Soul Bound: Dark Souls, Book 1

by Anne Hope

  “Relax. She’s fine. I just checked on her. She’s pretty worried about you, though.”

  A relieved sigh whooshed from his lungs. “I shouldn’t have left her unprotected.” He was screwing things up. Big-time.

  “Why did you?”

  What could he say? Because I want to jump her bones, and I’m afraid if I do, I’ll kill her. Or worse, drive her insane.

  “It’s complicated,” was his curt reply.

  Regan made a humming sound deep in her throat. “I see. So it’s like that.”

  “Don’t tell me you can read my mind, too.”

  “No need. I see the way you two look at each other. Like there’s no one else around.”

  Jace turned his back to Regan and began his trek back to the house. The last thing he wanted was to discuss his love life with his mother.

  Still, after an unsettling stretch of silence, he felt compelled to ask. “How’d you do it?”

  Regan, who now walked beside him, angled a puzzled glance his way. “Do what?”

  “Make love to my father without killing him.”

  She shrugged. “Luck, I guess. I was pretty green back then. Didn’t know all the rules. I could’ve easily drained him.”

  Disappointment was a bitter pill to swallow. “That’s what I figured.”

  Her gaze bore into him for the longest time. “There are ways, though. Ways to control your urges and the dark energy you emit. The fact that the Hybrids exist is proof that an immortal can successfully mate with a human.”

  “How?”

  “There’s no secret formula. It’s just mind over matter. For instance, Cal has taught us how to keep a soul from entering us. Creatures like us, we’re wired to attract souls. The second a life-force leaves the human shell that houses it, it naturally seeks us out. But by subduing the dark energy inside us, we can repel it.”

  He recalled the incident at the train station, the way the woman’s essence had risen from her broken body and plowed into him. “Can you teach me?”

  A luminous smile spread across her face. “That’s the idea.”

  The mansion came into view, a tall, regal structure bleached by the morning sun. Sitting on the front steps, arms draped around her bent knees, was Lia. She looked tired, her features pale and drawn. Something inside him leapt at the sight of her.

  She sprang from the steps and walked toward them. “I was worried sick. I though they got you.”

  “I didn’t mean to scare you.” His voice sounded raw, gravelly. “Fell asleep.”

  “In the woods?”

  “Guess we’ve got ourselves a real outdoorsy type.” Regan gave him a motherly pat on the back.

  Lia’s eyes remained deep and shadowed. He’d hurt her—he didn’t have to read her mind to know it—and that knowledge made him feel even worse than he already did. All he’d ever wanted was to protect her.

  “How ’bout we get started?” Regan said in what looked like an attempt to break the tension. “We’ve got a lot of ground to cover. Oh, I almost forgot.” She freed her arms from the straps around her shoulders and flung the backpack at Lia. “I took the liberty of gathering a few of your things. Some clothes, your purse…”

  Lia’s complexion instantly brightened as she rummaged through the bag. “Thanks.”

  “Did anyone see you?” Jace couldn’t help but worry she’d inadvertently led their enemies straight to them.

  Regan rolled her eyes. “What do you think this is? Amateur hour? Have you forgotten I can pop in and out of places at will?”

  The certainty with which she answered was enough to satisfy him.

  Lia pulled her purse from the backpack and withdrew her cell phone. “Cassie’s called about a dozen times. I should call her.”

  “I wouldn’t recommend it.” Regan’s tone was adamant. “They could trace it.”

  “The Kleptopsychs?” Lia looked skeptical.

  “They can pry information from humans, and they’ve got plants everywhere—hospitals, banks, phone companies.”

  “Like our good nurse Diane,” Jace noted.

  “She’s just one of many. They’ve infiltrated every major organization, even the government. Why do you think there are so many wars? In this day and age, people should be able to resolve their differences in a more civilized manner, but they still choose to whip out their guns. Without violence, the Kleptopsychs would lose their major food source. They can’t exactly let that happen, now can they?”

