Entasy (Prophecies of The Nine) (13 page)

"You may work for my grandmother and believe that allows you some authority over this situation, but I can guarantee you I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. So drop the macho protective bullshit and go guard someone or something else."

I pushed past Aerric but I didn’t make it far. I doubled over in pain, gripping my stomach, a wave of intense nausea sweeping over me.

Aerric was the one to reach me first but Syd was right behind him. "What’s wrong, Kylah?"

I wanted to tell them but I didn’t know myself. I took hold of Syd’s arm to steady myself when my vision suddenly changed. Ty and Vivi were in the alley behind the bar fighting strange creatures with razor sharp teeth. While these images seemed unrealistic, I knew they were not costumes. There really were monsters attacking my brother and his wife. I broke free of Syd and Aerric’s grip and ran past the bathrooms towards the back door that lead to the alley.

I slammed the door with my hands and it burst open, slamming against the wall. I watched as the man from the stairs appeared next to Ty. Tynan had been standing with his back to Vivi in a protective stance, but as she ducked and stabbed one of those monsters, it left him open and vulnerable. The man with the black eyes glared in my direction as he moved behind my brother and stabbed him. A slow menacing grin replaced his stern look as he watched Tynan drop to the ground.

"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!" My scream echoed off the alley walls as Vivi turned to see Tynan collapse.

The man behind him was no longer a man but a swirl of thick black smoke. He left as quickly as he had arrived, and I watched as people from the VIP section killed the rest of the monsters who lingered. Vivi cradled my brother in her arms, crying and speaking to him in Gaelic. I wanted to run to her…run to Tynan but my feet failed to move. I forced myself to take a step but stopped a second later when Vivi turned to look at me, her eyes pitch black. She stared at me for a moment and then began to chant.

I had never heard such words: not Gaelic, not Latin…what was it she was saying? Tears streamed down her face as she continued chanting. A bright light began to surround my brother and rise up from his body. I heard her say to Tynan, "I love you too much to let you go, my love. I have to do this in order to save you." Tynan didn’t speak; he just stared at her with a blank, vapid gaze. I took another step but someone grabbed my arm to stop me.

Unwilling to be detained, I ran towards Ty, but halfway across the alley, the bright light surrounding my brother was now headed straight for me. The light traveled across the space between us and knocked me backwards when it slammed into my chest. I staggered, trying to stop myself from falling, when a cool sensation swept through my body. Instantly, I felt sorrow and peace and loss and love, too many emotions all at once. My life, all of my life began clipping off like a movie reel stuck in reverse. The images moved so fast that it was difficult to keep track of them all. They kept flashing, one right after the other: my brothers, Vivi, our place here in New York, the bar, all of us back in our home in Stowe. The memories continued to rewind, back to a time when Mom and Dad were alive, to when I was training with The Nine, and then I saw my grandmothers hand me the tonic that literally changed my life.

My breath hitched in my throat as I looked around to everyone here in the alley: The Nine. I recognized them all. They were all here in this time, in this moment. I looked around to see them all looking at me with shock in their eyes. My attention shifted to Obsydian and Aerric who stood on either side of me, watching and waiting. The side door crashed open and Dillon came barging through, his eyes a smoky white which meant he was struggling with maintaining his human form. How? How was it that I was seeing all of this now?

Lightning began to crash overhead and I looked over at Vivi, who was now crying uncontrollably; she was so distracted by Tynan that she didn’t see the monster come up behind her. I felt my hands heating, the anger and fear over what had transpired consuming my every thought, and before I could process what was happening, the creature behind Vivi fell into a pile of ashes. My eyes were filled with heated tears as I ran to my brother’s side. I took his hand in mine and tried to comfort Vivi over this tragic loss, but her pain was too overwhelming.

As I reached for Vivi, I heard my voice but the words were not my own. "Do not cry my love, we will find a way to fix this. I will come back to you."

Vivi looked at me, her tears flowing freely as she spoke. "I know, my love, and I know that Kylah will do everything she can to keep you safe. She will bring you home to us when the time is right."

All of a sudden, the alley became eerily silent and very crowded. Evan, Zephira, and Rhyderich were now walking towards us. Syd began to bark orders and commands, which they all acknowledged and quickly executed. Syd pointed at Aerric and spoke under his breath. Evan picked me up by my arms and pulled me away from my brother.

 "Kylah, I need you to listen to me." Evan’s thick Irish brogue was slow and deliberate. "We need to take you out of here. We need to take you home."

I snapped out of Evan’s hold and started to run, but Aerric caught me in his arms.
"I’ve got her, Evan." Loud banging and something that sounded like an explosion shifted my focus from Aerric. I felt safe in his arms, and yet I wanted to turn and attack whatever was coming down the alley. Odd sensations continued to surge through my body. A burning heat stirred just beneath my skin; a liquid blue flame began to coat my hands as I looked into Aerric’s eyes. He didn’t seem fazed by this at all, in fact, he seemed relieved.

I turned to see the creatures as they came closer. Black streaks covering their pale faces, moving as their red eyes glowed in the darkness of the night. The flames in my hands began to creep up my arms; my eyes burned as I watched the creatures move towards me, their sharp fangs dripping with blood and saliva. The others moved to attack but that wasn’t necessary because I was not going to allow another person to die here tonight. I heard Ty’s voice in my head trying to calm me, but I ignored it because I looked over to see his body still lying on the ground. Vivi looked over and then vanished with my brother in her arms.

Dillon’s voice was the next one I heard. "Kylah…NO!"

