Born By Moonlight by Krista Street

Chapter 21

~ WYATT ~

I panted heavily, unable to breathe. Avery still lay beneath me. I’d collapsed on top of her, barely catching myself in time so my full weight didn’t crush her.

I still couldn’t think. Could barely move. I’d never experienced anything like that. My orgasm had exploded through me, making me see stars, as my magic had entwined with Avery’s soul, tethering her to me with a bonded thread.

It’d been perfect. Magical. Otherworldly.

I’d heard from other males what it was like to claim one’s mate, but words didn’t do it justice. The sensations and power that shook through me when the claiming had taken root . . .

Gods, I would never forget that cataclysmic feeling.

I tenderly brushed a lock of hair from her face, and she murmured softly, already surrendering to sleep. She cuddled into me, a sated glow filling her cheeks, as I felt inside myself for our bond, that luminescent silk ribbon which connected me to my mate.

I closed my eyes, concentrating on my core, and then . . .

There.

It floated inside me, a tiny glowing thread linking me and Avery forever. A growling surge of satisfaction coursed through me, a rumble vibrating my throat. I felt like puffing my chest. Beating drums. Roaring for the entire world to hear that Avery was mine.

I’d claimed her. Marked her. Had fiercely possessed her. And now she was mine to cherish and protect for always.

A tight band squeezed around my lungs. Gods, I loved her.

I gathered her to me, rolling gently to my side until her head was cradled in the crook of my arm.

She snuggled into me more, her breath creating soft puffs on my neck. I felt again for the bond. Avery’s emotions strummed to me. They were dim and faint since she was sleeping, but I still felt them.

Contentment.

Absolute satiation. I puffed up with pride at that one.

And fierce . . . love.

My throat tightened when I felt her love for me. The warm, fragrant feel of it bathed me in lilacs, cushioned me in clouds, and swathed me in silk.

“I would die for you,” I whispered to her softly before kissing her on the cheek. “And I will do anything to save you.”

I lay with her for seconds that stretched into minutes. I spent the entire time watching her sleep while memorizing her features. She was mine. I had to protect her and keep her safe.

Which meant I needed to leave her.

I was loathe to let go of her but knew I must.

I slid out from under the covers and quickly threw on clothes while I watched my mate sleeping.

Fear quivered through me. She’d grown cooler and cooler as the evening had ticked by. Whatever strength my claiming had infused into her was slipping away.

Dark circles lined her lower eyelids. Those faint lines hadn’t been there this morning. And her entire body was now so white it resembled snow. She’d still had some color a few hours ago. And even though her chest still rose, her breaths were shallow and infrequent.

My gaze snagged to the faint crescent moon that shadowed Avery’s neck. My mark. It shimmered in the firelight. I traced my finger over it so softly that she didn’t stir.

Mine.

My mate.

She’d wanted me to mark her. She’d known what that would mean, and she still chose it, which meant she wanted to be mine, and now she was.

But for how long?

That pragmatic realization nearly shattered me in its intensity, crashing down on me in a relentless avalanche of despair.

No.

I couldn’t lose her.

A snarl threatened to rip from my throat. I choked it down and strode silently to the door. The lock clicked softly when I opened it, a shimmer of magic washing over my skin.

I closed it behind me, the door latching with a flare. Before I’d even turned around, a soft, seductive voice crooned from the hallway shadows.

“I wondered if you were ever going to emerge from there.” Nicholas leaned against the wall, one ankle crossed over the other. His face was a mask of boredom, yet I caught the glint in his eye.

“How long have you been waiting there?”

“Long enough to know what was happening in your room.” He shrugged. “I told you I would be nearby.”

I locked my jaw. Knowing he’d heard me make love to Avery, that he’d heard her cries and passion, made me want to rip his head off.

He rolled his eyes. “Don’t bother getting cross. It’s nothing I haven’t heard before.” He pushed away from the wall and sauntered toward me. “Would you like to get back to work now?”

I gave a curt nod, not trusting myself to speak as fury simmered underneath my skin.

Wisely, instead of baiting me with more comments, the vampire glided back toward the Sacramentum Library.

