Marilyn ignored Wrath and continued, “When the woman we shall not name found out Lucifer was dating Aphrodite at the same time, she put the goddess of love under a mind-control spell, the balance of love in the world was off, and more people got divorced during that time than the entire year before. If Zenius hadn’t stepped in, she would have ended all marriages on earth.”
“So, where is Kali?”
Wrath glared at me and looked over her shoulder. “We don’t speak her name! Last I heard, Lucifer and the other gods got together and sent her to another dimension.”
“If she is in another dimension, she wouldn’t hear me say her name. When would they have sent her?”
Wrath shrugged.
“Is the woman we are not speaking of the demon or the fallen angel?”
“Kali—”
Wrath grunted at the sound of the woman’s name, and I searched the room just in case she showed up on the third time, like in Beetlejuice or when someone said Bloody Mary’s name three times. Nothing happened.
“She is the goddess of time, death, and destruction. When she gets upset, she destroys everything in her way. When the gods broke the spell over Aphrodite, Kali tried to start an apocalypse by telling Loki lies.”
“When was this?”
“Around the time you would have been born. We need to go to your old pack and see if anyone remembers the person who brought you there.”
Wrath stretched out her legs, and Marilyn yawned again.
“Looks like I’m heading to Georgia. Marilyn, thank you for your help. Again, I’m sorry for lighting your shop on fire and for Frank’s tail.”
“You did that to his tail?” Wrath laughed and pointed at Frank while he tried to angrily swish his tail back and forth.
Glaring at my new sister, I said, “I’m not sure you’re my favorite.”
The deadly sin frowned and waved her hand at the cat. His tail magically straightened, and his coat shone even brighter. “Ha, now I’m number one again.”
I gave Marilyn a hug before I walked out the front of the shop. Heels clicked behind me, and when I looked over my shoulder, Wrath was two steps behind me. “I’ve got this. I’m sure you have things to do, since you’re one of the deadly sins and all.”
“With social media breeding so much hate, I really don’t have to do anything anymore. I’m excited to help my new sister.”
When I pulled on my office door, it opened without having to be unlocked. Carter and the trolls must have grabbed Michelle before she locked it. No point in trying to stop Wrath—she shoved her way in behind me. The office was dimly lit. I walked to the back and sat down at my desk, and Wrath took the guest chair on the other side.
“What are we doing here? We need to be on our way to Georgia to take down the alpha,” Wrath said with excitement.
I peered up from my laptop screen. Wrath was running her hand along the blade of her sword. “I’m booking a flight for first thing in the morning and grabbing some files, then I plan to go home, shower, and sleep.” My headache hadn’t decreased one bit. I rubbed my temple, hoping the throb would go away.
“We don’t need a flight. We will take hell’s portal.”
I bit my tongue before I asked what hell’s portal was. “Wrath, all of this is a lot to take in. I found out my father is Lucifer, my sisters are the seven deadly sins, and my mother might be in another dimension for almost destroying the world.”
I didn’t wait for her to reply. Deciding to book the flight at home, I grabbed my laptop and the folder on the top of my desk and headed toward my car. On the way out, I locked the shop and posted a sign saying we were on vacation. I didn’t want Michelle at the firm without me around, and I had no clue how long it would take to find my mother.
Wrath pulled open the passenger-side door. When I turned the key in the ignition, I noticed a set of car lights turn on behind us. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Someone from Ryker’s pack had waited for me. My wolf purred at how protective her mate watching over her was, but I couldn’t help but grind my teeth at the intrusion on my privacy. I bet Ryker never had his last second followed to make sure he made it to his locations okay.
The tires squealed as I pulled out of the parking spot and headed home. I didn’t care that my house looked like Christmas had bled all over it. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with the alpha, and I had a new sister as backup. Surely Wrath could take a few demons down.
The drive home went quickly, and for the first time in the last two hours, Wrath was actually quiet until we walked into my house. “Holy shit, it stinks in here.”
