Morgane was waiting as the doors opened. “Slowest elevator ever, right?” The blonde woman’s smile was infectious, and Syd had no choice but to smile back, crappy day or no.
“Yeah, I should have walked.”
“Stairs are darker than shit, so it’s a no-win either way. I’m Morgane, by the way, didn’t get a chance to meet you earlier. Loki said you need a place to work?”
“Yeah, anywhere will do, I don’t need much.”
Morgane shot her a sideways glance, taking in the laptop and notebook clutched in her hands. “Yeah, I can see that. Look, I’ve got an idea, how do you feel about views?”
“Can’t ever turn down a good view.”
“No,” Morgane murmured, “no, you sure can’t.”
They walked swiftly down a hall paneled in finely carved wood, recalling a time long past when men took the time to painstakingly recreate such details. And when Morgane swung open the door and ushered her in, Sydney gasped. The windows, which were almost three times as tall as she was, opened up onto the sky. At least, that’s what it looked like. As she drew closer, they actually overlooked the lake, but with the fires, or the fog, it was like floating above the clouds.
“Nice, huh? I thought the same thing the first time I saw this view.”
“Wow.” Was the only intelligible sound that escaped Syd’s mouth.
“So anyhow, you can work from here, there’s a bed and a bathroom. I’ll fix you up with some nice bath stuff, and I think some of my clothes might fit you. You finish up on the layouts Loki needs, and we’ll just go from there.” She hesitated a moment before adding, “Loki and I are two doors down. And Mir’s on the other side.” There was a glimmer in her eye as she added, “You know, in case you need anything.”
Morgane moved with the surety of a hunter, Sydney thought, smooth and confident, her long, blonde ponytail swinging behind a long, lean body. “Thanks,” Syd called out to her retreating back. “I appreciate this.”
“Don’t mention it. My sister lives here, too. We girls have to stick together. In the end, we’re gonna be the glue that holds this shit show together. Just you wait and see.” And with a playful wink, Morgane shut the door behind her, leaving Sydney suspended over the city, adrift in a thousand questions without answers.
“Well, I can figure out one thing at least.” She pulled out the laptop and accessed her files from the dolmen expedition. Hundreds of them, starting from the initial discovery, to the excavation, to the process of importation into the states, to the series of experiments and studies she did to calculate their placement.
Seven hours later, she had a rough schematic drawn up. One that wouldn’t rely on the use of heavy equipment, as they had none, nor the manpower of twenty men—ditto on this too. However, it would satisfy the lunar solstice alignment as well as the spatial requirements. Double checking her numbers for the umpteenth time, she was finally satisfied. Science was what she needed to stick to. God, she sucked when it came to personal relationships.
“I should have stayed in the basement at the museum.”
And then what? her brain asked. Those spider-monster things would have eaten you for breakfast. No, she thought, reflecting, she’d made the right decision coming here. Except thinking about being next door to Mir was doing funny things to her insides, and the more she tried to put it out of her mind, the more the image of him loomed large.
“How am I going to fix things between us?” she asked herself, although from the way her insides tightened up, it appeared, physically at least, she knew exactly how to fix things.
Gathering her papers, she marshaled herself for the inevitable. Mir was going to want to see her results, and she was going to have to explain them to him. She’d be a fool to think otherwise. At least the infirmary was neutral ground. “I can do this,” she muttered, trying to talk herself into it.
Flinging open the door, she walked straight into pure, honed muscle. The hardest she’d ever run up against. At least in a few hours. Strong hands encircled her upper arms but made no attempt to put any distance between them. In fact, they seemed to draw her in even closer. The papers crushed in her hands, electricity cracked between them, as Mir’s voice hummed in her ear.
“I was just coming up to see how far along you were. It’s been hours and nobody’s seen you.” Jesus, she felt like she was wired into a generator. The kind that fed power straight into you and then sucked it right back out again. Her legs felt weak, her heart was beating far too fast, and the only thing that was holding her up, she was pretty sure, were the iron bands of Mir’s hands around her arms.
