Refugee (The Captive Series Book 3) (16 page)

She had just started to lose herself to
him when he severed the bond between them. She felt the loss
acutely as he cradled her against him. “You terrify me,” he
breathed.

She managed a small laugh. “The
feeling’s mutual.”

She realized she’d said the wrong thing
as he stiffened against her. “I would never harm you Aria,” he
grated.

She was not surprised to discover that
they were alone in the hall; Ashby had been smart to use Braith’s
distraction as a chance to escape... so had the others. “I know
that.” She ran her fingers over the firm planes of his face as she
pulled the glasses away and dropped them into the sand. “I know you
would never hurt me,” she assured him. “But Ashby, what was that?
What were you thinking? You were going to kill him.”

He opened his mouth; she thought
perhaps to protest her statement. Instead he closed it again and
tenderly rested his fingers over the fresh marks he’d left on her
neck. “I would have, yes,” he admitted.

She was not taken aback by the
admission. “Why?”

He shook his head; his eyebrows drew
together as a brief look of confusion crossed his face. “I don’t
know.” She knew it killed him to admit that, but there was no
denying it. “I saw you, on that roof, bleeding. I thought you were
going to die. I left you with him, to protect you, and…” His voice
broke off. Aria stroked him, looking to calm him as his distraught
eyes met hers. There was so much anguish and confusion in his gaze
that it robbed her breath. “I just lost it.”

He hated acknowledging any weakness,
and that’s just what she was, a weakness that he couldn’t keep
completely protected no matter how much he tried. And no matter how
strong or how fast or how capable she was, she was also a mortal.
She had a lifespan clock that she suddenly heard ticking very
loudly within her chest.

“There’s so much risk for you here. I
shouldn’t have left you, but I trusted Ashby to take care of
you…”

“It wasn’t his fault Braith, he did
protect me.”

“You were on the roof
Arianna.”

She forced a smile, hoping to ease him
in some way. “It’s not that different than a tree, little more of a
pitch, little less bark but still wood.”

He wasn’t amused. “You could have
broken your neck.”

She quirked an eyebrow at him.
“Hardly,” she snorted.

“That wood is over a hundred years
old…”

“I know where to put my feet,” she
interrupted sharply not at all phased by the irritated look he shot
her. “You have to stop treating me like I’m incapable. I may not be
as strong as you, I may not be immortal, but I am far more capable
than most of taking care of myself. I just beat a vampire in hand
to hand combat. No one does that Braith, no one. And you shouldn’t
talk; you left me in the dark about your suspicions for you out
there! You put yourself at risk also!”

His jaw worked as his teeth ground. She
was braced for a fight. She was not braced for the brush of his
lips against hers, or the surge of heat that pooled in her belly,
causing a small sigh to escape. “I need Ashby, Jack, and Gideon,
and yes I trust Gideon enough to trust him with you, to help
protect you. When they fail…”

“Ashby didn’t fail. We were ambushed
Braith, there was no way for anyone to know that they would sneak
up behind us like that. He saved me.”

“I’d say you saved him,” he
retorted.

Aria smiled as she poked him in his
rigid stomach. “Who knew that I, of all people, would have a habit
of saving vampires?”

She was finally able to coax a smile
from him, one that melted her heart and caused her own grin to
expand. It was so rare that he smiled. It lit his flawed eyes and
eased the hard angles of his face. If the smile were big enough,
every once in a while a dimple would appear. She was the only one
that ever got to see him like this, relaxed, almost vulnerable, and
oh so wonderfully, almost trouble-free.

“Certainly not me.”

“I didn’t think so.”

She was saddened when his smile faded
and his face became tense again. One day, she vowed, one day he’ll
smile more often. She’d make sure of it. And he’d laugh, at least
once a day, preferably more. “Is it always going to be like this
Braith? Ashby said you were volatile, I told him no, but he was
right wasn’t he?”

“I think he is.”

She peered up at him, hoping he would
say more but he remained silent. “Because of me?”

“No.” He frowned, shaking his head.
“Well, yes, but it’s not like you think Arianna.” He grasped hold
of her hands, pressing them flat to his chest. “Here, my heart may
not beat but it’s there, I’m aware of it now because of you. I
can’t stand the thought of losing you, it just…” He broke off as
his gaze drifted to the window at the end of the hall. “I would die
for you and not think twice about it. I won’t, I can’t, risk losing
you. I need you to stay with me.”

She was awed by his words. “Of course I
will.”

“Alive Arianna, I need you alive and
there are so many things against you staying that way.”

“If I became a vampire…”

He stiffened so suddenly that she
stopped speaking mid-sentence. “No.”

“But…”

“I said no. It’s too much of a risk, I
won’t take it.”

He went to turn away from her, but she
grasped hold of his arm. “Braith, I’ll die no matter
what.”

He flinched as pain flickered through
his eyes. “Most humans do not survive the change.”

“But some do,” she pushed.

He ran a hand through his thick hair in
aggravation. “Yes, of course, some do.”

“What makes them different?”

He shrugged and took hold of her hand.
His thumb ran leisurely over the back of her knuckles, causing
shivers of delight to run up and down her spine. She didn’t think
he was aware of the effect he was having on her though as he seemed
distant and remote. “I don’t know. No one really does. Perhaps it’s
just sheer strength.”

“Strength?” she prodded when he didn’t
continue.

He shook his head; his eyes finally
seemed to focus on her again. “It’s extremely painful for a human
Aria. I’ve only seen it occur once and the man did not survive it.
I won’t put you through it.”

“Who did you see it happen
to?”

