“I thought I’d look up places to eat and have something delivered. Anything in mind?”
She turned the bag, pulling the top open as she began shuffling through the clothes I’d thrown in.
“I’m not picky.”
With that, she took off, leaving me staring at her in a loss. Her attention was one-track minded. She wasn’t even affected by what had happened between us. It was as though she could have cared less. And maybe that was where it stood. But not with me. Ri may have had her tied, but I was feeling his want. His need. It darkened inside me, until all I craved was to march in the bathroom and pin her against the wall. I’d force her to want me. I’d make her feel so good, she wouldn’t have a choice but give in.
I took a step forward, cursing as I spun toward the rickety table. The room was so small, there was nowhere for me to go. Food. I had to try to concentrate on anything other than the fact that Cara was in there undressing. Thinking and doing were two different things. Again, I faced the back of the room. When the shower started, a sound rumbled from my throat.
Mates weren’t meant to be denied. When they wanted something, they went after it. But that wasn’t the situation here. I wasn’t her mate, and it wouldn’t be like it was between me and Leone—consensual. The last thing Cara wanted was me in that way. She was willing to die over going along with my plan to get her help. Her weakness was the only thing stopping her from pulling stunts like she had in Tijuana. Given her sudden mobility, she would try again.
I pulled out my phone, searching the web for nearby places to eat. Even though I was hungry, nothing was appealing. I had a taste for only one thing, and it was all Ri’s fault. What if I had refused to help her? What if changed my mind and still did? No, that was absurd. The real question was, what if I decided to use his tie to keep her for myself?
War.
For so long, I had tried to prevent it. With Ri’s lust for destruction, how long could I avoid it?
Hitting the number to the closest restaurant, I mumbled my order, barely hearing the woman who spoke surprisingly good English. My cut-up stare was locked to the bathroom door. I paced the width of the room like a savage. One step in her direction, and it was all over. What I was capable of, I didn’t want to know. My past may have revolved around setting a good example, but I wasn’t the Paltenian king anymore. I was a man who had nothing left to lose. And not far away stood a woman whose future had nothing left to gain.
The shower continued for what must have been an eternity. I went through moments of clarity: I wasn’t at liberty to have feelings for her. It was wrong. I needed to leave. Now. But nothing got me to move closer or farther away. I stayed walking my path. I even tried to telepathically reach out to Ri, just to release this anger. It didn’t work.
The quietest squeak had my shoulders straightening. The water turned off, and I jolted to a stop, panting through the uncontrollable need. When the door opened and Cara exited, she didn’t give me a second glance. Black pajamas molded to her body, enhancing the curve of her hips. She walked at a leisurely pace, her head tilted to the side as she dried her hair with a towel. The lack of acknowledgement was like a slap to the face, egging on my beast.
“I guess it was too much to hope for one of those small blow-dryers. My hair is going to be a frizzy mess tomorrow. Not that I guess it matters.”
“Cara.” The deepness of my tone brought her eyes to mine. The words choked off in my throat as I fought between light and dark.
“Are you okay? You look…strained. Angry? Did you hear something?”
I shook my head. Sweat began to dampen my clothes. I feared moving.
“Atlas?”
She took a step, and my arm shot up.
“Stay back. I’m trying really hard.”
“Trying hard to do what? Stay away from me?”
I nodded.
“Ri. He wants. I want.” My explanation was tripping all over my tongue. Cara moved around to the far side of the bed, watching me cautiously. Or was she hopeful?
“What exactly does he or you want?”
I closed my eyes, grateful for the blackness behind my lids. I was so lost with lust, I couldn’t even look at her.
“You.”
“Oh.”
My head turned at the light rustling of her footsteps.
“So, earlier, that wasn’t you. That was Ri’s influence on you.”
It wasn’t a question. And had I detected disappointment? For the love of light, I hoped not. I was barely holding on by a thread. Not seeing her helped, but it also made my other senses surge to the forefront, which wasn’t better. I could smell the soap. The scent only had me imagining her rubbing it over her nude body.
