by JL Madore
Lifting my skirt to step into the brush, the soil-stained hem made me sigh. It needed to be soaked and scrubbed as soon as I returned to my suite. Wearing my best skirt for teaching at the castle was one thing. Trudging through the forest was quite another.
With a frown, I glanced around. No sign of the pack. They must have run off with Cowboy and Aust. Cowboy’s medallion steadily darkened through the afternoon. He needed physical exertion to regulate his strange condition.
“There’s my girl.” The smooth, deep voice came from over my shoulder as a pair of male arms secured me from behind. “Wandering through the forest alone are you, baby?”
I froze. Bile rose in my throat. Abaddon. Master of the Scourge, plague of the realm, had come.
For me.
He tightened his hold as I battled to break free of his embrace. My arms were trapped at my sides, his steel frame restricting my movement. Terror made me strong, but Abaddon remained stronger. I screamed.
He chuckled deep and throaty next to my ear. “Now. Now. Don’t be like that.”
My mind spun to recall Bruin’s teachings. Jabbing my elbow into his ribs did nothing, pinned as I was. I gripped hard under the zipper of his black khakis and twisted. His hiss was gratifying and though he wrenched away from my grip, he failed to release his hold.
“Abaddon.” Castian’s voice was sweet relief. “Step away from my niece.”
Samuel’s wand was drawn and aimed, though the impulse was more habit than ability, considering his state.
“Release. Her.” Castian’s command was low and quiet, the strength of the threat unmistakable.
Abaddon’s hold remained, though he did stop groping at my breasts. “I have every right to claim her and you know it.”
Castian’s expression remained unaffected, his focus locked squarely on the monster behind me. Sensations bombarded: the smell of damp tunnels, the subtle brush of a guard’s hand, the lingering stares of wanton when Scourge minions thought no one could see. The forest spun into a green blur as thunder roared inside my head.
Lia, focus. Castian’s voice caressed my mind. Fear not, for I am here.
His gaze returned to Abaddon. “State your purpose.”
The hold on my arms shifted and I was whirled fast and rough so we stood face to face. I stared into the soulless black eyes of my captor. Though most females would consider him handsome, he was my living nightmare. The mere cadence of his voice made my legs tremble.
He pulled me tight against his chest, his arm against my back an iron bar as he lifted me off my feet. “I came to claim my woman. We were separated when she was taken from my compound. It’s time wifey and I were reunited.”
His words tumbled through my mind but held no meaning. “I am not your mate. I have no mate.”
“Come now,” Abaddon clucked, arching a cruel brow. “Lying doesn’t change fact. Highbornes are bound to their first lover. I was yours. Got the bloody gown to prove it.”
I struggled to strike him but remained trapped. “You beast. I have never lain with a male and when I do, it will not be one with a soulless waste of manhood.”
A sly smile spread across Castian’s face. “She speaks the truth, Abaddon. You can both read her voice and scent a lie. She denies your claim and there is no doubt of her honesty.”
Abaddon yanked me by my hair, forcing my face closer. “Look me in the eyes and say that again.”
With more bravado than I possessed, I stood as tall as I could manage. I craned my neck to meet him eye-to-eye. “Never have I been sexually intimate with you or any other. You lie.”
“Sounds pretty definite to me,” Samuel said, his wand still aimed. “Let her go before I call in a dozen Enforcers and we beat your ass for holding her against her will on Haven grounds. Or better yet, a brutal beat-down sounds fun.”
The release of Abaddon’s hold left me staggering to catch my balance. I stumbled and raced forward. Samuel’s arms opened and I collided against his solid chest. Tears streamed. I ignored the ensuing argument and pressed my face into the warmth of his neck. His unique scent did more to settle the tremors racking through me than anything.
“I demand you contact the Fates,” Abaddon shouted. “They meddle in every moment of our lives. They’ll have proof. I don’t know how the fuck she’s doing it, but she’s lying. When I had her last summer, I fucked her senseless and nothing any of you say changes that. If you want witnesses, I have dozens.”
Samuel’s arms tightened around me. “You colossal bastard. Ye’d provide witnesses to raping her? Do ye really think that helps yer case?”
