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The Quarter Moon

Afterlife Saga

Book 4

 By

  Stephanie Hudson

Copyright

This book is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the author, as allowed under terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author's rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

Copyright © 2013 Stephanie Hudson

All rights reserved.

This book is a work or fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

Cover design by: © thePaperface

www.thepaperface.co.uk

hello@thepaperface.co.uk

Other books by Stephanie Hudson

Afterlife Saga

Book 1 Afterlife

Book 2 The Two Kings

Book 3 The Triple Goddess

Dedication

I would like to dedicate this book to the 52 people who lost their lives in the 7 July 2005 London bombing and the families, friends and rescuers this terrible day affected.

I will never forget the emotional feelings on my birthday to hear that so many innocent people had lost their lives and would never again celebrate their own birthday. I am happy that I finally get to dedicate a book to you all and your everlasting memory.

We all

For once you hope the train will never come,

Standing, waiting shocked at the world and all its done,

Creating monsters that think to change with tools of death,

But the only tool needed is blind madness with each breath,

You want revenge for the wrongs not yet made right,

To strip yourself of your working armour and join in the fight,

Hunting those long dead that remain responsible,

Our feelings are raging, furious and unstoppable.

They thought to change the world by killing innocent people,

Hiding behind actions not condoned in any Mosque, temple or steeple,

But still 52 people were unjustly taken from us,

Bringing Hell to London by underground Train and bus.

We did not engage you in battle or wage your war,

We were not soldiers holding our weapons at your door,

We were but living out our peaceful lives,

On the way to work or meeting our wives,

We were parents, students and more,

Not battleships invading your shore,

We were not the fighters in the sky,

We weren’t the ones invading your homes shouting ‘die’.

You lived among us and gained our trust,

Then you used and buried us into dust,

But we will be the ones to live on,

As greater people in name although were gone,

We say learn this lesson world and not fight,

For things better than ourselves we do right,

Holding on to the memories we love,

We send you this important message from above,

All humans are equal no matter your faith,

So put an end to the destruction and do so with haste,

Say goodbye to the hate and revenge in your sorrow,

For the sun will rise on a happier tomorrow.

Prologue

“He’s dead, Keira.”

“NOOOOOO!” I screamed out at the impossible words as my knees impacted the ground and the next thing I knew darkness surrounded my soul.

After that, time didn’t make any sense to me. It was as if it was lost… pieces of a cosmic puzzle breaking away and leaving massive black holes in its wake. I could see my body freefalling down into a pit of space, where ink coloured arms would stretch out and try to rip pieces of my soul from my body as I fell. I screamed…at least I think I screamed, as I felt my mouth open but heard no sounds escaping.

Then I heard it…was that what my name was?

Was that what it sounded like?

“Keira!” A voice was trying to pull me back and whoever it belonged to was putting the fear of God into the Beings that were trying to drag my soul down into their underworld.

Who was that?

“Keira! Come on girl! Bring yourself back!” I closed my eyes and tried to control my weightless arms to wrap around myself. I was letting go, despite the voice I heard and the urgency I felt in my name being called out didn’t make me want to hold on any longer.

It wasn’t the right voice I needed to pull me back, so what was the point? These Beings could take my soul. Hell, they could tear it to shreds and scatter it like confetti if they wanted, as there was only one man that would ever own it and his was the one voice I would never hear again.

“KEIRA!” The voice boomed and the shockwaves hit the edges of the tunnel to Hell I travelled. Then, I felt the thunder crack before I heard it…pain. Pain erupted across a face and when my eyes flashed open, I was looking into the piercing eyes of a scarred bear. I had to blink a few times before the image disappeared and what was left was the tear stained face of Leivic.

I looked around and saw the familiar clear sky I had woken up to that morning. The hard gravel floor started to dig into my back where I lay and I turned my head to the side to see the creaky front steps leading up to a door that someone I loved would never walk through again. It was only then that I realised my body was shaking uncontrollably and my vision was like opening your eyes underwater.

“I am so sorry Keira…so, so sorry.” He spoke to me in hushed tones that had blurred into meaningless words of a truth that I would never be able to understand.

I would never want to understand.

I was being held by strong arms that would never be strong enough and being softly spoken to by a voice that would never be soft enough. The wrong breath in my ear, wrong fingers curled round my arm and the wrong heart pounded wildly in the wrong chest.

It was all wrong.

And Draven was really gone from this world and had left behind a shell of a girl, who was now not only missing half her soul, but also…

The whole of her heart.

Chapter 1

Hearts of the Abyss

I woke to the sound of my alarm going off and it might as well have been screaming “no life, no life, no life”, instead of its annoying beeping sequence. I hit it with a little too much force and the pain was welcomed. These days it was the only feeling that let me know I was still alive.

The week that followed the worst day of my life was like walking in the dark and having to feel my way around blindly with my hands. To say that I felt numb was not exactly true. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I felt plenty numb, but only when I had to be around other people. But it was times like now, the times I was alone and the only emotion and physical feeling was the same and that was pure, unfiltered pain. A pain which cut so deep, that with every movement my body made, I felt like screaming in agony.

Some days I found I couldn’t actually get out of bed. I was too exhausted and mentally drained, yet at night I couldn’t even close my eyes for fear of dreaming. See, it wasn’t nightmares that haunted my nights but wonderful dreams of Draven, that were like ripping open an old wound every morning I woke. So, I tried the technique of not sleeping. It was like a blissful torture, one that would break the little left of my soul. I would cry for hours, until that was all my body knew what to do. It was a complete lie when people said that your tears ran dry, that you could cry so much that you had nothing left, because a week later and it was still all my body knew what to do.

I would love to have said that, after that day, things got easier, but I would be lying. The only changes were the different responses I took to the news. The first day my body seemed to shut down. Even after Leivic had carried me through the empty house and carefully placed me on the bed, my eyes wouldn’t focus, my lips refused to form words and my body began to sink further into the hole it was being sucked into. It was as though my mind had no say in the fact that my body had given up and was ready to die along with the other half of me.

I think, if Leivic hadn’t stayed there with me that day, to keep pulling me back, I would have died. It was only after a full twenty odd hours that it was finally safe enough to leave me. That’s when the tears and screaming started.

Libby had come back to find me in such a state that she could get little from me but from the way I kept repeating,

“He left me, he left me…” She made her own conclusion that Draven had broken up with me. And still, to this day, I had not found it in me to correct her. Because she was right in a sense, Draven had left me, but unlike living with even the smallest possibility that he would come back, no, I was living in the shadows of what his body left behind.

The second day had me waking to even more tears as my cruel brain had spent the night replaying every touch, smell and loving word he had bestowed on me. Libby had tried to talk to me again that day but still couldn’t get anything from me. I couldn’t eat. I could barely keep down liquids before having to run to the toilet to exercise my stomach muscles.

The third day however, my mind took on another approach. It was the day that my brain finally kicked into living gear and started to try and form a plan. It was only then that I started to realise that no-one and I mean no-one had been in contact with me! I mean, not even a phone call or a message from either Vincent or Sophia. It was only then that I realised even Ragnar, my bodyguard, had disappeared. It was as if time had been rewritten and I had gone back in time to when I first arrived.

I had grabbed my phone and started ringing every number on there to try and get answers, but every number came back with a dead dial tone as if that phone was no longer in use. I had even driven to Afterlife, just to sit in my car for three hours, to stare out at a lifeless club that had been my second home. It had been shut up tight and even when I finally got my cramped legs out of the car, I found there was little point.

All I found was a notice on the door,

Afterlife will be closed until further notice,

Thank you.

This had started a whole load more crying, but added to this was also a whole load of fist banging that ended with a couple of bruised hands and cut up knuckles. I walked away with some sick hope that my blood on the notice would be seen by those who had caused my pain. Because it wasn’t just Draven that had caused my heartache, it was also those that I had considered family, the ones who had abandoned me. A brother and a sister, a Viking bodyguard whose life I had saved, a Vampire king who I had taken a knife in my heart for and an Imp who I had let into that heart. But no-one was there, no-one had come and I was very much alone.

This was what led me into day four, which I would rightly call ‘Anger Day’. This was the first day that I cried not tears of pain and heartbreak, but pure rage. I had walked back to the cabin which was still in pieces in the forest clearing and it was the first time I had been back to the scene that changed my past forever. The night that had killed my demons once and for all and at that moment I was so angry that I wished Morgan had been there waiting for me.

I wasn’t the same person I was back then and the shaking in my arms from clenching my fists so hard was the proof. I wanted to see him. I wanted to smash his face into my ready bones and watch him crumble at my feet. I wanted him to suffer as I had done, like I was doing now. I wanted someone who deserved to feel my pain and when I punched my fist through one of the only pieces of wood left standing, I knew I had lost it.

Anger Day ended with a trip to the hospital and a fracture at the neck of the fourth metacarpal bone, or so the doctor informed me. He asked me what I had hit and I told him not to worry and not to expect to see someone coming in with a broken face…not surprisingly, he didn’t respond.

I left the hospital with a splint that extended from my mid-forearm to the fingers, leaving my fingertips exposed and a shit load of Ibuprofen. He told me to put ice on it to help with the swelling and take the pain killers as needed. At the price of an X ray, two thoughts entered my mind in the back of the taxi, one I was glad I had taken out health insurance and two, how I missed the National Health Service in England.

I had gotten home and managed to form enough words to lie to Libby by saying I had fallen on my hand awkwardly when out walking. I knew I wasn’t being fair to my sister, but it was hard to explain things I didn’t even yet understand myself. For one, I couldn’t tell her that Draven had died because where was his funeral? Where was his goodbye to the world and where did his body rest? These were the soul destroying questions my ‘supposed’ family could have answered for me but no, they had left me, just like Draven had, as though he hadn’t been the only one to die that day.

It all added to the reasons that were best to just let Libby and Frank believe he’d finished things with me. I hated that they thought badly of Draven and hearing Frank one night saying how he would kick his ass if ever he saw him again, had me crying once more. I loved my sister and Frank but the very last thing I wanted, during her last weeks of pregnancy, was to add any stress, which was why things changed on the fifth day.

Day five brought back an old friend of mine and I woke up to see the fake Keira back in business. I got up, decided to finally use the bathroom for more than the toilet and endless rolls of tissue paper to dry tears, to have a much needed shower. I dressed in something other than pyjamas and pulled a pair of gloves on over my splint. It kind of looked like I had stuffed a tennis ball on the top of my hand but the pain of it I welcomed. It was like a sick release on my overwhelming emotions and it helped in finally talking to Libby. Every time Draven’s named was mentioned I would flex my hand and the shooting pain had me biting my lip at the sweet agony. Every time I would think, well at least there is one pain in my life that I could control!

The conversation with Libby was just as hard as doing anything else in the day. Getting up, washing, eating… Christ, even breathing was a chore, but one that I would no doubt continue doing. I think at one stage of my first week, I even tried pretending he wasn’t dead and that any day now he would be coming back to me and knocking on my door. This ended in me sat in the corner of my room, fisting my necklace, holding myself into a protective ball, saying over and over,

“It’s a mistake, it’s a mistake,” until my voice didn’t feel like working any longer. Holding on to the necklace that Draven had given me was another coping mechanism I used, one that only brought me slight comfort, as without Draven around, it felt colder against my skin, as though some part of it was lost as well.

My week pretty much continued the same way, only with the added no sleeping rule. I would get up…or force myself up on most days, and start the day with a new depressing thought to drag me down into a pit of misery that I would walk through like a bloody zombie. A zombie that even having Stephen Hawking’s big brain to suck on wouldn’t satisfy!

I was lucky those days if I made it downstairs without pathetic tears emerging or squeezing my broken hand for my pain rush. I let out a sigh of relief when I saw the kitchen empty and a quick call out told me I was in the house alone. I treasured those moments and would find myself sat at the table, with an abandoned cup of tea waiting for me to take notice, just staring at the window. I think in the cruel subconscious of my mind, I was just waiting, or more like praying, to see one of Draven’s lavish and ultra-expensive cars pull up on my driveway. I think by the end of an hour I was imagining things as a car’s engine was the only thing I would hear. Of course, it would never be a car and I could not even blame my craziness on Libby or Frank coming home.

But no one ever came at these times.

I got up and discarded the cold tan coloured liquid down the sink and grabbed a bag of crisps from the cupboard, as it was the only thing I could even think to eat right then. I thought at some point I would reach the tubs of ice cream and my body weight in chocolate phase but until then I was reduced to putting little effort, or care for that matter, as to what I fuelled my body with.

I had the bag open and was stuffing four crisps in my mouth at once when I walked out of the kitchen. I crunched down as I turned after something caught my eye. It was a single envelope, which was odd for two reasons. One being that these days whenever the mail came it was always full of baby related leaflets as I think Libby had joined every bloody baby group in the state! Oh and big reason number two, there had definitely been no mail when I came down earlier and after looking through the window for the entire time, I was pretty damn positive I had not seen any mail man!

I walked to the door, but as I got closer the bag of crisps dropped from my hand and rained salty snacks to the hardwood floor. I gasped and my shaking hands flew to my mouth. Because there, on the crisp white envelope, was a red wax seal that was glued to the paper like large drops of my own blood.

I don’t know how long I stood dumbstruck like a daft blonde character out of the movies we all mock, but I finally came out of it and literally scrambled for the door and ended up on my knees to grab the small rectangle to my chest like it was ‘My Precious’. I gripped it to the heart of me, as though it would be the very thing to save my life, the very cure to all my pain and the very thing that could bring Draven back to me.

By the time I ran up the stairs, I had orchestrated this whole scenario that Draven had come back and was sending me instructions on where to find him… maybe he needed my help or maybe it was from Vincent who knew a way for us to get him back. It pretty much went on like this until I reached the secret lair that had become a messy version of my room.

I jumped on the bed and placed the letter in my lap, all the while shaking, which was no doubt going to hurt my hand later but right then, no other sensation could penetrate my small bubble of hope. I turned it round and saw that it must have been delivered by hand as it had no stamp or postal mark. I traced my finger around the wax seal and over the indents of the Draven family crest. It was the same crest that was carved into the doors of Afterlife and that of the chair in which he sat in the VIP. That thought tore through me like a jagged piece of metal that made up some of the art work in the club.

The last time I had seen that chair, Draven’s body had filled it. I bit down on my lip, remembering how sometimes he would reach out and pluck me from my own chair to rest me on his lap, like a pet he could stroke. Most of the time that happened he would simply ignore everyone around him and spend the night just focused on smoothing his hand down my hair and whispering endearments in my ear that had me blushing like a nun in a BDSM club!

I swallowed down a sob and finally took a big enough breath to enable me to rip into the letter and somehow breaking the seal felt wrong. But I ignored the pang of pain and pulled out the thick paper that had been folded neatly twice. I opened it up and gasped as I automatically saw who it was from…

It was a letter from the grave, a letter from…

My Dominic Draven.

Chapter 2

My Mr Goodbye

I looked down at the elegant handwriting of my lost soul mate and I had to concentrate how to breathe. I felt the momentum of shakes travel through my body and I closed my eyes, squeezing out the tears that had already formed. I needed to control myself enough to at least read what were no doubt, Draven’s very last words to me.

Over the days since all my nightmares came to a head, I had read and re-read every text message from not only Draven but anyone that I once called family, just to try and make any sense of what was happening to me now. But nothing ever made any sense. In fact, there was not one shred of evidence to suggest this was even coming.

No, ‘It’s getting dangerous’ or ‘It’s worse than I thought’…nothing like that. If anything, it had been the opposite, with messages that suggested he would be seeing me soon and couldn’t wait to hold me again. There wasn’t one single thread of worry in my mind thanks to these texts from him, so the blow of things to come was like an A bomb given to me to hold tightly to my chest, by the grim reaper himself.

And looking down at the black inked calligraphy of more words for me to take in, was going to be like setting a match to any body parts I had left. So what did I do....?

I lit the flame.

Dear Keira,

I fear that this letter will ever reach you for I know what it must mean. I sit here now, as I have never done before, to write a letter to the only love of my very long life, one that at this time, has no doubt come to an end. I wish for nothing more than to hold you my darling. To keep you so close that I can literally burn the memory of your soul to mine for all time but the troubles and truth I have encountered today means that my time by your side is at an end.

I know with absolute certainly that without you, Heaven will never be enough.

It pains me to say the words I know I need to say in letting you go, words I never thought I would have to say, but the fact remains, my Love, that this is my Goodbye.

With my last orders as the King I once was, I have ordered for all ties to my life, this supernatural life that had been thrust upon you, to be severed. Please do not be angry with those on my side whom you love, for they are only following my orders. Vincent and Sophia will always love you and were less than pleased with my decision, but it is mine to make. I never wanted this pain for you and I know that there is no way to go back, so if this is the last final good thing I can do for you, then I will.

My wish for you, dearest Keira, is for you to live.

To live in your world as you once did, without the stains that Heaven and Hell could blemish the world’s most beautiful of minds, for yours was my saviour in all ways possible and even having you in my life for a short time showed me the greatest happiness I have ever known. So here they are, my last words to you my Love,

Live for me, live a full life, with that laughter I love so much, use that mighty heart of yours that has become fused to my very own and live in the knowledge that I will be watching you from my very own Heaven, that just witnessing your life has created for me.

So live Keira, live for me, live for your wonderful family and those you care deeply for but most importantly, live because,

I Love You.

Know that I am thinking of you,

Wherever I am in this world or the next.

Always Your

Dominic Draven.

As I read the very last words, my tears joined those already stained in parts from eyes I would never see again. Draven had shed his tears just as I did so now and that very thought broke me. But even in my devastation I knew I couldn’t do damage to the most precious thing I would ever own, so I lay my letter down and gathered my sobbing self from the bed to run from the room.

I flew down the stairs with tears streaming from my eyes and ran from the house, just as Libby was coming through the door.

“Whoa, where’s the fire....? Keira....? Keira, what is it, what’s happened?” Libby asked me in a panic and I just had enough mental strength in me to turn and take a deep shuddering breath to say,

“Dra…Draven… wrote…wrote me a…a letter,” I said with more tears overflowing the confines of my stormy eyes. Upon hearing this, Libby’s face relaxed into a sadder version of the look she already gave me, but now with the worry gone from her beautiful eyes. I continued to run back out of the front door and across the gravel drive.

“Keira! Keira, please wait!” She shouted.

“I’m sorry…Just…please, just give me some time…just some time… just some time….just…time.” I whispered out a strangled cry when I realised I was far from the house and had repeated the same words over and over. I ran from my home, from the brutal reality and from the letter that was like the last nail to the coffin that buried my heart.

I just kept going, kept running until I couldn’t breathe and even then I would just fold my body over until my breath returned and then I would do the same thing again….the same, until it hurt. It seemed that the pain was all I understood. It was all I controlled and when I finally ran until my legs gave out, I hit the ground with an angry scream,

“WHY!!!!....WHY, WHY, WHY? IT’S NOT FAIR! GODDAMN YOU! IT’S NOT FAIR...!It’s not… fair…it’s…it’s…” I finally lost all my steam, as my head followed my weak limbs and hit the ground. I sobbed the last of my emotions out into the earth, hoping in some way they would not only be heard by the Gods, but felt as well. Damn them and their rules and damn them for their fates. Fates that had ripped Draven away from me and for reasons I didn’t know. Would I ever know? Would anyone ever be able to tell me what happened or was what Draven told me going to remain so forever?

He spoke of his orders, orders I didn’t agree with in the slightest, but yet I had to live with them! It wasn’t fair. Hell, it was so beyond fair it was convoluted and tortuous! These people had become my family and now, along with Draven, I had lost them. What had Draven been thinking? Did he really believe this was the best thing for me? To just turn my back on all that had happened and continue my life like some good little mortal?

NO! I couldn’t do it and more importantly, I wouldn’t do it! It was like walking away from my own body while watching it burn. I sat up as my inner battle raged on and the two sides of me continued the struggle between what I wanted and what Draven wanted. He had asked this of me and ordered it from everyone else. Could I really follow through with his last wishes upon this earth, the very last thing he asked of me, which just so happened to be one of the hardest? How did he ever think that being torn from this world I had followed him into, would be better for me? It was insanity!

I don’t know how long I sat there, but by the time I tried to move I had to shake my legs out to try and get rid of the pins and needles. I also needed to get some ice on my hand at some point because it was throbbing so much it brought tears to my eyes. I looked down at it and yelped when I tried to move my fingers. I decided not to do that again for a while.

It was only when I was picking myself off the ground and patting myself free from dry mud and dead leaves that I heard a noise. My head snapped up and around in a heartbeat, but as my eyes scanned the forest they found nothing.

“Who’s there?” I said feeling as foolish saying it as it sounded. I mean really, did anyone ever just pipe up and say, ‘Oh I’m sorry, it was me, did I frighten you, I am awfully sorry’.

“Stupid, Jesus, Keira what’s next, running topless in the wrong direction screaming....? Dumb ass…” I was still grumbling when I heard it again, only this time it sounded like a short grunt of laughter.

“Shit!” I said whipping around until coming full circle, but still not finding anything. Ok, now I was definitely freaked!

“I know you’re there!” I shouted, putting on my bravest voice and hoping it wasn’t being affected by the hours of raw crying I had put it through. I flinched as I heard another deep grunt and decided I had outstayed my welcome. I started walking backwards, but being surrounded by a vast forest with too many hiding spots to think about, I didn’t know where to look for danger.

“Man, what I wouldn’t give for a big Ragnar right about now,” I whispered to myself, but received a heavier grunt of laughter in return. This time I spun too quickly in response and caught my foot in a creeping arched root, acting like a very effective Keira trap. I was about to go down when strong hands grabbed me from behind, making me scream.

“Hush now.” A deep voice said in my ear and it was a voice I didn’t recognise. I could feel a very tall presence behind me and when I tried to turn, long fingers bit into my shoulders preventing me from doing so.

“Let go of me!” I shouted looking down for a foot to stamp on. My eyes found two heavy booted feet that looked a bit like you would expect to see from the military. I let out a frustrated sigh on seeing that they were steel toe-capped for sure and I just knew my size four Nike trainers weren’t going to cut it.

“What do you want?!” I demanded trying to wriggle my way free to face the guy.

“Time to go home, lille øjesten” Said one of the deepest voice I had ever heard. At that, fingers left me and I turned quickly ready to face him but he was gone.

“What the Hell?” I looked around in a mad panic thinking any minute he would take me off guard and then I would find myself at an even greater disadvantage.

“Where did you go?!” I shouted in frustration, which even in my heated state, sounded lame.

“Run home, lille øjesten, run home now.” The voice purred in my ear and I screamed at it being so close yet nowhere to be seen.

“STOP DOING THAT!” I screamed walking backwards and alternating my eyes ahead, where the voice had been and down on the ground so that I wouldn’t fall again. Then it happened. The wind picked up and rolled towards me as though it was being controlled. I could even see it forcing its way through the trees like an invisible wave before it crashed into me. The sound that echoed told me it hadn’t been wind at all; it had been a shouted order consisting of only one word,

“GO!” I fell backwards and scrambled back like a frightened little crab until I turned and found the same black boots. I was just looking up at black leather covered legs that reminded me of the most solid tree trunks before I was picked up like I was a quivering leaf in the midst of a storm. I tried to see what was happening and follow the actions that were spinning me around but all I caught was a blurred black shadow.

“He said that you were stubborn! Go home, run now and you will be in time!” He said again, only this time the depth of the voice had a new rippled edge of power.

“Who did?! Who are you, who sent you?!” I fired out the questions quickly and I moaned when his hold shook me.

“Time lille øjesten, time is what she doesn’t have, neither of them…run home, fast as you can now and don’t stop. I will do what I can to guide you, but you must be quick…your sister calls for you.” On hearing this I froze in utter terror.

“What do you mean, what has happened to Libby?! Tell me!” I heard him groan in frustration and he said one last thing before I took off running like the blazes of Hell were on my heels,

“A new life comes forth this day and Death is watching in wait to take them both.”

“NO!” I screamed as I ran like I had never run before and I did as the voice told me, I didn’t look back. It was amazing to watch as the forest opened up for me like I was a poisonous force touching the earth and everything around me retreated in fear of being infected. Tree branches folded back just before I would have hit into them, snapping the bark off in chunks and roots dug further underground to hear my pounding feet overhead. Not one branch, not even one rock stood in my way, nothing touched me… even the wind seemed to spur me on faster than I would have ever been able to move.

I had only one focus in my life right then and that was keeping the two heartbeats on this earth, one whom I loved with every fibre of my being and the other whom I would soon be welcoming to this world with the very same love. They were all I had left. Nothing meant more to me at that moment than getting home and doing everything in my power to save them both.

As soon as I got closer, the sound of my sister screaming seeped into my bones like liquid ice. My smooth skin was no more and was covered in bumps that spoke of only the chilling sound of a loved one in serious pain.

“LIBBY! HOLD ON, I’M COMING!” I screamed and devoured the remaining space between me and the open door with a new energy. It was an impossible speed and I knew, without anyone explaining it to me, what I was doing. I was using up the very last power Draven’s body passed on to me as supernatural fuel. I could literally feel the last remains of his essence leave my body like it was leaking out of every pore. The more I was driven forward, the more of Draven I was saying goodbye to, but for the only time in my life…

I didn’t care.

I leapt up the steps with the last power surge and came to a halting stop when I first took in the scene.

“Libby!” I shouted and her crying eyes whipped round to me. Her skin was almost the colour of her hair and she was sat sprawled up the stairs with her legs open and panting.

“Oh, thank you God! The baby! The baby is coming, oh shit…oh shit, here it comes again…oh…ARRRRHH!” She screamed through what I could only assume was a contraction.

The baby was coming and there was no time, the guy in the woods had been right about that. Only when I looked away from Libby, I saw that wasn’t the only thing he had been right about, for there in the corner stood…

Death.

Chapter 3

Not a Great Time for a Reunion

“Carrick!” I shouted at the very man responsible for my kidnapping and one scary mother at that!

“One and the very same my dear.” He responded with a respectful head nod.

“GET OUT!” I screamed making both him and my panting sister jump.

“Kaz, who the Hell are you talking to?” Libby asked me with rising panic. I nodded over to the corner, but from where she was positioned she couldn’t see…well, that or he had shielded himself from her.

“Now that is hardly a greeting.” He said actually having the audacity to look hurt.

“Well, that’s the only one you are gonna get ‘cause if you think you are going anywhere near those I love, then you will have to take me along as well, kicking, screaming and trying to rip you to pieces!” I said feeling the rage build and build until the pressure of it was starting to pound inside me like a pneumatic drill.

“Then you will be pleased to know that I think you made it in time.” He reached into his suit jacket, which was once again beige and pulled out a little book the size of his palm. As he flipped it open I saw in disgust that the book’s binding was made from sewn human skin held together like a crude jigsaw by thick black cord. He ran his finger down a few lines and then made a humming noise like he was looking for something.

“Jesus, Keira who are you talking too? Don’t just stand there for God….Oh Ahh, here comes another one….AHHHHH..AHH!” Libby started screaming again and I rushed to the bottom of the stairs she was leaning against and did the only thing I knew to do.

“Just breathe through it, just breathe…come on Libs…that’s it breathe….deep breaths.” I repeated over and over trying to get her twisted face of pain to co-operate.

“I am BREATHING!” She screamed just as the pain hit harder. Meanwhile Carrick was still checking his book, as though there wasn’t a screaming woman in the room trying to push a person out! Finally his humming stopped and he snapped the book closed.

“Exactly as I thought, the names are back in the assessment stage, but they are not out of the dark yet, so I will wait and see I think.” He said calmly, about to take a seat.

“The Hell you will, get your bony ass over here!” I shouted at him and he scoffed at my insult.

“NOW!” I screamed this time making him change his mind. He came over to us both and raised an eyebrow at the scene in front of him.

“Have you lost it? You gotta be kidding me Kaz, at a time like this for fuc…”

“Libby, calm down, I can explain.” I said interrupting her.

“I doubt that,” Carrick said under his breath making, me snap my cutting gaze to his.

“Get down here and help! Oh and while you’re at it make her see you!” I demanded and was utterly amazed to see him do as I ordered. He folded himself gracefully to the floor by my side and he touched Libby’s knee gently. I was about to stop him from touching her but it was too late and soon Libby was freaked.

“AH! Who… the Hell…are you?!” She shouted between puffs.

“Calm down Libby…this is…umm…the doctor.” I said weakly shooting a look of disbelief to Carrick and receiving the same one back.

“Oh Hell no” He whispered sideways to me.

“OH, thank God!” Libby said visibly relaxing a little after her contraction.

“Oh, now that’s fitting,” Carrick responded drily.

“Just roll with it and help me through this!” I snapped through gritted teeth.

“Fine! But you do realise this is kind of the opposite to what I do, don’t you?” I looked sideways and said,

“Yeah, thanks, I got the memo. Now help me with this. What do I do?” I was close to grabbing him by his suit lapels and shaking the shit out of him. I was sure with my bubbling rage that I would hear bones rattle with little effort.

He let out a big and exaggerated sigh before turning to face Libby.

“Right my dear, as you no doubt know your baby is coming and your contractions are too close together to get you to the hospital, we are going to have to deliver the baby here but don’t fret, you are in good hands.” I snorted at this and he gave me a look as if to say ‘do you mind?’

“We need to get her lower half bare” He said, taking off his jacket and folding it neatly over the banister. I looked down at the soaked jeans my sister was still wearing in a daze and jolted when fingers snapped in front of me.

“Do you fancy catching the baby through her pant leg? No, I didn’t think so. Keira, you are going to have to focus now, first undress her, then go and fetch as many towels, sheets or clothes to soak up the blood and dry the baby. GO!” He shouted and I jumped before I got to work.

I yanked down her jeans and knickers off together throwing them over my shoulder and running to the hamper my sister had left situated by the door to the basement. I grabbed the towels and washing I had brought down with me this morning. As I was running back to the bottom of the stairs, I noticed a pair of my dirty knickers stuck to the pile so threw them over my shoulder, slipped to the side as I rounded the corner with an armful of material going flying.

“Shitty, shit shit!” I cursed as I scrabbled along the floor, arms wide open scooping back up everything I’d dropped.

“Will this be enough?” I asked breathless from panic as I made it back to them on another skid.

“That will be fine.” He responded so calmly it made me thankful I wasn’t doing this alone. Well, that was until I asked him my next question,

“You have done this before…right?” I whispered through Libby’s screaming.

“I have seen it done once….” Then he looked thoughtful for a moment and continued,

“….but the cow died.” Then he started to lift Libby down until she was sat up against the last step with a cushion he placed behind her head.

“A COW!” I shouted and he shot me a look, one eyebrow raised.

“I’m sorry, would you prefer to see my résumé before I aid you in saving your sister and her child’s life or would you just like to crack on?” He nodded back to the point where my sister was clearly pushing out her baby.

“Oh shit! Ok, yeah you’re right, sorry… Come on Libby! You’re doing great!” I said moving up to her and taking her hand in mine, which she was soon trying break. Thankfully I’d given her the one that wasn’t already broken.

“AHHHH!” She screamed once more and then started breathing in great puffs and blows. She was bright red and I pushed her wet hair back from her sweat covered face.

“Oh God! The baby, it’s coming, I need…I need…AHHHH!” She took a deep breath and pushed her chin to her chest to push down.

“That’s it Libs, you’re doing great, you’re doing it!” I felt the tears running down my cheeks and I looked to Carrick, whose face was serious and frowning.

“What is it?” I asked and his answer chilled my blood.

“The baby’s heart rate is dropping.”

“NO!” I shouted and then moved to closer to Carrick.

“Do something!” He frowned at me and then turned back to Libby.

“You need to push harder!” He said sternly to Libby but she just let out a strangled sob and kept shaking her head.

“I can’t, I can’t…I…” My heart broke at seeing my sister in so much pain.

“You must or your baby will die.” He said and I hit him on the arm.

“Don’t tell her that!” I said seeing my sister burst in to body shaking, harder sobs that weren’t helping her in pushing.

“What can I do, tell me! I need to help her!” I demanded grabbing him by his rolled up sleeves.

“You need to help her push, I suggest trying anger.”

“WHAT?”

“Anger will help, in this case trust me, make your sister angry, in fact, make that very angry.” I frowned at him and was about to tell him I needed a more practical answer, when Libby screamed as another contraction hit.

“Right, Olivia, you need to push and push hard!” I said as sternly as I could muster with what I was seeing.

“I can’t! AHHHH!”

“Yes you can, you must! If you don’t, I will tell mum!” I said thinking that always did it in the past, but then again she wasn’t trying to fit something the size of a melon from a place that…well you get the picture!

“I CAN’T!!!” She screamed and I could see her trying to find the energy to push harder but it just wasn’t enough.

“Try harder.” Carrick said opening her legs wider.

“She is trying.” I said in Libby’s defence, but he shook his head in small motions.

“Not her, you! Anger her Keira, I am sure you have it in you for pissing people off.” He shot me a look that told me I could indeed.

“Right Libby, listen up, if you don’t push and I mean push like your life depends on it, then I will tell Frank about the time you kissed those two brothers in college and then got drunk and played strip poker!” I shouted at her, feeling like the worst sister in the world. She gave me a utter look of disbelief and then scowled,

“You wouldn’t!”

“Oh yes I would, NOW PUSH GODDAMN IT!”

“I am going to…..AAHHHHHH…kill you!” She screamed at me but I just held her hand and screamed with her,

“AHHHHH, YES, THAT’S IT!” We then both took deep breaths together.

“COME ON! PUSH!” I shouted at her again.

“I am PUSHING FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!” She said, half in rage half in pain but Carrick was right, it was working.

“I see the head, now one big push and the baby will be here.” Carrick said just as calmly as if he was ordering a Big Mac from the drive thru!

Just then Frank burst through the open door, out of breath and in a mad panic.

“LIBBY!” He shouted and then took in the scene quickly.

“Oh SHIT!” He added.

“Oh thank you, thank you.” Libby said looking up to the Heavens and I blinked back the onslaught of tears.

“Frank, the baby…the baby, its coming, its coming!” He rushed over to take my place, skidded landing on his thigh and Carrick grabbed my hand to drag me to where the baby would come.

“Oh baby, you’re ok, you’re ok sweetheart,” Frank said holding on to her.

“The baby isn’t coming, the baby is here! Now push!” Carrick ordered her and I looked down to see the baby’s head emerge. It was by far the most beautiful, yet at the same time the most nauseating thing I had ever witnessed in my life.

“I see the head, Libs! I see it!” I said looking up at Libby gripping on to her husband with force enough to rip his shirt. Then Carrick grabbed my hands.

“You must see the baby into this world, I cannot bring new life forth into this plane, but you can.” Carrick positioned my hands ready.

“Now Libby, you are doing really well, but this last contraction I want you to push gently and the baby will slip out nicely… are you ready?” He said soothingly and I was touched at the knowledge that even Death himself could be so sweet.

Libby nodded quickly and Frank held her tighter.

“This is it babe, you’re doing so good, oh baby I love you.” He said making the tears come even harder than before.

“Oh…now, now! Coming now!” She said and then took one last breath before pushing her baby into the beautiful world we live in.

“Yes Libby, you’re doing it…I can see, Oh my God, I can see!” I said and then a baby literally slipped out and into my waiting hands.

We all cried out and I tried to control my shaking as I held the tiny person in my hands. Carrick handed me a towel and told me to clean the blood off her.

“Her?” I asked and then looked down over the slightly blue baby who was getting a pink colour rising up through her little limbs.

“Yes Keira, congratulations, it is a little girl.” He said beaming at me and I turned to Libby and held up her baby.

“Libby! It’s a girl!” I shouted and she lifted her green eyes from her husband’s chest and the look of pure love touched her daughter for the first time, mother to baby.

I picked the first thing I could from the pile on the floor and wrapped my niece up in it.

“Rub her back Keira, to get her crying.” Carrick said and then nodded. I did as I was told and before long she let out the best sound in the world.

The sound of new life.

I looked down at her once more and was grinning like a fool when I saw what I had wrapped her in was my dad’s old college sweater. I couldn’t think of anything more fitting at that moment and I quietly told her I loved her before handing the baby to her mum and dad. The afterbirth came shortly after that and even with the cord still attached it wasn’t a problem as they took their daughter in their arms for the very first time.

Frank was crying along with Libby and then he grabbed her by the head and pulled her to him to kiss her deeply. He pulled back and looked from mother to baby and said,

“I am so, so unbelievably proud of you! Both of you, both my girls! I love you so much! Thank you God! Christ I love you baby, I love you… You did it!... Jesus, Libby we did it!” He said and Libby looked down and kissed her baby on the head.

“Yes, we did. I love you to, both of you.” Libby said and the heart melting moment was perfect.

“So, we were a bit late then?” A paramedic said from the doorway, smiling at the sight. I quickly moved out of their way to let them get to work on helping my sister and when I stood up, I knew that this was one of those rare times in life that I was witnessing pure greatness. I don’t think for as long as I lived that I would ever forget this moment in time, this sight right now that had me realising just how precious life really was. Of course, one look to the man on my right had me backing up that statement with a shudder.

Carrick walked over to reclaim his jacket and bent down to retrieve his black case that never seemed to leave his side. That’s when I added a deep shiver to the shudder, as I remembered in detail just what powers lay within that innocent looking case. He came back over to me and nodded to the door and I followed him out.

His hair shone like silver thread in the sunlight and I saw him lift his head to the fresh air to inhale deeply.

“Nope, still prefer the smell of death I am afraid.” He said looking back at me smiling and I wrinkled my nose.

“Uhh, gross Carrick!” He laughed and the sound of it actually had me smiling. He was a really nice guy if you could overlook the whole ‘Soul collecting’ thing.

“So, don’t fancy a career change then?” I asked only half joking. He gave me a dazzling smile and for an older gentleman he certainly didn’t lack in the looks department. His steel coloured eyes that matched the silver in his hair gleamed at me.

“I think not. Besides, most deaths aren’t half as messy.” I laughed in disbelief and he raised an arched eyebrow at me. He then looked me up and down and I followed his eyes to find my top soaked in blood.

“But all births are without a doubt… bloody affairs.” He added and I took in his crisp beige suit wondering if he owned any other colour, but thankfully I stopped myself from asking.

“I can’t believe I am going to say this Carrick, but I am actually glad you were here.” I said and then offered him my hand. He looked taken aback for a moment and there was no hiding the emotion my gesture put in his eyes. He transformed his cool features into a breathtaking grin and took my hand in his. He started to shake it and I was so overcome by the moment that I said out loud,

“Oh bugger it, come here!” And I pulled his hand to me as I stepped in to wrap my arms around him. If someone had told me five months ago that I would be hugging Death himself in thanks, I would have been asking who supplied their crazy pills!

He stiffened in my hold at first and then decided to just roll with it. He patted me on the back softly before I let him go. When I pulled back I had tears running down my face. He reached up and took away one of my tears, holding it in his closed palm before lifting it to his mouth. I gasped when I saw him lick it from his skin and then close his eyes. Once again he was looking up to the sky as if listening to someone.

“Such an unpolluted soul and rare….very rare indeed.” He said to himself before looking back at me.

“And of course, still as feisty as ever, which I am most pleased about. There are not many people that would be so bold as to threaten Death itself Keira but I must say, you do so very nicely. Until next time, Chosen One.” He said, nodded and then he turned to walk away.

“I hope not Carrick, but no offence!” I shouted back and without even turning his head he responded,

“Oh but we will Electus, you can be sure of that. Oh and Keira…” I didn’t say what I wanted to but instead just waited for him to finish.

“….take care of that niece of yours…she is special that one and…most important to him” He said and without a look, he simply swung up his briefcase over his head in way of a wave goodbye. He left me stood there feeling baffled by his cryptic parting comment, but I was soon brought back to the now when Libby was being lifted into the ambulance I had only just noticed waiting there.

I ran over to my sister and gave her a teary kiss and told her I loved her. I touched the baby’s head, who was now resting her little eyes in sleep on her mother’s chest and was touched to see her still snuggled peacefully in my dad’s old sweater.

Libby was still so emotional and Frank had to pry her curled fingers from my top to let me go so as they could both go and get checked out at the hospital. After a mammoth bear hug from Frank, I told him that I would stay at the house and clean up, ready for when they got home. He thanked me again, only this time there was a single tear running down his cheek.

He leant down and whispered in a thick emotional voice,

“I could never thank you enough for saving them both, you did it…you saved my family and…man…Jesus kid, I love you!” He said and I felt more tears hit my neck before he turned his face away and jumped in the back of the ambulance, wiping his cheeks as he went. Once they went out of sight I fell to the ground and cried, but for the first time since Draven had left, leaving my chest feeling empty, I felt it full and the tears I shed were finally ones of utter happiness.

The rest of that day I spent cleaning up, which I am ashamed to say also made me a little sick. I didn’t know how all these great people that became nurses and doctors did it, but they had my deepest respect even more, that was for sure.

I got a phone call from Frank later, telling me they were keeping them overnight just to be sure, but for me not to worry. Libby was doing great and the baby was sleeping and feeding like a trooper, Frank’s words not mine. He also told me quite a few times how damn beautiful his baby girl was and I knew by the added ‘F’ word that Libby wasn’t in hearing distance.

It was this amazing feeling that had me on this sort of cloud the rest of the day and for the first time in a week I couldn’t wait for people to come home. I just kept seeing my little niece’s face looking up at me and my heart seemed to swell. It was only when I was washing up humming ‘You’ll be in my Heart’ by Phil Collins to myself, that I looked up and saw a shadow of a man in the forest that surrounded the driveway.

I squinted my eyes as the sun was going down, but I could still make out the giant of a man who stood staring at the house. I still couldn’t make out any features, only that he wore black, was extremely tall and had a heavy frame to match. It wasn’t a wild guess to know that it was the same man I had met in the woods, the one that had helped me get to Libby in time.

So what did I do...? The only thing I could think of, I clicked the kettle on.

I was soon walking out to the forest, that now looked even darker than from the kitchen window and with both hands I held on to the steaming mug.

“Hello...Hello?” I said a bit louder but I didn’t get any response or see anyone through the thickness of the trees. But something in my gut told me he was still there, waiting, so I did what I came to do.

“I umm…I wanted to say thank you… for my sister and the baby, what you did…well, I will be forever in your debt…I wish I could say this to your face, but something tells me that isn’t going to happen, so this was the only way I could think to thank you.” I placed down my Homer Simpson mug and then dug out the mini packet of Oreo cookies from my coat pocket to place next to them.

“I made this for a friend of mine once and he seemed to enjoy it. It’s hot chocolate and some biscuits. If you need anything else or want anything else to drink, just let me know.” I said feeling like a right dork talking to the trees. I started to walk back until I whizzed back round, thinking of something else.

“Unless, that is, you’re a Vampire! ‘Cause trust me, I have seen enough blood for one day and that didn’t go so well for me…oh God, now I am babbling! What I mean is…if you fancy a beer or soda or something but NOT blood! No blood for you…Ok well… I guess bye then and thanks.” I said hurrying back to the safety of my house after freaking myself out.

He wouldn’t really be a Vamp would he? I mean, being behind my neck like that he would have had a taster, wouldn’t he? No, he wasn’t a vamp but that still raised the important question…

Who was this guy?

Chapter 4

Draven’s Legal Mind

The next week came and went in a baby blur. It was filled with sterilizing bottles, changing nappies, feeding, bathing, changing the tiniest baby clothes and playing host to a stream of people, all desperate to see the new baby. It was a heart-warming time, the second Libby and Frank came home with the new family addition.

And the very first thing they did was ask me to name her. I was so touched I just sat there dumbstruck for the entire time it took for Frank to make me a cuppa.

“So, what do you think?” Libby said finally, bringing me from my shock.

“I…Lib’s, you can’t…I mean…really?” Not my brightest literary moment, but what do you say to something like that?

“Absolutely!” Frank joined in, handing me a steaming LFC mug.

“Guys, I am touched but come on, you really want me to name your child?” I just couldn’t get my head round it. I mean, it was a massive responsibility even for a parent but for an Aunt, this could literally be a make or break situation…what if she hated it while growing up?!

“I know what you’re doing Kaz, but please don’t. There is no need to try and talk us out of this, we have talked about it and we couldn’t think of anything more fitting that having the very person who brought her into the world to name her.” Libby said wiping a stray tear from her eye and Frank was nodding like a little dog on a dash board with a massive grin, next to her.

Of course, I soon realised that Carrick had left them both with a void in their mind as to his role in her birth, which had left me looking both crazy when asking them about it and also looking like the heroine of this baby miracle. Next time I saw Carrick, if ever, I would be giving him an earful for the lack of a heads up, that was for sure.

“Yeah and can you imagine if a doctor named Donald had delivered her, I mean how do you change that into a girl’s name?! Poor kid would get crucified in school, that’s for sure.” Frank said making light of the situation and we all laughed.

“Are you guys really sure about this?”

“Yes!” They both said at the same time so I gave in, getting up to hug them both.

Later that day I had thought about the baby and must have run through every name I had ever heard but nothing seemed right. It was only when stirring a big pot of chilli that night, that I thought about something that was significant to the whole situation we all went through when bringing my niece into this world. So at dinner I explained myself.

“I’ve thought of a name,” I said causing both Libby and Frank to drop their forks at the same time. They looked up at me and Libby took Frank’s hand in hers as they waited for the sound of their baby girl’s name to be said for the first time.

“I umm, well ok, I guess I’d better just come out and say it. I was thinking about Carrie Ella but like me, using her second name Ella for most of the time…what do you think?” I asked, biting my lip waiting for the name to sink in. They just turned to each other and my sister tested the name, saying out loud,

“Carrie Ella…Ella, Umm…baby Ella, I like it…no, no…in fact I love it! Oh Keira, its perfect!” She said and jumped up and threw her arms around Frank who laughed heartily with his wife. He looked to me over Libby’s shoulder and winked at me.

I went to bed that night smiling.

The naming of baby Carrie Ella was a big hit with everyone and soon everyone took Libby’s lead and started calling her just Ella. She asked me that night where I had got it from and I shrugged and told her ‘it just came to me’. I mean it wasn’t like I could tell her that it was the only female version of my buddy Death Carrick or the fact that Ella came from the ‘Helluva’ time we had delivering her into this world, of course I just knocked off the H U and the V to make Ella.

That was over a week ago and I was now sat in the house alone, trying to catch up on end of the college year course work that I had missed due to the depression I’d had thrust upon me. I can’t say that life was ever going to be what it was for me, but Ella’s arrival had at least given me an even greater purpose to life. I found every time things got too much for me all I needed to do was look at my perfect niece lay sleeping, to feel better.

I still went about my life and instead of finding the time to cry, I would use it helping Libby with the baby or cramming in last minute studies. This was enough to put off the inevitable questions about Draven, where my friends were concerned but I knew it wouldn’t be long.

The only other question that was never answered, was that of the mystery man in my life, who hadn’t shown himself again since that day. I had, however, found a Homer mug waiting for me one morning and I smiled down at it for a few minutes before picking it off the porch. I examined it to find it had been cleaned and I even sniffed at it to find it smelled like it had been washed in the stream not far from the house, one I often passed on my walks.

He may not have shown himself, but I still felt myself being watched sometimes. And in a strange way, I was comforted by the fact, however annoying it was that I still didn’t know who he was.

I was just getting up after a three hour round with one of Reed’s history assignments, when my need for tea dragged me downstairs. I had just clicked on the kettle when I heard the knock at the door. I was alone, which was unusual these days and I didn’t like being without Ella in the house. Libby and Frank had gone to Frank’s parents to stay the night, so that the rest of his family got a look in with the babe. Of course, they had invited me, but having the amount of work I had to finish, I knew I couldn’t say yes.

So now I was answering the door to a suit who drove a silver Mercedes.

“Can I help you?” I asked cautiously knowing, one, I had never seen this dude before and two, I was in the house alone.

“Miss Williams?” This instantly put me on guard considering very few people actually knew my real last name. I knew, now that Morgan had died, that there was little point still keeping up the charade, but it just never came up to the point of changing it. And besides, most people still thought that Morgan was still out there somewhere, so it was just easier letting them carry on believing the crazy bastard had probably killed himself and at some point the authorities would be discovering a body. Well, even if they did start searching the bottom of a ravine that was extremely difficult to get to, by that time I doubted there would be much left to discover or so Draven had told me, I thought with a shiver.

“Yes.” I finally answered, coming back from darker pasts.

“I have much to discuss, may I come in?” I arched my eyebrow in question before I asked,

“And you are?” His answer blew me away.

“I am Mr Jenkins, Mr Draven’s attorney.”

I soon found myself sat opposite a softly spoken English man, dressed in an impeccable crisp navy suit, white shirt and startling red tie. He was handsome in an unconventional way, with sharp features and soft blue eyes. He must have been in his late forties and took his tea with lemon instead of milk. I decided, when he told me this, to give him the posh stuff we had gathering dust at the back of the cupboard.

“So Mr Jenkins, is it too soon to ask what you are doing here?” I said after he had just taken the tea and smiled at me.

“Ah, direct and to the point… A much preferred personality trait in my line of business.” He said nodding after he took a sip of the tea. I gathered I was on to a winner with the posh stuff.

“Which is?” I prompted.

“Well, unfortunately right now, dealing with Mr Draven’s Estate.” He said placing the cup down and lifting his briefcase. The word ‘Estate’ had me slopping my own tea on my jeans. I closed my eyes for a few painful seconds to try and barricade the torrent of emotions that singular word brought me.

“And why does that include me?” I forced the words out, still keeping my eyes shut.

“And why wouldn’t it? After all, the information I had from the man himself suggests you weren’t far from being his bride. Of course, as you no doubt know, he was a man who liked to take care of his business in all aspects.” I shook my head at hearing this and rubbed a spot on my forehead as I processed his words.

“I am…was… his girlfriend, not a business deal. I think I know why you are here and I don’t mean to be rude, but I think you will find it has been a wasted trip.”

“How so, Miss Williams?” He asked me, being genuinely shocked.

“Well knowing Draven as I do…did…” I swallowed hard at the slip ups I kept making and carried on,

“….you are no doubt here to give me some ridiculous amount of money he left me, or something even crazier like a car, house… Christ, I don’t know, maybe even a horse, but I am telling you now, I don’t want any of it!” I said getting up making him do the same. However, he didn’t take the hint and instead of following me to the door, he just stayed where he was and started laughing. The look I sent him was deadly.

“Sorry, I umm…I guess I can see now why Mr Draven did things in this manner.” I frowned at him and held up a hand.

“Stop right there and rewind…what do you mean, ‘in this manner’?” This got a little smirk from him which kept me frowning.

“I am afraid that if you wish for me to say anything else on the matter you will have to sign this paperwork.” He said getting a cream folder out of his case.

“Oh no, I have seen this movie, this is where I get screwed over for something and find I’m legally bound to running some bloody hillbilly ranch in the wilderness! I am not signing anything without first reading it!” I said folding my arms across my chest.

“Certainly, but I must inform you, I doubt you will be able to make much sense out of it.” I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

“I may not be a hot shot lawyer, but I can read.” I responded coldly.

“Persian?” He said handing me the paperwork, which was indeed written in a language Draven knew that in no way would I be able to make sense of.

“Ok, so Draven expected me to sign something I can’t read so that I am forced to receive some of his money that he knew I wouldn’t want. Nice try Love…” I said looking up to the Heavens and then handing the paperwork back to him saying,

“…but no dice. I thank you for coming but I will not, nor will I ever be signing that.”

“He thought that would be the case, so he added something that would interest you. If you sign the paperwork, at any point, you will then receive this letter from the man himself, which is only addressed to you, but only to be yours with this little condition of course.” He added smugly when he saw my eyes light up at the sight of more words from Draven.

He held it up for me to see like bait to a fish but the question was, would I survive the hook? It took me all of nano second to decide as I snatched the paperwork back off him and took the pen he had offered me. I signed on the line at the bottom and an emotional shiver rippled along my body when I saw it was next to Draven’s own signature. I had to sign three more times but got to keep one copy. I asked what the point was, but he just shrugged and said he’d had his orders.

He placed the other copies back in the folder and into the safety of his briefcase. He held out a hand to me and I shook it, doing close to anything he wanted just to get my hands on that letter. He gave a little laugh at my eagerness when I took the letter from him and held it to my chest. I at least had the mental ability to walk him to the door, remembering my upbringing well, even under the circumstances.

“It was an experience doing business with you Miss Williams,” he said kindly and I smiled.

“Likewise Mr Jenkins…oh and please call me Keira.” I said thinking this was a bit late, but saying so anyway. He nodded and then shook my hand once again.

“Only if you call me Daniel, as I am sure to be meeting you again, in the future of course.” He said giving me a wink before getting into the back of the expensive car thanks to the driver who held open the door for him. I was left wondering what on earth that had meant and why would he need to be seeing me again? But none of these were the reasons I was running to the car window, tapping on the side.

The blacked out glass slid down and I could see he wasn’t alone but being hidden with a full black hood, I couldn’t tell who the other passenger was.

“Yes Miss Will…Keira?” He said correcting himself.

“You never explained to me what I actually signed…what did I get myself into?” I asked feeling slightly embarrassed asking this in front of someone else, someone I was trying desperately to make out.

“I left you the paperwork, Keira. I think you will find by the time I have gone you might be able to make more sense of it.” He said with a smile.

“But how…I…” He nodded at me, stopping me mid question.

“Have trust in my Master.” He said before sliding the window back up and I followed the motion of it trying to see who else was in there with him.

“But…?” I said weakly as the car drove off. Something told me the other person in the car, I not only knew who they were, but they also watched me until I went out of sight.

I did the same.

So now I was once again sat on my bed with another letter in my lap with the added legal paperwork I couldn’t yet read.

“Just what are you playing at, Draven?” I asked out loud and then unable to resist any longer, I pulled up the seal.

Dear Keira,

I wrote you this letter directly after the first, but I knew you needed time to process all that has happened. I know it must not have been easy adjusting back to ‘normality’ and I know my decision no doubt made you angry and upset, for this I am sorry but I still believe it was the right thing to do on my part. By now I wonder if a new being has made it into the world and if so, I do hope she is healthy and can imagine her to have her mother’s beauty, it is after all, in the family.

I did know it was a girl and never told you as I knew the surprise would light up your face the way I always loved to see. That was the face only the baby deserved to see first-hand of her beautiful Aunt. I think now what I wouldn’t give to see a baby in your arms and I can’t tell you of the utter bliss it would have given me to see such a sight.

But, back to the reason at hand for this particular letter and also the part that, if I know you, will be making you angry very soon, as by the time you finish reading this letter the paperwork you signed will be understandable to you. I knew this was the only way to get my stubborn girl to sign the terms of my Will. However, I do find myself smiling at the thought of being able to get one over on you and not being there for you to battle it out with me, which must be most frustrating to my Little Vixen, but please know you make me most happy in doing so, therefore it is not in vain My Love.

I will now say my last Goodbye to you My Keira, but it is out of necessity rather than wanting, please be sure of that.

My Everlasting Love

Your

Draven X

It was no surprise that I had tears streaking my cheeks by the time I had read it and re-read it, but I didn’t feel the utter emptiness I had with the first letter. However, it did make me miss him just as much, if not more as I did that day and every day since. It was getting harder to ignore the fact that he wasn’t coming back, but now I understood that feeling sorry for myself wouldn’t ever be bringing him back….planning would.

I don’t know when exactly it had happened, but I firmly believed that somehow, someone should be out there to help guide me on how to do this. I mean, if there was one man in the supernatural world that could come back from Heaven or Hell, then that man would surely be Draven. Wasn’t it? I mean… he just had to…right?

I always ignore the internal battle at this point, the one trying to tell me that if he could, then why wasn’t he already here. But then I would argue that he just needed my help to do it and that he just didn’t want to put me in danger…well screw that! I didn’t care whether or not I had to go to Hell and back again to drag him out myself, as long as there was a chance I would be doing it! And if I died in the process, then I would just meet him on the other side, but I wasn’t giving up without a fight that I was certain about.

I folded the letter back up carefully and put it under my pillow to join the other one. Corny place to keep a love letter, but in the middle of the night, when I would wake in a blind panic and it would take me heart wrenching seconds to come to terms with the cruel reality, then I would reach out for his written words. As my fingers touched the smooth paper, which always seemed to stay cool to the touch, I would find my tears would dry and my shaking would stop. I would instantly calm and find then that my sleep would take me to a more peaceful place.

Once I did this, I then remembered the reason I had possession of this letter in the first place and the reason Draven knew I would be angry.

“Well, better get it over with, but if you left me your Ferrari collection I will freak out mister!” I said looking up like he could somehow hear me. I unfolded the thick bound paperwork and looked down at it with new eyes. The whole document was now in English and it didn’t take me long before I came to the part that turned my roots red.

“Oh Hell, No!” I shouted thinking the Ferrari idea didn’t look so bad compared to the words that spelled out the truth I was facing…

I was now a bloody Millionaire!

Chapter 5

Poorest Millionaire and the Big Bad Wolf

I was still in shock and I had to stop myself from tearing up the paperwork in anger. Ha, frustration Draven had said, well yeah that combined with about ‘seventeen million’ other emotions!

The paperwork stated that every month I would receive a cool million dollars in my bank account, with the exception of every birthday, when I would then receive five million! It was absurd and completely irrational! I never wanted a penny of Draven’s money and the very idea that I had no choice in the matter was making me see red.

It took a lot of stomping around and swearing to eventually calm down. I mean, I knew that Draven wanted to take care of me, but I was a bit sensitive to the money fact and had this crazy idea of earning my own money in life.

By the time I had eaten my lunch, even chewing angrily, I decided what the first thing I would be spending my money on. I got up, fetched my laptop and was checking my online account to find, that yep, I was now a million dollars better off…fine, if that was the way things were to be played, then oh, I would play alright.

I started looking through a list of charities that didn’t ever receive much support and decided on one. I then checked the website and clicked on the link to send money directly to them, anonymously of course. The first charity I chose was to make a statement as to how ridiculous it was in sending me all that money. The rest were Cancer and Children’s charities that got the majority of the money but ‘The Badger Rescue Trust’ in England was going to get a surprise when they found someone nicknamed Badger Bee Boo had just given them $200, 000.

This was what I decided to do every month and I found I soon had a big grin when I’d finished, with my account having just my original savings in it. Of course, I had the usual phone call from the bank thinking some nutter had decided to play charity roulette with my account, but after assuring them with my security details that I was in fact sane, they could do little with my decision other than to proceed with the donations. When I then informed them that this would be a regular thing every month, the guy nearly wept on the phone. He even suggested a really good hotel in the Caribbean that he and his wife went to on their honeymoon. He said I sounded like I could do with a holiday, to you know, think things through. I asked for his details and sent him enough money to go on another holiday with his wife and kids…this time in a five star resort. At this point he did weep on the phone.

I felt quite good after my little spending spree and I had to giggle, hoping Draven could see me now. I was in the bath shaving my legs, that looked as though they belonged on a Yeti, when I had looked up, as if I could see him above me and said,

“Don’t mess with me matey, you think you can get one over on me…Ha! Not this Vixen!” It would have been a cool statement if my leg hadn’t slipped off the rim of the bath and I hadn’t just taken a thin slice from my ankle. Man that smarted!

I got out of the bath and started to get ready, as I had promised to see the gang tonight. It was times like this I was glad Afterlife wasn’t open, as I didn’t think I would have been able to cope with that just yet. Seeing that place and knowing that Draven wasn’t up there looking down at me, would have been a first class ticket to Misery City with a stopover at Homicidal Central.

Thankfully, we had decided on a pizza place before the movies. I was still trying to dress when I heard the beep of Jack’s truck. I dragged the top over my head and went over to wave out of one of the bedroom windows to hold up my hand to indicate five minutes. In that time I dried off the rest of my hair while stuffing my feet into my Doc M’s. I was still putting on my gloves when I reached the front door.

Everyone asked me about baby Ella and I held the conversation until Jack was parking the car outside Pizza Pie Palace, or known as the 3P’s to everyone around here. Once we were seated in one of their biggest booths, one Chaz and Drew had waiting for us, we started chatting about what we were doing for summer.

“Yeah Kaz, are you still going travelling with Draven?” RJ asked me, before taking a bite of a slice of pizza that I swear was bigger than her head. I, of course, snorted in my coke.

“You ok Kaz?” Jack said patting me on the back while I wheezed, coughed and tried to find my breath that eluded me.

“Yeah…just went…down…wrong way.” I said hoping RJ still wasn’t waiting for an answer. Of course, one look squashed that hope like a bug on a windscreen.

“Well?”

“Umm…” I looked around and now everyone had stopped and was looking at me, waiting. I closed my eyes briefly and took a deep breath. I knew I couldn’t have held this off forever but it still felt far too raw to be talking about this and even Libby hadn’t asked me the details.

“Me and Dra…Dominic… broke up.” I said and in that moment all hope in my friends being tactful was lost. Lanie dropped her pizza, Drew’s glasses slipped down his nose, Chaz stopped drinking with his straw still caught against his lip and RJ…well RJ actually shouted,

“WHAT THE FUCK!?” There only seemed to be Jack that I could depend on for even a normal response.

“Yeah, well it kind of just happened and as you can imagine, I really don’t want to talk about it.” I added hoping like Hell RJ would get the hint.

“Who finished with who?” Well Hell really was never going to be on my side now was it, I thought dryly.

“Ok, if you must know, he finished with me.” I said knowing there was no other way I could play this card. I mean come on, no-one in their right mind would have believed that I finished things with him!

“Why?” She asked and I rolled my eyes thinking just how blind, deaf and dumb could one person be at this moment. What part of I didn’t want to talk about it did she not get exactly?

“Come on sis, what part of ‘she doesn’t want to talk about it’ don’t you get?!” Jack said as if reading my mind. Did I just project that or what? Either way it worked and even though she rolled her eyes, she still saw the insensitivity in her question.

“Sorry…I guess I am just shocked is all.” She said but I shrugged my shoulders before responding,

“No more than me, I can assure you.”

“Is that the reason the club is closed?” She asked and Jack groaned.

“What! I can ask that can’t I?”

“It’s fine Jack. Look, I don’t really know all the ins and outs about the club or why it closed, but I do know that the Dravens won’t be back for a long time.” I said taking a sip of my drink to mask the emotion in my voice.

“Oh, that’s a shame.” Lanie said quietly. I didn’t even have it in me to smile at her cute little comment.

“So, what movie we gonna see? ‘Cause, I am thinking horror.” Jack said steering the conversation away from me and I nudged his leg under the table and mouthed a ‘Thank you’ when no-one was looking. He winked at me and continued with the tactic the rest of the afternoon.

It was only later that evening when he dropped me off last, after Lanie, that he turned the engine off outside my house.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked me, shifting in his seat to face me.

“Do you want to come in?” I asked thinking that, no, I didn’t want to talk about it but on the other hand, I really didn’t want to walk in the house on my own.

“Sure.”

He locked his door and followed me into the house. Once inside, I made us both hot drinks and we sat down in the living room.

“Do you wanna watch something?” I asked him getting up, but he stopped me with a hand on my arm, one I wasn’t used to being touched by human hands.

“Keira stop.” I gave up on pretending and slumped down in the seat next to him.

“I am no expert Keira, but I have had my fair share of heartbreak and know what it feels like to go through the emotions being left behind can bring. I am not asking you to tell me all the details honey, but I am going to ask that you consider me as a friend to talk to when you’re ready, despite my devilish good looks, there is a good listener in here as well.” He said making me laugh at this last part.

“I know you are.” At me saying this he did a dramatic head flip and pushed all his floppy hair back with both hands while saying,

“Thanks sugar, no face for radio in this house, nope, not us!” He said breaking into a laugh when I elbowed him in the ribs.

“Hey, watch the merchandise, gotta take this hunka burning love all the way to Hollywood someday.”

“Hunka burning love…really?” I said sarcastically and we both burst out laughing.

Jack stayed to watch a movie and it was nice not being alone in the house. We chatted like we used to do and Draven didn’t come into the conversation again. He explained that his plans for the summer were travelling and most of the gang were going along, if I was interested in getting away for a few weeks. I was just telling him I would think about it when he checked his phone.

“Whoa, I didn’t realise the time.” He said standing up and stretching his tall frame. I could just see the strip of tanned stomach under today’s rock T-Shirt that was a faded Metallica logo in grey with a coiled snake underneath.

“You working tomorrow?” I asked following him to the front door.

“Yeah, although I was supposed to be taking some tourists up for a hike, only the sheriff put a stop to that. Hope it’s not for long though.”

“Why, what’s wrong?” this piqued my interest.

“Haven’t you heard? Man Kaz, you really need to start reading the papers, the damn world could be ending tomorrow and you wouldn’t even know it.” He said and I shuddered thinking he really had no clue how close that statement came to being true last December.

“Well, that is what I’ve got my buddy Jack for, to bring me all this happy, feel good news that just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.” I said making him arch an eyebrow before he ruffled my hair like a child.

“Sure do and don’t you forget it! Ok, here’s the heads up. Some weird stuff has been happening in the National Park, so do us a favour…don’t go walking in the woods alone…K?” He said becoming more serious as he put on his khaki combat jacket.

“Why?” I asked having a very bad feeling about this.

“Because some hikers didn’t fare so well the other week and from what I heard, it took a large crew to collect all the scattered body parts.” I hit him on the arm to tell him to stop joking with me but then I saw his look and knew there was no messing around in the story he just told me.

“Please tell me you have exaggerated that ‘body part’ bit?” He shot a look to the woods before coming back to my worried eyes.

“Hey don’t worry, it was probably just some wild animals or something.”

“You mean they don’t know that for sure?!” I asked not being able to keep the high pitched squeak from the question.

“Well, from what I heard, they have had loads of trackers and wildlife experts up there, but so far none of them can say with certainty what animal they are dealing with, but you wanna know the weird part?”

“There’s a weirder part to that story?” I responded in disbelief.

“Sure is and the whole thing kind of gave me the heebie jeebies, ‘cause when they did their search of the camp ground they found some strange stuff.” He said pulling his jacket together and zipping it all the way up.

“Like what?”

“Prints around the bodies that suggested someone else was involved, someone who wouldn’t exactly go hiking in biker boots but the weirdest part was, it was as if someone had been looking over one of the bodies.” The mention of biker boots had me almost breaking out in a cold sweat. I remembered boots that looked as if they belonged on a biker, but it wasn’t just this part that had me close to freaking out, it was the answer to my next question.

“How would they know that someone was looking over the bodies?”

“Because of what they found lying on top of the remains, as though it had fallen from someone’s pocket…” He pushed his hair back and I noticed the little shiver he did before carrying on,

“An Oreo cookie packet.”

That night I didn’t sleep too well and dreamt of tall men in biker boots chasing me through the forest. I even woke up, still in my dream, and saw a shadow stood at the bottom of my bed. I screamed again and then woke for real, to find I was alone but there was no going back to sleep after that.

I just kept playing it over and over in my head. I had even dug yesterday’s old newspaper out of the bin to look at. Jack hadn’t been exaggerating at all, even though the authorities were still holding out for it to be a wild bear or pack of wolves, as the extent of the damage done to the bodies was too extreme for a single person to do. They even found claw marks to back up their theory, but I knew differently. I knew first-hand what the other side could become, let alone do to a human body with ease.

Jack knew about the things the press had kept out of the paper thanks to a cousin he had on the force and with this type of thing rarely happening in Evergreen Falls, it was being talked about everywhere. Of course, RJ hadn’t thought it bigger news than the Dravens doing a disappearing act on the town, which was probably why I was only hearing about it now.

I found, for once, I was bypassing the kettle and going for the hard stuff. I grabbed the first bottle I could see and poured myself enough to down in one. It burned all the way and made me cough but it still felt good. I tried not to think about it but the two elements put together were too much of a coincidence in my world. Could he have done this…my mystery guy? I wanted to say no way ‘cause he had helped me but what if he had been told not to attack me but anyone else was fair game? What if I had been right and he was a Vampire? It must get pretty hungry up in those woods.

“Stop it, Keira!” I said out loud, pouring myself another shot. I mean a lot of people like Oreo cookies…I mean for Christ’s sake they were like the Nations biscuit of choice, probably having them in most homes. Like rich tea or digestives in England I thought as I swigged another back, this time wiping my chin from the over slurp of what I now knew was Vodka.

I went on like this until I could remember that I hated Vodka neat, but by that time, I was far too wobbly to move. I woke the next day with the feeling something had crawled in my mouth and died, possibly a rodent, and a head that felt like someone had used it to go bowling! I was also still in the kitchen and had to peel my cheek from the table. That’s when I decided drinking alone was never a good idea or in trying to solve a murder by reading the paper. Nancy Drew would not have approved, nor would she have passed out on the kitchen table drooling over her face, making the newspaper soggy, which happened to be my only source of information.

It wasn’t any better when I finally dragged myself to the toilet and looked in the mirror.

“Well at least I didn’t lose all of the article.” I said rolling my eyes on seeing a large section of the print inked and transferred to my face where I had slept on it. I was glad when Frank and Libby brought the baby back so that I could find some normality again to my days.

I tried not to follow the story after that and last I heard it had been declared an animal attack by the coroner and the investigation was dropped. This didn’t put me at ease in the slightest or make me want to go on any forest walking days out anytime soon. Even after weeks later and still no sightings of the biker booted man, it wasn’t enough to get me into those woods.

So, with that, I spent my time locked away most days in the house when not at college and kind of became a hermit version of myself. It wasn’t that I had lost my backbone all of a sudden, but considering all my supernatural chums had up and left me to handle things on my own, I wasn’t sure how I would have done this when faced with another supernatural threat.

The other down side to this was that the longer I went without seeing any of my old life, the more withdrawn I became. I would try and think of plans in my quest to rescue Draven, but I kept falling back to a point where all ideas fell back to one question…where to start?

I woke weeks later to the sight of the same old hollow eyes that looked back at me every morning. It was as if you could actually see the missing pieces of me that left only the shell to function… And function I had to. So, with that in mind, I did as I usually did and got ready for a day I couldn’t wait to see the back of.

“Morning.” I said to Libby and she looked at me with tired blood shot eyes.

“Is it morning? I can no longer tell.” She said in a hopeless tone I tried not to match.

“Don’t worry, I will take the next night shift, so you guys can get some sleep.” At this she found the energy to get up and hug me, putting some much needed hope in her eyes.

The new love of my life wasn’t big on sleeping through the nights but that was just fine by me, as I didn’t sleep so well myself these days. Ever since I was left alone I wouldn’t do so well and having little baby Ella with me soothed the ache in my soul like no other could. She was the reason I kept myself going, the reason I didn’t fake my smiles when I looked down at her precious face and the only reason I was still living in a place that reminded me of the only man I could ever love, at every turn.

I got up after clicking the kettle on ready for my daily fix of Tetley, when I heard a knock on the door.

“Who would it be at this time in the morning?” Libby snapped in her obviously deprived sleep mode. I smiled at her, giving her an ‘I understand’ pat on her shoulder as I passed to find who exactly it was.

“Coming.” I said after nearly tripping up on a bag of nappies that was now half spread across the floor thanks to my foot.

I finally made it and was still trying to push the knotted hairs that had escaped my plait back from my face as I opened the door. I was taken aback by the sight of a messenger all dressed in black and complete with flat cap to match. What the other startling thing was, that the boy must have been no more than twelve and was sat on a very old fashioned bike that should have been in an antique store.

I frowned before I managed to smile at the lad.

“Uhh…Hello.” I said wondering why the kid was just staring at me.

“You’ve only just got up…I can tell ‘cause your hair’s a mess.” He said with a slight accent I couldn’t place. Ok, so now I was frowning again.

“Umm…yeah, cheers for that.” I replied sarcastically.

“I’m just saying, ‘cause the misses said you’d be pretty and all but I’m a guessin’ shit hasn’t been that shiny lately.” He said and I think at this point my mouth actually dropped open with a ‘pop’ sound. Was this kid for real?!

“Is it ever?” Was the only thing I knew to say, that or to scold him for swearing at his age.

“Hey I guess not, so look, I need you to sign this before I can give you what’s in my bag.” He said pulling out a little black book! Oh God, this was just getting weirder and weirder…I mean, was this actually happening or was I still asleep?

“Ok, do you have a pen?” I asked but then I was made to feel stupid by a twelve year old riding something that looked older than my Nan! The look he gave me nearly had me feeling the top of my head to check that I hadn’t in fact grown a twin from the side of my neck.

“You’re not very savvy to these things are you…? Look Blondie, just place your finger here and think of Snow White’s mother.” I placed my finger on the pad just as I said,

“Uh?” Which was quickly followed by,

“Ouch! Hey, it pricked my finger!”

“Yep it sure did, just like Snow White’s mother and look what happened to her, kid with bloody coloured lips, husband off with a witch and dead as a door nail! Some people have no luck…here you go.” The lad said, making not a lick of sense and handing me a vanilla coloured envelope. I then watched as he snapped his little book shut, but not before I saw my full name along with my bloodied finger print underneath it.

“Aren’t you a little young to be out here delivering on your own?” I said feeling that I had to at least ask before letting him go riding off on his own.

“Oh well, aren’t you a sweet one, but don’t worry Blondie, I am older than I look…well I’d better be on my way…you do something with that hair now.” He shouted before running alongside his bike and then flinging a leg over to wobble over the gravel drive.

I closed the door, shaking my head and made my dazed way back into the kitchen.

“Who was it?” Libby asked, having just made my tea.

“Just some delivery lad.” I said lifting up the envelope for her to see. I then took my Homer mug from her and sat down to open the letter.

Dear Chosen,

(Electus, Catherine, Keira, Kazzy, Vixen, My little Keira girl or whatever other name I have not included)

You don’t know me but I know a great deal about you and I think it is time we should meet, in fact I know it is time we should meet, that’s why I wrote this letter.

Ok, so I have established we should meet, but now here comes the tricky part.

See the thing is, I am not allowed to write down where I am in the world or tell anyone, so this is where the fun begins. I do hope you like puzzles, well I know actually you don’t because like I said, I know you, but that’s just tough shit as this is the only way to play the game.

So, my first puzzle lies with Leivic at the warehouse. I know you have been there before and that didn’t end well. This time it will be different, I know this because I know this and when I say that, it is because I know I mean it. So first come to warehouse and pick up what I left there for you and then you will need to book a flight to Europe but my letter will tell you the destination.

Your code name will be: Tricks

And the name to get into the warehouse will be: Treats

P.S Be there this Monday no later than 4am and bring a large bottle of water with you. You will also need to bring fifty dollars, a jacket with a hood and a long umbrella with a hooked handle. Oh and to make things easier, wear red, hair down and dark lipstick.

Follow my instructions, Chosen One and I will help you discover the biggest secret of all…

How to take back what the Gods took from you.

See you soon

P

“Anything interesting?” Libby asked once I had read it four times and was still in a state of shock. Was it true, could it really be possible or was I running away with myself? The only thing the Gods had ever taken from me was the one man I had ever loved, surely everyone in the Supernatural world knew this!

I actually felt myself shaking and then smile for the first time in weeks. Could this person be on to something or was I walking into a trap!? I don’t think I cared if that could be a possibility as nothing in the world could have stopped me from being at the warehouse and following those instruction to the letter.

I felt my blood begin to thaw after all this time and I felt like jumping up and down and screaming, just to release the other self of me that I had locked away ever since that heart breaking day I said goodbye to Dominic Draven.

“Not really, just college stuff.” I said realising I hadn’t answered my sister and I think if she hadn’t been so tired then she would have noticed the first big grin I’d had on my face for a long while.

“So, summer break is coming up, have you thought of any plans yet?” She asked over her mug and I picked up my own, took a long drink and answered her question.

“I think I might do some travelling.” I said, then got up eager to get upstairs and start planning. I got to the door and turned back to Libby’s question,

“Sorry, what did you say?”

“I asked where to…you know…travelling?” She repeated and my smile widened as I said with utter certainty…

“Europe.”

Chapter 6

It’s all in the Planning

That very day I started getting things ready but soon realised I would have to go shopping to get most of the stuff I was instructed to bring. It didn’t take a genius to guess that the letter had been written to me by Pythia the Oracle. That was the only explanation for it, but this just led to more questions, like for starters…wasn’t she supposed to be missing?

This was just the tip of the question iceberg that was boggling my mind and I found, on my drive to the shopping mall, more than once my hands would grip the steering wheel in frustration. However, by the time I pulled into the car park, I knew one thing for certain, there was only one person who could answer all my questions and that person was one I vowed to find…Pythia.

The Mall was quiet but it was a weekday and I was thankful for it. First stop was the easiest item to get as I knew just where I would find one. So I walked straight up to the counter at the expensive men’s store that specialised in suits and business wear. I remembered seeing one of the faceless fancy metal mannequins dressed in a pin striped suit and holding an umbrella on top of a suitcase. I only remembered it because I was laughing with Libby, as someone had gone to the trouble of making it out like he was hailing a taxi or Cab, as they say here. We laughed at the idea of anyone doing that in a place like Evergreen.

However, it all became clear when I walked up to a snotty nosed assistant who looked at me as though I came in shaking an empty can for spare change at her.

“Hi, there’s an umbrella in the window I would like to buy.” I said as nicely as possible, given the look she gave me. She looked thoughtfully at her manicured nail before finally taking me on.

“It’s one hundred and fifty dollars, so may I suggest Wal-Mart where you can get one for about ten bucks, that would suit you much better I think.” She wrinkled her nose up at me which, added to her behaviour, reminded me of a little pug dog. At that point I took a moment to ask myself if it was worth biting back, but then when she flicked her hand motioning me to leave, I decided ‘oh Hell yeah’, it was worth it.

“It’s a shame you don’t have one more expensive, but I am sure my boyfriend will understand… I will take it.” I said with a fake smile. At this she dropped her relaxed pose and stood up a bit straighter, only to cock her hip out to one side.

“Oh yeah, and who’s your boyfriend then?” She said one hand on that bony assed hip of hers.

“Ah Miss Johnson, what a lovely surprise, how are you my dear?” The owner of the store came from the back and Miss Attitude lost her Pug bitch face like it fell off her in seconds.

“Hey Mr Stanton, how are you today?” I said remembering the same guy who had served Draven and me once when I dragged him in here shopping. I had wanted to buy him something and settled on a tie that matched his eyes when his other side came through. I felt a pinch to my chest when I remembered what the first thing he’d done with that tie when we got home…I had been right, it was a perfect match to the purple that flashed in his eyes as he found his release. I had to swallow the memory down like a lead weight wrapped in sandpaper.

“Oh please, please, call me Thomas. So, what can we help you with today? I hope Mandy is taking good care of you?” He said and for a second I saw a flicker of worry in her make-up caked eyes. Good, I thought, serves her right.

“Oh Mandy has been just dandy and was just about to show me your selection of umbrellas.” I said shooting her a look as if to say, you’re a lucky cow that I am not vindictive like you! I saw her release a held breath and then say in her nicest tone,

“This way Miss Johnson.” I followed her to the section where men’s accessories were displayed and with her boss still watching us we both kept up the charade of being friendly.

“Who the Hell is your boyfriend?” She whispered to me and I laughed without answering her. I looked at the umbrella while she gave me all the sales spiel and half way through her, ‘Luxury Micro fibre and hi-tech fibreglass ribs’ I interrupted her and said,

“I will take it.” She blushed and nodded, taking it over to the counter to ring it through the till. I didn’t really give two hoots about what it was made from, all I cared about was that it had a curved old fashioned handle, like I had been told to bring. I still had no clue what this list meant, but I wasn’t about to doubt the fates on something like this. Hell, if she had told me to turn up in a bikini, shaking my behind with half a fruit stall on my head, singing ‘Copacabana’ by Barry Manilow I would have!

“Would you like it gift wrapped?” She asked when prompted by her boss and I felt a little evil as I enjoyed seeing her uncomfortable expression whilst trying to be nice.

“That won’t be necessary, thank you.” I said smiling but, once I paid for my purchase and said my goodbye to the owner, I leaned over the counter.

“Some advice for next time… never judge a book by its cover ‘cause sometimes that cover is going to judge you back.” I said as I left the store, leaving the snotty attendant asking her boss who my boyfriend was. I had to smile at hearing her little gasp when he told her.

The rest of the shopping went more smoothly until it came to buying something red and I knew that unless I was going to turn up in workman’s overalls in maroon, I was going to have to buy a dress. As expected it was going to take time…

Three hours later, I was on my way home.

Once I had everything ready I was itching to get going but I had two whole days to wait. For that time I was as edgy as Hell and the only time I would calm was when I was looking after Ella. I don’t know what it was about her, but as soon as someone placed that cute little bundle in my arms, it was like being injected with liquid ‘happy’ mixed with a sprinkle of ‘serene’.

Of course, after trying to stay awake and survive on a few hours sleep each night, it finally caught up with me. I went to bed to read, under the pretence of going to sleep like everyone else did, but I knew I would have to leave the house at about 3am if I was going to make it on time to the warehouse, because tomorrow was the big day. I was just turning the page when I felt a shift in the air that had the hairs on the back of my neck prickling.

I set the book down and looked around my room, but it was just as it always had been. No shadows stood in the corner or at the bottom of my bed and my windows displayed only the darkness the night brought. Then I jumped as my bedside lamp started to flicker before a pop sounded, plunging the room and my vision into a black void. My heart was pounding as I was still for seconds wondering if the power had blown. I really didn’t fancy getting up and fumbling around in the dark.

“Close your eyes.” I would have screamed at the sound of a voice in my ear, but a hand clamped over my mouth to prevent it from ever being heard. I started shaking my head in the dark as blind panic set in but then a hand came up to my face and smoothed back my hair before turning to brush the back of a hand down my cheek.

“Ssshh and calm… my Vixen” That name! I instantly went still as if a deep freeze had taken over my body and allowed only my mind to spin out of control. How?!

“That’s it, calm for me.” That voice! I soaked it up like a sponge that would keep me alive from its liquid. I needed it to breath.

“Come now, close those eyes for me.” This must have been a trick! It had to be I thought, even as I did as the voice told me to. Was there ever going to be a point in my life where that voice couldn’t pull at me like a Master with strings attached to his hand?

“Good girl. I need light to play.” He hummed and as soon as I inhaled I felt my frozen limbs melt deeper into the bed I lay on. The sound, the smell and then the touch. This was the last element to confirm one of Heaven’s sons now sat at my side.

“Draven?” I whispered so quietly, too afraid that this bliss would leave me too soon. His fingers grazed down my neck as softly as if I had been made from petals and I took in another lung full of his delicious scent. I sensed the glow of soft light through my closed lids and had to use all of my willpower not to open my eyes.

“How?” I asked as his hand continued lower and I heard the hum of pleasure in his growl.

“No questions my Love…don’t think, just…feel.” He said against my skin before he tasted my neck. I moaned and arched up to him, knowing this was crazy, but that I would have been even crazier not to accept this feeling. To say that I had missed it was just not enough. It was like dying in a drought and suddenly finding yourself swimming. And at this point, I didn’t care if I drowned.

When his lips touched mine and his hand found the core of me, I was released from the spell and I woke from my invisible bonds. I reached up, buried my hands in his hair and took his lips at greater need. My eyes opened to find Draven as I always remembered him, in the only place he should ever be…in my arms.

It was perfect, stunning and soul consuming all at the same time. It was my Heaven and I had died with him.

He kissed me to a fever pitch and took my orgasm with him when he finished. I came screaming in his mouth as his fingers played me into a fine tune that all nine circles of Hell could have heard. I gripped onto his granite shoulders, just for something to anchor myself to as I floated into my euphoric bliss. It was like saying hello to an old friend and with every wave that crashed into me, it was like another hug to my soul. Of course I hugged back.

“I take it you miss me?” Draven said on a laugh before kissing my forehead too gently for my liking. Hell, I wanted him to mark himself to me so hard, I wanted to feel crushed, to feel imprinted against every last inch of his skin. I think if I could have crawled inside of him I would have.

“You left me.” I said in a small voice that was close to breaking. He laid his forehead to mine and whispered,

“I know.”

“But why, why did this happen?” I asked him and his eyes seemed to melt at my question.

“Because there are other ways of the path to take, ones that may take us in opposite directions, but there is always purpose in the destination.” I shook my head, not understanding.

“Then take me with you.” I said over his lips, but he pulled back.

“I can’t”

“Why?” The pain was clear in my question and I saw him wince at it.

“Because you don’t belong where I am, you belong in your own world Keira.” He stated softly.

“No!” I said as he started to get up from me. I reached out to him but he moved quicker and before long he was stood over me at the side of the bed.

“Yes Keira. I am sorry for this but it must be done. You must be made to watch me go and know that you can’t follow.” He looked so lost saying these things, like he was forcing the words from his lips in a painful process.

“No Draven!…don’t do this…” I said feeling the tears roll down like little rivers of pain.

“I have no choice and my time is at an end. I am being summoned back. This is for your closure, Keira and my chance at seeing you one last time and to tell you I am sorry. I never meant for it to be this way, Keira but the fates have left me with no other choice. Please understand, everything I have ever done is because I love you and that will remain so until my soul is nothing more than mere black desert sand. I will always love you…” He said moving away from me back into the shadows and I shot out of bed after him.

“NO! Draven, no!” I shouted and followed him into the darkness. I ran and I ran but my room had become an endless corridor of space. As though someone had taken my walls and pulled them back like a slingshot in time. I kept running as I saw him being pulled backwards by invisible hands of light.

“Draven! I am coming with you!” I shouted as I started to gain distance. I then saw a light at the end, behind where he was headed and just as my mind told me it was Heaven, the closer I got I realised the cruellest fact of all. Draven wasn’t going back to Heaven at all. He was going back to Hell!

“NO, NO, NO!” I screamed!

The flames licked out at the shadows as though they were feeding from them and soon the hands that I saw on Draven became black and charred around his arms. They burnt through his skin where they touched him and I reached out to him one last time even through the burn. He was just being pulled back into the breasts of Hell’s keepers when I lunged for him.

I flew at him only to fall straight through him as his body disintegrated into nothing but the black desert sand he spoke of. I landed on the floor in a heap and was frantically waving and kicking my limbs out as if I was burning up in the pits of Hell.

I finally came to as I opened my eyes to see, not only my lamp still lighting the room but my book was open and next to my head. It took me a minute to focus but when I did, I found the first words on the page closest to my head,

“God pardon me!” he subjoined ere long; “and man meddle not with me: I have her, and will hold her.”

I picked up the copy of Jane Eyre and hurled it at the window on a screamed cry.

“NO!” I felt like my damned heart had broken all over again and my anger was coming out in a mangled stream of pain and suffering. As the book hit the window I looked on, I then cried out again at what I saw behind the glass.

“AVA!” I screamed out her name and ran to the window, but she had already taken off. I struggled with my window and cursed this life, just as it opened. I reached out into the night that Draven’s bird seemed to own but it was too late…she was gone.

After that I didn’t know what to think but I certainly knew what to feel and that was close to desperation. Did it all mean what I thought it did? Had I been lied to and Draven wasn’t in Heaven after all? The thought of him living in Hell was too much to bear, but the one thing it did do and that was force my plan into action.

It didn’t take me long to get ready as I had laid out my clothes yesterday and put any other items I needed in my truck ready. All I needed to do was brush my hair, leaving it down and get dressed into my designated clothes bought for the occasion. I decided as it was cold to wear jeans under the dress, so that I could slip out of them if need be and I wore thick black boots, good for running and even better for kicking. I decided it was time to be practical in the world I lived in and whatever the morning brought me, I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be like taking a walk to the post office and picking up a letter!

I grabbed my old faithful jacket with a massive floppy hood and just as I closed my door, I unfolded the letter I’d written to Libby. It just said that I couldn’t sleep and decided to take an early morning drive. I used my bedroom door handle to punch through the paper so that it would stay there and she would see it if she decided to check on me when she woke up.

I soon found myself in my truck, driving along the twisted dark back road out of town. It wasn’t the best time to be alone after what I had just dreamt and every time my mind touched on what had happened, I would then find myself wiping away my tears along my jacket sleeve in an angry one handed swipe. This was why I hated sleeping, but this time it had been worse. It hadn’t just been a bombardment of past memories of my time with Draven, no this time he had actually come back from the dead and I couldn’t think of anything crueller!

I shook my head and hated what I saw every time I would catch my reflection in the rear view mirror. My eyes looked like two hollow points, connected with how my soul felt…empty and cold. Was this what an empty glass felt like to an alcoholic? Or more like the last breath to a dying man? I had no answers, but only one thing I was certain of…I didn’t like what I saw in the mirror anymore, not without the other half of my soul and whole of my heart back in place.

I didn’t know how far away I was, as I was just going from memory and trying to ignore all the beautiful parts of that journey that included looking to my side and finding Draven sat there with me. The clock on the dash said it was only 3:27 when something started to go wrong. The engine started to splutter and nothing I was doing was helping the dying truck to carry on. It quickly gave up on me and I had to cruise to a stop by the side of the road.

I hit the steering wheel with the palms of my hands and even though it had been weeks since my broken hand it still hurt like an SOB when I did this.

“Bitches and ball bags!” I swore at my truck, flinging my arms up in the air before trying to find my calm place. Problem was, these days I didn’t bloody have one!

After sitting there for five minutes and then another ten minutes trying to start it, I gave up and got out to have a look at something I knew I would have no clue at what to do. It was cold and the ground was covered in an eerie morning mist that was like walking in a fallen cloud.

“But of course, being out here all alone was going to be as creepy as being in some horror, with a side of teen slasher movie. What’s next, a family of zombie hillbillies to come moaning from the woods?” I muttered as I circled the truck. I even kicked the wheel as I passed. I touched the bonnet and swore out as it burned my fingers.

“Shit me, that’s hot!” I said somehow feeling better talking to myself. I saw the steam coming from the grill and knew I was in deep doodoo. What now? I had my mobile on me, but if I called Frank then I doubted he would take me all the way to where I needed to be and then he would be asking too many questions, ones I had no way of answering.

I was just in the middle of considering calling a taxi, when a noise had me spinning round. The road was a long strip of dark grey and floating mist, with the looming forest on either side. I hadn’t seen any cars and the air was thick with morning dew, where just breathing hard made your skin feel damp. It was so still I knew it must have been an animal or something and just as the thought entered my head, I saw it.

A deer crossing the road just before the bend, had stopped to watch me. I wondered if it thought, ‘Daft Cow’ before continuing with a little run to the other side and disappearing into the darker forest.

“Better you than me mate.” I said thinking there was nothing that could get me to go that way… when I heard it again, only this time it sounded like twigs snapping under a heavy pair of boots. I froze just like the deer had, only I was too afraid to turn and look at what made the noise.

That news article came rushing back to me in a jumble of words, like ‘mauled to death’ and ‘ripped apart’ and then even Jack’s voice jumped in there and added ‘body bags’ and ‘claws’. When I heard it again, only this time closer to where I stood, I knew the time had come to be brave. I took a deep breath and turned, only to expel it just as quickly. As the gasp left my body I could see it in the cold air almost like a cartoon voice bubble. For there, in the woods, stood the same tall shadow I had seen that day, only now he wasn’t staying back, hidden and watching…

No, now he was walking forward in long strides to where I stood and my horror movie reference was about to come true.

As obviously…

My killer had just arrived.

Chapter 7

Old Haunts from Hell

I squinted my eyes to try and make out more of the dark figure coming towards me, but his features remained hidden. It was extraordinary the way he used the shadows around him. I was actually watching him move them with a little flick of his wrist, although his hand remained by his side. I could even hear the strain on his leather gloved hand as one finger came out and made a turning motion. Then the shadow wrapped tighter around his body, shielding himself before travelling up his body like a massive ink coloured eel. It floated, using the air like water as it circled him like a pet to its owner.

The further up it went, the more it slowly revealed. I couldn’t help my sharp intake of air at the sight of those thick heavy boots, but more importantly, they were continuing to take slow steps towards me. Leather encased legs showed thighs thicker than my waist and I felt my back bump into my truck as I had been allowing my body’s natural flight reflex to take over. The bottom of a long black jacket moved at the back of his knees as the shadows played with his body and just as I was getting to his waist, high beam lights from a car coming round the bend lit the scene.

The high pitched cry hurt my ears and I looked back to see the shadow had formed a head on the end nearest to his face, and was crying out at the invasion of light. It wasn’t quite the head of a snake but that of a thinner dragon, only made from black smoke. It hissed once and just as the headlights were coming closer, it vibrated until its body grew and grew. The man’s hands whipped out and the shadowed beast obeyed his silent command. The shadow spun round then erupted into a fine mist and unbelievably, took the man’s body with him.

The car was just pulling to a stop in front of mine when one last look told me that there was nothing left of my shadowed stalker.

“You alright, need a hand?” A man’s voice asked and I stiffened, being on my guard. Who was I kidding? My back was as straight as a ramrod since the first sighting of the biker man. I tried to speak, but had to cough first just to clear my throat.

“Umm, yeah, I broke down.” I said being very tempted to add on a ‘durr’, to myself. I mean, I think he gathered as much and doubted he encountered a lot of girls out here at near four in the morning for a quiet drive.

“Ok, let’s pop the hood and see what we got.” He said coming closer. He was a big guy and my skin prickled, but when his face came into the light, I let out a breath. He actually looked like a jolly Ginger Father Christmas, with a lovely smile and kind brown eyes. Half his face was covered in a copper coloured beard and the same colour hair could be seen under his woollen hat, that looked as if it had been knitted by someone losing their sight. The trim around the edges started as a zigzag and then joined the other side in a wobbly wave as if someone had given up half way through.

There was just something about this beer bellied man that said kind hearted and when the hood opened and steam bellowed up, he let out a gut jiggling laugh.

“Whoa! Now we’re smoking girly!” He said still laughing after I had released the bonnet for him to open.

“I guess I won’t be going anywhere in a hurry eh?” I said laughing with him, just because his was an infectious sound. The situation still sucked the big one!

“Ah, now don’t ya worry. Let big J take a look, I will just go and fetch my tools and flash light.” As he walked away I couldn’t help my eyes from trailing to the forest. I just knew the guy was still out there, watching me, but if he was this ‘Hikers’ Killer’ then why was the sight of this harmless logger enough to get him to back off? I shook my head lightly as Big J came back.

It was amazing what you could learn about a person in the space of fifteen minutes. Take Jimmy here, aka big J. His wife was named Betty but he calls her Rubble Bubble ‘cause he thinks she looks like Betty from the Flintstones. Her mother was the one who knitted him the ‘damn hat’ as he put it, but he didn’t have the heart not to wear it, as she was slowly losing her sight and lived in a nursing home that he and his wife visited every three days. Jimmy was definitely a talker but I found it eased my nerves just listening to him, nodding with a smile.

I think I knew what his technique was because he was trying to put a young girl, stranded in the middle of nowhere on a dark road, at ease. Well Jimmy had this down to a T, as it was working like a charm…Hell by the end of it I couldn’t stop myself from giving him a hug in thanks. He smelled like chopped wood and rolling tobacco.

I was soon able to be on my way after he had discovered a slow leak in my radiator. When he asked me if I had any water, he must have wondered at my beaming grin. I had almost tripped over myself getting to the gallon bottle I had in the back.

“Well that was bloomin’ handy, Girly.” He said scratching his head and then rearranging his hat. He showed me how to fill it and said,

“She’ll get ya where ya headed, if where ya headed isn’t too far.” He chuckled making his plaid covered belly wobble. He also told me not to let ‘her’ overheat as I could warp the metal and blow a gasket. I had nodded all the while not really understanding any of it.

He waved me on as I drove past and I just hoped stopping to help me hadn’t put him in harm’s way. I had tried to convince him all was good for him to get back to his ‘Rubble Bubble’ but he was adamant to see me on my way. I watched him in my rear view mirror and with a big sigh of relief saw he was safely in his own truck.

So the Oracle had foreseen my car breaking down and told me to bring water, which had me wondering, why she didn’t just tell me to forget the truck and get the bus or something? Or better still, warn me about my busted radiator so I could have had it fixed beforehand. As I made it all the way to the outskirts of the city, I thought of another million other ways she could have played this ‘Little Clue Game’ of hers. I nearly missed the turning.

“Shit!” I said as I had to slam on my brakes and reverse to catch the service road. I remembered passing the sports complex and since then it was fairly easy to find the rest of the way. Big J had told me not to go too fast but I was close to running late and I needed to be there by four, so I hadn’t strictly followed that rule.

I only had to drive down the road for a few minutes until my next obstacle lay ahead in the form of an armed guard, heavy barrier and electric fencing. I doubted very much I was going to get away with doing an action movie stunt with this one, so I slowed down.

“ID!” The guy ordered in a gruff manner. I was quickly transported through time and all the little details of that first ride came back to me.

“Tony?” I said remembering the guard’s name, who Draven had wanted to rip a new one for being rude. Well, given the way he asked me for my ID just now, I was guessing he hadn’t learnt his lesson.

He dipped his head and that was the new detail I never got last time. He was in his early thirties, shaved head, thick neck and he acted like he was a cop or an army man. My guess was that he failed the exams and ended up a security guard instead. Well, I wasn’t one to judge but I was just hoping this made him easier to bribe, as I was quickly gathering he wasn’t in need of an umbrella or about to complement me on my loose hair! I just hoped fifty dollars was enough.

“You know me?” He looked shocked and I decided to play it cool.

“You don’t remember me, huh? I was in the Aston Martin that day, when Mr Draven came through here.” I said and his eyes grew wide.

“Oh yeah, my first week on the job. I’ve seen him coming through here a few times since.” He said and my eyes widened at the information he was giving me.

“When was the last time?” I asked trying to reign in the heavy dose of desperation that came with that question. He frowned and looked as if he wasn’t going to answer me at first but then shrugged his shoulders like it didn’t matter either way.

“Back in May I think.” This was the point where my heart started to pound. May? But he wasn’t around in May…maybe it was someone driving his car, like Vincent or someone…it couldn’t have been Draven…could it?

“Do you remember if it was Mr Draven driving?” I asked heart pounding and then he really started to get wary.

“Look lady, I don’t know what your game is but no more questions, I ain’t his damn secretary!” Whoa, ok Rent a Rude Cop! I didn’t say this, as I had enough restraint to know this wouldn’t have gotten me anywhere so I smiled instead.

“I’m sorry, a strong looking officer like you, doesn’t need me bugging him. I must be taking up too much of your time as it is.” I said in an admittedly pathetic attempt at flirting, so I was surprised when his eyes softened.

“Well now, don’t you go being sorry at me being rude to a pretty lady like yourself. But if you’re looking for Mr Draven, then he hasn’t been around for a while.” I tried not to show my shock at cracking his rude shell and gave him another smile, hoping it didn’t look as awkward as it felt.

“Actually, I have to meet someone but it’s a bit of a surprise, do you think you could help me out?” At this he took a step back like he was thinking about radioing it in.

“I wouldn’t normally ask, but I have travelled quite a way for her birthday and would be gutted if she found out now…you understand I’m sure and in thanks I would love to compensate you for your time.” I said holding up the fifty, thinking this guy was no way going to accept so little but I was left surprised again when he plucked it out of my hand and waved me on without a word.

“Wow, maybe I should notch up the sex appeal in this spy game more often.” I said out loud as I drove on to the warehouses. I passed a darkened version of the place I remembered and as soon as I approached I found a nervous sweat had broken out. It was as if I could even hear Draven’s voice in my head telling me I shouldn’t be here and looking back to what happened the last time I was, then it was the reason I couldn’t get out of the truck.

I saw myself being pushed into the van and the memory flashed in front of my eyes, like an out of body experience. I was seeing it being ripped open by a scarred bear that had been to Hell and back and had his King drag him out again. I saw Draven destroying the vehicle to get to me and once free, had it flipping to the side like a toy car at the hands of a small boy.

I saw the demon he sent back in a puddle of holy water and the prayer he said after the act. All I saw was a man protecting his own and what had the Gods done in thanks…taken his life!

I knew I needed to get out of the car and in the end only one memory did it. It was before all the worst part of that day reared its ugly head. It was the sight of Draven playfully pulling up my hood and calling me cute at the sight. And, as if that memory alone contained the magic I felt that day, it took away the vision of being kidnapped. It just flew away by the sight of two lovers in the middle of the madness around them. The two memories were playing alongside each other and the destructive force became a faded shadow in the sight of true love. It just flew away like the rolling fog on the empty road that had led me here.

With that last sight in my mind I got out of the truck feeling stronger than before. I shimmied out of my jeans after removing my boots, only to put them back on again. They didn’t exactly match my dress but I wasn’t here for a bloody catwalk, so I didn’t care too much on accessorizing.

The dress was a deep red that was cut straight across the neck line to my bare shoulders. It was plain and simple, cut to my waist where a thin black belt was tied. The skirt flared out to just above my knees and it was one of those dresses that could have been worn to the office with the right jacket and shoes or could have been worn on a night out with some heels. I, however, was attending neither, so I didn’t think anything of my added woollen gloves that reached the top of my arms and were knitted to allow my fingers and thumbs free rein.

I smoothed down my hair, applied the dark red lipstick and took out the remaining items on my list. I folded the jacket over my arm and hooked the umbrella under it, so it swung down thanks to the hooked handle. I checked myself one last time and with a deep breath, walked to the right door.

It was a small access door to one of the warehouses nestled further back in between two larger buildings. Nicely tucked away for hiding what lay behind those doors, I thought as I reached up to the metal door. I knocked and when I heard nothing I knocked again, only this time with a little more force.

“Piss off!” Ah, that was more like it I thought, remembering the same welcoming reception from last time.

“Open up please.” I said using my sternest tone, even though I had added the please.

“You got the wrong door little girl, nothing but big bad wolves behind this one, now piss off…please.” He added the ‘please’ as a sarcastic after thought and I banged the door harder.

“The password is Treat…. Now open the bloody door!” I shouted hoping to at least shock him into opening the door or to at least take me more serious, which thankfully worked.

“You got some balls, I will give ya that!” He shouted through the door and I heard the heavy locks slide back before the door swung open to reveal a four hundred pound Samoan. He filled the entire door space and that was without his head! He wasn’t short off seven feet and it actually hurt my neck to look up at him. From the looks of his gut alone, it looked like it could play house to someone my size with ease. I think if he hadn’t been so damn intimidating then the massive gulp I did would have been a comedy moment.

“It’s you!” He said with the clear look of being stunned, changing his honey coloured eyes to a glowing amber. He looked pretty much the same as last time, long shorts resting under his impressive sized gut, a massive black vest I didn’t think they made in his size and Jesus sandals.

“Umm… yeah.” Wasn’t the smartest thing to say, but I was lost for words and even more so when I saw him lower to his knees in front of me. I stepped back, giving him more space and looked around in case someone important had just entered.

“Electus Unus.” He murmured as his knees cracked when putting all that weight on them.

“What are you…?”

“My name is Ira and I serve the balance, my Heaven’s Light.” ‘Ooookay’ was my only thought.

“But you told me to piss off?” I don’t know why this was the first thing I asked, let alone said it at all.

“And my most sincere apologises, Light Bringer.” He said still looking at my feet, making me more uncomfortable by the second.

“Umm, please…you don’t have to kneel or anything…but can I ask, what do you mean by Light Bringer?” I asked as he heaved himself off the ground with one beefy hand.

“You are the 7th light, the Chosen One by the Gods.” He said this as if I should have known this already. I felt like telling him that I must have skipped that class!

“I don’t really know what you’re on about with the whole ‘light bringer’ bit, but I do know that I must get into this club, so can I pass?” I said shifting round to get closer to the door. As soon as he frowned I knew I had pushed my luck and was waiting for the big ‘Hell no’ and given his size, I didn’t think there was anyone better at delivering it.

“You wish to pass?” He asked wide eyed and suddenly shifting his large bare feet. I mean what did he think…that I had popped in for a visit to introduce myself? The sound of his sandals on the hardwood floor was the only noise as he studied me.

“If you mean if I want to go in there again, then the answer is yes,” I said firmly. His big hand smoothed back his plaited Mohawk and I could have sworn I saw the tattoos on his face move round like the cogs in his mind.

“If you would take the advice of a mere servant I would suggest before you do, you cover yourself. Here, give me your umbrella and I will give it back to you for when you leave.” He held out his hand and I did as I was told because I hadn’t had any other instructions to do otherwise. So, doing as he suggested, I put my jacket on and when he nodded to the hood, I covered my face. I just hoped what I was doing was right because there was no going back now.

“Come, I will walk you in, I gather you are here to see Leivic.” He said motioning the way with his big outstretched arm. The loose skin I would have called a bingo wing looked more like the wing on a small aircraft! It swayed as he moved like a waving flag of skin and I gave him a crooked smile as I passed.

The club was a lot different than when I had last been here and it wasn’t only due to the serious lack of people. For one, I could now see more than just my feet, even if my hood was covering a lot of my face. I easily followed my new big Samoan friend, Ira by his shuffling alone. The place reminded me of somewhere someone would pound metal for a living. It was a steel worker’s wet dream. The place had open iron girders covering the ceilings and the walls were metal plates riveted to concrete pillars to create different spaces. Glass bricks were also used as room separators and the same theme made up the bar area in one corner.

As I followed on, I soon realised that the hard core clubbers didn’t require a more comfortable space, as that had been saved for the VIP section we were now headed to. A crimson wall of material was the barrier between the two vast differences in interior decorating. It shimmered with its own magic and the grittier other side could be seen, as though looking through rippling water.

Now this I remembered, as it was like stepping into a portal to a different land. The walls were covered in booths of rich, deep reds, pinks, sunset oranges and yellows. But, unlike before, this time there was only one booth not empty.

Leivic was sat in the middle of the centre booth, on a raised platform covered in large flat pillows with smaller ones scattered between the other female bodies that accompanied him. He was smoking a large pipe the length of his arm. As soon as he saw us coming he sat up and the lounging half-naked beauties startled. It looked like chicks digged scars on big handsome warriors, I thought with a hidden smile. His silver blue eyes grew wide with both shock…and was that… fear?

“Leave us!” He snapped making me jump and after a few pouts, five females left quietly. I found my eyes following them, everyone strutting their beauty like peacocks being dismissed unhappily. He placed his pipe down on a small table and stood up to greet me, but his smile didn’t meet his eyes. This instantly made me wary.

“Keira, what an unexpected but lovely surprise!” He said in that easy going manner I now knew was being put on for my sake. I folded my hood back and smoothed my loose hair back from my face.

“Well, that isn’t completely true now is it?” I said deciding to put a stop to the bullshit before it clouded my reasons for being here. For only a moment he looked taken back but with a quick flick of his wrist, he dismissed Ira and held out his hand for me.

“Keira, please join me.” I took his large hand and let him lead me to the same booth. I had to walk up a few steps to get there and once in the only thing I could do with my legs was to sit as if I was about to start meditating. When I saw him sit the same way I did a mental shoulder shrug and waited for him to say the first thing. After all, I didn’t really have a plan here and was just going with the rocky flow.

Leivic picked back up his pipe and from here I could see the tiny and intercut carvings along the thin, twig like pipe that got thicker towards the end. A little copper cup sat at the end and I gathered this was where the tobacco was put for smoking. He puffed on the flattened end and he gave me a sideways glance as if still trying to comprehend that I was actually here and more importantly, how he was going to deal with that very fact. He then sucked in a lung full and like before, he let out a smoking Dragon he knew I liked watching from last time. For a second he seemed pleased with my wide eyed reaction. Then his voice cut through the smoky creature and with its end came the end of the silence as well.

“Why are you here, Keira?” His voice brought me back to that very day when I learnt words could nearly kill you. “Draven is dead!” Those words would not only haunt me to the end of time here, but in the next life as well. I closed my eyes momentarily as I tried to breathe through the pain. For a few seconds the memory hit me so hard I had to fight the run reflex my brain was screaming at me. It just wanted me to get as far away from that voice as I could, just to spare me the agony demons that would come collecting soon after.

But I stayed.

“What happened to him, Leivic?” I asked the one question I had been regretting not asking him that day. It was the same question that had troubled my every thought and the amount of times was long ago lost in the masses. I heard his reaction through the pipe he was sucking and I knew my question was like a sucker punch to the gut.

“Keira…I…can’t.” He said with trouble and that was when I finally looked at him. His usually pale scar was now an angry red through his flustered skin and at that moment, I couldn’t help what happened next. I reached out to him and placed my hand on his scarred face. He flinched but didn’t move away.

The feeling I got was an overwhelming comfort. My hand grew warm and my body tingled. It was as though my cells were crying out for the supernatural side that I had been denied and now they finally had contact, it was like they were singing.

“Please, my friend.” I said and he closed his eyes. I thought I had lost my only chance and was about to move my hand away, when his covered mine and held it to his cheek.

“It’s been a long time since I felt a touch like this.” He whispered as if to himself and me hearing him was like an afterthought. I smoothed my thumb along the part of his scar that cut across his nose and I heard a rumble as if his inner bear was enjoying being petted.

“You are such a good, clean soul, Keira and do not deserve the pain my friend inflicted on you.” He turned his face to fit more firmly in my palm that neither he, nor I wanted to move at that point.

“Then help me understand, Leivic. Help me heal. I need to know what happened to him or I will never move on.” I said knowing this wasn’t entirely true. See, something in him told me not to disclose the real reason I was here, as soon as I saw Leivic’s reactions to me. He obviously had no clue and if he didn’t, then that was because the Oracle didn’t want him to. And at this point, I was terrified of anything that could jeopardise my plans.

“I am so sorry Keira, I wish I could…I really do, but it is utterly forbidden. I should not be talking to you as it is, but to explain details to you would surely get me a one way ticket to a place I vowed never to visit again.” He said shaking his head free of the memory.

“What! But why? Surely it is not as severe as that, is it?” I asked in utter disbelief.

“What, you doubt a King’s order to be heard and to be obeyed? I can most certainly say it is as severe as that! Anyone who breaks his orders is only going to end up in one place Keira, his words and his rules.” He said in all seriousness.

“But how...? He’s… he’s dead Leivic, how can he rule still?” At this his head hung down and he shook it in a quiet little motion that looked so sad.

“Please Keira, I will beg of you if that is what you require, but please…don’t put me in this situation. That day my vow was paid, don’t make it in vain.” I felt a single tear of frustration fall before I nodded.

“Alright, I will give up on knowing…for now. But trust me in this Leivic, I will one day know what happened and make no mistake when I say I will never stop trying, that is the truth! NEVER!” I got up at that, scooting to the edge as I knew there was nothing more I would get from this single minded meeting. He’d had his orders and I had my own quest to follow.

I was just leaving when I thought of one last thing, one I will always regret asking.

“At least answer me this, for I think it is owed to me.” I turned to find him slumped over, resting his face on his open palms, his knees holding his elbows. He looked so young and lost. I almost gave him a break and left… Almost.

He lifted hurt eyes to mine and just nodded.

“Is Draven in Hell?” I waited and when I saw his head lower and his eyes slam shut, I didn’t really need to hear his answer but I got it anyway,

“I have no doubt…that yes…

“He is living in Hell, Keira.”

Chapter 8

Ring ‘a’ Round the Warehouses

I walked away from Leivic feeling as if the walls of my world had been torn down. I now knew without the shadow of a doubt that Draven now lived out his time, not watching me from above like he suggested, but from down below. The thought nearly brought me to my knees. I hiccupped a cry back and hurried out of the club, just so that I could breathe. It was as if the whole room was clouded in a dark looming presence that was making my skin itch. By the time I made it back to Ira, my scars were burning and I was nearly desperate to rip off my gloves.

Ira didn’t look surprised to see me and when I saw him put a finger to his temple and say,

“She is here.” I knew he was communicating with Leivic. I think he must have been making sure I was leaving, as it seemed to me that he couldn’t see the back of me quick enough. In my mind I wanted to say something like, ‘don’t worry tough guy, I am leaving’ but in the end, the sight of the giant of a man kneeling once again stopped me. Being rude wasn’t going to get me anywhere and if anything, it would have just made me feel even shitter all the way home.

“Electus,” he said in respect, lowering his head.

“By the way, it’s Keira…just Keira.” I whispered the last part after I took my umbrella from him and walked through the door. Once it slammed shut behind me I didn’t even flinch, I just felt numb. It was only when I felt little rivulets of rain running down my forehead that I released I was just frozen in the pouring rain. At this point I lost it completely and burst out into a humourless laugh that didn’t sound as if it belonged to me.

“An umbrella for the rain, great…just great!” I shouted lifting it up.

“Like I give a shit if I get wet at a time like this! Good one on predicting the weather!” I shouted looking up as if the Oracle could hear me, from where I didn’t know. I bitterly pressed the bottom releasing the black material in a whoosh. I lifted it over my head in one motion and just saw a sheet of paper fluttering down. I caught it just in time before the puddles ruined it for me.

I ran for my truck to get out of the rain and once inside I opened the letter with shaky hands. Little droplets ran down from my wet hair and dropped on to the paper making some of the ink run. I read it quickly and tried to make sense of it.

Dear Tricks,

I know if you are reading this right now, then no doubt your mind is a whirlwind of questions, it is always the way of you Chosen Ones but the key is trust and with this next clue, you will need it. For it is time to introduce Little Red to Big Ugly.

On the back of this note I have included some rather useful information for you about Big Ugly which you WILL NEED TO READ. After all, my game can’t work if there are no pieces left on the board to play with…if you catch my drift. And with the King gone there is now only the Queen, so take the hint and don’t get eaten! Try really hard about that last part as even the fates can’t prevent stupidity.

Given that, you should be fine if you follow my instructions.

Number 1: Place – There is a warehouse three buildings down from the one you are sat opposite right now. Go there, for my next clue waits for you inside. Beware, he takes being grouchy to a whole new level!

Number 2: Tools: Your umbrella is not just for keeping you dry. It is a shield and a hook…use them both.

Number 3: Entrance: The ladder is your friend. It is good for escaping when escaping isn’t needed and for breaking and entering when breaking isn’t needed.

Number 4: Red is the colour blood, blood comes from flesh, flesh in a pound becomes a payment…NEVER pay Tricks.

One last thing

Remember, the shadows may be where people lie, but a liar is easily hidden in the shadows.

P.t.o

I turned over the page and read the last short paragraph,

‘Pishachas Demons enjoy the feast of flesh and prefer the solitude of dark places, only coming out to feed. Their eye sight is near blind with the exception to red, this being blood, the colour to feed on, it is what gives them strength to see when needed.

They are known to possess human beings and alter their thoughts, before sucking the madness they inflict dry and taking with them what is left of your conscious soul. Pay this demon with your flesh and they will leave the fruits of your mind intact’

So shields up my dear and trust in your ability as I do.

The King needs you!

