15. Rome

15

ROME

W e egress to Quinn’s rooms in the Hotel, to do the power transfer between Lucca and me before Quinn and I leave for Rome tonight. A terrible sobriety has taken our trio in the wake of the Vampire Council’s Summons; no one says anything as Quinn escorts us inside, then up to his bedroom loft rather than do our metaphysical transfer down in his living area, which is less intimate and more easily interruptible by distractions.

Once we arrive in his loft, Lucca makes a beeline for the bed, the place where he recuperated from nearly dying a week ago. He flops down, laying back as if it’s his, as Quinn heads to a built-in wine cupboard on the far wall, pulling out a bottle of red and three glasses. He takes them to his small breakfast table in the open area of the loft, pulling the cork, and pouring wine for us all.

The glasses ridiculously full, even for the decadent Quinn.

“Fuck.” Lucca curses as he rubs both hands over his face, then curries them through his hair. Wrath boils in his deep blue eyes as he scoots out of bed to come take the wine Quinn offers.

We clink in a toast, but no one is celebrating.

“Are you ready to do the transfer, Lucca? Ariana?” Quinn asks us after we have all taken a deep swig of wine, and are in the middle of another.

“No.” Lucca grumps, though it’s clear he’ll do whatever needs doing tonight. “And here I thought today was going so well…”

“What do we have to do, exactly?” I ask as I take another drink of wine, glancing between Quinn and Lucca.

“I have to pour my magic inside you, Ariana, which is never pleasant.” Lucca sets his wine down, then goes back to the bed, eyeing me. “It’s like an invasion, as I force your magic and body to make room for mine. It’s not a complex process, but it’s going to hurt—a lot. Be prepared for that.”

“Okay.” I steel my courage now as I head over to the bed with him, assuming whatever it is we’ll be doing may need a nice soft landing-pad if I collapse from it. As I settle to the bed beside Lucca, and Quinn sets his wine down also, joining us, I note that Quinn’s settled fully in the middle of the ample bed rather than on the edge. With a tense smile, Quinn reaches out, beckoning me to the center of the bed with him.

“You should both do this here in the middle, not on the edge. It’s safer to have something soft all around you, just in case,” he says, his voice quiet now as he caresses a lock of my wild red hair back from my face.

“That bad?” I lift an eyebrow at him as Lucca joins us and I twist my hair back into a bundle, moving it behind me now so it’s out of the way if any biting needs to happen. Fear cascades through me, but I try to control it.

My dark rainbows betray me, however, as they surge through the loft.

“Am I going to hurt until I can use your power for the demonstration?” I ask Lucca now, glancing at him.

“Hopefully not,” he says with tenderness as he takes up my hands and holds them, though his eyes are worried. “Generally, the pain only happens when my magic goes in and when it comes back out again, as it should remain dormant inside you until you call upon it to be used. I’ve never done this with a Dark Fae before, though, only Summer Fae when I was part of the Darkwatch. ”

“So you don’t know precisely how it’ll go. Awesome.” I sit tall and sigh now, readying myself for whatever comes next. “Alright. Let’s do this. To delay any longer for my comfort’s sake will just make me more nervous.”

“And delay our sojourn to Rome,” Quinn says, lifting a pointed eyebrow.

“Right.” Scooting to me upon the bed, Lucca is very close now as he kisses my hands, then releases them. I feel from Quinn that he will have no part of this transfer, except to stabilize me with his magic of the Night, should I need it when Lucca pours his Light into me.

Lucca wraps one arm around me like we’re dancing while kneeling on the bed, pressing his warm palm to the center of my back, right behind my heart. He spreads his other hand, pressing that palm to my chest over my heart in front, and I feel the deep warmth of his hands as his power moves through me.

Right through my chest, blazing directly into my heart.

“My power must be held in your heart.” Lucca’s lips are close to mine now as he gazes down at me, his eyes a far gentler blue than before. “Don’t fight it as it goes in; try to open as wide as you can to embrace it. I will try to pour it as gently inside you as I can—but if I am to give my all, Ariana, there will be pain no matter how I try to control it. It will feel like a blaze, or a burn, and your whole body will spasm and fight it, because the power is not yours. Open up to that. Accept the burn, and know it is the burn of true love I give you now… because without me doing this, you will most likely die in Rome, and Quinn, too. And I will never let that happen.”

