Blaze of Wrath (Phoenix Rising Book 5)

by Harper Wylde

  Amber colored sparks and embers began to fall around me, filtering through the air like snowflakes. The scent of burning flesh seared my nose and my stomach turned, causing me to fight off the growing urge to vomit. And then I heard it, a screech from Nix’s Phoenix, and I saw her fall from the sky in an array of blazing feathers. Her usually graceful wings were unmoving, refusing to spread and catch the wind. My heart exploded in my chest as I raced to reach her. My feet waged war with the ground, each step pounding with the force of a man about to lose everything. There was no greater motivation, no more desperate act. Yet, no matter how hard I pushed, how viciously my muscles strained, the world slowed. My pulse raced faster and panic bloomed in my chest, and a ragged, debilitating cry left my lips as I watched her crash into the rocks below.

  The picture changed, the body of Nix’s Phoenix going up in a haze of smoke that obliterated my sight.

  New, ominous visions filled with blood and danger bled into view, causing a wicked headache to emerge, and I moaned in my sleep. None of the pictures flying by made any sense, but I tried to absorb all the remnants to decipher later nonetheless. A general cognizance of the world outside of my sleep state permeated my vision. Sheets tangled around my feet and the sweat coating my body began to cool on my skin. I knew my visions were fading as awareness slowly but surely claimed me, but before I awoke, one last movie faded into my mind’s eye, grabbing me before it was too late.

  Thrust into the last dream I’d have tonight, I felt the sickening sucking sensation that signaled the body I possessed in this vision was not my own.

  Wings protruded from my back, and the form I was in felt heavy and strange. Noise came at me from all sides, making me want to cry out and grip my head, but that wasn’t the way this vision worked. Instead, I was stranded as a bystander, an intruder in a body that wasn’t mine, forced to watch, experience, and live through whatever I had the privilege to witness. I made myself focus and quickly realized I played the role of Damien. I saw Nix, her beautiful Phoenix whizzing by in an elegant flight. I watched her from this angle, never getting to see her from this point of view. As my Puca, I’d always been stuck on the ground, observing her from below as she soared overhead. She was beautiful. She was graceful. Fire flew from her Phoenix. She was fucking attacking me! What the hell? Her heat hit me full force and I flew backward, wanting to cringe from the pain I was sure would follow, but never did. Damien growled and shook himself off, charging after our mate.

  No! I screamed internally, trying to fight him with all the considerable strength I had, yet it made no difference. He gave chase. Nix flitted this way and that, evading him and causing him to up his game until she swooped the wrong way and he finally caught her. If there was one thing I knew about Damien’s Gargoyle, it was that he was strong as fuck, and I heard the snap before I heard the screaming cry.

  I ripped myself out of the fucking nightmare and jolted upright in bed. My chest heaved as I panted, my muscles so tense they resembled steel. Sweat dripped down my temples and I shook. My heart dropped straight to the pits of hell as I recalled how I’d hurt Nix. Crushed her with my strength.

  Shit! Fuck! No! I reeled and swung around on the bed. My feet hit the carpet and it helped ground me in the present rather than the fucked up future I’d just witnessed. I inhaled and then exhaled slowly, reminding myself that I would never hurt Nix. It hadn’t been me. Rage at Damien surfaced afterward, but once again, I forced myself to calm down. It was just a vision. A dream. A goddamn nightmare. It wasn’t real. Damien hadn’t actually done anything to hurt Nix. Yet. My muscles trembled as the edge of panic subsided and my thudding pulse returned to non-heart-attack inducing levels.

  Once I was more sane, I glanced behind me at the sleeping angel in my bed. Nix’s hair kissed the pillow as she slumbered peacefully, completely unaware of the dark fate I’d just witnessed. Every night I dreamed of that rocky beach, and every night I watched her fall to her death. I shuddered, stood, and tried to pace away my anxiety.