“I was just coming down to see you. Actually. Now.” God, she sounded like an idiot. Barely programmed for the human language. Breathing seemed to be the biggest thing on her plate right now, and every single breath brought in great sweeping gusts of Mir’s scent. Clean, crisp and purely male, her knees went weak and to her utter embarrassment, she staggered against him.
Yup, totally a fucking failure at this interpersonal shit.
“Well,” Mir murmured, gathering her against him and backing her into the room, “I saved you a trip then.” He kicked the door shut behind him.
Somehow, with just the two of them inside, and everyone else barricaded outside, he seemed to grow exponentially bigger. Sexier. She breathed him in again, slower this time, more deliberately. Definitely more desirable.
“I also came up”—he leaned in close enough that she swore she felt lips in her hair—“to apologize”—the velvety touch of lips on her neck—“and to tell you”—lips on her face—“that I behaved like a total and a complete asshole.”
And finally, those lips grazed her mouth.
There were laws of physics that just could not be broken. Laws that couldn’t be overcome. Syd thought dimly that this was probably one of them. From the first time she’d seen him, striding across that street like an avenging angel, it seemed inevitable they’d end up like this.
It had only been a question of when and how.
His strong hand cupped the back of her head, cradling it, tipping her backwards. His other hand braced against the small of her back, and those velvety lips pressed against hers, the lightest pressure, teasing, gentle. Testing.
Her body turned liquid, anticipation ratcheting up with every breath. His tongue brushed at the seam of her mouth, and she opened for him as his kiss grew more demanding, the length of his body hard against hers, his mouth pressing hers wider as she surrendered to him, to the moment. To the heat of this thing.
Another nudging intrusion of his tongue had her on fire, liquid pooling between her thighs. Each kiss grew more possessive, more claiming, more wild, and she lost herself, the papers scattering to the floor, her arms wrapping around him, fingers skimming over hardened muscle. Touching him, feeling his warm, velvety skin beneath her fingertips.
“I love this.” Mir’s eyes turned incandescent. “I love it when you touch me, Syd.” Wrapping his hand into her hair, Mir tipped her head farther back and traced his teeth over her jaw, down her neck, and down even more, the pressure of his teeth leaving her panting. Breathless.
Desire pounded through her, from her heart to her core. She wanted more of him.
Harder. Faster. More.
Sydney ran questing hands up and over him, feeling every inch of him before she cradled his face, searching his eyes intently before pulling him back to her mouth. Mir drove his tongue into her mouth, leaving any pretense of tenderness or gentleness behind, tipping her back even farther as he devoured her.
As if he were starving and she was the only thing he was hungry for.
Chapter 10
Mir wound his hand tighter into Sydney’s silky hair. He’d felt his self-control shredding away with the first lick of his tongue against her lips. When she’d gazed deliberately into his eyes before pulling him back to her mouth, something about those pale green depths sucked him in. Down and down and down, and now he was completely lost.
Her lips were sweeter than
anything his tongue had ever tasted. Her body softer than anything he’d ever desired. Walking her backwards, he tumbled her to the bed, catching their fall with an outstretched hand, letting his body pin her, savoring the feel of her beneath him, the way she was welded against him, the softness of her breasts, the hard pebbles of her nipples.
A breathy sigh and she undulated like a wave underneath him, their mouths still fused together, her hands moving from his face, down his neck, roaming over his body as if she couldn’t touch him fast enough. Mir slid his hand beneath her, cupping her ass, lifting her up against him, thrust himself against her. She gasped, breath exploding into his mouth, as he chuckled darkly, pushing her legs even wider.
