Jewel Of Atlantis

“What have I done?” she whispered brokenly.

She never should have led Gray here, no matter how desperately she needed him. The demons would smell his human blood. They would find him and rend the flesh from his bones.

The consequences of her actions rose full force in her mind. Jewel rubbed a hand over her forehead and briefly closed her eyes. A dark, dangerous inner storm threatened to flood and drown her; she was responsible for this. She should have known better, she thought, laughing bitterly. She of all people should have known better than to ask someone to help her. Especially Gray.

He had always been a part of her life. Her earliest memories were filled with him; throughout her life, she’d had visions of him, of his path from child to man, of his silly antics with his siblings. Of his kill-or-be-killed missions. Of his numerous—too numerous, to her way of thinking—women.

Quite simply, she’d always loved him.

His image formed in her mind, though it didn’t soothe her as it usually did. No, her fear increased. Wonderfully tall and strong, he was muscled like the fiercest warrior. He had pale blond hair and slate-colored eyes fringed by spiky black lashes, and he glowed with unflinching life and vitality. He fairly sparkled with it.

His lips were pink and lush like a woman’s, but perfect for his masculine features, softening the rough edges and providing an utterly arrogant smile that promised absolute pleasure. For years she’d imagined those lips all over her, tasting, sucking…

A shiver trekked along her spine. His body was a work of art, bronzed and roped with sinew and scars. So many times she’d longed to somehow breach the vast distance between them and touch him. Trace her fingers over him and assure herself that he was real, flesh and blood, not an exotic figment of her imagination.

As if she needed another reason to stand out to the creatures of this land, her connection to Gray provided one. Having observed him and the people of his world for so many years, she knew their language, their attitudes, and their humors. She hadn’t meant to, gods knew, but she’d adapted herself to their way of life instead of her own.

She’d known Gray would one day enter Atlantis, and she should have resisted the urge to lead him to her. She’d foolishly allowed her desire for freedom, her craving to learn about herself, her abilities, and her father, to color her actions and thoughts. But more than all of that, she’d simply longed to see him. To see Gray. Not as a dream, but as a man. Real and warm. Touchable.

She had to do something, anything, to prevent him from entering this palace. She would find a way to escape on her own.

She closed her eyes, pressed her lips together, and fought a tremor of regret. “I’ve changed my mind, Gray,” she said, projecting her voice into his mind. “Do not enter this palace. Just…go home. Go home and forget about Dunamis. Forget about me.”

He didn’t respond, but she knew he heard her. “Gray!” she shouted. “Answer me.”

Not now, Jewel. His hard voice growled inside her mind, and it was the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard.

Frustrated by his lack of concern, she crossed her arms over her chest. “You better be packing up and heading out.”

As if.

“I’m appointing myself your commanding officer, and I command you to go home.”

His only reply was a derisive snort.

“Did you hear me, soldier? I told you to lea—”

Boom!

She gasped and tumbled to the ground, the explosion rocking the very foundation of her room. Her heart skipped a beat; her ears rang—and that ringing soon blended with the sound of demonic screams and racing footsteps.

Gray was here. Damn him, he was here.

Where are you? he demanded.

Stiffening with helplessness, horror and fear, she gritted out, “Do not enter the palace, Gray. Bringing you here was a mistake. You’ll be hurt!”

I’ll get there faster if you tell me. Otherwise, I’ll end up wandering these damn halls and searching every damn room.

Too late to send him away—he was already inside. How could she protect him? Shaken to the core of her soul, she quickly rattled off directions. “Be careful,” she whispered.

Always.

Her limbs trembling, she climbed to her feet. Nothing would happen to him, nothing would happen to him, nothing would happen to him. She’d protect him, somehow, someway.

A lump formed in her throat, and hundreds of sharp knots twisted her stomach. She didn’t know what to do. Seconds passed without a word from him. She yearned to call out to him, to ask him where he was and what he was doing. Too afraid to distract him, she remained silent. She merely stood in the center of her room, helpless and racked with guilt and worry.

Minutes passed.

Even more minutes passed, becoming longer and more torturous.

Another explosion rocked the palace.

Jewel gripped the bedpost, holding herself upright. Her blood ran cold and hot, alternating between the two as demons hissed and wailed beyond her door. Her limbs shook violently.

“Please, let him live,” she prayed. “Bring him to me unharmed.”

The gods didn’t respond, but then, they never did, preferring instead to pretend the people of Atlantis did not exist.

Get away from the door, Jewel.

Her eyes widened, even as hope and excitement flared to life inside her. “I’m already away.”

Cover yourself with something. Anything.

He sounded so urgent, so forceful. Bending down, she crawled under the bedframe. “I’m covered.”

Boom!

The third explosion nearly burst her eardrums. Wood chips and marble chunks crashed onto the floor, raining around the bed like hail.

“Jewel!”

This time, Gray’s voice wasn’t inside her head, but inside her room. Nearly crying with the force of her relief, she crawled from under the bed, pushing past plumes of smoke. She winced when her knee slammed into a broken shard of glass.

“Here,” she shouted, waving a hand in front of her face to clear the haze. “I’m here.” Her gaze darted around the destruction until she found him.

He wore his green and black clothes, his robe nowhere to be seen. His shirt was tight against his bulging muscles, and his pants were ripped at the thigh. A cloth made of the same material as his shirt anchored his hair, hiding the paleness of the strands. He’d painted his face green and black, but beads of sweat had lightened the colors and now streaked his forehead and temples.

He looked so beautiful.

He scanned the room, searching for her. And when their gazes collided, locked, hot awareness stole her breath. Her heart skipped a beat. He was strength and life epitomized just then, and he was here for her.

Slowly his lips lifted in a tender smile completely at odds with the fiery carnage behind him. “Hello, Prudence.”

She nearly melted.

“And just so you know, you are so not the commanding officer in this relationship. Now let’s go.”