Several staff members passed us in the hallway, keeping to the shadows with their heads dipped and their footsteps quiet.

I knew that hundreds of witches, sorcerers, and supernaturals worked within these cavernous walls, but I’d never heard idle conversation or soft laughter from them.

“Have they found anything new?” I growled, agitation making my hands flex and unflex.

Nicholas pursed his lips. “I do believe Master Ambrose recently found something. He sounded almost giddy when I spoke to him a few minutes ago, which says something. As you may know, gargoyles rarely get excited unless it’s a novel finding.”

I picked up my pace, my strides eating up the stone floor. When we reached the library’s gigantic monolithic doors, Nicholas ushered me inside.

As before, entering into the room was like stepping into a void. Invisible forces pushed against me, slowing my movements and dulling sound.

Several gargoyles were perched upon ladders as they ascended the high shelves to retrieve books and scrolls. The shelves stretched for miles in the huge cavern, farther than I could see. Unlike at the SF, the shelves here didn’t float but were firmly anchored to the earth.

In the corner, a group of supernaturals crowded around a table, their attention held by a large tome. They whispered quietly to one another, or at least, it sounded like whispering. They probably spoke at a normal decibel level but the wards and enchantments dulled their voices. A gargoyle sat at their side, pointing out various things in the large book with his curled claw.

“Ah, Major Jamison.” Another gargoyle hobbled toward us, wearing a similar-looking robe to Master Romanus. The cobalt-blue woolen robe hung low, hiding his clawed feet.

“Master Ambrose,” Nicholas said with a bow. “I trust you have the document you informed me of?”

“Indeed.” The gargoyle beckoned us with a bent claw and pointed at a table with a lone scroll sitting on its smooth wooden surface.

Even from the distance I could tell the scroll was old. Despite the anti-aging magic that throbbed heavily in the air, the scroll’s edges looked worn, its parchment yellow, and tiny cracks and crevices creased the rolled scroll at unnatural angles.

The group in the corner quieted when we approached, their eyes following us. They only resumed their hushed conversation after we passed.

I gritted my teeth together to keep my pulsing anger from overwhelming me. My mate was dying. I’d left her in our chambers alone. And everything was moving too goddamned slowly.

I was seconds away from picking the gargoyle up and carrying him to the table when he finally reached it.

“Here we are.” Master Ambrose stepped onto a stool. With careful precision, he unrolled the scroll.

My eyes widened. The scroll didn’t contain any text. Only a drawing of symbols, or perhaps they were shapes, and at the bottom a group of figures formed a circle. The figures were so tiny it was impossible to identify who they were, but they stood in a circle with joined hands.

I studied the rest of the drawing. Very faint colors splashed the circular shapes, as if vibrant colors had once graced this piece of work but time had faded it. There were ten circles in total, sitting on a straight line. All of them were of various colors—red, purple, yellow, green, blue—and were different sizes.

Nicholas arched an eyebrow. “Well, this is interesting. Can you tell us what it is and what it means?”

Master Ambrose clasped his claws. “We believe this a drawing of the fae lands’ solar system.” He tapped the circles drawn on the line one by one. “Daphnis, Jeulic, Merimum, Eucaladas, Titun . . .” He listed off the planets in order. “And this,” he added, tapping the circle at the end of the line that held faint hints of purple dye which now looked like watered-down orchid, “is the Safrinite comet.”

My brow furrowed as I studied the drawing more. I placed my hands on my hips. “What makes you think that’s the Safrinite comet?”

“Look at the date beneath it.” He pointed to a very tiny smudge of ink directly beneath the faint purple ball.

My lips parted, and I had to lean down to see that the smudge was actually two lines of text, so tiny that I could barely read them. My head jerked back. “Those are the dates when the Safrinite comet appeared in the fae lands—the first time two thousand years ago and the other week, but those lines are so small. It could’ve easily been mistaken for a blob of ink. How did you catch it?”

Master Ambrose grinned, revealing terrifyingly sharp teeth and thin gray lips. But instead of replying, he merely shrugged.

