All Hallows' Satyr (The Cursed Satyroi Book 5)

by Rebekah Lewis

  That really sucked. The one thing all satyrs wanted more than anything was to rid themselves of the curse. Something didn't add up though. "If he can't perform, how'd he cause so much noise last night?"

  Melancton clasped his hands together and leaned back in his chair. "His tongue is still in working order…and he didn't give that nymph any reprieve until dawn. Honestly, I am impressed. Daphne was too." His lips thinned. "I had to ensure she did not become jealous, by distracting her with my own."

  Too much information… Jacen would have done the same thing though. Maybe that was what had drawn Aphrodite to keep Adonis around for as long as she had and what made her so greedy to have Ariston too. "Anything else I need to know?" He regretted those words as he asked them.

  Melancton nodded once. "Are you ready for the bad news?"

  Gods, what now? "Adonis being here breaking doors before we re-open wasn't the bad news?"

  "Theron stole your panpipes."

  Chrys glared at his cell phone. No signal. Still. He'd been hiking through this godsforsaken jungle for a day and night and missed having a thyrsus dearly. Dionysus' power had flowed through those handy little magic staffs that could transform into other objects, including cell phones—that never lost a signal. Hell, he could have called someone in Olympus had he wanted to with that. Now though, even with a set of panpipes, his phone was just a phone, nothing extraordinary, and he didn't know how the humans had not lost their minds with annoyance and threw every last one of them into the sea yet.

  Frustrated, he shoved the phone into his pocket and kept on his path. He had to see for himself what was going on in Brazil, what Echidna had left behind.

  "Who are you and why are you here, stranger?" The sound of a fierce, feminine voice behind him gave him pause. Well, that and the pointy, stabby tip of a weapon against the back of his neck.

  Chrys raised his hands and slowly turned his head. The weapon, a spear, retreated enough to allow him to rotate his body. The woman holding it toward him, however, did not appear to want to lower the weapon. She was gorgeous, with smooth mahogany skin and ebony hair braided elaborately atop her head. She wore olive pants and a black shirt that hung off one flawless shoulder. Eerie yet beautiful yellow eyes narrowed on him.

  "I can smell the immortal blood within you. Why are you looking for the vrykolakas tribe?"

  "Ah, so you all did stay in Brazil. I had heard you'd moved on. That your queen—"

  "What about her?" The challenge in the question was emphasized by an added thrust of the spear, stopping before hitting him in the throat.

  Chrys looked down at the spear and then back up at her. "Do you mind not pointing a weapon at me while we speak?"

  "I do not know you. So pardon me if I decide when and if I should lower my weapon."

  The woman was breathtaking, and her warrior resolve made her even more so. Undoubtedly, this vrykolakas had to be one of the Amazons that Lamia had created. Not all of them were Amazons, but from the records at Bach Industries, those who were not had been adopted into the tribe after they were freed from their compulsion. Since they had set up a tribe, it was evident they were perhaps returning to their way of life here in the Amazon jungle, so far from their original homes in the Mediterranean despite also working toward creating lives and identities in the United States. Chrys could see why the name of this place would feel like home to them, but he didn't understand why they had come back here with what seemed like no intention of leaving again.

  "As I was saying, I heard your queen had created an organization to benefit women and children."

  "She did." The woman's uncanny eyes twinkled, almost glowing. He could stare at them all day, but it wasn't the time for it.

  "And not all of you wished to move out of the jungle?"

  "The jungle is our home. We leave when necessary." She lowered the spear, finally, and took a less defensive stance. "And I repeat my question from before: who are you, and why are you here?"

  Might as well state it simply. He took a step back to give her space and slid his hands into his pants pockets. "My name is Chrysander, Chrys if you like, and I'm hunting dragons."

  The woman's eyebrows raised. "That dragon will eat you alive."

  He sucked in a breath. "So, it's real then?" With Bach Industries under his control at the moment, he had resources he wouldn't have had before. Could he get rid of a dragon before it could cause any real chaos and destruction? Either of which would definitely draw human attention, more so than he already had.

  The woman nodded. "That's why I came back to New Amazonia. Destroyer, what the dragon has named himself, is the last child of the Titan Echidna. It wishes to avenge his mother's death. He grows larger and stronger by the day, and nothing gives him more power than his hatred for Olympians and the Satyroi."

