by Scott, J. S.
Drew quickly gave Hunter the information Kristoff had given him. “There’s a woman there Kristoff needs you to locate. I take it she’s critical to helping us. That’s all I gathered from Kristoff. His time with us was limited.” Drew watched as Hunter nodded abruptly. “Our king traded his own life for mine and Talia’s. I’d like to return the favor. I’m counting on you to find this woman, Hunter. If this woman can help, we need her.”
“Kristoff is my father, Hunter. Please do this for him, and for me,” Talia begged. “I know it shouldn’t have happened, but it did. He got my mother pregnant, and I’m his daughter. He’s the father I never got to really know. If we can save him, I want to give that possibility every chance.” Talia reached out and touched Hunter’s arm lightly in a silent plea, ignoring the low, growling noise she heard rising in Drew’s throat.
Hunter looked startled at Talia’s revelation, but he didn’t ask any questions. He simply inclined his head again and disappeared without a word.
“Were you doing that to distract him, to keep him from beheading more Evils?” Zach asked Drew curiously.
“No. It actually was Kristoff’s request. Whoever this woman is, Kristoff thinks she can help Hunter.” Drew’s voice was grave, but slightly hopeful.
“I sure the hell hope so,” Zach answered quietly. “He might be a pain in the ass, but we’ve been brothers for a long time. I want the asshole alive and safe.”
Drew was hurting over Hunter. Talia could feel his pain as surely as she could feel her own. The gradual decline in Hunter’s sanity troubled him deeply, and she was willing to bet that it did the same to Zach. Although they were both covering up their anguish over their brother with a “tough guy” mentality, Talia knew they cared about him more than they could express.
“I can’t believe Kristoff is your father,” Kat said, shaking her head.
“He is. Pretty amazing, I know,” Talia agreed.
“How?” Kat asked curiously.
“Brother, if your mate doesn’t know how that happened by now, you aren’t doing your job very well,” Drew teased Zach, his voice amused.
Zach flipped Drew the middle finger and grasped Kat around the waist. “I’ve taught my wife plenty, and it would take me an eternity to show her everything I know,” Zach boasted arrogantly.
Talia looked at Kat and they both rolled their eyes. “If this is going to be a caveman competition, I’m leaving. I have scrolls to study,” Talia told Drew, pulling away from him.
“You have scrolls?” Kat asked excitedly. “Which ones?”
“The demon prophecies,” Talia told her enthusiastically. “Kristoff gave them to me.”
Kat squealed. “I want to have a look, too.” She rushed over to Talia and grabbed her hand, ready to pull her from the room.
“Wait,” Drew demanded. “Zach and I have business to attend to. Humans are being slaughtered, and we need to check on the warrior Sentinels and see what’s happening. But I have one thing I have to do first.”
Talia looked at him questioningly. “What?”
He looked at her intensely, and Talia gasped as the robe she was wearing was replaced by her own clothing, a V-neck shirt and jeans. “The robe smelled like Hunter. I don’t like the smell of any other male on my woman. If anything happens, call out to us. You’ll be watched over by the guardians until we return.”
“Yes, master,” Talia snapped back at him, more than a little irked by his arrogance.
Drew smirked at her, and Talia could feel his amusement underneath his alpha exterior.
I think that particular game is a little advanced for you, mo chridhe. But we can try it if you like. Problem is, if I had you at my mercy, pain would be the last thing on my mind.
Talia’s irritation drained away, replaced by a rosy flush that covered her entire body as she heard Drew’s sexy, naughty words in her mind. Suddenly, the idea of being completely under his control was one of the hottest thoughts imaginable.
Maybe I don’t want to play. Talia tilted her chin and her eyes met his, her body melting as she saw the glint of amber in his eyes.
Then it will be my mission to convince you. His accent made the low, hot statement sound almost like a deep, throaty purr. Stay safe, love.
