Published: March 30, 2020

13

KAYLA

Her lungs seized when the cool night air slammed into her chest. Purple essence cascaded down her fingertips like a waterfall to the ground.

“Please stop,” she rubbed her hands together to no
effect. Garrick jolted at her sudden outburst. Their eyes met. “I can’t make it
stop.”

“We will find a way.”

His bright brown eyes watched her with determination. He’d
meant it. They’d find a way to get her magic under control. Even though he had
no allegiance to her, his presence assured her that there was a way through
this.

Just at the edge of the alley, a body crystallized from a deep hazy green mist. Her eyes traveled from his army-style boots up his ripped jeans and onto his wide face and mop of sandy hair.

“Theo?” She was both relieved and a hundred times
freaked out by his presence. At least she hadn’t killed him with the jolt of
lightning or subsequent fireball. His sudden materialization set her teeth on
edge though.

Garrick grabbed her forearm and pulled her behind him,
but it was him she was worried for.

“This won’t end well if you wish to attack her,” Garrick
hissed, his fangs popped from his skull in warning.

“I don’t hurt those of my own kind, vampire.” The mage sucked
his teeth impatiently. There was a threat disguised in his words. He wouldn’t
hurt her, but he would hurt Garrick.

“Leave him alone,” she drew forward. This time, it was she who shielded the vampire behind her.

Theo threw up his hands in surrender. “I don’t want to
harm him either.”

Said the mage who had just tried to kill him because
he’d been a different species.

“Then, what do you want?”

“I want to help you calm your magic.”

“Why?”

“Magic is not allowed out of doors this far into the night.
You need to calm your magic before they come.”

“Who?” Garrick shifted on his feet, looking at every
point of the alley for threats. He stepped back in her way. If they kept that
up, pretty soon they’d outstep each other and be at Theo’s toes.

“Your kind, vampire. Night has fallen and we cannot be
on the streets much longer. Helping you keep it contained is imperative for us
all.”

“Okay, then help me.” She only half-believed what he said. “Tell me how to do it.”

“It is not something I can tell you. I have to show
you.”

Yeah, that sounded like a sack of horse manure. Embers
shot from her hand, sprawling onto the street like firecrackers when Theo took
a step forward.

“Don’t come closer,” she backed away. Garrick fished
into his pants and pulled out the most menacing piece of metal she’d ever seen.
Was he hiding a dagger in his pants this entire time?

“Move, vampire.”

Garrick stood his ground, but Theo waved his hand,
pushing him flat against the wall. As soon as Garrick flinched in pain, her
nervous system went into overdrive. Her heart raced. Her vision blurred, and
her essence slid from her hands, scattered across the pavement and up Garrick’s
body breaking him free of Theo’s hold before chasing his magic away.

A whoosh of air blew her hair back. Theo staggered backward but otherwise remained unharmed. Her magic recoiled back, sliding slowly up Garrick.

“By the foremages,” Theo whistled, tousling a hand
through his windblown sandy hair, as he studied the tendrils of her magic
protecting Garrick. “I haven’t seen this in over a century. Your magic has an
innate instinct to protect him.”

Well, how could it not when he’d just had him in a
magical chokehold inside the cathedral and was back to destroy him and probably
her too.

“Our magic doesn’t form bonds with outsiders easily,”
his pensive eyes turned to stare at the warrior beside her. “And your magic has
bonded with vampire no less.”

“What do you mean, bond?” she asked despite herself. If
anything, Theo proved he wasn’t to be trusted, but he knew things about magic
that she didn’t. Things she ought to know.

“It’s what you’re doing right now. Just a moment ago
your magic was out of control, but now it’s managed to find its way to protect
him against someone you view as a threat.”

She looked down at her hands, the magic was gone from
her palms and circling steadily around Garrick in gentle waves up and down his
body. It was no longer erupting at her feet or sparking against the pavement.

Something changed in Theo, his shoulders softened. “I
can help you control it.”

“It seems plenty controlled now,” Garrick’s body
hunched, ready to strike at the mage.

