I love you, he thought at me. I will spend the rest of my life proving that to you, if you'll let me.
I knew he loved me. And I knew I loved him. What I didn't know was how to deal with the sense of betrayal that had lodged its way into my heart, the anger that I felt every time I even thought about him.
When he pulled away, I let him.
We sat, watching each other. I could feel it from him, how much more he wanted. How hard it was for him to hold himself back, stop touching me when he did.
Maybe it was a good time to distract him. I wasn't ready for anything else just yet, and I had a few things I needed to tell him.
"I think there's a reason our connection never died, even though Nain's and mine did," I said.
"We love each that other more?" he said, raising his eyebrow at me, and I shook my head.
"That would be very fairy tale, wouldn't it? But that's not why. And your son is going to be insanely powerful, like you."
He just watched me.
"Which one of your parents could shift into any animal form?" I asked him.
"My mom."
"And her favorite was the huge black cat too, I bet?" I asked.
He nodded.
I watched him, wondering how he'd take what I told him next. His experiences with beings from the realm of the immortals hadn't exactly been pretty. "When I came to in the Nether after I resurrected there, I made my way to a cave to regain my strength. Once, when I woke up, there was a huge black cat guarding me. It brought me clothes and food. The first time I saw it, I thought it was you. Its power signature even felt similar." And then I told him about Artemis, and about his ancestry, and about how the first child of those gifted with Artemis' powers would have them as well. I told him about how excited Artemis was to meet him, about how excited she'd been at the prospect of actually getting to know the next generation of her family. And when I was done, he just sat, staring at me. "So I think that a lot of our bond's strength comes from the fact that we're both descended from the immortals," I said. "There’s a little something extra there."
"So you're saying I'll live a long time," he said.
"Unless someone kills you, yeah. Your natural lifespan, and your son's, too, will be very long. Artemis said it's not uncommon for her heirs to live a thousand years or more. So there are a few of you around."
"That's crazy," he finally said.
"It explains why you're so much stronger than other shifters we know."
"It doesn't explain our bond, though," he said. "That has nothing to do whether we're descended from immortals or not."
"You don't think so?" I asked, and he took my hand again.
"Maybe it explains why it didn't die. I can buy that. But you and me have never been easy. There’s always some reason we can't just be together and happy. We seem to have to fight for every peaceful, happy moment of our life together. And some of that is my fault, and not just what happened while you were gone, but some of the dumb things I did early on. Even with all that, I think we're worth fighting for. Don't you?"
I met his gaze, gave a small nod. "We are. I just need time."
"Well, apparently I have a lot of that. I'll give you whatever you need." And then he brought my hand to his lips, and he pressed a lingering kiss to the inside of my wrist, and I swore it sent fire through my veins. My entire body warmed at that simple touch, and when he pulled back and released my hand, his eyes had that mischievous sparkle that had always made my heart race. He knew everything he did to me, and I knew what I did to him.
I wanted to hit him. I wanted to pull him down onto the bed, rip his clothes off and ride him hard. I wanted to scream at him and I wanted to kiss him senseless. And part of me, something lodged deep inside, wanted to see him bleed, and that terrified me. Was I really like that? Cruel? My love for him and the anger that had risen toward him since I'd been back battled, each trying to assert dominance in my emotions.
And so, for maybe the first time in my life, I did the smart thing.
I did nothing.
He got up a few seconds later, and I watched him walk out of the bedroom and close the door behind him.
"Yeah. That's a mess I don't need right now," I said to the empty room. I rubbed my hands together. I'd naively thought that being back in my own world would help me forget the sensation of grime and blood coating my body. You'd really think I would know better by now. I got out of bed and rifled through Brennan's dresser. I didn't know how to feel about the fact that my clothes were still there, just the way I'd left them. I don't know why I expected different. Did I expect to find some other woman's bra on my side of the underwear drawer?
Maybe I did. Maybe I should have.
