The Guardians (The Tempest Isle Series Book 1)

by S. C. Storm

  Not knowing what to say, Jasmyn watched her for a long while. She wished there was something she could do to help her best friend and cousin find their way to one another, but she knew that was a lost cause. Jason had already taken on his responsibility as alpha, and eventually Mel would face hers as the Keeper Prime once Millie stepped back or left them. “I’m sorry, Mel.”

  “It is what it is.” Melody smiled. “Now tell me about this Ryder guy you mentioned on the phone earlier.

  Jasmyn smiled and began telling her all about her and Ryder.

  ***

  Bloodstone Island, Winthrop House

  Richard Winthrop stood in his office window, staring out over the manor’s spacious gardens. Everything was in bloom. If he cared, he would appreciate the majesty of it all. Unfortunately, he did not, nor did he care about the woman who walked throughout the gardens, smelling the roses and taking in the fresh evening air. He had raised her. He had done what he was required to do. Still, he could find no love in his heart for the abomination that had taken his mate Isabella from him, nor could he forgive the bastard who taken his eldest son Edmund from him. His life had become devoted to destroying those who had destroyed him.

  His burden, Tessa, was easy to take down. He had been working on it for hundreds of years. Once she was old enough to entertain his fellow council members and associates, that was what she had become⸻entertainment. She played music for them, carried drinks to them. She made the perfect little decoration. But as she had grown older, her body had changed. His fellow council members had noticed her in a different light. Still young, underage as it was, she would be off-limits. However, with his permission, many of his fellow council members had partaken in the forbidden fruit of a young. As the years passed, their time with her had sometimes changed. She had become the tool they could push limits with⸻inner demons able to escape. The benefits of the arrangements were two-fold for him. He now had something to use against his allies. If he needed something, they came through. If he wanted a vote to pass, it usually did. The other benefit was watching Tessa fade from the light, happy child that had filled his home to the withdrawn, lifeless woman she had become. It was all quite brilliant. The only flaw was Deacon. Richard knew in his heart that although Deacon would do anything he asked of him, when it came to his sister, Deacon would kill him in an instant.

  Stepping away from the window, Richard glanced at the clock. It was almost time for Deacon to make his way out onto the islands. He would be watching things as much as possible, as well as watching who the tracker spoke to. If they could possibly trace her back to Arthur, he would demand his death be ordered by the council. That would be an order he would proudly carry out. Although many claimed that Arthur single-handedly made the council into what it was today, he was still a pain in Richard’s side. He and his henchmen, Aric Thorsen and Sebastian Myddleton, tried to thwart him at every turn. But without their leader, he could handle the other two.

  Hearing the door of his office open, he glanced up to see Deacon. “Ah, are you about to leave, son?”

  “Yes, I just wanted to check in before I did. I will report in if you are still awake when I return. If not, I will inform you of my findings in the morning,” Deacon told him as he turned to leave. “Please tell Tessa goodnight for me.”

  “I will, son,” Richard lied as he watched his son vanish. Once he was gone, he picked up the phone. Hearing a familiar voice on the other end, he smiled. “Deacon is gone for the night. You may come collect Tessa. As always, no visible marks or bruises. Her brother cannot know,” he finished and hung up. Making his way over to the window once again, he saw a tall figure appear near her in the garden. Tessa did not fight. No, she merely deflated. How he loved seeing the defeat in her as she and her “date” for the night vanished.

  Chapter 16

  Crimson Island, Temptations

  Ryder sat at the table, hearing his brothers talking but not really paying attention to them. He had gone home earlier, only to be told Ryden and Rian were heading to Temptations. He had arrived first, taking a table in the back—as was his and Ryden’s habit anywhere they went. Both always wanted to be able to see who was coming and going. Although tonight, he paid no attention to anything other than the drink in his hand. His thoughts were on Jasmyn and his reaction to her. In over four hundred years, no woman had ever affected him the way she seemed to, and he wasn’t sure why that was.

  “Hey, you in there?” Rian waved his hand in front of Ryder’s face. Rian laughed, seeing him scowl. “What’s wrong with you? You’ve been quiet since Ryden and I got here. Something on your mind?”

