Shackled to the World: A Phantom Touched Novel

by Brutger, Stacey

  As she reached for the door, the room behind her cooled dramatically. A shiver snaked down her spine, but it had nothing to do with the temperature.

  “Good afternoon, Daughter dearest. I thought it was best that we finally meet, don’t you agree?”

  Chapter Twenty-five

  The voice was deep and cultured, every word modulated in a way that was guaranteed to annoy the piss out of her. Annora’s gaze flew to the guys, but even as she watched, the glass separating them began to fog.

  It only took seconds to black it out completely.

  Darkness stirred around her fingertips. Though she could easily dispel it, she decided to wait. The last thing she wanted was to put her men at risk.

  Very slowly, Annora turned and faced her father.

  He…wasn’t what she was expecting.

  He wasn’t a big man, more medium height and slim build, and reserved, like he’d emerged from a different era. Since phantoms could live for centuries or even longer, she shouldn’t have been surprised.

  He didn’t look like the power-hungry megalomaniac she was expecting.

  Until she got to his eyes.

  Pure ruthlessness stared back from those black pools. No hint of color was revealed in their dark depths, like he’d swallowed the afterworld. She tore her eyes away, checking the room, but he was alone. She wasn’t sure that was much better than if he’d brought an army.

  He could easily kill her without any other phantoms being the wiser.

  “Hello, Daxion. I would say this was a pleasure, but I detest lying.” She didn’t bother smiling at the man who was her father. Though her mother was the complete opposite of him in personality, she could easily imagine her slight, petite mother, who never had a hair out of place, standing next to him.

  That’s where the comparisons ended.

  Her mother loved and laughed and lived to help others. This man, the way he looked down his nose at her, would be content to cut her throat without blinking if she dared get in his way.

  “What do you want?” It chilled her to see him study her with curiosity. She’d take his disdain, or no emotion at all, over that.

  “You’re causing quite a stir.” He sauntered toward her, unbuttoned his tailored coat and sat, resting his arm along the back of the couch…revealing two small blades tucked into his jacket. “I decided to investigate.”

  He was so calm and collected, not a hint of emotion marred his expression. She didn’t make the mistake of thinking him cold and unfeeling. She’d met enough men in her life to know that psychopaths came in all flavors and could strike at any time.

  Instead of provoking him, she took a seat opposite. “What do you want to know?”

  He pursed his lips, clearly not liking her taking control of the conversation. “You seem completely unaware of the phantom realm and your place in it. You’re upsetting the balance.”

  Annora widened her eyes, going for the innocent look. “Whatever do you mean?”

  He cocked his head like a curious bird, the afterworld clinging him, ready to yank him out of danger if he came under attack. Annora kept her hands on her knees, making no sudden moves, very conscious of those shiny blades easily within his reach.

  “Phantoms have a very precarious place in the world. We don’t share our magic with others. Imagine if the world discovered eternal youth. What if no one ever died or had to face the consequences for their actions?”

  Annora grimaced, recognizing the truth of what he was saying.

  The world would descend into chaos.

  “So you go about killing anyone who challenges…your way of life?” Annora frowned and leaned forward. “But what if phantoms don’t deserve that type of power either?”

  His smile was sharp and lethal when he leaned forward to match her pose. “We have checks and balances to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

  “Explain.” Annora should be thrilled to finally meet her father and talk with him. Unfortunately, the creep vibes coming off him erased any pretense of fatherly love or devotion. She didn’t need to be told that she shouldn’t get too close to him for fear he would turn on her and ordered her tossed in a dungeon just as graciously as he smiled.

  “Most phantoms live in a delicate balance. Too much of the darkness will poison us and not enough will slowly starve us to death. Imagine if everyone had access to it. The well of power would shrink, putting our way of life and our people in jeopardy.” He shrugged, not the least bit perturbed. “No one has complete control over the darkness. Only the very strongest can spend any time there without losing themselves to it.”

