Demons of the Sun

by Madsen, Cindi

  Jax put his hand on Persephone’s knee. “We’re all on the same side. Maybe it would be better if we stuck together. Not only for her, but for you, too. I could go out hunting, and—”

  “No! She dies if she stays here, end of story!” Persephone’s voice echoed through the empty space, and Jax recoiled, eyes wide. Persephone shot to her feet and stared into Isadora’s shocked face. “Do you really want to end up like the rest of the murder victims? Branded with Hades’s symbol, your heart ripped out and your head severed from your body?”

  Jax stood. “Persephone, that’s enough!”

  “If it was enough, she wouldn’t just be sitting there. She’d be packing her bags.” Persephone threw one last glance at Isadora. “You’ve been warned.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Jax caught up to Persephone in the stairwell. “What in the name of Zeus was that?”

  Adrenaline flowed through her as she raced down the stairs. She didn’t slow down, didn’t look back. “I came to warn her, and I warned her.”

  “You didn’t just warn her, you scared the hell out of her. And I couldn’t even stay to calm her down because you charged out of there like a lunatic.”

  “Go back, then. Maybe you can get her calmed down enough to get her killed.”

  His hand gripped her upper arm as she hit the landing. He whipped her around to face him. His eyes were wild, the vein in his neck stuck out. “You don’t get to make all the decisions, Persephone.”

  “Wrong,” Persephone spat back. “When the dagger’s involved, I do.”

  “That discussion up there had nothing to do with the dagger. It was about her life. You stormed in there and destroyed it without a second thought of how she would feel.”

  “Wrong again. I was thinking about how she’d feel when the demons came. When they tortured her and tore her apart.” Her rapid breath started to slow, and she stared into his angry eyes. She didn’t know how to make him understand that she had to do what she did—that she felt awful about it, but the other option was worse than hurting someone’s feelings. “I’ve seen things, unspeakable things.” Her voice cracked and she shook her head. “You have no idea what could happen.”

  His grip loosened and his expression softened. “So tell me.”

  “I’d rather just keep it from happening.”

  “You don’t have to do it all yourself.”

  If only that fact were true, life would be so much easier.

  Jax turned off the TV and turned to Persephone. The corners of his mouth tightened, and the crease between his eyebrows deepened. “I know you said you don’t want us to contact the Order, and I want to believe I can keep you safe no matter what, but we are talking about Hades Dagger, and I’m thinking reinforcements aren’t a bad idea. Even if we just start with some of the Warriors I know I can trust.” He held up his hands, like he was bracing for her to yell at him. “Thought I’d throw it out there.”

  Persephone sighed. “It involves too many people and variables, and like I said before, I can’t risk anyone else knowing about the dagger. It’s bad enough that you know.”

  His shoulders and chin dropped, and she could see the hurt in his eyes. “Gee, thanks.”

  “Come on, you know what I mean. There’s a reason Sentries split off and got lost with the rest of the world. Even the best people in the Order can fall. Or be tortured to the point they talk.”

  “But we’d be really careful. We wouldn’t tell everyone why they were here, only the select few we really trust.”

  “My family thought that before…” A sharp pain shot through her chest, ripping open old wounds that would never fully heal. “And it’s why they’re no longer around to help me.”

  “Someone betrayed them?”

  She nodded and swallowed past the lump in her throat. “Someone we thought we could trust. The demons came in the middle of my grandfather’s birthday party. I was old enough to know what was happening, but not old enough to help.”

  Jax reached out and took her hand. “What happened?”

  Persephone never thought she’d tell another soul about that night. To truly explain why she was so adamant against anyone else knowing, though, she needed to. And she supposed it was only fair for Jax to know what he was getting into.

  “Well, like I said, it all happened on my grandfather’s sixty-fifth birthday…”

  All day, Persephone had been waiting for the big party. She got to see all her aunts, uncles, and cousins. It was a welcome break from the training and reading, even if all of them were older and liked to pat her head like she was an adorable puppy.

