The chanting grew louder, and a dreamy look crossed Samantha’s face. “You’ll thank me for this later, Jayne. When you see what it means for us, taking his soul.”
Reality crashed back around me, and my fury ignited. I turned on my heel and shoved, breaking free of my captor. I succeeded in pummeling Samantha to the ground before her minion managed to secure me again.
“I’ll kill you!” I screamed. I grabbed my captor’s hand and twisted it backwards, using my anger to channel an inner strength. My grip propelled me away from him, and I reared back to punch his face when I saw who it was.
Stephen.
I lost my momentum and stumbled forward. He took advantage of the motion and captured me again, swiveling me around to face Samantha.
“Stephen?” I said, but he didn’t respond. No wonder he’d smelled familiar. But this touch, the way he gripped me, there was nothing of Stephen in it.
Samantha touched the back of her head and scowled when her fingers came away with blood on them. “You’re not likely to kill me. I’ll be immortal soon.” Darting forward, she grabbed me by the shoulders, tearing me from Stephen’s grasp. “You won’t want to miss this.”
She held me facing the mass of chanters. My eyes locked onto Jods where he led Aaron by the forearm.
“Normally they must commit a blood sacrifice to prove their allegiance,” she breathed in my ear. “Ducks, cows, even mice work. But Aaron sacrificed himself for you. He is the blood sacrifice.”
“No!” I cried, images of Jods slashing Aaron with a knife flying through my mind.
She squeezed my neck. “Patience. It’s not his blood we want.”
Even as I watched, wispy streams of darkness began to encircle Aaron. The chanting grew to a shout, and Jods released him. Aaron’s head tipped backward and his body levitated, parallel to the ground. The darkness converged on him, swallowing him from sight. I screamed as an orb of white light appeared in the middle and floated to the top of the massing blackness. And then it dispersed, dropping Aaron to the concrete below with a sickening crunch.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
“Aaron!” My cry sucked me dry, and I felt that my own soul had been torn away.
“He’s mine now,” Samantha whispered, her voice smug. “Rise, Aaron.”
Although her voice was nothing but a small murmur in my ear, Aaron’s eyes opened. My relief that he was alive quickly evaporated when he sat up and rose from the parking garage floor, movements as stiff as a robot’s.
The only thing holding me up was Samantha, and she let me go. I collapsed on the ground.
“I have something special planned for him, Dekla. He will be no ordinary vadatajs. You can still be with him. Join me.”
From somewhere within the depths of my broken heart, a flame of indignation lit. I got to my feet, letting my hatred fuel me. “You will lose this battle, Samantha. And I will get him back. I’ll never join you.”
She shrugged. “You don’t have to come along willingly anymore.” A smile played about her lips, as if she knew a secret. “Because, you see, you belong to Aaron. And Aaron belongs to me.”
I let out a gasp, horror flooding me as I remembered the conversation we’d had with the professor in New York.
“The male has an extremely dominant relationship in the ancient mythology,” he’d said. “She must do what he commands.”
Now I understood why Samantha and Jods had agreed to the exchange.
Lightning flashed in the garage and the lights flickered, startling me. Rain began to pour from—the ceiling? How was that even possible?
“Karta!”
I turned my attention to a woman all in white with long, flowing golden hair. Even in the pouring rain, her angry features looked regal and elegant. Beside her stood Meredith, her face as dark as the thunderclouds hovering above our heads.
“Ragana,” I said.
Her eyes flickered to me, stoic and somber before facing forward again.
“Laima,” Samantha said, for a moment faltering. Then she regained her confidence and threw her shoulders back. “You’ve pledged your allegiance to the wrong god. You will also be overpowered.”
Laima threw her a look of complete disdain. “You have forgotten your place.”
“I am Karta!” she raged, stomping her foot like a spoiled child. “I am a goddess!”
“You have been replaced.” Laima’s hand rotated and turned to point at Beth.
