by Katie Reus
She nodded as he watched her, his dark eyes unreadable. Closing the distance between them, he grasped her hands in his and pulled them to his chest. I’m beyond humbled, Larissa. I didn’t think it was possible I could love you more, but I do. Their reaction is worse than I thought, so let’s leave tonight. We’ll head to America. As he spoke, she felt her power returning, the invigorating sensation flooding her veins as the blue flames transferred to her with such fluidity, it surprised her. To be able to control her gift so easily spoke volumes about his untapped power and their bond.
As she absorbed her gift, she wrapped her arms around his waist, laying her head on his chest as she turned to her parents. Her mother looked even angrier than before, which told Larissa all she needed to know. “Your reaction is beyond disappointing and we’re not going to stand around and argue about something that I couldn’t change even if I wanted to. Aiden and I are leaving. I’ll contact you in a month to see if you’ve decided to act rational.”
Her mother’s entire body burst into blue flames. “You will do no such thing!”
Larissa turned fully on her mother, shoving out her fire to shield Aiden and his parents in its protective bubble in case her mother had any stupid ideas. She wasn’t acting as if she meant to harm them but right now she seemed unstable.
No matter how terrible their reaction to her and Aiden’s mating had been, she wouldn’t let her mother kill the people he loved and start a war. “I will, and you will do well to remember that I am just as powerful as you.” Larissa may not have flaunted it, but she had no problem reminding her mother now. Before her mother could say anything, she took a threatening step forward. “If you attempt to hurt my mate or any of his pack I will return home and burn all your castles to the ground. I will fucking destroy everything you hold dear. You will absolutely honor the pact you made with his pack and act like the honorable vampires I know you to be. If you don’t . . .” Her teeth clenched together as she tried to contain her building rage. She wasn’t sure if she was speaking the truth or not because the thought of anyone hurting Aiden tugged at her basic instincts. She would destroy anyone who dared hurt him or cause him pain. Anyone.
“Larissa—”
She turned on her father, who’d been relatively silent up until now. “Don’t even start. You taught me everything I know, so don’t pretend to be shocked.”
His mouth pulled into a thin line as he quieted. He didn’t look angry so much as resigned as he turned to Larissa’s mother. “Oana, let’s step back and discuss this situation. Our daughter has made a foolish choice, but she’s right about bridging the gap between our species.”
Larissa nearly snorted at his words. “This situation.” As if her being newly bonded to a shifter was a crisis to solve.
Her mother’s flames disappeared as she straightened, her body going rigid and her expression turning cold. “There’s nothing to discuss. We have no daughter anymore.”
The words punched into Larissa’s chest and for the first time in centuries she had the urge to cry. Before she could react, Aiden scooped her up, taking her completely by surprise. She knew what he was doing, saving her from becoming emotional in front of them. She appreciated it more than she could put into words. He didn’t say a word to anyone as he strode from the room, but she sensed his anger, aggression, and sadness intermixed as he hurried out of the castle to his car. She guessed he’d be driving them to his castle so they could pack some things.
“I can walk,” she eventually murmured, still struggling to comprehend what had just happened.
He didn’t respond, but once they reached his car, he leaned against the driver’s door and buried his face against her neck. “I’m so sorry to tear you away from your family.” His voice was ragged and a new wave of guilt rolled through their link.
Pulling back, she cupped his cheeks with her hands. The grief etched on his face tore at her. “You have nothing to be sorry for. Fuck all of them. If they can’t accept us, that’s not unconditional love. That’s not what parents are supposed to do.” Her words didn’t lessen her own grief much, but it felt good to say them.
He brushed his lips over hers and despite everything they’d just left behind, she knew mating with him had been the best decision she’d ever made.
* * *
The sword had fucking impaled her.
Panic swirled inside him, but he shoved it down. He had to trust Larissa’s instincts on this.
