Cherish (The Guardian Series Book 3)

by K. B. Wheelock

  “I-I don’t know.” He sat for a few minutes thinking about it. “Let’s drive. I feel like we need to get to Foss as soon as possible. The humor of the afternoon was gone, and now he was on a mission to make the trip in record time.

  A loud bang had them all jumping, bringing them back to the present. Cullen’s tale had had them all laughing. But suddenly, they remembered why they had left the safety of their mountain home.

  “What was that?” Rose asked. “Girls, come here.” She held her hands out to bring her babies close to her.

  Another bang and the sound of metal tearing shook the house. Cullen saw his own fear reflected back at him in the others’ eyes. Esson had found them.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Niall

  “Thea, take Rose, Gris, Keyne, and the girls to Empyrean. It’s the only place that they cannot go,” Niall said. “We’ll try to stop the attack here.”

  “No–” Gris and Keyne both yelled at the same time.

  Niall turned to them. “Look, we don’t have time to argue. Keyne, you’re not strong enough to help us after being away from Rose for so long. Gris, Rose, and Thea can’t carry the girls by themselves, and they’ll need you to help them.”

  “Why don’t I stay, and you go?” Gris looked at his brother.

  Niall rubbed the space between his eyes. “Gris, if for some reason we cannot stop them, you’re the best hope to keep the girls safe.”

  The two men gave him disgruntled looks but nodded at his reasoning.

  Niall turned to his father. “I know you are supposed to guard the girls, but I need you here. Once we stop this threat, we’ll need a guide to find Thea in the Empyrean Realm.”

  Jake looked from his son to the girls and back. Niall watched as an internal battle waged in his father’s mind. Finally, he nodded yes. “I’ll stay, but I don’t know how much help we’ll be.”

  “Dank je, Dad,” Niall said. He went over to Rose and kissed her, then each of the girls. “Be safe. We’ll be there before you know it.”

  Jake and Snowden went to the twins. Niall watched as his daughters giggled as Snowden licked their faces. They nodded at something Jake said to them. He then went to Gris and hugged him, saying something to him. Gris nodded his head.

  Thea ushered the girls and Gris into her room and through the portal. She turned one last time and looked at the men. “Be safe.” A bang had her jumping and scurrying through the portal.

  “Dad, can you guard the door to Thea’s room? If they can get through the boundaries that Thea put on the house, then they might be able to find a way into the Empyrean Realm,” Niall asked.

  “Sure, though I’m not sure how much help we’ll be,” Jake responded.

  “Cullen, we’ll need to get weapons and guard the hallway you entered through earlier. That is the only entrance to the house, but it is also the weakest spot. When Dad built the house, he planned it so that it would be easily defended. Any attempt to break in means that the attacker has to come through the garage.”

  “When you and Keyne returned, you armed the house, right?” he asked Cullen.

  “Yeah, Keyne did it.”

  “Okay. We have a few minutes, and that should kill some of them. But how did they find us or get around Thea’s borders?” he asked as they ran back up the stairs.

  “As far as I know, the only way to get around a Brownie’s borders is to have another Brownie with you. And as to finding us, I’m not sure. Unless . . . ” Cullen’s voice trailed off as a look of surprise and fear came over his face.

  “Unless what?” Niall asked menacingly. He’d finally come to the conclusion that Cullen was reformed, that he wouldn’t hurt them. But if he’d brought harm to their house, Niall wouldn’t be responsible for what he did.

  “I’m just guessing here. But every demon gives some blood to the Lord they serve. It’s a way to make sure that you don’t double cross him. With that blood, he can find you anywhere. Thea’s boundaries have kept me hidden. But what if . . . what if our cross-country travel allowed him to track me?”

  Another crash and an anguished scream filled the air, raising the hair on the back of his neck. Niall looked up the stairs, realizing that they were out of time.

  “We’ll have to figure that out later.” They topped the stairs and ran towards the small hall that led to the garage. “Cullen, you get to the far side of the hall, I’ll stay here. Dad, you protect that portal.”

