A howl escaped him as he jerked back and tried to throw her off, but Aria adhered to him like a burdock to cloth. She bit back a cry of agony and frustration as he clawed at her over his back, tearing her arms open but not slicing as deep as the creatures from The Barrens had. Caleb beat at her, catching the corner of her eye and splitting her lip as she tried to keep her face shielded from him.
Suddenly Braith was before them. She’d never seen him look like this before, feral and lethal but with an air of control he’d never possessed when her life was threatened before. His eyes, as they met hers, were not rubies. Instead they were a piercing gray that touched the very core of her soul with their beauty. She knew, without words, without a gesture or move, what he wanted her to do.
A final burst of energy poured through her as she leapt off of Caleb’s back. Braith lunged forward and grabbed her around her waist. Pulling her protectively against him, he slammed his right hand into Caleb’s chest. An inhuman wail escaped Caleb; he reared back beneath Braith’s assault as Braith yanked back with a mighty heave. Aria turned away, and buried her face in Braith’s neck as Caleb’s wail increased in frequency before silencing completely.
She shook against him, clinging to his solid frame as he held her flush against his side with her feet dangling in the air. His hand trembled as he brushed the sweat dampened strands of hair back from her face. She didn’t even care he was touching her with the hand that had just destroyed his brother as she lifted her gaze to meet his frantic eyes. She simply stared at him for a moment, basking in the feel of him.
A small breath escaped her, he was the only thing she could see, the only thing she could feel as he kissed her firmly, bit into his wrist and offered his blood to her. She stared at it for a moment before snagging hold of it and pressing it to her mouth. She eagerly swallowed, pulling his blood into her body as she tried to rid herself of the awful taste of the king’s blood that stained her tongue and throat. The sweetness of his blood, the pureness of it flowed into her, healing her at the same time it helped to purge her system.
He kissed her forehead as he stepped back from the table and turned her into the shadows of an alcove. Aria gradually became aware of the hush that had descended around them and she released Braith’s arm. Her hand pressed into the hollow of his back as she leaned around him to survey the room. The few soldiers that continued to fight were swiftly being taken down. It seemed that when Caleb had been destroyed, most of the king’s remaining soldiers had given up the fight. There were pushed against the opposite wall, their weapons on the ground at their feet and their arms raised in surrender.
There was a new King now.
“Are we safe?” she whispered.
Braith’s lips were warm against her ear as he bent his head to hers. “Yes. You are safe now Arianna.”
Aria’s heart hammered, her hand clenched upon his back, she didn’t want to let him go, but she had to.
Her grip on him eased as he slid her to her feet. Bodies littered the ground; blood splattered the floor, walls, and fighters that remained. She somehow managed to keep from vomiting as she surveyed the carnage. Jack momentarily came to the forefront, he gestured frantically for Braith to join him. Foreboding filled her as she took a step toward the large group. Braith seized hold of her face, turning her away from the casualties strewn about the room and spilling into the hall beyond the massive doors.
“I have to help them.” She managed a small nod as his eyes raked her face. “I need you to stay here Aria. Please, do as I ask until everything is secure.”
She should help, but the idea of plunging into that pile of dead bodies was more than she could tolerate right now. The thought of finding one of her loved ones amongst the dead caused her stomach to twist into knots. It may be cowardice, but she couldn’t face that possibility right now, she simply couldn’t. They were alright, they had to be; she just couldn’t see them right now through the crush of humans and vampires filling the room. “I will.”
His eyes closed for a brief moment as his shoulders sagged. He kissed her for a lingering moment before reluctantly releasing her; he grabbed a bow, and a mostly empty quiver of arrows from the body of a dead guard. Aria accepted the blood splattered weapons. She took a step back as she watched Braith disappear into the swell of bodies. Though she didn’t relish the thought of killing anyone else, she pulled an arrow from the quiver and rested it against the bow as she searched the crowd.
She finally spotted William leaning against the far wall with his own bow and arrows. Aria tossed the bow over her shoulder, grabbed the quiver and bolted onto the top of the table. Some of her dread and queasiness eased as she moved further away from Caleb’s body.
William glanced briefly at her before focusing on the group of soldiers being restrained by Braith and the others. Landing beside him, she took reassurance in his solid presence as her fingers entwined with his and he pulled her close for a hug. Aria fought back tears as she embraced him. “It’s good to see you,” he told her.
“You too.”
He released her and fell back against the wall to turn a watchful eye back on the crowd. “Don’t do that again.”
“I’ll try my hardest not to.”
He smiled at her as he lifted an eyebrow. “You do have a habit of being vampire chow.”
“Ha ha,” she muttered. Her free hand fell to Keegan’s head as she wordlessly thanked the wolf for watching over her brother. “Are you ok?” She warily eyed the bloodstained bandage that Daniel had hastily wrapped around his thigh.
“I’ll survive.”
“That’s reassuring,” she told him.
“Are you ok?”
