Magick Marked (The DarqRealm Series) (12 page)

An executioner dressed like Halloween Barbie. Laughable. She wrapped her arms around herself, embarrassed by her revealing display.

Eldon glanced up to meet her eyes, then shook off his coat and handed it to her. “Here, take this.”

“Seriously?” Rho raised an eyebrow, not moving to accept the offer. “I’m a vampire. I’ll be fine.”

Surprise ran across his chiseled features as he took the jacket back. “Oh.” He shook it out and put it back on then stared at the ground.

“Thanks for offering, though,” she mumbled. Okay, so maybe he got one teeny, tiny point for being a gentleman. She joined him in his foot-staring contest, the chirping of crickets filling the awkward silence between them.

Their heads snapped up in unison as Tim and Preshea exited the rear of the tent.

“Anyone else out here?” Tim asked.

Eldon shook his head. “Not that I can see. Stay here.”

Tim flinched at the command but didn’t argue, holding his inner Alpha in check. Rho’s eyes narrowed as she glanced from one man to the other. There were four dominants on this team, each selected by their respective leaders for their authoritarian instincts. No one wanted weak representation.

Forget the enemy. They’d all be lucky to get out of this without killing each other.

Rho turned her attention back to Eldon. He glided around the group in a circle, his hands flexing and bending gracefully, his voice hushed as he spoke in a language she couldn’t understand. Latin, maybe?

As he completed the circle, the wind stopped. Even though the chill couldn’t give her a case of hypothermia, she was grateful for the stillness in the air.

Eldon stopped near Preshea, glancing at each of the teammates. “It’s a silence circle. No one outside of it can hear us or see us.”

Well, wasn’t he full of handy tricks?

Preshea folded her arms and turned to the wolf. “So who do you think stole it?”

“I’ve thought about it but haven’t come up with much.” Tim turned to Rho. “Who would want your Kamen? Actually, who could access it?”

“Ask Eldon.” Damn it, she hadn’t meant to say that out loud.

Preshea’s brow wrinkled. “What?”

Rho shot a glance at the wizard, his quick glimpse telling her this may not be the proper time or place to bring up their history. Too late now.

She cleared her throat. “You know how you and Tim knew each other before tonight?”

Preshea glared impatiently. “So what?”

“Yeah, well, Eldon and I knew each other, too. I hid the Kamen in a box in our kitchen cabinet and hired a magick mover to perform blood and vocal protection magick. No one should’ve been able to break those spells.”

Tim looked annoyed. “And?”

“I know Eldon because he was the mover I’d hired to perform the spells.”

Preshea and Tim turned to stare at the wizard.

“Wait.” Preshea aimed a finger at Eldon, glaring at Rho. “You’re telling me the only way you know him is because you hired him?”

Rho nodded.

Tim’s brow furrowed in thought, but he didn’t say anything.

Rho shot Eldon a sideways glance. His grim expression told her he wasn’t pleased with being turned into the number one suspect, but she really didn’t care.

Tim glanced at Rho. “So if the spells were tuned to you, is it possible for someone else to break them?”

Rho pointed to Eldon. “Ask him.”

Eldon rubbed his face. “Honestly, I didn’t think it was possible to break a spell that strong. Technically, I shouldn’t be able to break it once it’s set.”

“But someone did.” Tim’s tone implied the wizard’s inadequacy.

Eldon’s eyes narrowed. “I’m a purebred with an ancient family tree. Other than the fae, I can’t think of anyone strong enough to override me. It would need to be a damn powerful fae to manage it, too.”

Rho brushed a hand through the air dismissively. “He has no reason to want our Kamen anyway.”

“Oh?” Preshea folded her arms across her chest and pushed a hip out. “And how do you know that?”

Rho wrinkled her brow as she thought. Of course she couldn’t know for certain, but she didn’t think he’d taken the relic. What could he stand to gain from it? If he had, why would he be here?

The shifter glared at Rho. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. You don’t know a damn thing. All of you vampires are the same—arrogant and uneducated. Most especially you, vampire girl. Rumor has it you’re practically a newborn.”

“I’m the youngest executioner on record, yes. But I’m damn good at what I do and I hardly see how that’s relevant.”

“Newborn?” Tim’s eyes gave away his obvious shock. “Great. Vampires want us to put our asses on the line to find their Kamen, and all they sent us was a damn vampire toddler.”

