Bound By Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #8)(15)
Author: Alexandra Ivy

Immortal Ones were vampires who had left the world centuries ago to create a clan within another dimension where they were allowed to exist without the primitive passions that plagued this world.

No hunger, no thirst, no lust.

Just endless days of tedious peace they devoted to studying in their vast libraries and meditating in their supposedly endless gardens.

Most of the bastards had the mistaken idea they were somehow superior to their more “barbaric” brothers.

And this woman was one of them.

No, not just one.

The one.

The big kahuna. The CEO and founding member.

It was Nefri’s medallion that allowed her to travel through the Veil. And it was her powers that kept her people safe from those demons who attempted to break through the misty barrier that surrounded their world.

Ironically most vampires would be fascinated to meet one of the Immortals.

They were a source of myth and mystery and only a rare few vampires could ever claim to having encountered one. Like freaking leprechauns, Santiago acknowledged with a wry smile.

He, on the other hand, had barely been out of his foundling years when his sire had grimly informed him that he could not bear this world after the loss of his mate and was leaving to join those beyond the Veil.

The memory of his rejection was like a raw wound that had never fully healed for Santiago.

“I thought your … clan had turned their backs on the mortal world,” he accused between clenched teeth. “What are you doing here?”

“The disruptions that are thinning the barriers between dimensions are affecting us as well.”

“Ah.” He regarded her with an acid gaze, even as his body continued to react as if it had never seen a woman before. Madre Dios. If he didn’t leash his instincts he’d have her tumbled on the nearby bed and showing her just what she’d been missing all those long, lonely years. Maybe she would even discover a new appreciation for a mere barbarian. Or maybe she would rip out your heart and feed it to the wolves, a voice whispered in the back of his mind. For some reason the thought only intensified his smoldering anger. “So you were willing to remain in your little slice of paradise while the rest of us went to hell, but now that you’re being threatened you’re ready to take notice of the danger?”

Her dark gaze held a piercing intelligence that warned she could see far more than he wanted to share.

“So bitter,” she murmured softly. “You cared very deeply for Gaius.”

He squared his shoulders, refusing to allow the memory of his sire to rise to mind.

“I care about the family who didn’t abandon me,” he growled, “which is why I would do anything to protect them.”

“I am here to offer assistance, not harm.”

“Easy enough to claim.”

“True,” she readily agreed. “What will it take to convince you?”

Oh, he could think of several possibilities.

Erotic images flashed through his mind, most of them focused on having those cherry lips wrapped around a specific body part.

With a growl he was crushing the dangerous thoughts. How often had he used his own potent sexual attraction to defeat his enemies?

He wasn’t going to be led around by his cock.

“It’s no coincidence you are in this precise spot at this precise moment,” he accused.

With an elegant motion Nefri moved toward the window overlooking the backyard, her hair rippling like liquid ebony in the moonlight.

“No, it is no coincidence,” she admitted. “Like you I am searching for the prophet.”

Santiago curled his fingers, ignoring the itch to run them through those satin strands of hair.

“Why?”

She turned back to meet his wary gaze. “It was our hope to protect her from the Dark Lord by taking her beyond the Veil.” She waved a hand toward the empty room. “I fear we were too late.”

Yeah. He knew the feeling.

“How did you even know of Cassandra?”

A Mona Lisa smile curved her lips. “We are not utterly isolated.”

“So you’ve been spying on us?”

“There are those who travel between worlds,” she said without apology. “And when it became known that there were rumors of a seer I began to investigate. She is …”

He frowned as she hesitated. “What?”

Nefri reached into the pocket of her robes to pull out a thin book no larger than the palm of her hand.

“She is vital to the future of all our worlds.”

He studied the book, sensing its age. “What is that?” She stroked loving fingers over the battered red cover. “A book of prophecies that I took beyond the Veil when the Dark Lord began to destroy them.”

His brows lifted. Books of prophecies were as rare as actual prophets.

“And?”

“Most of them are gibberish, I fear.”

Santiago snorted. “Typical.”

“But, there is one that speaks of the birth of the Alpha and the Omega.”

The Alpha and the Omega …

Santiago stiffened. They were the same words spoken by the Sylvermyst who warned that the child Laylah had protected for so long was destined to return the Dark Lord to this world.

It couldn’t be a coincidence.

“What does it say?” he rasped.

“It warns that the ‘harbinger of truth’ must not be silenced,” she said without hesitation.

“That’s it?”

“Yes.”

He clenched his teeth. Why the hell couldn’t prophets just spit out the future in words a person could understand?

“Still gibberish.”

“No.” Nefri shook her head. “A warning that I intend to heed.”

She lifted her hand to grasp the medallion around her neck. The gold metal inscribed with some ancient hieroglyphs began to glow, filling the room with a strange heat.

Santiago instinctively lifted his sword. “What the hell are you doing?”

“I am going to search for the female.”

Despite his hatred toward the Immortals, and the very real possibility she might fry him if he tried to interfere in her dramatic departure, Santiago stepped forward, grasping the woman’s arm.

“Not without me, you’re not.”

She went rigid beneath the firm grip of his hand, her dark gaze studying his fierce expression.

“I had forgotten,” she whispered.

His fangs throbbed at the exotic scent of jasmine and pure female.

“Forgotten what?”

“How aggressive males tend to be in this world.”