  “More like someone,” Ryden said, draining his glass. He reached for the bottle and poured another one. “How was the wolf? Did she feel all right?” He smirked at the double meaning. “As I recall, she feels quite nice.”

  Ryder gave him a look.

  “What? Am I wrong?” Ryden grinned.

  “No, and she was fine,” Ryder said dryly.

  “And?” Ryden prompted after a few minutes.

  “And what?”

  Ryden looked at him. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  Ryder growled. “Nothing. Damn, if you must know I went over there, and she’s fine. Her friend was stopping by so I left.”

  Ryden studied his twin. “From your mood, I can see that nothing happened.” Ryden heard Rian laugh. “If you can pull yourself out of your nothing mood and look around you, brother, you would see there are plenty of somethings here tonight,” he said with a smirk. As his gaze wandered over the crowd again, a figure came into his view. “Well, well, look who is here.”

  Rian followed Ryden’s gaze and shrugged. “She owns the place, so I’d say she should be here.”

  Ryden looked at him. “She what?”

  “I said she owns the place. Why?” Rian asked.

  “You said she owns the place, but you don’t know who she is?”

  Rian shook his head no.

  “That’s Rayne,” Ryder told him.

  Rian looked at the woman standing by the bar. “I didn’t know that. I mean, the first time I came in here, I saw her. The waitress said she was the owner of the club, but I didn’t ask her name.”

  “That sounds like you,” Ryder said.

  Rian gave him a look. “Me? The two of you are just as bad.” He looked over at Rayne. “Are you going to talk to her?” he asked Ryden.

  “Yeah, Ryden, are you going to talk to her?” Ryder repeated sarcastically.

  Ryden glared at both his brothers. “What for? I think she and I have said all we need to.” He finished his drink, setting the glass down, and stood up. “Who’s up for a game of pool?

  “Sure, why not?” Rian agreed as he got to his feet. He looked at Ryder. “You can play the winner.” He grinned. “Which will be me,” he added as they began to walk.

  “Dream on, little brother.” Ryder said as he followed his brother. He caught Rian’s gaze following Rayne as she crossed the floor. “I wouldn’t if I were you. She’s out of your league.”

  “I wasn’t thinking that,” Rian stated, seeing him glance toward Ryden. “Do you think there is something still there?”

  “I’m not sure, but only time will tell, little brother. It’s a safe bet that things aren’t completely said and done with them though,” Ryder told him as he looked over at Rayne, who was intentionally avoiding their direction.

  “If you say so,” Rian said as they reached Ryden at the pool table.

  Sighing heavily, Rayne made her way toward the back of the club where a private stairway was. As she mounted the stairs, the music from below mixed with what was playing upstairs. At the top of the stairs, she turned and looked around. Temptations had two levels to it. The lower part of the club boasted a huge stage set in front of a larger dance floor. There were three fully stocked bars, four pool tables, and plenty of seating. Here on the second floor there were private alcoves. Some were small enough for two, others were for larger parties. There were also
two more bars on this level. Her staff made sure that no one had to wait for a drink. A loud laugh made her look down again. A group of werewolves had taken their seats after being on the dance floor. What made Temptations unique was that there were no humans anywhere in the building. She had built the club when she realized the vampires and werewolves needed somewhere to relax and enjoy themselves without having to worry about accidentally revealing what they were. A vampire or werewolf could drink ten times the amount of a human before the liquor affected them. “If that,” she whispered with a smile. She was proud of Temptations, and she also knew that tonight, and every night for the next week, they would be busy.

  Taking one last look around, she walked back downstairs and over to the main bar. “How are things going, Karina?” she asked her head bartender.

  “Great, like clockwork.” Karina laughed. “No worries here, boss. With the way you have things set up, this place can practically run itself.”