  The house was bursting with the buzz of conversation. They sat down to a dinner of roast lamb, and then, as dinner wound down, Mom brought out the cake.

  Gran leaned in, whispering to Persephone and Mom. “Okay, if you guys will start dishing up the cake for me, I’m going to sneak out to the shed and get his present.”

  Grandpa liked to fly fish, so they’d pitched in and gotten him the rod he’d been talking about for months. It was lightweight, cast better, had a lighter sensitivity, and all kinds of other things Grandpa insisted were vital to catching the perfect fish.

  Gran disappeared, and Persephone passed out pieces of cake.

  Without warning, the front doors suddenly burst open and demons poured into the house. Persephone had heard about demons all her life, she’d even seen drawings—but physically seeing them was different. They were bigger than she’d expected, and their red eyes glowed in an eerie way that sent goose bumps across her skin. She stood frozen, unable to do anything but stare.

  “But the alarm never sounded,” Aunt Joan said, shaking her head, her eyes filled with disbelief. “How can they be here?”

  Another demon walked in, pulling Alcibiades, the Shaman who’d blessed Persephone, set the demon alarm, and provided the protection spells for the dagger. He was the only person her family had ever trusted with who they really were.

  Where his right eye should’ve been, there was only a bloody, gaping hole. The demon kept a blade aimed at Alcibiades’s neck. “Nobody move, and we’ll let you live. We’re just here for the dagger.”

  Like they’d rehearsed it, Persephone’s family members leapt out of their chairs and charged toward the demons, grabbing the weapons they kept stashed around the room.

  A hand clamped on Persephone’s arm. “We’ve got to get the dagger and get you out of here,” Mom said.

  Keeping a tight grip on Persephone’s arm, Mom sprinted to the weapons’ room. She took out a wad of bills and shoved the money into Persephone’s pocket, then kneeled and pulled up the floorboards.

  She dug out the box, and handed it to Persephone.

  The box was heavy, and Persephone nearly dropped it. Screaming, yelling, and sounds of metal hitting metal drifted from the main room.

  Persephone set the box on a bench, opened it up, and reluctantly lifted the dagger out. Heat traveled up her arms and ran through her body. She felt the pull of Hell, calling the dagger back home. It whispered to her, telling her to take it to the demons in the other room.

  “Persephone, no!”

  Hand wrapped around her skirt, Mom took the dagger from her. She cut off a strip of material, used it to stick the dagger in a belt, and cinched the belt around Persephone’s waist. “If you hold it, the demons will sense it, so only hold it if you absolutely have to, like if you need to defend yourself.”

  The dagger felt hot against Persephone’s skin, even through the fabric, but at least she didn’t feel the pull so strongly anymore.

  Mom walked across the room and threw open the window. “If Gran’s in the shed, get her and run.” She turned and gripped Persephone’s shoulders. “But Persephone, if she’s not there, or she’s in trouble, you can’t stop. And if she can’t keep up…” She blinked away tears. “The dagger is all that matters, you understand?”

  “But—”

  “No buts. You’re fast, and it’ll be easier for you to slip by unnoticed. The dagger
is what’s most important. Do you understand?!”

  Persephone nodded.

  Mom took off her necklace, placed it around Persephone’s neck, and kissed her cheek. “Never forget how much I love you.” Tears ran down her face and her voice shook. “Now run. Run and don’t look back.”

  After taking a moment to regain her composure, Persephone continued the story where she’d left off. “I climbed out the window, sprinted to the shed, got Gran, and we ran into the forest. I heard screaming, awful screaming, but I kept going.” A warm tear rolled down her cheek and she swiped it away. “At one point, Gran twisted her ankle. She couldn’t run anymore, so she told me to leave her.”

  Persephone squeezed her eyes closed and a couple more tears escaped. “I told her I couldn’t, but she told me I had to—that I had to be strong, no matter what. She told me once I got to New Orleans I needed to find a restaurant called Carrefour and tell the woman who owned the place who I was. Gran said Rose would take care of me until she could get there. When I left her, I honestly thought I’d never see her again.”

