“Then we’re all done here—”
“Wait,” I said, my thoughts running rampant in my mind. There were so many threats—so many unknowns—that had driven us from our home and forced us to hide underground and rely on the likes of Hermes and Deimos for aid. Why not have Kaine and his Dark Ones search for those that had nearly eviscerated my mother, provided I got to take their lives? Why not ally with the enemy of my enemy if it bought me time to save my brothers in the Underworld and devise a way to eliminate Phobos? “I have one condition—one to replace Oz’s unofficial third.”
“Khara—”
“I’m listening,” Kaine said, eclipsing Oz’s objection.
“You and your Dark Ones will help us find them and take them out, but I will kill those responsible for what happened to my mother. The traitors and executioners. The rest are yours.”
Frustration plagued his countenance. “Agreed.”
“Great!” Oz shouted, sounding less than pleased. “Can we get the fuck out of here now?”
“Am I to have no say in this?” my mother asked.
“No,” Oz and I replied in unison.
She looked between us again and sighed. “I suppose this behavior should not surprise me; I trained one of you and birthed the other. Perhaps this is part of my punishment…”
“That seems likely,” Oz said, picking her up again. Then he turned to Kaine. “Go get your boys and make yourself useful.”
“And when we confirm their location? What then?”
“You know how to reach me,” was all Oz said before he walked past Kaine, once again giving him his back, as though he had not stabbed him in it before.
I turned to Deimos to find him watching Oz like a hawk. “You must stay behind and protect my mother as you would me.”
He looked me up and down, then nodded. “I will.” His dark gaze drifted to Kaine, and a wash of terror swept the hall. “Touch her in my absence and I will make your torment endless.”
“And if I touch her in your presence instead?” Kaine asked, his arm lifting slowly, as though he would dare to right then and there.
Deimos had him by the throat against the stony wall. “Your hand will be the first of many parts I remove for the affront…”
“Down, boy.” Oz mocked the god of terror over his shoulder, as though there would be no repercussions for that act. “We need him alive—for now.”
“Kaine,” I said as Deimos released him, “assemble your Dark Ones at the Victorian. We will be there soon enough.”
The Dark One snapped his wings in a show of aggression, then flew down the narrow corridor, nearly slicing Oz as he passed.
“Fucking dick.”
I rushed to catch up to Oz, with Deimos close behind. We made our way through the circuitous halls until we stood before my father’s chambers. I had barely spoken to him since I had restored his reign, a fact that haunted him, according to his wife. Guilt coursed through me as I lifted my hand to knock. I wondered how my request would be met.
I wondered if he would turn his back on me, as it might seem I had him.
Seconds after my knuckles rapped on the heavy wood, Hades stood in the open doorway, looking at me with wide eyes. He did little to hide his utter shock and disappointment at my delayed reappearance. I did not know how that would bode for us.
“Khara…”
“Father, I am sorry to ask this of you, but my mother...” I said, moving aside. She climbed out of Oz’s arms, much to his protestation, and stepped forward. Hades’ eyes widened further when he took in her blood-soaked clothing and pale skin. “She needs refuge, Father. Will you grant it?”
He stared at her, speechless, as she took another step closer.
“King of the Dead,” she said, bowing her head ever so slightly. Her reverence for his title was surprising, given the past between the gods and the Light. “Please allow me to thank you for all that you’ve done for Khara. For doing what I could not…”
“I never thought I would meet you,” he said softly, eyes raking over her disheveled state, “but I had hoped to. There was much I planned to say.”
Her back stiffened at his words. “Say what you must. I deserve that and more.”
“Celia—”
“No, Ozereus. It is true. You…Hades…you both have sacrificed so much to keep my Khara safe. Whatever punishment I must weather for this, I will. You paid your price. Now I must pay mine.”
“I do not wish to punish you,” Hades said, voice soft and kind. “I wish to thank you.”
My mother looked confused. “Thank me…?”
“Have you learned how Khara came to be with me?” he asked.
“Yes. She explained on our way to the Hallowed Gates.”
Hades nodded. “I will admit that, when the covenant was made and Khara came to live here, I did it only to ensure those six months every year with Persephone. I thought it would make her happy to be able to see her mother, and so I took this dark, remote creature as my ward to give Persephone what I thought she wanted.” His eyes fell upon me, and all I found in them was sadness. “I was not built to love as a parent does—not created to share that kind of bond with another—but Khara changed that.”
Celia smiled. “She is so special, isn’t she?”
“Very special,” he replied, smiling at me. “In so many ways, she is my world. And it has been difficult to watch her grow into this fearsome being before me—to see her physically harmed as part of her evolution.” His gaze darted to where Oz stood behind us. “To watch her make mistakes as to whom to trust and whom to give her heart.”
Celia followed his line of sight to her former warrior. “I entrusted her to Ozereus once, and he did not fail her. I imagine he can be trusted with her heart as well.”
“I do not share your confidence,” Hades replied flatly.
“Then perhaps you can share your daughter’s. You have raised her well, Hades. Trust in that.” She turned to face him once again, her radiant smile nearly glowing in the firelight. “If you would permit me, I would love to stay and hear stories of Khara’s time with you in the Underworld.” Her smile faltered. “I have so much to learn…so much time to reclaim.”