“I love you, Lucca. I trust you.” Lucca holds me close with his hands cupping my heart. Though I’m afraid of the pain, Quinn takes my hand, smoothing his thumb over my skin and lending his support. Steadiness flows through me now as I gaze up into Lucca’s beautiful blue eyes, luminous with love like a vividly sunny day. I swallow hard, feeling a wave of Quinn’s magic calm me.

Lucca nods, and I feel the flow of magic begin .

There’s no stopping it as Lucca pours the entirety of his blazing, tempestuous power inside me now. It’s like a river of heat at first, pouring into me as Lucca holds my gaze with his, cupping my heart between his hands in front and in back. I feel a strange mesmerization come from him as he gazes down at me, almost like a Vampire as his eyes blaze with a powerful, vivid white light.

But rather than holy, like I’ve seen it before when we made love, that light is ungodly now as Lucca lets the full power of his magic come. It seethes from his eyes and pours from his hands and body deep into my heart. His hands burn upon me, then scorch as I gasp and writhe, trying to escape it. My body fights the connection, though Lucca holds me firm from escaping with his hands, while Quinn pours a deep command into me.

A command to be still and allow the process to complete.

Then Lucca truly unleashes the floodgates of his power—and I scream as his magic devours me. Because it’s not just a burn now, it’s a sun going supernova, hammering into me as I scream with pure agony and ecstasy all at once. Sundered by that powerful, endless Light, I spasm back into Quinn’s arms as Lucca falls with me.

Keeping his hands firmly in place.

I’m laying back on Quinn now, with Lucca on his knees over me as if he’s going to take me. There’s nothing sexy about this torrent of terrible energy rushing through me, though. It is bliss and awfulness, seething within me, and too much Light as my power tries to fight back.

My magic blazes like midnight rainbows and gold-silver fire, surging from my every limb to battle Lucca’s. I feel it, trying to engulf Lucca’s terrible blaze and snuff it out with my Night. My magic is still largely untrained, however, and Lucca has known centuries of wielding his. With a determined push, he thrusts the full horror of his Light inside me. Lucca sets his jaw, letting everything go now as he thunders every last bit of his annihilating power inside me .

And I scream as I arch in madness—breaking wide open to Lucca’s Light.

There’s nothing inside me but pain and endless stars exploding as Lucca’s power tears through me, searing deep into my heart and consuming me. There is nothing but endless diamond light as I scream on and on, arching and spasming and shaking like my body will tear itself apart.

It’s like a thousand suns going supernova all at once, and nothing can stop this burn as it devours me. Nothing will save me from Lucca’s terrible Light as tears stream down my face, and matching ones stream down Lucca’s high cheeks as he feels what he’s doing to me.

But it isn’t finished; Lucca has to pour all of himself into me or this power may not be strong enough to return a Revenant before the Council of Rome. I scream as Lucca gives one last, final push—and I feel that blast skewer me more thoroughly than his father Archivolio Bellari’s lance of Light that nearly killed me weeks ago.

I’m ablaze; everything inside me is burning, even as I feel a faraway flow from Quinn desperately try to balance and cool Lucca’s terrible power incinerating me. But though my two men are matched in their magic, one is trying to pour everything he is inside me—while the other is definitely not.

I feel my body give in then, as my power opens wide. I’m embracing all of Lucca’s terrible Light in one massive wash of Night now, unprecedented in the black rainbows it hurls through the room in a hurricane.

And a maw of devouring opens deep inside me now, rather than my regular power.

Suddenly, it’s as if Lucca becomes locked to me as my power hauls him in close rather than shove him away. My magic is like the cosmos’ largest black hole as it devours Lucca’s light rather than let him push any more into me; Lucca gasps as he tries to pull back, his eyes flying wide.

My Dark Fae power has him now, though, and it’s not about to let go. Like the most horrible Vampire of the entire cosmos, I feel it devour everything he fed me, rather than let it be stored in my body.

As it tries to surge into Lucca now through our connection—and eat him alive.

“Ariana, stop! ” Quinn’s voice is like thunder on the mountains as it hammers into me, rolling me via our connection. Lucca is gone now and Quinn is before me, staring into my eyes, hammering wave after wave of his strongest mind-mesmerization into me, to get me to stop eating Lucca’s Light.

But I can’t stop, even as I’m inundated by Quinn’s black flows. I cry out; Lucca has fallen away on the bed, shaking like he has a palsy, gasping like he can’t get enough breath now.

As I drain him to death with my power.

