Dark Tremor (Mated by Magic #2) (14 page)

Fire, flames, matches. Damn
. She tried to bring her new talent front and center, but she was so damn tired. Think bigger.
Napalm. Meteors in the desert. The sun.

Her left foot hit the floor.

Mic kept on typing.

The Great Chicago Fire.

Her right foot slipped off the stone. Then, she was free. Jace’s heat surged in her veins as she focused on his strength, living inside her.

I am firestorm.

A blaze fired up in her palm. Nearby the pile of turquoise called to her. She needed it just one last time. Stepping onto the stones, the surge was too much to hold. She flung the energy at her father.

At that second, he turned, and his mouth dropped open. When the wall of flames hit him, he screamed, and fell back on his ass. He tried to scramble away, crablike, but it was too late. He was encompassed in fire so hot, it burned blue and white.

He put his hands to the earth and shouted, “We die together, witch.”

The building shook, the cement under her feet cracked, and she fell.

Gagging at the smell of burning flesh, she turned her head and covered her ears and nose until the awful screaming ended. When she looked again, all that was left of her father was a pile of black ash.

She stared and tried to feel something. All she felt was relief and something else. A niggling need. The stones under her feet glowed and whispered into her mind.

Just to be safe. Grab another piece from the truck. While you wait for Jace. What if someone comes?

It all made sense until she stepped into the bed of the truck.

Jace had nearly lost his mind when he returned to the hotel and saw the door busted open, the security guard lying unconscious on the floor.

He paced along the plate glass window where below, the Paris Eiffel taunted him with cheerful yellow lights. The Bellagio Fountain rose and fell, as if nothing was amiss.

Jack was on a plane back to Jersey and Josh wasn’t picking up his phone. He was on his own.

As a last resort, he dialed Falcon. “You better not have anything to do with this, or I swear to God I’ll tear you apart limb from limb.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. What’s going on?” The healer sounded genuinely surprised.

“Terra’s gone. Someone broke into the suite.”

“Shit.” Real fear shook the man’s voice, and something else…
What wasn’t he telling him?

“I’m heading down to security to take a look at the surveillance videos.” Jace raced across the room, cursing internally, when he realized he’d been wasting time.

“I can be there in fifteen.”

Could he trust the little weasel? Jace paused at the elevator and jammed his thumb repeatedly at the elevator button.

“Look.” Falcon exhaled heavily on the other end. “I know I fucked up royally, but I care about her. If I can help…”

“Fine. Meet me in the control center at the Vdara. I’ll let them know you’re coming.”

The elevator jerked and descended, nauseating him even more. Who the hell was after her now? He never should’ve left her alone.

Finding the door marked security, he barged into the dim room filled with floor to ceiling monitors. Using the Fialko name as leverage, it took less than ten minutes to pull up a video. Two men carried Terra’s limp body from the elevators to the parking garage.

Jace slammed his palms on the table, and a Styrofoam cup filled with coffee fell to the floor.

“Where the hell were you guys when this happened?”

“It’s not all that uncommon to see someone being carried out of here.” The darker skinned man winced when Jace sent him a withering glare.

“Can you zoom in on that licence plate?”

“No need. I know who they are.” Falcon moved into the room and pointed at the still shot on the main monitor. “That’s Eddie Miravito. He’s one of Mic’s men.”

“Shit.” Jace grabbed Falcon’s upper arm and dragged him into the hall. “What do you know?”

The healer’s eyes widened. “I made a few calls on my way here. They’re headed to an old warehouse just south of the city.”

“What the hell do they want with her? With Mic gone–”

Falcon shook his head. “That’s the thing. He’s still alive.”

“Impossible. He was buried under forty feet of ruble. No one could have survived that. Unless…” In order not to kill the fucking idiot, Jace let go.

Hands in his pockets, the healer shuffled, and said, “He could have harnessed the power of the stone to create a shield.”

“You know for certain he’s alive?” Jace glared.

“He called me earlier this morning. Had me pick him up in the desert.”

“And you didn’t think to tell me this before?” Every muscle in Jace’s body twitched to strangle the man. He grabbed him by the scruff and shoved him against the wall.

One of the security men exited, hand on gun. “Do we have a problem?”

Jace turned and growled, letting paranormal fire light the center of his eyes. “Give me just a moment, if you would.”

Paling, the uniformed man stepped back.

