Shadows of the Keeper (38 page)

He softly smiled.  “It isn’t
the first time I’ve bled over you.”

She looked up at him, quizzically.

“There is more,” he said, his voice
low.

“Always is.”

“Do you understand fusing?”

She shook her head.

“His blood now flows through you.”

“Oookay.”

“It was not an easy decision for
him to make.”

A sense of inadequacy swept over
her.  “Yes, my being this Im’pyur you spoke of
is
a terrible
downside.”

“Sharing blood.  That’s what
wasn’t easy for him.  It is a serious decision.  He didn’t have time
to confer with you, and explain what the consequences would be.  You are
hapless against the bond with him now.”  Inzyr hesitated.  “Emily,
should he die, there will never be an end to your grief.  It won’t be like
human women in your world where, as years pass, the pain lessons and good
memories fill the void.  Lumynari bonding creates the opposite.  The
more time that passes, the deeper your loss; the deeper your grief.  None
will be able to fill your heart.  This is fusing.  None ever agree to
such a binding, save for a few.  Our world is too violent from crib to
coffin.”

“Yet, he takes his time to claim
me.  Reeks of regret.” 

Lightly, he fingered a loose
tendril of hair on her cheek before tucking it behind her ear. 

Emily looked down at the gleaming
black floor.  If her damn lip didn’t stop trembling, her eyes flooding
with new tears.  “Not surprised.  No one is interested in me, only
this person I supposedly was in another life, the power I have buried, and a
group of Elders I’m to be protecting.  Then there’s the one who, if I
mention his name, you go ape shit, showing up at various times in my
life.  I was accused of being
his
whore.  Nice.” 
Hysterical giggling bubbled.  “How can one be a whore, yet no man has ever
remained interested long enough to discover I’ve never been touched?”

“Emily.”

“Can’t tell you how welcome Broc
made me feel.”  She stepped back, hand flying to her chest.  “I’m a
memory to them.  There’s a portrait of Aurelia.  Freaky, really, how
we’re twins.  They have it hanging in a library of sorts, though I think
it’s been long forgotten.  Fitting.  Did Aurelia suffer a sense of
never belonging?  The first time Peter put his hands around my throat—how
come you didn’t kill Peter, but you killed Millie?”

“I was with my mother.  In her
realm, I am blind to the conspiracies transpiring in the mortal’s realm.”

“I should have stayed my ground and
never allowed him back into my life.  But no, not me, I have to belong—“

“Emily.”

“. . . feel a part of something
because there’s been this emptiness—“

Clicks releasing locks and chasings
yanked her attention to the onyx door.  Quickly, she stepped closer to her
father.  Glistening spiders slid out from deep ports and followed their
macabre paths, twisting, scuttling, turning.  Just as before, they settled
deeply into their tiny caves.  “Don’t you have a doorbell or something?”

Inzyr wrapped a powerful arm around
her.  “You have always belonged.  I could not allow you to be a part
of my world.  You would not have survived it.  The person you have
become is what your mother wanted.  Naivety.  Though I didn’t agree,
it was her dying wish.”

“Shouldn’t you be getting a weapon
ready?”  She hiccupped.  “I don’t think I’m in a killing mood right
now.”

He remained somber.  “Only one
knows the code to enter my quarters.”

“No!  Not
him
!” 
She furiously dried her face on her sleeve.  “I do
not
want to talk
to him right now.  It’s been too—“

His magnificent body stepped
through, completely clad in black.  His hair seemed whiter, glowing,
unbraided and falling to his waist.  He was so male, so bracing, his gaze
possessing, their breathing unified.  Her lip trembled.

His presence commanded the room.

Tears blurred her vision.

He simply held out his hand. 
“Come to me, Keer’dra.”

She dove.

Instantly ensconced within his
embrace, he held tightly, crushing her to him.  The top of her head was
showered with kisses, unintelligible words muttered into her hair, his large
hand cupping her head against him.

“The need to wait ceases to exist,”
Inzyr stated, touching the runes.  “I will not return this night.” 
His stare at Dezenial was not lost to Emily. 

Dezenial curtly nodded.  “It
is done.”  He bent slightly, and swung Emily up into his arms. 
Striding towards a chamber as, behind them, the door mechanics clicked back
into place announcing he and his life-mate were alone.

