“Not today and not ever. I’m already married—well, bonded—to someone else. Someone who needs me right now.” She pressed his hand briefly. “I’m really sorry. But please try to understand.”
“Understand?” He glared at her. “Of course I understand! I understand you’re running off and leaving me to foot the bill for this entire ceremony and reception!”
“I guess I am,” Alli said, shaking her head. “I guess I’m not as practical as you thought.”
“But…but where do you think you’re going?” Douglas blustered.
Alli took a deep breath.
“I have to find the man who really loves me—who’s trapped in a whole other universe, which is where I have to go too, in order to save his life.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “How’s that for a grand, romantic gesture? Now, please excuse me—I have to go.”
She left him standing there, slack-jawed, and rushed down the aisle.
“The PORTAL,” she exclaimed, grabbing Caroline by the arm. “Please hurry—I have to get to it and find Kane!”
“O-okay,” Caroline stuttered. “If…if you’re sure.”
“I’m sure!” Alli told her firmly.
She was certain the other woman was thinking of how she had reacted last time she had seen the other universe through the PORTAL aperture. But this time was different. This time she remembered.
“Come on,” she said, dragging at Caroline’s arm. “Let’s go!”
Forty-One
It seemed to take forever for the PORTAL to warm up. All the time Alli kept fidgeting nervously as she watched for the swath of stars and the clouded Earth to appear in the window. She was still barefoot and wearing her wedding dress, having run with Caroline—and Sophie and Sylvan and Liv—all the way from the Sacred Grove to Caroline’s lab.
“Hurry,” she muttered, as the PORTAL at last began to hum. “Hurry, hurry, hurry…”
At least none of her friends seemed to think she was acting strangely. Caroline had been startled at first but everyone in the Grove—with the possible exception of Douglas—had felt the Goddess’s presence. And several of them had heard the priestess’s words as well.
“I’m so glad you got your memory back,” Sophie told her, squeezing Alli’s hand. “I knew something must have happened in that month you were gone.”
“A whole lot happened,” Alli said distractedly, her eyes still glued to the PORTAL’s aperture. “But for some reason Kane made me forget it. He must have thought I was in danger. But damn it—how could he?”
“Ask him yourself,” Liv murmured. “Is that him there—on the bed?”
Sure enough, the PORTAL had rushed through the space and Earth scene so quickly it had been nothing but a blur, and now it was displaying a carved black four-poster bed with a man lying in the middle.
No, not a man, Alli realized—a Kru’ell One warrior—Kane!
But something was wrong with him. His eyes were closed and his breathing was shallow. In front of his bed, two other warriors who were clearly guards were talking.
“Poor bastard,” one was muttering to the other. “He might be the new Overlord, but for how long?”
“Not long at this rate,” the other replied. “The hell of it is, it’s not his wound that’s killing him.”
“No?” The first warrior raised his eyebrows in surprise. “That was a nasty scratch the old Overlord gave him.”
“No.” The second warrior shook his head firmly. “The Medic says the wound is all but healed. His problem is, he’s starving to death.”
“What?” The first warrior frowned. “Why doesn’t he just take a new concubine to feed from?”
“Rumor has it he went and bonded himself to another concubine—a female the old Overlord coveted for himself,” the second male said. “He did it to protect her but then he sent her away so the old bastard couldn’t get her.”
“Then he signed his own death warrant!” The first warrior looked awed. “What male in his right mind would do such a thing?”
“A male in love, I guess.” The second warrior looked almost wistful. “Have you ever thought of that? Thought of finding a concubine you could stay with forever?”
Alli didn’t wait to hear the other warrior’s answer. This was the place—the universe she needed to be in. And now she knew exactly what was wrong with Kane—he needed to feed from her emotions. And right now, she was brimming over with them!
“That’s him—how do I get in?” she demanded, climbing over the guardrail which had been placed in front of the PORTAL, apparently to keep people away. “How do I—?”
