I stumbled over the white flokati rug that Adam had given me for my birthday. He was the one who brought the ashes over, but he didn’t join in the festivities in the other room. He sat quietly in the living room, staring at the urn while drinking his stout. Losing Knox was more personal to him than the rest of us because he was not just a friend but had watched it all go down. He had the same contemplative look a man might have standing on the edge of the world.
Adam was half-asleep on the sofa, lifting an eye to watch me.
“You drink like a fish,” he murmured.
“You’re one to talk, Shamu. How many kegs did you guzzle down?”
His glazed eyes slanted my way and he tossed a pillow at my head. My Adam was slowly returning, scars and all. They marked his jaw and lacerated his forehead and eye. Since that night, he always kept his jacket on or wore long sleeves. I knew the explosion had scarred him elsewhere, but I didn’t know how to express to him that it didn’t matter to me.
He ran his hand through his wavy dark hair and scratched his bristly chin before resting his fist against his cheek. “So, it’s serious now with Logan?”
Adam watched me take a few swallows of beer and my voice softened. “I know you’re thinking I’m rushing into this, but I can’t begin to explain how I feel when I’m with him, Adam. He’s not perfect, I’m not perfect, but together… we’re perfect.”
His finger traced along the scar on his right jaw, something I noticed that he did when thinking. “Just remember, if he breaks your heart, I’ll kick his ass,” he said, loud enough that I cringed.
“Keep it down, Adam.”
“No, I won’t keep it down,” he replied, raising his voice to nearly a yell. “If he breaks your heart, I’ll kick his ass!”
“As you should,” Logan said, bringing enough swagger into the room to set my heart afire. “Come with me, Adam. Our man-to-man talk is long overdue.”
“Wait a minute,” I said. But Logan lifted his hand to silence me. He was as serious as a heart attack and I looked on nervously as Adam polished off his beer and accepted the challenge. As they moved toward the outside hall, Logan turned around and shot me a reassuring wink.
“You need to ease off that,” Christian said, nodding at my drink as he slumped into a chair.
“I can drink you all under the table,” I said with a hiccup.
He stared down his nose, looking as Vlad as a Vampire could with his short beard and apathetic eyes. “A drunken woman is not fetching.”
“It’s so much easier for you men in this world,” I grumbled. “It’s hard to relate to Mage women because most of them were brought on as sexual liaisons, not warriors. Most of them weren’t even properly educated.”
“Aye. And your Ghuardian has tried to remedy that by giving you all the best.”
“For what? I haven’t seen many independent women who weren’t under the protection of a man or organization. Maybe Page is on the abrasive side, but she’s more down to earth than some of the Loopty Loos I’ve run into.”
“Well, you can piss and moan about it, or you could be the exception to the rule.”
I rolled on my back, gripping the rug between my fingers. “I don’t want to be an exception, Christian. I want it to be like this for all the women. I’d like more women to be created, and for there to be more balance in our race.”
“Jaysus. The men would go wild over some of the modern lasses coming into your little society. Ever seen the girls in those clubs wearing the shorts that ride up over their arse?”
“And people like you are the reason why women were made into whores.”
He frowned and looked up at the ceiling. I tried to keep our banter going because something had changed with Christian since the night of our blood sharing. He looked at me differently. Novis had shared his concern that he might not be fit to guard me because that kind of blood sharing sometimes created a personal bond not conducive to protecting me within the rules. He would become easily distracted. I didn’t know much about Vampires, but I wondered if they felt a sense of entitlement to those who had ingested their blood.
“Is it true that your eyes silver?” Page curled up on the sofa, hugging a small pillow.
“Sometimes,” I said. “Who told you?”
She smirked and pointed her thumb over her shoulder. “They’re drunk in there. Loose lips and all that. Can you show me?”
Christian laughed enthusiastically. “I think I can help out with that.”
“You can stuff it, Christian.”
“Yes, I certainly can,” he said suggestively.
I ignored the remark and glanced at Page. “The silvering only happens when I get angry or…”
“I believe horny is the word you’re looking for,” Christian responded matter-of-factly. He leaned in privately to Page. “Been there, done that.”
I narrowed my eyes and decided to buy Christian a box of wooden stakes for Christmas. “Why do you ask?”
She rested her chin on her knee. “When it was mentioned, something clicked. It took me a minute to figure it out, but I’d have to see it for myself to know.”
“See what?” Logan said in a deep voice, looking tall and delicious as he entered the room. He was wearing Knox’s black hat, and his blond hair peeked out from the edges.
Adam came up behind him and I was relieved to see no black eyes on either of them. He looked satisfied and took a seat in a chair beside the faux fireplace, sitting with his legs wide apart.
Logan sat on the floor and wrapped his warm hands around my ankles.
“Page wants to see her eyes do that pinwheel thing,” Christian answered.
A deep and guttural purr hummed from Logan’s chest and I melted—it was one of my most favorite sounds that he made. There were different levels of purring and growling, and each had its own meaning. He had one particular purr that was reserved for me, because it was at such a low decibel that you could only hear it if you were next to him. He parted my knees very slowly and began to crawl over me.
