Bound to Blackwood

by Sharon Lipman

  Damn him. The horrible thing was that Lena knew Ryver was right. She wasn’t qualified for this job, at all.

  She felt, rather than heard, someone behind her. Feeling sheepish for skulking in the corridor, she span round to meet Thorn Blackwood’s muscled chest. Wow. He was enormous. She wasn’t particularly short, but at six foot seven, Thorn positively towered over her.

  And just like that, she forgot what she wanted to say. Was it something about not really hovering in the corridor? Yes, that was it. What came out was more like, “I… erm. Well. Um.” How embarrassing.

  If Thorn noticed that she had just made a complete idiot of herself, again, he didn’t show it. Instead, he said, “Come on Steward of the Watch. Let’s go and face the music.”

  Yeah, great idea. Lena would rather take an afternoon stroll in the sunshine.

  Thorn led the way and Lena followed like a little terrier at his heels. Not for the first time tonight, she thought, “this is not going to be fun.”

  As soon as Thorn opened the door, the room fell silent. The Guardians span around to meet their King, each nodding their heads in respect. Once Thorn had returned the nod, all four looked at Lena.

  No nodding of the head there. No respect either, she suspected. She couldn’t blame them and wanted to say so, but, like the socially inept moron she was, she stayed quiet. The men returned their gaze to their King and waited.

  “So you’ve all heard the news then?” Thorn glared at Mercury as he said it and the Guardian shifted his gaze to the floor.

  Thorn looked annoyed that he hadn’t been able to break the news himself, but Lena thought he ought to be used to it by now. It was difficult to keep a secret in the Order. Well, unless you were Kaden. That man wasn’t just Keeper of the Watch, he was Keeper of the most dangerous of secrets too, and his defences were nigh on impossible to breach.

  “Well, just so you can hear it from the horse's mouth; I have appointed Lena as Steward of the Watch.”

  The statement met with silence and Lena wondered if they had all been hoping that Mercury was having them on after all. Hearing it from the King has just quashed whatever faint hope they may have held. Oh well.

  It was Mercury who piped up first. “Scuse me, My Lord, but I 'ave to ask, why? We aven’t had a Steward for nearly a thousand years.” Mercury wasn’t that old, but he knew his history.

  Thorn’s eyes flashed bright gold as he inhaled deeply and Lena winced. She had only ever seen him look like that on a handful of occasions and every single time he had been furious. Mercury must have noticed the look too because he quickly added, “Obviously I’m not questioning your judgement.”

  “Obviously not,” Thorn replied, his tone dangerously even.

  Mercury gulped. The Order was not given to questioning commands or edicts, so it was clear to Lena that her comrades were really not happy about this new announcement. They’d ask Kaden for the reasoning behind strategy decisions, but they'd never questioned orders, especially in front of Thorn. This was about as bad an endorsement as she could get.

  “Lena is the best Fallen tracker we have and her swordsmanship is second to none. We’ve been reactionary for too long and Lena is the only one of us with enough knowledge of Fallen movements to deputise for Kaden,” Thorn said.

  Lena’s eyes widened as she met Thorn’s gaze. For the second time tonight, he'd left her dumbfounded. Having lost the ability to speak and determined not to impersonate marine life again, she just nodded at him. He returned the gesture, exchanged a hard glare with the rest of his audience and headed for the door.

  As he left he said, “Lena, I’ll see you in my office in five.”

  Lena pushed out a hard breath. Now what? She honestly didn’t have a clue. She’d never been in charge of anyone except herself, and look how that had gone. She might be an excellent tracker, but Kaden’s current condition was completely her fault. Looking at Phoenix, Skylar, Mercury and Ryver, it was obvious they knew it too.

  Deciding the best strategy was just to grab the Vampire by the fang, she said, “Any questions?”

  Unsurprisingly it was Mercury who answered. “Yeah, I got one. What’s the plan, Steward?”

  She gave the only answer she had. “We find Eden of House Greenshire.”

  Mercury just nodded.

