Passion of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 5) by Bella Klaus (best motivational books txt) 📗

“I see,” Valentine said in a tight voice.

My gaze snapped to red eyes set within expressionless features. He was trying to hold back his reaction, always trying to be the gentleman and shield me from his darker nature. My chest tightened at the thought of all the wild things I’d done with his preternatural self. If only he knew I’d already seen that part of him and still wasn’t discouraged.

I bit down on my lip. “Are you—”

“All this time when Kresnik’s soul was supposed to be in the depths of Hell, he has been cultivating a cadre of loyal followers willing to bring him to life?” he snarled.

“Yes,” I whispered.

“I presume that the presence in the derelict mansion who had killed the researchers I sent was Kresnik?”

I nodded. “He told us that after the enforcers destroyed his body and dragged his soul to Hell, all that was left of him was a shadow.”

His lips tightened. “The same shadow who struck you with the blood lure that resulted in my loss of control?”

My gaze slid down to his neck, where the muscles were corded and tight. I hoped Valentine wasn’t blaming himself for any of this. Whoever battled Kresnik all those centuries ago had assumed that they’d destroyed him completely and reported back their victory instead of making a thorough search for signs that he had survived.

If everyone in Logris believed that Kresnik was gone why would Valentine ever believe otherwise? Thinking about the situation, it looked like either Hades or his demon enforcers had covered up the raid on the mansion. They’d told Valentine that they had only captured a mage.

I placed a hand on Valentine’s bicep, daring to meet his eyes again. “Kresnik had five hundred years to plan his comeback—”

“And the Demon King was too busy scheming to take control of my body to watch over his prisoners?” he snarled.

I grimaced. There was a lot more to that story, but Valentine was already reeling from the knowledge of Kresnik’s resurrection. I didn’t have the heart to tell his soul about Hades’ attempt to abduct me, since I’d already told his preternatural self.

Silence stretched out for several moments, and blood surged through my veins, making me overheat with stress. Would he be satisfied with knowing Kresnik had resurrected or would he ask for more? I didn’t want to tell Valentine about his other self’s attempts to keep me safe.

Dipping his head, Valentine ran a hand through his ebony locks and sighed. I held my breath, waiting for him to speak. Perhaps he would ask me about Kresnik’s plans, and we would skip over his preternatural self’s inappropriate acts.

“Did I…” His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. “How did my undead body help you escape?”

Chapter Eleven

My throat dried, and I sat forward, lowering my gaze from Valentine’s eyes to his chest. There was no way I could lie to him in this dreamscape—not with our souls so deeply connected. I doubted that I could even lie by omission because one question would lead to another and another until he uncovered the truth of what his body had done during our time together in the Flame.

I placed my hands on Valentine’s chest and winced at the rapid reverberations of his heart. This had to be the worst kind of nightmare for him—being stuck in a heart, unable to influence the outside world while the man responsible for the death and degradation of his father was free from Hell.

Valentine’s fingers slid across my cheek, sending ripples of sensation down my neck. “Mera, what happened with my body?”

My mind skipped to the good news. “He broke free from Kresnik’s control.”

I met his eyes, which glittered like triple-A-grade amethysts. Beneath the radiant purple was a network of chips and channels and dark fissures that communicated his inner turmoil.

If I didn’t say something now, Valentine would probably think the worst. “And I’m now safe within the enforcers’ barracks next to the Supernatural Council building.”

His gaze roved over my features. “The Council no longer wishes your execution?”

I shook my head. “It’s complicated. When you broke free from the Mage and Demon Kings, you also tracked me down to the Flame, and the Demon King followed.”

Valentine tilted his head as though to ask why.

“Hades thought you would lead him to me,” I said with a shrug. “He’s desperate to keep a phoenix as a pet.”

His eyes flashed. “The Demon King gave you his name? Mera, you can’t trust that creature. He’s extremely dangerous—”

“And he’s a liar and a double-crosser and a whole lot of other terrible things.” My gaze darted to the side, where the void of white stretched out forever. If I told Valentine about my trip to Hell, he’d probably fly into a rage. “Kresnik destroyed the Demon King’s body with my stolen fire and reduced him to ash. Hades came to me while I was sleeping…”

Valentine gripped my shoulders. “He what?”

“We made a deal,” I murmured. “Kresnik separated his ashes into jars so he wouldn’t resurrect, and Hades needed me to find them. In exchange, he would help me find your heart, arrange pardons for me and others who wielded fire, and help me escape.”

“What was my preternatural body doing this entire time while you were on this dangerous quest?”

“He tried to keep me safe by blocking my magic.”

“With thrall.” Valentine’s voice was flat.

“And something else called Quell,” I added.

He hissed through his teeth, dropping his hands from my shoulders. “Mera, you need to see a healer—”

“But I’m alright now.” I lurched forward and wrapped my arms around his neck. “Istabelle unblocked all my chakras and meridians and removed all the parasitical attachments—”

“Parasites?” Valentine stiffened.

I drew back, meeting his drawn brow and the confusion etched across his features. This was all going wrong. I was telling him everything in the wrong order, throwing out revelation after revelation until he thought that the outside world had collapsed into mayhem and I was on the verge of dying.

“Maybe