Rise of the Gryphon

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

  "I don't have a choice, Storm, but I do have a plan."

  "No. You're not going back to the Medb."

  "Kizira has the power to find me anywhere right now and to teleport me away without a word."

  The curse he let loose should have turned the air bloody. "I'll take you to VIPER lockdown. She can't get in there."

  Bringing VIPER into this would be a mistake. Evalle shook her head. "That wouldn't work either."

  "She can take me with you."

  "Then I wouldn't be able to escape when the time came because you'd end up in the Medb dungeon where I couldn't get to you. And I wouldn't leave you." Evalle kissed his chest. "I trust you. Now you need to trust me that I know what I'm doing."

  He ran a hand roughly over his head. "You make me crazy."

  "You've told me that before." She smiled, hoping to lighten his mood, then remembered something. "How did you get away from the beast fight on Cumberland?"

  "Used my majik and a sip of your potion. Walked right past the guards and Sen. I still have it. You can use it."

  "No, I can't and I can't explain why, but I need you to do something for me."

  "What?"

  "It's not easy to explain, because I've been compelled from divulging certain things."

  "Dammit." With the liquid movements of the jaguar inside him, he shot up and loomed over her. "What did they do to you?"

  "I can't really talk about being there, because of the spell. But I can share some things if I'm careful about the words I choose. That's why I need your help. There are people who need this information, and I can't talk to them at all. People who you know will help me when the time comes."

  "Tell me."

  Feeling lost and staring into his tight gaze, she started talking before her brain engaged. "I need you to tell--"

  Her throat tightened. She wheezed, gasping for air.

  "What's wrong?" His every movement said he wanted to hurt something for touching her.

  "It's okay," she croaked out, massaging her throat. She'd almost said Tzader's name. "I didn't realize I couldn't say a name."

  "Would it be easier for you to write it down?"

  "Yes. That might be a better idea. That way I could check for a slipup before I handed it to you. The spell doesn't attack me until the point I actually share information I shouldn't." She yawned, wishing she could just lie down with him and sleep for days.

  He hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her to him with possessive strength. He kissed her with more than passion. Something deeper. As if leaving a mark.

  His whispered love words wrapped around her, sliding past her senses, but one word slipped inside her and grabbed her heart. Mine. Had she heard that . . . or felt it?

  The world around her might still be spinning along on course, but hers stood still at that moment.

  Had he just done something to bind her to him?

  Did she care?

  Yes. It made her happy.

  She gripped his biceps, holding on to the one person who had been her anchor since the day she'd met him. His fingers touched her breasts, barely grazing the sensitive skin, then leaving too soon. After hours of making love, she shouldn't be up for another bout, but when his fingers slipped between her legs she was on fire all over again.

  Guess she wasn't as tired as she'd thought. But time was disappearing for her. "Storm, I want--"

  He lifted his eyes to hers, then cupped her face in his hands. "What? Say the word and it's yours."

  You are all I want. Instead, she said, "Time, which is something neither of us can control."

  She stretched and squinted at the glowing clock on his nightstand. With twenty minutes left, she didn't want to have Kizira appear in the middle of them tangled up again.

  And Evalle wanted a chance to say good-bye this time, to tell Storm she would do everything in her power to return.

  He asked, "How long?"

  Sometimes she could swear he read minds. "Twenty minutes. I want a quick shower."

  A sigh filled with regret spilled out, then he sat up, pulling her with him. As comfortable naked as he was wearing the sleek coat of a jaguar, he got out of bed and turned around, picking her up.

  "I can walk," she said with dry sarcasm.

  "I know." He deposited her in a glass shower large enough for two that had to be part of a remodeling, since this house had been built during the time of small tubs and shower curtains. "I'll make coffee and find you something to write on."

  After thoroughly kissing her one more time, he walked out, beautifully naked. She could spend hours watching him do mundane tasks with no clothes on.

  That wouldn't happen unless she left a message that Tzader and the Beladors could figure out.

  Or if she failed to survive the attack on Treoir.

