by Juniper Hart
A moan of frustration and despair escaped Sierra’s lips.
There was no going back now. Rowan was a sure thing. Tobias had a bad track record. The choice was clear. She had to follow through with her promise to Rowan.
The psychic shop was lit up, an eerie glow against the seedy street.
Sierra had not forewarned the priestess that she was coming that night, but oftentimes, Rowan could anticipate her arrivals.
She spends more time hovering over that crystal ball than she does anything else, Sierra thought grimly. She wasn’t sure if she wanted her presence foreseen that night.
She sat in Simone’s car, unmoving, her green eyes fixated on the shop. She bided her time, unsure if Rowan was alone inside or not. Interrupting Rowan while she was with a client would surely result in wrath, no matter what prize Sierra was carrying with her. Rowan took her readings very seriously. Yet as the minutes passed, her stress levels rose dramatically. Time was wasting, and Sierra could wait no longer, not when her child’s health lay in the balance.
She jumped from the silver car and hurried toward the entranceway, a windchime announcing her arrival as she entered the hazy shop.
It was the quintessential spiritualist shop, decorated with bronze suns and silver moons. The Eye of Providence hung conspicuously in the three spots beyond a beaded curtain, and as Sierra ventured further inside, the scent of Nag Champa incense filled her nostrils. Usually, the scent was warm and welcoming, but in that moment, it churned her already unsettled stomach. She didn’t hear voices at first, and she moved past the makeshift partition toward the back office, where she saw the door closed.
“—done it, I’m sure. Any moment, we’ll know.” Rowan’s voice met her ears, and Sierra pushed herself nearer, hand raised to knock and let her know she had arrived.
“I’m looking forward to meeting this girl,” a man said, and Sierra felt her body stiffen at the sound of his voice. “It takes a great deal of balls to do something like that—even for a Collingwood.”
Who is with her? Sierra wondered, alarm coursing through her. Are they talking about me? Although she could sense danger beyond, what could she do other than enter now? Her only other option was turning and running from the shop, but not without the Shroud of Protection. Do I know that man? His voice isn’t familiar, and yet…
“She had the proper motivation,” Rowan replied, her tone almost a purr of satisfaction. “If the reward is good enough, you can get anyone to do anything at all.”
“You must tell me what you offered her, Rowan. I can’t imagine that anyone would be stupid enough to take on Toby Sutton—unless she’s unstable.”
Rowan chuckled dryly. “And yet you are, Helios, ready to do the very same thing.”
There was a deep, ominous silence, and suddenly, Sierra knew there was a demon in the shop.
A thousand thought floated through her as she tried to make sense of what was happening. Helios, she remembered, had been in hiding for centuries after losing his mate, Carina, in a legendary event that had killed her. Until the aranium sword had been produced, the demons had been unstoppable, and Helios had used that to his advantage. But what was he doing there? Why was he working with Rowan? And what did he want with the Chasm?
Sierra tried desperately to link what she knew to her current situation. Helios had once reigned over the criminal underworld, hadn’t he?
Shivers of apprehension shot through her as she suddenly understood what was happening; Helios had come to reclaim his rights in the underworld from Tobias. And Rowan was helping him.
Helios is here, and they are talking about me. They are talking about the book. Rowan lied to me. She doesn’t want the Chasm. She is giving it to the most dangerous demon that ever lived.
Sierra didn’t have to be told the repercussions of what would happen if the book fell into the wrong hands. The Chasm was a powerful weapon in itself, if one knew how to use it.
“I feel like you’re mocking me, Rowan,” Helios growled after a long moment of quiet. “And I think you know how much I despise being mocked.”
“I would never mock you,” Rowan replied quickly, and even through the thickness of the door, Sierra heard a slight panic in her voice. “I’m just worried that taking on Toby Sutton might not be the best course of action right now.”
“Are you telling me what’s best for me?” he hissed.