  Then, the time for planning was over. Eight-foot demons flooded the hall and spilled into the living area. Cullen and Niall struck them down as fast as they could, a pile of bodies creating a small barrier at the entrance to the hall. But the demons just kept leaping over it. One demon took to the air, the twelve-foot ceilings allowing him to jump over Niall and Cullen. Niall swiped at the demon, hitting him in the leg and starting black ichor flowing onto the carpet. “Crap. Thea’s going to kill me.”

  Another demon flew over them, this time keeping his legs and tail drawn into his body. Soon, the demons were everywhere.

  Niall could no longer see Cullen through the mass of demons. Fear suddenly filled him that they wouldn’t be able to stop them, that the demons would somehow find a way to Empyrean. Without consciously thinking about it, his wings burst from his back.

  “NO!” He heard his father yell, but it was too late. A bright light burst from his wings, incinerating almost all the demons.

  Niall felt a cold piece of metal clicking around his neck, forcing his wings to fold into his back. He looked over his shoulder and saw a demon with a long spear pointed at him. A sharp jab had him falling to his knees. He looked to his right as clapping echoed through the room.

  “Very good! You managed to kill the traitor and all my cannon fodder,” Esson said as he walked into the room.

  Niall looked over to the last place he had seen Cullen, but all that was on the floor were piles of ashes. “No!” he cried out. He had forgotten that Cullen would be affected by his wings, that it would kill him. Why had they not thought of this possibility? They had had three years to figure out a way to protect him.

  He looked at the door to the portal to see if his father still lived, but he couldn’t see him or Snowden. Hopefully, they’d found somewhere to hide, or maybe they were just incorporeal.

  “Ever since that little show your mate put on in Missouri where she killed all my brethren, I’ve spent time working with the Angiron. You see it negates your powers, making you just a man. A weak man at that. But when forged a little differently, it makes my warriors immune to your light.”

  “Of course, Angiron is too valuable for every demon to have, so only my most loyal men can have them.” Esson looked to the pile of ash that had been Cullen. “Had he stayed with me, he would’ve received a ring as well.”

  Tears ran down Niall’s face. He had never fully trusted the demon but knowing that he’d accidentally killed him while they were fighting to save their family–it was more than he could bear.

  Esson clapped his hands once, and a demon walked in, pushing a Brownie ahead of him. The Brownie had his hands tied in front of him. His face had cuts and bruises, and one eye was swollen shut.

  “Bring him here. I want him to open the portal. Vlad, you’ll go first,” Esson said, looking at the only door in the space. He tried the door and hissed when his hand came away red. “Damn Brownies and their magic.”

  Niall looked at Esson with hatred. He didn’t know how, but he would kill the Demon Lord.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Niall

  Cool fingers touched his neck, and he felt the metal loosen around his neck. Jake must be alive, doing what he could to help. It was now up to the two of them to prevent Esson from getting Rose or the girls.

  Shouts reverberated through the room and minor scuffles could be heard. Niall didn’t dare turn his head in fear that the cuff around his neck would fall off. He knew his father must have a plan, and being that he removed his cuff first, he must want him to use his wings. Tension fil
led him as he waited, unsure what to do. Just as he couldn’t wait any longer he heard his father yell “NOW!”

  Suddenly, Niall shot to his feet, his wings unfurling, throwing his guard backwards. Bright light radiated from his wings. He turned to see Snowden chomping on the demon guard’s neck. He looked for his father and saw his form flickering in and out as he leaned against the wall. Jake nodded his head towards Esson.

  “You don’t have any of your men left. Will you still continue this quest for my wife?” Niall asked, picking up a sword that one of the demons had left behind. He hefted it in his hand, swinging it gently to get a feel for it.

  “She is my grand-niece, and those girls belong to me,” Esson spat out, his face turning a deeper shade of red. He pulled an Obsidian sword from the scabbard at his waist.

  “I hate to tell you this, but you can’t own a person. Especially one as special as Rose.”

