“Now I understand how you’re able to see me,” Fate said, sounding irritated.
When I saw Fate staring at the cyclone of birds, his eye sockets focused in thin slits, I knew he’d prevented me from going to Ethan. He was toying with my emotions and I was sick of it. “You’re playing with my fate, defying the laws of nature to suit your need for vengeance.”
“And you’re not?” he roared, snapping his soulless attention back to me.
“I have this ability for a reason. It is my nature.”
Fate shot forward, thrusting his misty face directly in front of me. His arctic disdain washed over my features as he narrowed his pitted eyes, sneering, “Ask your father how ‘using his nature’ worked out for him. Oh, wait…” Leaning back, he crossed his arms, his expression chillingly smug. “You can’t, since he didn’t care enough to stick around.”
“He cares!” I wanted to believe saying the words made them true.
“You probably remember this…hold on, you should dress for this ‘special’ occasion,” Fate said haughtily as he lifted a shadowy hand and suddenly I was wearing a billowy red formal dress and heels. When I glared at Fate, he pointed to my right as a scene materialized in the air.
A dark-haired man laid a book on the nightstand, then leaned over a young blonde-headed girl and pulled her covers up around her.
My heart pounded as I gobbled each movement, taking in every nuance between my dad and me. It must’ve been soon after the accident, because I had the butterfly bandage on my forehead.
“That’s the last story,” Dad said.
I looked at him with adoring eyes. “Night, Daddy. Thank you for taking me to get ice cream today.”
He pressed a kiss to the top of my head, then straightened. “You’re welcome. I love you, Nari.”
I snuggled under my covers, answering without hesitation, “I love you, too, Daddy. See you in the morning.”
As the picture faded away, a lump knotted my throat. I didn’t remember this particular night between my father and me. I must’ve blocked it out, because it was too painful. That was the last time I’d seen my dad.
“So touching, I think I feel tears coming on,” Fate said with a snicker.
As Fate’s solid shape morphed into a patch of rain, creating puddles at my feet, I lifted the dress’s hem to keep it from getting wet. At least I knew why I hated ice cream and why I had such a hard time saying ‘I love you’. Both were the last memories I had with my dad.
Solidifying once more, Fate’s tone hardened. “Here’s a dose of reality, Nara.”
A flick of his hand and a new scene materialized. My father stood in the doorway of our house. As he glanced back inside, I half-expected to see my younger self run up and hug his leg. Instead, my father took a step to the right, lifted a suitcase and then walked out with an impassive look on his face. Loading the suitcase in his car, he drove off and never once looked back.
As the scene dissolved, I lowered the dress to the damp ground, searing hurt knifing through me. I wanted to punch Fate for obliterating the sweet memory between my father and me. Fate wanted me to witness how easy it was for him to desert us. I ached, but I wasn’t going to let Fate’s twisted mental games distract me from my goal—forcing him to back off.
Clenching my fists, I stepped forward and shoved my face into his shadowy features, disturbing the solid shape. I felt perverse pleasure in wiping the condescension off his face as I spoke into his dark, misty form. “You might be Fate—”
“Might be?” he snarled, cinching tight around me.
My breath whooshed out like a sponge being squeezed dry, but I’d had plenty of practice with Fate’s tactics. Gritting my teeth, I wheezed, “I know what you’re doing is wrong. You can’t—”
Cold hands snaked around my neck, cutting off my words as he dug deep into my windpipe. “I am Fate!” he snarled and pressed harder.
As my vision blurred, I tried to pull his shadowy hands off my throat, but my fingers went right through him. Somehow I knew that if I died in this dream, I wouldn’t wake up.
“Want to know the beauty of this scenario?” Fate whispered in my ear as I tried to hold onto consciousness.
His eye sockets moved to look at me. “What? No response? You’ll have a crushed larynx and bruises around your throat, and yet there’ll be only one person who could’ve done it.”
God, no. He intended to kill me in my sleep and for Ethan to take the blame for my death. My heart pounded and my chest burned. I tried to struggle harder, but I was losing the ability to stand on my own.
