Salvaged Soul (The Ignited Series Book 3)

Salvaged Soul

The Ignited Series

Book Three

Desni Dantone

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or events is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2015 Desni Dantone. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means.

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Cover design by Najla Qambar

Edited by Jennifer Leisenheimer

First Edition September 2015

All rights reserved. Copyright © 2015 Desni Dantone

Published 2015 by Laine D. Publishing

ISBN: 978-0-9895090-5-3

This eBook is a part of a series. For the best reading experience, it is recommended to read the books in order.

The Ignited Series:

Ignited

Sacrificed

Salvaged Soul

Avenging Heart

Chapter 1

{Nathan}

Some conversations were easily forgotten. Some were never forgotten. And then there were some that you would give anything to forget. Take, for instance, the conversation I just had with Gran. Nothing short of a lobotomy could have made me forget that conversation, no matter how badly I wanted to.

There were some things no grandson should
ever
be forced to talk to his grandmother about. Sex was one of those topics. I knew this because I just suffered through it for ten horrifying minutes. There was only one person I could think of to blame for the uncomfortable subject matter forced on me that morning, and I was on my way to find her right now.

I knew exactly where Kris would be. Her schedule was as regimented as an army recruit’s. The Kala had ensured that, to know exactly where she was and who she was with at all times. Now, she would be eating breakfast with Micah in the mess hall.

The Kala’s orders for her to be accompanied by either Micah or her appointed bodyguard, Kim, everywhere she went was something I had been forced to accept. Fortunately, I was good friends with one of the supervisors, so I had also worked it out that she could be with me without Micah or Kim tagging along. And
that
was something I’d had the luxury of watching Micah bitterly accept.

It was the one time I had used my connection to Jared for personal reasons. Since we had first met over a decade ago, when we were both young hybrids going through the early stages of development together, we had formed a friendship that had survived even after I left, and he ascended to a leadership position on the island. He had no problem granting me access to Kris. Of course, since he knew me so well, it hadn’t taken him long to figure out why I had requested it.

It was Jared who suggested I keep my relationship with Kris on the down low. Because she was destined to become the world’s most powerful Skotadi, the Kala feared her. It was in her best interest to maintain a low profile. To be seen in a relationship with a Kala—especially a well-known one like myself—would put an even brighter spotlight on her than there already was.

At least none of them knew she was also a demigod of Incantation, and capable of yielding magic like her goddess mother, Hecate. Well . . . she couldn’t yield anything yet, but she had been practicing it in secret while under the protection of the Kala here on the island. Since Incantators were feared even more than the Skotadi, her identity as one was something else we were forced to keep hidden.

We hoped her future as an Incantator would free her from her ties to the Skotadi. All she had to do was figure out how to do it. And I had no doubt that she would find a way.

She
had
to find a way.

Because there was no way in hell I was going to lose her now. Not after coming as far as we had. Not after realizing just how much she meant to me. Not when we had a lifetime yet to spend together. Knowing what we had to look forward to made pretending I wasn’t absolutely crazy about her more tolerable. However, my strength wavered a little every time I saw her.

I didn’t spot Kris in the mess hall when I entered. I glanced at my watch. 9:07—only seven minutes late. For a girl, that was pretty much considered on time.

The dining area was packed with Kala of all ages and stages, though the leaders dined in a roped off area separated from the rest of us. This morning, the three head leaders sat at their round table, sipping their coffees and eating their pastries as they likely discussed the most recent Kala-Skotadi war developments with the mid-level supervisors.

Each mid-level headed up their own department, based on one of the twelve specialties we were gifted in. All matters and decisions pertaining to those specialties went through them. Jared was a low-level supervisor in the leadership department, and was one of many put in charge of organizing and executing missions. There were often multiple missions going on at one time, so Jared was a busy guy.

