“No. I’d never heard of Itara or the Queen before. I’m totally human, as far as I know.” Mari shrugged. “At least I used to be. So, I don’t know what to tell you. They didn’t answer all of my questions. Celestina told me that if I didn’t find you, everything would be lost and Earth would perish.”
Raiden studied her for a hint of deception and, this time, found none. “What is the date?”
“April first.” Mari smiled. “April Fool’s Day. It’s my favorite day of the year.”
He had no idea what she referred to, but he did, indeed, feel the fool.
Raiden stood, paced once more. He had no other choice but to believe what he suspected was true. He had traveled through time. These people did not remember the battle because it hadn’t happened yet. And that meant he needed to change it. The Triscani could not be allowed to win.
Perhaps he could help determine the ending of this war? Perhaps he could find the Dark One and keep the Black Gate sealed? Maybe there was a way to defeat the Triscani. He would not be able to unknow a century of war, his soul would remain stained no matter the outcome. But he could make sure that his friends and brothers did not suffer the same ill fate a hundred years from now. If he could find the Guardian of the Gates here, in this time…and warn him.
Mari’s eyes had been tracking him around the room but she looked away and placed the soul stone in her palm. Curiosity tilted her head as she studied it. He looked her in the eye. “Where did you get that soul stone?”
“In the Triscani cave.” Mari tossed it to him as if it meant nothing, as if she had no true concept of it’s worth. “What does it do?”
He plucked it from midair. “Many things.”
Unable to keep his distance, Raiden sank back down to sit on the bed beside her and placed it in her palm, wrapped her fingers around it. “It’s a soul stone, and it’s not mine. It’s yours. It must belong to a Timewalker. It bears the Mark.”
Mari held the small black stone and turned it over and over in her hands. “A soul stone? What does that mean? What does it do?”
“It traps or holds the essence of a soul, acts like a psychic anchor. Healers of old used them to separate and capture a piece of a soul when the body was dying. Immortals have used them to escape the pain of recovering from wounds, but no longer do. It’s considered too risky. Healers do, but only if they are desperate, and only on the royal family. The stone can grant a courageous healer time to heal a half-blood, but it’s very dangerous for both of them.”
“Why is it dangerous?” Sarah tapped her lip, thinking out loud. “And why don’t Immortals use them anymore?”
“Because true Immortals know that given time, they will always heal. Their bodies and souls are strong enough to survive almost anything. Placing their soul in the hands of another is not worth the risk. Half-bloods aren’t always so lucky.” Raiden knew from experience.
“How is it dangerous for them?” Mari’s huge eyes asked for an answer he was quite sure she must already know. She was the strongest healer he’d ever heard of, even in legend. But she wasn’t from his time, or his people.
“If the injured body dies, or if the healer isn’t strong enough to keep her own soul separate, the dying soul’s anchor will latch on to the healer forever. The legends say it’s like living with two different people inside your head. Eventually, the stronger soul destroys the weaker. Mythical healers of old used the stones rarely, and only on the royal family or people they deeply loved.” Raiden shook his head. “It’s best not to risk using them at all.”
“Well, someone obviously did.” She frowned and brought it close to her eye, as if she expected to see a tiny person standing at its center.
“The stones are illegal on Itara, an instant death sentence. They are not solely use for healing.” Raiden place his hand over hers and lowered it to her lap. “Some Immortals use a stone to send messages through time. They can hold power or knowledge. However, the soul has to be strong enough to endure the split. And from what I’ve heard, it’s not a pleasant experience.”
And yet, this was the second stone he’d seen in as many days. Two stones. Both pulsing with power. Whose soul did she hold in her hands? Whose soul was locked on his ship? Gerrick had claimed the first belonged to the Lost King.
That was highly improbable. A soul stone was serious business. If the stone were lost or stolen during a healing, the physical body left behind eventually went insane while the soul’s essence would remain trapped in the stone forever. An Immortal king would not need to take that kind of risk.
