Searing Ecstasy

by Setta Jay

  P nodded.

  Make sure the bastard keeps checking the link to Apollo. And find out what he’s hiding. Drake wasn’t sure why he thought the God was hiding something, but he was.

  Drake felt his cousin’s frustration in their telepathic connection. I will, I feel it too.

  They’d spent an entire day with him and Drake hadn’t shaken that feeling. It was Hades, not Ares or Apollo, but that didn’t mean his hiding something was a good thing. He was fucking glad the bastard’s ass was currently tagged with a tracking spell. Something Hades was unaware of and Drake planned to keep it that way. He and Sirena had come up with it after Apollo’s stasis unit was taken months ago. He’d injected it into all of the systems personally in case anyone else decided to steal a fucking God out from under his nose. The spelled gas would have sucked into the God’s lungs the second the unit was opened and should stay in his system for a week, if he was lucky.

  He considered having Uri take blood memories from Hades to ensure the secret had nothing to do with Apollo, but he didn’t believe the bastard would allow anything bad to happen to the world. Apollo’s secrets or abilities in an enemy’s hands could be very dangerous.

  If it came to it, he’d go to war with the bastard over Uri taking his blood. And it would be a fucking war. Until then, Drake would wait for P to get what Hades was hiding or for the God to lead them to something that would give them a clue.

  Brianne was still chatting up the God as they landed in the courtyard again and he was fucking thankful that she was keeping him thoroughly entertained. At least for the moment. Vane didn’t look nearly as pleased as he eyed the God and growled anytime Hades moved closer to Brianne. Vane was the son of Athena and was more than aware of Hades’ sexual needs. Of that, the Demi-God was making it very clear she was off-limits and he saw her sly grins to her mate, indicating she was enjoying it. If the God wanted to try to get in between those two, he’d have a rude awakening. Neither were the sharing type and they were an inseparable pair. It might be entertaining to see Hades try, though.

  The fight had eased his beast some, but already the dragon had lost interest in Hades and was trying to get to his link with Delia, and Drake needed to make sure the bastard stayed back. That meant checking on her and then refueling his energies.

  “I’ll check on you later,” he declared, eyeing Hades before porting away without sparing another moment for that potential cluster fuck.

  Chapter 6

  Guardian Manor, Tetartos Realm

  Uri, Alex, get to my office, Drake ordered as he stalked to his desk. He’d barely gotten seated when Alex and Uri slipped in. He looked up at them for a second before reevaluating his needs and calling Bastian and his new mate, Tasha, in as well.

  “What’s going on?” Uri asked seriously. “Where’s Hades?”

  “P is babysitting with Vane and Brianne. Have you found anything?”

  “Nothing. Has Hades been able to get through to Apollo yet?”

  “No.” Not knowing what the fuck was going on grated more and more with every passing moment. The tension eased by the fight was already mounting again. “And I have a feeling he’s not sharing something.”

  “Do you think he really is getting through to Apollo and not saying anything?” Alex asked in surprise. The dark-haired Demi-Goddess’ sapphire eyes widened a bit, but he saw her speculating the same way he had.

  “He’s an arrogant pain in the ass, but I can’t see him helping an enemy.”

  “Yet he never wanted you to find the box to call the Creators back when the other Gods were wreaking havoc on the world?” Alex pointed out with a cocked brow.

  Drake rubbed the back of his neck. “Our mothers were just as guilty.”

  Alex was the daughter of Athena and she knew full well what it was like to grow up as the child of a God. They were arrogant at their best. Athena, Aphrodite, and Hades were marginally good, but they had all thought they could find a way to stop the destruction on their own. Only a God would assume they had enough power to protect what was theirs against insurmountable odds.

  Even so, thinking three could go against nine was a fucking joke and took arrogance to another level. He, P and the others had spent years going behind the Gods’ backs to find the damned box. Ares and Artemis had secured it somewhere no one knew about. P, Jax and Sander had finally found it, but not without a cost.

