Death Bringer

nice and tidy again.”

“If Adam kills her, I will return to Otherworld and to my full powers. I’ll demand vengeance for her death, as is my right as a bonded male.”

“Um, that’s not good, right?”

“It is for me. I’ve missed slaughter and bloodshed more than I thought I would. If my mate is involved, I strongly suspect my rage will have no bounds.”

“You mean, you’d kill your own family?”

“If I had to.” He paused for effect. “If I felt they had failed me.”

Rossa’s color faded. “I don’t think anyone can stop the sect from completing their games.”

“I’ve stopped them in the past.”

“But only a great personal cost!”

Vadim held Rossa’s silver gaze. “And I’ll do it again, but this time I’ll save my mate and take everyone who opposes her down with me. Tell them my terms.”

“And what if they won’t help?”

“If she is harmed, they’ll be dead. It’s quite simple.”

“You can’t—”

“I can, Rossa. You know I can, and so do they.” He hesitated. “And if I’m killed, I’d appreciate it if you would look out for Ella.”

“You’re asking me? Frakk, cygnet, I’m probably going to get fried just for being your messenger.”

“But if you survive, you will protect her?”

He shrugged. “Sure, I like her.”

“Swear it.”

Rossa sighed and placed his hand flat over his heart. “I will keep the faith until the sky falls upon me, until the earth opens and swallows me and until the sea rises and covers me.”

Vadim nodded as relief swamped him. “Thank you. Now please go and deliver my message.”

With a wink and a flash of light, Rossa was gone. Vadim slowly let out his breath and stared at the rumpled counterpane where his cousin had been sitting. Would it be enough to save Ella? Adam had touched her to show Vadim that he could. Luckily for him, she hadn’t seen it as a threat, only as a near miss.

He got up and straightened the bed covers. Despite what he’d claimed, if the sect combined their powers again, they might have the strength to harm his mate. That was unacceptable. He hadn’t been making empty threats to his family. For the first time in his long existence he was willing to lay down his life. Would they understand that? Would they act?

There was nothing else he could do at the moment to stop the inevitable battle between him and the cult. It was his destiny, one he’d tried to avoid by running away.

Ella would survive. He would make damned sure of it. She was worth dying for. Now he just had to find a way to convince her of that too...

* * *

“So you’re okay about this.”

Ella studied her companion as he drove across the bridge toward the East Bay and the joys of her parents’ house in Walnut Creek.

“Are you deaf? I believe I’ve said that at least three times.”

“I’m just worried. You know my mom will be all over you, right?”

“Yes.”

“And my sister, Madison?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re okay with that.”

“Yes. For God’s sake, Ella, stop worrying.”

“Madison can be difficult.”

“I noticed that the first time we met.”

“We used to get on okay, and then over the last few months, she’s just shut me out again.”

“Of course she’s shutting you out.” He glanced over at her. “For an empath, you can be surprisingly obtuse sometimes.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“She’s obviously scared about losing you again.”

“So she treats me like shit?”

“Exactly.”

She rubbed at a nonexistent spot on the glass. “I suppose that makes some weird teenage kind of sense.”

“When she finds out that you’re sticking around, she’ll come back to you.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Yes. And if she and your mother get too annoying today, you can soothe them with magic.”

“Or stop them talking entirely. That might be fun.” She smiled for the first time. “I’m going to have to tell them I’m not going nuts.”

“I’m sure they’ll be delighted.”

“But that means I’ll have to tell them about you.”

“Which is also okay.”

“She’ll probably cry all over you.”

“I have a handkerchief. Stop worrying.”

She studied his handsome profile. He wore jeans and a tight black T-shirt that molded his biceps and muscled chest. She wanted to rip off his clothes and run her hands over his abs and tight ass...

“You can do that later. I wouldn’t recommend trying it in front of your parents.”

“I don’t know, it might be fun.” She patted his muscled thigh. “Mom already said we can stay the night if we want.”

“And you want to have sex with me in your parents’ house?”

She looked out of the window. “I’ve never done that before. I missed out on all that adolescent fun while I was at the empath college.”

“You didn’t get to go home a lot?”

“I never went home. My mom said it would be too much for her to cope with.”

His hand covered hers and squeezed. “Then we’ll stay the night. The shock should’ve worn off by then, and hopefully they’ll leave us alone.”

“You have no idea.”

“Are your brothers coming, too?”

“I think they’ll all be there for dinner at least.”

“Great.”

He didn’t sound too rattled, but then he came from Fae royalty whose family gatherings were probably more terrifying and gory than she could even imagine. She stared out of the window at the rolling hills and the shady trees that covered them. By the summer, everything would be dry as dust and golden brown and ripe for a fire. Despite everything, visiting her parents was still an ordeal. How the hell was she supposed to have a relationship with the people who had dumped her in an all-year boarding school in Otherworld for empaths at the age of five? Sure, they’d done it to protect the rest of the family from the creatures who were magically drawn to her, but it still hurt.

And now she was bringing the Boy Wonder home with her...

“What do you want me to tell them about you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Should I say you’re not human?”

“I am human.”

“About one percent, right?”

“More than that.” He clicked on his indicator and moved smoothly across the lanes toward the upcoming