Cult of the Hexad (Afterlife saga Book 6)

by Stephanie Hudson

  “Well thank you for trying to spare me any horrible thoughts Vincent but it’s actually nice to know in my past life that I had a backbone and could stand up for myself.” Sigurd, after picking up a piece of paper and pencil, walked back to the rug but on the way slapped Vincent on the back and said,

  “See, she’s fine. Happy even.” Vincent just scowled at him as he walked back to the rug. Then he started to draw the symbol out, no doubt ready for me to do the same.

  “So you were saying blood…are we talking pin prick here by any chance?” I asked being hopeful.

  “Not unless you also know how to piss blood on demand. You need enough of your blood to write the symbol with it.” Eww, even talking about this was making me queasy.

  “But the other one was carved into the stone.”

  “Yes but do you think you will find the time to whip out your hammer and chisel. What are you going to do, ask the bad guys politely to step outside and give you a minute, or a few weeks?”

  “Okay, good point. Blood it is…but does it have to be mine?” Vincent’s eyes widened before he raised an eyebrow at me.

  “I don’t mean like dragging some poor sap in there with me and using theirs! What I mean is couldn’t we just say, nip to a blood bank and borrow one, or steal…hey I am up for stealing if it gets the job done.” I said looking between them to find them both smirking.

  “Sorry Honey, that’s a no go. The symbol needs to be from the blood of the one doing the casting. Even the six Dicks would have had to have done the same, even after it had been carved.”

  “Right, well then, I’d better to remember to take a sharp kitchen knife and a first aid kit with me!”

  “We will be there as soon as the barrier is down.” Vincent told me gently.

  “Yeah buck up sweetness, we won’t let you bleed to death.” Sigurd said patting me on the back.

  “I knew there would be a bloody catch.” I said flopping down into a nearby chair utterly deflated.

  “Nice, I see what you did there.” Sigurd said winking at me for my ‘Bloody’ comment.

  “So we have our plan.” Vincent stated and even though the worry was still there you could see the difference in him from when I first walked in here. I suppose it’s the not knowing that is the worst part and considering what little we had to go on, then I would say we had come a long way since Vincent’s first vision into my memories. And from the look of things, he knew this too.

  “I think we do.” I said assuredly.

  “Then might I suggest we all get some rest, as I have a feeling we may need the extra energy come this time tomorrow.”

  “Yeah and the extra blood.” I said sarcastically, once again making Sigurd chuckle.

  “Ah come Lille øjesten, we wouldn’t let anything happen to you.” He said pulling me to his side like a big brother would show affection, which got me thinking about what he kept calling me.

  “Sigurd, why do you call me that and what does it mean?”

  “It means ‘little apple’ sweet cheeks and for my people and especially in my family, it is meant as an endearment to someone we care for.” I felt so touched by this that I didn’t really know what to say. I didn’t know what had gone on between us two in my past as it was one story Draven wasn’t willing to discuss but deep down I didn’t need to know. Because what I already knew in my heart was that I trusted him to my core and I knew that he cared deeply for me. He actually felt like a brother and now I knew that he felt the same way. So I smiled up at him and then gave him a hug around his waist before saying,

  “Thank you for telling me.”

  I said goodnight to them both and started walking back when Vincent caught up with me.

  “I think it’s best I walk you back.”

  “Oh that’s okay, I think I can manage.” I said thinking about my plan.

  “Then I think you should know you’re heading towards the kitchens.” He told me with a smirk and then turned me by the shoulders so I was facing the other way.

  “That way would be best.” He added making me blush.

  “Oh…uh, maybe you’re right, it probably would be a good idea to walk with me just to make sure I don’t end up in the dungeons or anything.” I joked and then inwardly shivered as I thought back to my dream of the prison.

  “My thoughts exactly as we don’t want a re-occurrence of last time.” At this I stopped walking.

  “Uh…come again?” Vincent stopped when he realised his mistake and by the time he turned to face me he still didn’t know how to recover from it. In the end I gave him a break by holding up my hand and saying,

  “You know what, I don’t want to know.”

  “A wise choice.” He said looking relieved. Then before we could go any further I grabbed his arm and said,

  “I will be right back.” Then I turned and ran back into the library, where it was my turn to be relieved to see the plum tree had gone. I smiled thinking how when Sigurd had left he had grabbed a plum from a branch and walked out taking a big bite out of it, saying goodnight with juice running down his chin.

  Well at least Vincent had been careful enough to cover our tracks as I don’t know how any of us would have explained a tree growing overnight in the middle of the beautiful parquet floor.

  I ran over to the right shelf after checking it out when waiting for Vincent to return with Sigurd in tow. Then I grabbed the version that looked the most interesting and tucked it under my arm before leaving to get back to Vincent. As soon as I came close he tilted his head and read the spine. He raised one eyebrow at me and I warned,

  “Don’t say a word.” Before continuing down the hallway back to Draven’s room with my head held high, a naughty grin on my face and with me my borrowed library book…

  The Kamasutra.