  Jax grabbed her hand. “You did what you had to do.”

  “Can you imagine what most people would say if they knew I left my grandma in the woods to save myself?”

  “To save the dagger—all of mankind, basically. There’s a difference.”

  “Well, it made me feel awful, all the same.” Persephone sniffed. “Anyway, you know about me running here, sleeping in the alley and meeting Turtle. Gran showed up two days later. She’d caught pneumonia out in the woods, and she struggled with her health, until it eventually got bad enough to…” Pain radiated through Persephone’s chest, so strongly she wanted to curl up in a tight ball and never move again. “She wouldn’t even let me take her to a hospital, and I can hardly live with myself, always wondering what would’ve happened if I…”

  A sob wracked her body and tears streamed down her cheeks. “I mean, I know she would’ve passed eventually, but it still makes me feel awful. Rose came over and took care of the cremation. We spread the ashes in the Mississippi, but I couldn’t even take the time to mourn. Just had to push it aside so I wouldn’t risk having to move the dagger.” Persephone took a deep, shuddering breath and wiped her cheeks. “Anyway, now you know why I can’t trust anyone else. They got to a Shaman, Jax. Someone whose entire life was dedicated to the gods, to fighting evil. If they got to him, they can get to anyone.”

  His gaze locked onto hers, Jax asked, “Are you scared they’ll get to me?”

  She’d felt evil firsthand. When she’d held the dagger the first time, she felt the powerful pull. In her dreams she felt it, too, that intoxicating power of Hell. She wasn’t worried about him; she was terrified of herself. Which was why she’d purposely left those details out of the story.

  Jax’s face dropped, and she realized he thought she wasn’t answering because she didn’t trust him. She put her hand on his cheek. “I know you’d never give me up. I’m not worried about you.”

  The tension drained from him. “Good. Because you’re right. I’d never do anything to hurt you or the Order.”

  And what would you do if it came down to choosing one or the other? That question was far too loaded to get into. It would take a lot more explanation from her, explanation she wasn’t ready to give. She didn’t know if she’d ever be ready to give it to him.

  Her eyes burned from all the crying she’d done, and after losing control at Isadora’s apartment and rehashing one of the worst days of her life, she was completely exhausted. Just getting to the bedroom was going to be a challenge.

  “I’m going to go to bed.” She stood, thinking how nice it would be to crawl into her soft, warm bed.

  Where the nightmares would be waiting for her.

  That thought made her stomach clench. They’d been getting worse and worse, and if it got much worse than last night…

  I don’t know if I can make it through another one.

  She looked down at Jax. “Telling you about the night I lost my family, and with everything going on…” Her heart was hammering so hard it hurt. “I keep having nightmares, and I was wondering…Do you want to come now, or would you rather wait until I start screaming?”

  Jax swallowed, like it took great effort, and she was afraid he was going to say no. Then he stood and draped his arm over her shoulders. “Let’s see if we can avoid the screaming part.”

  Her anxiety washed away.

  Then, like always, came the guilt. She didn’t want to lead him on, and she didn’t want to betray Adrastos. But she needed one good night of sleep to recover, and having Jax next to her would help with that.

  She’d deal with the guilt later.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Sunlight peeked through her window and Persephone rolled away from its brightness as her last moments of sleep drifted away.

  Jax covered a yawn with his hand. “Any nightmares?”

  The realization she hadn’t had one sent a mixture of relief and happiness through her. “No nightmares. Actually, that’s the best sleep I’ve had in a long time.”

  “I’m happy I could help, even if it’s only with bad dreams.”

  “Well, they’re awful enough I’d rank them right up there with demons.”

  His eyebrows drew together as he studied her. “What could be that bad?”

  She sat up, because she still couldn’t bring herself to tell him about the nightmares, even after all he’d done for her. He’d never understand. Not without knowing about the demon blood running through her. Not without telling him she wasn’t as good as he thought she was.