  When Evalle finished showering, she walked through a cloud of steam while she dried her hair. The heat had turned what was left of her muscles into noodles.

  The sound of coffee brewing gurgled in the kitchen way down the hallway. Maybe Storm was making breakfast.

  Warmth tingled on her chest.

  The emerald was glowing. She had to ask him about that.

  She tightened the towel wrapped around her breasts and started to head to the kitchen until she saw a pen and paper on the bed.

  She should write the note now.

  The minute she got within two steps of Storm, she'd forget anything except touching him.

  Getting a message to the Beladors was the other reason she'd traded for the four hours here. Kizira could sit on her broom and spin if she thought Evalle intended to tell Tzader and Quinn to not protect Treoir.

  No way would Tzader stay away with Brina under threat, and he needed Quinn's powerful mind, especially to stop the gryphons.

  Evalle might possess Medb blood, but she had a Belador heart.

  She sat down, dropping the towel on the bed, and hurried to write the note. She wrote two sentences, scratched them out and started over. When she finished, she hoped Storm could explain the rest of what she couldn't. Otherwise, this would sound stupid.

  Storm--

  Give this note to the person I trust as much as I trust you, and explain that all I can do is give a hypothetical tale because I've been compelled.

  If a person had pets who didn't need ears to hear words and couldn't die, that person might teach her pets how to steal a special home in a faraway place. But she would have to travel with her pets, because of being the only one who could control them with silent commands. If her pets proved to be successful, she would rule not just her new home but homes everywhere.

  But for every strength there is a weakness and hers is in her heart.

  And considering any of these pets friendly could be royally dangerous.

  Evalle read it over quickly, trying to think of what else she could tell Tzader. She hoped Storm would not take out that last line, where she basically was saying she was just as dangerous to Brina as all the other Alterants. Another look at the clock gave her eleven minutes. She gripped the pen, determined to leave one last message for Storm to have when she left.

  Also, Storm, this is for you only. Thank you for being everything I could ever want in a man. You live in my heart every minute that I breathe. Trust me that I will find a way to come back to you. Please don't make me face you in battle. I won't be able to protect you. In fact, I'm now the greatest threat to those I love.

  I love you,

  Evalle

  Laying the note on the nightstand, she put on Storm's shirt, which she intended to take with her, then glanced over and realized she'd left the note facedown. Turn it over so he sees the message.

  Before she could reach over to touch the paper, the air in the room stirred with energy.

  Kizira stood on the other side of the bed.

  Evalle hissed at her, "You're early. I have ten minutes."

  "Unavoidable. Flaevynn's on a warpath looking for you."

  Crap. "Let me go tell--"

  The
room spun out of focus.

  Evalle yelled, "Storrrmmm," but she knew she'd already left the room behind.

  THIRTY-EIGHT

  Kizira had better come prepared for a fight.

  Storm pulled two mugs from his kitchen cabinet. Evalle should be finished showering. His jaguar stirred, wanting more.

  He wanted more, too.

  Just thinking about Evalle made his jeans too snug for comfort. More than that, he struggled against the urge to shift into his animal and kill anyone who tried to take Evalle from him. He wanted to pack her away somewhere dark and safe.

  The human part of him was barely restrained.

  He tried to convince himself it was nothing more than the protectiveness he'd felt since first meeting her. But that was a lie. All he had to do was breathe her scent and she became a part of him.

  Mine. He'd mated with her. It had happened fast, an unconscious action that came of the innate knowledge that he'd met the only woman for him.

  That didn't excuse his lack of control. She should have been given a choice. Should have been told that he had no soul. It was done, and he'd die to protect her, but he still should have told her before he made love to her.

  And he'd planned to, until he'd opened the door to find her standing there. Every thought had fled his mind except touching her.

  But he still had to get his soul back, and his father's, which he would just as soon as he killed the witch doctor.

  Not wanting to give up even a couple of minutes with Evalle, Storm turned away from the counter with intentions of heading back to his shower in case she hadn't finished.

