by Unknown
“Monster?” I frowned and her eyes widened further, “Oh, you didn't know it was me?” I laughed as I shifted back into human form. “Surprise! Now let Troy go or I'll kill you slowly.”
“You'll kill me anyway,” she sneered.
“No, actually,” I sighed. “I promised Blue we wouldn't hurt you if we didn't have to. Let my lion go and I'll allow you to leave unharmed.”
“What?” Her expression fell into blankness and she blinked at me in shock.
“He still loves you,” I nodded, “but hurt Troy and you're dead. I will kill you and drink your blood.”
“Go to hell, Godhunter,” she snarled and sliced the knife across Troy's throat.
I screamed and lurched forward, hands reaching out in both hatred and love. I couldn't decide whether to catch my dying lion or strangle his murderer. Turns out, I didn't have to decide. As I reached the spot where they stood, as I watched Eztli drop Troy's bleeding body with careless disregard, the whole scene faded away and the reality was revealed to me.
I fell forward through the evaporating hallucination, my knees hitting the wood floor heavily, followed closely by my palms as I lost my balance. My jaw fell open as I lifted my head to see all of my missing lions, including Troy, shackled to the wall before me. They were gagged and bound but completely unharmed. A trace of male laughter danced in the air around me, tickling my ears playfully.
“Phantasus,” I whispered, angry and relieved all at once.
My lions rushed forward to free their brothers as I regained my feet with help from Trevor and Kirill. I gave them quick grateful grins before rushing to my freed Intare to run my hands over their faces. I needed to reassure my lioness that her cubs were safe before I could work through all that had happened.
When I was content with their well-being, we all headed outside to where the gods were gathering near the pool. Laid out on padded loungers were Blue, Pan, Finn, and three of my lions, sleeping off the effects of Net. The rest of the gods and Intare were relaxing in the remaining chairs and some had even ventured into the pool. I rolled my eyes at Hades, who was canoodling with Sephy in the hot tub.
“You wanna fire up the grill while you're at it?” I asked them.
“We figured we might as well enjoy ourselves while we waited for you and our sleeping beauties over there,” Horus shrugged. He was seated in a wide rattan chair with Kate on his lap.
A whoop came from behind me and several Intare rushed by to jump into the pool naked. The naked part wasn't all that surprising. Their clothing was in shreds all over the lawn and shifters weren't shy. Still, they looked like a bunch of frat boys gone skinny dipping.
“Really guys?” I huffed. “There are dead vampires everywhere.”
“Piles of ash,” Aidan laughed as he strode up beside me and I quickly averted my gaze from his beautiful body. He slung a muscled arm around my shoulders. “Come on, Tima, let's blow off a little steam.”
“One of those bodies is not a pile of ash, it's Morph's dad,” I ground out and Aidan sobered.
“I know,” he jerked his head to motion behind us and I turned to see that Odin had wrapped Hypnos in a sheet and was laying him out on the grass. “He's being treated with respect. We've done right by our friend. Now, can't we celebrate this victory? This was our fight, remember?”
“Alright,” I sighed. “I guess we need to wait for the others to wake up before we can leave anyway.”
“A very wise decision,” Aidan grinned and ran forward to cannonball into the pool.
“Excellent,” Azrael nodded and took Aidan's place beside me.
“What, you want to go swimming too?” I lifted a brow.
“I think we should,” he glanced over my head and I started to turn but before I could, I was picked up by Kirill.
I had the briefest glimpse of Kirill's grinning face as he ran forward with me. Then the shock of cool water hit me as we plunged into the pool.
Chapter Forty-Five
“Do you think she loves him?” Blue's voice bled sorrow.
It was hours later and night had settled in. The lions had indeed lit the outdoor grills and had raided the villa's kitchen for meat. Even though the vampires didn't eat, they had stocked up on food for my captured Intare and their new Greek god friends, so there was enough for a huge feast. Now we sat poolside, our bellies and hearts full, while smoke from the grills drifted lazily about.
