Forged by Fate (Entangled Embrace)

by Reese Monroe

  “Sadie’s leaving.”

  Justin smiled as he studied the two females. “I catch a whiff of desire, but fear is the predominant scent. Are you getting that?”

  Theo nodded. The acrid scent of fear made him uneasy. Worried. Mates should not fear each other, yet she did. It should be instinctive to connect. To touch, confirming the uniting.

  “How did you find her, Theo?”

  “Our connection drew me to this part of town. I came in here to eat at noontime, and I saw her. More, her shoulder.”

  “Why didn’t you go in and claim her right then? Instead, you interrupted my pleasure, and just now you froze. She was inches from you, yet you said nothing.”

  He couldn’t explain it. After failing miserably to gather the strength to face her this afternoon, he’d come here tonight with every intention of talking to her and touching her to get his long-awaited Mark. Instead, her blue topaz eyes had captivated him. Despite wearing work clothes smudged with grease and smelling of it, she’d rendered him paralyzed with her stare. Over nine centuries of experience tracking demons and returning them to Hades, but one look from the tiny female and he’d choked. Not a single coherent word had formed in his muddled brain.

  His Mate, with a coffepot in hand, made haste to an old man’s table. A wide grin filled the geezer’s face.

  “Refill?” Her voice cracked.

  “Yes, dear.” The man eyed Sadie in the most peculiar way.

  She leaned forward with the coffeepot poised to fill the cup, and the old man’s hand landed on her behind.

  Theo burst out of the booth, snarling. His fangs extended. A roar vibrated through his stomach and out of his mouth with so much violence he feared fire might have accompanied it.

  Sadie jumped back and the coffeepot slipped from her hand, sending the steaming liquid over the table and splashing against her white shirt.

  “Theo. Stand down.” Justin grabbed him by the elbow, and amid distant voices and gasps, he steered Theo toward the door. The female Sadie had been talking with earlier met them at the exit, holding a tray with menus and two sodas.

  Theo clamped his mouth shut to hide his fangs and focused on his breathing. In. Out. Justin’s grip tightened around his arm, and for that, he was thankful. This was not the place to unleash his beast. Even though the gray-haired man deserved the wrath of the Gatekeeper for touching Sadie in such a manner.

  No one disrespected Theo’s Ahavah like that.

  “So, you don’t want your sodas or menus anymore?” the redheaded woman asked. Her voice was on the edge of Theo’s awareness as his focus remained on Sadie, who now stood at the counter, patting her shirt with a towel. A young boy had appeared and began mopping the spilled coffee.

  Sadie turned and hurried into the back room labeled EMPLOYEES ONLY.

  “I’m sorry. My brother isn’t feeling well. We need to bolt,” Justin said. “What’s your name?”

  “Dasha.”

  “Mmm, Dasha. That tongue ring looks delicious.” Justin tugged at Theo’s arm, urging him toward the door as he dug into his pocket and retrieved a fifty. “Here. A tip for your trouble.”

  Justin manhandled Theo out the door and into the cool night.

  “Holy shit, she was hot.” Justin released Theo and put his hands out. “Dasha, not your woman. Don’t go all fang on me.” He glanced around. “You need to calm the hell down.”

  Theo ordered his despised fangs to retract and with them, the aggression of his beast. Though the Shomrei were angelic in nature, they were vicious. Especially when it came to their Mates. But the fangs were the one thing about being Shomrei Theo had the most difficulty accepting.

  They too closely resembled the demons he vanquished. A constant reminder of the small piece of that darkness still in him, despite his dominion over it.

  “I thought you were going to shred that old man to ribbons.”

  Theo glanced through the windows and into the restaurant. Thankfully, only two other couples were in there. He’d been so focused on Sadie he hadn’t taken his surroundings into consideration as he should have. He might have to send Justin in there to trance anyone needing to forget his outburst, because Theo didn’t trust himself right now to do it.

  A punch to his arm yanked him back to the moment. Justin stood eye-to-eye with him. “Is the Shomrei in check?”

  Theo nodded. Damn it, he needed to get focused.

