by Karen Lynch
Desmund’s arm jerked slightly, and I felt another presence stir inside him. Shit! I pulled my power back until it barely touched him. I had completely forgotten about his Mori. I doubted it would like my power any more than other demons did. The fact that I had my own demon was not lost on me, but I’d have to sort out how that worked later. Right now, I needed to figure out how to reach the witch’s magic without upsetting Desmund’s Mori, and that was easier said than done.
If the mountain won't come to Muhammad . . .
As soon as the idea formed in my head, I knew it was the right one, even if it freaked me out more than a little. I almost shuddered at the thought of that horrible magic inside me again, but it made sense to try to pull it into me where I could fight it with my power. If it was even possible to draw it out of Desmund. I had no idea how the magic would behave if it had access to another host, and confronting it wouldn’t be the same as battling a Hale witch because there was no sentient presence to fight against. This magic had lived inside Desmund for a very long time, saturating every cell like a cancer. I wasn’t foolish enough to believe I could eradicate it as easily as I’d defeated the Hale witch, but maybe I could weaken it a little and ease some of Desmund’s suffering. There’s only one way to find out.
I tried to steel myself for what was to come, but I knew it would not be enough. Even though I had told Tristan I wasn’t afraid of Hale witches, I still abhorred their magic, and I already felt unclean just being near it. I pushed my power toward Desmund just enough to touch the swirling coldness inside him, and instead of putting up a barrier to protect me, I opened myself to the magic, calling it to me. It did not take long for the dark magic to begin moving toward a new potential host. I had to force myself not to jerk away and to clamp my lips together so I did not cry out when it trickled from Desmund into me like a cold slimy sludge. My heart sped up and sweat broke out on my upper lip as the magic invaded my body. It took every ounce of my strength to keep my power back except for the small tendril that lured the foul magic into me. Nausea twisted my stomach until I knew I was going to throw up if I endured it for one second longer.
My body trembled as I closed the connection between me and Desmund and pulled back until an inch separated us. I fought the urge to retch and opened my power, letting it sweep through me like a cleansing fire. There was no scream like the time I fought the witch, and the magic didn’t even fight as my power burned it away to nothing. My power receded leaving me only slightly nauseous, which all things considered, was a vast improvement over how I felt a moment ago.
Desmund finished the piece with a flourish and smiled at me. I had not been able to take all the magic from him, but it had to have helped him a little. Was I imagining it, or did he look more relaxed than he had when I arrived?
“That was pretty,” I said, searching his handsome face for any changes. He did look a little happier, but that could just be the joy he got from his music.
“Pretty? You don’t call Schubert pretty.” He sighed in mock aggravation. “I see I have my work cut out with you, little one.”
His playful words made hope spark inside me. The Desmund from a few days ago would have scowled at me and even showed disdain over my ignorance. Was it possible that I really had lessened his pain?
“You keep playing like that and you will spoil me for other music.” I touched the cool keys, still amazed that he could draw such incredible notes from them.
“Would you like to learn to play? I can teach you.”
I laughed, touched by his offer. “God, no. I tried to play the flute back in elementary school before I discovered I’m tone deaf. I’d much rather spend the time listening to you play.”
“As you wish.” His eyes sparkled with pleasure, and he began to play another piece. We spent the next hour like that, with him playing and me listening. There was no need for conversation, and an easy companionship grew between us. For a while I was able to forget my homesickness and my dread of tomorrow.
It took me a few minutes to realize I felt only slightly tired from my healing. Considering the amount of power I had used, I should have felt more drained than I did. It confirmed my suspicions that my elemental power was growing as Aine said it would. I didn’t know what that meant for me, but if it gave me more healing power, then it couldn’t be a bad thing.
“It is late, you should be in bed,” Desmund said, interrupting my thoughts. “Tristan will not be pleased with me if I keep you up all night and you fall asleep in training tomorrow.”
