by G. K. DeRosa
“There has to be another way,” I whispered against his lips.
He cupped my cheek, brushing the pad of his thumb over my skin. “If there is, I have yet to find it. But I’ll try anything, Luna. I can’t live without you.” His lips captured mine, his desperate need crashing over me like a tidal wave. The dark cord around my heart strained, an onslaught of emotions surging through the bond.
I slipped my tongue through his clenched teeth, and it only took a second for him to yield. Lying back on the bed, I tugged him down with me. He hesitated, his corded arms keeping him at a distance. “Luna,” he growled.
A flash of citrine streaked across his irises and I released him, my body screaming in protest. He sat up and raked his hands over his face, grunting. “I’m sorry.”
I took his hand, dragging it from his face. “No, don’t be. I shouldn’t have pushed. I just… I think there has to be another way. You’ve controlled the demon for so long, why couldn’t we learn to do it together?”
He shook his head. “Your life isn’t something I’m willing to risk.”
“Ryder, you said it yourself—even when your demon was running the show, he never tried to hurt me. On the contrary, he protected me, even saved my life a couple times.” I draped my arms over his neck and gave him a chaste kiss. “Let’s just consider all our options before we do something drastic.”
A crooked smile melted over his face. “Okay, but I don’t know how much longer I can wait.” He slipped his hands beneath my shirt, and his fingers grazed my spine. Every single nerve ending responded to his touch as desire prickled my flesh. “You don’t know what you do to me, Luna. We wasted so much time… I want you to be mine, now and always.” He pulled me into his chest and his musky, sandalwood scent consumed me.
My heart smashed into my ribs as if it were trying to break through its skeletal confines to reach him. “I want that too,” I mumbled against his t-shirt. Because pretending I didn’t was futile. My heart was his and it always would be.
He stretched out on my bed and tugged me down beside him. I curled into him, my body perfectly fitted against his. “Are you sure this is okay?” Memories of the last time he spent the night flitted through my brain.
“Yes.” He nuzzled my ear, his warm breath sending goose bumps down my arms. “We’ll keep it totally PG tonight.”
I relaxed into his arms, and a deep sense of calm washed over me. Before long, the steady sound of his breathing lulled me to sleep.
Chapter 17
I focused on the steady crunch of our unipegs’ hooves slogging through the snow as Cinder and I rode side by side on the practice field. The big race was only a week away and with everything going on, I barely had a chance to train with Zeus. With it being Drake’s last race before leaving Darkhen for good, I knew he’d bring on his A-game. My heart constricted at the thought of my friend leaving. Drake and I had been through so much together, and I dreaded his departure.
“So are you and Ryder still in the honeymoon phase?” asked Cinder, drawing my thoughts away from the ice prince.
“Um, sure, if you consider it a honeymoon when there’s no sex involved.”
She laughed. “Just proves how much he loves you.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“I’m so happy you guys finally worked it out. I knew you would.” Her golden eyes shimmered as a sweet smile lit up my best friend’s face.
“Well, we’re still trying to figure out this whole demon-binding thing. Ryder went to talk to my dad about it actually.”
“Oh really? And?”
“He says it can be done, but as Ryder said, it’s risky. My father’s never performed a demon-binding spell, but he’s willing to try.” My fingers tightened around Zeus’s reins, and the wily unipeg chomped at his bit.
“But you still aren’t?”
I slowly shook my head. “Things are good right now, Cin, and I’m just so scared to mess it up. And on a selfish note, we kind of need his demon to fight Luxora. I don’t know what she’d do to him if he was powerless.”
“It’s a good thing he has a kickass girlfriend to protect him.” She winked, and I couldn’t help but smirk.
“That’s another thing. You know how Ryder is; I’m not sure he could handle not being the one to protect me.”
“Ugh, boys,” she muttered.
“How’s everything going with Raf?” I was the worst friend ever. With all the drama that surrounded my life, I barely asked about my bestie’s.
