Dark War Chronicles Box Set One

by A. L. Kessler

  Kaden took her hand. “Tegan?”

  “I’m okay, sorry, it just takes me a moment to readjust to the blindfold.” She took a deep breath. “I remember now, how we met. I’m sorry I didn’t know who you were and that I haven’t sought you out in the last...” she ran a hand over her braid. “Oh gods,” she laughed and her heart ached. “Centuries. Zaaren took those memories from me, he made sure I would not know I was mated. Lucius went along with it.” But she knew she didn’t blame her master as much as her brother.

  Kaden kissed her hand and his sign of affection warmed her heart. “I know, Lucius told me what happened when I sought you out again. He allowed me to stay in the territory when I became an outcast.”

  He knew. Everyone but her knew. “You didn’t think to tell me in my dreams? Or reach out to me in any other way?”

  “Lucius threatened to turn me in to the Demons. I’m wanted on a death warrant. I didn’t want you to suffer my death. Coming to your dreams was as close as I could go without Lucius knowing. I left flowers in your apartment once and you didn’t mention it to him.”

  She remembered when she found them. It was Valentine’s Day, and she’d been working at the bar. When she’d gotten to the apartment for the night she’d found roses on her dining room table. “Something told me I shouldn’t have mentioned it to him. I listen to my instincts.” She laughed and sighed. “Mates and lovers are weaknesses. I’ve seen relationships bring down powerful vampires and weaken Luicus and Zaaren both.”

  Her heart broke at the idea, what could Kaden do but provide another way to get to her? After the Circle used the demons to take her.

  “I’m not going away.” He stated as if reading her mind.

  Tegan nodded slightly. “I don’t want to lose you after finding you, but...if Markus knows he’s going to use you against me.” Her stomach lurched at the thought of Kaden being tortured. “You wouldn’t be able to survive his care.”

  “I’m not weak, Tegan.” His sharp voice hit her hard, what she wouldn’t give to be able to see his face.

  “I didn’t say you were. The first time Markus tortured me, his goal was to kill me. He’s always been threatened by Lucius and there was no easier way to take out Lucius’ human than by making it look like I was too weak to take the punishment.”

  His hand cupped her cheek. “Why didn’t that work?”

  “Because short of beheading me or burning me, as far as we know I can’t be killed.” She gave a bitter laugh. “It’s part of being a Blood Human, I was damned into this life by a spell. You saw it in my dreams one night.”

  Silence for a moment and she tried not to panic at what he might be thinking. “I guess I never realized what the spell was for. Holy shit, Tegan.”

  “It’s a power long lost, the Father fell out of favor with the gods. So did the witches that were trained for the ritual.” She pulled the blanket around herself, suddenly cold. “What you saw... that last dream, that’s what I am...was...just something for the Father to feed from and satisfy any need he had.”

  “Were.” The bed dipped when he sat next to her and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m not leaving you, I don’t fear Markus.”

  But she did and he’d already done a wonderful job at making her life a living hell. She slowly stood. She needed to thank Zaaren for returning her memories and talk to him about what he hid from her. “I should go speak to my brother.”

  “I’ll—“

  “Alone, he doesn’t like you and I really don’t think he’d hesitate to kill you.” She snorted. “Besides, there’s going to be a lot of screaming at each other. You don’t want to be there for that.”

  Kaden chuckled. “Okay, I’ll go cook us something while you visit him. I’m sure you’re hungry.”

  She nodded and counted her steps to the door, opening it and going out to the hall. She’d admitted to Kaden what she was and he wasn’t running, but she knew his feelings would change. Something would scare the demon away or they would be ripped apart. She tried to convince herself that she couldn’t afford to get attached, but she knew it was too late.

  Lucius finished locking up the bar after Mae headed back to the mansion. He put his hand in his pocket to make sure the small box there was safe. Tegan’s anniversary was the next night and he refused to break tradition. With Coran’s help Lucius ordered a butterfly on the internet and made sure to have it delivered to him at the bar.