  It was so fucking obvious that she was all that mattered to me. Her and my brothers—literally and figuratively. Family was the most important thing in the world to me, and I’d be damned if I let anything happen to any one of them, least of all her.

  I drove my hand through my hair as I considered everything that had happened with Joshua yesterday. The fact that Nix had one more mate had shocked me, and my anger had quickly followed. The thought of anyone else touching her made my heart ache. My brothers being mated to her was one thing, but Joshua was slightly older than us and had never been much more than an acquaintance. My Puca thumped in my mind. Fine, a friend… the kind you waved at but didn’t talk to often. I was bitter about the entire affair, but couldn’t deny that his presence completed a circuit for us. The power and strength I’d felt when we’d touched Nix as a group had been undeniable. Being able to protect Nix was far more important than my feelings over adding another mate to our already established group. If I needed to accept Joshua in order to keep Nix alive, it wasn’t even a fucking question. It wouldn’t be easy, but I wouldn’t stand in his way. Not when death hung over our heads like a dark omen.

  When pacing failed me, I grabbed the drawing instruments I needed, settled myself at my desk, and lost myself to my work, staining my fingers with the evidence of my obsession.

  Moonlight slashed through the window as I stared off into the dark night. Hours had passed and I’d finally purged all the images I could remember onto paper. I absently twirled a colored pencil between my fingers in an elaborate pattern as I turned my attention back to the sketch pad I held, which was now filled with more images than I could count. Bright red stared back at me from the page, depicting the crimson blood I’d seen spilled as thick as ink across white marble—one of the frames that had filtered through my mind in between my two main visions. It was a single clip that tied into nothing and held no explanation. It seemed the most insignificant, given the other two visions I’d seen, but I knew better than to discount its importance. I shook my head as I stared at it, thoroughly frustrated that I had no idea which scene it fit into. I closed my eyes and replayed it, recalling the coppery scent of the blood that stung my nose and the phantom, feminine cries that had echoed through my mind.

  My visions had started as silent movies, but each night brought an increase in my abilities as a puca, the latest being the accompaniment of scent and sound to round out the dreams that played through my mind.

  I probably should have been happy to finally gain back my prophetic skills, but each vision left me with a sense of foreboding and a desperation to piece together the fragments of the future I was blessed enough to see. Like broken glass, my visions were jagged and hard to piece together. I had rows of drawings, which I arranged like jigsaw puzzles across my desk in a quest to figure out what the hell I was seeing and if any of the multitudinous dreams fit together.

  The guys were adamant that I just needed to practice, and eventually my skills would strengthen enough to hold on to the visions, allowing me to get the whole picture. I didn’t have their faith.

  It probably didn’t help that they didn’t understand my desperation. I hadn’t shared the ones starring Nix, hoping to have more information to share than the grim fate awaiting her. Information that could change the outcome of what I’d seen.

  The sound of stirring sheets drew me out of my brooding, and I turned in time to see Nix stretching, the sheets pooling around her waist and leaving her nearly bare back exposed to my rapidly heating gaze. Her warm, bronzed skin appeared cool in the blue light of night. Long strands of hair escaped the messy bun she’d piled on top of her head, cascading down her back to tease her flesh.

  Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she peered around the room when she realized I wasn’t in bed next to her, and her chocolate colored eyes warmed when they finally found my shadowed form in the darkness. Nix slipped from the bed, pulled on one of my shirts, and moved until she stepped up behind me. The heat from her palm seeped through the
thin fabric of my t-shirt as her hands trailed around my waist. Dainty fingers spread out over the hard planes of my abdomen, and a ragged breath escaped my lungs from her touch. It never ceased to amaze me that she was mine.

  “Another vision?” she murmured, sleep filling her sweet voice.

  She always knew.

  “Yeah. A couple.” I tried to keep the gruff edge out of my voice, but I knew I was unsuccessful when she peeked around my large body to peer up at me.

  “What did you see?”