A sudden blur of black drew across my vision right before the pressure on my throat stopped. Coughing in a lungful of air, I stumbled back and rubbed my throat as an invisible force shoved Fate away.
Snarling, Fate rushed toward me once more, but a wall of ravens swooped between us. Fate bounced off them like they were an electrified force field.
My hair blew wildly as the birds turned to circle around me like they’d done Ethan. This time they were completely silent. Only the flapping of their wings sounded in the woods.
An arrogant smirk registered on Fate’s face right before he disintegrated into mist, then moved through the wall of birds.
I blinked in shock as he began to reform in front of me.
Effugio! A commanding voice shot through my mind. I didn’t understand the word, but I felt the urgency.
The order spurred me into action. Just as Fate finished reanimating, I grabbed the voluminous skirt’s hem and shot away.
The hair on the back of my neck rose and my breath escaped in frantic pants as I ran through the dense woods, the heels dragging at the thick leaves coating the forest floor. Everywhere I looked, the forest seemed to go on forever, nothing but long lines of trees and endless darkness. I gulped in more air. I wouldn’t be able to keep up this pace forever.
Just when my legs started to tremble, something shoved me hard from behind. Flying through the air, I missed a thick tree by mere inches when I landed with a bone-jarring thump among the slippery leaves. Damp earth filled my nose and wet leaves stuck to my hands and arms as I painfully rolled to my back and tried to regain my breath.
Fate approached, menace emanating off him in a display of vivid red sparks surrounding his dense frame. “I will not be overridden anymore!”
I struggled to get up, but couldn’t move. An invisible weight held me pinned to the ground. The swarm of birds returned, this time diving straight for Fate, disintegrating his form. But as each bird passed through Fate, I heard screeches of pain, while the smell of burning feathers and flesh wafted in the wind.
As the ravens’ bodies hit the forest floor in burning clumps of ash and bone, tears brimmed my eyes. I sobbed, begging the birds to stop.
Nara! The same strange voice drew my attention.
Ethan squatted beside me. His expression was calm, but his eyes weren’t Ethan’s deep blue—they shined black, like obsidian. He said something I couldn’t decipher. I blinked, trying to understand. When I realized he was speaking Latin, the words began to align in my mind.
Focus on me, he’d commanded. His lips never moved, yet I heard his voice speaking in my head, full of authority. It sounded like Ethan, but different—it sounded ancient and slightly out of sync, as if the words entering my thoughts were a collection of many speaking at once.
Curved dark shapes on either side of Ethan’s head blocked out the forest, and as he glanced at the birds battling with Fate, the two shadowy arches flanking him seemed to flutter with repressed fury. His dark eyes cut to me. They’re giving their lives for you. Listen to me.
Choked with fear and confusion, I could only nod.
You must speak of free will. I cannot tell you more. Hurry.
Warm wind blew across my face and then Ethan was gone.
“Ethan,” I reached for him, grasping air. Fate was winning the battle with the ravens. You must speak of free will, Ethan had said. That was why Fate had tried to choke me earlier—to keep me
from talking. My voice croaked, but I forced myself to speak as loud as I could.
“I exercise my free will. Stop screwing around with my fate!” As soon as the words “free will” left my mouth, the few remaining birds scattered among the trees.
An angry hiss reverberated throughout the woods and the heavy weight lifted off my chest. As I sat up, gasping for breath, Fate’s powerful energy began to fade. Before his form fully disintegrated, he shot close. I cringed when he bumped against me, sliding his cold breath along my cheekbone in an icy lick of disdain. “I might not know his fate, but I know yours.”
He was talking about Ethan. Why wouldn’t he know Ethan’s fate?
Fate continued, “I’m the least of your worries, Nara. You’ll come to me again one day.”
“Never!” I hissed.
Fate smirked. “And I will ask for something in return.” As the last remnants of his misty form faded away, assured laughter echoed eerily through the woods, sending a shiver rocking through me.
