Dream Warrior: (Dark Warrior Alliance Book 1)

by Brenda Trim

  Her vision cleared long enough for her to see that the space was now full of skirm as well as the two archdemons and Lena. Helplessness set in as she realized there was no way she could fight them off and escape. She prayed to God, and Zander’s Goddess, that she lived. She had so much to live for now. She may have fought what was happening between her and Zander, but somewhere along the way she had fallen in love with the vampire and she wanted to embrace the relationship he had been asking her for.

  She regretted not taking the opportunity before. She had been thinking about it all wrong before. It was not a betrayal of Dalton to be with Zander. Dalton would have wanted her to find love and happiness. She had allowed guilt and fear to control her. She would never again allow such emotions to stop her from having a life with him. They had an eternity of passion before them if they completed the mating. There was nothing she wanted more.

  The pain intensified and nearly took her under. To escape the sharp edges of her agony, she lost herself in imagining the life they would have together. Zander had already shown her how much he loved her. This bitch wasn’t taking that from her.

  “Nothing you say will make me doubt Zander or how he feels about me. And, mark my words, he’s mine, and will always be mine!” At hearing her words, Lena lost it. If the vampire had been mad before she was now a complete lunatic.

  Out of control, Lena began hitting her. Elsie tried to duck the blows, but the chains restricted her movements and one after another landed on her head and face. Lena’s hands and fists connected next with her broken ribs, sending shooting pain through her torso. Zander’s soul sent warmth through her chest, dulling the intensity.

  Elsie refused to give up and twisted and turned with all her might. Sides heaving like a bellows, she smiled at the knowledge that Zander loved her and no matter what, her life had been better for having him in it. The smile threw Lena off and she backed away, staring with narrowed eyes.

  “You’re so smug because you have his mark on your neck. The mating hasn’t been completed and that can be removed before it’s inked into your skin. Once removed there’s no going back. You will lose him forever.” Lena approached her and squeezed her injured leg, making her cry out. Elsie couldn’t think through the anguish and wasn’t able to fight back. Lena grabbed her neck and panic set in when Lena pulled a knife from her boot.

  “This might hurt a little, ma chere,” Lena whispered into her ear, before white-hot agony scoured the left side of her neck. Her screams consumed the dank space and black dots winked in her vision as Lena slowly sliced into her skin.

  Her soul rose to protect Zander’s mark and refused to allow any piece of him to be removed from her body. Her body and both souls had risen to protect what was theirs. Both souls sunk talons into the area and held on with all their might. It warmed her to know she wasn’t fighting this battle alone. Further confirmation of what she and Zander shared. The muscles in Lena’s arms stood out as she hacked at the flesh. She began sweating and breathing rapidly as she worked to remove the mark.

  Elsie held tight with every slice as the skin was flayed and tissue and tendon was separated from muscle. She hadn’t realized what torture was before that moment and as a piece of her soul was sacrificed, she lost all hope of survival. Her heart ached for the loss Zander was going to experience. She knew all too well the pain of losing someone you loved and didn’t want him to experience one moment of that misery.

  “I stand corrected, Kadir. I love a good cat fight, the bloodier the better,” she faintly heard Azazel say as she teetered on unconsciousness.

  “Who doesn’t love a good blood bath, but that matters naught when the vampire isn’t calling. I told you this plan wouldn’t work. We’ve wasted precious time and resources on this,” Kadir intoned.

  She wanted to rant at the twisted creatures, but blackness consumed her. The last thing she felt was Zander’s soul wrapping protectively around her, tethering her to him and the earth.

  *****

  Santiago’s voiced intruded in Zander’s rampage, spiking his anger. “You may want to hide in your rooms, buddy. He’ll rip your head off right now.”

  Zander gazed past the total destruction of their war room, and saw that Santiago was talking to Orlando. The warrior’s face was stricken, and it reminded him all over again of what he had lost. Fear and despair joined his rage and his body coiled once again preparing to let it all go. His previous tirade hadn’t helped any and he fought to regain some semblance of the vampire he was, but the monster refused to let go. Several deep breaths didn’t do anything to help. The only thing that kept him from descending completely into that pit was holding a vision of Elsie in his mind.