I made a face. “Don’t remind me.”
“You don’t like training?”
“Do the words ‘I suck at it’ mean anything to you? And now Tristan has decided to torture me by making me train with Nikolas.”
Desmund smiled. “Ah, Nikolas.”
“Do you know him?”
He chuckled. “Nikolas and I go way back.” His tone told me the two of them were not exactly friends. “Most women would be happy to spend time with him.”
“Not me. He’s always trying to tell me what to do, and I swear he does things just to bug me.” I tapped one of the keys and an angry note resonated. “He acts like I’m totally helpless, and he gets all uptight if there is the slightest hint of danger. Okay, maybe he had reason to worry a month ago, but not since I came here.”
“Nikolas always did take this vocation very seriously.”
“I’d say. He got so mad one time when I got hurt by a crocotta that he went into some kind of rage. At least that’s what Chris called it.”
Desmund’s eye widened. “A rage? Is that so?”
“Yes,” I said with a moan. “How am I supposed to train with someone like that?”
He was quiet for a long moment, and his next words surprised me. “I think you just have to trust that Tristan knows what he is doing.”
“How can you say that? Tristan knows how I feel about Nikolas, and I bet he knows what Nikolas thinks of me, too.”
“I’m sure he does.” He stood and held his arm out like a gentleman. I took his arm, and he led me to the top of the stairs. “As much as I enjoy your delightful company, you need to get your rest for tomorrow.”
“You know, this is so not what I signed up for.”
Desmund laughed softly. “If I know my old friend Nikolas, you are not what he was expecting either.”
“Gosh, thanks for the pep talk, Desmund.”
His eyes flashed with amusement as he turned away. “Anytime, little one.”
Chapter 8
“IS IT TRUE? Are you really going to train with Nikolas?”
I quit pushing my scrambled eggs around and looked up at Olivia as she slid her breakfast tray onto the table. A few feet behind her, Jordan followed with her own tray. Just a few days ago, I was eating alone. I wasn’t sure how I felt about my new popularity, especially since all anyone wanted to talk about around here was how awesome Nikolas was.
“Yes.”
Olivia gave a very un-warrior-like squeal that made me wince.
“Do you have to do that?” snapped Jordan. She obviously wasn’t a morning person.
“How the hell did you swing that?” Olivia went on, ignoring Jordan. “No one trains with Nikolas. What I wouldn’t give . . . ”
I gave up pretending to eat and pushed my plate away. “You know, just because he’s like some kind of warrior god around here doesn’t mean he’s all sunshine and roses to be around. If you think training with him will be easy or fun, you are delusional and welcome to take my place.”
“And deprive us all of the enjoyment of watching you and Nikolas?” drawled a familiar male voice.
I smiled up at Chris, whom I had not seen since my first day here. The blond warrior was the kind of gorgeous that made women forget their names, and he was a lot more easygoing than Nikolas. “Hello, Dimples. Shouldn’t you be out breaking hearts or something?”
Chris grinned and the dimples I’d nicknamed him for appeared. I heard Olivia let out a soft sigh. “You and Nikolas
training together – I wouldn’t miss that for the world. And this time when you tell him to kiss your behind, I won’t intervene.”
“I thought you were supposed to be the nice one.”
Laughing, he turned away. “I’ll be seeing you . . . if you two don’t kill each other.”
Olivia stared after him with cow eyes. “Okay, Sara, what is your secret?”
“My secret?”
“You’re training with Nikolas and flirting with Chris?”
“I was not flirting with Chris. We’re friends, sort of.”
“If you say so. Any more super-hot guys you have stashed away that we don’t know about?”
I decided not to mention Desmund who could probably fit into Olivia’s “hot” category even if he was just a little insane. “The girls back home think my friend, Roland, is pretty hot, but I don’t think he’s your type.”
“Why, is he gay?”
“Nope, werewolf,” I smothered a laugh at her look of mingled disbelief and distaste, which to her credit, she tried to hide.