“Tell me to stop, and I will Syd,” he murmured against her neck, his voice a husky growl, his teeth nipping a trail down to her collarbone. “Say this isn’t what you want…and I’ll leave…” He reared back, searching those desire-glazed eyes swamped with lust. They were unfocused, darkened to the color of emeralds. Fuck, don’t say no, not when this thing is spiraling so far out of our control…not when everything inside of me is telling me to claim you…take you…make you mine…
“No…more… I want more…” She writhed against him, her hands gripping his arms, holding on, red hair tangled around her head, her face flushed and pink, lips red and wet. So trusting. So young.
And so mortal. A long, shuddering breath and Mir dipped his head down and laid it on her chest, feeling the human heart that beat wildly there, every frantic thump a reminder of his own stupid recklessness.
He never lost control. Not ever. And not like this.
“Shit. I’m sorry.”
She whimpered in frustration as he rolled off her, her hands grasping for his arms until he rose over her, sprawled out on the bed like some kind of virgin sacrifice. He couldn’t take his eyes from her beautiful face, nor those exotic, intriguing eyes watching him with confusion and longing.
“Why did you stop? I don’t understand, Mir… What happened? Did I do something?” She shifted on the bed, closed her legs, crossed her arms, and studied him, her face tightening. In anger or regret, Mir didn’t know, but he retreated a step, putting more space between them, a little more of their shared heat fading away. A bit more of that stuff called common sense began flowing into his brain, replacing the blood, all of which was currently in his cock.
“No. It wasn’t you. It’s me.” And didn’t that sound like a lame ass excuse. “I… We can’t, Syd. You and me are supposed to be working together, for fuck’s sake. Not fucking. I’m not cut out for relationship shit. Never have been, and never will be.”
“Is that a warning?”
“That’s a fact.”
For a long time she stayed silent, staring up at him with those pale, unreadable eyes. “All right.”
She slid off the bed in one deft move and ducked beneath his arm. Mir squeezed his eyes shut as behind him, papers rustled. He dropped to his knees and helped her pick them up, everything he’d made her drop when he’d barged in and gone at her like a freight train.
“I’m sorry, Syd. I can’t jeopardize everything we’re working on.” And I can’t risk hurting you, he didn’t add. “This is life and death. End of the world shit.” He tacked on lamely.
“I get it,” she said tonelessly. “Tell you what. Let’s just pretend none of this happened, okay?”
Mir ran his hand over his head. Fuck and fuck and fuck. This was why he stuck to theories and science. It was simple and clean. Not dangerous and reckless. He’d put her at risk, crossing that street. Talking to her. Bringing her into this. And now, by kissing her, he was taking the risk factor up another notch. He should be protecting her, for fuck’s sake. He should be watching out for her, not adding reasons for Odin to go after her.
“All right,” Mir forced himself to say, his heart aching. “We pretend this never happened, and we go downstairs, where you can explain to everyone how to reset the timetable. Does that sound like a plan?”
Silently she regarded him, and then nodded once, turning away. Before she took a single step, he stopped her with a question. One which had been burning inside him all day long. Her previous answer had only intrigued him more.
“Are you a witch, Syd?”
From the way she froze, he wished he’d never asked.
“Witches don’t exist in the world. Or didn’t they teach you that in god school?”
But he had to know. “Witchblood, Odin said. Told you he smelled it on you.” Now she turned slowly, her inscrutable gaze cold as a dagger. “So I have to ask again, are you a witch? You can trust me with the truth, Syd, I swear you can.”
There was nothing on her face as she answered, “A long time ago, before I ever believed in science or theory or prophecies, I believed in something else. Something I thought was more powerful than anything in existence. Something that betrayed me and took away everything I ever loved. So no. I don’t believe in magic anymore.”
Her face hardened. “It’s like you said, Mir.” She chuffed out a small, bitter laugh. “Now I believe in science, and it’s far more dependable.”
Mir felt a flood of raging emotion shoot through him as she straightened, leveled that cold stare right at him, and told him, “That’s all the explanation you’ll ever get from me because you don’t deserve anything more. We are done, you and I. We’ll work together, but other than that? Stay the hell away from me.”