  "The…Satyroi you say?"

  She nodded. "Were they not who slew his mother?"

  "Shit." Well, that would cause some hatred all right.

  The woman looked him up and down. "Are you a satyr, Chrysander? You wish to die on this day?"

  "Negative on the dying, but affirmative on the satyr. I…didn't know he knew satyrs even existed." Echidna and Lamia were both dead. "Who told him?"

  "Helios."

  Ah, okay. This obviously was a situation bigger than the satyrs themselves and what occurred with Dionysus. Helios, the Titan god of the sun, still had not been captured by the Olympians and had turned to encouraging a dragon to attack Olympus, apparently. That was just peachy. It overcomplicated his trip beyond what he'd been prepared for, which, in all honesty, hadn't been much. "Please, take me to your queen so I can discuss the situation and assess how the Satyroi will play a role in hunting Destroyer before he leaves Brazil to take revenge." Chrys had little doubt the dragon would leave Brazil if vengeance motivated his actions. And with Helios whispering in his ear, it could get really bad before anyone had a chance to prepare for it.

  The woman smirked. "I am Queen Myrine. And the Satyroi do not belong here. Go back to playing with your nymphs and panpipes and let the vrykolakas take care of this."

  Chrys flinched out of surprise. He should have realized, but then again, how could he? "No disrespect, Your Majesty, but as the new CEO of Bach Industries, I'm cleaning up a lot of Dionysus' messes, including this one. We can either work together, or this will get a whole lot more complicated."

  One moment Myrine was standing before him, calm and collected, and the next he was face down in the dirt with the warrior queen kneeling on his back and tying his hands with a length of rope. "I choose complicated. Congratulations, Satyros. You are now my prisoner, and if you do not wish to be sacrificed as a peace offering with the dragon, I suggest you start thinking up a better plan."

  Chrys barely heard a word she said. Even with the pills Nestor had created, he was so turned on by Myrine's actions that he wasn't going to fight back. He'd think of a plan, all right.

  A plan to get the warrior queen of New Amazonia into his bed.

  12

  Sage's whole body simultaneously felt lethargic and energized in a way she never had in her entire life. Of course, her life hadn't even lasted a quarter of a century yet, but still. Adonis had one of his strong arms wrapped around her waist, his fingers curled against her inner thigh. She understood it now—why Aphrodite wanted him back. Had wanted a set of him and his twin. Sage didn't know if she'd survive two of Adonis if both were that devoted of a lover. Though he was unable to benefit from the intimate act, that had been the best sex she'd had.

  Ever. No questions asked.

  Adonis was a paragon among men. The myths might not all be true, but that one seemed to be. Holy. Shit.

  "I can sense you getting wet for me." His raspy voice sent heat through her body. Like it was completely in tuned to him now. Trained on voice command. Those fingers against her leg turned upward, strumming against her opening, slipping inside. "Mmm. The sweetest honey." He kissed her shoulder. "One way or another, I'll break this curse. When I get my
dick into you, we're never getting out of bed again."

  Her inner walls clenched around his fingers as his promise sent her into a fast orgasm. "Adonis!" She gasped, trying to keep her voice down. A quick glance at the door showed it was still agape from being broken. She hadn't been able to control her cries in the early morning hours. Gods, everyone in this building and the ones next door had probably heard.

  "That's it," he urged her, kissing her neck. "Open for me like a budding flower." Aftershocks from the orgasm made her body tremble uncontrollably as he rubbed his thumb over her sensitive clitoris. Two of his fingers continued to pump in an out of her in a mimicry of sex. "I wish we could stay here all day."

  She wished she could stay there forever. Gods, the only thing that would make it any better was if she could pleasure him in return. Sage turned her head to meet his gaze. When she licked her lips, his focus shot to them, and then he was kissing her as he had last night. Nobody kissed like Adonis. Like the only thing worth living for was tasting her lips.

  There had to be a way to break Pan's curse. There had to. A door opening and closing downstairs broke them apart. Adonis' ran his fingers over her clit one last time and her body sobbed at the loss of his attentions. No matter what happened now, she'd crave his touch above all else, his kiss. He'd ruined her for others, and she couldn't be any more satisfied than she was in that moment.

