Darkness Reborn (Order of the Blade #5) (21 page)

Without saying anything, she dragged the spiked flail across Kane's palm, drawing blood. Adrenaline and disbelief rushed through Kane. His throat thickened as he watched Sarah do the same to herself. "Shit, Sarah," he said, unable to keep the emotion out of his voice. "You shouldn't trust me like that."

"You don't get to tell me what to do," she said, determination bright in her eyes as she lifted Kane's palm to her lips and pressed a kiss to the center of it. Daring him. Offering herself to him. Putting her entire soul and her life into his hands. This woman, who had no reason to trust him, and every reason to never trust anyone ever, believed in him.

"What do you see in me? Don't you see the demons?"

I see you, Kane Santiago. I see every single level of who you are, and I believe in you.
She was still pressing a kiss to his palm, still waiting, still giving him that chance, those blue eyes so full of trust and love.

She knew everything about him, she knew exactly what he was, and yet somehow, she believed in him. She had faith in him, that he was the man he'd tried to be for the last five hundred years. Rightness surged through him, and he knew he didn't deserve that gift.

But he wasn't going to give it up. It felt too damn good.

Keeping his gaze on hers, Kane slipped his free hand around her wrist and gently raised her palm. "I swear on the souls of my children, whether past or future, that I will never, ever violate that trust, Sarah. I give you my oath." He then kissed her palm, pressing his mouth directly over the injury and sucking her lifeblood into his body.

The moment he swallowed, his whole world seemed to vibrate. Intense satisfaction surged through him, a sensation that he had finally found his place, that he was exactly where he was supposed to be. The words tumbled from him, filling her mind and his with promises that would seal them forever.
Mine to you. Yours to me. Bonded by blood, by spirit and by soul, we are one. No distance too far, no enemy too powerful, no sacrifice too great. I will always find you. I will always protect you. No matter what the cost. I am yours as you are mine.
The moment the words were spoken, raw intense need and desire raged through him, a need to make her his, to cement the bond.
I swear to keep you safe,
he added.
Always.

Sarah's warmth flooded him, filling him and spilling over into the air, making it glow with a faint white light.
Mine to you.
Sarah's voice echoed through his mind, as the words burned into his soul, branding him the way his mark had branded her.
Yours to me. Bonded by blood, by spirit and by soul, we are one. No distance too far, no enemy too powerful, no sacrifice too great. I will always find you. I will always keep you safe. No matter what the cost. I am yours as you are mine.

Rightness exploded through him, and he pulled her down, consuming her with kisses he couldn't contain. The lust, the desire, the animalistic need to seal the commitment they'd just made to each other. "I swear I'll protect you," he said as he rolled her onto her back.

"I know, Kane. I know." Sarah shifted beneath him, giving him access, and he drove inside her, desperate to put his mark on her, to brand her as his, even though he'd already done it. He needed to make her his in the personal and private way of a male with his mate.

The lovemaking was violent and fierce, a dominant possession, a promise of safekeeping, a baring of his soul. Sarah accepted all he had to offer, giving him her warmth and her trust and her faith. They filled the gaps in the other's soul, as he drove into her, as he filled her the only way he knew how. Sarah clung to him, kissing him back while promises and emotions tumbled unspoken between them, held only in their emotions and their touch.

He thrust again, and this time it was Sarah who screamed his name first, her body arching from the force of the orgasm. The moment he felt her reach her climax, he allowed himself to join her, shouting her name as he held her in his arms, offering her everything he had.

As the climax faded, Kane collapsed beside her and pulled her into his arms. He enveloped her with his body, tucking her tightly against his chest, using his arms and legs to create a shield around her, cradling her head with his palm. This was how he wanted to keep her forever. Safe. Protected. And in his arms.

As God was his witness, he would not fail her.

No matter who he was.

* * *

"Kane!"

He bolted out of bed, arising instantly from sleep to vigilant battle-ready, his flails clutched in his hands at Sarah's startled cry. He scanned the room, and instantly realized there was no immediate threat...until his gaze went to Sarah.

Her eyes were wide, her face in shock as she stared at him. The sheet had fallen to her waist, revealing the same curves he'd made love to all night long. Desire pulsed at him, but he didn't acknowledge it. He jerked his gaze back to Sarah's face, his adrenaline screaming its readiness to take on whatever threat was endangering her. "What's wrong? What is it?"

She pointed to him. "Your scars. They're gone."

