Reign

by Alaska Angelini

  “It’s your fault. I told you not to go there.”

  “It had to be said, whether you wanted to hear it or not.”

  An eyebrow lifted in warning, but I kept quiet, forging on as we neared the elevator. When the doors opened and shut behind us, I swallowed hard, knowing this was probably a mistake on my part. I was risking a lot by breaching Axis’ walls, but I had to see Tessa for myself. I had to make sure she was okay. That I had restrained this long was torture.

  “Don’t say anything,” I rushed out. “Let me do the speaking if anyone addresses us. And … just don’t do something stupid. We go in, we check on Tessa, and we get out as fast as we can. Clear?”

  “Crystal.” Hunter paused. “Actually, maybe I should do the talking.”

  “Hunter.”

  “Okay, okay. Just joking. Bad timing I guess. Sorry, I get like this when I’m nervous. That talk you gave. I hate that shit. It’s like bad karma. You tempt fate when you invite in death. I can’t shake the feeling I got when you continued after I told you to stop.” He frowned, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Marko, you can’t lose. You just can’t. Tessa needs you. She’d be lost without you.”

  “What about you? Wouldn’t you be happy to have her to yourself?”

  He gave me a hard look before he moved his attention to the floor. “No. It wouldn’t be the same. I used to think she and I were perfect for each other, but she loves you, too. And I, well, I like you. A lot. Don’t take that the wrong way, I just.” He shifted, glancing up at me. “You’re dear to me. Let’s leave it at that. You’re a good guy.”

  “So are you.”

  The door opened and I gave him one last look before leading us out of the elevator. Silence met us and I felt even sicker than before as I led us down the long hall. So clear I could feel Aetas and Tessa’s energy. It only made me rein mine in even more. Fuck, they were close. So damn close.

  I slowed, letting Hunter come up, even with me. “They’re on the main level. There’s a lounging area for enforcers to the far right. I think if we head in that direction, we may pass them. Stay at my side. Not behind me. We are equal here. Brothers.”

  “Always.” He kept his stare ahead, hard and devoid of emotions. Mine were almost impossible to control at his word. Brothers. Yes. In a weird way, perhaps we were.

  The hall opened up into the main room and the news filled the space as it always did. I ignored the chaos and destruction sounding in the background and tapped more into the powers around me. When I glanced toward the thrones in the back, I almost stumbled. Aetas was seated in his, and Tessa sat erect at his side. Members were split and stood to the side of both. All were glaring in our direction. All but one. Tessa. Her eyes were swollen and red as if she had been crying and was still trying to manage to keep it in.

  “I was wondering how long it would take for you to grace us with your presence. How are your lodgings? Did you long for death so much that you would inhabit a city of dead vampires?”

  Enforcers poured from the surrounding doors, moving in to surround us. Hunter grabbed my bicep, but I shook my head at him. There was no more running. Our people were here and there was no getting to them fast enough.

  I let our true forms take us over as I faced my enemy. Tessa’s hands reached for the arms of her thrown and I watched her knuckles turn white while tears rolled down her cheeks.

  “That is not your true form,” she said, wiping them away. “You are not Marko. You are an imposter. Show yourself to us and confess your crimes.”

  I laughed under my breath, giving her a smile. “Ma minette, somewhere deep in your mind, you know who you face. It is why you cry. The man you sat by is not me. He is Aetas. Aetas,” I repeated louder for all to hear. “You’ve all been deceived. This man is none other than our leader. He did not die the day you placed him to rest, that was me. Me! Think back to Margo and Gina. Think back to the predictions made before their deaths. They knew this was going to happen. It is why he killed them. Isn’t that right, Aetas?”

  “Aetas?” he repeated.

  The members turned his way, but kept still as shock began to settle into their features.

  “Do your lies go so deep?” he continued. “Aetas is dead. Everyone saw him before he was laid to rest.”

