Stygian Read online

  I stopped pacing and jerked around as a mist of water formed then Genevieve stood before me in a classic, long, blue gown, low cut and sweeping across her curves like a caress.

  “Come near me and die,” I said when I saw her take a step in my direction.

  She stopped and lowered her head, her golden hair falling forward to blanket her breasts. “I didn’t want this. My intentions were—”

  “What intentions?” A caress and burning sensation began on my neck as my Ink awakened. I needed my damn pills.

  “I felt it the moment they met in those . . . cages. Their connection was so strong.” She backed up a step and her eyes blazed a brilliant green. “Then your Scar left with no intentions of returning. But Danielle, she was tortured with his memory. When he returned, I had to do something.”

  “You Bonded them.” My voice quivered with fury. “You almost killed her with your meddling.”

  “I meant no harm. I didn’t consider his punishment would be so harsh. I saved her life.”

  “She’s human,” I shouted.

  “Yes. But he loves her.”

  “You were wrong. Undo it.”

  “No.” Her chin tilted up and her shoulders stiffened. “It has worked out for the better.”

  I ran at her, my rage taking control. I raised my hands to throw her back against the unrelenting wall. She remained immobile and I figured out why when the gold bands around my wrists and ankles tightened and yanked me backward like a sling shot and I slammed into the opposite wall. I tried to move, but the bands locked me in place.

  A roar emerged. “Release me!”

  “The bands know when you aim to harm. I can’t do anything.” She sighed. “If I undo the Bond, Balen will accept his fate and be sent to Rest then exile.”

  “She’ll die if they capture him.”

  “No. Now she will become a Scar.”

  It was the only option and Genevieve very well knew it. “It has never been done before. You risk her life, for what—love? They don’t even know one another. What they feel right now is your Bond.” She was cunning, more so than I’d anticipated. “You planned this. You knew the moment judgment passed on Balen that your Bond would kill Danielle. You had Delara warn me. You set this in motion, knowing I’d never allow Danielle to die.”

  “Yes. She will make the transition and they will have eternity together.”

  “You believe in this crap, Genevieve? A love that can withstand centuries?”

  “You’ve experienced it—”

  “And it destroys,” I shouted. “As it will Balen. He’ll be weak and forget that he’s a Scar first and foremost.”

  “You want your Scars to be just like you. Alone and with nothing to lose.”

  “Balen betrayed us, his sister, and his blood for her.” The bands released and I lowered my arms.

  “But you fight for them. Why?”

  “Because he is a Scar and she’s a friend to our Healer. We’re here to protect humans. All of them.”

  Genevieve stiffened. “I must go. When the time is right, I’ll come for you.” She closed her eyes, then dissolved into a swirling mist and vanished.

  Within seconds, I discovered why Genevieve had taken off so abruptly. “What have you done, Waleron?”

  The voice was soft with a sweet lull, but I knew beneath that voice was a spirit of power. The Goddess Azzurra tolerated nothing except her orders being followed. I’d met her two times in my life—when I was a child and again after I escaped the Lilac.

  Coldness seeped into the room as if I were standing in a freezer. A hint of lavender and rose wafted into me, and then she appeared in human form.

  I remained silent. She knew what I’d done; the other Wraiths would have informed her in detail.

  Her long, floor-length hair was parted in the middle, half cerulean blue and the other half white. It was a stark contrast and, well, she knew it. She always liked being unique.

  “You didn’t put him in Rest. Why?” Her features remained still and impassive, voice quiet and soft, but it was in her eyes that I read the anger. Their colors were constantly changing, never remaining the same for longer than a few seconds.

  My body was reacting, shaking, and beginning to perspire despite the nonexistent temperature. I clasped and unclasped my fists. Control. If I lost it now, she’d chain me in this room for eternity.

  “A human would’ve died if Balen was sent to Rest. They’re Bonded,” I stated.

  “Why did you not mention this at the Deaconry?”

