Against All Odds (Kaliss Book 3)

by Cree Storm

  “Helio, what the hell? Where are you going?” Sabien asked, as he ran next to him.

  “I don’t know, but I can’t stop. My friends… or at least one of them was here, and from the strength of the scent, I know I’m getting close,” Helio muttered, stopping long enough to look around and lift his head, sniffing once more.

  Orion, Jael, and some of the guards caught up to him. Orion asked, “You think your friends are on the coven lands?”

  Nodding, Helio replied, “Yes. I should have discovered the scent sooner. Then again there wouldn’t be a reason to have them in the office and besides the dungeon that’s the only place I’ve really been since arriving. Then, with all the upheaval of finding my mates and the crap we had to go through since then, that’s the only excuse I can think of for not smelling it before.”

  Helio knew he was rambling, but he often did that when he was worried and right now he was beyond worried. Seeing the new coven house, Helio quickly made his way in that direction. He rushed inside the monstrosity and scented once more. “Nothing. They aren’t here.”

  Jael and Sabien followed him back outside, not saying a word. Helio was thankful, even if a little agitated. Trying to find the magic scent of his friends with the scent of his mates right there was a bit distracting. Turning to them he said, “I don’t know how to ask this without hurting your feelings, but I really need you two to back off a bit. Your scent is distracting the heck out of me and I can’t think.”

  Sabien smiled. “No offense taken. We’ll step back and allow you to do whatever it is you are doing.”

  “But we will not be far. We’re not letting you out of our sight,” Jael insisted.

  Once his mates left his side, Helio sighed, muttering, “Okay guys. Where the hell are you?”

  Taking another whiff, Helio caught the scent he was looking for and started towards the back of the new coven house. Seeing a small shed-like building, Helio quickly made his way there, but before he could open the door, Orion appeared. “Wait here.”

  Helio almost argued, but he also understood. He had no clue what might be behind that door. Orion made sure everyone stood well back, and then opened the door.

  Rakes, shovels, and other gardening tools hung on the walls and bags and bags of fertilizer filled the room. The smell of fertilizer damn near made them all choke. “Why do they have all this shit when there isn’t a garden anywhere… at least not that I’ve seen,” Orion rasped.

  “It makes no sense. No one comes out during the day. Hell, until I went to Kaliss I had no idea that once mated we could go outside in the sun. We have no gardens here that I even know of,” Sabien muttered from behind Helio.

  Helio moved away and walked around the shed, but the scent kept leading to the spot they were at. Then an idea hit him. “Orion, remember the Beverly Hills Cop marathon we watched with the guys last week?”

  Snorting, Orion replied, “Yeah, what about it?”

  “Remember when Axel went into that warehouse with his friend and they found those crates with drugs. They were using coffee to throw the scent off from the dogs. What if this fertilizer is their version of coffee?” Helio asked.

  Orion nodded. “I get where you’re going with this.” Turning to the Imperial Guards next to him, Orion ordered, “Help me get this shit out of here.”

  As the bags were taken out, Helio noticed something on the floor. “Here! Here!”

  Helio rushed forward and grabbed a loop of rope but Sabien took it from him. “Sweetness, back up and let me do this.”

  “But my friends…”

  “Are not going to go anywhere down there, but if there are guards with them, I would rather Jael and I face off with them than you,” Sabien stated.

  Helio pursed his lips and slapped his hands on his hips. “I might be smaller than you, Sabien, but I am not defenseless. Just because I choose not to show my powers, does not mean I don’t have any.”

  Jael came up from behind Helio, wrapping his arms around him. “We don’t think you’re weak, but remember you are not just our mate, you’re a dragon butterfly, and all vampires are sworn to protect you. So, for us it’s like a super need to keep you safe. We are not saying you can’t go down there, just let us check it out first.”

  Helio understood what his mate was saying, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. “Fine, but I am going down there.”

  Sabien opened the trap door. The stench of urine and feces was disgusting.

  “Oh, by the gods… that’s nasty,” Sabien rasped.

