It was nice, having a friend who could flash from one location to another with only a thought.
Within five minutes, his friend materialized a few feet away from him. Lucien was winded, barreled chest rising and falling shallowly. A sheen of sweat covered his entire torso. His mane of black hair shagged around his severely scarred face, and his multicolored eyes were bright. He was shirtless, his butterfly tattoo practically crackling with electricity on his left shoulder. His unfastened pants were barely staying on his hips. To top it all off, tension radiated from the man.
What the hell were you doing? Strider asked from his closet. Hed already strapped himself with weapons, but a few moments before had decided a couple more blades wouldnt hurt. Well, wouldnt hurt him.
One of Luciens black brows practically knitted into his hairline. Who the hell do you think I was doing?
O-kay, then. Lucien had been in bed with Anya. For a moment, Strider almost forgot how pissed he was with Amun and Haidee as he savored the fact that hed just cock-blocked the keeper of Death. Almost. Anyone ever tell you that you shouldnt check your messages while youre rolling around in bed?
Yes. Anya. And believe me, Im going to pay for this. His deep baritone was amused and excited rather than fearful at the thought of incurring his volatile females wrath. Heres a news flash for you. No matter what Im doing, I check my messages when Im worried about leaving my friends at home with a contingent of angels, when one of my men is sick, or when a Hunter is in residence. And when all three are happening at once? I check even when I dont have messages. So. Whats wrong? Why did you summon me? Amun okay?
Strider shoved an extra clip for his .22 into his pocket as he abandoned the confines of the walk-in. Amuns great. Better. The problems me. I gotta take off for a little while. For his sanity, yes, but mostly for Amuns safety.
Amun had lifted the fragile Haidee into his battered arms and carried her to his bed. He had tucked her under the covers, so careful not to jostle her, and climbed in beside her. Strider didnt think Amun realized this, but the warrior had caressed the woman during their entire conversation, as if the need to touch her was already ingrained in his soul.
A sense of challenge had begun to rise inside of Strider. For Haidee, a godsdamn Hunter. Worse, a godsdamn killer. Hed wanted to win her from Amun and claim her for his own, and the want had been far more intense than his usual thats mine and Im not sharing mind-set.
If Strider stayed here, he would eventually give in. He wouldnt be able to help himself. His demon would badger him constantly, and in the end, he would fight his friend, hurt his friendbecause no way in hell would he pull his punches like hed done the first timeand hate himself.
Hate. Huh. Hed never hated himself. If anything, hed always liked himself a little too much. Once, a human female had even accused him of picturing his own face while he climaxed. He hadnt denied it, either, and next time hed slept with her, hed made sure to scream, Strider at the pivotal moment.
She hadnt appreciated his sense of humor, and that had been the final nail in their relationship coffin. He was too intense, too jaded, too warped and tooeverything for most women to take for long. But so what. He was made of awesome. Anyone who couldnt see that wasnt smart enough to be with him, anyway.
Haidee, though She would be able to take him. With her strength of will, her courage, her unbending and reckless spirit, she would match him. Maybe even surpass him.
That is the key player in Badens murder youre thinking about.
Hadnt mattered to Amun, he thought darkly. Why should it matter to him?
Fuck! He hated those thoughts.
Hated. There was that word again.
listening to me? he heard Lucien ask with exasperation.
Sorry, he muttered. Say again.
Sighing, Lucien strode to the bed and sat at the edge of the mattress. Striders gaze followed his friend, picking up little details about the room along the way. He hadnt cleaned in a few days, had been too busy guarding Amun, so his clothes were scattered throughout. His iPod hung from his nightstand, the earbuds wrapped around a lamp.
How the hell had it gotten there? Oh, yeah. Hed tossed it over his shoulder last night, uncaring where it landed.
Torin texted me and told me Amun was doing better, but damn, Lucien said, once again dragging him from his thoughts. You scared ten years off my life.
Youre welcome. Eternitys too long, anyway.
Not when youre with the right woman.
He experienced a flash of jealousy that so many of his peeps had found the right woman already. And damn it, he was as sick of being jealous as he was of everything else.
Talk to me, Lucien said. Let me help you, whatevers going on.