“Highborne laws are absolute, asshole. Intercourse is binding and irreversible. I was her first and I put that ring on her finger. Rheagan’s heir is mine.”
I squeezed the ornate diamond stuck on my finger. No matter how we tried to remove it after my return to the living, nothing worked. To know Abaddon thought of it as a symbol uniting us made me want to sever my finger to be rid of it.
“Enough,” Castian said, “I’ll notify the Fates of your claim. Ooze yourself back under your rock and when they find time to research your claim, you’ll be contacted. I warn you, though, the Fates are fickle ladies. There’s no telling when they’ll get to it.”
“It better be soon. I won’t put up with you stalling.”
The air snapped and Castian stalked forward. He stopped before Abaddon and pressed a finger to his chest. “Don’t piss in my sandbox, little man. I am fair to all members of my realm—even those who make my skin crawl. It would set me off to think you just implied I’m biased.”
Abaddon had the good sense to shut his mouth.
Castian turned to me. “Lia, due to your history with Abaddon and his predisposition for violence and treachery, I am assigning you a garda síochána. This guardian must be in the service of the Pantheon and will protect you and your rights during the time leading up to the Fates findings.”
“I’ll do it,” Samuel said, his jaw set, his diamond-white gaze staring straight ahead. “Galan would be the logical choice, being the Sentinel of Souls and her brother, but his focus is needed elsewhere. Lia and I are already spending time together and my life was pledged to your service long ago. I offer to guard her, her rights and her safety.”
A private look passed between them. “Lia, unless you object, Samuel shall assume his post as your guardian.”
I wanted Galan by my side but Samuel was right, Jade needed him. “I, uh, no, I have no objection.”
“Then it’s settled—”
“The hell it is.” Abaddon faced off against us and the air around us crackled. Supercharged. Electric. “I don’t want that blind traitor anywhere near what’s mine. He’s the bastard who stole her away in the first place. She’s coming with me.”
Samuel stepped in front of me and raised his wand. “You stole her. I freed her. Now, stand down. Haven is a safe zone and no one will force Lia to leave.”
“Says the blind man waving a twig. Your wizarding skills are no match for my sorcery.” Abaddon laughed, the sound hypnotizing. “You’re nothing but a pathetic shell of what was once a mediocre wizard.”
Samuel whispered something and a blue electrical field enveloped us. Abaddon thrust a bolt of screeching light through the air. The surge hit our protective barrier just as Castian sent Abaddon flying fifty feet into the scrub. With a loud thud, our attacker struck the cold, hard ground and Samuel spun from the force of the blow.
“This matter is settled.” Castian’s voice echoed through the trees. A violent wind picked up and swirled leaves all around us. We stood in the eye of a hurricane. “Until you are contacted, you shall make no move to speak with, gain access to, or relocate Lia in any way. If you do, I shall strike you down where you stand and declare your claim nullified.”
Abaddon staggered to his feet and locked his gaze on me.
Castian matched his movement and blocked his view. “Get the hell off this mountain.”
Abaddon cursed, gave in and Flashed out.
I rushed to Samuel and cradled his head in my lap. With the fabric of my skirt, I cleaned the gash bleeding along the line of his jaw. “Samuel, wake up. Are you well?”
I stroked my fingers through his hair, praying his eyes would open. Though the protective field absorbed most of the energy strike, he took a horrible blast.
“Let me see him.” Castian eased Samuel flat onto the forest floor. He opened Samuel’s leather slicker and laid hands on his fine white shirt. An amber glow built across Samuel’s chest and as it expanded, a breeze lifted my hair. The succulence of bergamot and mint made my mouth water.
I clasped Samuel’s hand and closed my eyes. Sweet Shalana, let him be well. When I opened my eyes, Samuel lay unconscious on the sofa in my suite and I knelt on the floor, still clutching his hand.
“All is well, Lia,” Castian said. “Your guardian will need rest but will recover. Watch over him now and he will return the favor tenfold.”
I covered Samuel with the sofa throw and gave Castian a hug. “Gratitude, Sire, you are so good to me.”