Nicholas chuckled. “There’s a reason the Bulgarian libraries are world renowned. Our gargoyles are highly esteemed for their clever findings. I can see why this made you excited, Master Ambrose. It is a rare find indeed.”

“How old is this document?” I peered closer at it.

Master Ambrose tilted his head. “We believe it’s around two thousand years old.”

My frown deepened. “Yet the date of the comet’s second coming is written on it. How was that known two thousand years ago?” Similar to earth, the fae lands hadn’t had advanced scientific technology back then.

“That I do not know,” the gargoyle replied. “But that’s not the interesting part.” He tapped his claw on the parchment, being careful not to tear or puncture it. “Do you see how they’re all aligned?” He once again ran his claw along the straight line that connected the circles. “Masters Romanus, Godric, and I believe this indicates the alignment of the planets, another rare celestial event that occurs in the fae lands.”

My breath hitched. “The alignment of the fae lands’ planets? But isn’t that happening—”

“Tonight.” Nicholas grew completely still.

My breathing quickened when I recalled the news stories I’d seen on TV during the past month. There had been coverage of the impending alignment happening in the fae lands, just as there’d been coverage of the Safrinite comet. The fae lands highly anticipated every celestial event since they each infused new magic into their world, and the biggest events even spilled over into earth’s supernatural news stories.

“So, according to this map, the Safrinite comet and the alignment are related,” I said, thinking out loud.

Master Ambrose shifted on his stool. “Yes, based on this document, they’re related, especially given this date here.” He pointed again at another faint smudge under the aligned planets.

My jaw dropped when I saw the date. “That’s the date in the fae lands today, which means that whoever drew this map, however many hundreds or thousands of years ago, also knew something significant would happen regarding the Safrinite comet and the alignment. But what does that have to do with Avery?” I studied the circle of figures again at the bottom. My jaw worked. Perhaps they would know. “Who are those people?” I asked the gargoyle.

He shook his head. “We haven’t identified them, but we shall continue trying to do so.”

Nicholas frowned, then leaned over the map. His shoulder-length blond hair brushed the worn document. “You said that Avery was in the fae lands when the Safrinite comet appeared and at its apex the magic took a hold of her, and tonight the alignment occurs, once again in the fae lands.” He looked at me expectantly.

My eyes widened. “Meaning something may happen again to her if she’s present in the fae lands when the alignment happens tonight.”

Nicholas nodded. “Yes.”

“How long do we have until the alignment?”

Nicholas checked his watch. “According to my calculation with the time difference—” His eyes widened. “Less than an hour.”

My heart skipped a beat. “We have to go. Now.”

I was already whizzing out of the library. A rush of air behind me told me the vampire was hot on my heels.

In a blur of speed, we arrived at my chambers. I inserted the enchanted key into the lock, twisting it in a flurry before barreling through the door.

Avery still slept. She didn’t even stir, and she looked closer to death.

My heart squeezed, and my insides churned. I frantically felt for our bond.

The tiny thread still glowed inside me, her faint sleepy emotions strumming along it.

I carefully dipped down at her side. Her limp hand felt like ice.

Nicholas entered the room behind me but stopped when he saw her naked body barely covered by the sheets. The bastard didn’t even bother trying to hide the waft of arousal that shot off him.

I lunged toward the vampire, a growl reverberating through me as my hand shot out to encircle his neck.

He sidestepped just in time, his eyes widening. They’d glued to the mark on her neck. The crescent moon that let all know that Avery was mine.

But even that didn’t dampen his arousal. “You claimed her,” he said in shock. “Tonight. That’s what you were doing in here.”

“Yes,” I snarled. “I told you she was mine.” Rage poured through me that his eyes dared fall on my mate as she slept unaware in his presence.

His heated gaze raked over her full breasts and lean legs that even under a sheet were still evident to see.

A roar burst from my chest, but when I advanced on the vampire again, he backed up with his hands raised. “Apologies. Old habits die hard. I’ll leave you to wake her.”

I waited until he reached the door, using my body to block Avery from view. “Do you have access to a portal key?” I barked at him.

“Yes.”

“Good, then get the fuck out of here and retrieve it. As soon as she’s dressed, we leave.”