by Unknown
“Yep,” I nodded.
“Nyet,” Kirill said from behind us. “He vill die.”
“It's fine,” I waved Kirill into a seat. “He's right, this situation isn't fair. I understand why he thought he could at least have another woman if he shared her with me.”
“That's not who you are,” Trevor frowned. “Did you even discuss sex before you had it?”
“Not really,” I sighed. “I guess I should have mentioned that I'm not bisexual but I didn't think I needed to, after I told him I needed him to be faithful. I thought all that was kinda self-explanatory.”
“I guess not,” Trevor grimaced.
“Ve vill find someone else,” Kirill stroked my shoulder gently and leaned down to kiss my cheek.
“At least you've had something to tide you over,” Trevor offered. “It buys us a little time.”
“Yeah, you're right,” I was suddenly sad.
The anger was wearing off and I was remembering all we'd shared. It wasn't much in the scheme of things but it still seemed like a lot at the moment. I had thought that I'd found someone to finally take Odin's place in my heart and now I had to start all over. But maybe that was where I'd gone wrong. No one could take Odin's place. I would forever have an emptiness inside me that belonged to him and I needed to come to terms with that before I could move on.
“Oh, damn it,” Trevor growled. “You have feelings for him already, don't you?”
“I'll get over it,” I waved it away resolutely. “Now, what were you going to tell me when I first walked in?”
“Are you sure you want to deal with this now?” Trevor asked with a concerned look.
“I'm happy for a distraction,” I admitted.
“Alright,” Trevor shared a grim glance with Kirill. “Things have heated up in Afghanistan again and we believe we know who's responsible for it.”
“Who?” I asked, my heartache instantly shoved aside.
“A trio of gods,” Trevor began. “The first is Gish, he's an Afghani war god.”
“And zen zere's Qaus,” Kirill added. “He's Arabian, God of Veather and Rainbows.”
“Rainbows?” I couldn't help a small smile. “Is he also the God of the Gays?”
“Nyet,” Kirill said seriously, making me roll my eyes. “He is closer to Zor, vith zunderbolts.”
“Zunderbolts and lightning, very, very fright-” I stopped singing when I saw their faces. “It had to be done,” I whined. “Come on, it's funny.”
“I vish you'd stop making fun of my accent,” Kirill sighed.
“Really?” I was instantly contrite. “I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I thought you didn't mind. I-” Then I saw his lips twitch. “Damn it, Kirill,” I slapped him. “You had me worried.”
“I know you zink accent is sexy,” he smiled wide. “Your teasing is actually flirting.”
“Okay, good,” I sighed. “So, moving on; who's the third god?”
“It's a goddess,” Trevor took over. “She's the supreme goddess of the Kafir. Her name is Disani.”
“Like the bottled water?” I tried very hard to keep a straight face.
“I zink zat's Dasani,” Kirill said.
“Close enough,” I waved my hand. “Oh, this is just perfect,” I sighed. “I'll need to prepare a list of insults before we go after them.”
“Vervain,” Trevor groaned.
“What?” I huffed. “I hate being unprepared, especially when there's such good material to work with.”
“Gish wears a quiver that has a rainbow sling,” Trevor admitted. Like pulling off a Band-Aid, I think he wanted to get it all out there at once.
“Wait,” I blinked in shocked delight. “One is the God of Rainbows and the other wears rainbows?! Oh, it's a Christmas miracle!” I clapped my hands.
“It's not Christmas,” Kirill frowned.
“It's a saying,” Trevor shook his head at my lion.
“Let's see,” I tapped my lips with a fingernail. “Rainbow Twins, yes, yes, that's good,” I got up and started heading towards the intercom. “Rainbow Brite? Oh, I like that. But the water thing, I think I'll have to go watch some Dasani commercials for that.”
“Minn Elska?” Trevor called.
“Yes?” I turned around.
“What are you doing?” He asked.
“Telling whomever's on duty downstairs to text the Squad,” I said as if it were obvious. “We need to have a meeting.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“Damn Isis,” Pan growled. “Horus, tell your mother to stop killing Arabs.”
“It's not my mother,” Horus snapped, “as you very well know.”
