The Cloaked Maiden: A Reverse Harem Romance (Rise of the Ash Gods Book 2)

by Cara Wylde

  “It’s worth it, trust me.”

  “Kali, no one trusts you.”

  The goddess laughed. “Okay, be it your way. I saw this huge bed. And you were in it. You weren’t alone, though.” She ran a hand through Valentina’s long hair. Her touch was almost tender. “When I say huge, I mean huge. As big as this entire room.”

  Val chuckled awkwardly. “Now, why would I need such a big bed?”

  “Aren’t you listening? Because you weren’t alone.”

  “So, you saw me and my future boyfriend, whoever he is, in a bed as large as this room.”

  “Future boyfriends, in fact. Not one man, not two, not even three.” She leaned in, her breath tickling Valentina’s ear. “Many. I can tell you the exact number if you open your eyes and let me get a better glimpse. I can even tell you who they are.”

  Valentina jumped to her feet. Eyes still closed, she tried to navigate the room only to knock down the coffee table. Cursing under her breath, she stumbled until she found an armchair and sank in it.

  “What’s your deal, Kali? Nergal is out there, doing what you asked. What’s the point in messing with my head?”

  “I’m not messing with your head, darling. I thought I’d do you a favor since you were so nice to help me with my problem.”

  “Lying to me is not a favor! I guess you’re too twisted to get that...”

  Kali set her glass on the floor and ambushed Valentina again. Two hands on her shoulders and another two pinning her head in place, she urged her to open her eyes.

  Val pursed her lips. “I won’t do it. You can just give up now because it’s not happening.”

  “Come on, witch. One second. Let me take a better look. You’re destined to bed about a dozen men. At the same time. Don’t you want to be ready for when it happens?”

  “A dozen?!” She snapped her eyes open before she could stop herself. Kali’s black orbs were fixed on her, looking long and deep, as if she was trying to read her whole life in the blue irises that were about to flash back and forth between the past and the present. “Damn it!” She shut them before her time sensor got to react.

  “Oh! How marvelous!” Kali stepped away and danced around the fallen coffee table.

  Valentina bit the inside of her lip. “What did you see?” Why did she have to be so goddessdamn curious? Kali was having the time of her life, and she was falling into her every trap.

  “You’re trying to restore the Trionfi Chiari, Keeper of the Spades. To show you that I’m not all that bad, I’m going to tell you this: you will succeed.”

  “You saw me succeed? You saw me defeat the Walk-Ins and save the Mysteries of the Tarot?”

  “When it comes to the future, you know full well that nothing is set in stone. You’re a tarot reader! But, yes, there’s a good chance you’ll accomplish your mission. There’s one condition, though.”

  “What condition? Tell me!”

  “You must accept your fate. And if your fate means you have to give your heart, soul, and body to all the gods of the Major Arcana, then my advice is: do it. You’ll like it, too.” She laughed mischievously. “You see me as a cruel goddess now, witch. But I am old and wise. I don’t want the original Tarot to be destroyed and the Mysteries of the Trionfi to be lost. I rather enjoy my time in your third dimension.”

  “What are you talking about?” Was it hot in the room, or had her own body just turned into a self-fueling furnace? She took another sip of her drink. It only made things worse.

  “Oh, I’m sure you’ve felt it by now. How many gods have you trapped in your cards? Two? Why do you think they agreed?”

  “Because they understand how important it is to restore the masculine part of the Major Arcana?”

  Kali laughed again, this time longer and louder. “You’re funny. You know, you’re one of those people who are constantly in denial. I find that funny.”

  Valentina’s cheeks went beet red with anger. “I’m not in denial.” She thought for a moment, then dragged in a breath and admitted through gritted teeth: “Okay, Loki does have a thing for me. But Veles? Veles is different.”

  Kali grabbed her glass and sat on the armrest, one of her hands coming to play in Valentina’s long hair. No matter what she did, it seemed like Val just couldn’t get away from her.