P :o)

Reading this made me nearly throw the damn letter from the window and hightail it out of there but like a magic word, the Oracle’s last sentence had me hook line and sinker. I knew this wasn’t ever going to be as easy as just walking up to Leivic, getting some answers, along with a happy note and some plane tickets to where I would find the Oracle. Nope, not me!

The letter was a mind twister if ever there was one and left me with more questions than answers. I wasn’t certain that by the end of this little ‘game’ of hers that when finally meeting her, I wouldn’t be tempted to shake her by the neck instead of the hand!

I drove closer to the warehouse she’d written about, just in case I needed a quick getaway. Christ, I was starting to feel like Jackie Brown being dragged into all this. What was next…a gun for my birthday? Well, after reading that description it was looking like a better idea by the minute!

As Little Red I got out of Big Blue, umbrella in hand and walked over to the metal door. I tried the handle but had a feeling it wouldn’t have been that easy, when I found it locked. I debated whether or not to knock for a moment but I decided to trust my gut and hold back. I lowered my fisted hand back from the door and decided to look around. Thinking this, now I was really feeling the part. Forget about just the gun, now I was thinking about adding a long beige trench coat.

“Female version of Columbo, that’s me! Just short of a good head rub, one cigar and I have cracked it.” I muttered as I rounded the corner. I don’t know what I was looking for but I thought back to the letter and knew I was most likely supposed to find a ladder.

“Bingo!” I shouted when I saw the alley way. There was a metal fire escape on the side and although I had never used one, I remembered one in almost all American movies that had alley ways in them. I walked closer and looked up at the series of ladders and metal balconies they were attached to.

“I hate heights.” I muttered looking round for something to stand on. The first ladder up needed to be pulled down and it was only when I couldn’t find anything that my mind went back to the clues the Oracle had left me.

“Haha!” I said in triumph as my mind clicked in gear. I lifted the end of the umbrella and hooked the last spindle on the ladder to then pull it down with a groan. It was stiff but once it moved the first bit it started to play ball. It came down with a rush and I fell backwards landing with a thump on my behind.

“Smooth Columbo…real smooth!” I picked myself up and patted my coat free from wet dirt. I bent back down to pick up my umbrella and started to climb to the next level. I tried not to look down but of course I did, without anyone saying the standard movie line ‘Don’t look down’. I seriously needed to get a grip…preferably one that wouldn’t let go at the wrong moment. I also need to stop watching movies!

When I made it to the top I saw a window that was half open and all I needed to do was push it all the way up and I was in. I unfolded myself and soon found I was in a messy looking office. The desk that was near the window was piled high full of paperwork that had long ago become beyond organised. I moved the worn chair out of my path and made my way to the only door. Once out of the office, which smelled like someone had a mouldy cheese fetish, I took in a deep breath and looked around the massive open space.

It was a fairly large warehouse with a metal balcony all the way around the top that only seemed to lead to a few doors and I gathered these to be more offices. Looking down, I could see pallets of boxes piled high and all wrapped together with clear plastic. There was also a forklift and a few hand held devices for moving heavy items. But that was it, not a soul was in the building…or at least not one I could see.

I had to walk around the edge to get to the staircase at the other end and the sound of my booted feet on metal grating was the only noise to be heard… and it wasn’t a comforting sound.

I did a quick check of the other rooms, the one with ‘Manager’ on the door was locked and the others empty, so I continued down the staircase. The main part of the warehouse was a bit like a shiny maze of clear plastic towers and a chill crept up my spine when I realised just how many shadows in this place could be filled with these ‘Pishachas Demons’.

“This is insane.” I whispered out loud as I made my way around them and gingerly checked every dark corner. Although, I needn’t have bothered. As I soon heard a cackling laugh that sounded like a combination of wood burning and a child’s high pitched giggle, I knew I had been found.

“I love the smell of chilled flesh in the morning…like coffee to you humans.” A strained voice said from further away. I wrinkled my nose at the thought of getting anywhere near someone who I smelled like breakfast to, but at this point, did I really have a choice?

I zigzagged through the piles of boxes until it opened up into what looked to be a loading dock. I could see the big rolling doors and some sort of conveyor belt. But it was the two red glowing orbs in the dark that had me stopping fast enough to tip back on to my heels.

“Lose the jacket, Tricks!” He snapped and I was sure I could hear the clicking and grinding of teeth at the order. I couldn’t yet see him as he remained hidden in his favourite place, using the shadows to his advantage. I did as I was told, knowing now the reasons behind my dress…I just hoped it wasn’t like dressing the Salmon before the buffet opened!

As I pealed the jacket back I heard a sharp intake of breath and I purposely hid my umbrella behind my back as I moved my coat. I tucked the handle into my belt at the back, so it hung out of sight. I had a feeling it was going to come in handy pretty soon.

“Throw it away, up on that crate,” he ground out, all the while still gnawing those teeth. What was he doing back there, filing them into sharper points?! Did I look that chewy?

I did as he said with a frown, as I really liked that jacket and doubted I would be given the time, when running for my life, to have the chance to grab it.

“Ah, now that is better, come closer,” he said and now, instead of the grinding teeth, there was more of a slurping sound, like he was sucking back up the saliva that was dripping down his chin, if he even had a chin.

“Umm…I think not, no in fact, I think I am good right here.” I said in my firmest tone. He started laughing again and the sound made bile want to rise up. There was something so disgusting in the sounds he made that even without seeing him, I was repulsed.

“Silly, silly, silly…if you don’t come closer, then how are you to retrieve this?” He said and I saw a shadowed arm come out from the darkness holding an envelope. I fisted my hands at the sight, wishing I knew how I was going to get that letter with every pound on my body still intact. I mean, most girls liked the idea of losing a few pounds but the Hannibal Lecter diet wasn’t one I wanted to try any time soon!

“Let’s cut the spooky shadows crap and cryptic messages that are really just giving me a damn headache now…what do you want for that letter?” I said losing my patience and letting my frustration take control of the situation.

“They say that you are f…”

“Feisty, yes I know.” I interrupted dryly.

“Fresh.” He corrected back and I shivered.

“The price is a penny for your thoughts or a pound for your flesh…which do you value more?” Nice saying I thought but doubted it would make it as a bumper sticker!

“My thoughts are the payment I choose, but first the letter.” I said knowing with the shield I had in place, if Lucius couldn’t have cracked them then this lower Demon would have no chance, so let him try as I walked away. Well this was the plan, I thought with hope.

“I accept, although I must say what a shame it is that I wouldn’t be tasting the marrow from your bones…that colour suits your skin.” It was one thing being told ‘nice dress’, but saying that how pretty I would look bleeding to death was quite another and even in the supernatural world I wasn’t about to take that as a complement!

“Jeez, thanks. Now can we get this over with” I snapped and as soon as I said this I heard the envelope skidding along the floor. It stopped right at my foot. I picked it up quickly and stuffed it into the top of my boot until it was flush against my leg. As soon as I straightened I felt it. It was like someone was pulling at the edges of my brain with one of those tiny metal hooks the dentist uses to scrape plaque from your teeth. It nicked and scratched away at the seams but it couldn’t get in. Then it tried something bigger and replaced the hook with claws. It was painful in a strange way but after a few minutes of concentration, the pain receded and soon its clawing gradually seeped away until it was nothing but a murmuring around the edges.

“Impossible! Impossible for a human! Give it to me!” The voice grew into a growl and I took a step back.

“I said GIVE IT TO ME!” It screamed and the sound cracked the windows, making one give out and smash to the floor behind me. I jumped and held up my hands.

“Hey, it’s not my fault you can’t feed from me, we made our deal.” I said playing dumb.

“Then your flesh will just taste all the sweeter!” It said before I finally got my first glimpse of the creature itself.

It stepped from the shadows and I screamed at the sight. The first light to hit the Demon sizzled like it was being burnt but the further it came forth, I soon realised it wasn’t its own skin that cooked, it was the skirt it wore that was human skin sewn together like a horrific patchwork quilt. Soon the room started to fill with the smell of charred skin and burning hair. Some pieces of his demonic uniform even had tattoos from the pieces of flesh he had taken from humans. As he stepped closer the skin suit was made like a coat that had thick straps crisscrossing all his torso and it reminded me of a straight jacket made in Hell.

One arm looked broken and twisted back to lie flush against his back while the other, a long and thin black bone, had several joints as though it belonged to a spider. It had a pincer on the end that clicked as it snapped out and back in on itself. The claw type bone looked as if it had been carved out of flesh as it bled from the tip and it alone was the size of my hand.

When the last of him came into view, it was the face of a man with long, grey hair, centre parted and it hung down his torso in two strands straight as a board. His eye sockets were impossibly deep and the two eyes staring at me with a mixture of hate and feeding lust, were bleeding tears. Like two pools overflowing from the source, they flickered as something in him started to ripple from his smoking chest.

The nauseating smell was making me keep swallowing my own bile back down, but when he took the last step and I saw what his face was doing, I could no longer keep it back. The rippling had travelled up his chest, to his neck and then started to literally rip his face apart. The split started at his chin and spread up his face, spraying blood out in a fine mist.

Once the blood cleared the air, it left me staring at a face cut in two, only now with tiny rows of teeth running vertical up the sides of the hanging flesh. His face had now become one massive sideways mouth and his eyes were the only things spared from the change, as even his nose had become two nostrils inches apart.

I turned my head and heaved up my vomit, finishing just in time to move out of the way. His one arm had swung out to grab me and missed by so little, I had felt the whoosh of air from the action on my face. As I was taking steps further back something in my mind clicked and one word flashed like a neon sign.

‘Shield’.

In one swift movement I brought the umbrella I had back round from the hook of my belt and pressed the button. It flew out and I held it out in front of me hiding myself behind it. It covered my dress perfectly and when I heard the roar in frustration, I knew he couldn’t see me. I heard the movement of a frantic arm looking for prey as it blindly whipped this way and that. I took little steps back, not knowing how well it relied on its hearing but not willing to take any chances. As soon as I thought I was far enough away I stopped to look around for an exit. To get back to the stairs I would have had to have passed ‘Big Ugly’ and I now realised why that name was picked for him, as it was oh so very fitting.

I saw on the other side, an exit door and I made my way towards it making sure to keep myself from view the whole time. It was slow going walking backwards but I soon made it. I let out a sigh of relief when I pushed on the bar in front and it opened near where my truck was parked. I fumbled with my umbrella while running for the door and it was only when I was safely inside my vehicle that I could breathe.

I didn’t feel like waiting round here while I studied the letter so I turned Big Blue around and squealed the truck down the road back to the guard who let me through with a wave. I only just managed to make it out of sight before I cut the engine, threw myself out the car to throw up again on the side of the road. When nothing was left, I spit a few times to get the taste out of my mouth and got back in the truck.

It wasn’t what you would have called my finest hour, that was for sure, but at least I had done what needed to be done. I tried to tell myself this over and over but it didn’t help when trying to open the envelope with shaking hands. I pulled the letter out, feeling something weighty in the corner of the envelope but left that for later.

I unfolded the page and thought my eyes were deceiving me for a minute but no, I read it over and over again and then said the first thing that came to mind,

“Son of a Bitch!”

Chapter 9

Paid for my Wasted Hopes

I just couldn’t believe that all I had gone through was for a piece of paper that’s said what, another damn riddle!

‘If Alice is sick of Wonderland then pull an ET, But if she wishes to meet the Royalty down the Rabbit hole, then wait ten minutes for one to show up’

And that was it! I screamed out in frustration and fisted my hands. How was that any help to me at all I didn’t know, but one thing I did know, was that I was being led on a merry dance! Question was, how did I know what the bloody steps were without any music? All this cryptic crap was getting me no closer to Draven and I was close to jacking it all in. I mean I had just nearly become a main course for a Demon to chow down on, and for what...? A letter and a…

I tipped the envelope, just remembering there was something else in there and something weighty fell into my gloved palm.

“A coin?” I said looking down. It was a misshapen silver coin which looked like it belonged in a museum. It was so old it was barely even classed as being round in shape. On one side had the head of a person, man or woman I couldn’t tell, but they had their mouth open and their tongue hanging down. Tiny round circles surrounded the head that could have been curls or snake heads, I couldn’t tell. I turned it over and the other side looked like an anchor with three symbols around it at different points.

I don’t know how long I stared at it but when another car passed me it brought me back from my trace. I put the coin back in the envelope along with the pointless letter and started the truck. All the way home my mind kept going back to that coin and what I was supposed to do with it. Of course it was at this point my truck decided to give up for the second time and I cursed like a sailor as I pulled it over.

Old tricks came back and I hit the steering wheel in hopes the truck would know yet again how pissed off I was with it! I got out, dragged my hands through my hair and tried to calm down. This was turning out to be one Hell of a day and it wasn’t even past morning yet.

“I doubt I will get another chance at seeing Big J,” I said finding that my own comfort in this situation was to talk to myself like a crazy lady that lived with a shopping trolley, collecting cans. I once again saw the smoke coming from the grill on the front and I wasn’t about to burn my hand twice in one day doing the same stupid thing, like touching the bonnet.

Well, it looked like I only had one choice. I got back in the truck and fished my handbag from under the seat where I had stuffed it and rummaged for my mobile.

“Time to phone…home” I said slowly and then dropped my phone along with the penny in my mind.

“Phone home! That’s it!” I shouted reaching for the letter I had stuffed angrily back in the glove box. I read the letter again and groaned out loud.

“I don’t know what you’re playing at Pythia, but I am starting to see you’ve got one pain in the ass sense of humour. Ok, so I will keep playing…ET indeed.” I said shaking my head at the last part. So she was saying if I was to call Frank, game over but if I waited here, for only she knew what to show up, then I was still a piece on the board. So that is what I did, I waited.

It was almost the longest ten minutes of my life as I painstakingly waited for each number to change and when spot on ten minutes hit, I saw help coming my way. I got out to meet the tow truck as it pulled up in front of me. I watched as a stocky guy got out of the truck and approached. He was about five foot ten but was square in the shoulders and had a shaved head that he rubbed on his way over. When he lifted his gaze to me, he looked uncomfortable for a moment and when he looked me up and down, I realised why.

I was still wearing my dress and with the combination of gloves and heavy black boots, I didn’t exactly fit the expected profile of someone broken down at this time in the morning. I bit on my lower lip and when I still felt the remains of lipstick there, I winced. I really hoped he didn’t think I was a working girl.

“Are you Keira?” He asked in a deeper voice and I frowned at him.

“How do you know that?”

“A guy came into my garage as I was opening up. He told me that a girl called Keira in a hot…umm…red dress was in need of a tow.” He said rubbing his head again and it looked to be a nervous habit. When his gaze finally found mine, I was taken aback by light green eyes and a rough but handsome face. He had week old stubble on a strong jaw, a flat nose that added to his roguish charm and a pair of full lips. And I hadn’t missed the blush his little ‘hot’ slip up, had caused him. Although I really didn’t see why, as I felt like a swamp critter at the moment, with wet hair and no doubt a red nose due to the cold the early morning brought. I missed my jacket already.

“Well, I appreciate it.” I said not knowing what else to say.

“Hey, you’re British!” He said and then looked as if he instantly regretted it. He walked past me to my truck to hide another blush.

“Sure am.” I said in a higher pitch than was needed, but the smile he flashed me to the side told me that he was thankful for my light-hearted response.

“Let’s see what we got here then, can you pop the hood?” It was amazing how many times you could hear the same sentence in the space of a few hours, from two very different guys.

“I will do but I can tell you now what’s wrong.” I said and he straightened from the bonnet and folded his arms. He had a playful glint in his eyes as he said,

“Oh really?” I smiled back when he raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, Mr oh really…” At this he gave me a beaming smile and I knew if I wasn’t already in love with the world’s most handsome man, then this smile would have made me melt. I went to my door, opened to the pull the latch. By the time I closed the door he was still waiting for me to elaborate.

“There is a small leak in one of the pipes from the radiator. I know I should have been watching my temperature gauge so it didn’t overheat but I…well, I had more important things on my mind at the time… anyway, I think I might have warped the metal and blown an overhead gasket.” I finished and he now looked stunned. He actually had to clear his throat and I laughed a little when he turned from me.

“Let’s take a look should we?” He said, his voice dropping an octave. I tried not to notice when he covertly adjusted his jeans slightly. He looked at my steaming engine and started nodding his head.

“Well sugar, you know your stuff, I will give ya that.” I laughed making him look my way.

“Not really…I kind of…well I broke down earlier this morning and some guy helped me then, I just remembered what he told me and reeled off the same stuff to you.” I confessed and this granted me another beaming grin.

“I can see I am gonna have to watch myself around you.” He laughed out a husky sound and rubbed his head again.

“Ok sugar, I am gonna have to get her hooked up and tow her back to my shop, can I drop you off somewhere on the way?” I gave him my address and he nodded. I stood back to let him work and he told me to wait in the cab as it was warmer in there. At first he had tried to give me his jacket but I convinced him I was fine. Just before he was about to strap my poor truck up, I remembered something vital.

“Wait!” I shouted and ran to my truck door.

“Sorry, I forgot my bag and stuff.” I said making him shrug his shoulders and motion for me to go ahead. I reached in, grabbed the most important thing which was the frustrating envelope and my bag.

“Thanks.” I said letting him get back to it.

We were soon on the move and after a few silent minutes he startled me by reaching across me while driving and offered me his hand.

“I’m Edison Tucker but my friends call me Eddie or Tuck.” He said as I shook his hand.

“ET!” I blurted out and he raised his eyebrows.

“Sorry, I just mean…your initials, are ET right?” I said, now being the one to blush.

“I guess, hey…you’re not comparing me to a short, wrinkly alien are you, ‘cause man, I will tell ya, that will hurt any guys ego?” He said joking, making me laugh and shake my head at the same time.

“Sorry, I have this bad habit of speaking without thinking…I think I need a new brain filter or something.” I said hoping that letting him know I was a little mental would help. He let out a mighty laugh that shook his large frame.

“I think your brain is just fine…damn fine.” Did I hear that last part right? I chose to ignore his whispered compliment but I couldn’t hide the damn blush that went with it.

“So, was that guy your boyfriend?” The question caught me off guard.

“Sorry?”

“I mean…sorry it’s none of my business.” He looked uncomfortable now and I put my hand on his arm before I could stop myself.

“Which guy?” I asked feeling my pulse quicken at just the thought…why wasn’t I even thinking straight. I mean someone had walked into this guy’s work place and told him where I would be. Did the Oracle have someone working for her on this little game or could it have been someone I knew?

“He never told me his name, but he paid me for the tow and more than enough to fix what’s wrong with your truck, I just guessed he must have been your boyfriend is all.”

“This guy paid for the work?!” I said a bit dumbfounded.

“Yeah and I am guessing with that tone, you don’t know who he is?” I just shook my head at him and gave him a blank look of pure confusion.

“Apart from paying for the job, what else did he say?”

“Well it was weird ‘cause he told me not to hurry with fixin’ your truck, ‘cause you won’t be needing it straight away…and I am taking that cute wide eyed look of yours that this is not the case?”

“Umm, that would be a big Hell no! Why would anyone say that?” This last part I asked myself out loud. He shrugged his shoulders and then jumped a little as if remembering something.

“I almost forgot. He also gave me something to give you when he paid.”

“What was it?” I shouted eagerly grabbing his arm again. Man wasn’t I the touchy feely one today, I thought letting go of the poor guy.

“Sorry, I guess my social skills need working on today.” I mumbled.

“Hey, don’t go saying sorry for touching me…I mean…oh shit, I didn’t mean that sexually or anything…shit!...Now look who is the one that needs to find their social skills.” He said rubbing his large palm over his shaved head. I laughed thinking this had been one Hell of a morning.

“Let’s start over, my name is Keira, I have a broken truck, that hopefully you will be able to fix, because I have a real soft spot for that hunk of junk, and the guy you met wasn’t my boyfriend.” I said shaking his hand again, making him grin at me. That look had me regretting all this as I now thought he got the wrong impression that this was flirty…was this flirting?

“Eddie, the idiot that keeps putting his foot in it and will, without a doubt, thanks to my mad skills as a mechanic be able to fix your hunk of junk.” I laughed and slapped him lightly on the arm.

“Hey, less of the junk bit!”

“Hey yourself sugar, you said it first and besides…she isn’t that bad.” He added with a sideways smirk.

The rest of the journey to my house continued on in this playful conversation and I found I liked Eddie and his easy, blushing smile. That was until he pulled up to my house and asked me his next question,

“So Keira, I…umm, well I wanted to ask you if you fancied going for a drink sometime…or maybe, I don’t know, like dinner?” Right at this point my mind got slammed with a vision so strong I couldn’t breathe. I don’t know how it happened or where it came from but it put me on a cross roads with two paths to choose. To the left was a sign that said ‘Blooming Orchard Drive’ and when I closed my eyes that path filled my mind with an onslaught of images.

It started with chatty dates, evenings filled with laughter thanks to Eddie’s playful manner. Then nights sat kissing on his battered couch in the flat above his shop. Teasing nicknames like ‘ET’ for him and ‘Hot Red’ for me. Introductions to friends and family. Him holding little Ella and shaking hands with Frank after having a beer from out of our fridge. BBQ’s, birthdays, Christmas’s all merged into one. Then a simple wedding flashed up and a beautiful man in a Tux who had shaved for the occasion.

Then there it was, a sign we drove past that said ‘Blooming Orchard Drive’ where a little quaint house that needed painting and a new fence sat. What came with it was a montage of snippets of our time there. Chasing each other with paint brushes, that ended in a tangle of limbs on the floor in one of the rooms. I swallowed hard when I saw us making love and me calling out a different name.

The visions only stopped on the cruellest of all. I was being wheeled into the hospital by an anxious Eddie at my side and my breathing was laboured in pain. My hands were protectively on my pregnant belly, as I was ready to give birth to our first child.

Then time dragged itself back at such a speed it was like the sight one would see in a blur going too fast for our eyes to keep up. It snapped me back to that same crossroads and had me facing my one other path. This one was named,

‘7 Breaths to make, to 7 Steps to take, to 7th Heaven you will wake’

One step in this direction took me to one vision and one alone…the only one needed.

I was back in Draven’s arms looking up at him. He raised his hands to frame my face and he placed his forehead to mine. I saw his lips move but I didn’t need to hear the words to know what he said, it was a clear as the sky we stood under, as beautiful as the summer sun which shone down on us. We stood on his balcony and Ava landed next to us but we didn’t look her way, we couldn’t move and stand the thought of turning away from each other, I couldn’t, not as he told me,

He loved me.

I was suddenly slammed back to the now and turned to see Eddie waiting for my answer. I felt my heart pinch in my chest as I looked into the eyes of the man who could no doubt bring me a life filled with happiness. But it just wasn’t enough. It would never be enough. I knew that without the help of any vision. I knew that, thanks to this heart that beat inside of me for the only one person that would ever own it.

The other half of a beating muscle that kept my blood still pumping around an empty vessel. Empty, until I could step back into those arms and feel him as he gave me back my soul.

Dominic Draven, my soul’s keeper.

“I’m sorry Eddie, I would love to say yes and would… if …well…if I wasn’t already in love with someone else.” I said biting my lip and feeling like I had just sealed a fate with a locked door, one as thick as a bank vault. He gave me a little head nod but the disappointment was clear.

“I figured a beauty and funny sweetheart like you wouldn’t be single. He’s a lucky guy, whoever he is.” He said lifting my hand and giving the back a little kiss. I was so touched, I couldn’t stop myself from giving him a hug and I felt him breathe me in, making a shudder vibrate through his chest.

“Thank you for asking Eddie, and someday I have no doubt you will make someone a great catch. You take care of yourself…oh and my truck of course.” I finished with a wink and he laughed. I opened the door and was just getting out when he stopped me.

“I almost forgot to give you this.” He said pulling out an envelope from his jacket and handing it to me.

“Thanks ET,” I said making him chuckle. We may not ever have a life together, but no one was ever gonna get to call him that nickname but me.

“You’re welcome, Hot Red.” He said smirking and I burst out laughing. I left his truck on a massive high and in the complete opposite mood to when I had left this morning.

I waved to him and watched him until he went out of sight. I then rushed into the house to find a letter left back on top of mine in the kitchen. It was from Libby saying they had gone shopping and were going to grab pizzas for tonight.

Normally finding no one here would have me feeling low within seconds but with this new letter in my hands and everything that had happened this morning, I was in need of the solitude.

I rushed up the stairs, whipped the dress over my head, dumping it in my wash basket and tied up my hair. I changed into some comfy clothes and sat on my bed, ready to read the next part. I opened it up and when I pulled out the thick wad I noticed the first part was in the form of plane tickets. I looked at the destination and like last time, one comment came to mind,

“Son of a Bitch!”

Chapter 10

Royal Pain in the Cryptic Ass

I looked down in my hands that not only held my ticket out of here but more importantly, my first real footstep in the direction to bringing Draven back.

“London.” I said the destination out loud and flopped back on my pillows as I blew all the air out through my cheeks. It took me a moment to absorb it all and I had to shake my head to carry on with the letter. I picked it up and confusion hit me big time. It was an A4 sized piece of paper with only one sentence in the centre,

Didn’t fancy pulling ET?

“WHAT!?” I shouted out loud reading it again and again. Was this it?! Was this all I was going to get? This was unbelievable and just confirmed two things, the first being that this Pythia was truly and completely nuts! The second was that, when I finally met this nutter, I was going to strangle her!

“No I didn’t bloody pull ET! What is wrong with you people, just talk normal!” I shouted at the ceiling whilst slamming the pathetic excuse for a letter down.

“Arrrggghhhh!” It was only when I was panting through my little rage episode that I looked down to see that the piece of paper had started to mist over. I could see little ink veins travel from the underneath around the top and they came together growing into thicker branches.

“What the Hell!” I whispered as all the branches joined together and swirled around until they suddenly splattered outwards making me jump back. It was as if someone had a water balloon full of ink and had just thrown it at the page. Then I watched on as the ink seeped into the page leaving only words behind. The first line made my mouth drop open.

There is no need to shout, I was only asking!

But as I now have your answer, it is time to proceed.

Good choice by the way!

I then couldn’t believe it as I read on and it began like any other letter....

Dear Tricks,

Well that was exciting now wasn’t it? Ok, so now it is time to crack on and flip the coin. The next steps will take you further into a place you have never known but have faith young traveller, as it won’t be your only friend on this journey.

First you must go back to where it all began and take steps into the past that put you at the Kings level. Only in his footsteps will the answers come into the light.

A coin is just a payment for the ferryman but when kissed by Angelic Royalty it becomes a key into the palace. Take this key to the Hellfire gates and the mouth will drop at the sight of the depths Charon will go. Cross over to the other side with aid from which payment is granted and walk the path your lover’s fate will take you.

There you will find your King and with it your answers,

Now is the time to put pen to page for the riddle it dances,

To find the Ahoy and your deck,

Place your true name in order of its peck.

The last letter in your name is where you will begin,

Then jump to the start, find 3 A’s, put two in the bin.

To see the next 3 we’ll leave your name behind,

And look back to my words where the same 3 you will find.

The same letter you will see in my madness of double 3,

Never have over a traveller’s level lover for tea.

But then look back to what you find in half a ships greeting,

Before continuing on to find where we will be meeting.

So back we jump to your name once again,

Time to jot down the doubles and leave out the N,

But the L we won’t need until the last in the word,

Have faith in your King for this next letter to be heard.

For there is one who you love, this much is true,

But take him away and the answer left is in the do.

For with 4 in this Journey is Key to Royalty,

Here you will use 1 and then the A you find in loyalty.

The last word comes out on the page as a whole,

With the last step in my game for reaching your goal,

For a whistle and flute is the name of the place,

He pays at the end and leaves with his case.

Oh and Keira…have fun!

P x

“Oh you gotta be kiddin’ me!” I shouted shaking the letter. This was unbelievable! Not only was I crap with riddles but this one looked like the Holy Grail, Mother of all that is Crazy and New York Times crossword level of difficult! Well, there went my good mood I thought as I dropped the letter. I don’t know how long I sat there giving the paper my death ray look with my arms folded but some time later my stomach rumbled at me. I got up, determined to leave the paper where it was, but it was suddenly as though it had become a bloody puppy, whiney about being left.

“Fine!” I snapped as I picked it back up and went downstairs with it in my hand. I slapped it down onto the kitchen table making it shake under the force.

“I haven’t finished with you buster!” I said to it thinking that by the time I finally did meet this Pythia I was going to be as crazy as she was! I mean here I was talking to a piece of paper and all I wanted to do with was ram it down the loo!

“Tea…I need tea!” I said turning away from the table and clicking on the kettle. I made myself a sandwich and was chewing angrily, thinking this was doing nothing for my poor molars. All the time I couldn’t take my eyes from that damn letter. It was like it had some sort of spell. Like a magical pull that wouldn’t let me go until I knew its meaning. I rolled my eyes and wiped the crumbs from my mouth with the back of my hand.

“Fine, let’s do this.” I said and plonked myself down to start the unlikely task of decrypting this mad code. Five seconds later I was swearing at it. None of it made any sense and forget about needing a degree, this thing needed a technologically advanced little green man with a PHD!

“Holy shit Pythia, why didn’t you just send me a bloody rubic cube! It would have been faster…or here’s an idea, why not just do it the normal way and write down a bloody address! Oh no, couldn’t do that for me now, and while we’re at it try stepping into the modern day and emailing me! Hell, I wouldn’t say no to a homing pigeon as long as it didn’t come with quiz attached to its leg!” I said all this as I stormed back up the stairs…letter in hand of course.

I deflated into my desk chair and stared at the letter until the words started to blur and then slam, the first answer came to me.

“No way!” I shouted as I wrenched open the drawer so hard I nearly pulled it from its runners. I grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil. I ignored the first three lines until it got to the part about my ‘true name’. At first I wrote down Catherine but then it didn’t make any sense so I added the rest,

Catherine Keiran Williams

Then I followed the rules. The last letter in my name was S so I wrote that down. Then I found the next one was A so added that. The next part about ‘madness of double 3’ which I gathered meant 6 but that was all I could get from the next part, so I moved on. I had no clue to the ‘Traveller’s level lover’ so passed on that as well.

So I went back to my name as it told me to and looked for the double letters in my name. Ok so there were two N’s, L’s and R’s but after reading on I could eliminate N and L so wrote down R on my paper. Didn’t get the next bit but saw the A, I would ‘find in Loyalty’ so added it to the page. So now I had SA letters missing and then R and A. I quickly scanned the next part and think it meant O. Yes because if you took away the one I love, which was Dom, and the answer was in the ‘Do’ then that would leave O, also meaning 1-1 =0, so I added that to the list.

“Ok so what next, I have the S.A….3 letters missing and then R.O. Letter missing and then A.” I bit my lips as I read on hoping I was on the right track so far. I read the other part more slowly and asked myself what 4 had to do with ‘This Journey is Key to Royalty’…when I saw it…that’s sentence had 4 Y’s and it asked me to only use one and then an A!

So after a quick scan of the rest I saw a bit that said ‘But the L we won’t need until the last in the word’ So when I added that too it spelt out,

‘S.A…..R.O.Y.A.L’

After reading the last part it came to me quicker this time as the only thing ‘Whistle and Flute’ could be is Suit in cockney slang. And then the ‘Pays at the end and leaves with his case’ meant hotel so these too put together could only mean ‘Suite’

“I got it!” I shouted going back to the top and reading ‘You find in half a ship’s greeting’ which she mentioned at the beginning in the ‘To find the Ahoy and your deck’

I wrote down the place she was going to finally meet me and couldn’t help but make a ‘Woop woop’ shout out. It might have taken me a few hours to figure it out but I finally made up the place name with the last letters…

‘SAVOY ROYAL SUITE’

I knew it was one of the most famous hotels in London, so this could be the only place she meant. I felt so great after I finally figured it out, it was only when in the shower later that it occurred to me why she did things in this way. All of the letters so far only made sense after the next piece of the puzzle. So if anyone was to get their hands on one of the letters then they wouldn’t be able to make out where she was, or even what they meant. She told me in the beginning she couldn’t just write down where she was and in this last letter, without the right name you wouldn’t have figured it out.

It was crazy madness and frustrating as Hell, but you couldn’t deny the genius in her ways. The one part I still didn’t get was why hand over the coin and letter to someone that wanted to eat a piece of me? That one I think would have to be explained by the lady herself.

After I got out of the shower, changed, and dried my hair, I was starting to feel more human again. I picked up the tickets and the rest of the letters and hid them all in my top drawer apart from the last letter. I sat down on my bed cleaning the water from my ears with an ear bud while I scanned the first part of the letter. It just felt like there was something I was missing, something I needed to do and soon.

It was a strange feeling, like some invisible hand was pulling at my fingers until I got it right. I mean, everything so far she’d predicted. That was until the one choice I was given. Eddie was like the ultimate test to where my loyalties lay. It was like handing me my one and only chance at a normal life. Like the Gods had given me a way out of being the Chosen One. But why...was this my very own version of ‘free will’, the same chance at it that everyone else got?

At this point there was only one person with any answers for me but first I needed to figure this part out. I knew the key was in these words but it was like trying to make sense of a small child that can’t quite talk yet. They knew what they were saying but as adults we already had the correct way of saying things drummed into us, so the key was thinking like a child. Was it the same with this? If I ever wanted to make sense of it I needed to think like her. Like someone who was trying to give me orders in a way only I would understand.

‘First you must go back to where it all began and take steps into the past that put you at the Kings level’ Well, surely the only thing meant by this was ‘Afterlife’, as that was after all where this all began and to put me at Draven’s level was in the VIP. The next part I didn’t understand yet but I knew one thing, I would have to get back into Afterlife before I went anywhere. And it had something to do with this coin. So, with that in mind, I rooted out that envelope and placed the coin in my pocket, feeling comfort instantly on feeling its tiny weight in my jeans, so I continued to keep it there.

After a few days I had it all planned out in my head. The tickets said I was to travel on the fifth of July, two days before my birthday, which gave me enough time to put my plans into action. But there was one thing I knew I needed to do to make sure my plan worked and for that I needed Jack. Which was why I was scrolling down to his number and calling him right now.

“Hey stranger, what’s up?” His easy going voice helped calm the buzzing I felt in my head from being ready to burst with excess energy. All this cracking codes and planning a rescue mission had had me pumped and ready to go for days.

“Umm, nothing really, just kinda need to ask you something but don’t want to do it over the phone…do you fancy meeting up?”

We arranged for him to come round after his shift the next day and this gave me time to talk to Libby. I didn’t know how Libby would take to the idea that I was going to go on a mission on my own, to try and find Draven, so this is where I had to do the hard part…lie. I hated the thought of doing it but I hated the idea of her worrying even more. I knew after all this time that she thought Draven had broken up with me and she would have thought I was crazy travelling the world to find a man that clearly didn’t want me, but what else could I have told her?

‘Well see Lib’s, Draven is actually in Hell, so me and an Oracle are trying to come up with a way to bust him out’ …umm I didn’t think so! So, as I found her nursing little Ella in the living room, I sat down near her.

“Hey, you ok?” She said shifting the baby, getting ready to wind her.

“Yeah, but I wanted to speak to you.” I said dreading the next part that was until she interrupted me.

“Yeah, I kind of wanted to speak to you too.” She said so I decided to see what she had to say first.

“Well, you know Frank’s mum and Dad have that cabin they vacation at?” I nodded for her to continue.

“They asked if all of us wanted to go and spend two weeks with them, they invited you as well of course and I know that college has wrapped up for you, so I wanted to know what you thought?” She must have seen my face because she frowned.

“What is it?”

“Well, I was just about to tell you about my plans for travelling, I was asked to go with the rest of the gang and well, I really want to go.” I was surprised when I saw her smiling.

“I think that’s great Kazzy, I mean you could do with some fun, ever since that ass…”

“Libby don’t.” I warned just like I did every time someone tried to turn Draven into the bad guy.

“Why do you bother defending him…? You do remember what he did to you. I mean you should have seen what you were like…I…”

“Trust me, I remember Libs, but it’s over now and I don’t want to hear his name being dragged through the mud just for not wanting me.” She looked like she was about to argue her point further but something in my face stopped her.

“Fair enough. I am glad you’re having some fun though and Jack’s going, right?” She waggled her eyebrows at me and I groaned while rolling my eyes.

“Not this again.” I muttered making her laugh, one that jiggled Ella. Not that she minded much as she had fallen asleep slumped over my sister’s arm. We both laughed and she cradled her. I had been hearing from my sister none stop lately on her thoughts about how she thought Jack and I should date and every time I would stop her mid flow.

“So, when are you going, ‘cause I hate to spring this on you but you know how Frank’s folks leave everything to the last minute…?”

“Why, when are you going?” I asked hoping for sooner as it would make my plans much easier.

“Tomorrow.” She winced as she said it but I smiled.

“That’s fine Lib’s, I won’t be here long before I go either.”

“But I will miss your birthday.”

“Libby it’s fine, it’s not like it’s an important one or anything and I won’t be on my own, I will no doubt be celebrating it in some bar somewhere, having one too many and then being carried back to my room by…

“Jack.” She giggled when I groaned.

“So, you guys go tomorrow for a couple of weeks, and I fly on the 5th, but I think we will be gone for most of the summer.” She already knew this from when I first started talking about going to Europe travelling and this was where Jack would come into my plans.

“I can’t believe I won’t see you for ages.” She complained and I gave her a little grin.

“I know but hey, we did it before, remember when you turned to the other side and married a Yank.” I joked and she gave me a beaming grin which I copied.

“You will too, one day.” I walked away smiling and whispered under my breath,

“I have a thing for old Persian Kings,” as I took the stairs two at a time.

The next day consisted of me running round helping Libby get ready for their trip and as we brought stuff downstairs, Frank loaded it into their car.

“Remember the days when we could just pack one bag and drive off?” Frank complained light heartedly.

“What happened to those days?” He asked me and I patted him on the arm as I handed him another bag loaded with baby stuff.

“You had a baby, Frank.” He looked down at me with a massive grin and then looked over to where Libby was feeding Ella. He beamed at them both and then said,

“Yes, yes I did.” Then he walked out of the door whistling.

When they were all loaded up and after an emotional goodbye from both sides, I was soon waving them off. I hated the thought of not seeing my niece for so long but I knew that what I needed to do next was one quest in life I had to take alone.

I was just getting out of the shower later when I heard my phone ringing. I made a mad dash dripping water all the way downstairs to get the phone. I picked it up and when I heard the dial tone I replaced the phone down with extra force. I hated it when that happened and was just about to go stomping up the stairs, when I heard something being pushed through the letter box. I spun round and saw the letter emerge and I ran over to the door, but by the time I opened it, whoever had delivered it had gone.

I closed the door after searching for a good few minutes and when I was sure no one was going to jump out at me and say, ‘yep it was me’ I closed the door. I grabbed the letter and followed a familiar pattern by going to my room to read it. I wrapped the towel around me tighter and took off the one I had wrapped round my hair like a turban. I sat on the bed and opened the letter with shaking hands.

The emotions that would come barrelling my way whenever I would get another letter were heart pounding and breath stealing. It was like every piece of paper was another step taken towards Draven and this was my driving force.

‘Those with eyes can easily see the changes one makes for the journey ahead, but no matter what the looking glass holds, it is our souls that don’t ever change colour’

It was a tiny scrap of paper that held these words and I re-read them over and over until like usual, it clicked. She wanted me to change my appearance before I went anywhere.

“Ok, I get it.” I said out loud and as soon as I did this, the words blurred and changed into something else,

‘A Lion can’t smell the other Lioness when she turns into a moth, even one burnt by the flame’

And then suddenly it started to burn in my hand from the inside outwards.

“Shit!” I said shaking it free before it burnt me. It floated in the air as the paper turned into tiny black pieces and then disappeared. So, what she said this time, she didn’t want anyone knowing about. Well that was fine, but if I was going to change anything then there was first one place I needed to go and that was back to the beginning….

Back to Afterlife.

Chapter 11

Breaking Afterlife Law

When I heard Jack’s truck pull up outside, I was pumped and ready to go. I was even wearing all black for my mission. I had everything I needed in my bag and I could feel the coin in my pocket where it always was.

I walked out of the house, locked the door and ran over to Jack. He was such a gentleman, he even leaned over and opened the door for me.

“Hey you” He said and I smiled at him as I climbed in.

“Hi Jack, how are you?” I asked with a grin.

“I’m all the better now for seeing you.” He said winking at me and I laughed. I don’t think there was ever a point where Jack didn’t flirt with me, so it would have been weird if he ever started acting any different. It was just one of those relationships we had and had never thought to change. It caused no harm and even the very few times he had seen Draven, he had been nothing but respectful around him. Jack was a good friend and this was the reason I had asked for his help.

“Hey, I like your hair that way, never seen it like that before but it suits you.” He complimented, making me blush. I had never worn it like this, out of the house before but tonight was different. I had tied it into a low ponytail and then plaited it, tying it at the end with one of the purple ribbons I got from Draven that he used to tie around a rose left on my pillow. It had grown longer since then and the end of my hair swung past my waist to my behind.

“Thanks, and hey, new T-shirt?” I asked looking at his ‘Black Sabbath’ T-shirt that had some sort of brown helmet with a gas mask on the front which also had ‘U.S TOUR ‘78’ underneath the picture.

“Yeah RJ got me it, it’s the one Tony Stark wears in the Avengers movie.” I knew he was a big comic book fan and his favourite was Ironman.

We were just chatting about everyday stuff when he pulled into our dingy dinner that had become a quick favourite, thanks to the laugh we had in there every time when doing our ‘people watching’.

Once inside and as comfy as you were ever going to get in one of those hard booths, Jack put his menu down and said,

“Ok Kaz, what’s up?” I took a deep breath and placed my menu down ready to explain my crazy plan.

“Jack, this is going to sound insane, but I need your help with something.” His eyes widened for a second and he nodded for me to continue.

“You can’t tell anyone though, not even RJ. You cool with that?” I asked first and he laughed.

“Well that’s a given, tell that girl anything and then wait five minutes for it circle the town’s ear for it to get back to you. Gotta love Facebook!” He said shaking his head smiling.

“Yeah, but we love her.” I said before ordering a coke from the less than happy waitress.

“Ok, so we have established me not telling anyone but question still stands…are you gonna ask me…you know like some time before I need a walking stick?” I rolled my eyes and threw my menu at him.

“Ok, but please don’t judge me.” At this he held up his hands and said,

“I am never one to judge, you know that Keira.”

“I know but this…well… you’re gonna think I am crazy.”

“I already do if that helps.” I laughed with his teasing and we went silent as ‘happiness’ brought over our drinks.

“So what is it, you’re not joining the circus are you, ‘cause you know you need a bit more stubble for the next bearded lady?” I laughed and this time flicked my ice at him.

“You would know…didn’t you date her last week?” I hit back at him making us both crack up.

“Ok, serious time…I…”

“Just spit it out, I mean jeez, it can’t be that bad.” He said so I did just that.

“I am going to London to find Draven, but no-one knows.” I blurted out and his face dropped.

“Why?” Was the only thing he said after minutes of stunned silence.

“Let’s just say we have unfinished business.” I said and shrugged my shoulders.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Kaz.” His face got serious and I felt even worse for including him in this.

“It’s been decided and my flight has already been booked.” I wanted him to know how serious I was about this, but I hated seeing the spark in his eyes die out, knowing I had done this.

“On your own?” I simply nodded at his question.

“And he has no idea?” Well this part I didn’t need to lie about.

“No-one does but you and the friend I am meeting there.” He seemed to relax a bit at hearing this.

“So you won’t be completely on your own?” He asked as it was clear he was worried about me.

“I guess not, but now for the part where I need your help.”

“What do you need me to do?” He said not having to even think about it.

“I hate this, but I have no choice and I know it isn’t fair…I wish there was another way…”

“Keira, look at me…I am your friend and I know anything you have to do is because you are most likely trying to spare the feelings of others.” His words touched me and I reached across the sticky table and said,

“Thank you Jack, that means a lot to me.”

After the dinner I asked Jack not to drop me off at home as there was something I needed to do. He raised his eyebrow at me, but didn’t comment. We had just pulled up outside and a deep sigh released from me.

“It looks so barren, so empty.” I said looking out to a building that had become a part of me and seeing it this way hurt something deep inside me, making me feel as empty as the place now looked.

“That’s because it is, Keira.” Jack said in a quiet voice that was full of meaning.

“Why are you doing this to yourself?” His question took me off guard. I knew he only asked because he cared, so I turned to him fully, shifting in my seat.

“Because if I didn’t try then I would always have regret and I couldn’t live like that. Just like you tried everything in your power to find Celina, I have to do the same, before I reach that point where I know I have done everything and still I walk away with the same answers I started with. Only then, I know it won’t have been in vain…do you understand?” I asked softly.

“I think I do. But Keira, can I give you some advice?” I nodded for him to continue.

“Don’t lose who you are in the answers. Sometimes, no matter the outcome and how much we tell ourselves it will just be better once we know, sometimes it doesn’t work out like that. Sometimes…things are better left without an ending, that way it is easier to make a new one, one that makes us smile…sometimes…” He looked like he was about to get choked up so he turned to stare out of the window, not looking at me but his next words cut deep, without him even knowing it,

“…things are better left…dead.”

After I said my goodbyes to Jack, his words kept repeating round in my head as I walked up to the front entrance of Afterlife. I had told Jack that I would call Frank for a lift back as I hadn’t told him that they had left already. I didn’t need another person worrying about me and I had told him too much already. But I knew someone in the world needed to know the truth in case something happened to me. I wanted my family to at least have closure and I knew that Jack was the key.

I asked him, if the occasion ever arose, to back up the lies I had told my family. I needed them to believe I was travelling with them to Europe, when in actual fact they were taking a road trip to the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas and then on to California. I told him what to say in case anyone ever called him and we made up our different excuses together. I said I would call him and keep checking in with him at least twice a week.

By doing this I was trying to cover all bases. I had even found out the address for ‘Transfusion’ in Germany, being surprised they actually had a website. I had written down all the addresses, email, website and town, telling him if he didn’t hear from me in over a week to get in contact with someone called Judas and tell him that Toots was in trouble, to then tell him everything he knew and that would help. Jack had been dying to ask questions about it, but when I started shaking my head, he got the hint. The one thing I did tell him was,

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that, but if something ever does go wrong, then know that is the one guy who will definitely be able to help.” After telling him this, he didn’t looked relieved but more worried. It was at that point that I hugged him goodbye and told him not to worry about me, I had all bases covered. I just hoped I was right.

I walked up to the front door, but it was all locked up tight as it was last time. But the one thing I noticed that was missing was the note that I had hit with my fist, smearing my blood on it. It had me wondering who took it down?

I decided to play at detective once again and take a look around. I decided my best bet was trying the access door on the side of the building close to the bins. This was one door that led straight through the back and then into the bar area. I walked up the few metal steps and entered the code I knew from memory. When the thing beeped at me I tried again.

“Oh come on!” I shouted as I realised someone had changed the code. Well, what was I going to do now, that was my only idea at getting inside? I stood back and looked up to the balcony higher up, which I knew was the one attached to the VIP area. Now, if I could just get up there somehow. I went through the most obvious options that came to mind at a time like this and the first being the quickest to cross off the list. Even if I had a ladder at home, I didn’t have the truck to get it here. Big blue was still with Eddie and because I chickened out talking to him, I had Frank ring up and ask about it.

He was told that there were a few more things to fix than he first thought and it would take a little longer, as he’d had to order a part. As it turned out I wasn’t going to need my truck for a while anyway. Now a ladder was another thing, I thought as I moved back a few more steps.

I looked around and then a crazy idea formed in my head. Could it really be done? I stood to the side of the bins and saw that the thicker part of the ivy was within reach if I stood on them. I knew this was more than a little risky, but it wasn’t like I could just call someone to let me in. I knew from bumping into Mike one day while out with the rest of the guys that everyone, including Jerry and Gary the twins that managed Afterlife, had been given the summer off and been paid well for the time. He told me how he couldn’t complain about having a paid holiday, but what was weird was that Jerry had to hand over his keys, something he had never been asked to do before.

Of course, I knew why, but I faked my confusion to Mike the best way I could. So knowing this, it left me little option than the crazy one I was considering right now. So I did the unthinkable as a person scared of heights. I put my bag over my head across my body, climbed onto the massive bin, using the metal on the sides as a foothold. Once I was up, I heard it groan in protest.

“Oh shut up, I’m not that heavy!” I said as I reached up and grabbed one of the thicker bits of ivy. I pulled at it to test my weight but it was so thick and old that it was almost as though it was welded to the building. I looked down and saw there was a perfect part for my first foot and I took three deep breaths, told myself I was crazy, and heaved myself up.

I had closed my eyes as if waiting to fall backwards with the ivy coming with me, but when it didn’t I let out a breath. I opened my eyes, saw a wall of green, lush leaves and took in the scent of earth into my lungs before reaching up for the next piece. If anything, it was easier than I thought it would be, as it was just like climbing a netted rope wall. I just had to keep my eye on that balcony ledge and I knew I would be fine, just fine. It was only when I reached out for the next bit that the pain I sometimes got in my hand had me slipping. I gripped on tighter with my other hand so I wouldn’t fall but it took me a minute of panicking to get over the pain and near drop to my death, to carry on.

By the time I could reach out and touch the stone balustrades my hand was causing me a lot of pain, enough for tears to spring up. I just kept telling myself, not far now, just a little bit further, which was the only thought moving me forward. Finally, I was high enough to haul my leg over the side and I kind of collapsed onto the balcony in a heap. I pulled my sore hand to my chest and when I moved my fingers I cried out. I knew the first thing I would be doing when I got home was downing some pain killers and raiding the freezer for a bag of peas.

I got up and looked over the edge to see how far I had come. I couldn’t believe I’d managed it but then, given my situation, there was nothing more motivating than a vision of Draven in Hell. I looked down at my hands that were scratched and grazed from the rough treatment I had just put them through, but I didn’t care, I just rubbed them down my black jeans.

Now came the tricky part, I didn’t know what I was going to do if this door wouldn’t open because I didn’t know if I could manage to climb back down. Looking up to your goal and the skies was one thing but looking down to the earth and possible death was quite another.

I walked over to the double glass doors that prevented any view of the room beyond thanks to the ice like frosting and I held my breath as my hand raised. Well this was it, no going back now. I closed my eyes and reached out until I felt the cool glass beneath my palm. When I heard the whoosh and felt the air of them opening hit my face, I smiled. When opening my eyes I was welcomed with a lightning bolt of emotions.

“I’m home.” I said as I walked through the open doorway. The sight and smell of the place filled every pore in my body and I felt my body start to hum inside. It was the same feeling I had when touching Leivic. It was as if my body was craving all things supernatural and being here now was the most comforted I had felt in a long time. I even felt the pain fade in my hand and I tested my fingers but there was nothing. I didn’t know how it was possible but the building itself was healing me and I thought that if I hadn’t had a job to do, I would have moved in here and never left.

I walked further into the room and heard the door close behind me. It looked so strange knowing no-one had been here and as I walked round I looked right at the bar without it’s bar man. I could never get used to the fact that Karmun wasn’t here anymore. One of the other waitresses had taken over the duty until a replacement could be found, but I would feel a little pinch in my chest whenever I saw it. But as I moved past it, that was nothing compared to the feeling that stabbed me at seeing the Top table.

I felt like I was walking in thick mud with every difficult step I took towards my past. I came to stand opposite to where Draven sat and I was hit with the memory of last Halloween when I stood here challenging Draven with my bravery. That was the night I met Malphas and then only a few months later he tried to kill me. How my life had changed since that night and the thought brought tears to my eyes.

The room was mostly hidden in the empty shadows and it felt like the ghosts of those who once used to spend their nights here were all that were left. Seats lay waiting for their usual customers to come back. Metal works of art that were once considered beautiful were left to hang like forgotten cars at a scrap yard. It had left the mysterious lure behind and had been replaced by something sad and depressing. The room was once a haven of supernatural energy that seeped from every stone in the building, now all that was left was an empty shell where life once blossomed. It felt like this room was a mirror image of myself and the empathy I felt was enough to have me shaking.

I walked round running my hand along the back of the seats as I went, until I came to the only one that mattered. I pulled the heavy weight back and I looked down at the space where the man himself used to sit. There, with my eyes adjusting to the light, I caught sight of something and just as I was about to pick it up and take a seat, a voice from behind me made me stop.

“What do you think you are doing?!” I jumped at the sound and whipped round to face the trouble I was in. After all, I had just broken in to a locked building. I was just getting ready to explain myself when the figure stepped from these forgotten shadows.

My mouth dropped open but no words came out. I mean what could I say…was I dreaming? Did I have to climb that damn ivy again!? This could not be happening… could it?

“Keira?” He said my name and it pulled me from the dream and dipped me straight back to this reality and what I found there was both unbelievable and beautiful. That perfect voice, that strong frame and that Angelic face. I said the only thing I could manage through the fog of emotions,

“Vincent?”

Chapter 12

The Key is in the Missing Kiss

“Keira!” Vincent said my name and that’s when I let all emotion take over. I ran over to him and flung myself into his arms. He caught me and for the first time since that dreadful day, all was taken from me, I could truly breathe.

“Oh, Keira.” He said as he held me to him and I soaked up the contact like a starved woman. He cradled my head to his chest using the full length of his forearm. His elbow was by my shoulder blade and his palm secured me, as his other arm held my back, as though he never wanted to let go. It was only when he started making soothing sounds as he looked down at me and making small comforting circles with his hand at my back, that I realised I was sobbing.

I had wrapped my arms around his waist like I would never let go and I don’t know how long we stood locked together, but he only eased his hold of me when my tears ceased. He allowed me to pull back and look up at him. His eyes held too many deep thoughts to catch just one, but when he smiled down at me, it was nearly my undoing. He gently used both his thumbs to wipe the remains of my tears away and I stuttered for breath.

“Do you feel better?” He asked me and I blushed at how I had behaved.

“Well, this is a better colour on you, that’s for sure.” He said brushing a single fingertip down the length of my rose tinted cheeks.

“Vincent…I…”

“Hush now, I know you have questions Keira, but let us first sit, you look exhausted…come.” He said as he took my hand in his and strong pale fingers tapped against my hand for me to look up at him. Once I did, I saw a flash of pain in his crystal blue eyes that turned them darker for a second. I wanted to ask him what was wrong but he just smiled at me before he pulled me along. It surprised me when we didn’t sit up in the VIP and it hurt me when we didn’t go to the back through the doors to what was still his home. It was like I wasn’t welcome in that part of his life anymore.

Instead he led me down the main staircase into the lower part of the club, where I had only seen him twice before. The first was all that time ago when the Dravens first entered my life that night. The next was when he came to pry me from scratching my cousin’s eyes out, but I never thought it was to be again in this situation. It was as if he was almost getting ready to escort me out of Afterlife for good.

I let myself be led down the stairs and closer to the entrance. When I saw those heavy carved doors I pulled back on his hand and gave him my plea,

“Please don’t…don’t make me go…please.” I said as he turned to me and I saw that same pain flicker through his pale blue eyes like a navy coloured lightning bolt. I had never seen Vincent’s eyes do this before and worst of all I didn’t know what it meant. He didn’t reply but just held his arm out to a small seating area. There were four red velvet chairs against black lacquered painted wood, with a heavy iron round table in the centre. He positioned me at one of the chairs and pushed gently at my shoulders until I complied and sat. He towered over me as he took every inch of me in, before he turned to take the seat opposite me.

“I know I should be walking you out of that door Keira, but I will be condemning myself to a world of hurt if I do, so be damned the consequences.” He said spitting out the words like they tasted foul.

“Oh no, not you too.” I said knowing all too well what those words meant. When he raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at me I elaborated.

“Before he died, he ordered you not to speak to me…didn’t he?” I said in a voice close to cracking at the idea. That same pain sliced through him and I realised just how much his brother’s death affected him. Just the words had him grinding his teeth and the colour in eyes swirling like the storm was coming in.

“Dominic’s death was not anything you were ever supposed to go through Keira, but it has been decided by those more powerful than I. If I could have changed things then I would have given my own soul to do so. I want you to know I never wanted this, not for you or for my brother, but the…” He looked as though he couldn’t continue, like he was first trying to swallow the lead before his next words could emerge, so I finished it off for him.

“The fates had other ideas.” I said softly and Vincent’s response surprised me. He stood quickly and threw the iron table out of the way. It flipped too many times for my eyes to catch but it travelled the width of the room before crashing into the stage area. I jumped at the sound and looked at Vincent as he lost his temper for the very first time in my company.

“Damn the fates, Keira! Damn them for involving you and damn them for taking my brother to the place he is! He is dead alright and in a place I cannot reach him, even as I have tried to swim though the madness of his cell, even he himself has thrown away the key and given up on ever being with the one he loves. So I say Fuck the fates and their very reason for this death! They took him from me just as they have taken him from you and even if I could deny my brother’s wishes, how can I deny my King’s?!” He shouted and his voice boomed around the room in the echoed anger I felt. It was the first time Vincent really scared me and I watched as his bare arms started to glow with the power he was keeping locked down. Thick corded muscles tensed and I saw the blue glow race through his veins as the Angel in him screamed out at the injustice.

At that point I knew how he felt, the pain that lanced through him and what was left of my heart, it broke for him. I sucked in a staggered breath that seemed to break through his anger. I watched as his chest rose and fell through his tight faded Harley Davidson T-shirt as he tried to calm himself further. He sighed as he looked down at me and closed his eyes before taking a few deep breaths. He then ran a frustrated hand through his tight curls that were cut short and then stormed back over to me to once again taking his seat opposite me.

“I apologise.” He said in a voice that had not completely turned back to the softly spoken Vincent that I was used to.

“Keira, look at me.”

“I am so sorry, Vincent…so…sorry…” I said not being able to give him what he asked for as I knew as soon as I looked into those eyes of his, I would crumble at the pain I found there, one that was so foreign to see.

Then I saw his hand snatch out to grip the centre of my chair in between my legs and I watched as the muscles on his forearm twitched as he pulled me to him. The sound of the chair’s legs scraping along the slate floor bounced around the room like a charged current. I couldn’t look up but saw his legs spread wide as I came closer to him and he only stopped pulling me once I was seated in between his legs. He must have been able to hear my heavy swallow.

“Look. At. Me. Keira.” His voice was now nothing short of commanding and this was a completely different Vincent who now faced me, one that had me close to whimpering at his feet. I felt him grip my chin, first lightly and then more firmly as he lifted my face to his. There I met icy blue eyes ringed with navy and almost glowing with their intensity. He looked for a moment like he wanted to devour me whole and I couldn’t have been sure that I would have been able to say no.

“You need to listen to me now. I want you to move on with your life. You deserve so much more and now you have a real chance at finding a happiness that was destined for you. The Gods want you Keira, but even they cannot make you do something you do not wish to do. Even our Chosen one gets a chance at free will, and this, it seems, is your chance and my advice for you…take it Keira. By the Gods take it!” I stared at him in disbelief.

“How can you say that…how…?”

“Because it is your only choice. Embrace this chance and regret nothing because I will warn you Keira, regret is not your friend and will do nothing to your soul but grind it down.” His eyes held me and I tried to pull back from his words. I didn’t need this and he could take his advice back to the heavenly place from which he was born! As he took in my actions I saw his grip tighten on my arm rests. He looked so desperate for me to hear his plea that he was slowly losing his grip of anger.

“And you know this?” Again the colour in his eyes lashed out like an angry sea at my words.

“Yes Keira, I know this and this is not something I want for someone I care for.” At this I bit my lip, a motion he followed with his heated stare.

“Someone you care for?” I dared to ask.

“Deeply,” was his only reply but the purr behind every letter pronounced caused a tingled wave to rack my body.

“I don’t see what you are trying to protect me from Vincent, your brother is gone and you said it yourself that not even you can bring him back…what are you expecting me to do, just forget him and join lonely hearts online, post an ad in the paper and start dating again… ‘cause you know I can’t do that!” I snapped feeling hurt that he could even think I ever could. However, his eyes softened back to clearer blue skies and he cupped my cheek with his palm.

“No, I don’t expect that of you Keira, but at some point I would like to know someone is taking care of something so precious. But more to the point, why are you here and why would you ever put yourself in danger by doing so?” He said taking my hands in his and turning them over as if seeing the healed scratches that were there but minutes ago. This had me blushing and pulling my hands from his, which he allowed me to do.

“I needed comfort and this place…well it became a part of me too.” I said not enjoying the feeling explaining myself invoked.

“You don’t understand!” I said getting up and pushing him away when he tried to stop me.

“No, now you will listen to me!” I snapped as I walked away before turning on my heel abruptly and staring at him.

“You think it is as easy to walk away from this, as easy as just giving up and carrying on?! I mean Christ Vincent, it was easier getting bloody kidnapped, tortured and having some whack job think I was possessed by demons!” I saw him flinch at this but I couldn’t stop what came next.

“It was easier taking a mirrored shard to my own skin and slicing my life further away with every swipe, than living this life after Draven. The only reason I even take a breath every morning is for the lives I would hurt if I didn’t. Every damn day I think about joining him, I am that miserable, walking this earth without him! I know he is your brother, Vincent and I know you are hurting, but telling me to just move on is like asking you to do the very same!” Once I had finished tears streaked my eyes but not in sadness, but in pain and anger. I was panting and my actions had become stomped feet and fisted hands.

“I under…”

“Oh no, don’t you dare say you understand! How the Hell could you, Vincent?! You still live in a world where you can at least draw comfort from those around you. You still wake to a world surrounded by those comforts! Me...well, I was ripped from those comforts and why, because Draven had some warped idea that it would be better for me…well you know what, screw him and you and most of all your sick, warped ideas of me living a better life because I am living in Hell just like he is!”

“I wake in my own version of it every damn day and every damn day I know it’s because he put me there! So, what do you say now Vincent, still think I should meet a nice guy and settle down?!” I know I was blaming others but I couldn’t help the pent up bitterness that had just been released. I had no other person that I could even talk to about this and now I had finally found one, I just wanted to erupt! And bless his Angelic heart, he just sat there and took it.

Once he knew I had finished, he stood and I burst into another pitiless sob and ran to him. He caught me and held me to him as I mumbled my sorry into his chest, one still wet from my earlier tears.

“Ssshh, it’s alright, I have you…I have you now.” He said smoothing back my hair and rubbing my back. After I really didn’t have anything left this time I looked up at him.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean…”

“Yes you did and you had every right. Dom’s reasons for sending you out in the world were not so you could feel alone, but to give you a new start, foolishly he could not be convinced otherwise. I thought…well…I thought this might happen but not as severely as it has. I didn’t realise…I” He paused and tore his gaze from me as if seeing the answers there.

“What?” He locked his emotions with me then, with just one look and if his arms hadn’t been holding me up I would have buckled to the ground. I knew his next words would be confirmation to how I had felt since that day.

“I didn’t realise your soul had become so entwined, so locked in to the beings we are that you would not make it out in the world alone. I should have known, but none of us expected this outcome to be true. We thought the longer without Draven’s essence, the easier it would become, not harder…I feel like we failed you.” He said lowering his forehead to mine and the zing of energy it gave me just confirmed his words to be even more powerful.

“The fates failed me, no other. I cannot blame Draven for dying as much as I can blame you for going along with wanting the best for me, I just wish that this changes things, but I know you’ll still have to leave me…don’t…y…you?” My last word broke with just the thought and he couldn’t answer me with anything but a nod.

“Then, you now know why I can never move on Vincent, not while there is breath in my body and blood pumping in my veins. I cannot and will not ever move on from Draven, what is left of my heart won’t let me. I thought he would have known this.” I said looking down, as seeing the pain in his eyes grow with every word heard from me was just mirrored pain.

“I agree, he should have known and handled things very differently and I wish…”

“What? What do you wish, Vincent?” I asked knowing his answer would only be driving the spear further through my heart.

“Never mind, come, there is no place to hold you here anymore and no need to add to your torment, I will take you home.” He said taking my hand and pulling me in the direction of the bar. I really wanted to know what he was going to say, but his next move halted me. He turned to face the stage and with his outstretched arm he moved the table he threw. It lifted and shot back into place with a simple flick of his wrist. The up turned chairs its destructive path had caused righted themselves and soon the place looked as untouched as when we had entered it.

I saw him swipe up a leather jacket from the bar where he had left it and he led me out through the very doors I had first tried. He pushed the door open and held it for me. Then he turned to the door and instead of moving away, I watched as he reprogrammed the code on the door in front of me. I smiled when I saw it was my birthday. I don’t know why he did this, knowing I would no doubt use it to get in, if ever I came back but when he looked over his shoulder at me he winked.

“Let’s have no more climbing up the side of buildings, Keira.” He said as he came down the steps to my level and he gently brushed a loose strand of hair from my face. I gave him a cheeky little grin and said,

“You know Spiderman is my favourite superhero?” This was the first beaming grin he gave me and it transformed his entire face into such beauty it was almost blinding. He grabbed my chin and shook it slightly, almost playfully and replied,

“I thought as much.” He said then leaned down so close to my face that his next words were said over my lips,

“But let’s leave the heroics to the professionals and the breaking and entering to the bad guys…yes?” I smiled at him and just shrugged my shoulders before walking past him laughing at my response. I could feel him following close behind and as we walked round the corner I could just see a lone motorcycle waiting there. I say motorcycle but what I really should have said was a black metal panther waiting like a predator for someone to ride on its back at death speeds.

I must have stopped dead as I was staring at it because he passed me, walking right up to it like meeting an old friend, or in this case a new one as it looked like it had just been driven straight out of the factory. He had also put on his jacket when behind me and the sight of tight grey denim buttocks and fitted leather encasing his upper body was nothing short of mouth-watering. It wasn’t right for me to admit it or to even think it, but a girl was only human!

He looked back at me and the grin he gave me was pure bad boy, one not expected on an Angel like Vincent.

“Is there a problem, Keira?” He asked doing a lousy job at trying to hide the humour he found in my face.

“Umm, no, no, not a problem. I will just wait for Frank to pick me up, that’s all.” I said thinking…actually scrap that…knowing, there was no way in Hell I was getting on that thing!

“Then we both know you will be waiting a while, when are they back…in two weeks?” He said surprising me and when he saw my stunned face he walked back up to me and his expression turned serious for a moment.

“Don’t ever lie to me again….we understood?” I bit my lip at the new tone from Vincent and I wondered in that minute if he had taken his brother’s shoes in the control department. He sounded very much the royalty that was in his blood in this moment.

“How did you know?”

“How and why is not important, but your safety is, so don’t ever lie to me about it again and we will be just fine. Now come on, time to get you home.” He said taking my hand and leading me numbly towards the mass of black steel and chrome.

“Wait!” I shouted pulling back and I heard a sigh whisper from his lips.

“It’s just…I don’t want to go home.” When he raised an eyebrow at me I quickly carried on.

“I need to do something first and I need your help.” This time he crossed his arms across his chest making the leather of his jacket groan. That’s when I noticed he now also wore black leather gloves and a naughty image flashed into my mind of him running them down my bare skin. Jesus, what was wrong with me, I mean this was Draven’s brother for God’s sake! I just blamed it on my fragile, comforted and sexually starved brain. Yep, that was it!

“Keira” He said my name and I blushed as I realised I had been eyeing him up like a candy stick, one I was almost panting to lick! Now this was embarrassing!

“Umm…sorry, where was I?” He at least had the decency to laugh about my weak moment and if anything he looked quite pleased about the way my eyes wandered.

“You need me to do something?” He purred and the way he lingered on that one word made me gulp. Oh I needed something alright, it was just a shame I would never let any other man give it to me but Draven…wait not a Draven, I mean Dominic…yeah that was better.

“Yeah, sorry, I was going to ask if you could take me somewhere…you know…to say goodbye.” I added softly. He unfolded his arms and simply nodded.

“Alright Keira. Come on then, your chariot awaits” He motioned towards the beast with two wheels and I shivered.

“Don’t you have a car around here somewhere?” He laughed.

“Didn’t you hear…I am more of a biker than a petrol head” Now I laughed as a thought popped in my head and I made the next comment without activating that handy little filter that was supposed to stop these things from happening.

“Next you will tell me you are a lover not a fighter.” My cheeks nearly melted when I saw his heated look.

“Now we both know you have been witness to both and I think it is easy to say which I prefer…given the right partner of course.”

“Or partners?” I said letting it slip out again when I could have kicked myself. Where was the bloody filter anyway, on holiday?! Of course I was referring to the time I had opened the door to find Vincent being kept company by two beauties in his bed…very, very close company…as in naked company.

I was glad when he laughed and was about to laugh with him until he quickly grabbed me round the waist and pulled me to him. My hands flattened on his chest and I shook as he continued to let out a rumbled laugh.

“Flirting will not save you from a ride on my bike Keira, if anything it will only get you on there sooner, so stop stalling.” He pulled me over towards his ‘ride’ and I nearly bit through my lip at the thought of getting on that thing! I let him pull me to the bike that looked far too heavy to sit in between someone’s thighs and that thought wasn’t ever going to help with my red face that gave me away like a fire alarm.

I felt him come up behind me so if I decided to back out of taking this ride, then he would be there blocking my only exit.

“Umm…it’s a nice bike.” I said not knowing what else to say about something I could die on. I knew I was being a bit dramatic but for someone as cautious on the roads as I was, bikes I didn’t understand. I liked to feel nice and safe when travelling killing speeds…boring… yes, but to be boring you had to be alive.

“This one I have been waiting for. She’s a Moto Guzzi California1400, custom of course.” He said with pride and I smiled at hearing the passion in his voice.

“Of course,” I said playfully and I felt him poke at my side for my cocky comment. Then he leant down to softly speak in my ear like a lover’s whisper,

“She is a handmade beauty, every single component a perfect combination of power and sleek grace and with 96 horse power, she is a forceful touring bike. That said, I will take her gently as a beauty should be for her first ride with an Angel.” As I sucked in a quick breath at his sexual words I could feel him smile at my neck. I didn’t realise I even closed my eyes until his next words snapped me from his promised words.

“Time for something cute.” He said with a cockiness that was new on Vincent. I looked to see him lifting a black helmet to my head and I ducked out of the way.

“Umm, actually I think I will pass on this, maybe I could just get a taxi or something?” At this he laughed.

“You’re not scared are you, Keira?” He said making me frown. I knew his game and I didn’t like it, so I crossed my arms to show him so. Of course he just laughed.

“I didn’t think so, not the brave beauty I know so well.” His complement momentarily distracted me and before I knew it, he had the helmet over my head.

“Hey!” I moaned.

“Hey yourself, now hold still while I adjust the strap.” He said first holding down my arms from trying to take it off and then his hands came back up to rest on my neck. My pulse pounded and it wasn’t just down to the ride he wanted me to take.

“We don’t want this pretty little head of yours to get hurt now do we?” He said as his fingers first tapped against my pulse point before going to tighten the strap under my chin. He smiled as he felt my heavy swallow of doubt.

“And is there much chance of that happening?” I asked unsurely.

“Not a single one.” He said with a level of certainty that burnt away my fears.

“Leg over sweetheart.” He said and before I could have blinked he was on the bike and patting the space behind him. I looked down at the Emblem of an Eagle pressed into the saddle and just hoped that these weren’t the only wings that would keep me safe.

I took a deep breath, took the last few steps towards the bike and did as I was told. I felt awkward mounting the bike as if ready for it to start bucking or something but the knowledge of its heavenly rider was the only thing forcing me to sit down. Once there, Vincent looked over his shoulder at me. The way the back part of the seat was raised put me at the same level as him.

“Hold on to me and put your feet here.” He pointed to the foot rest further back from his own and that’s when I noticed his booted feet. I couldn’t help but shiver as I noted the heavy biker boots with steel caps. He must have taken this for worry about the ride, which could have easily been a factor.

“Keira, don’t worry if you get scared or want me to slow down just tap my stomach and I will pull over…ok?” I nodded when he looked round and then when he seemed satisfied, he flipped my visor down and he kicked the stand back with one foot before taking the weight of the bike. I gripped on tighter and heard him chuckle.

“So, where are we headed sweetheart?” He asked me before firing up the beast.

There was only one answer to give and only one place I wanted to be for this next part, so I didn’t hesitate,

“Draven’s cave.”

Chapter 13

Cutting off the Reasons

He didn’t say a word about the choice of destination I had in mind and instead of a comment, he just put the key in the ignition and started the brute of steel that thundered beneath us. It was my first experience on a bike and I couldn’t help but grip onto Vincent like my life depended on it. I held on until my fingers ached and we hadn’t even moved yet. I didn’t want to be a wuss and tried to convince myself it was just a bike…just a bike. Yeah right! I mean the fact that it was one mean looking bike was one thing but the fact I was sat on a bloody engine was quite another. I was just about to tell Vincent that I couldn’t do this when the bike started to move and I was left with only the urge not to die.

I tightened every muscle in my body to grip on with great force to the steel between my legs and the Angel in front as we started to pick up speed. I couldn’t help what came next as I found myself tapping madly on his stomach but when I felt it vibrating I just knew he was laughing at me…Not surprising, he didn’t stop.

After about ten minutes of trying to convince myself I wasn’t going to die and I had in fact faced worse things than this in my life, I finally started to relax. I watched the world whiz by and soon I felt a type of liberation. It was like my fear was being replaced by pure adrenaline and it was almost like getting drunk on fun. I couldn’t believe I was actually enjoying this, even though the first corner we went round had me shrieking out in my helmet. But the way he controlled the bike was nothing short of beautiful…and oh, so Goddamn sexy.

The time fell into a supercharged hole that shot us right to our destination in what seemed like only minutes. When I saw we were at the top of the mountain track, I actually felt disappointment that it had come to an end. It was only when I felt Vincent’s hand on mine and tap a few times that I knew that was my cue to release him. He had already cut the engine and once I let him go, he got off first. He didn’t say a word as he undid my helmet and lifted it off me.

“Well, look at you smiling.”

“Wow, that was….just wow!” I said knowing I was beaming up at him. His grin made my heart stammer but I tried pass it off as I told myself it was just from the ride, nothing more.

“Umm…Another biker in the making I think.” He said and when I wrinkled up my nose he laughed.

“Maybe not.”

“I loved it, but I don’t think I would ever be brave enough to ride one myself.” At this he smoothed back some hair that had come loose from my plait and sweetly planted a kiss on my forehead. I didn’t know what prompted it and I didn’t ask.

“Be careful when getting off, you might be a bit unsteady.” He said giving me more room to swing my leg round. I felt tiny on this massive machine and even more so with Vincent, who was at least six foot two. He wasn’t as bulky as his brother but he was still made from pure muscle on a sleeker level. His body was made for stealthier actions. His fighting skills more of a graceful dance that were the steps to a deadly song. Even his Angelic looks could be turned into a weapon with just one stare. He was like his brother in the way of the essence of leadership that just poured from him and it was easy to see the warrior commander beneath the cool countenance his eyes usually held.

As soon as my feet touched the ground I did the pathetic girly thing and nearly toppled over. He caught me as if he had been ready and pulled me to him for the second time.

“Easy.” He hummed and I wondered if he was aware that his arms had tensed around me. It was only when I placed my hands on his chest that he let me go.

“Thanks.” I muttered shyly, still filled with the lush scent of male musk and leather.

I brought my bag round to the side, happy that it had survived the journey and glad I had brought one with me that had a long strap that crossed over my body. There were things inside that I was going to need.

“So, how did you know about this place?” I asked Vincent as I thought that no one but Draven and I were supposed to know about it. When I first told him my destination I had been surprised when he didn’t ask me where, not that I would have explained in full detail but getting to this point on the mountain was as close as a human like me would ever get to it. But Vincent hadn’t asked for directions or questioned why, he had just told me to hold on and off we went.

“Dom told me about this place when he thought you might have been in danger.” He answered as he walked to the edge to look over at the sheer drop.

“Why would he think that?”

“Because Keira, he maybe King, but even Kings have enemies.” He said, again without looking at me.

“He was King but now…?” I let the horrible question linger and it was only then that Vincent turned to me and the pain there was understandable.

“Now…well that danger is over at least.” At this I shook my head making him raise an eyebrow at me but I didn’t comment. No, instead my mind just went back to that day in the warehouse and I wondered just how many more times on this journey were going to be filled with dangers just like that one.

“So when was that?” I asked getting back to the subject.

“Just before we left to look for the Oracle.” He said and he shrugged his shoulders as if it wasn’t a big deal. So I pushed further.

“Did you at least find her?”

“No.” Was the only answer I got and one I knew with absolute certainty was a lie. In a way the fact that it came from an Angel just made it all the worse and it was hard to hide the fact from my face. But nothing more was said and I walked past him further to the cliff’s edge.

“This will be fine.” I said kneeling down and opening my bag but I jumped when I felt myself being picked up.

“Hey! What are you doing?!” I said as I was being adjusted so that he had me in a more secure hold. He had taken his jacket and gloves off and I saw the way his biceps bunched when he had one arm under my knees and the other holding my back.

“Hold on to me, put your arms around my neck.” He said ignoring my surprise at suddenly being picked up.

“W…why?”

“Because this isn’t the cave, Keira” He stated calmly as he walked us both to the very edge.

“Vincent?” This time I was rewarded with an Angelic smile that was under laced with crazy intent.

“Oh God, not again!” I said grabbing him around the neck and burying my head there.

“Don’t worry sweetheart, I fly my wings better than I drive my bike.” Once he said this I looked up to see a pair of massive pure white wings erupt just as he took that last death step of the cliff. I screamed at our free fall and my plait fluttered past my head along with my stomach.

“Vincent!!!!!” I shouted and I could feel him laughing as the air tunnelled around us as we plummeted to the bottom. Then I felt a great whoosh and his heavenly wings opened and took us straight up like a deploying parachute.

“Come on, open those eyes for me, it’s beautiful up here and it would be a shame to miss it.” He spoke into my hair and I was surprised he could even manage words with the way I held on to his neck. Hell, it was a miracle he could still breathe!

“I think I am good like this.” I said into his neck and being this close to him, the natural scent I inhaled was near intoxicating. He chuckled and I felt him tickle my back.

“Ahhh! What are you doing! Don’t you dare do that again, you got me?” I said sternly and this time he laughed harder.

“Oh, I wouldn’t dare me, not from up here…now come on, just open your eyes and take one peek and I promise not to tickle you again…or I could…”

“Don’t you dare...! Ok, ok, I will look for heaven’s sake!” I snapped, not that he was bothered by it but at least it stopped him tickling my side.

I lifted my head from the little nook I preferred to stay in and opened my eyes for longer than a few seconds. Once I did this I found he was hovering at the same level for me to see the sunset over the mountains. It cast the skies out like fire and the National Park was the perfect shadowed frame to such beauty. The clouds created patterns on the landscape and beams shone down in the distance. It was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen this earth create and if I wasn’t being held over the deepest ridge so many feet in the air, then I would have loved nothing more than to paint it’s splendour and magnificence.

“See, I told you it was worth a look and as if I would ever drop you.” I looked up at him and he winked at me before we started to move again. I looked at the next beautiful sight behind us as his wings manipulated the air around them. They were so graceful and pure I wanted to smack him about lying to me earlier, knowing that nothing this heavenly should be allowed to sin.

He looked ahead and we changed directions slightly making me slam my eyes shut again. Like this I was being held more directly over the immense drop and I was happy when I felt Vincent’s muscles pull me closer against him.

“Keira, we are here.” He said after a minute and I peeled my eyes open to find the dark cave. He let my legs slid down him and he held me steady until he knew I wouldn’t wobble all over the place like last time.

“It…it looks so cold.” I said wrapping my arms around myself and feeling the familiar tugging at my heart. Vincent didn’t say anything but just turned from me, lit one of the torches on the wall and walked back to the edge.

“I will give you the time you need.” He said in an emotionless tone and I watched as he launched himself up in the air with a little bend of his knees. I ran to the rock wall to grip on as I saw him fly off to where his bike was sat on the top of the mountain.

“Oh Vincent.” I whispered as the whiplash of his playful mood disappearing stung. I knew he was hurting just as I was but there was something else I couldn’t place, almost as though he had felt betrayed by someone. Of course, he knew how Draven had died so maybe that was it. Was that the reason he cursed the fates, had he felt betrayed? ‘Cause if that was the case then didn’t we all? Or did it have something to do with the Oracle? Could she have betrayed them and if so, what was her plans for me…was this journey, I was so blindly throwing myself into, safe?

There were just too many questions and never enough answers for someone like me. I was now out of the loop and that fact hurt a lot more than what I wanted to fully admit, but the main question was…should I be telling Vincent about my plans? Every gut instinct in me told me no, but what if all this was a trap? Oh God, this was just hopeless!

I pushed away from the rock once I saw Vincent as a tiny speck walking over to his bike on the far side and he sat down as if to wait for me. Well I sure hope so, ‘cause otherwise the next people to find this cave would be in for a shock finding ‘cave dweller’ Keira’s remains curled up on a massive bed.

I looked around the space and became consumed with the image of Draven and I. His hands holding me down as he found home inside my body. The endless kiss that had rooted his soul to mine every second that connection lasted. Every word uttered in that blissful sense of peace just being together created. Everything hit my chest like a tsunami of memories that made my knees give out. I landed on the bed and once again my body was overtaken with the depth of my loss. The very level of it was enough to render my body useless as the only thing it wanted to do now was weep, sob and cry out at the cruelty my life’s path had been thrown down.

I couldn’t understand why? Why lay my body down for only one person to take, someone I was supposedly made for, my one true soul mate if such things exist, why then let us join together in a love so strong it could withstand all we had been through and still they decided to take him from me…it just didn’t make sense!

“I just want him back! Please…please…oh Gods hear me now…I am on my knees begging!...BEGGING!...pl…ple…please.” At this point I lost it and fell forward into the bed and gripped the covers so tight I could hear them start to tear. I sobbed all I had left out into the one place I knew was so special to Draven and it just so happened to be the place I gave a dark Angel my virginity.

But where was my dark Angel now?!

After all the tears had broken the dam and all memories had seeped from my veins, I finally sat up. I took one last look around our special place and knew that there were only two possibilities that were going to happen. I was either going to be back here one day with Draven or if everything else failed, then I would never see this place again. Either option meant there was only one thing left for me to do.

“Time to say goodbye.”

I pulled my bag round and took out the two things I needed. One was a letter I had written to Draven and the other was a large pair of scissors.

“I know there is no way for me to bury you or even attend a proper funeral, so this is the only way I know how to tell you one last time that I love you and that I will never stop believing that one day we will be together again. Whether in this life or the next, I will see you again but until then, I wanted you to have a part of my body along with that part of my soul you own. And well, I know how much you love this part so, now it can be yours forever. I love you Dominic Draven.” I said and then I held the blades to where I needed to cut and closed my eyes as I felt them cut through every strand of hair.

I felt the weight lifted from my head and it felt strange without something I had carried around with me every day for years. But now it was done and I shook my now short hair around my face and looked down at the plait that lay by my side. I had cut all my hair off for Draven to have and I just hoped that one day, he would know what I had given him.

I picked it up and placed it on top of the letter before covering both with the pillows. I didn’t want the weather getting to them, if it even could from this far in but just in case, I kept them hidden. I got up from the bed, stared down at it for what could be the last time before turning round to find an Angel stood watching me. With the sun now set, all that I could see was the shadow of a man with wings and my heart hammered in my chest for a second as I thought it was Draven. But then a voice cut through the illusion and I sucked in a breath.

“Keira…what…what have you done?” Vincent asked as he stepped forward into the light. His eyes were framed by a frown but his voice was a soft lure.

“I buried him and I said goodbye the only way I knew how.” I said walking past and the strange sensation of the ends of my hair brushing against my neck had me touching the tips with both hands. I looked out to the night and the moon that had graced the land with its full glow.

“You didn’t need to do this…you…”

“It is done Vincent, now please take me home.” I said knowing that by home I meant Afterlife, but also knowing that the place he took me would be far from there. I felt him come up behind me and he placed his hands on my shoulders then down my arms.

“I wish…” He started to say something but then stopped and after a moment of hoping he would continue, he just cleared his throat and I could feel him shaking his head behind me.

“It matters not what I wish and it is like you said, it is done now. Come, I will take you home.” Then he hoisted me up into his arms once again and this time I couldn’t help but hold him to me tighter than before. The comfort having him so close gave me, was something I needed right now and I was not in the right mind set to hold back the deep currents of my emotions.

So I clung onto him like I never wanted him to leave me and when I felt the kiss planted to my temple, I knew he knew it too. He held me tight and we took off into the night.

I didn’t know how he knew where he was going but soon we were descending and the moon could be seen glinting off the chrome on his bike. He set me down, put back on his jacket and gloves and lastly my helmet. All was done in silence, as there were no words for either of us to find after the great sadness that had infected us once more.

We rode home but this time, I didn’t get the same thrill from the ride as I did earlier. I knew why, it was easy to gauge, as the bike took me closer to the time that we would have to part ways and the thought that I might never see Vincent again was too much to stand.

I even tensed as my house came into view and Vincent knew it because he covered my hand with one of his and gave me a little squeeze.

“It will be ok.” He said once he cut the engine, getting off his bike and turning back to face me. I really didn’t know who he was trying to convince with this statement because it wasn’t ever going to be me. However, I didn’t respond, instead I just nodded my helmeted head before fumbling with it to try and get it off.

“Here, let me.” He said pulling my hands back down and going to the strap. He pulled it off me and then looked down at me all wide eyed. I bit my lower lip and he smiled. He reached out and rubbed a strand of my cut hair in between his leather covered thumb and forefinger.

“You know it suits you, although it makes you look even more innocent and cute, something I never thought would be possible.” He started doing the same with his other hand and soon he was smoothing the hair behind my ears. His leather hands remained on either side of my face for the longest time but no words were said. There was one moment when it looked as though he was going to even kiss me, but abruptly he shook his head, as if to clear his mind.

I was left feeling breathless but once again he helped me off the bike to keep me steady. He even walked me to my door as if this had been a date. The thought made me blush.

“Would you like to come in?” I asked and for a second I saw his eyes flash lighter before a darker shade overtook them too quickly.

“You know I can’t, Keira.” He said quietly and I nodded in shame. Yes, I had known that but a girl could only hope couldn’t she.

“I know, but since we were already breaking the rules I thought that by you staying a little longer wouldn’t hurt.” I said trying to justify something his look said I didn’t need to.

“But it will hurt Keira, it will hurt both of us and even now, this should not have happened but…”

“But?” I couldn’t keep the hope out of my voice.

“I could not have turned you away for all the Gods’ commands, let alone my brother’s.” He closed his eyes for a second and his long dark lashes created shadows on his high cheek bones.

“Thank you, Vincent.”

“For what, Keira?” His eyes snapped open and he took a step closer to me.

“For helping me today and for not turning me away like you should have.” At this his eyes seemed heavy lidded by my words.

“You are welcome, my sweetheart.” His voice turned to warm honey and I felt myself take a step closer to him. Soon we were so close together you couldn’t have got anything between us, but we were just staring at each other like we were trying to take every single piece in, to store in our precious memory bank.

“I should go.” He finally spoke but it was far from breaking the spell as despite his words, he didn’t take a step from me.

“Me too.” I uttered but again it didn’t change things. My heart was pounding and he must have been able to hear it. I didn’t know what was happening between us but it not only felt electrically charged but also magically. What I wanted and what was right was being merged into something else and the need for him to place his lips to mine was confusing. I had never wanted anyone to kiss me as badly since Draven and that thought was sobering.

Then another factor came into play as I felt a tiny vibration of the coin in my pocket. ‘A kiss by a Royal Angel’. This was what it wanted but could I really take that step, could I do that to Vincent?

While I was thinking about this I watched Vincent as he raised one hand to my cheek and then he frowned.

“Not enough.” He said and before I could ask him what he meant he raised one of his fingers to his mouth and he gripped the leather between his teeth. I gulped at how sexy a simple action could be but the sight of Vincent gripping his leather gloves in his teeth as he pulled them off was definitely a hard swallowing moment.

Once he had both gloves off his hands he threw them to the ground and went back to running his fingers down my cheeks and neck.

“You are so beautiful, so perfect… it pains me to know I won’t be able to see you like this again.” I could have cried at hearing this but instead, I reached out and grabbed onto his jacket.

“I wish you didn’t have to leave me.” I whispered and this time he ran the pad of his thumb over my lips that had started to tremble.

“And I too wish I didn’t have to leave you, but I have no right to you, Keira…no right at all.” He said leaning his forehead to mine and I took a shuddering breath.

“I…I wish…”

“Please don’t finish that sentence Keira, or nothing will hold me back and we would both regret the aftermath greatly.” He was right and I forced my body to pull back on hearing it. He let me and the coin vibrated harder in my pocket. I took another step back and I watched as he did the same. I knew part of my quest required this kiss but I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t take that from Vincent, even if it wasn’t for the wrong reasons. I didn’t want Vincent to feel any guilt at all and I knew that if we would have taken that step then it would have hurt both of us. So I would just have to take my journey without the coin but keeping my heart intact in the process.

“Goodbye, Keira.” He said and it was as if I could hear another crack split its way down to my fragile heart.

“Goodbye… Vincent.” I said and felt the single tear drop down as my eyes overflowed on a blink. He took in the motion and looked like he was going to reach out again but then held himself back. Then he nodded and turned round to walk back to his bike. I painfully did the same and made my way back to the house, this time letting the tears flow more freely without him looking. I was waiting for the sound of his motorbike to fill the silence and at least then it would mask the sounds of my pain.

“Oh fuck the aftermath!” I heard Vincent shout and when I turned back his way, he was storming his way back to me. Before I could fully take in what was happening he gripped the sides of my head, slanted my head and took possession of my lips.

And I finally got my wish…

Kissed again by an Angel.

Chapter 14

Flip Side of a Coin

I couldn’t believe what was happening, but just because I couldn’t believe it, it didn’t mean I could have stopped it. It was fast becoming an unbreakable force and one certainly to be reckoned with.

My gasp was an open invitation for his tongue to sweep in and taste me, which managed to light up every nerve in my body. If I thought just being around the supernatural had my cells singing, well this had them all screaming out the chorus!

He took things deeper and fisted a hand in my shorter hair that he then gripped and turned my face to enable him to delve even deeper. If I thought a kiss by an Angel was going to be a gentle and soft affair then how wrong I was. It was all mind consuming, heart stopping and blood racing to jump into a red ring of fire!

His other arm anchored my body to his as if I was never going anywhere again and at that moment, I didn’t want to. It was a kiss I would never be able to forget and one that would be imprinting itself onto my very skull, it would be that deeply embedded in my memory.

I don’t know how long it lasted, as time seem to belong to us and do with it what we wanted, and right now we wanted it to last a lifetime. I don’t know when it clicked for Vincent that forever wasn’t ever going to be in our cards, but it didn’t make him just drop me and let me go. No, instead he pulled back slightly making his kisses softer until he trailed them to my neck and back up again until he hovered over my lips.

“That is how I’ve always wanted to kiss you and it scares me at how something so wrong, felt so right. But I promise never to touch you in such way again, as much as it pains me to say so, it is the only way it could ever be.” Even as he said this he still held me to him and dipped his lips to mine one last time. He lingered there, tasting the seam with one last swipe of his tongue and I looked up to find him smiling. I couldn’t help but do the same.

“Thank you,” I said and he winked at me.

“If you’re thanking me for attacking your sweet lips, then I must be better a kisser than I thought.” He joked and I poked him in the side for being cocky.

“Oi!” But he just laughed harder before pulling me in for a full bodied hug. I wrapped my arms around him and I felt him breathe me in deeply at the neck before letting me go for a final time.

“Thank you for your greatest gift, Keira, I will forever treasure the memory.” He said taking my hand and kissing the back of it. I then watched him walk back to his bike and this time, he didn’t look sad but more…liberated.

“Wait! Just tell me, what did you mean…what gift?” I shouted to him, staying closer to the house, afraid if I went over there I would never let him go. He looked up at me and I could see his eyes flash for a second before he answered me.

“The brief encounter in giving me the gift of your heart.” He said and then put the helmet on his head and before I could blink, he had skidded the bike round and rode off out of sight. I turned back to my front door, took the coin out of its hiding place and kissed it on each side before replacing it. It even hummed in pleasure.

I was sat back in this lonely house that for once didn’t get to me. It was like that kiss had given me a kind of hope and filled me with peace. I couldn’t find one single emotion that even touched on guilt or regret. Vincent had given me a gift also and I wasn’t sure he knew it or not. The heart I thought broken was healing and doing so in the knowledge that one day soon, I might be seeing not only him again, but also his brother. It was as though in that one kiss I felt the power of the coin come to life and with that my hope bloomed.

Now I was sat in the kitchen, where I hadn’t moved since coming in and was picking at the sandwich I had made whilst on autopilot. I thought the sight of Vincent leaving me behind would mean a night of needing a vodka bottle just to get by but it wasn’t the case. Every time I touched my lips it took me back to the way he heated my body and it was nice to know it was still working right.

It was only when I felt my neck as I was burning up that I realised something. I dropped my crust and bolted from the chair.

“Shit!” I said as I ran up the stairs to the main bathroom. I still hadn’t even taken off my jacket or my bag, I realised as it flapped around me when I bounded up each step.

I came to the main bathroom and practically skidded to the mirror to check out the butcher’s job I had done on my hair.

“Double shit!” I cursed as I took in the straight cut of my hair that now hung longer at the front from where I had cut it in a hair band. I moved my hair back and forth and knew I would need to cut it into more of a style, so I took out the scissors and started snipping away.

By the time I had finished it didn’t look that bad. I had first levelled it out as much as I could and then trimmed little layers into it as I had once done for my friend in high school. I feathered the shorter parts round my face into a side fringe that flopped into one eye. It took me longer than I thought but after using a hand held mirror behind me, so I could see the back, I managed to get it into something that didn’t look like I had cut it with my teeth.

I mean, I wasn’t about to win any hairdressing awards but I was just happy I didn’t look like someone had put a bowl on my head and cut round it…I didn’t think I would suit the monk look! Of course the next part was harder to do. I walked back in my room and got out a plastic bag that I had kept the hair dye in, away from Libby. I knew I had no choice and there would be a few surprised looks when I got back from this ‘Mission’ but the most important thing was that I’d done as the letter had told me to and changed my appearance.

I didn’t know how much of the supernatural world knew about me or whether they even knew what I looked like, but the less chance of me sticking out like the ‘Lucky dip human God child’ the better. Nevertheless my hands still shook as I looked down at the colour.

I got changed into some old clothes Libby had given me that I wore to help her paint Ella’s room, so that I wouldn’t get hair dye on any of my clothes. I then went into the bathroom to do the deed and didn’t come out again until a different Keira was looking back at me in the mirror.

One with black hair.

Hours later I found myself sat in my room, once again going over all the letters and that’s when I decided to take a closer look at the coin. I fished it out of my pocket and my first thought was a panicked, ‘it had been swapped’. But then I held it under my lamp and saw that the symbols had changed since the kiss and something told me this was all part of the plan.

The side that once held the head now had the Draven’s family crest engraved there but the other side was even stranger. It was a large circle with a smaller circle inside but around the edge had the letters A.S.M.O.D.A.Y and then an intricate symbol in the middle. It started with a vertical line in the centre with a devils tail to one side. The other side had a U shape on its side with smaller circles attached and in the centre was a number two in roman numerals on its side. The last part had a tiny cross inside the design that would be easy to miss and it reminded me of the same cross a solider would have received for bravery.

By the time I had finished examining the coin my eyes stung from squinting to see all the minute details and I had to turn off my lamp.

I had no clue what any of it meant but the very fact that the coin had changed told me the deed was done. It had received the kiss and was now ready for the next part of my mission.

But was I?

Later that night I was just drifting in and out of sleep when I was transported back in time. I heard the same scratching at my window I’d heard on my second night in this house and the very same reasons for it went through my mind. Was it a cat, no we didn’t have one, was it a tree, no there wasn’t any close enough. This was when one name slammed through my system and I bolted upright.

“Ava!” I looked to the window and saw her sat on the ledge on a window that was now wide open. But how? I was just about to get up to go to her when I noticed Ava hadn’t come alone.

There was a massive shadow of a man stood watching me from the corner and I froze.

“Don’t be afraid.” That voice! Could it be?

“Draven?” I whispered, too afraid it would disappear and this living fantasy would go back to the confines of my life’s most perfect memories.

“I shouldn’t be here.” He said this time stepping closer but remaining in the shadows and the second time hearing his voice, the beautiful reality was confirmed, it was Draven.

“You told me that once before.” I said softly as he approached the bed. I couldn’t move but I wished I’d had the courage to. I was more than stunned as this didn’t feel like a dream but more and more like living, breathing, certainty that this was really happening and more importantly, it was happening now.

“How?” I asked and I wished I could have taken it back as soon as I saw Draven halt his footsteps. He didn’t answer me and I hated the distance between us but more importantly, I didn’t understand it.

“Draven?” I said after he just seemed frozen to the spot. I still couldn’t see his face but from his voice alone I knew it was him.

“This is wrong, I should not be doing this.” He said but it sounded more directed at himself than at me.

“What’s wrong, why is your being here wrong…I…don’t understand?” I said trying not to feel the massive weight crushing me down every time he spoke.

“I can’t control it…I need to control it… I didn’t mean to come here.” He said but again I didn’t know if it was meant for me to hear.

“Why are you saying these things?” I almost crumbled and broke down.

“I am sorry…so sorry, this should not be happening…but…” His voice sounded so strained, like someone speaking whilst lifting weights.

“But what? Tell me!” I shouted feeling more and more hurt by the second.

“But I can’t help myself, it’s not just my body that is drawn to you, but it is my very soul and it seems even Hell itself can’t keep me away.” He said and at this point I couldn’t stand it a moment longer. I jumped off the bed, into the shadows and flung myself into his arms. He tried to move back at first but as soon as I reached up and pulled his face to mine, all resistance fled him.

He descended on me like a starved man and his kiss broke every rule. But I didn’t care, he was here now and that was all that mattered. As soon as our lips connected, so did our souls reunite. It wasn’t gentle and it wasn’t soft, but it was undiluted raw lust and love combined. His mouth took possession of mine and claimed it with every move and every taste.

His hands gripped onto me like someone would soon be dragging me away and it was the point just before pain. Again I didn’t care. If anything I wanted it harder, rougher just so that I could feel every hard inch of him. I was close to crawling up like a cat and it was only when my hands went for his hair that something clicked. Draven’s hair was shorter, cut close to his head and it didn’t feel like the usual straight, thick strands that I remembered entwining with my fingers.

“Draven?” I said his name but then he lost all willpower that was holding him back, because the next thing I knew he had hoisted me up around his waist and was pushing my back into the wall, taking the kiss further.

I was panting and quickly getting lost in the feel of what I once had every day of my life, but all the while that niggling little feeling something wasn’t quite right kept scratching at my brain. It was like there was a miniature version of myself pounding on the window of my mind, screaming something was wrong. But I couldn’t hear her words.

“Just…need…you.” Draven’s voice filled my mind and started to cloud out that same window. His touch, his smell, his taste all told me this was him, really him. The man I needed in my life and now here he was. He was really back.

“Draven.” I said before he took my lips once again. I could feel him trying to tear my clothes from me to get to the skin underneath. I felt dizzy and lightheaded by the drug that Draven was injecting into me with every grip his fingers made. Of course, this tripled when his fingers dipped down and found my core. They ran down the centre and flicked at the bundle of nerves there sending my head back and a cry of pleasure to escape.

“Yes…yes.” I said and he growled.

“Come, I need you to come for me.” He said, his voice turning into that demonic creature that at this point couldn’t be contained. It commanded my pleasure like it needed it to breathe. He drummed at the entrance, drawing it closer and closer until,

“Come!” He growled as he plunged deep with two fingers and this was my undoing. I screamed out my orgasm and he pulled at the waves as if feeding his addiction.

“Draven!” I shouted as he continued his sexual demands, trying to draw another out for his feast. He took my plea and pulled from my sensitive flesh that had now coated his hand with the evidence of my release. He raised it up to his mouth and sucked every drop from his fingers, all the while in shadow.

“I want to see you.” I said but I saw him shake his head to indicate no, then he spoke,

“I want you.” And then he carried me to the bed and I landed with Draven’s massive frame caging me in. His large palms ran the length of my arms until he shackled my wrists and then drew them up over my head. He imprisoned me there and I saw the darkness as if he was pulling the night closer in around him.

“I need you…need to…” He sounded pained and I tried to pull against him to reach out for his face but he wouldn’t let me. His hold on me intensified and he looked like he was shaking, trying to control something.

“They are… trying to take me back, I can’t…No!” He shouted and I shifted my legs to grip around his waist.

“They can’t have you.” I said holding on tight but then his back bowed as if in pain but there was no bellow to indicate his suffering.

“Draven?”

“I…what is this…? Dominic no...! By the Gods you can’t do this!” There was another voice in the room then and with utter horror, I realised it came from above me.

“What’s going on?!” I said getting more and more panicked.

“No! Leave us, I need her…I need…” Draven said on a growl but then he was once again someone else.

“Not like this…don’t do this!” The other familiar voice argued but Draven’s hands wouldn’t let go.

“No…she’s mine…MINE!” The demon screamed and I flinched in his hold.

“Dominic, come back…don’t do this…not to her, don’t do this to her…to us.” And then it came with a flash of lightning, the horrifying reality that could never be taken back. And the next words just confirmed what the blaze of light had shown me.

“I need her, can’t go back there, not yet…not yet…need her…Keira…” His voice was so full of pain, however that pain was far away from the figure of the man that lay above me.

“Now brother! LEAVE NOW!” Vincent shouted and I screamed as the body above me flew backwards, all the darkness evaporating from him and then he landed on his back in the corner of my room.

I shot up and as soon as I saw Vincent getting up from the floor that was when I found my limit and the last thing I saw before darkness was an Angel running forward to catch me.

“I am so sorry…so…sorry…oh…Keira.”

Chapter 15

Impossible Dreams and Clashing Nightmares

I woke up in a twisted mess on the floor screaming. I tore off the covers and got up trying to make sense of what had just happened. I didn’t know whether I had just had a blissful dream or a disastrous nightmare but somewhere along the line, the two had merged into one, just like the Draven brothers.

I didn’t know where my warped brain was at, but that dream had seriously thrown me. I deflated back onto the bed and I dragged the covers from the floor back around me, like they would somehow make me feel safer. I wanted to know where the Hell my head was at dreaming craziness like that, but then I only had myself to blame. I mean really, what type of person was I, kissing Vincent like that…? I felt my mind screaming at me from inside, ‘he was Draven’s brother for Christ sake!’

I sat there shaking, feeling horrified with myself and the lengths I went to, to feeling comforted. I should never have done that and now this was my penalty. A dream that quickly spun out of control and ultimately became a punishing memory I would have to hold with me forever.

After beating myself up some more, I finally dragged myself up and tried to scrub the dream from my body in the shower. I felt both sick and ashamed but the guilt wasn’t just for Draven, but also for Vincent. There was no denying that the kiss we shared meant something deep for both of us and I didn’t want to ever wish it had never happened, so I didn’t really know what to do with it…that was ultimately my biggest problem.

After my shower I got dressed, went downstairs and forced some breakfast into my stomach. It was strange getting ready and not having a mane of hair to deal with, but what was weirder and harder to get used to was every time I caught my reflection I saw someone so different looking back at me. One of these times I had to take a minute to figure out some stranger wasn’t outside the window peering in at me.

It was only when pouring my second cup of tea that something twigged in my head. Something that once I was in the same room with any Draven, flew straight out of my head and stayed there until now. I got up and rummaged in one of the kitchen drawers until I found a small taxi card that looked like it had spent most of it life in a man’s wallet as it was still ass cheek shaped. I then called a ‘Cab’ and raced upstairs to get my stuff together before it arrived.

Fifteen minutes later I found myself sat in the back of ‘Catch a Cab’, leaning forward and telling a cool looking rock chick, my destination,

“Afterlife”

As we pulled up outside the massive building that looked more like a perfect setting for an English period drama rather than being a Goth nightclub, I felt the twinge in my chest. Even the building was like another person in my life that had been ripped away from me and seeing it this way, all closed up tight and not welcoming with life, it was hard to take in.

“Right Chicky, here you go.” Said the cool looking taxi lady, who could have entered a Daisy Duke contest and come away with first prize. I looked to the meter and fished out the cash, including a tip.

“Just a quick question.” She said slapping her glossy lips together a minute to judge my reaction. I nodded for her to continue.

“Why you here anyhow? I mean, the joint don’t exactly look like its rocking any time soon.” She said as she scanned the closed doors and deserted car park.

“Someone’s waiting for me.” I told her in a voice that screamed ‘Emotional’ and after a frown she handed me a card and told me to ring the number if I needed another cab and told me to ask for ‘Jax’. I thanked her then watched her until she was out of sight.

Then I just stood there and took in the building like it was the last time I would ever see it. I followed the green lines of the thick ivy that was closer to taking over than the first time I had seen its beauty. I flashed back to that first day and I found I was still overwhelmed by its imposing structure.

This was Afterlife and inside, I had found that in the literal sense in more ways than one. It both contained the elements of dreams and nightmares, Heaven and Hell’s creatures and the living Gods of a world most people would run screaming from if they only knew the truth. But me…well I was running screaming into the arms of that world and praying with every step that it would take me back. So, with that in mind, I did what I had come here to do. I entered my Afterlife.

I now at least knew why Vincent had let me see the new code he’d programmed into the panel at the door. One look up at what I had climbed yesterday and I shuddered at the thought of doing that again. I think he knew right off the bat that my craziness knew no limits and at least this way he was ensuring that craziness didn’t lead to a broken neck.

I entered the date of my birthday, one that would be with me in three days time and let myself into the club. The place was stark and eerie in its silence, but more so when I knew that not one soul but mine was contained within its walls. The bar area had been stripped of all bottles and the glasses had been covered in thick clear plastic. All signs pointed to a place that would be locked up tight and closed for the long haul. It was sad to see a place I loved become so forgotten and lost to me. With that in mind, I quickly walked through that large open space until I was stood looking up at the next heartbreak.

The last time I was here didn’t give me long enough to process the emotions that seeing this place again did to me. I could easily put this down to one big playing factor and his name was Vincent. As soon as I took one look his way, I think I even forgot where I was. But now…now there was no time for forgetting, there was only time for hurting.

I walked numbly to the focal point in the vast open space that was the main part of the club. I wondered what it was like for all those who came here and had those double staircases taunting them like that. What went through their heads when that one time a year they saw the Dravens descend on their little town and up those steps like royalty they could never touch? And then there was me, the only one to infiltrate that dream and find soul shattering love on the other side.

I walked up the steps shaking my head asking myself how I had even survived it all, when the final bullet to the heart was that damn chair coming into view! There it stood waiting for its master, one that wouldn’t be coming home any time soon and one that made me run to its core like an anchor in the devastating twister that was my feelings.

There I found what I had dropped and left forgotten, for the arms of an Angel. I picked up what I knew was another letter from the Oracle but I couldn’t open it yet. What I did do was what I would have done if Vincent hadn’t found me and that was to crawl onto Draven’s chair, curl up tight and let myself go. I allowed my tears to fall freely as I thought back to all the things I had lost and I told myself this was the very last time I was going to cry about this situation the fates had thrown me into.

I shook like a sobbing child and started to claw at the high back as if searching there for Draven’s scent. I pressed my face deep into the padding and continued to take deep breaths, filling my lungs with what I thought was the last remnants of Draven’s Godly fragrance and felt my body go tight, so tight everywhere just ached and I froze when I couldn’t get any tighter. For then I knew each breath might be the last. I wanted to scream again in an anger that always came booting its way back to my gut and kicking me there until I was out of that precious breath. The need to have Draven back in my life wasn’t just consuming but it was lifesaving. It was as though I was drowning in my own ocean of misery and I was kicking and twisting my whole body, trying to stay afloat.

This was when I saw it. This was the precise moment I saw myself that very night. I couldn’t believe my eyes, just as I couldn’t all that time ago. It was after the night with Justin and Draven had taught him what he thought was a very valuable lesson, one that meant not ever coming on to his woman. I say this because this was what he had told me days later.

But now I was looking back at myself, one with long blonde hair and a confused look that said my other self couldn’t understand what she was seeing, just as I couldn’t. I remembered that night, the one crazy moment I had witnessed this horrible space in time that was now confirmed to be my future. It was just before I walked into Sophia’s play room and found Draven dripping in beauties, all to teach me a cruel lesson.

I watched the moment my breath caught and my step became staggered in the past. I wanted to scream out at her, to tell her to run from the hurt she was about to endure, but would that have stopped me? I mean, would I have really run a mile and hitched my way back to England, if I knew the outcome? The thought of all that time with Draven, even if it was going to get ripped away from me at some point, would I have really turned my back on that? I knew the answer to that one and it went a bit like ‘not bloody likely’!

The image of my other self faded away like thick smoke being wafted by someone’s hand. At this point I pulled myself together and forced my fingers to uncurl the letter I had subconsciously held to my chest. Then I got up and just because I needed to know, I walked over to the large carved doors at the back that led into the Draven fortress. I don’t know why, but when they didn’t open, it still caused that crater that was in my chest to erode further. I mean, I was expecting it, but that just went to prove the point that even the greatest expectations hurt like the Hell they put us through. Expecting the worst can always get worse and expecting the best can always get better. The lesson learnt in this still made me do daft shit and trying to open this door was one of them.

I just ended up walking away feeling even worse than before and these days it was surprising that could even happen. So I walked over to the balcony, placed my hand on the glass and sucked in the fresh air in the hopes of cleansing the pain. Once there I used the light of day to read my next letter.

Kissing Angels is the price you pay getting into Hell,

For the time you spend there will be as quick as ringing the Bell,

As to what you find, then the choice will be yours,

I am only the map but you are the key to those doors,

So take heed of my warning, for it will be your last,

The quest you take will drag you under, hard and fast,

So learn how to swim my dear and make that current your own,

Ride the wave of doubt to your destination that will bring you home,

Being that of course…

‘Roses in a Dome’

With that all said enjoy your flight Tricks,

And don’t forget to add a drink to the mix!

P x

I stared at this for a few minutes and then noticed a few lines on their own written on the back, so I turned it over and read the rest.

p.s

In five minutes you will find, many black circles all entwined,

Suffice to say this booted man, will easy bring down this angry clan,

So rest assured and hold on tight, for Mr Handsome to take flight.

I re-read this part about three times before I heard the evidence of what the Oracle was trying to tell me. I turned and walked back into the VIP but as soon as I did, I froze. Voices were making their way up to where I stood and I looked down in horror as there were now five men dressed in what looked like black combat gear spreading out searching the bottom part of the club.

I held myself as still as possible but then realised from many nights of experience when I first started working here, that you could barely see up here. So, with that in mind, I stuffed the letter in my pocket, feeling the coin I always kept there and got down on all fours. I started to crawl closer to the balcony, making sure I kept in the shadows. From here I was close enough to hear what they were saying.

“I know she is here…Find her!” A crackled voice spread out like prickly thorns along my skin and I shuddered. These men were looking for me, but why? Ok, so forget the why, more like, how the Hell was I going to get out of here?!

I looked around and only saw two exits, one meant climbing the ivy and possibly falling to my death or the other was a door I hadn’t yet tried and one that might possibly be locked. The door I usually used to get into the VIP so I wouldn’t ever have to use the stairs, was sitting there like a calling beacon, so after weighing up my options one sentence from the thugs made my decision,

“Find her, knock her out and drag her ass back to the boss.” This came from the obvious leader and kicked in my flight mode and the mental shot gun sounded in my head…RUN!

And I did just that. I scrambled up and ran towards the door I had used too many times to count. I weaved in and out of tables and chairs as I ran for the door, praying that this one would be open and then my access into the depths of Draven’s home would be available for me to hide in. There were only two places to go and one of those took me straight down to the main part of the club, somewhere right now I really didn’t want to be. But there were two parts of this plan that I didn’t figure happening, one would be that the commotion I was causing with my running into furniture and the fact the men clearly now knew where I was and the other was having to skid to a halt when the door swung open and a dark figure emerged.

I took one look at the massive hooded giant coming towards me and turned to bolt in the other direction. If I could just make it back to the balcony, then maybe I would have a slim chance at getting away from this new nightmare. My heart was pounding with the surge of adrenaline pumping through my system and I thanked God for it, for without it, it would be times like this that I would have just curled into a frightened ball and shook. But no, not thanks to this natural drug that was a driving force.

I circled round and just before I came close to the railings of the staircase I was grabbed from behind. An arm that felt like it could have belonged to the Terminator snaked around my waist and slammed me back into a wall of chest. Another hand quickly grabbed my throat and his hand was so large it spanned the entire column of my neck. He held me still and when I tried to break free he applied a little pressure as a warning. I then felt slight movement behind me as he lowered his head, closer to my ear.

“Ssshh lille øjesten.” That incredibly deep voice vibrated through me once again and as I shivered I felt his thumb create little soothing circles along my skin.

“Down!” He ordered then he moved quickly and I found myself being pushed down to the floor by heavy hands at my shoulders. He pushed so hard that if I hadn’t bent my knees my legs would have snapped. This being the case he also gripped my jacket so that my knees didn’t bang too hard on impact as he lowered me until I was tucked below his leg.

My last thought before the sounds of destruction erupted around us was…

Thick black boots were back.

Chapter 16

Black Ink

I looked up to find myself in between the legs of giant, one who was clearly getting ready to kick some ass! He widened his stance and I saw him start to shrug one arm out of his long dark grey jacket. It came down to the back of his knees and its heavy hood remained hiding his face. I wondered how he even saw anything with only his square chin being exposed.

Underneath this massive cloak-like jacket, I could see black leather trousers, black t-shirt and some kind of leather straps across his huge chest. Every single thing about this guy screamed dangerous and colossal and this was coming from someone who knew a Ragnar!

He was so tall I could have easily lived in between his legs and still had room to spare…of course not in a rude way. That thought alone terrified me, one hug and you would be crushed, let alone what a night with a man like this could do. One thing was for sure, he would roll over and you would lose weight pretty quickly!

Once he had freed his arm, I sucked in a quick breath when I saw it was practically covered in tattoos. Only these were unlike any I had ever seen before, as it wasn’t like a sleeve tattoo as there were spaces in between each one. They were thick black bands, each one different in design and they all got thicker the further up his arm they went. I noticed one as he brought his arm to the railing by my head and it was then I noticed they were all snakes ringed around strong muscle eating their own tails.

The commotion downstairs was getting louder and three of the men had started to come up the staircase at us. I sank down lower and gave a startled little moan when I saw that the snakes had all started to move, each one circling round his arm in opposite directions.

