Jonas (Darkness #7) (7 page)

His fingers resumed stroking. “And then there was that halvsie she found. That guy—he’s a nutcase. Most people, besides the Boss or Jameson, won’t look me straight in the eye. Not for any period of time, anyway. He did. Right when I first met him he shot me a hard challenge. Couldn’t give a shit if he was outgunned or not. And just like Sasha, that guy threw his balls to the walls immediately. Waltzed into a larger race with a hard eye and infallible confidence. He’s my kind of nut.

“Then there’s the other humans—those harebrained witches—and babies being introduced, and more magic… Cato’s right. He’s the craziest of all, but he saw it from the first moment of meeting Sasha. Looked beyond all our prejudices and saw what would make the race as a whole stronger. And we are—we
are
stronger as a united force.” Jonas shrugged. “Just got to open the eyes to see it. Gotta swallow that pill.”

Emmy slid up his chest until her lips slid across his. “Then I got lucky with the timing. Touch me, Jonas.”

Jonas wasted no time. With his fingers splayed, he slid his hands down her smooth back. He deepened the kiss, tasting her. Feeling her tongue retreat and invite him in. He moved his hands to the top of her back again, and this time when he slid them down, he hooked his thumb in her straps and pulled her gown down. Her warm chest met his, skin on skin. He could feel her hard nipples rubbing against his pecs.

After removing her whips and knives, he brought his hands around her waist and pushed them up her stomach and over her firm breasts. She moaned into his mouth as her body moved away from his, giving him space to work. He did so. He bent his head and kissed down her neck and onto her chest. He flicked a nipple with his tongue and pinched the other before enveloping the small bud with his hot mouth. Her moan was louder this time. Her hips gyrated against his, needy. Insistent.

He increased the suction on one nipple before moving to the next. Then more suction, bordering on painful. He just wanted to see her tolerance. See what she liked. Her sharp inhale of breath was followed by a groan of delight. He bit softly before backing off and blowing lightly.

“Oh holy hell,” she breathed.

Jonas flicked her nipple again, manipulating it with his tongue. He let his fingertips drift down her back in light caresses. Teasing her. Making her anticipate. When her breath started to increase in heaviness, and her hips started to swing wildly, he sucked in her nipple and bit a little harder this time. He pinched the other with the same strength.

“Oh shi—“ Her body trembled against him. Her hands clawed at his back and her head fell to the side. “Oh wow.”

Jonas started to kiss up her neck again, light and teasing. Building her again softly. Making her wait for the harder friction. Learning her body with touch in the process.

“Take my blood.” Her voice was heady. Somewhat wild. “You’ll need the strength.”

“So will you,” he countered. He nibbled her lips.

“Not as much as you, Jonas.” She rose up onto her knees. He leaned forward and found her breasts. He sucked one in as he felt hands at his waistline. “Help.”

With a smile, he lifted up on his hands so she could work his sweats down around his thighs. He sat back down on the cold, stone floor. A rug of some sort would’ve been nice, but as her body moved over him, and her wetness touched off his tip, he forgot all about it. Instead, all his focus went to the hotness of her core as she sat. Her core enveloped him. Electricity filled his body. The world dimmed to just her. To the feel of her body and the subtle movements over him.

“Take my blood,” she urged with a sigh. “I want it.”

He couldn’t deny her. Not when she asked like that, with her voice desperate. Wild. Needing to feel this thing between them with reckless abandon. She rose and then sat down on him again, harder. As he plunged into her, feeling sensations he could barely handle, he bit the delicate skin on her neck. She rose up slowly, breathing heavily. He sucked in her essence, taking a long draw.

“Oh my—Oh gods. Oh—“ Emmy clutched onto him. Her nails dug deeply into his back and then scored down his skin. Hot, stinging pain flared. Then pooled. Then turned into white-hot pleasure.

He thrust upward into her as she was coming down. His skin smacked off of hers as pleasure assaulted him. Her blood fell over his tongue in a burst of flavors and colors he’d never tasted before. Like a deep, underground river, the currents arrested him and sucked him under. Her floral scent wrapped around him as he tasted spices and danger. The desire to run headfirst into battle rose up. Of courage and steadfastness. Of hot nights and victory. His blood sang as it mingled with hers. His adrenaline keyed up.

He couldn’t think any more. There were only sensations. There was only her.