“It’s hard to describe, but I believe he’s influencing me.”
“But you’re not sure?”
My mouth opened, only to close.
“It has to be him. At least to a degree. You have no idea how hard it is for me not to throw you on that bed and have my way with you.” I bit my bottom lip until the pain drew me from the visual imagine. “I’m not that impulsive. There’s no other explanation.”
“Have you…” she trailed off, pausing. “Have you been with another woman since your wife?”
“Of course not.”
“Are you forbidden?”
My eyes opened as I took in her question. Her body was so inviting as she played with the hem of her pajama top. “Forbidden, no. In truth, I shouldn’t even be alive. I shouldn’t have lived after her death.”
“Physically, or by circumstance?”
“Physically. We were mates. When one mate goes, it’s usually not long before the other follows. Sometimes instantly. I don’t understand. I’ve never understood why I didn’t die.”
Cara eased around the bed, stopping a good few feet away. “I’m sorry. That must have been heartbreaking. All of it. Even what followed, with you having to leave your home and family. I can’t begin to understand your customs, or you, but I can feel your goodness. I’m starting to feel a lot of things I can’t explain. I saw something while I was in the shower. So many things, actually. I understand now. I feel and know things I didn’t before. This density thing you spoke about. The power.” She swallowed hard, changing the subject. “You’re debating not handing me over to Ri, aren’t you?”
Before I could answer, knocking sounded at the door. I back-stepped, only turning away from her to open the barrier. The moment I did, an explosion slammed me to the ground, knocking the air from my lungs. I couldn’t speak as I lay there immobile.
“Well, well. What do we have here? I thought surely Nynx was wrong. I see we’ve bagged us a runaway king.”
I grunted as I tried to thrash my shoulders against the invisible force keeping me restrained.
“What’s wrong, Atlas? Forget who you are?”
Laughing from two other men filled the room as they stepped inside. The pressure eased the smallest amount, allowing me to take a deep breath.
“I’m just passing through. I don’t want any trouble. The Paltenians have no quarrel with the Lry.”
“No. They don’t want any either. They have enough—”
Pale eyes narrowed as Rayl, the leader, stepped around me. Out the corner of my eye, I could see Cara sliding against the wall to get farther away.
“Oh, this is just too much.” Rayl looked back at me in disgust. “You bring a shadow creature here? In my territory?”
“Shadow creature? I beg your pardon,” Cara snapped. “I am no creature. I’m human.”
“She’s sick,” I rushed in. “I’m taking her to my sister to be healed. Please, we won’t cause any trouble.”
“Traitor.” Rayl’s face tightened as he gestured with his head to the other men. I was immediately lifted by the first’s energy. When the second swept by, I tried thrashing to break the hold. Ri’s tie mixed with the flame inside, heating unbearably. It boiled in the pit of my stomach, driving me to fight harder.
“We’ll throw Atlas in the dun
geon until trial. This one…get rid of it. We don’t need her coming into more of her powers.”
“No! No!” I tried throwing my weight forward. It had Rayl turning to face me. Light blue eyes turned almost silver as he forced his way into my mind. Had I been standing, I would have collapsed. The invasiveness was nothing more than a torture technique. But he had nothing to get out of me. He was having no trouble seeing whatever he wanted.
“You’re…light. Lightbeing,” I panted. “This is…uncalled for! I am not your enemy.”
“Atlas! Atlas, please! Please!”
Cara’s legs kicked out as the man carried her by. Her struggles were nothing next to the Lry’s power. Her hands clawed into him, and her feet kicked into the door, closing it before he could make it through.
“Your light is so dim,” Rayl whispered. “So weak.”
Despite the pain, I couldn’t focus on me. All I saw was Cara: her fear, her fight. And I could hear Leone again, screaming for our daughter. The flashbacks mixed with reality. There were so many screams, my body vibrated with them.
“Let her go.”