Unless the stone did, indeed belong to the Lost King, and it had been stolen. That would keep the king’s body weak and vulnerable for centuries. Perhaps the Lost King was using the stone to send a message through time. But a message to who?
And Mari’s stone bore the Timewalker mark. Interesting indeed. Could there be an Immortal Timewalker? Or a human Timewalker who had somehow convinced an Immortal priestess or healer to aid in creating the stone? Either way, it was dangerous. The owner of this soul had to be either desperate or insane by now. The stone reeked of age. A century or more. The dark gifts of his mother whispered this to him as he brushed the stone with his fingertips.
Soul stones were dangerous. And yet, he’d considered it himself once. But he’d had nothing to lose. He was prince to a people who did not offer him the crown, a son with no mother, a commander with no ship, no weapons and no crew, and a man with no place in this time. One look at his savior where she lay shivering, wrapped in blankets, and he felt a tinge of regret. She was beautiful, sacred, innocent, and had gifts many would kill to control. She would have kings on their knees begging for favor.
She had saved his life, but she was not his savior. Mari was not his anything. He owned nothing, could offer her nothing, and wanted nothing but an end to the war.
Raiden’s gaze was locked onto their joined hands. He knew he should move away, but couldn’t find the will. Her touch was the only thing holding him together.
“Raiden?” Mari lifted her hand to cup the side of his face and he allowed her to turn him toward her. Her lips were so close he could taste her sweet breath in the air between them.
“Yes?”
“Did you dream of me, too?” Her golden-brown eyes looked sad, and vulnerable. He wanted to lie to her, to tell her he’d dreamt of her every moment he’d spent locked in the tube.
“No, Mari. In stasis there is nothing. Just…nothing.” Raiden leaned over until their foreheads met. Unable to deny himself, he traced the soft angles of her lips with his fingertips. She was so soft. So incredible. “It’s a dreamless death.”
Mari’s hand trembled against his cheek and Raiden turned his head to place a kiss in her palm. “Thank you, Mari. Thank you for finding me.”
Mari’s breath hitched and Raiden wasn’t sure if she was about to laugh or cry.
“You’re welcome.” Mari’s palm held his jaw, then she shifted forward to splay her fingers through his hair and tighten her grip on his neck. That small act, her claim of ownership, ignited his blood and sent a streak of lust straight to his groin. She wanted him. Gods be damned, she wanted him in her bed.
Her gaze locked with his and she asked him a question. “Do you remember our kiss?”
Kiss? If he’d kissed this woman, he would’ve remembered it. “No. I have not kissed you, Mari. I would damn well remember it if I had.”
“No, you wouldn’t. It wasn’t in this time. But you did.” Her gaze dropped to inspect his mouth as he waited for an explanation. “And I do remember.”
He couldn’t move away from her and he was tired of fighting her siren’s song. Perhaps she would be courted by kings, promised riches and power. But not today. Today she was looking at a battered soldier, a bastard prince lost in time. For today, she could be his.
Mari tugged him closer and pressed her lips to his softly, a gentle entreaty, a tasting. All the while her hand remained at his nape. The conflicting signals, the aggressive claim of her gr
ip yet tender exploration of her lips, lit him on fire. Raiden wrapped his arms around her and deepened the kiss, demanded entrance into the sweet heaven of her mouth.
She opened for him and he couldn’t hold back the primal urge to stake his claim. Someday, should she be seated next to a king, he wanted her to be thinking about this.
Raiden pulled her closer, right into his lap. She came willingly, her generous breasts pressed to his chest with nothing but his borrowed shirt and her thin swim suit to separate them. The tight peaks of Mari’s nipples rubbed him through the soft fabric in blatant invitation. She moaned as her arms wound their way around his shoulders. Mari’s grip was demanding and tight, but her body melted in his embrace. He explored the delicate skin of her back with hungry hands and traced her curves like a master sculptor desperate to learn every line and angle of a new masterpiece.
His cock swelled where it pressed beneath her wiggling bottom and he groaned as she moved against him. Raiden had taken a number of different women to bed in the last century, but none had moved him like this.
