Kindling Flames: Stolen Fire (The Ancient Fire Series Book 4) (15 page)

Vicky grabbed his hand as he started to tear at the collar of his shit. “
Zak!
” she begged the hellhound as she pulled Darien into her lap. His skin was flushed, and he moaned from the agony consuming him.

Tears streamed from Darien’s eyes as he gripped onto Vicky for dear life. His breath came in short, ragged pants.

“
Please!
” she begged Zak again. Holding Darien, she tried her best to help him. She could feel the warm brush of feathers on the inside of her skin, only this time, the feathers flowed out of her and into Darien. Opening herself as wide as she could, she let the power work as it willed. At the back of her mind, she could feel someone’s confusion. It came from the area she associated with Darien, but it wasn’t him. His thoughts were filled only with the pain threatening to break him. Vicky leaned forwards and soothed his hair back from his face as the magic worked to heal him. Slowly, he relaxed as the pain eased.

Now that she had opened herself up fully, Vicky could feel the edge of Elliot’s panic rubbing on her mind. When Darien’s pain had begun, Elliot had stepped in and blocked the master’s connection with the rest of the kiss. Vicky agreed that this was not something Darien needed to share with the people he was taking care of. She sent a wave of gratitude and reassurance to Elliot. A responding wash of relief and curiosity rolled back to her. Unable to express anything in words, she thought of patience, and Elliot backed off her mind.

Vicky looked down to where Darien was curled on his side with his face almost buried in her stomach. His breathing was better, and his color was returning to normal. “What did you do to him, Zak?” Vicky turned narrowed eyes to the fay.

Zak flattened himself out and whined. Only the tips of his tentacles wiggled where they touched Darien.

Vicky could feel his confusion and regret pushing at the edge of her mind. She touched that point and gasped at the overwhelming mix that was Zak’s mind. His consciousness pulled back, leaving her with a very clear picture of what he had intended.

Marking Darien had been the only way Zak felt he could ensure the man’s safety through the between place. The hellhound had chosen to do so through a bite because it was the fastest way to set a secure mark. The type of fay mark Vicky carried would have taken days to settle on Darien and would not have given the protection needed to move through the between places immediately. Zak also didn’t think Darien would have agreed to the claiming.

“Well, you didn’t give him a choice,” Vicky huffed at the fay, rubbing Darien’s back. The man was completely relaxed now. His consciousness had fled when the fire burning his insides had ceased.

Zak wiggled and whined at her again.

Letting out a deep breath, Vicky held her hand out to the fay. Now that she understood why he had bitten Darien, she really couldn’t stay mad at the little horror. The mark was for the man’s own good. “Next time, ask.”

Zak wiggled over and rubbed up against her side. His tentacles tangled through Darien’s hair, petting him.

“Is Uncle L'aimè dead?”

The little voice startled Vicky back to her surroundings. In her attempts to help Darien, she had totally forgotten about the people around her. Vicky smiled up at the child watching them. Shifting her gaze, she took in Delia and Mama waiting anxiously behind her. “No,” Vicky reassured the child. “He’ll be alright. He’s just tired.”

Marie nodded as the two older women let out relieved sighs.

“It’s not da puppy’s fault,” the girl pointed out adamantly. “Hims was try’n to help.”

Vicky smiled soothingly at the girl. “I know.” And she did, because Zak had shown her.

Zak was truly confused by Darien’s reaction. He had expected the magic of his mark to spread throughout the man’s body, carried by his blood, but it shouldn’t have hurt the way it had. The only time Zak had ever seen a reaction this bad was when another fay had tried to claim something of light that had fallen to earth. The creature had writhed in agony for days before dying a most horrendous death. Afterwards, Lady Aine had forbidden the marking of such things. Their magics didn’t mix, and the consequences were much too high.

Vicky looked down at Darien asleep in her arms. His pain was gone and the bite mark was healed, but the magic had used most of his energy. He needed to rest, but Elliot’s call still pressed on her mind. Darien’s recovery would have to wait—they needed to leave soon. Rubbing the wet hair back from his face, Vicky leaned over to kiss his cheek. “Darien,” she breathed his name.

His brow furrowed as he rubbed his face harder into her middle.

Vicky patted him on the back. “You have to get up now.”

He groaned in response.

“Come on.” She shifted him into a less comfortable position on her lap.

Darien groaned again but opened his eyes. Rolling to his back, exhausted by the experience, he studied the swath of blue shimmering between boards of green. It had been a long time since he had lain back and stared at a sky the same shade as Vicky’s eyes. Taking a deep breath, he concentrated on his body. The pain was gone, but the memory of it lingered just under his skin. The feather light whisper of power rubbed against the inside of his skin. He knew this feeling, had used it to heal many times, but this was the first time he had no control over it. It was… odd.

