Soul of Darkness (5 page)

No woma
n―
eve
r―
had gotten to him the way she had from the very beginning!

He’d been with quite a few women in the past, but his relationships had never lasted very long, as he hadn’t felt more for any of them than physical attraction.

But Persephone was different. She was in every part of him…had gotten under his skin. If the reason behind his feelings for her turned out to be nothing but destiny’s machinations, then so be it.

It wouldn’t change the way he felt.

Even if this love had been designed by a higher power, he didn’t care. It felt real to him. And that was all that mattered.

“Wait…,” Aaron suddenly said, “…why should
he
  do it?
I
should be the one to remind her of who she is. I’ve been with her longer than Aidan has, and I believe I know her better.”

“I believe you are mistaken,” Malcolm replied calmly.

“I don’t understand. Maybe you could spell it out for me,” Aaron challenged.

“Though you may be acquainted with her longer, Aidan knows her more intimately,” Malcolm said matter-of-factly.

“You sonofabitch,” Aaron declared heatedly, looking at Aidan. It seemed Malcolm’s declaration had not gone down too well with his brother, who seemed to interpret the term ‘intimately’ in a different way than Malcolm had probably meant to convey.

Aidan was certain his father knew nothing of the several instances Persephone and he had kissed or been close. He’d surely meant that Aidan knew her intimately because he’d been inside he
r―
her soul, not her body. Though physical bonding was just as importan
t―
not to mention that it felt incredibly goo
d―
it didn’t get more intimate than that.

“Think about whose mother you are calling a bitch, son,” Malcolm scolded Aaron, who didn’t even seem to hear him.

“What did the two of you do? Did you touch her? You can’t have fucked her or we’d already be toast,” Aaron said.

“Watch your fucking mouth when you talk about her,” Aidan threatened, his voice a low growl. He would not have his brother talk about her in such a crude manner.

“You didn’t answer the question,” Aaron said.

“And I don’t intend to. It’s none of your business,” Aidan replied.

“It’s my business, alright,” Aaron declared adamantly.

“Why? I thought you said you didn’t love her. Wasn’t that what you said only minutes ago?” Aidan said calmly.

Aaron glared at him, his eyes hard, his chin set.

“I lied,” he finally admitted, his anger seeping into his voice.

Aidan didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t unaware of the emotions that must be tormenting his brother. He could very well see how Aaron would feel in all this. He had met her first, had spent time with her…they’d been on the run together. They were connected by the same bond that bound Persephone to Aidan. Surely there had been intimate moments between them.

Then, Aidan had shown up and gotten between them. She had even sacrificed her soul to save his life. He couldn’t imagine what must have gone through Aaron’s head when Malcolm had told him about her reasons for doing so. Aaron’s apparent feelings of outrage and betrayal were certainly justified and understandable.

And, deep down, Aidan felt for him and regretted having caused him pain. But as much as he could understand where Aaron was coming from, he couldn’t help but react strongly to his brother’s insinuations about Persephone.

He was as crazy for her as Aaron was…and he would not back down!

If they ever got her back and finally abolished the curse, a fierce battle for her affections would undoubtedly begi
n―
and she would be the one to decide. Until she chose one over the other, Aidan intended to fight. There was sadly no room for brotherly affection when the woman they loved stood between them.

And though Aidan would mourn the loss of a relationship with his only brother
―
his own flesh and blood
―
what he felt for Persephone, for the only woman he had ever fallen in love with, was stronger than the call of blood.

In his case, blood was definitely not thicker than wate
r―
only redder.

Malcolm slowly approached and positioned himself between his sons, who had risen from their chairs in anger and stood facing each other. He gently placed a hand against each of their chests.

“Do not fight each other…you are brothers,” Malcolm beseeched them, his voice sounding strained and a bit sad.

“I have no brother,” Aaron replied in a cold, hard voice, dismissing any relationship to Aidan, who stood completely still and silent, stunned by Aaron’s harsh words, though he had just thought along the same lines.

Hearing it spoken aloud, though, felt like the last nail in the coffin of their brotherly bond.

Well, he chided himself, what had he expected? He’d swooped in and taken the girl from him. He couldn’t blame his brother for hating him…and he already hated himself with a vengeance for what he had let happen to Persephone.

“Let us not speak words we will regret,” Malcolm hastily interjected, “What is important now, is how we can help Persephone,” he finished, his statement making Aidan recall that they did, indeed, have much more pressing matters to discuss.

“Father…,” Aidan asked, suddenly struck by a thought, “…maybe I should bring her home for a short visit so that she can see her parents. Surely,there are so many memorie
s―
happy memorie
s―
that we might get an emotional response. If she saw her old room, she would certainly feel
something
.”

“I agree. She would undoubtedly respond in some way. Alas, it is impossible,” Malcolm said slowly, his tone remorseful.

“Why?” Aidan asked, suddenly alarmed. Something was wrong. He knew his father’s voice too well not to be worried.

“Persephone cannot go home…,” Malcolm sighed heavily, “…there is no home to go back to.”

“What happened?” Aaron asked, his tone of voice echoing Aidan’s own fear.

“Something dreadful has happened. Persephone’s parents were…murdered…their bodies burned in the flames that consumed their home. This has the separatists written all over it.”

“How could this have happened?” Aidan asked bewildered, “You must have anticipated that they might find Persephone’s home. Why didn’t you see to her parents’ protection?”

“I did, Aidan,” Malcolm replied softly, “I sent some of our guard to keep an eye on them…to protect them.”