“And she's not killing Arabs,” I added with a chuckle. “That's a Cure song. ISIS is a group of Arabs.”
“Horus, tell your mommy to stop stirring up the Arabs,” Pan corrected.
“I'm going to stir up your intestines with a fork if you don't stop talking about my mother,” Horus' metallic eyes, one gold and one silver, glinted with menace.
Looking at Horus now, I wondered if he'd inherited the gold eye from his great great grandfather. I knew the myths spoke about Horus' right eye being connected to Re, and that was Horus' gold eye. His left eye, the silver one, was supposed to be connected to the moon. Then there was that whole Eye of Re/ Eye of Horus thing. From what I'd read, they were interchangeable, basically the same thing; an amulet of an eye adorned to represent a hawk's eye (yes, those weird swooping lines were meant to imitate the way a bird's eye looks) and was used for protection. But Re had told me that both of his daughters were also called The Eye of Re. It was damn confusing. How many eyes could one god have?
Then again, now that I think about it, some myths portray Azrael as covered in eyes and tongues. He's also supposed to have four faces and four-thousand wings. Now I ask you; how would that even be possible? Four—thousand wings! Where would they all attach? And the eyes? That's just gross. How would he sit down? I swear, sometimes I think people make stuff up without considering how they would actually work. I've come across quite a few descriptions of ridiculous forms which humans have tried to give their gods. Thank goodness the gods don't have to follow the myths precisely.
“Oh you're so hot when you get angry,” Horus' girlfriend, Kate, aka Hekate, said and brought me out of my eyeball musings.
Hekate knew Horus so well, had him wrapped around her little finger, and easily dissipated his anger with her smile. I was so happy he'd found her. Or rather, she found him. Kate had been the one to practically club Horus over the head and drag him home by his short hair.
“Thank you,” Horus slid an arm around Kate. He was dressed in a suit and she was in Goth night-club wear. They looked ridiculous sitting together but yet perfect somehow.
“Can we get back to the more pressing matter?” Thor asked. “I'd like to get home at a reasonable hour.”
“Is that you or your wife talking?” Blue smirked.
“As if it's any different for you,” Thor shot back, turning Blue's smirk into a scowl.
“I choose to go home early,” Blue straightened the cuffs on his black, cotton, dress shirt. “It just happens to coincide with her desires.”
“Soooo,” I drawled, “what are we going to do about this?”
“What did your man on the inside say again?” Hades asked Trevor. Hades didn't have to get home anytime soon. His wife, Persephone, was sitting right next to him.
“He's not my man on the inside,” Trevor huffed. “He's a Froekn who happened to be traveling through Afghanistan.”
“Why?” Teharon asked with genuine concern.
He was a healer and I'd rarely seen him behave in an unkind manner. His girlfriend, Karni Mata, was almost as sweet as he was but she was the Goddess of Rats and that tended to be off-putting for most people. Not for Teharon though. He loved her more than anything.
“Sightseeing,” Trevor said simply.
We all stared at him in shock.
“He's a werewolf,” Trevor shrugged. “War isn't a big
deal for us. In fact, it can be the equivalent of an amusement park.”
“Valid point,” I conceded.
“He spotted Gish and recognized him,” Trevor went on. “So he followed him. Dave wasn't on the inside, just in the right place at the right time.”
“Great,” Morpheus, AKA the Greek God of Dreams, ran a hand through his short, ebony hair. “And he heard Gish talking to his cohorts about instigating a war. So what? Gods do that all the time.”
“And we try to stop them,” I reminded him.
“I know,” Morph huffed, crossing leanly muscled arms over his chest. “What I meant was, why is this so alarming? Why is this time special enough that we need to act on it immediately?”
“Did you miss the part where I said they were working both sides?” Trevor sighed. “How the gods are helping to supply weapons to both ISIS and the Afghan National Army?”
“So we stop their arms dealings?” Morpheus asked.
“No, that won't do much good,” Thor mused. “They're intending on causing a battle of such gigantic proportions that it destroys both armies. A plan like that will have back-up routes. There will be numerous suppliers, I'm sure.”
“Where's the attack going to be?” I asked Trevor.
