“Did he force you?” Anger threads her voice.
I turn away from her, look beyond the tree line to the snow-covered ground beyond that.
“Answer me, Gia.”
Tension radiates off her. I sense Jess wanting to come to me and comfort me. Yet she holds back. It’s as if the balance of power between us has changed.
From being a peer, I’ve gone to being the more vulnerable of the two of us. The one to be protected. Anger fills my chest. It’s not fair, how everything in my life seems to have changed just like that.
“Did he force you?” Her voice feels too loud in the muffled quiet brought on by the snow on the ground.
I shake my head. “No. Yes. I don’t know.” I hang my head forward.
“So he did force you?”
“No.” My voice comes out stronger. “He shared his life force with me to save me from dying.”
The silence stretches.
“Then he told me he had to consolidate the bond to make sure he survived.”
“And you agreed to sleep with him—”
“No…” I smooth my palm over my T-shirt. No, it's his T-shirt, which I've just borrowed, which I am never gonna return... Whatever. I wrinkle my nose. "It's complicated, okay?"
"That ol' excuse?" She narrows her eyes. "You must be desperate."
"Gimme a break, Jess." I toss my hair.
"Tell me the truth G."
I throw up my hands. “I wanted to sleep with him, okay?”
Why am I telling her all this?
She’s my work partner. We’ve faced many dangerous situations together. When you face death together, you become close, enough to watch out for each other in emotional situations, too.
“Jess?” I hold my knees and legs tightly together.
She rubs the back of her neck. “Don’t misunderstand me, Gia. What you do with your personal life is your own call. It’s just," She raises her shoulders then lowers them, "he’s Fae.”
“He saved my life.” I wrap my arms around my waist.
“So you felt obliged to save his?”
“I thought that’s what it was, but it isn’t.” The mating cord screams against my rib cage. White-hot pain sears my chest. I groan and double over.
“What the hell?” Jess strides forward, then stops less than a foot from me.
I straighten. My shoulders shake and sweat beads my forehead.
“You’ve gone pale, Gia.”
“It’s Dante…” A cold feeling coils in my stomach.
“The Fae male?” Her lips thin.
“He’s in danger; something’s happened to him.”
“We need to leave before they find us, too.” She sets her jaw.
“I need to go to him.” I turn to stumble back to the opening of the tunnel.
“Hang on a sec.” Her voice follows me.
“Sorry, Jess. I am grateful that you came for me, but I made a mistake escaping. I shouldn’t have left. I need him as much as he needs me.” My voice trails away.
I hear myself and realize I am not making any sense.
But maybe that’s what this crazy connection between me and Dante is about. It’s about instinct, about following what’s right. About not trying to make sense of this chemistry between us. About what existed from the first time I’d set eyes on him.
I’d tried to leave him, I’d tried. But no way can I go when I know his life is in danger. My stomach lurches. I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from feeling sick. Then, hurrying to the entrance of the corridor, I step inside.
The light is blocked out for a second.
I half turn to find that Jess has followed me. “Go back. This isn’t your fight.”
“That’s where you are wrong.” Her forehead furrows. “Remember the motto of the Bureau?”
“Never leave anyone behind.” My voice rings hollow in the space.
“Not even when he’s the enemy.” Her smile twists her lips. “You chose him for a mate; that makes him one of us now.”
She reaches me, then jerks her chin to keep going.
A sigh hitches out of me. “Thanks, Jess.”
“Don’t thank me yet; we are not clear of whatever threat is waiting for us up there.”
I nod and begin to race up the corridor.
Before I turn the first corner, footsteps ring out. I freeze.
Jess curses. “Stand aside, Gia.”
I drop to the floor.
She pulls out her gun, then takes aim.
We wait. A beat, then two. A soldier dressed in fatigues appears around the bend. He wears a blue armband; marking him out as Fae.
Jess fires.
The man drops to the floor. Behind him, there are more footsteps, which come to a stop.
Sweat drips down my back, plastering my tunic to my skin. My eyes ache, and my feet throb. The smell of blood floods the air. I stiffen. An eerie glow lights up the corridor.
Jess turns to me just as I spring up to my feet.
“He’s teleporting.” I grab her arm. “I am going to follow him.”
“I can’t let you do that.” Her features stretch tight.
“This is the only way to save Dante.” I drop my arms to my sides.
“I can’t let you die.”
“If he doesn’t live, then I am already dead.” My voice is calm. I know she senses the ring of finality to it. Enough for her to know I am speaking the truth.
“Go get back up and bring them to Singapore. It’s where they are taking him.”
Ahead of us a portal forms. The Fae steps in, and the space burns bright then recedes.
I race toward the fading vortex. “Don’t delay, Jess, I am counting on you.” I throw myself into the hollow of the portal.
The psychic breeze tugs the hair from my face.
Geometric designs flash past me. Fluorescent green and pink and red sparks fly over me. The wind whips at me, and my eyes stream. The vortex pulls me in deeper. Every cell in my body feels like it is being torn apart. Then the whiteness sweeps over me, and the vortex recedes to spit me out.
