Fury tore through him when Max seized her arm to keep her upright when she stumbled. That was it!
"Braith!" Jack hissed as he grabbed his arm.
"Get your hand off me!" Braith snarled.
"They can't know."
"They already know, Jack."
He jerked his arm away from his brother and ignored Gideon, Ashby, and Xavier as he waded through the muck and mire. Max released Aria when he saw Braith approaching; he tried to move to the side, but the swamp hindered his movements.
"Braith wait," Aria protested.
He didn't listen as he lifted her from the mud with a loud sucking noise. Her feet kicked before he slid her onto his back. She faltered, and then her knees locked against his sides and her arms wrapped around his neck.
"You shouldn't have done that," she whispered in his ear.
"They're humans, Aria; they won't hurt us."
Her displeasure was evident in the stiffness of her body. She didn't lean against him as she had on their first trip through the swamps, but he'd be damned if he'd allow her to struggle, and double damned before he let Max be the one who helped her.
"It will be fine," he muttered as he walked.
Her forehead rested against his neck before she pulled away. He ignored the questioning stares directed at them as he rejoined Jack, Gideon, Ashby, and Xavier. Jack and Gideon looked as if their heads were going to explode; Xavier turned silently away. It was Ashby who held his attention though. He’d paled considerably; his lips were clamped and nearly bloodless as he studied them.
By mid-afternoon most of the humans were starting to waiver, the heat of the day and the exertion was wearing them down. Aria had managed to squiggle from his arms over an hour ago, but he kept her close to his side and helped to lift her when she became mired in the mud. Her sweaty hair stuck to her skin, her face was florid from her effort, but her eyes bothered him the most.
He'd become aware of a distance growing between them. There was a resignation in her gaze and a sense of loss he didn't understand. She smiled at him and held his hand, but he felt a wall in her that hadn’t existed before. He knew better than to believe it was due to her apprehension over the upcoming war. She may be afraid, but she’d never allowed it to rule her before.
He was also aware of a difference in his brother. It was not as pronounced as Aria's, but Jack was colder and a little more distant. Even though they were brothers, Braith knew Jack's primary loyalty lay with the rebellion, a fact he’d already proven by taking Aria away from him once.
A pit formed in his stomach. No, it couldn't be possible. When Jack had taken her before, he was unaware that Braith had already shared his blood with her and established the connection that would allow him to find Aria wherever she went. Jack was aware of that now; he wouldn't be so foolish as to think he could take her again and get away with it.
But something was up with them, he was sure of it.
Aria halted so abruptly he almost grabbed her arm and dragged her forward in his irritation. One of them was going to talk to him, and it was going to be her if he had anything to say about it.
But she was staring at the world around her with turbulent eyes. He started to speak, but she held up a finger as she used her other hand to wave behind her at the trudging humans. He was impressed and a little amazed when, as one unit, they all stopped.
Her head tilted back as she searched the sky, then the treetops in the distance. "Something's wrong," she muttered.
Braith followed the direction her eyes had taken, but he saw nothing to signal something amiss. "How do you know?"
"I just do. Something is off. I feel it."
"Trust her on this, Braith—"
"I do."
He cut Jack off as he fought the urge to smash his fist into his brother's face. He had no tangible reason to hit his brother, but Jack deserved it for some reason, even if Braith wasn't sure what the reason was yet.
Aria went to step closer to him; her face scrunched in frustration as she stared down at the swamp. She gazed helplessly at Braith and then at the people behind them. Her eyes snapped to the tree line as a bird took flight about two hundred yards away.
"Braith."
He lifted her free of the muck and mire encasing her. She winced at the small sucking sound, but it was far more subtle than any noise she could have made. He held her in front of him before sliding her around to let her grasp him piggyback style. Her heart beat loudly against his back while he made his way forward as silently as he could.
