“The pack never leaves anyone behind,” Dominic says while meeting my gaze. “No matter what.”
So much has happened, it’s hard to remember why I tried to exile him again. I open my mouth to say so, but Dominic waves me off. “Later. Let’s focus on getting out of here first, yeah?”
He shuffles ahead, still leaning on Lucrezia, leaving me and Monica behind. I take stock of the river – no sign of the three cretini. “We should follow them, try and get as far away as we can.”
“Bene,” she says in a subdued tone, completely unlike her. Then as if I’m not even there, she tries to pass by me.
Before I can think it through, my hand shoots out and I catch her by the elbow. Despite trying to read her expression, she won’t acknowledge me until I force her chin up. “What’s with the silence, cara?”
“Nothing,” she mutters. “Can we go?”
When she tries to move, I only tighten my grip on her. “No, not until you tell me what’s going on.”
Monica finally meets my gaze then, her own dulled as if she’s trying to hold back emotions. “I got your message, loud and clear.”
“Message? Ma di che diavolo are you talking about, Monica? What message?”
She turns her head away, but not before I see a tear slip past her lashes. When I reach to wipe it away, completely confounded, she lashes out. Shoves me away, scowling at me. “Stop! You didn’t say it in so many words, but it’s obvious my display of any emotion that doesn’t equate with sleeping in bed is too much for you. I get it, Lucas. So, you win. I’m tired of games and this back and forth. Let’s just get out of here, and then we can go our separate ways.”
She tries to pass me again, and I almost let her. Almost. I snap out of the stunned moment of surprise enough to grab her wrist, then pull her body so it crashes against mine. “You want to talk about games and back and forth, and hidden messages?”
Monica scowls, and that stubborn tilt of her chin is what does it. I grab the back of her neck so she can’t move and drop my mouth to hers unceremoniously, unapologetically. It’s been too long since I felt the fullness of her lips, the softness of her body pressed against mine, and I want more. So much fucking more. But not here, despite how desperate I am.
“Not here,” I repeat against her lips, pulling away with much effort. “Come with me, let’s get out of here, and then talk properly.” When she says nothing, I add, “You want me to beg? Fine. Ti prego, tesoro. Just come with me.”
She searches my gaze for a long moment, then nods in silence. I take it as a good sign, then grab her hand in mine and follow in Dominic’s footsteps. He and Lucrezia have arrived at the farthest point of the river, but there is no Charon or boat anywhere.
“We don’t have time to wait for the ferryman,” Lucrezia says.
“Too bad. I owe him a bath in this river,” Dominic mutters.
“It might be best he’s not here,” I add. “Given my father sent me down here to get his staff.”
“His staff?” Lucrezia frowns. “Why?”
“Hell if I know.”
As my gaze roams the river, looking for a way across, Monica says, “It’s for the doors. Charon’s staff can open portals to different worlds, different realms. What Ana was able to do in Alessandro’s cellar, she can do it again, but all over. It would be...unlimited power, wielded by someone with no care for innocents.”
I squeeze her hand in mine as another thought strikes me. “Did you coerce Ana into opening another door, or how did you get in here after me?”
Monica shrugs. “Got a bit creative. Found some of your blood in the cell, and I did the spell.” She shivers. “Would love to avoid that particular one again.”
“We may be able to,” I add. “Ileana said we can get out of here if we follow the marigolds.”
“Ileana was here?” Dominic asks.
“Sì, apparently she and Hades are childhood friends. Know anything about that?” He shakes his head, and I sigh in defeat. “A mystery for another day. Alright, I have a plan for getting us across, then all we need to do is find the marigolds.”
Taking a step back from Monica, I allow the change to take over me. Like before, I picture myself growing larger, large enough to be mounted, then open my eyes. It seems I achieved the proper size, more or less. So I force my body into an awkward bow right in front of my pack. “Hop on my back!”
They do as I ask, and I enter the river. The coolness of the water chills me to the bone, but I force my paws to swim through it. I’ve been half-expecting some kind of creature to drag us under, but we reach the other shore without incidents, all within moments.