  I swallowed hard. I didn’t want to lie to her, but there was no fucking way I was going to share that I’d seen her die. Instead, I angled my sketchbook her way, uncaring that she saw the generic imagery I couldn’t make sense of.

  Even in the dark room, I could see her brows pull together as I craned my neck to look down at her.

  Shifting until she was standing at my side with an arm around my back, she reached for the pad of paper and studied the drawing.

  “This is the throne room in the Lodge,” she said with surety. “I recognize the marble.” Letting go of me completely, she traced a finger over the bloody image, the pad of her fingertip coming away with the residue of red colored pencil. “In fact, I think you might be drawing the past. Remember that shifter I told you about? The one Maldonado killed?” Wide brown eyes met mine, even as I scowled and shook my head.

  “I see the future, not the past, Nix,” I gently reminded her, more than frustrated that I didn’t know what part of the puzzle this particular picture fit into. I felt utterly fucking useless.

  “Hey there, big guy.” Nix tossed the sketch pad down onto my desk, and the light wind the movement made caused the other drawings to ruffle and shift. “Don’t beat yourself up over this. You’re doing amazingly well. You haven’t had your powers since you were like… five. You’ve only had them back for a few days. Cut yourself some slack, okay Abra?”

  I huffed and looked to the ceiling, swallowing down the rude remarks I wanted to make about myself and my “skills,” all of which I knew Nix wouldn’t appreciate. Hell, my Puca didn’t appreciate the remarks either—easily reading them from where they floated through my brain—and he thumped, causing me a temporary headache in his aggravation.

  I winced and Nix reached up, smoothing her soft hand over the scruff coating my jawline. Gently, she maneuvered my face until I was staring down on her.

  “I mean it,” she insisted sternly. “No one expects any of your dreams to make sense while you get the hang of your powers, Kill. We’re all behind you, supporting you. Don’t blow off the fact that you’ve made incredible progress in a few short days. Look at all these drawings.” She nodded toward my desk. “You’re seeing so much more than you ever did before, and that should be celebrated. Not cursed. The longer you do this, the more you’ll see and make sense of.”

  “The blood, Nix. Every time I close my eyes, all I see is death and blood and it fucking terrifies me,” I divulged, like I was a sinner confessing to a priest. Nix was my savior in so many ways. I wasn’t even sure she realized it.

  “I know, babe. I know.” Stepping up on her tiptoes, she pressed her lips against my jaw, trailing sweet kisses along my skin.

  With her distracted, I reached behind me and shuffled the papers so the ones of her and her Phoenix were hidden from view. I didn’t want her to worry. Fuck, I was doing enough worrying for the both of us.

  Still, it didn’t keep me from uttering the raw truth that lived in my heart. “If anything happens to you and I could have prevented it…”

  “I’m right here, Killian. And I’m safe.” Her hands slipped underneath the hem of my shirt, and she trailed her palms over the ridges and planes of my stomach, up over my chest and pecs, and then back down again in a soothing rhythm. “The guys are all in their rooms. Everyone is okay.”

  “For now.” It was a curse on my lips.

  “We’ll figure out your visions together. You’re not alone in this,” she murmured. Her promises were sweet, and I just hoped she was right. I swore then and there that I’d do everything in my power to change what I saw to save her, keep her safe, and keep her alive. My greatest fear was that one day she simply wouldn’t regenerate, and then I’d want to die beside her. Without Nix, life didn’t seem worth living. I was deeply, madly, life altering in love with her.

  It took a while, but with Nix in my arms, I relaxed marginally, letting her caress soothe my soul the way it always did.

  “Why don’t you come back to bed?” Her smile was full of life and her eyes sparkled with her intent. “I think I can distract you enough to help you fall back to sleep.”

  My cock responded to the seduction she wielded against me, and I let her hand slip into mine as she dragged me willingly after her.

