Her heart tightened. "So you understand why I need to save my kingdom from the shadows. I need to protect my people from the shadow wolves."
He studied her. "I understand why you need to save your kingdom, but there has to be another way."
She sighed and leaned her head against his chest, needing the feel of his strength around her. He wrapped his arms around her, enfolding her in the shield of his body. This man was her first line of defense and offense, but at the same time, he had the power to destroy everything for her. "I've been searching since my parents died," she said, unable to keep the weariness out of her voice. "I brought in so many experts, and no one knew what to do. Rohan is supposed to be a master of dealing with dark creatures. It took me forever to find him, but he eventually arrived at my kingdom with his team. He was there the morning the shadows arrived." She'd never forget that moment, when she'd opened her curtains and seen them. Her stomach had dropped, and a blanket of icy doom had descended upon her, freezing her into the immobility of true terror. "I couldn't believe it when I saw they were back," she said softly. "I wasn't ready, and they were coming for me."
Levi kissed the top of her head, listening to her words. He could imagine that moment when she'd seen the shadows, and the depth of her fear for her kingdom. He was impressed that she'd managed to recruit Rohan. The warrior was legendary in his battle skills, but also very elusive. He rarely, if ever, offered his skills to anyone. He had his own agenda, and never strayed. He wondered why Rohan had responded to her call for help. "What did Rohan say?"
She burrowed deeper against him, as if she were seeking protection from the memories, protection she hadn't been able to rely on when she'd faced it by herself. Levi tightened his arms around her, knowing they had to keep moving, but also understanding that they needed this moment.
"He said that they were creatures of darkness, predators made of smoke," she replied, her body fitting against his as if they had been created for each other, which, in a way, he supposed they had. "They take the form of wolves with red eyes when they attack, but they just dissolve under any blows. They don't stop until they are sated, and then they retreat. He said they usually defend ancient spirits, and it's unusual for them to be used offensively."
Levi narrowed his eyes as distant bits of memory floated past him. "I've heard of them. Rumors, only. I didn't realize they actually existed." He tried to remember what he knew of them, but so much from his past existence was a blur of blood-red memories.
She nodded. "Rohan said that, traditionally, they retreat when the danger to the ancient spirits has passed, but since they appear to be acting offensively in this case, they won't retreat." She ran her hands over his chest, as if drawing comfort from their connection. "Rohan agrees that sunlight would defeat them. When they come, they take over the sky and block out the sun. We need sunlight from within, so they can't block it. He doesn't know of any way to make it happen, though."
Levi considered this. "And you believe Merk has sunlight?"
"He does have it." She sighed, her face filled with grim resignation. "He brought it once, long ago, to show my parents. He gave them a sphere that was lit from within as a wedding present. They kept it in their bedroom until my sister and I were born, and then they put it in the nursery. We were both in there with that sphere the first time the creatures came. They attacked the castle, and surrounded our room, but never entered. We could hear the screams as people were attacked, and we could see their red eyes racing past our door, and our windows. They snarled at us, and stalked around the room, but they never entered."
Levi felt the tension in her body, and knew the nightmares she must have had as a child. He'd had the same ones of Merk hunting him, because Merk had scouted him out before kidnapping him, stalking him at night and during the day, assessing his powers before selecting him. Merk had been the same as the wolves hunting her.
She ran her hands over his chest, moving restlessly, as if she were instinctively seeking comfort from his touch. He liked it, liked that her instinct was to ground herself in him when revisiting hellish memories. "After that night, my sister and I slept with the sphere every night. The next time they came, I was very sick with a fever. I was almost delirious. I heard them come, and I tried to get out of bed to find my sister, but I collapsed on the floor. I was lying there when I saw my sister running for the bedroom. The wolves were all around her, sucking her life force from her body. She lunged for the door, but fell before she could reach it. I—" Tears filled her eyes, and her voice choked. "It took me so long to drag myself across the floor, because I was so weak. I finally got her wrist and managed to pull her into the room. The minute she was inside the door, the wolves peeled away from her, howling in dismay, but it was too late. She didn't die, but to this day, she remains in a coma. I saved her, but too late." She searched his face. "I know what Merk has works, because it has saved me twice. I need enough to protect our entire village, forever. Don't you understand?"
