Page 5 of Of Flame and Fate

Its brother can.Awesome.

I keep my comments to myself, obviously. God forbid I piss off the knife, its evil fork brother, or whatever the hell. “This world is messed up.”

“I know, Taran,” he agrees. “Which is why I need to spare you from it.”

“It’s too late to shut my eyes and pretend the boogie monsters don’t exist, love.”

Again he quiets, the intensity in his watchful eyes growing more severe. “You can’t keep doing this, Taran,” he says. Regardless of the brewing anger overtaking his form, he eases the SUV around another curve. “Not to yourself. Not to us.”

“I’m not trying to hurt us,” I add.

“But you are,” he tells me. “When you disappear without telling me where you’re going, and what you’re up to, you’re betraying my trust and our relationship.”

“That’s not my intent,” I say, hoping my tone reflects how bad I feel.

He sighs. “But it’s the result.”

I’ve hurt and likely embarrassed him. Butthe road to hell is paved with good intentions, and once more here I am, adding another flat stone and taking a step closer.

“You wouldn’t have let me go,” I point out.

I’m not trying to be difficult, nor am I anything close to defensive, at least not this time. When it comes to the bad guys, my role in the secret world of the supernatural has always been muddled. That changed when my sister became pregnant with the first of several children prophesized to rid the world of a new evil that’s rising.

Without meaning to, Celia became a target. As a result, I delegated myself to stand in front of her, doing my best to shield her from the encroaching arrows.

I don’t want to die. If I’m being honest, I’m scared shit-less. But I’m more scared of losing Celia, and what will happen if the Dark Legion succeeds in killing her babies before they have a chance to be born.

Gemini meets my gaze, it’s brief, but more than enough to silence my thoughts. “You’re right,” he says. “I would have found a way to keep you.”

I stroke my right hand when she twitches. She does that when deep emotions rile her and her power awakens. It’s the reason why fire rained down in Giza and the Sphinx is now sporting a new tan. It wasn’t my intention to mar a monumental treasure, butwhen you’re fending off another curse, inadvertently wake a skeletal army (also, not my fault), and unleash the skin burrowing demons protecting the relic you need, everything goes to hell and things get blown to shit.

“All those times you left to fight during the supernatural war, you ignored my pleas to stay,” I remind him.

“I didn’t ignore them,” he says. “As awere, I’m sworn to protect the world, and because of it, I was obliged to leave you.”

“And I’m obliged to protect my sister,” I remind him.

“It’s not the same thing,” he says, his voice gruff. “You’re being used. Can’t you see that? The vampires have the means to ghost you around world, not for the earth’s or the Alliance’s gain, but for theirs. Each relic is power they accumulate to do as they wish, regardless of what the rest of us need or desire.”

“I know,” I say quietly. “But whatever relic I find doesn’t just go to any vampire.”

“No,” he says, his voice lowering. “It goes to one of the most powerful in existence.” He looks at me. “As the only known vampire with a soul, Misha will one day be unstoppable.”

“He will,” I agree, lifting my face in his direction. “But the only reason he has a soul is because Celia returned it, giving him back some of his humanity, as well as his heart.”

“You’re giving him too much credit,” he counters.

“And you’re not giving him enough,” I press. “He loves her, Tomo, and because he does he’ll protect her, using the relics if it comes down to it.”

“Is that what he told you?” he asks, hints of his anger returning.

“He didn’t have to. I just know he will.” I ignore his growing anger, keeping my voice calm. “You can’t dismiss what Misha and Celia have been through.”

“Do not insult my alpha by comparing his matehood with Celia to whatever affections that leech feels toward her.”

“That leech helped save her life.” The memory of that day causes my eyes to burn and my arm to twitch. “She wouldn’t have made it without him and the fate of the world would already be decided.”

“It doesn’t absolve him from all those times he risked her life and now yours. I won’t have you working for him, Taran.”

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