So far, since returning to the island, I had not been called up for a mission, but I knew it was only a matter of time. Since I had left the island seven years ago, and had avoided following the rules of the Kala, they labeled me a troublemaker. Not that I cared, but I figured I was due to be taught a lesson in Kala etiquette soon.

Avoiding the supervisors, I moved through the food line, grabbing an assortment of bagels and pastries. By the time I turned with a full tray, Kris was setting her bag down on a table in the dining area. Micah and Kim were both at her side.

I bit my tongue on the not so nice words that instantly came to mind, and limited myself to a hard glare directed at the center of Micah’s forehead.

“If looks could kill.”

I turned to the familiar voice beside me. Finding a grinning Alec staring at me, at one time, would have brought about an intense need to punch something. Not so much anymore. If anything, the guy had become an ally of mine. Only because he hated Micah, too. More than he hated me.

And I wasn’t so sure he hated me anymore.

And I wasn’t so sure I hated him anymore.

Well, not as much.

Like Kris, Alec was destined to become a Skotadi against his will. And also like Kris, he was under constant supervision. His bodyguard was a beast of a man that not even I would mess with. Bruce towered over me by six inches. And he was big. Really big. Apparently, he had been the top-ranked fighter in his class. He had been serving as a Kala soldier for about ten years now, making him a little younger than me.

Despite being a lot bigger than me, he seemed to admire me a little. Maintaining his position behind Alec, Bruce gave me a stoic nod, which I returned before shifting my attention back to Micah.

“I can’t believe I’m going to say this,” Alec continued, turning to follow my gaze, “but I think you might actually despise him more than I do. And that’s a lot.”

“I’m sure you’re a close second,” I returned.

He took a moment to ponder that, then shook his head. “No. I think she might have both of us beat.” 

If the look of absolute boredom on Kris’s face wasn’t enough, the way she moved away from Micah when he leaned close to whisper something to her, and the ensuing roll of her eyes in response to whatever he said, suggested plenty.

I knew I had nothing to worry about—as long as Kris’s destiny didn’t eventually force her into Micah’s arms. As far as who she
wanted
, I knew that was me. 

I offered Alec a grin before leaving him and Bruce to navigate the food line as I worked my way over to Kris’s table. She had just started to stand when she saw me. Her eyes lowered to the assortment of sweet deliciousness on my tray, and she smiled.

Familiarizing myself with her likes and dislikes hadn’t been hard considering I had kept a watchful eye on her for fourteen years. Some things, like the type of donuts she favored, had been instilled in me without even realizing it, which was why it didn’t come as a surprise when she plucked the chocolate donut with sprinkles from my tray the second I set it down.

“Saving me a trip?” she asked as she claimed the pint of chocolate milk I had also gotten for her.

“I thought you might want a break from your entourage for a few minutes.” I may have been speaking to Kris, but my gaze leveled on Micah. 

He and Kim had to get their food yet. I knew that. From the smirk on his face, he knew that I knew that. I looked away from him as I took a seat beside Kris, leaving Micah with no choice but to walk away in defeat.

Other than my knee grazing hers, we didn’t touch. At times, like now, maintaining an acceptable distance between us bordered on painful. Surely anyone watching us closely enough would see through our charade, but most had no idea what was really going on between us, or what our stolen glances and subtle touches really meant. I had to remind myself that it was better that way. At least for now.

So, as much as it pained me to hold my hand back from brushing that unruly strand of hair that kept falling in her eyes, I did. I refrained from touching her. Until later.

Speaking of which . . .

“So . . .” I mumbled around a mouthful of donut. “I had an interesting talk with Gran this morning.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I noted the hesitation of her hand before it moved to tuck that chunk of hair behind her ear. Her method of stalling.

Which meant she knew exactly what talk I’d had with Gran earlier.

Which meant she had to have been behind it somehow.

Which meant . . .

Oh, shit.

Anyone within a five foot radius had to have heard me gulp as I turned my head to look directly at her. Her head shifted fractionally, but not enough to permit eye contact. Her tongue flicked across her lips quickly, the tell-tale sign that she was nervous.

