He'd been Damian's most trusted executioner for thousands of years.
He'd served as Damian's executioner for thousands of years, a position he found fitting for his general dislike of the human capacity for evil.
He couldn't help feeling thrilled at the prospect of Damian's son.
Damian himself would be overjoyed, and Jule-- the third adopted brother in their threesome-- ecstatic.
He pulled out his phone to text Damian.
He hadn't heard from either Damian or Jule in two weeks.
I have to, because Damian's going to be gone for another week and a half, and then a lot of bad stuff is about to happen, but whatever.
Once Damian came back, Dusty was going on his first vacation ever.
He closed his eyes and summoned his power to Travel, one of the most useful gifts Damian granted him.
He'd never gone a day without silently thanking Damian for the gift of self-healing.
Why can't I contact Damian or Jule?
He'd been a kid when Damian found him and a human when the Schism occurred.
He logged into the computer and clandestine website, sending Damian an urgent message.
His memories and thoughts played like home videos, similar to those of her mate, Damian, and his adopted brothers.
Damian can do that, too, but Darian's too weak yet to tap into his power.
He missed Damian and Jule.
He tested his new phone by sending Damian and Jule a text. 911.
If anyone could, it would be Darian while Damian was away.
Speck shifted away from him, a response Dusty was accustomed to after thousands of years as Damian's lead executioner.
He and Damian can use the portals.
Damian saw him and bought the herd of them, freeing all but him.
Breathless, Dusty closed his eyes and leaned against the punching bag, unable to shake his first memories of Damian or his last memories of his sister, Trinka.
He'd trade all the powers Damian granted him after the Schism for his sister's life.
He'd sworn to Damian that he'd protect him.
Watch the kid and get word to Damian tomorrow morning.
Looks like Darian took out everyone's power but Damian's.
The last will require some discussion with Damian.
Damian smiled wide and opened the door, sliding into the passenger seat.
Damian suspected what kind of hell Dusty had been through and was pleased to see his trusted friend looking good.
I think the worst is you've been whipped by a woman, Damian ticked off.
Damian laughed, thrilled to be back with his adopted brother and to see the glow in his face.
Damian's silver-white hair was braided down his back, his thick body causing him to sink two inches into the mud.
Jonny's brown eyes, now black, traveled past Dusty to Damian.
Yes, I kept you from returning with Damian to North America.
Damian might have some insight into what was going on, and who the Magician was.
He chuckled, silently thanking Damian and his mate.
No one is invulnerable to temptation, Damian.
The voice of Damian's mate, Sofi, was a whisper in his mind.
Damian studied him, curious about the reaction.
Damian wondered what the hell Sofi had figured out that would send the man before him into the teenage-like fit.
If it goes off for any reason, I'll be at your throat with a knife, truce be damned, Damian said in a low, firm voice.
Damian Transported himself before he ditched his mission for some quality time with his mate.
Damian went to the gym, where Darian spent most of his time.
Amused, Damian looked at Darian and tossed his head towards the door.
Dusty trusted her for a reason, and if Dusty trusted someone, Damian knew she was the best at what she did.
Damian growled, crossing his arms.
The vamp standing beside Jonny was as big as any of Damian's Guardians, with eyes that glowed red.
While uneasy, Damian suspected Jenn was seasoned enough to handle the boy for a month.
The vamp crossed the room to Damian and stood.
You'll have to stick with animals, Damian replied.
Damian called to the Black God.
Maybe it was his delirium, but Jule thought the vamp looked larger than even Damian.
It appears as if either you, Damian, or you, Jonny, sent someone to kill her.
Damian can't say the same.
The man named Damian still watched her.
You don't give me orders, Damian.
No matter, I'm outta here, Damian said.
Damian disappeared, followed by the man named Jonny and the woman with him.
The man in the corner was tall with eyes that swirled gold like Damian's had.
The air around him rippled, reminding her he was as powerful as Damian.
Thus far, he'd listened to her, and she hoped he feared Damian enough to continue paying attention.