I didn't even know how I was supposed to feel, and I hate that. I hate ambiguity. Tell me what to punch, and I'll punch it. Point me toward the bad guy, and I'll destroy him. This emotional shit made me want to gouge my eyes out.
I stepped under the jet of scalding hot water, did my crazy scrubbing thing, knowing how nuts it was but still not able to stop doing it. By the time I was done, my skin was raw and red and I didn't feel any cleaner. I dressed (stepping into my favorite pair of jeans was another kind of homecoming, and this one made me grin), dried my hair, and even went as far as putting on some lip gloss and mascara.
Look at me, looking all human and shit.
I grabbed my empty coffee cup off of the nightstand and headed downstairs. Eunomia gave a loud shout and flew at me, practically knocking me on my ass as she wrapped her thin arms around me. I stumbled back against the wall under the force of her embrace.
"I am so happy to see you, my friend," she said as she hugged me. I hugged her back and laughed.
"Same here. Where were you last night?"
She pulled back and looked at me, grinning. "I felt the gateway, so I flew there. Your parents were still there, and they told me you'd departed. It was a relief to feel access to the Nether again. My power has been badly depleted since it closed," a shadow crossed her face, for just a fraction of a second, and then disappeared, and she grinned at me again.
I hadn't even thought of that. "I'm sorry," I said.
She shook her head, still smiling. "Are you kidding? You saved countless lives, and you suffered for it, from what Brennan went through while you were gone." And then her face fell as she realized what she'd said. "Oh. I…"
I gave a tiny shake of my head. "It's okay," I said quietly. "We'll work it out."
She smiled then. "Good. You should." And then I sensed something from her: guilt.
"And what do you have to feel guilty about, my friend?" I asked her softly. I was aware of Brennan and Nain standing in the kitchen, Stone, Levitt, and Ada in the living room. Eunomia's eyes met mine.
"I… that's to say… your ex-husband--" she said quietly, and I had to laugh at how flustered she was. I was surprised, but not in a bad way.
"You and the devil, huh?" I asked her, laughing, and she smacked my arm.
"It was really more of a physical thing."
"Well. He's very good, physically speaking," I said, trying to keep my voice serious, and she blushed bright red and shoved me gently, which only made me laugh harder. Soon we were both laughing, supporting each other as we wiped tears from our eyes. She gathered me into another fierce hug.
"You were missed, Mollis," she said softly, and I hugged her back.
"Thanks. And thank you for rescuing Brennan. I owe you."
"You owe me nothing. I am ashamed that my family forgot their purpose," she said, and shame radiated from her. I gave her another squeeze.
"You're amazing. Were you hurt?"
She shrugged, and we pulled away from each other. "Broken wing, a few cuts. I am healed."
I observed my friend. "You are." And she smiled at me again and we headed toward the kitchen. Brennan was standing at the counter, pouring a bottle for Sean, and I glanced at both of them as I headed for the coffee pot. I set my coffee cup down and held my hands out for the baby after wat
ching Brennan fumble with the bottle for a few seconds. He handed Sean over with a murmured "thanks" and finished making the bottle. I handed the baby back, and Brennan took him, eyes on me. Then he leaned down and brushed his lips across mine. Avoiding his kiss didn't even cross my mind.
I was in the middle of my third cup of coffee when the buzzer sounded. Brennan pressed the intercom button to answer it.
"I'm looking for Mollis," a deep voice I immediately recognized said over the com. Hephaestus.
Chapter Fourteen
Brennan looked at me questioningly.
"Let him up," I said. He did, and a couple of minutes later, Hephaestus walked through the door. He barely acknowledged the other people in the loft, heading straight for me.
"Queenie. Hope this is okay," he said, and I nodded. "I just thought you might want to know what everyone is up to."
Ada, Stone, Levitt, Nain, and Brennan were all watching the new arrival with interest.
"I would, thanks."
