Darkness Seduced (Primal Heat Trilogy #2) (Order of the Blade)

by Stephanie Rowe

  “Human?” Quinn asked.

  “No. Something more specific. Like an object with great power.” She managed a wry smile. “Well, at least that’s good to know he’s not planning to sacrifice me.” There was a murmur in the room, and Lily looked around. “What?”

  Quinn answered. “Calydons are being murdered and their weapons are being harvested. If a Calydon weapon is ripped from the body at the moment of death, the weapon doesn’t disappear. We think Nate was collecting them for the ritual he was going to conduct to free Ezekiel from his prison.”

  “A ritual.” Lily sat down on the couch, barely noticing that Ian had to scramble out of the way to keep her from landing on him. She hummed under her breath as she traced the words, and Gideon could practically feel her mind turning over the possibilities. She looked up at Gideon. “You said that Ezekiel’s prison walls are weakening, right?”

  Gideon vaulted over the back of the couch to sit beside her, giving up trying to resist his need to be close to her. “Yeah. Does it mention him?”

  She leaned next to him, her shoulder resting against his as she pointed to a small design on the handle. He bent his head beside hers to get a closer look at it, feeling strangely content as she leaned her elbow on his thigh, unconsciously, he was sure.

  Her hair fell in the way and she shoved it aside impatiently, then pointed to a symbol that looked like three triangles superimposed over each other. “This is a symbol for strength, but it’s been broken. That could reference the weakening walls.”

  Anticipation pulsed inside Gideon. “So, this is it, then? The stone has our answers to what’s going on?”

  “Maybe…” Lily continued to chew her lip as she studied the handle. “I need my texts. I can’t remember what most of this means.” Her finger traced over a symbol. “This one here. This is important. It’s a location…” She faded off into silence as she studied the knife. “I need paper.”

  Anticipation hummed through the room as everyone scrambled for a pen and paper. It was Ryland who finally brought it from the kitchen. All the Order members tensed and readied to call their weapons when Ryland neared Lily, but all he did was set the paper and pen in her lap and walk away, shooting a scowl at everyone for not trusting him.

  Gideon knew it was only a matter of time until Ryland went rogue, especially now that Dante was dead. Dante had been the only thing keeping Ryland on the right edge of rogue, and now that he was gone, the Order had to be ready to take Ryland out when he finally crossed the line.

  But it wouldn’t be yet. Right now, Ryland was too committed to avenging his mentor’s death, and Gideon suspected that his goal would provide enough motivation to keep Ryland sane until he’d accomplished his mission.

  Lily set the paper on Gideon’s thigh and started to scratch notes, pausing every few minutes to inspect the knife again.

  “Can you figure out the location of the rite?” Quinn’s voice was brimming with anticipation. “If we can find where the rite is being performed we can stop it.”

  “Working on it,” Lily muttered. “It’s a map, but it’s so old that once I translate it, we’ll have to correlate the location to modern times. I need to go to my office and get my books.”

  Gideon rubbed her back as he spoke. “Do you think your office is still there?” he asked gently, not wanting to upset her. “You’ve been gone for two years.”

  “Of course it is. My parents would never have been able to let go of the hope I’d come back.” Her conviction was apparent. “My office will be exactly as I left it.”

  Kane stood up. “I’ll get them and bring them back. I’m fastest—”

  “No.” Lily was already shaking her head, and she still hadn’t looked up from the knife. She was utterly focused on what she was doing. “I have thousands of books. I need to go and sort through them.”

  Oh, yeah, Gideon didn’t like that suggestion. “Frank is probably waiting there for you.”

  She waved her hand dismissively, so caught up on her work that she didn’t even react to the reminder of Frank. “My office is unlisted because I got too many threatening phone calls about my work. About tangling with the Calydons. He wouldn’t be able to find it.”

  Gideon grinned and ruffled her still damp hair. Lily was a different woman when she was concentrating on her work. She simply shut everything else out. He could see now how she had survived all the hell she’d been through. She’d retreated into her mind and her work, into a world where she was powerful and in control. She’d found her place, and that gave her strength to rebuild whenever she revisited it.