Languidly, she stretched, halting
her hand midair.  White gauzy
something
wrapped tightly around her
sprained wrist.  It had an uncanny resemblance to the woven ooze Spinners
had wrapped her body in.  Sickened, she dropped her hand.  Out of
sight, out of mind.

She felt peaceful; alive. 
Cherished.  Exhilarated; tranquil.  Terrified her first time would be
as the rumors warned, painful, she’d stiffened.  He’d enlightened her that
Lumynari males absorbed their mate’s pain.  Emily giggled.  And
covered her face, though no one was currently present to see her blush.

It had been the most miraculous,
spectacular, toes curling, still left quivering event of her life.  More
blushing.  More grins. 

Gah
!

Candlelight flickered, a soft hue
warming the room with just enough light as to not have her swallowed in
darkness.  Now she understood why Inzyr was dumbfounded over her fear of
the dark.  Being half Lumynari, she should bask in shadows. 
Eh-eh. 
Shadows are where creepy shit hides, waiting to pounce.
  Dezenial
respected her need for light.  Inhaling deeply, a contented sigh about to
escape—

She bolted upright.

Coffee
!

Deep chuckling reached her from
beyond her partially open door.  “Wrap yourself.  We are not
alone.  Come get your poison,” Dezenial called from, she assumed, the
galley.

Coffee.  Hell, I’ll storm
naked—

“Use the blanket, Keer’dra.  I
will clothe you later.  You are not permitted to allow any to view what is
mine.”

She snatched the thin coverlet
around her, and stormed from the bedroom.  “Must you always be in my
mind?  Is
nothing
sacred?” She glared.  Until his mouth caught
her attention.  A delightful shiver of wanting ran through her.  Heat
warmed her face.  What he’d done with his tongue, upon her ankle,
swirling, hot breath—she’d climaxed!  His tongue, last night, on her
ankle!  Her breasts began to ache with need, they too having succumbed to
his mouth.  His hands.  Her eyes dropped down to his hands currently
stilled.  Good God, the things those fingers were capable of.  Claw
marks ribboned his biceps—marked for any fool female thinking to slink near
him!  She knew, without seeing, his back didn’t fare any better. 
Little tremors shook her.  Her eyes lazed back up to his chiseled
mouth.  A sardonic grin lazed across it now, his task momentarily halted,
watching her.

“Oh, just give me the damn
coffee.”  She snatched the large mug he held out for her, stomping away
from him and joined her father at the table.  He grinned like a
loon.  “You too?”  Very male all-knowing look shared with Dezenial
didn’t get past her.

“I’m seriously tempted to toss this
on you,” she warned her newfound sire.

“I would then be forced to teach
you respect.”

“Prepare to be disappointed. 
Precious commodity in this cup.  Mine.” She sipped, and purred with
appreciation.  “Perfect.”  She crossed her legs, made sure the
blanket covered all the important parts, and glanced around for a clock. 
“How do you know what time of day it is?  Doesn’t the lack of sunlight
make you crazy?”

“Unlike our Lumynari brethren, we
are not chained to darkness,” Dezenial stated, joining them.  “And we do
have tolling bells to announce the passing hour.” 

His voice muted.  His body
distracted her.  The closer he stood, the more she crackled. 
Jeeze,
it’s like he’s a walking Taser
. 

He grinned.  “We will commence
again what we shared last night, since you feel . . .
charged
.”

She choked.  Burning dark
liquid scalded her throat.  “Could you keep those comments private.”

“Sex amongst Lumynari is an
art.  Wait until he initiates you with a massage and hot oil.”  Inzyr
leaned closer.  “Your mother became very good at it.”

“Gosh, thanks for the
visual—not!”  She rubbed her throat, attempting to soothe the burn. 
“How did my mother survive down here if she was enthralled enough with nature
that she painted landscapes?  Wait, how?  You said she was blind.”

“Your mother had an uncanny power
usually not found in ordinary humans.”

“Maybe she wasn’t all human?”

