Caressed by Shadows (Rulers of Darkness Book 4) (16 page)

Chapter Eighteen

Falcon quickly finished his shower, dried, and dressed. He was not letting Sonya out of his sight for an instant. If death was coming, it was going to be for him and he would make damn sure of that.

“What are you doing?” he asked when he entered the room.

Sonya wore a gray, long sleeved shirt, the v-neckline showcasing her assets and slender waist. Her black pants hugged her curves. She ignored him while she secured her long, damp hair in a braid.

“Sonya?”

She did not look up even though he stood by her side. Instead, she bent down to work on her shoes. “I’m getting ready to head out,” she answered as she began lacing up her boots.

Falcon knelt before her and stilled her fingers by taking her hands in his. “There is no need to rush. We will be staying another day.”

“We are?” Sonya’s heart quickened. With excitement, he hoped. “I thought you wanted to get to Glasgow tonight.”

“The city isn’t far.”

“We’re…relaxing tonight?”

He shrugged in response.

Her golden gaze narrowed as she looked him up and down. “I wasn’t aware relaxation was in your vocabulary.”

“We’ve both been under a lot of stress.”

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you can say that a million and one times over.”

He finished tying her boots.

“Staying isn’t going to mess with the escape plan?” she asked.

Falcon stood and shook his head. “No. We are ahead of schedule and can spare a day.”

“Great!” she exclaimed, clicking her heals together.  “I’ve got the perfect thing for this little…break.” She grabbed a bag, ruffled through her clothes and pulled out a bottle of Silver Moon.

“When did you get that?”

“You were busy working out a deal with Nick for the newest additions to my arsenal and I swiped it.”

“Sneaky.”

She winked at him. “I prefer to be called sly or cunning. I am a warrior queen after all.” She opened the bottle and took a swig. Humming with pleasure, she twirled about the room until she bumped into him.

Falcon snatched the bottle. Sonya prepared for him to scold her and give her a responsibility lecture. Instead, he hooked his fingers around the neck of the bottle and took her hand. “Let’s enjoy this outside.”

He stood and offered her his arm. Sonya shook her head. He stepped aside, expecting her to lead the way. Instead, she wrapped an arm around his waist and they sauntered out into the night together.

In front of their cottage was a weathered picnic table and bench seats. Sonya sat, leaning her back against the edge of the table. Falcon remained standing.

After a long moment of silence, Sonya asked, “Are you going to take a drink, or not?”

Falcon blinked down at the bottle dangling between his fingers as if surprised he held it. He blinked again, then handed it to her. Sonya mumbled a “thank you” as she pressed it to her lips.

The night was peaceful, the air cool. Stars burned brightly in the dark velvet sky. Everything felt…right. As if pieces of a puzzle were finally starting to slip together.

Falcon ran his hands through his hair. Stress darkened his expression. Their days were numbered, but he refused to tell her. Sonya would never allow him to sacrifice his life for hers. Instead, he would spend as much time with her as possible. He was no longer in a rush to get to their Clans. He had planned on staying by her side until the Death Curse took her, but if Silvie’s words could be believed, his original plan was no longer an option. His focus: make Sonya sublimely happy, make her strong and deliver her to the rescue rendezvous site.

“Judging by the look on your face, you could use a swig,” she said, holding out the bottle.

Falcon accepted her offer and took a long drink. He had never been one to indulge in liquor, but this was a special circumstance.

“Falcon, I want you to know, you needn’t worry about me.”

He coughed. Choking, he set the bottle on the table.

“Seriously. I will be fine. The Death Curse,” she shrugged, “is a natural part of vampire life. All those who take the crown and lead their Clan dies.”

Unless they find their mate, he thought. Disappointment and sadness knotted his stomach. No amount of wishing or praying would make him her intended.

“And I don’t want you to…be nice to me just because I wear a hangman’s noose.”

Anger flooded him. “Nice?” he asked between clenched teeth.

“Yeah. What we have shared has been…amazing and special, but…” Her gaze fell from his. She stared at the grass, silent as she tapped her foot nervously.

“A pity lay. Is that what you think all of this is?” he asked, unable to mask his irritation.

“Not the
first time−”

“Not any time. Ever.” He stepped closer and crouched down, placing his large hands on her knees. “I’ve wanted you since the moment I first saw you on the shore that night. The time we spent together in those following weeks while we looked af
ter Queen Victoria’s sister, Margaret, you were wonderful with her, calm, gentle and nurturing. I felt as if…we were a true family. I hated to leave. I hated that reality had to shatter my dream.”

Sonya lifted her eyes. She barely held back her tears.

“I love you, Sonya. Never doubt that.”

“But the Curse
−”

“Will not take you. I vow it.”

She shook her head, her lips trembled. Falcon cupped her chin. “I am done trying to hide my feelings. I am done struggling to pretend living without you isn’t killing me. Sonya, I love you.”

She knocked his hand away and t
hrew herself into his arms. Burring her face against his neck she whispered, “For years, I lied to myself and everyone else about the way I feel about you. I refused to admit that you had stolen my heart. God, Falcon, those were miserable decades.”

His arms tightened around her. “We are together now.”

“But this can’t last. You have to go back to your Clan.”

Falcon’s chest tightened as a storm of conflicting emotions waged within his heart. He would never return to his Clan. His decision to save Sonya meant he would be abandoning his King. Hadrian was his closet friend, his mentor, his leader, the brother he never had. But Hadrian would understand, as would Dimitri and Dorian. All three proud, powerful vampire kings would gladly give their lives for their women. They would skip into hell whistling without a second thought. And so would he.

