Darkness Awakened

by Stephanie Rowe

  Ajax watched one of Faulk's guards adjust his gun. "He wanted you to kill rogues?"

  Faulk shook his head. "No, none of them were rogues."

  "And you turned it down because you've suddenly developed a conscience?" Xander's voice was hard.

  Faulk bristled at the tone, and Ajax touched Xander's mind. Chill. You can carve out his heart some other time.

  Xander's jaw flexed. "Continue."

  Faulk nodded. "The guy gave me a list of names. He didn't just want them dead. He wanted me to harvest the weapons as well."

  Ajax felt a pulse of anticipation. They'd heard about the weapons being stripped, but hadn't been able to confirm it, because the bodies had vanished before the Order had arrived, as Calydon bodies did shortly after death.

  Which led to the next question. "Why?" It was the one question they'd been unable to answer. Calydon weapons performed only for their hosts and their host's sheva, so why take them?

  "He wouldn't say." Faulk lowered his voice. "I didn't like the guy, so I knew I wasn't going to take the job, but I wanted to hear what he had to say. The money he offered was so high I almost took it on principle." He named a figure that got Ajax's attention. "When I refused, he got this really weird look on his face, like he couldn't believe I'd turned him down. He kept asking me if I was sure."

  "You getting to the point soon?" Ajax asked.

  Viktor shifted in his seat and began to fiddle with the throwing star he hadn't sheathed after nearly cutting Ajax up with it.

  Faulk looked at Ajax. "Yeah, you were on his list. You and your boss."

  Ajax grinned. "Good. It'd save us the hunt if the asshole would come after us."

  "They wanted you to go after Zion?" Xander snorted. "Only someone with a death wish would try to take out the Order's leader."

  "Everyone's got a weakness," Faulk said. "If I'd taken the job, I'd have found a way to kill him."

  And broken the treaty with the Order that was keeping him alive. "Were the murdered Calydons on the list, too?"

  Faulk nodded. "Some of them, I saw only a partial list." He paused, then lowered his voice. "But that's not all. When he left, close to twenty Calydons who were here at the time followed him. They just went out the door with him as if they were great buddies, but I swear none of them knew him when he walked in. None of them have turned up since. Something happened while he was here, and I need to know what it was. I promise safety for my patrons, and I don't like this situation. I'm losing five to ten patrons every night. They just suddenly walk out the door, and no one sees them again. I can't figure out what the hell is going on."

  Shit. That was big. No wonder Faulk had been willing to talk.

  Viktor shoved away from the table and paced a short distance away. He set his hands on his hips and surveyed the sentries on the walls, his back toward the table.

  Ajax eyed Viktor as he took over Viktor's spot in the booth, but Ajax's weapons were quiet, which meant that guy with the ice blue eyes had left, or he was no longer targeting Viktor. Satisfied the danger was past, Ajax turned his attention to Faulk. "Can you describe the guy?"

  "Sunglasses, tall, thin. Dressed well. Human."

  Ajax eyed Faulk. "You so sure he was human?" Something shifted in Faulk's eyes, and Ajax knew the warrior was still holding out on him. "Tell us what the hell's going on." He let his voice carry his threat, and knew Faulk heard it when he stiffened.

  "You can't touch me. The treaty—"

  "Fuck the treaty," Xander snarled. "We scented you at three of the murder sites. That's enough to act if we want."

  "You'll never get to me—"

  "Look around."

  Faulk glanced up at the scaffolding. His lips tightened when he saw his key guards slumped on their platforms, and his ground floor guys being disarmed by three Order members in an operation so smooth that no one in the club had even noticed.

  Faulk turned back to Xander and Ajax, his eyes mocking. "Always good to know where your defenses are weak. Thanks for the tip."

  Neither Order member responded.

  The amusement suddenly vanished from Faulk's eyes, and he shifted toward them. "I'm telling you this in confidence, and if I hear about it anywhere, I'm coming after you both. No reprisals from the rest of the Order."

  Ajax and Xander both nodded. "Agreed."

  Viktor was a good thirty feet away now, wandering through the crowd. Ajax frowned. Viktor. You with us?

  Yeah, I'm good. Checking out someone on the other side. All clear?