Pity flashed in my father’s eyes and he reached his hand toward her, inviting her in.
“Please,” he said, stepping back, “make yourself at home.”
A tear fell from her eye as she accepted his offer. Then her arms wrapped tight around my neck, and she embraced me as though she feared she might never again.
“Do not underestimate them, Khara,” she whispered in my ear. “They will show you no mercy.”
“Fear not, Mother, for I will show them none in return.”
“That’s my girl.” She stroked my hair before pulling away. “Ozereus,” she said, looking over her shoulder, “you know what to do.”
He nodded. “Wish you could join us—for old time’s sake.”
“And I wish I were well enough to do so. But you must strike quickly. Waiting for me to heal fully would be a mistake.”
“I know.”
“Then you should be off,” Hades said as he walked toward me. “Be careful, Khara.” He, too, pulled me into an embrace. “And promise to return once you’ve done what you must—and follow through this time.”
“I will, Father.”
At the sound of that title, he squeezed me just a little tighter. “Dark One, consider this your chance to prove yourself to me—”
“Not that I need to—”
Hades went rigid in my arms. “Yes,” he said, his voice low and menacing, “you do.”
“Go, Khara,” Deimos said. “They will be safe in your absence.”
I pulled free of my father’s hold and nodded.
“Let’s get this shitshow on the road, new girl,” Oz said as he started down the hall. “We still have to stop and fill your brothers in on this plan. And we wouldn’t want to keep Kaine waiting.”
“Thank you,” I said to Hades. “I will be careful. And I
will return.”
I rushed after Oz, the stares of those watching us leave heavy on my back. The task at hand was formidable, and each of them knew it, as did I. But it changed nothing. The Light Ones would pay for what they had done—for their treachery—and I would use the Dark Ones to help. Perhaps Kaine would fall in battle and I would no longer have his threat against my brothers to face. But even if he did not, all was not lost.
I would do as my father had asked and return to the Underworld once we finished with the Light Ones, because I had to. I would come back and take the souls of my dead brothers into me, harboring them so that Kaine could no longer use them as leverage.
And then I would make him pay.
24
“Get ready,” Oz yelled to my brothers the second we walked through the magical doorway in the sewers.
“What’s going on?” Drew asked as he emerged from his room. “What did Deimos want?”
“He found my mother. The Light Ones tried to kill her and left her for dead,” I said as the others filed in, their expressions grave. “And for that affront, they will die.”
“Holy shit,” Kierson said. “But…she’s one of them.”
“A fact that didn’t seem to bother them when they damn near disemboweled her,” Oz growled, the memory still fresh in his mind.
“What’s the plan, then?” Casey asked, blades already drawn.
“We succeed in doing to them what they failed to do to my mother,” I replied. “And we shall have help in doing so.”
The boys shared a quizzical look. “From who?” Pierson asked.
“The Dark Ones.”
“Ummm, Khara?” Kierson started. “I know you’re pissed about this, but—”
“But that’s fucking nuts,” Casey finished for our brother.
“Kaine has his reasons,” Oz said, “and I don’t have time to go into them right now.” He looked pensive for a moment, concentrating on something I could not see. “We’re meeting the Dark Ones outside the Victorian—then we’re headed for the Hallowed Gates. So if you’re in, great. Grab your shit and let’s go.” I shot Oz a curious look and it was met with a smug grin. “Kaine and I still have our ways of communicating, new girl. Maybe I’ll explain them once this shit is over.”
”What would you have me do?” the Dragon asked from the shadows. He slowly stepped out into the light, his expression filled with caution. “Do you want my help?”
I looked from him to Casey and awaited his cue.
“Can’t hurt,” he said gruffly before stalking into his room to prepare.
The Dragon gave a nod before disappearing back into the shadows.
“Did you call Sean?” Drew asked as he approached. “Shouldn’t he know about this? I feel like this is the kind of thing we should tell him…”
“No!” I snapped before softening my tone. “There is no time. We attack the Hallowed Gates as soon as we join Kaine—”
“But how?” Kierson’s confusion was warranted. It was a place that none but the Light were able to tread—a place where I had once been told I would be safe from all others. But that had been yet another lie.
“Fear not, Brother. I have a plan.” I winked at him, as he so often did me. His smile in return was wide and immediate, and one of the things I loved so much about him. He found humor in mischief.
And we were about to be steeped in that and so much more.
“About that plan,” Oz said, pulling me into one of his beloved ‘sidebars’, “exactly how the fuck do you think this is going to work? I doubt you can draw them out. Surely they’ll think it’s a trap.”
“I do not plan to draw them out,” I said plainly. “I plan to break down the gates and storm their lands.”
He stared at me for a moment, concern in his eyes as he searched my face for something he clearly could not find. “Jesus, Khara…you’re not kidding.”
“I do not ‘kid’, Oz. Not about battle.”
“Or virtually anything else.”
“No, I do. Or have you already forgotten the blowjob comment from earlier?”
“Blowjob?” Casey growled as he stormed back into the room.
