by J. S. Scott
Drew and Hunter both stared at Zach skeptically, but they released him.
“What the hell were you doing? And what the hell was Kristoff thinking to send you on a rescue?” Drew demanded, his voice both angry and concerned. “I thought he was yanking our chain when he told us he sent you out on a rescue. Obviously he wasn’t.”
“You were both occupied. There wasn’t anyone else,” Zach answered, shooting Drew an annoyed look. “They would have taken Kat. There was no time.”
“It’s not like we’re the only two rescuing Sentinels. There are others,” Hunter scoffed. “What was your bargain for the rescue? And why in the hell is she here?”
Zach’s brows drew together, his expression fierce. “It’s…complicated.”
Kat looked from Zach to his two brothers and back again. Zach was blocking his thoughts from her now, but it was pretty evident that he was basically telling them to shut the hell up. And honestly, she wanted to tell them the same thing. How dare they come here and belittle what Zach had done for her?
She stalked up to Drew and jabbed a finger into his chest. “He rescued me, saved my life. Don’t you dare criticize him. I agreed to the same thing that the evil demons wanted.”
Drew stared down at her, his brow raising and his lips twitching slightly, as though he were amused. “And what was that?” Kat noticed vaguely that Drew had a rather attractive lilt to his voice, a bit of a Scottish or Irish accent, but she was too irritated to dwell on it.
“One week of my time doing anything Zach wants. Not a bad bargain since he smells better than they do and he doesn’t want to torture and kill me,” she told him sarcastically, not sure she liked either of Zach’s brothers. She owed Zach her life, and they were chastising him?
Hunter exploded. “What the fuck, man?” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. Pacing the kitchen, he said irritably, “You don’t need that for a Sentinel bargain. Shit, you could have taken a penny, a lock of her hair…or any damn thing you wanted. Why a week of servitude? That’s just crazy.” He stopped pacing and stopped next to Zach, drilling him with an intense stare. “Why?”
“I asked for it, okay? I screwed up,” Zach growled back at Hunter. “I’m a damn recruiter, not a rescuer.”
“But it’s not like you didn’t know that you can take anything. You might not be trained in rescues, but you know the damn basics. What the hell?”
Drew coughed loudly and folded his arms in front of him, his gaze moving from Zach to Kat before speaking. “Uh…Hunter…I think you’re missing something significant here.”
“What?” Hunter’s eyes flew to Drew, his voice impatient.
Drew smirked as he said casually, “What would compel Zach to ask for that? Think about it.” He lifted his hand and placed it lightly on Kat’s shoulder, looking deliberately at Zach as he did it.
“Don’t. Touch. Her.” Zach’s guttural voice vibrated through the kitchen.
Kat’s eyes flew to his face, stunned by his tone that was…well…demonic.
Drew removed his hand immediately, a satisfied look on his face.
“Fuck!” Hunter exclaimed loudly, flinching as he ran his hand across his face, obviously irritating the cuts and bruises on his skin. “She’s his damn radiant.” He sank into the chair closest to him, gaping at Kat and Zach, his expression stunned.
“You’re right, Zach.” Drew sat as he spoke, crossing his arms in front of him and arching a dark brow as he looked at Zach. “That’s complicated.”
What in the hell is a radiant…and why is it complicated?
Kat frowned, watching the three brothers as she tried to figure out what was happening.
“Can someone please explain this to me?” Kat asked, exasperated. She was tired and emotionally overwhelmed, and it had been a long and terrifying day. Really, all she wanted to do was crawl into bed, pull the covers over her head, and sleep for a week. “I was going to make a deal with evil demons. Zach saved me. Why is that such a terrible thing? And what exactly is a radiant?”
“What? You haven’t told her?” Drew asked Zach with a frown.
“Not yet. I haven’t had a chance,” Zach answered, shooting a warning look at his brother.
“Maybe you should have mentioned it before you stuck your tongue down her throat,” Hunter mumbled, disgruntled.
Kat’s face flushed, remembering the heated embrace that had been abruptly interrupted by Zach’s brothers. “Mentioned what exactly?” she mumbled, embarrassed.
