by Ryals, R. K.
"I'm Marcas'," I said confidently, and I knew my eyes were shining. I could feel mine and Marcas' power move through me, and I welcomed it. I stood straighter, my eyes meeting Damon's. "And he's mine."
I smiled. The realization was swift and sudden, and I felt overwhelmingly powerful. It was suddenly obvious to me why mine and Marcas' bond had never worked the way it should. He was a hybrid Demon and I was a hybrid Angel. We had been bound unknowingly, but while Demons who bind servants to them also become their servants' rulers, there had never been an Angel bound to a Demon. A Demon couldn't rule an Angel, and an Angel couldn't rule a Demon. We belonged to each other equally. I wasn't just Marcas' servant, he was mine as well.
Damon frowned, his dark blue eyes going red. The Seal shone, the light almost blinding in Damon's rage.
"No longer," he growled as he placed the hand containing the ring against my stomach. My eyes went wide. "I feel him, you know. He is close. The ring could trap him now," Damon breathed as pain surged through me.
I gasped, the pain so intense I couldn't even find the strength to scream.
"Feel that?" Damon asked. I struggled to breathe. "That's the Demon blood in your system. It doesn't belong there, and it wants out. All I have to do is purge it. Purge it and force my own blood down your throat."
I was choking now, tears building up behind my eyes. I would not belong to Damon. Marcas would not be trapped by the Seal. I gathered up all the strength I had and grabbed Damon's hand. He laughed.
"Fighting will only hurt you," Damon whispered against my ear.
I could hear Amber screaming as Damon forced me to my knees. His strength was incredible, and he followed me down, my hand still wrapped tightly around his fist. The Seal was burning my skin, and I wondered briefly if it was because of the Demon blood in me. And if so, how could Damon stand it? I looked him in the eyes, the first tear searing its way down my cheek. "Fight, Day. Whatever happens, fight. I'm coming."
"I will never be yours," I breathed as I concentrated on the power circling within me, using everything I had to shove it into Damon. His eyes widened as he flew backward, the Seal still shining.
I felt Amber at my shoulder, but I stood up slowly, weakly refusing her help. I stared at Damon instead, my eyes hard.
"You can hold me down, you can force me to do things I don't want to do, but I will never be yours."
Damon stood, and I could feel his anger. I took Amber by the arm and forced her to the ledge. Damon held his hand up, the Seal brightened even more, and the pain I had felt before slammed into me. It hurt three times worse than the first time, and I struggled to stay on my feet.
"I will have my redemption," Damon ground out as he moved toward us.
I climbed onto the ledge and pulled Amber up after me.
"If Angels wear halos, this is me setting mine on fire," I said coldly as I pushed Amber off the roof, my arm going around her waist as I jumped after her.
Amber's screams filled my ears. It was the sound of terror, and I ignored it as I pulled at my magic. I had never felt so in tune with my power. I could feel Marcas' fire in my blood, the ice of my own power mingling with it to create something warm.
"Use the power. Give yourself wings," I heard Marcas whisper in my head, and I closed my eyes, the last glimpse of the world a terrifying view of the approaching ground.
"Help me fly. Give me wings," I whispered as the power moved through me, running up and down my arms and into my legs. I was suddenly weightless even with Amber dangling from my arms.
"Dayton!" Amber gasped, and I realized she was no longer screaming.
I opened my eyes to find myself floating above the ground. I concentrated on moving upward, and we flew higher.
"We're flying," Amber said, her laughter filling my ears. It was the laugh of survival, half hysterical, half relief. I wanted to join her, but I didn't.
"Marcas," I said instead, my mind searching for him. I could feel Damon coming for me, and I lowered myself to the ground, releasing Amber as my shoes touched the grass.
"Run, Amber," I said urgently as I lifted myself back into the air.
Flying was suddenly unbelievably easy. It felt natural. It felt right. Amber looked up at me.
"I won't leave you," she said quietly, and I knew her guilt and shame was going to get her killed.
"Then hide," I told her.
