I leaned my arm across the table, avoiding our wine glasses, and held out my hand. “Shall we give them something to prattle on about?”
Alexandria’s cheeks flushed as red as her dress, but she nodded and took my hand.
“We have come such a long way, Alexandria.” My thumb rubbed over her dainty knuckles. “And I wanted to give you something to show my appreciation, and for my love.”
She exhaled, shaking her head. “You are always giving me gifts, Avalon. All I need is your love and for you to be near me.”
“Then you shall be very happy with what I am offering you.” I pulled out an envelope from my suit jacket and handed it to her.
She took it gingerly, eyeing me cautiously as she opened the paper to read. Her eyes skimmed it quickly, and her mouth fell open in shock. “You are giving me Camelot?”
“You two appear to get on very well, so it seemed only right.” I smiled as she squealed and stood to come around the table to hug me.
“Thank you so much. I love him.” She put the ownership papers in her clutch. “I will make sure to pay his board and vet bills and …”
I pressed my finger to her lips, effectively shushing her. “You will pay me nothing. Just promise me you will consider, in time, staying with me.”
The pink flush in her cheeks grew brighter. “I shall think on it.”
“Good.” I kissed her quickly, causing a new wave of whispers to break out at the table behind us. “Now, the charity joust.”
Alexandria understood my hint to go back to her seat before we gave the women behind us any more of a show. She sat demurely, clasping her hands and resting them on the table. Her blue eyes glittered with the excitement of owning her first horse. I relished the ability to give her things that interested her, knowing I had the power to give her things no one else could give her.
I also had her love. That was the most coveted prize of all in this life. For many a man wanted her attention, and so far, I was winning.
“It is basically a renaissance fair held in York. Every year, some of the lords and gentry get together for charity and have a joust. I was invited and will be going.”
“To joust?” Her gaze widened in amazement.
“Of course. I’m not going to go and just sit there.” I smirked. “I used to do it for sport all the time back in the day.”
The waiter appeared, bringing the cheesecake we had ordered to share. Alexandria picked up her spoon but paused.
“Is something wrong?” I asked, glancing down at the cake with chocolate sauce drizzled over it.
“No, everything is fine. It’s just …” Her heartfelt smile made my heart pound even harder in my chest. “I love being with you, Avalon.”
I smiled in return, taking a piece of the cake onto my fork and offering it to her. “I enjoy spending time with you as well. Will you come with me to the joust?”
Alexandria nodded eagerly, unable to speak as her mouth was full of cheesecake. With a laugh, I took a swig of wine. She had the grace and beauty of a lady but still the exuberance and childlike excitement I needed in my life. The very best of both worlds.
“I would love to! Should I wear something from that time? What period is it set in? Do I have time?” Alexandria rambled on a mile a minute about what she would wear to the jousting event.
I sat back and just listened to her make plans. Watching her completely at ease and unaffected by the odds stacked against us, I admired her. She was the air I breathed, and I vowed nothing would rip her from my side.
Our bill came soon after, and I called for Merlin to come around to the front to pick us up. John was staked out at the bar, blending in with the local high-end bigshots. I motioned for him to follow us outside, and Alexandria gave him a friendly nod.
She understood the need for a little extra security under our circumstances. Since I had refused to retract our date tonight, Merlin forced us to take John along. Once we were in the safety of the Aston Martin, Alexandria checked her phone and groaned.
“What is it?” I asked, sliding my arm around her shoulders in the back seat.
“Can we swing by my apartment? Elaine said there is an issue with the plumbing in her bathroom again.” She rolled her eyes as if this had happened before.
Merlin glanced at me in the rearview mirror.
I swallowed hard. “Sure, I’ll come in with you, of course, to make sure everything is all right.”
“That’s fine.” Alexandria huffed and tossed her phone back into her clutch. “It will only take a minute.”
I looked back to meet Merlin’s gaze in the mirror. John peeked over his shoulder, and I knew then we all had the same thought. Tonight was the night to see if my powers would save us or lead us to our ruin.