  “I didn’t know then.” My rage was clawing at my insides, wanting to be released, eager to taste blood and rip apart anything that could satisfy it. The tattoo on my neck began to slither across my skin, and soon, I’d have no control. I needed my pills or out of this room. Soon.

  The bands on my wrists tightened and I took several deep breaths. Trapped in a room by a female was not something that helped my anger. It made it worse.

  “Who Bonded them?”

  I hesitated. Azzurra didn’t know a Wraith was responsible? Interesting. Well, I had no intention of informing her of Genevieve’s meddling, as I might yet require the Wraith of Water’s assistance to get me the hell out of here.

  “I don’t repeat myself,” she said.

  “And I don’t always have to answer to you.” I was eager for harsh retaliation. I knew pain, lived it, and it had become a familiar and comforting emotion. I never feared it, not like the rage that lived hovering close to my surface, ready to be released. Pain was my control. I needed it more than anything.

  Azzurra laughed, her head thrown back and a wide smile extenuating her exotic mouth. “The ever-defiant one. I knew that’s why I liked you. Just like your mother. You realize you’re the only one ever to speak to me as such? Refreshing and . . . stupid. Have it your way. You’ll remain in the realm until Balen is brought to justice.” The smile disappeared. “You’ll be free to walk among us here as a sign of respect. However, the gold bands will remain. But you may have this.” She threw me the duck head dispenser. “I know of your rage, Waleron, and your Ink. Remain under control whilst living among us, or you will spend your days here in this room. And I know it’s the last place you would choose to be.”

  Before she evaporated, she floated into the air and peered at me. “I hope for your sake this matter is resolved. It would displease me greatly to have to replicate your mother’s fate.”

  “Like it matters to me.” Death would end my torment, stop the rage and my constant need to feel pain.

  But I’d never leave her. Never be able to walk away from one woman.

  Azzurra tilted her head, and for several seconds, her eyes remained a bright gold. “I like you, Waleron. But remember, without me, you and your Scars will cease to exist.”

  “And without us, you will have no one to fight.”

  “Touché,” she said, smiling. “Well then, it is in our best interests to continue to work together.” Her figure began to dissolve into particles of brightly-colored specks, then she disappeared, taking the coldness with her.

  The wall in front of me dissolved into nothing and, suddenly, I was standing in the Deaconry room. Shit, the Wraiths had more power than they knew what to do with. I walked out of the room, down a hall, and into a garden with dozens and dozens of red and white roses. I ignored the flowers and walked the path. I had no clue where I was headed, but it was someplace other than that gray room.

  My breath sucked from my lungs, and my body froze. Her familiar scent slammed into me like a brick wall. I never forgot it. Never could. Even with all my powers, I couldn’t erase the one scent that ripped me apart too many times to count.

  But it was impossible, because she couldn’t be in the realm.

  Yet I heard her footsteps.

  Her breath.

  She was here. Behind me.

  I turned.

  I had no place to run. He’d already sensed me behind him. Christ, this was the worst possible scenario. I never intended him to find out
I was here. It was my haven away from him, away from the constant torture of his memory invading my mind. Maybe this time it wouldn’t hurt as much.

  “What the hell are you doing here, Delara?” His voice was cruel, low and husky. I knew that voice and it made me want to run, leg muscles twitching to take the familiar road and escape. It wasn’t because I feared him, but because it brought back memories of what he’d said to me that day when he ripped me apart and left.

  His hands curled into fists at his sides. “Answer me,” Waleron shouted.

  I jerked. It was rare he shouted. He was always in control, steady and stable, but it was different today. My eyes drifted to his fists and when I looked back up at him, I saw the flicker of . . . unease. That was impossible. Waleron was as hard as a freakin’ rock. But as he strode toward me, I noticed his hands uncurl. Three steps, two steps, one step. The air left my lungs as his scent barreled into me.

  His voice softened. “Delara, answer me.”

  I licked my dry lips and straightened my back as I faced the one man who had destroyed my heart. But I was stronger now. I’d repaired it.

  Before I could answer, a ball of fire appeared and Edan flashed into human form beside me.

