by Jaime Marks
Dynamics
Mists of the Fae
Book 7
by
Jaime Marks
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, distributed, stored in, or introduced to any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, without the express permission of the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes only.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are fictitiously used. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. On a side note if you happen to be a Fae and think you have a claim that you have been portrayed in this book by all means feel free to contact me in writing so we can debate the semantics of your existence ;)
Certain content and scenes may not be suitable for readers under the age of 18.
This is an adult paranormal romance novel and recommended for an adult audience.
First Kindle Edition, October 2015
Text copyright © 2015 Jaime Marks
All rights reserved.
Dedication
To all my readers who have stuck with the series. I love and appreciate all of you.
To B. who keeps me going and supports me so I can do the things I love. You lift me up even when I fall.
Mist of the Fae Series
Revelations
Secrets Past
Shades of Redemption
Protectors and Kings
Connections
Choices
Dynamics
Bound in Blood (Coming May 2016)
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Epilogue
About the Author
Chapter 1
Byryn knelt in the Darkness waiting with Kyle beside him. He could feel her but there was no direction here. This realm didn’t operate under the normal laws of physics. It was like they were there and yet not there at the same time. He could have searched for her but it wouldn’t have gotten him anywhere. They’d actually tried that a few times when no one came for them but it was almost as if they never really changed locations no matter how far they walked.
“I still can’t sense anything,” Kyle muttered. “How much longer do you think he’ll make us wait? I would’ve expected at least Syneous to show up by now but this is ridiculous. How long have we even been here? It’s gotta be close to two days.”
“I don’t know but she’s here. I can feel her.” It was close to two days but voicing his frustrations wouldn’t help him. He needed to stay centered and focused. This was as much a test as everything else they’d endure here. “You need to center yourself.”
“I know,” he sighed. “I’ll manage what I need to. I’m just worried about her. Can you tell if she turned? Is she hurt?”
Byryn shook his head. “I don’t know. There’s too much Darkness flooding us to be sure. It’s messing with my senses and she’s blocking me. She’s trying to protect us but I wish she’d just let me know if she’s alright. I can’t tell if she’s in pain, upset, scared…it’s making me crazy.” His rage was getting the better of him. He could feel the Darkness around him feeding it, but he allowed it knowing he’d need every strength, every advantage to get her out of here.
The energy around them began to shift and he lowered his head in respect as he braced himself to face whoever was finally coming greet them. Dark essence pulsed through them, sensing them. Byryn didn’t bother to block or resist it. He knew he’d have to allow the Darkness to become part of him. It made him feel sick but it was the only way they’d get through this. He’d survived it once. He could do it again.
He only hoped Kyle had the ability to withstand it. Being Sacred Borne allowed Byryn added protection from the Taint. He suspected Kyle might be Sacred Borne as well, but even if he was wrong the bond they now shared should grant him a certain strength beyond that of the average Gray. There was no real way to tell. He hadn’t gotten the chance to train with him yet.
A deep voice resonated through this place seeming to echo from everywhere at once. It almost seemed to wrap around him in a physical caress ass the words flowed over them. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t both the young Princes of Night, and both on their knees. I am sure my Princess will be quite pleased. That is, of course, if I decide to allow you to live.”
Lazurys formed in front of them in a swirl of red flame and black ink. He was in the shape of a man, but Byryn wasn’t really sure he could call him a man. His skin appeared to be more tar and essence than actual form, his eyes were red glowing orbs, and flame seemed to literally erupt and wave over and through him. He’d never given much thought to what the Dark Lord would look like, but for some reason this wasn’t what he expected. In a way he sort of expected a Darker version of a Shade, not a demon.
Raising both of his arms the creature sent them soaring through the air in opposite directions. They slammed into the stone walls of the cavern, not that the walls had been there before. Lazurys had merely willed them into existence.
There was no point in fighting him. They were bound in Dark essence. They’d been born Shade and regardless of their Redemption he still owned some piece of them. By coming here of their own free will they’d literally given themselves over to him. The Dark Lord could do whatever he wanted to them and there was nothing they could do about it.
Byryn grit his teeth against the pressure that held him. “I know what you want, Lazurys. I want to see her first. I won’t give into you until I know she’s alive and safe.” Although safe was relative. She’d never be safe until he freed her from this place and the Dark Lord’s hold.
Lazurys spread his fingers and gashes ripped along his skin. He clenched his jaw absorbing the pain as he released a hard breath in an attempt not to scream. He could hear Kyle’s labored breaths, feel his pain echoing over their bond, but he couldn’t see him. He assumed he was receiving the same treatment.
