by D. G. Swank
“We’re not even sure what it does,” Collin said with a scowl. “You thought it would close the gate to hell, but all it did was make an annoying noise.”
I rolled my eyes. “Ahone told me the ring’s purpose is to give me an advantage over the demons.”
“Sure, it momentarily stuns them, but it doesn’t kill them. It won’t help us with the likes of Okeus.”
I got up and walked over to a duffle bag by the window and started to remove a wooden box. “We have the watches.”
“We don’t even know what they do, Ellie,” he said in frustration.
My father had left me three pocket watches of varying ages. I had no idea what they were supposed to do, but I believed they had some purpose in all of this. I popped open the lid, partially to make sure they were still there. “The Guardians had an identical watch in the Ricardo Collection. That has to mean something.”
“I agree, but until we know their purpose, it’s kind of beside the point.”
I closed the box and returned it to the bag. “I haven’t forgotten about my vision of the end.”
I’d seen how we ended this, in a vision when I’d almost died. I’d seen Collin and me standing at the gate to Popogusso, me wearing the ring that sings and holding the Sword of Galahad while Collin held the spear. My power had made the gate blast open in blinding light. I hadn’t forgotten that I was the alpha and the omega.
Collin was silent.
I glanced over my shoulder at him. “We still haven’t found the spear.”
In the spiritual world, we’d learned, most everything had a counterpart. The spear was the counterpart to the ring that sings. The Guardians had agreed to bring it to the meeting at the botanical gardens, but they’d reneged. Now that the Great One was gone, maybe it was time to look for the spear. It had definitely figured into my vision of the end.
“We don’t even know where to start,” Collin protested. “For all we know, the assholes never had it to begin with.”
“The only way we can rule it out is if we search their treasure trove.” I stood and gave him a wry grin. “Sounds right up your alley.”
He shot me an unamused look.
“There has to be a way to kill Okeus.”
“There’s no killing Okeus,” Collin said. “You can’t kill a god. Tsagasi said so himself. You can only take their power.”
I moved closer to David. “Then why does Piper have the title ‘slayer of demons and gods’?”
“Maybe she only has the power to slay demigods and minor gods,” David said. “She killed Caelius, the sex god, last night.” He lifted his gaze to Collin. “I suspect Collin’s right about Okeus. I don’t think he can be killed.” He gave me an apologetic look. “But I’d suggest we hold off on making a decision about whether to work with them until we hear more about their plan.” He took a breath. “The Great One has been our focus for weeks. Now that it’s gone, we need to decide what comes next.”
Collin studied him for a second, then nodded. “He’s right.”
David continued. “I think the best thing we can do is get some sleep and get up early enough to discuss this with clearer heads before we meet with them. We need to present a united front.”
I ran a hand over my head. “You’re right, David.”
I leaned over and pressed a grateful kiss to his lips.
“I’m going to take a shower,” Collin said as he headed for the door. “Let’s meet here a half hour before we meet with Piper and Abel.”
“Yeah,” I said as a wave of exhaustion swept over me. “See you in a few hours.”
Collin opened the door and walked out, then closed it behind him, leaving me standing in front of David.
“Ellie,” he said in his soft, compassionate voice. The one that made me feel loved and cherished. With everyone else I had to put up a badass front, but with David I could just be me—twenty-three-year-old Elinor Dare, waitress and heir to a bed and breakfast that no longer existed, someone completely too unqualified to be fighting demons and trying to save the world.
He slid an arm around the small of my back and pulled me close, resting his cheek on my stomach as I wrapped my arm around his head. I needed him more than I’d ever needed anyone and that scared the shit out of me. I’d learned long ago not to rely on people, not because they were unreliable (Collin being the exception), but because I’d learned at the tender age of eight that fate stole the people I loved. My mother. My father. My stepmother, Myra. Only I’d recently learned it wasn’t fate at all. It was a creator god with a massive ego and a plan to use me to get even with his brother.
My fingers dug into David’s hair, holding him closer as though it would keep him safe, because I knew it was only a matter of time before the gods stole him from me too.
“Hey,” he said, tilting his head to look up at me. “It’s going to be okay.”
Collin was so wrong. I wasn’t an optimist at all.
David’s face became blurry through my tears, and he stood and began to gently remove my clothes. “Ellie, love, you need sleep.”
My tears began to flow down my cheeks as David swiftly and tenderly undressed me, placing kisses everywhere he touched, not out of desire, although I knew he had that too, but because he knew I was empty inside.
“I wish Abel hadn’t killed the Great One,” I finally whispered in shame. “I needed to do it myself.”
“I know, love,” he said in his soothing tone as he pulled off my pants, leaving me in my underwear. “I know.”
I started to quietly sob. “Why can’t I just be happy it’s gone? What is wrong with me?”
He stood and gathered me in his arms, and I realized he’d undressed too. “Because the demon stole the last family member you had. I know you loved Myra as though she’d given birth to you herself, and trust me, Ellie, she loved you too, more than anything. But she’d hate for you to become consumed by hate and vengeance.” He tilted my face up to look at him. “Collin’s right. You see the good in things. In people. You’re a glass-half-full person.”
