Cash cursed under his breath.
“You didn’t tell her, you cheeky sod,” I said.
“What’s he talking about, Cash?” Roo asked.
“It’s nothing.”
“Bollocks. Bertram told me.” In a flash, I was in front of the hunter, ripping his shirt at the center, popping buttons, displaying his bruised and manly chest for all the world to see. Tiny plastic buttons clattered to the floor and whirled loudly.
“Asshole.” Fierceness flared in Cash’s eyes and he shoved me in the chest.
“Careful now, hunter. I mean, I knew you had a death wish, but you don’t want to go there, mate, really.”
Cash’s nostrils flared as he sized me up, calculating, assessing. Fists flexed at his side, pectorals tensed, abs bunched. Obviously the little tosser wanted another go.
As if reading my mind, lightning fast, he shoved me again. I almost hadn’t seen him and he caught me unawares. I’d forgotten how quick he was. I dropped back a pace or two. He shoved me again. Lucky shot.
“Right. That’s how you want to play it then, yeah?” I teleported directly behind him and slapped him playfully over the head, then shifted back to the front, ready to laugh at his inferiority, but was met with a fist to the sternum.
I coughed as pain splintered from the site. Another lucky shot.
I growled. Right, fun time was over. Fury surged through my anatomy. White hot rage ripped through me and I jabbed him in the face, hitting him squarely in the jaw.
He staggered, head snapping backward. Slowly, he lifted his gaze to catch my eyes and wiped a smear of blood from his lip with a smirk. “Hoc est bellum, hey Marc?”
Those words hadn’t been muttered in years. Thousands.
“Why did you say that?” I asked, pausing my fist in the air.
“One of Urser’s men uttered it to me before he died. I thought it appropriate in this case.”
“Bloody Hell. Didn’t see that coming.” I stood down, urging my rage to release and let go. I scrutinized the hunter’s aura. There was no vindictiveness, no sin sparked my way, only the same steady Cash. I shook my head. Despite wanting to rip the sod’s head off, he wasn’t my enemy. Far from it.
“This is war. You know that’s what you said, yeah?”
Cash looked at me like I was barmy. “Of course I did. Why else would I say it?”
“Did you also remember that when spoken between our kind, it’s an actual declaration of war?”
“I was just…”
“I’m not talking about you and me, I’m talking about that bloody Urser soldier. Use your head, hunter, think!”
“Damn.”
“That’s right, civil war. It’s here.”
Cash slammed his fists on the kitchen bench, rattling its foundations. It was exactly how I felt.
War.
All of the time and effort spent honing this planet into something more peaceful, protecting and loving for the Simons—it will be eradicated. Bloody Urser. I knew he was up to no good. I knew it. But, honestly, the bastard had kept his machinations firmly within the confines of the rules of the Game. When did it go beyond that? When had he seen the need to teach his house those three little latin words?
When you were too busy frolicking around with Simons to notice.
I sighed. They were bloody good frolics.
“Can somebody tell me, what the hell is going on?” Roo’s voice amplified in pitch as it filled the room, bringing our attention to her.
Magnificent, I marveled. She’d instinctively used her power in her voice. Definitely not a Soul-Eater then, I thought, distracted. Unless she stole that ability off someone. I’d be utterly and truly devastated if she were one of those bloody parasites. Sure, she’d be handy in the coming war, but, what a waste.
“Do I have to repeat myself?” Roo’s wild eyes darted between us.
“Go on then, hunter, tell her the other juicy tid-bit you left out.”
Cash’s eyes shuttered, and the air deflated in his chest. “I’m dying,” he said without opening his eyes.
“What?” Roo choked, taking a step toward him. “That’s impossible. What do you mean? Shit. Have I done something?” She blinked at her hands. “Was it me touching you?”
“No, love, it’s not you. What he means is that his simple Simon shell is failing. He’ll be returning to the Empire shortly.”
“But, why didn’t you tell me?” Roo stepped away when Cash moved towards her. “You came here, and you… you lied.”
