Dragonmark

  "Kill him?"

  "No, Thorn. Save him."

  19

  "I agree with Jo. I think the most irresponsible thing we can do is leave Cadegan in Terre Derriere le Voile without supervision or protection. We've awakened the demon inside him. It's our duty to watch over and guard him."

  Every head in the room stared at the Dark-Hunter Acheron as those words left his lips. Some were happy about it.

  Some, not so much.

  Illarion fell into the latter category. Last thing he wanted was to return to the hell realm that had been his home and cost Edilyn her life. He wasn't into saving mankind.

  Personally, he'd like to help Cadegan end them.

  By the expression on her face, Jo wanted to kiss the ancient Dark-Hunter for backing her wishes to save her lover. The expression on Thorn's face said he wanted to choke him. Karma Devereaux, who'd been lobbying to banish Cadegan to an even bleaker realm, was furious.

  Fang Kattalakis, a handsome, dark-haired wolfwere who worked as a Hellchaser for Thorn, exchanged a gaping stare of disbelief with his blonde werebear wife, Aimee. Their group was currently meeting in the back room of the bar and grill called Sanctuary, which the two shapeshifters owned in conjunction with Aimee's Were-Hunter family.

  The room they were in was a bit cramped with Karma and her sisters Selena, Tabitha, and Amanda, along with Tabitha's husband Valerius, who'd once been a Roman general, and Amanda's husband, Kyrian, an ancient Greek general who'd been killed by Valerius's grandfather Yeah, they had awkward family get-together. Then there was Talon, an ancient Celt who'd once worked with Valerius and Kyrian--all as Dark-Hunters under Acheron's command, who sat between them.

  Just in case.

  While Kyrian and Valerius had learned for the sake of their twin wives and five children to let bygones be bygones, they still had a tenuous relationship at times. One Illarion was beginning to learn was quite complicated.

  And some of the more interesting glances he'd noted between Karma and Thorn said there was much more to them than just mere friendship.

  While they discussed Cadegan's future, Acheron's demon daughter Simi sat beside him, eating from a plate loaded with barbecue chicken, while Acheron's twin brother, Styxx, kept adding french fries and coleslaw to her meal whenever she ran out.

  Styxx and Acheron were an odd duo, indeed. They were identical in absolutely every way, except hair color and style. Acheron's black curly hair was cut just below his ears and fell around his face. Styxx was blond and brushed his short curls back, out of his eyes. Acheron's clothes were black on black and as Goth as a 45 Grave audience ... including his black titanium wedding band that had skulls and crossbones on it.

  On the flip side, Styxx had a preppy style and wore a dark blue shirt and jeans. His yellow gold wedding band appeared to be engraved with Egyptian hieroglyphics.

  Also in black, Thorn sat beside Jo, while Illarion and Max leaned against a wall next to Ioan and Talfryn. The Hellchaser Zeke had stepped out only a few minutes ago to take a call, while they discussed what to do about Cadegan.

  Illarion was really too tired to deal with this shit, but if his brother was in for their fight to save Cadegon, he was in.

  Thorn sighed heavily. "You didn't see him, Ash. He is the Addanc. Fully morphed. Are you really willing to unleash him into this world, where we might not be able to stop him?"

  Ash met his brother's gaze. "I've learned to reserve judgment on people for their actions, especially when they've been wronged by family." He turned back to Jo. "What do you honestly think? You've spent the most time with him out of all of us. And remember, if you guess poorly, you'll probably end the world as we know it."

  She snorted at Acheron's words. "No pressure, there, right, buddy? Wow, Ash. I know why you don't have your own self-help show ... Lifestyles of the Morbid and Terrifying. Stay tuned, folks. This week we learn how to end the world with a flourish and get rid of those pesky dog flea problems, all in ten minutes."

  Talon and Styxx burst out laughing.

  "Hey!" Simi said. "No picking on the akri! He not the one who gots us into this ... for once."

  Offended, Acheron snorted. "Thanks, Sim."

  "Anytime, akri. That's what the Simi's here for. Make sure you don't get one of them big heads."

  Ignoring their segue, Illarion stepped forward. I haven't known him long, but he seemed decent enough. For a demon. And I've known many of them over the centuries. I think we can trust Jo. She is his anchor, from what I've seen. There's nothing he won't do for her. He even spared my life at her command. So long as she lives, I think he's safe.

