by Rue Allyn
“I don’t need you.”
His heart slowly tore in two, sinking deep into his stomach, a destroyed mess of agony. “I’ll leave you in peace then. For now. I will be back. I do love you, Tera, and I will not be able to stay away long.”
In the most painful moment of his life, he turned from her and walked away.
Chapter Twenty-Two
He’d left.
Tera didn’t know whether to be satisfied or to sink to her knees and sob like a baby.
Instead, she walked forward across the dirt terrain like a zombie. Tera recognized the city in the distance, she been there a time or two with Sparrow before. She smiled painfully, recalling the many times Sparrow tried to convince her to let loose and give into the many guys chasing her. Her best friend once claimed that Las Vegas was the place to leave everything else behind and just let loose. Tera imagined that if there were one city to drown out her sorrows in, Vegas would be it.
Tera fished her Blackberry from her back pocket. Her hand trembled from the emotional exhaustion racking her body, but she managed to dial Sparrow.
Her best friend picked up on the last ring, just when Tera’s sanity nearly collapsed. “Hey, buddy. I’m surprised you have reception in the Fog Realm.”
Instead of replying, Tera’s voice broke and she burst into tears. “I’m so stupid, Sparrow.”
“What’s the matter?”
“I caught him with another woman.” The words barely escaped through her sobs.
“Where are you? I’m coming.”
“Las Vegas.”
“Las Vegas?” Sparrow’s high-pitched voice questioned.
Tera just cried in response.
“Tera, I’m coming. Keep your cell phone on. I think one of my tattoos will get me there faster than a plane. I hate airport security these days.”
A laugh escaped Tera through her tears.
“Tera . . . I don’t know what happened. But I’m sure it’s not what you think. We all saw the way he looked at you. I’ve never had anyone look at me that way. It was . . . magickal for lack of a better word.”
Tera sucked in a breath, letting her tears dry against the warm Nevada wind. “I wish that was true Sparrow. Right now I just need to forget.”
“I’m on it. You, me and all the free booze we can handle in the casinos tonight. I’ll be there soon.”
“I love you, Sparrow.”
“I love you too. Now, go to that Thunder Down Under show and by the time it’s over, I should be there.”
Tera nodded numbly before hitting the end button. Watching a bunch of half-naked, make that, completely naked, stallions of men was the last thing on her mind. Instead, she lay down on the ground. The cold dirt felt good against her back as she stared up at the stars.
One final tear slid down her cheek. Now she knew how her mom felt thousands of years ago when her heart was broken by a man. Betrayed.
Three days later, Tera arrived back in Alameda with Sparrow. Her best friend had tried her best to distract Tera with night-long dancing binges and alcohol induced-stupors, but nothing worked. Tera even tried to lose herself in the arms of another man. It didn’t work. As a matter of fact, it’d failed miserably and she ending up puking all over. Another man’s touch had made her feel violated, even if she was the one that had sought it.
Memories of the electricity that ignited between her and Sabin had plagued her the entire trip. More and more she doubted what she saw in the Fog Realm. Even the aunts seemed to defend the man they barely knew. But the pain of being caught off-guard with the sight of a naked demoness in his arms left an ache in her heart. She couldn’t trust him. She wouldn’t trust anyone besides her family ever again.
Thanks goodness it was Tuesday. Tera started to walk toward Park Street to give the free self-defense lessons she taught at the local martial arts studio. She needed to beat something up.
The weighted “attacker” hanging from the ceiling became the naked demon in Sabin’s arms. Instructing her students, Tera threw her agony into each blow. Halfway through her lesson, she went into a stupor, pounding on her dummy until the silence behind her made her realize that her pupils had all come to a stop and were gazing at her with dropped-jaws. One of the younger women spoke up. “You stopped telling us what moves to use, Tera.”
“Oh.” She flushed.
