A door creaked behind her and she darted to the side as a gun went off, but the older man who had fired had wide eyes as she rushed him. She landed a kick into his knee, the joint popping loudly as he went down hard, his gun skittering over the concrete as he cursed. “You bitch! I’m going to make you pay -”
Turning she kneed him in the face, and the crunch of his nose made her smile. “You’re going to… what? I’m sorry, I don’t think I heard you.”
“I own you, you fucking bitch!” He shouted, but she ignored him as she grabbed his jacket and hauled him effortlessly over the floor until she was facing off with the two men on either side of Alaric at the other end of the hall.
“You don’t own me,” she hissed and stabbed the knife into the hollow of his shoulder twisting it until he screamed, then she ripped it free and stood up. Between her and the other men were the bodies of the two who had tried to stop her already – one of them was gone, but the other was weakly groaning as he attempted to apply pressure to his belly. He’d be dead soon. Tara smiled brightly, putting on her happiest voice as the power Apollo had blessed her with made her feel invincible. “Would you like to let him go now?”
“No.” The man lifted the gun from Alaric’s temple and fired it into his thigh – the raw shout of pain that escaped him made her heart stutter.
Mortal.
Her foolish, all-too-mortal knight.
“Listening to me now, Tara?”
With a growl she hauled the asshole next to her to his knees and placed the knife against his throat. “Is this supposed to be my next master?”
“Yes, he is. Perhaps you should start apologizing now, because -”
Tara dragged the knife upwards, slitting his throat in a clean sweep that left nothing but the gurgling, choking sound between them as she let go and let the man slump forward. Both of her hands were covered in blood now, and memories flashed that hadn’t appeared in centuries. Memories of mud-coated battlefields, slippery with blood and rain, and a pair of daggers gripped tight in her palms as she smiled at her sisters. “You were saying?”
“Holy fuck, Luca, we should go -”
“NO!” The dark haired man above Alaric roared, and she narrowed her eyes. This was Luca? The one who had saved Alaric all those years before? The same man who had buried a tracker against his rib? The asshole who had just shot the one he had treated like a son?
“Let. Him. Go.” Tara felt the wild energy of Apollo’s touch fading, and behind it was nothing but the raw panic of hearing Alaric’s harsh breathing, and seeing his blood pooling under his leg as he tried to press his hands against the wound.
“You’ve ruined everything.” Luca shook his head, shifting the gun back to Alaric’s temple. “It’s all ruined, and it’s all your fault.”
Tara heard the gun click, and she started to run forward, but even with the last dregs of Apollo’s power in her veins she knew she wouldn’t make it. Alaric’s eyes lifted to hers, a pain-filled mix of brown and green, and she saw sorrow in them. The sorrow of everything they were going to miss out on, and she felt her promise to Leonidas breaking mere moments after she’d made it.
Luca was actually going to kill him.
That thought settled in slowly as time seemed to stretch, because he knew the gun had cocked just as Luca had pressed it back to his temple. Tara was rushing towards him, her golden hair flaring, an incredibly vibrant glow surrounding her, her hands slick with blood – and he wished he had just a moment longer to tell her how beautiful she looked, how wild, how strong. This was probably what she’d looked like on those battlefields long ago.
He wished he had a moment to tell her he loved her again.
The explosion of the gun firing should not have been a sound he heard, but he did. It made his ears ring, and then he felt a rushing energy through him. A booming sound shook the building, making the floor shake under his feet, and he leaned forward to catch himself on his hands as the lights flickered.
Glowing.
Alaric sat up straight and realized he was glowing now, vibrant gold, and when he looked over Luca’s eyes were frozen wide, the gun still clenched in his traitorous fist as he was sprawled on the floor. He growled. “You bastard.”
“Alaric! What the fuck? How-?” Luca sputtered, shoving himself backwards, and Louis was busy scrambling back to his feet as well.
