Mark of the Bear (Hades' Carnival)

by N. J. Walters

  She didn’t want to go but that was out of her hands. Gathering all her energy, she gave one final push. “Love you.”

  Marko threw back his head and roared. His hair flowed down his back, so soft and silky. She wanted to touch it one more time but didn’t have the strength to raise her hand. Her heartbeat was slowing. Soon it would stop.

  He peered down at her, his brown eyes swimming with tears and pain. She wanted to take that from him. “Live,” she whispered as she felt the last of her strength fade. Darkness closed in around her.

  “No!” Marko roared his fury to the gods and goddesses, to the heavens, to all who would listen. Kellsie had saved his life, taken the sword thrust meant for him. How could she have known it wouldn’t kill him? It would have wounded him, but he’d have survived. To her it was a fatal blow, struck by a man he’d once called friend.

  She loved him. She’d sacrificed her life for him. Could he do any less?

  He was free. Free from the curse. Free from Hades and his minions. According to the terms of the curse, the god had to let him live in peace for the rest of his eternal life. But he no longer wanted that life, not without Kellsie.

  In comparison to his, her life had been so short, no more than a few brief decades. He’d lived for time beyond remembering before the curse. She deserved to live.

  Time was running out. He could feel her heartbeat slowing. Her breathing was labored. Blood bubbled at her lips and seeped out through the wound in her chest.

  Strength flowed through Marko, a power he thought he’d never experience again. There was still a chance he could save her. Conjuring the cloak, he spread it on the ground and laid her upon it. She didn’t flinch, didn’t cry out. Her eyes were closed and her skin was pale and cold as death. The spark of life within her was almost gone.

  Marko laid his hands over the wound, closed his eyes and concentrated. Light surrounded him. He loved Kellsie. He would not let her go. The light blazed down his arms and into her chest. He poured himself into her—his strength, his healing power, his immortality. He’d give it all if it meant she would live.

  Chanting drifted on the midnight breeze, caught easily by his preternatural senses. Wood smoke and incense drove back the stench of the demons. Those who’d died had already turned to dust that was swept away by the wind.

  He didn’t recognize the words of the chant, not at first, but it didn’t matter. They fed his strength, his determination.

  “You will live,” he told her. There was no other choice. He couldn’t live if she died.

  Her heartbeat slowed and stopped.

  “No,” he cried, anguish washing over him. He renewed his effort, pouring everything he had into her, including his love. “I love you, Kellsie Morris. Don’t leave me.”

  He didn’t stop. Couldn’t stop. If he drained himself of power, so be it. He’d rather die on the forest floor beside Kellsie than to leave her this way.

  The bright, golden light was stronger now, enclosing both of them in a bubble. Beneath his palms he felt her skin begin to knit together. “That’s it,” he crooned. He swiped his face against his shoulder to dry his tears, never moving his hands from her chest. “You can do it.”

  But her heart remained still. Hope began to dim.

  “Please,” he begged. He who had never begged anyone for anything did so now. “Please live for me.”

  Time stretched out and seconds became an eternity. Still, he did not stop, did not falter. He heard the two bears beside him roar with anger, sympathizing with him at the loss of his mate.

  Marko refused to give up. Refused to lose hope. All his focus was on Kellsie and he never wavered as he poured his very life essence into her.

  Then he felt it. The lightest flutter. Determination flowed through him. Renewed. One thump. Then another. Marko began to laugh even as he felt himself growing weaker. Kellsie was sucking his power into her at an enormous rate and he gave it freely, offering her all that he was.

  She would live. Nothing else mattered.

  Kellsie floated on a sea of tranquility away from all the pain and death. She frowned, not quite knowing where she was.

  He needs you.

  The female voice was familiar. She wanted to open her eyes, but it was too difficult. Who needed her? Everything was a blur in her mind. Nothing had form or substance.

  Go back.