  “I’ve been by your side for almost a thousand years, and I have never seen you react like that outside of slaughtering demons.” He grinned as he waved Theo toward the vehicles. “I never believed in the Mate thing until this very minute. Holy shit!”

  “I’ve told you it was true. Just as Mother always said.”

  “Parents will tell kids anything to get them to sleep.” Justin glanced at the inky sky. “I mean, it’s enough that we’re earthbound heavenly beings meant to guard the gates to Hades—well, at least you are—but to be mated as well? As in one woman?” He shuddered. “But the way your beast erupted back there. First with me and then at that old man for touching Sadie…”

  “That man touched my Mate in a way only I am allowed.”

  They reached Justin’s car and he said, “What if she’s been with others? She looks like she’s at least twenty or twenty-one. No way can she still be a virgin.”

  “Nothing about her past matters. Only that I’ve finally found her.” Theo closed his eyes, basking in what remained of her vanilla scent that’d wrapped around his senses back in the restaurant. The minute she’d approached their table, her essence had imprinted on him. He would now be able to pick her out of a crowd.

  “Did you see how scared she was?” Justin leaned on the roof of his car, resting his arms atop the vehicle. “She has no clue what she is.”

  “Mother said she might know nothing of the supernatural world. That I’d have to earn her trust. She told me, like all Shomrei Mates, my female was human—yet more than human. I expected the bond to be natural, that she’d innately feel linked to me rather than scared of me.” Theo pointed toward the diner. “There. She’s coming out.”

  Sadie pushed open the door. She’d put on a black leather jacket and carried a helmet beneath her left arm. While balancing that, she eased black leather gloves on as well.

  “Holy shit. I take back my earlier comment. She’s hot, too.”

  Theo let out a growl.

  “It’s a compliment. Doesn’t mean I want to jump her bones. She’s yours. I know.”

  Theo puffed out his chest. She was his. But she wasn’t completely his yet, and that sent a nine-century-old ache through his body. An ache only she could sate.

  Theo lurched forward, followed closely by his brother. Sadie turned the corner of the building and a shiny red motorcycle came into view. Was that hers? Could he be so lucky that his Mate enjoyed riding bikes as much as he did?

  “Her cool factor just upped another notch.” Justin stood beside him. “Go. Talk to her. Make the connection so you can jump into bed with her and be done with it.”

  “Jerk.”

  Theo jogged forward, closing in on Sadie. She crouched over, putting something in the tank bag, then her back went ramrod straight. Could she sense him?

  Theo slowed to a brisk walk.

  Less than ten feet separated him from his future. From the one thing that would seal his power.

  Now less than five feet from the one thing that would complete him. After all these centuries, he would no longer be alone.

  Faster than he could register, Sadie whirled around. But what surprised him most was that the heel of her combat boot rushed his face.

  Even more surprising, it met his chin with enough force to spin him around and plant him on his ass.

  No one, human or demon, had done that in centuries.

  Chapter Four

  Sadie bent her knees and raised her fisted hands. The massive pile of human flesh lay like a heap on the asphalt. So cocky he hadn’t even tried to sneak.

  Snickering waft
ed in from the darkness surrounding the parking lot, and a form took shape about twenty feet off.

  “Stay back.” Despite her insides quaking ten on the Richter scale, her voice came out strong, echoing off the brick wall beside her.

  She backed toward her bike, keeping an eye on the man on the ground. Wait. It was the guy from the restaurant. Hazel Eyes. “You.”

  She straightened, keeping her muscles tense in case she had to fight. The scent of cinnamon mixed with a hint of spice and a splash of pine coiled around her senses. Such a strange mixture of smells, yet it soothed her. It molded with her instinct and laced a sense of security around her soul.

  The man jumped to his feet, and though he was ten feet away, she could tell he was at least ten, maybe twelve inches taller than her. Then again, she was only five feet tall so most people towered over her. Yet, she’d knocked him down.

  She bent her legs again, keeping him in sight.

  “She’s a strong one,” the man approaching them said.

