The Ascended (19 page)

Mark's desire abruptly burned out as he looked at me with concern.

"Krista, are you okay?" He asked, sitting up and holding me in his arms.

I nodded my head weakly. "It just takes its toll," I said, trying to keep my words short so I wouldn't lose the last of the remaining air in my lungs.

He pulled me up closer to him so that I could rest against his hard chest. "Krista, I thought you said you wouldn't be able to come back," he said, stroking my head. His touch felt heavenly, but lacked the healing touch he used to be able to offer.

"Shawn had a plan," I said, trying to adjust my shirt so that I wasn't flaunting so much skin.

"A sentence that starts with ‘Shawn had a plan,’ is never a good sign," Mark said with a chuckle.

"If I didn't feel like a bus just ran me over, followed by a Mack truck, I might argue with you," I said, trying to find the strength to turn my head to look at him.

"Then why did you risk it?" He asked, angling my body so he could peer down into my eyes.
"To help the other Guides and Protectors?"
He probed.

"You know why," I said, feeling flushed. What if I had misread the situation? What if he had no feelings left for me now that our link was gone? I looked down at my hands, mortified. I was so stupid. Why hadn't I transported somewhere else, somewhere useful, where I could have helped the others? Instead, I let my feelings override everything else.

"Krista look at me," he pleaded quietly.

I shook my head no as my face burned out of control.

"Krista," he said again, using two of his fingers to lift my chin. I tried to avoid eye contact, afraid of the pity I would see there. The pad of his thumb swiped away a lone tear that had escaped without me noticing. He moved his thumb further down until it gently caressed my bottom lip.

"Krista, you have to look at me," he said more urgently.

"Why?" I whispered.

"Because, I need to look in your eyes before I kiss you," he murmured.

I pulled my eyes up finally and was lost as he lowered his mouth to mine. I kept my eyes locked on his until the last possible moment. They finally fluttered closed as he kissed me like never before. We had always had our share of passion from the supernatural link we shared, but this made every other kiss feel like child's play as Mark plundered my mouth with his own. I gasped as he nipped on my lip, encouraging me to open completely to him. His mouth was familiar in so many ways and yet I could feel multiple layers that had never been there before.

Mark pulled away and I couldn't help my small moan of disappointment as I latched my mouth back on his.

"Krista, we need to stop for a minute," he said, pulling away, holding my head firmly between his hands.

"Why?" I gasped, working to get oxygen flowing through my foggy kiss-induced state.

"Because, you’re having a hard time breathing sweetheart.
You don't have the appropriate energy to kiss the way I want to kiss you. We're on unfamiliar territory
here,
my kisses no longer replenish your needs."

"Um, yeah they do," I said, still gasping for breath.

He chuckled. "I mean like they used to. We no longer have the power to heal each other."

"I know," I said as grief for what I had destroyed threatened to crash over me.

He tilted my head back and was able to read the grief on my face. "Krista, this is the way it should be," he said gently. "Look at what you can do. Your gifts exceed everything we could ever imagine, tenfold."

He leaned down and lightly kissed the sensitive skin high on my cheekbone, right below my left eye. I closed my eyes, shivering by the sensations his kiss had stirred inside me. I heard him chuckle quietly and knew that even without being able to read my mind, he could read me like an open book. He moved his lips to my eyelids where he placed an equally sensitive enticing kiss on the closed lids. I murmured my pleasure, letting my body relax completely in his arms. I knew I was shirking my new duties, and I was sure my wanton ways would deeply disappoint The Light, and my mentor, Haniel, but I couldn't seem to find an ounce of care in me. I knew I was acting selfish and letting my new gifts go to waste, but as I lay curled up in Mark's arms, I felt I was exactly where I should be. I had lost him once—I would not let that happen again.

"Well, well, well, as sweet as this was to watch from the monitors, I really must break up this happy reunion," Victor said, strolling into the oversized room with a disgruntled Harmony tagging behind him. "Krista, it loathes me to admit it, but you truly are a remarkable being. It's a shame you bought into the Ascended facade though. You would have made a spectacular addition to my following. Harmony shares many of your gifts, yet your ability to transport to another location seems to elude her. Unless, perhaps she's not applying herself appropriately," he continued in a biting tone that contradicted the genial outward appearance he was shooting for.

Harmony muttered something derogatory under her breath. Victor turned on her with lightning-quick reflexes, firmly wrapping his hand around her slender throat. "Don't think for one moment that your newfound relationship with The Dark One will save you from my wrath," he said, tightening his fingers around her neck, making her skin take on a bluish tinge.

I pulled myself to my feet, wanting to do something to stop him, but the electronic cage kept Mark and me at bay. I wondered why Harmony didn't use her gifts to break his hold on her throat.

"She is not insolent like you and Mark," he snarled at me, pulling my thoughts from my overworked brain. I would have tried to block him, but it took all the energy I had to stand. "She knows her rightful place and respects those that have created her," he said, shaking her by the throat to emphasize his point.

Tears of pain leaked down her cheeks and after a moment he released his hold on her. I watched, sickened as Harmony fell to his feet gasping for breath.

"I'm sorry father," she said. "Please forgive me," she begged, pulling on his pant leg much like a toddler would.