  Tomorrow night, Renee had planned something at the mansion for the people Tegan called friends. Though at the time Lucius wasn’t sure if it was a good idea, but now that Tegan had her memories back he felt differently. She needed familiar people and happy memories.

  He froze at the sense of panic shooting through him from Tegan, something different. She wasn’t in danger, but she was in emotional pain.

  Kaden. Had the demon done something stupid? Lucius closed his eyes and reminded himself that Tegan needed to handle Kaden on her own. He used a portal to take himself back to the mansion.

  The moment he arrived he felt Tegan’s anger. He put the box on his nightstand and set out to find his human. It wasn’t long until he heard the voices in the great room screaming at each other. Tegan and Zaaren.

  “Because you fucking left me.” She screeched. “Every damn time that I actually needed you you’ve turned your back on me. You have no say in this.”

  “I am your brother, I have every right to say who you can be with. Kaden is a demon, he is not to be trusted. Sister of Mine—“

  “Tegan.” Lucius corrected as he stepped in. “She has chosen to go by that name, regardless of who gave it to her. You need to respect that.”

  “I will not use the name the Father gave her.” He snapped back. “You stay out of this, had you not kept that demon around this situation would not be happening.”

  Tegan snorted and crossed her arms. Even with her eyes covered her attitude showed through. “I still would have lost my memories. You still would have had to return them. How were you going to explain that?”

  “He would be dead if Lucius had not taken him in. He wouldn’t be around for you to fuck.”

  Lucius shook his head. “Break it up you two. Tegan, my side, now.” He tapped his foot to give her a noise to follow. He watched her take a deep breath to bring in her attitude and temper before finding him. He put a hand on her shoulder when she was close enough.

  “Kaden will stay, the mating has already happened despite our interfering. Tegan will not forget her place and Kaden knows the rules for staying.”

  “She’s putting herself in danger. She’s putting the territory in danger.” Zaaren snarled. “She is being selfish, as a bound human she cannot afford that.”

  Lucius raised a brow. “I feel like I’ve missed part of this conversation.”

  “Tell him, sister of mine.” Zaaren shoved his hands in his pockets. “Tell your master what he has missed.”

  She tensed before she spoke. “The demons are working with the Circle. They feared what would happen when the Father rose. But Kaden isn’t tied to the demon people.”

  “He hasn’t been for five hundred years.” Lucius confirmed. “He’s been in vampire territory since the death of the demon king.”

  “You don’t find it suspicious that he was in your territory and she was taken by the demons?” Zaaren asked.

  Lucius looked to Tegan who was clenching her fists. “No, I don’t and I’d like to talk to Tegan alone, now that she has her memories back.”

  She shifted her weight at his words and nodded. “I’d like that. We have a lot to talk about.”

  “I should be there for this conversation.” Zaaren took a step towards them. “Tegan’s memories could be the key to the turning point in this war.”

  Tegan stepped up and Lucius put a hand on her shoulder to remind her that she needed to watch her temper.

  “And in time, you will have all the information, but right now Lucius and I have more to talk about other than the memories and the war.”

&n
bsp; Kaden. Lucius still didn’t like the idea of their mating and now the two of them had slept together. Everyone kept reminding him that Tegan was no longer a child and in this situation he was starting to see what they meant. “This is true, when she’s ready we’ll collect the others and fill them in, but right now her and I need to talk as master to bound human.”

  “Go on then.” Zaaren waved a hand. “I’ll go attend to other things.”

  What other things the Original could attend to, Lucius didn’t even dare ask. “We’ll see you later.”

  The moment Zaaren left Tegan relaxed. Lucius turned to her and folded his arms around her. “It’s going to take some adjusting to get used to him being around.”

  “Yes, it is. He is stuck in his ways and if he was to run things around here I’d be back to being a broken whore laying at your feet.”

  Her harsh words hit Lucius hard. “Those days are in the past, you know that.”

