She disappeared with a smirk, leaving a frozen Luke staring at the door. He wouldn’t mind a shower with his mate. He stank, needed a shave, and a good massage.
“Okay, listen here,” he started off to Violet as he led her to the bed, “If you sleep now, I’ll take you home and get you lots of candy.”
She stopped crying immediately and Luke fumed internally.
She wants candy more than her own parents, eh?
Violet hopped off her father’s arms and got into bed, snuggling under the covers. He’d never seen a child be so willing to sleep. What form of sorcery did candies perform on children? Or was it just her?
He sat at the edge of the bed, watching her, and she had slipped into slumber soon enough. He hated lying to children but he needed to calm her down somehow. He promised to himself to fulfill what he had offered Violet as soon as he got the chance.
With her asleep, he slipped into the shower after Cassie, stripping off his clothes and coming up behind her to wrap his arms around her small frame. She smiled and leaned back against him. She turned the shower off and turned the tap on, moving away and reaching down to plug the drain. The tap filled the tub quicker than he expected it to, and Cassie tugged at his hand. He lowered himself into the tub and rested his back against the end of it. Cassie crawled forward and turned around to lean her back against his chest. The water rose over their legs, and soon reaching their chests. Luke’s hands gently massaged her shoulders and she relaxed into his touch with every press of his fingers, head against his shoulder and closing her eyes. His lips trailed soft kisses onto her neck, and she giggled. It had been a while since she got to be intimate with her mate properly. Having alone time with him became harder with a child around. She was grateful for the opportunity she had with him and wanted nothing more than to relax with him. Not sex, no making out, nothing.
He seemed to be in the same mood. She could feel him against her back, limp and flaccid. This was all completely innocent and he didn’t want it any other way.
She moved forward to turn the tap off and reach for the shampoo. Turning around, she poured some into her hand and rubbed it into his hair. He closed his eyes, head falling into her hands. She laughed as she massaged her fingers into his scalp.
“Don’t you need some shampoo, too?” he asked. She shook her head.
“I’m all clean,” she said. She reached out for the soap to rub it over his body. Her hands travelled over his muscles smoothly, finger pads pressing gently into them and easing the stress and tension out and into the water. Luke relaxed into her touch and stretched out. Cassie giggled and continued to massage his shoulders, but he soon made her stop and pulled her to him, simply cuddling.
He’d needed this for a long time. Pressing a kiss to her forehead, he murmured a soft thank you.
He didn’t want the moment to end.
Chapter 9
Viria studied her carefully. The woman couldn’t have been any younger than twenty-five when she’d died. She could tell her consciousness had been numbed, but there was something within her, a spark of life and humanity left that made her feel ashamed for the crime inflicted upon her. Viria did not want to make her uncomfortable. She looked at Mitch unsurely, not knowing how to approach her for the request. Right now, consent to the ritual was more important to her than anything, even though everything worked externally and she wouldn’t even need to touch her.
Mitch understood Viria’s request and started off slowly, “Maya, we need to perform a ritual on you. It will be done from afar and won’t take too long. You’ll feel better after it, too.”
Maya looked up at him. “Will you kill me?”
“Oh, God, no,” Viria said shaking her head. “It’s just a little cleansing. It’ll be as if the whole week never happened.”
Maya looked at her with hope in her dead eyes. Viria couldn’t comprehend how some emotions worked so clearly in the undead, but she figured she could find answers later.
“So, can we?” she asked, and Maya nodded. Viria breathed deeply, relieved. She bowed her head and clasped her hands, tracing symbols into her palms that glowed golden. She then drew them out in the air and sent it floating toward Maya, and it sunk through her chest. Viria closed her eyes and her consciousness was transferred into Maya’s, muddy and murky. But she found the memories she needed and extracted them. She then harnessed all of Maya’s energy in one place, trying to look for any contamination. Once she found the darkness lurking around, she drew another symbol to contain and extract it.