They meant little to her, but to Damian, they could mean something.
I can do things Damian and the Black God can't.
I mean, I might be able to seal the breach I made, if it doesn't get bigger and I can borrow Damian's power.
You gotta keep her alive while Damian figures out what to do.
Damian tapped the knife against his boot, deep in thought.
Damian would never kill his brother, Jule, but if the woman was dangerous enough to warrant a Watcher's attention, he couldn't look the other way.
Damian didn't respond, silently cursing the being.
The more Damian dealt with them, the less he wanted to deal with them again.
Damian sought out Sofi, both for her calming influence and any tidbits of what she might've Seen.
You and Dusty better catch up, Damian teased his brother's mate.
Damian looked down at Sofi and raised an eyebrow.
Damian turned in time to see the vamp Charlie struggling to drag a skinned deer carcass across the threshold.
Damian looked the vamp over.
Damian, however, was impressed he was able to do it at all.
He's a person of sorts, too, Damian.
Damian, why not give him a shot at something?
The vamp stared at Damian.
Damian reconsidered the vamp before looking at Sofi, who ignored him.
No, Darian, Damian said, perplexed.
The training was part of what Damian wanted her there to do, and she mixed training with good old-fashioned spy techniques.
They wanted your head, too, but Damian set 'em straight, Dusty replied.
Damian will tell them to go to hell.
Jule was quiet, trying hard to remember something from before the Schism besides brief glimpses of Darian and Damian.
That he was an Original Being who had chosen to stay with Damian and a woman long since dead.
Damian appeared to be waiting for him, perched on the corner of a mahogany desk with his arms crossed.
Damian was quiet for a moment.
The Vamp is here, and yet the only tear between realms was caused by Darian and is being pursued by the Watchers and Others, Damian said.
Certain creatures with unlimited power and motivations thousands of years in the making weren't what Damian really needed right now.
He almost refused before he realized he had no choice, if he wanted to help Yully survive and Damian defeat the Other.
Jule Transported himself back to Damian's headquarters.
Damian went to scout things out.
Just don't tell Damian or Dusty.
She recognized Damian, Darian, Jonny, the woman who accompanied Jonny, and several others.
Jonny asked, drawing abreast of Damian.
Tell Dusty not to blow everything up, and leave the vamp alone, Damian said.
If not for Yully's fading energy, Jule would've stayed to make sure Damian's version of chat resembled his and not Dusty's, who was more likely to shoot first and discuss later.
Damian studied him, not sure what to think of the oldest vamp in the universe.
Damian never imagined her protector might be the towering vamp before him.
There was more to Xander than Damian could pinpoint.
Damian turned to walk away.
Damian heard the uneasy note in her voice and looked her over, his gaze lingering at her hips, where her weapons should've been.
Damian lifted his head, indicating the three forms standing at the top of the hill.
He'd let her live, knowing she was obligated to report everything to Damian and powerful enough to be dismissive of any threat she might cause.
Damian's headquarters is in Texas for now.
She recognized Damian and Darian as they neared and crept closer to Jule at the sight of the strange man with red glowing eyes.
Damian asked with an easy smile.
Yully, you've met Damian and Darian.
Dusty eyed the wiry man coolly, and Damian chuckled.
And this … thing—" Damian indicated the man with red eyes "—is Charles.
The low growl drew her attention behind her, where the red-eyed man materialized beside Damian.
The Watcher frowned, his gaze going from Damian to Jule.
Damian Bylun stared at the phone.
Damian, I'm one of your … employees.
Damian opened his PDA to do a quick search on the number.
Damian hung up and looked at his executive officer and sparring partner.
Han nodded, and Damian trotted into the 20,000-square-foot mansion in the middle of the Arizona desert he called home.
Damian waved to show he'd heard and then took the stairs two at a time to his room.
Han's brother Laney, one of Damian's oldest Guardians and the station chief for NOVA sector, leaned in the doorway to the main house with a smile.
Damian walked over to him.
