Betrayal (Blood Haze: Book Three) A Paranormal Romance (23 page)

Alexi placed his hand on top of mine and
looked up at me. His violet eyes overflowed with the love and
passion I knew he felt for me, and my own eyes matched his gaze
with equal devotion. I believed in him. I trusted him. He would not
let me down.

It was agreed that we would spend the next
three days preparing for the assault on Dmitri’s compound. We could
not tell Dmitri about our plans, lest we risk alerting the wraiths.
But we would have to be prepared.

Kai spent most of his time working out and
training hand-to-hand combat. His role was to attack Dmitri without
actually hurting him, so he needed to practice control.

Father Jacobs worked to memorize the wraith
exorcism rites. He would need to know the process thoroughly, and
he would need to recite it with unwavering speed and confidence. We
could only hold the wraiths off for so long, and the faster he
could perform the ritual, the greater our chance of success. Jamie
worked to help him memorize it and practice it.

My mother and Will helped me train my
abilities. We went to the back field and they created targets for
me to use as dummies while I refined my ability to control the
wind. I soon learned to control two vortices at once, doubling my
effectiveness. I could control one vortex with each hand, sending
them each in different directions.

And Alexi struggled to learn the dark arts.
He spent most of his time alone in the basement, and he refused to
allow me near him while he was training. I wanted to be there for
him, but he was adamant that I should not see him in such a state.
I knew he wanted to avoid me thinking of him as evil or dark, but
he had no reason to worry about such things. I could not have seen
Alexi as anything but pure and beautiful, because that is what he
was. There was no darkness within him, and I knew that if
practicing the dark arts temporarily shifted his alignment, he
would always still be my Alexi, and he would always come back to
me.

For three long days, I hardly saw him. He
trained for hours, and I knew he must have been nearing exhaustion.
Finally, I knocked timidly on the door to the room in which he
trained. He opened the door, looking haggard and weak.

“Oh, Alexi,” I breathed, stepping forward and
wrapping my arms around him. “You must rest, now, my love. Please,
come with me.”

He opened his mouth to object, but the lure
of being with me was too tempting. He followed me willingly. I took
his hand and led him upstairs to our bedroom. I had already drawn a
hot bath for him, and he submitted to my demand to get into it and
relax.

The bathroom was dark and soothing. The
candles I had lit flickered joyously, and they cast a romantic
golden glow across Alexi’s pale skin. I knelt beside him, and I
brushed his white hair away from his face soothingly.

“Relax, darling,” I whispered. “Close your
eyes.”

Alexi closed his eyes, and he sighed
contentedly. I continued to stroke his hair with one hand, and I
let my other rest on his chest. He clasped my hand in his, and
squeezed it gently.

“Join me,” he pleaded.

I quickly slipped out of my clothes and cast
them aside, stepping into the hot water and snuggling against his
skin. I put my head on his chest and was lulled into a near trance
by the rise and fall of his chest, and the rhythmic thumping of his
heart. His arms were strong and comforting around me, and despite
the looming threat of the wraiths, I felt content.

“Alexi?”

“Yes, my love.”

“I believe in you.”

“I know that, now. There was a time when I
never thought you would, but I know now that you do.”

“No matter what this does to you, I know it’s
not you. Please don’t worry about me loving you any less. I promise
you that I’ll never give up on you, no matter what happens.”

“That is the only thing that gives me the
strength to do this. Knowing you believe in me, and knowing you
will be there when I return – is the only thing that I have to hold
onto.”

I shifted my body so I could look up into his
eyes, and I placed my hand on his cheek. I was afraid. Not because
I remembered the evil I felt in my vision. Not because I was
worried Alexi couldn’t fight his way out of the darkness if it
managed to overtake him. But because I was afraid my plan would
somehow fail. I was terrified it would all be for nothing. I
couldn’t lose him. He was everything to me.

I remembered Barnabas’ vision of our
marriage, and of me saving Alexi’s life after we were wed. I hoped
it would never come to that point, but if it did, I prayed I would
have the strength to do it. Alexi said the bond between married
vampires would make it easier for my Grace to save him, and more
than anything, I hoped that would be true.

