Rave’s hands were still in her hair. She snaked her hands around behind his waist. With no timer set and no one watching, she pressed her lips against his and surrendered completely to the feelings.
And oh what feelings! She scarcely noticed the weakness of his magical heat. The sensation was still beyond anything human lips could provide. Their mouths opened slightly and her tongue met his. She quivered again. For the first time, she could take her time to truly savor its sweet, masculine taste—like wild berries, she thought—and the firm yet soft feel of it as it danced with her tongue.
Her passion rose and she squeezed her arms more tightly around him. Rave responded by dropping his hands to her shoulders and pressing his body against hers. An audible gasp escaped her throat at the exquisite pleasure. This was a new sensation for her. She had lain in his arms and been carried against his chest, but never before had she felt his body against hers like this, magnified by the passion of their kiss. This was not volkaane magic. This was magic of a different sort—the magic of love, of longing, of desire, of need.
His mouth left hers, but only to lick and nibble the sensitive skin of her neck. She arched her head back, thrilling to the wondrous feeling. When his tongue found her ear, she thought she might pass out.
And then his tongue was back in her mouth. Somehow, she could still feel it on her neck and in her ear—how was such a thing possible, she thought for a fleeting instant before she was once again lost in the sensations. She pressed her tongue greedily against his, taking and giving at the same time. It was hard for her to tell where she ended and he began.
Rave slid his hands down from her shoulders and found the swell of her breasts. She gasped again as he gently kneaded them with his palms. Only one guy had ever touched her there, and that had been a perfunctory experiment producing no pleasure, only anxiety and guilt. This was different. As different as a ripe strawberry dipped in luscious chocolate was from a piece of stale white bread. Rave’s hands sent waves of electric pleasure shooting through her body—she swore she could feel it in her toes. She grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled it out of his jeans, then moved around to the front and yanked it free there as well. Her hands slid up under his shirt, caressing his stomach and his chest. His body was solid, as if he was constructed of marble that had been warmed by the sun. It was marble with a thin soft coating on top of it, and she thrilled to the feel of his bare skin.
Time passed in a blur—an immeasurable blur of pleasure, joy, rapture and oneness. It could have been an eternity; it could have been a frozen instant. Whatever it was, it was wonderful. Leesa didn’t know which felt better, Rave’s hands on her, her hands on him, or their lips and mouths crushed together. It did not matter. His breath was her breath, his body was her body, his soul was her soul. They were one being, joined in pleasure and in love.
Finally, Rave pulled his lips away and Leesa slowly floated back to earth. When she trusted herself to open her eyes, she found they were lying face to face on Balin’s old bearskin rug, which had somehow made its way atop his straw-filled sleeping mat. Rave’s hand rested lightly on her hip. She had no recollection of how the two of them had gotten down here. Nor did she remember when Rave’s shirt had come off. The bronze, sculpted muscles of his chest and stomach were like nothing she had ever seen—he made Michelangelo’s statue of David seem woefully out of shape. She lightly trailed her fingers across his rippled abdomen.
“You’re so beautiful,” she said.
Rave smiled. He lifted his hand from her hip and carefully moved a lock of hair that had fallen across her face, tucking it behind her ear.
“If you really want to see beautiful,” he said, staring close into her eyes, “you should be lying where I’m lying.”
Leesa sighed contentedly. She loved it when he said things like that, especially since he really seemed to mean it. She could not believe she was going to be spending five hundred or more years with this sweet, gorgeous guy. She wondered if that was going to be nearly enough.
25. BAD NEWS
By the time Balin returned, Leesa and Rave were sitting in front of the fireplace, holding hands and talking quietly. The slow burning fire was mostly embers now, but neither of them had felt the need to add any wood. A pewter mug of water—half empty now—rested on the chair beside Leesa. The bearskin rug was back in its usual place in the middle of the floor. To Leesa’s disappointment, Rave had put his shirt back on.
True to his word, Balin knocked and waited to be invited in before entering.
Once inside, his eyes swept the interior of the cabin before fastening on Leesa and Rave. Leesa was sure he noticed some kind of change in his sleeping mat and in the position of the bear skin. If he did, he didn’t say anything about it.
“I trust you two enjoyed your time alone?” he asked, smiling.
Leesa returned his smile. She was pleased to discover she did not feel awkward at all.
“Yes, Rave was very comforting,” she said, using the euphemism Balin had employed when he had suggested how they could pass the time until he returned. She lifted her mug from the chair and balanced it on her thigh, making room for Balin. The old volkaane slipped onto the seat and looked at Rave.
“Any problems with your fire?” he asked.
Rave shook his head. “Not of the kind you mean. It’s barely strong enough for Leesa to feel. There’s no way it could harm her.”
“It’s the same for everyone,” Balin said. “Except that the rest of us are not going around trying to kiss humans.” He grinned again.
Rave squeezed Leesa’s hand. “That’s your loss,” he said to Balin with a smile.
“I’m glad some good has come of this, at least.”
There was something in Balin’s voice that gave Leesa pause, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it might be.
“Me, too,” Rave said. “Now tell us, what did you learn?”