Any anger Talia had was gone, replaced by her concern for Drew, and the events that were currently taking place with the Evils. Be careful. Please.
Drew nodded slowly. I intend to. I have you to come home to now.
Talia watched as Drew and Zach vanished, her gut clenching from not knowing what the two of them were up against and what would happen.
Kat squeezed her hand. “I know how you feel. It’s scary out there right now.”
“I love him,” Talia admitted simply, following Kat as she headed toward the bedroom door.
“Of course you do,” Kat answered with a laugh. “He’s a Winston. They’re hard to resist.” Kate dropped her hand and walked out the door ahead of Talia.
Talia followed, knowing Kat was right. But Drew was her Winston, and even knowing how capable Drew was, it didn’t stop her from worrying any less.
Two days later, Talia and Kat were sitting at the kitchen table, still trying to decipher the prophecies. Drew and Zach hadn’t been back since the day they’d disappeared from Hunter’s room, and the two women were working frantically to help by figuring out the words on the scrolls.
Talia touched her mind to Drew’s often, but he was blocking almost everything from her, only leaving a pathway open so he could hear if she called. She knew he was exhausted and frustrated, but when he spoke to her in her mind, he didn’t mention any of those things. He reassured her he was fine, and nothing more. Zach did the same with Kat, but neither woman was fooled. Zach and Drew were facing some pretty tough odds.
The guardians were non-intrusive, but Talia could feel their presence constantly. And she knew there were more than just one or two. Honestly, she wouldn’t be surprised if Zach and Drew had them surrounded by a whole fleet of guardians.
Kat had decided to take some time off from her classes, her mind too focused on the Sentinel crisis to think about her studies. The two of them had spent almost every waking moment trying to figure out what was still to come in the future of Sentinels versus Evils.
So far, Talia had been able to identify previous events because she knew what had already happened, and she thought she was getting closer to being able to decipher the future using the phrases that had been used before.
“Look at this.” Talia pointed her finger at a particular passage, turning it around so Kat could see. The prophecies had been translated to the English language, which might account for some of the meaning being lost in translation.
The majesty of the Sentinels will fall, but will rise again if the light can be seen in the darkness.
Talia read the sentence aloud thoughtfully, watching Kat wrinkle her brow in concentration.
“In some of the other passages, majesty stood for king rather than the obvious meaning. I think this refers to Kristoff. And the light is a radiant.” Talia’s gut instinct told her she was right. “And Hunter is referred to as well.” She pointed to another line for Kat to look at.
When rage meets power, rage will be calmed by the untried creator, and divinity will once again be free in a different form, if divinity and anger can exist together.
“Power, creator, and divinity have both stood for a god or goddess in previous passages. I think the rage is Hunter. I’m a little shaky on the rest of the prediction. Is it possible that Hunter is going after a goddess who still exists?” Talia once again got a pang in her gut, a certainty that some of what she was decoding was true. “Kristoff said that the Sentinels were more bound to their rules than the Evils. The only way that could really be true is if their source and creator were still on Earth. The gods who created the Evils are gone. But what my father said could be true i
f I’m right. If the god or goddess who helped create the Sentinels still exists, it binds them more tightly to their honor and pledge they made to the creating deity.”
Kat looked up at Talia and smiled. “The way you think scares me sometimes. But I have a feeling you’re right. It all makes sense, in a weird sort of way.”
“After reading the prophecies, I think you and I are part of a bigger plan. Think about it, Kat. You can enter different realms. I can return power to the Sentinels. We really can enter the demon realm and rescue those women and my father.”
Kat raised a brow and took a large sip from a mug of coffee. “Zach will let me into the demon realm again when Hell freezes over. He was ready to go alone before Kristoff made him realize it was suicidal, but he won’t even talk about the fact that I can get them into that realm.”
Talia had a feeling Kat was right, and Drew would have the same reaction, but… “It may become critical that we do get in. It already is for the sake of my father and those women. But we need something more.”