She slid free of his back when he stepped onto solid ground. Xavier, Gideon, Ashby, and Jack pressed closer to him as she grasped the limb on a frail-looking pine. He almost pulled her back, wary of the decrepit looking tree, but she was already moving up it with grace and agility.
The tree barely moved as she slipped from one branch to another. Near the top, she hesitated, her hands rested against two thin branches swaying almost imperceptibly. He could practically feel her holding her breath as she waited for the limbs to stabilize before lifting herself above them.
She released them suddenly, and though he thought she was going to plunge heedlessly out of the tree, she scrambled far enough down to leap out safely. He kept his feet firmly planted to catch her.
"What is it?" he asked.
"I can see seven men through the trees that way." She pointed into the woods. "They may be human, but I don't think so; they're wearing your father's colors."
"They're not human then," Jack said.
Braith's mind churned as he slid Aria to the ground. They were standing in the swamp and cornered if there were more troops in the woods. The swamp was impossible to maneuver in these circumstances, not silently, and not with speed.
"They're heading this way, Braith," Aria said, seeming to read his train of thought.
His teeth clenched. "I need you to stay here."
Her eyes heated briefly, but her attention turned to the swamp. Her brother and father had crept closer, but they still weren't free of the mud. She looked as if she were going to argue, but resignation settled over her features. Then, she slid the bow from her back and grasped it in her hands. She would not leave her family unprotected.
"Be careful," she whispered. She closed her eyes, went to grab him, but then her hand fell limply back to her side.
"Stay here." His tone wasn’t as brisk.
"I will." She slid an arrow into the bow.
Braith gestured to the others and slid into the woods. They were about a hundred feet in when he smelled them. The others spread out around him and filtered through the trees like wraiths toward his father's men.
He heard them before he saw them; someone commented on a woman, and the others laughed as the guardsman regaled them with a story. Though he was relieved the guardsmen didn't sense their approach, or feel there was any threat in the woods, another part of him, the part trained to rule one day, was irritated. They should be on guard no matter what, even if they felt safe and were far from the palace.
Their lack of awareness was about to get them killed.
Jack’s head poked up from behind a large fallen tree. Braith nodded toward his right; Gideon and Ashby were somewhere over there, while Xavier was on the other side of Jack.
The guardsmen came into view. None of them were paying attention to their surroundings as they continued to exchange stories. They may be outnumbered seven to five, but the guardsmen didn't have a shot of walking away alive.
Braith waited to make sure there weren't any others. They could not take the chance of one of them escaping and returning to the palace; if it weren't for the swampland, he wouldn't engage them at all. When he was certain it was only these seven men, he nodded to Jack and waved his hand toward the last place he’d seen Gideon and Ashby.
They simultaneously burst free of the woods. Braith seized the first guardsman and took him down before he made a sound. He had a brief glimpse of wide, terrified eyes before he smashed his fist into the guardsmen's chest. Bone g
ave way beneath the tremendous blow and crumpled as easily as paper beneath the force of his fist. When his hand wrapped around the heart, he ripped it free.
Braith launched to his feet, Gideon and Jack were encircling one of the last two guards, but the other one turned and bolted into the woods. He raced after him as the guard ran toward the area where he left Aria. The vampire ran faster as he sensed his impending demise. Concern for Aria drove Braith to levels of speed he'd never achieved before.
They came around a turn in the woods; Braith was homing in on the guard when a path opened before them. Aria stood there with her bow raised. The stunned guard hesitated. Aria didn't.
She released the arrow with deadly accuracy. The small sidestep of the guard saved him from a killing blow to the heart. It drove into his shoulder and knocked him back a step.
The guard lurched forward with his hands curved as he dove at her. Braith surged ahead and seized the back of his shirt. He ripped the guard back, and all sense of reason vanished as he drove his fangs into the guard's neck. A gurgled sound of surprise escaped him as he clawed at Braith over the back of his head. Disgust filled Braith as the man's life pumped into him.