“Kris?”

“Hmm?”

“Is there—” I stopped, suddenly unsure how to proceed. Apparently there was much we needed to talk about if she was approaching Gran about sex, but I had no idea where to begin. I wasn’t exactly sure what she had said to Gran to prompt Gran to give me
The Talk
. I wasn’t sure where Kris’s head was. Until now, I honestly hadn’t suspected that she had given it any thought.

I stared at her without saying anything for so long that she eventually turned her head far enough to lift her eyes to mine. She waited, and still I said nothing.

I was saved by Alec as he plopped into a chair across from us.

Really? What happened to me, that I am actually glad to see Alec?

“You’d think they would have better variety,” he muttered as he poked at his food with a frown. “We eat the same crap every day.”

“Limited resources,” I quipped. “You know, being on an island and all.”

Granted, the Kala traded with the citizens on the mainland and had more than enough finances to import a better variety of food. They chose to fund better weapons instead. There had been an ongoing complaint over the subject for years. Not once had it been given consideration by the supervisors.

“I happen to like eating donuts every morning,” Kris said.

Alec and I both stared at her as she shoved the last bite of a donut into her mouth.

My girl, ever the lady.

She had the right idea though. Spying Micah over Alec’s shoulder as he approached the table, I decided that a speedy breakfast would be wise. I finished off a sausage, egg, and cheese croissant in three bites, and stood with my Styrofoam cup of coffee as Micah was pulling a chair out. 

Kris looked up at me, her brown eyes wide and questioning.

I shrugged. “Gotta run. Jared wanted me to swing by the Command Center before class.”

“Again?”

Since I had arrived back on the island, Jared asked for me to come by often, usually to discuss the investigation of potential spies on the island. One of the first things I had done upon arriving was to inform him of the spy that had set Kris and me up for the Skotadi back in Kentucky. Travis had been surprised to see me, but not as surprised as he was when security apprehended him. He hadn’t ratted anyone else out yet, but Jared was convinced there were more like him. He had made it his mission to find out who they were, and why they were working for the Skotadi.

“I guess he missed me while I was gone,” I joked.

“I’ll see you later then?” Kris flashed me a smile—sweet with a dash of sexy—that made me want to forget all about hiding our relationship.

It took a tremendous effort on my part to not cave. Only my eyes, which were fixed on her, hinted at the torture I suffered. “Yeah. I’ll see you later.”

Alec gagged, causing me to break my gaze from Kris. “No one, least of all me, wants to see the two of you making googly eyes at each other,” he whined.

I shook my head at him, and left.

The Command Center wasn’t far from the mess hall. Conveniently, most of the main buildings bordered the village center, a large horseshoe-shaped clearing with far too many benches and palm trees that opened to the beach on one side. Though easy to get to, gaining access to the Command Center proved more difficult.

Security stood at every entrance. The building had always been guarded, but it was my understanding that security had been increased recently. I wondered how much that had to do with the potential spies on the island, and how much that had to do with the three Skotadi now living here.

In addition to Kris and Alec, Lillian had also been brought back. While Kris and Alec weren’t full-blown Skotadi yet and were permitted some freedoms, Lillian was not. As the Skotadi put in charge of tracking down Kris and ensuring Micah’s demise, she was considered extremely dangerous, and thus heavily guarded. Apparently, they were treating her conversion to a Skotadi as an illness, and she was being held in the Infirmary which was in the same building as the Command Center.

The guard at the main entrance took down my information before letting me through. Another two guards stood outside the door that led to the Infirmary wing, but I passed by without slowing. I knew more guards waited inside the Infirmary, and that their presence increased the closer I got to Lillian’s room.

I knew because I had visited her a few times. Not necessarily
her
, because in her evil state of mine, she hated me and wouldn’t have wanted to see me. Mostly, I conferred with the medical staff and inquired about her progress. There hadn’t been any good news yet.