Chapter 21Sasha

Chapter

Twenty-One

SASHA

I watched the thick fog swirl around as if moved by a gentle breeze. However, I couldn’t feel a breeze from the inner circle where I sat—I felt nothing at all.

Sometimes, I would stand and lean over the fountain my back was currently resting against, peering into the water, feeling as if secrets were to be found there if I only knew where or how to look. But all I ever saw was my own distorted reflection.

Often, my mind would wander as I watched the thick fog that kept me trapped by the fountain. I felt as if there was something important I had forgotten, but then my mind would drift again before I could pursue the thought further.

Time held no meaning in the strange place I found myself in. Neither did emotions. There was no worrying, no stress or fear. There also was no happiness, love, or joy. But I couldn’t bring myself to care about that.

I stood up and walked right to the edge of the swirling fog. There was no looking past it to see what, if anything, lay beyond. I reached out my hand to touch it, but while it was so thick I couldn’t see through, it also seemed insubstantial. Like shadows…

A memory tried to surface, but it was just a flicker before dissipating as if it had never been there at all. I let out a soft sigh and turned to take the few steps necessary to reach the fountain but froze as my eyes found those of another being.

I stared, only summoning up a mild curiosity as to who they were. I tilted my head as I took in the long, shimmering hair that fell clear to the floor and draped there like a puddle of golden silk. I picked up the end of my own heavy braid, taking in the dark red strands of hair woven together before letting it drop to my waist.

The female was wearing a long light blue gown that hugged her curves while billowing outward. She wore no jewelry, only a circlet with a gemstone the same brilliant blue as her eyes that rested against the pale skin of her forehead. She was a flawless beauty and someone who knew far more than anyone could ever imagine. It was there in her eyes as I took in her ethereal appearance.

“Are you God?” I asked, still taking in everything I could about this being who couldn’t be real.

Laughter so sweet and melodious rang out around me that I couldn’t help but close my eyes to properly savor the sound. “Oh, sweet Sasha, how delightful you are. There are many deities in many languages, in many lands, and in many realms. I am but one of many.”

“I sense that you are important to me somehow,” I squinted, trying to understand why I would even care. “Why is that?”

The female stepped forward until she reached the fountain, then ran the tip of a pointed pearlescent fingernail through the water. As I watched, mesmerized by her movements, I saw an image form. It started out dark and formless, then purples and pinks appeared as she spoke.

“Eons ago, I was given a gift by someone very close to me. For the first time, I was allowed to have children. I was so very excited and was already forming grand plans. First, I needed a home for my children, so I took my favorite things and placed them on the land I chose.” Swirls of black settled into shapes of trees and animals in the water.

“But as I began to place my children there, I found that the one who had gifted me this joy of motherhood had angered another by denying them what they most wanted. Out of spite, that other being planted a seed in my garden. One that I hadn’t known was there until it was too late to pull out.”

As I watched, a sickly color of green thread began to weave through the pretty landscape.

“My children grew into wondrous beings! I couldn’t have been more proud of the differences and the variations of wonderful creatures. To maintain peace in my children’s kingdom, I assigned ten of my most powerful, talented, kind, and fair children to be Kings. I had chosen well, and my children flourished!”

Flashes of color filled my vision as I watched her story unfold in the water. I was as fascinated as I was capable of being. Then, her following words had my heart beating a little harder than it had since I’d been in this place of in-between.

“But the weed of deceit had taken root. One of my loyal Kings prayed to me, having seen what was to come, and asked me to intervene. It was forbidden, though. I had to watch with great sadness as the weed grew stronger. But I wasn’t without hope. I planted that hope inside my greatest achievement, one that would bring balance back into the world I had created for my children. Four wonderful beings that would be the hope for the future. Then those four were snatched away like wisps in the wind.”

She closed her fist, and darkness covered the water. “For millennia, the foulness has grown over the land, infecting everything within it. So I took the chance, my last chance, to save that world from full destruction.”

Four lights began to dance through the darkness in the water before the first one landed. As it connected with a dark shape, a bit of the light that had once been overshadowed by the dark showed through. Then, the second light settled next to another dark shape. The third swirled and dipped, and I watched, mesmerized, and felt my heartbeat quicken as it finally landed. I could hardly tear my eyes away from that third light, but the fourth light drew my eye, and I reluctantly turned to it. I watched as it hovered over a small bit of darkness but didn’t connect. A part of me wanted to nudge it forward, knowing somehow that it was essential to do so. I lifted my hand as if to do just that, but the beautiful female stopped me.

“No, my dear. We can’t interfere. Remember. We must embrace hope.”

“What about that one?” I gestured to the third light that didn’t seem to be shining as brightly as the first two.

A sad smile crossed the ruby-red lips of the female. “That one will be perfect very soon.”

I watched as she dipped her entire hand into the fountain. When she raised it, she was holding a brilliant goblet made from diamonds that captured every droplet of water in its prism, creating rainbows of color that sparkled as the water splashed gently into the fountain.

I swallowed as she held the diamond goblet out to me. “Drink, beautiful daughter. Drink and fulfill your destiny.”

With trembling fingers, I reached out for the goblet and took it from her steady hands. I glanced from the crystal clear water and back to the female. Before I brought it to my lips, I had to ask.

“Who are you?”

She smiled at me indulgently like a loving mother who is full of patience for their unruly child. “My name is Naamah.”

“The Mother of Demons,” I whispered in a reverent tone.

“And you, sweet one, will be the Queen of Demons. One of four other magnificent females who are pure of heart and worthy to be the mates of my greatest treasures.”

As I brought the goblet to my lips I kept my eyes on the light in the pool. As I took my first sip of the most delicious ambrosia I’d ever tasted, the light grew brighter. With each swallow the light shown until it was as brilliant as the first two.