  “You don’t think you own her? That she doesn’t feel that she must stay with you,” Esson spat, circling Niall, trying to find a weakness, somewhere he could hit. “There are two roles in this world. Own or be owned. I chose to be the owner, and you’ll not keep me from what is mine!” Esson made as if to strike Niall’s left side, but at the last second, he changed the angle, hitting Niall in the thigh.

  Gold blood soaked Niall’s blue jeans as he hissed at the pain. He stepped back, and then parried with a strike of his own, his sword making contact with Esson’s arm.

  “That’s the problem with demons. You poison everything, making relationships into a war of who owns who. It’s not one person over the other, it’s a give and take. Rose knows that I love her, that I’m there for her and will do anything for her. As I know she will for me.”

  “Will you die for her?” Esson blocked Niall’s blade with a loud clash of metal on metal. Esson turned quickly and swiped at the back of Niall’s leg.

  Niall screamed as he lost his balance, a severe burning pain making him gasp. He tried to stand on one leg.

  “That’s all you will do here today. No one will even remember you,” Esson said.

  Niall looked beyond Esson and saw Snowden coiling his legs up ready to pounce. Something must have signaled to Esson that something was behind him, as he turned, blade up ready to strike. And it did.

  The Obsidian blade plunged into the ghost hellhound’s stomach. Snowden managed to rake his claws down Esson’s arm as he fell to the ground, deflating like a balloon.

  “No,” Niall whispered, unable to look to his father, to see the heartache he must feel at the death of his beloved friend.

  “Niall.”

  He heard his father’s whisper.

  “I’m sorry. I love you. Tell Gris I love him.”

  Niall looked up in time to see his father flicker out of existence. He looked to where Snowden had lain, but he also was gone.

  “NO!” Niall shouted, trying to stand. “You can’t take them, you can’t take everything.” Tears poured down his face. He didn’t care what Esson thought of him. He just knew he had to kill the demon that took everything from him. Balancing on one leg, he held his sword the way his father had taught him. Taking deep breaths, he centered himself, pushing his anger and pain under a rock, to be taken out when he was better able to deal with it. The only thing that stood between Esson and his girls was him. He couldn’t let him get through that door.

  Esson stood looking at him, his head cocked to the side. “You think you’re a match for me? Your blood will stain these floors, then I’ll enter Empyrean and take control there. Your wife”—he spat the term—“will be nothing but my broodmare. The genes of my family mixed with the genes of her mother will provide me with the strongest army.”

  “You will not get her or the twins. The prophecy will end here, with your death.” Niall pushed his body forward and swiped at Esson, but Esson danced backwards causing Niall to stumble.

  Esson danced around and hit Niall with the flat of his blade across his backside. “Funny. You don’t even know the truth of the prophecy. It isn’t the twins who will decide the fate of the world.” Esson kicked him in the back, forcing Niall to the ground. He placed one foot on Niall’s back, pinning him to the ground. He grabbed the neckline of Niall’s shirt and pulled him up, cutting air from reaching his lungs. “No, it isn’t the little brats who will decide the fate of the world. It’s your wife, and I’ll do everything in my power to make sure she is mine.” He hit Niall on the head with the hilt of his sword and let Niall’s head fall to the floor with a thump.

  “Now, Vlad. Get this door open, or you’ll be feeding my men tonight. And I mean your body will be feeding them.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Esson

  While Vlad was working to counter the magic that Thea had used to prevent entrance to the portal, Esson stalked through the house.

  “It has to be here,” he muttered. He walked into the kitchen and started rifling through the drawers and cupboards. He pulled drawer after drawer out, throwing the contents on the floor and shattering the wood. Opening the cupboards, he pulled the doors off the hinges and threw them to the floor, his long arms reaching in to pull the items out and smash them to the floor. His anger spurring him on, he ripped into the flour and sugar, even though there was no way the box could fit into one of those bags.

