Page 14 of A Daemon’s Alliance (Daemons & Lumens)

Morax

M ichaela was quiet as we walked back to the cabin.

I used a bit of my magic to pull her bike along with us.

She wanted to go for a long ride alone, but I refused to leave her side.

Gremory escaped, and I wasn’t sure how this would play out.

He was more cunning than I expected, masking his scent and his power, even with the injuries he sustained during our fight.

The last thing I wanted to do was frighten my mate, but she had to know the danger of the situation.

Once again, she surprised me with her courage.

She listened to my recount of the night after I dropped her safely at the cabin and went on the hunt.

I suspected The Obscuritas would come for her and her father.

It would be foolish to think Gremory did not sense her, since we did not know exactly why he was at the warehouse party in the first place.

It was even more troubling that the now-dead lumen hybrid was working with him.

The Obscuritas had more power than I realized, with allies from my world working for them.

The dead Obscuritas King offering his help was a pleasant surprise.

Well, not entirely a surprise. My gossiping younger brother, Phenex, mentioned something about allies on the inside.

He was terrible at keeping secrets, but so far only slipped a few details of his master plan to me.

I wasn’t being fully transparent with Michaela either.

Phen and I knew her mother a bit more than I let on.

We met her several times, and Lailah once.

As Aurora was lumen royalty, we met when my brothers and I were very young.

Lailah was a newborn, and all royal babies were to be presented to the other royals.

It was the way of things before war between our kinds ended any kind of peace.

I knew something disturbed her even then, because we never saw her or her daughter again.

Word came of her lumen husband’s death not long after Lailah’s second birthday.

The true shock was the discovery of Aurora’s daemon lover many years later.

How she was able to hide so many things from so many prying eyes was still a mystery.

I never met the daemon, Seraphina’s father.

But Phenex did meet him, just before the daemon was killed.

My brother was silent for many weeks, which was incredibly strange.

He would not tell me what happened that day, what the daemon said to him.

But since then, many things had come to pass, according to Phenex, that he was told would happen. I had an inkling he knew I would end up mated to the little lumen walking beside me. And I would most definitely be kicking his ass for allowing me to be blindsided with the knowledge.

Michaela was humming a song under her breath, the sound like a lullaby to my heightened hearing.

Her beautiful blue and hazel eyes stared ahead, unseeing as she was deep in thought.

While I couldn’t hear her thoughts, I could sense her troubled emotions, and the desire to soothe her became too strong.

I grabbed her arm and stopped her, pulling her close as I wrapped my arms around her slim waist. She looked positively edible in her little sundress and sneakers.

Her blonde hair caught the sunlight in a way that perfectly highlighted the many shades of her natural balayage.

I was constantly mesmerized by her beauty and her inability to see herself as I did.

“Tell me what you’re thinking, little lumen.” I spoke with authority, urging her to obey me. Her distress caused a need in me to destroy whatever it was that made her so.

Michaela turned her head up to look at me, giving me a full view of this pretty creature who would be mine for eternity.

Her eyes dipped to my lips, and I smirked as her scent changed to something more depraved. She blushed, knowing I could sense it.

“Well, I was mulling over everything Ezekiel said. And I just wish I knew more about my mother.” Michaela sighed.

“I wish she could’ve left me something, even videos like that, so I could understand all of this.

Every time I learn something new, it’s like I’m starting over again.

Why can’t people leave clear and specific instructions on how to do things? ”

I started to respond, but she interrupted, apparently building up for a good rant. She tried to pull away, but I held her in place, locked safely in my arms.

“You know? Like a nice long letter that says, Hello daughters, let me tell you all the crazy shit that happened before I brought you into this world. And all the crazy shit you will have to deal with after I get murdered.” Michael huffed irritably.

“If she was such a brilliant seer, why is she dead? Why is Lailah dead?”

I leaned forward and rested my forehead against hers. “Being a great seer is more of a burden, or a curse, than an advantage. Perhaps she saw things, to the very end, and this path was the only one leading to a positive outcome.”

Michaela closed her eyes, and I could feel the sadness deepen within her. “What outcome is positive enough to warrant their deaths? I would give anything to have my family back together again.”

Her sadness was breaking my heart, and there was little I could do to rid her of it.

I slipped my hand beneath her chin, and she looked up at me with watery eyes.

“I can only imagine the future she must have seen for her to choose this path. I did not know your mother well, but I have heard she loved her daughters more fiercely than a lioness. The future she saw must have been dark indeed for her to choose this path for her children. But she knew you would be strong enough to do what must be done.”

“I don’t even know what that is. What am I supposed to do?” she whispered softly.

I kissed her forehead, willing a sense of calm over her. “I don’t have all the answers, little lumen. But I do believe the fates of our worlds are connected. And we will both play a part in saving them.”

Michaela rolled her eyes. “Sounds terrible.”

I chuckled at the grumpy tone of her voice. “I am grateful for your mother’s actions and her sacrifices. They brought me to you. That is something I will never be sorry for.”

My mate blushed, and her eyes dilated as she stared up at me, seeing the truth of my words.

I wanted so badly to tell her we were fated by the stars to be together, but I was also terrified of her reaction.

Growing up on Earth, such things didn’t exist. I could feel her desire for me, but while her lumen side was locked down, she couldn’t truly feel the mating bond.

So instead of pouring my bleeding heart out for her, I kissed her softly, nipped her lip possessively, and turned us back toward the cabin.

We were nearly there, only one turn through the woods before the cabin would be visible, when the air shifted. I growled, my wings snapping out and my horns protruding from the crown of my head. I turned so my body blocked Michaela’s.

“What is it?” she whispered, grabbing my arm.

“They’re here. The Obscuritas are in the cabin with your father. They have come to take you both.”

The thought of that filthy cult taking my mate had a growl building deep in my chest. I couldn’t sense any other daemons or lumens present. They sent humans, and I could easily kill them all.

Michaela squeezed my arm. “We knew this would happen.”

I snarled, my fangs descending, but my mate did not back away.

She grabbed my face, pulling me close. “Go back to the police station. Figure out how to join the security detail and come find me. I’ll be okay until then.”

My skin felt hot at the thought of leaving her, leaving her with them.

“Keep these safe for me.” She slipped the two small jewelry boxes into the back pocket of my jeans.

Michaela’s delicate hands reached up and stroked my horns, making me shiver with pleasure. If anyone else had attempted to touch my horns, I’d rip out their throat. But not her. Never her.

“I don’t know if I can do it. I don’t want to leave you with those monsters.”

Her hands slid down my jawline, and her thumb brushed across my lips. “I can handle the humans for a bit.”

My tongue snaked out to taste her, and she smiled.

“I’ll be bringing the real monster to them. And when the time comes, I’ll unleash my daemon on every one of those fuckers.”

My cock twitched at her filthy little mouth. “Unleash me, princess? I didn’t realize you’d collared me.”

Michaela twined her arms around my neck and jumped up. I caught her thighs as she wrapped her legs around my waist.

“That’s because I’m sneaky.”

I chuckled and burrowed my nose against her neck, inhaling her sweet scent. I could eat her up. Her pulse quickened as I moved closer to her ear, licking and sucking her pretty skin.

“Every single one of them who dares touch what is mine will lose a limb. Or their life. Remember their names, princess. And when I come for you, tell me the names of the pathetic humans who dared to harm my mate.”

The word slipped out, and there was nothing I could do to take it back. Michaela’s breath hitched, but before she could speak, a helicopter flew overhead, stealing her attention. We were out of time.