But Quinn’s incredible dark-light is suddenly pouring into me. Cascading inside me like the darkest ocean of fire, black, red, and gold flame devours me as he surges in, kissing me. The touch of Quinn’s body on mine and his lips devouring mine breaks my connection to Lucca as I feel Quinn’s command thunder all through me, enhanced by his touch.

Ariana, stop! Take me instead.

I do. My power opens like a devouring maw then, swallowing Quinn’s Night as I drink him down through our kiss. But Quinn’s magic understands darkness; as Quinn’s power floods into me like a blackfire tide, burning me up in a decadently dark way now rather than scorching and bright, I feel him counterbalance Lucca’s energy in my veins.

My magic is no longer threatened as Lucca’s blazing, every-color Light is matched by Quinn pouring his dark passion of Night inside me. He floods his power down my throat with his kiss, making the black maw of my void devour it.

That void closes as Quinn creates balance inside me. I don’t know when the flow of power between Lucca and I cuts off, my terrible void ceasing to devour him. I only know that I blaze bright-dark and dark-bright all at once now, as rainbows of unprecedented saturation and hues careen through the loft. My veins rush with shimmering white light and rainbow-dark mist. Quinn’s and Lucca’s powers are like twin suns blazing inside me.

One bright as life.

The other, dark as death.

I gasp as I realize what they’ve done. For not only did Lucca pour his power inside me with this transference, but Quinn did also—balancing and calming Lucca’s disastrous Light as it invaded me.

I still feel how deep and wide that ancient maw of darkness inside me opened to eat Lucca’s power, rather than allow it to be stored within me. As Lucca and I stare at each other now, him gasping on the bed, me still locked in Quinn’s arms and gasping just as hard, I suddenly choke. As I rub my chest, a deep pain aches in my body and heart. My magic used Lucca’s energy as fodder; as I grip my heart, I know that wasn’t part of the plan.

Not only that, but Quinn had to pour his own energy inside me to stabilize my power and stop it from eating Lucca’s energy—and nearly killing him. As I feel only half of Lucca’s full might still burning in my chest, and a matching amount of Quinn’s power now stored inside me, I know my magic has ruined all our plans.

Tears burn my eyes now, not just from the lingering pain still coursing through me, but also because of what I just did. If we lose control of our magics before the Council, it will be my fault now, thanks to the endlessly devouring void deep inside my Dark Fae magic. As I blink, tears slip down my cheeks. As Quinn sees it, he sighs with a pure, beautiful sorrow lighting his eyes.

Gathering me close and holding me from breaking.

“It was just supposed to be Lucca!” I am sobbing now on Quinn’s chest. I can’t help it. To have so much pain, right after such ecstasy, then to have my magic so spectacularly eat Lucca’s and fuck up our life-and-death plans is more than I can take.

As Quinn holds me close, I sob harder. He wraps himself around me, petting my hair. The fact that he’s being so nice after I so disastrously made everything go wrong is too much now.

I break—losing it in his embrace.

Lucca’s strong arms wrap around me from behind; only then can I finally control my sobs. I gasp, pulling his arms in hard around me as I cuddle into Quinn. Their touch is the only thing that can soothe me, and slowly, it does.

As my misery abates, Quinn sets a solemn hand to my chest. Pressing in with his dark, lovely power, I feel him search for Lucca’s bright Light stored inside me. He finds it blazing like a star of molten plasma deep inside my chest. With a nod, he kisses me with his soft, luscious lips.

“It is enough, Ariana. It will be enough for our Revenant demonstration in Rome.”

“How can you be sure?” Doubt cascades through me now as Quinn curls me back in, his arms close around me. As we hold each other now, breathing together, I feel our trio’s powers braid into a deep, bright-dark coil all through us. None of us want to voice what might happen if the transfer wasn’t enough.

Because we all know what will happen if it isn’t.

I feel deep fear, but also stubbornness inside my men then, that they will not break unless we all go down together.

They’re prepared to—and I am also, as I understand the horror of what we’re facing now.

“What we did cannot be helped,” Quinn says at last as he holds me, and I feel his heart beat in his chest. “I would come up with a different plan, but for the first time in my life, my mind is blank. It was the right thing to do, transferring my power into you along with Lucca’s, to balance his Light with my Night and stop your devouring, Ariana. You would not allow Lucca’s Light to be in you without my darkness present. And so I let my Night be in you as well. For as long as Lucca’s Light is.”