“You taste—“ He took another long draw. Her moaning filled his ears. Her body moved faster over him. His manhood plunged in and out of her. Her body stroked him. Made his balls tingle. Made his head swim.

His eyes rolled into the back of his head as an orgasm tore through him. She shuddered over him a moment later, crying out and then muffling it within his neck. Their panting filled the quiet room. Her presence, her body, her feel, filled his everything.

They would live through this, and he would make her his mate. There was no other way to play it.

As that thought settled into him with a comfortable surety, they heard distant shouting.

“He’s coming,” Emmy said in a strangled voice.

I
hopped
out of the car a moment after it rolled to a stop. We’d arrived in a dusty field ten miles outside of town. It was the only place in this area that didn’t have some sort of farming setup. With the yellowed grasses and uncultivated ground, it looked like a farmer had long since given up and moved away, never having sold his land so someone else could make a go out of it.

Once upon a time, I wouldn’t have noticed. I would’ve just passed this field with a brief glance at the deserted nature of it. Now, however, I rolled my eyes and scoffed.
Obviously
there was something hidden here. No way would land this fertile go unworked. No way would one building-size plot of land, perfectly square with the perimeter defined,
not
be housing a bunch of Stefan’s race trying to hide from the humans.

A line of cars had stopped in the middle of the street. Many had pulled to the side, ruining some cabbage, but a great many had just stopped. If someone wanted to get through, they were out of luck. I had no idea what Cato had done to keep the humans away, but whatever it was, it worked like Raid to ants. Not one person drove down this road that wasn’t here for a huge battle over American soil.

Warriors of one size—gigantic—gathered along the edge of the road. Each body stood straight and tall, dressed in leathers with swords at their sides or on their backs, sporting grim and terrifying expressions. These were the best of the best, that was clear. With their perfectly-sculpted muscles decked out in vicious, jagged scars, these gals and guys had all seen plenty of action. Their shoulders were set and eyes hard, staring at the empty space as if looking into the eyes of their enemy. They were just waiting for someone to kill.

The line of warriors was four deep and as long as the plot of land. There must’ve been a thousand people for the front line. Behind them, sporadic, were more warriors with less scars but harder expressions. Most looked older, and often they surveyed the toes of the men nearest the dirt. They were probably the commanders who would orchestrate the charge.

Cato stood in the cabbage field. Spread out around him were people with some mark denoting their ability at advanced magic. Some held hands, and some stood with heads bowed, but all stared unfocused. They were working.

“Love.” I turned at Stefan’s voice. He walked up beside me as he scanned the front line. He glanced back at all his warriors getting out of the cars, then turned his attention down to me. “You don’t need me for this. I’ll be working with the warriors.” He bent so his face was closer and his eyes bored into mine. “Stay safe, do you hear me? Don’t be a hero.”

“I’m totally going to be a hero.” I winked at him. I was pretty sure I still had raging anxiety in my gaze. Before a battle, I was scared shitless. This wasn’t new. The fireworks had to actually get started before my courage got fired up and my brain shut off.

“I love you.” He bent and kissed me. “I’m leaving Charles with you. Hopefully we’ll have Jonas by our side soon enough.”

“I just have to crack this bitch open and let him out,” I said with bravado I didn’t feel. The magazine paper of directions Emmy had given me crinkled in my fist.

Stefan nodded as warm comfort infused our link. “Call me if you need anything.”

I watched him stride away with a sense of loss. That feeling never went away when he put distance between us, and the rush of bliss always rushed me when I saw him again. That’s just how it was.

Which was not helping at the moment.

“All right. Time’s a wastin’.” I glanced back the way we’d come and saw Paulie stalking down the street with his straight and determined walk. My clan nodded to him as he passed, but those that didn’t know him gave him a double-take. He looked both human and like Stefan’s race, and he wore his halvsie status with pride. Gold flared up his arms, highlighting his tattoos.

A crew of mostly hippies and older women followed him like a flock. They tittered and looked around with wide eyes, many staring at that field as if their gazes would eventually penetrate the magical defenses. If Paulie got double-takes, the witches and warlocks (there were men now, too) got open-mouthed gawks. We had the largest collection of human magic-workers in the entire world. Seriously, the whole world—unless someone was hiding their humans, that was. Cato didn’t think so, though. We were an anomaly and often laughed at within the Council.

