Page 29 of Dark Souls

Love-sick Romeo

A n hour earlier…

Feeling battered and bruised but thankful to be alive, I gave my Grandma Maddy a rare hug before she helped haul me up to an upright position on my bed, plumping the pillows behind me. Most of my family were still in Heroux, dealing with the aftermath of the war that just so happened to start during my brief visit. My brothers had come out victorious, but I’d barely made it out alive.

“How’s your head?”

“In a world of pain. Being tossed into a tree trunk and knocked unconscious by a brutal magical force will do that, though, I guess.”

Grandma gave me a sympathetic smile as she untied the bandage around my shoulder. “Let’s check on this wound.”

I braced myself for the pain as she pulled back the last of the cloth to reveal where my brother sent a branch soaring through my shoulder. I couldn’t be angry with him, though. It was quick thinking on his part to find out if I was really being held captive by the evil he was up against or if I was just an illusion conjured up by the witch he was fighting. If the branch had sailed right through me, he would have known he was being tricked, but unfortunately, he didn’t, and I had been captured. I couldn’t even remember how it happened. One moment, Valina (the witch who was shagging my brother) and I were searching the woods for Leif when the war broke out. We didn’t want him to be alone. The next thing I knew, I was caught in a magical bind, floating in the air, about to be sacrificed by a vengeful evil. I may have come away with a concussion and a deep, burning wound through my shoulder that would leave a scar, but he had saved my life with that act. He had made a harrowing decision to save me, forcing him to sacrifice someone else he cared deeply for, and the guilt was eating away at me. I shouldn’t have gone. If I’d stayed here, that might never have happened.

“There is no use beating yourself up about it,” Grandma said softly when she noticed my pained expression. “What happened was not your fault just as much as it wasn’t Leif’s. In fact, what happened in that realm, to those people, is heart-breaking and tragic, but I firmly stand by my belief that everything happens for a reason. Without darkness, you could never truly appreciate the light.”

“Hardly seems fair though, does it? How can one life be more important than another?” I asked, forcing back the tears that threatened to surface. That realm had damn near destroyed the people I loved most in this world. Lorcan was hanging on by a thread, the emotional journey he’d been through nearly killing him. Neve seemed okay now, but the way she’d been treated when she’d arrived in that realm made my blood boil. And Leif…I could only imagine the pain and guilt he’d be feeling.

“It isn’t fair. But life isn’t always fair, sweetheart. Especially when it comes to war. But we are so grateful that you and your brothers are okay. That you made it through the last few days still breathing. Let’s focus on that, yeah?”

I nodded as she peered down at the wound on my shoulder, surprise taking hold of her features. Confused, I glanced down to see what she was staring at and my eyes widened. The wound was practically healed. The gaping wound, red and raw with scorched flesh from the wood that had ripped through me only a few hours ago, had completely disappeared, leaving only a small scar in its place. “What the…”

Yes, my vampire healing was better than a human’s, but real wood inflictions always took a while to heal.

“How strange,” Grandma said, brushing her finger delicately over the small scar as I stared at it in bewilderment. “That must be because they brought you back here as soon as you were hurt. Maybe the time difference helped you to heal quicker.”

’Or the powerful ancient demon blood that is still in our system? ’ Rue interjected.

Or that.

I sighed, slouching back onto the cushions and closed my eyes. There was nothing quite like a near-death experience to make you realise how much you still hadn’t experienced in your life. If I had died, would I have died with regrets? Absolutely. So, I was going to stop pissing around and start taking action. Do all the things I want to do without letting outside influences get in the way. I was going to live every day like I might die tomorrow. Because who knows, I might. Everyone says your life flashes before your eyes when faced with death, but when I was in that binding spell, completely helpless, seconds away from my life being snatched from me, there were only two faces that appeared in my mind. Heathen’s and Red’s. Clearly, I had unfinished business with both.

I felt my grandma perch on the side of the bed, placing her hands on either side of my hips and I opened my eyes to meet her sparkling grey eyes. My gaze narrowed at the serious look on her face.

“What?”

“He came, you know. The day after you left. In fact, I’ve spotted him in the treeline of the village every night since.”

“Who came?” I asked, but somehow my heart already knew.

“Your broody bad boy.” She smirked, raising her eyebrows at me with a mischievous smirk. “You’re right. He is sexy.”

I rolled my eyes. “Don’t let Grandpapi hear you say that. Wait,” I panicked, sitting up a little straighter. “He came here? To the castle? Did Grandpapi—”

“No.” She shook her head quickly. “I found him snooping around the village, staring longingly up at your bedroom window like a love-sick Romeo. All very romantic.”

“Must have been someone else. Pretty sure Red doesn’t have a romantic bone in his body and there is no way in hell he’d be staring longingly up at my window.” I huffed, picking at the thread of my duvet.

“Roguish good looks, tattoos everywhere, piercing in his eyebrow and nose, scar down one side of his face, blood-red eyes that matched that rather charming tousled red hair… yeah, pretty sure there are plenty of men like that around.”

