Flames of Redemption

by Jamie A. Waters

Valentina lifted her gaze to meet his, the small flame around his iris flaring brightly. She swallowed, emotions caught in her throat at the depth of love in his eyes. “I thought I'd lost you, Seryohza.”

  He sat up, pulling her into his lap, and wrapped his arms around her. Clinging to him tightly as though if she let him go, he would disappear again, she buried her face against his neck. She couldn't lose him again. She'd never survive it.

  “Shh,” he murmured, tilting her chin to look into her eyes. She blinked up at him, the internal flame within him flaring brightly. “I love you, Valechka. I haven't spent the last three years away from you only to be separated from you now. You will not lose me.”

  Her throat tightened and she shook her head, knowing he couldn't make such promises, especially in light of everything she'd learned from Viktor. Sergei's life would continue to hang in the balance the longer this threat still lurked out there. Viktor was only the beginning.

  “Someone wants to see you executed,” she managed, burying her face against Sergei's neck again as Viktor's words came rushing back. “They believe you're organizing a rebellion against our people.”

  His hand calmly stroked her back. “I know. Nikolai told me. We'll figure it out.”

  Valentina lifted her head. He couldn't afford to be cavalier about this situation, and she couldn't afford to let him. “It's not that simple. Peter's already gone to some of the other leaders about this. They must be supporting his bid for control of your tower. Otherwise, no one would have had the audacity to order an ambush without a collective order. It was messy but very effective if their intention was to create disarray. Your death would not only have opened the new tower up for someone else to take control, but someone may have also viewed it as a neat fix to eradicate a possible rebellion if they believe you're responsible. I don't know if Peter had a hand in it or not, but I think you were always the target, not me.”

  Sergei cupped her face. “We will figure it out. I will not be parted from you again, and I'm not responsible for what they claim.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Did you think I doubted you?”

  He grinned. “I would hope not.”

  “I know you would never betray our people,” she snapped, pulling away from him and climbing out of bed. They needed to start making plans to figure out who was responsible for the thefts. She'd reach out to every one of her contacts and call in every favor she'd accumulated over the years. Somehow, they'd find a way to clear Sergei's name. “We don't have much time. We need to find the people responsible, or these rumors will continue to spread. If they become too far out of control, we won't be able to contain the situation.”

  Valentina walked over to the bag she'd brought with her and yanked it open. She'd have to start with Peter and Lena first. She had a few contacts in Lena's camps, but no one within the woman's inner circle. She'd already decided to take on some additional jobs so they could extend the construction timeframe, and this could be a good opportunity to investigate. And if Yuri hadn't killed Viktor yet, maybe they could extract more intel from him. She started digging through the bag for her weapons, but Sergei's hand on her arm stopped her.

  “Look at me, Valentina,” he ordered.

  She turned, lifting her head to regard him. He took a step closer to her. “You've been asleep for many hours. During that time, much has happened. We've already begun investigating based on the information you gathered from Viktor. But there are other factors that changed when you healed me.”

  Valentina frowned, a sense of unease blooming inside her. “What do you mean?”

  Sergei wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, his touch light but still possessive. He stroked the side of her neck with his thumb, the gesture extraordinarily intimate considering the vulnerability of the location. He was the only one she had ever permitted to touch her like this, and it had been years since she’d last allowed it. A small shiver went through her as she held his gaze, letting him know she trusted him implicitly.

  His eyes softened as he searched her expression. “There's something I must tell you, but I don't want you to have any regrets.”

  “What?”

  He moved even closer to her. “Before I say it, I want you to know I wouldn't change any of this for the world. Nor would Nikolai or Yuri.”

  “Tell me,” she urged, his hesitation unnerving her more than anything else.

  Sergei sighed. “When you drew upon Nikolai and Yuri's energy to heal me, it somehow changed the bond between all of us. Alec says he can sense the energy connection between the four of us now, even when we tried to suppress it. That's not typically part of his abilities, and he wasn't sure whether he was able to sense it because of Ariana or because our connection has changed.” He paused, took a deep breath, and added, “Unfortunately, Brant was also able to detect it. Something about your energy is different, and his shadow abilities don't work quite right around you. I'm afraid most of the Shadows will be able to tell we're bonded with very little effort.”

  Valentina leaned against the dresser for support, immediately understanding the implications. They were all at risk if this information got out. If one of the Inner Circle breathed a word about their connection and the wrong ears overheard, everything they'd accomplished over the past ten years would be destroyed. Hundreds of lives would be put at risk and entire families would be torn apart as Nikolai's territories were divided amongst the remaining leadership. That didn't even take into account their own fates if the truth was discovered. “We have to leave the towers immediately.”

  “No,” he argued, taking a step closer and caging her against the dresser with his arms. “You burst some of the pipes in the construction tower, Valechka. That, and your ability to heal, has made it clear to all of us that proper training is critical. Nikolai, Yuri, and I are all in agreement in this matter. We cannot afford to leave the towers.”

  She blinked at him, barely able to get her head around what he was proposing. “Are you saying you want to renounce our allegiance to the Coalition?”

