William’s hands tightened on Tempest’s shoulders; he pulled her back a step and hugged her against his chest.
CHAPTER 32
William stepped off the last stair and stared across the empty tavern to where Aria sat. Candlelight flickered over her, illuminating her pale skin and turning her hair a vibrant shade of red. Normally she had a tan; it had faded a little due to her time in the palace, but her skin had still held a golden hue that caused the brush of her freckles to appear fainter. Now her skin could make glue look tan, and her freckles looked as washed out as the rest of her when she lifted her head to look at him.
The woman claiming to be the rightful queen had said twins had a special bond and Aria was his closest friend, but he’d never been able to feel her pain or known when she was in trouble. Still, when he’d pulled the blankets away from himself and slipped free of Tempest’s arms he’d known he would find his sister here.
Pulling the chair across from her out, he stared at the numerous documents and papers spread out on the table before her. A wooden box sat on the ground near her feet. He glanced around the tavern but didn’t see anyone else in the shadows, and he didn’t sense anyone in the kitchen. “Where is everyone?” he inquired.
“Working on getting things ready to go,” she replied.
His eyebrows rose as he leaned back in his seat. “They left you alone?”
She carefully stacked some of the papers to the side, her attention focused on her task as she spoke, “I asked to be left alone.”
“Do you want me to leave?” Her head finally lifted; her eyes met his. For the first time in his life, he saw true fear in his sister’s gaze. “Aria…”
“No, stay,” she gave him a wan smile and focused on moving the papers around again.
Questions ran through his mind as he studied her, but he knew her well enough to know she wouldn’t open up until she was ready. “What is all of this?” he asked and gestured at the papers.
“These are Atticus’s and Genny’s journals,” she murmured. “I was going through them in the hope that maybe I had missed some mention of this woman you encountered, but nothing in them hints at her. Genny’s sister, Camille, could still be alive, but most records of her have vanished. Even if she is still alive, she wouldn’t have the power you described, and according to these documents, she was blonde with blue eyes.”
“You were going to tell me who this Genny girl was,” he reminded her.
She folded her hands before her and stared at her lap before finally lifting her eyes to him again. “I will. Tempest seems very nice.”
“She is, she’s normally not so quiet, but I think she’s overwhelmed.”
Aria chuckled and sat back in her chair. “If anyone can understand being overwhelmed by unknown circumstances, it’s me.”
“True.”
“You care for her.”
“I more than care for her.”
Some color came back to her face when she tilted her head to look at him. “You’re in love,” she teased.
Normally he would have told her to screw off or some other wiseass retort; instead, he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. “I haven’t admitted that to her yet.”
“She knows.”
“And how do you know that?”
“I see the way she watches you; she risked her life for yours, and you for her. She knows. She’s your bloodlink.”
He folded his arms over his chest. “I’m not so sure.”
And he wasn’t. He could feel the pull to return to Tempest’s side now, but a bloodlink? He’d felt a bond with her, but was it the strong mystical bond he’d sensed between his sister and Braith? When he was with her, the walls and indoors didn’t feel anywhere near as suffocating. She made them bearable, and he knew he could endure anything in order to be with her and make her happy.
“I’m sure,” she replied with the unwavering, stubborn insistence she could always somehow pull off, even if she was insisting the grass was red instead of green.
“And what makes you say that?”
“You climbed a mountain with a broken leg and a barely useable arm; you put her ahead of your desire to see Kane dead.”
He rubbed at the short beard that had regrown over the past few days. “I didn’t put her ahead of the peace. I had to learn more about that woman in order to try and protect what we’ve all established here, and I put Tempest at risk by doing so. I could have just taken her away from there or never taken her back in the first place.”
Aria’s chin jutted out; her shoulders thrust back as she sat up in her chair. The carefree, wild woman he’d always known and loved vanished before him. In this dimly lit tavern, he saw the queen she’d become. It had nothing to do with her attitude or her smile, and everything to do with her demeanor and the poise with which she sat so regally.
It hit him that she would be completely capable of doing what had to be done to protect her kingdom. Aria had always been strong, but she’d never been ruthless. He didn’t think it was because she was a vampire now that she came off fiercer, but because she’d also been through a war and would do anything to stop it from happening again.
“None of us can put anything above keeping the peace in this land,” she replied. “No matter how badly we wish we could.”
“You’re right,” he murmured.
“Have you shared blood with her?”
Unreasonable annoyance shot through him at the question. “That’s between us.”
Aria rolled her eyes. “It’s rather obvious, William.” Apparently, she hadn’t needed him to answer the question. He glowered at her as she smiled sweetly in return. “Serves you right. If you do recall everyone had a say in mine and Braith’s relationship, this is nothing compared to that.”
“True,” he relented though he still didn’t appreciate anyone knowing about what transpired between him and Tempest. “She saved my life.”
