Fate Forsaken (6 page)

“You protected me from the elves without touching me, though.” Rho frowned. “How is this any different?”
He shook his head. “Different type of defense. Those attackers weren’t powerful enough to require much focus.” He lifted a hand. “Rhyannon’s magick was extremely powerful. So just like with her, because of your nature, I’ll need to hold your hand to help me focus.”

This had disaster written all over it. Even if the magick worked and she didn’t fry to a crisp, the Collective could find out and they wouldn’t approve
at all.
Being on the Collective’s watch list by herself was unnerving enough, but she couldn’t let him get dragged down with her.

“I don’t know if this is a good idea, Eldon.”

He set his coffee down and extended his hands across the table, palms up. “The daylight is your weakness, and it’s one we can’t afford. If we can find a loophole around it, it’ll give us an advantage against our enemy.”

A part of her wanted to be stubborn and refuse, but they needed every advantage if they were planning on recovering the Kamens quickly. So far they’d only recovered one, and three more were still out there.

She set her coffee down and leaned across the table to place her hands in his, giving them a gentle squeeze. “I see your point, but—”

Eldon frowned. “Do you want one of us to die trying to protect you? Turning our back on the enemy just to keep you from burning alive?”

“Well, no, but—”

“I want to protect you, Rho. Whether you like it or not.”

Not
was more like it. But they needed the element of surprise more than she needed to be stubborn. “And we’re going to do this today?”

Rising from his chair, he pointed to the back door. “Right now, actually.”

Rho rose from her seat. Creeping slowly around the table, she tried to shove away the countless negative thoughts swirling around in her head. There were a million reasons not to do this, but all of them were trumped by one possibility.

She’d see daylight again. It had been two years since she’d joined this world to live in the shadows, and finally, she could be free of this prison of darkness.

Eldon extended his hands, and she took them both, wrapping her fingers in his. The warmth of his flesh centered her and replenished her confidence at once. She glanced up at him, reminded of his towering height.

His determined eyes met hers with a gentle smile. “You ready?”

Chapter Six

A
s Eldon peered down at Rho, warmth spread through his chest. She was so petite next to him, her tiny frame tucked perfectly against his. Her cool fingers twitched as she faked a smile.

He could tell it wasn’t real because it didn’t touch her eyes. “Don’t be nervous.”

“Easy for you to say.”

“If it doesn’t work, we’ll come right back inside,” he promised. Vamps didn’t burst into flames unless they were out in the sun for a few minutes. He only planned to keep her out for a brief moment. That was all it would take to know whether this would work. If it didn’t, she’d have a wicked sunburn, but she’d live.

A sliver of his brain worried about the what-ifs, but he shoved the cautions aside. This would work. A part of his father lived on inside him, which meant he should be a legacy mover. The daylight-to-darkness spell should work for him, just as it had for his father.

Should
, of course, being the operative word. The last thing he wanted to do was harm Rho, even if by chance.

“How will I know what’s going on?” Rho squeezed his hand. He tried not to flinch. Vampires were strong, and sometimes she forgot her own strength.

He gave her a gentle squeeze back. “I’ll do the spell in English.”

“Don’t you need to do it in that other language?”

“Latin?” He shrugged a shoulder. “Latin is the native spell language, but it’s not necessary. It’ll work just the same.”

“Are you sure?” Rho’s brows knotted in concern and she bit her lower lip. Tension poured off of her in waves, so thick it was nearly palpable. “It doesn’t need to be in English just for me.”

He tilted his head and gave her a long stare. “Rho, stop worrying. It’ll be fine. The language of the spell is irrelevant. Old-school movers like the native tongue, but us younger ones know it makes no difference. Just try to relax.”

She nodded and blew out a long breath. He hated to see her so nervous, but if he were in her shoes, he’d feel the same way. If this didn’t work, he wasn’t sure what they’d do. They were under a time crunch already.

“Our flight leaves at nine.” Eldon glanced at the metal-shielded windows then at the clock on the stove. It was already six in the evening. “We’re running out of time. You ready?”

“Hit me.”

Eldon took a step toward her. They were toe-to-toe, her hands wrapped in his as she stared up at him. Her grip tightened and he gave her a reassuring squeeze. She sucked in a shaky breath and let it out slowly, her brow creased with worry as she squared her shoulders. He wished he could pull some of the panicked energy out of her.

A sense of total unification ran through him. He allowed his aura to wrap around hers, binding them together despite the fact that vampires weren’t supposed to have auras.

Rho did.

He tapped a line, and she stiffened as the electric charge ran through her. “In the light you cannot see, I shall take the place of thee.”

A hum rang in his chest, like the tine of a tuning fork after being struck. The sensation was barely present but very clear.

“And let the veil that covers me, by my power set you free,” he continued softly.

The vibration strengthened, the connection between his chest and hers somehow joining without touching. His hands began to glow, the vibrant blue of the ley lines being called forth by his gift. She stared at her own hands with wide eyes, now blanketed in his power.

“For in the dark you shall not stand, so long as you can hold my hand.”

The energy swirled around their joined hands then shot to the ground and started circling at their feet. Rho met his eyes again, and he held her gaze. They needed that connection now more than ever.

“For over you my power shall pour,” he said.

The ley lines twisted around their bodies until it was as if they stood in the center of a tornado of electricity. Tendrils of light shot around the room, begging for his attention, but he kept his focus on her. Manipulation was entirely about focus.

He summoned his strength for the final declaration. “And you shall walk by light once more!”