  She nodded. “I thought I could talk sense into him, but it seems to me that no one is going to listen to me.”

  “Have I sent Kaden away yet?” He wrapped an arm around her and started to lead her to one of the sitting rooms.

  “No, but—“

  “And I won’t, unless he does something intentional to put you and the territory in danger. We should have trusted that you could have dealt with having a mate. You are so strong. You have survived many horrors and Kaden could have helped you get through that. We should have trusted you.”

  She looked towards him despite her covered eyes. “You’re admitting to being wrong?”

  “Overly cautious.” He laughed and led her to a couch.

  “Close enough.” She sat down and ran her hand over the fabric of the couch and sighed. He didn’t want to interrupt her train of thought, feeling was her way of figuring out where he’d taken her. Speaking to her would throw her off. “I think...” He heard the hesitation in her voice and she took a deep breath before continuing, “they raised the Father.”

  The words hit him hard and he stopped his first instinct to scream at her for even considering the possibility. Taking a deep breath he sat next to her. “Why do you think that?”

  “Because I have memories of his voice, of him feeding from me in a cave of some sort. Of Markus telling me that is what happened.” She kept her voice even, but he could feel the underlining fear from her.

  “There has been no talk about it, no one has felt his power. Tegan, if you were blindfolded Markus could be trying to mess with you to further to drive a wedge between us all.” He hoped that was the case. It wouldn’t make sense to keep the Father hidden, but if Lucius knew Markus, he had something else up his sleeve.

  “I could hear his voice, it felt like him.” She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. “I would never forget how he felt.”

  No, not after she’d spent so long with him, but still Lucius had his doubts. “I’ll see what I can find out.”

  “Which means you don’t believe me.” She sneered and shook her head.

  “There’s no physical evidence right now Tegan, we both know Markus could have still altered your memories even though he hid them from you.”

  Her jaw tensed and he knew she was keeping herself from arguing. “What else did you want to speak to me about?”

  “My brother can’t stay here, he’s going to drive me nuts or try to kill Kaden.”

  Lucius laughed. “I cannot kick your brother out, but I will talk to him about backing off.”

  “Can I stay at my apartment until he figures his head out?”

  He didn’t like it, she shouldn’t want her independence back so quickly after her stay with the demons. “Tegan...”

  “After my punishment is over of course, and I hear Renee has something going on here tomorrow, but I don’t want Zaaren looking over my shoulder. Plus, I’m sure Mae needs help with the bar and Kaden will be with me.”

  He couldn’t ignore the pleading in her voice. “Okay, and tonight will end your punishment since you proved you can rein in your temper and act as you should as my bound human.”

  She bowed her head. “I was angry and stepped out of my place and I am sorry for my words.”

  The formal wording made Lucius sigh. “I know you are.”

  Aristides looked up when Cael walked in. “Where have you been?”

  “Working with some of the younger soldiers on their attacks. Why? It’s not like you need me for anything important.”

  Aristides shook his head. Though they weren’t in love and most days at best tolerated each other, when she started acting strange he became suspicious. “I’m sending out a squad for your brother. He’s had his chance to come home.”

  She shifted her weight and glared at him. “He has good reasons for staying there. Just let him be, one demon in Lucius’ territory isn’t going to tip the scale in his favor.”

  “And if the Father decides to slaughter us because one demon chose to side with the vampire?”

  “I still don’t understand why the Father is concerned with just that one territory. We have other demons out in the world working under different territories. Why Kaden?”

  “The Father and the Circle have something against Lucius and have chosen his territory for their starting point. They need to establish a territory to set things in motion.” He stood from his desk and walked towards her. “Do I need to lock you up or send you on your own mission to not interfere with your brother’s apprehension?”

  “No, I’ll stay out of your way.” She turned to leave.

  “There’s something you’re not telling me Cael, what is it?” He grabbed her wrist before she could leave.

  She hesitated and ripped her wrist away from him. “Don’t worry about it.”