"Okay. Your father, your mother, Persephone, and your aunt are working with Aphrodite and Artemis right now. Overnight, Zeus and I worked on fixing street lights. You know there were whole blocks in this city with no lights?"
"I know. The lighting system is outdated and they weren't able to get parts to fix them anymore."
"Yeah. So I made new parts. Fixed. People started coming out of their houses like they'd just experienced a fuckin' miracle or something," he said, shaking his head.
"Considering it's been years since some areas have had streetlights, it is a miracle," I said, smiling. "Thanks for doing that."
He waved it off. "So now Zeus and Hera went home. They said they did their part. The others decided to keep working. Hestia discovered a soup kitchen, and the line out the door made her mad. So, they went grocery shopping and right now they're handing out bags of food to anyone that wants them."
"Uh. That's great. How are they paying for the food, though?"
He smiled. "Aphrodite has credit cards. She always did get a kick out of shopping here."
"Oh. Good," I said, smiling. "So, no trouble?" I asked him.
He shook his head. "I don't trust Zeus and Hera. I'm going to be keeping an eye out for them. And though Apollo is Artemis' brother, I'm not sure his pride will allow him to accept what you did to him."
"I know."
My friends were all still watching us.
"One more thing," Heph said, and I nodded. "You mentioned the possibility of staying on here, maybe. I'd like to take you up on that."
"You want to live here?"
He nodded.
"What about Aphrodite?"
"What about her? We've been over this, yeah? She has her life, I have mine. And I think I could be of use here."
"It's not my decision to make. And I'm not sure," I paused, took a breath.
"You're not sure you can trust me. I know. I thought of that. If you want, take a piece of me again. Having one connection shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"I'm …" I was about to tell him abut the trouble I was having, and decided against it. "Okay. If Nain decides to let you stay, I'll do that. No offense."
He nodded. "None taken."
I turned my attention to my friends. "Guys, this is Hephaestus." Ada and Stone gaped at him. Eunomia grinned.
"How are you, you great lout?" she asked him, and he laughed.
"Happy to see you, for sure, Guardian," he said. "Glad you're well."
"Happy to see you are as well," Eunomia said.
I continued with the introductions, and soon they were all exchanging handshakes.
This guy okay, really, Molls? Nain asked in my mind.
He was a big help to me while I was trapped. Excellent weapon maker, crazy smart.
You trust him?
As far as I trust anyone, sure. It really is up to you.
I'll take him, then. Can't be a bad thing, having another immortal on our side.
I nodded, and then Nain and Heph went into Nain's office, talking on the way there. I was downing another cup of coffee when the buzzer sounded again, and Ada answered, remarking that the loft was like Grand Central all of a sudden. Soon, Chief Jones was walking through the door. His gaze found me, and a huge smile lit his face. He opened his arms and walked toward me.
Jones was a good-looking man, mid-forties, just a teeny bit of gray sprinkled through his black hair. Considering that the man was chief of the Detroit police, and also the leader of his shifter pack, he had a genuinely disarming smile. I was glad he was on our side.
"Molly," he said, and he folded me into a huge hug. "Thanks for getting me out, Angel."
"It was my pleasure. Are you all right?"
He nodded. "Sure am. I wanted to see you and thank you properly, then I'm going to head back home to my family."
"What about work?"
A shadow passed over his face. "The story they were telling was that I was off on family medical leave. I'm ready to go back. Stuff has probably gone to hell in my absence."
I nodded. "So they weren't making it a public thing that you were being held?"
"Hell no. They had no proof."
"What's the name of your underling? The one who's been investigating the supers?" I asked him.
"McGregor. Don McGregor."
"Okay. So McGregor has no proof of anything?"
"Definitely not. He's suspected for years, but we have always been able to throw him off. And then during the worst of the craziness, some supers started being more open about what they were. Nain and Brennan and I did a good job of mostly keeping that crap under wraps, but it was all McGregor needed to decide it was time to act. So he set a trap, because he'd always suspected me, and Nain was unlucky enough to get caught in it." As he spoke, Nain and Hephaestus came out of Nain's office, and they stood nearby, listening.
