Chapter 41
MORRIGAN
As light filtered through my lashes, I noticed a dark figure looming over me.
His black, tousled hair hung from his head, covering his brows. It was more unruly than it had been before. Even the skin on his jaw held a dark stubble, and dark circles shaded beneath his eyes made him look tired. But it didn’t take away from the youthful glow that always emanated from him.
Nor his beauty, even if it pained me to see it.
“There you are, little dove,” he whispered, and my heart betrayed me as it fluttered from the sound of his voice.
It took me a moment to realize that I held his wrist, and the familiar taste of his blood coated my tongue—hot and heavy.
I swiftly pulled away, licking my lips as I scooted back against the headboard to sit.
I had to physically tear my eyes away from him to find Tristan standing on the other side of the room, and some of my tension eased instantly. “What… What happened?”
“You lost control of your power,” Tristan explained, and Kaiden lowered himself onto the mattress, sitting beside me. I didn’t miss the slight flick of Tristan’s eyes as he tracked his movement.
Then, the memory of Mara flashed through my mind, and I sucked in a breath, anxiety crawling over me like icy daggers. “I killed… Oh, Gods, Tristan. I’m so—”
“You did what was necessary, Morrigan.” Tristan walked up to my other side and sat down, smoothing my hair over my shoulder. “If you hadn’t, I would have.”
“Tristan, she raised you—”
“And she threatened you,” he pushed on. “I hadn’t realized just how deep her bitterness ran, but nothing—not even his death—would have quenched that.
I never should have made that promise to her.
” His thumb found my lip and settled there for a moment, earning an uncomfortable shift from Kaiden.
This really couldn’t get any more awkward.
“No one will lay a hand on you, Morrigan. I’ve told you this already. ”
Reluctantly, I turned to face Kaiden, and Tristan’s hand dropped from my face, but he didn’t move to leave. Kaiden’s tired eyes bore into mine, but all I could see was the way he had looked at Mara. The only words that whispered in my mind were, “She’s not you, Mara.”
A lie, I remembered. All of it.
“Please, let me explain,” Kaiden whispered.
“There isn’t anything more to tell me.” It took an abundant amount of courage to dry up the tears welling in my eyes. I am not weak. Not anymore. “You loved her, Kaiden. And when you saw me…”
“No! I mean… Yes, when I first saw you, I thought of her, but Morrigan, you’re not—”
“Her,” I answered for him, feeling a sting of sadness in my chest. “I know. You’ve made that very clear.”
Kaiden’s lips pressed together, and I could see the anger and hindrance in his eyes. “If you would just let me talk—”
“Princess!”
The sound of Azrael’s voice rang through the room, and I shoved off the blankets, ignoring the men on either side.
It only took seconds for me to climb off of the bed and meet him across the room.
The moment my arms wrapped around his body, every bit of sadness poured from me, replaced with sweet relief.
I pulled away and held both of his arms, forcing him to look at me. “If you ever do anything like that again, Azrael, I swear to the gods I’ll—”
“I won’t,” he promised, a small smile teetering the corners of his lips.
I wanted to scream at him, tell him how reckless he had been. How he could have gotten all three of us killed. But as I looked into his eyes, I couldn’t stay angry for long. Because, truthfully, it didn’t matter. I would do it all again for him.
“He’s been worried about you, too, Morrigan,” my mother said quietly as I stood to face her with Azrael’s hand in mine. Then, her eyes peeked over my shoulder, and a slight blush crept along my cheeks. “Why don’t I take Azrael to the dining hall. You three can… finish up here and meet us there.”
“Thanks, Mom.” Leaning down, I placed a kiss on top of Azrael’s head. “Behave,” I quickly threatened, only half teasing.
With a small giggle, he followed my mom out of the room, and, once again, I was left alone with Kaiden and Tristan. I saw the question lingering on Kaiden’s face and spoke up before he could ask it.
“He was one of the prisoners in the tunnels. I took him with me when I escaped.”
His expression grew serious. “Morrigan,” he said grimly. “Those prisoners had gifts that were—”
“Touch him, and I promise you, I will finish what Mara started.”
The statement seemed to strike him as though I had physically hit him. And nearby, I could vaguely see Tristan smirking. I quickly turned my anger toward him.
“I had a fun little trip down memory lane, Tristan.” I tilted my head to the side as I planted my hands on my hips, and his eyes went wide—the smirk instantly falling from his lips. “A particular room on fire happen to ring a bell?”
“Morrigan, I swear… I only took away that memory for your own—”
“Gods!” I laughed as I brought both hands to my head. “You are both the same person!”