Just then, Sparrow rushed through the door of the studio, holding something in one of her hands. She came to a full-stop at the door, smiling sheepishly, taking off her shoes before taking a seat next to the mat. Tera waved back, but didn’t bother with the fake smile she offered her students. The final ten minutes of the lesson passed the same way. Tera sweated the pain from her heart with each kick, each jab that she threw at the dummy. When it was over, she had no choice but to see what had brought her friend to the studio in such a hurry.
“So um, it got kinda messed up on my way here, but I wanted to show you something.”
Tera realized what Sparrow had holding when she arrived. The round, black shape of a Magic Eight ball came into full view as Sparrow released it from a tight grip. Tera leaned down to read the words floating on the screen. All signs point to no. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“I asked it if Sabin has been unfaithful.”
“Why can’t you just let me forget and move on, Sparrow?”
“Because I think you’re being crazy. This isn’t like you. You’re acting like a wimp.”
“A wimp?”
“Yeah, I’ve seen you fight vampires to keep this city safe, but now you’re too afraid to even talk to the man that claims to love you, and find out what the hell really happened. You’re too afraid to defend what you’re heart still dares to believe. It’s your head that refuses to be brave enough to take a chance on something great. Quit trying to protect yourself from hurt and take a chance. I got you drunk as hell in Vegas, and I was hoping you’d come around and go running back to that portal for hot makeup sex, but it never happened.”
“How could you, Sparrow?”
“Because I love you. And I know that you’re too hurt to see the truth right now. Go to him.”
“The last time I went to him, my heart got broken.”
“Okay, well if that happens again I’ll put a teeny peeny hex on him,” Sparrow grinned hopefully. Tera’s heart swelled, and she couldn’t help the laugh that escaped.
“Come on. Let’s go home. I’ll think about it.”
• • •
A week later, she’d thought about it. She’d thought about nothing but him. She was scared as hell that she’d be wrong once again and feel stupid as hell for trusting in her heart. But her mind was consumed with Sabin. She realized that in the short time she’d known him, she had indeed fallen in love with him. Whether he deserved her love or not was still under debate. Her heart pled with her to go to him, but her head taunted her, calling her out for daring to make the same mistake twice.
When she’d first met Sparrow, Tera was nervous of leaving her forest only to be betrayed to the cruel world she’d seen evolve. But leaving her redwood had been one of the best things to ever happen to her, for now she had the Reed family. Tera decided that she’d take a chance once more. Which is why now she stood above Alcatraz prison, debating entry into the Fog Realm to seek out Sabin once more.
Just as she was about to follow Sparrow’s old instructions on reaching the portal, it flashed with light within the thick Bay Area fog. Sabin’s large body fell through the air, his combat boots landing with a thud on the ground just before her. His arrival sent her hair blowing back, her knees going weak at his presence. His eyes glittered with surprise . . . and happiness.
“You’re here?” His low voice rang with disbelief as reached out to cup her cheek. She backed away.
“I’m surprised to see you here.”
“I told you I’d come back for you.” The fog hung in the air behind him, matching his fluorescent, otherworldly features. But it wasn’t the mesmerizing color of his gaze or the
hardness of his body that had plagued her mind in his absence, but the way he looked at her with such tenderness, the way she fit into his embrace.
“It’s been over a week. Long enough for you to enjoy some solace from an overemotional Dryad?”
“No, of course not. In the Fog Realm, I thought I was only gone two days. I wanted to give you time to contemplate your feelings. I apologize. I know this sounds bad, but immortals aren’t the best judges of time. After centuries it just seems to flow together. My fellow knights didn’t mention anything upon my return so I did not realize that time passed so differently between planes.” He reached out for her once more. This time she let his hand meet hers. “My time was not as long as yours, but every second was still agony. It pains me that you would not trust me.”
His words rang with such honesty that it was hard not to just give into her heart and run into his arms. Her throat ached, longing like a traitor to declare her love for him, but it wouldn’t be enough. “You’ve stolen my heart. I can’t deny it. But even if you are right, and I choose to believe you for now, I don’t know if I can ever trust you again. I’ll always question the perfect happiness that you weave around me. Before, I thought it was all too good to be true. And then it shattered before my eyes.”