  “That amount of arrogance still doesn’t make any sense,” Alex snapped.

  He blew out an irritated breath as Bastian and his new mate walked in. Tasha was the latest addition to the Guardians and she’d proven impressive in the battle the day before. Her unique ability to mist was interesting, but she was also able to manipulate her invisible form into sharp blades that cut down all in her path. She’d destroyed more numbers than even his Guardians had. The warriors hadn’t even seen her, no one had.

  “When are Nastia and Sander finishing the mating?” he demanded.

  Tasha sighed. “I’m not sure.” Her twin was stubborn and a complete smart-ass. She was fucking perfect for the Phoenix.

  He nodded and then ordered the two, “You need to do your diplomatic shit in the cities. Tell them Hades is awake.”

  “That might not go over well,” Bastian said without inflection. Bastian usually handled this shit along with Sacha, but she was still unconscious. Sirena was still reporting there hadn’t been any changes in Sacha’s health, leaving one more problem that he had no damned control of.

  He focused back on Bastian. “I don’t care.”

  Bastian nodded.

  “You want me to go with him?” Tasha frowned.

  She’d been living in Earth Realm, so Tetartos Realm’s customs were new to her. “He goes with someone. Would you rather it be with Jax?” he growled. He made sure all of his warriors were in pairs.

  All that mattered to him at the moment was getting everyone out of his office so that he could check on his mate. The dragon was getting fucking antsy.

  Before Tasha could say anything more, Bastian put his arm around her and tucked her into his side. Her deep blue eyes softened as she settled into her male as he spoke. “They’ll likely be too distracted by my mate for the information to matter.”

  He was sure Bastian was right. Though it could have been a compliment directed more to his female, in all reality Tasha was gorgeous, powerful and yet another Guardian mate. Mates had always been rare and coveted, and now there was an abundance of them, not just for his Guardians, there was a surge in Tetartos in general. The increase in matings was seen as a kind of miracle amongst the Immortals and Mageia living in the cities of Tetartos; to Drake it was a sign that something was coming.

  “Do you have a reason for waking Hades? One you want me to tell the coven leaders or the Immortal warriors?” Bastian queried as he shifted his mate toward the door.

  “I really don’t give a fuck how you spin it. Just make sure they stay alert to threats.” The Immortal warriors had been on constant shifts since Apollo was freed.

  Bastian nodded. Those in Tetartos hadn’t been happy that Apollo was loose, but Hades would cause an entirely different kind of stir. Hades was one of the Gods Immortals actually liked. If nothing else, the pain in the ass had treated his warriors well and been known to be fair. But it was his reputation for partying and fucking that drew others in. If he wanted females, which he’d been demanding earlier, they wouldn’t be hard for P to come by. Orgies were something Hades personally invented and Immortals were bored and overtly sexual in nature. Hell, the males alone were ruled by their dicks, needing sexual energies as much as the world’s to stay in optimal condition.

  As soon as Bastian and Tasha were gone, he ran a hand over the back of his neck.

  “So you and Hades battled it out, huh? I’m bummed we missed it,” Alex said.

  He grunted. “Did Sirena talk to you?”

  “About?”

  “Fixing Delia’s nightmares.”

  “I was supposed to head over there after we patro
lled,” Alex said with a nod. “Delia’s never let us in before.” Alex’s eyes shifted back to her mate in a way that made Drake growl.

  “What aren’t you telling me?”

  She let out a breath. “I attempted to push inside her mind when she was sleeping, back when she was in so much pain and feral. Her mental protections were strong even then. I only got glimpses before she woke wild and confused and shut down tight.”

  “And?” he demanded.

  Alex’s lips thinned.

  Smoke filled the air with his growing agitation. “Tell me.”

  She hesitated. “There were several impressions.”

  “List them!”

  “The wolf is beaten down and in mourning. The shadowy beast she got from Cyril is psychotic.”

  “And?” he snarled, not liking what he was hearing.

  Alex released a breath and answered, “And from the impressions I saw, it was Cyril’s memories tormenting her more than anything else. At least they were a month ago.”

