by C. A. Worley
Theron’s multi-colored eyes met Viktor’s. They moved to the female, then back to Viktor, who remained still, allowing Theron to assess the situation and speak first. It was the only diplomatic tactic his father had ever taught him.
The priest’s long white hair was as unkempt as ever. Viktor knew the Theron’s appearance was a façade. There was great power under his disheveled guise.
No one knew from which faction he had come. The colors of the irises usually gave it away. But Theron’s were like a kaleidoscope, constantly moving and mixing colors. It had taken years for Viktor to get used to it.
Scent was the other way to identify which race Theron was, but he never smelled the same. The last time Viktor was here, the old man smelled of cinnamon. No being in Imperium smelled of cinnamon.
Today, he smelled of earth. It was faint, but definitely earth.
“Viktor,” Theron greeted him. “Welcome.”
“Theron,” Viktor replied. He peered over the priest’s shoulder to the men behind him. “It seems I am late to the festivities.”
Theron smiled, his eyes twinkling in delight as he looked at Viktor’s mate, who hadn’t moved an inch since the door was opened.
“On the contrary, I’d wager you’ve arrived at the exact moment you were meant to.”
Chapter 5
Viktor’s jaw ticked, but he held himself in check. Theron knew. He had to know. It was the only plausible explanation for why he seemed pleased to see Viktor with the female.
“Yes, so it would it seem,” Viktor responded.
Edward cleared his throat and drew Viktor’s attention.
“Viktor. It is good to see you again.”
Viktor inclined his head towards the gentleman. “Likewise, Edward.”
Edward gestured towards the third man. “You remember Foley.”
“Of course.”
Edward stepped forward and put his hand on the delicate shoulder of the female. Viktor caught the growl in his chest before it was able to escape.
He’d never been possessive of anyone, but he found he did not like the Witch King touching what belonged to Viktor. If she was Edward’s second wife, he would be forced to kill the man.
Edward’s power over air sent warning signals across the space. He eyed the vampire, sensing an undercurrent of hostility from the male. Viktor was never jovial, but he never gave off such antagonistic vibes.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us?” Viktor inquired, attempting a tone of politeness. It came out ominous instead.
Edward cleared his throat. “Viktor, this is my oldest daughter, Eden. Eden, meet the King of Prajna.”
Daughter. Not wife. How very interesting—and lucky for Edward, he thought.
Viktor loved her name. He looked forward to whispering it in her ear.
Eden curtsied and put her right hand out for him, as was customary in her kingdom. Viktor ignored it and bowed low.
He was sure she thought him rude, but touching the skin on that hand was not an option at the moment. He could explain it later.
As Viktor raised from his bow, he found striking green eyes narrowed on him. He cocked his head, challenging her to say something of his behavior.
Eden’s face reddened at Viktor’s rebuff. The King of Prajna had silently refused her offered hand. It was an insult to do such a thing to a lady, especially one born into a royal family.
Her birthmark pulsed and soothed like a steady heartbeat. Soon she was able to reassess and shift her frame of mind.
Maybe vampires did not touch strangers. She would need to ask her father before she rushed to judgement again. She stole a glance at her palm, thankful for whatever it was doing to her.
Eden looked back up at the huge male and saw him staring intently at her hand. She clenched her fist and turned to her father. She didn’t know why, but catching Viktor regarding her hand so keenly affected her deeply.
“Yes, well, are you ready?” Theron asked.
Viktor eyed the old man. “Ready for what?”
“To discuss whatever you came to discuss, of course.”
“I am. Though, I am more than happy to wait here until you’ve finished with your other guests, if you prefer,” he offered, wanting to stay close to Eden.
“Nonsense. Come in, everyone,” Theron motioned for them to follow him back into the study.
Edward and Foley returned to the room and Viktor was left standing alone with Eden. He didn’t want to leave her, but it was unlikely she had plans to go anywhere without her father.
He would deal with matters of state first. It would give him time to come up with a plan where Edward’s daughter was concerned. A smooth departure was his preference. Though, if Edward put up a fight, Viktor would take her anyway.
“If you’ll excuse me, Eden,” he dipped his head and strode into the room after the others.
Eden bit her lip as a pang struck her chest at the sound of her name upon his lips. She almost trailed after him through the doorway.
Her arm started to reach towards the male. She put her left hand over her right, holding it down. Eden’s palm was acting like a magnet, attracted to whichever direction he went.
She was going to have to ask Theron about the birthmark. She’d never heard of a body part behaving as if it was its own entity.
Her offending skin prickled and the same soothing sensation crept through her body. She wanted to go to him, to be near him. Eden thought it might be quite nice to feel his fingers clasp her own.
Staring longingly after him, she sighed, and her logic took over. What was wrong with her? He was a vampire—the Vampire King of Prajna. They called him the Heartless King for a reason.
Eden had no business panting over someone like Viktor. She should put him out of her mind and go find Evelyn to continue their search.
Eden took a step towards the library when she heard Theron call her name.
“Well, child? Are you coming in or not?”
