by Scarlet Day
The energy streams didn’t stop, however. With lightning speed, they streaked out across the black water, dividing as they went. Diego felt as though he were having an out-of-body experience, many times over, as his mind followed each multiple strand that had originated with Emma. As they divided, the bright streams became invisible, but Diego could still sense them clearly. They raced over the dark ocean in a hundred different directions until they reached land. They shot down streets, though walls, houses, and buildings, until they found their targets.
The invisible streams sought out vampires, slamming into their chests and then moving on, splintering again as they raced away. Diego’s mind seized with the impossibility of what he was witnessing. These energy streams were finding every vampire, everywhere, worldwide, and changing their hearts. One by one, blood flowed freely through the veins of every vampire the power touched. But why? What did it mean? He still didn’t understand the repercussions of his own beating heart.
Minutes passed. Or maybe hours. Diego didn’t know anymore. The only thing he did know, the only thing he was certain of, was that everything had changed.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Emma let her hand drop from Diego’s chest and opened her eyes. She looked at her sisters, who seemed to be as drained as she felt. It was finished. They had succeeded.
“No! What have you done?” The furious snarl came from the direction of the dinghies.
Emma jumped to her feet as Tiberius launched himself out of one of the small boats and then raced up the beach toward them. He must have stayed hidden in the boat while he allowed his men to do the fighting for him. Emma narrowed her eyes at him. Coward.
Diego threw himself in front of Emma, and Cash and Chase did the same, still in their panther forms.
“What have you done, you bitch?” Tiberius’s face burned red with fury as he squared off in front of her mates.
Cash and Chase both growled at the insult and crouched, ready to lunge at Tiberius. The other panthers leaned forward, as well, prepared to back up their brothers and cousins. Emma quickly sent Cash and Chase her desire to hold back. As much as Tiberius deserved to die for the crimes he had committed against her kin and against Diego, they would not murder him where he stood. He was no threat to Emma at the moment. Cash turned his head and threw her an exasperated glance before huffing loudly and turning back to glare at Tiberius. Low grumbling sounded in the chests of the other panthers, but none of them attacked.
Emma glared at Tiberius. She supposed he would have been considered handsome, with his long, dark hair and strong features, if it were not for the evil that practically oozed from his pores. What she had sensed about this man in Diego’s mind had been correct. He was beyond redemption.
“Answer me, bitch!”
The cats growled again and inched slightly closer to Tiberius. Diego reached around and gripped Emma’s hand. Tiberius’s gaze locked onto their joint hands, and his eyes narrowed. He glared at Diego with hate and betrayal in his eyes.
“You son of a bitch. How dare you betray your creator? I’ll deal with you, Diego Anton.” His voice hissed with his fury. “You have been through nothing compared to what you will endure for this.”
Emma had heard enough. “I don’t think so.” She let go of Diego’s hand and stepped around him. “In case you haven’t figured it out yet, you’ve lost.”
She looked at the other vampires encircling them. Some still had their hands pressed to their chests. It was time for them to understand what it meant.
She raised her voice and addressed the confused vampires. “Your hearts are beating. You’re more vulnerable now. You don’t have to lose your heads to be killed anymore. You can be killed from a distance, even. All it would take is one well-aimed bullet.”
She glanced around, making sure the vampires were absorbing the weight of her words. Based on the stupefied expressions she saw, she guessed she was getting her point across.
“But it’s not just you. Every vampire, everywhere, now has a beating heart. You’re still immortal as long as your heart keeps pumping. But if it stops…” Emma shrugged. “You die.”
A shriek of rage ripped from Tiberius’s throat, and he lunged at Emma. Diego pushed her behind him, and Cash and Chase leapt at Tiberius, claws and teeth bared. Their powerful front paws slammed into his chest as he bolted forward. They stopped his momentum, but Tiberius managed to sink his teeth into Cash’s shoulder. Cash snarled with anger and pain as Tiberius ripped a jagged gash out of his flesh. But Cash wasn’t the only one in pain.
