by F. E. Heaton
She looked at the strand while he let it slip through his fingers. Her hair was turning red again now. The black dye she had used in order to escape her family's mansion undetected was fading.
"It's my heart,” she said and ran her fingers over the mark on her chest. “The magic responds to it, and it in turn responds to you. It hears the commands yours whispers to it and it obeys. The magic obeys it."
"And the sky is clear,” he said, raising his face to it. He was right. There wasn't a cloud above them now. “When Mia was regressing you, there was a moment when you screamed. A split second before it happened, the whole world fell silent."
A chill ran up her spine at what he'd said. “And you believe it was my power that made that happen?"
He nodded. “There is so much power inside of you and so much we do not know about it. You have mentioned your mother's book many times now. Do you believe there will be answers in it?"
"I do,” she said and leaned back, splaying her hands out behind her so she didn't fall over the edge of the balcony. She smiled inside when Valentine caught hold of her waist. Something told her that he was scared that she would fall. Shuffling forwards to allay his fears, she sat up again and stared at the distant mountains. “I wish I knew a way in. I hope I'll find one soon. There's so much to do."
Her eyes widened when she remembered something and she looked at Valentine.
"I know where the second half of the scroll is. Hyperion told me. It's in a museum in London. He said that I would know it when I saw it."
"You seemed to have got along well with Lord Hyperion,” he said.
She smiled at the darkness in his eyes. It made her want to tease him more with comments on Hyperion's appearance and seductive air, but she knew it would only irritate him and she didn't want to ruin the easiness between them.
"He was helpful, but that was all. He was more concerned with his sister than with me. When I told Mathias...” She frowned and then jumped down off the wall. “Mathias!"
"What about him?"
"When I called him to tell him about going to see Hyperion and about knowing where you were, he told me to call him before three nights were up or he'd be coming after me.” She took hold of Valentine's hand and led him back into the house. Her clothes stuck to her skin and she frowned at them when she tried to peel them off her. Maybe the rain hadn't been such a great idea after all.
Walking down the corridor, she followed her senses, using them to pinpoint Mia's location within the building. She pushed the door open and walked into the lounge. Mia paused halfway through sitting down when they entered, her fine brows knitting for a moment when her eyes ran over them.
"Is it raining?” Mia said and sat in the seat beside the unlit fire. “I can have this lit if it would please you both."
Prophecy looked down at her wet clothes and then across at Valentine. He ran his fingers over his hair, slicking it back, and shook his head in the negative.
"It was merely a shower,” he said.
She was a little surprised that he hadn't mentioned that it was her who had caused the rain. Was he hiding things from Mia now? Looking around, she smiled at the absence of Dmitri.
"Can I use your phone?” she said and gave Mia a grateful smile when she nodded and pointed in the direction of the telephone.
Leaving Valentine's side, Prophecy walked across the room to it. She had expected him to remain with Mia, but he followed her instead. She smiled when he leaned against the table the phone was on and folded his arms across his chest. He sighed down at his jacket and she knew he wasn't pleased about being soaked through.
She offered him a sheepish smile and dialled Mathias’ number. It seemed to take forever to connect and then it started to ring at the other end. She tapped her foot impatiently and held the receiver with both hands. The line was terrible. It crackled, giving the ring a distorted sound.
"Hello?” Mathias’ voice came down the line.
"Mathias, it's Prophecy,” she said and sighed when she looked at Valentine. “He's safe. I have him with me now."
"I never doubted you,” Mathias said. “We have been able to translate some of the scroll, but we need the second half if we're to understand what it is trying to tell us. The scroll has been split down the middle, so we only have half of each sentence."
"So it makes no sense? Hyperion has told me where to find the second part. We're coming—” She cut herself off when she heard a crashing noise in the background at Mathias’ end. “Mathias?"
There was a garbled noise and the sound of glass smashing. She heard things falling over and she clutched the phone a little tighter, causing the plastic to creak under the pressure of her fingers.
"Mathias?” Panic raced through her when there was the sound of unfamiliar voices and a cry of pain. Her eyes widened when the phone went dead. Slamming the receiver down, she picked it up again and hastily dialled the number.
Her heart clenched when an automated voice told her the number wasn't available.
Staring at the phone, she didn't hear Valentine speaking until he caught hold of her shoulders.
"What happened? Prophecy, what happened?” He shook her a little and she moved her gaze to rest on him. She let the receiver fall from her hand.
"Mathias ... I think something, someone ... it sounded like a fight.” Her mouth dropped open and she swallowed hard when she remembered that Mathias wasn't the only one in danger. Her stomach flipped. “Venturi!"
Valentine frowned. “Venturi?"
Grabbing his hand, she knew that she had a lot of explaining to do. She'd failed to mention Venturi during all their conversations about what she'd been doing. She hadn't done it on purpose. It had probably been a subconscious effort not to upset Valentine by mentioning another man's name, especially a man who showed feelings for her like Venturi did.
She didn't have the words to tell Mia what had happened.
She just stared at her.