Damian sat down on the arm of a leather couch, accustomed to the reaction, and pulled off his boot to drain the water.
Damian closed his eyes and opened them, materializing in his suite in Tucson.
Damian grunted, expecting Dusty's message.
As their king, Damian owed them nothing.
Damian knew better than to trust the deceptive appearance of this type of creature.
Damian didn't trust the beings that saw all, knew all, and yet spoke in riddles—if they chose to speak at all.
Damian mulled his words, waiting for more.
Damian hadn't expected his day to be so eventful.
Damian crossed to his window and gazed out at the setting sun.
Damian returned his interest to the displays, and Han closed the door softly.
At the pause, Damian knew they were all looking at the geospatial depiction.
Damian could feel his ire through the screen.
Damian knew if they had video chat, he'd see Jule rolling his eyes.
I'm getting reports from the recruitment team that a lot of their newly flagged Guardians are getting whacked as soon as they make the list, Damian said.
Damian grimaced, recalling the last time he'd seen the beautiful woman, his slain brother's wife.
Damian snorted, gaze lingering on the map.
Damian Bylun was not a doctor.
Damian wasn't sure how someone going from the second to first floor had managed to get bloody enough to look like she crawled through a war zone.
Damian heard the amusement in his voice.
Damian asked, moving away from the door.
Damian felt the unusual urge to look in on her again, to feel her soft skin against him once more and make sure she was safe.
Damian smiled, waiting for Dusty's response.
He'd never said why, and Damian didn't ask.
Outside her room, Han whipped out his phone to text Damian with an irritated sigh.
Damian glanced at the new text message from Han before his gaze returned to the small base camp tucked between two ridges in the Tucson Mountains.
Damian followed him across the dusty landing pads to the helo-hangar.
Pleased that one thing was going right, Damian tucked the phone away.
Damian sobered, troubled by the news.
No one could find Damian's HQ unless they were on the guest list, or one of his Guardians revealed its location.
Rainy nodded, a look of relief crossing his features, and Damian saw his mind was on his Natural ward, Traci.
Damian issued few clean-up orders, for there was no way to maintain the discretion his Guardians needed to mask their shadow operations protecting humanity.
Rainy's voice was quiet, and Damian sensed his heartfelt gratitude.
Damian snorted then glanced at Rainy.
Damian clapped him on the arm and opened the door.
Her gaze swept over them, stopping to rest on Damian.
The men were dispersing, and her heart leapt when she saw Damian's gaze riveted to her window.
By the look on Damian's face, he wasn't happy.
Startled, Damian stared at her.
She left the door cracked until she heard Jake greet Damian as the leader passed her room.
Damian had a lot of cars, and she found the black BMW whose lights flashed when she clicked the key fob.
She tightened her grip on the wheel, assuming he spoke to Damian.
She was pretty sure Damian would find her no matter where she tried to go, but damn them all, she was going home.
She turned, startled to find the man in front her of the same make and mold as Damian's men.
Damian turned the cell phone back on and emerged into the warm evening air from the Marriott's conference room, the random place chosen by his spy chief for this week's intelligence briefing.
Damian accepted his hand in greeting, looking around.
Furious his order had been disobeyed, Damian started for the young Guardian.
Damian met Dusty's clear blue eyes, blood boiling.
It was a death sentence, and Damian saw the realization in Jake's eyes before the newbie left for the weapons room.
Damian pulled off his sweater to reveal a black T-shirt and tucked weapons into his cargo pants, boots, and pockets.
Dusty shook his head, though Damian saw his faint smile.
Damian's not gonna sit around for this one.
That Damian was capable of the same level of violence as these men reminded her that this world was nothing like hers.
The alarm sounded the second Damian materialized into the compound.
Damian whirled, whipping out the sword at his back.
He ducked into a doorway while Damian shot two more vamps and reappeared, the blueprints on the screen.
Damian located the enemy ahead of them, shooting intersections clear as they reached them.
Damian shouted as the Traveler disappeared.
Jilian met Damian's sword with his own, barking orders to his vamps.
