Infinity Unleashed (4 page)

Her breath caught in her throat. “How did you know?” Her mind raced with all of the possibilities.

“Even in this sick stupor, the Immortals have shown me everything, including the birth of your son, Boulder.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Does the Council know?”

He scoffed. “Those idiots? They’ve become so corrupt and blinded by power they have lost their way to the powers and guidance of the Immortals. No, they will never know of Boulder’s birth. The Immortals will do everything in our power to ensure that.” He smiled proudly, cupping her cheek. “You have done good. Your son is strong and worthy of the Thorburn name.” His eyes widened with awe. “We’ve never felt a power like his. When he came into this world, we felt his strength, his purpose, his gift. He will change everything for the Immortals and Others. Uniting them all with the help of his Valkyrie true-mate.”

Tears slipped down her cheeks. “Father, I’m so scared for him. How do I protect him?”

“Azura, he doesn’t need your protection. When the time is right, he will protect you.” He looked at her with power glistening in his eyes. “Despite what you think, the Immortals know about Glen’s plan to destroy the Others.”

Her mouth tightened. “So they give that psychopath the key to the castle as reward? Why don’t they just kill him? And throw in his sniveling father too.”

“You know it’s not that simple. There are laws binding us from killing our bloodline. Be patient.”

She crossed her arms defiantly. “I will never allow him to lead me.”

“And you don’t have to. Upon my death, declare emancipation from the Council.”

Her eyes narrowed. “What’s the catch?”



“Your sacrifice. You will release yourself from the binds of your life, including Hunter and your son… dedicating your life to working for the Immortals until you can convince Boulder to accept his right to reclaim the throne and his property.”

Her body stiffened. “And what if I fail?”

He looked at her sternly. “Failure is not an option.”

CHAPTER 4

The Present

“Boulder’s your son?” My mind was whirling from everything Azura showed me.

“He is mine, though he tries his damnedest to deny it.” Azura sighed heavily. “It doesn't help that he's angry with me at the moment, but he will adjust and forgive all of the deception given time,” she finished with a calm voice.

I rubbed the back of my neck trying in vain to relieve the tension. “And I thought I had problems,” I muttered under my breath.

I couldn't decide if it was a good or bad thing that Boulder and I had so much in common. Our mothers were overbearing crazies bent on controlling us, and we both had been handed a bullshit hand of cards courtesy of them.



“Our way of life is on the verge of turning to shit. Now that's a problem. You two whining about the lies we had to tell to keep it together for this long is total bullshit. Just get over it and move the hell on,” Azura bit out.

“Move the hell on?” My body tightened with rage. “Boulder and I have been force-fed a steady diet of lies from the day we were born, and now you expect us to smile and move the fuck on? Lady, that’s not even going to happen.”

My head snapped around, eyeing the door warily as the banging, snarling, and growling shook the walls. It was like the television version of wild kingdom was being filmed in the next room. “And what the hell is going on in there?”



Azura’s voice boomed. “Maybe I wasn’t clear, or maybe you couldn’t wrap your mind around the past that was revealed to you. But we have real shit going on here. Glen’s probation is almost up, and if Boulder and you don’t get your stuff together, Glen will rain hell on the Others.”

“First, there was way too much bass in your voice. I don’t like to be yelled at. Second, I can’t help you solve this Glen problem. Third, speak to your son and work it out.” My foot tapped impatiently. “So are we done here? I have an appointment with the devil, otherwise known as Mason.”

“Without you, Boulder does not have the power to stop Glen. You are his true-mate. You complete him… in more ways than one.”

I laughed loudly. “How do you know this for sure?” I asked sarcastically.

Not that I was opposed to exploring the many sensual possibilities of the hotness I called Boulder. Just the thought of riding that stallion hard and fast made my sex clench with need. But true-mates sounded too permanent and I didn’t believe in relationships. I’ve been burned way too many times to put myself out like that. Besides, I had no real clue about what Boulder really felt about me. I knew he was attracted to me, but it took a real connection to bond a couple to true-mate status.

I continued. “If you’re basing your theory on what your father and Immortals told you, then you need to reevaluate your whole strategy because no offense, I don’t trust either of them.”

