by Amy Sumida
“I'm the God of Light, not the God of the Sun.”
“Really? I would have sworn you were a sun god. How odd,” I murmured.
“Marduk's light stems from the Sun,” Ninkasi explained. “He's technically the God of Water, Vegetation, Judgment, and Magic, but he inherited sunlight from his father.”
“Judgment, eh?” I asked dryly. “That explains a lot.”
Ninkasi chortled.
“Stop telling the Dragon about me!” Marduk snapped at Ninkasi.
“I already know about you; I saw a documentary.” I grinned. “It was what inspired me to come here.”
“What?” Sin gaped at me. “He's the reason you came to Bahrain?”
Marduk eyes flashed again, and he leaned across the table toward me with grim anticipation. “What do you want? Why are you here?”
“The documentary was on your entire pantheon,” I amended. “Actually, it was Tiamat who interested me the most.”
“Of course!” Marduk spat as if I'd confirmed his suspicions. “The Dragon drew another dragon here. Even dead she brings us trouble.”
“Mar, you need to let that shit go.” Sin rolled his eyes. “That happened eons ago. Vervain isn't here to slaughter our pantheon.”
Not if you behave and do what you're told, Star sang in my head.
“From what the documentary said, it sounded as if Tiamat was avenging her husband,” I pointed out.
“Apsu attacked us!” Marduk slammed a fist on the table. “We were defending ourselves. Then Tiamat assembled an army and sent it to slaughter us.”
“An army of monsters and dragons,” I whispered wistfully. “What an amazing woman she must have been.”
“You see?” Marduk waved his hand toward me as he looked at Ninkasi and Sin. “This is what excites Dragons; blood and war.”
“And sex.” I nodded. “Although I think that's more due to the fact that I'm a love goddess with War and Victory as sub-magics than my being a dragon. And I'm not here for war. I'm here for peace.”
Marduk snorted.
Don't go telling him all of our secrets just yet, Star warned me.
Yes; you're right. I thought I might enlist these gods into my army, but I don't think they're ready to sign up.
We don't need them. The point of you being here is to check out the locals and see if you like it enough to stay.
“She just broke up with her husband, okay?” Sin huffed at Marduk. “Leave her alone. So, she saw a documentary and was interested in roaming the land where another dragon once walked. So what?”
“Is that why you're here, Dragon? To walk in your ancestor's claw prints?” Marduk sneered.
“First of all; I'm a dragon-sidhe. A faerie, you ignorant racist. I'm not related to Tiamat. Second, if I were here to bring you trouble,” I leaned across the table, got into his face, and let my eyes go fiery as I dropped my voice into a menacing tone, “you'd already be dead.”
Marduk's glare trembled, and he slowly eased backward. He got to his feet as he kept that wide stare on me. “I killed the greatest dragon to ever live, and I can kill you too; faerie or beast, it doesn't matter.”
“Baby, you don't know who you're talking to.” I smirked. “You don't even know my name.”
“I don't need to know your name to tear you into pieces,” he snarled and stormed away.
“You should learn it before you attack me,” I called after him. “So you can scream it when you beg me for mercy.”
Marduk turned and started heading back toward me but another man stood, grabbed him by the shoulder, and whispered something into his ear. Marduk pulled away and stormed out of the room.
“Damn,” Ninka exclaimed under her breath. “That was amazing. I've never seen anyone deal with Marduk like that.”
“Yes, you make friends wherever you go, Godhunter,” Sin noted brightly.
“She's the Godhunter?” Ninkasi gaped at me.
I rolled my eyes. I announce that I'm a faerie dragon and imply that I can kick Marduk's ass all over Bahrain, but she's more impressed that I had once been a human who hunted Gods. Go figure.
Chapter Twelve
“You are the most fascinating woman I've ever met,” Sin announced after I gave him and Ninkasi a summary of my past.
“I've had a lot to deal with.” I shrugged. “It's been rough but there have been rewards.”
An image of the love bower Trevor had made for us popped into my mind. Flowers strewn through the woven branches and pillows cast across silk sheets with my wolf lying naked in the middle of it all. I shivered as my eyes filled with tears.
Stop that! He couldn't even face you. He made the Wolf do it. And what did that animal do? He told you that you smelled wrong and took your son away from you.
Vero, I whispered brokenheartedly.
He's fine. Those men love their children. That, at least, I'm sure of. They'll take care of the babies and your cat. You can get them back later, after we've made the world safe for them.
“Vervain?” Sin asked in concern.
“Have another shot, girl.” Ninkasi refilled my glass. “Mar can be an asshole, but he's harmless. All bitterness and no bite. He's probably on his way home to sleep it off.”
“Oh, I'm not worried about him,” I said flippantly. “I really could kill him if I wanted to; I don't bluff. Bluffing is foolish.”
Sin and Ninkasi shared wide-eyed looks.
