Marked

by Elisabeth Naughton

  Frowning, she relaxed against him, only to tense once more when his hand drifted up the back of her hamstring. She braced her hands on his lower back and pushed herself up. “Watch it, buddy.”

  “Just getting a better grip.”

  Oh, she just bet.

  Before she could tell him just what he could do with his hands, darkness overtook her, and she realized they’d stepped into some kind of cave or tunnel.

  Theron eased her down to the ground. Behind her Nick said, “Not far now. Stay close and keep me in sight. Tunnels branch off in various directions. You’ll be lost forever if you choose the wrong one.”

  That didn’t sound so appealing to Casey right now, who wanted nothing more than a warm bed, a stiff drink and a chance to sleep this nightmarish day right out of her mind. She followed closely behind Nick and knew after the first turn that if he weren’t leading her, she’d be lost in an instant.

  What little light shone in from the opening quickly went out, and darkness pressed in as they made turn after turn. Casey reached out a hand to steady herself on the rock walls, the scents of earth tingling heavy in her nose. From ahead she saw a pinpoint beam of light and realized Nick had pulled a flashlight from his pocket. Though the tunnel was tall enough for all three of them to stand in, the walls were close, and both men had to turn sideways to fit their broad shoulders through the space.

  After what seemed like an eternity of hairpin turns and rapid elevation changes that stole Casey’s breath all over again, the tunnel finally opened into a massive cavern illuminated by hundreds of torches. Casey gasped as she blinked rapidly at the increase in light. Three-story wooden structures were built into the rock lining both sides of the cavern. Doors and windows and balconies looked out to a central pool of water, fed by a massive waterfall that fell from the ceiling of the cave, nearly a hundred feet above.

  “Oh, my,” she whispered. People milling around the central pool stopped to look their way as wary eyes peered down from the structures on both sides.

  She took a cautious step backward and ran smack into Theron’s chest, but he didn’t move. Those eyes staring down at her weren’t the least bit friendly, and she had a wild impression that she’d just been thrown into the lion’s den.

  A small child, no more than five, broke free from a woman standing off to the side and raced toward them, yelling, “Nick! Nick!”

  Nick dropped to his knees to catch the child as she threw herself into his arms. Their hug was brief, but it was clear even to Casey that the two shared a special bond.

  “I knew you’d come back okay,” the girl said to him. In her hands she held a doll cradled to her chest. “Minnie told me.”

  “Minnie’s a smart girl,” Nick said, chucking her under the chin and rising to his feet.

  The girl glanced briefly up at Theron, standing at Casey’s back, then turned her attention to Casey. And it was then Casey noticed the marks.

  The entire right side of the girl’s face was covered in puckered scars, as though she’d been in some terrible car accident and then burned. Her right eye was covered by a patch, and hair that should have been long and thick was sparse on that side of her head.

  But it wasn’t the girl’s appearance that made Casey catch her breath as she looked down at the small child. It was the look in the girl’s good eye. Like she’d seen the world and beyond. Like she’d already lived a lifetime and aged eons beyond her years. Like she was looking straight through Casey and into a future no one knew but her.

  “I knew you’d come,” the girl said. “Minnie told me.”

  “Who’s Minnie?” Casey found herself asking.

  The girl held up her doll. “Minnie knows everything. She knew that Nick would battle the monsters today and win, and that he’d come home safe. And she knew he’d bring you here to save us.”

  Casey glanced at Nick, who was staring at the girl with a perplexed expression.

  A chill of foreboding slid down Casey’s spine. She returned her attention to the girl. “What do you mean, ‘save us’?”

  “All of us.” The girl held up her free hand and gestured behind her. “The whole colony. Minnie said that’s why you’ve come.”

  Though it was completely insane and made no sense whatsoever, considering everything else, two words pinged around in Casey’s brain. My people.

  She dropped to her knees in front of the girl without hesitation. “What’s your name?”

  “Marissa.”

  “Marissa,” Casey repeated, eyes running over the small child. “What else did Minnie tell you about me, Marissa?”