"I know you think you're sorry my dear, but you must learn to respect those that give you life," he said, pulling her to her feet.

"I will, I promise," she said. Her relief over his forgiveness was glaringly obvious.

"Now, where were we? Oh yes, we were discussing Krista's ability to do something as a newborn Ascended, that you as a full-fledged Descended have been lazily unable to accomplish," he said to the now remorseful Harmony.

"I don't know how she does it father," Harmony said in a plaintive voice.

"Then perhaps we will have to search for a solution that will give us insight into this gift of yours," he said, directing the statement toward me.

"I would rather cut my tongue out than help you further your sadistic plan," I said, stepping back away from the electric field.

"Once again Krista, your insolence tests my patience. I believe with the right motivation you will be a little more compliant," he said, turning on his heel. "Come my
dear,
let's go see how our other guests are doing."

My stomach dropped as I watched Harmony and Victor leave the room. His point was clear. For the third time in a handful of months, I was once again at Victor's mercy. Even with Haniel's help, we had somehow allowed Victor to get the upper hand. And I sure didn’t help by transporting into this electric cell rather than help my friends. I couldn't help thinking that maybe The Light just wasn't strong enough to avoid an eclipse by The Dark. Good versus evil had been battling it out for years and we were merely pawns in the whole scheme of things. I sank back down on the ground, no longer having the will or inclination to stand up.

"Krista, it's going to be okay," Mark said, sinking down next to me, rubbing my arm to comfort me.

"How?"
I asked. "Our extended family is being held captive somewhere in this labyrinth of a building. I'm scared of what he has done to them, but most of all I'm scared of what he has done to Haniel," I continued quietly.

Mark paused halfway up my arm. "Krista, do you have feelings for Haniel?"

"Of course."

"I see," Mark said, pulling away.

Puzzled, I looked at the withdrawn look on Mark's face. "What?" I asked confused.

"Nothing," he mumbled, sinking back.

Confused and hurt at his sudden mood change, I allowed myself a small peek into his mind and nearly laughed out loud with relief.

"You dork. I don't love him like that," I said, smiling at him.

"Are you sure? Every time you talk about him your voice takes on a different quality. I know you two have been spending a lot of time together and you believing that I had betrayed you might make you turn to someone else."

"I could never turn to anyone else. It has always been you, and only you," I said as he dragged me back in his arms. His lips smothered out any further talk as he made it clear I was only his. I returned his kiss with fervor, feeling my energy coming back in small measures.

"Dang," I said, pulling back slightly to replenish my lungs with air.

"You could say that again," Mark said with a small laugh, resting his forehead against mine.

"Dang," I said lightly, making him chuckle before his lips reclaimed mine once again. This time though, the passion still flowed around us. The kiss was gentle and tender as he cupped my face gently, holding it in place.

I laughed, standing up reluctantly. "As nice as this is, we need to find a way out," I said.

"I know," Mark said also standing.

"Let me look at your ankle thing," I said, sitting on the edge of the small couch in the makeshift jail.

Mark pulled up the cuff of his jeans so I could inspect it closer.

I lifted his bare foot and placed it on my lap. His foot was tanned and smooth to the touch. I ran my hand over the top of it and smiled when I saw the look that passed over his face. Shelving that tidbit for another time, I focused on the task at hand. The contraption around his foot was clasped on tightly, making it impossible to slide it down off his foot. The hardware itself looked simple enough, but I could see that only a key would work to remove it, unless of course Mark and I were talented at picking locks, which we weren't. I looked around for some kind of device to pry it open with.

"There's nothing," Mark said automatically, knowing what I was searching for.

"Okay, well that won't work," I said, moving on to a different solution. I approached the unseen barrier and cautiously stuck out my finger in front of me. I felt a red hot surge of electricity race up my hand, making my hand and wrist go numb. I winced in pain, stepping away.

"Krista, don't do that," Mark said, cradling my hand in his.

"So, as long as your ankle thing is on, we're trapped here," I said, stating the obvious. "Can we try to short it out?" I asked, looking around for water.

Mark shook his head. "I've tried that. It doesn't work. The electrical mechanism must be waterproof.

"Okay, so we can't short it and we can't get it off. What if we ignore the pain and charge the barrier?" I asked.

Mark looked at me skeptically. "What about the monitors? My father will just send in Daemons to take care of us."

"I'm not so sure about that. I have a feeling Victor had all of them engaged in other activities."

"What about your weakness?" He asked, trying to be the voice of reason.

"I'm already starting to feel better. I don't think I could pull off another transport anytime soon, but I was able to read your thoughts not too long ago, which means some of my energy has been replenished.

"Oh you did," he said, shooting me a sexy smile.

"Maybe just a sneak peek," I said, smiling also.

"Okay, so we test the boundary," Mark said, dragging me back to reality. "I've done it one other time and it hurts like Hell. Plus, it takes several minutes to get your nerves to recover the assault. Last time I did it, my father had his goons in here within seconds because of the alarms I set off. If no one comes rushing in, we know you're right about him being busy elsewhere."

"I say we do it together. I’ll try to use my gifts to help protect you. Maybe if I concentrate hard enough, it won’t hurt you that much."

"That sounds good, but what about your pain. I’d rather have it the other way around," he said bitterly.