Shattered Destiny (Soulbonded Book 2) Read online

  He cried out as Nikolai bit at the thin skin of his neck and slipped his hand around the back of Alexei's thigh, spreading his legs and settling himself in the cradle of his hips.

  "God," Alexei breathed. He wrapped his legs around Nikolai, begging for closer, for more, with his body and his words. He needed Nikolai in him in all ways. Needed to be more tightly anchored to this plane. His connection felt tenuous, physicality hard to hold on to. He was fighting the urge to find the currents of the sky. Nikolai grounded him, made him real. "Please, Kolya. I need you. Please."

  Nikolai dropped his head to Alexei's shoulder, heart thumping hard. Warm breath curled over Alexei's skin. Nikolai crashed against Alexei like the surf onto the sand. "Lyosha, love. We can't. I don't want to hurt you."

  "I need it, please. Please." He dragged his hands down Nikolai's back, gathering the sweat that pooled in the dip of his back. He slid his hand around the curve of Nikolai's ass, feeling the strength of the muscles there. "I don't care. I don't care. We'll go slow, we'll be careful."

  Nikolai groaned like he was dying, thrusting against Alexei. "God, you...you're..."

  Alexei drew two of Nikolai's fingers into his mouth, Nikolai's breath catching in his throat.

  It did hurt. They were slow and careful, but sweat and spit and tears and come could only do so much. Alexei cried out as Nikolai pushed in.

  Nikolai's grip on his thigh tightened. "Jesus. I could...I could stop." He stilled, throbbing inside of Alexei.

  "No don't, don't." Alexei's fingertips dug bruises into Nikolai's skin.

  The air in the cabin under the protection Alexei had woven was heavy and hot with sweat and their scent. The room glowed with a soft incandescent light as Nikolai pushed in.

  Words of love and curses fell from both their lips until Nikolai reached between them to grasp Alexei. "God, I missed you. Missed you so much, bratiska."

  Alexei tilted his head up for a kiss. "Missed you, Kolen'ka. So much. Love you."

  Nikolai bent his neck down for the kiss, moaning against their lips as Alexei tightened around him. Alexei thrust up into his hand and came silently, back arched, hands clenched in the sheets. His breath caught in his chest as Nikolai came inside him. So long, he had been gone so long in that timeless place. Nikolai was remaking him, bringing him back to life in this world.

  Neither one of them missed the waves of light and energy streaming from their joined bodies. Nikolai dropped to the bed. "Holy shit." He breathed heavily, chest heaving. "Sorry," he apologized as he slid out of Alexei with a grimace.

  A sharp sting of pain and Alexei felt empty. He curled into Nikolai's chest, waiting for their breathing and heart rates to come back to normal. Nikolai ran his fingers through Alexei's hair as they watched the light fade from around them.

  "So, um. Nice light show."

  Alexei didn't look at him.

  "Now, I might not have the most experience with this kind of thing." Nikolai's fingers tightened in Alexei's hair. "But I'm pretty sure that doesn't happen a lot. Or ever, usually."

  "No. It doesn’t." Alexei turned his head and kissed Nikolai's chest. He didn't even know where to start or how to explain. And he didn't want to. He just wanted this time, this oasis from reality, for one night. It wasn't too much to ask, was it, given what was to come?

  The room was almost completely dark, the last of the light faded, the fire died down to hot coals.

  "It happened last time, didn't it? The night you, you left?" Nikolai stopped petting Alexei’s hair.

  Alexei nodded.

  "I thought I imagined it," Nikolai whispered.

  "No." Alexei waved his hand, dissipating the web of air around them, both of them shivering in the cool breeze.

  "That doesn’t happen a lot either, I'm guessing."

  "No."

  Nikolai sighed. He grabbed a shirt from the floor and cleaned them both up. Mulevi looked up and grumbled when he tossed the dirty shirt back on the floor. "Go to sleep, Mule." The dog's tail thumped against the floor. Nikolai pulled the blanket over both of them, and they shifted on the bed until Nikolai had his arms wrapped around Alexei from the back, his knees tucked behind Alexei's. "You're going to have to tell me what's going on."

  "Tomorrow? Please?" Tears burned against Alexei’s closed eyelids.