  His eyes dropped to her neck, and the first hint of true emotions entered his eyes—awe mixed with wonder, not to mention a huge dose of greed and anger. “Where did you get that?”

  Annora didn’t dare take her eyes off him. She reached up, her fingers tangling in the chain around her neck, and she curled her hand around the coin that dangled and spun in the air. “A friend gave it to me. He thought I would need protection.”

  She refused to acknowledge that it was his brother.

  Only after she tucked the coin back into her shirt did Daxion seem to shake himself out of his stupor.

  “Hand it over.” He shot to his feet, and thrust out his hand, glowering down at her. Blackness seeped from him and crept across the floor toward her, the inkiness almost sinister in the way it moved, like it was prepared to take the necklace from her. “Now! Or I’ll make you regret it.”

  Before she had a chance to respond, Edgar appeared behind him, Sadie’s sword in his hand, the tip pointed at her father’s neck. “Step away from her. Now.”

  Death gleamed in Edgar’s eyes, his gaze narrowed on his former mentor as if barely resisting the urge to swing the sword and sever his head from his body. Daxion stiffened and backed off, glaring daggers at them both.

  Annora kicked out at the hovering fog, watching it curl up in the air before dissipating harmlessly back into the afterworld.

  “Alcott…you managed to survive, I see. Pity.” Daxion lifted his hands in surrender, clearly knowing the other phantom was more than capable of following through on his threat.

  “No thanks to you.” Edgar moved to stand in front of her. “And not on my own.”

  Daxion lifted his brows at her, his curiosity sharpening as he looked back and forth between them. “Ah, I see.”

  “Annora—touch the seal on the room. Your men are locked out, but your touch should be able to key them into the house.” Edgar didn’t lower his sword or take his attention away from Daxion for even a millisecond.

  Although Annora wasn’t sure she wanted more volatile emotions in the mix, she trusted her men. If her father thought to harm them, she would destroy him. She walked over to the glass wall and placed her hand against the cool surface.

  The dark particles whisked up to lick at her hands in welcome, obeying her without hesitation.

  She felt the instant the guys entered. They were silent, each of them entering at different points to clear the house.

  They reached the living room in under a minute.

  Daxion didn’t say anything, studying each of the guys with shrewd eyes, before turning toward her. Without speaking, he lifted his arm, unbuttoned his sleeve, and rolled it up. Imprinted on his wrist was a raven in midflight. The black lines were faded, the wings a little molten.

  “I used to be mated like you.” He brushed his fingers along the symbol and shook his head at the folly. “More than five centuries ago arranged alliances were the norm. It allowed families to merge power during the wars. When humans began to persecute shifters and witches, we fought alongside them, only we ended up taking the brunt of the damage in battle.

  “We lost many. After the wars, we withdrew from the outside world. To keep ourselves safe, we allowed everyone to believe we’d perished. It was only after the wars that we became aware of how dangerous it was to bind two phantoms together.”

  He turned his back toward the room and stared out the darke
ned window at something only he could see, his hands on his hips. Camden and Xander crept deeper into the room, while Logan and Mason moved into position on either side of her.

  When Daxion started speaking again, everyone froze. “I lost my mate in the war, only she didn’t die when she went into the banished lands. Our connection bound her to me, giving her enough power to survive in the dead zone. Since then we’ve banned the barbaric practice so we won’t make the same mistake twice. That coin you wear is the only way for a phantom to enter and leave the dead zone unscathed. The only way I can get my wife back.”

  He turned toward her, his gaze beseeching. “Your mother was helping me find an alternative way into the deadly realm. We managed to create the coin as a type of portal, but something went horribly wrong. We lost the coin, and your mother vanished.”

  “Annora, you can’t believe a thing he says.” Edgar took a step back to stand at her side. He rested a hand on her shoulder and squeezed hard enough to hurt. “He manipulates the truth to get what he wants. If he hasn’t already tried to take the coin, it’s because it has to be given freely or the magic won’t transfer. You—”

  “I’m not stupid.” Annora reached up and patted his hand. Edgar searched her face, relaxing when he saw she believed him.