  "We should probably go downstairs," she said, sitting up and stretching her overly relaxed muscles.

  Adonis stretched as well as if the action were contagious. "I agree, but only because if you don't put clothes on, I'm going to have my mouth on every inch of that body again, and we'll never leave."

  That sounded utterly amazing. "Are you trying to give me some kind of sex version of Stockholm syndrome?"

  He raised an eyebrow. "Is that working?"

  "…Maybe?"

  Adonis brushed his thumb over one of her nipples. "I've always tried to be a considerate lover. The curse, well…the original one, made it easier because we don't have to rest like mortal men after an orgasm."

  And he wanted to give that up? The whole mad-with-lust aspect of it would be a downer, so maybe it wasn't worth it in the long run. But she couldn't stop herself from teasing him anyway. "Are you saying it's going through the motions at this point, or you like to practice?" In her experience, men who didn't enjoy giving oral sex to women simply wouldn't do it. He might have made himself on occasion if it was only to make a point. Most of the night though… And with how skilled he was at it. Yeah, he enjoyed it. Her body heated once more at the reminder of his skills. She wanted him, all of him, and she would find a way to break his curse one way or another.

  "Just wait, little girl." He chuckled wickedly, clearly picturing something he wanted to do to her. "Just wait."

  How intriguing. She shivered with delicious anticipation. "Promises, promises, old man."

  He laughed openly, and in the daylight, she finally saw him happy for the first time. The way his eyes and very being lit up—he was so handsome. It broke her heart that he'd been brushed aside and hated by everyone who should have loved and supported him. Including Aphrodite.

  Bitch.

  He'd made mistakes. He owned those mistakes and obviously felt terrible about them. His regret was tangible when the subject arose. From her understanding of it, he hadn't actually gone through with the thing he'd been punished for the second time, and if she met Pan herself, she'd give him a piece of her mind about that.

  When they finally made it downstairs, Adonis hesitated at the staff entrance. Sage intertwined her fingers with his and he looked at her, almost as though her action startled him. "We'll get through this. One step at a time. They let you stay the night, and that's a first step. Think about moving forward and not rehashing the past."

  He nodded and then knocked on the door.

  Melancton, as gorgeous and intimidating as she remembered, opened it and quickly assessed the two of them before backing up to allow them entrance. Sage shamelessly rubbernecked, expecting more…she wasn't sure…mythologically abundant dwellings? Some statues…a column or two? Yet what she found was a breakroom like any other company breakroom: chairs, a couch, a television, and a kitchen area. A few other doors were farther back in the area, probably closets or bathrooms, and the one with a sign for stairs next to it must lead to the first floor where they slept.

  She wasn't disappointed; that would be dumb. Everything was…so normal.

  "Is he awake?" Adonis asked, still holding her hand. The change in him was remarkable. Even though he couldn't receive the same pleasure he'd given her, it was like their intimacy had calmed the rage within. Was it because she'd stood up to Aphrodite? Or merely because he didn't want to lose access to the only nymph he'd found?

  She frowned. He had used her already, hadn't he? Some of her happiness sobered as she contemplated what she meant to the satyr she was close to falling for. And it was hard not to after a night like that. Sage would have to harden herself before the other shoe dropped. Physical pleasure and affection were different things. She'd said as much to him when he'd claimed he felt something for her last night.

  Yet…the change in him told a different story. When he'd been using her to keep his curse at bay, he hadn't been pleasant. In fact, he'd been extremely pissed off by the whole situation and annoyed with her and her constant chatter.

  "Sage?" His hand being pulled out of hers startled her back to the present. She'd zoned out. Adonis looked down at her with concern. "Are you all right?"

  She forced a smile. While she didn't like the circumstances that had brought them together the night before, she was thankful they had. "Yes, sorry. Just lost in my thoughts."

  Adonis' features softened again and he nodded. "I'm going with Melancton to speak to Jacen. Daphne will stay here with you, and London will probably be up in a minute. If you need anything, one of them can come get me."

  This amused her, and she raised a brow. "Am I a secret from Jacen?"