  Ajax did a quick check of his senses. Nothing out of the ordinary. You're good. Want backup?

  Nope. All set.

  Faulk waved off his bodyguards and leaned in close. "The guy got in my head."

  Ajax frowned. "What are you talking about?"

  "The minute he asked if I was sure I wasn't interested in the deal, I started to feel like that guy was the greatest shit I'd ever smelled in my life. I wanted to get down on my knees, kiss his toes, and ask him to be the mother of my kids." Faulk glanced over his shoulder. "Hell, I was ready to pay him for the chance to do his dirty work."

  Xander glanced at Ajax. For someone to get past Faulk's mental barriers, he must have been extremely powerful. Faulk had a thousand years of mental discipline protecting his psyche. Ajax felt his anticipation build. "How'd you break his hold?"

  Faulk's face was stoic, his grip so tight around the steel beer stein that it started to collapse. "I picked up the case of money he'd brought and started to walk to my safe to put it in there, accepting the fucking offer, when he got this smug look on his face. That goddamned look on his face..." He swore again. "It pissed me off so much that everything snapped back into place, and I suddenly realized what I was doing. I shoved that case of money into his face." He grinned. "I crushed the asshole's nose, too."

  "So, what'd you get out of him?" He knew an interrogation would be automatic with Faulk after getting worked over like that. "What did he do to you?"

  "Denied the whole thing, of course. He said he hadn't been in my head at all. But I knew he had. He'd gotten me to agree to the deal even after I'd already decided I wasn't going to take it." Faulk ground his jaw.

  "And after you knocked him around? What was his story then?"

  Faulk shook his head. "Before I could do anything, a riot broke out on the main floor, and I had to get out front before I had casualties. I left him with my guards, but by the time I got it sorted out, the guy was gone, along with about twenty of my patrons and the five guards I'd left with him."

  Ajax let out a low whistle. Faulk paid his staff so much money that none would ever betray him…and yet they had. "You think it was an Illusion?"

  Faulk shook his head. "I've never heard of an Illusion that only worked inside your head, have you? One who could fuck directly with your emotions and your thoughts?"

  "No," Ajax admitted. "That doesn’t mean it can't happen, though."

  "He did something," Faulk said. "No one messes with me or my patrons and walks away. It's not good for business." He smiled, his white teeth glittering dangerously in the dark club. "And now, it's personal. I have a team hunting him. We've been to every murder site, but I can't find a damn thing on him. If you guys find him, let me know. I want him myself. I'll pay you to bring him to me alive."

  Ajax had scented Faulk at only three of the murder sites. Why hadn't he picked him up at the others? Another new talent of Faulk? The fucking treaty was going to get them all killed if they didn't find a way around it soon.

  "We'll find him," Xander said. "What's his name?"

  "He didn't give one. None of my clients ever do." Faulk's grip was still tight on the beer stein. "That's all I know."

  "You think of anything else, let us know. We'll do the same." Ajax scanned the floor for Viktor, but he couldn't see him through the crowd. Viktor? Check in.

  A woman wearing a black leather bra and a matching skirt looked over at him, raised her brows, and began a seductive slide across the floor toward him. Her breasts
were nearly spilling out of her top, and a dragon tattoo danced across her stomach, disappearing into her skirt.

  For a split second, Ajax forgot about Viktor. He could think only about the woman approaching him, and the invitation apparent in her eyes. He knew that he could be buried deep inside her in less than a second—

  He shook his head to clear his mind.

  What was his problem? Since when did he let sex get in the way of protecting his brothers? He didn't. Ever. He passed his hand over his forehead, and something on his face made her pale, and she quickly changed her path and headed toward another man.

  And his body was hard with regret that he let her get away.

  Xander raised his brows, clearly reading his expression. "We've probably got time if you want to take a minute. I'll watch your back."

  "Hell, no." Ajax stood up. "Where's Viktor? We need to get out of here. Something's all wrong, and I don't like it."

  Xander moved beside him, also searching the room. "Probably on a scent or in the corner with a woman."

  "Going solo here? Not likely." No Order member would stray too far on his own around all these women. There was too much danger of losing control, and hell help the warrior if one of the women he brushed against was his sheva. This place was like a pit of land mines for a Calydon. Ajax stood up and searched the crowd. "Faulk? You got guys on him?"

