Marked By Hades (Entangled Embrace)

by Monroe, Reese

  “Ex-husband not willing to let go.” She grabbed his warm, smooth hand. “I’m thankful you covered for me.”

  The way his eyes brightened when he smiled, she could tell it was genuine. If it were a different situation, she’d stay for a bit and talk with him.

  Yes. Earth was well worth the risk of defying Pario, indeed.

  By the looks of this guy, there would be men willing to indulge her need to touch and her desire to be touched.

  Dyre hurried toward the revolving door. Toward freedom.

  All she had to do was get to the other Artifacts she’d already snatched from Pario, and she might be able to bargain for her freedom.

  He’d said he had three, but she’d only found the Thata and the Sword of Terentia in his drawer. Sure, the ring would have made three, but he’d made it sound as though he’d already had three.

  Didn’t matter. She had three Artifacts, and she needed to stay focused to make it out of this alive.

  Looking up and down the sidewalk as best she could through the revolving door, everything appeared clear, but she waited until a group of tourists passed by before hopping onto the sidewalk. Disappearing in a crowd was much easier.

  The cold air bit at her face, and she drew in a frigid breath, shoving the worry from her mind. Almost there.

  Almost free.

  Gasps from the tourists surrounding her yanked Dyre’s attention to the side. Pario stalked down the alley toward the group, eyes fuming and fangs dropped.

  The crowd scattered, knocking into her. She flowed with them, glancing over her shoulder, but Pario was upon them in a blink.

  Screams in foreign languages surrounded her. A darkness streamed into her sight, and she growled. No. She would not let him take her. Never. She’d die first.

  Knowing she’d never be able to defeat him, she grabbed her blade from her ankle holster. She’d bested the two minor demons from the roof last night, but Pario, he was one of the highest-level demons. Strong.

  And so very old.

  “I knew I saw you sneak into that bank.” He grabbed her arm just above the elbow and tugged. “You can’t escape me, Dyre. Ever.”

  She swung the blade and sliced through the chest of his jacket, but his grip only tightened. He spun with her, and she found herself deep in the alley. The light of the morning sun trickled down, but they were isolated. Alone.

  Damn it, he was going to get the ring.

  But he didn’t know where the others she stole from his room were. That, at least, gave her something to grin about.

  “What do we have here?” He reached for the strap of her bag.

  Deflecting his advance, she poked at him. He grabbed her by the neck and propped her against the brick wall, effectively immobilizing her more than a foot off the ground. She kicked up, hoping to hit the vulnerable spot. Too bad she missed, because his grip tightened. Much longer and he’d snap her neck for sure.

  He ripped the bag off her shoulders and released her. She landed on her feet but was met with an iron fist to her cheek. It spun her around and rammed her into the wall, face-first. White lights exploded in her vision as she sagged to the ground.

  “I knew you were hiding something from me. You’re beginning to be more trouble than you’re worth.” He stalked forward, dagger in hand and eyes flaring blacker than pitch.

  He’d crushed her larynx, so she couldn’t say a word. Every breath felt like razors. A salty, copper-tasting warmth oozed into her mouth, and she felt it creeping down her face, too.

  “I’ll take my chances on finding the other Artifacts on my own, you human wannabe.” He towered over her and plunged the dagger into her neck.

  “Hey!” A deep-timbred voice pierced through Dyre’s fear and the pain radiating through her neck and shoulder. It was soothing but determined. Familiar.

  Pario ducked, and a blade sparked off the brick, inches from Dyre’s face, but somehow he kept his lethal weapon deep in her neck.

  A man with jet-black hair and blue eyes sprinted toward Pario. “I knew I saw your piece of shit face around town.”

  A woman with long red hair sprinted toward them, another dagger in hand. Mavet? Was that a Mavet dagger?

  Darkness swam around Dyre’s eyes, filling them like a tide overwhelming the shore. Pario’s blade shifted in her neck, painfully slow, and he sliced the weapon across her throat.

  It was then she knew she’d die.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  “Halena, hurry.” Justin’s heart pulverized his ribs.

  He’d recognized Pario from the night he’d taken Yvonne. Then this morning, he knew he’d seen the demon as he and Halena left the coffee shop.