“Yes.” His eyes ran over her as he tried to judge the truth behind her answer. It seemed as if he was trying to see into her soul, trying to see what had been done to her, who she was now, and if she would ever be the same. Nothing would ever be the same, but there were some things that would never change. “I’m ok.” His gaze raked over Caleb’s ragged claw marks, and the raw bites covering her arms, collarbone and neck. “Really.”
His eyes, so similar to hers, met and held her own. “He deserved what he got Aria.”
He knew her so well, so unbelievably well. Caleb had deserved what he’d gotten, he would have done far worse things to her and Braith, but she couldn’t rid herself of the feel of his body lurching beneath hers. Aria braced herself as she turned to survey the survivors. It was nearly over; she should feel more excited, she simply felt sick and desperate to see her family.
“Where are Daniel, Max, and Xavier?” she asked.
“They went to help in the fight.”
“Have you…” She had to swallow before she could continue. “Have you seen them? Dad?”
His eyes closed as he gave a small shake of his head. She was finding it difficult to breathe as she blinked back the tears burning her eyes and focused on the group before her. Jack and Ashby had joined Braith in front of the remaining king’s guard. Most of the king’s men had dropped to their knees at Braith’s approach but a few remained standing out of sheer defiance. For the first time she noticed Melinda pressed against Ashby’s side, she looked almost as shell shocked as Aria felt as she leaned against him.
Over the sea of heads she spotted more fighters on the other side of the massive doors that opened into the hallway. Aria held her breath as she took a step forward. That was where they had to be, her dad had been near the doors, and the others must have fought their way out the doors, and were now helping to oversee things in the hall.
Calista and Gideon appeared from the hall and encircled Braith and Jack. Calista gestured toward the doors as Gideon solemnly bowed his head. A frown creased her forehead as Jack turned and bolted toward the doors. Seizing hold of her arm, William halted her as she took another step forward. Dread curled through her stomach as Jack began frantically tossing aside fallen bodies. Braith was at his side in an instant; they shouted something to each other that Aria couldn’t discern above the roar
of blood pulsing through her ears.
Aria’s gaze flew over the crowd; she spotted Saul and Frank, but where were her father and Daniel? Where were Max and Xavier?
Her heart was hammering as her throat went dry. There was something clawing at her insides, something hideous and frightening; something that made it difficult to breathe as Jack tossed aside another crumpled body. Jack froze; his hand stilled in midair as a look of despair crossed his and Braith’s faces. Aria shook off William’s weak grasp as she took another small step forward. She couldn’t see what they were looking at, there were still too many people moving in and out of her line of sight.
Aria’s hand moved slowly to her mouth, she couldn’t breathe as the room lurched sickeningly. William leaned heavily on a spear for support as he stepped beside her. Daniel burst free of the crowd in the hall, Max and Xavier were close on his heels as he shoved past some of the restrained guards. A scream lodged in Aria’s throat; her paralysis broke as she bolted forward. William lurched awkwardly after her, trying and failing to grasp hold of her as she sprinted toward Braith and Jack.
Braith’s head shot up as she heedlessly charged through the crowd. Braith jumped over the bodies scattered around him, rushing to meet her as she raced at them. His arms encircled her waist and he lifted her high. The cry that she had been unable to release before finally ripped from her throat.
“Daddy!” she screamed as her heart shattered and tears of anguish burst free.
Her arms stretched out as she reached for the body Daniel had fallen beside. Braith’s hand wrapped around her head, he pushed her face into the hollow of his neck as he clutched her. He refused to let her look again as she sobbed against him. It was too late, he was trying to protect her, but she’d already seen enough to know that her father was gone.
CHAPTER 15
Braith had originally taken Aria to Melinda’s apartments to get her away from the turmoil and her father’s body. However, after the first day of mute silence scattered with intermittent weeping, she made her way out of the palace while he was preoccupied with trying to sort things out. He found her in the stables with Max, tending to the wounded animals with stalwart care. The two of them seemed content away from the confusion of people and vampires, and he didn’t have the heart to protest.
He simply couldn’t dislike Max, not anymore, and had actually come to respect him. The boy had gone through things Braith would never understand, he’d been damaged and tormented by them, but somewhere along the way he’d stopped being a boy and grown into a man. A man that had protected his back, and unflinchingly followed him into the palace while knowing that he would never have the one person he coveted most.
Max noticed him first in the doorway of the stable and nudged Aria to get her attention. “I know,” she murmured as she snipped off the thread she’d used on a wounded lamb. “I’m not going back in there Braith, you can’t make me.”
He couldn’t help but smile as she glanced at him over her shoulder. Dark circles shadowed her haunted, reddened eyes. He was well aware of the fact that she hadn’t slept last night, and that she probably wouldn’t sleep tonight, but her chin jutted in determination and her gaze was defiant as it met his. She was damaged, she was partially broken, but that radiant spirit still flickered beneath the sorrow.
“Have I ever been able to make you do anything?”
Max chuckled as he lifted the lamb, nodded to Braith, and wandered down the aisle of the only stable that had survived the fires. It had taken most of the day to finally extinguish the fires within the palace walls, and there were still a few houses burning in the outer town. There was a crew working on putting them out with water from the river, but hopefully they would have them out by nightfall.