We'd already discussed how Eztli must have made a deal with the displaced Greek deities, who had no territory of their own now that Hades had thrown them out of the Underworld. I thought it was obvious that they'd traded their help to Eztli in exchange for sanctuary. Blue however, had other thoughts.
“Who?” I asked him.
“Phantasus,” Blue set his gaze on me, the creamy jade of his eyes was almost black in the shadows. “Obviously he cares for her. He rescued her.”
“Maybe he did that because he has nowhere to go without her,” I shrugged. “Phantasus never struck me as a romantic. He's creepy in a bad way.”
“A god is never without a place to go,” Blue scoffed. “They didn't need her for her assets. It had to be more than that.”
“I don't know, Blue,” I sighed. “I agree that there's probably more to their alliance but I just can't see what else she could offer them besides living arrangements.”
“How about power,” the low voice startled me and it seemed to startle Blue as well. We both flinched as we looked up to find Morpheus standing before us. His face was etched with grief.
“Morph,” I stood and went to hug him immediately. “I'm so sorry about your father.”
“It's okay, V,” Morpheus sighed and sank into my hug for a moment. “What of my brothers?”
“They both got away,” I watched his shoulders go slack with relief. “I gave Phobetor the option to leave peacefully and he took it but Phantasus tricked us with an illusion while he fled with Eztli.”
“I was able to secure my mother in the Cave of Dreams,” Morph added. “I'll have to consult with Hades later, on what to do with her.”
“What did you mean when you said that Eztli could offer them power?” Blue's anxious voice attracted the attention of the other gods and several of my lions. The God Squad began to head over to us.
“The only thing of any value that Eztli possessed, besides herself and her property,” Morph smiled grimly, “were her vampires. They aren't gods, so what would happen if they chose to worship one?”
“Could they?” I looked over to Blue in shock. “Technically they're divine creations, not actual gods or even demi-gods. So can the magical creations of gods, beings who were once human, give back some of their magic by worshiping their creators? I mean really, it's what humans have been doing all along, worshiping someone they believed to be their creator. Except in this case, it's true.”
“I don't know,” Blue whispered.
“Hypothetically,” Odin mused as he came up to us, “I think they could.”
“And Eztli could create as many of these new worshipers as she wanted to,” Naye huffed with a fair amount of admiration. “Good plan.”
“If it was their plan,” I worried at my lip. Was this the reason why Blue's death had altered so many lives? Sarasvati had mentioned something about vampires running wild in the Human Realm. If Blue was able to win Eztli back, how many humans would be saved from either death or from becoming a vampire?
“It doesn't matter,” Trevor declared.
“Why not?” Karni Mata spoke quietly but everyone turned to listen to her. She was a lot like her boyfriend Teharon in that way. “Eztli has eluded us again and Morpheus' brothers are with her. They could easily regroup and form a new plan of attack.”
“But as far as Vervain and her lions go,” Trevor said into the silence, “we will be wary and Eztli will never take any of them again.”
“We will all be wary,” Karni nodded. “Still, wariness may not be enough. That woman is determined and a woman determined is never easy to thwart
.”
Unease filled my belly as her words sank through me. Karni was right, Eztli wouldn't stop until she had what she wanted. The only way to win would be to kill her or...
“What if we give her what she wants?” I stared straight at Blue.
“What do you mean?” he sat forward.
“Right now she thinks that the only way to become a goddess is by drinking Rian's blood,” I explained. “But that isn't the only way.” I sat down beside Blue on his lounger. “What if you went to her and romanced her a bit, using an apple of immortality or a flask of soma or even some ambrosia to offer as both an apology and an incentive? You could tell her that you'd always intended for her to become a goddess but she left before you could change her.”
“That's brilliant,” Blue breathed. “Give her what she wants, just not in the way she wants it.”
“And you'll get what you want too,” I grinned at him.