  Chapter 34

  Unexpected Guest

  The next day was tense, to say the least. And after not getting much sleep, which yes, was partly my fault considering what book I decided to take to bed with me, I was feeling it that morning. Although to be fair I didn’t know Draven was going to be awake sat at his desk waiting for me. Nor did I know that after thanking Vincent for walking me back he was going to be all sexy and demanding.

  I mean it was three in the morning, jeez, didn’t the guy sleep. When I asked him this he wouldn’t answer me until I had submitted and walked over to him, doing as I was told. Once I was within arm’s reach he grabbed me around the waist and swung me as he stood from his seat and sat me down on his desk. My bum crinkled the papers he had been working on but he didn’t seem to mind. He then separated my legs and stepped into me.

  “I have been forced to sleep too many nights in our bed alone and I refuse to add another to that painful number.” He said running his fingertips across my shoulder and neck in a tantalising way.

  “You must be tired then.” I assumed being cheeky.

  “Um, funny but I seem to have perked up all of a sudden.” He said pressing into me and he was right, he most certainly had.

  “Have you had fun reading, love?” He said picking up the book I had dropped on the desk beside us and as soon as he saw the front cover his eyes flickered purple in what looked like excitement.

  “Uh, well I brought that back with me, it wasn’t like I was reading it there or anything, cause that would have be weird, especially with your brother there as well, so…uh…no?” I said making him laugh because I’d got myself into an embarrassed state.

  “I adore it when you blush for me.” He said before bending his head to my neck and kissing and sucking and nipping at it in a way that made me moan aloud. God it felt so good.

  “I’m glad to hear it.” He said smiling against the sensitive skin he had been working on. I was left realising once again that I had said my thoughts out loud.

  “You know I don’t think I have ever received a love bite before.” This time he growled against my neck and I cried out a little louder when he held a mouthful by his teeth, letting me feel the pinch of pain. I
t was so strangely erotic being dominated this way and I felt my underwear get even damper from the act.

  “Trust me when I tell you that you have.” The gruff way in which he said this was enough for me to believe his words. But if that wasn’t enough we spent the next hour re-enacting not just the experience of a love bite but also some of the positions we found in the book.

  Hence why I was so tired and this mixed with my nervousness about tonight, well I think by ten in the morning I was ready for an adrenaline shot! The club was generally shut in the day, unless it was a weekend, so it was decided that we all meet in the main part of the club to go over our plans. This was also a very tense time considering that I felt like a complete betraying bitch as I knew full well that not only were their plans doomed to fail, I had also gone behind his back and made secret plans without him.

  I felt terrible but thankfully he took this side of me as someone that was tired and anxious about the safety of her sister. And don’t get me wrong, a lot of it was, it’s just that he didn’t know about the sneaky, soon to be winner of the worst girlfriend of the year award!

  There were points last night when he was inside of me that I wanted to scream about my deceit. Because what that man could do with his body or more importantly do to mine, was the most exquisite torture that as I was begging for him to stop, in my next breath I was telling him that if he did it felt as if I would die. At that point if he had suspected anything then all he would have had to have done was ask me once and I would have been singing like a damn canary! I would have signed sealed and delivered him my soul with a damn bow on it for the Devil if he’d asked in exchange for allowing me to come. That’s what the man did to me.

  “It’s okay love, you can sleep in the car.”

  “I thought we were going in a helicopter?” I asked and it came out in an unintentional whine that made him grin.

  “We are but first we have to drive into Portland where I have a few ready to go.”

  “What about the others?” I asked knowing we would need a convoy of them to fly us all out there.

  “I also have a plane fuelled and ready to go that will take the rest. We will all meet at the Hotel and wait for nightfall.” I nodded, knowing it made more sense to get us all there first and then they could plan accordingly if there were any unforeseen changes in circumstances. Well I knew right now they were going to find a big one, but obviously and stupidly, I might add, I kept my not so big mouth shut on the matter!

  I was just trying to count how many of us there were in total when all of a sudden the front doors burst open and the angry sound echoed to the high ceilings. Draven stepped in front of me before I knew what was happening and it was an act so quick and precise, that it seemed more like second nature to him.

  “WHERE IS SHE!?” A demonic voice boomed around the room and I instantly gripped onto Draven’s jacket. I looked around his large shoulders and gasped at what I saw. A man had raged through the doors with long determined strides, his long black jacket bellowing behind him as though power swirled all around his tall body. But it was his look of fury that had me trembling in fear. His skeletal features stood out like someone screaming nightmares in your face. Translucent bone flickered above the handsome face making it hard to pinpoint where the Demon ended and the man began. The two faces were so tightly fused they seemed to battle each other with little control.

  He wore tight black trousers that were ripped and full of what looked like paint splatters in varies shades of reds and greys. Big army boots that were unlaced matched the paint marks and underneath his jacket was a black vest that looked as if it had seen better days. I could tell instantly that this guy was an artist, and from the looks of it a broody one at that. He had that ‘I don’t give a shit what people think’ look and just wore what was to hand. Even his hair was haphazardly styled.

  But it was the black eyes and black on his nose that made him look like death walking the world and clearly from his entrance he did so in search of something. White eyes with their tiny dots at the centres scanned the room with little care that he was definitely outnumbered.