“Not too much, I’m afraid. We found a few vague references in the archives to a mass weakening of fire far back in the past. None was a direct account—they were obscure mentions of someone recalling hearing about such an event, or saying they had read about something like this.”
“That doesn’t sound very useful,” Leesa said.
“It’s not. But if it happened, at least we know it was temporary, or we wouldn’t be here today. And if it had lasted very long, I think we would have found more accounts of it.”
“So that’s it?” Rave asked. “No specifics? No information about a cause?” He stood up and ran his fingers through his hair. “It doesn’t sound like a very productive meeting.”
Balin stood up as well. Leesa remained seated, her eyes moving back and forth between the two of them. She had a feeling something was about to happen, something at least one of them was not going to like.
“Oh, we learned another thing,” Balin said. “And we made a decision, as well.”
The decision part worried Leesa. She sipped at her water.
“Tell me,” Rave said. He sat back down beside Leesa and took her hand. “Tell us.”
Leesa gave his hand a quick squeeze. Apparently Rave also sensed bad news was coming.
“As soon as we realized what was happening this morning, we sent scouting parties to the north and west,” Balin said. “Their orders were to go as fast and far as necessary until their fire came back. We needed to know if distance from here might be an antidote.” He let out a long breath. “Apparently, it is not.”
“What do you mean?” Rave asked.
“Our scouts returned a little while ago. Each party traveled well over a hundred miles from here, to no avail. Their fire remained as weak as ever.”
“Why did they only go north and west?” Leesa asked. “Shouldn’t you have sent some south and east as well, just in case?”
“That would have been too dangerous. It would have brought them nearer to vampire territory. With our fire weakened, we are no match for the creatures. We cannot risk moving in that direction.”
<
br /> “But this thing, whatever it is, affects my magic, too,” Leesa said. “Wouldn’t the vampires also be affected?”
Balin shook his head. “Vampire powers are not based on magic. Their only true magic lies in the special saliva that allows them to turn people into vampires. Not being able to create new vampires would have no bearing on their ability to kill us. Their strength is simply too great for us to match.”
Leesa remembered Rave telling her that although volkaanes were amazingly strong, vampires were far stronger still. Speed and surprise were what usually made the difference when a volkaane killed a vampire—that, and their fire. Without their fire, speed and surprise would be of little use.
“So what are you going to do? You said the Council had made a decision.”
Balin sat down. “Yes, we have. We are going to leave this place, until our fire returns.”
Leesa felt her stomach drop. This must have been what she was picking up on when she sensed Balin bore bad news.
“Why leave?” she asked. “You just said that distance won’t help bring your fire back.”
“No, it won’t. But it’s too dangerous to stay here. If the vampires ever discovered we had lost our fire, they might be tempted to attack en masse, despite our unofficial agreement, to try to wipe us out.”
Leesa knew about the agreement, which kept both vampires and volkaanes from attacking each others’ home bases, or even venturing too close. Such a battle would be disastrous for both sides—but not with the volkaanes having lost much of their fire. It would be an opportunity to destroy their enemy that the vampires would not pass up.
“I understand,” she said. “Do you think I’ll be allowed to come with you?”
Before Balin could reply, Rave spoke.
“No, you cannot,” he said.
Leesa was surprised by Rave’s statement. She had thought that perhaps the Council might forbid her to go with them, but she had not expected it to come from Rave.
Rave took her other hand and held both her hands in his lap.
“It’s too dangerous,” he explained. “If the vampires did find us, I would not be able to protect you. And carrying you, I could not escape them, either. You will be much safer back at school.”
Leesa wanted to argue, but in her heart she knew Rave was right. Not only might she be in danger, but she could be a burden to him. She knew he would die to protect her, and that was exactly what would happen if he had to fight vampires in his present state. Other volkaanes might perish as well, for she was certain that Dral, Bain and Balin, at least, would also try to protect her. No way could she be responsible for any of that. Still, there was one last straw she could grasp at, so grasp at it she would.
“But you helped Stefan. Surely that should count for something. Stefan is honorable, in his own way.”
Rave nodded. “It would count, yes, if Stefan was there, and if he could control his fellows. But until he becomes the leader of their coven, we cannot take that chance.”
Rave was right again, Leesa knew. She needed to stop making this more difficult on both of them.
“You’re right. It is too dangerous. For everyone.”
She leaned forward and kissed Rave on the forehead, then stood up and pulled her cell from her pocket. She moved a few steps away from the two volkaanes before turning it on. Weakened fire or not, she wasn’t going to take the chance their energy might zap her phone.
“I’ll get my brother to come pick me up,” she told them. “Don’t worry about me. Do whatever you need to do to get ready to leave.” She spoke to Bradley briefly and then turned off her phone. “No problem,” she said. “He’s on his way. He’ll pick me up out by the highway.”
Rave got up and crossed over to her. He draped his arms over her shoulders, linking his hands behind her neck.
“I wish you could come,” he said. “Now more than ever.”
“Me too, but I get why I can’t.” She smiled. “I have a few minutes to kill. There is one thing you could do for me before I go.”
Rave raised his eyebrows. “Oh, what’s that?”
