by Eve Vaughn
“That makes the most sense. I’m sorry you had to find out about your father like this.”
Sarah shrugged. “Well, it isn’t as big a shock as finding out that I’m not completely human. But then again, since my father was a hunter, I guess I’m not human at all.”
“It’s true that hunters are basically bound warlocks and witches which basically renders them human. And it’s quite possible your father was the offspring of a bound couple which basically would make him human in most senses of the world except his ability to wield dark magic without a demon attachment.”
“None of this makes sense to me.”
“You’ve met my friend Dante Grimaldi. Remember him?”
Sarah nodded. “Of course. He helped me when Constantine first brought me your home.”
Paris then relayed the story of how he along with the Grimaldi Family and a number of members from the Underground had faced off with a witch who had been practicing dark magic for centuries. But using the dark arts came at a price. This witch was not born an immortal, nor descended from them so a demon had attached itself to her. When that magic became too overwhelming for her to control, the demon broke free.”
“Oh, my Gosh. That sounds scary.”
“It took a bunch of us to take that thing down but we did.”
“You said there’s a price for wielding the dark arts. What’s the price to bound warlocks and their descendants who use it?”
“Madness. It’s a slow process but it eventually seeps into every pour of one’s being. I would imagine that as long as Gage has been around he’s probably already to that point which makes him extremely dangerous.”
“Well, from the sound of it, he’s already extremely dangerous. Look, I know you need answers but this is all a lot for me to process so I think the person you should be asking these questions of is Nina. I’m going back to my house.”
Paris wanted to grill her some more but he realized he was being a little too zealous. Besides, this new information provided was something worth looking into.
“Sure. I’ll see you later.” He inclined his head forward to dismiss her.
Sarah stood up headed out the room but she turned back around and walked toward him. Paris found himself engulfed in her hug. “We’ll find her. I know we will,” she whispered before giving him a kiss on the cheek and pulling away from him.
Once he was alone in his office again, Paris mulled over her words. Sarah’s last statement exposed him. It was true that it was imperative for them to neutralize the threat of Gage. But the truth of the matter was, he needed to find Anisa. Ever since he found out there was a possibility that she was still alive bringing her back to him had become an obsession. He turned to the painting on the wall that depicted Anisa in her wolf form. “I will find you,” he whispered.
Chapter Eight
Gage thumbed through his book of records, as he waited on word from his men on the task he’d sent them out on. His Pet had been gone long enough for some damage to have occurred. There was a reason he’d let her go. He smirked when he thought how the Kyriakis Alpha must have thought they’d scored some victory by rescuing that mangy mutt when in fact that would be their downfall.
A knock on his study door brought him out of his silent musings. “Enter,” he commanded.
Lars, one of the higher ranking members of his organization entered the room. “Master, we have eyes on every dock within a hundred mile radius of Circe. We’re keeping an eye out for all the Kyriakis who leaves the island.”
Gage narrowed his eyes. “That is what you interrupted me for? I’m sure you wouldn’t waste my time with information I already know.”
“Of course not, Master.” Lars bowed his head respectfully. “A member of pack Kyriakis has recently come to the mainland. There’s something different about her. I sense that she’s not like the others. Perhaps some magic in her blood. She might be of some use to us to recharge our powers for a while.”
Gage stroked his chin. “Was she alone?”
“As far as we could tell. She apparently has a home in Crete and it appears she may be staying there for a while.”
“Does she show the beginning stages of Malum?”
“Not that I can tell.”
“Fuck,” Gage cursed under his breath. Pet had been with the Kyriakis long enough for the spell to activate. There could be only one explanation why it hadn’t. The Kyriakis must have figured out the half-breed’s powers. He gnashed his teeth in frustration and slammed his fist into the arm of the chair he occupied.
Lars cocked his head to the side. “What is it, Master?”
“The half-breed must have figured out her powers.”
Lars frowned. “You were already made aware of that.”
Gage stiffened before he caught the meaning of what his lieutenant had just said. “What have I already been made aware of?”
“The half-breed’s powers have obviously been activated. I personally informed you that Persephone Kyriakis and Eric Magnussen left Circe shortly after delivering Pet to the Alpha. Persephone was in her two-legged form. She’s been cured.”
Gage flew across the room before Lars had a chance to get another word out. He grabbed the other hunter by the throat and lifted him in the air. “Care to walk that back? How dare you lie to me?”
Lars clawed at Gage’s hand as he struggled to breathe but Gage refused to let up, squeezing tighter.”
“I personally delivered the news myself. You shattered this room. No one would come near you for days. Look around you. Most of the furniture has yet to be repaired,” Lars managed to wheeze out.
Gage took a good look around the room and sure enough most of the furniture that had decorated this room was missing in disarray. Why hadn’t he noticed this before? He released the other hunter from his grip.
Lars fell to the floor breathing hard.