  He moved in a very predatory manner as if trying to sense if what he was looking for was in the room.

  “As I have told you before, we don’t know where Aurora is, so you can continue your hunt somewhere else Pure Blood.” Draven said sternly, standing like an impenetrable force in front of me.

  “My hunt for that traitorous bitch continues! But I am not here for her.” He informed us and I could see there were many in the room that didn’t appreciate his distasteful tone directed at their King.

  “Then who do you hope to find by barging through my doors?”

  “Mine!” He snarled back and I heard Draven sigh heavily as this must have meant something to him.

  “She is missing?” He asked.

  “She went in search of her and I want her back or I take yours from you!” He growled at me and this went down even worse with the rest of the group. Suddenly one of Jared’s men ran at him like a beast would do on all fours. He roared and just as he was about to change into his other form mid leap the skeleton man snatched out his hand. Without touching him the beast turned back into a man and was suspended in the air being choked by an invisible hand.

  Then another of the beasts let out a bloodcurdling growl and started to change before he too charged the man. The newcomer simply used his other hand to flip the beast over his head and again without touching him, threw his body into the far side of the room.

  I saw Lucius nod to a young punk lad that barely looked like a teenager. Then quicker than a heartbeat he pulled a blade from behind his back and threw it at the man. But without releasing Jared’s man he caught the knife that flew at him by the blade and spun round on one foot, throwing it right back at the boy. I gasped only to find the young lad had himself caught it again but the surprise was plain to see.

  This was the point Draven had clearly had his fill.

  “ENOUGH!” He roared and opened his arms so the intruder flew backwards into the bar, smashing bottles as he landed. The beast fell to his knees, grasping at his throat and the other one that had been flung across to the other side transformed back into a man.

  Draven nodded to Ragnar who was at his side and he took a step forward to stand guard over me whilst Draven dealt with the man. His long determined strides took him closer to the bar and this was the first sight of Draven’s true power I had witnessed.

  “You come into my home and dare to threaten me!” Draven warned in a dangerously furious voice. The man shook the glass off him as he made it to his feet. Then he jumped on the bar itself and spun round trying to land a kick at Draven’s head. But he was too fast for him and ducked, grabbing his foot at the same time. Then Draven used his momentum to spin himself and fling the man up and into the VIP area above us.

  “But worse still, YOU DARE TO THREATEN MY QUEEN!” Draven suddenly bellowed at the peak of his anger and his wings burst from him. His veins lit up with purple fire and for the second time I was to witness Draven in his demon form. Then he let his wings take him up so he was level with the mezzanine above and I turned to try and see what the man was doing.

  “Don’t do it Seth, man.” I heard Sigurd warn under his breath as he too looked up. Well at least I now had a name to go with the broken body that was sure to follow. Ragnar, fearful of what would happen, grabbed my hand, swallowing it up in his massive palm and he pulled me off to one side, which gave me the advantage to see what was going on better.

  I could now see that there was movement below the rubble and quickly what followed was the ground beneath us started to shake.

  “What the fuck?!” Jared asked from behind us before I could ask something similar. I had to grip on to Ragnar’s arm as I suddenly felt like I was on a ship in stormy seas.

  “What’s happening?” I asked gripping harder just to stay upright. No one answered me because no one knew.

  “Wait, what is that?” Someone else asked as m
y eyes flew first to Draven and then back to the VIP. Draven still hovered in the air with a better view of what was coming than anyone.

  “GET BACK!” Draven suddenly ordered as he must have seen what was happening and knew the destruction to come from it.

  “Oh God.” I uttered as first a hand burst through the mound of stone that Seth had crashed into. Then bone burst through the surface of the skin and started to get longer and longer, until it reached double the length of his normal arm. Then as ifit was reacting with the air, it started to turn into black stone like some kind of infection had taken hold and was feasting on the bone like bacteria multiplying.

  I jumped when I saw great branching fingers started to claw into the floor around him and drag the rest of him out. It was only when one giant stone skeletal arm was free that panic really started to set in. What if Draven couldn’t defeat him or what if he got hurt trying?

  “That ain’t no fucking Nephilim I have ever seen.” The big black guy named Orthrus said.

  “He is the Son of Sammael and combined blood of the first.” Another one whose name I didn’t know yet informed him.

  “Well that makes perfect fucking sense if you wanna spawn a walking disaster!” He commented back as the shaking ground got worse. The ceiling started to rain clouds of stone dust as cracks started to appear in the arches above.

  It didn’t take long before more of this Seth had dragged himself from the fallen stone and when he was finally free, I cried in horror,

  “Oh my God!” Seth was no longer a man but a skeletal beast with arm bones as thick as my legs. Just as he got up he arched backwards as the rest of the Demon burst from his chest and the last remaining flesh of a man was torn from him. His head had transformed into the giant skull of a demon with ridged horns that looked like they had been hacked at with a hatchet. Big grooves and chunks had been taken out of them and it left razor edges that looked like weapons in their own right.

  Draven seeing him getting ready to make his first move let massive swords come from the insides of his wrists and I could see the power firing around his arms as they were produced. I was so shocked to be seeing all this that I held my hands to my face now the floor had finally stopped shaking.