  Uh, oh. Lily went rigid beside him, and Gideon was instantly on alert.

  His fingers stilled in her hair. What’s wrong?

  I just found out why the Order thinks they may need to kill me to stop Frank. And they might be right.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Gideon cursed silently, realizing the living room had fallen silent. Everyone was watching Lily intently. They’d picked up on her tension and knew she’d just learned something significant. Something she’d shared only with Gideon.

  “What did she find?” Quinn’s voice was soft…too soft. Dangerously soft, indicating that he knew full well that Lily didn’t want to share. “Lily. What did you find?”

  Lily didn’t look up, but Gideon caught the scent of her sudden wariness. “These are instructions on how to bring down the walls of Ezekiel’s prison.” Her voice was careful. Modulated. Not giving anything away. “What’s needed for the rite, where to do it, the words to say. That kind of thing.”

  Gideon felt the omission in her words and knew she wasn’t telling them everything.

  “And?” Quinn said.

  Gideon? If I tell them, they’ll kill me.

  He closed his eyes for a second at her words. It was as he’d feared. They’ll know if you lie.

  But will they kill me for lying?

  Not for lying, no. He studied the room, rapidly assessing the body language of his teammates. He felt their quiet intensity, their commitment to doing whatever it took to fulfill their oath of defending innocents, including the sacrifice of one to save many. Yeah, they’d do what it took. Gideon shifted closer to Lily, easing forward to the edge of the couch, readying himself for action. But they won’t hesitate if they figure out what you’re not telling them, which they will.

  Okay, then. Lily slipped her hand into his, then sat up. “The reason I can read this writing is because it’s written…” Her fingers dug into Gideon’s, and he flexed his arm, ready to call out his weapon. “It’s written in my language. Ancient, but the longer I look at it, the more I can understand.”

  “Your language?” Ryland had stopped pacing. “What are you talking about? What are you?”

  “Satinka.”

  Ryland cursed and the other men grew still. Gideon set his hand on Lily’s opposite thigh, using his arm as a shield between her and his team, making sure they knew where he stood.

  Lily pulled herself more upright. “From what I can gather so far, the walls of Ezekiel’s prison were originally created using Satinka magic, paired with a great Calydon warrior. The only way to bring them down is the same way: Satinka magic paired with a great Calydon warrior.”

  There was silence while the men absorbed that information and Gideon shifted so his upper body was in front of her. He reached out to Kane, who was leaning against the wall on the far side of the living room, his arms folded across his chest. They didn’t have a blood connection, but they could still talk across short distances. Kane? You feeling this?

  Kane looked at him. I can sense it. I know. They’re figuring that killing Lily will end the threat of Ezekiel getting out. A clean, easy, solution to protect thousands of innocents.

  What side are you on?

  Dante’s.

  Dante had rescued Kane from a sewage-filled back alley three hundred years ago. Kane had been covered in scars, with no memory of his life before that moment. He’d been strung out and violent, and only Dante’s c
ounsel had helped Kane manage his anger and his sense of loss at not knowing who he was or why he was scarred.

  Like Ryland, Kane had been heavily dependent on Dante and he was struggling with his mentor’s death even more than the rest of the Order was. So, it was no surprise that Kane’s only focus would be on revenge for Dante’s death. But how did that translate into their Order’s plans to kill Lily? Which means what?

  Still deciding.

  “So, Frank needs your magic to free Ezekiel?” Quinn asked, his voice deceptively casual.

  Gideon tightened his grip on Lily’s leg, watching Kane carefully. If Kane decided he was on Lily’s side, he could teleport them out of there instantly to a safe zone. If he didn’t decide to help them, there was going to be blood drawn, and Gideon did not want to go against his Order.

  He really didn’t.

  But he would.

  Kane’s eyes were at half-mast and he looked bored, but his body was coiled. If all hell broke loose, Kane was their only chance to get out alive, because Gideon couldn’t take down the whole Order at once and still protect Lily.

  “It means that any Satinka could bring them down,” Lily said, sliding ever so slightly toward Gideon, as if she could sense the rising threat in the air. “Not me specifically. Any of my kind.”