Nothing to talk about. He needed to forget Haidee, lose himself in another woman, in the heat and wetness of her body. An appropriate woman. Someone inexperienced, though not a virgin. Someone he wouldnt have to work his ass off trying to win, then work his ass off again to please. I need a break, thats all.
You summoned me with a now because you need a break?
Yeah. Youve been on break for weeks, it seems. Let someone else have a turn.
Silence, thick and heavy, enveloped them. Lucien studied him, and whatever he saw in Striders expression caused him to lose his air of irritation. All right. Ill take you wherever you want to go. For Torins sake, someone needs to take your place before we leave. Hed never admit it, would even deny it, but he needs some help running this heap.
Gods, he loved his friends. Lucien wasnt going to question him further. Was just going to give him what hed asked for.
Id do it, Lucien continued, but Im busy. I havent been vacationing as you seem to think. Ive beenand currently amguarding the Cage of Compulsion in a place Rhea cant reach. And I cant tell you where that is. Torin asked me not to say anything since theres a Hunter in residence.
The cage was one of the four godly relics needed to find and destroy Pandoras box, and in desperate need of that guarding. Strider knew that wasnt the only reason Lucien refused to move back into the fortress. The god queen was out for blood, and the man didnt want his Anya in any more danger than necessary. Strider could dig. Williams here, Strider said. He can
Lucien was already shaking his head. Hes useless. He grows bored too easily to be relied upon. Hell forget whatever duty hes promised to perform and head into town for a little some-some.
Some-some. Someone was picking up his womans vernacular. Apparently hes related to Lucifer. That has to count for something.
Believe me. I know who hes related to, Lucien replied dryly. That doesnt change anything.
Yeah, but hes strong. No one will want to mess with
Again Lucien shook his head. Nope. Like I said, hes unreliable. Hell think of himself first and everyone else not at all.
I know. William wasnt demon-possessed. He was a god, according to himself, and had spent centuries locked in Tartarusa prison for immortalsfor sleeping with the wrong woman. Hundreds of them, in fact. Hed even slept with Hera, the former god kings wife, and had been stripped of some of his supernatural abilities as further punishment. Exactly what those abilities were, he wouldnt say.
Strider liked the man, even though, as Lucien had said, he looked out only for himself. Even though he could turn on you in a heartbeat, stabbing you in the backor rather, the stomachas Lucien had experienced firsthand.
My kinda guy, Strider mused. And since William wasnt wanted here, maybe hed want to leave with Strider. Strider made a mental note to text him before taking off. Never hurt to vacation with a friend.
So. Who did that leave to guard the fortress and those inside? Kane and Cameo, he said with a nod. Disaster and Misery. Since Amuns better, they can return from wherever they are.
Lucien pondered for a moment, then nodded in turn. All right, then. Its settled.
One more thing. Tomorrow I need you to contact Sabin. Strider planned to be too wasted to be coherent. He needs to return, too, and meet the female Hunter up close and personal. But dont call him until tomorrow, okay?
While Torin had apparently been texting, Strider had been calling both Lucien and Sabin every day, giving them updates on Amuns health. Only thing he hadnt told themyetwas Haidees identity. He didnt know why. Hed certainly meant to share, but every time hed tried, the words had congealed in his throat.
All he knew was that he still wasnt going to tell them. Like him, theyd find out the truth as soon as they talked to her. And when they did, Strider wouldnt have betrayed Amuns trust, but would still have done all he could to safeguard his friend from the murdering bitchs influence.
Shit. He was getting worked up again, fighting a need to stomp back to Amuns room and do some damage.
Win? Defeat asked.
Oh, no. Were not going there.
Consider it done, Lucien said.
Good, he replied, tangling a hand in his hair. Cause I really need this break.
Once again Lucien asked no questions. He merely straightened and gave another nod. Pack while I hunt down the lucky twosome and bring them home.
No need to pack. He had his weapons. Thats all he needed.
For the first time during their conversation, Luciens lips twitched into the semblance of a smile. Twice youve said you need a break. We both know nothing will change in a day or two. Youll still be stressed, on edge. So I want you gone for at least two weeks, and thats a nonnegotiable requirement if you expect transport. Pack.