  Sergei hesitated. “Not exactly. But we need to reassess our loyalties. Our first loyalty and priority must be to each other and to harnessing these abilities. Duty to everyone else, both the Coalition and the Omnis, needs to come second. If we're going to succeed in our endeavors, we must embrace this connection between us fully. We can't hide who we are anymore.”

  “You know that won't work,” she said, turning around to look at the clothing scattered on the dresser. She caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror and frowned. Someone had removed her bloody clothing and dressed her in one of Sergei's shirts, but there were still traces of his dried blood on her skin. It was a stark reminder of how close she'd come to losing him. “Our people won't accept it when they find out about the four of us, and the Omnis won't understand our bond. Maybe in time, but not now. I don't see how all of us can stay here without losing everything we've been working toward.”

  Sergei arched an eyebrow and met her gaze through the reflection. “Would you send a partially trained soldier into battle?”

  “It's not the same,” she argued. “I agree we need to develop our powers. Almost losing you made that very clear to me. But staying here and not doing anything to prove your innocence would be the equivalent of admitting your guilt. That's unacceptable, Sergei.”

  “What they think of me doesn't matter, Valechka,” Sergei said gently, putting his arms around her. “We must be true to each other. If they don't accept us, that's on them. We'll have a home together regardless of whether or not the Omnis understand our bond. Alec has already promised this to us.”

  She lowered her gaze, feeling conflicted. It wasn't that easy. After her parents had died, she'd agreed to enlist in the training program in exchange for her remaining family's security. The memory of her younger sister and elderly grandmother had been the driving force behind her desire to do whatever was necessary to guarantee their people's continued survival.

  Valentina hadn't seen her sister,
Nadiya, in years. She only had childhood memories of a playful little girl with long brown hair and an older woman with wrinkles who had showered her with love. But everything Valentina had done since enlisting had been for them. To her, Nadiya and her grandmother represented the thousands of faceless individuals who made up the embodiment of the Coalition. It had fueled her determination to help find resources, protect their people, and secure their futures. As long as Valentina was part of the group, she was helping her family and thousands of families like them.

  “I don't want to leave the Coalition or do anything that might jeopardize my position within it,” she whispered, turning around and putting her hands on his chest. “I understand your reasons, but please don't ask me to do this. You know I'll always choose to stay with the three of you, but there has to be another way.”

  He tipped her chin back to look into her eyes, searching her expression. “You're thinking of your sister.”

  Valentina nodded. “Yes, but I'm also thinking of everyone else. We've spent our lives trying to protect our people. Your efforts in securing this tower have given us a real chance to thrive. Will you, Nikolai, or Yuri really be able to turn your backs on everything we've built?”

  Sergei paused for a long moment, trailing his thumb over her cheek. “No, but it isn't possible to keep our abilities a secret any longer. It will come out. Alec has offered to check their archives to see if there's a way to hide our bond, but it will take time. We need to decide upon a course of action while we still have a choice. We have a little bit of time to decide, but not much.”

  She nodded, knowing he was right. He put his arms around her again, and she leaned her head against his chest, listening to the reassuring sound of his heartbeat. “Will you tell me what else happened while I slept?”

  Sergei sighed and tightened his arms around her. “It would have been more expedient to have Viktor killed, but Nikolai wanted to keep our options open. Alec used his ability to make him forget everything that occurred after I came back into my office. Viktor does not remember the fight. He was taken to their medical center and had his wounds treated, so he will not even have the scars to remind him. They released him about an hour ago. He is most likely on his way back to Peter's camp.”

  She frowned and lifted her head. “He wanted me to leave Nikolai's service.”

  Sergei's body tensed. “I heard. Nikolai and Yuri are in the other room reviewing the recording of the entire conversation again. They're not happy either. You will not be alone with him again.”

  Valentina shook her head. “You're missing the point. Viktor wouldn't have made the offer unless he knew Peter's position was stronger than Nikolai's. He also knew Nikolai had taken other lovers. He thought because you had left me and Nikolai had chosen another, that my loyalty would no longer be with you.”

  Sergei frowned. “You're suggesting Peter has spies within Nikolai's camp? We knew Regina wasn't the only one, but you must have several people whose loyalty has been compromised.”

  She nodded, irritated with herself for not catching it. As Nikolai's influence grew and more people swore service to him, it became more difficult to manage all the different working parts. “It makes sense. Nikolai is discreet, but someone paying close attention would have noticed. Viktor also claimed one of the chairmen in the area was responsible for the ambush. It's likely he has well-placed spies within several of their camps too.”

  “Which chairmen are in the area?”

  “Four that I know of—Peter, Lena, Ivan, and Oleg. Peter's been cooperative, but I still intend to investigate him. I have people close to Oleg, so I don't think he's had a hand in this. They would have sent word.”

  “Lena's never been fond of me or Nikolai,” Sergei mused and rubbed his chin. “Peter's not thrilled with me either. I don't know Ivan well except that he's overly interested in OmniLab.”

  “He is, but his agenda here isn't clear. I may need to take a few jobs in his camp to learn more about what he's been doing.”

  Sergei frowned. “I don't know if that's a good idea. Everyone knows how important you are to Nikolai, and they may use that as a reason to target you. It might be better to let this play out naturally until we have more information.”

