by Amy Sumida
“Zis is pretty country,” Kirill observed. “But fucking cold, and zat's coming from man who lived in Russia.”
I laughed and leaned into Kirill's side. “Maybe we should snuggle for warmth.”
His arm went around me immediately. “You're right; zis is much better.”
“When's the last time we had a vacation?” I asked him.
“Our honeymoon,” Kirill said with a smile.
“Damn,” I snorted. “That was awhile ago.”
“Over two years,” he said softly as he laid his forehead on mine. “Ve're due for vacation.”
“Overdue,” I agreed. “Maybe once we get this settled, we can go on a trip.”
Kirill gave me a dubious look.
“What?” I asked.
“Zere's always something to deal vith.” He shrugged. “It's fine; ve figure it out later.”
“Okay!” Pan said merrily. “What did I miss? Did he come out yet?”
Pan deposited our drinks on the table; two pints of beer for Kirill and him, and a mug of steaming tea for me. All of the beverages were as dark as the rich Irish soil. But I barely glanced at the drinks. My eyes shot to the window as I realized that we hadn't been watching the shop while we sat whining about a lack of time off.
“You have been watching for Eros, haven't you?” Pan lost his smile.
“He couldn't have been that fast,” I said as I scanned the street.
“You're the one who practically called him a two-pump-chump,” Pan pointed out.
“Closed sign is still up,” Kirill said calmly.
“You guys are lucky,” Pan huffed and settled against the hard, wooden bench. “What were you doing; playing kissy-face instead of watching for our enemy?”
“We were just talking about how long it's been since we had a vacation,” I admitted. “And it was like a minute.”
“Fair enough.” Pan sighed. “You know I love humans, but when I first joined Thor's team, I had no idea that this would be so time-consuming.”
“This?” I chuckled. “You mean the God War?”
“Well, the God War is one of those long-lasting conflicts that ends up being more about subterfuge and skirmishes than straight up war,” Pan noted before taking a sip of his beer, sighing in appreciation of the taste, and then adding a delighted hum. “Before you joined us, it was heavier on the subterfuge side. There wasn't a whole lot of physical altercations.”
“Do you regret choosing this side?” I asked softly.
“Regret?” Pan's vividly green eyes widened. “Never. I've formed friendships that I treasure and have saved countless humans. That's worth every long day and sleepless night. Besides, what else would I do with my time?”
“Vatch people have sex,” Kirill said dryly. “Or actually have sex.”
“Shit; you're right,” Pan said with an air of epiphany. “What the hell am I doing here? I've been seriously screwing up my priorities.”
Kirill rolled his eyes, but I laughed.
“You can't fool me, Pan,” I said fondly. “You're far more than a horny little man.”
“Thank you.” Pan grinned. “But I want to make one thing clear; the size of my horns has no bearing on my manhood.”
Kirill and I groaned.
Chapter Sixteen
Over four hours later, we'd had three more rounds of drinks and lunch. We were done waiting for Eros to finish; it was getting ridiculous. So, we closed out our tab, went into the bathrooms, glamoured up, and walked out. I hoped the bartender wouldn't be searching for us later. But going invisible in a bathroom was far less risky than doing so in an alley.
We ran across the street, and Pan undid the store's lock with a bit of magic. We slipped inside, locking the door behind us, and took a look around. No sounds came from the backroom; which worried me. Despite my concern, we crossed the store slowly and quietly, not wanting to alert Eros to our presence. I glanced at the tea towels embroidered with Irish slogans and renditions of the Blarney Stone, the rotating display of cheap jewelry featuring claddaghs and four-leaf clovers, the rows of boxed shortbread cookies, and the racks of thick, wool sweaters. The air smelled like cinnamon and tea. I would have enjoyed looking around a little, if I hadn't been chasing a backstabbing, Greek, sex god.