  “Saw me! See.” I changed into Aetas form and gasps filled the room. “It is easy to become anyone when you have the power to. Isn’t that right, my dear ruler? How am I able to do this if I were not pure of blood like you? It is because we’re bonded. I grow because you grow. It is time to end this charade. You have hurt our kind long enough. I am the one who gathered the survivors to save. It wasn’t you. You care not for us. You have killed us. You have committed treason and by your own law, and I say you should be arrested.”

  Laughter filled the space as he stood. Regardless that he felt this was a joke, the enforcers around me were humming with energy. My words were enough to confuse them, I just hoped what I was doing worked.

  “No one here has committed treason except you. You held an uprising to overthrow your king. You have your rebels—”

  Aetas’ words died off as a group of vampires came walking from the hallway that led from the City of the Dead. Mistress Price walked side by side with Niko and with each second, more followed.

  “What is this? Are you all so ready to face your deaths?”

  “No.” Niko walked around an enforcer and came to stop next to Hunter. “We’re here to watch one, though. Or an arrest. Either works for me. As long as it’s you.”

  “How dare you speak to me like that!”

  I threw up my shield just in time to deflect Aetas’ power. The blow was like a punch in the gut and I gritted passed the pain.

  “How can I do that if we aren’t equals?” I stepped closer to him, glancing at Tessa as she scooted to the edge of her chair. “It’s over Aetas. Your reign is finished. You must submit and go with the guards to lockdown. I’m asking nicely. You would be smart to take me up on my offer. It beats the alternative.”

  “And what’s that?”

  He stepped down, walking toward me. Footsteps pounded from behind and I could feel the enforcers closing in.

  “Admit you are not me, or you will find out.”

  Tessa stood, rushing toward us. My hand shot out for her to stay back, but she didn’t stop. She only widened her steps away from us.

  “What is this? Is it true, Marko?”

  Aetas glared at me and slowed as he turned to face her. “You love me, yes?”

  “…Yes.”

  “Tell him I am Marko and you love me.”

  “You are not me! Tessa is my concubine, not yours, and what you have done is also against your laws. Now admit who you are Aetas and submit to your fall. You have failed us—killed us. You are guilty of treason.”

  “NO! I am not him! I am not Aetas.”

  A frustrated sound came from my mouth and I looked down at my hand, watching a knife appear. In one strike, I let the blade slice through my forearm. Blood simultaneously poured from our skin, trickling to the floor. The steady downpour that left both of us mingled with the whispers that were exploding in the room. “I am you. You are me. We are one. Do you remember that, ma minette? You once said that to me. Now I say it to him.”

  I cut through my arm again, deeper this time. Aetas growled, holding to the wound as he lunged for me. Hunter jerking me back was the only thing that saved me from getting caught in his grasp.

  “Admit who you are,” Hunter said, putting half of his body in front of mine.

  “I should have killed you instead of made you in my creation. You betray your maker!”

  Tessa raced in our direction, only to be cut off as Aetas disappeared, only to appear between us.

  “Don’t listen to them. Look back into my eyes. You love me. Remember? None of this matters. None one matters but us.”

  “Don’t do it, Tessa!” I pushed passed Niko, moving more in their direction. “Don’t look at him, love, look at me.”

>   “No! You do not speak to her.” A blast of energy sent us all flying back and even as I hit the ground, I didn’t take my eyes off of Tessa. He had her, pulling her toward the side of the room. The enforcers didn’t stand a chance as they tried to stop him. Power kept coming toward us in blows, weighing us down.

  I scrambled to my feet, fight through the heaviness. I fell over one of the vampires as I ran in their direction. Each step was harder than the last, until it ceased for a few seconds. He was talking to her, beginning to wrestle her fighting form.

  “Aetas! Wait! Don’t make me do it. Aetas!”

  The closer he got to the main doors, the more panic registered. He could disappear at any time and then Tessa would be lost to me for good. He could come back and do this again if he got free now. I couldn’t lose her or let my people down. I had no choice.

  “Tessa!”

