Released by Desire

by Melissa Stevens

  “Hmm. Perhaps a heritage awareness event? Have people submit all kinds of lore and tales they remember with the plan to put them in a booklet to be given away to participants. Then, even if no one submits it, we put the legend front and center, first thing in the book, so they all see it, even if they don’t read the whole thing.”

  Teya pulled her mouth to one side. “How long would it take to put an event like this together?”

  “I can do it in a couple days. It’s not like there are ten thousand dragons in Vegas.” Rachel made a few notes on the notepad she carried. “It will also help with awareness of other regional dragon lore and legends.”

  “Good.” Teya nodded once. “This is a good way to get word of the legend, prophecy, whatever you want to call it, to spread so I can put the worry of the clan using Jericho as a reason to replace me out of my mind.” She took a deep breath and leaned back against her chair. “Though, I’m not entirely sure losing this position would be as big of a catastrophe as I feared. Yes, I’ve led the clan for the last thirty years, and my father held the position before me, but I have been thinking about what else I could do if I wasn’t so busy here with clan and Fraction business.” Rachel watched her for a moment.

  “I’d hate to lose you and have to break in a newbie.”

  “You didn’t have to break me in.” Teya laughed. “I was already well broken in before you got here. But thanks for the sentiment.” She glanced down at the desktop and the papers scattered there. “I guess I better get back to what needs to get done...” With a sigh, she began to stack and sort the pages then glanced up to find Rachel still watching her. “I’m considering not waiting for the clan’s approval to make things official with Jericho. If it doesn’t matter to me if they accept him, why should we wait?”

  “I can’t argue there, but give it another day or so before you dive headlong into the idea of giving up your position. And if I may, I’d like to make a suggestion.”

  “Of course, you can make a suggestion.” Teya looked at her friend with one lifted brow.

  “Delegate more. Most of the Fraction leaders in town have more than one assistant. They are not nearly as hands on as you are.” Rachel lifted one hand as Teya started to protest. “I’m not saying it’s a bad thing to take care of everything personally, but you don’t have to. Consider promoting a couple more people and delegating some of the things that take up so much of your time.” Rachel stood. “I’m going to go get started on this.” She lifted her notepad. “Hopefully, it will make things easier in the long run. But think about what I said.” Without another word, Rachel turned and went back to her desk, leaving Teya alone with her thoughts. Was she serious about giving up her position for Jericho? Rachel did have a good point about letting other people do more. Maybe that was the answer.

  By the time Teya called it a day and left the office, Rachel had worked miracles, at least in Teya’s opinion. She’s already drawn up the details on the clan lore project, made up fliers, and sent them out to everyone in the clan. She’d set the deadline ten days out. It was enough time that those who were willing to participate would have done so, but not so long out that it would take forever to get them put together and have the book printed. Teya had cleared everything before Rachel sent it out. That’s how she knew all the details.

  At the end of the day, Teya got on the elevator and hit the button for her floor without thinking about it. Instead, her mind was running over old stories she’d heard over the years, thinking about what she could submit. If she expected others to submit stories they remembered, she could do no less. The elevator stopped on her floor, and she made her way to her apartment, still on autopilot, even stepping inside and out of her shoes. Shoes had gotten more comfortable in recent decades, but she still preferred to be barefooted when she could.

  In her brightly lit living room, Teya picked up her laptop from the coffee table and took it to the small table she sometimes ate at to type up the story she remembered her mother telling her about the beginning of the world they lived in. She’d finished the story and submitted it to the email address on the flier, one Rachel had set up just for the project, when she realized she didn’t know where Jericho was.

  If he were in the apartment, he would have come and found her before she had finished typing up the story. Confused, she checked the entire apartment, making sure she hadn’t missed him somehow. Then, without bothering to put her shoes back on, she went down the hallway to her brother’s apartment. Teya knocked and waited for an answer then knocked again, harder. Nothing. Where were they?

  18

  Teya was still standing in front of Neo’s door, considering where to look next, when the elevator bell drew her attention. Laughter echoed down the hall as her brother and Jericho stepped out. Relief washed through her. As one, they turned toward Neo’s apartment, still laughing and talking. Jericho’s eyes met Teya’s and his smile changed. Heat rushed through her. Until that moment, she hadn’t realized how worried and scared she’d been when she realized Jericho was gone.

  “Looks like you were right.” Neo slapped him on the back. “I don’t know how you always know exactly where she is and when she’s looking for you.” Jericho turned to face Neo, a disbelieving look on his face.

  “It’s not that hard. Her dragon tells me.” Neo blinked twice

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes, I am under the impression that her dragon speaking to me is normal.” He looked back and forth between Teya and Neo as if he was now unsure.

  Neo turned to Teya. “Are you aware of your dragon talking to him?”

  “I know she does it—” she shrugged “—but I’m not always aware when it’s happening.”

  Neo fell silent, but his gaze went back and forth between the two of them several times.

  I’ll tell you again, don’t let this one go. Trust me on this one. Neo’s voice was clear and earnest in her mind.

  I don’t plan to, she sent back, turning to look at the man she’d known for centuries but had only recently made an appearance to the rest of the world. I’m sure he feels the same. “What’s the plan for tonight?”

