Shades of Blood (31 page)

“Eden helped me kill the soul eater who murdered my mom and sister.”

Everyone eyed each other in surprise, Noah pulling back to look down at Eden, his gaze searching.

“Eden?” Cyrus was standing next to her now, towering over her, his chocolate eyes warm but questioning.

She pulled away from Noah and turned to face him. “I needed closure. It was the best I could do.”

He didn
’
t say anything. Instead he pulled her into his arms and she felt his shoulders shudder as she hugged him back. Cyrus had been scared. He
’
d thought Darius was going to have to kill her. Guilt as well as overwhelming love for this Ankh only underlined how right the move to let go of revenge on Romany had been. For the first time in her life she had a home she could always come back to. A home she would always
want
to come back to.

“I
’
m sorry.”

“Don
’
t be.” He pulled back and stroked her cheek. “I should have known there was too much of your mother in you for you to hurt the girl.”

“Well…” Darius was grinning, that off-kilter wicked grin. “All is well that ends well. I
’
ll be off then, my friend.” He clamped a hand on Cyrus
’
shoulder. “Call me if you need me.”

“I will.” Cyrus nodded and as Noah pulled her back into his arms, she felt her own relief that Darius was leaving. Just because she
’
d escaped his judgment didn
’
t mean he was any less unnerving. As the ancient warrior strode past Val they shared a longing look and Eden
’
s chest ached a little for her mentor. To not be with the one who was everything to you… she buried deeper against Noah and his familiar, comforting warmth… she couldn
’
t imagine.

“I better get back to my Councilman,” Romany said softly, drawing their attention.

Val stepped forward, finally dragging her gaze away from Darius. “I
’
ll drive you.”

Romany smiled at her and then looked back at Eden. “I promise.”

Eden nodded back at the Neith. After all the pain and turmoil her appearance had caused, her promise to stay away was the best one Eden had received in a long time. She was at least grateful to the girl for that.

Exhaustion gripped Eden as they all turned and headed back for the house. She strode between Cyrus and Noah, her hand in her boyfriend
’
s, her other resting affectionately on Cyrus
’
s arm. Alain and Emma fell into step beside them as Romany and Val hurried up ahead.

“Eden, I had the television in our rec room changed to a full HD and the DVD player is now a Blu-Ray player,” Alain suddenly said to her, his voice softer than it had ever been when directed at her. “Noah tells me you like movies and the shop assistant assured me the package I bought was the best in home cinema entertainment.”

Shocked, Eden nearly stumbled. Was Alain holding out an olive branch? She looked up at Noah, eyes questioning. He smirked at her, silently telling her just to go with it. She cleared her throat and looked over at the French warrior. “That sounds awesome, Mr. Valois.”

“Please, call me, Alain.”

She almost passed out.

The Only Ones that Matter

At the sound of the soft knock on her bedroom door, Eden sighed. She really didn
’
t want to leave her bed. She looked down at the heavy arm lying across her stomach and felt a rush of breath-stealing relief. Her eyes slid along the arm to the body that was curled into her side, the face that was pressed against her shoulder. Even in his sleep Noah tried to burrow as close to her as he could. His long lashes rested against his cheeks, his features soft and relaxed in slumber. Eden could have watched him sleep forever.

The knock sounded again. “Eden?”

Val?

With another sigh Eden shed her exhaustion, using her graceful Ankh stealth to slide out from under Noah
’
s arm. He made a grumbling noise but continued to sleep. She threw him a smile over her shoulder as she pulled on her jeans.

“Val?” she whispered, opening the door and stepping outside, shutting it silently behind her. It had only been fourteen hours or so since her return to the estate with Romany. Romany was thankfully gone and everyone else was probably still in their beds, sleeping off one of the most grueling weeks ever.

Val arched an eyebrow. Her mentor had gotten a peek of Noah in her bed before she
’
d closed the door. “We
’
ll let that one pass as long as Cyrus doesn
’
t find out. No sleepovers in one another
’
s room until your eighteen, Eden.”

Grinning at the rule
–
one that Eden was afraid had come far too late
–
Eden nodded her head down the hall, quietly suggesting they take this conversation away from her bedroom.

Val shook her head and jerked a thumb in the opposite direction. “Cyrus wants to see you.”

Uh oh. That can
’
t be good.

Brow furrowed, Eden followed Val down the vast hallway until they reached Cyrus
’
suite. His door opened as if he had been waiting for them. The gentle smile he gave her as she stepped inside with her mentor relaxed her somewhat, but Eden was still wary. What was so important they couldn
’
t give her some time to chill out with Noah?

