Love Eternal

by Nikki McCoy

  “He’s right,” Xenessa chimed in. “When I met Keenan, I was misled by his darkness. At first, I’d thought he was Roh Se Kahn, but when I saw Dhani earlier, I felt the difference. Keenan inherited his darkness whereas Dhani, quite literally,” she said, using Keenan’s word, “is darkness. I believe he’s the living embodiment of Roh Se Kahn.”

  Everything within Tailor stilled. His mind repeated Xenessa’s last sentence over and over again, unable to grasp the significance. It couldn’t be. Every kiss, every breath and sensuous emotion he’d felt from his mate over the past two weeks had been all Dhani. He was sure of it. Past the dryness in his throat, he said, “I know Dhani’s in there somewhere. He has to be.”

  “He is,” Xenessa assured him. “I could feel his spirit, although it was very faint. I just don’t know how much of Dhani is still in control. From the information Keenan relayed to me about what you told him yesterday, it seems Roh Se Kahn’s soul was only gradually taking over. You told Keenan that Dhani’s hair had only a single streak of white in it at first, right? Then the white became more and more prevalent in his red hair.”

  Tailor nodded.

  “I would surmise that the white signifies Roh Se Kahn’s growing power over him. If I recall correctly, the human host Roh Se Kahn was using during his recent time in this realm had also grown a full head of white hair after the God’s possession of him.”

  “That’s right,” Rowan said. “but it was whiter than Keenan’s or Dhani’s, and his skin was nearly translucent.”

  “Because of the amount of time Roh Se Kahn had spent using his body. From what I saw, Dhani’s hair still retains a small portion of its original color. That must mean Roh Se Kahn’s soul hasn’t been able to corrupt his completely yet.”

  “Yet?” Tailor said through clenched teeth, feeling rage boil in his blood. How could he not have seen what Keenan and Xenessa had so easily recognized in his own mate?

  “This is my fault,” Keenan said frantically, bracing his head between both hands. “I shouldn’t have taken him with me to fight my father. I should’ve made him stay here where it was safe.”

  Rowan strode to his mate and pulled him into a tight embrace. “Shhh. Don’t do this to yourself. No one could’ve predicted what happened, and you can’t tell me Dhani would’ve stayed if you had told him to. He loved you. He still does. We’ll find a way to save him.”

  Tailor watched the best friend of his mate cling to Rowan’s larger build as if his life depended on it.

  His life and freedom…

  Tailor’s mind went into overdrive, trying to put together the missing pieces of the puzzle eluding him. “Dhani came back,” he said slowly. “He appeared out of nowhere at a Ba’Kal community.”

  “So…?” Cy asked.

  “So he couldn’t have been released by Roh Se Kahn’s followers. They would’ve kept him with them if that was the case.”

  “Is it possible Dhani could’ve found a way out himself?”

  “No,” Xenessa said. “Dhani had no darkness in him when he was pulled into the alternate realm. The spell to open a rift between the realms would require both light and dark, such as Laya’s mate used, as you told Keenan over the phone,” She said to Tailor, her excitement matching his. “Roh Se Kahn’s darkness from the other realm and the light from the separation of your first mate’s spirit.”

  Tailor nodded. “Which means Roh Se Kahn had to be the one to free Dhani.”

  “I don’t understand,” Keenan said. “I read up on the alternate realm I sent my father back to. Only essences of darkness dwell there. The only light would’ve been in Dhani’s spirit and he still has it.”

  “Or not,” Laya murmured, her face blanching. “At least, maybe not both of them.”

  Keenan drew his brows down. “I know you told me he has two, which I still can’t believe Dhani didn’t tell me about, but… Oh.” His eyes rounded as realization set in.

  “The spell would require only one spirit,” Tailor said, finishing Keenan’s thought. “Roh Se Kahn could’ve taken the spirit of my first mate and replaced it with a part of his soul. That would leave Dhani with his leopard and we would’ve been none the wiser if Laya hadn’t shown up and told me the whole story.”

  Xenessa leaned forward, her face animated as the pieces of the puzzle were finally beginning to come together. “Dhani’s leopard may be the only reason he’s been able to resist Roh Se Kahn’s control for so long. I understand now. The rift Roh Se Kahn created by taking one of Dhani’s spirits would only have been large enough for Dhani to pass through.”