“Thank you,” he breathed softly to Vicky. “You can stop now.” Reaching over, he touched her on the leg.

She cocked her head in confusion before realizing his meaning.

Darien felt her pull the power back and close up. The sensation left him slightly empty, but it made room for something else he had not felt. Worry pressed against the edge of his awareness. He touched it and let out a manic laugh when he felt Zak’s mind.

“All that for a mark.” Darien pushed up from the ground and rolled to look at the hellhound. Holding the fay’s unwavering gaze, he let out a deep sigh. How could he reprimand the fay for doing what needed to be done? He would have done the same thing if their roles had been reversed, but that didn’t mean that he was going to be happy about it. Darien sat up and pulled his pant leg up to look at the form Zak’s mark took. “At least it’s not flowers.” He shifted to show his new mark to Vicky.

Vicky studied the back of Darien’s calf. She had expected to see two rows of teeth marks but was surprised to find what looked to be a tattoo filling the space between the lines. A mass of black and green was swirled over his skin. A few flecks of silver floated along the twisting lines. It was very abstract but amazingly beautiful. Vicky blinked a few times and reached out to touch the image. It was solid and still, but it felt as if it were swirling too slowly for her eyes to catch. “Amazing,” Vicky breathed.

Darien snorted and pulled his damaged jeans back down. He looked up to the ladies watching him. “Just remember, the help of the fay always comes with a price.” He caught Zak’s shining eyes. “Sometimes that price is more then we bargained for.”

Zak wobbled over and rubbed up against Darien.

Darien stood up. “I’m fine now,” he reassured everyone. Exhaustion clung heavy on him and he would rather have laid back down for more rest; but something was wrong at home and he needed to get back as soon as possible. “Let’s get this over with.” Darien held his hand down to help Vicky up. He made sure she had the messenger bag before turning to Delia and Mama. “I will see you again soon.”

“Travel safely.” Mama waved to them.

“Bye, Uncle L'aimè.” Marie waved to them from where she stood by her mother.

Darien bid her farewell and turned to where Zak was now waiting for them. “Let’s go.” He took Vicky’s hand and laced their fingers together. “Whatever happens, don’t let go.” Patting her hand, he turned to Zak.

The fay looked over them for a moment before reaching out and grabbing each by an ankle. Grabbing at reality, he split the air in front of them.

Vicky didn’t have time for her mind to respond to the impossibility of this before Darien and Zak took off at a run pulling her along. Memories of danger and pain burst forth as the darkness of the between places closed around her. Terror bubbled up, paralyzing her as her mind shut down. Darien caught her as she stumbled, unable to move.

“Victoria.” He pulled her against him.

She clung to him, terrified. The feel of Zak urging them on pressed at her, but she just couldn’t get past the fear of the darkness. Even though the ifrit had healed the damage to her mind, the near-death experience still showed from time to time.

“I’ve got you.” Darien pressed her face into his shoulder and swept her legs from under her. He settled her in his arms and took off after Zak as quickly as he could.

Vicky could feel how his pace has slowed, but she could not face the blackness clutching at them. Even now, with her eyes shut, clinging to Darien, the dark was cold against her skin. “I’m sorry,” she sobbed into Darien’s shoulder.

He shushed her as he ran. “It’s okay.” Carefully, he squeezed her, offering what comfort he could. “We all have our moments.”

A reassuring gurgle sounded from Zak somewhere below and in front of them.

This brought a smile to her face and a tear to her eye. Even when time is of the essence, her boys cared enough to comfort her. Vicky rubbed the tear that slipped from her closed eyes on Darien’s shirt and kissed him where her head rested. “Put me down.” She shifted in his arms as he ran. His breath had started coming in more labored pants as he fought against his fatigue. His pace slowed as she wiggled to get loose.

“Are you sure?” he asked as he released her legs, swinging her down.

“Yes.” Vicky found her feet without opening her eyes. If she didn’t think about the darkness, she could do this. “Just don’t let me go.” She gripped at Darien’s hand for dear life.

“Never.” He spared a moment to kiss the side of her head before following the pull of Zak’s tentacles.

With her feet on the ground, Vicky matched Darien’s pace as they pounded through the unfathomable distance.

Vicky’s chest and sides were burning by the time Zak tore another hole in reality and they spilled out onto the streets of Brenton.

Darien placed his hand against the wall of the alley and huffed, trying to catch his breath. Turning around, he leaned on the wall, about ready to pass out.

“Keep moving,” Vicky warned and dragged him up from where he was sliding down the bricks. “If you stop now, you will cramp up.” She pulled him to her side and forced him to walk slowly into the gathering twilight.

Darien nodded his head and followed her lead, huffing.

Zak whined as he slipped into his Shih Tzu form and circled them.