"You could have broken away from them," I said, watching Nain.
He nodded. "We both could have. But to do that, we would have had to become what they were accusing us of. We would have proved them right. It was either that, or kill them, and the Chief has this thing against killing if he can avoid it."
"Call me crazy," Jones said, rolling his eyes. "I know you all handle things the way you have to. The less I know about that, the better. But me: I'm sworn to protect and serve, even those who don't deserve it."
"So we sat in jail, thinking they'd just have to let us go eventually," Nain continued. "But then a couple of weeks passed, and the only one I ever heard from was McGregor, usually trying to piss me off enough to do something supernatural in his presence."
"Did he really think it would be that simple?" I asked, shaking my head.
"He's an idiot," Jones intoned.
"We can make him disappear," Nain said, crossing his arms over his chest.
"No. I'm his commanding officer. I have all kinds of ways of making his life hell," Jones said, and the smile on his face then was not the friendly one I was so fond of.
"Where can I find him?" I asked Jones as I set my coffee cup down on the counter.
Jones watched me. Studied me. "Why?"
I held my hands up. "I'm just going to have a little talk with him, that's all."
Hephaestus snorted. I glanced his way. "You have something to add?"
"I've seen you 'talk' to people, queenie."
"Yes, well. I'm just going to make sure he knows, in no uncertain terms, that there are no such things as supernaturals, and he's been a deluded asshole for believing otherwise."
Jones chuckled a little. "I can still make his life hell though, right?"
I nodded. "I think he has that coming to him."
"All right." Jones told me an address not too far from my house.
"Okay. I'm going to go take care of a few things," I said, stepping into my shoes and heading toward the door.
"I'm coming with you," Brennan said, and then I turned and met his eyes.
"No. You're not. I've got this, and I need some alone time right now," I told him.
Then I headed out and down the elevator, imps trailing me, just like they always had.
Bash, Dahael, and I climbed into my Barracuda, and I turned the radio up, loud. It was on the classic rock station, just like I'd always had it, and Van Halen poured from the speakers. That would do. I had a whole bunch of rage on, and I needed someone to take it out on. I'd noticed, since being back, that not only did it hurt like hell to use my powers, but my emotions were all over the place. Part of that was the whole Brennan issue. But I'd stood there in the loft feeling like I wanted to hit something, for no reason in particular, and now I felt like I would destroy any unfortunate soul who happened to cross my path.
So I had issues. What else was new?
I went to the address Jones had given me. I sat in the car for a bit, pulling myself together, forcing control that I did not feel. I didn't want to kill him, just manipulate his mind. I'd gotten so accustomed to using my power at full-strength in the Nether. That, and using my power without constant pain.
When I felt as cold and steady as I could be, I got out of the car. My imps shadowed me, dashing behind shrubs and parked cars. I stalked up the front walk of a pretty brick colonial. The front lawn was a mosaic of orange, brown, and red leaves, and a blue and red Big Wheel sat near the porch. I lifted my hand and knocked. I'd worn my sunglasses, hiding my eyes from the Normals. Like so many things now that I was home, it felt weird to hide what I was.
A tall, thin man opened the door. He had the round, soft look of a man who had just about reached his retirement years, gray hair badly in need of a trim. "Captain McGregor?" I asked. He considered saying he was not, but I picked up right from his brain that he was the captain.
"There is some information I need to give you regarding your search for supernaturals," I said.
I felt anger, frustration roll off of him. Clearly, he'd heard that his prize captives had escaped. He didn't know how. One check, they were in their cells, the next, they were gone. Hazy description of a woman who'd been spotted in the corridors when it happened. Short woman, dark hair. Like this one.
"What do you want to tell me?" he asked, and his voice was sharp. Distrust, suspicion from him.
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