Chapter 30
One second,Dove was bursting with pride as Marcus told his uncle where he could stick his offer. The next, she was plunging to her death.
So far, dying was disappointing, to say the least. No movie of her life flashed before her eyes. And it would have been epic. Won Oscars. Someone glamourous would have played her. Walked the red carpet. Signed autographs.
Sigh.
Seriously, where the heck were those singing angels she’d heard so much about? Maybe that came later? Who knew? The spirits she’d spoken to were never big on the details.
Frustration mixed with her fear. Darn it! She wasn’t ready. She’d accomplished so little in her life, always flitting from one thing to the next. Never committing. Never finishing anything. Biggest example, Marcus. Her heart ached. She hadn’t told him yet. Hadn’t given him the words. Now, it was too late. Perhaps if she came back as a ghost, she could convince Celeste to relay the message.
This entire experience—her final experience—was a complete letdown. Sky divers who got off on this kind of rush were insane. Her body didn’t feel weightless, floating blissfully in some sort of orgasmic freefall. Nope. In that moment, she was a one-ton elephant on a collision course with the sidewalk. Wind rushed past her. Her stomach lodged in her throat. Still, she managed to scream. Loud and long. Every muscle drew up tight as though she could brace and survive the fall. Ha. Ha. Not happening. This was going to hurt. A. Lot.
Tangled hair obscured her vision. Through the strands, an inky figure took shape. Glowing red eyes peered back at her, determination in their depths.
“Shadow!” she shouted.
Just Shadow. Without Marcus. That meant Marcus was either dead or dying. No. No. No! Her own death was hard enough to process, but losing Marcus? It was too much.
The shade’s inky silhouette streaked after her. Gaining speed. She reached for him, and her hand passed through his form.
That crumb of hope for a rescue plunged to its demise faster than her body. Without Marcus, the shade was incorporeal.
He surged forward, enveloping her in his misty shape. His presence wrapped around her like a warm hug. Was this his intention? To keep her company on her way to the great beyond?
Aw. Isn’t he sweet? Who’s a good demon?
Purple light flashed beneath her nose. Her talisman! Tendrils of her dark savior pushed into the pendant. By the goddess, he was using it as a gateway to possess her.
His voice whispered in her mind. “Let me in, my queen.”
She’d never heard his voice in this way. He sounded calm. How the hell could he sound calm at a time like this? Her chest constricted. Let a spirit into her body? She answered out loud. “No, I can’t.” Bad things happened when necromancers let spirits in.
“Trust me.”
Tears burned her eyes. She was taught never to give a spirit access to her body. It was a recipe for disaster. Except this entity was already a part of her. She trusted him completely.
Her talisman glowed bright enough to burn her retinas. This was happening. No time to argue. She clasped the tumbling pendant and smashed it against her chest. Tapping into a sliver of what remained of her power, she pulled him inside, welcoming him body and soul.
Instead of the cold she expected, warmth seared her torso. Oh fates. He was spreading. Heat rushed through her chest outward, sliding along her frozen limbs. Energy infused her being. Not only was he part of her, he was exerting his influence.
Black swirls rippled down her arms. The sensation like hot water spilling over her flesh. Through Shadow’s eyes she saw vivid shades of midnight blue, burgundy, and plum. Those colorful bands attached themselves to the wall of the building, acting as bungee cords. Transfixed by the beautiful colors, it took a second to notice the rushing wind had quieted. Her descent slowed. Windows in the building drew into focus, ticking by like floors of an elevator.
Pavement smacked her feet. Her legs collapsed beneath her, and her ass hit the ground.
She stared up, up, up, and her stomach pitched. Oh, that was far. She’d fallen all that distance and somehow Shadow had managed to hit the brakes.
“I’m alive.” She patted herself down. Yep. All the pieces were there. “Shadow, you did it.” She staggered to her feet with a fist pump. “I’m alive!”
“Quiet,” said a voice from the back of her psyche. “Zion will hear.”
“Whoa.” She splayed her hands out for balance. “That’s kind of freaky. Shadow?”
Sigh. “Who else?”
Dove snorted. “You’d be surprised at the things that run through my head.”
“No surprise.”
She ignored his snarky response, too happy to be alive. Joy bubbled inside of her. “You did it. You saved me. Oh, I could kiss you.” She kissed the backs of her hands and hugged her middle.