The door to the backroom creaked eerily as I opened it, but it didn't matter. There was only the shop girl in the cluttered room. She was laid out across a table, her panties stuffed in her mouth, her wrists tied with that scarf Eros had been admiring, her legs bent at the knee to hang over the edge of the table, and her thighs spread wide. There was a flush across her pale skin, and her hands were clenched into fists. She was passed out.
At least, she looked like she was passed out.
I hurried over to the girl and pulled the underwear out of her mouth. She took a breath and sighed contentedly. I breathed out in relief. I laid her panties by her hand, spread a blanket over her, and untied her wrists. When she was presentable enough, I left her to look around the room more thoroughly. I needn't have bothered; my first glance was correct—there was no one else in the room. The only thing the second search revealed was another door just past the lines of storage shelves. It was ajar. I peeked out of it and saw a back alley that ran behind the shops. The only thing alive in the alley was a shivering rat that squeaked in distress before scurrying behind a dumpster.
“Fuck!” I hissed as I dropped my glamour. “He must have gone out this way.”
“He could have left at any time,” Kirill added.
“We just lost Eros because we waited for him to get laid?” Pan huffed in horror. “My Dad is going to be pissed.”
“He's not the only one,” I growled.
“Vhy vould he go out back?” Kirill murmured thoughtfully as he stared back into the shop.
“Because that's what you do after you fuck a shop girl,” Pan said in a duh tone.
“I suppose,” Kirill said, but he didn't sound convinced.
“I don't know.” I scowled, agreeing with Kirill. “I don't like the feel of this. Let's get back to Pride Palace. I think we're missing something.”
Chapter Seventeen
“Where have you three been?” Odin asked as we walked out of the tracing room.
“Trying to catch Eros,” I said. “Why?”
“Trying?” Odin asked.
“And failing,” Kirill cleared it up.
“He slipped away,” Pan said with a smirk. “Right out the back door.”
“Why is that funny?” Odin scowled at Pan.
“Because he might have been going in and out of the shop girl's back door before he went out the shop's back door,” Pan added gleefully.
“Gross,” I whined.
“Vervain doesn't like asshole jokes,” Kirill said. “She calls it 'bathroom humor.'”
“What?” Pan's expression went giddy. “Oh, you shouldn't have told me that. I make porn; there's no end to the amount of rear-end jokes I have.”
“Gods-damn it, Kirill,” I snapped at my husband. “You know better than to poke the porny Pan.”
Kirill shrugged with a grin.
“What the fuck are all of you talking about?” Odin growled.
“Eros took a shop girl and... you know what? Never mind; it isn't important. We lost Eros; the end,” I said, giving a quelling look to Pan when he started giggling over my use of the word end. “Now, what's happened that has you so upset?”
“While you've been gone losing Eros, there's been another power plant attack.”
“Did you investigate it?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Odin growled. “That's the problem.”
“How so?” I asked as we started following Odin into the dining hall.”
“I see the truth!” Trevor's shout echoed out to us. “And it is beautiful. The lies of all existence are falling away.”
“What the hell?” I looked at Odin.
“You weren't here.” Odin grimaced. “We needed Tlaloc's goggles to search the area surrounding the power
plant for any possible entry points for magical lightning to use.”
“Oh no,” I whispered as I picked up my pace.
When I stepped into the dining room, I found Trevor standing on the dining table, his arms spread wide and his head thrown back as if he were receiving spiritual enlightenment. The God Squad and Intare were gathered around him; everyone except Sara and Brahma, who still hadn't returned from speaking to Rudra. The crowd parted for me as I approached.
“We've tried to snatch the goggles off him.” Hades stared at me with a pair of exposed, hellish eyes. “It didn't work.”
He showed me his cracked sunglasses.
“Shit,” I whispered.
“He's lost to the knowledge and power,” Thor added. “He keeps raging about the true nature of things. Trevor told each of us what we truly look like and what our magics look like. Then he started staring into the distance and making these vague, unsettling announcements.”
“I've been there,” I admitted as I stared up at my husband. “It can be overwhelming.”
“Trevor was fine at first,” Mrs. E said softly. “He searched the scene calmly and thoroughly, with no indication that he was falling under the sway of the goggles. But the search went on so long, and the goggles began to take a toll on him.”