  I laced my fingers, gripping to the handle of the knife. My heart ached more at seeing her struggle to break free than any blade was capable of producing.

  “Marko? Marko!” Hunter’s energy blasted against my skin, but it was too late. I forced my hands toward me with every ounce of strength I possessed—right over my heart. The pain was but a blessing for the goodbye my soul was saying.

  “Marko!”

  Tessa blood-curdling cry for me echoed in the distance and in a blur of color I watched Aetas drop as I did. Heat gushed down my chest even as the mix of mine and Aetas’ blood filled my mouth. None of it mattered as I watched Tessa step over his dying body to rush back to me.

  “Jesus. Somebody get me something!”

  Hunter was suddenly over me and the horror on his face sent tears trailing down the sides of my face.

  “If you live, so help me. Fuck,” he cried out.

  Agony flared in my chest as he removed the knife and pushed down over the wound.

  “No.” I tried to turn out of his hold. “I … must die. It’s the only way.” Sobbing sounded as Tessa threw herself down next to me. I let out my own heartbreak at her pain, not able to stop the crying that poured free of me. “I’m sorry. I … love you.”

  “Not this way,” she sobbed. “Take my blood. I can save you. I’ve seen it.”

  “You can’t.”

  The room was already fading and each word was getting harder to speak than the last.

  “Marko?”

  “Shh. Kiss me. One … last time.”

  The sobbing grew louder as she lowered, but I couldn’t tell if it was coming from her, me, or Hunter. Everything was so dark. I didn’t like the dark, but I had Tessa. Her energy was my light and I held to it with every last breath that struggled free from my lips.

  “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Please forgive me. I love you,” she cried.

  The pressure only lasted for a second against my numb lips, but it was everything to me. She and Hunter had been together when I first saw her, and I was leaving them together. Something in that gave me peace as I felt myself drift away. I had never been the hero of my story, but somehow the love of a woman and a dear friend had made me become one in the end.

  Epilogue

  Tessa

  “Do you think it will always be this way?”

  More tears rolled down my cheeks and stopping them was impossible. My heart ached and there was no removing the heaviness that was weighing me down. My eyes rose back to the memorial and I wiped away the new stream that trailed down my face.

  “I feel as though we’ve had this conversation before.”

  He wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close. The kiss on the top of my head had a sob leaving me and I buried my face into his shirt.

  “That’s because in a way, we have. I showed you my memories of us again last night.”

  “That’s right. High school. I’m sorry. I can’t think straight these days.”

  Hunter turned us, walking toward headquarters at a slow pace. “That’s because your plate is full of responsibility. Ruling a race isn’t easy work, you know. Not to mention everything else you do. You need to feed, and then you need rest.”

  I nodded, hearing his words, but barely processing them. Since Marko’s death, I had the weight of the world on my shoulders. We were in hiding again here at Axis, and we’d stay that way for at least another century until we braved going back to our underground world. Days were spent training our gifts. Growing them so we could establish our foundation again. We were off to a good start, but it was hard work.

  The humans were still on guard—still patrolling and killing us off. They had luck with large groups that didn’t make it to us in time, but even now, almost two months later, vampires were showing up at our door. They didn’t know that when they arrived. Axis was always hidden, even from our own kind, but the pull would always be there for us to find.

  I made sure of that.

  I made sure of a lot. Maybe too much.

  My eyes squinted as more thoughts rushed in. Ones I was thankful to even be having. Aetas has screwed up my mind good. Even now, after all this time, I still didn’t recall my past. At least, not any of it that didn’t come from Hunter. I was a mix of truth and lies fed to me by my former leader. Deciphering truth from fiction was almost impossible. All I did know for sure was my love for Marko. The emotion was real, even if I couldn’t recall the majority of our life together.

  “Mistress Price was meant to put a call out to the cities this morning. I forgot to remind her. Do you know—?”

  “She took care of it,” Hunter assured. “I talked to her just after she finished.

  “And the enforcers? How’s the recruiting going?”