“Oh, be careful!” she heard either Sophie or Liv shout, but their voices seemed very far away. The picture in the PORTAL’s aperture got rapidly bigger and bigger until Alli found she was in it—standing right beside the four-poster bed with its still, silent figure.
“Hey!” one of the warriors gasped.
“What in the Seven Hells?” the second growled. “Where did she come from?”
Alli ignored them both.
She climbed into bed with Kane, not caring that her wedding dress was getting crumpled, desperate to be by his side.
“Kane!” she gasped as she gathered his head into her lap. “Kane, wake up! It’s me—it’s Allisandra!”
His eyelids fluttered open and he looked up at her with his mirrored eyes.
“All…isandra?” he muttered weakly. “What…what are you doing here?”
“Saving you—if I can.” She looked at him anxiously. He looked so weak—so helpless! What could she do for him?
He lives on pleasure, whispered the little voice in her head. Remember, Alli? He lives on emotion and the sensations you have when he touches you. Think about it!
At last Alli understood—finally she knew what to do.
“Kane,” she said urgently, putting her neck to his mouth. “Kane, Sting me! Hurry—do it now!”
She was afraid he might refuse for some reason, but then she felt his mouth opening as he pressed a weak kiss to the side of her throat.
“Sting me!” she urged again. “Just like you did when you bonded me to you!”
He groaned weakly but at last she felt the sudden stabbing pain, followed by the intense pleasure. With a gasping cry, she pressed herself to his big body.
“Yes, Kane,” she moaned, holding him tightly. “Yes, Sting me again and again—as many time as it takes to make you better.”
The big Kru’ell One did as she said and as the waves of pleasure rushed through her, Alli could feel him growing stronger.
“What are you doing here?” he sent through their link. “Thought I made you forget.”
“You did, you big idiot!” Alli was half-laughing, half-crying through gasps of pleasure. It was an emotional overload but she welcomed it eagerly. “You sent me away to keep me safe from the Overlord, didn’t you?”
“He wanted you.” There was a fierce growl in Kane’s mental voice. “Couldn’t let him have you, baby.”
“Well someone else almost got me, thanks to your little memory-wiping trick!” Alli scolded him. “Do you know I was actually at the altar with Douglas saying my wedding vows before the Goddess helped me remember you?”
“You were?” Kane’s eyes flashed and he drew back to speak aloud. “Tell me you didn’t Join with that weak little bastard! He doesn’t deserve you!”
Alli felt her heart leap in her chest. He was already looking and sounding stronger! He must be feeding off her intense emotions even now. Emotions of joy and love and deep relief that the man she adored was going to be okay.
“Of course, I didn’t,” she said, stroking his cheek. “I left him at the altar. He’ll get over it—as long as I pay him back for the ceremony and the reception.” She made a face. “He’s more worried about losing his money than losing me.”
“He’s a fool then.” Kane wrapped her in his arms. “Because now that I have you back, I never intend to lose you again!”
He started to kiss her but Alli put a hand on his chest.<
br />
“Uh, Kane? The guards?” she said, nodding at the two big warriors who were still staring at them, dumbfounded, as though they couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
“Guards?” He frowned and looked over at them. “Hey, you two,” he growled at them. “Do you mind? Your Overlord needs some privacy.”
Their black and silver eyes wide, they both nodded.
“Yes, Overlord. Of course, Overlord!”
“And lock the door behind you!” Kane called after them as they left the big bedroom hurriedly.
He pulled Alli in for a kiss and gave her a smile.
“I’m going to bond my concubine to me all over again…and I have a feeling it’s going to take a while…”
Epilogue
“So this is a Kru’ell One. We’ve heard much of you in my universe, but I never thought to meet one of your kind in person.” Sylvan reached across his desk to offer Kane a warrior’s clasp. The other male took his arm and gripped it firmly before letting go.
“Pleased to meet you, Brother,” he growled. “I like your ship. We have our headquarters on the Earth itself in my ‘verse.”
“A much-changed Earth, as I understand it.” Sylvan raised his eyebrows.