“But you need your power to face off with your Vampire Council!” I say, knowing I made a dangerous situation with the Council so much worse now. I feel how Quinn’s and Lucca’s powers whirl far lower than they normally do as we all cuddle together. Only I have my usual power moving through me; augmented by Quinn’s and Lucca’s, my Dark Fae energy surges bright silver and gold now as it churns with a maelstrom of midnight-dark rainbows through the room.

Their powers are not available to me, though—until we need them in Rome.

“I shall deal with having only a fraction of my usual power while we are in Rome. I’ll have to.” Quinn is pragmatic now as he kisses my lips.

“Quinn’s right, Ariana.” Lucca squeezes me from behind now, cradling me close. “There was no other way to balance my power inside you. Quinn and I accept we’ll be at a tenth or less of our usual might while our magic is stored in you. Because it can be safely stored there now until it is needed.”

“Come, Ariana,” Quinn says with a gentle nuzzle at my lips. “Our transference ends, and our task tonight is done. We must away to Rome.”

“One more minute,” I say, clutching him and Lucca, never wanting to leave our togetherness.

Lucca draws a deep breath and sighs, however, and I know our moment is broken. As Quinn and Lucca share a long glance over my shoulder, as if they both know battle must come before passion, Lucca pulls slowly away. Quinn helps me down to a seat on the bed now, as Lucca slides off it, pushing up to standing.

Quinn is silent as he goes to his walk-in closet and packs a modern suitcase for our sojourn to Rome. I head to the table to eat something, knowing it will help both my pain and agony at everything that just happened, as Lucca pulls out his phone, texting something to Alleno.

As Quinn dresses now in a modern Victorian suit of dark red rather than his simple grey one, this suit slashed and filigreed with black lace, he hauls on a black silk shirt with a high collar. He grimaces now, though, as he fastens his cufflinks. I feel his thoughts through our connection; how weak he feels without his usual level of power moving through him .

But Quinn says nothing as he hefts his zipped bag, beckoning me to the loft stairs. “Come. I’ve had Devi pack a bag for you, Ariana. You can dress in something more appropriate in the car for our arrival at Arturos’.”

Though I’m reticent to go, Lucca follows us now to see us off. As we spiral down the wrought-iron stairs to the main floor of Quinn’s apartment, I blink, realizing what Quinn just said.

“Car?” I glance at him as we exit his suite, navigating the underground halls of the Hotel to the nearest staircase. I frown that we’re not taking a manticore carriage or something, and ascend with him and Lucca all the way back up to the nearest attended parking drop-off. As we egress to the outdoor portico where guests are leaving the Hotel in a flood, thanks to this new threat from the Vampire Council, I spy a sleek black Maserati parked right in front of the Hotel’s steps.

Quinn turns, facing Lucca at last.

“Be safe.” Lucca reaches out, gripping Quinn’s shoulder.

“We will be. As much as we can be,” Quinn says with a dark chuckle as he sets his hand on Lucca’s shoulder as well. Though Quinn keeps me tucked beneath his arm, I feel the deep energy that passes between him and Lucca as they regard each other in the night. A hot blaze of passion rolls between them, as Lucca’s blue eyes blaze and Quinn’s dark onyx ones burn. They say nothing more, though, as Lucca steps in.

And takes up my hands, kissing them.

“Take care of Quinn, Ariana,” Lucca says, as he gives a small smile. “He needs watching.”

“You both do.” I lift an eyebrow at Lucca’s quip.

“Yes, but he needs it more. By quite a lot.” Lucca lifts a hand now, stroking my cheek and holding my gaze as he smiles.

His light is less bright than normal, however, most of it stored inside me now. Lucca nods to the car, saying nothing about what just happened. He just gives my cheek one last caress and steps resolutely back.

“Get thee to Rome,” he says in an old-fashioned way to Quinn now, lifting an eyebrow. “Go kick some ass. ”

“You can be certain of it,” Quinn says with dark readiness. They watch each other a moment more, then with a nod, Lucca gestures at the car. With a nod back, Quinn turns, escorting me down the Hotel steps as a valet holds the car door open for me.

I climb in and Quinn takes over for the valet—shutting the door behind me.

Quinn goes to the driver’s side, closing his door and firing up the sleek sports car, as I get one last glance of Lucca standing before the Hotel in the night. As the dashboard lights come on with the headlights, though, and Quinn revs the Maserati’s powerful engine, we pull smoothly out, driving over the cobbles as if we glide over ice.

Leaving Florence.

And heading to Rome.