by India Kells
Sera seemed to hesitate. “We’re here, so I suggest that we try to find this Pheme.”
Finn reached in his pocket and took out his phone At least one of them knew a little about useful human technologies. “I’m gonna send a message to Asher. At least to let him know where we are and what we plan to do. If we run into trouble, I would rather have Valeria open another portal to get us out of here instead of running for it.”
“I just need time, so I can have enough magic to bring us back to Sanctuary.”
Ian kissed her hair. “I always like a plan B. At least we have a way of getting out of here quick. And that doesn’t mean that you’re helpless.”
He knew that was what she was thinking, because her mouth gaped open for a second, before closing it, wrinkling her nose. “I hate when you’re right.”
That made him smile. “I don’t have your quick mind, but I still have a brain. Now, let’s find that goddess.”
It took them a moment to figure out the general layout of the building, with no doors apart from what looked like elevator sliding doors. Each corridor ended at a wall, and there didn’t seem to be a staircase either.
Ian lost track of how much time they remained on that floor. His stomach growled but he ignored it. Finn looked even paler than before, if even possible. Sera was holding on, but only by a thread. She needed rest and food. The wolf inside him sneered at him for not taking good care of her, but Ian knew it couldn’t be helped. He would be aware of her, trying to protect her as discreetly as he could, and when he would see an opening, he would act. Even if it meant tying her down.
Sera stopped before the elevator doors. “Unless you guys have an idea on how to get out of here, I suspect that this is it. Up or down.”
“A closed door is our way out?”
Sera rolled her eyes at the vampire. “It looks like elevator doors, don’t be a smart ass and try to find a way to open them. After all, you were around when they invented these things.”
Finn arched an eyebrow. “That’s low, witch, even from you.” But obviously ticked by her remark, he started to analyze it.
Ian tried to find a detail out of place, or some sort of hidden button, but even with his great eyesight, he didn’t see anything from the adorned door, detailing or color.
After a long moment, Finn puffed in frustration and decided to use brute force. He put his fingers in the thin crack and started to pull on the sliding doors. When a metallic sound came from inside, Ian decided that a little more muscle was needed. Without a word, Finn moved to the side and they both pulled with all their might.
Ian’s muscles tensed, and he was surprised by the amount of force that was needed just to make the door slide open, painful inch by painful inch. And just as he thought that damn thing wouldn’t budge, it slid open with an ear-tearing screech.
Heart pumping, he looked at Finn who had his hands on his knees. “That was easy.”
The vampire cursed under his breath and Ian smiled, shaking his head.
Sera came close and that’s when Ian turned to look at the inside of the elevator. It looked pretty ordinary. Like many elevators he had seen in posh buildings. Sera peeked inside and finally stepped in. Ian followed her with Finn on his heels. As soon as the three of them were in, the doors closed in a final thump. And then, nothing.
Ian slid his hands over the blank side panels. Nothing seemed to indicate how to operate it.
Finn turned around. “Maybe it’s voice activated. Let me try.” He cleared his throat. “Elevator, take us to Pheme’s apartment.”
Ian thought it was a silly idea until he jumped when a soft female voice answered him. “You are not authorized to command this elevator.”
Finn shrugged. “We’re screwed.”
Sera put her hand on her hips. “I’m surprised that you survived so long in this world with your lack of perseverance, my dear Finn.”
“Welcome to Olympus Tower. Please state your command.” The female voice made all three of them stand still.
Ian frowned. “Why did it say that? It was just after you spoke, Sera. Do it again.”
Sera looked up, as if the female voice came from the ceiling. “Please take us to Pheme’s apartment.”
“Command accepted. Please wait as I take you to destination.” And the small box they were in started moving.
Finn pouted. “Well, I’ll be fucked. That must be because you have god’s blood, Sera.”
Sera crossed her arms. “Or female power, don’t forget about that.”
Ian hooked a hand around her hips and brought her closer. “Since I’ve met you and your two friends, I have to say that I’m now a believer.”
