Chapter Twenty-Five
Braith couldn't keep his astonishment hidden as his father took another step away from the ruined wall. It was a sight he'd never even imagined he would ever see, never mind actually experience.
Part of him felt like a child again, cowering beneath his father's heavy hand, and unable to defend himself from the repeated blows and the abuse his father so jovially inflicted on him.
Another part of him, the adult one, the king one, the one shielding Aria, wanted to rip the entire barn down and shred the man looking at him with such delight. Red shadowed his vision as the scent of Aria's blood drifted up to him, and a snarl curled his lip.
He'd dared to touch her again, and Braith was going to make him pay for that. After everything this man had done to Aria, to him, and countless other innocents, Braith knew he could not let him survive this. There was no way he would allow this man to touch her again or be in charge; no way he would allow him to unravel all the good they had already created here.
Braith just wasn't sure there was any way to stop him. His father had taken a stake to the heart, and with no sustenance to sustain and revitalize him, the wound had still somehow managed to heal itself.
It was apparent his father hadn't had much nourishment before returning to the palace, but Braith suspected he'd looked far worse than this when he first crawled from his grave. Braith didn't know how long he'd been wandering around, but the fact he'd returned here meant he believed himself strong enough to be a threat to Braith and anyone else he came across.
He looked like a decomposing corpse, but beneath the rotten exterior, Braith felt the vibrant pulse of power he still possessed. His body was rapidly healing itself; his shoulders were straightening as he thrust them back and quirked an eyebrow in amusement.
His upper lip curled to reveal long fangs glistening in the dim light of the stable. Even though her chin lifted, and her eyes narrowed, a small shiver ran through Aria and into him as his father leveled her with his gaze and licked his lips.
A low growl rose in Braith's throat as he pushed Aria back a little. The tension in his body notched higher; bloodlust curled through him as he shielded her. He had far more control over his more primitive instincts now, but even so, he would slaughter the creature across from him before he ever allowed his father to touch a hair on her head again.
"Xavier!"
His father's head tilted to the side as Gideon's startled cry echoed through the stable. Braith had seen Xavier's prone figure in the shedrow, but he hadn't taken the time to learn if the vampire was alive or not. Judging by the marks on Xavier's neck, and his father's rapid healing, Braith suspected Xavier was gone. Aria's blood alone couldn't have caused the changes rapidly transforming his father.
"He was delicious," his father murmured.
"Xavier," Aria breathed.
"Almost as good as your whore here," his father purred.
Aria's hands tightened on his arms; he refused to rise to his father's baiting as he pulled her closer to him. Pressing her flat against his body, his hands splayed across the hollow of her lower back. He stood for a moment, savoring the feel of her while he still could.
Aria's gaze darted behind him at the sound of feet skidding to a halt outside the stall door.
"Holy shit!" William blurted.
"Atticus?" His father's head swiveled to the side, a smile twisted his lips at Calista's disbelieving question.
"You look as beautiful as I remember, Calista, perhaps when this is over we can reunite," he said suggestively.
Braith's grip on Aria eased. If there was one thing he knew for sure, no vampire came back from having their head ripped off. Her eyes were wild as they came back to his, her fingers clenched around his arms before her grip reluctantly loosened. He stared at her before she gave a subtle dip of her head and her fingers stroked briefly over his biceps.
She let go of him as he sprang into motion. His father turned toward him, bracing for the impact as Braith lowered his shoulder and collided with him. His father's hands came down on his shoulders; his fingers dug into his skin as Braith propelled them both backward. They crashed through the already ruined stall divider and into another wall.
Everything about the hideous creature who had once been a king was repulsive. Yet Braith hadn’t been prepared for the strength in his hands. The walls gave out, and he lost his balance as they tumbled into the shedrow. They rolled over the top of each other as they each sought to gain the top.
Braith managed to get a few blows into his father's lower ribcage, but it felt as spongy as the rest of him. He'd been decaying when his body came back to life, Braith realized. He wasn’t just starved and emaciated like his pitiful trophies; his body had started to break down.
Braith's nose wrinkled as he lifted his father with his feet and flipped him over his head. He jumped back to his feet, but even in his state, his father was faster and back on him in an instant. They had been about the same size once he hit maturity, but he had a good thirty pounds on his father now. Even still he was knocked backward by the force of his weight and momentum.
They slammed into the back wall with enough force to crack the wood. Dust rained down as bits of the beams fell over top of them. A loud grunt escaped Braith as his father dug his fingers into his stomach and tore through his flesh. He struggled to unhinge his father's hold on him, but he continued to rip and dig until fire erupted within Braith's gut and rapidly spread through his limbs.
A bellow of fury erupted from him. He drove his elbow into his father's nose hard enough to knock him slightly loose. He seized the hand working its way steadily into him and yanked it back. His father screamed in his ear; his fetid aroma washed over Braith as bone and skin cracked within his grasp. Braith took advantage of his father's slackened hold to get his legs in between them and thrust him off.
He crashed into the wall, but Braith didn't take time to recuperate as he charged at him, grabbed his throat, and propelled him into the wall again. It gave way with a loud crash as they plunged out of the barn, bounced across the ground and bounded back to their feet.