When I was done, I handed the empty goblet back to Naamah.

“You are ready to return. Your mate has been waiting for you, sweet one. But before you go, I must send a warning with you. That weed has grown strong. It will take The Four and more to remove it. Stand strong at your mate’s side and all will be rewarded.” She waved her hand over the fountain, and the vision of light and darkness disappeared until there was nothing left but clear water. “Go, now!”

I startled, stepped back, and tripped over my own feet. I landed on my back, a cry on my tongue that never found an escape. Instead, I took a deep breath and blinked at the ceiling above me.

“Mate!”

A deep, raspy growl snatched my attention from the ceiling, and I turned my head on the pillow it was resting upon to see brilliant green eyes staring down at me. I swallowed back the thickness that suddenly filled my throat and whispered the name of the one being I knew I could never live without.

“Varos.”

Without another word, Varos ripped the blanket off of my body, revealing my nakedness. I gasped in surprise, then watched as he ran his palm over my abdomen, which had large black stitches sewn into the flesh. I eyed him as he inspected the stitches closely. A thin pink line was apparent, but other than that jagged line, there were no other wounds. It was healed and fully closed, and I saw no reason for stitches to be there.

“Why do I have stitches?”

Varos growled and rolled from the bed, dressed in black slacks and a T-shirt. He looked handsome, even more so than I had thought before, and he had taken my breath away then. He stood there looking down at me, his fists clenched at his sides and his chest heaving from his heavy breaths.

“Your wound wasn’t healing. The only way to keep it closed was for Juliette to sew it closed.”

I drew in a shocked breath, then leaned up on one elbow and peered at him. “That must have been frightening for you. But, Varos, why do you look so angry?”

“You were asleep for two days, princess. Two days that I didn’t know if you were going to live or die. I only just found you. How could you leave me so soon?”

I sensed his fear, knowing it had to have been eating away at him the whole time I'd been asleep. Knowing Varos, he likely felt guilt and possibly even shame that I had been hurt while with him. I needed to help and make him see that I was alive and well. I wanted the pain that I saw in his eyes to be replaced by anything else. So I chose to taunt him.

I cocked an eyebrow. “As I recall, it was I who found you . Are you trying to rewrite history, mate ?”

With a growl, Varos climbed on top of me, immediately sealing our lips together in a fierce kiss. My desire rose quickly into an inferno of lust as his tongue swept across mine, tasting every part of my mouth before he finally pulled away. I gasped for breath as he spoke in his raspy voice that never failed to send shivers of delight up my spine.

“You will never leave me again.” He jerked my thighs apart and settled between them as I began to pant. “You will never be injured again.” He bent his head and licked up my center with his wicked tongue. Sensations I’d never felt before fired off behind my eyelids as I relished in the intense tingling of my nerve endings. “Open your eyes!” he demanded harshly.

My eyelids struggled but managed to flutter open to see him glaring at me from his position between my legs. “Please, Varos, I need?—”

“You will take what I give you and you will watch me do it,” he snarled. All I could do was nod my head rapidly, willing to do anything he wanted as long as he never stopped doing that with his tongue.

He ran a finger through my wetness and circled my clit before running it back down to circle my opening. I shifted my hips, needing more. He removed his hand and smacked my clit with his fingertips, causing my back to bow off the bed. As the sting morphed into pleasure, I cried out, never realizing I could crave a male’s touch the way I did his.

Satisfied he had my attention, he bent his head back down. Instead of going to my clit, he pierced my hole with his tongue, licking all around the entrance and as far inside as he could reach. My hands went to his hair, and my hips bucked uncontrollably as he fucked me with his tongue, and his thumb began an assault on my clit.

“Varos!” I screamed as my fist tightened in his hair. An orgasm slammed into me, making stars dance in my vision while I tried and failed to keep my eyes on his. Before I could tell him I needed more, that I needed all of him, he was already there, pushing his length into me.

It was a delicious torture as my channel stretched for his girth. When his hips met mine, we both took in deep gulps of air. “You’re mine, Sasha. You. Are. Mine. Do you understand me, mate? I can’t exist without you. Where you go, I will follow.”

Tears flooded my eyes as I took in his words. I knew what he was saying. But I could never allow this beautiful, damaged male to follow me into death.

I ran my fingertips over his tightly clenched jaw. “If that means I have to stay alive just so you will continue existing, I will. The world should never be without you, Varos. You’re too beautiful of a soul.”

I watched as emotions overtook him, and he swallowed roughly. “My mate,” he whispered hoarsely. Then he withdrew his cock until just the tip was resting at my entrance. I thought that he would slam back inside, but instead, he gripped one thigh and placed it over his shoulder. “Hold on,” he grinned, flashing his brilliant white teeth at me. “I’ve been aching to do this since that day in the cave.”

Then he finally gave me what I wanted, what I craved. His movements rocked the bed, making the wooden posts creak, and the headboard slam into the wall. I couldn’t bring myself to care if anyone heard. All I could do was wrap my arms around his neck and hang on for the ride.

Over and over, my mate thrust into me so deep that it was impossible to tell where he ended, and I began. My channel was only one part of me that was alive with sensations as the nerve endings sparked to life with every brush of his cock. It felt as if my whole body was electrified.

As he began to tense, my own body shook with another impending orgasm that I wasn’t sure I would survive. “Varos! I can’t!” I cried out as I became overwhelmed by what was happening inside my body.

“Take it! Take me, mate!” he growled, and with his words anchoring me, I shattered, trusting him to keep me tethered. Behind my eyelids, I watched as the light from the pool danced around the dark figure, and I knew to my soul that we were truly one.