Damonq streaked across the lake, coming at Darkness from behind. He caught him, once again, by the play yard. He struck Darkness from behind, slamming his fist right through his back, utilizing his strength and power, breaking bones and tunneling through tissue to get his fingers around the heart. As if recognizing him as the one who had had the other piece of it, the organ leapt toward him.Darkness shrieked in fear and fury. He whirled, shouting orders, caught off guard. His shrieks drowned out the sound of gunfire. The two demons guarding him swung around just as Damonq extracted the heart and flung it to one side. Lightning forked across the sky, lighting up Darkness’s shocked features. The attack had happened too fast, a blitz he hadn't expected.One of the demons tackled Damonq, knocking him back from Darkness. Lightning hit the ground just to one side of the heart. The second demon dropped protectively to the ground beside the fallen master. Damonq recognized Levon.Levon
"We knew it would happen." Gary glanced toward the house and the healing grounds that lay underneath. "I reinforced the safeguards, above, below and all around her. Levon can't get to Elizabeth.""He's trying.""He'll keep trying. He's addicted to her." Gary sighed and shook his head. "You realize that Darknesss had a splinter of Xav in him. No way would the high mage allow himself to die by lightning. It's in Levon now. Two of them. He'll have more memories and skills to draw on. He's going to make an even more relentless and powerful enemy than he did when he had Darkness with him."Damonq nodded. "We'll just have to make it too difficult for him to continue to snoop around looking for Elizabeth. The woman deserves peace. You don't think he can wake her and call her to him, do you?"Gary shook his head, a slight smile curving his hard mouth. "I thought of that when I put her in the ground and commanded her to sleep. He can't break that spell, not even if the high mage was working ful
That was all the warning Elina got, and then she was cradled in his arms and they were moving through the air. She laughed and buried her face against his chest. She loved his surprises, although, truthfully, he was spoiling her far too much. She couldn't keep up with him. He was good at picking her wish list right out of her head and giving her item after item. She tried to do the same, but most of his wants were about making her happy or keeping her safe, or were very intensely sexual.Every evening he talked to the baby, his hands around the little bump, his mouth pressed to her bare skin. He whispered that she was loved and that they couldn't wait to see her. To hold her in their arms. Elina loved him all the more for that. She never once found a single doubt in his mind. He wanted the baby and thought of her as his. With all the blood exchanges between them, she knew his blood ran in Carisma's veins.I still have trouble thinking he's really gone. She knew Damonq would know wh
Storm woke up covered with sweat, her deep ragged breaths as heavy as an athlete who just finished a race. She quickly sat up on the bed, and took cognizance of her room. It was empty, void of anything strange or different. It was her room untouched. She let out a deep breath, and took a swipe at her eyes with her right hand, as if to clear the remaining sleep in her eyes.Swinging her right leg off the bed, she sat at its edge, her eyes slipping to the clock by her bed stand as if on cue. Three thirty am.It was still early. She wanted to return to sleep, but couldn’t find the will. And so, she stood, tentatively at first, looking around her room, her eyes training on her closet. Could something be there? She wondered fearfully, gulping down saliva. Slowly, she took steps to the closet, her senses attuned to her surroundings, in case there was a slip up in anything or anyone that was in her room. She was afraid, yes. But she wanted to know. Her hands stayed for more than a minu
Storm was speechless. She couldn’t shout-even though her mouth was opened to do that, no sound came out. It was the darkness that sucked the sound out of her. She was breathless too-her breath hanging on a thin thread of anticipation. What would happen next? Is this the manifestation of her dream?Her dream had just been like this; a dark closet, harboring a red eyed beast which had been after her life. A red eyed beast with a red stained mouth.Thinking of it now, she reasoned it was blood-probably the blood of Kaden. She shuddered involuntarily thinking of the previous one she had heard before dinner. Had the dream actually been real? Had the beast consumed Kaden and was now coming for her? Had she been stupid for not informing Kaden about the dreams she has been having? After all he knew of supernaturals. She was sure of it-she still remembered Lent, and his weird state when she had attempted healing him on the first day they had met. She should have told Kaden. Damn! She shou
Storm felt the light, knew when it had come on-even though her eyes went shut immediately she had felt the unknown touch her.She wanted to let out a breath of relief, but fear of seeing the unknown in light stripped her of courage more than she bargained for. She waited to feel the touch again, as the hand had gone away when the light had come on, but she didn’t feel it again.She took her lips again, wondering if the light had managed to dispel her assailant. But how? Was the unknown also a spirit like the angel that had visited her? Perhaps a demon? The knowledge of that being likely, caused shivers to break out all over her body.She heard shuffling of feet a few steps away from her, probably by the door, and decided to open her eyes, believing that one of her friends had been the source of the active light. But she did so slowly, apprehension still riding on her eyelids. Her eyebrow piqued on their own accord, when she saw Justin and Lucy by the doorstep, talking. No, more li
