Heart's Inferno (Fallen Guardians 4)

by Georgia Lyn Hunter

  “Did I?” His lips quirked in amusement. “Blame it on the shock. It may have taken me a year to admit it to myself, living in this black hole of constant nightmares, but suddenly there you were, and I couldn’t see straight. Then at the cabin when you kissed me…” His gaze caressed her face. “Everything changed in a heartbeat. I knew I would never let you go.”

  “So, if I hadn’t kissed you—”

  “Oh, I planned to kiss you, but you were hurt. You are my reality—my happiness, Kira. I will let nothing take you away from me. Certainly not a ridiculous dagger, even if it finally got its damn act together. But I blame that on your parents and their bindings to keep your true heritage hidden.”

  Her mouth quivered in a smile. Týr touched the beads at the ends of the skinny braids lying against her chest. “My mother imbued them with a shielding and protection spell, said I should use them, and these…” She touched her bracelet. “When did it occur, our bonding?”

  “The night we got back from Stygia I felt the difference after we made love. Felt your warmth, your presence in here.” He tapped his chest over his heart. “But with shit flying everywhere the very next day, it slipped my mind. Then, when my dagger didn’t appear when I summoned it at the fight, I realized the truth. However, I had already claimed you the night I first made love to you in Stygia, and your sire later called me out about marking you…”

  Kira simply stared as Týr told her about how the Norse gods claimed their mates by scent bonding. “But this, it means our souls have joined. We are one now, elska. If you should die, then so would I…”

  And vice versa.

  She swallowed hard, and through a throat swelling with emotions, she whispered, “I felt you, too, but I thought it was because I love you so much.” Unable to resist him, she pressed her mouth to his. Instantly, his hand cupped her nape, and he took over, kissing her in the way only he could, making her his entire focus. Desire took her hard, but she forced herself to ease back despite his groaned protest. “I don’t want to accidentally hurt you again.”

  He stroked her hair away from her flushed face. “Too late. I’m already in a damn lot of pain—”

  “What? Why didn’t you say anything?” Her gaze rushed to his dressing. “Your wound?”

  “No. Right here.” He took her hand and placed it on his erect sex. “It hurts real bad. Climb over me, that will help.”

  Her mouth dropped open. She sputtered in laughter.

  He sighed. “You’re cruel, elska, to do this to an injured man.”

  Smiling, she pressed her lips to his left pectoral, just above the dressing. “Nuh-uh. I’m not doing anything to risk you bleeding out again. But we’ll call it an IOU for once you’re healed.”

  Týr exhaled tiredly, then leaned back and shut his eyes. He reached for her hand. Lie with me, he telepathed to her.

  Kira blinked at the unexpected, but quiet intrusion in her mind, and then smiled, relishing the intimacy. Okay. Let me get rid of these clothes.

  His eyelids snapped open. The immense love there as he watched her remove her jeans and sweater made her heart bump hard in her chest. This impossible, sharp-tongue immortal to whom she’d given her heart a year ago was hers alone. Her mate.

  Chapter 33

  Morning light brightened the room as Kira stirred awake. She found Týr staring at the undraped window, his brows drawn into a V.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  Those gorgeous eyes met hers, and that caressing stare she’d missed so much glided over her face. “Why wouldn’t I be when I finally have you in my arms?”

  She smiled and slid her arm low over his stomach and away from his injury. He groaned. “Any lower, and I’ll be inside you so fast your head will spin, elska. Then I’ll definitely do more damage to this damn wound.”

  Oh. Heat rushed to her face. Kira moved her arm up. He shifted to face her and cursed, his mouth flattening briefly in pain, his movements probably pulling at his slowly regenerating ribs.

  She sat up. “How bad does it hurt?”

  “I’m fine.”

  He was so difficult. “Even if you weren’t, you wouldn’t admit it. Fine. I’m going to take a shower then get us some food.” She got up from the bed. He did too but wavered on his feet.

  “Darn it, Týr.” She darted to his side and slid her arm around his waist. “You have to stay in bed.”

  “I need a shower. I’m going to get one.”