Kane nodded.
“And it’s going to change even more—for the better, Goddess willing. There are a lot of things we need to do—stop the Calm dosage, elevate the humans to co-equal members of society…”
“Teach the Kru’ell One warriors they can find one special woman and bond with her instead of just going from girl to girl,” Alli put in, raising her eyebrows.
Kane grinned at her.
“Well, that’s already becoming fashionable, now that the new Overlord has already done it.” He pointed a thumb at his own broad chest and laughed.
“It turns out that many of the warriors were wishing for a permanent relationship with the female of their choice, but having Calm in a girl’s system made her emotions too muted to feed them for long,” Alli explained to Sylvan.
“But now that we’re no longer dosing the humans, my warriors will be able to find permanent brides like I have, instead of temporary concubines,” Kane added.
“I’m glad to hear you’re making such sweeping reforms,” Sylvan said, nodding. “But it sounds like you still have a lot of hard work ahead of you.”
“Which is one reason we’re here,” Alli told him. “I’m afraid that I’m going to have to resign my job with the Kindred of the Mother Ship. My place is at Kane’s side now. I’m going to help him through the legal aspects of setting up the new co-equal human/Kindred society on his version of Earth.”
“Well, we didn’t really expect you to travel between universes every day to get to work,” Sylvan said dryly. “That is, putting it mildly, one hell of a commute.”
Alli laughed. “You could say that. Plus, I don’t think I’ll want to be doing too much traveling in the near future.” She placed a hand on her belly which was very slightly rounded. “I’m expecting, you see.”
Sylvan smiled.
“Congratulations, Allisandra. I know the two of you will make wonderful parents.”
“We’re certainly going to try,” Alli said. “But I don’t want to leave you high and dry. I know I’m not exactly giving you two week’s notice, but I’d like to suggest a replacement for my position, if I may.”
Sylvan looked interested.
“Please do. Any human Councilor you recommend is certain to have a sterling reputation.”
“She does,” Alli said earnestly. “Her name is Imani Williams. She was my intern—I mentored her for years and I’ve seen her grow into a fine attorney. She’s a little young and inexperienced but she’s extremely smart and she has a sense of justice and a love of the law that’s unequaled in any lawyer I’ve ever met.”
“I’d be pleased to meet her,” Sylvan said gravelly. “If you’d like to have her make an appointment?”
“No need,” Alli said quickly. “I wanted to introduce her in person while I was in this ‘verse, as Kane calls it.” She smiled briefly at her mate. “She’s right outside your office door. Do you mind if I invite her in?”
“Please do.” Sylvan made an expansive motion.
Getting up, Alli went to the door and opened it. Imani was sitting there with her briefcase clutched in her lap and a tense expression on her pretty face. She was wearing her best interview suit and when she caught Alli’s eye, she raised her eyebrows in a silent question.
“Commander Sylvan wants to meet you,” Alli told her, smiling. “Come on—you’ll do great. Just pretend he’s a judge or a jury.”
One thing about Imani was her contradictory nature. She was shy almost to the point of muteness when meeting new people, but put her in a courtroom setting with a defendant who had been wronged, and she was as fiery as a dragon.
Rising, Imani brushed her long, black braids behind one ear and followed Alli into Commander Sylvan’s office. Alli saw her lift her chin and make eye-contact and knew how difficult it was for Imani. She liked to call herself an “extroverted introvert”—meaning she could force herself to get over her shyness and meet new people, but it really cost her some effort to do so.
“Hello, Councilor Imani, is it?” Sylvan raised his eyebrows.
“Commander Sylvan—so nice to meet you.” Imani’s soft voice was belied by her firm handshake.
“I understand you’re very interested in using the law to right wrongs which have been done to people,” Sylvan said to her.
“Yes, definitely!” Imani’s dark eyes flashed as some of her fire came out. “I’m a civil rights attorney and I deal with a lot of cases where people have been wrongly imprisoned.”
Sylvan nodded thoughtfully.