  Shit.

  His arm went around my waist and he pulled me against his side. Double shit.

  It was the first time I’d ever seen Waleron surprised, but his reaction was quick. His brows rose and the blue in his eyes flashed lighter then went dark again. His stunned look disappeared and was replaced with the familiar resolve of a man with power and control.

  “Edan.” Waleron bowed his head with respect and Edan, surprisingly, returned the gesture.

  Edan half smiled. “So, it appears you’ve discovered our little secret.” He shrugged as if he didn’t care that anyone knew I was living in the realm.

  “She’s a Scar, Edan,” Waleron reminded him.

  I stiffened. “I can go wherever I want.”

  Waleron hesitated, his eyes driving into mine like a dagger. “Yes. But not here.”

  “She belongs to me now,” Edan stated.

  Whoa. What the hell? I stepped from his embrace. “I belong to no one.” Edan should know better. Scars and Wraiths were possessive, but that didn’t mean I would be treated like I was owned by one.

  Edan kept his eyes on Waleron as he responded, “You’re right.”

  I laid my hand on Edan’s forearm. “Can you give us a minute?”

  Edan hesitated, and I knew he was thinking of refusing the request by the look of disgust on his face. But, he gave a curt nod and then disappeared in the same fashion he’d appeared.

  “You can’t stay here,” Waleron said as soon as Edan was gone.

  “I—”

  “No, damn it.”

  I shifted uneasily as his gaze roamed over my body and then up to meet my eyes. I saw pain. His pain. It was there in the cool glint of his gaze, and I had to step back to keep from throwing myself into his arms. Arms that had refused to hold me, to believe in what we had.

  “You’re a Tracker,” Waleron said. “You belong . . .” he hesitated, and then he made a gesture I’d never seen before. He ran his hand over his shaved head. He was frustrated. That steady, cold reserve had escaped him. “With us.”

  He didn’t say with me. He didn’t say I belonged in his arms or in his bed, or by his side. It was with us, the Scars. He said the same old shit. I tilted my chin up. This was finished. I’d end this now for my sake, for my heart, for my sanity. “You’ve ripped my heart out for the last time, Tac.” He flinched. “You destroyed me. You took my love, and then threw it away like garbage. I deserve better.” I hesitated for a second to try and get my breathing under control. “I am taking my heart back.”

  “Delara, I . . .” Waleron, for once in his life, stumbled on his words. “I can’t.” And then he said a word I’d never heard pass his lips. “Please, try to understand.”

  One word wasn’t going to do it. “Jesus. Understand? It’s too late. I have nothing left. Unlike you, I believe in love.” I raised my voice. “Love, Waleron. Something you’ll never know. Or rather, want to know.”

  “Delara . . .” He closed his eyes for several seconds. “I need to—”

  “Need. You need. It’s always what you need. Leave me the hell alone.” I turned, and for once I felt free from the pain that kept me locked in Waleron’s web.

  I walked away, and the hope that he’d call out to me had vanished. That part of my heart was gone. He was too late. I didn’t want him or his cold, calculating ways, his dark side that kept him from getting close to anyone. I was saying good-bye. Good-bye was forever.

  But this time, he did call out. “Delara,” Waleron said, his voice cracking. “Damn it, stop.” His voice was unfamiliar—haunting.

  But I kept walking. They were words. Nothing he said would ever make me go back to what I’d suffered. My trust in him had been blown into oblivion and dispersed across the Earth.

  As I turned the corner out of his sight, I felt the wind drift across my body. His scent carried on the breeze to surround me. Shit. I knew he’d done it. Maybe hoping I’d stop. Hoping that the words he’d spoken years too late would make me hesitate. They wouldn’t.

  I did stop when he materialized in front of me. I felt Edan in my mind, offering me his strength while still keeping his distance. The two men were complete opposites—fire and ice, and they sure as hell didn’t mix.

  Waleron grabbed my hand. “I’ll try,” he said. His fingers curled around mine and I felt him attempt to draw me closer. I stood my ground.