  Orion stepped forward. “Jael, it’s you and me. Sabien watch your mate. Everyone else, surround this building, no one in or out.”

  Helio watched as everyone followed Orion’s orders and Orion and Jael made their way down the dark stairway. They disappeared into the darkness, and Helio was surprised at how worried he was for his mate’s safety.

  “I feel it too, sweetness. We just have to remember, Jael is trained to take care of himself,” Sabien said, holding Helio close and kissing him on the temple.

  Jael and Orion were down there for who knows how long before Orion’s face appeared at the bottom of the steps. “Sabien, send one of the men to find the healer then bring Helio down here.”

  It didn’t take Sabien long to do as ordered, and soon enough, Helio found himself stepping down the wooden stairs. The closer he got to the bottom, the more trepidation he felt. The scent he had been following grew stronger with each step he took.

  Once at the bottom, Orion looked at him with sorrow. “I’m not going to lie, Helio. It’s bad. However, it isn’t hopeless. There are many down here. Some are shifters, some vampire, fae, elven, and one we have no clue what the hell he is. If I could have you not go in there, I would, but we need to know if any of the creatures in there are your friends.”

  Nodding, Helio whispered, “I can do this. I have to do this. Let’s go.”

  Helio followed Orion with Sabien by his side. He was shocked at how large the underground prison was, and there was no doubt this was a prison. Small cell-like rooms with bars for doors held creatures of all types. Helio was shocked to see a tiger pacing one room, a vampire hissing at him from another, and so many others, one right next to another. The further back he went, the worse things seemed to be. Some looked dead while others were close to death. “Oh gods.”

  “I’m right here, sweetness,” Sabien murmured, grasping his hand.

  Squeezing Sabien’s hand for reassurance, Helio gasped when they came to the last cages. Jael was kneeling next to a figure on a thin dingy blanket. “Kondra!”

  Helio rushed into the cell, bent down and held his hand out, but hesitated to touch his friend. “Oh gods, what have they done to you?”

  Kondra’s eyes slowly fluttered and then opened. He licked his lips, rasping in a deep gravely tone, “Helio, I found you.”

  CHAPTER 7

  Orion ordered his men to take Kondra to the main house and place him in Heskel’s quarters, then he sent word back to their coven in Kaliss and had Jewel send Tango, the coven doctor, to come to them to care for Kondra.

  Helio had paced the floor in the hall outside the room for what felt like hours. He nibbled on his nails and allowed his wings to come out and fluttered them non-stop as he moved. Yes, he knew it was a habit he had when he was nervous or upset, but he didn’t care, right now his friend was hurt and in trouble and some of his other friends were missing.

  What had happened to Kondra? And what had happened to the others? What was still happening to them? And where were they? All these questions kept running through his head, but Helio had no answers, which was driving him crazy. From what had happened to him and Briar when they arrived in this world, Helio could only guess of the things that Kondra had been put through, and what Lanius, Lochus, and Ianis might still be suffering.

  He needed to go home to Saturnalia to talk to the others. When he had popped in earlier he had only been there for a few minutes, just long enough to learn who was gone, but now he needed to know
why they had left in the first place, and whether anyone knew where they were going. But, with everything going on here in this coven and finding two mates, how was he supposed to just leave right now?

  Goddess! He needed to find out what was going on, or all the questions would kill him. Helio stopped in his tracks as a thought hit him. Briar! Briar needed to know what was happening and he could help. Maybe Briar could take a few minutes away from Ezra and Jewel and come here so that Helio could go to Saturnalia?

  Helio turned to look at his mates, who had been standing by the door to the room Kondra lay in, this whole time keeping an eye on him and the door at the same time. He knew they wouldn’t be happy with him leaving, but they would have to accept it, because he really did need to go.

  Helio drew in a deep breath and held it for a moment, then slowly released it. He straightened his spine and squared his shoulders, then headed toward his mates. As he approached, Sabien and Jael, both turned their full attention to him and Helio could see the hesitancy and questions in their eyes.