If I couldn't get her to run, then I needed her as safe as I could get her. No matter what problems the two of us had between us, I couldn't lose another family member. I couldn't. I loved Amber. No matter what, I loved her. She nodded, and I flew upward, my eyes on the sky. I could feel Damon, but I could feel Marcas too.
And then there they were, twin brothers, the sons of Lilith and Cain, both hovering in the air. They were facing each other, their eyes red. And I did the only thing I knew to do. I flew between them.
Chapter 4
The bond has changed. It is stronger. Only one thing can make the bond unbreakable, and I fear this bond can never be undone.
~Bezaliel~
I felt Marcas' anger instantly, and it was chilling. It was far more potent than anything I had ever felt, and I wanted to go to him, but I forced myself not to move. Damon was smiling, his eyes moving between us. Together, Marcas and I were strong, but we were also weak. The ring was the key to unbinding us and Damon knew it. From the beginning, the ring had been our salvation, the key to separating us. Now, the ring was my enemy. I didn't want unbound.
"Brother," Damon said coldly, nodding slightly as one corner of his lip curled upward. His eyes gleamed.
Marcas kept his gaze on Damon, his expression unreadable. For once, I welcomed Marcas' even demeanor. Between the two of us, I was the openly emotional one, completely readable. We balanced each other. But Damon fed off emotion. He used it to his advantage, and Marcas knew this better than anyone.
"How do you want to die? It's best I know now," Marcas said slowly, his face as smooth as granite. I wanted to touch it, to make sure he was still real.
Damon laughed.
"You're confident, Brother, considering . . ."
We both knew Damon meant the Seal. Marcas flew closer to me, and I could feel the heat emanating off of him as he stopped a few inches away. I was sideways so I could see each brother, my gaze drawn inexplicably to Marcas. He didn't look my way.
"Would you rather have me afraid?" Marcas asked.
Damon didn't approach us.
"Oh, you're afraid. Of this I have no doubt," Damon said as he lifted his hand. "I've tasted her blood, Marcas. It even tastes like redemption."
Marcas growled, the sound deep and low, emanating from a dark place, and I knew the moment Marcas' arm suddenly wrapped around my waist, the moment I was spun so that I was facing Damon, my back against Marcas' chest, that Marcas had finally broken. If he had been unreadable before, he wasn't now, and I knew it was because of me.
"Protective, are we? It should hurt that I plan to destroy you, but it doesn't."
Damon's words were like daggers. I felt them in my own heart whether Marcas felt them or not. A Demon, his sanity lost, who would kill his own brother for something he was never meant to have.
I found Marcas' hand, and I grabbed it. Somewhere during our journey, I had become less afraid of touching him, of showing him how I felt when I wasn't sure he reciprocated. I no longer cared if his feelings were as deep as mine. I was in love. I knew this because love had removed the fear of rejection and left behind the need to show him how much I cared no matter the obstacles between us. And I let my touch say everything I didn't have the time to say, to say everything the moment wouldn't allow me to say. Marcas returned my grip.
Damon's eyes found our clasped hands, and his brow rose. His gaze met Marcas'.
"This just went from sad to pitiful. Tell me, Brother, have you fallen for another Angel?"
Marcas didn't answer him, although I knew without looking that his jaw had tightened. Damon laughed.
"And you fault me my
redemption? For someone who rejects so heartily what I want, you have a knack for attaching yourself to Heaven."
"You bound us, Damon. I didn't seek her out."
Damon snorted.
"Didn't you? You've watched her since our mother ordered you to kill her. Lying doesn't suit you."
I didn't move. What Maria had said in Egypt was true. Marcas had been watching me for a long time. The years separating us, which had mattered so much to me before, didn't matter anymore because Maria had been right about something else as well. Sometimes it isn't the era a person was born in, it's the soul she was born with.
"I didn't come here to argue," Marcas said fiercely.
Damon grinned.
"No, you came here to die."
And with that, Damon lunged, narrowly missing us as Marcas and I dove toward the Abbey. I folded my free hand across my chest, the other still trapped around Marcas' fist. My feet only just touched the ground when Marcas reversed.
We flew backward into the air, barely missing a ball of fire, the flame's red color heightened by the Seal's power.
