Bonds of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 7) by Bella Klaus (romantic books to read TXT) 📗

at me with unblinking eyes. “I can’t believe she arranged for that young man to spy on you.”

“It wasn’t really her.” My gaze dropped to the tea. “She was only a team leader in the Flame. By the time I met her, she’d been completely brainwashed.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

I met Aunt Arianna’s blue-gray eyes. “Those fire users all worshipped Kresnik as a god.”

Her lips parted to let out a shocked breath, and she glanced across the low table at Valentine, who nodded. “Why, when he’s the reason they are persecuted in Logris?”

I exhaled a long breath. “Did she ever tell you about my father?”

She shook her head. “Aurora didn’t even stay for long enough to explain you were her daughter. The ancestry test brought up her image and a man nobody recognized.”

“Jude,” I said.

Her eyes bulged. “You met him, too?”

I nodded. “He was some kind of seer. His magic was both angel and demon, and he could distort time.”

“Was?”

“He sacrificed his body in a ritual to give Kresnik a physical form,” I said. “Then Kresnik destroyed it in an explosion when he found his immortal body.”

Aunt Arianna’s features stilled, but her chest rose and fell with rapid breaths. “And my sister?”

“I’m sorry.”

“How?” She closed her eyes.

“Kresnik killed her for failing to perform an impossible task.” A rush of anguish cut off my words. Now that I thought about it, he’d probably punished Aurora out of frustration about not being able to take control of my magic.

She bowed her head, her shoulders moving up and down with silent sobs. I placed my crust back onto the tray and wrapped my arms around her middle. For the next few moments, we cried in each other’s arms, lost in grief.

Maybe Aunt Arianna was grieving for a younger and sweeter Aurora, but I mourned the broken woman, disillusioned by her god, who had risen against him to save my life. If I ever got the chance, I would make Kresnik pay for every life he ruined.

“Wherever she is now, I hope she’s at peace,” Aunt Arianna murmured.

I bit my lip, debating whether to tell her that Hades had reserved a comfortable room for her in Hell. Swallowing, I drew back and met her sad eyes. Telling her about Aurora’s soul would lead to sleepless nights.

Valentine’s phone buzzed. “Please excuse me, ladies.”

He picked up a heaping plate of food and moved to the far side of the apartment.

Aunt Arianna leaned into me and clasped my hands. “Are you happy, Mera?” she whispered. “You’ve been through more trauma than an entire generation of witches.”

“It’s just like how you said when I was little,” I murmured. “Never give up. Never surrender.”

She clutched my hands. “Be strong and endure. Someday, this pain will be useful.”

I told her the rest of my story and how I’d finally regained my magic, only for Kresnik to attempt to steal it back, including creating a connection strong enough to weaken the bond I had with Valentine.

“Before you arrived, we talked about erecting a ward around me to stop Kresnik from pulling on my magic,” I said. “Do you think such a thing is possible?”

Aunt Arianna drew in a deep breath. “I can’t see you doing that without disrupting your connection with King Valentine.”

I glanced over my shoulder, meeting Valentine’s eyes. He gave me a subtle nod, indicating that he’d overheard Aunt Arianna and was willing to take the risk if it meant freeing me from Kresnik.

“Can you do it?” I asked.

She raised her palms. “I’m not nearly powerful enough to pull off that kind of magic.”

“But you know how?”

“It’s just speculation.” She picked up her teacup and frowned. “But if you place a phone in a box lined with electro-magical material, it still functions, but it’s unable to receive inbound and outbound communications until someone opens the box again.”

“Alright.” That made sense. If you ordered magical items from the Hatch, they came wrapped in magic-dampening packaging for protection. “Are you saying we should create a ward out of something more powerful?”

“Or enclose your heart chakra to block the bond.” She took a sip of her tea.

I nodded. “But when I take off the material, the connection will spring back.”

“That’s why you’ll keep it in place until you discover a way to get rid of Kresnik for good.”

My breath caught. “That’s brilliant.”

Her brows drew together. “It’s just the skeleton of an idea. I don’t know if it will work.”

It didn’t matter what she said because my mind already spun with possibilities. If Valentine’s soul could be encased within a heart and secured with crystal, the same could be done to Kresnik, except we would make sure to stuff his soul somewhere it could never escape.

“Mera?” Aunt Arianna tilted her head to the side.

For the first time since Kresnik resurrected, I could see a future without the tyrant. “You don’t know how much that idea has helped.”

She looked like she was about to retort that it was just a theory, but I grabbed her hand. “Between Valentine and the rest of the Supernatural Council, I think we can muster up a way to kill Kresnik’s immortal body and confine his soul for an eternity.”

Valentine strolled over to the armchair opposite our sofa and lowered himself into the seat. “That was Captain Zella from the Law Enforcement Division. She confirmed that the Supernatural Council has secured Kresnik’s dragon behind layers of wards and they won’t hold anyone but Kresnik responsible for the breach of supernatural secrecy.”

“Was there ever a chance they blamed Mera for being abducted by Kresnik?” Aunt Arianna asked.

“He forced my phoenix to transport him across London.” I leaned forward, helping myself to a glass of orange juice and a portion of eggs Benedict. “That sort of spectacle would have caught the attention of everyone with a mobile phone.”

As Valentine and Aunt Arianna discussed the possibility of suppressing my bond with Kresnik and locking up his soul forever, I sat back, my chest bursting with pride to see her discussing magical