“I’ve always known the day will come when I’d need my powers for entering the demon realm. Zach won’t like it, but when we can get in and out to rescue Kristoff and the women, I’m doing it,” Kate told her adamantly. “Kristoff taught me enough to control the powers, and I get better with them every day. And now that you can restore power to the Sentinels after they get in, we’re closer than we’ve ever been. I can’t stand the thought of those women suffering, and with Kristoff there, too, we have to find a way.”
“It’s not just the rescue. The balance between good and evil needs to be restored, Kat. The future of the Earth depends on it. The future of the Sentinels, too.”
“What else do you think we need?” Kat asked curiously.
“Firepower,” Talia replied. “The Evils have more power than the Sentinels do, and they have very few rules, now. The Sentinels need more power or they’ll never be able to achieve the balance.”
“Hunter?” Kat guessed. “Do you think whatever mission Kristoff sent him on is to obtain what we need?”
“I think so. I’m hoping it’s what we need to drive back the Evils. Even if Drew and Zach can calm the situation right now, it won’t last.” Talia hated to voice the words that she knew were true. She wanted to believe the Sentinels could drive the Evils back to their own realm, crying for their mommies. But the truth was, the balance of might was uneven. The only advantage the Sentinels had was their intelligence.
Kat released a long sigh. “Waiting is hell.”
Talia couldn’t have agreed more.
Pumpkin jumped into her lap, whining woefully. As Talia stroked her fur, she couldn’t help but wonder if her cat was crying for Drew. If so, she knew exactly how she felt.
Drew returned the next day, looking wearier than Talia had ever seen him. His entire body was littered with lacerations and bruises. He’d obviously cleaned himself up, but it was hard to miss the fact that he was beaten all to hell.
He’d told her the Evils had been driven back to the demon realm for now, the warrior Sentinels taking a lot of casualties to accomplish that mission. Talia had been able to see the sorrow of the loss of every Sentinel on Drew’s face.
Zach had taken Kat home, and Talia had climbed into bed with Drew. He’d been asleep almost from the moment his head hit the pillow.
She’d risen the next morning, trying to shower and dress as quietly as possible so Drew could catch up on his rest.
She went downstairs to cook, determined to feed Drew the moment he woke up. She’d caught up on her own research projects for work during the last few days, completing one of the texts that was coming due very shortly, and that had been neglected during her mystical compulsion to research demon history. As she prepared a massive breakfast, she wondered about the fact that she didn’t miss her home in Idaho at all. For years it had been her sanctuary, but also her prison, her place to hide away from the world and the people in it. Now, she wondered how she had managed to live in that kind of isolation.
Because it’s all I knew.
But over a short period of time, Drew had changed all of that, bringing her into a world where she actually had friends…and family. Maybe her weirdness really wasn’t weirdness at all. Maybe she was just…different from the norm. But here…she fit.
What are you doing, love?
She’d felt Drew stirring before he actually spoke to her telepathically. She pictured him tousled and naked in bed, his massive body stretching before he tumbled out of bed.
Cooking. She answered him with a smile, flipping the pancakes over with a practiced flick of her wrist.
I’ll be right there. His tone was hopeful.
Talia’s chest ached, and she whipped up the rest of the breakfast with double portions, knowing Drew could eat the majority of it. She doubted that her desire to feed him would ever go away, and that his desire to eat would ever subside. She actually hoped he always ate this way, enjoying everything he had access to now after nearly dying of starvation.
“I’m more hungry for you than I am for food.” Drew’s arm snaked around her waist, pulling her back against his rock-hard body. “I woke up and you were gone. The only thing next to me warm and purring was the cat.”
Talia smiled. “She loves you. And don’t try to tell me you didn’t talk to her this morning or give her a morning dose of affection.” Pumpkin had jumped up into Talia’s place the moment she’d gotten out of bed, curling up beside Drew like she owned him.