  “So they’re the reason humans are so damn cruel to each other?” Jace asked, shocked. How could an obscure group of creatures cause so much chaos and remain undetected, century after century?

  “One of the reasons. Humans are hardly innocent. Each and every one of them has the capacity for evil. The Kleptopsychs merely bring it out, same as they do with nature. They can cause floods, fires, earthquakes, you name it.”

  “How is that possible?” Lia’s disbelief mirrored his own.

  “When you can mold matter into anything you want, the world becomes your playground. Diane has the ability to control water, I have the ability to control space, and Athanatos, he controls the earth. One concentrated thought and he can make the ground roll out from under you. And just as he can cause structures to collapse, he can also erect them. We call these perceptual walls.”

  Interest shimmered in Lia’s eyes. “Like that bubble that blond guy used to trap me at the Watchers’ complex?”

  “Sort of, but more powerful. With a little focus, our walls can be dismantled. The walls Athanatos creates aren’t as easy to tear down. For all intents and purposes, they’re real.”

  “What’s the big deal about walls?” Jace wasn’t impressed.

  Regan laughed. “Word is Athanatos is the reason some of the Nephilim survived the Great Flood. Apparently, he led a bunch of them deep within the catacombs and sealed all the entrances. There they remained for nearly a year until the water receded, feeding on rats and whatever else had gotten trapped down there.”

  Jace shuddered. “When you say feeding, are you referring to flesh or life-forces?”

  “Both.” Regan arched a brow for emphasis. “And the ability to control the very fabric of the earth still comes in handy today. The Kleptopsychs have a nest hidden deep within those very catacombs. There are only a few entrances open at any given time, and every so often Athanatos seals them and opens new ones. That’s why we can never find them.”

  “They live underground?” Jace couldn’t picture an army of these creatures scurrying beneath the earth like giant beetles.

  “For the most part. But once in a while they like to come up for air…and sustenance. Unlike Cal, Athanatos makes it a point to keep his troops well-fed and satisfied.”

  “I get the feeling Cal’s a slave-driver,” Jace said.

  A long sigh made his mother’s shoulders slump. “It’s like working for the Pope. All work, no play. Can’t even date. Every Watcher is required to take a vow of celibacy.”

  “That’s gotta suck.” He stifled his amusement. Here was yet another reason for him not to join the Watchers.

  “Tell me about it.” Regan withdrew a killer-looking sword from the scabbard attached to her waist. “But enough about my love life,” she said, “or lack thereof. It’s time to teach you how to kick some serious Kleptopsych butt.”

  “We’ve got a lead.” Kyros swept into Athanatos’s underground chamber and spoke before being given permission, driven by the good nature of the news he was delivering. “My contact at American Express confirmed there’s been some action on Cutler’s credit card these past few days.”

  Athanatos swiveled in his chair, a wide contraption made of the finest Italian leather and set on a chrome base, tall enough to accommodate his father’s impressive form. “Where is he?”

  “The card was used three times, all in the Lincoln City area—once at a motel called Devil’s Lake Inn, then at Abbie’s Diner, and finally at a car rental company.”

  “When was the card last use
d?”

  Kyros hesitated, anticipating his father’s response. “Three days ago.”

  “Cutler could be long gone by now.”

  “It’s more than we had yesterday.”

  “Any leads on the girl?”

  “No, but if we find one, we may very well find the other.”

  A long, pregnant pause ensued before Athanatos spoke again. “Get a team together and investigate. Do whatever is necessary to find Cutler and the human. Both must be brought back to me. Alive.” Greed resonated in Athanatos’s voice, though it had nothing to do with physical hunger. There was only one thing Kyros’s father craved, and that was power. Power over his own kind, but most of all, power over the one man he couldn’t seem to vanquish in a duel that had spanned millennia—the Watchers’ elusive leader, Cal.

  “Understood.” Kyros met his father’s shrewd stare. “I will not fail you.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Twilight swept in to dull the sun, but Jace and Regan refused to quit. They were focused, determined, inexhaustible. Lia wished she possessed a quarter of their energy, but—twin soul or not—she was still human, and sleep beckoned her. She’d hardly slept the previous night, worrying about Jace, reliving the kiss they’d shared over and over again. Her system flushed with heat just thinking about it, and a flood of guilt swamped her.