Flames moved outward beyond my body. The flames rose higher as they slithered towards their prey. The creatures kept coming as if they were untouchable, but the flames changed once again to bright white.

Syd’s voice boomed over the high pitched screeching. "Aerric take her to the labyrinth…NOW!"

Aerric wrapped his arms around my flaming body and flashed us out of the alley.

Chapter Sixteen

We stood in a stone room with moss covered walls and dirt floors, the only light shining from the torches on the walls. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the new lighting, but just as I was about to scold Aerric for fading us out of the alley, he pinned me against the walls with a crushing kiss full of passion and pain. He kissed me for what seemed like an eternity, our bodies intertwining with each thrust of his tongue.

He lifted me off the floor and I wrapped my legs around his waist, my body melting against his as if we were one and feeling as if no time had passed since we last touched. The heat between us was more than mere sexual tension; our bodies were literally a mix of red and blue flames. Aerric kissed my neck, his fangs grazing my skin with a burning heat as he ripped the jacket off my shoulders and tossed it to the floor. The linen blouse was the next thing to go as he lifted it over my head, exposing my lace bra.

He growled at the sight of my body, only stopping long enough remove the ridiculous coat he was wearing. The buttons flew as he ripped it off. His bare chest heaved as he moved to undo his belt, but I put my hand up to halt his next move. He growled once again but obliged my request as the flames in his eyes flickered. He leaned back against the adjacent wall, watching as I removed my bra. I swung it between my fingers, taunting him, knowing he would not remain across the way for much longer.

He slid his hand down to grasp his erection as I dropped the bra from my fingertips. That did it; I was against the wall once again, his hands tugging the tight black fabric down my hips, exposing my bare skin. He lost all control and unzipped his pants, freeing his hard cock.

"You are mine." He growled against my skin. "It has been too long and I cannot wait any longer."

He slid his fingers between my legs and I moaned at his touch. I, too, could not wait any longer. I needed to have him inside of me. I needed for him to claim me, not only because I was his mate, but because we had been apart for so long. My nipples tightened as he brushed against my chest. I nipped at his neck as he plunged his fingers deeper, but I wanted more. I wanted his thick cock sliding in and out of my wet core until we were both sated. Aerric must have read my thoughts because with one thrust he sheathed himself deep inside.

"By the gods, Aerric, do not stop." He complied with rough demanding strokes as he rubbed my nipple between his fingers.

My body trembled with each thrust, only spurring him even further to take me over the edge. The scent of sandalwood and leather mixing with the heat of our skin overwhelmed me as he drove himself deeper and deeper. His lips once again found mine as the waves of our orgasms simultaneously exploded, leaving us both breathless.

Aerric kissed me gently as he smiled against my lips. "In all of my days, I will never want anyone the way I want you. I have missed you, my love."

I looked into his eyes, which still swirled like molten lava, his passion not yet subsided. "I don’t understand how all this came to be, but as long as I am here in your arms, I won’t complain."

Aerric captured my lips once again, his hands caressing my face. "I will never let them take you from me again."

We stood there for a few moments longer, savoring one another as we kissed. I knew that it would be impossible for us to just go back to our home because here we were in the outer edges of the labyrinth, and if Aerric did not deliver me to the Nine and my grandmothers, there would be hell to pay. Aerric reluctantly helped me get dressed, apologizing each time he handed me a piece of tattered clothing. I made the pieces work enough to be covered.

Aerric shrugged on his jacket, which no longer had any buttons, but he just smirked. "I didn’t really like it anyway."

He intertwined his fingers with mine. "Are you ready to go?"

"No, but I know we don’t have a choice."

"We need to take a shortcut since we had our little detour here." He kissed my forehead as he wrapped his arms around me.

We faded to the opening of the sanctuary the goddesses called the labyrinth. The labyrinth was a series of mazes only family or members of the Nine could enter. The many entrances were intermingled amongst cairns and dolmans. If a human were to mistakenly find their way in here, they would be lost forever and most likely die, unless a member of the goddess’s court happened to stumble upon them. Supernaturals had a greater chance of survival, but the walls constantly moved and reconfigured themselves so that even the most talented mage would become disoriented and lose his way. The labyrinth was impenetrable unless you bore the mark: nine moons with a Celtic knot in the center.

As we stood before the thirty foot marble doors waiting for the magic in Aerric’s mark to open them, I took a moment to replay tonight’s events. There were so many questions I needed answers to, and only two women were capable of giving them to me. I bowed my head as the doors slowly opened and my black hair fell forward. With everything that had happened, I had completely forgotten about my costume. I looked over at Aerric for some kind of reassurance.

"I don’t know who I am anymore, Aerric." I pulled the wig off my head and let it fall at my feet. I looked different, I felt different, and now I was beginning to feel lost once again.

"I know who you are, and I will never let you forget it." He smiled as he grabbed my hand.

We walked forward into the foyer and the priestess greeted us. It had been a long time since I had been here in the labyrinth and I looked around, taking in the grandness of the space. I remember playing on the limestone stairs before me. As a child, I would run up and down, pretending I was drifting into the heavens. Mom would call up and say, "It’s time to return to me my child; you cannot stay within the clouds forever." I would giggle and respond. "But Máthair, this is where I wish to stay, there are no worries here." She would smile and look up at me leaning over the balcony. "My beautiful raven, how would I survive without your loving hugs though?" That would be all I needed to run back down the stairs, thumping my hands on the carved staircase as I ran towards my mother’s open arms. I looked up at the fresco painting and wished I could once again run up those stairs and play amongst the heavens, forgetting all that had transpired.