The screams stopped, and Damian's heart quickened.
Damian gritted his teeth, unable to unleash the blow that could destroy them all in a blink without taking out Sofia as well.
Damian slashed through Jilian, and the vamp dropped.
Damian rose, sickened by the sight before him.
Damian launched forward, snatching the tube and whipping out a knife.
Damian followed his gaze.
Damian shoved the other end of the tube into his neck, releasing his power.
Damian carefully gathered the woman into his arms and closed his eyes.
Damian met his gaze, and they sat in the kitchen, bloodied and breathing hard as they recovered.
Damian rose and pulled Dusty to his feet.
A sense of dread filled her as she approached Damian's room.
If Damian hadn't opened the door, she would have run back to her room.
Han was as big as the man before her, and if he feared him … Damian's gaze swept over her.
Damian turned down the stereo blasting trance music and faced her, crossing his arms as she closed the door.
Damian rested his hands on her shoulders.
Damian's words swirled through her thoughts, along with the scent of his blood.
You rank up near Damian now.
He was always right, even when he told her to ask Damian something he knew very well.
Damian was rarely indoors during the day, and she hoped he wasn't in his room when she knocked.
Damian hissed beside her, his grip on her neck tightening.
Damian had turned his face away and was clenching a thick knuckle between his teeth.
Dressed for sparring, he waited with Grande and Pierre for Damian.
Damian trotted down the stairs.
They were always worse at night, when Damian's draw was overwhelming.
The men were at dinner, including Damian.
Damian held out his hand to her.
Damian, I'm a monster, even in your world.
Damian crossed his arms and leaned against the wall around the trickling fountain at his back.
Damian raised an eyebrow, not about to humor the otherworldly harbinger of bad news.
Despite his suspicion, Damian chuckled.
The Watcher smiled in response, and Damian knew well enough his kind truly thought themselves superior.
Damian straightened, at his limit with the cryptic nonsense.
She made a face, drooling at the thought of Damian's blood again.
She found herself again in front of Damian's door.
Angry, she turned to leave when Damian's door opened.
I don't want to hurt you, Damian.
While his form was large enough to be a man the size of Damian's Guardians, his voice was terrified and gravelly, as if he hadn't ever spoken to anyone.
Damian hadn't returned the night before after their last interaction.
Will you answer something personal, Damian?
Damian wrapped his arm around her and held her close for a moment, torn between thoughts of her naked and thoughts of his brother's death.
Damian's hair was mussed, his arms crossed.
Damian crossed to the window.
Damian's gaze turned to the door to the bedroom, and she ducked back, remembering he could hear her thoughts.
Not wanting to be around to hear Claire get her way, Sofia climbed onto the edge of Damian's balcony and stretched upward toward the ledge running around the mansion.
Damian demanded, lowering her to the ground and spinning her to face him.
It's okay, Damian, really.
She wasn't dressed in skin-tight workout clothes like Claire, who joined Damian as he trotted down the stairs for their daily sparring session.
Damian glanced at the redhead and touched her arm in affectionate greeting.
You are so damn stubborn, Damian snapped, pushing her door open.
Damian couldn't have chosen a better guard.
Damian's call pulled her from the vision replaying in her head.
He shook hands with Damian, a small smile on his chiseled features.
Damian said with warmth she hadn't seen him display toward anyone else.
She looked at it curiously, then at Damian.
Damian asked, crossing to his desk.
Damian dropped an envelope on the table in front of her.
She rested her chin on her knees, gazing at Damian.
And if she told Damian who to kill, did that make her worse than them?
He held out his hand, and Dusty clasped his wrist, allowing Damian to Travel them both to Tucson Sector HQ.
Traci's eyes were on Damian.
Damian asked in amusement.
She's trying, Damian said.
Damian caught his eye and looked pointedly at Dusty, silently asking if the Guardian had done as he asked and told his boss that the Natural was more than a new recruit.
Damian waited expectantly, but Dusty shook his head.
