by D. G. Swank
“No,” Collin said softly, trying to ease her concern. “They’re here of their own accord. They still don’t trust Piper, and they’re curious.”
David gave me a tight smile. “Ellie made a pact with Tsagasi and his friends. They’ve pledged to help her seven times in exchange for her agreement to defeat Okeus. She’s used them twice now. Once when we faced the Guardians and the Great One at the botanical gardens on Roanoke Island and again last night. But sometimes they show up of their own accord and it doesn’t count toward her limit.”
“They don’t trust Piper because of her association with me,” Abel stated rather than asked.
“That and they claim she created a world upstairs,” Collin said. “They’re leery of what she can do.”
I wasn’t surprised, but it worried me that they knew what was upstairs. Hopefully they couldn’t tell what—or rather who—was inside.
“If they know I created a world,” I said to Abel, “then wouldn’t Okeus know too?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “I can sense a disruption, but I wouldn’t have known it was a pocket universe. I would have suspected you’d found a way to tear through the veil between this realm and the afterlife.” Then he added, “You do send ghosts on their way, so it would be within your skill set.”
“Then how does Tsagasi know?” I asked.
“It’s like his superpower,” Ellie said. “He just seems to know things, but the others can’t perceive as much as he does.”
“How do I know I can trust them?” I asked. “You may have made a pact with his people, but I haven’t. How do I know they won’t try to take Abel to Okeus themselves as some kind of trade?”
“We don’t,” Collin said. “The jury’s still out as to what they plan to do about him.”
I gripped my sword hilt. “They’ll have to go through me to get to him.”
Abel put his hand on my shoulder and said gently, “Easy, Waboose. You need allies. Especially when the mark appears.”
I spun around and looked up into his face. “I will stop that mark from appearing, Abel.”
A teasing grin played on his lips. “If anyone could do something based on pure willpower, it would be you, Waboose, but I need assurances that you will be protected.”
“Why do you keep calling her a baby bunny?” Collin asked.
My brow shot up to my hairline. “A bunny?”
Waboose meant baby bunny? No wonder the demons found the nickname amusing.
Abel shot Collin a death glare before turning back to me. “The Croatan used it as a term of endearment. Like the French call loved ones a little cabbage.”
I didn’t respond, unsure what to say. Abel had called me a waboose from the very beginning, before he really knew me…no, that wasn’t true. He’d started calling me that after we faced a demon together at Helen’s Bridge.
Ellie shook her head, looking startled. “Wait. You were a Croatan. You were there hundreds of years ago. You saw the aftermath of the curse.”
“I was born eight months later,” Abel said. “By the time I was old enough to remember anything, it was old news. Manteo and his son were closemouthed. My tribe spoke of the curse in hushed tones. My mother was a conjuror of spirits, and she told the tribe that the demons and gods were gone, leaving only ghosts behind. Which my tribe soon became. The English moved in and destroyed everything in their path.”
“You knew his son who carried on the curse keeping duties?” David asked, looking thoroughly fascinated. “Were you related to them?”
“Manteo was my mother’s brother,” Abel said. “My uncle.”
Ellie shot a glance from Abel to Collin. “You and Abel are cousins, Collin. Many times removed.”
Collin didn’t look too happy with that turn of events. Abel seemed equally unimpressed.
“You probably know more about the curse than Collin does,” Ellie said.
Abel shook his head. “As I said, the curse keepers weren’t forthcoming with the information. I suspect my mother knew more than she told me but didn’t want to taint me against my father. She taught me to respect Okeus but to fear his brother.”
“Ahone?” I asked.
“She said he would try to deceive me…to convince me that my father was evil. And she was right. After I hit my late teens, I started aging very slowly. My people feared me, so my mother sent me away. I lost track of the Croatan keeper when I left. Shortly afterward, my tribe scattered.”
“Where did you go?” I asked, trying to imagine what he’d been through.
