Cult of the Hexad (Afterlife saga Book 6)

by Stephanie Hudson

  Time. Truth. Life.

  “I’m taking them all back!” I told it before the symbol I wanted to draw appeared not only before my eyes but above the stone in shadow. I knew it was my mind guiding me, so I put my trust in that and began to draw over the shadow in my blood. The second I was doing the last line, half of the ceiling collapsed behind me. I was knocked to the side and hit my head hard against the concrete floor. My mind was foggy as something inside of me screamed for me to get up.

  I was too hot, in fact my skin was burning and I couldn’t breathe. I coughed and coughed but it never seemed to clear.

  “Get up! Get up!” I heard my sister’s voice saying and I knew it was in my mind. I opened my eyes to the fire raging all around us and saw RJ screaming behind the gag in her mouth. I knew I had to move, I had to finish what I had started. So I dragged myself over to the Stone, feeling the pain in my leg with every move I made. It was as though half my body wanted to shut down but the other half wouldn’t let it…just a little further. Just that tiny bit, reach out Katie, reach out and do them all proud. Because you can do it. You can save them all.

  Reach…reach for it…

  I let one single bloody finger reach so far and fall down to connect my symbol, making it whole at last. The second I did I felt the power that had restrained everything in this place fall, like it was being sucked back to mother earth. I looked up just in time to see the Hexad symbol underneath start to weep away like tears of the fallen souls it had caused until it evaporated into vapour.

  It had worked. I had finally done it and now I could die in peace knowing the evil had been stopped. Knowing my friends had been saved and Ari would finally get to meet her true love, as I had met mine. Because if only for a brief time in my life it had been beautiful. It had been perfect. But above all,

  It had been worth it.

  So with what little strength I had in me I knew there was just one thing left for me to do before I died and it was to give comfort in that death to another as we found the end together. So I dragged my body up, feeling that since the Hexad had been destroyed I had enough strength to at least get to my feet. I cried out as pain shot up my calf but I didn’t let it stop me. I cradled my bleeding arm to my chest and limped my way to RJ.

  I knew I would have run to her if there was any chance at saving her but the side of the staircase was ablaze with flames and we were surrounded on all sides. There was no way out and pretty soon the fire would consume us. I looked above RJ to see it also wouldn’t be long until the ceiling collapsed all together and from the looks of things right on top of her…

  No, not her.

  Us.

  “I’m sorry, RJ.” I told her as I wrapped my arms around both her and the post she was still tied to. I felt her head fall forward on my shoulder and I did the same on hers as I let my hopeless tears fall. Knowing that I would never see any of them again. My sister Ari, after all this time trying to save her. To know that I would never get to meet the family that I had or have chance to fall in love with them all over again. Maybe subconsciously that was the reason for my reluctance in getting to know them. Maybe I always knew I would die as Katie before I ever got the chance to live as Keira.

  But above all else it was Draven that was the last one my mind fixated on and it was not surprising. Because selfishly I knew he was my greatest loss and I wasn’t ashamed to admit it. He was mine and I was his and the type of love we shared was eternal in both life and death…

  And death was what now awaited me and I in turn would await Draven in his…but I guess that was the only downfall to one of you being immortal,

  The mortal one had endless time to wait.

  “I’m sorry Draven, forgive me… I love you.”

  These were my last words before the cabin caved in on top of us and we both found…

  Death together.

  Draven

  Chapter 38

  Sacrifices

  Seeing Keira disappearing over that wall slammed me back into a place in time where I felt my heart literally being ripped open from the sight. Walking into that dressing room and seeing her gone was excruciating to find that she had yet again been taken from me. But there has to be something said for the kind of pain one experiences when seeing the person they love leaving them through choice.

  “Keep trying, Rue.” I heard my brother say gently as I could no longer be trusted administering orders without killing someone. Sigurd was already out of commission after I took my rage out on him for helping her getover that fucking wall! Although his injuries had already started to heal, the treacherous bastard!

  Lucius thought it best if they took his unconscious body with them and I was more than happy to see the back of it! Lucius was heading his team off to the Colony entrance to see if they had the same shields up there. I was expecting to hear back from him at any minute for an update on their progress because the progress on our side was none fucking existent!

  I was so enraged that I half wished they had left that damn Snake Eye here so I could have had another go at him. I was surprised it had been my own brother who was the first one to prevent me from throwing that last punch too far. My own torn flesh and bruises had healed almost instantly, so I had to hand it to the Shadow King, he knew how to hit back and hard enough to make me bleed.

  I knew in this moment that I hadn’t been fair to Vincent because he was right, I was ready to do whatever it took to get in there right now and get my girl from harm’s way. She had only been in there twenty-three minutes and I was already losing my ever loving mind just thinking about what she could be going through. I was so angry at her I could barely think straight yet so worried at the same time that I knew I needed to keep my focus. It was a battle my worry was winning, thankfully because I had a promise to keep and come Hell’s armies I was fucking keeping it!

  When I finally heard my phone go I had to control myself enough not to break it in half just by swiping a fingertip across the screen.

  “Tell me.” I demanded.

  “You are not going to fucking believe what I am seeing.”