Kaden took a sip of the coffee that had gone cold on his study table. He smacked his lips as the chilly liquid touched his tongue. He dropped the cup immediately on the table like it had been a mistake in the first place picking it up to drink. “Don’t ask for another cup of coffee. That’s the third cup that I have made for you, and you never take past the first sip. Are you tasting the coffee for the first time?” Lent asked, whilst going through a stack of papers that lay piled on another desk, longer and wider that the one Kaden was using. It would be appropriately called a meeting desk for some board of directors. Lent knew that Kaden was knee deep in thoughts on what to do about the abduction of their friend’s wife, and couldn’t drink the coffee as usual even though it was his favorite kind. Yet Lent just wished his friend and leader could stay distracted, even if it was for a few minutes. Kaden had been at that space for more than five hours, without saying a word except for “
“So, Jutul, what were your findings?” Kaden asked the young man whom he had come to take as a younger brother. Jutul was actually a human, but his ruggedness and honesty had earned him a place in Kaden’s large heart. Kaden had found him five years ago during one of his trips down the country, in remote areas where they had gone to establish another arm of their business, cloaked behind an almost unknown convent. The guy, a budding teenager then, had been the one to inform the community head that a group of men had entered their town. Kaden had known because he had sighted the young Jutul at the entrance of the town, and had seen the skepticism on the boy’s face before he had hurried away. In the next five minutes, the town mayor was right in front of them with some guards. But of course, it hadn’t taken much time and money to convince the greedy man of their ploy. Jutul had watched the proceedings carefully, and seeing the effect Kaden had had on his mayor, had chosen to foll
Storm could feel her heart pounding hard, but it was more out of excitement than fear. She should be afraid, the bird was a true raptor, but it was magnificent. It had black eyes! Round, shiny, very intelligent black eyes. She stared at it for two full minutes. That wasn't normal, she was certain. Very slowly, so she wouldn't startle the creature, she backed across the room to the desk where she kept her phone. Still looking at the bird, she googled the images of the bird, biting her lips intermittently as she waited.Strangely, the bird was observing her just as intently, an intelligence in its gaze as it watched the phone beep occasionally. When the page opened, Storm glanced at the image of the harpy eagle. The eyes were round and shining with intelligence, but they were not black. The eyes in the picture were a bright amber with a black pupil. She let out her breath slowly. Something was wrong with her bird.‘You aren't blind, though, are you?’ She sent the words, not even kno
After Storm was done eating, she thanked Kaden, and let him have the plates when he stretched his hands to collect them. To hold herself from jumping on him, and demanding that he put her out of her sexual misery, she stood up from the bed and sauntered to the window to look at the forest, and clear her immoral thoughts. He had joined her to eat, and for each time his mouth had closed over a morsel of food, she had jerked subtly, as if the mouth was closing over her twin orbs. In a large oak tree, plenty feet away from her, a bird flapped its mighty wings, drawing her attention. A smile swept past her lips when she became aware that she could sight its distinctive features. She was not the same Storm of a month ago. She was different now, considering the amount of trainings she had submitted too.The bird had a round facial disk with a very pronounced ruff. It wasn't an owl but it was large. Very large. The unusual bird could easily weigh at least twenty pounds. She stared at it
Storm walked into Kaden's treehouse and was immediately struck by how it seemed larger than usual. The wooden walls, which should be plain and simple, were adorned with colorful murals and hand-painted designs. One wall even showcased a sprawling mural of a sunset over a peaceful lake, with vivid oranges and pinks blending into each other. And another wall had a charming depiction of a forest, complete with playful animals like squirrels and birds, all brought to life with bright, cheerful colors.The room was filled with natural light that filtered through the large windows, which had been decorated with flowing curtains in soft, earthy tones. The curtains swayed gently in the breeze, adding a sense of movement to the scene. The wooden floor was covered with cozy rugs that added warmth and comfort to the space.A large, comfy bean bag was positioned in one corner, surrounded by soft pillows. Next to it was a small bookshelf brimming with colorful books, their spines lined up neatly