  Before he let his nerves get the better of him, Helio blurted out, “I need to leave.”

  Jael flicked his gaze to Sabien, then quickly back to him and took a step closer. “But what about your friend, mate? Don’t you want to hear what Tango has to say?”

  “Of course I do, but there are three others that we know of who have gone missing from home, and I need to find out why they left, where they were going, and if they are in the same trouble as Kondra. There are so many questions that need to be answered, and that’s not going to happen if I just stand around here pacing a rut in the floor. And to be honest, my wings are getting tired,” he said, the last part in a sheepish whisper.

  Sabien gave a slight chuckle and stepped in close, wrapped his arms around Helio and drew their bodies together. Sabien kissed the top of his head, then held out a hand for Jael. There was a moment of shock on their mate’s face, but it was quickly replaced with one of happiness, and Jael immediately moved closer, pressing his chest to Helio’s back and wrapping his muscular arms around both him and Sabien, as Sabien did the same.

  Helio released a small sigh of contentment, feeling safe between them. He loved this more than he thought he ever would. Having both of these big, strong men encircle him with their bodies and strength had Helio feeling safer than he had ever felt before in his life. His body hummed with excitement and began to heat with the thoughts of how instead of he and his mates standing here holding onto one another, it would probably be a million times better if they were all naked and lying down. Hell, yes, he could just imagine how wonderful that would feel.

  “Somebody is having wicked thoughts,” Jael said against the back of his head, and Helio could hear the amusement in his mate’s voice.

  “I agree. I can smell your arousal, mate, and it is making my gums itchy,” Sabien replied, then leaned down and placed a gentle kiss against the side of his neck. The motion caused shivers to race down his spine.

  “I… um… crap. I was just thinking,” Helio explained, hoping that would be sufficient.

  “Really? And what naughty thoughts were running through that sexy brain of yours?” Jael asked, then he too placed a kiss on his neck on the other side, but this one was openmouthed and Helio felt a warm, wet tongue, glide over his flesh for a moment.

  “H-how am I supposed to th-think when y-you both do things l-like that?” Helio said with a purr as he dropped his head back to rest against Sabien’s wide chest, exposing his throat to his mates.

  “You’re not. If we do things right, then we should be distracting you enough for your brain to take a rest and stop stressing so much for just a little while,” Sabien replied, as he kissed Helio’s neck again and a hand began exploring his body. It ran up his side, from hip to the top of his ribs, then back down.

  At the same time, Jael’s lips pressed against his throat and Jael nibbled on Helio’s Adam’s apple as his hands roamed over Helio’s body as well. “Your skin is so sweet, like honeysuckle. Mmm, I could lick you all day.” The promise of those words along with the sensation of Jael licking his skin had Helio panting and wanting to beg for his mates to take him right there, and damn anyone who stumbled upon them.

  “So many times I have dreamed of what it would be like to touch you. To kiss you. You are so beautiful, Helio, and one of the sweetest people I have ever met,” Jael whispered against his flesh.

  “Y-you did? Then why didn’t you… oh goddess, that feels so good,” Helio panted.

  “Because, I never had any hope of us being together. Knowing I had a mate out there somewhere that I would be blessed in finding someday, and you would as well, kept me just dreaming of you from afar. I wish I would have known then about tasting your blood to find you, but in a way it was better that we came together this way, with our other mate here too. Fate has blessed me with two sexy, amazing mates.”

  “Mmm, I agree. We have been blessed. I wish we could go somewhere private right now, so that we may all explore our mating further,” Sabien said, then sucked a spot on his shoulder, causing Helio to quiver and his cock to grow hard. “If the rock-hard pole that just poked my thigh is any indication of your agreement to those words, then I think maybe Jael and I need to take you to a private room now, mate,” Sabien said with a growl, and the vibration against his skin had him whimpering from almost coming.

  “As interesting as all of this is, I thought maybe you would like to hear about your friend and maybe see him,” Tango’s voice broke through his lust, and Helio stiffened as his eyes popped open and he looked to the doctor. He felt the heat of a blush begin to run up his body and color his cheeks.

