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around her wrist. Still, he breathed a sigh of relief when she wrapped her arm around his and shuffled in closer.
Dovina held her breath as the hotel room faded, replaced by a dense fog. This should be impossible. But she’d learned in the past few days that many things she’d thought impossible were real.
She was grateful for the almost bruising hold Hadeon had on her wrist. She gripped his arm tight, the leather of his coat creaking beneath her fingers. No way did she want to get lost in this.
She was totally blind. The shadows seemed almost alive, to have substance and form. She squinted and then opened her eyes wide, trying to see something. Anything.
“Can you see?” Fear crept into her voice.
“Yes.” He didn’t say anything else as he continued to lead her through the corridor of darkness.
This must be what it would be like to be in a mine deep under the earth with no light source. It was totally disorienting. Dovina had no sense of time or space. It was hard to keep walking straight as she had no references to guide her. She shivered as she felt something pass them on their left. She knew she was right when Hadeon pulled her closer. She didn’t speak, almost afraid to attract attention to them.
Dovina didn’t know if they’d been walking for five minutes or five hours when she thought she saw a light up ahead. It seemed to waver. At first she assumed it was a trick of her eyes, but then it seemed to settle.
Breathing a sigh of relief, she hurried her step. Butterflies began to flutter in her stomach. This was the Shadow Realm, Hadeon’s home. She swallowed the lump in her throat.
Trepidation warred with excitement. She was about to boldly go where no woman had gone before. Or at least none that she knew of. This was truly a brave new world. The dense fog-like substance seemed to dissipate and Dovina could see the outline of a wall ahead. She reached out as they passed it, running her fingers over the structure. It was stone and very cool to the touch.
She felt Hadeon glance down at her. She looked up and smiled at him. She might not be able to see him, but was certain he could see her. That was one of his gifts. Dovina sensed movement in the shadows. She wondered if it was more warriors like Hadeon, lost and without hope. Her heart ached for them. She raised her hand and waved to the dark corners, feeling slightly foolish, but unable to shake the feeling that they needed something to stir them from the shadows.
“You have brought a visitor.” The powerful male voice seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time.
Dovina froze. The human response of fight-or-flight was strong and it was telling her to run. It was difficult, but she forced herself to keep moving when Hadeon tugged 75
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on her arm. She was here on a mission. Hadeon might think they were here to save her. And that was true. But she was looking for a way to help the Shadow Ryders. Hadeon stopped in front of an enormous throne-like chair. There was barely enough light to cut the gloom, but after the complete darkness of moments before, she was able to see a little. She squinted, making out the outline of a huge man sitting in the chair. This must be the Shadow Lord.
“You are correct, Dovina Horne.”
She startled, realizing he’d read her thoughts. She didn’t like that at all. This place needed more light. She needed to see who was talking to her. As if her very thoughts conjured it, a lone candle on the table ignited, spilling its warmth a small distance. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.
She heard several gasps and some male muttering from the various corners of the room. She ignored them and tugged her hand away from Hadeon and held it out to the figure sitting in the chair. “You must be the Shadow Lord.”
He pushed out of his seat and stood. Good lord, the man was gigantic. He would have to be close to seven feet tall, if not more. He dwarfed her, yet his grasp was gentle when he closed his large hand around hers.
“I could not leave her behind.” Dovina heard the challenge in Hadeon’s voice. She wanted to kick him. He might be a mighty warrior, but this Shadow Lord was beyond powerful. She could feel the energy emanating from him.
“It is done.” He motioned for her to sit in the chair next to his. Not exactly a warm welcome, but at least he wasn’t kicking her out. She slid into it, grateful to be sitting. After the walk through the complete dark and meeting such an imposing figure, her legs were a bit shaky.
Hadeon stood behind her, his hands resting lightly on her shoulders. She reached up and patted one hand, to reassure him that she was fine. The Shadow Lord watched their every move. She had a feeling he knew exactly what both of them were thinking.
“You summoned me, my lord.” Hadeon wanted to get down to business and get Dovina out of here. She didn’t belong here. She was light and this place was born of darkness. Yet, her mere presence had shed new light into the realm. The fact that one of the candles on the table had lit of its own accord was significant. She might not realize it, but Dovina had great power within her.
The Shadow Lord crooked his finger and several men coalesced from the dark and strode toward the table. They made a quick bow to their lord before turning their attention to Dovina. Neither bothered to disguise their interest in her. They stared at her and Hadeon glared at them. His fingers itched to draw his sword against his fellow warriors. She belonged to him.
“Jarda and Aris have returned from the Otherworld with disturbing news.”
Hadeon looked away from the two warriors and glanced briefly at the Shadow Lord, sensing the graveness of the situation. Whatever they had to tell him wasn’t good. What surprised him was the sense of sadness he felt rolling off them both in waves. 76
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Dovina reached up and captured one of his hands with hers, holding on tight. This was the news they’d been hoping for. Hadeon only hoped they knew of some way to defeat this creature that was hunting her.
“We searched the Otherworld,” Jarda, an enormous Viking with long blond hair, began. “It wasn’t easy to find any information on the horseman.”