“I have someone coming to clean it up,” I muttered as I stepped over a demon arm.
Wrath held her hand over her nose. “Why don’t we burn your house down?”
I trudged through the living room to the kitchen. My fridge was beeping because the door was open, so I pushed at it to try to bend it back.
Wrath’s voice came from the living room. “Burning this place down is the best option.”
The door wouldn’t budge. I gave up and pulled two beers off the top shelf, walked back into the living room, and handed one to Wrath.
The beer felt good as it ran down my throat. “So, don’t you have to go home?”
Wrath took a long swig of the Yuengling. “I’m not leaving you alone. I’m surprised your mate isn’t here.”
“I don’t have a mate.”
My new sister walked across the living room and nudged the dead troll with her shoe. “Dad told me the sexy Ryker was your mate.”
I couldn’t hold back the growl when she called Ryker sexy. “We have things to work out.”
“Famous last words. This troll’s eyes are red.”
Ryker’s pack had taken Carter out of the kitchen but left the trolls and demons for Reggie to clean up. “Both of the trolls’ and Carter’s eyes were red. Carter’s skin was falling off as well.”
“Hmm... did you tell Dad about this?”
“No, it’s not like we sat down and talked about why I used my magic. Why does it matter?”
Wrath squatted down next to the troll and poked at his skin. “It looks like someone put a demon in the troll, and that would explain the skin falling off the wolf’s face. A shifter body wouldn’t be strong enough to hold a demon soul. The body would decay.”
“Does this mean we are dealing with someone from the underworld? Maybe Lucifer made someone mad, and they figured out I was his daughter. Maybe you should go to hell and see if you can get answers.”
She stood back up and took another swig of her beer. “I’m not sure, but we need to figure out who your mom is. Going to hell will not solve the case. If it was someone from hell, they would create an army of strong demons. This person is using baby demons and weak souls from hell.”
The magic I’d used earlier had exhausted my body, and I couldn’t think about where demons came from any longer. “Tomorrow. I’m taking a shower and going to bed.”
I didn’t wait to see if Wrath vanished or stayed. The only thing I wanted was a long shower, then I would call Ryker. The clean water rained down on my skin, and it felt good. When it ran cold, I turned off the shower and grabbed a towel. Then a loud crash followed by a grunt had me running toward the living room to make sure Wrath was okay.
7
When I came to a stop in the living room, only wearing a towel, the sight in front of me left me speechless. Wrath was standing on the other side of the room, wiping her long silver sword on my somewhat white couch. Two large demons were lying on the floor. Ryker burst through the door. His eyes went from Wrath to the demon on the ground then to me. His heated stare raked over my body.
With the speed of his wolf, he was next to me. He ran his hands down my body, and not in a sexual way I’d hoped for. “Are you okay?”
Wrath huffed. “As if I would let my new favorite sister die. You should know better, wolf.”
Ryker ignored my sister. “You are coming with me.”
Usually, I would fi
ght, but more demons were arriving at my house, the stench of decay and blood was overwhelming, and using my powers earlier had drained my energy. “For one night.” I turned on my heel and headed to my room, which looked normal and was not covered in demon and troll blood. Ryker’s steps were so quiet I couldn’t hear them, but I felt his presence near me.
“I can dress alone. Why don’t you go talk to my sister.”
“I’ve spent enough time down in hell, playing poker with your father and having your sisters cheat at every aspect of the game, just like your father. Out of all your sisters, I would rather gouge out my eyes than spend a minute with Wrath.”
I dropped the towel and bent to grab a pair of sweats and a T-shirt from the drawer.
Ryker groaned. “That’s just evil, Paldon.”
It wasn’t the first time Ryker had seen me naked. Wolves had to strip down before switching forms. Sometimes the clothes wouldn’t rip, and your wolf would be wearing a pink thong. I tried not to care that my boobs were on display. “You’ve seen me naked before.”