Dusty gave Damian a cool look, and he heard the unspoken warning about women being the downfall of mankind.
Damian had been considering how to help Sofia adjust.
Damian's attention lingered on the image on Rainy's screen.
Damian and Dustin appeared deep in discussion as she approached.
She eyed him and then looked to Damian, who stared at her with an intensity she'd last seen aimed at Claire.
He's sensitive about that shit, like a woman, Damian whispered into her mind.
Dustin looked at her then tossed a look over his shoulder at Damian before directing her away.
She felt Damian's gaze on her as they walked away.
She stood beside Dustin on one side of the entrance while Damian and Claire assumed the other.
He sold out Damian's men—his own men—for money.
If Damian knew the woman trying to crawl back into his bed had helped murder his brother, her husband… She couldn't see him over the crowd.
Damian's world was brutal.
She didn't want to disappoint him or Damian and couldn't help but dread the conversation to come.
If Dustin's words were true, she'd never be welcomed into the home of any of Damian's people, not if they feared the sight of her!
She resisted the urge to move away from him, chilled by the visions of his work as Damian's executioner.
Damian's voice jarred her from her thoughts.
She wiped her eyes before turning to face whatever new challenge Damian brought with him.
Damian's gaze swept over her.
Sasha manages the operations for Dusty out of Miami and Levi for Jule in Europe, Damian explained.
Damian reached across the table and touched her face, dismissing them.
She reached Isac's picture and stopped, looking up at Damian.
When she was brave enough, she looked up at Damian.
Damian growled in a voice that bordered on inhuman.
But you know what, Damian?
Damian started after her, furious.
Damian glared at him, his restraint on his powers rippling.
Dusty's words floored him, and Damian couldn't help but feel hurt that his best friend hadn't told him of his suspicions sooner.
That she'd used him, killed Darian … "Damian."
No, Damian, you couldn't have known how twisted she was.
The Guardians knew that betrayal would be confronted by Dusty, and even those loyal to Damian feared him appearing unexpectedly at their door.
Damian knew him well enough to know all the tales weren't true.
Damian stopped, guilty yet too raw to confront her.
Damian didn't care; Sofia liked Pierre, and he had a feeling Pierre's blunt dose of reality was soothing to her in a world where nothing else made sense.
They had similar cool reserve, unlike Damian and Jule, and had both survived ordeals that would cripple anyone else.
It wrenched open, and a man in a black trench coat Damian's size looked her over once.
Damian's men were not the type she wanted to piss off.
I'm … new to Damian's organization.
After her explosion at Damian, she'd have to beg for food.
No one but her saw the other side of Damian.
She began to suspect Damian sent her there so she could meet the other women dragged into his organization.
What do you want, Damian?
His gaze went to her and then back to Damian expectantly.
Damian ignored his hint, and Lon didn't press.
She didn't see Damian until afternoon, when he strolled into the library from sparring, ear to a cell phone.
She left the library to return Damian's phone.
Damian trotted from the stairs toward the courtyard and paused, looking at her curiously.
Damian watched her, eyes narrowing.
She hung up and tossed Damian the phone.
In truth, it was the one place in the house where she felt safe and comfortable when she wasn't with Damian.
If not for the worried flicker of her gaze past him to see who followed, Damian would have thought this a social call.
Damian regarded her coolly, unwilling to let someone so undeserving get the best of him.
Damian gritted his teeth, remembering how tempted he'd been by the same ruse a few nights before.
Damian stood and moved away, emotions roiling.
Damian managed to get the difficult words out through clenched teeth.
Damian took aim with the pistol and fired into her heart before she could make another sound.
Damian closed his eyes to the heat and light, tormented by his brother's death and his own cowardice.
Miles away, Sofia couldn't shake the feeling that something was very wrong with Damian.
Damian brought me back, but I can't live without … his blood.
Damian's home videos played, intertwined with those of others, until a wave of power washed over her.
Damian was not one to lose control.
The power swirling in the air around her grew as she neared Damian's door, and she was reminded of the tension in the air before a thunderstorm.