“I know.”
“No,” he said and leaned toward her. “I feel like she brought me back to life, after the change…” he looked at the wall behind her head. “I felt hollow, devoid of all emotion except for a thirst for death. I originally wanted her to take me to Badwin to destroy Kane, but somewhere along the way that changed.”
“She became far more important.”
“She did,” he confirmed.
“She is your bloodlink; you wouldn’t share your blood with anyone else. Unless they were your brother,” she added with a half-hearted smile.
“The rules may be different for us. We’re not exactly pure vampires, or at least not according to some,” he reminded her.
“True, but Tempest is.”
William bowed his head in agreement. “You’re right.”
“You’d die for her.”
“I would.”
Wordlessly, she rose to her feet, picked up one of the piles of journals and papers, and placed them before him. “I think it’s time you met Genny and found out what really happened to turn Atticus into the man he was.”
She tapped her hands on the papers before turning away from him. His upper lip curved in a sneer at the idea of touching anything of the insane, murderous king who had tried to destroy them all. “I’m not sure I care what turned him into the bastard he was.”
“Trust me; you want to read what is in there.”
He stared at the massive pile, feeling more than a little daunted by the amount of them. “I’m not the best reader,” he reminded her.
“Timber managed to get through them, so can you. Some of the writing is difficult to read at times, I’ll help you with those if you need me too, but read them.”
“Is that your queenly command?”
A small snort escaped her. “Like I could command you to do anything.”
“You always try.”
“Not this time. This is important, William.”
He glanced back at her before heaving a sigh and pulling a journal from the top of the pile. Aria sat again and began to shuffle through some
of the papers still before her. He had no idea how much time passed before he set the last journal aside and lifted his head to look at his sister, but the candles were almost nubs and their flames flickered weakly against the walls.
He sat for a few minutes, thinking over everything he’d learned from the documents. His gaze went to the ceiling. He wished he could see Tempest now. He’d give anything to pull her into his arms and hold her close.
“So you forgive Atticus for all he did?” he inquired after a few minutes, uncertain of how to respond to what he’d read.
Aria’s head was bowed, her gaze focused on the hands in her lap as she spoke, “For some things, I do. I understand him better now; I know what drove him to become the monster he was.”
“I can understand that,” he said, his mind going back to Tempest. What would he do if something happened to her? His fangs tingled; he’d tear someone apart limb from limb if they ever tried to hurt her. He would do whatever it took to give her the happiness, security and love she deserved. “I’ll kill anyone for her.”
Aria lifted her head to look at him. “I told you so,” she whispered.
His forehead furrowed as he stared at her. The color had faded from her face again; she held herself so still it seemed she feared she might break apart if she moved. His concern for her buried his irritation over her, I told you so. “Aria, what is wrong?”
“You should understand better how deep the bloodlink bond runs,” she replied instead of answering his question. “Atticus was a good man in the beginning.”
“I understand it more now than I ever thought possible since meeting Tempest, but I also watched it unfold with you and Braith, then Jack and Hannah. I saw how powerful it was as a human, and I can feel how powerful it is as a vampire. I could feel the strength of those connections before I met Tempest. I’ve also experienced the strength Tempest’s blood has given to me.”
He’d known how powerful the bond was before she’d handed him those documents, but it truly hit him then what he and Tempest were to each other. It explained his accelerated healing and speed, how he’d managed to climb that mountain, and what had driven Tempest into a burning building after him. Just like Braith could see around Aria, and Hannah could walk in the sun with Jack, he and Tempest made each other stronger and better.
“I know what it is, Aria,” he murmured. “She’s everything to me.”
The smile she gave him didn’t light up her eyes. “Good. I’m so happy for you, William. I’m so glad to see you really smile and laugh again; I was terrified I would never see you happy again. She brought you back to us.”
He frowned at her, feeling as if he’d somehow missed something. “But…”
“But I needed you to understand what a vampire can become when the bloodlink is jeopardized or broken.”
Her gaze fell to her hands in her lap again. His mind spun as he tried to figure out where she was going with all of this. “If you’re worried about Braith, I can’t ever see him becoming like his father. He understands the damage he could inflict if he did. Maybe he wouldn’t be able to continue on without you, though I think he would because he knows he must, but he wouldn’t become a monster, Aria.”
She remained silent for a minute before speaking again, “Not Braith,” she murmured. “Me.”
When she lifted her head again, her face remained so pale her lips had become nearly colorless. However, her coloring wasn’t what sent a shiver down his spine or caused him to inhale a sharp breath. No, what caused that was the crimson color of her eyes burning into his. He finally managed to blink as she continued to hold herself as if she would fall apart at any second.
“Aria, you’re one of the kindest people I know.”
