by Suzanne Rock
The kiss was different from Soren’s, more gentle and touching, but no less possessive. Tara felt her legs weaken and her body start to sway. She leaned into him and wrapped her arms up around his neck for support.
He tilted his head and ran his tongue along the seam of her lips. Desire flared deep within her core. She parted her lips, inviting him in. He took advantage, sliding his tongue through her mouth with a commanding sweep. Tara shivered and touched him back. She felt light, her head fuzzy. She concentrated on how the rough stubble of his chin scraped against her skin, the earthy smell, the strong hand that dropped away from her chin and trailed down her skin.
He cupped the base of her neck with his hand, holding her steady as he plundered her mouth. Tara’s need escalated and she swayed closer, wishing that she could press her body into his, wondering how he would react if she reached out with her magic and touched him deep inside his soul.
But no, she couldn’t bind her soul with him, not without his permission. Besides, the blending of souls could only happen after the blending of emotions and thoughts.
So instead she held her magic in check and decided to enjoy the moment. She was at his mercy, her body his to command. His presence was overwhelming and Tara felt swept up in his emotion.
When he finally pulled away, she felt lightheaded. She opened her eyes and instead of the cocky smile she was expecting, she found him looking at her with wide blue-green eyes, his face the expression of wonder.
“How did you do that?” he asked.
“Do what?”
“She did the same for me.” Soren stepped forward and studied her face. “There’s something about you that calms the voices inside our head.”
“I feel a strong connection to you,” Donar said. “One that defies reason.”
“I do as well.”
They both felt the strong connection? Tara turned to Soren. “You both feel this too?”
He nodded. “Do you know what it is?”
She stared at them in amazement. The bond normally formed when an Iatros first saw her spirit-mate and would strengthen until the binding ritual was completed. The Iatros were a feminine race, and such bonds were normally formed with human males. Arianne was the first to form the bond with a tainted human, and she was considered one of the most powerful Iatros. Tara didn’t think she had the strength to bond with one tainted human, let alone two.
“That’s impossible,” she said. “You can’t both feel the connection.”
And yet, didn’t she feel the same strong connectiveness with both of them? She wanted them both, but for different reasons. She needed to be commanded by Donar’s strong hand and she needed Soren’s gentle touch.
“There must be some mistake,” she said. Iatros formed bonds with only one man. They only had enough power to combine souls once. The act was so draining, so consuming, that they would never be able to do it again. To have formed unique bonds with two humans was incredibly rare, to bond with two tainted humans was impossible.
Donar glanced at Soren and then refocused on her. “I am close to Soren’s deahman, I know what it’s feeling. There is definitely a connection to both him and you.”
“Agreed.” Soren said. “You are both like separate presences inside my mind.”
This was all too much. Tara rubbed her temples. “I’ve never heard of this happening before.”
“What’s happening?”
If they were right, and she had started the binding with both of them, would she have the strength to finish it? Or would she fail at this like she had failed at everything else in her life?
Tara needed to think, and that meant that she had to put some distance between her and the men. Their presence was too overwhelming and intense. When she was around them, she was all emotion, no reason. She started to turn away, but Donar grabbed her arms and pulled her back.
“What’s going on?” he asked. “You have to tell us.”
“It doesn’t matter why you feel the connection or how it was formed. The only thing that matters is that you sever it.” The familiar voice rippled through the air and chilled her heart. Nergal.
Donar stepped back and drew his sword. Soren did the same. Tara turned and saw the cab driver step out from the storage unit.
“Well, well. You two must be stronger than we thought. Urian will be pleased to learn of this.”
“Urian?” Tara searched her memory. Why was the name so familiar?
“You have Urian?” Soren’s grip tightened around the hilt of his sword. “Give him back to us.”
“With pleasure.” Nergal turned and bowed as a large man with long, dark hair and an ebony goatee strode outside. Tara recognized him. He was also the one who created the blast that caused Donar and Soren to temporarily lose their memories.
The man placed his hand on Nergal’s head. “Rise.”
Nergal straightened as Urian pulled his hand away.
“I don’t believe it,” Soren whispered.
Nergal’s smile was smug and self-satisfactory. “Deahmans, meet your new master, chosen by the red horseman himself.”
“The red horseman? As in the apocalypse?” This was worse than she thought. If the deahmans ever freed one of the horsemen of the apocalypse…
Tara heard a loud clang. She glanced at Donar and Soren and was horrified to see that they had tossed aside their swords and had bowed low to the newcomer.
She turned back to Urian and studied his face. She had seen him somewhere else, sometime before he hurt Donar and Soren. Where? When?
“You are part of Darien’s team,” she said after a moment.
“Darien. Yes.” Urian’s smile was pure evil. “You will have to thank him for me.”
“I will do no such thing.” She withdrew her stars. “You can give him the message yourself.”
“Perhaps I will.”
She glanced at Donar and Soren. Why weren’t they defending themselves?
“It’s me,” Urian said.
Tara turned back to the dark lord. “You?”
“Their inner deahmans recognize their master. I can control them.” He glanced down at Nergal and frowned. “Evidently I can control them much better than my second-in-command.”