The very last one was the smallest on his middle finger, about an inch thick and just past the first joint closer to the tip, this moved clockwise. The next was a banded snake that had little spikes and was slightly thicker running across the back of his hand and palm, this one moved anti-clockwise. This was the theme running up until I couldn’t see past the sleeve of his t-shirt.

The closer the men got, the faster they all spun and soon I watched wide-eyed as they started to move down and join together creating an entire arm of black ink. Then I gave a surprised cry as the ink shot from his arm like black tar and ran down the length of the banister towards all three men. It was like thick glue and I couldn’t hold in the scream when it reached the men and whipped out like elasticated webbing and latched onto their necks. Once there, it became hard, setting like cooling lava rock and all three branches that had necks in their grasp, all twisted at the same time and the sound of bone snapping echoed in the vast space.

After seeing the life leave the eyes of three men, the branches uncurled like a sticky vine and all bodies dropped to the steps, two of which rolled backwards down until they finally came to rest at the club’s floor. The other two watched this, as it all happened in seconds and then after a quick nod to each other, they pulled two guns each from behind their backs. That’s when I got my first encounter with flying bullets.

I thought I would see the flash or something coming from the end of a gun, but the only sensory encounter was sound, because before I knew it the world around us had gone black. The man above me had literally sucked the rooms shadows tight to our bodies and then I felt myself being hauled up into solid arms and carried off to only he knew where.

The shadows followed us and the sound of shots still filled in the gaps as to what was happening. Added to this was the sound of something whipping out like a tension wire had snapped, which was quickly followed by a scream. Then I felt the man carrying me rear back a bit before it felt as though he kicked forward. Glass exploded in front of us, this I could barely see in the cloud a dark grey but the shards got so far and then dropped to the ground before they could touch us.

I saw the shadows around us disperse with one step and it didn’t take a genius to guess why. The blinding sun was beaming down at us and I had to blink over and over to try and gather that sense back into working. As soon as I got my bearings I saw we were now on the balcony and the last man left was just coming through the space where sliding glass doors used to be. He held the gun up and pointed at us both.

“Give me the girl Sigurd and I won’t put a bullet through your Snake Eye.” It was the leader who was left, as I recognised the crackled voice that was making me shudder. He was wearing all black like the rest and he had a thick belt with some serious weaponry attached all the way round. His face was like mahogany, red with thick scarred skin that looked like someone had taken a searing hot blade to leather. His hair slicked back into a ponytail and two small eyes pierced me with a sneer that also made his thin lips curve up on one side.

“That bullet won’t kill me.” The man holding me stated and I felt the vibrations of that deep voice all the way through my jacket. The combat thug shrugged his shoulders before cocking the hammer and raising the barrel higher.

“That maybe so, but it will slow you down enough to get the girl and deliver her to my boss.” He said and without fail my skin crawled. He sounded like he had been kicked in the larynx recently after being made to swallow nails.

“Gastian.” Mr Deep Voice at my back snarled the name and surprise flashed for a second on the thug.

“This is for my men.” He said before pulling on his trigger finger. Now, if this had happened in slow motion I might have seen a flash or spark simultaneously as I saw the smoke, considering I was staring down the barrel of a gun. But the only thing I did see was the man behind me when his hand shot up and black ink moved as though it was oil under water from his palm. It caught the bullet before it hit, in a fist of three black fingered claws and held it up for the guy behind me to see.

“My turn.” He thundered and then the ink hand threw it up in the air and when it caught it again, it had formed the spiked shape of a crude hellish gun and fired the bullet right back at the thug’s head.

It hit him dead centre in the forehead and the man dropped with a frozen look of shock on his weathered face.

“That was for me, dickhead!” He snapped back at the dead body and I had to hold in the vomit at seeing a man on the ground with a hole in his head and a pool of blood quickly forming. I think I at least screamed at all this or at least my mouth was still open ready for it.

In my utter disbelief, I was still in stunned mode when he pulled me tighter to his chest, which I could imagine was very similar to being held against a brick wall. He turned calmly to face the balustrades and he ran a few steps before jumping up onto the ledge. This was when I finally found my nerve to speak…heights will do that to you!

“Put me down!” I shouted and when he led me over the edge I fisted my hands in his jacket.

“I doubt you really want me to do that right now.” He said as he leaned forward slightly to emphasise his point. When my grip got tighter, I heard the grunt of a short laugh escape.

“Who are you?” I asked for the first time, looking up and seeing him in the light of day. All I got was a square chin covered in dark stubble and full lips that curved on one side as my answer…then he jumped.

“AAARRRHHH!” I screamed and by the time I had to inhale he had landed us both on his heavy booted feet and was walking round to the front of a building.

“I really wish people would stop doing shit like that while holding me.” I muttered and thought I heard the light rumbling of his deep laughter, only I couldn’t be sure considering my ears were still ringing from my own scream.

We got to the car park and I saw a large black van with blackout windows and it didn’t take a whole lot of guessing to know that this was the vehicle the bad guys had turned up in. Well, one thing I was certain about and that was me being grateful that I wouldn’t be seeing inside it, thanks to my mystery giant.

He carried me closer and when we were round the other side of it he let my legs swing down from his arm under my knees. Then he walked away from me and closer to the van.

“Are you gonna check for ID or something?” I said thinking back to my Columbo days and all I got in answer was a shake of his hooded head. He went to the fuel cap and pulled it out with little effort even though it was locked. Out here I could finally see the full size of him and it made me do a comedy gulp.

This guy was friggin’ huge and trust me when I say that up until recently I was used to being around massive guys, Draven being one of them. But this guy was at least six foot six and had shoulders that wouldn’t have fit inside a door way without turning side on. If anything, I think I had just found a contender for Ragnar, but with this guy having a bit more stealth reactions rather than the man bull that Ragnar was.

I didn’t really know what to say, so I decided that he obviously knew what he was doing and didn’t need little nagging Keira asking stupid questions…like the ID one. So instead, I watched as he held his middle finger over the hole to the tank until it turned black, the same as his entire arm had done inside. It dripped down like crude oil from his finger tip and after four drops it sucked back up his hand, leaving the tattoo around his finger.

He turned back to me after dropping the cap over his shoulder and walked past me, snagging my arm in the process. He pulled me over to a motorbike I had only just noticed and this was when I heard other voices coming from the side of Afterlife.

“There’s more of them?!” I said in a panic.

“Yeah, so get on the Harley.” He responded, while looking their way and not really sounding concerned or even looking surprised. I did as I was told and ran the remaining steps over to the bike, after I saw six more men round the side of the building where we came from and once they saw us, they started running.

“Oh shit!” I said and just before I could mount the bike, I felt a steel band wrap around my torso and he lifted me with one arm. I found, due to his height, he could actually lift me quite high up and with my legs kicking out in surprise, he lowered us down into the seat.

“Umm… shouldn’t I…like… get behind you?” I stammered as I was positioned in front of him.

“Why, are you bullet proof?” He asked dryly and then reached round me and started the bike until a deep rumble vibrated beneath me. I jumped when his hand rested in front of me, but then I shrieked when that same black stuff started to ooze from his hand. It travelled up and over the top of my thighs and half way up my waist.

“What are you doing?!” I screeched out as the ink started to harden which ended up forming a secure seat that anchored me to the bike. It even ran down the bike and attached itself to my feet to keep me more firmly in place. Then we roared off just as shots were once again being fired.

“Jesus!” I shouted as he skidded the bike round, causing a dirt cloud, bringing us low to one side. He pulled the bike round again, kicking up a ring of dust that hid us from view and thankfully from the raining bullets. Then he righted the bike up and steered us onto the road, leaving the bad guys running for the van.

I didn’t think it would be possible to ride a bike with a person in front of you but the handle bars were higher than the ones on Vincent’s, so he just kept me caged in his arms, while he rode us the Hell outta there. Unlike my first ride on a bike with a sweeter Angel, this one was a bad ass ride that speed off at a speed I didn’t want to think about and had me hanging on to a lump of black rock in front of me like my life depended on the tight use of my fingers. At least I now knew why he had gone to the lengths of securing me to the seat like some lava ass shaped saddle.

We just cut through the tunnelled greenery the forest created when I heard it. An almighty boom exploded behind us and I would have looked, but the immense body behind me hid everything from what we’d left behind.

“Was that you?” I asked…or more like shouted over the roar of the engine.

“Yeah, that was me.” This was his only answer and also the last time he spoke to me until we pulled up in front of my house.

Half way home, he had slowed down somewhat, which told me the danger was now over or at least I hoped so, considering he’d blown up a van load of bad guys. After seeing all that had happened in the last hour, I was actually surprised I was still coping without girly hysterics and lip biting. If anything, on the way home, I had somehow felt the urge to relax into the body at my back and I had to say…man I felt safer doing so!

It was, however, when we pulled up in front of my house that the lip biting started. My mind started to speed up and I was racking my brain as to what to say. I mean, what was the standard procedure for times like this… ‘Thanks for finding me, snapping necks, dodging bullets, blowing ugly dude’s brains out and then blowing up a van full of thugs before taking me on a death ride home’…? Umm…I didn’t think so.

He cut the engine after leaning closer into me and then the solid black substance around me started to liquefy and left me, flowing back to its master. I think my mouth dropped open at seeing it happen this close up. It was nothing like watching it when it came out of him, which just looked like he had a hidden tube under his palm or something but this…this was something else.

The black substance up close looked like it was made from thousands of tiny strands of black wired thread that all entwined together to become sticky like the silicone gel I had once seen my dad using in the bathroom on tiles. This altogether folded over itself to travel back into the hand that mastered it and it soaked into his skin as if every pore was a gateway.

When the last drop found home, he moved his hand away from the front of me and I felt him kick up the stand ready to lean his bike to one side. He got off and his whole hand circled the top of my arm, still with plenty of length still left on his large fingers. He pulled me up and I had nowhere else to go but up and off the saddle.

I found myself looking up at him and my neck strained, it tipped that far back. He still had his hood hiding his face and his lips looked tight when he saw I was trying to discover who was under there.

“Who sent you?” I asked frowning and tilting my head to one side.

“That is not your concern.” He said and whenever I heard the deepest level of his voice, I would feel my heart kick up a notch. I listened and tried to detect an accent but the way he spoke he didn’t really have one. It was stern and it was precisely firm, only ever saying what he needed to, that was unless he was shooting back at a guy that had tried to put a hole in his… ‘Snake Eye’, whatever that was supposed to mean.

“Right.” I muttered as I started to walk past him towards my door.

“So what, you’re just going to keep showing up and saving my ass?” I asked not hiding the sarcasm, despite the fact that he had in fact saved me, my sister and my niece. I decided to put it down to being shot at for the first time.

“Whatever it takes to get the job done.” His voice hummed in my ear and I jumped at how close a man his size was able to sneak up on me without making not one bloody sound!

“What does that mean?” I asked on a whisper. I felt the weight of his hand rest on my shoulder first, before running gently up my neck and then brushing my new shorter hair off to one side. In doing so he exposed my neck for his next set of cryptic words.

“Of course, it would be easier if you didn’t keep getting yourself into trouble, lille øjesten.” He called me that again and I still didn’t know what it meant, but whenever he said it was the only time his voice changed and a hint of an accent could be heard. It was just a shame I wasn’t the best at detecting where people came from, so I was still left in the dark as to where the biker dude was from.

“What did those men want with me anyway?” I asked, still with him locked to my back and his hand still planted firmly at my neck.

“Gastian never forgives or forgets and from what I heard, you pissed him off big time, øjesten.” He replied only to make my head spin even more.

“I don’t even know this Gastian! And why do you keep calling me o..ost..een?” I said trying to say it like he did, only given his grunted laugh I didn’t quite get it right.

“Maybe one day I will tell you, but right now is not the time, lille øjesten.” He said the name slower this time, ran a single finger down my neck and then…

He was gone.

After my mystery biker had disappeared yet again, I had walked back into the house and made myself some lunch consisting of two boiled eggs (runny) and toast soldiers, which I considered comfort food. It was the first thing my mum made me when I didn’t get picked for a team sport at school, when I fell over the handle bars on my new bike on New Year’s day, and when Bobby Carlson told me we would be better off just staying as friends. But the most meaningful time was when it was the first thing my mum made me when I got back from the hospital after the whole kidnapping incident.

So here I was again, dipping make-believe soldiers into runny yolk and remembering the first time when my mum told me the soldiers were there for me and would turn the hurt and disappointment into yummy bites. Of course, I doubt she ever intended they would solve the issue of getting shot at, but I couldn’t say that it wasn’t working.

After I had finished eating and amazingly keeping it down, I rang the ‘Catch a Cab’ number and booked a taxi to take me to the airport, after asking for my new friend Jax. It was then that I started packing and getting things ready for my flight to London. I had no idea what I was going to need, let alone how long I was going to be travelling, but the only thing I did know was that I was supposed to be in disguise.

So with this in mind, and with how my hair had turned out, I decided to play little Goth chick. I was now thankful for the two shopping bags of the last of season’s line store clothes RJ had given me from the Goth store she worked at, ones she had bought for next to nothing and ones she said would have been a crime to leave, even on sale. What she hadn’t factored into it was that she had next to no bust and most of the stuff was far too baggy considering she liked her clothes tight…as in skin tight.

I never had the heart to say no and I was thankful she didn’t ever ask me if I wore any of it. The answer would have been no, but now, they would be coming in handy. Although most of the clothes made me start biting my lip at the thought of wearing, I knew I needed to play the part, so I sucked it up and filled my big duffle bag with black, black and even more black.

I was lucky with my footwear at least, seeing as my Doc Martins would suit most of the outfits, but just in case I packed the pair of Libby’s knee high black boots that I had worn at Halloween. I knew she wouldn’t mind as they were in the part of her wardrobe of things that she never wore but couldn’t yet give up.

After I had packed most of my stuff I then went downstairs to ring Libby and have my last chat with her before I went ‘Travelling’. Once I had finished and received my early birthday wishes, I did the same with my mum and dad. After being told to be careful about fifty times and to make sure I wore one of those hidden pouches round my waist with my money in, I finally said goodbye.

Now, I was stood in the kitchen waiting for the kettle to boil and looking out onto our driveway as the sun was going down over the national park. It cast beautiful shadows and stunning colours, causing me to take a moment to absorb the idea that this could be the last time I saw this. I didn’t mean I could die or anything equally as morbid, although I didn’t think it would be a walk in Central Park. No, I just had made the decision that if this didn’t work, I didn’t think I could live in this town anymore. Just the thought of spending the rest of my life living in the memory of what I once had, wasn’t ever going to be the right life for me to live.

So, even though I didn’t know where I would end up, at least I knew the reminders weren’t going to be there to haunt me for the rest of my days. So this was why I stood there and watched the sunset over a place I both loved and unfortunately…feared.

I held onto my Homer mug and felt its warmth seep into my fingers as I sipped my personal nectar, when my eyes scanned the dark woods ahead. Once there I almost dropped my mug at what I saw. There were now two dark figures that looked close to the same size, that size being gargantuan and being obvious that at least one of the men was my mystery biker, but then that led to the most important question…

Who was the other guy?

Chapter 17

Flying with a Clueless Mind

I think I was still in shock and I was sure I would still be this way until I landed. From the moment I walked up to the check-in desk in Chicago O'Hare International Airport after a short internal flight to get there, I was stunned speechless. It all started when a smart looking lady in a blue tailored suit took my ticket and sent me off to the first class lounge. At first I thought she had made a mistake and when I asked again, she simply looked back at her computer screen and said,

“No, no, it’s right here, you were upgraded, Miss Williams.” This was when the surprises started. After entering a whole new world into a luxury dimension that made me feel like a fraud, mutton dressed as lamb, wolf in sheep’s clothing, a fish out of water…ok, now I was hungry and quickly losing my point. But lucky for me, being in this new dimension meant being surrounded by the most luscious and mouth-watering food. So there was no thinking about it when I chose the fish starter and the lamb main for dinner.

Of course, after being sat in the private lounge, where you could get a pre-flight dinner, a facial and champagne handed to you by your own private concierge all before take-off, was enough to keep my mouth hanging open before even stepping on board. But once there and being shown to my own little flight hub that was complete with a chair I would have been happy to die in, it was that comfortable, I finally had a minute to process the magical whirlwind that was first class.

So here I was, sipping another glass of champagne, above the clouds watching the sun set on another day feeling guilty that I was enjoying the experience, while the man I loved was literally living in Hell. After that thought I gulped back the golden liquid, refused any more and ate my exquisite meal like it was acid infused cardboard feeling that guilty for every bite I took.

I shouldn’t be here and I definitely should not being enjoying any part of this journey. I scolded myself repeatedly, trying to ease the ache I felt in my heart when thinking about Draven. I knew right then that the only reason I wasn’t drowning in my misery and despair at being without him was that with each mile consumed by this plane, I was a mile closer to bringing him back to me. Failure in this plan was not an option. I just wouldn’t let myself think it and this was backed up with the idea that if the Oracle herself thought this was worth a shot, then there was a shot!

“Miss?” I shook myself out of my thoughts as a beautiful stewardess stood next to my little space.

“Sorry, I didn’t catch that,” I said shrugging my shoulders as it was obvious she was waiting for an answer about something. She smiled sweetly down at me and motioned with her head at my half empty tray.

“Would you like me to take that for you?” I nodded and moved slightly back as she reached across to get it and before she left me back to my mindful turmoil, she asked if there was anything else I needed. I was tempted to ask if she was a demon and could sneak me backstage in Hell, but refrained. After all, there was no need to freak out the people that provided the alcohol.

“Just a rum and coke please,” I said doubting they did tequila shots! She smiled at me and turned with the tray in hand only to start scowling at the entrance to first class.

“Oh wow, look at this place… Hey, are there any famous people in here?” I heard a lively voice ask and I arched my head round to see who was speaking.

“Excuse me miss, you can’t be back here, this is first class.” The stewardess said in an authoritative tone which you could tell she used often.

“No shit, its first class, I mean look at this…you guys get actual plates and stuff…and look at this…real glass…fancy.” The newcomer said waggling her eyebrows at me and I found I had to stifle a laugh. She was a big English woman with a cute face and massive brown eyes that sparkled as she took in the living myth that was the luxury of First Class. I couldn’t say I blamed her as I was exactly the same when I first saw it… minus the faded Mickey Mouse T-shirt, peach lipstick that was smeared and tight curly hair that was held back with a flowery scrunchy hair band.

“I am sorry Miss, but you really can’t be here.” The flustered stewardess repeated.

“Miss? Ah Hell, I ain’t been a Miss for over thirty years Lovey and I have had my share of hunks to prove that fact…” She said and then stepped closer making the poor stewardess wince before she continued with something that made me choke on a swallow.

“…think, throwing a stick down an alley way, I swear I am lucky I don’t whistle as I walk!” She said nudging her and I couldn’t hold it back any longer, I burst out laughing, while the stewardess stepped back horrified and looked as though she would catch something if she got too close.

“See, she found it funny, didn’t ya Lovey?” She said nodding to me and I winked back at her when the stewardess wasn’t looking, feeling like a naughty child laughing at the school joker.

“You have to leave…NOW!” She said more firmly to the newcomer, but the bigger lady just smiled.

“Alright, alright…don’t twist your ironed panty hose and untwist those knick knackers while you’re at it, I am here to give someone a letter…Keira Johnson…anyone of you fine folks called Keira whatsit face?” This sobered my humoured smile and I raised my hand before saying,

“That would be me.” She smiled down at me and then said,

“Of course it is, only one of you lot with any sense of humour for this old fart…alright, I’m a’leaving, just wanted to give the little cutie pie a letter is all.” She said while pulling it out of her ‘fanny pack’ as the Americans called it. She passed me the letter with a wink and then let herself be escorted out of First Class by another stewardess who soon got in on the authority act.

“Peace out, Richies!” She shouted before the manhandling could start. Meanwhile, I just turned my head from the commotion in dumb silence as I looked down at the newest letter on my lap.

“I am very sorry about that Miss.” My head snapped up at the stewardess who was apologising for completely the wrong thing. If anything, I was very close to getting up and hugging the cuddly Brit who had brought me what I could only class as a gift from the Heavens! It did bring forth the question of how the Hell did she even get her hands on it, which was why I found myself getting up from my seat and waving off any apology before asking where it was the lady was sat.

“I…umm, did you know that lady?”

“No, but I do want to know how she knew me.” I said to the confused looking stewardess as I gripped my letter tighter to my side.

“She was… sat in Economy,” she said pausing and whispering the words like they were dirty. I smirked at her and gave her a comical wink for no good reason other than finding the situation funny. I left a stunned looking stewardess in a navy suit in my wake as I made my way back through the plane.

I looked like a crazy person as I scanned each and every passenger I went past, looking for Mickey Mouse that had seen better and brighter days… pre a million spins in the washing machine. Of course I heard her before I saw her.

“I tell ya, these seats don’t half pinch my denim fillers, my cheeks will have arm rest marks in them for a week!” I stifled a giggle at her comment and smiled when her cute round face came into view. She was shifting this way and that, trying to get comfortable and the man sat next to her looked disgusted with her blatant disregard for where her elbows jabbed at him. Again, I had to swallow my amusement.

“Umm…excuse me,” I said clearing my throat getting her attention.

“Well hello again. What are your little rich britches doing back here, slumming it?” She asked without malice. I smiled at her before answering,

“I am actually a waitress and had this flight paid for me.” I shrugged my shoulders when she gave me a surprised look.

“Well, I hope you’re gonna marry him, anyone that doesn’t want to put your shiny butt through this torture for eight hours is a keeper!” She said squirming.

“Here, please sit down, it is a comfy seat for some… but I need a drink and to… escape.” The man next to her said standing, whispering the last part as he passed me.

“Thanks,” I said but this was over spoken by my new friend.

“I heard that!” She shouted at him and I cringed at the scowls she received from other passengers.

“I don’t know how anyone can be comfy with a parker pen shoved so far up their ass they must blow ink when they sneeze…do you?” I burst out laughing and failed trying to hide it.

“So, what can I do ya for skinny Minnie, what’s her face?” She asked cracking open her tiny Coke can before taking a large swig.

“I just wanted to know who gave you this letter.” I asked holding it up to her, which wasn’t needed but done out of impulse. This, however, created a response that I wasn’t expecting.

“Holy shit!” I said leaning back away from her when I saw her eyes start to glow. The toothy grin she gave me was sheer mischief and then she nodded which was contradicting my shaking head.

“You’re…you’re a… bloody demon?” I whispered the last part, looking round to make sure no one could hear my crazy statement.

“Of course, who else would you trust with something like that?!” She said minus the ‘Well Durr’.

“Of course, it still doesn’t help with me ending up with piles after a long flight.” She winked at me as I snorted a laugh.

“Who are you?” I asked feeling my eyebrows lower as the distrust seeped in.

“Merry Weather Jones at your service.” She said wiping a plump hand down her jeans leg a few times before offering it to me.

“Merry Weather?” I couldn’t help but ask as I took her hot and sticky hand that dwarfed my own.

“Yeah, the bitch that was my possession officer had a twisted sense of humour alright, plus she just loved the fat fairy from Sleeping Beauty and those, my dear skinny friend, are the reasons you will never get my awesome big booty in a blue dress…man what a bitch!” She said again before swigging the rest of her Coke back.

“So where were we?”

“You were about to tell me who gave you this letter?”

“Ah, well now I would gladly want to ruin the surprise being it’s in my nature and all, but I am afraid I don’t know.” She said offering me a peach coloured smile.

“I doubt that…I mean how can you not know?” I said raising a sceptical eyebrow, one she ignored. She simply raised her empty Coke can at a passing stewardess and shook it until the poor girl got the hint.

“Easy, it’s above my pay grade and definitely my ranking, but I will tell ya one thing, the pay was worth every hour my ass is going to be numb for! So thank you for that part.” She said lifting her empty coke my way and this time showing a bit of fang with her coy grin.

“So you can’t tell me anything?” I said feeling deflated and pulling my letter closer to my chest as my own comfort.

“Only this…whoever gave me that letter put some bad ass voodoo on it as the only soul that can open it is you, and trust me when I say that shit right there is the real thing…power like that…well it makes my Merry Weather ass look like bird shit hitching a lift off a Ferrari! And I aint ‘bout to claim myself as being that Ferrari if you catch my wheels ‘a drifting!” I nodded even though her unique code had me suppressing the need to scrunch up my face and tell her she was crazy.

So instead of pointing out the obvious screw loose she had going on, I got up and nodded my thanks before letting the stewardess through with another shot of caffeine…that, if you asked me, was the last thing that Demon needed.

I made my way back to First Class even more confused than before and instead of tearing into the letter as I usually wanted to do, something about this one now felt different. Of course when I was back in my private pod chair, feeling like a Bond villain, I found out just how warranted my feelings were.

You think this is a wise decision, to trust in the fates when they abandoned you?

You think you are capable of playing with the Gods and bring forth the Dead?

You think that by travelling this path will lead you to righteous arms in Hell?

You think wrong human!

Now it is time for what I think,

I think that the death of a King will not bring you peace but the death of a girl will bring peace to a King.

I think that the Dead will rise and with him revenge, redemption and retaliation will be found in your End.

I think the time is coming for those who have been chosen by the Gods and the mistakes found in those souls.

I think it is time for you to

Die right along with your King!

By the time I finished reading it for the third time my face ached from frowning and I had to uncurl my fingers from fisting the parchment that hard. Who the Hell had written this?! And how dare they try and stop me from doing what needed to be done! I slammed the paper words face down on the little table in front of me, making a few of the other VIP’s around me jump from my outburst.

My anger bubbled and coiled round me like something waiting to find the right victim to strike! I curled my top lip in disgust at the words of obvious hate on my part. So, someone out there knew what I was doing and was trying to use me, this ‘Mistake of the Gods’, to flee running scared with my tail between my legs. Well at least one thing was clear…they obviously didn’t know me!

After giving the offending sheet my best death ray stare for about an hour I finally folded it back up, still tasting the acid of anger inside, as I shoved it back into the plain envelope.

After that the rest of the flight was a blur as my mind crashed along the shore of doubt with a stormy vengeance. I hated that I was letting the words get to me in any way, but it was so hard not to. What did they know? Who were they and what if they spoke even a tiny element of the truth? Had the Gods made a mistake in picking me or now without Draven here what did that mean…was my Heavenly contract being the Electus now void?

My mind continued like this for the remainder of the flight and even when I was handed my jacket, I was still asking myself questions and using my zombie responses when thanking the stewardess. I hated what the letter had done to my courage and confidence in my plan and I found myself now stood in the bathroom at Gatwick airport staring myself down. Palms flat on the counter, I hung my head as my doubtful eyes finally got to me.

I couldn’t do this now! Hell, I couldn’t do this ever! This was not going to get me anywhere and besides, why should I be listening to the words of someone who obviously wanted me dead! For Christ’s sake, it could have come from Layla for all I knew, someone who was still high on the wanted list and had gone into hiding her hellish bimbo self to get out of the death sentence that clearly awaited her.

With my mind made up, I slammed my hands down on the counter shouting,

“Fuck it!” Scaring an old lady in the process, who walked out muttering about young ones today and having no respect.

“Sorry!” I shouted back, getting a slammed door as my answer. I looked back at my reflection to see the dark doubt leave my eyes, only to be replaced with a fierce determination that looked so much better on my grey blue eyes.

“I can do this…I can do this!” I said, the last time with more of a bite to my bark. I stormed from the bathroom as though I could hear my very own bad ass theme song pounding a heavy base line through my veins. My Doc Martins sounded out my purpose with every step as I made my way out of the arrivals gate and I almost missed the guy stood there with my name typed out on an ipad he was holding. So much for the cardboard days I thought as I stopped in front of him.

“Keira Williams?” He asked and at hearing my real name being voiced I didn’t know whether this was a good sign or a bad one. In the end I just nodded and followed him when he told me he had a car waiting. He waited by the open door of a black Mercedes for me to catch up. He looked like any other chauffeur, dressed in a black suit and hat worn low to his eyebrows. Black sunglasses that reminded me of Blade wrapped round his eyes and hid most of his features from my studying.

“Where to?” He asked abruptly as I approached.

“The Savoy Hotel please.” I said and with a nod, he closed the door after me and didn’t say much all the way there. I tried to ask him a few times during the drive, who sent him but I never really got an answer. I did however hear briefly about ‘Where the boss wants him, he goes’ oh and ‘Bloody London Traffic’ was another he thought to tell me.

So now here I was, pulling up to one of the most lavish hotels I was to stay in, knowing two things for certain. One was a bubble over my head as to how much one night was going to set me back and dip into my savings and two…how on earth was I going to be able to sneak into the Royal Suite?!

The Savoy was situated further back from the main street and as we drove down the hotel’s driveway, we passed two huge fern cats on either side. The outside had an art deco feel with its black cut marble lines along its multiple pillars. Its driveway circled a Mackintosh style glass water feature and its covered roof was lit up in square panels giving the posh exterior a warm orange glow. The front entrance was framed either side with two tall palm trees, which would have looked odd in England but for some reason it fit the theme nicely.

A Bellboy was stood there ready to open my door and another was loading luggage from a fancy metal lift. Then my door was opened and I looked up to see a cheeky smiley face welcome me. He was wearing a black top hat, a long black jacket that had a thick gold trim and two rows of high shine buttons.

“Welcome to the Savoy, Miss.” He said standing back so I could exit the vehicle. The driver was already pulling my bag from the boot and handing it to the Bellboy. Instantly, without Draven by my side, it was moments like this that I felt completely out of my depth as though any minute someone would be walking up to me and asking me to leave.

I knew it was my insecurities that were making me feel this way, as the staff were nothing short of pleasant and polite. But this, I was to find, was kicked up a notch when I was shown to the reception area. After walking through one of the sets of revolving doors, I stepped back in time into a treasure trove of antique furniture, grand oil paintings and solid wood panelled walls. The ceilings were a master piece in their own right. Cut into sections of squares from the free standing pillars that were topped with gold gilded leaves that arched out. The theme continued onto a wide border that spanned the top of the room, displaying beautiful mouldings of white figures against a light mint colour.

I gulped down an anxious lump as I walked over to the desk.

“Welcome to the Savoy Miss, may I help you?” A smartly dressed gentleman asked and I first had to clear my throat before I answered him. I mean, what was I going to say, ‘I probably can’t afford to stay here without my boyfriend, (who’s stuck in Hell by the way) but I was just wondering if I could take a peek at your Royal Suite’. No, I didn’t think that was going to fly with the posh folk now looking at me.

“Umm…well I…” I started in a quiet voice not really having planned this far ahead.

“May I take your name, Miss?” He said obviously thinking he was helping me out.

“Keira Williams, but I don’t…” I was cut off when I saw his eyes grow wide and he stood up abruptly.

“But of course Miss Williams, it is a pleasure to meet you. Please allow me to show you to the Savoy’s Royal suite.” After he said this I just hoped that my mouth wasn’t hanging open, as one thing struck me…

Man that was easy.

Chapter 18

Room ‘Supernatural’ Service.

Ok, so if I thought that the front entrance was intimidating in its extravagance, then this right here was something else. I now felt like I had sneaked into a royal palace! I kept expecting Prince Charles to come walking through the door and ordering tea to be served promptly in the sitting room.

The staff had quickly taken my numb state as a cue to leave me to it, especially after I almost screamed when I found one maid unpacking my bag and hanging up each Goth item as though she was handling ballroom gowns made by Gucci. I tried to explain that this really wasn’t necessary as I thought a huge mistake had been made, but I was quickly informed that I was the one making the mistake. I think it was the choking sound that garbled from my throat that had them convinced they now had a rich mental case staying in their hotel.

These fears of theirs were more than warranted even when I first stepped off the elevator and here’s why. The Royal Suite was certainly a well-earned name as that was exactly what it was fit for…royalty! The suite spread over the front of the entire 5th floor which boasted stunning views of the River Thames. The other eight, yes eight, windows also held the magnificent London vista from Canary Wharf to the Houses of Parliament.

The suite’s private butler introduced himself, but to be honest my mental capability wouldn’t have been able to register his name, even if he had introduced himself as little Bo Peep. This was because I had been shown through the suites marble foyer into a guided tour of what real money could buy you for the night. A private wood panelled office, a dining room big enough to seat eight people and a beautiful sitting room that had you thinking about English gardens. And most staggering of all, the whole suite was complete with Magic Mirrors! Yes that’s right, I said magic mirrors, as in mirrors that with the flick of a switch turned into high definition flat screens. So I could now even watch TV in the bath!

I would have expected, from my time with Draven, that I would have been used to the level of luxury and in some ways I was. But not having Draven by my side in this had me feeling like a kid’s goldfish that had lived in a bowl and just taken a nose dive into a tropical aquarium. Well, I guess I just had to hope it was a Piranha free zone but considering the last letter I’d just received I very much doubted it.

“Time to swim Keira, not sink,” I said to myself as I took in the spacious en-suite, complete with his & hers bathroom, deep soak tub and steam shower. I shook my head as I walked back through the walk-in dressing room lined with cedar wardrobes that now held a few dark clothes.

At the time I had been in shock at hearing that the suite had been booked for me and already paid up for the week. I didn’t even manage to ask by whom as I played guppy on the entire elevator ride, with the poor Concierge trying to keep a straight face.

“So now what?” I asked myself after checking the massive suite for clues. I did the obvious looking first, drawers, desk and anything else that opened among the antique furniture. But then I started to get creative and soon was even looking through the fresh flower arrangement, DVD player, sewing kit, newspapers, bathrobe pockets and shamefully even behind the pictures, like some Pink Panther thief. In the end, I just huffed down exhausted, sinking into a yellow couch that felt so comfortable it actually felt like the furniture was hugging me.

I must have only closed my eyes for a few frustrated seconds when I heard a knock on the door. I wrestled with the couch that had taken me prisoner and ended up half slumped on the floor before I got up to answer the door. I had my hand on the fancy handle but stopped myself before I opened the double doors.

“Who is it?” I asked, using my wits and past experience of deception.

“Room service.” A musical voice said and before I could think about it I opened the door. It was as if my hand was being taken over, not by another force but more like an emotional urge. It felt like being in a large theatre alone and then hearing a heart wrenching song being sung by a singer with tears falling down her eyes. The response was a shudder, a cold chill that touched my skin leaving a bumpy trail and my view misted with emotions too thick to keep buried. And all that just from two plain words spoken through a door.

In walked the only woman I would have given that magical voice to and the expression, fallen straight from Heaven, became reality. She was stunning to a point it nearly hurt to look at her. Even though she wore a serving uniform, it in no way at all detracted from her ethereal perfection that was now pushing a trolley into the sitting room with the grace of an Angel.

Fair white blonde hair looked like each strand was spun from the silk worm and twisted wistfully at the back of her head. High cheek bones that held a natural rose blush upon ivory satin skin. Her large almond shaped eyes were a kaleidoscope of colours that shone like permanent tears caressed her soul. Little heart shaped lips were naturally puckered and only lost their unique shape when she smiled down at me. Long legs and slight curves of a tall hour glass made a body worthy of the Gods to feast upon and with such grace, it was highly likely she held that position above.

I closed the door as she passed me and for the countless time today, I had my mouth hanging open as she wheeled the covered table into the centre of the room. And there was no doubt that finally I was now staring into the face of the Oracle.

“Pythia?” I asked gobsmacked that finally after all this time waiting and cracking codes, I would at last find my answers.

“No, sorry”…Okay, maybe not!

“But I am.” A spunky voice said and I gasped as a little black girl unfolded herself from under the white tablecloth. She stood up and patted herself down, which was a denim tutu skirt and a woollen striped roll neck jumper that was a rainbow of colours. She shook out her thick black hair that was a mass of corkscrew curls that remained around her head like a crash helmet.

“You’re a child!” I shouted tactlessly and she put one hand on her hip and cocked her pint sized frame to one side.

“So?” Well I didn’t really know what I could say about that one, but if I was to think of an all-powerful Oracle who held the weight of the fates on her shoulders, then the cutest seven year old with the biggest brown puppy eyes was probably the last image my brain would have found.

“I’m…uh…sorry.” I said lamely.

“Don’t sweat it Electus, we are never what people expect.” She said fluffing up her skirt, showing the spotty tights underneath.

“We?”

“Yeah, us Chosen Ones.” She said like it was obvious and she was in fact the one speaking to a child.

“Anyway, I brought cream tea, and Armi bakes a wicked scone, don’t you Armi?” She looked to the Heavenly knockout after jumping on the couch like…well like a child.

“One can only hope others think so.” She replied once again in that musical voice that could have brought Hell’s Demons to their knees in harmonic beauty. She winked at me and I nearly proposed marriage as she pulled the trolley closer to Pythia. Soon all the items were unloaded onto the table in front of the couch, including a three tiered cake stand.

“So, are you gonna come sit down or stare at me like a Gorgon Leech?” She said patting the space next to her.

“You know I have seen a few Gorgon leeches.” I said as I moved to sit down next to her.

“I know you have.”

“Of course you do,” I commented a little too dryly than I intended, but I was glad when I heard her laugh.

“Nasty little beasts, but I feel sorry for them all the same.” She shrugged her shoulders when I looked at her like she was crazy. I remembered these creatures when seeing them in the hundreds and the last emotion I would have had when seeing them trying to attack Draven was sympathy. I don’t think I could ever forget that night as long as I lived, as it was the first time I’d seen that amount of demons in one place, not of my dreams.

It was when Draven was battling it out with Sammael and I watched on as with one roar from him the cliff face transformed into a swarm and breeding ground for some of the creatures of Hell. I shuddered as the sight came back to me of so many broken bodies that had learned to walk with twisted limbs that were cracked at the seams. Bleeding holes where eyes should have been, attached to faces full of gnashing teeth.

And most of all, the memory of their screams as Draven set each one alight and released Hell back on them in the form of ruptured earth. The lava hands grabbing the flesh full and dragging each one back to what I imagined was their final resting place…only just how much resting you could get in Hell was a doubtful amount.

“I know that look and of course what you’re thinking…” She commented tapping on the side of her head before she continued,

“You see, the Greeks, taking their Mythology very seriously, knew how to tell the best stories. But unfortunately this time they got a few things wrong with these naughty little critters. Ok, so Medusa 101, you know she had snakes for hair and one look turned men to stone…yeah?”

“Yeah, that’s what I heard.” I said thinking how surreal this conversation was right now and if I ever thought I would be here speaking for the first time with the Oracle, who held all my answers, the last thing I wanted to be talking about was bloody Gorgon Leeches!

“Ok, so Gorgon was the name given to the three daughters of the Gods, Ceto and Phorcy. These fine lasses were more than envied for their breathtaking beauty and one of the very reasons their curse included ‘breath taking’ of sorts.” She shifted in her seat and leaned over her folded legs to pour the tea, while the one called Armi sat opposite us like a delicate flower, listening and nodding petals in the gentle wind.

“I remember this bit, the sister Medusa was seduced by Poseidon in a Temple and then someone got upset and cursed her,” I said trying to remember back to my days in my Grandparents’ library, reading the massive books about Mythology on a worn Indian rug.

“Yeah, Athene, she was always such a jealous bitch and if that was my man that was taking advantage of some young beauty with more than a slap and tickle, then his balls would be the one slapping, as in on the ground when I chopped them off!” She said nodding at Armi before taking a gentle sip of her tea and I couldn’t help but feel shocked at hearing this kind of speech coming from a seven year old! It felt a bit like the same reaction to hearing if Yoda ever told Luke to just F off one day in his training.

“Well anyway, that is an even longer story and that fruit is too juicy to drink right now, if you catch my meaning. But the point is that after that happened it meant all three sisters had to ride the ugly train and even after Medusa lost her head, her sisters Eurale and Stheno continued the curse.”

“But that’s not fair!” I shouted making them both smile.

“Ah, but this is where things get confused, you see people think that they just turned men to stone with one look, but this isn’t the end of it. I think they were quite clever as they twisted their curse to their advantage, turning each victim into a creature they could us to build an army, one for hire…I mean a girl’s gotta eat right and money is money in any dimension, plane, realm…whatever you want to call it” I frowned at her as the cogs turned and with a slight shake of my head she decided to elaborate.

“They became ‘The Gorgons’ Leeches’…The sisters’ private leeches or army and I will tell ya, they were mighty pissed at Draven that he killed a load of them off, but he’s hot, so they soon forgave him and what woman wouldn’t do a bit of forgiving for that grade of eye candy.” She said winking at me and my frown deepened.

“Right, well getting back to more important things like my eye candy, what the Hell happened!?” I said forgetting all about the stupid leeches, that yes, I now felt a bit sorrier for but it was time to get down to why I was here.

“Now don’t get upset young one and drink your tea, it will soothe you.” On hearing this I found myself having to close my eyes in frustration. I mean, it was one thing being called ‘young one’ by someone that came barely above my waistline, but to then be told to drink tea at a time like this, even for me that was the last thing on my mind! But nevertheless, I picked up my fine china tea cup and did as I was told.

“Ahh, love a cup of tea in this country. Right, so you have questions, I understand this, as trust me, I get it a lot…my entire being actually, so please let me explain the rules.”

“Rules?” I repeated, having a bad feeling that finally meeting with the Oracle wasn’t going to live up to the hype.

“What, you didn’t think that you could just go ahead and have me answer all your questions did you? I mean for one, knowing you I would be in my teens again before you even took a breath.” I made a noise as I started to argue with that statement but one reprimanding look had me shutting up.

“I know you, remember and besides, my King has told me plenty.” This shocked me and made me blush…what exactly had Draven being saying about me.

“So, before we go off track again, this is the low down on taking tea with the fates.” She placed her cup and saucer down and held out one tiny finger as she was getting ready to count off the rules.

“One, you can ask questions but those I won’t be able to answer, so what’s the point right…?”

“What!” I shouted which she ignored and continued.

“Please understand, I am the only one that knows the truth behind our fates, and although it gives me a bloody massive headache, it also means that I cannot speak of it, as imagine this…” She turned to face me and I knew that even the cutest eyes could shut me up with their seriousness.

“…a man comes to me and asks ‘When will I die and how will it happen?’ So I tell him, ‘You will be hit by a bus tomorrow at twelve.’ Said man then decides to take the car to work the next day and the reason he felt like taking the bus in the first place he ignores. On the way in his car, he suffers a massive heart attack causing a pile up and ends up killing that entire bus load of people, and still getting hit by a bus at twelve.”

“But you said he would be killed by the bus?” I said not being able to help myself, making her smile.

“Did I? I merely told him what I saw, he died because of the heart attack and that was the reason the bus hit him. This way only he died because he loved too much cheese and smoked his body weight in cigarettes. But now we have forty dead and the King will never meet his Chosen One.”

“Why?”

“Because, you were on that bus on the way to school Keira.” She said now grabbing a scone from the plate and just dipping it first into the clotted cream followed by the jam. She took as much as her little mouth could take and groaned.

I was still speechless by her story…could it be true? Was that the amount of power the fates had?

“Ok so I get it, what’s the next rule?” I said as things started to fit into place.

“Rule two, you lean across and eat one of these righteous scones, by the Gods, Armi, these are to die for…no pun intended.” I rolled my eyes before just doing as I was told and grabbing one….of course one bite and I couldn’t prevent the same groan of pleasure as my taste buds exploded.

“Mm..umm…th..ese are…sooo…good!” I said with my mouth full and she smiled sweetly at me before bowing her head.

“Right ok, I know this rule is a ball ache even for someone without them, but there is a way round it…like the…”

“Letters?” I said without thinking, just knowing.

“Well, would you look at our little Chosen One Armi, she’s all grown up, I am so proud.” She mocked in jest.

“Ha, ha, so I am right then?”

“Hell Yeah, see I am allowed to hand you a map but you are the one who chooses where on that map to go, if to even use that map at all…I mean it might be raining and you want to keep your hair dry with it…the point is, it won’t be you making that decision because you know it was going to rain that day.”

“So that is why all the letters, at any point I could have got it wrong and that would have been my personal fate to do so?” She nodded as she couldn’t speak with her second scone in her mouth.

“I think I get it but that still doesn’t really help me in getting Draven back…I still don’t know what to do.” I said feeling even more deflated than before my first letter. Pythia cleared her throat after swallowing.

“Not necessarily, there is a worm hole to seek comfort in. I can continue my masked guidance but the decision will always be yours if you chose to pull The King back from where he has gotten himself into.”

“You mean Hell and from what I was told, he didn’t exactly put himself there now did he?! He came looking for you when you went missing, thinking you had been taken and then the next thing I knew was that he was dead and no one will tell me how…now it’s your turn.” I demanded sternly.

She eyed me from the side and it was only the briefest of flickers of doubt or surprise that shone in her features. That was when it hit me and I almost screamed,

“That isn’t what happened?!”

“Keira…calm down…I…”

“NO! I can’t believe this, I was lied to wasn’t I?” I said getting up and storming away until storming right back to face big brown eyes. I couldn’t even find myself feeling guilty looking down at the face of a child and shouting out at them.

“That is something you will have to choose to find for yourself but this is not that time, now is the time to bring your lover back from where he has been imprisoned.” This knocked the wind from my sails.

“He’s in prison?!” I almost crumpled to the floor at this point.

“Some decisions the King makes are the decisions not yet recognised by the Gods. Thus an intervention is required and this brings me to this point. But more importantly, you to yours.” She didn’t make much sense but the whole decision part had me asking the next and possible the most important, heart breaking question of all.

“This decision…did it have to do with me?” I asked in a voice close to cracking and fading completely away.

“Yes.” And with that my world ended and was replaced with my own hellish prison. I cracked, I broke and I just now prayed to fade away. I had done this, I had been the cause. She said it herself, I was the reason…and that combined with her statement about the Gods not yet recognising some of his decisions, it took me back to a place in the past, one where he told me loving a mortal was against the rules.

And Draven had fallen for a mortal.

So all this time, when I thought the Gods had chosen me as the Electus, it was actually Draven that had chosen me. And now he was just waiting for the Gods to catch up and get the memo. But instead of that happening he had been punished, sent to Hell and now was rotting away in a prison…all because of me!

I must at some point have passed out or something. I definitely felt like I had closed down and retreated back into the same black abyss I travelled down that very day Leivic had told me of Draven’s death. Well now it felt like that day all over again, only now with the added person to blame.

I now had someone to hate for taking away the other heart of my soul and killing the one who brought my world into colour. Well now I was plunged into the darkness and it was the only place I deserved to be. This needed to be my prison for the way I felt, I needed to take control and more importantly take his place. There was now my new purpose, to seek revenge on the one who had taken Draven from this plane and get him out of Hell’s prison. And the only way to do this… the only way to seek justice against the person that had killed him,

Was for that person to take his place and go to Hell, after all…

I had killed Draven.

Chapter 19

Rosy Birthdays

“Wakey wakey, eggs and bacey.” I felt the poking in my cheek before the words floated under the closed door I had shut on my mind. But no matter how strong I made those mental locks, the sound of the Oracle obliterated them with the combination of crazy words and the smell of cooked bacon!

“Ah, see Armi, I told you crispy bacon was the key. Now she finally wakes.” I opened my eyes and winced as the bright sun shone through the windows, blinding me. My head ached like the mother of bad words and I groaned like I had drunk my way through a bottle of Jack.

“Happy Birthday!” Pythia shouted and I felt her little feet jumping on the bed in excitement. I sat up and rubbed the crusted sleep from my eyes before trying to focus on the two faces smiling at me. Then it all hit me and knocked me backwards, as though someone had decided to see how much a body could break from a sledgehammer to the heart.

“Oh shit!” A sweet voice said and then two tiny hands were on me shaking my head in a panicked ‘No’ action.

“Keira, listen to me, don’t go back there! Stay with us and listen to my voice…You did nothing wrong, all that has happened, all that is happening now, is through the choices you had no say in…Stay with us!” I heard her words but it felt like I was listening to them as I fell backwards from a plane’s open door. The air rushed around me and I felt weightless, not like I was falling at all. Only then I felt a mighty slap and my head whipped to the side before plunging me back on that plane.

My eyes snapped open and I saw the face of an Angel child with the biggest brown eyes, stunning smooth skin the colour of melting chocolate and a mass of corkscrew curls that stuck out from the cutest little girl I ever saw…But man, did that kid pack a punch!

“Oww!” I said rubbing the stinging sensation that heated my left cheek.

“Yeah, sorry about that, but snap out of it would ya! Now get your ass out of bed, eat your bacon and eggs and then shower your birthday suit, we have work to do!” She said with her arms folded the whole time, while sat on my lower stomach. I frowned at her before a mischievous side of me showed in the form of a sneaky grin. Then before she could act I shoved my feet into the bed for leverage before flinging her little frame into the air and onto the bed beside me, thanks to firing my hips upwards.

I fell backwards and we were both now lay next to each other, staring up at the elaborate ceiling and I could hear Armi laughing sweetly from the chair close by.

“Does this make us even?” She asked me and after a deep sigh I nodded my answer.

“Good, ‘cause you smell and like…really need a shower, Birthday girl.”

After an amazing shower, one that seemed to blast open every pore on my body, I felt a miniscule better. After yesterday’s bombshell exploded, I passed out and spent the rest of the night in a war, mind against body. Pythia had said it was lucky she had been here to ‘keep my soul safe’, whatever that meant. The point was that my body refused to let go, while my mind seemed to have gone on lock down. And even now I couldn’t let myself think about Draven. It was just too painful. Which brought me back to what I was doing now, which was unbelievable.

“Aren’t you going to blow them out?” Pythia said looking over the huge three tiered cake that looked too much like it should be cut by a bride and groom. I shut down the urge to moan as this was the very last thing I wanted to be doing. I didn’t give two dog turds that it was my birthday, as any happiness was not likely to be found on this day. If I was honest, it was one of the days I had been dreading since Draven…well since Draven left. I raised my hand to touch the necklace he had given me at Christmas and that’s when it started to hit me.

So with that thought, even though I knew it was too painful, I decided to torture myself. I remembered that day so well and it made everything hurt even thinking back to it. It was Valentine’s Day and I woke to the feel of something tickling my skin. I think I must have grunted or something even less sexy, as it was the sound of a deep laugh that had me waking up fully. I opened my eyes to see Draven propped up on his side looking down at me with amused eyes.

“It’s nice to know at least one of us is a morning person.” I said in a croaky sleepy voice. He laughed again and it sent shivers through me as he shook next to me. Seeing Draven this way always caused my body to react, as Draven naked was a sinful sight for anyone with a pulse.

“Then let me give you a reason to be a morning person.” He hummed seductively in my ear causing heat to flare in my belly and spread out to other places. He kissed me there before pulling back and giving me a wicked grin that spoke volumes at what his intentions were this fine morning. I cleared my throat and his smile widened as my cheeks blushed for him.

“What’s that?” I asked referring to the one hand he kept hidden behind his back, an action that caused his biceps to bulge. I almost said sod what’s behind his back and grab him by his powerful arms to pull him closer to me. But then, with a wink and bad boy smirk, he produced a perfect dark red rose that had opened fully. I smiled at the sight of a purple ribbon that wound all the way up the stem and tied into a simple knot under the head.

“Happy Valentine’s,” he said softly and then ran the petals just as softly along my bare arm. I soon recognised it as being the same feeling that tickled me from sleep. He had obviously been having fun with it before I woke.

“It’s beautiful… and thornless I see.” I added with a cheeky smile.

“As it should be, you really think that I would allow something sharp near that heavenly skin of yours, no matter how beautiful it appears. Sometimes beauty can hold the most deadliest of stings, Keira.” He said seriously and I nodded silently. Just looking at the man himself proved that statement true enough. Here in his bed, looking like a living God and even gracing me with an easy going smile, I still knew what the supernatural power underneath could do. But I would never have told him that, nor would it have ever been a danger to me. If anything, the very thought of the power he held had me wanting to claw it to the surface like a cat and scream for him and it to take me as one.

“Well, I am lucky then I have you to protect me from this mighty enemy, you are after all my hero.” I said in an over dramatic girly voice and then flung the back of my hand to my forehead making him burst out laughing.

“Your acting skills are adorably dreadful Keira, but if you wanted me to ravish you then you only need ask, my dear one.” He said before discarding the rose and taking me into his arms. There we made love until both our releases were spent, calling out each other’s name in rapture. Mine was screamed against the skin by his neck and his, with his body bowed and head thrown to the Gods above. The hands that had kept me gripped tightly to the bed unshackled my wrists and slid down my arms as we floated down from our addictive high.

“Y…you know…I think…you finally did it,” I said still panting into his delicious skin. He cradled the back of my head to keep me there, obviously not wanting to break our closeness.

“What’s that, my love?” He asked as he shifted enough to keep his bulky weight from crushing me.

“I think I finally became a morning person.” I said and then felt the vibrations of deep laugher radiate across my body which was securely held under him. The laughter continued and he could feel my massive grin against his neck before it turned into little kisses I peppered up his jaw. Soon his laughing turned to a lustful groan.

He turned us both quickly, causing a ‘whoosh’ sound to escape my mouth, as I was now looking down at his amused face. We were still firmly connected and I felt him strengthen inside me as I shifted, extracting another moan from us both.

I planted my palms on his chest and leaned down to lick the seam of his lips before pulling back quickly, avoiding the kiss he wanted to take deeper.

“Uh oh, not yet, not until I have had my Valentine’s fun.” I said leaning across to pick up the rose, that thanks to our activities had now lost a few petals. I picked those up as well and shattered them on his chest, marvelling at the contrast of colours. It looked like little pools of blood dripped on honey and as ever morbid that thought was, it was still startlingly beautiful to behold.

“I have never seen a red rose so deep in colour,” I said reaching out to trace a line around each petal, causing him to close his eyes at one point.

“I picked the rose not just for its beauty but also for its meaning, Keira.” He said still keeping his eyes closed. My hand stilled and I stopped tormenting him. I leaned down close to his face and whispered above his lips,

“Tell me.” He took a deep breath and I smiled to myself at the little shudder I just caused him.

“Dark red roses represent unconscious beauty. They symbolise the deepest and boldest expressions of love, Keira and most of all, they leave nothing unsaid. One speaks of desire, but more than one speaks of a person’s commitment to not just that desire, but to the united love that means that desire will never falter. This is the level of my commitment to you, Keira.” He said opening his eyes suddenly and then the curtains around his bed opened fully on their own. They let through the rest of the day’s light in and soon the room was almost glowing red from the sea of deep red roses that graced every surface of the room.

“Oh…my.” I whispered as I took in the room that had been transformed into a dreamlike rose garden.

“I love you, Keira.” He said sitting up and holding me to him with his arms up my back. His hands entwined in my hair as he gently pulled my face round to look at him. My expression was dumbfounded. He laughed and then took the lip that was hanging open in shock into his mouth to suck on.

“Do you like it?” He asked after he played with my lip, letting it fall back into place. I nodded my head like a dog on a dashboard.

“Words, Keira.” He ordered softly, like he had a million times before.

“I don’t know if there are any words Draven, other than, I love it! Thank you.” I said blushing when I saw the purple flash in his eyes that drank me in.

“You’re very welcome, my love.”

“I wish now I had bought you something different.” I said thinking how embarrassed I was going be when it was time to give him his gift.

“Oh Keira, don’t you know by now, my gift is the reaction I receive when your eyes take in anything I do, that is the best gift in touching my heart and with that in mind, I can’t wait until your birthday.” Now I was the one smirking at him.

“My Birthday? Draven that isn’t for months.” I said still getting excited about the thought.

“That may be true but the idea that I have will need about that much time in planning.” He tried to keep his mouth straight but one light smack from me saying, ‘Oi, that’s not fair’ had him breaking out into a full blown grin.

“So, what did you get me?” He asked emphasizing his excitement with a hug and a little shake to my body that still sat snugly on top of him.

“Candy nipple tassels, do you want to wear them now or save them for later?” I said and now I was the one laughing at the sight of his face dropping.

“Right, that’s it! Now you’re in trouble, little Miss!” He said lifting his hips slightly so he could slap my bottom.

“Hey!” I shouted playfully but he just flipped me again, until I was lay under him, caged in his straight arms holding himself above me. Once there he started tickling me into a snorting mess but soon the actions has us transformed from giggling idiots into moaning each other’s names once again.

The glorious morning ended with the only words that truly mattered being heard from my well used lips…

“I love you, Dominic!” I shouted as I came apart under my man, my love…My only heart’s owner.

“Snap out of it!” Pythia said which brought me back to the now and a load of half melted candles.

“Come on, just make your birthday wish already, you never know…it might come true.” She said winking at me and I had to blink a few times to halt the tears that started to form there, from falling. I stared at the cake until it blurred and I shook off the image of a room full of roses. Then I closed my eyes, letting two tears to slip down past the dam and made my wish…

“I wish for one day to live the birthday that Draven had planned for me.”

I took a deep breath, blew all over the cake and had to smile when not one flame flickered back at me. Pythia and Armi both clapped, cheered and handed me a knife to cut the cake.

“Right, time for your present.” She said getting up and sifting through a rainbow coloured fluffy bag that Pip would have loved.

“Ok, so it’s not conventional and it’s not that sparkly dagger I wanted to get you…do you remember that one Armi, wasn’t it pretty?” Pythia said to a nodding Armi.

“Stunning.” She agreed making my chest ache with just the divine sound of one word. I wondered if she just had a trail of people weeping at her feet as she nipped out for a newspaper at the local corner shop. I had no doubt that a few words from Armi could have brought down a barracks full of SAS soldiers and Navy seals to blubbering babies, she was that heavenly.

I looked down at the square parcel which was wrapped up in parchment that looked like Egyptian papyrus paper with red ink symbols blotted into it. It was tied with brown string that had little wooden beads at the end. I looked up to see that Pythia actually looked excited and I wondered if she had already seen my reaction and if so, why would be she even get excited?

“Because it is the start of a new beginning, four points to an arrow leading the way to The Quarter Moon.” She said as I opened the parcel. She had heard the question in my head along with all my others ones no doubt, but this Quarter Moon business had me more than a little confused.

“Yes I did and trust me when I say, this will help with that.” She nodded to my lap as I pulled back the sides to reveal a smaller square of tissue paper on top of a leather bound book. I decided to open the smaller gift on top of the book first. I tore away the thin cream paper and soon was looking down at a very unusual piece of jewellery.

It was a bracelet of thick black cord with four round stones situated at 12, 3, 6 and 9 o’clock. Each stone had silver wire wound round in such a way it looked like a Quarter Moon on one side of each smooth surface.

“It goes this way.” Pythia said handing it to Armi, which had me raising an eyebrow. Armi came to sit next to me on the sunny coloured couch and motioned for my wrist.

“Armi is the only one who can open it for its new owner…for now anyway…” She whispered this last part and it fell into the quickly filling category of ‘I had no clue’ part of my brain.

“…But once the stones have connected with your inner Chakras then you will be the only one who can wear or remove it.” Pythia explained before nodding for Armi to proceed. I was just about to ask a question as to why I would need such a thing, when a bright blue light grew from Armi’s delicate fingers. Even her finger nails looked to be made from pearls as they glistened in what looked like a piece of the sky she now held in her hands.

Suddenly the black cord snapped open from one of the stones and quicker than I could see it was clasped onto my wrist. I jumped at the feel of heated tingles that shimmied up and down my arm, paying special attention to my scars. I hadn’t bothered with gloves when getting out the shower, as I thought there was little point to it in front of a girl who knew everything that had happened in my life. The very reason I ever did in the first place was that I hated it when strangers would jump on the suicide train and ride it all the way to pity central.

I looked down at my wrist, now kind of liking the feeling it created just under my skin and it was something similar to the necklace Draven had given me. In fact the more time I gave it, the stronger the pull they had to each other and I had the strangest feeling that they were some communicating in some way to each other, using my veins as a motorway in between.

“Each stone will help you on this journey Keira, in ways you wouldn’t have thought possible.” Pythia said to me and I dragged my eyes away from the four beautiful stones that were still humming against my skin.

“What do you mean, will help me?” I asked.

“The four stones all represent a stage of your journey, four Quarter Moons will pass until you reach your goal and each stone holds the power to help the emotional strength you will need for each cycle.” I tried not to gulp at the sound of even a glimpse of what was to come. But four Quarter moons….how much time was that?

“The first Quarter Moon is tonight and therefore the beginning.” This time it was Armi who spoke and Pythia just nodded once before leaning across to touch my knee.

“Never let fear of the unknown cloud over the truth you know lies deep within your heart…remember that and you will rise above all obstacles.” I took in her treacle eyes that swam in the depths of knowledge and lowered my head before saying,

“I understand and….and I am ready. Where do I begin?”

“Right, well…” She said after clapping her hands, making me jump at the load noise such tiny hands could deliver.

“First, back to the rules. As you already know, I cannot outright tell you where to go or what to do once you get there, but you’re a smart girl, you will figure it out…and your next gift will help with that part also.” I looked down at my last ‘gift’ and my eyes grew large as I ran my fingertips around the symbol that was embossed in leather. It took me a moment to realise where I had seen that symbol before and when it finally hit me, I stood quickly and the book fell from my lap.

“AHH!” I screamed as I shot away from the book, as though the snake on its front would lash out and attack me.

“Now, now Keira, does the symbol of someone who has saved your life really scare you so?” Pythia asked tilting her head to one side in that adorable way children do when they don’t understand something.

“You know!?” I screeched.

“Well…durr! Oracle remember?” She said this time a little less…umm…Oracley.

“There is truly nothing to fear.” She added but I just shook my head. They hadn’t seen the power behind those symbols as I had and considering the last time I had seen that massive, tattooed biker, he hadn’t been alone when watching me, well…let’s just say it didn’t scream knight in shining armour!

Pythia once again was tapping the side of her head, like I was always missing something, which in this instance I guess I was. Of course she had seen that day at Afterlife. She had seen as I had, the way the tattooed serpents had swirled round his muscles in a never-ending attempt at trying to consume themselves.

“They are called Ouroboros and your lovely Knight just so happens to be the Master of them.”

“What! This…he…I…Ok let me start over….what!?” I said looking down at the rich red leather that was tied together with a simple knotted thong in darker leather.

“Look Electus…”

“Please don’t call me that anymore.” I said cutting her off with the strained sound of pain that name now caused me. She frowned at me and looked as though she wanted to comment about it, but instead I was happy when she just shrugged her little shoulders before continuing on.

“Fair enough Keira, I see that time needs to heal some wounds and that is to be expected, it really is, but right now the only thing that you need to focus on is simple…”

“Which is?”

“Suck it up! This is some serious shit and not that you need the added pressure here, but if you don’t keep that pretty little mind on the job at hand and fight for it, then it really won’t matter what we call you.” This was said with the tutu she still wore cocked to one side thanks to cocking her hip out and now she looked like a small antsy teenager. But it was when what she said started to play back in my head that something snapped into place.

“You messed up...! Didn’t you? That’s why I am here in the first place and why you’re even getting involved…But of course, man, I am such a smuck!” I smacked myself on the side of the head before carrying on with my rant,

“I mean, Draven was the one who told me that you don’t get involved and only…you only meet on the…” I trailed off as even more puzzle pieces fitted together.

“…7th day. Yes I do and yes I did. I messed this up and now it is not only me that needs your help in fixing this…”

“How…?”

“Did I mess up? Keira, you know that I can’t tell you that and even if I did, it would not change things. No…now we must use what we have in getting the fates back on track, where they belong.” She said standing up to face me…or more to like face my stomach.

“And these fates, they include Draven and me…right?” I asked the first part to the most important information of my life and I nearly crumbled to the floor in relief when she simply nodded.

“Oh thank God! Thank you!”

“Keira, there’s more…” I closed my eyes momentarily, blocking the rest of the world from my mind. I knew there was more…I mean Christ there was always more but right now, right this very second, the only thing that mattered was that the fates needed me and Draven to be in it together. For the first time in a cold age my heart soared. That was until Pythia finished her ‘more’.

“I am sorry Keira, but you don’t understand the reasons.”

“And those are?” I asked not even bothering to open my eyes as I knew as soon as she spoke the words, that they would just slam shut anyway.

“The Prophecy Keira, the one story that remains untold until…” She paused finally making me look down at her and I was surprised to find tears swimming so close to the surface, but with her last breath taken she released them with one sentence…

“…Judgement Day.”

Chapter 20

Pulling on Invisible Strings

“Whoa…now back up! What did you say?” I even stumbled back when she spoke about both the Prophecy and Judgement day in the same sentence. Now my eyes were open, like wide friggin’ open!

“Keira, please try and understand….” She started but my hand flew up to put a stop to her patronising tone. I mean, it wasn’t even the fact that it was coming from a child, it really wasn’t, but more the fact that after everything I had been through, all that I had seen, well I think that gave me an equal footing, alright!

“Oh I think I understand alright, I think I have been royally screwed over is what! That Prophecy, that Judgement Day you’re speaking of, well that day came and went Pythia, remember…some crazy dude named Malphas… ‘cause trust me, I do! Of course a memory like that would stick, considering when getting stabbed to death by the guy!” I shouted stomping round the suite and throwing my hands around to emphasise my point.

“That wasn’t the Prophecy, Keira.” She said softly but this just sent me over the edge.

“Bullshit! That was my Judgement Day Oracle and the only one I will ever live through again! I died that day for what I believed in and now you people want me to, what, do it again?! What am I now, a damn cat?” I felt like tearing my hair out listening to all this.

“Calm down, Keira.”

“What the Hell is wrong with you people? Calm down…calm down…really?! You just told me that all that shit I went through wasn’t even the bloody Prophecy that you have all been harping on about since the day I came along!”

“Keira, CALM DOWN!” Suddenly there was a huge flash of light that blinded out any other colour in the room, like a sun bomb had just gone off with her screaming words. It knocked me for six and I stumbled backwards until my ass fell into a convenient chair. Then magically the light got sucked back into Pythia’s chest like a vacuum and left us both staring at each other panting.

“Shit!” Was all I could say.

“Are we good now?” She asked once she had rained in her outburst, that made mine look like a RJ’s VW playing chicken with a tank!

“I would say so, yes.” I squeaked out.

“Good, now let me explain, as much as I can anyway.” She took a deep breath and sat back down, placing her elbows on her tutu covered knees.

“What happened with Malphas was not the Prophecy, Keira it was more like someone trying to create their own. See the Prophecy speaks of a day of judgement that the Gods have no part in. In other words, they are useless in this coming fight. They are allowed no part in it and as you know that day you had help, thanks to someone’s mother.” I nodded remembering it well. Not exactly how I would have expected to have met one of the in-laws.

“This time, you will have none and it is through your choices alone that will determine all our fates, but first we need to get the fates back in play before that day arrives, which brings us to now and the now is what needs fixing.” She placed her hands on her knees and pushed herself up like she was a grown adult.

“So now comes the most important question there is Keira, the question that hangs all the world’s fate in your hands, the one that only you can choose as the Gods decided it should be.” She walked over to me and held out her hand to me.

“Ask me.” I said looking up slowly.

“Are you ready to walk the steps of your destiny?” And that was it. That was what every single thing I did came down to. So, after a deep breath and a couple of squeezes of my fists, I answered her with the only answer there ever would be.

“Yes, I am Pythia.” I slapped my hand into hers and wasn’t surprised at the strength such a tiny frame possessed as she pulled me up.

“Good…now let’s eat cake.”

I had to smile.

After everything I had learned this day, I thought my mind would have been on some sort of supernatural overload and gone into lock down mode, which was what usually happened. So I was somewhat surprised to find that instead of spending the rest of the day in my pyjamas, curled up in bed making good use out of the 24hour room service, I was now leaving the hotel taking my first steps in this journey.

See I had learnt everything from Pythia that I could and the most important part was the book she had left me. At first I hadn’t believed her, that was until she and Armi had left the suite and I found my proof. Pythia had told me that the book was the best way to communicate from now on and I snorted when she referred to it as better than a mobile phone or email. A baby could have detected the doubt on my face at hearing that one. Of course, then she opened the middle of the book, slashed her palm open with her tiny teeth and slapped a bloody hand print on the two pages…suffice it to say I stopped laughing pretty quickly.

I was left to watch, with my mouth agape as the blood soaked deep within the pages and travelled like blood ink into the centre of the book. I didn’t really understand what was happening, but if I could have guessed, it looked like Pythia was marking the book with her essence. It was only when she spoke next that I snapped out of my amazement.

“Your turn.”

“Uhh…I think I will pass, but you can have a pinky promise if that helps.” I said holding up my little finger in hopes this would be a doable option. I knew when she laughed it was doubtful, but it really became a no brainer when she produced a small dagger. Then quicker than my eyes could follow she slashed out at my little finger I was still holding up.

“Ok…Oww!” I said making her roll her eyes before she slapped my hand down on the same page. There she held on to my little finger and milked the blood from it making me feel like some freaky ass cow!

This whole process she explained, was so the connection between us both could be formed and the Ouroboros on the front of the book could protect the messages within. I couldn’t help myself when I pointed out that all the pages were in fact blank, but once again she rolled her eyes. At that moment I thought that for an Oracle, she wasn’t a very patient one and when I received the cutest little death stare, I knew she had heard me.

Another very important thing she explained was the reasons behind all the cryptic letters and this was simply because nothing she told me could ever end up in the wrong hands or read by the wrong eyes. I gathered because she had already messed up once, she was a little paranoid now and for good reason. If I had the power to tell people their future, not only would I hate keeping something like that to myself, but also on the other end of the scale, I would hate being the one that could tip those scales the wrong way by telling them that future.

The one last part of the puzzle I really didn’t understand was about the warehouse. Why had she sent me to my near death to retrieve a coin, one that still remained firmly in my pocket. Her answer however was surprisingly basic. It was simply because the Pishachas Demon is sort of a treasurer of Hell and the only one that can bring with it the coins of the underworld, a coin that in the not so distant future I would be needing, apparently.

After all bases were covered, she gracefully rose from where she was sat crossed legged on the floor and took Armi by the hand. She passed me, patted me on the shoulder where I was sat and wished me luck. Her last glance wasn’t on me to see if I was listening to that wished luck, but strangely it was on the bracelet I now wore.

After they left I took the Oracle’s place and sat by the coffee table to take a closer look at the book. I shook my head as I flicked through its empty pages and when I got to the middle I saw that no trace of our blood remained. Getting frustrated I dropped my head to the table, resting my forehead on the thick pages beneath me, before banging it gently.

“So, what now genius?” I said out loud in a frustrated hiss after spending the last twenty seven minutes examining it and staring at it hopelessly. It was only when I felt the little vibrations underneath me did I react. I lifted my head and saw the little china plate my cake slice had been on started clinking on the glass top. I watched the leftover crumbs jump and dance as the whole table moved.

“What the…?” I said and then I touched the book realising that was where it was coming from. I flipped the book closed and yelped when I saw why. The snake on the front was spinning round and round, never making any headway in eating itself further but all the while trying faster and faster until finally…it just… stopped.

I tentatively reached out to touch it and I soon snatched my hand back to my chest as it flipped out suddenly, shocking me. The first page started to produce words written in fancy script and I felt like gagging slightly when I saw it wasn’t in black ink, oh no, not this book, this book was soaking up the words written in blood. I really tried not to think about it too much but my mind was already disobeying me by coming up with the possibility it could be our blood combined.

Soon my senses went wild, first with the mixed smell of brushed leather, the unique musk smell of old paper and the coppery scent of blood. My ears blocked out all surrounding sound and just seemed to home in on the soft blow of the wind that couldn’t possibly have been there. Finally my eyes drank in every word like they could be my last.

Here be the rules of the Ouroboros blood bound book:

Once a blood bond has been accepted then the only way to break this bond is to kill the serpent by starving the source of its power.

Anyone not blood bound may not view its contents and if an attempt is made then the accused will feel the venom of the serpent’s sting.

The blood bound carrier is now responsible for all secrets enclosed within its pages and entrusted with the power of all words read.

Each page will fade in time as will the words, indicating that time passes, so if your eyes still see, then time will still play a part in your future.

If there is something you wish to know then grow a patient mind for it will take you seven skips to skip a seventh step and find your mind stepping forward seven to the seventh time, then your question will be answered.

A hand raised in anger and a deed corrupted by hateful actions cannot take effect, for ashes still remain and so do the blood bound of the same.

Communication of the bound cannot converse in a parallel time but speaking what needs to be said will find a time unparalleled.

Heed all rules and your blood will remain in safe hands.

I let all that sink in and understood most of it, apart from the skipping seven thing, that was just way too confusing. As I read each word the red lettering turned to a normal and safer looking black ink before soaking away only to re-appear on the leather flap of the cover. But the closer I looked the more it seemed as though each sentence had been burned into the skin than stained by a quill’s point. This was obviously something that never went away and I guess for good reason. I, for one, would be the last person ever wanting to break its rules, as even reading them sent cold shivers up and down my spine.

After that I spent almost every minute for a full hour plus, asking it questions, just in the hopes of cracking the skipping seven code and it was only when looking at the clock and seeing ink for the first time on the seventy seventh minute at 6:53 did the writing start to appear once again. So that was the key to asking my questions, to wait exactly 77 minutes before seven minutes to seven and I would then get my answer. So after using my not so mathematical brain, I figured at 5:36 every day was my only chance at asking the book anything. Man my head hurt!

I wondered later on what was with the number seven anyway, what part did it play in all this, was it only connected to the Oracle or was it connected with me as well? Of course this question was going to have to wait for another day, as finally after waiting what seemed like ages, I finally had my first answer.

The Ouroboros: This is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. The name originates from the Greek language; (oura) meaning "tail" and (boros) meaning "eating", thus "he who eats the tail". The symbol is known to many ancient cultures as representing the eternal cycle of the renewal of life and infinity, the ultimate concept of eternity and the eternal return of life, death and rebirth, leading in the end to the path of immortality.

'My end is my beginning.'

But however in the Demon realm it is known as the symbol for Mastering Chaos and rightly so as the idea of the human race ever gaining the knowledge for such immortality will ultimately bring forth the end of all realms. Heaven, Hell and all in between will fall and the serpent will no longer circle life as it does death. For take one away and the balance will crumble in on itself, destroying Man once and for all.

This is known as the Day of Judgement for all.

After reading this and understanding its value I knew it was something not to be taken lightly. If I was honest, it kind of scared the living bejesus out of me. I was in way over my head, so much so I could almost see my shadow from above! But however much it scared me, I couldn’t help also drawing comfort from the fact that I now had a means to gain the answers I needed.

After reading it quite a few times and eating a delicious steak sandwich at the same time, I finally closed the book. I heard the antique grandfather clock chime and when I looked up I saw that it was now Eight pm. I got up and walked over to the massive windows that showed a stunning sight of London not yet lit up thanks to the long summer nights and I looked up from the hundreds of years old architecture. I could feel the hum of what I couldn’t yet see and it travelled from my wrist all the way up to my necklace, like it had a little time ago.

The Quarter Moon couldn’t yet be seen but already I was starting to feel it there. I raised my hand to the glass as if trying to reach out and touch it, even though it remained hidden from me but the humming pulse started to beat faster. So, when I heard the vibrating, at first I thought it was the beat of my own heart pounding. I turned and saw that the book was once again communicating something.

I actually laughed as it was just like Pythia had said it would be, which was a mobile phone vibrating to tell me it had received a text message. My fingertips slipped down the cool glass, leaving the comforting sight of the moon behind as I walked away.

“Time to get to work.” I said breaking the silence that had left the suite feeling cold and eerie. As soon as that thought entered my head I found myself humming the theme tune to ‘Mission Impossible’ just to break the tension of seriousness to what I was about to do.

I sat down on the couch, dragged the table closer and waited for the snake to stop spinning. I even found myself biting my fingertips as the seconds ran into everlasting minutes. Finally the book settled down and I opened it to find the blood ink had already started to appear on the second page. I smiled as I read the first line.

To my dear Tricks,

I hope this next letter finds you sane and well,

As now I must give you seven clues,

On where to find Hell.

Seven is the number of words you must find,

Then put them in order that best fit in your mind.

The clues are all there open in broad daylight,

Use the Savoy’s entrance and start on your right.

An English Rose sits proudly on the plaque

At the bottom of the words of nobles in black.

This is the point at where you should start

And remember that marrying off girls isn’t always from the heart.

The first letter before ladies of the word not behind

That’s also the letter in the number that’s the third in your find.

Now jump a side step and find the crown jewels,

Read on about building the palace to find the right tools,

Take the first 2 letters of the king you see

And add on the LL’S you don’t find in Army.

Making sure to keep on the same side

See at the bottom what you find on any bride.

When the Duke of Lancaster was given a home

What is the right word both written and rhymed in chrome.

It begins with the O you find there in who’s who

And the first name of Gaunt is the last letter on view.

Now you must ride on the wings of an eagle

Where on the 3rd of September a marriage became legal

So find out the time words were said by the priest,

Add a B to the mix and find your man for the feast.

Cross the road and you will see

It is the A you’re looking for not the B

So forget about the R MR

Or you won’t get very far.

Right now you’re here

The 14 should soon appear

So start at the Top

Keep counting and don’t stop.

3 Feathers are waiting

And anticipating

As you connect the dots in your mind

As you look for a place

Not fallen from grace

Look closely at the plaque and you will find

Take the names into account

But find the S and I you need left out

Use the second name to begin

And see the Pressure within.

A sign of the Gods and a king of the second

Is also the number of 8 that is reckoned

The last word on the plaque is where this refers

After this letter figured take the first 2 from Hers

Reuse the E and S that you also find in Bees

Then you have the place where you must say please.

Which brings me back to the now. I was outside the Savoy hotel looking along the building to my right and just as a London taxi came round the corner it flashed its headlight, and I caught a glimpse of the polished plaques that the cryptic poem spoke of. I must confess this wasn’t something I ever thought I would be doing on my birthday, looking for clues for a way into Hell but hey ho, there you go.

I even groaned aloud when my mind locked onto the rhyming shit and even now was doing the same with my own thoughts. I hated trying to solve puzzles and was next to useless doing so but this seemed to be the way the Oracle wanted to play things. To be honest, I wasn’t entirely convinced at her reasoning either. I mean if no-one but me could read the book, then why not just give me the bloody answer right from the start?

It was too frustrating to even think about and right now I was going to need all the brain power I had if I was ever going to crack this code…

Sometimes, it just sucked to be me!

Chapter 21

Do You Want Cheese With That?

“Impossible!” I shouted for like the hundredth time tonight. I was currently sat on the floor of the sitting room with seven sheets of paper spread out in an arch above the cryptic message that was mocking me in the book. It hadn’t taken me long to realise that standing in front of each plaque outside, looking like a right plebe, wasn’t going to help in solving the mother of all puzzles. So I quickly snapped a picture of each one with my phone and returned to the comfort of the Royal suite.

Of course, the Royal suite had its own office, complete with laptop, wireless printer and a desk big enough for two people to sleep on. So after first figuring out the top notch technology, I managed to print out the pictures so that I could easily read the words…not that this was currently helping much!

So this brought me back to the now and the now sucked big time! It was easy to say that each plaque was a word and unfortunately there were seven of the buggers. The only progress I had made in two hours was to use the clues and match them with the pictures that were at the bottom of every plaque. The order they read in went as such, the Rose, the Crown, Flowers, the Eagle, the initials AR-MR, Feathers and at last a Cross with the Royal mark for Charles the second. This had me back and forth and crossing the road looking like a headless chicken. Needless to say about the funny looks I had received from the Bellboy when walking back into the Savoy.

“Ah ha, Hell! That one must be Hell!” I shouted as the first word came to me. The second plaque, which was the Crown, told me to take the first two letters of the King I find, which was Henry the third. So I took the H.E and added the LL’S that it asked, getting my second word of HELL’S which I have to say wasn’t reassuring in the least.

“Beast! Oh beast, beast!” I said repeating over and over until I wrote it down on my scrap paper, which was the fourth word. This was only because I took a moment to go through the list of words that rhymed with Feast and Priest, but stupidly coming up with East and Least before saying the one that was needed with the actual B in it, like it asked.

Ok so now I had…

Blank. Hell’s. Blank. Beast. Blank. Blank. And another bloody Blank!

“Arrrhhh!” I shouted slapping my open palms to the rest of the papers. This was just too damn hard and getting me nowhere fast. I had been at this for over two hours now and only got two stinking words and about 50 headaches! This was the very last thing I ever wanted to be doing on my Birthday and in my little frustrated rage, I almost punched the cake that still sat there with only a few slices missing.

“Ok, so think Keira, I need to find the Hell’s something Beast…didn’t that just sound like a jolly outing…ok so where on this Earth am I ever going to find that!?” I finished on a groan but then something about saying that out load must have snapped into place.

“Wait a minute…Find…that’s it, that’s the first word!” I shouted as I grabbed the book to read it again.

“Son of a bitch!” I said as it was right there the whole time. It was the last word!

“Oh for God’s sake…right if that is how you are playing this Pythia, then let’s do this shit!” I said not even caring about what was happening to my mental health if I wasn’t even batting an eyelid at talking to myself.

So before I knew it, I had another two words, after playing the rhyming game once more and getting the word OWN that rhymed with Chrome. Then I finally got the word CHEESE from not only rhyming with BEES but also from counting that the plaque held 8 C’s and taking the H.E from HERS like it told me to. At first I thought I must have been wrong, as how random is putting the word CHEESE with HELL’S BEAST, but no matter how I looked at it, the more it made me sure of its place.

After writing this down it then clicked that the word after BEAST must be the word AT as the only letter that had 14 letters was T and it already told me to use the letter A. Of course when I wrote it down it made more sense. Now I had most of the sentence minus one word that I just couldn’t get but I was hoping it would be enough…

FIND. HELL’S. OWN. BEAST. AT. BLANK.CHEESE.

“Well, it’s a good enough start as any.” I said aloud before unfolding my numb legs from the floor and trying to shake off the pins and needles that assaulted me. I looked at the clock and saw that it was 11:17 at night but I knew the late hour wouldn’t stop me. So, before I could talk myself out of it, I walked into the bedroom and grabbed my long black hooded jacket. I quickly stuffed the book under the mattress and then thought better of it in case maid service was going to come in and turn down the bed. Instead I stuffed it under the sofa, hidden from view. I then hooked my bag over my body and left the suite.

I fidgeted with the thumb holes on my top and debated with going back into the suite to grab the book or not. This continued right until I got to the main Lobby, where I finally decided that if I carried it on me and anything were to happen, then it would be better safe and hidden. I nodded to myself and walked through the revolving doors to find it pouring down with rain.

“Of course.” I whispered to myself but the Bellboy raised his eyebrows.

“Typical English summer you’ll find.” He said smiling and I grinned back.

“Yeah, can’t say I missed it.” He smiled again and then asked,

“Can I call you a taxi, Miss?” I nodded at a smiley face that was complete with warm eyes and dimpled cheeks. He lifted a long whistle to his lips and called one of the taxis waiting along the drive to come forward. He then opened the door and tipped the rim of his top hat in parting. It made me feel like a Jane Austin character.

“Where to sugar?” Now this was the part of my plan I was kind of dreading…the embarrassing part. The guy in front turned round and the first thing I noticed was the reddish tattoo that swirled up the left side of his face in an unusual design. It looked almost like the tail part of something bigger as it forked at the end near his eye. He looked to be in his late forties and was big framed. His small grey eyes scanned me over momentarily before he cleared his throat. He was obviously waiting for me to answer.

“Um…I know this is going to sound a bit strange but you don’t happen to know a place around here with the name Cheese in it, do you?” I asked waiting any minute for rather a confused look or one of those short laughs that says, ‘you’re joking right?’ so imagine my surprise when I didn’t receive either.

“That will be the Cheshire Cheese pub then.” He said seriously as he pulled the car round the fountain and down towards the main road. My mind quickly flashed back to the clues that I had practically memorised and put the word ‘Cheshire’ as the possible answer.

“Cheshire! Of course” I said and when the taxi driver turned round and said, ‘excuse me?’ I knew I had shouted it out loud and now he must think he’d picked up a loon. The ride there really didn’t take that long and I could have walked it in less than 20 minutes.

He pulled up alongside a street filled with shops and a popular coffee chain all closed up for the night. Thankfully, the rain had eased into light spitting droplets.

“See that alleyway there, well just down that you will find the pub.” He said taking my money. I nodded and thanked him as I got out.

“Now what?” I said looking down at the alleyway called ‘Wine Office Court’. It was dark, looming and didn’t exactly scream inviting. But I knew there was obviously a good reason for me being here. So with that in mind, I pulled my hood up, hitched up my strap before my bag slipped off my shoulder and walked forward. I looked to the sides trying to make out the signs written in old script, but it was just too dark as the lights above flickered as I passed. It was as if my presence was causing an electrical interference or something because they sprang back to life once I had passed.

I was starting to feel as if I was on some sort of bad horror movie. Any minute I would see a dark figure step from the shadows that would then come racing at me wearing a long cape. Then my mind started to think about Jack the Ripper and the last thing I would scream as he raised his butcher’s knife…that being ‘I’m not a prostitute, so don’t hurt me!’

After shaking the stupid thoughts from my overactive imagination and a quick wonder if Jack the Ripper wasn’t in fact a Demon, I was soon stood outside a very quiet looking pub. The alleyway had opened up into a corridor of tall buildings either side but at least I could now see the sky. I shivered as I saw the Quarter Moon playing centre piece to this gloomy situation and I felt the tingling sensation at my wrist. One I tried to ignore.

I looked up at the round wrought iron sign that stated,

Ye Olde

Cheshire Cheese

Rebuilt 1667

“Well, this must be the place.” I said looking left and right not finding a soul, or more importantly a shadow. The sign wasn’t even lit up and everything from outside looked like it was closed for the night. This was then confirmed when I saw the opening times and that it closed at 11pm.

“Shit!” I said clenching my fists. If I hadn’t spent so bloody long trying to decrypt something with the same level of intellect needed for cracking codes for MI5, I would have been here in time. Now what I was supposed to do? I didn’t know but I wasn’t about to give up that easily. I took my still clenched fist and knocked on the door, hoping someone was still inside. It felt like I waited forever, when someone finally decided the knocking idiot just wasn’t going to go away.

“We’re closed!” I got shouted at through the door first before I heard the locks grind.

“Yes I know, I’m sorry but I think…” I wasn’t given time to finish as I saw a hand come out first with a palm flat out as if waiting for something to be placed there. The slither of a moon had become brighter thanks to the passing clouds and it now shone on the hand in front of me. It cast an eerie glow to reflect back from the palest skin. I could even make out the blue veins that bulged underneath the skin like thin tissue paper over electrical wires.

“Umm…oh…oh ok, alright, money…I see,” I mumbled as I fished out my purse and took out a twenty. I folded it and placed it in the hand and then jumped back when it curled up and shot from sight.

“What the Hell is this!? Sod off and stop wasting my time!” A gruff voice shouted and threw the twenty back at my face, all the time keeping their face clear from the door.

“But wait! What do you want if… not money?” I said in a rush but it ended up trailing off into a whisper when the door slammed in my face. Then I found my anger at the rude reply and instead of knocking, I used my palm to bang louder on the door. I was actually surprised when it opened again and even more so when I saw why. The same hand flashed out, gave me the middle finger and said,

“Piss off human and come back when you have earned the right for an invite!” This time when the door slammed shut I heard the locks to make it final.

“Well at least that confirms I have the right place…YOU ASSHOLE!” I shouted at the door before storming off down the alleyway where I had come. I had no clue what I was going to do now, but I knew one thing for sure and that was, I was pissed…oh man was I pissed! In fact I was so angry I decided that I needed to work off some of the steam I was sure was coming from beneath my top. I started walking in the right direction back to my hotel and all the while my mind was reeling. I had no more clues to go on and had no idea what was meant by ‘Earning the right to an invite’. So in plain English…I was so screwed!

And in true Keira style, this last statement became ever more true when I felt myself being grabbed from behind. A sweaty hand clamped around my mouth, while an arm banded my waist to pull me backwards. I started struggling as soon as the situation hit me and I heard the ‘Umff!’ sound when I connected with a leg behind me.

“Keep hold of her and drag that bitch back here so I can get this shit injected!” Another voice said from further behind us. I looked frantically for another soul who had seen me getting dragged into a shadowed alleyway, but there was no such luck. The old fashioned lamp attached to the side of the building flickered like the one near the Cheshire Cheese and I saw a sign saying ‘Cliffords Inn Passage’.

“I am trying but she’s strong for a short little shit.” Said the voice of the brute who was currently manhandling me backwards.

“Just hurry up would you, those wards won’t hold forever and we can’t risk being seen…fucking human lemmings.” I felt the guy turn to the guy speaking and I used this to my advantage as his hand loosened. I quickly brought my head forward and then flipped it backwards as hard as I could, cracking the back of my head into the guys throat and then bit down quickly on the hand over my mouth.

Numerous things happened at once, the first being the screaming bellow that came from my actions, the blood that I tasted in my mouth and the arm that left my waist making me drop suddenly to the ground. I fell hard on my knees but cursed through the pain and scrambled to my feet. It was amazing how much the F word can actually help in situations like this, I thought at the most inappropriate moment. I even spat out the blood to the side as I ran for the road that was still in view ahead.

I was just starting to make headway with my escape when I felt my hair being grabbed and then I was spun round and thrown back deeper into the alleyway. I fell for the second time, only this time I felt my jeans rip along with my skin below my knee. I looked up and actually hissed at the looming shadow blocking my only exit. Well, I’d been practically begging for something like this to happen, what with all that Jack the Ripper crap swimming around my brain earlier, I thought bitterly.

“Now that wasn’t nice, sugar.” That voice suddenly had me squinting my eyes and remembering someone else that called me that not long ago.

“You were the taxi driver!” I snarled, but all I got in return was a dark laugh.

“And first prize for the most ‘obvious dumb little bitch’ goes to little shit.” The voice said behind me and I jumped at it coming from too close to my ear.

“Hi bitch, I think I owe you a knuckle kiss don’t you?” Before I could answer or deflect what was coming, I felt the side of my face explode from the downward punch he delivered. The burn broke out across my skin and I felt like I must have bit through my lip as I felt blood trickling down my chin and the coppery taste mixed with the saliva I had to swallow. Ok, so now I was really pissed!

The taxi driver walked past me and joined his friend. I watched as he reached down to a darker shadow on the floor that was near a massive door at the end of the alleyway. I could just make out the old stone words that were carved from sandstone.

‘Clifford’s Inn’

I got up and they both laughed when I staggered a bit, which I was counting on as I let the rage I didn’t know I could find engulf me. It was as if another person was possessing my body and it was actually true when people say they just see red. My vision actually blurred and my fingers started to tingle, so much so, I shook from it, but before they could see what was happening, I charged them both. I don’t know where it came from but I just ran and threw myself into the middle of the one that hit me. The power I didn’t know I still had inside impacted with his waist and I took him of his feet in an unconscious rugby tackle. I heard the ‘umf’ that came from us both but as soon as I was on the floor, I started attacking his face like a wild animal.

“Get this bitch off me!” He screamed as he tried to protect his face from the nails I was raking down his skin, taking away with me sick bloody skin curls. I cried out briefly as I felt a piercing pain inflict my shoulder, making me twist out my arms, hitting someone behind me. Then I quickly went back to my mission and the asshole underneath me.

I was just pounding at any part of him with the sides of my fists as I was still sprawled on top of him, but I quickly found myself being ripped away. It didn’t quite register at first when I struggled in the hold of gentle hands that gripped me.

“LET ME GO!” I screamed trying to get back to the one who had hit me and it felt like my outer shell couldn’t contain the fire being pumped around my body. My lungs burned from breathing so hard and I was cutting into my own palm with my nails being fisted in the solid bends of my fingers.

“Calm øjesten!” The same deep voice that I was getting used to hearing when in need of rescuing, ordered me. In my mind I was so utterly thankful that I was now safe, but the furious part of me wasn’t yet done with tearing these guys a new place for bathroom use. I was a wild cat in the arms of someone about to dunk them in the river and I fought stupidly every second I was caught in his arms.

He made a grunting sound that sounded like it stemmed from frustration. I was so far gone in my frenzy, that I didn’t realise I was being lifted higher and walked over to the right of the door in the corner. I was then quickly dumped over the high iron gate and landed on the other side with a thud. I got up and ran back to the gate to watch what was happening.

My massive shadowed saviour stood in front of the door ready and it was only now that my brain could process the pouring rain that drenched every scrap of clothing I wore. His large hood still covered his face but now the rain dripped down the front point in streaming rivulets. He looked up at the two men that were approaching him from both sides and that was when my mind started to get foggy.

My vision was starting to blur and I kept blinking rapidly trying in vain to clear it. My grip started to loosen on the rusting iron spindles that locked me in like a cage. The flaking black paint broke off in places as I tried to hold on tighter. I shook my head, seeing the world spinning round like I was driving past it at a hundred miles an hour.

“Look man, just give up the girl and we won’t kill you, just walk away.” I heard the taxi driver’s voice stretch out like it had become an instrument someone was playing. Then I heard a grunted laugh that was starting to become familiar. I was sure that I then saw my shadowed hero crack his neck to one side.

“You two are already dead for touching the girl, so time to die…and quickly,” he said before he spun into action. I saw the glint of something being drawn from his back and I swear I could even hear the tapping of heavy water droplets dancing on steel. Then my world started to come to an end.

“Wh..at…’s...happ…ing?” I slurred my words as finally my hands

released their hold. I fell down as my legs crumbled underneath me and I tried to will my eyes to stay open. I caught the sight of a massive shadow moving at impossible speeds and then I heard a death cry before the echo of snapping bone and slicing flesh. Rain battered my body and I rolled over to my back with the last of my strength. The water came down at me in long lines as I looked up to the night sky and my last thought was of the first Quarter Moon and how the tingling in my wrist had finally stopped…

Why had it stopped?

Chapter 22

Snow White Needs More Than a Kiss

I didn’t know what was happening, but it felt like I had drunk my body weight in Absinthe. I wasn’t so much asleep as I was numb and paralysed with an unexplainable drunken fog. I kept having the past and present mixing up in my head. One minute I was on the ground pummelling into a face I hated and then I was being held upright against what felt like a worktop counter. It was too hard to figure out what was happening and it hurt too much to open my eyes right now.

That was until I felt my clothes being removed. I fought through the sting and peeled my eyes open, only to slam them closed at the bright spotlights that flooded my retinas with pain. Even without my sight, just the feel of someone touching my skin had me trying to fight. What if I had been wrong and the sound of death had in fact come from my protector, not from the two men that tried to take me.

This thought thankfully didn’t last long as I felt the immense bulk of a muscle clad body loom closer and a soft baritone spoke in my ear.

“Hush my lille øjesten, calm now for me as you are safe…I’ve got you now.” I instantly relaxed in his hold and my head drooped forward onto his chest. I then felt a large hand run up my neck and hold the back of my head to him. His fingertips did this slight gripping motion in my hair and I groaned at how nice and soothing it felt. It was definitely having its desired effect as I started to relax enough for him to continue whatever it was that he was doing before I reacted.

It was as if I was being lulled into a false sense of security, until I felt his other hand slide down my side and then across my belly. I felt calloused fingers graze the skin there and then I felt him grip the bottom of my top before he started dragging it upwards. He shifted back from me so that he had room to manoeuvre his hand between our bodies. It was only when I felt the cold air hit my bare flesh just under my breasts that I woke clearly to the fear of what was happening.

“No…plea…se.” I stammered as I tried to twist out of his hold.

“Ssshh, calm now. Your body is shaking from cold and it will go into shutdown if I don’t get you warm. Your clothing is wet and is keeping your temperature too low, so I must first remove it…don’t fight me on this, øjesten.” I tried to process his words and in the end I found myself just giving in. I was too exhausted to fight even if I had wanted to. He waited until I relaxed once again before I felt the material being peeled off my skin like a thick film of glue. I grunted as my arms were forced up with the motion. The top’s neck quickly pinged off my head and hit the floor next to us with a slap, proving just how wet it was.

I knew he said I was shaking with cold, but I was so numb I just couldn’t feel it. I did, however, hear a clicking noise my teeth were making as they rattled away as audible evidence. With my forehead still resting against the rock wall that stood as Biker dude’s chest, I felt him moving next to me. His actions seemed to get more urgent as I felt the sharp tug at my waistband and then I heard what sounded like the metal button from my jeans hitting the tiles.

“Can you hold on behind you?” He asked as his hands stilled on my hips. I nodded my head that still rested on him and moved my arms behind me. There I felt for the counter’s edge and held on but as he started to pull down my jeans I was given more of my own weight to hold. I shamefully crumpled and would have hit the floor if massive hands hadn’t shot up and grabbed my waist.

“Easy now.” He hummed softly.

“Let’s try another way. No panicking now, I will not hurt you, lille øjesten.” The sincerity in his voice spoke volumes to the promise said in my ear. I nodded and then I was spun round quickly making me nearly lose my footing altogether. Instead of falling, I found the top part of my body being pushed forward until I had nowhere to go but over the counter. The hefty hand splayed out against my back was unyielding until I was fully over. I knew at this point that I must have been frozen half to death, as I couldn’t even feel the heat from an automatic blush that needed the spare blood to blossom in my cheeks.

Soon my legs were rid of the soaked denim as they were quickly ripped away. I tried not to think about what this must look like, me bent over the bathroom counter, quivering in my underwear with a giant of a man at my back. In fact, I wasn’t given much time to think about it, as I felt the man in question taking my limp form in his arms.

My head flopped backwards like a puppet missing the hand that brought them life. His bicep became an inflexible pillow beneath me and I found myself praying to feel the softness of a mattress soon. However, what I felt was far from that wish. I heard a door being opened and then a bellow of heat hit me. I groaned as the obvious steam worked its magic and then pressured water added to the sensations. He had walked us both into the shower.

“This should help raise your temperature, hold onto me if you can, I am going to set you down.” His voice could barely be heard over the sounds of powerful jets coming at me from various angles.

“I am going to adjust the heat slowly, so you don’t go into shock.” He said as he let my feet find the wet base of the shower. I suddenly had a feeling I was going to fall as there was no way I could hold myself up. I reached out and grabbed handfuls of his wet T shirt but I needn’t have bothered thanks to the iron girder that belted around my waist, securing my chest to his. His muscles flexed as his arm shifted me closer and then he bent forward to reach for something.

The water grew warmer ever so slightly and he pushed me backwards so that all my body was under the biggest spray above. I felt his free arm reach up and gently start running his fingers into my hair, massaging my scalp.

“You have some blood on you...no, no… don’t fret now, I am going to wash it from you, so don’t startle when I start to touch you…understand?” He waited for something and when I murmured against his T shirt, he took that for the ‘alright’ it was meant to be. It took only seconds before his hands began their journey along my skin. When he started by my neck, I was thankful he had left my underwear on as my nipples felt like rock pebbles rubbing against his rippled abs. I felt tiny in his hold and even more so when one of his hands engulfed my entire shoulder.

I don’t know how long it took him to get me clean as I think I passed out a few times. My mind was finding it too damn hard to keep my body responsive, even when I felt his hand washing me, coming closer to each tender area. I didn’t know what was wrong with me, but I found myself more than thankful at being looked after, even if it was utterly embarrassing.

I was vaguely aware when I was being carried out of the shower and dried off with a soft towel. At one point, I kind of felt sorry for the big guy as he struggled in getting my body into the Savoy’s bathrobe. I gathered he was more used to getting women out of clothes rather than in them, much like any man. Lastly, I was hoisted up and heaved over his colossal shoulder in a fireman’s lift and taken into what I presumed was the bedroom.

I felt myself being lowered down and as soon as the mattress I had earlier prayed for made contact, this time there was no stopping my mind from bailing out on me. Darkness followed.

“It’s like I said before, they were waiting for her.” I heard the deep voice penetrate my senses through the shadows my mind had given itself to. I turned my head so that both ears were free in the hope that I would hear the one sided conversation.

“What do you think I did, you sent me here to do a job and I am seeing it through, that included the death of the two low ranking Warlocks that were given the girl as a mark.” Hearing this made me shudder and I wondered why the strength in my body hadn’t yet returned.

“And I said that she was fine, old man! I got there in time… barely in the end but not before she took on some damage.” His accent was coming out thicker as his emotions rose to the surface and it was easy to hear he was getting pissed. He was, however, still trying to control the level of his voice.

“Do not take that tone with me Elder, I know what you told me and it didn’t include her being marked and hunted. It also didn’t include her running off half way around the damn planet!” He hissed into the phone I couldn’t see.

“She got hit, that much is obvious, but I finally found her near The Devil’s Ring….Yeah well, no shit Elder, I would like to know the very same thing.” I really wanted to hear what was being said on the other side of this conversation and more importantly, who on earth was Elder?

“I have no choice but to do just that. If it was only for the bruises I would let it go, but one of the bastards must have injected her with something.” I finally had the strength to open my eyes into little slits and I just caught the shadowed figure of a frustrated male. His free hand raked through his hair and it was almost painful to watch, knowing Draven did the exact same thing.

“The Hell if I know, but I can feel it swimming around in her system and I know only one way to get it out of her.” This time he growled low and when he spun round to check I was still asleep, worried no doubt that he had awakened me with his outburst, I shut my eyes. He must have been satisfied because he continued his rant.

“By Odin, you think I don’t know that, old man! But by all means feel free to explain why the Chosen One can barely move, when your shit hits the fan! I am ruler of my own world Elder, thanks to the choices you made, but that does not mean I will bow down like you do to your frightened fates!” I watched on in amazement as he seemed to suck the shadows in the room, pulling them to his form until they cloaked him in writhing swirls of darkness.

“I still have a job to do, so I suggest you let me get it done and quit wasting my time with your Royal ramblings. I care little for the ramifications of your actions, I only care for the debt of life you hold. Now, if you will retire your tongue and trust in my abilities, I will be getting back to the small task of keeping the small human alive. Contact me only when the situation unfolds and I will do the same.” He waited and listened to something on the other end before shaking his head.

“Viðara.” He said sharply and then ended the call. He growled low before throwing the phone onto a chair, where I noticed his long black jacket was resting over the back. This was the first time I had seen this much of him and how much did it suck that it was a bloody time where I could barely focus!

Even my eyelids didn’t have any strength and felt like they were holding up mini bricks. I managed to catch a glimpse of him turning round before they fell again. The next time I managed to get them all the way open I would have jumped if I had the energy, as now his masterful shadow was next to me on the bed. I think I at least managed a groan.

“Hush now and save that strength, for you will need it soon enough.” His voice was so different now as opposed to the conversation he was having not long ago. It was still impossibly deep but also soothing when whispered gently in my ear. This he must have known as I started to relax almost instantly. What was it about this guy that had me so trusting when around him?

“Wh…at happ…?” My voice broke as it had done in the bathroom.

“You were injected with something and it is making you…” He hesitated and it felt like I was waiting for my lottery numbers to come up. In the end I tried to clear my throat which thankfully he got the hint and I got my numbers, although they weren’t the winning ones.

“…more compliant.” He must have seen the look of inner pain as he carried on,

“I only mean in the physical sense, lille øjesten. The drug will continue to run throughout your system until an antidote is administered and as you can gather, I am without these means.” On hearing this I closed my eyes and willed the tears to stay away. There must be a way of stopping this! I utterly refused to stay trapped in this numb and weak state when Draven needed me.

“I can see the pain you are trying to hide and there is no need. Have no fear of my words, I am not without my means, it was only meant to explain the reason as to what I must do next.” I couldn’t help my internal shudder at his words. In this crazy supernatural life I was living, his idea of ‘fixing’ me could be anything from chewing on my toenails to pulling rabbits from his ass to feed me!

“Just try and relax.” He said and I was happy when I managed a grunt of humourless laughter.

“Yo…u’re…kid…ding…right?” I stammered through shaky lips. The sound of his deep laughter echoing around me actually helped in relaxing me, mentally anyway, as I don’t think my limbs could get any more relaxed. Hell, it felt like that bastard had injected me with a concoction of jelly and antifreeze!

The huge body shifted his bulk into lying down next to me and I tried to will my eyes to focus on details of his face, but all it came back with was a shadowed haze and I wondered if it was down to my inability to see or his doing in controlling the darkness of the room. Either way, I still couldn’t make out anything about the man, other than the sheer size of him, which was nothing short of gigantic.

I was brought out of my massive man musings as he came to lie flush with my body and his arm snaked out, no pun intended, around my waist. His front was as close to my side as he could get and his arm felt like it weighed the same as a small person. With him on his side and me on my back, I could feel him looking down at me and the silent minutes were near unbearable. What was he waiting for? But more importantly, what would he do when the timer ran out on his waiting?

“Now, I want you to listen to me, lille øjesten, as I promise not to hurt you in any way, but what I am about to do will feel…” He cleared his throat and it was as if he was about to talk about sex to his grandma or something.

“…odd and well…ah shit, how do I say this?” I was sure my fuzzy vision could make out the frustrated actions of him raking his hand through his hair and letting out a deep breath.

“J…Ju…st…say.” I managed.

“It will make you come.” He blurted out and at first I didn’t think my stunted brain heard him right. In fact, if it wasn’t so difficult to speak I know I would have said, ‘Come again’ shortly followed by ‘What the F word’!

“This feeling can’t be helped and trust me if there was another way, then I wouldn’t be putting it off. I tried torturing the Warlock that injected you, but he was just a lackey taking orders and didn’t know shit. Plus, he kind of died quicker than I intended, so here we are.” He sounded like he was nervously rambling, while my mind was still trying to cast out the word ‘torture’ and ‘died’ before it could create an image.

“This will start to feel strange, so try not to fight my darkness when it touches you.” He whispered gently and when I flinched I felt a soothing touch at my cheek, where the back of thick knuckles caressed my chilled skin.

“Dddark…ness?” I couldn’t help but feel frightened by his words.

“Remember øjesten, don’t fight us.” He repeated, choosing to ignore my fears. I just knew that if I had the inner strength I would have been panting like a cornered animal in the sights of a beast. So with this in mind, I had to wonder where he thought I was going to find the strength to fight. That would be like Snow White getting up just before Prince Charming kisses her and breaking his nose before pepper spraying his ass for sexual assault!

And suddenly that’s exactly what it felt like. Some dark but modern Gothic version of Snow White and I now even had the hair to match that image as I lay motionless in waiting. And wait I did. It felt like he was powering up next to me for something. Every time I pried my lids back all I could make out was the swirling of black serpents that swam round his stretched out frame. I was about to try and say something but then it started.

I watched as long as I could as his body bent backwards and bowed in what looked like extreme strain on his muscles. He let out a howling groan before jack knifing forwards which ended in him curling his body around me. I felt like he was turning his body into a Boa Constrictor and I was about to feed his appetite.

Once his body seemed to come under some sort of control, his movement slowed down from the vibrations that had shortly racked his body into convulsing tension. However, this didn’t prove to be a good thing, well not for me anyway. No, this new control he found only meant whatever he had planned was about to come to light and it started with him crawling over on top of me. He held, what I imagined was an immense weight, all above me and caged me in.

“Just breathe, lille øjesten…just…breathe.” He whispered the last words resting his forehead to mine and I once again pulled my eyes open long enough to get my first glimpse of his eyes.

“Ah!” A startled yelp escaped before I sucked in a quivering breath. This was in response to the flaming flash I had seen encircling one eye, like someone had taken a glowing hot branding iron to his iris. I slammed them closed but I could see the moving lava spinning round his eye in the shape of a snake. It was like when someone takes a picture of you and you can still see the flash long after your image was captured.

“Plleeassse” I moaned as fear was overriding any other emotion there should have been. I mean, I knew deep down that he wouldn’t hurt me, but this fear seemed to be stemmed from a deeper root. Apart from in my dreams, this was the first time I’d had a man’s body so close to me since Draven and I felt trapped, both in body and mind.

“Ssshh now and be brave small one, for it is coming.” He hummed from above me like there was now an electrical current transforming his voice. His masterful tone wasn’t asking for me to try and be brave, no, it was demanding it, for there was no stopping what was coming and soon, I would be joining it.

Then it hit me with the force of a Freight train. It touched me like a sexually charged blanket that covered me from top to bottom. At this I no longer had to try and keep my eyes closed, as strength started to seep into my body. I looked up to see that the shadowed snakes I had seen him rule and master were now swimming all over me. They came from the home of his body like thick black ink tentacles that connected us together, like being bound by the hands of darkness. They kept hold and with every stroke they made the sensations they invoked doubled. The pleasured trail they left was leaving my chest heaving and my thighs damp with need.

I felt like the need was going to burn right though me and leave me with nothing but ashes instead of flesh. I needed to find release like I needed my next breath. I looked up to the figure above me that seemed to be having his own trouble keeping control as this other part of him explored every inch of my body, inside and out. I felt the pressure of the shadows as though they were made by the flesh of a man and each touch was a scorching caress. It seemed to touch parts of me that had long been left untouched and I cried out as it connected with each sensitive nerve.

At one point I even lost my mind and reached out to the man above me. I would have begged his own hands to take the place of supernatural fingers but as if he knew this, he quickly snapped out and restrained my wrists in an unbreakable hold. Almost bruising were his fingers as they curled into the tightest shackles, but I didn’t care. I was too lost in my need to care other than at least he made contact, no matter how brief.

The controlled darkness seemed to latch on to the connection like a live feed as its strength seemed to amplify. I cried out into the night in what seemed like a wishful howl and I heard it being mirrored back at me from above.

“Please…oh God please…I need…I…” I begged without even letting the shame of it to register. I just didn’t care. I just needed to feel myself shatter beneath him. It was like having a room full of hands on your body all at one time and I felt like each one was vibrating along my hypersensitive skin.

“I know…and…Uhh….Ahh…you will!” He shouted in between obviously seeking the points of his own pleasure. I felt the bed beneath me shaking and I followed its source, that being the body of muscle above. He was trying to hold onto something and I had an idea what. So, just as I felt that ultimate climb to a never ending and all-consuming pleasure cliff I knew I would soon jump from, I arched my head up as far as it would go and spoke my wishes,

“Let go and come with me.” I whispered breaking both of our controls like high tension wire.

“AHHH…OH, OH YES…ARHHH!” We both screamed out only in different ways. Mine was a scream whereas the body above me still shook from howling a roar that made the fixtures in the room shake with the force of it. I clenched my muscles that I could once again feel working and rode out the blissful waves until the tsunami destroyed all coherent thoughts.

Shortly after came the part of floating down to earth on a weightless cloud of euphoria. The feeling that power had flowed back into my being, only to be taken away by the power of such an orgasm. Oh, he had healed me alright and in the most shameful way imaginable but right now I couldn’t find the spare energy to care. No, all I could find now was the extra senses it took to notice two things, one was the man above me was trying to get his breath and the most important…Was that wet patch on my skin mine or his…

Or both?

Chapter 23

Master of the Ouroboros

The next morning I woke after one of the deepest sleeps I could remember in a long time and the reasons made me blush. It wasn’t hard to understand why my body had felt it necessary to shut down to such a degree. When was the last time I had such a firecracker of an orgasm…? Wait… that really wasn’t a memory I wanted to explore in the pits of my mind. If anything, those memories I kept well hidden behind a solid and impenetrable vault door, one labelled ‘My Heart’.

It was too deep for me to swim in and it made me vulnerable in its depths. No, I was going to put a stop to any of that immediately and focus on the now, not the past and unless I had a bottle of something I could shot to get me through it, then that wasn’t about to change. So, back to the other reason I had slept so well and was also one of the most confusing facts. It was the first time since pre orgasm that I was also held in bed until I fell asleep in the arms of another. I don’t know whether he knew I was aware of this fact, as when I woke his warm body was no long wrapped protectively around me. But nevertheless, it didn’t change what I already knew.

After last night’s risky and turbulent events transpired, the aftermath of coming apart under the hands of darkness had left me wiped….but I wasn’t the only one this affected. My shadowed saviour, whose face I still hadn’t seen and whose name I still didn’t know, had only had enough energy to roll to one side and pull my shaking body closer to him. We didn’t speak another word after that and once I heard his breathing mellow into an even rhythm, it didn’t take me long to follow suit. This didn’t mean that I wasn’t aware of his movements in the dead of night, one he seemed to command entirely.

I didn’t know what time it was, but at some point his protective bulk left me and I heard water running. I had never been more tempted to get up and perv at someone in the shower before. The reasons weren’t just to get myself a shot of colossal eye candy soaping down a naked body, no matter how much I knew the amount of muscle I would find. Hell, I could easily feel that this dude had muscle on top of muscle when he had pressed himself against me in bed, but this had nothing to do with wanting to haul myself up from the comfy bed. It was solely for the reason to find out who this guy really was. And unless he showered in the dark, I was fairly certain I would get a good glimpse of him this time.

This plan in theory was a sound one, so what kept me from following through? Easy, it was plain and simple… fear. I still didn’t know who had sent him other than a guy named Elder and the fact that he owned a soul debt. These are the things that I got from his own mouth when talking on the phone, but they still left me confused as to their full meaning.

So I had waited until I heard the water turn off and kept my breathing as even as possible, faking sleep. I did so well at this, I didn’t even jump when I felt the covers being slowly pulled from my body. I don’t know if frozen was the right word to describe how I felt at that moment, as the blood pounding its way through my veins felt anything but cold. My skin felt on fire just whenever he came near me and I had a feeling this had something to do with the after effects of what he did to heal me.

After the safety of the covers left me I then felt fingers lightly trace up my bare leg and the urge to bite my bottom lip was torturous. At first I didn’t know what he was planning on doing to me but then his actions left me stunned. He was cleaning me?! I could barely believe it when I felt a warm wet wash cloth start to clean the evidence of what happened between us earlier. He used slow and careful movements, no doubt in an attempt to try not to wake me. I decided it was better for both of us for me to still pretend to be sleeping as I didn’t know who would be more mortified when he realised I knew what he was doing. And now that I knew there was nothing sexual in his actions, I decided, what was the harm in a little after care?

That was, of course, until he travelled further up and I couldn’t help the little jolt it caused. He stopped his movement suddenly and waited. Once he was obviously happy I wasn’t going to fully wake he continued to wipe down my most private place until he was satisfied. It didn’t take that long before his job was done and he rose from kneeling on the bed. Once he had rid himself of the damp cloth and towel he had then used to dry me gently, he once again resumed his place by my side. This time instead of tugging me closer to him, he inched closer slowly until he was flush against me.

Then his last move of the night once again astonished me. He gently lifted my head while he shifted his full arm underneath me, before rolling me to my side. I found my back curled slightly to the wall of his front and tucked securely in the cradle of his big body. My head found a comfortable nook on his arm to snuggle into and I could have sworn I heard a deep inhale of breath at the gesture. Finally, once the covers were pulled back over us both, his arms wrapped round my torso holding me in place for the night. I slept soundly that moment onwards thanks to the comfort of safety I found in his hold.