It was happening again. He was losing pockets of his memory. His forgetfulness had never been an issue for him before because it was usually something as simple as misplacing an item. But now he was forgetting conversations, important ones. He had a spell to tell if someone was lying to him so Lars was fully aware that if he wasn’t telling the truth Gage could easily find out and the consequences would be great.
He turned his back to the wheezing man not wanting to show weakness. “Gut one of those mutts in the dungeon. I need more essence. And make it quick.”
“Yes, my Lord. But there’s something else that may be of interest to you.”
“What?”
“There may have been a sighting of the seraphim. We don’t have much to go on yet but I thought you would want to hear that.”
Gage nodded without turning around. “Leave me.”
Only when the door closed, indicating that Lars had left him Gage released the breath he’d been holding. He allowed his shoulders to sag and he fell into his armchair.
The news of the seraphim’s sighting couldn’t have come at a better time, especially with the way chunks of his memory seemed to disappear. As a hunter, they received their powers through the essence of other immortals. It was why they hunted shifters. They were easier to take down…at least the younger ones were. But ever since the advent of an organization called The Underground, hunting had become a difficult endeavor. Gage had to rely on the reserve shifters he kept around to tap into their energy and that reserve was running low. If they found the seraphim he’d have an unlimited supply power. No more memory gaps.
Gage’s thoughts transferred to the half-breed. Now that she had discovered her powers there was no telling what else the Kyriakis knew. She might have been able to heal Pet but it was only temporary.
A smile touched his lips as he thought about the look on the Kyriakis Alpha’s face when it all exploded in his face. Gage leaned back in his chair as he formulated a plan. That shifter Lars had mentioned may come in handy after all. He just needed to bide his. The Kyriakis had no idea what they were in store for.
<><><>
A
ries had told Nina that he would come for her today but he found himself taking a trip to the mainland after receiving a call from Calliope. She’d told him that she had something important she wanted to tell him. He’d asked her why she couldn’t tell him over the phone but she was persistent that he visit her house. She’d told him that she had some important information about the ‘all black’.
It was only half an hour boat trip to the mainland and another half an hour drive to Calliopes house, so he figured he would be back on Circe by nightfall.
Calliope’s family had a home in the city with its own private beach. Why she had decided to take a trip out here was beyond his comprehension but he figured she had her reasons.
When he pulled up to her gated driveway, he hit the buzzer to let her know that he had arrived but there was no answer, so he used the code she’d given him when he’d visited previously. As soon as he parked his vehicle, Aries realized something wasn’t right. Cautiously he approached the house and as he drew closer, he heard what sounded like some kind of struggle.
He raced to the house as fear gripped his chest because he could sense another presence other than Calliope. She was clearly in trouble. The sight he stumbled on when he found her sent his blood boiling.
Calliope lay in her wolf form bloodied and battered. Two of her legs were clearly broken and she panted for air. A body lay in the corner with its throat torn out and it was clear Calliope had put up a fight and managed to take one down before the other two had gotten to her. Two men who he assumed were hunters stood over the she-wolf, chanting something. They seemed to be so deep in working their spell that they hadn’t noticed him. But Calliope did. Her gaze collided with his and she whimpered.
Not having the time to fully transform and maintain the element of surprise, Aries shifted his hands and mouth so that his claws and teeth protruded to sharp points. Without further hesitation, he pounced on the closest hunter, gripped his hair and bit the unsuspecting man in the throat, ripping out a chunk. Aries’s foe didn’t get a chance to scream before he ripped the man’s head clean off. By the time the body hit the floor, the remaining hunter became aware of what was happening and sent a bolt of light toward Aries.
Having been on the receiving end of a warlock’s wrath before Aries was prepared and ducked as the bolt of lightning flew over his head. Before the hunter could get another attack off, Aries tackled him and sliced his face with his claws.
“Get off me you, mutt!” the hunter screamed. He grabbed Aries’s shoulder and something that felt like pure electricity ripped through Aries’s body.
He fell away from the hunter but he managed to wobble to his feet but was immediately kicked in the ribs. The hunter delivered another blow to Aries' stomach knocking the breath out of him.
When the hunter reared his foot back to kick him again, Aries managed to roll away. He was certain that last kick had broken one of his ribs and he needed to shift in order to speed up the healing process.
Aries jumped to his feet ignoring the pain coursing through his system. The hunter sent what appeared to be pure lightning in his direction and though Aries tried to get out of the way, it still caught him in the shoulder. This hunter was stronger than ones he’d dealt with previously. Usually, he could take a couple out without breaking a sweat but this one was stronger and more powerful. The hunter held his hands and sent a continuous stream of electricity into Aries, rendering him immobile.
“You’re weak, Kyriakis,” the hunter taunted. “Did you think you could just come in here and take us down so easily? Your entire pack is doomed and you don’t even realize it. All you had to do was hand over the half-breed. Now you only have yourself to blame for what’s about to happen. By harboring the all black, you’ve brought darkness to your pack. The half breed’s powers can only hold off the darkness but for long. It’s only a matter of time before everything goes black and it will be no more than you all deserve. Filthy beasts!”