“I do not find you in the position to make demands, Byryn a Trevyn. You have betrayed your lineage and the whole of the Shade. In doing so you have betrayed me and you will pay your penance.”
“I will give you all of me…but I need to see her.”
The demon made a fist and tendrils of essence wrapped around his throat cutting off his breath. “You will see her…once you have submitted willfully to me.”
“I…submit….to…no one,” he choked out, using what little air he could manage. “Only…to her.”
“We shall test that theory…And Kyle a Syneous, or is it Kyle a Cymeryn now? You have aligned yourself with my progeny, tied yourself to his betrayal, and forsaken your duty. Your blood wants you dead for your betrayal and weakness. What value are you to me that I should spare you? Why should I allo
w such treachery to pass?” The Dark Lord hissed.
“I brought you…Byryn…as you asked. I had no…choice…if I…hoped to attain him,” Kyle choked out through the pain.
“I know better than to believe such lies, but they reveal a strength and calculation in you nonetheless. Perhaps you are more like your Grandfather than he believes. You possess a strength he has never given credence and that alone gives you worth, but this? …This power in you. What is this?” Lazurys turned his attention from Byryn focusing in on Kyle. He held his breath biting back a curse. The last thing he needed was the Dark Lord to fully realize their connection.
“You are very…interesting. You have been touched by the Sacred Borne thrice over…and blood bound no less. There is so much Night essence in your veins altering your natural state. I wonder how that lovely blood swimming though you will affect your abilities,” the demon mused and Byryn could sense dark essence testing their connection.
Kyle remained silent but he could feel his confusion. Byryn still hadn’t told him about the bond they shared. Maybe he should have made time before they came here but there was nothing he could do about it now. He’d have to find some way to explain it and regain his trust, but their focus had to be on finding Staryana and surviving this hell.
“Ahh, I see. Byryn has not told you how special you are to him, how connected,” Lazurys continued to droned. “Nothing to say, Kyle? Your strength of will to remain silent is admirable. Very much like Cymeryn when he first came to me. We shall see if you fair quite as well under my will as your blood.”
Byryn could feel the pain ripping through him as if it were his own as Lazurys pushed Kyle to his limits. He didn’t cry out even once. He hid his reactions and held strong against the assault and Byryn couldn’t help but feel pride for how his progeny carried himself.
For a split second Byryn felt a pure light in his heart but it faded quickly. It wasn’t Staryana’s or his own. It had come directly from Kyle. How was that even possible? He wasn’t Fae…was he?
They hadn’t bothered to have his lineage assessed but maybe they should’ve made it a priority. There was more to Kyle than any of them understood. He didn’t even think Kyle understood it, but their bond grew stronger as time passed. There was Light in Kyle which meant there was something they were all missing.
She stood there watching them both as her heart broke. She cried out as they bled but she knew they couldn’t hear her. Lazurys met her eyes smiling at her loss of control. Her breath was ragged and strained as she tried to regain her composure.
She went to Byryn but she couldn’t reach him; couldn’t show him that she was here, just beside him. It was as if she was watching a projection and hell maybe she was. Lazurys was completely in control here and there was nothing she could do about it.
“You can end his suffering, Princess. I do not wish to separate you this way. I mean to unite you in Darkness, to fully harness the strength of your Dark pairing,” he murmured in her ear, suddenly behind her. Her skin crawled as he caressed her skin. “If you give yourselves to me I can grant you more power than you have ever imagined, my child.”
His claws ran tenderly over her skin but Star wasn’t fooled. The moment she gave into him he would tear her to shreds as he gorged himself on her. His only reason to refrain was that he wanted her full, willing submission. He continued to seduce and tempt her, but she hadn’t given him a reaction, not until he bled Byryn and Kyle.
He reached out his hand and more gashes opened in Byryn’s skin causing her knees to buckle but Lazurys held her up. She almost gave in, almost gave him what he wanted just to stop him from hurting her mate but Byryn’s essence washed through her being. Her walls were failing and he reached through their connection, comforting her.
“Don’t,” Byryn ground out. “I can…take it.” His eyes scanned the Darkness around them almost as if he knew she was there even if it was obvious that he couldn’t tell where. “Brightness…hold on…for me.”
Lazurys chuckled, “I must admit the connection you share is stronger than even I anticipated. It pleases me greatly that you will be able to fuel one another’s strength, your Darkness.”
“What do you want from us, Lazurys? It’s not like I’m going to help you get to my Mother,” Star spat out turning to face him. “I’d kill myself before I ever did that.”
He leaned his chest against her guiding her until her back was flush to Byryn’s chest. He groaned as she pressed into his wounds.
Caressing her softly the Dark Lord murmured, “Do you feel her, Byryn? Her body pressed between us.”
