Darkness Undone (32 page)

In a rapid move, he had her flat on her back. Ignoring her startled protest, he leaned over her, his pale hair cascading around her like a beam of moonlight. “The only one who looks at you that way—” he growled, “is me.”

“Bossy much?” she teased, looping her arms around his neck.

No, Eve,
me'morae
, it’s because you are mine,
his whisper coasted through her mind.

Eyes wide, she met his amused gaze. “You spoke to me like that before, too.”

He brushed her hair back with a tender hand. “I did. Try it.”

Where Eve felt the warmth of his presence in her soul, she mind-linked with him then complained.
Why are you telling me this now?

His pleasure dimmed. “I couldn’t before. I didn’t want you to experience the pain Inanna inflicted on me, yet somehow you did anyway.”

Not wanting to remember that awful time in Columbus Circle when he’d left her, she pulled his head down and slid her lips against his in a seductive glide.

He kissed her tenderly then murmured against her mouth, “Much as I want to remain in bed and make up for lost time, we can’t. They are all here, waiting for us.”

“
They
?” She pulled back. “I thought only Aerén would be here.”

“I can hear them.” He gave her a quick kiss and rolled off her, pushing aside the dark gray sheets tangled around their limbs. “They think they should just come up here and have the meeting.”

“What?” Eve grabbed the sheet to her chest then groaned, heat surging into her face. “God, this is so embarrassing. They know why we’re not there yet.”

“Eve, I don’t care if they know. I'm their target because I want to kick them all out but can’t.” Reynner tugged the sheets away, swept her into his arms, and strode to the bathroom. “A shower first. Then we go get this settled and get rid of them.”

After their shower, Reynner changed into jeans and a t-shirt while Eve, wrapped in a towel, took her spare clothes from the closet. That reminded him that he had to make sure she had more clothes here, too.

He grasped her waist and ran his lips down the damp skin of her nape. Her laughter turned into a moan before she pushed him away. “Nah-uh, I’m not standing here naked with threats of your friends about to walk in on us.”

Sighing, Reynner picked up a suede strip from the drawer and tied his hair. He had to tell her the truth about the accident before they met with the others, and could just imagine how well that would go down. Hell, she still mourned the loss of her parents.

After pulling on her navy yoga pants, she turned to him, her green tee still in her hand, not yet obstructing his view of her breasts and those tempting nipples.

Get your shit together and tell her, or else you can forget getting anywhere near her.

He scrubbed a hand over his face.

“Now, there’s a look I haven’t seen in… oh, the last two hours,” she teased him.

Urias
, but she made him smile. Then he sobered. “We need to talk.”

“What is it?” She pulled on her top and covered her lithe body, hiding his view.

“It’s about the Stone.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t find it. Maybe we could try elsewhere?” She glanced around, found his brush on the shelf and tidied the sexy mess of her coffee-colored hair.

“There is no need. The Stone is no longer in its original form.”

She spun to him in surprise. “What? You mean it’s changed appearance now?”

“In a manner of speaking. Eve, the Stone’s magic resides in your blood.”

Slowly, she set the brush down. “I know my blood has some kind of magic that responded to the scroll.”

“That’s not what I mean. It is part of you. It’s why the scroll reacts to you. Our high mage is here, since Lucan’s still a no show—”

“Now you sound like Lucan, trying to scare the hell out of me,” she said, cutting him off.

He didn't want to frighten her. But gods, he couldn’t bear her walking away, leaving him once she learned the truth. “Eve—”

She shook her head. “It’s okay. Let’s go down and see what he has to say.” She took his hand and urged him through the door. “He’s a high mage, I'm sure he’ll have some kind of explanation for all this, you’ll see.”

Reynner followed her, unable to stop the queasiness churning his gut.

***

Eve stopped at the entrance to the living room, her gaze on the stranger who stood near the picturesque windows talking to Aerén and North. A gentle tug on her hand and Reynner pulled her inside.

The mage turned, and eyes like an endless night surveyed them. The length of his braided white hair remained hidden beneath his navy robes.

“Eve, this is Allatus, high mage of Empyrea,” Reynner introduced her. “Allatus, my mate, Eve.”

“Hello.” She rubbed her hands down her pants.

“We have waited a long time for you,” Allatus said by way of welcome.

She smiled, and not knowing what else to say, she blurted out, “Reynner says the Stone’s magic is
in me?”