Inzyr tapped the side of his own
coffee cup a few times, lost in thought.  Emily regarded him with somber
curiosity and opted to leave him to his memories. 
Probably has never
shared feelings about himself or Kendra
.  Up until now, he would never
have struck her as the type to even be civil enough to sit and have
coffee.  Another time, perhaps, when they knew each other longer, he’d
trust her enough to quietly share tidbits of who her mother had been.

Dezenial gave her the barest of
nods. 

“So, how do Lumynari begin their
day?  Killing, torturing, or beatings?”

“Imp,” Dezenial muttered. 
Settling his tall frame at the table with them, black leggings his only attire,
her breathing hitched.

“What is
that
?” Emily asked,
the gold strip in his hand an excuse to distract her from his dark, naked
chest.  Very wide chest.  Lickable, or so she’d discovered—
ack
! 
He was grinning again, the kind of grin making her very aware of being a
woman.  That grin that sent shudders down her spine, made her feel like
giggling and raping him at the same time. 
Cretin
.  She poked
at the gold strip.  Metal, yet not.  “Weird.”

“It is how your mother survived
down here unscathed.  She moved about freely.  When she wished to go
above, a patrol was sent with her for protection.”

“A piece of gold?”  She
snorted.  “I
am
impressed.”  She waggled pale brows, and
resumed enjoying her coffee. 

“This is like hers, yet different,”
Inzyr said.

“Because I’m an Im’pyur?”

“Because you belong to me,”
Dezenial said, his voice ominous.  He rose from his chair, came around the
table and dropped down in front of Emily.  Sitting here, eye-to-eye, they
shared an intense physical awareness of each other.  Almost, she broke the
spell by grabbing his head and smothering him between her cleavage.

His wolfish grin nearly resulted in
a clobbering.

“I’m going to place this on your
arm—“

She reared and sloshed
coffee.  “Will it hurt?”  She accepted napkins from Inzyr.

“You think I would bring you pain?”

 Emily paused from mopping her
small mess and arched a brow at him.

“
That
was sex.”  He
grinned.  “You did holler for more.  I hurt you?”

“You
do
remember my dad is
sitting right there?  He’s old, yeah,
uber
old, but he can still
hear.”

Inzyr snorted.

“You enjoy my taking command of
you.” 

His accent and deep voice sent
shivers of delight through her.

“Clutching your hair and pinning
your arms above your head—“

“No!”  Emily covered her
molten face.

Both males laughed uproariously.

“Shouldn’t you be calling him out
or something,
dad
?  Defend my honor?  Pretend this is too much
information?”

Inzyr’s expression, though softened
since his revelation to her, hardened for a few seconds.  She didn’t feel
fear, but more, he was very matter-of-fact when it came to her and Dezenial and
Lumynari culture.  “We don’t have silly ceremonies of marriage.  His
taking you last night was just that—you belong to him.  In past lives, you
always belonged to him.  In this life, I knew who you were, though even
your mother did not.  When she shared her vision with me, she was confused
as to its meaning.  I knew immediately the warrior princess she was
seeing.  I knew immediately who my daughter was.  My loyalty is first
and foremost to Prince Dezenial.  Nothing will ever deter me from this
path I have sworn allegiance to remain on.”  His voice lowered.  “But
know this, Emily, and I know not if I will ever make such an revelation
again,”  He stood a bit, reached over, and cupped her face with his large
calloused hand. 

“You are most precious to me. 
You make me more proud with your temper, your bravery, and your determination
to get back up, square your tiny little shoulders, and charge forward.  I
may not have been able to show myself to you, but Dezenial and I have
always
been in your shadows, watching over you, allowing you to find your way . . .
slaughtering those who thought to raise a hand to you in cruelty.”

She reached up, covering his hand
with her own.  She gulped hard, hot tears coursing down her face.  So
much to say to him; words escaped her.

“Dezenial claimed you within
minutes of you screaming your way into the world.”

Emily laughed through her tears.

Inzyr did as well.  “Some
things about you, at least, have remained consistent.  He claimed you, and
I agreed, though I never revealed what I knew about your true identity. 
He would discover such things in time himself.”

“I should forfeit your membership
to my kingdom,” Dezenial growled.

“I would scale the wall and
encourage a coup.”

They chuckled, some long ago
private joke between them.