  She sighed at his crankiness. “I gave you a bed bath.” At his scowl, she quickly explained. “You were burning up and messed with blood…” For someone so active, who could never sit still and stuffed himself with copious amounts of candy, this inactivity and dependence must be stifling for him. “Okay, fine,” she relented.

  Kira put her arm around his waist again and helped him to the dressing room, reveling in having all the sexy, naked heat of her man—her finally mobile man—against her. She led him to the black wooden chest. “Sit here while I get things started in there.”

  That nerve on his jaw started up again. Oh, boy, he hated being helpless.

  Since a shower was out of the question, she ran warm water into the enormous, oval tub then hurried back to him. “Come.”

  Using the bureau as a crutch, he pushed to his feet and slowly made his way into the bathroom. “Forget it,” he snapped, glaring at the tub.

  Why wasn’t she surprised? Kira cut him a gimlet stare. “It’s a bath or the bed. Shower will have to wait until that wound’s healed.”

  When he didn’t move, she pushed aside plans for a quick shower, realizing there was only one way to get him into the bath—hopefully.

  “Okay. Whatever you want.” She waved off his grouchy mood. Taking her time, she grasped the hem of her t-shirt and slowly slipped it over her head, then glided her panties down her legs, aware of his stare on her every movement. Kira sashayed across to the tub and stepped into the soothing, warm water. She sighed in contentment, but her heart remained locked in her throat as she reached for the loofah, squirted some flowery gel onto it, and started her bath.

  A grunt sounded. Seconds later, Týr stepped into the bath opposite her and gingerly lowered into the water, strain lines forming around his mouth.

  “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

  “Nice try. But we both know what you were about.” His gaze turned intense. Man, she knew that look. It made her tremble in anticipation.

  “Moi?” She batted her lashes innocently, hiding her smile. Then she grinned. “Why on earth would I bathe on my own and miss all this sexiness”—she waved her hand over his naked body—“in the tub with me?”

  Though she teased him, she longed for him and missed their intimacy.

  “You destroy my sanity, elska. Every. Time.” A low growl rumbled free. He slipped his palm around her nape and drew her to him, his tongue licking inside her mouth. He kissed her slowly, sensually.

  “Damn,” he groaned a minute later. “Not a good idea starting this.”

  Trying to get her own breathing leveled, she sat back. “Then let’s get this bath over with and you back to bed…”

  A while later, back in the dressing room, Kira retrieved a pair of black sweats for Týr, who leaned against the bureau. Though he still appeared too pale, the strain lines on his face had eased a bit. He raked back his damp hair and reached for the pants. “I’ll do that.”

  Not surprised at his request, Kira handed them over. She got out her clothes and changed, keeping an eye on him as he dropped the towel and pulled on his sweats. Suddenly, an unsettling sensation swept through her.

  Her gaze darted to Týr, and she found him frowning, too. “Do you feel that?”

  He gave a slow nod and, bracing a hand on the dresser, he straightened.

  “Let me help you to bed, and I’ll go see what it is.”

  “No.” His jaw set in that intractable expression she knew too well, he dropped an arm around her shoulder. “The elevator. Now.”

  Too worried to protest, she as
sisted him from the room. When they finally stepped into the elevator, he hit the first-floor button.

  Her eyes widened as she stared at the number he’d pressed. “No…” She shook her head, her breathing escalating in a rush of terror. “Mom?”

  Týr said nothing, his gaze hooded.

  Oh, God, please, please let her be okay—let her be here!

  The moment the door slid open, Kira darted out, then looked back as Týr slowly followed. His chest rose and fell as if the short trip had taken a lot of his energy. “Go. I’ll be there…in a few hours.”

  She would have smiled if her heart weren’t close to cracking through her ribs. She nodded and ran to the left corridor and then to the first room there, opening the door.

  Her mother lay on the bed. She appeared almost translucent. One could see the bedding through parts of her body. “Mom!”

  Leaving the door open for Týr, Kira darted inside. She grasped her mother’s impossibly cold hands and fell to her knees. “No, no, you promised you wouldn’t leave without telling me.”