Jordan leaned over to nudge Olivia with her shoulder. “It’s that whole waif look she has going on. Men can’t resist it.”
“I am not a waif,” I shot back. “I can take care of myself.”
Jordan chuckled. “I didn’t say you were a waif; I said you look like one. Did you happen to notice that you’re way shorter than everyone else here?”
I had noticed that fact soon after I arrived. Mohiri men were all over six feet tall, and the women were close to six. At five-five, I definitely stood out. I supposed I had my Fae heritage to thank for that. Aine was around my height and build. But being shorter did not make me weaker, and I said as much to Jordan.
“You won’t hear me argue with you.” She toyed with her pancakes and gave me a sly grin to let me know she had been trying to get a rise out of me. “So, do you know what kind of training you’ll be doing with Nikolas?”
“No idea, but you can bet it won’t be exciting enough for you.” Knowing Nikolas, he wouldn’t let me do anything even remotely dangerous. “He’ll probably make me run in place until I pass out.”
She snorted. “That man doesn’t strike me as the type to do anything boring. Just be prepared to tell us everything tonight.”
“Yes, take pity on the rest of us.” Olivia let out a groan. “While you get to hang out with Nikolas, we have to spend the morning nursing stupid kark eggs for Sahir.”
“What are kark eggs?”
“Karks are ugly little bat-like things, and they hatch from eggs that smell like they’ve been rotting for six months,” Jordan said with a grimace. “This batch was supposed to go to Mexico, but someone screwed up and sent it here by mistake. They’re close to hatching, and Sahir says we have to turn and spray the eggs or they’ll lose the whole batch before they get to Mexico. For some reason, he thinks this would be a great educational experience for us.”
Jordan wasn’t happy about handling Kark eggs, but to me it sounded a lot more appealing than training with Nikolas. “Are karks dangerous?”
“No, they eat bugs and stuff, but scarab demons are their favorite treat. If you’ve never seen a scarab demon, think of that flesh-eating beetle in The Mummy.”
“Well, look at the upside; at least you don’t have to feed them.”
Olivia made a face. “Says the girl who will be spending her morning with Nikolas.”
“Look I told you – ” I sensed Nikolas the second he entered the dining hall. Even if there hadn’t been a tell-tale touch against my mind, I still would have known he was there by the sudden lack of conversation from the other trainees and the way Jordan and Olivia stared at him as he approached. My body tensed as a shadow fell across our table.
“Ready to start training?” His curt tone told me he was in warrior mode, no playful Nikolas today. He was dressed casually in jeans and a dark-blue sweater, but he carried a sword on his back and a sheathed knife on his hip. It wasn’t fair that he looked so at ease and I was a bundle of nerves.
I nodded reluctantly.
“Come with me then.”
Standing, I picked up my tray of uneaten food, carried it to one of the bus bins, and followed him to the door. As I passed Chris’s table, he raised his cup to me with a grin. Good to know at least one person was enjoying this.
Nikolas was waiting for me in the hallway, and we walked without speaking to the front entrance.
“We’re not using a training room?”
“I thought we’d go outdoors. Would you rather stay inside?”
“No.”
We left the building and walked across the lawn without him saying a word about where we were headed. When we entered the trees, I asked, “Where are we going?”
“For a walk,” was all he said.
“I think I should tell you that when I go for walks, I usually end up brought back in chains.”
He shot me a look that said he wasn’t sure if I was kidding or not. “I think we’ll be fine.”
Of course. Who would dare stop Nikolas from doing what he wanted?
Nikolas slowed his pace so I could keep up with him, and we walked side-by-side through the woods. He didn’t seem inclined to speak, and I didn’t know what to say to him. Most of the time I’d spent with him back in New Hastings had been full of tension or danger or both. I’d thought after all we’d been through that we had started to become friends, but then he’d left me here and I’d spent the weeks since then angry at him. Last night at dinner, he’d thrown me with his teasing and his announcement that he would be my new trainer. Now I was confused and I didn’t know how to act around him anymore.