Inzyr’s attention returned to his
daughter.  “Once a Lumynari sire consents to who will be his daughter’s
mate, she is forbidden to change the decision.”  Inzyr held her stare.

Emily’s attention reverted to the
proud Lumynari on his knees in front of her.  “Why?  Why did you
claim me and I was only a few minutes old?”  She wiped her face, but not
so much to dry it, but, rather, as if she could wipe away a troubling memory.

“I was engaged to Peter,” she
whispered.

He uncoiled and cupped her face
with both hands.  “From the first moments I held you, you glared up at me,
belligerent from the first.  But also, your screams silenced.  I
should have known it was your soul recognizing mine.  I claimed you
then.”  Softness withered to menacing.  “There was no knowledge of
the other residing in you.  At that moment, you were a squalling infant,
and shirked fear when I glared down at you.  You haven’t changed.  As
for you marrying anyone, sharing your body . . .” A look passed over his face
she didn’t want to give voice to.  “I would have intervened before
that
event took place, killing the mortal, if need be.”

“Sir Galahad.” She pulled down his
hands and held them in her own.  “You were right there, from the start?”

“My father’s machinations lack
boundaries.  I should have known he’d find a way to reunite us.”

“Regret?”

Inzyr picked up the thread of
explanations, disallowing Dezenial to answer her ridiculous question.  “It
was explained to your mother, the outcome of ancient magicks—
Lumynari
magicks—used on humans.  Our blood mixing with that of a human causes
madness.”  He waved his hand.  “They are a feeble lot.”

“You said her religion forbade her
to accept your offer.”

“I was tempted to ignore her wants,
my own too potent to hear anything other than what I wanted at that
moment.”  He looked away.  “She knew what I was about to do. 
She asked me to take her life, if the madness set in.”

A soft gasp escaped Emily.

Inzyr’s gaze swung back to
her.  “I was spared an ordeal I do not know if I’d have recovered
from.  She hemorrhaged.  Her passing was not quick.  Like you,
she was strong willed.  Determined to spend her last with you, she swore
breastfeeding bonds a child with its mother.  She held you in her arms, a
mother until too weak to continue.  Dezenial held you as I held her during
her last breaths.”  Amber eyes became shiny.

Emily’s own eyes pricked. 
“You don’t have to do this.”

“Once in a while, Emily, I will
open the book and share a few pages with you.”

Dezenial squeezed her hands while
her father continued.

“We view death like you view clouds
crossing your sky.  Inconsequential.  We had spies confirm Drakar had
perished, killed by his own.  Centuries passed with such silence from his
conniving, we took our spies at their word.”

Dezenial picked up where Inzyr left
off.  “But, we began to suspect treachery when outcroppings of rumors
emerged of a child possessing unusual powers.”

“Me.”

“You.  I did not reach you in
time to save your foster—“

“Who were they?”

“Those such as yourself.  They
understood the danger posed to you, should you continue living in our world at such
an vulnerable age.  Inzyr could never guarantee your safety when his
duties took him away from your presence.  They agreed to rear you as their
own, welcoming the protection we offered.  They understood your father
would return for you during you sixteenth summer.  In the meantime, you
were to be trained, prepared, if you will, to survive weaponry, wits, and basic
Lumynari magicks.  And then, when you reached the age of twenty-one, you
would become mine.”

“Not at eighteen?”

“Though Lumynari mature much more
quickly than humans, we wanted you to have a measure of time to become
comfortable with who I would be in your life.”

“What would you have done, should I
have determined I didn’t like you?”

“Inconceivable.”  His voice
was firm, final.  “You belong to me.”

“Chauvinist.”

“Everything changed,” Inzyr
said.  “Forked-tongued spies paid a high cost for their treachery.”

“You killed them?”

“I am not feared as an assassin for
my gardening techniques.”

She waggled eyebrows at
Dezenial.  “Well, we at least know which parent I get my sarcasm from.”

“Yes, now there are two of you with
sharp tongues.  I arrived in time to whisk you away, ordering you through
the forest, cloaking you with powerful magicks as you made your way towards the
voice calling to you.”

“Pend—“ she glanced Inzyr, who
grinned while shaking his head.