Rho’s jaw clenched.
She
was arrogant? Since becoming a member of the DarqRealm, she’d tolerated a prejudice she didn’t deserve or understand. It wasn’t like she’d signed up on the vampire waiting list and shouted ‘pick me!’ when she’d been beaten and left for dead in that alley. She didn’t ask for this life. This life had picked her. She’d trained her ass off, learning to be a soldier and doing what she had to do to survive. And she’d be damned if these narrow-minded, pretentious assholes were going to point the finger at her and tell her she was the lesser being. Fuck. That.

Whipping an arm across her body, she palmed a dagger hidden in the holster at her thigh.

Rrrrrip.

Rho’s dress split higher than its sexy design intended as she heaved the blade through the air. Years of experience told her it would land dead center in the trunk of the oak fifty yards away.

It did.

She spun around to face her teammates, expression impenetrable and her voice like steel. “I may be young, but I’m a trained assassin. I have a black belt in Brazilian
jiu jitsu
, I’ve trained in
krav maga
, and I’ve been an executioner ever since I got my fangs under control. I was strong as a human and I’m lethal as a vampire, so surely I can add something to this little band of warriors here.” Her eyes locked on Preshea. “I damn sure could take you out.”

Hearing the open challenge, the shifter stepped forward until they were toe to toe. “I’d like to see you try.”

Rho wiggled her eyebrows. “Love to.”

Tim lifted his hands. “All right, all right, chill out, vampire ninja. Presh, stop antagonizing her. I’m sure everyone can fight.”

“Damn straight,” Rho mumbled.

Preshea rolled her eyes. “Whatever, bitch.”

Rho sprang forward, but Eldon’s tense arms were somehow faster, anticipating the move and wrapping around her to hold her back. Her legs flung up in the air as she fought against him, fangs extending and begging to rip apart the vein in that shifter’s neck. A burning roared up her arms where Eldon’s body touched hers, and she froze. The burning ceased. She pulled away again, only to feel the burning intensify, followed by immediate relief when she quit struggling.

Tim held Preshea in a similar grip, her expression nothing short of furious.

“Ladies, settle down,” Tim said.

Eldon spoke quietly into Rho’s ear. “Wrong time and place.”

Damn it, he was right. She quit struggling. “I’m okay. Put me down now.”

He released her but remained tense, and she brushed off her ripped dress. The queen wouldn’t be happy about that. Tim let Preshea go, both men clearly ready to jump back in if they needed to. Yeah, working with each other would be peachy.

Tim cleared his throat. “Back to business. Anyone have any bright ideas about who stole the vampire Kamen? I mean, other than the obvious choice.”

Eldon folded his arms and cocked a brow. “The
obvious
choice?”

Tim lifted a shoulder. “You cast those spells. You know you’re a prime suspect.”

“My magick and my family are clean. I’d never do anything to endanger them or my race. How do we know
you’re
not reporting to the enemy?”

“Are you suggesting I would endanger my pack?”

“No more than you’re suggesting I’d endanger my family.”

“Packs are different.”

Eldon snorted. “Yeah, they are. At least my family is my blood.”

Oh, fuck.
Totally
the wrong thing to say.

Tim drew a deep breath. A roar screamed in Rho’s ears, the fury spilling out of the werewolf like rain from a thundercloud. To insult the bond of the pack was the ultimate offense to his kind, the connection tying their pack together held in higher esteem than even their blood relations. The bond was their deity, and Eldon just crapped all over it.

Tim launched himself into the wizard, tackling him to the ground. Preshea and Rho froze, stunned by the sudden role reversal.

The fists were a blur in the dim lights, but Eldon somehow managed to fight his way to the top, pinning the wolf beneath him. Preshea rushed forward and pulled on Eldon’s shoulder, but he wouldn’t budge.

Fucking men. Not two minutes ago they were lecturing her on the cons of fighting in public, and here they were, treating the grass like a wrestling mat.

Rho hooked her arms around one of Tim’s and yanked back with everything she had. He didn’t register her touch. What the hell? Despite her vampire strength, the wolf kept swinging his free arm as if she weren’t there at all.

Still linked with Tim, Rho braced herself as Eldon reared back to slam Tim into the ground again. Tensing every muscle in her body and closing her eyes tight, she waited for the blow.

But it never came.

Rho blinked her eyes open, watching in slow motion as Preshea began to fall backward. A new flavor of blood hit the air as Eldon wheeled around to see what he’d hit. Preshea’s nose was clearly broken, a crimson splatter across her shirt.

