The Storm Sullivan Saga: The Emerald Seer Series Box Set

by Violet Patterson

  Dorian appeared deep in thought, though Angeline could not be sure given his sudden impersonation of a statue. His eyes flicked to her face as if feeling her gaze and he offered a half smirk before responding. “The Immortal tells true. Provided the barriers work we can test each of the witch’s children in turn and the Emerald may claim those she is able to.”

  “It is decided then. I will attempt to claim the children and then we will take out Rosalee.” Storm’s shoulders relaxed and for the first time Angeline saw the fatigue in her eyes. She still had a few months to go in the pregnancy and should not be so tired yet. Angeline made a mental note to discuss it with Ryder later.

  Dorian tilted his head to the side as if listening, his eyes closed. “Gregoire has arrived with Watson and waits without. Will you permit him entry?”

  Storm stood and smoothed her shirt. “Of course. I would enjoy a walk before I retire so please let him know I will meet them at the gate. Ryder, would you care to accompany me?” She held out her hand to her mate.

  “I could use some fresh air as well, mind if we accompany you?” Sophia exchanged a meaningful look with Lucian and stood pulling the Phoenix unto her back.

  “Perhaps the Phoenix should remain here, Soph?” Lucian frowned but ran a hand over the creature’s head almost affectionately. “We do not know what eyes are on us and keeping her secret for now could save us later. As far as anybody outside these walls knows, the Phoenix perished with Elba.”

  Sophia glanced at Angeline, remorse and longing on her face as she passed off the lovely Phoenix. Angeline accepted the creature in her arms, cradling her form with care and stroking her underbelly. “You are so lovely. We must name you soon.” Angeline crooned softly as the two couples exited leaving her alone with Dan and Dorian. She could faintly hear Olivia laughing in the game room. Focused on the Phoenix, Angeline ignored the two males until they left silently and separately.

  Trouble for you, our fairy girl. The Phoenix’s presence in her head shocked Angeline every time. The creature flicked her tail and seemed to smile. Easier for some than others our thoughts are. Fairy girl has too many blocks and fights us.

  I do not mean to, truly. Angeline stared into the Phoenix’s eyes, lost in their fires.

  No, fairy girl does not intend many things. Fairy girl must learn to let go or we fear she will end badly. Leaning closer into a partial embrace, the Phoenix touched her head to Angeline’s. Our fairy girl must release the fear. Some prophecies are false, some misunderstood, some incomplete. We must find the truths and our fairy girl is so close to understanding, so very close, we can feel it. With a flick of her tongue across Angeline’s cheek, the Phoenix leapt to the floor and trotted off out of the study.

  Angeline collapsed to the floor, not caring who saw her at the moment. Tears trickled down her cheeks and fell to her shirt. She wiped at them with the back of her hand, a futile effort as it turned out. With no hope of stopping the flood of tears and struck with the sudden need to run, Angeline bolted through the back doors of the study into the orchard. She sprinted hard and fast to the line of trees where she had so often escaped when Trin still lived. Dan and Dorian let her go, maybe they knew better just this once. She wove through the spindly trunks toward the back of the property line seeking the illusion of escape.

  Roane – before written time

  The portals were set to be sealed but Damarra had not returned to him. Had she changed her mind? Roane pushed aside the thought and kept working. His home never seemed complete. Every time he stepped back and eyed his work he found something to add or alter. At the back of his mind he knew this would be the way for centuries to come, knew there would be new inventions and wonderful luxuries that would come from the world of man and even more from the supernaturals who would weave magic into everything. Sometimes he wished his second sight were a bit more predictable but Roane also feared what he might see if truly omniscient. As it stood his random glimpses were a confusing blend of images bearing people and places not yet in existence. For several decades he struggled to place them in time sequence but quickly found the task impossibly frustrating. Eventually, Roane took to writing out his visions and filing them away in a massive iron chest. In the end, the only thing he could tell for sure was that Damarra existed in many of them. Roane saw her in dozens of glimpses but did not make the connection until he began writing them down. Whenever she left, he clung to those glimpses as though they were real memories, visions of him holding her hand or stroking her hair gently. Those visions kept him going, pushed him to work harder and add bits of her to his home. His Damarra. Yes, she would be back. Roane folded his arms across his chest and set his jaw. She would be back.