  If they could capture Pario, maybe it could lead to finding Yvonne. He knew he shouldn’t hope, but still, his chest flickered as if his heart knew Yvonne would come back to him.

  The massive demon, who was even bigger than Theo, shifted his weight, moving the blade again as if to finish severing the neck he’d buried his blade in. Justin couldn’t see the person for how slumped over she was and all the hair covering her face, but that didn’t matter—he had to save her.

  He hopped on the demon’s back and rammed his blade into his throat. Black blood spurted over his hand, coating it in slime. The bellow vibrated the air and ricocheted off the surrounding walls.

  Pario squatted, and with one push they were both airborne. He elbowed Justin with the force of a battering ram, and he fell off the demon’s back, ten feet in the air. Landing with a thud on his side, the wind knocked out of his lungs with a paralyzing whoosh.

  “Holy shit,” Halena said.

  He rolled to his side to see if the Gatekeeper was okay. She held a half-shredded golden bag out in front of her. The victim lay slumped on her side but wasn’t moving. Had they lost her?

  “Halena. Get the girl,” he forced out between gasps of air as his lungs settled down.

  She tossed him the bag. “Don’t lose that. That’s the ring!”

  The sack landed on his side, and he grabbed it before it clanked to the ground. He hopped to his feet, eyeing the girl. “Is she okay?” There was so much blood. So much…wait, it was black.

  She was a demon? He didn’t sense it. And why the hell would he be worried about a demon? Let her bleed—

  He stepped closer and familiarity hit him like a Mack truck. Black leather pants, gloves, and matted long black hair. It couldn’t be.

  His heart stopped beating. Time was suspended. Everything blurred except the motionless woman lying on the dirty, cold ground.

  Halena flopped the female onto her back, and her head tilted to the side for a full view. “Merde,” she yelled, jumping back, shaking her hand. “I touched her—”

  “Yvonne!” Justin dropped the bag and skidded to her side.

  The asphalt burned right through his jeans, but he didn’t care. Nothing mattered. She was here. Oh, Great One, let her be alive. There was so much blood. Her neck.

  “Yvonne!”

  Blood streamed from her severed neck. Black blood. Fangs protruded from her gray lips, and her skin was so pale. Cold. Long black eyelashes dusted her cheeks, but there was no movement.

  A whipping wind slashed through his jacket as if he wore nothing. “Justin?” Theo stepped beside him. “What is it?”

  More shuffling behind him, but he couldn’t take his focus off Yvonne. He pressed his hand to her neck. It wasn’t all the way severed. There was still a chance. “Help me.”

  His brother knelt beside him. “Holy Great One.”

  “Theo,” Justin’s voice cracked. “Help her.”

  “Pick her up. Quickly. We’ll splice her to the hotel.” Theo stood.

  “No, Theo. That’s not Yvonne. She bleeds demon blood, and I didn’t turn to ash when I touched her.” Halena pointed to Yvonne. “Splice to the stronghold in the U.S. You mustn’t leave her unguarded.”

  Justin brushed the bloody, matted hair from Yvonne’s face. Demon. His Mate was a demon. Two months she’d been lost to him,
and he finds her…a demon. Shit. He knew that if he ever found her this was what she’d be, but to see it before his eyes still hit him in the gut with the weight of a thousand barbells.

  “Theophilus. You know I’m right.”

  He let out a long breath. “I’m sorry, brother. Until she awakens, we must proceed cautiously.”

  Whatever. Justin only cared that Yvonne was here. He’d found her. Finally.

  He glanced up at his brother, then to Halena. She stared at him with narrowed eyes, but he didn’t miss the hurt in them. As quickly as he saw it, it vanished. The cold, calculated Gatekeeper resurfaced.

  A splice ripped open behind Theo. “Hurry, Justin.”

  Justin scooped Yvonne into his arms with Theo securing her head, keeping contact with her pale skin. Once standing, Theo tucked her head to Justin’s neck and guided them into the splice. Sadie joined them. He hadn’t even noticed she’d arrived with Theo.

  But what he did notice…Halena stayed back.

  The cold wind whipped around them, but with the next step, they landed on familiar ground. The containment area at their Arizona compound.