  Ash put his hand on Simi's shoulder. "That's the one truth of demons. They are all enslaved to their hearts. So long as it remains flesh and not stone or ice, we can control them."

  Karma shook her head in denial. "But you're talking about someone who's been locked away for a thousand years. How will he acclimate to the modern world? You can't just let him loose and say, 'Hey, dude, welcome to the Electronic Age. Make sure you don't put your finger in an outlet.'"

  Styxx waved his hand at her in a gesture that said to take it down a notch. "Lower the disgust in your tone a bit. As one who was locked away in solitary confinement for eleven thousand years, I can say that no, it won't be easy. You people are effing nuts in this day and age. You make as much sense as a blind rat in a shifting maze. But with a guiding hand, we're not psychotic. I think Julian, Seth, and I have proven that. We have yet to run screaming naked through the streets."

  Selena grinned. "Your sessions with Grace must be going well."

  Styxx nodded. "She's helped a lot, and we can get Cadegan the same counseling. Plus..." He glanced over to his brother. "We could set him up in one of our temples to live. There are still plenty that sit vacant on the hill."

  Ash arched a brow at Styxx's suggestion. "You want him that close to your wife and toddler?"

  A slow smile spread across Styxx's face. "I'm pretty sure Bethany can handle it. I have no fear for them. From this, anyway." He glanced over to Jo. "If we can save him, I think we should try. I stand with Acheron and Jo on this matter. We unleashed him. We police him."

  Talon nodded in agreement. "If he really is the grandson of the Morrigan and the Dagda, that makes him the first cousin to my wife. Family is family. We protect that always."

  Karma sighed. "Normally, I'd agree with you all. But do we protect him at the expense of the rest of the world? Is there not any way to bind his powers?"

  "Duct tape?"

  They all cast a droll stare to Fang.

  "Oh, don't give me that look. Like none of you have never wondered why a witch doesn't use that in a binding spell. Nothing gets away from duct tape without losing half their skin and all their hair."

  Thorn snorted. "Really don't want to know about your kinky sex life, wolf. Your wife handles my food, and now I'm grossed out."

  They laughed.

  Acheron turned back toward Talon. "So, Celt, does anyone in your camp know Cordelia personally?"

  "My mother-in-law probably does. She's a member of the Tuath De. Technically so am I, and my wife. But Starla lived among them in her youth. She knows everyone who's still living in their pantheon."

  "Tuath De..." Acheron repeated that under his breath as he narrowed his gaze on Jo.

  "Does that ring a bell?" Kyrian asked.

  Acheron pulled out his cell phone and dialed it. "Yeah, it does, and not for the obvious reasons." He held his hand up to let them know the person he was calling had picked up. "Hey baby, how's my girl?" He paused to listen before he laughed. "Give them both a big kiss from Grandpa and tell them that I'll be by later to tuck them in." With his inhuman, swirling silver eyes, he stared at Jo in a way that was really making her uncomfortable. "Yeah, actually I could use you for a minute. Can you pop over for just a few minutes?" He nodded. "I'm at Sanctuary. Back room. You can ask Dev when you get here and he'll show you in. Thanks, precious. Love you." He hung up.

  "Kat?" Styxx asked. br />
  Acheron nodded again. "She'll be..." The door opened to show an insanely tall, gorgeous blonde woman who appeared even older than Acheron. "Walking in the door, right now."

  Wide-eyed at the number of people inside, Kat cast her gaze around the room. "Hi, Daddy." She moved to kiss Acheron on the cheek before she hugged Simi and Styxx. When she went to steal one of Simi's french fries, the demon gasped in horror.

  "You won't share fries with your sissy?" Kat asked the demon.

  Simi eyed her with mock ire. "Good thing I love my baby sissy. But ... Daddy Akri, Akra-Kat stealing your Simi's fries! Make her stop!"

  Laughing, Acheron shook his head. "Don't make me put you two in separate corners. Play nice."

  "Yes, sir." Kat stepped to the side.

  Simi handed Kat another fry before she laughed and returned to her barbecue.

  Acheron jerked his chin toward Jo. "Does she remind you of someone?"