Rayl blinked at my unrecognizable tone. It was so deep, so familiar to me, I could feel my arms loosen against the invisible hold. My warrior flickered inside, wanting to come to life. All my strength went into grasping my light as he stared nervously. Before, he would have never dared face me. Now, he thought he stood a chance.
“Hold still!”
The pop rippled down my body, triggering an eruption of fury as Cara crumbled to the floor from the hit. Rayl was yelling at the other man for help to hold me, but it wasn’t me they had to worry about. The moment Cara collapsed, darkness stained the room, climbing along the ceiling as it began to eat the light.
“Rayl, we gotta go. That woman isn’t just any shadow creature. They can’t do that shit.”
“Then kill the thing!”
Rayl dove down, jerking Cara’s unconscious body up. Through the commotion, they never saw me coming. My arms wrapped around Rayl, and I threw all my weight into his tall form as I pounded my fists into his face. When the fourth crunched into his nose, gravity became nonexistent. I flew across the room, crashing halfway into the wall and falling to the floor.
The men grabbed Rayl, swinging the door open. All three of them went spiraling into the air in a mass of limbs. Two dark-skinned men surged through, follow by one, a foot taller. He was so wide, he nearly took up the entire frame as he ducked in. Yellow eyes glared at me, and I yelled, already lunging and racing in Ri’s direction.
Despite the tie we shared, my hate was all I knew. It drove me forward, right into what felt like an invisible brick wall.
“Did you become stupider since last we saw each other? You should know better than to think brute force will get you the upper hand.”
Ri walked to Cara, easily lifting her into his arms. I pounded into the invisible wall, but there was no way I could penetrate through. Just seeing them together sent the flame in my core into lava. Taking Leone and my child brought deep-rooted rage. Seeing him with Cara fueled it even more.
“Time to wake up, Ina.” His palm cupped her cheek, drawing her from unconsciousness as a wave of energy rippled the shield keeping me out. Heavy eyes blinked, only to fly open. “There you are. Shhh. It’s okay. Deep breaths.”
Cara’s mouth shot open, but the scream was mute. Ri shook his head, and slowly, her lips closed.
“That’s a good girl. There’s no reason for hysterics. You have nothing to be afraid of. I’m here to help you. Not hurt you.”
“W-What’s happening? Why are you doing this?”
“Saving you?”
She paused, glancing over to me. When she turned back to him, he quietly waited.
“Yes.”
“I’m going to do better than tell you why. I’m going to show you. First, let’s make you better.”
Ri dropped the shield, dragging me to them by my energy. My hand drew up, and he leaned forward, putting Cara’s bruising cheek against my palm. Like my insides were being pulled out, light tore from my being, filling her face with a glow so bright, I could see through her flesh. We both screamed, seizing at the power exchanging between us. My soul kept getting tugged, and nothing I could do would stop it.
“That’s it. Take it, Ina. Let him heal what he’s responsible for.”
“No! No! Too. Much!” Cara screamed, trying to escape Ri’s arms. “Please. Hurts. It hurts! Ri!”
His tongue flattened over her cheek, tasting her, before he nuzzled his nose into her neck. With a wave of his hand, I collapsed.
“Oh, how I love to hear you say my name.”
He stood her up while she twitched and pulled at her hair. Where I couldn’t move, she couldn’t be still. She was making sounds, slapping her hands over her skin. What I was seeing, I couldn’t believe. Stealing my power? He wouldn’t have been able to do that had I been as strong as before. He wouldn’t have stood a chance against me. But if he could do this to lower density beings, what else could he do?
Chapter 11
Cara
Colors. They were everywhere. Around everyone and everything. I’d never done any hardcore drugs in my life, but if I had, I imagined what I was feeling would be the effects. Phantom sensations crawled over my skin. My heart shook my body with every beat. The need to scream and throw myself in all directions was beyond my control. If not for how Ri was pulling me closer, holding me against him, I would have. Long fingers weaved through my hair while his other hand flattened on my back. I pushed against him, unable to stop my sporadic outbursts of uncontrollable movements.