“It won’t be for long. Once you realize I am not here to
harm him, it won’t have anywhere to go. It’ll become out of your control again.
If you can come with me, I can teach you how to wield it.”

“Why should I trust you?”

He laughed again as if she’d asked the exact question,
he’d predicted she’d say. “I am a protector of magic. We are bound to protect
all magical beings. This is why your father has come to us to seek asylum.”

“You didn’t seem to keen on granting it,” Garrick spat
his mistrust matching hers.

“We were taken aback by your presence in our council.
All mage houses are protected against your kind. We were alarmed that you could
walk so freely inside our place of sanctuary. I apologize for overreacting.”

“Theo,” a woman with russet hair bouncing off her
shoulders ran toward them. She’d been the on the council alongside him. “There
you are. I thought I lost you. Pellan was able to control the fire, but night
has fallen…”

Standing an inch taller, there was no mistaking they
shared the same familial bone structure. Like him, her face was wide and flat,
her nose thin and slightly crooked. She placed a hand on Theo’s shoulder.

“Carissa, look at them.”

Carissa tossed her hair over her shoulder and stared
them down. Her green eyes flickered with disapproval when she saw Garrick but
it was quickly replaced by genuine surprise when she looked back to Theo.

“How are they bound to each other? Didn’t you…”

“I did,” he said. “I’d broken whatever had been trying to form, but here it is reforming itself. Her magic is choosing him.”

“Can it be? Do you think she can…”

Can what? A question she was curious to ask but didn’t when several sudden sprinkles of light flashed in the windows above their head, all coming in a stream toward them, diverted their attention.

“We have to go, it’s not safe on the street,” Carissa
said.

She and Garrick backed away from the duo. Garrick
grabbed her forearm, then tried to pull her into a run, only they bounced off
an invisible shield like they’d run into a giant beach ball.

“Not that way,” Carissa tsked. She shuffled in several
unsure steps, before glancing over her shoulder. Another sprinkle of light
flashed like they were jet landing on a runway. “There’s no way out. They’re
surrounding us.”

“We can find our own way,” Garrick offered, pushing against the shield, trying to find a weakness.

“There isn’t one,” Carissa said.

Beside her, Garrick took a sudden inhale, then his
entire body lit in alarm. His back found the wall, his head darted around. He
sniffed the air again.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

For a brief moment, the entire alley looked at him.

“Shifters. You didn’t say there were shifters in this
city.”

Apparently, that was new news to Theo and Carissa.
Carissa tugged at Theo’s arm, searching for his hand. “We have to go.”

“We need to take them back with us,” Theo rushed out,
snatching his hand away from hers.

“We can’t take a vampire.”

“But we can’t bring her without him,” he said quickly.
Something she couldn’t describe changed in his face. Joy and regret folded the
soft skin around his mouth as he stared earnestly at Carissa.

“We’ll be fine,” Kayla said lightly tugging at his
shirt. Or not, based on the look on Garrick’s face. For the briefest moment, fear
ghosted his full lips into a hard line.

“There are too many shifters to defend,” he told her,
then glanced at the duo. “Our options are few.”

“Come with us,” Theo said, holding out his hand. “You
can fight us when we get there.”

More sprinkles of light flashed inside of windows, much more
frantically before.

“They’re getting close. Grab my hand.”

Garrick moved without hesitating.

Okay, so they were going to choose door number one with
the crazy twosome over taking on another pack. Garrick’s arm hadn’t fully
healed. Blackened skin charred his forearm down to his hand and even though her
magic defended him, who knew how long that would last. They couldn’t get caught
up in another wolf fight. They might not survive it.

Theo took her hand first, then Garrick placed his
charred fingers on hers. They were thick and rough, but she was afraid to move
just in case it made his skin peel away.

Teleporting with Carissa was different than with her father.
Her father’s magic felt like an embrace as they move from one place to the
other in a blink. Carissa’s felt like riding a roller coaster on a full stomach
before slamming into the concrete so hard her teeth rattled.

Everything went dark.