“It’s great. I’m actually taking him home to Draeko this weekend to hang out with my family.”
My eyes widened. “Wow! That’s huge. How does your dad feel about that?” With the deep-set division among the houses of Azar, interspecies relationships weren’t that common. Especially not with the daughter of the former Alpha. Cinder was undoubtedly expected to mate with one of the shifters from the pride.
She shrugged, a twinge of worry marring her forehead. “He’ll just have to deal with it. Raf and I love each other, and for now that’s all that matters.”
“I wish I could hug you right now.” I gave her my best smile. “I’m so proud of you, Cin, for standing up to your dad for love. Not many people in your position would do the same.”
Her lips twisted into a smirk. “Like Drake, you mean?”
“Yeah. I wish things had turned out differently for him. And I guess they could have, but giving up his crown is too important.”
“Speak of the devil…”
Drake and Apollo sauntered over, weaving in between us. “Less chatting and a little more working, huh, ladies?” He turned his lilac gaze to me. “I expect you to be in top form for my last race next week.”
“Don’t you worry about it, ice prince. I’m on it. Don’t think for a second I’m going easy on you just because it’s your last chance at glory.”
“Okay kids, let’s bring them up!” Professor Thornberry’s voice interrupted our smack talk.
“Ad litem!” I called out to Zeus and his onyx wings unfolded, revealing a brilliant rainbow of colors beneath. Drake and Cinder followed right behind us on their steeds, the unipegs’ excited whinnies filling the air.
Soon Raf and Zephyr joined us, weaving in between the three of us. The winged unicorns bounded across the sky, the chilly breeze rushing through my hair. I glanced at my friends, and another smile split my lips. For some reason, I felt like I needed to enjoy this carefree moment.
Right on cue, Raine and her unipeg whizzed by, the mighty flap of its wings whipping hair across my face. I spluttered, trying to unstick my long bangs from my sticky lip-gloss. She slowed and sidled up beside me. “Sorry.”
“No problem.” I tightened my grip on Zeus’s reins to keep from saying something nasty. With Drake and I over, she hadn’t been quite as horrible lately and I was hoping to keep it that way. “What’s up, Raine?”
“I thought you should know that the Coven Council has asked me to keep an eye on you.”
My mouth dropped. More at the fact that Raine was betraying their trust for me than from what she actually said. I forced the words stuck at the back of my throat. “Thank you. I appreciate you telling me that.”
She shrugged. “I figured you’d want to know. Plus I guess I kind of owe you one after the whole Desmond thing.” She paused and swept her thick auburn locks behind her ear. “Being the first female warlock isn’t something they’re going to easily forget. Even though they’re keeping it to themselves for now, it’s only a matter of time till word gets out. And trust me, being under the watchful eye of the council is no fun.”
I nodded, and we lapsed into an awkward silence. I kept waiting for her to pull ahead or something, but she continued to fly next to me. Since she seemed to be in a chatty mood, I decided to ask her the question that had been lingering at the back of my mind for over a year now. Clearing my throat, I steeled my nerve and forced the words out. “Did you use magic to keep me from beating Drake in the unipeg race my first semester here?”
&nbs
p; A wicked grin pulled at her pink lips, reaching all the way to her striking emerald eyes. “What do you think? You were a first year, a human half-blood and you were about to beat the Fae prince…”
“I knew it!” I shouted.
She shook her head, laughing. “I’m not admitting anything; I’m just saying you’re a smart girl and you could figure it out.”
“Was that a compliment?” I slapped my hand over my chest dramatically.
“Never.” She smirked and dug her heels into her unipeg. “Good luck, human, you’re going to need it with all the baddies gunning for you,” she called out over her shoulder.
My phone buzzed in my pocket and I drew it out, keeping one hand on Zeus’s reins. Scanning the message from Cillian, I cursed. There’d been another attack in the human world.