  Ryland had stopped pacing and was looking at her. “A Satinka hasn’t been spotted for hundreds of years. You’re the reason Frank and Nate started the process. Because they finally found you. Without you, he has no power.”

  “Without me, he will simply find another.” Lily’s voice was hard. Without fear, though Gideon could feel her pulse racing where he held her wrist. “You don’t know of any Satinkas, but had Ana not sent Gideon for me, you still wouldn’t know about me, either. We’re out there. Plenty of us, and Frank knows how to find us.”

  “How do we find you?” Ryland leaned forward. “Tell us how.”

  “You want me to tell you so you can wipe out the last members of my race? I wouldn’t do that to them.” She lifted her chin, anger flashing in her eyes. “If you kill me, it will just be a race between you and him with you trying to kill off every Satinka before he can kidnap one for the rite. It’s a race you’ll lose eventually. There are too many of us.”

  “She lies.” Ryland sat back. “I can smell it. She doesn’t know of any others. We kill her, and it’s over.”

  “No, it’s not.” Gideon stood up, pulling Lily to her feet and shoving her behind him. “As long as Frank’s still alive, it’s not over. Killing Lily may not even slow him down. We have no idea if he has other Satinka on tap. He doesn’t have to have Lily specifically, but we do. She can help us find the site of the rite, and she can draw Frank to us. She’s our weapon, not a liability.”

  Ryland eyed her. “It would slow him down. He’d have to find another.”

  “It would slow us down as well. Drew could be dying right now. Ezekiel’s walls could fall at any minute. Surely we’re strong enough to keep one woman alive, aren’t we?” Gideon threw out the challenge. “Since when do we fear one man so much that we slaughter an innocent rather than face him? Is this what the Order has become without Dante?”

  “Dante held us together,” Ryland snapped. “We aren’t as strong without him. We all realize that, and we know that we’re fucked if Ezekiel gets out. It’s our job to kill one innocent if that will keep Ezekiel locked up! For hell’s sake, if Grace hadn’t been there to rescue us, we would have all been slaughtered a week ago by Frank’s army of Calydons. We’re alive because a woman saved us from a few Calydons, and you think we can protect Lily against more of Frank’s army? Fuck that. There was a day when we could, but not now. Not without Dante.”

  “Grace is not just an ordinary woman—” Thano started.

  “No. She’s not. Which is why we’re alive,” Ryland snapped. “But when has the Order ever needed anyone to save them? Ever? It’s never happened before, has it?”

  He looked around the room, but no one had a rebuttal.

  “What if Frank sends thousands of Calydons down on this house like Ezekiel did two thousand years ago before he was locked up? What then? We’re fucked!” Ryland called out both machetes, and instantly every other warrior in the room had his weapons out, the cracks booming through the air. The room hummed with tension and violence. “And yeah, we wouldn’t be able to protect a single woman in that situation. If you weren’t so fucked up by her, Gideon, you’d realize it too. Just the fact you’re standing there, telling us not to kill an innocent to save the world from the worst evil it has ever known, should tell us all exactly how screwed we all are. You’re our true leader, Gideon, not Quinn, and when you fall, you take us all with you. Do you understand? We don’t have shit anymore, and if that means that we’re reduced to killing one innocent because we can’t protect her, then it’s better to realize that now and do it before Ezekiel ends up free because we were too deluded to realize we’re nothing compared to what we used to be!”

  His voice faded, and no one moved. No one even breathed.

  Gideon finally spoke. “I don’t believe we’re weak. Dante still believes in us. He came back from the Afterlife to tell us that the future was up to us. He wouldn’t have done that if we’d already lost.”

  “He also said it was time to create a new destiny, and maybe he meant we had to change our ways or die.” Ryland body was vibrating with rage now. “I will not let his death be for nothing. Ezekiel can’t be allowed out. Lily is Ezekiel’s ticket. That’s all we need to know. We strike, then we find Frank while he’s trying to regroup. If we let Lily live, we risk failing Dante.”