He waved a hand absently. “Some young
peasant that a vampire was playing with. It was years ago, before
we had even taken control.”

Aria swallowed heavily. “But there is a
chance…”

“No.”

“I’m strong Braith, stronger than most.
I can handle pain…”

“This is more than just pain, this is
death.”

“Better than most people,” she
continued as if he hadn’t spoken.

“Your insides twist into something
different, your heart ceases to beat; your body goes into rigor
mortis…”

“I’m stronger than most people! I just
beat a vampire in hand to hand combat. I can survive
this.”

“You won’t have the chance to find
out.”

Aria sputtered as indignation filled
her. His stubbornness was truly beginning to grate on her nerves.
“If Saul can survive…”

“Saul?” he asked in
surprise.

She folded her arms over her chest and
began to tap her foot. “Yes, Saul. I assume he was once human, he’s
older.”

Braith’s full lips quirked in a small
smile. “Saul was never human.”

“I don’t understand. He has gray hair,
wrinkles. Do you eventually age?”

His thumb stopped stroking her skin,
his hand turned in hers as he held her. His gaze was focused on her
hand for a moment. He was studying it as if he had never seen it
before. Aria leaned forward to peer up at him, surprised by the
distant look on his face. He moved her fingers apart, slowly
tracing the bones of each one.

“Braith,” she whispered, fighting
against the reaction her body had to his tender touch.

“No, we don’t age,” he finally stated.
“At some time in our twenties we reach maturity, and we stop aging.
I was twenty two when it happened. For some reason, Saul didn’t
stop aging until he was almost fifty. It’s happened before, rarely,
but it has occurred.”

Aria’s mouth parted on a small breath,
what a strange and oddly fascinating bit of information. She never
would have suspected that such a thing could occur. “Has there ever
been one that has just never stopped aging and died?”

Braith shrugged, his hands moved slowly
up her arms as he pulled her a step closer to him. “It’s a
possibility, there were some before me,” he said with a teasing
smile that melted her heart. “I suppose it could have happened
then, but since I’ve been alive I’ve never heard of it. One aged
until he was almost seventy before stopping, but that’s the oldest
I know of.”

“How is that possible?”

“Do you know the legend of the vampire
race?” She shook her head no. “Have you heard of God?”

She frowned, confused by the question.
“I’ve heard of him, it, her? Some of the people in the woods would
talk of God, they even had ceremonies, but most didn’t really
understand what it was.”

“That’s one thing that hasn’t changed
in a hundred years.” Dry humor that seemed oddly out of place
tinted his voice.

“Was it supposed to?”

“No.”

“Then what does this God have to do
with anything?”

“It’s said that God created the first
man, humans, in his image. God also created angels to serve him,
and to protect and guide the human race, but between the two, man
was God’s favorite. One such angel, Lucifer, was cast out of heaven
because he didn’t want to play second fiddle. It is said that on
his way to Hell, in order to punish God, and inflict pain and fear
amongst the human race, that Lucifer also created something in his
own image to walk the earth. A demon that looked like man but had
the vast power of the angel’s, and fed upon man. He created the
first vampire.”

“Your speed and strength,” she
muttered.

“Yes, our immortality, our thirst for
blood is all said to be tied to the demon that Lucifer became. The
quirks that sometimes affect our race are supposedly because there
is also man within us.”

Aria’s head was spinning. “You believe
this?”

He shrugged absently. “It’s what has
been told over the years, but I don’t know for certain, no one
does.”

“And if you change me, you believe I
will become a demon or the demon is what will kill me?”

“You already are a little demon.” He
chuckled at the stern look she shot him. “But no, I don’t believe
that. I believe that the loss of your blood, and the sudden influx
of mine, is what will kill you. I believe the trauma to your
system, the changing of your system into ours is what will kill
you, but I do not believe you will become a demon, or become
infected by one. Most of us are colder and more callous than
humans, we feel things more acutely, our needs are more intense,
but we control our actions and we are not ruled by some demon
inside us. It is why Ashby loves Melinda, why my mother died for
Melinda, why Gideon has established a system of equality. It’s why
I love you. If we were ruled by a demon none of that would be
possible. Some of us seem to relate more to their angel or human
side, and some to the demon one though.”

“I see.” Though she was fascinated by
what he was telling her, she was barely paying attention to the
conversation anymore as his hands clasped hold of her face and he
kissed her lightly.

CHAPTER 9

Braith stood silently, his arms folded
over his chest as he watched Aria move about the room with subtle
grace. She didn’t know he was there as she studied the bindings of
the books with interest. Her hands were folded behind her back as
she leaned back on her heels before tilting forward again. There
was a wistful smile on her face that enchanted him.

He didn’t think he would ever get over
the powerful effect she had on him. The sway she had over his
deadened heart. She leaned back on her heels again. “Are you going
to stand there all day?” she asked.

“I didn’t realize you knew I was
here.”

The sunlight lit her features as she
tilted her head to study him. “I’d know you anywhere.” For a moment
he was robbed of all sense of reason. His fingers ached with the
need to touch her, to hold her. Standing on her tiptoes she pulled
a book from the shelf. “Would you like to read with me?”

He would like nothing more than to curl
up and read with her, but that was not why he’d come here. She
seemed to sense that as her smile slipped away and she tucked the
book under her arm. “What is it?”

“They’re going to vote on whether or
not they’re willing to join us. I thought you would like to be
there.”

“I would,” she agreed. Her hand slid
into his extended one. He held her for a moment, simply savoring in
her as she watched him. “What do you think they’ll
vote?”