Chapter Ten

KANA WAS PROPPED against something hard and firm. That something was also rising and falling as if breathing. A band wrapped around Kana’s chest, holding him securely. No, not a band. An arm, Kana realized as his brain started to engage.

“Kana!”

“Kana!”

Why did Mika and Sora sound so worried? Kana tried to reach out to them through the magic channels they shared to reassure them and… Nothing. Kana tried again, desperate to find his most important ties, and let out a soft breath of relief when he found them. The channels were severely constricted, and they felt tender and burnt, as if he had fried them with too much magic.

Which was exactly what he had done! Kana’s eyes popped open, and he immediately looked around, hoping he wasn’t about to see another vampire attacking. Instead, he found Mika and Sora, both in human form and looking worried.

Kana looked at Mika and Sora, and then realized if they were sitting in front of him they weren’t the person holding him. Kana craned his neck backward, and Ember’s face swam into view.

“Wha—” Kana coughed.

“It’s okay, Kana,” Mika said. “Take a few minutes. You used a lot of magic, and your body took a beating.”

“Octa—” Kana tried to ask, but his throat closed again, and he resumed coughing.

Ember smiled that beautiful half smile of his, and this time there was real joy in the way his eyes also lit up.

“George, Emily, and I had him pinned when you started your lightshow,” Ember explained. “When you stacked your circles, he got really scared and instead of trying to fight, he tried to run instead.” Ember’s smile took on a hard, yet still gleeful edge. “His distraction is what really killed him. George got his claws into Octavius’s jugular, and the blood loss slowed him down. When your spell exploded, he was caught in the worst of it. Turned him to ash immediately, along with every other vampire in the room.”

“And we rushed in just in time to see Ember sprint across the room to catch you,” Sora added, and the tilt to his cheeky grin was saying something that Kana’s rattled brain just wasn’t up to processing at the moment.

“You’ve only been out maybe ten minutes,” Mika added.

“No! I wanna see him!” Kana heard from outside. A second later one of the children from before dashed into the room. Ralph ran in after him but stopped at the door. The boy’s shackles were gone, and the worst of his open wounds had been smeared with some sort of ointment. His eyes were wild as they took in the room.

There had to be at least an inch of gray ash covering every single surface. The boy sent up plumes of it as he rushed around, looking at every inch of the space.

“Shannon!” He yelled and then ran into the closet. “Shannon.” This time the boy sounded relieved, as if he had found whomever he was looking for.

Ember shifted forward so he could get his legs underneath him, then stood with Kana still cradled in his arms.

“Marc, what’s going on?” Ember called after the boy.

Marc emerged from the closet slowly. “You can’t hurt him,” Marc said, his chin set in a stubborn line. “You have to promise not to hurt him.”

“I won’t hurt anyone who hasn’t attacked me first,” Ember replied. “Now show me.”

Marc reached back and tugged on something, drawing first an arm, and then the rest of a man into the room.

“This is Shannon,” Marc said. “He helped us.”

Shannon had been looking down at Marc, but he lifted his head to take in Ember and Kana. His eyes were very blue, his hair pale blond almost to the point of looking white, and he was definitely a vampire.

“Explain,” Ember snapped. He didn’t sound like he was feeling any strain from holding Kana.

“The one who called himself Octavius was turning just about every homeless person he encountered into a vampire. To create an army, I believe he said,” Shannon explained. His voice was soft and unthreatening, with a soft Gaelic lilt. “He encountered me and decided I would join his army.”

“So you joined,” Ember said, sounding flat and unimpressed.

Shannon shook his head. “I could feel the sun approaching. I followed him home for a place to spend the day.”

“And then he saw what Master Octavius was doing to me and he helped!” Marc cut in.

Kana focused on Shannon while everyone else spoke. The ash seemed to avoid him, so he was clean unlike everyone else. His clothing was well worn, darned neatly at the knees and elbows. His hair was long on the collar and looked like he had cut it with a knife. He also, Kana noticed, was completely uninjured.

“My spell—” Kana forced out and felt Ember’s arms tighten around him in surprise.

“That spell tore Octavius apart like he was tissue paper,” Ember growled. Ralph straightened up from where he had been leaning on the wall by the door and Emily walked into the room.

“The spell was beautiful,” Shannon said. “I haven’t seen it’s like in a thousand years. I hadn’t thought witches still remembered the master spells. A lot of knowledge was lost during the witch burnings.”

“But it didn’t touch you,” Ember stated, rather than asking like Kana wanted to.

Shannon just smiled in answer. “I was glad to see someone was capable of stopping him. I don’t like to kill my kind if I can avoid it.” He looked at Ember a moment longer, his smile not dimming. “I would like to petition you, alpha, for permission to remain in your territory.”

“Oh, can he? Please?” Marc begged.

Ember growled, the vibration in his chest moving pleasantly through Kana’s body. Marc immediately lifted his chin into the air, exposing his neck to his alpha.

“Please, alpha,” Marc asked again, although this time he sounded subdued and penitent.

Ember looked at Shannon for a very long time. Kana had no idea what was going through Ember’s mind, but he could guess it had to do with fear that he had just escaped one terrible vampire. The last thing Ember would want for himself or his pack was to end up under the thumb of another one.

“Just remember it’s my territory,” Ember finally said.

Marc cheered, wrapping his arms around Shannon’s right arm. “Let me show you where you can stay!” He dragged Shannon across the room and out the door, although it was clear from Shannon’s indulgent smile, he was allowing Marc his fun.

“Damn,” Ember said in a low tone. “Ralph?”

Ralph nodded. “Although I don’t know how successful I’ll be keeping a vamp like that in check. I think he’s probably double the age Octavius was.” He turned and left the room.

Ember looked down at Kana, still in his arms. “You need to rest.” He glanced at Mika and Sora, who were in human form and therefore naked, but Ember didn’t even blink at them. “This way.”

His stride was as effortless as his unmoving arms as Ember carried Kana out of the ash covered room and through the house. They turned down a number of hallways, and the overly decorated halls began to get simpler and simpler until they were in an area almost completely bereft of any decoration.

“Where are we?” Kana managed to get out. Ember’s stride was smooth, and Kana’s body was aching. His head was starting to spin as exhaustion threatened to drag him under.

“The servant’s wing. I figured you’d be more comfortable somewhere normal,” Ember answered. He stopped at a door and looked at Mika and Sora. “Could one of you open the door for me?”

Mika hurried forward and pushed open the door, then stepped aside so Ember could go first. Ember set Kana down in the center of a simple double bed and then gently pulled the covers back, yanking them out from beneath him. Mika hopped into the bed on one side, but Sora stood next to Ember as if waiting for something.

“You getting in too?” Sora asked Ember.

Kana was surprised when Ember’s face immediately went pink. Could Sora be right and Ember did want to join them in bed, or maybe Ember was simply not used to being propositioned, even if it was only for sleep.

“I can’t,” Ember finally said, and he did sound regretful. “I have to help my pack adjust to our new normal, so I can’t vanish for a few hours.”

“You’re a good alpha,” Kana said. He wanted to add something about how Kana would still be here when Ember’s work was done, but the words were lost in a yawn. Sora climbed into bed and helped Mika pull the covers over all three of them. Ember waited by the door until they were settled, then shut off the light and closed the door.

Kana snuggled underneath the warm blankets, content between the comforting bodies of his familiars. He wished Ember was also beside him. Maybe someday he would be, but for now Kana was content to enjoy what he had. He happily let sleep take him away.