“How long?” I asked with horror.
“Over an hour,” Hekate whispered. “There wasn't anything to find, but we were intent, and kept looking. We still don't know how the power plant was affected.”
“I can find out!” Trevor shouted. “The knowledge of everything is one look away! I just need to go back.”
But Trevor wasn't looking at us; he was staring out the windows at the Intare lands. He extended one hand to the glass and waggled his fingers as if he could feel the magic that pulsed throughout our home.
“He sees us coming for him before we take a single step,” Teharon added. “It's proving to be difficult to divest him of the goggles.”
“And he's getting worse,” Torrent said with worry. “You gotta help him, V.”
“It will be all right, Torrent,” I assured him. Then I called out, “Trevor!”
Trevor's golden-yellow gaze—magnified by the thick glass of Tlaloc's goggles—shot to mine. His eyes widened as he stared at me. Then he strode over to the edge of the table and crouched down. He looked me over thoroughly.
“Minn Elska,” he murmured, “there is so much inside you; a galaxy within your heart. The power to change the world in your smile. I've always known you were special, but this... I had no idea how truly special you are. And how profoundly beautiful.”
“Am I?” I purred. “Why don't you come here and show me how beautiful you think I am?”
Trevor smiled wide and jumped off the table. Within seconds, his lips were on mine, and my fingers were pushing up the sides of his face, through the hair at his temples, and sliding off the goggles. As soon as they were gone, Trevor tensed and pulled away from me. His expression went horrified, he began to tremble, and then he fell backward. Kirill caught him and eased him down to the floor while Trevor began to shake as if he were having a seizure. His beautiful eyes bulged, and his whole body went rigid as his limbs and head thrummed the floor.
“Hold him down!” Teharon shouted.
Those closest to Trevor instantly covered his limbs with their bodies, while Kirill held Trevor's head steady. Teharon straddled Trevor's chest and took Trevor's face within his hands. A soft blue glow emanated from Teharon's fingertips and seeped into Trevor. The glow spread through Trevor's body and then brightened to white. I closed my eyes against the glare, and as they were shut, Trevor went still. When I opened my eyes again, my husband was sleeping peacefully.
“He'll be fine,” Teharon announced as he stood. “He just needs some rest.”
“I've got him,” Kirill said.
Kirill scooped up Trevor as he stood, and then headed out of the dining hall. I went with them. The ride up to the top floor of the palace was quiet; our eyes focused on Trevor's serene face. He was so large that he looked strange in Kirill's arms; his limbs hanging nearly to the floor. But Kirill carried Trevor's weight with ease and an obvious tenderness. Those two had been through a lot together, and I knew Kirill felt just as guilty for not being there as I did.
We got Trevor settled in my bed, and then looked at each other with weary panic. We knew how close we had come to losing Trevor. I had nearly lost Kirill recently, and I wasn't over that yet. So, this Trevor scare cut me across a barely closed wound. I couldn't take much more of this.
“That is not going to happen again,” Azrael announced as he strode into the room with my other husbands and Re. “We're destroying those goggles.”
“Hold on,” I protested.
“No,” Odin stopped me. “Azrael's right. The goggles may come in handy, but they're not worth the risk of losing you. I don't want you using them again Vervain.”
“I know my limits,” I protested.
“But vhat if goggles have cumulative effect?” Kirill asked. “You could be sliding under zeir sway vithout even realizing it. Do you vant to end up like zat?” He waved a hand toward Trevor.
I scowled, looking from Trevor, to Kirill, to the goggles in Re's hands. I lifted my gaze to Re's.
“I doubt they can be destroyed; they're far too powerful,” Re said. “But we can lock them up and make sure that no one uses them again.”
“All right.” I sighed. “If it makes all of you feel better, you can lock up the goggles.”
“Re?” Azrael lifted a brow at the sun god. “Do you have somewhere for them or shall I bury them in Hell?”