Of course, being that the Council was a broken-down wreck, and since my clan’s united status was producing a larger next generation as well as increasing our magical ranks, we cared not at all. And not only that, Toa said we were finding traits in magic they thought were long extinct. Tarot cards, crystal balls, palms and ghosts acted as a medium for many humans to foresee the future, or work intricate magic that bent the elements in different ways. Toa was setting up a residence within the Mansion so he could spend more time analyzing. He’d come up with some crazy things, mostly forgotten magical relics, working with the rudimentary magic the humans used.

“He hasn’t figured out the notes you gave him, obviously,” Charles said as we walked toward Cato.

My mouth turned into a thin line. I had hoped that giving Cato the directions over the phone that Emmy had given me would have opened some magical door and we’d arrive to a battle already in progress. Or at least with a gate we could storm. No such luck.

We wound between the cars and slowed as we neared Cato’s cluster. He looked up and met my eyes, as if he’d seen me coming even though he’d had his eyes closed. And he probably had, since I was always connected with magic. Just like him.

“Sasha, ah. Lovely to see you. Thank you for those notes. So very helpful.” The group around Cato split down the middle, opening a path for me to walk closer.

“Have you made any progress?” I asked, half-turning so I could watch Stefan organizing his men with Dominicous, who stood slightly removed from the waiting warriors.

“We’ve cleverly masked and then dismantled the spells. They are extremely intricate. The notes have been invaluable, though strangely cryptic.”

“I don’t think the person who gave me those works with magic. She’s half-human. I get the feeling—“

“Ah yes. Emmy, if I am not mistaken. She would be the only one with intimate knowledge of Nathanial’s spell-working—who has surely set all this up. He assumes, incorrectly, that humans cannot understand the working of magic. He would be more open around her. No one but him could have. Yes. Emmy has a rare and sought-after blood type. It is like a drug for those going into battle, I have heard. Nathanial guards her religiously, though his treatment of her…” Cato looked out over the cabbage field in thought. “I wonder how she was able to get his phone without being subdued immediately.”

“I get the feeling she’s into Jonas. Or using him to get out. He seems into her, at any rate. He thinks she has a tracking thing on her person.”

Cato nodded slowly as his eyes lost focus. He stared at me without actually staring at me for about thirty seconds. I shifted both in impatience and from being extremely uncomfortable. When his eyes honed back in, he gave me a slight smile. “One more down. Only two to go and then we can start working on the disillusionment charm.”

Impatience won out. “Are you serious? Holy crap, Cato, this is taking way too long. Jonas is in there.” I glanced around and caught sight of Delilah hobbling up the road. Her man was holding her hand and glaring at everyone around them. Birdie was right beside her with new ink on her arms, a dagger at her back, and dressed in a Karate gi that didn’t fit her huge bosom quite right.

“Let’s get this show on the road. I’ll get all the witches assembled. We’re either going to take these down or blow them up.” I made a circle in the air with my finger as I connected eyes with Paulie. He nodded and turned to the crowd of humans at his back. With only a head flick, he had them all walking to me with nervous smiles and wringing hands.

This was the first time most of them would see a real battle. I had a feeling they thought it was like watching Shakespeare in the park. I wasn’t planning on spoiling the horrible, shocking surprise of what it would actually be. I needed them here too badly.

“They’re like a pack of children,” someone said from Cato’s crew. I could see a few members of the Clutch, the mages to the Council members, shift uncomfortably. They were supposed to be backing Cato—thinking humans in their fold was a good idea. It didn’t seem like they were really on-board with that idea, though.

Didn’t matter. We’d prove them wrong.
Hopefully.

“Delilah, how are you?” I asked, looking worriedly at the heavily-pregnant woman.

She smiled. Irritation ate away at her features, though. She was about ready to pop. “I’m fine if everyone would stop hovering over me. We have a four-wheel drive and know of the closest hospital. I’ll be fine.”

“Great. Paulie is bringing around your chair. We’ll sit you in the back. All we need is to get 90% through the spell, and then we’ll get you out of here, okay?”

“Fine, fine.” She waved her hand in impatience. “Let’s do this.”

She was so ready to be done with pregnancy. I knew exactly how she felt.