Meanwhile, Falcon squirmed, as if about to piss himself. “I-I’m sorry. It’s ju-just he controls my clan. If I didn’t do what he asked…”

“If anything happens to her, this will be on you.”

“I know.”

“Let’s go.” Jace pushed him out of the building toward the parking lot. “You’re going to show me where this warehouse is.”

“I-I can tell you, but there’s no sense me going with you. It’s not like I can help fight.” Falcon followed behind him, fidgeting with his car keys.

“You said you cared about Terra. Well, stop being a fucking coward and prove it. You drive.”

Ears red, face pale, Falcon gave a small nod.

“Wait.” Jace knelt and put his hands to the pavement.
After shocks.
That’s what the news would call it. After the past few days, some might say there was a new fault in the desert.

But what he felt in the almost undetectable tremors was her. And she was in trouble.

“How far is this place?” He opened the door to the old Ford Escort.

“The other side of town. With no traffic, maybe thirty minutes.”

“Make it fifteen.” At the stoplight, Jace stomped his left foot over Falcon’s right.

Spinning the wheel, to avoid getting sideswiped, they righted onto a one way street. Then, after a couple more turns, Falcon pulled into a driveway.

“That’s Eddie’s truck.” Falcon pointed at the open bay door. “I see her. There. She’s in the back, behind the loading dock.”

“Terra.” Jace jumped out of the small compact, vaulted onto the dock, and shouted over the loud hum that came from the rough-cut turquoise.

With eyes glazed and body rigid, she stared, expressionless.

“Terra. It’s me.” He took another step towards her and the cement beneath his feet shook and cracked. 

“She can’t hear you.” Falcon grabbed his shoulder and tried to yank him back.

He’d felt the stone’s attraction himself. Knew how easy it was to be lost to that much power. Soon, it would totally consume her mind. Play on her fears and weaknesses.

If he blasted the stone, there was a possibility she’d get seriously hurt.

He produced a fireball in his palm, the familiarity reassuring.

“What’re you doing?” Falcon grabbed Jace’s arm.

Jace growled low in his throat. Not many men who attempted that were left standing. He let the flame rise.

“I need to get her away from the stone. If I destroy it–”

“You could kill her.” Falcon stared with real anguish in his black eyes.

Jace tightened his fist and extinguished the blaze. Frustration made his mind go blank.

“Then what do
you
suggest I do?”

“You’re her
mate
.” Falcon’s mouth skewed down on the word, but he continued, “You need to get into her mind. Neutralize the stone’s power.”

The next wave of her out-of-control power made the cement floor roll. The sickening sound of bending metal groaned all around them.

“And just how the hell do I do that?” He was shouting now, his heart racing.

“I don’t know.”

Well that was fucking helpful.

“Get out of here. If I can’t control her, the entire building will collapse.” Pieces of ceiling rained down as small cracks grew wider.

Falcon glanced at Terra, then back at him and nodded. “Good luck.”

He was going to need a hell of a lot more than luck.

Another of her blasts nearly knocked Jace off his feet.

Falcon dashed for the door, pausing to dodge a huge piece of cement that crashed in front of him. 

“Terra,” Jace yelled over the growing hum.

This time she turned to him, but her eyes held no recognition. Her pupils were dilated, rimmed only by a thin edge of blue, the blackness reflecting the purple glow of the stone.

“Shit.” He ducked when she threw a fireball at his head.

An aura of power swarmed and glowed around her. Streams of light sizzled and sparked. Her hair tangled around her face as if she were caught in an electric windstorm. Eyes wide, unseeing. It was as if she was sucking in the essence of the stone itself.

He needed to break the link or find a way to connect to the stone itself. 

Without another thought, he lunged into the brick wall of energy. Searing pain slammed at his chest, but Terra’s hands remained glued to stone. Her rigid body pulsated with power.

“Let go,” he screamed. “Sweetheart, let go. It’s killing you.”

She blinked once and pupils returned to normal size. Then just as quickly, they enlarged. Within her, an enormous geyser of power rumbled, about to burst.

Fuck it. He placed his hands on the stone. It was the only way to stay connected to her, to equalize the distribution of power. Electricity shot through his hands and up his arms, a siren calling him into a dark abyss.

Clenching his eyes shut, he fought to gain control.

“Don’t. Let. It. Win.” Every word was a strain. With tremendous effort, he slid his hand across the stone and placed it on top of hers.

Terra’s eyes widened, and in that moment, he knew. She wasn’t just fighting against the stone’s powers, she was fighting her own demons, and she was losing.