  “Oh honey, don’t be naïve. When it comes to you, none of them is different. There’s something about you, something that makes them... do as you ask. Nergal is trying to resist you. Oh, he’s trying hard. But he can’t.” She paused, looking at Valentina’s face for a long minute, at her plump, sensual lips, rosy cheeks, and the dark, rich lashes trembling when her eyes moved under her closed lids. “Hm. Maybe there’s something of a goddess hidden inside you. Who knows?” She shrugged and pushed herself off the armrest, suddenly heading to the door. “I guess we’ll see soon enough.”

  As if on cue, Gideon Jove burst through the door, and if Valentina had had her eyes open, she would have seen he was a few inches taller than earlier that morning. He barely fit through the door frame.

  “You!” He was fuming. His eyes narrowed on Kali, but the second he saw Valentina, he rushed to her side. “Are you okay?”

  Magny poofed himself on her shoulder. “I brought him as soon as I could.”

  “Do you have the cloak?”

  “Funny story,” Magny said sarcastically. “I couldn’t bring it, which is fine because I’m just a hobgoblin. I wouldn’t expect Death’s cloak to answer to a hobgoblin’s wishes. But Jupiter here couldn’t bring it, either.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jove said. “Hang in there.” He leaned in and kissed the top of her head.

  Magny scrunched up his nose. Lately, when a god was around Valentina, he kind of felt like the third wheel.

  “What do you mean you couldn’t bring it? Where is it?”

  “Where the blue lady dropped it,” Magny said, eyeing Kali suspiciously. “Don’t worry. People are walking over it without even noticing it’s there. It’s as if it’s invisible.”

  “What is happening here?” Jupiter stood up straight, facing Kali. “Where is Nergal?”

  “Finishing the job he started. Don’t worry, your witch is fine. For someone who thought she could meddle in my business, she is more than fine.”

  “The bruises on her neck say otherwise.”

  “You’re mad about some bruises? I believe the blue and purple compliment her pale skin quite well.” She took a step forward and sneered in his face. “She should have been dead.”

  Valentina could feel the anger pouring through Jupiter’s every pore. She grabbed his hand quickly.

  “It’s okay. I’m okay. She didn’t hurt me.”

  Jupiter turned on his heels, shielding her with his massive body. He was so tall and wide now that Valentina looked like a child next to him. He relaxed his shoulders and allowed his body to shrink enough so her chin could reach his shoulder. He cupped her face with his big, warm hand and caressed her cheek with his thumb. He couldn’t look at the bruises on her neck.

  “Yes, she did. But I can make it better.”

  He drew a sigil in the air, lengthened it with a gesture, and slowly pushed it toward the bruises on her neck as he murmured a chant in an old, long-dead language. The thin, graceful strokes of the sigil shimmered and wrapped around her neck. In a matter of seconds, the bruises faded, and so did Valentina’s pain. She sighed in relief and smiled up at him.

  “Thank you.”

  Magny blinked in confusion. He rubbed his eyes, then looked closer at Valentina’s neck. Maybe his vision was starting to fail him – after all, he was as old as dirt – but it seemed like Jove’s sigil had formed some sort of golden collar around her throat. He poofed himself on the kitchen counter. For now, he felt better if he was at least a few feet away from the Keeper and her gods – the ones who wanted to help her, and the ones who wanted to kill her.

  “See? Easy peasy.” Kali laughed. “You should thank me for giving
you the chance to be her knight in shining armor.”

  “Stay away,” Jupiter growled. He pulled Valentina into his arms and led her to the other side of the room.

  “Yes, yes... you should enjoy her now that she’s all yours.”

  Jove cocked an eyebrow.

  “Don’t listen to her,” Valentina said quickly. Her cheeks were red again. “Kali, the goddess of mind games.”

