by Lawrence, S
He comes over me, pressing me down, as he unbuckles and shoves down his pants.. His hands slide up my sides until they reach my hands, drawing them over my head. He is dominant and that thrills me. He shifts, gripping both my hands in one of his larger ones. His lips crash into mine, tongue thrusting deep. He is wild as his other hand closes over my breast, pinching the nipple through my thin top, hard enough to dance the edge of pain. I gasp, and he groans in my mouth.
He is pressing against my entrance, hard and hot. He is large and I hesitate for a moment, shifting away from him. He follows, and in one thrust, seats himself fully. Gasping, I try to relax into the pressure. He moves his mouth to my breast, drawing the taut nipple deep. Sucking in rhythm to his thrusts, I lose myself to the sensations. On and on it goes, as I climb higher and higher. A keening crying fills my ears, and I realize it is coming from me.
"Arias, Arias Arias..." All I can do is chant his name. He shifts slightly, and I implode. He screams my name as he fills me with his seed. He releases my hands and I bring them down, curling them around his back. He pushes up and moves off me, pulling up his pants and moving to a door to our right.
"Let me clean you up." I stare after him. He returns with a warm rag and cleans my thighs, and tears fill my eyes. Looking up, he notices them. "My love, what's wrong with you?"
"Did I do something wrong?"
"No, why would you think that?"
"You had to get away from me so fast." Dropping the rag, he moves to my side, his long fingers caressing the swell of my breast.
"I'm sorry, you must give me time. I love you, but I've never done a relationship before. You can't expect me to grasp or do everything right."
I feel horrible. Of course, he is right. I'm being needy. We lay together, and I succumb to sleep. Dreams plague me. Dreams of a life I wish I had, filled with love and friendship.
* * *
Aphrodite watches from her temple, reveling in Emma's heartache. It reminds her of the time spent with Arias a thousand years ago. How many humans had they destroyed together before he had focused on his revenge. She missed him and their fun. But, if the clan realized what she had been doing in helping him, they would kill her. Shaking her head to clear away the memories, she focuses on both sleeping forms.
A pang of jealousy runs through her body as she sees him curl around the girl. Her eyes narrow and she suddenly grins. Closing her eyes, she sifts into the room, staying beyond the dimension - a ghost, one bent on havok. Leaning over Emma, she whispers in the girl's ear before looking at Arias. He is beautiful in his peace. Too bad that won't last. None of this is her fault; he really should stay with her.
39
ARIAS
Nuzzling her neck, I draw her scent deep within me. I'm not quite content and want to wake her. I want to bury myself deep within her again. My arms tighten around Emma's body, hand cupping her breast. She shifts back in her sleep, and I push against her, moving my mouth to her ear. "Emma, I need you." I whisper to her, drawing her from her dreams. Her body stiffens.
"Oh my god! What is happening? Why did I do this? What did you do to me?" She fights free of me, throwing herself from the bed. She hobbles to the corner staring at me in terror while shaking her head.
"You love me. Like I love you." Her rage is in her eyes, rage and disgust.
"I don't love you! What did you do to me to make me think my own daddy didn't love me? Your power doesn't work on me so who did you have do it? WHAT DID YOU DO?!?" I rise from the bed and move toward her. "Get away from me! GET OUT!" She screams at me.
I stalk from the room slamming the door. Her sobs filter through the wall. My own rage surging through me. "Aphrodite!" I want to scream but I don't. I don't need to. She is near or watching, thriving off the damage she created.
She appears before me, a smirk on her beautiful face. "Why?" I wanted to add ‘you bitch’ but held back.
"Because I like her pain." Watching her face, I understand she wants my pain as well. I refuse to give it to her.
"You're ruining the plan. I want, need her to love me. It would hurt Jason more."
"I don't care about hurting Jason though. That's your thing. I only want Him to win this war." She smiles and waggles her fingers at me as she fades away.