“I’m not!” Rowan squealed, her voice higher than Sierra had ever heard it. “Y-you know what you’re doing, Helios.”
Panic prickled through her, every instinct telling her to run, but Sierra couldn’t bring herself to move, not when she had risked so much for Aurora.
“Why has your girl stolen the book? What have you promised her?” Helios asked again, and Sierra willed her not to answer.
Don’t tell him about my daughter! she begged silently. Tell him nothing!
A strange noise met her ears, and she drew her head closer, realizing that Rowan was being attacked by the demon beyond the door. She clutched the bag to her chest, stepping back. Her heart was thudding dangerously, but there was nothing she could do to silence it. She had to get out of there. She couldn’t give the book to Rowan. She’d made a terrible mistake.
The reality of what was happening flooded Sierra like a wave, and she chomped on her lower lip to keep from crying out, though she still could not force herself to leave, not until she heard everything from Rowan’s lips.
“Tell me!” Helios barked, and a terrible gasping followed suit. The demon had released Rowan, it seemed.
“I promised her a Shroud of Protection for her child,” Rowan moaned. A thousand stabs of dread flowed through Sierra.
Oh, Rowan…
“Her child?” Helios sounded dumbfounded by the confession. “Why does the child need a Shroud of Protection?”
“The baby has HID. She is half bear shifter.”
Another deep silence ensued, and suddenly, a low, sinister laugh filled the room. “And you promised her a Shroud? You cannot give her such a thing. That is only something an underworld lord can provide her.”
“She doesn’t know that,” Rowan choked. “She thinks the spell is inside the book.”
The world around Sierra began to spin as Helios’ chortle grew louder until it filled her ears entirely.
“Oh, that is deliciously cruel!” the demon howled. “She’s going to be angry when she learns the truth.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Rowan countered quickly. “When I have the book, I’ll pretend to perform the ritual, and I will disclose her location anonymously to Toby’s minions. They’ll deal with her betrayal, and the matter will end there.”
“Pity that,” Helios sighed. “She sounds like she would be an asset in my reign. Ah, well, you will simply have to find me another good thief.”
“And I will,” Rowan assured him. “I trained this one, after all. If not for that kid, she may have worked out for many years to come.”
“The good ones always find their follies,” Helios agreed.
It was all Sierra needed to hear, and she spun blindly to claw her way out of the shop before they could sense her there. It was a small miracle they hadn’t already, but they were apparently so caught up in their devious scheme, their good sense had failed them both. Sierra used the distraction to her full advantage.
She had been duped by Rowan. There was nothing the priestess could do to save Aurora. And she had stolen from the only being who might be able to save her baby.
Pushing her way out of the shop, she went to Simone’s car again and zoomed away, tears stinging her eyes.
If Tobias so much as sees me, he will kill me. There will be no explaining my case to him. He’ll listen to me about as much as I listened to him when he tried to tell me what happened that night. I got what I wanted—for him to feel betrayed, but at what cost?
She could barely see through the waterworks slipping down her cheeks, her breath as labored as her baby’s had been for weeks.
There was
nothing left to do except find a place to hide until Aurora succumbed to her illness.
And then I will find a way to return the book to Tobias, and I will die, too.
10
The rage flowing through Toby’s veins was unlike anything he had felt in centuries. It seemed to have taken on its own form and lived outside his body like an entirely new being, awash with fury. Of course, he had experienced anger in the past, but nothing quite as venomous as what he felt in the moments following Sierra’s abrupt departure.
“We’ll find her,” Shane reassured him. “She can’t have gotten far, boss.”
“Find that damned book!” Toby howled, pacing around the library. “Bring her to me alive!”
“Are you sure, Toby? If she has the book, I can take care of her. She’s only a witch—easy to take out. You’ve got enough to worry about without Sierra Collingwood.”