“Yes,” Allatus said, studying her. “Its essence is in your blood. When it’s time,
you
would have to go to Empyrea.”

Go to another world? Eve swallowed. Panicked. “Why can’t you summon the magic from me? I thought your realm needs it urgently?”

Allatus nodded. “Yes, we do. But we’ve waited centuries—a few more weeks won’t change much,” he told her. “It’s not just you, Eve, even though you do possess more of the magic. We have to wait until the rest of the pieces are located. Then the journey to Empyrea will be made.”

Reynner leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb, his brow creased in a frown. “What pieces?”

“When the Stone plummeted to Earth, it shattered,” Allatus explained. “A part of it, Eve absorbed.”

“How do we find the rest of it?” Aerén asked. “It could be lying anywhere.”

“No.” Allatus shook his head. “When the Stone fragmented, it would have selected the humans to keep it safe. Now, we search for the mortals who were wounded on the day of the accident. If they have magic in their blood, the scroll would respond to them. Once all are found, then we will take them to Empyrea.”

“That should go down well,” North muttered.

“Where do we start looking—yeah, I know, New York,” Aerén said. “But from what I’ve seen, humans move around. A lot.”

“With Eve’s blood, we’ll be able to scry for their locations using the scroll.” Allatus smiled at her, as if not to scare her.

Too late.

The hollow in Eve’s belly grew. She should have stayed in their room and let Reynner explain all this to her.

Reynner pulled her to him and brushed his lips over her hair. She took a deep, anxious breath and tried to calm down. Go to Empyrea—a place unknown, a place somewhere in the solar system she couldn’t even imagine. Heck, she hadn't even left the state of New York. She tensed up again.

“I will be there with you, Eve,” Reynner reassured her. “And it’s not forever. I won't take you away from your world. But we have to make the trip once all the humans are found to trigger the Stones of Light back to full power.”

“What happens when the Stone’s
power fades again?” she asked him.

“Then those females not mated will reside in the tower of the mage,” Lucan answered, sauntering into the sitting room. Looking far too healthy for a missing man. “And you will visit when needed. Before you ask, the magic in the Stone would have found a way to keep them single, until the time’s right.”

Like it had with her. Eve had to bite back her irritation. “How do you know it’s only women? Men—”

Lucan shook his head. “This particular artifact is feminine in its power. It will choose likewise. Proven by the very fact that you were the first we located.”

Her mouth tightened, he had an answer for everything. “What makes you think they will come?”

“Why not? You did.”

She scowled. A pity he was a mage and would remain celibate. It would have been something to see him knocked off his imperious pedestal by some woman.

Soft laughter garnered her attention. Eve found Allatus watching her, his dark eyes twinkling. Crap. She hoped he hadn't read her bitchy thoughts. Annoyance still prowling through her, she shot Lucan a glare. “You forget one tiny little detail. I'm mortal,” she reminded him. “I have just a few decades. Then what?”

Reynner stiffened at the mention of her mortality, his grip tightening on her waist. She didn't want to hurt him at the reminder, but Lucan made her so mad.

Amusement flickered in Lucan’s eyes, cracking a little of his typically cold façade, like he knew something monumental. He glanced at Reynner then back at her.

“When your souls joined and became one, you took on the lifespan of your mate. It’s why when one dies, the other has the option to follow. And why I had to give you both a shove in the right direction. Or
you
—” He pinned Eve with those lethal, swirling turquoise eyes. “Would have lived alone for centuries if Reynner left.”

“Then you need to work on your people skills,” Eve snipped at him, remembering that horrible day in her studio when his words had sunk in—knocked her for a loop. Her mouth dropped open.

“Yes, you will have a long life, but you can still die as mortals do,” Allatus cautioned her.

Her heart in her throat, wide-eyed, she spun to Reynner. He smiled and drew her into his arms. “Eternity with you is a gift, one I never expected. I would have gladly followed you into the afterlife if it wasn't so.”

Eve swallowed at his absolute love for her when she remembered something else he’d said. “You mentioned the accident. How exactly did the artifact become a part of me?”

He brushed the scar on her left breast and a chill swept through her.

“The Stone shattered on impact when it hit the car you were travelling in several years ago. It seems a shard of it became embedded in your chest and dissolved into your blood.”