  But Faulk's seat was empty. Ajax swore. "I don't like this—"

  Something hit Ajax hard in the back of the neck, and the force of the blow threw him across the table. White hot pain exploded in the back of his head as he crashed into the wall. Blackness crept at the edge of his vision, and he fought to stay conscious.

  He heard Xander shout, felt the rise in static electricity in the room as the Order went into full battle mode. He heard the screams of women and the shouts of Calydons running for the doors.

  Staggering to his feet, Ajax grabbed the back of his neck, his fingers closing around steel. He wrenched a Calydon throwing star out of his flesh, swiped it clean on his jeans, and saw the familiar designs carved into it.

  It was Viktor's throwing star.

  What the hell?

  He threw it down, and Viktor stepped out of the crowd, his body rigid, his other throwing star clenched in his fist. Viktor's eyes had gone dark, almost black, as they did when he was in battle.

  Not red.

  He hadn't gone rogue...But how in the hell had he made a mistake like throwing at Ajax? It had to be an Illusion, fucking with Viktor's mind.

  Ajax's adrenaline kicked in, and he began to move swiftly toward Viktor, scanning the crowd for the man he'd seen earlier, certain that he was the one responsible. "Head toward the exit," Ajax shouted above the din of the panicking crowd, calling out his own swords to defend his blood brother. "I'll cover you!"

  Viktor moved suddenly, a flick of his wrist so quick and so subtle Ajax barely noticed it before Viktor's throwing star was cutting through the air, heading straight for Ajax's heart.

  Chapter Six

  Ajax made a split-second decision not to attack Viktor, raising his sword for defense only. The weapons collided with the loud crash of metal against metal, and Viktor was already calling his weapon back before it had hit the ground.

  A crazed fury raged in Viktor's black eyes as he caught the star and instantly relaunched it at Ajax, convincing Ajax that Viktor's mind had been twisted, just like Faulk had described. It had to be an Illusion.

  Illusions were the one thing Viktor had no defenses against. Ajax had sworn to protect his blood brother against them at all costs.

  And he'd failed, just as he'd failed Enzo so many years ago—

  No. Fierce determination swelled inside him, and denial roared in his mind. This time, it would be different. This time, he would protect those who mattered to him.

  He blocked Viktor's star and charged him, intending to take him down, to knock him out, to keep him from becoming a monster the Order had to kill—

  Ajax suddenly saw Liam and Isaac stalking Viktor from behind, weapons drawn. Ajax's skin went cold, realizing it was too late. The Order was already in assassination mode, and their target was Viktor. He was their brother, but their mission always took priority. True to their Order oath, they were going to stop the rogue from bringing down their own kind.

  "Stand down!" he shouted. "He's not rogue!"

  Liam and Isaac didn't even slow, their entire beings focused on the battle before them. But Viktor was concentrating only on Ajax, a searing hatred on his face, a need to kill. Oblivious to the threats bearing down, he would make no move to defend himself. Within moments, Viktor would fall to the blades of his teammates.

  Ajax realized it was up to him.

  So he did what he hadn't had the strength to do for Enzo: he unleashed his blades at Liam and Isaac, at his own brethren.

  His weapons shot right past Viktor's head and slammed into Liam and Isaac. Ajax saw the disbelief in Liam's eyes as he went down, felt the hatred of Isaac as the Calydon clutched his stomach, and Ajax knew he'd just sealed his own death warrant.

  Viktor spun around, saw the downed Order members, and caught sight of the rest of the Order coming after him. True panic flickered over his face, then he turned and sprinted for the back exit, the frantic flight of someone too scared to think of anything but escape.

  Again, not Viktor's style. He was a warrior, not someone who ever ran from anything, and now he was, which made Ajax even more certain that someone was fucking with his mind.

  Ajax hauled ass after Viktor, cutting off the angle to the door as the rest of the Order fought through the crowd running for the front door. Ajax reached the exit before Viktor, but he didn't try to stop him.

  Viktor slashed at him as he ran past, and Ajax barely managed to dodge it. Once Viktor was safely out the door, Ajax stood in the doorway, weapons drawn, as he prepared to stall the others and give Viktor time to escape.