  The thought of putting Yvonne in one of those cells crushed his heart, but he knew Halena was right. This wasn’t Yvonne. This was Dyre. A demon. Evil.

  Theo opened the cell door while Sadie held Dyre secure.

  In unison, they worked their way toward the cot at the far end of the cell, keeping Yvonne from moving too much. The slice across her neck was deep, so they couldn’t take any chances. If only Theo could heal her, but Gatekeepers couldn’t absorb wounds on demons.

  Justin sat on the excuse for a bed and held Yvonne close. He hated that he couldn’t take her to his soft king-size bed in his room. That she’d have to awake in these horrible conditions.

  “Here, let me help you put her down,” Sadie said, her voice calm, soft.

  “No.”

  She stopped, eyes wide.

  “I’ll hold her.”

  “Justin, it’s not safe for you to stay in there. That’s not Yvonne. She could wake up and attack you!”

  He nodded to the door. “Lock it behind you as you leave.”

  Theo growled but didn’t say a word as he guided his Mate through the doorway. “As soon as she begins to heal enough to be moved, you settle her on the cot and come out here. Do you understand?”

  “Fine.” Whatever.

  He was never going to let Yvonne go. Ever.

  …

  Dyre faced the sun and closed her eyes as a subtle breeze kissed her forehead. Such a soothing sensation, as if the wind were soft lips brushing across her skin, pressing tender kisses on her closed eyes, then her temple.

  “Wake up, szép,” a gentle voice whispered in her ear. More slight touches followed.

  Were those kisses? She’d never experienced such tenderness. Such comfort. She smiled toward the sky, yearning for more. Her surroundings were muddled, but she thought she made out a field of grain, wheat maybe. It was waist-high, like when she lived on her farm.

  “Yvonne, dinner.” Her mom’s voice was like a song she’d forgotten. One she missed so much her chest ached. This memory, so long ago buried she’d nearly forgotten its existence. Oh how she wanted to be Yvonne again. Human and able to fall into her mom’s amazing hugs.

  Warmth spilled over her cheek, then along her neck and to her chest. She glanced down but didn’t see anything. Yet she felt something soft caressing her skin.

  More warmth, water. Yes, this was water. What was happening?

  Darkness plowed into the serenity of the bright, calming scene. Like a toxin, marring the beauty.

  “No,” Dyre yelled. “No!”

  Black leather covered her fingers, creeping up her wrist and to her elbows. Cold. Thick. Stiff.

  Yet warm hands massaged her throat, her cheek, and the nape of her neck. She opened her eyes and met the intense ocean-blue gaze of a man. Black hair framed his pale face. Black blood splattered his smooth flesh.

  As if the few seconds of energy spent to open her eyes wore her out, she fell into oblivion once again. Back to her retreat of peace, memories of her mom and a time where nothing was dark.

  A time before she’d been tricked into this life of a demon.

  Too soon, a chill pierced her neck like an ice bath. She jerked to a sitting position and scanned her surroundings. Bars in front with three concrete walls around her boxed her in a tiny cell. A window no bigger than a shoebox about nine feet up allowed the only bit of light in, and it was dim light to say the least.

  Where was she?

  She kicked free of the tangled sheets and planted her feet on the cold ground.

  More concrete. Where were her boots?

  Rubbing her eyes, she worked to clear away the confusion. She felt drugged, sluggish. Wait, her gloves were gone, leaving her in only her black leather bustier and leather pants.

  Through the bars, she spied a man on a chair in what looked like a hallway outside her cell. There were a few more chambers and at the end was a door, probably leading out of this dungeon. No other doors. No other way out.

  She returned her focus to the man. He was slumped over, facing her direction. His head dangled to the side, eyes shut. That had to hurt his neck, yet he didn’t move an inch. She couldn’t tell if he was even breathing.

  Locks of shaggy black hair dangled over his forehead. Splotches of darkness marred his pale, smooth skin.

  Wait. She’d seen that face while she dreamed.

  That mouth called to her. Those full red lips needed tasting. She eased off the cot, careful not to make a sound, and crept toward the bars. Who was he? A sense of familiarity tingled through her abdomen and jacked her heart rate up, but the knowledge of who he was eluded her. Teased her like a memory just beyond her reach.