She didn't know what Damian was, but he was beyond Superman powerful.
Damian's head was bowed, his tense body still.
Damian listened to the door close behind her, stunned by what he'd seen in her thoughts.
Damian chuckled despite himself, unable to shake the negative emotions running through him.
Damian regarded him, reminded again how fortunate he was to have friends like his.
Damian gazed at the dark landscape.
Damian was engraved on the interior.
She saw glimpses of his shared history with Damian and Dustin and of a time before meeting them that was too dark for her to see clearly.
I'd do anything for Damian.
She recognized his tone; it was one Damian used when making her boundaries with him clear.
She liked him, too, even though he was different from Damian and Dusty.
Damian and Dustin awaited them.
Damian glared at both of them, suddenly aware they were laughing at him.
Damian flipped the lights on, and the three of them gathered at the table.
Dusty pursed his lips, and Damian smiled.
Damian smiled and tossed his head toward his computer, straightening.
This is who you are, Damian.
Damian dropped to the floor with a roar, his eyes blurring as more fire and liquid tore through him.
Something terrible would've had to happen to break the connection between Damian and her.
She went to the key locker and chose one of Damian's sports cars, her instincts urging her to go somewhere, though she didn't know where.
I know something awful happened to Damian.
She needed to reach Damian, now!
At least one of Damian's Guardians lay slain among the scores of vamps.
The adobe structure was guarded by several more Guardians, none of whom looked like Damian from the distance.
Her chest was tight and her breath short, but she knew there was one way to find out what happened to Damian.
Damian appeared, a fragmented vision, as if the vamp had been peering through a foggy window.
Damian was meant to be kidnapped, not killed.
She'd seen the dark side of Dusty in his home videos in the library before she told Damian about Claire.
Chances are he used your blood to incapacitate Damian.
If Damian died, it was because of her.
Even if I kill Damian, I'll have to deal with all his people.
By the time Dusty figures out what to do, Damian will be dead.
Her greeter motioned her to follow, and she obeyed, her mind on Damian and nothing else.
Damian was nowhere to be seen.
Eventually, she ran out of tears and lay spent on the table, mind on Damian.
Though his blood didn't ensnare her as Damian's did, it tasted familiar.
He was Damian's size, though by his lopsided shoulders and scars, he'd survived some sort of serious injury.
He was lean and wiry compared to Damian's bulky build.
Renewed by the blood, more sobs wracked her body as she thought of Damian and how badly she'd destroyed any plan Dustin or Jule could make.
If you kill Damian, I'll die.
Images flooded her mind, Damian's, Claire's, Isac's.
She saw Damian watch the new king get his tattoo as a rite of passage, saw it again as Claire made love to the man meant to be her husband, saw it in Isac's vision as he hacked the tattooed man apart.
The man hiding in the corner of her mind, he whose death plagued Damian for thousands of years.
If there was a way to make him see what was in her head … to make him remember … she focused on Damian's memories, the ones before the dark age, when he and his brother were happy.
As she drank, she replayed Damian's memories over and over.
Do you remember your brother Damian?
An image flashed, that of Damian chained to a wall.
She took his face in her hands the way she had Damian the night he wanted to destroy the world and forced him to meet her gaze.
She rose to her tiptoes and kissed him, her own memories of Damian forefront in her mind.
Kill Damian and come back when you're done.
Something about Damian, the man who made kiri cry.
Two went to Damian's cell and opened the door.
Damian was still and silent, but he wasn't dead.
Damian was chained to the wall so he could be force fed what looked like fruit punch.
Damian was the strongest man Two had ever met.
As Two gazed at Damian, another flash of images driving him to his knees.
Two released Damian from the bonds and lifted him over his shoulders.
He took Damian outside to the rock where he and kiri had watched the stars once long ago and set him down.
He knelt over Damian and pulled the ring from his finger.
He placed the necklace in Damian's hand and closed it gently.
He held Damian's ring in front of her face and then tucked it into her jeans.
