Demons had hearts.
But the connection between our hearts and our spirits had been severed. That was why we were evil by nature. We had no conscience, no nagging feeling when we do something bad. We had no sense of right and wrong.
Power.
Money.
Greed.
Survival.
But mine, mine was awoken, the connection established as if someone had sewn my shadow back to my feet.
Hell. I was the Peter Freaking Pan of my people.
“Here, boss,” Octavian said from the front seat.
He would die later.
For putting Hope in harm’s way by allowing Alex to get free.
Alex. His name left a bitter taste in my mouth — the man had no idea how powerful he was.
His power would destroy everything.
Better he die than risk the lives of all of the immortals — Hope included. He was capable of killing so many — and what was worse? He wasn’t aware of how easily he could be used as a pawn… if someone got ahold of his power, his thoughts.
I shuddered and stepped outside the car.
Hope did not follow.
I didn’t expect her to.
She was scared.
And while I wished I had time to go slow — time was of the essence, so I walked around to her side of the car, opened the door and held out my leather-gloved hand. “Come.”
“But—”
“Hope.” I snarled her name. “You don’t have to trust me, not yet, just know, that I will protect you until my last breath — do you understand?”
“Why?”
“Humans,” I spat. “Always wanting to know the reason, as if the reason will make this any easier!”
“Elf,” she corrected in a small voice, her eyes finally lifting to meet mine. They were a glorious brown, the color of the very earth that had formed her so long ago. The first real human race, until it all went to Hell.
Literally.
“Sorry,” I whispered. “You’re correct.” I took a deep soothing breath. The air smelled like her, like dirt and sand, roses and trees, rain and forest mist. “Elf.”
With a gulp, she put her shaky warm hand in mine and stood to her full height which hit me just below mid chest.
“You’re tall.” She had to lean completely back to look me in the eyes.
“Yes, well,” I tilted my head. “We can’t all be short little elves.”
Her shoulders hunched. “Like the Nabisco Elves.”
I barked out a laugh. “You’re no cookie elf.”
“Thanks.”
I tugged her toward the house, my house, the only safe place I could think to bring her.
Werewolves guarded the front gates.
And vampires guarded the doors.
A parting gift from Sariel… the morning after he was taken, I woke up to find my house littered with immortals.
And not the demonic kind I was used to.
When I told them to go to Hell, the vampires at the door told me they were guarding a demon — they were already there.
That’s how things had been ever since.
When I’d asked Cassius what the hell was going on, Cassius merely shrugged and said some bullshit about how he couldn’t read every mind — especially one as complex as Sariel’s had been.
Nice. Real nice.
Hope crossed her arms, casting her eyes to the ground as she leaned closer to me, passing both vampires with a weariness that I knew had been ingrained since birth.
Only a vampire could tell who she really was — by sucking her blood — but elves had always been taught to fear anything that could be their destruction.
Funny, how the “safe” immortal had been the one to destroy them all.
Disgusted, I snarled at the vampires and shoved her through the doorway.
Hope stumbled into the entryway and let me lead her toward the guest bedroom. I tried to imagine what my house looked like to a scared little elf.
It was dark.
I preferred it that way.
It was a reminder.
Of what I’d always been — until an elf touched me — saved me.
The lighting was dimmed; anything too bright hurt other demons’ eyes, and since they were my race and still didn’t know all there was to know about me, I kept things normal.
The décor wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, black leather couches, fur rugs, and as much alcohol as a being could have in one place without looking like they owned a bar.
We passed the gourmet kitchen I rarely cooked in, with its white marble counter tops, and red wing backed chairs. Her footsteps echoed across the wood floor until we reached the end of the hall.
“You can stay here until…” Until what? The end of the world? Until forever? “Until Alex gets better.” I settled for a lie.
“He will get better, right?” she asked in a small voice that had my damned heart beating a bit more erratically than usual.
I casually opened the door to the small bedroom and took a step inside, gathering my thoughts before finally shrugging. “I’m sure all he needs is a little sex… based on the size of the bite—” Her face paled. “—what?”
“Sex.” She gulped. “But I’m his mate.”
My nostrils flared as I took in her scent, the scent of lust… not love. “You may be bonded sexually — but not emotionally. Therefore, he can find pleasure… elsewhere.”
“But he said—”
“Forget what he said.” I growled. “It no longer matters. All that matters is keeping you safe… even if it means, I’m saving you from yourself.”
“Myself?”
“You want him, even now, I can smell it in the air. But Alex is death to you… you must understand that. He has blood on his hands, has for many years.”
Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
“Let’s not focus on the negative.” I changed the subject. “For now, let’s think about all of the people you’re going to save.”
Hope shook her head. “I’m no hero.”
“We’ve waited for you….” I kept the trembling out of my voice. “You are the only one who can restore them all.”
“Them?”
I smiled. “My race of course.”