Sera smiled and touched his hand, slowly caressing his knuckles. But before anything more could be said, the elevator slowed down and stopped. The doors whooshed open, leading to a large living room overlooking the city of Los Angeles. Everything was blindingly stark white. Not the same decor as Layla who had a much more subdued and warm taste. This one was monochromatic, but also tacky and over the top with things and artwork.
Ian kept his arm around Sera, not convinced that a threat wasn’t lurking around the corner of this posh apartment. And even worse, how was he to fight a goddess? The image he had in his mind of such a being was mostly fueled by rumors and lore. And none of the possible outcomes were good.
Sera squeezed his hand before shouting. “Anybody home?” The sound of her voice reverberated in the space. Bracing for anything, Ian looked at Finn who nodded, standing ready.
What happened next wasn’t what Ian expected at all. Ready for the fires of hell to descend upon them, it was a cheerful, high-pitched female voice coming from the back.
“I’ll be with you in a minute, darlings. Make yourselves comfy!”
Ian looked around, and guessed that the cheerful voice was coming from what seemed to be the kitchen area. As one, they all made their way, one step at the time, toward the living room. That when the familiar clicking of high heels on hard floors, came from their left. Instinctively, Ian moved Sera behind him. A defensive move, but as a woman came into view he wondered why he was defending Sera.
The female was out of old movies from the fifties. Sky-high heels, a bright pink dress and blond hair around a very beautiful face. A very made up face. And a white apron, for crying out loud!
“Hello darlings! I told you to make yourselves comfortable in the living room! I’ve made cocktails!” Carrying a tray, the blond bombshell passed by them, swaying her hips like a bell and leaving a trail of heavy perfume in her wake.
At the smell, Ian felt lightheaded and a powerful surge of lust blurred his mind. He swallowed hard, and shook his head, trying to get rid of it, but it lingered, making it difficult to think. Sera gripped his hand and when he looked at her, she had a strange look on her face, as if trying to figure out what was going on. Her contact was making it more and more easy to think. One look at Finn, and Ian realized that the vampire was under the same effect too. His breath was labored, and his eyes were dark, fixed on the woman wriggling her ass in the living room as she emptied her tray on the low coffee table.
Logically, Ian wasn’t attracted to her, but his body was fighting hard on this. Even his wolf seemed puzzled, keeping silent.
Sera took the lead and went to the woman. “Are you Pheme? The goddess?”
The woman giggled. “Of course, lovely! And that’s why you’re here. Well, that’s the word going around, at least.”
Ian forced himself to make a wide circle around the goddess and sit as far as possible from her, dragging a reluctant Finn with him.
Sera sat beside him, a barrier between the goddess and them.
“What do you mean ‘that’s the word going around’?”
The goddess-hostess handed each of them a stemmed glass with an amber liquid filled with the cocktail she was talking about. When she passed by, Ian took the glass, barely touching her fingers, and it was as if an electric current shocked his entire body. It was as if it was o
n fire. Burning from the inside out, he unconsciously took a sip of his drink, but instead of calming him down, it stirred him even more. His self-control was working extra time to stay in the moment and ignore this lustful, undesired feeling.
Finn changed position beside him, but Ian was so focused on keeping himself under control, fighting to remain in this reality, that he couldn’t help the vampire.
Sera and the goddess seemed oblivious to their state of tension, and he prayed it remained that way until it dissipated.
“Well, you know who I am, don’t you? Information comes to me naturally, not that I know everything, but well... almost, I dare say. You are the daughter of Apollo, and that’s news, my dear! After millennia, I thought your father was more inclined to the other team, if you know what I mean. It seemed I was wrong! Such a handsome body, it would have been a shame, if you get my drift.”
“Please, I don’t want to be rude, but I came here because...”
“Oh, I know why you and your friends came to see me. As I said, there is little I don’t know. And I couldn’t be more pleased with your arrival.”
“Why is that so?”