  Shit. Two against one. The other guy could pass for Hazel Eyes’s brother. They had the same raven hair, and he was just as huge, only he had eyes as blue as the deepest parts of the ocean.

  She inched toward the bike. No way could she get on and get it started in time to evade an attack, but she had her nunchakus in the tank bag. That’d even the odds a bit.

  “Don’t move,” Hazel Eyes said.

  Finally, he’d spoken. A switch flipped in her mind. His voice triggered a wave of heat that rolled through her stomach, sent her heart into a tailspin, and ignited an intense pulse in her shoulder.

  Right where her tattoo was.

  She must have stumbled into a dream or something. This wasn’t a dumb romance novel. Only there did they describe shit like this, yet there she was, staring doe-eyed at a complete stranger, wishing she could strip him bare and learn every curve and crevice his body offered.

  Her cheeks flamed at the thought. At the vision of it.

  “We won’t hurt you, Sadie.” He stepped forward as he wiped the back of his hand down the side of his face. She’d made him bleed.

  Served him right. Shouldn’t just sneak up on a black belt like that. A nervous, scared, and angry one, especially.

  “I’m Theo,” he said.

  “How do you know my name?”

  He smiled. Even though the sun had long ago set, the orb’s golden rays beamed off his tawny skin. “I heard it in the restaurant.”

  “Stay back.” She’d reached her bike.

  He tilted his head back and drew in a deep breath. “Shit.”

  She tensed. “What?”

  The atmosphere changed. Suddenly the air felt…heavy.

  “We need to leave.” Hazel Eyes stepped forward, hands reaching for her. “Now.”

  “Hell no.” She ducked, kicked his knee out, and slammed her palm into his chest. He flew back, colliding into his brother, and landed thirty feet away.

  Holy shit. She stared at the stranger sprawled out on the ground in disbelief. She’d always been a little stronger than average, but how in the name of all things holy had she sent that massive guy that far?

  She swung her leg over her bike and the machine roared to life.

  I’m so outta here.

  Chapter Five

  “Holy son of Hades—she did that?” Justin whooped as he hopped to his feet.

  Theo did the same, just in time to witness the ripple in the air beside his brother. “No!”

  The word slipped out as the demon lunged through a splice into the human realm. Justin was fast, superhuman, but so were the demons, and since he wasn’t the ordained Gatekeeper, he wasn’t quite as fast as Theo.

  Justin dived to the side, but the demon’s claws slashed his stomach, shredding his T-shirt. Blood arched through the darkness, followed by his groan, as he rolled and hopped to his feet, clutching his side. Somehow, he’d grabbed his blade from his leg holster and pointed it at the demon.

  “Agares.” Theo strode toward the beast, two Mavet daggers drawn and ready to banish that evil…again. “You found a way out, Aggie.”

  The demon growled. “As if you could keep me down, Theophilus. Your god is strong, but not that strong.”

  “Blasphemy.” Theo lunged, daggers pointed. But in a blink, Aggie vanished and reappeared behind him.

  “I’ve picked up some fine gifts in Hades.”

  A blade pierced Theo from behind, the point showing through his stomach, just above his spleen. Fire-hot pain bloomed deep in his gut.

  “No!” Justin yelled, ramming into Aggie.

  The impact knocked Theo to the side, but thankfully, the blade retracted. Instantly, the healing began. Metal clanged on metal, and Theo whirled around to find his brother engaged with the chaos demon.

  Justin should be able to handle this foe, but Theo didn’t dare chance it. He flipped his weapon, pinching it between his fingers, then took aim. One well-timed toss and the demon froze.

  “Reverto ut Abyssus!” Theo yelled.

  A roar left Aggie’s lips, but he vanished in a puff of black smoke. Theo fell to his knees and grabbed his stomach while scanning the area. Such a commotion should draw humans, but those in the restaurant remained focused on their meals.

  He lifted his shirt to confirm what he’d felt: his flesh knitting together again. Pain receded with each breath.

  Not so for his brother. Justin lay on the ground clutching his stomach. “Theo…by all means, take your time. This doesn’t hurt at all.”