“I didn’t lie, I was—”
“You were going to quit, is what you were going to do,” I said with a smirk. This was grade-A entertainment, this. Who needed a talking box, when you had this? I folded my arms across my chest to watch the drama play out. All I needed right now was tea and honey cakes. Maybe some Ambrosia.
Cash shot a glare precisely in my direction. “How did you know?”
“God-of-the-in-between.” I pointed at myself and rolled my eyes. Really. How many times did I have to remind these people? “I can sense when people are close to crossing.”
“Bullshit.”
“Alright. It was Betram.”
“You were going to quit? As in… suicide?” Roo slid herself onto the edge of a stool. “I need to sit down.”
“I didn’t tell you because I changed my mind.” Cash gave me a pleading look, and bloody hell if it didn’t pull at the old heart strings.
Kinder, Marc. Be kinder. I could almost hear my old mate Plato preaching in my ear in his oddball Greek accent. “Be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle.” Or did I get that from a wrapper around those little mints?
I sighed. “Right. I apologize for my big mouth. I forgot about that part. You have no body to return to.”
“This is so messed up.” Roo swiped her wet eyes. “I can’t lose you now… I…” Her voice trailed off, and she appeared to look inwards, thinking about something that clearly made her distraught.
Then I remembered. Little Red had to pass the trials before being released as a full fledged Player into the Game. She was at risk of being sent back to where she came from, and even worse, being tied to her father’s house for her duration here. Royals sometimes had other duties extraneous to the game. All at once my chest constricted, and I regretted being the one to break the bad news. I didn’t like seeing her this way. Desolate and hopeless. It wasn’t right.
“Don’t worry, love, we’ll think of something.”
“So what can we do? How long do you have?” Roo locked eyes on Cash.
“Don’t know,” he said. “Could be months. Could be about a year, maybe more, maybe less. I guess it depends on how much I use my abilities. Bertram said the more I use them, the more I’ll burn through my body. It’s not exactly like I can stop smelling or sensing things.”
I snorted. “Definitely don’t go using that flaming sword thingy then. Any expended energy will tax your body.”
Cash stopped short. “What sword?”
“You know, the one you used to… I thought you said your memories were returning.”
“In dribs and drabs.”
“Mate.” A smile inched up the side of my face. “You had the ability to conjure a sword made of flames. Red for eternal death, blue for severing souls from bodies, yellow for something or another. I stopped paying attention when you gave your little speeches to the rest of the cavalry. I much preferred to use my skills for loving than fighting.”
They both stared at me dumbly.
“What? Haven’t you ever heard ‘it’s all fair in love and war’? Who do you think that came from?”
Silence from the two of them echoed in the air.
“Right. Well, you’ve most likely heard of the Archangel Michael using a flaming sword to kick the sinners out of Eden and removing the ingredient they needed to return. That was you, hunter, except in the case of truth, you used it to kill all the infected Simons the Queen left behind. You and your bloody sword. I mean, talk about a man having an unnatur
al attachment to his appendage. You could just fire it up anywhere, any time. Magnificent, really. C’mon people. I told you all this back in Australia. Didn’t I?”
Roo’s eyes darted from side to side and a frown creased her brow. “Actually, I think you did mention the Archangel, but for some reason, I got stuck on the Egyptian mythology. Or was it Roman? I’m getting so confused.”
“It’s all bloody the same, isn’t it, love? Different tales, same story.”
“But we don’t know all that! You know that! Maybe if you told us exactly what happened all those years ago, you’d save us a lot of trouble. Why can’t you people all just write one book about what you did, instead of five million?”
“No need to get snarky. And besides, we don’t write the books, our believers do.”
“Why did you come here, Marc?” Cash asked, jaw clenched. “I can’t believe it was to screw everything up for me. There had to be another reason.”
“Yes. That’s right. I came here to tell you I spoke with that witch”—I flinched at the word—“who helped you disappear in the first place. Rather ironic really.”