He stroked her hair. “I am here with you. That is all that matters.”

Sonya’s slim shoulders gently shook as she cried, her tears dampening his neck as she nuzzled against him. She wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders, fisting his shirt in her hands as she clung to him. Falcon wanted to roar as he struggled against the anguish that crippled his soul.

They sat in silence. The soft breeze swirled around them, carrying the musical chime of crickets.

“Falcon,” she whispered, her breath caressing his neck. “What do we do now?”

Releasing a long sigh he said, “Enjoy the night.”

“Carpe Diem,” Sonya added with a light, sad laugh.

Sonya released him and sat back. She whipped the tears from her cheeks with the back of her hands. Falcon placed a kiss on her brow, then the tip of her nose. He pressed his lips to her cheeks. Sonya sighed when he brushed his mouth against hers.

Falcon stood and helped her to her feet. Sonya resumed her post on the bench and snatched the bottle. After taking a long drink, she held it out to him. Falcon took it and followed suite.

“Have a seat, Sir Knight,” she said, patting the space beside her.

He sat and leaned back against the edge of the picnic table.

“Tell me, Your Highness, what shall we do tonight?”

“Well, my holiday in England has been rather eventful thus far. Underground dungeon, being shot, staying in a swanky hotel, partying at a seedy club, back alley fights, a car chase and amazing sex. I think I would like to take it easy tonight.” She took a sip of the liquor. “I just want to relax, talk, and have more amazing sex.”

“The latter is a given, but what would you like to discuss?” Falcon asked.

Sonya shrugged. “Anything.”

Anything to keep our minds off of what the future holds. He understood and he could seriously use a distraction.

“I doubt you like to chit chat.”

“No. I prefer to be direct.”

She took another drink. “So, Falcon, have you ever been married?”
He shook his head and her eyes narrowed. “Really?” she asked.

“I was the bastard son of a noble man and a woman people believed was a gypsy,” he explained. “Perh
aps I would have married if had returned from the Crusade alive. I believe my father planned to name me his heir, despite the protesting of his wife and legitimate daughters.”

“Instead your mortal life ended on the battlefield and you rose as a vampire.”

Falcon took a swig. He was not one to indulge, but right now, he wished they had a second bottle. “How about you?”

“I hardly mention it, but yes. I was married.” Sonya’s shoulder shook with a light laugh. “It wasn’t easy, but my parents were able to arrange a marriage for me. I was sixteen, tall and gangly. I was a tomboy. Honestly, I
’d rather work in the stables with my father than sew with my mother.” She laughed again, her eyes sparkling with delight. “I was the son my father never had. My husband’s name was Ivan. He was little older than me and was from a neighboring village, but we got along well. He was handsome, charismatic, and kind hearted. After two years of marriage, Ivan succumbed to a fever, leaving me a childless widow.”

Falcon watched as her happiness slowly faded and her bright golden eyes dulled. Instinctively, he knew why. It was not because of the loss of her husband, though he did not doubt she had mourned him. He had spent plenty of time with Sonya to know that her biggest regret in life was never being a mother. She adored children. He also recalled the stigma that shadowed motherless women back then. She would be pitied, shunned, viewed as damaged goods. A woman’s sole purpose was to be a mother. He could only image the whispers that floated about her village.

She shook her head as if dispelling the memories. “You know the rest. I reverted back to my tomboy ways and took up sword fighting.  I was nineteen when my mortal life ended.” She sighed and took a drink and set the bottle down. Sonya stared at the glowing liquor for a long moment before shaking her head. “I’m glad Dorian found me and brought me to Gudmund. My king gave me the strength to avenge my family.” Her voice faded as her gaze grew distant. “Falcon, do you ever regret?”

“Becoming a vampire?”

She nodded.

“I mourned my mortal life for a time.”

“But?”

Falcon shrugged. “Hadrian helped me through the first few years, which were the hardest. He taught me to control my hunger and my strength.”

“I refused my Clan in the beginning.”

She gave
a dark laugh when he frowned. “By vampire law, I should be an outcaste. I did not want to be a Voidukas. He explained the consequence, he told me I would be hunted by the Red Order. He told me I would most likely die. Hell, he even told me that without him and the Clan to show me how to manage my thirst I would slaughter every human I came across.” Sonya took a long drink and cursed. The bottle was nearly empty. “I didn’t care. I had a goal.”

“To avenge your family.”

She nodded. Darkness bled into the gold her eyes. Falcon could sense the rage she kept locked inside, he could feel her sadness. The sweet taste of satisfaction was ruined by the bitterness of regret.

“The world was never meant to know the wolf shifters,” she said, her voice deepened by her demon. “I made damn sure of that.”

Falcon straightened. “What do you mean?”

“Those shifters were a rebel group of Red Order Hunters desperate to regain their magic. They found a Shaw descendent, a girl who did not know how to use her power and they forced her to help them. The result, hundreds of Red Order soldiers were cursed. They were not like normal shifters. Every time they took their animal form, they lost a piece of their soul until they became nothing but a pack of rabid dogs.”

Falcon was struck speechless. No documentation existed on wolf shifters, they were thought not to exist. Sonya was the only one to report a sighting centuries ago. Many vampires believed the wolf shifters were either a myth, extremely secretive creatures, or had been bred out of existence.

Sonya’s claws extended, carving
into the weathered wood of the picnic table. “It took me three years,” she said, her voice a hard whisper.

“Why did you return to the Voidukas?”

Her fangs flashed when she smiled. Shadows descended upon her face and for the first time since he had known the warrior queen, Falcon saw her demon.