“Except those things don't make us gods,” Thor countered. “Any of those items will give her immortality but she already has that. What she wants is the magic of a goddess and that doesn't come from eating an apple.”
“Oh. Right,” I sighed.
“But she already has the magic,” Blue protested. “It's just diluted. If I give her immortality that's unconnected to mine, she will be free to use the magic I bestowed on her for other purposes.”
“So she could become a goddess?” I brightened.
“I believe it's a possibility,” Blue nodded.
“Thor?” I looked over to him.
“Yes, it's possible,” Thor nodded. “Getting you an apple will take a little time though.”
A gold flask fell into Blue's lap and we all looked over to find Brahma standing in front of Blue, smirking.
“It's soma,” Brahma shrugged. “I just happened to have some on me and it would absolutely thrill me to know that my soma was used to woo a woman. Frankly, I can think of no better use for it.”
“Watch it,” Sarasvati hit Brahma in the arm.
“My darling,” Brahma slid an arm around his wife. “I can't help it if I'm a romantic.”
“Just as long as your romance doesn't wander into another woman's bed,” Sara narrowed her stare.
“Never,” Brahma vowed but I had a feeling he was crossing his fingers behind his back.
“Thank you, Brahma,” Blue said sincerely as he stood and held his hand out to the Hindu God.
“You're most welcome,” Brahma grinned wickedly. “But I expect details later.”
“Brahma,” I groaned as Sara smacked him again.
“What?” Brahma feigned innocence. “I want to know how she reacts, that's all. What did you think I meant?”
“You know exactly what we were thinking,” I got up to poke my finger into Brahma's chest.
“Because it's what you were thinking,” Sarasvati added with a grimace.
“He was just joking, Blue,” I said as I turned back around. “Blue?”
But Blue was already gone.
Chapter Forty-Six
“We think you should live in Faerie until Rian is born,” Trevor announced as he, Kirill, Azrael, and Odin came striding into our bedroom.
I looked up from my mid-day snack of seaweed jam and toast, chewing the remainder of my bite as I stared at them. They all took seats at the table. Four solemn faces, each so precious to me, and they wanted me to leave.
“So you want me to go to Faerie and lose time with you?” I finally asked. “Or are you saying I should go until Rian is born and then leave him there while I return to this moment? He won't know I'm gone but I will have to spend months away from my newborn son until time catches up between the realms. Breast feeding will be difficult.”
They exchanged confused looks.
“I'm so glad you thought this through,” I chuckled and took another bite of toast.
“You and the child are in danger here,” Odin said simply. “We need you both out of Eztli's reach.”
“She can't reach us here,” I huffed.
“You never know what could happen,” Azrael said. “She could find a way to lure you out again. We think it would be best to remove the threat entirely.”
“But if all she wants is Rian's blood, the threat will never be gone entirely,” I said calmly.
“Vhy not?” Kirill growled.
“Because even were I to go to Faerie and leave Rian there,” I explained. “She could still bargain with me for some of his blood. I'd just have to go to Faerie to get it. As long as Rian lives, his blood will be available to her.”
“Less available in Faerie,” Trevor ground out. “We have to do something. We can't just sit here and wait for her to make a move.”
“Blue is handling it,” I shrugged.
“Blue has been out of touch for two weeks now,” Azrael snapped. “He could be dead for all we know.”
“He's not dead,” I scoffed.
“How do you know?” Odin asked.
“I just do,” I can't explain the peace that had come over me since the battle in Tuscany but I had this feeling that Blue was doing well with Eztli. Romance could take time, especially when you had a past like theirs to contend with, but I was confident that Blue would overcome Eztli's resistance. Mainly because I had faith that they were supposed to be together and now that things had got back on the right path, they would work out their issues like they were meant to. Then I wouldn't have to worry about her anymore.
“Well I don't,” Trevor grumbled.