  “Get your arse over here,” he ordered Orlando as he yanked on his disheveled hair and began pacing. He needed to find her. Save her.

  “Have you found a working computer, Killian, or should I be-head you, now? We need that database to go over known locations for archdemons and the Fae. They could have her anywhere in the world, and I still canna connect to her. You,” he stabbed a finger into Orlando’s chest, “tell me everything that happened.”

  Orlando took a deep breath, and then recounted everything that happened, and told them what Kadir had said.

  “How did they learn aboot our charity? Let alone when Elsie would be there? That could be the link to finding her, if we could figure that oot,” Breslin suggested. She dislodged the chair from the wall and set it outside with the pile of growing debris. Normally, he would feel bad about his behavior, but his fear and anger were completely out of his control. And it was only getting worse as time flew by.

  “Someone in the realm had to have leaked the information. And, it had to be someone close to one of us. Kadir may be smart enough to put two and two together, the charity is called Elsie’s Hope, and they did have her name. Regardless, there are too many possible leads that will waste precious time. I think we need to focus on your connection to get her back,” Hayden clasped Zander’s bicep, squeezing with force, “and you need to calm down, so that you can focus, my friend. I can see how hard that is for you, but you are the key to finding your mate.”

  Hayden held his gaze. “They aren’t going to kill her. They want you to trade the amulet for her.” Zander knew that he was right. They wouldn’t kill her.

  “That’s right, calm down. You can feel her here,” Hayden placed his palm on Zander’s chest and Elsie’s soul jumped to meet his palm. He closed his eyes at the proof she still lived. “Okay, now focus on the bond you have with her. You need to use it to guide us to her,” Hayden encouraged.

  Silence descended in the room while he kept his eyes shut, blocking out the evidence of his anguish. He took several deep breaths, focusing on Elsie’s heart-shaped face. He shouted in relief when his connection to her finally sparked. “Thank the Goddess! She’s alive. I feel her.” He used his blood bond to her to try and determine her exact location. He sensed her within a couple hundred miles. “She isna far from here. No’ further than Victoria. I need a map. You have that computer running, Kill?”

  Killian waved to the image on the cracked computer screen. “This is the best I can do with the damage. You can still zoom in and out so it should work.”

  “Och, thank the Goddess.” Zander gazed at the computer screen, as he concentrated on the bond he shared with his mate. He knew she was north of his location and he kept zooming in different areas. After several grueling minutes with her blood acting as a divining rod in his system, he was directed to the Hoh Rainforest. Looking closer at the map on the screen, he realized there would be no easy way to get to her.

  They needed buildings that were familiar to the sorcerers to open a portal. She was in the middle of a forest with nothing around for miles. A sense of urgency overshadowed everything. He had to reach her fast.

  “I’ve found her, but it will take all of us working together to get her back. She is here in the Hoh Rainforest, so we canna portal close to her. Unless one of you,” he motioned to Jace, E
vzen, Killian, and Gerrick, “has spent time in, and knows of somewhere close to the location. We need to do something, now. I have a verra bad feeling.”

  Nikko flipped his sgian dubh, and then caught it by the hilt. “I can have the Cessna fueled and ready to go in twenty minutes, Liege.”

  “Bluidy hell, make it fifteen. And, Kill, find an exact location we can use to portal the rest. I’ll be taking no chances with my mate’s life.” He grabbed his weapons from Kyran’s arms. The need to annihilate had consumed him. He would tear Kadir and his minions apart, piece by fucking piece.

  “Yes, sir,” Nikko called from the door.

  “The closest location I found to Hoh is the Misty Valley Inn, a small B&B in Forks, of all places.” Killian shook his head and muttered, “Sparkly fucking vampires.”

  Bhric strapped on his weapons and crossed to the mangled door frame. “Kyran and I are going in the plane, I don’t care who else joins us, but I’m not leaving my brathair’s side. We’ll need at least Evzen and Kill to set the portal.”

  It was a small comfort to him knowing his brother cared so deeply. He called over his shoulder, “Eight of you can come with Nikko and I, but decide quickly. I’m leaving now.”