  Storm

  “That was a lot of information.” Storm squeezed her spouse’s hand lightly. Ryder squeezed back and smiled down at her.

  “Something tells me that is not the end of it.” Sophia looped her arm around Storm’s waist and fell in the same cadence. “This is bigger than I ever imagined.”

  “Indeed it is. I am still troubled by how little we knew and how slowly we are unraveling the mysteries. Things that seemed trivial are proving crucial and there are so many trivialities in our world it seems impossible to select the important ones with any accuracy.” Lucian frowned down at her. Storm had considered the same quandary more than once. She even pressed Ryder for more on occasion.

  “It had to be intentional. Somebody must have set this in motion, guided each person down the right paths with a nudge here or shove there. Could it have been one of the Immortals?” Storm hesitantly presented the idea, prepared for the backlash that never came.

  “That is the most likely explanation. Somebody to orchestrate all of this. Lucian and I are relatively young among the Immortals and Roane has always been different. It would stand to reason that one or more council members had a hand in this, laying the foundations over centuries, turning us off their machinations while strengthening their positions. It would also explain Roane’s disappearance and our inability to locate him.” Ryder exchanged a meaningful glance with Lucian, one she was certainly not meant to see.

  “What? You know something!” Storm released Ryder’s hand and stopped in the middle of the drive. “Ryder?”

  “Gregoire and Watson have arrived. I see their headlights.” Ryder continued walking to the gate but Storm remained stationary with Sophia beside her. Neither woman was budging and again, Storm found herself immensely grateful for Sophia.

  “Ryder!”

  Lucian stared pointedly at Ryder, “You may as well tell her, brother. She should know and she should hear it from you.”

  In the glow of the security lights Storm watched Ryder’s shoulders slump slightly as he turned to face her. “My mentor had the ability to cloak. He could disguise anything, become anything, and fool any tracker, even Lucian.”

  The gravity of Ryder’s revelation hit her harder than she would have thought. Storm staggered slightly but Sophia steadied her and Lucian moved to hold her other elbow. “How many do you think are involved? Could I amplify Lucian’s ability to breach the cloak? Can you reach him? Can-“

  “This is why I wanted to greet our guests before telling you. There is much to tell of the brethren and as you know, we do not know all of their gifts. It will be difficult to determine who specifically is working with the Unseen if indeed any of them are. Please, my love, let us regroup and discuss this tomorrow. It will wait, it always does.” Ryder knew she hated when he placated her but the logic of his words nearly trumped her irritation. Then, Sophia gave her a squeeze and whispered words of agreement in Storm’s ear. She knew Lucian would side with Sophia and Ryder. Dammit. There would be no way to win this argument.

  “Fine. But this is the first thing we discuss in the morning. Period.” Storm glared at her mate as she stiffly walked passed him. So much for a relaxing walk with Ryder. She had to focus deeply to suppress the power building off her rage. By the time she reached the gate, Storm succeeded in dimming the golden
glow to a slight shimmer over her fingertips. Surely she could play that off as illumination in the night. At the gate, Storm was greeted by a man who could only be Watson. He was a living embodiment of the stereotypical servant. His glasses set near the tip of his nose and hair a bit unkempt but his suit clean and probably as custom tailored as Dorian’s appeared to be.

  “Hello, Watson.” Storm punched in the code and watched the gate swing inward. It no longer creaked thanks to Lucian’s work on the hinges. “Welcome to Willow Wood Manor. Is Gregoire with you?”

  “He is in the Hummer, ma’am. He refused to emerge until I verified his welcome.” Watson grimaced slightly, clearly not a fan of his master’s brother.

  “Of course. He is welcome provided he can cross the magical barriers that have been laid around the manor. We cannot be too careful.” Ryder approached and assumed his position at her side, slipping a hand to the small of her back. Storm was not letting him off that easily, guests or not, she was still plenty angry. Sliding away from Ryder, Storm stepped forward to meet Watson just inside the protective barrier.

