“Argh!” Sierra groaned, looking down at the piece of wood that had become impaled in her chest. “Nice one, Geth!”
Kaylan knelt by her friend. “Hold still.” She tried to draw magic, but nothing happened.
“Kaylan, we need to get out here,” Elijah said.
“Oh crap, I’m sorry.” Geth clutched Sierra’s hand. “I had no idea the dust would trigger an explosion.”
“It’s not your fault. Freya already had the room rigged to blow,” said Elijah.
She knew he was right. “I’ll leave it in or you’ll bleed out. Elijah-”
“I hoped you’d get out.” Kaylan didn’t need to look up to recognise Ena’s voice coming from the dais. “Where’s the crystal?”
“We don’t have it, and even if we did we wouldn’t give it to you,” Elijah told her.
“Oh, but I know you do. You’re the only one who could have taken it,” Freya snarled.
Ena smiled. “Besides, I have something you don’t.” She held up several pages of old yellowed parchment.
Kaylan rose, stared up at the other sorceress in shock. How had Ena got her hands on those pages? Did that mean she had the rest of the book? No, they’d be dead already if she had. She didn’t have the energy or resources to heal Sierra’s wound yet. Geth, please tell me you have more dust.
He shook his head. Even if I did, look what happened when we last used it.
Two shifters advanced towards them.
Geth and Sierra both turned on their stunners.
Elijah growled, rounded on the first shifter.
Kaylan stared around the room, knives in hand, as a burst of power rushed through her body. She knew it came from Elijah and gave him a quick smile, then zeroed in on the next male shifter as it headed towards her friends. Thinking of what she already knew about shifters, a fireball formed in her hand. She took aim, fired it straight at his heart. He yelped and then screamed as his body erupted in flames. He waved his arms, trying to quench the inferno.
She lunged forward, plunging her knife into his chest, drew the blade back out as he slumped to the floor and turned her attention to Ena.
Freya stood watching them from the balcony with a huge grin on her face.
Kaylan knew she had to get those pages away from Ena, but the Glistan leader wouldn’t give up so easily. She landed on the dais, glaring at her former sister-in-law.
“Don’t think you’ll win so easily, Kaylan.” Ena sneered.
“Don’t think I’ll give up so easily, either. You may have corrupted my sister, but…”
Ena cackled. “Corrupted? Freya came to me for help. She took me out of the prison your uncle forced me into the past decade. Without her, none of this would be possible.”
Her mouth fell open, and she looked up to meet Freya’s gaze. Her sister descended the stairs, her long white dress billowing behind her. Freya walked up to Ena. Silver flashed as she slashed the other woman’s throat. Ena’s eyes widened in shock as blood seeped down her neck just before she slumped to the floor, dead.
Kaylan gasped, staring down at Ena in disbelief. “Why would you–”
Freya bent down, retrieved the fallen pages of the Amaranthine Chronicles, bloody knife still in hand. “Ena kept you distracted while I plotted my rise to power.” Blood dripped from the knife as she tucked the book under her arm. “She served her purpose. It was personal for her. She loved Dad – but I just want the power that is my birthright.”
She shook her head. “No good can come from using the book or those pages you already have.”
Freya’s smile widened. “Just because our father and the Amaranthine never had the courage to use it doesn’t mean I can’t.” She motioned to the shifters battling with Elijah and the others. “Look what I’ve already achieved.” She sheathed her knife, turned to go.
Kaylan grabbed her sister by the throat, backing her up against the wall. The pages vanished from Freya’s hands as Kaylan drew her own knife. “Go on, do it,” Freya challenged. “You know part of you wants to. Ena killed our parents, but I was the one who convinced her to do it.”
“Why?” she demanded. “Why would you do that? You were only sixteen.”
“Mum never wanted me to join the Amaranthine. They didn’t think I was good enough for anything,” Freya said. “I knew about the book long before any of this. But Dad didn’t choose me to be the next keeper. He chose you. I could never find it before now – not until I gave you a reason to find it.”