Leesa moved her mouth closer to his. “This,” she whispered as she pressed her lips against his.
Within seconds, she was flying again.
26. A SECRET REVEALED
Waiting with Rave on the side of the lightly traveled highway, Leesa spied her mom’s car approaching in the distance. A moment later, she could see Bradley behind the wheel. She smiled and waved to him.
Bradley swung the car in a tight u-turn and pulled over on the shoulder in front of Leesa and Rave. He switched off the engine and climbed out. He was wearing a jeans and a gray sweatshirt, which he zipped halfway up against the chill.
As soon as he came around the front of the car, Leesa bounded forward and enveloped him in a tight hug. She hadn’t seen her brother in almost a week and as usual, was happy to see him. Until Rave, Bradley had always been the most important person in her life. Ever since his return from the vampire caverns, her time with him had become especially precious.
Finally, she let go of him and stepped back.
“Thanks for coming to get me,” she said.
“No problem.” Bradley nodded hello to Rave and then turned back to Leesa. “Do I want to know how you managed to get stuck out here in the middle of nowhere with no transportation?”
Leesa grinned. She took Rave’s hand.
“Funny you should ask. We’ve just decided to let you in on a little secret.” Leesa put her other hand on Bradley’s forearm. “You can’t say anything to mom, though. I don’t think she’s ready for it yet. Promise?”
Bradley’s face tightened into a frown. Leesa could almost see the wheels in his mind turning, trying to figure out what secret she could have been hiding that she was still not ready to share with their mom. Of course, there was no way he could ever dream of what she was about to tell him. He was probably thinking she and Rave had gotten engaged or something. Not that getting engaged wouldn’t be huge news, of course.
“Sure, I promise,” he said. “I have to say, you’ve got me very curious.”
“Well, brace yourself then, big bro, because this is a doozy. It’s about Rave. He’s not quite what you think he is.”
Leesa watched Bradley’s eyes flick toward Rave’s face. Her brother had always been a bit suspicious about Rave, once even asking her if Rave was a vampire. She had easily laughed that question off as preposterous. But Bradley had been closer to the truth than he knew. She and Rave had decided it was time to stop hiding Rave’s secret from him. It would make a lot of things easier. More importantly, she didn’t like not being completely honest with him. She still had to tell him about her own magic, but had decided that could wait a bit. She was worried that when he learned about Dominic, her magic and the black waziri he would go into big brother mode and get all protective. And that would put him in danger. So she would keep that secret to herself for a while.
“Rave isn’t exactly human,” she continued. “He’s a volkaane.”
“A volk what?” Bradley asked, clearly even more confused now.
“A volkaane,” Leesa repeated. “They’re much stronger and faster than we are. Plus, they’ve got a magical fire inside them, although Rave’s fire is temporarily on the fritz.”
Bradley pursed his lips in thought as he tried to understand exactly what Leesa was telling him.
“A magical fire?” he said after a moment. “What do they do with this magical fire? Light campfires? Cook marshmallows?”
Out of the corner of her eye, Leesa saw Rave smile. She grinned.
“Well, they could do both those things. They can also use it to heat water and to keep their girlfriends warm in the coldest weather—which is pretty fun, by the way.” She paused for a moment before continuing. “But its main use is to kill vampires.”
Bradley’s eyes widened. “You’re kidding me, right?”
Leesa shook her head. “Nope. Volkaanes are vampire hunters. Rave is one of the best.”
Bradley leaned back against the front fender of the car.
“Wow,” he said. “I can’t wait to hear the rest of this.”
“And you will,” Leesa promised. “On the ride home. But for right now, I’ll answer your original question—how did I get out here?”
She jumped up into Rave’s arms. He caught her easily.
“Rave carried me here,’ she said. “Just like this.”
“He carried you all the way from Middletown?” Bradley asked incredulously.
“Yep. I told you, he’s really strong and fast. Not as strong as a vampire, but even faster than one. It took less than an hour to get here.”
Leesa looked in both directions, making sure they were alone on the highway.
“Show him,” she said to Rave.
With Leesa still cradled in his arms, Rave raced thirty or forty yards down the road and back. The whole thing took about five seconds.
Leesa hopped down to the ground. “See?”
Bradley shook his head in disbelief. “Yeah, I saw. I’m still not sure I believe it, though.”
“You’ll get used to it,” Leesa said. “Especially when I fill you in on some more details, like why volkaanes don’t drive and how mom’s camera got fried that day outside the restaurant. I wish Rave could show you his fire—it’s this cool blue color and comes out his fingertips—but like I said, it’s on the fritz. Temporarily, we hope.”
She moved aside, so she was no longer between Rave and Bradley.
“Shake his hand,” she told Bradley. “You’ll get a little feel of what I’m talking about.”
Leesa watched as the two shook. Rave and Bradley had shaken hands before, but Rave had always taken care to keep his skin temperature normal. This time, he left his heat unchecked. Even though his fire was greatly diminished, his hand was still warmer than a normal human.
“Wow,” Bradley said, staring down at their clasped hands. “It is warm.”
Fearless (The Blue Fire Saga) Page 14