Aria wiped the blood from her hands with a dirty rag. “I suppose not,” she admitted with a tremulous smile.
“How long have you been out here?”
“A couple hours.”
“You should have told me,” he admonished.
“You were busy.”
“I’m never too busy to make sure you’re safe. There are still some out there who were loyal to my father, we haven’t caught them all yet, and it’s no secret what you mean to me anymore.”
Her eyes flickered, for a moment tears sprang forth but she rapidly blinked them back. “Max has been with me, and I have my bow.”
The slender curve of her neck drew his eyes as she glanced toward the barn doors. He winced at the myriad of bite marks and bruises from his brother and father, stark reminders of the brutality she’d endured and had yet to talk about. There was an air of desolation around her that he didn’t know how to ease.
“At least have a vampire with you; I can’t lose you again Aria.” He knew her freedom was essential but she had to stay alive. Something flickered in her eyes as she turned back to him, she looked about to say something more but simply nodded. “Xavier has stepped aside as leader of his people.”
Her eyebrows drew together over her nose. “Why would he do that?”
“Xavier has always preferred his books and histories more so than his role as an aristocrat. He was never afforded the opportunity to step aside before, but now he has a chance to set his own destiny. He has chosen to stay on as an advisor, and to sit in on important issues that involve the people he represented when it’s necessary, but he doesn’t want to be involved in the daily running of the government, not anymore. We have all agreed to accept his decision. He said he would stay with you if that’s ok?”
“Why would he want to stay with me when he has just gained the freedom he desired?”
Now was not the time to give her the real answer to that question, but he couldn’t bring himself to lie to her either. “He’s curious about how the rebellion worked. He won’t push you, won’t ask you anything, but if you’re willing to talk with him, he is more than willing to listen.”
“I see,” she murmured. “That’s fine.”
“Aria…”
She held up a hand to forestall his words. “I don’t mind if Xavier stays, really. I would just like to be out here, away from…” Her words trailed off, her gaze darted toward the palace. Her father was one of the few that hadn’t been buried yet. He’d been placed in the second hall on the main floor so that each of his followers would have a chance to say goodbye. Barnaby, whose body had also been recovered, was lying in the room beside David’s. His father, Caleb, and Natasha hadn’t been awarded the same luxury and had already been buried in unmarked graves away from the palace. “I just have to be outside for a bit.”
“I understand.”
Her attention was diverted as Max returned with a small piglet that was squealing in his arms and bleeding from a gash in his leg. “I have to get back to the animals.”
He thought she was simply going to turn away from him, that she was going to shut him out. After a moment’s hesitation though she hurried over, wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him. He felt the wetness of her tears, but when she pulled away she had already stopped shedding them. He brushed the hair back from her face as he kissed her softly and released her into the care of Xavier and Max.
Braith hated that he couldn’t be with her when she retreated to the stables for the following two days, but there was so much to repair, and order to be re-established. Barnaby’s followers were confused and scrambling. Calista and Gideon had taken over trying to organize them while Adam, Barnaby’s second, was slowly trying to assume command.
Xavier reported back to him every night, but it wasn’t the same. He longed to be with her during the day, but he knew now that he couldn’t always have everything he wanted. Not anymore. He refused to leave her at night though, no matter what necessity might arise to draw his attention from her, he wouldn’t leave her side. He’d placed Jack and Gideon in charge of any crisis that arose at night.
For two nights he held her as she lay awake. She remained mute as she stared unseeingly into the darkness, sometimes shedding noiseless tears that broke hi
s heart. In all his years he’d never felt more helpless, not even when Caleb had taken her from him. At least then there had been a plan, there had been a mission, there had been someone to destroy. There was nothing now; there was no one he could protect her from, no way for him to ease her deep heartache.
He didn’t know how to handle grief, he couldn’t beat it, he couldn’t break it, and he certainly couldn’t kill it. All he could do was lay helplessly beside her and hold her as she suffered through the nights. It didn’t help that she wouldn’t talk about it, the mere mention of her father made her flinch; her face would become stony and impassive every time his father or Caleb was brought up.
Finally, last night, something had changed. Long after every one had retreated to sleep, she’d risen from his bed, grabbed a robe and noiselessly padded away. His own exhaustion clung to him as he followed behind her, uncertain of where she was going until she arrived on the first floor. He’d held back, hovering in the doorway as she’d wandered to her father’s side. She stood beside the casket that hid the injury he’d sustained to his shoulder, and the spear hole through the heart that had ultimately been his downfall. Braith was infinitely glad the wounds were hidden as she sat on the stool next to her father, placed her head upon his chest and began to weep more openly than she had for the past three days.
Though he’d yearned to go to her, to hold her, to pull her away, he’d remained unmoving. He sensed instinctively that she was simply seeking a way to heal, a way to say goodbye on her own, and that he didn’t belong here. He’d retreated from the doorway, leaving her within as he settled onto the cold marble floor outside the room and waited for her to come back to him. She didn’t reemerge until the first rays of daylight broke over the horizon.