Chosen: Book 1 in the Ancients of Light series (29 page)

His view of her was limited by the press of
Darks. Lorcan savagely removed the heads of two with a single
whistling pass of his weapon, seeing them only as obstacles in his
mission to keep watch over the witch. A disturbing wave of energy
rolled over the grounds simultaneous with a loud rumble. It was
followed immediately by a hammering groan of metal that
reverberated through the courtyard. Lorcan glanced over in time to
see Kaitriana pick herself up from the stone steps and irritably
brush dust from her behind. By her expression, he had no doubt she
was sharing a litany of foul curses with the still standing
door.

The drama unfolding on the steps was enough
to gain his undivided attention. Judging by the hordes of Vampire
and Witch that now stood motionless, it was for them as well. Both
Light and Dark were spellbound watching the Chosen. Kaitriana
looked otherworldly surrounded by the blue aura with that sparkling
shroud covering her eyes. Her appearance left no lingering doubt
that the dainty witch held more strength of power than even the
Ancient Queens. Her hands were braced against the doors to
Shadowmere and her mouth moved in a chant, but the words were
audible to none.

The door had almost given way under her last
strike, but the Dark power had slammed it back with a wicked shriek
of twisting iron. She had been tossed her on her butt by the energy
from it. The magic protecting it had taken a swipe at her and the
blow felt physical. She had ascertained that the witchcraft facing
her was not that of one Dark witch but several, and Kaitriana was
thrilled by this contest against so many of her adversaries.
Chanting again, she was taking playfully swats at its defenses when
her face lit with sudden inspiration.

Taking a few paces back, she was oblivious to
her audience. She remained immobile save for the tapping of her
booted toe against the landing as seconds clicked by. A confident
smile formed and the mute recitation of her magical words resumed.
Very nonchalantly she pulled her hands forward. Two tiny bolts, one
of fire and the other of light, struck the metal. The massive iron
sheets crumbled as though paper and fell inward to the interior
floor with a crash.

Kaitriana danced a circle in her elation.
Clapping her hands and laughing exuberantly, she basked in her
victory, forgetting entirely that she was standing in the middle of
a thousand bloodied warriors. The cheers of her followers rivaled
the bitter obscenities shrieked by her enemies.

Delighted for her, Lorcan regained his
awareness and raised his sword in time to stop the contact of the
one sweeping towards his neck. The Darks had become rabid in their
fight with the fall of the main defense and the maelstrom erupted
once again. The Elite were quickly cutting through their enemies
this time, settling into the rhythm of the fight. They made
progress towards where the witch still stood on the steps admiring
her handiwork.

Noting their advancement and intended
destination, a group of the attacking vampires shadowed to the
steps directly below and behind the girl. Kaitriana remained
unaware of the immediate threat; her focus was only on the darkened
interior of the entry. Lorcan could not shout warning to her over
the din of the battle in the bailey. The leader of the group
brought his sword higher and took the next step up, positioning
himself for a killing blow. Seeing the threat, the Elite circled
more tightly in with one another and Colm shoved at Lorcan, yelling
so as to be heard, “Go!”

He did not hesitate, appearing the next
instant beside his witch. The impact of his body drove her to the
ground beneath his weight as the steel made its arc downward. The
blade caught the armor on his shoulder and Lorcan was immediately
rolling, weapon in hand to take on the assault from the Darks. He
looked on in disbelief as the four on the steps disappeared with a
blinding flash.

The immediate threat was gone, but being in
the midst of a battle did not allow him to either coddle or
throttle Kaitriana as he wanted. He was relieved that she was safe
but furious over her mindless stunt. Fury won out and he dragged
her roughly to her feet, shouting, “There was a reason I forbid
this. You almost were killed because you do not have enough sense
or experience to maintain focus on your surroundings.”

Rubbing her bruised arm, Kaitriana whirled on
him but her answering shout of anger was interrupted by sardonic
laughter behind her. The orbs of magic that formed in her hands
were unnecessary. She turned and found herself craning her neck to
look up at a Light warrior - Caedmon. Her nose wrinkled in
distaste, no effort made to conceal her aversion.

