Jaded

by Danielle James

  “Then if there are no objections, and there better not be,” Gage announced. The guests chuckled but no one spoke up. “I now pronounce you husband and wife.” He turned his face to Michael. “You better kiss her, man.”

  Michael pulled Jade into his arms and took her mouth in a soul-searing kiss that made her insides melt. He explored her mouth and nipped at her lip with his new teeth.

  That is, until someone cleared their throat.

  Michael broke the kiss and rested his forehead on Jade’s. “Mine,” he whispered.

  Jade smiled. “Mine.”

  Applause and cheers erupted and filled the room. Michael brushed a stray tear from Jade’s cheek. She hadn’t even realized it was there. “I hope those are happy tears,” he said softly, taking her hand.

  “They are,” she replied and turned to face their guests. Traditionally, they were supposed to walk back down the aisle together, but Michael had other ideas. He slipped his arms around Jade’s waist and spread his wings, lifting them into the air. He flew with her, gently, just above the ground so that no one could see up her dress, but far enough up that her dress didn’t trail the floor.

  He floated with her to the center of the room and set her gently on her feet in the space created by the guests. Titters and hoots filled the room, and Jade had never felt so loved in her life. “I will always be there to carry you when you need it,” he told her.

  Jade raised a sarcastic brow but didn’t say anything. She only smiled at her mate. Her beautiful, strong mate. He was everything she wanted and he was hers.

  “I have a surprise for you,” Michael whispered in her ear.

  “Oooh, I love surprises,” Jade replied on a genuine smile. He led her to the dance floor by the hand, and Jade happily followed. Brea and Jessica were at her side immediately, pulling the train from her gown.

  “Hey,” she protested as the train fell away and much of the skirting went with it. She felt twenty pounds of fabric drop away, leaving her in the bodice and only knee-length skirts. “Why are you taking my dress?”

  No one answered her, but the lights dimmed and a hush fell over the two hundred guests at her reception. Michael grinned and looked toward the small stage where the band would play the song she and her new husband would dance to. He pulled on her hand and Jade followed.

  Five men were on stage, but all of them were dressed in black so that they were hard to make out in the dim light, even with her vampire eyes. Then she heard the trilling arpeggios of a lone guitar in a tune that she knew as well as her own heartbeat. Beams of light danced across the stage as a bass drum thumped in a beat that vibrated her chest.

  Jade looked at Michael with stars in her eyes. “You didn’t,” she grinned.

  Michael looked exceptionally proud of himself. “I did. I wanted to have you something special, so I got your favorite band to play at your wedding.”

  Jade tip-toed up to kiss his lips quickly and then all but ran to the front of the stage as the rhythm guitar started playing. Jade knelt in front of the stage just as the music exploded into the ballroom. She couldn’t believe it! Her husband had found a way to get A7X to play just for her. As the song continued, Hail to the King, as it were, she bowed her head in respect for the song and the men playing it. This was her mecca. This was her life. This was her heart and soul. Before Michael, there had only been music. Now, she had them both.

  She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into the eyes of the lead singer. He held a hand out for her and she took it. He led her to a standing position, then to the stage. Someone, she couldn’t see who, raised her guitar strap over her head and hung her Flying V over her shoulder.

  “Whenever you feel like joining us,” the singer said close to her ear, just before he moved away and began singing.

  Jade didn’t hesitate. Her stomach was in knots but she didn’t care. She was on stage with her favorite band and they were letting her play with them! She immediately went into the heavy riff of the lead guitar notes, never missing a beat. She sang at the top of her lungs along with the singer, although no one heard her over the music. When it came time for the solo, the lead guitarist looked at her and smiled. Jade nodded and took over. She let her fingers fly over the frets in a melody as unique as she was. The other guitar players joined her by her sides, throwing their bodies back and forth in time to the beat with her. As her solo ended and the bass drum beat prominently once again, Jade looked up to see two hundred fists in the air. Moving with the music. Moving with her.

  She wondered if this is what her father felt like when he played on stage. She knew two hundred didn’t compare to fifty thousand, but hey, it was a start. As the last note hung heavily in the air, the gathering of family and friends went wild for her.

  She pulled her guitar over her head and handed it to someone; she didn’t notice who, and leapt off the stage into Michael’s waiting arms. She caught a brief glance of Phoenix and Kelly, who were watching her with adoration.

  Michael caught her and spun her around. “Thank you,” she said against his neck.

  As they danced and laughed, Jade looked around the room. It was filled with people who loved her and who loved her mate. Her family had begun with five vampires who loved music. One by one, they each found their mate and their family grew. They had friends across the country that also loved and lost. Wasn’t it fitting that their children would find each other? Everything her family had done and everything Michael’s family had gone through was a small step toward a destiny none of them had realized they were hurtling toward. Now, with her mate in her arms and evil cast away, they really had come full circle.

  There was just one little thing nagging at her brain.

  “What’s wrong?” Michael asked as he pulled her closer to him.

  “I was just thinking,” Jade said. “If we took out the leader of Hell, then who is going to run it now?”