  Oh, she had no doubt what Daxion said was true, but the facts were twisted to suit him. Her mother hadn’t trusted him for a reason and gave up everything to go into hiding. It was a lesson she wouldn’t soon forget. “What is this dead zone?”

  Daxion’s eyes flashed toward Edgar in surprise before addressing her. “When phantoms die, we don’t just rot like humans. Our spirits are sent to the banished realm. Reapers often roam there from the dead zone, consuming the souls of the weak. The strong fight back and often turned into reapers themselves. No one survives long unscathed.”

  Annora was appalled at the choice—either die or turn into a reaper. Horror clawed down her spine when she saw the truth of what he really wanted. “When your mate died in the war, it was because you killed her. She chose to become a reaper to get her revenge. You don’t want to save her, you need to kill her to sever the connection between you so you can finally be free. She’s draining you faster than you can replenish your powers.”

  Everything began to fall into place. “You tricked my mother into helping you—possibly made her believe you loved her. It’s the only way you could have gotten her to willingly participate in your scheme.” She turned toward Daxion in time to see his face harden, all artifice gone, leaving behind the cold man who first entered the room.

  “My mother wasn’t a fool. She was a very powerful witch in her own right. She discovered the truth, the real reason you wanted the coin, and used her magic to keep it out of your hands before she gave it to Valen.” She saw a muscle jump in Daxion’s jaw and knew she was right. “In order to keep the coin away from you, he vanished into your dead zone.”

  “Valen followed me on one of my trips to visit your mother, the impetuous boy,” he huffed in exasperation. “The fool fell in love with her, ruining months of careful planning. He couldn’t mind his own damned business. When he learned the coin could open a portal to the other realms, he took it for himself. He always craved my power. Unfortunately, he wasn’t strong enough to control it.”

  Annora cocked her head, recalling the image of Valen…his kind eyes, his genuine worry and concern about her safety.

  He offered her the coin he gave his life to acquire in order to protect her from his brother.

  It wouldn’t surprise her one bit to learn he was the one who helped her mother make the grimoire for her, infusing it with his own magic, another layer of protection to keep her hidden.

  “I think it was the other way around.” Annora cocked her head as she studied Daxion. “You were the one who was jealous.”

  Daxion scowled and began to pace, his face so forbidding she could practically feel the air in the room cringe away from him. “He didn’t understand what we could’ve achieved. With the coin, we can raise an army of undead and taken our rightful place at the head of the supernatural world.”

  He stopped and put his hands on the hilts of his weapons, as if he could go back in time and kill them both. “Instead, Valen took the coin and entered the dead zone to keep your mother safe. I lost track of him there. When I returned to confront your mother and get her to create another coin, she was already gone. Imagine my surprise when I learned she created a half-spawn like you, one who could pass between realms and thrive.”

  He gave her a nasty smile. “In the end, she did exactly what I wanted her to do. I have no need of the coin, not if I have you.”

  Annora rose to her feet, her chin lifted in defiance, not the least bit frightened. She’d gone through worse and survived. She wasn’t about to allow herself to become that frightened girl again. “And you think I’d help you?”

  “Maybe not willingly.” Daxion laughed, a cackle that sent chills down her spine. “But as a half-breed, your kind has no legal standing in my world. The only way you’ll survive is if I publicly claim you.”

  He stalked toward her, ignoring the sword pointed at him and grabbed her chin in a cruel grip. “If I don’t vouch for you, phantom soldiers will hunt you and your men down and kill you one by one. The only way for you to survive is to become my pet, a slave to do my bidding.”

  Annora burst out laughing, startling him so much he dropped his hand and backed up with a glower. Any fear burned away under the rage that he would dare threaten her. Darkness licked under her skin, craving violence. Black wisps of smoke curled around her, the afterworld seeping into the human realm. “Send your soldiers. I’m not so easily killed. Harm my men, and I’ll make it my life’s mission to make sure you never get the coin or me.”

