by Lia Davis
They took form in a bedroom, Khloe realized with a scowl. He noticed and gave her a sideways grin. Arrogant ass. Laugh it up, demon.
She looked around the room. “Where are we?”
“There’s a shower through there.” He pointed to the door on the left. “Don’t leave the room.” Then he exited, closing the door behind him.
Khloe stood there, staring at the door as if she could will it back open. He had her thoroughly confused. He was a demon, a very powerful one at that. She could feel his power even with her magic muted. Yet, he was different. Almost god-like. There was concern in that smooth voice that caressed her skin every time he spoke.
However, he had ordered her to stay put. She frowned in annoyance. Who does he think he is? No one ordered Khloe around. Not even her sister. Even her parents had had a hard time in that department while she was growing up.
That last thought brought back unwanted sorrow. The demons had killed them.
She pulled the cell phone out of her back pocket and noticed the screen was broken. Using the power button, she cursed softly. The whole phone was broken. Awesome!
She looked around for a landline and found nothing. Disappointment added to her growing irritation with the demon. Damnit. Kalissa must be pacing the floor with worry and giving everyone an earful.
However, Khloe doubted it would help matters if she contacted her sister. She wasn’t sure where she was. She did know she wasn’t in the natural world anymore. The air in the room told her that. It was lighter, in a magical, positive energy kind of way.
Deciding to wait until she got back home, she turned from the door and wondered if the demon could be trusted. He claimed to be there to help keep her safe. Nope. The ones that made such claims usually turned out to be the real monsters. She’d have to keep an eye on him.
With a heavy sigh, she hobbled into the bathroom and smiled at the promise of being clean after her romp through the forest.
Samoan grew more impatient the longer she stood watching the witch stare at the stone. Seriously. How long did it take to transfer power into a crystal?
“Hurry up, witch.”
The witch slammed the gemstone on the stainless steel table and turned to lock gazes with Samoan. Ice-blue eyes framed by a slightly rounded face offered a challenge she was more than happy to accept.
“I told you before that I can’t activate it. It’s an uncharged piece of the Sinew.”
Not buying it, Samoan pressed harder. “You’re a Divinity. Now finish it.”
“I’m a soul-keeper, not a goddess.”
Samoan counted to three. If they didn’t need the witch for information, she’d strike her down for the snotty tone and that eye roll.
Bitch.
“What does that mean exactly?”
The witch’s shoulders tensed. At first, Samoan didn’t think she’d answer. Samoan was about to loosen the little bitch’s tongue, but she turned, lifted her chin, and replied. “I’m a Porter.”
Fuck me. There was no way she was a guardian of lost souls. “Porters don’t exist anymore. They were all killed thousands of years ago.”
Another eye roll from the way-too-cocky Divinity hit another nerve. “All the full-blooded Porters died over three thousand years ago. The bloodline continues through other species.”
Samoan filed away this new intel for later. Her mission, at the moment, was to activate the crystal into a copy of the Sinew—the source of all magic. “So, Miss Smarty, if you can’t do it, then who can?”
The strawberry-blonde cocked her head and smiled. “Hecate.”
Before she could control her instincts, Samoan backhanded the bitch hard enough that the witch stumbled back against the table. The witch pulled herself to a stand. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand and peering down at the blood, a smile raised one corner of her lips in a sideways smirk, and she charged at Samoan.
Samoan found herself flat on her back with the witch straddling her. Hands wrapped tightly around her throat. Her lungs struggled to draw in air. Coldness crawled up her arms then wrapped around her spine as pain ripped through her chest. The witch’s eyes grew darker, almost a midnight blue. Swirls of silver spiraled around the pupils. Then Samoan felt it—her soul began to rise from her body.
Fuck. She wasn’t bluffing about being a Porter.
Samoan coughed. “If…I die…your son…dies.”
The tearing pain stopped. The sense of her soul slamming back into her body replaced the numb, hollow feeling she’d experienced. Samoan gasped for air. She stared at the Porter for several seconds before an iron cuff slapped around the witch’s wrist, and she was yanked off Samoan.
Pulling herself upright, Samoan leaned against a chair and glared at the Porter. “Take her out of my sight,” she barked to the Lackey holding the soul-stealing Divinity.
She would definitely have to find a way to mute the soul keeper’s power and find out how many more there were out there. An army of them could be useful.
Chapter 4
“What are you up to?”
Jagger groaned at the sound of his brother’s voice behind him. He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. He so didn’t need to fight with Lex right now.
“My job.” He turned and walked past Lex to the other side of the study where a set of drawers lined the opposite wall next to a bookshelf.
“Your job…”
“Is to protect them,” Jagger said through clenched teeth as he whirled around to stand nose to nose with Lex.
Lex smirked. “From a distance, brother.”
Jagger turned back to search the contents of the drawers. “I had no choice.” He sighed and lowered his shoulders. He gave Lex the short version of the attack on the Divinities and Khloe’s self-sacrifice to keep the others safe. “I had to get her out of there. I’d have no problem taking on the Regals, but with her powers muted, she’d be nothing but a distraction.”