“Tera, I’ve watched you die. Or nearly so back in Muir Woods. My happiness has also been shattered because the woman I love more than everything believes me to be untrue. That day I swore to myself that I’d never let harm come to you. I never thought my vow would be undone by breaking your heart. I’ll spend every moment outside my duty proving to you that my words in this matter are true. You mean everything to me.”
Tera’s body heated at his words, her heart constricting within her chest. The words from Sparrow’s Magic Eight ball spun through her mind. Her heart agreed with the novelty toy. To give him another chance at earning her trust might be the greatest happiness she’s ever known. Like the days she spent with him when her whole life was lightness.
• • •
Chaos smiled as she watched the three Goddesses. The dumb bitches didn’t even realize they were an important part of her plan to extract revenge on Sabin and his Dryad. She would wreak havoc upon the human plane in the Dryad’s city if it were the last thing she did.
Now Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera strolled through the Portal Realm. It was not a common sight since Gods and Goddesses could create their own portals. But now, the three gorgeous ladies floated through the fog, glowing like flesh and blood angels.
Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love and Beauty, had the face of a young, innocent woman. And no matter how much hot sex she seemed to find, it never lessened the sweet innocence of her youthful face. The same height as Aphrodite, and with the same exquisite, porcelain skin, Hera, the Goddess of Marriage, flanked Aphrodite’s right side. Her long, pure blond hair was her outstanding feature. On the other side, Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, revealed a graceful gait, though her stunning gray eyes were watchful of trouble, scanning the fog intently. A simple white cloth tied by golden ropes wrapped elegantly around her voluptuous body, concealing what many described as the most exotic of the Goddesses. Eris had brought the trio to the plane by challenging them to a contest of looks. Tossing a shiny red apple into the air, she had called out to them, “This is for the fairest of you.”
Of course, all of them had reached out to catch the apple at the same time and immediately began bickering. Eris had smiled innocently, so content that for a moment, she looked beautiful in a very sinister way. “I have a wonderful idea. A game if you will,” she offered the Goddesses. “Go to the Portal Realm and let us see which of you can coax the most kisses on your palms from the Knights there.”
So now the women strolled through the fog. One by one, the Knights stopped in their tracks, enamored with the presence of the ethereal beauties. Soon they were surrounded by Knights, their blue and gray eyes gazing appreciatively at the women. As Eris watched from the onyx mirror in her room, she realized that her distraction was in full swing. Now was the time.
She dipped her fingers into the mirror and spread her palm across a dense population of demons in the Asuras Realm. Power seeped from her fingertips, demanding the demons to do as she willed. They were ever so happy to oblige as she opened the portal for them to escape.
The Goddesses continued their stroll, taking the Knights farther and farther away from the portal to Alcatraz. Caught up in Aphrodite’s lustful essence in particular kept the Knights from noticing the Asuras demons racing by through the fog. The Goddesses, too, were unaware of the trespassers, too blinded by their own shining narcissism. Sex demons, vampires, gargoyles, and dragon breeds barreled toward the portal to Alcatraz Island as instructed. Other demons traveling through the Portal Realm noticed the excitement and joined the parade. And then, the fog parted, and the demons shot through portal, the distant sound of Chaos’ laughter echoing in the distance.
• • •
Above Alcatraz, Sabin gazed into the eyes of his love. “Trust me, Tera.” Sabin relished the palm she’d let rest in his hand. She’d come to the portal site. That was enough to assure him there was at least the tiniest chance of proving to her that she’d never have to doubt him. She must know deep in her heart that after what they shared, it would have been impossible for him to be with another.
Just when Sabin noticed a glimmer of hope in Tera’s gaze, he heard a rumble from the portal. Looking up into the fog, Sabin saw the demons about to drop onto the roof of the prison. “Do you trust me?” He didn’t wait for an answer. He crushed his lips against Tera’s with urgency before tossing her off the ledge of the prison.