He was dimly aware of screams and shouts as humans and vampires scrambled to get out of their way as they ran full speed at each other. Braith felt as if he'd run into a brick wall as his shoulder dislocated with the reverberating crack of a bat hitting a ball. His teeth clenched as a low hiss escaped him.
Braith tried to seize his father's throat, but his father grabbed his hand. Before Braith knew what he intended, he sank his fangs deep into the meaty part of his palm. Braith grunted at the unwelcome invasion, and reacting on instinct he delivered a crushing blow that collapsed his father's eye socket. It only made him bite down harder.
Infuriated, Braith released a rapid series of punches on him, but he clung like a dog on a bone as he gained strength from Braith's blood. Gritting his teeth, Braith ripped his hand back. Skin and sinew tore, but he was finally able to extricate himself from his father. Lowering his head, he charged at the man, wrapped his arms around his waist and propelled him back a good fifty feet before they hit a house.
It shuddered from the impact but held firm as his father somehow managed to get him turned around and underneath him. Braith didn't see the piece of wood in his father's hands until he was plunging it downward.
He managed to get his arm up to deflect the blow somewhat, but his father's weight continued its downward trajectory. It slammed into his upper chest, dislocated a shoulder, and tore through flesh and bone as it burst out the other side.
A grunt of pain escaped him; his legs reflexively kicked up as his body instinctively tried to curl inward to protect itself. Red filled his vision as he swung his arm up and caught his father harshly under his jaw. Knocking his father aside, Braith managed to push himself up with his good arm.
Reaching up, he snapped the end of the board off and tossed it aside. He rose into a crouch as his father launched at him again. Braith's hands grasped his back as they fell into one of the newly constructed houses.
"Let go of me!" Aria shouted as she tried to rip her arm free of Gideon's hold.
She didn't know what possessed her, or perhaps she did, but she'd never experienced it before as a ferocious snarl ripped from her and her teeth elongated instantaneously. A strange shimmering rattled through her as the line between light and dark seemed to spread out before her. A line that made her realize what it was Braith had been so fiercely struggling with all this time.
She could take one step over the line and let it all go; she could embrace the power lurking just beneath the surface and let the darkness take over. Destroy, as she so badly wanted to destroy the man who had hurt Braith.
How had Braith controlled this so well? She felt like she was going to fall apart as if she wasn't herself anymore. Her skin crawled with the energy sizzling up and down her body. She knew the only thing that would make it better was death.
"Easy, Aria," Gideon urged. He released her and held his hands up as he backed away. "Easy."
She spun away from him and took a step forward before she stopped abruptly. Braith and his father had disappeared into the house; the walls were shaking from the force of their fight.
She started to run forward, but faster than she could blink, Jack appeared in front of her. She didn't know where he'd come from, Jack hadn't been in the stable with the others, but he was here now, and he wouldn’t let her go as he grasped her arms.
"Let go of me, Jack!"
Jack bent so he was eye level with her. "You are of no use here, Aria. Stay out of the way; you're only a distraction."
He pushed her gently back as he released her arms. Hands seized her, and it took everything she had not to kick Ashby in the shin as he gripped her. Jack turned and ran toward the house. Aria fought against Ashby, but the harder she struggled, the tighter he held her.
"Aria, please, stop," he pleaded against her ear as he pulled her down to the ground and enfolded himself over her.
A scream welled in her throat, tears burned her eyes as she continued to struggle against him, but it was useless. Gideon and Calista ran past her, followed by Daniel, Max, and William. A low moan of anguish escaped her; she rocked forward as Ashby kept her on the ground.
A loud crash echoed from within the house. It sagged precariously for a minute before collapsing.
The boards caught him hard in the back and drove him to his knees. Braith threw his good arm up as he tried to protect his head from the roof crashing upon him. He was buried beneath the weight, pushed down under the force battering his already bruised and broken body.
It took him a moment to recuperate as the last of the beams fell with a dull clatter upon the heap. Gathering his strength, he pushed back some of the boards as he drew upon his determination to end this once and for all.
He crawled out from under the boards, shoving them off as he surveyed the ruins of the house. The front of the building was still standing, but a stiff wind would knock it over with ease.
In all the confusion, he'd managed to lose his father. Pulling himself free of the jumbled mess surrounding him, Braith spotted him. He'd already extricated himself from the rubble and was trying to make an escape when Braith launched to his feet and raced after him.
If his father were able to get free now, he would bide his time and grow stronger as he tried to recruit an army. Braith suspected he'd come here with the intention of claiming Aria and trying to control Braith.
It didn't matter what he'd expected; he wasn't going to leave here alive. He was never going to have the chance to touch Aria again. Drudging up some of the last remnants of his strength, he surged forward, grabbed his father's shirt, and yanked him back.
Braith didn't realize his father was holding a board until it smashed into the side of his face. Stars burst before his eyes as his cheekbone cracked and his jaw broke. Blinking away his blurry vision, Braith wrenched the board from his father's hands, spun it around and swung it against his father's side. He staggered sideways from the force of the blow; his hand flew to his collapsed ribs.
