His smile returned but his eyes didn’t reflect it. “We all have our burdens to bear, Gray.”
A lump formed in my throat, suddenly aware of the distance between us. “Do you…still love me?” I held my breath.
Aldric’s eyes widened. “Darlin’, I never stopped. It’s always been you and it always will be. But I can’t give you what you need. Not with the guilt I carry in my heart. I get people killed. They risk their lives for me and they pay for it. I can’t let that happen to you.”
My heart sank and tears threatened to spill out. “I wish we could go back to how it was before. We had something special then.” My voice cracked and was barely above a whisper.
He nodded and squeezed my hand. “Maybe someday we will have that again. I’d like to hope so anyway.”
I opened my mouth to speak but was cut off by Dragos, grinning from ear to ear as he approached. “This wine is delicious. Have you had some?” He was enjoying the festivities in true Dragos fashion.
I managed a smile. “Not yet. Let’s go find me a glass.” I threw Aldric a look filled with regret and longing. A look filled with remorse for the life we once had. His eyes mirrored mine as he gave a slight nod just as Dragos dragged me toward the bar.
Inside the Wolf and Crescent, the covens danced and sipped on their drinks. With the battle looming, I was pleased to see they were obeying my orders and not getting too carried away with their festivities.
Dragos threw me a sideways glance as he placed a glass of cherry wine in front of me, his smile fading. “I know you still love him. If you’d rather be with him, I won’t stand in your way. I just want you to be happy, Gray.”
A knot formed in my stomach. I turned him toward me. “Love isn’t always enough to last forever. I’m not going to lie to you. I will always love Aldric, but he chose a different path. I have to live with that. It doesn’t mean I love you any less, just differently.”
His eyes darkened. “So, you would still be with him if he hadn’t let you go. You would not have chosen me.” He was not asking a question.
I sighed. “I will never know that. Life doesn’t work that way. We make our choices and we deal with the repercussions. Like ripples in a stream, each one affects the next. I love you, Dragos. I’ve loved you for four hundred years. Being with you again, now, is not a consolation prize.”
He ran a trembling hand through his dark hair. “I should have never let you go to begin with. We would not be in this mess right now.”
I cupped his face in my hands. “Maybe that had to happen so that we could be in this place right now. We took each other for granted back then. We were different. The love between us has changed for the better. Maybe we had to lose each other and love other people to appreciate what we have now.”
He nodded and kissed my fingers. “I promise I will never forsake you again. I would rather die.”
I kissed his cheek and pulled him into a warm embrace. He wrapped his arms around my waist and buried his head in my neck. I sighed as he left a trail of gentle kisses leading all the way up to my lips. Our mouths locked and a fire danced in my belly. I tasted clove and honey as his tongue danced around mine. He gripped the back of my neck, pulling me deeper with a desperate urgency. A hunger that needed to be quenched. My head spun as we came up for air.
His eyes lit up and a mischievous grin spread across his face. “When this is all over, I’m going to ravish you.”
I winked as my blood rushed hot through my veins. “We can break some more furniture.”
He chuckled and kissed me again, this time softer as his lips lingered over mine.
Our moment was interrupted by Valentina, her footsteps rattling the floor as she stomped toward us.
I spun on my heel and a chill ran up my spine. Her eyes were blood-red.
“Arcadia is missing. Along with four of my top-ranking Lupi.” The veins in her neck were raised and bulged out like a fresh tattoo.
My heart raced. “Are you sure?”
She stomped her foot, arms crossed. “I’ve looked everywhere. She is gone.”
Dragos clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes. “If your little boyfriend has anything to do with this, I will tear out his throat.”
Valentina hissed. “Lycos is on our side. He had nothing to do with this.”
I huffed. “I’m more concerned about what Arcadia is up to. I knew she couldn’t be trusted, but this doesn’t feel right. Maybe she just went out to scout ahead.”
Dragos snickered. “Yeah, to scout out the best way to ambush us. We need to be ready for anything.”