“Sorry. Did that sound arrogant?”
“Well, I always say; it's not arrogant if it's true.” Sin winked at me. “So, will you at least dance with me, dragon lady?”
Before I could answer, a shimmering haze sparked blue directly beside our table and then solidified into a man. An angel, to be precise.
“Azrael?” I gaped at my husband.
“Carus,” Az whispered with relief. Then his gaze swung out to include Sin. “Who are you?”
“I'm Sin. Who are you?” Sin shot back as he looked Az up and down.
“Yes; I'd like to know that as well since you just traced into my club,” Ninkasi added with a cocked head.
“I'm Azrael Morningstar, Ruler of Shehaquim, Guardian of the Garden of Eden, Son of Satan, and Vervain's husband,” Az declared as he spread his midnight wings with a dramatic whoosh.
The room went silent beyond that feathered wall.
“You forgot; Angel of Death,” I noted dryly.
“Technically, I stepped down from that position so I didn't think I should include it,” Az murmured as his wings drooped a little.
“Once Death, always Death. It's your magic, Az; no one can take it from you.”
Except for us, Star added in my head.
“The fucking Angel of Death is her husband?” Ninkasi whispered to Sin.
“True,” Azrael conceded, ignoring my new friends. Then he shook his head and glared at me. “What are you doing here, Vervain?”
“I thought I'd take in the sights. Have a nice stroll through the desert, meet some new people, drink something exotic. You know; expand my horizons.” I shrugged. “How did you find me anyway?”
“I'm your husband. You made a blood oath to me, remember?” Az said impatiently. “Plus, I'm bound to the Garden and the Garden has ties to this place. As soon as you set foot here, I knew where you were.”
“But you waited until now to come,” I pointed out and grimaced. “Where are the others?”
“They were too angry. I thought it best that I speak to you alone.” Azrael looked pointedly at Ninkasi and Sin. “Can we talk in private?”
I sighed and stood up. “Of course.” I looked back at the other gods. “Sorry for leaving so soon but I'd best deal with this and I think I've brought enough drama to your club for one evening. Thank you for bringing me here, Sin, and thank you for your hospitality, Ninkasi. It was lovely to meet you both.”
“Come back again; it's been a blast,” Ninkasi offered immediately.
Sin stood up. “Are you sure you want to leave with him?”
“St
ay out of this!” Azrael snapped. “You've known her a few hours; I've known her two lifetimes.”
Sin just looked at me.
“I'll be fine,” I assured him. “I'm staying at the Fraser Suites, the Royal Penthouse if you'd like to stop by sometime.”
“I'll come by tomorrow and check on you,” he promised.
“She won't be there,” Azrael growled, grabbed my arm, and traced us away.
Chapter Thirteen
Azrael traced us to Shehaquim, the Third Heaven, which he ruled. It was also the territory where the Garden of Eden had been transported to after its brief stint on Earth. We stepped out of the tracing room in Azrael's palace, and he immediately turned to me.
“What are you doing, Vervain?” Azrael asked, his expression baffled. “Bahrain? Why?”
“I saw a documentary.”
“You saw a documentary?” He gaped at me.
“Yes. It looked interesting.”
“Carus, can't you see that—?”
“Oh, hey guys,” Mike, AKA the Archangel Michael, stepped into the hallway. “I thought I heard someone out here. What's going on? Everything okay?”
Azrael had been attending the Angelic University in Zebul, the Sixth Heaven, and he didn't have a lot of time to rule Shehaquim so Mike had stepped in to help. He had even moved into Azrael's palace temporarily.
“We're having some marital problems,” Azrael said as he led me past Mike. “Sorry, Mike; it's good to see you, but I need to talk privately to my wife. We'll be in my bedroom.”
“No prob.” Mike waved at me. “Lookin' good, Vervain. You do something different to your hair?”
“I freed my star from its restrictions,” I called back.
“Oh.” Mike blinked. “Well, it shows.”
“Thank you.”
Azrael and I climbed the sweeping, Gone with the Wind staircase in silence, his hand gripping mine as if I might disappear at any second. Even Star remained quiet; neither of us knew what Azrael's intentions were; this could go either way. My heart beat wildly. I was hoping that at least one of my husbands would realize his mistake and try to fix our marriage.
We stepped into Azrael's spacious bedroom. Sunlight streamed in from the balcony, shining through the stained glass set within the railing and painting the thick rug with sheer washes of color. The light stretched through the French doors, behind the sitting area, and barely touched the edge of the enormous bed. Four posters in the form of giants scythes arched their blades over the center of the bed where they connected. Black silk draped the scythes, tied back around the handles.
“You redecorated?” I asked in surprise.
“Mike thought it was funny; a scythe bed for the Grim Reaper. He did it while I've been gone.” Azrael waved away the issue of the death bed, closed the bedroom door, and started again, “Can't you see that the Star is changing you; altering your personality? Vainamoinen's magic has infected you, Vervain. You're starting to behave like one of the Finns.”