  “Lucius, the last of my patience is hopefully still bleeding in the form of an unconscious Viking, don’t make me add Vampire onto that list.” I informed him making it clear the level of my tolerance for guessing right now.

  “She is something else, our girl.” I ignored the ‘our girl’ comment as much as I could, my demon, however could not and let this be known.

  “Stop growling and listen. I am looking at a convoy of what looks like every police car in this town and the next, but not just that half the town itself has turned up causing trouble.”

  “I don’t care, can you get in there?!” I snapped.

  “No, not yet but the spell is definitely weaker here so you’re best sending Rue to our side…”

  “Takeshi, take Rue to Lucius, now!” I ordered wasting no time.

  “But Dom you’re not listening.”

  “What?!”

  “She sent them a fucking angry mob!” I frowned into my phone not seeing his point, so he continued as if he knew this was what I would be doing…damn know it all!

  “She has a plan, Dom.”

  “I don’t care, she is in there on her fucking own and I won’t just stand here and do nothing! There has to be a…”

  “Wait, I see something…” He said cutting me off and moving the phone so he could speak to someone.

  “As far as we can see a truck has come out of the woods, we think it may be the Rogues I told you about and if it is then it means she might not be in as much danger as we first thought.” Lucius had been almost as angry as I, needing Adam to holding him back when once more attempting to get over the wall, this after being flung into the trees on the other side of the road after his first attempt.

  “Can you see for sure?”

  “Not yet but who else could it be. She told you about the girls and …wait, they are getting out.” He said stopping at the sight of this new information.

&n
bsp; “How many are there?!” I asked praying to every God I knew above and below for the answer to be six. I know I would have breathed a little easier knowing that at least where she was these soon to be dead assholes were not.

  “There’s five, Dom.” Lucius said in a dangerously low voice that I knew spoke of the murder to come. It was his tell and one I had seen in the many years he was my second in command.

  “Fuck!” I snarled turning quick and putting my fist through yet another tree.

  “If you get in kill them all but save the Uncle and deceitful bitch to me.”

  “I will inform you if we have any changes.” He didn’t need to tell me this as I knew he would. Before everything had soured between us and our swords had clashed, he had been a trusted and loyal companion but then again so was a dog, so I couldn’t give him too much credit considering the asshole was in love with my wife!

  “Good, Rue is on her way to you…oh and Lucius…”

  “Yes?”

  “Make it painful.” At this he laughed and surprised me by saying,

  “Yes, my King.” As though all those years doing so hadn’t ever really worn off as I thought they would have. Maybe I would take the loyal mutt comment back for one slightly less insulting. And after all Keira was Keira, so who could really blame him…no, I still could!

  I had hoped by the time I got off the phone I would have been appeased somewhat with the knowledge that she was not surrounded by Rogue Vampires being led by who we suspected was a powerful demon. But obviously one still remained and that was enough to make my blood boil all over again because that was still one Vampire too many.

  “Try it again!” I snapped. Seth and Zagan both complied with the order and attacked the wall in tandem. This, like all the times before, was useless and all that happened was those damned runes lit up like it was a Viking’s fucking Christmas show! Before I sent Ragnar away he told me what they meant and the power we were looking at every time they showed themselves to us. But after what Keira believed, I knew she had known all along and somehow got it in to her hard human head that the only way to defeat this was through her alone. By the Gods if I had only known what it was that I had been truly up against then I would have employed every powerful witch in the world to go in there with an army of every special forces to deal with it!

  If only I’d seen it, if only someone had been able to foresee…that’s when it suddenly hit me and as soon as it did, everything quickly fell into their deceptive places. I looked to Vincent and he looked up at the same time, knowing instantly that I knew. Vincent should have seen all of this when he looked into Katie’s memories as he couldn’t access Keira’s, this he had told me later. However, what he had failed to mention to me was that only Katie would be able to pass over the Wall and now with much more on the line than just a sister-in-law to lose, he had risked my everything to save his own.

  “Now Brother, you need to listen to me.” He said backing away as my legs had already started to take me over to him. Sophia looked first to me and then to Vincent, trying to figure it out for herself.

  “I didn’t send her in there, it was her choice to make, not mine and not yours.”

  “You didn’t!” Sophia shouted now discovering the level of our brother’s deceit.

  “And what would you do if it was Zagan?!” Vincent shouted getting angry himself but if he wanted to see anger, then he was about to!

  “I would sacrifice myself to get him back, I wouldn’t sacrifice my brothers!” She snapped getting in his face first because she was closer.

  “Exactly! I didn’t sacrifice her, she sacrificed herself!”

  “And you let her!” My demon growled as I felt my wings burst free and I charged at him. I caught him in his centre and pushed him into the wall, holding him there with an arm across his throat.

  “It was her choice to make and you know that!” He said in his defence but I wasn’t listening. I was too far gone in my rage to care about his reasons. All I could see was the red mist of wrath coming straight from the ultimate family betrayal.

  “Uh Dom?” Sophia called my name but I wasn’t listening.

  “And what would you be doing to me right now if I had helped risk the life of your Chosen?” I snarled the question an inch from his face.

