GOE 08 - Bound By Darkness

Chapter 14

Jaelyn paced from one end of the kitchen to the other, refusing to glance out the window where Ariyal stood in conversation with a blob of mist that hung in the air.

It was just ... wrong.

Who used a ghost to do recon?

It would give any sensible demon the shivers.

Which was why she was hiding in the kitchen instead of questioning the creature herself.

Wasn’t it?

Reaching the wooden table she came to an abrupt halt, heat blasting through her at the memory of being perched on the edge with her legs wrapped around Ariyal’s thrusting hips.

She had told herself that she didn’t want to be around the creepy blob of mist, but if she was entirely honest with herself she would admit that she’d needed a few minutes away from Ariyal to try and patch back together her shattered defenses.

Yeah, like that was going to happen anytime soon.

She wrapped her arms around her chilled body, unable to ignore the tug of awareness nestled deep inside her.

Dammit, she didn’t want to dwell on her connection to Ariyal.

Even if she wanted to mate with a Sylvermyst who was as annoying as he was gorgeous, it was never going to be in the cards.

Not only would the completion of the binding mean that Ariyal would have to commit fully to becoming her mate and exchange blood with her, but she would have to convince the Addonexus to release their best Hunter when the potential end of the world hung over them all like Damocles’s sword.

Accepting that being alone wasn’t doing a damned thing to help, Jaelyn was relieved when Ariyal’s voice cut through her dark broodings.

“You can come out now.”

She moved to the door, scanning the darkness. “It’s gone? I mean gone, gone?”

Ariyal’s lips twitched, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. Those remained guarded, unreadable.

“Yes, he’s been returned to the underworld.”

“Good.”

“I can’t believe a vampire could be squeamish about a spirit,” he said, folding his arms over his chest as he watched her descend the wooden steps and cross the yard to join him.

She shrugged. “The dead should be allowed to rest in peace.”

“Moving on to the afterlife doesn’t guarantee peace, poppet. It’s a rare spirit who rests easy in their grave.”

Well, wasn’t he a bundle of joy?

“Have you considered the possibility that they might be perfectly content until you start messing with them?” she asked wryly. “Anyone would be cranky at being jerked out of the underworld and forced to become a slave to a fairy.”

There was a fleeting heat in the bronzed gaze as it skimmed down her body.

“There are some who are positively giddy to be my slave. I have that effect on women,” he murmured, as if she needed a reminder of his potent sexuality. Hell, he literally screamed sex. “And a surprising number of men.”

“Conceited ass.”

“Confident,” he corrected, a fleeting heat flaring through his bronzed eyes before he lowered his head to kiss her with a harsh frustration.

For a crazed moment Jaelyn returned his ferocious kiss, her hands grasping his shoulders as she went on tiptoe to arch against the addictive heat of his bare chest.

Then reality slammed back into her and she was pushing him away with a low, pained growl.

“No, Ariyal.”

He stiffly stepped backward, his expression once again indecipherable.

“We should go.”

“Did you discover what you needed?”

“The spirit was able to locate Tearloch and the babe.”

“Where?”

He tilted his head toward the north, his hands fisted at his side.

“A series of caverns less than three miles north of here.”

So close?

For no reason at all a chill inched down her spine.

“Why do I sense this is a good-news/bad-news kind of deal?” she asked.

“The good news is the child is currently alone in one of the caves.”

“And the bad news?”

“Besides Tearloch there are half-dozen Sylvermyst as well as the wizard.”

She frowned, studying the arrogant perfection of his face. She could sense the emotions that churned beneath that careful mask, and she hated the knowledge he wanted to keep them hidden from her.

“That was more or less what you expected, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

He silently debated her question before he at last heaved a sigh.

“I don’t know.”

She arched a brow. “Maybe you can be a little more vague?”

“I think you should stay... .”

“ No.”

His eyes blazed with a bronzed fury. “Dammit, Jaelyn, there’s a very good possibility that this is a trap.”

“All the more reason you need me to go with you.”