It was strange to say, considering what had passed between us, but it felt like being held protectively by a friend or a brotherly figure more than a lover, one would have expected after the night we had together. But this brought me back to the now and how different that felt once I opened my eyes. As now, my soft and gentle protector was back in full shadowed biker mode and his hooded face gave nothing away.

He sat next to the bed after bringing closer the chair that had held the jacket he now had covering him. He was leaning forward with his forearms resting on the top his thighs and his hood fell forward as he regarded the floor. I took a moment while this deep contemplation occupied his attention, to take in as many details about him as I could.

The long leather jacket he wore was draped at the legs over each side of the chair, thanks to the slit up the back, made for easier movement. It was the first time I had noticed that the hood was made from a different material and looked as if it was a separate piece of clothing under all that leather. The thick dark grey wool had specks of lighter grey and it was big enough to cover his eyes completely. In fact, the only thing that I knew I would see when he lifted his head was dark stubble on a square chin with full lips above.

This thought brought me a flash back to last night when I saw what looked like a flaming serpent swimming in one of the eyes that looked down at me through the controlled darkness. Did he even realise what he had revealed or had it been a result of what was happening at the time to my overwhelmed brain…was I once again seeing things?

I didn’t have much time to look deeper into the reasons as a head on square set shoulders snapped up. And yep, stubble chin and full lips were all I was rewarded with. I mean jeez, you would have thought after last night we would have at least been on a first name basis, let alone faces being seen.

“You’re awake.” He said and his deep voice sounded grated and strained. I found I could only nod, which he took for a different reason.

“There is no need to fear me little one, my hands will remain right here.” He said looking briefly at the hands he held firmly at his knees. I shook my head slightly, trying to think of the best way to say what clearly needed to be said.

“I…” I had to first clear my throat, which prompted him into passing me a bottle of water. I had a moment of craziness, hoping that it wasn’t from the mini bar in the suite, as God only knows how much that would set me back! I took the water and my eyes took note of the black snake that circled his middle finger at about an inch thick. The contrast of the deeply engraved ink was startling against his pale rough skin. The weathered and thin scars on strong hands told me that once upon a time he was no stranger to hard labour outdoors, only in a cold country at least.

“Thank you.” I said after taking a strong gulp. He lowered his head slowly in acknowledgment.

“And what I was going to say was that I am not afraid. I think I know by now that you do not mean me any harm.” I think this must have shocked him as his head came up quicker and this time I could just see the end of his nose.

“This is good as I think it is time you and I had a little chat about the way of things…” I was about to speak but his hand shot up to stop me in my tracks.

“But first, I think your body would benefit the effects of a hot shower.” I smirked at him and narrowed my eyes in a playful mocking before saying,

“Hey, if you think I smell bad, all you needed to do was say caveman.” His reaction was priceless. He stood quickly and stammered to speak. He didn’t know I was joking. I laughed and after wrapping the robe tighter under the covers, I swung my legs round and walked up to him.

“Relax caveman, I was joking with you.” I said patting his chest, which I noticed was without the strange leather straps that he had across his chest when at Afterlife. He grunted and I smirked again as he proved my new nickname for him. I started to walk away when he grabbed my hand suddenly, shocking me. He yanked me back to him and my hands found his chest as the only way to steady the quick flight.

I looked up at him and one of his hands held me to him with his palm plastered to the small of my back. I felt embarrassed and had to look away but he made a tutting sound. He raised his fist to my face and his knuckles skimmed the apple of my cheek. However, this proved not enough to get me to look back at him so he moved down my neck and then journeyed back under my chin. He raised my head up with his fingers still curled into a fist and I had nowhere to go other than to look up at his hidden face. There was something disconcerting about someone that could see your every emotion being played out on centre stage in an opera, while their face remained hidden in the wings. Just when I thought he wasn’t going to speak as the silence had started to make me squirm like a fish in a sushi bar, he killed the tension.

“My name is not caveman, lille øjesten.”

“And my name is not lil..le ogestin.” He smirked at the way I had said it wrong and I noticed a slight dimple to one side dip before disappearing.

“To me it is, Keira. Now go shower…” He said and then leaned down to me to say the rest,

“Because you are starting to smell a bit.” I laughed as I smacked him on the chest, little good it did me but it made him laugh with me all the same.

“Yeah, well you don’t smell so hot yourself cavemen, what’d you do last night, sneak out to go mud wrestling?” I shot back and this time it got me a full blown grin, one I would to have loved to have seen the effect it had on a pair of eyes.

“Very good little human and no, it wasn’t mud I was wrestling in last night, but in an alleyway saving you little behind, now go shower before room service arrives as I don’t think it will go down well if I answer the door, do you?” He said with humour lacing his every word. But of course his words did beg the question, how exactly did he get me back up here last night without anyone seeing?

I laughed once and then left him standing there watching me go. I was just about to walk into the bathroom when the sound of my name being called stopped me. I looked back over my shoulder at him and raised my eyebrows in question.

“My name is Sigurd, I live in a loft apartment in New York, not a cave and I am hungry little human, so hurry up and don’t make me wait.” I shot him a smile and a little wink with my next statement,

“It’s nice to finally know you, Sigurd.”

My shower was a quick one and not just because I was told to by one big ass biker dude in a hood. I found myself excited that he was finally here and that I might actually get some answers out of him this time. I mean there was nothing like a near death experience followed by a shared orgasm to bring a friendship together, right? So with this in mind I was in and out of the shower in no time and I was finding with my new hair…or lack of, that it was a lot quicker than I was used to.

I didn’t know why I felt so comfortable around him but it felt as though I had known him for years. Like someone close to me had introduced him once and that alone stood the weight of any suspicions. Besides the fact that he had saved me from being taken or even killed, it was also the fact that he had saved those closest to me. Which was surely something he hadn’t needed to do, so that begged the question…Why did he?

I decided to put all these overwhelming feelings down to what had happened last night. I mean, being connected in such a way was bound to have its consequences and I knew from extensive experience what the effects of a ‘healing’ can do. So that was most likely it and now I could find myself having a deep connection to the big guy…what was his name…Sigurd. Was that Dutch or something?

Once dressed in a comfy pair of stonewash jeans and a stretchy long sleeved, maroon coloured top with those trusty thumb holes I loved so much, I walked back into the sitting room hoping to see the delicious sight of freshly baked goods.

“So what’s on…the…menu…” I trailed off quietly as I processed the situation in front of me.

“Hey! What the Hell do you think you are doing?!” I shouted just as I saw the man dressed from head to toe in black bending on one knee by the yellow couch. I caught him just in time to see his hand resting flat on the plush carpet right by where I had stashed my book. He tapped his fingers in a certain rhythm and I jumped as the book shot out to his waiting hand. It almost looked like a pet of his that he had been trying to lure out of hiding.

As soon as he had the book in his hand his head snapped up in my direction, but still his face was hidden in those mastered shadows. He simply rose from his bent knee in an alarmingly graceful way considering his size.

“I could ask you the same thing, øjesten.” He said calmly and I needed a minute to gather my courage. It wasn’t long ago that I was looking for the reasons why I felt so safe with him and now, with that predatory stance, I was feeling a little naive. I mean what did I really know about this guy? For all I knew he could have been sent by someone who wanted me for themselves and that is why the past ‘Capture Keira’ attempts had failed.

“Give that back to me!” I demanded in my strongest, I take no shit voice, one that wasn’t reinforced by a brick wall body like he had to back up that unspoken threat. He straightened to his full height and crossed his arms across his chest like a black granite statue.

“I think not little human. Not until you explain to me in full exactly how you got your hands on my book.” He said with his voice dropping to an almost demonic growl. I gulped in a way that would have been comical if I didn’t have a considerable threat stood in my hotel suite.

“Wait a minute…your book?” I asked picking up on the important part of that demand. He nodded his head gently, but I could hear the crack of his knuckles from his fisted hands echo in the room. There was nothing gentle about that noise, I can tell you.

“But I…I…it’s mine.” I finished in a weak little voice that even I detested hearing. But it must have had its desired effect on the big guy Sigurd as his fists uncurled and also his arms came back to his sides. He exhaled a big sigh and I could tell he wanted to run a frustrated hand through his hair.

“Come øjesten, come and sit with me.” He moved to the side and motioned a place on the couch for me to park myself. I nodded and followed his instructions. What choice did I have? It wasn’t like I could call security and tell them someone that looked like a professional wrestler stole my book!

I sat down and waited for him to do the same. I think I actually felt sorry for the battering the cushions took when taking his weight. We both sat in silence for a moment and I noticed I looked like a child does when sitting next to an adult. His legs looked like they belonged to a forest with a mass of leaves attached.

“Now tell me, who gave you this book, Keira?” Somehow I knew by him calling me by my name this was serious business. But what should I tell him? Was I even allowed to tell him anything? Oh God this was too much! What was I supposed to do?

“You can tell me, have no fear, as no harm will come to you in doing so.” He sounded calmer now and almost soothing to my tense nerves.

“I am not sure I am allowed though.” I said truthfully.

“Then trust in me and look deep down into what you know is right. When I tell you that it is my birth right to know whatever happens with this book, I speak no lies. Feel the truth in my words, Keira.” He said engulfing my hand in his. I closed my eyes and replayed his words over and over. But then he spoke them for real once more and I found myself stunned to know with utter certainty that he was telling me the truth. I found myself nodding at him before opening my mouth.

“The Oracle gave me the book, Sigurd.” His hand tightened on mine for a moment but thankfully he released my bones before he broke them. It was obvious this had not been good news. He took a moment to struggle through the reason I gave him and then I silently screamed out in a caught breath as he grabbed my hand once more and placed it over the snake on the cover of the book.

“What are you doing?!”

“Ssshh.” Was all he said before he placed his tattooed hand over mine. I then watched in dark fascination as the black snake on his finger began to spin and shortly the one across his palm started to do the same. However, this time they all travelled in the same direction, unlike before when he was fighting the guys at Afterlife. I didn’t know what this meant but I was praying for it to mean that he was dealing with a friendly…as in friendly fire in shooting games…although I wasn’t quite sure what was friendly about firing any type of weapon, especially one that got you killed. Ok, focus here Keira and forget about Frank playing Call of Duty.

Soon, just like before, his whole hand went black like he had just dipped it into a bucket of treacle and I watched as the substance started to flow over onto the small helpless hand underneath…my hand. I felt the tingling flicker of constant cooling and then a flare of heat continue until every fingertip was covered and when I felt the vibrations start I tried to pull away.

“Just wait for it, human!” He said sternly and I found myself obeying. The vibrations turned to spinning under my palm and although I couldn’t see the snake, I knew it was moving and getting ready for something. I heard a deep growl coming from the chest next to me and it sounded as if he was changing into some sort of furious animal. I started to panic inside and my heart was pounding to the point of near pain. I was breathing heavy and felt the thin sheen of sweat start to damp my clothes.

I closed my eyes and that was when the nightmare began.

I felt locked in a cage without bars. A cage of darkness that was creeping into my soul and keeping that precious part of me open for probing. My horrific past secured deeply in the abyss I had created for my murderous captor was bubbling up. My secured vault door that held my secret memories of Draven popped open and came spilling out. And a nightmare of a flaming version of myself running through a river of blood, fed by the deep slashes cut into my veins by my own hands. It was now all playing out in a flickered film of black and white. Surrounded by a derelict Victorian theatre, where plush velvet seats were filled by every supernatural form I had ever seen in my now 24 years. And of course the front row held those that were dearest to me.

I ran down the centre of the aisle screaming ‘No, turn it off!’ But it was too late. Everyone was already watching my nightmare, both real, past and feared future, premiering on the crumbling screen. The closer I got the harder it became to run. All the faces of Demons and Angels in their true form were laughing in chorus, some choking on their spitefulness and hellish glee. But the closer I got, all the heads of those I cared for turned at the same time, all but one.

Libby, Frank, Justin, Jack, RJ, Sophia, Vincent, Pip, Adam, Lucius and many more were all at the front row now staring my way as the piece of glass in my hand dug deeper into my flesh on screen.

“Dead, dead, dead, little Keira girl! Dead, dead, dead little Keira girl!

We will get you and we will kill you!

They are coming back for you, wolf in a suit’s silk will walk by your side while you cry and when your back is turned and knife plunged in deep, that will make you die!”

They all chanted cruelly and I staggered in my steps.

“No, no, no! This isn’t real…YOUR ARE NOT REAL!” I shouted before my knees hit the mouldy floor that was covered in rotting wood and pieces of once red carpet. My long blonde hair fell forward and touched the floor to cover my crying face. I reached out and touched the golden strands that I knew were still tucked safely away on Draven’s hidden bed. Then I heard the laughter.

“Is that what you think, you pathetic human?” No it couldn’t be! There was no way my mind would conjure up something so cruel. But no matter, in my disbelief I had to look, I had to prove how wrong it was. I raised my head and took in the cruellest beauty of all, the one of betrayed love…Draven.

His face was now the singular one in the room and I looked in horror as all others had now decayed into skeletal corpses. Their grey bones becoming one with the perished theatre that started to peel and fade upwards like floating ash. But none of this mattered to me as the one face remained.

“Why?” I whispered and I flinched at the cruel sound of his laughter.

“Why? WHY?! You know why Keira! You! You killed me and sent me to this place, it is because of my stupidity that I am now to live the rest of my days in chains!” He lifted his arms and that’s when I first noticed the metal entwined around every inch of him but his face. They started to glow red like they had only just been forged and I started to howl from the pain the sight caused me to see them branding his skin.

“But…but I didn’t know! I will help you! I will…will come for you!” I shouted as the chains started to get tighter around him and I saw him gasp for breath.

“You can’t! Leave me! RUN! RUN NOW BEFORE…” The glowing links started to cut into his skin and then he was being dragged backwards towards the screen, towards the mistakes I had made still being played out on a tortuous loop.

“Before what?!” I shouted and then I saw with one outstretched hand the entire screen melt into burning film. Behind it was Hell itself and Draven was now getting dragged back to it.

“DRAVEN!” I screamed running towards him until his last words stopped me dead and I stared at the truth he believed in every word come through his purple eyes.

“…BEFORE I KILL YOU!”

Chapter 24

Bound to Ask

“You are blood bound?!” Sigurd shouted bolting from the chair just after I yanked my hand free and fell to the floor. I looked up still in a state of shock at what his darkness had shown me. I held my hand protectively to my chest while still kicking my legs to put greater length between us. I moved like a wounded crab and only came to a stop when my back bumped into one of the horseshoe shaped chairs that were covered in thick olive green velvet.

“What…what did you do to me?!” I shouted back, having little care for the giant presence now looming over me. He leaned forward and trapped me in with his hands holding his weight on the arms of the chair.

“Answer my question, NOW!” He growled that last command and I flinched back like he had lashed out with the back of hand.

“I…she…we…ok look, I don’t know why she did any of this, all I know is that she took some of my blood and then told me the book was connected with me in some way and that’s it! So do me a favour and back OFF!” I shouted finally replacing fear with anger. He didn’t seem too concerned with me screaming at him, but he did at least push his weight off the chair to give me space. I closed my eyes briefly and took a deep breath in relief.

“FUCK!” He snarled with his back to me and if I were to take a guess, I would say it looked like he was trying real hard not to pummel his fist into something. Well, as long as it wasn’t someone then that was fine with me!

“What on this earth’s realm was that crazy bitch thinking of?!” He snapped and I got myself off the floor silently. I straightened down my jeans from where they had ridden up in my haste and that’s when I heard a sharp,

“Well?!”

“Oh…you were actually asking me a question? Well…I…” I shook my head and then anger sparked again,

“…I mean how the Hell am I supposed to know? Good God, what is it with you people?” I threw up my hands dramatically before carrying on with my rant.

“You think I know why or how or any bloody details as to why anyone does what they do in the supernatural world? I mean for Christ’s sake, I have a big ass biker guardian stood in my hotel suite and I don’t even know who sent you, so why you think for one minute I know why the Oracle is using me as a pawn, I can’t figure! All I know is what she tells me and what I can figure out with all this riddle shit that now comes from that book, instead of weird kids on antique bikes, creepy warehouse guys that get the munchies for human flesh…I mean what the holy shit…? Eat a cheeseburger for God’s sake!…and then there was that weirdo on the plane, Miss pop drinking Merryweather…although that one wasn’t from the Oracle but more likely from this Gastian person, who for some reason hates me and wants revenge but there’s the problem...I don’t even know this guy!” I shouted as my rant that had me storming all around the sitting room was much too slowly running out of steam.

“I mean what was next…what did I miss this time?! Huh? Come on, tell me handsome, ‘cause I don’t know! What’s next, because at this point it wouldn’t surprise me if a canary flew from my ass and sang me the next riddle in Swahili!” I said finally coming down from my anger mountain and deflating in the same chair I had backed up into.

I seemed to have stunned the man in black, as he didn’t move. He just stood in front of the couch with that bloody hood covering every revealing feature on his face. Thinking back I wasn’t even sure why I had called him handsome, I mean it’s not like I had even seen most of his face. He could look like good old Quasimodo for all I knew.

“Have you finished?” He said folding his arms making the leather groan around his impressive biceps.

“Yes!” I said with plenty of attitude.

“Good, now we will eat and you can answer my questions.” I was about to reply with some witty response about the food not even being here yet, but the sound of knocking shut me up…how did they do that?

“Good hearing.” He answered my unspoken question and motioned me to get the door with an out stretched hand. I rolled my eyes and got the door, muttering about how chivalry was clearly dead and buried.

We both ate in silence… well he ate while I, on the other hand, just picked crumbs off a sweet pastry and nibbled like a mouse. I guess that analogy worked better than any other, given it felt like I was eating breakfast with a frustrated panther.

“Soo…” I started to break the tension while brushing the flakes of buttery goodness from my hands and lap.

“So?” He mocked after swallowing what looked like a whole piece of bacon.

“So, are you going to tell me what is going on and what it was you did to me with that damn book?!” I snapped.

“Watch your mouth, human. That ‘Damn’ book holds a piece of my ‘damned’ soul, one you are now bound to…you get it now sweetheart?” He said in a growl, twisting the endearment into something sour.

“Yeah well this ‘Sweetheart’ didn’t exactly buy what you were selling now did she...? Hey wait a minute…let’s rewind here… what do you mean bound to?” I forgot about the insulting tone he had now switched to and homed in on the words he used.

“What part are you finding difficult?” He asked not dropping the attitude for a second.

“Hello! Human here remember, I don’t exactly have a supernatural degree in all this, so let’s play a game should we, let’s play the ‘I am obviously talking to a human who doesn’t know shit about that book and need to use layman’s terms’ game…is that cool with you, big guy?!” I was losing my rag quickly and it wasn’t helping knowing I was only going to get my answers from Mr Clueless Human communicator over there!

He growled in response and that was when my last thread of patience snapped. I stood up and walked over to him to point in his hidden face.

“Now that’s not exactly going to help us now is it? So here’s what you’re going to do, you’re going to man up, put down the bacon butties and explain to me, in detail just what the Hell that book has to do with this!” I motioned between us with my hand but didn’t get very far as he grabbed my wrist to shackle. Even sat down with me stood up, he was large enough to put us at the same height. “Butties?” He said cocking his head to the side and I huffed out my frustration when pulling from his hold.

“God, what is wrong with you people? All this time on the Earth and you don’t even know Northern slang for a sandwich. It’s hopeless!” I said going to sit back down in my chair and it was nice to hear his laughter for a change, rather than him growling at me.

“Ok, so I know this isn’t easy for you and I am not helping as I am clearly over-estimating your knowledge on this.”

“Gee, you think?” I said and I just knew that if his hood had been back, he would have been raising an eyebrow at my sarcasm.

“Look, let’s start over shall we?” He nodded his head slowly at my suggestion and then rubbed his stubble chin with his hefty hand.

“Explain…”

“Tell me…”

We both spoke at the same time and it became very apparent that we both had more than our fair share of questions for each other.

“Ladies first.” He motioned and I smiled as I realised that chivalry had just been resurrected.

“Tell me about the book and why you think the Oracle gave it to me…I mean if it belongs to you or your soul or whatever, then how did she even get it in the first place, did you just leave it hanging about on the coffee table or something, ‘cause I gotta tell ya, if it held a piece of my soul it would be in nothing short of a Bank Safe and…” He cleared his throat to stop me and I blushed when I realised I had been a runaway train with my thoughts.

“He told me you were always so full of questions, I thought it was just a human thing…how wrong I was.” He muttered looking to the side as if trying to weigh up the best way of dealing with me.

“Who told you that?”

“That’s five questions in total, so tell me lille øjesten, which one would you like me to answer first?” Ok, so I had to give him that, I had already been told it was an annoying trait of mine. One that given circumstances like this, it was near to impossible to control. When I finally kept my mouth shut I think he took this as his cue to start talking.

“To your last question, that you will never know, so stop asking me about my employer as it is none of your concern…understood?” The only answer he would get from me about that was an eye roll and a little shake of my head. If he thought for one minute that I would let something like that go then he was hugely mistaken.

“Good enough. Now for the Ouroboros, Book of the Blood Bound. The book was given to me as a tool of information that I would need to do my job. This is something I will not be going into detail about as you wouldn’t likely understand, even if I did.” I was about to call him on that but he held up one hand to silence me.

“Just know that I have a job to do as my place among my people and to do this job I need certain guidelines from higher powers, that book gives me them. I have been bound to that book from my rebirth and a piece of my soul resides within its bindings…now along with a piece of yours.” I was calm until he said this last bit.

“What!” I said standing once again.

“Keira, sit down.” He ordered softly and I only complied because of his gentle tone.

“I believe this was the Oracle’s plan, as it seems my employer isn’t the only one trying to keep you safe, although with you that is becoming a full time job in itself.” He commented dryly.

“But we will get back to that shortly, won’t we my bound one?” I could only nod as I knew I also had some explaining to do.

“The book was taken from me while I was watching over you and I gather the Oracle not only foresaw my involvement, but also made walking away from protecting you impossible”

“You what? But you said…” I asked, utterly shocked that he was planning on walking away.

“Try and understand, after last night, after what was needed to heal you…well, it became too much for both of us and this was one situation…umm…person… I didn’t think wise to continue to grow attached to, am I making myself clear?” I frowned at him in confusion. No, he wasn’t making sense and one look at my face was all it took for him to continue.

“Keira, I take it for a fact that knowing the trouble you find, that you are more than familiar with being healed, am I correct?”

“So?” I questioned his point.

“Then you will know that a part of my essence has found home in your veins and although it will fade in time, for the moment I will be drawn to that part of you, the darker side of you.” He whispered the last part like it was shameful to him.

“And that’s why I saw those nightmares when your…your black stuff touched me?” He nodded and then held the lower part of his face with his hand.

“That is why I was going to leave and trust me when I say it, I did not make this decision lightly, when I give my word, I give it with my life, but after the new circumstances I would do you more harm than good, as no one wants to relive their nightmares daily.” My mouth dropped slightly with the thought of being attacked by that vision every day.

“But I am afraid that option no longer is available for me, as now we are bound by the book and until that bond is broken, then I must remain by your side. This is why the Oracle has intervened, it seems it is in both of our destinies to see this through, which brings us back to what it is I am facing…what are you doing here, Keira?” Now this was the part that I was dreading. How was I ever going to explain this crazy quest to someone who obviously wanted me to make their job easier and stay tucked up safely in a small town like Evergreen?

I remained silent and tight lipped as I gathered my thoughts. And that in itself was the main problem. With the people I dealt with being immortal, then time wasn’t a massive issue for someone who grew patience like other people grew tomatoes! This was proven after ten minutes of silence and him obviously still waiting for an answer.

“I take it you would not believe me if I told you I was just taking a vacation for my Birthday?” I said in a quiet voice.

“I am afraid not, øjesten, but what if I started by telling you what I do know.”

“I…” He rose from his chair and plucked a lush apple from the breakfast fruit bowl, stopping my excuses as he flipped the fruit along the top of his arm. Seeing this move reminded me of some orphaned, cocky street kid in years gone by, surviving by pick pocketing and stealing from market vendors.

“Here’s what I know.” He started, catching the bouncing apple with his free hand before taking a crunching bite of its flesh, talking with his mouth full.

“The King goes underground and goes to extreme lengths in trying to keep you safe by giving you a life free from our existence, so what do you do…? Go looking for it anyway!” He snapped at me taking another vicious bite to chew.

“But I…”

“I haven’t finished. So, after your little expedition to the warehouse, which thankfully Leivic was around to keep you out of trouble as I am forbidden to go there, I find you about to get kidnapped at Afterlife.”

“Why were you forbidden to go to the warehouse?” I asked and was surprised when I got his humourless grunted laughter.

“Of course, that would be the part you focus on.” He laughed again and turned round before wiping a hand down his hooded head and over his face. I gathered it would have gone through his hair if his hood hadn’t been concealing it.

“Why do you still hide your face from me?”

“No! No, no, no…” He started spinning round to face me (well sort of).

“No?”

“Yes no! As in NO more questions!” He shouted and then took another bite of the apple that had been forgotten during his little outburst.

“So where was I…oh yeah, but of course, you being kidnapped. But was this a clue for you to stay safe, oh no…not my blood bound little human, pain in my ass…no, you just hop on a plane to London and I find you just in time after trying to get into the Devil’s Ring…”

“But I don’t…” He quickly showed me his palm to stop me in my tracks.

“And of course when you obviously weren’t admitted, you were then pursued by two Warlock lackeys and dragged into an alley way.” He shook his head as he obviously played out the scene in his head but then he smiled before saying,

“Well, at least you’re not afraid of fighting dirty, lille øjesten, I will give ya that”

“Well that’s something that comes from dating a bad ass, over-protective half Angel/Demon King like Draven. He kind of rubs off on you.” I said without thinking about the pain saying something like that would bring me. And one look at my face told Sigurd all about that pain.

“Keira…I…”

“Just forget about it, big guy.” I waved off his concern and reburied the memory of me and Draven down in his training room with him throwing me down on the mats, showing me some self-defence moves. Of course, it turned into a different kind of work-out pretty quickly after Draven tossed me to the floor gently and commenting on how good I looked down there. I felt the tears mist up and that little burn you get in your nose when you try to hold them off, reminded me about trying to stay strong.

“I know about the pain there, øjesten and I am sorry for it, but maybe it is time to just go home and try to live a normal life.” He said softly and I found I couldn’t conjure up my anger as I wanted to with hearing that idea being voiced.

“But that’s just the thing Sigurd, I never had a normal life and wouldn’t know how to start living one even if I had the damn handbook. Besides, that life you talk about just doesn’t exist for me without Draven. So you want to know my plan, here it is, I am going to Hell and I am not coming back again without bringing Draven back with me.” I stated standing up and folding my arms over my chest.

I saw him take a staggered step back as the truth of my mission came to light. His lips got tight and he looked so taken aback that it stunned him to silence.

“So there you have it and before you do something pointless and stupid like trying to talk me out of this plan, I will just remind you that the Oracle not only knows about the reasons I am here, but she is also the one backing up this plan. She gave me the book to communicate the steps I must take in reaching my goal and neither you nor every bloody supernatural being is going to stop me!” I tried to storm past him to get myself to a place I could freely cry without him seeing me, as I clearly wasn’t as strong as I made out. However, this didn’t happen the way I wanted, as a solid arm snaked out and pulled my body back to his.

He held my back firmly to his chest and whispered for me to stop struggling against him.

“Just think Keira, just…just take a minute to think about what you’re saying. You want to try to get into Hell for a man who has made it clear he wants you to get on with your life. Why would you darken the memory of him by going against his last wish for you?” He asked this question in hushed tones by my ear and I could almost hear the crack in my armoured resolve his words caused.

“Because I knew if it was the other way around, he would stop at nothing in trying to get me back, no matter what I asked of him.” I counteracted and I felt him stiffen behind me. Then he took a deep breath and delivered the final blow,

“Yes, but what if he doesn’t want to be rescued, Keira?” I let the tears roll down as I slammed my eyes shut at what that sentence did to me.

“That’s…that is not true, he…my Drav…he wouldn’t feel like that…I…” I stammered out my argument but even coming from my lips it sounded like a far cry from what I truly believed. I mean how could I be sure? What if he was right, what if Draven just wanted me to move on and forget him in his new resting place. I mean, what was Hell like for him anyway, was he down there partying with the big red boss man?

“NO! That’s not true, get off me!” I shouted twisting out of his hold, killing all thoughts like that. No, Draven just wanted me to be safe and that was the only reason he wanted me to move on. No other thought was worth the wasted time thinking about.

I whirled round and faced the mask of material, but I could swear I could see a flash of something looking up into the shadows, where his eyes should be.

“Now you listen to me and listen good. I don’t care if you have to protect me or if you walk out that door right now, but nothing you say will stop this from happening, do you understand me? I am going to find a way into Hell, one way or…or the dead way…you get me?! Now you can rather help me or get the Hell out of my way, either of those choices I won’t lose sleep over, no matter what type of darkness you say will inflict my mind, because Sigurd, if there is one thing this ‘Little Human’ is used to, it’s living with seeing the worst type of nightmares…so trust me, anything you show me will just be a walk in the damn park when it comes to the demons in my dreams.” I said walking away from him.

“Wait…where are you going?” He said in a gruff tone that was clearly affected by my little speech.

“I have to go and get ready.” I stopped on the way through the sitting room after looking at the clock, to notice the afternoon had come and gone. I looked at him one more time, pausing at the door wondering if this wasn’t the last time that I would see him. I mean I wouldn’t have blamed him after what I had just said, but I needed him to be on my side. If not, then there was just no point having someone around who kept on trying to stop me all the time. After all, I had a job to do, just as he had his. So with this in mind I said the one thing that would seal his decision, which was the truth and a sure glimpse of things to come.

“I’ve got a pub to go to and a Devil’s Ring to find.”

Chapter 25

Bands of Bone

I spent a long time getting ready and must have changed my outfit choice ten different times. It was just too tempting to go with jeans and a dark top, clearly ignoring all the revealing clothes RJ had given me. But then I knew the mistake I would be making as I remembered the Oracle’s words about having to disguise myself. And after a night playing victim in an alleyway, I could now see her point.

It was obvious the new hair was not enough, so it was time to play little Goth girl to the fullest. I ended up grabbing a mixture of stuff, having no idea if it went together or not. But I didn’t really care what people thought, just so long as they didn’t think, ‘Oh look, there goes the Chosen One’.

I stood in front of the ornate mirror for a long time staring at the me that was no longer there, as in my place was the girl I had to become to get the job done. So I took in the multiple holes in black rose pattern tights, the short black combat skirt that had straps hanging lower than the hem. I tucked the long sleeved dark red top in so that the thick belt buckle was showing and to prevent the brushed copper skull cross bone from digging in my belly.

The front of the top had a faded grey skull that looked half decayed. The sleeves not only had thumb holes but also crude stitch work in thick black cord that crisscrossed up the arm. This continued along the neck, pulling it in different angles that gave it a plunging neckline. I decided that I didn’t think it wise to show my necklace as I wasn’t sure if people would use it as a tool to recognise who I was or not.

But this wasn’t the only reason I grabbed the little jacket that zipped up to a high neck that passed my chin. It was also because I didn’t think it a good idea to draw any unwanted attention to myself and having the puppies on display the way the low neckline promised, wasn’t a good idea in my book.

The little jacket had cute puffy little capped sleeves that cut off at the top of my arm. The material was black canvas cut into sharp lines and a pointed bottom half. The top part was soft velvet that met the stiff canvas in a V shape in between my breasts. And the side zip was reinforced with three large leather buckles that were fiddly to get through the copper squares. The last one was the easiest to deal with as it was across my covered neck and once secure, the weight made the neck flop to show my painted black lips.

By the time I had finished with smoky eyes, thick mascara, and lots of black liner, I looked like a different person altogether. I had towel dried my hair and layered on the hairspray to give it more volume in a messy style at the back.

And little Goth girl was ready to play in the big leagues.

It did occur to me that this wasn’t going to be like a night at Afterlife. That was if I even got in there in the first place. Which reminded me, just how much I really wanted to see Sigurd still waiting in the sitting room when I finally plucked up the courage to walk back in there. After what I said to him, I wouldn’t have blamed him if he had walked away without looking back, but it was an unfortunate test he needed to pass. I just knew I couldn’t continue this quest with him holding me back at every turn.

So, with this in mind, I took a deep breath, as much as the tight clothes would allow, grabbed my knee high boots, courtesy of Libby and walked back into the sitting room, head held high. I was so sure I was going to be embarrassed facing Sigurd again, especially dressed like this, which is why when I walked into the sitting room I almost stumbled to a stop.

He wasn’t there.

He had left me.

“Crap, crap, crappy, crap, crap and double crapola!” I shouted storming into the centre of the room.

“That’s a lot of shit, even for a troublesome lille øjesten like yourself.” The deep gravelly voice from behind me had me dropping my boots. I spun round to see Sigurd leaning against the door frame like some biker version of Robin Hood.

“You’re back!”

“I never left, sweetheart.” He pushed off the frame and came closer to where I stood until I had to look up at him.

“Besides, without that book I would have been forced to take a vacation and I don’t fancy Florida this time of year…” He leaned down closer to my ear and whispered,

“It’s the damn humidity…its pisses off my darkness.”

“And here I was thinking you were going to tell me you hate having frizzy hair.” I said causing him to throw his head back where a deep laugh erupted. I thought this might have been my chance to see him but that damn hood stayed in place all the same. I did notice he had a thick corded neck though, which wasn’t a shocker considering how gigantic and muscular my dark guardian was.

“Well I think I can safely say that this job won’t be boring, not with you around.” He said taking a slow and predatory intake of my body. The way that lip raised higher on one side told me he didn’t mind what he saw. That thought made me blush, which I tried to hide with humour.

“That’s the spirit.” I said patting him on the chest and bending to pick up my discarded boots. I turned to walk over to the yellow couch to put them on when a hand circled the top of my arm.

“Why are you dressed like that?” he asked, all traces of good humour worn away. I looked down at myself and then shrugged my shoulders like it was nothing, feeling the heat in my cheeks start to betray my actions.

“Why do you think?”

“Well, unless you tell me you are off to a Goth style Pyjama party, you are not stepping one foot out of that door dressed like that.” His stern voice sent shivers down my spine and prickled my skin.

“Is that a fact?” I said looking him up and down, outrage clear as day twisting my tone.

“Oh sweetheart, that is a FACT. ‘Cause if I find you as delicious as I do, then trust me, others will see you as just as sweet, and I don’t mean to look at.” He whispered seductively causing a deep shiver to scurry along my spine. I knew he was just saying this to try and scare me, but I couldn’t let fear prevent me from going through with this, no matter how crazy it sounded.

“You know, that last time I checked, you weren’t the name on my birth certificate on the line under Daddy!” I snapped making him growl.

“And would you stop that, I am not a damn cat!” I yanked my arm from his grip after my little jab. My God, what was wrong with us, it was like our friendship would take one step forward and then a car journey backwards.

“Look øjesten…”

“No, you look big guy, if you think for one minute I am just going to sit here and wait for stuff to happen, you are mistaken. I am walking out that door and I AM going to find this place, with or without you… like I said, your choice.” I said after huffing down on the sofa and jamming my foot into the boot with enough force to hurt my toes.

“Are you always this stubborn?” He snarled crossing his arms across his chest in what I was coming to recognise as his macho ‘me man, you weak woman’ stance.

“Yes, so either get used to it or cut me loose, your ch…”

“My choice, yes, yes, you said that. Fine! But I am telling you now, you’d better listen to me once we are inside or this little crusade of yours won’t end with a slap on the wrist, but more like a good mauling of the flesh and the last I heard, humans die from shit like that!”

“Fine!” I snapped.

“Fine!” He growled.

And that was pretty much the ground rules laid out for me ready to break.

The rest of the daylight hours were spent with me and Sigurd sharing yet another room service selection while talking shop. I first had to explain from the beginning how this plan came to unfold and brought me to this point. Most of the way through this conversation I could tell he wanted to express his feelings and it was clear which direction those feelings were headed. I was thankful that he had it in him to refrain from commenting, as this was a good sign for things to come. Especially when he started to explain exactly what it was I was getting myself into.

The Devil’s Ring was a fight club where the supernatural could come and bet on just about anything. Humans were forbidden unless they were ‘owned’ which was highly illegal in its own right. But according to Sigurd bringing an owned one to fight night was like bring a snack to eat between rounds. I didn’t take this piece of news well.

This then, of course, brought on a heated discussion as to why anyone, let alone the Oracle, would think it a good idea to send me to the wolf’s lair.

“Exactly my thoughts, lille øjesten, which is why I think it’s safer to just forget this kamikaze mission. It’s time to go home.” He said which had me shaking my head even before he had finished. I slammed my plate down on the coffee table and then gripped the arm rests in frustration.

“No! That is not an option so get that out of your head now. There must be a reason the Oracle wants to send me there.” I said tilting my head to one side and scratching my eyebrow.

“Well, I can’t think of a reason, other than getting you killed and unless you broke all ten commandments in your spare time that you’re not telling me about, then I would say there is no reason, as you don’t exactly have a one way ticket to Hell.” He stated and that’s when I saw it.

“Wait…say that again.”

“You don’t have a one way ticket to Hell.” He repeated cautiously.

“No, no, not that, the first bit.” I demanded and this time I watched him more closely.

“Well, I can’t think of a reason?” The way he said it was definitely questioning my sanity but none of that mattered as I now had my proof.

“You lied!” I shouted getting up.

“What!”

“Don’t try and deny it, you’re a shitty liar and I may not be a poker player but trust me when I say I know when I see a ‘tell’ like that one! My father can’t lie for toffee, which is probably who I get it from.” I muttered this last bit turning round to face the window to gather my thoughts. He just lied about not knowing why the Oracle would send me there, which meant he knew a lot more about this place than he was willing to tell me.

“How did you know?” He asked me quietly and I was at least happy he wasn’t trying to deny it.

“Whenever my father had to lie to my mother about stuff, he would rub his chin like he was relaxed but his body would be as stiff as a board, you know, shoulders tense like yours were and the way your free hand had the side of the couch in a death grip…you hate lying don’t you?” His growl was all the answer I needed and I knew it wasn’t helpful, but I couldn’t keep in the knowing smile.

“So what if I do, Human?” He barked and again I couldn’t suppress the grin.

“My father was the same, that’s why he hated buying my mother gifts on her birthday, he can’t keep a secret to save his life and yours won’t save mine.” At this he grunted.

“Can’t blame me for trying, it would, after all, make my job a lot easier.”

“You don’t strike me as the type to take the easy way out of things, so ‘fess up matey, why does the Oracle want me to go there?” And we were once again back to me crossing my arms over my chest being about as intimidating as a snail is to a booted foot. I waited and waited and then…I waited some more.

“Oh for Christ sake Sigurd, just tell me!”

“Fine! She…well the only reason she would send you there is to meet Jared Cerberus.” It was made quite apparent that this was information he didn’t want to tell me and the way the name was uttered at the end made my skin bump after a shudder.

“Yeah, that’s the right reaction you got there, lille øjesten.” He remarked darkly.

“So…so who is he?” I was almost scared to ask. Sigurd shook his head down as though thinking a silent plea for me to just drop it.

“He not only owns the Devil’s Ring…if only it were that easy…no, he lille øjesten, was the guardian into Hell itself and the very thing where your myths about werewolves come from.”

“What?” I shouted. NO way! Could this life of mine get any weirder?

“Wait, Demons, Angels, Vampires, even Warlocks but now you’re expecting me to believe in Werewolves too…please tell me you’re kidding, right…this is just a ploy to scare the shit out of me…right?” He started laughing, although there was obviously no real humour behind it.

“Hell, if I thought I could get you to give up this insane plan of yours by scaring you shitless, then I would be happy to tie you down until you have heard everything there is to know about what’s truly frightening in this world.” He said then his lips got tight before he carried on,

“But I doubt even then that would stop you. So here it is øjesten, Jared Cerberus is not merely a wolf in his other form, as none are. No, the myth started with a beast and fairytales took that horror and twisted it into something cute and fluffy but trust me sweetheart, there is nothing cute and fluffy about Jared Cerberus.” I bit my lip as I waited for him to continue, suddenly not feeling quite as brave about going to this place.

“This guy…I mean Jesus… this guy even gives me nightmares and I deal with guys like this for a living, you get me?” I nodded bringing my knees up under my chin in a defensive manoeuvre.

“He is still known for being Master of the Gates and that is why she is sending you to him. You say you want into Hell to bring back lover boy, then this is the only flawed way.”

“Flawed?”

“Oh yeah øjesten, most definitely flawed as its damned near impossible.” I took a deep breath and then let it out in a hiss as something from my love of mythology hit me. Hell, it didn’t just hit, it near knocked my bloody teeth out!

“Wait! No, it can’t be…it can’t be possible but…his last name, that’s not anything to do with…?” It couldn’t be, could it?

“He’s the one and the same. Cerberus is the Alpha Hellhound and before the bastard was forced to retire on earth, he used to guard the gates of the Underworld to prevent those who are stupid enough to cross the River Styx trying to escape.” Well yeah, that just confirmed it!

“Oh shit!”

“Oh shit is right.” He confirmed.

“So what, he looks like a man but is in fact a three headed vicious dog?!” This was not good…so not good!

“Oh no sweetheart, he doesn’t have three heads.”

“Oh well that’s something.” I said sarcastically.

“No, when the beast takes hold and transforms his body, the Hounds of Hell will play and they play pretty damn fast. His head can move so quickly that it seems as though he has as many heads as your eyes can see but dog he is not.” All the air left me.

“And this is someone that the Oracle thinks can help me...? She really is crazy isn’t she?”

“Yep, ‘fraid so.” I lifted my arms up in a defeated motion.

“Well then, I have no choice, do I?” I said getting up and smoothing my skirt down.

“About bloody time, lille øjesten, you’re making the right decision.” Oh yeah, he was jumping the gun.

“I’m glad you think so. Let’s go.” I swear if I could have seen his eyes they would be framed by slashed eyebrows frowning.

“But you just said…” he trailed off and then exhaled a big sigh when he realised what this meant.

“Right, of course… but what was I thinking? I tell you how we have to ask Hell’s Alpha for an escort into the Underworld and you are what...? Ready to go? I swear only you sweetheart.” His deep voice took on that masterful tone as he rose to his full height, adding to the intimidation that still affected me.

“So, you in?” I asked and added in secret the ‘Oh please say yes, oh please, oh please.’

“Ah shit! Yeah I’m in, but if you get me killed I swear to you then I will be coming back to drag your ass to Hell myself!” He walked over to me and before he passed I stopped him with a hand on his jacket.

“Umm, wouldn’t it just be easier to…you know…” I made a slitting throat action with my hand and tried not to laugh as his lips made a tense line.

“Don’t even say it little girl, as you wouldn’t want to see what I look like in Hell!” He growled and I released my hold on him.

“Kidding! Just kidding big guy! Hey, you need to chill out a bit, maybe when this is all over that vacation to Florida might not be such a bad idea.” I joked as he walked to the door.

“Shut it, Shorty!” He said trying to keep the smirk from his covered face.

“No I’m serious, you could hang with Mickey and his missus, go watch killer whales jump over crazy people, a rollercoaster or two, then dinner and a show.” I said trying to keep a straight face.

“I think I would rather death.” He commented dryly making me laugh.

“Well that should be relaxing, although definitely not as much fun.”

“Oh, I think any death you bring sweetheart, would definitely not be of the boring kind.”

“Ha ha, well this is your last chance tough guy. Florida or demonic fight clubs run by Hell’s beasts?”

“And there’s a difference? Get your bag, øjesten.”

“Yes Sir!” I said, happy he had chosen to stick with me in this. I got my bag and wrapped the long strap across my torso.

“You know I think you should call me that from now on.” He said closing the door behind me.

“Not a chance, sugar plum.” I smiled when I heard him groan behind me. Well this was a good start, I thought as I took in the night through a passing window. London was lit up in all its beauty reflecting an orange glow across the river and I just had one thing in mind... I hoped that the same city would be holding more for us than just pretty lights.

So here I was once again, back staring at the same door I did the night before. The only difference this time was the comforting muscle I had at my back. Getting out of the hotel had been an experience in itself, so this was going to be a blast I thought sarcastically.

When walking down into the lobby I quickly realised no one could see Sigurd walking by my side. Which was a very good thing considering he kind of looked like death, minus a trusty scythe tapping next to him. Of course, the fact that Death actually wore a beige suit and carried a briefcase didn’t exactly scream ‘Horror’ which made me wonder where that misconception actually came from.

The reason that no-one was able to see Sigurd was down to his talent with shadows, which had me hoping it didn’t look like I was walking with a black cloud next to me. Thankfully though, my fears were unwarranted as no one batted an eyelid as us, that was until the concierge stopped us. He just wanted to ask if I needed anything but the growling sound that came from thin air had him nearly tripping up over his own feet to get away from me. The last look he gave me before backing away told me he not only thought of me as strange looking but now he could add to that, growling crazily.

“Yeah, thanks for that Sigurd.” I commented through gritted teeth, one he ignored.

So now here we were, stood outside the Cheshire Cheese pub and once again it was closed up tight for the night. Only at least this time I had reinforcements, I thought with a little mental ‘Boo yeah’ on the end. I knocked on the door and waited but nothing.

“Allow me.” Sigurd’s deep voice rumbled behind me. One long arm came forward over me and pounding on the door until the old wood rattled on its hinges.

“Do this often by any chance?” I remarked mockingly just before we heard a familiar,

“Piss off, we’re closed!” from behind the dark door.

“Obviously not often enough, as I think I am losing my touch.” He replied light heartedly. Then he let rip.

“Open the fucking door, NOW!” His tone broke no messing with as the locks on the other side could be heard turning. I looked up and slightly behind me to find the big guy grinning close to my shoulder.

“Guess I still got it.” He whispered then turned his attention back to the slight crack the door had opened. Then it was like déjà vu all over again as a sickly looking hand snapped out like it had a mean bite. Bony fingers covered with translucent skin uncurled requesting payment. I was waiting for Sigurd to place something in its hand, like an old coin or maybe some kind of ancient relic. But when the time came I couldn’t suppress the scream his actions caused.

And just like the spider that attacks the fly, he sprang into action. The same hand that had knocked to request entrance was now a deadly predator over my shoulder. He grabbed the out stretched hand, yanked hard and then sunk his teeth into the papery skin and powdery flesh. This all happened with me wedged in between them, too stunned to move.

A great howl came from behind the door where the owner to the savaged hand was still hiding behind. I then watched as Sigurd retracted a set of fangs I hadn’t seen before, but he didn’t let his prisoner go. No, instead he let the shadows that ruled half his body flow over his hand down to his fingertips. The darkness seeped from every pore and overflowed onto the palest hand, creating a living Yin and Yang of the flesh.

I was so close to both their hands I was seeing every detail lit only by the faint moonlight and the flickering of the old round sign above us. The black liquid oozed into the deep gash his teeth marks had made and when one single black drop was solely consumed, Sigurd finally released his victim.

The hand snatched back through the door with a slam and I was about to turn to unleash my anger on the big oaf when we both heard the door swing open fully.

“Well that was subtle.”

“No sweetheart, that was payment and proof. Now, after you” He countered.

We both walked through the door and I looked around to try and finally see who the hand belonged to. The pub didn’t open up into a large room like I would have thought, more like a hallway you would find in an old house. The walls were lit with candles which added to the eerie gloom and I looked to my left to see a door. Above it an old sign said ‘Chop Room’ and above that was a painted portrait. It was a picture of an elderly woman with her arms folded as though even she disapproved of me being here. She even looked like a strict headmistress, with her grey hair, regal demeanour and three strings of beads hung around her neck.

That doorway had one opposite it, so I turned to see what lay hidden there but doing so nearly stopped my heart dead from ever beating again. Now I could see who the hand belonged to and it was one action I wished I could have taken back!

The creature stood in the doorway and no amount of mental fortress my mind had built could get the image to fall back. A tall thin figure was like a hellish bone snowman against the background of a night sky. Its body was made from a twisted set of endless bones all entwined with no reasoning behind them. It reminded me of a body made from hundreds of white elastic bone bands but wrapped around and around bigger bones of its long limbs.

Its head was similar to its body, only more elongated at the back of its skull. Again this was covered in the same bands of bone and an opening for its mouth was its only facial feature. Other than that it appeared blind.

I took a step back and was comforted by the hard chest my back found. When an arm secured me tighter to him I felt my body instantly relax into the hold.

“Lead on!” Sigurd commanded the large albino stick man.

“Very well you bastards, this way.” The thick London accent didn’t really match the picture I was seeing. Then he started to move and when I looked down I realised the humanoid figure was tapping away on the floor with bone stumps as he was missing his feet. I had to make a conscious effort to hold down the bile.

I little nudge from behind me told me that it was time to move and I had to force my grateful feet to follow the white ghostly form in front of us. As I passed both doorways I noticed another sign on the left. It had different names Like ‘Court Bar’ and ‘Johnson Bar’ on the wooden board and underneath, written in chalk whether or not the places were open. I didn’t take a genius to gather this place must be a honeycomb of different rooms, if they needed a sign by the front door.

“Keep going, sweetheart.” Sigurd told me gently as I stopped to look up at the sign. I nodded and walked past but as the flames flickered with my movement I saw something twist in the words painted on the wood. ‘Cellar Bar’ was there one minute in yellow paint and with my next blink, it had been replaced with ‘Hell’s Bar’. It looked as though some small child had finger painted the words with blood. A chalked arrow pointed down and I shuddered when I saw the tangled bone man disappear down the small staircase.

I think Sigurd heard the frightened lump I swallowed as I received a reassuring squeeze on the arm. I looked down at my feet that only half willingly moved towards the stairs and I noticed a strange type of sawdust on the floor. It was almost like the creature in front was leaving a trail of tissue or skin like breadcrumbs for Hansel and Gretel to follow. But somehow I doubted I would be finding a cute little gingerbread house at the end of this road.

I turned fully back on myself to climb down the narrow staircase and noticed another sign painted on one of the steps above. This one, like the others, once again morphed the words, so instead of saying ‘Mind Your Head’ as I passed it said, ‘Mind Your Soul’.

“Careful!” Sigurd said behind me as I nearly slipped on a narrow step because of it. I looked back and saw that to get down the steps he had to almost bend in two it was that tight a space. I saw the snow figure waiting for us at the bottom. It was a small square room with a dark stone slab floor and four shut doors all close together. To my right there was an open doorway which is the way I thought we would go.

There were two doors straight in front of me with only enough space for a fire extinguisher in between. Then to left there were two more other doors, one Ladies, the other Gentlemen…neither of which I was expecting to find where I was going. When I saw the grotesque figure stop by the two doors in front, I thought this is where we were to continue on alone. Well, a girl could only hope.

“No øjesten, just wait for it.” My large protector said after stopping me from walking through the open doorway. So I did as he asked and waited for something to happen. I didn’t have to wait long. The bone stick man moved closer to where there was a wall mounted strip light and it flickered madly the closer he drew. Then he raised his hand to the plastic casing and pushed against the light. The beam of yellow turned crimson and then the two doors ahead of us swung open with such force I jumped back. Sigurd’s arms locked around me to hold me steady.

The two doors now touched each other as their hinges had been together in the middle. I looked into the red glow and where I expected to see a tunnel leading to doom, what I saw made me speak.

“A cleaning cupboard...! Really?” I heard a chuckle behind me and then a hiss from the creature in front.

“Just watch, lille øjesten.”

I did as I was told and soon found myself gasping. The Demon in front pushed the light until it disappeared all the way into the painted brick wall and then the red light started to come from inside the cupboards. The doors started to shake as the glow got brighter and then before I knew what was happening, the parts that were hinged switched sides. Now as the doors slid shut they had become a set of double doors instead of two separate ones. The fire extinguisher in the middle of them started to melt just as the doors were closing and it puddled on the floor causing me to step back.

The new substance spread out in a line as though forming some sort of demonic red carpet. It stopped an inch before my booted toes. I whipped my head up in shock and saw the white figure holding out one painfully thin arm. Did this guy even have flesh?

“After you, Bitches.” He said and I cringed in place of a smile. The doors now held a pair of knobs that looked like stone skulls in the shape of rabbit’s heads. I took one step forward on the remains of the fire extinguisher and then nearly jumped a mile when the doors started to reopen.

“I’m not sure she wants to go down there, Hunter.” The demon all but sniggered and I heard the usual growl vibrate from behind me.

“Go ahead øjesten, I’ll take care of you.” He whispered sweetly in my ear, emphasizing his words with a little squeeze of my shoulders. So I took a deep breath and tried to ignore the dread lying in the pit of my stomach like a block of dry ice. I walked forward and thought sarcastically, well I wanted to know where the dark tunnel to doom was, now I’d found it! Of course, now it looked like I was about to walk down a staircase straight to Hell and the red lighting that seemed to come from nowhere was helping with that fear.

My one constant strength in all this was the feeling of Sigurd at my back and every now and again I would draw comfort from his touch. The further we went down the harder it became to breathe, as though the air was being sucked out through the rough cut stone that belonged to deep earth. You could actually see the tool marks that had chipped away at the stone no doubt through years of hard labour.

A few times I almost slipped and it would have been a painful time for my back landing on stone steps, if it hadn’t been for my guardian. I was happy though that the sides of the tunnel travelled up into a high peak and this wasn’t only to help with the claustrophobia, but more down to my large friend being able to descend the steps in comfort.

I don’t know how long it took us but it felt like we had made our way down thousands of steps and I wondered if this actually wasn’t the route to Hell itself. Surely we were deep enough? I was just about to start voicing these opinions aloud when finally the bottom could be seen. My relief was let out in a grateful sigh and Sigurd grunted his laughter by my neck.

“Now for the tricky part.” I nodded my understanding but just as we came to the bottom he spun me round to look at his covered face. His lips were in a grim line and I soon found out why with his next words.

“No, you don’t understand. I know how well your mind blocks out my kind, but down here, so close to the forces that breed us, those walls you built will crumble to dust the second you step through that door.” I turned to see the door he spoke of but his grip tugged my attention back to him.

“You will be defenceless in this Keira, if they want you to see them you will have no choice…you think you’re ready for that? And if the time is forced upon us…ready for me?” Was this what he was really worried about, that I would see his other side? That I would freak out and run from him? I may not be able to see this fear in his eyes, but I knew anxiety when I felt it.

“Please don’t worry about me Sigurd, I know what I am getting myself into.” I said trying to sooth his fears but when I turned around to face the entrance that held my own fears, his words made my breath hitch.

“I sure do hope so, lille øjesten, because…” He walked past me and stood near the door ready to open it and release a world that I really wasn’t ready to become a part of.

“…the Beast knows we’re here.”

Chapter 26

Freakin’ Show Me the Host

The door opened and instead of the sound of flesh hitting flesh and grunts of pain, my ears filled with the musical chimes of…fairground music? It was an eerie, disturbing sound that didn’t remind me of happy childhood memories, that was for sure. It was a darker version with its tap tapping and dings on triangles with an undercurrent of haunting cries, humming to a deadly tune.

I couldn’t help the shudder, quickly followed by goosebumps adorning my flesh.

“Sigurd, what…what is this place?” I asked on a whisper and grabbed his jacket from behind. He turned his head down and round looking at me over his shoulder before stating softly,

“This is a Demon’s playground.”

I followed his movement closely as we walked into a curtained area, where the music grew louder, along with my anxiety. Swathes of material in dirty yellows, oranges and reds swept down from the ceiling where they were gathered and pulled back to create an entrance way. A box that came up to my waist stood to one side and this was made from worn looking crates that some time ago had been painted in white and red strips. Sigurd stopped at the box and thumped down a sideways fist, making me jump.

“Blimey, you’re a big fella ain’t ya?” I looked down to where the voice came from and saw a dwarf demon wearing a crumpled, wide pin striped suit of white and grey, making it look as though someone made the thing from old fashioned prison clothes. His face was painted into a crude sad face with high arches for eyebrows and a small black dot on the end of his nose. He was smoking a cigarette and wearing a bowler hat that had a dead rose attached to one side.

The Dwarf looked up at Sigurd and then shrugged his shoulders before walking round the other side of the striped box. It sounded like he was heaving himself up until his head came back into view.

“Payment in the hat, Sunny Jim.” He said nodding his hat off his head and rolling it down his arm before catching it in his hand. I squealed as I saw his head. He had what looked like a massive bullet hole on the top of his bald skull and a spoon handle sticking out, at an angle.

“Ya looking at something, missy?” He said cocking his head to one side along with a hand on his hip. I almost gagged when I saw blood spill down his head in a little gush, thanks to the motion.

“No, she isn’t. Now, how much Kobold?” Sigurd snapped making the little guy frown in a way that also made his lips scrunch to the side.

“Names Puck A.C.T.U.A.L.L.Y.” He said emphasising each letter slowly.

“Yeah, well tell someone who gives a flying fuck…Puck!” The dwarf huffed a cute little growl before giving Sigurd a sneer and shaking his hat.

“Price is a tenner, you big asshole, fifteen for bringing your own little Goth bitch in with ya!” At this, it was now Sigurd’s turn to growl, only I had to say hands down he won on the intimidation front. The striped box shook slightly in reaction to Sigurd’s outburst of anger. But before things could escalate, I fished out the fifteen quid and stepped up to put it in his hat.

“Well, at least it’s cheap.” I said in an overly enthusiastic tone.

“Yeah, just like your date.” Puck said and Sigurd’s rumbling growl got a level deeper. I just managed to grip his arm which was coming up to lash out at the suicidal dwarf.

“Sigurd please, let’s just go deal with the reason we are here.” I pleaded, before this guy lost his little head to a work related injury.

“Fine!” He snapped before relaxing his fist into a flat palm that he slapped down onto the box. Puck looked a little relieved and reached up to grab the spoon from his head. I couldn’t help my gag reflex when I saw him slap a dollop of blood from the spoon onto the back of Sigurd’s hand. I then watched as the blood turned into a stamp that was an upside down triangle with a little V underneath it that the ends of the triangle curled across back on itself. I saw him then flex his large hand, after pulling it from the box.

“You’re next, Goth Bitc…” He was stopped short when Sigurd’s hand whipped out and cut the end of that word from his strangled breath.

“Beauty…I…mea…nt… beauty.” He said with great difficulty.

“Aye, I thought you did.” Sigurd said letting go, making the little guy cough.

“If you will…” The growl made him add a hasty “Please” and I stepped forward. I felt the big guy at my back and looked to the little guy in front of me, when I heard the soft words of encouragement whispered in my ear.

“Hand flat, palm down and don’t make a noise as it burns.”

“Uh…come again?” I said thinking this was one Hell of a bad idea!

“Don’t worry Princess, it’s more like a little tickle...” Puck leaned forward and whispered behind a little hand,

“Think of it as a loving caress by the Devil.” He winked at me and I groaned whilst rolling my eyes.

“Yeah right!” I said as I rolled up my sleeve and slapped my hand down, just as Sigurd had done.

“That’s the spirit, human!” He smiled showing a row of tiny pointed teeth that all had gaps in between. I tried not to grimace as he reached up once again for his spoon, but I don’t think I accomplished it. Then I closed my eyes and repeated softly,

“There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home,” making Puck chuckle.

“Oh, she’s a corker this one!” He said and I opened my eyes just as the liquid touched my skin. The blood started to itch at first but then, as it changed shape, the burning started. I was about to move it away when Sigurd came to restrain me, keeping my palm firmly against the box.

“Give it time, my øjesten.” He said sweetly and I let his scent roll over me as the burning started to subside. He eased his hold but instead of letting me go completely, he took my hand in his and led me away from Puck. I looked down at my slightly throbbing hand and saw that I now had the same mark that Sigurd did. It looked like a stamp you would have received at a nightclub.

“Welcome to The Devil’s Ring ya bastards, you be sure to have fun now!” Puck shouted at us, as we walked through the curtained doorway. I looked back to see him grinning and snapping his teeth at me in what looked like pure Demonic glee.

“What…what was that?” I stammered out as I was practically being dragged along through the long curtain entrance, that didn’t seem like it would ever end. Sigurd stopped swiftly and then raised my hand up for his inspection. His thumb made soothing little circles over it before answering me. I looked up at him and I could just imagine the vulnerability he must have seen in the depths of my eyes. I could safely say that, considering how I was feeling right now. I had no doubt I must have looked like a scared baby deer looking down the barrel of a shotgun, silently begging the hunter with my eyes.

“That is the Grimoirium Verum, or ‘Grimoire of Truth’.

“The what?” I said while no doubt raising a sceptic eyebrow.

“It’s also known at the Sigil of Lucifer.” He said as though getting frustrated.

“Ok, so I am getting that it has something to do with the Devil, but what’s it now doing on my hand?” At this he groaned and ran his free hand down his hooded head.

“Seal of Satan! Alright, it’s the bloody Seal of Satan…you getting it now?” He snapped making me snatch my hand back to stare at the mark.

“So, let me get this straight, I have now signed myself up as some kind of Devil worshiper?” I snapped back. I swear I could hear his eyes rolling at my response.

“Not yet, no, but with your insane ideas about taking a little trip to his place of residence, then I wouldn’t say you’re far off…now come on and let’s get this shit done, I’m hungry.” Now it was my turn to roll my eyes as he walked on ahead.

“Why am I not surprised…three bacon butties, half my damn birthday cake and even swigging back the bloody milk jug with the tea service, didn’t take the edge off!” I muttered whilst following him into the arched doorway at the end of the grubby material hallway.

“What can I say, gotta lotta meat on these old bones that like a little thing called substance.” He said sarcastically before pounding a fist on his chest. I patted his arm and said,

“Sure you do, caveman,” making him growl. But right now that sound just added to the background of utter insane surroundings, dragging the only question from my gaping wide mouth,

“What the Fu…!” The sound of a fog horn sounded before my curse could be fully heard.

“Step right up my fudgling pretties and show the room your beautiful twin ditties!” A bellowing voice sounded from the centre of the cavernous space.

“He means breasts, doesn’t he?” I said in a stunned voice, standing by his side in frozen wonder.

“God, I hope so…come on my little Goth snack.” He said grabbing my hand to pull me further into the cosmic joke that was the room I was now standing in.

“Funny, Flintstone.” I commented dryly.

We walked further into the circular room that looked as though it had been crudely carved from the solid rock and I shuddered to think of what was powerful enough to have accomplished such a mammoth task. The surface had then been whitewashed before different fixtures could be mounted. Like the entrance way, the place screamed out demonic fairground Carnival and had swathes of decaying material hung down in lines, creating some creepy vision of a Big Top. The yellows were dirty, the oranges were ripped and frayed and the red were splattered in stains that not surprisingly looked to be blood. In the gaps between the hanging material there were upside down crosses, that no doubt also represented the Devil. But the most shocking was the person sized iron cages all stacked up in towers attached to different sections of the walls. These held a sickening array of different demons and…

“Chickens?” I questioned out loud making Sigurd lean down to whisper something,

“They are for the games, along with the fools that angered the Beast and are awaiting punishment.” He nodded at the cages and I shuddered just thinking about what that punishment could entail.

The rest of the room was split into different sections but all focused around the large stage in the centre. It reminded me a bit like an abandoned theatre and all at once I was hit with the haunting memory that the dark shadows of Sigurd’s mind had shown me. Was this why? Because he knew on some level that this was where my fate would bring us? I didn’t have any of the answers and this was hardly the place to start questioning my large protector on the matter.

Seating was sectioned into three parts with large open spaces in between that were crowded with an array of demons like you would find in a nightclub. The fading burgundy material on the chairs was ripped and worn as if it had been installed decades ago and never bothered with since. The cobwebs and grime only added to my assessment, as when one was sat on, a little cloud of dust fanned up around the shoulders of a demon wearing a patchwork jacket. I felt sick when he turned his head to the side to speak to another Demon and I saw half his cheek was decayed, leaving a gaping grey hole where his jaw bone could be seen, like a gory window displaying his skeleton.

On the stage was who I imagined to be the Ringmaster, although not surprisingly, like none I had ever seen before. He stood in the centre alone, but his booming voice was the one that had shouted for the girls to step up. He was dressed in tight fitting black trousers that tucked into knee-high boots of high polished black leather that were buckled all the way up with copper spikes. His slim build was shown through the white shirt tucked into his waistband then finished off with a thick belt of blood red silk tied tight and left hanging to his knees from the knot at the side. The ruffles around the neck of his skirt were framing the mass of red ruffles in the same crimson silk at his waist. This was all topped off with a black, red and white stripped waistcoat, matching top hat that was double the regular size and black satin gloves that pulled up over the sleeves of his lavish shirt.

His costume, however, wasn’t the big shocker, nor was the massive goggles that rested at the rim of his hat, making him look a bit like a Steampunk explorer. No, it was his face. The beaming white skin that was a startling canvas for the harsh black features that had you screaming ‘evil’! Thin diagonal slashes formed wicked eyebrows that made him look constantly disapproving, ones that match his shadowed cheekbones. His thin black lips cut upwards in a sinister smile, that was a sarcastic contradiction to his disapproval but his eyes added no clues to his feelings. They were two round orbs of cloudy white, stamped with a pair of black X’s in the centre or shadowed lids. So, to say he was creeping me out, was a gross understatement!

He spun a long walking stick which looked like a deadly spike that had a metal demonic hand curled round the blade in a deathlike grip. The long claws spanned the distance around the spike twice and this was the end he tapped on the floor, before swinging it back up to tip his hat up as the girls stepped up to the stage. He waggled his arched eyebrows in a comical fashion and the crowd roared their approval also, at seeing half naked demon girls.

The thing with demons that I was starting to realise, was that not all of them look completely demonic. Oh sure, there were enough elements to know I wasn’t in Kansas anymore, but at least most had human figures and the girls were no exception.

The crowd was still split until the last girl had made her way through and up to the stage. The music started to play when the last girl of eight joined the others, who were now circling the Ringmaster. The song reminded me of something you’d find in a Burlesque show as each of the very different girls started to shake and offer up their goods for the Ringmaster’s inspection.

“I thought you said this was a fight club?” I muttered sideways to Sigurd, who had stopped to scan the room. I just hoped it wasn’t for a quick thrill at seeing so much skin.

“Oh, just wait lille øjesten, there will be blood, ‘tis but the first act.” I frowned and was left to do nothing but watch the show I’d never thought to see in all my ideas of ‘The Devils Ring’. I kind of had the whole fight club thing in my mind, being some dingy room big enough for betting crowds squashed tight against some rough version of a boxing ring; the kind lit by a single light bulb swaying by a dodgy looking wire. But no, no, I was now in Hell’s version of a bloody circus with some fights and punishments thrown in. Yeah, this was going to be great for my stomach muscles I thought, as the first wave of sickening gag came from just looking at the crowd alone.

All the girls were so different in not only size and features but also in costume. There were tutus and bone covered jackets with curled tails that looked to be made from human skin. There were also hats and headdresses made up with everything from feathers and ribbons to the more gruesome bloody teeth and body parts. One girl wore her dark curls to the side, held there with a pinned brooch made from severed fingers, arranged in a flower shape. The painted pink nails matched her ruffled bolero jacket and sparkling bra.

Another was only wearing black underwear over a pair of fishnet tights and her back was pierced in a V shape with hooks. I curled my lip at the view of blood dripping down, as if it had just been done and the ribbon threaded through like the back of a corset did nothing to hide the grisly sight.

“Please don’t tell me this is an appealing sight?” I whispered when I saw Sigurd had now started scanning the stage.

“Do I look like a boy scout to you?” Was his only answer and I grunted in response. I had to keep reminding myself that he was, after all, a demon and why would he not be attracted to his own kind?

As the music started to pick up and a voice sang out from over the speakers, this was the cue for the act to kick it up a notch. They all started dancing slowly in sync to the words as each one was introduced. Two walked up to the Ringmaster on either side and were introduced as twins and ran their hands seductively across his chest before thrusting a leg up each thigh and with him holding their backs flicked their upper bodies out to the side. Then he quickly slammed them back together so that they smashed their heads together and knocked them both unconscious on the floor. He simply then stepped over the two bodies and let the other girls drag them off the stage.

The roar of laughter drowned out the song for some moments while he dusted off his hands, as part of the act.

“Step right up as our Girls, Girls, Girls are going cheap, so just pay the man and pick one from the heap.” He nodded to the two that were now dumped to the side.

“But the last one standing, however hideous or nice, will be, I’m happy to say, double the price! So come now, gentlemen that you are not…come strip these titties bare, heave them up, show them your man time, I’ll throw them over there!” He sang out and nodded to two other girls who had started fighting. One was pulling the other’s hair, making pins and pearls go flying, while the men rose from their seats to shout their approval. Then the Ringmaster danced side to side as the beat increased, to then swing his stick round and hit one of the girls who was bent over ready, giving her behind a deafening slap. Her head cracked back and the other girls dragged her off to add to the pile.

Some demons had stood up and were adding themselves to the queue, hoping to pay for an unconscious girl. As the show continued and eventually there was just one girl left, the song came to an end, just as the Ringmaster grabbed the waist of a short girl with a massive red tutu and breasts simply hidden by slashes of black tape, to manhandle. She squealed her delight as he grabbed a breast in his hand and kissed her until her lips bled. Then he pulled back swiftly to say,

“However, for these nights, this little bean can be my queen…” He then said to the crowd behind his hand,

“…let’s hope she fights.” And then hauled her up over his shoulder and carted her off the stage, with her giggling in delight.

“That’s barbaric!” I said outraged, but Sigurd merely laughed next to me.

“Do the girls look like they are complaining?” He asked causing me to look towards the ‘heap’ of girls now all doe eyed and coming back around from their knocked out states. Each was getting sold off and all were looking far too pleased about it. One girl even whipped off her bra, then slapped it round her buyers neck to drag him in for a bruising kiss.

I forced my eyes away from the sight, to take in the other horrors of the room. Whereas the seating was concentrated around the stage in a fan shape, the areas in between were where we seemed to be headed. The closer we got, the more it started to look like a type of market was also taking place.

“Come on øjesten, time to see if anyone here can tell us anything useful.” He started walking past the rows of chairs, when I grabbed his arm to pull him back.

“Why can’t we just ask for this Jared guy?” At this I was answered with a grunted laugh.

“Because, doing so might just end up getting us killed for the bother. Look, you’re gonna have to just trust me on this øjesten, an Alpha Hellbeast isn’t exactly your most welcoming of hosts, so just try and keep your head down and let me do all the talking, alright?” His voice did that ‘Me man, you woman’ thing again, so I decided to let it be and just nodded like a good little human pet. Hell, I am surprised he didn’t just walk off, whistling and patting his thigh, saying ‘come on, good doggie, does the little poochy want a treat?’ I think he could hear my groan as I trailed behind him.

We walked past one group that looked to be waiting in line for a fortune teller as there was a little peacock coloured tent that held a small table. A big gypsy lady with a massive gut was covered in layers of jingling sequins and rich sunset colours wrapped around enough times to make a dress. She was drawing in the crowd with her large swaying hips and promises of fates told to those who wished to pay with another’s pound of flesh.

“But that one there, I will do for free. Come here my pretty and let me taste the nectar of innocence.” I quickened my pace when that offer was directed my way and the growing crowd laughed at my hasty retreat.

“Keep close to me.” Sigurd growled low.

I braved a quick look back and was shocked to realise she wasn’t the one that was the fortune reader at all. She merely accepted payment in a dripping sack and moved to one side to show a girl behind her. She was a small young girl that looked to be no more than fourteen and wore a straight, plain black dress over her tiny frame.

Sweet ringlets of black hung down in a middle parting and overall she would have been the most normal looking person in the room, that was if it hadn’t been for the two Chinese coins in place of eyes, with a tiny white dot in the middle of the square cut from each one. Then, of course, there was the blood soaked hands and forearms that looked like she had dipped both her arms inside an open chest cavity. I saw one massive male bow deeply, before following her inside the tent, until the flap hid them from view.

I ended up walking into Sigurd’s back as I hadn’t realised he had stopped to talk to someone. I let out a whoosh as the solid back nearly knocked the wind from me.

“Careful.” Sigurd cautioned, turning his hooded head down to see, no doubt, if I managed to stay on my feet. I couldn’t really help it, I mean this place was just insane and had my curious mind doing back flips at the mental overload. If there had been a demonic version of Pandora, then this was like stepping into her box!

I pulled myself together and looked around Sigurd’s colossal frame only to nearly lose my dinner once again.

“Oh, Jesus!” I said before I could stop myself.

“Oh, I doubt you will be seeing him round these parts, but hey, seeing as you missed the crucifixion, then we could have a reconstruction of the events, now we just need a pure soul, some nails, a cross and voila…but where would we find such a thing down here?” He asked tapping a dirty claw on the side of his cheek, before that cut up smile curled up enough to cover most of his face, showing me bloody row after row of teeth.

“Oh wait, I think I found one.” The most frightening clown I had ever seen in my life finished with a sickening laugh and that tell-tale painted face that was anything but child friendly! His dirty white face paint was plastered on over burnt twisted skin, some pieces still hanging down flapping as he spoke. Red arches framed milky coloured eyes that just looked like someone had carved the holes with a fork.

Sigurd grabbed him suddenly by the overly large lapels of his joker suit of orange and blue. His silky shirt tore showing boiled skin underneath. I almost wished he hadn’t bothered, seeing as it just added to the nauseating site.

“Where is Marcus Edwin?” Sigurd barked close to his face, one I didn’t know how he could stand looking that closely at.

“Ah now, Marky boy…let me see.” The clown chuckled sadistically before seeing something when looking up at Sigurd that quickly changed his features from amusement to sheer terror. I could just see the reflection in his murky eyes, as a black shadow started to form into what looked like a snake. Was that coming from under Sigurd’s hood? I was just about to sneak a peek when the clown started to become very helpful. The shadow disappeared before I could see it for myself and the clown started to mumble out answers.

“He is calling forth the first fight.” The clown nodded back to the stage area and Sigurd briefly glanced that way before turning his attention back on Mr Flappy Skin.

“Thanks for giving me a reason.” Sigurd said, his voice getting deeper with every word.

“For what?” The clown laughed nervously.

“This!” Sigurd said before pulling his body closer to then knee him in the dangly man bits. The clown dropped to his knees and cupped his damaged balls with a high whistle. Sigurd turned away without another word. I, however, thought a few parting words were in order. I smiled sweetly and said,

“Not laughing now, Chuckles?” Then I gave him a little bow along with the one finger salute.

“øjesten!” Sigurd snapped, making me turn quickly to catch him back up. This wasn’t exactly the type of place I wanted to be left alone in. I might have a little spunk in me, thanks to who I came here with, but take that protection away and I would be nothing but a quivering mess in the first hiding place I could find in this warped funfair of Hell.

We came to a stop, closer to the stage than I would have liked, but I had no option than to follow Sigurd’s lead. I looked up when murmurs filled the room and I watched as a man emerged from the steps at the other side. He had a slim tall build that showed he wasn’t lacking in lean muscle. He wore dark trousers with an old gun attached around one thigh. He also had a fringed scarf tied around his waist under a belt that held a sword to one side. His V shape torso was covered in a dark leather top that looked both worn and soft as it moulded to each contour. The neck was a separate panel that folded back at each corner showing a graceful neck.

The only way to describe his face was as a handsome jester. His pale face was painted with two slits of red that ran through startling blue eyes and down the length of his cheeks. They created horn shapes on his forehead that curled inwards and did the same by his chin. Another long straight arrow shape was the last painted piece that came from the centre of his bottom lip and all the way down the long column of his throat. But it wasn’t his makeup that amazed me, but the presence with which he carried himself; the tilted chin that looked down on others, with high cheekbones and a sculptured jawline.

His piercing eyes took in everyone around him before he spoke and he arched one thin eyebrow, as though assessing the crowd. Then the faint music began and he shook his blazing red hair which was pulled back into sections, knotted and tied at each point with a little bell on the end. The sharp widow’s peak pointed down his forehead and this combined with the red horn curls of makeup in the same colour was like a warning sign that shouted ‘deadly’.

“Listen up my esteemed scumbags and assholes, I have great displeasure to welcome thee to pay witness to our first fight to the death. So, without further ado and for your perverted pleasure, raise your fisted hands and growl your greetings for SNOW WHITE AND THE TEN DWARFS!” He said shouting out the last part but still keeping his posh accented voice steady as a rock.

“Snow White?” I asked only to be shushed by Sigurd. The jester finished with a graceful spin on one foot and a regal bow to the other side of the room. I looked to where he aimed his bow to and saw the shadowed figures that had suddenly emerged from the parted crowd. Hushed murmurs added an extra baseline to the music already playing. The larger figure in the middle walked ahead of the rest and with him came a thick fog that rolled through the room with dramatic effect. I waited for these to be the obvious ones fighting, only to gasp when Sigurd leant down to whisper in my ear. But I couldn’t hear his words over the loud announcement from the jester, which was no doubt the same as what Sigurd had confirmed,

“My Lord Cerberus.”

The Beast had arrived.

Chapter 27

Freaking Out About Fighting in the Show

“That’s him?” I whispered as the hulking great figure emerged from the fog and shadows that seemed to follow his every step. I couldn’t believe the massive deal that was making this man out to be the most hideous beast who controlled the Hell’s gates.

“Really...Another biker?!” I said, this time not being able to keep my voice down.

“Quiet!” Sigurd snapped pulling me by the arm to stand behind him.

“What?” I couldn’t understand the big deal. I mean, it just looked like the lead singer of a heavy rock band just walked in with his crew behind him. I peeked round Sigurd to get another look at the guy now taking a seat on a raised area which held a massive black throne. I squinted my eyes trying to get a better look but the details on both throne and occupant were heavily in shadow.

“What did I say on keeping quiet and letting me handle this?” He said biting his fingers deeper into the top of my arm, just before the point of pain.

“Fine!” I snapped and yanked myself from his grasp, to fold my arms.

“But I hardly think what I said was life threatening!” I all but stamped my foot on the compacted earth that was the fairground floor. Sigurd just answered with a trademark growl and turned back to where he saw the jester was coming over. The stage area that had once held sadistically colourful entertainment, now had been converted into a fight ring. Walls of metal poles entwined with twisted tension wire had shot up from the floor to encase the area and the jester simply grabbed the top wire and vaulted over effortlessly.

He now faced us and on seeing me, he cocked his head to one side, gracing us with a vicious smile, making his little bells jingle.

“Marcus.” Sigurd nodded and the jester without taking his eyes from me, nodded back saying,

“Snake Eye.” Then, before directing anymore words at us, the sound of footsteps drew his attention back to the stage. I followed his gaze and saw that the space was now being filled by ten little guys all wearing the same thing. Dwarfs dressed in dark blue military uniforms with red piped jackets and matching metal buttons in V shapes down their breasts, all took their stations around the ring. Then I watched as a naked man in chains was brought forward by four guys dressed like freak show strongmen from the 1930’s, who were all bald and had bulging muscles barely covered in bloody fur tunics. The pale man they dragged in towered over them and I couldn't decide if the strongmen were short or the pale man was overly tall.

As soon as they got him into the ring, the strongmen let go of the four chains that were wrapped around various parts of his body and made a run for it. Then the jester shouted over his shoulder,

“Light ‘em boys!”

I saw someone near the wall nod and then slammed a massive throw switch down until the buzz of electric could be heard travelling along the tension wire around the ring. It was the same time as the large pale man chose to run at the fence, ready to jump it. Unfortunately, he was too late, as the power made its way round the ring and into his body. The shock kept him holding on for moments too long, before he was thrown backwards. He shuddered on the floor and then, curling his body one way and bow it back another, he started to change form. The sound of skin splitting and bone popping seemed to be the symphony people had been waiting for, because the crowd went wild. The man was a man no longer, as white fur folded outwards like petals of the flesh, opening up to the electric current that powered the change.

Meanwhile, the little army of guards started circling the beast escaping the confines of a man form, as if waiting for the transformation to finish. Soon, there was only a beast of white fur, claws attached to longer twisted limbs and elongated snout of furious snapping teeth. The dwarfs started to run around the ring faster than before and then an alarm sounded, being the cue needed for the crowd to start throwing down bets. Half-naked females, dressed like gothic showgirls in black and white stripes, all started to collect the bets in their top hats.

Then the heavy beat of pounding drums from a band which just emerged from behind the raised seating area and came into view. This became a heavy rock song as a background for screaming spectators and for a fight to the death…One that was just about to get bloody.

“I must confess Snake Eye, I did not expect to see you with a piece of forbidden candy. Which shop of damnation tempted you to stick your hand in the human cookie jar?” Marcus asked, leaning a hip against a wooden post that held a black box which looked like a safe made from cooled lava. The girls were all coming back to dump their hats filled with bets into the door that was open, guarded no doubt, by Marcus.

“Of course, if you have had your sweet fill, then I would be only too happy to take the dark bit of fluff off your hands.” Sigurd snarled and stood a little closer to me, in a clear sign that I was off limits. The jester’s smile was pure evil as it widened across his face, the thin lines of makeup matching the fine arch of one eyebrow. He then winked at me, peeking out behind Sigurd and the snarl deepened to a growl.

He merely crossed his arms over his chest and then shrugged his shoulders as if he didn’t care either way.

“So, if you’re not here to share…which isn’t very polite by the way… what is it you want exactly?” He said the last word directed at the long talons he was examining on one hand. The tips were dipped bloody over black nail varnish.

“I need to be granted a meeting with Cerberus.” Sigurd stated with confidence oozing from every pore.

“That’s Lord Cerberus to you!” He snapped, ending the remark with a creepy rake of his tongue between his teeth, making a hissing sound.

“Then in that case, from one Lord to another I demand my request be granted.” Marcus started laughing at Sigurd’s statement and pushed away from the post, after slamming the safe door closed and spinning the combination lock. He only came to a stop when he was looking up at Sigurd. Even with this being the case, the jester still must have been at least six feet tall.

“I’m sorry, but I wasn’t aware you had claimed that title, My Lord Ouroboros…” He then took a step back and swept into a graceful, but mocking, bow before continuing,

“Forgive me for misplacing the red carpet in your honour, prey do tell me, how I could make up for such blatant show of ignorance.”

“More like arrogance!” I commented, stepping from behind Sigurd, not being able to hold my tongue any longer.

“Ah, so it speaks.” He said smiling this time, making me growl.

“Yeah and this bitch also punches, kicks and bites assholes like you, so prey tell me, do you like having your balls hanging where you can still play with them?” I asked stepping forward happily, making him take a step back. I thought the retreat was out of intimidation on my part, but I knew differently when I saw him bend over into a chorus of raucous laughter. It was an evil sound that grated on my nerves, like someone had stretched them out and was playing them like a violin.

Meanwhile, behind the amused jester Marcus, the fight was in full swing and the white creature had his claws fully extended. I don’t know about Snow White and the Ten Dwarfs but snow beast and the axe wielding goblins seemed like a more accurate description. The ten soldiers were now, not only armed, but their faces had changed into a mass of boils, split skin and pus dripping holes.

They were running as one, trying to take the beast down by swinging at his legs, like miniature loggers going at a pair of tree trunks. The beast roared at the ceiling and then swiped out and down low, taking out at least six of the ten dwarfs still standing. They went down like pins at a bowling alley and when one started to crawl away in a desperate attempt to get from under the large feet, the beast took the opportunity to strike. He rolled his long tongue out over his dripping snout, all in anticipation for the crack of a spine that followed with one stamping foot on the little guy’s back. His small limbs stopped moving and soon resembled nothing more than a child sized squashed bug.

The others soon found their feet and re-evaluated the white beast, who had started playing with their fallen companion’s dead carcass. I had no clue how they were intending to bring down such a creature, but the jester’s knowing voice soon drew my eyes from the brutal playground of the stage.

“I have no doubt you could my dear, but it will take more than spunk to get you what you seek. And you, ‘My Lord’ of the Ouroboros, well, you should know better, as I am sure you are more than aware the deep feelings My Lord Cerberus holds for the species of your pet. I suggest you both leave before he sees her and makes you take a bite outta her beautiful skin for his amusement.” On hearing this, I decided it was a smart move by taking the few steps back behind my large growling protector.

“And you Marcus, should know better than to threaten any pet of MINE!” The deep demonic word wasn’t only a threat to the man he was speaking with, as everyone that was close enough to reach out and touch me suddenly decided I was too much of life risk. I didn’t know what was worse; feeling like a bone being fought over by two dogs or being referred to as the damn dog!

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I couldn’t be more thrilled to know that instead of just saying ‘ah to Hell with it, you take her, she is more trouble than she is worth’, Sigurd was instead fighting my corner. But how I felt about being referred to as his pet was another thing and if he carried on doing so, then he was going to be cleaning up my shit in an entirely different way!

“Well then, I guess it’s your funeral my old friend, as you know the only way to be put in the same space as Lord Cerberus is to rather be there for his entertainment or at his mercy, neither will bring you a good outcome, Snake Eye.” At this Sigurd started laughing.

“By the Gods, has your mind become so old you have forgotten what happened the last time I was in that ring, for I recommend you dust it off before you feel the need to warn me of such things.” Now it was the jester’s turn to snarl his reply, losing that cool countenance and cocky visage.

“Yes and I am old enough to know better of times long past and times brutally changed. The sport of blood is not what it once was, thanks to the King, who no longer has his uses for it!” I gasped at the sound of Draven being mentioned and Sigurd pushed me completely behind him before Marcus could take notice of my response. After all, what would a little ‘pet’ like me know about someone as powerful as Draven, when someone like Jared Cerberus wouldn’t see a mere human?

“Enough of this Marcus, just do what needs to be done to get me the meeting.” At this he finally nodded in defeat and then muttered,

“It’s your choice of a final resting place, my old friend,” before turning his attention back round to the fight still taking place. I too couldn’t help looking back at the bleak sight.

The music started to change into something heavier and more demonic as the show was obviously coming to the bloody end. A few more small corpses lay still, that had been battered and broken into a mere shell of the beings they were before. But six still remained and it looked to be all that was needed to bring down the beast. They decided the best attack was to form as one, all now standing on each other’s shoulders to create the height needed.

So, as one swaying body of twenty four limbs, they worked together to pass up the biggest of the axes to the top dwarf. He then used it to swing back, making the rest wobble in a comical way, causing the crowd to break out in cheers of laughter. I was disgusted to say that, even when the force brought that axe back over his little head, to then crash into the face of the beast, it didn’t stop the laughter. The beast howled in pain as the blade split his muzzle in two sections and the blood sprayed out over the front row, causing excited shrieks. I could only bury my face into Sigurd’s back, to hide from the beast’s last breaths on this plane. The crowd didn’t follow my repulsed views as they erupted into a deafening applause, most even standing as the six dwarfs left standing all joined hands to take a bow.

“This is sick.” I whispered into Sigurd’s back.

“No pet, this is entertainment, Demon style!” Marcus was the one to answer me over his shoulder, just before the thrown switch was killing the power in time for the jester to once again take the stage. His lithe form bent over the wired fence like an Olympic high jumper, landing gracefully behind the six winners.

“A cheer now for destruction of ‘Meh-The beast’ brought down by the brothers Kobold!” The room again went crazy at the jester’s praise and the dwarfs started to climb over the fence to then throw themselves into the crowd like they were the singers at a rock concert.

“What is the ‘Meh…eh, something beast? And the Kobold, are those the little guys?” I asked not being able to help the bubbling of questions. I heard Sigurd’s little groan before he turned to face me. This time, however, I could swear I saw the little flash of where his eyes would be in the shadows his hood created.

“The Kobold are a race of what you would think of as Goblins, although I can assure you, nothing like what your fantasy mythology dictates. They are more like demonic helpers that thrive from the leadership of others. And, as you have seen, are great little fighters in numbers.” I shook my head wondering how much more of this night could I take, but when Sigurd carried on with answering my question, I discovered my limits,

“The Meh-The beast is also better known to your kind as a Yeti, but to us, a once faithful protector of the Kangchenjunga Himal Demon door that resides there in the Himalayas. He is a creature made by Jared Cerberus and was here today for his betrayal, or so I heard.”

“This is his idea of punishment?!” I said outraged at the sheer brutality of it and feeling sorry for the soulless carcass now being dragged off stage. Sigurd merely shrugged his hefty weight, as if it didn’t really matter. I walked a few steps to the stage and then whirled round when I saw the jester was now talking over the fence to someone making his way round the sides.

“What’s he going to do with him next, make a rug outta him for his fire place or just nail his ass to the bloody wall?” I snapped now facing Sigurd, only the grim line of his lips didn’t look directly at me, but more like over my head and I soon knew why.

“Actually, I was considering mounting his fucking head on my wall, but now I am thinking of making room for another…” I felt a strong and insanely large hand circle the column of my neck, before I was yanked backwards into a hard chest. I felt lips at my neck and the next threat whispered along my skin, like a deadly sting.

“…and here we have such a pretty little head.” He then snapped my head back with a brutal grip in my shoulder length hair before I looked up into the face of the Beast and now something told me my number was up!

“Let her go!” Sigurd ordered in a demonic command that made me flinch.

“Ah, so I have you to thank for bringing this little human snack to my attention. You know I don’t usually like these weak, feeble creatures but I must confess, this one holds an appeal like I have never known. Wherever did you find her, Snake Eye?” He asked as his eyes never left my frightened ones. His fingers caressed my neck and did the same at the back of my head, but I was at a loss to know why. It was soothing down my fear, preventing it from reaching fever pitch.

“I will not speak of her until we are far from prying eyes, now release her.” He took a step closer to me, the shadows beneath his hood starting to flow out and the soothing fingertips turned deadly in a heartbeat, once again putting my neck in a punishing hold. I cried out, making Sigurd stop and rethink his next move.

“You know what I could do with her with a mere flick of my wrist, so I suggest you keep your darkness in check.”

“Don’t hurt her!”

“Umm, now I am intrigued and must confess a strange urge myself to protect this body, rather than naturally peel the pale skin from her tender flesh…so I have to wonder…” he suddenly flipped me round to face him and finished with a gentle bent finger running down the length of my cheek.

“…what are you, my little bisque doll?” I closed my eyes and tried not to look at his face, thinking that given the harsh voice that matched Sigurd in the deep and gravelly department, nothing good could come from looking the Beast in the eye. I bit on my bottom lip and shook my head, hoping he got that I wasn’t going to answer him. His booming laughter came right before my body was suddenly turned upwards. He literally just threw me over his shoulder. I braved opening my eyes to find Sigurd being held back by about five massive guards, rage evident on his twisted features. The Beast that held me just laughed harder making me shake and then finally said,

“Give it up my friend and save that fury for the ring, as you will most certainly be needing it!”

“No! I will fight, but only if you give me back the girl!” Sigurd roared at his back and I saw from upside down the shadows start to come out like tentacles, reaching for its prey. I tried to reach out and grab one, when one amused Lord Cerberus spun back round. I hoisted myself up and scrambled on to one enormous shoulder to get a look at what was happening to my friend.

“Don’t worry… I will keep her close by until your fight is up and I have a feeling that we are going to become fast friends, this kitten and I.” And to prove his point, his palm connected with my fleshy cheek in a swift slap to my bottom. I yelped at the burn his hand left and flopped back down from being perched on his shoulder.

“Now, are you going calm yourself or do I have to hurt her to prove a point?”

“I will do as you ask, just don’t hurt her Cerberus!” Sigurd’s voice had taken its deep depths to pleading and it broke my heart at the sound.

“And I am sure your kitten will do the same and be good for me, won’t you now?” I received a little shake when I didn’t answer, for the tears that formed and found a place to disappear on the ground. I nodded my upturned head and whispered a weak,

“Yes.”

“Come now, you can do better than that.” He gave me another shake, this time stronger than the last and I had to hold onto his leather jacket to stop myself from being whipped from side to side.

“Yes!” I shouted making him laugh once again.

“Of course you will, as will your protector. Have no fear my new pet, this night promises to be entertaining…very entertaining.” He added as he made his way back through the now parted crowd to the throne he once sat upon…

New pet and all.

Chapter 28

Molten Silver

I was quickly finding myself dreading being turned upright and would have been quite happy to spend the remainder of my days this way, if it meant I didn’t have to face Jared Cerberus. Ok, so this was a lie, but it still didn’t mean I was in any rush to be looking into the eyes of the very beast that guarded the gates of Hell!

I wanted to make a fuss by kicking and screaming all the way back to the raised sitting area, but I knew this wouldn’t help me, or the situation I had forced Sigurd into. I also didn’t think it would have made much difference to the solid strength of one arm wrapped around my legs, holding them immobile. I bounced with every step but his shoulders were so wide they were ample enough in size to accommodate my bent waist.

My big metal skull belt buckle dug into my belly and I had to hold in the moan of relief when we finally stopped moving. I had tried in vain at first to pull down the skirt I had felt riding up, but after a few more spanks and feeling like a naughty child, I decided to give up. I refused to scream out and kept my lip firmly between my teeth to keep from doing so. However, when I felt his teasing hand worm a few fingertips in the holes of my rose pattern tights to play along the skin on my thigh, I had squeaked out a protest and tried to get away. He had just laughed again, hoisted me further up his shoulder and gripped my legs tighter.

I braced myself when I was lowered down the length of him and it turned out to be my first good look at the Demon Lord. I saw at the back of his head, hair now longer than mine and all of it pulled back into a leather tie. It was thick, wiry and a strange dark charcoal colour. I closed my eyes just as I saw the flash of silver in his penetrating eyes that were sizing me up, the same as I was doing to him, the only difference was that he didn’t chicken out from one look.

When I felt my feet touch the ground, I braved a glance to find him wearing a very, worn pair of boots of cracked leather, obviously withered with age. They came up to his calf, but the laces were only tied halfway so they flopped back down, covering some of the heavy buckles. Tucked into these was ripped grey denim, slashed at the knees, showing a slice of tanned skin. One thing about the Lord that screamed out, was that he clearly liked to dress comfortably.

It finally reached the point where I could no longer hide from those penetrating eyes, as I felt my chin being gripped between a finger and thumb. He forced my head up and on the way I saw the stretch of material that practically groaned at being expected to cover such muscle mass. He wore a plain black T shirt, leather waistcoat which, along with his leather jacket, also looked worn to the point of looking like rock hard skin on some type of black reptile.

But then, I had nowhere else to look other than to take the beast into my sights and hoped I would be the same this time tomorrow…that is, with my throat still intact and my lungs still breathing.

The first thing I noted was the black wiry beard that was shaped and trimmed on each side, only to come down longer on his chin into a point. He had a strong bone structure and a wide nose that suited the hard lines of his face. He also had a full pair of lips framed with the darkness of his facial hair and slightly arched eyebrows, one of which had a thick scar running through it. The end of the scarred flesh hooked slightly to one side, stopping halfway down his chin and disappearing behind his ear.

But the most prominent feature and the one I had dreaded looking into, was a pair of startling silver grey eyes that were ringed by a thin black that bled slightly into the white. The skin around his eyes was naturally dark, adding a forbidding back drop to the intense stare I received. This, combined with the almond shape of his eyes and deeply tanned skin, gave him an exotic island look. It was as if he had acquired his great muscle mass from days of making village huts, lugging around tree trunks and wrestling live boars.

And at that moment, I would have loved nothing more than to say how hideous he looked, but like the rest of the big players in this supernatural world, he was of course jaw-dropping handsome. Hard, rough and rugged were aspects that created a frightening beauty that one can only ever find in a beast of nature and Jared Cerberus was the Underworld’s equivalent of looking into the pale eyes of a rare white tiger.

As soon as my face was released I looked away, unable to bear the weight it took to look at him straight on. I felt too vulnerable and wondered if this was due to what he was. Did everyone feel this way around him, with an unexplainable reason to fear being in the predator’s sights?

“Now, there is a face of an angel hiding behind all this war paint.” He said while his thumb roughly smudged a line of my black lipstick down my chin. I noticed he wore heavy silver rings on three fingers, which added to the biker image. One was a series of metal flames that covered half his middle finger. The other two were thick twisted symbols I couldn’t recognise. On his other hand I saw only one big thumb ring that was a horned skull with the point coming past his nail in to a deadly tip.

I pulled my face from his hold, noticing how coarse the skin on his large hands was. Scars and calluses marred long thick fingers that first fisted by my face, as if wanting to reach out again, but held back. Either that or he was about to punch me, but for some reason I didn’t think that was going to be the case. Proving I wasn’t about to get smacked around, he turned from me and snapped out an order to a girl sat further down from him.

“Take her and clean that shit off her face!” At his barked order, a short girl full of bountiful curves got up and bounced over to me. She had bright orange hair with it cut in a harsh straight line high on her forehead. This highlighted the peach coloured skin on her round face and made her painted sunset lips a bright focal point in the creepy room. She had a piercing on either side of her cheeks, like two metal dimples and one bright red bar piercing the bridge of her nose.

Her choppy cut hair was pulled back into a high ponytail and swayed with her wider hips as she walked closer to me, with a fuller figure lady swagger. She gave me a wink when Jared turned his back on us both and said in sweet voice,

“Come on, sweetie,” and took my hand in hers to lead me away. I followed and felt somewhat relieved at meeting the first kind person in this Hell hole. She pulled me along with a sunny smile and winked at the singer when we passed the band. One look at those guys and winking was the last thing on my mind. I wrinkled my nose to hide my reaction to all the cracked black lines that covered their pale skin. They reminded me of full sized gothic male dolls, which had been smashed and been put back together using too much black glue.

We got to three doors at the back of the room and the signs on them surprised a laugh out of me. The ladies’ was a picture of Little Red Riding Hood squatting in the woods. The men’s was a picture of a wolf dressed as grandma looking over his shoulder as he peed out of the window of a girly bedroom and the middle door brought me up short. It was an explicit picture of the wolf bending Red Riding Hood over and taking her from behind. Of course, before I needed to ask, I could hear sounds of rough sex coming from behind the closed door, which was obviously coming to an end.

The orange haired girl held open the ladies’ door for me and laughed at the sight of my crimson blush. She was still giggling when the door closed and we approached the sinks.

“Ah, don’t worry honey, there’s only one big bad wolf you need to worry about around here.” She winked at me again and swiped her tongue over her top teeth.

“I’m Smidge by the way.” She added turning to face away from the mirror and shake my hand. I bit my bottom lip in preparation for the lie that was about to come from me.

“I’m Cathy.” I said, using the nickname an old teacher had given me once, before I got the rest of the school in the habit of using my middle name. Although, if I had thought about it, I could have just said my name was Tricks, after what the Oracle had named me in her first letter.

“Well Cathy, we don’t get many humans here, which begs the question, what did you do to one of my kind, to get into this shithole?” She asked, walking over to grab a couple of paper towels from the dispenser. I watched her and then my eyes focused on the back of her neck. I didn’t see it before, but now under the brighter lights the bathroom had to offer, it was fully on show. This girl’s shoulders were covered in yellowish scales that shimmered as her muscles moved but this wasn’t all. Instead of just the bones of her spine being more pronounced, they actually came up so close to the skin, it stretched over the points as though the skin would soon rip open if she moved too quickly. Each bone was triangular in shape, giving her exposed back a reptilian side.

She turned back around and I knew she waited for my answer. The thing was though, this was the part of the lying process I never got round to ironing out. I mean, for starters, I had a big ass warrior dude who told me he would handle all the talking! So where did that leave the world’s worst liar...? In this shithole, up its own shitcreek, without a freakin’ paddle, that’s where!

“It’s…well…it’s a long story.” I said lamely hoping miss cute, scaly and sunny lips would let the matter drop. She nodded and then started wetting the paper before handing me the soggy wad. When I frowned she nodded to the ‘shit’ on my face as wolfy back there had called it. I started to wipe my face clean and actually started to feel better after clearing my pores and not just from the heavy makeup. This place had you feeling all kinds of dirty and I felt like I needed a whole station of firemen to hose me down, to feel clean again…although this picture had its own dirty thoughts. I giggled at the thought of where my head was at.

Smidge raised an eyebrow and smiled at me without comment.

“Well, Jared was right, there is an Angel under there.” I blushed again at her compliment.

“Ok, so can I ask you a question?” I decided to brave a question to the only kind person I had encountered.

“Go for it.” She said shifting round her black tube top that connected to a bright orange layered skirt that matched her hair perfectly.

“You’re like the only nice person that I have come across in here and I was wondering, what brings you to this ‘shithole’?” She burst out laughing and then reached up to pull her hair apart making her ponytail tighter.

“I am Jared’s personal assistant.” I couldn’t help my mouth from dropping.

“Really!?”

“Yep, have been since the end of the seven year war.” Ok, so if my mouth was hanging before, now it was touching the floor!

“But that was like seventeen…something!” I said not remembering the exact date.

“Summer of 1763 to be precise, but Hell, who’s counting when you don’t look a day over twenty, right?” She said nudging me and my numb brain told me to nod so as not to be rude. All the while, of course, I am mentally adding up the years as we exited the bathroom. It took me the whole journey back to come up with a figure, as maths was most definitely not my strong point.

“You’re at least 250 years old!” I shouted out without engaging a filter or even the good sense to know that we were no longer alone. Smidge giggled as my hands flew to my mouth in a hopeless attempt at taking it back.

“I see you have been getting acquainted with my new pet, Smidge.” Her boss said dryly. I did what I do best in these embarrassing situations and that was make it sparklingly obvious with a torrent of blood rushing to my face and a tight grip on my bottom lip. His powerful eyes flashed molten silver at the site of my shame and then he was from his chair and in front of me in a heartbeat.

“Now, why does this beauty seem familiar to me?” He said cocking his head to one side and bending slightly, trying to see me better. He was tall, but not gargantuan like Sigurd. He seemed more like Vincent’s height of 6’ 2” but he definitely had more hefty bulk than the Angelic Draven brother.

“I…don’t know…you.” I stuttered out, looking down at my feet. This time it was his ringed thumb that raised my face to his, thanks to the painful point that dug under my chin. He didn’t say a word as he took in every detail of my face, one that was burning under the excruciating assessment. He ran the silver horn of his ring down my cheek no doubt leaving a dented trail which, thankfully, didn’t break the skin.

“Not yet you don’t.” He made those four words sound like the threat he no doubt intended. I made a little yelp as he wound an arm around me and pulled me roughly to him. He then leant down to my neck and used his free hand to rip away the clasps that held the material from exposing my skin to his exploring lips. The little jacket didn’t stand a chance and now a large flap hung limp showing my hidden cleavage which, thanks to the neck of my top, showed far too much skin.

I felt his rumble vibrate through my chest, which was pressed tightly to his solid torso and came out in a breath from the lips he had at my neck. He took my scent in with a deep fill of his lungs and another noise that sounded close to a gravelly purr sent goosebumps along my skin.

“Please.” I whispered helplessly against him.

“Please indeed. Don’t worry my pet, I will keep my vow and not harm you, but I said nothing about not playing with you.” He laughed at the shudder that wracked my body and I was glad he was still holding me up, as I felt as though my legs would have given out on me. I was scared shitless of what this body that held me captive could do to me, but more importantly, was that on a small level my own body was betraying my good sense to get away. Being held this way by such a commanding force was swamping my mind with memories of what it used to be like. To feel this need and this closeness from another being not of this world…well, it was like someone had just plugged me in.

It was as if my body craved this supernatural touch from another and it was only the utterly ashamed feeling that also flooded my fragile system, that stopped me from climbing up his body like the damn pet he called me. I had to close my eyes tight when his hands reached up and held me by the neck gently. I knew he was taking in my responses and I felt the slow probing around the edges of my brain. He was trying to gain access to my mind and I was thankful that I still retained enough power to hold my shields in place.

Sigurd had said that my mental walls would not work in here which, considering the amount of Demonic faces I had seen, he had been right. So, when the fortress that surrounded my thoughts held against such a commanding presence like Jared was inflicting, I was surprised when it held him firmly on the boundaries, denying him his power.

“Now, that is interesting and starting to make sense.” He said leaning down so the words were only heard by me. Then he surprised the Hell out of me by granting me a brush of his lips on my nose in a sweet kiss, before taking my hand in his. He pulled me from my mental anguish and on opening my eyes, I saw that he was pulling me into a chair situated next to his.

“Now, time to enjoy the show, as I am sure you would like the time to collect the right thoughts, that you will be sharing with me soon enough.” There was no escaping the demand in that statement, so I did as he suggested and kept silent until I no longer had a choice. After all, I had come here for a meeting with the only man who could get me into Hell, so what did I expect…that he would just take me there like a tourist with a paying ticket? Of course, there was no getting around what I would have to tell him, but then what? What would he do when he knew the truth…and more importantly, would I be regretting it once the real show began?

Anyone seeing me sat here, being offered a drink by a waitress dressed as an evil Tinkerbell with a beanie hat on, would have thought I was in Jared’s VIP as a treasured guest. I took everything that was offered, as I had a feeling, very shortly I would be needing the alcohol. I looked to my side seeing the man himself, the Lord of his domain sat back on the most disturbing looking throne I had ever seen.

It looked like burnt wood that had been carved into a design which could only be described as twisted souls trapped into the shape of a large chair. Arms out-stretched up the back as if trying to break out of Hell and reach Heaven. These limbs formed an arch with one singular hand holding a sword. The blade had hands trying to grasp it, until the highest point came above the others and could be seen clearly over Jared’s head. The sides were also carved black wood, only the flames of a hellish abyss licked at the start of the bodies trying to escape it.

You could say that if there was ever going to be a chair made for Hell’s gatekeeper, then this fit the man down to the very last grasping finger of a damned soul.

“Her name?” I shot a look at Jared, who was firing this question at the bubbly Smidge, whose name I still didn’t get.

“She told me it was Cathy, but she lied and not very convincingly.” She shot me a smirk and I tried to shrink down in my seat to make myself smaller.

“No, I expect not, I could smell her pure soul even with a field of Gorgon shit between us, no mistaking one the Gods themselves take an interest in.” He turned to look at me and I was thankful, at that moment, I had to direct my attention from his questioning gaze to take my drink from a tray.

“Look at me, girl!” The order made me spill my drink over the rim, as I jumped. I did as I was told and met his eyes with a pair of frightened ones of my own. I waited for him to speak and when he didn’t I inhaled a premature breath of relief, only to let it all out again in a whoosh, as I was plucked from my seat.

“What are you…?”

“Be silent!” I decided to do as I was told, considering I was now being set in his lap, surrounded by muscle. He put me sideways so that his arm held me behind my back. My booted legs hung like limp noodles over the side of the black carved Hell of his chair and when I tried to move, his free hand held me down by resting his weight on my lap.

“Now, time to watch the show.” He nodded towards the stage where another act was stepping into the centre. The Ringmaster was now back, but his once smart costume was now somewhat lacking, thanks to the obvious fun he had found with the girl he carted off stage. He was now missing his shirt but his ruffled tie was still in place. His trousers were on but he hadn’t bothered to do up the button and if the bulge was anything to go by, he was definitely ready for another round with the tutu girl. You could even see her waiting at the side of the stage for his return, wearing a now ripped tutu, only one breast covered in the strip of black tape, and the Steampunk goggles on top of her head, that had once been on the Ringmaster’s now missing hat.

He swung his massive stick in the air around his head and brought it crashing down to create a loud boom, silencing the room.

“Now, now you scummy bastards and listen to my words, it is time for the next show to begin, so I suggest you watch out for the birds. It’s time to smell the roses and three cheers for freak acts galore, when the acid trip hits and Russian doll man dies, be sure to tip at the door!” He swung round his spiked stick towards the edge of the stage and the room burst into applause as the acts made their way through.

The Ringmaster jumped down and landed in front of his claimed girl. He then ripped off the remaining black tape, exposing the girl’s other breast, before whipping his scarf around her body to use it to pull her nipple to his eager mouth. She let out a squeal before he pushed her backwards out of sight, all the while still latched on to her breast.

“Now, that is one randy bastard!” Marcus said as he stepped up to the seating area shaking his head. He stopped short and scanned up my body, which had no other option than to be sprawled out across his master’s lap, in a dominating display.

“I’m glad to see you finding pleasure in the company of our new spunky human, Cerberus.” He commented with a sly smirk, making Smidge giggle. He winked down at her and then snapped a short,

“Up!” Smidge rolled her eyes, before getting up and giving Marcus her seat. She was just about to sulk off when the smirking jester grabbed her around the waist and hauled her to his lap, mimicking Jared.

“Hey!”

“I thought I would give it a try, after all it looks so comfortable.” He nodded to me and then hummed as his hands started to roam over her shoulders and down her bare arms.

“And with your delicious curves Smidgy, it feels, so fucking good!”

“Jared!” She shouted in outrage and I think I was the only one who heard him groan beneath me.

“Marcus, stop scratching at her scales for fuck sake, before she bites you and I have to patch your ass up again!” Marcus’ hands flew up and he shouted,

“Fine!” And let a struggling Smidge go, only to swear in pain as she stamped down a booted heel on his foot.

“Asshole!” She snapped, but before she could move away quickly enough the loud crack from her behind getting slapped even made me jump. She whirled round with a pointed finger and he started laughing like the joker he looked.

“Sorry Smidgy, I just couldn’t help myself, that big beautiful bum of yours is too much temptation for one man to bear!”

“Grrr! Jared I swear to the Devil, he will die by my hands one of these days… I don’t give a shit if he is your best friend!” Jared laughed and I was dumbstruck gobsmacked when she walked past him and smacked him upside the head, making him laugh harder.

“Jackasses! The both of you!” Was her parting line, as she stormed off into the back. I couldn’t believe, after all I had heard about this guy and his famous fury, that he was acting this way. It was like a group of mates all hanging out together and laughing over beers.

“You know, one of these days, she is right and will tear you a new hole if you keep teasing her.” Jared warned, turning his neck to shoot a warning look at his friend, one I had mistaken for his minion.

“That is a fight I look forward to J, you know that.” He said laughing and swiping a bottle from the tray the waitress held out to him.

“Anyway, where is ‘Conan the Black’ tonight?” Marcus asked still full of humour.

“Laugh it up asswipe, but that is another of my council, who won’t bother with tearing you a new hole, but will just go straight for that jolly fucking head of yours, if he catches you calling him that again.” Jared warned, making his friend laugh harder.

“Like to see him try, besides, what’s he got…a date or something?” I looked up just in time to see the evil grin that Jared stamped down into a serious face, before giving his friend an answer.

“Not sure, but I think Smidge wouldn’t mind a bit of Conan action.” At this Marcus choked back on his swallowed beer and shot from his seat.

“The fuck she does!” Now this was the face of a very different jester, lost and dead was all the easy going amusement that oozed from his every word. No, now a mixture of rage and hurt was left in the wake of his face splitting grin that had turned into a harsh line.

“I will ring her bloody neck!” He started to walk back and to, as though he didn’t know where to begin.

“And him?” Jared asked over his shoulder, as if he wasn’t taking his threats seriously.

“Fuck him in the eye my friend, fuck him in the eye!” He said before swigging back the remainder of his beer and then smashing it on the floor before storming away. Jared burst into raucous laughter, making me bounce up and down.

“That wasn’t very nice.” I said in a quiet voice, which quickly brought his laughter under control. He gave me a bad boy grin and then flicked me at the end of my nose.

“No, but it was damned entertaining… besides, my friend needs a push in the right direction every now and again.”

“And if it gets someone dead?” I couldn’t stop myself from pointing out the obvious.

“Concerned for my people… Cathy?” He laughed when a frown was my only response.

“Must be that pure soul of yours…” He pulled my body closer to his and lowered his head to whisper in my ear,

“So let me set your pretty little head and locked mind at ease…this is what will happen… he will storm into Smidge’s quarters, thinking of catching the two in the act and make a fool out of himself in the process, when he demands to know who she is seeing. Smidge will find the whole thing hilarious and therefore have her revenge, thanking me in the aftermath.”

“And if he sees this Conan guy along the way and gets his head ripped off?” I challenged.

“His name is Orthrus and although he does not see the appeal of having someone like Marcus as a friend, he would not kill him, hurt him yes, but not kill him.”

“And you know this because he works for you?” I said feeling braver with my questions, but this was probably down to the soothing play of his fingers on my side, where his hand still rested.

“He works with me and no, I know this not because he is my council member, but because he is my brother…now, you are missing the show.” He said shocking me with this bit of information. I instantly wondered that if Jared refused to help me, would his brother be able to?

I was shook out of my thoughts as Jared physically turned my head to face the show.

“You think too much.” He hummed along my neck before laying a lingering kiss there. My whole body tensed in his hold after that kiss and only relaxed again when his lips left my neck.

“I thought… you… didn’t like humans.” I asked cautiously, hoping to remind him that by rights he should be finding me repulsive. His fingers crept up my torso and only stopped moving when they held the full length of my neck in one large hand. He placed his fingers at my pulse point and tapped twice.

“I don’t, but you are something more.”

“What do you mean? I…I am human.” It didn’t sound convincing, coming from my flustered whispers.

“I can feel you girl, and your words fool no one. I can scent it here…” He held my head out to the side and took another deep breath before continuing to prove the weakness in my denial.

“…I can taste it here…” He licked at my skin, making me shudder, then tapped once again on my pounding pulse.

“…I can feel it here… and…” His hold left my neck and pushed his flat palm down until it lay in-between my breasts, over my heart.

“…I can hear it in here.” He then moved himself back to rest his arm over my lap, as he had proved his point.

“Now, watch the fucking show.” My head shot back round to the stage, just to get away from the closeness he was creating by whispering into my neck. I found myself trying to calm the torrent of emotions that were crashing like waves into my battered senses. There was only one word that tamed the storm my mind was getting lost in.

Draven.

It worked. My heart ceased its pounding and I wiped my sweaty palms down my skirt. I knew Jared was taking in my every move, but I was thankful when he didn’t comment. Instead, we both took his advice or more like demand, and watched the show. Although, if he thought that watching what was now happening on the stage would help me relax, then he was damn crazy!

The creepy fairground music started back up as demon clowns started to ride little bikes, which looked to be made from small animal bones, around the stage. I recognised the music to be ‘It’s a long way to Tipperary’, only when it got halfway through, it changed from the high pitched whistle into a rock version, when the band started to play. This happened simultaneously to when all the hellish clowns stopped and started to squirt water from their flowers, at the crowd. The screams that filled the room coming from the smoking front row quickly told me that it wasn’t water at all, but… acid!

I had to turn away from the disgusting sight of skin melting into raw flesh and the only place I had to go was into Jared’s chest. I felt his rumbling chuckle but felt somewhat comforted by the hand at the base of my skull that held me to him.

“Not to your sweet taste, my pet?” I ignored his question and held onto his jacket in a steely grip. His hand slid down to my back and he patted me gently before assuring me softly,

“They have gone now.” I lifted my head and looked up into the palest silver eyes, which for the first time, had a beautiful softness to them. He winked at me and then nodded back to the stage. I mumbled a small,

“I hate clowns,” as I turned back and I felt his laughter once again. The next act was coming out and I almost tried to find home in Jared’s chest again, only he held me still before I could get there.

