Of Gods and Monsters

by Susan Harris

  Of Gods And Monsters

  The Ever Chace Chronicles, Book 8

  Susan Harris

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

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  Of Gods And Monsters

  Copyright ©2021 Susan Harris

  All rights reserved.

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  ISBN: 978-1-63422-420-8 (paperback)

  ISBN: 978-1-63422-419-2 (e-book)

  Cover Design by: Marya Heidel

  Typography by: Gem Promotions

  Editing by: Chris Kridler

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Playlists

  Also by Susan Harris

  About the Author

  Afterword

  This book is dedicated to the readers:

  Whether you’ve be with me since the beginning,

  or have recently joined the EC family ,

  thank you for all the support for my paranormal crime series

  and the characters that I adore.

  This one’s for you guys!

  Centuries ago, a young Valkyrie princess made a deal with her father, Odin, in order to try and put a halt to his quest to remake the world. If he could take her life seven times, then she would hand him the keys to Valhalla and usher in the new dawn of mankind, rebuild the world anew after Ragnarök wiped the slate clean.

  Throughout the course of time, she was aided by her trusted sister, the daughter of Tyr, and her one true love, a Viking warrior who held her heart who was forced to die beside her each time her father succeeded in ending her life and the cycle began again.

  Now, with only one life left to give, the Valkyrie must call on those who have become family, her werewolf mate, the vampire queen, the psychic vampire, the truth-seeker and the mind reader, along with her Valkyrie sisters.

  The final battle is upon them; the fate of the entire world falls upon their shoulders. Only fate knows if they will prevail, and upon the culmination of the endless night … who shall be left standing?

  In the time of Gods and Monsters, the end is only the beginning …

  Derek

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  “It’s the end of the fucking world.”

  Loki’s words echoed through Derek’s mind and had done so, on a loop, for the last three days. It had been three days since Odin had appeared at the edge of Cork city and sent his berserkers to ravage all that stood in their path. For twenty-four hours, war raged upon the streets of Cork while Derek stood helpless against it, his need to protect his family conflicting with the need to protect the city that was his.

  The Valkyries proved why they were some of the most ferocious of warriors, their battle cries heard all over the city. Humans had little time to barricade themselves into their homes, too fragile a species to fight this war, and those who were unable to escape the destructive path that came their way were snuffed out in mere moments.

  The dawn never came, darkness a blanket around them as Odin watched on, perched on Sleipnir, his eight-legged horse, which Derek was shocked to learn was another of Loki’s children. The horse seemed to hover in the air, steam flaring from its nostrils as it stomped its hooves against the nothing.

  A warning had blared throughout the city, a national broadcast advising all those unwilling to fight to remain indoors but calling to arms any able-bodied fighters. The army had been called in to set up a blockade, and Derek had done what he could from the position he was in.

  After twenty-four hours of endless night, the fighting suddenly stopped, the berserkers retreating to their master, where they then stayed by his side for almost two days. Derek set up a mobile command center from Ever’s hospital bed, rotating between reading reports on damage and death and tending to his newborn daughter.

  And still his mate remained asleep.

  Derek stood and stared out the window, his eyes focused on the god who was determined to end them all. Derek had always felt protective of the innocent, of his team, and more recently of Ever, but even though he wanted to be on the ground fighting with his team, he couldn’t leave his daughter, especially with her mother in a coma.

  “Boyband, catch.”

  Derek snapped out his hand to catch the packaged sandwich Erika tossed in his direction before the Valkyrie strode over and placed a kiss to Ever’s temple. Then she glared at him for two minutes straight until he unwrapped the plastic and began to eat. The petite warrior’s face was covered in blood and gore, her eyes dark, her clothing torn, but she paced the hospital room for a few minutes before she leaned against the wall and swept her braid off her shoulder.

  “It’s driving me crazy having the asshole just standing there. Like make a move. I wish you all would just let me take a shot at him. I can kill him.”

  This was an old argument, the Valkyrie determined to have her slice of revenge. Not only had Odin forced Erika to witness Ever’s death over and over, but Odin had also made the woman kill Derek as well. It had initially put a strain on their relationship, but when the end of the world was upon them, petty things such as murder took a back seat among family.

  “I mean, it would be a simple sneak and stab. I don’t know why everyone is against it,” she mumbled, her voice a growl in the quiet of the room as Ash shifted in her sleep.

  Derek placed his palm on the baby’s chest, and she stilled in the cot. “No one is disputing your skills. Yet none of us want to have to tell Ever when she wakes up that her father has killed you. And that’s even before we factor Loki into the equation.”