“Please ssstop,”he growled, sounding a lot like his previous host.
“Did you know you could do that? Jump out of Marcus and into me?”
“Know now.”
Yep. Sounding more like Marcus every minute. Which reminded her. “Holy crap. Marcus! At this very moment he may be gasping his last breath. We have to get back to him.” She thrust her arms over her head and jumped. “Up, up, and away!”
Shadow huffed, “What are you doing?”
“Duh. Flying.”
“No.”
“No?”
“Too heavy for flying.”
“Did you just call me fat? Never mind.” She sprinted down the walkway, racing for the door.
Inside the lobby, she eyed the elevator, followed by the stairwell. Every second they wasted was a second they didn’t have. Stairs. Elevator. Bah! “We’ll never make it in time.”
“Leave to me.”
Dove stepped into the elevator. Lights flickered and dimmed. It was all the warning she had before her heart plunged into her stomach. Her stomach into her feet. Her cheeks into her ears. She stumbled into the corner, bracing herself on the railing.
“You know, astronauts usually train months for this kind of thing,” she shouted over the squealing cables, swallowing bile. Moments later, the door opened, and she stumbled down a short hallway onto the roof.
Once her vision cleared, she discovered Marcus lying on the ground, his flesh sizzling. Zion leaned over the top of him, lips parted. Dark blue tendrils wafted from Marcus’s mouth into the demon’s.
Zion was reaping his soul.
No. No. No!
Rage burned at Dove’s center. Shadows gathered in an inky pool beneath her, spilling up her legs. For a moment, she gaped at the sensation building at her core. It felt strong, powerful, and deliciously dark. Shadow’s power was hers now. Their combined energy, a heady combination. Oh, mamma. Screw being a pacifist. This little faerie was ready to rumble.
Channeling all the anger she felt, she splayed her hands, gathering the darkness. Black energy crackled between her fingers.
“Give me everything you’ve got, Shadow.”
“Everything?”
“Absolutely.”
“Yes, my queen.”
They’d only have one shot at this.
Narrowing her focus, she reached deep into her well and gathered every speck of power both she and Shadow possessed. They came together like two halves made whole. The two whirled inside of her, twisting tighter, gaining strength. Oh boy, it was a lot of juice. If the officials who’d called her an underachiever could see her now, they’d piss their starched undies.
“Like this game,” Shadow growled in her mind.
“Same,” she grunted, her chest near to bursting.
At her response, Zion glanced her way.
“You?” he snarled, raising his hand to defend himself. Too late.
Power exploded from her fiery palms.
Black energy exploded against the monster’s chest. It detonated with the strength of a thousand pissed off poltergeists. The power of the explosion threw Dove back into the wall. Oxygen slammed from her lungs, her bones splintering. She hit the ground.
Sirens screamed in her eardrums, ozone burning her nostrils. She coughed, rolling to her knees. With the back of her hand, she swiped blood from her lips.
“Holy crap,” she choked out. “What the… Marcus. Shit. Marcus!”
She scrambled to her feet and stumbled to his side. Marcus rested against the roof ledge, tossed there by the explosion. Zion’s smoking corpse rested a few feet away, unmoving.
Carefully, she rolled Marcus onto his back. Half of his face was scorched, his flesh burning. Much as he’d looked after her failed exorcism.
“Is he…”
“He livesss,” Shadow reassured her. “But not long.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “He’s dying without you, Shadow. You have to go back.”
“Can’t.”
“What? Can’t or won’t?”
“Can’t. Energy gone. Yours and mine.”
He was right. Her tank was totally empty.
She flicked a glance to a groaning Tiberius. He wasn’t dead yet. That meant his soul was intact.
“I’m not losing Marcus. Not like this. Not after everything we’ve been through.” For once, she was going to be the badass necromancer she was always meant to be. No more holding back. No longer would she make herself smaller, hiding from others’ expectations. The only one she needed to fear disappointing was herself.
“I know what I need to do. May the fates forgive me.”
Scrambling to Tiberius’s side, she leaned over him. The vampire looked more like a bloated bag of raw meat than a powerful monster, thanks to her. She planted her palms into his bloody chest, cringing at the squelching sound.
His eyes cracked open, and she nearly screeched in surprise. “Do it,” he sneered.
Surely, she didn’t hear right. “You’re ready to die?”
“I’ve already won.”