  Screwing her face up, Kat licked the ketchup from her fingers. Suddenly, recognition lit her green eyes and she gasped. "Are you thinking Brit?"

  "Yeah."

  Kat nodded. "Spitting image of her. But I haven't seen her in centuries. It's why it took me a while to realize it."

  Jo frowned at their discussion. "Who's Brit?"

  "Britomartis," Acheron answered. "She was a cousin of the goddess Artemis. They played together when they were girls on Olympus."

  Kat nodded. "She's the one who gave my mother her famous nets that no one can escape from. As a thank-you for them, my mother gave her an enchanted mirror that had once belonged to Apollo. The mirror could show events of the past, present, and future. But most of all, it showed Britomartis the true heart of those around her."

  Acheron nodded. "She was gazing in that same mirror one day when she fell in love with a Welsh prince and demigod named Arthegall ap Tyr, whose face she saw while he was jousting against another knight."

  Jo gaped. "I saw Cadegan in the mirror before we met. It was how I ended up falling through it and into Glastonbury Tor."

  Thorn rose slowly to his feet. "That's one hell of a coincidence, isn't it?"

  Acheron nodded. "And I don't believe in them."

  Kat moved closer to Jo. "Brit had a son and daughter and both she and Arthegall gave up their godhoods so that they could live out their lives in peace with their children."

  Karma folded her arms over her chest as she jerked her chin toward her cousin. "Jo could always see things in mirrors. She used to accuse us of planting it in her mind, but she's a born scryer."

  "I have no powers."

  "Would you let us test your blood?" Kat asked.

  Jo hesitated. "Test it how, Draculina?"

  "A little prick?"

  Talfryn snorted. "Little prick's what got her into trouble."

  Ioan shoved at him. "Shut it."

  "It's true. Just saying."

  Kat ignored them. "Can we?"

  Jo held her hand out toward the woman. "Sure."

  Kat pulled out a small knife and lightly pricked the edge of Jo's finger. She pooled the blood on the knife's blade before she took it to her father and handed it to him.

  Acheron dipped his finger into the blood then tasted it.

  Jo screwed her face up in absolute repugnance. Nasty!

  After a second, he nodded. "It's the same bloodline as Artemis."

  "You sure?" Thorn asked.

  He gave Thorn a droll stare. "Yeah. Pretty sure. I've tasted it before. Jo is from Zeus's bloodline."

  Jo scowled at all of them. "What does that mean?"

  Kat winked at her. "We're very distant cousins."

  "For another," Acheron continued, "there's something much larger at play here. Your ancestor was pulled into Terre Derriere le Voile by a mirror to meet her future husband, who was a Welsh prince and demigod."

  "You think the two of them are reincarnated?" Selena asked.

  Talon passed a knowing look to Acheron. "It happens, and you don't want to get in the way when it does. Two lovers will not be denied."

  Except for him and Edilyn. Illarion choked on that thought as he forced down his own pain.

  "Then how do we get him out?" Jo asked.

  Talon stood. "I'm part of the Tuath De, so I'll lead us in."

  Styxx nodded in agreement. "Since we're trespassing into another pantheon's realm, I think we should keep the group small. Jo has to go, because we'll need her to deal with Cadegan. Thorn's Frick and Frack, since they'll follow us in, anyway." He grinned at Talfryn's disapproving growl over their nickname. "Thorn and me."

  Simi looked up from her food. "No Simi?"

  Styxx kissed her on the forehead. "Not this time. I don't want to risk you and I know your father agrees with me. We need you here to protect our small sons and Kat's son and daughter."

  That placated her. "Okies. But you have to let me put hornays on Baby Ari."

  "Sure, as long as they're detachable."

  She blew him a raspberry.

  Their stupid solidarity pissed Illarion off. But more than that, it touched him.

  Damn him for it. And before he could stop himself, he made a decision he'd sworn he never would.

  I will come, too.

  For Edilyn. If she were here, she'd be among the first to volunteer to help them. The romantic in her wouldn't rest until the two lovers were reunited. So for her, he would act against his own nature.

  If he couldn't have her, he could at least do this in remembrance of her.

  Max sighed. "Then I will go, too."

  Illarion glared at him for volunteering for such a suicidal task.

