Page 26 of Ancient Magic

Chapter 6

It had been fifteen hundred years since his latest resurrection, but Micha had a vivid memory of the moment he’d entered his first Gyre. Unlike many of his brothers, he hadn’t been reborn with an obvious talent. He didn’t have the brutal strength of Valen or Kane, or the Zen confidence of Gabriel. For nearly a century he assumed he would never acquire the power needed to rise to become a ruler. And honestly, the knowledge hadn’t bothered him.

He was a scholar at heart. An eternity spent in the peace of the massive library he intended to build was a lot more appealing than trying to keep hordes of fiercely ambitious demons under control. But then he’d reached an age where he was allowed to leave the secluded sanctuary where all vampires stayed during the century of their rebirth and stepped into his first Gyre.

It hadn’t been a particularly large pool of magic, but a thunderous connection had sparked inside him, igniting his ability to touch the ancient power in a way that no other vampire had ever done. It wasn’t the same magic as a mage. Or even a witch. It came from the deepest bowels of the earth.

Suddenly he was on the radar of every Cabal leader. No one understood his powers or knew if they might prove to be a danger to them. Micha did his best to ignore the attention, at least until Sinjon had ordered him to claim a territory. A vampire with his power would be a constant threat to the other leaders until he was settled.

Now he used that power to touch the magic vibrating beneath his feet as he watched in astonishment as Skye Claremont flew through a nearby window and landed on the hard pavement.

“Stop her!” a voice shouted from inside the pub.

Micha flowed forward and scooped her up in his arms. Concentrating on the shadows, he willed them to thicken around them, obscuring them from view as a half dozen demons leaped off the roof and scurried toward the nearby street.

Micha cradled Skye in his arms, backing into the line of shrubs at the edge of the parking lot. He was acutely aware of how perfectly Skye’s delicate body fit against his chest, and the scent of laurel leaves swirling around him with an intoxicating sweetness. His lips twisted as he realized just how easily he was distracted by this woman.

My very own kryptonite...

The word whispered through the back of his mind even as the last of the demons disappeared from the area and Skye shook her head, as if trying to clear the fog from her brain.

“You can put me down,” she whispered.

Reluctantly, Micha lowered her until her feet touched the ground and even more reluctantly loosened his arms and stepped back. It felt like he’d lost a piece of himself as the warmth of her body was abruptly replaced by the chill of the late-night air.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She grimaced, lifting a hand to touch the scrape on her temple that seeped a few drops of blood.

“A pounding headache. Not my first this week.” She lowered her hand, her expression wary. “Did you follow me?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Micha considered his answer. He’d never been impulsive. Most of his brothers and even his servants would call him tediously cautious. But tonight, he hadn’t hesitated when he’d seen Skye Claremont scurry out of the party. For the first time in centuries, he’d allowed his instincts to overrule his logic.

Not the most comforting thought.

“You were obviously upset when you left Valen’s lair.”

She studied him in confusion. “Even if I was, why would you care?”

He folded his arms over his chest. He wasn’t going to admit that he’d felt an impulsive need to discover what was troubling her. Not when he had a perfectly legitimate reason to keep track of her movements.

“I hate politics, especially vampire politics, but there’s no way to ignore the threat to Valen’s position,” he pointed out in smooth tones. “Or the threat to the stability of the entire Cabal. If there’s a challenge to the leadership of this Gyre, it will affect all of us.”

“What does that have to do with me?”

“I’m not sure. But we already know someone is using Valen’s mate to try to weaken him—”

“Peri doesn’t weaken him,” Skye snapped.

Micha shrugged. “She makes him vulnerable.”

“Because he loves her?”

“Because she’s an unknown threat.” He held up a silencing hand as her lips parted to argue. “Unless Valen can prove that she has gained control of her magic and has no intention of using it to challenge the Cabal, then she’s going to put him in a perilous position.” He deliberately glanced toward the pub, which had shut off the lights. “What better way to force her to do something reckless than to lure one of her best friends into a trap?”

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