“And maybe that’s what got her killed,” I choked out. “Maybe if I’d been more cynical, I would have…”
“Would have what?” he asked as he placed a kiss on my temple. “You would have noticed sooner that the Great One had killed her and used her form? The damage was already done, love.”
“So I’m supposed to just let the demons do whatever they want?” I asked, my voice full of bitterness.
“No, Ellie, you keep fighting. You keep fighting to save the people you love and to save the people that other people love, because you, Ellie Lancaster, are destined to save the world. But not right now,” he said, tugging me down to the bed. “Right now you need sleep.”
I lay down on the cool sheets and let him fold me up in his arms and his legs. Out in the real world, I was the person standing between evil and the man I loved, but behind closed doors, he was the one who saved me.
Chapter Nine
PIper
I woke to a kiss pressed to the nape of my neck and evidence of Abel’s arousal pressed against my backside.
“What time is it?” I murmured, still in shock at the turn of events that had led to Abel sharing my bed.
“Early enough for me to have you again before we leave to see the seer.”
“And what does that translate into in real time?” I asked with a grin as I rolled over to look up at him.
“Eleven.” A shadow crossed over his eyes. “I confess to my inner struggle between letting you sleep and devouring your body again.” He pressed a kiss at the top of my head. “But I’ve warned you before, Waboose. Self-sacrifice is not my forte.”
“In this instance, I’m glad you were selfish.”
A predatory look filled his eyes, one that stoked a fire deep in my soul. His mouth covered mine, hot and demanding. Our connection felt like a vast ocean, and we’d barely swum below the surface.
He lifted his head, searching my face in wonder. “What is this thing between
us?”
I didn’t need to ask what he meant.
“You would be in a better position than me to know,” I said, already breathless.
He straddled my waist, pinning my arms next to my head. “I very much like my current position.”
He kissed his way down to my breasts, still holding me down and making me squirm with frustration.
“Abel.”
“I’m just getting started, Waboose.”
His mouth trailed over my stomach and down between my legs. I gasped as white-hot heat spread through me. “Abel.”
“Piper,” he murmured in a low tone. “You are perfection.”
He brought me to climax, then rose over me.
“My turn,” I said, trying to lift up and push him off me. “I get to taste you now.”
He gave a slow shake of his head as he spread my right leg out. “I need to be inside you. Now.” Then he pushed in with one long, deep stroke.
I arched up to meet him, already on the cusp of another orgasm. What is this hold he had on me? Every part of my body sang for him.
“You are mine, Piper Lancaster, Kewasa, shepherd to lost spirits, witness to creation, slayer of demons and gods, creator of worlds. You are mine and I am completely and utterly yours.”
We didn’t talk after that. The pleasure was too great for me to do more than gasp and call out his name, and I didn’t need the ring to know the same was true of him.
Afterward, we lay on my bed, wrapped in each other’s arms.
“Do you think Deidre will have the answer?” I asked softly, my hand resting on his chest.
Surprise filled his eyes. “You’re suddenly uncertain she does?”
“Unlike you,” I said, “I’m uncertain about a lot of things. And Deidre is a wish and a prayer. If she doesn’t have the answer, I’m hoping she’ll give us a shove in the right direction.
“You don’t have any other ideas?”
“I’ve never given it any thought,” he said with a frown. “I’ve been waiting centuries for the mark to appear. Never once did I wonder how to keep it from happening.”
“You’ve really wanted to die for centuries?” I asked, overcome with sadness.
He flashed me a soft smile. “Cheer up, Waboose. I haven’t been moping for hundreds of years, only about the last forty or fifty. I knew my window of opportunity to move to the next phase would be appearing, and I was watching for it.”
“Still, Abel…forty or fifty years…”
He turned silent, then said, “We have to come up with a contingency plan in case we can’t stop the mark from appearing.”
I sat up. “What? No.”
Abel rose too, turning to face me. “Piper. We have to be realistic, and you have to be prepared.”
“No!”
He reached up to cup my cheek. “Waboose, hear me out.”
I moved to get out of bed, but his hand encircled my wrist and tugged me back.
“You can’t run from this,” he said, his voice full of a sentiment I wasn’t used to from him—compassion.
“I don’t run from danger, Abel,” I said bitterly, “but I refuse to discuss killing you.” I pulled from his grasp and slid out of bed before he could stop me.
“We need a plan, Piper,” he said, sounding anguished. “I need to know you have a plan in case we can’t stop this.”
His sincerity caught me by surprise, and I stopped to face him.
Relief washed over his face when he saw I was listening.
“Fine,” I said, feeling like the word was a betrayal. “We can discuss it if Deidre can’t help us.”
“That might be too late,” he said, getting out of bed. “The mark will likely appear without warning.”
My anger surged again as I turned my attention to my rumpled sheets. “You can’t expect me to have this discussion after…” I gestured helplessly to the bed “…that.”
“Sex?” he asked with a smirk. “I never took you for a prude, Piper.”