  Nikolai pressed a soft kiss into Alexei's shoulder. "Tomorrow."

  Nikolai's breathing quieted, the only sounds in the cabin the dog's gentle snoring and the occasional pop and crackle of burning wood. Alexei tried to push thoughts of tomorrow out of his head, memorize the feel of Nikolai around him in case he never got to feel it again.

  "What day is it?" he asked Nikolai.

  "Tuesday. Probably Wednesday morning now. Go to sleep."

  "What date?" he pressed.

  Nikolai dragged his hand over Alexei's chest, fingers rubbing at the collarbones. "Um, the twenty-seventh. Twenty-eighth now, I guess."

  Alexei pulled the wandering hand up to his lips and kissed it. He tangled their fingers together and pulled Nikolai closer to him. If it was the twenty-seventh, they had four days; four days and four nights until All Soul’s Night.

  It wasn't nearly enough time.

  #

  Chapter Two

  Amma's Diner was nothing special, a couple of tables, three booths, and a counter. Old-fashioned even by small-town standards, it served all-day breakfast every day and a fish fry on Fridays. The diner sat right off Route one, on the very edge of the property Amma Brinna and her family had owned for three hundred years, a vast, mostly untracked, stretch of forest and lakes reaching into Canada.

  Tall and lean, braided white hair piled on top of her head, Amma Brinna had been in this part of Northern Minnesota for as long as any of the locals could remember. Not that there were many locals. Lemming, Minnesota was almost as small as towns got. The official population count was three hundred and twenty four if you included the snowbirds who migrated south right after New Year's and didn't come back until Memorial Day. Nearby meant within a day's drive or snowmobile, depending on the weather. Still, anyone passing through this area eventually stopped at Amma's, even just to use the bathroom.

  Cookie was short and fat and bald. He'd been behind the counter since the opening day almost no one alive remembered.

  It was eight in the morning Cookie’s favorite time of day. After the small rush of caffeine-addicted long-haul truckers and early-morning hunters had gone and the regulars started coming in. They sat at the same table, ordered the same meals, and tossed around the same bullshit they'd been talking about for the last thirty years.

  Cookie had been there so long the original crowd had passed on for the most part; these were the surviving sons and daughters of those old timers. Farmers, miners, and retired truckers, all drinking coffee and passing around pictures of grandkids in college sweatshirts and high school graduation gowns.

  There were worse ways to spend a morning.

  "Morning." Cookie brought a pot of coffee over to the table. "Ladies." The five regulars already had their mugs taken down from their places of honor on the pegboard on the wall. He didn't usually take orders, but they were a little short-handed since Debbie had finally run off with the Ludgren kid, heading for parts warmer and more populated. He was surprised it had taken her so long. For the most part, this was a land of old people. A few native sons and daughters returned with young children in tow, looking to give the kids the same childhood they had fled from right after high school. It was to be expected. Kids had to go out and make their own mistakes, find their own way in the world. Cookie had left his family at the ripe old age of sixteen. Course back then, sixteen was full-grown. Cookie liked to tell people was older than the rocks dirt was made from.

  "How about this weather?" he asked the table. "Pretty warm out."

  Nods all around. "For sure," Old Man Williamson answered. Jake was his real name, not that anyone used it. His father had been Old Man Williamson and the moniker had transferred with the man's death. He
was all of sixty-seven years old but had worked many of those long hard years in the mines. "Not like Halloween ninety-one. Remember that?"

  "You betcha," Sarah Williamson said. "We almost lost the dog in a snow drift."

  Cookie filled up Martha Severson's cup and gave her wink. "Looking good this morning, Martha. Is that a new shirt?"

  She pulled her shirt away from her body to double check which one she wore. "Oh, no. Gosh. It was a present from my daughter-in-law. Jessica? The one down in Chicago with Tommy?"

  "Sure, sure." He nodded.

  "You don't think it's too much, do you?"

  He shook his head as he took in the black cat applique and the embroidered jack-o-lantern with flashing LED eyes.

  "Nope, just right. So, the usual all around?"

  Jake looked over the edge of his reading glasses at the menu. "You got any of the walleye hash? Any fresh?"

  "You betcha. Nikolai brought me a fresh batch just yesterday."