Storm’s mind kept conjuring up provocative images, as she and Kaden walked hand in hand around the clan. The kiss they had shared in her room still tingled on her lips, still kept heat in her blood, still made her hunger for more. She inhaled sharply when Kaden turned and stared at her, his eyes brimming with the emotions that she was sure was playing out in her own mind. For a second, she feared that he might have peeked into her dirty mind, but then she remembered that they were not bonded yet, not in that sense. It brought her swift relief which came with a coating of abashed-ness seen in the coloring of her cheeks and necks, something that wasn’t lost on Kaden who was battling to hold on to his honor. He cussed at himself for closing her lips with his earlier, knowing what could happen from there. But she had been speaking, and her luscious mouth had been like water in a desert land; he had been parched so much that he couldn’t have been able to help himself. And now, the stirr
All through the week, Storm only concentrated on the books Kaden had given her, or rather on the first book she had collected from the pile. Jutul had done the same, concentrating on the second book he had picked. Both had only taken breaks when they wanted to eat or when they wanted to train with Casper for an hour. To assuage Kaden’s caveman jealousy, all the reading had been in the dining downstairs, and yet they weren’t close enough to whatever the books were on about. They weren’t close to the end either, and the transcribers were doing a poor job, despite Jiraq’s input sometimes. It was then that Storm had learnt that Jiraq wasn’t done with the book either. ‘What are you doing with one of the hardest books in the pile?” had been his first question when she had solicited for his help. He had gone ahead to pick up a smaller book, written in English, for her and Jutul to start with, but she had declined—she had grown attached to the old book. And she had vowed to bring it to a fi
Storm groaned tiredly; under the full weight of the knowledge she had been absorbing for the past four hours. Kaden had been true to his word, and with the help of Jiraq, had bundled more than thirty books which smelt of oldness into her room this morning, just before she dressed for school. “For those written in old language, Jiraq was kind enough to let you have his transcriber, so that you can better understand it. You can check them out after classes today.” Kaden had said, when he had stepped into her room with a fellow whom she knew went by the name, Micheal, Liam’s younger brother. She had found out right after Liam’s recuperation weeks ago, about the wicked action on the young fellow who didn’t look a year older than her. The first book on the pile had gotten her attention after the duo had left the room, and picking it up, she had decided to peek at a page, then return to her preparation for school. But a page had turned to two pages, and then five pages, until school was
Storm was chatting with Lucy and Justin, in their phone group , around a time when she should be sleeping, when she heard her name being droned in her ears. “S-t-o-r-m” She furrowed her eyebrows, and looked around the room she shared with Kaden sometimes. There was no one. The voice sounded familiar, and until she felt the eeriness in the room, she didn’t know who it was. The vampire.She got up from the empty bed, and sauntered toward the door, needing to get to Kaden as soon as possible, but the door wouldn’t budge. She stamped her foot on the floor out of frustration, as fear suddenly took root in her mind and body. Where was he when she needed him? Why hadn’t he spent the night with her? She wondered, never minding that she had been one to ask they sleep on separate beds tonight, after he had returned from his meeting with his people, after she had returned from seeing her friends off with Lent. The voice called for her name again, and she shuddered before she could help it, h
There was a stark naked silence in the room after Jutul’s declaration. So stark was it, that Storm felt her ears ringing with deep silence, deep silence and an unclothed unbelief. They were lying? If she didn’t know of Jutul’s gifts, she would have berated him for speaking against her friends. But she knew. She knew he was telling the truth—there wasn’t a need to lie. And she still was finding it hard to believe. Lucy and Justin had planned a lie, and had come to convince them of it? All for what? To gain information on what was going on in the clan? Was their school even on break? Then, the silence was broken by Kaden’s voice which had descended to a certain chillness that informed Storm that her mate was angry, very angry, at being made a fool of. “Lent, place a call to the school’s authorities, and find out if the school is really on break…” Lucy’s dark laughter interrupted his statement, and brought Storm’s attention to her. “So y’all would rather believe Storm’s newest friend
Of course they wouldn’t. Storm thought, looking at Lucy squarely for the first time since she had entered the room. Her friend was still bubbling in age-old anger, and was still carrying a grudge against her.And since, Storm knew she couldn’t do much about it—because what Lucy was demanding was unattainable—she let the latter think that she wasn’t bothered by it. It would help with them leaving earlier. Having seen what exactly was at play here, what evil forces were at play here, she wasn’t about to risk the lives of her friends. She wasn’t about to have their blood on her head, because she wanted them to be included in every facet of her life. It was better they thought she was against them; it was better they believed that she didn’t value their friendship.“So, why are you here, Lucy?” She schooled her face to a cold aloofness, unfazed when Justin let out a cuss word, whilst darting a glance between Lucy and her. There was a minute silence, where Lucy scanned Storm’s features;