  He shifted and she expected him to leave. Instead, he sat up and brushed her hair over her shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me, and I’ll still be here every night if that’s what you want.”

  Warmth filled her chest and a lump formed in her throat. She turned and looked into his eyes. She was playing with fire. Very cute, attractive fire.

  “What’s this?” He ran his finger over the spot where the trefoil knot was etched into her skin. “You’ve got a tattoo?”

  She threw her hand over it. “Oh, yeah. Anyway, we should—”

  “Did it hurt?”

  Persephone remembered Adrastos’s lips against her neck, the heat it had sent through her. His words replayed in her mind. No beginning, no end, just always and forever.

  “It didn’t hurt at all.” But she hurt now. Her heart ached when she thought of Adrastos, and how he’d feel if he knew she’d been cuddled up to a handsome Warrior for the last two nights.

  I was really hoping the guilt would wait at least until after breakfast.

  “So what’s it mean?” Jax asked.

  “It’s a trefoil knot. It symbolizes immortality, forever. It’s…” Her throat had gone dry, and it hurt when she tried to swallow. “Adrastos gave it to me.”

  A crease formed between Jax’s eyebrows. “You let him tattoo you? That doesn’t sound like you.”

  She scooted to the edge of the bed. “We wanted to have a symbol of our commitment to each other. He’s got one, too.”

  “I want to talk to him. There’s something you’re not telling me about him, and I don’t trust the guy.”

  “That’s because you don’t know him, and all that matters is I trust him.” Persephone walked around the foot of the bed, and Jax stepped into her path.

  “I don’t like it,” Jax said. “The mystery, the marking you. Something’s off about this guy.”

  “Lots of people get tattoos, and you’re making a bigger deal of it than it is. And by the way, it doesn’t have anything to do with you, so you don’t have to like it.”

  “Nothing to do with me?” The muscles along his jaw tightened. “That’s right, I’m just the temporary fill-in until he gets back. You keep telling yourself that, Persephone.” Looking completely disgusted with her, he shook his head. “I’ll be here to protect you, to help you guard the dagger, no matter what. But next time you need someone to hold you, why don’t you c
all up your boyfriend.”

  ***

  Jax was so angry he couldn’t think straight. He wanted to slam his fists into the wall, kick over the plant, grab the door, rip it off the hinges, and toss it aside. To keep from destroying the place, he burst out of the house and stormed down the sidewalk, the blood boiling in his veins.

  I’m such an idiot! She told me she was in love with someone else, but I convinced myself she was in denial. She has a freaking tattoo!

  Which means she’s either stupid, or she loves him more than I realized.

  It felt like he’d been punched in the gut. Because Persephone wasn’t stupid. Why did I let myself fall for her? I’m supposed to protect her, not win her heart.

  Was it so bad to hope that both things were possible?

  Last night she’d fallen asleep in his arms, and he thought that life couldn’t get any better. He’d been right. It had taken a nosedive.

  He thought he’d be okay with just being close to her, even if she was thinking of someone else. But now he was miserable, and he realized he cared.

  Not just care, I love her. I’m freakin’ in love with that girl, and after the way I acted, she’ll probably never talk to me again.

  Somewhere along the way he’d taken a right and ended up several blocks from her house, drifting into the business district. He sat on a bench and propped his head in his hands.

  After spending a good fifteen minutes sulking and feeling sorry for himself, he tried to think of the right thing to say to Persephone. Something that would undo the damage he’d done.

  In theory, if you really loved someone, you wanted them to be happy. And he did want Persephone to be happy. He just wanted her to be happy with him. That other guy didn’t deserve her.

  Yeah, that’s probably not the best thing to say to her if you want her to talk to you ever again.

  Five more minutes without coming up with anything he thought would work, he realized he’d just have to go back and try to diffuse the situation. Truth was, he’d never know the right thing to say, and even if he did plan it all out, he’d probably screw it up when he got there. Nope, he’d have to suck it up, go back to the house, and deal with the fact that he loved a girl who was never going to love him back.