It’s only once I let everyone get off that I bother scanning the area, and notice we’re being watched. Charon awaits us, stepping out of the shadows with his staff in hand. And he’s not alone. Three heads lift in our direction, mean eyes and growls announcing his arrival – Cerberus.
∞ ∞ ∞
∞ Battaglia ∞
“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”
-Margaret Thatcher-
Lucas
Letting my form revert to human, I step in front of my pack. “Stand behind me,” I mutter to them, already walking towards Charon. Something changed in him, but what?
Then it dawns on me. The ferryman is no longer pretending to be a statue. Instead, his expression is filled with anger. “Cerberus here tells me you didn’t come just to return your brother. No, you came for something of mine, isn’t that right?”
Fucking Alessandro. “No, not anymore. It was a misunderstanding.”
My gaze shifts between Charon’s ancient form and Cerberus’ massive one. One of the heads stares at me, but the other two are focused too much on my pack. I need to figure out a way to draw his entire attention to me.
“Be that as it may, I cannot let you leave.”
The wolf in me points its head, followed closely by the chimera. I don’t know which is more indignant, but that boiling anger I’ve gotten used to, is right there underneath the surface.
“Let me leave?” I scoff. “What makes you think you can stop me?”
Charon only stares back, and Cerberus’ second head refocuses its attention on me. So far, so good.
“Hades himself cleared me,” I growl. “Will you go against your master?”
“He will thank me for protecting his domain, I have no doubt about it. And I am sure he will understand whatever befalls you, especially given you were after my staff.”
I take a step closer. “I told you, I’m not after it anymore.”
Charon shrugs. “Too late. A challenge was drawn, a line in the sand, if you will. You can leave here, you and your little friends... Once you pay the price.”
“I don’t have another fucking coin.”
“It is not a coin I seek.” He points a knobby finger towards the massive the dog. “Fight Cerberus. If you win, you get to pick the staff or leaving with your lives.”
“All of us?”
“Yes.”
Only the promise I made to Mamma – to find happiness – holds me back. “And if I lose?”
Charon snorts. “You join Cerberus, enslaved to the Underworld.”
Ovviamente. If I want Alessandro’s death, there really is no choice – winning, above all. Mi dispaice, Mamma. I nod to Charon. “We have a deal.”
“No!” Monica cries behind me, tugging on my arm. “Do you not see what that monster did to Dominic? Lucas, it’s suicide!”
Her scent envelops me, the fire in her eyes, the touch of her hand – I want to kiss her. But I push it aside, and instead back away from her. There will be time for that later. For now, I need to do my duty and get us the fuck out of here.
My eyes shift to Dominic, still leaning on Lucrezia. Find the fucking marigolds, amico. Without me having to explain further, he nods. His expression is resigned. He knows if I fail, he needs to be ready to get the girls out of here. They will not pay for all this... Not when it can be avoided.
&
nbsp; With that settled, I move closer to Cerberus, drawing him away from the others. Three massive heads follow my every move. I remember what Mamma told me, about the history behind our chimera gene.
If she was right, his lineage and mine are from the same god. Only, he’s the original monster, whereas my particular gift has been watered down through thousands of generations. Does that make us related, in a way? Possibilmente.
Except he’s older, has had more practice, and doesn’t need to fear me. Whereas I’m...a rookie. One who can’t even fully morph into the monster form because I’ve been fighting it far too long.
Clenching and unclenching my fists, I say, “I know what Charon thinks, but I never intended to steal anything. My father pushed me into this. Surely you know something of that?”
One head tilts to the side, and the other snaps at it. The middle one’s gaze never wavers from mine, and I feel like a small insect under a microscope. That thing is enormous. Not even my wolf will stand against it... But I have to try.
When Cerberus says nothing, does nothing, I sigh and morph. My wolf form takes over, and I dig into my ability to enhance my size, becoming as large as I can – roughly still a few heads smaller than Cerberus. Then I tap into Finn’s ability of sensing moods, hoping Dominic’s vârcolac strength can help me out.
