“Everyone leave but Stephanie,” I whispered.
Ethan growled, “Like hell, Cassius.”
“Am I not your king? Have I not spoken?” The air swirled around us in a shade of white hot icicles.
Hissing, Ethan took a step back. He could by all rights kick my ass and leave me for dead, but in front of Marcus he had to pretend that I held all the power. “Try not to die, King.”
Alex chuckled while Mason shot a worried glance in my direction. A bunch of women! I was fine!
I didn’t want to use Stephanie in that way, it would be grueling to try to protect my thoughts while she invaded me.
With both hands I clapped once and opened my palms together as moisture gathered between my fingers. Closing my eyes, I concentrated on sucking the moisture and then forced it around Marcus’s head, first blinding him, and then causing him to be in an essential bubble so he could not hear, see, taste, feel, smell, he simply ceased to exist.
For ten minutes.
It took every ounce of power I had.
Leaning against Stephanie, I could barely lift my head as I whispered in her ear. “He wants his soul back.”
Stephanie clung to my body, “Cassius, we don’t do that. We’re not the freaking Grim Reaper!”
“Who?” I repeated. “Is a Grim a type of Angel?”
“Never mind.” She rolled her eyes. “And why did you do that? You just used all of the Angel blood you had!”
“Had to,” I gasped. “You need to make him think we gave him his soul back… and you need to put a mark of protection over him.”
“A what and a what?” Stephanie said, teeth clenched. “Cassius, I can barely get angry without killing things! You want me to concentrate hard enough to mark him and make him believe something took place that didn’t actually take place?”
“To be fair…” Damn it, she smelled good, my hands just naturally went to her long dark hair, tangled in it, tugged. “I’ll be doing it, but we’ll be joined in body and soul, therefore you’ll be watching.”
“So…” Her breathing accelerated. “You’ll be possessing me?”
“No.” I chuckled. “You’ll be possessing me, more like joining.”
“How do we… um…” She shook her head. “Stop distracting me!” Taking a step back, so I stumbled toward her, she asked, “How do we join?”
“I need your hand, we need to be touching. We have around six minutes left. Better make it fast.” I was enjoying her hesitation more than I thought I would. “Open your palm.”
Stephanie chewed her bottom lip and stepped closer to me. Her right hand trembled violently as she held it out, palm up. “Now what?”
I pressed my palm flat against hers, my fingers gripping into her wrist as I pulled her flush against me, our mouths fused in a frenzied kiss as light exploded between us.
Already I could sense her awe at the brilliant light, of the drunken power that surrounded us. But her wonder would be short—lived because where light existed, darkness always followed. It was the gamble we made, why we were called Dark Ones. We could not use one half of ourselves without leaving ourselves exposed to the other.
The light was swallowed up by a swirl of icy black as it wrapped around both of our arms linking them together.
Stephanie gasped as our minds linked.
It was dangerous.
As a human, I was Pandora without a box. With everything I had, I focused our attention on Marcus. Away from me, away from my thoughts, my desires, away from her.
Watch. I whispered into her head.
Her eyes widened.
Marcus. You have been restored. I mouthed the words.
Marcus’s body relaxed as I lifted my free hand, the one not linked. Palm open the black from Marcus’s body slowly twirled away from him like I was spinning wool, it wrapped around my free hand, leaving him bathed in light. He convulsed as his body fought to take demonic form.
Light and dark would always fight for dominance.
But light. Light was better at winning.
Finally, a cry broke free from his lips as the water evaporated around him, his blue eyes opened.
“He is free?” Stephanie’s voice sounded in my head.
“He is has been given a second chance to get his soul back, since Marcus’s was taken from him by another greedy Demon… it seems that he has been given a trial. If he proves faithful, he will be restored. There are always second chances.”
“But what if he’s a horrible human? What if”—
“That is not our decision to make. As Dark Ones, we do not pass judgment. We simply create the opportunity for judgment to be passed. Sariel will watch him. It is out of our hands now.”
Marcus crumpled to the ground.
John was still out.
“I can’t handle your power much longer.”
Stephanie nodded.
“I will collapse from exhaustion after this. Have Ethan and Mason carry me to the car. Our link is still very active. Wait until the warmth is gone.”
“Warmth?” Stephanie repeated and then laughed. “You’re right. I feel… so warm! Why do I feel warm”?
“Linked. Dark Ones linked creates a firestorm of darkness.”
“Why don’t we do this all the time?”
“Because two Dark Ones cannot co-exist in this state very long without one killing the other. And because once we use the light—our darkness also links—it could easily overtake us both if we stay this way.”
She recoiled.
“Thought you’d feel that way. Thank you for allowing me use of your powers.”
I pulled my hand away and succumbed to the darkness that I knew my human body would not be able to process or handle.
And as my eyes closed, all I saw was black.
Stephanie
CASSIUS HAD BEEN OUT for two hours. Ethan and Mason were hardly gentle with his human body as they carried him up the stairs, banging his head against the wall at least twice before finally managing to get him into my bed.
He seemed so foreign there.
So beautiful.
