The impact staggered her. Power met and merged, so much of it she couldn't possibly remain the conduit for it for long without being consumed.
“I embrace my shadow,” Sybil whispered or shouted. She couldn't hear anything over the roaring in her ears. “Good and bad, I own what I am.”
In answer, a column of energy ate her.
“Sybil. Sybil. Witch, answer.”
Two leathery hands gripped hers. The sensation was both exotic and familiar.
“Abaran?”
“You know me. You live.”
The relief in his voice made her summon the strength to open her eyes. “We can't die, remember?”
“Under ordinary circumstances, no” the demon agreed He looked haggard and tense. “You encountered the full manifestation of your shadow and merged with it.
Even I didn't dare try that.”
“Merged?” She licked her lips. “Does that mean I won?”
“It means you lived to tell the tale, and you won our freedom.” He lowered his forehead to rest it against hers. “You aged me a thousand years in the process.”
“I've always liked older men.” She almost smiled but caution killed the response.
“How do I know we're really out this time? This could be another mind trick.”
“You are a creature of both realms. Judge for yourself.”
Sybil sat up slowly and looked around. There was the gate; she felt its distinctive energy signature. There was the place she'd slid from Kadar's back; she felt the trace of him that remained where he’d touched the earth. The web of worry lines on Abaran’s face didn’t strike her as things of illusion. The signs of his sojurn in the shadow realms altered his appearance subtly. In their earlier shared illusion, he'd looked exactly the same as he had before.
“You look like I feel,” Sybil said, raising a hand to cup his cheek. “That seems more realistic than the two of us defeating an army of demons and then feeling good enough to get it on.”
“You wound me,” Abaran said but with too much relief to put much conviction into his protest. “I only need to see you to be inspired to new heights of sexual excess.”
She let out a short laugh. Then she turned her attention back, to the gate. “It's the same, but different. Is it closed?”
“I'm not sure what you did to it, to be honest.” The demon sat back and studied her, his face unreadable. “You grabbed your shadow self, and then took both the gate and me. For lack of a better description, I'd say you possessed us.”
“I don’t remember.” She remembered wanting out, and taking a desperate gamble that would either save them or turn out to be a really, really bad idea. “If it worked, though, we can call it a success. Then we just need to close that thing.”
“Be my guest.” He waved an inviting hand toward the topic of discussion.
Sybil loosed magic, shaped it to her will, and probed the gate. It wasn’t just shut, it was sealed. “Huh. Why do I get the feeling I could do the demonic 'open sesame' chant again and it wouldn't open this time?”
“I implore you not to try.”
His dry tone made her smile. Then she frowned in concentration, tracing the gate with power and intent, feeling the change in it. It was sealed. She rose and moved closer to it, testing She tried to probe beyond the barrier with a cautious toe, then her hand. It remained impenetrable.
“I can't pass through.” Sybil said, turning to look at Abaran over her shoulder. “You try.”
When it failed to allow Abaran to pass, she let her knees sag in relief. “Well, that's done.”
“So are you, I think,” He slid an arm around her waist and pulled her against his side, offering support. She took it gladly, absorbing the welcome physical proof of his presence at the same time. He felt warm and solid and safe. She could have collapsed in relief for those things alone. Their escape from the shadow realms and the safely sealed gate were almost too much to take in.
“The mighty heroes return victorious,” she sighed. “Can we go home now?”
“In a moment.” He tucked her more securely against his side and rubbed his cheek against the top of her head. “Do you remember who we met after our shadow victory, and what happened?”
“It’s not the kind of thing I could forget.” Sybil shivered. “Kenric blasted me.
Accused me of conspiring with the witches to turn you over to them.”
“I think his shadow delivered a message to us.”
“Hell.” She felt a chill creep through her. “I didn't need him to tell me they're up to something. But what would they want with you?”
'The same thing they want with you. Power they hope to take and twist to their own ends.”
But the coven didn't want a demon, they wanted the lost book. Didn't they? “If they want to turn the world into chaos, I don't see how getting their hands on you would help.”
“Then you don't realize what I am yet?”
The question made her suck in a breath as she saw it. “Oh. The last of your kind.
You're the last chaos demon.”
It made sense. They resonated magically because the power she'd unwittingly absorbed had the same base as his.
“I don’t understand,” she said, pulling away to look into his face. “Kenric said your kind fought on his side. Why, if you were thee ones who made the damn book?”
His dark eyes met hers. “Chaos needs order. Balance. The book was never meant to leave the shadow realms. The lost word was meant to stay hidden. We sealed it away so it would remain forever unspoken.”
“But the rest of the demons wanted to destroy what was on the other side of the gate,” Sybil said slowly. “Or maybe they thought they'd create a new order. One that put them on top. So they conspired with the witches.”
She didn't have to ask why. Hunger, an eternal gnawing appetite for more. The visceral memory of that hungry place would remain with her no matter how many centuries she lived beyond this day.
“They nearly succeeded.”
“Twice,” Sybil agreed. “Let's not go for three.” The coven had to be stopped.
Abaran had to be kept far from their reach. And she was the one they wanted.