“Leave. Now. I want to talk to Kat alone,” Zach grunted to his brothers.
Hunter and Drew exchanged a knowing look and nodded.
“Before we leave, you need to know that something’s up. We’ve lost a few who were under our protection,” Drew said gravely, his whole demeanor changing to one of remorse.
“Lost them how?” Zach rumbled.
“We don’t know.” Drew shook his head as he added, “Somehow the Evils are breaking our protection, getting our previous rescues to agree to go with them to their own doom. It doesn’t make sense. These are people who know the truth. Only one incident was actually seen by one of our guardians. From his description, it sounds like Goran and some of the ancients.”
“It’s a power play. I’ll kill every one of the ugly bastards. They want to prove they can outmaneuver us,” Hunter snarled, his eyes glowing with hatred.
“You aren’t doing any of us any good when you keep ending up like you are now,” Drew answered dryly. “Try playing by the rules for a change.”
“I do. My rules,” Hunter answered belligerently, disappearing as the words left his mouth.
Drew shook his head slowly at Hunter’s disappearing form before turning his attention back to Zach. “Be careful. We aren’t sure what’s up but I’ll keep you informed,” Drew told Zach as his eyes drifted to Kat and pinned her with an intense look. “Be good to him. He needs you.”
Kat took a deep breath as Drew’s form faded, leaving her staring at the kitchen wall. Three Sentinels in one room had been intense, even if they were sort of the good guys. Strangely, the volatile atmosphere in the room was no less acute, power vibrating from Zach as he clamped his hands on her shoulders and turned her toward him.
His expression fierce, his eyes piercing her with raw emotion, he told her in a husky voice, “A radiant is the demon equivalent of a chosen mate. When the gods created the Sentinels, they gave us one opportunity to lighten the darkness of our souls. Our radiant is our only chance.”
I’m his mate. I’m Zach’s mate?
Kat should have been astounded, or at least extremely surprised. But…she wasn’t. Somewhere deep inside herself…she recognized the truth. She could feel it, had felt the pull of her soul to his almost from the moment she saw him. Maybe, even before that, when her eyes had kept drifting back to his picture in the Winston building, her reaction to the sorrow in his eyes slamming her in the gut every time she looked at his image. “What happens now?” she asked him curiously.
Every muscle in his face tensed and his expression turned tormented. Kat wanted to soothe him, hold him until his pain went away. Yes, Zach’s soul was dark, but it wasn’t all caused by his demon heritage. Kat knew he was hanging on to some sort of remorse, something festering inside him that needed to be healed.
“Nothing.” Zach dropped his hands from her shoulders and shook his head. “Nothing can happen. You’re under a demon bargain, compulsions that you can’t deny. You don’t want me, Kat. You don’t want to be the radiant to a demon. I lost control earlier. I’m sorry,” he told her softly, his voice resigned. “You look exhausted. Let’s get some sleep.”
As he turned to walk away, Kat’s entire being rebelled, clamoring for her to comfort him, to take away the emptiness inside him that gnawed at her until she almost couldn’t bear it. Following behind him, she acknowledged that her need had nothing to do with his wants or his compulsions. They were completely and utterly her own.
Chapter Five
Kat stood between th
e two demons, her whole body trembling with confusion. Neither demon was touching her, leaving a few feet of space on each side, but both were trying to gain control of her. Her decision should have been easy. Zach was on her right, and a large evil demon, bigger than Dwarf or Goblin but just as hideous, was on her left.
She stepped toward Zach, but every emotion inside her rebelled, telling her not to let him take her. Why? She trusted Zach completely. He’d saved her life. She had no reason to fear him. But as she tried to move again, she was bombarded by the same internal alarms, her body stopping after a slight step in his direction.
Something was wrong. Terribly wrong.
Kat’s eyes flew to Zach’s face, and then she knew. It was Zach…yet not. His eyes were bloodshot and glowing a dull red. The difference was subtle, but it was there.
Tearing her eyes away from Zach’s beckoning form, she looked at the Evil, his eyes glowing amber, drawing her to him for some unknown reason.