“He has piercings elsewhere, too.” I groaned, lifting my good arm to cover my face as a memory of all that metal in my mouth sprang to mind. I was going to hell. She chuckled. “And you spoke to him?”

“Yep.”

“I bet that was a riveting conversation.”

“Interesting for sure.” She smiled, patting my hand. “He’s… unique. I’ll give you that. Not a big talker, but there is one thing I’m certain of from my little interaction with him. He’s into you. Big time.”

“Now I know you have the wrong man.” I shook my head. “He told me he wanted nothing to do with me, Grandma.”

“Isn’t it you that always tells me that actions speak louder than words? He’s struggling with something, there is no doubt about that, but it’s certainly not his feelings for you.”

“Grandma, he turned his humanity off. He has no connection to his feelings.”

“I know. He told me. And that may be true in every other aspect of his life, but when it comes to you, you’re breaking through. Otherwise, what the hell was he doing here?”

I frowned, chewing at my lip as I thought about that. She was right. Why the hell would he come here to see me after he told me to stay away from him and pretend he didn’t exist?

“He wasn’t very happy to hear that you’d gone to Heroux.”

“Well, it serves him right. He told me to stay far away from him. I was only meeting his request.”

“He told me to give you a message.”

I glanced up as my heart started racing. “What message?”

“He said...” She paused for dramatic effect and I wanted to punch her. “He has your phone and dagger and…his name is Luka.”

Luka. Of course, he had a hot name. “It couldn’t have been a Clive?” I dropped my head back into the pillow as Grandma burst out laughing but quickly covered her mouth to suppress it when she saw my lack of amusement.

“Would it have made a difference if it was Clive?”

“Probably not,” I grumbled. “But at least the sound of it wouldn’t turn me on. I don’t even want to speak his name out loud in case I have a spontaneous orgasm.”

“Well, at least you could give the porn a break. Just whisper his name instead,” Grandma teased, and I threw a pillow at her head. She was finding my torture far too entertaining.

After a brief knock, Sienna poked her head around the door tentatively with a smile. “Ah, you’re awake. I came earlier, but you were still resting.”

I shook my head. “Unconscious,” I corrected.

“Same, same.” She flapped her hand at me as she took a seat on the stool at my vanity table. “How are you feeling?”

“Physically? Okay.” I nodded. “Mentally and emotionally? I might need to be institutionalised soon.”

Grandma gave me a knowing look that said I could handle my shit and I replied with a small smile.

“Well.” Sienna huffed, looking a little unsure. “I hope what I am about to show you doesn’t push you over the edge.”

“What?” I frowned as she stood up and handed me her phone. I stared at the screen, which showed a stilled image of a strange, beamed ceiling. Realising it was a video, I pressed play. The camera seemed still at first, but there were noises in the background that sounded like someone moving around. Then the camera moved rapidly, and Red’s gorgeous face took up the entire screen. My breathing hitched as he stared directly into the camera as if he was searching for my soul. My eyes widened as I glanced at Sienna in panic. “What is this?”

“Footage from the hidden camera in that diamond choker. You might want to keep watching,” she said with a seriousness that made my gut twist.

I focused all my attention on the video as Luka threw the necklace away from him, and it landed on the side, giving the perfect view of his shirtless form slouched in a wooden chair. I swallowed the excess saliva that instantly appeared in my mouth at the sight of his tattooed chest and concrete abs. He lifted my knife next, my baby, and my heart tugged when he caressed the leather handle with so much care, staring at my initials that were engraved before he noticed the wooden spike hidden beneath it. My mouth dropped open when he dragged the tip of the spike across one of his pecs and blood appeared.

“What is he doing?” my Grandma whispered with alarm and it was only then that I realised she had come to the side next to me on the bed so she could watch it over my shoulder. My heartbeat was pulsing too loudly in my ears to even entertain her questioning as I watched Luka repeat the process again and again until blood was pouring down his chest from the self-inflicted wounds. When he finally stopped, he grabbed a rag and wiped his chest clean, peering down to check the cuts weren’t closing too quickly. With the blood gone for a few seconds, a shocked gasp left my Grandma while I just stared, dumbfounded at the three letters seared into his skin.

I.R.B

‘He marked himself as ours!’ Rue was beside herself with glee, while I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to feel. Angry? Proud? Aroused? This man was a complete maze, one that I was very much lost in.

Sienna sighed. “Keep watching.”

“There’s more?” Grandma seemed more concerned than me.

Luka threw down the knife next to the necklace and relaxed back, looking deep in thought. His ruby red eyes had so much turmoil swirling around in them. A sudden thought came to mind about his natural eye colour. They were always red because he was always in his vampire form. What colour were they before? I was dying to know.

A loud bird noise came through the phone and made me jump out of my thoughts. Luka stared at whatever had just interrupted him and the faintest smile appeared on his lips.