“Just wait, they won’t scare you…see, they are not part of the act.” He said pointing at the two macabre harlequin clowns, who were carrying out a small girl who looked like a living doll. Her head was bent over at an angle and they used her outstretched arms as a way to move her into position. They set her down gently and floated around her like ghosts, dancing upon the grave. Their muted faces were frozen in shocked expressions, thanks to the masks they wore.

One broke away from the feather like dance and made a silent request that the audience be silent. His gloved hands went to her back and started to turn a large key, like one you would find on a giant windup toy. It was situated just above her massive skirt that flared out and stood rigid as if she had something hidden under the fabric.

As soon as the winding was finished the girl’s small limbs started to twitch as if coming alive. Then, the clowns ripped off their masks, to show the same faces underneath, only this time painted with their own blood that oozed from their sliced throats. Well, at least we knew now why they were silent, as the cuts were so deep they no longer could use their diced vocal chords.

Just as the girl was waking fully, they both made a quick dash off the stage. She spun round on one foot like a petite ballerina and when her face came up, I saw the cutest features; a head full of curls pinned back into two pigtails and large brown eyes shone under the oil lamps, dotted around the huge space. She looked like a living cartoon character. The girl started to dance around the room, to the sweet lullaby that was playing and the innocent sight was leading me into a false sense of security that I knew I should not be falling for. This was of course proven with her next few steps.

The spinning in the centre of the stage was getting impossibly fast and just at the right moment, she unsnapped the material from her skirt. A sea of red silk flared out and hid the gruesome part of this dancing doll for seconds, before it floated away like a cloud. Her lower body was covered in an oversized bird cage that she was stood in the middle of. It was filled with a least fifteen scruffy black birds that had all pecked away at the skin of her bare legs!

Once again, I was left feeling sick at the sight and it was only when I heard the hushed tones behind me that I knew I was struggling to get away from the horror.

“Calm yourself and watch what happens next.” I shook my head over and over wishing he would just let me be, but when I felt his merciless grip on my chin, I knew he wouldn’t let me go without watching it to the revolting end.

The girl was soon joined by the rest of the acts and a large muscular woman, dressed like the earlier strongmen from the first act, came to her aid. She knelt down and used her strength to bend the bars open, releasing a black swarm to come flying out. The birds moved as one like a fog clogging the air. However, they didn’t get very far. Another one of the acts came out and the heavily pierced man removed the blades that were embedded under his skin and they whizzed through the air, all hitting a bird each. The power of each throw propelled the little black bodies backwards and they landed in the centre of a round bullseye that someone was wearing on their chest.

The crowd cheered and the girl kissed her hands, throwing her invisible kisses into the audience which obviously adored her and her act.

“See how her legs have already started to grow back the skin. She doesn’t feel the pain like you would think.” Jared told me and I had to say it did ease some of the tension that seeing such an act caused. After that, things got a little crazier, if that was even possible! The acts all performed as one, moving into the centre when the music hit a chorus. The fire eater first blew on the sides of the stage and let out a stream of orange creating a line of dancing girls made up of large flames. The next stream out of his mouth created a flaming ringmaster, complete with tailed jacket, top hat, stick and dickey bow.

Other acts came and went in a flourish of the unbelievable. Jugglers that used surgical tools instead of balls, gymnasts that used the bodies of their partners as swings and the most nauseating of all was the living Russian doll. A man came out that was at least seven feet tall. He first opened his jacket and then dug large nails into his own flesh to open his own chest cavity. He cracked back his rib cage, creaking like opening a rusty cabinet door.

“I’m going to be sick!” I shouted before scrambling to get up from his lap. Thankfully he let me and I flew into the direction of where the ladies’ room was. I had to pass the stage and did the stupidest thing in this situation, I looked at its centre. There a smaller version of the man popped out of his chest and rolled to his feet with his blood covering his costume. Then he did exactly the same thing as his taller brother had by opening up his own chest to then let another smaller man come rolling out. That was when I ran faster and threw my whole body into the door. I threw up, thankfully making it to the bowl just in time.

By the time I had finished my stomach hurt, my throat felt like I had drunk acid and my mouth tasted of churned bile. As I made my way from the toilets, I saw two guards stationed either side of the door, dressed in black combat gear. They didn’t speak and neither did I. Instead, I just followed them back to the amused Jared, who only lost his cocky smile when he saw how pale I must have looked. He rolled his eyes and mumbled something I didn’t catch.

He motioned for the two guards to leave and walked over to me. He groaned out of what seemed like frustration, as he bent to pick me up.

“I can walk.”

“You look close to passing out pet, so now is not the time to argue.” He sat back down with me and placed me in-between his legs, this time facing forward. An arm came round my front and passed me a bottle of water, even going as far as opening the cap for me. I didn’t speak. I just took what was offered and downed the water, taking away the taste that was left, thanks to my weak stomach.

His actions kept surprising me. I couldn’t help but wonder what had happened in his mind to stop him viewing me as the enemy? When he had described how he could feel it, what exactly had he meant by that? In the silence of the room and the stillness behind me I knew I needed to take advantage of this moment and talk to Jared. I needed to get answers and in return give him some of my reasons. He needed to know that I had come here solely to seek him out. So with this cemented in my mind, I started to turn to face the only being that could help me get into Hell. But that turned out to be the exact moment that the time had come for my own little slice of Hell on earth.

“Time for the main event.” Jared announced, making my stomach flip over. I turned my gaze back to the stage so slowly it was almost as if, in my subconscious, I was giving myself time to brace for the nightmare that was still to come. But no matter how long it took, it didn’t change the outcome. Sigurd was now at centre stage, waiting for a fight that I had gotten him into. That thought weighed heavy on my mind… that was until Sigurd’s next actions had my jaw dropping. For now Sigurd, my hooded knight and shadowed warrior, was stood there in all his glory.

All his bare glory that showed every inch of him, now no longer hidden, but more importantly and for the first time…

I could finally see his face.

Chapter 29

Black Betty

When the veil lifted in the form of Sigurd tossing his jacket aside, I couldn’t take my eyes from him. It was like having a blindfold take your sight from you for days and then at once being ripped away having you blinking rapidly. Well, that is what I was doing right now, blinking as though the sight before me wasn’t real. It wasn’t from seeing the formidable display of muscle upon muscle that made up his tall body. It wasn’t even that most of his colossal body was covered in thick black tattoos of snakes that circled his torso in diagonal lines. No, what had me blinking was all I didn’t expect to see and that was the breathtaking beauty before me. His face was the very meaning of stunning masculinity.

Hair the colour of desert sand was a disarray of choppy waves that was longer on the top, lying in every direction as though hands had been roughly raking through it. High sculptured cheek bones came down into a square jaw that was speckled with tawny coloured stubble. A long straight nose gave him a vicious and predatory air as he turned his head up to the sound of his opponent coming into the ring. But the real beauty came from his incredible eyes.

They were like the light in burning amber and dark drizzled honey mixing together in swirls. Only, one was unusually different than the other. Brighter one minute and then darker the next. Almost as if the iris was coming alive, swimming around and pulsating with anticipation for the battle to come.

At some point Sigurd must have been asked to get ready for the fight, because now he stood, cracking his neck to the side, wearing nothing but his leather trousers with every other inch of him on impressive display. I recognised the tattoos that consumed most of his body as the Ouroboros, which wasn’t surprising considering he was the master of them. What was surprising was just how alive they appeared. They weren’t just flat against his skin, but they had a real depth to them. The further up on his arm they went, the thicker and more intricate they became, each one looking as alive as the body they lived on.

“Now, this is a sight I have been looking forward to.” I couldn’t help it when I turned quickly and shot daggers at Jared. He was, after all, the very reason that this fight was taking place.

“Please, you don’t have to do this! I will tell you anything you want to know but please…please, don’t make him fight.” I decided begging was going to be a much better way to go in helping my friend from the dangerous situation I had put him in.

“Now, that sweet pleading just answers one of my questions.” He said laughing.

“What do you mean?”

“What I mean is simple…” He paused to hold onto my neck with one hand and turn my head with the other, until I was once again facing the stage.

“…if you really knew the Demon you keep as company, then you wouldn’t at all fear this fight.” He hummed in my ear.

“But what about the Demon he fights, should I underestimate him too?” I said in clipped tones, not being able to take my eyes from the stage even if I had wanted to, thanks to the hand that still held me positioned, ready for his ‘entertainment’. I felt the deep chuckle at my back before I felt lips at my ear,

“Never underestimate your enemy, young one and further more…” This time both his hands came to rest on my shoulders and he tugged me back sharply in time for him to finish his frightening words,

“….never underestimate…me!” The ‘me’ part was not only emphasised by the fingers that bit into my flesh, but also the dangerous growl that was all the warning I needed to trust in his threat. When he heard me swallow a plum sized lump in my throat he relaxed his punishing hold on me.

“Now, relax back and enjoy the show, I think you will find the outcome surprising.” He said now back to his comforting tone that still held that undercurrent of dominating command and well, this combined with his arm that banded itself across my upper body to pull me back to him, I had little choice than to do as I was told. So, needless to say, I ‘relaxed’ into him.

“Oh good, I didn’t miss this bastard’s bloodshed.” I heard Marcus say behind us and I turned my head as he flung himself back into his seat, legs thrown casually over the armrest. I sent him my fiercest scowl hoping in the next ten seconds I would develop the supernatural power of heated death rays from my eyes. Unfortunately, there was no such luck seeing as his lips didn’t come melting off his evil clown face!

“Get your ass outta of my seat, pencil dick!” Smidge said coming to stop in front of him with her arms folded and her orange hair slightly glowing with her anger.

“Sit your big ass down Smidge and I’ll prove just how wrong that statement is by drawing a moan from those succulent ripe lips of yours.” He said making slow work of licking his lips after creating a few tiny sparks when sharpening his wicked looking nails against one another.

“Arrrhhh!” She shouted storming off to Jared’s other side to take the empty seat there. Marcus laughed heartily when he heard her mumble,

“Frustrating fucker!”

“Now, now children, play nice.” Jared commented dryly.

“Now where’s the fun in that, J?” Marcus asked then shouting,

“Wench!” to get the attention of one of the waitresses, who rolled her eyes before handing him a bottle.

“Don’t worry Jared, he couldn’t find the right hole to put that ‘pencil’ in, if the dipshit had DickNav!” At this I couldn’t help the laugh that burst through my anxiety from the upcoming fight. Marcus slammed down his beer, sloshing foam over the neck and leaned forward towards me,

“Think that’s funny, human or do you wanna see me test my statement on your skinny ass!?” This turned out to be the wrong thing to say as Jared had suddenly lost his patience. His arm tensed around me in a protective way and he let out a booming word that hurt my ears,

“ENOUGH!” At this the whole room stopped and lowered their heads at the sound of such rage and the air became thick with the pulsating energy of their master’s wrath. I looked to Sigurd and saw him make a move in the ring that brought him closer to me. I knew he was about to do something stupid just to save me in this but because I knew something he didn’t, I quickly shook my head at him. He thankfully ceased in his risky plans but you couldn’t miss the proof he was less than happy at seeing me in the arms of Jared. The beautiful amber heat in his eyes started to get consumed with black smoke, leaving only one flaming ring that spun with his building anger.

I did the only thing I could think of and mouthed the words,

“I’m okay,” which thankfully was enough to unclench his hammer-like fists.

“Now get on with your fucking job, Jester and leave this human to ME!” The beast snapped out at the end, making it clearer than ice who was in charge. His once friendly manner gone the instant my life seemed threatened. This was how I knew I had nothing to fear from the beast at my back. The only question now was…why?

“Of course, My Lord.” And with these words from Marcus, it meant I regrettably didn’t have long to ponder this as the jester took off back to the stage. He jumped gracefully over the wired sides that acted as crude boxing ring ropes, ones I knew, would soon be coursing with electricity, caging in the fighters with power created by mere mortal men. This irony wasn’t lost on me considering it was the supernatural world that fought against each other, as us lowly humans couldn’t do it for ourselves. Well, we certainly were good at lighting the way for their ‘entertainment’ weren’t we? I thought on a huff.

“I will have your held tongues now my gits and bitches, for the real fun is about to begin.” Marcus said as he took centre stage, arms open wide, like he was solely created to be there.

“For our first contender is not unknown, as you can all see the snakes that scar his skin. I give you the Master of the Ouroboros and with him his shadowed kin. For the power that he controls, it is a wonder we do not see him grin.” This part got a few laughs from the crowd but surprisingly most seemed to just stare at Sigurd with nothing short of awe and admiration. But one thing was definitely coming through and that was the excitement for the upcoming fight.

“But now I invite you to view our next contender and give your heads a spin. The mountain that mounts the steps is none other than Deumus Drekavac, so please cause a thunderous din.” At this the crowd went wild with shouting, fist pumping and feet stomping causing it to become a frightening background base for the snarling growls that were coming from the parted crowd. I looked up just in time to see an enormous form pushing back demons, sending rows sprawling to the floor before stepping up to the stage. He too jumped over the wires and his feet landed with a cracking thud that caused dust to rise in a small cloud around his bare feet.

“Oh shit!” I felt the words escape my lips and paid no attention to the response at my back. I couldn’t. I was frozen in suspended horror at Sigurd’s opponent. This guy made Sigurd look like a regular sized man and with him being 6’5” at least, I thought this was an unbelievable feat. But it wasn’t just his height, it was everything else, including the look that expressed only one emotion and that was clearly the intent to kill…no, not just the intent but more like the pure, raw…need. It was the rippling muscles that tensed, while waiting for the word ‘go’. It was the saliva that dripped from behind the teeth that couldn’t be contained in a closed mouth due to him panting like a rabid dog. But it was in his eyes, the eyes that wanted nothing more than to see the blood of his kill on his hands. Hell, he looked like he wanted to bathe in it!

This was when my heart started pounding.

“So, sit back and enjoy or cause a ruckus within. But whichever you do, place your bets, on the demon win!” At this, the same ladies fanned out amongst the crowd like before and started taking bets from the eager horde of demon spectators. This was obviously the cue for Sigurd to get ready and he did this by circling to stand directly opposite the one called Deumus Drekavac, whose drool was now coming down his chin in a long disgusting chain until it pooled on the dirt floor by his feet.

He stood at least three inches taller than Sigurd and instead of the massive broad shoulders and defined graceful ridges of muscle that tapered down into a slim waist, Sigurd’s enemy was just an undefined mass of bulk. He was like an old crone beaten with the ugly stick in her youth, who had got it on with a bull sized swamp thing and here now stood their love child! But when I say ugly stick, I actually mean a Being so ugly that his parents could have mass produced their own ugly sticks, ‘cause bloody Hell…this was one ugly ass dude, who was taking ugly asses to a whole new level!

His skin was wrinkled like he had spent a lifetime living in a stagnant pond which animals only used to take a shit in, not drink from! It was ghost grey and all his veins were shown through the thin layer of his translucent wet skin. If it wasn’t for the size and obvious strength in the raging creature of Hell, then I would say he looked ill. His head was devoid of hair and that too was wrinkled. Most of which gravity pulled down on his forehead in flappy swags of loose grey skin.

His eyes were two piercing black dots in a mist of dirty white, that were set deep into his large head. Like Sigurd, his clothing only consisted of trousers, only his were made from some sort of animal hide. Most of his chest was bare, but I couldn’t escape the sickening straps of leather that were sewn directly into his skin. Attached to these he had crude metal hoops and some thick chains that acted as some form of armour. This must have been covering a weak spot of his, as the skin underneath his ribcage was darker, with black veins spanning out as if poison had been injected there.

“Wh…who…is that?” I mumbled.

“That, my pale pet, is Deumus, the human soul gatherer of the Drekavac.” His deep voice informed me and then paused to swallow heavily at his bottled beer.

“And who is the ‘Dre…acvk?” I said knowing I hadn’t said it right, but not really caring considering I already hated the guy.

“The Drek…avac is a race of demons that are said to be created by the souls of those not of sound mind…” He corrected, then leaned into me and his voice once again did that soft rumbling that left little bumps along my exposed neck, when he spoke the rest,

“…crazed, deranged, mentally unbalanced and certifiably psychotic.” He pronounced each word with his lips at my ear and almost snapping out with his teeth, making me shrink further away. But with nowhere to go, I had no other choice than to sink myself closer into his hold. He seemed to like this, as I felt a growly purr behind me.

“He…he looks… insane.” I forced myself to say.

“Oh I will confirm that, he most certainly is, but well, considering the level he has gained through his gluttony of consumption, then for the Drekavac, madness lies hand in hand with the power they take from others…this, for the most, is why they are immune to their demise… the stronger their opponent, the stronger they become… so as you can imagine, fighting them has its difficulties…drink.” He finished by bringing his bottle round and holding it to my lips, lips he could see because his head rested above mine and was now cocked to the side, looking down at me. But hearing all I had about this dude made me snatch the bottle from his hand and down the whole thing! Jared laughed heartily behind me and when I came back up for air I passed the now empty bottle back and wiped the dripping beer from my lips using the back of my hand.

“We have to stop the fight!” I demanded and this was when Jared’s amusement ended and his hold on me became less of the comforting variety and more of the restraining kind.

“Calm yourself моя бледная красота” (means ‘my pale beauty’ in Russian) His foreign words combined with his strength anchoring me to him, made me put a stop to my struggles. Once I did this he took a deep breath and released it in a long sigh.

“I know you have no reason to trust in my words, for you do not know me, but trust in something else…I know about you and the future you may hold for me, so I would not harm you and although my explanation is vague, it will be understood soon. But first, I only ask for your faith in your friend.”

“But…my friend, he…he is powerful and if what you said…”

“Power is indeed great, on both sides of that ring, but Hell’s essence powering the muscle, flesh and bone of my world is nothing compared to the power of the mind, power which even a human can possess…” He raised his free hand, the one not still curled around my torso and shifted his long fingers through my hair, holding it all on one side back to speak his next words, words that finally comforted me,

“…and the insane are not often known for their intelligence.” This was the first time one of their kind had actually said anything remotely positive about a human and I found myself surprised that it had come from someone who was known for his dislike of humans. I was starting to open myself up to the idea of understanding the beast at my back.

There was some deeper meaning in his words. Also the rough use of his voice that was heard like velvet pulled amongst the jagged rocks in an effort to comfort me. The unyielding strength of solid muscle that was a contradiction to the soft and gentle rubbing his thumbs were playing, creating circles on my ribs. But more than that, was the trust he asked for and the trust I couldn’t help but give, even when my friend faced unbelievable odds at his command.

These thoughts were dragged from me as the girls had collected all their bets and Marcus was securing them away in the black rock safe. This meant only one thing…

The fight was on.

Drums started to beat out something that sounded vaguely familiar but all my attention was glued to the two that had started to circle each other, both getting ready for the first move. Then the guitar added to the beat just as the Drekavac made his first move. He ran straight for Sigurd, bent over slightly as if readying himself to tackle Sigurd to the ground. But my friend was definitely quicker by side stepping and then spinning from the oncoming truck that was not only ugly but looked crazed!

The motion propelled the demon into the electrical current coursing through the wire and gave him a wakeup call of all wakeup calls. Sigurd widened his stance and then, after looking amazingly bored for a few seconds, he gave the furious Drekavac a head nod, almost asking for him to come at him and try again. That’s when my shock hit new limits as the band started to add lyrics to the song being played, just as Mr Ugly Ass ran at Sigurd and this time encountered his massive fist. I couldn’t help but blurt out the obvious,

“Seriously…Black Betty!?”

“What, not a fan of Ram Jam?” Was Jared’s only comment, referring to the song being played as a theme tune to match with the sleek moves Sigurd was planting on his fighting partner. After I didn’t answer I received a whispered,

“Or would you have preferred Marcus’ other choices?”

“Them being?” I whispered back,

“Kung Fu Fighting, Live And Let Die or Michael Jackson’s Thriller?” I snorted and answered truthfully,

“Uhh…no.”

“Black Betty it is and you will soon find out why when the shadows come out to play.” He replied just as Sigurd dodged a hit and spun to get in two quick kidney jabs. The move caused the Drekavac to take a large step forward to right himself. There was nothing clean or precise about this fight. It wasn’t like when I had seen Draven fight or even my other supernatural friends. No, this was no graceful dance, this was dirty raw, this was painfully gritty and this was downright disgustingly brutal.

Punch after punch got landed, on both sides and neither one even looked to be slowing down. Out of the two though, it was clear that Sigurd was the more skilful fighter. Like Jared had said, Sigurd used his brain more that the incensed Drekavac’s uncoordinated moves that were based only on berserker strength, fuelled by frenzied rage. This wasn’t to say that Sigurd didn’t feel some of these hits and everyone he did I would flinch and press myself firmer into Jared, out of a pure reflex action.

One of these times was when I saw Sigurd was in for a punishing blow but I let out my held breath when I saw him grab his opponent’s arm. He then spun and using the Drekavac’s own weight against him, he threw the massive body flying once again into the electric fence. With these moves he reminded me of a wrestler. And seriously, I didn’t know how many times one dude could get smoked and still walk steady after it. I mean, the guy’s trousers even started to cook, making the room smell foul like burning hair and steaming animal skin.

The Drekavac flung his arms back and threw his head up to the rock ceiling above to let out a blood chilling roar. Then his head came down and he finally cottoned on that charging at his opponent wasn’t getting him anywhere. So he changed his tactics, if you could even call them that. He began circling round the centre where Sigurd stood and this made my friend look like he was losing his patience. This was proven when he lowered his forehead and growled,

“What are you waiting for pretty girl, an invitation?” The snarl he got back made him smile, one that made me shudder, it was that cold.

“Come get it then bitch, I got fucking things to do!” This was enough to get him to move. I knew what he was doing by provoking him. He wanted the Drekavac not to think. He wanted to keep him in that manic state to use to his advantage.

“Taunt the beast by pulling on its tail and as it snaps back, in doing so only reveals its jugular ready for the claws.” Jared whispered in my ear. Then, before I could stop myself, I leant back and did some taunting myself,

“Tell me Jared, do you have a tail?” I was happy when this unwise comment got me raucous laughter at my back, instead of the neck breaking move it could have. His arms hugged me closer for a second, before replying with what sounded a lot like flirting,

“Do you wanna find out, little dove?” I laughed back and my smile widened further when I saw Sigurd’s next move. Just as the Drekavac stupidly charged again, Sigurd held his own wrist and when his target’s head came close enough, he slammed his elbow into the oncoming face. It made a sickening crunch, but Sigurd didn’t give him any time to register the hit. No, because after quickly letting go of his wrist, he was powering the heel of his palm upwards. Fast as lightning and bone charring as the thunder, he forced the Drekavac’s nose bone up and with nowhere else to go but penetrating through his brain. The howl of pain pierced though my ears like a dagger, straight down past my ear drum. The Drekavac was finally on his knees and I held my breath, thinking this had to be the killing blow…oh how wrong I was.

This…

Was just the beginning.

Chapter 30

Dark Upgrade

I was stupidly readying myself for the roar of applause at the sight of the Drekavac falling to his knees. I soon discovered though that I would be waiting a while for this, as in, it never came. The reasons for this became clear in the next few seconds when Sigurd started to walk backwards as if preparing himself.

“End of round one, pet.” Jared informed me. I whipped my head round and looked to his startling silver eyes. As soon as they read my shock they turned soft and this was mirrored in the small smile he gave me.

“There are two rounds to fights like this and the first is to prove the strength of the vessel they command.”

“And the second?” I asked, if only to confirm my fears. He simply nodded back to the stage and yep, it had already started to become very clear as to what the next round was.

The music changed to a faster and heavier song, giving the next round a more serious vibe. A booming base line reverberated around the room and started to build the frenzied crowd to fever pitch as their stamping feet fell in tune to the drums. I was quickly gathering that this was the round that people were really waiting to see and the music choice only added to this theory.

I felt the air change before I saw anything happen. It was the same as when you knew the storm was coming. The thick wave of clouds bringing with them the proof of something so powerful, it could easily destroy us all. This was what it was like when I watched these two beings start to call forth that power.

It wasn’t only my visual sense that took note, but all my senses; my hair standing up along my skin, readying itself for the mental chill, the smell of dust being unearthed by each pounding foot from the crowd, the tension I created in my own fingertips by fisting my skirt in a bruising grip. And it was completed by the coppery taste in my mouth from biting the inside of my cheek bloody. All were over-riding any rational thoughts of trying to stay calm.

It started with the Drekavac.

He was still on his knees, only now he had brought one up along with his head. That’s when the rumbling started through the floor. I jolted in Jared’s arms only to have them squeeze me in a show of strength. The enormous Drekavac started to pound one fist on the ring’s dirt floor, also in time with the drums and the rumbling got stronger, making me jump each time his hand connected to the ground.

Then I watched with my mouth open as what looked like charred tree roots burst from under him and started to latch onto his legs, firing out like giant sling shots. He shifted his torso around as if he was trying to break free. I didn’t yet know if this was Sigurd’s doing or just the start of his change. But whatever it was had clearly had enough of his attempts to break free. The chains that were attached to the straps sewn into his skin suddenly leapt towards the roots and effectively began restraining him to the floor, so the roots could take further hold.

This continued until hundreds of stiff and twisted black vines entwined themselves over the rest of him, until utterly consuming the bulky mass that was his body. By the end, he looked like a jagged burnt tree in the shape of a man. It was as if it created some sort of wooden armour before someone set him alight, until flesh became fused with cruel nature.

Of course, this now also made him resemble a human battering ram. I mean, the guy was huge before, but now he was just freakin’ monstrous! The black roots had created a type of breastplate that flared up and out at the tops of his shoulders in spikes. His arms and legs were like solid trunks of black petrified wood that branched out at the feet and hands. But all this was nothing compared to the change made on his head.

Four separate roots had started by wrapping around his neck like some wrought iron noose with all ends coming together at the front. Then, like twisted rope soaked in crude oil, it came up the front of his face. It was about the thickness of my wrist but smaller branches broke off the spiral and spread out, covering his entire face. This created thin slanted eyes as his only feature left showing and within their depths looked like burning hot coals. Once the branches reached the top of his head, all four pieces uncoiled and flared out into spiralled horns. Now he really looked like a battering ram, only this time of the animal variety!

“This isn’t good.” I whispered aloud my fears and gripped on to my necklace hidden under my clothes for comfort.

“He isn’t a destined Lord for nothing pet…look.” I felt the nod Sigurd’s way and I tore my eyes from the living tree monster to see another monster in the making.

Once again I was witness to the extensive tattoos on Sigurd’s body as they all started to spin. Only, unlike last time in Afterlife’s VIP, I was now seeing all of them that covered the vast space of muscled skin. The thicker snakes that slashed diagonally across his chest were the first to start moving and by the time the last one on his middle finger started joining in, the ones across his chest had picked up speed. The thickest of these looked like an Aztec design, where the one next to that was obviously of Asian ancestry, looking more like a dragon than a snake. Whatever their design though, they were all now very much alive and a part of him; creatures in their own right swimming against the current of flesh and bone.

Soon, they were all spinning in opposite directions so quickly they became a blur, one that melted into each other and left behind over half a black body. It was as if someone had grabbed his hand and just dipped him into a vat of black paint with only one shoulder, arm and his head remaining untouched. This didn’t last for long.

The parts of him that had remained unblemished soon became sucked into the shadows that started to seep from his very pores and float around him like clouds of black ink in water. It was as though every beat of his heart was feeding the darkness that wanted to cover its master from head to toe.

The Drekavac snarled in a way that sounded as if claws were raking lines into tree bark and in response the shadows howled like the wind whistling, before slamming into your window in anger.

The now black covered Sigurd rolled his neck, as the shadows finally took the remainder of his body into its mist, including his face, so that the only constant feature that remained seen was a pair of blazing eyes. Even his desert sand coloured hair had become as black as the moonless night.

“That’s a lot of power I can feel there, buddy.” Sigurd said and even his voice had dropped into the fearsome demonic realm. The Drekavac didn’t reply but just snarled some more. Sigurd circled closer and then tipped his head forward in a provoking manner.

“You fancy a lot more...? Then you come and get it, pretty girl!” Sigurd finished taunting the Drekavac, making him roar. Then the band started blasting their instruments into the height of the heavy rock song in perfect timing for the fight to begin. And boy, did it begin!

Every eye in the room looked on as the roaring Drekavac ripped his rooted limbs from the ground and charged at my shadowed knight. His four horns became his only weapon, ones pointing directly at Sigurd’s chest and just before they hit their target his body disappeared, leaving a smoking shell of his shape behind. The Drekavac broke through the mist at the same time my chest released my held breath in a painful shudder.

“Looking for me, dipshit?” Sigurd said before connecting his blackened fist into the side of the Drekavac’s head, after a jump in the air to gain momentum for the downward thrust. His knuckles burst through the splintering wood, causing charred shards to scatter to the floor. The Drekavac didn’t take long to regain his balance after a clumsy step to the side and then he spun to grab hold of Sigurd in a bear hug. The problem with this, was that one second his arms were closing in on a solid body and the next, they were encasing fading black vapour.

I was starting to get a good sense as to where Sigurd’s power lay, as it was indeed hard to hurt someone you couldn’t first catch. Each reach and every lunge was met with nothing gained by the Drekavac, but the same could not be said for Sigurd. Whether it was his fist or his foot, each meant a direct hit that would once again take chunks from the wooden beast.

I was just letting my hope firmly ground itself deep within me, to a point it was re-forming more into a knowing defeat on the Drekavac’s part. That was until I looked deeper. A depth that forced a hard reality to seep in and start acknowledging just what a Drekavac could really do and that was…bloody regenerate.

Every hit the Drekavac took, every piece now missing from its grotesque form, was just another that could be healed. More roots were silently called from the ground to slither up their brothers and find home amongst the new space made. This now begged the question from the opposing side, for even if you couldn’t catch a shadow to hit, how could you kill when your shadowed hits meant nothing?

The Drekavac, who was now fully healed, had backed up for another charge and I once again tensed as if ready to take the impact for myself. Sigurd stood tall, waiting and looking impatient for something he was waiting to happen.

“You wanna dance now...? Then come on …come on…COME ON!” Sigurd bellowed out making four massive smoked serpents emerge from his back. The Drekavac’s four horns twisted round to point more firmly readying himself for a killing blow. Then he let rip. He ran flat out towards Sigurd and I couldn’t help but scream out when I saw Sigurd side step but not quickly enough. The horned head flicked out, catching my warrior which propelled him behind the Drekavac.

However, Sigurd’s step didn’t even falter and something unbelievable happened. Sigurd snapped his head back around and smiled at the beast.

“Now, it’s really time to dance, bitch!” My mouth opened in shock and with Sigurd’s next move, it stayed that way. He opened out his arms wide to his sides and his head went back, looking up to the ceiling. Then he said in the calmest voice one would not expect in this moment,

“Go play, boys.” And at this soft command, the serpents behind him shot forward, striking their prey at a ferocious speed. Each of his pets opened their vapour jaws, just before they crushed down on each branched limb and then with the click of Sigurd’s fingers they shot back, taking their pickings with them. The Drekavac travelled the distance across the ring, as if he had been blasted that way by a great cannon at his back. Just as it neared Sigurd, he then kicked out aiming his booted foot square in the Drekavac’s chest.

Three sounds simultaneously echoed around every witness in the room. The howling of Sigurd’s serpents in a conquering battle cry, the screaming agony of a Demon’s defeat, and more importantly, the sounds of four wooden limbs being ripped away from the torso that held them all together. A torso that was also making its way flying backwards from the impact of Sigurd’s kick….minus its legs and arms, of course. No, these were still in the possession of Sigurd’s pets, pets that seem to be in no hurry to part with their new spoils of war.

Everyone in the room seemed to be frozen. I expected any moment to hear the wild shouts of obvious victory for my friend and held my breath waiting for them. But like before…

They never came.

And like before, they never came because I was the only one in the room who didn’t know what was happening or what to expect from these two fighters.

“Why…why is no one clapping?” I whispered to the presence at my back and I felt his hold tense quickly before he answered me.

“Because, it is yet to be finished.” He whispered back and I felt a frustrated tear form. I didn’t know how much more my heart could take of this!

“Klaar.” (means ‘Be Ready’ in Dutch) Sigurd said turning his head slightly to the side as if talking to his pets. At this, the huge rows of teeth each retracted from the limbs they held tight and each thudded to the floor like forgotten logs. The torso, that had remained unmoving, started to suddenly vibrate. It danced around on the floor as though there was someone trapped inside, trying to break free. The horned head whipped back violently, snapping some of the bark around its neck. Then, the roots started to fuse with the ground and before a noise could be uttered, they fired forward like a poison travelling through the veins of the earth. They hit Sigurd suddenly and before he could react, it latched onto his foot like a shackle. His body went taut like some puppet master had just pulled his strings. It looked as though he was being electrocuted.

All four serpents’ heads roared in anger, before they started to get sucked back into Sigurd’s body. They each shrunk away to nothing and with them the black smoke that concealed most of his body. It was like a vacuum was sucking his powers back through his pores and straight down to his foot. The numerous tattoos of war paint started to melt from his skin and down to the twisted wood that kept him prisoner. It was literally drinking the demonic essence right out of him.

I tried to stand, but the arms from the man behind me held me down.

“NO!” I screamed again and fought to escape my capture.

“Calm down.” Jared said firmly.

“No! LET ME GO! I need to help him!” I tried to fight my way free but nothing was getting me anywhere fast and time was not my friend. For it was only seconds before there was nothing more in front of me than a defeated man. His sandy hair fell forward as did his shaking frame. He landed on his knees as the last of his power left him.

“NO! SIGURD!” I screamed.

“Calm yourself, Chosen One!” Jared demanded and if I wasn’t in the process of watching my friend fall at the hands of his enemy and quite possibly his death, then I would have cared more on hearing Jared call me the Chosen One.

The shaking of the torso started to jump and bounce around the small space it occupied. Then I screamed as the last of Sigurd’s shadows were absorbed and it started to once again turn into a man’s form. Arms and legs grew, only this time bigger, strong and harder than before. The creature rose from the floor onto his feet and cracked his new limbs around as though testing them out. It made a sickening noise, like popping knuckles only ten times the strength of the average sound.

Meanwhile, Sigurd was still on his knees and his pale skin looked stark without his stripes of ink. The new version of the Drekavac took a pounding step closer to my friend and a tear fell from my eyes with each punishing step.

“Please, my friend…please.” I let out the plea on a whisper, but in that moment Sigurd’s head snapped up and saw me, as if he had also heard me. Then, I couldn’t believe it when I saw another cocky smile from him. Added to this was a cheeky wink, before he came to his feet. Thank God he wasn’t through just yet and I needed to do the same and stay strong for him. So, I swallowed the frightened lump and nodded back to him, mouthing the words,

“Go get ‘em.” To this I received a small nod, as a gentleman would do, tipping their head to a lady-in-waiting, upon receiving a request.

“Idő áttörni, és gyere haza srácok.” (Means ‘Time to break through and come on home lads’ in Hungarian) Sigurd spoke in another language, words which became the trigger to a silent bomb. The monster, Drekavac, had no choice other than to stop his advance as the shadows started to leak from beneath the roots in bursts. It rose up in a thick fog and then started to form back into Sigurd’s serpents.

The Drekavac suddenly started to claw at itself as though it was trying to tear away the roots himself. I leant forward and squinted my eyes to take in the truth. It wasn’t the roots it was trying to free himself from, but the dozens of smoke serpents that were now writhing around his frame. Each one had a head and each head had rows and rows of lethal teeth and each deadly point was being embedded into the body they came from.

The movements reminded me of the flickering of an old movie being projected. The pulsating flutter as though something was growing inside him with not enough room to move about in.

“What’s the matter Deumus Drekavac, don’t you like my essence…?” Sigurd asked and then, taking a step forward, bent slightly at the twisting form of his struggling opponent, he continued,

“…can’t you just taste it? The darkness that comes from stealing someone’s power, couldn’t you just DIE drowning on it...? What’s that…?” Sigurd put his hand to his ear in mock surprise.

“…You don’t like it?” He said sarcastically, as the captured roar of pain behind a lipless face, thundered our ears.

“Ah, I see…they just don’t like you...! Very well.” He said stepping back and he turned to look directly at me.

“For you, my fated one.” He said softly, before running both his hands back, pushing his hair from his face. The last remaining Ouroboros in his eye seeped from the light of amber and slithered in a black line down his cheek. It was the smallest one, so tiny it was barely seen, as it travelled the length of his neck, over his shoulder and right down his muscle clad arm. For once I felt it was Jared’s body that was rigid at my back, as if readying himself for the end.

“Here it comes.”

“Here what comes?” I asked in response to the tense comment made.

“The strongest Ouroboros of them all and one only mastered by its true Lord.” He whispered back. Ok, so now this was the mother of all shocks!

“You mean that tiny little slithering thing?” I asked raising my voice and Jared’s reaction was to quickly clamp a hand over my mouth.

“Be careful little girl, for we all know that the large may fall and the small may be mighty, nothing in our world is what it seems…even you.” At this, I decided to let it go, considering he was more than just a little right, he was absolutely right!

By this time the little snake in question had made its way down to Sigurd’s hand and rested on the inside of his upturned palm. There it spun like the others had and soon all it took was a mere flick of his wrist for the black mist to emerge. This time though, it didn’t come in the form of a snake at all, but something far more terrifying. Four spiked tentacles circled out from within the centre, uncoiling like something from the dark depths of the ocean.

Meanwhile, the other Ouroboros were making it their mission to punish the body that attempted to command them and steal the power from their rightful master. They were biting into the body quicker than the parts could be regenerated. The huge breast plate rose and fell in an unhealthy rhythm, that screamed panic was definitely setting in for the Drekavac and the serpents shrieked out as if more than ready for his end.

Sigurd then took the last strong strides needed to reach the Drekavac which, amazingly, was still on his feet.

“It ends and with it, your fucking soul-sucking buffet!” Sigurd shouted in anger and the tentacles took these last words as a sign to do what needed to be done. They lunged forward and each end grabbed hold of a horn on his head, entwining themselves so tightly you could hear the splintering of wood. Then one demonic roar released, that this time was a command by Sigurd, each tentacle pulled taut like metal rope.

Then came the pull.

It spun the Drekavac round and round, but with it tearing the four horns from one another. This caused the strongest roots to break apart and this unravelled down the beast’s face, then down the length of his chest, leaving behind the first body of the Drekavac we all saw in the beginning. It all happened in seconds as one minute there was a black rooted creature pulsating with too much demonic power and now there was nothing but the sad form of a beaten Deumus Drekavac. Now, it was his turn to fall to his knees and all around him was the proof of his coming end. The broken roots lay around the floor like confetti made by a demonic wood chipper.

But there was one job left to be done and Sigurd took the last step to do precisely that. With one move, he had the Drekavac’s head in his hands. One more move, a turn of his whole body into an action that not only placed one knee to the floor but broke the Drekavac’s neck with a sickening crack. Then, a more violent twist severed his head from his body altogether and this time I didn’t shelter my eyes from the horror.

I saw Sigurd take a deep breath from the end of the battle, before he rose to then throw the severed head to one side like trash. He then stood over him, held his palm out to the remains and closed his eyes.

The tentacles were the first to retract back up his body and soon the power that had been stolen from him, if only for a short time, quickly started to find their way home. Dozens of serpents formed, coming from inside the dead shell of the Drekavac and they swam through the current of the air to re-join their master.

My eyes felt like they were going to pop right out of my head as I saw each serpent take back the form of inked skin right where it used to be. After the biggest Aztec one was back in place, the lifeless body started to disintegrate on the floor, after seconds of beating trembles that caused it to seem alive for one last moment. Then, something incredible happened. One last serpent, this one bigger than the rest, came out and shot through Sigurd’s arm. I heard him cry out a deep guttural sound that gave you the feeling that whatever was happening to him, was hard for him to take.

His own skin started to quake and ripple, as something beneath the surface was breaking through, something that hadn’t been there before. That’s when a new tattoo started to emerge. Black ink seeped up, bubbling at first and then, when the area was covered in a new strip next to the Aztec Ouroboros, it started to calm. The rising ink sucked back into his pores and left behind a crude form of a snake eating its own tail, situated around his upper body on a slant just like the others. This one was a huge brush stroke that left lines in places as if there wasn’t enough ink on the brush. Unlike the others, its head and body had no details other than an inkless dot for its eye and a single stroke for a tongue coming from its open mouth.

Sigurd’s body shuddered as the last of his new tattoo took form, then he looked down at the eroding body and said,

“Thanks for the upgrade, asshole!” He turned from the sight and I couldn’t stop the gasp as he then kicked the head into the crowd like a football.

Finally, this was when the crowd went bat shit crazy. They erupted from their seats and drinks, food, money and some people got thrown up over their heads in excitement. Sigurd merely rolled his shoulders once, before nodding to a guy in the shadows. He snatched his jacket out of the air single-handedly, while not even looking at the guy and I never thought at that moment I had witnessed someone looking so friggin’ cool!

“He won!” I stated and I heard the deep chuckle from my back.

“He didn’t win.” I frowned and whipped my head round to stare at him.

“Of course he did…which fight were you watching?” I asked folding my arms across my chest in a huff.

“That wasn’t a fight, pet.” I pulled back and then shook my head a little, in confusion.

“What? Then what the Hell was it?” I snapped.

And this was when Jared delivered the final shock of my night so far…

“Simple…”

“…it was an execution.”

Chapter 31

Convincing Cerberus

“What!?” I shouted out, thanks to the bombshell Jared just delivered. This time when I twisted, I found myself able to move off his lap, which was both a relief and strangely… not. However, this was something I didn’t want to look too closely at, so I continued to stand.

“How much clearer can I make it for you? Deumus Drekavac has been my prisoner for a long time and considering there was only one being walking this plane who could destroy him, let’s say he has been awaiting his execution for decades. So, if that man finally walks into my domain, then I am going to take advantage of that fact.”

“And me?” This granted me a bad boy grin and a shrug of the shoulders before he said,

“A soft and welcome company for such a momentous occasion.”

“Soft?” I don’t know why I asked. I just did.

“I liked having you in my lap love and you…” He leaned forward and whispered seductively,

“…are most definitely soft.” I couldn’t help it, I blushed ten shades of red, transforming that bad boy grin into a full blown smirk. I looked away and noticed Sigurd talking with Marcus and taking a wad of bills from his hand. I looked back and asked,

“So, this wasn’t just a fight and all that back there before, what was that?” I asked flinging my hand out, pointing to where Sigurd and I first stood when Jared approached us and was more than a little rude. Hell, he was downright bad ass scary!

“That, my pet, was simply insurance. I had to make my point to Snake Eye so that he would follow through with his end of the bargain.” I frowned and emitted a little growl.

“So, you used me?” I shouted, making him laugh.

“Calm yourself kitten, we all got what we wanted and did I hurt you? Did your valiant knight die saving your virtue from the Beast…? No! You live, he lives and you have been granted what you came here to do, which was seek me out…a win, win wouldn’t you say?” I rolled my eyes because what could I say to that, he was right and considering our earlier circumstances, the outcome was what we wanted…or at least I hoped.

“Alright then, can you answer me something that I probably won’t get from my friend?” His eyes got soft before nodding once.

“What was that in there?” I asked looking over my shoulder to where the ‘execution’ took place.

“You will have to elaborate on that question, love.”

“What I mean is, how did you know he would win…? I mean…I…thought…” I shook my head trying to find the right words, but thankfully Jared decided to help me out.

“You thought when his power was taken, that was his end?” Now it was my turn to simply nod.

“Oh sweetheart, you really don’t know anything about your friend, do you.” It wasn’t a question, so therefore I didn’t answer.

“Alright little dove, let me enlighten you whilst your friend is still busy. He is Master of the Ouroboros, this much you know?” Jared asked at the same time as raising his arm to flick a few fingers in order to get the attention of the waitress. A pretty brunette dwarf came over in a shy manner and handed Jared a beer, gaining herself a wink. She blushed scarlet and bit her lip. Well, I was happy to see I wasn’t the only one with this annoying habit!

“This much I know.” I confirmed, watching him take a long pull from the bottle labelled ‘London Pride’.

“What you don’t know is that he is the only one of our kind with this ability.”

“Why?” I asked.

“Because long ago the fates threw him a question and instead of death, he chose…”

“Life?” I butted in, just because, well I couldn’t help myself sometimes.

“No pet, he chose revenge.”

“But I don’t understand…how…?” I started to ask but he started shaking his head.

“This is a man’s own story and I am not that man, but what I will tell you is this…” He leant forward again to lean a forearm on his knee.

“….That friend of yours is powerful enough to become a King in his own right, but it is a right he refuses to take. I know not the reasons for this… perhaps they are similar to my own.” He said this last part more to himself than to me and before I could let my mouth run off without its filter he continued,

“But I do know about the extreme power that is there and his for the taking. So, in cases like the show he just put on, that is all it was pet, a show. Never could he have been defeated, simply because no being alive could control the Ouroboros and for the Drekavac to try was its own death sentence.” Realisation was starting to seep in. Jesus, my protector was not just your everyday supernatural Joe! He was mega bad ass and with a royal title for the taking, one he didn’t want. I wondered why that was and more importantly, why had I never heard Draven speak about this guy?

“So when that…uh…Dre…Drekvk…uh…tree dude took his power, he couldn’t control it so Sigurd took it back?” After Jared finished laughing at my bad attempt at saying the guy’s name and coming up with my new nickname for him, he answered me.

“Yes love, that and more.”

“More?”

“The power gained from defeating others of similar power emerges as Ouroboros on his skin and as you no doubt saw for yourself, he now has new ink added to his brothers.” He was referring, of course, to the new strip of black across his chiselled torso.

“And the one in his eye? What about that one, ‘cause I noticed it was the only one that didn’t leave him when that…uh…”

“Tree Dude?” Jared finished, smirking once again.

“Yeah him, so why couldn’t he suck that one from him?”

“Upon Hell’s gates woman, you do ask a lot of questions!” He commented making me defend myself the only way I knew how in this situation. I folded my arms across my chest and made a piss poor show of defending myself!

“Alright pet, but for future reference, pouting at me like that only makes you cute and adorable not pissed off and challenging, like you’re going for!” At this my frown deepened which only added laughter to his amusement.

“He can’t ever lose that Ouroboros because it was his first and is fused to his very soul…or so I hear. This is the root of all his power and no-one could ever take that away from him, hence why this wasn’t a fight at all. He knew what would happen and he counted on it. He waited until the right time, like the skilled warrior he is and used his own power against him. Like I said, no other could have defeated Tree Dude but the Master of Ouroboros, which is why I used you.” The way he finished and said ‘You’ was on a guttural level that shouted danger, but being me, I ignored it.

“And how did you know exactly that was going to work?”

“Because Snake Eye has never had a weakness before and it was clear to see an opportunity was being handed to me on a platter.” He said mockingly, making my anger rise.

“A platter!?”

“A very pretty platter… now you’ve wiped all that shit off your face at least.” Ok, so this comment started to bump that anger up a few notches to furious!

“Why you…you…!” Ok, so granted, it wasn’t the best come back of all time.

“Watch it love, I like it when my pets have bite, but try and remember the reason you are here.” Jared said smoothly leaning back, looking casual.

“And why is that?” I snapped losing my patience. I saw the quick flash of hot silver glow in his eyes as he took in my attitude and he leaned forward slowly. He rested one elbow on his knee and held his chin with his fist. This pose was nothing short of deadly and it made me take a step back. My action made him smile and only gleaming fangs could be seen.

“It’s nice to see you do have some self-preservation after all.” He said, his smile growing. Then his eyes shifted behind me and I felt the presence of Sigurd, before I needed Jared’s reactions to confirm it. It was hard to describe but I guess the only way would be that it was like he was connected to my blood. I could literally feel it singing, having him near once again. He grabbed my shoulder gently and turned me to face him. I was met for the first time with a close up of his tattoos and I couldn’t help what I did next. I raised one hand, without looking him in the eye and ran a single fingertip over his new mark. I felt his slight tremble as though he had not been touched by a woman in a long time.

“Lille øjesten.” He said as his fist raised my chin to meet his gaze. Then he bowed his head and asked seriously,

“Are you well?” I bit my bottom lip and gave him a small nod to indicate my yes. He relaxed his bunched muscles, which could be seen easily, as he hadn’t yet changed from the fight. He then cupped the apple of my cheek and pulled me to his chest as if this eased some of his tension further.

“How touching.” Jared commented before finishing the rest of his London Pride in one swig. My cheek was still plastered to Sigurd’s rumbling chest when he growled low at Jared’s remark. Of course, Jared ignored this entirely by slamming his empty bottle down on the arm of his throne and stood.

“Right, let’s get this shit over with! The time has come for you to explain yourselves, so you’d better follow me…there are those in my realm that you don’t want overhearing what the Chosen One has to say.” Jared stated as though I had bloody gone up to him and introduced myself…my real self that is!

“You knew?” I shouted pulling away from Sigurd’s chest.

“Cathy…really?” That was all it took to get a groan of frustration from Sigurd.

“What? How was I supposed to know he knew who I was…? I’m in disguise, remember?” I said back at my frowning protector.

“Catherine Keiran Williams, next time you come to see the King of Hell’s beasts just introduce yourself as Keira and leave the Goth shit at home...it doesn’t suit you” Mr royal Jared Cerberus himself said, as if talking to a child. So I did the only thing one could do in this situation…I folded my arms, gave him the mother of all pouts and resisted the urge to stamp my foot in frustration.

“Point made, my Liege.” I sneered, only little good it did as he just threw his head back and laughed heartily. I rolled my eyes behind Jared’s back as he started to leave and went to take a step forward to follow, when a hand stopped me.

“I think from now on it will be wise of me not to let you from my side.” Sigurd said bending his large frame to whisper in my ear.

“I’m still alive, aren’t I?” I said turning my head to him. He looked me up and down in a slow assessment and one side of his lips crept up in a knowing smile.

“Very much so…” He started and then tilted my head back further to finish seductively in my ear,

“…So much so, that you are no doubt taunting a beast with this very clear fact…one who usually plays with his food.” Sigurd’s warning came through loud and clear and to a point where I shuddered against his hold.

“Yep, I see that took hold.” He added before snapping a,

“Let’s go.” And off we went. Or more accurately, off he went and I just got dragged along for the ride. I turned my head and took one last look at the stage, glad to see it turning smaller behind me. However, after seeing a Gorgon Leech being led into the centre in chains and then being freed to gorge itself on as many chickens it could in 30 seconds, was a sight I could have done without. Well, that just taught me when walking away from bad memories to leave them well alone!

The walk through to wherever Jared expected us to follow him to, was a weird one and to use the word ‘weird’ in my life meant a shed load more than your everyday, average use of the word. Weird in my world actually meant “Oh shit”, “Bloody Hell” and “Jesus H Christ” all rolled into one!

It started by walking through a simple stone tunnel that was only wide enough to fit two people side by side. This part, not so high on the weirdometer, but when we came to a house front door at the end, then things started to creep their way up that meter. It was black painted high gloss with a shining brass number 3 in the centre panel. Jared had waited for us to get closer before opening the door, which adding to the weird vibe, he didn’t use a door knob. No, instead he simply traced his fingertip over the number three and we all heard the echoing of many locks sliding open. He then pushed on the door and we continued to follow him to destination unknown.

This was when things got ‘spooky weird’. We walked into what seemed to be a dilapidated house, complete with at least 50 years of cobwebs and dust covering every surface. The simple hallway opened up to show a staircase on the right hand side and other closed doors on the left. There was also a heavy wooden sideboard up against the staircase that held a very old typewriter, covered in a thick layer of dust. Strangely, there was only one key that wasn’t hidden under all the grime and that was the number 3. There were also broken bits of crockery and a glass vase that held what looked like dried weeds hanging limply to one side.

“What is this place?” I whispered to Sigurd but when I looked sideways to him all I got was a warning shake of his head. I decided not to push it and opted for silence. I waited until Jared and his entourage preceded us up the stairs. I then received an encouraging nudge from behind telling me to take the steps to up and beyond, so I did as I was silently told. Even the bloody steps had seen better days, with its once rich red carpet runner worn down to the wood on each lip of the edge.

I followed the voices up as I had dawdled long enough to have lost sight of them. I was at the top of the staircase when I screamed out as a hand shot from around the corner and latched onto me.

“Me thinks someone could benefit from a vodka chased chill pill.” Marcus said from behind Smidge, who had scared the crap out of me in an attempt at showing me the way.

“I’m fine.” I said in a shaking voice, which made him laugh. Of course, thanks to Smidge’s quick actions, I soon had to stifle my own laugh as she elbowed Marcus in the gut.

“Will you two cut it out and get them in here!” Jared bellowed from some other room, but it was loud enough to rattle the glass in some of the pictures that were lucky enough to still have it. I wondered how you even did that and doubted my human lungs had the power to produce the same depth to vibrate a whole room. Still, it was one Hell of a way to get someone’s attention, that was for sure.

“Bitch” Marcus sneered.

“Dickhead.” Smidge counteracted with a smile on her face.

“After you, big butt.” It was my turn to scowl up at Marcus for that comment, but Smidge just laughed louder this time, saying,

“I know you love it, dumbass!”

I was surprised when she pulled me past and I heard his response,

“I’d fucking worship it, if you’d let me.” He said under his breath.

Smidge pulled me down the hall and round a corner at the end where we came up to a pair of double doors that were open. Then we stepped inside and weird left the building, being swiftly replaced by oh my God!

The room was an open plan study/sitting area that was so richly furnished, I had to blink a few times just to take it all in. I looked to my left as I walked in and saw a large square sunk into the floor with three steps down. The area was big enough to sit at least twenty people comfortably, if the massive plum and gold coloured cushions were to go by. In the centre of this was a coffee table of the likes I had never seen. It was once the base of an enormous tree that had been sliced so close to the ground, it flared out before its roots had disappeared under the earth. It was a highly polished piece of wood that gleamed under the hanging gold lantern that was the size of a birdcage.

Further on from that, I could just see a black felted snooker table with coloured crystal balls scattered from a game left unfinished. The whole room was dark wood panelling up to waist height with thick cream wallpaper that had an elegant light gold swirl, most of which was covered by expensive looking oil paintings.

However, the whole room was dominated by a massive black lacquered desk that could have doubled up as a bed. It looked to have been made from one single piece of wood that had an elaborate war carving all along the front panel and this too gleamed under the many spotlights that were a part of the fancy moulded ceiling.

“Sit!” The order rang through the open space like a damning bell screaming high treason. I didn’t know why it was, but the way Jared treated me now that Sigurd was back was far different than the comforting, playful guy at my back when watching the ring.

“Well, you wanted this meeting and your friend went to great lengths to get it for you, as you saw… I think it is time for confessions, Keira.” It was the second time he had called me Keira and the shivers it shot through me didn’t lessen. I looked back at Sigurd and he nodded, making Jared growl.

“I am allowing him in on this meeting to appease your tension, do not push it, pet.” I took his warning as possessive, because every word was dripping in it.

“Alright, you want the reason I needed to speak to you, here goes…I need to get into Hell.” At this, all conversation stopped. Marcus had been talking to, who I assumed was another member of Jared’s council and Smidge had been speaking to someone on the phone. Now, all eyes were on me and the phone was no longer by Smidge’s ear. I guess I just dropped a show stopper with that one!

“Come again, little dove?” Jared asked as though I had been speaking Klingon.

“I want you to show me a way into Hell.” I stated, this time slower and hopefully less thick on the Northern twang. He had been leaning forward to hear my answer and now he got the repeated, longer version he let out a sigh and deflated back.

“I see.”

“You do?” I asked hopefully.

“I do, it is clear to me now that you are unfortunately deranged and in need of the medical profession.… Snake Eye, what were you thinking, taking on such a damaged bird?” At this I shot out of my chair facing his and took an offended step back.

“I am not deranged!” Jared simply snorted a huff and I felt Sigurd walk up behind me and place a calming hand on my shoulder.

“The girl speaks the truth and as hard as it is to be believed, she is right of mind.” This must have been the wrong thing to say as Jared let his meaty fist come crashing down on his desk, one thankfully enough to be solidly made to withstand a beating.

“Enough! Marcus, show out our guests, they have suddenly out stayed their welcome!” He snapped looking, for the first time, disgusted with me.

“No wait! You can’t! We need your help!” I shouted out quickly as Marcus was cutting the distance between us.

“Come on Keira, I told you it couldn’t be done.” Sigurd said as he started to try to lead me away.

“It can be done! If it can’t, then why did the Oracle send me here? Why did she send me to him?” I said looking up at my friend but pointing at Jared. Marcus came to us and was just about to take my other arm to aid in leading me away, when Jared’s hand flew up in a halting motion.

“Wait!” All three of us turned to Jared’s stony face.

“The Oracle sent you?”

“Yes, she did.” I said, firmly crossing my now released arms across my chest.

“You swear by this?” Jeez what did this guy want, a pinky promise?

“Yes…” I leaned forward and finished with a definite,

“…I do.” Jared relaxed back in his huge wing-backed chair and steepled his fingers.

“Alright Keira, I will play…for now. Sit back down and explain things to me.” I did as I was told, mentally thanking my lucky stars to have this second chance.

“Ok, so you know who I am…right?”

“I do.” I nodded and swallowed, ready for the hard part.

“And if you know who I am, then you know what I was to Dom… Dominic Draven?” God, even saying his name out loud was hard. A muscle in his jaw twitched but he only nodded back, obviously not saying what he really wanted to say.

“So you know where he is?” Now this question got me a frown.

“I do not.” Now this shocked me. I would have thought every big player would have heard where Draven was.

“Keira.” I heard Sigurd warn me from behind but it was already too late, the words were forming and bursting free before I could stop them and think about that warning.

“He’s in Hell!” At this, Jared shot a hard look over my shoulder at Sigurd and I turned just in time to catch a brief head shake back. Now what was all that about?

“And the Oracle told you this?” I nodded and said,

“She told me that I would only find Draven once I had been to Hell, so I know he is there.” Jared’s eyebrows slashed together over his eyes in a deep frown. It was as if he didn’t believe what I was saying and this was confirmed when he asked,

“But you don’t know that he is there?”

“I do.”

“But how…?” I interrupted him and spoke about something I hadn’t yet told anyone, not even the Oracle.

“I know he is, because I saw him getting dragged back there, with my own eyes.” At this I heard the inhaled breath of shock from a few people, including Sigurd at my back.

“Explain!” Jared commanded.

“He came to me in my room, not long after I found out he had died… he said…he said I needed to watch, to see him being taken back, so that I understood. I think he meant to give me a clue, to let me know where he was, as it wasn’t light I saw taking him, but…black hands dragging him back, burning him…then I saw…” I choked back a sob as I brought one of the most painful memories back to life.

“What Keira…what did you see?” Jared asked, softly this time and I looked up at molten silver through a watery haze of unshed tears. I looked down and let them slid free, hitting the desk I didn’t even realise I was holding onto, in dainty droplets. When I heard him prompt me by saying my name on a whisper, my head rose slowly and I said the words that pained me,

“Fire...” Then I fell forward and Jared lunged over the desk to catch as I whispered on my last breath, before darkness overtook me…

“My Draven in the Flames.”

Chapter 32

Black Sand

I woke up and blinked away my blurry vision, only to focus on a pair of light green eyes. I frowned and blinked harder. It couldn’t be… it just couldn’t…could it? I kept my eyes open for longer this time and took in the rest of him; smooth shaved head, at least a few weeks’ worth of stubble on a strong jaw, flat nose and a full pair of lips that were pulled together, looking worried.

“Did I break down again?” I asked in a groggy voice and was met with the soft rumbling of a laugh.

“No Red, you didn’t break down again but shit sugar, you had me worried for a minute. How’s your head darlin’?” I tried to sit up and felt hands come to my aid.

“Eddie?” I asked and felt a palm cup my cheek as I came upright.

“Yeah babe, that’s me, your ET…hey, you ok…? I mean, it was only a little bang on the table when you tripped but honey, you are looking a bit pale…how’re you feeling?” I squeezed my eyes closed and tried to shake some sense into my head.

“Wh…what’s happening?”

“Well, Libs and the gang will be here in about ten minutes to help set up in the back and I lit the grill like you told me, but next time I think you should wait until people are around before attempting decorating on your own, babe.” Eddie the mechanic said with light humour, whilst feeling for a bump in my hairline.

“I’m confused.” I confessed making him laugh.

“That’s what birthdays do to ya, babe.”

“Birthday?” I asked as I started to take in my surroundings.

“Jeez, you really did a number to that pretty noggin I love so much. Yeah babe, your birthday…remember, bbq, streamers, Hell I know you already peeked at your cake I ordered for you…just like every damn year…like you spend every bloody day in December trying to find your presents…if it wasn’t so damned adorable then I would try and rein you in, but with Libby coming, what’s the point.” He said after moving away and whilst trying to pin up a banner I had obviously been doing before I fell.

Ok, so now I had fallen into some warped parallel dimension, where I lived here with Eddie the mechanic. I looked around and saw I was sat on a worn and obviously second-hand couch that was no doubt kept because it was one of the comfiest seats ever. The room was bright and decorated with dozens of my art work, some I recognised and others yet to be painted by my hand. Pictures of family and friends covered the shelves amongst books, but the most featured in the frames were of me and Eddie. Ones by a lake laughing at the camera, another with a cabin in the background and Eddie situated behind my back, arms wrapped lovingly around me and then there was the biggest one. This one was on a large canvas hung over the fireplace and my mouth literally dropped open at the sight of us both stood under a flowered altar on our wedding day, in black and white.

Then I did a slow look down and caught sight of two things at once. One was a plain gold band and the other was a small but elegant diamond engagement ring situated next to it. One thought penetrated…

Holy shit!

My mind started going a million spins a minute, trying to piece together what this all meant? I must be dreaming, but God, it felt so real! I knew one thing for sure and that was I hoped insanity was grounds for divorce. I didn’t know why, but looking at Eddie as he started pinning balloons up either side of the banner he’d just hung for my birthday, I felt guilty even thinking the word divorce, and I didn’t even know the guy!

“Edison Tucker.” I said his full name in a kind of trance, trying it out, as if saying it would break the spell.

“Oh shit, here we go.” He turned round giving me a sheepish look and then said,

“But of course, I know by now that this is the best part about Christmas… even though I will remind you, I had to store your presents last year at the garage with my damn tools and even then you found them! Seriously, what is it with you, do the Williams sisters have inbuilt present radar?” He was laughing after his placating start to explaining and I gathered quickly that by me saying his full name was code for he was in trouble. I also noticed he knew my real last name. Well, I mean, this wasn’t surprising considering I did marry the guy. Wait, what was I saying?!

I didn’t marry him!

“You sure you’re ok babe, only you’re real quiet?” I brought my attention back to Eddie and saw he was now kneeling next to me and running his fingers though my hair, which I will mention was back to being long and blonde again.

“I’m not usually?” I asked stupidly, to which he burst out laughing again.

“Uh…that would be a no, babe.”

“Ah.” Was all I could think to say.

“That being the reason I am always asking you, do all English girls look as cute as you do when they never shut up?” I frowned and smacked him on the arm saying,

“Hey!”

“And there’s my girl, welcome back honey.” He gave me a beaming smile and kissed me on the cheek before standing.

“Oh well, peace time over, we are now officially being invaded. Here comes Libby and crew…get the door babe, I’m hiding on the deck until Ella finds me…think I am gonna be a wolf this time.” He said to himself as he walked out through a set of patio doors. Meanwhile, I stood dumbstruck in the capital city of twilight zone, only coming out of my numb state by the pounding on the door.

“Come on Kaz, I’ve got my hot potato salad balancing on my arm!” My sister’s voice shouted through the door.

“Oh shit, tell me she didn’t cook?!” Eddie said from around the side of the patio. I found myself speaking before I realised this crazy new universe I lived in had sucked me in.

“God, I hope not.” I heard Eddie laughing again as I opened the door to a heavily pregnant Libby in a maternity summer dress. Then, whizzing past her legs in a red blur of curls, a five year old I assumed was Ella flew through the house shouting,

“Ready or not, I will find you, bear!” Making Libby shout,

“Ella!” And she skidded to a halt, turned and said,

“Oh yeah, Happy Birthday Aunty Kazzy cakes.” I turned a stunned head to Libby and blurted,

“That’s your little girl?” She sighed and said,

“I know what you mean, so much of Frank’s side in her…the other day she asked me for her next birthday party if she could have a baseball theme, I nearly wept!” I snorted a laugh out.

“Can I go find Uncle Eddie now?”

“Go, be wild, run with nature and all that jazz… just be sure you come back a little girl who still likes hugging her momma!” Libby said in a funny accent and laughing, making Ella giggle. She smacked a kiss on her hand and threw it our way. Libby and I both caught it, as we used to do the same thing when we are kids. It came to me on sheer instinct and I wondered why I hadn’t yet broken down into a fit of hysteria.

“Oh, by the way, he’s not a bear anymore, he’s a wolf.” I told Ella before she went off running in search of my twilight zone husband.

“Cool! I love wolves, they’re my favourite!” She shouted excitedly and was soon out of sight. About five seconds later I heard a big over exaggerated roar, a fit of girly giggles and knew she had found her wolf. Then something weird happened…well even weirder than this at any rate. Deep in the back of my mind I heard a real roar, only this one was so far from fake, it wasn’t anything but terrifying and not in the least bit playful. My startled gaze shot to Libby, but she was in the kitchen grabbing some fizzy drink from the fridge and didn’t look at all freaked out like me. Well, I mean why not, after all it was obvious she wasn’t the one living in a different world and hearing monster’s cries of anger in her head.

Nope just me!

“Hey, there’s the birthday girl! Mrs Tucker herself, where do you want the beers and half the grocery store Libby bought…? ‘Cause she is pregnant and does in fact need to eat everything in sight and going with her to the store is my new living nightmare.” Frank said unloading some bags to his other hand after passing me the beers.

“I heard that!” Libby shouted and Frank winked and whispered on a smirk,

“Sure you did…sorry dear!” He walked into the kitchen and I was just wondering whether I should give Frank the real low down on living your nightmares, when I noticed something. I was just about to close the door, as this other reality was anchoring me to the scary mundane, when I saw a person standing on the other side of the street. I opened the door further and took an extra few steps out of the door to get a better look.

Could it be? No, this…he…could it? I dropped the beers and my unconscious steps led me all the way to the bottom of the driveway. From here, I didn’t have to question it anymore, as I knew where my other life had taken me and the man standing there staring at me was proof of my real destiny.

“Draven?” I said his name and felt a gust of wind blow around my body in answer. I didn’t even realise it until now that I too was wearing a summer dress, until instinct told me to hold down the skirt. But to be brutally honest, I couldn’t give two worlds about pulling a Marilyn Monroe right at this minute because there, in the light of day, was my only living dream...

My only life’s choice.

My only life’s destiny.

My only.

“Is it really you?” I whispered and I just knew at that moment the wind took with it my question and travelled to the other side.

“Keira.”

“Keira!” My name came from two very different men, two totally different lives and was heard by two loving but very different Keiras. Which one did I want to be? Which life did I want to live? Which man did I love more? The easiest answer lit up my soul so bright it could have shadowed the sun’s rays!

I turned to Eddie and with a single tear rolling down my cheek, I bit my lip to keep in the sob and mouthed the words,

“I’m sorry ET.”

I let more tears go when I saw the pain twist bitterly in his face and turned away from what represented that life, to look towards the one I wanted like my next breath.

Then I ran for it.

I crossed the road and made it to the other side, the side of supernatural beings and prophecies. The side of Heaven and Hell at war, of flirty Vampire Kings that hold little Northern blondes to ransom, of Angels that kiss me goodbye like I’m an elixir of life and with funny Imps and beautiful Demons named Sophia, that call me sister. Sides of the Viking protectors, Biker shadow Knights and cute little chocolate skinned Oracles that wear tutus. But even all this lay in the background to the man in front of me now…

The only side there was for me.

The Draven side.

And so I ran and didn’t stop until I threw myself into the arms of the only man in the world.

“Draven.” I let out on a breathy whisper as his arms circled me. He held me close and pulled me up until my feet were off the ground so he could bury his face in my neck.

“Home.” He said into my hair and I couldn’t hold it back any longer. I burst into happy tears so strong he had to hold my trembling body. I heard him keep saying the same word over and over on my skin,

“Home… Home… Home.”

“Yes.” I whispered back and then moved my head back because I wanted to look at…no, I needed to look at him!

“You didn’t wait for me…why Keira…why?” He said and the last word came out so anguished, it felt like being struck.

“I’m here Draven, I waited…I swear!” I looked into his eyes and when they looked over my head, I saw he was referring to the life on the other side. His dark eyes erupted into purple flames and then he turned his furious gaze down on me.

“Draven…I…”

“You carried on…I died and you carried on…you don’t belong in my world and because of that I can’t keep you.” Hearing this now turned that simple strike into a killing blow!

“Draven, NO! Don’t say these things! You have to know, I waited…Oh God I waited so long, I never gave up…I will never give up, do you hear me?!” I grabbed his face with both my hands and made him look at me.

“You don’t believe me?!” I asked on a caught breath that didn’t want to come out. Tears were now streaming down my face and felt like they would never stop.

“Draven, please!”

“No Keira, I understand now…I understand why this had to happen but I needed to see it for myself first, before I could let you go.” I cried out as my pain doubled. My sobs were only allowing me a few words to come through.

“No…N…No! Don’t…don’t sa…say that!”

“It is the truth and what must be done, I’m sorry my Keira…my love, there is no other way, I see that now.” He said sadly as though breaking and I knew he meant his words as seriously as he saw his duty to his people and I knew this because he let me go. He released me from his hold and it looked as painful as it felt.

“NO!” I panicked and wiped away my tears and snotty nose. I knew this was my last chance and I couldn’t make him see by crying. He started to turn away from me and I grabbed him by the jacket he wore.

“Draven, no! Now listen to me! I have not done this to you, that life…” I motioned back behind me at the house I wanted no part of.

“…that is not what I chose! I am somewhere else right now and I am doing everything, and I mean every…damn…thing to find you! I won’t stop…Jesus Christ, I won’t ever stop…do you hear me! I will find you and when I do, I am NEVER letting you go! Do you hear me!?” I shouted as even more tears fell around me, but his face didn’t change. He looked away from me and I stammered out,

“Dra…Draven…look at me.”

“I’m sorry Keira, I truly am, but it was never meant to be.” And then he tried to walk away, but I held on.

“Draven…Draven Please! I…love you.” But no matter how I begged or how the declaration of love was bleeding from my heart, his eyes remained determined. He gave me one last look, touched a fingertip to my cheek and then turned away from me for the last time. I watch in utter slow agony as the material of his jacket slipped through my grasp. I was left to watch as his back became smaller and smaller the further away the road took him and when nothing was left, I crumbled to my knees on a tortured cry, that sounded as though it was ripped from my very soul!

I was so torn apart, that I barley even registered when the world around me started to blow away like everything was made from black sand…

Draven’s black sand.

“Keira…Keira!” I heard my name being called and my hope soared. I lifted my head to see the last of the road disappearing but no Draven in sight. I was just looking back down when a hand came out of nowhere.

“Come with me Keira, I’ll keep you safe.” I looked up and saw Jared staring down at me, waiting for my hand.

“Can you hear me?!” I heard shouting in the distance, but where from I couldn’t tell as that distance could no longer be seen.

“Who is that?” I asked in a croaky voice, just as the sun came from behind the clouds, turning Jared into a looming shadow stood above me.

“He can’t help you Keira, only I can help you now.”

“What do you mean...? I still…I can still get Draven back?” The shadow bent on one knee and said,

“Well now, that depends on what you are willing to give me in return?”

“What do you want from me?” I asked thinking there wasn’t anything I wasn’t willing to give.

“You may think that now Keira, but would you really give another life for his?” I jolted back surprised.

“How did you…?”

“Hear your thoughts? In this place I can do many things.”

“And what is this place?” I asked looking up and taking in the nothing blank canvas that was my new world. He got closer to me and swept my loose hair back from my shoulder in a soothing gesture.

“This place is your projection, Keira. A place you feel safe enough to deal with your life’s choices.”

“I don’t understand.”

“We’re in your mind, Keira.” He whispered and just as my eyes widened, my body felt weightless. It was as though I was quickly sucked back into the now and I bolted upwards trying to catch onto something to slow my speeding flight backwards.

“Thank fuck for that! Keira…Keira can you hear me…? Answer me by the Gods be damned!”

“Shadow Knight?” I mumbled blinking quickly, trying once again to clear the blur. I was suddenly pulled into a tight embrace and I heard Sigurd’s deep chuckle by my ear.

“Yes lille øjesten, I am here.” He sounded like a man who had just been put through the rough end of being helpless. I held onto him and kept taking deep breaths to try and hold back the tears that were desperate to break free. It was that ‘crying for your mum syndrome’, you are utterly fine coping until,

A. You see your mum or

B. Someone asks if you’re alright.

Both times bravery and pride go take a parachute jump out the window. That was what being safely in Sigurd’s arms was like right now. All that had happened and not just with the dream, it was all trying to unload onto his shoulders to share the weight. Thankfully though, the other company in the room brought me under control before I could fall to pieces.

“Just a little bit longer.” Sigurd whispered into the top of my hair as though he had heard every one of my thoughts. I nodded because I didn’t have it in me to deny the truth of the matter. He let me go and held my face with both hands spanning the length of my head before letting me go completely. He lowered his head and caught my eyes, to which I nodded silently, communicating that I was ok. He nodded back and then released me.

“What happened?” I asked the room but it was Jared who answered me.

“I will explain but first…everyone out!” I saw Sigurd tense and the muscle ticking by his jaw told me he was grinding his teeth.

“That was not our agreement, Cerberus.” He ground out.

“Things evolve, Snake Eye.” He replied coolly and I wondered what I had missed when falling down the rabbit hole?

“Not today they don’t.” Sigurd said crossing his arms over his chest and I noticed he was now back to wearing his usual gear of black, black and dark grey. Even the hood was back but this time at least he didn’t try and hide his face from me.

“You want me to help the girl, then we play by my rules. Now, I won’t ask again.” He stood strong, carrying out his order with just one look at the room, which was enough to get people moving.

“I will not leave her!” Sigurd however, was clearly not getting the hint, so I felt it necessary to intervene.

“Are you going to help me?”

“Keira.” I ignored Sigurd’s warning and waited for Jared to answer me.

“If it is in my power and our terms are met.”

“And will you swear not to hurt me?” At this he didn’t hesitate,

“I give you my vow that no harm will come to you while under my care, and as you know Snake Eye, a vow of mine is not given lightly.” I bit my lip and looked towards Sigurd who was outright giving Jared the death glare. Therefore, I got up from the sofa I had been placed in and walked up to my protector. I put my hand on his forearm and waited for him to look down at me.

“Let me do this.”

“No.” He snapped, going back to glare at Jared. I gave his arm a squeeze to draw back his attention and said,

“I need to do this Sigurd, so I will ask you again, as a friend…please let me do this and I promise you…I promise that if he breaks his vow then I will…”

“…Then I will break him!” He interrupted me on a snarl at Jared. This prompted a laugh and Sigurd showed his fangs on a growl.

“Sigurd, please.” My word, it really was my day for begging!

“Fine!” He snapped and turned from me, clearly anything but fine with this new arrangement. He stopped by the door the others had left through and said without looking at me,

“I will be close.” And then he left, slamming the door until the frame shook.

“Okay…so now what?” I asked trying to break the tension. Jared gave me a coy smile and then motioned with an outstretched arm to the sunken seating area.

“Now we simply talk.”

“Talk?” I repeated in question as I walked down the three steps to the unusual seating arrangement.

“I believe you are acquainted with the term.” He teased and I relaxed at seeing the earlier Jared come back. His mood when we were alone was so different, it was hard to keep up with him.

“Ha, ha, yes as a Northerner I am known to practise the art.” I said making him smile and also thinking painfully back to Eddie’s comment that was of a simple nature.

“Sooo…what are we going to be talking about?” I asked extending the ‘so’ for comical value, which again made him smile. Although, thanks to his answer, my own smile was swiftly swept away and was left gaping wide open in confusion. So I asked a dumb sounding,

“Come again?”

“You want a way into Hell, then that’s what I will need.” I shook my head as though this was just his idea of a cruel joke.

“Umm…could you just say what it is you’ll be needing, as I didn’t think I heard correctly last time?” This got me another smile before he confirmed the sick feeling I had in the pit of my stomach was in fact warranted,

“A human heart…”

Yep, that’s what I heard.

Chapter 33

Affairs of the Heart

“Ok, so you know you’re gonna have to explain that to me because I am telling you now, I am not killing some poor bugger for a beast’s appetiser!” I said getting back up, making him do the same.

“Keira, sit back down and listen.” He held out his hand and led me to sit beside him.

“I’m listening.” I informed him in a haughty tone.

“I am not going to ask you to commit murder, I doubt you have it in you for starters.…that is unless you have before unknowingly driven another to commit suicide due to your endless questioning?” My reaction to his tease was to elbow him in the side, which is what I did before I even thought about who I was really doing it to! He let out a muffled laugh that was both shocked and amused (the last one I sent a thank you up to God for!)

“Can you really blame me, human remember?” I received a shrug of the shoulders and a sly grin, but no words.

“Right, so I think this would be a good time to explain about the heart thing.” I said bracing myself.

“Before we get to the fun stuff, let’s first get our agreement concreted shall we?” As I was sat next to him I decided to get cosy, so I turned to my side to face Jared and pulled one bent leg up to rest on the couch.

“Alright, what do you want from me, Jared Cerberus?” He mimicked my position turning to me, but instead he rested a bent leg on the other and bent his elbow at the back of the cushions.

“What I want isn’t something physical, but what I need is nothing more than I gave to you.”

“A headache then?” I couldn’t help running my smart mouth but I was happy to see he had the patience for it. I did get an eye roll though so I nudged him saying,

“Sorry, I promise to behave.”

“Now I know that’s not true.” He winked at me and I joined him in the eye rolling.

“Ok, so you need…”

“A vow, Keira.” This had me frowning before I asked in a wary tone,

“What type of vow are we talking about here?”

“A simple one really…I merely need you to vow that, when the time comes, you will back me in an endeavour that others will not.”

“That’s a bit vague, Jared.” I commented wryly.

“Besides, I don’t know what having me backing you would accomplish for your…um…cause.” I added making him smirk before saying,

“Oh trust me, when the time comes your help will be paramount to my success, of this I have no doubt.”

“Will anyone get hurt?” This was the most important question I had to ask before giving him anything. I would absolutely not hurt anyone to get what I wanted, no matter how much Draven meant to me!

“Not through your acceptance no, as for the rest… well, I am no Oracle but I will give you this…” He got slightly closer and said softly,

“The person it will mostly concern would never be hurt at my hands…never Keira.” He said the word ‘never’ with such sincerity that I would have been a fool not to trust his words. I had no idea what future he spoke of but I knew that the world I was living in was all about chance and this was one of life’s games that I wanted desperately to win. So, I made my decision in about five seconds from when he last spoke. I held out my hand for him to shake and said,

“I’m in! I, Catherine Keiran Williams, vow to back you when the time comes that you need it.” He gave me a knowing smile, placed his hand in mine and in turn gave me his own vow,

“And in return, I, Jared Cerberus, King of all immortal Hellhounds and guardian of the Underworld gates from the River Styx, do vow to help you any way I can to get you through those very gates.” He nodded his head to me respectfully and I found myself doing the same. Then we sealed the deal and shook on it.

“Right, well, considering we are on the subject of helping me bust in the joint, let’s talk tactics. How exactly are we gonna get me in...? ‘Cause you know I am not fond of the committing an horrendous crime and then topping myself plan.” I added this last part for good measure, although now thinking back, I probably should have made that clear before my vow. I mean, his way of helping might be to just point me in the right direction to some Hell worthy deed and then hand me the knife to finish myself off with! Would he at least draw me a map for when I get there…or maybe there was Hell’s version of a Holiday Rep to point me to the right bus.

“Now, I bet that’s a scary place to be.” He said laughing.

“What… where?” I asked shaking myself from my runaway thoughts.

“Inside that head of yours, if you could just see your adorable and very expressive face right now, you would know what I mean.” I shot him a ‘not impressed’ look that got me a deeper laugh. Well, glad I could entertain his big Royal Ass! I thought on a scowl.

“As fun as this is to witness, I think it’s time I put your over active imagination to rest. When I said Keira, that I needed a human heart to get you in, I wasn’t joking or being metaphorical.”

“But…” He lifted a hand to silence me and said,

“I think it’s time you heard my story, pet.” Now this was something to shut me up! I was practically gagging to hear this story that I unconsciously brought my other leg up to cross them on the couch. He smiled at my action and relaxed back.

“Now, where to begin?” He dragged a hand down half his face and caught his shapely beard between his thumb and fingers, pulling it down in what I gathered was a thinking habit.

“It was 1763 when I was brought into your world and I think you know by now what I was doing before this.” I nodded, too scared to say a word that would prolong my wait in hearing his story.

“My rebirth was instigated by a man call Sir Francis Dashwood. This fool was the founder of the Hellfire Club and held his ridiculous cult meeting in the Hellfire Caves of West Wycombe.” It became very clear with the venom he injected into his words, that he did not like the man he spoke of or this club, so to take his mind off his anger momentarily I said,

“West Wycombe…that’s not far from here.”

“You’re right, but forgive me, where are my manners?” He said getting up as if needing some sort of distraction.

“Drink?”

“Please.” Considering the story I had coming to me, I thought a drink was a bloody good idea! He walked over to one of the wooden panels and pressed against it. The whole panel then slid down into the floor and a stainless steel bar emerged behind it.

“Cool.” I said in such a geeky way, even I winced after saying it. I think if I could have gotten away with slapping my hand to my forehead and saying ‘Durr’ I would have done, just to make myself feel better. However, he turned his head to me and gave me knowing grin that said he was clearly entertained by my goofy behaviour.

He then shifted his immense shoulders and shrugged out of his worn leather jacket that was fitted biker style. I bit my lip at the sight of his bulging biceps under the long sleeves of his black t-shirt. He threw his jacket over the back of a dainty embroidered chair and the contrast was almost funny. He pulled his sleeves up his forearms and I got sight of some kickass tribal tattoos on one arm. The other wrist was covered in leather bands with what looked like crude hammered metal attached. I watched him turn his back to me and thought everything about him screamed bad ass! It wasn’t just his black leather waistcoat that sat snugly to every sleek line of his muscular back, his worn biker boots half tied up his ankle or his heavy silver rings of flames and claws. It also wasn’t his ripped jeans or tied back hair. It was just him. The way he moved like he owned everything in his world and didn’t give a shit what the rest of that world thought, as long as they played by his rules.

He confirmed this when he didn’t ask me what I wanted but I was thankful to see him grab a chilled bottle of white wine. He also brought a bottle of red under his arm and two black stemmed glasses. After putting the two glasses down he lifted both bottles to me and I nodded to the white. We were both silent as he poured the drinks. He handed me mine and then settled back with his red. He swirled it round as if trying to pluck the rest of his story from his memory bank and I couldn’t help but think that this action looked totally out of character. I mean, here I was describing another big scary biker dude (In a completely different way to Sigurd) and he was drinking the wine like a connoisseur!

“So, where was I?”

“You were about to tell me about the Hellfire club, Sir Francis Dashwood, how they brought you here, The caves, the need for a human heart and how you plan on getting me into Hell without…” I made a slitting my throat action and he threw his head back to release a throaty roar of laughter, then said,

“I think we’ll have to order take out, as something tells me this is gonna take a while.” I had to agree and also suddenly had the biggest craving for some crispy noodles with seafood.

Now, all I had to do was hope they delivered to a King Hell Beast’s Devil’s Ring!

I didn’t think after hearing and seeing all that I had in one single night I would have been able to sleep, but damn, I must have been out like someone with narcolepsy! I knew this because after Jared had finished his story he excused himself to speak with Sigurd and the next thing I felt was being lifted into a pair of arms. I remember looking up into a hidden face and knew Sigurd was back to taking care of me. I couldn’t help the deep sense of safety I felt being held close and therefore gripped onto his t–shirt tight, snuggled closer and rested a cheek on his chest before passing out again.

I woke when the light of day started to penetrate my hotel room. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and stopped mid yawn when I noticed the dark figure of a man asleep in a chair. Sigurd had stayed in my room with me and I felt a lump form in my throat. Just the sight of him with his arms folded, hood pulled over his eyes and his legs out-stretched in a lounged position, I felt my chest compress. I knew why he had done this and the answer was in the look of relief he gave me when I woke from my nightmare in Jared’s office. There were other rooms in the suite but instead, he spent the night in a chair close to my bed because he was worried about me!

This made me feel like crying. Here I was, on this ridiculous quest to save the man I loved and the family I thought loved me, which I built around that man, were nowhere to be seen. No, only one man stood by my side now and I knew already without him, I would have been kidnapped, possibly even dead twice. I didn’t care that I was some mission for him. That I was some contract given to him by whom I had no clue. All these things meant nothing to me because looking at that man sleeping in the chair by my bedside, so that I wouldn’t have a bad dream, was not only doing this for honour and duty. He really cared. And that, right there, was why I got up, grabbed the comforter on the end of the bed and lay it over him. I then leant down, kissed his cheek and whispered,

“Thank you, my Shadow Knight.” And then I left to shower in one of the other bathrooms so as not to wake him.

Once in the shower I thought back to Jared’s incredible story. My love for history wasn’t lost on him considering I bombarded him with questions. What surprised me was how patient he was with me but what surprised me the most was how brutally painful his story was and how deeply it touched me.

In 1763, the human, Jared Weller, was a blacksmith in West Wycombe. He was a quiet but hard working man and lived alone. He made it sound as if he was a recluse and didn’t like being around people much. The reasons for this he didn’t explain, but I could tell there was something more to this due to his tensed jaw, hard eyes and the flash of pain I saw in their depths. However, I didn’t think it wise to push this as we were far from bosom buddy status.

Anyway back in 1763 rumours of Sir Francis Dashwood’s after dark exploits weren’t completely unheard of, but not exactly widespread knowledge either. Therefore, when Jared Weller was approached about a job by Dashwood’s steward, Paul Whitehead, he simply agreed. Of course, he had no idea of the real reason he was picked for the ‘job’ and that was because he was the best candidate for what the Hellfire Club had in mind. This was for two reasons. The first being that he was a known recluse and therefore nothing was much done for a man who went missing, who had no family connections or even friends to care. But it was the second that was the most interesting and also… frightening.

It was discovered upon looking for the right person for their ‘job’ that the meaning of the name Jared is "he who descended" in Hebrew history. This, to them, meant no-one else even came close to aiding them in their attempt to not only enter the Underworld but to steal a piece of it. As for this, they needed a human sacrifice and poor blacksmith Jared was to be the one.

Of course, the story didn’t end with Jared’s life. No, something they didn’t count on was that Jared was the only living host who was both strong enough and royally connected, to contain a rather important being. Although, admittedly he had no clue to his supernatural bloodline at the time and this was the reason he simply didn’t just die when they cut out his heart. See, not only did Jared mean “he who descended” but it also meant something much more.

In the Book of Enoch it is explained that Jared also meant "he who shall rule" because of his family connections that, unsurprisingly, were not of this world. This made him the perfect host in which to merge with the Hellbeast that the club mistakenly released in their moronic attempt to gain entry to Hell. Just to mention at this point, I was not including myself in this stupidity as I actually had good, solid, valid reasons for my quest, not because I was some jumped up, spoilt rich man that didn’t know what else to do with his money and wanted to impress his friends!

No, guessing that I didn’t exactly like the sound of this Dashwood guy after Jared’s story and I didn’t try to hide the fact. This I could tell when Jared’s molten eyes turned soft, that he liked my bitch rant that erupted upon hearing what was done to him. Anyway, as the story continued I found I was glad these actions at least bought about the end to the stupid club!

This didn’t surprise me as, until this point, it was just about a load of rich guys playing dress up and convincing themselves they had dark powers by worshiping Hades (who Jared told me was known better as the Devil or Lucifer). What they didn’t know was that the Devil couldn’t have given two donkey shits about what these guys thought (Jared’s actual words) but he was then not too pleased when they stole his Alpha guard dog Cerberus. This part was a complete accident, as they didn’t realise fully that the man Paul Whitehead chose, was the only one who would automatically absorb Cerberus, acting as his host. Therefore Jared and Cerberus merged into man and Beast combined.

I couldn’t help but ask the question, why he couldn’t just go home? The answer came as this,

“Once bound to a host, you need one of royal blood to send you back and considering I was royal blood, there was no going back.” This made some sense until he started to explain about why he needed a heart to get me back in through ‘his’ gate.

After Jared Cerberus had been reborn, his first job was to close the gate and in the same way it had been opened, he needed a heart to bind to it to keep it locked. It didn’t take him a second before he knew exactly which heart to choose…one belonging to Paul Whitehead. I had gasped a bit at the thought of him ripping the steward’s heart out, which made him laugh before explaining further.

“I didn’t kill him Keira, although when I first woke, I will admit it was an appealing thought.” I released the breath I had been holding and he smiled. Then he explained how he bound Whitehead’s heart (whilst it was still beating) and the Hellfire Club was no more. I think after royally fucking up their first ritual they had learnt their lesson (Again Jared’s words, not mine).

But that still wasn’t the end of it. It was decided, or more like demanded on Jared’s part, that when Paul Whitehead died, which he did in 1774, that his heart then belonged to Jared. It was then placed in an urn at the Mausoleum that was situated on top of the hill where the caves were chiselled a quarter of a mile into. For reasons Jared didn’t explain, all parties involved thought it best to keep the heart close to the caves and this worked well enough for years until in 1829, the heart was stolen by an Australian sailor.

This, believed by Jared, was down to a man named Admiral Sir James Stirling who was captain of the HMS Success at the time. He was in London at the end of 1828 with the Foreign Office trying to gain support for a settlement in the vicinity of the Swan River, Australia. He then departed right after receiving the heart from one of his lackeys on the 6 February 1829.

I naturally asked the question why…as in, a lot! But this was something he admitted he didn’t have all the answers to. He did know, however, that all people involved were under the influence of his kind. The worst news came after this story was finished and that was that even to this day he still didn’t know where the heart of Paul Whitehead remained. This was going to be a big problem for me, considering I needed that bloody heart!

He explained, after another rant of mine that consisted mostly of my lack of luck in life, that without the heart there was no way he could open the gate. This sucked the big one, which brought me back to now and why I was washing my hair like a woman possessed.

So there you have it, why man and beast became one and how the first werewolf was born…or kind of anyway, as I still wasn’t sure what beast Jared turned into! I did know, however, I was totally screwed! We made a deal that he would help me, but what the ruggedly handsome bastard missed out when we were taking our vows, was that he couldn’t actually help me, not unless I was the one who magically found the heart.

Which was when I came to the conclusion, after I had finished punishing my abused scalp, that it was in fact exactly what I had to do. I just hoped that a trip to Australia wasn’t on the cards, as it was a Hell of a long way to go and not really what I had in mind when planning my trip down under…although I’m sure it could be hot as Hell all the same!

I got out of the shower, dried, dressed and was rubbing a towel in my hair when I walked into the suite’s sitting room. Jared was now up and looked like he too had showered. I was surprised to see him without his jacket and his sandy hair now wet and slightly darker waves curling back from his hands. He looked so beautiful with the sun from the window lighting up his perfect features. Those high cheek bones, those ochre coloured eyes that matched the tawny stubble that dusted his jaw. I saw the darker ring of his Ouroboros pulse when his gaze turned to me. He gave me a head jerk and said,

“You alright, øjesten?” I gave him a small smile and walked to him. I don’t know why but I gave his hair a little ruffle and said,

“I am, but you must be ready to consume a whole cow by now, it’s at least noon.” I joked making him release one of those, ‘I’m not really angry but still a badass’ growl at me that I laughed at.

“Don’t worry big guy, I’ll call room service.” I looked back and smirked when I saw he was trying not to smile but when the edge of his lip curled up, both of us knew he was on a losing battle. I flopped down on the yellow couch and picked up the hotel menu. Then my eyes went sideways to note he was still watching me and I decided I wasn’t satisfied with just a hidden smile, so I said,

“So, should I just order you a steak in every cut they do, or do you just eat it raw from the bone…? You look like a bloody steak kinda guy.” The look I got made me laugh out loud and then I was fully satisfied when I saw him crack and start laughing along with me. And just like that, all the tension from the previous night was lost and added to the frightening past vault in my head. Worryingly it was getting quite full in there and I was only 23…oops no, now 24!

“Gimme that, you cocky little shit.” He said, trying to go for stern only failing, this by the crinkles around his eyes giving away his enjoyment my banter brought him.

“Hey! Enough of the little shit, big guy or I can easily find you a new nickname, one less flattering to your physique.” I said after throwing the menu at him on the ‘Hey’ part of that.

I ordered room service and while we were waiting I explained all that Jared had told me to Sigurd. I felt bad doing this but knew I had no choice than to share ‘cause I was seriously at a loss on what to do next. Sigurd didn’t look at all surprised at my story and I put this down to being his age, he must have heard something about the King of the Hell Beasts. I mean, for a big player in his world like Sigurd I doubted when someone like Alpha Cerberus goes missing, it is simply swept under the Demonic carpet.

I sat back waiting for some genius idea but when the silence grew to lip biting proportions I snapped.

“So? What do we do now?” His head snapped up and he said,

“Fucked if I know!” I took that as a resounding he didn’t know.

I deflated back to the sofa just as room service knocked. I got up to get it saying sarcastically,

“No, no, please don’t get up…I’ll get it.” He laughed at my grumbling and I groaned angrily when he said,

“Then get to it, little woman.” Ok, so I gave him that one, it was a good come back and if his laughter was anything to go by then he knew it also. I opened the door wide for the guy to wheel in the trolley that as predicted, was filled mostly with meat. I then looked around the room trying to locate my bag.

“Umm, just one sec.” I said to the guy, trying to find my bag that would lead to my purse, which would then lead to this guy getting a tip. I looked to Sigurd and mouthed ‘bag?’ who nodded to a single chair by the window and there it was. I looked back to the fidgeting bellhop, who looked uncomfortable with my strange antics. I soon knew why when it was obvious he couldn’t see Sigurd and saw me mouthing words to inanimate objects. Oh well, bigger tip it is.

I scrambled in my bag for a second, when I felt the Ouroboros book and that’s when it hit me and also when I had to triple the tip for I shouted out,

“Son of a bitch!”

Chapter 34

Asking the Obvious

After I had sufficiently freaked out the poor room service guy and it had cost me a few notes, I turned back to Sigurd and jumped up and down with the book clutched to my chest. Needless to say, this was after the door closed. I didn’t know if I was surprised or not that Sigurd was more interested in the food trolley than the sight of his book. Either way it was obvious the steaks were a good choice. I sighed and joined him when my stomach started to complain about its neglect.

“What’s with all these rules anyway?” I said after swallowing a milk chocolate, Earl Grey and raspberry macaroon, yes that’s right, I said Earl Grey in a macaroon! Gotta love some afternoon tea action in London!

Sigurd raised his head to see me cross-legged at the coffee table having just devoured most of the goodies on the three tier cake stand. I had the open Ouroboros book next to me and the looks I kept receiving from Sigurd, told me he was worried I would get clotted cream or posh egg salad on his precious pages. I had to grin every time.

“Well, considering you are the first to be blood bonded to me and the first human’s blood tasted by its pages, then I have no clue, as I have not yet read them.” I gave him my deepest frown and then skidded the book across the floor to where he sat.

“There you go buddy boy, knock yourself out!” I said with attitude and stuffed down the remainder of a scone piled high with a cream and jam tower.

“I think I prefer big guy, if you don’t mind.” I almost choked on a swallow when he added a wink. Of course, he knew he had won a round when the only come back was a lame,

“Whatever.”

“Ok, so it’s obvious that given the first rule, the only way to break this bond is to kill me, which I would prefer was a last resort…if you don’t mind.” I gave him a mocking smile as my answer.

“And the other?”

“To kill you.”

“Ah!” I said nodding a frightening understanding in a comical way. Because let’s face it, anything other than humour right now and I would end up a sticky mess on this expensive floor in a pool of my own misery.

“So blood buddy, does this mean you will be joining us for Christmas dinner this year or what?” Again my coping mechanism came through in the form of sarcasm.

“I am thinking no.” I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Jeez, mum is gonna be so disappointed not to have my very own blood brother over for the festivities this year.” A little corner of a smile emerged and he said,

“I’ll send a card” This made me laugh out loud.

“So, the rest is basically saying that it isn’t a great idea for another to read the book or try and destroy the book. I also wouldn’t advise using it to start a book club, considering anything that kills its readers isn’t ever gonna make the best seller list.”

“Ain’t that the truth.” I agreed.

“And the last rule?” I asked referring to the cryptic words of ‘Communication of the bound cannot converse in a parallel time but speaking what needs to be said will find a time unparalleled’. This time Sigurd ran both hands through his hair and scratched the back of his head before answering.

“I am only assuming that this means that the Oracle has found a way to communicate through the book to you…and I take it from that spark in your eyes, that this has happened before.

“Yeah, right after she gave me the book a message appeared…well I say message in the loosest sense of the word considering it was like a cracking a Dan Brown novel!”

“A what?” He asked me with clear confusion written all over his face.

“Seriously?” I asked and he shrugged his shoulders before I muttered,

“Forget about it. Ok, so this is what we do know…We need a heart from a dead asshole that was stolen and could quite possibly be in bum fuggle nowhere of some Australian outback being eaten by coyotes as we speak, although, eww for them right?” He held up a hand and said,

“Ok…what now?”

“What, I didn’t leave that part out of Jared’s story did I?”

“What the fuck is ‘bum fuggle nowhere’ Keira?” I couldn’t help it, I burst out laughing again.

“I don’t like saying the F word unless it’s completely warranted, so that’s what fuggle means…look can we get back to my rant?” You could tell he was really trying to hold in his laughter and I was even impressed when he restrained himself and just motioned me to continue, with a hand gesture.

“Ok, so even if when we ask the book where it is and we catch a break when it gives the answer clear as day, then what…? I mean I still have to get Jared to fulfil his side of the bargain, break into the Hellfire Caves and then somehow break out my boyfriend…I don’t know about you but this seems like a lot of breaking of things.”

“Yeah like a shit load of rules, that’s what. Shouldn’t kids at your age be getting drunk off your ass at parties and shit?” I gave him a disgusted and insulted look and said,

“Really…kids my age?”

“My mistake oh old and wise one, please remind me, exactly how many wars have you lived through again?” He asked crossing his arms over his chest and waited for my answer.

“Alright smart ass, let’s just get on with the problem at hand should we.” His look said it all…

He had won another bloody round!

The rest of the day continued with me and Sigurd bickering like we were actually related. It was as if the more time we spent together the stronger the bond became. We would start finishing each other’s sentences and pretty soon all it would take was a single look and we knew what the other was thinking. But it was strange and not at all in a brotherly way, as there was no ignoring the unique pull that was heating up between us. For example, at one point in the day I got up to sit next to him, just because something in me needed the closeness. It was only after he started playing with my fingers that rested near his own, that I realised he needed that connection just as I did.

The other weird factor in all this was that it didn’t seem to be a solely sexual urge, which helped in controlling myself around him. It was almost like our bodies’ cells were communicating to each other and needed the contact to increase the intensity. This was the one thing we both avoided mentioning and I was glad. More than glad in fact, as I think my skin would have bubbled from my cheeks if this conversation ever arose. I mean here I was looking for death defying ways to spring my soul mate from a slammer in Hell and I was acting like a damn cat needing to be stroked!

Shameful, Keira Williams!

Thankfully 5:36 rolled around quickly enough and I sat staring at the clock on both my phone and the grandfather clock which displayed the same time right down to the last minute. Well, you could never be too careful and Sigurd obviously found this highly amusing as he didn’t refrain from taking the piss out of me whenever he could. The last time he got shushed, as I only had one minute to go.

Then it came. I looked down at the closed book and took a deep breath to ask the only question that mattered right now.

“Mighty book of the Ouroboros…” I started all official sounding before Sigurd interrupted me,

“Jesus Keira, let’s just get on with this shit…Book tell us where the damn heart is!?” My mouth dropped on a gasp as disbelief set in.

“You did not just do that!” I said turning slowly as anger filtered through my blood stream, taking root of my actions and when he shrugged his shoulders and said,

“What?” I let rip. I launched myself at him…literally. I saw his eyes widen quickly just before I landed on him and extracted an ‘umph’ sound before I slapped at his arms over and over again.

“What the Hell?” He shouted but his questioning was being drowned out by my rage.

“WHY!? Why did you do that? You idiot!” He quickly grabbed my attacking arms and restrained me, pinning my upper body to his chest.

“Calm down!”

“Sod your calm down! Why? That was our one shot today and you ruined it! You…you…” I accused looking him straight in his eyes, one burning with a snake ring that started to move at the sight of my anger.

“Keira…”

“You just don’t care! How could you do this to me?!” I was so lost in my devastation that I was missing what he was trying to tell me. He growled loudly and then gave my pinned arms a shake.

“Keira, look!”

“I just can’t believe it, why you…!”

“Christ øjesten, just look for fuck sake!” My scowl turned into a drop dead plasma death stare before I turned my head to look at the failure of knowledge that I was certain I would find in a closed book. Of course, I didn’t expect to see the book open and filled with new crimson words staining the pages. I also didn’t handle his reaction to my ‘overreaction’ in the best possible way either. I turned my head back to see all the amber in his eyes being replaced by a dark storm and a glowing snake. Man, even his snake looked pissed with me!

So I did the only thing I could think of doing to defuse the situation. I gave him a nervous smile and mumbled a sheepish,

“Uh…my bad?” His eyes flashed darker and his lips remained in a straight line of disproval. So I tried a different approach, this one named bullshit. I leaned forward, gave him a kiss on the cheek and patted his back saying,

“Just kidding big guy, I knew you wouldn’t let me down…good job partner.” I tried to extract myself from his lap after he let loose another deep and throaty growl. However, when his fingertips bit into my arms before shifting down to hold my spread thighs in place, I decided the only course of action was to let him have his moment and bit my lip. Oh and I added a little whispered sorry in there for good measure. Luckily, this one clinched it for me as the darkness left his eyes and his hands became less demanding and more soothing.

“Do not let distrust taint the bond we have again, Keira…do you understand?” He demanded and I could only give him a small nod in return, now feeling a bit ashamed. He held me a little bit longer and his assessing gaze must have found my shame, for he then rested his forehead to mine.

“My silly blood mate.” He said in a soft voice that only held a hint of the scolding I deserved.

“I’m sorry.” I whispered again and he nodded once before letting me go.

“I know you are øjesten. Now go and get the answers you seek before you drive me insane.” I gave him a little sideways smile and jumped from his lap to do just that. When I saw the words of hope I had so desperately needed right now, I had to close my eyes briefly in a silent prayer of thanks. That was until of course I opened them again and actually read those words!

Nine keystones sit at the Entrance

As guardians to the river Palace,

At a time after housing Royals

To become an Admirals place for Malice.

“Oh, you have got to be shittin’ me!” Sigurd groaned, slapped his palms to his knees and then sat up to lean forward at the sound of my outburst.

“Christ, what now?” He asked when I let my head fall forward on the coffee table where I was sat with my legs folded under. I banged my forehead against the open book in hopes that a good smack to the brain might help in decoding this cryptic nonsense.

“Maybe you’re right, maybe I should just be getting stupid drunk with all the other kids, ‘cause I am telling you right now, this party is no fun!”

“Well, before we breakout the cheap cider or beer that tastes of piss, let’s take a look shall we?” He leant across and whipped the book from under my head like a magician with a table cloth, making my forehead slap the top.

“Uh…oww!” Not surprising, I didn’t get much of a reaction to my rough treatment. However, this was soon forgotten when I thought I heard angels singing in the form of Sigurd saying,

“I know where this is.”

“You do?” I shouted and jumped to my feet to plant myself in the seat next to him.

“I do. There is only one building that had nine keystones which referred to the principle rivers in England at its entrance. One that was built to be a palace to then be used by the Navy Board.”

“And that is?” I asked gripping onto his forearm in anticipation.

“Somerset House.” He replied to my question in a way that he must have been sure of my knowing it. It was confirmed that I didn’t quickly after when I frowned and repeated,

“And that is?” This was when he released a trademark groan of frustration, something I was quickly getting used to considering I seemed to spend most of my time around Sigurd, annoying the crap out of him.

“Never mind, I will explain on the way.”

“You mean we’re going now?” I asked not even trying to mask my excitement.

“Grab your coat lille øjesten, it’s time for a walk into the past.” I did as I was told and was at the door waiting, trying to hook one arm in my sleeve and pull the door knob with the other.

“You ready for this?”

“Do donkeys eat cherries?” He raised one eyebrow at me and I quickly said,

“Forget I asked…so ready for what exactly?” I asked as we stepped through the door.

“Breaking the rules.” He stated as though what we were about to do was an everyday occurrence in his world. Well, for all I knew, my new found blood brother was a vigilante, criminal mastermind for the Underworld’s underworld. So, of course, I gave him the only answer there was for me to give,

“Hell Yeah!”

Chapter 35

Trapped in Shadow Prison

I was pleasantly surprised to find this Somerset House was a quick walk away from the Savoy hotel. Well, that was until Sigurd reminded me that the Oracle was the one who planned most of this, so I gathered it made sense setting her own personal sucker…I mean Chosen One…up in a place that was walking distance to all these places. It made me wonder if she didn’t just do a search on Google… ideal places to stay for the tourist attractions Hell’s Ring/ Cheshire Cheese and one Heart of Paul Whitehead… in other words one Somerset House!

“She really did have everything planned, didn’t she?” I asked out loud as Sigurd manoeuvred amongst angry pedestrians like a policeman would handle a suspect.

“She sure did.” He replied dryly, keeping his hood up as if shying away from the crowd. I looked up at him and then looked around at the mass of people that all walked past us like they weren’t seeing a massive 6’ 5” guy all dressed in black who kind of gave off Grim Reaper vibes. This was when I realised it wasn’t the crowd he was shielding himself from, but the late day sun. I took a wild stab in the dark and gathered he wasn’t a big sun lounger kinda guy. Well I guess that cut out the need to get up at stupid ‘o clock and reserve a place by the pool with a towel when on your holidays!

“We’re here.” His gravelly voice brought me out of my daft thoughts and I stared up at three colossal open archways that were the centre of nine Corinthian columns. My head went all the way back and I counted the nine keystones that all held a stern Godly face frozen in stone. I was actually impressed that from that small paragraph of cryptic nonsense he knew exactly where to go.

I was just taking in the splendour that was the entrance to Somerset House, when I was roughly pulled through the middle arch around a group of Japanese tourists snapping pictures. As cliché as is sounded, I couldn’t say I blamed them as the place was simply stunning. It opened up into a large square, one big enough that I was sure could it be used for professional football, and that literally took my breath away. It was fronted with a large bronze statue that looked Greek in design with an obviously important man dressed in a toga. At his side stood a lion and the other side, the bow of an ornate ship. On the platform beneath him lay a large, muscled God spilling liquid from a rounded urn.

It was beautiful and as we walked closer I tried to pull Sigurd towards its information plaque. However, he was having none of this and steered me around it, giving me a view of Somerset House’s vast courtyard.

“Hey, I wanted to read that!” I complained, which granted me an unamused grunt before he stated,

“You’re not here on a school trip, princess.”

“Really...? ‘Cause you know I thought you would have made an excellent History teacher.” I commented sarcastically.

“You think?” I actually coughed on my own surprise.

“Uh no, Mr grabby, draggy Magee.” This time he growled down at me.

“Don’t make me push your little ass into the fountains.” He threatened and I jumped when the centre of the courtyard erupted into bursts of water in tall spurts. There must have been at least fifty of them and they all danced along in sync at different lengths. It was as though they flowed along to an un-heard water song.

We continued walking towards the main building ahead and the smell of coffee and baked goods came from the numerous plates sat in front of customers enjoying a late day break. It was as if we had stepped into a French main street. People took pictures of the stunning architecture and a group of young girls were all daring each other to run in between the lines of water.

I looked around all the buildings that formed a square which could have been seen from space it was that huge! (Ok, so maybe a slight exaggeration but you catch my drift… it was damn big!)

“We are never gonna find it in this place.” I said feeling my shoulders slump with defeat. I even felt the tears of frustration start to seep up from the worry I had on lock down.

“Hey.” Sigurd said softly before turning me to face him. He gripped my chin between his thumb and forefinger to lift my gaze to his. I saw the snake ring glow under the shadow of his big hood and his other hand rose to run the back of his knuckles down my cheek. His open palm came to rest on the side of my neck and he tugged me to his chest as the first tear fell. I felt his head lower and his lips first kissed the top of my head. Then he whispered tenderly,

“We will find the heart my øjesten, this I will promise you now.” I nodded at his soft words of comfort and his fingers tensed at the column of my neck briefly. He let me go and I leant back to look up at him.

“But how?” I questioned in a small voice.

“Give me the book.” I did as he asked and dug into my bag which was strapped across my chest. I located the book, slapped it into his waiting hand and said,

“Do your thing, big guy.” This delivered me a wink I could barely see and a cocky smile that showed the hint of fang. Briefly it made me wonder what it was with Demons and fangs but I didn’t think now was the time for inappropriate questions.

Sigurd’s large hand held the back of the book easily in one hand, whilst the other was placed over the raised leather snake on the top.

“Ojentaa Ouroboros.” (Means ‘Reach out’ in Finnish)

I watched as the tiny shadows under his hand crept out cautiously under the light of day before flowing like silk under water into the heart of the book. Sigurd shuddered and my reaction became the domino effect doing the same. We both ended up taking a step back at the same time but for different reasons, as his was to prevent what had already started happening…mine was to get away from it.

But I was too late.

I closed my eyes, not because I wanted to but because I had no choice in the matter. After a few seconds the darkness behind my closed lids released its hold, but soon I wished for that darkness back. My vision cleared into my truest nightmare, so that I couldn’t stop the scream that tore from my soul. I looked around my basement prison and for a second thought I was back with Morgan. But no, this was so much worse, if that was even possible. See, it wasn’t that experience that I feared the most, although that may be surprising considering what he put me through. Ever since I was seven and transformed into a human with extra abilities of supernatural sight I had the very real fear of one day being committed. The terror of living the rest of my days in a mental asylum was a haunting prospect and it was more than enough to keep my mouth shut on anything I ever saw.

But now…

The room was just like one I had seen before, a small square that held nothing more than a slither of a metal bed and walls void of any feeling. Well, at least it wasn’t padded, I thought without humour. I looked to the heavy iron door, thinking that the frame length locks were massive overkill. What did they think I was going to do…hulk out?

I got up from the cobbled floor and blinked a few times at the unexpected. Wasn’t it usual for places like this to be all stainless steel and cold tiles smelling of disinfectant? If anything this place had a damp stone and mossy smell. I brushed the dirt from my jeans and stood wrapping my arms around my belly for comfort.

“Hello?” I whispered as a way to test the waters. I heard muffled footsteps from behind the door and the window behind me let through a slither of moonlight, enough for me to see the small square in the centre of the heavily bolted door anyway. It held three bars and was just above my head in height. I tensed my fingers into a fist and then released them as I decided I needed to see where I was. It looked like the same prison I had seen in Draven’s temple, holding a very different female prisoner.

I slowly approached the door and my heart thundered in my chest as though I was walking through a haunted house waiting for a ghostly figure to walk past me. I reached out with stretched fingertips to feel the condensation dripping down the dark metal. When nothing happened and no sounds could be heard, I braved getting closer. I took another step until I could take no more and I lifted up to my tiptoes. It wasn’t enough to see so I gripped onto the bars and held still. Each movement I made had to end in pause, making sure that the result was still silence.

My grip tightened and I started to lift myself up whilst at the same time putting my feet to the door in order to push myself higher. Thankfully, the rubber on my trainers was enough to stop my toes from sliding down, keeping my grip in place. I looked through the bars and scanned the room beyond. What I found chilled me beyond the bone. I found the back of my own face staring back at me.

My long hair still remained but was matted and dirty. Mascara created black tears of panic as I stared down at arms covered in blood. I was wearing a wedding dress torn at the shoulder and a tear sliced in the bodice.

“DON’T HURT HIM!” I screamed in the middle of the room as I spun without reason. My grip turned painful on the bars as some other part of me just knew that I was staring into the future.

“Oh God.” I whispered but that was when the other me had finally found her focus. Her head snapped round and then she was gone. I took in a premature breath of relief that was short lived.

“AH!” I screamed out as my own terror filled eyes appeared right in front of the door’s window. I let go and fell backwards on my backside with a painful thud that would definitely be painted an unappealing shade of blue in the foreseeable future. I shook my head and in an angry swipe at being so weak with the fresh pain, I ran the back of my hand across my face so as not to get dirt in my eyes.

“What do you want?!” I shouted feeling betrayed by my own self. The other me looked both sad and evil at the same time. My blackened eyes still streamed with tears but this time they looked angry.

“You killed the one I love!” She shouted back and I flinched at the verbal slap.

“I…I…”

“You…you…KILLED OUR LOVE!” The vision of me screamed out the end in a demonic voice that was a fleeting memory in the back of my mind. That voice…I knew that voice…who…?

As I tried to get my mind back in time down a road of demonic discovery, the other me had clearly had enough. She uncurled her bloody fingers and dropped behind the door, no longer in sight. I got up gingerly and ran back to my place at the door.

“Wait!” I shouted and lifted myself up once more but by the time I got there she was gone. The room beyond was empty and as I no longer had a mirror image to fixate on, I could take in the rest of the room. It was soon confirmed that this was indeed the room I’d walked into all that time ago in the Temple. But when I looked behind me I saw the window and wondered how. The Temple was situated deep under Afterlife but there the moon shone, just peeking out behind the clouds.

This was the thought that brought on the change. The room started to spin and some aspects of my cell started to morph into another room. I felt a speck of something land on my cheek and I raised my hands to smudge the ash that rested there. I rubbed my fingertips together and examined the black mark that formed from my actions. This was when I looked up to see dirt raining down from the ceiling and the walls started to move back. They then wrapped around forming a circular space with the stones shrinking into smaller blocks.

The floor was soon covered in not just soot but also leaves and dirty trodden straw. The window arched and elongated into a wider slit in the tower room the space had transformed into. Even the door ahead of me folded in on itself and just as I took a step to escape, iron bars, the thickness of my wrist, shot up from the ground like the fountains at Somerset House. What was left was half the room on my side in a semicircle, barricaded by a wall of bars.