  But Max refused to back down. "You've been too long alone. I won't let you do this without a wingman."

  Styxx nodded. "That actually works. It leaves a mount for each of us."

  Jo stepped forward. "Then we're going after Cadegan?"

  Thorn inclined his head to her. "May the gods have mercy on us all. The last thing we need is to face an even stronger creature."

  20

  Cadegan dove beneath the blackened waves as he sought some sort of refuge from the hell that had become his world. Hatred and bloodlust pounded through him without letup. He wanted to taste the entrails of every creature dumb enough to approach him. While he'd never been friendly, this was completely different.

  He had lost all ability to feel for anyone or anything.

  Opening his eyes, he breathed in the water and scent of blood that still clung to him. The giant had been his first victim.

  Too bad Cordelia had run screaming before he had a chance to finish the giant off and add her to his menu. Since then, he'd flown over the countryside, looking for more food. How he loved the musical cadence of screams echoing in his ears.

  Truly, there was no better sound.

  Drunk on the panic he'd induced, he dove deeper into the water. This was what he'd needed. The water's caress. The sound of his heartbeat echoing in his ears.

  He froze his muscles as his instincts picked up on the sound of creatures approaching.

  Curious, he tucked his legs and floated to the surface. With only his eyes out of the water, he scanned the banks until he saw Morgen's men. Fey Adoni armor glistened in the grim, gray light. Armed with crossbows and spears, they sent out lures to flush him to the top.

  Did they think him as mindless as he was soulless?

  Hah! They were about to learn the truth of his kind.

  "Cadegan?" Morgen called. "We are here to free you."

  Her gown was the only color in the dreary landscape. Bright bloodred, it clung to the voluptuous curves of her body. Something that brought out a new hunger inside him as she stirred his lust.

  "Come to us, love. We will care for you in ways you cannot imagine."

  Tempted, he moved his gaze to the MOD on Morgen's left-hand side.

  Bracken. His uncle, who'd once tortured him at Morgen's behest. He wanted to spear the bastard through his missing heart. But he refused to give them his location.

  Especial
ly since half her army carried nets he knew were there to capture him.

  "Cadegan? Come, child. Let me care for you."

  He went perfectly still at the sound of a voice that was identical to his mother's. For the merest instant, he was a boy again, sitting on the edge of the tower window as he counted down to the bell toll. As he looked out upon the endless land and wondered if his mother was out there, somewhere.

  If she ever gave a passing thought to the child she'd left behind.

  Furious, he started forward, wanting more blood.

  But as he moved, the water caressed his demonkyn skin like the hand of a lover.

  It caressed him like ...

  He struggled to remember. It was important that he recall the sensation.

  'Tis nothing. Devour them!

  He pulled back. Placing his hand upon his cheek, he heard the faint memory of laughter.

  Gentle teasing.

  Like a wombat in a cornfield.

  "Josette," he breathed as he remembered feeling something other than burning hatred and the stinging hunger for death and blood.

  I will never leave you.

  But she had left him. Just like everyone else.

  His rage built even higher. It was true. She'd betrayed him. Abandoned him the first chance she'd had to go home.

  And here he stayed. With no one and nothing.

  Morgen wants you.

  Nay, she did not. He was not so stupid as to be that easily fooled. She wanted to use him.

  No one ever wanted to keep him.

  "Cade?"

  At first, he thought himself dreaming. Imagining the sound of a voice that was forever gone.

  "Sweetie? Where are you?"

  It was Josette. His heart pounded as a hope he despised filled his entire being.

  'Tis a dodge from the Queen Bitchtress herself.

  Suddenly, two dragons and two Adar Llwch Gwin swooped down to attack Morgen and her army. Exploding into action, Morgen's forces flew to engage them.

  But the moment he was alone, a slight movement on his right caught his attention. Crouched low in the shrubs was the last person he'd ever expected to see.

  Josette.

  She stretched her hand out toward him. "I'm here to take you home with me. Come, my lord. I won't let anyone harm you."

  Cadegan started forward instinctively. Until he saw that she wasn't alone. Two men were with her. His bastard brother and one he knew was related to him. He wasn't sure how he knew, but he'd always been able to feel any member of the Tuath De what came near.