Hadeon wanted to shake them and tell them to hurry. He couldn’t rid himself of the sensation that time was running out. For all of them.
Aris, who was dark-haired, of average height, but just as deadly as his companion, continued. “We heard rumors of Shadow Ryders who have crossed over into the Otherworld and made it their home.”
Hadeon sucked in a breath. What desperation could have driven them to do that?
At least here they were safe. In the Otherworld, they would constantly be facing all manner of evil entities who wished to leash their powers and use it for their own gain. As though he’d asked his question aloud, the Shadow Lord answered him. “They were searching for some reason for existing. They felt that anything, even something evil was better than the absolute nothingness they lived in.”
“That’s the act of a coward,” Hadeon retorted. “We are warriors, sworn to your service. To leave is an act of desertion.”
The Shadow Lord shook his head. “I must take some responsibility for their defection.” He waved off Hadeon before he could mount an argument. “Continue, Jarda.”
“It seems that one of them has joined with a dream demon. The demon has given the Ryder the ability to enter dreams. That is, along with the abilities he already had.”
So it was a hybrid creature as Dovina’s professor friend suspected. “Who?” Hadeon needed to know.
“Faran,” Aris all but spat the name.
Hadeon didn’t know the warrior at all, but it was obvious that Aris did. “How can he shift into a headless horseman? We can only shift into the animals tattooed on our chests.”
Jarda nodded. “We asked the same question. The only answer we have is that whatever power the dream demon has given him allows him to take another form.”
“Why a headless horseman?” Hadeon was still trying to make sense of all this, while dealing with the fact that one of his own was after Dovina.
&nbs
p; “To lure and frighten Dovina.” The Shadow Lord stirred in his chair. “It’s all about her. She went to Sleepy Hollow to study the legend. He probably pulled the image from a dream she had before he made a deeper connection with her that enabled him to fully enter her dreams. Once he saw her in person and was able to track her to her hotel, he could get into her dreams. Before that, she was simply a light out there in the world. One he wants.”
“What does he want?” Dovina spoke softly, but everyone in the room heard her. 77
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“Your light. Your very essence,” Aris continued. “The demon believes that if Faran takes your light, it will allow him to be in dim light as well as shadows. That would make Faran even more powerful and allow him to do more of the demon’s bidding in your realm, thus making the demon more powerful. It’s a win-win situation for both of them.”
“But why me?”
It was the Shadow Lord that answered her question. “There are only a handful of women on the Earth with your light, your ability to drive back the consuming darkness. You have a combination of empathy, kindness and a generosity of spirit that makes you shine like a beacon of hope. You also have some psychic ability and believe in the possibility that there is more out there than you can see or understand.”
“But I’m not psychic,” she insisted.
“Are you not?” the Shadow Lord countered. “You draw people to you with ease and they find themselves confessing all manner of things they’d rather keep to themselves, you are able to enter this realm, which few can, and you have always sensed other creatures in the world. That is why you study myth and legends. Whether you accept it or not, you are special and, now that he’s found you, Faran will not stop until he has you.”
He felt Dovina shiver with fear. Ignoring the men around him, Hadeon pulled her from the chair and wrapped his arms around her, snuggling her against his chest. Her arms slipped around his waist.
“Leave us,” the Shadow Lord commanded.
Hadeon sensed all the other men leaving the great hall. Jarda and Aris were the last to leave. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.” They’d risked their very souls by trekking into Otherworld. He wanted them to know how much he appreciated their sacrifice.
“It is worth it.” Jarda took one final look at Dovina and disappeared. Aris inclined his head and followed.
Only the three of them remained. “You must destroy Faran.”
Hadeon nodded at the Shadow Lord. “It will be done.”
“Beheading and sunlight will kill him. If he is in her dream, it will work there just as effectively. But I think you already figured that out. But be careful, if Faran can die in her dream then both of you can as well. There is no safety to be found anywhere for either of you until he is taken care of. Or you can destroy his demon master, which will be next to impossible.”
Dovina stirred in his arms and turned to face the Shadow Lord. “What about you?
What about these men? What can I do to help?”
Hadeon was stunned by her compassion, her generosity. Here she was being hunted by an evil entity and she wanted to help them.
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The Shadow Lord didn’t smile at her, but Hadeon felt the softening of the man toward her. “You cannot help them all, but you can help Hadeon.”
Hadeon stiffened. “It is my job to protect her.”
She elbowed him in the ribs. It didn’t hurt him, but it sure as heck shocked him. “I want to hear this. Go on,” she prompted. “Please.”
“Hadeon is darkness, but you, Dovina, are light. You can anchor him, giving him a reason to live, to fight the darkness. He would still die if exposed to full sunlight or if he was beheaded. But he would still be immortal. With your light being shared by Hadeon, Faran or others like him would no longer be able to access it. Your light essence would be lost to them forever and you would be safe.”
“That’s wonderful,” she began, but Hadeon cut her off.
“What about Dovina? What happens to her if we do this?”