Shit.
He did.
He got it.
But he didn't believe that allowing Merk to live was their only choice.
Levi let out his breath. "I don't recall him having that kind of power source," he said slowly, trying to think back to what he knew of Lord William. "He must have acquired it, which means it could be acquired from him."
She stared at him, and for the first time, he saw hope in her eyes. "You don't think he creates the sunlight himself?"
"No, I don't. I would have known about it."
Her fingers tightened against his chest. "So...you think we could steal it from him? Or find out how he got it and then get some ourselves?"
"Yeah, maybe. It's possible."
"So, you can't kill him first, then. We have to find out about that power."
Levi ground his jaw. Every second Merk lived, he was a danger to both of them. If he'd targeted Maya, he wouldn't hesitate to claim her. Would Levi let him live long enough to hurt Maya? He looked down into Maya's blue eyes, and he knew the answer was no. If he had to make a choice, he would choose her over her kingdom. But if there was a way... "I think it's time to get some answers," he said quietly, intentionally not giving her the answer she wanted, that he wouldn't kill Merk until they had acquired their information.
She stared at him so long that he knew she'd realized his evasion. But to her credit, she didn't push it. "So, how do we do that?"
Levi looked up at the dark mountain. "I'm not sure yet." Merk was insane, but his security was impressive. At one time, Levi had known how to get through every safeguard, but he was sure they'd changed. "We'll assess as we get closer—" A sudden chill drifted across his flesh, and he spun around, calling out both weapons.
Maya paled. "They're here, aren't they? The shadows? They got past Rohan and Thano in the caverns?"
"Something is." Levi reached out with his mind, and he touched the rankest of evil. There was nothing about ancient protectors in what he felt. It was pure, predatory evil, and it was coming for Maya. Urgency coursing through him, he scanned the woods swiftly, searching for the wolves. They were coming fast, and he knew he couldn't outrun them.
He had to fight them, and from what Rohan said, his Calydon weapons weren't going to get the job done. He was going to have to go deep, to the places he didn't want to go. He spun around rapidly, trying to find a place to stash Maya. There was a small opening in a nearby rock, and he raced over to it. He crouched in front of the opening and reached out with his mind, assessing the interior the same way he'd inspected the tunnels around his prison while he'd been hung up there. It was small, empty, and enclosed. "There's only one entrance. Go in there." He pulled back and gestured to Maya. "Get in there."
She paused, looking at him. "What are you going to do?"
"Make me a promise," he said softly, as he handed her one of his axes. "If I cross the line and I don't come back, kill me. I won't live like I once did. Do you swear?"
She looked down at the axe in her hand. "You're going to
kill them with your powers, aren't you?"
"It's all I can think of." He gripped her shoulders and dragged her against him. "There is only one way to kill me," he said urgently, searching her face. "Even as my sheva, you'll have to do it this way. Even if you do it, only the fact you're my sheva will make it work, because I won't be able to hurt you to defend myself." He jerked one side of his pants down, revealing a small, cross-shaped mark burned on the front of his hip, just below his pelvic bone. "You have to attack here," he said. "It's my weakest spot. You have to stab me there. Getting hit there can cause serious damage to me, but when fate helps you, I think you'll be able to kill me if you get me there. Got it?"
Her eyes widened. "Seriously? What are you? And how do you know that?"
The night grew colder, and he gripped her arms more tightly. He didn't have time to answer questions, or to think about the fact that he'd just given her information he'd never given anyone in his life. No one knew how to kill him, no one except Maya. "Do you understand?"
She nodded quickly. "I've got it." She grabbed his wrists. "But don't lose yourself! I need you!"