“Kabul,” he shrugged, “where else?”
“I don't know,” I rolled my eyes. “I'm not an expert on Afghani cities.”
“So they're slowly infiltrating both armies,” Hekate observed. “I've heard that the Afghan National Police force is dirty, quite a few of them are on drugs and a quarter of them quit every year.”
“They're not the only dirty ones,” Brahma added, stroking his close-cropped beard thoughtfully. “The Afghan National Army has high officials who regularly take bribes or otherwise use their position to enrich themselves.”
“ISIS would be harder to infiltrate,” Teharon said. “Those are people who are acting out of strong beliefs.”
“Religion,” I shook my head.
“These are extremists,” Blue protested. “They're not true followers of Islam.”
“Yeah, I get that,” I agreed. “Still, religion is at the base of this.”
“Is it?” Blue mused. “Or is it about power and oppression?”
“Things you know all about,” Hades smirked at Blue.
“Well isn't that the pot calling the kettle Blue?” I shot back before Blue could get mad.
“Fair enough,” Hades lowered his dark shades so he could wink at me, giving me a glimpse of Hell through the brown-tinted window panes of his irises. Cheeky bastard.
“Can we get back to stopping mass destruction?” Thor sighed.
“Let's,” I agreed and looked to Trevor. “Does Dave know where Gish is now? And does he have any other information that could help us?”
“He's been keeping an eye on them for us,” Trevor huffed a laugh. “I think he's having fun, it reminds him of the days when we were assassins.”
“Good times,” I grimaced.
“Wolves need to hunt,” Trevor said unapologetically. “It's in our blood.”
“So we'll know where to find Gish,” Thor got us on track again. “But you said Gish mentioned two others; Qaus and Disani.”
“Qaus is working with ISIS, Gish with the Afghan Police, and Disani is serving as a go between,” Trevor explained.
“Makes sense,” Thor nodded, “Qaus is Arabian.”
“God of the Gays,” I added with a straight face.
“Excuse me?” Thor frowned at me.
“Ignore her,” Trevor sighed. “We're having issues with finding a replacement for Odin and Vervain has gotten twitchy.”
Thor swallowed hard and looked away.
“Sorry,” Trevor grimaced. “I wasn't thinking. I know you must miss your father.”
“He left a lot more than just Vervain's bed,” Thor rumbled, casting me an angry glance.
“Yes, he did,” I leaned across the table towards Thor. “And we know that, of course we do. This is a personal issue I'm having-”
“We're having,” Trevor corrected.
“A personal issue we're having,” I shot an exasperated look at Trevor. “And we're not going to let it interfere with the God War. I'll be fine.”
“Da but Re is fool,” Kirill shook his head.
“Re?” Horus straightened in surprise.
“Yes, Re,” I sighed. I'd been hoping to not have to address this at all since it now looked as if Re wasn't going to be a part of my life... at least not in that way.
“He was being considered for...” Horus looked like he was choking.
“For her next lover,” Kate gave him a pat on the back. “Ease up, Sweetheart, it's just sex.”
“Not vith Vervain, it isn't,” Kirill grinned.
“Girl, you gotta tell me your secret one of these days,” Kate chuckled. “What is it; lined in gold or something?”
“Well that would make sex uncomfortable,” I shot back and she laughed harder.
“Re is my grandfather!” Horus exclaimed, sending Kate a quelling look.
“Oh damn,” Hekate gaped at me. “You were gonna sleep with Horus' grandpa?”
“Have you met Re?” Persephone waggled her brows at Hekate.
“Good point, girl,” Kate leaned over to fist bump Persephone. “That man is like a woman's wet dream.”
“Technically Re's his great great grandpa,” I corrected. “And I did sleep with him.”
Horus started to make strangled noises.
“Damn!” Hekate hooted. “You go, girl!” She reached across the table to fist bump me next.
Horus started to turn red.
“Relax,” Kate knocked him in the shoulder. “We're gods, it's not like she was screwing a wrinkly old man.”
“He's still my grandfather,” Horus spoke in a strained whimper.
“Great great grandfather,” Kate corrected. “Two greats equals a lot of space.”