  Fatigue weighed her down, as if crawling across the hard floor wore her out. Impossible. She was a demon. Strong. Healed easily. She—

  She stopped and grabbed her neck. Pario. He’d— She groped her flesh but found everything intact. Smooth. He’d nearly beheaded her. The man sitting so uncomfortably in this chair outside her cell had saved her. But why?

  “Hello?” She thought she’d said it out loud, but she didn’t hear it with her ears. Instead it felt as if fire and razors came from her throat it hurt so badly.

  The man hadn’t moved, either, so she was sure she hadn’t actually spoken the word. Her eyelids hung heavy over her eyes. No. She wanted to stay awake. To find out who this man was. Where she was.

  Oh, Hades. The ring. Where was it?

  She eased onto her side, ignoring the cold floor on her bare shoulder. She didn’t have the energy to fight off the chill seeping into her. Propping her hands beneath her cheek, she was able to keep the man in her sights. Yes. That’s what she wanted…to watch him. Be close to him.

  But he had been with that female Gatekeeper, right? Was she his Companion? Girlfriend? A growl bubbled in her chest. Silly as it was, it vibrated through her. Demon and a Shomrei…it could never be. But since she was floating away into dreamland, she could have him there. No rules. No reality. No cold.

  So yes, there she would have her mystery man.

  Chapter Thirty

  The door creaking open tore Justin out of a deep sleep. A pain radiating through his neck stopped him cold.

  “Ahhh, I see you have the sleeping-in-the-chair neck,” Theo said, his smile big.

  “What’s with the grin?” Justin stood, stretching toward the dark ceiling. He hated this dungeon.

  Theo pointed to the cage.

  There lay Yvonne, on the floor, her hand through the bars as if reaching for something. Yet she lay still, eyes closed.

  No fangs this time.

  “Yvonne?” He squatted before his former Mate.

  “Amazing,” Sadie whispered as she stepped from behind Theo. “She’s all healed.”

  The past three days had been the longest in Justin’s immortal life. Even though she wasn’t his Mate anymore, her bare should
er punctuating that depressing fact, holding Yvonne for the first twenty-four of those thirty-six unbelievably long hours was heaven.

  But it didn’t negate the fact that his Mark no longer graced her smooth skin. Their connection was severed, and The Great One would never allow a bonding between a Shomrei and a demon. Would He? Justin wasn’t sure he could accept being mated to a demon.

  “She wanted to be closer to you. Look how she’s reaching for you,” Sadie went on as she knelt beside him. “There’s hope, Justin.”

  He didn’t dare speak to Sadie’s comment. He wasn’t sure he could handle any more disappointments. At least his heart couldn’t. This Dyre…she just wanted to be with someone. Anyone. There wasn’t the Ahavah connection as with Yvonne. Innate. Intense.

  Well, he couldn’t say his feelings for this demon weren’t intense, but that was only because she looked like Yvonne. Minus the fangs and black blood.

  “She had the Ring of Episteme,” Theo said, his arms crossed over his chest. “Security cameras indicate she’d gone into the bank and retrieved it.”

  “She fed incorrect information about the whereabouts of the ring,” Sadie whispered. “Why?”

  Justin picked up Yvonne’s hand and reveled in the feel of her skin. Tiny fingers lay limp in his big palm. Pale against his darker skin, even though he was considered pale by many.

  “Where is it?” Justin asked.

  “Upstairs in our safe.”

  “Have you tried it?”

  “Hell, no. Until I know more about that thing, no one is going to be trying anything.” Theo’s voice rumbled. “But there’s more.”

  He looked up, refusing to let go of Yvonne’s hand.

  “You should eat. We’ll talk over breakfast,” Theo said as he moved to the door.

  “Tell me now.”

  Sadie stood and inched toward the door. “She’s safe, Justin. She’s still healing, rejuvenating. Come on. You need to eat.”

  He hated seeing Yvonne lying on the concrete floor, looking so alone and cold. What if she woke up while he was gone?

  “Just for a short time while she sleeps.” Theo waved him on. “She’s fine.”

  Well, besides being a demon, she was fine.