She screamed but he knew that she would land with the grace of a Dryad. Thump. “What the hell?”
But he was already firing his astral gun into the fog, penetrating the demons’ skins just before they dropped to the ground. The first two demons to drop were vampires, followed by saw-toothed leeches, and he quickly slapped handcuffs on their incapacitated bodies. The next thing he knew, a dragon spread its wings and flew through the portal, taking off into the night.
“Shit.” He barely uttered the word before a giant demon dropped down, its heavy body crushing Sabin to the roof of the prison.
• • •
“Was that a dragon?” Tera shouted from the ground. But she heard only a grunt and a feral growl in response. The next thing she knew a huge headless black body hurled over the edge roof of the prisons. Black blood oozed from the severed neck of the twelve-foot, winged mass.
Backing away from the prison wall, she finally caught a glimpse of the scene unfolding on the roof. Sabin was surrounded by various demons, fighting them all at once. More demons continued to drop while the dragon, clouded by the fog, flew above the mêlée, spewing flames downward.
Sabin yelled down, “We’re going to need back-up. Can you call your coven?”
Grabbing her cell phone quickly out of the pocket of her leather jacket, Tera punched Sparrow’s number. Suddenly, a vampire misted in front of her. Caught by surprise, Tera dropped her phone and ducked before the vampire could reach out and catch her by the neck. Reaching back into her pocket, she pulled out a small, but short, thick wooden stake and drove it into the creature’s heart. Even as she drove the stake deeper, the leech opened its mouth wide, trying to rip out her throat with its razor-like teeth.
Suddenly, Sabin jumped from the roof, landing to sandwich the vampire between them. Plunging a stake into the leech from behind, he thrust the evil one to the ground where it slowly began to decompose. He held up the dark, granite-like stake that glowed faintly. “Made from astral stone, if it’s necessary to kill this kind of vampire.” Sabin thrust it into her hands and turned toward the onslaught of approaching demons.
A faint voice called out from the ground. “Hello? Are you listening to Rage Against the Machine again? Turn down that damn music!”
Tera recalled the cell phone lying in the dirt. Picking it up, she cradled it against her cheek. “Sparrow, t
hat’s not music, it’s the real deal. Vampires. Demons. Dragons. That’s brimstone you’re hearing.”
“Is this April Fools? Are you punking me right now?”
“No,” Tera yelled into the phone. “I don’t have time for this. Sabin and I are under attack on Alcatraz Island.”
There was silence on the line.
“So, did you guys make up?”
“Sparrow, can you send Morgana and Melissandra? It’s Dungeons and Dragons and Middle Earth status over here!” Another vampire misted behind her. Tera spun rapidly and elbowed the creature with her cell-phone hand, while driving in the astral stake with the other.
“Whoa, is that bone crunching I hear?” Sparrow’s voice was a calm awe.
“Yes, damn it.” But before she could react, a large boot kicked the phone out of her hand. Her fingers throbbed with pain, but she averted a giant fist aimed at her face just in a nick of time. She dropped to the ground and swept her feet out to bring the humanoid-looking demon to the dirt. She noticed that the moment the demon hit the ground, its eyes blazed from brown to red and its chocolate skin bubbled like lava.
“Tera,” Sabin called out. “Don’t touch him. Move!”
Leaping away from the monster, she watched Sabin shoot several astral bullets into the demon’s body. Its skin bubbled violently and suddenly erupted in a molten mass before raining back down to the ground in a puddle.
Shaking off the revolting sight, she ran to help Sabin fight off the group of demons swarming him. A vampire teleported around the fray, trying to confuse Sabin in the scuffle, but Tera anticipated his move and again drove the astral stake in.
Sabin ripped the head off of one of the naked sex demons. “Thanks, love.”
“No worries.” As another demon leapt toward her, she flipped gracefully and caught the creature off-guard. She felt a thrill as she landed the kick, bringing the demon to its knees. Sabin stepped forward and snapped its neck. Working together came so easily that it caught Tera off-guard.