  “You’re saying that so I won’t be with Edan.” I jerked away from him.

  A flash of panic swept across his face because I was right.

  I laughed. “Besides, how can you try when you can’t even talk to anyone about what she did to you? What you suffered for years. Try? Try to what—love?” I snorted. “You don’t know how to love anymore.”

  “Don’t do this.”

  “Did you listen to me at all? I said you ripped out my heart. You don’t know what that feels like. You’re numb. You keep yourself numb with those bloody pills. You’re not willing to feel again or to stop hiding behind the drugs.” I crossed my arms. “All those times you said it, you were right. You can’t love because you don’t believe in it any longer. She destroyed that in you and I’m tired of trying to get it back for you.” I stepped back when he reached for me. “No.”

  The hurt and pain I saw in his eyes vanished and Waleron’s familiar cold resolve came back like a steel shield over his face. “The Talde needs you.”

  “And I’ll be there for them when they ask me.” I walked away, the ache still real even though I tried to deny it.

  “YOU KNOW WHAT?” I fiddled with the channels on the radio after a three hour nap. “I don’t even know what music you like.” I glanced at him and he shrugged, eyes focused on the road. “No favorite bands? Come on. Fess up, Bale.”

  “Bale?” He frowned.

  It was my turn to shrug. “Yeah, I like it. Short, sweet, and—” I gave an exaggerated sigh “—my favorite actor’s last name. Christian Bale. So hot in Batman Begins. I mean, I’d jump his bones in a second, no introduction needed.”

  “Fuck that,” Balen ground out.

  I gave my most innocent expression. “Oh, I most definitely would. Did you see the movie? That man comes knocking on my door—”

  I didn’t have the chance to finish as he grabbed the back of my neck. “I don’t like the name Bale and I don’t share.”

  Shit, I loved how his fingers caressed my neck and weaved into my hair. It was a small movement that just felt . . . shit, it felt sweet and possessive. Suddenly, I was thinking about pulling over and doing it on the hood like he’d mentioned. I slid my hand onto his thigh and his fingers on my neck tensed. I slowly caressed downward between his legs.

  “Baby.”

  “Hmm.” I moved my hand to his cock and smiled when he groaned.

  “Jesus.” The c
ar swerved and the tires skidded on the shoulder. “Fuck.” He grabbed my hand and pulled it away. “You remember what I said about fucking you from behind. You do that again, we’re stopping this car. And I don’t give a shit whether anyone sees what I do to you on the side of the road.”

  I bit my lower lip. “As hot as that sounds, we’re on the run, remember.”

  “I know how to do quick and hard. You don’t have anything to be worried about.”

  God, I wanted to suck his cock, and then have him take me from behind. Up against the hood of the car sounded like something I’d like—a lot, just not on the side of the highway. I shifted in my seat as I thought of his hands on my hips, his cock driving into me again and again.

  Could he really read my thoughts? My gaze went to between his legs and, from the bulge, I knew he was still hard. “Are you using your telepathy?”

  Balen glanced over at me. “Why the fuck are you looking at my cock like that?”

  “Because it’s hard and I was thinking about what you said. So were you?”

  “No. And I’m hard because I want to fuck you. Don’t need to read your thoughts to get hard.” He shrugged. “But it’s disrespectful to read others’ thoughts. We communicate through our minds, but try to refrain from taking on others’ thoughts for privacy reasons. You can learn to block others, but it takes time to learn that. To the ancients, it’s natural.”

  “Are you an ancient?”

  “Yes. Would you like to know how old I am?”

  I scrunched my nose. Did I? “Will I be totally turned off? Because I never date men more than ten years older. It’s a rule.”

  “I’m definitely over the ten year rule, but it’s too late for you. You’re already mine,” Balen replied.

  I laughed. “Ha. I’m not yours. Now, tell me how old you are.”

  “One hundred and ninety-six.”

  “Holy shit.” I gaped at him. He was really immortal. That meant . . .”So when we do this thing, this transformation, will I stay looking like this for the rest of my life?”