Tiberius jumped back and grabbed his own shoulder, his face a mask of surprise and confusion as Cash’s blood ran down his chin. He withdrew his hand from his shoulder and looked down at it. His palm was covered with his own blood. Tiberius’s eyes widened, and he tugged the collar of his shirt aside. On his shoulder was a deep, ragged gash oozing blood, mirroring the wound his teeth had inflicted on Cash.
Tiberius stared at Cash and then turned a murderous glare on Emma. His face contorted in rage. “What. Have. You. Done?”
This was it. This was the crux of the plan Emma had devised. The vampire’s beating hearts had just been a byproduct of the power directed at them. The actual intent, the instructions carried within each of those energy streams, had been so much more complicated.
Emma took a deep breath and looked around to the confused vampires. “You are all tied to us now, to the black panther clan. To us, our mates, our kin, our children…our great-great-great-grandchildren. If even one of us dies from unnatural causes instigated by one of your kind, the power we used tonight will know. And if that happens, each and every vampire will die.”
Gasps sounded around her. Diego spun and searched her face. She hoped he wouldn’t hate her for what she had done to his kind. His beating heart had been an accident. And he wouldn’t be affected by the new death curse in the event a panther shifter was killed. She had made sure to shield him from that as the power flowed through him. But the change in his heart did make him more vulnerable than he had been before he met Emma, and for that she was profoundly sorry.
She wanted to tell him about the small gift she had given him from her power, but it would have to wait. She hoped he would give her the chance to explain. She turned in a circle, making eye contact with each stunned vampire on the beach.
“You should also know this. We don’t want to fight with you. We would rather live in peace with you. As a start toward that peace, we have lifted the darkness curse over the ancient ones.” She pointed at Tiberius. “Except for this one.”
Tiberius’s lip curled up in a snarl, but Emma ignored him. “You each have a choice to make. Every member of your kind has a choice to make. You can choose to allow us to live in peace. You can choose to spend your lives ensuring our protection and continued existence. Or you can die.” Emma shrugged. “The choice is yours.”
Emma watched, hopeful but wary, as the vampires exchanged glances with each other. She noticed they all avoided Tiberius’s glare. One by one, the vampires backed away.
A vicious snarl erupted from Tiberius. “No!” With a powerful lunge, he launched himself over Cash and Chase and flew straight toward Emma. He never made it. Diego stepped in front of Emma and thrust his arms out to block Tiberius.
Horrified gasps erupted across the beach. Everyone froze, their wide eyes locked on Tiberius and Diego. Emma inched around Diego and then stopped, struck by what she saw. Tiberius gaped down at a fist-sized hole in the center of his chest. Diego’s bloody hand, outstretched toward Tiberius, held Tiberius’s heart. One rattling breath left Tiberius, and then he crumpled on the sand at Diego’s feet.
Diego looked down at the heart in his hand. Blood oozed out of it and dripped, splattering onto the sand below. Emma could feel his shock and disbelief at the knowledge of what he had just done. He had killed his creator. He had killed the one who had caused him so much pain and torment. Diego shook himself and then tossed the heart into the nearby fire, sending a shower of sparks
flying into the nighttime sky. He turned to Emma, his emotions exploding out to her in a shock wave.
She leapt into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. It was over. It was really and truly over.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Emma rolled over and stretched. She opened her eyes and then threw her arm over her face to block out the bright sunlight streaming through the windows.
“Hey! Who opened the blinds?” No one answered.
She peeked out from under her arm and looked around. She was alone in the bedroom on the yacht. Alone? But—where was Diego? She bolted upright in the bed. Her head! The pain! She grabbed her head in her hands and braced herself for the onslaught of agony she knew would come. But it didn’t. The pain wasn’t there.