  “That you would come with him.” She nodded toward Theron, standing close at Casey’s back. “And not to be afraid of him.” She leaned in close to Casey’s ear. “The others don’t understand that. Not even Nick. But he’s here to protect you, and you need him as much as we need you.”

  “Why?” Casey whispered.

  Marissa pushed the doll into Casey’s hands. “Let Minnie show you.”

  The moment Casey’s fingers touched the girl’s hand, a jolt shot through her, and suddenly she was soaring through time and space, then standing on the edge of a great cliff, looking down at a horrific scene.

  Flames shot to the heavens. Screams echoed above and beyond, and a great roar rose from a scuffle just beyond the fire. The youngster—Marissa—was hurt and bleeding, flames engulfing her dress and searing her flesh. A woman was working to smother them but couldn’t get them out fast enough to save the child’s delicate skin. Beyond them, the same monsters that had converged on Casey’s store earlier in the day were devouring a man.

  Then Nick appeared on the scene and began battling the creatures, just as he had in her store.

  He was swift and efficient, and his strength and skill were mind-boggling. He saved the young girl and her mother, but the man was devoured before the child’s eyes, and in horror Casey watched as the monster reached into the screaming man’s chest and ripped out his heart.

  The girl’s hand on Casey’s arm pulled her from the vision and back to the present. But the pain was still fresh and real in the youngster’s good eye, and Casey felt it too. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “What they’ll do to you will be worse.”

  “Marissa!”

  At the sound of the sharp female voice, Casey eased to her feet, more shaken than she wanted to admit. The woman who came running at breakneck speed was also burned and scarred, and she scooped Marissa up into her arms just before shooting Theron a scorching look and hurrying off into the village, speaking in a language Casey didn’t understand.

  Casey’s heart was beating a mile a minute as she looked up at Nick, but if she’d expected answers on his hard face, it was clear she was on her own. His amber eyes were narrowed, and focused directly on her as if he were seeing her for the first time.

  “Marissa is a soothsayer,” Nick mumbled. “A seer. She uses Minnie, her doll, as her medium, but she senses happenings in the future without her.”

  Ooookay. That didn’t help any. Because somehow Casey knew that what she’d seen hadn’t been the future, but the past.

  Casey let out a nervous laugh that held absolutely no humor. “Well, this time she’s wrong. She’s obviously mistaken about me. I can barely save myself, let alone anyone else.”

  Theron and Nick exchanged confused glances, and weird clairvoyant child or not, Casey decided it was time for some answers.

  She squared her shoulders. “Just what’s going on here, Nick? What were those things back there, and where the hell are we?” She looked Theron’s way. “And where on earth did you really come from?” She glanced between the two mammoth men again as panic edged its way back into her voice. “It’s about time someone started talking, or I’m walking.”

  Nick’s eyes settled on Theron. “I think it’s about time we all got some answers. But not here in front of the others. We’ll do this in the lodge.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The lodge was a massive expanse of wood built at t
he far end of the enormous cavern. As they walked through the central courtyard and passed the waterfall, Theron stayed close to Acacia’s side. Though he sensed the villagers’ unease was solely due to his presence, he didn’t put it past them to take a swipe at her because of him.

  Gods, there were so many. He scanned the crowd that parted for them. So many worn and battered and bearing marks of battles past. How could so many have been kept secret from the Argonauts for so long?

  It was clear Nick was the band of half-breeds’ leader. He exuded an air of authority over the entire colony, and heads bowed slightly as he passed. Not for the first time, Theron wondered who this rogue warrior was. He’d noticed the fingerless leather gloves Nick wore, and that strange sense that had struck Theron at Acacia’s store hit him again as they walked—the feeling that this man was both human and Argonaut.

  But how could that be possible?

  They reached the steps of the lodge, and Nick led the way into what appeared to be a gathering area. A giant iron chandelier lit with candles showered golden light over the space. The ceiling featured beams carved from massive trees and the floor was a rich honey-colored wood. A giant staircase directly ahead led to the second floor. To the right a living area, complete with leather chairs and rustic tabletops set in various groupings, littered the space. Double doors opened to the left.