We slept for hours. Lying there in his
embrace, it was all too easy to be lulled into a false sense of
security – to almost forget the threat that loomed ominously in the
distance. It was just hours until we would attack Dmitri’s
compound, but Alexi’s touch was so enthralling, it was easy to
become lost in it.

When I finally woke up, I didn’t want to
move. I wanted to keep lying there. I wanted to stay there with
him, and never leave. I wanted to forget Dmitri, forget the
wraiths, forget the world. I was motionless, nearly breathless.
Finally, Alexi stirred.

“Good morning, darling,” he murmured,
nuzzling my neck.

“Good morning, my love,” I returned,
squeezing him tighter.

It was at that moment that the reality of the
situation began to press in on me. As I felt the warmth of his body
against mine, and the softness of his breath on my skin, the terror
seized me and refused to let go. I tried to hide it, to choke it
down and lock it away somewhere deep in the pit of my stomach. I
didn’t want to ruin what might be our last moments together. But it
all hit me like a tsunami of emotion. It ravaged me, dashing me
against the jagged rocks like a thunderous wave, and it all came
crashing down.

I dissolved. Burying my face in his chest, I
released everything in a great wave of sobs. I felt Alexi’s grip
tighten around me, and he whispered gently into my hair.

“Darling, it is going to be alright,” he
comforted me. “As long as we are together, nothing can hurt us.
Please do not cry, darling. Please.”

“Alexi!” I sobbed, my voice muffled by his
flesh. “Oh, Alexi! I can’t bear to lose you! I can’t!”

“You are not going to lose me,” he promised.
“You said you believed in me. If that is true, you must know that I
can do this.”

Somewhere inside me, I knew what he said was
true. I believed in him. I knew he wouldn’t let me down. Yet, the
ever-present fear would not be quelled. It bubbled over and rushed
against me, choking me.

“I can’t live without you!” I cried.

“You will not have to, love,” he vowed. “I
promise.”

Alexi held me close as I trembled and sobbed
for what felt like hours. In reality, it must have been only a few
minutes, but the terror I felt made it seem like an eternity. I
felt his kisses on my hair, his lips brushing against my forehead.
His strong arms encapsulated me like a warm shield, and soon I
began to relax. Finally, logic stepped in and guided me out of the
bleak darkness.

Alexi was strong. He was capable. He loved me
more than anything. It was true. I believed in him. If anyone could
do this, it was Alexi. I looked up at him, and he brushed a tear
away from my face.

“I do believe in you,” I said
confidently.

“Then let us go and finish this,” he
urged.

I nodded, and I dried my face. I pressed my
lips against his, and I managed to lose myself in his kiss for a
few moments. There was a chance, however small, that it would be
that time I would be able to kiss him. I would hold it with me
forever, even if the worst should happen.

“Let’s go,” I said at last.

We filled ourselves with a quick breakfast,
and we fuelled ourselves with blood from the volunteers. After
discussing our plan one last time, we all piled into the new
Guardian, and we were on our way.

Alexi gripped my hand comfortingly in the
car, and I fought to remain stolid. All of them needed my strength,
and no matter how terrified I might be inside, I would be the rock
they all needed.

We arrived at Dmitri’s compound, and Alexi
instructed the driver to crash through the gates. It had to appear
like a real attack. Everything hinged on our ability to keep the
wraiths distracted. The car came to a screeching halt in front of
Dmitri’s massive house, and the driver blasted the horn
dramatically.

We all jumped out of the car, and I stood at
the bottom of the steps and shouted, “Dmitri! Get out here, you
coward!”

I stood in front, with Alexi and Father
Jacobs flanking me. Kai stood ready to attack, and my mother, Will,
and Jamie all stood behind me. Their job was simply to make our
numbers look a little more impressive. In reality, we could have
brought any number of acolytes from the Council, but we needed the
wraiths to feel like it would be an easy fight for them – just not
unrealistically easy.

