by Sandy James
She rolled her eyes. “You both need to learn to trust me.”
“You’ve yet to give me a reason to,” Richard replied.
“Oh, but I’ve given you many reasons. I saved your Amazon from sure destruction by the lioness. I saved your own ass as well.” With a jerk, she freed herself from Richard’s grasp. “I’m taking advantage of her anger. She’s deterred by the Amazons, so I’m leading her to Avalon because I know they’ll be ready for her. A much better plan than waiting to see what she’ll do next, don’t you think?”
He wanted to knock the smirk off her face. Gina’s voice kept echoing in his thoughts.
Scorpion. Scorpion.
Jory gave Helen a hard stare. “She’s right, you know.”
Richard wasn’t so sure. “You can’t charge into Avalon without at least warning them. What about the kids?”
Her condescending hand patted his shoulder. “You and your brother can go to the children and protect them. Sekhmet’s sure to bring revenants with her to keep the Amazons occupied while she goes after their families. You two can save the children so the Amazons can destroy Sekhmet.”
He swatted her hand away. “I still don’t like it.”
“I don’t care if you like it or not. I’m the Ancient. You’ll do as I command.”
“Fuck that,” Richard replied.
She answered with a shrug. “I wouldn’t mourn should those children perish. But I will lead Sekhmet to the Amazons, and I’ll trust that with their help, I can destroy her.” With an angry swish of her skirts, she brushed past them to disappear around a corner at the end of the hall.
“What do you think?” Richard asked Jory.
“I don’t trust her.”
“Neither do I.”
“But right now,” Jory said, locking eyes with his brother, “I don’t see any other way.”
Unfortunately, Richard agreed. He only hoped that Gina’s prophecy wouldn’t come to pass.
* * *
Zach sat up with a start, his heart hammering in his chest. The nightmare had been terrible as he’d watched Gina hit by whatever the hell it was that SOG had thrown at her.
A shockwave? He wasn’t sure.
He’d seen nothing but the impossible from the first leap Gina took to land in his path back in that alley in San Francisco. That seemed a lifetime ago. The intensity of the dream had been interrupted by the movement in his cabin.
Someone was watching him. The snap of fingers brought light blazing into the room.
Zach shielded his eyes against the glare as he waited impatiently for them to adjust. Figuring the interruption had come from Artair or Johann, Zach stared in amazement at Freyjr.
The god wasn’t alone, either. He’d brought Ra.
“I thought no one could get in or out of Avalon,” Zach said.
Freyjr chuckled. “My sister allows me passage. I suppose it pays to have a twin as one of the patron goddesses to the Amazons.”
Remembering Artair’s advice, Zach almost ordered them to leave. Well, maybe not order. Humans shouldn’t demand gods do anything. He couldn’t ask them to go because he honestly didn’t want them to.
They’d presented him with the only solution that made sense if he wanted a life with his Amazon.
“Why are you here, Freyjr?” he asked.
“I’ve come to finish our conversation.”
“According to the Sentinels, that conversation was already over.”
Freyjr pulled his lip back in a sneer. “Ah, the brave and noble Sentinels. Would it be that they have no interest in extending our conversation because their women are safe in their beds while yours could be suffering at the hands of Sekhmet as each moment passes?”
Zach scowled as he climbed out of bed to stand before the gods. “Their women are out fighting, not safe in their beds.” The women were due back at any moment, and when morning came, they’d make their plans to rescue Gina.
Freyjr’s cheeky grin pissed Zach off. Together with being awakened in the dead of night and worrying about rescuing Gina, this development drained what remained of his patience.
“A figure of speech, inventor. Their women are not in the hands of the Destructor. Nor do they need to worry about an Ancient robbing them of their memories and intellect as you do. They need not fret that their wives will outlive them by centuries. Their place in the Amazon world is secure.”
Zach folded his arms over his chest. “You’ve got my attention.”
Ra leveled a hard glare at him—the same glare he’d used earlier that sent a shiver racing across Zach’s skin. “You know what I want. You alone can stop my daughter.”