When she was seated in front of them, Eden felt about five. They stood facing her, side by side, their arms crossed over their chests, like two parents who had caught their kid trying to put the cat in the washer/dryer.  “Uhh… what
’
s up?”

“We thought we better discuss this with you before everyone else awakens,” Cyrus replied.

Eden gulped. God, this didn
’
t sound good at all. “Discuss what?”

Val narrowed her eyes. “Your use of your gift.”

Oh.

“My gift.” She thought about that goth girl she
’
d changed in Cambridge. The fanatical feeling of rightness that had taken over Eden as the thing inside her had transformed goth girl into a human. That thing was like a sentient being, something separate, something powerful. If Eden were honest it had been quite the rush.

“We told you not to use your powers and we understand that it was in the heat of the moment.” Val nodded, her face still stern. “But you have to promise us, Eden, to not use your gift again.”

She blinked. But… the threats were gone now. Was that really necessary? Her gift… it was important… it freed people. “It shouldn
’
t be wasted.” Eden shook her head. Her eyes shifted to Cyrus, pleading. “I don
’
t understand.”

Cyrus sighed. “It is still not safe for you to use it, Eden. We are not saying forever, we are just saying… not now.”

OK. A part of her felt surprisingly sad over the promise they wished to extract from her. However, if these last few weeks had taught her anything, it was to trust these two implicitly
–
despite appearances, their motives were born out of protecting her. “So… how long?”

Her guardian and mentor looked at one another as if coming to a silent agreement on something. Cyrus
’
s gaze slid back to Eden. “Three or four centuries.”

Her mouth fell open. “What?”

He shrugged. “Neith memories are long… but hopefully by then the Neith will think of the tales of Eden MacDouglas as myth and legend. That is usually the way of things.”

Three or four hundred years?!

“It
’
s not that long, Eden,” Val assured her. “Not to an immortal.”

“It still sucks ass.”

Cyrus grunted. “My daughter, ladies and gentlemen.”

Despite the sarcasm, Eden felt that mushy warm glow within when he called her his daughter. That would never get old. She grinned, despite herself. “OK, OK, I promise.”

“Really?” they asked unison, disbelief coloring the word.

Eden rolled her eyes and she stood to her feet. “I promise. It sucks but… I can live with it.”

After holding eye contact with her for a minute they seemed to relax, reassured she was on the same page as them. The two older Ankh asked for a few more promises from her: she was never to disappear, always to let them know where she was going, to keep her cell switched on at all times, and to try not to venture anywhere alone. That last one in particular stuck in Eden
’
s craw but to appease them she nodded along with a lot of
‘
yeah, yeah, yeahs
’
and
‘
I promises
’
. Finally, they let her leave… but not without one last word from Cyrus.

“And Eden,” he called as she opened his door.

Not liking the very father-ish tone in his voice, Eden tensed, throwing him a tentative look over her shoulder. “Yeah?”

He scowled at her now. “I would prefer it if Noah refrained from sleeping in your bed.”

Embarrassed, Eden threw Val a look of betrayal. Val held up her hands. “I didn
’
t say a word.”

Cyrus sighed. “You really think I do not know exactly what is going on in my own home. I am all knowing, sweetheart.”

Flushing, Eden nodded, hardly able to meet his eyes. “It won
’
t happen again.” She stopped and turned back. “Not until I
’
m eighteen… right?”

“Not until you are eighteen hundred.”

“You
’
ve got to be kidding me?”

“I never kid.” He shook his head, completely immovable.

“Well that
’
s just ridiculous.”

“That is ridiculous,” Val agreed, making a face at Cyrus. “Loosen up.”

“I am loose. I am completely loose. My daughter, however, will not be.”

Cheeks burning, Eden decided she
’
d had enough mortification. “Alright, I
’
m out of here.”

“Remember… not until you are eighteen hundred!” he called from his suite as she strolled down the hall back to Noah.

“Sorry, Princeps,” she muttered, smiling when she opened the door and found Noah awake and waiting on her. “That
’
s one rule I
’
m going to have to break.”

“You all packed?”

Tobe had been so busy checking her room over to make sure she had everything, her mind crammed full of so much that had happened over the last few weeks that she hadn
’
t even heard Eden approach. She smiled up at her, still tripping from fatigue. “I didn
’
t really have much with me.”