“You were trained better than that, Hunter,” he rasped. “If I don’t return then you must alert your Oracles that I have failed and that Tearloch will soon use the child to resurrect the Dark Lord.”

He was right.

If her current task was to retrieve the child and save the world from the Dark Lord, then she would have to concede that it was preferable for one of them to sneak into the caverns while the other waited to determine if it was a trap.

But she had been charged with staying near Ariyal and keeping track of his movements.

Which in this moment suited her just fine.

“They aren’t my Oracles,” she denied.

“We aren’t going to argue about this.” He slashed a hand through the air, looking every inch a prince. “The only sensible plan is for me to try and rescue the child while you find a sun-proof location to wait out the approaching day.”

She shook her head. “I can’t.”

“Can’t? Don’t you mean won’t?”

The air smoldered with the force of his barely restrained power.

Jaelyn stood her ground. “No, I mean I can’t.”

“Why?”

“I have to remain with you.” She met his gaze squarely. “That’s all I can say.”

She braced herself for Ariyal’s explosion of anger. Even a threat to lock her in the cellar and leave her to rot.

Instead he held on to his grim control, taking a deliberate step backward.

Not that he needed to.

Jaelyn could feel the mental barriers he was erecting between them without the physical demonstration.

“And you accuse me of being vague.”

She wanted to ... what? Plead for his understanding? Demand to know if he thought this was fun and games for her?

She hadn’t asked to become a pawn for the Oracles, had she? Or to become entangled with the one male in the entire world who treated her as if she was something more than a killing machine.

And she certainly hadn’t asked for her emotions to be stripped bare after decades of believing they had been efficiently destroyed.

“I don’t have a choice,” she ineffectively muttered.

“Of course not.” A humorless smile curved his lips. “Tell me, poppet, if I weren’t your current duty would you already have taken off?”

Well, he certainly wanted his pound of flesh.

She fingered her shotgun, shifting beneath his bleak gaze. She’d rather be skinned alive than to continue this agonizing conversation.

“Being a Hunter means I must go where I am commanded to go.”

“And that truly does put me in my place, doesn’t it?”

With liquid grace Ariyal turned on his heel and headed across the barnyard, his spine stiff and his head held at a proud angle.

“Shit.”

A brutal pain seared through Jaelyn as she forced herself to watch him walk away.

As much as she might ache to follow, she forced herself to remain standing alone in the darkness.

She didn’t know jack squat about men, but she did know that you didn’t poke at a lethal predator when he was licking his wounds.

Even if they were just superficial.

Ariyal wasn’t a vampire, after all.

And she doubted that Sylvermyst mated for life.

In a day or two she would be a bad memory that he could tuck away with those of Morgana le Fey.

Telling herself that was exactly what she wanted, Jaelyn stood immobile, feeling as if the slight summer breeze might shatter her into a million pieces.

She lost track of time as she stood there; then the distant scent of blood abruptly destroyed her full-blown bout of self-pity.

What the hell?

She was flowing past the outbuildings to a small pond at the bottom of the hill before she realized that the blood she smelled wasn’t Ariyal’s but that of a feral pig that Ariyal had obviously sacrificed to increase the power of his blade.

Her panic eased, but not her need to seek out Ariyal and make certain he was unharmed.

It was a compulsion that refused any logic.

Vaulting over the sagging barbed-wire fence, Jaelyn continued forward, not halting until she was kneeling beside the Sylvermyst, who was crouched next to the water, washing the blood off his hands.

He didn’t turn his head. In fact, he stubbornly refused to acknowledge her arrival at all as he shook the water off his hands. Then, rising to his feet, he grasped his sword over his head, the blade glowing with a white-hot magic.

“What are you doing?” she stupidly asked.

Anything to break the awful silence.

His gaze remained locked on the sword as he sliced it through the air in a slow, practiced pattern.

“Preparing for battle.”

She watched his graceful dance as he performed the ancient Sylvermyst ritual, her heart clenching at his sheer beauty.

His hair shimmered with colors of autumn, his delicately crafted features set in lines of a warrior, and his body honed to an elegant weapon.