“I’m no longer people,” she replied in an emotionless tone he’d never heard from her before. “And I have this horrible feeling.” Her hand fluttered up to her chest and pressed against her heart. “That this isn’t going to end well, that I’m going to lose him.”
“Aria…”
“Don’t shrug it off William, don’t brush my concerns aside. I know it makes no sense, but I can’t shake this horrible sensation that’s been forming inside me since you told us about this woman. No matter how badly I try.” Her eyes remained red; a fracture slipped through the wall she’d erected around her when a single tear shimmered in her eye but didn’t fall. “So if he is taken from me, I need you to understand why I may have to be destroyed too. To really understand, William, and not just say you do.”
Leaning forward he rested his hand over the top of hers. “I understand,” he assured her. “More now than I ever could have beforehand, I understand.” It didn’t mean he would destroy her as she seemed to hope, but he would do everything in his power to make sure she wasn’t lost to him forever.
“Good.” Her head turned toward the door. Her nostrils flared and the wall around her crumpled. “He’s coming.”
The red bled from her eyes as quickly as it had appeared. Rising to her feet, she walked toward the door before William heard the first heavy footfall on the porch. He leaned back in his chair, turmoil rolling through his gut as he watched his sister push back her hair and wipe at her eyes. The smile that lit her face when the door opened to reveal Braith was radiant, but he sensed the sadness and apprehension beneath her exterior.
Braith wrapped his arms around her, lifting her off her feet to hug her against his chest. Lowering her, he glanced at the papers spread out on the table. “Why are those out?” he inquired.
“I’d hoped to find something about this mystery woman in them. I also thought William should read them, especially now.”
Braith grinned smugly at him over Aria’s head. “Oh yes, especially now. It sounds like Tempest is going to give you a run for your money.”
“She already has,” he replied with far more composure and airiness than he felt. He couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in his stomach as he stared at the two of them. Now Aria had him feeling like an axe hung over their heads, poised to fall. “And I think it’s time I get back to her.”
“We should be able to leave sometime tomorrow,” Braith said.
“Good. I’ll see you both in the morning.”
“Goodnight,” Aria said to him.
He stared at her for a minute, praying she was wrong, but inwardly feeling the turmoil seething through him. He tried to shake it away, but it clung like a leech as he climbed the stairs to the second floor. Aria was frightened she would lose Braith; he couldn’t blame her for feeling that way with this new threat looming out there, but she was overreacting.
The only problem, he realized as he stopped outside the room he was sharing with Tempest, his sister had never overreacted about anything in her life.
***
Tempest lay within William’s arms as she listened to the banging sounds of a hammer hitting wood. Conversations flowed down the street of the small town as people moved about, busy with the preparations for leaving. William had explained to her that many of the residents of Chippman had something wrong with their DNA, and it could make it difficult for some of them to travel.
“What’s going to happen?” She didn’t have to look at William to know he lay awake behind her.
“We’re going to fight, like we always do, and we’re going to win.”
“You’re so sure.”
“Yes,” he murmured and nuzzled her hair. “And until then, we’re going to live every moment of every day, together.” His fingers trailed up her arm, causing shivers of pleasure to slide over her everywhere he touched. “Do you remember the bloodlink bond I told you about?”
She rolled over to face him. Her fingers traced over the handsome planes of his face before brushing over his almost fully regrown beard. His eyes searched hers as she rubbed her thumb over his full bottom lip. “I remember.”
He pressed his palm against her face; his eyes burned into hers as he stared at her. “That’s what you are to me. I know it, I can feel it,” he took hold of her hand and p
ressed it against the place where his heart used to beat. “Here. I need you to feel it too.”
She smiled at him. “I do,” she assured him as she brushed a kiss over his lips. “I feel it every time I touch you, when you’re feeding from me, and I miss you every time you walk out of the room. I feel you all over me even when you’re not there.”
His eyes searched her face with such reverence she found herself unable to move. “You’re mine.”
“I’m yours and you are mine.” The last word came out a possessive growl she hadn’t expected.
He smiled at her as he ran his hands lovingly over her hair. “I’m yours. I want you to stay with me forever.”
She pressed his hand over her heart as she leaned her forehead against his. “I can do forever.”
“You bet your ass you can.” He pulled her against him and claimed her mouth. A gasp escaped her when his fingers bunched in her hair and he lowered himself over the top of her. The heat and power of his body enveloped her in a warm cocoon. “I love you,” he breathed against her lips when he pulled back a little.
This time the tears did slide free to streak down her face. “I love you too,” she whispered. “More than you could ever know.”
He grinned at her before taking hold of her mouth again and making her forget everything outside of their window. The world would be waiting for them later, but for now, she planned to do just as he’d said and live every moment of every day, with this man. The man she loved more than anything in this world. The man she planned to spend an eternity with.
THE END
Look for the next book in the series coming in 2016.
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