  Ten minutes of awkward silence. As cocky as she was, even Kali knew it wasn’t a good idea to provoke the God of the Sky. She was getting what she wanted, so why bother anyway? In truth, she was already bored of the entire drama and she wished Nergal would be back soon so she could be on her way and forget all about the witch and her lovers. She’d had enough fun messing with her pretty little head and giving her something to dream about at night. If she didn’t dream of her gods already, that was. Oh well. She’d told her she’d bed a dozen gods. She’d exaggerated a bit, but she didn’t particularly feel like revisiting that number. Valentina would figure it out herself when the time came. If she were to be honest with herself, Kali didn’t know whether she should envy the witch or pity her. One woman and nine gods?! Oh, the possibilities! Maybe she should get her own harem once she got bored of her lover. Yes, he was her soul mate, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have a few more soul mates! She grinned at her own thoughts. Yes! Why not? She was Kali, the Goddess of Destruction. Her lover would reincarnate into a god aspect in his next life, and she would take him and keep him at her side for a couple hundred years. If he agreed to share her with others, then maybe forever. If not... Well, she’d cross that bridge when she got there.

  The tense silence was interrupted by Nergal, who slammed the door closed, threw his bag under the bed, and plopped onto the couch. He pulled out his cigarettes and lit one. It smelled like the tobacco had been grown in hell, where it had absorbed the fumes of the burning lakes.

  “It’s done.”

  Kali squealed in excitement. “See? It wasn’t that hard!” She stepped closer, wanting to shake his hand. “Friends again?”

  “We were never friends, Kali,” he sighed, exhausted. “Please go now.”

  The blue goddess furrowed her brows and huffed. So rude! She glanced over at Valentina, but the witch still had her eyes closed. She was nestled in Jupiter’s arms. It was clear that no one wanted her there. She took a step back and with a flick of all her four wrists, she opened a portal and stepped through it.

  Gone, at last. Nergal took a long drag, straightened the fallen coffee table, and extinguished his cigarette right in the middle of it. He turned to Jupiter and Valentina.

  For a long moment, the two gods locked gazes. It was impossible to guess what was going through their minds, although there was one person in the room who did try. Magny shuddered at the thought that, any minute, either of them would decide the other one was responsible for what Valentina had just gone through, and then all hell would break loose. When Nergal walked briskly toward Jove and Val, Magny covered his eyes with his hands, ready to poof himself to safety at the first spark of a fight. Except Nergal did the unthinkable. He looked down at Valentina, wrapped an arm around her waist, tipped her chin up, and kissed her. Magny’s eyes grew to the size of saucers. He kissed her while she still was in Jove’s arms! Nergal hadn’t even bothered to push Jove aside! What in fresh hell was going on here?

  Valentina let out a sigh that was very close to a moan. Still resting a hand on Jupiter’s wide chest, she reached out with the other, grabbed Nergal by the back of the neck, pulling him toward her. He smelled like tobacco, leather and cinnamon. Intoxicating. What if Kali was right? What if she was supposed to...

  Nergal broke the kiss.

  “Feeling better?”

  She opened her eyes. She was in the present, sandwiched between two very hot, very ripped gods, and she knew she wasn’t going to flash through time as long as she held on to them. One god could keep Ravenna out of her head. Two gods could fix her time sensor for a while. She couldn’t help but wonder what more gods could do. Maybe fix it forever? A theory worth verifying...

  “Y-yes. Thank you.” After a short pause, she added: “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry you had to do it. It’s all my fault.”

  Nergal smiled warmly. “How is it your fault, sweetpea? It’s just what Kali does. If anything, it’s my fault for not having anticipated it.”

  His hand moved down her arm, raising goosebumps on her skin. His fingers stopped for a second at her wrist, then he took her hand into his. Her heart picked up the pace. Jupiter leaned in to place a kiss on her temple, and her knees almost gave in. How were they not jealous of each other?

  “I should have been there,” Jove whispered. “I should have never left you alone.”

  “And I should have known better,” Nergal said. “It’s my fault...” He stole a glance at Jupiter, who nodded imperceptibly. “Our fault for having dragged you into this.”

  “But I wanted to be dragged into this...” she murmured, blushing.

  Magny was so uncomfortable with the whole scene that he didn’t know what to do. He was torn between hiding under the kitchen counter and poofing himself outside.

  “Err... guys? Valentina needs her cloak,” he said in a small voice. “It’s clear that your... ahem... presence keeps her time sensor under control, but we need a more... ahem... permanent solution here.”

  The spell was broken. Jupiter and Nergal pulled away, leaving Valentina feeling cold and abandoned. Which was silly, because it was a scorching hot day, and abandoned was the last thing she was. She’d become rather greedy lately. At least, Nergal was still holding her hand.