“There’s no other mortal more...I don’t know...worthy?”
“You alone can stop my daughter.”
Every superhero story had some reason—from chance to genetics to destiny—to have been chosen. Ra wasn’t revealing what brought him back to Avalon, so Zach was just going to have to accept he was the one to receive the power. Since he wanted this, that acceptance wasn’t a hardship. “I understand.”
Those black eyes never blinked. “Do you? Do you realize what type of transformation you invite? I will alter you, giving you a power that could overwhelm your humanity.”
Try as he did to worry about the bad things that could happen, he could only think about Gina. So he nodded.
“Should you choose this path, your destiny will be forever changed.”
“And you shall have the power you crave.” Freyjr threw Zach a knowing grin, probably the same type the serpent gave Eve when he told her he knew of a yummy fruit she should sample. “Ah, but you did not realize I could sense what you seek. Foolish, mortal. You want power so badly you reek of it.”
Zach didn’t bother to deny it. “Like I said, you’ve got my attention.”
Ra’s eyes drilled holes through Zach. “I must know why.”
“Why what?”
“While I already know of your ambition, I need to hear it from your lips. Do you truly believe you are meant for more in life than to be a simple inventor? More than a mere mortal? Do you truly thirst for this power?”
Zach didn’t understand the reason for the question. “Just tell me what you need me to do so I can bind Sekhmet. I can do this. This whole fucking mess is my fault. I put the power in her hands. It’s up to me to stop her.”
“’Tis not enough,” Freyjr said.
“Let me do this,” Zach insisted. “I was born to do this.”
Freyjr chuckled and turned to Ra. “Must he say the words? You hear his desire in his arrogant reply. He speaks not of love for the Amazon or the humans. He speaks of his own craving for greatness.”
Ra still glared at Zach. “Tell me.” His voice rumbled like thunder through the cabin.
“Fine,” Zach admitted. “I do. I think I’m meant to be important, to be more than some guy who owns a technology firm.” And that rampant ambition for more, more, more had led him to the Pentagon and ultimately to this disaster. “Does that make you happy?”
“It does,” Ra replied. “One cannot wield this power without hubris.”
With no warning he planted one hand against Zach’s chest, wrapped the other around his throat and shoved him against the wall. “Then I shall make you more than you ever dreamed you could be.” His face mere inches away from Zach’s, Ra spoke in a language Zach didn’t understand.
The shutters flew open, crashing against the cabin wall. As Ra’s words grew into a droning chant, a trail of black smoke slithered into the room. The thick smoke circled the room, stopping in front of Freyjr as if judging him, then moving on to stop above Ra’s head. The chant continued, and the smoke rose like a cobra from a basket, hovering above the god’s head.
In his mind’s eye, Zach saw Gina, battered and broken on that terrazzo floor back at the Pentagon. He’d do this for her. He’d become whatever it was that Ra wanted him to become if it saved her and gave him a chance to always be a part of her world.
Without her, his life no longe
r mattered.
The tendril of smoke slithered over Ra’s head, down his chest, and began to wrap itself around the powerful arm holding Zach hostage. Then, with an ethereal hiss, it covered Zach’s face. As if he knew what to do, he inhaled deeply, pulling the smoke into his nostrils and mouth until it filled his lungs.
He might as well have been breathing in flames. The pain couldn’t have been any worse.
Panicking, he struggled, trying to get away. Ra’s hands kept him pressed to the wall as if the god’s arms were cast iron. As Zach choked and gagged on the caustic smoke, he twisted against his tormentor, clawing at Ra’s hands and forearms. Ra refused to release him.
Zach’s heart pounded hard and fast as he fought to draw a breath of fresh air, entirely convinced he was going to die.
Mercifully, the ordeal ended as suddenly as it began.
Ra took a step back and frowned.
Freyjr, on the other hand, was grinning like a fucking moron.
“You must bind her powers now,” Ra commanded. “You must fulfill your promise.”