“Alive,” Toby repeated dully. “And untouched.” The mere thought of someone harming her, despite what she had done to him, was devastating, but he knew he couldn’t permit this infraction to go unpunished. He would deal with Sierra in his own way.
The ire burning through his body was not directed strictly at his one-time lover. He knew that she was working under Rowan and possibly Helios, and he was far more enraged by the high priestess and his nemesis. No matter how furious he was at Sierra, they had to have promised her something she needed.
Whatever it was would never happen. By the time Toby got his hands on them, they would be begging for exile—or death.
He considered calling on Theo Veriday for help. After all, Helios was his problem. But that would mean answering questions about his own illicit activities, the very ones that Toby had inherited from the fallen demon.
This was a mess he didn’t need right now. His entire life was coming apart at the seams, and the woman he had been pining after had been the nail in his coffin.
Does Sierra hate me so much that she would risk a civil war over it? Simply because I disappeared after a one-night stand?
It didn’t make sense. He could not claim to know Sierra perfectly, but his instincts told him that she was not a spite-driven being, no matter how hurt she might be. It was illogical, and nothing about Sierra seemed imbalanced. Then again, Toby had been wrong before, hadn’t he? He thought she had gone to see him, not to steal the Chasm of Purity.
“Bring me Rowan,” he growled to Shane. “And I don’t care if she’s unscathed—but I do want her alive.”
There was a knock at the library door, and both bears tensed, watching as it swung inward. At this point, Toby wasn’t sure who to expect anymore. For all he knew, Helios would be storming into his study, demanding his rightful place among the underworld.
Maybe I should just give it to him, a tiny voice reasoned, but Toby instantly silenced it. He wasn’t giving Helios a damned thing. He had built up the Enchanted mob himself over the centuries, and there was nothing Helios was going to do to take it from him.
“Hey, TS,” Paul chirped from the doorway. “Dinner is starting, and everyone wants to know where you are. They’re opening the phone lines to the public now, too.”
For a long moment, all Toby could do was stare blankly at Paul, his words making no sense. For a strange, foreign second, he had forgotten about the gala affair occurring beyond the walls of his study, as if everything had disappeared with Sierra. He wanted to tell his PR manager to take a flying leap off a tall building, but he quickly reminded himself why the night was happening in the first place.
“I’ll be right there,” he said, catching his temper before all the stress exploded from his mouth.
Paul nodded slowly and eyed Shane suspiciously, carefully choosing his next words. “I heard the alarm. Is everything okay?”
Exasperation overwhelmed Toby. “Paul, can you kindly get the hell out? This is a private matter.”
“Oh, sure, sure,” he replied hurriedly, backing out of the room. “I was just going to say that if you—”
“Close the door behind you!” Toby snapped. He waited for Paul to move out of earshot before turning back to Shane. “If you find Rowan, you’ll find Sierra. She may have already brought the book to her.”
Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to catch them before too much damage is done, he mused, though he didn’t have high hopes. If the Chasm ended up in Helios’ hands, gods only knew what catastrophic events lay ahead for everyone.
It was impossible to know what Helios wanted with the book. Was it merely a way of gaining the upper hand, or did he need something in it—something that might help him finish what he had started with Carina all those years ago? He could find a way to wipe out all the mortals if he still so desired. Or was his mind more on executing revenge on all those who had helped kill her?
It was only a matter of time before Toby found out for certain.
Shane waited, sensing that there was more to the order.
“If you see Helios…” Toby continued, gritting his teeth. Instantly, his mind fluttered back to the night he had met Sierra, but his memory was of the mess Marius had made in the barfight, the death of another shifter, when his cousin had been sentenced to death by the Council and Toby had been banished for the coverup.
He couldn’t kill Helios. He had no access to the sword or aranium without calling on Theo Veriday. He had to find another way to get rid of him once and for all. Then the Council would owe him and let him run his businesses without constant scrutiny.
“Don’t do anything if you find Helios,” Toby finished. “Just bring me Rowan and find Sierra Collingwood.”