The room erupted with blue light. Eldon dropped her hands and crushed her to his body. At once, the light vanished into the ground, going back to its rightful home. The spell was done.

As she started to shake, he held her closer. “Shhh,” he tried to comfort her.

“I’m fine.” Her voice was muffled as she spoke into his shirt.

“You’re shaking like a leaf.”

Rho shook her head and pulled away to look at him. “That was…weird.”

“Line magick can be like that.”

She sighed and rested her head against his chest. “I’m pretty tired now.”

He frowned. “You shouldn’t be. You slept forever.”

“Maybe I just need another coffee.”

“Maybe.” It sure seemed like she was more tired than usual lately. Just yesterday she’d been acting strange at dinner, and now she was tired, despite a full night’s sleep. His eyes narrowed as he surveyed her body. Any changes of mood or strength had to be monitored closely now that she sported his death mark. “Are you ready to test the theory?”

Her breath caught as she craned her head toward the doorway. “Okay.”

Taking her hand, he guided her toward the back porch entrance. “Remember.
Do not
let go.”

She nodded.

As Eldon set his hand on the doorknob, he looked back at her. Her eyebrows were drawn as she pursed her lips and studied the doorway. Nothing he could say would help, so he kept his mouth shut.

The line beneath his safe house was strong, and he tapped it once again. The spell he’d cast was a standing spell. He only had to cast it one time, and then he’d be able to call on it forever.

Showtime.

He allowed the magick to bubble around him, encapsulating him in his own power. With care, he pushed the bubble outward, painting the circle of energy around Rho with his mind.

Satisfied with the strength of the circle, he set a hand on the doorknob. Then he cranked the handle and let in the first sliver of light.

A ray of light flooded the room, and Rho jerked backward. Eldon snapped his head toward her, his chest pounding loudly in her ears, echoing her own fears without a word.

She took a step toward the light on shaky feet. It had been so long since she’d seen the sun. As Eldon pulled the door farther open, the brilliant glow of daylight filled the kitchen.

With careful steps, she squinted against the light and ventured through the doorway. The moment her foot touched the concrete patio, she felt it. Warmth flooded her senses, the intense rays of sunlight filtering through the bubble of energy and melting her heart. She’d forgotten the touch of sunlight on her skin, the sensation pure bliss.

No burning. Just blessed heat.

Blinking furiously, she lifted a hand to shield her eyes. She tried to survey the yard around her, but the sensory overload was so intense, she had to shut her eyes and take everything in pieces.

Birds chirping. Grass rustling in the breeze.

“You okay?” Eldon stood behind her and to the left, his hand clutching hers tightly.

She gave him a short nod then cracked her eyes open. Greenish-yellow grass waved in the wind. The trees lined the backyard perfectly, a canopy of strong, ancient oak trees woven into the landscape of the home. The winter had stripped them of their leaves, but still they stood proudly against the setting sun. An exquisite blend of peach, pink, and orange tones streaked across the sky as they gave way to the impending night.

“This is so…beautiful.” The word didn’t quite cut it, but nothing could be great enough. This was far beyond any beauty she could remember.

Eldon nuzzled his nose against her ear. “You’ve seen a sunset before.”

True. But this was special. “Yeah, but…when you haven’t seen it in so long…” She tried to put into words the sensation in her chest. “You just forget. You forget what you’ve missed.” With a deep breath, she turned to look up at him. His eyes were even bluer in the light of day. “Don’t you feel that?”

“What?” His brow lifted as he stared down at her.

She closed her eyes and lifted her chin to the sun. “The sun on your face. And the
colors
. Those are my favorite part.”

“You can’t see colors?”

“Of course, I can. But they’re not like this at night. They’re so intense.” She squinted against the light and dragged Eldon toward the grass. Kneeling down while holding onto his hand, she brushed her fingers along the green blades. “It’s the way we were meant to see the world. I’ve missed it.”

“Glad I could help.”

She glanced up at him, wondering if he could ever understand what this meant to her. “This is…more than helping, Eldon.” She stood up and moved closer to him. “You’ve given me something I’d forgotten I lost.”

“It’s not a big—”

She cut him off with her lips, kissing him deeply, allowing both him and the sun to take turns warming her soul. He pulled her closer with his free hand and groaned when she ran her nails down his back. She did that on purpose, knowing it always did him in.

He pulled away from her and kissed her neck before whispering in her ear, “You’d better stop that before you get yourself in trouble.”

“I’m not scared of you.”

He chuckled and leaned back to meet her eyes. “You should be.”

The moment overwhelmed her. It had been so long since she’d felt happiness this deep. “Thank you.” She craned her neck to take in the setting sun then glanced back up at him. “For all of this.”

The humming sound of the motorized storm shutters opening for the evening echoed in the clearing, punctuated by a loud click as they snapped into place.

Pressing a kiss to her forehead, he sighed. “We really should head for the airport.”

Her good mood deflated at the thought of wading through security and sitting in a metal tube of death. “Fine.” For once, she wished they could just jump the lines. The faster they got to the airport, the faster they could arrive in Paris.

“And by the way, no one needs to know about this little spell, either,” he said.

“I know.” She tried not to pout as the sun fell behind the trees.

“Look at the bright side. At least we know you’ll be okay when we land.”

The thought was only mildly relieving. “Maybe I’ll get to see the City of Lights during the day.”

“Maybe.” He gave her a gentle tug as he steered her toward the house.

That maybe was a hell of a lot closer to a yes than she’d ever been before. She’d take it.