A silver key appeared in front of his face. Jagger wrapped his fingers around it, but Lex held onto the ring connected to it. “What are your motives? And don’t think about brushing this off as an ‘I’m doing my job’ bit. I know you.” He paused, searching Jagger’s face, then smiled. “You like the female.”
Figures. One of the rare occasions Jagger saw any kind of emotion on his brother’s face, and it was at his expense. “I believe now, more than ever, that Khan has some kind of power source. The demons are growing stronger. They are targeting the Divinities one at a time.”
“This is not new news.”
Snatching the key out of Lex’s hand, Jagger growled and turned toward the door. He stopped when his brother asked, “What can I do to help?”
“Can you go keep a watch on the Divinity House?” he asked over his shoulder. Lex gave a short nod. Relief rolled through Jagger. “Thanks.” He rushed out of the study and back upstairs where he’d left Khloe.
When he arrived at his bedroom door, he paused and listened. It was quiet except for her heartbeat. By the rapid rate, he could tell she was frustrated. Smiling, he twisted the knob and slowly pushed open the door.
She sat on the bed with her head bent, picking at the lock on the cuff until he stepped inside the room and shut the door with a soft click. Her head snapped up, her eyes a darker teal than they’d been when he’d left her. Stunned, he stared as if seeing her for the first time. Her face was clean of makeup, showing her natural beauty, but it was her hair that caught his attention. Wet from the shower, it cascaded over her shoulders. The pink streaks were gone. He shifted his eyes to her attire. She wore nothing but an oversized bath towel wrapped around her small frame, tucked in between her breasts to hold it in place.
The only things that remained the same were her tiny nose piercing and a small hoop through her eyebrow.
“What?” she snapped.
Blinking, he closed the door and walked toward her. He held out the key to the cuff she’d been trying to open when he came in. She hesitantly reached out and took it, then eagerly slid th
e key into the lock and turned it. When the cuff fell free, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. Jagger knew she needed her elements soon to draw in more strength, but first, he wanted her to rest.
“Why were you staring at me when you came in?” she said after a few brief moments. There was mistrust in her tone. The way she kept her distance from him, he would bet she didn’t allow many people inside the wall she’d built around herself.
He smiled at her. “I was admiring your beauty.”
Khloe scrunched up her face and rolled her eyes. “I doubt that. You were admiring a half-naked woman sitting on your bed.”
That made his smile widen. Normally, it would anger him to have someone speak to him in such a way, but there was something different about the female in front of him.
“And that,” he teased and walked into the bathroom.
The mixture of their scents slammed into him, making him take a step back. It was an exotic aroma of spiced hot chocolate. She’d used his soap. He knew she would, but he was not prepared for the effect it would have on him. It took everything he had not to turn around and claim her. Possess every inch of her.
He’d been charged with keeping her safe from the demons. But who was going to keep her safe from him?
The rush of unbound power ran through her veins. It was wonderful to have her magic back online. Khloe was so grateful, she could have kissed the demon, but he turned to go into the bathroom.
She eyed the doorway. He had been in there for a while. She was tempted to ask if he’d fallen in, but the door was still open. Stepping to the side just enough to peek inside, she saw his reflection in the mirror. He was pulling items out of a drawer, then he opened the medicine cabinet. With a sigh, she turned to the bedroom door, wondering if she would be able to make a run for it. Not a chance. He would track her down. Besides, she didn’t even know where she was.
Giving up on the hope for escape, she looked down at her wound and frowned. It was still sore and red. Odd. Her magic should have healed it, or at least started to heal it.
She conjured clothes onto her body and sighed at the feeling of a fresh pair of jeans and a soft tank top. Might as well be comfortable.
“Why did you do that?”
Startled, she whirled around toward the sound of Jagger’s voice as he emerged from the bathroom. She studied him, suspicious of his meaning and still unsure why he’d brought her to his home. “Do what? Get dressed?”
The conflicting emotions that ran across his face almost made her laugh out loud. He sobered quickly and said, “Your hair.”
“Oh.” She shrugged.
“Why do you use glamour to hide your natural beauty?”
She looked straight at him. Had he just called her beautiful? “Am I not pretty now?” Again with the debatable look. He opened his mouth then closed it again. “I don’t cover up my looks. I alter them. You try growing up looking identical to someone else.” She rolled her eyes.
“I have.”
She searched his face for a few moments. “You’re a twin?”
Shaking his head, he walked to her, motioning to the bed. She sat back down, not taking her eyes off him. “I have a brother. We are not twins, but we looked so much alike when we were younger, that we were often mistaken as being identical.”
“That didn’t bother you?” she asked.
He sat down on the bed so that he faced her. “Why should it? You and Kalissa may look alike, but you are different. Your eyes are different colors,” he pointed out.
“True. But I like being different.” She winced when he took her injured arm in his large, firm grasp.
“Infection is starting to set in. This will help.” He opened an amber-colored jar and scooped out a small amount of the cream with his fingertips. The smell of willow bark, lavender, and rosemary drifted up from the creamy mixture. She flinched as the cool cream touched her cut. His eyes flicked up to meet hers, concern heavy in his gaze. “Does that hurt?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s just cold.” One side of his mouth lifted in a smile of amusement. “I don’t understand why my magic hasn’t sped up the healing process.”