  Tailor tipped his head in agreement. “If I were the dark God, I would command Dhani to gather my followers to perform another incantation to free myself, using the power of the light in them to make the rift big enough.”

  “Dhani’s a ticking time bomb,” Manning concluded. “Once Roh Se Kahn has full control over him, there’s no telling what he might do to complete the God’s plans or whether we’ll even be able to stop him.”

  “I can,” Keenan said with grim determination. “I still have the spell I used to cast my father out of this realm. Maybe if I can find a way to alter it, I can draw my father’s soul out of Dhani then send it back. I’ll start looking through the books I took from my father’s castle. There has to be something in them that can help us.”

  Cy stood up. “I’ll go with you. There might be a spell in there we can use to inhibit Roh Se Kahn’s control over Dhani.”

  “And me.” Laya spoke up, standing as well. “I have to do something. I can’t just keep sitting around watching my son fade further and further away from me. I won’t let him down again.”

  Keenan smiled with a look of newfound respect. “Okay, then. Let’s get started.”

  Tailor put his glass down. “I’m in, too.”

  Keenan shook his head. “You need to stay with Dhani and let us know of any changes. From now on, we can’t let him out of our sight for a single moment.”

  He acknowledged the truth of Keenan’s statement grudgingly. In all honesty, he wanted to stay by Dhani’s side to keep an eye on him as he had been for the last several days. Yet, the futility of doing nothing was starting to test every ounce of patience he possessed. He forced himself to stack a plate with food despite his lost appetite then bid everyone goodnight.

  In the room, he found Dhani asleep above the blanket, still dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. Quietly, Tailor kicked off his shoes then went to his luggage by the closet doors. He took his weapons out immediately, the only ones he’d had permits to enter France with, and put them in the bottom drawer of the dresser. His gun he placed in the top drawer of the nightstand. In the bed next to Dhani, he ate his food then shifted Dhani to pull the covers over them. Without waking, Dhani instinctively curled up next to him and settled his head on Tailor’s shoulder.

  Tailor’s mind still raced with the new discoveries he’d made, but his recent lack of sleep clouded his thoughts and pulled him under. He drew his mate into the circle of his arms and closed his eyes, telling himself he would sleep for only a short while. Just a few hours…

  * * * *

  Apprehension filled Dhani when his eyes sprang open. His body stirred and he shuffled quietly out of his mate’s arms to sit up in bed, only it wasn’t him controlling his actions. It was Roh Se Kahn.

  For the past three days, he’d been a passenger in his own body. Watching everyone around him from the cage of Roh Se Kahn’s control. He was a prisoner again, held hostage by the force of the dark God’s essence, so much stronger than his.

  The night he’d learned his falcon spirit had once belonged to Tailor’s former mate, something had snapped. All the despair and pain that had consumed him had been the leverage Roh Se Kahn needed to push his way past Dhani’s resistance.

  The God was more devious than Dhani had given him credit for. Instead of using the weakness of Dhani’s anger, Roh Se Kahn had broken through his will using the force of his grief. In that moment when Dhani had given up hope, thi
nking he had lost Tailor forever, Roh Se Kahn had pounced. He’d shattered the barrier of Dhani’s will and staked his claim, making it only a matter of time before Dhani could no longer stave off his domination.

  So many times since then, Dhani had tried to reach out to his mate. To scream at him and tell him of Roh Se Kahn’s presence inside him, but the words wouldn’t come out. Roh Se Kahn had taken his speech first, then his sight and finally the whole of his motor skills. It had been the God who had boarded the plane to France to set his plans into motion. The God who had hugged Keenan and stayed close by his side while traveling to Rowan’s palace.

  All the while, Dhani had raged inside to give even the barest hint to his mate and best friend that he wasn’t who they thought he was anymore. The most he’d been able to manage for the past several days was pressing himself into Tailor’s warmth at night. To show his mate that he still loved him. That he was still there.

  And his smiles…

  He could see how much Tailor hated them, as if he thought they were false when they were just the opposite. They were the only truths aside from their closeness at night that Dhani had been able to give him.