The leader of the Spell Casters had darkly
tanned features that contrasted sharply with his bright green eyes
and shaggy black hair. Kaitriana had no doubt that he was
responsible for the disappearance of the Darks; rumor was that the
Caste Leader was as powerful as he was ruthless. She continued to
glare up at him and her eyes went inky black when he reached out
and rumpled her hair in a patronizing gesture.

The male witch’s eyes were glinting with
amusement when he shifted his attention to Lorcan, “You need to
keep a closer eye on your pet, Vampire.”

To her surprise rather than issue the
scathing retort that Kaitriana expected, Lorcan actually laughed,
“She makes that task rather difficult, Cade.” Incredulous, she
watched the pair of males as Lorcan reached forward and smacked the
other hard on the back, “I appreciate your assistance. I expect
your fee for rescuing the little hellion will be exorbitant?”

Lorcan circled his arm tightly around her
waist and was moving her to the side of the doorway, when Kaitriana
muttered under her breath, “Arrogant BOS.” She did not appreciate
the witch bastard talking about her dismissively in her very
presence. Kaitriana began to squirm. She wanted to see the interior
of their newly captured holding, but she held at the tight squeeze
delivered by Lorcan.

Cade’s next words shocked her, “No friend,
this one is on me. Sending those Darks on an unexpected vacation to
the equator was particularly rewarding. It should be around noon
and cloudless there.”

Friend?
She gazed
back and forth between the two with dark suspicion in her eyes. Her
vampire actually
liked
this male witch?
The displeasure over the thought was obvious on her face and
directed at them both now. Of course Lorcan would like the surly
conceited ass; Cade was one of the most arrogant in her breed so
the two were peas in a pod.

After Lorcan’s answering jest, Cade casually
folded his arms over his chest and insolently gave her the once
over. Frowning at her with disapproval in his eyes, his voice was
full of reprimand, “It is ‘arrogant
SOB
’
pet.” When he tired of the staredown with her, Cade dismissed her
easily by stepping around the pair. Giving Lorcan a parting smack
on the shoulder, he tossed back, “If your witch keeps running off
and finding trouble, I can cast you a leash that even her powers
cannot break. That one
will
cost you a
fortune, Lorcan.” Cade’s mocking laughter echoed as he stepped
inside Shadowmere.

The Darks were retreating, overwhelmed as
Kaitriana had predicted by the sheer number of Light and their
surprise attack. Of course, the additional help from hundreds of
Vampire warriors had not hurt their cause either. The fall of the
formerly indestructible fortress defenses had been the final turn
in the battle. Light forces now swept into the building and the few
lingering enemy took it as a cue to hasten their retreat.

Kaitriana pushed out of his hold. Her eyes
were snapping when she jabbed Lorcan in the chest, “You should not
have allowed him to speak of me like that.”

Lorcan cocked a brow and studied her face for
a moment. He reached out and slid his hand into the heavy fall of
her hair and slowly wound her curls around his fist. His stare was
intense. Kaitriana could feel the power in it and she shifted
uneasily. With a jerk he had her smashed against his hard frame and
her head dragged back, “Cade is a witch and you are the Chosen.
Perhaps
you
should not have allowed him to
speak of you like that.”

Uncomfortable with his point, Kat issued a
pouty huff and averted her gaze. When he bent her back over his arm
and gave her hair a tug she quickly returned it to him. He voice
was deceptively soft, “And if you ever pull a stunt as stupid as
that again, I will pay him handsomely for that leash. As it stands
now, I am strongly considering locking you in my rooms and
punishing you for a week.”

Limited in her struggle by his hard hold, her
eyes flashed with her outrage, “You would not dare!”

Unwilling to contain the urge any longer,
Lorcan leaned down and ran his fangs over her neck, “Wouldn’t I?
You forget who and what I am, Kaitriana. After your behavior of the
past week - your defiance and your downright insolence - I would
dare that and more. Push me further and I will allow my instincts
to override my reason and remind you why it is unwise to toy with
me.”

Pulling her head further to the side, he took
a small nip at her neck before continuing, “You will give me your
vows Witch and then I will let you know if I am in a mood to
forgive you or punish you. Your vows – tonight – because I will
tolerate no more disobedience from you.”

