Gods Of The Stone Oracle

by Krista Walsh

  “No, Daphne. Stop,” Hunter said.

  “I’m sorry. But I have to do this.”

  She forced the words out as her throat grew tighter. Before he could say anything else, she pulled out the earpiece and tossed it at Mayes, letting it melt in his fire. Then she closed her eyes again, stretched out her arms, and allowed herself to free-fall deeper than she’d ever gone. Her skin grew hot and then deathly cold as the world exploded into a searing light only to plunge into a blinding dark, like the aftereffect of staring into the sun.

  In the distance, she heard screams, but couldn’t tell if they belonged to her or Mayes, or were just an echo of the cries through her destroyed earpiece. As she sucked Mayes’s power into herself, consuming the fire that had tried to consume her, all she could do was hold on to the thought that her father would be proud.

  He’d got what he wanted. For this one brief moment, his daughter was the strongest sorceress in the entire dimension.

  As the thought drifted away, Daphne Heartstone faded, giving herself up to her magic.

  35

  Allegra tapped her fingers against the surface of Percy’s computer desk as she stared over his shoulder at the screen.

  It had been five minutes since he’d managed to repair the connection with the team inside the prison, and in those five minutes, every concern they’d harbored during the silence had come to bear. Zach and Vera sounded as though they were locked in a fight with a demon whose voice pounded the speakers in a loud bass, and Daphne…

  Allegra twisted her fingers around a strand of her hair and released the curl over her shoulder. Daphne had gone silent over a minute ago to the sound of screams, both hers and what might have been a dragon’s. Allegra didn’t know what that meant for the sorceress’s fate, but she wasn’t hopeful.

  The only person they had yet to hear from was Gabe. They’d tried calling to him and had received no response. Percy was sitting tense in his chair, his gaze not leaving the satellite image he’d finally managed to bring up on screen. Emmett, his thin face pale and tear-streaked, sat slouched in the passenger seat of the cab, staring intently out the windshield.

  Allegra pushed away from the table and walked the length of the RV. Matthew was standing in the far back corner, the wolfhound lying at his feet.

  “This is why it was foolish to leave me behind,” she said. “I could have been in there with them, ensuring no one did anything as stupid as to engage in a fight that any sane individual would know could not be won.”

  “This isn’t your fault,” Matthew said.

  “Of course it is not. How could it be? I am here, waiting safely in this hideously decorated vehicle while they face the threat. Believe me, I know this is not on me.”

  She picked at the nail polish in the crease of her index finger, then stopped herself before she could chip it and set to smoothing her ruined dress over her thighs instead. Despite her protestations, guilt was threatening to choke her. If she’d pushed harder, they wouldn’t have been able to leave her behind. Fear had held her back, and now they were about to fail and the cage around her would grow smaller, maybe even leaving her alone there if Matthew was lost to her.

  A shock of energy pulsed around the RV, sending the image on the screen to turn to static and causing Matthew and the wolfhound to flicker in and out of sight before coming back.

  “Shit,” Percy said, his fingers flying across the keyboard. “Vera, can you still hear me?”

  “Bit busy at the moment,” she said.

  A growl vibrated into the room, followed by what sounded like a brief earthquake.

  The electrical surges had been increasing in frequency and strength over the last half hour. Allegra was relieved she was no longer overcome with nausea when they happened, though she longed to hunt down whoever was causing them and drink his soul.

  Her stomach grumbled, and she stroked her fingers over it. With all of this stress, she would need to feed twice this week to regain her strength.

  This foolhardy mission had better be worth the state I’m in.

  She stepped out of the RV and glared down the empty street. No other demons had shown themselves since the last encounter, and she was getting restless.

  The speakers in the RV sounded behind her. Hearing the voice that was cutting in and out, Allegra wheeled toward the door to look at Percy.

  He’d jumped out of his chair and was leaning close to the microphone beside the computer screen. “Gabe, is that you?”