Mari kissed him like he was the center of her universe. She held nothing back in her kiss, her touch, or her sighs of pleasure. A spiral of heat was rising inside him like his body was a long dormant volcano set to explode. Power rose with their lust as their energies merged into one massive wave.
Raiden’s shoulder burned as if she branded him with a hot iron. And brand him, she did. The Mark, her claim on him, pulsed with heat and desire. For her. Only for her.
If he fucked her, he’d never be free. Never again. She’d own him, body and soul. He’d never be able to walk away from this. Even though he could give back her Mark, he knew he wouldn’t have the strength, not after he tasted paradise in her bed.
She didn’t deserve that. Didn’t deserve to pay for his mistakes.
He’d known her a matter of hours. He’d known and loved his brother, the traitor, for over a century. He couldn’t afford to make that kind of mistake again.
It took every ounce of honor he had, but he lifted his hands from her hips and ended the kiss. Mari leaned forward and traced the line of his jaw with her tongue. His gut clenched as she moved on to explore his neck.
“Mari, we have to stop.” Raiden placed his hands on her shoulders to push her away from him. Her Mark flared with heat beneath his palm and shot a bolt of fiery need straight to his groin. He was going to explode. Her name came out a moan. “Mari.”
“Don’t stop.” Mari’s hands tunneled beneath his shirt to explore his stomach. Each stoke of her fingers was like electrical current across his skin. “I want you.”
“Mari.”
She leaned to the side and pulled his sleeve up on top of his shoulder, out of her way, so she could see his Mark. “You are mine now, Raiden.” She bent slowly, her whisky-brown eyes locked to his as she traced the outline of the Mark with her tongue.
It was like a bomb went off in his head. He didn’t know where he was. If she’d asked, he wouldn’t have been able to remember his own name. All he knew was that he needed to be inside her.
Raiden rolled her to the bed beneath him and pressed her to the mattress. Her legs twined with his and her hips rose in invitation. He kissed her again, unable to resist the sweet lure of her mouth.
Neither one of them heard the door open. Raiden did hear Sarah’s gasp, but barely processed the sound. Nothing mattered but the woman in his arms. Nothing.
A sharp bolt of lightning jolted him in the ass.
Raiden startled out of his passion-induced haze and turned to face the woman standing near the door. She obviously had a death wish.
Sarah’s hands were on her hips, and she glared at him like he was the lowest of low. “Really, Ryan? You two just met, and she was almost dead an hour ago. You do this and I promise you she’ll want to kill you later, after she’s come to her senses.”
Raiden shook his head to clear it, but Mari was still writhing beneath him, unaware of Sarah’s presence in the room. Her skin glowed with power, power his Mark was feeding her system. Sarah was right. Mari was out of her mind and she’d taken him along for the ride.
“Damn.” He pulled back and Mari followed him. She whimpered like a lost kitten when he wouldn’t return to her embrace. Her eyes were glazed and her hands shook.
Why hadn’t he noticed?
He looked at his own shaking limbs. Maybe because he was nearly as bad.
Tim walked in behind his wife, a pained look of sympathy on his face. “Come on. Let’s get to work. Now that Mari’s awake, we need a plan.” Raiden cursed and rose from his place next to temptation incarnate. The woman was dangerous to his system. Tim raised an eyebrow and grinned at him.
“What’s so damn funny?”
“Resistance is futile.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“It means you’re hers now.” And then the bald bastard tapped his left shoulder, pointed at Raiden and raised one eyebrow with a grin. “There’s no going back.”
Chapter Seven
Was he well and truly Marked? Mari had claimed him. Her Mark rode his flesh, but that proved compatibility, nothing more. Did she intend to assert that claim? To try to keep him? He’d thought Gerrick delirious when he said as much, but the possibility nearly brought him to his knees.