At his explanation, ice seeped through her veins. Slowly, she pushed away from him. “You’re telling me I lost my parents because a rock from your world hit our car—killing them?”

Silence. It swept in and wiped away every sound at her question.

Reynner straightened.

The tightness in her chest made it hard to breathe. Pain pushed to the surface.

“Eve,” he began.

“No.” She backed away, tears clouding her eyes. Pivoting, she rushed outside, unable to bear being the focus of all their attention.

Indistinct voices followed her.

“Get the fuck off me!”
Reynner snarled like he was held back.

Eve stopped at the balustrade. The spray of water from the waterfalls dampened her skin, but nothing took away her sense of despair. Sorrow swept through her. Logically, she understood Reynner wasn’t to blame. It was an accident, but when old loss filled her, she couldn’t think clearly…

She squeezed her eyes tight and rubbed her chest to ease the pain spreading through her. But the ache grew, sharper than before, piercing in its intensity.

She rubbed her chest again…no, not her.

Reynner
.

Being connected to him, she’d feel every nuance of his emotions as he did hers.

She wheeled around. She had to put things right and saw Allatus ambling toward her. The breeze blew his cloak open, revealing his black tunic and trews.

“If you had a choice to go back in time, would you use it to save your parents or remain with the male you love?”

Eve stared at him, her heart literally stopping. Leave Reynner behind—tied to that horrible witch?

“I thought not.” Allatus smiled. “Come, he’s like a caged beast, he won't hold out much longer.”

She followed Allatus back into the lounge. Flanked by North and Aerén, Reynner watched her with shielded eyes. How could she have been so stupid to hurt him?

Eve rushed over to where he stood near the door and flung her arms around his waist, she didn’t care that the others were watching her. “I'm sorry—I'm sorry,” she whispered. “The shock of hearing about the accident—I didn't handle it well. I didn't mean to hurt you.”

A deep sigh left him, and his arms came around her. “It was my fear of what you’d do when you heard about the accident.”

“Leave you? I could never.” She hugged him tightly.

Allatus headed for the coffee table. He picked up a pitcher of pale lemony-colored liquid and poured a glass.

“My dear,” Allatus said, taking a sip of his drink, and Eve glanced at the mage. “Nothing in life is black or white. It was their destiny to die in that accident, and yours. But fate decreed otherwise for you. Instead, the sliver embedded in you, saved your life. You were never meant to be alone. Just to wait for the right person. I sent Reynner to this place because his destiny ties in with yours.”

He drank more of his juice. “This nectar’s really good.” He set the glass aside. “Reynner had to find you. He would not have done so of his own accord had he known the true reason. Lucan informs me it’s like getting the white cliffs of Empyrea to move when it comes to this male.”

“You were playing with my life—Eve’s?” Reynner growled, his arms tensing around her.

Allatus merely said, “Love soothes hurts, but hatred and violence deepens them. Had you gone on in that manner, you would have ended up in the last place you wanted. Be thankful you took that step and healed old wounds.”

Eve glanced at Reynner, worried at how he’d react to the high mage’s words. Her heart settled when she saw him scowl. He wasn’t angry.

“There’s something else,” Lucan said. “The Darkreans let Eve go because they believe she isn’t the foretold one—just an Empyrean’s mate.”

Reynner went motionless behind her. “They knew?”

“Their leader tasted her blood, but we have more pressing problems in light of what I’ve just heard about the Stone shattering. It seems they have found another of the females who possess the Stone’s magic.”

“We have to go get her. Where is she?” North asked.

“It’s not that simple,” Lucan said. “It was a cell phone call Sebris took. I stayed behind after we rescued Eve and tried to track them, but they shut down the house and disappeared. However, I saw one of them in the city.”

“And the woman?” Aerén asked.

“No idea.” Lucan features became cast in ice once more. “We must find her first. They cannot have her.”

Allatus nodded at Lucan. “Now that the quest is back in your hands, it’s time I returned to Empyrea. But first, I will avail myself of Izzeri’s mouthwatering feast.” He headed for the door.

Eve pulled away from Reynner. She had to speak with Allatus before he left. But Reynner grabbed her hand and frowned. “Where are you going?”

“I won't be long.” She offered him a quick smile, patted his chest, and hurried after the departing mage. “Allatus?”

The high mage turned, his cloak sweeping around him in a gentle swish. “Yes, my dear?”