“What the…?” That message was left unfinished as I spun around to see my own form once again, slumped over a bed of straw sobbing. I knew this was a different time, as my hair was as I saw it in the mirror this morning, short and black. I decided to slowly approach and just before my reaching hand found her bare shoulder, she turned abruptly, scaring me. It took a startled moment for me to realise that the Keira in the future wasn’t staring at me but past me. I felt a chill creep over me as I took in her frightened gaze and readied myself for what I would soon see.

I took in a shuddered breath and looked round at the bars, not knowing what I would see in this nightmare realm. It seemed both mine and my future self both had the same urges as a double scream pierced the night. I stumbled back enough to hit the far wall before I fell due to my unsteady legs. The sight before me terrified me enough to take the strength from muscle and sanity from mind.

Gorgon Leeches filled the space beyond the bars, alongside other creatures of Hell I hadn’t seen before. The tall flaky skin bodies flanked the Leeches and each one carried a weapon in the sickest of ways. Each blade or spear had the ends stuck firmly in their own flesh with darkened ash being the only sign of affliction. Each one had their eyes rolled back into their head and the one coming closer had his weapon of a steel bar rammed through his cheeks, keeping them locked painfully tight together. It caused his lips to form an elongated O making its entire face lengthen in a nauseating stretch.

The closer they came to the bars the more my panicked mind told me to do something.

“NO! SIGURD HELP US!” I was the only one shouting the plea of hope as only I seemed to know this vision for what it was…an after effect from Sigurd’s dark bond with my soul. I had to believe that! There could be no other logical reason for what we were seeing. At my desperate cry for help the walls started to vibrate, but I knew not a single stone moved under the helpless hold I had on the wall. It was just like when your vision blurs when you shake your head violently. It started to knock my equilibrium off course as the room continued its visual assault on my senses, but one important thing managed to penetrate through the fog.

A figure started to step though as the minions parted and the other me growled out her obvious hatred. I couldn’t see the man clearly but what I could see was my reaction to him. My mirror image shot from the floor. I stood back and watched as she faced the man who came closer. At this point the room moved in such a rapid way, that my head pounded trying to keep up with their movements. I could feel that Sigurd was desperately trying to get me out of here and the only thing hanging onto this madness was me. It was a crazy need that kept me rooted to the spot, but somewhere in my subconscious I knew what it was doing and I was about to find out why.

“Ah, my disgusting parasite, how nice to see you again.” I could just make out my fists clench at my sides at the sound of his voice and I looked down momentarily to see my own doing the same. It was clear my captured self was in one mind about what she would like to be doing to the man stood in front of her. I couldn’t recognise him thanks to the blurred edges Sigurd’s efforts were creating, but even the sound of his voice was sending revulsion to pebble my skin. The future’s Keira took a step forward and the room stepped it up a few notches on vibrations, making it next to impossible to see anything other than us two. But it was one name spoken that finally brought down the walls to this nightmare,

“Gastian!”

As soon as the name passed her lips the room cracked and light poured through the walls. It was blinding bright and I raised my arm across my eyes to protect myself. It was only when I felt a soft touch from a big hand trying to pry my arm away that I felt comforted for the first time.

“It’s alright now Keira, you’re back with me.” Sigurd’s warm breath travelled my neck and I quickly felt a strong presence at my back. He pulled my arm down and I braved opening my eyes. He was holding me from behind with his arms crossed over my torso. It took me a moment to gather my bearings and when I did I realised that Sigurd must have carried me to somewhere more private for me to finish my blood bound freak out. We were in a less busy part of the courtyard, hidden either side by the many floors of Somerset house.

“I’m back.” I whispered as though waking from a deep sleep.

“I’ve got you, sweet øjesten.” Sigurd rumbled softly behind me and pulled me in tighter. I don’t think I was mistaken when hearing the relief in his voice and I relaxed further into him as a result. We both needed it, plain and simple.

We stayed this way for the silent minutes it took for both our heart rates to slow. Then I ruined the peace when a thought took precedence over what I had just been through.

“The book?” I both felt and heard the deep sigh he released before he let me go. He took a step back and then turned me to face him slowly. His actions had me bracing for the worst.

“What is it…no answer…or maybe she was just engaged?” I said hoping injecting a bit of humour would dull the disappointment I was almost sure was coming. So much so, I was surprised when he grinned and then said,

“She left you a message…Tricks?” I couldn’t help my reaction when I launched up into his arms giving him no choice than to catch me. He laughed at me and I turned my head to kiss his cheek.

“Thank you my friend.” I whispered through the material of his hood where his ear would be. His hold tightened for a second then he lowered me until my feet found the cobbled floor again.

“Are you alright?” He asked me and I nodded, knowing he was referring to the darkness his powers took me to. I turned to move, giving space to our intimate moment but his hand struck out and pulled me back to him. He lowered his hidden forehead to mine and declared severely,

“He will not take you, Keira…I will not let him take you from me.” I shuddered under the strength of his vow and found I could only nod slightly. The grip he had on the whole side of my neck loosened after he had reined in his strong emotions and I was able to keep the space between us to a few steps.

The more time we spent with each other meant the more dangerous the territory we trod on. I decided to clear my throat as a way of bringing us back to the task at hand.

“Please tell me the message she left wasn’t level impossible on the Oracle’s version of puzzle cracking?” Sigurd grunted before saying,

“Take a look for yourself.” This was said in a way that held no doubt, that yes, it was going to give me a headache. Sigurd pulled the book from behind his jacket as though he had kept it tucked in the waistline of his dark, belted jeans. I was about to take it and then hesitated a moment as I remembered what had happened not long ago, thanks to that book.

“It’s alright Keira, that won’t happen this time.” I looked up at him with wide eyes and the guilt I found in his own gaze made me feel bad for him. I didn’t say anything but as I took the book from him I gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. I opened it up, finding the right page straight away as it was the only one with any words written.

To my dear Tricks,

I hope you enjoyed your fun faired Trip,

Cause now it’s time for hearts to be found,

And for you to bite your Lip.

The beats maybe long gone,

For life in the Deadhouse,

Now is the time to grab a King,

And play the happy Spouse.

Number 26 is facing you Ahead,

And a door with no number is not a coal Shed,

So take a deep breath and greet the Dead,

To find the still heart of one Paul Whitehead.

To your left is a name you know well,

But the date 33 won’t get you into Hell,

So move away and look for another,

One that speaks fondly of the Queen Mother.

Skull and cross bones isn’t down to a wooden leg,

For he was a doctor, so no need to beg,

For he doesn’t hold the organ that you seek,

It’s not even on this side, so go take a peek.

So leave the doctor alone

And look around the space,

For once you find the ½ topped cross,

You need to look under the pace.

Look to a number 7 set in pale stone,

The one you seek will rightfully sit upon the 7th throne,

Your lovely name you will no doubt find,

And an old withered heart lays waiting behind.

After reading the cryptic message aloud, it was as though I could feel the hope draining away with every word spoken. How on earth were we going to find anything that referred to these clues in a place this big?! I was just about to ask this out loud when I saw a group of people all following someone with a clipboard, across the courtyard coming closer towards us near the big bronze statue. That’s when it hit me and I looked up to Sigurd to say,

“Honey, we are going on a tour!”

Chapter 36

Geek Man Walking

After walking into the main building and bursting into a fit of childish giggles thanks to the name above the door, we received our tickets for the last tour of the day. We had some time to kill and after seeing the last guy I watched Sigurd take care of, I was glad that wasn’t meant in the literal sense! We decided to grab a coffee (tea for me of course) and sit down to wait. This I thought was the perfect opportunity to ask Sigurd about my dark dream.

“Ok, so I gotta ask…what is it with this dude Gastian and what exactly is his beef with me?”

“I don’t know.” He stated simply, after devouring the last bites of my cake slice he bought me….this, I had to add, was after finishing two slices bought for himself!

“Jesus, what is it with you and food…?” I leant forward and whispered,

“Ok pick one, you are A, going to be spending the next ten years in a remote colony in Antarctica, B, all the food you eat is going out of fashion tomorrow, with all bakers, butchers and chefs deciding to a career change or C, there is going to be a world Famine that I don’t yet know about?” He growled with his mouth full and then I could hear the angry swallow that followed. I couldn’t help but smirk.

“Your turn, A, I can use your bones as a toothpick, B, I could wash down my cake with a pint of your blood or C, I can bend you over my knee, render your ass a rosy red and use your back as a place to rest my plate…pick one.” It was my turn to growl and it was his turn to smirk.

“Time to go, buttercup.” He said mockingly, whilst grabbing my upper arm and hauling me up from the seat.

“But wait, you never told me about Gastian.”

“Can’t tell you what I don’t know, sweetheart…now come on or we will miss all the excitement.” The word excitement was most definitely a sarcastic overstatement for him as I knew he was dreading it…this was because in the last 45 minutes he had told me so at least 45 times!

I let him lead me over into the main entrance and only when I saw his reflection in the door’s window did I pull back, gasping at what I saw.

“What the Hell!?” I shouted making an older couple stare at me disapprovingly.

“What?” Sigurd hissed, allowing me to pull him back before we walked inside. Having a firm hold of his jacket, I pulled him further out of the way of people passing us to get inside and tried to drag his head down by the hood so that he could hear my panicked whisper.

“Why do you look like that?!” I asked through gritted teeth.

“Keira, please try making sense…I don’t know…” I didn’t let him finish as I pointed over the sheer drop from the floors below and over the balcony that spanned the area either side of the main entrance. He started to look down when I shook his hood and said,

“Not there….there.” I pointed across to the window that was directly ahead of us, at the reflection standing next to me…one that definitely wasn’t Sigurd!

“Ah.”

“Yeah, ‘ah’ is right buddy boy, explain…now!” I looked back at him and saw a naughty smile start to form. I scowled at his obvious amusement at my freak out.

“What? So I don’t want people seeing the real me, what’s the big deal?”

“What’s the big deal?! Are you serious? We are supposed to be acting as a married couple, like the book’s message said!” I said all this while doing a tennis fan impression watching a game. I could barely tear my eyes from the reflection which others were clearly seeing as him.

“Yes well, I don’t know if you noticed at all, but someone looking like me does tend to cause unwanted attention.” I rolled my eyes and said,

“So yeah alright, you’re unbelievably handsome and rugged and have the body of a God, with your tall frame and muscles on top of muscles but that doesn’t mean you should go all big headed about it!” My outburst brought about the first time I had seen one of his kind actually bite his lip, but unlike me, it wasn’t done out of shame. He pulled me closer to him until I had to reach up on tiptoes so as not to end up dangling by my arm a foot from the ground.

“I meant that people find me scary and intimidating øjesten, not someone that people want to sign up for the cover of a magazine. You wanted to come here and get what you’re looking for. Well, to do that we not only need human interaction, but also their help…somehow I don’t think they would have been as accommodating with someone that fits my description, do you?” Ok, so he had a point, but did he really have to rub it in? I mean my blush had already turned nuclear. He released me until my feet were once again flat on the floor and for long moments we just stared at each other like we were both fighting a greater urge. I shook those thoughts from my mind and slapped a great big warning sticker on that metaphorical case file.

“Ok, so I am getting that, but really….I mean… come on, you had to marry me to that guy!” I said pointing for the last time to his lying reflection. I referred to the 5ft guy who wore thick rimmed square glasses that reminded me of my granddad, a cream shirt with brown dickey bow and a pale blue V neck knitted vest on top. Brown cords and sandals over white socks finished the nerdy reflection. But this wasn’t the worst part, oh no, I think the crème de la crème was the side parted comb over that was slicked down with only what can be described as car oil!

“So, I take it you’re not into the geek look?” He asked bringing my stunned gaze back to the real him. Needless to say the sight was much more appealing!

“Umm, I don’t think that counts as just plain old geeky…I mean my friend Pip is married to a geek and he is hot! Besides, I think it is safe to say that you look like you are trying hard to bring Granddad fashion into…well…fashion.”

“You know of Adam’s Imp?” His abrupt subject change had me pulling my head back and frowning.

“Her name is Pip and yeah, we are good mates, why?” I said not being able to rein in the attitude thanks to my protectiveness over my friend.

“It figures.” He commented wryly as he turned from me about to make his way back to the main entrance. I reached out, grabbed his arm and snapped,

“And what is that supposed to mean?!”

“I know Pip and the trouble she gets in, so to assume you and her are friends in no stretch of the imagination considering trouble will inevitably find friendship with trouble. Now come on or we will miss this fucking tour!” He pulled me with him into the building and I made a noise in the back of my throat that was half growl and half moan. It was only when we were waiting with the rest of the tourists that I whispered,

“If you look harmless then I suggest curbing the language to match, we don’t want people to think I’m married to an aggressive wife beater.” Of course this idea was a joke as one look at Sigurd’s portrayal of my husband and it was outright laughable. But instead of commenting he leaned down, or thanks to his new height not at all and gave me a kiss on the cheek, finishing it with a,

“Yes dear.”

We waited for the people ahead of us to move aside before handing over our tickets to the tour guide. She handed us a gold and white sticker each and I slapped Sigurd’s to his chest with more vigour than was needed.

“There you go, honey boo.” I said loud enough to draw some strange looks. He took mine from the lady and returned the favour by placing it above one breast and making a show of patting it down unnecessarily. He was still doing it, only this time making it more than obvious he was using the opportunity to fondle my breast, drawing some even stranger looks. I batted his hand away and snapped through gritted teeth,

“It’s fine!” He laughed once and then winked at a guy behind me saying,

“I had to be sure, sugar plum bum.” I rolled my eyes when I heard the guy cough to hide a laugh and waited until everyone had moved so we were left at the back before elbowing Sigurd in the stomach. I got an umpf sound and smiled when everyone turned round to face us.

“That’s it love, cough it up.” I said making a show of patting his back. After some more funny looks everyone turned back to the front to hear what the guide was saying. She introduced herself as Rachael and before starting the tour asked us all to refrain from using our mobile phones. Then, after explaining the details of our tour, we followed her outside to our first point of interest.

After all of the group had gathered round I couldn’t help but notice people kept their distance from us. I put this down to some deeper human instinct of survival considering Sigurd’s true nature. It was like no matter how convincing his geeky disguise was, the truth was in the shadows lurking in wait. You could see it in his stance, as though ready to pounce and strike down any threat that might arise. People were smart to be wary and as a result we were given a wide berth in the circle.

The guide had taken us outside near the fountains and started the tour with the building’s history. I soon found myself engrossed in hearing how Somerset house started life as a Tudor palace built by Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset and virtual ruler at the time. This was because as Lord Protector of England, in the minority of his nephew, Edward VI, who was the son of the lady obsessed Henry VIII who seemed to collect wives the way others do tea sets! I don’t think by the growly noise that came from Sigurd that he was a big fan either! Of course, it was a no brainer the reason why everyone took a step back and gave us an even greater space.

I hooked Sigurd’s arm with my own and pulled him closer to the back of the group.

“Ok, down boy and less of scaring the human population if you can help it because see that meathead there…” I nodded to the guy who looked like he bench pressed his girlfriend every morning before breakfast.

“Even that guy is wary of you right now and given the way you look, that is doing nothing for his street cred.”

“And why should I give a shit?” Sigurd rumbled and I looked into the opposite window to check his disguise was still in place. I had to squash down my surprise when I saw his fingers rise to push up a pair of thick rimmed glasses that weren’t actually there. I shook my head trying to dislodge the weirdness this day kept throwing at me and tried a different tactic.

“Because we are trying to fit in, hubby dearest and I would like to end this day with a scabby, old heart of some asshole in my hand not you getting your geeky ass thrown out of here for being an asshole… capiche?” I whispered making him burst out laughing.

“Seriously…did you just say Capiche?”

“What? I can say Capiche.” I frowned up at him when I saw his humour grow at my expense. Then his lips rose further up one side and he placated me with a head pat, saying,

“Alright Don, how about I whack the meathead with my heavy before my shakedown with our tour guide for ten large whilst you go on the lam?” I rolled my eyes at his chuckle as we took our place back with the group.

“Funny, but you forgot swimming with the fishes in that sentence.”

“Ok, now we really need to work on your mobster ‘cause they don’t actually say that outside of a movie set and whilst we’re at it, do me a favour and never say Capiche again.” I scoffed at that and said a lame,

“Whatever.”

“Too damn cute.” I whipped my head up at his muttered comment but he ignored me and when I tried to speak he just shushed me, nodding back to what the tour guide was saying. I huffed with my arms folded.

The tour continued around the courtyard until we had heard about what part of history influenced the architecture of the buildings and their enrichments, which clearly had a strong ancient Greek feel. You could tell that Sigurd found this completely boring and to a point where I wouldn’t have been surprised if I would soon have to drag him along like an unruly child. I tried to see it from his point of view and wondered if I too had lived through these times would I have also found it tiresome? Every now and again I would catch his reflection in the many windows, rolling his eyes at something the guide said and wondered if what we knew of history was as accurate as we presumed? Well, if Sigurd’s reactions were anything to go by then I was thinking not.

It was only at the point in the tour that got to the Navy side that we started to really take notice. According to Jared’s story, Paul Whitehead’s heart had been stolen from an Australian Sailor and this place held it within its walls, somewhere that one possessed Admiral Sir James Stirling had hidden it. I could almost feel the cells inside my body buzzing with the excitement of the adventure that had been thrust upon me. The thrill of the chase sent my mind into overdrive and I could almost taste the lips of my lost lover coming closer to lips eagerly waiting.

Soon…I just knew it.

Standing outside the Navy Office, which was situated next to the main entrance with a name that still made me snigger when reading it, I listened with interest as our guide spoke about the Navy’s involvement with Somerset house. Then I heard a big yawn next to me and I wasn’t the only one that shot daggers at Sigurd for his obvious show of boredom.

“What, she wore me out last night, alright.” My mouth dropped as I processed what he just said. I heard a few laugh (mainly the men in the group) and some gasp clearly outraged (mainly the women). Meanwhile, the guide got everyone to move on from both the Navy and my shame. I turned and smacked Sigurd on the arm making him chuckle.

“Well, technically you did.” He said behind me as I stormed ahead fuming. I gritted my teeth as I heard his full blown laughter following me.

“I don’t remember being in that ring last night!” I gritted out as I tried to catch up with the group which I could see disappearing down the hallway.

“What can I say… taking care of you wears me out, lille øjesten.”

“Then you’re obviously getting old…maybe it is time to think about retiring to Florida after all.” I had to smile when I heard the trademark growl replace sniggering laughter.

“Over my cold dead host!” He said in my ear before stamping large boots ahead of me, grabbing my hand at the last second to drag me along. I couldn’t hold in the satisfaction that I had won another round.

“If you could all just look up the staircase and then back down again, you will notice the distinct difference between the floors above to the floors below. This was one of the ways that level of importance was clearly stated as the higher class worked on the top levels whilst the lower class obviously worked down below. You can see with the elaborate mouldings decorating the top floors and beautiful hand railings that compared to the plain lower levels, this distinction stands out clearly.” We walked through just as the guide was starting her talk on this section but nothing in what she said was going to be of any help to what we were looking for. So far it just showed us an endless amount of doors and floors that we might have to look through. It was almost like showing us an aerial view of the garden maze and then dumping us dead centre to find our own way out.

The rest of the tour walked us through the outside balcony that looked over a main road and then the river that once had come right up to the building itself. From what I took in from the guide, the water went right underneath where we stood so that boats could pull into a big archway to let passengers disembark. It was cool to see how it would have been back then, but I had to admit that when she took us back inside and that wasn’t the end of the tour, I was relieved.

We followed once again as she started to take us across to the other side of the building and down a spiral staircase that got more unrefined the further down we went. This was to the point that the steps became mottled with dimples in the stone resembling a grey leopard print.

“What is that?” I whispered as Sigurd kept firm hold of me as we descended the steep staircase.

“That is thanks to the metal in the boots of the workers.” I looked down past where my own feet were heading and stared at the evidence of that extreme level of hard work that had ingrained itself into the very building itself. Once we reached the bottom floor it made me a bit dizzy looking up in the centre space all the way to the top. I couldn’t help but back into Sigurd and felt better when his hands held onto my hips to keep me steady.

Like every place we stopped the lady started with stories of the past but by this time I had started to get frustrated that we would never get this done. So once again I listened to words that didn’t help us in getting any closer to the damned heart!

“Patience øjesten, I know we are getting closer…not long now, my sweetheart.” He brushed my short hair from my neck as I relaxed back into him. God, I hoped he was right! I didn’t know how much more excitement I could let build, knowing that if this tour didn’t produce the right clues then that hefty weight of hope would come crashing down.

Finally we were on the move again and this time it took us to a more promising setting. After going around the corner and into a room that opened up, branching off to four different ways, I was glad to see it took us outside. Now, here was the real grit of Somerset house. Leaving behind the finery of the upper class we walked straight into the belly of the beast. Stepping through a time to where the real backbone of England’s workers would find a hard life of dirt and sweat.

This was where all the coal sheds were housed, along a cobbled narrow street that hadn’t really changed in over 200 years. I looked up and you could see all the levels to where we had first been stood outside the main entrance. You could even still hear the laughter of the children running through the fountains in that grand courtyard. A zigzag of staircases ran this way and that until it reached that level and I could easily see a way to break in if need be.

Ok, so now my thoughts were scaring me as I knew once you started analyzing how easy a place was to break in, that meant only one thing…I had spent way too much time around bad ass Demons! What was next on my list, a trip to get myself some camouflage gear, black face paint and some night vision goggles?!

“Wait!” I said a bit too loud making the guide stop and give me one of those ‘are you serious’ looks. I bit my lip and said a quiet,

“Sorry, please…um…carry on.”

We waited for the others to go ahead of us and I vaguely listened to our guide explain about the terrible work conditions and point out the shoots the coal came down inside the coal sheds that lined the walk way.

“Keira, what is it?” Sigurd asked once we were far enough away from everyone else.

“The book, I need to see the book again, I think I remember something in the Oracle’s riddle.” I flipped back the large flap on my bag and pulled out the book.

“Aha! See there, the number 26, we’re on the right track…woohoo!” I said once finding the right bit in verse three and pointing to the same number on the black door in front of us.

‘Number 26 is facing you Ahead,

And a door with no number is not a coal Shed,

So take a deep breath and greet the Dead,

To find the still heart of one Paul Whitehead’

I couldn’t help but jump up and down like happy fool, all the while slapping Sigurd on the arm like he should join me. Of course, he didn’t but it was nice that I got a smile for my obvious enthusiasm.

“So, where to next?” I asked reading through the riddle again. Sigurd looked down over my shoulder and re-read the verses himself and it only took a second for him to say,

“This way.” Then, grabbing the crook of my arm, he led me down the open passage way to catch up with the rest of the group. We continued to pass the black doors of the coal sheds which all had flimsy looking locks on them that would be one simple kick away from opening for someone like Sigurd. See...! There it was again, with the breaking and entry thoughts. What happened to the days where my main thought process was about course work or which gloves to wear with what outfit?! Well, that one was easy to answer and began with a capital D…

Draven.

Even thinking the name had me both aching inside and walking faster to get to this bloody heart! Ok, so I doubted there would be any blood after all this time, which brought on the next morbid question in my mind…what would a 240 year old heart look like?

“You still with me, øjesten?” Sigurd’s question brought me out of my daft thoughts and back into the now. I nodded and started to concentrate on the numbers on the doors. I only pulled my arm from his hold when I got to the first door without a number. It was unlike all the other doors which had been made from panelled wood, but this one was smooth glossy black.

“This must be it.” I said going up to run my hand over the door as if trying to judge what lay behind.

“No it isn’t.” Sigurd’s voice burst my bubble and I quickly found my hand no longer touching the door. Instead it was firmly encased in a much larger hand and being pulled in the opposite direction again.

“But it had no number and the book said…”

“That is number 17, look…the next door says 16.” He pointed to the door as we passed.

“So…it still didn’t have a number on the door, so that means…” Once again he cut me off.

“That means it didn’t have a number on the door, but it is still a coal shed and according to the crazy shit the Oracle told us, that’s not what we’re looking for.” Ok, so he had a point there!

He continued on pulling me and it was only when we were by door number 12 and I nearly tripped over a drain on the floor that he slowed down. However, this wasn’t because I had to practically run to keep up with his long legs, nearly falling over myself to do so, but because we had caught up with the group. They were all filing into a space where a set of double door had been opened up. I looked to see the numbers on the doors and even though ten didn’t have a number, the other side of the double doors was numbered 9. Which meant that one of the doors we walked though now, actually was the door with no number, just like the riddle said.

“Please gather round.” The guide said and I let Sigurd pull me further inside past the others so that we were closer to the back. The feeling of the dark behind me was unnerving for one reason only and that was because I could almost taste the humming power emanating from Sigurd who stood at my back. I looked behind me and gasped as I saw the shadowed serpents seeping out from behind his back as though they had finally been allowed to break free from the confines of their flesh and bone cage.

“What are you doing?” I whispered in desperate tones.

“Ssshh and relax, soon no one will see us anymore, my øjesten.” I swallowed the worried lump down and scanned the room for anyone who was looking at us even more strangely than usually. I was just about to do as suggested and relax when our guide spoke up,

“Welcome everyone…

To the Deadhouse.”

Chapter 37

The Deadhouse

The Deadhouse wasn’t what I expected it to look like, although what exactly I was expecting I didn’t know. But one thing was for sure and that was I definitely wasn’t expecting a horror movie boiler room. The small bricks that made up the walls were painted thick white which had long ago turned a dirty colour thanks to the damp streaks running down the walls from the overhead pipes. I couldn’t tell how far the room went on as the darkness we stood in prevented it, but it was only wide enough to fit a car and not much else either side.

One thing I was certain and that was it definitely didn’t lack the creep factor! As I had been pulled past the group I did have chance to notice the small recesses that held plaques either side of the walls making four in total. The only light in the room came from the open doors and a metal gate which obviously added to the security. This was left sticking out, causing looming shadows to branch out on the pale floor.

I felt Sigurd’s arms surround me and then I tried not to scream out as his shadowed serpents did the same. It was a strange sensation, somewhere between a light touch from a cold hand and a damp mist travelling over your skin. My senses reacted by leaving a trail of tiny bumps over my body as they slithered around my torso. I jumped in Sigurd’s hold when one of the heads reared back and hissed at me.

“Calm lille øjesten, they won’t hurt you… Légy jó a háziállatok, nem ijedt a kis drágám” (Means ‘Be good my pets, don’t frighten our little darling’ In Hungarian) Upon hearing the foreign words spoken by their master, they pulled back and made little crooning noises that sounded very similar to a purr.

“Won’t someone see us?” I whispered, rising to my tiptoes and turning my head to the side so my cheek rested on his chest. His two misted snake buddies shook their head at the same time he whispered his answer as a negative.

“The reason we are in the Deadhouse is to see these five tombstones you can see on the walls. Charles I’s wife Henrietta Maria of France was a devout Catholic and when coming to this country she didn’t come alone. In fact, she brought her whole entourage with her and, needing a place to practice their religion, Charles let her build a chapel in the grounds, which used to be situated in the Northwest wing. The chapel was designed by a man called Inigo Jones and when the new building of Somerset House was commissioned to be rebuilt in 1774, one Sir William Chambers had the chapel demolished. But for reasons unknown, other than his admiration for Inigo Jones, he had five of the tombstones found, kept and stored here.” I listened to the guide explain the strange events that led up to the very room we were now stood in and wondered why these tombstones. One thing was certain and that was I couldn’t wait to get a good look at them!

She continued to talk briefly about each one, but I quickly found myself distracted by the feel of bands of muscle pulling me deeper into the dark obscurity, one consumed by the shadows he ruled there.

“What are you…?”

“Silence now and trust me, sweet øjesten. It is time to let my Ouroboros hide us from view.” I decided it was wise not to argue and this turned out to be right when the group started to move on to the next stop on the tour. I let out the breath I had been holding until the guide shut both the gate and double doors, locking them behind her. I was about to call out when Sigurd’s hand clamped over my mouth.

“That would be foolish, honey.” He spoke directly into my ear and it became the only sound over my pounding heart in the solid darkness. He gave me a moment to let my panic go and only when he felt my pulse slow did he release his control.

“You alright now?” He asked me softly and I nodded as he still gripped my chin in a loose hold.

“Good girl, now let’s get to work.” He let his hand drop from my face and took my own hand in a gentle grip.

“But how, I can’t see a thing?” I asked hoping he was about to whip out a torch or maybe a mobile phone app that flashed Morse code.

“That’s where I come in handy.” He assured me.

We stopped moving and I felt his hands on my shoulders turn me slightly. I heard the whoosh of material moving back and then the small glow where his eyes would be. One came through like a silver light, where the other was a flame torched snake that circled his eye.

“I gather this means you can see in the dark?”

“And the stuffed animal prize goes to cutie here… now you look at the book and I will read out the tombstones to you.” I smiled in the dark at his funny response and then pointed out the obvious.

“That’s great and all, but I forgot to buy my set of night vision goggles…although they are now on the list…”

“Not going to be a problem. Get out the book.” I did as I was told and only when I felt his hand over the cover did I quickly move a step back. The last thing I wanted was a trip down nightmare lane again! He didn’t say anything but his actions made me shriek out. His slithering guard dogs snaked round me to hold me still and when I felt my elbow bang against something hard sticking out of the wall I knew it was for my own good.

“Ok, ok, I get the picture…down boys.” I spoke to the shadows and another hissing purr was my answer as they released me, trusting that I would stay put this time. My attention was soon caught by the glowing red letters from the Oracle, that now burned brightly on the page. This combined with the smouldering light from Sigurd’s eyes was enough for me to at least see my hand in front of my face.

“Now what?”

“Read the fourth verse” I took the book into my hands now feeling the slight heat it gave off.

“To your left is a name you know well, But the date 33 won’t get you into Hell, So move away and look for another, One that speaks fondly of the Queen Mother’…what’s that supposed to mean?” He didn’t answer me straight away but I felt myself being moved to the right side of the room.

“The other one you were stood in front of had the date 1633, so let’s try this one…next verse”

“Ok, let’s see… ‘Skull and cross bones isn’t down to a wooden leg,

For he was a doctor, so no need to beg, for he doesn’t hold the organ that you seek, it’s not even on this side, so go take a peek’…ok so what do you see?”

“Well this guy was obviously the doctor so let’s go back to the other side and see the only other one there.” I again felt myself being shifted around until we must have been opposite the one he spoke of. We stood in silence for a minute and then after Sigurd exhaled loudly he said,

“Next one, Keira.”

“Oh right, sorry…umm…ok it says, ‘So leave the doctor alone And look around the space, for once you find the ½ topped cross, you need to look under the pace’…pace no wait do you think she meant place?” I said re-reading that part again.

“No, the one we’re facing has a cross above it, the date 1691/2 and the words ‘requiesc in pace’ at the bottom…what’s the last one?”

“The date 169 and a half…well that’s weird… I wonder what that’s about?”

“Focus, Keira.” Sigurd said trying no doubt for patience.

“Ok, ok, my bad… last verse is ‘Look to a number 7 set in pale stone, the one you seek will rightfully sit upon the 7th throne, your lovely name you will no doubt find, and…”

“And?” He prompted.

“And an old withered heart lies waiting behind…Sigurd this is the one! Can you see it?” I said feeling my own heart soar that we had finally come this close. I waited for an answer from Sigurd but after too long of waiting I felt out for him in the dark and tugged on his arm.

“What is it…? Sigurd speak to me.”

“This life for Immortality, the 7th of May 1674…” His voice sounded strange, as if talking to himself and caught in the unbelievable.

“So this is it?”

“Keira it has your name…Queen Catherine and talks of the third sonne, the Queen mother and…”

“So what, that just means we found the right one, just like the verse said.” I didn’t understand where this strange reaction was coming from. He almost sounded too far away as though trying to figure out something that wasn’t there for everyone to see.

I was about to ask him to explain himself further, but his sudden actions stopped me. His fist shot out and hammered straight through the tombstone ahead of me, making me jump out of the way. The sound of crumbling stone raining down on the floor echoed along the walls. I could also hear his hand moving around in the hole he’d just brutally made.

“Come here.” Before I could move to the order, his shadowy friends once again found it fun to play with the Human and moved me over in front of him. I could swear the little devils were trying to tickle me!

“Now, I am going to put your hand in there and I want you to grab it.” Sigurd instructed, making me wrinkle up my nose.

“No, no, you can go for it…in fact, I insist.”

“Keira.” My name came out as a warning.

“But it’s gross.” Ok, so my argument wasn’t a mature one.

“I’m sure you will be fine and I think we can safely say it won’t bite…besides no demon can touch it remember, so unless you think our guide is up to doing extra occupational duties, then I suggest you get it over with.” I groaned at the thought and before I could back out and shy away from my duties as Supernatural ambassador, I held my breath, put on my best disgusted face and shoved my hand right into where Sigurd had left a gaping hole.

“I’ve got it.” I said quietly when finding more than just air with my probing fingers.

“Good work øjesten, now pull it out and put it straight into your bag…that’s it.” He instructed as I pulled the material wrapped package from inside its resting place. Once it was firmly in my bag, I breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Oh, thank God.” In return, the feeling of a massive weight lifted and floated away with the week’s turbulent events. We had the heart and now nothing could stop me from getting to Draven…

Nothing.

Once Sigurd had assured me he would see to the evidence of our thievery and busted us out of the Deadhouse, he relocked it and we silently found the quickest exit. For the most part he remained silent, if only for the brief muttering to himself. This was after we were back on the stone walkway heading away from the coal sheds, when he asked to see the book one last time. Then without any explanation he repeated two lines in the last verse to himself and I couldn’t help the shiver that washed over me.

‘The one you seek will rightfully sit upon the 7th throne,

Your lovely name you will no doubt find’

After this he didn’t elaborate and for some reason I couldn’t bring myself to ask. In fact, it was only when we were back up near the fountains did we finally speak to each other.

“What was that?”

“I have to go.” We both spoke at the same time but I was the only one to reply and shouted,

“What?” In response to his abrupt need to leave.

“I’m sorry but I have to see someone.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

“You’re leaving me?” I asked in a small voice, trying not to get upset at the idea of going this alone again. He must have heard the waver in my voice as my emotions got the better of me. He took a deep breath, stepped closer to me and raised his hand to cup my cheek.

“Lille øjesten.” He used a thumb to wipe away the single tear that escaped, one I wasn’t even aware had grown and slipped away from me.

“I will come back for you little one, but you must make me a promise.” I nodded, not trusting words right now, words that would no doubt bring on more useless tears, feeding the feeling of hopelessness.

“I want you to take the heart, go straight to the hotel and stay there until I return…can you do that for me?” He sounded so deep and soft. Listening to the way each word drizzled goosebumps along my skin, there was no way I could have denied him anything.

“I can do that but tell me…”

“I can’t tell you why Keira, not yet. I will just have to ask you to trust me again…you will do that for me…yes?” I bit my bottom lip, looked away for a second and then after taking a shaky breath, said what he wanted to hear and what I knew to be true.

“Yes Sigurd, I can do that for you.” His released a breath and let his hand slip round to grip my neck. He pulled me into his embrace and held me to him for silent minutes which gave me the secure strength needed to face being alone once again. I had become so dependant these last few days on my shadowed knight, that I felt a little hollow at the thought of walking away from him. Vulnerable would be new word choice of the day and I wanted to cry like a little lost girl at the prospect.

I mean, what if he didn’t come back? What then? No, I couldn’t think like that! I had trusted him this far, with my very life in fact, so I needed to man up and just keep on trusting him! So with that in mind, I hugged him tighter before letting him go.

“You’ll be back.” I said in way of confirmation. He smiled down at me and said a gentle,

“Yes sweetheart, I will be back for you.” I let those words float over me like a comforting blanket I wanted to hold onto, until I watched his large hooded form walk away from me. I then looked up to the clear sky, took a deep breath and after looking over my shoulder to see the main entrance of Somerset House one last time, I walked away giggling.

“Goodbye, Seaman’s Hall.”

The rest of the day was spent with me staring at the gauze wrapped package of Paul Whitehead’s heart, sat on the suite’s coffee table. Was it strange to be shocked that it was in fact heart shaped? I don’t know what exactly I expected to find, definitely not in a nicely wrapped Tiffany’s box that’s for sure but really…just a bit of mummified wrapping was all it took to gift someone with your heart. I wondered if Sir Francis Dashwood just sat it on his coffee table that day and stared at it.

One thing was for sure and that was how quickly the day went by just watching something old do a whole load of nothing in the sitting room! My gaze wandered to the massive windows that showed London in all its lit up glory and I couldn’t help but ask out loud,

“Where are you my friend?”

I must have had a brief thought about going to bed before crashing out on the sofa because, when I opened my eyes to the blinding morning sun, I quickly realised I had fallen asleep. I blinked back the grogginess to find the heart come into focus, still there on the table.

“So, what’s on the menu today life?” I asked the empty room after I stretched out my arms and yawned. My stomach was the only one that answered me when it started to rumble. I decided it could wait until I’d had a shower at least, but by the sounds of things it disagreed.

“Tough luck belly, the only thing you’re gonna get right now is soap.” I got up and started walking to the bathroom when I stopped and looked back at my new friend sat waiting on the table.

“Eww…I can’t believe I am gonna do this.” I said rolling my eyes at myself and what I was about to do. This was how I ended up having a shower with a 240 year old heart sat next to the bathroom sink. I just hoped the condensation didn’t effect it and make it soggy, that was the very last thing I needed right now and I doubt I could have called room service and ask them if they have an airing cupboard I could dry it out in!

I got out from the shower, wrapped a towel around myself and looked down at the heart whilst I brushed my wet hair.

“So was it good for you?” I smiled to myself, winked at it and said,

“Of course it was.”

I laughed thinking that I was taking the whole new friend thing to extremes and could only hope that I would cry when it was time for us to part, like when Tom Hanks had to say goodbye to his volley ball Wilson. Ok, so maybe this was finally confirmation that I was losing the plot! Thankfully the sound of the suite’s phone ringing didn’t allow me to look too closely into the new side effects of being alone. I picked up the heart, weirdly no longer feeling the ‘yuck’ factor, and raced for the phone.

“Hello.”

“Hello Miss Williams, I wanted to inform you that someone came in with a letter for you, would you like me to bring it to you personally?” It was the Hotel’s concierge and in my over excitement I screeched back,

“Shit yeah!” I heard him cough back his shock on the other side.

“Umm, sorry I mean, yes please, that would be smashing.” I winced as that didn’t sound any better than swearing. Well, if he didn’t think me a freak before, then that fake posh accent I was insanely going for would do it! At least he thought I was rich, so I had that going for me at least.

“Uh…yes Miss, of course, it will be with you shortly.” I put down the phone thinking ‘poor bastard having to deal with me’, but then just ended up laughing while changing into some jeans and thinking about it again. So much for trying to be shy little Keira girl that faded into the background…I think that flight took off quite a while ago and took that plain pipe dream with it!

I heard the knocking and was soon about to open the door thinking just how much my life had really changed, along with it my personality. I couldn’t be sure if it was for the better or not, but one thing I was certain of and that was my inner strength had definitely quadrupled! Everything I had been through since that life shattering day when I no longer had Draven to lean on. I had lost my soul’s protector and become the saviour in our combined life story. Even thinking about it made me bite my lip and start worrying about simply fucking the whole thing up!

The swearing in my mind just emphasised the importance of the task I still had waiting me. All those questions that I had kept at bay until now just seemed to burst from the flood gates. So what, I have the heart but what if it means nothing? What if Jared can’t keep his word and get me into Hell or more importantly what if he could…then what…bust in there, guns blazing, demanding my boyfriend back. Christ alive, but I didn’t even know who I would be aiming that damn gun at because, of course, I still didn’t know who had him!

Ok, so while I was about to answer the door, wasn’t really the time for a meltdown, but answer me…whenever was?

“Miss Williams?” I heard from behind the closed door that I realised I was still standing behind with my grip on the handle.

“Yes, sorry I’m coming.” I said in the steadiest voice I could muster. I closed my eyes tight and held in the frustrated tears that I refused to set free. No more being weak, if anything it was the time to grow an even thicker skin and get on with it, saying to Hell with Hell!

It wouldn’t beat me and if it did, then I would just die trying, knowing that there are far worst things to die for than dying for love. And this little northern English girl was willing to get into that blazing underground death club, kicking and screaming if need be! So with that firmly in my bad, ass mode mind, I opened the door to my next adventure, ready to ride the very waves of the River Styx right to Hell’s front door and this time…

Hell will know the damned.

Chapter 38

Hateful Hellfire.

I started to push my way through the crowd of tourists all on their way to various parts of London, cramming into the tube stations. I learned pretty quickly that when on the escalators to stand to the right so that the ‘real’ Londoners could run for their connections around the city. This was after a rather rude ‘Get to the pissin’ right love’, that I took a huffed side step to let the impatient cockney pass.

After opening the door to my suite I raced to get ready to do as the latest letter instructed. Which brings me to now and feeling like a small clueless fish in a massive pond of irate barracudas. Well, at least I figured out that by getting myself an oyster card topped up with a twenty would cut down on time with the ticket barriers, which was what I gripped in my hand now like I would need it at every turn. I may have been born English but the capital city still intimidated the Hell outta me!

After checking out the Hellfire Club on Google, which thankfully was only in West Wycombe and was about as 30 minute train journey from here, so I booked the first ticket I could. Now I was on my way to catch the Bakerloo line from Embankment station to Marylebone …sounds easy right, well that was until I noticed I was being followed!

It started on the same escalator that I had my first lesson in ways to piss off London business men. I don’t know what it was that made me turn round, maybe it was the extreme vertigo I felt by looking down the steep descent into the underground, but whatever it was it made me spot the guy. Not that it was hard given what he looked like. Of course, the empty steps around him were setting off alarm bells.

The guy was a tall black man and built like a friggin Mack truck! He wore a combat jacket with a hoodie zip up underneath and in this heat it was massive overkill for the sunny summer day. The only part of his wardrobe I would give him for the weather was the aviator shades he had hiding his eyes. His hair was thick black dreads that he wore knotted at the base of his skull and the cords in his neck bulged as he saw me staring.

I turned away from him quickly, feeling more than a little intimidated by his size and decided I needed to make my move. I counted to three in my head and side stepped to the left to move down the remaining steps with haste. I heard the commotion behind me of a woman outraged at being roughly moved aside. This meant I didn’t need to look behind me to know that the chase had begun…however I still did and yep, this guy was now in pursuit mode alright. Thankfully I had size on my side as I quickly reached the bottom and weaved in and out of people.

My heart raced in sync to the rumbling on the tracks as a carriage came into view ahead. If I could just make it before he got there, then I could lose him. It was the one time I was thankful for the squeeze of people all trying to get on and one glance behind me confirmed that his size wasn’t helping him.

The doors whooshed open and people fought to get off as others tried to do the opposite. I gripped my bag strap, put my head down and forged ahead in a tiny gap that I could see as one girl went one way and a man in a suit went the other. I crammed my way through them both and arched my back around another guy with headphones just in time to step into the one space left before the doors slid home.

A sea of disappointed faces became a blur in the background of one angry black fist that pounded on the door’s glass just as we began to move. With his strained face staring down at me for the mere second it took to leave, was enough to catch the flash of molten silver over his shades. They clouded with red ink that spread out over high cheekbones like poison and he snarled his frustration at me like a jungle predator.

I could only take a breath again once we were zooming along the tunnels of the underground, leaving the mad demon behind. I looked up to see my white knuckle hold on the railing and knew it wasn’t just thanks to the bumpy ride. I think it took every stop to Marylebone for me to finally calm my frazzled nerves. The walkthrough the station to find the right platform was a fast paced trek with a continuous look over my shoulder just in case. This turned out to be a wise choice as just as I rounded a corner I saw Mr scary big dude come storming around from the escalators, luckily not yet spotting me.

He must have caught the next tube barely minutes after my own to get here this fast. I quickly made it to the line of people waiting to buy tickets and thanked my lucky knickers when a spot opened up at one of the machines. After breaking the buying ticket record I grabbed my printed ticket to High Wycombe and ran for the barriers just as he spotted me. I looked to the guy at the end of the row of machines and thought to save time by asking him which platform I needed.

It was easy to see the panic in me and I was grateful he understood my need to hurry. I was just heading for my platform when I saw my stalker was quick on my tail. However, instead of going through the motions he just threw himself over the barriers with one hand. Then unlike my approach, he simply grabbed the same guy I had spoken with and I could just make out him raise his hand to my height before I disappeared down the stairs.

I nearly wept when I saw my train was already waiting there and I got on the first carriage so that I remained out of view just in case. The train wasn’t very full at this time so it made walking through to the front of the train easy. This, of course, was until I looked out of the window and saw that he was back. I quickly sank down in between the seats and when I looked up I saw I was acting crazy in front another passenger. She looked about seventeen and was wearing a Shinedown T-shirt, so I said the first thing that came to mind,

“Great band.” Her eyes widened at my comment but I didn’t let her say a word before I asked,

“Could you do me a favour and tell me when that massive black dude is gone?” I nodded to the window and she turned her stunned gaze away from me.

“He…he just went past.” I gave her a smile and said,

“Thanks,” before I got up and walked back up the train to where I started. I kept careful watch behind me and noticed one of the rail staff outside ready to whistle the train on. I was about to choose a seat thinking I had gotten away with it, when I leant over to see my stalker was back and getting on the bloody train!

“Shit.” I said before getting back to the aisle and moving to one of the doors. I opened it quickly and stepped back onto the platform just before the train was about to leave.

“It’s leaving right now, honey.” I smiled at the guy in uniform and said,

“Don’t worry, I will catch the next one.” I couldn’t help but smile when I saw it pulling away just as the black guy noticed he was leaving without me. I blew him a kiss and gave him a little wave. It wasn’t hard to see him take his anger out on one of the chairs and shout the word, ‘Fuck’. I was still chuckling to myself twenty minutes later when I was finally on the train heading towards High Wycombe.

Well, that was another demonic escapade I had dodged…maybe I should consider writing a ‘how to’ book when all of this was over. Again I laughed to myself. Once I let the humour of my situation go, I reached in my bag and decided to re-read the letter I’d received that morning.

I smiled at the name at the bottom, knowing my friend hadn’t left me for long. It was from Sigurd and although a little brief, I didn’t hesitate to jump to his instructions. He told me to get myself on a train to High Wycombe and meet him outside the gates of the Hellfire Caves tonight. So, I decided to get there early and case out the joint… Sigurd would most likely cringe at my corny Mobster talk but I didn’t care!

So just like that I had a new plan and was off once again, only this time I had escaped a possible threat all by myself…go me! I had looked up the Hellfire Caves website to find it was a tourist attraction and that for a small fee of 5 pounds you could go inside and check it out, which is exactly what I planned to do.

I decided whilst I had some time to kill I might as well get in my weekly phone call to Jack, Libby and my mum. I told Jack I was following a lead (feeling the role of a secret agent with a grin) I then told my mother and sister the same thing, which regretfully was mostly lies, being that I was having fun with Jack and RJ…ok, so it was all lies but what could I really say? I’m having a blast getting nearly kidnapped and I just got in my exercise of the day by running from a potential killer?!...err no, I didn’t think so.

So one train journey, one taxi ride and just under two hours later, I was now stood outside the Hellfire Caves looking up at the stone archway that was the entrance of the caves. Strangely it resembled a long forgotten Gothic church, with its tall flint facade and vaulted window divided by two slender stone columns. High flint walls also arched upwards surrounding the entrance to encompass a large open courtyard. But it was the eerie red glow coming from inside the caves that was no doubt added for theatrical purposes. If you asked me though it was just plain creepy!

At least I hadn’t first shown up here late at night with no one around and if I checked it out now I would be ahead of the game. Plus, seeing it for the first time at night would have probably made me pee my pants and I wasn’t ashamed to admit it.

I walked past the gates warning you of private property and felt a chill rack my body enough for my steps to falter. It felt like whatever was here from histories long dead didn’t want me here. But then across the courtyard was the sight of happy families just coming from the caves, with laughing children trying to spook each other. Didn’t they feel it?

I made myself walk closer and noticed a couple to my right sat down enjoying ice cream on one of the picnic tables. Large umbrellas were up shading a small group eating plates of chips and one of the cave’s staff members came from a door on the left carrying a tray of cakes.

The closer I got, the less sinister the whole place looked, but I still couldn’t shake the disturbing feeling that had tuned into my very consciousness. I tried to focus on the happy scene in front of me but this was quickly lost as pain crashed through my head as if I had been zapped.

“ACHH!” I gripped my head and fell down to one knee as the agony overwhelmed me. My eyes slammed shut and I pulled on my hair just for something to hold on to. I kind of hoped inflicting a different kind of pain on myself would bring me home. I don’t know how long I stayed this way, but when I finally braved opening my eyes what I saw was the impossible.

Twelve men in robes all stood in the courtyard with five on each side of the caves entrance, all holding a flaming torch. The two remaining men then dragged a shouting man between them who looked like he had been beaten into submission. Long hair hung down over his face as he gave up the fight, looking down onto the ground. His feet were rendered useless as the men that held him wouldn’t let him use them to walk. You could see the blood dripping from the raw flesh that had been exposed due to the gravel he was roughly dragged over.

The moon was full and high in the sky directly above the courtyard, but this time it was void of all tourist embellishments. In fact, it looked as though no one even knew about this place, or if they did they knew to keep well away or suffer the same pitiful fate as this man.

“Please! Let me go…Why do this…? Why…? What have I done to deserve such treatment?!” The man pleaded as the blazing lit entrance came closer, looking more and more like the entrance to Hell itself! I heard the sobbing and for a moment thought it was coming from the man about to face his doom. It was only when my hand covered my mouth to prevent a scream, that I felt the tears and knew I was the one sobbing. It was slow torture being made to be a part of this and shamefully I was almost glad when they finally got him to the entrance. I couldn’t bear the pain of it any longer and the hate for those men filled my mouth like the metallic taste of blood.

Then something insane happened. A booming crack of lightening hit the clear sky coming from nowhere. I screamed in my fright and turned from the sky to see them struggling to get the man inside the tunnel. He twisted his body and lashed out with his hands to grip the sides of stone in a desperate attempt at saving his life. But this wasn’t the reason I cried out. The reason was that the man’s face came into view thanks to the flaming torches that hung either side of the doorway. I couldn’t believe it!

“Jared!” I screamed out his name just as he looked up, found my face and said loud enough to carry along the flint walls to where I stood,

“Promises Keira…I want my promise… child.”

      I jumped as history blew away like a weathered building under a hundred year old storm. In its place was the sunny present and I stood in the centre of it with everyone watching me. Normally I would feel the need to explain myself or offer an excuse, but after what I just witnessed, I just couldn’t bring myself to pretend.

Seeing the strong Alpha I knew as Jared Cerberus to then the poor tortured soul of simple blacksmith Jared Weller, I felt like my own heart had been crushed. I wanted to reach into my bag and crush Paul Whitehead’s heart into dust for being the cause of so much pain!

What was done to him was cruel dark murder and I felt sick knowing that these men, thinking themselves above the law, used him for hellish gain. Well, I was glad when he came back as Jared Cerberus and put an end to their sadistic club!

“Can I help you?” It took some effort to focus on the person who asked me the question thanks to my building anger.

“Sorry?”

“Can I help you with anything?” A slim attractive girl stood in front of me waiting for a response. She had short black hair and was wearing a black polo shirt with the Hellfire Caves logo over one small breast.

“Umm…sorry, I guess I’m not with it today.” I said quietly, thinking what I really wanted to say was, ‘more like not with it this year’… Man that vision had really shaken me up.

“I just wanted to check out the caves whilst I’m here.” She gave me a small smile and said,

“Come on, I’ll get you a ticket.”

I stood by the entrance for what seemed like the longest time. It was like facing the door to a haunted house and knowing what you needed was inside, but you feared what you would see. I don’t know how many times I convinced myself to just wait for Sigurd to show up but each time I felt as though I needed to prove something to myself. I mean, if I wasn’t strong enough to walk in there on my own in the light of day, then how would I fair crossing over into Hell itself? After all, it was just a few caves…right? Well standing staring at it right now I wasn’t so sure.

I don’t know how many people I saw coming and going but each one was laughing or smiling as though they had just stepped off a fair ground ride. What would they really be like if they had any clue to the reality of what went on down there…? What if they had seen what I had? Would there be screams of terror? Would anyone weep desperate tears like I had done? These are the questions I would never have any answers to but one thing remained…

The caves didn’t want me in them.

This was something that the whole place seemed to scream out at me, like a pulsating threat, almost as if the very heart in my bag had started to beat along with its dark secrets. It was only once I took that first step through its warning gates did the pressure of the unwelcome start to ease. I walked into the red glow of the past and each side was filled with plaques of information of members of the Hellfire Club.

My lip curled as I came to the man responsible, one Sir Francis Dashwood. I stared into the face that seemed so respectable, one even holding a bible. I read the words below and my fingers curled into a fist before placing my hand over his face because I just couldn’t stand to see it any longer.

“You did this.” I snarled the words and pushed away from his picture like I was pushing the man himself. I ignored the words of history for the first time in my life, as I knew it would only be setting a foolish man in good light, when it should have been sticky with darkness, just like the tunnel I was about to step into.

I looked to the fake flame lights that were attached to either side of the opening and it quickly transported me back to the vision of Jared’s first life ending. The way the flickering light caught the distraught note of death in his features.

The complete realisation the end was coming was written in his eyes the way one sees the storm brewing. And they flashed silver, as though the beast knew his host was near. Well now I was the one that was near and with only my knowledge as power, I looked back at the entrance one last time to see the naive world looked a million miles away…and it was…it truly was.

As soon as I started to make my way into the first tunnel the first thing I noticed was how cold it suddenly became. The gravel under my feet crunched making it impossible to hear much beyond without stopping. I was thankful at least for the low lighting that didn’t plunge you into complete darkness. It wasn’t that far to the first part of the cave that branched off to the left after a creepy mannequin stood in a recess that represented the steward’s cave, or at least so the plaque that was on the wall told me.

Considering I didn’t fancy wigging myself out any more than I already was, I didn’t give it more than a glance before continuing on. The next stretch was now considerably darker than the first part and it started to decline deeper underground. The next plaque I came to caused me to hug my centre as I read the title,

‘Ghosts in the Cave’

The first name was none other than ‘Paul Whitehead’. Now, that was one ghost that would regret showing up around me, unless he fancied getting his pale ass kicked and getting a piece of my mind while cupping his pasty white balls! Ghost or no ghost, I just didn’t care, the heartless bastard was gonna get what was coming to him!

I decided not to read on anymore but just continue on only to find the nasty bugger had his own bloody cave. Here it explained about leaving his heart to Dashwood in a marble urn that was still there behind a gated door. They had dressed some poor dummy up to mimic Paul Whitehead, that stood next to the resting place of where his heart should be. I felt some sick revenge twist my gut knowing that I had that very heart in my bag right now and I wanted to mock him with the fact. My actions happened without thought as I dug in my bag and grabbed the heart in a bruising hold. In fact, I was surprised that when I lifted it out it still remained in one piece.

“Here it is Whitehead…this is all that is left of you.” I whispered holding it closer to the place the man used to spend his time and the raw power I felt buzzing along my veins was one that could easily become addictive. It was only when I heard someone approaching that it pulled me from my dark game and I quickly hid it from view.

I decided to let the people pass me so I waited before I carried on, deeper down until coming to a junction. It was lighter on the right so I chose that way for obvious reasons. This whole part went round in a circle so I didn’t think I would miss much by choosing the easier route. When both sides came together it started to decline further still and I wondered just how deep underground you were when at the end.

Another plaque I looked at in disgust, as it named off the members of the Hellfire Club in 1762. I shook my head without reading the names as at this point I didn’t think it a good idea to increase the negative vibes I was projecting already…not in a place that had them in abundance.

The next part of the cave got considerably steeper and because of this I was putting the sudden drop of temperature down to that fact. I pulled my hood over my head to keep the chill from my neck and pulled my fingerless gloves further over my hands as I took cautious steps forward. One more step and it had me feeling as if I’d just walked through a different time once more. It was as if I’d just missed a step where there weren’t any and I fell forward having to catch myself on the wall before I hit the floor.

My hand slipped on the damp stone but thankfully I had already saved myself from sacking it. Although when I pushed my hair back I saw the white chalk that now covered my palm from the light. It was only when I spun round that I realised why the light was placed there in the first place. Large Roman numerals were carved into the stone of ‘XXII’ which thanks to the plaque underneath told me it meant 22.

“What’s this?” I whispered out loud frowning but read on.

TAKE TWENTY STEPS

‘Remnants of 18th century poems referring to a secret passage in the caves’

Take twenty steps and rest awhile,

Then take a pick and find the stile,

Where once I did my love beguile,

‘Twas twenty-two in Dashwood’s time,

Perhaps to hide this cell divine,

Where lay my love in peace sublime.

When Churchill turned against the club in the Wikes quarrel, he wrote a poem with lines in it that seemed to give the same hint:

Under the Temple lay a cave,

Made by some guilty, coward slave,

Whose actions fear’d rebuke, a maze,

Of intricate and winding ways,

Not to be found without a clue,

One passage only known to few,

In paths direct led to a cell,

Where Fraud in secret lov’d to dwell,

With all her tools and slaves about her,

Nor fear’d lest honesty should rout her.

When I finished reading I was in shock. It was like something the Oracle would have written. But here it was, clear white writing on a black background with the light shining against it. There was no mistaking that this was something important and following my gut, I just knew this was the very spot that would aid me in getting into Hell. Well if it wasn’t, then I would go as far as saying I would eat my own foot! Ok, so I wouldn’t, but you get the level of passion I felt right now. This was it…

This was the gateway to Draven.

Chapter 39

It’s Dark in Hell

The rest of the cave was as expected…dark, cold and depressing for me. Maybe if I hadn’t had such an intimate connection then I would have enjoyed the history that only hinted at the sordid. But as it stood I knew exactly what had gone on here and sordid wasn’t a strong enough word for it!

I thought at one point I would throw up as I made my way from the Banqueting hall to the Inner Temple. The nauseating feeling that just washed over me was like being drowned in a negative sea of emotions. You could almost taste it in the frigid air the further away from the outside world I ventured. At one part you had to cross a small bridge to get to a large room they called the Inner Temple, where they had brightly dressed mannequins drinking around a table. This actually made me laugh out loud.

Did they really believe that a man would go as far as to dig over half a mile into the countryside and some three hundred feet down just for a bit of fun? Just for a quirky place to host parties? Well, I knew the truth and it was a damn sight darker than the smiling faces of the dummies that were putting on an unconvincing show of playing normal.

The River Styx was said to be what you crossed to get into the Temple but these days it was little more than a small pool of water, although according to the plaque by the bridge it was said to be much deeper years ago and the only way across it was by boat. Now, knowing my mythological history and what I had read up on since being thrust into the world of the supernatural, I knew what this meant.

The River Styx was what separated the real world from the Hades ruled version of the Afterlife. Although Hell in the Christian sense was only where ‘Bad people’ were sent, but in the Underworld mythology states there are different sections. The Elysium fields for the good, the Asphodel meadows for the indifferent or ordinary, and the Tartarus for the evil. However according to Roman beliefs Avernus is for the good and Inferno for the evil.

I also found it fascinating that one story my gran had told me when I was younger was about Achilles. According to the mighty legend that was Achilles, he was supposedly dipped into the river in his childhood. It was believed that the River Styx also had miraculous powers and could make someone invulnerable and immortal, so when he was lowered into the water he gained this same power to carry on throughout his life. However, when being lowered by his mother the only part that wasn’t touched by the water was his heel, by which she held him. This was the reasoning behind his one and only weak spot known of course as the Achilles' heel.

Mine, no doubt, would be named Draven.

So, more importantly, getting back to the River Styx and the reasons in which I believed it would play a part in my next mission. The ferryman Charon was believed to have transported the souls of the newly dead across this river into the Underworld. In ancient times some believed that placing a coin in the mouth of the deceased would help pay the toll for the ferry. This is why I think coins were found in the caves themselves. I think Dashwood believed that by paying the ferryman across this part in the caves was the same as paying to get into the Underworld.

There was a plaque in the banqueting hall to explain that one of the first visitors of the caves when they first re-opened found a lump of chalk and embedded within was a series of coins. Not only is it odd in itself to find this, but what was stranger still was that they were scratched on in Greek characters. These characters read ‘Francis’ and ‘HHHH’ on the reverse. Discoverers of the coins believed this could denote to ‘Hell’ in being the banqueting Hall and the church above representing ‘Heaven’. However, I had my own theory.

I believed that Dashwood had these coins made for his twelve Apostles. His ‘brothers’ that were the only ones allowed to cross the river and enter the inner Temple, paying the ‘Ferryman’ with his own coins. This thought automatically made me think of my own coin which had never left my pocket. Did that have something to do with what was coming next? Was I to use that to pay my own way into Hell?

All these questions plagued me as I spent the rest of the day sat on one of the picnic benches picking at a club sandwich. I explained to the staff that I was meeting someone but didn’t know when they would show, so that after ordering my fourth cup of tea, they didn’t think me as much of a weirdo. I also got up and walked up the massive hill to the Dashwood Mausoleum that stood next to the Church of St Lawrence. It was closed off from the public but was open enough to see inside and had you only imagining what must have gone on there.

Another mystery was the strange golden ball that sat on top of the tower of the Church, which was out of place for somewhere like West Wycombe. Again the place was conjuring up more questions than answers.

It was actually surprising how fast the day went by and soon I noticed that they were telling the few other people around that they were closing at 5:30. I picked up my plate and mug to take into the coffee shop which, I noticed, also sold a few souvenirs. I put my empties down on the counter to look at the shelves. I found mostly corny skulls, witches caldrons and your usual magnets, oversized pencils, rubbers and leather bookmarks, all imprinted with the Hellfire Caves logo. Then I picked up the essentials.

A chocolate skull, a cake bar, and tin of toffee, a book on the caves and a wind up torch that also had the Hellfire Caves logo on it.

 “A few gifts for the family?” The same girl that had helped me earlier asked as she came from the kitchen.

“Uh…yeah, why not?” She frowned at me for my weird answer and I decided to act somewhat normal for a change.

“They have a sweet tooth...hey, I don’t suppose I could get a bottle of water off you as well…? You know, for the trip home.” She smiled at me as she rang my items through the till.

“Sure thing, I gather your friend didn’t show in the end?” She inquired politely.

“He’s more of what you would call a night owl, so I didn’t hold much faith that he would.” I said not completely lying.

“That’s a shame he missed out.” I couldn’t help but let loose a nervous giggle.

“Umm yeah…I guess, but I am sure he will get another chance soon.” Like in a few hours just after you guys high tail it outta here! Of course I didn’t add this, but did manage to get in another nervous giggle for good measure.

“Well, I’d better be off, but thanks for your help and have a good evening.” I said and she smiled once more replying,

“Yeah, you too.” I turned and muttered,

“Doubtful, where I’m going.”

After hooking the plastic bag handle round my wrist, I walked outside the gates as the last person to leave, then I waited. On the other side of the flint walls was a small grass verge where I sat and when I looked round it gave me a good view to see what was happening with the staff. It didn’t take long, as I gathered all that needed doing was a quick walk through the caves to make sure no one was still down there, before they could start to lock up.

I saw the girl walk into what must have been a control room as the lights went off just inside the entrance. Then I saw my opportunity, as she must have heard a phone ringing because she left the gates open to go and answer it. I waited until she went out of sight and then made a mad dash for that entrance. I jumped over the ticket barrier, thinking I didn’t do it with as much flair as that black dude had, as I nearly fell forward. I righted myself and ran for the darkness of the caves so that when she came back she wouldn’t see me.

After about five minutes she returned still chatting on her mobile phone, telling someone she would be home soon and did they need her to pick anything up. I was just glad she was distracted as she locked the gate and didn’t look too closely or she would have seen me hugging the damp wall like an over-enthusiastic rock climber.

“Do we have any garlic to make the sauce?” Was the last thing I heard her say before it became silent. I waited for longer than was necessary before coming to the entrance way which thankfully was still light thanks to the summer sky. The main gates were now locked but I knew this wasn’t going to be a problem for Sigurd when he finally turned up.

The letter didn’t say a time but I knew it would be dark so I had some hours to kill and I was damn certain I would be spending them right here in the light, not in the creepy caves that were now pitch black. So I plonked myself down, put my back to the wall and bit into my chocolate skull.

I didn’t know what time it was but it was now dark, my mobile phone was dead and I felt a bit sick from pigging out on chocolate, cake and toffee. But in my defence, that was all that was available to me at the time, so a dinner of sugar was what I got. The water was long gone and I had powered up the torch as much as my hands could do without giving into cramp. It was one of those dynamo ones that needed to be squeezed about a gazillion times before giving off enough light to last about 3 minutes but it was all I had.

So, for the last hour at least I was fed, powered and ready to go…just not down there… alone and in the dark with a load of pissed off ghosts that had heard me slagging them off most of the day! But as the minutes ticked by and still no Sigurd I was getting restless. What if I needed to be down there waiting? Although, even thinking it made me laugh at how stupid it sounded. I mean, why would he want that and if so, why not write it in his letter?

No, I was safer waiting up here, where at least there was a security light that hadn’t plunged me into darkness. Oh and there was also a fullish moon that aided in lighting the courtyard. It seemed to reflect off the flint and give it a silvery glow that I had been staring at for longer than was healthy. I had already tried the control room door to find it locked up tight. Now wouldn’t that have been handy.

Long ago I had read the book and to my disgust, the plaques about Dashwood and other members that plastered the entrance way. I mean, I was that bored right now I could find joy reading a take-away menu! In fact I was just in the process of reading how many calories were in the brownie cake bar when I heard the rumble of an engine.

I got up and dusted myself off to walk to the gate, when I saw there was more than one motorbike coming closer to the main gates. My eyes widened as reality sank in and I crouched low so that they wouldn’t see me. I scrambled to the ticket barrier and used that as cover to see what was happening.

I saw one of them flip the kickstand and dismount the bike. He walked over to the gates and with a swift kick in the middle they thrashed back, admitting the rest of the bikers into the courtyard. Well, unless Sigurd was in a ‘Hell raiser’ biker gang he forgot to mention, I knew I was in deep shit.

I looked to the tunnel that was my only means of escape and then back at the first guy who was pulling off his helmet. I swore out ten types of screwed in my head as I saw who it was. The same black mountain of a man, who had chased me around London’s underground, had now found me and from the look of the scowl etched on his face, I didn’t think he had forgiven me for giving him the slip.

I had two really bad choices ahead of me and only one of them meant not getting immediately kidnapped or worse, being the furthest place from Hell I could get…which depending on how the Gods looked at letting me in at the Pearly Gates… Well, there are all the new ‘break ins’ to consider! Ok, humour kept me from crying like a helpless little girl right now, but it didn’t help with putting the bad decision into plan. So with that in mind, I took in a steady breath just as I heard the big dude’s threatening declaration,

“If she’s here, we will find her.” That’s when I whispered,

“Oh Hell, no.” And in the words of a good old western, I got the Hell outta Dodge! I picked my timing right as they all turned to watch a larger bike roll in, one with its rider having silver flames on his helmet before I took my shot. I stayed as low as possible while still moving and managed to grab the strap of my bag before running for the tunnel. I ran into the dark abyss, feeling along the walls for support until I was far enough away to fumble with getting the torch out of my bag.

In my panic I dropped it on the floor before I had chance to click it on. I dropped to my knees feeling the gravel floor digging in through my jeans and frantically felt round for the little plastic torch that would save my life in this Hell hole. I felt it not far from my own boot and tried to get my shaking hands to co-operate long enough to click the bloody thing on!

The small beam of light was like seeing the sunrise after a lifetime of obscurity. I spun it one way and couldn’t contain the scream when I saw a dummy dressed up like a steward stood behind a caged door. I fell back into the plastered wall in shock and had to get a grip for a few wasted seconds in order to brave going further.

“It’s just a dummy Keira, get a grip girl…don’t freak out now.” I whispered in the dark feeling slightly comforted by the sound of a voice, even if it was my own. I didn’t wait around to see if the guys outside had heard me. I just lifted my bag strap over my head and gripped the torch in a death grip.

“Be brave…be brave…be brave.” I repeated as I continued on and took the most frightening steps I ever had before in my life. The echoed crunch of each step beneath my feet made it impossible to tell if anyone was behind me without stopping and that was just something I wasn’t willing to do. It wouldn’t take them long to guess that I had braved hiding in the caves, so I needed to use what little time I had ahead of them and hide somewhere.

My little torch offered me a small amount of comfort but only enough that it stopped me from walking into any walls. Anything other than that and I was on my own. It just wasn’t powerful enough to penetrate this level of darkness. I had never encountered anything so frightening before. It was almost thick enough to reach out and touch. With each foot further the harder it became to breath at a normal rate. The temperature was so cold, I could no longer put down my shaking to just the intense fear.

The last time I remembered being this cold was when being pushed into the frozen lake by Layla and being convinced I was going to die. Well, right now I was not far from the same feeling. I didn’t actually know what was still making my legs move further on, but I didn’t think I was that far from crumbling to the floor and praying for this nightmare to end.

It felt like the heavy blackness that surrounded me was weighing me down and a brick wall at my back was preventing me from escaping. I felt trapped in my own fear and I needed to calm myself down if only so that my breathless panting wouldn’t give away my position. I tried to take deeper breaths…in…out…in…out they came and went but no matter what I tried telling myself, my heart wouldn’t cease its hammering against my chest cavity.

I had to stop for a second, I had to just try and control this dread. I leant against the wall with the flash light shaking in front of me, so I used both hands in an attempt to gain some control. That’s when I realised I was silently sobbing and the tears I left behind were like an invisible trail of bread crumbs.

“Control…breathe and control breathe Keira…darkness can’t hurt you…remember back…Why are we afraid of the darkness when the light shows us more of the land of nightmares?" I let this mantra sink in and used it to ease my deep set fear, twisting it into something else. The grip on reality started to seep back in and I convinced myself that the danger wasn’t down here but back up there and it…well… it was coming for me!

So I decided to use the darkness as a tool, a means of hiding like a friend that would shield me against the real threat. I needed to trust the shadows like I trusted that Sigurd would come. He would save me, I just knew it but until then I needed to be strong. I needed to let go of the fear.

I wiped away my tears, gritted my teeth and my breathing became that of determination. I lifted my head and with a steadier hand, aimed my way to take firmer steps into what I now considered was my escape. And so I moved. Strong and sure onwards I went until I found one of the plaques on the wall. This time when I saw another dummy I didn’t freak out other than let my breathing hitch at the unexpected. This was Franklin’s cave and if I remembered correctly not far from the banqueting hall. This was going to be my aim, as I knew exactly where I was going to hide.

As I stopped at the junction I started to hear other people in the cave and knew it wouldn’t be much longer before they were upon me. I picked the right tunnel and moved as fast as I could, all the time resisting the impulse to look behind me with the flash light. I knew that would be another way to give them my position if they were close enough behind me, so I put a lock down on that urge. I was just coming around to where the left side would have brought me and that’s when disaster struck. The light from my torch started to flicker as the power started to diminish.

“Shit!” I whispered and started to work the dynamo to gain more power but the noise it made was too loud. I knew it wasn’t far now so decided to continue on quicker. The dim light flickered off mid-step making me inhale sharply. I had to pump it a few times to get it back and I shrieked out when the light lit up two figures of small children right in front of me. I only just managed to keep hold of my bladder let alone the torch!

My mind quickly started to process what it was seeing and I remembered back to earlier. This was the children’s cave and the small mannequins I saw now demonstrated how some children would find their way down here to play…which sounded just plain bonkers to me.

I moved on from this disturbing display pretty quickly, hating anything creepy that included kids, but in my haste I didn’t see what was in front of me. I went straight into the wall ahead and let my hand save me from knocking myself out. I looked up to see something in the wall that didn’t make sense…A face? I moved back and raised the flickering torch only to freak myself out again enough to scream. Right in front of me was some weird skull shaped head that had been carved into the stone. It looked like someone had created the eerie picture by using their fingertips to gouge into wet clay. The stark white face of chalk dripped with condensation almost like it was crying for my distress. Green moss grew around the top and framed its shocked features. Why would anyone make this?

I whipped my head round as I heard once more the distant voices coming from the passages behind me and wondered how long I had. Needless to say I did this thinking whilst on the move. I aimed what little light I did have and saw straight ahead of me was an opening, so I ran. I held on to my bag to stop it beating around my body with the movement and made it into the massive open space that was the banqueting hall. It was the largest space in the caves and it was easy to see this was the main hosting area for Dashwood and his friends.

I didn’t really care about that now, as my thoughts were more along the line of, ‘I hoped I had made the right decision to hide here’. I scanned the area just as my light started to completely give out on me but at least managed to find one of the deep alcoves before it did. Soon the dark wall at my back surrounded my entire body in a black cage of terror.

I felt around the rock until I was sure of the ledge I was about to hoist myself up onto and lifted my bag over before using my puny upper body strength to lift the rest of me up. I scrambled forward until I felt the bars on the door that kept me from going any further.

“Damn it!” I said in a frustrated whisper. I wrapped my fist around the metal and gave it a shake that echoed in the empty space. I cringed at the sound and knew I couldn’t get away with doing that again. It didn’t help that the ceilings in this room were about thirty foot high, giving every movement a boost in sound. I shifted my weight and sat with my back to the bars, with my legs tucked up tight to my chest.

Well, this was it. I could do no more and didn’t have time or the light to find another spot to hide in. I had remembered the alcoves but forgotten about the bars preventing you from getting inside them. All the men needed was a decent torch and I would be done for. Ok, so a gun was now going on my new list of must haves…because those night vision goggles would have come in pretty handy right about now!

Waiting was another form of torture. Being sat in the dead silence with despair as my only friend was not an experience I would ever like to relive any time soon. There was nothing worse than waiting for the unknown to find you scared out of your ever loving mind and unable to fight for your life. What could I do against Demons the size of wrestlers on steroids? Well, one thing I would be doing and that was throwing this piece of shit torch at them…fingers crossed I took out an eye!

When I first saw the light coming from beyond the passageway I had to slam my hands over my mouth so as not to scream. I even had to bite down on to my bottom lip to prevent the trembling. I knew this was it and what other choices did I have…? I was out of time and luck was no longer my friend.

“In here.” A voice travelled to me and I tried to stay as still as the air in this room. I focused on my breathing but it was difficult when my lungs felt like they couldn’t get enough air to circulate around my body and to my pounding heart. I finally got my first glimpse of who was after me as a black figure had to almost bend double to get through the opening. I was lucky in the sense that they were only armed with the small flare of light from the lighter he held.

I didn’t want to get my hopes up but I knew that thing wouldn’t be giving him much to go by. As he stretched up to his full height he lifted it up closer to his face and I saw the single flame reflected in the mirrored lenses he still wore covering his eyes. My stalker walked further into the room to allow the others at his back to also enter. Three big guys spread out as each took a space in the room that was on either side of the archway.

“Give it up girl, we know you’re in here.” The black guy stated in a firm authoritative tone, which told me he was the one in charge. Which begged the question…who the Hell was this guy?!

“She’s here, I can hear her little heart pounding…we won’t hurt you girl.” I wanted to shout out, ‘yeah right’ but decided to bite my fingers instead. I heard him release a breath through his nostrils in frustration before he started moving around the room.

“The light isn’t for our benefit.” He told me as he made his way round. The sound of the gravel under his booted feet danced along my tightly strung nerves until I want to shout out not to come any closer.

“It’s for yours pet, so you know where we are…it’s for your fear...” He stopped and the small flame let me see enough of his face to witness him sniff the air like an animal sniffing out its prey.

“…The fear I can smell and…” He licked his lips before snarling the word,

“…Taste.” He then smiled, flashing a fang that grew in length from his gums and down his chin. He stopped and waited, as though trying to judge something and then when obviously coming to a decision, he did something that nearly made my heart stop beating.

“It was your choice, pet…” His grin grew and he turned his head to the lighter he held and finished his sentence,

“Now it’s mine.”

Then…

He blew out the light.

Chapter 40

Twenty Two Steps for the Brotherhood

             Now with the only light long gone and four men in the room with me in their sights, my chances plummeted just as my fear skyrocketed. I could hear the crunch, crunch, crunch of each footstep getting closer and I wondered if everyone else could hear the deafening chorus of my heart beating out like death’s drum.

The irrational part of my brain wanted to close my eyes tight and repeat ‘there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home’. Thankfully though I didn’t give into the compulsion and remained as still and silent as I could.

“Be sensible now, girl.” His gruff voice surprised a sharp breath from me at how close it sounded. I reached down by my side until I felt the gravel there and so, so slowly grabbed a fistful of the tiny stones as my only means of a weapon. I knew it was a wasted effort, but I just didn’t have it in me not to try and fight, even if it meant my death. These bastards wouldn’t take me with ease!

One, two, three more crunching sounds, the last one being the loudest so far told me where he was in the room. My hold on the stones tightened until it hurt but it was a pain I welcomed. If anything it brought me comfort to know that these little pebbles could hurt someone.

Then suddenly he was there! I screamed out as the lighter lit his face right in front of me and if that was his way to elevate my fear, then he couldn’t have been more wrong! But the one thing it did at least do was give me a target. I turned my scream of fright into one of outrage and threw my handful of small projectiles in his face, watching with satisfaction as one cracked the lens of his shades. He took a few startled steps back and I took my chance. I jumped from the ledge, leaving my bag and in exchange reaching for the zippo lighter that still had flame. Then I legged it for the opposite exit into the next set of caves.

“RAAAHHH!” The roar echoed round the walls and I almost expected them to shift with the force and come crashing down on us all. I panted out my panic and kept running with one single flame to guide my way. I soon found myself torn between my haste and the light that wasn’t taking kindly to my speed. It kept threatening to go out and at one point it hit its limit. I stopped, frozen in the dark and through my shaking hands, fumbled to try and re-ignite it.

“Come on! Come… on!” I shouted at it through gritted teeth until I got it the on the third try. The tight space of the tunnel reflected with an orange glow but was only enough light to show me a foot in front of me. However, I kept running. I could hear the shouting of angry voices coming at my back but knew I couldn’t stop now. All ideas of them not hurting me after what I had done were long gone.

I quickly came to a junction and didn’t think about the decision as I took the right, pushing away from the rock I bumped into. It hurt but my mantra then turned away from being afraid of the dark and more towards…

“It’s just bruises Keira, it’s not a severed head, which is what you will get if you don’t get the fuck outta here!” I no longer cared if they could hear me anymore as there was only one place I could go and one place for them to follow. My mind started to work like a damn steam engine as I thought back to today. Where else could I hide, what else did I see?

“Wait…the river!” That was it! I remembered the river that bent round out of sight. The water was shallow enough to walk through and surely they wouldn’t think to look there…would they? Well, there was only one way to find out. I bumped along the tunnel, propelling myself off the sides whenever I would get too close.

“God, where is it!?” I asked frustrated with not knowing what was around the corner and desperate to see the next section that would bring me out by the Inner Temple.

I finally came to the point where both ends met and when I rounded the corner a high pitched scream exploded out into the caves! It actually took a second to figure out it came from me as a shadowy figure came at me. A ghost looked as though it came straight from the rock wall and came charging right at me. I tried to turn and I covered my head with my arms in a protective manner out of reflex.

“O…oh…GGG…od please…” I stammered through my arms knowing soon my legs would give way and I would no longer be able to move. All the things I had seen in my life and never once had I seen what I considered to be a ghost. It just proved that the things we fear the most in life was the unknown.

“Calm.” A gentle voice spoke as it neared and I screamed again when I felt it touch me.

“NO!”

“Look at me…Keira, see me.” I knew that voice! That rough voice that had whispered in my ear, that had told me his secrets and of his first life passed.

“Jared?” I said as I felt my arms being gently lifted off my head.

“Is it really you?” I asked in a small voice that was on the verge of hopeful tears.

“Yes, pet.” On hearing his answer, even before I saw his face to confirm the fact, I threw my arms around his neck and clung to him, thinking of the impossible act of ever having to let go. I felt his hand hold the back on my head to his shoulder and then realised we were both on the floor. When did I fall…when did he catch me? He was on his knees holding me to him with one hand at my head and the other ran up and down my back as I sobbed into his jacket.

“Ssshh now pet, I have you safe.” He crooned softly into my hair.

“Yyyou…you’d better not be a bloody ghost.” I stammered out after letting my emotional outburst run its course. I felt the rumbling in his chest as he laughed.

“I can assure you I’m not.”

“Thank God.” I muttered and he laughed again.

“Although I don’t think we can thank any God on that account, now come, up you get.” He said gripping the top of my arms, raising me to my feet. I wobbled a bit and he held me steady until he was satisfied. This was when my situation sank in enough to be useful.

“Jared, you have to listen to me, there…there are men out there, they…well, they chased me down here and there’s this one guy, a massive guy that followed me earlier today and now he has more men and…and…” My head was going back and to, through this jumbled tale, as if expecting them to jump out at us around the corner.

“Keira, stop.” When I didn’t look at him I felt his fingers and thumb grab my chin. With my face still turned down I saw the small flame from the lighter I must have dropped in my shock. It was just enough light to show me his serious face after he held me still for a minute, before raising my head up to look at him. His silver eyes flashed in the dim light as he assessed me and only when my breathing had calmed did he speak.

“There is no threat, Keira.” I knew he spoke the truth and was about to brave asking him what he had done to them, but decided I had enough horror for one day and didn’t think adding a word by word description on a mini massacre would be wise…Not unless he had a fancy for watching consuming chocolate in reverse!

When he held out his hand I decided to trust him and gave him my hand in return. He lent down and retrieved the lighter, flicking it closed and plunging us into darkness.

“What are you…?”

“I can see well enough for the two of us, so trust me. Keep hold of my hand and put your other hand on the back of my jacket. Take slow steps and you will be fine.” I did as I was told, taking the back of his jacket in a tight grip making him chuckle. We walked a few steps and after I stumbled into the back of him a few times he huffed out his frustration.

“Let’s try something else.” This was the only warning I got before he turned to face me abruptly and lifted me by the waist up his front. I gasped and quickly found a hold on his shoulders to keep steady.

“Wrap your arms around my neck.” I did as I was told as I dangled a foot above the floor.

“Now wrap your legs around my waist and lock your feet at my back.” I coughed before saying a confused,

“Sorry… what now?”

“Just do it, pet.” I bit my lip in the dark at the intimate position this new hold put us in and could feel my cheeks burn, even in the icy temperature. When I complied with his gentle command he leant his head down, brushing my neck with his nose, inhaling deeply. Then his lips skimmed up the column of chilled skin resting just by my cheek. This was so his praise could be heard clearly, making my heart skip a beat.

“Good girl, now hold on tight, I am going to be moving fast.” I did as I was told making him smile against the side of my face before he took off. Thankfully, the stronghold he had on my upper body prevented me from being too jostled when he broke out into a mad run through the pitch black tunnels. I tucked my head by his neck as the feeling of dizziness washed over me from travelling fast in a small space I couldn’t see but only feel.

It took no time at all to make it back up the tunnels and when he stopped I felt kind of woozy from the speed.

“You can let go now, pet.” I heard what he said but for some reason it took some time for me to follow through with the suggestion. I felt him chuckle before reaching behind his back to first unlock my legs before doing the same with my hold on his neck. I was surprised he didn’t actually need to pry my fingers back, I held on that tight. He held me as I slid down his length and like before didn’t release me until he was certain I wasn’t going to drop as the sack of jelly I felt like.

It took me a moment to figure out where we were. I couldn’t help but squint at the little light that was coming from somewhere in the room and I had to blink a few times to regain focus. Although, as soon as I did this, I immediately wished I hadn’t, for there, leaning against the same ledge I had hidden in, was my big scary stalker!

It took me all of about ten seconds to realise none of the men were a threat to Jared, especially the black dude who was stood casually with his arms folded over his vast chiselled chest encased in leather. I wrenched from Jared’s hold and backed away from him. His eyes narrowed at the sight of my retreat and a growl rolled up from his chest.

“Keira!” He said my name in warning but I shook my head.

“You…you’re…with them.” It wasn’t a question but I still hoped for denial as an answer. It was when I didn’t get it that I made my move. I spun quickly and made a foolish dash for the way out of the banqueting hall. It was quickly proven to be foolish when steel bands wrapped around me from behind and pulled me flush with a solid chest against my back. I started to squirm around in hopes of getting free when his growling stopped and it started to sound vicious.

“STOP!” He roared hurting my ears. Of course, I did as I was told. I could feel his heavy breathing as his chest heaved, making each muscle tense from his rippled abs to defined pecs that pressed into me from behind…Oh yeah, I stopped moving alright!

Once he got his temper under control, I felt his hold ease so I could at least breathe without working at it.

“Testy little thing isn’t she?” I looked to the black guy who just looked a bit bored with the whole display of disobedience. Jared just growled at him and then whipped me around to face him. His silver eyes flashed in his obvious anger and I swallowed a frightened lump at seeing it directed at me.

“Don’t. Do. That. Again.” Each controlled word looked ripped from a pit of fury and all I could do was nod silently.

“So, what next?” Jared’s burning gaze still tried to burrow a hole in my head when the question asked finally tore his wrath away.

“Everyone out, NOW!” Jared ordered in a booming voice that vibrated through the cavernous space of the banqueting hall. The black guy slapped his hands on his thighs and said,

“You heard him boys, fun’s over when the rabbit’s caught.” I frowned at being referred to as furry animal on a hunt but no matter how brave I was frowning, I still sank back against Jared when he stepped closer. He grinned down at me and then leaned in to me to make sure he was heard,

“Some advice for next time, girl…” He looked over his broken shades and his eyes blazed the same colour as Jared’s, only his had black rings around them.

“…don’t run from the beast…it excites us, ain’t that right bro?” I sucked in a hiss of surprise. His brother!

“Orth don’t be a dick! Now go wait outside until this shit is done.” His brother laughed a deep gravelly sound that was drowned out by the slap he delivered on Jared’s back, one that despite the obvious power didn’t make Jared move a muscle.

His brother’s stride to the exit was surprisingly stealth like considering his immense bulk. He bent to duck his head through the opening and then, as if remembering something, he turned back.

“Oh and J, you owe me a pair of fucking shades, man!” Jared’s response was to flip him the bird, making them both grunt. Meanwhile, watching the brotherly banter was making me shake my head like I had just stepped into an alternative universe. As soon as he was out of sight I pushed from Jared’s hold once again, only this time it was to face him, not run from him. His brother might be a dick but I wasn’t one to turn down good advice!

“He’s your brother! My scary stalker dude is you brother?!” I almost screeched with the force of emotion behind that question.

“I thought that would have been obvious.” I couldn’t help what I blurted out,

“But he’s black!” Jared thought this was hilarious and actually doubled over to rest his hands on his knees, he laughed with that much power.

“Wow is he, I never noticed…Shit, just what is my mamma gonna say?” He laughed again at his own mocking question, making me put my hands on my hips.

“Have you finished?” He laughed again and then held up one hand saying,

“Just another minute…ok…ok, I think I’m good, Sherlock.”

“Ha ha, very funny… you know what I meant Jared, it’s not like you guys look like twins!” I snapped losing my patience.

“That was my brother Orthrus and yes, as you so accurately discovered, he is in fact a black man.” I rolled my hand around at the wrist as if to prompt him,

“And?”

“And…Keira, his host is black, didn’t have a mother remember…well at least not in the sense that you would understand anyway.” I shook my head as I tried to make sense of all this.

“So, you guys were brothers in…” I looked down so he would know where I meant without me saying it. He gave me a cocky smile and said

“You mean…in Hell, Keira?”, behind his hand in a dramatic whisper, that once again had me rolling my eyes as he took the piss out of me.

“And now he’s here…working for you?”

“Working with me, pet. Now should we continue with why we’re here or would you like to know our favourite colour and how we like our steak?”

“I can imagine, given your true nature, the answer to those questions is the same.” I said walking past him to go back over to the ledge where I had left my bag in my attempt to run.

“What black and well-toned…but of course I mean…well done?” He said cocking an eyebrow and then motioning to his tight black leather gear that moulded to his very toned body. I couldn’t help the smirk break out when my back was to him. I lifted the strap over my head and walked back up to him. I patted him on the chest and said,

“Try red and bloody, come on fatty, time to get me into Hell.” He burst out laughing, after getting over the initial shock of me calling him ‘fatty’ as though I was the first one in his entire existence. Well, just looking at him I knew that was a true statement considering there wasn’t one ounce of fat on the guy…but still, it was fun teasing him for a change.

“You’re lucky I find you cute, pet” I smiled at him over my shoulder,

“Oh yeah, why’s that?”

“Cause you really don’t wanna know how I like my meat or…” He stalked right up to me with his eyes scanning my body as he came closer until he was right by my ear,

“…what I do with it.”

Ok, so this comment left me panting for a very different reason, since being down here!

It was a lot easier getting around the caves now that I had Jared with me, as all I needed to do was follow him. It was also a lot more helpful seeing as he had a lantern with him that one of the men must have brought down with them. This, as Jared had demonstrated, was for my benefit only. Well, I can’t say I wasn’t grateful for it as if there was one thing I was utterly sick of and that was the darkness.

I followed Jared back up the caves until we came closer to the beginning and I couldn’t say I was surprised when I saw the plaque we were now stood in front of.

“Twenty Two.” I said looking up at the Roman Numerals etched in stone.

“Twenty Two.” Jared repeated. I was about to ask what it meant when Jared passed me the lantern to hold.

“Oh, ok.” I muttered before I watched him reach out and trace his fingertip along the carved ‘XXII’. At this point I had to almost bite my lip so as not to ask him what he was doing. As soon as his fingertip left the last numeral line, I shuddered as a chill passed through my body like someone just blasted us with air con on full.

“Okay, so…what now?” I asked hugging myself, letting the handle from the lantern dangle from my side.

“Just wait.” Right after he said this something started to happen. The poem beneath the Roman numerals started to blur and the white words started to evaporate like acid had been poured over them. It was only when the last of the poem had been destroyed that something else appeared. The whole plaque started to become weathered and old in seconds. The plastic cracked at the edges and it bubbled in places like it had been in exposed to extreme heat from the rock behind.

Then came the new words.

Dripping red lacquer seeped from the Roman numerals and dripped down in lines that connected together to form letters.

“The blood of the innocent souls taken here will open the door to where they rest.” Ok, so it wasn’t red paint…no, no, of course it was blood. Always with bloody letters! What was wrong with these guys, hadn’t they ever heard of a marker pen?

“Oh lovely.” I said not bothering to mask my sarcasm, which prized me with a frown from Jared. He was just about to speak, when he must have caught on that something was wrong. He turned his full attention back to the plaque that had new words forming. Now, instead of reading the original poem, it had twisted parts of it into something opposite and I don’t know why but Jared looked utterly pissed!

Wait twenty steps and forget the mile,

Pick up where you left off and smile,

For one long lost love is now on trial,

So taking twenty two is not your time,

Now open the cell and leave the climb,

And wait for love lay in peace and prime.

“What the fuck?!” He shouted at the plaque after using his upper body as an aggressive cage with his fists on either side on the rock.

“I’m gonna take a wild stab in the dark here and say that wasn’t supposed to happen?” If I had been smart I would have taken Jared’s tensed body for a cue for quiet time, but seeing as I was going to Hell tonight, I think that killed the whole smart thing for me. He snarled at the plaque and pushed away from it with such force he made two fist shaped marks in the stone…yep definitely not smart, Keira!

“Come on.” He snapped moving away from the plaque in anger.

“Wait, where are we going now, can we still get in?” He seemed to be counting his steps but stopped to face me abruptly.

“Don’t worry pet, I have too much riding on that promise of yours to let you leave here tonight without visiting sweet home Underworld.”

“Umm…isn’t it sweet home Alabama?” I asked his back as he continued. He looked over his shoulder and said,

“Not tonight, sweetheart.” I couldn’t help the nervous laugh that escaped on hearing him answer in a Southern American accent…I thought shamefully, it might have even done funny things to my naughty parts!

He still looked like he was concentrating on his steps and after no more than half a minute he stopped. He turned to the wall and started to feel around for something on the rock. I lifted the light at the same time saying,

“Do you want me to…?” His sharp gaze sliced to me and I was faced with glowing eyes like liquid silver.

“Guess not.” I answered myself and he went right back to work…whatever that work was exactly. He looked to the other side muttering to himself in another language, one I couldn’t make out. He then looked up briefly and must have decided something because he started to shrug out of his biker jacket. He passed it to me and said a short,

“Hold this.”

I did as I was told and watched as he leapt straight up and grabbed hold of something on the ceiling I couldn’t see, so I made the mistake of raising the lantern. I screamed for like the millionth time tonight and dropped his jacket to scrabble back at the sight of freaky skeletons hanging there with their arms crossed.

“That’s an expensive jacket, pet.” I looked down and without taking my eyes from the skeletons that I quickly realised weren’t real, I picked back up his jacket.

“Good girl, now stand back.” He said and quickly I forgot about the stupid plastic scare props in sight of beautiful muscle. Jared was hanging on a metal grating stuck to the ceiling by one arm, making the t-shirt he wore ride up, exposing the edge of a tight six pack. I swallowed hard as I also took in the bulging bicep that strained the material around the top of his arm.

The whole length was covered in an intricate pattern of some kind of tribal tattoo, the likes of which I had never seen before. It was like ink cogs in a machine joined with puzzle pieces that were forged together in swirls of some lost tribe. What little I could see in this low light was incredible and I just wanted to get him under a sunny day to trace each line gently with my fingertips. There was something about it that just pulled you in, like the pieces were actually moving.

His other arm went up and started to wrench down the creepy dummies to drop on the floor like actual dead bodies. That’s when I noticed the unusual bands of metal and leather that covered his other wrist and half way up his forearm. Combined with his roguish charm, rough good looks, tattoos and biker style, this guy was one of the most kick ass guys I had ever met...! Ok, so given he was a Hell Beast King, this wasn’t a surprising revelation, but he was still a good Supernatural being to have at your back.

Another body dropped and it snapped me out of my tingly girly bits…I mean shit, I was only human and everyone can appreciate the candy wrapper without biting into the bar! And the only bar I would be biting into had a capital D on the front.

“Ah, here you are you little bastard” I heard Jared say as he pulled on something I couldn’t see. He used his whole body weight as he dropped to the floor pulling what looked like wire set into the ceiling above. The force of his fall caused a chain reaction as part of the tunnel started to crumble in a small line as the wire was pulled taut. He then wrapped the excess wire around in his fist a few times before using those big muscles to yank it one last time.

I turned to see a large chunk of the rock come away revealing an older looking wall behind it. It was as if the other stuff had just been plastered on to cover what was beneath. Jared let the wire go and started pulling bigger chunks off until there was about a metre square exposed.

In the centre of the wall was another one of those skulls I had seen earlier, the one that looked to have been made by fingers gouged into wet clay. This one was slightly more realistic looking and was rougher, whereas the other one had been smooth, like chalk.

This one was a dark grey and speckled with black droplets that made me wonder what made those marks. There were also four claw marks that went down the length of the face like an animal had gone at it. I couldn’t help but look at the only animal in the room and raised my eyebrow in question. He looked sideways at me and just shrugged his shoulders, not confirming my silent assumption…though not denying it either.

“You ready for this, pet?”

“Not really.” I said truthfully.

“Good answer.” He replied and then went ahead and opened the doorway or more like…

A Gateway to Hell.

Chapter 41

The Silver Lining in Cells

It turned out that just opening a door to Hell wasn’t as easy as just turning a handle or knocking three times. But really…living the life I did, could I just expect something easy for once? Well, it would be a nice change that’s for sure, but when Jared raised a hand to his mouth, I knew that a simple secret knock was just a pipedream.

“Oww.” I hissed as I saw his fangs grow before he slashed the top of all his fingertips across one of them. Blood oozed from the torn skin and he fisted his hand a few times to get more blood pumping to the surface. Without a sound of pain or even discomfort from having nearly taken off the top of his fingers, he slapped his hand over the skull that was a perfect fit in his large palm. He ran his bloody fingertips down the four claw marks and then placed two of his fingers in the eye holes.

“פתוח,אני מלך הדם הזה” (means ‘Open, I am this blood King’ in Hebrew) He spoke the foreign words perfectly and I was just about to ask what they meant when he spoke another word,

“Neshamah.” This time I couldn’t help but ask,

“What does that mean?” Just as I sounded the question, I flinched as the skull disappeared into the stone and the sound of rock grinding against rock filled the passageway. I took a step back when Jared’s arm straightened out to his side across my torso and moved me behind him. I looked around his bulky size to see bigger pieces of wall crumbling away like wet sand. It was like when the sea destroys the sandcastle and drags it back to become part of the shore. There was no longer any hard stone but now, in its place, was an opening the size of a small man.

“It can mean many things, but Neshamah in Hebrew means mainly the call of the soul… ‘The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul’… That’s a bit of Genesis 2:7 for you.” He said shocking me enough to gape at him. He bent his frame to fit through the space and when I didn’t automatically follow he stuck his head back round the space and said,

“You coming or what?” I shook out the part where I had just heard a Hell’s beast giving me a religious sermon and cleared my throat to say,

“Uh…yeah, I’m right with ya.”

“So Hebrew?” I asked as we stepped into yet another tunnel.

“Hebrew has 22 letters in its alphabet and, considering Dashwood’s entrance was 22 steps away from my own entrance, I decided it was apt when choosing the right containment words, sealing it back up is much more simple though.”

“Ok, so you will need to explain a few things here, ‘cause my head is going a million miles.” He looked at me over his shoulder and said,

“Shocking”, in a sarcastic tone.

“Oh come on, give me a break, I find all this fascinating.”

“You need a hobby, pet.”

“Yeah, so I have been told but you know, in between solving cryptic messages, trying not to be taken hostage, visiting freaky ass fight clubs, finding deadhouses, and being chased around in some bloody caves all night, in the hopes of getting into Hell to save my boyfriend, has kind of not given me much time for water sports, so if you don’t mind just answering some of my question that would be swell.” I added after counting all these points of on my fingers and not pausing to take a breath.

“Tell me all that was in a life time?”

“Uh…Try a few weeks, now is it so much to ask to appease my curiosity?”

“Jesus, you really are dangerous to be around.” I gave him my ‘ha, ha, so funny’ fake smile, when he stopped to face me.

“Fine, here’s how the story goes, Dashwood and his jumped up rich boy clan was made up of…

“The 12 apostles, I know.”

“You know?” He said clearly shocked.

“Yeah, I mean…well, there’s dummies and a plaque and everything.”

“Dummies?” Now he looked very confused.

“Near the Inner Temple is the plaque explaining about Dashwood’s apostles and dummies dressed up having a jolly old time in the Temple…and I gather from your face this is new to you?”

“Uh yeah, I don’t exactly come back here for a vacation spot or just for shits and giggles…I hate this fucking place for a reason.” I exhaled a large sigh, ‘cause let’s face it, what do you say to that?!

“Shit, they really have all that stuff as public knowledge?” I nodded but then added,

“They kind of put a softer spin on the ‘Devil worshiping club’ but yeah, it’s all there, although I very much doubt all they did in the Temple was get dressed up, rip roaring drunk and discover what was under a girl’s skirt.”

“Yeah, no shit.” We kept on walking when I decided to remind him that he hadn’t actually finished what he was going to say, so naturally I helped him out by say,

“Sooo…Dashwood’s jumped up rich boy clan…?”

“The entrance we came through was different back in Dashwood’s time. It was masked by a fake stone wall where, if you knew where to look, an open doorway could easily be found behind. When I first came back to this world I found my own exit from a cell they kept me in, only now it seems powers above my own have taken back control of it.” He looked less than happy about that and even in the lantern’s low light, I could still see his eyebrows knitted together in an angry scowl.

“Why is that do you think?”

“I don’t know, but I can guarantee you one thing, pet…I won’t stop until I find out.” Given the determination in his voice I had little doubt in that promise.

“So, you didn’t know what the poem meant?” He gave me a look that made me feel like I was acting like a dog with a bone. I couldn’t say I blamed him.

“That would be a firm no, now end of conversation.”

“But…” He whipped his head round and all he had to do was give me that warning look, shake his head and silently mouth the word ‘NO’ at me. I finally got the hint.

We walked in silence around all the twisted tunnels that, if believable, were a lot creepier than the original caves. This I put down to two things. The first being not only the lack of life but the lack of any evidence there ever was any. At least in the other caves there was always something to remind you that you lived in the modern world. Wires, light fittings, maps, plaques and even exit signs could be seen, but in here…there was nothing but cold hard stone.

Although I guess that wasn’t strictly true, which brought on my second point. There definitely wasn’t any lack of pain and suffering down here. That same cold hard stone was scarred with evidence that whatever went on down here couldn’t be further from a tourist attraction. Claw marks ran metres in length at different angles and old dark spots of something I didn’t want to think about were sprayed in varies areas.

“You?” I asked in a small voice that didn’t have one ounce of humour. He saw me looking at the marks and just before I reached out to trace one of the deeper claw marks, he snatched my hand, pulling it away.

“Let’s just say you wouldn’t want to see me angry.” This was his only explanation as he pulled me further down into the unknown.

After we had turned this way and that, right and left into so many junctions, I knew that without a map to this place it would have been near impossible to find your way out. I didn’t know how Jared knew it so well, and could only assume he had spent way too much time down here to know it from memory the way he did. This thought brought on a fresh wave of anger at what he had been through.

Instead of voicing my opinions, I followed silently as Jared navigated us around what looked like a stone version of a garden maze and the movie ‘Labyrinth’ came to mind.

“I swear if David Bowie pops out now singing about babes with power, I am so outta here.” I said needing to break the tension of being in such a horrible place. Jared stopped dead but didn’t turn round to face me. I was about to ask but he just shook his head and grunted his amusement rather than laughed.

“You are nuts, anyone ever tell you that?” I let a cheeky smile form.

“I’m nuts?”

“That’s what I’m saying.” this time I grunted.

“Yeah well, I’m not the one with a freak show circus for a fight club.” This time he did laugh.

“What can I say, the revenue in breaking Demon flesh is good” I rolled my eyes and muttered,

“And you think I’m nuts.”

We went round yet another corner just before the banter could continue, because soon I was faced with something that looked like it belonged in the Tower of London! A large open dome that looked to be the same size as the banqueting hall was the space we walked into now but with a very distinct difference. Whereas the banqueting hall had little alcoves, which according to the plaques, had been where lustful men could enjoy a masked woman of their choosing, this had something more horrific!

The sight of all those tall, iron bars turned this large cave into a makeshift prison, using the bare rock as an impenetrable means of escape. On the walls that there weren’t doors of rusted iron, there were things that were considered far worse than a cell. Hanging manacles dangled from chains, some with strained links no doubt from years of abusive use. There were also metal contraptions that hung on hooks as if waiting to be taken down once again for their only means in torture. These looked like they were meant to hold a person in a contorted ball or others in the reverse. Large iron holes for a head bent forward and then in the opposite direction, smaller holes at the end of iron branches that came out to hold the limbs behind their back.

It looked sick!

I made sure when walking to keep in the middle and after being silent for so long I think Jared must have wondered what was wrong with me. He looked behind him and with one look at my face, his eyes softened with what I gathered was sympathy.

“Come here, little pet.” He held his hand out for me to take and I practically ran to him, needing his comfort right now. As soon as his fingers could curl around mine he yanked me to him, making me fall into his embrace.

“I didn’t think… I’m sorry, pet.” Confused at his words I pulled back as much as he would allow and looked up at him with wide eyes.

“About what?”

“This…” He spread his arms out to motion to the room before continuing,

“…all of it, everything you see is nothing to me. It never was…not where I come from, but looking in your eyes, the portal and viewing glass into your very soul and seeing there just how pure that soul really is…well, that is not a thing that even one such as I would want to see tarnished by the pain and suffering that went on in this room or what truly lies waiting for you.” He turned his head to one of the largest cell doors that was partially hidden.

“Jared, look at me.” When he did I couldn’t help but raise my hand to his cheek, feeling the heat there even through the material of my glove.

“I passed Go and continued playing the game a long time ago when I could have just called it quits…I didn’t. I stayed and even through all the horrors of your world, I still knew I had made the right choice. I don’t know what exactly happened to Jared Weller to turn him from the world, but I think I get the impression you know what it’s like to deal with loss and for loss to hold the power it does, you also have to have known love.” At this he closed his eyes as if my words were actually causing his heart to hurt and he was working through the pain. I swallowed down my sadness for his discomfort and whispered words of love in this dreadful place,

“That’s why I think you also know that what I do now is something I must and given the chance…something you yourself would do too, to stay in the game, because I promise you this Jared, the only thing that will get me off that board is going to be nothing short of death!” I vowed this with so much passion I felt a few tears fall, sealing that promise with raw emotion. He opened his eyes, flashed me his own silver emotion and nodded his head once.

“Then all I can do is keep you safe in the game, the best I can.” I smiled up at him and said,

“That would be appreciated.”

“Then in that case, let me show you the evidence of something happy that did happen in this shithole.” At this I crinkled my nose, thinking that that surely would be impossible and I told him as much,

“Happy? What could possibly have been happy down here?”

“My escape.” He said giving me an evil smirk and I could have sworn I saw his pupils elongate, turning briefly into thin slits from that of an animal. Then he winked at me, grabbed my hand and led me to the last cell hidden in the dark.

The rusted door to this one looked to be double the size of the others. It had a massive contraption that looked to be the lock and the closer I got, the thicker the bars looked. I couldn’t help but look at Jared and then stupidly wonder what he looked like in beast form. However the sound of Jared effortlessly kicking the door open and busting the lock like it had been made of tinfoil, made me shudder those thoughts away. I quickly decided I had no great urge to witness Jared as a beast, considering the man himself was scary enough!

He held the dented door back and said gallantly,

“After you, pet” I bit my lip and walked into Jared Cerberus’ first home in this human plane. Although, judging by the massive hole in the wall that a raging bull could fit through, I would say it wasn’t his home for long!

“Ah yes, it didn’t take me long to realise I preferred something a little more upmarket…more space, maybe somewhere with a view, oh and let’s not forget more than a dirt hole to shit in.” He said laughing at the disgusted face I pulled. I knew why he joked about this and it was for my benefit only. He was putting a cloak of humour over a disturbing part of history so that I wouldn’t see the true horror of what lay beneath.

I looked from the crumbling mess that looked as if an engine powered piece of construction machinery had just ploughed through…or maybe a small tank would be a better description for the destruction left. Whichever fit better was irrelevant as I started to really take in the rest of the space. It was dark, damp and cold stone that looked like any other cave you could imagine…that was apart from one major difference.

“What is this?” I asked referring to all the symbols that decorated every available space on both the stone and the tiny marks that looked scorched into the thick bars of the door.

“Ah, well after Dashwood had these cells built and started to move onto the more serious side of Devil worship, he began by looking to history for some answers. Most of which were utter horse shit, just like these useless symbols that he thought could keep a demon contained.” I silently took in each different symbol before asking,

“How?”

“He heard of a story back in the 1760’s that in the French village of Gevaudan the people there were trying to deal with villagers being savagely attacked by some kind of animal. It was actually where fucking Werewolves came about, all thanks to some big ass rabid dog that went on a rampage attacking folk.” He said sounding half pissed and half amused.

“So it wasn’t anything like that?”

“Oh honey, there was no-one like me before this shit happened.” He yet again gave me another wink as he boasted and I couldn’t help but smile even through my rolling eyes.

“But the poor mutt was said to be hurt by silver and so that stupid ass myth was born, hence those symbols that are Alchemical symbols for the metal” He nodded to where my hand was touching one that looked like two triangles attached. There were about 12 in total and ranged from moon shapes to tridents, duel cups and smaller circles attached to a larger one. I even snorted a laugh at the one that looked like a horned stick figure stood on top of a hill.

“So, they didn’t work?” I looked back to the wall and saw the painted symbols on some of the fallen lumps of stone, so knew my answer before he said it.

“You wouldn’t be asking me that if you saw what it means to be a Cerberus.”

“I can imagine you’re right about that.”

“Of course, they weren’t expecting me to show up.” He said cracking his knuckles in a manly show of dominance he had every right to.

“So what were they expecting?”

“Truthfully?” I nodded at him and he shrugged his shoulders before saying,

“Fuck knows…a hand shake with the Devil, a pat on the back by one of his Presidents…who really knows but the dead, but one thing I will say, given the cells, the useless symbols and abducting poor bastards like me, my guess is he simply wanted to sacrifice a human in order to give a demon a host he could use…maybe even control…whatever it was though died with my rebirth, as did the club.”

“Well, I can’t say I am sorry about that.” I said leaving the destruction alone and walking over to where he stood. I hoped this was enough of a hint for us to get going. He raised an eyebrow before whispering a cocky,

“What’s wrong pet, had enough of me already...? Are we that eager to jump to a hotter playing field?” My answer was to shrug my own shoulders at him, knowing that I had no great urge to see Hell up close and personal but was still buzzing at the prospect of seeing Draven again.

“Then give me your heart, pet.” At this request the organ in question started to beat a lot quicker. He must have noted my reaction because he started laughing at me.

“Don’t panic sugar, I don’t mean it in the literal sense or that I want any declarations of love, just the heart you have in your bag.” I bit my lip as a blush rose with his gentle teasing.

“But I…I thought you couldn’t touch it?” This time he grabbed my shoulders and guided me over to a darker corner where something lumpy sat under a dirty cover. He turned me and walked me closer to it and I screamed bloody murder when he suddenly grabbed the cover and yanked it hard enough to come off in one whoosh.

“You jerk!” I shouted moving back with nowhere to go but closer into his hold.

“Calm down pet, I think you can see he won’t hurt anyone.” I was seething mad with the man at my back for forcing me to see the only other one in the room with us.

“He’s…he’s…”

“I can assure you Keira, he’s quite dead.” He referred, of course, to the heavily decomposed corpse that sat in the corner on a low wooden stool as if he just needed a rest. Well, he was most certainly getting a good rest alright, nothing more relaxing than death!

The skeleton figure sat there patiently, still dressed in his 18th century finery, with a long jacket embellished with buttons down the length and large cuffs. Even his embroidered thigh length waistcoat and knee high boots could be seen under years of filth. But more than any of this, I had to say the main feature had to be the ripped open chest cavity, where even the rib bones had been broken back like the lid to an old tool box.

“I just thought that it would be better done swiftly…what is it they say, rip the band aid quickly for less pain.”

“Plaster…so why is Captain McRib down here anyway?” Jared burst out laughing at my nick name for him and then sobered enough to ask,

“Plaster?”

“Band aid…It’s called a plaster where I’m from, so answer the question, who is he?”

“That handsome fellow is none other than Paul Whitehead of course. Now all you need to do to make him dance is give him back his heart and it will open the gateway.” This time I dropped the smart ass comments and snapped round to say,

“Oh, sod that for a bag of chips! There is not a cat in Hell’s chance I am going anywhere near Mr chatty pants over there!” Ok, so I didn’t exactly drop all of the smart ass comments but I couldn’t have been more serious with them!

“Assuming I understood you in all that northern charm, if you don’t, then I am afraid the tour is over and there will be no more passing Go and collecting 200 for you, so…” He leant down, as most supernatural men had to do around me and whispered,

“…Game over.”

“Ok, Fine! I get it…jeez you want me to do gross stuff but I swear I am drawing the line if you ask me to give him a makeover!” I said stomping my foot in frustration. He again just laughed at me. I decided not to bite and fuel his humour anymore but just get on with it. I did the easy bit first, considering I had begun to get to know Mr Whitehead’s heart on a sharing shower basis. I reached in my bag and grabbed my new friend.

Then came the hard part.

I walked closer to what used to be the living, breathing and breaking the law, Paul Whitehead and couldn’t help but take pause before getting too close.

“I must say, as amusing as this is, I would ask for you to get on with it before time catches up with you and you end up looking like his sister.” I shot Jared daggers making his grin grow a notch. I refrained from the comeback I really wanted to say and opted for a grumbled swear word. Then I got back to the gruesome task at hand…or should I say at heart?

I held the wrapped package in one shaky hand and closed my eyes as I stepped closer to my target. I couldn’t tell you how happy I was at least, that he was that far decomposed so as not to have any rotting fleshy bits or the smell that goes with death. Thinking along these lines gave me another new mantra and I started to whisper,

“Just a large stick man…it’s just sticks, not bone, just sticks…”

“Keira!” Jared said my name like he was losing patience and I snapped out a,

“I’m doing it, alright!” Then I used my anger and frustration to open my eyes and ram it home with one strong thrust. Then I jumped back like a little girl, jumping up and down like trying to get rid of a spider.

“Eww! Eww, eeewwww!” I shook my head, pulled a face like I just licked in between cheesy toes and continued to jump up and down in a circle like this would somehow drive out the last two minutes of my memory!

“Good girl, now if you could just control the girly shit, then that would be nice.” I decided to take a page out of his brother’s book and flip him my middle finger as my reply. This was quickly ignored by both of us when stick man Paul Whitehead started to move! I screeched out an unattractive sound and hid behind Jared’s back to watch.

The once very still corpse now raised his head as a series of shudders started to vibrate his old bones, starting from his chest. It was like his heart had actually started to beat again after all this time. Then in a blink, his arm shot out, causing me to yelp at Jared’s back when Whitehead’s bony hand slapped the rock behind him. I raised the lantern Jared had given me back to hold and watched in morbid fascination as I made out the blood that oozed from the organ and started to wrap around his bones like a red ribbon. It only went one way and travelled along his arm, leaving the rest of his body untouched.

Then Paul Whitehead’s fingers, complete with long fingernails, tightened on the stone, causing his nails to clash with the it. The lantern in my hold started to shake as I saw what he was doing and noticed, just as the blood reached the tips of his fingers, he drew his nails down the grooves left there by Jared’s claws. Blood reached the thin crevices and filled the gaps in the rock like little dried river beds flooding for the first time in years.

“Shit!” I shouted as the whole cave started to shake. I dropped the lantern and held on to Jared’s back with both hands, grabbing fistfuls of leather. I was about to shout over the noise, but then all senses became transfixed as moisture started to bead on the walls like condensation from an intense change of temperature. Heavy droplets fell just from one space above, like heavy rain that was concentrated just by the wall. Soon it formed a puddle and then started to boil.

“Wh…what’s hap…?” I never got to finish the question as the rumbling increased and Jared started to take steps back, pushing me along with him. I didn’t know how the cave was still standing and thought for sure any minute we would be buried under an entire hill full of rock!

