"I'm fine. I promise." I reached for his face and turned it so that he had to make eye contact. "You did the right thing."

"I was so terrified he'd kill you right there in front of me. I didn't even think. Before I realized how far I'd stabbed, I knew in my gut it had gone through your heart."

My soul broke for the man in front of me. Such heavy pain shone from his eyes. For so many years we had suffered the same, each thinking the other was lost forever. The guilt he'd tortured himself with poured out as a few stray tears trickled down his cheeks.

I wiped away the tears, knowing they were bothering him. My soldier's heart was showing, and it gave me hope. He'd grown so hard after losing his brother. I'd seen all the trees behind his barn. Death and killing had haunted him like it haunted me.

"I'm here, and you saved us all, Killian. Remember that."

He nodded and pulled me into a tight embrace. As the tension left his body, I sank lower, situating my head and shoulders across his lap. He ran his fingers through my hair, and I had to hold refrain from the urge to purr like a satisfied cat.

"You are my heart, Eira. When that blade pierced yours each time, it was like killing myself."

"I know, but it had to be done. You must let it go, Killian. Rest your eyes. Put your hands on me and just rest."

A sigh slipped from his chest, and he closed his eyes before leaning his head backward to rest against the seat cushion.

I did something I rarely ever did and closed my eyes as well. I focused on the rumbling of the bus's engine and the thump of each tire rotation on the pavement of the road.

"About ten minutes out from Sanctuary," Harrison called out softly.

The baby had just gone to sleep, and the older man knew better than to rouse him with an announcement most of us could hear, even if he barely whispered it.

Killian stirred in his seat, but he didn't wake.

I sat up, catching his hands and placing them gently on his lap. A quick glance out the broken window to my left showed me we were almost there. I could see the lights of the little town in the distance. Even though Sanctuary wasn't my official home yet, I knew it would be soon.

Rose held up her end, and I wouldn't go back on my word. The role of Protector would be mine as well as whatever else that entailed. I just hoped Killian would stay. Imagining life without him in it every day made my chest tighten and tears well in my eyes.

The bus jerked to a stop, and Killian's eyes flew open. "We're here? Finally?"

"Yes."

Everyone on the bus stood at once. We were all so exhausted, but every single one of us wanted the same thing. A hot shower and an actual bed.

I plodded slowly after Killian, stepping down the stairs onto the red brick paved Main Street Circle. Several of the Pixies stood patiently on the sidewalk. They helped Alek and Jared as they climbed off the bus.

Diana stood next to her husbands, and Calliope waited beside Rose a few yards away from everyone else.

"Mikjall." Diana stepped toward her son, but he side-stepped her and guided Riza after the Pixies who were helping Alek and Jared.

My poor friend looked as though the air had been knocked from her chest. Miles and Eli stood silent, neither one of them moving from their place, but I could see the pain in their gaze. Not that their son wouldn't speak to them, but because he chose to continue hurting their mate. Mikjall still blamed them for his wife's death. And until he was able to move past that grudge, there would be no connection between him and his parents.

"Eira!" Diana called out, rushing forward as we made eye contact. Her body was a little thicker, but she still moved as gracefully as ever.

"My crazy ice-breathing friend," I said, allowing a smile to spread across my face.

Diana laughed a little and threw her arms around my neck. "Come, you must stay in the Castle.

"Killian needs-"

"Of course. We have a big suite all ready for you both. Rose told us you were nearly here about a half hour ago. You must be tired, and you smell like you've been through h.e.l.l."

"I feel like it, too."

"I'm so glad she has you now," Diana said, turning to Killian. "Her heart has been missing a piece for a very long time. I can see you were that missing part. It will be so nice to have another person from home here in town. You are staying, aren't you?" She stared at him expectantly.

"I will be wherever Eira is," he answered quickly.

"Excellent! Come, come, come," Diana coaxed, moving to stand between her husbands again.

Killian took my hand in his, and we followed them across the circle to the dark looming Castle across the street. The crowd around the bus had dissipated, and silence had once again claimed the small circle.

