Immortal Rider

by Larissa Ione

  “No,” Arik said. “To me.” He finally caught Limos’s gaze and he hoped she got his silent message loud and clear. We’re married, and we’ll stay that way, no matter what bullshit you pull.

  Him, bitter? Nah.

  “I don’t understand.” Reaver’s dull, limp hair brushed his robe as he turned back to Limos. “Marrying Arik won’t negate your contract.”

  “It most certainly did.” Limos gave a haughty sniff, as if offended that Reaver would dare question her. “When Arik removed my chastity belt and put his—”

  “Okay.” Arik cut her off before she could go into detail neither her brother nor an angel should hear. “He gets the picture.”

  Reaver grimaced. “Too clearly.”

  Limos looked down at her feet and then back up at Reaver. “I get that you’re busy, and you have all those stupid rules to follow, but you know… there aren’t many people I care about, and I don’t have many friends… and I wanted you to be there.”

  “I’m sorry, Limos.” The regret in Reaver’s voice turned it to gravel. “Those responsible for keeping me away will pay. I promise you that.”

  Arik’s phone buzzed in his BDU’s leg pocket, and when he palmed it, Kynan’s text flashed on the screen: Will be at Ares’s place in two minutes.

  Oh, this ought to be good.

  He excused himself, leaving Limos and Ares to question Reaver on his whereabouts, but Arik wished them a silent good luck with that, because the angel didn’t seem inclined to answer.

  Arik met Kynan in the courtyard, cutting Ky off before the guy could get “hello” out of his mouth. “Do you know what you idiots almost did?”

  The other man’s expression remained passive, even though Arik had just jumped his shit. “I have no idea, but I’m guessing you’re going to fill me in?”

  “I’m talking about Than’s Seal. Sound familiar? Do you know what was supposed to break it? Sex. His Seal was supposed to be broken by sex, so he’s been celibate his entire life.”

  Kynan paled. “Wait… what? Regan said he was a virgin, but we didn’t know why… oh, fuck.”

  “Yeah. Morons. You told me Regan was going to seduce Thanatos, but—” Arik broke off at the behind you gesture from Kynan, and sickly, Arik turned around to see Limos standing in the doorway, flanked by Reaver and Ares, her eyes sparking purple fire.

  “You knew? All this time you knew why Regan was at Than’s place, and you didn’t tell me? Your lie could have caused the freaking Apocalypse!” She advanced, glaring at him with savage contempt that speared him right through the heart. “After all your bullshit about hating liars, you did it to me. You did it to me!”

  Arik had no defense. Not even a lame, “You’re one to talk,” because while it might be true, the fact was that he was a hypocrite of epic proportions, and that was what this was about. Not his lie, not his omission. His hypocrisy.

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  “Well?” she demanded.

  He didn’t have a chance to answer, not that he knew what to say, because Cara hurried up to them… attempted to, anyway, since Hal kept trying to grab her shoelaces. “I just checked on Thanatos. I think you might want to see this.”

  Ares went bowstring taut. “Is the venom wearing off?”

  “No, everything’s fine. But… you really should come with me.”

  Ares shot Arik a you’re mine later look, and Limos did the same. Man, Arik was in a metric fuckton of trouble, and all things considered, he’d really rather go up against Ares than Limos. He had to fix this. Had to fix it now.

  He started after them, but Kynan grabbed his arm. “A little advice from one married man to another. You have to chase her. Women never forgive you if you don’t. But give her a few minutes to calm down first.” Kynan smiled wryly. “Trust me on this.”

  Arik’s muscles twitched with the need to go after his woman, to explain the unexplainable and fix all of this shit between them. He wasn’t going to feel solid with her until all of their dirty laundry was aired, and until he knew for certain that she would never try to get rid of him for his own good. They had to get past this, and even though he knew Kynan was right, Arik couldn’t wait. He was a soldier, and his job was to destroy the enemy.

  Right now, the enemy was his own stupidity.

  He started forward again, but this time it was Reaver who stopped him. The angel stepped out of the house, seized the back of his neck, and frog-marched him over to Kynan as if Arik was an errant schoolboy.