Both Kaiden and Tristan stood from the bed synchronously, speaking in unison.
“I am nothing like—”
“How dare you compare me to—”
“Stop speaking!” I yelled, cutting them both off and walking toward the nearest chair to sit down. “This is what’s going to happen. You will both sit down, and I will get the truth. Right now. Then, you are going to bring the rest of the guys here. Immediately, Tristan.”
Kaiden bit his lip, suppressing a familiar cocky smile as he moved to a chair and sat down, leaning back.
Tristan moved to my bed, sitting at the end as he clasped his hands.
I felt like a damned mother scolding her children.
These men were supposed to be centuries older than me, and they behaved like kids sometimes.
“The episodes I have,” he looked to the ceiling and sighed, “with you having half of my light… it leaves me at a disadvantage. I can’t remove the power that Ryuk left behind.
It’s been poisoning me for a long time. And—while you can basically wield the power of a god—you walk in the body of a mortal.
The nosebleeds, the headaches… It’s because your body can’t physically contain so much power. ”
“Then take it out of her,” Kaiden argued.
Tristan shot a glare his way. “You think I haven’t thought of that? When I awakened the light in her that day, it didn’t answer to me; it answered to her. That power has burrowed itself inside of her, and it’s not going to let go. It’s different now. Changed.”
“If my body can’t contain it, what’s going to happen? What will happen to you?” I asked, the slight tremble in my voice giving away the fear I refused to show.
“If I can’t gain access to the other half of my light, my father’s power will kill me one day.” He turned to face me, his eyes filled with dread and remorse. “And eventually, your power will eat away at the mortal part of you until there’s nothing left.”
Kaiden stood in outrage, storming toward him. But I met him halfway and placed a hand on his chest before returning to Tristan. “There has to be something that we can do,” I insisted.
He hesitated for a moment. “No, Morrigan.”
“So there is something?”
“I can’t let you do that. It’s too much of a risk.”
“Tell her!” Kaiden growled at him.
“This doesn’t involve you, halfling!”
I was in the center of two men, who were acting half their age. Actually, I think Azrael might have been more mature than they were. I took a breath and turned my back to Kaiden, kneeling in front of Tristan before pulling his hands into mine. “Tell me,” I pleaded quietly.
His mouth opened and closed several times before he finally gave my hands a light squeeze. “A soul bond.”
“No.” I could feel Kaiden’s shadows behind me, their presence darkening the room as they seeped onto the floor by my feet.
Soul bond. Two souls bonded as one. A ritual that is almost impossible to reverse.
“Will that save you?” I asked Tristan, ignoring the anger that radiated at my back.
He shook his head and pressed our foreheads together. “Don’t make this decision for me, Morrigan. If this time was all I had with you, I would accept my death. It’s your life I need to preserve. But I haven’t been able to find any other way to stop the light from destroying—”
“Tristan,” I stopped him, bringing my hand to his cheek. “Will it save you?”
“Morrigan, no,” Kaiden insisted. “Soul bonds between those with gifts merge their power. It’s shared between both partners. If his light merges with yours, it could speed up the process.” I felt his hand on my shoulder, and he turned me to face him. “This could potentially kill you.”
“I’ll be fine, Kaiden, and this isn’t your choice.” I ripped away from his grasp to look at Tristan again. “Will it save you?” The moment I watched his head nod stiffly, I stood and dropped both men’s hands from me. “I’ll do it.”
Kaiden’s eyes shot wide. “Morrigan, just think about this—”
“You and Dez left him here!” I yelled, watching Kaiden take a sudden step back.
“You knew about him, and you didn’t even try to help him!
A baby, Kaiden!” His shoulders slumped in response as he stared at me.
“I am doing this, and you have absolutely no say in it. Tristan, I want the guys here now.”
Kaiden said nothing, but his eyes swam in darkness like he battled with them internally.
“With the soul bond, would we be able to break the wards keeping you here, then?” I asked Tristan.
“I-I think so. I hadn’t really thought that far—”
“Once the soul bond is complete,” I turned to Kaiden, “Tristan, Malakai, and the rest of the lycan come home.”
Kaiden opened his mouth in clear protest, but I didn’t let him speak.
“I’m not asking for your permission, Kaiden. We will fix everything that the gods fucked up. And if you won’t help me, I’ll do it on my own. But gods forbid you get in my way, and I won’t stop myself from doing what I think is right.”
Sticking his tongue in his cheek, Kaiden took one more step back in surrender. “As you wish, Your Grace.”