  “I know, child…” Luceré’s voice wavered in a reedy whisper. “I tried, but I cannot hold on any longer. My time has come.”

  “It’s the healing. It drained you, didn’t it?”

  A wan smile hovered and disappeared. Luceré lifted her hand as if to touch Kira, but it fell back to the mattress. She grasped her mother’s frail fingers. “I am not as strong as I should be…I haven’t been for a while. It’s why I wasn’t able to heal your mate as fast as I should have. I’m so sorry about that, but I’m truly grateful that I got to watch you grow up and find love with a worthy male.”

  “But you will regenerate and come back, right?” Kira tried to rub warmth into her mother’s icy hands. Please say yes.

  “I cannot. I missed another merging.” Sadness etched Luceré’s ashy features. “I cannot linger much longer, my brethren will sense it and come for me. I can’t—I won’t—become another light trapped in isolation once they find out the truth. I choose to become one with the universe again. Of course, they will know once I cease to be, since my passing will tear at them—at least, I hope. Being weakened is probably the only thing they care about.”

  No, no! Tears clogged her throat.

  Echo rushed into the room and fell to her knees beside Kira, her face pale with fear.

  Are you just gonna let her die? Týr telepathed to her.

  Kira’s head snapped around. She found him near the entrance, leaning against the small table, breathing deeply.

  I heard the conversation between you two while I was in a coma, he said.

  Determination clawing through her, she jumped to her feet. “Echo, don’t let her leave this plane. Anchor her any way you can. I’ll be back.”

  As Echo grasped Luceré’s hand, Kira ran to the door where Týr sagged heavily against a table, absently aware that he still wore no shirt. She touched his arm. “Please, sit down.”

  “I’m fine.”

  Dammit, torn between her mate who looked like he might keel over at any moment and her mother who was determined to die, Kira ran for the lift. She willed herself to their quarters, not sure if what she had planned would work. In a scatter of molecules, she disappeared and reformed in the dressing room. On the bureau, she found her jambiya. She unsheathed the deadly weapon and grasped the hilt with the embedded, fiery-looking, reddish-black stone.

  With no idea how to do this, she shut her eyes. “Wrath, I need you…” She frowned, then said, “Father, please, I need you to come immediately.”

  Nothing. Dammit. Dagger in hand, she grabbed her cell from the dressing table. Surely Riley would know how to reach Wrath. About to call him, a knock echoed. She hurried out and found Hedori in her doorway. “Kira, there’s a…man out front—”

  “Thank you!” She willed herself to the foyer and appeared there in a flash. She threw open the door. Wrath turned from staring out across the snow-covered gardens. Though his immense power appeared tamped down, some of it slithered around her, an eerie, seeking sensation she was now familiar with. Or it could just be that she was his daughter and sensed him.

  “What is it, Kira?” Wrath’s gaze flicked lightning-fast over her. “You are not hurt.”

  “No, not me. Come inside.”

  Wrath raised a brow. “Into the archangel’s abode?”

  “Michael will understand. Father, please.” Kira grabbed his hand and tugged him inside, but he couldn’t enter, it was as if an invisible wall stood between them. Dammit! “Hedori!”

  The butler appeared in the foyer in a flash. “Please lower the wards, let my father enter.”

  “I have already conferred with the archangel. He allows it.”

  Of course, he spoke with Michael. For all his easygoing manner, Hedori was damn strict.

  With a wave of his hand, the protection wards on the front door lowered in melting, iridescent sparks.

  As Wrath stepped into the foyer, Kira said, “There’s something you need to know…”

  Wrath went dead still, every part of him freezing. His neon-green eyes trained upstairs toward the left corridor. “Luce—” In a blink, he vanished.

  Kira sprinted after him to the first floor and skidded into her mother’s bedroom, panting hard. Wrath knelt at her mother’s bedside, gently stroking back Luceré’s hair while her physical body flickered as if she would disappear.

  “Luce?” Wrath’s tone stayed low, a little shaky with emotions. “How? Why?”

  “You promised, Kira.” Those inky-dark eyes with the scattered, fading stars peered dully but accusingly at her.