It was all so easy to do. She couldn’t believe the witches had lost access to such training. She wondered when spells and enchantments even came into existence. They were a modern form of curse holding witches back from their full potential.
Viria was transferred back into her conscious. Opening her eyes, she saw a limp Maya who started to awaken again. She looked around, confused and dazed.
“Did you do something extra?” Mitch asked her.
“I did tell her the week will feel like it never happened,” she answered him. “I extracted all her memories of the week and freed the body of tainted energy. If I could trace dark energy, then all this wouldn’t really be needed as the culprit himself holds traces of her, too.”
Mitch nodded and walked toward Maya who recognized him. He led her out of the chamber, trying to divert her attention from what had just happened. Viria watched on until they were out of sight, and yawned widely. She hadn’t wanted to wake up, but it was the only time Maya was available. She hadn’t slept so peacefully in forever and it had rejuvenated her, but not completely. Using her powers drained her faster, but it wasn’t as bad now that she’d had a good rest.
Her bladder started to act up, so she headed into the bathroom. She came out, clean and washed up. Mitch came back in soon with a tray of food.
“Ghouls can’t really taste anything,” he explained, setting it on the bedside table, “but we keep a kitchen for the new ones who still miss life as a living being. It works if we try to taste hard enough.”
“How does that even work?” Viria asked.
“Memories, I think,” he said. “We can regenerate certain smells, tastes, and feelings through them. Best to make use of them before they disappear forever.”
She climbed onto the bed and crawled to the other side, picking up a sandwich from the three. It smelled fine, clean and fresh really. There was a slice of cheese, two of turkey, and a few olives with a piece of lettuce. She sat back and bit into it, reaching out for the glass of water. The bite was warm and delicious. She gorged it down as fast as she could, reaching for the next which was more filling than the last. Pieces of fried chicken tore apart between her teeth, along with tomatoes and sauce. She wanted to save the third for later, but her hunger wasn’t satisfied, and soon that had disappeared, too.
“That was good.” She sighed as she fell against the pillows. She looked over at Mitch who was holding a thick file in his hand. “How do you disappear and come back so fast?”
“You ask a lot of questions, Viria.” He chuckled and handed it over to her. “All the alliances and treaties you asked for, along with proof.”
She accepted the file and looked through them. The ghouls were definitely not in the best of companies. Some of the witches and wizards communities heads they had allied with were wiped out by her in the past few months in battles with them. They had contracts and alliances to renew, expired treaties, and many foes. She figured that the visits from intruders had kept them from being able to arrange meetings with the other communities to move forward with their own.
“All right, now how about this…” she said. “Cut off everything with everyone else and simply sign an infinite contract with me. Most of your allies are linked with each other to disrupt the realm, and it won’t be long before you’ll be pulled into the disaster like Lucille Cleawer had done.”
“I can deliver that request to them, yes,” he said. She looked at him strangely.
“You’re being awf
ully formal.”
“I tend to switch between my nature unconsciously,” he said. “Ghouls have little control over it.”
Viria nodded and went back to the documents. “Well, anyway, I can send my people to look after you and keep intruders away so that you’ll be able to hold your meetings with the others in peace. I, on the other hand, need one of you guys to come with me.”
“What for?”
“I could use a few extra hands when it comes to combat,” she said. “It gets hard fighting on my own, really.”
“I could go with you,” he offered. “I’m their most powerful yet.”
“Well, that depends on the heads, doesn’t it?”
“I’m sure they’ll agree. Anything else I need to convey to them?”
“Nope, this is about it,” she said arranging everything and putting them back in the file. “I’ll leave as soon as I get the okay. I need to head back somewhere for updates so I hope it won’t take you too long.”
“I’ll be off right away then,” he said, and left immediately. Viria only had to wait ten minutes before he was back.
“They agreed to everything. Let’s go.”
