Nether: Hidden Book Five

by Colleen Vanderlinden

  "Well, that's just great," Brennan said. "So what are we supposed to do? How am I going to keep my son safe if I can't even see Hyperion coming? And don't tell me to trust you, Molly. You can't be everywhere."

  I clamped my mouth shut. He was right. I was about to say those exact words. "I'll just have to get to him first," I said. "I'll find him."

  "Yeah, well, Nether wants to kill me too, so, hey: maybe I should be bait," Brennan said, and at first I thought he was just being an asshole. Maybe he was, but a thoughtful look replaced the angry expression on his face. "Draw them out, and you can do your thing," he said, looking at me.

  I shook my head. "No way."

  "Why not?"

  "Because I don't know if I can actually kill either of them and I'm not putting you in harm's way while I try to figure it out."

  "He's already in harm's way," my father said. "At least this would be of his choosing."

  "No. And fuck you for even suggesting it," I said. "I have a psycho to find. Stick together," I muttered, then focused on rematerializing elsewhere before anyone could stop me.

  Chapter Eight

  I ended up in the neighborhood where Heph and Meaghan lived, hoping to find some sign of Hyperion. I knew the possibility of him being there was unlikely, but it was all I could think of.

  Man. My imps would have been so helpful. I could do it myself; I always had, but I had been spoiled by how quickly the imps could find things out. Now, I was left to listening in on conversations and thoughts and trying to detect power signatures. I was walking through open fields around Heph and Meaghan's house when my phone rang. I glanced at the screen. Nain's number.

  "Hey," I said when I answered.

  "Hey," he said.

  "I'm sorry I took off like that. They were making me nuts," I said.

  "I'm glad you did. I know you do better when you're out actually doing shit instead of standing around. We just got a report that Nether's on I-94 near Wayne State. Apparently there's a huge pileup and she's there acting nuts."

  I didn't say anything for a second. I have never in my life backed down from a fight, but facing Nether again, being so totally and completely overpowered, was not something I had even the smallest desire to do. I shook my head.

  "Okay. I'm on my way. Don't come," I added, and then I hung up and focused on the freeway. There was an overpass that would give me a pretty good idea of the surrounding area, so I focused on making it there.

  The first thing I noticed was the mass of cars in both directions on the freeway. Backed up.

  The second thing I noticed was the silence. Usually, at times like this, people would be honking their horns or shouting profanities. Right then, it looked like everyone trapped in a car was just hoping the insane being on the freeway wouldn't notice them.

  Nether was flying, hovering just a couple feet above the concrete, back and forth across the freeway. She was talking, but even in the quiet I couldn't pick up what she was saying. I focused, and rematerialized closer, on the embankment at the side of the freeway.

  I listened harder, and it really did sound like she was speaking gibberish, more noise than words. I studied her, glad she hadn't noticed me yet.

  Nether looked like hell.

  Her long white hair was in snarls, bits of leaves caught in the strands. The white outfit she'd been wearing the day she kicked my ass still sported blood (likely mine) and was gray with filth. Her wings were filthy as well, the pristine white now smudged, the feathers in disarray.

  She looked at the pylons for the overpass nearby, and then, in the next second, she flew toward it, faster than I've ever seen anyone fly, and she ran head-first into the concrete pillar. The bridge shook with the impact. It was still morning rush hour, and there were people everywhere, including on the bridge. She backed up and did it again. I flew toward her before I could talk myself out of it, and just as she was rearing up to fly into it again, I lunged toward her and pulled her back.

  "Stop it. What the hell are you doing?" I said, and she struggled against me.

  "It won't stop. In Nyx's name, it just won't stop!" she screeched, and she clawed at my arms, trying to get away to do it again.

  I had to get her out of there, away from the crowds of morning commuters. I held on to her tight, and focused, and we ended up in the empty lot where my house had once stood. My old neighborhood, which had long since been deserted by everyone but me. When we got there, she was struggling, screaming against me, but I held on.

  "Stop," I said, trying to get through to her, past whatever insanity was going on in her head. "Just stop."