  “Come on, let’s go get your cloak.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Why did she feel guilty?

  Valentina was back at the hotel after Nergal had retrieved the cloak for her. Magny was currently digging into a plate full of hash browns and chicken strips – his favorite Ordinary food. That belly of his wasn’t going to maintain itself round and fat, and with the whole madness of the past few days, he was afraid he might lose too much weight. The huge dollops of garlic mayonnaise he’d spread all over his feast were going to do half of the job, at least.

  Val was pacing the floor. Her stomach rumbled but she didn’t want to eat. Oh, she was hungry all right, but right now there was something bigger than hunger gnawing at her insides. Guilt. Why? Why did she feel guilty?

  “Magny, I need to ask you something.”

  “Shoot,” he said through of mouthful of hash browns.

  Valentina dragged in a breath, then saw how his long, shaggy beard was covered in mayonnaise, and the urge to confess her thoughts and feelings faded.

  “Nevermind.”

  He shrugged. He was too hungry to care about the Keeper’s inner turmoil. By now, he’d figured out that Valentina’s middle name was Inner Turmoil. Or Drama. Valentina “Drama Queen” De Rossi. And she called herself a Virgo! More like a Cancer or a Scorpio, in his humble opinion. As he stuffed his face with another chicken strip, he promised himself he’d do her natal chart that evening. There was no way she was a Virgo! She probably had her moon in Cancer. That had to be it! And Mercury in Scorpio!

  She resumed her frantic pacing. She’d found her tarot cards scattered on the bed and floor, just like she’d left them when she was unceremoniously abducted by the Goddess of Destruction, and now she was shuffling them over and over. She wanted to feel them in her hands. She’d counted them at least a dozen times, checked each of them to make sure they were unharmed, but she still couldn’t bring herself to put them down. She felt like such a failure! A Keeper was supposed to have her tarot deck with her at all times. And she’d left it behind. When Kali had materialized out of nowhere, her first concern had been for her life, not for the Tarot. Ugh!

  “I suck.”

  Magny almost choked on a hash brown. Okay, maybe he should slow down. The food wasn’t going anywhere.

  “You suck? Why... err..
. why do you suck?”

  “I can’t do anything right, and now... now...”

  “Okay, spit it out. What’s bothering you?”

  “Kali said something.” She turned to him and stopped shuffling. “She said that I will save the Mysteries of the Trionfi and everyone who was taken over by Walk-Ins, but on one condition.”

  “What condition?”

  That was Loki. Valentina looked at the deck in her hand and realized the Hanged Man had ended up on top, face up. She sighed. Of course she couldn’t tell Magny a thing without the cards hearing it too. Well, she might as well...

  With a flick of her hand, she made the Hanged Man and the Magician jump out of the deck, then summoned the two gods quickly. She saw the Page of Swords and the Knight of Swords were curious to hear the whole story too, but this wasn’t some sort of Tarot conference. They were staying inside their cards. What she had to say only concerned Loki and Veles.

  As usual, Loki was dressed in black jeans and a black T-shirt, his brown hair gathered in a loose ponytail. It was strange and unexpected, but Veles was wearing normal clothes, too. A pair of cream-colored slacks with a navy-blue shirt. He looked amazing! The colors he’d picked worked so well with his silver hair and blue eyes, that Valentina was ready to admit she didn’t know Veles as well as she thought she did. The man had a sense of fashion!

  “Are you okay?” Loki tried to take her hand. He failed. “You were gone for so long.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “If we had been here, in flesh and bone...” Veles growled. “None of this would have happened.”

  “I... I will make it possible. I promise. But first I have to... mmm... tell you something.”

  Loki crossed his arms over his chest. “Did you kiss Jupiter again? That bastard!”

  Veles merely rolled his eyes. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and turned all his attention on Valentina. For some reason, he already knew what she was doing to say. Loki knew, too. Deep down, if he took the time to look within... He guessed the Trickster had spent too much time among Ordinaries. Sometimes it felt like his jealousy and competitive spirit were more important than the truth.