“I met my mate, Raven.” That charming, deep European voice echoed around the room and my heart flipped. My eyes lifted to Sienna’s, finding hers locked on my face, gauging my reaction. I looked back down at the video. “It is not as easy as that. You know me, bird. I’m not free. I’m not whole. I’m broken. I have nothing to offer her. Have you met your mate yet, Raven? No. Because if you had, you wouldn’t be here with me, right?”

The sound of pecking against wood came through the speaker after Luka had placed some food on the surface.

“Tell me what to do. I want her. But wanting her will destroy her,” he moaned in frustration, sending want straight to my core as he lifted his hands above his head and stared up at the ceiling, giving me the perfect view of his athletic form and bloodied initials carved into his chest. Urgh, why is he so deliciously dark? “I can’t let her get close to me. Everyone who has ever loved me has suffered. But I need to be close to her. How? How do I do that without ruining her life?”

Suddenly, the camera moved, spinning and losing focus until the image was no longer of my mate but of a beautiful, rugged landscape of cliffs and raging seas. The video ended and I forced myself to breathe.

“Well?” Sienna cocked her head to the side.

“Who else has seen this?” I whispered, feeling dazed and still processing everything I’d just seen. He wanted me but thought he’d ruin my life? Why? What was he hiding? How did he seem to have even more secrets than Heathen?

“No one,” Sienna answered with a frown. Her gaze darted over to Grandma, who was sitting still by my side, and then back to me. “Only me. I logged in to the system and disabled the camera because I thought it would be useless locked away in a locker, but then I saw this. It seemed… personal. So I brought it straight to you. So, are you going to tell me who that man is?”

“I am sure you’ve pieced it together by now.” I huffed, passing the phone back to her.

“He’s her soulmate. And his name is Luka,” Grandma clarified.

“And you already knew this?” Sienna looked between us both, confused. I nodded and rubbed my hands up and down my face. Here come the questions. “Did you meet him the night of The Underground ? Why didn’t you say anything? How did he get your stuff?”

“I met him at your bachelorette party. Somehow, he knew I was going to be there, and he just showed up, out of the fucking blue. We slept together without me even finding out his name first, which I blame Calli for. And then he was gone before I woke up the next morning. I’d been trying to find him all week, but then I went to the Underground and there he was. The final fighter in the event.”

“Wait! That would make him…”

“The Dealer. Ruler of The Underground.” I nodded as her face paled and her mouth dropped open. “Yeah. Now do you see why I didn’t say anything?”

“Well, shit. What are you going to do?” She leaned forward, her amber eyes sparkling like gemstones.

I barked out a laugh. “Fuck knows. I am open to any suggestions at this point.”

“He’s been here, standing in the woods every night since she left for Heroux. It’s all very romantic.”

“No. It’s not. The man is fucking twisted. He doesn’t know what he wants, so how the hell am I supposed to know? He says he wants me to stay away from him yet turns up here night after night, pissed that I am doing what he fucking asked. Where is the logic in that?”

“In my experience, logic kinda goes out the window when it comes to love,” Sienna offered with a smug smile. I rolled my eyes. “I mean, his way of expressing it is a little… intense, but I agree with Maddy. You have to admit, it’s quite romantic.”

“You two are as bad as Rue.”

“So I repeat, what are you going to do?”

I chewed on my bottom lip as I thought about my options. Who was I kidding? My options were limited, and everyone in this room knew I only had one real choice.

“Are you able to turn my phone on again?” I asked Sienna and her smile widened.

“Sure, give me two minutes.” She left the room, making a phone call to one of her tech agents at the SIA and Grandma handed me her phone. I inhaled sharply as I opened up messages to my own phone and typed.

“You cannot say that as your first message! Tell him you are home safe and sound.” She roared with disapproval.

“I only speak the truth, Grandma.”

She shook her head as Sienna entered the room and gave me a thumbs up. “It’s on. Have you messaged him?”

“Yes, she called him a douchebag,” Grandma answered, and Sienna nodded with approval.

“Sienna.” I placed Grandma’s phone on my lap to avoid constantly checking it until he replied and fixed her with pleading eyes. “I’d really, really appreciate it if you kept this information to yourself for now.” She held up her hands and started shaking her head in panic. “Just for a little bit. Until I know what the hell is happening because my life is a mess and as soon as you add the protective men in this family to the mix, you know this will be an epic disaster.”

“I won’t lie to Raiden,” she said, placing her hands on her hips. “After everything I put him through and proving my loyalty and trust, I won’t lie to him.” I sagged back into the pillows, deflated. “But… I won’t say anything as long as he doesn’t ask.”

“Thank you! Seriously, thank you!”

“It’s fine. I’ve been there, remember? I know how complicated finding your mate can be.”

I exhaled with relief that she understood just as Grandma’s phone pinged in my lap. My heart thundered as I stared down at it. Grandma squeezed my hand, grabbing my attention.

“We will give you some privacy.” She smiled, standing up and nodding for her and Sienna to leave. The moment they did, I lifted the phone and read the shouty message in all caps, demanding to know if I was okay with a reluctant smile. Grandma was right. He cared. Which meant it was time to make him grovel.