The Dark Ones

by Rachel Van Dyken

  Stephanie directed me toward a white Lexus hybrid and practically shooed me inside.

  "So I'm thinking Downtown, since it's close to work."

  She nodded. "Work? Why would you want to work anyway? I'm just curious."

  I shrugged. "I need a purpose."

  "But Ethan is your purpose."

  "Right, but Ethan has a job too. It's not good to be idle, you know? Plus, I'm not really good at anything… other than reading… so why not work at a bookstore? It helps out Drystan, and so far I like it."

  She snapped her gum and shrugged.

  Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, exposing her neck. I was about to glance away when I noticed a mark on her neck.

  "Did someone bite you?"

  "Lovers all bite…" She smiled. "If they're good."

  "Oh."

  "Hey, relax. We're shopping. This is fun. You get to spend your mate's money, and you get me as your personal shopper for the next few hours."

  I forced myself to smile and embrace the moment. "You're right."

  "Course I'm right." She turned up the music and started singing at the top of her lungs.

  By the time we'd made it downtown, we only had a few hours until I had to be at work.

  Shopping with Stephanie was like an Olympic sport. She took me from store to store, tossing clothes in my empty arms and ordering me to try them on before I'd even told her I liked them.

  She knew my style well. Not fussy, comfortable — but cute. I tried on several pairs of jeans, bomber jackets, shirts, boots — the list went on and on. I needed more coffee if I was going to make it through the rest of the day without passing out.

  Or maybe I just needed Ethan.

  He would be nice too.

  "Hey!" Stephanie knocked on the door to the dressing room. "Hurry up in there. We only have a few more minutes."

  I rolled my eyes and stared at my reflection. "Can I ask why you put me in a black evening gown?"

  "Because!" She laughed. "Ethan will want to show you off."

  "Fine." I pressed the heavily beaded fabric against my stomach. It was strapless and ridiculously heavy. Black with silver beading cascaded from floor to ceiling, it seemed.

  I was like a walking pageant queen. "Stephanie, I don't think I like this."

  No answer.

  "Stephanie?"

  With a sigh, I opened the door. Words died on my lips.

  "Hello." His white eyes matched his long white hair. He tilted his head to the side as if examining me. "Come."

  I stepped back and shook my head. "Where's Stephanie."

  "Come." He held out his hand. His body was massive, bigger than Cassius and Ethan combined. He stood at least eight feet tall. Why was no one else running and screaming? He was beautiful, but it was a deadly type of beautiful. I don't know how, but I knew if I touched him, I'd die.

  When he ducked into the dressing room, I gasped, covering my mouth.

  Wings. He had wings.

  Gold feathers that appeared then vanished right in front of me.

  Ethan! My mind screamed.

  Cassius… he could read my thoughts; he was powerful enough. I started yelling for him in my head, hoping he was tracking me, hoping in vain he would be able to find my scent. There was no way I was escaping the immortal in front of me.

  "You're an archangel," I whispered.

  "And you're the human."

  Not a human. The human.

  I gulped. "Please don't make me go with you."

  His smile widened. "Are you afraid?"

  It felt like a test.

  I didn't know what to say.

  I opened my mouth to yell no, but it was like he'd stolen the words from my lips. His head tilted back. "Come."

  I shook my head, forcing myself to breathe, to not give into the fear that threatened to choke me.

  "Come, or I kill your vampire. Your choice."

  My throat released. "Don't!"

  "So you'll come?" He seemed pleased.

  "Just don't hurt him."

  "You have my word. It won't be me who hurts your mate."

  I nodded and reached out, touching my hand to his. And my world faded to white.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  Ethan

  "SO THINGS SEEM TO BE PROGRESSING nicely." Alex smirked over his morning coffee.

  Ignoring him, I rolled my eyes and continued reading the paper. I was just about to put it down and grab my keys so that I could finish what I needed to do for the day and find an excuse to stop at the bookstore, when pain sliced through my chest.