Kane quickly glanced down at his body, then he swore, shocked by the sight. There wasn't a single scar left on his body. Every inch of him was smooth, unblemished skin. His arms, his chest, his legs,
everywhere.
"Son of a bitch." He ran his hand over his stomach, unable to believe the sensation of his hand sliding across his body without resistance. His blood was racing through his body, humming so powerfully that he could actually hear it rushing through him. His lungs were loose and free, and he sucked in his breath, taking in more air than he'd ever inhaled in a single breath before. His heart was thumping so loudly he could feel it reverberating in his chest. It was as if there hadn't just been scars on his skin, but inside him as well, and they were all gone.

"How do you feel?" Sarah crawled across the bed and ran her hands over his shoulder. "Your skin is so soft. It's flawless."

"I feel..." He couldn't even begin to express it. He felt more powerful than he ever had before, as if he could tear the roof of the house off simply by thinking about it. "Like a fucking king."

Sarah looked up at him, her brow furrowed. "How did this happen?"

"You." He grabbed her hand and pulled her against him, their bodies hitting with a thump that seemed to vibrate all the way to his feet. "It started when I met you." He couldn't keep the awe out of his voice. He kissed her, burning with desire a thousand times more powerful than anything he'd felt before. He felt like he had a thousand years of fire amassed inside him, waiting to be unleashed onto the world.

He pinned her up against the wall, adrenaline and desire raging through him so fiercely it took him over, and he unleashed all of it into his kiss. He knew his kiss was almost violent, almost over the edge, but the moment he tasted her lips, he was totally lost to the power raging through him, and when Sarah locked her arms around his neck, giving him permission, he gave himself over to it.

Sarah was shocked by the intensity of Kane's passion. It was as if he was a man on fire, burning with a need that had exploded within him. His kisses were frantic, consuming her very soul, sucking it right out of her body with each kiss. His grip on her hips was fierce, holding her still, giving her no chance to move as he braced his knee under her thigh, shoving her legs apart.

She gasped as he thrust his fingers inside her, an invasion that tore an orgasm out of her throat. She convulsed in his arms, her own passion ignited by his, her entire being capturing the violent need of his essence. Again he thrust into her, stretching her widely, and again, an orgasm exploded through her, so powerful she felt like it was going to rip her apart. "Kane—"

He gave her no mercy, capturing her protests with his bruising kiss, driving into her again with his fingers and coaxing another orgasm from her trembling body, giving her no respite, allowing her no breath. And she didn't want one. She was sucked hopelessly into his spiral of sex and lust, and when he grabbed her hips and pulled her down onto him, she bucked violently as he sank into her.

"God, Sarah," he gasped as he thundered into her, slamming her against the wall, his thrusts so fast and so deep that she screamed from the intensity of it.

He didn't stop, she didn't want him to, and he took her again and again and again over the edge, every orgasm more violent than the last, until she felt like she was going to come apart in his arms, until she felt like she had nothing left. And again, he took her, driving deeply and violently, his eyes so black she couldn't see anything but the darkness. Dear God, he wasn't even getting tired. He would never stop! He was going to kill her. "Sarah," he growled, and he bent his head and bit her neck.

"Oh, God." The climax exploded through her, and this time, she grabbed hold of Kane and mimicked the love bite he'd just given her, placing it in the exact same spot as the one that had undone her, frantically trying to get him to climax before he drained her completely.

Kane roared in response, and the climax exploded through him, rocking him against her. Sarah clung to him as the orgasm took both of them, spiraling again and again, an endless loop that would never release them.

"Kane," she gasped.

He groaned her name and pressed his face to her neck as his body gave one final, violent shudder, and then it was over. Sarah collapsed against the wall, and Kane caught her in his arms, cradling her against him as he carried them back to the bed, both of them tumbling helplessly onto the mattress.

Kane landed with a groan beside her, his arm wrapped around her waist as if even that hadn't been enough for him. "Son of a bitch," he muttered. "That was a first."

"You and me both." Sarah's body was boneless, exhausted, and sore in a thousand places. She'd been satisfied dozens of times, and her body still vibrated with the need for more.

"I feel it, too." Kane rolled onto his side and propped himself up, his hand cupping her breast. "I need more."

"You'll kill us both," she gasped, even as her nipples turned hard beneath his touch.

"What a way to go, though, huh?" He said with a grin, his eyes dancing with mischievousness that made her skin tingle in anticipation.

"Wait." She braced her hand on his chest, trying to catch her breath. "I know I'm really hot and everything, but this isn't normal, Kane. There's so much power pouring off you that I feel like you're about to explode."