He brushed a soft finger against my cheek. “You are more than my niece, my dear Ryanne. You are Jade’s sister, so in a way, you are another daughter to me.”
I stared up at his perfect face. He was ethereal for certain, his eyes the sparkling green of gemstones, his features beautiful, but not feminine. The power emanating from him tickled my skin. How could I ever live up to a father figure like Castian? Strong. Righteous.
His smile widened. Raising his hands over my head he produced a necklace similar to his own. “The crescent moon is a powerful talisman for me. When you feel panic overwhelm, as you did in the forest today, touch the medallion and draw on my power until you regain control.”
He winked, and in a golden shower of mist, he was gone.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Had Castian not assured me Samuel was well, the fact that he had yet to stir by morning would have had me frantic. As it was, I spent hours curled up in the plush club chair of my suite thinking and dreaming in a fitful reverie
The events of the previous day haunted me.
It was pointless to try to understand the actions of a madman. Somewhere on Abaddon’s journey for dominion, he not only lost his soul but his grasp on reality. I was not, nor would I ever be, his mate. I was a newling and though my age of eligibility recently passed, I had every intention of saving myself for a kind and honorable male.
Galan waited five decades into his eligibility for Jade. I wanted that kind of love for my own.
Whisking around my suite I opened the drapes and welcomed spring sun to wash the room. I enjoyed darkness—though nothing was truly dark with Elven night vision—but loved the golden haze of morning.
The sun wasn’t at a place in its seasonal cycle to bring us full heat yet, but the burgeoning promise of the day to come grew with the champagne sunrise.
Selfish as it was, if Samuel was well, I needed him to wake and be on his way. Despite my personal situation, it was the week’s end and I committed to watching over the orphaned Were cubs while Bruin escorted Mika to the Modern Realm to visit her friends in Vancouver.
Looping the drapes into their tiebacks I gazed upon the grounds of Jade’s private home. Below, workers trimmed hedges and aerated the lawn. As they made their passes from the perimeter wall and back to the courtyard, piles of cuttings marked their path. Sadly, the pool would be covered for months yet, a large black tarp stretched over the waters below.
I missed my late-night dips when headaches kept reverie at bay. Submerging the depths silenced the chaos of the world.
The landscapers below gathered and bagged pruned branches, making ready for the colorful flowers and leaves to come. I had believed the greens of the rainforest the most beautiful sight, but the multi-hued reds, yellows, and oranges of this forest in autumn matched the resplendence of even the most splendid palette.
Samuel’s breathing hitched as he shifted to his back.
What would it be like to be deprived of color? To spend endless hours and days in an empty void of sightlessness? It was near eight months since he was caught in the magical explosion. The fact that he lost his vision being heroic would be little consolation.
Samuel’s breathing changed as he woke. He fell still.
“Fash not, Samuel. Castian Flashed you to my suite.” I poured him a glass of juice and made my way to the sofa. When he remained still as stone, I perched on the edge of the cushion by his hip. “Are you well?”
A gasp hissed from his chest as he scrubbed his face. With his eyes clenched tight, he shook his head and opened them again. “Sweet Mary, mother of God.”
I set the glass on the table. “What is it?”
“I can see.” Samuel blinked and spun his glance across the room. I stood as he bounded to his feet, his gaze bouncing from the stained-glass light fixtures, to the area rug and all around the room. “Sort of. Mostly. Shapes and colors come at me. More like auras. Everything’s blazing in a mass of jewel tones, streaming from you, the furniture, the windows. It’s not sight exactly but I can make things out.”
“That’s wonderful, but how?”
Samuel walked along the sofa. With his arms extended he brushed his fingers over everything within reach. “Abaddon’s sorcery? Castian’s intervention? I dinnae care.”
He lost himself in the magnificence of the everyday items around my suite, the bouquet in the vase, the painted pattern on a bowl, the books stacked beside the sofa. He strode to the window, raising a hand to shield his eyes. “Jaysus, that hurts like the devil’s needles stickin’ in my retina.”