It could never be. And though she had Marked him, he’d have to find the will to free her before it was too late. Right now she was still pulling energy from him somehow, healing. He couldn’t deny her that small boon when she’d saved his life. Right now, she needed him. When she was strong, he’d do what needed to be done to save her. He’d let her go so the darkness he carried didn’t destroy her.
Still, he had to see the impossible for himself. He strode to the tall mirror sitting atop the wicker dresser and twisted around to get a clear view of the top of his left shoulder. He knew exactly where to look. The darn spot had tingled to life as if it had a life of its own and knew it was being placed on display. And there it was, the Shen, the mark of a Timewalker. He turned back around to Mari, shoved his still shaking hands into his pockets to caress the hilts of his blades. He needed to calm the fuck down. “Mari, what exactly did Celestina say when she sent you through time?”
Her gaze found his, locked on to him like a homing beacon. Mari’s eyes darkened with desire and he took an involuntary step toward her before his brain processed the movement. The Shen on his shoulder sent a bolt of lust into every cell in his body. By the gods, the woman had him bewitched. Mari licked her lips and Tim stepped between them, breaking the hypnotic allure in her gaze. “Time for that later, my friend. Let’s figure this out so we know what we’re dealing with.”
Focus. Yes. He was clearly lacking in that department at the moment. Every breath he took drew Mari’s scent into his lungs. He wanted to taste her kiss, cover her body, and bury himself so deeply inside her that she’d never think of another man again.
Focus.
He held out his hand and Mari tossed the stone to him. Sarah and Mari were frozen in place as he pressed his thumb against a sharp edge and cut himself. He smeared his blood around the centerpiece of the stone to unlock it. As expected, the blood disappeared into the stone, but only a faint light glowed from its depths. It recognized his Immortal blood, but that wasn’t enough. There should have been a clue, a message, a name, anything to tell them whose soul was anchored in the stone.
Frustrated, he made the cut deeper and rubbed even more blood onto its surface. This time nothing happened. The dark red liquid remained on the exterior, rejected.
His thumb tingled where he’d cut it and Mari held her breath on the bed. He watched as the flesh of his thumb knit back together perfectly until it looked untouched. Completely healed. Her freshly indrawn breath agitated him. There was pain there, in the soft sound that escaped her throat.
Unerringly, his gaze flew to Mari’s hand where a new flesh wound blossomed in the same location his had been. Fresh blood dripped onto her blanket. Damn it to hell. Th
is was unacceptable. He could not have this woman absorbing his wounds. He had a dangerous mission still ahead and he wouldn’t be able to risk even the slightest injury if she were going to suffer in his stead.
What would happen to her if he couldn’t find the Guardian of the Gate? Would she die with him as the Queen’s Remnant ate him away from the inside out? As the souls of the fallen that he’d turned to ash devoured his own? By the gods, he had to get the hell away from her before their connection became any stronger. He must find the will to break the link between them before it was too late to save her. Way too late.
Mari closed her eyes and enclosed her thumb inside her fist. He watched intently and staggered as a sharp pulling sensation tugged from the Shen on his shoulder.
Mari opened her hand and held up her thumb. The wound was gone.
He’d have to refuse her Mark and break the link once he’d found his ship. He couldn’t risk her life. He wouldn’t be the cause of one more innocent’s death, of her death. There wasn’t much left of his soul, but enough to know he’d Turn into one of the bastard Triscani if he hurt her. He’d be totally and irrevocably lost the moment she died.
He had to break this bond and get far away from her. The other side of the galaxy far.
He turned his attention back to the soul stone and resisted the urge to throw it against the wall. His blood was both royal and an Immortal key. Unless his father had lied to him, his red blood cells should have activated the stone, revealed its creator at the very least. His blood had done nothing.
Tim’s keen eyes studied him. “Well?”
Raiden shook his head. “Nothing. I don’t understand it. I am of the royal bloodline. Our DNA is keyed to all of these devices when they are created. It’s the Queen’s most sacred command. It should have activated. It should have at least revealed a name.”
Blue Abyss: Timewalker Chronicles, Book 3 (The Timewalker Chronicles) Page 15