  They stood in silence for a few minutes. When it was clear that there was nothing else to say. Phoenix, Mercury and Skylar stomped out of the room. Lena was relieved. Now that it was just her and Ryver, she relaxed a little. Despite what he'd said earlier, he was still her friend.

  Not really knowing what else to do she smiled weakly and said, “Surprise!”

  Ryver gave a quick laugh and Lena felt the tension bleed out of her shoulders. The feeling didn’t last long though as Ryver’s eyes hardened again and he said, “Jesus Christ, Lena, this is serious. Don’t fuck it up.”

  “I wont." Even to her own ears, she sounded pathetic. She felt miserable, but Ryver laid a comforting hand on her shoulder as he passed her on the way to the door.

  She looked around the Command Centre at the high tech equipment and her eyes stung. She felt completely lost. Her brethren didn’t trust her and she knew, for all he had said, that Thorn was testing her. She was determined not to fail, but she didn’t have a clue where to start.

  The stinging got worse and she felt a tear trickle slowly down her cheek. Goddess in Glory, she was in trouble.

  Chapter 5

  “You’re late, Steward.” Thorn said as Lena walked into his office.

  Technically, she was only two and a half minutes late, but that was beside the point. Kaden’s words still echoed in his mind and he didn’t want to show a moment of weakness. Normally, it never even occurred to him to worry about things like this, but after his “Lena will make a great Steward” speech, he wasn’t so sure he could afford to be so nonchalant.

  Lena just nodded at his reprimand. Well, this was a first. He expected some sort of rebuke at least. He scanned her face, looking for any sign of emotion, but it just wasn’t there. At least she’d regained that part of her M.O.

  The corner of his mouth tilted upward as he remembered the mouth flapping she furnished him with earlier. As amusing as it had been, he had to admit, it didn’t really suit her. No, the composed, emotionless woman in front of him was much more Lena’s style.

  "What are your thoughts on the Greenshire girl?” Thorn asked.

  Lena’s head snapped up so quickly it was like a bomb had gone off in her neck. Her midnight-blue eyes flashed wide as if he had surprised her with the question.

  “The Greenshire girl?” Lena’s voice trembled as she said it. How odd.

  “I cannot allow the Onærelen to stand and I fear Heath’s time is running out. Clearly getting into the Fallen Archives is not going to work without a full scale assault.” Thorn could see the misery in Lena’s eyes as he mentioned the archives and he felt his chest constrict a little. The feeling confused him, but he pressed on. “So, what I want to know is, if you were me, what would you be doing?”

  She searched his face as if she were considering the sincerity of the question. Thorn stayed quiet. For some reason, he didn’t want to interrupt her thought pattern. He hadn’t had to deal with Lena on a one to one basis very often, but he was surprised to find he wanted her to trust him as she trusted her Keeper.

  “The Fallen aren’t as antiquated as we think they are. Since Asher Fell, they're a lot more organised. He's setting up Command Centres, small cells of operation. Their attacks on us, and humans, are far more coordinated than they ever used to be, but they still move around a lot, and, like us, don’t have the keys to Faerie. Keeping records safe would be a problem. We've digitised a lot of our records, why wouldn't they? I’m betting there’s a lot stored virtually, so I’d get Mercury on the case. If the guy can hack MI6 then Fallen archives shouldn’t be a problem for him.”

  Well now, why hadn’t he thought of that? “What else?”

  Lena’s brow knitted. “I would
go back and talk to Heath. Where did he go in those early searches for Eden? We know he didn’t find her, but someone else may have seen or heard something. Maybe we can cross-reference it with whatever Mercury comes up with? It's got to be worth a go.”

  Thorn knew he shouldn’t be surprised at her ingenuity but he was. The Lena he knew was a fight first, ask questions later kind of girl. He had no idea she could be so insightful. Her ideas were sound though and what’s more, he agreed with them.

  "Alright. You go and talk to Mercury. Ryver’s pretty good with this sort of thing so he can help too. Since Skylar’s still sulking, you can get him to assist. If the archives are held on a server somewhere, there’s going to be a lot of information to process. You and I can talk to Heath.”