32
Dante
The sun shines on my shoulders and sweat drips down my back. I move my arms only to find they are held immobile. I try to take a step forward and am not surprised when I can’t move them either.
The red behind my closed eyelids grows in intensity.
The sound of distant cheering reaches me. The hackles on my neck rise. Even without opening my eyes, I know this is bad. The events of how Boris had come to the safe house, of how I’d been hit from behind wash over me.
There is a flash of light. The air around me thins. I try to take in a breath, but my lungs feel like they are burning. I crack open my eyes just in time for a portal to form. A Fae soldier steps out of it. He walks forward only to turn and drop into a defensive stance.
It’s a signal to the others to form a circle around the opening.
“No,” I try to croak the sound aloud only to find my throat is too dry.
I strain at my bindings.
The portal glows white, then another figure rolls out. Long, dark hair flows around her, sweeping the ground.
Her clothing barely reaches her knees. It's torn and muddied. Blood marks stain the fabric.
“Get away from her.” My voice roars around the space.
The Fae warriors hesitate. I don’t recognize them. These are not the men I have trained. I don’t see any of the Fae Corps here either. Which means Boris has my men captive, or worse…no, he couldn’t have killed them. I shove the thought out of my head.
“Capture her.” Boris steps forward into the ring from the opposite side.
Around us, people in the stands rise to their feet.
Only then do I realize where I am. In the arena in the center of the city. Where the Fae Elders meet to celebrate victories and mete out punishments. Blood thuds at my temples.
“Get her,” a man from the crowd hollers.
“Leave her.” The words roar out of me. “
Else I won’t spare any of you. When I get out of here, I will kill each and every one of you.”
The soldier stops. His shoulders bunch. His throat moves as he swallows.
Boris leans forward on the balls of his feet. “Dante went against my orders. He’s a dead man.” He looks around at the soldiers. “Any man who disobeys me is siding with him. And you know what that means for you and your families, don’t you?”
The soldier who’d come out of the portal looks to the man closest to him. Then nods. He raises his hand. “Get the woman.”
The other soldier races toward Gia, who drops down and kicks his legs out from under him. The soldier goes clean over her shoulder, hits the sand, rolls over, and lies still.
The crowd boos.
Another man in the audience jumps up. “Fight,” he screams.
Others take up the cry. “Fight, fight.”
This can’t be happening. I strain at the bindings that tie me. They are too secure. The ropes are steel-edged; they bite into my skin, tear at blood vessels.
Two soldiers attack Gia. She charges at both of them and takes them down. She wraps her arms around their necks and holds them down.
Another man raises his joined arms and brings them down on her back. She screams.
The sound is lost in a cheer that rings out from the audience.
Anger heats my blood. My insides twist. I dig my feet into the ground below. I have to get to her. Have to. I drop into myself, reach for that kernel of telekinetic energy, and draw it up; only for it to surge forward and hit a barrier.
Fire flares to life around my neck. I smell my own burning flesh. “The fucker collared me?”
The pain screams over my skin, and my nerve endings seem to all short-circuit at once. My brain cells feel overloaded. My skin seems to be on fire.
Another burst of flares from the collar tears into my throat.
Darkness breathes at the edges of my mind. I can’t give in to it. Will not give in to it.
Not when she needs me. I dig my nails into the palm of my hand. Force my emotions to calm. Force the deluge of fear that threatens to overcome me. I push back all the thoughts, clear my head of everything except the feeling of how it was with her. I force my muscles to relax.
The telekinetic energy subsides.
The air rushes back into my lungs.
Ahead of me, a soldier grabs Gia by the scruff of her neck and hauls her to her feet.
Everything inside me screams to break out and help her. But I can’t give in to my emotions. Can’t let the anger overtake me. I need to bide my time, find an opening, then attack.
Else we will both be dead, I know that.
“Leave.” Boris jerks his chin at his men.
The soldier who’d held Gia steps away.
She stumbles forward, then straightens herself.
His men leave the arena. The door slams shut behind them.
The audience quietens. A hush of expectancy grips the crowd.
Boris’ gaze locks on Gia. He takes a step forward.
My heart hammers. My muscles bunch. Everything in me screams out in protest. “Let her go, asshole. It’s me who failed the mission. I am the one you want, not her.”
He turns to survey me, his eyes narrow. “True that, soldier.” He drums his fingers on his chest. “But I never could resist a bargain. And it seems the two of you come as a package deal.”
He’s right, and yet the way he says it, the implications of it are not lost on me.
“You know she is innocent.” I square my shoulders and blink away the sweat from my eyes. “She has no connection to what happened on the mission. She just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
His eyes gleam. “Collateral damage.” He turns to stalk toward me. “You of all people should know that is unavoidable in our line of work.”
I toss my head. “You were never unfair, Boris.” I cast around in my head, trying to say something, anything to distract him. “I am here, aren’t I? You got me, captured me. I am the one who made mistakes. Who botched up my mission. It’s me who should pay.”
“And you will.” He leans forward. “But she knows too much. She can’t live, not after making it this far. She came for you. And you may deny any connection with her, but clearly, she doesn’t feel the same way. It’s why she has to die.”