Dark and light mixed in one. Swirls of blue spread throughout his wrist and pushed against his fingertips as little icicles attached themselves to my bedspread. The Angel blood was leaving him.
I kind of hated it.
As a Dark One, I knew what to expect from him, complete indifference or on rare occasions pity, where he’d let me spend time in his arms for a brief second, only to push me away hours later in shame.
I swallowed my pride and moved to stand by the bed. He’d said not to touch him… but the temptation was too strong.
Ethan, Mason, and Alex were too busy going all medieval on John’s ass, stuffing him in a dungeon I didn’t even know existed until Alex skipped toward the kitchen pantry, pressed a button and gleefully clapped his hands chanting. “Dungeon, Dungeon, Dungeon.”
Clearly my brother needed a hobby if this was the highlight of his week, which he repeated over and over again while he carried the body downstairs, and then again as he attached the metal chains.
I’d nearly puked when I saw a rat.
Working out of fear, I froze it and then nearly burst into tears while Mason groaned out, “We used to eat those in the old days.”
“It amazes me you even remember eating meat,” Alex pointed out. “Don’t pinecones give you stomach troubles? How does one even process that?”
“Magic,” Mason barked. “I’m magic.”
“I had a girl tell me that once in bed…” Alex smirked off into the distance as if recalling the memory. “Rocked her world twice for the compliment then sadly had to wipe her memory so she wouldn’t commit suicide after discovering no man would ever compare.”
“As much as I love hearing you bicker like women,” Ethan said, his dark hair falling around his chin, “I’d really love to get back to my wife. Mason, secure the last chain, and Alex find a mirror.”
Alex flipped him off.
While I stared in horror. Is t
hat really what our lives have come to? Chaining someone to a wall?
“You’re young.” Ethan was at my side instantly, his grip on my wrist was painful, but I think he meant it to be, to gain my attention. “You don’t know how we used to do things because you never had to see the ugly… we’ve lived through so many wars, so much death, plague, destruction. Believe me when I say, this is Disneyland.”
Alex moaned. “I would give at least six sexual favors for a turkey leg right now. After all those Disney movies Genesis made us watch I looked it up online.” His blues eyes widened. “Tons of turkey legs.”
“Just a guess.” Mason shoved past Alex and adjusted the metal casings around John’s legs. “But sex for turkey legs is probably frowned upon by King Disney.”
“King Lion!” Ethan grumbled. “Disney is no King. He’s a man.”
“Genesis says so,” Mason argued as if it was complete truth. That was just the type of relationship they had, and frankly I was getting a dizzying headache from all their arguing, not to mention I kept hearing screaming.
It was faint.
But it was there.
Gulping, I’d gone back upstairs to take a nap.
Only to find a giant of a man in my bed.
A perfect man.
The perfect blend of good and bad.
His lips twitched as he kicked his legs and then stilled again.
Just one touch. I promised myself before my fingertips grazed his strong jaw.
“Eva!” Cassius’s voice was thick with emotion as he held nothing but dust in his hands. Like diamonds, the glittery dust spread in a perfect circle around his body, his head was hung, his shoulders tense.
Sariel was standing behind him, looking just as menacing as ever. Then he disappeared, leaving Cassius alone.
I’d never seen a Dark One cry, didn’t know they were capable of it. Ever since my change I’d had trouble even conjuring up watery eyes. Although I felt sadness, I couldn’t express it.
Cassius, was wrapped in a red type of toga, a sword was laid at his side, he slowly pulled the sword from its silver casing and held it out in front of him.
“Don’t.” Ethan appeared in front of Cassius. “Put the sword down, brother.”
“She’s gone,” Cassius whispered. “I have nothing left.”
“You have Alex.” Ethan joked. “He’s like a two-year-old. He needs guidance, you know how new he is.”
Cassius continued to stare at the long sword. “I want to forget the pain.”
“You’ll go dark if you do, Cassius. You know this. Forgetting emotions isn’t human.”
“I am no human!” Cassius spat. “I’m an Angel!” He stood to his full height, his body shimmering with iridescent whites and purples as he called upon his Angel blood, pushing the humanity so far away that my eyes hurt to look at him. Snow fell in the spot over his head. “I am to be worshipped!”
“Brother…” Ethan’s voice was still calm. “You are fallen.”
As if a reminder of what he would never be, wings appeared at Cassius sides, but they were completely black.
Dripping with blood.
As the storm increased what was once bright turned so dark I stumbled backward.
His eyes went black, his teeth elongated into fangs, and his body grew another foot.
“Evil and good always did have a problem co-existing,” Ethan said in a bored tone. “Come back, brother…. killing yourself is not the answer, for you will lose your soul and turn into your greatest nightmare, meaning one of us will eventually have to kill you, and I’ve hunted enough friends, don’t make me hunt my family.”
Cassius fell to his knees as the diamonds of dust burst into the air. He lifted his hand and caught a few particles and pressed them to his heart. “So I never forget the pain of remembering.”
“Pain…” Ethan answered just as Mason appeared, sword raised. “…isn’t reserved for mere humans, but for everything in creation. It would not be fair that we never experience it.”