Nergal fixed his gaze on Urian and held his hands out to his sides. “Our power always weakens when we cross the portal. It was inevitible.”
Urian raised his hand for silence. “Perhaps for you, but not for me.” He focused on Tara. “I believe that you have something that belongs to me.”
The twins. “No.” She shook her head. “You can’t have them.”
“Ah, but I already possess them. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it, friends?”
Soren and Donar buckled closer to the ground. Their jaws locked and sweat beaded at their temples. Donar let out a low groan.
“Stop it. You’re hurting them,” Tara said.
“It will be nothing like what they receive when we finally bring them back home. They ran away from me, Tara. I can’t let that go unpunished.”
“How do you know my name?”
He smiled. “I know many things, can do many things. Perhaps a demonstration.” His smile fell. “Seize her.”
Soren and Donar rose as one and grabbed Tara by the arms, causing her to drop her throwing star. She struggled and kicked, but she didn’t want to hurt them. They easily overcame her.
“You see?” Urian held his hands out to the sides. “It was almost too easy.”
“You bastard. Let them go.”
“I don’t think so, not yet. As long as they have the taint, I’ll be able to control them. That could prove to be…useful to my plan to destroy Darien Lange.”
“Asshole. If you can control people with the taint, why don’t you just order Darien to come to you?”
“Ah, you see, he fucked that Iatros whore and now I can no longer touch him. But once the stone is healed, that little bitch won’t be able to block me and he’ll be mine to control.” Urian smiled at the thought and then glanced
at Nergal. “Go retrieve the shard.”
How did he know about the shard? Tara watched as Nergal rose and went directly to Soren. He stuck his hand inside Soren’s glowing pocket and retrieved the shard. Then he rubbed Soren’s head.
“Good boy. You always were one to obey orders.” He glanced at Donar. “You, on the other hand, were more difficult to control.” He closed the distance between him and Donar and ruffled his fingers through the hair on top of Donar’s head. “But in the end you finally submitted, didn’t you?”
Donar hissed through clenched teeth as his whole body tightened. Pain washed over Tara from both Donar and Soren. Thankfully they weren’t fully bound, or she would be washed in too much pain to think. When a full mate was hurt, the Iatros felt the pain right along with him. If he died, she’d die as well.
Tara wished that there was something that she could do to break the hold Urian had over them, but what? Even if she could fuck them twice, there was no guarantee that it would work. Arianne was much stronger than her and she had all she could do to hold off the taint of one tainted man. How could Tara hope to help two?
Nergal laughed and stepped back. Then he turned his back to them and held up the shard. “I’ve found it, master.”
Tara’s frustration grew. It was so unfair. How could they just take the shard from Soren so easily? The fact that they could control Donar and Soren didn’t sit well with Tara. It looked like the men weren’t going to be able to help her with this one. Once again, she was going to have to save their asses.
“Bring it to me.” Urian held out his hand as Nergal approached him. The lesser deahman knelt low before his master and presented the shard. It glowed bright red in his hands. Urian reached down and picked it up. The glow intensified, engulfing his arm up to the elbow.
Urian pulled a second shard out of his pocket. It too glowed like the first. As the shards came close together, they glowed brighter. Urian closed his eyes and bowed his head as he cupped both in his palms. The glow engulfed his entire body and Tara felt the evil ooze out of the light. She turned away. After a moment, the glow faded. Tara turned back to Urian and saw him stare at the shards in his palms.
“It didn’t work,” he said.
Nergal stood. “What do you mean, it didn’t work?”
“I felt the power in each shard reaching out toward the other fragment of the stone, but they didn’t bond together.”
“Perhaps you need all of the shards together before you can fuse them.”
“Perhaps.” Urian gave Nergal one of the shards. “Take the men to the boat and tie them up, then clip the girl’s wings. Set the boat adrift and use the shard to take her across the portal. Lock her in the cage-room close to my chambers.” He glanced up at Tara. “I will personally keep tabs on her there.”
Tara gasped at the command. To clip an Iatros’ wings would be to strip her of all her power. She’d become as helpless as the humans she was sworn to protect.
“Why don’t we kill her, master?” Nergal asked.
“They have already started the binding ritual, you idiot. If we kill her, there is a good chance that the twins will die too and I need them to tell Darien what they saw here today. It’s part of my plan.”
“Yes, you’re right as always, master.”
“Good.” Urian’s shoulders relaxed as he pocketed the second shard. “I have business to attend to elsewhere.”
“What business is that, master?”
Urian frowned.
“If it pleases you to tell me,” Nergal added. He sounded supplicant enough, but Tara sensed a thread of frustration in his voice. Things might not be as they seemed in the deahman hierarchy. She filed the information away for future use.
Urian’s features softened. “Someone has failed me, Nergal, and I cannot allow failure in my ranks.”
“I understand, master. Let me send Anisa. She will give proper punishment.”
Urian’s eyes widened and the crimson in his eyes brightened, engulfing the entire orb. Then, seconds after it happened, the glow faded. Urian ran his fingers over his goatee. “It appears that your secret weapon has a weakness, my friend.”
