Before the Dawn

Chapter One

Images of the dark woods flood my vision. I'm running, running from the one I thought I loved. My legs burn and my eyes blur with hot tears. My brain is in a constant state of confusion. I don't know where I'm going. All I know is that I need to get away from him.

"You can run, but you can't hide, Thanatos!"

I bolt upright in bed screaming in terror. Theo's words still echo in my head. My cheeks are slick with fresh tears and my breathing is heavy.

Finally taking in my surroundings, I begin to panic again. The bed I lay in is not my own. Everything about this room is unfamiliar, and white. That's right, the entire room is pure white. From the bed sheets, to the walls, to the chair in the corner, it's completely white. My eyes skim over these items as I think them. With wide eyes, I look back at the chair and gasp.

In the chair sits a very muscular man with shaggy brown hair. His luminescent green eyes stare into mine hazily from across the room. His taut muscles flex as he crosses his arms across his broad chest.

"Are you alright, Thanatos?" his smooth, deep voice strokes my ears soothingly.

I take in a shaky I'm-about-to-cry breath. My bottom lip trembles as I wrap my arms around myself. I fight the oncoming tears that battle to fall from my eyes.

"Declan, I-" My voice cracks, ending my pitiful whisper. More hot tears spill from my eyes, blurring my vision.

I don't hear him get up, but suddenly Declan's arms are around me, strong and secure. I lean into his embrace, letting him rock me back and forth. He presses his lips into my hair and doesn't say anything. But he doesn't need to. His presence is all I need right now.

We sit together in silence, locked in a tearful embrace. Eventually, my tears run dry and my sobs quiet. Tired from my crying, my eyelids droop but I force them to stay open. I need answers and I won't sleep until I get them.

"Where are we?" I ask in a small voice, sounding very much like a small child.

Declan plants a kiss on my forehead gently.

"Home."

Unable to help myself, I nuzzle my head into the crook of his neck and inhale his delicious scent. The movement feels natural, it feels right. In response, Declan's hand rubs up and down my back, a soothing motion.

"Where is 'home' exactly?" I ask sluggishly, becoming more and more tired with each stroke of Declan's hand.

Declan sighs, but doesn't let me go.

"The Underworld, well, part of it. We're in my domain. I had to bring you to the one place I knew you'd be safe, the one place that I could protect you best," he murmurs tenderly.

The Underworld? Okay, normally that would have majorly freaked me out. Two months ago, if someone had told me that I'd be dragged to Hell by an insanely hot guy, I would have laughed in their face. But now? Not so much.

"Theo said that you're my warrior. Is that true?" The question comes out in a tentative whisper.

My mind flashes back to the party and my eyes widen in horror. In my terror, I'd forgotten to warn the others about Theo. My heart beat quickens with the realization. I left innocent party-goers unaware of a psycho killer in their midst! What the hell is wrong with me?

"Oh my gods!" I gasp out, pulling out of Declan's arms. He frowns but lets me go nonetheless. "I have to go back! I have to warn them about Theo! He'll hurt them!"

I crawl towards the end of the massive bed, frustrated that I can't move faster. Declan grabs a fistful of the t-shirt I'm wearing as a night gown, halting me in my tracks.

"Thanatos, stop," he commands sternly.

I keep trying to crawl forward, becoming even more panicked with each passing second.

"Let go! I have to warn them!" I yell back at him.

Oh, Gods. What if I'm too late? What if Theo already got to them? What if they're dead? Amora, Egan, Adam, Aubrey, Seraphina, Wade... all dead.

"Damn it, Thanatos!" Declan growls, hooking his arm around my waist. The muscles in his arm flex around me as he lifts me up into the air and slams me down onto my back.

Declan leaves me no time to recover as he climbs on top of me. I fight him, screaming at him to stop, to let me go. Tears stream down my face as I do this. Declan fights right back, easily gaining the upper hand with his superior strength.

"Enough!" he snarls, grabbing my wrists and pinning them down on either side of my head.

My chest heaves with every breath. Taken aback, I stare up at Declan's godly face in shock.

"Please," I beg in a whisper. "Let me go."

Declan moves so that his face is even closer to mine. I blink slowly, intoxicated by his minty breath.

"No," he whispers. I open my mouth to protest but he stops me. "I am your warrior, Thanatos. It is my duty to protect you. Therefore, there is no way in hell I am letting you go anywhere near that son of a bitch, Bel-Theo- or whatever the hell he calls himself now."

"But-" I protest.

"No buts. I warned the Leaders. Everyone is safe for now and on the look out for Bel," Declan says fiercely.

I sigh in relief, relaxing slightly. They're safe. Declan's grip on my wrists doesn't loosen. He probably thinks I'm going to take advantage of him if he does and run away.

"If it's safe, then why am I here?" I ask quietly, confusion written all over my face.

Declan recoils as if slapped. I frown, not intending to hurt his feelings.

"You need time to recover. That necklace that Bel gave you weakened you. You powers are damaged and you need time to let them strengthen again. You need to be somewhere out of the human realm, somewhere that I can protect you. This is my realm. I know everything that goes on here. Nothing will happen to you here. This is our home," Declan says, whispering the last part.

Home. Some part of me stirs at the word and I know it's true. I'm home.

"But what are we going to do about-"

"Shh," Declan hushes me, touching a finger to my lips. "That's something we'll discuss at a later time, love. Now you need to rest. I need you strong."

As my eyelids droop, I realize just how tired I still am. To ease the tension in the air, I kiss the finger Declan has placed on my lips. He smiles and climbs off of me. I start to protest but Declan pulls me into his strong arms. I rest my head on his muscled chest and close my eyes. Never before have I felt as safe as I do now in my warrior's arms.