Confusion washed over her for a moment, but then the memories flooded back. Her hands dropped into her lap. Tiberius was dead. The link he had established to Diego with the help of an ancient witch, the link he had used to inflict Emma’s pain through Diego’s psychic power, was broken.
She sighed in relief and fell back onto the mattress. She stared up at the ceiling and thought about the events on the beach. Once Tiberius lay dead at Diego’s feet, the other vampires had been quick to disavow any allegiance to their dead creator. They had also promised to spread the word about the new bond between the black panther clan and the vampires. For any vampire interested in self-preservation, their new priority would be to ensure the long-term survival of Emma’s new family.
Emma squirmed. She didn’t think her new mates would be thrilled about having a hoard of vampires as babysitters. It was the reason she hadn’t told them the details of her plan. She had been afraid they would try to talk her out of it, but it was the only thing she could think of that would ensure the vampires would never again hunt them or try to use them.
Emma sighed. The ramifications of the power she and her sisters had used would be felt far and wide, but she was more concerned about how the men closest to her were handling the changes. Emma put her hands over her face and shook her head. No use in putting it off. She needed to go find her men and see how much trouble she was in.
She rolled out of bed and looked around. The shorts and T-shirt she’d been wearing had been tossed on the floor. She had been so physically and emotionally drained after using her full power that she’d barely had the energy to pull them off before climbing into bed.
Emma grabbed a fresh pair of shorts and a T-shirt out of the closet and pulled them on. She darted into the small bathroom to freshen up, quickly brushing her teeth and running a brush through her tangled hair. If she was going to be in trouble with the guys, there was no reason she had to have medusa-like hair and troll breath.
Once presentable, Emma ventured up the stairs to the aft deck and poked her head out of the doorway.
“About time you woke up.” Cash held out his hand to her.
Emma timidly emerged from the shadow of the doorway into the bright sunlight. She took his outstretched hand, and he pulled her into his arms. She bit her lower lip and looked up at him.
“So, um…how much trouble am I in?”
Cash raised his eyebrows. “Oh, heaps. News travels fast among the vampire realm. We’ve already heard from three ancient vampires. They’ve promised their protection and vowed to kill anyone who threatens us.”
His hands moved to her ass, and he pulled her into him, pressing her against the prominent and very hard bulge in his jeans. “We’ll discuss your punishment later.”
“Punishment?” Chase slid down the ladder from the upper deck. “If we’re handing out punishment, I’ve got some ideas.”
Diego slid down the ladder after Chase and scoffed. “Amateurs. You should let a pro handle this.”
Cash squeezed Emma’s ass. “Punishment later, guys. First, why don’t we let Emma tell us what we’re doing here?”
Emma stared at Cash in confusion. “Here? What do you mean?”
She looked around. They were near an island, but it looked familiar. “Hey, isn’t that—is that Panther Key?”
She had wanted to come back here, to see if her idea had worked, but she hadn’t said anything to the guys about it yet. “But, how did you…?”
Cash grinned down at her. “Did you know you talk in your sleep?” Emma felt her face heat up, but Cash just grinned wider. “It’s pretty adorable, actually.”
Emma felt mortified. What had she said in her sleep? How many ways had she embarrassed herself? Good grief, didn’t she already have enough bad habits?
Cash chuckled. “Don’t worry, kitten. You seemed pretty intent on a theme this time.”
“This time?” Emma thought her face might erupt into flames.
Cash grinned and winked at her. “You kept saying that we needed to bring Diego here. Over and over.” He shrugged. “So here we are.”
Emma looked over the water toward the island. “Why haven’t we docked?”
Cash’s forehead wrinkled. “Diego can’t get close to the island, remember? It’s protected.” His expression changed to one of worry. “Unless you girls did something to the protection spell?”
Emma shook her head. “No. We didn’t change anything about the island.” She turned to look at Diego and braced herself. “But I did change something about Diego.”
Confusion swept over Diego’s features and reverberated through the link she still shared with him. “You did something? To me? What?”