Lunging forward, Alaric slammed his foot down on Luca’s wrist, feeling the bones crack, but he didn’t care as he wrenched the gun free and stood again. He fired twice. Once into Louis’ back as he collapsed to the floor, and then again when he kept moving. When he turned, Luca was pressed against the wall, his mouth open as he held his good hand up in front of him.
“Wait, wait! Don’t do this, Alaric, you don’t want to kill me. You love me, I know you do.” Luca’s pleading plucked at his heart, but Alaric had let his last shred of hope for the man die the moment he’d pulled the trigger.
“You’re wrong.”
“What?” Luca sputtered, his soft, brown eyes widening again.
“I loved someone I thought I knew, a different man who saved a very lost boy, but you? The man who would torture a woman to punish a man you treated like a son? The man who would order unspeakable things to be done? You? I never loved you.” The gun went off in his hand once, twice, and then again, but he couldn’t even look to see where he’d placed the shots. Years of experience told him they’d been true.
He took a steadying breath, and then turned to see Tara in the hallway, halfway between him and the other bodies. She was glorious, the glow of her skin fading slowly, while his was still vibrant. Opening his mouth to speak, he saw Henrik enter at the end of hallway, his phone in one hand and a candy bar in the other.
“Duck,” he commanded, his voice humming with it, and Tara crouched almost instantly. Alaric raised the gun and fired, hitting Henrik in the leg and he went down screaming. Striding forward he paused by Tara to help her stand, whispering apologies for the command. She smiled at him, her eyes full of love, and then they continued, together, towards the twisting form on the floor.
At some point he’d dropped the gun, and he turned to see her looking at him. Vibrant blue eyes like ocean water met his and then she smiled. “Well?”
“I’d like to kill him, dolcezza, but I think you deserve this one.” Alaric gestured at the knife in her hand, and she stepped forward with a wild grin. Henrik screamed, pain-filled pleas and curses echoing off the concrete, but it was over soon enough. Too soon. He would have preferred her to drag it out, to make him scream as long as she had in that damn room, but the asshole wasn’t immortal and there was no way he would have survived the kinds of thoughts Alaric had been toying with for hours.
The floor shook again, another deep rumble making the lights flicker, and then he felt something behind him. When he turned he saw the tallest woman he’d ever met. She towered over him, her long brown hair cascading in waves to her waist, a beautiful green dress wrapped around her, and bright, golden manacles on her wrists linked by a chain.
“Eltera!” It was a cry full of joy, and he turned to see Tara rushing forward, the knife forgotten on the floor as she stopped short in front of the goddess to bow her head.
Alaric mimicked her, and then his heart stuttered as the goddess spoke. “I see Apollo’s gift paid off well.”
Did she just say Apollo?
“Yes, very well.” Tara grinned, and then she glanced at him.
“Alaric,” the goddess’ strange, musical voice made him tremble as he risked raising his eyes. She glowed, brighter than he was, but the color of it was the same.
Gods and goddesses and blood sacrifices, oh my.
“Um, yes? Eltera?” Alaric stumbled, and then laughed nervously. “I’m sorry, I don’t really know what to say.”
“Hmm…” Eltera faced him completely, and the full focus of the goddess’ eyes was almost too much. “That mortal planned to kill you with his gun, but I ensured that did not happen.”
�
�Then I think I should say thank you.” The confirmation that Luca really would have killed him made his stomach twist, but as he looked past her down the hall he could see Luca’s body slumped to the floor – and now he knew for sure that he had deserved it.
“You are welcome.” She tilted her head, her vibrant eyes moving over him like she was evaluating him. For what – he wasn’t sure, but he could only hope he passed. “You put your life on the line for my daughter, and for that I am grateful. However, I must ask something more of you.”
“Anything.”
“I need you to protect her, to keep her safe, will you do that?”
“With my last breath.”
“Yes, about that…” Eltera took a step forward and laid her hand against his chest. Warmth spread from her palm, seeping through his shirt and into his skin, and he smelled rain as his body tingled and hummed. It was a strange sensation that left his head swimming when she pulled her hand back, and he looked down to see that he wasn’t glowing anymore.