I managed to keep my gaze riveted to the spot where everything seemed to be happening, when a piece of the wall came away. It was about the size of a few bricks and an intense orange glow could be seen shining behind it. It looked like sunrise and, as if attracted like a bug to light, I started to step round Jared to get closer. He turned quickly and held me still and to his chest.

“You don’t want to do that just yet.” And just as he promised, the orange glow showed its true form, as burning hot lava started to flow over the small gap.

“Oh God!” It started to spew out in a more powerful gush and in doing so, broke away more of the rock, until it resembled a glowing molten waterfall. It hit the puddle with a hiss as steam automatically rose before it evaporated the water. Once it hit the cave’s floor, it started to turn into a wave of smooth black rock that built up in layers as more lava fell. I didn’t know what we were still doing here as surely it would soon consume the cell’s space and us along with it.

“Do you trust me, Keira?” Jared asked in the calmest voice and my panicked gaze told him I didn’t know if I could. He turned his head to look briefly at its progress before turning back to me and on a shocked breath he lifted me into his arms. Then he turned and for a relieved second I thought he was getting us out of there, but this turned out to be the opposite. He started to stride straight for the pouring lava and for once, I was too stunned to scream.

Then something amazing started to happen. The closer he got to the floor’s flowing lava the quicker it turned into ageing grey dust and started to float away as though it never should have been there. By this time the scorching waterfall was now the size of a door, having melted the remaining rock away.

I gripped onto his shoulders and started making little panicked noises by the side of his face. His hold told me he wouldn’t be letting me go any time soon and coupled with what we faced, I wasn’t sure if this was a good thing or bad! One step, two steps and I hoped not our last step breathing as we approached the opening. Then, as if by a sensor, the lava started to part at the top and began to only to flow at the sides, still making the space large enough to fit through.

Then came our very last step as we walked through the overflowing magma, straight into another world…

Jared’s Underworld.

Chapter 42

Say Hi to the Devil When You Get There

“You have got to be kiddin me!” I uttered after minutes of stunned silence with my mouth hanging open in unattractive shock.

“Not what you expected?” I turned to look at him and he laughed at the dumbfounded way I shook my head.

“Then enjoy it for the time you have here.” He said and I happily did as he suggested. After the fiery entrance getting here I would have thought the theme continued, but I couldn’t have been more wrong if I had tried.

We had walked straight from inside the mountain at our backs and onto sun bleached decking that ran on for miles in each direction. Then surrounding every square inch of us was nothing else but water like an enormous lake, rather than the raging river I would have expected. The water was so deathly still it didn’t even lap against the mountain we stood next to.

The decked walkway was constructed above the water next to the rock, with stilted poles running along in intervals, until they went out of sight on either side. I then faced forward and saw a long dock that reached out over the pearlescent water as though it floated, so as not to disturb its harmony.

It was one of the most tranquil sights I had ever seen and I instantly felt a sense of peace flow over my soul, inducing a warm calm of the likes I had never felt before. It seemed to somehow reflect back from the turquoise surface, like a gentle blanket of morning mist rising up, giving it an ethereal feel.

“What is this place?”

“Keira, you don’t have to whisper.” He said smiling.

“I feel like I have too, this place…it’s…it’s so…”

“Serene?” He added helping me.

“Flat.” He laughed out loud at my description.

“Well it is, I mean just look at that water, it doesn’t even move…what type of water doesn’t move?”

“The type that has no weather to guide it.” I looked up to the sky after he said this and took in the infinite space of white. There were no fluffy clouds, no blinding sun, and no vast ocean of blue…just… still… white.

“I don’t understand this place.” I said looking back to Jared, who gave me a sympathetic look.

“The easiest way to understand it is if you think of it as a waiting room at a train station. There is a ticket office you walk up to but only they know your destination. They give you the right platform and you get on the train waiting there, after that…well…only the life you’ve lived determines that.”

“And if you don’t believe in any of this?” I asked looking back out on to the still topaz water.

“Then my guess is that none of this happens.”

“Your guess?” His answer surprised me enough to ask.

“Keira, try to understand, this is all I know…I am a part of this world just as much as you are, so it matters not what we believe because we are already a part of its very makeup, it’s DNA, both of us, we are not solely of your world.” I frowned at his explanation.

“I’m human, Jared.”

“As was I, but I always had something else inside me, a light or darkness that called out to this place, to one of its masters…why do you think you were chosen… Electus.” I cringed at hearing the name I had first heard come from Draven’s lips. Ever since the day that Draven no longer was of this life, I had become to hate it! Hearing it again felt like being struck with a back hander across the face and from the looks of Jared, he saw it there.

“Keira.” He said softly and I turned from him as he reached out to cup my cheek.

“Don’t!” I warned stepping away, putting some distance between us.

“Believe it or not pet, I had difficulties coming to terms with what hand my fate dealt me, but unlike you I had those choices taken from me…both times.” When he said this last bit in an emotional whisper I turned back to him.

“Both?”

“That love you spoke of, the reasons that brought you here… that part of my history was also out of my control and no matter the amount of power gained that night, it could never bring me back what I lost.” I let the bitter attitude I felt evaporate on hearing his pain. It was amazing to look at this creature of Hell, locked in the body of once a simple man, and see the common ground we walked on. To realise how similar we were was strangely heart-warming to me and I couldn’t help my reactions to it. I threw my body into his and hugged him until it took my breath away.

Silent minutes passed us by, but no words were needed in our own private moment. And even stood on the edge of this hellish quest, it was one of the most beautiful moments I had ever known and for that, I couldn’t have been more thankful. Not only for his friendship but for his complete understanding. It turned out to be all I needed to see me ready for this upcoming trial I had facing me.

“Thank you my friend.” I whispered into his chest and I felt the gentle kiss placed on my hair at the top of my head. We both released each other and I sighed, knowing that my time was up. His look told me his understanding of the same thing.

“So…do I have to give this ferryman a call like I would a taxi or what?” This got me another handsome smile framed by that trimmed black wiry beard of his. Even the scar along his face didn’t seem that frightening to me anymore.

“That won’t be necessary.” He said tapping me under the chin and then taking my hand to lead me.

“Come on, I’ll show you.” He started to take me down the dock which didn’t even creak once at our combined heavy weight. This was something else I noticed, as other than I and Jared, not one sound was heard coming from this place. In such an open space like this that was beyond eerie.

Once we got to the end of the dock and I looked out over the water, the colour changed as the mist got thicker and it suddenly became harder to see where the water ended and the sky began. After a few moments of Jared not giving anything away, I was about to speak, when I saw a shadow in the distance getting closer. This had to be the ferryman and suddenly it dawned on me what I was really about to do.

The closer the small boat got, the more the fog lifted and soon all of the water was shining bright and vibrant as if the sun had just popped back up. I looked up, almost convinced I would see it there but there was nothing but vast empty white space.

“Any last words of wisdom?” I asked watching the boat getting bigger.

“Here, take this.” I looked down to see a coin in his hand with a three headed dog engraved in the silver.

“Why?”

“Because it will let the ferryman know where to take you. There’s a friend of mine who might be able to help you find what you are looking for, or at the very least will be able to give you some answers…here, take it.” He tried to pass it to me but I shook my head and reached into my jeans pocket. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw what I held in my hand.

“That’s alright, I have my own.” After the initial shock his eyes turned hard and he scowled down at my hand as if what I held was a blasphemy.

“Keira, where did you get this?” His voice was serious and hard, making me shiver. When I didn’t answer he growled out my name in warning making me take a step backwards. He grabbed my forearm to both stop me from going too close to the edge and so he could lift up my hand to examine the coin.

“Fuck! Keira, you can’t use this!” The sound of his fresh anger was startling and for a moment I couldn’t react until he tried to take the coin from me. I closed my fist as tight as it would go without causing pain and wrenched my arm from his grasp.

“Why not?!” I shouted back.

“Because I know where and to whom it will take you and trust me when I say you do not want to go there. Now Keira…” He said in warning that was ringing in my head like an alarm I had no choice but to ignore. I took another step back as he made to reach out for my arm again.

“Stay back! Jared you know why I have to do this, I have no choice…I was given this coin for a reason!” His furious gaze turned into one of soulful worry.

“Look pet, I don’t know who gave you that coin but it is dangerous…that place, Christ even I wouldn’t want to go there! That level of Hell is not for you to see, let alone go and spend time there! Please honey, please…now just listen…” I bit my lip as I felt frightened tears rise, but I had to remain strong. So I silently shook my head at him and prayed for him to stop scaring me.

“I’m sorry, Jared.” I said in an emotional whisper and turned away just as the boat was nearing the end of the dock. When I didn’t hear anything but heavy breathing from behind me, I thought he had given up. Then I was roughly spun round and in an attempt to save the coin as he reached for it, a soundless ‘No’ was my only reaction when the coin flew from my grasp. I watched in slow motion as my only chance gathered more distance from my outstretched hand. In that precious moment time stood still and I couldn’t breathe. How could I have come this far only to fail now?!

How?!

Just before my reaction to losing the coin could settle in my gut like poison, a hand flashed out of nowhere and plucked the coin from the air before it could fall into the water.

“Well now, wasn’t that lucky.” A chirpy voice said. I looked to the bearer of the voice and what I saw made me do a double take. A guy, who couldn’t have been much older than me, was stood at the end of a thin boat, dressed in a striped black and white sweater, with a pair of black board shorts and to top off my shock, a boater hat worn to the side. I didn’t know what I expected but whatever it was, then this guy was the furthest from it by a long shot!

“Keira, don’t.” Jared was close to pleading and his pained expression nearly undid me. I looked back to the ferryman who had started whistling a happy tune, whilst flipping my coin in between his fingers at a blurring speed. He looked like someone who was trying not to be a part of this uncomfortable position by pretending it wasn’t happening. He caught me looking and said,

“Hey kids, don’t mind me, you guys look like you’re heavy into something.” I was utterly speechless at hearing this guy talk, he was just so…well, so…normal! Jared growled low and my head shot back to him to see he was giving the ferryman a fierce scowl that looked like he wanted to rip out this guy’s jugular.

“You’re really not gonna listen to me?” I didn’t know what to say so instead I just shook my head, giving him a sad look. His features turned to granite as he nodded once, taking my answer as absolute. Then he flipped his own coin at the ferryman and without looking the guy caught it.

“That’s for the return trip. Make fucking sure she has her ass back on that boat or you have my permission to put her ass down on that boat by any means…understood?” He gave Jared a salute and quite possibly the cheekiest smile I had ever seen. He then took a step onto the dock and used one of the posts at the end to pull his boat closer, which I now recognised as a fancy black gondola. He held out his hand for me to take and just as I was about to, Jared snarled and grabbed me, spinning me so quickly it took me a minute to process what was happening. But before I could, Jared crashed his lips to mine and kissed me so quick it left me blindsided.

“If you don’t come back, so help me pet, I will tan that hide when I find you!” My eyes opened wide at both the kiss and the threat, but before I could say a word Jared handed me over to the happy boatman. I was promptly sat down on one of the comfy black leather seats as I was spun underarm like a bewildered dance partner and received a wink, at the same time he tipped his hat and ran his fingers along the rim.

“And Charon…” The intimidating voice of Jared turned both our heads.

“In one piece, you got me?!” The dangerous smile he gave Jared gave me chills but in a typical happy go lucky manner, he replied,

“Not gonna be a problem Cerberus man, there are others where she is going that want the very same thing.” I didn’t understand this secret exchange going on between these two but I didn’t miss Jared’s response.

“That’s what I am afraid of.” Then before explaining it more he turned his back the same time the Ferryman pushed us from the side. I felt a pinch in my heart as I saw Jared walk away from me and I couldn’t help wonder two things…was I doing the right thing and the other…?

What was that kiss all about?

“That’s some pretty hard thinking you got going on, does it hurt?” I didn’t realise I had my eyes shut tight as my thoughts were running riot. I opened them to see a friendly face tilted to the side smiling at me.

“Sorry, it’s just been one of those days, you know.” I said thinking about the new level of strange my life had jumped to.

“Oh, I know all about those days in this place, but the question is, what is a nice girl like you doing in a place like this? You don’t look too dead to me…just saying.” He said whilst picking up a long black pole from the water side of the boat.

“Uhh…thanks.”

“You’re… uhh… welcome.” He winked again. I couldn’t help but stare and smile at his unexpected teasing.

“Do I have something in my teeth?” He asked, rubbing his tongue over them to see for himself. I shook my head and offered an explanation for my rude gawking.

“Sorry to stare and all, but you’re not exactly what I expected.”

“What, roguishly handsome, a fine specimen of a being maybe, or just such a dashing representative of this very Underworld?” He asked grinning wide. I laughed, relaxing back into the seat. He was certainly a lively character for such a morbid job and he was cute. He reminded me of one of those guys who never wanted to grow up and loved life to its fullest. Whether that could be said for someone that did what he did I couldn’t say but he fit the type. The ones who like to party hard, play harder and didn’t give two shits what anyone thought about their life’s philosophy and who could really blame them if they were happy.

But then there was this guy who had that same easy going nature all those things embodied that just oozed from him. It was in his messy brown hair style trying to be contained under his bent hat, his growing bushy beard that wasn’t as neat as Jared’s, but somehow still suited him. His eyes were soft and smiley with a hint of mischief ready to pounce out at the next opportunity. And then, there was his smile that made his eyes light up from somewhere deep and the lines there that said he did it often.

Oh yes, this guy made me relax alright, if anything he made me want to laugh out loud just for the fun of it. Definitely opposite to what he did in this place. It felt wrong for someone with so much life and soul to deal with so much death. Or was that the reason for it? To bring ease to those who had passed? That would make more sense than say, someone who looked like death.

“Hey, what’s that?” I pointed to what now came into view. With the mist completely lifted it now gave me a clear sight of all the other docks that stuck out of the endless decked walk way. I couldn’t even count them all there was so many. I could see other figures, tiny from as far out as we had quickly become.

“Oh them, don’t worry they won’t have to wait long.” I frowned at what he could mean. Then I realised we weren’t the only boat on the water.

“Oh God…they’re dead and they’re waiting to be picked up aren’t they?” I asked quickly losing that relaxed state of mind his presence had put me in.

“As great as I am, I am still only one being, my pretty obol giver.”

“Obol?” He gave me that cheeky grin of his again and replied,

“It means coin.”

“Oh…and those…” I cleared my throat not knowing what to call all those unfortunate souls that, unlike me, would not be making the return journey.

“Those… well now, only their Charon will know the destination, once he has touched their soul.”

“But wait, you didn’t touch mine and I thought your name was Charon?” At this he burst out laughing and pushed the boat along after bending over to give a full belly laugh.

“Questions, questions, it’s one of the things I do love about my job and usually this is the point where I become all serious and say in a masterful tone, ‘Thou shall know when the Gods see fit”. He said this last part in a booming Godly voice that made me jump and rocked the boat.

“And see, isn’t it great! I get that same reaction every time! But for you I will answer your questions, as I doubt you will be coming back here for a while.” He continued to push us along and I could see even more of the never-ending line of docks, to a point where I had to hold myself to stop from shaking. I mean I knew I was not naive to the ways of the world, for there must be death to grant life, I knew of the balance but to see it here, in front of my very eyes was…

Heartbreaking.

“Answer one, I did not need to touch you to read your soul as you had one of these.” He said flashing the coin around in between his knuckles once again until it disappeared.

“And number two, there are many Charons, in fact as many that are needed…I am simply a small means to a larger end…but what a means! Don’t you think?” He said wagging his eyebrows at me.

“Well, I for one definitely think you’re a nice surprise.” On hearing my comment he took off his hat and bowed, making a big floppy mess of loose curls escape. Then he pushed it all back with one hand and replaced his hat.

“Would you like to hear something once written about us?” I nodded making him beam at me.

“There Charon stands, who rules the dreary coast -

A sordid God: down from his hairy chin

A length of beard descends, uncombed, unclean;

His eyes, like hollow furnaces on fire;

A girdle, foul with grease, binds his obscene attire”

Once he finished I pulled a distasteful face at him and said,

“That’s wasn’t very flattering for you or very accurate.” At this his excitement grew, making him shout out,

“I know, right! The only thing I can think of is that he must have got one of us on a bad day.” I burst out laughing at the thought.

As the journey continued onward I let my mind wander to all that had happened and what was still happening. Jared’s face still haunted me when he saw my coin. Where was it I was going to exactly and should I have accepted his offer of help? No, I couldn’t. So far I had followed all the rules from the Oracle and it hadn’t steered me wrong yet. I just had to keep my faith in her and continue. I mean, what choice did I have now? But I must say my main concern had switched to not where I was going but more like to whom.

Jared’s own words wouldn’t leave my mind, playing over and over…'Because I know where and to who it will take you and trust me when I say you do not want to go there’. I shivered at the thought.

“It does start to get colder the closer we get to the gates.” I looked up at Charon, who simply nodded ahead. I shifted in my seat and looked at what he meant. A gasp escaped me as I saw the most incredible sight. There, coming closer to us, was a structure so great, it didn’t seem it could possibly be real. It made me wonder how long I had been sat there lost in my own thoughts.

Along the full length of the water until out of sight were the most colossal columns that were at least 200 ft high. They were sparkling white but with no sun to reflect off them, I didn’t know how it was conceivable. The columns made up the start to a wall of tunnels big enough that the Lady Liberty could have walked under them with ease. Each archway over the opening reached up in a spear that pierced the sky for another 100 ft at least. I couldn’t even count how many there were, but I could see some with small boats entering the dark tunnels.

“What are they?” I uttered in breathless fascination.

“Those are the destinations.” I had to tear my eyes from the sight to gauge his expression.

“What do you mean?”

“Ah, now this is the part where people always get testy…let me ask you, are you a deeply religious person?” His question threw me and I didn’t know any other way to answer but truthfully.

“Umm, sort of…I don’t know exactly what is beyond life, although this is giving me a pretty good idea alright.” I laughed and then had to continue,

“Living with the supernatural, I now know about Gods, Angels and Demons, Heaven and Hell, but even being allowed to live with that knowledge, it doesn’t seem to make me anymore knowledgeable than the next person.”

“Then I can answer you, for you will not bite my head off with your faith.” He said winking at this last bit.

“The truth of the matter lies as such, if you believe in this place then it lives, it is that simple. You find many a crumbled passageway lies in ruins at the bottom of these waters from the death of a faith.” My mouth dropped open is disbelief.

“So, what you’re saying is that each one of those tunnels is a gateway into the end that they believe in, with the Gods that they worship?” Even as I asked for confirmation I knew the truth. I remembered back to all that time ago on Draven’s balcony. I remembered the day I finally found out what he was, and the words he used…“Everyone sees things through different eyes and it is as simple as yes and no. It always has been. Religion means something different to everybody. Every race of life, throughout time has viewed God differently but they have all had something in common...they all believed. That is the difference.”

   So that was the only difference. People had to believe in order to come here and find their own end.

“But wait, in that case what happens to those who don’t believe?” At this he just shrugged his shoulders and said,

“Sorry, not in my pay grade to know but I will say this…” He leant closer to whisper,

“…I don’t hear much about reincarnation, so what I don’t hear means it doesn’t happen down here and what doesn’t happen down here…could very well happen up there.” He looked up and I followed his gaze staring into nothing but endless white.

“You mean Heaven?” I asked causing him to turn serious.

“No my obol giver, I mean up in your world.”

I couldn’t say much after that because my mind was like a spinning top in the hands of a small child. Naïve and innocent watching the colours of life blur with such speed, well that’s what was happening to me right now. All those myths, all those stories now holding some sense of truth… All the world’s fighting and killing in the name of a faith that people tried to control when there never was any.

Two men at war when both of their beliefs existed. And all for what…to come here at the end of days and see the mistakes they made. To see all this and know that glory was not ever to be found on earth but right here and right now. Glory in belief, whatever it may be is true only if it is true to you.

Your very own personal Heaven or your very own personal Hell. That is what awaits us if we believe and if not, then maybe what Charon says is true as well. If there is no belief then maybe nothing happens but the simple reuse of our soul. Not for Demon, not for Angel but for plain old humankind.

Souls recycled.

“Look there, for that boat holds someone set out for The Elysium fields.”

“That’s the place for good…so like a Heaven?” I asked as the penny finally dropped. You didn’t rise up to Heaven, but first you came here to let the fates decide what type of life you once lived.

“A lot of gateways if it isn’t.” I nodded my understanding.

“So where is it then that we are heading, if there is more than one version of Hell?” This was when for the first time Charon lost his easy going smile, replacing it with one full of menace and sinister venom.

“Let’s see shall we?” He said once again producing the coin I had given him for this crossing. We came to some sort of deeper section of the water as it had changed to a darker colour as far as I could see. For the first time down here, I actually began to let the fear seep in enough to root and take hold.

“Make a wish.” He said and I didn’t know if he was joking or not, however I still wished and said one name in my mind. Then he flipped the coin up and over the boat into the darker depths.

His eyes clouded over and his lids flickered for quick seconds before snapping open and looking to one of the tunnels to his right. I followed his sights and saw it was one of the darkest tunnels, with the waters not looking as calm as the rest.

“Your answer… off to one of the nine circles we must go.”

“Nine circles…as in Dante's Inferno nine circles?!” His answer came like a spider crawling up my spine under my skin…

“And you were such a nice girl.”

Chapter 43

A Draven at Home in Hell

Charon pushed us off what seemed like a dip or small ledge in the water as, all at once, everything about this journey started to change. The water that was once still and tranquil quickly turned into an angry entity that made the boat rock. I held on just as he shouted over the roar of water,

“HOLD ON!” I gripped the edge of the boat with one hand and the bottom of my seat with the other. I also tried to use my legs as leverage, anchoring me down. I bravely turned my head to see the churning water ahead that twisted and gushed up into waves of white foam. It battered against the rocks that could now be seen rising up from the water. I didn’t know how this small gondola could survive, along with us in it.

“AHHH!” My scream got swallowed up by the sound of water smashing into the sides of the tunnel we were about to enter into and amazingly Charon remained standing as he manoeuvred us out of danger. The front of the boat would dip down in between two rocks that were causing a clash of power with the water and then the back would fall, landing with a splash through the spray. I looked up to see the last of the white sky disappearing overhead as we entered the belly of the beast.

My grip on the boat became painful, but it was drowned out by the heady mixture of adrenaline flooding my senses and life threatening fear. I felt drunk on it and it wasn’t only the extreme motions of the boat that were making me feel sick and dizzy. I just wanted it to be over! Why had I come here? How could I have possibly thought that I could have survived this? I wanted to shout STOP! I wanted to put an end to it all and call it quits just like any other scared witless fool would do, but then something happened.

“Draven.” I uttered his name as a prayer. It was all I had to hold onto. But then, unbelievably, I saw that some of the rocks had started descending back under the water. Was it a sign, was it my faith? I had to try, so this time I shouted louder,

“Draven!” Making even more of the rocks disappear. It was really working! He must be here! He must be able to hear me somehow! Then, just as the worst of the rapids could be seen ahead, I swallowed the last of my fear. I gripped the sides now with determination and found my footing to follow through with what I thought was the best chance at living, or I would not be making it past this part without my body intact. I got up on shaky feet, steadied myself enough to make it to the front of the boat and held on to the wooden frame that curled towards me.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Charon screamed from behind me and I answered,

“WHAT I HAVE TO!” Then I rose up with all my strength and shouted with everything I had left in me,

“DRAVEN, HEAR ME! I’M COMING FOR YOU!” And just like that, the rest of the rocks and dangerous boulders that would have made our journey nearly impossible, all erupted, bursting into tiny versions of what they once were. I screamed, placing my arms over my head as the debris rained down over us and sank down to the floor of the boat.

It was only when we again entered calm waters did I raise my head and look round.

“Well, it looks like he heard you.” Charon said after jumping down from his perch at the back of the boat. He produced a heavy lantern from underneath some plastic covering and lit it just as the last of the opening’s light could be seen as a small white space in the distance. He then hooked it onto a fancy iron holder that curled at the top. It swung with the motion of the boat and the light from its windows danced along the tunnel’s walls in a pretty display.

“Is it usually like that?”

“No, only when life tries to cross over…death however, it welcomes.” I nodded thinking as much.

I was about to ask him if he knew who Draven was when his new appearance stopped me. Unlike before when his clothes had been clean and smart they were now ripped and thread bare. The white stripes looked as though long ago they had turned so dirty it was hard to distinguish them anymore. His hat now looked as if it had been dumped in black ash where it had once been cream. But it wasn’t just his clothes that had taken a turn for the darker. It was also his features which looked haggard and older. His beard was longer, scruffy to the point he looked homeless but the most change was in his eyes that no longer reflected cheekiness and humour.

Now they looked like the eyes of a man who had given up.

I decided that it would be a good idea to put a lock down on my questions for now as he wasn’t looking as friendly as he once was. So, I sat back on my seat and waited for my destination to reveal itself, just holding onto hope that it would be into Draven’s arms.

Time went on and, as it always does on a journey where you don’t know the way, it was taking a small forever. The tunnel didn’t change much and inside my mind I was going out of my head with worry. I didn’t think I would have any bloody lips left for Draven to kiss by the time we got there!

Thankfully, not long after that we came to our first entrance. A tunnel that was cut right out of the rock was covered in lush green moss and was in the shape of a keyhole, thick enough just for a single boat not much wider than this one. Then, when I looked to see the rest of our tunnel, there were entrances the full length down on each side but all were different. The next was a grander entrance with tall pillars made up of hundreds of naked bodies all tightly entwined.

I looked away feeling awkward on seeing such a sordid display as they seemed so real, I wouldn’t have been surprised if the tunnel started to fill with the sounds of rapturous moans. I looked further on and could only make out the next two tunnels, one of which had a crude statue of a grotesque, large creature gorging on fistfuls of flesh from something dead at his feet. The other was a startling contrast to this dark and dreary place as it shimmered from every point. It was large Roman columns that looked to be made from solid gold and reflected that same shimmer on the water, making that too look as if it was liquid gold.

Then, whilst my eyes strained against trying to see the other ones further on, I hadn’t seen us turn before everything was snatched from view. I didn’t even know which one we were now travelling down. I was thankful though, that this one was bigger than the first one I had seen, as that looked as though it would barely fit us. No, this one, although not as large as the tunnel we just came from, was a big enough size to not feel trapped in or claustrophobic. In fact, our little gondola seemed quite small and dainty for such a turbulent journey. Which made me ask, despite my earlier reasoning to stay quiet,

“I am surprised you guys don’t upgrade to speed boats after doing rides like this on a daily basis.” Instead of the friendly laughter or smile I expected, he almost looked like he was trying to hold back from taking a bite out of me. Eyes that once lit up with welcoming discussion and an easy going manner, now looked almost cruel and irritated. So much so, I was surprised he answered me, even though his tone demonstrated that he found the chore distasteful.

“There is no modern technology in this place.” And that was all I got, so I firmly decided this time not to speak unless utterly necessary. I made a point of turning my body away from him and facing the front as we continued further on down into the unknown.

After a while, I was almost at a point where I feared I would start seeing things that weren’t there. I don’t know what the cut-off point would be for staring down a tunnel without seeing anything new for hours and not go crazy but I had already felt I had hit my limit. My Charon still hadn’t said a word to me and the last time I had looked at him, there had been a few more lines added to his gaunt face. Hell, it looked like the guy had aged about a year for every minute down here!

The even stranger thing was it wasn’t just his face but also his clothes. They were getting to the point of falling from his body, they were so tired and worn. It was such an upsetting thing to witness and now I could add trying not to look at him as well as speaking to him. Oh, it was Hell alright and we weren’t even there yet!

We started to approach something in the distance but it was hard to make out with only the aid of a single lantern. I had to wait until we were closer to it and only then did the light hit the features of such an imposing statue. Three large heads had been carved straight into the rock and were big enough that they covered every inch of the opening we were now heading for.

The one in the middle was that of a man or God, opening his mouth wide, providing the new entrance. He had curling hair that dipped under the water and his expression said one thing…enter if you dare! The one on the left of this was a bull’s head, with the horns disappearing into the roof of the tunnel as though he had just reared up and pierced them into the rock. The one of the right also had horns but looked more like a demonic Ram, with them curling up and round, coming to a deadly point. Both creatures either side also blew out flames from snarling nostrils which reached out like grappling fingers along the tunnels walls.

Well, whoever lived here, they most definitely got the intimidating welcome down…forget belly of the beast, I was travelling straight into the mouth of Hell alright!

I looked up to see his teeth hanging down as though any minute they would clamp shut on us and that would be the end of that. The tunnel we travelled down now was smaller but looked more like a corridor in some ancient palace. Gone was the harsh rock, being replaced with heavily decorated walls of terracotta statues that seemed to be built into the structure. It reminded me of some kind of temple, only taking one look at what the statues were doing, my guess would be the type of worshipping they did was only that of the body.

There were too many figures to count as they all entwined into one great massive orgy. Legs and arms were spread out in the most unusual ways, all to display their willing secrets to the world and the parts that fit them. Every single one of them had hold of the other, whether it be in their mouths or being mounted like rutting animals and every single one had a smile.

I wanted to be disgusted at the sight, but found I would be condemning myself a liar of the worst kind, as the evidence was pure and simple…I was getting turned on. I didn’t know what it was but it didn’t look like it was just about sex and any hole to fill or be filled. The reason for this was the closer you looked, the stronger actual love shone through. I knew that twenty different people could look at this the way one would with art and see something different. After all, that was the beauty in the creative world we lived in. Everything was personal.

Every book, song or painted picture was something different to us all. And it wasn’t just exclusively to the ‘Arts’ but to anything…buildings, places and even people. That’s what made the world beautiful! So could the same be said down here? Even in this sexually framed passage? Because what I saw wasn’t just sex, but it was the way the women were also held. It was the way some gazed into the eyes of their lovers, the gentle hold on the heads as pleasure was delivered and the kiss given in praise to others. I know not many would agree but I couldn’t help but see the beauty in this too.

However, that beauty was soon over and opening up into a dark open space with gigantic pillars that made me think we must be underneath a castle. Our little boat floated on by one and it was the same width as the black bricks that made up the circular structure. It was incomprehensible to think that if these pillars were this size then what was the size of the building they held up?

Well, I was about to find out as we went through an open archway at the end of this massive underground room. I sucked in an amazed breath as my head went up and up and up, taking in the imposing black castle that rose above us as though it had just this second, risen from the depths of a volcano. I had never seen black rocks cut into blocks and used to build Hell’s version of a Fairytale castle.

That was the only way to describe this place. Turrets the size of skyscrapers were everywhere. It was like a city full of them had all gathered and joined together. They weren’t just round but they were actually carved into giant soldiers and were all connected by sweeping passageways that looked like the bent over form of a woman. This wasn’t just a castle on an epic scale, but it was also an art sculpture of mass proportions. From this angle I could just see that it was sexual slaves being held captive by heavily armoured soldiers. You could see the battlements on top of the helmets they wore that reached out to an angry grey sky of swirling clouds.

It surrounded us in a U shape so there looked to be no escape from this evil place. I continued stretching out my neck to keep it in sight, when it finally got to me as the whole place started to disappear when we entered another underground tunnel. This time there was no holding back on speech.

“What…is this place?” I asked in a voice that didn’t sound like my own. I looked to Charon for answers and jumped in my seat. He now looked like a man possessed by something raging inside of him. He was actually looking at me as if he wanted to attack, only I couldn’t tell you if it was for my blood or my body. His eyes had started to burn into me and all the skin around them looked scorched. Flames shone from deep within and I could see he looked to be fighting some consuming thoughts that made him crush part of his pole in two hands. I didn’t move. I couldn’t. It was like being in the sights of something deadly, whether it be a lion or a man, holding a gun to your head.

Adrenaline once again played with my body and I was transported back to another place, another moment in a dark time. I sat waiting just like now. Waiting for a sign, a noise or one movement that told me what to do. I sat there waiting with a blade to my veins and death in my hands. Now death was in some else’s hands and I had suddenly tired of waiting. Just like that day I had held my fate and now I would do the same.

My life was mine and even here, in what some souls knew as their last resting place, where resting consisted of torture and cruelty, my life was still my own. And I chose to take it and use it to live.

“You can’t have me, Charon.” I stated calmly rising from my seat to face this new demon head on. He wasn’t what I thought or was it just this place? Was that what being here did to us? He hissed at me and brought his pole further out of the water as if ready to use in a different way. I held my ground only wishing I too had a weapon. Then a commanding voice cut through our showdown and for a moment my heart stopped beating.

“She is right Charon, you cannot have what belongs to another.” Tears instantly appeared as I let that voice soak over me in a desperate need for safety. The only voice I could ever give my entire being to and the same voice I had not heard in my world for what felt like an entire lifetime…

“Draven.”

Chapter 44

Long Lost Lust

“Well now, I certainly can count myself as a Draven.” I watched as a figure emerged from the steps to our right. I hadn’t noticed during my altercation with Charon, but we had drifted to a very grand underground docking area that looked like steps leading up to a Temple. But the rest of the details were lost to me.

Draven was walking down the steps, flanked either side by two guards who were so heavily armoured that I couldn’t make out much about them, other than they resembled a Gothic version of a Roman soldier.

“Draven…is…is that really you?” I felt the tears fall down my cheeks as my heart sped up with the very idea. Then the man in question came closer until he stood where the room’s flaming torches lit up his features…features just like Draven’s, only…

It wasn’t quite him.

“No! I don’t know…is this…what is this!?” I stammered finding my heart couldn’t take another blow like this one. This man standing in front of me could be his brother or even the man himself if he ever aged…but wait, it couldn’t be!

“I’m sorry my dear, please let me introduce myself. I am Asmodeus, one of the Seven Princes of Hell and formally known as The first hierarchy President of Lust but to you my dear, I am simply to be known as Dominic Draven’s father.” This was when my legs crumbled beneath me and thankfully, I fell slumped to the seat behind me. Ok, so now I knew I couldn’t take another blow like this one! Draven’s father! I screamed it in my head but thankfully only spoke it quietly to the room,

“Draven’s father?”

“Charon, I think you have reached your limit being here, why don’t you give us a moment alone.” The older version of Draven had every ounce the amount of authority coating his every word, just like I remembered in his son.

Charon went to reach out to me, when a thundering demonic roar stopped him. I don’t know whether it was the sound that rocked the boat or Charon trying to get as far away from me as possible.

“Raka!” (Means ‘Fool’ in Aramaic) Draven’s father ground out what sounded like an insult as Charon scrabbled backwards. Because of the sheer power in this man, I couldn’t help but hold myself frozen as Draven’s father stepped up to the boat. With one hand he dragged my end of the boat right up to him. Then, in a far softer tone than he granted Charon, said gently,

“Tlīthā qūm, come now.” (Means ‘Young one stand’ in Aramaic) I nervously raised my head to look up at him and for a moment I was captivated by the beauty I found there. When I didn’t rise he offered me his hand, nodding down to it, almost like he was engaging a frightened doe. I bit my lip and took his offering, making his eyes flash a powerful red for a small time.

He gave me only a whisper of his strength as he lifted me from the boat with such ease, wrapping an arm around my waist in order to raise me high enough to get me onto the platform. It was whilst being this close to him that I could see more than just Draven in him.

There was also Sophia, as he too had her black curls which brushed the top of his shoulders, although he did have touches of silver along the sides. He also had harsher lines on his handsome face that spoke years of knowledge. The only one that was hardly there to see was Vincent but he still had the high cheek bones and long straight nose that his other son had. But mainly and more painfully, it was mostly my Draven that I saw in him.

He lowered me and I realised it was also Draven’s height I now looked up at.

“Draven?” I said his name without being able to help myself. It felt like I was in a dream and in that dream I was transported into Draven’s future. Would he ever age like this?

“I fear my appearance is playing tricks with your fragile mind, little one.” I couldn’t help it. I sucked in my bottom lip and tried not to cry. It felt like being lost as a child and finally finding an adult to guide you. He raised a hand, cupped my cheek and took away one side of the wet trails that had soaked my skin.

“They said you were beautiful.” I didn’t know who he meant but right now I couldn’t care as the only thing that mattered to me wasn’t who thought I looked beautiful, but it was the beauty that owned my heart.

“Please…oh please, can you take me to him.” I pleaded, trying to hold back from just falling to my knees and outright begging. I would no doubt be saving that for later.

“Where the rewards in selfless acts lie, I will never understand.” I didn’t know what he was saying or why, but nor did I care.

“Please.” This was one moment I would never be above begging. He released a sigh and regarded me with regret.

“I am sorry, love of my kin, but what you seek isn’t here and hasn’t been for some time.” I shook my head not even letting his words penetrate. He was wrong!

“N…n…nnno! He has… to be, I know he is! Please…oh please…I can’t…not again, please just take me to him, I will give you anything, my life, my soul…my…my…” I started with a stutter, then a rush of desperate words only to end up sobbing, but just managed to push out the last of my promised bargain,

“…My…everything…” Tears came thick and fast, making it impossible to see his reaction to me crumbling at his feet. There I found myself in a ball of misery as I let every second of faith I held onto evaporate into what it was…the dust of an age old lie. God, would this emotional pain never end?! No! I needed the physical to bring me back, so I pounded the sides of my fists on the floor, drowning in a pit of agony that I felt so deep inside of me I couldn’t see any way to rip it out!

I felt myself being picked up and cradled to a hard chest which, for a moment, I let myself pretend was Draven’s.

“Ethpthaḥ!” (Means ‘To open’ In Aramaic) I didn’t take much in but briefly heard what sounded like a pair of massive doors opening. I didn’t look. I was scared what looking up at him would do to me, so I held on. I didn’t know what he was wearing, I didn’t know where he took me and I didn’t know if he was taking me up on my exchange for life. And I no longer cared! I couldn’t, I just didn’t have anything left in me. All I had been through, all those times that I put my life on the line, to come here and find what…?

Nothing…just… nothing.

Draven wasn’t here and I had failed! I had lost everything all over again. Coming all this way just to learn this reality was like someone had just dumped dry ice in my belly and it was seeping into my very soul!

“How could this happen?” I mumbled into his chest, crying the last of it out. I felt myself being lowered before I received an answer, even if though I didn’t really expect one.

“You thought any blood of mine would be brought back here against his will?” I raised my head and had to wipe my blurry eyes on my sleeve, along with… I hated to say it, a runny nose. I then looked up to find him kneeling by my side.

“Wh…what do you… mmmean?” I asked sounding like I had a cold and trying not to cry at the end, as my breathing hitched.

“My poor young one, I think you have been steered into greater depths before you learned how to swim.” I rubbed my nose again and said in a quiet voice,

“I can swim.” He started laughing and it was a lovely warm sound that once again reminded me of my Draven. His finger traced one escaping tear and he un-expectantly brought it to my lips. When I didn’t do anything but freeze he smiled at me and nodded to his fingertip. So I did what I thought he wanted and kissed the end of it.

“Nothing as beautiful as you should lose a part of herself…even something as fragile as a single tear, a tear that should never have been given permission to fall.” I nodded and rubbed the rest of them away receiving a wink for my efforts.

“Right, now tell me of your tale and how it led you to my home, my sweet child.” He got up and sat down next to me. Surprising a squeak out of me, he picked up my legs and laid them across his own.

“What are you doing?”

“Making us comfortable.” He said with a mischievous glint in his dark eyes.

“Umm…isn’t this a bit weird, I mean, I am kind of dating your son.” I reminded him just as he removed my boots and started rubbing my feet.

“First of all, knowing my son and the blood that runs dominant in his veins, then you are not simply ‘dating’ him as you put it, you solely belong to him, owned by him…”

“No I…”

“Eh, eh…I haven’t finished.” He said holding up a finger, gently admonishing me. He also went back to rubbing my feet after first peeling back my socks and I just prayed that my feet didn’t smell! And how did he make that simple act seem like he was peeling something a lot more concealing away? Wait, what was I thinking…? This was just plain old weird but also, oh so heavenly. I mean, jeez the man had skills alright!

“And secondly in reference to this…” He nodded down to my bare feet that were currently being dominated by his large hands.

“Just find yourself lucky that’s all I am doing and you don’t find yourself flat on you back, screaming for days under my ministrations, sweet girl.” When he saw my mouth drop, he gave me a pure, down to the bone, bad ass grin and leaned closer to my mouth to snap at it with his teeth, making me snap my own mouth…shut tight, that was. He burst out laughing and said,

“I am the Devil’s Prince of Lust, after all.”

I gulped and licked my dry lips causing him to watch the action as though he would lean over at any minute and do the same thing. I decided there was only one way I could think of to take both our minds from the sexual fog that his presence emitted.

“I don’t suppose there is any chance in Hell of a cuppa tea is there?” The grin he gave me painfully reminded me of Draven whenever he thought I was being cute and for the long minutes of being stared at, I didn’t think he would grant my odd request. But the next thing I knew I was soon staring down at my own Homer mug full of the perfectly brewed tea being held out to me like a gift from…uh…well not the Gods but…The Prince of Lust. Now that was a weird sentence even for me!

I looked up from my own personal nectar to say thank you when he said,

“Where there is tea, there is hope.”

I had to smile.

Whilst I was I telling him the story from the beginning, I also had time to take in my surroundings. The room we sat in was a very long gallery type room that was completely made from the thick black blocks. It had at least ten pillars running in the centre the full length until I couldn’t make out what was at the end. The pillars were made from a light grey stone that looked like solid ash. They arched up to the ceiling and the moulding interlaced with numerous other arches making up the intercut pattern above.

As dark as the stone was, it wasn’t lacking character or light showing off that character to its fullest. The light came from the most unusual lamps. Thick bicep arms of red tinged brass came out of the heavy rocked wall, with their shackled hands holding flaming orbs.

But it wasn’t just from the walls, as long slender female arms also provided light. They came out of the top of the pillars like tiered chandeliers but each was holding a light bulb upside down. The tops of each held a single flame and the oil could be seen in the glass at the bottom. Each one of these was shackled at the wrist and chains hung heavy in between, joining all the arms together.

It was pretty cool in a strange way, but the rest of the room had me blushing. Along the walls were various sized alcoves, each housing a sculpture of a sexual nature. Now, if there had been just two people having sex with each other then I could just act like I was seeing something like this in a museum. But oh no, not for the President of lust!

Of the ones closer to us, there was one of a large apple four times the size of a football. In its centre was a woman’s vagina with the snake’s body coming from its core. It was coiled around the apple and its head rested just by the stalk, looking down at its own body emerging. I think most would gather this represented Eve in the most unforgiving light.

The one straight ahead looked like a large gold ball, but when you gave it more than a quick glance you could see it was something more. It was a contorted body with the face of a demon. A large penis stood tall and erect for him as he was having a jolly good time giving himself oral sex. As crude as this was it wasn’t the worst part, as its bull sized balls were also in some sort of vice! Now that made me blush.

The ones further away in the next set of alcoves consisted of an overly muscled sea God holding across him a writhing mermaid. His trident, held tightly to her front, was trapping her breasts in between the three spears. The helpless mermaid had her head arched back in rapture as her tail had been pulled down enough to reveal a painfully large penis mid thrust, in between the glimpse of human legs. This one was made from old bronze, the type that turned green in places from the copper oxide.

The very last one I could make out, was of two figures that were some sort of half animal doing it standing up, whilst other creatures licked at their moving sexes from either side. It was made from pot and one of the heads was half crumbled away from what I gathered was old age.

I wish I could say that was it, but the largest sex symbol in the room was actually the one we were sat on. It was the longest sofa I had ever seen, being at least three times as big as a regular three seater. The cushions felt like cashmere and were the same ash grey colour as the pillars. They were thick and one of the softest seats I had ever graced my bum the task of sitting on.

But this wasn’t its most defining feature. No, it was the frame upon which all that comfort was placed on top of. Two larger than life naked women, that looked dipped in slick black oil, lay on their backs. Their heads were what were used as the feet of the sofa and their arched backs meant the sides consisted of high thrust out breasts and the arms bent so that fingers could tug on their own nipples. The legs met in the middle and lay over each other with their sexes scissored together.

It was a work of art really, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to be sat atop of two naked women, getting my feet rubbed by Draven’s dad, Mr Lusty! Of course, my wants weren’t up for discussion and so here I was. I had just finished telling him everything, as once again the floodgates opened and I found there was no holding back. He had a strange calming presence about him that I imagined granted him with the skills for a different type of torture. After all, why inflict pain when pleasure worked just as well…for all parties involved.

Apart from taking in our naked surroundings, I also had chance to take in the man who controlled it all. He sat back with such ease but commanded his space in an effortless way. When I was finally allowed to move my legs, choosing to pull them underneath me and to the side he gave me a knowing smile that had me blushing. Of course, the blushing could also account for when he started brushing the backs of his fingers along one of the chair’s breasts.

Now, I will say that seeing someone who looked like Draven, even an older version, wasn’t the easiest thing for my raging libido but when he did things like that…well, now that had me close to panting! Another thing that really wasn’t helping was what he was wearing. It looked to be a type of black toga made from some kind of hide, but I couldn’t tell you what. It fit tighter than a simple loose piece of material draped over one shoulder, so that you could see the sheer size of muscle he was packing. I wasn’t sure whether he was bigger than Draven or they were just the same size and I had forgotten how big Draven really was. I just knew that, thanks to the design of the toga, it showcased his enormous arms off to their fullest.

He had one arm covered completely in a skin tight layer underneath his toga but I didn’t know what material it was. It was like a soft black suede moulding to every curve and at first I thought he was wearing a single glove on this hand but when I looked closely I saw it was part of the sleeve. The arm that was left bare had thick leather straps crisscrossed over part of his bicep coming from his shoulder. His forearm also had a plate of brushed metal which covered the length of one side, growing wider near his elbow to fit. This was edged with small spikes that looked deadly enough in a fight. It was held on with straining buckles pulled tight around the muscle and in the centre was the same symbol I had seen on the back of my coin. It looked as if it had been burnt onto the metal with a branding iron.

“Well now, that was quite a story, my young one.” All I could do was nod my acknowledgment. After all, I had said all there was to say and now I was at a loss.

“So, was Draven ever here?” I asked the question that had been eating away at me.

“My dear, understand this, if my son were ever to grace us with his presence in this realm, then he would not do so wrapped in the chains of others. He would live like the King he is and being as he is so much more in your world.”

“What do you mean?”

“My lovely, he is a God amongst mere men.” He said with pride shining through each word.

“And as I and his mother had intended it to be, including his brother and sister also. But it is the unique mix in my son that has never happened before, that rivals that of any God. He is just yet to discover it.” I shook my head not fully understanding.

“What do you mean…has he…I mean how? Can he really have even more power?”

“You know nothing of the prophecy I take it?” He asked raising an eyebrow.

“I just know I am supposed to have something to do with it.” At my answer he laughed.

“One does not know true power until it has been taken from them and one does not know true love until that also has been taken from them…mix the two concepts together and you will then find that there lies your true power.”

“I don’t understand.” Now instead of laughing at me he simply gave me a small, knowing smile.

“You will…one day you will understand that your role in the prophecy wasn’t a role at all but simply a choice made from love, like this journey you bravely chose to walk down…one day I promise you, you will know your own worth, as my son does.” I looked down at my lap and tried to hold in the emotions his kind words brought to the surface.

“Can I ask you another question?” He lowered his head into a deep nod at my request.

“How is it you look like him?”

“Is it playing on your mind, child?” He asked finding the humour in my question. He didn’t wait for the answer he knew.

“I have many forms, but this I thought necessary for your comfort, besides, my son is easy on the eyes is he not?” Again he was finding this all quite amusing and I must say his easy tone was helping my strangled nerves.

“Oh yeah!” I said on a sigh making him laugh.

“So what am I to do now?” I said after the humorous moment had passed.

“Well, I cannot tell you where my son is, only where he is not. But my advice…” I turned to face him and nodded when he didn’t continue.

“Find someone who does.” Well that was easier said than done when even the bloody Oracle thought that he was down here!

“Could he be…you know, in the other place?” I looked up out of habit.

“Ah, now that I definitely can’t say. I know this might shock you given where my particular talents lie, but me and my dear Sarah are not really on speaking terms.”

“Sarah?” I asked, not hearing the name being mentioned before.

“My wife, although she is somewhat difficult in her acknowledgement on that fact. The Hebrew name Sarah indicates a woman of high rank and is translated as ‘princess’ which is why I named her as such. She will always be my Sarah.” He said looking thoughtful down the long room until I followed his gaze. There, in the middle of the room on a higher platform, was a sculpture of a single female and although I was too far away to make out any of her features, it was more the lack of what I could see was more profound. She was the only statue in the room that wasn’t of a sexual nature.

I knew from his look alone that this was his Sarah and Draven’s mother.

“Women are like flowers you know.” I tore my eyes from the pale marble woman back to Asmodeus. He was once again touching the breast like he was using that as an example, taking in her smooth curves like a connoisseur.

“Us bees search out the one we want, whether it be the biggest, the boldest in colour, the dangerous ones full of thorns, petals so soft it could bring the strength behind our wings to fail…All of you, standing there waiting for the day we come to find you, our perfect flower waiting in the storms of life, holding on for us, being strong for us…” He snapped his piercing gaze back to me and suddenly the intensity of it had me squirming. His grip tightened on the breast before he finished,

“But some fail. Some lose themselves in the waiting. They wither up in the strongest winds and give up holding on. So they let that wind take them, leaving nothing left for us bees to find…” He reached out and had my hands locked in his before I could blink.

“Don’t let the wind take you, my son’s Chosen… hold on until he finds his way and if you do, then I can promise you it will be worth facing the storm my world throws in your path.” I nodded my understanding and gave him all I had left to give…

“I will always hold on.”

It was a promise.

Chapter 45

Behind Enemy Lines

After leaving the second Circle of Hell and saying goodbye to its President, the journey back was a lot easier than it had been coming here. First of all Charon, although still scary for the most part, must have had his warnings because he remained silent until we broke free of the tunnels. When this happened not only did he turn to smile at me once more, but he had also transformed back into his former happy self…clean clothes and all.

He even apologised for his behaviour and told me that it sometimes happens to Charons when they are not naturally comfortable in the place where the souls take them. This was one of those times. I told him there were no hard feelings and shrugged it off. I mean, what was I supposed to do, hold a grudge, throw a hissy fit and tell him I wouldn’t ever be back? I didn’t believe in any of those things. Anyway the trip back gave me the time needed to sort through my head.

On first hearing Draven wasn’t there, I had wanted to give up the fight. Hell, I think for a moment I did. But then after hearing what Draven’s dad had to say about not giving up and holding on, I knew I could never just give up on Draven like that. And I wouldn’t.

So, what was next? Draven’s dad had walked me through a small section of his castle (which was seriously cool) and as I turned to say my farewells I was roughly pulled into his embrace and licked…I kid you not…actually licked up my neck to my ear, where he whispered,

“Good journey, my sweet, sweet young one and…” He released me and placed something cold in my hand before saying,

“…until the next time we should ever need to meet.” I looked down to see he had placed another coin in my hand ready to use should I ever need him again. I gave him big eyes of surprise and then said something that made him burst out laughing,

“Thanks, Draven’s dad.”

Well, after saying goodbye to Asmodeus the way no ‘could one day be’ daughter-in-law should ever do, I felt better than when I had first arrived. I mean, it was always nice to know that someone, who one day could become your in-law, actually liked you. Besides, it couldn’t be a bad thing to have someone that powerful in Hell at your back, could it? I thought this as I palmed the coin in my hand before placing it back safely in my pocket. I had carried it with me for so long now it felt right being back there.

So, bringing me back to the now and a place where Jared waited, pacing along the same decking I had not long ago left. I used these last few moment to consider what to do next? I had already used what I had learned to gather there was something bigger at play here for everyone else to believe Draven was in Hell. So where was he really? The only answer I could come up with was so simple it was practically staring me in the face.

Thinking back to everything that had happened, it suddenly felt so obvious now, I felt like smacking myself. The attempts of my kidnapping, no-one knowing where Draven was or having any concrete answers for any of my questions. The reality of it was that no-one really knew!

But I think I did.

Could it be that Draven wasn’t dead after all and just being kept prisoner by some kind of power he needed love’s help to overcome. Was that what his father had implied when talking about Draven’s restrained power within? Was I now a target simply because I was trying to find Draven, because thinking back, it had all started when I received my first letter from the Oracle. So did that mean that Draven’s jailor could be this Gastian person?

Well, Draven’s dad was right about one thing and that was I needed to be asking the right people and right now there was only one person I could think of who could help me.

“Lucius, I hope your ass is still in Germany.” I muttered to myself before looking up to catch the look of relief on Jared’s face. He stopped pacing and stormed to the end of the dock with a determined stride. I was about to take the offered hand from Charon when Jared snarled inches from his face.

“Well, alright then.” Charon said pulling back comically. I had to say I felt a bit sorry for the guy now, after the day of being shouted at and turned into a nasty Lust Demon. Jared didn’t bother holding out his hand for me to take…no, no, instead he just took me. He was still giving a warning glare to Charon as he lifted me clean out of the boat and popped me down by his side. Then, without another word, he took my hand and pulled me abruptly back towards the mountain.

“Um…thanks Charon.” I said waving behind me, wondering what had gotten into Jared.

“No worries…I would say laters but you know…not what people wanna hear, so…” He just nodded his head as he gave me a salute in place of a wave.

“Hey, where’s the fire?” I asked trying to get Jared to communicate with me using actual words instead of growly pissed animal noises.

“The fire? Seriously, you wanna play this bullshit with me?!” He snapped at me and I pulled from him, holding up my hands in surrender.

“What is your problem?” Ok, so this was totally the wrong thing to ask a beast on the edge. His eyes turned into black slits in a pool of hot silver, oh and of course he snarled at me.

“My problem?!” Even his voice had changed, crossing those fine lines between, man, beast and Demon.

“My fucking problem started when you decided it would be good for a laugh to go off to a circle in Hell and right up to the fucking doorstep of the one who runs that shit! Do you have…” He cut his arm through the air in his anger before carrying on,

“…have, any fucking clue how dangerous that was…? DO YOU?” He roared this last part out at me and I could briefly see his fangs grow and his jaw elongate. Then I decided to do something stupid. I pushed him.

“How dare you! What right do you have to go ape shit at me for anyway? What do you care!? What would it have mattered to you if…oh wait…now I get it…you weren’t worried about me, oh no...!” Oh, now he backed away. I stepped closer and poked him in the chest as I carried on delivering the truth of the matter,

“You were worried about your precious vow and what would have happened if I wasn’t around to keep my side of the bargain!” I swear I saw him flinch and I felt some satisfaction in that, given the reasons why he seemed to be so worried about me or more like, what I could do for him!

“Well, what did you expect Pet, me here gushing over a piece of pretty ass?!” I gritted my teeth at his come back and then let rip. Before he saw what was coming I slapped him shouting,

“You jerk!” And then stormed off in my anger, only I had no idea to where, seeing as I was in the Underworld! But at that minute I just didn’t care, I was fuming angry!

“And where do you think you’re going?” The words grumbled out of him as he wrapped both his arms around me from behind.

“Let me go!” I screamed but he just held on tighter.

“NO!” After that shout I decided to let my anger come off the boil and simmer. He must have decided to do the same because we just stayed like this and panted until our breathing calmed. Then he released a big sigh.

“Look, I…well damn it, I was worried about you alright!”

“You mean the bargain don’t you?” I reminded him bitterly then heard him try for patience in the form of another sigh.

“It should be just about that but it… wasn’t. I was worried about what would happen to you and what I could have done to get you back safely.”

“You would have come for me?” I asked a bit dumbfounded.

“Yes.” On that one word my breath caught before I asked,

“But why?”

“I don’t know why and that’s why I am so angry. It’s like as soon as I met you something deeply ingrained inside of me was connected to you. As if someone flipped a switch that said I must protect you, even against my own kind and even with my own life.” On hearing his declaration, I relaxed back into him, all fight flying right out of me.

“Maybe it’s just the vow.” I said looking for the simplest answer.

“Fuck the vow! All I know is these feelings are opening a big fucking hole, one I closed and buried a long time ago and nothing scares me in this world other than one thing and that is seeing that hole open up again…hear me now pet, I don’t let anyone in…ever!” I bit my lip and nodded, not trusting myself to say anything right now.

“Now do me a favour… take my hand, follow me from here and forget this damn day, leaving it where it belongs.”

“And where is that?” I asked on a whisper. He released me and we both turned but even now with his back to me I didn’t miss what he said next,

“…Dead and buried.”

We soon found ourselves back in the caves and making our way back through the complicated maze of bare rock. And for once, I was silent. I was still trying process all I had learnt but mostly trying to make sense of Jared’s words. I didn’t quite know what was going on with him but I knew being around me was messing with his head. I didn’t want that. I didn’t want to be anyone’s painful reminder of a past long buried. But most importantly, where did that leave us now?

These thoughts plagued me and when I lost my footing and fell into his back I felt him tense.

“Sorry.” I muttered feeling embarrassed where once I wouldn’t have.

“What are you planning, Keira?” I frowned at the unexpected question at first, not understanding where it had come from.

“What do you…?”

“Well, knowing what I’ve come to learn about you, I know that by me putting your ass on a plane home is going to be a wasted effort in keeping you safe... so I will ask again, what are you planning?” He asked turning to me, having stopped not far from the top, back near the Roman numerals ‘22’.

“I need to get to Germany.” I stated firmly.

“And what’s in Germany?”

“Lucius.” At this I could see him raise an eyebrow.

“Please tell me you’re joking.” I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him my best ‘I got attitude’ look.

“And why would I be?” My answer got me an eye roll and him throwing his arms up dramatically.

“Jesus girl! What is it with you… you got the fucking yellow pages of bad ass Demons on speed dial?! Is there even one powerful killing machine out there you don’t know!? Jesus! But of course…the fucking Vampire King!” His irate voice seemed to bounce from the damn stone surrounding us, making it even colder down here.

“It’s not like that…you don’t …” He wouldn’t let me finish.

“Oh no? So let’s see shall we, let’s recap…” He stormed back to me coming so close I had to look up. Then he began counting on his fingers,

“First off, you come into my club with a bodyguard, who if he ever let’s his iron control snap, could have torn through every fucking Demon there and is a King in his own right… then second comes me, another King who you fearlessly asked for help into getting into Hell…right am I getting through yet…no, then let me continue…” He stepped again further into me making me back up with his intensity.

“…So, once in Hell comes the third guy, a God damn President in the circles that aids in ruling Hell itself! I mean do you have even the tiniest concept of how powerful someone like that is?... I judge from your wide kitten eyes that’s a no!”

“Jared…” I reached out to him to get him to stop, but instead he grabbed my wrist and then twisted it painlessly behind my back. Once trapped, he then took the last steps pushing me back into the wall behind.

“Then I find my little pet wants to take a trip off to see the fourth guy, a fucking Vampire King, who is known throughout my world as being one ruthless bastard and that’s coming from ‘it takes one to know one’, darling.”

“But…” Again he wouldn’t let me speak. Instead he raised a finger to my lips to silence me before he continued his rant, which granted was making me out to be mentally incapable of making my own suicidal decisions.

“But then to top it all off and the very last slice of your crazy mind, is who you belong to. A being who is more powerful than all of the above and I am not ashamed to admit to it. The very one who commands us all, apart from you it seems, considering you can’t just listen to him and fucking MOVE ON!” This was when it felt like he had slapped me! He knew…he knew!

“You know?!” He shook his head as if surprised that I was focusing on this part of what he had just said.

“I…” This was when I showed him a piece of that crazy!

“You knew! All this time you knew what I was trying to do, yet answer me this Jared, why is it you didn’t seem very shocked that I came back to the dock without the one person I went there to save…? Answer me, why is that exactly?!” At this he let me go on a growl and walked away showing me his back.

“You knew he wasn’t there…all this time and you still let me go to Hell and back and all for what…so you could get you’re fucking Vow from me! Oh, you were right about one thing, you’re a ruthless bastard alright! So where is he then, do you know who has him?!” I was so near to screaming at him instead of shouting, but this was breaking my bloody heart! I felt betrayed, so utterly betrayed.

“You have this all wrong, pet.”

“Don’t call me that!” He held up his hands as he tried using a softer tone, saying,

“Alright Keira, but you have to listen to me, it isn’t like that. I knew, yes, that you wouldn’t be coming back with the King in tow, but I thought you would at least find some answers, that’s why I wanted to give you my coin. But then when I saw what you really had planned, where you were really trying to get to, then that’s when I tried to stop you.” I had nothing to say to his confession other than to hear it all out. He took a moment and when I didn’t speak he rubbed one hand at the back of his neck in frustration. It was surprisingly a very human thing to do.

“I don’t know where the King is, Keira and I don’t know anyone who does. When you came into my club, I felt something… I wasn’t lying about that back there…I knew I needed to do this for you and what it would mean for me in return one day. It didn’t take me long to figure out who you were, but by then it was too late. The King’s rules had already been broken and I had to follow what the damn fates had set into place.” This news made me react. I lost sight of my hurt long enough to ask,

“What do you mean by the fates?” His reaction to this worried me because his gaze lowered as though he couldn’t look me in the eyes any longer.

“Jared?” He closed his eyes briefly, inhaled a deep breath and finally looked at me to deliver his last emotional bomb.

“The Oracle, Keira, she told me you would come and what would happen when you did.” I sucked in my own sharp breath and took a stunned step back, using the wall to stop me from crumbling.

“She…she told you to make a Vow and that I too would make one in return…didn’t she…DIDN’T SHE!?” I screamed this last part when he didn’t answer me. He took in my anger and nodded.

“All this time I have been played.”

“No, I don’t think that’s what this is.” He tried to reason with me, but I was too far from the surface to claw out of my pit of betrayal that these people had plunged me into.

“Then what would you call it Jared, because from the very beginning I have been placed around this damn chessboard like a defenceless pawn, all for what, to give the big players a chance at something I couldn’t see before, but now I see…now I see what this is!” I walked to push past him in this narrow tunnel but he grabbed my forearm to stop me.

“Then what is this, Keira?” He asked gently looking down at me with sad eyes of concern.

“This is your fate, Jared, this is everyone’s fate at the expense of my own happy one.”

“That’s not true and you know it. Look Keira, I am not going to pretend that I know what will happen with you and the King, but I do know that I was meant to meet you, I was meant to feel this way about you and for what, so that I could get you into Hell for no real reason…?” I shrugged my shoulders, feeling deflated and hurt but then he shouted,

“Bullshit! Don’t you see, everything that happens now is for a reason, but it’s just a reason we can’t see yet. Don’t stop believing Keira, don’t give up…hold on Keira.” Those words had me in a vice called faith and hope. They were the same words from Draven’s father and now they had come back to me when I needed them the most.

“I know you feel betrayed, little pet, but I did all that was asked of me, I was told not to tell you what I knew and this I did on blind faith in the Oracle’s words. Knowledge, pet, is a weapon sometimes best left until the last possible moment.” I let myself absorb his words of wisdom and hated that he was right. If I had known any of this, would I still have gone through with it all? That I couldn’t answer, but it still made me understand the why.

“Fine, but what about Sigurd, is he working with the Oracle as well? Is that who sent him to me and if that’s true then…wait a minute.” I said suddenly realising something that I had not thought of until now…something that chilled me to the core.

“Keira, what is it?”

“Where is Sigurd?” Jared shook his head and said,

“I’m not following…should he be here?” My eyes widened and panic seized me.

“He wrote me a note, but with everything that just went on I had forgotten…he… he was supposed to meet me, he is the reason I came here tonight.”

“Give me the note.” Jared ordered, now stepping back into his masterful role. I fished around in my bag, knowing that every second I took, the more frustrated Jared was getting with me.

“Here it is.” I said passing it to him. He picked up the lantern he had dropped in our argument and held it over the note. It was a few tense moments before he said,

“Time to go,” in a harsh voice. He stuffed the note in his back pocket and grabbed my hand to pull me quickly through the last of the tunnel.

“What is it…? Jared, just tell me!” I pleaded when he wouldn’t answer me. Then he stopped abruptly, making me walk into his back again. He looked as though he was trying to figure out how to word his next statement. Then he turned to me with the lantern raised, which put his serious expression in the spotlight. Then he told me the startling truth.

“I got a visit from your Ouroboros master last night. He told me he had to leave the country… someone he worked for in Italy who needed to hear all that had happened. But before he left, we made a blood pact to seal my word in looking out for you in his place.”

“What!?” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing! He left me…he really left me?

“Keira, listen to me now. This is the reason I had my brother follow you and when he found out you were coming here, I assembled my men and came for you. I knew you had the heart and thought you had taken it upon yourself to try and get into Hell alone.”

“So, Sigurd didn’t tell you to meet me here?” Which was what I originally thought had happened.

“No, in fact he asked me to do the opposite, to wait and stall you if you became insistent, a task I found I could not withhold due to my own vow to you.” I was fast trying to make sense of all this, but then the most important question had to be asked.

“So if Sigurd didn’t write the note, then who did?” At this his face hardened as if ready to lose that barely contained fury he wanted to unleash with his next breath.

“Let’s go.” He didn’t answer me but I had a feeling he had an idea.

We made it up the last tunnel with haste and emerged from the entrance to find that the darkness could not hide what faced us. Jared’s brother and his men were all stood spaced out in a line which secured the entry way. I was quickly pulled behind Jared’s protective frame as we approached his brother.

“Nice of you to join us J, wouldn’t have wanted you to miss your welcome party.” Orthrus said sarcastically, then cracked his knuckles in the face of our danger.

“Wouldn’t have missed it for all of Hell, brother.” Jared replied dryly, looking from side to side, as if taking in each individual threat. Although now, looking at the small army of mutated demons that had us trapped in a corner, there looked to be too many threats to count.

“How many?” Jared asked one of the men at his brother’s side.

“Twenty five here, but there could be more.”

“That’s five each boys, anyone that gets six picks a loser to buy a round…plus looking at these ugly bastards I’m thinking a lap dance too.” All heads nodded in agreement and I snorted my disbelief on hearing Jared’s brother making a bet at a time like this.

“You have got to be joking?” I whispered at him from behind Jared’s back.

“Do I look like a fucking Jester, little girl? This shit is ugly and I will need a drink and a sweet piece of ass after a night of ugly…you volunteering, sweetie?” He asked winking at me.

“Knock it off, Orth!” Jared snapped without taking his eyes from the sea of uglies that Orthrus had named them…and rightly so, I thought shuddering.

“Speaking of Jesters, where is our buddy Marcus?”

“I sent him a text, so fingers crossed doing what he does best and coming up the rear.” I bit my lip as that was quite funny.

“Play nice, brother” Jared said trying also not to laugh.

“Never gonna happen, Brother! So what’s the plan here J, ‘cause I gotta tell ya, we have been staring at these fuckers for a while now and I am getting bored of the zombie dumb ass show.”

“No-one has voiced their demands?” Jared asked, but before his brother could answer him, another voice took that liberty.

“Oh now, I wouldn’t say that.” I looked to see the army part to let through a man wearing a suit, one who I couldn’t see properly thanks to the shadows that hid him.

“Oh yeah, I forgot about this asshole.” Orthrus said as if he hardly mattered.

“Enough! Hand over the girl and I will consider letting you live, mongrels.” Orthrus whistled low and said,

“Oh Hell no, did he just say that, Bro?”

“You know Orth, I think he did.” Jared said in a voice that screamed so close to the edge of ferocity, I felt it buzzing through his back.

“Oh shit man, now you gone and done it, do you not have any idea who my brother is, you dumb fuck!?” Orthrus taunted making his men snarl at the wave of demons getting ready to attack.

“I don’t care what breed of dog he is, NOW GIVE ME THE GIRL!” He roared.

“You heard him brother, go give him your girls.” Jared said to Orthrus smiling.

“With pleasure.” He replied kissing his fists, before walking ahead of the rest.

“What is he doing?” I whispered into Jared’s back.

“Just wait and see, pet.”

“Very well… my Death soldiers, tear these dogs apart!”

And just like that, a swarm of mutated men were released from their verbal control and attacked…

A war at the Hellfire had begun.

Chapter 46

Bring the Rage

Orthrus opened his arms wide in the centre of the courtyard and just as the first wave of demons came at him, something started to happen. The earth beneath him started to split but there was no rumble or evidence of the earth quaking other than the sight of it.

“What is he…?” I started to ask when the sight of something emerging from the hole in the ground had me stopping. The tear in the earth spanned the length of his legs and some sort of creature started to pull itself up, grabbing a foot first. Orthrus shuddered and then it all happened in a matter of seconds. The congealed black sand used his body to drag itself from the pit of what I could only imagine was Hell itself. It started to cover his legs first, wrapping itself around him then turning to thick liquid and seeping into his clothes. As it moved up his body with such speed, it then revealed something darker in place of the body that once was Orthrus.

I gasped as I got my first sight of the beast he was becoming. A pair of animal feet like no other stood holding the weight of the transformation taking place. They had four massive claws of thick bone that curled into the ground like spikes. His skin was black but looked like cooling molten rock that cracked, showing the glow of hot power beneath the surface. A larger back claw knifed out at the heel and I saw it pound into the ground before Orthrus fell forward as the last of his other self over took him. He raised his upper body and roared into the night as the liquid sand disappeared into his open mouth, as if trying to drown him in his own demon form.

What was left was a living, breathing nightmare of a demonic beast the size of a bull. All his body looked to be made from cooling lava as if he had merged with the volcano’s eruption instead of dying from it. But the sight of his hissing, cracking skin was nothing compared to his head…or should I say ‘heads’, as he had two of them. They looked different and if I could compare them to anything, I would say it was like a Rottweiler on steroids one side and a rabid German Shepherd on the other, only these two were bigger, meaner, demonic and more deadly!

The demon horde that came after him looked like an army of men once upon a time, but now they were nothing more than empty shells that only had death on their minds. There were no loved ones to fight for, there were no thoughts of country and honour and there was no fighting for protection. There was only death in their eyes and that death was their only need.

And Orthrus was in their sights. But from the looks of things that was just fine with him, as the first demon that got close enough found its head in a vice of jaws from two killers. In one second it was raising its arm in attack and the next it was missing its head.

It was as this small army came closer, that I realised I had seen them before and I gasped in my hands as that memory resurfaced. It had been the last time Sigurd’s darkness had transported me into the land of nightmares…only now it was starting to look more like into the land of things to come. The time in my prison when those creatures had come closer was like a replay in reality as they once again made their way towards me.

They each had their own weapons of choice embedded somewhere in their bodies and their tall flaky forms were disfigured because of the fact. Dark ash corroded the area, like the next one coming closer to Orthrus. This one had an axe cutting into the side of his neck, making his head favour his unaffected shoulder. The blackened skin around the metal licked out along the pealing skin and made half of his dead face look charred and burnt.

Just as before, he got within distance of Orthrus’ snapping fangs that dripped with saliva, the demon reached up and pulled the axe from its fleshy holder. Then with more strength than I would have counted on, he swung it at Jared’s brother’s heads. It nicked one pointed ear as he didn’t move quickly enough, but that looked to be his last mistake. As his beast of a body twisted away, in the next move he was snaking back and ripping the arm that held the weapon, clean off.

As another came running at him, so he threw the arm out of his way, making the axe skid across the floor towards us.

“I think it’s time to join the fun, boys.” Jared said nodding each side at his men. They smiled as though he had just given them Christmas off and then they fell to the ground ready for their own change. I couldn’t help but grip onto Jared’s back as the earth split once more, only this time in three places. The one on our left, where Orthrus had been standing, changed the quickest. Only this time instead of black sand to cover him, it was thousands of tiny thin roots of grey snakes that slithered up from the hole.

In no time at all there was now a snarling beast that looked more like a giant wolf with spikes along its spine, although there was no soft fur to speak of. It stretched out as if readying for the fight and it sounded like tension wire being pulled tight.

By the time I looked to my right, the other two had already transformed. One looked a lot sleeker than the others and this wasn’t just down to a more panther like body. No, this one wasn’t like the others at all, as it was covered in a shiny thick red oil that was the colour of dark blood. I just hoped he didn’t feel like shaking his fur because I didn’t fancy a bloody shower!

The very last one was a similar size to Orthrus, who was the biggest one of the pack. His pale skin was pulled painfully taut over jagged bones that looked like they had inverted outwards. His own ribcage had fanned out and sharp bone became a weapon on his back, should anyone try and attempt to take him down. Even his skull had been morphed into flat horns that looked as if they could be used as a battering ram. And from the sight of him with his head lowered ready, I didn’t think I was wrong.

They all looked towards Jared, their master and on his nod they all leapt into action. Each one of them mid leap landed on a demon and started tearing into him. Jared then turned to me and said,

“I need to get you safe.” I looked behind us back to the caves.

“No, that’s what he wants, that’s why he surrounds us here, to try and force us back. He wants me to lose you in the caves so he…”

“JARED, LOOK OUT!” I screamed just as one of the creatures slipped passed the chaos and came barrelling towards us. He was covered in hammered metal plates that had been fused to his skin and his head looked like it was half machine. The terminator came to mind just as he crashed into Jared, who had positioned himself in front of me.

Jared, even in his human form, was still an unstoppable force. He flipped his body upright and grabbed the demon. He quickly did the same as me and zeroed in on the weak spot on his back as this was an area without plated armour. Then he delivered a series of kidney punches that came so quickly it was impossible to count them. The demon fell to his knees but not from pain. He used this motion as an escape from Jared’s pounding fists.

I saw another demon look towards us and decide to get in on the action. But with Jared still focused on destroying the plated one, he didn’t see what I was seeing. I backed up and a pair of white eyes locked onto to me. I knew I had to do something and running off screaming like a little girl was going to be as practical as a chocolate gun, with candy bullets. I looked desperately round the space for any type of weapon and came across a severed arm with its hand still clutching an axe.

It couldn’t have just been an axe…oh no, not me, it had to come with an arm! I thought as I ran to it. I looked up to see the demon coming closer but he was slower than the rest, as he was dragging his foot behind him. I thought at first that he was already injured but then saw the glint from the moon shining from the leg length blade attached to his hip bone. Well, he might not be quick but he sure was packing!

I looked down at the arm and noticed with disgust that its fingers were still twitching around the axe’s handle.

“Typical.” I said and then stamped my foot down on its wrist hoping this would release his grip. I then quickly reached down and snatched the axe before its hand could fist around the wood again. I picked it up, feeling its hefty weight, wishing I had some more of Draven’s mojo left in me. I looked up just in time to see the demon reach out and try to grab me. So, on a scream, I swung the axe round with all my puny strength. The demon reared back as I missed him but the momentum twisted my body more than I planned for and took me a few feet away from him.

I righted myself and dragged the axe back with me to be closer to Jared who looked to be finishing with the plated guy. He had just jumped up and delivered a downward punch to the top of the demon’s head, where now a fist sized dent had caved in part of his face.

“Uh…Jared…could use a… little help over here.” I said backing up further. Jared looked up from the guy on the floor to find me being stalked. He swiftly stomped down on the guy’s spine, breaking his back in a sickening crunch of bones shattering. I used every shred of my strength to raise the axe up, hoping to use the weight to drive it down when needed. I jumped as I felt the axe being taken from me and I looked up to find Jared smiling down at me.

“You’re just full of surprises, pet.” Then he winked at me like we were on a date.

“And you’re crazy.” I said on a laugh. He nodded as though what I just said was obvious and then he proved that statement true. He cracked his neck and swung the axe to rest over his shoulder like some demonic woodcutter. The muscles bunched under leather and he strolled up to the demon who was still dragging his weapon behind him. It was looking quite helpless until it lashed out with its weapon infused leg with blinding speed. Jared jumped up enough to miss the propelled blade that spun the demon round. Jared then smiled before swinging the axe like a mad man. Parts soon started to be chopped off left, right and centre, so I looked away from the grotesque butchering.

My eyes quickly caught a flash of something by my feet and I screamed again as it was the plated demon that had crawled my way. He grabbed my foot in a painful hold with metal bent fingers and I stamped down on his shoulder to get him to release me.

“Oh. Just. Die!” I said each word with another stomp of my foot but it was as if he couldn’t even feel it.

“DIE! You stupid tin can!” I shouted and then shrieked when I saw an axe blade take off most of the demon’s head.

“Tin can…really, that’s the best you could do?” Jared asked with his eyes aglow with dangerous excitement. I kicked out of the dead demon’s hold and said,

“I thought it would be degrading, but next time I will try ‘little dick’ and see if that helps.” Jared burst out laughing as he pulled me to his chest and gave me a swift kiss. Then I was let go in breathless wonder, to see him back in serious killer mode.

“I need to get you safe.” Then he looked around to assess the situation. There were piles of dead demons, most of which were missing vital parts of their bodies. I think if there had been lots of blood and gore I would have thrown up long ago. Thankfully though, this wasn’t the case, as it was more like black dust and bits of burnt paper that came from the broken bodies. They were like man-shaped, skin sacked dirt.

His beasts were making short work of killing and I saw two trying to hold onto the one covered in oil but they couldn’t grasp him for his slick body. He gripped one by the leg and rolled quickly, ripping the demons limb away from the rest of its body. Then I saw the other two playing tug of war with one demon that had a mace for a head. He was trying to ram his face full of spikes into the bellies of the beasts that had him, but then he literally split in half from his crotch up to his chest. They left him with half his ribcage sticking out. Ok, so now I felt a bit ill!

“Yo J, can I crash this party of yours or what?” The voice came from above us and we saw Marcus stood in between the empty flint window frames, taking in the scene of carnage with a smile.

“About fucking time Marcus, get your ass down here.” I felt the whoosh of air and then there he was standing next to me.

“Hey spunky, you causing trouble again?” He asked me, making Jared growl and Marcus grin.

“So what’s the plan here J, you want me to do some roasting?” Jared raised an eyebrow at the thought and I had no idea what he meant but from the sounds of it, I didn’t want to!

“When I give the signal I want you to get Keira out of here. Transport her to the Mausoleum and wait for me there.” Marcus crossed his arms and pouted before saying,

“Now that doesn’t sound very exciting J, surely you’re not going to make me miss out on all of the fun.” Jared rolled his eyes and then stood back and raised his arm out at the fighting,

“Be my guest, Marcus.” The evil smile that raised his sinister jester features made me shudder.

“Don’t mind if I do, My Lord.” He bowed gracefully and then straightened in one fluid motion. He was dressed like a modern day pirate. With his long dark red leather jacket that had black metal buttons down its length and large cuffs folded back. With this he’d added a pair of skin tight jeans in light grey and a Beatles T-shirt with a loose thin scarf draped round multiple times.

Marcus stepped further into the centre and just as two demons came running at him from both sides he pulled a long thin blade from the holder hanging low by his thigh, hidden by his long jacket. He raised that blade to his lips, kissed it and ran it slowly through one closed hand. The blade came out the other side engulfed in red flames.

Just as the demons attacked, Marcus side stepped one way and arched his blade up, cutting up the torso of one demon and then one step back had him slicing down into the next. Both fell to the floor in less than three seconds and only two steps.

“Man, he’s good.” I said looking on in awe. Jared just scoffed,

“Damn show off.”

Jared’s comment had me wondering why he hadn’t yet changed himself. Was it to protect me better?

“I see dickhead showed up.” Orthrus said now back in his human form, slick with sweat from his full body workout. Tight black muscles were still tensed and at the ready under his wet shirt. He looked like a tank ready to roll over someone.

“You gotta give it to him Bro, he’s certainly got finesse.” Jared commented at the sight of Marcus slicing apart his foe in a blaze of strokes.

“I don’t gotta give him shit, unless it’s mine to eat.” Orthrus replied, rolling his shoulders. Jared laughed at his brother and smacked him on the back in some sacred brotherly code for love and respect.

All of Jared’s men fell back to the line as all the demons in the courtyard had been forced to rest…and with no chance at getting back up again.

“So what now, ‘cause I gotta say, that seemed a bit too easy.” Marcus said coming back last. He ran his hand over his blade and the flames died down to nothing before he sheathed it. However, a moment after that statement, another line of demons came from around the sides and collected together in front of us.

I turned to see Orthrus smack Marcus upside the head making the little bells in his red hair jingle.

“You just had to say it didn’t you!” Orthrus scolded at Marcus.

“Just for you I did sugar lips, anyway quit your Conan belly a’rumblin, you know you live for this shit.” Marcus counteracted.

“I also live for pounding on cocky little jester runts such as yourself.”

“Cut it off, you two and save it for the damn horde!” Jared snarled at them both and when his back was turned Orthrus rubbed his middle finger down his face and Marcus blew him a kiss in return.

“You have one more chance Cerberus, hand over the girl and walk away.” The suited man’s voice rang out as a clear threat to my life and Jared started laughing.

“Well, at least the asshole knows who we are now.” Orthrus said smiling.

“What’s wrong Gastian, running out of death dealers and think you’re pretty voice will scare me?” This got him a reaction as the mysterious Gastian bellowed a demonic rumble.

“Now that’s what you call a comeback, pet.” He said running a finger down my cheek with his lips twitching for a smile. I rolled my eyes at him and he broke out into a full laugh when I said,

“Men!”

“Bring the rage, my Brothers…bring the rage!” Jared shouted making his beasts snarl and snap their jaws with excitement.

“Alright bitches, you heard the man.” Orthrus said nodding to his men to spread out as the next set of demons came closer. One of the largest ones didn’t seem to be carrying a weapon so he moved quicker than the rest. Just as I was wondering what he was planning on using against these guys, he opened his mouth so wide, he dislocated his own jaw. Then he started to regurgitate something and soon the start of a thick chain could be seen coming up. I heaved a few times in the sight of him puking up metal, never being very good watching someone else being sick.

I was at least pleased to know I wasn’t the only one that thought this was gross…but then it got worse. He bent over at the waist just as the chain was long enough to curl along the floor and then we all noticed another bit coming out from…oh God!...the other end!

“Oh Hell no… That is just sick…man that is wrong!” Orthrus said along with Marcus saying stuff along the same lines. Then Orthrus stepped up to Marcus, slapped him on the back and said,

“This dudes all yours, my man.” The look Marcus shot Orthrus was enough to have me slap my hand to my mouth to try and squash down the laughter. Orthrus saw my attempt and gave me a friendly head nod that said he appreciated I was on his side.

“The Hell it is! You’re the bastard that can lick his own balls, you go at him!” Orthrus dropped his amused face and growled.

“For that, both of you are gonna deal with him, now go.” Jared ordered, turning serious all of a sudden.

“Fine, come on pencil dick, let’s go kill this metal sucking fu…” I didn’t hear the rest of his comment as Jared grabbed me and pulled me close.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know, but it feels different this time, like he is waiting for something bigger to come. Promise me that when I give the word, you will go to Marcus, he will get you out of here, somewhere safe, then I will come find you…understand?” I bit my lip at the thought of any of these guys getting hurt but didn’t say anything, I just nodded.

“Good girl” He let me go and just before he turned back to the fight I grabbed his forearm.

“Jared…just, play it safe…yeah?” He gave me that handsome grin of his and said,

“You worried about me, little pet?”

“I’ve got a vow to keep, remember?” I said smiling up at him. He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and whispered,

“That you do, darling.” Then we both took in the scene. The demon with the chains still had them dangling from both ends of his body but now had enough to swing around as weapons in each hand. I saw that neither beast particularly wanted to get within touching distance of the chains and I found this to be a bit funny, considering why. Here were all these mighty Hell beasts, and some of the most frightening creatures I had ever seen and they were worried about touching something as gross as where those chains had been…well minus the heinous situation we faced…that part was something I couldn’t find humour in.

In the end though, they had no choice as Orthrus grabbed one bit of the chain in one head’s mouth and the other bit in his second set of jaws. Then he jumped, twisting his body and in the process managing to loop the chain around the demon’s neck. Then with both mouthfuls of metal he nodded to Marcus. The same evil grin sparked something devious in his eyes as he produced a ball of flames in his hand. Then he dodged his way passed a lunging demon and grasped the chain closest to demon’s mouth. This caused the metal to glow poker hot and that heat travelled along each link, not only on the outside but on the inside of his body also.

“Now!” Marcus shouted to Orthrus and the two-headed beast started to pull down on the ends of the chain just as that heat made its way around the demon’s neck. One more pull like a pair of dogs with a bone and the massive demon’s head singed right off his body. The rest of the demon, minus his head, fell to the ground just as the scorching chain burnt the rest of his body from the inside out.

“My Lord!” Marcus’s shout shocked my head round in time to see a demon, that’s torso was riddled with throwing knifes, coming at us. Then, before I could shout out Jared’s name, he had me wrapped in his arms and turned so that his back was to the demon. I felt his body vibrate before he jolted as though being struck over and over again. I heard him groan but more in discomfort than pain.

“Are you alright?” I whispered up at him, muffled in the warm cocoon his arms held me in.

“Peachy.” He replied dryly, before looking over his shoulder. He must have seen the threat was over so he released me. I gasped as he turned round presenting a back that was full of embedded knifes. But unbelievably this wasn’t the reason for my reaction. It was less what was in his back and more what his back had become.

Instead of the back of a leather jacket moulded to a muscular back, now the leather had been shredded by the triangular shaped raised points that covered his back like scales. Only instead of them resembling the skin from a lizard, they looked more like a mixture of something Jurassic and hardened clumps of cemented fur.

Each one was ridged on top like a shell and the further down his back they went, the larger they were. They started off black closer to the skin and got lighter, being grey in the middle until the ends shone like metal tips.

Then he shook and the scales rippled, fanning out until all the blades dislodged and tinkled to the cobbled stone. It was incredible and I couldn’t help myself from reaching out and trying to touch him. Just before my shaky fingers made contact, I found my wrist shackled and I looked up to see Marcus looking stern.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” His warning was enough for me to take a step back, taking that threat seriously. Jared then took large angry strides to the demon who was about to discover the wrath of unleashed Hell’s beast’s fury. He lashed out and grabbed the demon by his neck, brought his face an inch from his and said,

“I liked that jacket.” Then he twisted his wrist and snapped the demon’s neck like it had been attached to his body with a toothpick.

“RRRRAAAAHHHH!” An ear shattering roar erupted, causing everyone to stop and look to the cause. Just near the entrance four of the demons were walking in what looked like a chained giant and struggling to do just that.

“Time to go.” Marcus said, but before he could grab me, a demon caught him from behind, momentarily taking him off guard. This gave me enough time to watch Jared drop the demon like trash and step up into the middle of the courtyard. Along the way he casually kicked another dead demon out of his way and then nodded to Orthrus. His brother’s heads both nodded back and then his eyes found mine.

Orthrus then let go of his other side and his beast peeled away, sliding from his body, once again looking like black sand. Once he was again in his human form, he slowly turned, looking for Marcus and rolled his eyes when he found him fighting off one of the demons. I saw him mouth the word ‘asshole’ before he started to fight his way over to us.

Meanwhile, my gaze turned back to Jared just in time to see two things happen simultaneously. The first had me suck in a frightened breath as the demons all let go of the chained giant at the same time, falling back to get away quick enough. The second had my mouth dropping as Jared shrugged off what remained of his ruined jacket. Then just as the giant man was about to reach him and I mean the very last second,

Jared changed.

His body rippled and unlike the others that had received their beasts through the ground, Jared was his own beast. His clothes tore, and then his skin split like a knife cutting through thick rubber until his host was no more. In its place was a beautifully terrifying creature to behold. He was by far the biggest out of his fellow beasts but he managed to look more graceful. He was a similar shape to a large cat, like a lion or a tiger rather than a wolf or large dog. The way he moved was so precise and calculating rather than brute strength attacking.

He had tall legs with massive clawed paws the same as his brother’s beast had. However, his claws were longer and curled like polished talons. All of his body was covered in the same scales that I had seen on his back, only they were smaller and more tightly knitted together on his legs, giving the appearance of being smooth to touch. However, the ones near his back and around his neck were more pronounced. Kind of like a deadly mane as they looked sharp at the tips as if being dipped in silver.

But it was the lethal beauty in his face that really got to me. The adrenaline pounding through my veins for the upcoming fight had my pulse rate rocketing and he turned his face to me as though he could hear it.

A low forehead that connected to a thick muzzle and a wide nose at the end that was flat. Lines flared out from his nose that I imagined became more prominent when angry and snarling, which he didn’t do when looking at me. His eyes were slanted and almond shaped which had lines running from the corners to his ears that gave him a cunning grace. They were the only thing left on him that remained like Jared, being piercing silver, only now with his black pupils in slits.

He was now all Cerberus and he was going in for the kill. The new demon was at least eight feet high and was huge. Not so much with defined muscles but more like just body mass as everything seemed to be overly large. His chest looked as though a stood up barrel had been sliced down the centre and then strapped together. His arms were longer than they should have been, which gave him a demonic primate vibe, made worse when he started swinging them around in an attempt to get to Cerberus.

The sheer speed in which Cerberus moved was incredibly fast and it was hard to keep up with his movements, unless he slowed to a calculating prowl. I could now understand where all the myths came from, because when Cerberus moved his head, there looked to be at least three of him due to the blurring speed.

I then focused back on the demon and it was his head that was the most distinct difference, when comparing him to a human male. Although most of his features remained the same, nose, eyes, ears and head shape, it was his mouth and his forehead that held the most differences.

Around his mouth there were no lips, just all open jaw with teeth that although the same shape as ours, were about ten times bigger. The fangs however hung down and locked with the bottoms ones, which were the same size as a jungle cat’s. This gave the appearance that his jaw was far too big for his face. Then there were the holes in his forehead that looked like someone had ripped out a central horn that was meant to still be there.

A pair of deep set eyes gave the illusion that he might not have any, if it wasn’t for the reflection from the moon that shone in them when he raised his head to roar at Cerberus.

And then he charged. Only this time Cerberus had obviously had enough of watching for his enemy’s weaknesses. He let the raging giant run at him and at the last minute he used the flint wall of the courtyard to jump from, landing behind him. But this wasn’t the only thing he counted on as the giant not being able to stop his momentum, went crashing into the stone head first.

“Show’s over.” Marcus said from behind me and just as things started to fade I saw Cerberus lunge for his back and deliver the killing blow to his neck.

“Wait!” My plea was lost somewhere in that courtyard, one we were no longer in. After a brief touch of darkness, I found we were now in some sort of mausoleum. It didn’t take long, thanks to the moonlight shining down on pale stone, to realise I had seen this place before. Earlier that day in fact, I had walked up the hill behind the Hellfire Caves and looked through its locked gates.

It was a large open space of green grass and tall flint walls with no roof. It was an enormous hexagonal building with each side having a large arch flanked by Tuscan columns, as well as smaller arches, and rectangular openings. Most, I gathered, were designed to hold memorial slabs, busts or urns. All along the top in the corners of each bend were three vases of stone with the one in the middle being larger than the others. It was a beautiful structure, but right now I was a bit lost in what was happening below.

“Why did you do that?” I asked turning to Marcus.

“Orders spunky… just following orders. So you might as well get comfort…” His word ended abruptly on a shocked expression and a wheezing noise. I looked into his wide eyes amongst all the makeup he still wore and then when his gaze lowered, I followed it only to find an iron rod sticking out of his chest.

“Wh…at th..e.. fuck!” He spluttered with blood not only seeping from his wound but now also his mouth. I was frozen in utter shock at what I was seeing. One second I was talking to the cocky face that spent most of his time fooling around and then next he was stood in front of me loosing blood and looking far too close to death.

“Marcus!” I uttered his name and then something snapped me into action.

“I am going to get help!” I said taking a step back, about to turn when he just spluttered out one word…

“Run!”

Chapter 47

Prisoner of Promises

“RUN!” He bellowed at me when I didn’t move.

“I’m not running.” He groaned rather in pain or frustration, I couldn’t tell.

“I’m not leaving you to die…but I need to get…” I didn’t end up finishing that sentence as Marcus screamed out in agony and I watched the steel rod in his chest start to move downwards, forcing him to his knees.

Then I screamed.

There was a demon stood right behind him holding the end of the rod, controlling Marcus like a diabolic Puppet Master. But more disturbing still, was that I had seen this demon before, only back in my nightmare he had that rod painfully set in between his cheeks. Now, there was just gaping holes either side where it had been, leaving his face misshapen even more than before.

“NO!” I screamed and without putting much thought behind my angry actions, I flew at him. I had no weapons other than my rage that blinded my fear. I pushed against his chest making him let go of the rod and Marcus. But, more unbelievable than him flying back through the air and landing on the wall of the mausoleum, was the damage I caused. He fell down like a repulsive broken doll and I looked at the damage one push of mine had caused. The whole of his chest cavity had caved in from my tingling hands and I was in such disbelief that I had to look down to see for myself, half expecting to see a weapon.

There was nothing.

“Get out of here! Run girl!” Marcus shouted at me, but instead of climbing the gates, I was running back to him. I skidded on the wet grass and fell in front of him. His head was slumped and a strange wheezing sound came with his breathing.

“Hold on, I will get Jared and he will…”

“You sho…d…should have run… gir…ly.” He forced out in pain and then raised his head to look not at me, but the person I could now feel behind me. Before I could turn my head, I was seized from behind and stabbed in the neck with a needle. The world started to fade into a colourless fog, just as I heard words at my neck, from a voice…

I remembered,

“He’s right you know…you should have run from me.”

Then everything went black.

I woke up with a start to feel ice cold water being dunked over me. I shot up, coughing and spluttering, only to hear garish laughter echoing in the darkness.

“There, she’s awake, now go n’ tell the master so he can quit his belly achin’.” I heard the heavy sound of a metal door bang shut then the grating noise of a lock sliding home.

I rubbed the water from my eyes and felt groggy, like waking after being on some heavy drugs…unfortunately it was from past experience that I knew this. This thought had me wrapped up in a moment of panic as I jolted from was must have been a bed. I fell in a heap on the floor with a painful thud and I scrabbled my way to a corner.

“It’s not Morgan…it’s not Morgan…it’s not Morgan.” I whispered over and over again. I pushed away that broken part of me until it was locked away in pieces, lost in a vault. Finally, I looked up from where I had huddled my knees to my chest and saw the moon’s beam, coming through the bars on the window.

It lit up the space enough to semi recognise where I was. This prison was the same tower room from my nightmare. It may have started different in Sigurd’s shadows but it had twisted into what I sat in now. So, it hadn’t been a nightmare at all…it was my future!

I jumped up at this and ran over to the arched window and looked out to…nothing. We were too far up to see the ground in shadows so I would have to wait until the morning light. I turned back to the room and took in the small blocks that built up the circular room. Old iron pieces that once held candles stuck out of the rock, like battered arms hanging limp. The floor was covered in dirt and old straw. There was a small cot at the far end that looked to be made from crates and a battered mattress only a few inches thick.

I felt my lips start to quiver, not just from being cold and wet. The slow build of tears started to rise, threatening at any moment to fall, mixing with my cold damp skin. I didn’t want to cry, I knew it wouldn’t help but seeing Marcus slumped over like that…please…don’t be dead. I held on to the idea that Jared had found him in time, but this didn’t help with my emotional overload. I glanced at the wall of bars that was the only way I would be getting out of here, knowing that it wouldn’t be tonight. So, I did the only thing I could do at that moment, whether it helped or not,

I cried myself to sleep holding onto my necklace.

I don’t know how long I slept for, but I knew exhaustion made it a dreamless night. However, it was when I opened my eyes that I remembered I was already living through a nightmare. The sun shone through the window shedding more light on my dire situation. I gingerly got up, feeling the pain in my back from a hard night on this board for a bed. I was thankful at least that the grogginess had gone from whatever drugs they had injected me with.

I rubbed my neck where the needle had penetrated and thought out loud,

“Hell, its last year all over again.” This was when I jerked to the sound of a door being opened in the distance. I remained still, half hoping no-one would come and half hoping that they would so I would know what was going on. Another door pushed open and from the sounds of it, this one was much larger as it ground against the stone floor. Then came the sound of someone trying to whistle a tune, which no doubt produced more spit than actual sound!

A tall lanky string of shit waltzed in, swinging a bunch of metal keys round on a ring, looking smug.

“I see you’ve dried from your shower last night…consider that the start to your prison initiation process.” The man who spoke was no questions asked ugly because the answers would consist of A: being dropped on his head repeatedly or B: mother and father were already mutants!

His eyes bulged, like one bum burp and out they would come flying. His lips were nearly none existent they were so thin and what was there was cracked skin and some weird white snotty stuff collected in the corners. His nose was more like a beak that bent off to one side at the end. Jeez, even the guy’s eyebrows looked like a pair of slugs had worked their way across to join in the middle and die!

Ok, I think you are getting that this guy was ten different types of ugly all wrapped into one bone thin package!

“I hope the next initiation step is the chance to kick your ass!” I said, my anger flaring. I heard a snigger from behind one of the pillars and the guy in front turned and snapped,

“Shut it you dumb shit!” At this the snigger died.

“You think you’re funny bitch, yeah? Well just wait and see what’s coming to you, then you won’t be so quick to disrespect me!”

“And you called him the dumb shit.” I said sarcastically, knowing that whatever happened to me in this cell, the last thing on that bloody list would be to respect this guy...! Now, the guy hiding who laughed might be worth my time.

“What did you say to me!?” He boomed…or as much as he could with that nasally voice of his.

“Wow, deaf and dumb…really, what are the chances?” I said again, this time leaning against the wall like I had not a care in the world…when deep down I was praying to make it out of here in one piece.

“That’s it now bitch, you will be sorry.” He now looked enraged and if possible his eyes bulged further. He held out his hand behind him and snapped,

“Food!” To which a small guy appeared from behind the pillar just long enough to hand him a wooden bowl. I didn’t really get a good look at the guy other than to see he was about five foot in height.

“This is your breakfast, enjoy it like the bitch you are.” He said before he threw its contents at me, making it splat mainly on the floor and wall behind me. I closed my eyes as he started laughing at me and decided what he wanted was to see me get upset. So I opened my eyes, ran a finger along the slop on my cheek and then licked my fingers to taste the lumpy porridge.

“Thanks for that, from the taste of this shit, you just did me a favour.” Then I grinned at him because to see his face turn beetroot red in frustration was a funny thing to behold. He looked ready to blow but before he did, he threw the empty bowl to the floor making it bounce and then stormed off swearing.

“Thhhat wasnhh’t a good idea missth.” The stuttering that came from behind the pillar sounded gentle, not threatening. I scooped the rest of the porridge off my face and top, and shook it off onto the floor.

“What can I say, I am just a glutton for punishment…besides, that demon’s toothpick doesn’t scare me.” Not after all I had seen in my short life!

“He doesth me.” I gave his general direction a small smile and said,

“What’s your name?” I asked hoping, in spite of the low chances, that I could make a friend here, one who might help me.

“Perthcy.”

“Well Percy, I’m Keira and I would love to know what I am doing here?” I said getting up and walking closer to the bars, hoping to lure him out of the shadows.

“You don’th know?”

“Not really, but I am guessing it’s because of a man called Gastian.” At the sound of me saying his name, a hissing noise came from behind the stone.

“He isth no man.” I wanted to say ‘no shit’ after seeing what guests he brought to the party last night, but decided to give the little guy a break on the sarcasm.

“So, who is he or more importantly what does he want with me?”

“I don’th know but he doesn’th like you very mucth.” He said like this was news to me. Again I squashed down the sarcastic remarks and stretched my head to try and see the other rooms from my cell.

“Percy, do you know where I am or do you know if anyone else is kept here?” I asked, suddenly thinking that maybe somewhere in this rotting shell, Draven could also be held prisoner.

“I am not thsurpossed to talk to you about thhat.” As soon as I heard the slightly panicked edge to his stutter, I knew I had lost him by going too far with my questions.

“Ok, but do me a favour…don’t listen to what that idiot says to you.”

“Why are you being thso niceth to me?” I shrugged my shoulders and then answered honestly,

“I don’t like bullies and besides, you laughed when I threatened to kick his ass, so in my book that counts for something.”

“Don’th be niceth to me, I don’th dethserve it.” He said in a sad voice that had me feeling sorry for the guy. It was obvious he was only doing what he was told in this situation and in the supernatural world of the fittest, I was afraid my new friend must have come low down on that scale.

“Well, you haven’t hurt me and you have not bullied me, so that is a big plus in my situation.”

“PERCY, GET YOUR ASS IN HERE NOW!” I cringed at the sound of my new best friend being a dick once again and bellowing for my ‘actual’ new friend.

“I have to go, but don’th make him mad again, I don’th wanth him to hurt you.”

“I can’t promise that my new friend, as I have a feeling it might just become a favourite pastime for me.” I heard a burst of cute giggles before another yell had him leaving without a word or giving me my first real glimpse of the guy.

Now that I was alone, I let my mind begin the process of self-preservation and trying to find a way out of here! I didn’t know where I was, so trying to reach out for help was not a doable idea at the moment. I had looked out of the window and saw that not only were we in the middle of some nowhere field, but that I was at least six stories up, which translated to suicide if I had the inclination to see if I could fly.

The next step was to see if there was any weak spots in the bars but that took all of about five seconds and a swear word to realise that was a big fat no go! Then came the walls, running my hands along them to see if there was any crumbling but without my very own Jared in beasty form, I wasn’t getting anywhere with that either. So, after a frustrating few hours, I slumped down on my rickety bed and tried to stare a hole in the wall.

In the end I got so bored I started to peel away the porridge that had hardened worryingly into something that resembled cement and plaster. I was now glad that ugly stick man had thrown it at me instead of demanding I eat every morsel like some creepier version of the witch in Hansel and Gretel.

I was half way through a really big peeling bit, that shamefully was exciting me (And yes, this was an indication of the deterioration of my mental state) When I heard the doors opening again. I was secretly hoping for it to be just Percy with maybe a McDonald’s bag in hand. Of course, when I saw the sleazy walking pencil, I knew one could only hope.

“Hey Bitch, miss me?”

“You know I would say ‘like a hole in the head’ but I met a guy last night with an actual hole in his head. I reckon he would take that over five minutes of looking at your butt ugly face...! So no, I really didn’t.” Again, I had to smile as I saw him go a blotchy fuchsia colour, reminding me of someone allergic to fruit being dipped in a vat of the stuff.

“Laugh it up you stupid slut, I am the one who brings you food and once again…ooops!” He said tipping the plate and I watched something that could have been a sandwich but I couldn’t be sure. Then he stamped on it, giving me what he must have classed as his best ‘bad ass’ smile. I felt like introducing him to a few of my male friends where he would receive a crash course on the very meaning of Bad Ass!

“Wow, you know it actually looks more edible now, why don’t you take the first bite.”

“Oh, you think you’re so clever, well let’s just see what that smart mouth comes up with when you are begging me for food and water!” I heard a stuttering as Percy must have been back and trying to find the right thing to say in this situation.

“Yyyyou know you can’th do thhhat, Dimme.”

“Shut your trap! I can do what I damn well want, this is my prison, you stupid little shit!” Meanwhile I had burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny, Bitch!?”

“You name is Dimme?” I said unable to hold back on the perfect timing for revenge.

“Yeah so what?!”

“As in Dim…? What’s your last name, Witted?!” He growled at me and it was about as intimidating as being faced with a featherless baby bird pecking at me. I say baby bird, ‘cause that was the ugliest baby anything I could think of.

“Have fun losing weight, ‘cause I won’t be back here until I hear you beg me for food!” I clapped my hands and stated,

“Oh, thank you Lord, some good news today after all! I would take death over seeing your bony ass again and as for begging…I would rather eat my own clothes first!”

“Don’t be so sure, Bitch!” He snarled and then stormed out.

“Oh dear…my, my, masther isth not going to be pleasthed.” Percy stammered worryingly.

“Don’t worry about it, just be sure to let him know when I am close to death and then ask him if you’re allowed to bring me a cheeseburger.” I said only half joking.

“How isth it you’re not worried?”

“Because believe it or not, I have been in stickier situations than this and going without food is just like a stay at a diet camp, not my idea of torture…although I wish I could stop thinking about burgers.” I heard him giggle and I winked over at where I thought he was hiding.

“I won’th leth him stharve you.” I gave him a grateful smile but said,

“Look Percy, I don’t want you getting into any trouble because of me.”

“I will come in the nighth, he won’th know, I promiseth you to be back.” I nodded my head, as much as my bravado act might be convincing, I didn’t know how long I could hold out on the food front.

“Thank you.” He made a nervous giggle again and I bet if I could see him he would be blushing.

“I bether go before he shouths at me.” I nodded and gave him a little wave.

That night I woke to my name being whispered in the dark, to find a piece of bread, a chunk of cheese, an apple and a tin cup of water just outside my cell.

My new friend had kept his promise and now it was my turn to keep mine…

To Draven.

Chapter 48

The Blood That Won’t Burn

It had been nine days since that first day, or at least that is what Percy had told me when I got confused. It was strange how all days seemed to mingle into one long blur. Even with the light from the window, I still found myself muddled as to which time of day it was as my sleeping pattern had changed.

It started when the dreams came.

There was an enormous sandstone wall that ran the full length around a sandstone city. People were dressed from a history long gone and I stood in what seemed to be a market place. Handmade stalls were everywhere, in no particular pattern. They sold bowls full of spices, herbs and dried leaves piled high into pyramids. Others sold, fruits, vegetables, furs, baskets, and pottery painted in pretty colours in all shapes and sizes.

The dreams always started the same. I am stood amongst the hustle and bustle of the place, looking round in wonder, trying to make sense of this old world. I am in the middle of the largest space between stalls as if it’s the main path, when I hear the great thundering of hooves. I look up to see men on horseback racing their way straight to me and that’s when I realise I am stood in a road leading straight to the massive palace behind me.

Everyone else around me has moved out of their way, but I am frozen. I cannot move one muscle other than what it takes for my body to produce a single tear. For there, coming right at me, leading the army of men is…

Draven.

He looks so strong and powerful on the back of his midnight black horse. He is armoured as if ready for battle and his fierce expression tells me his sword and shield aren’t his only weapons. I let the slight breeze take away his name whispered on a breath and from his sharp gaze it looks as though he heard me.

It’s in these sweet moments that last only a few beats of my heart, that a sense of peace envelopes me and I welcome every last morsel of it…before a different Hell rips it from me.

The world turns dark just as he forces his horse into greater speed right at me. I know it will kill me and just as he gets closer enough to see the purple in his eyes, I fall to the ground to protect myself. Only he doesn’t hit me. No, he goes straight through me and when I finally brave opening my eyes, I find him galloping away from me with a great army behind him.

That is when my dream turns so dark, I scream out for him to come back to me. But he doesn’t hear my plea for all he can hear is the cries for battle as he races head first into a wall of armed demons and an Underworld unleashed for War.

So, because of this dream, I no longer wanted to find comfort in sleep and when I couldn’t hold it at bay any longer, I’d wake screaming much to the glee of my captor Dimme. Sometimes I’d wake feeling like I was drowning in the blood of the battle, my dead friends around me like broken ragdolls. But then I would realise like the first night, I was just being woken to an icy bucket being thrown through the bars.

I would grit my teeth and come up with a witty comment much to the displeasure of the sadistic string bean that was my tormentor. This was actually one of the things that managed to keep me sane, as I would spend my solitude thinking up new insults that would make my day purely for unmaking his.

I wasn’t a cruel person, I like to think far from it, but that demon deserved far worse than my harsh words. I would talk to Percy when I could and he would tell me of the beatings he would receive at Dimme’s hands. I still hadn’t seen his face but his stuttering voice brought me so much comfort in this nightmare, he was like my light in the darkness.

He told me that a long time ago his Possession officer was forced into a blood pact with Dimme, over some debt and as a means to pay him he handed over possession of the new Demon he was training to accept his host at the time. That demon was none other than my poor friend Percy. Now until Dimme would release him into the world to face it alone, he was stuck doing his will for the rest of his miserable days.

The hardest part of all this was knowing the real reason Percy kept himself hidden, was from shame at what had been done to his face. I wanted to ask but the deeper stuttering had me worried if I pushed too much, I would upset him. I knew however, with every bone in my body that Dimme was the reason. Percy was a good demon stuck being slave to one he loathed for being so evil.

The worst part to all this, in those nine days, wasn’t the hunger or the intense thirst. It wasn’t the stench that I lived in or the fact that I had become part of that stench by not being allowed to wash. Hell, it wasn’t even having a bucket for a toilet and shamefully not having any privacy sometimes. No, it was in that nine days the amount of times that I saw him hit Percy and trying not to react to it every damn time! I knew that if I made even the slightest flinch that looked as if I cared, then I would be condemning Percy to even more pain as Dimme would have found my weakest spot of all.

Throughout this I would only cry at night, sometimes to the sound of Percy’s soothing words, but all he would hear from me was the word ‘Sorry’. I wanted to find the hidden strength in me so badly, that I felt like my head would explode from trying so hard. I not only wanted it to lead to a way out of here, but also to aid in my new mission…I wanted to save Percy.

I needed to save Percy.

I had to!

My heart bled for him and that was why a bitterness and twisted side grew in me. I felt good whenever I delivered an insult that would cause a reaction from Dimme. I wanted to hurt him, to humiliate him in front of those he considered weaker than him. I wanted to show up the bullies for what they really were…weak and scared!

“Only the weak and scared would prey on those they truly feared, for if a smaller man was ever to rise and take a stand against the bigger then that would be their end…that was their real fear and they warped it into a power they thought would keep them powerful…but they were wrong and one day I will prove this to you my friend.” I told Percy one night.

“I hope that one day you will.” His voice had not stuttered at all this time and I knew right then that in anger it never would.

“There is a warrior in you my friend and hope for us yet.” I whispered once I heard the doors lock up for the last time that night.

Which leads me to now and nine days into my un-judged sentence.

“Good morning, Skeletor.” I said as Dimme walked up to my cell like he did every morning. He grinned at me so I don’t think he got the He-man reference…pity, it took me half of yesterday to come up with that one! Of course, it wasn’t lost on me the irony of my ‘bony’ jokes considering I was being half starved to death. I didn’t like to think of it as Karma for my nasty behaviour, but just plain old payback. What he didn’t know was that if he really wanted to torture me right now all he would have to do is bring me a mirror and that would do the trick, I thought on a laugh.

“Something funny, you disgusting Bitch?” Eh…kettle….black much!

“I was just thinking, you know if you swallowed a meatball you would look pregnant.” I laughed harder at his thunderous face and didn’t even flinch this time when he threw water at me… After all, I needed the wash!

The only thing I was lucky for, was that he thought I must have some supernatural mojo at work in helping me not starve to death, as he not once suspected Percy was the cause. This rather made him ‘supernaturally thick’ or it was just so unbelievable what my friend would do for me that it wasn’t conceivable enough to consider. I liked to think a mixture of the both.

“Soon you won’t have the strength to laugh!” I had heard this last comeback for a few days now and it was more annoyingly repetitive than threatening.

“Yeah, so you’ve said…again and again… Say, do you know when that’s gonna happen? Do you? ‘Cause you make me want to rip my ears off and choke you with them every time I hear that line.” Yep and there was his trademark blotchy face…score million to Keira and a big fat zero for Mr Puniverse...!

Oooh, that was a good one and was so getting used tomorrow!

“You know, I was going to wait until later to do this, but I think any time to watch you cry is as good as any.” I frowned at this new change of events, normally he just stormed out looking ready to implode.

“Pass me the bag you scarred little turd.” Don’t flinch, don’t flinch, I said over and over hoping this wasn’t one of those days that he hit him. Instead I slowly released a held breath when I saw him take something from Percy’s out-stretched hand, only to suck it back in again when I saw what it was.

“That doesn’t belong to you.” I said in a voice that I didn’t recognise belonging to me. It was one that didn’t threaten violence but more like promised it.

“That’s where you’re wrong. See, my master said I could just burn it if I chose, but I don’t think he realised what it was you had hidden inside.” He said in that snotty nasally voice that grated against my skin. He held my bag that was now torn on one side of the strap, like it had just been yanked from me.

“You will be sorry.” I warned as he reached inside and pulled out the Ouroboros blood bound book.

“Oh I don’t think so, let’s just take a peek and see what secrets I can report back to my master, shall we?” I felt the tingling in my fingertips and thought this might be one of those times my anger could transform into a useful weapon.

Then I calmed slightly when I realised I didn’t need to panic about anything, which was proven when I heard his high pitched yell of pain. He had tried to open the book, only the snake on the front had lashed out and bitten him. He clutched his pale hand to his chest and I saw the black venom from the bite start to travel along his veins.

“I did warn you.” I said not even bothering to cover sounding smug as I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Shut up, Bitch! Percy, hand me that torch!” He snapped and that was when I lost all my cool demeanour.

“NO!” I shouted at him, coming to the bars to get closer in hopeful aid to stop what I knew he was about to do. He kept his beady eyes to me and smirked as he took the torch from the shaking hand of Percy.

“It really does mean so much to you, don’t it?” He asked making me hate him even more. I felt my eyes turn into hard slits as I let the true rage fill me to the point where my hands grew hot against the metal bars.

“Then watch it burn, Bitch!” He said raising the torch to the book and watching the flames engulf its pages. I watched the snake on the front hiss and writhe around the page in the face of danger.

“NO!” This time I screamed and it was Dimme’s turn to laugh. He dropped the square of black charred pages as the flames curled the edges into ashy flakes, ready for a mere hint of a whisper in order to fly away.

“No!” I said, falling to my knees. I had to save it, I couldn’t lose that bond, not when it was one of the very things I was counting on getting me out of here. I knew that Sigurd would somehow find me…he would tell Jared and maybe even Lucius…They would come for me…they had to!

With this in mind, I decided my promise mattered more to me than my own flesh, so even though it was still burning, I quickly reached out my hand through the bars and snatched it back to me to hold it to my chest. I felt the heat of it but instead of pain, I felt light. I inhaled sharply as I felt part of myself being absorbed into the book. As though it was looking for something in me and once it found it, it homed in and drew from its strength.

“NO! That’s not supposed to happen!” I heard Dimme scream out in anger and even with my eyes closed, I smiled to myself at the sound, for I knew without looking that the book was whole once again. But even better, it was now in my arms and the only way it was leaving them was being pried from my cold dead body!

I looked up at him but what he saw in my eyes had him backing up, stumbling over the fresh bucket he brought.

“No! It’s…it’s not possible! You’re human!” He spluttered out in shock and I had no idea what it was in me he was seeing, but I knew fear when I saw it. And the next sight of him running from the room was confirmation of this.

“Ke…ira?” Percy’s voice was unsteady, also seeming a little frightened of me.

“It’s alright, Percy.” I said blinking a few times wondering if what Dimme had seen was still there.

“Your eyeths, they…changed.” I didn’t really have much to say to that as I couldn’t explain it myself. I looked down at the leather bound book in my hands and noticed that not only was it without a mark from what happened…so was I. Surely I should have been burnt?

