"I made you what you are!" he hollered. "I gave you everything! You owe me! Bhaltair could never have loved your mother. He was using her for sick pleasure."
"Bhaltair loved Rhona and she willingly loved him," Jaden whispered. She felt a single tear line the edge of her eye. She missed Tyr. She longed for him. Suddenly, nothing else mattered--not vengeance or justice--only Tyr. She wanted the past to be dead. She didn’t want to wait for him. She wanted him to be with her now. She wanted to spend an eternity begging his forgiveness for her sins. "And the only thing you taught me was death."
Mack’s change was complete. His lungs no longer panted. The wound on his arm healed itself shut. Jaden could feel the strange mixture coursing through his blood like a river of souls squished together, fighting to be released from the coil of one body.
"You’re right about one thing," Jaden said. "I couldn’t have killed you--as a human. But now you’re just a corpse."
She lifted the stake above her head. All of a sudden, Jaden felt Shiva beside her. She turned. Mack kicked up from the floor, jabbing his boot into her stomach, knocking her into Shiva’s arms. Jaden pushed to her feet to face Mack. His eyes swirled angrily. The blood was too much for him. It raged inside his body.
Mack scrambled to the dropped stake and lunged at her, aiming for her heart. Unexpectedly, she was whisked to the side. Familiar arms wrapped in protection. Jaden gasped. Her dark gaze instantly found the solid strength of Tyr’s blue eyes. Her lips parted, wanting to speak. Sadly, he let her go, spinning around to face Mack. Mack darted forward, stake in hand. Tyr shielded Jaden with his body.
Without warning, Mack stopped. The stake dropped from his fingers. His hands pressed into the sides of his head. He fell to his knees. His mouth opened with a scream only to gush with a torrent of blood. Jaden pushed to Tyr’s side. Her arm strayed back to touch him as she stepped forward. She could hear Mack’s heart racing in her head and then suddenly the organ exploded. Crimson poured from the man’s lips. He fell to the ground with a swooshing of air and splattered blood. Then, with a silent eruption, he exploded into an ashen cloud of grave dust.
Chapter Eighteen
Jaden didn’t wait for the dust to settle. She swirled on her feet, flinging her arms around Tyr. Her lips rose naturally to meet his. Tyr pulled back. He looked sadly into her face and shook his head. His blue gaze searched every line of her, like a vampire starved. He’d missed her desperately. When he left her, he left a piece of himself behind. And without her, he wasn’t whole. If not for Ragnhild’s insistence to the council that he be allowed to come this night to help, he wouldn’t be seeing her now.
Knowing the danger of being seen talking to her, he turned to leave. He wouldn’t be harmed by such a thing, but Jaden would be killed. He knew the decree, had been reminded of it by the council before coming to her.
"Tyr," Jaden whispered. Her hand shot out to touch him. "Please, don’t leave."
Tyr stiffened, hearing the pain in her voice. He could feel the heat of her. Her touch was like fire to his skin. Could it be she missed him as much as he had her? Did he dare to hope such a thing? Her greeting said she did.
Without turning, he whispered, "No, Jaden, don’t. We can’t be seen talking."
"I don’t care," she said, pulling desperately on his arm to get him to look at her. She needed to see the cool, ice blue of his eyes. She needed to know he would wait for her. She needed him to know she was waiting only for him.
"You’ll be killed," he said hoarsely. "Will you leave me to live with that?"
Jaden looked desperately at Osiris and Shiva. Her heart poured with longing out of her eyes. Shiva nodded. He and Osiris turned their backs and looked the other way.
Tyr felt it to. Unable to deny her insistent hand, he spun around and gathered her into his arms. Jaden pressed her mouth to his. She sprinkled kisses over his cheeks and lips. Tyr’s mouth met her eagerly. He pulled her up into his embrace. His hands wound like iron about her waist, never wanting to let her go. Jaden wrapped her arms about his thick neck, clinging to him for her very existence.
"Jade," Osiris whispered quietly. "You must hurry. We don’t have much time."