  Soon her screams died down, and she stopped struggling, instead resting her head on my shoulder. Sobs shuddered through her thin body, and she just kept repeating, "It won't stop, it won't stop, it won't stop."

  "Nether," I said softly. I patted her shoulder awkwardly. I didn't even want to think about how stupid I was being. My parents were right. I was soft. I should have been trying to kill her while she was off-balance and distracted. It really would have been my best chance at destroying her, when she was like this. "What won't stop?"

  "All the noise. The noise. The noise never ends and it hurts, my Prison. It hurts," she whispered, as if even her own voice was too loud for her to bear.

  I lowered my voice to a whisper as well. "Nether. It's quiet here," I said, "listen. No one lives around here. No traffic. That's why I liked living here so much." She covered her ears and shook her head manically. She slumped down to the ground.

  "Too much. Too much," she said, and I looked around. I sensed for her, and the biggest thing I felt was fear. Confusion. "I should be killing you now," she whispered, rocking back and forth, holding her knees. "You so deserve to be punished, my Prison," she said.

  "Yes, well," I said. "Tomorrow's another day, right?"

  "It's too much. Tomorrow is a nightmare," she answered, still rocking back and forth. I focused on her emotions. In addition to the fear and confusion, she seemed to be in genuine pain.

  "Nether, what's hurting you?" I asked, focusing on keeping my voice low and calm.

  "Everything," she answered.

  We sat in silence for a long time, and she rocked back and forth in that manic way the entire time, eyes nearly glassed over. The whole time, I was debating whether I should be trying to kill her or not.

  "Aren't we supposed to be fighting?" I finally said.

  She didn't answer.

  I couldn't take it anymore. I knew damn well there was not a chance in hell I was going to try to attack her when she was down, and that irritated me. My parents would have a field day with this. And I knew that the choice not to try to kill her would come back to bite me in the ass eventually.

  I stood up and unfolded my wings.

  "Freedom is a nightmare," she murmured, so low I barely heard her.

  "It can be," I agreed.

  "I was not created for this." Then she looked up at me, finally focusing. "If you're not going to fight me, then leave. I have no desire to spend quality time with Nyx's little tool."

  "Nyx's tool, huh?" I asked. Maybe I'd get a fight out of this yet.

  "Traveling the path set for you by Nyx like a good little soldier," she said, voice still low.

  "I was on this path long before I ever knew about Nyx," I said. "The only path I'm on is the one I chose for myself."

  She smiled then. "Believe what you must, then. But know that I have dwelled in your soul, and I have seen you as no one else has. You try to be light. You try to be a savior. Inside, you are just as dark and damaged as I am. You surround yourself with beings who have betrayed you over and over again. Your parents. Your mate. Your former mate," she sneered. "You hold them so close, yet every single one has proven themselves unworthy."

  I didn't answer.

  "You are weak, Fury," she said. "And one day, you will learn to be strong."

  I snorted then. Honestly, I can only be expected to take so much bullshit. "Yeah. Strong like you. You forget that just as yo
u think you know me, I shared soulspace with you as well. All I felt from you, ever, was hatred and fear, Nether."

  I rose into the air. She made no move to get up, and had gone back to her hypnotic rocking.

  I started to fly toward home, and I heard her parting words to me: "Hatred makes me strong."

  Chapter Nine

  On Saturday, I spent the day trying to figure out how to put together Zoe's new crib and trying to soothe both her and Sean at the same time, since Brennan and Nain were out patrolling with Heph and my father, trying to get a read on where Hyperion might be. By late afternoon, both of the kids were exhausted, and I passed out on the living room couch, which was where Nain found me when he walked in that evening.

  He pointed me toward my bed and told me he'd wake me up at nightfall so I could go sit with Shanti, and I was happy to take him up on that.

  Kids are completely exhausting. Tiring in a way I never would have imagined. It seemed like Sean was always on the verge of hurting himself somehow, and when Zoe wasn't eating or crying, she was pooping or just generally fussing.

  I fell asleep again for what felt like seconds, and then Nain was gently shaking my hip, his lips at the back of my neck.