  “We’re going to chat first,” Reaver said, releasing Arik so both he and Kynan could get the you’ve-been-bad-boys lecture. “When did The Aegis decide to send Regan to Thanatos?”

  “A few days ago,” Kynan said. “Why? And you look like hell, by the way.”

  “I live for your opinion,” Reaver drawled. “Now, what was the purpose of taking this action?”

  “We recently found a scroll written by a Guardian who was an accurate Seer back in his time.” Kynan shifted his weight a few times. “He… indicated that in order to save the world from Pestilence, an Aegi had to mate with a Horseman.”

  Reaver’s eyes narrowed. “Where did you find this scroll?”

  “An Aegis chamber Limos took me to.”

  “Ah.” Reaver looked out at the sea surrounding the Greek island, his expression troubled, and Arik swore the guy was shaking a little. “Interesting, isn’t it, that while I was being held outside of summoning range, Limos took you to a scroll that instructed you to do something everyone thought would break the Horseman’s Seal.”

  “We didn’t have any reason not to trust Limos. She said she found the chamber while looking for her agimortus. We didn’t take action lightly or without researching the items we found in the chamber.”

  A lump of suspicion the size of a Gargantua demon sank into Arik’s gut. Limos hadn’t mentioned this chamber, hadn’t brought up doing anything to help The Aegis recently. Was this yet another secret? Another attempt to start the Apocalypse?

  No. He couldn’t think that way. She’d told a lot of lies, but he believed she regretted them all, and if she’d done something to lead The Aegis astray, it hadn’t been because she wanted to.

  A breeze kicked up, ruffling Reaver’s robe, and he tightened the sash before returning his attention to Kynan and Arik. “Since Than’s Seal didn’t break, no harm done, but the situation leaves a lot of questions.”

  “Like what will break Than’s Seal.” Arik blew out a frustrated breath. “Even he thought sex would do it.”

  Kynan’s face took on an oddly green cast. “Ah… there’s more.”

  Oh, Jesus. Hoping Kynan wasn’t going to say what Arik thought he was going to say, he ground out, “What else is there?”

  “It’s Regan,” Kynan blurted. “She’s pregnant.”

  Absolute silence fell. And then Reaver stumbled backward, eyes burning blue fire. He let out an angry roar, and then he was gone.

  Fuming, feeling like a damned fool, Limos followed Ares and Cara to the rear of the mansion. How could Arik have kept something so huge from her? This wasn’t a, “Honey, no, that dress doesn’t make your ass look fat,” kind of thing. He’d known The Aegis had sent someone to betray them all, and he hadn’t warned them. How long had he known? Had he been part of the decision?

  Maybe, during their wedding ceremony, instead of admitting to how many other women he’d kissed he could have said, “Oh, hey, by the way, Regan is here to fuck your brother and I knew about it.”

  Yeah, that would have been good. How many people had died in Greenland because of his treachery? And what kind of consequences were yet to come?

  And now, because of The Aegis, Thanatos was incapacitated, trapped inside his own head with only his rage as company.

  He lay where they’d left him, on a king-sized bed in one of the smaller guest rooms. Someone had put sweat bottoms on him, and a blanket covered his upper body. A hellhound lay on the bed beside him, and judging by the look Cara gave the hound, Limos figured he was suppose
d to be on the floor. But really, one didn’t tell a two-thousand pound, man-eating monster where to sleep.

  “If we have to keep Than here long, he’ll need an IV to keep him hydrated,” Limos said, her voice betraying her anger so clearly that the hellhound bared its teeth as if she were a threat.

  “We’ll also take shifts to keep him company.” Ares wrapped his arm around Carais aoune wers waist, and Limos swallowed, wondering if she and Arik would ever find that intimacy again. “What is it you’re worried about?”

  Cara gestured to Thanatos. “See for yourself.”

  This couldn’t be good. They all eased close to their brother, who looked as peaceful as if he was sleeping. Except his eyes were open. They stared upward, unmoving but aware. Limos tensed, knowing exactly what he was experiencing and how he felt. At least he was with family, and he knew no one would hurt him. He’d be kept comfortable and safe.

