Immortal Rapture: Immortal Heart (5 page)

He sat next to her and gently ran his fingers over the baby’s soft hair. “Why do you look so sad, Jelena?”

“I know my time with him is short. He can’t go to my part of the Underworld with me.”

Makyle shook his head. “I’m not sure he can.”

“Will he ever? He was born of your world; this is where they will want him to remain when they send me back.”

“You’re not supposed to be here, Jelena.”

“He wasn’t meant to be born here. Why are they doing this?”

Makyle dipped his chin as he studied the sleeping baby. His
tiny, alabaster fingers were wrapped around his little thumb and his breathing was soft and even. Makyle drew in a deep breath. His world wasn’t all bad, but the lower levels held the worst of the Fae. No child deserved to start its life in this place. “I wish I had answers for you, but I promise I will protect him.”

She turned to look back at her brother. Her beautiful and fierce
black-haired and diamond-eyed brother. “That should be his father’s job. If I can’t keep and raise him, then Uriah should have that right.”

Makyle nodded. “We’ll figure it out. Now, did you decide on a name for him?”

She sniffled and nodded. “Makiah, son of Uriah, born of Ragnar’s line.”

“Strong name… he will live up to it.”

Jelena looked over at Makyle. “I think, if given the opportunity, he will prove to be as strong and good a man as the men he is named after.”

“He will be given the opportunity.”

She nodded and smiled before turning her attention back to her son. “How much longer do I have with him?”

“A few weeks.”

“It isn’t long enough… Won’t you help me, Makyle? We can sneak him out of here and into my side of our world.”

Makyle sighed. His brothers may not realize it, but even for them, emotions lay under the surface and influenced their actions. Fear was what guided them to keep the child under their control. Makiah wasn’t supposed to exist, but here he lay in their sister’s arms, a demi-god by his own rights. There was no telling what he would become, what strength he would hold, or what powers he would wield. Still, the fear of the unknown was a crippling and unnecessary emotion in this situation.

Makyle leaned over and kissed Jelena’s cheek. “It’s all going to work out.”

Izzy’s home was very Izzy. It was comforting and cozy with warm tones and plush furniture. Uriah dropped his bag at the base of the stairs and moved into the living room. Grabbing the remote, he flipped on the television just for a little background noise as he headed for the kitchen. He wasn’t at all surprised when he saw two shadows land in the backyard, or when he heard the security pad click and the alarm shut off. He reached for the bottle of
Patrón that sat in the cupboard above the microwave. Pulling three shot glasses from the other cabinet, he poured the shots as Lothar and Kale entered the kitchen.

“I had a feeling I’d be seeing the two of you.”

“Well, after talking with Bain, we wanted to check on you.” Kale crossed his tatted arms over his broad chest and eyed his brother carefully.

Uriah nodded. With a flick of his
finger, his telekinesis sent the two shot glasses to the end of the counter for his brothers. “I should have waited and talked to you both… but when Izzy offered me her keys, I took the opportunity to get out of there.”

“It’s understandable
,” Lothar said before shooting back his drink and shaking his head. “Is there anything besides tequila in this house?”

Kale chuckled. “The only reason there is tequila is because of me.”

Lothar arched a brow. “Yeah, I figured as much.”

Uriah grabbed a paper sack he’d set down on his way in and pulled out a bottle of Jameson, Grey Goose
, and a bottle of something that looked awfully girly to Kale… “Does that say fucking Whipped Vodka?”

Uriah nodded and pulled out a
two liter of Root Beer. “The sales lady said it was a good mix, taste like Root-beer floats.”

Lothar chuckled. “I’m sure it does. Anyhow,” he said
, reaching for the Jameson. “So, do you want to talk about Mom?”

Uriah scoffed. “You mean
, Freya, the banished Norse fertility goddess?”

Kale smiled. “That makes us
demi-gods.”

“Makes you Loki
,” Uriah joked.

“I do love a little mischief
,” Kale agreed.

“Are you angry with her?” Lothar asked seriously.

Uriah shook his head. “How could I be angry with her? She fell in love, and she was a good mother to us. I wish we had known more about her—about our history, our family, and where we came from.”

“We can learn. There are plenty of texts on the Gods that came before the Fae.”

Uriah took a shot of the Grey Goose and nodded. “The other thing the two of you need to realize is that we all carry the blood of a fertility goddess. I don’t know what that means for sure, but since she had us in pretty quick succession, you two need to think about whether you want to have children who will be cursed as we are, and you need to talk to Holly and Kat. We may have just been lucky so far that we don’t have offspring out there.”

Kale and Lothar both furrowed their brows. “Well… maybe someday Kat and I will want children, but for now… we’ve got the situation
covered
.”

Lothar chuckled. “As a
made vampire, Holly shouldn’t be able to have offspring, but her biology is mostly a mystery so we take precautions… Now, moving on from that, I’m pretty sure you met the Fates today and if I had to guess, based off what Bain told me, Lachesis was the one you were talking with.”

“That’s what I figured. The whole weaving destiny thing.”

“Yeah, and from what I learned on Moiria, she’s a pretty straight shooter and she really is on our side.”

Uriah took another shot of Kale’s patron. “That’s what I figured… which means that what is happening in our lands will only end when Jelena returns to her side of the
Underworld… once that happens, I—” He took a deep breath and let the pain slither through his veins. “It means I really will never see her again. We broke the rules, but I really did love her.”

He held back the tears that threatened as Kale and Lothar both stayed silent, waiting for him to work through what he had never admitted out loud.