“Is this all about your twisted revenge?” Kaylan demanded. “Dad loved you just as much as he did me.”
Freya snorted, unafraid of the blade at her throat.
Kaylan stared at her little sister. The same girl who’d once followed her everywhere as a child. She gripped the knife in her hand and saw the defiant look in Freya’s eyes. The blade fell from her grasp, clattering to the floor.
Freya shoved her away. “You can’t kill me, Kaylan. Your emotions are your weakness. I used to admire your strength as warrior, but after you lost Elijah – you showed everyone how pathetic you are,” she said. “Three days from now I’ll become High Lady and nothing you do will be able to stop me.” Freya vanished in a flash of light and Kaylan shook her head, cursing herself or her own weakness.
“Kaylan!” Sierra yelled.
She grabbed her fallen knife, jumping over Ena’s body as she hurried back to her friends. When she turned, she saw Elijah on the ground, grappling with one of the shifters. She flung her knife at him. The blade embedded itself in the shifter’s back. He grunted. Elijah’s arm shot up, grabbed the weapon and shoved it through the man’s rib cage. Elijah pushed the body away as Geth and Sierra took down the last shifter.
Elijah appeared at her side, his gaze questioning. Kaylan squeezed his hand, but she didn’t know if she did it to reassure herself or him.
“Let’s get out of here,” Kaylan said as Elijah started scanning the floor.
“What are you looking for?” asked Geth.
Elijah pulled back one of the elaborate floor tiles, lifting it to reveal a hole beneath. “Let’s go.”
Chapter 2
Elijah leapt down into the tunnel below, carrying Sierra, and Geth followed. Kaylan came down after, using her flying ability to drag the stone down with her in an attempt to disguise their escape.
Kaylan got to work on Sierra, removed the splinter of wood and bandaged it up so they could get moving.
“I doubt that will do much good,” Geth muttered.
The four of them hurried down the tunnel. Water dripped from the walls filling the air with the scent of salt.
Geth helped Sierra along, but the two of them soon fell behind. Geth had turned on his maglight, filling the empty gloominess with sharp rays of bright white light.
Elijah kept his senses on high alert as he led the way through the darkness. He and Kaylan walked ahead and he kept a firm grip on her hand.
Are you okay? he asked. Stupid question, he knew the answer. He felt the waves of suppressed pain through their bond.
Kaylan shook her head. No. I thought – I thought I had this figured out, but…She shook her head again.
None of this is your fault, he insisted.
Isn’t it? The bitterness still rang out in her mind voice.
No, it’s not, Elijah stated. You didn’t know about Freya’s madness.
Madness? Kaylan snorted. I don’t think she’s mad. I think she’s always wanted this and I’ve been too blind to see it.
Kaylan, none of us did. You can’t know how someone truly feels. Everyone is good at hiding their true feelings. Hell, he’d done that for the past year. Forcing himself to stay away, to not go to her and beg for her forgiveness. But he’d had to. There hadn’t been any other choice. Ena might have been the one to turn him, but it had been under Freya’s guidance.
What are we going to do? Kaylan’s thoughts seemed more to herself than aimed at him.
That was a good question.
Funny, Elijah had always thou
ght he’d be the one to take Ena’s life, but now he knew his true enemy. Freya wanted power. She’d used him because of the shifter genes inside his life code. Hurting Kaylan and tearing them apart had been an added bonus.
“I don’t know,” Elijah admitted out loud.
“I couldn’t do it,” Kaylan said. “I couldn’t kill her even though I knew it was the right thing after everything she’s done to us.”
Elijah wrapped an arm around her, and held her close for a moment. No, he didn’t know if he could, either. Freya had been like a sister to him too.
“Ow!” Sierra doubled over in pain as she let go of Geth. “I think the shard has caused more damage than we thought.”
Elijah caught the scent of blood and looked down to see more pouring down Sierra’s side. “Bugger.”
“Here. Let me take a look again.” Kaylan went straight into healer mode.
Elijah shook his head. “Wait, we need to get moving. There are shifters not far behind us.”
“But she needs healing,” she protested.