“I'm not stealing magic from other gods nor am I planning to do so.”
“No; you just want to control the world,” he said it as if it were laughable.
“I can control the world, Az,” I said gently. “The Star has connections to the greatest magic in all the Realms. If I wanted to, I could simply wish myself into the position of World Leader.”
“Then why don't you?” His pale blue eyes shifted into sparkling diamonds as they narrowed. “You know this is wrong, and you're fighting it; that's why. Somewhere inside you, you're still my wife. Fight harder, Carus!” He grabbed my upper arms urgently. “Don't disappear on me.”
“Azrael, stop,” I whispered gently as I laid a palm on his cheek.
He closed his eyes and leaned into my touch.
“I'm still me, just smarter. I see everything clearly now.”
Azrael opened his eyes and pulled away with a sigh. “No, you don't, Carus. It's the opposite; you're being blinded by power.”
“Az, I can make the world safe. Truly safe. No more war. No more God War. Don't you want our sons to grow up without the God War threatening their family?”
“Of course, I do. But conquering everyone—Gods and humans—is not the way to end the war. You talk about freedom, but what you're really saying is that you want to enslave the world.”
“Not enslave,” I protested. “I'll be a guardian, like the Police except on a global scale. I'll make sure that bad people and bad gods can't hurt the good ones. So simple, but no one has had the power to do it. Well, I do, and I'm not going to waste this gift.”
“Do you understand how many good people will die during this process?” Az asked softly.
“What about the millions who will live in safety because of that sacrifice? How many generations will be born and live without fear because of a few deaths? I think it's worth it, Az.”
“You can't know how many will die, Carus, or how many will be unhappy under your rule. Conquerors are feared, not loved. Is that truly what you want? To be a dictator?”
“No.”
Azrael started to relax.
“I want to be the Supreme Goddess,” I went on, and he paled. “The only goddess to be worshiped. Then the Gods will be forced to come to me for their immortality, and I can keep them in check.”
“Now, you sound like Zeus.”
I slapped him automatically and then immediately gasped and laid my hand on his cheek. “I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I shouldn't have done that.”
Az pressed his hand over mine and stared at me forlornly. “Fight this, Carus. Please. Come back to me.”
“Come back with me, Az,” I implored. “Be the God to my Goddess. Rule the world with me. I love you. It's always been you and me, ever since you held my soul in your hands. That kind of connection trumps all others. You know me better than anyone else. You know that I want the best for the world; for Gods and humans. We can make it a safe place together.”
“Carus, I...” Azrael took a deep breath and as he let it out, his eyes shimmered back to pale blue. “Okay.”
“Okay?” I beamed at him. “Truly?”
“Truly.” Az pulled me into an embrace and kissed me.
There was no anger or resentment in his kiss. Just sweet, gentle passion. Softly stroking hands and heartbeats pounding together. I had my husband back; one down, six to go. As I sank into relief and pleasure in Azrael's arms, Star spoke into my mind.
He's playing you. He thinks that if he's with you, he has a better chance of turning you back into your old self.
If that's true, then I shall have the chance to convince him that this change is positive. I'll prove to him that I'm not tainted.
Fair enough, her voice slid into a calculatingly pleased tone.
On the contrary; I intend to play very unfairly.
Even better.
Chapter Fourteen
“Nice view,” Azrael noted as he stood at the window of our penthouse suite.
I joined him and considered the city. I've never been a fan of cities, although they were prettier at night; all sparkling lights and shining metal. This city, in particular, stood like a bastion against an almost apocalyptic stretch of dusty sand that somehow seemed even bleaker with the sharp crisscross of roadways, aggressive expanse of bridges, and the deep indigo ocean that scooped into it.
“If you like dirt and steel,” he went on as if he could hear my thoughts.
“I agree; it's not the most breathtaking vista, but I can change that eventually. For now, I need to make use of the tactical advantage this place gives me.”
“An island kingdom.” Az nodded. “Easier to defend but you also have to import supplies; here especially. There's not a lot that grows here.”
“There are quite a few crops that do well here, plus there are livestock and lots of fish. That being said, I can import anything I need in an instant.” I grinned at him.
“You truly have no limits now?” He turned to face me; expression solemn and wings relaxed.
&n
bsp; “No limits,” I whispered as clouds filled the room and the floor fell away.
Azrael gaped at the Garden of Eden far below our feet. “Did you take us to Shehaquim?”
“No; it's only an illusion,” I sauntered forward across the puffy clouds and as I did, I shifted into my weredragon form but a minor version of it. Golden scales outlined my suddenly naked body, pale horns curved back at my temples, a sleek tail whipped around my legs, and a pair of leathery wings lifted from my back.