“I don’t like cats,” Drew replied with very little conviction behind the declaration.
Pumpkin strolled into the kitchen behind Drew, rubbing against his leg affectionately. Talia turned and lifted a brow at him. “Really?”
“Bloody hell! She’s still a menace,” he said unhappily, reaching down to pick up the plump cat. He went to the cupboard and opened a can of tuna and set it on the floor, letting Pumpkin down to devour it from the can.
Talia put her hands on her hips, biting her lower lip to keep from laughing. “She can eat cat food, you know.”
“She’s particular,” Drew answered defensively.
“Because you’re spoiling her,” Talia replied with a laugh, unable to hold it back.
“Nothing wrong with eating well,” Drew grumbled, watching as Pumpkin devoured her fish. “Food is important.” Turning away from the cat, Drew slipped behind her, his arms once again encircling her. “I’m hungry,” he reminded her, stroking his hands over her abdomen.
Talia shivered as his hot breath hit the sensitive flesh of her ear, his low, husky baritone making her panties damp and her face flush. “I’ve never cooked for you before. Sit.”
“I missed you, mo grha.” He didn’t let go. He drew her closer, turning her so he could kiss her.
His words tugged at her heart, and her arms slipped around his neck, marveling that this incredible man was actually hers.
Drew pulled her away from the hot stove before he devoured her lips and mouth with his, staking his claim on her, body and soul, with one scorching hot kiss. Talia melted against him, relieved that he had come back to her in one piece.
I missed you, too. The thought flowed from her to him easily as he took his time tasting her, claiming her.
Finally, Talia ended the kiss, worried her breakfast was going to burn. “Sit,” she asked again, her voice a little less firm than it had been before. For her, Drew was the ultimate temptation, and she was doubtful there would ever be a time when she didn’t want him. “Tell me what happened.”
Drew demolished his breakfast, telling her about the battle with the Evils as he plowed through his eggs, bacon, sausage, and pancakes. Talia sat, slowly eating her own plate of food and drinking her coffee as they talked.
Finally, when he had finished catching her up on the last few days, she told him about her theories. “I think whatever Hunter is doing is impor
tant. It’s in the prophecies.”
“It makes sense. But what god or goddess could still be alive?” Drew said, frowning.
“I’m not sure. I don’t know if my father was just saying it was a female to throw us off track, or if it really is a goddess. But I know it’s important. It has to be one of the final pieces to the puzzle of how to rescue those women and my father.”
Drew glanced up at her, sending her an obstinate look. “Tell me you don’t plan on being part of this rescue plan,” he stated dangerously.
“You have to know that Kat and I are part of what’s happening right now, Drew. There’s a reason we have these abilities.”
“No,” he stated ominously, his stormy gaze meeting hers. “Not happening.”
Talia took in a breath and let it out slowly. Sometimes guys could be so short-sighted. “So you’d rather I live in a world full of Evils where no place is safe? What if we have a child someday? I know it’s rare, but it could happen. Do you want our baby to live in a dark world filled with evil?”
Drew’s eyes started to shoot fire as he looked at her. “Bloody hell! I want to take you someplace where no one will ever touch you, ever threaten you. Everything inside me tells me to hide you away in some remote place so the Evils can never touch you,” he rasped, his breathing labored.
“And what if no place on Earth is safe? Then what?” Odds were, if the Evils tipped the balance too far, that kind of world would be a reality. Talia knew how hard this was for Drew, that his demon side ruled sometimes, but he had to understand that some things were worth fighting for, no matter what the risks.
“Controlling the Evils is worth almost any risk except losing you,” Drew said huskily, rising from his chair and moving around the table to pull her from her seat. “Or any child we may or may not have someday.” He pulled her roughly against him, his arms coming around her like steel bands. “Ask me for anything, but don’t ask me to willingly put you in danger. I can’t.” Drew’s tone was angry and desperate at the same time.
