Unleashed (Guardians of Anubis - Book 1)

11 Chapter 9

“A sword,” Nila blurted. Zaya’s eyes widened. She managed to keep the shocked sound from escaping her throat. She never thought of training as every guardian did at a very young age. Outside of finding her brother nothing else interested her.

“That’s good foresight, Zaya. Go clean up, we’ll talk about your training later.” Mondune turned to the high council. “Now, like I said we have important matters to discuss with the council, we’ve kept them waiting long enough.”

“Please excuse me. I’ll only be a moment,” Zaya said taking her leave. Zaya rushed through the long hallways leading to her bedroom with the disapproving stares of her ancestor glaring down at her from their perches along the walls. Their painted faces reminded her of the kingdom she was slowly leading into ruin.

Zaya sighed. Couldn’t she do anything right? She was a guardian but she wasn’t, she was a princess of a crumbling kingdom. Even the high council has come to take that away from her. She found the man who haunted her dreams and mated with him even though the idea of being mated scared her half to death.

Zaya roughly pulled the humans clothes she wore off her. She reached for her robes, and walked into the adjoining bathroom.        

“You can thank me by telling me what happened,” Nila said with a smirk on her face as she walked into the room.

“Nothing happened.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” Nila said reaching for something that was stuck in Zaya’s hair. Zaya sighed loudly. There was no way of stopping Nila. Once she was onto something she was like a dog with a bone. Zaya moved to the basin and started to wash up, while she told Nila everything that happened in that basement.

“You released him?” Nila looked at Zaya stunned, but excitement shone in her eyes. “I’ve never heard of that happening. It really is unique, isn’t it?”

“No, don’t turn this into a history moment.” Zaya wagged her finger at her.

“What? You can’t deny it’s fascinating. Its history in the making,” Nila said her fingers flying on her ever present iPad pro. Zaya shook her head, Nila always thought of life in the past tense. And now she was missing the fact that she was losing the only way she had of finding her brother.    

“I wasn’t supposed to accept him, remember?”

“Well, now that you have. Are you going to let him claim you?” Nila stared at her with hope in her eyes. Zaya could feel Nila’s excitement building: Kemet restored to its former glory as the new king took his place. The guardians would return and the city of Brown will be protected again. Guilt swirled in Zaya’s gut at the vision.

“No.” Zaya finished up, and left Nila standing there. She’ll never allow another king to take her brother’s place. She heard Nila follow close behind her.

“Zaya.” Zaya ignored her. No. There won’t be another king of Kemet except her brother. Nila reached her and pulled her to a stop. Zaya looked away, feeling tears pool in her eyes.

“You deserve to be happy too,” Nila said softly.

“Not like this, I don’t,” she said the words choking. Yet in spite of her denial Zaya still remembered his scent. It had been intoxicating. And the feel of his body on hers had been mind-numbing. Zaya felt her body awaken as though he was there with her. A tingling sensation ran down her spine. She closed her eyes feeling the fear surface as well.  She was still unsure of everything. How could she be messed up and desire him at the same time?

“Did you at least see him? Did his jackal rise when you were with him?” 

Zaya knew what Nila was asking her. She avoided talking about this, or even think about it. Only Nila knew her deep dark secret.

“Yes. His jackal has imprinted itself on him, reaching the surface without even trying.”

 “Did yours?”

Zaya shook her head ‘no’. They both knew the jackal within always responded to its mate, rising in the heat of the moment. If hers hadn’t… Zaya didn’t want to think about it. She hasn’t felt her jackal since Saphrina was taken by the demon. And she’s missed her so much. She’d become a woman without her. 

Silence reigned between them. Nila nodded, her eyes conveying the support she couldn’t put into words.

“Anyway,” Nila cleared her throat. “What did he look like?”

“He was massive, strong and forceful. And he had Anubis’ eye on his neck,” Zaya said pride slipping into her voice. She shook her head in disgust. Was she in or out? Even she didn’t know. But she couldn’t help it he was her mate.  

Nila froze. Zaya wondered what she’d said to make her freeze out on her. Maybe she was going through the records still filed in her mind. She always needed a second for her mind to go back to normal. “Was it on the right side of his neck?”

“Yes, how did you know?”

 “Your mate… I think he is an Unborn,” Nila said typing on the iPad. “That’s what Mondune asked me to go and find. Their origin, but there isn’t much known about them because they’ve been kept as…as…”

“Slaves.” Zaya felt her body grow cold. Her mate was a slave. It couldn’t be.

“Yes, it can.” Zaya heard Nila answer her. She didn’t even realize she’d spoken out loud.

“How?” Zaya couldn’t wrap her mind around it. He couldn’t be. She’d seen him. He was a warrior – dominating and formidable. Was this the reason way she innately feared him before she even met him, because he was an Unborn? The very thing all guardians abhorred.   

“Other than the seven high priests, all the guardians to follow were born from mated guardians, until the first Unborn to surface seven centuries ago. Someone made a record of it. This is Nkem Nkoma of Nigeria.” Nila turned the iPad to Zaya so she could see. The drawing was done crudely but there was no denying the similarities. She stared at the image of the jackal for a few minutes. It was like she was staring at her mate, with less aggression and intensity. Zaya will never forget his dominating personality and his will to live and claim what he believed was rightfully his.

That tingling sensation returned again, it was stronger this time. Zaya could swear she felt him all over again, and his scent was wrapping around her like it had in the basement. Zaya turned to the direction of her bedroom window.

Something was not right.