Taken By Darkness (Guardians of Eternity #7.25)(14)
Author: Alexandra Ivy

Her stomach clenched as the two warriors savagely fought, Victor’s fangs ripping deep gouges in the Jinn’s perfect skin as he shoved it against the wall. In return the Jinn filled the air with staccato jolts of energy that brought down showers of jagged stones smashing onto Victor’s head.

Juliet bit her lip as she caught the exotic scent of Victor’s blood. As a vampire he could not bleed to death, but the loss of blood would quickly drain his strength.

Victor again slammed the beast against the wall, his fangs striking over and over with sickening force. The Jinn, however, appeared indifferent to his vicious injuries. No, it was more than indifference.

The violet eyes sparkled with an unmistakable pleasure, as if the nasty creature relished the pain. Or perhaps he simply enjoyed the battle.

In either case, Juliet sensed that the Jinn was merely toying with Victor, and that when he wearied of the game, something very bad was going to occur.

For both of them.

On the edge of panic, Juliet absurdly found herself searching her pockets, as if she might discover a hidden weapon. It was hardly shocking that she found nothing more than a bit of lint and the small crystal from her father. She had come to the docks to rescue Levet, not to wage war against a mythical demon.

Juliet cursed in frustration, gripping the crystal tightly in her palm.

She needed—

She gave a jump of surprise as the crystal abruptly flared with heat, almost as if it were feeding off her terrified emotions.

With a frown she opened her hand, realizing that the soft glow that always surrounded the crystal when she held it was decidedly brighter, the pulsing center seeming to echo her heartbeat.

For years she had attempted to call on the gifts of her imp blood with little more to show for her efforts than minor hexes and lingering headaches. Now she could actually feel the tingles of power darting through her body.

She stilled in shock. Was it truly possible?

Before she could consider whether it was all nothing more than a fluke, she heard a low rumbling from the Jinn.

Good lord, was that…laughter?

A sickening horror filled her as a familiar sensation of prickling electricity swirled through the air. She had suspected that bad things would happen when the bastard grew tired of playing. Now her fears were about to be confirmed beyond her wildest nightmare.

Instinctively she charged forward, but it was already too late.

With a massive shove, the Jinn freed himself from Victor’s grasp and tossed the vampire against the far wall. Stunned by the brutal impact, Victor crumpled to the ground, his pale face marred with blood and his arm hanging at an odd angle. Without giving Victor the opportunity to recover, the Jinn raised his hand and a sizzling bolt of lightning erupted from the tip of his finger.

Juliet was blinded by the violent burst of light, her ears ringing as the solid rock wall shattered. She cried out as she dropped beside Victor’s unmoving form, leaning over to wrap her arms around him in a protective motion.

“Victor…” she breathed, cruel pain wrenching her heart as she held him close, planting frantic kisses over his pale, beautiful face. “Please…”

She tasted his blood on her lips and felt the dampness of her tears falling down her cheeks, but her thoughts were consumed by the sense of the Jinn moving ever closer.

Did he intend to kill them both with his undoubted command of the elements?

Or was he plotting something even more hideous?

Squeezing shut her eyes, Juliet refused to accept failure. If she could not defeat the Jinn, then she must find the means to escape with Victor.

An easy enough task had she been a full-blooded imp.

Imps with any talent were capable of producing portals that could move them from place to place in the blink of an eye. Her father had been particularly skilled with such magic.

But of course, Juliet had never managed more than a weak gateway that collapsed the moment she attempted to enter it. And even that had left her exhausted for days.

Tonight, however, she did not allow herself to recall her innumerable failures.

Instead, she poured her thoughts and energy into the crystal still clutched in her hand, along with her mother’s amulet. If she’d ever needed her parents’ assistance, this was it.

Burying her face in the rich satin of Victor’s hair, she willed the portal to form around them, sending up a silent prayer she did not kill them both.

Victor could feel Juliet wrap herself around him, obviously attempting to protect him from the advancing Jinn. With an ancient curse, he struggled to regain command of his battered body to push her aside.

By the gods, he would not allow Juliet to be harmed.

Not even if it meant—

His uncharacteristic flare of heroism was rudely interrupted as Juliet tightened her arms around him and the entire world shifted beneath him.

As a vampire, Victor was incapable of sensing magic, but he could not fail to notice the tunnel melting away to utter blackness before he landed with jarring force on a damp cobblestone street with the night breeze blowing in his face.

Briefly disconcerted, he held himself perfectly still, absorbing the realization that he was lying flat on his back in the middle of London with Juliet sprawled on top of him.

He rolled to one side, carefully cradling the tiny, unconscious woman in his arms as he scanned the area around them.

Bloody hell.

Juliet must have created a portal to rescue the both of them from certain death, but at what cost?

The stench filling the air warned him that they were still dangerously near the docks, but thankfully there was no scent of the Jinn. Nor any other predators besides those who owed their loyalty to him.

Sensing one of his servants hurrying in their direction, Victor grimly rose to his feet, holding Juliet against his chest. An unfamiliar torment twisted his dead heart as he noted her unnatural pallor and the pain that tightened her features even in her deep state of slumber.

She had come perilously close to draining herself beyond the point of no return.

Too damnably close.

“Johan,” he called softly, knowing the young vampire would hear him despite being several blocks away. “Find a carriage.”

“Yes, master.”

There was a short delay, then the sound of horseshoes striking against cobblestones broke the thick silence. Victor watched the elegant black carriage turn the corner and come to a halt in front of him.

Leaping from the driver’s bench, the massive vampire was forced to calm the nervous horse before moving to offer Victor a deep bow.

“Master.” Although attired in rough wool clothing with his blond hair pulled into a simple braid, there was no masking the brewing danger that shrouded Johan. He was a warrior poised to kill. Straightening, the younger vampire narrowed his gaze as he took in Victor’s slowly healing wounds and the unconscious female draped across his arms. “You must feed, my lord. Shall I find a host?”