  “I’ve got a date, so you two are on your own.” Neo glanced at Jericho then back to Teya. “Have fun.”

  Teya rolled her eyes and turned to Jericho as her brother pressed is hand against the panel next to the door and went inside.

  “Well, what do you want to do?”

  “Hmm...” Jericho stepped close and wrapped one arm around her shoulders. “How about we order something to eat then spend a quiet evening together?”

  “That sounds amazing.” Unable to stop the smile that crept across her face, Teya leaned her head against his shoulder as he pulled her closer. “Let’s go order dinner.” She wrapped her arm around his waist, and together, they walked back to what had become their apartment.

  After they’d eaten, Teya sat on the sofa, curled against Jericho’s side, while “Clarity with Amie” played on the radio. Jericho’s arm wrapped loosely around her as they sat in silence.

  “Have you thought about what you want long term?” Teya asked without moving.

  “What do you mean what I want?”

  “Do you want to be here with me? Do you want to go out and build a life of your own, away from all the drama of the dragons? Or something else? Anything else. Have you thought about it?” He shifted beneath her. She glanced up to find him frowning down at her, a crease between his eyes.

  “Do you want me to leave?”

  “I didn’t say that. I simply want to know what you want.” Her heart ached at the idea of him leaving her, but she wouldn’t ask him to stay if it wasn’t what he wanted.

  “I want nothing more than to be with you. I have worked toward being able to hold you in my arms for centuries. I have no desire to give you up. If you want me to go, I will, but it is not something I desire.” His arm stiffened around her and his entire body went tense. She’d managed to upset him, which hadn’t been her intention at all.

&nb
sp; “I don’t want you to go anywhere.” She met his gaze so he could see the honesty in her eyes. “I needed to make certain it was what you want, though, not just my wishful thinking.”

  “I have no desire to be anywhere but here with you, Teyacapan. For the rest of my days.”

  “You really mean forever?”

  “I do. There’s nothing I want more than to spend the rest of my life with you, however long that may be.”

  “You’re certain?”

  “Baby, I spent more than two thousand years trying to get to you. I don’t want to be anywhere else. I understand there’s a way we can make our bond permanent so that we will each live as long as the other, and when one dies, the other will follow.”

  Teya blinked, wondering where he’d heard about the spell that would bind them. Then it dawned on her. Her dragon had told him.

  “There is. Would it be something you would be interested in doing?” Teya wanted it more than she was willing to admit, but she didn’t want to push him into something he didn’t want.

  “I can think of nothing I would like more.” Jericho cupped one side of her face. “You are my everything, and I have no desire to be without you, if it is something you want.” She wondered if her dragon had told him exactly how she felt, and how strongly.

  “It is, but I wasn’t sure you would be ready for such a commitment. Once it’s done, there’s no way to undo the spell. We will be bound to each other for eternity.” She covered his hand on her face with one of her own.

  “I would not have brought it up if I did not want to do it. I want nothing more than to be bound to you. I have no thought or desire to exist on any plane for even a single day without you.” Relief and contentment washed through her. Somewhere deep inside, she’d been worried he wouldn’t want to be bound to her.

  “It’s not hard.” She pulled his hand from her face and folded both her hands with his as she faced him and watched him. “We just have to recite the spell together. We can even do it now, if you would like.”

  “I would like.” He shifted on the couch so his entire body faced her the way she faced him. “What do I need to do?”

  “Just say the words with me at the same time. Do I need to tell you them first?”

  Jericho shook his head. “I already know them.” Teya took a deep breath and together they spoke the words.

  “Two hearts become one, two souls forever entwined, coming together, now combine, tied to each other for all time.” Power and energy pushed through them, metaphorically tying them together for eternity.

  “Is that all?”

  “All? Don’t you feel it?” The energy continued to race through them, creating the bonds that would take them into the next world when one or the other met the end of this life.

  Jericho was quiet for a moment before his face changed. His eyes widened with surprise then a shiver ran through him. He closed his eyes and gasped.

  “I feel it. It’s like heat and magic rushing through me.”

  “Exactly.” She leaned close and waited until Jericho opened his eyes then kissed him.

  NEXT BOOK IN THE COLLECTION

  THE LIGHT

  by Savannah J. Frierson

  Order Now!

  Chapter One

  One moment, Aminata “Amie” Fisher was minding her business while walking down the street, and the next she was airborne before slamming into a brick wall. It was all more than a touch disconcerting considering she couldn’t see a damn thing and her cane and cell phone were now most likely abandoned on the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Road.

  “Dammit,” Amie moaned, her head throbbing and the metallic scent of blood hitting her nostrils. Her blood. Her stomach roiled and she frowned, both in annoyance over her injury and the fact this particular alley where she found herself was rank as hell. Which made sense because she suspected the being before her was also from there.

  Taloned claws bit into her shoulders, making her grit her teeth in pain and hiss softly. The responding deep, foreboding chuckle made her skin crawl.

  “Now yours is a soul I know the Donas will enjoy,” came a voice on a breath that smelled of rotting death. Amie gagged but gained control of herself. She wouldn’t give this being the satisfaction of seeing her retch. “You’ll fetch me a fine prize.”