Chapter 11
Wow, and she’d thought a seminar of tenured professors was a tough sell.
She’d had everyone on board until Odin had drifted into the War Room and casually leaned against the table and raked over her with eyes that clearly said, Fuck up, human and your ass is mine. And not in a good way.
Now the nerves were eating away at her self-confidence like popcorn at a horror flick.
“As you can see, dolmen number five, the tallest one, will present the biggest challenge. The entire formation must be moved one and a half feet to the northeast, and shifted slightly, close to twenty-two inches, fourteen degrees north, to complete this line created by moving dolman number four.”
Nervously licking her lips, she scanned the room, eyes snagging on Mir’s for a split second before she continued, “Obviously, the biggest challenge will be keeping the site secure until the solstice begins, which will be at 9:47 pm on the twenty-first. The duration of the event is approximately ten hours, during which time…” She licked her lips again, knowing this was when Odin would pounce. “Anything might happen.”
“Anything?” he prodded.
Jeez, men were so predictable. “Anything,” she reiterated firmly. Like she somehow knew the secrets of the universe? Thought that was his territory.
A vicious smile quirked his mouth. “Not everything, human, only what I need to know.” The smile turned even colder. “You purport to be a scientist? Postulate.”
Sydney had, actually. And she’d come up with a couple of scenarios that seemed equally as unlikely as they were horrifying.
Before she could continue, Celine calmly broke in, “You’re asking her to give you a prediction when clearly, she doesn’t have enough information to base it on.”
Aaaand, that’s what a lifeline looks like. She sent Celine a look of utter gratitude.
Odin simply waved his hand in a circle in the air. “As I said human, postulate.”
Fine. “Actually I came up with two possible scenarios. Based on my research of your mythology, historical facts, the size of the stone circle, the readings I took at the Millennium Park site, plus the fact that this solstice will occur during a full moon, it is a reasonable expectation that the Orobus may attempt to bring something else through. Armies, perhaps, or other beings from one of the other nine realms. Equally probable is the possibility he might use it to return to another dimension or world.” She paused. “However, neither of these hypotheses satisfy me.”
She forced herself to skim over Mir’s face in the sea of people. “It seems there is more at play
.”
Her gaze rested on Odin. For a long, drawn out moment she debated what to say, and a chill went down her spine at the thought of what might happen if she actually spoke the truth.
“Do you remember what I told you? When we met?” Sydney asked the king, her gaze steady. “That life is a circle?”
“Stop speaking in riddles, human.”
Sydney’s lips quirked at the inferred insult.
“As I said before, we’re all the same, Odin. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. And it’s so appropriate in this case. I believe the Orobus intends to drop the gates between all realms so he can swallow up life itself. Turn all available energy into the chaos from which everything began.”
Odin straightened ever so slightly.
There. She’d said it. The horrible idea that had begun gnawing at her as soon as she’d started her calculations, factoring in the new evidence. Meeting Odin’s eyes, she realized that for all of his wisdom, sight, and experience, it was a conclusion he had not yet reached.
“Chaos?”
“Chaos,” she agreed with a brief nod, “The stuff of which everything is made, according to your lexicon of faith. I did my research this afternoon. According to your beliefs, the first of your gods imprisoned him, correct? And now this thing’s free?”
Odin cocked his head, his face hard. “Why are you asking me? The Orobus spoke through you the last time we had a face-to-face, if you remember.”
Actually, she wished she didn’t.
“Said, and I quote,” Odin’s voice went high and sing songy, “because of me that bastard is here. Since I’m a direct descendent of The Three. And I’m somehow supposed to pay the price for him being locked away, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.”
Odin’s eyes narrowed. “Well, forgive me if I call bullshit on that.”
“He wants you to lose what you covet, remember?” Sydney reminded him softly. “Of everything you have, at this moment, what do you value the most? Is it your friends? Yourself?” She waited a beat before she tacked on, “Or this world?”
The Banished Gods Box Set: Books 1-3 Page 56
