Kade's Dark Embrace (Immortals of New Orleans) (24 page)

Kade shifted and delivered a sidekick to Asgear’s thorax, pounding him into the floor. “You are the one who will die tonight. Even your magic wanes in the light of war.”

Asgear crawled toward Kade, trying to push himself upright. “Your little whore tried to fight me, you know? She bled nicely when I beat her face bloody. When you die, I will take her for my own. She will serve me on her knees!”

Kade had enough of Asgear’s venomous words. He stood erect over Asgear and kicked his face hard. Once, twice. Blood spritzed out of Asgear’s mouth as he rolled onto his back. “This is not the end, vampire!’ he hissed.

Kade smirked at him. “Wrong again, mage. This is the end of the road. Rot in hell!” In a flash, Kade pinned him to the floor, cracking Asgear’s neck and wrenching his head off its spine. He bared his fangs, shredding Asgear’s throat until there was not a single drop of blood left in the mage.

Sydney grabbed the edge of the table, pulled upward and steadied herself on her feet. She called out to Tristan as Simone continued to stab the wolf, but he wasn’t responding to her. She had to save him. “Hey bitch! Over here! Leave the wolf alone! It’s me you want,” she
baited.

Simone’s head snapped around to Sydney, astonished she’d gotten free. Flashing across the room, she grabbed Sydney’s throat by one hand. “You! You! You distracted me from my purpose! All my hard work. The girls’ deaths ...it was all for him. I was practicing. My power was growing. And you had to stick your nose into my business...ruin my ritual!” She spat at Sydney’s face. “I will make him watch as I drain every last drop of your whorish blood. I will rule this city! Nothing will stop me! Nothing!”

Sydney choked and struggled to breathe under the pressure of Simone’s strong, bony fingers. Her eyes darted to Kade, who stealthily approached Simone. “Let her go, Simone. She is a mere human. This animosity is between you and me.”

Simone glanced quickly over at Kade, but didn’t release Sydney from her deathly grip. Sydney felt herself starting to lose consciousness. Even as both her arms fell to her sides, she fought to hold onto the sword.

Stepping a hair closer to Simone, Kade refused to relent. “I do not love you, Simone. I never did. You will never rule this town. You’re finished,” he goaded. He just needed to distract her, to get her to release Sydney.

Simone spun on her heels throwing Sydney to the floor and rushed over to Kade. “You do love me Kade. I am here now. I am your queen. My power, I will share it with you. We shall rule together,” she purred at him and laid a pale hand upon his chest. “This is our time. You are mine.”

Reaching for the table’s ledge, Sydney quietly pulled herself up so she was standing once again. Her abdomen throbbed, and she felt dizzy with pain.
Never give up.
The sword hummed underneath the warmth of her grip. She approached Simone.
Time for the bitch to go.
With a final thrust of strength, Sydney whirled the heavy sword above her head. As the sword hissed, it sliced through the blood tinted air and Simone’s fine, pallid neck. Simone’s dismembered head went flying across the room as blood and ash sprayed Kade’s face. A clank of the sword on the ground was followed by silence in the room, as Simone’s spell was broken. Minion vampires cowered to the ground, grieving in pain from the loss of their Mistress.

Sydney fainted and her head cracked loudly against the ebon floor, blood covering her golden braid. Kade fell on his knees screaming her name; bloody tears stained Sydney’s pale face. Biting into his wrist, he pressed it to her still lips hoping she would swallow the precious fluid. “Sydney! Swallow, love. You cannot bloody well leave me!” He laid her head in his lap, smoothing her hair across her head. “I love you so much. Please, this will heal you. Come on now. Drink,” he commanded.

Imperceptibly, Sydney’s swollen lips began suctioning against his wrist. “That’s it love. Don’t give up.” He kissed her forehead knowing she would survive.

Kade delicately lifted Sydney’s frail body into his arms, carefully cradling her head against his chest. As he ascended the stairs, a healing breeze grazed his face. He sighed in relief, finally exiting Simone’s diabolical, stone creation. He telepathically called to Dominique to beckon Ilsbeth. Whatever demonic forces held the walls from the water table, they needed to be dismantled. This tomb and its rooms needed to be destroyed and blessed so that nothing remained of the malignant force within.