“Eltera?” Tara asked quietly, and the goddess turned towards her, her expression softening to one of sorrow.
“I did not have the power to protect Leonidas, or you, in that time long past. I was still too weak from my battle with Gormahn, but I can give you this.” Her eyes shifted back to him and he stood up straighter. “I can give you him.”
“Me?”
“You, Alaric Wright.” Her voice hummed with power, and he felt a burning on his chest where her palm had been moments before. He hissed air through his teeth, pulling at the neckline of his shirt until he saw the golden light working itself into a circle.
“What the -”
“Is that -” Tara grabbed at his shirt, staring at the dark lines as they etched into his skin, forming a circle, and then another, larger one. The head of a serpent appeared, and the two lines closed together, tucking into its open mouth.
It was exactly the same mark Kiernan had, without the sword.
“Eltera?” Alaric raised his eyes and she smiled.
“You are mine now.”
“What?”
“He means thank you, great goddess,” Tara corrected him, her joy apparent as she held tightly to his arm.
“Of course, I mean thank you, but – what does this mean?” He felt lost, but he’d felt lost since he had met Tara. She had turned his world upside down, made him really think for the first time in years, and in all the drama, in all the danger and turmoil… he had also been found.
“You are immortal, in the same way that all of my Faeoihn are immortal. If you are injured, I will heal you at dawn as the sun rises when my power is strongest.” Eltera held her hand out, and he opened his palm as she dropped pieces of metal into it, along with tiny screws – and a GPS tracker. “These were inside you, but they are no longer needed.”
“No, they’re not.” Alaric dropped them to the floor and smashed the tracker with his heel.
“So, he won’t die?” The emotion in Tara’s voice brought his attention back to her, and he saw the hope there, the same hope that bloomed in his chest as the question was asked.
“He will live as long as his head stays on his shoulders.” Those infinite eyes returned to him, the goddess’ voice turning cold. “Unless he betrays my gift and brings harm to you, Tara. If he does that, I will snuff his life out like a candle flame.”
“He wouldn’t hurt me, Eltera.” Tara smiled, but Alaric had to swallow hard. There was no risk of him hurting Tara, but the threat was terrifying all the same.
“I would never hurt her.”
“Good. I would hate to have to kill you after all the work I put in getting you two together.” The small smile that lifted the goddess’ lips looked almost feral, and Alaric was reminded that no matter how kind she had been – she could and would destroy him.
“Understood.”
“I will give you one more gift.” Eltera kept her eyes on him, and he swallowed hard.
“A gift?”
“Knowledge.” A small frown passed over her beautiful face, and she sighed heavily. “You lost your mother as a child. Your father killed her, yes?”
Alaric flinched, the memories reappearing like the goddess had summoned them. “Yes.”
“This haunts you.” Eltera waited until he raised his eyes back to hers. “But it should not. All she wished for was that you were safe, she called out your name because she was asking your father to spare you. She was not calling on you to save her.”
The words landed on him like a blow, and he couldn’t breathe. Tara’s hand tightened on his, and he wasn’t sure if he was going to be sick or if he was just in shock. “How do you -?”
“I can see the pain in you, but it is a pain I cannot heal except to tell you the truth. Her last act was one of trying to protect you.” Eltera nodded. “And you avenged her death. A warrior even as a child.”
“Is she… happy? Safe?”
“She was never mine, Alaric, but I am sure she is. The worlds after this one are not meant to cause suffering to those who are good.” Eltera gave a small smile, her expression one of ultimate kindness. “It is your job to make this life good for you and Tara. That is what I ask of you in repayment.”
“Always. I always will.”
There was so much joy inside her that Tara thought she might explode from it, or spontaneously faint, but it didn’t matter. None of it mattered because Alaric was safe. Alaric was immortal. Alaric wouldn’t die of old age, or a bullet, or a car crash.