He turned to me, his eyes softening at the compassion in my voice. “England. Manteo had taught me English at my mother’s urging. Ahone came to me there.”
“What did he want?” Collin asked, sounding far less sympathetic.
“To let me know he was willing to guide me when needed. I only had to call out to him, and he would come.”
“So of the gods, you’re loyal to him?” Collin asked in a hard tone.
“I’m loyal to only one,” Abel said. “And she is not a god.”
“Piper?” Collin asked, sounding incredulous.
Abel didn’t respond, but it was answer enough.
Ellie must have decided to change the subject. “You were talking about stopping a mark. What’s that about?”
I started to tell them, but Abel grabbed my left wrist and lifted my hand. “While Piper bears the mark of the spiritual plane, more marks keep appearing, giving her new titles. We’re trying to stop them.”
I shot a questioning glance up to Abel, but he avoided my gaze as Ellie stepped forward to examine my left palm.
David moved closer. “Collin and Ellie are like two parts to a whole. The son of the land and the daughter of the sea. Yin and yang. Do you have a counterpart?”
I started to answer with Abel’s name, but he spoke first. “Piper is Kewasa.”
“Deliverer,” David said. “What is she to deliver?”
More like who, I thought.
“Enough about the marks and her title,” Collin said, turning to me with his sharp gaze. “I want to know what you’re hiding upstairs.” He moved to the doorway to the dining room.
“What’s upstairs is none of your freaking business,” Rhys said, darting in front of me. “And this conversation feels a lot like déjà vu.”
Collin turned his piercing gaze on my friend. “If we’re staying here, then we have a right to know.”
“Feel free to stay somewhere else,” Rhys said, practically nose to nose with him.
“We can’t stay here long anyway,” Abel said, sounding exhausted. “Even if the marks keep Okeus from entering, he can simply wait outside. Human time is nothing to him. I suspect we’ll only be safe until nightfall. If even that long.” He cast a glance to me, prompting me to tell them what I had seen in my vison…or not.
“We need to come up with a plan,” I said.
Collin narrowed his eyes. “A plan to do what?”
“To kill Okeus.”
He burst out laughing. “Are you insane?”
“No. Okeus is sending an army for us, and soon. We need to take the offensive.”
“How do you know this?” Collin asked, some of his skepticism fading. “Did he tell you in the warehouse?”
I wasn’t ready to tell them I’d seen Okeus in a post-orgasmic vision. Collin would likely dismiss it completely. “It doesn’t matter how I learned about it. Okeus said he would torture and kill you and Ellie, then chain your souls to his throne of bones to torment you for eternity.”
Collin’s face paled.
“What about you?” Ellie asked. “What does he plan to do to you?”
I forced a sarcastic grin. “Lucky me, I get to have his children while Abel is forced to torture me.”
“She can’t know this for certain,” Collin said. “Okeus is waiting for the six month agreement to lapse so you can have his babies too.”
“Collin,” Ellie said, wearily “We’ve defied him multiple times. I’m not surprised if
he’s decided I’m not worth the effort.”
Collin stared at her, speechless.
“Ellie’s right,” David said. “Okeus isn’t the forgiving type. Even if he does play the long game, he likely intends to kill you both.”
“We’re nowhere near strong enough to consider killing him,” Collin insisted. “Last night was proof of that.”
“He didn’t give a timeline,” I said, “but I suspect he’s not going to wait long. We need a plan.”
Abel put a hand on my shoulder. “Everyone is exhausted. As much as I dislike the idea of lingering here, you all need rest.”
“I agree,” Ellie said. “We can get a few hours’ sleep then figure out a plan.”
Collin folded his arms over his chest, but if he disagreed, he didn’t say so.
“I have plenty of rooms upstairs for you all to sleep in. I think we need to stick together for now.” I shot a glance to Rhys and Jack. “You two included. I won’t risk either one of you getting kidnapped again.”
Jack grimaced. “Thanks for reminding me.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Rhys said. “I plan on sticking so close to Piper that she’ll think I’m her actual shadow.”