The ground rumbled. Before us, Beth jerked to her feet as if pulled by an invisible rope. The gag disintegrated, and her hands fell free.
“Behold the new Karta,” Laima said.
“But—it’s not possible.” Samantha’s hands flew to her throat. “I will die. If the power passes from me to her—”
Abruptly the chanting stopped, and Jods appeared at Samantha’s side. “You will not die.” He took her hands. “More than three-hundred souls have given up their will to you.”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Yes. Yes, I feel the strength.”
Laima turned blazing eyes on Jods. “She is an abomination. She does not belong here.”
He squeezed Samantha’s hands. “I’ve claimed her as mine.”
Laima’s glare could have cracked concrete. “Then take her and go before I have her destroyed.”
He bared his teeth at Laima and hissed. “You cannot.”
“Watch me,” Laima growled, and the clouds overhead began to churn.
Jods jerked his head at Samantha. “Come.” His hand grasped her wrist.
As one, the mob of chanters began marching out of the garage. I spotted Aaron, in his starched button-up shirt, still soaked from the storm outside. My heart leaped into my throat. “Aaron!” I cried.
He didn’t turn toward my voice, didn’t even glance at me. I started to run to him, but Jods spun on his heel and barred my path.
“He is mine now,” he rumbled, his face blazing red.
“He gave himself to save me,” I said, swallowing back tears. I tried to catch Aaron’s eye over Jods’ shoulder, but he continued to march with the rest of them.
Jods sneered at me. “He is no more.”
Samantha stepped forward. “Wait!” she cried. “Jayne belongs to us too.”
Hundred of eyes turned toward me, including Laima’s.
“What does she mean?” Laima asked in a threatening tone.
A wicked smile played about Samantha’s mouth. “He gave himself to us, and she is his. So now she is ours.”
A tempest swirled in Laima’s eyes as she glared at me. “I warned you not to get him involved. I told you he could be used against you.”
I gulped. She had. And I had tried. But in the end, I failed.
“Come to me, Dekla!” Samantha crowed.
I closed my eyes and held my breath, waiting for some compelling force to make my legs move forward.
Nothing.
Samantha’s voice thundered at me again. “Dekla! Come to me.”
I dared to peek an eye open. Everyone stood as they had been, only now Samantha’s arrogant smile faltered.
“Command her, Aaron!” she shouted.
He fell out of line and moved toward me. “Jayne.”
My heart trembled at the sound of his voice. Slowly I turned my head. I cringed when I saw him, standing a few paces in front of me, back rigid, face blank. But it was his eyes that made my stomach lurch. Normally a deep blue, they had been leached of all color.
“Come with us, Jayne.” Eyes so dark they were almost black gazed at me.
I stiffened, but again nothing happened.
“Call her Dekla,” Samantha said, something like panic entering her voice.
“Come, Dekla,” he said, his voice booming across the garage.
Nothing. I straightened, my confidence returning.
“Why?” Samantha shrieked, turning on Jods. “Why isn’t she responding?”
“Because he broke up with me,” I said, understanding crashing over me like a wave at a
breaker. The words he’d spoken to me hadn’t been to hurt me—they’d been to save me. I hadn’t known my heart could break any more, but the remaining pieces crumbled, and a deep well of pain opened up inside of me.
Now it was Samantha’s turn to scream. “No!” She clutched at her hair and pulled.
“We have not lost.” Jods yanked her down an aisle of the empty garage. “This is not over.”
Her army followed, and the minions behind me, including Stephen, surged forward, protecting Karta and Jods as they made their escape. I started to run after them, but Laima grabbed me, her hands as solid as any mortal’s as she gripped my arm.
“Let them go. We will have another chance.”
“You!” I said, finding a new outlet for my anger. “Where have you been? You could have prevented this!”
She did not even react to my accusations. “We must go now.”
“Go where?” I exclaimed. “We have to save all those people!”
“This is just the beginning, Jayne,” Meredith murmured. “Samantha’s already gathering more people. They won this battle, but the war is just beginning.”