  Back where? Honestly, you’d think the woman, whoever she was, would be a little more forthcoming with information. Kellsie would be annoyed if she could work up the energy for it.

  She felt a tickle in her chest. She frowned, wondering why it was beginning to hurt. What had happened?

  Memory struck her like a tsunami, smashing against the numbness enfolding her. Agony pulsed through her body and she jerked upward as though she’d been hit by a bolt of lightning. Her life flashed before her eyes like a movie on fast forward, yet she was able to see and understand it all.

  Marko. Hades. The curse. The demons. The fight. The sword piercing her chest. She was dead. She’d died.

  Then why was she still feeling pain? That sucked royally.

  Her entire body jerked and her eyes flew open. She wasn’t dead. At least she didn’t think she was. Her chest ached like a sonofabitch. She blinked against the brightness surrounding her. It was like being in the intense beam of the lights on a movie set.

  She threw her arm over her eyes. “Cut the spotlight,” she muttered.

  The light dimmed and she lowered her arm. Marko was above her, his face gray and ashen. His hands were resting on her chest and she could feel the pulse of his power filling her.

  Knowledge suddenly filled her. He was killing himself to save her.

  She shoved his hands away and he fell back and hit the ground with a solid thud. The two bears he’d called earlier snuffled him in concern. Kellsie sat, ignoring the wooziness in her head and the weakness of her body. She shoved one of the bears aside, deciding if they meant her harm they’d have already killed her.

  Marko’s eyes were closed and she couldn’t tell if he was breathing. “Don’t you dare die on me, you idiot.” She put her ear against his chest, trying to hear a heartbeat. “I didn’t save your ass only to have you throw it away.” She fisted her hand and brought it down on his chest.

  Tears were flowing down her face. He couldn’t die. Not after all they’d gone through.

  She went to thump his chest again but he caught her hand and held it. “Enough.”

  “You’re alive.” She threw herself on top of him, hugging him as hard as she could. Then she reared back and thumped his chest again. “You scared the hell out of me.”

  Marko began to laugh. It was then she realized what she’d said. “You scared hell completely away,” he told her. He sat up slowly and they clung to one another like two exhausted, drunken fools.

  “I didn’t know if I could save you.” He brushed his thumb over her cheek and lips.

  “I didn’t know if I’d be in time to save you either.” For the rest of her life she’d see Mordecai’s sword going for Marko’s back.

  Marko frowned. “That wound wouldn’t have killed me. It would have been too low for my heart and I would have healed.”

  “What? You mean all I did was for nothing?”

  He framed her face with his hands. “No, not nothing. You love me. You truly love me.”

  She shrugged and could feel her face heating. Now that she wasn’t in danger or dying it was hard to admit aloud. “Yeah, I do.”

  “Say it again.” He gently touched his lips to hers. She savored the warmth and enjoyed the tingle that surged through her entire body.

  “I love you.” It was then she remembered the blood bubbling from her mouth. She pulled away from him and licked her lips. The blood was gone. She glanced down at her clothing and frowned. All the blood was gone.

  “How is this possible?”

  Marko smiled and she was momentarily stunned by the sheer masculine power of the man. He was rough and gorgeous and had charisma
to burn. “I have all my powers back.” He paused, looking slightly concerned.

  Her stomach dropped. “What aren’t you telling me?” Honestly, she couldn’t take much more. She needed at least four or five decades of peace and quiet after the past twenty-four hours.

  Marko met her gaze, his deep brown eyes warm and concerned. “When I saved your life I shared my immortality with you.”

  She knew her jaw was hanging open, but that had been the last thing she’d expected to hear. “How is that even possible?”

  His massive shoulders moved up and down as he shrugged. “I have no idea. Didn’t know it could even be done. I just knew I had to save you no matter what.”

  “What does that mean, exactly? Do I have any cool super powers?” She tried to wrap her tired brain around the whole idea of immortality. It would be like being a superhero or something.