  “With the amount of people we will have in here, it may have to,” Rayne told her. She turned away and checked with the other bartenders. Taking care of a few minor problems, she made her way to the table reserved for her. From there she could see the entire club. A shout of triumph caught her attention. It came from the pool table area, the one where the Athertons were, to be exact. She had felt Ryden’s presence when she walked in. She had also felt the glares he had been giving her before she moved out of his line of sight. Looking at Ryden and his twin, she realized that if she didn’t know Ryden so well, she wouldn’t be able to tell them apart. Rayne looked at their younger brother and recalled seeing him earlier during the week. Leaning over the pool table, Ryden’s gaze settled on her. His eyes darkened as she met his gaze. He broke eye contact, and she sighed. You knew it would be like this, she told herself. One of the waitresses brought her a drink, which she took gratefully. Drinking half of it, she set her glass down. Seeing the door open, she smiled as the Hunter siblings, a known island werewolf family, all walked in. It seemed that, as the ascension got closer, everyone was coming home. Settling back in her chair, she watched, making sure everything, as Karina put it, ran as clockwork.

  Kane Riggs leaned back against the pool table, watching as Temptations began to fill. Several local pack families were in attendance. Seeing them brought out the pride he had in his wolves. Never had their kind backed away from the challenge of protecting all the races. They had stayed on track. They trained together, helped one another, and all believed in the same things. Yes, being guardian-born practically wrote your life story from the onset, but it was an honor to protect the world and serve the goddess. Casually, he looked around, taking in the many vampires in the room. He could not blame the vamps for not being more organized when it came to doing their duty. They had no structure. The council served as leaders of the race itself, but it had been ages since anyone had stepped in and served as the leader of the guardians. In his mind, it was long overdue.

  “Are you going to take your shot or play the big bad alpha for all us little people tonight?” Alexandra asked, snapping Kane back to reality. Seeing his face, she laughed. “I can’t kick your ass at pool if you are too busy pondering, big guy.”

  “That would be your only shot at kicking my ass, girl.” He turned back to the table to take his shot. He, Jason, Alexandra, and a vampire by the name of Nia had been playing rounds the past few hours. As he took his turn, Alexandra and Nia motioned over the Hunter family and some other locals that had returned home for the ascension. After small talk, Kane glanced over, seeing the Athertons a few tables down. It was clear the twins were eyeing Nia and Alexandra. Shaking his head at the look Jason had on his face, he smiled up at Alexandra. “Do you think those two will do what the vampires want and help the race?”

  “Yes, I believe they will,” she answered, glancing over at the twins and their brother. She had to admit he was just as hot as they were. Smiling, she motioned them over. Looking up at Kane and Jason, she smiled. “The two of you need to meet them. See for yourselves.” She watched as the Athertons made their way. “Hey guys, long time no see.”

  “Hello, little wolf. We are glad to see you are well.” Ryden smiled down at her as he took her in. The skirt and top she wore left little to the imagination.

  “Thanks.” She looked around at all the wolves and vampires who were gathered around the tables talking. “Hey everyone,” she called out. “This is Ryden and Ryder Atherton, and I would assume their brother, Rian.” She watched Ryder nod. Continuing, she introduced everyone standing around.

  “It is nice to meet you all,” Ryden said, hearing both Ryder and Rian agree.

  “I had wondered when I would get the pleasure of meeting the sought-after Athertons.” Kane smiled as he stepped over and shook each of the twin’s hands, then Rian’s. “Your family has been talked about since I was just a youngster.”

  “Which was a long damn time ago,” Nia added.

  Kane turned around, giving her a look. She swung her dark hair over her shoulder and gave him a wink, which made him laugh. “She’s right, but that’s beside the point.” He finished off the drink he had been nursing. “I have to say, I am glad all of you have come to the islands. Your race needs it. I had no idea just how much until I saw Arthur today.”

  Seeing Jason flinch slightly, Alexandra knew immediately something had happened to send Kane to the home of the council leader. Silently she asked him. Clearly annoyed, he told her of the attack on their cousin and the reaction of Richard and his son. “But I was the one hired to find them.” She growled as she spoke aloud. She neither cared nor noticed everyone’s attention was now suddenly on her. “Is Jaz okay?”