  Cassie.

  Watching Jace and Regan from her bedroom window, half convinced they could see her even though neither was looking her way, she dug the cell phone from her purse. Her sister had called another five times today. She’d left over a dozen messages and several texts.

  Lia, where are U? I’m worried sick. Call me.

  It’s not like U to go AWOL. If U don’t call or write soon, I’m going to the cops.

  I went to the station to file a missing person’s report today. Those AHs looked at me like I was smashed or something. They checked with the hospital and found out U asked for a few days off. Great. Call the hospital but not your sister. I’m hurt. Deeply. What’s going on?

  Her fingers itched to dial or type a reply. She hated leaving Cassie hanging this way, but two things stopped her. One was Regan’s warning not to use her cell phone, and the other was the dread that flattened her every time she thought about coming clean with her sister. She kept reassuring herself that Cassie would understand. She’d laugh it off, make some snappy remark about Lia being on drugs, then tell her she was welcome to Jace. We’re over anyway, she’d say. I wouldn’t take him back if he fell on his knees and begged.

  Lia snapped the cell phone shut and tossed it back in her purse. Who was she kidding? Cassie would flip. Her voice would grow taut, razor-sharp. Unwilling to show her pain, she’d resort to sarcasm. The high-pitched tinkle of Cassie’s voice rang through Lia’s mind, clear as a bell: How fitting—the nun and the philanderer. You two are made for each other.

  Sadness and regret twined in her gut. She couldn’t stomach the thought of hurting Cassie, couldn’t bear to lose her. Despite their differences, they weren’t only sisters but best friends. They relied on each other, comforted each other. Cassie was Lia’s greatest link to her childhood. No matter where she went, as long as she was with Cassie, a piece of home stayed with her. Lia had devoted her entire life to healing her sister’s heart. How could she now turn around and willingly break it?

  From beyond the window, Jace’s gaze briefly touched hers, and every inch of her skin pulsated in response. The fire that had been lit inside her yesterday blazed out of control. She couldn’t deny the hold he had on her any more than she could deny her lungs air. He was part of her now, a natural extension of herself. To walk away from him would be like ripping her soul in two. She couldn’t do it.

  Not even for Cassie.

  She needed Jace with a fierceness that scared her. And the fleeting spark she’d caught in his eyes when he’d glanced up at her convinced her he felt exactly the same way.

  Jace pried his gaze away from Lia, who was standing at the window, watching them. He couldn’t concentrate with her eyes burning a hole through him. The frustration that had been simmering within him all day bubbled over.

  “Enough.” Folding his body on the porch steps, he let his weapon clang to the ground. “How ’bout you teach me something I could really use,” he told Regan. “Like how to make myself invisible.”

  His mother shook her head. A weak smile curled her mouth. “You’re like an eager child. Before you learn how to fly, you have to learn how to walk.”

  “I know how to walk just fine.”

  “Oh, yeah? Prove it. Get up and walk.”

  “Are you kidding?”

  “I’m serious. Walk.”

  Jace wasn’t sure what kind of game she was playing, but he decided to humor her. He stood and attempted to take a step forward, only to slam into another one of her invisible walls. As much as he tried, he couldn’t advance. “Very funny.”

  “Who’s laughing? Go ahead. Break free.”

  He ran his palms over the smooth, translucent barrier, looking for some kind of crack. “I can’t. It feels impenetrable.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong. Matter is nothing more than a series of vibrations. If you concentrate, you’ll see the harmonies that compose the walls I’ve erected around you. Once you do, tearing them down will be a piece of cake.”

  He focused his mind on the strange membrane imprisoning him. “Nothing’s vibrating. All I see is an airtight bubble, about as hard as ice.”

  “Look closer, dig deeper, the same way you delve into someone’s mind.”

  “I’m trying, goddammit. I can’t.”