“You don’t have enough power, and the longer we stay here the greater the chance of us all being captured.” He didn’t want to be the one to state the obvious, but he knew Kaylan would never forgive herself if they lost Sierra.
“Why can’t you give me more power like you did back in the great hall?” she asked.
“He’s right, Red.” Geth grimaced.
“Leave me here. I don’t want you guys getting caught because of me,” Sierra said.
Elijah, we need to do something, Kaylan said. We can’t afford to lose anyone else.
He gritted his teeth, sighed. He knew she was right. “Don’t be ridiculous, you’re one of the team,” Elijah insisted. “Kaylan, Geth, is there anything you can do to stop the bleeding?”
Kaylan bit her lip, frowning. “Apply pressure. I can’t work on her down here. We need to get somewhere safe. Fast.” She gave Sierra piece of cloth to hold against her stomach.
“Good.” Elijah picked Sierra up. “Let’s move.”
The three of them moved faster as he led them through the city’s underground maze of tunnels. Getting to his makeshift quarters was the safest bet for them and Sierra. Sierra drifted in and out of consciousness as they moved.
“Elijah, go on ahead without us,” Kaylan said. “I left a med kit there. Do what you can until I can get there.”
Elijah opened his mouth to protest, then closed it again. He was no healer, but Sierra needed help – and fast. “I’ll come right back for you.”
Darkness blurred as he shot through the tunnel, moving through the echoing passageways until he reached the place he’d called home for the past year. He set Sierra down on his bed and scanned the cavern for Kaylan’s kit. To his amazement, equipment now spanned one side of the large cave. Sierra’s doing, no doubt. The girl did love her tech.
He scoured through the boxes until he found the bag.
When Elijah felt Sierra’s forehead, he winced. Heat radiated from her skin from a burning fever and more blood seeped through the wound.
“I’m going to get Kaylan. Be right back,” he promised.
Elijah sped out of the tunnel and back to where he’d left Kaylan and Geth. As he moved, he caught the scent of shifters and heard a scream.
Kaylan! His speed magnified as he shot towards his mate.
Geth lay on the ground with a shifter on top of him as Kaylan grappled with a female shifter who tried slashing her with her claws.
Elijah gripped the woman by the back of her neck and slammed her to the ground. The woman yelped, golden eyes wide with fear as he raised his hand to pull her heart out.
She whimpered and crawled away. “Please, don’t!” she begged. “We are just following orders.”
“Well, hurting my fiancé and my friend isn’t an option,” he growled. He yanked the other shifter off Geth, horrified to see the deep gashes in his friend’s neck.
“Elijah, stop!” Michael appeared in the tunnel entrance.
He hesitated and watched Michael warily. Just because the other shifter had let them go once didn’t mean he’d do it again. “Why are you following us?” he demanded. “I warned you–”A familiar rage burned through his blood as his inner beast threatened to take control. He wanted their blood for daring to hurt his mate and the people he cared about.
“Stop, please!” Michael begged. “This is Dan and Emily. They were imprisoned with us.”
Memories flashed through his mind of a dark, damp cell. Water dripping from the ceiling. Cold aching through his bones, his muscles screaming from being forced to change shape. A moaning sound coming from the cell next to him as Emily cowered in the corner. Dan ripping into the body of a man struggling on the floor. The stench of blood filling the air.
Kaylan scrambled over to Geth. “He needs healing. We have to get him out of here or he and Sierra might both die.”
Elijah’s hands balled into fists as his claws came out.
“Let them go,” said Michael. “They’re just following orders. They don’t have a choice.”
He growled. “Why should I?”
“Let us come with you,” Michael added. “We won’t hurt you or your friends.”
Kaylan snorted and a hand went to her knife. “Why the hell would we do that?”
Elijah’s eyes widened. He didn’t know what to expect from the newcomers, but he hadn’t expected that.
“Because like you said, we all want to end this war before it’s too late,” Michael replied. “Ena is dead and Freya may not need us much longer.”