  *****

  Elsie fought against the insistent force that was ripping her from her place of peace and thrusting her back into pain, excruciating, bone-crushing pain. She wanted the peace death would bring her, but she refused to give in when she had yet to discover what it meant to be Zander’s other half. She had been created for Zander and he was hers. She was part of something bigger than she’d ever known. Her resolve to live renewed, she was determined to experience every moment of life she could with Zander. Regret flooded her at how much she had already missed out on.

  She’d wasted so much precious time pushing him away and refusing to embrace what she had clearly felt for the vampire. Her heart skipped several beats and terror hit. She could die without ever experiencing the full scope of his love. And, in return, not have given him all the love she had in her heart for him. There was no longer any doubt that she did love him.

  Somewhere between the caramels and the float, she had fallen deeply in love with the bossy vampire. She loved him so much, in fact, that it was keeping her alive, giving her the drive to fight. Zander had knocked down the bricks she had erected around her heart, one by one, despite her protests. She had used her guilt as a shield, but Zander had managed his way through. She needed him to manage the impossible right now and save her from these demons and that vile traitor.

  Awareness stopped that train of thought as Elsie came to, with a knife at her throat. ”Ah, she wants more,” Lena whispered in her ear. ”Good news for you. I’m happy to oblige.”

  “Get bent bitch,” she spat at Lena, and wrapped her hands around the chains that shackled her to the cave wall. Determined to go down fighting, she wrapped her legs, ignoring the pain in the broken one, around Lena’s mid-section. In a blur of movement, she twisted and slammed her to the floor with all the strength she could muster. Adrenaline spiked, and her good foot connected with the vampire’s head, several times.

  Lena screeched and did a back-flip away from her. From an angle, Lena reached out and slammed her head against the wall. Her vision blurred around the edges, but this time she remained conscious. Lena moved at her so fast she was a blur and then fire exploded through Elsie’s leg. She felt the skin tear and looked down to see her bone sticking out of a gaping wound. Lena ripped the chains free of the cave wall and picked Elsie up, throwing her across the space. She hit the ground and rolled.

  She stopped when she hit a large boulder. Unable to move a muscle, she lay on the hard, dirt floor, every inch of her body broken or bloodied. As her blood seeped from her veins it took her life force with it. She weakened as the minutes passed. She was going to die in the god-forsaken place and would never see Zander’s beautiful face, again.

  She pictured his smile, recalled his sexy accent, and everything he had done for her. He hadn’t held back, but had showed her how deeply he loved her. All the reasons why had she refused to acknowledge the depth of her feelings for him seemed so irrelevant at this point.

  I love you, Zander! Dizziness assailed her, as she felt the blood trickle in a steady, hot stream, down her chilled skin. She was losing too much and was going into shock. Lena stalked toward her, ready to deliver the final blow.

  “Lena, desist now!” Kadir roared. “He will give me nothing if I can’t prove to him that she lives. If she dies, you will endure far more at my hands!”

  Lena paled, her head swinging from Kadir to Elsie’s slumped, lifeless form, then back to Kadir, again. “Where is your sidekick? And his Fae? He can heal her, right?”

  “No, he can’t, you idiot. You know nothing about magic. I’m surrounded by ineptitude,” Kadir ranted. “You,” he demanded of a nearby skirm, “see if the human is alive, and find Azazel. Hear my words, vampire, you had better start praying to your Goddess that she lives. Otherwise, you will understand why your kind fears demons.”

  As the demon’s words faded away and the tidal wave broke, sweeping her out to sea, her beloved’s soul wrapped her in a soothing energy that gave her the strength to hold on. She hoped it wasn’t too little, too late.

  CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

  After a grueling plane ride, a rough landing and a hike to the Inn, Zander was crawling out of his skin, nerves shot to hell and back. He watched anxiously as the three sorcerers created the portal to Zeum. Not soon enough, Orlando stepped through, followed by the others. Thank fuck! No more waiting, now they could proceed. He turned his attention to his brothers and Nikko. “Have you finished? We’re wasting time, damn it.”