Valentina nodded in agreement, but still looked sour from his comment about Lycos. “I’m already on it. A few Rougarou have picked up her scent. She went into the city.”
My head pounded. I knew Arcadia wasn’t my biggest fan, but I was still her sister. I couldn’t believe she would double cross us like this. “What about Tobias and the rest of the Lupi? Have you mentioned anything to them yet?
She shook her head. “No. I wanted to come to you first since this is your…family.”
I grabbed her shoulders. “You are my family, Val. I’m not going to let her get away with anything. We need to tell the others. Especially the Lupi. They should know the truth about who they’ve been blindly following.”
In agreement, we marched outside to deliver the bad news. Amidst the gasps and shock-filled murmurs, I locked eyes with Tobias. I searched his face for any knowledge or recognition but found only a dark rage in his eyes. His face twisted and contorted like a demon.
He stomped toward me. “I will kill her myself.”
I flinched from his tone. I knew he wasn’t the most loving father, but this was cold even for him.
I took a deep breath and chose my words carefully. “That won’t be necessary. I have other ways to debilitate her without ending her life.”
Tobias snickered. “I will do what I have to do to protect this coven.”
A surge of anger shot through me. Who does he think he is? “You will do nothing. Don’t forget, I call the shots now. You saw to that when you made me Imperator. I am ordering you to back off from this one.”
He gritted his teeth as we stared each other down. My eyes flashed, black as night.
He grunted and threw up his hands. “The last time you showed mercy, your mother almost killed us all. Don’t make that mistake again.”
I took a step forward, our faces only inches apart. “Arcadia is not Jezebel. I’m the only one she wants to kill. I will not stoop to her level. She is unstable and needs to be contained. My mother was evil. Arcadia is just…misguided.”
Tobias shook his head. “You’re making a mistake. How can you be so naïve?”
My heart ached. “She’s your daughter. And Pythia would never forgive you. You need to let me handle this. You need to let me keep you from doing something you will regret.”
His brow crinkled. “You have so much potential, Gray. Your power is unmatched. And yet…you waste it.”
I clenched my jaw. “I have killed people for far less with my bare hands. The darkness simmers below everything I do. Every thought I have. Don’t underestimate me and don’t tell me how to lead this coven. If you get in my way, I will contain you too. The only thing I’m wasting right now is time talking to you.”
I gave him a dismissive nod as he finally relented and sulked away, dragging his feet and mumbling under his breath.
I let out a frustrated groan as Chaos came up behind me. His eyes lit up with amusement. “I see where you get your stubbornness from.”
I shot him a glare. “I’m nothing like him.”
Chaos smirked. “I’m nothing like my father either. But he always surprises me.”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t patronize me.”
His wings flapped slightly, and it sent a shiver down my back. In my annoyance, I had almost forgotten how his presence affected me. It was like a moth being drawn to the flame—enticing, but threatening.
His smile faded. “Ce
rberus knows we are here. I can sense him. It is time.”
Butterflies swarmed in my stomach as I clutched my sun blade. I nodded and went to gather the others.
Twenty-One
The sky over New Orleans was a fiery red. The sun was masked by smoke and flames. I gazed out at the magical barrier separating us from them and said a silent prayer to Apollo that it would hold long enough for us to send them back to hell.
Layered in protection spells against the shadow demons and banshees, the covens moved into formation behind me. Dragos and Valentina stood to my left while Aldric was on my right. Chaos hovered over us, flapping his wings. Dionysus was noticeably missing from view. I bit my lip. Knowing the gods, he probably set out ahead to get a better vantage point. At least that’s what I had hoped.
On my signal, we marched into the Quarter to the sound of Zari’s war drums. The beat thumped in my ears and my chest, sending tingles of adrenaline coursing through my veins. The sky rained ash and fire on the desecrated streets of our beloved city. My rage grew as I surveyed the damage.
We turned down Pirate’s Alley and my lungs tightened as the smoke grew thicker. It poured out of every window and every crack in the ground. My stomach turned as the stench of burning flesh hit my nose. New Orleans was a ghost of its former self. It looked more like Tartarus.