Like he could think right now with his body still deep in fight-or-flight. Zach took ragged, choking breaths, coughing out the remnants of the smoke that made his mouth taste like he’d sucked on a piece of charcoal and his lungs sizzle with each inhale.
“Aye, inventor,” Freyjr added. “You have been given the power. Learn it. Practice it. Use it. You must face Sekhmet and bind her so you can put her back into her desert tomb. The Amazons will find a way to seal it.”
As he filled his lungs with fresh air, Zach was able to relax enough to ask one of the millions of questions swirling in his mind. “Bind her powers? How do I—” A coughing spasm stopped his words as he expelled more of the black smoke. A few long moments passed before he was finally able to ask his questions. “How do I do that?”
Before either god could answer, the door to the cabin slammed open. Sarita stood at the threshold, eyes wide and mouth agape. “I heard voices and thought you might be in trouble.”
Freyjr moved closer, gave a bow and offered his hand.
She skirted around him. “I can see I was right.” She frowned at the gods. “Who’s your friend, Freyjr?”
“Our work is done now, little one.” Freyjr dropped the hand he’d held out for her to his side. “It is time to bid thee farewell ’til we shall meet again. I will be counting the hours.”
“Fine. Whatever. Bye. Don’t let the door hit you on the ass as you leave.” Her eyes were skewering Zach, full of accusation.
“We will meet again.” Freyjr snapped his fingers and popped out of the cabin.
Sarita glared at Zach. “You ever going to tell me who this is?” She inclined her head at Ra.
The god turned his back to her in blatant dismissal. “You must use this gift, but it will not be easy. She is my daughter. I know the power I seeded within her. Do not underestimate what she is capable of.” He disappeared in an eerie shimmer.
“What’s going on, Zach?” Sarita’s voice quivered with what sounded like anger. “Who was that?”
“Ra.”
“Ra? Sekhmet’s dad? What in the hell was he doing in your cabin in the middle of the night?”
He was about to answer when he realized what was wrong. With the exception of the sensation that his lungs were still on fire, he didn’t feel any different. Shouldn’t being endowed with the power to stop an Ancient make a person feel as though there had been some change? He almost flexed his biceps to test if their strength had increased. At least his skin hadn’t turned green like the Incredible Hulk.
Maybe something had gone wrong. Maybe Ra hadn’t really bestowed him with power after all. Maybe he’d suffered that god-awful smoke for no reason.
“Answer me.” For such a small woman, Sarita could command attention.
Instead of replying, mostly because he wasn’t sure where to begin with his story, Zach asked a question in return. “What are you doing here?”
“Rebecca and Megan are back.”
“Why would you come to tell me?”
“They brought Gina with them.”
Zach darted out the door. He was already down the porch stairs when her footsteps echoed behind him. He was so frantic to see Gina, he forgot to ask where they’d put her.
“Is she in her cabin?” he called over his shoulder.
A hand shot out to grab his arm, and Sarita dragged him to a stop. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“Later. I need to get to Gina.”
“You’ll see her in a minute. Johann told me those two troublemakers were here earlier, that they tried to force some ridiculous task off on you. Is that why they came back?”
Judging from the stern frown on her face, she’d keep him standing there until he told her what happened. “I let Ra give me the binding power he offered.”
Her eyes flew wide. “You did what? A god never gives that kind of power without his own selfish interests attached. Why didn’t you go get Johann or Artair?”
“Because I’d already made up my mind.”
“Before you could talk to Gina?”
Not about to waste time being scolded for something that was already done, he marched toward Gina’s cabin again.
Sarita hurried after him. “What in the hell were you thinking?”
“I was thinking I could save Gina if I stop Sekhmet. It’s my fault you’re all in the middle of this. It’s up to me to stop it.”
He almost fell on his face when he was suddenly frozen to the ground. Literally. The cold encasing his bare feet stung like thousands of pricks from invisible pins.
Regaining his balance, he whipped his head back to glare at Sarita. “Did you do this?”
“Damn right, I did.”
“How?”