This was not the way he liked to kill. This was not the way any of them preferred to kill; very few of them allowed another vampire to feed on them. It walked a fine line between remaining in control and becoming something unspeakable. But his desperate need to protect Aria had driven him to this.
He pulled away from the vampire, grabbed his head, and snapped his neck with a sharp, jerking motion. The guard crumpled before him, weakened by the loss of blood and the severe injury but not yet dead. Braith seized the arrow, ripped it from his shoulder, and drove it deep into his heart. He remained kneeling over for him for a moment, struggling with the influx of vampire blood in his system and what he had just done. His actions had been bad enough, but he had carried them out in front of her.
Slowly, guardedly, he lifted his head to look at her. He knew what he was, knew what he was capable of, especially when it came to her. He had tried to keep the worst of it hidden from her, but it was too late now. Now, she could see it all, had seen it all.
She stared at him, her bow hung limply at her side. He expected censure and disgust in her eyes; instead, there was merely shock. Seeming to sense his need for her to accept him, even like this, at his most evil, her expression changed, and the bow slid from her fingers.
Falling to her knees before him, she attempted to remove his sins by wiping the blood from his mouth.
"It's okay." Her hands clasped his cheeks; her forehead pressed against his as she comforted him. "It's okay."
Then, to his utter amazement, she kissed him with a love that humbled him. She'd seen the worst of him, she'd seen him do something atrocious, and she still loved him. A groan escaped him as he drew her closer.
He buried his face in the hollow of her shoulder as his love for her swelled and grew within him. He rocked her as the delightfully sweet scent of her blood washed over him and soothed his mind and body in a way only she could.
Her hands were in his hair as she maneuvered his mouth against her neck. He didn't know how but she knew he needed reassurance from her that he wasn't a monster. His lips skimmed back; his fangs lengthened as they fairly vibrated with anticipation.
She jerked when his teeth penetrated her supple skin, but then she relaxed and melded against him. Her blood filled him, replacing the foul taste of the guard's blood on his tongue.
The taste of her was enough to help wash away his transgression. He released his bite and licked the remaining drops of blood from her neck. "Arianna," he groaned. She pressed her cheek against his, her lips brushing his skin. "So sweet—"
The sounds of approaching feet silenced his following words. He kissed her cheek far too briefly before rising and lifting her with him. Her eyes were questioning, but she threw back her shoulders and thrust out her chin as she picked up her bow and turned to face the oncoming vampires.
If things were different, she would have made a magnificent queen, a superb leader and champion for her people. He was proud to have her at his side and always would be.
Jack rounded the corner first, skidding to a halt as he spotted the two of them. Then his gaze locked on the ruined body of the guard, his eyes widened, his jaw dropped. "What did you do, Braith?"
"What needed to be done."
Jack gaped at him; he turned to Aria who stared unwaveringly back at him as she took a step closer to Braith's side. She didn't fully understand the true nature of the transgression he had committed, but she looked about ready to shoot an arrow into his brother's heart if it became necessary. Her fingers twitched on her bow as Gideon, Ashby, and Xavier appeared.
"Help me get this out of the way." His voice was detached, he felt a small recoil from Aria when he referred to the dead guard as a 'this,' but he had to keep himself disconnected from this mess.
Jack eyed him from head to toe and back again. Gideon's eyebrows were in his hair as he looked back and forth between Braith and the dead guard. Interestingly, Xavier watched Aria. His eyes latched onto the fresh bite marks on her neck and the single drop of blood quivering on her skin.
Braith brushed it away and fought a rising wave of anger as he glared at Xavier in warning. Xavier didn't back down from Braith as he continued to assess her from top to bottom.
One of these days, preferably today, Braith would find out precisely what Xavier was trying to figure out about her, or what it was he thought he already knew.
"Give me a hand, Jack," he commanded gruffly.
Jack looked discomforted as he grasped the guard's arms. He didn't offer any protest as he helped Braith carry him into the woods. "Are you okay?" Jack inquired.