“In that case, I think I have something that might interest you. A trial case to see if you and the Kindred are a good fit. Are you interested?”
“Can you give me the details?” Imani asked.
“I certainly can, but I have to warn you, this will involve some travel. You’ll have to fold space and go to a distant planet—are you all right with that?”
Imani lifted her chin.
“I can do that. Who is the defendant?”
“A Nightwalker Kindred.” Sylvan frowned. “They’re a very rare branch of the Kindred family tree. Rare to vanishing, I’m afraid. This particular warrior has been charged with murder—but we believe he is innocent. In fact, we have evidence proving it. Will you go and defend him? If you won’t, I’ll have to find someone else quickly. The prisoner is going to be put to death in a matter of days unless someone intervenes.”
“Put to death?” Imani’s dark eyes flashed fire. “Point me in the right direction, Commander Sylvan—I’ll be there to fight for him as soon as you need me.”
Sylvan looked pleased.
“You’re right,” he said to Alli. “She does have a very strong sense of justice.”
“She feels injustice personally, I believe,” Alli murmured, smiling proudly at her protégé.
“I do.” Imani nodded. “My big brother was sent to prison for a crime he didn’t commit. He…” Her voice faltered for a moment. “He died there.” She straightened her shoulders. “That’s what made me want to do the kind of work I do and fight for people who don’t have anyone else to fight for them.”
“Well, you’ll certainly have a fight on your hands,” Sylvan told her dryly. “The court you’ll be arguing in has some very…shall we say odd rules. But I believe you’re up to it.” He held out a hand to her. “Councilor Imani, welcome to the Kindred Legal Team.”
Imani shook his hand and smiled.
“Thank you, Commander Sylvan. I can’t wait to get started.”
Alli smiled with pride at the young woman beside her. It looked like Imani would be going on a little adventure, but she was sure her protégé was up to the challenge.
In the meantime, she would have a few challenges of her own—including motherhood. She turned her gaze on Kane, who was watching her
with a hungry smile on his face.
“I know what you’re thinking,” she sent through their link. “You want to have bonding sex again. But remember, you already made me pregnant!”
“Let’s try for twins,” Kane growled in her head. “It seems your protégé is going to do well here, so all your loose ends are tied up. Let’s go home, Allisandra—I want you.”
“I want you, too,” Alli sent him and felt a warm surge of lust through their bond. As she rose and took his arm, she felt as though her heart might overflow.
Just a month or so ago, she had been ready to settle for a loveless, childless marriage just so she wouldn’t have to spend the rest of her life alone. Now she had a mate she adored and a baby on the way. Her life had done a complete turn-around and she couldn’t be happier about it.
Thank you, Goddess, she prayed as she and Kane said their goodbyes. Thank you that I was…Captured by the Kru’ell One.
The End?
Of course not!
There are always more Kindred Tales coming. Next up in Imani’s adventure with the Nightwalker Kindred. I want to thank everyone who sent in ideas again. And don’t feel bad if your idea wasn’t used yet, you never can tell what may spark my muse—the next book might be dedicated to you!
If you have enjoyed Dark and Light, please take a minute to leave a review HERE. Good reviews are like gold for an author in this crazy, crowded e-book landscape. They let other readers know it’s okay to take a chance on a new author or a new series. Plus they give me the warm fuzzies. : ) Thanks for being an awesome reader!
Evangeline
PS—The two books in this Duet Novel are very different and I would like to know which you enjoyed the most. If you’d like to let me know, please take a quick minute to fill out this SURVEY asking about what you as my reader like and want from my next book. (It also asks your age but don’t worry, I won’t share the results or tell anyone. A lady never tells, after all ; ) It’s only 4 or 5 questions so if you have a minute, please fill it out. Those who do, are entering themselves in a drawing for a signed copy of Dark and Light. If you win the drawing, I will ship it right to your house with all my love.
Dark and Light: A Kindred Tales DUET Novel. Contains: Saved by the Drake AND Captured by the Kru'ell One Page 30