My legs gave out from under me, and I crumpled to the ground. Beth rushed to my side and grabbed my arm. Meredith took the other. We were the only ones left. They dragged me, pulling me in the opposite direction of Jods and Samantha. Dimly I realized the rain had stopped in the garage.
Outside the sky was clear. The moon shone, only a lazy cloud or two bothering to pass by. Meredith stuffed me into the backseat of her car and Beth climbed in beside me. I barely noticed as Laima got into the passenger seat.
“What happens now?” I asked, wrapping my arms around my torso as I began to shake. “What about all those people? Are they lost?”
Laima’s voice held no inflection as she spoke. “They have gone to hell.”
“No,” I croaked. Hot tears rolled down my cheeks. I couldn’t bear the thought of Aaron being doomed to hell. Not when he’d given himself up for me.
“We can still save them, can’t we?” Meredith asked.
“You can’t.” Laima swiveled in the passenger seat and looked at me, her blue eyes steely. Then she looked at Beth. “They can.”
*~*
Samantha wasn’t the only one with connections. Laima directed us to a house in the middle of the woods about an hour from the parking garage. I cried the whole way, resting my head on Beth’s thigh while she stroked my hair. Apparently the owner of the house, a small man with a kindly face, was some kind of sprite. We settled around him in the living room, sitting on chairs and couches. I tried to stay awake as he and Laima discussed strategy, but eventually their words morphed into dreams, and I slept.
Aaron called to me in my sleep. I could hear his voice, and I knew from the desperate pleading that he needed me. But I couldn’t find him. I ran through hallways, opening doors, peeking through windows, searching for him frantically. Finally, at the end of the hallway, I paused in front of a door. A malicious, sinister feeling emanated from it, and I hesitated. But I needed to get in there. I reached toward the knob and jerked back at the heat radiating from it.
“Jayne, Jayne!” he called.
He was behind this door. I was certain of it. I grasped the knob, biting back a cry of pain when it singed my skin. I threw open the door and pulled my hand away, examining the raw wound.
The knob had burned a brand into my skin. I stared at the symbol of a star etched into my exposed flesh, recognizing it somehow.
“Jayne.” Aaron’s voice was louder now. I lifted my eyes and saw a stairway in front of me, going down. Down, down into darkness.
The same evil feeling crept over me, and I shuddered. I didn’t want to go down. I wanted to flee, to slam the door shut and never look back.
“Help me, Jayne.” The words were nothing more than a whisper now, but they reached my ears and slipped into my soul. I placed my hands on the banister and took a step down.
“I’m coming. I’m coming, Aaron.”
I woke up with a start. Outside the living room window, bright sunshine crept in, and a bird tweeted its morning song. I sat up on the couch, the blanket draped across me sliding to the ground.
“Good morning,” the old man said at the kitchen table, where he sipped something from a mug. “I’m Douglas. Would you like some tea?”
My lip twisted. “Where’s Laima?”
“She’s already gone.”
I bit back a snarky reply. She’d shown up, at least, but it would’ve been more helpful if she’d arrived before Aaron had sacrificed himself.
“Jayne.” Meredith came down a hallway, rubbing sleep from her eyes. “Are you okay?”
Beth came in behind her, looking sleepy but none the worse for wear.
I shook my head. “We have things to do.” I glanced down at my hand and started in surprise. On my palm was a fresh brand, the star symbol from my dream. My breath caught as I stared at its raised edges. “It really happened.”
“What is that?” Beth sat beside me and took my hand, eyes narrowing as she examined the symbol.
“It’s from my dream. I touched a doorknob, and it burned me.” I poked at it with my other hand, amazed it didn’t hurt.
“I know that mark,” Meredith said. “It’s the Star of Auseklis. The protection against evil.”
Auseklis. I lifted my head, my eyes widening. “Trey.”
“Auseklis.” She nodded at me.