Emma rushed to him and put her hands on his chest. “Nothing bad, I promise. At least, I hope you don’t think it’s bad. I mean, I’m sorry about your heart, but I made sure you wouldn’t be affected by the whole death thing with the other vampires.”
Doubt and regret gripped her. What if Diego couldn’t forgive her for what had happened to his heart? What if he didn’t like the gift she’d given him?
Diego cupped her face in his hands. “It’s okay, mi belleza. I’m not upset about my heart. In fact, I’ve never felt this alive. Just tell me what you did.”
Emma looked up at him and felt his reassurance flow through her. “I–I wanted to give you something. A piece of me. I thought it might make it possible for you to get through the protective spell of the island, but I also…well, I wanted you to be able to, um…be more like us. If you want to. You don’t have to, if you don’t want to.” She was rambling, but she couldn’t help herself. “I mean, you should still be able to get on the island, but if you don’t want to—”
“Emma, what one earth are you talking about?” Diego’s expression was a mixture of puzzlement and amusement.
Emma looked into his eyes and screwed up her courage. “I gave you the ability to shift. If you want to, you can shift into a panther.”
Diego’s jaw dropped open, and his eyes grew wide. “I–You–I can…”
“Shift. If you want to.” Emma couldn’t feel anything other than shock rolling off of Diego.
“Holy shit.” Chase’s pronouncement was mixed with a long, low whistle from Cash.
Diego blinked. Once. Twice. And then his face broke into understanding. “That light! When your power went through me. I saw a tiny spark split off and stay inside me.”
Emma nodded. Diego’s mind was too much of a mixture of emotions for her to get a grip on them. Just as she started to get really worried, a smile spread across his face.
“You gave me part of yourself.” His voice was filled with awe.
“That’s what I said. Well, what I was trying to say. So…you don’t mind?”
The smile left Diego’s face, and he froze Emma with the intensity of his stare. “Emma Walker, I can’t think of anything that could mean more to me. I love you, Emma.”
Relief and elation flooded through Emma. She grinned up at Diego. “I love you, too.” Diego picked her up and spun her around, laughing with her.
“Why don’t we see if this is really gonna work.” Cash sprinted up the ladder. Emma couldn’t miss the mixture of hopefulness and joy that filled him as he headed toward the bridge.<
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As the motors roared to life, Chase moved to Diego’s side. “I hope this works.”
Emma threw him a nervous glance. “Me, too.”
Diego stayed silent as the three of them turned to face the island. Chase put one hand on Diego’s shoulder.
“If this doesn’t work, you may be going for a swim. The force will repel you somewhere”—he waved his hand toward the open ocean behind them—“back there. I’m not sure, but it might hurt. A bit.”
The tension rose as they drew closer to the island. The green mound appeared larger. And larger. Emma could see palm trees lining the white sand beach. She looked nervously at Chase. Chase looked at Diego and then back to the island. He turned back to Diego again.
“I don’t believe it.” Chase shook his head. “It worked.”
“It did?” Emma looked around. Everything looked normal. She wasn’t sure what she had expected.
Chase nodded and looked at Diego. “How do you feel? Any odd sensations?”
Diego shook his head. “No. I didn’t feel anything.”
The yacht pulled up at the dock, and Chase jumped out. Diego threw him the ropes to secure them to the dock and tossed the rubber boat bumpers over the side. Silence settled over them as the motors cut off.
Cash slid down the ladder and then stood there, looking from Emma to Diego to Chase. “My God, it worked.”
Triumph swept through Emma. She flashed Cash a grin. “What, you doubted me?”
Cash shook his head and walked over to Emma. He put one finger under her chin and lifted her face up. “Kitten, after the last couple of days, I’ll never doubt you again.”
His lips came down on hers with a searing possession. Emma’s mind went blank for a moment as she lost herself to the probing heat of his tongue.
“Uh, guys?” Chase cleared his throat. “We have an audience.”