  "I cannot do this," I muttered into my pillow.

  "Can't do what?" he asked, pulling me into his arms.

  "This kid thing. I am so clueless. Fighting is so much simpler. See the bad guy, smash the bad guy. I have no idea what to do for her, other than keep trying things until she stops crying."

  Nain nuzzled my neck. "You're doing a good job with her, baby. She's calmer for you than she is for the rest of us. But if you want, we can find somewhere else for her to stay."

  I shook my head. The thought hadn't even crossed my mind. "She's ours. I'm just feeling whiny and inadequate."

  "Those are two words I'd never associate with you," he said. I closed my eyes and let myself be comforted by my mate. He was so good that way. There weren't a lot of sweet, flowery speeches from Nain. He never tried to butter me up or stroke my ego. Straightforward words and physical contact. He knew how it comforted me when he touched me. I was thankful, for about the fiftieth time that day, that I had him back.

  "You're a pretty good husband," I said, patting his arm so I could get up.

  He gave me one more squeeze and kissed the side of my neck before releasing me. "I try. Later, I'll try harder," he added, and I laughed.

  "Horny demon."

  He gave me a grin before heading out of the room so I could get myself cleaned up and ready to go to Rayna's.

  A few minutes later, I kissed both Nain and Zoe and headed out to the vampires' house. I flew, hoping to clear the last of the grogginess from my brain.

  It wasn't hard to spot the sprawling French Tudor with its wrought-iron fence and gate. The grounds were lit by even more floodlights than they'd had at the old house, a testament to how often they'd been attacked in recent weeks. I landed just inside the gate and raised my hands in a placating gesture to the two armed vampire guards who came rushing off of the porch.

  "I'm the Angel. Rayna and Ronan are expecting me," I said.

  At that moment, the front door opened and one of the vampires I recognized from before, Sam, came walking out. I didn't really understand the intricacies of the family but from what Shanti had said, Sam was in charge of helping rehabilitate vampires after they'd been turned. He helped them deal with their new lives, their new senses. Their new cravings.

  I guessed he'd be spending quite a bit of time with Zero after this.

  He strolled down the front stairs and held his hand out to me after he had waved the guards away. I smiled at him in greeting.

  If my vampires weren't so loyal, I'd kind of hate them. Every single member of Rayna's family, including Shanti and, soon, Zero, was so damn gorgeous it was almost impossible not to stare. And they only seemed to become more beautiful after being turned. Sam, with his dark wavy hair and smoldering smoke-gray eyes, could have been on the cover of any romance novel on the planet.

  "How are things?" I asked Sam as he gestured toward the porch.

  He shrugged as we started walking. "We're managing. We're grateful to you and Brennan for sending the shifters to guard things during the day. It has helped."

  I nodded. I could hardly take credit for that at all. That was mostly Bren's doing. It was weird to me, watching how quickly he'd established himself as not just the guy who coordinated the packs, but as kind of the ultimate alpha. When the alphas of other packs listened to him, when they did as he ordered… that said something about the kind of shifter Bren was. So when he'd told them to send some of their best to guard Rayna's home during the day, they'd done it, and gladly, all wanting to be on his good side.

  I scrunched my face, thinking. Why hadn't I seen any of this when we'd been together? Had I really been so blind that I'd been unable to recognize what everyone else seemed to see in him?

  Well. I'd been blind to other things, too, right? I pushed it out of my head as I followed Sam into the house. I took careful note of the hallways and rooms we passed through, so that, if I had to, if they needed me, I could rematerialize here someday. I can't do that unless I have a good sense of a place. Heph can do it from a photo or a video, and, sometimes, even from a verbal description if it's good enough. I'm not there yet.

  Sam led me into what looked to be a family room or den. There was a large stone fireplace at one end of the room, and on the two sofas near it, Rayna, Ronan, Shanti, and Zero sat. When they noted my presence, they rose, and, to my discomfort, gave me the salute my imps so often did: hand thumped to the chest, head bowed.