"Fine," he replied brusquely.
"Braith, this isn't good, this isn't the way things are done. You know it's a sign of loss of control."
Braith dropped the feet. "I am fine, Jack."
Jack's gaze darted toward the path they had left behind. "Aria—"
"You'll leave her out of this."
Jack swallowed heavily. "What did she see?"
"All of it."
Braith didn't wait to hear what else his brother had to say, he turned and made his way back to the others. Aria stood with her shoulders back as she warily watched Xavier, Ashby, and Gideon. Braith stepped between them. She looked at him but seemed not to focus on him until a small smile curved her full lips.
"Let your father know it's safe," Braith said.
She nodded before taking off down the path with the bow bouncing against her back as she ran.
Chapter Eighteen
Aria stood in the shadows, a lump in her throat as she slipped deeper into the hollows of the cave. Braith spoke with a commanding, self-assured tone to the group who would soon become an army. The cave was unnervingly silent considering the number of bodies it housed as they listened raptly to him. He laid out his plans, speaking of his new government with such passion it brought tears to her eyes.
Gideon said the king had a way of making people believe him. Braith seemed to have inherited that charismatic ability as he roused the crowd, garnering cheers from them as well as devoted agreement for the cause. He encouraged and excited his army in preparation for the coming war.
She refused to look at Jack. She could feel his eyes from across the cave as she slid further into the tunnel behind her. She was so proud of Braith that she could barely breathe through the emotion rippling through her. That same pride was at war with the feeling of being trapped she constantly felt.
She turned away, needing some time to herself. With care, she moved through the dark cave and navigated the turns with ease. She ran faster and faster until she was pounding through the dark tunnels as the need to be free consumed her.
Her lungs were burning, and her legs were tired, but she continued to run toward the promise of freedom. She burst free, nearly falling to the ground as she inhaled heaping gulps of air. She made it to
a tree before collapsing against its trunk and sliding to the ground.
She drew her knees against her chest and hugged them. Shadows from the tree limbs played over the ground, the crickets chirruped, and the frogs called to each other. The usually soothing sounds now offered her nothing.
Figures emerged from the cave and stepped into the moonlight. Having spent her entire life with them, she knew Daniels's assured gate and William's slight swagger anywhere. She also recognized the sadness rounding both their shoulders in much the same way. They sat on each side of her and leaned against the tree.
"They admire him," Daniel said after a period of silence.
"They do," she agreed.
"Jack spoke with us," William told her.
"I figured he would."
William's hand wrapped around hers, he squeezed it briefly before releasing her. "I understand where Jack is coming from. The vampire race, even if we are finally all united, is far different than ours, but you're a strong person, Aria, they may accept you."
"Do you honestly believe that?" she asked.
He started to respond then shook his head. She knew he wanted to make her feel better and give her flowery promises, maybe even wanted to believe them himself, but he wouldn't lie to her. "No."
"I didn't think so."
"I was on board with this. I thought it was better if you were separated anyway." Daniel squeezed her shoulder when she glared at him. "You're seventeen years old, Aria. You've never been a child, but you're young, and he's... well, he's far more advanced than you. He's a vampire, and your worlds are so completely different I saw only grief in your future. I thought it would be best if you returned to a more normal life, with people your age, and your kind. I thought it would be best for the two of you."
"And now?" William prodded before Aria could.
"And now I don't think there's any chance what Jack proposes will work. Even if he is somehow unable to track you through your blood, Braith is not going to let you go, not unless you ask him to. Even then, I don't think it will be a good situation. It was bad enough when you first escaped the palace. You were lost and heartbroken, but the two of you are closer now; your bond has grown and strengthened. I've never seen anything like it. If Jack is right, then you know the choice you have to make, the one you've already made. But if Jack is wrong it's going to be bad, Aria, very bad, and you know that."
The Captive Series 1-5 Page 55