  “I’m sure God has an answer for that,” he told her.

  “Isn’t it strange how we can have this conversation on the dance floor at our wedding?” she asked. “Have we really all become so jaded that this is commonplace?”

  Michael laughed. “No, I’m the only one who’s been jaded,” he said and kissed her quickly. “And I can’t think of any way I’d rather be.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY NINE

  The man’s stark white suit was in complete contrast to the dark red and black walls of the cavernous space of Hell. His inner light surrounded him, giving him a heavenly glow. All of Hell’s Keepers, the ones that oversaw the different sanctions of Hell, were gathered for a meeting. They weren’t really given a choice in the matter. What God wanted, He got. No ifs ands or buts about it.

  “My children,” He said softly, but every ear heard his words. “There has been much to happen. The balance has been upset for too long. I have taken back my creations. The time of change is upon you, my will be done. The population on Earth has succeeded where others have failed. My child, my creation, Lucifer, is dead. In the wake of his loss, many of you have vied for his position, but I am taking Hell back. For too long, this place has been allowed to run as Lucifer saw fit, but he ruled with anger and jealousy in his heart. He ruled with hate and sorrow. Now, Hell will be run as it was always meant to be, without corruption.”

  Murmurs and whispers spread throughout the cavern.

  “Hell is a necessity,” God continued. “As always, the punishment must fit the crime. But now, instead of being led by a fallen one with evil in his heart, you will be led by someone of my choosing. There will no longer be senseless killing for power or title in this place. You will be ruled by one who has proven himself worthy in my eyes. He will be fair and just, but don’t upset him too badly, he can be nasty.”

  A man appeared next to God. His short dark hair, dark eyes, and muscular body gave him the look of someone fitting for Hell’s throne. “He has earned his way to this seat. I trust him with the power it holds. He shall rule over you. You will grant him all the respect and authority due to
him, as he is sanctioned by me.”

  All of the leaders fell to one knee in front of their new leader. He was nervous and still wasn’t too sure about this job God himself had given him, but he would do it. He would make God proud of him. A hand landed softly on his shoulder and words that were spoken to his heart rather than his ears came to him. “I am already proud of you.”

  “Our Lord?” one of the leaders asked. God raised a brow. “What has happened to Stephan?”

  ***

  Stephan beat his hands on the sides of his prison. The walls were just tall enough so that he could stand, the ceiling just low enough that standing was all he could do. He was stuck in a box. He had only inches between himself and the four walls. On the walls, every sin he ever committed flashed in front of his eyes. His punishment? To remain trapped with his sins every day for the rest of eternity. Every soul he hurt, he felt their pain. Every heart he broke, broke his heart. His conscious worked overtime, forcing him to relive the guilt and pain over and over again.

  When he made the deal with Anubis, he thought he didn’t have a soul. How wrong he had been! His mother had been human and he was born with a soul. Now Anubis owned it, on the condition that Stephan be punished for his actions. The condition was set by the Almighty, and Anubis wasn’t what Stephan had thought. The god of death and mummification, he caused death and oversaw the trip to the underworld. To Heaven or Hell. But he got to keep Stephan’s soul, and he got to choose the punishment.

  Stephan hated himself. He hated Anubis. He hated everything that had ever shaped his life. He hated his free will, but most of all, he hated the vampire who made his mind right. This was his punishment, and he would pay for eternity for his crimes. He had spent his life believing he could never be anything else. He was wrong. Stephan opened his mouth and screamed for the thousandth time, and like every time before, no one heard him. And no one ever would.

  Two families, bound by heart

  Shall rise together but from afar

  Unlikely births

  To falling stars

  Two young of age But old in soul

  Mated in blood

  Destined from birth

  Will stop the flood

  Two hands tied

  Will unite the clans

  Their strength combined

  The future in their hands

  One thousand years of peace

  Will reign

  No longer will blood

  Or evil remain

  From the author:

  I hope that you enjoyed Jaded. Jade started out as an infant in another book. We have watched her grow and then one day, she was all grown up and demanded her own story.

  I knew when she told me what she had in mind that this was going to be something special. I hope that you thought so too.

  If this is your first encounter with The Forbidden Love Series, go back and start from the beginning. Reading order for the series is:

  Out of the Dark

  Into the Light

  Into the Fire

  From the Ashes

  Into Forever

  Into the Divine

  Spider Web

  Phoenix

  Reviews are the life-blood of authors. If you read and enjoyed this book, please, leave a review. It only takes a minute.

  As always, thank you for your continued support and for loving my characters.

  Sincerely,

  Danielle James

  Contact me: email: ddjames1976@aol.com

  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Danielle-James-Author/148085235274682

  Soundtrack to Jaded: (songs I listened to while writing)

  I’m with You, Avril Lavigne

  Down with the Sickness, Disturbed

  Chalk Outline, Three Days Grace

  Hail to the King, Avenged Sevenfold

  The Only Exception, Paramore

  Another One Bites the Dust, Queen

  Keep Holding On, Avril Lavigne