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 pressed 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 s
treak 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
The final book in The Captive Series, Unbound, is now available for pre-order.
Coming September 27th 2016.
Unbound: http://tinyurl.com/j9sh83v
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
My name is not really Erica Stevens, it is a pen name that I chose in memory of two amazing friends lost too soon, I do however live in Mass with my wonderful husband and our puppy Loki. I have a large and crazy family that I fit in well with. I am thankful every day for the love and laughter they have brought to my life. I have always loved to write and am an avid reader.
Erica Stevens, The Captive Series Bundle
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