What’s confusing is the scents around the heads. The middle one is assessing me, the other two are eager – for my blood? Suffering? Death? It could be either or.
I don’t get a warning. One moment they’re watching me or fighting with each other, the next Cerberus moves. And for a massive dog, he’s too fucking fast and barrels into me like a freight train.
Monica
“Lucas!” I take a step forward, but Lucrezia reaches for me.
“You can’t intervene,” she hisses. “First off, Lucas is an alpha. He can take care of himself. And second, you heard the terms.”
“Does it look like he can take care of himself right now?” I point in panic to Cerberus practically wiping the floor with him.
Lucas slams into the wall of the cavern, and drops heavily to the ground. It trembles with his weight. Then he pulls himself up, shakes his massive head, and goes back at it. It’s like watching a train wreck happening and being unable to stop it.
“We have to do something!”
Dominic snaps his fingers. “No! Focus, Monica. What did Lucas say about the marigolds? We have to find them, then we can get out of here without you using any magic.”
It’s almost painful, tearing my eyes from Lucas to look around, but I force myself to. There are no damn marigolds anywhere! And then... I notice Charon’s positioning. By all intents, he shouldn’t be standing where he is, as he’s smack in the path of their fight. And yet he makes no move to get out of the way, almost as if he’s covering something.
I’m done wasting time. Instead of trying politeness, I straight up march to him and shove him. Underneath his foot, crushed but still alive, is the tiniest marigold. I bend down and pick it up, then glance behind him. What I thought was a shadow in the wall is actually a narrow opening, more than likely leading to the outside. And at its foot, hidden under a boulder, is another marigold.
The marigolds lead the way, Lucas had said, or something to that effect. Well, that answers that.
I turn to Dominic and wave the flower. “I hav –” Something hard lands a blow on my back, and I fall to my knees. Pain zings in my ears, down my back, a throbbing that feels like it’s splitting me, but I don’t let go of my prize.
I do, however, manage to angle my head despite the pain and glance behind. Charon is standing over me with his staff, fuming. “You could not leave it be, could you?”
Lucas’ roar echoes, covering the rest of his words. My gaze is drawn to him, and across the distance I see him pinned under one of Cerberus’ paws. But his roar wasn’t for himself – it was for me. I can read the rage in his eyes even from afar, and I feel that pull again. To help him. Is that what he feels, is that what enrages him so?
Movement out of the corner of my eye draws my attention back to Charon. The staff is poised my way now, and I remember its deadly power from before. The bottom of it vibrates, and the energy slowly moves up. I’m frozen, staring at him, and praying to the Goddess I don’t get blasted to ashes.
“Monica, duck!” Lucrezia yells, and I don’t think.
On instinct, I roll over and grab a handful of sand, tossing it towards Charon. I propel my body away from him, even as a shot of lightning runs over me and smacks him in the chest, tossing him a few feet away.
I scramble back towards Dom and Luz, panting and clutching the marigold. “Thanks for that.”
“Don’t mention it,” she says, frowning over my shoulder. “What the hell was that about? Are you okay?”
When I try to stand properly, I waver forward, almost falling flat on my face. “Don’t think so. He hit hard, but I’ll deal with that later.” I open my palm, showing them the flower. “I found the marigold. It was under Charon’s foot.”
“That guy is really starting to get on my nerves,” Dominic growls.
“You and me both.”
“Did you see the rest?” Luz asks.
“Yeah, there’s a path that leads over there. See that big thing that looks like a shadow? It’s actually a fissure in the wall, big enough for a person to pass through, or a group, but one at a time. There’s a marigold at the bottom of that spot.”
“Fuck!” Dominic yells and he sprints across the shore. It takes me a moment to realize why, and for my vision to focus.