“Let me go. Make it stop.” My eyes closed as he pulled me higher. My toes were barely brushing the surface of the floor, but he didn’t seem to care that I kept fighting against him.
“Which is it, Ina? The first, or the second?”
I didn’t answer. Too many things kept happening all at once. It was as though my legs had a mind of their own. They pushed back while my body bowed at the adrenaline. Sharp jerks only sent me flying back towards him.
“Atlas?” I turned my head as I reached for him. To trust either one was foolish, but Atlas held good, and the man who clung to me didn’t.
“Don’t worry about him. He’ll regain his strength soon enough. In the meantime, you have work to do, Ina. You want this to stop. I’m going to help you with that. But first, you’re going to be my vessel.”
Ri lowered me to stand, turning me as we faced the Lry. The men were on the floor, their legs drawn up as if they were just becoming aware of what was going on.
“You hurt my future queen?”
The dark-haired man who’d struck me levitated for the briefest moment before Ri sent him hurdling toward us. His feet were still not touching the ground, and I could feel his terror.
“Do not answer then,” Ri snarled. “I don’t need an admission. I know it was you. The signature of your energy is still on her face.” His hand flattened over my stomach, moving and drawing up my shirt until one of his large fingers settled between my breasts. He tapped on my breastbone until my entire body hummed. “Do you know what happens when you cross me, lightbeing?”
“Not as much as what’s going to happen to you if you don’t let us go.”
Ri laughed. “We shall see. Ina, let’s show him what we do to those who hurt us.”
“I don’t…know. I…”
“Don’t worry. I’ll help you,” Ri purred, moving in and nuzzling my ear.
“You touch him, you’re dead!”
Rayl pushed to his feet, pausing as the two dark gray men snapped razor sharp teeth in his direction.
“Let this be a lesson, Lry. The Ri will not be hunted a day more. Not by you. Not by the Paltenians. Not by any being, so long as they want to keep their light.”
Pain tore into my scalp as my hair was ripped back and Ri’s lips sealed to mine. Blinding light exploded in the room, and I knew my hand was palm-out, right in front of the man who’d hit me. His life force
flooded me in a shockwave of purity. Of essence. It filtered through my arm, into my chest, and up my throat, right into Ri’s mouth. I was screaming—again. And there was nothing I could do to stop my actions. I was under Ri’s control, and I suddenly knew why. I was the connection between two spectrums of beings—I was the vessel, the transporter of light, and he was using me to take the one thing he didn’t have.
“No!”
Atlas’s voice echoed as thickly as the light filtering through. What felt like forever had to have been seconds. My body went limp against Ri’s hold, and as my head dropped in exhaustion, I saw the body of the man fall to the ground. Atlas dove toward him, staring up at me and Ri in horror. I saw his fear. Felt it brush over my skin as it transitioned into anger.
“Do you know what you’ve just done?”
“I do,” Ri said in a smooth tone. “It was long past overdue. Take this warning to heart, Atlas. Tell all those who hunt us we are no longer at your mercy. I’m willing to overlook your sister’s continued mission to overthrow me. But only if she heals my queen and stops attacking my men. We were at peace during your time away. We can be again with you back on the throne. I can forgive and forget.”
“I am banished because of you. You took everything from me. If Kelu attacks you, this is her karmic tie I carry, not mine.”
“Wrong. She is not the true leader of the Paltenians. You are. As family and leader, you’re responsible. Her sins are your own. You know this!”
Atlas surged to his feet, and I managed to lift my head. Sweat beaded his face. Knowing he was weak, he didn’t appear so as he stared Ri down.
“You will not blackmail me back to the throne. It is not my place anymore. Paltenian law forbids it.”
“You are the king of laws. You can change any you want. If you grew back into your real power, who would stop you? You’re stronger than them all. Stronger than your top three altogether.”
Atlas Lost Page 8
