by Cathryn Fox
He stood before her dressed in an overcoat, his hair slicked back off his forehead, looking exactly as she remembered.
“Kohan,” she whispered, taking a step backwards.
“That’s not exactly the warm welcome I’d been hoping for,” he said, a wolfish smile on his face. “It’s been a long time, Katrina. Come closer, let me have a better look at you.” He took a step toward her and her mouth went dry with terror.
Her heart pounded so hard in her chest she thought it would burst. She fought to recapture her breath. “What do you want from me?”
He took his time in answering. He shot her a sidelong glance, his eyes gazing at her with lustful hunger. “Ah, my sweet.” He cocked his head to the side. “You already know the answer to that question.”
She gave a derisive twist of her lips. “I’d rather die than mate with you.”
A low chuckle rumbled in his throat as his eyes darkened. “Yes, well, we’ve already walked that path now, haven’t we?” With a swift movement, he closed the distance between them. “And I have no desire to wait another few decades for you to resurface.” His body was close enough that she could feel his heat, his arousal.
His eyes slowly tracked her curves. He pushed his cock against her and groaned in delight. “You’re still as beautiful and desirable as I remember.” He inhaled her skin and scoffed in disgust. “Once I rid you of Ranek’s scent, I’ll make you mine.” He kept his voice soft, but his anger was evident.
She shuddered and turned her head away.
He grabbed her chin hard and tugged her back to face him. “Don’t ever turn away when I am addressing you. Do you understand?”
“You’re hurting me,” she cried, clawing at him.
He eased his grip and smirked. “Ranek has been too lenient with you. Under my command, you will learn respect and discipline.” The look in his eyes was frightening and Katrina felt her knees begin to collapse.
Kohan pushed his body against hers, anchoring her to the wall. Disgust crept over her skin. There was no way she’d let this man have her.
She summoned her courage and lifted her chin. “I will never live under your command,” she bit out tersely.
“I’m afraid, my love, you will have no choice in the matter.”
“Let go of me.” She squirmed and he tightened his hold, letting her know she was no challenge for him.
He ignored her protests. “You will see that the pleasures I have to offer you outweigh death.” He smiled and trailed a finger over her breasts. “And soon, I assure you, you will seek such pleasures.” He buried his face into the crook of her neck and moaned into her throat as he began to unbutton her blouse.
“Undress for me, Katrina. Let me see what I have missed all these years. The last glimpse I had of your beautiful, naked body was the night you mated with my brother.” His breath on her neck curdled her stomach and she could feel bile pushing into her throat.
“So you were there. How?”
He chuckled. “Magic, my dear Katrina. A magic cloaking potion from the underworld. My foolish brother had no idea I was there, watching you.”
She felt his wet tongue leave a slimy trail on her neck. Her stomach twisted and she shook her head. Fresh tears spilled from her eyes as she batted his hands away. “Stop!” He was too strong for her to push away.
He stepped back and laughed. “I must admit, I always did love your spirit.”
She closed her eyes in relief when he released her from his clutches. When she opened them again, she spotted movement behind Kohan.
“Ranek,” she murmured breathlessly, and felt almost giddy with thankfulness.
“Ranek cannot save you.” Kohan’s voice was cold, dangerous.
“Don’t be so sure, little brother.” Ranek’s tone was so frigid it turned her blood to ice. His eyes burned with an intense rage and Katrina suspected his fury knew no bounds. He stalked forward and hovered over Kohan like an untamed animal ready to pounce.
She didn’t recognize the look on this man’s face. Gone was the tenderness he’d shown her. What was before her was the face of a warrior.
Kohan spun around. “How—?”
“Seems your illegal potion has worked against you.” Ranek pulled his dagger from its casing.
“Some would call me a genius. Such brilliance, don’t you think?” Kohan said reaching for his own dagger.
Ranek’s eyes burned like black coals as they stared into Kohan’s. “There is a fine line between genius and insanity.” His tone was deceptively mild.
Kohan twirled his dagger in his hand. Light glistened off the razor-sharp edge. “I have not grown soft in the underworld, big brother. You are no match for the strength and agility I have acquired over the years. I shall make short work of you and then return to matters that have more interest to me.” He shot Katrina a leer and laughed.
The sound of his poisonous laughter seeped into her skin and filled her body with panic. Katrina stood immobile, frozen with fear. She could taste the tension in the room. Her muscles were unable to move as she watched the battle in horror, brother against brother, warrior against warrior.
The clash of weapons made her ears ring. She gulped air, covered them and cried out for Ranek’s safety.
Katrina held her breath when a lethal blow barely missed Ranek’s head. Kohan let out a low, triumphant laugh.
As the fight continued, Katrina fought the urge to faint. She felt terror unlike anything she’d ever felt before.
Kohan matched Ranek blow for blow but soon his stamina seemed to dwindle.
“Where is this strength you speak of?” Ranek asked, thrusting his dagger forward. “I believe you have grown soft in the underworld.”
Ranek’s taunting words enraged Kohan. Ranek neatly sidestepped his advances.