“I was planning on going into Faerie anyway,” I sighed. “I just wasn't planning on staying there four months.” I chewed at my lip. “That would make it difficult for me to catch up to time here. I think it would be best if we compromise and I spend two weeks there and then two weeks here. That will half the pregnancy for you guys.”
“Half the pregnancy?” Azrael frowned.
“Because even though she will return to us in almost the same moment as she leaves, she will have lived two weeks in the Faerie Realm,” Odin explained. “Thus, we will experience only half of her remaining pregnancy and she will only be at risk for a month and a half instead of three.”
“Fair enough. I think I can handle six weeks,” Trevor smiled and the rest of the men seemed to visibly relax.
“So basically, I'm doing exactly as I normally do,” I smirked.
“Well, yes, I guess so,” Trevor blinked as he thought it through.
“You guys are just tired of dealing with my baby issues,” I teased.
“Not at all,” Azrael declared. “In fact, we look forward to when you have more baby issues. Issues that hopefully won't include fire.”
“Ugh,” I rolled my eyes. “I do not want to do this again any time soon.”
“You say zat now,” Kirill grinned, “but I know you'll start zinking of ze future you saw and you'll be vanting babies.”
“No more babies,” I growled but it was only a half-hearted protest and they knew it. “What about the wedding? Who's going to plan it if I'm gone half the time?”
“We were the ones planning it anyway,” Trevor chuckled. “Just go enjoy your time with the Lizard King and let us relax, knowing you're safe.”
“I don't think any of you are seeing the bigger picture here,” I went serious as a cold shiver went down my spine. “If Eztli wanted Rian, what makes you think there won't be others wanting our children?”
The guys went still, their beautiful faces shifting into dangerous lines. I blinked, catching a glimpse of what fatherhood would do to them and wondering if it was worth it. Then Lesya's face flashed in my mind. Then Sebastian's, Dominic's, and finally Vero's. Yes, it was worth it. They were worth it.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Even though we'd settled on the every two weeks plan and I actually wouldn't lose any time with my men, I still wanted to make my goodbyes to each of them privately. I saved Azrael for last because there were a couple of things I wanted to talk to him about before I left.
So I was up in his
tower room, admiring the simple décor he'd chosen and the panoramic view the multiple windows provided him with. He had the topmost room in the right tower and so his view of Intare territory was practically unimpeded. There were curved glass panes in the large windows, set into gold frames which could swing open from the center. I sat down on the window ledge and pushed the panes open.
Far below me our moat, which was actually run-off from the natural rock swimming pool, meandered around the palace merrily. Bright fishes swam the clear stream, scales of butter yellow, stop sign red, and purest white glinting up at me. To my right I could see Intare fighting in small groups on the sandy training field. Their battle cries carried to me, softening a little on the way up. Ahead of me, the sweet grass swayed and undulated like a woman dancing. Sunlight glittered off calm water as animals lowered their heads to drink and delicate trees offered their shade. It was so peaceful, I didn't want to leave.
“First, I know what you've been feeding Nick,” I said as Az took a seat beside me.
“So he's still alive in the future?” Azrael smiled.
“Our boys were taking care of him,” I nodded. “I wanted to thank you for that again, since you won't remember the other two times.”
“You're welcome,” he laughed and took my hand. His thumb started stroking my skin and I pulled my hand back slowly. He looked up at me in concern, “Vervain?”
“I also wanted to talk to you about that section of Shehaquim that you never showed me,” I didn't have to elaborate, the look on his face told me that he knew exactly what I spoke of.
“I've never hidden it,” his jaw hardened.
“No but you've never fully revealed it either,” I narrowed my eyes on him. “You have some nerve, Mr. I'm-too-compassionate-to-torture-people,” I poked my finger into his chest.
“Yeah, well I got over that, didn't I?” He growled.
“Only just,” I huffed. “You nearly ruined our relationship because I tortured Rebecca, when all the while angels were torturing live people in your territory!”