“And by the way, Brahma,” I looked over to the Hindu god who was completely fascinated by the conversation. “Your mother-in-law is a freak.”
“Are you referring to her ability to manifest multiple arms or her sexual appetite?” Brahma cocked his head at me.
“Yes,” I nodded and he laughed uproariously.
“Could we perhaps move on from Vervain's gold-plated vagina and Brahma's sexually deviant mother-in-law?” Thor said dryly, making everyone burst into more bouts of laughter. “Come on, people, this is serious.”
“You just said the words gold-plated vagina,” I pointed at Thor. “You are now officially part of the silliness.”
“I am not,” he pulled himself upright.
“So much silliness,” I shook my head as we all continued to laugh.
“Look what you've done,” Blue accused Thor. “Now neither of us shall be having sex tonight.”
They sighed together, doomed men, and we laughed harder.
Chapter Twenty-Two
I didn't expect Kabul to be cold.
“Why is it snowing?” I whined as I stoked my internal temperature up to such a high degree that I started steaming. The gods around me pulled in closer.
“Because it's Winter,” Thor rolled his eyes. He had no problem with the cold. Damn Nordic giant. He was like a yeti.
“But I thought Afghanistan was a desert,” I looked around the snow covered streets and then up to the snow capped Hindu Kush mountains which surrounded Kabul. “Deserts are supposed to be hot, aren't they? It's definitely not supposed to snow in the desert.”
“Ve are at high elevation,” Kirill explained.
“Oh damn, you're handy to have around,” Kate sighed as she eased into the circle of gods gathered around me like I was a space heater. I guess I kinda was. “I understand why they all love you,” she went on. “In fact, I think I'm in love with you now. Will you marry me, Vervain?”
“Shut up,” I laughed. Snow melted as I passed over it and we ended up walking through puddles but the heat was worth it.
“I can't
help it,” she slid closer. “Cold makes me crazy. I'm an Underworld goddess, I like it hot.”
“So do I,” but then I frowned and looked over at her. “The Greek Underworld isn't hot.”
“Tartarus is,” she smirked wickedly.
“True enough,” I agreed, remembering my one journey through the actual Greek Hell, which was beneath the Underworld... a sort of Under-Underworld. That was one place I hoped to never have to visit again.
“Here's where Dave is staying,” Trevor led us off the slushy street and up a wide path.
The cement walkway had garden plots running down the center and along its sides but all the plants were covered in cloth for the Winter. Still, it was pretty and halfway down it, there was an open space with a fountain filled with frozen water and snow. It was like walking through the gardens of some magnificent French palace, in the dead of Winter.
There was a hotel looming at the end of the frozen path. Made of a creamy beige stone and boxy in shape, it looked luxurious yet subdued. Like it couldn't decide whether to be a shopping mall or a five star hotel. But the sedate stone exterior hid a Middle Eastern wonderland. I gaped as we walked into the lavish lobby to be immediately greeted by a well-dressed member of the staff. He welcomed us to the Kabul Serena Hotel and then directed us through the lobby, barely eyeing our strange group.
Still rather boxy, the lobby was much more elegant than I'd expected. There were several massive crystal chandeliers hanging from the wood-framed ceiling, and lots of comfortable couches to lounge on. We walked past arches which soared over intricately patterned stone floors and inhaled the aroma of exotic food, as we made our way to the elevators. I had turned down the heat as soon as we entered and was quite comfortable as I stepped into the spacious elevator, which was big enough to fit us all.
We went up to Dave's floor, casting impressed looks at each other. Then we padded down a thick carpet, through a softly lit hallway, to his room. Dave answered our knock immediately, like he'd been standing there waiting for us, and waved us all into his suite. The Middle-Eastern décor continued there but in a more sedate, hotel room fashion.
The furniture was more modern but was upholstered in richly patterned textiles and there were beautiful carvings done in all the wood accents, like the headboard and the border around the large window. The view through that window was spectacular but it was the room itself that we all stared at in shock. It wasn't nearly the nicest hotel room I'd ever seen, kind of modest in size and without a balcony, but it was far better than I'd been expecting to find in Kabul. And everyone seemed to share my opinion.