Beth glanced back and forth between the two of us. “Did I miss something?”
The first rays of hope lit my heart. “We have to save Aaron.” I lifted my eyes to Douglas’s. “And no one’s going to stop us.”
“On the contrary. I’ve been given very specific instructions to help you. Deivs has more allies than Velns realizes. But before we discuss war strategies . . .” He placed a mug in front of me. “Tea?”
The tea made me think of Aaron and his family’s quirky English ways. I closed my eyes against the nostalgia, and then opened them, filled with determination. “Sure. Tea. And then . . .” I narrowed my eyes. “Game on.”
*~*
Preview of Coercion
Chapter 1
The three of us stood there in a circle, facing each other. I looked at my younger sister Beth and recognized the determination on her face. Beside me was Meredith, my closest friend. No, she was so much more than that. There was no defining our relationship, at least not in mortal terms.
I looked down at my hand, at the cell phone cupped in my palm. It was time.
“Ready?” Beth asked.
I lifted my head to my sister, her eyes unwavering as she stared at me. I nodded. “Ready.”
It had been two days since the three of us ran away from home. Two days since the mythological Latvian pantheon took over our corner of New Jersey, resulting in countless suicides and abandoned families. Two days since Aaron was swallowed up by hell.
And now it was time to call home.
I powered up my ghetto flip phone and pressed the button to call my mom. Next to me, I saw Meredith doing the same to her smart phone, only she was calling her dad.
My mom answered an instant later, her voice breathy with panic and hope and relief. “Jayne? Jayne, is that you?”
“It’s me, Mom.” My throat unexpectedly closed up, and I thought I would cry. Never had I wanted my mother more than right now, when my whole world was literally falling apart.
Her sobs echoed through the phone. “Where are you? Are you okay? Where is your sister? What happened?”
I took a deep breath and answered her questions, spitting out the lie the three of us had already fabricated. “I don’t know what happened. When I woke up this morning, I wasn’t at home. I don’t remember leaving, but I’m with Beth and Meredith and we’re all okay.”
She latched onto those words. “So you’re okay. You’re okay.”
“Yes,” I said, glad to keep her focused on that sentiment. “We’re on our way home. We should be there in a few hours.”
<
br /> “Jayne,” my mom said, her voice barely above a whisper now. “The world has gone crazy. You’re not the only person to vanish. I hope all of those missing people are heading home now too.”
I gave a little shudder and closed my eyes. They weren’t. Those people weren’t heading home because I had failed. I couldn’t even save my boyfriend, let alone the faceless masses whose fates had been changed by a rogue goddess.
“I hope you’re right,” I said instead. “We’ll see you soon, okay?”
“Hurry. I put out a missing persons report for you, I’m not going to tell the police you’re home until I see you myself.”
I couldn’t help the tiny smile that pushed against my lips. My poor mom had been through enough of my shenanigans to know not to expect me until I was present.
How completely different from a year ago, when I was the very predictable, reliable older daughter.
“Okay, Mom. Call me anytime.”
As soon as I hung up and lowered the phone from my ear, it was flooded with a dozen other missed calls and texts and voicemails. I started at the top, playing them as Meredith finished up her conversation with her dad.
“Well?” Beth asked from beside me.
I held up a finger as I listened to Dana’s message. Dana had been my best friend for years, but since she left me for college over the summer, we had sort of drifted apart. I was involved in some crazy stuff and hadn’t been able to keep her on top of it.
“Jayne, I’ve called you five times now and you’re not answering. I’m freaking out, your mom is freaking out, half of New Jersey is freaking out. It’s spreading into Delaware and Maryland, and I just know this has something to do with you. Call me back. Call me back as soon as you get this.”
Dana was seriously concerned. While prone to theatrics, I knew from the tone of her voice that she was sick with worry. She knew more about my secret talents than anyone else, except present company and perhaps my boyfriend. She also knew that I had been on the trail of the rogue goddess, trying to bring the destruction of souls to a halt.
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