  Nick led them into the office. Once inside he closed the doors and pulled the blinds, blocking out the view and the curious eyes from the village below.

  Acacia didn’t wait for an invitation to sit. She dropped onto one of the green leather couches in the corner of the room on a long sigh. She didn’t look good, and as he had back in her store, Theron sensed the illness racking her body. The same illness that plagued Isadora.

  Skata, he needed to get her back to the castle. Like, now.

  The guilt he felt over what he’d been sent to do was swift and useless, so he pushed it aside and decided to dwell on the facts. “What is this place?”

  Nick eased into the chair behind a large oak desk, leather creaking beneath his big body. “Refuge. Or the best we can get. The caves allow us protection. Any daemon who ventures inside will be lost in the tunnels and picked off by our sentries. This colony’s been in existence for nearly five hundred years, and not once has it been breached.”

  Five hundred years. Dear gods.

  “How many are there?” Theron asked.

  “In this colony?” Nick’s brow lifted, and though he volunteered answers, the challenge in his eyes was evidently clear. “Two hundred and forty-seven. On a good day. But our numbers rise and fall as our people move from colony to colony.”

  Two hundred and forty-seven? Holy skata. And there were other colonies? That the king knew about?

  When he could speak after the shock that brought, he asked, “They don’t remain?” If the fortress was as impenetrable as Nick claimed, why on earth would any of these half-breeds risk venturing out into the human world, where they could be identified and killed on sight?

  “We have to live, Argonaut. Although I’m sure you’d like it if we didn’t.”

  Theron sensed the aggression, and didn’t respond. Nick’s eyes narrowed to thin pinpoints. “No comeback for me? Yeah. I didn’t think so.”

  In the silent tension between them, Nick lifted a pencil and tapped it against the edge of the desk.

  “What do you mean, colony?” Acacia asked in a small voice from the couch.

  Nick turned her way, and his voice gentled. “What do you think I mean, Casey?”

  Theron’s eyes narrowed as he looked between the two. There was a connection between them, a bond that set off a strange tingling in Theron’s chest.

  Wary, Acacia eyed Nick. “I—I’m not sure. But I have the strangest feeling those people out there aren’t…”

  “Aren’t what, Casey?” Nick asked. “Aren’t…human?”

  Her eyes flicked to his, and whatever she saw there made her catch her breath.

  Nick nodded Theron’s way. “Show her.”

  The command wasn’t just startling, it was inconceivable. You didn’t order an Argonaut, especially its leader, to do anything, because doing so was as good as inviting a death sentence. But Nick obviously didn’t give a flying fuck about protocol and threats. And that made him the most dangerous kind of adversary.

  Common sense told Theron he was basically SOL here. The half-breeds already knew who he was. Acacia would never believe until she saw for herself. And until he won her trust, she wasn’t going anywhere with him anytime soon. Ever since the incident at the store, she’d been looking at him like he might be a daemon himself.

  Reluctantly, he held up his hands, flashing the markings on his skin. Because he was an Argonaut, he could open the portal from wherever he was. When his pinkie fingers touched, a burst of energy flooded the room. His hands glowed white light that shimmered and backlit the markings. And in the light, the portal opened, casting a vision of the kingdom of Argolea over the walls and floor and ceiling, filling every inch of space in the office with its presence.

  Acacia gasped. And Theron tried to view it from her perspective—as an outsider looking in. He’d opened the portal countless times with barely a thought, the beauty and regality of his home lost on him over the years. But now, looking at it through her eyes, at the blue-green mountains and the white marble buildings with their bronze-topped spires, for the first time he saw secrets. Lies. Half-truths that had possibly left an entire section of their race in peril.

  He separated his hands, and the portal closed in a rush, the light and vision fading as quickly as they’d appeared.

  Wide-eyed, Acacia looked up to his face. “Okay, that was a little freaky. Chriss Angel Mindfreak freaky. Wh-What the hell was that?”

  Theron glanced toward Nick. “Chriss Angel?”