“I don’t want to feel.” Cassius stood, sheathing his sword and facing both men. “I refuse it.”
Mason looked uncertain at what to say, but Ethan nodded. “One day, you will regret that choice. And I do hope I’m still alive to see it.”
The vision shattered in front of me into a million shards of glass. I gasped as I was transported to last year.
Genesis had just been brought to one of the immortal parties.
I hung on Cassius like a whore.
Ashamed, I looked away.
Minutes passed, maybe an hour.
And I was across the room, talking to a few friends. Cassius stared, his mouth ajar and then flexed like he was both in awe and irritated.
“Happened faster than you would have liked, I’m sure, even though it’s been what? A few thousand years?”
“Go to hell,” Cassius muttered.
“Interesting choice, however.” Mason crossed his burly arms and chuckled. “I wonder what the council would think.”
“The council needs to mind their own damn business.”
“She is beautiful.”
“She’s mine!” Cassius roared slamming Mason into the nearest wall.
Mason brushed him off, smirking like he’d just won the lottery. “Is she? I haven’t seen your mark.”
Cassius recoiled. “I would only mark my true love and even then, we cannot be.”
“But if you could?” Mason asked.
Cassius didn’t answer. He simply watched me, and when my friends disappeared he held out his hand and whispered, “May I have this dance?”
I shivered remembering the way he’d touched me that night, so different than other nights, like he wanted me as a woman.
Saw me as his equal.
We danced for hours, and when it was time to leave, he tugged me against him and whispered against my mouth, “Come with me.”
“Is that allowed?” I teased back.
“I make the rules.” He tugged my body against his, he was so big… everywhere, that it was overwhelming to all my senses. Even then I’d been powerless, so powerless.
“Good.” He chuckled wickedly. “You can try to fight me… but you’ll give in… in the end, they always do.”
The thought that he’d been with others pissed me off. I pushed him off and spat. “Don’t you have a human to chase?”
“Why chase a human? When I’ve tasted you?”
“Why taste me when you can have her?” I countered.
His mouth snapped shut.
Fresh pain washed over me as the vision shattered again.
And I was back in my room.
And Cassius—was awake.
“What did I tell you?” He tried to get up, but was still too weak. After three tries he lay back down and cursed. “You cannot simply invade my thoughts while I sleep. It isn’t fair.” I invaded his sleep? “And before you try again, remember you can only do it once within a REM cycle, and I’m very much awake thanks to your erotic musings.”
“Erotic musings?” I repeated, crossing my arms. “I wasn’t the one going all Viking or caveman!”
Cassius frowned. “I am neither of those things and I don’t appreciate being called a Neanderthal.”
“It’s a figure of speech! You know, cavemen, who pulled woman by the hair and had sex with them.”
Cassius face blanched, and he looked absolutely appalled. “I’ll have you know my favorite human was a man who lived in a cave!”
“Of course! Because you’re older than dirt!”
“Another untruth!” Cassius fired back. “Dirt has been around for at least a millennium longer than I!”
I groaned. “You’re giving me a headache.”
“It’s the Angel blood, not me.” He sniffed the air. “Damn it, I cannot smell anymore, at least not how I could before. You’re too new to dream walk. I’d suggest against it, but you’re like a child with a new toy.”
“Am not.”
“Are too!” he argued.
He glared. “Still you.”
Sighing, I sat down on the bed. “I’m sorry for…” I waved my hand over him. “That.”
He looked down. “Oh, a simple chemical reaction to your kiss.”
“Huh?” I looked where he was looking and then nearly burst into flames. “Um….”
He was still staring. “Though it’s quite large? Is that normal for a human?”
Still blushing, I looked away. “How would I know?”
“You’re a woman.”
“So?”
“So you’ve lain with human men.”
My eyebrows nearly met the sky. “Excuse me?”
“Siren.” Cassius seemed confused. “It was your glamour. Therefore, you practiced seduction, mainly of humans, did you not?”
“Not! Most definitely not!” I yelled. “I never… slept with them!”
“Silly, who sleeps? You fornicate.”
“Please don’t say fornicate. In my bed.”
“Would you rather I stand and say it?”
“Why? Are you so ancient that simple manners during conversation escape you?”
“Sorry… You fornicate in bed… please?” He looked even more confused.
Alex’s laughter from down the hall didn’t help. “Sirens love manners in bed!”
“Shut up!” I yelled slamming the door in his face and glaring back at Cassius. “Look, maybe we should talk about what I saw, and then you can start my training.”
Cassius clenched his jaw. “You saw a memory, nothing more.”
“But—”
“And you’re training…” He heaved himself out of the bed and stood on wobbly feet. “…begins as soon as Mason cooks meat.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, we feed you again and then lesson time?”
“Yes.” Cassius leaned toward me and whispered, “Why do you smell so good?” His eyes dilated as he reached out to touch my skin.
“I’m a Dark One. I think that’s part of the attraction, right?”
“Right.” He stumbled over his words. “Yes, that’s it, of course. We should… eat.”
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