  "Nah," Adonis said, "he's probably naked, and maybe I don't want you looking at other naked satyrs right now."

  That was the last thing she expected. "Oh." The two satyrs disappeared through a door and down the stairs. If he didn't want her looking at other naked guys, did that mean…he was interested in her? Like, as in…more than to break his curse? Butterflies erupted in her stomach and she felt warm all over.

  Daphne sidled up next to her, dressed in a silky silver maxi dress that was longer in the back than the front, and a pair of dainty pink sandals. Her hair was braided, with the length of it over her shoulder. "Satyrs are not embarrassed by nudity."

  "As it would seem." There wasn't more to say about that, really. Adonis wanted her to himself, and that was as far as her thoughts could process at the moment.

  "Why don't we take you upstairs to shower and change?"

  "I, um, didn't bring any clothes." Her dress was wrinkled and in need of a wash, and the pajamas she'd borrowed had been stolen by a goddess. She was wearing Adonis' sweats and a T-shirt again.

  Daphne gestured to a pile of dark clothes sitting on one of the chairs. A pair of black flats lay on the floor beneath it. Sage hadn't noticed them before. "Already have you covered there. I can wash your clothes while you shower."

  "You're a blessing." A shower sounded amazing.

  Daphne winked. "I take it the issue with Adonis has been mended, and he realized he didn't need the use of his favorite appendage to pleasure a woman?"

  Abashed, Sage turned to pick up the pile of clothing. She wasn't embarrassed by her sexuality, but by the fact that she had yowled all morning like a cat in heat with the door broken. "Sorry if we, uh, woke you."

  Daphne grinned. "It didn't bother us. In fact, it stimulated a quite decent morning."

  Sage's cheeks burned, yet…the fact that people had heard them and gotten turned on sort of turned her on. Maybe she was a bit of an exhibitionist and never knew. Or maybe it was the nymph hormones again. "Oh, well…that
's good, I guess."

  She was definitely happy to take a shower and hide for a little while. Though the thought of having more time with Adonis later proved the proper motivation not to take too much time hidden away.

  Adonis stood awkwardly in the doorway to Jacen's bedroom, hands in his jeans pockets, wishing he was anywhere else right now as the Arcadian stared at him with a speculative gaze. Jacen's dark hair was at that awkward stage between short and long where it would always appear messy even if he brushed it, and he lay in bed with a blue sheet pulled up to below his pectorals.

  "So," Jacen said. "It is true. You're really here…" While his words didn't sound angry, they didn't sound at all that welcoming either.

  Adonis didn't have the patience to deal with another round of Twenty Questions. He'd rather be upstairs with Sage. Funny to think he'd wanted nothing more than for her to leave a day ago. Part of that had been annoyance at his situation, and bafflement that his temperament didn't easily scare her off. "I guess I am."

  Melancton, sensing the tension, sat on the end of Jacen's bed and gestured toward a chair for Adonis to sit in. While he complied, the other Boeotian turned back to Jacen and asked, "How are you faring?"

  Jacen groaned. "Waiting for my ribs to heal and about to go out of my damn mind."

  "It should only take another day or two."

  "And that's what I'm afraid of." Jacen glowered at the ceiling fan. "If Pan can change London into a nymph, how am I supposed to go through the Satyr Moon ritual with her? Ariston said the earth produced a dais that bound Lily to it. I can't stand up."

  Well, at least Adonis wouldn't be the only one with performance issues. He immediately regretted that thought. It wasn't Jacen's fault that Adonis had gone and gotten an additional curse. "It should be fine."

  Jacen's gaze shot to him. "And how do you know? Oh, that's right. You were there."

  Adonis winced. He wished he'd seen Dionysus' manipulation sooner. Had seen how his anger made him easy prey. But he hadn't, and he couldn't change the past. "What you described did happen, but as Melancton can attest to, when Artemis drew the moon chariot back so Ariston wouldn't miss the eclipse, they were in his cabin. Unbound. It played through." As Jacen gawked at him, Adonis added, "You can stay in bed and let your woman take control." At least Jacen might get a chance to try. There wasn't a lot of hope he and Sage would be able to go through with it if his curse refused to let up.