  “…out…chasing us…send Allegra…”

  Percy looked over his shoulder, but she was already moving. She charged into the house, grabbed hold of the ladder at the mouth of the trapdoor, and descended into the darkness. Sitting and waiting had been torture. Movement was what she needed. Movement and action.

  She hoped Gabe was bringing her someone she could eat. It had been a while since she’d enjoyed delivery.

  Once she reached the bottom of the ladder, she started running, not giving herself any time to consider what might be crawling around in the darkness with her. The air was thick and reeked of mold, but she focused only on the rough earth beneath her feet.

  Minutes passed as she ran, her breath growing ragged. A light flickered at her side, and she lurched away, then turned her head to find Matthew and the wolfhound keeping pace with her. “You didn’t think I’d let you go without me, did you?”

  “Hopefully your protection will not be required,” she said between breaths.

  Her elongating teeth were cutting into her lips, and she stretched her hands out in front of her as she picked up speed. Her vision glimmered gold, and her mouth watered with anticipation.

  “Allegra,” Matthew said, and although she didn’t slow down, she paid him the courtesy of a glance. “Please be careful, all right? With everything we just heard upstairs, it doesn’t sound like things are going well. We don’t know what’s coming after Gabe. I would hate…” He paused and sighed. “I don’t want you to end up like me.”

  Allegra swallowed hard on her retort, but she drew in her bloodlust and forced herself to grab the reins on her slipping self-control. As she reached the next corner, she slowed down long enough to peer around it before making the turn.

  “Percy, have you heard anything more from Gabriel? How far ahead is he?”

  There was no reply but static. Allegra cursed and picked up her pace. Matthew was right that she had to be smart, but if something was coming after Gabe, she didn’t want it to get too far down the tunnel.

  How long had she been running now? When Gabe had called for help, he’d come through on the comms, which suggested he hadn’t yet been underground. She knew she couldn’t be close to the end, but surely she’d passed the halfway point.

  Another corner approached up ahead. Grumbling to herself, she slowed down to take a look.

  Green light exploded against the wall behind her, and she ducked back into the shadows. Magic. Aimed at her?

  Footsteps sounded against the packed earthen floor up ahead, heavy breaths keeping rhythm with the patterned smacks.

  Another flash of green came, followed by a shriek and a scuffle, then the footsteps resumed. Allegra peered around the corner again just as Gabe, dragging a terrified Molly, came into view. Behind him, two demons and a human male, a warlock no doubt, kept close pursuit.

  She stepped into the center of the tunnel, and when Gabe lurched toward her, she shoved him out of the enemy’s path. Molly tripped and sprawled across the ground, but Allegra barely noticed, too focused on the warlock coming toward them. Her stomach growled.

  Typically, she didn’t feed on those who used magic. Their energy was too sharp for her tastes, and the effects on her demon were too unpredictable. But she was hungry, and he was trying to kill them. Under the circumstances, it sounded like a perfect early breakfast.

  The two demons came at her first. In her eagerness to get to her meal, she made quick work of the first one, snapping its neck before it even realized she had the strength to overpow
er it. The other one was smarter, more cautious. It shifted itself to the side, leaving her exposed to the warlock. In the dim light, its bluish glistening skin and stretched face gave it a fish-like appearance. Its tongue flicked out, catching Allegra’s cheek, and a burning pain shot through her face, followed by a brief numbness that horrified her more than the pain.

  She curled her fingers in front of her and slashed out, catching the side of its face with her nails. It hissed and spat at her, but she ducked away from the projection, missing the blast of magic the warlock had fired at her head at the same time.

  Low to the ground, she swung out her leg, bringing the blue demon to its back. Once it was incapacitated, Allegra turned her attention to the warlock. She couldn’t make out his face clearly, but it didn’t matter what he looked like. He smelled tart, like lemon, and she knew he was afraid. He could hide behind his magical bursts all he wanted, but he knew it was pointless.