“She would share your immortality, but also your limitation. The sun would most likely be lost to her. There is a slim possibility she might be able to venture out in sunlight, but there is no way to know until it is done.”
The truth struck Hadeon with the force of a battle axe. “Gideon and Blade. Their women have anchored them. That’s why our realm has lightened and more warriors are stirring from the dark.”
“Yes.”
“What do I have to do?” Dovina’s voice was strong, no sign of doubt in it. If he hadn’t already loved her, he would have fallen hard at that moment. He tightened his arms around her wanting to object, but needing to hear what his lord had to say.
“When you make love face to face, place your hands on each other’s hearts and concentrate only on one another and the deep connection you share. You will feel the transfer of power, a melding of light and shadows.” He turned his black gaze on Hadeon. “Normally, I would give the woman a chance to refuse, have all her memories of knowing you removed and return her to her normal life. That is not an option for Dovina. Not with Faran hunting her.”
“But what if I killed Faran?” Dovina gave a cry of distress, but Hadeon had to know. He didn’t want her to sacrifice herself for him, not just to gain protection.
“Would she be able to get her life back then?”
The Shadow Lord took in both of them and nodded. “Yes.”
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Chapter Nine
The long, dark walk back from the Shadow Realm passed in silence. Dovina was still shocked by what she’d learned and by Hadeon’s reaction to the Shadow Lord’s solution. She’d been fooling herself to even imagine that Hadeon would want to permanently bind himself to her. She was obviously fine for a few nights of fun, but not for the long haul.
She was trying to understand. Honestly, she was. But right now, she wanted to kick him in the shins. After everything they’d been through, she’d thought he felt something for her beyond the physical. The way he’d touched her, the fact that he’d saved her life several times. Heck, he’d even taken her to the forbidden Shadow Realm. She was so caught up in her thoughts that the darkness didn’t even bother her quite as much this time. Maybe she was getting used to it. Her hotel room came back into view, the walls reforming around her. The same generic bedspread was tumbled across the mattress, her suitcase was sitting on the rack. The light she’d left on in the bathroom still gave off its dim glow. Nothing had changed. Yet everything was different. She’d changed.
“Dovina,” Hadeon began. She tugged away from his hand, which was gripping hers tight and whirled around.
“Not now. I don’t want to talk about it.”
He caught her shoulders and rubbed his thumbs up and down her neck. “We have to talk. I can get your life back for you.”
She closed her eyes as pain shot straight to her heart. There was no mistaking he wanted to be rid of her. “Fine. Whatever. I’m going to bed now.” She waved her hand toward the corner. “You can take the chair if you plan on staying.”
He was frowning now. Good. She was glad he was upset. He should be upset. And she was feeling totally irrational. Hadeon was risking his life to save hers. She should be grateful. Was grateful. But she wanted to be more than just a mission to him. Hurrying into the bathroom, she shut the door and swiped at the tears in her eyes.
“You can do this.” She stared at herself in the mirror and straightened her shoulders. “Hadeon might not want you for eternity, but you can save him from the darkness in repayment for everything he’s done for you.” Not to mention the fact that she loved him and couldn’t bear to think of him lost in the darkness, sucked into the nothingness void forever. She couldn’t let that happen. She needed to think. A loud thump came on the door. “You okay?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m fine. I’ll be out in a minute.”
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/> Figuring he might not give her much time, she used the bathroom and ran a washcloth over her face. Her pajamas were hanging on the back of the door, so she changed into them. She didn’t think she’d get much sleep, but she figured she could at least be comfortable. Her brain simply couldn’t process anything else tonight. She yawned as she pulled open the door. Hadeon was stretched out across her mattress. His coat was tossed across the chair and his sword was propped up next to the bed.
Ignoring him, she padded across the room and crawled into bed, turning away from him as she tugged the covers around her.
“Dovina.”
“Not right now. I need to think and I need some sleep.” She yawned again, suddenly exhausted by the day’s events.
“We will talk about this when you wake.” She heard the frustration in his voice. Imagine that. A man who wanted to talk.
His arm came around her and he pulled her tight to his body. Even through the blankets, his heat surrounded her. His earthy, male scent tantalized her nostrils. Huffing out a breath, she ignored the way her nipples immediately perked up. Honestly, the girls had no shame whatsoever when it came to Hadeon. His lips caressed her temple, his breath teasing her skin. “Sleep. I will protect you.”
She felt like the most ungrateful woman in the world. He was trying desperately to get rid of the threat and return her to her everyday life. And what was she doing?
Pouting because he didn’t love her the way she loved him.
She covered the hand at her waist. He turned his wrist and captured her fingers, squeezing softly. Dovina sighed again. Tomorrow. Tomorrow, she’d talk to him about this claiming business. She could anchor him from the darkness. That didn’t mean he had to stay with her.
She’d be immortal then and no longer go out in light, although that wasn’t a given, according to the Shadow Lord. Maybe she could work for him. Talk to the two other couples that were out there, maybe identify other women who might be able to help other warriors. She could teach at night if she had to. There was always a shortage of professors willing to teach night classes.
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