“Restore?”
“Save,” I whispered. “Set free.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about…”
“Once you have fallen… the only other option given to you is to either stay that way or… look up.” I held out my hand as blue fire danced across my fingertips. “Elf blood… the only substance that mimics its angelic counterpart… You are of the first, which means you have the DNA of life running through your veins. Elves were not protected because they were weak as you were told by your precious siren — they were protected because they have the power to build races, to mate with immortals, but most importantly, they have the power to bridge a gap — between heart and soul. Only if the person is willing of course.”
“That’s….” Hope collapsed onto the bed, shaking her head back and forth. “And I’m the last one?”
“So you see,” I knelt in front of her and pulled both of her hands into mine. “I will protect you.”
“Alex was protecting me.”
“Alex was feeding from you,” I snapped in outrage. “Big difference.” Her hands were warm, comforting. “Alex was addicted to you like any immortal would be once given a taste of your essence. But what you shared wasn’t real…”
“He kept me safe.” Why did she refuse to let it go? To let him go. “He…” She gulped. “In his own way, he cares. He does. I know it.”
“He cares?” I spat. Repeating her words left a bad taste. “You think you know your precious siren so well?” Abruptly I dropped her hands and stood. “You’ve been sleeping with the enemy.”
“But, Cassius—“
“Cassius cannot see every future!” I yelled. “And this one is pretty damning… I lived through the Great War, I saw what Alex was capabl
e of then, and I know what he is capable of now. Cassius may have blind hope that Alex won’t unleash his power, but if he does, you are going to be the one caught in the crossfire. It will be your life, and all of this will have been for nothing!”
A tear slid down her cheek, it was red.
I caught it with my fingertip and let out a sigh. “Your heart weeps for the loss of your people. And yet, you were so fickle to give that very heart away — to the one who killed them.”
Alex
London, England
1815
“WHAT THE HELL?” I blinked in confusion. Minutes ago, I had been slowly dying from an unfortunate demon bite, and now, I was roaming the streets of London.
I kept walking.
Maybe I was hallucinating.
Though I’d never seen a demon bite cause hallucinations, they burned like hell, but there were no weird side effects like I was currently experiencing.
A tall man in a cloak walked out of the alleyway, and turned, his icy expression on mine.
Bannik.
His hair was black, the ends red, like someone had dipped his hair in blood.
He looked through me.
It had to be a dream then, right?
I had the sudden urge to follow him.
And I had no idea why.
At least the pain in my neck was gone.
I weaved around people, carriages. The noisy London streets smelled putrid, just like I remembered. Rain pounded the ground leaving giant puddles that were nearly impossible to walk around without walking into the street.
The man didn’t turn around again.
He stopped in front of a large building. It looked abandoned, run down, like an old shipyard or perhaps a mill.
Pulling the cloak tighter around him, he stepped through the unhinged gate and into the shadows.
“Hell,” I muttered. Why was I following him again? I shivered from the cold.
Then paused.
When had I ever been cold?
I always ran hot.
So hot it was impossible for me to think straight at times.
“Master,” a demon croaked. “They are gone.”
Bannik growled. “What do you mean gone?”
“Someone must have freed them.” The demon’s crazed red eyes darted from left to right. His long black hair was tied at the nape of his neck, his face smudged with dirt.
“I leave for an hour, and suddenly the elves are just… poof? Gone?”
“Timber said—”
“I don’t give a rat’s ass what Timber said!” Bannik yelled. “You get your orders from me! I’m trying to build your race, and the only means I have to do that just walked out the front door!” He picked the demon up by the neck and tossed him like a ragdoll against the wall.
“Enter,” Bannik whispered. “Don’t think I can’t see you in the shadows, Siren.”
I hesitated.
And then a version of myself walked forward, a version I wasn’t proud of. I looked crazed, like I hadn’t had sex in years.
I searched my brain for any recollection of this moment and came up with nothing. What the hell kind of paradoxical past was this?
“Watch,” a voice that sounded strangely like Cassius whispered.
I shivered.
And suddenly it made sense.
That bastard knew I hated dream walking!
Not only was it cold as hell, but I hated anyone touching me — Cassius knew that.
“Watch,” he urged again, louder.
“Awaken,” Bannik commanded.
My old self whimpered.
“I said awaken! A weak siren is not useful to me! You will fulfill your destiny and reach full power!”
My old self fell to his knees. “Go to Hell.”
“Awaken!” The room shook, moaning, groaning, as he did what no fallen angel should ever do. Command the universe, speak things into existence.
“You do not have the power to command.” My old self whimpered. “I am not yours.”
“No,” Bannik said hoarsely. “And how sad that you will always be a slave to your own desires, to your own needs, to the constant pain in your chest that refuses to go away. The burning heat will destroy you, the flames will lick you until your corpse runs dry. You will not remember this day. But I will. I will always remember the time I asked you to reach your full potential, and you failed.”