  My knees buckled as I reached for the table to steady myself.

  "Ethan?" Alex was immediately by my side.

  My blood boiled, turning to acid beneath my skin as the room started to spin. "Something's wrong."

  "Sit down."

  I pushed him away.

  Mason was soon at my other side.

  The door to the house opened, and Stephanie appeared right in front of us. "Ethan, I tried to—"

  Our eyes met.

  Hers were white.

  "What. Have. You. Done." I roared, the heat in my blood searing every rational thought in my body.

  Stephanie held up her hands and took a step back. "Nothing. I did nothing. I woke up, and she was gone!"

  Alex cursed. "Cassius."

  "No," I repeated. "It isn't Cassius."

  I would feel Cassius — I'd felt him before when he'd taken one of my mates, knew the way it felt when my blood turned to ice in my veins.

  "Stephanie?" Alex's eyes narrowed. "Your neck."

  Growling, I pushed away from both men and slammed her against the granite countertop, tilting her next to the side so severely I was surprised her head hadn't come off.

  "No." Hands shaking, I stepped away. "No."

  Stephanie rubbed her neck; tears streamed down her face. "What? What's happening?"

  Her eyes were still white.

  "Did you see… it?"

  "See what?" She was nearing hysterics. "Something knocked me out, and when I woke up, she was gone!"

  "The archangel," I said in a hushed tone. "You wear his mark."

  Stephanie's horrified gaze met mine as she started vigorously rubbing the spot I'd just discovered. It was small, white, and had the appearance of a snowflake tattoo. It would have been beautiful if it hadn't been a mark of death.

  "No." She hugged her arms to herself. "I'm so sorry. I thought we were safe. We should have been safe."

  "Can you track her?" Mason growled next to me, his body trembling with the need to change and tear something limb from limb.

  "Yes," I said in a voice I didn't recognize. "But it may be too late. I'm strong enough to fight him, to distract him, not strong enough to defeat him alone."

  The room fell silent.

  Pride kept me from saying his name.

  But my love for her trumped everything.

  So in that moment at my kitchen table, I closed my eyes and uttered a plea — to my greatest enemy.

  "Cassius," I whispered, "help."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Genesis

  MY TONGUE FELT LIKE SANDPAPER IN the roof of my mouth. When I tried to lick my lips, it was like someone had dehydrated me then handed me peanut butter.

  I tried moving my lips. They were heavy, pressed together.

  "You won't speak."

  I blinked my eyes open. Having already thought they were open, I was surprised when I saw a blinding light appear in front of me then fade into the darkness surrounding my body.

  "I allow you to speak after you've earned it." It was the same man or angel as before. His feathers were now fully visible; pieces of every color of the rainbow shimmered from the large wings, though his seemed to favor purples and blues. It seemed like that should be significant, the colors, but I couldn't talk, so instead I stared, knowing I probably wouldn't ever see anything like it in my entire life.

  I wanted to be afraid.

  And I was.

&nbs
p; But I was also fascinated by the sheer beauty of the archangel in front of me. Long white hair, which should have looked stupid and old, created an ethereal effect around his sculpted face. His eyes were a bluish-white, more aqua than anything, and his mere presence filled up the entire room.

  "Are you afraid?" He tilted his head to the side, his eyes studying me for a reaction.

  I didn't nod.

  I simply stared back.

  "I'll take that as a no." His full lips curled into a smile. "I am Sariel. I've been watching you."

  Creepy statement. I shivered. The last thing I wanted was a being like him watching me.

  "It intrigues me…" His smile grew as the light faded around his body, making him look more human than immortal. "How they fight over something so insignificant."

  I flinched.

  "I don't mean you, little human." He moved around the room. Lights followed each footstep until I realized I was sitting in a large open room — a lot like a typical living room with couches and tables — facing the Puget Sound.

  It would be normal…

  If an archangel wasn't walking around in front of me, glowing all over the place.