TWELVE
Alexandria
I didn’t understand why three men followed me up to my flat above the art gallery. I understood the threat Lancer posed, but he wouldn’t harm me. My key unlocked the door, and Avalon put his hand on my arm.
“Wait a moment.” His gray eyes were narrowed, listening for sounds inside my apartment.
John came up on the opposite side of me and pressed his ear to the door. His grim gaze settled over my head on Avalon. I didn’t like that.
“When you enter, if I say run, you run.” Avalon’s hand squeezed my arm, and my heart thundered against my ribs. All I could do was nod silently as I turned the knob.
Time seemed to slow as I stepped over the threshold and into the kitchen. I looked to the left and right, trying to focus my eyes in the darkness. My hand shook as I reached for the familiar light switch.
Nothing happened.
I felt my stomach twist into a knot, glancing at Avalon and shaking my head.
My lights were out.
M opened his mouth to say something, but a flash of light blinded us all.
A rough hand gripped my shoulder, ripping me from between John and Avalon. I screamed, scrambling desperately to grab the side of the kitchen counter. I kicked and clawed, only to find the person attacking me wore a hard-armored suit.
I turned my gaze upward, and deep green eyes glowered back.
“Lancer, let go of me!” I pushed off him again, but his strength shocked me. It was too strong—inhuman.
“Lancelot!” Avalon’s voice boomed over the bedlam. I turned and saw M conjuring a ball of fire in his palms while John chanted in Latin.
Without warning, Lancer froze, his feet seemingly glued to the floor. In his frustration, he raised his hand to my throat. I whimpered seeing his skin covered in what appeared to be a suit of dark purplish-black armor. It scaled in sections, making it easy for Lancer to bend and flex. The suit didn’t restrict like those suits of old. In fact, I feared the suit came directly from his flesh.
“You shall not take this innocent into the dark.” John’s powerful voice crept closer, his amber gaze focused on Lancer. “You who I once called father, I shall expel the virus within you.”
Lancer glanced down at me, and the sound of metal slicing metal echoed in my ears. “John, watch out!”
A blade slashed the air. Where it came from, I had no idea, but the force of its swipe threw John backward. M took John’s place, firing well-aimed fireballs and bolts of lightning at Lancer’s exposed areas.
Lancer growled, and a miasma began to swirl around his blade. My instincts immediately warned of danger, sending adrenaline pumping through my veins. “M! Something is coming from his sword.”
My eyes met Avalon’s.
I had never seen him look so terrified in my life. Then, in a matter of seconds, his gray eyes seemed to glow. He pushed past John and stormed toward me. I braced myself.
Lancer positioned me away from Avalon’s charge, and I watched, unable to look away from the impending carnage. An explosive clash of metal on metal blasted throughout the room.
“Arthur!” I heard M’s voice shout from somewhere behind me.
Glancing at the sword Lancer wielded, Avalon’s forearm blocked the
blade, his arm covered up to his shoulder in the same armor Lancer wore. Instead of the inky black, though, Avalon’s appeared to be silver. The fabric of his suit jacket was torn at the sleeve as if the armor took precedence over clothing.
“Arthur …” I whispered.
Lancer still held me in his grasp, and Avalon pushed off the blade, jumping back. I felt Lancer shift his stance. He still couldn’t move, held in place by John’s incantations.
He released me, shoving me hard into M’s waiting arms.
“Are you all right?” M dragged me back toward my front door. “Are you hurt?”
John kept on speaking in a low whisper, nodding at M.
“I can’t leave! Not without Arthur!” I struggled against M’s softer, more human body. Lancer lifted his sword again, and I realized how outmatched Avalon was.
The armor covered Lancer’s entire body like an outer layer of skin. The only human part I could see were the green of his eyes. Avalon, in contrast, only had one arm protected by his armor. Lancer had a sword; Avalon had nothing.
“Arthur!” I called out. He briefly turned his head, staring at me. A strange expression rested on his face for a moment. We both wondered at that moment if we would survive. I knew it; I was soul bound to Arthur.