“Not in front of a crowd!” I shouted. Laughs filled the room and Logan winked.
“I tried,” he said with a wag of his brow. That dark gaze in his eye let me know he would have made out with me on top of the queen’s dining table to prove his devotion.
Page picked a piece of lint from her black sweater. “I think I have an idea of what’s in your genetic makeup if you ever want to show me.”
I sat up quicker than a heartbeat. Hell yes, I wanted to know.
I grabbed a fistful of Logan’s shirt and rose to my feet. “Give us a minute.”
He stumbled behind me obediently, sliding his hands around my hips and dipping his fingers into my pants. I pulled Logan into the study and stood with my back against the wall.
Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was curiosity to know more about what I was, or maybe it was just Logan being so damn sexy in that tight black shirt.
He pressed his hard body against mine and I drew in a deep breath, smelling his wonderful scent. He pulled off the hat, revealing messy hair, and respectfully placed it on the arm of a chair.
Meanwhile, my hands were sliding around to grip his ass and he growled, pressing even closer to me as his mouth tasted the curve of my neck. “I’m afraid if you work me over, Little Raven, the good doctor will not be able to see what it is you want to show her.”
“Why is that?” I breathed.
His tongue laved a sensitive part below my ear and kicked my heart into fourth gear. “Because I’m going to carry you to the bedroom and make love to you if you keep this up. Or maybe I’ll just close the door and bend you over that chair.”
He kissed his way up my neck and I touched his smooth jaw as his warm lips mashed against mine. Logan kissed me slow and sensually, curving his hand around the back of my neck and pushing the hard muscle of his tongue against mine. He kissed me that same way during sex.
The back of his hand stroked my stomach before moving higher. He circled his thumb over my bra
and then took a detour, slowly heading south where he gave me a hard massage. I moaned against his mouth and wrapped my arms around his neck, keeping my hands at a distance.
It took all of fifteen seconds before he turned his head to the side and shouted, “Relic, come see.”
And then his mouth was back on mine. “I don’t think I can stop,” he whispered against my lips. His chest vibrated like a motor and his breathing grew heavy.
Page walked in and looked startled.
Logan pressed the flat of his hands against the wall and lowered his head, looking at me like a six-and-a-half-foot predator. Somehow, he managed to pull himself away so that Page could lean in and get a closer look. I tried to straighten my shirt as I kept my attention on Logan’s eyes; they dripped sex from every fleck of color that bled from them like honey.
Page suddenly obscured my view. Her finger pushed up my lid and she leaned in closer.
“Fascinating,” she whispered. “I never imagined how beautiful it was.”
Logan held my wrist as a reminder not to accidentally touch the Relic. I pinned them behind my back and allowed her to look at my eyes before the silvering disappeared.
She scratched the side of her nose and stepped back. “Has anyone ever told you that you were a…” Her lips formed a thin line and I knew what word was coming. She didn’t finish because Logan was present.
“Logan, there’s something I’ve kept from you,” I said.
His heavy brow sank over his eyes. “What does that mean?”
I took a deep breath and met Page with a worried glance. “You’re about to find out.” I nodded at Page, because I did not intend to keep secrets from Logan anymore. Those days were over.
“There are different kinds of Uniques,” she began. “Four that I know of. They were once called Elementals because their power was different from a normal Mage, and they’re rare. But they are a Mage. No one understood their unique power, so they were feared and hunted. Part of my gift is learning the makeup of various Breeds: healing, treatments, abilities, limits, and believe me—I could go on in what we know. Some of us specialize in Breeds that are rare, or have gone extinct. Slater was one such Relic.”
“I’m not following.”
Page closed the door and lowered her voice. “My family used to consult with, treat, and assist Uniques. That was many generations ago. There were more in that time because they didn’t hide who they were. Many were killed, kept captive in their younger years, or just disappeared. My theory is that they still exist and live in secret among us. I have never met one myself. Each possesses a unique ability that makes them easy to identify from a regular Mage.”
I felt the energy dissipate and I held my hand across my racing heart. I’d never had anyone explain what a Unique was; all I knew was that my light was different. “Which one am I?”
She chewed on her bottom lip for a moment. “I’m not sure if they went by any kind of name during that time, I only know that my family referred to them as Shiners. They were the easiest to spot because of the silvering in their eyes,” she said, pointing to my face. “Maybe that’s why there are so few of you. Uniques can only be identified if someone witnesses their power or tastes their light. But Shiners would have been easy to spot. People feared those who were different.”
I folded my arms. “They still do.”
She smiled knowingly and Logan leaned on his right shoulder beside me, clinging to her every word.
“I’d have to look through my ancestors’ books to give you exact details, but Shiners had the ability to move metal. Can you do that?”
A shiver ran up my spine. “Yeah. Only if a Mage has touched it. Something about the energy left behind allows me to manipulate it. Just not all metals.”
She began rolling up the sleeves of her oversized sweater and a small line appeared on her brow as she spoke. “If I tell you this, then you can’t share it with anyone.”