  She grinned at him, allowing her teeth to return to normal and her talons to retract. Her fingers trailed a path up her hip toward the scooped collar of her dress. The warlock’s mouth fell open, and he inched backward until he hit the earthen wall. His throat bobbed with a swallow as she sauntered up and pressed herself against him. Allegra placed her hand over his chest and sucked in a breath at the sensation of his heart racing beneath her palm. Slowly, she leaned in and slid the tip of her nose along his neck, drinking in the scent of his energy and sweat.

  From here, tucked around the corner, the others were nowhere to be seen. There were sounds of a scuffle, and she guessed that Gabe was finishing off the blue demon.

  “It is so generous of them to give us this moment of privacy,” she whispered in the warlock’s ear as she guided her hand toward his belt. Her body ached for full completion.

  But time was limited. With a groan of disappointment, she lifted her hand to the back of the man’s neck and drew his head down, locking her lips against his. He melted into her kiss, his arms going slack at his sides. Despite the dampness of the corridor, his skin was warm, getting hotter the longer she kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, drawing a moan from her throat with the feel of his body against hers.

  Impatience forced her to be quick, not trusting herself to maintain her restraint. Raising her other hand so she could grasp his head on both sides, she sucked in a breath, tasting the lightness of his soul as it rose out of his body. He stiffened and tried to push her away, but she drew in another breath. The heels of his palms pressed into her shoulders, his fingers growing hot as he tried to summon his magic into his hands, but already his legs were weakening. She sucked in a third breath, and his grip on her shoulders loosened. Or maybe it was that his energy was making her stronger. A hint of his magic floated over her taste buds and soaked into her blood. Her golden vision took on slight green haze.

  A smile touched her lips as the warlock’s empty body sagged to the ground. She wiped her mouth with the pads of her fingers, smoothing out her lipstick, and returned to the others around the corner.

  The blue demon lay dead next to the other one Allegra had killed. Molly stood next to Gabe, who glared at the wolfhound sitting next to Matthew.

  “Was the dog Percy’s idea?” he asked.

  “It was,” Allegra said. “It has served us well.”

  “I wouldn’t trust it. Considering who its former master was, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were sucked into doing its bidding for the rest of your lives.”

  Matthew chuckled. “I don’t see that as being a problem.”

  Gabe quirked an eyebrow at him, then looked to Allegra. “What’s the status? I haven’t been able to get anything out of Percy.”

  Allegra frowned. “I worry our plan has taken a wrong turn. Zach and Vera are still fighting, but Daphne seems to have lost herself in her magic. Emmett called her lover to have him talk her down, but I regret to say it didn’t work.”

  “Shit,” Gabe said, and shoved his hand through his hair. He glanced at Molly, who stood trembling and staring wide-eyed at nothing. She looked lost and confounded, and Allegra wondered whether her sanity had snapped.

  Gabe shifted his attention back down the tunnel, and his shoulders slouched. “I need to go back.”

  Molly went stiff, and she grabbed his arm. “No!”

  Allegra widened her eyes at Gabe’s idiocy. “Why?” she asked. “You survived and found your way out with the girl. Mayes is still inside, and the Collegiate will be carrying out their plans in another hour. This can all be over.”

  Gabe scowled, and his glasses shifted. He grabbed them before they revealed his gaze. “An hour might be too long. There’s a warlock in there who’s already casting a spell that would compel every otherworldly being on the east coast to bend a knee to Mayes’s will. Someone needs to stop him.”

  He gave her a quick summary of everything he’d learned from his father, who apparently had been working for Mayes, and the more he spoke, the colder Allegra became. A slave nation? In her case, she would be escaping a cage for a slightly larger cell. The thought was horrifying, but it still wasn’t enough to let Gabe run back inside.

  “Daphne’s circle of sorceresses is aware of the spell, and they are working against it,” Allegra said. “Surely they can keep up their defenses long enough to prevent this warlock from succeeding.”

