Blind Magic: The Sanctuary Chronicles Read online

  “And if he’s not?” Asher’s voice was cold as ice, and Sera understood why. This was his Sanctuary, and people counted on him for protection. He couldn’t afford to let a bloodthirsty vampire loose who could murder living beings on sight.

  To her surprise, Violet’s response was calmed and controlled, as if she knew. “He won’t. But if he does, I’ll stake him myself through the heart.”

  What did she know, Sera wondered? She remembered that when Valeria saved Finn’s life and he said he owned a debt, Violet didn’t trust him and exchanged blood with him. She said it was to keep an eye on him, but was there more to it?

  “On my mark, set, now!”

  The roar of Finn, awakened by the pain, shook the house to its core. Sera tightened her hold on Ian’s fur. There was grunting followed by the scent of blood. Violet’s.

  And then, nothing. No more struggle or fight. It was as if everyone in the room held their breath and waited for the outcome.

  “Violet.” The Irish accent was thick in Finn’s voice, and a clear indicator that his mind was still with them. The surrounding crowd breathed a collective sigh of relief.

  “Idiot vampire.” But despite the insult, there was a definite tenderness in her friend’s voice.

  “Let me up, witch.”

  “Easy, you were hurt badly, Finn. And you still need a lot of blood.”

  “And that’s why I need to get out of here, and quick. I can go hunting and dampen my hunger with deer blood.”

  “Finn. If you need blood...”

  “NO!”

  Sera shivered. The vampire may have been under control but barely. And wind touched her skin as the door opened and he was gone.

  Asher was the first to speak. “Brant, you’re in charge of the Sentinels until Ian is back. Get them prepared for an attack and tell them that a vampire is hunting deer on our grounds. They must stay in human form only for now. I want a secure perimeter, day and night.”

  “Understood.”

  The man left, and Sera went to Violet. “Are you okay? You’re bleeding.”

  “It’s nothing, Sera. Only where I cut myself. It will heal on its own.”

  But Sera didn’t listen. For such a wound, a simple spell could be used, without requiring much effort or time. Violet didn’t say a thing and rubbed her now healed wrist before giving her a quick kiss on the forehead.

  Valeria came beside her. “We’re moving Ian to his room. And I’m going to check on Hunter. I’ve given him a room to rest, you’ve drained him a lot. We should talk about that.”

  “Yes, we should, but not now. There are more pressing matters. I want to check on Patricia, and Ian.”

  “You need to rest, Sera. Go to your room, the same one you had last time you were here. Violet and I will check on Patricia and Ian. You go and take a shower and rest. You’re no good if you use your magic that way. And we need your brain fresh and ready. A few hours of sleep won’t change anything right now and will allow Ian to heal and probably wake up. You are safe. We’re going to upgrade the safeguards on Sanctuary and, with the Sentinels, nothing will get past our precautions.”

  Sera knew Valeria was right, but there was so much to do, so many things she had to verify, to research, to uncover. Again, her face must have revealed what was in her whirling mind.

  “Not now, Sera. Go to your room, shower and take a nap. I promise, as soon as something happens or changes, you’ll be the first one to know.”

  Defeated, Sera touched Ian’s head one last time and followed the familiar path to her room, praying that with some sleep would come solutions.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Ian toured the house once more, as he had done so many times before. It was like a bad joke or a mean prank being locked in here.

  And what was even worse was seeing them, lurking in the shadows, appearing around the corners. Julie and Amelia. His wife and daughter he thought gone for so long. They were taunting his heart, making it expand and break each and every time. As soon as he had woken up in his old house, it had been a shock to his system. Three years of pain, despair and madness had resurfaced like a tsunami, making him choke for air.

  And when he had seen them... hope flared. Had he awakened from a bad dream? Had it only been a nightmare?

  The true cruelty of the game was that he could never catch them. As soon as they appeared, and he went after them, they vanished. He roamed the small house he had chosen with Julie so many years ago, tried to find where they were hiding, to no avail. And they never spoke. He could hear Amelia laughing and he would sprint to where the sound was coming from to find the room empty.