Only when he was finished did she straighten, squaring her shoulders for yet another clash of wills.

During her wild run down the hill she’d come to a decision, and now she wasn’t going to be denied. Even if it was destined to drive a greater wedge between them.

“There’s no need for battle,” she said.

He sheathed his sword. “That’s the hope, but we both know our luck isn’t that good.”

“I could improve our luck.”

He turned to meet her stubborn gaze, his face carefully devoid of expression.

“How?”

She crushed her pang of regret. This was how it had to be.

Strictly professional.

“I have the ability to travel in and out of the caves without being sensed,” she reminded him. “Once I’m wrapped in shadows no one will be able to track my movements, not even the wizard. It only makes sense that I go after the child.”

He was shaking his head before she even finished. “No.”

Her brows snapped together. “Have you forgotten there’s a spell on the child that will prevent you from even being able to touch it?”

“I’ll figure out something.”

“But ...”

“I said no.”

Her hands landed on her hips as she glared at him. “Why are you being so stubborn?”

“It’s too dangerous.”

“Dammit.” She stepped forward, poking a finger into the center of his bare chest. Okay, so much for being strictly professional. She was suddenly so mad her fangs throbbed. “I’m sorry if it offends your male pride that I’m not a helpless woman who needs a big, strong man to take care of me, but this is who I am. I’m a Hunter, and that means I’m stronger and I’m faster and I’m better trained than ninety-nine percent ...”

He was moving before she could react, grabbing her upper arms in a punishing grip.

“This has nothing to do with my pride,” he growled. She made a sound of disbelief. “Really?”

“Really.” His glare seared over her pale face. “Okay, I’m male enough to occasionally want to flex my muscles just to prove I have them, but I would never want you to be less.”

She stilled, savoring the feel of his warm hands against her skin. It didn’t matter that he held her in anger. She was so hungry for his touch she would take whatever she could get.

Pathetic.

“What does that mean?” she demanded.

“It’s your power and your beauty and your stubborn independence that make you who you are,” he said, as if the words were being yanked from him. “I would never change that. Not ever.”

His words touched the vulnerable place deep inside her, but Jaelyn fiercely refused to be distracted.

In this moment all that mattered was that she keep Ariyal from walking into such an obvious trap.

“Then is this because you don’t trust me with the child?” she accused.

His jaw clenched so tight she could hear his teeth grinding together.

“No, it damn well has nothing to do with trust.”

“Then what?”

“Because if you are hurt or worse ...” He struggled against a fierce tide of emotion. “I’m not sure I will survive.”

Stunned by his raw confession she lifted her hands to frame his face.

“Ariyal ...”

She didn’t know what she was going to say. Nothing that would have improved the god-awful situation. And Ariyal thankfully didn’t give her time to flounder in her helpless yearning.

“So don’t expect me to be happy when you put yourself in danger.”

She held his smoldering gaze with a wistful smile. “I don’t expect you to be happy, but I need you to understand why I can’t deny my true nature as Hunter. I’ll never be the sort of female to wait in the corner for her man to return.”

“Dammit.” With a shake of his head he conceded defeat. “Let’s go.”

“Ariyal ...”

With a foul curse he was jerking away from her touch and running north at a speed that made sure there would be no opportunity for further conversation.

They arrived at the abandoned church with less than an hour left until dawn.

Ariyal ruthlessly ignored the whispers of panic that Jaelyn needed to be tucked in a nice, sun-proof crypt. She’d made it brutally clear that she didn’t want or need his concern, hadn’t she?

After all, she was the big, bad Hunter. And he was just the poor slob who happened to be her current job.

If not for her mysterious contract with the Oracles she would be long gone.

He kept the warning in the front of his mind as he halted at the entrance to the cavern and once again described the exact route through the tunnels to where the baby was being kept.

Thanks to the efforts of his friendly ghost he possessed a complete map of the sprawling caverns burned into his brain. As well as the members of Tearloch’s motley crew.