"If you want that, you could take me through the portal, could have years ago, but no, you are too frightened of being caught by your clan." She leaves but she can hear me.
I stare at the empty space where she had stood, dreading my next step. Rubbing my eyes with my fingers, I turn. Leaving Emma locked in my bedroom, I walk downstairs. I don't want to deal with the others, but I must. This changes everything.They are sitting on the sofas drinking when I reach the common area. A fire is roaring in the pit between them. They all look up at my approach. Hondo is immediately suspicious. The others are curious.
"I thought we wouldn't behold you till morning." He leers at me.
"We have a problem." I choose to ignore his statement.
"A problem?" Erika sits up straighter.
"Yes, Emma no longer believes she loves me."
"That bad in the sack, huh." Hondo barks out a laugh at his own joke.
Powaqu narrows her eyes. She realizes that Aphrodite did something again. I refuse to tell the others. I move to sit on the chair that is free. We begin to discuss how this changes things. It is only a matter of time before our enemies find us. In the end, we decide to take the fight to them. Instead of waiting, we will approach those that wish to kill us and offer an ultimatum.
I regard them across from me. Hondo and Erika are predictable in their need for revenge, but Powaqu's sudden conscience about Emma worries me. I really don't like unknowns.
We all surge to our feet as power washes over our skin. An enemy is near.
* * *
My fingers wrap around the bars of my cell as I ignore the pain from the poison and gaze out. My friends are also looking out, searching for the power that is rushing over us. I smile at them. The wards we set will hold, but I hope they also do the secondary task we set for them - alert those Arias is hiding from to our presence. Now that the power is pushing against the wards, those with sensitive ears should pick up the tone.
40
JASON
We are all gathered in the garden, where Kai and Raven returned empty handed. They are both laying on the loungers recovering for their night of flight. Aislin is holding Kai's head in her lap, her fingers absentmindedly running through his hair. Sean and Michael dragged chairs to either side of Raven, each with a knee touching her. I share a look with Aislin, and she ducks her head, hiding her grin.
Damia bustles in with Gregor right behind her. Both are carrying trays loaded with food and drink. She is humming. Gregor's face is filled with gratitude, and I realize she is happy having us to care for. They were alone here for too long and that is my fault. I nod at him, an apology.
Perséphone shimmers into view, and we all swivel to her expectantly. Her usually serene face is clouded with sadness and anger. This isn't going to be good.
"You just as well spit it out."
"I'm almost certain his name is Arias.
"And who might Arias be? What did Hades do to the poor bastard?"
"He is the first version of you." She stares into my eyes and I cringe, shaking my head. "The first time they tried to make you, they didn't like the results. He couldn't change. His power of voice is nowhere near as strong as yours. They sent him to a man that prayed in the Temple of Hades, and they assumed the child would be killed or die in some other way. I found out years later his fate was much worse than that. He was used, tortured, and then locked away until years later when he grew more powerful in his rage and managed to free himself. It was he who forced Sisyphus, his tormentor, to push the boulder until his death. I looked for him but couldn't find him and truly, I had all but forgotten him until yesterday at the island. All those years ago, I was certain someone hid him from me. I'm sure of it now. I also think that whoever is helping him
also told him about you, Jason. Told him that you were made and weren't thrown away. It might be why he is fixated on you now."
"So, you're saying he took Emma to punish Jason?" Aislin's grated in my ears, her accusation causing me to draw back. Kai tightens his grip on her hand, the power of their silent communication flows over me. Her eyes fly back to mine and she shoves him off, standing quickly. It would be funny if my soul didn't hurt at the thought of her scorn.
"Oh god, Jason. NO. I didn't mean that. I had… Well, I had thought for sure this was my fault."
"And now you understand the fault lies with me."