Survive.
The moment I spoke the word internally, Avalon’s face became resigned.
M tried to drag me away back to the car, but I refused. I couldn’t leave Avalon to do this on his own.
Lancer swung his sword down onto Avalon again. He had no protection, no armor over his neck or head like Lancer had. I screamed, clinging to M in fear.
It couldn’t end like this!
This wasn’t fair!
A high-pitched ring resonated in the air, and I recognized that sound.
That was Sinfonia.
I looked back at Arthur, his armor still only covering his left arm, but the sword he wielded was indeed Sinfonia.
“Leave. Now!” Avalon demanded, holding Lancer’s sword off with ease.
John stopped his incantation, and Lancer’s frozen state became unglued. Instead of listening to Avalon, he swung again.
Avalon blocked then parried. His movements were fluid and streamlined. Each step was taken with precision for the next strike. Lancer swung aimlessly, desperate to connect to Avalon’s flesh.
“Lancer, stop this!” I bravely pushed off M.
The dark knight turned his attention toward me, and Avalon took advantage. With a heavy swing, Sinfonia made contact with Lancer’s side.
I expected the armor to hold up against a blade.
I didn’t expect the spray of blood to paint the walls of my apartment.
Lancer groaned, clutching his side and falling to his knees.
Avalon held up his sword above the back of Lancer’s neck. His hand on the hilt of Sinfonia shook as if he was fighting himself.
M stepped out from behind me and began to slowly walk up to Avalon. John took his place next to me, holding my arm tightly.
“Let me go to him,” I begged.
“No, he’s not in his right mind right now,” John whispered. “Arthur has one goal right now and that is to protect you. You are his trigger.”
“But if I don’t, he’s going to kill Lancer.” I desperately tried to wriggle out of his grasp.
“Look, he’s fighting that urge.” John yanked me back against his chest. “He raised Lancer; that’s a hard bond to break.”
Panic rose in my chest watching Avalon’s blade grow closer to Lancer’s neck.
“Arthur … you’ve done enough. Alexandria’s safe.” M put his hand on Avalon’s non-armored shoulder. “Come on, let Lancer go.”
“No.” Avalon’s voice sounded foreign, almost possessed. “I have to end him. I must kill him. For Alexandria.”
I gasped.
He wanted to kill Lancer?
“Arthur, don’t!” I struggled against John’s hold. Avalon’s gaze focused on me, and a chill shot down my spine. His eyes glowed white, his brows furrowed into a deep scowl.
“Alexandria …” Avalon’s voice wavered with familiarity.
“Arthur,” M spoke again. “Let him go; there is no need. He is no match for you.”
I begged to differ. I frowned at M’s eagerness to let Lancer go. He almost killed Avalon, and he tried to take me with him.
“Perhaps we should take him to Caliburn,” John began. “Lock him up and see if I can exorcise whatever is plaguing him.”
“Not now,” M spoke firmly with an authority I’d never heard him use. “Not while Arthur still hasn’t unleashed all that he is capable of.”
Avalon continued to look at me with confusion etched across his face.
I shook my head. “Let him go, Arthur. Don’t kill him, please.”
Avalon glanced at Lancer, his sword still positioned at the kneeling man’s neck. He pulled away, staggering backward, and M quickly helped his master stand. Lancer glowered at me. I couldn’t see his face through the black mask, but his eyes issued a warning.
You are mine. I will come for you.
Fear spindled from every nerve ending in my body while John held me closer to his chest. Then Lancer raced for the door, leaving destruction and a trail of blood in his wake. I stared at the spot on the floor where a pool of Lancer’s blood amassed, following the spray on the dining room wall.
It’s real now. I shivered. The dream is over. The nightmare is just beginning.
THIRTEEN
Avalon
Everything seemed to move in slow motion. My left arm tingled and flushed with heat before silver-plated armor appeared from my skin. With no time to panic, I zeroed in on the task at hand—eliminating the threat.
