Echoes in Eternity (The Pella Series Book 1) (53 page)

             
“What the hell do you want? Her? You’re not getting her. She’s my wife!” I whisper with an icy gaze.

             
“Does she know that? That was in a different lifetime. If you count the old claims, she was my fiancée first. I have every right to attempt to regain her regard.”

             
“Regain her regard? Listen to yourself! How selfish can you be? Let me help you jog your fucking memory. Was it not your own family who found her lineage unworthy? Accused her of being untitled and trying to buy a title with the money gained from her father’s unrespectable business of… what was it that your mother said?
‘R
aising and selling cattle among the savages is simply scandalous and my son, the future Duke who holds an ancient title that has prestige and wealth to not to be married to someone from the wildest west where they don’t even know Jesus! You may ease your lust by just fucking her as a mistress, but she shall never have your aristocratic title!
’
According to her Grace,” I hiss spitefully, “a man of peerage would not engage in trade or marry someone who is the daughter of an untitled man in trade. Tell me, Duke, did the titled witch manage to marry you off with a breeding mare that had a lineage she approved?” I ask with a dark gaze.

“No,” he responds coldly.

“Did the old bitch even know who Marcus was when she was weighing his and his daughter’s worth in human titles?”

             
“She didn’t know about it, and Elissa’s father concealed his status. Had she known she would have been amenable, not that it was an excuse. The Duchess cared about her human titles and our lineage that came from our ancient generations. But, you well know how it was. Our Nephilim blood is diluted, and our connections to the human governance and the dual natured are strong. In her eyes, it was social suicide for my reputation and she was doing what a mother of privilege would of the time do and we, having existed a long time simply could not disregard those rules! She always regarded love as a passing notion. We had a war on our hands and I believe we still do,” he says looking at me significantly. “Not just for survival, but the thriving of our kind among humans had been tremendously important among our leaders. She knew I was in line to rule the European, Asian and North African sectors of our kind. In her mind, she wanted strong alliances to give me the best chance of success and completely discounting that I have been in love with Elissa. She disregarded the fact that immortality is a long time to exist with dalliances and not courtly love. Somehow when she caused me to lose Elissa, I could care less for her maternal love and concern…” he mutters bitterly.

             
“Of course,
the she-devil
, I mean her royal highness was an apotheosis of maternal tenderness!” I say but he interrupts me.

             
“Can we please go to a private room where we can discuss this, rationally?” he says vibrating with tension. I look at his face for a long minute. The other buyers rubbing elbows with each other in the room are blissfully ignorant of our spectacle. Since both of us are Nephilim, we can mostly conceal the tone of our conversation from mortal ears. But other Nephilim aren’t part of that rule. To mortals we look like two people engaged in a conversation and they get a feeling that they don’t wish to be a part of something mundane. But it’s far from it. The aggressive energy pulsing through my veins coupled with his barely concealed restless energy, we can light up the state of Arizona. Yet it is the same energy that defers other people away from us. Just the humans. Not the
Nephilim
, certainly not the
Fallen Angels
, the
Darklings
, or any other dual natured, and definitely not the
Psyches
. Of course, I don’t wish to discuss our former relations that involved Elissa in the presence of her potential enemies.

             
“I have a private meeting room reserved,” I say. He is the last person I want to engage in a conversation or have in my company tonight of all nights, but I intend to keep my enemies closer. I lead the way to the meeting room my company had reserved for my private use as I easily slip into my distant, worldly but unapproachable CEO persona in place with ease while readily concealing my wild, nearly murderous streak from the rest of the room. As soon as Anthony closes the door behind us effectively keeping both the bodyguards outside with him, the Duke turns to me on his heels. His arms on his side, his stance is both defensive and offensive, ready for anything; a battle stance I recognize. The Duke has gained some skills since I have seen him last, I note. Without a preamble, he fixes his eyes with their dark intensity on me and starts with a somber but determined voice:

             
“I’m ready to swallow my pride. I should have disowned my entire family for disparaging Elissa at the time. But, you know how the peerage worked! She would have been shunned by all society for permitting our union. It was the Duchess’ way of saving face, trying to save me however misguided it was.” His choice of words makes me cringe inwardly. ‘Misguided’ would only be appropriate if they just ignored Elissa or voiced their disapproval. His mother attempted to murder Elissa; it wasn’t simply a ‘misguided’ act, it was criminal! But of course the crimes committed by peerage against the commoners at the time weren’t punished with the same severity of that of an equal.

             
“Spare me the aristocratic dueness your mother thought you were entitled to. If you’re here simply to defend the bitch’s behavior, you’re speaking to the wrong man! You have been on my shit-list for a very long time closely followed by the she-devil herself and that is saying a lot considering she nearly killed Elissa!” This makes the Duke wince in pain as if I hit him.

             
“She’s been duly punished,” he says, his face grim. I have a hard time believing that the Duchess suffered any real punishment. How would that punishment go about? How would he have punished the attempted murder? “I have endured her loss to you and been punished enough after she was gone!” Elissa’s loss as his fiancée was his punishment? That’s it? What does he want now? Being allowed to strut back into her life as if nothing happened or that she doesn’t have enemies right within his family?

             
“And now that most of the barriers have been eroded between the classes, you have decided to march back into her life, is that it? What? Because now the princes are marrying commoners, you decided
my
wife is finally doable and her father’s former line of work is now acceptable for your fucking lineage?” I hiss with a deep guttural voice, “You want the mother of
my
children,” I hiss jabbing at my chest with my thumb, “to become a part of your life now?” My eyes are blazing with pure hatred.