  “I won’t take that chance,” Gabe said. “Even aside from that, I’m not leaving Vera in there, and Daphne might still need my help. And my dad…” Gabe cupped the back of his neck. “Everything I care about is in that prison. It might be the stupidest thing I do, but at least I’ll know I died protecting the world, right? You watch Molly. Take her back to Percy, and if anything goes wrong, get her back to her parents.”

  Tears slipped down Molly’s cheeks as she grabbed his arms tighter. “Don’t leave me here. Not if you’re going back in.”

  Gabe tucked her hair behind her ear and eased her toward Allegra.

  Then he started down the tunnel, but this time Allegra grabbed his arm to hold him back. “Gabriel, you do not have to do this.”

  She didn’t know why she cared. He was nothing to her but someone she’d met a few times and for whom she enjoyed a superficial attraction. After they left here, she had no intention of seeing him ever again.

  But to let him run into a burning building without saying something was more than she could do. He’d treated her with kindness, without judgment, and had proved his courage more than once. Men like him were rare, and it seemed a shame to lose one for such a needless cause.

  Gabe stepped toward her and pressed a kiss against her forehead. “Watch the girl and take care of yourself. If only two of us have to survive, it may as well be the pretty ones.”

  He flashed her a smile, then eased out of her grip and ran down the tunnel.

  Allegra cursed as she watched him go.

  “What’s happening?” Molly asked, the sound of her voice rousing Allegra from her worries. “And where are we?”

  Allegra turned on her heel to look at the girl who had caused so much trouble. Molly barely appeared able to stay on her feet, her skin clammy and pale, the cochlears curved around her ears half-hidden by her unruly and filthy blond curls.

  Beside her, Matthew stood still, staring at her with so much sympathy in his eyes that Allegra turned away.

  “Your knight in shining armor has decided he must be the one to face the dragon,” she said to Molly, “which leaves us to find our way back. Are you able to walk on your own? I will not carry you.”

  The girl’s lips curled into a grimace. “I’m fine. Thanks for asking.”

  “Then let us get out of this goddess-forsaken tunnel before I’m never able to wash the stink from my skin.”

  ***

  Despite her attempt at detachment, Allegra helped Molly climb the ladder toward the trapdoor and guided her out of the house. When they stepped outside, Emmett jumped out of the RV and ran toward them.

  “Molly, thank god. Are you ok
ay? Shit, what did they do to you?”

  Thanks to the light spilling out from the RV, Allegra could better see the state of the girl: the bloodied burns on her arm and shoulder, the torn and blood-caked shirt. Despite her injuries, and whatever else they had done to her mind, she was still standing — still fighting. Allegra found herself impressed by her resilience.

  Molly jumped when Emmett touched her, then seemed to relax when she realized who it was. “Emmett. You came too?”

  His face split into a grin. “I still owed you that date, right? I had to make sure you weren’t trying to worm your way out of it.”

  Molly’s smile didn’t have the same strength as his, but the fact that she was able to smile at all assured Allegra that she would be fine once she had time to recover. Depending on what happened next.

  Allegra rolled her shoulders and stretched out her neck, enjoying the new power flowing through her veins from her breakfast. The green hue in her vision had faded, but the extra magic still thrummed in her blood, heightening her senses and leaving her skin tingling. She wished she could steal Matthew away for a few moments of privacy, but reason kept her from suggesting it. While euphoria tempted her to while away her time in pleasure, they weren’t out of the fire yet.

  Overhead, the stars were beginning to fade as the first hints of morning touched the sky. Soon enough, the prison in the distance would crumble, trapping anyone who hadn’t made it out.

  She sighed and shook her head, regretting the waste of Gabe’s sacrifice.

  “Has anything else happened?” she asked Percy as she stepped inside.

  Emmett tried to help Molly in after her, but the girl shook her head and pulled back. “I’ve been trapped inside for so long, I just want to enjoy the fresh air for a while. You can go in.”

  “Wait a second, I have something for you,” he said, and dashed into the RV to grab a black case from where Zach had stowed it beside the computer desk. He returned to Molly’s side and presented it to her.