Immortal Awakening: Immortal Heart (3 page)

Kale shook his head. “No, Cree needs to stay here. The castle will need protection.”

“So will Makiah.”

A new seriousness took residence in Kale’s features as he nodded. “True.”

Kat sighed. “Do you think we’ll ever get a chance to just breathe?”

Kale dipped his forehead to hers. “Someday, Kitten. Someday.”

A knock echoed through the room, causing Kale to let Kat go and answer it. Uriah and Marie stood on the other side with a bright-eyed Makiah in Uriah’s arms. Kale tilted his head. “What’s up, brother?”

Uriah smiled. “I need your help.”

Kale stepped to the side so they could enter. That was when he noticed the two bags hanging from Marie’s shoulders—one blue and brown and the other hot pink and zebra printed.

“What’s going on, Uriah?”

Marie smiled. “Well, it’s more that we need Kat’s help.”

Kat nodded. “What can I do?”

“They can’t stay here,” Uriah started. “I talked to Makyle before his brothers took him. The deal was Makyle’s life in exchange for Makiah’s freedom. He was fine with that deal, but I can’t sit here and allow him to suffer, and we all know that Izzy won’t turn her back on what’s happening. So I need to get my son beyond the Immortals’ reach.”

Kat furrowed her brows. “What do you need from me?”

“Holly spoke with Evan. He’s agreed to take Marie and Makiah in… I was hoping you’d be willing to go with them. Marie is new to our world, and you know the vampires.”

“You need me because Holly is going with Bain and Izzy,” Kat said with a sad smile. She was always going to be the one they sent fleeing.

Uriah handed Makiah to Kale as he shook his head and stepped closer to Kat. “No. I want you to go because you are strong enough to survive the human world and keep the two most important people in my life safe. I am responsible for what is happening here, and I can’t leave my brothers to fix things while I protect my son and the woman I love. But I also can’t help my brothers unless I know Marie and Makiah are safe. Will you help us?”

Kat smiled and nodded. “On one condition.”

Uriah tilted his head, but nodded. “Sure. Name it.”

“You keep my true mate safe. And you protect my family… I am nothing without all of you.”

Uriah smiled and pulled her into his arms. “That’s where you’re wrong, Katarina. You’re purer and stronger than anyone I’ve ever met.”

She laughed softly… she was far from pure, but she didn’t argue. “When do we leave?”

Uriah’s gaze shifted to Kale. “A couple hours. If that works for the two of you.”

Kale handed Makiah to Marie and nodded. “We’ll make it work.”

Marie looked to Kat. “Thank you.”

Kat nodded and moved to Kale. She wrapped her arm around his waist. He pulled her tight to his side and dropped his lips to her temple. “We’d do anything for that little one.”

“That we would,” Kale agreed. “But now you two need to get out so I can enjoy those couple hours with my Kitten.”

Marie laughed. “I’d say have fun, but we all know you already plan on it. We’ll meet you in the Hole in a bit.”

Kale lifted Kat into his arms the second the door closed behind Uriah and Marie. With swift movements, her jeans were in shreds on the floor and his were joining them. Pressing her back to the wall, he made quick work of the buttons on her shirt, and his lips devoured her skin as he sank deep inside of her. Lifting his face to hers, he whispered, “I love you,” before capturing her mouth in a needy, heat-filled kiss.

“You moved him ahead of schedule,” Zarek accused, as he entered the great room of the black castle.

Josiah lifted his gaze and nodded. “I did, in fact. It was my shift to watch over him, and I made the call to move him from the Ogres’ cave. He was meant to be on display and left to the mercy of those who reside in each level. He was not to be their dinner, and that was where he was headed.”

“You look at me as though I came to this punishment on my own.
We
chose this.”

“Correct… only you seem to find more joy in it than myself and Alistair.”

Zarek scoffed. “I believe it is time for Makyle to remember his place. He’s been weakened by his relationship with the Fae. Our world is black and white! You break the rules, you must be punished in order to restore balance.”

“We may live in a world of black and white, but Makyle—and even our sisters—see many shades of gray, which means Makyle sees his relationship with the warriors and the half-breed, Izzy, in a much different light than you or even I. He believes those relationships have made him better… stronger and wiser.”

Zarek groaned. At some point over the past few years, he had become the unreasonable one because he refused to yield when it came to his responsibilities to his domain and the Fae species in general. He was losing his brothers to free will and emotions. How could they have lived so long in the routine and roles the Fates set forth for them just to suddenly question all they had been created for?

“Perhaps by the time he moves through the nine levels, he will see things the way we do—or the way we all used to—If not, we will be forced to reevaluate his position among us.”

“You wish to relieve him of his role?” Josiah questioned.

“Of course not… we will just have to reevaluate his level of involvement.”

Alistair entered the room then. “I don’t believe it will come to that; from what I gather, he may no longer wish to rule at all.”

Josiah tilted his head at his brother. “What makes you say that?”

“It may have been your shift, Josiah, but I never trust an ogre, especially when there is fresh flesh involved. I heard your conversation with Makyle. The rule of the Underworld may shift to just three.”

“Impossible… we are the Immortal Four—we were created to rule,” Zarek stated firmly.

“Perhaps, but do you honestly not find it funny that there are four of us and only three sisters? The Underworld is out of balance; it always has been.”

“The Fates created us this way for a reason,” Zarek said with barely veiled annoyance. He was getting tired of all his siblings questioning everything.

“And the Fates aren’t ill-behaved? They don’t do things for their own amusement?” Josiah countered in a deadpan tone.

Zarek grunted and exited the room. “It’s my turn to watch over our brother.”

“Keep an eye out for the banshees; they were all over him earlier.”