“Not the time to play the overbearing brother card, Casey. Besides, it was only a quick one.”
Oz’s words did little to help calm my brother.
“The plan requires me to go in first,” I said, knowing that would draw their attention back to the matter at hand. “It also requires those of you that cannot fly to be carried.”
The Dragon once again emerged from the shadows. “I will carry them on my back. You will need Oz at your side should things go awry.”
“And what about the fucking Dark Ones?” Casey asked. “We’re to trust that they’re not going to pull some shady shit once we get in—if we get in?”
“Of course not,” I replied, “but that is a problem for after. Kaine still wants my help, and to ensure it, he will not harm any of you. He is well aware of those terms, so I do not believe he will be a problem.”
“And his bitches will do as he says, so we’re good,” Oz added. “For now.”
“Then let’s get this shitshow on the road,” Casey said, heading for the door. Kierson and Pierson followed close behind him, with the Dragon tailing them. Only Drew stopped before me, hesitation plain in his eyes.
“Are you sure this is the only way?” he asked. “For you to go in first?”
I placed my hand on his shoulder and pulled him closer. “You have always watched over me, Drew. From the moment we met, you have done nothing but your best to ensure my safety. Know that has never gone unnoticed or unappreciated, Brother.”
“That’s not an answer,” he said, his expression hardening to the leader I had once known before his life had been lost, then reborn.
I clasped the back of his head and pressed his forehead to mine. “It was not meant to be.”
“Khara—”
“Know that I am PC, as you are, Drew. And I will not fail you.”
He did as I had done and cupped the back of my head. “You never have…”
He held me for a second longer before releasing me to join the others. Only Oz and I remained.
“You can’t trust Kaine.”
“I am well aware of that.”
“The Light Ones won’t go down easily.”
At that, I smiled. “I do not want them to. I want them to fight with their whole beings. I want their deaths to be earned.”
“You’re gonna keep this one interesting, aren’t you, new girl?”
I looked up at him to find mischief in his eyes.
“That, I can guarantee.”
We met the others outside and flew to the Victorian, where Kaine and his legion of Dark Ones waited in the shadows, wings out and ready. My brothers and the Dragon formed a line behind Oz and me, prepared to go to war should Kaine make a wrong move. I hoped for his sake he did not.
“This is all you plan to bring?” he asked, eyeing my reinforcements as though they were insufficient.
I canted my head. “Are they all you plan to spare?”
Anger blossomed in his expression. “I have brought every Dark One in existence,” he said, his gaze darting to Oz, “except for him—and you, of course.”
“Can we skip the ‘whose army is bigger and badder’ portion of this conversation?” Oz said in a put-upon tone. “Because all that will lead to is Casey going postal and a dick-swinging contest that will end with your hurt feelings when I whip mine out. So, if we could just take to the sky and get this insanity over with, that’d be great.”
Kierson chuckled behind me while Kaine glared at Oz and Casey grumbled something about being all the army we needed. I realized that Oz’s crude analogy had not been far off the mark.
“I brought them because they are all the PC we need. Does our agreement still stand?”
He nodded. “What is your plan?” I relayed what little I had, and his expression grew dubious. “I am going with you.”
“I do not ne
ed—”
“You cannot make an attack on the gates and not expect to meet immediate resistance.”
“Which is why I’ll be with her,” Oz said, inching closer to me.
“And who will flank her other side?” His question went unanswered. “You know as well as I do what they will do when we appear. We know because we met threats at the Hallowed Gates many lifetimes ago—together. She cannot go in without us both. This mission requires both cunning and speed, but we cannot risk safety to accomplish either.”
“Fine,” Oz growled, “but keep your distance. I don’t trust you, Kaine, and I haven’t for a long time—long before you got your soul sucked clean from your body. Stabbing me in the back certainly didn’t help.”
“Will they meet us with force before we reach the gates?” I asked, distracting them from their brewing fight.
“It’s possible,” Oz said. “There’s no way to know how they’ll react when they see you, given what we know now. Depends if they want you alive or dead…”
“Well, dead ain’t happening,” Casey said, stepping up behind me.
“I guess we will see when we arrive.” Kaine’s words were sobering. There was no room for failure in our mission. Not because my life might hang in the balance, but for the lives of my brothers and the Dragon—and Oz.
Kaine snapped his wings wide, and his legion mimicked his motion in eerie unison. The sharp sound rang through the street like a dark call to arms.
“Oz,” I said, turning to face him, “do you think you can remember the way?” I allowed a smirk to grace my face as I spoke. “Or have you been gone too long?”
The wry smile he gave me was answer enough.
“Follow me, new girl. You’ll get a great view of my ass from there.”
With a loud snap of his wings, he shot into the sky, never looking back. He did not need to. Within seconds, I was right behind him, followed by the Dark Ones and the Dragon, my brothers on his back. Together, we rose through the clouds, headed to a place that should have been my home. At one time, it would have been. But fate had had other plans, and I had gladly followed them to the present; a reality that now had me heading into battle against my mother’s kind—Oz’s and Kaine’s former brothers- and sisters-in-arms.
Unmade (Unborn Book 4) Page 17