She didn’t have time for his nonsense. Not while Marcus slipped away. “This will go easier for you if you don’t fight,” she sneered the words he’d once uttered to her.
Her chest unfurled, the sensation like a black hole had opened in her gut. Darkness rose in her center and pulled inward. Midnight blue vapor wafted up from Tiberius, his essence entering her body. Strength flooded her empty cells, her glyph igniting with power.
The connection between them shut off and Dove tumbled back, bile rising in her throat.
Ew! Ew! Ew! We just ate Tiberius. Don’t think about it, Dove. Don’t think about it.
Tiberius stared up at the sky. Lifeless. From his corpse, a furious shadow rose. “No!” It snarled in an unnatural voice. “No drone can defeat me.” It drifted on the breeze for a moment until a sunbeam sliced through its disintegrating form. The stench of sulfur burned Dove’s nostrils. Then, poof. It was gone.
“Shit. Was that Zion?”
“Yesss. Hurry,” Shadow urged.
“Right.” She hustled to Marcus’s side. He already had the Keres brand. Hopefully, the talisman would work as she hoped.
“Get ready, Shadow.” She whipped the chain over her head and pressed the talisman against Marcus’s chest. Everything that mattered to her in this whole screwed-up universe rested beneath her palm. “Hold on, Marcus. Don’t give up on me.”
Energy pulsed through her veins. Her glyph sparked along her back. Tangled locks lifted from her shoulders in an invisible wind. His spirit called to her. Thin ribbons connected them. There you are. Thank goodness she’d interrupted Zion in time. The Chosen bond remained. Dove focused on that connection, opened herself to it, sensed it deepening. This connection it went beyond a blood bond. Deeper, to a place of love. The ribbons between them thickened, twisting together until a channel opened.
In that connection was another presence. Shadow. He glided along the pathway. Sliding along its length, his roots stretching deep into Marcus. Connected. Her limbs tingled, growing cold as though drained of life. The shade’s presence inside of her dimmed. Grew faint. Disappeared. Beneath her palms, the talisman cooled. The purple light extinguished.
Dove panted, afraid to move. Did it work, or did she destroy them both?
“Marcus?” She smoothed his hair back. “Shadow?” No response. Her heart thundered, panic rising. Silence closed in, suffocating her. It didn’t work. She’d failed. A sob rose to choke her.
“Please, answer me.” She patted his cheek. No. It wasn’t fair. She couldn’t lose him. “Marcus!” Without thinking, she cracked her hand against his cheek.
His lips parted with a groan, and her heart leapt. She clasped her stinging palm to her chest. “Marcus?”
“We really need to work on your bedside manner.” His husky voice was music to her ears.
“Marcus!”
He blinked, smiling up at her.
Joy overwhelmed her senses. She grasped his cheeks, showering him with kisses. “Oh”—kiss—“I thought”—kiss—“I’d lost you.” Kiss, kiss, kiss.
He cupped her nape and planted a kiss on her that stole her breath.
Another jolt of concern had her pulling back, gasping, “What about Shadow?”
Marcus’s gorgeous eyes glowed red, humor twinkled in their depths. “Back where he belongs. He’ll be impossible to live with after this.”
“Tiberius?” Marcus asked.
Dove glanced in the direction of his uncle and Marcus lifted his head, glancing at the man’s corpse.
“Dead. Shadow and I killed him. Zion too.” She held her breath. What would Marcus do when he realized she’d stolen his chance at revenge? Again.
“Good.” He let his head drop.
“You’re not mad at me?”
He snorted. “Mad I missed it.”
Emotions rose to choke her. “You were willing to sacrifice yourself to save me.”
His expression smoothed and he cupped her cheek, staring deep into her eyes. “It was the least I could do for the woman who brought me back to life. Gave me a reason to live. Reason to look forward instead of back.”
Dove’s heart soared. “I love you, Marcus Shadow-Steele. I want to share all my tomorrows with you.”
“Whatever tomorrow may bring.” His brow furrowed. “Because of Tiberius, the Council will self-destruct. Alliances will crumble. War is on the horizon. With no laws or leadership, chaos will reign.”
Dove bit her lip. “Tiberius said he’d already won. Perhaps he was right.”
“Regardless, one thing I know for sure. Tomorrow has little value without you at my side. I love you. Say you will be mine. Forever.”
Dove grinned at the man who possessed her body and soul. She pressed her lips to his, whispering, “I love you too. Forever.”