"I know." His eyes were blazing again, and she felt her whole body clench with need as he pulled her toward him. "I'm making you mine, Sarah," he said. "
Mine.
"

Mine. There was something in the way he said it that sent chills down Sarah's spine, and not the kind that were begging for more kisses. The kind of chills that screamed a warning that something wasn't right. That something was terribly, terribly wrong—

"Sarah!" The door was flung open and Kane yanked her under him, shielding her beneath his body. He growled as he positioned her beneath him, swinging his head around to glower at the person who'd barged in.

Sarah went still, aware of the lethal violence coursing through him. "Kane?"

There was no response from him, other than another low growl. She couldn't see his face, because he had her locked down under him, but his muscles were like steel rods, ready to attack.

"Kane Santiago." Javier spoke from the doorway, and Sarah peeked under Kane's arm, shocked to see the old man in her bedroom. Javier's cheeks were streaked with black paint, and he had talismans painted all over his bare chest. In his hand were two spears, Calydon weapons. He pointed them at Kane and Sarah. "The time has come," he said. "Both of you, in the living room.
Now
."

Sarah perched on the edge of the couch in Nonny's living room. She was wearing a heavy sweatshirt as she watched Kane pace restlessly around the small space. She was cold, even though it was warm inside the cabin. Even the steaming mug of tea Nonny had made wasn't warming her up, and she knew it was because something was so wrong with Kane that she couldn't settle.

Ryland was standing in the open doorway, letting the morning sun stream in. His eyes were narrowed as he watched Kane pace, and she could feel the absolute readiness in Ryland's stance, prepared to react the moment Kane moved too quickly.

Javier was sitting cross-legged on the coffee table, his dark eyes fixed on Kane, while Nonny was handing out bagels and muffins that she'd prepared for them.

They were all waiting for Javier to speak, but he hadn't said a word since he'd ordered them to the living room. Now he was just watching Kane and Sarah, his sharp gaze going back and forth between them.

"For God's sake, Javier," Nonny said as she slammed a platter of pastries down beside him. "Start talking."

Kane spun around then, meeting Javier's eyes. "I'm Los Muerte, aren't I? I can feel it."

Javier gave Kane a long look. "Los Muerte is the name for the demon who will destroy our village and wipe out the angels," he said. "It can be anyone."

Kane swore and paced the room, restlessness rolling off him like a dark cloud. "Were you there?" he asked. "Were you there the day Los Muerte came to life and killed everyone?"

Javier nodded once. "I was."

Kane strode across the room then and bent over the old man, gripping the edges of the table so tightly that the wood cracked.

"Hey!" Nonny batted at his hands. "I like that table. Get off it."

Kane didn't move, staring down Javier. "Was I the man who murdered everyone? Was I the man they tried to kill and couldn't? Was I the man they carved up and tossed in a gutter to try to save the village?"

Javier lifted his gaze to meet Kane's, and Sarah leaned forward, her heart racing. "You know the answer," Javier said. "You tell me."

Kane stared at him, and then his face hardened. He looked over at Sarah, and she saw the pain in his eyes. "It was me." There was finality in his voice.

"No—" Sarah started to protest, then swallowed her words when she saw Javier nodding his approval. "What? That's impossible."

"He is a wise man," Javier said.

"So I'm right." For a split second, Kane's face went ashen and he bowed his head. "I'm Los Muerte, and I murdered my son."

Goosebumps prickled over Sarah's arms, and she hugged herself. She didn't know what to say, how to comfort him. The man standing before her had really murdered his own son and his own
sheva
, just like Mason? But she'd seen inside his heart. He had goodness. Was she so wrong? Nausea churned inside her belly and she lurched to her feet, suddenly needing space to think, to process, to get a handle on her emotions. "I have to go—"

Kane's head came up and he looked at her. There was such darkness in his gaze, and she saw him struggle with the news. His pain wafted across the room toward her, and she knew how devastating it must be to have it confirmed that he was once a monster. If he could do the unthinkable once, he could do it again, right?

Don't lose faith in me,
he said.
I need you, Sarah.

Sarah's throat tightened, and Nonny flicked her fingers in Sarah's direction. "Sit," Nonny said. "You're not going anywhere."

Slowly, Sarah sank back to the couch, perching on the edge, ready to run. But at the same time, she wanted to go to Kane and offer him her support. To tell him she believed in him. She swallowed hard, trying to know what to do, to preserve herself or to trust her instincts. Which was the right choice this time?

Ryland shifted in the doorway, and she saw him flexing his hands, as if he were preparing to call out his weapons. As if he was seeing Kane only as Los Muerte and not the warrior he'd fought beside for so long.