“As the daughter of Apollo, you have powers of your own. I need them.”
Ian’s protective streak pushed aside everything else and he growled. When he tried to push himself to his feet, cramps took him by surprise and he toppled over. Sera was by his side, but the goddess didn’t seem surprised. Slowly, she put her own glass on the table in front of her and crossed her legs prettily.
“Don’t worry about them, my dear. That’s the drama of being a man around me, or should I say, around a goddess. It affects mostly people with magic flowing through their DNA. And if not shut by the divinity, it becomes some sort of aphrodisiac. Nothing dire, just uncomfortable.”
Ian’s vision blurred as pain and lust mixed in a dangerous combination.
“Why would you do such a thing?”
Pheme didn’t seem the least disturbed by Sera’s accusation. “Well, to make you help me.”
Sera exhaled in a rush. “I came here to ask for your help! I would have gladly helped you in return!”
The goddess stayed silent for a moment. The surprise in her voice very sincere. “Oh dear. Really?” If he wasn’t in pain, Ian would have laughed at the goddess’ stunned expression. The woman puffed and frowned. “Nobody helps freely, my dear. Everybody has an agenda...”
“Not me! Now, help them!”
Pheme got to her high-heeled feet and paced a little. “I’m sorry, my dear, I’ve shut it down, but the effect will remain for a few hours...”
Ian exhaled through his teeth. He had to get out, he had to get himself under control.
“Knock us out! And do it quick!”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Sera was wildly considering Finn’s crazy solution. A logical and feasible one.
Ian’s breath was harsh, and his body covered in sweat. Damn goddess! She should have known that something could go wrong, that they were walking into a trap. Soren had warned her against them.
Pheme came a little bit closer, but Finn hissed at her and Ian’s low, menacing growl made her take a few steps back. They may have been stronger than humans, but she probably wasn’t immune to pain.
“Pheme, if that was a threat, what was your solution when I accepted, for them to stop suffering?”
A blush crept from her neck to her cheeks. “It’s been a long while since...”
Sera grimaced and Pheme shook her head. “I didn’t know you had any attachment to any of them.”
“What did you need from me? What was the bargain you wanted to strike?”
Pheme hesitated, and her shoulders sagged. “You probably have your father’s divination abilities. There is something I need to know.”
“The almighty goddess of communication and gossip needs to know something from me?” Sera was part astonished, part exasperated. On the other hand, she needed information too. Her brain was spinning ten thousand miles a minute, checking every possible angle, and what she needed to do.
Reluctantly, she pushed herself up to Pheme. “Okay. I need information from you too, but you already know that. No tricks this time. I want you to knock out Finn. Like right now.”
Pheme gestured at the vampire who finally relaxed and fell face down on the rug. Pheme, was about to do the same with Ian who was now shaking when she stopped her.
“No. You need me at full force, and I need Ian to do that. Give me fifteen minutes with him in a room, alone. And then, we’ll talk.”
A glint of hope shone in the goddess unique blue eyes and she nodded quickly. “Yes, my room is the door to your left.”
The goddess approached as if to help Ian up, but the man jerked away.
“Don’t fucking touch me!”
Sera knew that he was soon to be completely out of control, at his most dangerous, but they were in a jam, and she was ready to risk it. When she tried to touch him again, he recoiled.
“Ian, listen to me, you have to come with me.”
He shook his head and she placed her eyes level with his.
“Ian, sweetheart, come with me. Please. Trust me on this, okay?”
His blazing amber eyes locked with hers, Sera moved backwards toward the door, beckoning him to follow her. As if hypnotized he did, and the more he got closer, the more she detected the predator in him. She prayed that everything went as she hoped, because he would never forgive himself if he hurt her.
Sera felt the door handle in her back, and reached for it with her hand. Once they were both inside, she magically shut it down with the flick of her fingers.
The sound Ian made was no longer human. Sera feared that he would shift any second now.
