by Dahlia Leigh
Berone approached Darien once the declarations were over and submitted himself on his knee in front of both Darien and the Sentinel at his side. “For your information, Rozalind is no longer under my control and no longer a part of the pack. She betrayed me and is working for a demon from the Void. She left the pack and is still unaccounted for. I will immediately pull all the shadows away from the castle and the surrounding area, but the Grievers were not mine nor a part of any plan of mine.”
“Thank you, Alpha,” Ashlynn said with respect, “we would appreciate that.”
“I hope this means we have a new tentative alliance in place between us?” Alpha Berone asked uncertain where they went from there.
Ashlynn nodded her head. “I believe we do. I will work something out officially with Darien so your pack has something to fall back on in the future.”
“Thank you, Sentinel.” The alpha turned to Darien. “Well done, son. You saw the bigger picture.” The alpha left before Darien had the words to respond to him.
Ashlynn reached for Darien’s hand, entwining her fingers with his.
“You did well, alpha,” Ashlynn said with a proud smile.
“One problem solved, one hundred to go?” Darien asked with a chuckle.
“Right. Let’s go deal with the remaining Grievers. We still need to find Roz, I saw her in shadow form around the perimeter not long ago. I have a feeling today is not over yet.” Ashlynn rounded up Edmund and Taegen while the shadow shifters and Unbound quickly left the grounds.
Chapter Forty-Six
Ashlynn
Ashlynn and her team ran for the castle. Another battalion of Grievers flew out of the trees, swarming not only the castle but the team. They battled their way to reach the castle doors. Ashlynn used her pendant’s magic to see the creatures for what they were: ugly carrion creatures of death made up of dark masses of shadow and bone with large heads, beady eyes, and stringy wings like bats. One dove at her head. She flung her arm out in defense and projected a shield of light to keep it off her. Ash ran to the door with her shield above her head. Once in the relative safety of the archway above the door, she threw one of her last vials of light magic at the beasts attacking her men.
“Run!” Ashlynn shouted at the guys so they didn’t miss their chance to get inside the castle when she opened the doors. Each of the guys ran, Taegen slashing left and right at anything approaching them, covering the rear.
Inside the safety of the outer entry, they turned to watch as Hijinx leapt off the overhang on the castle roof right in front of them. He turned to chatter something at Ash then turned back to face the Grievers.
“Hijinx, what are you doing?”
Hijinx pushed out a burst of powerful energy. When the residual energy settled, the little furry creature had multiplied into a hundred whirrels, each a carbon copy of the original.
Ashlynn gasped. “I didn’t know you could do that! How many secrets do you have, my friend?”
One hundred whirrels bared their many rows of sharp teeth and growled, taking off to attack the Grievers, releasing Ash and her team to get into the castle.
“We need to find Roz,” Ashlynn said, “I saw her head to the castle.”
More Grievers slammed against the windows and the front door.
Taegen nodded and held out his hands. “Do you have any more vials of that potion stuff left? Edmund and I will take the rest and help Hijinx clear out the rest of the Grievers. Go on without us and we’ll catch up.”
Edmund nodded and collected their bags of dust, too, leaving Darien and Ash with one set each, just in case.
“Good plan,” Ashlynn said. “Come on Darien, I have an idea.” She grabbed Darien’s hand and pulled him along behind her to his room.
He opened the door and before he could close it, Ash pulled him inside then pushed him against his own wall and kissed him like tomorrow wouldn’t arrive. Darien pulled back for air.
“I hardly think this is the time, though I’m not complaining,” he chuckled under his breath.
“Part of my idea,” she whispered into his ear then lightly bit his ear lobe, scraping her teeth across the sensitive skin. Both still alert, they sensed the shadow sneak into his room.
Ashlynn’s pendant heated at her chest in warning and she saw the shadow beast first, hidden in the dark corner of the room. Darien stiffened, but kept at their playful distraction. Ashlynn continued to play with the hair at the base of Darien’s neck and twirled her hand around the dark, wavy ends.