Jack appeared on the other side, encircling their father as a cruel smile curved his lips. Braith had never seen that look on Jack's face before or the vindictive gleam in his eyes.
"Father," Jack greeted, moving to intercept him as he tried to go in another direction.
Gideon grinned as he stepped forward, blocking another pathway as Calista moved to block another. Max, William, and Daniel blocked the other side. His father's eyes spun crazily before focusing on something in the distance.
Braith followed his gaze to Aria as she slowly approached the circle. Ashby was hot on her heels, looking chagrined as he rubbed at his reddened jaw. Braith had never seen it before, but Aria's eyes were glistening rubies when they met his and then his father's. He sensed the unraveling beneath her outwardly calm exterior and moved to intercept her as she reached the circle.
"I'm fine." Her crimson eyes focused on the board protruding from his shoulder. His fingers brushed briefly over hers as he looked to soothe her. "Really, Aria."
William and Max flanked her. They wouldn't be able to hold her back, not anymore, but their presence seemed to have a further calming effect upon her as her fingers wrapped briefly around his hand.
"What was your plan here, Atticus?" Gideon inquired with a tilt of his head and a quirked eyebrow.
"He planned to recapture her or kill her," Braith answered flatly.
"I plan to do many, many things to her, son. All of which I will truly enjoy."
A gleam on the other side of the circle caught Braith's attention. Jack had managed to retrieve a honed ax from one of the building sites. He twisted it in his grasp as he met Braith's gaze over the top of their father's head.
"You can't kill me!" Their father laughed as he flung his arms wide and spun in a circle. "Look at me! I'm invincible! You can't stop me!"
His father was still laughing as Braith lurched forward. His father wasn't fooled though, instead of meeting Braith head on, he spun to confront Jack. Jack's fangs flashed as he threw the ax to Braith and dove at their father with unrestrained glee.
Braith had anticipated the action as he leapt into the air and seized the handle with his good hand. Jack rammed his shoulder into their father and shoved him back. On his descent, Braith swung the ax downward with the full force of his might.
Atticus turned toward him as the ax whistled through the air. Braith had to grab it with both hands as the impact of metal against flesh and bone jarred his arm. Atticus's mouth parted in an O; his crimson eyes widened as the ax cleaved his neck.
Braith stepped back when the head bounced across the ground and the body collapsed. There was no satisfaction in the deed, but rather a strange sense of completion and relief as the ax slipped from his fingers. Disgust coiled through him as he wiped the splatters of his father's blood from his face.
"Not that fucking invincible," Jack spat as he nudged the head away with his foot.
Braith's shoulders sagged; now that his adrenaline wasn't pounding, and the threat eradicated, it took everything he had to stay on his feet as blood loss started to take its toll.
Aria was beside him in an instant. Her arm wrapped around his waist as she pressed against his side. He grabbed her hand when she reached for the broken piece of board jutting from his shoulder. He couldn't be weak in front of so many.
He pressed her hand flat against his chest. His broken bones and wounds were throbbing, and he desperately needed some blood, but there was something he had to do first.
"Caleb," he grated. "We have to make sure Caleb and Natasha are still in their graves."
"Braith, you need blood," she whispered.
He glanced down at her, relieved to find her eyes back to their crystalline, sapphire color. "We can't take the chance Caleb may be out there right now."
"I'm coming with you."
He started to protest but decided against it. He'd feel better having her with him just in case his siblings were out there. His hand tightened on
her arm as Saul emerged from the barn with Xavier's arm draped around his shoulder. Xavier was pale beneath his dark complexion as he held a hand to the still bleeding wound on his neck.
"He's okay," Aria breathed.
Tears shimmered in Aria's eyes as she watched Xavier. Braith had to admit he was relieved to see him still alive. Xavier still managed to irritate him once in a while, but he was an asset and had become Aria's friend.
Melinda pushed past the crowd as she arrived at the edge of the circle. Her mouth dropped, and her eyes flew wildly around before landing on Ashby. A small cry escaped her as she raced across forward and threw herself into his arms.
Aria went to take a step toward Xavier but stopped as she glanced nervously at Braith and wrapped her other arm around his waist.
"Saul, gather the remains and place them in the stable. We'll burn them later." Saul nodded agreement to Braith's command. "The rest of you grab shovels, something to light a fire with, and come with me."
Aria's fingers dug deeper into his skin as the crowd that gathered during the fight parted to let them pass. "I think there is no longer any doubt you deserve to be king," she said.
The crowd bowed their heads and began to kneel as they started forward. At least something good had come from this awful mess, Braith realized as he pulled her closer to his side. Though he couldn't understand how his father had returned.
"It appears so," he agreed.
Aria eased against him as they moved past the gates and into the town beyond. When they entered the woods, she released him and turned to face him.
"Let me look," she commanded.
"We have to check on Caleb and Natasha."
"They're either still dead, or they're already roaming the earth again. A few minutes isn't going to change the outcome either way. Now, let me see."
He could behead his father and take on twenty men at once, but he still found it difficult to say no to her. He forced himself not to wince as her fingers gently prodded at the wood embedded in his shoulder.
The Captive Series 1-5 Page 80