Panicked, she looked from one demon to the other; what she saw was completely different from what her gut was telling her. How was it that the Evil actually felt safe while Zach repulsed her?
“Come with me. Offer your life and I’ll make sure your nephew is safe. Agree now,” Zach demanded, his voice grating and so unlike his usual smooth, husky baritone.
Kat took a small step in the other direction, toward the Evil, but no alarm bells were going off in her head, no shiver traveling down her spine. The closer she moved toward the troll demon, the safer she felt.
It made no sense, and she shook her head, unable to decipher why she wasn’t moving toward Zach, getting away from the Evil. She’d give her life for her nephew without regret, but she needed to be certain that it would keep him safe, and she wasn’t so positive that giving her life for Stevie’s was going to keep him alive. Hadn’t Zach already told her that her nephew was safe? Why was he asking her for something more?
Knowing her gut feeling was correct, she said aloud, “No. You’re not Zach. He’d never ask that of me. And I can sense you’re not him.”
“Stupid bitch,” the pseudo-Zach snarled. He lunged toward her, arms reaching out to grab her. Scrambling to avoid his grasp, she tripped and fell on her ass right beside the Evil.
The Evil suddenly moved for the first time, vaulting into action by yanking her behind him, and springing toward the Zach look-alike, putting himself between her and the demon trying to attack her. It was as if the Evil were actually trying to protect her.
Disoriented, dazed and terrified, Kat let loose a bloodcurdling scream as the two demons collided, not even completely sure which one she wanted to win the battle.
*****
Zach woke from his nightmare to the sound of Kat’s scream. His heart was pumping as he tried to shake off the bad dream he’d been having, a common occurrence that plagued Sentinels, his main concern being what was happening to Kat.
Transporting himself to the guest room, his chest heaving with fear and from the residual adrenaline from his nightmare, he arrived at Kat’s bedside scared shitless. Her body was thrashing violently on the bed as she whimpered, her eyes still closed.
Fuck.
“Kat.” Sitting down on the bed, he grasped her arms and sat her up, shaking her gently. She remained asleep, her head tilting sideways, and Zach got more desperate. “Kat. Open your eyes,” he repeated sternly, bellowing the command.
Her eyes popped open suddenly, as she gave an audible gasp, and Zach frowned as she looked at him with obvious terror and started struggling to break his hold.
“Stop. Kat. You were dreaming,” he told her in a soothing voice, not at all liking her beautiful green eyes filled with trepidation as she looked at him.
“Zach? Is it really you?” she asked, her voice soft and hesitant.
“Yeah.” Who in the hell did she think he was?
“Can you turn on the light?” she requested quietly. She had stopped struggling, but she was tense, her body stiff.
Zach activated the light by the bedside with his magic, momentarily forgetting that Kat didn’t have perfect sight in the dark. Still, he would have thought she would recognize his voice.
And my touch.
He could understand her waking up confused and scared from a bad dream, but she seemed terrified of him. “Kat, I would never hurt you,” he told her gravely, disappointed that she would have any doubts about him, but he supposed she had good reason after the scene in the kitchen.
She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the light, her gaze flying up to meet his, searching for…something. “Oh, thank God. It’s you,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck with a sigh of relief.
His arms tightened around her reflexively, his protective, possessive instincts barely held in check as he cradled her soft, feminine body against him. “Who the hell else would I be?” he asked her in a disgruntled voice. Granted, they had only known each other for less than a day, but it still bugged him that she wasn’t as hyper-aware of him as he was of her. “What were you dreaming about?” he asked her in a gentler voice as he felt her trembling in his arms. Jesus, it must have been some fucking nightmare.
“I was dreaming about you, except it wasn’t you. You were an Evil and the Evil was you,” she answered in a muffled voice against his shoulder. “You asked me to give my life for my nephew. But it wasn’t you. And it didn’t make any sense. You said Stevie was safe.” She was babbling, her explanation confusing, but it was obvious that she meant every word she uttered.