When they finally appeared in what looked like a subway
tunnel, she realized they had indeed been slammed into concrete. She found
herself flat on her stomach with a trickle of blood coming from her forehead.
The magic inside of her rallied around the cut on her brow, making it itch like
a dozen ants were charging it as it healed it over.

“I’m sooo sorry,” Carissa heaved, her breath coming out
in shallow spurts. “I haven’t tried to move so many people before.”

Of all of the council members, Carissa seemed to be the
only one who didn’t have an old soul speaking out of a young face. She was
actually young. If Kayla had to guess, maybe even her age.

Garrick let out a strangled cry beside her. His arm
looked like it had been splintered. Dark red-black blood oozed from his skin.

“Oh shit,” Carissa blurted out. She scrambled to her
feet moving toward Garrick. “I’m sorry—I- I can try to fix it.”

Garrick flipped onto his feet in a blur, hunched over in
a defensive crouch, letting a growl rip through his throat.

“Carissa, stop. Let him calm himself,” Theo tugged her
backward. Garrick hissed, holding his arm, but her magic slithered to him,
wrapping around his wound. His defensive posture relaxed as he watched it.

Another sprinkle of lights darted on the ceiling thirty
feet above them.

“We have to go,” Theo said. “It’s still not safe. Vampires
are above us in droves.”

She stared at the ceiling as they followed the duo at a
safe distance. The sprinkle of lights above them said all of that?

Garrick’s stride slowed.

“Are you okay?” she whispered. Garrick nodded, watching
her magical essence coat his skin like a glove. The bleeding had stopped, but
the gash didn’t close.

“I will heal,” he promised, tucking his arm close to his
side so she couldn’t see it.

At the end of the hall, Theo pressed his hands into a large iron door. His magic seeped into its cracks before it opened on creaky hinges. On the other side, several figures waited.

“Theo,” Pellan pulled the sandy-haired boy into a hug, tucking his chin over his shoulder, then pulled at the redhead. “Carissa. Did you find her?”

“I did. Both of them.” Pellan’s muscles locked when he
noticed Garrick standing next to her. Theo quickly caught his attention. “They
are bound without magic.”

Again, the same look Theo had in the alley appeared on
Pellan’s face, one that was filled with both hope and sorrow. The emotion was
gone in the blink of an eye.

“Are you certain?”

The word no teetered on her lips, but there was no way
she was going to say that aloud. Judging by the standoff in front of her, the safety
behind those doors could only be reached if she’d kept her mouth closed. So,
she did.

“Come in,” Pellan lifted his arm, motioning them inside.
“Your father is also here.”

A tightness she hadn’t realized she was holding loosened
her shoulder blades a few inches. Her father was safe.

“Thank-you.”

Inside was like being transported to a new world. It was
like walking into someone’s comfortable house instead of a dirty underground
bunker.

“Sorry about the whole arm thing,” Carissa apologized again, walking closer to her than to Garrick. She caught her staring at the hominess around her. “It’s our hideaway. Some of us have safe houses in the city like Marnie, but it’s safer for our kind in here. It’s an entire building, you know. The front doors are locked tight at sunset. So, we came in through the basement.”

“Carissa,” Theo warned. Apparently, she was telling them
too much.

Carissa shrugged uncaringly. “Don’t worry about my
brother,” she whispered. “He thinks because he’s older than me by a century, he
can boss me around.”

Well technically, that would qualify anyone to boss
people around. After living a century, he’d deserved the right to.

“Mages live for so long?” Garrick asked.

“Those with the strongest magic,” she nodded. “Sorry
about the whole thing back there. We don’t come by many vampires.”

“I harbor no ill.”

“Good,” she sighed in relief. “We haven’t seen a bound
pair in a long time.”

“But we aren’t…” her lips scrunched to the side,
trailing off. Wow, this was getting ridiculously awkward again. Heat rose
inside of her chest.

“Together?” Carissa finished. “Well, your magic thinks
so. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have reacted the way it did.”

Chem did call her a ticking timebomb. It could have been
that. She avoided the heat of Garrick’s gaze on the side of her face and the
tingle that settled between them as soon as her magic broke free from its
confines.