  Order members charged the exit full force, and Ajax attacked.

  He hit hard, his strikes clean and precise, acting before his team knew what he was doing. In less than a minute, the rest of the Order was on the ground, none of them dead, all of them seriously injured. None of them in a position to go after Viktor.

  Xander sprinted up, his throwing axes in his hand. "What the hell are you doing?"

  Ajax spread his feet and held his sword ready. "Protecting Viktor."

  "He's rogue. He has to be killed." But as he said the words, Xander's face was hard. Angry. Angry that he had to kill his best friend, or angry that his best friend had turned on them?

  Ajax shook his head, his body starting to weaken now that the initial adrenaline hit was fading. He fought to keep his focus, realizing the hit he'd taken to the head had been harder than he'd thought. Viktor had been going for the kill. Jesus. "No. Viktor's not rogue. He's sane. His eyes were black."

  Xander swore. "Then he's turning into a cold-blooded murderer." Xander met Ajax's gaze, his eyes cold, emotion buried deep as only he could do. "Either way, he needs to be taken down."

  Ajax deliberately raised his sword to Xander's chest, his grip steady. "Illusions are at play, Xander. On Faulk. On the Calydons who died. You know what that'll do to Viktor after what happened to him." He met Xander's eyes. "When he ran, he was scared."

  Xander blinked. "Scared? Him?" Understanding filled his eyes. "Fuck."

  "His mind's fragmenting already, just like before."

  Rajak groaned and rolled onto his side, trying to struggle to his feet. Keeping an eye on Rajak to make sure he couldn’t go after Viktor, Ajax pressed his sword into Xander's chest, well aware that Xander hadn't raised his weapon in response. "If the Order goes after him now, they'll kill him." He glanced at his Order teammates recovering behind Xander. "I'll take them all out if they go after him. I'd do the same to protect you." He paused for a split second. "You'd do the same for me or Viktor. The three of us took a blood oath to protect each other, remember?"

  "Of course I remember." Xander's ja
w flexed, but he finally sheathed his axe. "We'll go to Zion and tell him—"

  "We don't have time. I've got to go after Viktor now, before he hurts someone else, or himself. Or gets himself killed." Ajax remembered all too clearly what had happened when his uncle Enzo had gone rogue. He'd never forget Zion's brutal response. There had been no excuses, no second chances, no reprieves. Just the heartless slaughter of the man who'd been the Order's number two guy for three hundred years. "Zion won't call off the team. Viktor crossed the line, and the only way to save him is to bring him back here, sane."

  "If Illusions got him, Zion's the only one who can repair his mind." Xander gripped Ajax's arm. "For hell's sake, have faith in our leader. If you tell Zion, he'll believe you, and he won't send the Order after Viktor on a death hunt. He won't condemn you for attacking the Order in Viktor's defense. They'll retrieve him and help him—"

  "You don't know that." Ajax knew the Order couldn't be trusted. They were too entrenched in a mindless oath that was two thousand years old. They were too unwilling to fight for what was right. All they ever did was play by rules that didn't always make sense. Enzo had paid the price. Viktor would not do the same. "I have to protect him."

  Xander swore. "Hell, Ajax, you can't go solo on this—"

  "I'm going after Viktor now. I have to go now, or I'm going to have to kill the rest of the team to get away." Ajax gripped his sword, watching as Rajak made it to his knees. He had only moments until the Order would be recovered enough to come after him. "Are you going to stop me?"

  He and Xander stared at each other, and he knew they were both aware of the blood on Ajax's sword. Blood of their Order members. Yeah, he hadn't actually killed anyone, but he'd still crossed lines. Ajax should not be allowed to leave the club. But Xander also knew there was a chance that Zion wouldn't allow Viktor to live.

  And Xander owed Viktor, just as Ajax did.

  Finally, Xander ground his jaw. "I'll represent you to Zion. If he doesn't grant a reprieve, I'll do my best to give you a twenty-four-hour head start to find Viktor, but that's it. After that, we're coming for him." He locked gazes with Ajax, deep regret in his eyes. "And you. You know I won't be able to save you."