I ignored outraged murmurs from Cato’s crew regarding Delilah’s condition as I turned to the humans. Just as I was about to tell them to call the corners—they
insisted
I use that terminology so they could be a little different in their approach than Stefan’s people—Toa glided out from between two cars and stopped directly at my side. He glanced over the gathered humans and then honed his unblinking, blue stare on me.

“Sasha, I am having Dominicous and Stefan move everyone back from the line. We will have them duck behind a line of cars. With that in mind, the magic-workers should push back further into the field. This way, when you don’t immediately crack the spell, you can use your method.”

My method. Blowing up the spells with my inverted magic. It was another reason having human magic was awesome—no one fortified against us because no one worked with humans. Toa was the leading creator of spells I couldn’t just blow away, and that was only because he was tired of me cheating. This Nathanial character wouldn’t have thought of it—not with how he viewed humans.

Cheat to win.

“Call the corners, everyone,” I commanded as I turned and jogged to the open field.

The witches gathered in a tight horde behind me. Delilah was carried back farther still before her man ran off muttering about moving the car closer. With our mill-in-flocking nature, and the wide eyes and twittering, we were proving how naïve we were to all this. We made Cato’s crew look like the military.

Soon that wouldn’t matter, though.

I felt the stirring of the elements around me. Like atoms starting to heat up, the swirls of elements raced around excitedly, riding the currents as people drew in power. Toa moved right to my side, his magic ready to link when I was ready. When the witches were ready.

“I thought I was supposed to link with Cato this time,” I said in a hush so as not to distract the witches and warlocks. Most of the humans still needed to focus to do this. They’d come a long way in a short amount of time, but they still had a long way to go.

Toa turned his stare to Paulie on my other side, then to Charles in front of me. Finally to all the humans at my back. “You will when we start to battle. For now, as the white more familiar with your… style, I will aid as well as monitor. I will be masking your efforts until your frustration level takes your level-headedness away. Then we will need to plan how you take down their defense.”

“Because if I don’t do it right, they’ll know we’re here?” I felt the swell of power behind me. The arms of magic reached, ready to link. I connected with each of them, over thirty in all. Since I only needed their energy, the size of the link didn’t matter. That’s why Cato and my magic was awesome for this type of thing—limitless power and easy linking, as long as we had the energy to back us.

“Precisely. It would be best to dismantle the traps. After that, faster is better.” Toa connected with me and half-staggered. Charles stepped closer and put a hand out to steady him. “They have grown in power, as a whole.”

“Yeah. Master Bert has become really good with humans. Who would’ve known? Okay.” I blasted my magic out toward the empty field, and then slowed down. I let the magic descend gently, like a soft mist. Immediately I felt these strange, jagged areas out toward the front. If they were physical, they’d be like clusters of spikes, ready to stick someone who came too close. In addition, there were little feelers. Weird little additions to the spell like tripwires. They were woven tightly within the spell. The whole thing looked like an abstract, beautiful torture device.

I now saw what took so long.

“So… this is intense.” I let my magic drift into the cracks and seams, looking at the construction. Finer than any spider’s web, and infinitely more sticky; if I didn’t work the inverted spell just right, the original spell would go
boom
and spray everyone with sharp, magical spikes. Worse still, it would immediately alert everyone in the invisible complex that we were here.

“Yup. This guy is way out of my league. Delilah?” I didn’t bother glancing back. I could feel her working within my magical touch in that strange way she did.

“I would love to study this. It’s… unlike anything I have ever seen,” I heard from about thirty feet behind me.

“That’s not saying much,” Charles muttered. “It’s not like she’s been doing this for very long.”

“Not helping.” I rubbed at my brow. “Toa?”

“It took Cato and the Clutch an hour to dismantle the other two. The disillusionment spell is bound to be ten times as intricate. As I understand it, we don’t have that kind of time.”

“Blow this shit up and let’s get in there.” Paulie’s gruff voice had a few warriors looking back.

“We’ve been working on the disillusionment charm,” Cato said from beside his crew. “Subtly, of course. Just little tweaks and breaks. Getting it ready. If you would be so kind as to sink your human magic in the various pitfalls we have created, as you get a hold of the trap spells, and then apply your adverse magic, I think it will set off the implosion. That is how you are often able to blow things up, if what Toa has said is true. That is why working
with
human power to create spells is the strongest magic known to the world. There is not this imbalance—“