“He is safe.” Zach should have discounted what she was saying as complete nonsense, but his body tensed as he realized that she had been having much the same dream as he. Except the Evil had been an ancient, the gray tufts of hair and larger size identifying his age. The ugly bastard had looked exactly like what it was…a very old Evil. Still, it was strange that Kat had been experiencing a similar dream, one where an Evil had been trying to get her to agree to a life bargain. In his dream, Kat had been hesitant, not immediately choosing to come to him. He had been mute, unable to speak, the helplessness nearly driving him insane. He had also been paralyzed, unable to move until Kat had chosen not to accept the bargain. All he had been able to do was observe until she had rejected the Evil. “You refused the Evil. You chose me. Even though I looked like an Evil?”
“I didn’t choose you. I moved toward the Evil and fell,” she said, her voice confused. “Were you there?”
Drew said that the Evils were somehow taking humans under Sentinel protection. Was it possible that they were doing it through the dream realm? Could I have been pulled into the dream as a Sentinel witness?
It sounded implausible, but how could he and Kat be having such a similar dream without it being more than coincidence?
Zach’s arms tightened around Kat. The possibility that what they had both experienced being more than just a bad dream was scaring the shit out of him. What if it had been more? What would have happened had Kat not refused? “Are you saying that the demon offering to take your life for your nephew’s looked like me?”
She pulled back and looked at him. “Yes. He looked exactly like you, except his eyes were glowing red and I sensed it wasn’t you. The Evils have come to me through dreams before, but not quite like this. They were showing me scenarios of what could happen to Stevie, breaking me down through my nightmares.”
“Fuck.” The bastards. Somehow they were manipulating dreams.
He manifested his cell phone and drew one hand away from Kat to punch in Kristoff’s number, keeping his other arm tightly around her.
When Kristoff answered in an irritated voice, the call clearly having woken him, Zach simply grumbled, “I need all of you. Now.” Punching the Off button, he got rid of the phone, and waited, his body tense.
“Zach, what’s happening?” Kat questioned, her voice frightened.
He ran a hand down his face in frustration, hoping his suspicions were wrong. “I’m not sure. I need to talk to Kristoff, Drew, and Hunter.”
“Zach?” she murmured.
“Yeah?” He tightened his arms around her, needing to reassure himself that Kat was okay and comfort her fears, even though they may very well be justified.
“Do you realize you’re…um…naked?” She drew her hand down his bare back slowly and to his hip, caressing his naked flesh.
“Am I now?” he answered hoarsely, his eyes closing for a brief moment while he savored the feel of her soft hand drifting over his bare skin, the sensation having nothing to do with her being his radiant and everything to do with the fact that Kat lightened his heart as well as his soul. Years of loneliness and regret faded in her presence and the feel of her hands on his body was pure bliss.
He could feel her warm breath against his ear as she whispered, “Feels like it to me.” She stroked again, moving slower this time, her touch soft and light.
Zach slammed his mind closed, unwilling to let Kat sense that her touch was making him want…and…want…and…want.
Clothing himself instantly, he mourned the feel of her softness against his naked flesh and sighed before answering, “Don’t want the guys to get jealous of my superior man parts.”
Kat laughed softly, the light feminine sound vibrating against his ear.
Mine. My radiant. My mate.
Zach tried to shove down his demon instincts that were clawing to the surface. He wanted Kat more than he had ever wanted anything, but it was a selfish need, and he knew it.
I’m not bonding her to me. I’m not making her my radiant. She’s had enough darkness in her life. She doesn’t need any of mine.
“I thought you said you needed us.” His king’s voice was displeased, but as Zach pulled away from Kat to look at Kristoff and his two brothers flanking their ruler, all of them had concerned looks on their faces.
Zach turned toward the arrivals, but he wrapped an arm around Kat, keeping her cradled protectively at his side. “I think the Evils are making life bargains in the dream realm with people under our protection, nullifying our bargains and stealing them away,” he told them, watching as his two brothers looked at him in disbelief. Hell, he couldn’t blame them. It sounded crazy to him too, but he had experienced it. They hadn’t.