Ahead of me, Raf, Zephyr and Raine all turned their unipegs toward the frosty ground below. I huffed and inhaled one last breath of fresh air. So much for enjoying the moment.
By the time we reached the small suburb outside of Chicago, the town had been destroyed. Entire housing complexes were burnt to the ground, and bodies littered the blood-soaked streets.
Nausea crawled up my throat as Logan led us through the decimated city. I stared up at the gargoyle, his expression like stone. “How did this happen?”
“My teams couldn’t get here quick enough. By the time we did, there wasn’t much left. We gathered the survivors and healed as many as we could with the help of a squad of angels the Archangel Amanadiel sent. There are simply too many of them and not enough of us.”
Drake and Ryder bristled on either side of me. The rest of the team scanned the damage with blank expressions.
Overturned police cars and emergency vehicles lined the streets, a few of their occupants trying to help the less injured. News vans were beginning to filter in filled with cameramen and reporters ready to document the destruction.
“This is going to be all over the news in a few hours,” said Ryder.
Logan nodded, his lips set in a grim line. “I’ve already informed the president, but there was no way to keep this one under wraps. This will be the final ammunition Congress needs to get the bill passed through the House. Then it’ll only be a matter of time before it gets through the Senate.”
“And our worlds will be closed off?” I asked.
“Most likely.” Logan shook his head. “Maybe it’s for the best. Before the realms were opened up, my teams could handle the occasional breakthrough, but now, it’s too much to control.”
“What if there were more teams like us?” I asked.
“That was the ultimate goal,” said Ryder. “But with everything that has been going on, training one team has been a lot. Once you all were proven successful, the Darkhen Academy board was supposed to consider expanding the program.”
“Would it really make a difference at this point?” Drake asked. “You’d need hundreds of teams to patrol the borders.”
“My father is the only one who can put an end to this.” Ryder’s jaw clenched, hissing the word father like it was a curse.
“Do you really think he’d go against his own daughter?” Logan asked.
“Given the right incentive, maybe.”
My father’s words echoed through my mind. He was going to offer Lucifer a seat on the Etrian Assembly if he could get the Underworld under control. Maybe it would work. “So what can we do for now?”
“Just more of the same.” Logan’s weary gaze scanned the battle-torn streets. “Protecting humans is my job, and I’ll continue to do it with my teams to the best of my ability. I only hope it’s enough.”
When we returned to the academy, I stayed in Cillian’s office after the team’s debrief. It had been a particularly depressing one, and I almost chickened out of the conversation I’d been meaning to have with the angel.
Cillian glanced up at me from his massive desk. “How can I help you, Luna?”
I sucked in a breath and folded into the seat in front of him. “What do you know about demon binding?” I figured an angel would have a good grasp on the subject. Or maybe it was just the images of The Exorcist that kept flashing through my mind.
He cleared his throat and folded his hands on the table. “Ryder mentioned it to me, but I didn’t know how serious he was.”
“Oh, he’s dead serious. He’s already gone to consult with Garrix about it. I’m worried what could happen.”
“You should be.” Cillian’s brilliant blue eyes darkened. “Binding a demon is no easy feat, even for someone as powerful as your father.”
“Have you ever heard of a successful case?”
He slowly nodded. “A few, yes. Not many have been performed over the centuries.” He paused and rifled through his drawer. Revealing an antique skeleton key, he handed it to me. “Feel free to search the archives for any successful accounts. You may find something in there that’ll help.”
“Thanks, Cillian.” I chewed on my lower lip as I stared at the key. “Do you think it could work? Would you advise him to try?”
A rueful chuckle slipped out. “My nephew wouldn’t listen to me anyway. He’s stubborn and beyond reason when it’s a matter that concerns you. I’ve already advised him against it.”
A pit of fear sank to the bottom of my stomach. If Cillian thought it was a bad idea, there was no way I was letting Ryder go through with this. I’d never survive losing him again. I had to find another way.