Grabbing the blade, Aiden pulled it out of Larissa’s back—even though it was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. She was still breathing, her heart still beating and he could sense their link, though it was faint. Too damn faint.
Though he wanted to feed her so she’d start healing, he knew these vampires would never let him get that far. But the vamps were all going to die. He’d lost his earpiece during his first shift, so he prayed Connor or one of his packmates had heard him.
Embracing the gift Larissa had given him, he held out his arms and let out another shout as her incredible fire surged through him. It shot from his hands like lightning, slamming into random vampires. Screams filled the underground cave as vampires burst into flames. Dozens started to run away from him, yet others ran at him like they were on a suicide mission.
Their leader raced toward the altar, jumping over it and away from Aiden, but he ignored the male for now. First he had to save Larissa.
Channeling the energy the way she’d taught him so long ago, he imagined the fire pushing out from every single inch of his body, covering the ground and walls and burning anyone who was his enemy.
As the flames grew, lapping at everything, it started to cover the room in a brilliant coat of blue. His heart nearly stopped when he felt Larissa’s energy fading. Another wave of pain rippled through him and he shoved out again, this time with a blast of pure fire, incinerating everything in its path.
Horrible screams filled the air as the remaining vampires burst into flames. A few vamps managed to dive into the exit, escaping his fire. He started to direct the flames that way when he heard Jayce grunt and curse. Moments later, his packmates spilled into the cave, but they all jerked to a halt, staring at him and the cave in shock and a little horror.
He knew what he looked like and didn’t care. Aiden pinned Jayce with a glare. “She’s dying. Save her!” He didn’t need to explain shit. The enforcer could help her with his blood and he knew it. If he didn’t, Aiden couldn’t even think about what he’d do.
“Behind you!” Jayce tossed him one of his blades.
Aiden didn’t have time to be surprised as he jumped and snagged it from midair. Grasping it, he turned and rolled to the side, missing what could have been a debilitating blow to his neck.
The vampire held a sword deftly in his hands. He jumped out of the way as Aiden went to strike him with Jayce’s blade. The weapon was light in his hands, but Aiden could practically feel the power humming through the thing. Holy shit. He knew it could ash vampires and that’s exactly what he planned to do to this bastard.
Out of the corner of his eye Aiden saw Jayce scoring his wrist and putting it to Larissa’s mouth. Then he saw Connor take an aggressive step forward. Keeping his eye on his adversary, Aiden shouted again, unable to even speak normally for all the adrenaline pumping through him. “Stay back! This is a nex pugna!” A death fight. Usually for Alphas but everyone would understand his meaning. This was his fight and no one else’s. Because of this fucker, Larissa was pale, unconscious, and possibly dying.
He shoved that thought away and held on to their link, focused on the fact that she was still alive.
Channeling the power of the fire raging through him, he sent a blast out at the vampire as he dodged what would have been another deadly strike. The flames flowed around the male in a huge arch, as if he had a protective ball around him.
He was spelled. Clearly he knew of Larissa’s powers and he’d mad
e sure her flames couldn’t penetrate him.
Aiden shot another blast at him as a test. This time a couple of thin streams of energy seemed to cut through. Pieces of the male’s hooded robe fell away in singed chunks.
The vamp let out an ear-piercing scream, his eyes dark and tinged with utter madness. But the red tint wasn’t there anymore. Neither were the hovering faces of the dead from beyond the veil. It was just Aiden and this madman.
Aiden’s body lit up in blue flames, but he didn’t feel their heat. “Is this what you wanted?” Aiden taunted as he struck out with the blade in a fast, jabbing action. He quickly jumped out of the way as the vamp attempted to strike him with his own sword. The male’s arm sizzled from Jayce’s blade. So the vamp was spelled but only from Larissa’s fire.
“You fucking animal!” the vamp shouted.
“You’ll never get it now,” Aiden continued, walking in a slow circular arc around the male.
“I will if I kill you,” he snarled, spit flying from his mouth.