  “I don’t know. It’s never happened before. Not that I know of.”

  So he was stuck with her for eternity. Sucked for him. She’d told him she loved him but he hadn’t said anything back. Kellsie pushed away and stood slowly on shaky legs. He didn’t need to be stuck with her. She could deal with things on her own. Not like she wasn’t used to working that way. Still, it hurt to imagine her life without him.

  “That’s okay. I can figure it out as I go.” She ignored the twinge in the region of her heart. Just a holdover from the wound, she assured herself. She brushed off her pants and stared into the darkness, shocked that she could see everything around her. She had seriously superior night vision all of a sudden. She blinked, but everything around her remained the same.

  Marko grabbed her hand. “Where are you going?”

  “Back to Betsy. My car. That’s if it’s even still there. I’ve got to get back home, and I’m sure you’ve got things you need to do.” She was surprised to see her tote bag lying beside a rock, undisturbed by all the fighting. She started to go toward it, but Marko tugged her back.

  He was frowning fiercely as he stared down at her. “You do not love me?”

  How could he be such a bone-headed idiot? For an immortal warrior he was seriously lacking in people skills. “No. You don’t love me.” There, she’d said it out loud.

  “Not love you?” He roared, so long and loud she’d be surprised if animals ten miles away didn’t hear him. She slapped her hands over her ears at the first roar, but he pulled them away. He wasn’t done yet. “I would have died for you. Would have drained every drop of my power into your body. How could you think I don’t love you?”

  Anguished filled his beloved face. She was sorry she’d hurt him. Hadn’t meant to. Kellsie guessed she had a lot to learn when it came to relationships too. “You haven’t said.”

  He yanked her against his chest and she nestled her cheek against his heart.

  “I did say it, but you didn’t hear me.”

  She understood then. He’d said it when she was dying or dead or whatever that numb floating state had been. She’d heard a woman’s voice then, hadn’t she?

  Kellsie frowned, trying to remember it exactly. But it was like waking from a dream and the memory was hard to grasp.

  “Do you hear it?” Marko turned with her in his arms until they were facing the valley below. With her newly ramped up hearing she could easily pick out the voices on the wind.

  “Who is it?”

  “I have no idea, but they gave me the boost of power I needed to save you.” He motioned to the bears and they lumbered on ahead. “Let’s go find out.” They started down the hillside, leaving the circle of death and destruction behind them without a backward glance.

  The Lady of the Beasts wanted to smile but knew it was premature. Marko had made it along with the woman, his mate. He was free, his power returned to him. And with that came the return of hers. With each warrior released, the power she’d used to bind him in the curse was returned to her.

  Hades was not going to be pleased. This was the second warrior he’d almost had and both had slipped from his grasp. He was going to be out for blood. Hers.

  Although he couldn’t stop her, he could put obstacles in her path. If she wasn’t careful she could wander in the bowels of Hell for eternity.

  Still, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly. Two of her warriors were free.

  Her lips tightened as she thought of those lost. She said a prayer for them as she continued on her way. Their sacrifice had given her strength, whether they knew it or not.

  She cocked her head to one side as she caught the melodic sound of chanting. Heartened, she started moving toward it, ignoring the searing pain in the soles of her feet as the fiery pathway licked at her limbs.

  Hope filled her as the voices grew louder. There was a glimmer of light in the distance. It was faint, but in the pitch black of Hell, it was a beacon in the darkness.

  She pushed toward it, ignoring the pain that was her constant companion. The heat grew even more oppressive and reached out to her like phantom hands pulling her backwards. Exhaustion pressed upon her but she kept going, knowing that to stop meant death.

  As she reached for the light, she heard a roar behind her.

  Hades was coming.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Marko tightened his fingers around Kellsie’s hand. After what they’d been through it was going to be a long time before he was going to be comfortable letting her out of his sight. She squeezed his fingers and he knew she felt the same way.