Death didnt wait for Striders reply. He simply disappeared.
Strider packed.
WILLIAM THE EVER RANDY, as the shitheads here had started calling him, lay propped on his bed, a mountain of pillows behind him. His covers were tucked around his waist and legs, cocooning him in a way he despised but refused to complain about because his Gillian Shawnicknamed Gilly, also nicknamed Little Gilly Gumdrop, though only he was allowed to call the seventeen-year-old human that last onewas responsible. She had a huge crush on him, and she had thought tucking him in would soothe him.
Unlike the tucking in, hed done everything he could to discourage the crush. Shed told him she wanted to date a nonsmoker, so hed immediately taken up the habit. Was even now sucking a disgusting cloud of ash into his mouth and blowing smoke in her too-appealing, perfectly sun-kissed face.
She gave a delicate cough.
Tragically, the smoke failed to diminish the loveliness of her features. Big, wide eyes of the purest chocolate. Sharp cheekbones that hinted at the passion she would one day be capable of giving. A pixie nose, slightly uptilted at the end. Lush pink lips. And framing all that beauty was a cascade of midnight hair.
With a sigh, he smashed the cigarette butt into the ashtray beside him. Maybe it was time he took up drinking.
Liam, she said softly. Her nickname for him. A name he would kill anyone else for using. Maybe because it was hers and hers alone. She sat beside him, her hip pressed against his, warm and soft and completely feminine. I have a question for you.
Ask. He could deny her nothingexcept a romantic relationship. Not only because she was too young, but because hewell, he liked her. Yeah, shocking. William the Perfecta much more suitable name for himfriends with a female other than Anya. The world should have ended.
But, in many ways, Gilly truly was his best friend. When hed returned from hell, unable to care for himself, she had done so. She had fetched his food, endured his dark moods as the pain became too much, and washed his sweat-soaked brow when necessary.
If, when she reached maturity, he was foolish enough to touch her, their easy camaraderie would be ruined. She would be forever disillusioned about the kind of man he was. He didnt want to disillusion her.
She deserved a man who would give her the world. All William would give her was pain.
So, become involved? Hell, no. Not now, not later. He wouldnt allow himself to hurt her. Ever. He was many thingsa womanizer, a killer. Callous, sometimes cruel, always selfish and dark in a way no one inside this fortress knew. But this tiny little beauty had been through enough in her short life. Physical abuse, and so much worse. Shed run away from home, had lived on the streets, taking care of herself when loved ones should have ensured her safety.
After Danika and Reyes, the keeper of Pain, had hooked up, Danika had brought her here. William had taken an instant liking to her. Shed needed someone to look out for her, and William had decided to be that someone. For now. That meant destroying those who had destroyed her innocence and later helping her find a man worthy of her love. That meant resisting her.
Lids heavy over those exotic eyes and lashes so thick and curling they seemed to be reaching for her brows, she traced some sort of design on the covers beside him. At last she found the courage to ask her question. Youre cursed by the gods, but I dont know how youre cursed. I mean, I tried to read your book. Anya let me borrow it, I hope you dont mind, but the pages were weird.
The subject he hated more than any other. His curse. The only person hed ever discussed the particulars with was Anya, and then only because theyd been cell neighbors inside Tartarus, and hed needed something to do while the centuries ticked by. When theyd later escaped, hed made the mistake of showing her the book that detailed everything hed told her, as well as his only chance for salvation.
He shouldnt have been surprised when the naughty goddess had stolen that bookand now threatened to rip the pages out every time he pissed her off. Nor should he have been surprised that shed given Gilly a peek. Anya had taken over the girls care, too, and knew how the sweet little human felt about him. But damn it, his secrets were his own.
Liam?
Resisting was pointless. And gods, he was pathetic. To not even put up a fight? Sickening. The book is written in code, he explained. A roundabout fuck-you from Zeus, he mused. A heres your salvationnot. He had yet to find the key to unlocking that code. He knew it was out there, though. It had to be out there. He couldnt believe otherwise. Even though he was afraid to find the key, afraid to know more about his curse.