"I’m sorry," Jaden rushed, pulling back just enough to talk. Her lips moved against his. Her hands pressed into the sides of his face, desperately feeling him. "I’m sorry for my uncle. I’m sorry for everything I’ve done. I’m sorry you’re mad at me. I never meant to deceive you."
Tyr stiffened, but didn’t let her go. "Why, Jaden? Why did you lie to me?"
"I was scared. I didn’t know what the file said and I was afraid you would think I did--" Jaden’s words were stopped by the press of his mouth and the stiffening of his hands.
"Not the damned file! I was a fool for thinking you had anything to do with that," Tyr whispered.
"Then--?" she hesitated, confused. She ran her hands into his hair, sewing her fingers through the locks. She couldn’t stop their exploring if she tried. "Why are you angry with me?"
Tyr glanced at Shiva and Osiris’ turned backs. Pulling Jaden away from them, into the shadows, he set her down. Lifting his hand to cup her face, he said, "I’m not mad."
"Jaden," Shiva called, persistently. "We have to leave."
"No," she whispered, shaking her head in desperation. Her eyes rounded as she turned her tortured face to Tyr’s. "I can’t leave you. Not again. These last months have been hell."
"We don’t have a choice," Tyr said. "They’ll kill you if you disobey."
"I don’t want to live if I can’t see you," she said angrily.
"Don’t say that," he hissed, pushing his face into hers. "Wait for me."
"It isn’t fair! Tell them you made me. Make them listen." Jaden felt him pulling away from her. In confusion, she detected Shiva at their side.
"Tyr, you have to go," the knight said. "The others are coming. If they catch you here they will report it."
Tyr nodded. He hated to leave her behind when his entire being begged for her touches, her kisses, and her love. His hand lifted to caress her cheek before pulling away. She tried to grab him, but his hand dissipated into a fine mist she couldn’t hold onto. A muffled sound of horror escaped her throat. Tears pooled in her eyes.
Tyr’s body disappeared completely, slipping through her frantic grasp. Shiva clutched Jaden to his chest to keep her from trying to follow. A small moan of torture came from her throat as she struggled against her bonds. Her heart tightened in agony. The road before her was long, endless. She could taste him on her lips, feel him inside her blood. But she couldn’t hold him, couldn’t have him.
Shiva felt her pain wash over him. Her eyes stared beyond him in a liquid daze. Slowly, he forced her to leave with him, back to the elevator. Her body didn’t put up a fight. She stared blindly, not noticing that Osiris stayed behind working his way through Mack’s machine, taking what little notes there were and destroying all the evidence.
"Come on, Jade," Shiva whispered as the elevator doors closed them in. "All will be well."
* * * *
Island of Delos, Cyclades, Two weeks later....
Jaden was dead inside. She didn’t talk, barely fed. She numbly went about her duties, stating only that which was mandatory to her job. She’d been the job before and if she must, she would be it again. But, after having known Tyr, duty was a bitter and cold replacement to her soul.
All necessary reports were made to the council to their reluctant satisfaction. The vampire responsible for helping Mack hadn’t been caught and the knights weren’t blamed for losing such information because her uncle killed himself with his greed. Jaden didn’t care anymore. She was tired of figuring out the past.
Rolling onto her stomach, she looked around the room the council was letting her use. As far as she could fathom, it was a guest chamber of sorts, set aside from the council’s bedchamber hall. The bed was thick, comfortable. White fur lined the floor and bed. A desk sat in the corner. It reminded her of Tyr’s bedchamber--only barren
because he wasn’t in it. She got no pleasure from the luxury. She wanted Tyr. She could think of nothing else.
Feeling a presence at her door, she turned her head to the entryway. Shiva stepped inside without knocking. She stared at him. The vampire frowned, coming across the room to sit by her.
"You can’t keep doing this," he said. She blinked and turned away without answering. Shiva started to speak and slowly shook his head. "Osiris is complaining that you are lax in your training."
"I have been to every session," she mumbled, not caring.
"But your heart has not." Shiva sighed, placing a hand on the back of her head in a friendly pat. "Without your heart, your fighting is weak and predictable."
"I don’t have a heart. The elders ordered it away."