At the sound of my sword coming forth, singing its victory cry, the spray of blood met my face. This would only be the start of an arduous battle. Drawing blood did not mean all was set in stone; it did not mean that my curse was even close to shattering. Drawing Lancer’s blood only secured our fates.
We would always be pitted against each other, no matter what time or era. Perhaps in another life, we wouldn’t be doomed to grow into enemies by becoming friends first.
Kill him.
That sadistic voice in the back of my head hissed. The dark beast I kept locked away burst forth. The dragon had been awakened.
Kill him and end this now.
“Arthur!” Alexandria’s voice sounded so far away.
I glanced upward and met her gaze.
Why did everything look so bright?
Had time slowed?
An invisible hand fought my bloodlust and my urgency to off Lancer.
Do not forget; you raised him. You vowed to protect him as a brother.
The voice whispered in my ear, backing the dragon back into his cage.
I didn’t succumb to you for your weakness to end us all.
It was him.
That part of me I killed.
He wasn’t dead.
I glanced down at the silver armor clinging to my arm, and in the shimmering scales, I saw his reflection. Emerald eyes bore into mine.
Do not forget our destiny.
“Let him go, Arthur. Don’t kill him, please.” Alexandria’s voice pulled my gaze toward her again.
Time sped up once again, and I stumbled backward, pulling my sword away from Lancer’s kneeling form. Merlin caught me as I gasped for air. It felt like I had been underwater, struggling to swim to the surface.
In a blur, Lancer ran from the room, knocking into the doorframe as he did so. There wasn’t any way to know how he would get back to Mordred. And I didn’t care.
The room spun and teetered as I was on the brink of blacking out. Spots danced in my vision, blurring into shapes. Hands cupped my face, and I could barely make out Alexandria’s blue eyes.
I tried to speak, but words failed me.
The urge to take life, to kill, empowered me.
The divine right to give and take pooled through my blood in this form.
“A-Alexandria …” Her name fell from my lips just before blackness consumed me, rocking me into a deep slumber
.
Time moved slowly as I floated in a land of darkness and comforting waves. The tides lulled my body back and forth, rocking me like an infant. Murmured whispers caught my ear; dull at first but then they grew into a roaring frenzy.
“Arthur … please wake up.” Alexandria’s voice hovered over me. I could see her, but the surface of the water acted as our barrier. “M, he’s staring up at nothing.”
John’s face replaced Alexandria’s above me. His amber eyes scrutinized me, and then his hand cut though the glassy barrier. Fingertips pressed against my forehead, he spoke few whispered words, and then the water around me turned to shattered glass.
I inhaled loudly, desperate for air.
“Oh, thank God,” Vivian exclaimed from somewhere to my right.
I was in bed, in my room.
“H-how did we get back to Caliburn?” My voice trembled as I raised my left arm. The tattoo of the angel wing had vanished, yet it still adorned my right wrist.
“M drove us.” Alexandria took my face in her hands. “Are you okay?”
“Are you?” I reached up to caress her cheek.
She nods, but the paleness in her cheeks causes me to worry. Alexandria would always pretend for me, be strong for me.
I can’t keep putting her into harm’s way.
Propping myself up on my elbows, I glanced around the room. Vivian, Merlin, and John were all there. I winced, flexing the fingers of my left hand.
“Are you all right?” Alexandria leaned closer.
“I will be. My skin just feels extremely sore.” I examined my hand. “Does the armor come from within?”
John took a step toward my bed. “Yes, it does.”
“Why did it only engage for my hand and arm?” I flicked my gaze over to meet his. “Why did Lancer have full armor on his body?”
John looked at Vivian who nodded.
Obviously, they knew something I didn’t.
“Lancer has been compromised.” John began, his voice tight. “I sensed a demonic aura coming from him as did Merlin. A miasma also exuded from his blade, which I can only imagine would poison someone who was cut.” He licked his lips. “I believe that poison would be a type of possession or corruption of the mind.”
Resurrection: A Historical Adventure Romance Novel (Legend Book 3) Page 9