  He padded on bare feet around the bed to the dresser, his vision clear in the pitch black of the room. A glimpse in the mirror showed him Roh Se Kahn’s silver eyes staring back at him. It was strange and terrifying to see his own familiar face, yet know that it no longer belonged to him. Dhani could only watch helplessly as he flashed his teeth in a malicious grin.

  The God was up to something. Although Dhani couldn’t read his thoughts, he felt every emotion in Roh Se Kahn’s soul. At that moment, Roh Se Kahn was feeling…exultant.

  Dhani took one of the daggers from the bottom shelf where he’d seen Tailor place it earlier, then stepped lightly back to the bed. He firmed his grip on the hilt and it was only when he raised the blade, preparing to bring it down viciously, that he realized Roh Se Kahn’s intent.

  No! he screamed within, throwing all that he had into seizing command of his own body again. Relief shot into him when his arms obeyed and halted their downward motion, but his control was tentative. His arms shook as Roh Se Kahn fought him, the blade hovering mere inches from Tailor’s chest. Inside, he could feel the God laughing at him, taunting him.

  Dhani used the last of his energy to yank his arms back and force his fingers to release the hilt. Roh Se Kahn reclaimed control in the next instant and caught the dagger before it could fall to the floor and wake Tailor. It all happened so fast, it took a moment for his mind to catch up.

  He’d actually stopped Roh Se Kahn! But his solace in that act was short-lived. The strength of his will was depleted and he didn’t know if he could go another round if Roh Se Kahn tried again.

  Fortunately, the God seemed to lose interest in Tailor. His sick humor gave way to impatience as he set the knife on the nightstand then called forth the power of his darkness. Dhani felt it rise swiftly within him, a cold force suffocating in its potency. His vision blurred and stomach lurched at a horrible sensation of displacement.

  Suddenly, he found himself in a different room. Roh Se Kahn must have teleported him—one of the God’s many abilities, Dhani recalled, from what Keenan had told him years ago.

  This room was decorated with lavish furniture in soft, pastel colors. A four-poster bed stood at the far end on which sat two figures masked by a sheer curtain of silk gauze. They spoke quietly, their words muffled. Dhani didn’t recognize the pair until his mouth opened and he said in an imperious voice, “Vane.”

  Dhani’s thoughts reeled in alarm. Roh Se Kahn was finally going through with his plan. He’d known all along it was inevitable, especially after Tailor had taken him to see Keenan, inadvertently reassuring the God that the object of his hatred was alive and available for him to use. Yet, Dhani couldn’t quite believe it was happening. In the back of his mind, he’d foolishly clung to the hope that he would succeed in taking his own life before Roh Se Kahn could force him to go through with what he intended for Keenan.

  Vane, the only one of Keenan’s half-brothers still alive after the battle a year ago, surged to his feet. His sleek, tailored suit fit his tall frame well and enhanced his aristocratic features, though his short, blond hair was mussed. He pulled a knife from a holster hidden by his jacket and flung the blade straight at Dhani’s head. With a simple flick of Dhani’s wrist, the knife was knocked from its path and clattered harmlessly to the floor several yards away.

  Vane stared in disbelief, then narrowed his eyes. “I know you. You’re the boy who brought my brother back to life. The one my father took with him to his prison when he was cast out of this world. How did you get in here?”

  The other person on the bed pulled aside the gauze and rose to stand next to Vane. It was a woman with long, auburn tresses and a full figure concealed by an ivory, satin robe. Her pale skin glittered with diamonds hanging at her ears and neck, and the slant of her chestnut-colored eyes was shrewd.

  It was Deirdra, Rowan’s ex-wife and the mother of his daughter, Adreanna. The last Dhani had heard, she’d been pregnant with Vane’s child during her marriage to Rowan. She and Vane had conspired to overthrow Rowan’s throne with the intent of making Vane the proxy Magnique until their son was old enough to rule as king over the Vam’kir.

  Confusion filled Dhani. The one and only time he’d ever seen her was when he and Keenan had snuck into Roh Se Kahn’s castle to defeat him. She had been in Vane’s room, arguing and crying over broken promises. Vane had revealed to her that he’d never cared about her or their child. That she had only been a tool in his scheme to get rid of Rowan and take control over the Vam’kir.