She knew what she had to do. She drew on the mark they both shared and the demon power they both, carried and slowly, surely, recited the words that sent him away. Then she pointed a finger at the ground, carved symbols in the earth with raw power shaped according to her desire, and stepped into them.
“What do you mean, you lost her?” Fury blossomed in Kenric's midsection as he spoke. His voice was taut with that emotion, each word spoken as if bitten off.
Abaran's jaw unclenched enough to let him answer. “She was too fast. I didn't guess what she would do until she had me locked in a sending spell.”
Kenric rounded on the dragon. “You sent her after him alone.”
A bronze shoulder shrugged indolently. “I could hardly follow past the point his trail led. Of all of us, only she could.”
“Of course she could. She's chock full of the accumulated power of an entire race of demons. That doesn't explain why you thought it was a good idea to send her on a rescue mission, with practically no training or experience. It's a miracle they aren’t both still trapped there.”
A pointed tail flicked in a sign of irritation. “She's clever and she has good instincts.”
Kenric turned back to the demon. “Let us recap the order of events. The dragon, in his wisdom, sent Sybil to drag you back to this side of the gate and close it. She managed, against all reason, to do this. And then a skinny little slip of an apprentice witch boxed you up and shipped you home while she headed straight into a trap. Have I got that right?”
Abaran's teeth grated audibly. “Yes.”
“You realize they have what they want now. What they've wanted from the beginning.” Kenric’s voice took on a, growling, lupine timbre as he spoke.
I wouldn’t be so sure they have the book,” Kadar said. “Our little witch has a formidabl
e will.”
“Formidable.” Kenric wanted to rend something. “She can't defend herself against an organized assault from a united coven trained in magical arts. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't keep what they want from them.”
“Even if she wanted to?” It was Adrian who repeated the phrase and made a question of it. “Whose side do you believe she's on? She was a victim of the book, not a willing sacrifice to it. She prayed to the goddess for aid, and accepted the form that took. She accepted us. She accepted the mark. She risked herself to retrieve one of our number from beyond our reach, Then she sent him beyond the reach of his enemies.
Why do you still doubt her loyalty?”
“I doubt her loyalty, her sense, and her sanity.” Kenric snapped. “She just handed over everything that coven has conspired to gain.”
“She's Strong enough to withstand their attacks,” Abaran said.
“Then why do you look worried?” Kenric countered.
The demon's wings unfurled. “She's alone.”
Abaran's words made Kenric's veins freeze us he realized that under the heat of anger was cold, cold fear. She was so fragile. She could be so easily hurt, while he was too far away to help.
“Not for long.” Wolf, dragon, sidhe, and vampire spoke in unison.
Twenty
If the set of Macbeth collided with Donald Trump's boardroom, Sybil thought it would look something like the scene before her. Eleven women who looked more like executives than crones gathered around a cauldron, in a room with sober paneling that could’ve been installed in any office. The lack of windows made the room feel oppressively close. Black candles occupied strategic positions and emitted an oily smoke that tainted the air. The arcane symbols covering the parquet floor made her skin crawl. It was a weird mix of everyday and otherworldly.
She'd grown up dropping in and out of this house with complete freedom, always welcomed. She’d never seen this part of it before. It was a little like going into a neighbor's house you thought you knew as well as your own and discovering the hidden room with evidence of bizarre sexual rituals, violent crimes, or both.
If she'd entertained any doubts that this coven was black, they were laid to rest now.
“What's for dinner?” Sybil asked, lounging in the doorway with deliberate nonchalance. “If it's eye of newt, I think I'd rather get take-out.”
“Hello, Sybil dear,” Maxine said. The smiling grandmotherly face didn't hide the avarice or cruelty that gleamed in her eyes. How had she missed that all this time? “You won't mind eating what's in the cauldron. Although it does have a powerful aftertaste”
“Sounds interesting.” Sybil channeled her inner shadow and pretended to consider the bubbling pot. “I take it you've not serving revenge. I hear that's best cold.”
Maxine laughed, a silvery sound that perfectly in her appearance and contrasted sharply with the lack of humor in her eyes. “Revenge is such a limited goal. We think in broader terms.”
“Much broader,” Ginny agreed, turning to nod at Sybil while she continued to stir the noisome concoction, “it's a night for dreams to take flight.”
“Or nightmares,” Sybil said. “You've been planning this for ages, haven’t you? To wipe out humanity and claim dominion over the human realm.”
“Long past time,” Ginny said as she ladled out a portion and inhaled the steam like a dedicated chef. “Needs more rat.”
“We're glad you've come to us. It makes things so much easier,” said Susan, a comfortably rounded woman in her forties.
“So much easier,” echoed Maxine. “I told you banishing and binding and demon would lead her here.”
“What's a demon got to do with it?” Sybil examined her nails, projecting boredom, making sure the fire that burned just under her skin remained invisible.
“You and demons share such a strong common interest now.” Maxine laughed her bell-like laugh again. “We felt the gate open. You can imagine; our delight when we found the spell's signature coming from your apartment. At last, you've fulfilled your ancestral destiny.” The woman positively beamed . “You're a living demon grimoire.”