But then I notice Charon getting up, and his staff rising in the air. Only it’s not aimed towards us, it’s aimed towards the exit. Dominic tackles him into the wall of the cavern and they wrestle for the staff, whose energy shoots upwards. Luckily, none of the cavern bits that fall from the top damage our only exit out.
For a moment, it seems like we have the upper hand. Dominic even has Charon by the throat. “There’s no way a ferryman can withstand a vârcolac’s strength, right?” I ask Luz.
She nods, but her frown tells another story. “True, but I don’t know why he’s hesitating.” Then her expression goes ashen, and she turns towards Lucas. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“What?”
“Come with me!” She yells and as we run over, she adds, “Hades told Lucas that if a life or anything of his is taken from the Underworld, one of us will pay in return.”
“Merda!” We quicken our step, and reach Dominic in time to pull him off Charon.
While Luz explains to him in whispers about Lucas, I keep an eye on the ferryman. Already, I know this won’t go well. He’s got us at a disadvantage, and Lucas can’t help us out. The sounds of the fight echo in the cavern louder than I care for.
Then Lucas whines – and I lose my focus, turning towards him. One of Cerberus’ heads has bitten into his flank, and he pulls away with a large chunk of skin and muscle. Lucas drags himself away, but it’s clear he’s massively injured judging by the blood staining the shore.
Bile rises up my throat, and then Charon moves again. I turn to him and punch him, but it doesn’t do much other than daze and piss him off. As he stumbles away, Luz waves me over.
“Charon won’t stay down, and we need to make sure we can get out of here. Help me secure the exit, and we’ll stay and guard it.”
While keeping Charon in our sights, we start backing away towards the fissure in the wall. About halfway there, I chance a look across – and find one of Cerberus’ heads focuses on us. Then the other turns, too. And the third. Like a nightmare on wheels, he starts running in our direction.
But Lucas isn’t done yet. Somehow, even while bleeding heavily, he gets up and grabs hold of Cerberus’ tail, pulling on it. The various wolf gifts in him must be helping, because he seems to actually drag the massive dog backwards.
We scramble faster to the wall and Luz draws a rune in the air, while I quickly grab my pentagram necklace and use the marigold j
uice to draw a protective shield into the ground. I’ve only ever done it once, with a different flower as a child, but I’m hoping it works.
The charm in my hand warms, hinting at the magic, and I breathe a sigh of relief. With Dominic behind us, and Luz’ magic as well as mine, we bought some time. Enough that when Charon tries to hit us again, his attack reverberates off my faint defense.
Yet Lucrezia’s magic won’t hold for long, and mine will fade with every attack. “We won’t last long,” I mutter.
“We can do this,” she retorts. “Dom, how’s your wound?”
“I’ll survive,” he hisses, leaning against the wall. He’s holding onto his bleeding flank, jaw clenched in pain. “Just let me know when it’s time to rip his throat out.”
“Let’s hope it won’t come to that.” But it will. If I don’t do something, we’ll have no choice but to get back into the fray with Charon, and I can’t have that. If Lucas is out there fighting for all of us to get out alive, then I can damn well do the same.
So I do the only thing I can – I shift to wolf form and lunge at Charon, or rather, his staff. If nothing else, it’ll give him less power and more of a survival chance for Luz and Dom.
The moment it’s out of his grip, I’m aware of a pain in my flank. Blood seeps everywhere, but I don’t let go as I keep moving. A deafening roar fills the cavern, and I search out Lucas, fearing he’ll have lost the fight.
No... he didn’t.
Matter of fact, what I’m seeing is him enveloped in a reddish light, then the wolf form I’m so used to shifts, enlarges. The head becomes that of a lion, and a dark, red mane emerges from the fur like cascading water. Its fiery hue burns bright, even this far away.
The sharp muzzle of a wolf expands into the glorious jaws of the king of the jungle, its massive canines glinting in the darkness of the cavern. The fluffy tail swings once, twice, and on the third move it becomes slick and scaly, with the head of a brown snake at the tip. It hisses, and its blood-red eyes meet mine over the distance, causing a tremor to run through me.
Last to Love Page 21