And while he wasn’t willing to assume that no one had noticed his approach, they would be expecting a Sylvermyst to try and make a grab for the child. There was no way they could prepare for a vampire who could make herself practically invisible.

With the least amount of luck Jaelyn should be able to slip in and out before anyone realized the baby was missing.

His pretense of aloof indifference briefly faltered as he felt the prickles of ice filling the air. She was preparing to call on her powers.

“Jaelyn,” he said in urgent tones, reaching to grasp her forearm. “Wait.”

“I got it.” Her smile was rueful. “Be careful. Get in and get out. Don’t stop for anything or anyone. I am trained, you know.”

He heaved a frustrated sigh. “I don’t like this.”

“And you think I do?” Her eyes narrowed. “There’s no need for a distraction.”

Ariyal shrugged. He’d waited until they had reached the caverns before he announced his intention to enter the tunnels. He claimed he wanted to create a distraction to make sure no one noticed the missing child until she was clear. It was true enough. He would make one hell of a distraction.

But he had his own agenda. One he didn’t intend to share with Jaelyn.

“We’ll only have one opportunity to grab the child,” he said with undeniable logic. “I intend to give us the best possible chance.”

She held his gaze. “And you swear you aren’t going to try and go after Tearloch?”

He held up a hand. “I swear.”

“Fine.” A dangerous warning glittered in the indigo eyes. “But if something happens to you ...”

His hand skimmed up her arm, craving the feel of the cool silk of her skin.

It didn’t matter how furious he might be; if he didn’t make it out of the caves then he wanted his last thought to be of this female.

“What?” he prompted.

“I’m going to be pissed.”

Her warning delivered, Jaelyn spoke a low word and the chill in the air became a frigid blast of ice. At the same moment her slender frame simply seemed to disappear, no doubt already headed through the caves.

“So romantic,” he muttered, reaching out his hand to clench and then spread his fingers.

There was a stir of air before a smooth ash bow abruptly appeared.

Not as good as Jaelyn’s stealth act, but it would have to do, he wryly acknowledged, grasping the smooth wood in a loose grip as he silently slid into the entrance of the cavern.

He paused a moment to examine his surroundings.

There was no sense of Jaelyn, of course, but with an effort he could catch the scent of his fellow tribesmen despite the wizard’s dampening spell.

It was impossible to make out individual scents, but he had what he needed.

Moving as swiftly as he dared considering he was surrounded by enemies, Ariyal headed deep into the earth, barely noticing the too-smooth surface of the tunnels or the growing stench of evil that tainted the musty air.

He had only a few minutes to accomplish what he’d come to do and try to make a clean getaway.

In and out.

No problem.

He chanted the words beneath his breath as he used the images the ghost had shared to find his way through the confusion of passageways and abandoned caverns. The scent of Sylvermyst thickened, but instead of following the rich aroma of herbs, he darted into a narrow cave directly above them.

The ghost had been commendably thorough in his investigation of the caverns. Which was why Ariyal knew that half a dozen Sylvermyst were frantically working to clear a tunnel.

The question he wanted answered was ... why?

Tearloch might have tumbled into madness, but the wizard remained coldly cunning. He wouldn’t waste that sort of man power unless it was essential to returning the Dark Lord.

Which meant that Ariyal needed to halt whatever they were doing just in case Jaelyn failed.

He crushed the surge of fear that threatened to distract him, kneeling on the floor next to the large crack that ran the length of the cave. Whatever had destroyed the tunnel beneath him had left this floor split nearly in two. A wrong step and it would collapse.

As he hoped, he could easily hear the sound of his tribesmen as they struggled to remove the rocks that blocked their path.

For several excruciating minutes there was nothing but the sound of stone scraping against stone. He wasn’t concerned about the fact his presence was already seeping through the passageways. He wanted to attract attention so they didn’t realize the baby was missing. But he wasn’t any closer to discovering why his tribesmen were burrowing through the rubble.

Then, as if some kindly deity had decided to have mercy on his black soul, the sound of voices at last drifted through the air.

“Why aren’t you working?” a male voice roughly demanded.