  Cara tapped Than’s foot. “Watch.”

  Instantly, Than reacted. Not his body… just his upper lip. And… holy hell… his teeth. His canines elongated into fangs a tiger would be proud of.

  Ares stepped back, nearly knocking Limos over. “What the hell is that?” He turned to Limos. “Do you know?”

  She couldn’t tear her gaze away, even when Than’s mouth went back to normal. “I have no idea. Is his Seal intact? Reseph… Pestilence… he grew fangs when his broke.”

  Ares peeled the blanket away to reveal Than’s Seal, which, thankfully, was whole. But that didn’t explain the carnivore hardware. Was Thanatos as confused as they were?

  “These past few days have been interesting as hell,” Ares muttered. “And by interesting, I mean fucked up.”

  “Yeah, and I’m part of that.” Limos took a deep breath, knowing she had to do this and bracing herself for Ares’s fury. “I’m so sorry for what I’ve done and all the lies I’ve told. I don’t expect you to forgive me, and I understand if you hate me—” She choked up at that, because while she might understand it, she couldn’t bear it.

  And then she didn’t have to. Ares hauled her up against him so hard her breath was knocked from her lungs.

  “I don’t hate you,” he said, sounding a little choked himself. “I hate what you did, and I hate that you lied for so long, but I meant it when I said I loved you no matter what. I was wrong to have taken that away from you and said you were as bad as Pestilence. Can you forgive me?”

  Oh, God. He was asking for forgiveness? How stupid she’d been for ever doubting him. She’d been raised to believe that everyone was only a single word or a single act from hating and betraying you, and it had never occurred to her that love could truly be unconditional.

  But then, no matter how angry she’d been at her brothers, she’d loved them. No matter how angry she was with Arik right now, he still held her heart. Why had she not figured all of this out before? Like, a couple of thousand years before?

  “There’s nothing to forgive, Ares,” she whispered.

  He squeezed her tight, and then gently set her aside. Relief made her legs a little wobbly until she looked over at Thanatos. He had so much to deal with on top of her lies.

  She sank do ">She sawn on the mattress and took Thanatos’s hand. “Hey. I know you can hear me. Everything is going to be okay. We can get Kynan to explain about Regan—” She broke off as Than’s lip peeled back again, and there went the teeth.

  This time, though, crimson spokes flashed in his yellow irises, and a scorching burst of heat came off his body. His tattoos writhed, the scythe on his neck slashing at the scorpion.

  Taking a deep breath, she eased off the bed and backed away, but the banked rage in him continued to burn.

  Looked like they not only had the mystery of why he was fangy, but it was also apparent that he was still a very, very angry Horseman, and that was never a good thing.

  Thirty-six

  Reaver stood atop Mount Megiddo and cursed. Cursed until clouds swirled above him in an angry black vortex, and then he cursed some more. He couldn’t get to Heaven, not until his wings grew back. This was like being an Unfallen again, stuck between realms and practically powerless.

  At least here he could call to his Heavenly brethren… assuming they’d answer. His body was full of marrow wine—but not enough. He craved it so bad he was shaking, and he either needed to score some more or get clean, and right now his brain was too pickled to consider the clean thing.

  His scalp grew tight, and he turned as a strike of lightning torched the earth a few yards away. When it was gone, Harvester stood there with a burlap bag in her hand, her eyes glowing, her lips as blood red as the wine she’d forced down his throat.

  “Someone’s a little pissed.”

  Pissed didn’t cover it, and it took every ounce of restraint Reaver had not to launch himself at her. “What have you done?”

  Cocking her head, Harvester smiled at him. “You just found out why I kept you prisoner, I see.” Thunder cracked, and rain pelted them with big, stinging drops. With a wave, she cast an invisible umbrella that shielded them both. “We couldn’t very well have you telling The Aegis not to send anyone to fuck Thanatos, now could we?”

  Some of his fury evaporated, replaced by a sudden suspicion. She didn’t seem at all upset that Than’s Seal hadn’t broken, which told him she’d known it wouldn’t. Ending the Horseman’s celibacy hadn’t been the goal, had it?

