“They didn’t happen because I was alerted to the danger and took care of it. Would you like to see my back where the threads of fire Darkness created burned through my skin to the bone?” Damonq demanded.Liv shook her head, sending her older sister a quick glance of sympathy. “I’m so sorry, Damonq. I would never want to hurt Elina. She’s been one of my best friends. She saved us.” The last was said in a whisper, on a hiccup.“Elina trusts you. Tensel trusts you. We all do. You betrayed that trust to have fun. Just for fun.” He let that sink in.Liv was silent for a long time, staring up at his face with too-old eyes. “You’re right, Damonq. I didn’t think of the consequences, only that I wanted to fly my dragon. I couldn’t wait.” She took a deep breath. “I wanted to show Danny and Amelia what I could do so they would want to be ancient, too. I should have thought it out first. What can I do to help the families of the two men who died?”“They are dead. There’s no bringing them back fr
“This is so stupid,” Amelia said. “A baby? You think Darkness chose a little baby to rush outside when we were all supposed to stay inside. Where was Jane? She always watches May.”“I believe the last time you wanted to go flying you sent Jane to sleep,” Tensel answered. “That’s enough, Amelia. We’re going to get to the bottom of this tonight.”Amelia fell silent, but clearly she was still angry. Damonq would bet his last dollar from the considerable fortune he’d amassed in his lifetime that the girl was the one Darkness had used to take over the lightning whip used to try to kill him.Gary emerged almost immediately. “There are parasites in this child’s blood.”Tensel closed his eyes. Damonq shook his head. “It isn’t her.”“No, it can’t be her,” Gary confirmed. “I found a fresh entry wound on her thigh. It was up high and cleverly concealed, but someone pushed a needle into her and shot her full of parasites. It is so new, they haven’t had time to take root in her bloodstream. I have
Damonq wasn’t about to let it go. Amelia had allowed Darkness to influence all of the children, but in particular, Liv, the ten-year-old. Claire hadn’t found parasites in her blood, so how was Darkness controlling her?“Check me, then,” Amelia demanded of Tensel. She refused to even look at Damonq. “I want you to. Check my blood. I know I didn’t do something like that.”“You did,” Damonq said softly. “Darkness found a way to control you.”“That’s not true,” she denied. “Tensel” – she turned to her guardian – “I swear, it isn’t true. I would never hurt my little sister, or Elina. Either one of them. Where would I get a needle filled with parasites? Tell me that.”“When I went up to get May and Lana,” Damonq said. “He had plenty of time to give you whatever he wanted to give you. You were out of my sight. Danny had run for safety. You were supposed to be right behind him, but you weren’t. Was she, Danny?”Her brother frowned and then shook his head, his eyes sliding away from the ancien
“She dreams. Elina dreams. She’s a strong psychic, able to resist Darkness’s compulsions. She remained alive and kept the baby alive when all those other women we found down in the underground city died. They hadn’t been able to withstand the torment of Darkness’s parasites. He might want her for either reason or both.” Damonq still hadn’t gotten over the sight of those dead bodies carelessly thrown aside like so much garbage. Darkness had been trying for some time to find a woman who could carry his baby.Tensel rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Claire mentioned this to me. She said Elina can share her dreams, that when they were together and Elina dreamt, Jane had the exact same dream.”“Wait a minute.” Gary paced back and forth across the room, all pent-up, restless energy. “You told me about the machines down in the underground. The computers and how they were tracking hunters and sending out alerts to leave an area if a hunter arrived. He’s using widespread communication with his
Gary shrugged. “I didn’t say I thought it was too risky, only that it is a flawed system. There are weaknesses and they have to be addressed if all of you want to be safe.”Damonq noticed the healer had said “all of you.” He hadn’t included himself as if it didn’t matter one way or another that he was safe. It hadn't been to Damonq before he’d found Elina. He knew it still didn’t to Sandu, Andor or Ferro. He looked around at the other ancients. So many without lifemates. The burden of an entire species fell squarely on the shoulders of a very few couples.“Elina wishes to remain here. She wants to have a home here near her friends,” Damonq said. “She will go with me if I choose to leave, but she would much rather be here. I would like to buy property bordering this one and add to the compound. I would also like to go through the entire compound with you, Gary and Tensel, to see if some of these weaknesses can be addressed.”Tensel inclined his head. “I’m grateful you wish to stay. Jane
Tensel inclined his head at Damonq’s observation. “Perhaps,” he agreed. “On the other hand, I have found my love of humans is both a strength and a weakness. Thanks to the prince, we do know some human women can be converted. Those of us who did not find their lifemates, century after century, still can have hope. That soul is reborn again and again until we find her or we go into the next life. There are women out there, human and ancient, protecting the soul of a hunter.”“We left the monastery because three women came together and gave us hope. They told us that our lifemates were waiting in this century for us. I am not certain I really believed them at the time. I may have needed to believe them, but I was skeptical. Then I heard Elina’s voice, and my world changed from darkness to light. I hope that finding Elina continues to give the others hope that they might find their lifemates, too. Like me, they don’t think they belong anymore. We are ancients, and while we locked ourselv
STORMIt’s been two days since I had last seen Kaden, or heard anything from him even though Lucy usually gave me updates about the arrangements that he has been making with them about our school and housing. But he has never involved me. Had never called me or even asked Lucy about me. Lucy thinks I must have really annoyed him.I was beginning to feel sad, then agitated with him, and with myself. Was he really still angry that I had sent him away hard and needing for me? But what had he expected? That I pretended my best friend hadn’t just caught me making out with my benefactor and lead him to the room, where we will do what? Have sex obviously. I wasn’t ready for that. Somehow, I believed that my life would never remain the same if I crossed that threshold. That was one of the reasons why I had kept away from sex with Kaden, if not the major one. He seemed more than a mystery that I wasn’t sure that I wanted to unravel, even though I had campaigned for Justin to go ahead with i
STORMMy phone rang at the moment I was still contemplating if I should open the door, or let the knocker keep knocking. Sighing deeply, I retrieved my phone from the back pocket of the denim black shorts I was putting on. It was Lucy that was calling. Thank god.“Hi Lucy, how are you doing?” I asked, immediately I picked up the call.“I am okay, Storm. Could you open the door? Kaden’s man mentioned that no one is answering the door. He is there to pick you. He will help with carrying the luggages, so you should lock up and turn off the lights. Justin will receive the keys here. His parents are already with spares after all. See you later babes. Can’t wait to see you here. You will love it here!” She finished rattling off and hung up, without waiting for a comment from me. Was she that busy? I sighed again as I slithered my phone into my front pockets, before hurrying to the door.“Good morning.” I greeted, immediately I opened the door, a smile crawling across my lips as I recognize