  If he stayed immobile for a long moment, Ian would start to see them standing in the corner, but they never addressed him. It was pure torture, worse than pain or death.

  Would that be the solution? The idea whirled in his head until it became deafening. What if it was the key to get out of here? The sound of laughter tugged at his heart and he turned to see his little girl, and his beloved wife running in the garden in the sunlight. Where he couldn’t go.

  “Ian?”

  Her voice... Everything here was designed to torture him, so, of course, he should hear her bewitching voice too. The voice of Sera. He didn’t turn and instead closed his eyes, defeated. What else was left for him to hang onto if he dreamed of her too?

  But it was when a hand touched his shoulder that he jumped away as if burned. They never spoke to him. They never touched him.

  Mustering the courage to look behind him, he saw her. Sera. Standing there, so close, and not running away.

  “Ian, it’s me. You recognize me, right?”

  As if still doubting his eyes, he reached for her, touching her cheek. Warm flesh against his fingers.

  “Sera.”

  Gently, she took his hand in both of hers, worry on her face. “Do you know where you are, Ian?”

  He swallowed hard. “This is the house where I lived with Julie and Amelia, before...” And he looked back in the garden where he could still see them. “But this isn’t real. I can’t get out of the house, I can’t reach them. Why am I here, Sera, is it a spell?”

  She shook her head and that’s when he realized that Sera was looking at him. He pulled out of her grasp. “You can see. It’s impossible. The Sera I know is blind now. You’re like them, an illusion!”

  He knew it! His brain was playing another trick on him and he couldn’t stand it. Rubbing his face, Ian let out a groan.

  “Ian, I’m real. I swear. You’re trapped in your head; the same way Patricia is. I didn’t have time to tell you when we fled from Hunter’s apartment. She’s trapped in her mind. For her, it looks like Sanctuary. I don’t know why or how. You’re in your wolf form, unconscious at Sanctuary.”

  He hesitated. Could she be real. “How did you come here?”

  “I’m not sure yet. I think it has something to do with Hunter’s power. When Asher and the Sentinels found you in the forest with Finn, you were in a bad shape... dying. I almost drained Hunter to have enough power to help you out. I expected to have to help Finn, but Violet did. Nobody at Sanctuary knows I came into your room to try to reach you. I had enough power to do so.”

  Taking a tentative step in her direction, Ian shook his head. “You must not stay here. What if you remain trapped with me?”

  It was a rare sight to see fierce determination on her face, the blond witch so sweet and compassionate. “I’m not leaving you here! Nor will I leave Patricia alone. There must be a way out. Patricia talked about something unusual when I saw her, a noise of water.”

  Ian blinked. “Yes. I heard it, but only when I first arrived. I lost track of time, but I haven’t heard it in a while. And honestly, I didn’t search for it, I was too busy...” And of his own accord, his gaze traveled once more to the people playing outside.”

  Sera came to stand beside him. “Patricia told me she was seeing people too. But they never talked to her and she could never touch them. I even saw you when I was with her. I
t was the first time I had seen your face since I became blind.”

  He couldn’t speak. Emotions ran high inside him, as if they were filling every available space and he was ready to burst. It was Sera who did first as she looked through the window.

  “Your wife is so beautiful, and your daughter is adorable.”

  Again, words got stuck in his throat. Sera was right. Both of them owned the most precious pieces of his soul for a long time.

  “I wish I could offer you that too.”

  As if trying to wrap his mind around the words, Ian shook his head and looked at her. She appeared calm and collected, and strangely resigned as she looked at the garden.

  “Why?” His voice sounded as if he had swallowed sand and glass.

  Still she didn’t look at him. “I will never be able to replace your wife, Ian, nor be your mate. Or even give you kids.” And she gestured forward as Amelia tumbled on the grass, and Julie laughed. “It’s unheard of that two different species could ever have children. I know what you went through, how you lost your sanity over them. I’m incredibly grateful that you found your way back out of that darkness. And I know you will be an amazing father again someday, and a wonderful husband. I couldn’t rob you of that, Ian.”