We walked for a good ten minutes before he finally spoke. “Other than the problem with your training, how are you doing here?”
“It’s not home,” I replied a little more harshly than I meant to.
I felt him look at me, but I didn’t meet his gaze. “I know you miss Nate and your friends, but it’s not like you won’t see them again. And you aren’t alone here. You’ve made some new friends and you have Tristan and Chris and me.”
“Until you go off on one of your missions again.”
“Are you trying to tell me that you missed me?” The change in his voice told me he was smiling, but I refused to look at him.
“No.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth I knew I was lying. But I would bite my tongue off before I would admit anything to him.
“I have no plans to go anywhere for the next month so you are stuck with me for a while.”
“Lucky me,” I muttered, and I heard him laugh softly. “Where did you go?”
His laughter died. “It was a job, clearing out some nests. Nothing you want to hear about.”
“You were looking for the Master, weren’t you?”
“You don’t need to worry about him anymore.”
I stopped abruptly. “I’m not a child, Nikolas, and I deserve to know what is going on. If you can’t be open with me, you can go find someone else to train.”
I spun back toward the stronghold, but he grabbed my arm and let out an aggravated sigh. “I see you are still the same pain in the ass.”
I kept my face turned away from him as a smile played around the corners of my mouth. “Takes one to know one.”
“We found where we believe Eli was staying in Portland, and there were signs that the Master could be in Nevada. It’s not surprising since Vegas is the perfect place for vampires to blend in and hunt. We hit a nest in Henderson and that led us to two more nests near Vegas, but none of them gave us anything useful about the Master. Whoever he is, he is well hidden and his followers have no idea where he is.”
I faced him again. “So, what happens now?”
His smile returned. “Now we train while someone else looks for him. A Master is no small matter, and the Council has made it a priority to find him. They’ve already sent extra teams to the US dedicated to hunting him. It is only a matter of time before he is found.” He didn’t say it, but I k
new he would join the hunt again if the Master was not found. As upset as I was with him, I didn’t want to think of him out there facing such a powerful vampire.
We resumed walking and a few minutes later, I saw a glimmer through the trees and knew exactly where we were going. I ran ahead and burst out of the trees onto the rocky shore of the lake I had been trying to get to for weeks. It was bigger than it looked on the map and, except for the water lapping gently at the shore, not a ripple marred its glassy surface. The woods around the lake teamed with life, and I could hear birds and frogs and insects. A ways down the shore, a doe stood alert, watching us for signs of a threat. It was just as serene and lovely as I’d imagined it would be.
“This is incredible,” I said as Nikolas caught up to me. “I can’t believe people don’t come here all the time.”
“Not everyone loves the woods as much as you do.”
I looked back at him. “Then why did you bring me here?”
“Because I’m not like everyone else.” He sat on a large rock and waved at another rock near him. “Let’s talk.”
I hesitated for a long moment before I took a seat on the rock. “I thought we were going to train.”
“We will, but first I want to talk about your training. Callum told me you don’t seem to want to use your Mori strength or speed.”
“You talked to him about me?” I wasn’t sure why it bothered me, but I did not like the idea of them discussing me.
“Of course. I needed to understand the problem so we can fix it.”
The problem was that I did not want to be fixed, but I didn’t say that. Nikolas, like the rest of the Mohiri, had some mysterious connection with their Mori that I couldn’t comprehend and he would not understand why I didn’t have or want the same thing. “You think you know what my problem is?”
“I have several theories. The first is that you are so used to suppressing your Mori that you don’t know how to do anything else. Demons are afraid of Fae magic, which explains why your Mori doesn’t fight for control like mine would if I kept it locked away. You need to learn to loosen your control just as you would exercise any muscle. It takes practice.”