Ryker’s eyes flashed yellow before I pulled a white T-shirt on. “Yes, but I could also go jack off afterward. You’re coming to my house, and all I can think about is your perfect round ass.” He was next to me in two steps and pulled me against his chest.
An image of Ryker wrapping his hand around his cock had my mind muddled. He pressed his lips to mine, and the worry from the day went away. Warmth filled my body, and he deepened the kiss and ran his hands through my hair. My body was on fire. I wanted to take him right there and not worry about anything going on around us.
“Are you guys going to make out all night?” Wrath yelled from the living room, followed by the sound of another crash.
Ryker pulled back and rested his forehead on mine. My body tensed under the sound of glass shattering.
“Oops, my bad,” Wrath said.
After placing a kiss on my forehead, Ryker said, “Wrath is a mess.”
Being in his arms helped take away the drama from the day. The clock on the nightstand read two in the morning. I didn’t even know how I was still functioning. After slowly pulling out of Ryker’s arms, I grabbed a pair of jeans and a T-shirt from the drawer so I would have something to wear the next day. When I looked at Ryker, he didn’t look like he planned to leave my room.
I hurried into the bathroom and brushed my teeth. When I walked back out, Ryker had my pink suitcase in the middle of the bed. “What are you doing?”
“You are in danger, Paldon, and in case you forgot, you’re second now. You need to be close.”
Though I could see the pack house from my backyard, I didn’t want to waste any more breath on the subject, so I brushed past Ryker and headed back to the living room. He could pack all he wanted—I had other things to worry about. Wrath was weaving her hand over the dead demons, and they disappeared. One massive troll was still lying across the coffee table.
“Are you sending them somewhere?”
Wrath looked up from the demon she stood over. “Hell. Dad wants to interrogate them.”
I didn’t want to point out that they were dead, but I didn’t understand so much about the supernatural. Fatigue overtook me, and I headed for the back door to walk back to Ryker’s house. Wrath and Ryker followed behind as I walked across the backyards. The elves next door were sitting on their back porch around an open barbecue pit.
I pulled open the back door to the Mystic Ash house. The living room, which had been filled with pack members earlier, was quiet. I let my wolf out and couldn’t sense anyone else in the house, so I looked at Ryker over my shoulder.
“All young children and women are at Jacob’s house.”
He didn’t have to say why—it worried him that someone might attack the pack house while coming after me. I knew I should head somewhere else, but I wanted to curl up and sleep. When I heard Wrath’s heels click on the stair behind me, I took a deep breath. “Wrath, you are not sleeping in the same room as me.”
She tapped her red nails on the railing. “Who will protect you?”
“I’m sleeping. You can stay down there on the couch or go back to hell and do research.”
Wrath turned and plopped down on the couch.
Ryker whispered, “You won’t ever get rid of her. She might annoy you, but one thing I know is she cares more about family more than any of your other siblings.”
“Wrath, take the guest bedroom,” I said.
Wrath nodded before we walked the remaining steps to Ryker’s bedroom.
More questions about my sister were on the tip of my tongue as I sat down on Ryker’s bed. Three hours ago, I’d been curled up in his bed, wondering what might happen next. Now I had three leads, a new sister, and a missing shifter to figure out. What I wanted was to find the pandacorn and hug him. His presence made my world feel so much better.
Ryker had climbed into bed and pulled me back into his arms.
I still had questions. “Ryker, how much do you know about Lucifer and other immortals?”
He let out a breath, and it tickled my neck. “More than I would like. I’ve done a lot of work for the council and have met most of the other immortals during Lucifer’s weekly poker matches. What happened earlier to bring that up?”
“Marilyn, the lady who has a shop near me. We talked tonight.”
Ryker ran his hand down my arm. “I’ve met her a couple times. She opened the shop three months ago. Like most of the other shifters who have moved into my territory, she says she felt a pull to move here. They can’t explain it, but I know what the pull is.”