Ashlynn knew Darien felt stalked as she did, too, playing themselves as the bait, waiting for the shifter to come out of the shadows, so to speak. They waited patiently. In certain light—or lack of light—shifters in shadow form could almost be invisible as they blended in, just as the Unbound could. Some reflections could be seen, though, and some were allowed to be seen. In the mirror right behind them, Darien could see her. Rozalind.
“She’s here,” he whispered with a barely audible voice into the crook of Ashlynn’s neck.
Ashlynn knew she was playing with fire by luring the ex-betrothed in such a manner, but she knew the ploy would work. Plus, it was an added bonus to be able to steal a moment of passion with Darien. Ash knew Darien and Rozalind had been betrothed since they were young, but she also knew and believed him when he said he had never loved her. She had only used him out of her desperate desire to become the queen of the shadow shifter pack.
Still in the shadows, Rozalind sauntered closer to them, a look of hunger on her face. Ashlynn could see Roz watching Darien in the mirror, wanting him to see her. Roz looked him over. Spotting his hands at Ashlynn’s waist, Rozalind sneered. Roz’s persona altered, as if she transformed. Her sneer became a sultry smile. Through the shadows she spoke to Darien, though to anyone else the words would sound like a breeze moving through the room. Though, Roz wasn’t aware of Ashlynn’s gifting within the shadows and could hear her too.
“Darien, come back to me,” Roz whispered, “the Sentinel could never give you what I can as one of your own.” She trailed her long-nailed fingernails up his arm. Darien stiffened but allowed her to continue as if he was considering her offer, even as Ash was in his arms. “The Sentinel would never care for you like I did. I was meant to rule at your side. I can make that happen for you. I could give you this castle if that’s what you want.” Her personality shifted again. “Because, I will rule with or without you. I deserve to rule! I found someone who showed me the way to do it. I can become the Sentinel if her power turns you on. I will rule this castle and strip her of all her powers…”
Darien unexpectedly reached out his arm in partial shadow beast form and clutched her neck, grasping hold of her to keep her there.
Ashlynn slipped out from under Darien, but gripped his opposite hand so she could shift into the shadows with him.
Rozalind’s eyes widened and she inhaled with shock then quickly shut down her expression to be composed and tight.
“I’m guessing you didn’t know I could do that,” Ashlynn said.
Rozalind’s jealous rage was palpable. Darien squeezed tighter on her neck and released his claws, barely scraping her skin. “Who told you, you could strip her powers?”
“I don’t need to answer to you anymore.” Roz responded with feigned sweetness. “I found a way to be queen when no one else could.” She batted her eyes at Darien, right in front of Ashlynn without care. “You could still join me, Darien.”
Ashlynn raised an eyebrow at Rozalind’s audacity.
Roz lifted her lip in disgust. “The Sentinel is weak and pathetic, moping around in a castle all to herself when she could be ruling the world—or even the Void—with her power. But she doesn’t, because she is weak.”
Ashlynn calmly stepped in. “Rozalind, this is your last chance. Back down and you can end it all right now.”
Roz glared at her. “Never,” she spat, “I’m called to be a queen, and if I can’t be his queen then no one else would be.” In the blink of an eye, Roz had pulled out a dagger f
rom her hip and thrust it toward Darien, but in a lightning fast movement, Ashlynn swung out her own blade. Her blade connected with Roz’s dagger, knocking it away, throwing it off course from Darien.
“No on harms one of my men.” Ashlynn was furious. Still in the shadows she threw out the remaining light dust she had on her at the female shadow shifter. Ashlynn was glad the light dust worked even in the shadows, causing Roz to solidify. Ash threw her own dagger right into Rozalind’s heart, instantly sending her into a spark of light then a raining shower of black ash.