Javier turned to Kane. "The scars are gone. There is nothing protecting you from the demon within. It's you and he at war. No one to save you this time."

Kane nodded. "I can feel it," he said, his voice strained.

"You're being called home," Javier said. "To take over your role as the anchor of our village."

Kane frowned. "You mean as a destroyer or as a protector?"

"Both." Javier leaned forward. "Luc Acostos is a formidable foe, Kane. Do you know why?"

Kane shook his head. "Tell me."

"Because he is motivated by love. If he can find a replacement for himself, he will be free to leave this place and find the spirit of the woman he loves and connect with her. But his replacement can be only someone with enough strength to survive the pit. You have his blood. You are the one he has been waiting for."

Kane stiffened. "I have his blood? What do you mean?"

Javier raised his brows. "Your mother was an angel, Kane. Where do you think the demon comes from?"

Kane went still as Javier's words sank in, as the meaning took root. "You mean, I'm Luc's
son?"

Sarah sucked in her breath as Javier nodded. "He is going to reclaim you, Kane. It is the only way for him to be free to be with the woman he loves."

"Jesus." Kane stood up and strode across the floor, his tension bleeding all over the room. "My father is a demon," he said. "I'm a demon. Jesus." Sweat trickled down his brow, and Sarah suddenly couldn't stop herself.

She scooted off the couch and wrapped her arms around him. Kane immediately locked his arm around her waist, pulling her tightly against him and burying his face in her hair, as if she could chase away the truth.

"Luc is here to destroy the angels," Javier said. "The village is a conduit to the Afterlife, and it is a weak link where the demons want to access the earth, but they need to cleanse the area of angels before they can do it. They've been working on it for hundreds of years." He looked at Sarah. "There is one angel left, standing in their way."

Sarah swallowed. "Luc's job is to take me out?"

"No. He can't kill you, not directly." Javier looked between them. "His job is to find your weak spot and use it to destroy you. It's a trinity, Sarah. Mason was the first part. Jacob is the second. Kane is the third and final element."

"No." Kane tightened his grip on Sarah. "I won't bring her down—"

"It's more dangerous now," Javier interrupted. "Because of the baby."

Sarah bit her lip as she thought of Abigail. "Why was Abigail important?"

Javier looked at her. "Because she was the next generation of angels. She needed to die before she became powerful. That was why she had to be killed. The next generation had to be stopped before it began. So, the stakes have gone up this time."

A dark feeling of foreboding started to beat through Sarah. "This time?"

Nonny pushed on Javier's shoulder. "She doesn't know. I didn't think she could handle knowing. It's too soon, Javier. Let it go."

Sarah shoved herself away from Kane, her heart pounding. "What are you talking about?"

Javier looked at Nonny. "They need to know."

"No, they don't."

"Hey!" Sarah grabbed her grandmother's arm. "Nonny. What do you know?" She didn't want to hear it. It couldn't be true.
It couldn't be true.

Nonny sighed and looked at her, and in those eyes Sarah saw a thousand years of burden. "Sarah, you're pregnant."

Sarah felt the blood drain from her face, and her legs started to shake. She was vaguely aware of Kane grabbing her and holding her up, but her body was so numb she couldn't feel it. "But that's impossible," she whispered. "It was just last night. It couldn't happen that fast—"

"It didn't," Nonny said gently. "Sarah, sweetheart, when you showed up here, it was already done."

The night in the woods. When Jacob had been trying to kill her. "Oh, my God." Sarah couldn't breathe. The room was spinning. Her hands were shaking violently. She was cold. So cold. She didn't doubt Nonny for an instant. Her grandmother had always known things like that. It was her gift. Sarah was pregnant. Again. By Los Muerte. "I can't—"

Nonny raised her eyebrows. "You obviously can, my dear."

"But—" Sarah clutched her belly, fighting against the sudden pain in her stomach. "Mason tore me open. He made it impossible. It can't happen—"

"Sarah!" Nonny's voice was sharp. "Pull yourself together! You have to cope with this! There can be no mistakes this time."

No mistakes. No mistakes. No mistakes. No mistakes that would wind up with her baby killed. Again. "Oh, God."

"No mistakes from either of you," Nonny said. "Hell, Kane, you look like you're going to be sick."