“I forgot what it’s like to have to worry about things like muscle fatigue.” Darien stretched his legs as they moved. “Whee!” he said giddily as the endorphins running through his system hit him hard, making him stagger.

Giggling, Vicky clutched at him to keep him from falling over. “Welcome to oxygen deprivation and a runner’s high.” She led him down the alley to the cross street. It took her a moment to recognize where they were and turn in the direction of home.

Darien tilted his head back and stared up at the sky, enjoying the head rush. “This is fantastic.”

“Give it a minute.” Vicky laughed. “You’ll change your mind.” It was only a few minutes before she could feel Darien come down from his high.

He leaned on her heavily as his legs turned to jelly. “And people do this willingly?” Darien moaned as fatigue hit him.

“People train extensively for what we just did,” Vicky explained. She didn’t know how far they had gone, but it had to have been quite a ways without a pause.

Darien eyed her suspiciously. “How come you’re not feeling that run?” Vicky had already recovered mostly.

“Because I run several times a week,” she pointed out, “while you sit around and don’t exercise.”

Darien scoffed at her. “I’ve never needed to work out,” he huffed. As a vampire, he didn’t require the same type of body conditioning humans did.

“Well, maybe you should think about it until we get this thing straightened out.” Vicky sighed. “Speaking of straightening out.” She opened herself to Darien’s power and let it pour into her again. Pushing the healing force into Darien, she cleared the lactic acid from his system and soothed the stressed muscles.

“That is so weird.” Darien held his hand out in front of him as if he could see the energy coursing through him. His stance and walk had both become stronger. “But you better stop before you overtax your system.”

Vicky nodded and let the power go. As it receded, she could feel a touch of confusion coming from the point where she pulled. Reaching out, she recoiled as soon as her mind touched it. She had expected to feel Darien, but the mind she touched was hard and cold, filled with bitter rage and confusion. Vicky shuddered, trying to remove the lingering chill from the contact. “Someone else has your powers.” She leaned into Darien for comfort.

He looked down at her, shocked. “What?” Slipping his arm around her, Darien pulled her tighter to his side.

“I can feel them… no, him. It’s definitely a ‘him’.” Vicky swallowed as she reached for that point again, not quite making contact. “There’s a presence where you normally are, but it’s not you.” Looking up into Darien’s eyes, she tried to make him understand. “It’s cold and dark and filled with so much anger it hurts.” She buried her face into him as they walked.

“Can you still feel me?” Darien pushed on their connection as hard as he could, sending her love and comfort.

A smile bent the corner of her distressed mouth. “Yes,” Vicky sighed, relieved by his touch. “It’s faint, but it’s there.”

He rubbed her shoulder, giving as much comfort as he could. “We’ll go see the fay as soon as possible.” Darien kissed the side of her head before turning the corner onto their street. “Let’s deal with this, first.” A large crowd filled the sidewalk in front of the Touraine building. Darien let his arm drop from Vicky’s shoulder and stood up straighter. Even without his vampire powers backing him, he still held a commanding presence from years of walking in the human world.

Zak wiggled up between them, letting his aura of power mask what Darien was not putting out.

“Can I help you?” Darien let his voice boom out over the crowd.

Vicky recognized several of the Rupert’s pack as they moved back to let them through. They stepped into the white stone lobby to find Rupert standing to one side and two wolves Vicky didn’t know squaring off with Ethan. The poor concierge stood between them and the elevators, determined not to let the intruders pass.

“Is there a problem here?” Darien’s voice rang through the crystals of the overhead chandelier. He could see relief flood Ethan’s eyes. Rupert looked amused, while the remaining two wolves almost quivered with frustration.

“Mr. Ritter.” Ethan nodded his head in greeting. “These men came in demanding to see you. I told them you were out, but they insisted that I let them up. They tried to slip past me when I went to call security about their gang outside.”

“Thank you, Ethan.” Darien looked at the four men, amused. “I’ll take it from here.”

“Would you like me to call the cops for you?” Ethan started to move over to his counter and the phone he had dropped when he went to stop the men from passing.

“That won’t be necessary,” Darien reassured him. “I will take care of this.”

“And who the hell are you?” the older of the two men growled at him.

Darien cocked an eyebrow at him while Zak growled from his place at the vampire’s feet.

“Can’t you tell? He’s Master Darien Ritter.”

Relief swept through Darien at the sound of Elliot’s voice from the doorway.

A smirk stole across Rupert’s face as the color drained from the other two wolves.

The older one snapped around to glare at Rupert. “You didn’t tell me she was staying with him.” He jabbed his thumb at Darien.

“I
did
tell you that she had taken the protection of a…” Rupert glanced over to the human watching them and changed what he was going to say. “…of someone important.”