  "Hey," I said. Shanti came up to me and gave me a hug, and I squeezed her tight, sensing her overwhelming nervousness. Ronan shook my hand warmly, and Rayna leaned in for a quick hug. Then I looked at Zero.

  Shanti had excellent taste. Good lord, the man was drool-worthy. Skin like light caramel, eyes that looked gold in the right light. He stood protectively near Shanti, and regarded me with a serious gaze.

  "Zero," I said to him. "Nice to see you again."

  "Likewise, Angel," he said.

  "We're kind of family or whatever this is. You can call me Molly," I said, and he gave a small smile and nodded.

  Ronan spoke up. "Thanks for your help with the day guards, Molly. We would have perished eventually if not for that."

  I looked up at the huge vampire. Serious, straight-laced. He and Brennan had seemed to become friends over the past weeks, and I could understand why. They were opposites in many ways, similar in others. "That was mostly Brennan's doing," I said.

  "He had to get your approval to do it," he said, and, after a moment, I nodded. It was true. He ran just about everything by me, even when I told him he didn't have to.

  "I'm glad it's helping," I said. "We'll deal with the vampires and their people."

  "I know there's a lot going on for you. The help you've given us already is more than enough," Rayna said. "Is there anything we can do to help you?"

  That's just like my vampires. Getting attacked left and right, and asking what they can do for me. To think I used to hate vampires.

  I shook my head. "It's all stuff I have to deal with."

  Ronan transferred his gaze to Zero. "Ready, man?" he asked.

  Zero took a deep breath. "I am. But, can we have a minute before we do this?"

  "Sure. Head in. When Shanti comes back out, we'll begin," Ronan said.

  Zero nodded his thanks and held his hand out for Shanti. Her nervousness for her lover was making my stomach twist. She put her hand in his, and they headed up the stairs, which is where I guessed Zero would be turned. I watched them go, hoping all would go well.

  My girl was a wreck. It kind of pissed me off that there was no one to hit.

  I hated that.

  I turned back to Rayna. "So, how does it work?" I asked her.

  She gestured for me to take a seat, and I did. Ronan sat next to me on the sofa, and Rayna took a chair nearby. "He
chose Ronan to turn him, so Ronan will be in there with him, along with Sam," Rayna began. "Ronan will begin by draining most of his blood. Not all. If it goes that far, then he's dead."

  "Drained," I said, and she nodded.

  "So he'll drink most of Zero's blood. Just before Zero's heart stops, Ronan will slice his own wrist, and feed his blood to Zero. It won't take much. A few sips, and soon, Zero will begin regenerating his own blood. Except that, then, it will be imbued with our powers."

  "How long does that take?" I asked, trying not to be squicked out by the whole thing.

  "The actual feeding takes mere minutes," Ronan said. "The metastasis takes several hours. And there is always the chance that his body will reject the feeding."

  "And if that happens?" I asked, not really wanting to hear what I knew he'd say.

  "Then he dies."

  "Is that common?"

  He shook his head. "Especially not when the new vampire is young and healthy. And Zero is a strong son of a bitch. I'm sure he'll be fine."

  I let out a breath. "Okay. So what is Sam in there for?"

  "When he wakes," Rayna said, "he'll be starving. The remotest scent of mortal flesh will drive him insane with hunger. Sam will be there to help Ronan hold him back and to provide him with some of the blood we keep on hand for new vampires." She transferred her gaze to her brother. "We will have to air the house out well. If he smells her," she said, glancing at me, "It will drive him nuts."

  "She smells good," Ronan agreed with a nod.

  "Ugh, vampires," I muttered, and they both laughed.

  Shanti walked into the room, and we all sobered. Her eyes were tinged in pink, her hands were shaking, and she looked more like the lost teenager I'd first met than I could bear. I stood up and folded her into my arms. She held me tight.

  "It's gonna be fine," I said, glaring at Ronan over her head. It better fucking be fine, I thought, sure he got the message by the look in my eyes.

  "He'll be fine, Shanti," Ronan said, looking coolly back at me. "He's strong. He's motivated to do this, and he's not afraid."