  Valentina wrinkled her nose. She didn't like sitting on the sidelines, and patience had never been her strongest character trait. But if information was what they needed, there were ways to get that without waiting. First, she needed to check on the two other people she loved. Everything else could wait.

  “I need to talk to Nikolai and Yuri,” she said and started to head toward the door.

  Sergei chuckled and grabbed her around the waist, spinning her back around and into his arms. “You might want to get dressed first, Valechka. As much as I enjoy you being in nothing more than my shirt and your panties, this new bond is requiring some adjustments on our part. Nikolai and Yuri are in the common room with Lars. If you walk out there like this, Lars won't be able to help but admire your legs, and I'd rather not kill him. My control is not what it should be.”

  Valentina blew out a breath. Without even trying, she could feel not only Sergei through their bond but Nikolai and Yuri as well. Nikolai and Yuri were currently distracted and growing increasingly agitated about something, most likely her recorded conversation with Viktor. But she intuitively knew if she reached out to them, they would come rushing into the room. She'd always been able to sense them, but it was a little disconcerting how they were now edging in on her thoughts.

  Before they focused on anything else, they were going to need to get a handle on things and establish some very clear boundaries. Sergei was right about one thing—their relationships with each other needed to come first.

  She nodded, grabbed a pair of pants, and quickly pulled them on before heading out to the common room with Sergei. As she suspected, Yuri and Lars were sitting on the couch replaying the recording of her and Viktor. Nikolai was pacing back and forth, rubbing the back of his neck like he usually did when he was worried. As though sensing her approach, Yuri and Nikolai immediately turned toward her. Yuri shut off the audio and stood.

  Her heart thudded in her chest as she gazed at them. Through their bond, a sense of awareness and knowing filled her. They no longer hovered peripherally in her mind. Instead, they were vibrant and individual in her thoughts but somehow merged seamlessly with herself. She was still separate but more interconnected with them than she ever thought was possible. Sergei was right. Their bond had changed somehow. She could feel their energy within her, as though she carried part of them with her. She swallowed, amazed and disconcerted at the sense of completion and rightness in having all three of them here with her. It might not be possible to suppress their connection any longer, at least not using their old methods.

  “Valya,” Nikolai murmured. She immediately walked over to him, and he encased her in his arms. Even without saying a word, she knew Nikolai felt it too. On some level, he must have known what it could be like between them. That was part of the reason why he'd pushed so hard to bring Sergei back to them.

  Nikolai hugged her. “I'm assuming Sergei told you everything?”

  “You know he never tells me everything,” she grumbled against Nikolai's chest. “He only tells enough to tease or annoy me. But he told me our bond has changed. I feel it too.”

  “You're not mad?” He leaned back to look at her. “We're all much closer now than we were yesterday.”

  She smiled and shook her head. “No. It's going to be an adjustment for all of us, but having all of you so close is comforting. It feels right, Kolya. This is the way it was supposed to be between us.”

  Yuri walked over to them. “You do realize we're never going to be able to get rid of Sergei now, right? We're going to be stuck with him.”

  She laughed and threw her arms around Yuri. “Good. You two can irritate each other and give me a break.” He hugged her tightly, and she leaned against him. “Are you really okay with this, Yuri?”

  He ran
a hand over her hair. “Which part? Deepening our bond? Or not being able to get away from Sergei?”

  Valentina pulled back and swatted at him lightly. “I'm serious. Does it bother you?”

  His grin faded. “I love you, Valya. Flaws and all. That wouldn't have changed, with or without a bond. I think there could be a lot of benefits from it, but we're going to have some challenges too. None of us have ever shied away from hard work though, and quite a bit will be necessary in making this relationship between all of us work.” He paused, hugged her again and whispered, “No, it doesn't bother me. I didn't have a choice about my birth family, but I had a choice about you. The three of you are my chosen family… even Sergei. But I'll deny it if you tell him I said that.”

  “I love you too, and I won't say a word,” she whispered, blinking back the moisture from her eyes. She released him and gave him a small smile. He acted gruff most of the time, but Yuri's heart was bigger than most people realized.

  Lars stood. “Alex and Ariana wanted me to let you know they're at your disposal. They said they'd be more than happy to work with all of you on learning to manage whatever this change is in your bond. Much of it will be finding your balance with each other, but they can offer some suggestions on adjusting to it. Alec also suggested the possibility of asking Kayla to return from the river excavation site. He thinks she might be able to help, too, since Valentina's energy is similar to hers and Ariana's.”

  Sergei put his hand on her back. “I think we'd all appreciate that.”

  Valentina turned into Sergei, wrapping her arm around his waist and leaned against him. He kissed her hair and said, “If I didn't say it before, I'll say it now. Thank you for saving me, Valechka.”

  Gazing up into gray eyes that flickered with smoldering embers, she felt a surge of emotion. Somehow, against all odds, they'd managed to find their redemption and salvation within each other. Nikolai had been right when he said love was what bound them all together and made them stronger. Choosing love had brought him back into her life, and that same love would see them through the dark days ahead. No matter what happened, she'd never lose sight of that again.