There was no place for emotion in a battle of wit and skill. Katrina knew a fight should be fought with intellect, not passion. She knew this was Kohan’s shortcoming and prayed it would be his downfall.
“I wonder just who is making short work of whom?” Ranek mocked. He moved around the floor with grace and agility while Kohan wiped blood from his face and fought to recover his breath.
Rage burned in Kohan’s eyes. “I will destroy you once and for all, big brother,” he bit out, swinging his dagger with all his might.
Once again Ranek sidestepped his advance, sending the other man sailing to the floor.
In a motion so quick it threw Kohan off-guard, Ranek stood over him. Katrina looked up just in time to see Ranek plunge his dagger through Kohan’s chest.
Kohan’s cry of agony rang through the air. She tried to block her mind to the sound but it was too loud, too intense.
White lights danced before her eyes as horror twisted her insides. She clutched her stomach as fear and nausea overcame her. The room began to spin and, no longer able to remain conscious, she felt herself slip to the floor.
* * * * *
“Katrina, wake up.” Ranek cradled her in his lap, gently rubbing her cheeks, trying to rouse her from her faint.
Her lids slowly flickered open. As her mind began to return to consciousness, he watched the color drain from her face. Her body began to quiver and he held her tighter trying to soothe her.
She glanced at the floor, to the spot where Kohan had fallen. “What happened to him?”
“I sent his body back to our kingdom.”
She freed herself from his embrace and pressed herself against the wall. With her knees bent to her chest, she wrapped her arms around her legs and shook her head back and forth.
“I can’t do this, Ranek. I can’t take any more memories or witness any more battles.” He watched her throat work as she swallowed. Fresh tears glistened in her eyes.
Ranek cursed himself for slaying Kohan in front of her. The human part of her could not handle such things and was putting up great resistance. She was retreating, and he needed to bring her back around.
“Katrina—”
She cut him off with a w
ave of her hand. “No, no more. You have to go.” Her voice wavered. Her eyes were dark, haunted, reflecting her every emotion.
Panic cut through him. Blood pounded through his veins. “You know not what you want, my love.”
She buried her face into her palms. “I do know,” she cried. “My life may not have been perfect before you entered it, but at least it made sense. Now I’m confused and emotionally drained. I just want things to go back to normal.” She lifted her head and matched the intensity in his gaze. “I want you to leave.” Anger sparked in her eyes.
He reached for her and she flinched away. “I’ve spent decades searching for you, Katrina. I love you and you are my soulmate. I will not let you go so easily.”
She sniffed and brushed the dampness from her eyes. “If you cared anything about me, you’d accept my wishes and leave. Let me follow the safe, planned path I was on.”
“Is this what you really wish? For me to leave? For you to marry James?”
Her eyes opened wide. “You knew about James?”
“Of course, Katrina. I know everything about you. You are my soulmate.”
She turned away from him.
“Katrina?” He needed more time to bring her mind back around. But with her wedding in a couple of days, time was a luxury that wasn’t his.
“No more, Ranek. You must go.”
“If it is truly your wish, Katrina, then I will not stand in your way.” His heart felt as though it had been torn from his chest. “Before you marry, there is something you should know.”
“What?” she asked quietly.
“I am your soulmate and if we are denied each other, we will never be able to find true happiness.” Ranek deliberately withheld his knowledge of their eventual deaths. He refused to blackmail her into choosing him.
She began to shake her head. A sob caught in her throat. He knew she was scared. So scared.
His heart went out to her. “There is another way, Katrina.”
“How?” she whispered, and he sensed she was trying to stay in control of her emotions.
“You gave your life for me once. Now it is my turn to give my life for you.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You died trying to save me, now I will die to save you,” he repeated calmly.
“What?” Her whole body stiffened.
“As your soulmate, if I was to willingly die, then you would be freed from me. Free to marry a mortal and live a full mortal life. You would no longer be connected to the Bandara world.”
Her eyes opened wide. “You’d sacrifice your life for me?”
“Yes,” he whispered.
“Why? Why would you do that?” Her tone softened as her anger melted.
He pressed his lips hungrily against her sweet mouth and smoothed her hair back. “Because I love you, and without you I have no reason to go on.” With those tender words ringing in her ears, he disappeared.
Chapter Twelve
He was gone.
Katrina stared at the empty space where Ranek had been standing until he’d faded into mist. With her legs too weak to lift her from the floor, she remained huddled in the corner. Her heart pounded in her chest as she tried to comprehend what had just happened. Oh God, Susan. What had they done to Susan?
“Susan!”
A moment later Susan stumbled into her office, her hand pressed against her head.
“Susan, are you okay?”
When Susan saw Katrina sitting on the floor, she hurried to her.
“Katrina, he overpowered me. Are you okay?”
She took a deep breath and nodded. “It’s over. It’s all over.” An empty feeling settled in her heart and she tried to ignore it.
“You’re in shock.” Susan helped her to her feet and into her office chair. She glanced around the battered room. “What happened here?”
