15. On a Dark Path
ON A DARK PATH
Irene
When Alex had told me to take the carriage and go home, I’d hesitated, but the predatory intent in his gaze had been clear.
I hadn’t seen him after I’d arrived at Raven Hall, and Darius had gone to Alex’s room more than an hour ago.
Meanwhile, I’d been pacing in my bedroom, worried sick about Alex, and I had no idea how he was faring.
“Irene?” Darius opened the door and peeked inside.
“Finally.” I rushed to him. “How is Alex?”
He rubbed his arm. “He’s fine. He fed from me.” He grimaced, his face pale. “I’ll never understand why humans find the bite pleasant. They don’t enjoy being mauled by a hound, do they? I nearly passed out from the pain. And I have no magic at the moment. I had to use my hands to change my clothes.”
“May I see him?”
“Well…” He shut the door. “You probably should stay away from him until we fully understand the consequences of the reckless pact he made with Cara.”
“He didn’t drink from me. He asked me to leave him alone. That’s a good sign, isn’t it?”
He pointed to the tray with the slices of honey cake I hadn’t touched. “Do you mind?”
“Please go ahead.”
He wolfed down the cake and added several sugar cubes to a cup of tea. I stopped counting them after the fifth one.
“Sorry. I had a tray, but you know…” He finished the tea with a sigh of relief.
“I’m usually optimistic, but I’m afraid the situation is more serious than you think.
Alex did the right thing by sending you away.
His control is growing thinner by the minute.
Heck, I had to spray him with blessed water to make him stop drinking. ”
“Oh no.” Goose bumps stung my skin. “I’m worried.”
“So am I. His healing power is slow, and that’s not a good sign.” He showed me his arm where two red dots marked the skin. “His tolerance for sunlight has diminished, and his temper… No, that’s the same foul, horrible one. Anyway, don’t go to him.”
“Now that I can touch him, I can’t be with him.” I couldn’t completely remove the frustration from my voice.
“That’s called irony, which I’ve always thought to be a fancy word for bad luck.”
I dropped myself onto the bed. “He shouldn’t be dangerous now, should he? He’s just fed.”
He gave an uncertain nod. “He was calmer when I left him. Do you still have your gold cross?”
“Heavens. I can’t believe I have to use my cross against Alex.” Sadness sat heavily on my chest.
“Just a precaution. And I’ll come with you, even though my magic is at its lowest.” He sipped another sweet cup of tea before opening the door.
I wrung my hands as we walked along the corridor to Alex’s room. “He’s turning into a rogue, isn’t he?”
His aura lacked its usual brightness and colours. It was a dull grey halo with no spark or vitality, likely due to the blood loss. “I’m afraid so.”
Alex was buttoning his waistcoat when we entered. Steam floated from his lavatory, and the air was thick with the scent of sandalwood soap. The bond gave a light yank. The muted throb had nothing to do with the harsh pull I’d experienced earlier. It was a soft tug, drawing me closer to him.
He brightened when he saw me.
“Irene.” He cupped my face and kissed me with such sweetness that I sagged against him. “I’m sorry for having frightened you. I’m sorry for how I behaved.”
My skin tingled at his touch, but my concerns didn’t slip away.
The wounds on his neck had vanished although a thin red line blemished his neck where the rogue had bitten him.
“I was worried.” I brushed the wet hair from his face, my heart filling with compassion.
“I’m better now. Thank you for helping me.” He craned his neck towards Darius. “Are you all right?”
“I’ve been better.” Darius snatched a biscuit from the tray on the nightstand. “I’m here as Irene’s chaperone.”
“Excuse me?” Alex held me by the waist.
“You aren’t yourself.” Darius stood next to me. “Why risk?”
“I’m in control, and while I appreciate your concern for Irene’s safety, I’m surprised you don’t trust me.”
I touched Darius’s shoulder. “I think you can leave us alone.”
The sense of calm the bond gave me was a good indication of Alex’s state, and I trusted the bond.
“Are you sure?” Darius searched my face.
“Very much.”
“Here.” He handed me a bottle filled with a clear liquid. “Blessed water. Avoid contact with the eyes unless you’re really angry with him.”
Alex didn’t protest when I took it.
Darius gave me a quick nod. “If you are sure.”
“I am.” The bond was relaxed and warm after days of tension; it was the best indicator of Alex’s mood.
The moment he shut the door, Alex’s lips were on mine, burning, demanding, firm.