I pulled her into a tight hug. “That’s good, because you’re staying with me from here on out. I’ll barely be able to let you out of my sight.” I considered suggesting a slumber party in the living room. Rhys, Hudson, and I had done that very thing soon after we’d discovered that I was a demon hunter. We’d been too scared to sleep alone.
And now Hudson was dead.
A bakery box on the counter caught my eye. Had it only been two days ago that Hudson had bought me a donut for my birthday? Tears flooded my eyes, and I felt dangerously close to losing it.
“We’ll meet down here at one,” Abel said. “That will give us time to come up with a plan before nightfall.” Turning to Rhys, he added, “I’m sure you’re familiar with Piper’s house. Can you help assign rooms?”
“Of course.”
Part of me wanted to protest that Abel was taking charge when this was obviously my home, but I was too overcome with fresh grief over Hudson to deal with practical issues. Besides, something told me that he had another reason for sending the others off.
Chapter Seven
Piper
As everyone headed upstairs, I let Abel wrap his arms around me and hold me close.
“Is he here, Waboose?” he whispered into my ear.
I didn’t need to ask who he was asking about. “I don’t know.”
“Call him.”
I leaned back to look up at him. “What if he hates me? What if he blames me for what happened to him?”
“If he loved you as much as you’ve led me to believe, he won’t hate you.”
“Rhys hated me after she found out her girlfriend had been killed to give me a lame message from the great beyond.”
“It doesn’t look like Rhys hates you now.” Abel ran a hand down my arm. “What’s really holding you back?”
I gave him a look of surprise.
“You don’t hide from a challenge, Piper. You face them head-on, so I have to wonder why you’re hesitating now.”
My stomach churned. If I called Hudson, I might have to help him cross over. One of the last ghosts I’d helped cross over had gone to hell. Even though Hudson had done nothing to earn eternal damnation, I wasn’t sure I could bring myself to send him there if it came down to it.
But Abel was right. It was time to call my best friend.
“Hudson,” I said in a soft voice, hoping the others didn’t hear me. Selfishly, I didn’t want more of an audience when I saw him.
If I saw him.
“Hudson, are you here?”
Seconds later, he walked into the kitchen, wearing pants and a dress shirt, the top two buttons undone like he’d just come home from work. “Took you long enough to get here.” He stopped in front of me and held my gaze. “Tell me you killed the bastard demon.”
Tears flooded my eyes. “Not me, but Abel did.”
Hudson shot a glance to Abel, who was standing behind me. “Maybe you’re not so bad after all.”
Abel gave him a grim smile.
“Huddy,” I said, starting to cry. “I’m so sorry.”
He pulled me into a hug, as substantial as he’d been in life, only I’d seen his body on the floor of that warehouse. Twice. This felt like a lie. A cheat. “Don’t cry, Pippy. It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay,” I sobbed into his chest. “Nothing about this is okay.”
“You’re right. It’s not okay, but we’ll make it work.”
I shook my head and stared up at him like he’d lost his mind along with his life.
“Pippy,” he said patiently. “I can see a lot of things more clearly now, and none of this is your fault.” He shot Abel a dark look. “And, contrary to my previous opinion, it’s not his fault either. This has been in motion for centuries. You’re both pawns—and so are the people who are helping you now.”
I blinked hard and pulled out of his embrace. “How do you know any of this?”
While I’d only started seeing ghosts a few weeks ago, I’d seen plenty ever since. Few of them even realized they were dead, let alone had information about the spirit world.
Confusion flickered in his eyes. “I don’t know.”
“What else do you know?” Abel asked. “Do you know Ahone’s plans? Or Okeus’s?”
Hudson turned his attention to the demigod. “No.”
“What can you see?” Abel asked in a patient tone that surprised me.
“I can see what Pippy’s true purpose is.”
I held out my left palm. “You know?”
His mouth lifted into a smile. “It’s so much more than killing Abel.”