  “He is welcome to enter.” Storm looked to the Hummer, “Gregoire, I welcome you to Willow Wood Manor.”

  “Where would you like us to park, ma’am?” Watson shifted slightly and looked longingly toward the house.

  “Please pull up by the garage and park wherever you like. Are any of the other vampires with you?” Storm inclined her head slightly, listening to the silence and unsettled by the lack of breeze all of a sudden. She fought the urge to react but she put her hands behind her back as casually as possible and allowed the power to well in her palms.

  “No, the rest of the vampires have opted to take to ground until tomorrow night. They will arrive after dark.” Watson smiled an awkward yet endearing grin.

  “Watson, why don’t you walk inside with Sophia. Lucian and Ryder can direct our visitors. I think Dorian must be eager to see you.” Storm nodded toward the house without showing her hands, working to remain as casual as possible. Something was coming – other than a vampire.

  Sophia caught her meaning and slipped away from Lucian toward the much smaller man. “Come, Watson, let me show you to your rooms and get you a drink.” She winked causing Watson to flush some. Sophia hurried him off toward the house as the other half of the gate swung open and the first car entered, followed closely by the Hummer.

  “You feel it too, right?” Storm looked up to Ryder and Lucian who stepped forward to flank her, both masking their alertness with expressions of indifference. Only she could feel the tension swirling around her.

  “Yes, we are being watched.” Ryder watched as the last vehicle rolled through, his expression oddly indifferent.

  “We can play this to our advantage provided they did not hear all of the conversation.” Storm felt a glimmer of hope as several plans began to form at the edges of her mind.

  “We should assume our enemy is now fully aware of the exchange between you and Watson.” Lucian frowned. “I think we should resume patrols.”

  “I agree.” Ryder looked down at her. “My love, you must rest. I will talk with Watson about their contingency and set up shifts for all of us.”

  Storm yawned. “You must rest too. Both of you. If we do not keep our energy up we will be no good to each other.”

  “We have had less sleep than this, Storm. We have gone days with little more than naps. We will be fine.” Lucian patted her on the shoulder, his attempt at reassurance.

  “Indeed.” Storm looked up the drive toward the house, fatigue setting in quite suddenly. “Let me introduce myself to the rest of our guests and then I promise I will go to bed.”

  Ryder leaned in to kiss her lightly on the forehead. “Fair enough.” He eyed the gate as it clicked closed. “I think we should change the code again.”

  A chill rippled down Storm’s spine. She took both men by the arms and turned toward the house, keeping her pleasant smile intact. Lucian cocked his head to the side and frowned but played along when Storm squeezed his elbow lightly. “If you do not get some rest you will lose your sparkle, Emerald.” Lucian feinted away from her as Storm made to retaliate with a playful jab. He took off in a sprint. “Cannot catch me in your delicate state, Storm?” Lucian’s laughter echoed back to her and carried out to their invisible watchers.

  Ryder made to lead her back to the house, his face a mask of amusement. Storm shook her head, “I will get him back for all this.”

  “I do not doubt you for a moment.” Ryder leaned in as if to kiss her on the cheek but whispered softly in her ear instead. “Well played, my love.”

  Storm yawned. “I guess I am a bit tired. Let’s greet our guests so I can get some sleep.”

  Ryder

  It was exceptionally challenging to keep such a slow pace up the drive. His senses were stuck in overdrive fueled by an overwhelming desire to lift his mate and race into the house with her. Something watched them, some things actually. Ryder could not get a clear gauge on how many or even what specifically they were dealing with. Storm continued to squeeze his arm lightly, a gentle but effective reminder of their ruse. It would not do to rush blindly into a confrontation with an unknown assailant after the things they’ve witnessed. He would not risk her life or the babes’ lives. No, those days were over. Even Lucian refrained which admittedly spoke more of his connection to Sophia than any maturation on his part. Still, by the time Ryder and Storm reached the caravan by the garage Lucian had already briefed the dozen or so black clad soldiers on their plan. Watson was nowhere to be seen but Sophia stood in the shadows with the Phoenix curled upon her back. The vampire Gregoire stood near Lucian watching their approach. Ryder understood how the vampire brothers could so easily interchange themselves. The only difference in their appearance this evening was their attire. Where Dorian favored tailored, neutral or cool-colored suits, Gregoire sported a vibrant crimson shirt beneath a modern black blazer and slim fitting slacks.