“Does she know where my real body is?”
“She said you split your soul by yourself.”
“How does that help us?” Roo asked.
I shrugged. I didn’t have all the answers.
“Aren’t you supposed to be more invested in Players? Shouldn’t this be your job—to help him with this stuff?” Little Red’s temper flared, giving her an invigorating flush.
“What do you think I’ve been doing, love, and besides, I was never charged with protecting Players. It’s my job to protect the Simons. Making sure Players don’t step out of line is part of that.”
“So you don’t give a shit what happens to Cash?”
“He’ll survive.”
A strangled scream ripped from her lungs and shook the walls. She launched to her feet, fists clenching at her side. “Between the two of you, I don’t know why I bother. You’re both bloody arrogant assholes who only care about yourselves.”
She stormed toward the door.
“Where do you think you are going?” Cash snapped.
“To the car. We’re late for a funeral,” she shot back.
But when she opened the door, someone was waiting for her.
Cash
Fear exploded when I saw what waited on the other side of the door. James, or rather, what was left of James burst through with an inhuman growl. Roo yelped and jumped back in surprise, shielding herself behind the open door.
The emaciated boy’s thin, gray skin had sunk below the hollows of his cheeks. His eyes were distant, focused inwards on something, yet flashed around the room with unfettered hunger. A sickly sweet and sour scent saturated the air. The same scent I had smelled back at the dorm. The boy stank of rotten, decaying flesh, like a witch.
“Where is it?” James spat.
“Where is what?” I positioned myself between James and Roo by bracing my hand on the edge of the door to hold it firm. The message was clear: Go through me to get to her.
“You stole it. You took it from me. I need more.” James’s fingers clawed at my forearm but I deflected with my palm, like swatting a fly.
He must have meant the vial found in the scarab.
“It’s gone, James. There’s none left.”
“You’re lying. I smell it on you.”
The fact that he could smell something like that was a testament to new abilities he shouldn’t have as a human. Which posed the question, what was he becoming?
“I had it, but it’s gone.”
A wail ripped from him and he sunk to his knees, fingers raking down my front, cutting into me with new claws. “But I’m so hungry.”
Roo ducked under my arm and knelt beside the boy. “It’s okay. I’ll get you some food.”
“Roo, get back.”
I made to grab her but James beat me to it. It happened so fast that all I registered was the whites of his eyes as his yellowed teeth latched onto Roo’s shoulder.
“No!” I punched him in the temple, knocking him out. He fell in her arms, a dead weight.
“No more!” Roo held her trembling hand in the air, too late. “He’s sick. I can fix him, stop. Please, no more.”
At her words, I froze, my blood running cold. Those were the exact words the Queen had used in my memory. Her words. Something clicked inside me as ice cold recognition slammed down my spine. I met Marc’s blue eyes, hoping he’d allay my confusion.
The god’s face turned white, and he held the same cocktail of expression: shock, recognition and fear, all rolled into one.
“Fuck.” The word fell from my mouth.
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking, mate?” Marc murmured.
My eyes bored into the smarmy god, trying to figure out if he indeed thought the same thing. He was there that day, he’d heard the Queen proclaim to be able to fix them.
“How can we be sure?” I replied.
Unaware of what conspired between Marc and I, Roo touched her palm on the poor boy’s chest, holding him steady. She met our gazes with defiant eyes.
“He’s just a boy,” she whispered. “There’s something off with is aura. I can’t explain it, but, maybe it’s the book in me, maybe it’s something else. I think I can fix him. I know I can. He’s innocent.”
She leant in to listen to James’s breath. “He’s breathing,” she mumbled, and kept checking for signs of health.
Air rushed out of Marc’s flared nostrils, and when he returned his gaze to me, he spoke softly under his breath. “I know her true name.”
“Say it.”
In slow motion and with anticipation pulling the air thick, together, we studied Roo as Marc whispered one word: “Seraphina.”