  “Aye, brathair. The human’s memories have been erased, and two of them have kindly given us their SUVs,” Kyran informed him.

  “Let’s go. Something is wrong,” he barked, as everyone loaded into the SUVs and they headed out.

  He gazed out the window as they drove in silence, praying to the Goddess to keep his Elsie alive for him. Bhric’s voice echoed in the quietness of the vehicle. “Which direction do we go from here, brathair?” he asked after they had crossed into the rainforest. He hadn’t realized they were that close. He concentrated on his mate.

  The throb of the bond between him and Elsie pulsed hotter than ever. He nearly collapsed with relief that she was alive, and feeding into their bond. She had accepted him, and her status as his mate. He had been waiting for weeks for this to happen and now he may never know the joy of claiming her.

  “Go east,” he ordered. They were not going to arrive too late. He had to believe that.

  Orlando’s fury seeped from every pore. “Have you tried to communicate with her, Liege?”

  “Nay, I havena been able to bring myself to reach out to her. I couldna handle it if I heard her being tortured and could do nothing. I will link with her when we’re closer. Through our bond, I have been sending her strength and love.” The car fell silent once again, each consumed with their thoughts of what lay ahead.

  He gave Bhric directions when needed and as soon as they were minutes away, he reached out to let her know he hadn’t abandoned her. As he linked to her mind, he heard her scream out that she loved him. He lashed out and hit the door frame as their connection was lost before he could respond. Frantically, he repeated his attempts to contact her, but failed. The thrum from her soul was dimming, he was losing her. Nay, please, Goddess, doona take her.

  “Jace, stay with me. I fear…” his voice broke, as his emotions tightened in his throat. “I fear she may be injured verra badly,” he managed past his tears.

  As soon as the car slowed, he was out the door and running through the forest, a blur in the night. He had to reach her, before it was too late. Urgency rode him hard as he heard the council members and his warriors close on his heels.

  When Hayden gripped his arm, stopping him mid-stride, he nearly ripped the Omega’s head off. The hand signals that followed informed him of two sk
irm, one archdemon and one Fae, less than a hundred feet ahead. Hayden motioned for Orlando and Santiago to shift. Zander nodded his acknowledgement and continued on to Elsie while the shifters ambushed the small group.

  On soundless feet, Zander entered first, followed by Jace. His blood boiled when he saw Lena pick Elsie’s slack head up by the hair. His worry for Elsie kept his feet moving as the shock of Lena’s betrayal hit hard. One of his vampires, one that he knew intimately, had turned against him, and turned his most beloved treasure over to the archdemons. The burn of that treachery was drowned out by his need to get to Elsie.

  He ignored the dozen minions that lounged around the edges of the fissure, as he charged toward Lena and his mate. He was focused on Elsie and the blood-soaked cloth around her neck. Her cheek was swollen and he noticed a bone protruding from her leg. This bitch was going to pay for hurting his female. His war-cry drowned out Lena’s plea to Kadir.

  He was saved the choice between his mate and the archdemon responsible for her torture, when Nikko rushed in and slashed out at the surprised demon. “Not so fast, asshole,” Nikko’s blade found purchase in the demon’s hard, grey chest, but missed his heart. Zander noted the demon was momentarily halted from teleporting away.

  “Where is the amulet? I expect that you brought what I require,” Kadir brazened, as Nikko ripped the blade from his chest. The demon was trying to buy enough time in order to heal and teleport away, but Nikko didn’t pause in his attack. Zander continued on his path to Elsie.

  “No, asshole, we didn’t, but you won’t need to worry about that after I’m through with you,” Nikko reached into his boot, and came up shining, with twin sgian dubhs. He sliced at Kadir’s neck, missed, and chopped off the demon’s right hand, just as the demon teleported away. “Coward!” Nikko shouted.

  Killian and Evzen didn’t hesitate to attack the skirm that stood between them and Elsie. Evzen muttered a spell, freezing several combatants, while Killian grabbed his titanium blade and dispatched them. Zander reached Elsie’s side as four more blades were added to the battle when Bhric and Breslin joined their forces. He ignored the rest of the battle and trusted that his warriors and the council could keep him and his mate safe.