Frozen in a moment of shock, Ashlynn sought for air to breathe. She had never killed a person before—sure, lots of creatures from the Void or the shadows of the Unbound, but never a real person she knew. Quickly she thought of Darien. Ashlynn had no choice and would stop her again. Her duty was to her castle. But Darien had grown up with the girl and had been betrothed to her. Ash wondered for a brief moment if he would hate her for what she had done. She realized she cared more about what he thought than she would have ever allowed herself to in the past. Needing to get the moment over, her eyes found his to see his reaction, she was relieved to see nothing but love and adoration in his eyes.
“You saved me, Ash. In more than one way,” Darien said with an awe-filled expression.
Something changed in Darien’s face. His features tightened. His eyes locked on hers, filled with fear as they began to cloud over. Ashlynn felt as though he was slipping away from her, drifting further into the shadow realm. She could almost hear them—the shadows calling him to join them. They pulled on his strength and power. She remembered Edmund telling her the shadow realm pulled harder on those who were strongest. Darien’s shadow beast was one of the strongest.
“Stay with me Darien. Fight the pull of the shadows.” Ashlynn could almost feel his beast longing to return to the shadows until he heard her voice. She only hoped their new bond was stronger than the pull of the shadows.
“Darien, come back with me. Don’t be enticed by the shadows. I need you to stay with me. I can’t lose you now.” Ashlynn called to him, pushing her magic into their bond and reaching into his soul with her words and her heart.
He had a moment of clarity. She could see the fight in his eyes and they had a moment of connection. She gripped both his hands in hers, and leaned up to kiss him. His response was lacking at first, but she kissed him more, pouring her heart into her kiss. His mouth moved with hers, he responded to her passion and need. Out of the shadows they returned together, hand in hand.
Darien pulled away from her with awe in his expression once more. “I told you. You are my anchor.” He rested his head against hers, taking a moment for the two of them then kissed her forehead.
“Thank you.”
“We’re a team now, and you’re not getting out of it,” Ashlynn said with a wink.
He grabbed her hand. “There’s no place else I’d rather be. Let’s go find the others.”
ASHLYNN
Ashlynn and Darien found Edmund and Taegen just outside the entrance to the castle, still fighting off the pesky Grievers. They were holding their own, but appeared to be wearing thin and out of light explosives. Hijinx and his clones were on a rampage, taking out multiple Grievers at a time, but more and more seemed to keep coming.
“It’s like a never-ending supply of Grievers. Is someone manufacturing these things somewhere?” Ashlynn wondered out loud. Surveying all the damage around her to the castle and the grounds broke her heart. This was her home. She had had enough.
Her necklace warmed at her neck. Now more in tune with herself, her magic, and her pendant she could feel more of the castle than she had before. She sensed within the shadows with a greater strength than anything she had felt so far.
Ashlynn called to the creatures born of shadow, remaining in the grounds. Using the power of the pendant, she called the Grievers to come to her. The force of the power she used rocked her, but she held steady. They all came. All the Grievers gathered in a tight circle in front of Ashlynn, awaiting her command as if she had become their new master.
“Throw whatever light magic potion or dust you have left,” she instructed.
“Ash, we’re out of all of it,” Taegen said, gesturing between he and Ed.
“I have one left,” Darien said and held out up his vial.
“So do I,” Ashlynn said. “Throw it at them and we’ll see what we have left to work with.”
They threw the potions, but the magic wasn’t enough to do more than take out a handful of them.
“Well that was a let-down,” Taegen said, wiping his brow with his dirty sleeve.
“It doesn’t matter.” Ashlynn stepped forward into the center of the mass of Grievers. She knew she had all the light she needed within her. Her pendant responded to her belief in herself and warmed hotter than the stone ever had. She saw all the Grievers for what they were.
Ashlynn focused her power, but found accessing her magic to be fluid and seamless. She thought of her team, her family, her castle, and released all the love, acceptance, courage, and belief she now had within her and blasted them with an explosion of light so big no one could see for a moment. When she opened her eyes, all the Grievers had been extinguished and all that was left was a shower of ash raining down.
“Mission accomplished,” Taegen said, wiping the ash off his shoulders and out of his hair. “If only you knew you could have done that sooner.”