He showed her a picture of where he'd taken Damian.
He placed his hands on Damian's face.
Damian rolled onto his side and puked blood into the sand.
Damian's head whipped around.
Damian's voice was soft, but his command made everyone in the hangar jump.
Damian's brother was somewhere inside the scarred shell of a man before him.
Damian's own head was fuzzy from the effects of the drink he'd been force fed.
Damian couldn't help his smile at the words.
Damian twisted, surprised to find his body stiff with the simple movement.
For the first time in his life, Damian was speechless when confronted with the horror before him.
Damian's throat tightened at the unspoken words.
Damian's spinning emotions warmed at the idea that Sofia saved him.
Damian whispered the thought, unable to help the tears that rose with it.
Darian didn't resist, and Damian delighted in the idea that the sound of him breathing meant his brother was truly alive.
Damian waved him away, his attention returning to Darian.
Darian stood obediently, and Damian's throat tightened again to know his brother was at his side.
Damian's heavy ring hung off a chain around her neck, and she clenched it.
Sofia only half-listened as she led them down the stairs, anxious to get back to Damian and the place that had become her home.
She was about to lie down when she sensed Damian walk by.
Steeling herself, she passed Pierre at her door and knocked on Damian's door.
He knew Sofia better than he knew Damian.
Damian closed his eyes in pain, unable to shake his brother's black history.
I don't know how she reached him inside that dark maze, Damian said with a shake of his head.
And I'm deeply sorry for it, Damian.
Damian's throat tightened, and his eyes misted at the sight of his brother.
He turned to Damian, his scarred features the most beautiful sight Damian had ever seen.
Damian's feelings for her swelled even more.
Damian's suite was lit only by a blazing fire in the hearth.
She waited, gaze falling to Damian.
Damian waved her in without looking at her, his eyes reflecting the fire.
She sighed in relief and rested her head on Damian's shoulder.
Darian's disapproving gaze mirrored Damian's, and Sofia hid her face against Damian's chest as the three men facing her gave her similar looks.
Jule and Dustin both looked to Damian.
She huddled closer to Damian, unwilling to look at his face.
She shifted away from Damian and touched Darian's forehead, absorbing the horror of his memories.
His heavy words broke her heart, but she respected his request and returned to Damian's side.
Comfortable against Damian, she drifted into a restful doze until he shifted.
Damian replaced his necklace around her neck, a small comfort until his work in the European front was finished.
Alarmed, she swung on her robe and snatched one of Damian's trench coats.
Damian was crippled by the same thing.
Obviously, Damian had reconsidered.
The whole of Damian's history, his forefathers', all the way to the Beginning, when spirits milled without purpose before the Original Beings shaped the universe into something much greater.
She's my family now, too, Damian said and rolled his eyes.
It dawned on him he really hadn't seen much of Damian at all since the ceremony.
A full ten years older than his little brother, he'd raised Damian from the age of seven, after the death of their father.
Damian appeared pensive as he responded to Darian's playful strikes.
Damian's wine goblet was never empty during the day, and he always had well-cared-for boots and more fresh flowers in his room than Darian.
Despite his attempt to look down on the peasants, Damian had befriended many of them.
If anything happens to me, you take care of Damian and Claire, he said.
He'd watched Damian's birth here, grown up here, met Claire here.
Damian's white-blond hair was familiar to her before his face came into view.
Damian clutched his brother's necklace in one hand, the reins to his horse in another.
Damian wiped his face, staring at the pulpy mess of the body before him.
He'd tell you to fulfill your duty, Damian.
Damian. He bought me off the auction block.
Dustin ran up to the young man Jenn assumed was his master, and the golden eyes at once told her who this Damian was.
Another woman lay on the ground near the youth named Damian, her shapely figure, porcelain complexion, and auburn hair indicating her beauty even in her sleep.
Damian struggled to lift the woman at his feet then carried her towards a tree.
Damian inched towards it, planting his hands on the ground.
Not including the man Damian called Watcher, the man called Jule was the only one of the group older than her, and he'd be lucky to survive the day.