  “Likely story,” Amie muttered, her sightless eyes glowering in the direction of the breath. The one day she’d decided to forgo her glasses and wear contacts would be the day she was abducted by supernatural forces. With her contacts on—the contacts that gave her the appearance of having white sclera and distinct irises, of being normal—she was well and truly blind.

  Only in her life. Only in Vegas.

  Her comment clearly brought the being up short for it froze. “You are not afraid?”

  “Wrong word,” Amie said. “The word you want is ‘surprised.’ And, no, I’m not.”

  “Why?”

  She smirked then, her head rolling against the bricks, making the tight coils of her hair catch in the grain of the wall. “Let’s just call this...déjà vu.”

  The being before her remained still, its talons digging deeper into her shoulders with the effort of keeping her on the wall. The longer those talons remained embedded, the harder she grit her teeth. She wouldn’t cry out at the fire emanating from the being’s grip. She was vulnerable enough without letting on he was causing her agony. Being suspended in midair like she was, Amie could only use the wall and the being itself for any sense of locational reference. It was certainly not the most ideal of circumstances, haring off to fight otherworldly creatures she hadn’t been certain existed until this very moment, and her bright idea to investigate this theory was actually among the dimmest of her soon-to-be thirty-three years on earth.

  If she got out of this altercation alive, that was.

  The being’s face came closer and what she assumed was a pointy nose grazed the column of her short neck. Amie shuddered, the smell even worse now that it was closer, and she squeezed sightless eyes shut.

  “You smell like dog.” It then huffed out a chuckle. “Look like one too.”

  Amie rolled her eyes but kept her mouth shut. She’d heard people say she looked like a short, squat, brown pug, which apparently was supposed to be an insult. But she had it on good authority that pugs were the cutest and most adorable dogs—at least according to her best friend, Melody.

  “You’re stalling,” Amie said, a slight pant carrying her words because it was incredibly exhausting to keep herself upright with only talons and a wall for braces. She was a woman of some substance, both in personality and in size, so Amie really hoped the rest of what she’d seen in her dream would happen quick, fast, and in a hurry. Passing out was not an option right now. She needed all the faculties she possessed, and perhaps a few she didn’t, to make it back home.

  “You’re not afraid enough yet,” the being said, frustration tinging its voice. “It’s easier when you’re afraid.”

  Amie arched an eyebrow. “Oh, is this like Monsters Inc.? The screams power Hell City or whatever? Then maybe you should make me laugh. Would that make it easier to snatch my s-soul?”

  The being didn’t like being teased because it gripped her even harder, its nose dragging along her jaw. Her eyes were starting to roll in the back of her head and her brain was turning into cotton. The fear that she’d been keeping at back was threatening to break the dam of her resolve. Nothing about this was funny, but everything about this was ridiculous. She should’ve left well enough alone, but the dreams had been dogging her every night and sometimes during the day. Apparently, the universe thought a blind radio show host could do something about the missing people in the city, a number that had been growing daily. That had to be the only reason she was out in a random alley on a chilly December night instead of in her toasty bed with her dog’s soft snores lulling her to sleep.

  The being chuckled again. “Ah, we’re getting close.”

  “Close to what?” Amie asked, bu
t she suspected she knew the answer.

  “Enough fear for me to grab onto,” it said, now almost giddy with the rising terror that was filling in her belly and close to rising up her throat in a scream. “I’ll get your soul yet.”

  “It’s not for you,” Amie said with an authority she had to believe even though it was quickly getting buried underneath her fear. She began to tremble, unable to quell this small manifestation of her growing panic. The being cackled its glee, its mouth now hovering over hers. Amie’s stomach roiled, its breath so foul she thought her lips would shrivel up and fall from her face at any moment.

  “You’re mine!” the being crowed. “Donas will be so—!”

  A burst of light so bright forced Amie to turn her face in automatic response and squeeze unseeing eyes shut. Then she was falling.

  She’d been higher up than she’d realized because several seconds passed before her falling ceased, then she was rising again. Unlike before, however, Amie could sense the displaced air and the cool breeze hitting her face. There were also a pair of arms around her now, too, arms that were solid and muscular, but not bulging. This new being felt like her grandmother’s warm hug and smelled like her grandmother’s kitchen during Thanksgiving, spicy with a hint of sweetness. There was also a hint of something citrus, almost lemon but not quite. Yet this being was not her grandmother. This one was too broad and tall to be.

  “Who—?”

  “Shh,” the voice crooned in her ear, this one also deep but far more pleasant than the last. “We are almost there.”

  Amie shuddered for the second time that night, but disgust wasn’t the reason for it this go around. The English was accented, as if it weren’t the being’s first language, but she could understand him clearly all the same.

  They didn’t fly for very long; but instead of landing on earth, they landed in water. Amie inhaled deeply, her head falling back as she was gently submerged in the water. She gasped as her clothes and shoes were singed away from her body, leaving her in nothing but her underwear. As completely bewildering as that trick was, she wasn’t nervous about being so exposed. In fact, she’d never felt safer.