“Maybe we should take this upstairs,” Darien offered. He could see Ethan’s hand hovering over the phone, ready to call for help as soon as they were out of sight.

Elliot nodded. “That’s a good idea.” He turned his attention to Rupert. “Send your people home. There’s no need for them to be caught up in this.” Elliot tipped his head towards the concierge poised for action.

“Of course.” Rupert went to the door to disperse his pack.

Darien looked over to where his friend had taken up a place by his side. Their eyes met for a moment, and he felt Elliot understand the gratitude he couldn’t show. Darien turned his attention back to the waiting werewolves. “Gentlemen, if you will please come with me.” He held his hand out towards the waiting elevators. “I’m sure we can discuss this in a civilized fashion.” Reaching over, he touched Elliot’s shoulder, drawing the man’s attention to him. “Do you mind?” He nodded to the counter where Ethan was watching them.

“Not at all, My Lord.” Elliot raised his fist to his chest and bowed before turning to alter the poor man’s memories.

Darien hooked his arm around Vicky and led her past the waiting wolves.

She looked back to where Elliot held Ethan enthralled. “Will he be alright?” Vicky remembered how Elliot had changed Vanessa’s memories.

“The things that man has seen and does not remember could fill books.” Darien smiled at her. “But, Elliot will make sure he doesn’t notice them.”

Vicky glanced back. She worried for the man’s mental health, but she knew they had to mess with his memories. He couldn’t be allowed to inform the world of the things he had seen.

Darien punched the call button for the elevator. Rupert and Elliot rejoined them just as the door slid open. Darien waved his guests inside. “Shall we?”

Picking up Zak, Vicky stepped inside the door as Darien punched in the code that would take them to his penthouse.

Zak turned his dark, beady eyes to the two new wolves and stared at them hungrily. They shifted, uncomfortable in the little fay's gaze. The tension in the elevator was tangible by the time the doors opened to let them out.

“So, what may I do for you gentlemen?” Darien asked as he crossed his foyer. He causally leaned his elbow on the railing of the stairs, effectively trapping them in this first room. Vicky and Elliot took up places on either side of him, showing their support. The two wolves looked around the spacious entryway. Rupert eased his way to one side, abandoning the two wolves to Darien’s questioning.

The older of the two wolves drew himself into a dignified stance and glared at Darien. “We have come for the rogue wolf,” he announced.

Darien cocked an eyebrow at him, curious at his lack of manners. He studied the man for a moment before answering. The man was heavyset and squat, with gray touching the edges of his brown hair. His eyes were root-beer brown and held the light of authority in them.

“Well, Mr.…” Darien cocked his head, waiting for the wolf to supply his name.

“Eckert,” The older wolf offered, realizing his faux pas. “Corban Eckert. And this is Ross Umlad,” he said, introducing himself and his companion.

“Under other circumstances I am sure it would be a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Eckert.” Darien inclined his head in greeting but did not move to offer the man his hand. “But at the moment, we have business to settle. As for the ‘rogue wolf’, Miss Marshal is under my care at the moment.” Darien offered them a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Corban cleared his throat and cocked his head, uncomfortable with the situation. “Then, we have a problem,” he said very politely. “She must answer for what she has done.”

Darien’s eyebrow raised again in curiosity. “And what, pray tell, had she done?” He shifted his eyes from the wolves to Rupert, standing silently away from them, and back.

“She tried to kill my lieutenant.” Corban held out his head to his companion. The second man stood up to his full height.

Darien looked over him. The second wolf was taller than his commander was and darker in complexion. He held an edge of violence to him that Darien did not like. “He looks perfectly fine to me.” Darien shot him another warm smile.

Ross glared at him. “She tried to rip my throat out,” he growled, knowing the vampire was egging him on. An answering growl from the doorway drew all their attentions.

Sue stepped into the room and bared her fangs at the man.

“See?” He pointed towards the angry wolf. “Even now she threatens me.”

Darien looked over Sue’s raised hackles. “I’m sure she had just cause,” he said calmly.

Zak wiggled in Vicky’s arms so she had to put him down. He scampered over to Sue and rubbed up against her legs reassuringly.

Ross bristled in anger.

“Then make her shift and defend herself,” Corban demanded.

Darien moved to stand next to Sue to soothe her. “That would be troublesome at the moment.” He pushed his fingers into the bristling hair at the back of her neck. “Such a feat would endanger her unborn children.” He spoke softly, but his words seemed to echo across the silence this revelation brought.

Rupert stared at him in shock as the other two wolves stiffened. “Is this true?” he snapped at Sue.

She lowered her head and licked the side of her muzzle, unable to properly answer him.

“It’s true,” Karl replied as he stepped in from the living room. “She’s only about three weeks along, but she is most definitely pregnant.”