Azura’s silence was deafening.

“Azura?”

“That’s why I’m here. I need information.”

My eyes narrowed as the tension in the room became oppressive. I could feel Azura’s anger seeping into the room. “What am I missing here?”

“I do not have permission to enter into this part of history. It is not mine to share.”

My eyes widened as all of the pieces of the puzzle finally came together. “You’re here because you need me to show you what’s behind that door.”

“Yes. It’s your beginning, but it is believed that this where Glen’s plan to destroy the Others took root. I need to know what happened in the past to stop him in the future.”

I licked my dry lips. “And if I refuse?”

Azura growled impatiently. “Glen will win, sealing the ultimate destruction of the Others.” She paused when the loud snarling and growling from the next room vibrated against the walls. “Valkyrie, you must show me what’s in that room.”

My hands were trembling. This was it. The moment I dreaded, learning the truth Mom tried so hard to bury. “Why does this feel so much bigger than me?”

“Because it is, but you’ve known that all your life. We must move on, Infinity. Time is running out. I’m struggling as it is to cloak us from Glen’s detection, but soon, he’ll catch on and figure out what I am doing. We need to move fast.”

This was all up to me now, and this time, I wasn’t going to stick my head in the sand and pretend it wasn’t happening. Besides, I was growing more pissed off by the minute, and I needed to know why Mom lied.

I shoved down my fear and pushed open the door, stopping short when I smelled something odd in the air. The hairs on my arms stood up warningly.

What the hell was that foul smell?

I dragged in another deep lungful and recognized the smell immediately. The air reeked of death and decay.

“What the hell is this?” I asked.

The door slammed open. “Move forward, Valkyrie.” Azura hissed menacingly.

Hesitantly, I peeked in, only to see huge wolf-shifters snarling and snapping as they launched themselves at vampires with blood-red eyes and sharp, razor-like nails extended from their pale fingers.

“Oh, hell no! I’m not going in there.” I stepped back, bumping into a hard force that brutally shoved me forward.

The force shoved again. “Woman up! This is nothing but a glimpse of the past. It cannot change or harm unless you command it to do so.”

Taking a couple of steps forward, I could physically taste the acrid blood lingering sickeningly in the air. My body froze with fear at the total chaos of the bloody fighting. Vampires swiped fiercely at men who transformed mid-air into huge, hairy, snarling wolves. It was unadulterated savagery. I gulped at the blood and body parts scattered across the floor like confetti.

Azura chuckled like some evil villain. “Courage, Valkyrie.” A gust of wind circled me, pushing me forward brutally. “Just in time… It looks like the star of the show is arriving.”

My head snapped around at the soft wisp of air whirling in a circular pattern. Out of thin air, Mom swooped out of the shadows decked out in a full-bodied, skin-tight, black leather cat suit with bright gold corset with intricate markings. Glorious ink-black wings protruded from her back as her tall, lithe body landed softly onto the ground into a crouch.

Frankly, she looked scary and totally badass.

“Mom!” I shouted as I stupidly ran toward her with arms wide open, only to have my hands pass straight through her body like some ghost aberration.

Mom shivered before looking around suspiciously.

“How can she sense me?” I asked flatly.

“Past, present, it doesn’t matter. Valkyries can automatically sense their sister’s power.”

I looked around accusingly. Something about this situation did not sit well with me. It felt like Azura was studying me like some lab rat in some horrible experiment. “Azura, why won’t you reveal yourself to me?”

“Won’t? I’m not controlling what you see. You are. I’m only a visitor to your past, like you were to mine.”

My head snapped around at the sound of ear-piercing snarls vibrating through the air as big wolf-shifters clashed with vampires. My eyes watered at the way they tore into each other ruthlessly. Men partially shifted into half-wolf, then ran past me while shooting at vampires. Upon impact, the bullets disintegrated the vampires into fiery embers. The air pulsed with such raw hatred and violence that it seeped into my pores, making me lightheaded.

I needed this to be over as quickly as possible. “Why are they fighting? Does this have anything to do with the Fire and Ash war?” I asked sharply.

“Yes,” she responded just as sharply.

“Is this the beginning or end of it?”