             
“That was a lifetime ago! She’s here with a new chance. And stop referring to her as
your wife
!” he barks irritated. “Part of the new life cycle is that she is cut off from the old life, and if it bypasses the
Divine Law
by being a new life, a new beginning and not a continuation of the old life, it stands to reason that she is no longer yours. She’s not your wife anymore!”

“Just because you assume that she’s on a new life, does it make you forget and clear the crime? You expect me to just wipe the slate clean because she’s departed that life? Are you here to get the old bitch forgiven?”

“I’m not here for the Duchess. I’m here to tell you that I know I have fucked up royally! I had others pay for what they did to her,” he says gravely. How did he manage to make his mother pay for attempting to kill Elissa while he froze there like the statue of Caesar suspended in space and time with only a flick of her hand?

“
Excuse me if I don’t believe you Duke!” I hiss angrily. “You’re unforgiven! While your mother shoved my already distraught girl into the frigid waters, you, froze! Froze!!! So, suddenly you remembered that you cared for her? You’re just as responsible in my book and you haven’t been punished for it!”

“Not punished, you say? Knowing the person that would have been my wife, the mother of
my
children marry someone else and bear his children wasn’t punishment enough? Her absence for two centuries wasn’t another punishment?”

“Don’t tell me you grieved over her! You don’t deserve and neither will you get a chance with her!”

“On the contrary, Alexander, I will do everything possible to correct my ways and win her back! I am even willing to have you continue protecting her if that’s what you want. If however you try to block my way Alex,” his voice is a determined, resolute whisper, full of threat, “you will find an enemy before you.”

             
“Take a hard fucking look at me Duke!” I say words hissing through my teeth as staccato lashes, voice low, deep and clear enunciating each word. “I’ve never been deterred by men, Nephilim, angel or devil for that matter! Never have I lost a battle, a fight or a lover to anyone! Do your assessment and declare your war after you examine the husband you would be fighting against…” I stop and stare at him taking a step forward, standing toe to toe with him. My eyes blaze the fire of Hades at my rival. “The love of my fucking existence is non-negotiable!” The Duke is the epitome of aristocratic, blue blood pride and vanity. He may absurdly want to dictate to me, but it will be a cold day in hell if he can achieve it.

             
“Maybe you have not lost a fight when you were one against one, or even two on one. But, you’ve never been against a three on one. I’m not talking about a dual natured. I’m talking about a triple natured. Even you, great
Emperor
,” he says mockingly, “even you have met your match! You… Need... Me…” he says each word distinctly, gently, so sure of himself with complete satisfaction.

             
“The price which you would offer your aid is unaffordable, unacceptable and simply denied. Elissa is mine! I have the means to protect her. Nothing you would do or did for that matter would keep her safe. Your ulterior motives are selfish,” I say in a low voice jabbing an accusatory finger into his chest. He does not step back; instead he walks into my finger to show me how determined he is.

             
“Listen to you!” he says as his voice takes a mocking tone. “If you really had confidence in your abilities Alexander, you would not mind a little bit of competition. Why not let her make the choice? Are you worried that she may actually choose me, the man she loved first? Oh, I know you’re bound to her by duty and that binding makes you feel like you’re in love with her,” he utters gently as if he’s soothing a wild animal, twirling his fingers in a condescending gesture. “How’s the life with shackles treating you by the way?” he mocks smoothly like the devil himself.

             
“Clearly, even my shackles make you envious,” I say with a mocking grin. “But since you asked for it, anything that binds me to Elissa is more than welcome. As for your claim that Elissa was in love with you… There’s not a shred of evidence or truth in it because Elissa is such a strong willed woman that if she loved you, if she truly wanted you, your mother would be of no consequence to you despite her dark ties to the
Fallen
.” I utter bitterly. Then my voice goes low as I say, “She would fight for you if she actually loved you.” It is painful to even think Elissa would love someone else in the hypothetical, but, what I say is simply the truth. My wife loved me and I have loved her since I saw her in the first vision. Thanks to Marcus who didn’t have the foresight to think that others may also fall in love with her, we now have Duke here. I will however fight for my woman. I don’t intend to play fair because I know the Duke will not. I don’t have pride or qualms when it comes to retaining her regard for me. I continue with a mocking gaze and a voice that matches it, “Does it bother you that she never fought for you or your regard afterwards?”

             
His face darkens, and his lips pull back, baring his teeth as if he’s going to snarl at me. But, I don’t get a chance to hear his response. The door to the meeting room swings open with such a speed and angry velocity, the hinges rattle on the frame, the door hits the stopper placed at the baseboard firmly, shoving it into the wall like a tiny nail, the heavy handle denting the wall, rattling and shaking in its place and finally coming to a shaky stop. The suddenness of the offensive noise causes both Duke and I to jump a few feet apart and to automatically hold defensive stances. I relax only a fraction when I see Doc, but the rare animosity on his face, the murderous rage he’s exuding towards the Duke who looks ready to string him to the nearest tree with the tightest noose, making every cell in my body stand to attention. The Duke’s two cohorts are behind Doc ready to attack him at his command. Anthony walks back into the meeting room at full attention and on alert, battle-ready and closes the door to prevent attention from the curious eyes of all other natured. The humans are oblivious.

             
“What?” I growl impatiently at Doc.

             
“Did you bring the queen viper with you, Duke?” he hisses at Maximillian Courcillion completely ignoring my question. Courcillion first ashens then turns crimson with fury. “Is that how you found your way here?” Henry growls further.

             
“What are you talking about Doc?” I ask growing irritated without leaving my gaze off the Duke.