A Clash of Storms (A Shade of Vampire #50)(54)

“What’s happening? Serena,” he said, his lower lip trembling. “Please, kill me now while I’m still here… I can’t hold on anymore. If he takes over completely we’re all dead.”

I closed the distance between us and took his face in my hands, gently pulling him closer. I looked deep in his eyes, looking for a glimmer of the real him beyond that shuddering yellow.

“Draven,” I breathed. “I love you more than anything. I’m ready to burn this whole world down for you to stay alive. Call it selfish, if you want. I don’t care. I love you too much to let you go, and I’m hoping this will be enough to give you the strength you need to fight Asherak.”

I could hear the dark Druid hissing inside Draven, whose gaze softened on me as he listened.

“I’m not going to save a world that doesn’t have you in it, and I know that’ll piss you off enough to take a stand and fight this bastard and finish the job yourself, because there is no one as strong as you are, Draven…”

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I kissed him, pressing my lips against his and pouring all my love into that one little gesture that meant the world to me.

Asherak was struggling beneath the surface, snapping and snarling. I could feel his rage, but Draven had my full attention. He had yet to lose control.

“I want to spend the rest of my life with you,” I told him with a watery smile. “And I plan to live for a damn long time with you. I love you, Draven, like nothing and no one else in this world, and the reason I fell so hard is because of your strength. Even when you didn’t think you had it in you, you stood tall and fought back and brought us all here today. You are strong, Draven.”

He exhaled sharply, gold energy pouring into me, feeding me like before and filling me with his emotions. They all burned for me. For us.

“You can fight this. For yourself. For Eritopia. For me, Draven. Fight it and kick this snake out! Don’t let him take another soul down with him. He’s taken enough!” I raised my voice and took a step back.

I could hear growling and hissing beneath his ribs. I could feel Asherak’s poison flushing through his veins. I could feel the rage crashing into his very soul. A war was being waged inside Draven’s body, and I’d made myself heard, loud and clear.

His resolve had already resurfaced.

Draven was ready to reclaim his body.

Because his soul was already mine.





Draven





I could feel him burning through me, like wildfire swallowing a forest, blazing and consuming everything in its path. Asherak was furious.

Serena had taken advantage of his momentary weakness, his desperation to get to my soul before he could manifest his full power like he’d done with Azazel. Even in my current state, struggling to maintain consciousness and take my body back from the dark Druid, I couldn’t help but marvel at Serena’s quick wit, playing on his arrogance like that.

I loved her with every fiber of my being, and she’d been able to get her message through to me, loud and clear. It was all in my hands now. I had one last chance to make this work. To save myself and be with her. She’d instilled hope with a handful of words, and I loved her even more for it.

My heart swelled as Asherak’s poison kept trying to pierce through it. My brain sizzled as his roars traveled through me, echoing through every cell, making my muscles jerk and my bones crack as he sought to bring down my physical defenses.

I looked at Serena, and I could see a glimmer in her bluish green eyes, her long black hair framing her beautiful face. She stood tall and proud and wiped the tears away. Her split lip was swollen and red, and I could taste her blood on my lips. I felt horrible for having hit her so hard. I felt my own rage coming up, as I was angry at myself for allowing Asherak to hurt her.

“Fight it, Draven!” she said, projecting everything she felt at me.

Emotions washed over me. Love. Longing. Pride. They were all for me.

I directed my rage at Asherak. He’d made me hurt Serena, and there was no way in hell I was letting him get away with it. My consciousness struggled against the dark Druid’s constant pummeling, his bellowing in the back of my head.

Let me in, Draven. Your soul is mine. You offered yourself to me!

Something inside me didn’t want to let go. Something tugged at my heart, and it took me a few moments to realize what it was, while Asherak was digging his claws deeper and sending ripples of pain through my body, making me bend forward.

Let me in! You’re mine!

The tug got stronger, and I jerked back into an upright position, while every inch of my body ached to the point where tears streamed down my cheeks. It was Serena. It was our bond, our unbreakable tie that had formed the night we first made love.

Her sentry nature kept us connected even as Asherak burned holes through me, desperately trying to sink his fangs into my soul and devour my energy. Serena was my lifeline, my beacon of light, and the one creature I needed to get to before it was too late.

Asherak caught on and tried to break the invisible chain, but he hissed and growled with frustration as I focused on how Serena made me feel.

Everyone around us was frozen, swords out and ready to strike me down.

I knew I would die if I didn’t fight back now. I knew there was an end coming. My friends, my allies had me covered on that end. I could see it in Hansa’s emerald-gold eyes. I could see it on Jax’s face. The young Druids, too. They were ready to do what Serena couldn’t, but they’d also seen what she could do, and they were now watching it all unravel.