“Why should we?” Kaylan snapped. “If you really wanted – argh! Never mind. Elijah, let’s go.”
“You can come.” Elijah felt surprised at his own words as they came out.
The five of them hurried to the hideout. Kaylan got to work on Sierra and Geth. Elijah stepped in and did what he could to help, but he didn’t know much about healing.
Geth’s wounds didn’t appear as bad as they first thought, so Elijah got to work cleaning and bandaging them up. In the end, Kaylan told him to stay out of her way while she worked on Sierra and removed the splinters of wood from inside her body.
He rounded up the three shifters. He didn’t know why he had agreed to let them come since they’d attacked Geth and tried to hurt Kaylan. Yet he felt a strange kinship to them.
“Thanks for letting us stay here,” Michael murmured as Dan and Emily huddled together in a corner.
“I should kill them for attacking my mate,” Elijah muttered.
“Why didn’t you?”
He sighed. “Because I remember how hard it was for all of us when Ena held us captive. I don’t remember much about that time, but I do remember us talking to each other, keeping each other strong.” He glanced over as Emily clung to Dan. “I’m surprised she’s still alive. She suffered most out of all of us.”
“You kept us strong, Elijah. Your strength was the only thing that kept us going.” Michael glanced over at Kaylan. “You found her again.”
Elijah looked over at his fiery redhead as she worked on saving their friend. “She’s my strength. I’d never have found the will to live without her.” He paused. “I thought you all died. What happened?”
“The night you broke out, we made into the woods, but Emily was too weak. Dan wouldn’t leave her and I convinced Ena to let them live.” Michael pulled off his shirt, revealing deep scars from multiple lashes across his back. “They can’t control their beasts very well. Ena would have killed them if she didn’t have so few of us who survived the change. We weren’t just following you – I hoped you could help them – us.”
“Me?” Elijah’s brow creased. “How?”
“To gain some control.”
Kaylan came over to them. She looked pale with dark smudges under her eyes as she wiped her hands on a dirty rag. “Sierra is going to be okay. But she’ll need to rest for a while. Ideally a few days,” she said. “But I know she won’t miss being at the final battle.”
She put her hands on her hips. “You’re really letting them stay here with us?”
“She’s right,” Geth agreed, rubbing the back of his neck. “They tried to kill us. How do we know Freya didn’t send them to catch us off guard?”
“They’re staying and that’s final,” Elijah told them. “It’s been a long night. Let’s have some food, and then we should all get some sleep.”
Geth pulled out some tins of food and passed them around to the others, but avoided giving any to the shifters.
Sierra snorted as she sat up and glanced around. “Right, like I’m going to sleep with them around.” She motioned to the shifters.
The three newcomers all flinched.
“We won’t hurt anyone,” Emily piped up.
“Right. From what I’ve seen of shifters so far, you won’t have a choice.” Sierra dropped her tin, spilling its lumpy contents all over the floor. “Go scurry back to your mistress.” She pulled the blanket over her head and turned away without saying another word.
“Fine, when we get ambushed in the middle of the night I won’t tell you I told you so,” Kaylan muttered, grabbed another tin of food and stalked off down the tunnel.
“Okay, if we’re stuck with you then you can answer a few questions. How come you three are still alive?” Geth wanted to know. “Most of Ena’s test subjects died during her first trial – except for Elijah. The rest are all mindless killers.”
“We don’t know,” Michael admitted. “Our bodies accepted the change, but a lot of others didn’t.”
“Maybe there’s something in their life codes,” Elijah said.
“Do you want us to leave?” Michael asked.
Elijah’s gaze swept over them. Kaylan and the others were right to have their suspicions, but he couldn’t help but feel like these people were family. Strange, he’d never felt that with anyone. Not even the Avilion family. “No, stay here tonight. We’ll talk more after we’ve had a few hours’ rest.”
Elijah headed off to his chamber, the only place he’d made a comfortable place to sleep. Back then it had only been him down there. Not a brood of guests.
The Amaranthine Chronicles Complete Series: Betrayed By Blood, Dark Revenge, The Final Battle Page 13
