Alliances (Guardians of White Light, #1) (16 page)

“Do it!” she bellowed.

Mathias struggled against her assault to prevent the demon within from forcing its way to the surface. His concentration compromised his defense. He couldn’t stop her and maintain control at the same time, and she knew it.

“Stop!” Jenna’s voice came from behind them.

Alna’s irate glare snapped to hers.

Jenna instinctively brandished two hunting knives.

Alna raised her hands.

“Don’t! She’s human, Alna!” Mathias cried out.

Alna hesitated and eyed Jenna. Mathias’ plea had reached through the thick blackness that had enveloped her.

Mathias knew it was extremely unlikely that Jenna would be able to absorb her magic. The human body wasn’t made to withstand the powerful supernatural attack that Alna could deliver. She wasn’t just any witch. She held great power.

“Alna!” he pleaded.

She lowered her hand slowly. He watched as she crumpled to her knees. He struggled to his feet and by the time he reached her, she was sobbing. He wrapped his arms around her.

“Kill me, Mathias. Please, just kill me,” she choked out between sobs.

“All right,” he agreed sadly.

As he held her he looked up at Jenna. He nodded at her reassuringly. He watched her relax her fighting stance and lower her weapons with relief. A few moments passed before he pulled back and helped Alna to her feet.

“Just give me some time. I need to…prepare,” he told her softly.

She nodded.

Mathias headed for the door.

“Where are you going?” Jenna called.

“I have an errand to run. I’ll be a couple of hours. When I get back we need to move immediately.”

Jenna threw him a questioning glance.
Move immediately?

“I used heavy magic. Silas could have picked it up,” Alna explained.

“I see.”

“Are you okay to go?” Alna asked, seeing him walking a little unsteadily. She had been holding back when she’d struck him but her magic was still powerful.

“Fine,” he said irritably, closing the door behind him.

As soon as he was gone, Jenna probed, “So, the two of you were involved?”

Alna raised an eyebrow. “You’re reading me?” She wondered how that was possible. There was no record of The Hunter having that ability.

“No, I don’t need to. I can see what’s right in front of me.”

“Another time, perhaps.”

“We have two hours,” Jenna pressed.

Alna took a seat on the couch while Jenna eased herself into the chair opposite.

“First thing is first. Give me your hands.”

Jenna hesitated.

“You have a difficult battle ahead of you. There's no more time to allow your wounds to heal naturally.”

Jenna held her hands out and Alna clasped them tightly. She closed her eyes and concentrated. After a few moments she pulled back.

Jenna hadn’t felt anything at all. What was that all about? Perhaps Alna’s magic was tapped out from her fight with Mathias. “Don’t you need to recite some sort of incantation?”

Alna chuckled. “I’m way beyond that. Stand up.”

Jenna complied. She was amazed that the familiar dull ache in her side had gone. She lifted her shirt. The stitches had disappeared! There was no scar, no sign that she had ever been wounded. Flabbergasted, she eyed Alna for answers.

“The marks on your neck remain. They may be needed,” she informed her. “His bite was
gentle
.”

“He wasn’t going for the kill,” Jenna said, her gaze boring into Alna’s.
That’s all.

Seeing she was uncomfortable discussing whatever was going on between her and Mathias, Alna broke eye contact and dropped it for the time being.

Jenna relaxed and returned to her chair. She listened closely for the next ten minutes as Alna recalled the history between her and Mathias. She omitted the intimate aspects and concentrated on recounting it as chronologically as possible. It was difficult given the huge expanse of time. She discussed their magical studies, their life together and then the tragedy they were subjected to by Graven. Beyond that there wasn’t much to tell. Their paths had crossed only a handful of times since they’d parted a few centuries back.

“Wow,” Jenna uttered when Alna had finished.

“It’s all in the past. He’s taken quite a liking to you. I’ve never seen him like this. The demon is buried deep. I couldn’t force it to the surface. A few years back I wouldn’t have had any trouble.”

“But the demon is still there.”

“We all have darkness in us. It’s up to us whether we allow it free reign, or not.”

Jenna nodded in understanding. A few moments passed in silence.

“Where was he headed, anyway?” she asked suddenly.

Alna hesitated.

“Alna?”

“I don’t know.”

“You’re a really bad liar.”

Alna knew her continued denial was pointless. “The Sorceress.”

Jenna shot to her feet.
Unbelievable.
She bolted for the door.

“He’s trying to help you!”

“It’s not his place!” Jenna yelled over her shoulder.

Before Alna could even raise her hand to summon the magic to stop her, Jenna was out the door. God, she was fast.
Faster than any vampire? Interesting.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Mathias had been running since he'd left the house. He could have walked the entire way. There was still time before the day broke. But running always helped to clear his head. There was a lot to take in: the war. Tanya walking out and the possible threat she now posed. He should have killed her, but Luke would never have accepted that. And he'd agreed to Alna's plea—how was he going to bring himself to destroy Alna? She had been the one constant in his centuries-long existence. Everything else around him had changed as the years wore on, but not her. Now he'd promised her and he had to deliver. Unless there was an alternative. He would find out soon enough. And if that wasn’t enough to keep him occupied, there was now this confusing situation with Jenna.