"I know you do." He kissed her once, hard, and then broke away, shoving her into the crevice in the wall. As she crawled out of sight, as a deep sense of rightness settled over him. He knew he'd just completed his half of the trust stage by giving her the power to kill him. As he turned to face the night, he knew that there was another line being drawn on her arm, binding them closer together.
A low howl broke through the night, and he crouched, resting the fingertips of his right hand on the earth. The dirt was cold and wet, laced with rocks and the remains of the living creatures who had died there over the centuries. For a moment, he hesitated, his skin crawling at the idea of returning to that state that had once consumed him.
Then, directly across from him, he saw two glowing red eyes. As he watched, the shadows formed, taking the shape of a wolf. Two more sets of eyes appeared. The wolves spread out, encircling him on the three sides that were exposed, their upper lips curled in a deadly snarl.
He took a deep breath and calmed his mind, reaching out with his preternatural senses to touch them. He felt their evil, just as before, but this time, he looked for more. He searched for what they were...alive? Ghosts? Demon creatures? He sensed a life force within them, and knew then that they were linked to the living, even if they were not alive themselves.
He smiled, that slow, predatory smile that he'd worn for so many centuries. Where there was life, there could be death, at least when he was involved. He shoved his right hand deeper into the earth, and he took from it. He took life. He took death. He took every last breath from the earth. The dirt around his hand turned black and rotten as the earth died from his touch. His hand began to glow a bright white. Energy hummed down his arm, and his muscles went taut as he raised his head to look at the wolves.
They appeared to be swathed in a crimson hue now, and he knew his eyes were as red as theirs. The hunger inside him clawed to get free, but he kept a tight grip on it, refusing to allow it to claim his mind. He pulled his hand out of the dirt, and as he did, it vanished, disappearing from sight so that all that remained visible was the silvery, shadowy remains of his forearm, fading into nothing, an invisible weapon.
But his hand was still there, and it was deadly.
Levi stared at the wolves, waiting. His back was pressed against the rock, so that nothing could edge behind him and slip inside. His instincts howled with the urge to attack, but he fought it off, struggling to remain in control of the assassin within him. He waited. He would not strike first. He would not become like he used to be.
All three wolves attacked simultaneously. Levi hit the first one in the chest, and sucked every last bit of life from it in one hit. It howled in agony, and for a split second, he felt its life spiraling away from it. It wasn't an animal, but something else, a man who had once been alive, and now was truly, forever, gone. For a split second, anguish filled Levi for the man that he'd just killed, who had somehow become trapped in that hell, and then the other two latched onto him with their teeth. Poison leached into him, and his arms shriveled where their teeth were embedded. Levi cuffed the one holding onto his left arm, sucking the life out of it instantly. It shrieked and vanished, but the third one was still holding on.
He went down on his knees, fighting against the wave of weakness. He was slow, so much slower than he had once been. He fought to stay conscious as the wolf sucked his life force out of him, preying upon him exactly as he'd preyed upon so many others. Was Maya right? Was he the same? Was this what he would have become if he'd stayed with Merk?
The wolf was clamped down on his right forearm, making it impossible for him to reach it with his hand. He jammed his left hand into the dirt and sucked energy from the earth. His hand glowed and he jerked it out, pressing his finger between the shadow wolf's eyes.
It held his gaze for a moment, and he felt himself falling, sucked into their depths. His heart seemed to stop as he recognized what was coming for him. Merk.
Then, just as he was losing the grip on his mind, the wolf dissolved with a howl of outrage.
Levi collapsed to his knees, weakness pervading his body as he scanned their surroundings for more wolves. The night was empty and clear, and the air was warm again. The threat was gone, but he'd awoken the monster within him. It raged inside him, demanding to feed, demanding prey. The half-lives of the wolves had only whetted its appetite, not sated it. Levi dug his fingers into the dirt, his entire body straining to hold onto his sanity. "Maya," he gasped, "I need your help."