  “The same. But ask yourself, who would you have risked to get back your Chosen?” I knew what he was asking of me, to put myself in his shoes…would I have risked this Ari to save Keira, knowing she was destined for Vincent?

  “DOM!” Sophia screamed and we both turned as brothers and shouted,

  “What?”

  “What?”

  “The wall, you’re both against the wall and it’s not reacting!” Sophia shouted back and we both looked to see she was right. The shields were down! I let go of Vincent at the same time he said,

  “She must have done it, the Rune worked!” I ignored him because I had little time to care for anything else other than getting her back to me. I jumped over the wall in one motion and was off through the woods like Gorgon Leeches were biting at my feet.

  That’s when I started to smell it…

  Smoke.

  “KEIRA! I roared her name not giving a shit about what fucking name I used right now because no matter what she thought that was my Keira in that cabin and nothing in this world or the next would change that!

  The closer I got the stronger the smell became and my fear doubled. She’d better be okay, she just had to be, she…

  “By the Gods no!” I stopped in my tracks as my heart stopped beating in sight of the cabin completely ablaze. Then I really started to move. She would be okay, she would have gotten out of there…she couldn’t be in there…not my girl, not my Keira! I told myself all of this over and over like some lifesaving mantra.

  “Oh please no!” I heard my sister’s cry behind me as I reached the front of the cabin that had been utterly consumed. In fact, the roof was ready to collapse and cave in on itself. I scanned the whole thing searching for any signs of life but the smoke and flames were a sight only reserved for my own personal Hell. She couldn’t be in there!

  I had never felt so helpless in all my years on this earth as I did in that moment! If I started moving anything structural it could simply mean her death from that alone. If I went in there I might also disturb too much which would only give me the same outcome.

  “Where is she?!” Sophia asked appearing next to me.

  “I don’t know but she’s not in there.” I said firmly knowing it wasn’t possible.

  “Dom…tell me…by the Gods, please say…” My brother couldn’t finish that sentence after swiftly landing next to me and folding his wings back.

  “What’s that?!” I looked to the black charred body dragging itself from the wreckage with its legs still smoking. It had something sticking out from its head that looked as if it could have been a small blade.

  “What the hell is that?”

  “Not what, but who.” I snarled knowing more importantly who it wasn’t. I nodded to Sophia who knew what I asked of her. She flew to him, extended her demonic hands and dug in her claws making the creature cry out. She dragged him over to us and the closer he came the easier it was to see that beneath the scorched blackened flesh lay a parasite rogue.

  “Where is she?” My demon demanded. But the cretin simply started to laugh, as much as his burnt lungs would allow.

  “Your…your…” He coughed up black blood into the grass and I placed my booted foot onto his neck, seeing bloody cracked skin open and flakes of ash peel away from the pressure I inflicted.

  “WHERE?!”

  “Your little bitch and her friend are cooking as we speak!” He spat out and my Demon snapped.

  “NO!” My blade impaled him in the head just as Seth cried out his own agonising howl of pain, knowing now that RJ was in there with her.

  “KEIRA! HOLD ON!” I bellowed running to the cabin and with my powers pulling away piece by piece praying to every higher power I knew not to le
t them crumble on top of her.

  “KEIRA, I’M COMING, I’M COMING FOR YOU!” I roared out, screaming for her to just hold on. Take a deep breath, keep conscious, take the heat or just hold on a little bit longer…I was coming for her.

  “DOM LOOK OUT!” I heard Vincent yell behind me and I moved back in time to see first the front of the cabin fall and then I knew everything after it would follow. I reached out my hand trying to catch it in time, bursting into demonic flame myself so that my body could stand the heat. I flung my body, twisting it to make it go further, so I just reached for it before it went too far, for I knew what would happen if I didn’t make it…

  She would be lost to me...forever.

  “DOM!” I heard Vincent scream just as the wall fell right past my fingertips by a hair’s breadth away. My powers had been useless. I landed on the ground just as the wall landed also, blowing debris and ash in my face. I closed my eyes only for them to snap open just as quickly when I heard the devastating sound of the rest of the building collapsing.

  “NOOOOO!” I thundered at the sight of the whole blazing roof crumbling on top of my entire world that was trapped inside. I felt the tears of my loss flowing freely and I screamed my pain into the night, one that was quickly echoed by the rest of us.

  “No. No. No…don’t do this to me! You can’t do this! YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME...! Keira, please…please…” I looked up to face the cause of my anger and I lost it! I didn’t even remember getting to my feet, or tearing into the flaming building like a mad man. I didn’t remember the heat only the freezing pain in my heart. I didn’t remember when my demon split the cabin in two, only the sound of its agonising howls cursing the Gods.

  But what I did remember what how it felt when I first saw her. Back to the day in the forest where she fell at my feet and nervously mumbled her first words to me. I remember what it felt like to hold her for the first time, knowing I could never let this girl go. How I tried to deny the pull her magical spell cast on us all that is simply powered by the purest soul known to both man and being. A power she didn’t understand but the rest of us did. It was beautiful and it was raw and it was life in all its terrifying glory. And I got to hold it, to possess it and most of all, I was loved by it…