“I have the perfect place,” Re said. “We don't want any demons getting their hands on these.”
“Fair enough.” Azrael chuckled. “But I have to say that some of my best friends are demons.”
“I rest my case,” Re said with a smirk.
“Fine; we have a solution for the goggles,” I said. “Now, let's get back downstairs and figure out how to deal with this elusive storm god.”
Chapter Eighteen
“I'm going to go see my dad,” Pan intercepted us as we headed back into the dining hall. “I have to explain how we lost Eros after he located him for us.
“Tell Hermes 'thank you' for trying to help me,” I said. “And that I understand if he wants to stop.”
“Please.” Pan rolled his eyes. “Dad is more tenacious than that. He won't give up just because we fucked up.”
“Thank you?” I grimaced at him.
“I'll be right back.” Pan went to the tracing room. “Don't go to war without me.”
“This isn't a war,” I called after Pan, but he was already gone, and I wasn't convinced of the validity of my statement.
We found the Squad gathered around Blue and Eztli, who were sitting together at the dining table. There was a laptop in front of Eztli and her best friend, Elena, was leaning over her shoulder and pointing out things on the screen. Elena must have arrived while we were upstairs with Trevor.
Blue and Eztli weren't what most people would imagine when you said the word “vampire.” They were both Aztec, for one. Well, Eztli was Aztec, Blue just looked like one, courtesy of the magic he accepted as an Aztec god. He was actually Atlantean, and I had no idea what he really looked like. Not that it mattered. Anyway, they both had dark coloring and dressed more like modern royalty than goth teenagers. Even Blue's creamy jade eyes seemed far too vibrant to belong to one of the living dead. But then Blue wasn't a vampire; he was their god.
To me, though, they were simply my friends. Blue and Eztli didn't scare me; though they had both tried their hardest to frighten me at the beginning of our relationships. But they'd moved past that, and proven themselves to me. I knew they had my back. Elena, however, was another matter entirely.
I froze when I saw the sexy vampire; not because I was afraid she'd bite me or anything like that, but because I knew Elena was a psychic—a very strong one—and I hated people telling me about my
future. Call it a pet peeve.
“I got nothing on you,” Elena called over to me. “Ever since you started using that star of yours to change the future, my visions for you, and everyone near to you, have turned into white noise. So, you can come in, Godhunter. I won't spout some shit you don't want to hear.”
“Thanks,” I said with relief.
“But I don't understand why you wouldn't want a head's up,” Elena huffed. “I could save you a lot of pain.”
“In my experience, most prophecies only bring me more pain, not save me from it.” I shook my head. “Even if it's good, I don't want to know.”
“Do you want to know about the new Asatru cult?” Blue asked casually. “I assure you; it's not good.”
“Asatru is not a cult,” Odin growled defensively. “It's a modern version of my original religion.”
“Yes; we know that,” Blue said patiently to Odin. “But this is a new branch of Asatru; one that's taking the 'old ways' a little too far for these modern times. I believe the taking it too far bit is what turns it into a cult.”
“What bad blood have you brought me now, Blue?” I huffed as I went over to look at the laptop with Odin.
Thor had already seen whatever it was that Elena wanted to show us, and his expression was not encouraging. I scowled at him, and he shook his head as if there were no way to even warn me about what I was about to see. I turned my attention to the screen of the laptop. They were on YouTube, which startled me. A social media site and Asatru cultists? This couldn't be good. I looked closer; there was a video on pause, but Blue took it back to the beginning before he hit Play.
A bunch of men in Viking-esque armor were running across a field at each other. They were shaking swords, spears, and shields in the air, and were shouting at each other like they were defending their kingdoms from invaders. Or they were the invaders; I'm not sure which. The field itself was nondescript; dying grass with sparse bushes around the edges of a thin forest. There was nothing to give any indication of their exact location. They fought beneath a twilight sky that was quickly darkening from violet to indigo, but there were tiki torches spread around the perimeter of the battlefield, imparting some dramatic lighting to the strange scene.