"And what would he say if he saw you moping like this?" Shiva asked angrily.
"If he saw me, I’d see him and I wouldn’t be moping," she said. Scooting further away from him, she shrugged off his hand. "Now leave me alone. I do what duties I’m bidden to perform. I answer every question. Not once has it been ordered that I do so happily."
"I can’t leave. I have come to bring you to the council." Shiva stood. A frown still marred his elegant face. "The elders wish to test you."
"Again?" Jaden wearily hopped to her feet. "I thought the tests were over."
"Call it a mission then," Shiva stated with an indifferent shrug. "I think it will do you good to leave here. There are still many things you must put into order. Not the first of which is getting your uncle’s affairs in line. Technically, you are still his niece and inheritor of his property. I’ve convinced the elders that you should tend to it after you see to this first mission."
"Oh," Jaden muttered to herself. Maybe a mission is just what she needed to make the time go faster. She doubted it--highly doubted it.
She followed Shiva down the passageway along the now familiar path to the council hall. She had been questioned and tested by them endlessly. What was one more time? Soon she was in front of the tribal elders, waiting like a good soldier for them to speak. Her eyes didn’t meet their probing faces as they studied her.
"Dhampir," Theophania said.
Jaden nodded in acknowledgement.
"We have called you here tonight to address a complaint," Ragnhild said. "Osiris says you have been negligent in your training."
"I’ve been to and completed every training exercise," Jaden said. "I’ve done everything he has asked of me."
"We think there might be a deeper problem," Chara said quietly.
Jaden didn’t answer. The council glanced amongst themselves--all except for Pietro who stared dispassionately beyond them all. He was impassively quiet as of late.
Jaden gulped, her eyes finally moving to gaze at Chara. Her heart thudded nervously, not daring to hope.
"You are bored," Theophania said. "You are a fighter, used to fighting."
"Yes," Andrei added. "You need an assignment--something to do."
Jaden’s heart sank. She turned her eyes away. Every one of their damned words was like a kick to the gut.
"There is a disturbance in London," Ragnhild said. "Many of our kind have died. We want you to check it out and report back to us. Then, we wish for you to finish your work collecting any of the remaining MacNaughton personal documents and possessions."
Jaden stiffly nodded. Through tightened lips, she asked, "Shall I get Osiris?"
"No, he will be coming with me to Africa. You will be going there alone," Amon stated. "Consider this another test of your loyalty. And remember, dhampir, you may be alone but it doesn’t mean your actions aren’t watched."
Jaden dutifully nodded.
"Shiva has your travel plans. When you get there you’ll be met by a contact. It has all been arranged," Theophania said. "You have been taught our laws and know what is expected. Your life is yours as much as it is ours, dhampir. We won’t coddle and care for you, but we will expect you to report back to us."
* * * *
London, England, December 31
All around Jaden celebration resounded over the city streets. The dark alleyways were not as safe a haven, though there were plenty of meals to choose from. Jaden drank quickly from a passing man before letting him go on his way. The liquor in his blood soothed her some, being as she couldn’t consume a stiff glass of scotch on her own.
Turning from the crowd, she made her way through the narrow passageway streets. The chipped cobblestone whispered past her feet as she walked. The breeze swept around her, but didn’t stir her spirit. She was glad to be out of the council’s hall. She was glad to be out on her own again, though much had happened since she was last alone. The night hours were spent more in contemplation and longing, rather than in hunting.
Her feet moved over the direction memorized by her brain. The council’s order had been clear. Her London contact, supposedly a young girl, was to be out this night with her parents. Many vampires from a club of young ones had been killed, dragged out into the early morning sunrise and left for dead. It was said the young child witnessed the massacre and it was Jaden’s job to lure the girl away and read her to see if she could discover a name or face.
Jaden couldn’t care less. The job was no longer important. She just did it, hoping to pass the endless nights until she could see Tyr again. Nothing mattered anymore.
"That is not the chivalrous attitude of a true knight."
Jaden froze. Her heart didn’t dare to beat for fear she’d heard wrong. Her lips trembling, her limbs shaking, she slowly turned around. She gasped, her eyes growing round. Slowly shaking her head, she whispered, "Tyr?"
