Calm Before the Storm

by Cara Lake

  Calm Before the Storm

  Cara Lake

  In a world on the brink of chaos, only two people can balance opposing forces and restore order to the universe. To do so, the two must forge an intimate bond. Unfortunately, they’re complete opposites who are unaware of their powers—and of the consequences if they fail to unite.

  A lawyer with good reason to abhor violence, Irina is wary of her new client, a famous boxer accused of murder. As a street orphan, Tyr learned to fight for survival and trust no one. Despite their differences, the two find themselves irresistibly drawn to each other.

  With secret forces working both for and against their alliance, Tyr and Irina find themselves on a journey fraught with danger, betrayal and overwhelming desire. Ultimately the fate of billions rests in the hands and hearts of two lost souls who must overcome their fears and learn to trust each other.

  Reader Advisory: This story has graphic sexual language and scenes—no closed bedroom doors (or other rooms) here!

  A Romantica® urban fantasy erotic romance from Ellora’s Cave

  Calm Before the Storm

  Cara Lake

  The Tao begets one.

  One begets two.

  Two begets three.

  And three begets the ten thousand things.

  The ten thousand things carry yin and embrace yang.

  They achieve harmony by combining these forces…

  Laozi—Ancient book of the Tao Te Ching

  You have heard that opposites attract.

  For the sake of the universe

  Let’s hope they do.

  Glossary

  Aura: Field of luminous radiation that surrounds a being denoting a particular power or energy. All species with supernatural powers exude some kind of aura in relation to their specific abilities. Esseni have auras that manifest in direct relation to the essences they hold. These auras become stronger and easier to read when Esseni potentials cross paths with their partner duality. Only trained individuals, usually wiccani or warloki are able to read auras.

  Auriga: Home planet of the Aurigi. Major cities: Elpida and Magellania.

  Balauri: Three-headed dragons, their saliva is poisonous and can create precious stones.

  Chaos: Primary god of disorder and instability.

  Chemon: Blade made from shell of a chemosh beast. It is the hardest substance in universe.

  Chemosh: Rhino–horned. armor-plated beast. The chemosh’s shell is used for swords, blades, and armor.

  Chthonia: Home planet of the Chthoni. Major city: Fortress of Choronzon, also known as The Abyss.

  Concordia: Guiding council of the Eunomi Alliance based on Auriga in the city of Magellania. There are twelve Concordia members: Cygnus, Terra, Tellurus, Stellar, Sollarus, Etanin, Deneba, Rastaban, Arcturus, Al Ashfar, Albireo, Ursa.

  Discordants: Syndicate of species who strive to serve Chaos and create disorder and instability in order to exploit populations for their own benefit.

  Earth: Home planet of the Earthani. Major cities: New York and London.

  Elementals: Like Esseni, they hold essences that unite the fabric of the universe, but tangible things rather than actions or abstract concepts. (For example, Fire and Water, Sky and Earth, Light and Dark).

  Eridanus: Home planet of the Eridani. Major city: Cetus.

  Esseni: Unique individuals who hold the essences of one of the dualities (yin-yang pairings) that help keep the universe in check. (For example, War and Peace, Love and Hate). They therefore have the power to control The Balance, to ensure stability or instability, depending on their allegiance. Bonded Esseni usually develop great supernatural powers and can live for thousands of years.

  Esseni vessel: A vessel, usually in the form of jewelry, that holds the essences of bonded pairs.

  Eunomi: Alliance of species from all over the galaxy who strive to maintain the Balance and align with Gaia on the side of order and stability. Named after Eunomia, a child of Gaia who strove for order and justice.

  Gaia: Primary goddess of order and stability.

  Lyra: Home planet of the Lyrani. Major cities: Vega and Elnath.

  Ophiuchus: Home planet of the Ophiuchi. Major cities: Serpens and Arushka.