“No.” My heart pounds, and my throat closes. A burn of anger clutches my gut.
“Or perhaps, it’s you I should kill first.” He raises his hand, and the tips of his fingers burn blue.
33
Gia
The commander holds up both his arms, the tips of his fingers glowing with that blue light.
A shiver of anticipation grips the crowd. The wind picks up and plasters my clothing against my curves. The commander turns to look at me. His gaze rakes over my figure. My skin crawls, and my fingers tingle with the need to cover myself up.
After being with Dante, after accepting the connection between us, the gaze of anyone else on me feels so wrong. My heart thuds.
Boris’ lips firm. He tilts his head. “I suppose I see why you felt compelled to save this human.”
Dante’s shoulders bunch. The tendons of his throat flex. He sets his jaw. It’s clear he wants to scream choice insults at Boris, yet he resists.
Those blue eyes blaze at Boris.
His anger hits me with the force of a storm, and it’s not even directed at me. For that matter, since I made it here, Dante hasn’t even met my gaze.
It’s like he’s studiously avoiding me, pretending I don’t exist. Maybe it’s for my own safety, or perhaps he simply doesn’t care for me anymore. Had it been a mistake to have come here?
I curl my fingers into fists at my sides.
Boris turns his face up toward the audience. “Faes of Singapore. We are the most technologically advanced species in the world. We come from a lineage of high IQ, high-functioning species who have left the rest of the shifters, humans, and vampires far behind in our economic advancement. Thanks to your hard work, our island state is the most prosperous in all the world. The reason we have made it this far is because of that one thing we cherish above all else. Know what that is?”
He raises his chin at the audience.
There’s a muffled shout from the ranks.
“I didn’t hear you.” He cups his palm around his ear.
There’s an answering scream back from the front row. “Loyalty.”
“Still can’t hear you.” He wiggles his palms in the upward direction.
“LOYALTY,” the crowd hollers back.
“That’s right.” He holds up his palms faceup. His fingertips glow brighter. “And you know what happens when someone goes against the words of our founding fathers?”
He looks around. There is silence.
A girl stands up in the front row. She points at Dante. “Death.”
A murmur ripples around the arena.
Then another man gets to his feet. “Kill him.”
“Kill. Kill.”
He bares his teeth. “I knew I could count on you to tell the truth.”
He turns to Dante. “You have a choice now. Kill her and then I kill you. Or I kill both of you.”
Dante growls. His features tighten over his features. “I am going to rip you apart, motherfucker.”
“Aggression. That’s good.” Boris nods. “It means you still want to live. Want to survive.” He narrows his gaze. “Maybe I should have the two of you fight. What do you think?”
“Don’t you dare,” Dante snarls and struggles against his bonds.
Boris wiggles his finger at Dante. “Don’t challenge me, Colonel. You are the one who went against your people, against the vows you took right here in this arena when you were sworn in to the army. You know I can’t let your mistake go unpunished. It sends out the wrong message.”
Anger squeezes my lungs. I can’t breathe. And besides, I am tired of being dismissed in the background.
I stalk over
to Boris. “Untie him, and then we’ll see if you can’t take us both on at the same time.”
He freezes for a second then claps. “That’s what I am talking about. A good fight to the end. Only I can’t get my hands dirty, you understand.” He holds up his palms.
My gaze falls to those lit-up fingertips of his. They glow blue with a yellow light surrounding the core.
“Just a precaution.” He rocks on his heels, his eyes gleaming. “Just need to be careful around that boyfriend of yours.”
“He’s not my boyfriend, you fucker.” I lean my head back.
“Oh?” He tilts his head. His eyebrows rise in a look of polite questioning.
I curl my fingers into fists at my sides. “He’s my mate.” I swing my fist up and into his chin.
His head snaps back. Spit flies from his mouth.
I move in with a punch to the right. His shoulders twist back, and he roars in pain.
I know I am not strong enough to defeat him. Not here, and not in front of his home crowd. But I’ve had enough of his sneering voice, his superior gaze, his high-pitched, holier-than-thou voice. Anger churns my gut. I taste bile on my tongue and swallow it down.
I raise my fist, only for him to swerve. My hit grazes his side. Then he raises his fingers, and the tips glow. The light flares and smashes into me. I feel my body arc back through the air, then hit the ground with a thump. Spots flash in front of my eyes. My insides jolt.
My right leg screams in protest; every part of me seems to hurt. I try to breathe, and it feels like my lungs are on fire.
Sweat slithers down my back.
“Don’t hurt her, damn you. I’ll have your head for this, motherfucker.” I sense Dante charge forward, only for the commander to raise his hand.
A bolt of light slams into Dante; the bonds holding him spark. Then his body crashes to the ground.
The arena itself seems to shake.
Around me, the crowd rises to their feet.
“Kill her.” A man’s voice from the audience echoes around me.
“Kill the human.”
“Show her what it means to trespass with the Fae.”
Legs stride into my line of sight. The commander bends down and holds out his hand to me.
Fated Mates: Paranormal Romance Series Starters Boxset Page 13