Miles opened the ma.s.sive front door to the big fortress, and I breathed a little easier at the flash of blue. No more Djinn tonight. No more fighting.

I hoped.

Chapter Thirty-Seven.

EIRA.

We stepped through the large opening into the great marble foyer. Diana led the way up the grand staircase on the right. The light sconces on the walls made our shadows dance lively along the walls.

A few turns later, we stopped in front of a large green door with gold inlay. "Good night, my friend," Diana said, stepping forward and giving me another hug.

"Thank you," I replied.

Killian slipped an arm around my waist. "Good night, Snen Mor. Thank you and yours for the hospitality."

Diana smiled and shook her head. "Here, I am just Diana. That name is for another life." Miles and Eli each took one of her arms.

"Do you want to return?" Killian asked, squeezing me a little tighter.

"Eventually," Miles answered, his voice rumbling with purpose and a stony sense of determination. "For now, our place is here. We must protect the Sisters and help Rose fulfill the prophecy before we are released from our oath."

"If Eira accepts the role of Protector...we are that much closer," Eli added.

The Drakonae male wasn't asking, wasn't pressuring. But the hope in his voice was obvious.

"I will." The words slipped from between my lips without bidding.

All three of the Drakonae's faces brightened. "You both will be a most welcome addition to the town," Eli said, a friendly grin splitting his face from side to side.

Killian reached into his coat and pulled out a small golden dagger.

My chest clenched, waiting for a reaction from the three dragons.

"I wasn't sure who should really have this. I know Rose is the leader in the town, but I feel that my first allegiance is to your family. To the princes of the Veil my family served with dedication and loyalty for so many years." His voice was even, and his hand didn't shake as he extended the dagger, hilt first, toward Miles and Eli.

All three Drakonae were frozen in place. No one moved, breathed, or spoke a word for what seemed like minutes.

Then Miles stepped forward and took the dagger from Killian's hand. "Rose doesn't know you have this?"

Killian shook his head. "Can you hide it from Xerxes? They are able to do some type of locating spell to find it."

"We will have it cloaked. Thank you, my friend. This will serve us well in the years to come. I'm sure Xerxes is feeling rather crippled at the moment as well." A chuckle slipped from the large Drakonae male's chest. "Where did you find it?"

"I picked it up from the ground after Diana fought him. It was in a field not too far from town."

"Thank you. With this, we will be able to return to our home when our time here is finished. You, as well, if that is your wish," Eli said, emotion making his voice thick.

"There is nothing in the Veil for me except painful memories. I would not wish to ever return, but thank you."

"The offer will always be open, Killian," Miles added. "We will bid you good night. I know you are both exhausted."

"Thank you, your Grace."

"Miles," the male said quickly. "Call me Miles. As Diana said, those t.i.tles are for another life."

"We are friends, Killian, and indebted to Eira. If we can provide it, you both will have anything you desire," Eli added, extending his hand to Killian.

They shook before leaving us open-mouthed in the hallway. We watched them disappear into the shadows before entering the bedroom door they'd led us to.

Killian pushed it open, and I heard his swift intake at the sight before him. I'd been in the Castle as a guest before, and I wasn't shocked by the lavish decorations. But this room was decorated as sumptuously as the Blackmoor's personal suites.

Ivory rugs were placed strategically around the room, accenting the dark-stained hardwood floors. A ma.s.sive stone fireplace dominated the wall to our left, while a four-poster bed that would put other four-poster beds to shame lay to the right. The walls were stone, like the rest of the fortress. Beautiful paintings from artists that used to hang only in museums lined the walls. In addition to their book h.o.a.rding, the boys apparently had an uncanny eye for rescuing artwork as well.

European museums were still intact, but most of the museums in America had been destroyed in the Riots. Those with wealth and power were able to save some. The Blackmoors were in that group, but many masterpieces were still lost forever. America had taken a turn for the worst, and it had cost the world a great deal.

Youth and ignorance played a major role in that. The country didn't have deep enough roots to withstand the global change that came along with the discovery of Others, with the discovery that humans were not alone.