  "The situation — it's insignificant. Tell me, why should my brothers — why should I bother myself with the prophecy? It does not directly affect me."

  He waved at my mouth.

  My lips pulled apart. I inhaled then spoke. "It may not affect you, but it affects others. People are dying — what if I'm the answer?"

  He turned his back to me. "Do you think that we would put the balance of immortal lives in the hands of a mere human?"

  "Yes," I whispered, "because it's the only thing that makes sense."

  "You speak to me as if you have the right to breathe in my presence without falling to your feet in terror."

  "And you speak to me like you deserve to be worshipped, when you've done nothing but kidnap me and mock me."

  His body stilled.

  I blamed Ethan's blood. I'd spoken out of turn. And I was going to pay for it.

  "Keep that heartbeat under control. Wouldn't want that vampire blood to boil you from the inside out… quite painful I've heard, the process of a human turning immortal."

  "What?" My heart raced. "But I'm human."

  "Yes." He turned back to face me. "For now you are human. Until the choice will be made by the immortals. You will stay that way, in my care."

  "Why?" I gulped. "Why take me?"

  His shoulders hunched; it was the only chink I'd seen in his armor the entire time we'd been talking. "Because once, a very long time ago, one of my sons made a great lapse in judgment, and the immortals have been paying for it ever since."

  Sariel folded his hands in front of his large body, his wings going once again transparent. "Because of his sins, a darkness — a sickness — descended upon both races. I mean to rectify that in the only way I know how."

  I was afraid to ask.

  "Well?" he smirked. "Aren't you the least bit curious?"

  "No."

  "Lie." His eyes flashed white. "Blood will be spilled. They will come for you."

  "And if they don't?" I whispered.

  "Blood will spill either way."

  Was it my imagination, or did his eyes hold a hint of sadness?

  "Balance always needs to be restored, and you, Genesis, will be tested. I wonder, are you strong enough to do what needs to be done?"

  I gulped. "What needs to be done?"

  "Telling you defeats the purpose, now, doesn't it?"

  "So I'm your prisoner… until blood is spilled?"

  "Think of it as a vacation." He shrugged. "I've provided for all of your needs." He pointed to an open kitchen I hadn't noticed before. "You won't starve, you won't thirst — unless it's blood your body craves — and you have a view. What more could you want?"

  "Is that a trick question?"

  His grin blinded me. "I enjoy humans… so small."

  My eyebrows knit together in frustration. "Thanks."

  "…and interesting."

  "You said you had sons." I tried changing the subject.

  His face shadowed. "I have… sons, yes."

  The conversation must have been over because he quickly walked out of the room.

  I thought he'd left me alone…

  Until someone or something walked in. I wasn't sure how I knew since I hadn't actually seen anything, but I felt something.

  And then I heard chains.

  I had a brief vision of watching Christmas Carol and shivered, sitting on the nearby couch and pulling my knees to my chest. "Hello?"

  "Hello." The voice was smooth, like a caress against my face.

  The couch sunk next to me.

  A hand reached out of the air. I followed the fingertips up an arm; the body slowly came into focus.

  It was a man. Not an angel.

  A Dark One — or something else entirely.

  He had chains around his feet, though clearly he'd still been able to walk, and his hands were chained together as well.

  "I'm Aziel." He leaned back against the couch. "I hope you're stronger than the last human who visited."

  "The last human?" I repeated.

  "She looked like you." His eyes went cloudy as he stared out through the windows, his jaw set in a firm line. "The same blood flows through your veins."

  "She died?" My mouth was like cotton. I wasn't sure how much more I could take.

  "She was murdered." His teeth snapped. "I would have made her my queen."

  I tried to scoot away, but he put his chained hands onto my legs, holding me in place.

  "She was tested," he sighed in a cheerful voice, "and found lacking."

  "Why was she tested?"

  "Because she wanted too much — because it was within our capacity to give it to her — but we were too early. The prophecy never said when balance would be restored. And we are not perfect."