“It's a shame you won't survive the process of removing it.” Ginny said. “You're going to miss all the excitement.”
“And the glory.” Susan's eyes shone with fanatical light. “We'll all be in our glory.”
Sybil resisted the urge to tell her that was probably spelled without an L. Instead, she tightened her control on the demon power that lay ready to erupt and extended her focus to the tattoo that pulsed against her skin. “Sounds fascinating. I'd hate to miss it. I mean, I've already missed so much growing up without a mother, for starters.”
“This is precisely why you don't deserve to have the book.” Maxine frowned at her, “You think small. You could he focusing on the big picture. Instead, you want your petty revenge and completely ignore the opportunity you have. You could have an army of demons at your command. You could rule on both sides of the gate.”
“I like to keep things manageable,” Sybil said. “Ruler of realms? Sounds like it would really suck, up my free time.”
“You lack vision. You also lack a certain necessary ruthlessness.”
“I wouldn't be too sure about that.” Sybil might be newly acquainted with her ruthless side, but already she could the potential benefit. Me and my shadow.
“I hate to say it, but you're, also a foolish girl.” Maxine’s grandmotherly frown of concern fell short of creating the proper impression. “You came right into our place of power. You're ours now.”
“You're wrong. I'm Inanna's and she really doesn't like what you're cooking.”
“Inanna? Old days, old gods, old powers.” Maxine walked toward her, “It's a time for new gods to be born. And time for you to die, dear.”
“I don't think so.” Sybil let flames sheath her and drew on the multi-pointed star.
The cauldron shattered and white heat burned away every trace of the potion. Tendrils of power imprisoned each coven member in a hold as invisible as it was unbreakable.
But she stopped there instead of increasing the pressure until it reached lethal force.
Killing didn't seem like the answer here, anymore than it had when she faced her shadow self.
Goddess, what do I do with them now?
Let them face their own shadows.
Perfect. Sybil reached inside herself, found the key to the sealed gate, opened it, and sent her captives through before sealing it again behind them.
She managed to make it outside the room full of wrongness before she collapsed.
She still had enough reserve to seal the chamber and drive the internal temperature up until it erupted in fire.
Then she rested on the floor and listened to the distant wail of sirens and wondered how long it would rake some nice paramedic to come and help her to her feet. Of course, it was probably a bad idea to let one find her at the scene of the crime, no mutter how nice he was. But getting up was beyond her. So was activating another spell. She'd never drawn on so much of her power in such a short span of time, and it nearly depleted her.
Fortunately, the dilemma was solved for her when a large black wolf appeared. The wolf became a man and then she was lifted up by a strong pair of arms.
“Just in time,” she murmured, curling into him. He hugged her hard and she felt him bury his face in her hair for a moment, as if breathing in her scent. She rested her cheek against his chest. She wanted to stay there forever, listening to the rhythmic thud of his heart, pretending it beat for her.
“Did we miss all the fun?” Kadar peered down at her oyer Kenric's shoulder, “Weren't there some wicked witches to deal with?”
“There were. But since they thought it was such a good idea to bind Abaran in the shadow realms, I thought they should see for themselves what that was like.”
Abaran's low laugh made her raise her head and turn toward the sound. “Are you all here?”
“One for all, and all for one.”
Kadar spoke for them.
Sybil took in the sight of Ronan and Adrian and felt something inside her unknot.
The guardians were a team and they'd moved as a team to join her. The five of them together still stole her breath. Each man gorgeous and formidable in his own distinctive way. As a group, the cumulative effect of male beauty, brawn, and unmistakable power packed a wallop. And they were all her lovers. That either made her one lucky witch, or one who was in way, way over her head.
It was Ronan whose words chilled her blood when he spoke, “Demons incoming.”
She felt Kenric's muscles bunch as he turned to assess the threat. The movement gave her a line of sight to the sky through the window. It was filled with dark-winged creatures.
“Won't people notice that?” Sybil imagined a rash of phone calls reporting the invasion to local news sources and a War of the Worlds—style hysteria spreading.
“No more than they see the wind. You can tell where it's been and see the results, but the force itself is invisible,” Kenric answered.
She struggled to slide from his hold. “Put me down. You'll need your hands free. If I can't be an asset in this fight, I can at least not be a liability.”
Kenric set her on her feet. “Return to Xanadu. Wait for us there.”
“No.” She might still be too spent to be much help, but if she could be any help at all, she needed to be present to give it.
His face hardened. “You said it yourself. You can at least not be a liability.” He touched the eight-pointed star on his chest. It glowed with power. She felt her own pulsate as if in answer. A heartbeat later, she was standing unsteadily in Kadar’s Lair.
“Dammit.” She sagged against a rock wall. Then she kicked it. The sharp pain that shot up her leg from the impact of her heel made her grimace.
Sent home to wait and twiddle her thumbs while they dealt with the remaining threat. That said volumes about what Kenric considered her strategic advantages; she had none.
Not knowing what was happening made her pace restlessly. Her exile chafed. If she was part of the team, shouldn't she be with them? After all, she didn't just have demon magic, she had Ianna's mark and the reinforcing strength of her shadow self.
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