The stern set of his features coupled with
his harsh promise of his words sent a shiver through her. As
Kendrick and a few other Caste Leaders exited Shadowmere, Lorcan
released his hold. He could tell by the brightness in her eyes that
she was fuming but at least she was holding her tongue in front of
the others. Small progress there. Settling his arms over his chest,
he waited as they stopped before Kaitriana, all babbling at once
over their great success.

Lorcan heard Kaitriana give the instruction
to destroy the building. He immediately stepped into the center of
the group shaking his head to contradict her order. Incensed
further over his countermand of her directive, Kat placed her hands
on her hips, her tone determined, “Yes, Lorcan. I want all Darks to
look at the destruction of Shadowmere and be able to bear witness
to the power of the Light.”

Exasperated, Lorcan ran his hand through his
hair, “No, Kat. It is a solid, defensible fortress. It should be
maintained, not destroyed merely out of vengeful spite.”

Tossing her hair back her expression was
implacable when she responded, “No, it must be leveled to send the
appropriate message.”

Done arguing, Lorcan motioned to the Elite
that were loitering near the broken wall. Shaking his head, he
scolded her, “Such action will send the message that this new
leader of the Witch is as foolish as all in the past. The reason
the Witch do not have the wealth that we Vampire possess is because
you are illogical when it comes to these matters. This holding is
an asset. If you are unwilling to view it as such, the Vampire will
claim it as a spoil from the battle, as is our due for lending our
support to your campaign tonight.”

Her spine stiffened over the insult and she
hissed angrily, “Many things are more important than wealth Lorcan,
and we did not ask for the assistance of the Vampire. You have no
claim.”

Ignoring her comeback, Lorcan nodded to
Broderick, “Bring fifty of the men back here with you. It is yours
so long as you continue in your allegiance to me and so long as you
can defend it.” Broderick nodded and immediately shadowed off,
unable to fully contain his grin.

Kaitriana stamped her foot, seething,
“Absolutely not! I did not give you Shadowmere and it is not yours
to give away.” She rose up on her toes, her eyes clashing with his
when she whispered, “You are undermining my authority, Vampire.
This was
my
mission and it is
my
victory.”

Jabbing at his chest yet again, her voice
raised enough to be heard by the others, “You have no say in this
Lorcan, absolutely none.” Peering around him, she imperiously
commanded the Caste leaders, “Leave nothing but rubble.”

His look turned dangerous and his hand snaked
out lightening fast to settle around her neck. Curling his
fingertips around her nape he pulled her forward, ignoring all
others, “You would be wise to remember who you are pledged to
Witch. Do you want me to ask Jortha for a spell to remove your
marking?” Lorcan took satisfaction over the shock in her eyes at
the suggestion and went on, “If you were not such an irrational
species perhaps your entire breed would not be impoverished. To
truly lead the Witch you need to think beyond battles and revenge,
you need to also consider their welfare.”

Anger had light blossoming in her palms but
she closed her fists, squashing it before she scorched his eyebrows
as she wanted. Her eyes turned black, fangs extending as she
growled, “I remember full well whom I am pledged too – he happens
to be a pompous, egotistical vampire that…”

Kendrick intervened by stepping into the line
of sight of both, interrupting the remainder of her insult,
“Kaitriana, let the vampires have Shadowmere. We did benefit from
their assistance.” When she directed a contemptuous look at him, he
faltered and quickly added, “We possess Laverock once more, do you
not consider that a more than fair exchange?”

The icy blast of Lorcan’s gaze was palpable,
pinning first Kendrick then landing on Kat. She was gloating when
she looked up at him while responding to Kendrick’s suggestion, “I
do agree, Kendrick. You make a very good point, quite a
rational
assessment.”

Kaitriana nodded haughtily to Lorcan, all the
while taking heed of his darkening gaze and the tightening of his
fingers at her neck, “You may have Shadowmere as the spoils of this
battle. Do with it what you will.” She gave a shrug to dislodge his
hold and took the opportunity to shadow back from his reach.