Luca approached him carrying a small, unconscious woman with long, red hair. Kade immediately recognized the woman as Rhea. “Where did you find her?” he asked.

“She was cuffed to a wall. The room was barbaric.” Luca took a deep breath. “She was recently beaten. Bloody whip marks all over her body, black eye...the works. She said her name is Samantha. Kade, something strange is going on here...it was as if she had no recollection of the club or the night she silvered Dominique. When we released her cuffs, she fainted. Exhaustion maybe?”

Kade shifted his weight only wanting to get Sydney home as soon as possible. “Take her to my compound. Clean her up, make sure she’s healing, and lock her in the downstairs security room until I get a chance to read her thoughts. It is possible that she was under Simone’s thrall, or that Asgear bespelled her, but we need to make sure she holds no culpability before we return her to her home. And whatever you do, don’t let Dominique see her yet. She is looking for payback, and will ask questions later. Now go.” Luca sped off across the cemetery, human in tow.

Searching for Etienne, Kade found him kneeling on the ground, holding a naked Tristan who drank at his wrist. Kade glanced at Etienne. “Nice fighting, my friend. How’s Tristan?”

“He’ll survive, but we need to get him back to the compound before his brother comes sniffing about. He will be pissed beyond belief. Marcel means well, but Tristan needs more vampire blood if he is going to make it.” Etienne winced as Tristan continued suckling his wrist.

Dominique and Xavier exited the tomb. Walking toward Kade, they stopped to check on Tristan.

Kade eyed both Xavier and Dominique. “Okay, let’s get moving then. Xavier, help Etienne with Tristan. Get him out of here now. Dominique, I need you to wait for Ilsbeth to get here. She needs to clean up this mess. You know what to do.”

Kade was tired and angry. How could this have gone so very wrong? Sydney had been beaten, stabbed. He should have never let her leave Philadelphia. She was human, a strong human, yes, but still very human at that. She could have died tonight. His heart ached knowing she may need several days to recover from this ordeal. And then, would she still want to be with a vampire? The blood, the violence, the danger.

He trudged back to the van wiping the doubts from his mind. She was his. He was fooling himself to think he would let her go without a fight. He kissed her forehead as she slept peacefully in his arms. He prayed his beautiful, fighting, warrior woman would be okay and that she would forgive him for involving her in this mess.

Sydney slowly opened her eyes to a candlelit room.
Kade’s room? 
Peering up, she noticed the intricate carving of the dark, stained mahogany on the ceiling of the king-sized, four poster, Tutor, sixteenth century bed. Luxurious, black, velvet curtains were tied to the elaborately patterned posts, held back by red, silk tiebacks with tassels.
Nice bed, Kade.
She smiled and turned her head toward the center of the bed where Kade slept soundly on his side with his hand possessively touching her stomach.

She was moving to get out of bed when Kade pulled her into his arms and rested her head against his chest. “Now exactly where do you think you are going, love?” He kissed her soft hair. “How are you feeling?”

Sydney vividly remembered her last vision before blacking out...blood spraying profusely as Simone’s head flew off her shoulders clear across the room. She shuddered thinking about the torture she’d endured but felt strangely rejuvenated. “I don’t know, Kade. It’s weird. All that’s happened...but I feel energized...as if I hadn’t been beaten and stabbed to a wooden table by some crazy vampire bitch. Seriously, though, I feel great: no bruises, no soreness. I take it you gave me your blood? Pretty potent stuff, huh? Hey, do I need to worry about turning into a vampire?” she teased. She nuzzled into his chest taking a deep breath of his masculine scent.

“No, love, you are not a vampire. You would have to essentially lose every last drop of blood and then have me replace it with mine. But Sydney...we are bonded now. You have taken my blood. I wanted it to be special, but it is done.” Kade sighed.

“I know you asked me before you gave me your blood, and I really do appreciate that, given we exchanged bodily fluids and all, but Kade...what do you exactly mean by bonded?” Sydney questioned.

Kade hugged her even tighter, hoping she wouldn’t fly off the bed once she understood what it meant. “You are mine, Sydney. I am yours. When we made love before, I bit you. Your blood runs through my veins. And now, my blood has been introduced into your human body. We are formally bonded for eternity. I will always know where you are and be able to sense you. As our bond becomes stronger, you and I will be able to speak telepathically like I can with the others. And as long as you continue to take my blood, you will not age. We are linked.” He lifted her chin to look into her eyes. “I want you to stay with me, Sydney. Here with me in New Orleans. You belong to me now.”