  Hunter brought us to a stop, turning me to face him. “You talked to Colin yesterday. Nothing much has happened since then. Calm. Everything is going smoothly. You worry for nothing.”

  My arms wrapped around him and he angled my face up, brushing his lips against mine. “I love you, and you’re doing an amazing job. Please try not to push yourself so hard.”

  I sniffled, meeting his eyes as more pain nearly crippled me. “I’m so afraid.”

  “There’s no reason, I promise. Aetas is dead. We burned his body. His ashes are guarded by enforcers just to put you at ease. We just checked, they’re there at the memorial now. There is nothing to fear.”

  “It’s not that,” I choked out.

  Hunter made a sad expression, turning us to head back toward the elevator.

  “Then I will put your mind at ease.”

  Silence last between us until we got off the elevator and made it to the main stairs. When we started down the long hallway, my feet rooted to the floor and I couldn’t continue.

  “Why do avoid him so much? He misses you, Tessa. You saved his life. You didn’t leave his side for weeks. Now you rarely go to his room.”

  Another sob left me and I felt myself falling to pieces. “This is my fault. I killed him.”

  “You saved him,” Hunter stressed. “He lives, baby.”

  “Barely. Jesus, help me. He teeters on life and death I just know I’m going to lose him for good. I go in the middle of the night. I sit with him and I confess my love. I cry, and he doesn’t wake for me. I’ve tried everything and it makes no difference.”

  “It makes all the difference. Do you not see him get better when you’re around? He has more color. He breathes easier. You have to go to him. You have to be there for Marko. He needs you, Tessa. And he does wake now. Not for long, but he wakes. He’s getting better. Come see.”

  Hunter’s hand lightly settled around my bicep and I let him lead me down to the end of the hall, regardless that I was afraid. Could I do this? See what I had done to the man I loved? Why had I even stayed with Aetas? Shouldn’t I have known something bad was going to happen? My fault. I had failed Marko.

  The door opened and Hunter had to physically pull me inside. My pulse was pounding and I felt like I was going to be sick. When my eyes settled on Marko’s pale face, my heart constricted just as it always did when looking at his beautiful features.
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br />   “Lay down on the bed with him. I’ll get on the other side. He needs to feel his mates. We are everything to him, and he is everything to us. We love him and he has to know that.”

  My mouth opened, but I was already walking, already being pulled in by the love within. What I told Hunter was true. I may have avoid and buried myself in work during the day, but I always came at night. Always begged him to return to me. Each time he didn’t, my soul mourned even more.

  Deep breaths lightened as I approached and I stole a glance at Hunter as he moved in sync with me on the other side of the bed. When I climbed onto the mattress, he joined me.

  “Now lay down and hold him. Tell him how well you are running things in his absence. Tell him how much you miss him and how you’re madly in love with him.”

  I smiled, lowering myself. My head was propped on my hand and I reached over with hesitation to trace my fingers over his stomach. I could feel his core energy so close and the location and connection seemed right.

  His shirt moved with my touch and I soon lost myself in the motions as I began to speak about my every day routine. Hunter’s hand at some point had settled on Marko’s shoulder and being so close to the men I loved did put me at peace. Separate, we were incomplete. Together, we were whole.

  “I’ve missed you more than you’ll ever know. Sometimes when I’m giving orders, or holding a meeting, I find myself stopping and wondering what you would do if you were awake and in my position. You were meant to lead. Even as I do, I feel it is not my place.”

  I paused, lifting to rub my face over the stubble on his cheek. “God, your scent calls to me. Do you feel my emptiness without you? This is tearing me apart, Marko. You have to come back to me. This is killing me.”

  “I … think it’s killing me more.”

  My head shot up at the scratchy, weak voice that made my heart plummet to the floor.

  “Don’t stop.” His lids fluttered open and I nearly began crying all over again as his eyes connected with mine. The stinging left my vision blurred and I quickly blinked it away as I moved back. My hand cupped his cheek and the sob couldn’t be stopped as I hugged myself to him.