It was difficult not to fear the wild man before her, but he was starting to lose his humanity and he was in pain. And she needed to recharge. It troubled her to use him that way, but she tried to convince herself that it was the perfect arrangement. If nobody died in the process.
Still maintaining eye contact, she pulled her boots and socks off and started to unbutton her jeans. In the dim bedroom, Ian’s eyes were ablaze. His body was still as a statue, apart from his heaving breath. When she discarded her shirt, and stood there in her underwear, his nostrils flared, and he took one step in her direction before stopping in his tracks and shaking his head.
“Get out of here, Sera. Quick.” The words could barely be heard. Sera lifted her head.
“I’m not going anywhere, wolfman.” And as if to defy the predator as well as her own fear, she dropped her last scraps of lace and satin. The howl of pain and hunger coming from his lips, chased her apprehension and flooded her with desire. Even at his most dangerous, at his most lethal, she wanted him. Again, and again. Willing to risk it all for him.
And still he stayed in place, an internal battle clearly raging inside him. Sera decided to tip the scale on his wolf. If he was a predator, she would become his prey.
Taking one step back and another, Sera realized how vast the space was, which served her purpose. The light was low, but not enough that she couldn’t distinguish the layout of the space or the form of the furniture. Rounding the bed, she leaped sideways. Her movement triggered something in Ian and he moved, now on the hunt.
For Sera, it was the most surreal situation; her naked in a strange room, hunted by a man on the verge of losing his sanity. She didn’t know what it was to be so consumed by desire, she would forget her name and didn’t care about who would touch her. And there he was, Ian, lost, but grasping for the remnants of his humanity. Barely.
She didn’t have his speed or his strength, but certainly a few tricks that could work on him. As she felt his fingers brushing her skin, Sera enveloped herself in a vanishing spell. It didn’t make her completely disappear, but instead, it made her invisible. Ian seemed to be surprised and looked around, as she padded away. For a moment he looked around frantically, until he stilled. Of course, he could hear her breathing, and probably would follo
w her scent. Observing him, how he moved, was fascinating. For an instant, she forgot and inhaled sharply, which immediately gave her location away. Once more, his hand missed her by a hair’s breadth, but she couldn’t flee, being cornered beside a huge dresser. Barely breathing, Sera waited, immobile. And as he was about to turn around, she made her move. But it was a trick. As soon as she believed to have escaped, his hand closed around her hip and her body was plastered against the white wall. Reappearing, Ian pressed himself against her back, his nose in her neck.
When his hands smashed the wall on both sides of her head, Sera jumped. “You have to get out of here, Sera. Get out, fast, or I fear I will hurt you.”
Heart thundering in her chest, she shook her head. “I’m not leaving you like this. I can’t leave you in pain.”
“You don’t understand. I’m stronger than you, way stronger. Look at the wall, dammit! If I take you now, I’ll kill you.”
He had a point. One she agreed with and could be arranged. Bowing her head for an instant, she searched her mind for what she wanted. It was simple, efficient, but temporary. When she was ready, she turned and placed both her arms on Ian’s chest and pushed him back.
Ian stumbled at least six feet back, which astonished her. And Ian too.
“You see, I have shifter strength now. You won’t hurt me, Ian. And I’m not leaving.”
Ian didn’t move when she approached. He towered over her, and she intended to take full advantage of this body that made her shivery and wet. Her hands went for his shirt, but still unaware of her newfound strength, it turned to shreds under her fingers. And that was the end of Ian’s control.
His hands fisted in her hair, forcing her head back as he scraped his teeth against the column of her neck. Ian slid his hands to cup her ass and lift her. Sera circled his waist, the rough denim of his jeans rubbing hard on her sex. The sensation was swift when he let her fall on the wide bed. She didn’t know what turned her on so much, but having him looking at her with those eyes, so fierce, as he unbuttoned his jeans, made her not only restless but damn achy. Without even noticing, she reached between her legs and let her fingers slide between her sensitized folds, teasing.