  Sarah perked up her ears at that. Cookie knew Sarah had her eyes on the new boy. Not for herself, for her gay grandson. Everyone was out and proud now, Cookie thought it was better that way. Secrets were bad for everything and everyone. Had a way of eating you up from the inside like cancer.

  "So," Sarah said. "Did you find out if he has a girlfriend yet?” Her eyes twinkled. "Or a boyfriend?"

  Cookie clicked his tongue sadly. "I think he might be dating Shyama."

  "The new waitress?" Shyama had only been at the diner three years. She had a good long while to wait before she was no longer new.

  "Talking about that Russian boy?" Old Man Williams asked.

  “I thought he was a Gypsy,” Pete added. That was a lot of words in a row for Pete.

  "He's probably Russian Roma," Martha answered, nodding her head. "The gypsies from Russia. Good musicians, those."

  All eyes turned to her. "What? I read things. You think all I do is crochet baby clothes and watch morning shows?"

  "Kind of. Yeah." Sarah said.

  "Oh you," Martha laughed, swatting her friend on the arm.

  "Whatever he was, he's a good boy. Picked up hunting really quick."

  "Bow hunting?" Rich Wilson asked. He'd been bow hunting since he was a kid himself and was always looking for someone new to recruit.

  "He's got the eye for it."

  Cookie excused himself and went back to the kitchen to get started on the orders. The gang could and would help themselves to more coffee in between solving all the problems of the world and discussing the weather.

  The doorbell jingled as he flipped a batch of whole wheat pancakes onto plates and poured the warmed maple syrup into tiny metal pitchers. Little things made a big difference in Cookie's opinion. He didn't pay much mind to the bell. The gang would let him know if he needed to take care of it.

  Sure enough, Jake's voice rang out. "Hey, Cookie, your boy is here. And he's got a friend."

  Amma Brinna looked out the window at the sound of the horses' hooves crunching across the gravel parking lot. Something must be wrong, she hadn't expected Nikolai back for a few more days. Her breath caught at the sight of a second boy riding double on Wortako. Nikolai dismounted the tall horse with a practiced ease. He stood with a hand on the stirrup, looking up at the other boy. The look on his face took her breath away. There is only one person he would be looking at like that. The boy laughed, brushing back his long white hair, and said something she couldn't make out to Nikolai. He slid gracefully out of the saddle, ignoring Nikolai's outstretched hand, and landed on the ground as lightly as a cat jumping from a shelf.

  It was going to take them more than few minutes to unload Patsy and take care of the remains of the hunt. She didn't see any carcasses, just some bloody canvas bags with antlers. For some reason they'd bought back just the heads. She used the time to finish clearing up the dishes, doing her best to ignore the sense of unease prickling down her spine. By the pricking of my thumbs, she thought, wiping her hands on her apron. The bell over the front door chimed and she took a deep breath, centering herself before heading out to greet the boys.

  A blast of cold air came in with them. Winter was just around the corner. She smelled snow in the cold air.

  "Hi, Mrs. Severnson, Mr. Williams," Nikolai greeted the regulars as he passed. They were getting ready to leave, putting on coats and tossing fives and tens on the table.

  "Hey, Nikolai," Bill answered. "Good hunting?"

  Nikolai made a so-so gesture. "Not bad. New bow was good."

  "Good."

  Brinna came out of the kitchen and gently herded the crowd out the door. They eyed Alexei curiously but didn't ask any questions. Brinna thanked the gods for Minnesota reticence.

  "Hey, Amma." Nikolai leaned down to kiss her on the cheek.

  He was such a good-looking young man, tall and strong, with black curly hair and blue eyes. Handsome and charming, all the single and not so single women, and some of the men, had had their eye on him since he'd shown up there two years ago. Nikolai had turned them all away, gently and kindly. Until, apparently, Shyama finally wore him down. Though Nikolai denied it, Brinna suspected there was more than simply friendship between them. Reading the body language between the two young men in front of her, however, she knew there was going to be a lot more solo television watching in Shyama's future.

  Nikolai's introduction confirmed her suspicions. "Amma Brinna, this is Alexei. My brother Alexei that I told you about. He's back," he ended simply.