  “An illusionist. Human. No doubt you wouldn’t know him.” He refocused on Acacia. “That was Argolea, Casey.”

  “Argowhat?”

  “Argolea,” Theron repeated. “My home and the home of your father.”

  Her wide eyes slid to Nick for reassurance in a way that made Theron want to pull her eyes right back to him and punch Nick smack in the face.

  Nick rose from his chair and moved around the front of his desk. “Theron’s a hero, Casey.”

  “A what?”

  “A hero,” Nick repeated. “Your grandmother was Greek, right?” Acacia nodded. “In Greek mythology, the heroes were mortals of great strength and ability, spawned from the union of a mortal and a god.”

  Acacia’s eyes shot to Theron’s face, and as unexpected as she was that first night he’d met her, the connection they’d shared flared hot and bright. A connection that made absolutely no sense, considering who and what she was. “You’re telling me he’s a god?”

  “No,” Theron said quickly, refocusing. “A descendant. The first heroes were half human, half god. Over time, as they reproduced, our race was born and the lines were blurred. My people are the offspring of those original heroes.”

  “What race?” she asked hesitantly.

  “We are called Argoleans. Our home is in another realm, established outside the human world.”

  Her brow shot up in a “what the hell have you been smoking?” look. “You mean like Olympus?”

  “No.” Theron shook his head. “Olympus is home to the gods. Argolea was a land established specifically for our race, a place where we could flourish and remain free.”

  Nick huffed. “You mean where your kind could hide.”

  Theron ignored the barb. He’d deal with Nick and his colony of half-breeds later. Right now he could see that Acacia wasn’t buying any of what he’d just told her, and making her understand her lineage was important if he was going to get her to go back with him. “Your father is of my kind.”

  “What he’s neglecting to tell you, Casey,” Nick said, straightening, “is that he’s not just an Argolean. He’s an Argonaut. One of his race’s so-called Eternal Guardian
s. The leader, if I’m not mistaken. And aside from the obvious—why he’s in our world now—I’m just a little curious why he’s zeroed in on you.” Nick crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Theron.

  Moment of truth. The hair on the back of Theron’s neck stood up as he looked from Acacia to Nick and back again. He hoped to Hades this gamble paid off. “Your father’s name is Leonidas. King Leonidas. The ruler of my kingdom.”

  Nick swore and dropped his arms.

  Casey’s eyes grew even larger. “My father’s a king?”

  Theron nodded.

  “As in red robe, pointy crown and a jester at his feet king?”

  Theron lifted one brow, amused at her wit. “The gods were never fond of jesters. Didn’t get passed down to us.”

  She only continued to stare at him with that same wide-eyed, you-are-higher-than-a-hot-air-balloon look on her face. She turned to Nick, the candles on the walls casting warm light across her face. “Explain to me what this place is. And who are all those people outside?”

  Theron’s humor faded. What was that pinch in his chest he experienced whenever she looked to Nick for answers?

  Nick’s scarred features softened in a way that kicked up that pinch to a stab. “They’re like us, Casey. Half-breeds, or so his race calls us. Half Argolean, half human.”

  “What do you call them?” she asked quietly.

  A frown pulled his eyebrows together. “Really fucking unlucky.”

  Theron gritted his teeth as Nick moved to sit beside her on the couch.

  “Misos, Casey,” Nick said. “It means half, which is what we are. I know this is confusing, but do me a favor. Just tell me if I’m wrong. You’re twenty-seven years old, yet you feel like you’ve never belonged anywhere. You’ve flitted from job to job, never passionate about anything in particular. You loved your grandmother, but you always sensed she didn’t understand you because you were different, and you never felt bound to stay with her after you were grown. Your friends never truly accepted you, and you didn’t fit in with the people you interacted with. When you started working at XScream and you met Dana, as much as the club sickened you, it was the first time you’d ever felt a connection with another person that went deeper than the superfluous. And though I scared you and gave you every reason to be afraid of me, you trusted me with your life and didn’t once question who or what I was. At least not out loud.”