A rush of emotion flooded Sydney’s mind. She felt as though she could deal with being linked to Kade. She’d never loved anyone the way she loved him. He made her feel womanly, empowered, and erotic all at once. He fought with his life to save her, never giving up on her. He was everything to Sydney. After so many years of frivolous sex and meaningless relationships, Kade filled her soul, captivating both her mind and body. She wanted to submit to him. To give herself over to him, becoming one heart with his. But seeds of doubt grew in the pit of her stomach. He didn’t say he wanted to marry her. He said he wanted her to move in with him.

And for eternity? What about her job? She worked so hard over the years to make it through the ranks to where she was in her division, and now he expected her to give up everything on a whim and move down here? And what about the children’s center? How could she just leave the kids and give up all the work she’d done at the center? And her condo...was she just supposed to abandon it? As much as Sydney wanted to think with her heart, her mind was jolting her back into reality.

Sydney kissed his chest. “Kade, you know I love you, but I have commitments back at home and my job and....”

He pressed his lips to hers, stifling any rejection she might give him. “Sydney love, you will stay here with me. All the things you mention are minor details...we will work it out. Now come...come to me. Let me show you how much I love you.” Reclaiming her lips, they engaged in a long, drugging kiss. His tongue darted into her hot mouth, seeking her essence of love. Their tongues danced in a hungry, intoxicating act of passion.

Kade slid his hand across the healed, smooth skin of her stomach until he found what he sought, gently cupping and kneading her warm, heavy mounds. He deliberately chose to be gentle with Sydney, acutely aware of the trauma she’d been through in the past week. Although her physical wounds healed overnight, it would be a long time before either of them forgot the evil they’d faced and defeated. As he kissed her, he reveled in her strength and beauty. This woman, his woman, she was everything in life: his warrior mate, his friend, his lover.

Sydney squirmed under him impatiently awaiting his next touch. Her skin tingled with anticipation knowing he was capable of providing her immeasurable pleasure. She let her hands explore the hard smoothness of his chest. Ripping her mouth from his, she licked her tongue across the hollow of his neck and bit down on the flesh of his shoulder. He growled in ecstasy.
His girl liked to bite?
She laughed in response gliding her tongue down his muscled flesh, licking and sucking his nipple.

Releasing one of her breasts, Kade allowed his hand to delve into the slick, wet heat of her sex. Sydney sucked in a startled breath as she felt a finger slip into the center of her core. She bucked into the rhythmic intrusion, needing more. “Please, Kade. Yes. That feels so good.” Responding to her erotic desire, Kade pumped another finger into her while circling her hidden, delicate bud. With quickening gasps, Sydney arched toward his hand as she spiraled hopelessly into orgasm, shattering in a million pleasurable pieces. Screaming Kade’s name repeatedly, Sydney curled into him quivering in his arms.

“Sydney, you are the most incredible, fascinating woman I have known in all my years: so responsive, so soft. I love you so much” Kade gently rolled her onto her back, straddled her and held her arms down with his strong hands. “Look at me Sydney. Watch me love you.” Dipping his head, he captured a rosy, hardened tip in his mouth, gently taking it between his teeth. She moaned as he alternately bit and laved her hard peaks driving her mad with need.

“Kade, I can’t take it anymore. Please. I need you...in me now.”

Kade smiled and kissed the pink point one more time before settling himself at her entrance. “Sydney love, look in my eyes. I want you to see the pleasure you bring me. I want to look into your soul as we join as one.”

Releasing her arms, Kade shifted the weight of his body, supporting his hands on the bed, and Sydney opened her thighs wide inviting him into her. Frantic with desire, Sydney lifted her hips up to Kade moving to accept him. Kade groaned in blinding delight as he slid his rock hard length into her warmth. He moved slowly letting her stretch to accommodate his throbbing shaft.

Sydney gazed into the depths of Kade’s eyes acknowledging the love in every thrust. “I love you, Kade,” she whispered. He smiled as he continued to plunge in and out of her, increasing the pace, building the sexual tension. The slick heat of her center massaged his manhood as he leaned into kiss her swollen lips.