  Tango chuckled as he shook his head, then stepped back through the open doorway behind him, gesturing for them to enter.

  Fuck, he wanted to run into that room and hear about his friend’s condition, but at the same time he didn’t want to break the spell that had dropped over him and his mates like a horny blanket. But, then again, he also didn’t want his mates to move, because once they did, then everyone would see his dick was rock hard and leaking. Helio was sure there was a visible wet spot on the front of his jeans.

  “Thanks, Tango, just give us a minute, okay? We’ll be right in,” Jael replied, but didn’t release Helio.

  Tango smirked. “Sure thing. I’ll just be in here waiting patiently while you three… um… well. Yeah, I’ll be in here,” he said, and gestured behind him, then turned and walked further into the room.

  “I need to check on Kondra,” Helio said breathlessly.

  “Of course, mate, but first maybe you should lose the woody and maybe get a longer shirt to hide any evidence of your lust,” Jeal replied with mirth.

  Helio playfully slapped his arm as he rolled his eyes. “Ya think?”

  Helio pushed back lightly against both of them and each of his mates released him and stepped back. Helio fluttered his wings once they were free from Jael being so close, and he whispered a spell. Suddenly his pants were pristine and his throbbing cock was starting to deflate.

  “There, that’s better,” he said with a smile.

  “See, now, I think it’s from what perspective you’re looking at it. From where Jael and I stand, I think I can speak for both of us when we say you pressed between us, hard and wanting, was far better than this,” Sabien said leering at him.

  “So very true, mate,” Jael said, then leaned in and kissed Sabien’s lips. It wasn’t a hot and heavy ‘I want to eat your face’ kind of kiss, but it was still hot.

  Helio whimpered from the sexy visual before him. He really wanted to see both his large mates tangle. He wanted to see them lose control to their lust for one another that he could clearly see between them and be a voyeur to that heat. He wanted to see the kiss deepen, and their hard, naked bodies writhe together. Shit, his hard on was coming back. Damn it! Helio stomped his foot angrily as he cursed in his head.

  His mates broke their kiss and turned to look to him with matching smirks on their faces an
d each raised a brow in question at him. Bastards! They knew what they were doing. Gah! Helio crossed his arms over his chest as he glared at them, then he quickly spun on his heels and headed into the bedroom. Both his mates chuckled behind him and all Helio wanted to do was yell, “No fair!”

  Instead, a wicked thought crossed his mind and Helio smiled. He slowed his walk across the room to the bed and added a little extra sway to his hips. When he heard two tortured groans from behind him, Helio released his own wicked smile.

  As he approached the bed and his gaze fell on Kondra, the smile left his lips and was replaced by a frown of worry. Kondra lay in the bed, his eyes closed and he was breathing softly, the rise and fall of his chest slight.

  Helio sat on the edge of the bed and took one of Kondra’s hands in his, then looked up at Tango who stood nearby. “So, how is he?”

  Tango gave him a sad smile and stepped closer. “As for now, he’s okay. He’s sleeping peacefully and his heart and pulse are strong. I think with time and the right care he’ll make a full recovery. I took a sample of his blood and I’ll be taking it back to the coven to do some tests, so we can find out if he has anything in his system, but for now, the good news is he’s stable and comfortable.”

  Helio released a sigh of relief and gave Tango a smile as he nodded. “Thank you, Tango. I appreciate you coming so fast and taking care of him.”

  Tango reached out and placed his hand on Helio’s shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. Two deadly growls came from behind him, and Tango burst out laughing as he pulled his hand away and stepped back. “Yeah, yeah, assholes, we all know, you’ve been blessed and have found your mates. You know I would never try to poach a mate, Jael, so keep the growling shit to yourself. Anyway, Kondra is fine for now. I’ll send Jairus back to watch over and take care of Kondra while I start testing his blood,” Tango said, as he packed up his little black bag.