  Darkness wove between her fingers, eager for the taste of vengeance. Daxion studied the way the darkness obeyed her, narrowing his eyes when more fog seeped into the room, swirling protectively around the guys like a pack of eager hounds ready to rip apart anyone who ventured too close.

  The guys were hers to protect, and no one was allowed to touch them.

  Instead of fear, Daxion turned calculating eyes toward her. His smug attitude pissed her off, as if she was already under his control, her submission a forgone conclusion, and her control snapped. “You want to control the living and the dead? You want your reapers? Why don’t we call them now and let them drag each and every one of your soldiers into the dead zone you so fear. You won’t even see them coming.”

  The coin burned cold against her chest, keeping her from falling completely into the darkness of the afterworld. She stalked toward Daxion, ignoring the way Edgar followed hard on her heels. She glared up at the man who was supposed to be her father. “Checkmate, Father dearest.”

  * * *

  Edgar wanted to snatch Annora away from Daxion, hating that she stood so close to the vile man who saw her as nothing but an obstacle to getting what he wanted. She couldn’t know how very dangerous and underhanded he really was—the lengths he would go to achieve his goals.

  He saw the other men exchange glances, silently communicating with each other, preparing to move at the first hint of danger. Though they didn’t know Daxion well, shifters could sense his evil.

  By prior agreement, they were to remain silent and vigilant and wait for his signal before taking action. They protested until he reminded them that if they put themselves in harm’s way, Annora would throw herself into danger to protect them.

  If anything happened, they would keep Annora safe.

  He made them promise before he agreed to bring them inside.

  If anything were to go wrong, he would use his power to lock Daxion inside the shields, giving the guys a few precious minutes to kill him before reinforcements could arrive.

  If they didn’t all die first.

  When he glanced at Annora, he couldn’t see an ounce of fear in her. She would battle the world to keep them safe, but Edgar was very much afraid it would get her ki
lled.

  Losing her would destroy him.

  He couldn’t allow that to happen.

  “A compromise.” Edgar lowered his sword and turned toward Daxion. “I’ll hunt down your wife if you vow to leave Annora alone.”

  Daxion’s smile slowly curled his lips, a malicious gleam making his dark eyes shimmer.

  “Wait a fucking minute.” Annora slammed her palm against Edgar’s chest, managing to shove him back with the power of the afterworld still clinging to her. “No deal. The instant you step into the dead zone, they’ll rip you apart. I won’t send you there.”

  Edgar gently ran the back of his fingers down her cheek, not allowing himself to indulge himself the way he wanted. “No need. I can enter the dead zone through the afterworld without your help.”

  Annora flinched as if he’d struck her, confusion flavoring her words. “But…only the dead can get into the dead zone.”

  She blinked up at him, her mind rejecting the truth for a heartbeat longer, when anger suddenly darkened her face, and she slammed her palms against his chest and shoved. “Fuck you! If you think I’m just going to let you go without a fight, you’re more of an idiot than I thought. Do you honestly believe sacrificing yourself will keep me safe? As soon as you complete your end of the bargain, he’ll send his soldiers after us. He won’t even have to lift a finger himself. He’ll always find a loophole and weasel out of any bargain you make.”

  Edgar gritted his teeth, biting back the urge to curse.

  Because she was fucking right.

  He studied her beautiful face and his determination to protect her hardened. “But I’m not wrong. We need a compromise, something to keep him from coming after you.”

  Some of the fire in her eyes banked, the sharp edges of her fear easing, and she nodded up at him. “He’ll honor his promise?”

  Edgar glanced over her head and faced the man who had practically raised him. For so long he'd believed the man was a god. He’d been a fool. He pulled Annora close, his racing heartbeat only slowing when she was tucked safely against his chest. “Yes, he’ll honor his vow or he’ll risk losing his standing in the phantom realm. He cares about that more than anything else.”