  Kira shrugged, struggling to hold back tears. “I can’t let you die. Father’s a Sin for godsakes. And your true mate. Let him help you. He’ll protect you. I-I refuse to lose you, too,”—her voice broke—“I just can’t…”

  Strong arms wrapped around her waist, holding her close. Kira grasped Týr’s forearms, drawing on his strength.

  “Wrath…” Luceré’s voice wavered as she turned her attention to her mate. “I’m so sorry…”

  “Later, you can explain why.” Wrath swept Luceré’s frail body into his arms, his impossible power returning in full force. Heck, their combined power—even though her mother’s was muted—made it hard to get too close to them.

  “None will come between us this time, my mate.” A promise. Those glowing lime-green eyes shifted to Kira, and Wrath’s mien gentled. “My gratitude, daughter.” Then he glanced at Týr, his expression stoic. “Guardian, do bring Kira to visit. Through the front door this time.”

  Týr snorted behind her.

  With a nod at them, Wrath and her mother vanished, their power shutting off with a snap. Suddenly overwhelmed, Kira pivoted, and careful of his wound, she pressed her face into Týr’s chest. “God, I hope I did the right thing.”

  “What? Calling Wrath? Let me put it this way, if I was fading from this world—okay, bad example, but you get what I mean—would you prefer those last moments with me or not?”

  She scowled. “I would never let you die. I would do anything and everything…” Her words dried out.

  “There you go. If anyone can, the Sin will find a way.”

  “But the Ancients, they won’t—”

  “Then Wrath will deal with them. He’s one deadly bastard.”

  Her smile wobbled. “You say the nicest things,” she said, only half sarcastically, but her heart expanded with the immense love she felt for her warrior. This immortal who owned her heart. He’d come with her despite his own severe injuries so she wouldn’t have to face another stressful parting alone.

  Her gaze caressed his beloved but still wan face. “Come.” She interlaced their fingers. “Let’s get you back to bed before you collapse.”

  “You think me that weak?”

  “Honey, right now, in a hand wrestling match? I’ll come out on top,” she teased.

  His eyes narrowed.

  Oh, he didn’t like that? She bit back a smile. The next minute, he had her ag
ainst the wall, his palms planted near her head, his chest rising and falling, strain etching grooves around his mouth.

  “What are you doing?” she gasped.

  “When my mate thinks I’m weak, it’s time to set the record straight—”

  She went to her toes and pressed her lips to his. “I love you, you big growly bear. I’m sure you can overpower me easily.” Well, mostly because she couldn’t resist him. “But I don’t want you damaging something important inside here,”—she gently touched the gauze on his wound—“because I have plans for this body. So, heal up fast.”

  “Plans?” The battle-light in his gaze turned curious. “Like?”

  Despite his inquisitive expression, she sensed his discomfort and pain.

  “Hmmm…” She slipped her arm around his waist and strolled toward the elevator, aware that he still refused to rest much of his weight on her. “For starters, I’m going to strip you naked and paint this divinely sexy body,”—she patted his backside—“with melted chocolate…hmm, then I’ll probably end up with cavities. Wait, I know, I’ll paint myself in liquid chocolate and stick M&M’s all over me—all color-coded, of course—so you can eat them off my body.” She pressed the button on the wall, and the elevator doors rolled open. Týr stepped into the car, still staring at her. “What?”

  “I never knew you had a sadistic side. That vision’s never gonna leave me. There’s only one way to purge it from my mind…”

  She laughed at his soft caveat. “Later. My mother left a ton of healing potion and ointment behind. It’s time for another dose and sleeping with healing crystals for now, I’m afraid.”

  “And there flies my happy dream, straight out the window.”

  That he could joke made her heart feel as if it had sprouted wings.

  Chapter 34

  Two days later, Týr was finally able to walk without feeling as if the floor would meet with his face, but that excitement died damn fast.

  He narrowed his eyes at Michael. They were alone in the archangel’s study, the other warriors still in the rec room. “What the hell do you mean she cannot stay here for long periods? Her sire’s a Sin, not a fucking demon.”