Her memories flashed inside his head, running like an old black and white film. And what he saw destroyed him.

She had given up.

“Terra.” The voices called out to her. So many voices that she couldn’t differentiate one from another. “Terra, Terra, Terra.”

She wanted to scream, but her own voice was trapped, muted in the chaos. The stone held her prisoner, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get free. It attached to her like a leech, sucking all goodness from her and filling the void with despair. 

Images of the past crashed into her mind like a tsunami.

“
You’re no better than your father
,” the voices whispered.

“
Murderer.
”

“
Killer.
”

The words hissed through her mind, intensified by the growing hum of the stone. 

A woman’s hazy form approached, her face familiar and at the same time distorted.

“Mom?”

“Terra. What have you done?”

The image altered. The cold gray warehouse morphed into the red sands of the Nevada desert. Another approached. This time, it was a young girl of no more than fifteen, her mass of blonde hair tied back in a messy braid. When she looked up, Terra’s own eyes blazed back at her.

“I hate you,” she screamed.

Those three words burned like a hot poker. The horrid thing she’d said before the ground gave way under her mother’s feet. Before her small form was sucked deep into a crack in the earth, gone forever.

One stomp of her foot, one temper tantrum, and she’d destroyed the only person she cared about. The only person who’d ever loved her, unconditionally.

The scene replayed over and over, a hellish nightmare.

Stop. Dear God. Please make it stop. Her soul broke each time her mother fell, followed by the woman’s deafening screams before she hit bottom, with a sickening thud.

The younger self continued to rant. “I hate you. I hate you.”

Deep blue eyes glared accusingly at Terra.

It was herself she hated. Not her mother. Never her mother.

“Let go.”

“Give in.”

The voices taunted, edging her toward total despair, promising relief from the pain. If the darkness consumed her, she’d be able to control the power. Control the stone.

“Terra.” A new, familiar voice broke through the anarchy.

Jace
.

“Don’t give in. You’re stronger than this. Fight.”

Fight? For what? Nothing was left to fight for. She was alone. She’d always been alone.

“You’re wrong.” Jace spoke as if inside her mind. “Fight for me. Our future. Our child.”

A shiver ran down her spine. The fog lifted for a moment, and he appeared.

“I can’t…You don’t understand…”

His mouth didn’t move, yet she could hear his words. “I saw what the stone showed you. You were young. It was an accident.”

“I killed her.”

The stone screeched, mocking her.

“You had no control of your powers.” His dark pupils reflected the purple glow of the stone. “Don’t give into the darkness.”

“It’s too late.” Cold slithered, slug-like throughout her body. She clenched her eyes and shook her head. She couldn’t save herself, but she could at least try to save him. “Get out of here. Before it’s too late.”

* * *

He was not going to lose her, and there was no way in hell he was going to leave her like this. Not while she was shutting down and letting the stone take what little hope she had left.

As hard as he tried, he couldn’t neutralize the power. He wasn’t that strong.

Jace let go of the stone, cupped her cheek, and forced her to look at him. “Come back to me.”

A soft cry bubbled up from her throat and her beautiful face contorted in pain.

The hellish energy threatened to drive him away, but he planted his feet, and held her firm.

“Come back to me, Terra.” He willed her essence forth.

“Everything is gone.” Her pitiful cry tore him in two.

“Not everything. I’m here. I’ll always be here.”

Hope soared when a tear slid down her cheek. “Why?”

“Because I love you. You’re my mate. And I won’t give up on you. Ever.” He mustered every last ounce of his power and shoved it into her. If this didn’t work he would die with her.

The minute her eyes widened, he knew he had won.

“I love you, Terra. Let go.” He forced his dreams of their future into her head. Images of them together, their unborn child, happy times, all the things he dreamed for them to share.

Her body shook uncontrollably. Then, a loud pop broke over the hum.

As her hands flew off the stone, she fell backwards, taking him with her. He rolled midair so she would be on top when they hit the ground.

The large stone sizzled, glowing with purple heat. Then with a loud crack, it shattered, sending jagged pieces flying across the room.

Jace pulled Terra against his chest, protecting her body with his own. Slivers of rock sliced into his skin, and he gritted his teeth at the pain. He held his precious world tight, protecting her from the sonic blast.

Something hard slammed into his temple. His vision blurred, bright blue eyes the last thing he saw before darkness consumed him.