"Appreciating the art?" Killian's question broke through my daydream.

I nodded and turned to smile.

He closed the door softly and walked to my side.

"It's nice to see that some of it was saved." I pointed to the painting directly across the room. "A Monet. The Autumn on the Seine."

"It's beautiful. My favorites of his were the weeping willow series."

I sighed and leaned into Killian. "My eternal soldier."

"I fought in World War I with the French, as did Jon. It's only fitting that I favor the artwork he did in remembrance of those fallen men. They were my comrades."

"I was a spy in England then," I whispered. "It's hard to believe all these centuries pa.s.sed and we never ran into each other. Even now, to think that you lived only a few miles from Sanctuary makes me want to scream in frustration."

His mouth dipped to my neck, and I relaxed as his lips nibbled along the sensitive flesh behind my ear.

"No more frustration, my beloved. We are together now. As it always should have been."

A smile played at my lips, and a slow moan rolled through my vocal chords as his hands moved to caress my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. At this rate, we'd never make it into the shower. I'd just melt into a little puddle at his feet. Perhaps that was his goal from the start.

His teeth nibbled down the side of my neck, teasing the skin just in the hollow above my collarbone. The spicy scent of his maleness warmed my belly while my thirst to taste his blood rose as well. I drew in a deep breath, basking in his scent as it filled my lungs.

He was all I wanted.

I grabbed the hem of my shirt and pulled it over my head.

His fingers worked the clasp of my bra, unsnapping it and yanking it from my body. A guttural moan rumbled from his chest as his palms closed over the bare flesh of my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. He rolled my nipples between his fingers, and a shiver ran the length of my spine.

I turned to face him, and he dropped his hands to my waist, giving his mouth a turn on my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. His tongue swirled around my steel-hard nipples, and I bit down on my bottom lip, trying to hold in a moan of arousal.

He knelt in front of me, and I whined at the loss of his mouth on my flesh.

"I have to get you naked, love. You are still wearing combat boots," he said, looking up at me from beneath hooded eyes. His bright blue gaze burned with desire, and my fangs descended in response. He winked and returned to untying my shoes. After making quick work of the long laces, he'd freed my feet, and my pants followed shortly afterward.

"I want you hard and fast, Eira. Then I'm going to wash you and lavish you until you scream with pleasure. Until you can't draw a breath because you are so spent."

Liquid heat pooled in the cleft between my legs. d.a.m.n, I wanted that, too. Exactly what he'd described. I licked my lips and nodded.

He turned me around and urged me a few steps forward against a small love seat. His hand slid up between my shoulders, and he pushed me down until I lay over the back of the couch. I trembled as he caressed my a.s.s and slid his fingers between my slit, slipping one inside my v.a.g.i.n.a and then another.

I was so wet. So ready for him.

"Please." It came out sounding halfway like a plea and halfway like an order.

He pinched my c.l.i.t, and everything inside me tightened into a steel coil ready to explode. I'd begun to pant already, and I didn't even need the air. The zipper on his pants was pulled apart, and my chest tightened. I tensed, waiting for that first thrust. For that first sensation of fullness...completeness. That feeling of letting go and taking in everything that Killian was. That we were together.

"You are the most beautiful woman I've ever known. The only woman I ever wanted in mind, body, and soul. Mi kuir. Mi reka. Mi raorth."

I was suddenly very conscious of the medallion around my neck.

He thrust deeply, and I gasped. Warmth enveloped my body, sliding over my cool skin, and I cried out, feeling as though a lifetime's worth of emotion had just body-slammed me.

"Killian!"

He thrust again, caressing my hips with his hands. "Say the words to me, my beloved. I want to finish the bond we started so long ago. I want you to be my mate in heart, mind, and soul. Please, Eira. Mi kuir. Mi reka. Mi raorth."

The repeated words brought forth another rush of magick and emotions that threatened to drown me. The words were foreign, but sounded like music from his lips. The magick was unlike anything I'd ever felt before. It pulled at my soul and wrapped me in a blanket of peace. The words were on the tip of my tongue, yet I hesitated.

Something was happening.