Dmitri soon appeared at the front door. At
first, his face was awash with confusion, but then I thought I
noticed a twinkle of understanding in his eyes.

“What is the meaning of this?” his voice
boomed.

“You know what this is about, Dmitri! It’s
payback time!” I shouted defiantly.

“You have an awfully small group for such an
attack, little girl,” Dmitri growled. “Do you really think you
stand a chance against me?”

“I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?” I asked,
grinning wickedly.

I heard the familiar whispery hiss of the
wraiths. They were somewhere nearby, but I couldn’t see them in my
field of vision. I figured they were closing in behind us. I
listened carefully, trying to ascertain their location and their
proximity. I could hear their whispers growing closer, and the
sound seemed to be coming from behind us. I waited patiently for
the right moment, trying to control my frantically beating
heart.

“Now!” I shouted, when their whispers seemed
to be right on top of us.

Kai lunged at Dmitri, knocking him over. The
two of them began to wrestle, and they tumbled down the steps. Kai
threw a flurry of punches at Dmitri, but I knew his control was
precise and accurate. Dmitri was in no real danger, but it
certainly looked as though he was.

Alexi’s eyes narrowed, and his hands balled
into tight fists as he concentrated on gaining control of the
wraiths. The flesh under his right eye twitched, and I could tell
he was having difficulty. He could not see them, but I knew he
could sense their presence through the dark magic coursing through
him.

Father Jacobs had already begun reciting the
exorcism. I watched the wraiths, and they seemed to be undeterred.
They formed a perimeter around us, closing in slowly as though they
were toying with us. I could tell they had their sights set on
Father Jacobs. Alexi was unable to gain control.

“Alexi, what’s wrong?” I asked quickly.

“I do not know! I cannot make a connection!”
he said, his voice tainted with anxiety. “I cannot
concentrate!”

Instinctively, I reached out and took his
hand. I meant it only as a gesture of comfort – to let him know I
believed in him, and trusted him. But the moment our hands touched,
I felt a surge of electricity strike through me like lightning. I
gasped aloud, and Alexi mimicked me.

Whatever power I had inside me was amplified
by his touch. I could feel it surging through me. It tingled and
burned, but somehow, it was not unpleasant. It was empowering.

The wraiths began to whisper frantically.
Their voices sounded lost and confused. They paused to regroup.

“It’s working!” I whispered, and Alexi nodded
in acknowledgement.

Father Jacobs continued reciting his
exorcism, and his voice crackled with panic. He faltered,
forgetting the words. He shook his head to clear it, and
continued.

Whatever Alexi was doing, it had the wraiths
befuddled. They still stood motionless, their voices swirling
around me frantically as they tried to understand what was
happening.

One of the wraiths broke away from the
others. It flew at Father Jacobs, knocking him down. Without
releasing Alexi’s hand, I drew a vortex down from the sky and
hurled it at the wraith, knocking it back.

Looking visibly shaken, Father Jacobs
continued his recitation. The wraith recovered from my vortex, and
it flew at him for another attack. Once again, I knocked it back
with my vortex.

Then, another wraith broke away from the
pack. It joined the other, and the two of them flew at Father
Jacobs. I didn’t think I could hit both wraiths with a single
vortex, but if I released Alexi’s hand, it could break his
connection to the other wraiths.

I didn’t know what to do. I knew Alexi was
keeping the others from attacking, and I wasn’t sure he could do so
without my power boosting his. Even with my power, the connection
could be broken at any moment. However, without Father Jacobs, all
was lost. He was the only one who knew the recitation to exorcise
the wraiths.

I made the quick decision to release Alexi’s
hand. I trusted him with all my heart, and I put all of my faith in
him. I brought a second vortex down from the sky, and I hurled each
of them at one of the two wraiths. They were knocked back, but they
quickly recovered. And then they were joined by a third.

“I am losing them!” Alexi shouted.

“It’s almost over,” I urged him.

Father Jacobs was still reciting, but I
recognized how close he was to the end. Another minute, and it
would all be over. We only needed to buy him another sixty seconds
or so.