****

Samira’s lids fell heavily. She’d fought it as long as she could, but the bed in the room the warriors had provided her in the Light Castle called to her. There wasn’t any magic protecting her yet, and there wasn’t even a plan to help her thus far.

Bain’s mate, Izzy, was a feisty bitch. She hated to admit to herself that she liked her. The once human was eternally loyal, and she loved that bastard, Makyle. Samira couldn’t help but wonder if she was what had changed Makyle from the man she’d met so many years ago. Sure, he had
saved
her, so there was softness in him all those years ago, but he was different now—with the child, with the warriors, and even with her.

As sleep took her, the peace of a dreamless slumber was soon replaced with the blazing orange and red of liquid fire cutting through the dark landscape. Sweat began to form on Samira’s lip as she stood upon the onyx shore of the rapidly moving river of fire, flames licked at the shore reaching out to light the darkness and cast eerie shadows around her. With each popping bubble, fire was spat into the sky. Swiping at the moisture that clung to her delicate skin, she turned from the mesmerizing scene. The river was deadly and gorgeous, all at the same time, but she knew it meant she was visiting the Underworld. She scanned the barren land until her gaze fell upon Makyle, bound by barbed wire to a cross on the black sand of the river’s bank. His eyes were closed, but his lips moved slowly as he mouthed a string of words. Moving closer to him, Samira studied his lips.
Isabelle, Makiah, Jelena, the warriors, Samir—Sam.

Sam? Was he somehow finding strength in the thought of her?

She sighed and felt her heart ache at the site of the once-proud Ruler. Blood crusted where the barbs held him to the cross that suspended him above the sandy shores of the Underworld’s prominent river.

“They’re going to come for you,” she whispered to him.

His one eye cracked open and seemed to search for the source of the words she’d just spoken.

With a hopeful step, she moved closer. For all her anger and hate… even she could admit that he didn’t deserve this. “Makyle? Can you hear me?” she asked hopefully.

A smile pulled at his cracked lips.

“Hallucinations. I would prefer the visual kind, but a conversation is good too… So tell me, Samira, who do you suspect is going to come for me?”

Samira’s eyes widened. He could hear her. Stepping even closer to him, she cautiously lifted her palm to his chest. “Izzy. She would fight through heaven and hell to save you. She loves you.”

Makyle chuckled, which lead to a bout of coughing, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. “Now I know for
sure
that this is all in my head. My Sam would have nothing of kind words for me.”

Samira’s head fell back… was she truly so cruel to him that even now, as she attempted to relieve some of his suffering, he couldn’t accept it because the words were spoken from her tainted lips?

“I’m sorry that my anger has poisoned even these words. But your Izzy loves you, and she will come for you.”

“My baby Fae,” he murmured, before his head fell forward once more.

Sam held her gaze on his beaten form as he began to fade and she found herself in the comforts of the Light Fae castle once more. Blowing out a deep breath, she rolled to her side. Confusion was swelling and crashing over her.

What was wrong with her?

Her emotions were all over the place, and deep down, she knew it was because she’d never been allowed to feel what was truly churning inside of her. All her life, she had lived at the whim of others. When she finally found herself in the Human world, she felt cut off from any emotion that weakened her. All she really knew was survival.

With each connection to Makyle, she felt something deep inside of her soften, release, and emotions began to confuse what she had always known of herself.

Holly’s feet hit the marble floors of Evan’s Vegas compound home with unearthly speed. For as much as she loved being back in the Middle World with her Fae family, she missed her vampire family like crazy. Lothar held back a twinge of jealousy as Holly threw herself into Evan’s arms. The vampire leader held her tight and placed a kiss on the top of her head. Lothar didn’t do well in hiding a possessive growl as Evan’s lips made contact with her honey curls.

Evan let Holly go and smirked at Lothar. “It sounds like your man takes issue with my greeting you, Hols.”

Holly arched a brow and shook her head at Lothar as she extended her hand and pulled him to her.

“Knock it off,” she scolded.

Lothar sighed. “Apologies. I may be spending too much time with your brother.”

Evan grunted. “That simply won’t do… I would bet that Bain still hates me.”

Holly tilted her head and frowned at him.

Evan laughed. “Well, at least a little.”

“He won’t after this,” Uriah said as he, Kat, and Marie, with Makiah in her arms, approached the group.

Evan smiled as he looked down at the child and extended his arms. “May I?”

Marie’s gaze shifted to Uriah with barely hidden panic. Uriah kissed her temple and lifted Makiah from her arms. “He won’t hurt him. He’s the reason we brought you here.”

Marie sighed and looked to Evan. “I’m sorry. It’s the whole vampire thing.”

Evan chuckled, studying Makiah as he grasped at Evan’s fingers. “That’s because you were raised human. Believe me when I say there is no place safer from the Immortal Rulers—or anyone for that matter—than inside the gates of my coven’s home.”

Marie worried her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment before finally nodding.

“Now, follow me, and I’ll show you to your rooms. Then, we can take a seat, and you can explain to me what sort of trouble you all have found yourselves in…
again
.”

“You make it sound like we’re the troublesome younger siblings,” Holly mumbled.

Evan turned and grinned at her. “You, my dear, were the source of
all
my trouble.”

“Hey!” Holly exclaimed.

Evan laughed. “I’ve always loved a little trouble and pushing against the rules that define us. You know that.”

Holly shrugged. It was true. That was how Evan’s coven came to find themselves living in the Human World.

Marie’s eyes widened as she was ushered into the room she and Makiah would be calling home for the foreseeable future. It was beautiful and lavish. The large bed was covered in plush turquoise bedding with thick, lined, silk drapes blocking out the sun from the massive windows. The room was furnished with dark, polished wood furniture, including a crib and changing table with everything she would need to care for Makiah.