  “What is it?” He snarled. “You’ve been acting strange these last few days and I know you are hiding information from me.”

  “He has a mate.” Her face remained blank and he knew that there had to be more to it.

  “Interesting.” That could change some things, but Aristides didn’t care unless he could use the mate against him. “Who?”

  “Lucius’ human.”

  Even more interesting. “I’ll keep that in mind, maybe I can use that to my advantage.”

  “You hurt her, and Lucius is within his right to have you punished by the Circle or he can do it himself. Politics.”

  He laughed. “I’ve already hurt her, under the permission of the Circle, Lucius can’t touch me.” So he hoped. Of course, according to Markus, the woman was missing those memories. Maybe she still was and couldn’t rat him out.

  “If you say so.” She stormed out and slammed the door.

  Aristides laughed at her temper, it was the one thing other than her body he admired about her. She’d stick to her word and stay out of his way. Now all that was left was to locate Kaden.

  Kaden stood when the door opened. He’d expected it to be Tegan, but Zaaren walked in instead. Kaden flopped back down on the oversized chair. “Just you.”

  “You show such disrespect to an Original? You are a brave soul indeed. I’m coming to speak to you about Tegan.” The vampire sneered.

  Kaden sat up and met the vampire’s red gaze. “She’s with Lucius right now talking, you’ve made your views clear, so what do we have to discuss?”

  “I want you to leave Lucius’ territory and leave Tegan’s life.”

  Even the mere idea of being away from her hurt. Kaden stood. “I’m sorry you want that, but it’s not going to happen. Tegan needs me here and I’m not just going to walk out on her. Not like you did.”

  Zaaren sneered, baring fangs. “Do not pretend you know what was going on then.”

  “I know that as an Original you could have pulled Tegan out of Markus’ care and could have punished Markus for trying to kill her.”

  “He was merely punishing her, that is not crossing lines.”

  Kaden shook his head, disgusted with the vampire. “He forced her to drink poison and put a sword through
her chest. Within the first two weeks. He was trying to kill her to prove what she was. Markus took her again to get her to admit to what she was. You left her that first time. You went to sleep. I will not leave her in her time of need. Regardless of what you want.”

  “You don’t know what she is or what you mating her could do.” Zaaren snarled. “I will kill you if it means keeping you from her.”

  “And cause her so much grief?” Kaden tried to keep the images of Tegan weeping from his mind. “I’m not going to cause her problems, if anything I’m extra protection for her. I’m not trying to pull her away from Lucius and I’m not interfering in her life. All I want is to be with her. To cherish her, protect her. Why do you have a problem with that?”

  Zaaren paced the room. “You wouldn’t understand and you don’t know her or her past. There is no place for you in her future. Lucius is growing weak if he is allowing people to mate.”

  Kaden stood up. “Look, I get that you and Lucius have been scarred by lovers in your past, but let me tell you something. I have been silently slinking in the shadows watching over Tegan for the last five hundred years, two hundred of those you failed to realize that I was there. When she was taken by the Circle I felt every bit of her pain and sorrow as she was betrayed and tortured. I couldn’t save her because demons weren’t allowed within Circle territory without being beheaded or enslaved, neither which would have done Tegan any good.”

  Zaaren’s jaw tightened, but Kaden continued anyways. “When she was rescued by another man I kept my distance, her happiness was what mattered and I disappeared from the territory for a while. Lucius blamed her mood and depression on her time with the Circle when he knew it was because I was gone. He struck a deal with me when he decided it was time to go to America and start his own territory and I agreed because it meant that I could be close to Tegan.”

  “If that’s true, where were you when the demons snatched her up?”

  “Not on Lucius’ property, which was one of the agreements. She was taken from here.” Kaden growled. “You should talk to Lucius, he felt her a few different times and did not go get her. Both of us had the territory in mind, it is why I didn’t go barging in there to save her.” That and he’d be dead on sight.