Concern fell across Tim’s features as his arm slipped from Rho’s grasp. He rushed toward the shifter, ducking another blow from Eldon and sliding across the ground in time to capture Preshea’s head in his hands. He placed her gently on the ground before rising again to face the magick mover.

The anger that had once been a rolling boil exploded into a seething rage. Tim hurled all of his weight into the air, slamming Eldon into the back of the tent.

Blue glitter fell from the sky. Rho glanced up, temporarily stunned by the sparkling air before she realized what had happened. Eldon’s circle of silence had fallen, and every person within earshot would be able to hear the brawl happening behind the tent. It would only be a matter of seconds before someone came to investigate.

Shit, she needed to do something. Fast.

With the force of a freight train, Tim rammed Eldon into the tent again. The poles creaked against the added weight.

A tiny, dark-haired girl poked her head outside. Her eyes widened before she pulled her head quickly back into the tent. “Fight!”

Guests filed out by the dozens, the crowd growing as more people shouted, drawing attention to the fight. Oh crap, they had witnesses. Rho wanted to usher them back inside, but Preshea caught her attention.

The shifter sprinted forward. Blood trickled from Eldon’s nose. At once, Rho’s instincts went on high alert, forcing her fangs into full extension. But it wasn’t the instinct she usually experienced with the smell of blood.

Must. Protect. Eldon.

The compulsive need resounded within Rho’s subconscious, demanding immediate action. As if identifying a new enemy, Preshea surged toward her. She ignored the shifter and kept running. She had to get to Eldon.

Almost there.

An explosion of blue flames erupted from Eldon’s hands as he pressed glowing palms against Tim’s arms. The wolf howled in pain and yanked his arms away. Rho shrank back at the sight of the blue light and hit the ground, remembering that burn. The reprieve didn’t last, and Tim didn’t learn his lesson, rushing toward Eldon again.

Chaos surrounded them, the air filled with shouting, screaming, crying. When did everything go to hell?

Pop.

Rho glanced up to see Preshea’s body shimmering, taking on its alternate shape. Captivated, she froze in place as the shifter morphed, her body twisting and bones extending until only a magnificent white tiger remained. The black and white streaks of her human hair transformed into the Bengal stripes of her alternate self, her eyes the same striking icy blue.

Holy. Shit.

Preshea stared at Rho with those crystal eyes for a long moment before her motives became clear in their depths. If they were picking teams right now, Preshea would defend Tim to the bitter end. And Rho would be damned if that wolf killed Eldon.

Tim knocked another fist into Eldon’s face, spattering blood along the dry grass.

Curses flew through Rho’s mind, but they weren’t hers. Her connection with Eldon emerged, melding their minds together until she felt his pain so clearly, it was like it was her own. Her hands tingled to the point of burning, and she realized using ley line fire wasn’t without consequence.

The sound of Eldon’s cheek crushing on impact sent her into a spiral, her own cheek exploding with pain as she hurled herself into the air to cover him with her body. Immortality was only a gift of the fae and the vampires, so a few sticks and stones wouldn’t hurt her. Not permanently.

She landed on top of him, covering him in time to absorb a blow that would likely have put him in a coma. Tim was fighting blindly now, the Alpha need to retain control of the situation coursing through him, the smell of pride like burning leaves permeating the air.

Rho turned her head in time to see Preshea galloping toward her with long strides. Closing her eyes tight, she tensed to absorb the shock of the tremendous weight as the tiger approached with incredible speed. But it never came.

She tried to open her eyes to see what happened but couldn’t. Her eyelids simply wouldn’t move.

Rho, what the blazes are you doing?
The Lamia Prince’s voice boomed in her skull, replacing her connection to Eldon’s pain with his anger.

Frederick?

You’d better have one incredible explanation for all of this.

Rho struggled to open her eyes, but they wouldn’t budge. Did she get knocked out? Had her eyes swollen shut? She tried again, only to find that her lids might as well have been glued together.

I can’t open my eyes.

That’s because the Collective threw line magick over the four of you until we can clear this place out. What were you thinking?

Oh, crap. Nearly every person in this area of the DarqRealm would be at this party tonight, and they’d made a huge scene. Huge.

We didn’t mean to.
Geez, that was a piss-poor excuse, wasn’t it? She wanted to scold herself for using it.

It doesn’t matter now. I’d hoped you’d all be adults about this so we wouldn’t have to force your hand, but it’s a little late for that.