  And now, despite her stoic face, he saw the glimmer of tears in her eyes and he reached for her. “Sera. I had the incredible luck of having Julie and Amelia in my life until they were taken from me. I know that a shifter cannot have more than one mate in his lifetime, but I feel something for you. Deep and true. Don’t ask me to explain it, but the first time I saw you, in that back store, surrounded by dusty books, your big glasses perched on your nose, I couldn’t look away. Something dark lifted inside me. You may not want me for more than a friend, Sera, but please don’t shut me out. I don’t care if I don’t have any more children to call my own, but I won’t survive living my life in that darkness again.”

  There. It had been said. He had bared his heart and greatest fears to her without expecting anything in return shorter than a miracle. The bluest eyes he had ever seen peered into his, curious, assessing, expecting. Seeker’s eyes.

  “I don’t know what I am, Ian. I am told to be a seer, but I fought it, even if it meant being blind, because I believe in choice and free will. I don’t want to embrace this side of me, but I fear that the shadow after me may not give me much choice. And I have no clue what it will entail. I may bring you back to the darkness you fear so much if you decide to follow me. Because what you felt back in my study, I felt it too. But I couldn’t bring myself to deny you what and who you deserve. I couldn’t convince myself that it was worth fighting the High Council, and everybody else in our world who would be opposed to us. I would never ask you to make such a sacrifice for me, Ian. I truly believe you deserve happiness after what you’ve been through.”

  Something righted itself inside Ian, something he never thought he would find again. And when he spoke, the words he said came from the heart and steadied him.

  “You are right. I deserve happiness, Sera. And I choose you.”

  And without giving her time to react, he cupped her cheek with both his hands and kissed her. He meant to be gentle, but as soon as he felt her breath mingle with his, his wolf howled, demanding that he take her, here and now. Ian reined in his beast, waiting for her response instead. She was the one who would give the answer. And his witch didn’t disappoint him. Clever hands circled his waist, bringing him against her delicate body.

  Ian reminded himself that she wasn’t a shifter, the witch was closer to being like a human and he had to be careful not to hurt her, even in this dreamland hallucination.

  Deepening the kiss, he let his fingers sift through her blond hair, enjoying the texture and her familiar scent. When she moaned, it reverberated through him. At this moment, even if that kiss was the only thing he got from her, he would die a happy man. The thought made him break the connection.

  “Can we? Here, in this state?” He knew he sounded like a fool, but he wanted her as if he was in the real world with a body of flesh and blood. When Sera looked at him, her eyelids heavy with want, Ian almost regretted asking that question.

  She arched an eyebrow at him and a corner of her delicious mouth lifted up. “I don’t know how long my magic will keep me here. I don’t know what tomorrow might bring, but I know I would have you whenever and wherever I can, Ian Macon. However, if you want to stop, we can...”

  He muffled her next words and swallowed her mirth, his mouth taking hers again. There was no more hesitation, but instead urgency, visceral and uncontrollable. There was nothing around him, he only saw her. His Sera. His witch. He wanted more time, he needed more time. In his wildest fantasies, he imagined worshiping her lithe body for hours, making her lose her mind in pleasure. But how long could she actually stay in the limbo he was trapped in?

  It seemed that he wasn’t the only one in a hurry when Sera started to remove her clothes at such a speed, she almost clocked him when flinging her sweater at the other end of the living room.

  He tore at his own shirt and jeans, but his hands froze when he realized she was naked before him. She was a vision of enticing curves and alabaster skin. So pale, if he didn’t know how soft and warm it was, he could have mistaken it for porcelain. Her breasts heaved and the way she rubbed her thighs restlessly together made his temperature rise.