Aries gritted his teeth trying to fight this hold the hunter had on him but he could barely move his arms. He managed to get to his feet but this only caused his opponent to laugh.
“You can’t stop me. You’re ahhh—”
The man screamed out in agony as a still injured Calliope bit into his back. The brief reprieve gave Aries enough time to fully shift. His clothing ripped apart and fell at his feet as his body expanded. Once he was in his wolf form, Aries jumped in the hunter’s direction, teeth bared. He clawed the hunter’s throat while Calliope worked in the back.
The hunter who had been certain of his triumph only seconds earlier screamed in agony as the two wolves worked in tandem to take him down. Aries could have ended his life quickly but he wanted it to hurt because he’d dared to attack a member of Pack Kyriakis.
Enough! He ordered Calliope through a mind link.
She whimpered but felt back, limping off. She was clearly still hurt. Her injuring were too extensive for her to have healed that quickly but she was a fighter and Aries admired that about her.
Aries knocked the hunter off his feet and placed his paws on the dying man’s chest. What do you mean by holding the darkness off? Aries demanded, projecting his thoughts into the hunter’s mind.
The hunter laughed but that caused him to cough up blood.
“You’ll see,” whispered with a smirk as the life slowly drained from his eyes.
In a move of pure frustration, Aries sliced the hunter’s throat to the bone, finishing the job.
Chapter Nine
With the three hunters taken care of, Aries left the room to scout the perimeter to make sure there were no other surprises lurking to take him or Calliope by surprise. Once he was certain there were no other hunters, Aries rejoined his friend who was in the same position he’d left her in. It appeared as if her legs had mended but there were still patches of her fur missing. He walked over to her and slid his tongue along her wounds to speed up the healing.
After several moments, she shifted to her human form. Once he was certain that Calliope was okay, Aries followed suit.
“How about we shower and dress and you can tell me what was going on here.”
Calliope didn’t look him in the eyes for some reason but she nodded. “I’ll lay some clothes out for you since the ones you were wearing are no longer of use. I kept some outfits for you in case you came to visit.”
Aries nodded but didn’t question why she would keep clothing for him at her house. He’d visited Calliope several times over the years and usually, it was strictly for sex. He had never stayed overnight, however. But he decided not to question her motives right now while he was still covered in the blood of his enemy.
Since he’d been to this house before, Calliope didn’t need to show him to the guest bathroom. The spray of the hot water came as a relief to his still aching muscles. He’d exerted more energy than usual to fight off that last hunter. The last time he remembered fighting a hunter that powerful was when he and his cousin Constantine had stumbled on a few hunters trying to capture Sarah.
Their bodies were stronger and could take more abuse. And their offensive attacks were more devastating. The only conclusion he could come to was that the man had been one of Gage’s higher-ups. But what did they want with Calliope and why did she leave the island in the first place when she knew of the dangers of going off on her own. She was one of the packs most trusted fighters and she knew better than this.
By the time he finished his shower, Aries had a number of questions he needed answers to. As she’d said, Calliope had laid some clothes out for her him and they fit perfectly. Judging from the scent and the way they felt against his skin, they’d never been worn before.
He found Calliope in her dining room freshly cleaned. There were was also a plate of food waiting for him. “I thought you might be hungry. I know I am after a battle.”
Aries looked at the steak on his plate and he had to admit it did look delicious. And it was rare, just as he liked it. But as tempting as the meal before him was, h
e wanted answers first.
“Calliope, who were those men?”
Her head was bowed slightly as she answered. “They were hunters. They were trying to take me with them but I put up a fight.”
Once again he noticed that’s he wouldn’t look him in the eye but that wasn’t the most important matter…yet.”
“What happened exactly?”
“I needed to get off the island so I came here to do some thinking. Unfortunately for me, three hunters appeared in my home. It’s my fault really because it’s not warded to keep out spells. I meant to have it done but I never got around to it. But I didn’t think it was so important.”
“It’s not like you to be so careless, Calliope. What were you thinking to leave the island the way you did? Especially when you know Gage is on the warpath. I’m surprised my Uncle granted you permission to leave the island in the first place.”
“It wasn’t very hard to get his authorization. I told him I wouldn’t be alone and I would return in a week.”
“So you lied to your Alpha?”
“There you go playing the Beta again. Look, I messed up and I paid the price.”
“It’s not like you to be so careless.”
“I just had a lot on my mind.” She cut off a large chunk of her steak and stuff it in her mouth. Aries suspected it was a tactic so that she wouldn’t have to answer him immediately. But he could be patient when the situation called for it and Aries suspected this was one of those times.
“Calliope, do you know why those men attacked you?” he asked when she finished chewing.
“I suppose it’s because they somehow know that I get these premonitions. We both know that hunters value rare shifters above all others to give them their powers. While I’m not as special as an all-black, I guess they figured they could use me.”