The place where he was headed wasn't located on their plane of existence. The portal to it was constantly moving. Only those who were touched by magic could locate it. Thankfully, he was one such being.

A sudden rush of warmth overtook him as he strode through the thick canopy of the forest. He stopped. Before him were two identical trees with a narrow path between. Identical trees! That wasn’t possible. He smiled because that meant that he had arrived. He took a deep breath and walked forward.

His was blinded by a bright golden light and, at the same time, felt a reassuring warmth envelope his entire being. He continued to walk, shielding his eyes from the painful light. He stopped when he felt the warmth subside. At the same time the blinding light faded as the place took tangible form.

A medieval throne room. Most of it was obscured by a thick white mist, a result of her magic. It was just one of the many ‘places’ she conjured for visitors. What visitors saw depended on them.

His eyes were drawn to the golden throne at the far end of the room. Its frame was adorned with golden leaves. A maroon carpet covered the dozen steps that led up to it. Behind it were huge stained glass windows, depicting famous past battles, infamous knights. He could also make out a couple of tapestries that hung from the pillars near the rear of the room, a few feet from the throne itself. The rest of the room was hidden behind thick fog.

Where is she?

“I’ve been expecting you,” a velvety voice spoke from behind him.

He spun around, caught off guard that he hadn’t been able to sense her. Wearing a silky silver flowing gown, her golden hair cascading about her face, she was a vision, as always. Divine.

“The venue never changes with you, Mathias. Your subconscious always conjures the same thing. You spent your human life in this time and place so it makes sense. It brings a sense of comfort to you. Each person who enters here creates their own image—their safest place, as you are aware.”

She studied him for several minutes. And then, without saying anything, she turned from him and walked towards the throne. She took her seat and then gestured for him to approach.

He complied, stopping at the foot of the steps. He bowed his head with respect.

“It has been an age since you've come to me, Mathias.”

“It has.”

“You did not come here to discuss Guardian matters.”

“You know why I'm here,” he said, meeting her gaze.

She smiled. “Yes. I know
who
brings you here.”

“I want to alter the deal you made with The Hunter.”

“In what way?” she asked coyly, already knowing the answer.

“In a way that spares her life.”

“I am not in the habit of reversing my magic, Mathias.”

“Then make this an exception,” he shot back.

His bold tone was disrespectful and agitated her somewhat; however, having a vampire come to her to beg for a human’s life intrigued her. She would let it slide.

“On what grounds?”

Mathias hesitated.

“This girl, you care for her a great deal?”

“That’s beside the point.”

“It is the very essence of the point. You wouldn’t be here now otherwise.”

“She may be more than an ally, yes.”

“I do not entertain requests made on the basis of love. It makes for irrational judgment, Mathias.”

“We need more warriors. They are in short supply.”

“Silas’ death will mean one less warrior of darkness. Her death will maintain that balance.”

“There will always be another like Silas.”

She gazed at him, her eyes narrowing with intrigue as she searched for answers. “Ah, you are worried about Graven,” she realized.

“As long as he still lives, he's a threat.”

“He has remained in the shadows for centuries. Not even I have been able to locate him.”

“He's my sire. I would know if he'd perished. The connection is…powerful.”

“I am aware,” she said, leaning back against the high back of her golden throne. “You are right that she may be needed. But so are
you
,” she said, pointedly.

“You wish me to return?”

“Yes, that will be
your
price. You will return to the fold and become a Guardian of White Light once more.”

Mathias met her dark gaze and slapped his hand to his heart, “I swear it.”

“Jenna Knight’s quest is pure vengeance. She is not a warrior of light. If Silas stood on the side of good, she would still be against him for what he did to her family. She does not make those distinctions. That makes her an unstable force. She could go either way if she lived beyond Immortalia’s demise.”

“Her heart is pure.”

“The guarantee isn’t there.”

“
I
will guarantee it.”

“You’re asking to be her Guide?”

“I have the time,” Mathias quipped.

She considered his proposal for a few moments. “She would have to become an immortal being, more than human.”

“Vampire?”

“No. She will still be able to walk in the sun.
But
she will be demon, plagued by immortality. She will exist as a Guardian of White Light until the end of days. That would be her new curse to bear.”

“I understand the price, but why make her demon? There’s something I don’t know?”

“Her mortal body is degrading. It can no longer bear her powers. It’s possible she won’t last through to the end of the war. The contract of her curse allows her to maintain her powers until the day that she destroys Silas. All the terms of the contract must be met before another can be entered into. It is the supernatural law that governs all planes of existence.”

“Yes, I know.”

“It means, if her body fails her before she kills Silas, any contract we enter into right now would be null and void.”

Mathias nodded. What other choice was there?

The Sorceress closed her eyes and bowed her head. When she opened her eyes again they flashed briefly with a golden light. “It is done. Should Jenna Knight fulfill the terms of her current contract, our new contract will take immediate effect. She will become a Guardian.”

“Thank you, Sorceress.”

She nodded.

Mathias hesitated before saying, “There’s one more thing. Alna, the ivory witch, needs aid.”

The Sorceress’ eyes glowed with fire at the mention of Alna. “You dare to utter her name to me?”

“You have the power to reverse the change that she can no longer hold back,” Mathias pressed.

“She has defied the natural laws for long enough. The very fact that I have allowed her to do so is a mercy in itself.”