  The mattress dipped from our combined weight and I took my time as I lowered myself over her body. I hiked up her shirt and buried my head in her chest, while her fingers threaded into my hair. I inhaled her sweet, smoky scent. My lips traced between her breasts, and down her ribcage to her stomach, layering kisses along her bronzed skin. Her chest heaved and I could feel her gaze settling on me as she watched me worship her body. I lost myself in her, committing every touch, every moan, to memory. If there was one thing my visions had taught me, it was that life was too precious not to enjoy, and I planned to savor every damn second I got with Nix for as long as we lived.

  And I planned for us to live for a very long time.

  Six

  Damien

  I had never considered myself to be jealous before. That thought ran on repeat through my head as I watched Joshua from across the room, letting myself sprawl out on the couch, even though I was far from relaxed. Nix was upstairs, getting ready for a visit from Gaspard, leaving the two of us down here at odds with each other. “Do they know where you are?” I asked, a hint of accusation in my tone.

  “They believe I’m here to go on a date with Nix, which isn’t far from the truth. I am one of her suitors, so they won’t begrudge me any time with her. I’m safe visiting you all, if that’s what has your boxers in a bunch, Gargoyle.” Joshua raised a sleek eyebrow and stared me down, waiting for my reaction. I refused to be baited, merely nodding my acknowledgment instead of speaking, and turning my eyes back to the staircase.

  “Well, isn’t this cozy,” Ciarán cooed, and Joshua and I groaned in unison—the first time we’d ever been in sync since we were kids. “Old buddies back together again.”

  “What do you want, Ciarán?” I questioned in irritation, rising from my position on the couch. My temples were already throbbing as “Baby Shark” ran on repeat at maximum volume through my head. I damn well knew he did that on purpose.

  “I figured it was time you learned a little more, now that we’ve got all of the Avengers together,” he said with a wink at Joshua.

  I rolled my eyes, reaching out with my mind for the others. They had all spread throughout the house after Joshua arrived, not comfortable enough to remain in the living room as we adjusted to this new situation. Guys, Ciarán’s here with information. May as well gather down here, since I doubt he’s going away anytime soon.

  Did you really have to have such an obnoxious sibling? Ryder threw at Killian. You need to keep him on a leash.

  Like I have any control over it, Killian retorted. I’ll be down in a second.

  We all will be. Maybe it’s about our next task. I’d like to get him out of here before Gaspard arrives, Nix spoke up, her mental voice hesitant and full of worry. My heart ached for her, even as it ached for my brothers. This was new for all of us and none of us were handling it remarkably well, no matter what kind of face we tried to put on.

  Jogging down the stairs, Nix entered the living room to join us. I tugged her down into my lap, ignoring her blush as I buried my face in her hair and breathed in deeply. Missed you. The words were solely for her and I was thrilled when, despite our audience, she nuzzled her head into my neck.

  I missed you too. Out loud she added, “You wan
ted to see us, Ciarán?”

  “Can’t I stop to visit my brother’s fluffle?” he inquired with a wink, but sobered quickly as Theo came in from outside, brushing snow from his coat with a lazy hand. “With you all together, I figured I’d take a moment and fill you in on more of the rebellion.”

  “Are you assigning a new task?” Ryder asked warily.

  Ciarán shook his head. “Not yet. If your next task has been decided, I haven’t yet been made aware of it. We’ve been busy…” He trailed off, darkness cloaking his face for a moment, though his incessant music choices didn’t falter in the slightest.

  “You can turn the soundtrack off,” I reminded him pointedly and he grinned, bright and wide.

  “I could, but then I may get out of habit for when I need it most,” he teased. The music turned down, fading to background noise and allowing me to focus. “Since you’re late to the game, I’ll recap slightly for you, but I expect you to keep up in the future,” he told Joshua, who merely rolled his eyes at the man’s antics. “There are four main factions, although we all have one common goal—the removal of the Council for an institution of a new way of life. Faction Amber, Faction Opal, Faction Malachite, and Faction Topaz separate us, although there are some who flow between the factions without really choosing a side.”