Read Online Between Light and Dark by Elissa Wilds - Free Book Online

become involved. She was willing to believe Axiom was not of this world. She'd seen enough of the Umbrae in the brief glimpses she'd had of them to know they
were dangerous and terrifying, but she refused to accept she
was the only person who could mother the Earth Balancer.
    Why should she be forced into such a circumstance now?
Everything she'd worked so hard to build was crumbling.
Her independence, her anonymity, and the quiet life she'd
created had been torn from her grasp the moment Axiom
burst into her life. She was going to be forced to have sex
with a stranger.
    It didn't matter that he was the sexiest man she'd ever
seen. It wasn't her choice to be with him. And as if things
weren't bad enough, she had to feign friendly chats with her
mother on a regular basis. At the moment, death seemed
preferable.
    Axiom had said the Umbrae would find her and kill her
even if she refused to take part in the mission. He'd also
said they could only track her via the yearning. Since she
could ward against the yearning, this didn't seem like much
of a problem.
    Laurell snapped her attention back to Axiom and
Wayne. "So, Wayne, you're psychic, huh? So how does your
ability work? Do you see a good outcome if we go to Black
Earth?" It's worth a try.
    "I'm an empath, not a fortune teller." Wayne swigged
from his soda can.
    "Not just any empath," Axiom pointed out. "He can sense when the Umbrae are near. We will want to keep him
close to us when we are not in protected space." Axiom's
shoulders stiffened.

    Did Axiom fear the Umbrae too? Why? Laurell bit her
lip. If a god feared the Umbrae, perhaps the situation was
much worse than she knew. Her resolve strengthened. All
the more reason to get the hell away from Axiom.
    The landscape flashed by in a blur of farmland and nearly
naked trees. The scenery changed to winding roads and
deep woods as they left civilization behind and drove closer
to Black Earth.
    "The coven is taking Anne's death real hard," Wayne
said, his voice heavy with sorrow.
    "She was a strong witch and a friend of the Light," Axiom
said. His chest ached. No innocents were to be lost. Those
were his orders. Even though he had never met Anne, he felt
the pain of having failed her.
    "She was one headstrong woman. Always pushing boundaries and testing herself."
    "Laurell indicated the Council is investigating Anne's
death. I am certain she did not bring it on herself." Although he knew Wayne's description of the witch was accurate, he sensed there was more to her death than a lapse
in magical judgment.
    "I am grateful her sister will step forward to see the mission through," Axiom continued.
    "Yeah, well, Fiona's a tough cookie."
    Axiom sipped one of the sodas Wayne had packed and
savored the sticky sweetness of the liquid as it slid down his
throat. He enjoyed the way it tickled his nose and burned.
A strange yet exhilarating sensation.
    Thinking of strange yet exhilarating things, Axiom
glanced at the back seat where Laurell sat, arms crossed, eyes focused on the landscape. What thoughts raced
through her mind? He had studied her extensively in the
Light Realm, yet in many ways she remained a mystery.

    "I have to go to the bathroom." Laurell's voice broke
into his thoughts.
    Wayne raised his eyebrows in question, and Axiom nodded.
    "We should stop. This vehicle will need fuel," Axiom
told him. Several miles later, a gas station appeared on the
right. Wayne slowed the car and pulled up to the nearest
pump. In front of them sat a red pickup truck, jacked up
and apparently awaiting a tire change. The driver was
nowhere to be seen. A faded brown sedan with NRA stickers on the back pulled up next to them. The couple inside
could be heard arguing heatedly, their strained voices carrying through the closed windows. The man adjusted his
baseball cap and raised his hand to the woman, who cringed
and pressed herself against the passenger door.
    "Go get me another six-pack, woman. And