“I promise,” I said.
“I mean it.” Her brown eyes stared, unblinking. “I know you have a close relationship with Justus, and even Novis, but this stays between us. It could be dangerous.”
I held Logan’s hand and nodded. She flicked a glance to him and he said, “On my word.” That was good enough coming from a Chitah.
Page blew out a shaky breath. “My family believed that you could make a Unique—specifically, a Shiner. They found a commonality between all of them, and that was that their Creator gave them their first spark during an electrical storm. Did that happen with you?”
I shook my head and that’s when it hit me. “Do you know how I was conceived?”
“Yes. I looked through the files and your Ghuardian confided in me.”
“The Mage light has been within me since conception. I was born during an electrical storm.”
Her eyes went wide. “That must have triggered something in your DNA and when you were turned into a Mage, it switched it on. Fascinating,” she breathed. “If Creators had this kind of knowledge, they could create an all-powerful Mage by simply hanging around during a thunderstorm. I’m not saying you are all-powerful, but that is the perception among your kind. Your light is significantly stronger than the average Mage, so you have the potential to become very powerful. I’d never be able to confirm this unless I met a Unique who was an ancient. You also have special abilities that others don’t. There’s all this talk about common and rare gifts, but honestly, they’ve documented every single one of them.”
“So what does this mean? Are there others like me?”
She shook her head and stepped back. “I don’t know. My family broke contact with Uniques three centuries ago. I have a few names, but they could have changed them since then. Did you know that you can hide the silvering in your eyes? The older ones learned how to do it and that’s why I have hope that a few may still be around.”
“What information do you need from your books that you don’t already know?” Logan inquired skeptically.
Page lifted her eyes up to his. “What I know as a Relic is the equivalent of knowing what an orange tastes like, what it’s made out of, and the nutritional contents. But I couldn’t tell you what tree it was picked from, what name it’s called in Mexico, or exactly what it looks like. Does that make sense?”
I glanced up at Logan. “Sometimes during a storm, I feel a deep ache in my bones.”
“Uniques once congregated together, and I wonder if they still do,” she said. “The only way to learn more about yourself is by connecting with others. The newer ones—if there are any—may not be aware of what they are or that others exist who are like them. Some of the older ones may not know much more than I do. There’s just no way to tell. This is so exciting!”
“Is there anything else I can do besides moving around a tire iron?”
She stared at Knox’s hat on the chair. “Shiners were able to wield lightning. I believe that’s still the rumor that floats around these days, even though they thought it was something all Uniques could do. Some Uniques inherit the same gifts as their Creator, which in turn, made many of them Creators. But you don’t seem to have this gift. Could Samil do anything else?”
“Simon thinks he was a mentalist. Sometimes I could hear him in my head, but I don’t think I’ve ever done anything like that before. Surely I would have noticed.”
She pinched her chin and looked up. “Sometimes abilities don’t come to full potential for years, although you may have had a few episodes of it without knowing. Kind of like flickers from a lighter before the flame is actually lit. If you think back, you might make the connection. You should also be able to push your energy into metal, although I’m not sure what benefit that would be.”
My mind went back to the day I’d found Finn chained up in the compound and how I felt my energy pour out through my hands as I swung that mallet. I’d thought about it on occasion after that, because I was certain that I didn’t possess enough strength to have broken that chain. Samil’s progeny was strong because of our DNA
and how he created us, but he had no idea what he had made the day he put his first spark into me.
“Thanks for trusting me, Silver. I’ll do a little research and let you know if I find anything different. I’d really like to see if there are other Uniques who are still alive because I think you could benefit from them.” She offered a womanly smile and waved her hands together. “You may now resume your positions.”
I sniffed out a laugh as she left the room. Despite the news, I felt at peace. Now everything was beginning to make sense, and it was exactly what I needed to get on with my life.
“Why did you not tell me?” Logan rubbed my arm and searched my eyes.
“Because I was afraid, Logan. My light is different—it’s addictive. Consider me the gourmet version of a Mage. I have to be careful not to put my light into another Mage or they’ll pick up on it. A juicer might not know what a Unique is, but once they taste my light, they’ll want more. Just like Nero. There are those who would use me.”
His body shifted and he tilted his head to the side. “What do you mean, use you?” My heart leapt into my throat as Logan pinned his arms on either side of me in a quick motion. “No one better even think about touching you!”
He roared so loud that Justus flew in the door.
Misinterpreting the situation, Justus slammed his light into Logan and sent him flying across the room. A small table knocked over and Logan stood up slowly with his arms at his sides, staring Justus down.
The old Logan would have flipped his switch, but now he had managed to contain his impulsive behavior. His level of control still put me on edge.
Justus flicked his eyes back and forth between us. “What’s going on?”
“I told him that I’m a Unique,” I whispered.
Justus turned his attention to Logan and pointed his finger. “Break our trust and reveal this to anyone, Chitah, and I will not go easy on you by a mile.”
Gravity (Mageri Series: Book 4) Page 39