  Brinna knew there was nothing simple about it. She took the hand the boy held out, grasping it between both of her palms, much to his discomfort. "Look at me."

  Startled, Alexei did, green eyes opening wide. She grabbed his chin, turning his face this way and put her hand over his heart. Finally, she pulled back, looking between the boys. She jerked her head towards the counter. "Coffee?"

  “Yes, please.”

  The settled on stools as she poured coffee for all three of them. For the first time in a long time she wished she had something a little stronger to add to it. She placed the cheap ceramic mugs down in front of them, hoping they didn't notice her hand shaking.

  Cookie came out from the kitchen. "Hi, Nikolai. You're back early. Good hunting?" He poured himself a cup of coffee.

  "Well, let's just say I got something I think you'll want to see."

  Cookie extended a hand to Alexei. "Hi, there, I'm Cookie"

  "Alexei. Nikolai's brother."

  Cookie nodded. They drank their coffee in silence, the occasional slurp sounding overly loud in the stillness. Brinna leaned back against the counter, staring at them.

  Nikolai stopped just short of slamming his coffee cup onto the counter. "So." He clapped his hands together once. "Anybody want to tell me what the fuck is going on?"

  No. It wasn't supposed to be Brinna's job. That woman should have been there. Should have told the boy instead of grabbing Alexei and running away. Again. She always ran.

  "Is the lady with you?" she asked Alexei.

  "Her name is Stefanida. We were together, but we got split up." He swiveled on the stool, taking in the whole diner as if she might have been hiding under a table. "I was hoping she was here."

  "Alexei fell out of a hole in the sky. Two really weird looking guys riding some kind of hell-elk came out the hole and tried to kill me. Anybody got anything that would possibly make that make sense?" When no one answered, he stood up. "Brinna? Nothing? Alexei, do you want to explain? No? Fucking great." He stood. "Well, I got to get these horses put away. You know where to find me when you decide you want to let me in on the big secret." He started to walk to the door.

  Cookie stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "I'll take care of the horses, son."

  "Nikolai, please. Come back. I'll tell you what I know. I just don't think you'll believe me."

  "Yeah, you said that last night."

  Cookie slipped out the front door.

  "Last night?" Amma Brinna asked.

  "Yeah, you know I was head
ed towards the lake, right? Well, I was halfway there when he fell on me. Then we, you know, had to kill some things, and then he passed out. We barely made camp before dark."

  "Okay." She finished her coffee. "But not here."

  "Let me guess," Nikolai interrupted. "It's not safe here?"

  She fixed him with a long, hard glare. "It's not safe anywhere, Nikolai. Not now. Ask him."

  The door opened and the ringing of the bell caught them all by surprise. A young girl buried under layers of coats and a fur-lined cap with ear flaps and an overly-large pom-pom on top walked in. "Hey, guys. What's going on?" There was a hint of an Indian accent to her speech, a deliberateness as if she was translating in her head before she spoke.

  Shyama pulled off her cap, glossy black hair falling free. Walking over to Nikolai, she put a hand on the back of his chair and leaned over his shoulder. "You are home early. Did you scare the deer away with that giant circus horse of yours?"

  Alexei's eyes narrowed as he watched her hand creeping up Nikolai's shoulder.

  "You're home early, too."

  Shyama shrugged. "What can I say? I missed you guys."

  Shyama turned to Alexei, the broad smile on her face not matching the hard look in her deep brown eyes. "Who's this? Just passing through?"

  Nikolai shrugged her hands off his shoulder. "He's my brother."

  Her eyes widened. "The one who was missing?"

  "One and the same." Alexei wished he could slide his stool wasn’t bolted to the ground so he could slide closer to Nikolai.

  "Wow." She looked him over, top to bottom. "You are a babe, that's for sure. But I have to say, you look nothing like Nikolai. Are you sure you are brothers?"

  "No," Nikolai echoed Brinna's thoughts. "Not really. I think there's a lot I don't know about."

  "Oh." She sucked air in through her teeth. "Well, so. This was very awkward, I think. I can tell you're in the middle of something." She twisted her hat in her hands. "Should I come back later, Amma?"

  "No, thank you, Shyama. You aren't on the schedule and anyway, I'm going to close the diner early tonight. Why don't you come in tomorrow for breakfast?"