***
I awoke, calling Ethan’s name in a ragged whisper. He lay face down beside me, his hand locked around my wrist. Moving to wake him, I paused to stare at the tattoo on his back. My hand hovered over the image, fingers trembling.
Not only had the feather doubled in length, but it now decorated the center of sword’s blade. The sword’s hilt started at the top of Ethan’s right shoulder, then angled across his spine, its sharp tip ending just above his left hip. A black and silver circular symbol was etched near the hilt, while swaths of purple and green iridescence glimmered along the center of the feather, standing vividly against the feather’s darkness and the backdrop of shiny metal.
I studied the black and silver insignia; the two curved halves faced each other, making a complete circle. The black half looked like a raven and the other half was its twin in silver. Why did the symbol look so familiar?
“Hey,” Ethan said, releasing my wrist to move to his side.
I rolled to face him and smiled when I didn’t feel any crackly static in my covers. My triumph quickly faded as my line of sight caught on the red scarring along his neck. I couldn’t tear my eyes away.
“I rarely have my own dreams. I wish you hadn’t seen that,” he said quietly.
He looked so upset, I leaned over and kissed the marks. “I don’t know anyone who could’ve handled that kind of constant torture,” I rasped. Leaning back, I met his self-conscious gaze. “Samson is my new favorite person.”
The deep grooves around his mouth smoothed into a quick smile as he slid his fingers into my hair. “Did it work?”
I frowned, surprised by his question. “You didn’t see my dream?”
His brows drew together. “I saw you talking to your mom in the kitchen about the text your aunt sent, then everything went blank.”
“My aunt’s having trouble finding my dad.”
“Maybe he’s out of town. Don’t worry. She’ll get in touch with him.” He ran his thumb along my cheek, concern in his gaze. “Do you think it worked?”
I rubbed my hands across the covers, then ruffled my hair for good measure. “No more static.”
Ethan stared at me pensively. “How was Fate?”
Why didn’t he see me talking to Fate? Maybe only I could see myself talking to my Fate. Clasping his hand, I threaded our fingers together. “He’s nasty and manipulative. You were right. He showed himself when I made up a story about Aunt Sage’s text to keep Mom from freaking.”
His fingers tightened around mine. “Why are you hoarse?”
“I told him he was cheating, which pissed him off. I think screaming at him that I had free will and he needed to stop messing with my fate did the trick.”
Ethan exhaled a sigh of relief and wrapped his arm around my waist. “Thank God. I’m glad it worked,” he said, burying his nose in my hair.
There’d been no recognition on Ethan’s face. He didn’t have a clue that he’d helped me with Fate. How was that possible?
Burying my nose against his sleep-warmed chest, I murmured, “Me, too.” Yet, I couldn’t help but wonder about Fate’s parting words. They’d been purposeful and mocking—he’d said just enough to leave me wondering what my future held.
Fate had seemed annoyed by the ravens’ appearance in my dream, but he didn’t see them as a threat, at least not until they’d tipped the scales by keeping him away from me. Why had the ravens sacrificed themselves to save me? Were they responsible for Ethan’s presence in my dream as well? Is that why Ethan didn’t remember helping me?
There was only one fact I was certain, the feather on Ethan’s back was a raven’s feather.
I trailed my fingers over his tattoo, worried how he would react when he learned it had changed again in a big way.
He touched my cheek, his blue eyes on alert. “What is it?”
I loved him so much.
“Come with me.” Clasping his hand, I pulled him over to the mirror above my dresser.
When he saw the new tattoo on his back, the color drained from his face. “What the hell is that—”
“It’s a sword.” I turned his face toward me. He felt tense under my palms and his eyes were glazed over in disbelieving fury. As he gripped his forearm, rubbing his fingers hard along the dragon, I’d never seen him look so angry and scared.
“Ethan!” When he focused, I cupped his jaw. “I love you. I love every part of you.”
Emotion flitted across his face as he pulled me close. Resting his lips against my hair, he exhaled a ragged, desperate whisper, “How can you love me? From one day to the next, I don’t know what’s going on with me.”