Pellan guided them to a sitting room. Her father sat in
a corner; hands folded in his lap as he stared at the floor.

“Dad?”

“Kay-Kay!” He rushed her and pulled her into an embrace
similar to the one Pellan gave Theo. He kissed the top of her head. “You’re
okay.”

“I am.”

“Now that you’ve seen her…” Pellan said as if they’d
been having an extensive conversation before she appeared at their door.

“Kayla,” he grabbed her hands. Already, she could feel
her palms growing hot again. “I’ve told them about the Rogue—about us being
hunted. They’ve offered us asylum for the time being but they have to take you
two to isolation for the next day or two until your magic settles.”

“I’m sorry, what?” She asked. “They’re taking me to
jail?”

“Not jail,” he clarified. “As a precaution, while we can
get your magic sorted, they want to keep you from hurting anyone. Right now, your
magic is just too powerful.”

“It’s fine.” Although, as she said the words, she could
visibly see her magic move down Garrick’s body and slither back to her own. As
soon as it hit her hands, her palms grew ferociously hotter.

“It’s happening again,” her father tried to pull her
attention away. “You have to be calm. If you control your emotions, you’ll
control it. Remember, like I taught you.”

“Donovan,” Pellan’s urgent voice broke through their
conversation.

She looked at the menagerie of faces in the room. Of
which, only two she could trust. Garrick gave her a short nod.

“Okay,” she agreed. “I’ll go.”

Pellan guided them down a narrow hallway filled with
art, but no doors, except one. At the very end of the hallway, a skinny carved
door sat in lonely isolation.

“You two will stay here for the night.”

“Oh… um… Like, in the same room?”

“Yes,” Pellan pushed up the red skull cap that had
fallen onto his face then scratched the back of his neck. “We don’t have many
rooms that can contain supernaturals like this one. If your magic gets out of
control, the walls will absorb it.”

“What if he gets hurt?”

Pellan shrugged as if to say ‘what’s the big deal,’ but
to ease her he said, “Your magic will protect him. Not hurt him.”

Pellan didn’t know her magic very well. It was never a
saving grace. It had practically burned down one of the oldest institutions in
the city. Hardly a protector of anything. More like a destroyer. None of this
she told to him before he left them to their own devices.

Their room consisted of a single bed because of course, it did. She wondered if her father knew they were shoving her inside of a room with only one bed to share with an insanely hot vampire. Probably not or he would have likely braved the rogue instead. A heavy thud at the door made her jump.

“Whoa, are you okay?”

Garrick leaned heavily against the door, sliding down it
in one motion. In an instant, her magic was back to him again, snaking around
his body, looking for what ailed him.

“I’ve gone too long without blood and rest.”

“Is that why you’re not healing?” She asked, touching
his arm. He hissed, but not in the way that told her to back off him, the kind
that told her she’d hurt him. She loosened her hold.

“It’s a lot slower, yes.”

“So, you need to drink?”

“I won’t ask it of you. I only need rest.”

He tried to hoist himself up but only succeeded in
shifting his weight to one side. It was as if his body gave out on him as soon
as he deemed them safe enough.

“Hey,” she tapped his shoulder when he closed his eyes.
“Come on, drink. It’s the least I could do as a thank-you.”

He shook his head, moving it away from her hand.

“Stop being so stubborn, drink.”

“Cha! Don’t tell me what to do, woman.”

“Then don’t act like a child, man,” she shot back
boldly. “Besides, you’re blocking our only means of escape.”

His head perked up at that. He checked for another exit.
Not even an egress window was at their disposal. They’d better hope she didn’t
burn the room down with them in it because they’d never escape.

“See? So, you have to drink so you can move from the
door.”

Garrick blinked. She wasn’t sure how exactly vampires fed but guessed relied on what she’d seen in movies as her springboard. He’d bit her in the car, as far as she could tell he only needed exposed flesh to ignite his fangs. She straddled his lap to give him better access to her neck. This close to him, her heart started to pick up the pace. He was solid underneath her, the ripped body she’d glimpsed earlier felt even more wonderful than it looked. She may have copped a feel when she got into place.