“Some things take patience and time to uncover.” She smiled at him.
“I don’t mean to ruin the moment, but it’s raining Griever remains on top of us, do you think we could go inside?” Edmund asked.
“Are you bothered by a little bit of Griever guts, Ed?” Darien teased. Edmund’s expression was answer enough as he removed his glasses and tucked them away in his pocket.
They all laughed in joy, in relief, and victory. They had worked as a team to defeat their enemies. After the dust and the adrenaline of the day had settled, Ashlynn realized how much she admired each of the three men. Now that she had them in her life, she couldn’t ever imagine a world without them; that terrified her as much as it filled her with joy. She had a family, both her greatest desire and greatest fear. She was starting to love them so fiercely she would be utterly destroyed if one was hurt because of her. She also recognized having them in her life would be worth the risk.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Ashlynn
Darien and Ashlynn met with the alpha who had come back to see how everything unfolded with Rozalind and her minions. Ashlynn told him what happened with Roz and the alpha still seemed surprised at the level of her treachery.
“I was wrong about her, son. I’m glad you were able to see it when I didn’t.” Alpha Berone turned to Ashlynn and gratefully inclined his head. “No one attacks my son and gets away with it. Thank you for stepping in, you saved him.” He turned to Darien with a solemn look in his eyes. “I was wrong about a few other things as well. I still hope you will return to the pack—your pack—but, for now, I see the honor and position you hold with the Sentinel at the castle as worthy. I will respect your decision to stay. I will continue to watch over the pack in your absence.”
“I will check in, father. I trust you to lead them into a new and prosperous future.” Darien stuck out his hand. His father grasped his hand firmly and shook.
Ashlynn smiled. “I hope to become allies for the future if necessary.”
The alpha nodded and gave them both a salute then took his leave.
Before Ashlynn and Darien returned to the castle, Darien gently held Ashlynn’s face between his hands. “Thank you for saving my life when Rozalind would have struck me with the dagger. I realized even more in that moment how much I wanted to be at your side. You are fierce and strong, gracious and merciful. I am humbled and honored to be bonded to you.” He placed his hand on his chest over the crest he now bore.
Ashlynn couldn’t tear her eyes away from him, and in that moment gave into the desires of her body. S
he leapt into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist then leaned in and captured his lips, entwining her fingers through his wavy, shoulder-length hair. Darien moaned but slowed the kiss. He took his time savoring her mouth, slowly sliding his tongue in and out, caressing her from the inside out. Ashlynn groaned with pleasure, enjoying how gentle his movements were against the dichotomy of the intimidating beast of a man he was. She loved every bit of it. Their moment continued to heat until Ashlynn became aware of their surroundings and how far her body was truly willing to go until they heard a high-pitched, throat clearing behind them.
Ashlynn slid down Darien’s body and jumped apart from him only to realize who had interrupted them.
“Asteroth!” Ashlynn cried as she fell to her knees in front of the little garden gnome statue with the green hat. “You’re back!”
“Thanks to you, Ashlynn.” The castle paused. “And I am to announce to you dessert has been prepared in the dining hall where the others are expecting you.”
Ash and Darien laughed. She was so relieved to hear his voice again even if it was through an irritating little gnome. “I’m so excited to have you back, but how did you?”
“I felt your burst of light and power—the Sentinel Queen’s power—and that gave me a bit of a surge and brought me back. I am still weak but can feel myself gaining energy again. Unfortunately, the only strength I could muster to communicate with you was enough to speak through the smallest of statues. And for some forsaken reason we have gnomes scattered throughout the grounds.”
Overjoyed, Ashlynn picked up the little gnome and carried him with them as they returned to the castle. Back to his old self, Asteroth grumbled and complained about the stupid little gnome and the indignity of being carried. Ashlynn laughed. “Oh, stop being such an ass.” Then she kissed the statue on his head.
“Darien, could I have a moment with Asteroth? I’ll meet you inside.”