  Portal Travelers: Individuals with the innate ability to open starportals. The skill can be learned, but true portal travelers can access territory they have not previously visited, only needing a picture as guidance.

  Realignment: Every eight hundred years as decreed by Gaia and Chaos, the essences of all things must be realigned to stabilize The Balance. These essences reside within the Esseni potentials who must bond for realignment to occur. Failure to realign causes disorder and imbalance, which will affect the harmony of the universe.

  Saevici: Shapeshifters. Individuals born with the ability to tame the beast spirits that reside in them at birth. They usually need to be taught to harness the spirit and go through initiation rituals to enable them to change at will. There are a few species that are both sanguini and saevici.

  Sanguini: Blood drinkers. There are many types. Most are healers with the ability to purge disease by drinking blood and then giving their own, which has healing properties. There are some species who have lost the sense of using their ability for good and use it for their own benefit and to the detriment of others. (Drakulus is a good example.)

  Taijitu: The symbol that represents the concept of opposites existing in harmony and balance (yin and yang). The Taijitu mark appears on the skin of an Esseni potential when they meet with their partner duality and are intimate (i.e. they kiss). The mark appears on the body in the same place but on opposite sides of a pairing. For example, if it’s above the hip it will be on the right side for one Esseni and on the left for the other.

  The Balance: The universal law that maintains the web of the universe holding all elements in place. Disturbance of The Balance causes ruptures that have dire consequences for the myriad galaxies that exist in its web. All things are interdependent and need to coexist in balance for the universe to be maintained.

  Warloki: Individuals who have the ability to harness great magickal ability. Warloki powers are derived from the negative energy of the dark. The majority support the Discordant cause.

  Wiccani: Individuals who have the ability to harness great magickal ability. Wiccani powers are derived from the positive energy of the light. Most support the Eunomi cause.

  Prologue

  Fifteen years ago

  The spy reviewed the night’s handiwork with no small amount of satisfaction. The scene was one of carnage. Fragments of a once-harmonious existence, the wreckage of a once-perfect life, now nothing more than broken shards strewn like forgotten detritus. A family massacred. A bloody chaos. Mother. Father. One child. But the task was not yet complete. One other still eluded them. The one. The special one. The other child. How the spy hated those of her kind. She had to be here somewhere. “Send in the bloodhounds!”

  The order given, the spy watched their right-hand man curve his thin lips into a grin, the yellow glow in his eyes a sign he would take great delight in the execution of the task. The spy cautioned him before he moved. “They can cause as much damage as they wish but make sure they only take what’s ours, nothing else.”

  Commands issued outside, the spy walked across the room, relishing the gratifying crunch of broken glass beneath booted feet. Surveying the destruction, the spy smiled at the culmination of years of planning. Whoever said revenge was sweet, no doubt some puny human, was right. But they were also wrong. It wasn’t just sweet, it was delicious!

  More booted feet echoed in the distance as the rabble of urchin boys, the bloodhounds they used to seek and retrieve, converged on the silent house in search of the elusive quarry. A horde
of locusts, a plague but a useful one nonetheless. The spy waited patiently while the vermin set about their task. “Look for the girl!” Shouts from the upper floors as the search intensified. Their prey was either adept at concealment or not present.

  Doors slamming.

  More shouting. “She’s not in here!”

  The spy’s elation began to dissolve as the search proved fruitless. “Where is that damn child?” Mild annoyance exploded into rage as realization dawned that the one they were searching for had escaped them. Again. This would not go down well with their superiors.

  Sirens in the distance. Too late! The human authorities had finally deigned to respond. Time for the hordes to depart. The spy barked orders counting the vermin bloodhounds as they left. The last of the rabble, a dark-haired, black-eyed boy descended barefoot from the attic, empty-handed. The spy vented frustration with a blow to the boy’s head, sending him reeling, before turning and vanishing into the night.

  A fraction longer, had they waited, the prey would have been theirs. A fraction longer, had they waited, they would have heard the sound the first police to arrive would never forget. The piercing, agonizing sound of a child’s screams.