“You’re still you, Ethan.” I pressed my face into his warm neck and wrapped my arms around his back to show him I wasn’t going anywhere. “I think part of the answer to what’s going on with you was in my dream.”
“I was in your dream?”
“You weren’t in my dream about my day, but when Fate zapped me into the woods to talk, you were there in the background, surrounded by a circle of flying ravens.”
“Ravens?”
“Your eyes were closed and you looked relaxed, almost peaceful among them. I believe the feather on your back is a raven’s feather. Don’t forget, the ravens helped when Fate was going all vigilante on me.” My eyes misted as I continued, “Many of them gave their lives to save me from him in my dream.”
Ethan tensed once more. “Fate attacked you?”
“He tried to choke me, but a swarm of ravens threw him back.”
Lifting my chin, Ethan rubbed his fingers along my throat, worry and guilt creasing his forehead. “I didn’t think he could hurt you in a dream.”
“The ravens protected me. But you were the one who told me what to say to make Fate back off.”
Shock rolled across his features. “I told you what to say?”
“Yeah, in Latin.”
He frowned. “I don’t know Latin.” Raking his hand through his hair, he blew out a breath of frustration. “God, I wish I could’ve seen your dream.”
“It was you, but different.”
Shaking his head, he sighed. “Maybe there’s some connection with the ravens. I can’t explain their sudden appearance in our lives any other way.” His expression of wonder turned grim. “But a sword’s not very peaceful, Nara.”
“A sword can be defensive as well as offensive.” Turning him around so his back faced the mirror, I pointed to the circular symbol above the feather near the hilt. “Can you see what this is?”
Ethan moved closer to see. “Is that a raven?”
I nodded. “The black raven is one half of the curve and the other half is the same, but in silver. They fit together like a puzzle. It reminds me of a Yin Yang symbol, a symbol of balance.”
When he didn’t respond, I continued, “I think the tattoo on your back is somehow connected to your dreams. I saw this symbol that night I wore the necklace and shared your dreams and then again last night.”
Surprise flickered
across his face. “You did? Why haven’t I ever seen it?”
“I don’t know, but whatever’s happening with your tattoo…with you, we’ll face it together.”
He looked at me, his gaze swirling with love and turmoil. “Promise?”
Even though some parts of Ethan were still a dark mystery, I felt closer to him now more than ever. Pressing my chest to his, I drew a diagonal line from his left shoulder blade to his right hip. Moving my fingers to his right shoulder blade, I trailed them to his left hip, touching his entire tattoo. “Cross my heart. Together, ’til the wheels fall off.”
Thank you for following Ethan and Nara’s journey!
If you found Brightest Kind of Darkness an entertaining and enjoyable read, I hope you’ll take the time to leave a review in the on-line store where you purchased it. Sharing your thoughts could help others decide to read Brightest Kind of Darkness.
***
To keep up to date on when the next BRIGHEST KIND OF DARKNESS book will release, join my free newsletter http://bit.ly/11tqAQN
Read on for an excerpt from book two, LUCID, where Ethan and Nara’s journey continues!
LUCID
Book 2
Excerpt
“What’d he say to you?” Ethan said in a low tone.
I tilted my head and decided to tell him the truth. “He thinks you’re bad for me. That you’ll consume me.”
Ethan’s gaze narrowed sideways and his jaw muscle jumped.
I ran my finger along the twitching muscle. “Do you plan to consume me, Ethan?”
His gaze snapped back to me and he clasped my shoulders, pulling me so close I had to crane my neck to meet his darkened gaze. “Not in the way he meant.”
Every bone in my body melted at the heated look in his gaze as he stared at my lips with hungry intent. But instead of kissing me, he pressed his lips tenderly to my forehead and spoke in a desperate whisper, “You totally break me apart, Nara. You’re the only one who has the power to do that. You consume me.”
Dark Roses: Eight Paranormal Romance Novels Page 84