  What was Vane doing here now?

  Dhani didn’t believe for a moment the demigod had miraculously grown a conscience in the past year and had gone back to Deirdra out of any semblance of love. And the child, if it had been born, would be obsolete. It was not of Rowan’s blood and therefore had no ties to the throne.

  Deirdra pulled tight the lapels of her gown in a false attempt at modesty. “What’s going on?”

  Vane ignored her, sneering with contempt as he advanced on Dhani. “Tell me, boy, did my father make you beg for mercy when he had you in his prison? Did he make you pray for death as Keenan did when I tortured him like the slave he was?”

  Without any effort, Roh Se Kahn drew on his darkness and raised Dhani’s hand, shooting a bolt of lightning at Vane’s chest. The demigod flew backwards onto the bed and Deirdra jumped away with a shriek.

  Dhani approached Vane, meeting his shocked gaze with contempt. “You disappoint me. How can you expect to win a fight when you can’t even recognize who you’re fighting with?”

  Vane rubbed the scorch marks on his suit then sat up, staring at Dhani in consternation. “Father?”

  “I see your wits haven’t improved during my absence…or your tastes,” he said, curling his lip in Deirdra’s direction.

  “How is this possible?”

  He paced to the other end of the room. “This boy has two spirits. I’m not sure how that came to be, but it has worked to my advantage. I was able to open a portal to this realm by taking one of them and replacing it with a part of my soul. However, there was only enough light for the spell to send him through. The rest of my essence is still trapped in that prison. We’ll need to gather my worshippers so I can perform the spell again and free myself completely.”

  “That may not be an option.” Vane flinched when Dhani rounded on him. “Yet! I mean, it’ll take time. Your followers who were still alive scattered after the battle. In your absence, they fled. I’ve only been able to track down a few. They’re scared of Rowan’s retribution if he were to find out who they truly served.”

  Dhani could sense through Vane’s energy that he was lying, though Roh Se Kahn didn’t seem to notice.

  “And this one’s mate,” Vane went on, gesturing to Dhani’s body, “has been searching for him ever since you stole him. He’s been killing every follower of yours
he can find. It’ll make things harder. There’s no telling where they’ve gone into hiding.”

  “Then find them!” Dhani roared. “Recruit more. Do whatever is necessary or I’ll no longer have a use for you.”

  “Y-yes, sir.” Vane stammered.

  “Where are your brothers?”

  “They didn’t survive the battle.”

  If that saddened the God in any way, Dhani couldn’t feel it. There wasn’t even a hint of hesitation in his threat to Vane. The only emotion Dhani could feel in him was a slight annoyance at the setback to his plans. “You’ll have to do, then. Find my followers and have them meet us at my castle.”

  Vane stood with a frown. “Rowan and Manning are having the castle watched by their guards. It’s why I haven’t returned to it.”

  “No,” Dhani sneered. “You haven’t returned because you’re a simpering coward. I’d have thought you would’ve found a way to free me yourself by now. I’ll take care of the guards. You have one day to gather enough people for the spell.”

  When Vane nodded, Deirdra ran to him and clutched his arm. “You have to take me with you, and Sevrick. You promised you would take us with you when a chance arose.”

  “Who is Sevrick?” Dhani asked.

  Vane glanced at him nervously, as if he hadn’t intended his father to find out about Sevrick. “He’s my son. I can teleport him and Deirdra to the castle now. They won’t be a distraction, I swear it.”

  Again, Dhani was confused. Why was Vane bothering to care for a child he’d never wanted?

  The God’s ire hitched up another notch, but he didn’t argue. “Get him now. We have no time to waste.”

  Deirdra’s face lit up with elation. “Sevrick’s room is just down the hall. I can have his things packed in two minutes,” she assured Dhani as she rushed through the door.

  Vane and Dhani followed her, only to halt when they caught sight of a group of three men coming up a flight of stairs at the far end of the hallway. Judging from their uniform pale skin and dark hair, Dhani guessed they were Vam’kir. Rowan must’ve assigned a guard to keep watch over his ex-wife.