  Chapter One

  Tyr Bellor.

  The name echoed wildly in Irina Columba’s head as she clasped the manila file being pushed across the table toward her. A sharp spike of adrenaline shot through her veins. How could this be happening? It was as if there were some weird cosmic conspiracy against her. But why now after all these years? Heart pounding, brows drawn in confusion she peered across the desk at her boss, wondering if she had heard him correctly. “The fighter?” She paused, staring at him incredulously. “You want me to question him?”

  Merak Espenson’s steely gaze drilled back at her, a strange intensity in his sharp gray eyes that seemed odd for her usually calm, implacable superior. “That was the idea,” he replied smoothly. “He won’t talk to anyone, has clammed up tight since his arrest.” Merak paused thoughtfully, his eyes narrowing. “You have a special gift, Irina. There are not many clients who don’t open up to you and I’m hoping that where others have failed, you’ll succeed.”

  Irina thought about her “gift”. It was true. Of all the lawyers who worked at the offices of Espenson and Shedir she did seem to have the highest success rate when extracting information from even the most tight-lipped of their clients, but sometimes what they told her was nothing she wanted to hear, the stuff of nightmares. Dark thoughts best kept secret.

  She sighed, resigned to the conspiring fates. “I guess I can give it a go but I can’t guarantee success.” Her fingers gripped the file. “Isn’t it all pretty cut and dried? He was found with the body, his prints on the murder weapon, no evidence of anyone else on the scene…” Her words trailed off as Merak’s eyebrows lifted in surprise.

  “He’s our client, Irina, innocent until proven—you know that. Read the file. Talk to him. Get a statement. Don’t come back without one.” Merak pushed back his chair indicating the meeting was over. Chewing her lip nervously as she gathered the file to her chest, Irina stood up slowly, a thousand unasked questions swirling around her head. The words that fell from her lips next had been gathering like a storm inside her for years and like a hurricane hitting landfall, they had to be unleashed.

  “You know I’ve seen him before…” She blurted out the words, her voice trailing to a whisper as Merak’s eyes focused on hers again. “I know you have,” he said, appearing slightly bewildered by her outburst. “We were all there at the fight last week when he won the world heavyweight championship.” She nearly faltered under his scrutiny. “No,” she countered, urging him to understand. “Before then.”

  “When?” Merak asked the question quietly as if he sensed the underlying panic in her words. She knew then that he already knew the answer, but it was important to her that he understand fully what that meant.

  “He was there that night.” She watched him carefully as his brows rose sharply. “I saw him with them.”

  Merak stared at her with concern. “Are you sure?” he asked gently. Irina swallowed before replying. “I see his face in my dreams.”

  Merak frowned at this and looked grave. “Irina, that night was a long time ago. You were just a child of ten,” he said slowly. “Bellor’s face is well known. He’s an athlete and you’ve seen him many times in the papers and on TV. Dreams can be…confusing. His face has probably merged into your memories of that night because you associate him with violence. After all, he is a fighter.”

  Irina shook her head. “I know he was there that night, Merak. When I dream, his face is younger than it is now. Why would he look younger in my memories of that night if he weren’t there?”

  Merak skirted the desk to take her hand. “I have no answer to that.” He paused, gray eyes darkening—heavy with sympathy because he was more than just her boss and one of only two people who knew the true extent of the trauma Irina had survived. “You know it still amazes me that you decided on this career path considering all you’ve been through, that you still have compassion for the kind of people you have to deal with on a daily basis.” His hands held her steady, feeling her reflexive shudder at the painful memory of all she had lost that terrible night fifteen years ago. “I’m so proud of you, Irina, your strength and your innate sense of justice. You always try the best for your clients, regardless.”