  “Killing Lily doesn’t end it,” Gideon said. “Lily is our weapon to stop Frank forever. She needs to live.”

  The room was silent, and he felt everyone’s attention on Quinn, who had been chosen by the weapons to be the leader for this mission. Until Ezekiel was stopped, or another leader chosen, it was Quinn who had the final word. He looked at Gideon with true regret in his eyes. I’m sorry. I have to think about the greater good.

  Gideon felt his heart freeze. Don’t do this. It’s the wrong decision.

  It’s the only one I can make. Step aside, Gideon. Don’t die for her.

  Gideon felt Lily’s hand on his back, and he looked across the room to Kane. Decision time.

  Quinn held up his sword. “We will honor Lily Davenport in death, as a sacrifice to the greater goo—”

  “Quinn!” Grace leapt in front of her mate and grabbed his raised arm. “Don’t kill her! Are you insane?”

  Ryland let out scream of death and hurled his machete at Lily.

  “No!” Gideon threw up his axe to block the blow. “Ezekiel’s winning if he breaks us up like this! We have to stand together!” He knocked aside Ryland’s machete, then jumped in front of Lily as Quinn charged her. Don’t do it, Quinn. God help us both if you do.

  True pain flickered in Quinn’s eyes, and Gideon realized Quinn was going to kill him to get to Lily. One of them was going to die.

  Then there was a flash and Kane appeared in front of him. His arms went around both Gideon and Lily, and then the world fell away.

  *

  Ana stumbled as she raced from the house, Nate’s knife clenched in her fist. In the battle, no one had noticed her grab it when it had fallen to the carpet. She could still hear the shouts and the crashes as Ryland destroyed the house in his rage at losing the chance to kill Lily. Grace was shouting at Quinn for the choice he’d made. The men were arguing about what they should have done, what they were going to do. The Order was crumbling, and she knew it was because of the man she was going to meet.

  Her cast caught on a root and she fell, wincing as the knife cut her hand. Tears filled her eyes as she pulled the blade away from her skin and saw the blood well up, so many times that knife had cut her when she’d been kidnapped by Nate. So many…

  “You came.” Frank kneeled beside her. “Are you crying because of Nate?”

  She pulled back the tears. “I’m
fine.”

  “You aren’t fine.” Frank helped her to her feet, his grip supportive, but not restraining, his voice kind. “But you will be. I’ll help you heal.”

  She shrugged out of his grip. “Why? Why are you interested in me?”

  He smiled, his eyes hidden behind his sunglasses. “You aren’t ready to know yet, my dear.” He held out his hand. “Come, it is time to go. Shall I carry the knife?”

  Ana hesitated, her fist closing around the handle. Was she making a mistake? She knew Ezekiel couldn’t be allowed to be freed. She understood that. She saw how evil Frank was. She knew he had to be stopped. If she gave Frank the knife, would the Order be able to stop him, or was she damning them all to a future worse than hell?

  Frank waited.

  Ana.

  Elijah’s voice whispered through her mind, and the marks on her arms pulsed. Certainty reverberated through her, and she knew she had to go with Frank. She didn’t know why, not yet, but she had to trust her instincts and believe the answers would become clear. She set the knife in Frank’s waiting hand. “It’s yours.”

  He smiled and closed his hand around the knife. “Excellent. Let us go.” He set his hand on her back and began to guide her through the woods.

  She took a last glance back at the mansion, her heart tightening with fear as she left it behind. God help them all if she was making a mistake.

  *

  “I need paper!” The moment Kane delivered them to their new location, Lily whirled around. “I need to write down what I remember about the knife before I lose it.” They were in a huge studio apartment, furnished with only a mattress on the floor of the living room. Some clothes were piled in the corner.

  The only other sign of its being inhabited was the card table in the corner that had a laptop and dozens of files piled all over the floor. So much paper. Notes.

  Kane strode across the smoothly polished wood floor to the desk, rifled through the piles, grabbed a pen and a notebook and shoved it at her.

  Lily sat on the floor and started to write, frantically scrawling words and notations, drawing pictures of the symbols. Her lower lip was clenched in her teeth as her hand flew across the page.