  They’d come too close to dying. For all intents and purposes she had died. He’d watched her eyes close and the spark of life drift from her body. They hadn’t talked much about it. Not yet. Later when it wasn’t so fresh and raw in both their minds, he would ask her about the experience.

  In the meantime, he was content to enjoy the night air with the woman he loved. He shook his head and grinned. If his fellow warriors could only see him now they would laugh their asses off. He’d always been the most aloof of the bunch, content to be by himself while the rest of them had spent time drinking and sleeping with human females all those centuries ago. He’d told them it was a waste of time, but now there was nothing he wouldn’t do to see to his woman’s safety and happiness.

  His grin slipped away as he realized that two of his brothers were lost and one was gone over to the enemy camp. Two were still frozen in time in their prison. Only one other was free, alive like him.

  Was Roric still with the female who’d freed him?

  Marko couldn’t imagine carrying on without Kellsie. But that was him. Roric’s situation might be different. Marko didn’t think there could be another woman as beautiful and brave as his Kellsie. But whoever she was, the woman who’d freed Roric had enabled him to survive and that had to mean she was special in some way.

  There was plenty of time now for him to find his fellow warrior. Together they would try to come up with a plan to free his remaining brethren and the Lady from their captivity.

  “You’re awfully quiet. Are you okay?” Kellsie stopped beneath a towering fir tree and tugged him closer.

  She was chewing on her bottom lip, her precious face filled with worry. He cupped her shoulders in his hands and eased her up onto her toes as he lowered his head. He touched his mouth to hers, delighting in the feel of her soft lips against his, the slight gasp of her breath against his face and the subtle yielding of her mouth as he deepened the kiss.

  Marko knew he owed the others, knew he needed to start working on their behalf immediately. But right now, here in this vibrant forest, underneath the glowing moon, he wanted to celebrate life.

  Kellsie sank back down on her feet. “Wow.” She brushed a lock of hair from her forehead. “What was that for?”

  “I love you.” The words were stark. He had no other fancy words to add to them. He wasn’t a poet. He was a warrior. Suddenly he was worried that wouldn’t be enough.

  Kellsie threw herself into his arms, holding him close. “I love you too.” She nuzzled ag
ainst his chest. “I was so afraid I was going to lose you.”

  “You were afraid.” He shifted her away from him until he could see her face and glared down at her. “I was terrified. You can never do that to me again,” he growled. The bears glanced over their shoulders but kept moving until they were out of sight. Marko knew they wouldn’t go far. They were helping him to protect Kellsie, and he appreciated his brothers’ concern and assistance.

  “Believe me, I don’t plan to.” Kellsie shifted her weight from one leg to the other.

  Marko frowned. “Are you tired? We should rest.”

  She shook her head. “I’m okay.” She held up her hand to forestall further comment. “Yes, I’m tired. It must be almost two in the morning, but I’d rather keep going. The quicker we can get home the better.”

  Marko was concerned about that. What would happen when they got back to the modern world, Kellsie’s world? He was fine in the woods. They were his domain. But she lived in a city, and he’d seen modern cities as the carnival had passed through hundreds of them around the world.

  This world was one he didn’t understand.

  “I can carry you.” He hoped she’d say yes so he’d have an excuse to have her closer to him. But he knew what her answer would be even before she said it. She was independent and proud.

  “I can make it.”

  He supposed it was enough that she was letting him carry her pack with her belongings. The sound of voices raised in song drifted past them on a breeze. They’d been moving steadily toward it for quite some time now. He caught Kellsie’s hand in his. “Come. They are calling us.”

  They started to walk again. He could feel her gaze on him and glanced at her. “You can understand them.”

  He nodded. “All languages are known to me.”

  “Cool.” She scrunched up her nose. “Why can’t I understand it?”

  Her disgruntled tone almost made him smile. Almost. He was learning. “I don’t know. Maybe in time that will change or perhaps it is one of my powers you didn’t get in the transformation.”