"Leave me, Day," Marcas whispered suddenly into my ear, and I stiffened.
"What?"
"Together we are more a target than we are apart."
I knew he was right, but I was finding it hard to break away.
"If you die on me, I'll find a way to bring you back to life and kill you myself," I warned as we spun again, Damon's power just nicking the edge of Marcas' shoe.
Marcas smiled.
"So be it."
And with those words, we parted. I flew up, and he flew down toward his brother. Damon was not expecting the move, and Marcas' power was suddenly upon him.
There was a burst of red light, and I lost sight of them. My eyes searched the darkening skies frantically. Dammit!
And then there they were, a tumbling mass in the air, power against power, Demon against Demon, brother against brother. Energy crackled from Damon's hands, and a beam of light hit Marcas squarely in the chest, sending him reeling.
My torso was suddenly on fire, the injury a reminder of the bond's hold on Marcas and me, and I clenched my jaw against the pain to keep from screaming before diving toward the pair. I kept my distance, my eyes on Marcas, my heart swelling with relief as he recovered quickly. There was power moving so rapidly between the brothers now that it was hard to keep up.
There was abrupt pain along my shoulder blades, my left leg, and my right arm. It was intense, searing, and sudden, and I faltered, my body sagging in the air.
"Get to the ground," Marcas ordered in my head, and I shook myself.
I didn't want to leave him, but I was new to flying and every time Damon attacked Marcas, the pain crippled me. It was getting hard to stay in the air.
"The ground, Dayton."
This time, I didn't fight his command. I flew downward swiftly, an unexpected scorching pain in my gut causing me to fall the last few feet, and I slammed against the earth, my back bearing the brunt of the landing. I felt the air rush out of my lungs, and I prayed my descent didn't weaken Marcas.
"Dayton!" I heard someone whisper urgently, and I felt cool hands on my cheeks.
"You shouldn't be here," I groaned, my fist clenched against my stomach. The pain . . .
"Shhhhh . . ." my sister soothed.
I could feel her lifting my head into her lap. I didn't push her away, but I also didn't beg her to stay. There was no strength left in me, my body wracked with spasms. I didn't even have the strength to cry.
Amber attempted to lift me, and I knew she was trying to move me. I managed to struggle.
"I won't leave him," I said hoarsely, my voice cracked and strained. Amber tugged on me.
"You'll be killed," she pleaded.
I looked up into my sister's face. It was fairly dark now, but there were lampposts on the Abbey's grounds that came on at night, and the dull yellow glow blanketed the area. It made Amber's face look sickly, casting shadows under her eyes and creating hollows under her cheeks.
"I won't leave him," I repeated firmly. "I won't."
"Oh, Day . . ." Amber began, but she was cut off by my screams as I clawed at my throat, my body suddenly sliding backward along the ground.
Amber scrambled after me, running her hands over me frantically as I choked.
"Dang it, Day! What's happening to you?" Amber yelled as the pressure on my esophagus tightened and then eased, and I wheezed, my nails digging into the soil beneath me.
"The bond," I gasped.
The words came out garbled, my throat raw. Damon wouldn't kill Marcas. He needed me, but he would do his best to make Marcas and I wish we were dead. I pushed at the ground, my eyes on the sky. The pain that came next was expected, and I dug my heels into the ground, my teeth clenched so tightly I was surprised they didn't crumble.
"Dayton . . ." Amber began, one of her hands touching me tentatively. I felt pressure against my shoulder, but there was no pain. Only numbness. "You're bleeding," she whispered.
I just nodded absently, my own hand coming up to cradle the wound as I pushed myself upward. Amber scrambled to help me, and I used her for support. I knew she wanted an explanation, anything to explain why killing Marcas meant killing me.
"The ritual the sect performed bound Marcas to me as physically as it did metaphysically. He dies, I die."
The answer was short, abrupt, but it was all we had time for. A jarring pain shot through my jaw, and I grasped my face.
"Shit!" I cursed.
Amber didn't reprimand me for the language. Her attention was diverted, her eyes searching the sky.