You and Damian threw down the gauntlet.
Darian walked down the hall and stairwell to the study where his brother, the White God Damian, was probably plotting how to outsmart the pesky little immortals who'd declared war on them.
Damian sat at the desk, bent over his iPad as he scanned messages and reports from immortals across the globe.
Darian watched his little brother, at once proud of the White God that Damian had grown into and crushed by the sense of his own failure.
Damian had taken his place when betrayal rendered Darian near-dead then enslaved to a madman for thousands of years.
Damian's nature was not like Darian's and their father's, but he'd shouldered the responsibility to protect humanity and battle the Black God without question.
He crossed to the seat in front of Damian's desk and propped his feet up on the desk.
Damian sat back, waiting curiously.
Darkness crossed Damian's features, the same darkness Darian felt go through him as he alluded to the fact he was broken beyond repair.
Damian's eyes gleamed in sudden amusement.
Damian's smile widened, and Darian could see how touched his little brother was at the words.
He's in Europe trying to figure out how to pick up the pieces, Damian said.
Darian smiled, knowing how much Damian loved his family despite his complaints.
Damian said nothing, and Darian didn't have to look at his little brother to know he was trying not to grin.
Damian had assigned her here to help Jonny root out the vamps who were working with Others in the Black God's ranks.
Damian's lifemate was petite, beautiful, and angry.
Sofi left him alone in the study, and he sat down at Damian's computer to send the info the real estate agent needed to rent him the cabin.
Damian would've expelled me by now.
But he felt nothing, not even his brother Damian's fury at the immortals messing with the mortal world.
I believe Damian has a Hunter among his men, but the White God refuses to speak to me anymore.
He'd been enslaved the day of the Schism, and Damian would never speak of what happened to their home.
He hadn't wanted to think about the blackouts when he'd told Damian he was leaving.
Darian Traveled back to Damian's, arriving in the gym.
Charles, the vamp Hunter Damian traded for Jenn, rose with a growl.
I'm going to take Darian home to Damian and come back.
She recognized him as Charles, the vamp Damian had gotten in exchange for sending her to the Black God.
At the sound of a new voice, Jenn pushed herself to her feet as Damian slammed the door to the kitchen open.
Jenn obeyed and hefted Darian's shoulders as Damian took his ankles.
Damian asked, glancing up at her.
While she'd been one of the original Guardians to escape the immortal world with Damian, she'd also been at the bottom of the totem pole, once the Guardians in the mortal world rallied around their White God.
A small part of her suspected Damian knew what Xander knew.
And I gave away the only vamp who could track them to Damian.
You and Damian have a common enemy, one that threatens both of you.
She didn't say that she thought Damian would run circles around the boy and find a better solution.
I don't know what you told that kid, but he marched into Damian's study and demanded I fix his Others problems.
Damian traded me, like he did you.
Darian wasn't capable of begrudging Damian for anything he did.
If Jonny got you, then what did Damian … Xander.
If he had Damian's temper, he'd be in trouble.
Her mate, the White God Damian, sat with his adopted brothers, the assassin Dusty and the Original Immortal Jule.
With a complexion like hers, he was often mistaken as her brother, a similarity they'd used in the past to keep people from finding out she was Damian's mate.
Damian planted his hands on her shoulders, and she looked up at him for a long moment, feeling sick for more than one reason.
Jule and Dusty grew serious while Damian sat beside her.
She hesitated, aware she never should've told Damian, let alone allowed Xander to pry the answer out of her when they'd met.
Damian didn't keep secrets from his brothers.
Damian, you need me for anything?
Damian crouched in front of her, his hand on her stomach.
She wanted to tell Damian everything, but she'd broken his rules by telling them what she did.
Damian held out his hands and helped her to her feet.
I miss food so much, Damian, she said with a sigh.
She squeezed Damian harder, praying Darian did what he was resurrected to do.
She'd been acting standoffish since he sought her out at Damian's direction.
You could've told Damian you were in danger.