“I’ve loved her for over a century and I waited, and we behaved, never crossing the lines… until just before she died. It might have been easier to have never had her. But I held her, I made love to her, and now she’s gone. And we are on our own because I loved her. The sisters are cut off from us. Whatever role the Fates play, they still make the rules. And they decide how the Immortal Three live and the laws that define them. Now I need to figure out what it all means for me.”

“I’m sorry,” Kale said softly. “It isn’t fair.” He sighed and wondered if Uriah leaving without talking to him and Lothar had something to do with the curse playing out very differently for Uriah than it had for the two of them.

Lothar's head tilted toward Kale, and then his eyes locked on Uriah briefly before he shook his head.

Uriah smirked. “I know that move, Lothar, and I know you well enough
, Kale, to know what you are thinking. I would never want this outcome for either of you, and I don’t hold any anger toward the two of you. My situation was far different than either of yours. I loved who I was never meant to; I guarantee Jelena wasn’t part of the destiny Lachesis wove for me.”

Kale nodded. “
All right… so can we drink the night away with you, brother?”

Uriah nodded. “You bet… I might even let you talk me into a tattoo.”

Kale grinned, his baby face morphing impishly. “And some piercings too?”

The bottle of
Patrón floated to Kale, and Uriah smiled. “I will draw the line there, brother.”

“Most anybody who has the smallest amount of sanity would have drawn the line on Kale quite some time ago
,” Lothar joked. “I mean, really, the piercings?”

Kale grinned even wider. “My Kitten enjoys them.”

Uriah shook his head. “That sounds twisted, as most wouldn’t realize that your true mate’s name is Katarina and you call her Kitten… it just sounds like PETA needs a call.”

Lothar let out a bark of
laughter; at least Uriah was smiling and throwing barbs at Kale.

“You wait… you’ll get an awesome piece of art and you’ll be addicted, then the piercings won’t seem so crazy.”

“A tattoo does sound like something I might be interested in, but I doubt I will come around on the piercings.”

Kale grinned. “Fine, let’s drink then, boys.”

“Damn it, Kale.”

Kale, Lothar, and Uriah all grumbled at the sound of Kat’s voice ringing in their ears. Kale smiled as he cracked open a single lid and caught sight of Kat’s beautiful face peering down at him. Kale took a sluggish look around Izzy’s living room. Uriah was passed out on the smaller love seat, and Lothar was draped over the recliner. His gaze fell back on Kat and a smirking Holly behind her.

“What’s wrong, Kitten?”

She shook her head, suppressing a small smile. “It’s fucking one in the afternoon, for starters.”

Kale fumbled for his phone and clicked on the screen, sure enough it was 1:07. He set the phone aside and reached for her. Grasping her hand, he pulled her down to him and kissed her cheek. “I told you I wouldn’t be home last night.”

“Yeah, I know that.”

“Then why are you mad?” he pouted as he nuzzled her neck.

She slapped her hands against his chest and pushed back. With an arched brow, she gestured towards Uriah. “I’m guessing that is your doing.”

Kale didn’t bother to look at his brother. “He already had the alcohol when we got here.”

Kat sighed. “I’m not talking about the fact that you all got wasted last night… I’m referring to the fucking tattoo covering his chest.”

Kale’s brows rose
, and details of the night returned… They’d finished off the bottles and made a run to the liquor store for more. On the way back, Kale contacted his personal tattoo artist and decided it was a good idea to stop in. Now, Uriah had an expertly applied piece of art. Daring a glance at his brother, he caught sight of the colorful bird on Uriah’s chest.

He knew there was no way he wasn’t getting the blame for this, but he asked her, “Why do you think it’s my fault?”

“Are you kidding me?” She again arched a brow at him. He just grinned at her. “Well, for one, it’s a tattoo, and for two, it’s a fucking phoenix. Who else would choose a bird of fire for a tattoo?”

Uriah was awake now, a light chuckle escaping his lips. “Kat?”

She turned to look at the now-stirring immortal. “Yeah?”

“I love you… but can you quit yelling at him? It’s hurting my head. The tattoo isn’t exactly a Phoenix, and it was my idea.”

She glared down at Kale. “Really? Or is he just covering your ass?”

Kale adjusted them so he could sit. “It was his idea… I pushed for some piercings
, and he pretty much told me to suck it.”

She shook her head. “
All right, I’ll quit yelling.” She looked back to Uriah, who was sitting and holding his head in his hands. “Should we have brought Bain or Izzy with us to heal that hangover?”

He smiled and looked up at her. “Nope, I did all of this to myself, I will heal on my own… so you don’t like my tattoo?”

She laughed. “I think it’s beautiful.”

The bird looked more hawk-like
. A black bird with the color starting at its tail feathers in a vibrant blue, working up along its body to a rich red, with subtle flames on his wings that reached out over his pectorals. It really was a beautiful piece of art.

Kale cleared his throat
, and Kat looked back at him. “What?”

“Quit staring at his chest.”

Kat laughed and stood. “Come on, Cree wants to see the two of you,” she said, gesturing to Lothar, who held Holly in his lap and quietly listened to the exchange.

“Is everything okay?” Lothar asked, as he and Holly climbed out of the chair.

“Yeah.” Holly smiled and nodded. “He just wants to go over some stuff with the two of you and Bain.”

Uriah’s eyes drifted between the two women. “What’s going on?”

Holly smiled. “It’s nothing, Uriah. Just a meeting about what the plan is for the next few weeks. He wants you to heal, and as part of that, he’s taken you out of rotation. So you take care of yourself, and we’ll come see you in a few days, okay?”

Uriah nodded
. He felt bad that his brothers were still covering his ass, but he wasn’t sure he could go back to the Middle World right now. “Tell him I will check in with Lucas in a couple of days, and I can work this side of things.”

Lothar smiled. “You got it, brother.”