Mia calmly rose to her feet. “I will arrange for someone to take you to the airport. We will have tickets waiting for you when you arrive. I hope that the worst has not happened and that you find your friends alive."
She nodded and followed Valentine when he grabbed their bag and strode through the house to the main entrance. She couldn't think clearly. She knew what she'd heard and she didn't want to think about what they would find when they made it to England. Would Mathias be gone? Was Venturi going to be gone too?
Her head ached and she almost walked straight into Valentine when he stopped abruptly. He turned and looked at her with pain in his eyes.
"He'll be okay,” she said, trying to comfort him.
He shook his head and uttered a single word.
"Kalinor."
Chapter 16
Valentine growled when he turned the door handle, opened it and strode into the house.
"Mathias!” he called out and listened for any sign of his friend. He wasn't holding out hope that he would still be alive. He knew who had come for him and he knew why.
Unable to find him, Kalinor had decided to exact his vengeance on someone he valued instead. Mathias had paid the price for his escape. His brows knit tight when he thought about it and his fingers curled into trembling fists. It wasn't fair. It should have been him that had been murdered, not his friend.
He ground his teeth at the sound of Prophecy's calls. She was shouting Mathias’ name, but occasionally she would call out the name of the new lord of Tenebrae. During their journey, she had explained who Venturi was and that he had worked with her for a while. He clenched his jaw when he thought about the fact that this man had sworn to protect her. Protect her? She already had a protector and that was himself.
Turning the corner, he walked into the lounge where most of Mathias’ books were stored. His eyes scanned over the dishevelled furniture and broken objects, the sight of it turning his stomach and filling him with dread. The chairs beside the fire were turned over and half of the books on the shelves had been thrown on
to the floor. He stopped dead when he saw Mathias’ glasses on the floor.
His heart sank.
It was true then. Mathias was gone.
Bending over, he picked them up and stared at them. His fingers shook when he ran them over the broken glass in the frames and he kept his jaw tensed to steel himself against the emotions sweeping through him. Sorrow overwhelmed his anger at himself but it didn't abate it. This was his fault and he was going to be the one to avenge his friend's death. He wrapped his fingers around the glasses and blinked back the tears as they filled his eyes.
Mathias was gone.
The one person who had always been there for him, who had always offered him shelter during his journeys and was always happy to spend countless hours listening to the tales of his adventures, was gone and he wasn't coming back. A thousand years of living had come to an end because of him.
He was never going to see his friend again.
There was never going to be another day passed in conversation with him about books and languages, about all the madness that was eating away at the world, or about the missions that he'd completed.
There was never going to be another day where he could step foot in this house and not feel the pain of his loss.
What had he done?
He brushed away the tear that slipped onto his cheek and felt mortified when he realised that he was crushing Mathias’ already broken glasses. He uncurled his fist and idly straightened the twisted metal, using the task to keep his mind off what had happened and why. He needed a moment of peace to get his thoughts into order and his feelings back in check.
"Venturi!” Prophecy ran past him and crouched beside someone.
Placing the glasses down on the wooden table, he noted the cut telephone cord and the pot of ink that sat beside a few scattered sheets of paper. Some of them had notes scribbled on them and splatters of black ink. The lid was off the pot and the pen was strewn to one side. Mathias had been writing when Prophecy had called.
He went to her where she was kneeling on the floor. He towered over her and the prostrate body of the Tenebrae. The sight of him made him want to growl. He looked more handsome than Prophecy had dared to describe him. The long strands of his mousy hair were strewn across his face. There was a dart in his neck. It was tipped with red and black feathers. Aurorea. Only his family used darts with those markings.
Prophecy turned and looked up at him with eyes full of worry. He knew the tears that streaked her cheeks weren't for the Tenebrae. Those were for Mathias. She had obviously realised that there wasn't a chance of them finding him alive.
"Is he?” she said.
"No,” he said bitterly, wishing that the Tenebrae was going to die like she feared. He shut his feelings down and turned his back on her.
Wrapping his arms about himself, he stared at the table and the glasses on it. He sighed. It was no use blaming the Tenebrae for what had happened. It was his fault that Mathias had been killed. His friend would have been no match for Kalinor and his guards.
"Valentine?” she whispered his name as though she feared he was going to lash out at her. Maybe she'd noticed his feelings for her newfound friend and protector. His fingers tightened against his elbow.
She placed her hand over his and looked up into his eyes. He tried to smile but failed. There was nothing to smile about here. He couldn't even do it to alleviate some of the worry in her eyes. Instead, he shifted his hand and took hold of hers.
He moved his attention back to the table and the pot of ink.
"The scroll!” Prophecy said and searched the table for it.
He knew she wouldn't find it. Kalinor would have taken it so they wouldn't be able to translate it. He looked over his shoulder at the unconscious man. There was a wound on the side of his head. He must have taken a heavy blow. Why hadn't Kalinor killed him too? He wouldn't know what the outcome of the battle in Romania had been, or who this man was. Maybe Kalinor hadn't seen him as a threat or didn't think that he was anything to do with them.
Maybe Kalinor had already left when the man had shown up.
His eyes narrowed.