We approached the Three Blind Mice and I motioned for everyone to halt. Cerberus was in there. I could feel it. Black sludge oozed out from the door crack, seeping onto the sidewalk like spilled ink. The door rumbled and shook.
I drew out my sword and called out to my army. “Hold!”
The covens moved into formation but then froze in their places, awaiting my next command. The door roared like thunder. Smoke billowed out as the black sludge rushed out like a river.
I braced myself, my teeth chattering. Dragos and Valentina crouched down, daggers out and fangs bared. Aldric stood stiff with an arrow locked and loaded, aimed at the door.
The building shook, rattling the windows. I planted my feet into a wide stance, grounding myself with magic, the sun blade in one hand and a dagger in the other. “Wait for my signal!”
The chorus of hisses and heartbeats racing behind me was deafening. I tightened my sweaty grip around the hilt of the sun blade, allowing its energy to flow through me.
Another roar rang out and the windows shattered out. Candy colored glass rained down upon us. “Shields!”
In one collective movement, we crouched down and raised our shields over our heads, creating a protective barrier. Shards of glass struck down and ricocheted off, like fireworks.
After a few moments of silence, I stood and scanned the building. “Back into formation!”
The front door to the Three Blind Mice continued to rumble. A heat radiated from it. It began to bend and warp and stretch out, threatening to burst. I regained my footing and took a deep breath, bracing for impact.
With one final rumble, the door flew off its hinges and spun directly toward me. I threw up my shield and deflected it away. Turning my attention back to the building, I drew in a sharp breath. Shadow demons.
They slithered out, hungry and desperate for a body to claim. There were at least thirty of them, but there were more of us. One by one, they came toward us like an assembly line. “Don’t let them take you,” I yelled out.
The Lupi growled as they shifted into wolf form, the only way that they could not be taken by the shadow demons. They were our first line of defense. The demons screeched and howled as the wolves tore into them, destroying their sludge filled flesh like rabid dogs. I choked back bile as the stench hit my nose.
I turned to the others and held up my sword. “Keep holding!”
To my right, Aldric was firing off arrow after arrow, disintegrating shadow demons on impact. His hands and breath were steady as he took them down, quick and methodically. His blue eyes glowed like the base of a flame against the black war paint, smeared across his face.
As the last of the shadow demons went down, my heart raced. I trembled in anticipation as the banshees emerged, peeking their heads around the sides of the building. Some of them hung off the roof, twisting and contorting their bodies.
I turned to face the covens and closed my eyes. I drew up the Narcissus magic and let it coarse through my veins. My throat burned and scratched as it traveled to my fingertips. Raising my palms, I let it pour out and envelope the entire group. Within seconds, the barrier was up. They would only be able to hear each other now. I whipped back around and the four of us knocked back the potion. All sound left our ears.
The banshees swooped down, screaming in our faces. They pulled at their hair and limbs in a fit of hysteria. We held and waited. I glanced up at the sky just as Chaos swooped down. He landed with what must have been a thud as the banshees bounced up from the movement.
With a swiftness I had never seen, he raced between each one, snapping their necks like branches on a skeleton tree. He laid each one down carefully, whispering in their ears as they went stiff, their faces left permanently frozen in horror.
I held my breath as his eyes scanned the skyline. I followed his gaze. After what seemed like an eternity, he turned to me and nodded. I let out a sigh of relief and released the covens from the barrier.
My ears popped as my hearing started to return. I shook my head, fighting the dizziness. Nausea crept into my throat. I swallowed hard to keep it from coming up.
I drew in a sharp breath and a shiver ran down my spine as movement fluttered out of the corner of my eye. Giant black wings flapped in the distance. My body went rigid and I held out my sword. The covens followed suit. I shot a quick glance toward Chaos. He stood casually, a smirk on his face.
The winged creature swooped down and landed hard on the pavement, cracking it straight down the middle of the street. I let out the breath I’d been holding. It was Dionysus. He chuckled as he saw the look of worry on my face turn to relief.