“I would rather fail than be used as a tool for evil.”
“Wake up, Siren… everyone has a little bit of evil inside… you either feed it or ignore it — but it’s there and one day, very soon, when I make myself known to this world, you will see the ramifications of what happens when you feed a starving beast. It devours everything in its path just like I’m going to devour you…” His eyes narrowed, and then he backed away and sniffed the air, a cruel smile taunting his lips before his eyebrow arched. “Dark One, we meet again… you cannot dream walk through the past without ramifications.”
Cassius suddenly appeared. “You will not win.”
Bannik’s eyes went completely black as he tilted his head toward the ceiling. “I already have.”
Alex
I JOLTED AWAKE in a sweaty mess, with pain so severe I shouted out a few curses before blinking open my eyes to a room filled with ice and snow.
“Really, Cassius?”
He shrugged. “You were dreaming of the past. When I touched you, I saw Bannik. I thought it wise to follow him.”
“Can you leave me out of it next time?”
“No.” His eyes flashed. “Since apparently you’re part of the reason we are in this whole mess, my friend.”
I leaned back against the sweat-soaked pillow. “Where’s Hope?”
“Safe,” Cassius answered thoughtfully. “For now.”
“So downstairs?”
Cassius slowly took down his whole DEFCON 1 look, appearing more human by the minute as the ice melted around us. “You need sex.”
“If you get Mason, I can touch him, and have sex with her, it will work.”
“Did you know?” Why the hell was Cassius ignoring every damn question that came out of my mouth?
“Know what?”
“About Bannik?”
“No.” I pinched the bridge of my nose and gritted my teeth as fresh pain swelled all over me.
“I’ve always thought you were too powerful. Now I know I’ve been right all along. If Bannik wanted you then, he most likely wants you now, which means we either kick his ass before he finds out a way to destroy Sariel’s brothers… or you reach your full potential as he calls it, and do it for us.”
“Lover not a fighter,” I grumbled. “Where are we on that whole Hope situation? I’d really like to not die in my own sweat.”
“You need sex, not her. The bond is strong, not strong enough. There is no love…”
“You can’t ask me to fall in love that fast, and you sure as hell can’t ask that of her… you haven’t given us any time to do anything except have sex and—”
“No,” Cassius interrupted. “That’s all on you. I was told you set a timer for sexual intercourse?”
Guilt stabbed me in the chest. “It was logical… at the time.”
“For you or her?”
“Cassius.”
“You won’t die… not if you have sex…”
“And you know that because?”
“Because Timber made it so.”
“That bastard was here?” I roared ready to jump out of bed and ram my hand through his face.
An eerily calm expression washed over Cassius’s sharp features. “I let him take Hope.”
“WHAT!” My lungs burned from the scream. “Tell me this is your idea of a joke.”
“I rarely joke,” Cassius said with a deadpan expression. “She isn’t yours to protect, not anymore. Besides, what am I to do, when the very being she needs to be protected from — is her mate?”
“Come again?”
“You failed the elves before. You will
not fail them again.”
“History won’t repeat itself,” I snarled, “Not if you let me help. But it sure as hell is going to be bad if Timber turns her over to Bannik!”
“Timber would die for her.”
“But—”
“Would you do the same?”
“Seriously?”
“Honestly.” Cassius did that slow blink thing that somehow made me feel like he was searching my thoughts.
“Yes,” I finally choked out and then gulped. “I would die for her.”
“You hesitated.”
“I just met her.”
Cassius smirked. “No. You didn’t.”
“Talking to you is giving me a headache.”
“Reach your full potential, Alex. In order to do that, you must fall in love, you get that, right? What Bannik was trying to do to you? To get you to be desperate enough to mate with the woman of his choosing — and kill her.”
I shook my head in disbelief.
“The thing about sirens…” Cassius tilted his head. “Is that they do not understand how weak the heart truly is — and how desperate that same heart is, to be wanted by someone else. Love would not kill her — but your lack of love would eventually break her heart. And a severed heart means a dead elf. So yes, Timber saved her life, because she was falling in love with you, and you more with yourself.”
He disappeared from the room.
Leaving me in pain.
And alone with my thoughts.
Seconds later, a taunting voice in my head whispered, “It’s just sex.”
I lifted a shaky hand to my face and cursed. Because I knew the truth. With Hope, it had always been more.
I’d just been too blind.
And afraid.
To admit it.
And now she was gone.
My chest felt hollow.
I ached everywhere.
I burned.
And for the first time in my existence, I didn’t leave the house to find a willing human participant.
I closed my eyes and welcomed the pain — if that meant death, so be it.
I would not touch another but her.
Ever again.
Mason
“YOU’RE SMILING MORE than usual.” I narrowed my eyes as Cassius walked down the stairs and smirked.