“You should eat.”
“What about you?” she asked, stopping and turning back toward me in midstride.
“I’m fine for now. Perhaps tomorrow.” I wasn’t hungry. Mostly, I was trying to figure out how long it was going to take us to get from here back to Texas. Calliope needed to see her friends again, even if she decided not to stay there. I knew from experience, running or being cast out was not a great way to leave things. And I needed to tell my sister I had forgiven her. And that I wouldn’t be going home with her. I had a home of my own now.
I leaned against the wall and smiled, watching Calliope laugh and tease her sister as they prepared the big meal. Stavros had been delegated to slicing up the raw stew meat while the women washed and chopped the vegetables, tossing them into a large silver pot on the stove a handful at a time. I could smell everything. The crisp sweet scent of the squash and carrots. The deep metallic scent of the beef, or more correctly the blood in the beef. But that’s not what truly held me as a captive audience.
Calliope’s laugh did that all on its own.
Lander and Demetra emerged from the back room, minus the baby, and joined the others in the kitchen. Calliope finished washing the last of the zucchinis, handed them to Rhea, and then walked to my side.
Pleased to be touching her again, I planted a soft kiss on top of her red hair and hugged her to my side.
“I don’t suppose you could explain a little more about what happened here today?” she asked. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad he’s dead and gone, but what exactly happened. How did you know what to do?”
Rhea chuckled and threw the last of the cut vegetables into the pot while Demetra added a container of gelatinized broth.
“We are destined mates.” Rhea gestured to Stavros. “Using the ancient family spell book they possessed, we permanently bonded to them, which means when we die, we reincarnate with our memories intact. Both of us.”
“Yep,” added in Demetra. “No more hundred years of wondering what the hell you are or who you are.”
“How?” Calliope asked. “Didn’t father kill all of the Argyris Sirens hundreds of years ago?”
“My brother and I are the last. And unlike your father, ours left us a wealth of knowledge,” Stavros spoke first. “Spell books and tricks to keep ourselves hidden for a very long time.”
“And the final death? That was what killed him, right?” Calliope’s voice pitched lower as understanding seemed to settle. “We could’ve done this sooner. I could’ve come back before this.”
Demetra leaned across the counter toward my mate. “We were safe. You were safe. Until the soul stones failed, there was no reason to risk coming out in the open to look for you.”
Calliope nodded. “You’re right.”
“So I have a question.” All eyes turned to me. “All these colored wavelengths of magick? I don’t suppose there’s a way to turn that off.”
Calliope turned in my grasp and backed up a step. “You can see magick?”
“I guess. It happened when we bonded, but it never stopped. This place looks like a hookah lounge, except all the smoke is patterned and different colors.”
Everyone laughed except Calliope. I appreciated her restraint, even though I could see the corners of her mouth turning up into a smile. Still, she managed to keep it together for my benefit.
“It’s a s-side e-ffect of the bonding magick,” Rhea managed to squeak out between laughs “He can access your Siren vision through the mate bond.”
Calliope reached up, cupping my face. “Close your eyes and wish it away.”
I stared at her, disbelief making me frown. “It can’t be that easy.”
“Sirens can will magick without words. It should work the same for you. You can will the essence of magick to be visible or invisible. Close your eyes and just will it to be gone.”
I did as my mate asked. I closed my eyes and wished the colored illusion of magick to disappear. I focused on Calliope’s touch. On the way her soft fingers caressed my face. The way she ran her thumbs over the stubble on my chin. Such a small thing, but it aroused me. Made me hungry for her. I looked forward to the moment when I would finally have her alone and to myself for a few minutes. The things I wanted to do.
I opened my eyes again. The room was clear. No colored waves of magick in sight. Only a bright hue of pink flushing my mates cheeks. Can she tell I’m thinking about her?
“Better?” she asked softly, the blush deepening. “And the answer is yes. Your general mood comes across our bond.”