  A rush of smoky licorice engulfed his senses.

  The witch doctor stood between him and Evalle. The witch doctor couldn't teleport, or hadn't been able to the last time he'd seen her, but she had some strong majik to pull off getting past his security. She cooed, "I've certainly missed . . ." Her eyes drifted down his half-clothed body, pausing at his groin. "You."

  Sick bitch. She was just trying to throw him off track.

  Her yellow eyes twinkled with sinister delight. As if in answer to his unspoken questions, she boasted, "My powers have gotten stronger since we last met, yes? Do you like how fast I can move and mask my scent? But I actually gained access because you were too distracted when you first came home to notice a herd of elephants crashing through here."

  She'd been here since he'd arrived an hour before Evalle had shown up? She'd hidden her presence and scent from him.

  But she hadn't tried to take control of him. She still feared him, and should.

  Just when he thought he couldn't feel any more contempt for this female vermin, Nadina surprised him. He might as well think her name if she'd found him and breached his security.

  This wasn't the time to fight with her, but he was ready and hoped Evalle stayed in the shower.

  His fingers curled, wanting to choke the life out of her, just not yet. Not until he reclaimed all he'd lost. "Give me back my soul--and my father's--I'll let you leave alive."

  "I'm up for a trade when you're ready."

  "No trades. You owe me two souls you stole."

  "You won't even trade for Evalle?"

  Power rushed through him, driving his jaguar to break free. Storm drew fast breaths, fighting the change, because she was trying to push him to shift.

  Anything Nadina wanted, he didn't.

  If she touched Evalle, he'd make Nadina's death slow and excruciating. "You can't have Evalle, and she would destroy you anyhow."

  "Don't put your money on the wrong one so quickly. I'm not the same witch doctor you knew back in South America."

  "Egotistical, reality-challenged sociopath. I don't see any change."

  She smiled with confidence, so much that a ripple of concern ran up Storm's back when she bragged, "Oh, I've changed quite a bit now that I'm aligned with Hanhau."

  Hanhau? That explained her new and improved powers. Storm hid his shock with a scoff. "Only a fool would make a pact with him."

  "Fool?" Her eyes narrowed in warning. "Careful how you speak of someone favored by the ruler of all demons and Mitnal," she said, referencing the land of the dead.

  "Of demons in South America, not here," Storm countered. "Speaking of Mitnal, why aren't you there now?"

  "I'm not one of his demons."

  "Pity. You missed your calling."

  "I'd love to chat, but not right now. I'm pressed for time. This is your one warning. Come to me soon, Storm, and willingly, or I'll take what you most desire. Evalle."

  Kai's words echoed in his brain. His guardian spirit had warned him that if he did not kill Nadina, she would take what Storm most desired. He'd thought Kai meant his soul, but he now knew it was Evalle.

  He was ready to fight, but not when Evalle believed she would disappear soon. "You can die trying to take her."

  "You don't even know she's gone, do you?"

  "Liar."

  "Am I?"

  It hadn't been twenty minutes, so Evalle still had time, but Nadina had spoken the truth. Storm started toward his bedroom and Nadina swirled into a blur, moving out of his way. She claimed not to be the same witch doctor he'd known before, but she was wise enough to realize she didn't know how he'd changed either.

  He raced into the bathroom, then back to the bedroom, yelling, "Evalle! "

  "She's gone." Nadina appeared in the doorway and sniffed. "Smells like Medb in here."

  He ignored the burned citrus odor. He looked around for Evalle's note and saw a blank piece of paper on the nightstand.

  Nadina taunted, "You don't know the best of all this. If Evalle does find her way free of the Medb and you have not come voluntarily to me, I will call her to me instead."

  "How do you figure that?"

  "Remember the Volonte bone?"

  His scalp tingled with warning. "What about it?"

  "Did you think that ended up on Evalle's arm by accident?"

  No. "She's not wearing it anymore."