  “How did you know that his Seal wouldn’t break?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Of course I thought it would break.”

  She was lying. But why? He looked up at the churning clouds and then back down at the evil fallen angel and realization dawned. “You know what Thanatos’s agimortus is, don’t you?”

  “No idea.”

  “You lie.” He lunged ,for her, but without his wings, she was faster, and his hand closed on empty air.

  She stood three yards away, smirking. “I would never lie. I’m outraged that you would think that of me.”

  “Outraged, my holy ass.” He ground his teeth. “How is it that you know about Thanatos’s agimortus and I don’t?”

  “I’m special. You’re an angel with no memory of his past and with especially dirty wings. Oh, wait, you don’t have any wings at all, do you?” She reached into the bag she was holding. “Brought you something. Enjoy.” She tossed a bottle at him, and he caught it one-handed before realizing he should have let it break apart on the rocks.

  Marrow wine. The flask burned his skin, almost as if it were sinking roots into his palm. Rain began to pelt him. Harvester was gone.

  The wine… he watched in horror as his body disconnected from his mind, watched as he uncorked the flask and lifted it to his lips.

  Stronger than this. I’m stronger than this.

  The words penetrated his brain, but not because they were true. It was because he’d said them before, and he’d been wrong. But when? Why? The hazy memory was about as substantial as a phantom and harder to pin down. But the fact that he had any recollection, no matter how fuzzy, was a miracle.

  Maybe a touch of Arik’s military-honed ability to recall important details was what had clung to Reaver when Gethel had separated his soul from the human’s. Interesting.

  A thousand bursts of pain shot through his hand, and he looked down to see that he’d squeezed the flask so hard it had shattered. Clay shards were embedded in his palm, wrist, and fingers. Marrow wine mingled with blood and rain and ran down his arm and puddled on the parched ground at his feet.

  Part of him wanted to get down on his knees and lick the wine before it seeped into the dirt. Somehow, he resisted.

  Harvester was not going to win again.

  Harvester flashed back to her place, where Whine was waiting for her, head bowed, eyes downcast. She’d been in a shitty mood when she’d found Reaver at Mount Megiddo, where he’d been cursing up a storm. Literally. She hadn’t wanted to see him again so soon after dropping him off, but orders were orders, and only a fool ignored Lu
cifer.

  Feed his addiction, Lucifer had said. Keep him sodden. Easier said than done. Although she’d fed Reaver a steady diet of marrow wine while she had him in chains, he’d never asked for it, even when withdrawal tremors and fever set in. She’d stood nearby, wine in hand, waiting for him to beg.

  Never once had he done so. She’d been forced to overpower him and dribble it into his mouth. Once he tasted the wine, he took it freely, but he’d possessed the incredible ability to never ask for it.

  Such a proud, powerful angel.

  She both admired and despised him for that.

  Bitterness stung her tongue as she beckoned Whine to her. In a heartbeat he was before her, kneeling and kissing her feet. The scrape of his teeth on her skin infuriated her—the only time he was ever even a little careless in the way he touched her was when the full moon was rising in his native Hungary, which meant that she’d need to release him for three days in order for him to work off his warg energy.

  Dammit. This day just kept getting better and better. Eons of planning was coming together and yet… it was so close to falling apart.

  Arranging for the Aegis girl to get pregnant had been one massive gamble.

  In nine months, that gamble would either pay off for Harvester or ruin her.

  In nine months, the Apocalypse would either be averted… or it would break the world.

  Thirty-seven

  Arik stared at the empty space where Reaver had been, wondering when and if the world was going to get back to normal. His best guess amounted to when hell freezes over, and wasn’t that a joke, because if Pestilence got his way, hell was going to be right here on earth.

  “Dammit,” Kynan said. “This is a mess.”

  “A mess?” Arik pivoted around. “Understatement of the century, don’t you think? The Aegis is fucking lucky they didn’t break Than’s Seal with that little stunt.”

  “At least we were trying to do something to stop the Apocalypse,” Kynan snapped. “The R-XR is sitting on its damned ass. By the time they act, it’ll be too late.”