Shane nodded and disappeared after Paul, leaving Toby alone in the den again.
Toby had such a difficult time accepting that Sierra had played him for a fool, that she had manipulated him. The emotion he saw in her could not be faked. There was still something there, something between them which had survived the misunderstanding, even if she didn’t fully realize it.
The woman stole the most priceless artifact in the world, and I’m still thinking about how succulent she tastes. I don’t deserve to be lord of the Enchanted underworld. I’m weak!
But it didn’t matter how much he wanted to hate Sierra. He just couldn’t bring himself to do it.
To his relief, the rest of the fundraiser went off without a hitch, and by one a.m., security had cleared the estate of all the lingering guests.
Paul and Toby sat at an abandoned table in the ballroom as the staff cleaned up around them. Despite the emptiness of the room, Toby felt anything but relief. He looked about the disaster, shaking his dark head of hair ruefully. It never ceased to amaze him what slobs the uber rich could be.
They have absolutely no respect for anything, he thought disdainfully. I guess that’s easy to do when everything is dispensable in your world.
“That was a huge success, TS!” Paul announced gleefully. “We raised twenty million in total. They really should build a new wing and name it after you.”
Toby bristled at the lighthearted suggestion. “I don’t give a shit about a new wing,” he said, his mind not remotely on the party. “I care that this boosted my stock and helped to sweep aside the BS that Catherine created. And you know, the kids…”
“I’m sure you have nothing to worry about,” Paul replied, a knowing smile on his face. “You have the endorsement of some of the biggest celebrities.”
“That’s because our pharmaceuticals feed their neuroses,” Toby retorted. “It’s in their best interest to side with Sutton Industries. What other pharmaceutical company can compete with our quality?”
Paul nodded in agreement, downing the remainder of his scotch before rising from the table.
“Well, that’s what you pay me the big bucks for,” he reminded Toby. “And I think everything went perfectly. You have nothing to worry about. Sandrine will kill that lawsuit, and you’ll be back to living your life as always.”
“I hope you’re right,” Toby muttered, but he felt confident that at least that problem in h
is life was over. Now he had to conquer the other mess.
“Thanks for a fun night, boss,” Paul called, saluting him as he turned to leave. “I hope you find whatever it was that was stolen from you.”
Toby tensed at the offhanded remark. Who had told Paul anything had been stolen?
“What do you know about it?” he demanded.
“Nothing,” Paul answered with a shrug. Toby believed him. After all, he was just a clueless mortal. Even if he had seen the book, he wouldn’t know what it was. His eyes wouldn’t recognize anything but a bunch of Cyrillic on a page. Humans wouldn’t see the encryptions, moving in blinking lines across the ancient paper. That was for Enchanted eyes only.
And Paul does not strike me as the reading type, anyway.
“But I heard some of the security guys say the suspect was that gorgeous redhead I saw you with earlier. That’s what I was going to say to you in the library before you sent me on my way.”
“What about her?” Toby couldn’t keep the sharpness from his tone, but the mere mention of Sierra was enough to send his skin into a full body prickle. Even a reference of her sounded filthy from Paul’s hipster lips.
“Well, I guess you know her because you were talking to her, but I swear I’ve seen her somewhere else before.”
Interest overtook his suspicion, and Toby stared at Paul expectantly. Could this schmuck know where to find her?
“Her name is Sierra Collingwood,” Toby said slowly, his eyes boring into Paul’s unsuspecting face. “Does that mean anything to you?”
“No,” Paul replied. Toby sank back into his chair with disappointment. “But I’m sure I’ve seen her with Theo Veriday on occasion.”
Toby gaped at him, his blood running cold.
“Theo Veriday?” he echoed dubiously. “What do you mean with her?” That was the last place Toby could imagine finding Sierra. Paul had to be out of his mind. There was no way that Theo Veriday would be associated with a known criminal. He was far too self-righteous for that.
