A Valley of Darkness (A Shade of Vampire #52)(72)

I peeled my eyes open, welcoming the milky white moonlight on my face and relishing Draven’s soul tangled with mine, as always. I couldn’t get enough of the novelty of it all—our beings fused forever, our hearts attuned to perfection.

His love for me blossomed in my chest as I lifted my head from the pillow and found his grayish gaze on me, his fingers playing with a lock of my hair. He was leaning over the bed, watching me intently. We kissed, softly and deeply, and the world disappeared for a minute. It was like that every time our lips touched.

“Good evening, goddess.” He gave me a lazy smile.

I sat up and stretched my arms, welcoming the night’s breeze through the large bedroom windows, as it fluttered through the white veils of our canopy bed and the silk of my camisole. He slipped out of his shirt, letting it fall to the floor. Upon a second glance, I noticed he looked tired, but superb as ever, his broad chest stirring butterflies in my stomach. Ninety-eight black band tattoos covered his arms. Two more and he’d officially be named for the position he’d already held for three months: Master Druid of Calliope.

“I dozed off.” I smiled back. “What time is it?”

I rubbed my face with my palms, then glanced at the clock on the nightstand. It was just after midnight. Six hours had passed since our GASP meeting, and since Draven had heard back from Hansa after we’d seen them leave for Neraka this morning.

It had been a long day. I’d gone into a brief training session with Phoenix, while Jovi and Anjani had tried to spend as much time together as possible. The newlyweds had postponed their honeymoon until after we got our team back from Neraka, so whatever moment they could get alone in the meantime, they didn’t hesitate to vanish.

“Do you think they’re okay out there?” I asked, as Draven sat on the bed and brought his face closer to mine. He frowned slightly, sensing my concern over Harper and the rest of the GASP recon team. It was my sister’s first time on a mission so far away from home, and I couldn’t help but worry.

“It’s time I check in with them, anyway.” He gave me a soft smile, his emotions pouring out of him in shades of amber and lime, in a bid to reassure me. I nodded slowly, and he closed his eyes. “Telluris Hansa.”

Several moments went by, and his brow furrowed. I felt a little pang in my stomach, and his hand instinctively came over mine. Draven was extremely adept at recognizing and reacting to my emotions. He didn’t like me experiencing anything negative, and whatever he could soothe in me, he did.

“Telluris Hansa,” he called out again. His forehead smoothed, and he looked at me, his eyes twinkling. It seemed she’d picked up. “Hey, Hansa… Everything okay there?”

I watched quietly for changes in his expression—the slightest twitch, the faintest shadow passing over his face.

“That’s good. At least you get good beds to sleep on.” His lips stretched into a smile as he listened to Hansa. “How’s the team? How is Harper?”

My heart started beating a little faster, but mellowed when Draven squeezed my hand and winked at me.

“So you’re spending the night at the inn, and you’ll do more interviews tomorrow morning… How are the Exiled Maras treating you?”

I inched forward, tuning in to the subtle changes in his emotional spectrum. He didn’t think I’d noticed, but I caught the sliver of dark gray doubt.

“Okay, let’s catch up again at dawn,” he said, “and I’ll brief GASP afterward. Just stay safe, all of you, and reach out if you sense any kind of serious trouble, okay? Thanks, Hansa… We’ll speak soon.”

He exhaled, then focused on me.

“They’re all just fine, Serena,” he said, his hold on my hand loosening. “There’s nothing to worry about at this point. They’re settled at an inn in the city. Everything looks normal. Everyone is treating them with nothing but respect. Hansa says the Exiled Maras are even peacefully coexisting with an indigenous species called Imen. Based on how she described them, they remind me of humans from your world.”

“And Harper?” I asked, still mildly nervous.

“She’s doing well.” He smiled. “Thoroughly enjoying the adventure, apparently, though it’s been fairly low stress so far.”

“Okay…”

I still wondered about the doubt I’d sensed in him earlier. As if he’d read my mind, Draven brought his hand up, caressing my cheek.

“I know you felt something in me, but it’s not something I can explain,” he said, his voice low. “It’s this underlying feeling. I can’t put my finger on it, but it keeps me on edge where Neraka is involved. And I don’t like how I can’t actually… feel Hansa, or the others, for that matter, but I blame it on the asteroid belt they have there. It’s also most likely why Telluris doesn’t work as smoothly as it does here on Calliope. It’s nothing you should worry about, Serena. It comes with the unknown territory that is Neraka. It’s a different galaxy altogether—we’re adjusting and learning new things about it as we go along.”

I sighed, and he pulled me closer, gently wrapping his arms around me and filling me with his exquisite warmth.

“They’re okay, my love,” he murmured, his lips hot against my ear. “We’ll catch up with them again in the morning.”