  He saw rather than heard her gulp and he wondered what part of what he had just said incited the reaction. No doubt, it was the thought of telling the rest of the guys what to do. Well, she had to do it sometime, so it may as well be now. He wasn’t about to cut her any slack on that front and by the way her sharp eyes narrowed at him, she knew it too. She simply nodded and turned to leave.

  “We still have three hours before sunrise. Speak to the Guardians and meet me in the dining room. We’ll grab a sandwich and head out to Heath’s tonight."

  She didn’t turn round as he spoke. Instead, she looked back at him over her shoulder, nodded once more and sashayed out of the room. It was definitely a sashay. Did she normally walk like that? He had no idea. He did know he wouldn’t mind if she did.

  Unlike other women — who were willowy and full of grace, Lena’s body was hard and toned. She was blessed with what he would describe as “child bearing hips,” that no amount of workouts would change, and a generous bust. Not too generous, but certainly generous enough for his tastes.

  As he strolled back around his antique Georgian partner’s desk, he caught sight of himself in the gilt mirror behind it. His unruly dark hair was in need of a cut, but that wasn’t what had caught his eye. His fangs were on full display in one of the daftest grins he had ever seen. He shook his head as if to knock loose the expression and then a deep chuckle sprang forth.

  “You’d better watch yourself, Thorn Blackwood. That woman is nothing but trouble.”

  He was beginning to see what Kaden meant.

  The conversation with Mercury went better than Lena expected. When she sent the message for the Guardian and his brethren to meet her back in the Command Centre, she half expected that none of them would show. They did. They were men of honour after all.

  After a few snide remarks at the mention of the Fallen Archives, Mercury actually looked pleased that his talents were going to be put to use. Thorn was right; Skylar was still sulking. Even he managed to look a little enthusiastic at the thought of delving into the archives though.

  Now she was supposed to be meeting with Thorn. Even worse, they were headed out to House Greenshire together. Just the two of them. Bloody hell.

  Her feet dragged as she made her way up to the main house. The dining room was at the front of the house but Lena took the long way. Eventually she found herself outside the dining room door, but her hand hesitated on the handle.

  Man up, Lena.

  It didn’t work and she retreated back up the hallway, only to spin on her heels and march back down again. Still, she hesitated.

  Come on woman, it's not like it's a date or anything. It wasn’t. It was just her and her boss on an assignment. That her boss had brilliant golden eyes and a near perfect arse had nothing to do with it. Jesus. What was wrong with her?

  Suddenly the door opened and those amber-on-gold eyes met her own. “Um. Hi!” Her voice was shrill as she almost catapulted herself to the other side of the hall. God she was an idiot.

  Thorn’s fangs flashed her in a wide smile. “What are you doing skulking in the corridor?”

  “I wasn’t skulking. You just opened the door before I had a chance,” she replied defensively.

  Thorn held the door open and swept his hand in a welcoming gesture. Lena let out a breath she hadn’t realised she was holding and marched in. She headed straight for the dining table.

  As always it was laden with all sorts of goodies; steak, chicken, prawns, seven varieties of bread rolls, chips, dips, lemon meringue, some sort of death-by-chocolate, and a huge raspberry Pavlova that beckoned to her. Lena ignored them all. Yes, she was a Vampire. Yes, she had one of the fastest metabolisms in the known universe. No, she wasn’t going to pig out in front of the King.

  She never really ate that much in front of any of her brethren. Not anymore.

  As a child, her parents hadn’t been able to afford anything on this table. When she came to live with the Order she’d gorged herself on fine meat, cakes, biscuits, anything she could get her hands on. The boys teased her rotten about it.

  Around the time she reached maturity, which for a Vampire was at twenty-one, she’d realised that she wasn’t one of the boys. She grew curves and breasts and great big hips. She was suddenly a woman and although she fought and swore like a trooper, and a male one at that, she wanted just one thing that was ladylike. Not pigging out was it. She knew damn well it was stupid, but then Lena did have a strange way of looking at things.

  Thorn took his seat, stabbed his fork into what could only be described as half-a-cow’s-worth of steak and loaded it on his already overflowing plate.