Ivanna was silent throughout the journey back to the Faerie kingdom. Her discovery had unsettled her. The Morbus must have found out about the sanctuaries and were scouring the place to gain an entrance. The god thing about the abandoned communities was that it took powerful magic to enter, something only Viria had and could allow access to through someone on her own behalf. Ivanna had a small crystal that hung around her neck containing Viria’s essence that the magic around the communities recognized and deemed her a safe body to allow access to. But no matter how hard it was to get into those sanctuaries, she knew there was always a loophole in everything and needed to tell Viria everything.
When they arrived to the kingdom and to where everyone was settled, the others were all soundly asleep. The woods were silent. Sprites fluttered around following their routines, pruning and grooming their plants, feeding on berries, and stealing dew drops from leaves to drink.
Kalen and Ammara went to look for anyone who was awake, maybe catch some sleep for themselves. But Ivanna wanted nothing more than to find Viria and tell her what she’d found.
She walked toward the entrance of the boarding and knocked on the door. She came face to face with Diana. Her eyes stormed at the sight Ivanna and she was compelled to take a step back.
“You came back,” she said distastefully.
“Of course, I couldn’t leave the King and the Caillagh unattended and prone to attack.”
“They can handle themselves just fine,” she seethed “We’re part of the Council of Elders.”
Ivanna smirked and that only seemed to irk Diana more. “Is that so? It seems you all have been simply out of practice the past few days, then. Care for a duel?”
“Gladly,” she snapped and marched out past her while shoving her chest with her own shoulder. Ivanna shook her head and followed after her. Diana was stomping off blindly to God knows where and Ivanna grew concerned with the upturned roots in the woods that she could possibly catch her leg on and trip painfully on her face.
Diana stopped and shifted, her form ripping through her clothes. She looked back at Ivanna and took off like the wind. Ivanna sighed, sending a locater spell shooting after her. When she felt Diana stop somewhere, she simply teleported to the place. It hardly took much work since it was within the vicinity.
The wolf looked startled by Ivanna’s abrupt presence and took off again. Ivanna rolled her eyes and simply teleported to wherever she stopped again, and this time within a clearing. Purple wisterias hung from the trees, rising to form a dome overhead through which the sunlight broke and streamed down toward them. The ground was covered in purple petals, and the breeze blew past the wisterias, shuffling them and sending more petals down to rain on them gently.
This place was too pretty to have a duel in.
“If you’d found the Morbus already, then why didn’t Viria come in to save us sooner?” Diana demanded, her voice coming out a thick growl, but Ivanna understood her.
“Your mate was there to do so soon enough,” she explained.
“We could’ve stopped Asther sooner if you’d told us all!”
“Asther’s part in the following destruction was very necessary to follow through with our other plans.”
“What plans could have been more important than other LIVES?” she screamed and charged at Ivanna.
Good grief, she chastised, do these people have no control over their emotions?
“Some sacrifices have to be made for the greater good,” she explained calmly as she sidestepped her, sending her crashing against a tree trunk, “This is ridiculous, by the way. Please fight me with dignity.”
Diana roared and lunged at her again. Ivanna side stepped her again, and it went on until she herself started to feel frustrated of the incompetence and allowed Diana to catch her. And where Diana thought was her victory instead laid a trap. Ivanna grabbed Diana easily by the fur at her throat and flipped her on her back. Hard. The ground literally shook and Diana could not understand where the strength came from, but she knew Ivanna had definitely used her magic to conjure some strength.
“Do you use no intellect whilst in combat?” Ivanna said as she moved away and grabbed at a claw Diana threw at her, twisting it with the whole arm rather precariously. Diana groaned and she let go immediately. She did not want to seriously injure her, knowing that they could deal with a battle anytime soon.
“Intellect?” Diana scoffed. “You think people have time to think while fighting?”
“Well, then, you must be a rather slow one in the head, no?”
