Blakeshire (Insight #9)(27)

My eyes slowly moved over him. He smelled the same as Drake, had the same pull to his essence. So in some way, I believed Vade. Trusted him.

“If you came to see him, then why are you talking to me?”

“We must remain strangers at this moment in time.”

“And why is that?”

“Otherwise, it will place him in danger.” His grave stare backed up that statement.

“Um, yeah, he’s already there.”

The night air turned colder, and I knew that blast of arctic air was coming right off this warrior king before me; his expression filled with the anger he said he ruled. “He was stolen from me, along with others. They are only hurting him to bring me down.”

Now I had something in common with this sovereign: we were both robbed.

“Where is your kingdom?”

“Not of this world.”

“Figures.”

He grinned disdainfully. “Once I discovered how deeply my fellow sovereigns had betrayed me, I looked back over Drake’s existence.” His eyes fell into mine. “I am deeply sorry.”

My heart started to hammer against my chest. I wasn’t afraid; I was defensive. I thought that this boy right here was going to take me away from Drake. That the moment I spoke my intention to love and protect him, the universe saw fit to take him—just like I feared before.

“For?”

“It’s my fault. If I had known he was taken, if I had seen how deep the betrayal was around me, he never would have left your arms…in any life.”

See now, I’m a strong believer in the power of attraction. I know that what you think about, comes about. Apparently my brainpower was on steroids, and because it was, I managed to manifest the King of Anger. Not only did I do that, I managed to have him valiantly whisk away all my little insecurities. Either I was way jacked up at this point, or I was having one wicked dream.

I narrowed my eyes on him. “I seriously doubt it is your fault he hooked up with Willow in this life or any other.”

“By default, it is. I’m honored to meet you. I’m honored that a Selected was chosen to adore Drake…a fated soul that my essence has claimed.”

“A what?”

His diamond eyes rained down on me. “You are not from this reality. You are one of a few that traveled to this side to find and bring forth redemption.”

“Are you sure that you popped into the right bedroom?” Yep, my sarcasm was my instant defense.

“Your soul is marked. You are bound to have seen that.”

My breath seized. Days ago, Charlie and whatever ghost was following her around had placed fire against the skin on my back, and when they did, some kind of wicked symbol glowed through my flesh. Using my ability to see into Charlie’s thoughts showed me that she had one, too, but in some way the details in the center of our backs were different. Mine had marks, where hers didn’t.

“Recently.”

He nodded once. “I cannot read into your thoughts because you are not one of ours. Until you spoke those words to him,” he nodded to the door, “I wasn’t entirely sure where your devotion was resting.”

“You were eavesdropping on us?” I exhaled as I felt humiliation.

I heard a subtle laugh come from deep in his chest. “Even if I could, I would not witness your most private and sensual moments…his dreams have been calling me for a while. I was watching his thoughts when I heard your words.”

“He’s calling out to you? He knows about you?” How could I have missed that?

“Not entirely. He just knows he feels differently from the souls with which he dwells. He knows that he has a desire that is deeper than most to release turmoil in human existence. And he is prepared to sacrifice anything to fill that desire.”

“Truth,” I muttered.

The air grew tight as those eyes evaluated me very carefully. He was obviously judging who I was and what my intentions were. “What you need to know is that even though he comes from the line of anger, even though Donalt and Xavier are tormenting him, that is not his war. It is not yours.”

“Kinda figured that out.”

“Did you, now?” he murmured as he narrowed his gaze.

“Well, sort of. I feel like I’ve been distracted. I went through something wicked a few hours ago, and when that happened I came out of it lacking a few emotions.”

“Which are?” he asked, raising his brow as if he already knew the answer.

Something about him compelled me to be more forthcoming than I would have been with any other soul. “Fear, shock, grief.”

A proud grin came to the edges of his lips. “And why do you think those three negative emotions were taken?”

Oddly, I saw flashes of my friend Monroe fire all around him, and I could swear I felt pride. I knew saying it was because a fifteen-year-old girl had a temper tantrum was probably the wrong thing to throw out there, so I was honest with him and myself for the first time. “So I can focus on my demon: obsession.”

“And perhaps lose your fear to claim what has always been yours.”

“Perhaps,” I breathed as I glanced away. I was more than sure that was part of Monroe’s reasoning.

That made him smile. “You are so hard to read that I wasn’t expecting you to know as much as you do.”