Without a hint of protest from her reasonable mind, she entered the study.
* * *
“I think the time for secrets has passed, don’t you?” Theron pressed.
A vein throbbed near Viktor’s forehead. He did not appreciate being cornered.
Since Theron had closed the door, the priest had disclosed the current conditions in the West and the North, including the resurrection of the Sephtis Kenelm and an assassination attempt on Edward’s youngest daughter.
Viktor tensed, but not because he was upset over Eden’s sister. He cared little for strangers, especially those who were not vampire.
His only concern was for Eden and what the group’s resurrection meant for her. She was the sieva to the King of Prajna, just as Nora was the mate to the King of Burghard.
An upset of the balance, indeed.
The group, as far as he knew, had never operated in the Eastland. It was true there had been Prajna involved historically, but never had they brought their cause as far East as his castle. Considering he had no intention of putting Eden on the throne, it might not matter.
He could tell Edward was hesitant to openly discuss it, but Theron had argued if their assumptions were correct, and something was amiss across Imperium, the entire continent could be in peril. Each kingdom was facing its own plight.
Well, aside from Gwydion. Technically, their power drain ended the day Nora headed to the Northland. Edward’s people may be on the mend, but he now had a vested interest in the kingdom to the North. He’d soon know he also had equitable interest in the East.
Theron ended his speech, allowing the enormity of his words to settle. Then, the wily greybeard asked Viktor to disclose the curse plaguing the vampires. He asked, knowing Viktor had taken care to hide this misfortune.
“Says the one who knows them all,” Viktor replied tersely.
Theron remained unruffled. Nothing ever rattled the male.
“I hold the trust of each ruler, I guard your secrets and advise as best I can. It’s time the four kings start
trusting one another so we may work together. I’ll be calling on Marrok by week’s end.”
Marrok was the ruler in the Southland, a powerful Sundari—a demon. Viktor knew the demons were having their own troubles, much more serious than his if the rumors were true.
Viktor weighed his options, calculating what was in the best interest of the Prajna. Though he had no proof, all evidence pointed to Theron’s theory of some grave influence sweeping across the continent.
If his people’s sufferings were related to the other factions’ difficulties, he would want to be in on whatever they discovered, be it through tracking down the Sephtis Kenelm or finding clues in the scrolls. He had a duty to help the vampire kingdom.
The King continued to deliberate silently, assessing the costs compared to the benefits of throwing in his support to the other rulers. Having allies might prove useful.
In the end, his decision to cooperate wasn’t altogether magnanimous. Staring hard at Eden, he took a gamble.
“Very well. I shall cooperate. I’ll even help you root out the last of the Sephtis Kenelm.”
Edward and Foley visibly relaxed.
“On one condition,” Viktor added, surveying his sieva. She had not relaxed at his promise to assist. Beautiful and intelligent, too, it seemed.
Eden was seated to her father’s left. Viktor’s gaze shifted to Edward. He doubted the female would go against Edward’s wishes, so he would need to first clear his path.
“And what condition would that be?” Edward queried suspiciously.
“Eden returns to Castra Nocte with me. Willingly.”
Foley growled at the same time Edward spat, “Absolutely not!”
Eden sat, stunned at Viktor’s stipulation, as her father hurled a string of insults at the Vampire King. Foley threw in a few choice words, as well. Viktor simply sat there, not so much as blinking. He almost looked as if he was enjoying their denunciations.
She looked at Theron, wanting him to do something to quiet the men. Wasn’t that his job?
Theron’s prismatic eyes were already locked on hers, ignoring the rising tensions surrounding them. He nodded towards her lap, where her hands were tightly clasped together.
“Eden, do be a dear and show your father your palm.”
Eden inhaled sharply. How could he possibly know?
She sat still, immobilized by his request. Edward started to rise from his chair. Things were about to get out of hand.
“I suggest,” Theron continued, this time speaking loudly, “you do so immediately and put a stop to this nonsense.”
The mark pulsed, and silver light emitted from her hand casting a faint glow on her leg. She turned her palm face up.
“Father?”
The tremor in Eden’s voice caught Edward’s attention. He looked down and she extended her arm in front of him. Her crescent birthmark was producing a soft, silvery light.
“What. Is. That?” Edward gritted.
“I do believe,” Viktor interposed, “that is the perfect match to this. Wouldn’t you agree, Eden?”
He raised his hand to show his cicatrice, which was the same size and shape, and releasing the same silver light as Eden’s. If his marking had awoken five years earlier, hers would have, as well. It seemed his little witch was keeping secrets from her father.
Deviant female, he almost complemented. Eden was a puzzle he was looking forward to solving.
“Oh, dear Goddess above,” Foley sighed.
“What?” Eden asked her father, who had sunk back into his chair, both hands in his hair. He looked utterly and completely defeated.
“What does this mean?” she demanded.
Viktor stood, towering over Eden and her father. His heated stare felt like flames licking at her skin, like when she used her powers to warm herself in winter, only this was more intense.
“It means, mala vestica, you are mine.”