  We?

  "We are still flawed." His voice was hollow. "And we were wrong. I was blinded by her face… then again, I've always had a fascination with pretty things." He turned his head to me. "You remind me of her."

  I flinched, trying to move my body to the side. His hands grew heavier and heavier on my lap.

  "And you will probably die just like her."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  Ethan

  "THE LAST TIME YOU CALLED FOR me was over a hundred years ago," Cassius said from behind my spot in the kitchen. I'd been pacing for the past ten minutes, waiting for him to arrive.

  Stephanie and Alex tried to get me to feed.

  I didn't want blood from a bag.

  If I couldn't have her — if I didn't have her — I wanted nothing. Death. I would welcome death.

  "She's gone." I didn't recognize my own voice. It was hoarse, like I'd been choked and barely survived. "An archangel—"

  Cassius moved by me and held up his hand, his eyes blazing white for a few seconds before he uttered a curse. "Sariel."

  Mason whistled and fell down into a chair, hanging his head in his hands. "We should have kept better watch of her. We should have—"

  "Mason…" I shook my head. "It wasn't your fault." I turned my attention to Stephanie. "Care to explain how you earned the angel's mark?"

  Cassius's head craned to the side, his eyes so white they almost glowed. He stalked toward Stephanie then with one hand pushed her up against the wall, pulling her head to the side to glance at the mark. "Decided to whore yourself out?"

  Stephanie's face paled. "I had—"

  "Do not lie." Cassius dropped her to the ground. She crumpled against the floor, holding her head in her hands. "He didn't say he was going to hurt her."

  I lunged for her.

  Mason intercepted me.

  "He said she needed to be tested. You all knew there was another way." Slowly, Stephanie inched to her feet. "If an archangel deems the human pure, he'll restore balance, regardless of the prophecy!"

  "And that worked out so well last time
," Cassius hissed.

  Lost, I simply waited for someone to explain. When nothing happened, I pretended to lose my irritation. Mason's arms slackened. I lunged for Stephanie's throat, my fangs hovering over her artery. "What. Exactly. Did he promise you?"

  Her heartbeat picked up.

  "Worth dying for, siren?"

  "Love always is," she whispered.

  It wasn't a lie.

  I stepped back. Tears filled her blue eyes. "He promised me Cassius."

  Cassius went completely still next to me. The room temperature plummeted, causing a frost to cover the granite countertops. "So, you thought to enslave me?"

  "No!" Stephanie sobbed. "You said we could never be together… immortals do not mate. I simply—"

  Cassius held up his hand. It shook in the air, and pieces of frost fell from his fingertips. "You would betray a defenseless human — one for whom we have been waiting for over a hundred years — because you think yourself in love with me?"

  The room began to freeze; pieces of ice formed along Cassius's face, shattering into the air the minute he opened his mouth to speak. "Dark Ones do not love."

  A tear slid down Stephanie's cheek, freezing against her porcelain skin. "But we've spent nearly every night together."

  "And every morning I spend with someone else," Cassius said in a flat voice. "I didn't think you were becoming so attached as to sell your soul to an archangel in order to align your destiny with mine."

  "But—"

  "Enough," Alex barked. "Stephanie, stop… you're making it worse."

  Cassius hung his head. "You can track her blood?"

  "Yes," I hissed. "But going up against Sariel…"

  "He's old," Cassius stated in a bland voice. "Older than me."

  "Not hard," Mason grumbled.

  Cassius snapped his teeth together. "The only way to rescue her, to pull her away from the archangel's scent, would be…" He looked up, his eyes flashing once again. "…to mix the blood."

  "Yes." My voice shook. "She needs angel blood."

  "She won't take it." Cassius shook his head. "Believe me."

  "She has no choice!" I yelled, pain searing my limbs, making them feel heavy. "She either drinks from you and makes the choice to leave, or he'll keep her forever. You know he will."