Pleasure burst out, followed by the urge to have more. His tongue sought entrance, and I yielded, opening my mouth for him. I thought I would taste blood, but not a trace of it remained on his tongue. He kissed me with the desperation of a man who was about to be ripped away from me forever.
My cheeks were in flames, and my whole body was a chaos of sensations, but I’d never felt more desirable, beautiful, and strong.
He kissed me as he’d never done before with ferocious passion, going deep and worshipping me.
I sighed when his hand travelled from my waist to my breast. The ache between my legs pulsated harder, fuelled by his roaming hand and wild kisses. A shudder rushed through me when he rubbed my nipple with his thumb.
“You were frightened.” He nuzzled my neck, brushing his lips against my skin.
“I was.”
“Of me.”
“You asked me to leave you, bleeding and wounded, alone.”
“I was hungry, and I didn’t want to drink from you again.” He fiddled with the buttons of my shirt, and the gold cross came into view.
He hissed and leapt back as if he’d been shoved. The bond tensed immediately, and the pleasure died down.
For a moment, we stared at each other, both of us shocked and hurt.
The only time my cross had hurt him had been right before he’d transformed when he’d wanted to drink from me, when he’d been a danger to me.
After that moment, he had never recoiled.
Religious symbols worked only when the vampire was a rogue.
There was no need to talk about what his revulsion for the cross meant.
“Alex…”
He stepped back, his eyes becoming a solid obsidian colour. “You should leave.” His fangs came out fully, and the fabric of his shirt strained over his growing muscles. “It’s…better if you leave.”
Buttoning my shirt, I hurried out of the room, tears blurring my sight. Loud groans came from him as if he were sobbing. His wretched pain reached me through the bond.
Darius was waiting for me in the hallway. “Are you all right?”
“No.” I wiped my face. “Is there anything you can do to help him? Please.”
“I’ll do anything I can.” He hugged me. “I can talk to Carabosse and convince her to reverse the spell.”
“Yes. Lowe should know where she is.” Emotion swelled in my throat.
Tears blurred my vision, and my power jumped around, catching random feelings.
We found the witch in the entrance hall, getting ready to leave.
The footman was helping her don a dark coat.
Her aura was similar to Darius’s with many colours all moving in different directions, but now that I paid attention, the golden tendrils in Darius’s aura moved clockwise.
In Cara’s aura, they moved anti-clockwise, whatever that meant.
Darius breathed hard after the short walk. “Cara, we need to talk to you.”
“I’m afraid I’m leaving.” She patted her black velvet hat and lowered the black veil, covering her face.
“Can’t it wait?” Darius asked.
“No, it can’t.” She started to leave as the butler opened the door.
I blocked her. “You must reverse the spell you cast on Ravenhill.”
Her facial muscles tightened. “I understand you’re concerned, but Ravenhill and I made a deal, and I didn’t choose the price or the consequences of the spell. Magic takes and does whatever it deems fit. If Ravenhill doesn’t like what’s happening to him, there’s nothing I can do.”
“Cara.” Darius stepped in front of her. “The last thing the Dark Court needs is a duke out of control. The Fair Duchess is breathing down our necks. And there’s a rogue vampire at large. Soon, we might have two.”
Cara tilted her chin up. “Perhaps the Fair Duchess is exactly what this stuffy, priggish place needs.”
“Reverse the spell.” He didn’t step aside when she tried to brush past him.
“I don’t blame you for being ignorant about dark magic…” She touched her chin. “Actually, I do. You’re so conceited and think you know everything. Well, you don’t.”
“Enlighten me, then.” Darius folded his arms across his chest.
“I can’t reverse the spell without casting another one, which means another deal with Ravenhill, and who knows what the price would be? I’m not sure that would solve Ravenhill’s problem.” She waved her hand, and dark smoke came out of it.
The smoke coiled around Darius.
“Cara!” He struggled against the smoky ropes but to no avail.
They lifted him and removed him from her path. At the same time, the lights in the hall wavered and dimmed. One of the gas lamps was snuffed out, and the temperature dropped. Frost glazed the window. I rubbed my arms.
“Ravenhill knew what he was doing. Except what he knew was wrong.” She wiggled her fingers and left.
Darius swatted away the smoky ropes. “Great. Just great.”
“What did she mean by that?” My breath turned into mist around my mouth.
He patted my shoulder, his strands of hair jutting in every direction. “That we need to find a way to keep Alex and us safe.”