“Your what, exactly?” she bristled at being called ‘little witch’ again.
“My sieva. My mate. That crescent you don is what my people call a cicatrice. Each one has a match, and only one match, to the one person who can bond with his or her soul. You’re mine.”
Eden heard the truth in his declaration. Their identical markings could not be mere happenstance. Her body’s reaction to his went beyond ordinary attraction.
Nora’s words came to her mind. When you search your truth, look to the East. This was what she meant. All Eden’s logic and powers of deduction agreed. For once, so did her instincts.
The riddle finally made sense. The East wasn’t a location. It was a person. Viktor was where she would find her truth.
Eden had a choice to make. She could deny her fate, possibly drawing the ire of the Goddess, or, worse, forsaking her own wants and desires. Or she could meet her destiny head-on.
One look at Viktor’s severe countenance and her choice was made. She would go with him. Not solely because of the mark, and certainly not because he dared to mandate she do so in exchange for his assistance.
It was mostly because, underneath his harsh expression, Eden saw Viktor’s vulnerability. Some part of him was afraid she would refuse. The cool pulse of her marking told her she was making the right decision.
Chapter 6
“I agree to your terms,” Eden announced. “Now tell us what we want to know.
Viktor blinked. His tiny mate had easily agreed to leaving with him, then subsequently made a demand of him, all in one breath. No one demanded anything of King Viktor.
He wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it. It was refreshing to be challenged by a female, but it would not become a habit of hers. Taking his hand to her bottom may happen sooner rather than later.
“Eden, you do not have to do this,” Edward told his daughter.
Viktor wanted to argue, but he remained silent, allowing Eden to make her own case. She must be feeling the lure of her own cicatrice. Why else would she choose to leave with a stranger?
“I know. But do you think it would end here if I refused? We both know it wouldn’t. There is no possibility these marks are coincidence. So, let’s accept it and move past it.”
The edges of Edward’s mouth turned down. He reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, like he’d done a thousand times before.
“Always so logical,” he told her. She’d been this way since shortly after her mother passed.
Edward gestured to Viktor. “It seems the floor is yours.”
Viktor returned to his seat, ignoring the fact he did not like how his sieva had arrived at her decision. Irrationally, he wanted her to feel something, to argue she felt compelled to go with him. Which, for someone who had rarely allowed his own emotions to dictate his decisions, was entirely hypocritical.
Resigned to cooperate, Viktor started talking. He confessed the misfortunes of the Prajna, hoping he was doing the right thing.
Having just found his own mate, he had a newfound appreciation for his people’s frustrations. He and Eden were the first true-mates to find one another in a hundred years. He prayed they weren’t the last.
When he finished, the room was quiet.
“In ancient times,” Theron broke the silence, “many of the Prajna could not conceive until their clan’s leader found his own mate and bore young. It’s possible this is your problem.”
Eden’s face flushed, fully understanding the implication. She’d never been so much as kissed before, had never wanted to be. Until today.
“Yes, I know,” Viktor replied. “However, I’m not convinced that is the issue. We have experienced a number of cases of conception. Unfortunately, none of the young have been brought to term. Not in decades.”
“Which is extremely regrettable, Viktor. Truly, it is a travesty your people face. I still believe there is hope it will be rectified once the leader has his house in order.”
Theron’s words dug into Viktor, sharp and biting. The insinuation was he needed to impregnate his sieva.
He purposefull
y kept quiet that this subject was one of the reasons he had come here. His intention had been to discuss Bianca and the plan to attempt getting her with child, despite the awakening of his cicatrice.
There was no need to further enrage Edward or to make Eden uncomfortable. He would have to broker the conversation eventually, but, for now, he would not rock the boat. Eden was his and he intended to keep her, no matter what.
Theron arose from his chair. “I think we should conclude here. Viktor, I will send word once I’ve spoken to Marrok. Hopefully, we’ll come across something in the scrolls that may be of use. I’ll summon my courier now.”
Viktor and the others stood, as Theron left the study. He motioned to his mate, whose eyes had scarcely left him.
“Eden. Now would be the time to tell your family goodbye. I will wait for you outside the temple. I advise you to hurry.”
Her eyes glinted with displeasure. “I need to pack my things,” her level voice countered.
“Find your sister. Tell her to pack your belongings and I will have someone bring them along shortly.”
“Oh. You travelled here with another?”
“No.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You don’t need to. You have ten minutes.”
Eden held her tongue, not wanting to cause a scene, and took off in search of Evelyn. She shoved her fists into the pockets of her long skirt, thinking singeing the King might be unwise.
Viktor turned to Edward. “I know I don’t have to tell you the way of things between sievas. However, I feel compelled to assure you she will be safe with me. I would never harm my mate or allow any threat to come near her.”
The tightness in Edward’s jaw eased a small amount, knowing Viktor was making an attempt on his behalf. He felt like he’d been tense since the day Kellan had come to meet Eden, half a decade ago.
His wife had warned him, once their children chose their path, to let them go. If he interfered, it would have drastic consequences for Imperium. It was hell obeying her wishes.