  With a grunt, Theo pushed to his feet. He scented the air and found no trace of evil’s sour stench. Sadly, nothing of his Mate, either.

  He made his way to his fallen sibling and knelt beside him. Beads of sweat gathered on Justin’s forehead. He wasn’t immune to the evil-tainted daggers and claws as Theo was. That came only with the Gatekeeper job description.

  “So, they can make splices wherever now?”

  “There’s a gate nearby, but I sensed no activity there.” Theo reached for the shredded flesh. “The splice Aggie created this far from the gate is a new development.”

  Justin groaned as Theo touched the raw flesh. “I hate being the pincushion.”

  The fire-hot agony of Justin’s wounds sliced Theo’s side. He bit back a groan so as not to make his brother feel bad. Phantom pains ripped through his stomach as he absorbed the injuries.

  His heart hammered, but the flesh on his side had a separate pulse. Throbbing. Aching. Theo drew in a long, crisp breath and blocked out the pain screaming for him to release his brother.

  But he wouldn’t. Theo needed to absorb the injury. The pain. Drawing it from the victim if the wounds were to heal.

  Within minutes, Justin’s injuries were gone.

  Theo stood, sucking in oxygen to stave off the residual pain. “Those were deep.”

  “He met bone.” Justin stood. “Sorry, brother. I don’t enjoy the fact that you have to take in my pain to heal it.”

  “Comes with the territory.” Justin was Theo’s Companion, and Theo was responsible for his brother. To lose him…Theo’d seen it before. The Gatekeeper was never the same after having lost his or her Companion.

  So, Theo’d heal Justin, no matter what. He was family.

  “Sucks, if you ask me.” Justin shook his head. “So, do you know where your female lives?”

  “No. But her Mark calls to me. I’ll find her.” He glanced down the deserted street, scanning the darkness. She’d gone south. Thank The Great One Sadie had fled before Aggie appeared. But that was too close.

  “What is it?” Justin asked.

  “I’m not sure. Aggie shouldn’t have been able to breach Hell’s walls like that.”

  “Aggie?”

  Theo laughed. “When we last met, I gave him that name to piss him off. His full name is Agares.”

  “I’d hate Aggie as well.”

  “Problem is, I sent him back to Hades months ago. That should have been binding.”

  “As it is with the others.”<
br />
  Theo nodded. How could Aggie have escaped the fires of Hades? Someone had to be helping him. But who? Better yet, what? And why would he—

  A sense of dread tightened Theo’s chest. “They know.”

  “Who’s ‘they’? And what do they know?”

  “The demons. Shit. And Aggie came here. To this restaurant. This very moment.”

  Justin turned a circle, searching the surroundings.

  Theo fisted his hands at his side. “It would have taken great strength and magic to bring him here. To this spot. Such a far distance from the nearest gate.”

  “What do they know?”

  Theo looked down the street where his Mate had fled. “They know about my Mate.”

  Justin ran his hands through his hair. “If they kill her, leaving you Mateless, you don’t get your full powers.”

  “Doomed to remain half an entity. Strong, but not strong enough to maintain all of the gates.”

  “Therefore, more demons roaming around freely.”

  Theo stalked toward his bike. “That simply will not do.”

  He would go find his Mate and claim her.

  Chapter Six

  “Ms. Nowland?”

  Sadie jumped in her seat and looked up. Professor James stared down at her over the top rim of his glasses.

  “Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you.”

  She glanced around and found the classroom empty. Panic seized her stomach like a vise. She’d wasted the whole hour?

  “Are you finished with your exam?”

  She looked at the sheet and, much to her relief, saw the two questions on the front filled in. She flipped through the rest of the pages and was thankful to see her neat block lettering on each page.

  “Um. Yeah.” She handed him the sheet. Only four questions, two multiple choice and two essay. Sixty-five percent of her grade, though.

  Talk about pressure.

  “I sure will miss you, Ms. Nowland.” His green eyes twinkled behind his Coke-bottle glasses. “It’s been a privilege to be a part of the education of such a brilliant young person.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “And manners. Please, you’ll graduate in a few days, you may call me Ralph.”