“I froze the dew in the grass—my version of human fly-paper. You’re not going anywhere near Gina until you answer my question. Why would you let Ra give that power to you?”
“I told you, to help her. She shouldn’t have to fight Sekhmet. She’s already been hurt enough. If you could’ve seen her—”
“Didn’t have to. I felt her.”
“Pardon?”
“I felt her. Didn’t Gina tell you about our bond? I felt her pain, but you don’t see me running off to Ra and doing something that stupid. Artair and Johann told you not to.” Her sigh hung in the air. “You should’ve listened. Nothing good can come from this.”
He was getting damned sick and tired of everyone thinking he wasn’t going to be anything but in the way. “But I can help you now.”
“At what cost?”
“Can we argue about this later? I need to see Gina.”
A frown seemed so out of place on such a pretty face. She nodded, and his feet were suddenly free.
He ran the rest of the way to the cabin, hurried up the stairs and jerked the cabin door open.
Gina was laid out on the bed. She looked pale as the changelings fussed over her arm. Her eyes fluttered open. “Zach...”
“I’m here.” Since Beagan and Dolan didn’t seem intent on moving, Zach walked around to the other side of the bed. “How is she?” he asked the changelings.
Dolan gave him a reassuring smile. “Her arm is broken, but it will mend well now that she is home and has been tended by Mistress Sarita.”
“Her sister also healed her cracked ribs,” Beagan added, handing a roll of gauze to Dolan.
“Thank you.” Zach glanced back at Sarita. “Thank you, too.”
Sarita nodded. “But don’t you go thinking this power nonsense is over. I’ll be back to check on her and talk to you in the morning.”
Zach turned to the window. Streaks of pink and orange painted the horizon. “It’s already morning.”
“Are you always so literal?”
“Always,” Gina rasped. As Beagan and Dolan gathered their supplies and left the cabin, she weakly patted the patchwork quilt. “Stay, Zach?”
“Of course.”
Sarita brushed her f
ingers across Gina’s forehead. “Be well. I’ll be back soon.” She leveled a hard stare at Zach. “We are not done talking.”
“I figured.”
“Talking?” Gina’s eyes shifted between Sarita and Zach. “What—happened?”
Zach sat on the bed and reached for her good hand. “Nothing to worry about now, love. Rest. Get well.” He pleaded with Sarita with his eyes to let it go for now. There would be plenty of time later for him to convince the Amazons he’d done the right thing.
Sarita tossed him a curt nod and left the cabin, shutting the door behind her.
Stretching out next to Gina, Zach pulled her into his arms and put a gentle hand over her heart, needing to feel the steady beat. He kissed her cheek, but she was already asleep.
Sarita was good and pissed, and the other Amazons and the Sentinels would probably have a few choice words to say about his decision, but he would stand by it. Looking at Gina—a strong woman now appearing so fragile—he knew he’d made the right choice.
Fighting Sekhmet had to fall to him. These people wouldn’t die for his own arrogant mistake in making those fucking Toys.
Chapter Twenty-One
Gina woke to Zach’s soft snores. Snuggling closer, she loved that his arm tightened around her waist.
She flexed the fingers of her left hand, trying to see if that still caused blinding pain. While stiff and sore, her arm seemed to be in good working order. Breathing no longer felt as though someone was stabbing her with each inhale. Sarita, Beagan and Dolan had restored her well. Some more rest would complete her recovery, but it was hard to think about sleep when she was in Zach’s arms.
Her thoughts drifted to something she needed worse.
He snorted in his sleep, rolled toward her and threw a heavy thigh over her legs.
What was she? A human body pillow?
She let loose with an uncharacteristic giggle. The fact he felt so comfortable with her made her happy. It was as if they both just...fit. They were two pieces that needed to be joined to make a stronger whole.
How could she ever let him go?
For the first time since she became an Amazon, Gina considered surrendering her powers. She could go back to the world and be nothing more than the wife of an inventor. They’d have a nice home in the suburbs. Maybe a couple of kids would come along someday.