My gaze tracked over the smooth skin of his face and over his muscled chest that was still marred with blood but without a gash or burn mark to be seen. “How?” I asked.
He smiled, and his lips were no longer cracked and bloody but full and luscious, andhealed. “You saved me,” he replied in astonishment as he stared at his healed hands and arms. “No other healer in Zalei would have been able to do that. No otherfaecan do that.”
“I-it can’t have been me,” I said shaking my head. “I’m only human.” I was a nobody,but even as I said the words, I could feel my power slowly building again, strengthening me. Something bright caught my eye, and I peered down to where a gem the size of my fingertip and in the shape of a diamond had formed on my wrist. The sparkling blue was the same distinct color as Xander’s eyes, and I ran my fingers over the smooth stone, surprised to find it was incredibly warm.
Xander gazed at the gem, and then his eyes met mine. He stared at me like I was the most precious thing he’d seen, and he’d ruin worlds to keep me safe. When his lips met mine, it was like stars colliding and new worlds being born. It was warmth, and life, and hope, and as more tears streamed down my cheeks, I gave myself to him. I gifted him my heart, and he promised that we’d find my sister together.
CHAPTER 13
~ Darian ~
Wetraveledthroughthenight and made it to the House of Saceris without encountering any trouble. Lyr’s scouts had been watching the movements of the outliers in the city, and by following her strict directions and moving between a series of safehouses, we managed to stay out of sight and avoid the monsters that crossed our path.
Asher nudged me with his arm. “Let us come with you, brother.”
We stood beneath a bridge that crossed over the river closest to the House of Saceris, and I’d been lost in thought as I stared at the glowing water. Patterns of blue reflected on Asher’s concerned face, and I forced my lips upward into a smile.
“Not this time,” I replied simply, unable to push the thought of Cordelia from my mind. When I’d caught my siren lover conspiring against me all those decades ago, I could have bent her to my will or killed her, but instead, I’d let the conniving female have what she desired. To become alpha of the high house. After the sudden death of our last alpha, I had been the strongest candidate to succeed him. But I had finally seen the house for what it was, and I no longer wanted a part in it. Still, even then when I’d discovered Cordelia was bedding my so-called friend, Hersondal, and planning against me, even when my heart had been torn out leaving a chasm inside me, Cordelia had been surprised and disappointed when I’d announced I was leaving the house. Oh, another monster might not have noticed, but I’d seen that flitting expression of shock and the way her lips had thinned before she’d regained her composure. It was probably the only time I’d ever truly seen her. Possibly, she’d hoped that she’d have both Hersondal and me at her beck and call. I didn’t dare believe that it was because she had any genuine feelings for me.
But whether she did or not, I was the best equipped to appeal to the sirens of the House of Saceris. If Asher or any of my other brothers went in there, the sirens would likely entrance them to be their little puppets before they could even plead a case for the rebels. And Raine… Oh, I’d kill them all if they tried to hurt her.
“I don’t want you to have to face them alone,” my lovely dragon said, her fierce gaze watching me.
I took her hands in mine and pressed a kiss to her fingers. She hadn’t said much as we’d made our way through the city, but from the way she kept fidgeting with the hilts of her blades, I knew she was worried for me.
“If you were to join me, I fear the outcome would be less than desirable for the sirens. No, I’ll be back before you even realize I’m gone,” I reassured her.
She looked like she wanted to protest, but Kade spoke first. “I hate this as much as you do, Mahare, but the sirens don’t play well with outsiders. If Darian’s to have any hope of getting through to them, he needs to do this alone.”
Raine clamped her lips together and let out a puff of smoke from her nose.
“If I had my way, we wouldn’t be here at all,” I said quietly as I pulled her against me and rested my chin on the top of her head. “But we need the sirens to join the fight.”
“You said yourself, the sirens would have simply allied with the more powerful side,” she replied. “What makes you think you can trust them, even if they do agree?”
“Trust them?” I laughed. “Well now, no one said anything about that, lovely, but if they’re going to listen to anyone, unfortunately, it’s probably me. If I can sow enough seeds of doubt about the alliance with Warrick, it might be enough to force Cordelia’s hand.”
“And if they try to capture Darian and hand him over to Warrick, that’s when we come in,” Asher added with a grin, rolling his shoulders and bouncing on the spot like he was excited at the thought of having to bust into the sirens’ house.
Kade grunted his agreement, his tense muscles bunched as he scanned the water flowing beside us.
“I wouldn’t put it past Cordelia to try and imprison you,” Locke added, his hood pulled low over his face. “That bitch is still bitter you left her. It might not even be to hand you over to Warrick but for her own purposes.”
Raine frowned, a possessive growl rumbling deep within her. “If she tries to keep him, I’m going to roast her ass,” she said seriously, pulling back to stare up at my face.
I very much enjoyed the thought of her doing just that to Cordelia. The siren alpha may have prided herself on her ability to weave her webs behind closed doors, but I had no doubt Raine would burn through it all if she wanted.
“As much as I would love to see that,” I said with a sensual smile, “I don’t think Cordelia would be stupid enough to try and imprison me. There’s a reason I was going to become the alpha of the high house.”
Raine grinned at that, but her smile soon fell as sunlight began streaming through the surrounding buildings, announcing the dawn of a new day. The sound of dozens of sirens beginning to sing in harmony carried on the air, and I turned my head to the rushing water of the river. “But now, it looks like it’s my time to shine,” I said reluctantly as I pulled away from my sweet Raine. Taking off my weapons, I stripped until I was standing completely naked.
Raine openly admired me, biting her bottom lip as she grinned, and I had to fight hard not to damn the sirens and drag her against me. After Cordelia’s betrayal, I never thought my heart would heal, but what I felt for Raine was beyond what I had with the siren. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. The last thing I wanted was for Cordelia to think my desire was for her.
“If I’m not back in an hour, you’ll know what that means,” I said to my brothers.
Asher flexed his muscles. “We know.”
“Try not to be late,” Locke warned, his eyes turning black.