A wave of tremors tore over her body as she clearly felt the sensation caused by a Seraphim’s true name being called. Surprised at her body’s reaction, she was unaware the effect came from Marc’s whispered word. She strained to maintain control, to hide the sensation from both of us, and when it was over, she patted her throat, as though she’d nearly fainted, but we’d seen the truth.
Rock solid affirmation gripped my heart.
The Queen. Seraphina.
Unaware, vulnerable, and trapped in a Nephilim body. It had to be.
The knowledge brought every protective gene rushing to the surface of my body.
Nobody can find out. Not even her.
The room swayed and sweat trickled down my spine. I put my hand on Marc to steady myself, swallowing. “She mustn’t know.”
Marc’s wide eyes blinked at him. The tendons in his jaw ticked as he clearly thought over something. “I don’t like lying to her,” he breathed.
I gave him a reproachful look. “We have no choice. She’s a sitting duck.”
It seemed like an age before either of us breathed, and it wasn’t until Roo snapped us out of our stasis that we moved. “Well, Marc, Cash? Did you hear what I said?”
“Sorry, love, what did you say?”
“Should we take him back to your clinic, Cash, or should I have a go at fixing him?”
I snapped back into focus. “Yes, they might have formulated an antidote.”
“Perfect,” Roo said. “Marc, you’ll be the quickest there. Why don’t you go and check?”
“Yes, love. Right on it.” Marc held my arm and moved us both so our backs were to her. He lowered his voice for my ears only. “You may be right. She can’t know until she’s in full control of her memories. I will have to go back and confirm her body is safe. Who knows what’s happened for her to turn up on this planet as a lowly Player. If there were any a time to resume her training, it is now. Remind her how powerful she is. Give her the tools to protect herself. It’s impertinent you watch her at all times.”
“I won’t leave her side.”
“If she takes a piss, I want you there.”
My teeth ground. “I get it.”
“Do you?” Marc’s e
yes flashed. “Because if I’m not mistaken, hunter, you were about to quit. There is nothing more vital than protecting her. Without her, the Empire is in ruin. She’s the only thing holding the warring territories at bay. Her and this bloody game.” His eyes ran over my body, assessing. “How long do you have, again?”
“Bertram is uncertain. A year, more or less.”
“Right. I will be back long before then. Oh, and… there’s something else.”
I tossed a glance over my shoulder to where Roo shifted James, trying to make him comfortable, checking his temperature with the back of her hand, of all things. “What is it?” My eyes returned to Marc.
The god’s appearance flickered to his younger self with alarm painted over his face. “I was followed.”
I stiffened. “Here?”
“No. Earlier.”
“I’m yet to see the relevance.”
“It was when I took her with me to the bar—through the in-between.”
Realization dawned on me. “They’ll know about her. Whoever it was following you, they’ll know. Well, at least that she’s not who she says she is.”
Marc nodded solemnly. “I screwed up.”
“Guys!” Roo urged, interrupting them.
“Going, pet.” Marc gave me one last soulful look before dissolving into the atmosphere, granules of sandy dust falling to the ground in his wake.
Frozen to the spot, I didn’t know what to do. Thoughts escaped me. My world had just been turned on its head. All that remained was residual awe. The naïve, innocent woman I wanted to indecently devour an hour ago was the almighty, all powerful Queen sitting in half-human body. The same reverence I’d felt in my dream seeped into my bones. No wonder I’d felt the way I had when around her. I’d loved her through eternity.
Flashes of the people I killed flickered past my eyes and a grinding feeling twisted my gut. I’d loved her, but in the end, I’d hated who I had become for her.
Today, I wasn’t the same person and neither was she.
I could do things differently this time. I could speak my mind and hold my resolve. I wouldn’t let her put either of us in the position where we had to eradicate a world to erase a mistake.
“Don’t just stand there looking like you’re trying to figure out the number brown, get over here and help me position him before he wakes. Let’s move him to the gym mat.”
The Game of Gods: Series Box Set Page 43