“I’m a soldier not a damned mole,” another male responded, his tone edged with disgust. “If the wizard wants to clear out the tunnel then why doesn’t he do it himself ?”

Ariyal easily recognized the two Sylvermyst as Elwin and Toras. Not surprising. Both had lost their females to Morgana’s jealousy. They had never hidden their bitterness, or the fact they held Ariyal to blame for the death of their mates.

“Keep your voice down,” Elwin rasped.

“Or what?”

Ariyal could sense the man’s shudder. “I don’t think either of us wants to find out.”

Toras gave a growl of frustration. “When Tearloch promised the return of the Dark Lord he didn’t mention the fact we would have to dig out an altar that was buried beneath a ton of rocks. Or that we’d have to take our orders from a specter who should have been left to rot in hell.”

Ariyal’s lips twisted.

There was a mutiny brewing.

Did Tearloch know how close he was to losing his few tribesmen?

“The sooner we uncover the altar the sooner the wizard can complete the resurrection and the sooner he can be banished,” Elwin muttered.

“Always assuming that Tearloch hasn’t lost complete control,” Toras pointed out with a bleak resignation.

“Shit. Just get back to work.”

The voices faded and Ariyal sat back on his heels.

Altar?

It made sense.

Those who worshiped the Dark Lord often used altars to make their sacrifices. The blood was a conduit that allowed them to thin the walls that separated them from their evil master.

Obviously Rafael needed his altar to complete the ceremony.

That was all the information Ariyal needed.

Tossing aside his bow, he shoved his fingers into the crack. The rock scraped off his skin, but he ignored the blood that threatened to make his grip slippery and yanked with all his strength.

He wasn’t a troll who could tunnel through rock with his brute strength, but the floor was already unstable and the exact pressure in the weakest spot was enough to make the stone buckle beneath his feet.

Snatching up his bow, Ariyal darted toward the outer tunnel, leaping across the gaping chasm that abruptly appeared as the collapse picked up speed at an alarming rate. Bloody hell. He had expected a minor cave-in, not a landslide.

He sent up a brief prayer that his brothers would manage to find safety. Whatever their sins, he hoped that they could eventually put the past behind them and be reunited as a tribe. There were too few of them to allow petty resentments to separate them.

Then all thoughts of his brothers were forgotten as he at last reached solid ground and sought a passageway that would lead him up and out of the caverns.

Following the faint scent of fresh air, he was desperate to leave behind the choking cloud of dust that billowed through the tunnels. Obviously too desperate, since he was unprepared when Tearloch abruptly darted from a side tunnel to block his path.

“Tearloch,” he growled, skidding to a reluctant halt at the sight of his tribesman.

Good ... gods.

The younger Sylvermyst looked like shit.

His hair was tangled and hung limply down his back, his skin was a strange, grayish hue, and there were bruises beneath his eyes that revealed he hadn’t slept in far too long.

Obviously the effort to keep control of Rafael was taking its toll on him.

Or was it the damned spirit draining Tearloch’s power?

Either way, it was a dangerous situation that might very well kill the Sylvermyst if something wasn’t done.

Soon.

A pity he wasn’t about to let Ariyal help him.

Not if the hectic glow in the silver of his eyes and the big-ass sword he was currently pointing at Ariyal’s heart were any indication.

“I should have suspected that you would manage to cause trouble no matter how clever our plans,” Tearloch growled.

Ariyal forced a stiff smile to his lips. He had wanted to be a distraction, hadn’t he?

It looked as if he was roaring success.

Yippee ki yay.

“You know me, I can’t resist crashing a party.” He glanced down at the dust covering him from head to toe. “Sometimes literally.”

Tearloch’s jaw locked even as he tried to look as if he was indifferent to the considerable damage.

“It’s annoying, but nothing that can’t be repaired.”

Ariyal smiled. “In time.”

The silver eyes narrowed. “So you sacrificed yourself just to delay the inevitable?”

“But it isn’t inevitable, Tearloch.” Ariyal held his companion’s gaze. “Your mind has been twisted by those who only want to use you for their own glory.”