His nostrils flared as he inhaled her scent. “Kayla.”

The reverence in the way he said her name made her
stomach do a tiny summersault.

Garrick’s sharp brown eyes seemed to debate her presence on his lap, but she was too entranced with studying the color. They were the most dazzling coffee-colored eyes she’d ever seen. Pure brown with flecks of gold shimmering underneath making them shine.

His hands hooking onto her hips, settling her down in a
more comfortable position.

“Am I too heavy?”

“Cha, no,” he snorted. For a second, she thought he
might kiss her. By the foremages, she wanted him to. Under his full pink lips,
a peek of fangs flashed from under his top lip. That had to be the sexiest
thing she’d ever seen.

He was only going to feed from her, she reminded
herself, not kiss her. With a deep breath, she moved her hair to one side and
offered her neck to him.

“Go ahead.”

“Are you certain?”

She nodded. Her heart hammered inside her ribcage.

“It won’t hurt,” he assured her. She wasn’t afraid of
that part. She wasn’t afraid at all. More like anxious and a little excited.
Probably from the heavy doses of adrenaline she’d been exposed to in such a
short amount of time. She should be running and screaming, but as her magic
glided up around them, she felt like his lap was the only place she wanted to
be.

The heat of his breath was pillow-soft against her neck as he inhaled her for the second time. His lips were just as soft, but his fangs were freaking sharp.

“Ouch,” she tensed when he bit down. Her nails dug into
his shoulders in an attempt to weather the pressure. He tried to pull back but
she encouraged him on. “I’m fine, keep going.”

The pain was brief, like being stuck with a needle, then
a rush of endorphins surged through her. She’d never taken drugs before, but
she had to imagine this is what it felt like. Her thoughts faded into the
sensation of his lips against her throat. Fuck, that felt incredible.

The pleasure made her grip at him differently, her hips started to move on their own against him.

His fingers squeezed at her hipbones and pulled her
closer, all the while keeping his fangs in her throat.

“Are you… drinking?” her words came out in a breathy
moan she couldn’t stop.

In response, he slowly sucked at her throat. By the
foremages that felt even better. Her hands grabbed at any available space on
his body, then settled in his hair and pressed him further against her. Her
eyes rolled at how good that freaking felt.

Forget about trying to keep herself composed.

When he sucked again, her toes curled, her body bucked
and she moaned again. A low tingle built at the base of her stomach, ready to
burst if he did that again.

It was as if Garrick sensed her on the edge because his lips moved against her throat and as if he’d been working her clit between his lips, she shattered. Her entire body let loose, clutching at his hair as the most exquisite orgasm ripped through her.

“Holy shit,” she breathed, trying to catch her breath.
That had to be the first time she’d had an orgasm with all her clothes on. Next
one she wanted to have with her clothes off. “Does it always… feel… like that?”

“It can, yes.” Garrick licked the side of her neck, then
kissed her where his bite marked her flesh. His fangs nipped at the side of her
throat. Another spike of pleasure tore through her insides, shooting through to
her throbbing core.

Then, he kissed her again, up her neck to her jawline, then to her mouth. His lips were incredibly soft, but freak, were they perfect. She swirled her tongue in his mouth.

A headiness fell over the room. Her magic intertwined around them. The swirl of purple gave then an iridescent glow to the both of them, bouncing off his cheekbones and across his eyes. Foremages, he was beautiful.

He pushed her onto her back in a move she didn’t see
coming. One moment she was on him, the next she was flat on her back with him crawling
up her body with a playful lust-filled smirk. Over her, he pursued her mouth
like it was his last meal.

He moaned when she tugged at his shirt and raked her
nails across his skin. While he took care of his shirt, she worked his pants, ripping
through the button, and sliding the zipper down with ease.

She glanced over to the bed. Catching her drift, he
hoisted her onto her feet, never breaking contact with his mouth.

In a whoosh, her back was flat against the softest mattress
she’d ever laid on. Good luck getting her to ever want to get out of it again.
Especially with him on top of her.