  As Erika rolled her eyes, Derek remembered the first time Erika had suggested going after Odin, when the fighting first ceased, and Loki had lost his temper. It was the first time Derek had seen him so unraveled. The power that was contained in that lean frame was too much for a normal man to hold within himself.

  But Loki was not a mere man; he was a god.

  Erika had pulled him out of the room, returning half an hour later. Loki was calm again, but Derek wasn’t even going to think about what Erika had done to calm that storm.

  Derek shot off a text for the team to check in and got immediate responses. Ricky and Melanie had gone to check on Zach, who was at Ricky’s mom’s house. Caitlyn and Donnie had gone to try and corral the vampires, some of whom thought the endless night was the perfect time to skirt the rules and feed without care for humans. Caitlyn was trying to persuade the others to join the fight, using her queen of the vampire’s title to do so.

  Derek himself had sent a call to arms, reached out to the werewolves, knowing Odin’s phobia of wolves might be a surefire way to take him, and he was still waiting for the packs to vote on becoming
involved in the war. But even the council had said this was a matter that was so far above the scope of their relative species that they dared not intervene unless absolutely necessary.

  Fucking idiots that they were.

  And while Derek had always been one of those supes who followed the rules, if there was ever a time for action, it was now.

  As another being sauntered into the room, Derek turned to see his time traveling teenage daughter, who was in the same condition as Erika, her clothing torn, her skin spattered with blood and dirt. She had a cut to her lip that made Derek growl in his chest as the young woman sighed.

  “I’m okay, Dad. It’s nothing. Just some idiot who tried to take a cheap shot. It’ll be healed by morning.”

  Ash grabbed a bottle of water that was over on a side table and drained it, then, just as Erika had done, went to kiss Ever on her forehead. Then she walked over to the window and stared out at her grandfather.

  “You guys should just let me and Erika take a shot at him. All I need is one shot with Mjölnir and he’d be dazed enough for Erika to gut him.”

  Derek glared at Erika, who held up her hands in protest. “I haven’t said a thing, Boyband. Your daughter is bred of warriors. Of course her first instinct is to attack. Nothing to do with me and my willingness to sacrifice myself for the greater good.”

  The conversation was cut off as a nurse came in and checked Ever’s vitals, then gave baby Ash a once-over before asking Derek if he needed anything. When he said no, she left and then Caitlyn came in, her face drawn in a frown. She was swearing in her native French before switching to English.

  His oldest friend stood in the center of the hospital room, her hands on her hips, her shoulder-length black hair pulled off her face in a braid not too dissimilar to the ones that the Valkyrie were wearing. Her body was sheathed all in black, making her gray eyes seem darker as she frowned, shaking her head.

  “Fools. Every single one of them fools.”

  Derek didn’t have to ask, considering she had gone to Chester’s to find out if the vampires would fight against Odin or continue to cause extra trouble that the Paranormal Investigations Team had to clean up. Even the vampires were reluctant to get involved in the fight.

  Ash began to fuss in her cot, and Derek turned to reach for her, stopping when a uniformed officer came to stand in the door, his eyes wide. Without a word, Caitlyn strode forward and picked up the mewling babe and began to sing to her in French.

  Derek had been worried that he would not be able to share his joy at becoming a father with Caitlyn, that his joy would somehow add to the pain she already carried inside her. He could scent her sorrow, knew she thought of her own children and their deaths, but grown-up Ash loved Caitlyn so much that Derek knew his daughter was in safe hands.

  Derek strode over to the uniformed guard, who held out an envelope with his name on it. “This is from the commissioner, sir. He told me bring it straight to you. The reinforcements from all around the country are stuck outside the city. It appears that some sort of magic is preventing them from coming in. There’s no getting in or out of Cork.”

  Derek tucked the envelope into the back pocket of his jeans, then he thanked the guard and went to return to his spot by the window when the guard cleared his throat. Derek turned back to him.

  “The commissioner would like to see you face-to-face, sir. He is happy to come to you but does not want to force the issue. We don’t know how to deal with all the supes. The garda can’t cope.”

  Derek took one look at the worried expression on the face of the young guard and felt annoyed with himself that his own personal dramas had made him dismiss the letter as if it meant nothing. Derek hated to bring any more people to Ever’s room when she was so vulnerable, yet he could not turn his back on the police force and the legacy of Sarge, the man who had saved his life. Sarge would have wanted him to do all he could to stop what was coming, the monsters who knew the Paranormal Investigations Team would come for them if they skirted the laws, now that their attention was diverted to stopping the apocalypse.

  “Tell the commissioner to come meet me in a few hours. We can talk then, once the team is assembled.”

  The young guard nodded before leaving, and Derek wondered if this was what he thought he would be doing fresh out of Templemore, the place where those who wished to become a guard went to learn.