Sarah jerked her gaze to Kane, who was on his knees beside her. His face was stricken, absolute terror in his expression. He looked up at her, and she saw visceral fear on his face. "Sarah," he said hoarsely. "I killed my own child before." He stumbled to his feet, staggering back from her as if she were a monster. "I can't risk you. I can't risk it. The talismans are gone. There's nothing to stop me. Jesus, Sarah." His gaze went to her belly, and suddenly she felt so exposed and raw.

"My baby," he whispered, and there was so much agony and grief in his words that tears filled Sarah's eyes.

"Stop." Javier rose to his feet in a swift movement. "There is no time for this. Luc must be stopped. Sarah is at tremendous risk now that she is pregnant."

"From me," Kane said. "She's at risk from me."

Sarah was shaking so violently she couldn't stop, and Kane was staring at her with a gaunt face.

Ryland called out his machete suddenly and charged Kane. Kane whirled around and called out his weapons. They clashed hard, Ryland's eyes blazing with fire. "You don't get to kill the angels," he snarled. "Let me kill you, Santiago. You're the monster now. Let me end it before you destroy it all."

"No!" Sarah shouted as Nonny yanked her back from the men. "Stop it! Don't kill him!"

The weapons clashed and Kane fought back. It wasn't a spar. It was a battle, a battle to the death. Ryland was raging with focus, with his need to protect Sarah, and Kane was fighting back. The warriors were violent and powerful, slashing at each other. "Stand down, Ry!" Kane shouted. "This isn't about you and your damned hero complex about angels!"

"You don't get to kill her!" Ryland shouted back, and he lunged at Kane. The machete sank deep into his shoulder, and Kane roared with fury. Then, suddenly, she saw Kane's skin begin to glow deep red, as if he had become hell itself. He lunged at Ryland, moving with twice the speed he'd been moving before. His strikes were violent and fast, cutting Ryland as the warriors battled. But the more they fought, the greater the glow emanating from Kane's skin.

"Stop it!" Sarah shouted, desperate to make them stop. "We need to fight Luc, not each other!"

But they simply roared with fury, unleashing the full extent of their battle skills upon each other. It was as if they saw no other solution. Killing each other was the only answer... "Oh, God!" She grabbed Nonny. "They have no hope or faith that they can make it work! Without hope, there's nothing to fight for. Crap!" It was the same as what had happened to Kane the night before. "Why are they losing faith like that? Why is it so bad?"

Javier looked over at Sarah, then back at the men. "Sarah," he said sharply. "Come over here."

She rushed toward Javier just as Kane threw Ryland into the wall. Javier grabbed Sarah's wrist and dragged her over to him as Ryland crashed through the plaster and onto the grass outside.

Sadness filled Sarah's heart as she watched Kane leap through the wall to attack Ryland. The two teammates, trying to destroy each other. She could feel the despair of both warriors, their complete lack of faith in each other, their inability to see the man who was on their side. She felt it in every cell of her body, all the way to the very depth of her spirit. Their loss, their utter loss of faith and hope, the absolute emptiness of their souls. "Dear God," she whispered as tears filled her eyes, as their pain overwhelmed her. She was filled with a sudden need to help them, to break them out of their hell, to infuse them with the hope that would make their hearts beat again. "Don't give up," she shouted. "Don't—"

"Touch them," Javier said. "Now!" And he threw her against the two men.

Sarah crashed into both of them. There was a split second of sheer, overwhelming despair coming from them, and then her entire body billowed with energy. Sudden power burned through her, a golden light of extraordinary brilliance, burning so brightly she felt her skin ignite.

Nonny gasped in astonishment, and Javier grunted with approval as the golden light filled the air, flooding the entire house with the glittering golden aura. It blasted into Kane and Ryland, the impact catapulting them across the clearing and into the trees. She heard the crash of their bodies through the branches, the thuds of their bodies hitting the earth, and then silence. Stunned, she scrambled over the rubble from the decimated wall and raced after them. "Kane! Ryland!"

Ignoring Nonny's shouts, Sarah ran through the bushes, calling for the warriors. Had she killed them? Panic filled her heart as she ran. She'd never done golden light before. She had no idea what it was. "Kane! Where are you—"

Then she saw him. He was sitting on the ground, his arms draped over his knees, rubbing his forehead with one arm. Beside him, Ryland was in the same position, blood dripping from a wound in his shoulder. Sarah stopped, staring in shock at the men. "You're not fighting. And you're not dead?"

Kane lifted his head to look at her, and she saw his eyes were gleaming brightly. The darkness was still there, yes, but not the despair. Ryland looked over at her, and she saw that his expression was back to normal. Edging on violence and darkness, but not insane. "What did you do?" Kane asked.