“So, what happened? Did they abandon their posts?” Aaron asked.

“They are dead. They are all dead,” Malcolm replied solemnly, his voice a mere whisper.

“How many men? And when was this?” Aidan demanded, his heart sinking lower with every declaration his father made. He’d known these men. He’d known each and every single one of them.

Apart from belonging to his large family and being distantly related to him, they had been his friends, his ‘brothers in arms’.

As the leader’s son, Aidan was a high-ranking member of the guard by right of blood. Not wanting to delegate others and possibly send them to their deaths, Aidan had never wanted to be in command. Instead, he was known for his strategic abilities, was regularly sought out and consulted by the other members of the guard in times of crisis, and fought alongside them.

But in his capacity as Malcolm’s son, Aidan’s other duties kept him occupied and away from the guard at times. It had been one of those times…and the men had marched to their deaths to protect the family of the woman he loved.

Their deaths had been honorable, for they had died fighting to protect innocent lives…and to fulfill their duties toward the trusted head of their family. And though they had not succeeded, their intents and their hearts had been pure. They had died warriors’ deaths.

That should have been a comforting thought…it wasn’t. They were dead…and Aidan was left behind to mourn.

“How many men?” Aidan repeated, his voice had taken on an angry edge, “Was this when some of the guard were absent from the castle…when we were attacked?”

“No, this was before we were attacked. But the men absent during the attack were indeed the ones I had sent to Persephone’s home. I gave the order shortly after Persephone and Aaron were brought here and put in a cell together
―
a mistake on my part. I should have separated them, at least for a while.

It was foolish of me, but I believed they were not at that stage yet…the stage that could lead to our destruction. However, they tried to consummate their love…and a small vortex began to open up. I arrived just in time to separate them and was able to close the tear in the fabric of reality.

It was a close call, and I believed this incident might have alerted our gifted enemies because it must have had a greater impact than the magic we ordinarily use. They would certainly have felt the disruption in the natural energies of our atmosphere and would try to find Morrigan’s reincarnation.

Though they would not be able to locate her at the castle because of the enchantments that countermand the ordinary magic they would use to track her, they would have gotten a good enough reading of her signature power through the incident with Aaron to follow echoes of her magic to Adam’s house and trace her all the way back to the university…her room…and finally the office, where all they would need in order to obtain her name and home address was her student record.

Anticipating this, as well as their next move once they would find her absent from campus, I stationed ten of our guard at her house, thinking it would be sufficient protection. I cannot even begin to tell you, son, how terribly sorry I am for what happened. I never would have imagined that ten of our very best would not be able to protect Persephone’s parents…and…that they would die in the attempt. I still do not know how that could have happened.”

“Ten? That’s half of our guard,” Aidan said, shocked. “Those bastards!” he spat, his voice filled with fury, “I’ll kill every last one of them for this!”

Aidan’s hands were shaking uncontrollably from the anger he felt, the remaining whisky splashing dangerously close to the edge of his glass. He only just managed to set down his drink before it spilled, his fists clenching so tightly that his nails dug painfully into the palms of his hands, drawing blood.

He didn’t care…hardly felt it.

“You will do no such thing, Aidan,” his father said alarmed. “Their deaths were honorable,” he tried to soothe him.

“I don’t give a crap!” Aidan spat.

“Yes you do. When you have gotten over the first shock, when you are once again calm enough to think clearly, you will see that vengeance cannot be the answer. There has been enough bloodshed. What matters is protecting our family…and the rest of the world. We must work hard and ultimately undo the curse. Do not let hatred derail you from that path. Nothing else matters now.”

After a moment’s hesitation Malcolm added:

“Actually, I think you should both try to help Persephone…together. That way, neither of you will be alone with her for too long, and there will be less room for complications.”

“And with ‘complications’ you mean one of us would sleep with her,” Aaron clarified.

“Yes, that is what I meant,” Malcolm said, “And, you must admit, if only one of you is constantly with her, that scenario is a real possibility. Whereas, if the three of you are together…well, let us just say, I trust one of you will always stand in the other’s way.”

“What makes you think I give a damn about what Persephone does with Aidan?!” Aaron burst out, his voice rich with contempt.

“The fact that you want to live,” Malcolm stated calmly, “If, indeed, I am not mistaken in believing you do.” Malcolm’s words had shut Aaron right up. Aidan could see how much it killed his brother to have no adequate comeback. There was none.

If they wanted to live, Aaron had to give a damn and come between Aidan and Persephone once the necessity arose and the situation threatened to spin out of control.

Also, it didn’t matter how vehemently Aaron protested that he couldn’t care less about Persephone being intimate with his brother; Aidan could see right through his haughty demeanor.

Even if the safety of the world wasn’t at stake, Aaron would come between Persephone and Aidan in an instant, would do anything to eliminate a threat to a potential future with her.

No matter how betrayed he must feel by her at the moment.

And no matter how impossible it was that either of them could actually have a future with her.

Though Aaron had previously admitted to having lied about not being in love with Persephone, he still seemed inclined to display indifference and suppress his feelings for her.

But even before Aaron’s admission, it had been clear as daylight to Aidan that his brother was still in love with her, no matter how much he tried not to be or claimed the opposite.

“If neither of us is supposed to be alone with her for too long, then what’s the deal with Aidan spending the entire night with her alone in their room?” Aaron finally asked. He didn’t need to spell out how he felt about the idea; it was more than evident in his voice.