Oh yeah, this guy was fucking crazy. There may be some truth to his words, Aiden didn’t know. “I’ll kill myself before I let you take it.”
At that the vampire screamed again in that maniacal way before lunging at him with his sword. Despite his lack of control and clear rage, the vamp was skilled and nimble. Letting go of his control over the fire, Aiden used all the strength in his legs to jump high into the cavern.
Twisting midair, he came back down, slicing at the vampire’s back with his blade. The vamp turned sideways at the last moment, coming up with his own blade. It slammed into Aiden’s shoulder as Aiden pierced the male’s chest.
It wasn’t his heart though. Too far to the right and the guy didn’t turn to ash. The wound just sizzled and burned from the blade’s magic. Grunting in pain, the vamp started to pull his blade from Aiden’s body as Aiden released his claws and punched all the way through the male’s chest. Ribs broke as the male screamed in raw agony.
Grabbing the heart, Aiden let the fire loose again. The male’s dark eyes widened as his heart incinerated. But Aiden wasn’t done. Focusing on the energy, he blasted the blue flames through the male’s entire body. In a brilliant explosion of light, the powdery remains exploded over him and the floor of the cave.
Unable to savor his victory, he dropped the blade and raced to Larissa’s side. He was aware of his packmates and Jayce’s brother hovering near the entrance, watching as Jayce continued to feed Larissa from his wrist. Though her eyes were closed, she was sucking hard, pulling in long gulps of blood. Relief didn’t begin to describe what he felt as he looked at the woman he loved.
The enforcer’s jaw was clenched tight, his piercing gray eyes locked on Aiden’s. “That was some freaky shit you just did.”
“Get ready to see some more.” Kneeling next to his bondmate, he grasped both her hands in his and slowly, but purposefully, directed her powers back into her. Every second that passed, every second the energy drained from his body, he felt their link growing stronger and stronger.
As the last ounce of power left him, Larissa’s eyes flew open with a start. She glanced between the two of them before lunging at Aiden, wrapping her arms around his neck.
The most potent relief surged through him, overwhelming emotion nearly knocking him on his ass as his throat tightened. “It’s over. He’s dead,” he managed to rasp out. Whoever the hell that vamp had been. Aiden wanted answers, but right now all he cared about was that Larissa was alive in his arms. Everything else was just details.
“I thought I was dead. I can’t believe that blade struck perfectly in the middle of my heart. It basically shredded it,” she said with a tinge of awe.
If you hadn’t been amped up on supernatural blood, I don’t think you would have made it, he projected, unable to say the words out loud. As he buried his face in her neck, tears burned his eyes. He didn’t give a shit who saw him. He’d sobbed like a fucking baby when he thought he’d lost her once. To almost lose her again . . . Hell yeah, he was crying.
I know. Through their link her voice was ragged and tired. The feel of her arms around him reassured him. Thank you for saving me.
He snorted. Don’t ever thank me for that. I’m just . . . I don’t want to move yet. Maybe never.
She squeezed him back.
He wasn’t sure how much time passed, but eventually she pulled back, her blue eyes glittering with unshed tears. Reaching out, he brushed his thumbs over her soft cheeks when a few spilled over.
“We need to clean this mess up and block this cave,” she said quietly.
“Already on it,” Connor murmured from the entry.
Aiden looked up then, taking in everyone. First he focused on Jayce, who’d moved to stand next to Kat, his arm slung protectively around her. “Thank you.”
Jayce shrugged, as if the words made him uncomfortable. “I owed you.”
Aiden simply nodded, knowing that was all he’d get out of the male. He looked at his Alpha next. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions, but—”
“Let’s get your mate out of here and start cleaning this shit up. Everything else can wait.”
Hell yeah, it could. Standing, Aiden pulled Larissa up with him before scooping her into his arms. She let out a halfhearted protest before laying her head against his chest. His inner wolf was soothed immensely at the feel of her head resting against his heart.