“No privacy,” Lander said, a large grin spreading over his face. “They always know when we are thinking about sex.”
“Fun factoid, though,” Stavros piped up. “They get all hot and bothered, too, because of the link.”
A smile tugged at my lips, and I glance down to meet Calliope’s gaze again. “Later,” I mouthed.
She nodded and flashed me an eager smile. “Can you still see the magick?”
I paused, trying to remember what she was referring to. My entire focus had shifted to sex, and I’d forgotten where this conversation had started. Magick. Colors. Right. “They’re gone. Thank you.”
“Good. If you want them back, just call for them in your mind and they will return.”
“Strange power.”
“Very handy, though,” Lander said, tossing the last of the chopped rump roast into the stew pot. “We can see any type of magick. Sometimes over long distances, too. And no one knows we can do it or how. So no spilling the beans.”
Rhea stared out the window over the sink. “Hang on. Does anyone else feel those pulses? I don’t see anything yet, but I swear it feels like another Djinn.”
“I feel it, too,” Calliope said. “It’s not close yet, though.”
“My sister,” I said slowly. “She must have figured out where I went.”
“How?” Lander asked.
“There was a letter with the name of the town. I must’ve dropped it in your store before we teleported here. I have the map.” I pulled the folded piece of paper from my back pocket. “But I don’t have the letter. It has to be Asa.”
“I’ll take him. We’ll go find the Djinn. If it’s his sister, we’ll be back shortly. We rebuilt the cloaking wards around the cabin to shield anyone from seeing our magick or sensing our presence. She won’t find us unless we go get her.” Stavros washed his hands in the sink and then gestured to the front door.
“I’ll be back, love.”
“Be careful. You don’t know that it is her.”
“I will,” I said, giving her a quick kiss before following Stavros out the door into the night. We descended the craggy pathway to the beach below. The icy spray of the waves on the rocks bit into my skin. The air itself hovered near freezing, but the water was well below. The stars in the heavens above were bright and clear and seemed so much closer than they ever had while I’d lived in LA. I’d forgotten what it was like to truly be able to enjoy the outdoors. Everything in cities smelled of people and trash. Here, it smelled like pine and salt and earth.
“Will you stay here now that Ajax is dead?” I asked as we walked along the rocky shoreline.
“No. Our end goal was always to go home—to Greece,” he said. “What do you think Calliope will do? Do you have a different home you seek?”
I shook my head. “My home is with her. She is my family.”
“We are all your family now, Godric. You belong with us.”
“Thank you.”
We continued on in silence for a few moments before I spoke again. “I think she will want to say goodbye to the people in Sanctuary.”
“Nothing wrong with that,” he said then pointed ahead. “See the blue streak there that glows in the night.”
I turned my gaze, but saw nothing. I closed my eyes, asked the magick to show itself, then opened my eyes again. It was crazy to think something so complex could be so simple, but it was. When I opened my eyes, I could see the blue wave he pointed at.<
br />
“She’s not staying anywhere very long.”
“She’s trying to sense me. But I’m not a Djinn any longer. She won’t be able to.”
“Can you tell if it’s really her yet?”
“I need to get closer. If it’s Asa, I’ll be able to recognize her scent.” I ran, blurring down the shore away from Stavros, toward what was left of the blue remnant of her magickal signature. It was her. The second I stopped, I could smell the jasmine perfume and the pheromone of worry that seeped from her skin. Worry? I’d meant nothing to her for so many centuries. Strange to believe that she worried about me now.
“Asa,” I called out loudly. There was no telling how far she’d teleported—a few hundred feet or a mile. I turned in a circle, searching for another trace of her magick. “Asa.”
“By the gods! You’re here.” Asa’s high pitched voice screeched into my ear before she launched herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck. “I thought I’d lost you in that place. But when I saw the Siren’s body in the shop, I knew you were alive. I found a letter with the name of this town. I’ve been hunting for you for an hour. Why couldn’t I—”
She released me and stepped away slowly. I watched the look of joy on her face morph to confusion and fear. “You’re not Djinn. That’s why I couldn’t find you. What happened? Never mind.” She shook off her fear and grabbed my arm. “We have to go. They’re waiting.”