"No, no, no. Not your fault. I don't blame you, no matter what you heard in my words. Listen to my words now. You, not so long ago, told me ..." She draws a breath, glancing at the Druids, "You told me what happened to Chris isn't my fault. If I can't be blamed for what that madman did to him to punish me, then you aren't to blame for this." She regards Perséphone. "If anyone is to blame, it would be those who threw him away because he wasn't all they had hoped for."
There was no mistaking her tone or feelings now. Perséphone's cheeks colored.
"Fucking hell, what is that noise?" Kai scans around.
"What are ye talking about?" Sean glances at Michael who shakes his head.
I shake my head, trying to figure out what the sound is. "I hear it."
Looking around, I realize only Kai and myself, the two with extra sensitive hearing who can pick up the tone, can hear it.
"Chimes, sorta. Faint. It started moments ago. Almost like a bell ringing. A strange tone though." Sean and Michael look at each other again.
Michael speaks, "Kai, is the sound anything like the bracelet? Like the tone that you heard from bracelet when Aislin first put it on?"
I contemplate the Druids. "We had been able to feel the bracelet you had. This isn't like that."
"We realize that, but the dragon had heard the tone. Remember that was what Chris had been so excited about, the tone of nature." We all smile at the memory of his excited telling of the hertz and ley lines. "Ask your dragon, Kai."
Silence beats at us as Kai's eyes turn amber, the dragon moving forward to assess the tone. The amber fades and topaz peers at me before looking at Sean and Michael.
"It is very similar, but not exactly. It is like a repeating tone, but low. It started shortly after the goddess arrived." We all looked at Perséphone, who only shook her head. "My lady, could you please go and then come back in a few moments?" She nodded her head before sifting out.
I glance at Kai. "It stopped." I tell the others. Sean and Michael are looking at each other intensely. "For fuck’s sake, if you two have a theory, could you please speak out loud?" Perséphone reappears, seconds later the tone starts again. I nod my head at them letting them know it had returned.
Michael speaks. "Our best guess is that it is like an alarm. We think someone set a ward but for some reason, made it so that whenever it was touched by god level power, it would go off. That doesn't make much sense though. I mean, wards are for protection and concealment. You wouldn't want someone to know it was there." He looked at Sean for confirmation, who was silent, brows furrowed.
We all stand silent… Waiting. "Unless." Sean's eyes lock on mine. "It is meant for you. Someone wanted you to overhear it. Someone who knows what you are. They are counting on your hearing. Whatever the reason, we need to find the source."
"They might have counted on him but they didn't count on me." Kai walks away from us and starts running toward the fountain, changing and leaping in the air. The great bronze dragon beats his wings and soars out above the roof. Aislin stares after him smiling. Not to be outdone, I shift and pause, shaking my massive body before turning and dashing out of the front door. Gregor stands holding it open as I run by. I race around the house, ears twitching as I follow the sound. Raising my muzzle, I stare up, but the dragon is gone. Looking over my shoulder as footsteps approach, the others come out. Barking once I look back up, Aislin comes and lays her hand on my neck, "He is shielding so no humans see him. He's crossing the inlet."
I twitch my ears toward the house across the way and take off loping across the ground as everyone follows behind. We all reach the cliff edge and stand looking at the house. The sound is coming from there for sure. Aislin gasps and I scrutinize her before glancing back at the house. The great bronze dragon shimmers into sight right at the edge of the cliff opposite us, hovering for long seconds before once again disappearing .
"He saw her. Emma. She is in that house. We must save her." Tears clog her throat. The wind from his wings blows around us before Kai appears, dropping to the ground in front of her. He never breaks stride as he wraps her in his arms, holding her close. He whispers in her ear, all the while looking at the Druids and myself. Perséphone is staring across the water.
"I can't sense anything." Her confusion rings in her tone.
Kai replies, "Neither can I, nothing other than the tone. I was surprised when I saw her." He steps back from Aislin holding her at arm's length, forcing her to look at him. "She is as you described her. When I let myself be seen, she was sitting on the floor with her arms around her knees but the moment she saw me, she grinned. I saw fire in her green eyes."