I started to relax then gasped as he unfolded his wings. He was carrying Seven.
Dionysus and Chaos looked at me with amusement, their expressions identical. Seven stumbled forward, confused and weak on his feet. His eyes darted through the crowd, taking everything in.
I raced over to him and threw my arms around his neck. “Seven. You’re okay. Oh, thank Apollo. You’re okay.” Relief flooded through me.
He crinkled his brow. “Are we doing what I think we’re doing?”
I whipped around to face Dionysus. “Did you not tell him anything?”
He snorted. “I thought you would be happy he’s breathing on his own again. You are a hard woman to please, Gray Wynter.”
Dragos gritted his teeth but placed a gentle hand on Seven’s shoulder. “Yes, mate. It’s happening. We are at war.”
Seven nodded his head. “I’m glad I didn’t miss it. What do you need me to do?” He looked in my direction.
I shot Chaos a scowl before turning back to Seven. “Just stay close to me for now. I will need your help with Cerberus. He’s in there somewhere…hiding like a coward.” I purposely raised my voice at the end, hoping the demon guardian would hear me.
Valentina embraced Seven. “I’m so relieved to see your face right now. What you did for Gray was brave. You’re a good man, Seven.” He shrugged but the corners of his mouth turned up into a grin.
I nodded in agreement. “Yes, thank you for saving me. I don’t know how I can ever repay you.”
His eyes darkened. “You can start by helping me kill Cerberus so I can get my wife back.”
I squeezed his hand. “I promise you we will. Now, we need to split up into groups and comb the streets for more demons. I’m not leaving until we’ve destroyed every last one of them.”
I took Seven, Valentina, Dragos, and Aldric with me. Chaos also insisted he accompany us, sending Dionysus to watch over the Witches. We branched out in all directions from Lafayette cemetery and the banks of the Mississippi to uptown New Orleans and the Garden District. For my group, I chos
e the latter. It was where Valentina and I lived when we first arrived here. Our villa was burned down but my scent was still all over it. I imagined we might run into a few friends there.
The streets were quiet. Too quiet. Like something was lurking around the corner, waiting to jump out at us at any moment. I gripped my sun blade and it instantly steadied me. I imagined it was the next best thing to having Apollo actually at my side. Chaos smirked as he watched like a hawk, much to Dragos’s displeasure.
I craned my neck to look up at him. “Enjoying the view?” I couldn’t hide my sarcasm.
He chuckled and dove down, causing everyone to jump as he landed next to me. “Just keeping an eye on you, little one. The Furies have been following us since we left Pirate’s Alley.”
I froze, my eyes shifting to black. “And you’re just telling me this now? How far back are they?” I spun around, blade drawn.
Dragos, Valentina, and Aldric immediately encircled me.
Chaos cocked his head to the side. “They are at a safe distance for now. I suspect that will change shortly. But you never know.”
I grunted in frustration. “Do you always have to speak that way? Everything is a riddle leading down into a rabbit hole with you.”
Dragos snickered. “Gray, don’t even bother with him. I will protect you.”
Chaos stared daggers at him, his smirk never leaving his lips. “We’ll see about that.”
Aldric sighed. “Gray can protect herself. Stop acting like barbarians.”
Valentina giggled, then caught herself. Her face fell and her eyes burned blood red. She whispered, “Do you hear that?”
I nodded, straining my eyes in every direction. It was a low humming sound, sweet and melodic like the Siren’s song. It buzzed in my ears, louder and louder. All the hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
A shrill hiss, like nails on a blackboard, lashed out from behind. I whipped around and drew in a sharp breath. The Furies. All three of them. Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaera. Their faces were identical, like triplets. The only distinguishing feature was their hair. Each a different color. Brown, blond, and red. Their eyes were the color of obsidian, smooth and glossy. They circled all of us like vultures but kept their attention only on me.
Gods and Demons (Blood and Darkness Book 3) Page 14