She was there beside him instantly, her hands on his shoulders. "Levi, Oh, God, what happened? Your arm is shriveled. Oh, God, it's like my sister. They got you." The anguish in her voice was vivid, tearing through the agonizing battle in his mind. Her touch was hot, firing up his muscles everywhere she touched, but it wasn't enough. He needed more. He needed her. Blood bond. He needed to blood bond with her, to ground himself in her. "Give me your hand," he said. His eyes rolled back in his head, and he knew he was losing the battle. Merk had been there. Merk had been in the wolf. Merk was there in his mind, trying to take him. The wolf had weakened him, and Merk was trying to get him. "Now!"
She set her hand in his, but his fingers wouldn't close. He collapsed onto his side, his body rigid. "Kill me," he snapped. "Now. Do it! Jesus."
"No!" She grabbed his shoulders. "You did this for me. I'm not going to let you die."
He grabbed her arm and jerked her down toward him. She landed with a thud on her knees beside him. "Look into my eyes," he growled. "Look at who I'm becoming."
She searched his face, and he knew she was seeing the red glow, the bottomless depth of bitter, merciless death. "Damn it, Levi. That's not you!"
"Do it, now."
"I heard you think of the blood bond," she said. "Will that help?"
"I don't know. I can't." He gasped, his body convulsing as he fought the need thundering through him. "You have to do it. Once it takes me, I'm unstoppable. I'll never let you kill me. I'm too fast. You have to do it before it gets me."
"You're already too fast." She held up the axe she was still carrying and swept her hand across it. He scented the coppery smell of her blood instantly, and need lurched in his stomach, a deep primal need almost as powerful as his lust for death. He rolled onto his side as she grabbed his hand and raked it across the blade.
She slammed their palms together, and their blood mixed. Need pulsed through him instantly, and his body clenched in response. Maya! He grabbed her around the waist and hauled her onto him. She came willingly, pressing herself against him as she kissed him.
Her mouth was hot and sensual, but not enough. Not fucking enough. He lifted their clasped hands and pressed his mouth to their mingled blood. The blood was tangy and hot on his tongue and slid down his throat like a searing burn that ate away at his flesh. Maya's eyes widened and he grabbed her and dragged her down to him.
This time,
when they kissed, their mingled blood was damp on his lips and tongue, and he offered them to Maya. She accepted hungrily, and the kiss turned carnal within a split second. White-hot lust lashed through his mind, blanking out the lethal hunger that had been amassing inside him, replacing it with an insatiable craving for the woman in his arms.
He rolled her onto her back, and stripped off their pants, plunging into her wet, welcoming body without even breaking the kiss. She gasped his name, and he felt her emotions pouring into him. He was swamped by her desire, her fear, her passion, and her unbridled desperation for him. He pumped harder and faster, unable to get deep enough or close enough to take the edge off the intensity of the emotions raging through him. And then, just as he thought he was going to crack, the words came, the words he didn't know, and yet somehow came alive within him. Mine to you. Yours to me. Bonded by blood, by spirit and by soul, we are one. No distance too far, no enemy too powerful, no sacrifice too great. I will always find you. I will always protect you. No matter what the cost. I am yours as you are mine.He gave her the words, his heart, and his soul, and then hung, suspended in fear as he waited for the reply that he knew had to come, knowing, somehow, that if she didn't say them back, all would be lost for him forever.
Her voice filled his mind, so tender and beautiful he felt as if the sun had plunged right through the blackness of his soul and cast light upon it. Mine to you. Yours to me. Bonded by blood, by spirit and by soul, we are one. No distance too far, no enemy too powerful, no sacrifice too great. I will always find you. I will always keep you safe. No matter what the cost. I am yours as you are mine.
Maya. Her name burst through him like a great light, and then he thrust again. The orgasm exploded through him, and she clung to him, whispering his name over and over and over again into his mind as his orgasm swept her up, mixing them together into a glorious, exulting victory of connection, hurtling them over the edge into a final, joined climax.
Shadows of Darkness Page 8