“I’m not. I’m perfectly capable of calling it sex, but that wasn’t sex,” I said. “I’m not sure what that was.” It wasn’t love. I hadn’t known him long enough for it to be love, yet it was supernaturally powerful.
He took a step toward me, grabbing my wrist and tugging me to his chest. His face was expressionless as he reached up to tuck a lock of hair behind my ear. “Each time we’re together, our bond becomes stronger. More permanent.” A sad smile filled his eyes. “If I were a better man, I would stay away from you until the mark appears. Then I would find a way to anger you, a betrayal so deep you would feel no guilt or remorse for killing me, yet…” A soft sigh escaped his lips as he lowered his mouth to my ear and whispered, “I find myself unable to resist your siren song.”
He bit my earlobe, then licked it, sending a shiver down my spine.
I slipped an arm around the back of his neck. “I don’t want you to stay away. I want you here, so stop talking like that.” I took a deep breath. “I need a shower and then I need to check on Tommy before we leave.” I put a hand on his chest, pushing him back when he made a move to follow me. “I’m showering alone. It will take twice as long if you join me.”
“I want to visit your pocket world.”
I opened my mouth to protest, then stopped. “Why?”
“I want to see your first creation. I want to meet the ghost that has captured your heart.”
I raked my teeth over my lower lip as I considered it. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea. Tommy might be afraid of you.”
“What if I agree to leave the moment he shows any sign of distress?”
“You would do that?”
“Of course.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Why do you really want to see him?”
“I told you already.”
Something felt off, but I couldn’t figure out what ulterior motive he could have other than curiosity.
“Let me think about it,” I said, turning to my dresser to get clean underwear. When he didn’t say anything, I glanced over my shoulder at him. “No rebuttal?”
His gaze had drifted to my bare ass. “I was too distracted by the view.”
Although I would have liked nothing more than to savor the hot water until it turned to cold, I decided moments after I stepped into the shower that I didn’t want to take Abel up to see Tommy, so I rushed to get out, hoping to make my way up to the attic without Abel even knowing. While I was worried about the five-year-old ghost’s reaction, my main concern was Abel’s eagerness.
I didn’t feel great about my decision—I’d literally bound my soul to Abel’s mere hours ago, and here I was sneaking around behind his back—but I also knew that he would go to questionable lengths to do what he thought necessary to protect me.
With that in mind, I stuffed my bathrobe in the linen closet and opened the door to the hall, making sure the coast was clear. My bedroom door was still closed, so I tiptoed down the hall to the door to the attic staircase, reminding myself that ten minutes in the attic was equivalent to an hour here. I could only stay a few minutes at most, and even then Abel and I would likely still be late to see Deidre. I knew I should probably wait, but I hadn’t seen Tommy since the night before.
I opened the door to the attic, worried when I didn’t see the ward Deidre had made to help keep demons away. I’d left it on the steps. Who had moved it? Abel?
I was starting to panic when I heard Collin say, “Looking for this?”
He sat at the top of the stairs, holding the cotton bag on his upturned palm.
Closing the door behind me, I put a hand on my hip. “You’re just dying to know what’s so special about my attic, huh? I take it you’ve already done a thorough search and found nothing else of interest?”
Still seated, he tossed the bag into the air then caught it. “I suspect your secret has something to do with this?” He took a deep breath, and his cocky grin faded. “Tsagasi says it’s none of our business what’s up here, but our fate seems to be tied to yours
right now and you have a giant bullseye painted on your back. Throw in the fact you’re sleeping with Okeus’s son…let’s just say I need to know what you’ve got hidden up here before I decide if I’m willing to risk Ellie’s life on this.”
“Not your own?”
A scowl spread across his face. “I deserve whatever I get, but Ellie…” He sat up straighter. “Ellie is too trusting and the Great One killed the last family member she had, and then you pop up…”
“You don’t trust me,” I finished.
“I want to, Piper,” he said, and I heard the sincerity in his voice. “I really do, but while Ellie’s the trusting type, I’m more of a doubting Thomas.”
Collin wasn’t leaving, and the only way I could make him leave was to create a scene, which I wasn’t willing to do.
I let out a sigh. “You have to come down here.”
His eyes hardened. “I’m not taking no for an answer.”
“I’m not asking you to leave. I’m taking you into the world I created, but you have to come down here and touch me so you can walk in.”
Surprise filled his eyes. He’d probably expected me to put up more of a fight. The fact that I was taking Collin and not Abel wasn’t lost on me, but I doubted Collin would do any damage. I suspected he’d be too shocked at what he found.
He slid past me on the stairs and put his hand on my shoulder. “Now what?”
“Well,” I said, taking the ward from him and dropping it onto the step beneath us. “Usually I open the world from outside the door, but I confess, this is all new to me and I’m learning as I go.”
“What do you mean open the world?”
I glanced over my shoulder. “You checked out the attic already, right? You saw my father’s office.”
“Yeah.”
“I created something else. Hold on to me and I’ll see if I can make this work from here. When I start to go upstairs, you keep holding on and follow until I say you can let go.”
“Okay…” He sounded skeptical, not that I blamed him, but he wouldn’t be for long.