I noticed the moonlight shining into the room and rolled in Ryker’s arms so I could see his face. “She thinks everyone moved here because of me.”
Ryker swiped a wayward curl out of my face. “You’re special, Paldon. Your spirit calls to others, and they want to be near you.”
“Do you think that is because of who my mother is? Do you only want to be with me because of this pull?” The conversation was going down a route I didn’t want to talk about but knew I had to. It was time I asked for help, and I knew Ryker could help me find whoever my mom was.
“No, your spirit calls out to me.” Ryker gently held my chin. “I want to be with you because I can’t imagine my life without you. Tomorrow, we will sit down and come up with a plan to figure out who your mom is, and we will track her down together.”
“Marilyn has an idea of who my mom might be—a human named Donna. The second possibility is Aphrodite, and her last idea was a goddess of time named Kali.”
Ryker shivered at the last name and wrapped his arms around me tighter. “Was there any information she could give on the human? The third—I won’t even repeat her name—is the last one we will look into. Only death and destruction could follow her.”
Though I couldn’t help but chuckle at no one saying her name, deep down, I hoped it wasn’t her.
“I know you don’t want to tell me what happened with the North American alpha, but I need to know, and I want to hear it from you. I promise that tomorrow we will start the search for your mom, but Joseph will have already gotten word you’re in my pack, and I need to know what I’m up against.”
Despite Ryker’s body letting off heat like a sauna, a chill went down my body, and my hands were sweaty. Maybe he would understand. If not, it was better to find out sooner rather than later. I took a deep breath and spilled my secret, telling him how Joseph had banned me without trial, and everyone in my pack standing aside and letting it happen.
By the end of the story, Ryker’s growl echoed through the room. “I will kill him.”
“You can’t. He’s the North American alpha.” I was no longer worried about Ryker not believing me. Instead, I was worried about him challenging Joseph and losing.
Ryker pressed a kiss to my forehead. “Don’t worry about me, Paldon. You won’t get rid of me that easily.” My forehead tingled where his soft lips had touched. “Our first goal is to find your mother, then we’ll deal
with the North American alpha. Was Marilyn able to help you with your magic?”
I let out a huff. “I burned down part of her shop, then when we went outside, she created a bubble to stop my magic, but when her cat surprise-attacked me, I let all of my powers go at once. My magic broke through the ward, and a metal scrap flew and hit Marty, I broke the cat’s tail, and Marilyn had to use all of her energy to save Marty.”
“The homeless guy in the back alley.” Ryker’s eyes flashed yellow. “He needs to find a different alley to hang out in. I see the way he looks at you.”
I shoved Ryker’s shoulder.
“Ouch,” he said and laughed.
“Out of all of that—setting her shop on fire, my magic going through wards Marilyn thought were unbreakable, damaging a cat’s tail, and finding out my sisters are the seven deadly sins—you picked out some homeless guy in the back alley. I almost killed him, Ryker. If Marilyn didn’t have healing abilities, he would be dead.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Ryker grumbled. “As for your sisters, they are more bite than anything. Wrath can be protective when it comes to family. Lucifer probably mentioned you, and she’s worried. Tomorrow, we will look into the three women Marilyn mentioned, but if we can’t find anything, we will have to go to your old pack and research. I know you mentioned no one spoke up for you. How about the family that raised you?”
“Joseph found me next to his second’s dead body and took me to the pack house. He placed me in a room while the members voted on my sentence. He came back and said they banished me, then he took me away that moment, and when we reached the edge of town, he marked my face.”
I closed my eyes, and Ryker ran a hand down the side of my face. When he reached where my scar had been, he traced the line that was no longer there.
“Go to sleep, Paldon. We will figure out everything tomorrow. Remember I’m here for you. No more ruling the world on your own.” Ryker pulled away from me and climbed out of bed.
“Don’t leave.” I didn’t care if I sounded weak. The day had been crazy, and Ryker’s presence calmed my wolf and made the world seem less dark.
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