  “His memories?” Drake snarled. “Not hers?” He’d thought she was reliving all the horrors she’d suffered because he hadn’t saved her, but it wasn’t any better imagining a dead Cyril replaying all of his sadistic crimes for her to relive. Drake felt the beast clawing to get to her.

  “I thought it would be memories of what happened, but it’s not,” Alex agreed. “That doesn’t mean these are good memories. The bastard was…”

  Smoke filled the room as she cut off the last word. Drake hated that the sick fuck still had the ability to hurt her, but this was something Drake could save her from.

  “Fix it,” he bit out.

  “We can’t,” Uri said. “Alex was only in for moments before she was thrown out… it was more like she was severed from Delia’s mind.”

  More smoke left his lips as he slowly stood with his hands planted on his desk and snarled, “Find a way. And only Alex goes in.” He wouldn’t allow a male to be so intimate with his mate. He barely had control of the dragon as it was.

  Uri blew out a breath. “Sirena says Delia’s even stronger now.”

  “Find a way,” he demanded with finality, a dismissal.

  They nodded and left as he struggled to calm the beast. She was his and there wasn’t a damned thing he could do to help her, but Alex could. He would tell Delia himself through the laptop she should already have, according to Conn and Sirena. Talking to her in the link was too damned volatile. Each time she just brushed against it, he was on edge, but when she spoke it was ten fucking times worse.

  He clicked the keys and the screen came up. She wasn’t visible and he immediately tracked her through their link before noticing the steam rising from over the screen that obscured the shower. He ran his fingers through his hair, ripping out the tie that held it back. He needed energy; he’d already expended too much fighting the animal and dealing with Hades.

  Staring at the painted screen, he cursed having provided her that privacy. If he hadn’t, he’d actually see her skin as she washed off the mud and allowed her skin to finally breathe after having it sealed for the day. It was the only way Sirena could go into the room to do her tests and he wondered if it was a kind of security blanket for his mate. The spelled mud prevented her pheromones from affecting any Immortal who scented them. The spells on the room were set to contain it, but the fucking drug Cyril had used was dangerous. As soon as they’d contained her, he’d had Conn come up with a magically enhanced exhaust system that was able to filter out her pheromone scent so she could do this. So she could have some sort of freedom while they found a way to heal her. He hated keeping her in a fucking cage, but the beast inside her was too damned unpredictable. If she ever ran, it would be an invitation for the dragon to hunt. That couldn’t happen, not when Sirena didn’t think Delia would survive their mating. He slammed a fist into the corner of the desk and left the broken wood in pieces.

  One small hand lifted to the shower head and he stilled. He’d yet to see her skin; the dragon had claimed her on scent alone.

  He wanted to see her now. Needed to see the female he was tied to. The mental image they’d all been given of her at the time of her abduction wasn’t the same as the small bit of skin he was seeing now.

  All he’d truly seen were her eyes. A constantly changing kaleidoscope of color that never stayed one color or tone. It didn’t seem to denote a specific color when the shadow was in charge, it just shifted. He knew they’d started as a warm copper and that her hair had been a long mass of dark auburn waves over creamy freckled skin, but the flesh he was seeing was a smooth pink tone that seemed different and completely unmarked. He growled.

  I can feel you watching me. Her breathy voice slid over him and felt like her fingers were running over his hard cock. How the fuck was her voice alone able to rule his dick?

  He didn’t bother denying it. Using the link wasn’t smart; it only made him want to fuck her, to claim her when it was impossible. Every word slid over his mind in a caress that thrilled his beast.

  I am, he admitted.

  You want to see the female that was supposed to be yours, but she’s dead. Her voice took on a sultry, haunted tone and the dragon roared as it fought for control to curl over the link. To comfort.

  He let it. It was a fucking mistake, but he allowed the beast to do it, knowing that every time she needed it, he’d do it again no matter how much more difficult it would be to wrestle the beast away.