  Finding nothing in the kitchen, he stomped into the living area. If only his powers went to the physical, and he could just wave his hand like that villain in the books with the kid who lived. But no, he could just control people, even down to their ability to breathe. He kicked a table into the wall, the crash satisfying his need for destruction and made better when Vlad screamed. Reaching into the couch cushion, he pulled the stuffing out, creating a satisfying mess over the carpet, much like snow in May.

  “Where would she put it?” he screamed, getting more irate every minute. He stomped to where Vlad was trying to open the door. “What’s taking so long?”

  “I-I’m sorry, sir.” The Brownie shook in fear. “She has put some type of bond on the door. “Give me a little longer, and I will have it open for you.” He prostrated himself on the ground.

  “You’d better. You know the consequences of failing me.” Esson stalked up the stairs. The first room he entered seemed to belong to Gris. On the table beside the bed was a picture frame. Rose sat across Gris’ lap, looking up at him laughing. Screaming at the idea of that weak Guardian with Rose, Esson charged over and threw the picture into the wall. The glass shattered. He surveyed the rest of the room. The minimalist decor didn’t leave many places to look. Esson tore the room apart, just because it was Gris’ room.

  That bastard had helped to ruin his city in Moberly, and he’d taken what was his, ruining it in retaliation. Flipping the mattress off the frame, he gripped the metal headboard. With a roar, he twisted the metal. Throwing it to the ground, he went to the dresser. The neatly folded clothes further angered him, and he ripped them out, tearing them as he went. Once he finished demolishing Gris’ room, he looked around. There was nothing left to destroy, and still he wanted to destroy the man and anything he held dear.

  He stalked into the into the bathroom and rifled through the drawers, and then went into the adjoining room. This room was decorated in earthy browns and greens. He sneered at the blanket draped over the end of the bed, golden colored with black dots over it. Typical of a cat, thinking that they were the center of everything. Above the bed, a painting hung on the wall. His dear grand-niece holding two small babies, all with their wings on full display. Just as he was about to tear the painting, he decided to take it with him. Maybe he could torture his niece with the fact that her daughters would be his to do with as he wished. Just because he could, he ruined Niall’s bed gutting the mattress, and in his mind, making a bed better fit for a cat. He didn’t bother to look in the dresser drawers, he just tipped it over, simply for the satisfaction of hearing it crash to the ground.

  Stomping across the hall, he entered Cullen’s room. His anger at the trai
tor caused him to punch the wall, his fist going through the drywall. Scattered around the room were paintings that Cullen had done. Esson ran his claws through them and broke the canvases over his leg. Panting, he turned to the bed and flipped it. He wished he could light it on fire, burn everything that was Cullen’s. Instead, he had to be satisfied with the damage he could do with his hands and feet. Not one thing was left whole in the room when he was finished.

  Realizing that he had left Vlad with one of his lieutenants long enough to open the door, he stomped down the stairs. He still had to find that damn box once they could enter the portal.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Esson

  “Hi-high L-L-Lord,” Vlad stuttered. “I-I c-c-can’t open it.”

  “Why not you bumbling fool? How hard can it be to undo a simple spell?” Esson yelled, backhanding the small Brownie into the wall.

  Vlad slowly climbed to his feet, shaking his head as he stumbled, then regained his balance. “S-s-sir. Sh-she used a b-b-blood bond. Witho–” he stopped speaking, slumping to the ground as blood spurted from his throat.

  “Worthless Brownie. When I get my hands on that princess, I’m going to have her for dinner. She’s thwarted my plans for the last time. First killing my loyal allies in the Empyrean Realm, then managing to keep my grand-niece away from me. For all I know that simpering female has been the cause for all the failed attempts to break into the TOMBS,” Esson raged, passing back and forth in front of the door.

  “So much wasted time and energy. The Guardians were mine, ripe for the picking until SHE came along. Then her mates”—he spat the word—“hiding her from me. From me! She’s rightfully mine. I paid for her with the deaths of my brethren, with the death of my nephew. They have no rights to her.” He screamed the last as he punched the wall, his fist going through it. He pulled his fist out and stomped to where Niall lay unconscious. He kicked him in the ribs so hard that the giant-like man flipped over and flew into the wall.