  Regan finally took pity on him and released him. Jace dropped back onto the steps, frustrated and defeated.

  Sheathing her weapon, his mother came to sit beside him. “You’re holding back. Your refusal to accept what you’ve become is keeping you from achieving your full potential.”

  He barked a laugh. “Are you suggesting I embrace this whole spawn-of-Satan thing?”

  “Eventually, you’ll have to. But first you have to let go of the past.”

  He slanted a glance her way in an effort to read her. “Have you?”

  Her blank expression gave nothing away. With a poker face like that, she could’ve made a killing in Vegas.

  “Yes,” she answered without a breath of hesitation. “I don’t remember a thing about my life before I turned, so I don’t miss it. This is all I’ve ever known. It’s true what they say. Ignorance is bliss.”

  “Then you’re luckier than I am.” Orange fingers streaked the sky, fiery swirls that pulsed and glowed. The sun sure knew how to go down with a bang.

  “You remember your past?” she asked.

  “Not exactly. For the most part, it’s all a big blur. But once in a while, I catch glimpses of my old life through Lia.”

  Following his gaze, Regan raised her eyes to the sky. She was quiet for an exceptionally long time, honoring the sun’s descent with a grand pause. “And do you like what you see?”

  “No.”

  If his brisk and bitter reply surprised her, she didn’t let on. Sitting on the steps, her arms wrapped around her bent knees, her chin angled toward the heavens, there was a note of serenity about her. Jace figured with tempered emotions came a measure of peace. Right there and then, he envied her.

  Despite her youthful appearance, the wise stare she turned on him revealed a mind seasoned by time. “Have you ever considered that maybe, by coming into your destiny, you’ve not only become something more, but something better?”

  That simple question rattled him more than any of the blows she’d aimed his way today. He wanted to believe she was right, that not all monsters were evil, but he couldn’t. Diane’s words reverberated in his mind, an eerie chant that fed the chill in his blood.

  Angel of death and destruction. Spawn of the fallen.

  He grabbed her arm, studied the thin white scar on her wrist. “What does it stand for, the symbol?”

  “It’s Cal
’s signature. The letter C in Enochian script.”

  “You mentioned Enochian script before. What is that, exactly?”

  “The language of the angels. They use it to communicate with each other and sometimes with prophets.”

  “Right.” Jace shook his head, felt a smirk tug at his lips. “Silly of me to ask.”

  He traced the jagged mark on Regan’s wrist. A ripple of energy shot across the pad of his thumb. “Did it hurt?”

  “Like bloody murder.”

  “Why’d you do it?” He met her gaze, searching for a spark of emotional truth within them.

  She didn’t flinch, didn’t pry her glance away. “I had nowhere else to go,” she voiced honestly. “Same as you.”

  The thought that joining the Watchers might ultimately prove his only option depressed him. Taking orders was bad enough, but living without Lia would be unbearable. Still, what choice did he have? Any relationship between them was doomed to fail. There was no future there. Every day he spent with her he risked destroying her.

  “Lia’s convinced she’s immune to us,” he told her. “I really want to believe it, but I can’t help but feel there’s a piece of the puzzle I’m missing. I’ve got this sick sensation in my gut that I’m going to hurt her, whether I want to or not.” He aimed a probing glance Regan’s way. “This prophecy of Cal’s, does it say what’s going to happen to Lia? Will she come out of this alive?”

  His mother averted her gaze. “So now you’re a believer?”

  “I wouldn’t exactly say that.”

  “Then what?”

  He shrugged. “Just curious.”

  Regan drew a deep breath. “No one knows for certain how this thing will turn out. We can only guess.”

  Jace sat staring at the darkening sky, his elbows propped on his bent knees. Fatigue tugged at him, and he stifled a yawn. “I know I’m supposed to be indestructible and everything, but I’m beat. Can we call it a night?”

  His mother nodded and reluctantly stood. “I’ll be back first thing tomorrow morning. Try to get some rest. In a bed this time. We may not be human anymore, but we’re not animals.”