Then suddenly, cool air rushed across her as Garrick was
on his feet and facing the door.

After a double knock, Carissa opened the door.

“I have din—” she stopped as soon as she was inside of
her room, a tray rattling in her hands as she nearly dropped it.

Just as she recovered, her magic rushed from between them,
pushed Carissa back into the hallway and slammed the door.

Wow, even my magic is a horndog.

She hopped off the bed. Garrick was already redressing
himself and putting distance between them. He tossed her an apologetic look as she
went over to the door.

She fished for a knob that didn’t exist. So, she talked through the door. Hopefully, the poor girl hadn’t bolted.

“Hey, Carissa. I’m sorry, you can come in. I… We weren’t…”
She trailed off. It was pretty clear what they were getting ready to get up to.
There was no use denying it now. “We’re done,” she amended.

With careful hesitation, the door to their room opened
again.

“I’m supposed to bring you dinner. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
Carissa pushed the tray into her stomach and stepped back into the hallway like
she’d threatened her with a fireball. “And uh…” Her lips curled to the side of her
face, several thoughts darted across her eyes like she was holding in a message,
debating whether to tell her or not.

“Is something wrong?”

Carissa fidgeted and stared at the bottom of the doorjamb. “It’s probably not good to overextend your magic right now.”

A blush skyrocketed to her cheeks. It was completely stupid
to be getting it on with a vampire in the mage basement. That would be the
definition of playing with fire.

“Got it, we’ll probably settle in for the night,” she agreed.

Carissa flushed and turned on her heel, not meeting her
gaze. “Um… goodnight. I’ll get the tray in the morning.”

“Okay, goodnight,” she called after her but she was
already gone.

Garrick squeezed past her through the door, watching Carissa
twist into another hallway. Then, he followed behind her.

“Hey, where are you going?”

“Leaving.”

“Leaving? You can’t leave.”

“The door is open. This is the best to escape.” When her
eyes flickered to his wounds, he said. “My body is on the mend. Your magic is
in hand.”

Her magic was not in hand. They’d only just discovered
her magic protected him and was semi-controlled with him around. He couldn’t
leave now.

“Escape? Why would we want to do that?”

He shook his head. He didn’t mean us. “I am a vampire inside of a mage compound. They’ll kill me as soon as they get their chance. You are safe with your kind here, I must get back to mine.”

“What if my magic goes crazy again?”

He looked around as if he could see through the walls. “They
will help you control your magic.”

It felt like she’d taken a slap to the face. Five
seconds ago, he couldn’t keep his hands off of her. Now, he seemed like
touching her was the last thing he wanted to do.

Was she so freaking bad at kissing him that he wanted to
put as much distance between them as humanly possible? She unconsciously
touched her lips, replaying the last few minutes. No, the hardness in his pants
assured her she definitely wasn’t bad. He was being a colossal jerk. A stupid
colossal jerk if he thought he was going to get through a horde of the most powerful
mages in the city.

“How are you going to get past everyone?” She narrowed
her eyes watching him comb the hall.

“The mage spoke of the front door. I will make it there, slip out unnoticed. I have been trained to be undetected.”

“What about the shifters? What happens if you make it
outside?”

Garrick shrugged, subtly straightening the dagger in his
pocket but otherwise had no answers. He was going to wing it and hope for the
best. He traced Carissa’s footsteps down the hall and turned a corner.

“Your plan is dumb,” she called at his back.

Foremages, he was going to get himself killed. Her father had taken great lengths to keep her safe her entire life. She was not oblivious to the kind of power mages possessed and stupid face Garrick was walking headfirst into a den of them.

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Author’s Note: My Sundays have turned out to be Monday’s recently. I received some not so good news this weekend. My dad has tested positive for COVID-19. I haven’t seen him since I moved out to Arizona. He says it feels like he’s got a really bad cold, and even though he puts on a brave face, I think he’s worried. Truthfully, so am I. I keep thinking to myself, he’s older, but he’s in good health otherwise. When people get it, most get well. I’m praying he’s in that camp.

Otherwise, how are you all doing? I hope you’re well and keeping safe!

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