And she loved him, she loved him even more than she had ever thought possible before Leonidas had freed her of the guilt she’d carried, knitting together parts of her heart that had long ago been ripped asunder.
It felt like a dream as he gripped her hand tight, his hazel eyes vibrant and full of his love for her.
“I am sorry, daughter, but I must leave. I have been away too long, and the strain is growing difficult to maintain.” Eltera took a deep breath, and Tara saw the way the manacles around her wrists pulsed. “I have ensured that the Laochra will not be able to find you, but it may be wise to travel to Neala. Her home has my blessing, and it is protected.”
“We will, we’ve been apart too long.”
“I know, and I am trying to correct that, my daughter. I am trying to correct it for all of you.” A shadow of pain passed over Eltera’s face, her form flickering between solid and transparent for a moment. “I must leave. Just know, I have always been here. I am always with you.”
“I love you, Eltera!” She shouted the words as Eltera’s form disappeared completely, the low thrum she left behind echoing in her chest for a moment. An unexpected sob broke free as she realized the goddess was gone again, but Alaric caught her as she tried to slide to the floor.
“It’s alright, dolcezza, it’s alright.” His words soothed her as he wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tight to his chest, and her cheek pressed against the still warm mark just behind the fabric of his shirt. “I’ve got you.”
He let her cry, and she became aware too late that she had clenched her blood soaked hands in his shirt. “Fuck!” She laughed a little, leaning back to wipe her cheek with a clean spot on her arm. “I’ve made a complete mess.”
Alaric raised an eyebrow before looking over at the body of the man who had tortured her, and then back up the hall to where the others were scattered. “I think we made a mess.” He sighed heavily. “Time to see if any of my contacts liked me more than Luca, because someone is going to have to clean this up.”
When he started to turn away, Tara grabbed his hand. “Wait… I need to know, are you okay with this?”
“This?” He asked, his brow creasing as he looked back.
“Eltera claiming you, making you… this. Are you okay? Knowing that this is going to be your life?”
Alaric smiled, and it was movie star charming as he grabbed her around the waist and lifted her with ease to pin her against the wall. Her legs wrapped around his hips as he growled low, nuzzling her neck. “Do you
mean am I okay with being your foolish immortal knight for the rest of eternity?”
“Yes…” she gasped as he nipped the skin where her neck met her shoulder.
“Tara, if she had needed to turn me blue, and have me sprout horns, and never see the light of day again – it would have been worth it to be with you.” He pulled back and met her eyes, the hard press between her thighs further confirmation of his words. “I would go to hell and back for you.”
“There’s no need, I already did that today.” Tara grinned, and he kissed her, their tongues tangling as his fingers dug into her hips.
“That is a story you’re going to have to tell me.”
“I will. Maybe once we’re in Seattle?”
“It’s a long flight to Seattle, and I’ve got some things to handle on this side of the pond first. Like making sure my sister is set up with funds, because I may not know her well anymore, but I’ve always promised I’d take care of her.”
“You’re a good man, Alaric.” She smiled as he kissed her.
“You know, being around you, I’m starting to actually believe that.” Their lips met again, and she melted into his arms.
Safe, whole, and loved.
Epilogue
One Month Later
“Shit, sorry,” Alaric muttered as he stepped out of Kiernan’s way. Tara watched as the two men tried to stay out of the other’s space in the cramped kitchen, and the stifled smile on Neala’s face told her she was thinking the same thing.
This was hilarious.
“Can I just have – no, the other thing, the tongs, yeah.” Kiernan tried to reach past Alaric and then sighed when he finally had the utensil to flip the steaks in the oven, slamming it shut just as Alaric almost backed into him again. “Listen, like I said, I really don’t need your help with dinner. I’ve been cooking -”
“For two thousand years, yeah, I got it.”
“Actually, I was going to say I’ve been cooking for me and Neala since she got here, but if you want to point out the age difference – yes, I’ve been cooking since before your great-great-great-great-”
Tara Page 26