“The infection could have started before the cuff was removed. It will take a little while for your magic to repair everything.”
Watching as he carefully and tenderly spread the cream over her wound, she wondered who and what he was. “What’s your name?”
“Jagger.”
“What are you?”
He didn’t look at her as he answered, “Death Demon.”
Those two words should have scared the shit out of her, but they didn’t. In fact, they made her want to know more about the sensual creature sitting in front of her who was so cautiously tending to her wound. She also wanted to better understand the amount of power he possessed. Death Demons were the strongest of the demonic race, and most served the gods.
As if feeling her inquisition, he lifted his chocolate-brown eyes. “I’m tied to Hecate.”
He offered his left arm to her, palm up, revealing Hecate’s Wheel perfectly etched on the inside of his wrist. It was identical to the one she’d received during Kalissa and Ayden’s binding ceremony. She reached out to touch his mark, but he pulled his arm away before her fingers made contact. If he worked under Hecate’s command, he was on her side.
That still didn’t mean she could trust him.
After tightening the lid, he shifted to set the jar of cream on the bed between them and picked up the roll of bandages. In times like these, she wished she were empathic like Zach, or better yet, telepathic. She’d love to know what the demon was thinking.
He was truly a beautiful creature with his jet-black hair, honey-tanned skin, and strong jawline. But, he carried that dark, dangerous essence that all demons possessed. He might pledge his loyalty to Hecate, but what was keeping him from turning on her, on everyone she loved?
Khloe had always fallen too fast for men. A handsome face and nice words had gotten her heart broken enough times to harden it a bit. She would defiantly keep an eye on the demon, especially where her heart was concerned. That door was locked, deadbolted, and chained. There was no getting in. She’d made that mistake five years ago. Mark had turned on her, and he was human. She wasn’t about to watch history repeat itself.
“So. What’s next?” she asked, not taking her eyes off his face.
He finished dressing her wound, tying off the bandage to secure it in place and stood to put everything away. “You need to rest, build your strength. When you wake, I’ll take you outside.”
Where’s the damn leash? She narrowed her eyes at him. “I am capable of walking myself.”
He moved so fast she didn’t have time to blink before he was inches from her face. “You will do as I say. This is my home,” he growled and then turned and left the room.
Jagger was still fuming about Khloe’s defiant tone when he reached his mother’s chambers. The female brought too many emotions to the surface; lust being the leader, followed by possessiveness and heartache.
With a deep breath, he pushed away the dull tightness in his chest before entering the room without knocking. What was the use when the goddess knew he was coming?
“Mother?” he called, not seeing her inside the entryway of her private quarters, which was more like a small suite, consisting of a living room with a loveseat and two armchairs as well as a bedroom with en-suite bathroom. He walked toward her bedroom.
Once inside, he saw her standing in front of the window on the right side of the room. Her long, midnight-black hair hung loosely down her back and encircled her shoulders. She wore a white gown that blended with her porcelain skin and was the perfect contrast to her dark hair.
She turned to face him as he entered the room and frowned. She was annoyed with him. He knew that annoyance all too well. “You were not to make contact with any of them.”
He closed his eyes, holding his irritation in check. “I felt I had no choice.”
“We all have ch
oices, Jag.” She walked to sit in the chair at her vanity.
“I don’t understand the logic behind why we can’t make contact. We are to help them.” He moved to the window and peered out across the garden. Under the dim light of the moon, multi-colored streamers trailed behind the pixies as they played among the roses. He wondered if Khloe would like to see the gardens. Thinking she might, he decided it would be the first place he took her in the morning.
The sound of a hairbrush touching the dresser a little harder than it should, brought his attention back to the goddess, who was studying him in her mirror. He cleared his head of thoughts of the little distraction in his bedroom, sleeping in his bed…
“She was injured, and the demons were upon us. Her powers were bound.” He didn’t need to explain himself. Hecate knew, but she wouldn’t let him leave without hearing his side. She was the Goddess of Witchcraft, and the witches were hers to guide and protect. She knew what they did, their thoughts, and their prayers. With the war against the demons upon them, she kept a closer watch on her witches and the rest of magickin.
“But you revealed yourself. Went against a direct order.” He fell silent because there was no use explaining it. She sighed heavily. “Zeus will not grant them more powers than they already have. He also refuses to get involved with my witches and has forbidden me from helping them directly. I can guide them, but not fight with them. He was put off that I created the Divinities in the first place.” The goddess rolled her eyes and turned to Jagger. “Hades is no help. He denies knowing anything about Khan’s plan or his whereabouts. I think for once in his life, he’s siding with his brother.”
Jagger nodded. They were on their own in the war. The gods had shut them out. Like the Fates did him and Lex so long ago when they’d allowed their people to die.
“Khloe is a free spirit and has no fear when it comes to this war. That is why I assigned you and Lex to them as their guardians. You carry too much of my power and scent on you. If the other demons caught your scent—”
