Silken Rapture (Princes of the Underground 2)

“It all started when Christina and Saint became closer,” he began. “She and Aidan, her ten-year-old son, had lived on Saint’s property for years in the coach house. We Iniskium knew Saint had special feelings, both for her and the boy. He was very protective of them. But it wasn’t until recently that circumstances altered between Saint and Christina.”

“Christina? Who’s Christina?” Blaise asked, sitting forward and placing his elbows on his knees.

“Christina Astor. Saint’s mate.”

For a stunned moment, Blaise just sat there. “Mate?” he finally repeated. “Why hasn’t Saint ever mentioned Christina to me, or any of the Sevliss?”

“I think, once again, the Magia have had their hand in that, although I can’t be sure. Maybe the Magia had nothing to do with it, at least in the past, because until a few weeks ago Christina and he weren’t together. I always got the impression Saint sort of kept Christina at a distance. He was aware of her, though. We all were aware of Christina.”

“What do you mean?” Blaise asked, even though he suspected the truth already.

“I think you know,” Isi said quietly. He glanced around his suite with a narrowed gaze. “I feel something similar here. It’s like being in Christina’s vicinity. Her vitessence never seems to diminish. I’ve never witnessed anything like it. It’s never-ending. Christina…radiates.”

Blaise nodded. Creatures such as Isi and him did not exist within the orbit of a woman like Isabel or Christina and remain ignorant of their pull. “So Christina and Saint became involved, even though he’d managed to restrain himself for a decade.”

“It seemed that after they did, everything changed. Teslar became aware of Christina, as well.”

“Teslar fought for her?”

“Yes. I was there. Saint managed to weaken Teslar in the fight, and he fled, but we all knew that after that, Teslar wouldn’t rest until he possessed Christina. Saint insisted that Christina and Aidan stay at Whitby, within Kavya’s protective wards. It was during this time that I noticed they grew closer. You must understand, Saint never told me much at all in regard to his relationship with Christina. You are hearing about my observations. There’s much I don’t know.”

“Much that Kavya has forbidden Saint to tell me and my brothers, as well,” he said darkly.

“Yes. That much I’ve gathered. When we made the chance discovery that our territorial boundaries no longer applied, Saint called me to him. He said that his voice had been bound by Kavya’s magic, but mine had not. He said that he didn’t believe the Magia understood that our territorial boundaries had been broken.”

“They didn’t, but they know now,” Blaise admitted regretfully. “Usan read my mind about you being here, in Sanctuary. I’ve never seen him shocked before, but he was at that moment. Don’t worry,” Blaise said when he noticed Isi’s anxious expression. “He promised not to do anything in regard to you being here. I don’t know why—Usan is a never-ending puzzle to me—but he seemed determined to see how events played out without altering the circumstances. If Usan says he won’t interfere in the matter, he won’t. I have never known him to go back on his word. Go on with your story. Saint called you to him…”

“He told me he regretted not having told me more in regard to Teslar, but asked me to come to you and tell you everything that I knew about the events leading up to Teslar’s demise.”

“How did Teslar die?” Blaise demanded. He couldn’t wait a second longer for the answer to the burning question.

Isi shook his head slowly, a hint of frustration in his eyes. “I wish I could say exactly. It happened after Teslar had kidnapped Christina and kept her prisoner in the underground. Saint managed to discover her whereabouts and he took all of the Iniskium with him for an attack. We fought the Scourge while Saint went in search of his clone and Christina. What happened while Saint, Teslar and Christina were together is a mystery. All I know is at that one point, most of the Scourge seemed to lose their vitality. They were easily

killed by the Iniskium when they’d fought like rabid beasts just seconds before. We destroyed them utterly on that day. It’s my belief—and Saint has never confirmed or denied this—that the Scourge were weakened at the same moment Teslar was destroyed. After the battle was won, Saint confirmed that Teslar was no more.”

Blaise sat back in his chair, stunned by the news. “It’s all connected with the woman—Christina. The change was wrought by her,” he murmured, somehow knowing what he said was true.

“Yes. I believe so, as well. And Blaise—” Isi shoved back the blanket that covered his torso, suddenly seeming impatient to be involved and active again instead of constrained by his condition. “There’s something else. Something important. In fact, I believe it’s the sole reason Saint chose me to come to you instead of the Iniskium chief, Fardusk.”

“What do you mean?”

“Saint told me something that to my knowledge, he’s never come right out and said to another Iniskium—even Fardusk. One night, Saint came upon me while I was guarding Christina on the Whitby grounds. He said that Aidan, Christina’s son, was his child.”

Blaise slowly became aware of the sound of his heart throbbing in his ears in the ensuing silence.

“You are sure? Saint told you he’d impregnated Christina?”

Isi flinched back slightly, and Blaise realized he’d stood and bellowed the question. The image of Margaret Turrow’s indignant expression if she’d seen his insensitivity around a sickbed flew into his mind’s eye unbidden.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to shout. It’s just so important. Are you certain Saint said Aidan was his son?” he asked, carefully modulating the volume of his voice.

“Very certain. He must have impregnated Christina years ago, and not understood that Aidan was his until that very night. He seemed filled with the news…as if he’d just discovered it or—”

“Had just accepted the truth of it,” Blaise said under his breath.

Isi’s eyes sharpened on him. “Yes. It was just like that. He seemed filled with the miracle of the knowledge. Blaise? Are you all right?”

Blaise blinked and brought the wounded warrior back into focus. “All right?” he asked, his lips feeling numb. It was as if Isi had just asked him the most complex question in the universe.