I shot a look at Abel—could this be confirmation that I was to be his deliverer in truth?—then shifted my attention back to Hudson. “Then what’s my true purpose?”
His expression turned sad. “I can’t tell you, but I can guide you along the way.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Guide me how?”
“I made a deal to help you.”
Panic raced through my veins as I grabbed his arm, my nails digging into his impossibly corporeal flesh. “What kind of deal?”
He stared down at me, his eyes full of love and devotion. “I couldn’t leave you, Pippy. You need all the help you can get.”
“That didn’t answer her question,” Abel ground out. “Was your deal with Okeus?”
“Why would Hudson make a deal with the devil?” I countered.
“Okeus has a way of making his deals sound enticing,” Ellie said from the kitchen door, startling me. “Trust me, I’ve been offered enough of them to know.”
How many times had she encountered Okeus?
“I’m sorry,” she said, taking a step into the kitchen. “He’s here now, isn’t he? Your friend that the Great One killed?”
I hesitated, wiping my face with my fingertips, but decided it wouldn’t hurt to tell her. “Yes.”
She hugged herself, running her hands up and down her arms. “That explains why I felt a chill.” Sympathy filled her eyes. “You need answers about the deal he made. Okeus is a tricky bastard. He tried to get me to make a deal with him multiple times and in multiple ways. He even had something pretend to be my deceased father. Are you sure you’re talking to your real friend now?”
I cast a glance at the man who claimed to be my friend. Ellie had a point. How could I be sure it was Hudson?
“What did I say to you the first day we met?” I asked.
A soft smile lit up his face. “You asked me if I was going to eat the canned peaches on my lunch tray or if you could have them.”
Tears filled my eyes again. “It’s him.”
“Then ask your friend who he spoke to,” she said.
I reached out a hand and wrapped it around her wrist, tugging her arm free. “Ask him yourself.”
Her eyes flew wide as Hudson c
ame into view for her. She instinctively pulled back, but I gently drew her closer.
“Hudson, this is Ellie Lancaster, the cousin you helped me find. Ellie, this is my best friend in the whole world, Hudson Maine.” My voice broke on the last part. I still couldn’t believe he was dead, although he clearly wasn’t gone.
Hudson reached his right hand out to hers, then hesitated when he realized I was holding Ellie’s right wrist.
I moved my hand to her shoulder, and she stiffened.
“Whoa. He disappeared for a second.”
“You have to touch me to see him.”
“He’s a ghost,” she said, keeping her arm at her side. “How can I shake his hand?”
“Try it,” I coaxed.
She lifted her hand to his and he grasped it firmly. “It’s an honor to meet you, Ellie Lancaster, defier of the gods.”
She jerked her hand away as though she’d been electrically shocked. “How do you know that title?”
“He told me.”
She held perfectly still. “Who?”
“I haven’t seen him. Only heard him. He told me I had a choice to stay here on this plane of existence to help Piper or to move on to the afterlife. I told him if I could help her at all, I would stay.”
“You said you made a deal,” Ellie pressed. “What kind of deal?”
“That sometimes I would do his bidding. He assured me it would never be anything I’d find morally offensive.”
I shook my head in horror. “Hudson.”
He’d made a deal with the voice. The one that had been ordering Jack and I around for months. Years. The one that had killed people to deliver cryptic, pointless warnings to me.
Only one other being could command such power.
“You don’t know who the voice is?” I asked.
“No, although if I had to guess, I’d say it’s Ahone.”
“Yeah. Me too.” I released him and pressed my lips together. Although Ahone was a lesser evil than his brother, he was far from trustworthy, and he’d shown an utter disregard for human life. What had Hudson gotten himself into? For me. The guilt was suffocating.
Hudson’s dark gaze held mine and a smile wobbled on his lips. “He assured me he’d never kill anyone else to send you messages. That I could deliver them instead. No more guilt over needless deaths, Pippy.”