  Pulling her into a hug that managed to soothe some of her fears, Merak rubbed her back gently. “You’ve been working around the clock dealing with the backlog of cases from the recent rioting,” he said thoughtfully. “After this case, perhaps you should take a break. You and Cassi can go lie on a beach somewhere, have fun. You ought to relax more.”

  Irina clung to the tall, handsome man who had come to mean so much to her over the last few years, his aristocratic face, strong jaw, hair slightly graying at the temples, so familiar and warm. Family. Merak was her family now, along with Cassi, his niece, her only constants in an unsteady world. Together they had nurtured and nourished her back to life, salve to the wounds that would never truly heal. Replacements for those she had lost but not forgotten. They had taken her in at the lowest point in her life, Cassi becoming a sister to her and Merak a father. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for them.

  Swallowing the knot of fear that had tied up her throat since hearing that name, Irina gave Merak a wry smile of resignation. “I guess I’d better read the file. What time is the meeting set up for?”

  “Tomorrow. Ten a.m.”

  Once Irina had closed the door, Merak sat back in his chair and pressed speed dial. Irina seemed to have an interest in Tyr Bellor, an unusual interest, which meant that Merak needed to take an interest in him. Since that day fourteen years ago, when he had plucked a small frightened girl from an orphanage and taken her home to his niece, not one day had gone past where he did not take his position as Irina’s protector extremely seriously. For Irina Columba was a very special individual, her safety of paramount importance. So important that if she were to be found by others who sought her, the consequences could be disastrous, not just for Irina or Earth, but for the whole of the known universe.

  “I have a possible lead,” he instructed his colleague on the other end of the line. “Find out all you can about Tyr Bellor.”

  * * * * *

  Back in her office, Irina sat down at her desk, took a deep breath and opened the file. The pictures clipped to the inside cover slammed into her gut. Raw muscle. Power. Blood and rage. Snapshots of fights past, faces taut in fury, caught in that frozen moment as fist connects with jaw. Her fingers gathered one picture closer. She scanned the face that part of her recognized on an intrinsic level. So much so that it was threaded and woven into her soul, her past.

  She knew that face. Knew she had seen it that night. That devastating night that had turned her life upside down. But more than that, it was a face that she carried with her, that some part of her held in connection to what she had lost. The tips
of her fingers brushed across eyes frozen in a gaze that spoke of storm and battle.

  Tyr Bellor. Her lips spoke his name silently as she studied the grim crime scene pictures of Saleos Black’s corpse. The bloodstained floor and contorted body a reminder of the night her whole world collapsed. Images that contaminated her consciousness with memories she could never forget, no matter how hard she tried. Maybe…maybe there would be answers tomorrow, more than those needed for this case. Answers to her questions.

  Crunching. Bones cracking.

  Booted feet. Blood and death.

  The hiding place, a toy box.

  Eyes staring out through the hole her father had made because her sister insisted the toys would need some light.

  Light in darkness.

  A face scanning the room for hiding places.

  “Bellor!” A shout. A name.

  “Look for the girl!”

  The boy’s response: “She’s not in here!”

  His face intent on the box.

  Intent on her as if he could see through the wooden barrier into her soul.

  Black eyes, dark as night.

  Fingers to his lips.

  Ssshh! A silent plea.

  A light switched off.

  “Hey there, Rina!” Cassi’s voice cut through the dark of her thoughts, Irina’s eyes blinking to awareness and sunshine, to Cassi’s bright form standing at the door of her office. Cassi, her sister in all but blood. As usual, she looked stunning, dressed for business, her sharp, dark red trouser suit and cream blouse enhancing the honey gold strands of hair that fell loose from the tight bun she always wore for work. It was funny how they meshed so well together. Complete opposites in every way, Irina was the quiet, petite brunette foil to Cassi’s gregarious, elegant blonde. They shouldn’t have worked together but they did, Cassi’s generous nature breaking through Irina’s protective shell of reserve at the age of eleven, when Merak had come to her rescue, propelling her from the darkness of the orphanage and back into the light.