"Dayton," she said fearfully, and my gaze followed hers.
I glimpsed a colorful ball of red and black tumbling together, the mass growing as it descended. I had just enough time to shove Amber as far away as I could before both Marcas and Damon slammed against the ground, Marcas' hand wrapped around Damon's throat as Damon's back met with the soil not far from my feet.
"The Seal, Brother," Marcas hissed, his breath and words ragged. Even in the dim light, his injuries were apparent, his shirt ripped, his face swelling, his shoulder bleeding.
Damon spat, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth as he flashed pointed teeth at Marcas.
"And here I thought the girl meant more," Damon said, his eyes on me over Marcas' shoulder. He grinned.
His actions, his smile, should have been warning enough, but it wasn't until I heard Amber's scream that I realized Damon had played us. I twisted, my heart sinking into my toes when my gaze met the wide, cunning eyes of Ian James, my former philosophy teacher and a member of my aunt's sect. He had an arm wrapped around Amber's neck, his free arm held out. Gripped tightly in his hand, his knuckles white with the strain, was a wicked looking dagger. His eyes were white and glassy.
"Mr. James . . ." I whispered, taking a cautious step forward.
Ian jumped, the dagger moving toward Amber's side. I whimpered, freezing instantly.
"Please," I begged him, although I knew it was pointless.
It was obvious Damon had Ian possessed. Ian had been with my aunt, the Sisters, and a long line of Sethian descendants when they had performed the ritual that had tied me to Marcas. He also had some kind of arrangement with my sister. The last time I saw Amber and Ian together, I was fairly sure they were a couple.
Amber's eyes were wide, and she stood frozen, her gaze locked on the blade at her side. I didn't make any more sudden moves.
"It appears we have a slight predicament," Damon said, his eyes darkening. "Who do you love more, Dayton? Your sister or my brother?"
I knew even before Marcas backed away from Damon that the question hadn't been meant for me. Damon knew his twin well. Marcas wouldn't let his brother murder my sister. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. In my heart I knew Marcas released his brother because he thought if Damon killed Amber, I'd always think of my sister when I was with him. He was wrong.
"Release her," I demanded, my voice low, my
eyes hard.
The command was for Damon, but my gaze was locked on Ian's.
"You make demands without payment," Damon said.
It was the laughter in his voice that caused the sudden anger that flooded me. I was so sick and tired of everyone assuming they knew who I was, what I was capable of. They were all wrong. I wouldn't think of Amber every time I was with Marcas if she died. I loved Marcas too much for that, knew what kind of person he was underneath all of the Demon hype. Bad boy, maybe. But a bad boy who knew how to love.
"Release her," I repeated, my eyes moving briefly to Marcas'.
I'm not sure what Marcas saw in my gaze, but he nodded and backed away. This was my fight. It was my life that was being manipulated. No matter how wonderful it is to be rescued by a sexy, larger than life hero, it's even more fulfilling facing some things alone. And if Amber died, her blood would be on my hands because I didn't intend to let Damon win this fight no matter the consequences.
"Cockiness is not attractive," Damon growled as Amber screamed.
The point of Ian's dagger was pressed now against Amber's skin. It was enough to bring blood, but it wasn't enough to cause serious damage. I felt my jaw tighten. Amber's screams made my heart bleed, and I hardened myself against the emotions that suddenly bombarded me.
"Neither is arrogance, but you certainly don't lack in that attribute," I breathed as I turned to face him, my back now to Amber. "What do you want?"
Damon's eyes narrowed, his gaze sharp as he moved toward me. I could see Marcas stiffen, but I shook my head. Damon was mine.
"Wear the Seal, Dayton. Feel the power. Purge yourself of Marcas' blood and take mine."
Damon was whispering now, his eyes black as they stared into mine. I could feel his presence, blurry and mad, at the edge of my mind, and I knew he was attempting possession. My bond with Marcas prevented it. I leaned forward and stood on the tips of my toes. I was still too short to look Damon in the eyes, but it didn't stop me from trying.
"You can go to hell."
Amber screamed again behind me, and I swallowed hard. Damon grinned.