Before I could speak, we were swirling through space in a vortex.
“Fucking hell, Asa,” I snarled once my feet were solidly on the ground again. The air smelled strange. We were in the middle of a forest filled with supernaturals. The colors from their signatures made the place look like it was bleeding rainbows. “Take me back.”
“Everyone is congregating here. I have a few more people to get. I’ll be right back.”
“The fuck you will,” I growled, gripping her wrist tight enough to hurt her. “You take me back right now.”
“But.”
“Now.”
We teleported again. I breathed in the scent of salt and pine and heard Stavros yelling my name.
“We’re here,” I bellowed out into the night. The colored stream of his magick appeared before I saw him come up over a rise.
“Was it her?”
“Yes,” I answered. “We had a minor miscommunication. But she’s actually listening to me now.” I glared at my sister’s still-confused face, illuminated by the moonlight. At least she didn’t look frightened of me any longer. “Asa, meet Calliope’s brother-in-law.”
“You found them. The sisters mentioned in the letter. Can they help you find Calliope?”
It was my turn to be confused. “Find Calliope?”
“She died. She’s in a new body. Do they have a way to find her? I’ll help you look. As long as it takes.”
Anger surged in my chest, and my fangs descended, begging for blood. “You knew!” I released her arm, shoving her to the ground. She hit with a heavy thump. “You used her as a distraction for Calvar, and you knew she’d jump to a new body if he killed her. Fuck. Asa. Fuck. I could’ve lost her forever,” I roared, advancing toward my trembling sister. She didn’t teleport. Didn’t run.
“We can find her. I’ll help you.”
“Did you manage to save Manda? Was it all worth it, sister?” I sneered down at her.
Tears flooded Asa’s eyes, and she shook her head. “She died with the Phoenix. I lost her. Lost you. The Lamasu is dead and, with him, my ability to free all the trapped Djinn. I’ve failed everyone. Let me help you find the Siren. I’m so sorry, Godric.”
Even through my rage, I had to give her credit for owning up to her sins. I’d never in my life heard her apologize or ever admit guilt.
Still, she’d betrayed me again. “You sacrificed her on Calvar’s sword. And me. He nearly killed me, too. Did you think about that?”
“No. I was blinded by my grief and worry for my daughter. I’m sorry.”
“I don’t need your help. Calliope is safe. She is here with me. Her spirit went into Hannah’s body.”
“She’s here? You found her already. In the witch?”
“Yes, in the other poor soul you sacrificed on your quest to save Manda,” I bit out. The anger inside me subsided as a sense of reassurance from Calliope bathed my soul. She loved me. I belonged with her. I didn’t need to hang onto the hatred for my family that had poisoned my life for so many years.
I offered my hand to her and let the last bit of anger slip away. “We just want to go home, Asa.”
She hesitated, staring at my outstretched hand for a few seconds before placing hers inside it. I pulled her to her feet and then released her.
“I’ll take you anywhere. Whatever you need, Godric. You and your family,” she whispered, stealing a quick glance at the male Siren standing a few feet to our right.
“I’m sorry you lost Manda.”
Asa wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Thank you. I just hope she’s at peace.”
“I hope so, too.” I pointed up the shoreline. “We’re back this way, up in the hills.”
“There’s nothing over there,” Asa said, her mouth forming into a confused frown. “I already looked.”
“Precisely,” Stavros said, grinning wide. “It is good to know the wards worked on you as well.”
Chapter 49
CALLIOPE
I sensed their presence long before the handle on the front door turned. Rhea beat me to the question forming in my mind.
“Well, was it her?” she asked as soon as the door swung open.
Stavros walked inside first, followed by Asa then Godric.