I grabbed his mirrored sunglasses from the table. “Take things slowly. Mayhap you should ease—”
Samuel stared at me with an intensity which made my ears warm. He raised his fingers, tracing my hair where it brushed my cheek, my collarbone, my shoulders. “Gods, yer just that beautiful.”
His eyes, still white, now held the focus they lacked since the accident. Where before they were striking, like an opal in sunlight, now they shone with understanding. He swept my hair behind my shoulder with deliberate slowness. “I forgot, ye see. The last time I laid eyes upon ye was when I brought ye out of those caverns all bloodied and unconscious.”
“You saved my life.”
He cupped my jaw, his gaze dropping from my eyes, down to my lips.
I swallowed, a queer warmth swirling low in my belly.
When I thought he might kiss me, he wrapped me in an embrace and swung the two of us into a twirling spiral of laughter. “Oh, let’s go out and see everything: the grounds, the leaves, the castle—everything. Are ye game?”
He released me and spun past the sofa. I flopped down to watch him whirl. “I am caring for the lion cubs at Bruin’s den today. Mayhap after—”
“I have to go with ye,” he said. “I am yer guardian after all. I—Oh!” Samuel caught sight of the rest of his things on the table and raced to pick up his wand. He stroked the carved wood like a lover caressing his long-lost beloved.
“Colligevirgorosas.” He swept his arm in an arc around my suite. Instantly, the ceiling rained glitter and rose petals. Soft, velvet ovals of ivory, lavender, red, yellow and pink, fluttered and floated amongst a sparkling shimmer.
As Samuel spoke his magic again and conducted the rhythmic dance of roses, I leapt from the sofa and plucked them out of the air. It was like living within a snow globe of joy. It was pure and light.
I danced and twirled, free of worry and able to breathe easy for the first time in ages. The next time I twirled past Samuel, I raised to my tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Such fun. Gratitude, Samuel—”
“Lia!” Galan’s bellow echoed off the walls.
I spun toward the door. The petals and glitter vanished.
“Have you lost your senses?”
“I, uh . . . no.” I hurried to meet my brother as he strode toward us. “Fash not, Galan. We were merely celebrating the return of Samuel’s eyesight. He awoke just moment
s ago and can see well enough to do his magic.”
Galan’s glare slapped me with the force of a blow. “What do you mean he woke moments ago? Here? He spent the evening here in your suite?”
“He did, but—”
I grabbed for the suede of Galan’s vest as he blew past. A bull in a rage, he lunged, struck Samuel’s jaw and locked his fingers around his throat. My suite erupted in a blur of fists and fury, the pent-up animosity of nearly a year detonating.
Samuel thrashed, grabbing Galan’s hair with one hand while pounding his face with the other. The two of them tumbled backward in a flurry of oaths. The coffee table stood no chance of survival as they landed full-bodied on its surface. With a mighty crack, it gave way to their weight and they lay in a heap of splintered wood.
“Stop this!” I yelled. “Please, stop.”
Samuel’s face had flushed as red as elderberry wine. He grabbed a chunk of the walnut table and struck Galan a sharp blow to the head. Blood sprayed across the rug and stained the silver of his hair.
“Galan, let go of his throat! Samuel cannot breathe.”
The two of them continued to fight and kick and grapple.
The second crack to Galan’s skull dazed him enough Samuel rolled to the side and gasped for air. Galan swiped blood from his eyes and tried to regain his hold. Samuel’s fists flew in a wave, striking again and again. A fluid stream of his strange accent filled the air.
“Whoa! Whoa!” Bruin raced through the open door, grabbed Galan with one hand and yanked him from the brawl. His other hand he held out to keep Samuel at a safe distance. Not that there was any danger. The male was still on hands and knees, gasping for breath.
“Well, this is fun,” Bruin said, glancing between them. “And I love a grand-ole donnybrook as much as the next bastard, but I think we’ll call it a draw for today. Did either of you meatheads consider what this living room romp will do to my sister? Shit boys, Jade’s supposed to be avoiding stress. How do you think she’s going to react when Galan saunters up to her looking like he’s been Freddie-fucking-Kruegered?”