  "I know. That was all part of my brilliant plan. Just like Imogenia, I can call Evalle to me anytime and anywhere. I cast a spell on the bone that created a leash between me and those who wore it next."

  His mouth dried out. Storm's fingers curled into claws with his impending change.

  Nadina took a step back. "I can see you're still not ready to discuss this. Guess I'll have to take her if you won't come to me voluntarily."

  Fury crashed over him so fast that he started shifting, his hands changing shape into paws. Sharp claws curled. Fur covered his shoulders and chest where hair never grew due to his ancestry. But he wouldn't be able to talk and deal with Nadina in animal form, so he tightened down on his control and forced his animal to retreat.

  She moved in a blur, disappearing.

  He rushed into the kitchen, where she'd stopped near his closed front door. Not teleporting. Speed from black majik, because he never lost her scent.

  She smiled with predatory happiness. "Just a tiny demonstration to spare us any posturing. My timing isn't by accident. I know you mated. You have until she returns."

  The door opened on its own and Nadina strolled out.

  When Kai had searched Storm's future, she'd warned Storm that he would lose Evalle before he won her.

  The time had come to end this. He snatched open a drawer, grabbed out a pen and paper and scribbled a note he hoped Evalle would find if . . . when she came back.

  Sweetheart--

  I've gone to deal with the witch doctor and end this so we can be together. Then I'm coming for you no matter where you are.

  Storm

  He rushed out, hot on Nadina's trail. He could follow her as long as she didn't teleport. Once he found her, they'd both find out just who had become the most powerful since they last fought.

  THIRTY-NINE

  You bitch!" Evalle shouted even before the spinning from teleporting stopped. The minute her feet hit the carpet of the private study in TAmr Medb, she dove for Kizira, who disappeared.


  "Are you crazy?" Kizira yelled from behind her.

  Crazy didn't begin to cover the homicidal rush surging through Evalle. She flipped around to face Kizira. "One minute was all I needed. You owed me ten."

  "I would have given them to you if I could. I bought you as much time as possible. We're leaving here in one hour. Angering Flaevynn right now will not serve either of us."

  One hour? That cut through the red haze of anger blinding Evalle. "I am going with you."

  "Not if you don't get moving and calm down while you're at it."

  "Take me to the queen bitch."

  "Get the Triquetra."

  Evalle took in her jeans, the leather jacket and blue sweater. What had happened to Storm's shirt? She panicked. "Where's the long-sleeved T-shirt I had on?"

  Kizira made a grinding noise deep in her throat. "I sent it to the bed in your room with Lanna, for crying out loud. It smells of him. Wearing that around Flaevynn would cause her to question what you were doing in Atlanta when you were supposed to only be there to retrieve the Triquetra."

  Got it.

  Evalle would draw blood if anything happened to that shirt. Reaching into her jacket, she pulled out the soft case shielding the Triquetra. "Let's go."

  Evalle's location changed so quickly that she didn't have time to blink. She was back in Flaevynn's personal chamber, where the witch sat on a golden throne. Pompous bitch had it carved to look like a dragon.

  The dragon's head moved until its eyes narrowed at Evalle.

  Ohh-kay.

  Kizira's demeanor changed in a flash to stiff and professional. "Evalle was successful in completing her task."

  Flaevynn pointed a long black fingernail sparkling with diamonds at Kizira, whose face turned red. The priestess clawed at her throat, making gagging noises as tears spilled from her eyes.

  Evalle caught on quickly. "She's not lying. I have it." She withdrew the Triquetra from the case, then played up her role, snarling, "I hope you're happy. I stole a Belador warded Triquetra."

  Flaevynn's acidic eyes, heavily lined and sprouting lashes an inch long, whipped at Evalle. "How do I know someone didn't give it to you?"

  Didn't I make that same point to Kizira? "Because I was forbidden from even speaking to a Belador or VIPER agent when Kizira compelled me," Evalle spat. "She was so thorough I couldn't have accepted this even if someone handed it to me on the street. And this belongs to Vladimir Quinn of the Beladors, who is . . . was one of my best friends."