Chapter 18
“I don’t want to argue about this anymore, especially not today.” Ryder peered over the side of Zeus’s stall, the crease between his brows deepening with every word.
“Then why did you bring it up?” I hissed as I latched the bridle around Zeus’s cheek.
He threw his hands up and growled. “I thought you’d be happy. I thought finding out that we could finally be together would be good news.”
My heart clenched, and I whirled around to face him. “Of course it would be, if there weren’t so many things that could go terribly wrong.”
Ryder had met with my father three times this past week to go over the details of the demon-binding spell. Meanwhile, I’d been buried nose deep in the archives researching all the things that had gone horribly awry in the past centuries. In all my research, I’d found exactly one successful account in hundreds of years. Those weren’t good odds in my opinion, and I’d made that perfectly clear to Ryder.
Hence, the current fight. Apparently, my father had nailed down the specifics, and he was ready to proceed.
Ryder stalked into the stall and Zeus snorted, his hoof pawing at the ground. My mercurial unipeg was not a fan of the former demon bad boy. Ryder reached for me, his arms curling around my waist. “I know you’re worried, but I promise you, everything is going to turn out fine. I know it is.”
I snagged my lip between my teeth and shook my head as hot tears filled my eyes. “You can’t promise that.” I felt like we’d been having the same argument for weeks now.
He bent down and brushed his lips across my forehead. “Shhh. We’ll talk about it later. Right now, you have a race to win.” A crooked smile pulled up the corners of his lips. “And if you don’t beat Drake, I’ll take it as a sign that you still have feelings for the arrogant prince.”
I rolled my eyes, fisting my hand in his shirt. “If I don’t win it’s because my brain is too preoccupied with you.”
“I’m so lucky to have such a thoughtful and dedicated girlfriend.”
I nearly choked at the g-word. Which was silly really. After everything we’d been through, it was crazy how happy that silly title made me. For once, it was nice to pretend we were just a normal couple going through all the normal relationship stuff people go through.
I arched a brow at him, a ridiculous grin flashing across my face. “Girlfriend, huh?”
He stepped nearer, his ragged inhales and exhales bringing our chests closer together with each breath. “Would you prefer lover? Paramour? Soul mate?”
My
body shuddered as his hands ran down my back. “Girlfriend is fine,” I rasped out. He could call me anything he wanted when he was touching me like that.
“Come on, you two lovebirds!” Cinder’s voice rang out over the clip-clop of Bella’s hooves. “The race is going to start without you.”
Ryder released me, and I inhaled a deep breath to slow the rapid thrumming of my heart. I took hold of Zeus’s reins and led him out of the stall.
“Good luck, baby.” Ryder smacked me on the butt before I cleared the barn. Luckily, we were the last ones out so no one saw. I whirled around, my eyes shooting daggers. Even though he wasn’t technically a teacher at the academy anymore, we were still trying to keep our relationship on the down low. I was pretty sure the entire team knew about us, but it wasn’t something we openly flaunted.
I didn’t even get a chance to warm up Zeus thanks to my little spat with Ryder. The floating countdown clock was already flashing overhead as I mounted my unipeg and took him straight up to the arena. I took my place between Drake and Zephyr, purposely nudging up against Apollo as I did.
Zeus’s ears pinned back and he snorted, his onyx nostrils widening. Sometimes I wished the cantankerous beast could talk. I’d love to know what his beef was with Apollo.
“Nice of you to join us.” Drake shot me a sidelong glance. “I thought I was going to have to drag you out of the barn myself.” Something unreadable flickered across his cool irises.
I hated hurting Drake, and even though he was the one that brought up my lingering feelings for Ryder, I didn’t like confirming the fact that he’d been right. Ever since we’d broken up, his lilac cord had dimmed. More than that, I barely ever felt anything from it anymore. He’d managed to completely block me out. A part of me dreaded it was because he didn’t want to sense what I was feeling for Ryder.