  Lena arched her brow. “What happened to grabbing a sandwich?”

  Thorn looked down at his plate. “I have meat. I have bread. That constitutes a sandwich in my book,” he said whilst recharging his fork with another mouthful.

  Lena went with the grilled prawns, salad and a glass of water and took a seat opposite Thorn to watch him commence his steak-a-thon.

  “Here. Catch!” She hardly had time to put her plate down when Thorn launched a Blood Box at her. She caught in one hand just before it hit her square in the face.

  “Thanks,” she said as she took the little straw out of its plastic sleeve and stabbed it through the foil circle on the top. As she brought the box up to her mouth, the red “Rayo Rojo” logo twinkled in the light. Her eyes zeroed in on the “O Negative” written in silver script below it. It had to be a coincidence. There was no way Thorn would know it was her favourite. Was there?

  Sucking on her straw, she realised she hadn’t fed for days and she was grateful Thorn thought of it. She’d been so preoccupied with thoughts of Eden and Kaden, it hadn’t even occurred to her. Now, as the first sips of the sweet claret hit her system her body gave an almost audible sigh of relief.

  She was so absorbed in the sensory overload, it took her a while to notice Thorn was staring at her. Fighting the urge to check she hadn’t spilled blood over her clothes or down her chin she stared back. “What?”

  “Nothing.” He hid a grin behind yet another fork full of rib eye.

  “It’s rude to stare, you know? You shouldn’t do it.”

  “I know. But since I’m the King, I find I can do almost anything I please.”

  God he was arrogant! “That’s beside the point and you know it."

  Thorn’s eyes flashed amber and Lena gulped. It had been fifty years, but she often forgot Thorn was no longer just a Guardian. She really should keep her big gob shut.

  A deep, rumbling, masculine laugh erupted from Thorn and filled the room. Lena frowned. She hadn’t said anything particularly funny had she? Or was he laughing at her? Yes, that was more likely, though what she’d done, she couldn’t be sure. She shifted uncomfortably in her chair, confusion painted all over her face.

  Once over his fit of hysterics, Thorn let her in on the joke. “You and Soraya are the only people who ever put me in my place like that,” he said, still smirking. “I find it curious.”

  Curious? Well, that was better than accusing her of insubordination or treason, she supposed. Really, after one hundred and eighty-three years she should be used to living so close to the Royal Court, but being a courtier wasn’t really her style.
She struggled with the more traditional side of the monarchy and often forgot her manners. She was a Guardian — no, a Steward now, and that meant she didn’t have the time or patience for pomp and ceremony. Plus, for one hundred and thirty three of those years, Thorn had just been another Guardian, the King’s brother, but still a Guardian.

  Realising he was still gazing intently at her, she searched for something to say. “Is that bad?” seemed the best she could come up with.

  “No, it’s not bad. You remind me what it is to be a Guardian.” He looked almost wistful as he said it.

  Thorn only took the throne when his brother, Jett, died. Lena knew he never wanted it, but with no other heirs, he had no choice. With his privileged upbringing she hadn’t really thought to feel sorry for him, but looking at his face now, she may have been a little harsh. It would seem that even the King didn’t always get what he wanted.

  He shook his head and blinked several times, as if banishing daydreams. He cleared his throat and Lena waited for him to say something else. He didn’t. Instead, he scraped his chair on the stone floor and headed for the bar.

  Grabbing a bottled lager from the fridge he twisted the top off. The beer made a fizzing noise as foam raced up the bottle-neck in a bid for freedom. Thorn caught it as he placed his lips to it and took long hard gulps. He’d almost finished the whole bottle before he turned back to Lena.

  “I’ve changed my mind. There’s only a few hours before sunrise and I think we could all do with a break.”

  Lena almost gaped. Only almost. The goldfish episode was still fresh in her mind. “W-what do you mean,” she stammered. “What about Eden?” He was the one who had said the Onærelen couldn’t be allowed to stand, yet here he was suggesting they take a night off. It didn’t make any sense.

  “Eden can hold on for one more day. Besides, I think you could do with rebuilding your bridges with the rest of the Order, don’t you?”