Katrina sat on her hands to stop them from trembling and explained how Kohan had tried to force her into the underworld. How Ranek had shown up and saved her from Kohan’s clutches, and how the incident had ended with bloodshed.
“My God, Katrina. You could have been hurt! You could have—” She stopped mid-sentence, as if what she were about to say was too much for her to bear. “Where’s Ranek?”
Katrina stared straight ahead but saw nothing. “He’s gone.”
“Is he coming back?” Susan asked.
She shook her head. “No. He’s gone for good.” She struggled for normalcy in her voice when all she wanted to do was curl up and cry.
“But—”
Katrina cut her off. “It’s for the best. Now my life can get back to normal.”
Susan shot her a disbelieving glance. “Are you sure you want that?”
She knew her too well.
Katrina forced herself to turn away knowing full well her eyes would betray her emotions. “I’m sure.”
“Maybe you should go home and rest.” Susan leaned in and placed her hand on Katrina’s shoulder. “Think on this for awhile.”
Katrina gave a defiant shake of her head. She didn’t want to go home. At home, in her bed, the memories of Ranek were too strong. Just then the phone rang.
“That’s the call I’ve been waiting for.” She looked at Susan, her eyes pleading. She couldn’t talk to anyone in the condition she was in. She needed time, time to deal with the events, and time to heal the pain that had ripped through her heart.
“I can’t—”
“I’ll take it,” Susan assured her, putting her hand over the receiver.
“Thanks,” Katrina mumbled. She planted her elbows on her desk and buried her face in her hands.
* * * * *
The next few hours passed without incident. Katrina tried to block her mind to all the tumultuous emotions raging inside herself and move on. She forced herself to concentrate on her work and wedding preparations. But, as hard as she tried to forget what had happened in her office earlier that day, she couldn’t. Ranek’s parting words continued to haunt her.
I will die for you.
The emotions he pulled from her were too painful to think about. The strong resistance from her human side pressured her to block all thoughts of him and concentrate on other things.
By the time she left the office to meet James and his parents for the rehearsal dinner, night had closed around her. She chatted idly in the passenger seat while Susan drove to the restaurant. Katrina was careful to keep the conversation away from Ranek and the events of the day. When Susan tried to bring up the incident, Katrina quickly changed the subject.
Once inside, she was whisked away in a flurry of activity. The maitre d’ led her to a private table in back where James’s family was gathered. When she caught James’s eye, he jumped from his chair and rushed to her.
“Good evening, sweetheart.” He kissed her on the mouth. Nothing. She felt nothing.
Her heart sank into the pit of her stomach.
“Is everything okay?” he asked, but before she had a chance to tell him just how not okay everything was, he turned his attention to the waiter and ordered a bottle of champagne.
“You were saying?” he asked, turning back to her.
“Nothing,” she replied. “Everything is fine. Perfectly fine,” she lied.
“Katrina, my dear, just look at you.” James’s mother reached out and brushed Katrina’s mussed hair from her shoulders. “You’re as white as a sheet.” She shook her head and frowned. “You’ve been working too hard. I’ll be glad when you go on your honeymoon and get some well needed rest.”
James winked at her and whispered in her ear. “Don’t count on it.”
Katrina’s stomach churned as she sank into her chair.
* * * * *
The following days passed quickly as Katrina finished her work at the office and prepared for her wedding and honeymoon. Everything was finally in order for the big day.
It was well past midnight the night before her wedding when Katrina, feeling totally exhausted, fell into bed. Kicking h
er blankets to the bottom of the mattress, she shifted restlessly. She didn’t wait for Ranek to invade her thoughts, or her body. He hadn’t made an appearance in the previous nights, nor did she expect him to tonight.
A lump caught in her throat and she swallowed past it.
Susan was fast asleep in the other room. She’d insisted on staying at Katrina’s apartment to watch over her until the ceremony.
Other than Susan and her husband, she had no other family or friends coming to the ceremony.
This was all she’d ever wanted, wasn’t it? To marry into a big family? To finally find love, acceptance, and belonging?
As she lay in her bed, she willed her mind to think about James, but no matter how hard she tried, Ranek consumed her thoughts.
Her body quivered as she recalled his touch, his caresses, and his hungry kisses. She twisted sideways, buried her face in her pillow and groaned, praying that she’d made the right decision.
She’d never felt so empty, so alone in her entire life. She’d found solace, comfort and a sense of belonging with Ranek.
Would she ever find that with James?
She was well into the wee hours of the morning when she finally fell into a fitful sleep.
She awoke to the sounds of the birds chirping and instead of feeling alive and elated on this special day, she felt scared and alone.
She’d spent the better part of the night tossing and turning, trying to block Ranek from her mind.
Stretching out her limbs, she reluctantly climbed from her bed. The hairdresser was due to arrive any minute. After that the photographer would be coming, as well as Roxanne and Sherry, her soon-to-be sisters-in-law.
Susan opened the door, filling her room with the aromatic scent of fresh-brewed coffee. She crossed the room. “How are you feeling this morning?” she asked.
Katrina gave her a genuine, loving smile. “What would I do without you?”