Diana flipped over onto her feet and charged once again to jump on her. Ivanna dropped and rolled under Diana as she lunged, getting up smoothly on her feet while Diana slid across the ground, sending dust and petals flying everywhere.
Ivanna eyed her seriously. She would have to teach Diana a lesson.
Chapter 10
Nina winced in her sleep. Something weird was happening and she didn’t know what. What she knew was the she was definitely conscious and couldn’t seem to wake up. She felt Kevin’s arm under her head, his breath brushing past her hair.
Suddenly, she was pulled away from it all. She didn’t understand how it had happened. It alarmed her to wake up to nothing but absolute darkness. What was even stranger was the field that spread out before her. It was the same field in the dream where Morrigan’s essence had visited her to say goodbye. Nina almost felt like she would appear beside her again, but she waited and nothing happened at all. No one came.
Nina sighed and looked over the expanse, waiting for another vision to take place in front of her. Of the war she saw. Of the hope that she’d live on. Of the path she’d need to choose to survive what Dahlia had warned of oncoming death while in her womb. Dahlia never told her how she would die, but implied it would be soon. Very soon.
She turned around and almost screamed.
“You’re here, too?” Nina groaned.
“What?” Viria deadpanned. “I had to. Our essences conjoined after Morrigan’s faded and I need to teach you how to dilute it on your end ‘cause, God, I’ve never felt hornier in my life like I did an hour ago.”
“Oh, my God,” she cried out in exasperation, hands pulling at her face. “What else do I not know?”
“You don’t want me to answer that,” she replied with a smirk and Nina was glad she didn’t. She crossed her arms and looked at her.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Meditate,” Viria answered simply. Nina looked at her, confused. She wasn’t familiar with how meditating achieved anything. Viria sighed and crossed her ankles, lowering herself gracefully to the ground. She patted the ground in gesture for Nina to follow. She lowered herself and crossed her legs, knowing she would stumble and make a fool out of herself if she tried it Viria’s way.
“It’s something my life tr
ee taught me,” she said and Nina cut in immediately.
“How is that even possible?”
“I’ll teach you everything with time,” she said sternly as if speaking to a child. Nina huffed and Viria carried on, “Straighten your back, square your shoulders, and breathe deeply for me.”
Nina did as she was instructed, but she couldn’t understand where this was going.
“I want you to clear your mind completely,” Viria continued, “Stop listening, stop feeling, stop thinking and focus fully on a point within yourself. When all goes silent, try listening for your heart beat, feeling it if possible.”
With a sigh, Nina tried to focus. It wasn’t any different from doing a ritual or conjuring advanced spells, only this time, she wasn’t really doing anything.
She gasped as her consciousness was pulled away from her with a sharp tug elsewhere and she found herself in the same place, only alone this time. And not in control.
Her body moved on its own. Slowly and gradually. Then stopped and moved again in the same pattern.
“That’s your life tree communicating with you through yourself,” Viria’s voice came in with a breeze out of nowhere. “Let it guide you. Follow what it teaches you. Your true teacher is your life tree and no one else. This is the place you couldn’t reach under Morrigan’s aid. This is the place no one could reach under anyone. Her essence would not allow you to breach this territory or you would have done so a long time ago on your own.”
“You think so?” she said into the air.
“No, actually,” Viria replied, “it’s good to have some motivation and boost to self-esteem, though.”
“How nice of you,” Nina deadpanned as she followed the movements her body had, this time, on her own accord.
“Good. Now, you keep doing this until you feel like you’ve had enough,” Viria said. “Then you can just meditate again and leave the place.”
“But what about diluting the essence?”
“That’s for your life tree to teach you,” she replied, and Nina felt her consciousness evaporate into the air. She knew Viria was gone with the way it had felt. Nina was all alone now, with a life tree that couldn’t even talk to her. She wished Totters was with her.
The Hidden Truth (Shadow Claw Book 7) Page 6