Aislin draws a deep breath, a smile creep across her face. "They have no idea who they have on their hands with Emma. Her dad trained her like she was a Marine. I'm almost sorry for them if they think she is a weak little woman."
I shift back, and we all stand looking at the house. I want to go over there now. I didn't realize I stepped forward until Sean grabs my arm. Looking down at his hand, I draw a breath.
"Ye need to hae a plan, my friend. If they warded, they are prepared. We need to be also." He and Michael lock eyes and move away from us, walking along the cliff edge.
Raven studies them. "What are they doing?" She murmurs and startles when I answer.
"They are looking for a place for Michael to set up."
"Set up?" She focuses over her shoulder at me.
"Yes, his sniper nest. He'll be getting his rifle soon." I study the pair as they check for winds and look at every aspect that would affect his shots. "We just as well go plan and leave them to it."
"The problem is with the wards, we have no idea how many or what we are up against," Kai speaks what I had been thinking.
My phone rings right as we reach the house, pulling it out I look at the screen. "Nestor, did you learn something?"
"You can say that. I was contacted by a man named Arias. He says he is holding Emma. He wants to trade her for you, Jason." I glance up. The others are still walking up the steps to the house, but Kai's eyes glance back at me and his head shakes. I stop and wave him forward.
"All he wants is me?"
"That's what he said. Surely, you agree you can't do that." He is incredulous.
"Yes, I can. Call him back and tell him I'll meet him." I hang up before he can try to argue. I glance back at Sean and Michael before heading inside. Kai is waiting inside the door.
"Aislin won't let you do this. Neither will I."
"You don't have a choice; my decision is made. I need you to keep them all busy while I leave. After the exchange, I'll have Nestor bring Emma back here."
"And if you don't come back? What then? It'll kill them all. Aislin and Emma will think they are responsible."
"Then I better make it back. Listen, he was in that house. If I don't return, level it. Use your dragon fire to turn it to glass. Make sure that he doesn't get away." Spinning on my heel, I jog to my car. As I open the door, I look at him. He's watching me, knowing he can't stop me. "Tell her… Tell her I love her too," I whisper as I slide in, closing the door, knowing he'll catch the words.
He nods before continuing inside. The engine roars to life. Rocks spray the driveway as I floor it. I glance in the rearview as I hit the curve. Sean and Michael are standing where the car had been parked. Understanding mixed with disbelief clouds their faces.
41
&n
bsp; ARIAS
We wait to see if the attack comes. Powaqu's head suddenly tilts and her eyes narrow. The rest of us watch her closely. Her eyes fly to mine, "Arias, the witches. They set an alarm. He and the dragon will notice the sound."
"FUCK!" I'm spinning as Ericka shoves me aside rushing for the stairs. We race after the bloodthirsty Viking. She will kill them all, and I still need at least one of them. She is reaching for her favorite guy when we pound into the cavern. Grabbing her hand, I stare at her, daring her to shove me again. I let my rage show in my face. "If you ever do anything like that again, I will use my power in horrible unimaginable ways. You will spend eternity doing things for people, and I will make sure you remember every second." She stumbles away, shrinking. I don't regret reminding her of how I found her. She hadn't always been a fierce warrior.
I open the door and whisper to him, although I forgot his name long ago. He can't help but come to me, and we turn, walking over in front of Mimi's cell door. She has the most power and is the strongest willed. Whatever is going on is her doing. He stands slightly in front of me.
"Stop whatever you did or he dies."
"I don't understand what you mean." I wave Powaqu over and nod. She closes her eyes and opens them, raising them to meet Mimi's, the glow golden. A gasp echoes out of the cell. "You have until I count to three. One. Two..."
"Wait. Wait..." her hand comes through the bars and resignation fills them. "They didn't do it. It was me. Don't hurt him." She begins to weave her spell. I keep my eyes on Powaqu until she nods. "I had to try Arias. You would have tried."