“Maybe we could get Aiden some pants because I’m tired of looking at his junk,” Jayce muttered.
Bursts of surprised laughter erupted from everyone, echoing off the walls of a place that had seen too much evil and death. He pulled in a deep breath and released it slowly, his inner wolf quieting. For the first time in decades Aiden felt as if he were whole again.
The battle was over but his and Larissa’s new life together had just begun.
Chapter 26
Four days later
Larissa turned the page of the crazed vampire Cornelius’s journal/manifesto/tirade against the human race, wondering what insanity she’d read next. Everything in that cave had happened so fast she hadn’t had a chance to see his face before she almost died and Aiden vaporized him. That, she wished she’d seen. But she knew who he was after reading the journal they’d retrieved among his other belongings. It had been hidden inside that wretched altar, the stone enclosure the only thing that had saved it from being incinerated by the fire.
He’d been a member of her parents’ coven and while she’d never been friends with him, they’d been acquaintances. He’d even been with the group that went to Aiden’s parents’ castle. The male had been one of their scholars, a record keeper, and he’d been utterly brilliant. Well, mad and brilliant. He’d been witness to her mother’s little light-show display the day Aiden and Larissa had left both their families. As a record keeper, he’d been aware of the Danesti line gift, but he hadn’t realized it had been transferable.
Once he’d discovered that, he’d become obsessed with stealing the gift for himself. He’d even been the one who killed her parents, poisoning them and many of the coven members using knowledge he’d learned from the dark arts. She was still trying to come to terms with her parents’ deaths, but figured that would be a long time coming. Unfortunately for Cornelius—but fortunately for her—it had taken him a long damn time to figure out where her parents had entombed Larissa. It was the first time she found herself thankful for their need for secrecy.
She’d finally regained all her memories, though she wished she didn’t have them all. True to her word, Larissa had contacted her parents a month after she and Aiden had left. They’d apologized and invited both of them to stay in Romania. Larissa had been unsure about their motives—her mother had not been known to apologize for anything—and had convinced Aiden to let her go alone. They were her parents after all. It wasn’t as if they’d kill her. She’d thought she could deal with them much
easier without Aiden under their roof and would be better able to gauge their sincerity.
It had been a trap. They’d worked with a powerful witch to put her into stasis, then had planned to kill Aiden while she was under. Nothing had gone their way after that. So caught up in their own scheming they hadn’t realized they’d gained a new enemy under their roof. After they’d been murdered, Cornelius started picking off more and more vampires until only those he trusted were left alive. Then he’d sold off almost everything, but had kept one castle and had made sure the rumors of Vlad and Oana remained alive for decades.
The man had truly been brilliant in an evil sort of way. He’d wanted to rule humans, to keep them “in their place on the food chain,” as he put it in more than one of his rants. Using the dark arts he’d figured out he could possess Larissa’s gift by taking all of her blood. Stupid fool. Her gift could only be given freely.
Sighing, she rubbed her eyes as she closed the journal. She wasn’t even halfway through, but she needed another break. His ramblings were confusing and often hard to understand. As she laid her head back against the couch in the males’ cabin at the Armstrong ranch, she half smiled.
About ten minutes ago she’d sensed two individuals sneak into the room. They were terrible at hiding, but as cubs she didn’t expect them to be stealth predators. “You can come out now, little spies.”
Seconds later, a little girl and boy jumped over the back of the couch, landing on either side of her. The girl was a jaguar shifter who would most definitely be a heartbreaker one day. Though something told Larissa that the lupine shifter next to her wasn’t letting any male near Vivian. Ever. For a ten-year-old he’d shown surprising territorial instincts in the short time she’d interacted with them.
“What are you two doing? Aren’t you supposed to be in school?”
Vivian beamed at her and gave her that wide-eyed look Larissa guessed was supposed to be innocent. “We don’t have school today.”