  Derek leaned in the doorway as Ash checked her phone, let loose a sigh and moved toward him.

  “Kenzie texted. She needs backup downtown. I gotta go.”

  “Be safe.”

  Ash leaned up and kissed his cheek. “Yes, Dad.”

  Then his daughter was gone, her long braid a mixture of blond and brown as she left Ever’s hospital room and crossed over to another room, slid open the window, glanced over her shoulder with a smirk and held out her hand, that hammer of hers whistling as it sailed through the air. His heart was in his throat as she stepped off the ledge and disappeared into the night.

  Erika walked past him to go into the other room to close the window before coming back in. The Valkyrie tilted her head to the side as she stood in the doorway beside him, folding her arms across her chest.

  “You need to eat more. No point in her waking up and kicking my ass because I didn’t make sure you looked after yourself.”

  Derek huffed out a breath. “I ate the sandwich, didn’t I?”

  Caitlyn, who was cradling his newborn daughter, turned in their direction. “Donnie has gone back to the house to get some food and clothing for you, mon loupe. You look like you need a week of sleep and a good meal.”

  “Mother hens, the lot of you.”

  That dragged a chortle of laughter from the two women as Erika’s phone went off. She barked out a curse. Her whiskey-colored eyes darted to Ever as she muttered, “Wake up, Ever. We need you. You hear me? Stop being so goddamn lazy and get your ass off that bed. We don’t need a martyr; we need our queen.”

  Then Erika bolted down the hall without another word, her boots like thunder on the ground before she flashed and vanished from view, leaving him with Caitlyn. The vampire offered him a small smile as he came to stand beside her, following his gaze to where Odin stood.

  “I understand his grief. I really do. We have all lost while we have traveled this world, and yet, we do not seek to rebuild it. I have made friends with my demons, made what little peace I can with the darkness. And though I have lost, I can still see that there are reasons to keep going. You can, even if it is in a week, a month, or a century later, find a new purpose. There is light that can penetrate the shadow of loss if you allow it.”

  Derek shook his head and reached out to touch his child’s feet. “Something twisted in Odin when he lost his love. He focused on that grief and decided that the rest of us were inconsequential to that loss. When you were lost in your grief, you sought to ensure that others were not forced to endure the pain that you carried with you. That path was harder, and possibly crueler, until you found your way to cope. Odin considered himself all-powerful and refused to allow himself to be affected by pesky human emotions. In the end, it was his damnation.”

  “No one is immune to suffering, even the gods of old. Perhaps it is another reason for us to feel pity for him, for them, because they spend all of their lives trusting that they are beyond the rules of mortals, yet, when faced with human emotions, they know not how to deal. If Odin was not trying to end the world, I might feel some sort of sadness for him.”

  Reaching out to cup his friend’s cheek, understanding the compassion that shone in her eyes despite her words, Derek said softly, “You would still feel sorry for him, Caitlyn, because that is who you are. You might not agree with his methods, but you know what it is to feel the loss until you cannot breathe. We were lucky to be let in when you had tried to close off your heart, but Odin refused to let that happen.”

  “A bloke could get jealous and demand you unhand my mate.”

  The smile that curved Caitlyn’s lips remind
ed Derek of how far she had come because of the vampire who strode into the room, carrying enough food to feed an army and setting it down on the table. Donnie O’Carroll had chipped away at the armor Caitlyn had come to wear, helping her battle her demons and being exactly what she needed to heal.

  When Caitlyn had tried to slip off to kill her maker by herself, Donnie had gone after her, unwilling to let the woman he loved succumb to the demons of her past without him. Donnie was the steady calm Caitlyn had needed, the passion she deserved.

  “Jaysus, D, first your kid, now you. I mean, the mental flirting is a bit much,” Donnie teased with a teasing smile as he pulled out delicious food that made Derek’s stomach grumble. With a chuckle, Donnie pushed the table in Derek’s direction, lifting a chair. Derek dropped his hand and took the chair offered to him.

  Derek ate the food without really tasting it, knowing he needed to build up his strength in case Odin decided he was tired of waiting for Ever to wake and let the berserkers run riot again. While he ate, Derek watched as Donnie walked over, wrapped his arms around Caitlyn’s waist, rested his chin on her shoulder and smiled as she cooed at baby Ash.

  The pang in his chest would have been enough to buckle his knees if he hadn’t been already sitting. The fact that all he wanted was to be with his own mate, his arms around her waist as she cooed over the tiny being they had created, made him feel terribly guilty, because if his little Ash could bring anyone even a sliver of peace and contentment during this nightmare of a time, who was he to begrudge his friend that? He was disappointed at himself for these jealous feelings, but he so desperately wished it could be him and Ever. But she remained lying in that bed, unmoving.