“Yes, love. It was his sister,” the big blond Siren answered.
The small black-haired woman came toward me and dropped to her knees right there in the kitchen. “Please forgive me. I was selfish and cruel and used you. You died because of me. You and Hannah.” I stared over the prostrate woman at Godric’s feet. He was silent. Everyone was staring…waiting for me to respond.
Everything came rushing back about the mission. Manda. We’d gone to try and rescue her. Hannah and Jared… I’d seen Hannah’s body just before I died. “It is in the past, Asa. I have no wish to dwell on it, but what happened to the others? Jared and Manda? Did they survive?”
Asa looked up from the floor, tears flowing down her cheeks. This was the face of a brokenhearted woman, not one who had succeeded in saving her child.
“I’m sorry for your loss, Asa.”
She wiped her cheeks and gave a half nod. “Let me take you home. Anywhere. Just say the word.”
“Sanctuary.”
Asa glanced at Godric out of the corner of her eye before turning her focus back to me. Her eyes held trepidation. “Sanctuary fell. It is all but destroyed. I was able to get many to the portal, but there were still those who died when Naram and Xerxes destroyed each other. It was unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed. An explosion of magick so strong it destroyed the castle and many of the surrounding buildings. There’s nothing left but a crater.”
Sanctuary was gone.
I took a step backward and leaned against the counter. After all these years. All the struggles Rose had gone through to protect all of us. She had her faults, like the rest, but her goal had always been to protect those who lived in Sanctuary.
“Wait.” I looked straight at Asa. “Xerxes is dead.”
Asa nodded. “They both are.”
“Why did you take people to the portal? Rose said we couldn’t get through until the prophecy was fulfilled. There are only six Protectors.”
The Djinn shrugged. “I merely did what was asked. After costing the town you and Jared and Hannah, it was the least I could do.”
I met the gaze of each of my sisters. I didn’t want to leave them, but I needed to see the people I’d spent the last few hundreds of years with. Whether they considered me their friend or not, I needed to tell them goodbye. I needed to tell them I was sorry I hadn’t been able to fi
ght with them.
“Go, Calliope,” Demetra said, her voice soft. “We’ll be here waiting once you say goodbye.”
I smiled. Rhea nodded. They both knew I wanted to be with them. That I wanted to go home with them, leave this cold, forsaken spot in Russia and return to the warmth and beauty of Greece. To wake and see the sun glistening on the Mediterranean again would be a dream come true. And to do it with my family. My mate. I glanced to Godric.
“I’m coming with you, Calliope. Where you lay your head, so will I.”
His words filled me with peace. With love and a contentment I’d never felt before. I stretched out my hand to his sister. “Take me to the portal, Asa.”
The world folded in on itself the second she touched me.
When it unfolded, we were in the middle of a forest, and it was bright. The sun was high, and I shielded my eyes while they adjusted. People milled around in all directions. Most of the Lycans, I recognized. My gaze caught sight of Diana’s white-blond hair, and I headed toward her.
“Diana,” I called out. The Drakonae woman turned, showing her round tummy full of babies—triplets to be exact. Eira was next to her and Gretchen, but none of the men. Miles had to be alive or Diana would be a growly reptile eating us all—at least according to Miles, that’s what would happen if either of them lost the other.
“Hannah!” Diana opened her arms, and I stopped mid-stride.
I was in Hannah’s body, but Hannah was gone.
The three women moved quickly toward me, closing the gap in a second. Their arms were around me, embracing me as they exclaimed how glad they were to see me. That they’d thought I was dead.
“Hannah is dead,” I whispered.
Eira heard me. Her vampire ears missed nothing. “You’re standing in front of us.”
“I’m Calliope. Hannah died, and then so did I. But a Siren’s spirit, it can reincarnate. My spirit chose Hannah’s body and healed it, so I could live again.”
Sanctuary, Texas Complete Series Box Set Page 137