A slow smile curled over the face she loved. Handsome blue eyes shone with a possessive mischief. His lips formed easily on his face. Jaden took him all in--his Viking blonde hair, his piercing eyes, and his kissable mouth. Her hands hung lifeless at her side. Stepping before her in the dark alleyway, Tyr stopped. Jaden didn’t dare believe it. She didn’t dare to move and spoil the dream.
"I’ll admit that I expected a little more of an enthusiastic greeting," he said with a wry smile.
Jaden felt tears in her eyes. She had read somewhere that vampires couldn’t cry. A lonely trail of moisture worked its way down her face. It would seem she could only cry for Tyr.
"Jaden?" Tyr asked in concern. His smile faded.
"I can’t do this," she cried mournfully. Another tear worked its way out of her eyes. "You’ll only leave me again. They’ll take you away from me again and each time it gets worse. Each time I die a little more. My heart can’t take losing you. I can’t do it. It hurts too badly. I--I love you."
The rest of her tearful protest was crushed by the onslaught of his mouth. Jaden couldn’t resist the feel of him. It was too precious. Her eyes closed against the pain of eventual suffering. She clung to him. Her lips trembled, unable to return his passionate kiss.
A grin spread across his features. Tyr’s entire being exploded with happiness. She loved him. It was all that mattered. Pulling his mouth away, he drew back. Jaden panicked, holding on tighter.
"Not yet," she whispered. Her fingers clutched desperately at his jacket front, before maneuvering over his shoulders to cling to his neck. "You can’t leave me yet."
"Say it again," he murmured. His arms stayed steadily along her back.
"What?" she asked in confusion. "I can’t think straight. I love you."
Tyr’s smile widened. "Again."
"I love you?" she asked, the sound more like a timid question than an assertion.
"Never stop saying it, my love," he whispered, leaning in to kiss her.
"But--" Jaden’s weakened protest was cut off by his kiss. She returned his embrace full force. Only when Tyr drew back, did she stop to think.
"I love you, Jaden." Tyr said. "I can’t live without you. I can’t wait a hundred years to be with you. Without you I can’t fight. I can’t concentrate. I’m nothing without you."
"But, the council," she began weakly. "They-
-I’m on assignment. They’ll find out. They said they have people watching."
"Who? Someone to watch the dark knights? Don’t you realize? There is no one to watch us. We’re the only watchers and they know it. We’re the council’s eyes to the world. Besides, I took care of the council. I told them that you were mine and that I was yours. They would rather recant a decree than have us both defy them."
"But, how?"
"You proved your loyalty when you faced Mack alone," Tyr answered. His hand pressed over her hair, smoothing it back. "I turned you Jaden. That makes me your master in their eyes. And you have made me. Without you I am not whole." Tyr smiled tenderly at her, no walls up between them.
"Wait," she panted though her lungs didn’t need the air. "You love me?"
"Yes," he whispered, kissing the trails of her tears.
"And we can be together?" she persisted, not daring to hope, making sure she heard him right.
"Yes."
Jaden squealed in delight, all her dreams coming true. She jumped into the air, wrapping her arms and legs around Tyr’s steady form. She pressed kisses all along his face. Eternity no longer seemed so dim.
"That’s all I have to know," she whispered.
"Wait," Tyr said, enjoying her eager kisses. "There are a few conditions."
"Hum?" Jaden’s lips moved to nestle Tyr’s neck, making concentration hard. His hand threaded beneath her backside to support her. "There always are."
"They allow it because you have proven your loyalty. But you’re on probation as my apprentice. That makes me responsible for you." Tyr’s masculine smile said he was unconcerned. He was just happy to have her where she belonged--in his arms, under his spell.
Jaden chuckled as he walked, carrying her easily with him, her body clutching to his. She leaned over to naughtily lick at his earlobe. A smile crossed her face, as she felt him shiver.
"It means you’ll have to listen to me," he said, breathing in her cinnamon scent and angling his head to allow her tender lips greater access to him.
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