“What? Impossible. I turned Anisa myself. She’s the perfect heartless killing machine.”
“Not so heartless, it seems.”
“What are you talking about?”
Urian nodded to Tara. “You deal with them, then collect Anisa back at the hotel. Bring her and Tara to me. We have much to discuss.”
“Yes, master.” Nergal nodded as Urian disappeared back into the storage unit.
“What’s in there?” Tara asked.
“Surveillance equipment, not that it matters. It will be dismantled now that we no longer need it.” He turned to Soren and patted his cheek. “We have found what we came for. And in time, these two will do all of our dirty work.”
Soren growled, but said nothing. Were they really so helpless?
Nergal nodded toward the cab. “Come along, boys, and bring your lover here. We’re off to the marina, where I have big plans for all three of you.”
Tara screamed in frustration as Donar lifted her and tossed her over his shoulder as though she was a sack of potatoes. “Donar, listen to me. I can’t go to the marina. The water—”
“Oh, he’s listening, sweetheart. It’s just that his deahman is far too powerful to succumb to his feeble protests.” Nergal chuckled as he led the group back to the cab.
Chapter Eleven
With each kick of Tara’s feet, Donar felt more and more like a heel. He could sense her rising anguish and frustration, but was helpless to do anything about it. His darkness felt conflicted. It felt loyalty to Tara, and yet feared punishment from its master. Donar’s own anger grew at his helplessness. What could he do? Maybe he could use some good old manipulation to gain control of his deahman.
You’re weak, he forced the words through his mind and to the darkness within.
His deahman whimpered in response.
You’re letting others control you.
He could feel the deahman’s frustration and anger. I must obey my master.
Why?
He will hurt us.
But Tara will suffer.
His deahman hesitated for a moment before responding. Better her than us.
It was no use. His inner darkness was frightened of Nergal and Urian. The shard Urian had given Nergal had seemed to increase the deahman’s power. Before, Donar could easily resist Nergal’s pull. Not anymore. He’d have to recruit the help of his deahman if he had any chance of surviving this ordeal.
You’re nothing but a big baby, Donar said.
No hurt.
He’s going to hurt us anyway, you know. As soon as he’s done using us, he’s going to kill us.
His deahman was silent for a moment. Must obey.
Donar inwardly sighed. Some protector he turned out to be. He couldn’t protect himself, much less Tara and Soren. What good was he?
He had to get enough control back to get the shard away from Nergal. Then his power would weaken and he, Soren and Tara could escape. Maybe. It was a long shot, but at the moment it was the only option he had.
They had parked the cab and had been walking about two blocks before Nergal stopped in front of a mid-sized yacht and motioned the men on board. “After you.”
“You aren’t taking me on there,” Tara complained.
“Watch me.” Nergal stepped onto the boat and motioned for Soren and Donar to follow. Soren stood still, his face contorted with pain. He was fighting it, Donar knew. He could feel Soren’s energy draining away with each passing second.
Donar wanted to tell him to stop fighting. Nergal’s hold was too strong and they would only waste energy. It would be better to follow his orders now and wait for an opportunity to get the shard away from him.
“Please don’t take me on that boat, Donar.” Tara’s voice sounded weak and strained. “Please. He’ll clip my wings. It will kill me.”
Donar tried to stop hi
s body, but couldn’t. Listen to her.
His deahman whimpered in response.
Step on that boat and we’re all dead.
Must obey. The deahman used Donar’s body to take a step toward the boat, and Tara’s pleas turned into wails.
“I won’t go on that boat. I won’t!” She kicked and screamed and Donar’s grip slipped.
“Imbecile. Control the bitch, will you?” Nergal jumped off the boat and closed the distance between them.
“How?” Donar was using all of his strength to keep Tara safe in his arms. The little woman was a fireball, much stronger than he would have ever imagined.
“Like this.” Nergal made a fist and swung. The shot was a good one and Donar couldn’t get out of the way in time. Nergal connected with the side of Tara’s head.
Her body stilled. Nergal whipped his arm back and punched her again for good measure. “And that’s to make sure she doesn’t wake up for a while.”
Donar’s whole body stilled as his deahman screamed in agony. Mine! Tears stung his eyes and his arms shook. Tara was his. How dare Nergal strike her? Mine!
This was it, the opportunity Donar had been waiting for. Nergal didn’t know it, but striking Tara made Donar’s deahman question his loyalties.
A mighty roar rose up from his left. Nergal and Donar turned to see Soren lunge forward. Yes. The hit had Soren’s deahman question its loyalties as well. Soren must have gotten through to it.
Soren raced past Donar and tackled Nergal. Both of them hit the dock hard and started to roll. Fists flew so fast that Donar wasn’t sure where one man began and the other ended.
Mine!
Let me have control. I’ll help.
Mine! The deahman wailed, but Donar felt its control on his body recede. Donar moved onto the boat and carefully laid Tara down in one of the seats in the back. Having finished Nergal’s command, he felt the pressure on his mind lessen and felt more in control of himself. He quickly checked over Tara to confirm that she wasn’t in any immediate danger, then tried to assess the situation.