  Slowly, her skin flushing at his insistent stare, Sera started to cover herself. He noticed her blush deepen to crimson when her eyes wandered his body. He knew for a fact that shifters’ anatomies were naturally in great shape. Their metabolism acted that way. Some of them would use it as a means to have sex. Ian never did. He never cared until this moment. He saw by the reaction of her body, by the heavier scent of her arousal, that Sera liked what she saw, and he was grateful.

  When he touched her again, it was electric. She came into his embrace, kissing him with all she had, and the sensation of their bodies sliding against each other almost brought him to his knees. God, he wanted that woman with every fiber of his being, with every heartbeat of his wolf.

  “We don’t have much time, Ian. Please.”

  Hurry mixed with lust, making him dizzy with need, even a little clumsy in his movements. He needed more time, he didn’t want to take her like a beast, not their first time, not her!

  But again, the witch took the matter into her own hands. When he thought he had regained some sort of control, Sera took a step back, and bent over the couch, a mischievous grin on her beautiful face. His wolf snarled in anticipation, making it more and more difficult to take it slow. Ian’s hands were shaking as he lost grip on his control. “Sera don’t do that. I don’t want to hurt you. I want to pleasure you... Please.”

  Tenderness softened her features. “For another time, Ian. I need you now, inside me. Don’t make me wait any longer, wolf.”

  The growl that came from deep within his chest was anything but human. “You’re playing with fire, Sera. You don’t know the beast inside me like I do.”

  She arched an eyebrow. “Oh really?” She rocked herself back and forth, rubbing her sex against the material of the armrest. “I did my research, werewolf.”

  And it snapped inside Ian without even realizing it. The submissive position, her arousal, his need for her, it all coalesced into an inferno that was impossible to control anymore. His hands pushed her long hair to one side before sliding down her back and gripping her hips. His cock was pulsating, and it took all his might to fight his wolf and only rub it against her folds. She was slick with desire and rocked back against him, intensifying the friction. The deep moan that came from her finished incinerating the few remaining wisps of control. He plunged inside her in a single thrust, burying himself deep in incredibly tight, liquid heat, knowing he was possibly causing her discomfort, but unable to do anything about it. He heard her shout and prayed that he didn’t hurt her too bad. He would rather die than inflict pain upon her, but at this very moment he didn’t know if he could e
ven stop. Ready to battle his impulse, Ian realized that Sera was meeting his thrusts, and the sounds coming from her mouth were definitely not from pain. Relief blindsided him, brushing lust aside for a moment. Sera pushed herself up from the sofa and arched her back, putting her hand around his neck. Naturally, his hands spanned her small waist and made their way up to her breasts. Their movement was restricted in this position, his cock barely coming in and out of her, but the contact of her body against his was amazing. Sera gripped his hair in her fists and forced him to lower his mouth to her. Contorted, offered, Ian couldn’t get enough of her.

  Her tongue slid inside his mouth in a seductive dance and he moaned in pleasure, massaging her breasts before pinching her nipple. Sera cried out and arched, breaking the kiss, placing her hands once more on the armrest. The satisfaction of plunging completely into her tight sheath, so deep, he didn’t know where his body ended and hers started, brought him so much joy, he thought he would burst. His body took over, increasing the pace. The sound of slapping skin and breathless moans, added to the definite scent of sex, heightened the desire. Touching all of her, greedy for her body as well as her pleasure, he slid a hand between her thighs and found her clit. Sera’s back bowed, making him push even deeper inside her. His fingers slick with the essence of her, he circled and teased until her own movements became erratic, and she was babbling sweet nonsense. That’s when he let a digit slide lazily over the sensitive bundle of nerves and she simply shattered.

  Her sudden orgasm took Ian by surprise as her heated sheath grabbed onto him in a painful torture that triggered his own. His breath caught as he pumped himself to completion inside her and let his body cover hers. At this moment, their skin sweaty and still shivering with the aftermath of their lovemaking, Ian prayed for this to never end. In this moment, he promised himself he would fight. Fight her, fight the world, fight his damn brain so he could be by her side. Damn being the curse of only having one mate for a single lifetime. He held his second one right now, and he would go against all the gods and goddesses in heaven before he let her go.