Maybe this man had something to do with what had happened.
He shook his head, trying to rid it of the jealous thoughts that were crowding it. Just because Prophecy had failed to mention Venturi, didn't mean she had any kind of feelings for him. He looked at her.
"You will not find it,” he said. “Kalinor has it now."
"But...” She looked visibly crestfallen and slumped into the nearest chair.
He could see what a heavy blow this was to her. Walking around the table, he placed his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him. He smiled.
"Mathias was clever. He would have kept a copy hidden somewhere. When your friend comes around, he can relate what they had discovered during their attempts to translate the section of scroll. We will find the copy and continue to translate it.” He saw the relief that surfaced in her eyes when she took in what he'd said.
He wasn't lying to her. Mathias was obsessed with prophecies and doctrines of all ages and in all languages. They were of great value to him and he would have meticulous copies of all of them somewhere in the house.
"We must find where Mathias kept his copies. It will be somewhere hidden. Search the upstairs and stay alert when you do. Kalinor will know that we will come to the house to see what happened. Be careful.” He watched her stand.
She moved closer to him and her brows furrowed. Tears sparkled in the corners of her eyes. He sighed and wrapped his arms about her. She had barely known Mathias, but he knew that in the time she had, she had grown to like him and see him as a friend. Mathias had offered her shelter and food, but at the same time, he had given her more than that. It had been him who had explained the prophecy and shown her that there were others in the world who believed she would save the world, not damn their species to Hell.
Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, savouring her scent and the comforting feeling of having her in his arms, and then pressed a kiss to her forehead.
She pulled back and lightly kissed him before disappearing out of the room.
He stared at the empty doorway for a few seconds, giving himself time to come to terms with what had happened in the house and then his eyes slid across to the Tenebrae. He growled.
What kind of man had the audacity to swear to protect a woman who was already under another man's protection?
Crossing the room, he glared at the man for a few minutes, assessing his build and how easy he would be to defeat in a fight. He wasn't above killing him if it meant that his relationship with Prophecy wasn't threatened. The trouble was that he was sure that killing the newcomer would make Prophecy angry with him and that would jeopardise his relationship with her. She seemed to view Venturi as a friend. He'd have to settle for showing the Tenebrae that she was most definitely spoken for. He didn't care how old he was, or how skilled, when he woke up, Venturi was going to discover that he was not the alpha male in this group.
Valentine walked back to the table and picked up Mathias’ glasses. He frowned when he remembered what Mathias had said about his housekeeper. Someone was going to have to tell her what had happened and it was going to have to be a natural death or she'd alert the authorities. The last thing they needed were the police getting involved.
He folded the glasses up and laid them carefully back down on the table.
When the housekeeper showed up, he'd ask Prophecy to deal with her. There was no way he was going to associate himself with a human, especially one who was liable to start crying.
* * * *
Prophecy sighed and placed the book back onto the shelf. She must have pulled every single one off the bookshelf in Mathias’ room in search of a secret switch. It was hopeless and she was starting to tire. Whenever she caught a faint whiff of his scent she wanted to cry. Valentine appeared to be bearing up better than her, but she knew it was all for show. Inside, he would be hurting worse than she was. Mathias
had been a close friend to him, and Kalinor had killed him because of them. If she hadn't gone to rescue Valentine, Mathias would have still been alive. But Valentine would have been dead in his place. She wished that she'd killed Arkalus and Kalinor now. She should have stepped out in front of the car or blown it up.
She frowned when a distant noise caught her attention and then listened hard. When a crash came from below, she bolted out of the room.
She slid down the banisters, moving as silently as possible in case someone had come back.
"So this is the great and mighty Valentine.” A snide voice drifted through the open door and she paused just outside it.
She knew that voice.
Venturi.
She almost went in but stopped herself when he spoke again. She frowned.
"For a moment I was certain you were another of those filthy Aurorea dogs come to kill me,” Venturi said and she heard something clatter to the floor. Something wooden. “It was an honest mistake."
"An honest mistake?” Valentine growled the words. “Let us get something clear right now. I would kill you in less than a heartbeat if it was not for Prophecy."
"Prophecy? Does she command your every move? Can you not function without her to instruct you? Are we unable to think for ourselves? Maybe I was mistaken and you are just a dog of Aurorea, a slave to the whim of his master, waiting to respond to their every beck and call."
She clenched her fists. Who the hell did he think he was speaking to? Was this her fault? She had wondered what would happen when the two of them met. Were things always going to be this way between them?
Leaning against the wall, hidden from view, she waited for Valentine to respond. She closed her eyes and hoped he'd prove her fears wrong. She hoped he wouldn't take the bait that Venturi was dangling in front of him.
The wall shook and someone choked.
"I will not kill you because it would hurt her and I have vowed never to do that,” Valentine said in a deadly serious voice, one that made her smile.
She stepped out from her hiding place. Walking into the room, she raised her brows and folded her arms across her chest when she saw that Valentine had Venturi pinned to a wall. His fingers were digging into Venturi's neck and the Tenebrae's feet dangled limply a few feet above the floor.