  Before Jason could answer, Kane turned, seeing the look on the faces of the pack members. With a sigh, he raised his hand to stop any questions. “First off, Jaz is fine. But she was attacked here on the islands by a vampire. I took it to the council. Now before any of you go off half-cocked,” he said, cutting his eyes toward one of the Hunter brothers who’d dated Jasmyn in high school. “I want you to remember tensions are high on the islands right now, and we have always had a great relationship with the vampires. I do not want the actions of a few to change that. Do you understand me?” He watched as each of them nodded in agreement. “Good.” He looked at Jason, who nodded in response.

  Looking to his sister, Jason shook his head. “Apparently this Deacon guy found out about Jaz but not you. She kept him out of her head but just barely. He probed her mind hard. She had to shift, then almost immediately passed out. She didn’t let him know about you, which honestly, is a good thing.”

  “But I don’t want her being targeted over something that I took on, Jas. You should know that,” she spat, unable to hide her anger.

  “And we don’t want a target on both of you, Lex. It’s going to be hard enough to keep an eye on her. Just trust us, okay? We aren’t going to let anything happen to her,” he assured her. He knew his sister though. He waited, expecting an argument. He was shocked when one did not come. Touching her mind with his own, he realized that she understood. She knew it would be harder to protect both her and Jasmyn. She also knew trying to take the blame onto herself for going after the Athertons would do nothing, since Jasmyn had already claimed it was her doing. Sighing, he touched her shoulder. “It will be fine, Lex.”

  “I know,” she said with a shake of her head. She made her way back to Nia, who held out a fresh drink for her. She killed it, then reclaimed her pool stick.

  Watching Alexandra, Ryden turned to the alpha. “I am glad that Jasmyn is all right,” he said, seeing Kane nod his head. “We would have never brought issue on one of your wolves. For that we are truly sorry.”

  “I know you boys didn’t do anything on purpose. Meeting you, I also see you aren’t the assholes I expected. The thing is, I hope the three of you are ready for what is coming. Your race needs you to step up and take some control. If not, this war is going to be lost. The wolves have carried it too long. We’ve lost too many.”
/>
  “We have heard,” Ryden said as he sensed Ryder’s shift in mood. Turning, he saw where his brother’s eyes traveled. “He is here.”

  Kane looked around to see a vampire standing in the doorway. Ryden told him who he was. The smirk on his face made Kane want to force feed Deacon his own fangs. “This night is going to be just wonderful,” Kane mumbled and heard Ryden agree.

  Deacon Winthrop stood in the doorway looking over the crowd. His eyes narrowed as they settled on Ryder. As he would expect, Ryder’s did the same. He started to let out a growl, but it was cut short when he felt a jostle from behind him.

  “Well are you going to stand here all night, or are you going in? I have friends to meet,” a voice behind him said.

  Turning his glare, he took in a blonde she-wolf who didn’t even come to his shoulders.

  “Well,” the wolf pressured. “If you aren’t going inside, at least move so I can…please.”

  Deacon slightly turned his body, barely giving her enough room to squeeze past him. As she was in front of him, he looked down at her. “Watch yourself, little wolf,” he said menacingly. Her actions annoyed him.

  “Is that a threat?” the she-wolf asked.

  Deacon’s eyes narrowed at the she-wolf’s words. “Take it how you want.”

  The blonde looked him in the eye. “Then that’s how I’ll take it, and don’t worry, bloodsucker, I always watch my back.” She growled. They stood staring at each other for a few seconds, then she pushed away from him. “Asshole,” she mumbled under her breath.

  “She’s got some balls,” a vampire behind Deacon said.

  “She’s young,” Deacon stated as if that said it all. He had no patience for anything right now. Hell, his father was the only reason he was here tonight. Left up to him, he wouldn’t even be on this damn island. Not saying another word, he stalked into the club and took a seat at one of the tables.

  ***

  Appearing outside Temptations, Draven quickly cloaked himself and Haley from being sensed by anyone inside. Once finished, he grabbed a bench and moved it to the window. The much shorter Haley would not be able to see inside without it. Once she hopped up, they both peered into the window. “Man, Mom has a hell of a crowd tonight,” he whispered.