“No.” Tearloch shook his head with more force than necessary. “It’s your mind that has been twisted. That vampire has seduced you and stolen you from those who have always offered you their loyalty.”

Ariyal grimly refused to allow his thoughts to stray to Jaelyn. This wasn’t the time for distractions.

“But your loyalty wasn’t unwavering, was it?” he reminded his one-time friend. “You betrayed me.”

The bastard managed to look offended. “I didn’t betray you. I was only trying to protect our tribe.”

“Were you?” Ariyal gave a lift of his shoulder, knowing that he couldn’t force the man to accept blame for his treachery. “A pity then that they no longer trust you.”

Tearloch’s fingers tightened on the sword. “That’s a lie.”

“I heard them complaining only a few minutes ago. They fear you’re now the slave of your spirit instead of the master. And who could blame them? You obviously take your orders from the creature.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?” Ariyal folded his arms over his chest. “Then banish him.”

“I ...” Tearloch licked his lips, his eyes nervously darting over Ariyal’s shoulder as if fearing the spirit might be hovering just out of sight. “I can’t.”

Ariyal swallowed a curse.

It was revolting to witness one of his people in thrall of a spirit.

“You see?”

“I need him to cast the spell to resurrect the Dark Lord.”

“There are other magic-users who could do the task just as well, if not better.”

“No.” Tearloch pressed a hand to his forehead. “We’re too close.”

Ariyal took a stealthy step forward. Tearloch was weary. Unfocused.

If he could just get close enough, he could strike.

“What happened to Sergei?” he asked, hoping to keep Tearloch off balance.

“I don’t know.”

“You could no doubt track him down and let him perform the ceremony.”

“Haven’t you heard me?” Tearloch lowered his hand, his face flushed. “It’s too late.”

“No, it’s not.” Ariyal took another step forward. “Let me help you.”

“You should really listen to your brother,” a voice mocked from behind him.

“Wizard,” Ariyal hissed, spinning around to fire two arrows directly in the center of Rafael’s chest. Predictably, the arrows passed directly through the bastard, but Ariyal noticed that the spirit briefly flickered, as if he’d been injured.

Something to remember.

“Don’t be hasty, Sylvermyst,” Rafael drawled.

“Hasty?” Ariyal curled his lips in disgust. “I should have destroyed you the moment I realized your power over Tearloch.”

Flames smoldered in his sunken eyes. “Ah, but I have something you want.”

Ariyal snorted. “You have nothing ...”

His words died on his lips as the wizard gave a wave of his skeleton hand and pointed toward the wall of the tunnel. There was an odd glow; then a strange mist formed on the rock, revealing the image of a beautiful vampire in black spandex trapped in a small cave.

It was almost like watching her on a television with fuzzy reception, but there was no mistaking her identity or the fact that she was currently trapped in the cave where he’d told her the child was located.

“Jaelyn,” he breathed, his gut clenching with a sick dread as he watched her trying to claw her way out of the trap.

“I will say you have excellent taste,” Rafael taunted. “She is exquisite.”

“Damn you,” he rasped. “Release her.”

“If you insist.”

The wizard’s sinister laugh was like something out of a cheesy horror flick, but Ariyal wasn’t amused. Not when the bastard gave another wave of his hand and he watched in helpless horror as Jaelyn abruptly glanced upward, her eyes wide as the rock above her slowly parted and the early morning sunlight poured through the cave.

“ No.”

Pulling his sword from the leather scabbard, he launched himself at the wizard. Not that he truly believed he could hurt the spirit. As long as Tearloch allowed him to draw so deeply on his powers he was all but indestructible.

But any lingering sanity that he might have once claimed had been savagely stripped away as he watched Jaelyn being exposed to the dawn, and his black rage had no room for logical thinking.

Swinging his sword over his head, he was preparing to ram it through the wizard’s dead heart when Rafael muttered a harsh word of power and the magic slammed into Ariyal with shattering force.

One moment he was screaming for blood and the next a wave of darkness had swallowed him whole.