  She moaned in a way that felt warm and relieved, not necessarily sexual, but his cock didn’t differentiate.

  He’d have to stroke his dick before he even made it to his rooms.

  Anticipation licked at his skin just imagining what she was doing behind that flimsy wooden barrier.

  He growled in fucking misery when the dragon curled tighter and another soft sound slipped through his connection to her.

  A moment passed when he wasn’t sure what he was going to do. Demand she show herself? Pry the animal from the link so he could finally breathe again?

  When she gracefully prowled from behind the screen, he growled aloud and his heart stopped. She’d changed. In ways he couldn’t fathom. This wasn’t the young and sweetly innocent-looking mortal she’d been.

  He was looking at a seductress. Beautifully nude and confident. The epitome of an enchantress of old brought to life, standing before him without an inch of reserve, defiance or innocence. Nothing like the images of the female she’d been. Her lean tight muscle slid into gentle curves and lifted to pert tits he wanted in his mouth… his hands.

  Her wet hair was a dark crimson so deep it shown like black rubies not the titian it had once been. The long waves teased and curled around deep rose-colored nipples that were peaked against an almost dewy flushed skin. There were no freckles, just smooth silky pink champagne skin and pouty fuckable lips.

  It’s just an illusion to hide the nightmare beneath. I’m not for you, dragon. No matter how much I wish I could be. The longing and regret in her tone was destroying him.

  Her eyes sparked a brilliant gold under her finely curved brows. She was so incredibly unique that his dragon roared for him to claim her as the perfect jewel she was. It wasn’t just her beauty, it was the confidence that set the man inside on fucking fire.

  Her gold eyes flashed brilliantly and then he was slammed with so much intensity of emotion and power that his fingers sank into the wood desk, crushing more of it in his grasp. Smoke flowed from his lips, and a fierce roar shook the room around him. She was letting him see inside her mind. Horrible defining images filtered into his head and they were enough to make the dragon rage, but instead of clawing for freedom, it tightened its hold on the connection to her.

  Just as quickly as it had come, it was gone. Just like his female. She’d given him a glimpse of the fear she lived with and slipped back behind the wooden divider, hiding herself once again.

  Fuck!

  Her voice was breathless as she demanded, Now go.

  She’d fucking dismissed
him, but he couldn’t move if he wanted to.

  He roared as smoke filled the room and the walls shook around him.

  Sirena said you felt the cold from my nightmares. Now you know why they have to stay. I’ll try to build a block, but I won’t let anyone in my head.

  He growled as her mind slipped away from the connection and the dragon was nudged free of it. The entire room shook as he forced down the fury and fought for enough control to get the hell out of there without burning the manor to the ground as he went through every fucking detail of what she’d shared.

  And tried to make sense of it while the beast started ripping free.

  Chapter 7

  Guardian Manor, Tetartos Realm

  Drake fully transformed the second he made it to the balcony, and the dragon roared with fury as it launched high, shaking the trees below and sending birds scattering in the opposite direction as he soared into the skies. He focused on the sound of his flapping wings until he gained enough control to teleport into Hell Realm.

  The sulfur scent of the Realm had a second to fill his lungs before he unleashed fire into the nearest pack of hell beasts.

  If Delia thought to scare him, she’d miscalculated. All she’d done was taunt the beast with the power and strength inside her while also infuriating him. He couldn’t focus on that. Not yet. He needed to allow the animal to rage, far enough away that they didn’t take the manor down to reach her. He wanted her, needed to tame her.

  His mind wouldn’t relinquish the image of what she’d become.

  Fuck, the sight of her set him on fire and he wished he’d never seen it. The beast and his dick had made the decision that she was theirs on scent alone, but the man inside had only felt true protective instincts and rage at failing to keep her safe.

  Until now.

  The female in that cell didn’t need a protector in the way he’d thought. She was right, that young Mageia she’d been was gone. An intoxicating predator was in her place and fuck if it didn’t get him off when it should do the complete opposite. The female in there needed him for something far more dangerous.