  “Gregoire, it is a pleasure to finally meet you.” Storm detached from his side and strode confidently to greet the vampire.

  “The pleasure is mine, Storm Sullivan. You are much and more than I expected. Indeed I understand the attraction to you.” Gregoire bowed stiffly and took Storm’s hand in his. He swept his lips across her knuckles and withdrew. The vampire looked past Storm to meet Ryder’s gaze. “Relax, Immortal. I mean only that your mate is a beacon for supernaturals. It explains the vast gathering of supernatural beings in the area. When did you last leave your compound?”

  “It has been some time, to be honest. It seems we cannot leave without a fight ensuing.” Storm stepped back to his side and Ryder instinctively wrapped an arm about her waist.

  “There is more, is there not, Emerald?” Gregoire arched one thin, blond eyebrow in her direction. Ryder frowned. How much did this vampire know?

  “Yes, my grandmother insisted I remain here until the babes are born.” Storm’s hand fell to her abdomen. “Not that any of my friends would allow me to leave unaccompanied.”

  “You have no reason to leave. Your allies will flock to you. Many await your acceptance as we stand here preparing for an attack.” Gregoire inclined his head toward the gate.

  “Are you saying that the creatures watching us are friendly?” Ryder could not shake his suspicions. He knew well enough that Storm had the potential to act as a beacon and reasoned that something must have triggered her at some point after his initial reading. Since then, her mind had been locked to him unless she willingly opened it. Storm’s full abilities and potential remained a mystery to Ryder.

  “I am saying that they are neither friendly nor unfriendly at this time, merely curious. There are several creatures watching and waiting for a sign. Some are familiar to me and some are not.” Gregoire shrugged. “As I understand it, it is solely within the Emerald’s power to accept or reject any or all of them.”

  Storm leaned into him, her weight a welcome comfort. Ryder kissed the top of her head lightly. “Perhaps you
have a little more energy, my love?”

  “I do not think I have a choice. I will not willingly create another Rosalee.” Storm focused on Gregoire. “Are you certain of this?”

  “I am.” The vampire seemed offended for a moment but did not react harshly. “Be cautious, Emerald. Claim only those who would strengthen your cause. Do not let your humanity cloud your judgment. This is war.”

  “My humanity is what gives me strength.” Storm faced the vampire, her jaw rigid and fury burning in her eyes. “I will not put it aside now or ever.”

  Gregoire’s eyes flashed. Ryder tensed and he heard the Phoenix hiss. The vampire studied Storm silently, his expression unreadable. “I would like to consult with my brother. Is the fairy with him?” He spoke of Angeline with disgust causing the Phoenix to hiss again. Gregoire paid the creature no heed.

  “I am not certain where Angeline is, brother.” Dorian emerged from the front door with Watson close behind. “You will take care to be more polite in the future as we are guests in this house.” The brothers shared a silent exchange while the rest stood around awkwardly. After a few moments, Dorian looked to Storm, “Do not accept the fire sprites. They make for bad enemies but are incapable of truly breaking allegiance from the Unseen. We will retire to our suites and leave you to your business. Watson will remain with my guard to offer additional protection.” Dorian bowed and led his brother into the house. Watson smiled shyly at Storm and bowed as well.

  “Thank you, Dorian.” Storm called after him as the brothers entered the house. She strode over to the soldiers with Watson close on her heels.

  “Do you trust them, Ry?” Lucian leaned in to whisper low. “I mean, Dorian has always been friendly to our kin and Angeline is friendly with him but –“

  “I am aware. Gregoire may look like Dorian but his philosophies are quite different which makes me wonder about his motives in this.” Ryder turned to face Lucian, careful to speak low, his lips barely moving. “Still, he walked through the enchantments so he means Storm no harm and that will have to be enough for us for now. I intend to keep a close eye on him.”