“Let her go…Lazurys. I will…surrender…to you…if you let her go,” his voice was a tortured whisper.
Tears streamed down her face at his words. “No.” She couldn’t bear the idea of him sacrificing himself to this monster for her. She couldn’t lose him.
“I will not separate you from her. You were meant to be together. Possessing one of you is not nearly enough. It would only hinder my ability to control the other. Neither of you can ever submit completely without the other at your side,” he whispered just loud enough for them both to hear as his teeth grazed her throat, nipping and teasing.
It scared the hell out of her. This was more physical than he’d been since he’d brought her here. She didn’t want to know what came next.
“Would you like to see her, Byryn? Staryana is quite beautiful. I will even allow you your hands so that you might touch her. It will ease this for you both as I taste her.”
Her eyes peeled wide. He hadn’t really done more than taunt and caress her since she’d been here. Even the idea of what she knew he wanted sickened her. She wasn’t strong enough to fight him off if he decided to force himself on her, not that it would stop her from trying.
“Don’t you dare touch her!” Byryn growled, his arms suddenly wrapping around her. The blood from his wounds streamed slowly down her gown.
“I will give you both a choice.” The Dark Lord grinned wickedly, his essence flowing through her and into Byryn. His clawed hand cupped her cheek almost lovingly. “I am going to take you, Princess. I will possess your body and you will drink my essence. I have it in my power to force you with little effort, just as I have restrained your mate, but I do not wish to break your mind unless you force me to. I wish this to be a pleasurable experience for you both but I am also capable of inflicting great amounts of pain if I wish. Your torture and fear are just as desirable to me as your pleasure and your flesh.”
He looked up to Byryn meeting his eyes as he tore the front of her dress open and away from her body leaving her exposed to him. “So your choice is thus, Byryn. The power of your Bonding has grown. The bonds must be complete to seal the connection between you soon. Either I can simply join you both in your mated bed and you both will take of me, giving yourself over to my will, or I will simply take her here against you. There will be nothing you can do but watch her pain as the bonds that have been forged between you break leaving her in physical and spiritual agony.”
She whimpered in fear and disgust but he turned her away from him so that she faced Byryn. He pulled her head against his chest holding her tightly as he shielded her from the Darkness around them and let his love flow through her. He was the only thing that held her together right now. He was her strength.
Byryn stared at Lazurys with contempt as he held her. He had already felt the Dark Lord’s power. There was nothing he could do to stop this. Even the idea of her accepting him into her body disgusted him…but the idea that he would tear her apart in the process when she fought him was even worse.
“Lies and deception are the art of the Shade. An art you instilled in them. How do I know you won’t just hurt her anyway?” Byryn demanded. “How do I know this isn’t simply a manipulation to gain our acceptance before your rip her apart?”
The demon laughed ruthlessly. “I assure you, Byryn, if that is what I wished I would have taken her immediately and left her spread wide so that I might feast on yo
ur anguish. Just ask Tatyna…She is ready and patiently awaiting her sire.”
He waved a hand to his right and Cymeryn’s progeny was revealed naked and spread on a stone bed. Byryn tightened his hold on Staryana so she couldn’t turn to see the display. Tatyna’s skin had been torn open. Her black blood spilled freely. Her flesh was burned even in the most tender of areas. She was barely alive, but the bastard kept her conscious. It was clear her pain and anguish were unbearable.
Byryn had tried to turn away when she appeared but Lazurys’ essence held him fast forcing him to see exactly what the consequences would be if they didn’t submit to him. He saw all of it. The damage to her in places that it would destroy him to see on Staryana. The pained and vacant look in her eyes. Tatyna was a warrior if nothing else. She fought ruthlessly and had a passion that thrived fiercely which Cymeryn had always seemed to encourage in her. She’d been here such a short time and now she was broken; the life and fire that had always been present in her eyes completely doused.
Lazurys waved his hand dismissively and she vanished. The threat was clear. “The choice is yours, Byryn. I want your willing submission but I need not offer you the choice at all. She belongs to me as do you. I can take whatever I wish and I far more enjoy not to restrain my…baser urges. Breaking her goes against my needs…for now,” he smirked, “but if you will not accept my pleasure, you will both suffer in anguish as I savor in you.”
Venom flowed through Byryn’s veins but there was no choice here. Even if he fought this he couldn’t defeat the Dark Lord, especially not chained as he was. He kissed her head as she sobbed against him. “Baby? I need to know what you want,” he whispered against her. “You know I don’t want…Baby, he’ll destroy you and I can’t bear it.” In order to protect her, he had to sacrifice her to this. He broke knowing what he had to do as tears streamed down his face. “I don’t know if you can come back from that.”
