No!” Zendra shouted. “Father, this is Edward. He’s...an ally. Olen is dead. I have so much to explain.”
Her mother went quiet. She locked her gaze with mine. As Zendra hugged her brothers and did
her best to try and tell them what happened, her mother walked slowly toward me.
I froze. She lifted a hand and touched my face. “You’re...Zendra’s, aren’t you?”
I sensed an ocean of wisdom behind the woman’s eyes. She was so like Zendra. But, as agitated as Liall was, Zendra’s mother was calm.
“Yes,” I said. “I know it seems like only an instant has passed, but Zendra has been here...on Earth for over two years.”
“Liall,” she said, turning back to her husband. “This is the wolf. The one I saw in my dreams.”
Liall left Zendra with her brothers and came to stand beside his wife. They locked hands. Liall would make a formidable adversary, I sensed. Where Zendra, her mother and brothers were light, he was dark. He had a jagged scar cutting through his left eyebrow. An old battle wound.
“The wolf,” he said. “So, this is your home.”
“You’re welcome here,” I said. “All of you.”
“There will be others,” Liall said.
“Father,” Zendra said. “Where have you been?”
Liall turned to her. He held out a hand. Zendra took it.
“I don’t know,” Liall answered.
“We just left,” her brother said. “I mean, it was only a moment ago.”
“Edward,” Zendra said. “This is Kall. And my brother Joren.”
Joren and Kall came forward. Their looks were hard, but not threatening. It was more curiosity and perhaps a bit of shock. But, like their father, I sensed a warrior spirit in both of them.
“I don’t know how,” Liall said. “But, wherever we were, we saw. You protected our Zendra from Olen.”
“Yes,” I said, standing still and straight. This was a test. An inquisition. It mattered to me to measure up. Instinct told me Liall’s blessing was worth having.
“There are others,” Joren said. “The Ring. We saw them too.”
“Yes,” Zendra said.
“But you’re a soldier,” her mother said. I learned her name was Maryta.
“I am. And there are many more like me.”