“Valkyrie, let me watch what is transpiring, then we both will have the answers to our questions,” Azura snapped.

We watched curiously as Mom’s hard, violet eyes assessed the battle chaos taking place before standing. “Shit! I hate these idiots,” she bit out before slowly releasing her grip on her guns.

My eyes widened at her blunt coldness. This version of Mom was different. Gone was the nurturing softness I grew up loving. Now, there was nothing but hard cruelty flicking through her demeanor as shifters decapitated vampires and the feral snarls and screams of dying vampires and wolves filled the air.

Mom’s gold arm gauntlets glistened as she impatiently tossed back her waist-length blond hair, pulled back in a long, rope-like braid. Her nose twitched at the sight of a strikingly handsome man with glistening coal-black hair that kissed his shoulders and eyes languid with bloodlust.

“And here’s the biggest idiot of them all,” Mom spat with disgust.

I shivered at the sudden gust of cold air. “Wait… I’ve seen him before. That’s Cortez Taron, the president of the Collective Corporation.”

Azura snorted. “That’s nothing but a fancy title for the head of the Vampire Collective. He’s a bloodthirsty, power-climbing, backstabbing vampire who, in this point in time, is nothing but the vampire king’s second-in-command.”

Cortez was the man Mom had believed was her true-mate. My eyes widened as his canines viciously tore into the neck of a shifter without flinching and specks of blood splattered against the pale skin of his cheekbones that looked chiselled from beautiful white marble.

Azura snorted. “Savage!”

Inching closer, I examined his over-six-foot frame swathed in badass attire: black jeans and a T-shirt that displayed the rippling muscles of his chest and legs.

My mind whirled with evil possibilities. “Can he help me kill Mason?”

Azura responded coolly. “I believe the correct question is will he?”

My eyes narrowed. Vampires killed Zoe and Diego. They couldn’t be trusted, but I was desperate. “So will he help me?”

“Cortez will do anything for a price.”

My body shivered at the chill in her words. No further clarification was needed. The price had absolutely nothing to do with money and everything to do with blood and power. “I guess charity is really dead.”

“There is no charity in Others. You will do well to remember that. Do you see that crazed lust to kill in his eyes? A look I have seen too many times in too many battles. Battles between him and Kara that’s ended with them bloody, battered, and sexually unfulfilled. A predicament that would remain that way until the end of time.”

For a long moment, I studied Mom. “I beg to differ. They’ve scratched that itch a long time ago.”

Azura clucked her tongue disapprovingly. “So the mighty Valkyrie finally succumbed to his darkness. This does not bode well for her future,” she responded. Disgust laced her voice.

I was getting so tired of her riddles. “What does that mean?”

“Given the fact she is still the High Council’s property, it means that Valkyries shouldn’t shit where they eat.”

“Property?”

“The Valkyries were created by the Immortals to be their enforcers, and by right, the High Council has the authority to control them in the name of the Immortals.”

“That’s all I am to them? A piece of property to be controlled and used at will?”

Azura sighed heavily. “That is Glen and the High Council’s belief. As a Valkyrie, you are his property, and believe me, he does not share well with Others.”

“Is it always about control and killing?” I asked.

“For Glen and the Council, yes, but it wasn’t always that way. When my father ruled, the Valkyries were like his daughters and he loved them dearly. It will be that way again when Boulder takes the throne.”

“If he takes the throne…”

Azura laughed coldly. “And given your current predicament, it is in your best interest to sway that decision.”

I cringed at the truth. “I didn’t ask for this.”

“None of us asked for this. The Immortals bring balance. The Valkyries bring death. The High Council wreaks havoc. We all have our place in the circle of life.”

“Well, I choose not to kill.” I paused. “Scratch that… I choose not to kill anyone but Mason. He has a slow, painful death at the end of a rusty knife coming to him.” I’d never killed a thing in my life, but I had no doubt I wouldn’t lose a wink of sleep upon his death.

“See how the act of taking life seems so natural to you? Smell the blood and death in the air. Doesn’t it make your heart race and mouth water with the need to jump into the fray? Doesn’t it feed your lust to kill and destroy?” Azura taunted.