“You can come out my friend.” I said getting up to sit on the cot, feeling as if all the energy had suddenly been zapped out of me. I had asked this of him many times before, but never once had he come from the safety of the shadows he knew…

Until now.

A little man walked out, who I realised was smaller than what I’d originally thought, being closer to four feet than five. He had on him a dark brown cloak, like a monk’s habit and the hood was concealing all of his face.

“You don’t have to hide from me.” I said pushing up my sleeves and holding both of my arms out for him to see my scars. I saw him raise his head and I just caught sight of the burn marks on his chin.

“I…I don’th wanth to fffrighten you.” I smiled at that and said,

“I have seen many things, many terrifying things that most would class as monsters, but those monsters were all my enemies. You’re not my enemy…are you, Percy?” He shook his head making the low hood sway.

“Then I have nothing to fear in your face.” I saw his little shoulders slump in defeat as my words rang true. Then he raised his hands enough for me to see them wrapped in thin white gauze and guide his hood back from his face. I knew that what I was about to see would be heartbreaking but I didn’t want to react. So I prepared myself the best I could.

What shocked me the most wasn’t the face of burnt flesh, but it was the face behind the scarred mask. No amount of puckered skin and twisted scarring tissue could keep the beauty beneath it from beaming out at me. I slipped from the bed and walking on my knees, I approached him slowly. He seemed to want to back away and I raised my hand in a show of peace.

“Please, let me.” I said softly and I didn’t move again until he nodded. I looked at his face now nothing could be hidden and no amount of fire could take away a pair of beautiful eyes that were frantically looking around as if waiting for a harsh hand. I felt like crying for him, but knew that wasn’t what he needed. So instead of pity, I gave him what I thought he needed…a kind touch.

I reached out and he froze in fear but I would soon give him nothing to fear…not ever again if I could help it. My hand slipped through the bars and I quickly cupped his cheek before he could pull back from me.

“I think you’re beautiful Percy, make no mistake about that, for your pure soul shines through and no amount of hateful words or harsh punishments will ever make that beauty die…ever.” I looked deep into his sea green eyes and saw the tears start to form, making them look like an enchanted lake, that I could only hope was filled with trust. I watched one lone tear fall down the uneven path of his cheek and I caught it, wiping it away with my thumb.

“You will never be alone again, for I will take you with me, Percy.” Then we both cried our own silent sobs, mine brought on when he trusted me enough to take my other hand in his smaller one.

“Thhank you, my Fffriend.” He said smiling at me for the first time. All I could do was nod and clasp his hand tighter in mine.

That night came the next Quarter Moon and with it something new. I was stood looking up at it through the window when I heard the usual doors grating along the stone as they were being pushed open. I was not in the mood for any more of Dimme’s twisted pastimes as the day’s events had drained me. The emotional rollercoaster from nearly losing the book, to the heartbreaking reveal of Percy and then to a day full of asking the book questions it refused to answer.

No secret messages filled me with hope, not one new word seeped into its pages and now it looked as though I had something new to contend with. I ran over to the bed and placed the book I still held on to under the thin mattress. I was on my knees rearranging the straw I had piled on top for extra warmth when footsteps stopped behind me.

Then something disturbing crept over me like spiders covering every inch of my skin, all running over each other to find their own place next to my flesh.

Then came the pain.

It was as if they had all bit down at once. I lowered my head and couldn’t help the cry that broke free. I wanted to be strong but the pain was unimaginable. I just wanted it to end and it had only been seconds. It took me back in time to two different points. The first was that night so long ago in the bathroom at Draven’s. Sammael was the cause back then but he was long gone and sent back to the Hell from which he’d escaped. So the question was…who was my tormentor now?

This brought on the second part of my journey into the past, only back then it had been into the future. Sigurd had shown this to me and I had been in this very room with my other self trying to get back. Well, there was no getting back there now, that time had gone and with it my protector. There were no arms of comfort ready to pull me from this place and hold me close. There was only me and what little power I had.

‘Concentrate, Keira.’ I told myself. That’s when it happened. I felt the same tingling at my wrist and looked down to see one of the stones in my bracelet was glowing. I then looked up to the Quarter Moon and felt a sense of relief wash over me like a wave crashing up the cliffs of my mind. ‘Control it’ the wind whispered over the water and suddenly there I was. I was stood on a cliff face using my inner strength to push the waves back until the water became calm once more. And as those waves started flowing in the other direction, an impossible one back out to sea, it took with it my pain.

I took away my pain.

Now I could move. Now there were no biting spiders or fooling my mind into believing anything I didn’t myself control. I twisted my head and looked up to see outside of my prison, a room full of demons…and I didn’t even flinch.

Gorgan leeches with their faces full of teeth and cracking limbs all clicked their jaws, sounding out like giant crickets. In between them were more of the death army that had fought that night. Only unlike the dream, the one in front of the rest was no longer the creature with a steel bar locking his cheeks together. Because I sent him back, killing his already death host. Which made me wonder for the hundredth time…was Marcus still with his host?

As in the dream, the demons all parted to let through the one responsible for all of this. I stood and faced him with no fear left, only undiluted anger at what he had done to me.

“Ah, my disgusting parasite, how nice to see you again.” The same vile words passed his lips but this time it was different because now they were from lips I finally recognised…

“You!”

Chapter 49

Two Down, Two to Go.

I couldn’t believe it! After all this time of wondering who it was that was after me and now I was faced with this guy!

“This is not happening!” I said thinking back all that time ago to that cold night following a cruel punishment.

“Oh believe me you vile creature, this is happening and it just so happens to be my revenge.” At this my fingers curled into fist.

“I saved your life!” I screamed at him but he just threw his head back and laughed at me. Then he straightened as if someone flicked his crazy switch,

“You ruined my LIFE!” He screamed back at me, giving me a flash of his demon side. I shook my head trying to piece this all together but I was in too much of a shock.

“It was you all this time…I should have let Draven kill you!” I said gritting my teeth at the end through my anger and not only at the man responsible, but also at myself for being weak in Draven’s world.

I remembered it so well now. I was in Afterlife VIP when I bumped into a suited man… “How dare you touch me, you vile human bitch! Someone should teach you manners you disgusting parasite...GO and fuck off!” His words had been as such when he pushed me from him. Draven had seen and in his rage split his council’s table in two. That night I begged Draven to save this demon’s life after he had made the man in front of me now, beg my forgiveness in a broken mess. I had run from Draven, run from the horror and realisation of it all. Run from a world he commanded and ruled over with his iron will. And now I was here and I couldn’t run anymore…

But I knew what he wanted.

“You took Draven… you took me and now what…? You want to see us both beg!?” I said looking back at him with new eyes. He started laughing again.

“You really are a stupid bitch, aren’t you?” I didn’t respond as he continued laughing at me.

“Oh, this is so much better than watching you beg like the human dog you are! No, I don’t have your precious King! You really think if I had that type of power over him, I would be wasting my time with you!”

“Then why?” I asked making him laugh even harder. Then I lost it, I grabbed hold of the bars and screamed,

“TELL ME WHY?!” The laughing stopped and I heard Dimme suck in a frightened breath before whispering…

“There, I told you master…she has the essence of…”

“YES! I can see that you fool! You don’t scare me!” He snapped back at me and again I felt the same power making my fingertips tingle.

“You want to know why but the why is so simple. That night you ruined me, everything I worked for, my riches, my power, my position…all of it gone just because you couldn’t walk in a fucking straight line!” This time it was my turn to laugh.

“And now look who the stupid one is…this is all because you couldn’t keep your temper in check because someone fucking bumped into you…are you that senseless? If you had taken a second to think why a human would have been there in the first place it might have saved your ass…but don’t go blaming me for your own foolish actions!” This comeback had now turned this smug bastard in to an angry bastard instead, but I didn’t care!

“You vile creatures don’t deserve to walk among us! But don’t worry, I will be getting my revenge.”

“So, leaving me here to rot is your big ‘master’ plan?” I said mocking him.

“No, that is just for my pleasure before I regain what was taken from me. I care little what happens to the likes of you and with the King now out of the way…well, it was almost too easy.”

“You’re forgetting one massive flaw in this plan, Draven is not here you prick…so how do you suppose your revenge will work if he doesn’t even know you have me!?” This time he didn’t laugh but raised one side of his mouth in a knowing smirk.

“Your ‘Draven’ can’t give a shit about you where he is and I care little about pointless, but more importantly, penniless revenge.” I let go of the bars trying to make sense of it all. What did he mean…where Draven was?

“Then what…?” I didn’t finished as he stepped up to the bars himself and said,

“It is simple, I am going to sell you to the highest bidder, make back my money, regain my power and not give you one more single thought…I will however be most pleased if whoever buys you is a cruel bastard, but one can only hope.” At this I screamed and lunged for him. I didn’t end up doing as much damage as I would have liked but he was now sporting three bloody scratch marks down his face. He wailed out like a banshee, clutching his injured face in his hands and said,

“You will regret this!” But that was the last I heard as Gastian and his minions all vanished from the room, leaving me with my thoughts.

That night something in me changed and I knew it was all down to the Quarter Moon and the bracelet of stones. How did I know this? Well, after Gastian and his demon posse left me, the book woke up and told me so.

On the first Quarter Moon, the Blue moonstone stone will light the path for a protector to find his balance. Blood will bind together these souls and aid them both when travelling towards the prophecy. Clarity of mind and inner vision will flow clearly, building trust for future altered states of awareness. Life lessons will be learned through each other’s fates, entwining destinies into one goal…

Life must be conquered.

This I knew referred back to my birthday and when Sigurd had saved me. But why was the book only telling me this now…was it because up until this point I had not asked or even taken much notice of my bracelet? Well, now I was taking notice and found that for the first time, two of the stones instead of being a milky grey colour, were different than before. The first one that must have changed was now a stunning deep sky blue that had such a depth to it, the stone almost looked alive.

I touched it and felt its energy buzzing through me, as if somehow keeping me balanced. Then I turned round the black cord they were all attached to and found the next stone. This time it had been changed into a pure white stone that had a pearlescent sheen across the top of its smooth surface. I looked down at the book and asked it,

“And the second Quarter Moon?

On this second Quarter Moon, the white moonstone encourages the wave of calm in these fraught seas. It carries with it the energy needed from this moon, as the height of this power you will gain through strength of mind and will. It will aid in stimulating psychic perception and vision in this world and that of the dream realm you hold the key too. Learn from past lessons and this moon will magnify one's emotions into a powerful weapon of imprisonment of the mind.

Train yourself to do this and you will find Nightmares cannot hurt what they cannot control.

Now I knew what I had to do and why the Oracle had given me this bracelet. She must have foreseen my journey and knew I would need its guidance. But if that was the case, then why hadn’t anyone come to rescue me or even before any of this, why had she not warned me about the kidnapping so that I might have prevented it?

There were just too many questions like this and more than enough for me to go a little insane. I asked the book over and over but other than these two passages it would tell me no more. Not even on the other stones, so that I might have a small idea on what was left to come.

I remember her saying that it was only on the Last Quarter Moon that I would find Draven and this thought had me in tears. Was I really to go through so much more before I would finally find him and even more importantly would I be strong enough by then to fight for him?!

“Yes! I must.” I said aloud wiping away useless tears. I looked up from my helpless huddle and saw the Quarter Moon in the centre of my window. It was like a beacon of hope and from that moment on I knew what I needed to do with this time…

Make myself stronger.

Eleven days went by and if it hadn’t been for Percy, I knew I would have been dead. The only food that I had still only came to me at night but the effects of it could be seen in my protruding ribcage and collar bone. I had lost an alarming amount of weight in the almost three weeks I had been here. However, in all that time not once had an attempt been made to rescue me.

It was as though not one person knew where I was and even through the book no-one had contacted me. I used to hold it to my heart at night and with all my mental strength, try and get a message out there. I would sometimes feel something, like words trying to get through, but then when I looked down the words would already be fading. It was both so exhausting and soul destroying that after six days of this I gave up.

I might have given up the idea of anyone contacting me but I still held on to hope that someone would still rescue me. I had no choice, as the alternative of being sold was far too scary to face. So instead, I used my time wisely like the book had suggested I do and that night it turned out to be a definite blessing. See, when Gastian said that I would regret my attack on him, he hadn’t been wrong as I discovered what powers he still held.

Percy had tried to caution me but I had been too wrapped up in what the book had said about the moonstones to concentrate on his warnings. That night, after Percy had left me my food, when I quickly started to devour it, it turned out that it left me just as quickly when I had to throw it all back up violently.

As with the spiders, Gastian had piled my room full of delicious looking food after I finished my meal that had me salivating again. I forgot myself and started to pick up hot meat pies that once you bit into them would be filled with blood coming from the heart inside. I would drop the pie and grab a jug full of lush cool water only to find urine as it hit the back of my throat burning.

I then looked around the floor and suddenly every single bit of food was infected. From the rotting fruit to the maggots inside crusty bread or black flies writhing around on top of roast meat. Then came the large brown rats living inside large cakes and the disgusting human body parts made to look like normal food.

I retched into my bucket over and over until nothing was left but the bile I continued to bring up in spit. This was all made worse when I could still see it covering the floor of my cell, even hear the rats munching away on whatever their mouths feasted on. Then I would just end up heaving all over again.

I wanted to start screaming, begging for someone to come and get me out of there! I even gripped onto the bars, ready to shout out but then I stopped myself as I cried into my hands. I opened my eyes to see the white Moonstone with its wire moon shape holding it to the cord and knew what I needed to do. So I did what I had done countless times before, only this time I would work and work until I passed out if need be, but I would do it so much that pushing these nightmares back became second nature to me.

So for eleven days that’s precisely what I did. I trained my mind into a weapon against weapons. A shield to those who wished to use their powers of mind control against me, so that when the next night came and with it a new nightmare, I was ready for it. So for five days I fought off everything Gastian threw at me until one day they just stopped completely. I didn’t know if this was down to him giving up or that my mind had become so powerful he just couldn’t get through anymore. Whichever it was, this imprisonment had given me two things…

One was power and the other was Percy.

When it came to my little friend, I still didn’t know his story and I decided not to push for it as I knew he would tell me in time. I also found our limited time we had to talk was the highlight of my day as he would ask me questions about my life. He seemed fascinated by hearing me talk about Draven, as he had heard a lot about the King but never met him. I think it really hit home about Draven’s true position in Percy’s world when he seemed star struck just listening to me talk about him. Almost like me popping round to a neighbour’s house and telling them I was off out to have a pint with Johnny Depp dressed as Jack Sparrow!

But our time, as I said, was limited mostly to the nights when it was safer for Percy to spend time unbeknown to Dimme aka, Skin’diana Bones. So when he walked in now alone in the light of day I was instantly worried.

“Percy, what’s wrong?”

“I don’th have mucth thime but wanthed you to know hhe’s coming for you.” His words were panicked and even more slurred than usual in his agitated state.

“Who, Gastian?” He nodded looking round and then pulled out a ring of keys ready to get me out.

“Whoa, what are you doing?”

“I am setthing you ffree.” I knew this was my one chance here but something didn’t feel right and I knew in my gut what it was.

“No Percy, don’t.” He stopped and looked up at me, no longer trying to hide his face.

“Why noth?”

“Because there is no way to do this without them knowing it was you and without knowing we can get out of here together safely, I won’t risk you getting caught and punished.” I didn’t care if this was my one shot at freedom, at the expense of a friend’s life I wasn’t willing to risk it!

He started to fiddle with the key and try again to open the door until I put my hand on his to stop him.

“Percy no! Please, don’t do this…there has to be another way.”

“There isn’th time, thhey come for you now.” He said, his hand starting to shake.

“Then let them take me and I will try and get away at this auction thing, but I refuse to do it now…do you trust me, Percy?”

“Yesth” He nodded and I pulled the key from the lock and handed it back to him through the bars. I then fishes in my pockets until I found Draven’s fathers coin, as it was one of the things not yet taken from me.

“Here take this, it is something precious to me and I want you to keep safe until I see you again and Percy…” I paused as I placed the coin in his hand to then keep hold of it when I said,

“If you let me do this my way and I promise you… I promise you my friend… I will find a way for us both to come out of this safely.” He looked ready to cry but shook his head anyway for another yes and then ran from the room before I saw the first of his tears fall.

“Oh, Percy.” I said aloud. I now knew the lengths that Percy would go to free me and when someone risked their life for yours, that friendship was immeasurable!

It wasn’t long before they came for me and with Dimme being my main tormentor in all this, it was no surprise that he was front row with a beaming smile slapped on his face! Of course, it was Gastian who was leading the demonic mob and he too was looking especially pleased with himself.

“So, it’s the big payday today then?” I asked picking dirt from my nails trying to look uninterested, when deep down inside I was just hoping when the time came that I wouldn’t start screaming like a little girl who wants her mamma!

“It is indeed parasite, so it’s time to get you presentable, as I am not sure I will even get ten pounds for you in that state, although if it were left up to me I would gladly keep you in this cesspit where you belong.” I schooled my anger at his words and said on a laugh instead,

“Well, I am facing a room full of shit for brains!” At this Dimme reclaimed his trade mark angry blotches and Gastian sneered at me, making my work here complete.

“Get in there and hold her down!” Gastian ordered as he pulled out a syringe and started to draw liquid from a small glass bottle. The cell finally opened and the demon horde filed in making me shoot from the bed and back into a corner.

“NO!” I screamed as they all lunged for me at once. I tried to escape them but it was no use, as all I could do was squirm around in their flaky hands.

“GET OFF ME!” I screamed as their already bruising hold tightened painfully.

“Hold her down!” I tried to twist but it was no use as my face was slammed down to the floor, so my cheek rested against the dirty stone. My arms were held back at a painful angle and I could no longer move without fear of breaking something. So all I could do was wait for the stab of the needle and the drugs to override my system, rendering me unconscious.

And for once…

I welcomed it.

Chapter 50

The Auction.

The next time I opened my eyes it was to the sight of red darkness. It took me a moment to bring my senses back under my control and realise what I was faced with. I started by blinking my eyes but even that felt weird at first. My lashes kept tickling on something that was around my face but it wasn’t a blindfold. I managed to push away enough of the grogginess to focus on the dark red blur in front of me and in doing so, I saw thin black bars in front of some sort of red material that was only letting in a small amount of light.

“Where am I now?” I whispered to myself. I was just managing to come through the rest of the effects of the drugs that seemed a lot heavier than last time. It made wonder if they had to give me a few shots in the time it took them to get me here…wherever here was exactly?

I tried to sit up and when it felt like my brain was going to dribble out of my nose, I raised my hands to my head to find them shackled together in a pair of ornate silver cuffs that fit snug to my wrists.

“What the…?” I said following the thick chain attached to them all the way up to the top of the strange cell I seemed to be in. The chain wasn’t pulled taut at the moment, but hung loose around the floor which I was sat on. High above me was something I couldn’t really make much sense of. It seemed like a swinging metal bench like you would find hanging from a tree in a garden. That was all I could make out from down here, but it led me to follow the thin metal bars that went up into what looked like a cage in the shape of a Japanese pagoda. In fact, it kind of started to look like…

“It can’t be…a birdcage?” As soon as I said it the more I really saw that it did, in fact, look like a giant birdcage with a swing hanging in the middle of it.

“This does not look good.” I said as I saw the chain attached to the very top of the domed roof which had another smaller roof in the centre, exactly like those old antique birdcages you find people using for quirky ornaments. And for God’s sake, my own mother had one with a plant growing from it in her conservatory! Well, if I ever got out of here alive, then that thing would be finding itself in the skip!

When I finished examining my unusual surroundings, someone must have turned up the lights as I could now make out more and discovered what part I was to play in the birdcage and yep, you guessed it... I was the damn bird!

I can’t say I was displeased to wake and find I no longer smelled like I had washed in a compost heap with a rotted fish for a sponge and left to dry like a wet dog. Although, now being clean did feel beyond good but did beg the question as to who had cleaned me? This gave me chills and it wasn’t just down to my bare arms, which I kept hugged around my belly.

I had been put into a massive dress all made entirely from feathers. It had a swan white corseted top that laced at the front, leaving too much cleavage on view for my liking. The feathers reached up to a high point over each breast and then fitted tight down the waist to join the skirt. There was a wide white satin sash that hung around the waist and tied in a floppy bow behind my back. But it was the skirt that was truly incredible and also ridiculously huge!

The top layer to the skirt was made from long black feathers all hanging downwards in a graceful way and finished on a curve around the sides, then fell longer at the back. Then came the underskirt which was a mass of layer upon layer of large white ostrich feathers that fluffed out all around me and went way beyond my feet when I finally stood up. It was as stunning as it was crazy being dressed as a giant bird, but I had to admit that I was happy I didn’t have some over the top showgirl feather head dress, straight out of Vegas, to go with it!

No, instead my hair had been styled and swept back in a side parting and then pinned under, creating volume to the back with what little hair I now had. Over this was a single white ostrich feather held in place like a headband with what felt like jewels attached to one side.

I couldn’t see my hair, only feel it to know this was the style and it was the same with the mask that had been also pinned under my hairline to stay in place. I felt around my eyes and knew this was the reason for the weird sensation on my face when I had first woken up. My lashes would brush the top of the eye holes in the mask, telling me I also had makeup on my lashes to make them longer. I could feel the feathers along the mask that was a perfect moulded shape for my face and when I looked down at my nose, I saw the feathers were black. Simple, but elegant, ballet shoes in white were added to the costume and their ribbons were tied around my ankles keeping them firmly in place.

After I had finished looking around at my new crazy situation, it didn’t take me long to discover what was happening as I heard the sounds of crowded footsteps all beneath me. It sounded as if someone had just opened the door and people of the masses were now all flooding in. I wanted to move but I was too afraid to, so that no-one was aware that I was now awake.

I still couldn’t see anything other than the red glow from the light behind the material, but the noise of people was getting louder by the second. Did they know I was in here? For some reason, I didn’t think if I started screaming blue murder that people would come running to my aid.

So here I was, dressed like I was playing a part in Swan Lake, now about to go up for a sick human auction! I waited for the sound of the crowd to calm down as I knew they must have now taken their seats, considering I could no longer hear chair legs being moved along the floor. It’s amazing what your other senses can pick up when you can no longer rely on your eyes and you concentrate enough. For example, I could smell dust and old metal. There was also a chill in the air and that, combined with the echoing sound of people chatting, told me that I was most likely in a large open space, high above the ground. But I was only left to speculate as the Auction was about to begin.

“Good evening to you all on this fine night. I would like to welcome you to this year’s collective auction.” A round of applause sounded and also some thudding of feet where others were obvious getting more excited.

“As you will see in your catalogues handed to you at the door, we have a wide range of rare pieces on offer with also a surprise last minute addition to our collection. Which I think you will all agree is a most treasured find indeed and one held in the upmost secretive of circles.” This part brought on a lot of ‘Mmm’s’ and ‘Ahhh’s’ as I could imagine they were all looking up at the covered cage I sat chained to.

“Right, then let us begin.” I heard more shuffling and then,

“Starting with lot 23, here as you can see held up on my left is the rarest of all the Pokemon cards. This particular one was never released in English and only four are said to exist in the world. I have a starting bid on the table of 15,000 dollars, do I hear 16,000?” I could barely believe my ears and actually coughed out my shock on hearing I was being sold in the same auction as a bloody Pokemon card! Ok, so getting my whole priorities mixed up I couldn’t help but think… ‘I’d better get a higher bid for me than a stupid piece of card!’

I listened to the auctioneer reeling off figures and upped the price until it finally sold for $25,000.

“Next is lot 19 the iPhone 4S Elite Gold. This darling phone is made by Stuart Hughes and is designed with 500 internally flawless diamonds that total over 100 carats. The Apple logo itself has over 50 diamonds. And if that is not enough for you, then the navigation button has a 7.4 carat single-cut internally flawless natural pink diamond, which as you all know is extremely rare. But alas, that is not all, as it also comes with the chest which is made from solid platinum with original pieces of bones from the T-Rex…shall I start the bid at say 9 million.”

“What!” I couldn’t help myself from shouting…were these people crazy?! Luckily I don’t think people were too concerned with me as the noise of the bidding was underway. This ridiculously expensive phone reached 11.5 million and sounded as though it went to someone who could only grunt…well for that price, I hoped the guy got free calls for life included!

“The next lot is number 2 in your catalogues and goes by the name Chupacabra. This goat sucker has come all the way from Puerto Rico and in his previous owner’s own words, he’s glad to be rid of the ‘nasty little bastard’. A diet of animal blood is all that is needed to keep this demon in good health. I know there has been some interest in this lot, but as the owner was adamant to get rid of him there has been no price set, so we will start the bid at as little as 10 dollars, do I hear 15?” I could hear the snarling and gathered the ‘nasty little bastard’ was being shown to the crowd as the bidding for him commenced.

I had to say that right now I could relate to that goat sucker as I knew what it was like to be caged, soon to be put on display and sold. In the end the creature only sold for 85 dollars and I knew its buyer was an enthusiastic woman, as I could hear her gleefully shouting out as the last price was accepted.

“Next, we have lot 14 and in keeping with the pet part of the auction we have for sale this rare Red Tibetan Mastiff. It is considered in the human world as the most expensive dog, but as we all know in our world this is not the case, as a Hellhound at the last auction raised a mighty 30 million. However, we still have a starting bid on this fine animal, whose owner has named him Eugene and has thrown in the diamond encrusted dog collar. Let’s start the bidding at the vendor’s lowest asking price of 1 million, do I hear 1.5 million?” I listened to this lot get up to 2.5 million and then the auctioneer said,

“Come on people, this is a great lot and not one I want to go for so little. Please remember this breed has its direct ancestry leading all the way to Apedemak, who for those of you lacking in our history was a lion-headed warrior God, worshiped in Nubia by Meroitic people. Also the Maahes has been linked, who was of course an ancient Egyptian lion-headed God of war.” After this little history lesson the price reached 4 million within a few minutes and poor Eugene had a new owner who spoke in what sounded like Chinese.

It went on like this for what seemed like a long time and things auctioned ranged from The Sultan’s Golden Cake that was decorated with gold leaf, that went for $1500, to one of the lost Fabergé eggs from the fall of the Russian Royal Family in 1917 that sold for a cool 10 million dollars.

But in total they must have got through about 40 lots, which also included two dinosaur fossils "locked in mortal combat" according to the auctioneer that went for 8 million dollars. Now, this would have been something I would like to have seen but really, if I was honest with myself, I would have been fascinated to have seen all that was sold.

They had a whole section of five lots dedicated to antique weapons from a pair of pistols, that were once owned by President George Washington during America's War of Independence and then there was some Emperor dude’s gold dagger, who built the Taj Mahal! I have to say though, that one of my favourites had to be the 1954 Superman Lunch Box that sold to a deep voiced man who won with his bid of 14, 500 dollars. But with each time the hammer struck down again and again ringing out like a death drum, it only brought me closer to my doomed fate of being sold.

“Now, time for the last item from the catalogue with lot number 35. This beauty was made for Lamborghini’s 50th anniversary and is called The Veneno and as most of you here know this is Spanish for ‘poison’ and rightly so. With its V12 it thunders out a 750 horsepower which will bring you to 60 in 2.8 seconds. As you can see from the write up it also reaches speeds of a daring 220 mph. So, for all you speed junkie Angels and Demons out there, then this lot is for you. So let’s start this off at the company’s own buying price, but please do remember that there are only 3 of these hard tops made, so that will reflect on the bidding. Who will bid me to start off with 4 million?” I started to listen for the bidding but then got distracted by the sound of a chain moving.

I looked down to see the chain attached to my restraints had started to snake on the floor before lifting. I watched in horror as it kept going until pulling my bound hands up with it. I stood to give it even more slack but this ended up just giving me a few more seconds before it started to lift my whole body off the cage floor. I cried out as the pain lashed through my shoulders from being held up by just my wrists. The metal from the cuffs started to cut into my skin and I held onto the chain to relieve some of the pressure.

I looked up as I twisted round like a giant fish on a hook and saw that the swinging perch was coming closer. Then the pulling of the chain stopped and I hung limp for a painful second before swinging my body towards the seat. I then held on tighter to the chain and on a yelp brought my legs up enough to hook them over the metal swing. I shimmied my butt up until I was sat on it and tried to keep myself steady but it was difficult. I ended up battling to keep myself from falling back or forward but with my arms pulled above my head and with the perch moving under me, it felt like I was partaking in a circus act…and not doing a very good job at that!

Then I heard the hammer go down on the price of 6.5 million for the Lamborghini and I braced myself for what was coming next.

“Right, ladies and gentlemen, now it is time for the mysterious lot you have all been waiting for and our crown jewel of the night. Stewards, if you please.” The auctioneer said and then suddenly, in a great whoosh, the red curtain was pulled back from my cage and great gasps filled the enormous space. Tears filled my eyes as I looked down on the sea of people and took in the sheer size of the auction with utter disbelief.

I couldn’t comprehend how so many faces looked up at me now and not one single one of them looked at me with horror of what was being done to me. If anything, it was sick fascination and wonder that shone back in their eyes. I looked from them in disgust and focused on the vast room they held the auction in.

It looked to be a late-Gothic style building with a central glass dome that had part of its roof covered in metal squares. The great hall must have been at least 50 meters long and just as wide, with rows and rows of highly decorated pillars. There were galleries on all four sides and the upper one that I was closest to must have had at least 30 of these ornate pillars alone. Arches filled every space along the room’s full circumference and in the middle on the second floor were two stone plinths that jutted out with one either side as a mirror image. They looked fit for a king and the ideal place to stand and wave at his loyal subjects below. It was a truly stunning piece of architecture and one I would have no doubt admired more if it was not for my dire circumstances.

My cage was hanging in the centre, directly behind the raised platform the auctioneer stood on next to a podium. This angle gave me a clear view of all the people taking part in the auction, sat on row after row of red velvet chairs which had been laid out in arches like in a theatre. But it wasn’t just the hundreds of people sat down, but also every available standing space was taken up adding hundreds more. All had paddles with numbers on ready for their bids to be written down and assigned to their winning lots. I couldn’t help but look round wondering which number I would soon belong to?

I looked down to see the auctioneer nod to someone on the side out of view. I was then a bit happier at least when the chain lowered enough for me to grab onto the sides of the swing so that my shoulders no longer felt like they would pop off. I felt the lasting ache when they lowered and I tried to roll my arms to relieve the remaining tension, whilst still gripping on for dear life.

“I now present to you our last lot of the night and by far the most prestigious we have ever sold in our many years holding this auction.” The auctioneer actually took a moment to take off his small round glasses and rub his face as though he couldn’t quite believe what he was about to say. He nodded to the crowd, replaced his glasses and gripped each side of the podium to lean forward.

“I give you all…The King’s Electus!” He raised his arm up to me and the whole room gasped in utter shock and then erupted into a deafening roar of applause once more. My hands gripped the sides of my perch in frustration and when looking around the room I saw Gastian stood on the sidelines looking smug.

“Yes, yes, please everyone calm yourselves.” He waited for the room to hush down their tasteless excitement before explaining ‘the goods’ in further detail.

“As you can all be in no doubt about the seriousness of this last lot or the ramifications behind taking part in this bid, I will stress that you all made a vow upon entering into this auction and what has taken place here tonight is to remain under secrecy within the realms of that vow.” Even as he said this some people actually stood up and walked out after nodding their respects to the auctioneer. Good, I thought, knowing that at least six people remained faithful to Draven…although, out of hundreds didn’t look like good odds.

“You can understand then that the valuing of this lot has taken some great thought, as it is seemingly priceless, but like nearly all of my vendors, they are here to make some money, so without further ado, I will begin.” I was very tempted to shout out a string of obscenities when I heard the guy call me a ‘lot’ for the umpteenth time, but decided to hold my tongue in case my punishment was being held up by my wrists again.

“This lot is not numbered but named ‘The Chosen’ and personal details of the girl will be given along with purchase. As you can see she is a fine female specimen and although rumours of her status of her not being the Chosen One that are running worldwide, we are happy to confirm these rumours are not true. Found in her personal effects was the book of Ouroboros, given to her from the very Oracle herself, one to which she is blood bound. This is also included in the sale and one does not have to worry about the Master of the Ouroboros channelling through the book to find her, as the vendor has already had a warlock take care of this problem, which will reflect on the price, as I’m sure you can understand.” On hearing this important piece of information, I at least now knew why no-one could have contacted me throughout my imprisonment. Gastian had obviously heard from the snivelling Dimme about the book and gone to great lengths to prevent anyone from communicating with me.

There were nods and most started discussing amongst themselves, whilst looking up at me every now and again. I finally knew what it felt like for all those poor zoo animals being gawked at all day!

“I must also caution before the auction starts, that anyone who bids does so under their own risk of life as rules state clearly that no supernatural contact is to be made with this particular human and as we all stand here now, we are in fact in breach of that ruling. Anyone not willing to take those risks may leave like the others with our well wishes and hope to see you back here again next year.” Once again I was pleased to see this time ten more people stood up and left.

“Very well, now that all formalities are out of the way, let us start. This is a lot for the elite, so we will begin with an elite starting price, do I hear 10 million?” Now I was the one to gasp…really, 10 million?! I have to say, even though I knew I was letting go of some mental marbles for even thinking it, I couldn’t help but be a little flattered at the price set. I think if these feathers had been really attached, they would have puffed up on hearing that.

“10 million, do I have 15?” The auctioneer was soon having to go up in the tens instead of the fives and soon after that by the twenties! I was dumbfounded by the ludicrous prices being shouted and when it got up as far as 350 million, I nearly fell from my perch! What in the Hell did these people think they were going to get for that price…me crapping gold and sneezing diamonds?!

It had finally started to slow down and I noticed it was now down to three bidders and neither one looked like the friendly captive type. I was just about to start coming up with escape plans in my head, when a booming voice cut through the auction and vibrated the walls with the sheer strength of it.

“One Billion!” Was the next price shouted from a shadow in the back and the Auctioneer looked to Gastian and when he nodded he brought down his hammer, sealing my fate when he shouted…

“The Electus is Sold!”

Chapter 51

Worth Every Penny

             At the sound of my sale, I felt like an arm had just been pushed down my throat and forced my heart into my stomach! Was I really just going to be going from one sorry prison and on to the next and what would my next captor be like? Well, one thing was a given, I doubted it would come with my very own Percy!

“If you please Sir, can you show us your paddle number?” The auctioneer asked loudly trying to reach the back of the room. I held my breath as I saw a shadow walk in between the crowd and soon it was going to be my very first view of my buyer. I think, like everyone, we were expecting the buyer to just come to the edge of the gallery’s balcony and hold up a number, but he didn’t do this.

Oh no, not for this man! People started to fill the room with murmurs that seemed to travel straight from those who quickly got out of his way, as though this man was someone very important. The hum of noise washed along the crowd in a wave of gossip and I soon found out why. The mystery man simply stepped up on top of the stone banister and grabbed hold of the centre pillar, situated in between the six arches that faced me on the second level. This was done with such grace and masterful flair, I knew what I was seeing had to be true.

I released a stuttered breath as the reality hit me dead centre in the chest and a sob was wrenched from deep within my fragile soul. For the first time in three weeks of brutal imprisonment, I now felt my heart soar and my hope regain strength. I felt the tears fall from beneath the mask and I didn’t care one damn bit that a hall full of people could see it. I only had emotions for the man now stood at the pillar staring right at me, with that bad boy smile I had once grown to know so well. Then I whispered his name and prayed to the Gods that created him that this dream wouldn’t shatter.

“Lucius.” He must have heard me because he nodded slowly and then winked at me before dropping to the floor below. I was left breathing heavy and trying in vain to hold back the flood of emotions that threatened to take over my senses. Was it possible…? Had I been saved?

Following the sight of Lucius, everyone quickly bowed down in their chairs and all around the hall was an echoed sound of those stood, falling to their knees. The auctioneer took in the sight of Lucius striding down the centre aisle straight to the podium. He fell to his knees also and lowered his head until he found the floor.

“My Lord.” He uttered in quivering fear.

The sight of Lucius wearing a pair charcoal suit trousers, matching waistcoat and a light grey shirt unbuttoned at the neck, which was also casually rolled around his thick forearms, was a sight to behold for anyone. His dress shoes clicking on the stone floor made for a powerful beat as he ate the distance to the shaking auctioneer.

When Lucius made it to him, he looked down with disdain and motioned without words for him to rise with a simple bend of all his fingers from the hand still held relaxed at his side. He did what he was told and rose to face my buyer.

“The Electus is yours My Lord and I have been assured you will not be disappointed.”

“No, imagine not.” Lucius said letting me hear the hidden meaning in his smug gaze up at the cage. I finally let myself smile back knowing from now on everything would be ok and he would take care of me. I was not alone any longer.

I saw him look back at the crowd and nod to some woman with a massive hat, one that looked like a flying saucer had landed on her head. He nodded to my cage and whoever she was, she jumped up and bowed to him over enthusiastically, making him roll his eyes.

“You have something for me to sign?” Lucius snapped at the auctioneer and he nodded anxiously before running off to get what I assumed was my paperwork. Now I really felt like a prized cow being sold! Meanwhile the woman with the massive hat had disappeared into the crowd and the auctioneer seemed to be arguing with Gastian over the other side of the podium. Well, I knew one thing, the second I got down from this bloody cage I was going to be having words with my kidnapper and letting my fists do the talking…oh, who was I kidding, I would just ask Lucius to do that for me!

“Hey Toots, how’s it hangin?”

“PIP!” I shouted as I saw that the woman wearing the big hat was in fact Pip! She was stood on one of the middle plinths on the second level and she dramatically whipped her hat off, letting all her green and blue hair fall down. She wore it in a mass of voluminous tight curls resembling a green afro with a blue halo from the tips.

I couldn’t help but grin until my jaw hurt when I saw her and took in what she was wearing. It was some kind of poncho dress made from long hair that reached from her shoulders down to mid-thigh. It was sectioned in different colours and looked like she was wearing part of a rainbow! With this she’d added a belt that looked as if a pair of monster hands were holding her waist. She completed the look with a pair of knee high striped socks with high heeled blue wellington boots that had little red and yellow cars all over them.

“Tootie Cake.” She said beaming at me. Then she threw her hat into the crowd below, bowed to them all as they cheered like this was all part of the show. Then she launched herself at my cage, landing on the sides like a little monkey! She climbed up the bars until she was level with me on my perch making her hair poncho sway in a mesmerizing display of colours. Well, if I was the captured black and white bird then she was definitely the wild free parrot in this picture!

“I have to say, I’m not digging the new crib Toots, but the new look is bitchin’!...Although…you do kinda need your roots doing” I laughed at her and shook my head whilst thanking all the Gods combined for her!

“Sorry honey, I would have tidied up and done a touch up if I knew you were coming.” I said making a joke back, but also thinking my blonde roots were that last of my worries!

“Nah, I see you’ve been tied up” She nodded to my bound hands and we both giggled.

“Sometime tonight, Mrs Ambrogetti!” Lucius shouted up, making Pip roll her eyes.

“He’s taken to calling me that when I don’t move my itty bitty hiney quick enough…he’s no fun these days but now you’re back, the fun has already begun!”

“Glad I could help.” I said grinning like an idiot. The she winked at me and carried on climbing to the top. Once at the cage’s roof she must have done something with the mechanism because the whole cage started to lower to the ground. I gripped on tightly to my swing as it started swaying with the movement, so I was glad when the bottom of the cage finally found the floor. It hit the stone with an echoed thud and then Pip shouted from above,

“Hold on tight Tootsy chick…TIMBER!” she shouted as she released the chain that was attached to my wrists until it came crashing down to the floor, no longer holding me prisoner in this cage. I felt the pull on my wrists from the momentum, but thanks to Pip’s warning I had a good hold and was ready for it.

I watched Lucius take no time at all to get to the cage’s door and rip it from its hinges. He ducked his head to come inside and looked up at me.

“Jump down now, my little bird, I will catch you.” I bit my lip thinking there was a flaw in this plan.

“I…um…” His arms were open ready and he started to get that impatient look as I hesitated.

“I didn’t come all this way to drop you, sweetheart…now jump!” He added firmly at the end. I took a few deep breaths and suddenly wished I had been given wings when being dressed like this and being forced to take my first flight alone. I let go of the swing and closed my eyes as I scooted to the edge to then drop down into Lucius’ waiting arms. I released an ‘umff’ sound as his arms caught me and didn’t open them again until I heard Lucius say softly,

“My little Keira girl.”

I looked up to see Lucius and couldn’t help the fresh tear that fell at finally seeing my friend again. Just as I couldn’t help my reactions that followed as I threw my arms up and around his neck to hold on as tight as I could. I heard him chuckle which shook me as I hugged him. He wrapped his arms around me and whispered,

“I take it you missed me, Pet?” I shuddered at hearing him call me the same name that Jared did and this reminded me of all the questions I would need to bombard Lucius with…but right now, was our time and I was not going to ruin it with my runaway mouth.

“I missed you, so, so much Lucius!” I said back making him squeeze me tighter before letting me go and raising my bound hands from his neck. He rang a finger along my cheek and then under my mask to capture the tears he knew where there.

“I love to see you cry for me, Keira.” I bit my lip at the hidden meaning in that statement and could only nod.

“It’s good to see you’re still shy.” I looked up at him and let loose a little growl making him throw his head back and roar with laughter.

“Come on, let’s get this done.” He said taking my hands and snapping first the large chain that now hung down on the floor and then forcing the cuffs apart so I could finally move my arms to my sides. He found one of my hands and took it in his to pull me from the cage. I pulled back a little and said,

“Thanks for catching me, Lucius.” This time I got the bad boy Lucius when he looked down grinning and said playfully,

“I only wanted to look up your skirt, Keira.” Then he winked at me, making me laugh. Pip then came up behind me and whispered in ear,

“He’s telling the truth you know, I could have lowered your little birdy seat but he wanted a chance at your knickers.” I turned to face my friend and as soon Lucius let me go, I threw myself at her.

“I missed you Winifred Pipper Ambrogetti!” She shushed me and then whispered,

“Less of the Winifred Toots, you trying to piss on my street cred?” I laughed at her and then said,

“What street cred?” She gave me an evil glare that was just too damn cute and then pulled back my mask and let it snap back. We both fell into giggles.

We both turned and separated when we heard the auctioneer coming back. He had with him some paperwork and it was actually bringing it home to me that Lucius had amazingly paid 1 billion dollars for me!

“If you would just sign here and here, My Lord.”

“Turn around.” He ordered and the flustered auctioneer turned quickly and presented his back for Lucius to use.

“Wait!” I shouted stepping up to him to try and stop this madness.

“Lucius, you don’t have to do this, this is one billion dollars we’re talking about here! He’s doesn’t own me…no one does!” I said after pointing to Gastian, who stayed a safe distance away, the coward!

“I am afraid that’s where you’re wrong love, once a lot has been put into the auction, then it is no longer the vendor who owns you, but the auction house. There is no leaving this room for you without them receiving my vow to pay, as you are bound to them until my signature releases you.” Lucius told me softly giving me a small smile.

“Here you go, My Lord.” The auctioneer who was still waiting tried to hand him a long feathered quill over his shoulder. But instead of taking it he flashed me a wider grin and then I jumped as he put his hand up my skirt and plucked one of the feathers from my dress.

“I think I prefer this one.” He said winking at me, then turned back around and bit into his hand.

“What are you…?!” I started to say but then stopped as he dipped the end of the feather into his escaping blood and then turned back round to sign the document without a moment’s hesitation.

“Cool, huh?” Pip said behind me and I shot her a gross look over my shoulder making her laugh. As soon as he lifted the makeshift quill from the pages, having signed twice, I felt something heavy lift from me. It was as if there was some kind of spell that had kept me rooted to this place that I hadn’t been aware of until now.

“The funds are being transferred as we speak.”

“Very good My Lord, it was a pleasure doing business with you as always.” The auctioneer said bowing and then rose to nod to some men dressed like Edwardian gentlemen complete with top hats. I quickly understood this silent order as they went to stand behind Gastian and grabbed him.

“UNHAND ME!” He shouted as they half dragged him forward.

“What is the meaning of this!?” He demanded as he was brought in front of Lucius and the auctioneer.

“I am sorry my dear fellow, but I must adhere to the commands of those above me.” The auctioneer said and then Lucius leaned forward and I was happy to see Gastian flinch with fear.

“And your side of the commission was just too much to give up.” Lucius informed him making Gastian’s eyes bulge as realisation struck.

“You can’t do this!” He shouted making Lucius’ lips curl back on a snarl.

“Do you have anything you would like to add to this, my Keira girl?” Lucius asked me without taking his eyes off him. I went to step round him and his arm went ridged in my path. The look I gave Lucius must have been answer enough for what he was thinking because he let me pass him. I stood in front of Gastian and let my hate for what this man had put me through in the last three weeks build and build until I felt the familiar tingle in my fingertips.

“What, Bitch?!” I heard the growl behind me from Lucius but it was quickly muffled by the groans of pain from Gastian. My answer to his question had been simple…I punched him hard enough to crack his head back and with it his nose, as now blood gushed from the break.

“BOO YA, SISTER!” Pip cheered and I faced back round to see her jumping up and down like a mad woman, along with cheers from the audience, who I was shocked to see were on my side.

“He’s all yours, Luc.” I said flexing my hurting knuckles but knowing the pain was soothed in the sight of my little revenge.

“Time to get paid, Gastian.” Lucius said and in reply he screamed out,

“GIVE ME MY MONEY!” Then in the quickest move I have seen yet, Lucius was behind him with his head locked in his arms. He didn’t even have time to struggle as Lucius simply snapped his neck and killed him in one effortless move. He let his body drop and said,

“Consider yourself paid.”

The crowd cheered again as if this was a bonus part of the evening and everyone stood up clapping until Lucius growled out his displeasure, putting a quick stop to the commotion. My mouth was hanging open and Pip jumped past me and stomped on his dead body saying,

“Yeah asshole, no one messes with my friend Toots!” Then in true Pip fashion stuck her tongue out at him.

“You can deliver the Veneno to my home in Munich, now give me her things.” Lucius ordered, snapping the auctioneer’s attention from the dead host lying on his floor. Meanwhile, I was trying to remember what the name meant, being sure I’d heard it sometime during the auction, but what was it?

“Of course My Lord and the delivery will be on the house.” At this Lucius gave him a sarcastic smile and said,

“How generous of you, spending over a billion and getting the goods delivered.” Pip laughed and then said,

“Yeah I know right, they could have at least thrown in a piece of that Sultan’s Golden Cake for free but nope, nada, not even a free pen!” She made a ‘humpf’ sound and turned flicking her hair, hitting the auctioneer’s chest with cute curls. She walked over to me and hooked her arm in mine saying,

“Come on Toots, this party sucks cat balls and then blows them into the wind!” I looked over my shoulder to see my broken bag being passed to Lucius along with the Ouroboros book. I let Pip guide me past the gossiping crowd and we walked under one of the many arches.

“Pip, what’s a Veneno?” She burst out laughing and informed me through the giggles,

“It’s Lucius’ new baby, I just knew he wouldn’t be able to resist the Lambo.”

“What!?” She laughed again and said,

“Oh Toots, how I missed your funny ways.” My funny ways…this coming from Mrs Funny pants herself! But it was easy to admit that I had missed her so much and being away from everyone in my past life with Draven, had been getting harder by the day. Now though, it finally felt like I had found as least one half of that family, but would I be so lucky in finding the other?

We walked through the old building and as soon as we made it outside, a Limo was waiting for us. I looked around the small street before being quickly hustled inside the car by Pip. I was still wrestling with all my feathers when I asked,

“Where’s Lucius?”

“Missing me already, Keira girl?” Lucius said as he folded himself into the car and took the seat next to me. Pip fluffed up her hair and said,

“Nah, she missed me way more, she might have cried for you Mighty Master Maximillion, but I got the bigger hug.” I had to laugh at his nickname.

“Oh, you find that funny now do you?” Lucius said turning in his seat as the car started to pull away. He rested one bent leg on the other and ran a hand along the back of the seat to play with the feathers at my back.

“Nope, absolutely not.”

“I see your lying skills are still as shit as ever.” He said looking as though he was trying to hold back a grin.

“So where are we? And how did you find me and what happened to…?”

“Oh here we go…” He said to himself looking up at the roof of the car.

“Alright my Keira, we are going to play a game.”

“OOOH I love games!” Pip said bouncing in her seat and then she clapped her hands and said,

“Does it smell like cheese, but doesn’t come from an animal…oh wait but Adam is mostly like an animal…I mean he does this growly thing when I go down on…”

“LALALALA” I sang out like old times.

“I don’t even want to venture a guess this time, squeak.” Lucius said dryly.

“I thought it was a guessing game and that you meant Adam’s toes…don’t you think it’s weird how his left foot smells worse than the right one.”

“Really?” I couldn’t help it, I had to ask.

“I know right, total freak but I love em freaky!” She said before she slid off the seat to sit cross legged in front of a sleek counter to raid the minibar.

“Alright, now that my second in command’s feet are out of the conversation, where they belong…” He said this last part as a stern message to Pip, who just waved a hand behind her, whilst her other one was pulling out a bottle of champagne.

“…let’s get back to my game, it’s called the ‘I will only ask one question at a time’ game.” Pip snorted as she popped the cork.

“That’s pretty shit for a game’s name Luc, can’t you call it something…’Question Flash Time’ or ‘Flash my answer, bitch’ or, or, or ‘Flashin’ my Bitch up’…you know, something catchy like that?” I tried to keep a straight face when Lucius groaned and let his head fall back like he was asking for patience from the powers above.

“And why again does it have to have the word ‘Flash’ in it ‘cause you know the last one really didn’t make sense.” I added thinking this was quite possibly one of the strangest conversations I had ever had and not one I would have put high on the probability list when just being saved from being bought…or is it just plain bought, as technically Lucius had just bought me…and oh God, did this mean he owned me?!

“See Squeak, this is what your mouth does to people, it makes their faces look that confused.” Lucius said to Pip after looking at me but she just gave him the finger and said,

“Hey Toot’s! Whose side are you on anyway? You can never over use the word Flash and it fits in with so many different scenarios.”

“Yes, like if you don’t stop talking I will gag you in a flash.” Lucius said this time making her growl at him, which was one of the cutest things!

“Fine! But I am so not playing your stupid game now!” She said pouting.

“Good ‘cause you’re disqualified. Now, where were we?” Lucius said turning back to me and I had to hold in my smile when I saw Pip push her nose up, making faces behind him.

“Do me a favour here sweetheart, try and concentrate on my voice and not on Miss Piggy over there…who won’t be disciplined by her husband if she carries on.” This got her to behave and act semi normal…well, as semi normal as Pip could do anyway. And if I knew Pip the way I did, this was one threat she would not be pushing as she just loved to be disciplined by her husband… more so than Christmas apparently.

“So what were we talking about?” I asked feeling totally lost in the craziness that Pip starred in.

“Ask your ‘one’ question at a time, love?” He said looking exasperated and like he was sick of dealing with children.

“You bought me!?” I don’t know why but all earlier questions left me but this one. It was as if the realisation of how much he’d spent was seeping in and I was left feeling very emotionally vulnerable because of it.

“And?” Lucius said as if this was as everyday as reading the newspaper or better still, like sucking blood for a Vampire!

“And you paid one Billion dollars for me! I mean, that’s just ridiculous…do you even know what you could do with money like that…? All the people you could help, the islands you could buy? And as for paying you back…” At this he burst out laughing and then slid closer to me.

He pushed back some of the hair that had come loose on my neck then gently peeled back my mask. He pushed it down until it hung around my neck and then he gripped my chin between his thumb and finger to turn me to look at him. My heart was pounding and his grin told me he could hear every beat. He leaned in as though he was going to kiss me and in an impossibly slow move his lips changed direction and reached my ear. There he took it into his mouth and gently bit on the lobe playfully before he let it go with a pop.

Then I heard some of the most profound words I had ever heard in my life…

“Worth every single penny!”

Chapter 52

Ripping Off Loose Ends

The whole car journey must have taken all of fifteen minutes and all I had learnt in that time was that we were Antwerp, Belgium. Well, this wasn’t strictly true, I did also see Pip sulk about not being involved with Lucius’ ‘One at a time question game’ but to be fair there was only so much you could learn in the five minutes I had left after their mini squabble.

So this was what I had learned. It turns out that the Auction I featured in was run by a secret society called Lega Nera, which is Italian for the ‘Black League’. But when I started to ask more about this mysterious ‘Black League’, Lucius just raised an eyebrow at me and then tapped my nose twice in gentle chastisement for breaking his ‘one question at a time’ rule.

I must have wrinkled my nose because Lucius did it back to me before touching his nose to mine and Pip started laughing at me.

“Still doing that Tootie wrinkler?” Pip asked me after she had downed her third glass of champagne. I shot her my best ‘whatever’ face making her giggle.

After this Lucius continued to tell me that due to the Lega Nera’s illegal status it held its auctions in different places all over the world. So, given its high secrecy, the vendors are only given a weeks’ notice in which country it is to be held and a few days until the actual venue’s address is released to the supernatural world’s rich list. No guessing needed to whom I knew was on that list!

This year the Lega Nera’s auction was held in Handelsbeurs or better known to those like me that can’t speak Flemish, it was Antwerp’s old Stock Exchange building. According to Pip, who got quite excited at this point in our conversation, it was actually a reconstruction of the original building of 1531 which was burnt down as a result of the first fire in 1583. Then, after being rebuilt back to the original plans, came the second fire much later in 1858. By this time the old plans were no longer used, and was once again rebuilt, only this time in a late-Gothic Brabant style.

At first I couldn’t understand why this would be something to get Pip excited about until she explained that the fire in 1858 was down to the first time the Society’s auction was held there. The story was that a performing elephant that was being sold went ‘ape shit’ (Pip’s words) and went charging through the crowd, knocking oil lamps as she went. Her name was Martha and Pip had actually bid to buy her. This was much to Adam’s extreme displeasure, so much so he outbid her with a plan to give her away to a zoo. That was of course until she had to be put down, due to her ‘wig out’ so that the humans wouldn’t discover what had been going on under their very Belgian noses!

I asked about the first time the fire happened and she said,

“Bugger if I know, I only cared about Martha.” I found I could only smile at her endearing statement for a brief love affair with a 15,000 lb elephant, which brought us to now.

We were just pulling up outside Lucius’ private jet at Antwerp International Airport. As soon as I saw the sleek plane waiting on the tarmac it instantly plunged me back to that very first night when meeting Team Lucius.

Pip had been dressed in the tiniest pair of shorts and a Thundercats T-shirt with the sleeves cut off, despite the cold weather. I even remembered her kick ass, black spiked cowboy boots that looked deadly! Even back then when she was part of the crew that kidnapped me, I still thought she was one of the coolest chicks I had ever laid my eyes on, and ever since that night, that thought had only zoomed right up to epic on the cool scale!

Even now, when the car stopped and I watched as Pip decided to give up using the glass and instead just downed the rest of the champagne from the bottle. She caught me looking and with an expression that wondered how anyone could get through a bottle that big within fifteen minutes she said,

“What?! It comes with the Limo rental.” I couldn’t help but laugh when she shrugged her shoulders and then reached into the cooler and grabbed the remaining two bottles. I saw Lucius shake his head, smiling as he opened the door. He reached in and took my hand in his to help me from the car, making me realise I still had on my shackles which now had a broken piece of chain on the insides. I stepped out and one look at the plane had me wondering if they had tools on board, ‘cause I didn’t fancy making these ‘bracelets’ a permanent Keira addition!

“I will get them off you once we take off.” Lucius said pulling me from my DIY thoughts.

“How did you know?” At my question he nodded to my face and stated,

“Expressive eyes,” making me blush and in turn making him laugh.

“Oh, but that right there offers so many possibilities.” He said nodding to my burning cheeks and at this flirty comment my blush went nuclear!

“PIPPER!” Adam shouted from the open plane door. It only needed one look to see that he was not the composed Adam that I was used to. His shirt was un-tucked on one side and his hair looked like he had spent six hours raking his fingers through it, making his usual smart appearance look unkempt. Well, given the panicked shout out to his wife, it was easy to gather who he had been worried about.

Pip stuck her head out of the car and when she saw Adam her whole entire soul lit up. She bounced from the limo and forgetting all about her bounty she threw the bottles of champagne behind her and ran at him. He jumped down all the steps in one move and then caught her as she jumped into his arms. This was all in seconds and to the sound of glass smashing on the tarmac. A spray of bubbles and pale liquid flew up and it was like adding a firework to their pure love reuniting.

I couldn’t help the goofy smile that erupted at watching Pip cover his face in little kisses making his usual black rimmed, square glasses go askew. But he quite obviously couldn’t care less as he held on to her with one strong arm under her rear so he could use the other hand to check that she was all in one piece.

“Did you miss me, pumkee?” Pip asked him before sucking in her pink lip ring, looking cute twisting a curl around her finger. You couldn’t miss the growl he gave her but the whispered,

“Fuck yeah,” was easy to read on his lips. I laughed when I heard Lucius groan next to me as we walked up to them both.

“Get a grip man, it’s only been a few hours.” He told Adam but I don’t think a man like Adam really gave a shit what anyone thought when it came to his wife…not even his Vampire sire Lucius.

“Thank you for taking care of her in my place My Lord, but I will not be doing that again.” Oh bless him but he looked like he had been trying not to pull his hair out for all that time.

“You know why you couldn’t come, my second, not after what happened in 1858.” I looked to Pip but she just mouthed,

“I will tell you later.” It didn’t take much but if I was to venture a guess it would have something to do with an elephant named Martha….although I never thought I would be associating a sentence like that with anyone I knew, let alone someone like Adam!

After feeling every inch of his wife (which from the meowing coming from her, she didn’t mind one bit) only then did he let himself take in the rest of the world, which mainly included me.

“Keira.” I smiled at him as he tried to straighten his glasses, even with Pip trying to bite the frames.

“Hey Adam.” I said blushing and his grin was the only warning I got before he hooked an arm over my shoulder and pulled me into his free side for a hug, still holding onto his wife with his other arm.

“Good to see you again, little bird.” Pip laughed when I groaned at the mention of ‘Little bird’.

“First chance I get I am getting out of this damn dress!” I complained making them all laugh… well, all except Lucius who chose that moment to lean in to my ear and say,

“That can be arranged quickly enough.” Then I felt his hands at my hips and he gripped the feathers there enough to get the message across. I swallowed hard and thankfully Pip was the one to save me. She jumped down from Adam and grabbed my hand to pull me inside the plane, saying,

“I like birdy Toots, so no tearing it off her yet…Hey Tootie pie have you ever seen Sesame Street, ‘cause you know big bird was always my favourite!”

“Ha, ha Pip.” I said as I followed her inside the plane.

It took me a moment to realise this was the exact same plane that had taken me all the way to Germany the first time and I nearly laughed out loud at how different the circumstances were now. If anyone had told me all that time ago that I would be back on here, now thrilled to be with Lucius once again, then I would have not only called them nuts, I would have thrown a book of ‘How to perform a Lobotomy’ at their head!

Adam entered the plane next and asked the stewardess to tell the captain that we were ready to take off in five minutes. I let Pip drag me over to the middle of the plane. She plonked herself down in a seating area that was two cream leather sofa’s facing each other with a high polished table in between. Now we sat facing each other I heard Lucius enter the plane asking about take-off. I looked over my shoulder and saw Lucius not only had my bag with him, but also he passed something on to Adam.

“Catch, Birdy Tweet!” Pip shouted bringing my attention back round to find her throwing something at me. I caught the black shopping bag that had some gothic shop name on it I had never heard of. I gave her a ‘what is it look’ and she flicked her pointy nails to the bag and I had to giggle to myself when I saw how they were painted this time. It started as a story with a cute bunny chewing on some grass and then came a toxic waste can spilling on the same grass on the next finger. By the end of her nails it showed the cute bunny turn in to a Frankenstein demon bunny with blood dripping from a set of fangs. My only thought was what on earth the poor manicurists thought when Pip told her what she had in mind this week!?

I quit staring at her nails and opened the bag, taking out the sparkly tissue paper first. I lifted up a black t shirt that had a skull and cross bones on the front that said in bloody writing underneath,

‘I Party like a Pirate, so let me Play with your Captain’. I lowered the material to find her cheeky face nodding.

“Oh ARRRR it’s GRRReat isn’t it, me matey?” I closed my eyes, bit my lip to stop from laughing and shook my head at hearing her corny pirate voice. I took a deep breath about to tell her that big bird was looking more appealing when she repeated excitingly,

“There’s more…look in the bag, look in the bag!” I don’t know what else I expected… maybe a hat, a plastic hook or Christ, I wouldn’t be surprised if a live Parrot flew out squawking ‘Pieces of eight, Pieces of eight’ wearing a wooden leg! What I wasn’t expecting was a pair of red and black striped bloomers that had white embroidered words on the rear that said, ‘Spank me here to raise morale.’

“There’s a bedroom you can change in back there.” I raised my eyebrows and scratched my head before saying,

“Eh…Yeah, no I can’t wear this, honey.” On hearing this she pushed out her lips to pout and looked down at the floor. I was just letting her cute sulking face get to me enough to say fine, when she smiled and pulled out another bag from underneath the seat.

“I know, that’s why I got you this stuff as well, you big pansy!” She grinned, passing me the bag and I got up to go change. I walked past her and patted her on head saying,

“My good little Imp.” Her little growl made me chuckle. I walked to the back of the plane and heard Lucius shout behind me,

“Two minutes, Keira Girl.” I smiled a secret smile at hearing his usual nickname for me and I didn’t want to admit it did funny fluttering things to my stomach. I just held up my arm over my head and gave him a thumbs up to indicate I heard him then I ran for the room.

It was amazing what they could fit into the space allocated for a bedroom, as I dropped my bags onto the king sized bed. But not really having the time to nose around, which was what I really wanted to do, I decided to get on with it. I started to feel around my bodice for some sort of opening, a zip, clips, buttons, lock and key…but nothing! How on earth did they get me in this bloody thing in the first place…pour me into it, shoot me from a cannon… make the bloody thing around me when I was conked out?!

“Oh for God’s sake, get off you stupid… stupid… stupid thing!” I said in frustration as I tried to get it from the skirt and pull it over my head.

“Can I be of assistance, my dear?” Lucius said scaring me enough to fall backwards, landing on my bum.

“Oww!” I mumbled with my head under my skirt and a face full of feathers.

“Shut up, this isn’t funny.” I said, still hidden under the feathered layers, to Lucius who was making no attempt to hide his laughter.

“Oh, but I must disagree, from where I am stood I can assure you it is a very amusing sight.” I huffed and wrestled the feathers back from my face, blowing at some of the small loose ones that were trying to fall down my forehead.

“So what would you like me to tell the Captain the reason behind the delay is exactly…dress attack?”

“You’re loving this, aren’t you?” I said frowning up at him casually stood leaning on the door frame.

“Yes. Now tell me what are you trying to do?” He said trying not to laugh again.

“What does it look like I am trying to do, make a damn nest and lay an egg? I am trying to get this damn monstrosity off me, of course!” I snapped making him hold his lips in his mouth to stop from laughing further.

“Oh just forget it Mr Not At All Bloody Helpful!” I started to try and twist again when I heard him sigh and walk away from the door frame.

“Come on little chick, let’s get you out of this dangerous dress.” He bent, grabbed both my hands and hauled me up to my feet. Once there he let me go and with me still facing him, he grabbed the back of my dress.

“Can’t call this a chore.” He said giving me a hot look before the sound of my dress being ripped in two was thankfully louder than that of my pounding heart. I felt the air hit my body as he pulled it away from me and I quickly gripped onto the front to keep myself hidden.

“I…I uh…think I got it from here.” I said biting my lip at the sudden intimate setting and not missing out on the lustful looks that were making Lucius’ eyes burn hot.

“Are you sure, I would hate to leave only to have you need me to rescue you again?” I smirked at his playfulness and said,

“I think I will brave it.” He shrugged his shoulders and then replied,

“Pity,” before he turned round to leave. Once again he informed me,

‘No more than two minutes Keira girl, or I will come back to aid you… wanted or not.” This threat got me moving my ass! As soon as the door closed I tore through the new things Pip had given me, flinging knickers and a bra out of the new bag, mentally thanking Pip for remembering the essentials.

I was soon dressed in a long light grey skirt that was made from T-shirt material which hung low on the hips thanks to losing far too much weight. I found a long sleeved maroon coloured top but decided to make Pip smile, so I added layers with the short sleeved pirate top over it. I also found a pair of orange Dr Seuss All Stars that laced up the high tops with thick black ribbon. Well, at least they matched the bright orange and black stripped knee high socks she had added to the pile. The last thing I put on was a black zip up hoodie that had a sweet Goth scroll pattern around the wide bell sleeves in raised light grey and the same design continued around the long hood that hung the whole way down my back.

I knew I was running past my two minute mark when I heard the engines power up and heard Lucius threatening to come and get me.

“I’m coming! Just a second.” I was in the middle of pulling pins out of my hair like a mad woman, when I squealed out as I was spun quickly and found my stomach connecting with a hard shoulder. I was hoisted up in a fireman’s lift and put my arm around Lucius’ front, trying to hold on to the chiselled chest I could feel underneath his shirt and fitted waistcoat. He carried me back to the main seating area, holding onto my legs with one arm. Then he bent, dumping me in the seat opposite Pip and Adam. He knelt down and buckled me in with the seatbelt before taking the seat next to me, all without one single word.

“I said I was coming.” I grumbled, making Pip giggle into Adam’s neck, which she was currently snacking on….well, ok not really but close enough!

“And I said two minutes… you were five, so in future consider what you have learnt in that it takes all of three minutes for my patience to run out.” He said not looking at me but out of the window as we started up the runway. I didn’t have any comeback to this other than to pull a mocking ‘telling off’ face behind his back.

“Keira, it’s a dark night and I am looking out of a window that reflects, you do the math.” Inside I let loose a ‘GRRR’ in frustration but all that came out was a whispered,

“No one likes a smarty pants.”

Once we were up in the air Lucius turned to me and unbuckled my seatbelt and it was only then I noticed that I was the only one on this flight that obviously needed to wear one. Well, considering the rest of them would be just fine and dandy if the plane did decided to pull a Buddy Holly on us…poor guy and great music.

“So, my dear wife, did you buy me anything nice at the auction?” Adam asked Pip before plucking her from her seat and onto his lap, not being content with her just sat next to him. She started sucking in her lip ring and looked from side to side as if stalling.

“Well, my little Winnie?” He said playing with one hand and running his fingers along his name tattooed on her knuckles. It was only now I noticed that she wore a massive ring underneath his name that said ‘Loves me’ in a pop art font.

“Uh…well I…see this is what happened…I uh…no.”

“No?” He mocked playfully leaning back to look at her.

“Uh huh.”

“Well, it’s lucky one of us didn’t forget.” He said trying to hold back the grin until he produced what Lucius must have given him before take-off. He pulled it from the side of his chair and handed her one 1954 Superman Lunch Box sold in Auction for 14,500 dollars! Her reaction was priceless as her eyes turned into wide green pools of surprise.

She turned to look over her shoulder at Lucius and said,

“You sneaky peek-a-boo bastard!” He shrugged like it was nothing and Pip went back to attacking Adam with raspberry blows in between sloppy kisses. You could tell his reserved control on his wife’s crazy thank you actions was nothing but a mask for someone who was clearly loving every minute of his wife’s attentions.

“Permission, My Lordy, to take this man in the back and ride him like I’m at a rodeo?” Pip asked staring in Adam’s eyes as though she had just fallen in love with him all over again. Lucius raised an eyebrow as Adam moved his head to the side to look at his Lord. Lucius just rolled his eyes and said,

“Is it wise to rile the beast this high up?”

“Oh don’t sweat it boss man, I got it covered and do this thing with my inner muscles that just gets him to calm right down…see Toots, if you twist this…”

“LALALALA” I said hold my hands over my ears.

“Come on handsome, let’s go play beauty and the geek.” She said pulling off his glasses and putting them on herself, intending on playing the geek. He snapped his teeth at her nose making her giggle before picking her up like she weighed nothing at all and she swung her new lunch box around her index finger.

“Now don’tcha kids come running if you hear him scream now, yah hear?” She said pushing Adam’s glasses up her nose and then making a V with her fingers to point first to her own eyes then to us two like she would be watching.

“Are we ready, my lady?”

“Up and onward, my dear husband.” She said, pointing to the back of the plane over his shoulder, in a posh English accent which was actually pretty good. They started walking off and I stood up calling her name. Adam turned so she could see me as he was still carrying her. I unzipped my hoodie so she could see my pirate T-shirt and I said,

“Have fun with your captain!” And I winked at her, making her salute me and blow me a kiss for wearing her chosen outfit.

“Oh and my second.”

“Yes, My Lord?” Adam asked just as Pip was squirming trying to take off her belt in his hold.

“Mrs Ambrogetti was very disobedient tonight, punishment will be needed.” Adam’s eyes flashed his demon side before he lowered into a bow, making Pip forget the belt and grip on.

“It will be done, My Lord.” Pip let out an excited squeal and then over Adam’s shoulder she shouted,

“You the man, Luc!” Then her husband carried her out of sight.

“You know you just made her night, right?” I said the obvious but he chose not to answer. No, instead he nodded to his lap and ordered,

“Come here!”

“You know, I think I’m good here.” I replied but why I bothered I didn’t know. I mean this was Lucius we were talking about! I didn’t know whether he knew the rules on personal space or whether he just chose not to care for them, either way I was plucked out of my seat and placed in between his legs. Lucky for me the seats were big enough to accommodate the both of us without me having to actually sit on him.

“Let’s get this off you, shall we?” He said raising my shackled hands in his. I was then left with my mouth gaping open at the sight of his thumb nails growing into deadly shards and then start glowing poker hot. They reminded me of tiny swords still being made in the fire. With the way he held my hands, with his arms surrounding me, all he needed to do was swipe each point down the centre of the metal cuffs until they broke away under the intense heat. I was surprised it didn’t burn me, but before I could ask I felt the same points gently start making little circles on my open palms.

“I was worried about you, my little doll.” He said letting his words skim along the skin on my neck and he chuckled when he felt me shudder. I didn’t know what to say, so for once stayed silent. I also stayed deadly still in sight of those dangerous thumbs still playing with my hands. It was only when I saw the wicked nails start to descend back into his normal looking thumb nails that I finally relaxed back into him.

I then watched his hands leave mine and start travelling up the length of my arms. They followed the slow path right up to my shoulders then up my neck until his hands cupped my head, where he then started the delicate task of removing the rest of the pins from my hair. I was amazed at such a gentle touch coming from such a big man, as he made quick work of freeing my hair from the up do some unknown person had put it in.

“I thought it was a wig in order to disguise you.” He said softly, making me realise how different I must look from the last time he saw me.

“It is a disguise, just a real one done by me.” I informed him trying in vain to keep my voice steady. He decided not to make a comment and I didn’t know whether it was due to the waver in my voice that told him I didn’t want to talk about it, or just that he had nothing to say…either way I was thankful.

Once all the metal grips had been discarded to the floor he ran his fingers up and under and I couldn’t help but groan as he massaged my scalp with his large hands.

“I am glad you are safe in my care again, my little Keira girl.” He said in husky tones that sent shivers down my body straight to my damn toes. I couldn’t say I didn’t agree with him on that, but then with that single thought, I bolted upright and shot out of his hold and stood panting. What the Hell was I doing enjoying his touch and basking in the safety I now felt, when others who had kept me safe were still out there! Did they know what had happened? Did Sigurd know where I was? Did Jared get to Marcus in time? Hell, did Jared even get out of there safely? And what about Percy...? I had to find him and save him from a life of misery with Dimme!

Jesus what was wrong with me?

“Keira, sit down and take a breath.”

“I can’t! Shit, shit, shit!” I said freaking out as everything hit me all at once. It was as though once I saw my rescue as a reality, I had been somewhere in between ‘I still can’t believe this is real and I am not in that crap hole prison’ and ‘I am so deliriously happy I have not been sold to an abusive Demon overlord that wants to use me as a human footstool’! When really I should have been freaking out about this before I even got on this plane!

“Calm yourself and talk to me…now!” He added the ordered ‘now’ when I didn’t listen to him, but with that quick change from gentle coaxing to commanding Lord, it had me sitting before I even thought about it. Now that I was sat facing him, he released a sigh before leaning forward resting his arms on the table in front of us.

“Now ask your questions, Keira.” I bit my lip and said quietly,

“No games?”

“No games, but I will advise you to take breaths in between.” He commented giving me a knowing smile.

“Do you know where Sigurd is or Jared Cerberus…? Did he get to Marcus in time? Did he beat back Gastian’s army at the Hellfire Caves?” I knew I was supposed to take it easy on the questions but I found that once one came, others rushed out to follow.

“My, my we have been making new friends haven’t we, my little dove?” He said leaning back in surprise.

“Wait a minute…you didn’t know any of this?” I asked letting my shock be known.

“What, that you now obviously know the Shadow King on first name bases? Gone on a date to the Hellfire Caves with The King of the Hellbeasts? Or the fact that you have been caught in the middle of a war with Gastian’s demons of the damned…? Oh, before getting kidnapped of course…Fuck me Keira, did you put out a damned ad asking for trouble?” He snapped this last part at me as his anger got the better of his usual cool facade.

“Yes, yes I did, didn’t you read it last year when my second kidnapping happened?” I asked him sarcastically, snapping right back. He took a deep breath and I did the same.

“Right, let’s start this again and start it from the beginning…what the Hell has been happening to make you turn this insane?” I scowled at him and then snapped,

“Draven died on me, that’s what!” At this not so shocking revelation, I was more than a little surprised to find Lucius trying to hide his bewilderment.

“But…you knew that…right?” I asked slowly wondering what in my world was going on!

“Right, Lucius?” I said again when he didn’t answer me.

“Yes… that’s what I know.” He said and this was the point that I knew with utter certainty…

Lucius was lying.

Chapter 53

My Brave Contacts

The rest of the short plane journey was spent having the difficult conversation where I had to tell Lucius every single thing that had happened to me. Starting back with the day Leivic turned up delivering me with the killer blow, to the Oracle giving me back hope, that started my mission and then of course, finishing with where I was now.

His reactions were a mix of disbelief, concern and controlled anger. Every now and again he would swear under his breath, which I would purposely ignore or he would speak in other languages, giving me no option other than to ignore. Either way, it was pretty obvious he was less than happy about what I had been through, which then brought on our first argument, starting with him saying,

“Why the fuck didn’t you contact me!?”

“Are you shitting me right now?! Contact you? You and every other supernatural that I knew were the ones who disappeared!” He looked about to say something, but I wasn’t quite finished with my tantrum.

“No Lucius, don’t even bother ‘cause I have heard this record before and I didn’t like it the first time!”

“Keira, calm down and explain without the smart mouth!” He had the balls to say, which totally got my back up even more.

“Ok, let me spell it out for you, using small words so my smart mouth doesn’t upset you…You. Abandoned. Me!” I said not being able to help my building anger at every single person Draven had brought in my life and then ripped away! I knew I wasn’t being fair to Lucius, because he did in fact save my ass, but at that moment I lost every ‘right action’ to the shadows of every ‘wrong action’ that was done to me since that day.

Draven was never meant to die! We weren’t supposed to go through all that with Morgan, Sammael, Lucius, Layla and then some wacked up ‘horned God wannabe’ like Malphas, then for him to just leave me! That was not how the story was supposed to end. He was my soul mate, the better part of me and lastly, my love’s saviour… but now, well… now I was expected to be his saviour and I wasn’t even strong enough not to cry at the injustice of what he himself did to me!

I didn’t understand any of it. Did he not think that by having everyone I loved around me, that this would have not made me stronger? Was that why? Did I have to know my own Hell on earth before facing his?

I didn’t realise that I asked this last question out loud because I found at some point I was on the floor sobbing in Lucius’ arms and he was answering me tenderly,

“I don’t know love, I just don’t know what he was thinking… no one does.”

After this embarrassing little breakdown of mine and an apology from me, Lucius sat me down and explained all he knew…or all he was willing to tell, as it still seemed as if he held something vital back.

He told me that Draven’s decision to put his plan into action should anything happen to him was final, no matter what those closest to him tried to say on the matter…Lucius included. No-one knew what happened in his search for the Oracle, but once he found her it all changed for me that day. He started planning for something only he knew was coming, which was either his death or his capture but that was something no-one seemed to know.

However, only one thing was ringing clear, Draven simply used this new rule as a way of keeping me safe from his world or what he knew would happen if I tried to rescue him. And considering all that had happened so far, I was starting to understand why. Which begged the question, what would have happened if I had just let it be? Would I have moved on to Eddie at some point in my life? Was that my ultimate choice, normality in the human world or the dangerous path I now walked down?

Well, one thing was for certain, there was no going back now, so what did it matter? What’s done is done and I would stop at nothing in getting back to Draven, even if I ended up dead while getting there! Just one more sight of Draven and I just knew my soul would finally find its peace…

Whatever may come to pass.

The next thing I learnt from Lucius was that he had no clue what part Sigurd and Jared had been playing in my life since he had received his orders to leave me alone. That was of course, until he heard I was in trouble, from none other than…

Jack.

Lucius had given me a quizzical look when I shouted out his name and nearly ended up crying again at the strength and bravery of my very human friend. I had told him before leaving that if I didn’t get in contact then to get in touch with Lucius, no matter what it took.

“Yes and what it took was about fifty messages left until someone took him seriously enough to pass me the damn phone! Of course, one mention of not only your name but also the one you gave him for me and of course the plans you had to find Draven was enough for me to take him seriously.” Lucius had told me, cracking his knuckle one handed, expressing his agitation at this memory.

So, thanks to the persistence of a good friend, Jack had played the biggest part in saving my bacon from being sold at the meat market. I knew the first chance I got, I would have to call Jack and when saying as much to Lucius he told me how he had first reassured the ‘boy’ that he received ‘fake’ word from me to say I would be in touch shortly. What on earth I was going to tell him because of this I didn’t yet know, but Lucius told me he had no other choice as Jack was adamant he would travel all the way here and see I was alright for himself if need be. Oh yeah, a phone call was on my ‘to do first list’ alright!

It was only in the drive on the way to Lucius’ nightclub ‘Transfusion’ that I thought to ask the question,

“Ok, so if it was Jack that originally got you looking for me, who was it that pointed you to the Auction?”

“A contact on the inside of Gastian’s plans came forward just in time and being of course on the Lega Nera guest list, I was informed where it would be held as I always receive an invitation.” I rolled my eyes at his snobbery and said a muffled,

“Course you do.”

“So, who was your contact?” I asked after he didn’t explain any further.

“I forget his name but he was rewarded and sent on his way.” Lucius sent Pip a strange look that said, ‘Isn’t that right?’ making her quickly pipe up with,

“Oh right, yeah we sent him off all happy and shit.”

“O…kay.” I said unconvinced, wondering what the heck was going on? I was about to dive in head first and ask outright, when one look at Pip told me not to bother. After all, I knew I could just get it out of her later as Pip was easy to crack for information.

“Ok, so there is another matter I need to discuss with you.” I said turning to face Lucius, who, as always, was sat next to me in the back of another Limo.

“Like?”

“Well a few things actually, but first there is someone I need to find.” I watched him take a deep breath and sigh, letting me know with that reaction he thought I meant Draven…and yeah, of course I wanted his help in that, but first there was the promise I had made that I had to see though.

“It’s not what you think, Luc.”

“No?”

“No it’s not. I need to find out where they kept me before the auction.” His reaction was not one I thought it would be, which would be shock. No, instead I got a slight smirk and as he rubbed a hand over his mouth he asked,

“Really? And your reasons for this would be…?” I sucked in one side of my bottom lip and held it there thinking of how to put this correctly.

“I’m not expecting anyone to understand, but there is someone there I need to help…someone who helped me when he didn’t have to and someone that…well, someone I have come to care about, very…very much…he saved my life, Lucius.” On hearing my voice thick with emotion he dropped his smug attitude and gave me a caring smile.

“I will help you find this person, Keira.”

“You promise?” I had to hear it.

“I do.” He said nodding his head once in what looked like respect for my unexpected request. Then he turned to Adam and said,

“You know what to do, get it done.” Adam nodded in the same way Lucius had done and said his usual,

“Yes, My Lord.” Then he got out his smart phone and was soon talking to someone in what sounded like German. I tore my gaze off Adam’s phone call and noticed, as I turned back Lucius, Pip now looked even more excited than usual, bouncing on her hands which she held under her bottom.

“I also need to find some way of contacting Sigurd, as the book we are bound to has had some sort of spell put on it.” Ok, so now this was starting to sound like something straight from Harry Potter!

“So I heard. I happen to know someone who has dealings with ‘Snake eye’. I will get word to him and yes, before you ask, I will also get word to Cerberus as well, as I know you are anxious about your new eclectic group of friends.” He said sounding both amused and annoyed.

After hearing this I started to let myself relax, knowing that soon everyone would know I was in safe hands and hopefully I would be hearing the same thing about them. I let my tensed shoulders slump back into the comfy seat and I saw Lucius watch me from the corner of his eye.

“Why don’t you rest, you have had a long night and must be tired?” Lucius advised and I shook my head.

“I can’t, I have too many things I need to do when we get there.”

“Everything will still be waiting for you to ‘deal’ with, but you need to rest also…so close your eyes and rest for a while.” Just the sound of his voice was making my eyelids all of sudden feel heavy. It was like he was hypnotizing me with that soft lull add to every word.

“Maybe I could just close my eyes for ten minutes, just the time it takes us to get there…you will wake me when we get there, won’t you?” For some reason my saying this and giving in, made him look as if he had just won some epic battle.

“Of course.” Although the way he said this wasn’t inspiring much confidence in me but by this point I was suddenly so tired it’s all I could think about.

So I gave in and slept and my last conscious feeling was when Lucius plucked me from the seat and cradled me to his chest.

I woke up to the sound of a rumbling noise, but as soon as I became aware of it the noise stopped. I gingerly opened my eyes feeling the effects of more than a ten minute sleep. I almost growled out his name knowing that he didn’t wake me, but then stopped when I took in the new sights. The first of which was one I had seen before and I watched my own reflection mouth the word ‘Shit’.

I stared up at the ceiling full of mirrors encased in black lacquered frames of all different designs, shapes and sizes. It was like a gothic montage all showing the same thing, that of me lying in an enormous black sleigh bed under rich crimson coloured sheets. Oh yeah, I remembered this alright, only the last time was after Pip had bitten me. I quickly turned my head from side to side to expose my neck, checking just in case I had been caught again, only this time by someone with bigger teeth than my little Imp!

After that panic was squashed a new one quickly arose after looking more closely in the mirror and seeing Lucius’ naked body next to me. My hands flew to my mouth to keep in the little scream that nearly came out. Once I had my reactions under control, my hands curled into loose fists I held at my mouth not knowing what to do. I looked up at my own worried face and then decided to brave a look to my left.

Lucius was lying on his side, facing me with his eyes closed. His long lashes fanned out along the almond shapes casting shadows on the tops of his cheeks. There was just enough light coming from a lamp that someone had left on, to properly let me drink in my fill of this vulnerable side to Lucius I had never seen before.

He had an ethereal beauty that made me want to reach out and run my fingertips along his pale skin. His lips were a perfect balance of not being too full and not too thin and I had to bite my own so as not to giggle. I don’t know why but like this he looked younger and although always considered handsome, right now I would have gone more with cute. I think it was because he was void of a devilish grin that promised dark pleasures and predator eyes that could make the strongest of beings squirm.

But now I was seeing him without any masks of authority or reactions to carnal thoughts. Now, he was just a sleeping man of masculine beauty drifting along in his dream world that looked like he had found peace there. It made me wonder what Lucius’ dreams were about. What did a being as powerful as Lucius find when he closed his eyes?

After I took the minutes being captivated by this side of Lucius, I started to let my eyes drift down. After all I was only human…had I used that excuse once or twice before? Well, whatever worked to keep my guilt at bay long enough to take in the sights. I almost forgot that what happened to Lucius that day at the Temple had changed him forever. Well looking at him now I was definitely reminded.

His upper body was twisted facing me with one arm bent being used as a pillow for his head, making his muscles bunch and the other was lay over his wide chest. Like this I could see that sexy curved line men got from having muscular shoulders that then formed into wide and a lengthy bicep. Whereas before, Lucius had a slimmer build of muscle to Draven’s body, now that was no longer the case, thanks to receiving the same powers from both Heaven and Hell.

But it wasn’t just his bulk up that marked these changes. It was the lighter streaks of gold in his sandy colour hair that had innocently fallen over one side of his face. It was the deeper tone to his voice, giving him a slightly deeper authoritative edge than before. Hell, it was even that his fingers looked stronger, which were currently curled in the sheets in an iron grip. I wondered why and what had changed in his dreams to give him reason to hold on?

I didn’t have to wait long for my answer as his voice interrupted my silent appraisal.

“Enjoying yourself?” I jumped at his question and seemed frozen to the spot. Not that I had ever been caught stealing before as you would actually have to steal in the first place, but if I had, then this was what I imagined getting caught would feel like. Or did stealing the heart count…? Because technically I was just returning it to its rightful owner. Ok, ok, so getting back on course, maybe by looking at someone when they slept was like stealing?

“Uh…I…I wasn’t looking.” It wasn’t my best line by a long shot and one cheeky grin told me he knew this. I watched him push all his hair back with one hand and I couldn’t help but bite my lip at the sight.

“No? So you just woke up on your side facing me and for the last ten minutes have been staring into a space I just so happen to fill?”

“Er…yeah?”

“I will take your lame ‘Yeah’ and raise you a ‘Bullshit’.”

“Alright fine, I was looking! Happy now?” I said losing my patience and he laughed at my outburst. I watched him turn onto his back and stretch out his arms behind his head.

“Well come on sugar don’t be shy, you sit right here and get a closer look.” He said patting his covered groin, making me growl at him.

“Not funny.”

“Do I look like I just want to be tickled?” He said turning back round to his original position, giving me that bad boy ‘I wanna play’ look.

“Do you want to explain to me what I am doing in your bed?” I demanded in my best pissed off voice.

“Snoring.” He replied smirking.

“What! I don’t snore!” He lent toward me and then whispered,

“Yeah honey, you do.” This was when I smacked him on the arm and quickly realised that it wasn’t very effective when all I felt was solid flesh. This just angered me more.

“I. DO. NOT!” I said leaning in myself meeting him in the middle. We were now both only inches apart and where he was grinning, I was scowling.

“Don’t worry, it will be our little secret.” He whispered and then kissed me quickly on the end of my nose.

“I think I liked you more when you were a scary, controlling, bad ass Vamp kidnapper.” I said folding my arms across my chest and only now just realising I was wearing one of his bloody shirts! I opened my arms back up and looked down under the sheets to see apart from a pair of knee high socks, it was also all I was wearing!

“You have all of five seconds to explain, Lucius or I swear to God no supernatural power on earth will stop your balls from hurting.” I threatened holding the bridge of my nose in a non-effective way of gaining patience.

“Well, seeing as we have very different ideas on what you could do to my balls, I will explain, Miss Killjoy. You fell asleep and I carried you up here, where I took off my shirt to give to Pip to dress you in. By the time I returned you were snoring your little orange socks off and I fell asleep laughing at you…happy now?” I smacked him again and said,

“I don’t snore!” He laughed again and said,

“Yes Keira…you do.” I rolled my eyes and then muttered,

“Whatever,” knowing I was not going to win this game of his.

“So why didn’t you wake me up like you said you would do?”

“Because you were exhausted and even I am not enough of a bastard to wake someone when they have endured all that you have.” At this my anger softened enough to make me say a small,

“Thanks.”

“Besides, I knew eventually the snoring would wake you.” I groaned in frustration before I started to say,

“I do not…” And then that sentence trickled off because I suddenly remembered the rumbling noise that woke me up, only as soon as I became aware of it, it had stopped.

“Oh God!” I said slapping my hands over my mouth for the second time that morning.

“Ah, there it is.” I shot him daggers and said,

“Shut up!” Only making him laugh harder, which managed to jiggle the mattress. Then Lucius did a very human thing and stretched out his arms and yawned. I was so taken back that I didn’t realise I was staring at him until he said,

“What?”

“Uh, you yawn?” Wow I really didn’t wake up as the brightest bulb this morning did I?

“And?” He replied before rolling to grab his mobile phone from the bedside table.

“I just…never heard it before.” Stupid Keira, stupid Keira!

“You have never heard me cum before either, would you like to?”

“Eww you’re a pig!” I said slapping his chest for the third time, only this time he grabbed my wrist, reminding me of being in last night’s shackles.

“Try to hit me again and I will have no other choice but to restrain you.” He promised with a dark purr to his voice that screamed pure sin. I followed his heated eyes as they moved up to focus on the swags of chains attached to the twisted metal bar above us. It ran along the top curve at the head of Lucius’ incredible black sleigh bed. My eyes widened as I remembered from last time the black leather manacles attached to the middle of those chains.

“I’ll…” I had to clear my voice before pushing the rest of that statement out,

“…be good.” Lucius let go of my wrist and said,

“Pity,” before he flipped the covers back and I watched him get out of bed, completely butt naked. My mouth dropped open like a damn goldfish at the sight of all that pale flesh that curved into too many muscles to count. His back looked strong enough to carry boulders on and his thighs big enough to run with them there. I didn’t know if I had closed my eyes by this point and the perfect backside I was still seeing had just been imprinted onto my retinas or if I just couldn’t close my eyes because of the perfection. Either one there it was, Lucius’ naked body and it was a thing of pure lustful beauty!

“You’re staring, little doll.” He said, his voice full of mischievous mirth and clearly loving catching me practically drooling at him. I snapped my eyes shut, still seeing his perfect butt and mumbled something that I hoped sounded like an apology. I turned round to face the other way and bolted upright in the bed to swing my legs on the floor.

His bed was so huge that my feet didn’t even touch the thick gothic looking rug that I was making sure I kept looking at. I followed every grey line of the giant fleur de lis that was made from a series of delicate swirls and curled branches. It was a beautiful rug and at that moment keeping my mind from the beautiful body behind me. Only once the rug no longer held an appeal I switched to take in my knee high socks, counting the stripes of black against orange…or was it orange against black…?

“Ah!” I jumped when I felt Lucius’ hand on my shoulder and heard him chuckling softly.

“Found anything interesting down there?”

“Pip left my socks on.” I said because A: I was stupid and B: anything was better than blurting out ‘you’re a beautiful man’. I felt his head come closer until I felt his chin rest at my shoulder. He looked down at my feet and said,

“And how very adorable they do look.” This time I just blushed instead of speaking, thinking this was the wiser choice. My breath caught when I felt him move his chin back and one hand came up to my neck to brush my hair away to the other side. He held it there as it was now short enough to come back on its own and I quickly found it hard to breathe when his fingers suddenly made a fist in my hair.

“You look good in my shirt.” Lucius hummed along my neck as his free hand came up to play with the collar. Although he was only skimming his fingertips along where the two sides of his open shirt met the first fastened button, it felt like his touch continued all the way down to the junction of my legs. It was such a confusing mix of sensations. On one side I had his commanding hand gripping my hair, roughly tipping my head to the side so he could get better access and then the other was caressing me so softly it was almost like a lover whispering endearments.

“Lucius.” I released his name on a gasp as he let loose the first button so his fingertips could just reach the top of my breasts. I think I must have started panting at this point or close to it because he stilled after he heard the plea in his name, neither of us knowing if it was to stop or keep going. Later I would find myself thanking the Heavens that he saw it as a sign to stop, because feeling a man’s touch again was like soothing the wound before tearing it open again.

I had to give him credit for making light of the situation when he just kissed my neck and said,

“I think it best if you get dressed into something other than my shirt, pet…” Well I did think this was making light of it until he added,

“…before I take you whispering my name as a sign to rip it from your very biteable skin.” Then he sucked in some of that skin and held it with his teeth, only to then smile around his mouthful when I sucked in a shuddered breath. Then as quickly as it started he let me go and I felt the bed move as he got off the other side.

“Get dressed love, I have a surprise waiting for you.” He said being back to his usual playful manner.

“Uh, what time is it?” I croaked out like I was trying to form words around the squash ball I had unknowingly swallowed.

“It’s getting on for ten.” He said and I looked round to see he was adding a long sleeved t-shirt to the stonewash jeans he already had on.

“Oh, that’s not too bad then.” I said watching as he pulled each sleeve up his forearms. It was a rust coloured material that was a V neck only because it had been torn that way, along with the frayed edges around the waist and arms. It was tight around his torso, showing the lines of his pecs and only just hiding the six pack I had seen earlier…oh and of course it looked delicious on him, damn it!

“Not too bad?” He inquired.

“Yeah, means I didn’t sleep that late.” At this he laughed shaking his head to himself as though he found this to be another funny Keira moment.

“Keira, its ten at night, you slept through the day.”

“What?!” I shouted jumping from the bed to face him. It was only when he gave me that predatory gaze looking me up and down, did I pull down on his shirt, making sure it covered everything north of my knees.

“Guess I was right, you must have been tired… and now you must be hungry.” He added after my belly made itself known on an embarrassing rumble.

“You get ready and I will see to getting you some much needed food.” He said going back to being gentle caring Lucius. He walked to the door that I knew led into the rest of his apartment but as he opened the door he stopped to look back.

“Keira girl.”

“Yeah?” I said waiting for what was coming next,

“I thought the snoring was cute.”

I heard him chucking at my embarrassed groan as he closed the door.

As soon as I knew I was alone I ran to use the bathroom I remembered from last time, only now I was in a rush I barely took in the black and red theme that continued from Lucius’ ostentatious bedroom. However, I did give the monstrous black clawed tub a wishful glance thinking how long it had been since I had last soaked my body.

Not having the time, I had to be content with having a quick wash hoping there would be chance later to give this luscious bathroom the time it truly deserved. After brushing my teeth and trying to brush through my hair at the same time, I gave up with the knotted nest and spat out the heavenly toothpaste that I would have kissed rats for only days ago.

After visiting the posh toilet, I quickly made short work of getting dressed back in the clothes I had barely worn last night and thanks to Pip I found them folded up on a lavish cherry red Chesterfield couch.

I then ran out of Lucius’ bedroom door to be hit with the heavenly sight of two things, one made my stomach growl in anticipation and the other made me scream out with pure joy…

“Percy!”

Chapter 54

Bargain With Blood, Not Your Body

“Keira!” Percy shouted back as I ran at him. We joined together and tears ran down both our cheeks as the emotions soared. I pushed back his hood and put my hands either side of his scarred face to pull him to me to kiss his forehead. He looked up at me, bit down on his own lip as it quivered right before he wrapped his arms around me.

I heard Pip’s squeals of delight in the background at seeing our reunion. I just couldn’t help the tears. I felt, in this moment, so relieved seeing him here and safe, having worried that once I left, Dimme would end up torturing him beyond anything he could come back from. The bond we had forged together during that time was one that would never leave me, no matter what.

And just to put it in perspective, anyone that ended up taking punishments after sneaking out to get me tampons and then being the poor soul who had to dispose of them is someone who not only goes beyond the duties of friendship, but is someone worth risking my life for.

“How?” I asked after we had both had our moment to calm down.

“Ith wasth all your mas…ss…masthers idea.” He said stuttering even more and I knew this was down to being emotional.

“Uh Master… you know, I think I like that.” Lucius said making a joke of what Percy said. I turned to him and found him leaning against the bar area casually, as if this was all an everyday occurrence. Pip and Adam were also there and sat watching all this play out. She gave me a little wave and then said,

“I dressed him.” I turned back to Percy who was no longer wearing a scruffy brown monk’s habit. Pip had quickly brought him to the now and with a vengeance.

“You made him a punk!?” I said stating the obvious.

“Hell yea I did, doesn’t he look cute?” She said jumping off the sofa and coming to pat him on the head. He beamed up at her with one of the biggest grins I had ever seen on him and I had to laugh as it was clear he had found his new mentor. He looked so different than the worried and downtrodden friend I had met back in that horrible place and I couldn’t stop smiling as I took in the new Percy.

In just a few days Pip had transformed him in a smaller version of Ruto! He was now wearing a pair of ripped, black skinny jeans, a faded KISS t-shirt and a thin knitted top that hung open at the sides, showing multiple belts with spikes. The only thing that remained the same was that he wore the floppy hood up, but this time not completely covering his face. He even had on a beanie hat underneath which had grey skulls along the rim as if it had been stamped.

“Ok, someone’s gotta fill me in here.” I said looking back to Lucius. He pushed away from the bar and came to take my hand. He then led to me to one of the other couches and sat me down ready to explain.

“Your little friend over there risked the wrath of his master as he stole his money and travelled all the way here from Switzerland to come to tell me about his kidnapped friend being sold at auction.” My gaze shot to Percy and I asked in shock,

“You did that?”

“I wasth going to pay ith back.” He said looking sheepish, but I couldn’t give a flying monkey’s turd about the money as it was him I was worried about.

“Percy, why did you do that? You could have been caught or killed or that stringy piece of piss could have found out and…and…” I felt Lucius’ hand grip my thigh and I realised I was panicking.

“I…I am fffine thhhough…th’see. Bethsides I have thsomething of yourths” He said softly pulling my coin out of his pocket and handing it me.

“Keira, it will be fine, he is safe now.” Lucius told me quietly but at that precise moment Ruto walked into the apartment and announced,

“Luc, there is someone here calling himself Dimme, although dumb shit is my preferred choice.” I tensed at hearing the name and Lucius loosened his grip so that he could soothingly stroke my leg.

“Ssshh, breathe little bird.” He whispered in my ear. I flashed Percy a panicked look that matched the one I found staring back.

“Tell him to wait.” Ruto nodded respectfully at Lucius’ order and turned to leave.

“Oh and Ruto…”

“Yes, My Lord?”

“Stay at his back.” Upon hearing this, Ruto’s lips split into a murderous grin that promised the sight of blood before the night was over. Again he just nodded and then this time swiftly left the room.

“What are you going to do?” I asked Lucius nervously pulling one sleeve down past my fingers and then twisting it over and over again. Lucius looked down at my actions and then chuckled before taking my hands in his.

“Trust me, my Keira girl, to do what needs to be done.” I didn’t know if this was supposed to comfort me or just make me panic more but either way I found myself being pulled from my seat and walked out of the door. I looked behind me to see Percy following with his hand being held in Pip’s swinging one. She looked absolutely gleeful and winked at me when she caught me looking. How could she be so happy? Did she know what was coming?

We all walked from Lucius’ apartment back into the VIP of Transfusion and somewhere I had not been for what seemed like a lifetime. It was like déjà vu all over again for me, only this time instead of being led by Pip, I was being led by Lucius himself. So this time when Lucius starting walking to the back of his sex themed VIP, I knew I would once again find myself in the private part of the club. This had been the same room that I had been reunited back with Draven after Lucius had taken me. Of course, it was also the same room I had gone a little nuttso, having destroyed most of it in my rage thinking Draven had cheated on me.

We walked through the double doors and I felt my breath hitch as I struggled to hold in the frustrated tears. I soon found myself being hit with the ghosts of that memory so strong it was as though I could reach out and touch the Draven there from the past. What wouldn’t I give right now to have that single moment back? At least back then I knew Draven existed in the world and was trying to find me but now…well, the uncertainty in what I was doing was almost soul crushing.

The room was as I remembered it before I had run from it in a broken mess caused by my anger. It was a single open plan room about half the size of the VIP. The décor was modern and cold, with its stark white leather seating and its blue back lighting. The only other features in the room were black flooring, stainless steel table tops and glass, glass and more glass. The one thing I did notice, was that all the flat screens that displayed different aspects of Transfusion had been replaced but were now switched off.

“I thought it best considering what happened last time.” Lucius said when he must have noticed me staring at the screens. He didn’t sound the least bit angry at what my actions must have cost him, but considering the guy just spent a cool one billion dollars on me, I doubt a few TV’s and some new plastering was that much of big deal.

I let him lead me over to the same seating area as before and that pinch in my chest got tighter. He sat down in the middle which had a higher back than the rest of the U shaped couch and he pulled me down with him. I was about to argue the fact that I had once again been placed in front of him, but then I thought better of it. I mean what was the point, when did I ever win against these men? If it wasn’t Lucius, then it was Sigurd bossing me around or Jared sitting me on his lap stroking me like his damn ‘Pet’. There only seemed to be two types of supernatural men in my world and that was those who wanted to dominate me and those who wanted to kill me…oh and then there was Percy who, thank the Lord, was neither of those things!

The leather gave way to our combined weights and Lucius leant back getting relaxed and comfortable as if what was about to happen was nothing more than tonight’s entertainment. Me, well I was a nervous wreck not knowing what was coming.

Lucius nodded to the wrestler sized doormen we had passed and on cue they opened the doors once more to let Dimme in, who was closely followed by Ruto at his back. I heard Lucius snort his amusement at the sight of Dimme who looked a bit like a thin limp willy with legs.

His slimy gaze flew to me as I was dead centre, but when his scowl turned threatening Lucius wasn’t amused any longer.

“If you don’t want to make this any worse than it already is, then I would strongly suggest eyes on my Master.” Ruto said from behind him, making him jump.

“I have done nothing wrong!” He snapped haughtily, doing himself no favours.

“No? Then let me enlighten you, you dumb fuck! See, what I have here in my lap, well this stunning creature is mine and well, you not only aided in keeping her from me but you also tried to FUCKING STARVE HER TO DEATH!” Lucius quickly lost all of his cool and roared this last part at him coming straight from the depths of his more dominant demon side. It was so loud I thought we would have a reconstruction, or more like deconstruction, of when I trashed the room. The fixtures rattled and I heard a few pieces of the glass around us crack. In my automatic reflexes, I had covered my ears with my hands and soon I had Lucius grip my wrists to pull them gradually from my head.

“Sorry my pet…” He apologised sweetly being now a complete contrast to how he was only seconds ago, and I had to say, given how scary Lucius can be, I was glad I was receiving the nice end.

“So Dim what do you suggest I do with you?” Lucius asked regaining his calm eerie voice that really screamed, ‘Danger! Stand back or better yet, RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!’

“I…he…it wasn’t my fault My Lord…I was only following my…my master.” Dimme had lost all his bravado now and was a hair’s breadth away from grovelling on his bony knees.

“Yes, well your master died at my hands last night and is no doubt getting his skin peeled from his flesh as we speak…I have many friends in low places you see.” He said smirking as he looked down to Hell, in his reference to his ‘friends’ and I couldn’t hold back the sly little grin at seeing Dimme swallow down a hard lump of fear.

“So, the question remains, do I send you down to wait in line for the same punishment or simply deliver it here myself?” I had to hand it to Lucius at this point, he was utterly terrifying without even trying at it. So much so in fact I was half expecting to see Dimme pee his pants any minute now.

The hand that Lucius had been using to play with my hair suddenly gripped me tighter and pulled until my head went back to look up at him. It didn’t hurt, but it spoke volumes to the room as to who, at that moment in time, I belonged to. I remembered as much from my last time in Lucius’ domain. So I went along with it as I knew what he did was only for my own good.

“What do you think, little doll?” Upon Lucius asking me this question as to Dimme’s fate, he must have panicked because one second he was saying,

“But my Lor…” And then was cut off abruptly by Ruto who had produced a large blade from somewhere on his body and was quickly holding it to Dimme’s throat.

“He didn’t order you to speak.” Ruto informed him in the lethal composed voice that sometimes gave me the creeps coming from such a young looking person.

“But of course, my innocent little Keira couldn’t possible choose someone else’s fate, so perhaps one of your own will speak up for you…Percy, come here.” Lucius motioned for Percy to come forward after releasing my hair and I watched him step closer after Pip encouraged him to do so. The level of shock on Dimme’s face made his jaw drop and consequently Ruto’s blade nicked him on the neck.

“Yessth my… Master.” He managed to correct some of his stutter on the word ‘master’ out of respect and I gave him a smile to cheer him on.

“You came here against your possession officer’s knowledge because your actions against him would have seen you punished, correct?”

“Yessth My Lord” He said now with a bit more bite to his words. I didn’t know where this was going but having my trust in Lucius, I knew it wasn’t looking good for Dimme.

“And what punishment would he have given you, Percy?” I gave Lucius a quick glance to see him staring at Dimme with such severity there was no doubt what he had in mind.

I looked back to Percy to see him square off his shoulders and raise his head up before he whipped his hood back and stood there proud in all his beautiful but painful glory. He answered with one word so profound that it not only chilled me to the core, but forced a single tear to run down my cheek as a silent show of support.

“Fire!” He said in an entirely different voice that did not sound as though it came from my Percy. No, this voice came from a warrior… from a fighter and more importantly the strongest of them all…

A survivor.

“Then so be it…Adam.” I watched him first kiss his wife on her nose before he detangled himself from Pip, who was hanging around his neck like a baby koala. Adam then walked over next to Percy and put his hand on his shoulder to show him he agreed that Percy was one of them now.

“Yes, My Lord?”

“Why don’t you introduce him to Abaddon.” Lucius instructed and my head shot round to see he was serious. I was about to scream ‘are you out of your friggin mind!’ but he just mouthed the single word ‘trust’ to me and I decided I had no other option. Lucius nodded back to the scene now unfolding and thanks to my shudder, Lucius wrapped an arm around my middle and pulled me tighter into the comfort of his hold and then whispered,

“Don’t look away Keira, your little friend needs to draw his strength from you…so be strong for him, as I know you can.” I did as I was told, nodding to Percy when I saw guilt flash there.

Then it really began.

“With pleasure.” Adam rumbled, letting the first touches of his deeply contained other self merely skim the surface. I actually didn’t know what was more frightening to witness, the monster that was known as Abaddon, who was every last thing Hell signified? Or was it the geeky accountant who first pushed up his glasses before placing a single tip of his index finger on Dimme’s arm. Of course the second sounded a lot less threatening, that was until it released pure Hell inside his body and literally started to cook Dimme from the inside out.

It looked as though it started with his very soul and licked outwards to make blistering skin. Ruto released his hold over him when he knew it was no longer necessary. Dimme wasn’t going anywhere with his host that was soon becoming a charred version of his former self. His skin popped and crackled like a cooking pig, making me gag. The extreme heat was coming from the fire that you could see raging under the flesh and his face had become a grotesque jack ‘o lantern as you could see the brief glow behind his eyes and in his open mouth before the flames erupted from both.

Any minute I was expecting him to just burst open like a skin balloon trying to contain the fire but this didn’t happen. Adam gently ran the same fingertip down his blackened arm and then, as if he had been made of paper, pieces of his remains started to turn to white ash and float to the floor like dainty snowflakes.

And that was the end of my short term jailor and Percy’s long term tormentor. I really tried to be the better person and find some tiny part of me that felt sorry that it had happened this way, but one look at the horrific abuse he put my friend through, I just couldn’t do it. I did however get up from Lucius’ lap, walk over to my unmoving friend and put my arms around him to pour every ounce of comfort I had in me to give.

“I promised I would make it right, but in the end Percy, you did it! You were the one brave enough to save me and in doing so, you saved yourself…I am…so, so…proud of …you.” I said this last part through the tears that fell from raw emotions that had ripped me wide open for all to see. It felt like I couldn’t remember a time where I didn’t cry anymore, whether it was through sadness, fear, pain, humiliation, anger, extreme happiness or utter relief. My tears stood as evidence to the gaping hole Draven had put there and it only seemed to fill in times like this. Times where the friends I had gained before or the new friends that had been placed on my journey’s path came to find me. Whatever the time, whatever the place and whatever the trials put in place, no matter the heartache I faced, there they all were …ready to save me.

But I not only felt saved, more importantly I felt blessed and I didn’t need the Gods for that, because all I needed was what I always had…

My friends.

After all that had happened there was only one thing left and that was for Percy to declare his loyalty to Lucius. He did so with such fierce determination it was humbling to witness. He knelt at Lucius’ feet and sliced into his palm to offer his new master his own blood to bind his faithful service. However, it wasn’t just the honour I saw in Percy’s eyes that was so surprising to me, but it was that same honour I saw in Lucius’ that shocked me the most. He truly looked pleased to be gaining such a person into his fold and there I was, nearly crying all over again because of it!

“Do you Percy, declare your soul into my ownership, sealed with your very blood, branding you as one of my own?” Lucius had asked him and Percy, even with his own tears pouring down his puckered skin, decided to use them to prove the sincerity of his commitment to his new Lord. After cutting into his skin, he captured the salty drops from his chin that mixed with his blood. Lucius seeing this nodded sincerely, accepting Percy’s deep sign of respect for what it was, nothing short of a life sacrifice. Percy was telling Lucius this way that if ever the chance arose, he would lay down his life to save him.

“I do, with all that I am.” He said this with not once shred of a stutter it made me realise why. Percy was a Hercules Hero trapped inside a body that had never been given the chance to bloom. He had never in his life until now been shown his true worth, not until Lucius had asked him to make this vow. After all, this wasn’t something he had to do. He could have just made Percy leave and go on his merry way into a world he didn’t even know. But he didn’t do that. No, what he did do was go above and beyond what anyone of us ever expected him to do.

“Then Percy, I hereby decree that not only are you now one among us, but I have decided to position you inside my very council and swear to you my protection until the day comes that you no longer want to exist in this world.” At these words I wasn’t the only one expressing my shock.

“I…I…My Lord, I…” Percy was having a hard time understanding what this meant but Lucius looking slightly amused, just leant closer to him and said,

“Just accept it, lad.” Percy beamed up at him as though he was looking into the very eyes of his own personal God and then nodded quickly saying,

“I won’t let you down, Sir.” Again I was amazed that when talking to Lucius his voice was completely different. Like the man inside him desperate to get out was allowed that freedom when in the presence of his master.

“You already haven’t.” Lucius replied and then looked at me making it very clear what he meant by that statement. A deep blush rose in response to such a heated look, that I had to look away first. Only when I could no longer feel Lucius’ hungry gaze on me I looked back to see him dip a finger in the small pool of blood that had gathered in Percy’s palm before lifting it to his lips to suck it clean. I watched as he shuddered after closing his eyes and only seconds went by before they flicked open again. First they were the blood red I was used to seeing on Lucius whenever his emotions ran high, but now since his change there were also added swirls of yellow ochre swimming in the centres.

“Right, now that business is out of the way, now for something personal.” Lucius stated getting up and motioning for Percy to do the same. I looked back and made eye contact with him, giving my friend the thumbs up, receiving a shy smile back.

I was still looking at him silently laughing when I felt Lucius touch my arm, startling me.

“Come Keira, dine with me.” With the intense way he was still looking at me, it felt more like he was asking me out on a date and not willing to take no for an answer. I couldn’t find anything witty or smart mouthed to say, as my defence mechanism refused to kick in, so instead I just found myself nodding. He led me away, back to his apartment and just when Pip was about to follow, Adam grabbed hold of her and shook his head telling her no. I wondered what it was about as the look from Adam’s face said that he knew what Lucius was planning. Now that made me nervous!

Lucius didn’t speak all the way, nor did he look back at me. I mean why would he, it’s not as if he had to keep checking to see if I followed considering it felt like he wasn’t letting go of my hand any time soon. He opened the door and let me in first with his outstretched arm until he had to eventually let go.

“Leave!” At first I thought he was talking to me and was about to snap ‘make up your damn mind’, when I saw a half-naked waitress with a shaved head and several facial piercings who I recognised from last time. She had been replacing the food that must have gone cold from earlier, with another covered tray. One look from Lucius in his masterful mode told her to leave the trolley and cut and run.

Once the door closed the air suddenly felt thick with what needed to be said. I just opened my mouth to say what was on my mind when Lucius spoke.

“Sit down and eat before you fade into nothing.” I looked down at myself suddenly feeling self-conscious and hugged my once fleshy belly. He gave me a raised eyebrow that said don’t challenge me and snapped,

“Eat!” I let my stomach answer him as it chose once again the perfect timing to groan. I did as I was told, which was quite possibly the easiest command I had yielded to, considering I was starving. I walked to the dining table the food was all set out on, which was set separated back from the room in its own raised alcove. I stepped up to the first covered plate and when I revealed its hidden treasure I groaned out loud at the sight.

“My new council member told me how you had a cheeseburger craving for three weeks.” I turned to find him stood closer than before and the smile I gave him softened his gaze. We both took our seats and before I had even scooted my chair all the way in, I had the greasy goodness in my hands and taking my first mouthful from the Heavens.

“Oh God!” I moaned round my mouthful. I even think my eyes must have rolled back up in my head because Lucius started chuckling at me.

“That good?” He asked and I nodded like a mad woman around my next mouthful, not giving any care that I was acting like a pig.

“You have no idea and if you told me it was made from the ass end of a rat right now I would still eat like it’s going out of fashion.” At this he burst out laughing again and I couldn’t help but smile around my next bite. He was so handsome when he smiled like that and it was hard to take my eyes from the sight.

“You not hungry?” I asked when I noticed he wasn’t touching any of the covered plates.

“Not for food.” This was when the heated gaze came back full force. I swallowed the food as though I was trying to swallow his words and they too didn’t want to go down.

“Keira, I have a proposition for you to consider.”

“Okay…what are you proposing exactly?” I asked feeling that prickling sensation at the back of my neck when you know something is coming and it is screaming danger.

“I will take you to Draven.”

“You will! Oh my God Lucius, that is just…I mean, oh God this can’t be… wait…so does that mean you know where he is?!” I shouted now ignoring the back of my neck altogether. I didn’t care what he wanted from me, if was going to get me to Draven then I would do anything!

“I think I just might but…”

“But what…what do you want in return?” I asked only to wish afterwards I hadn’t been so eager to know, as what he said next made my burger slip from my hands and the food I had already consumed turn to lead.

Just two words…

“One night.”

Chapter 55

Seeing the Moon Light

To say it took me a while to process those two words was an understatement. Upon reflection, then maybe my initial reaction to it was a little over the top. I still remember his face of delighted amusement as I jumped from my seat so quickly it knocked the chair back. At this point I couldn’t even find the words as the shock was still seeping its way into the part of my brain that begged the question…did I just hear that right?

I had just placed my open hands to the table and lowered my head, shaking it slowly as if this would help the understanding process. Needless to say it didn’t and when Lucius stepped closer and placed his hand on mine, I acted like I had been stung. I whipped my hand from his and backed away from him as though I was facing my most dangerous challenge yet…

Temptation.

“Keira…” Lucius purred and I retreated further, nearly falling backwards as I didn’t account for the step the raised dining room was set on. Thankfully I righted myself in time and just as his hand came out to grab me I turned and ran from him. I knew he could have caught me, so I was more than glad when he didn’t try. It was obvious that the pure horror on my face was enough to tell him I needed time alone. And time alone was what I received as I ran to his room and then through into the bathroom where I barricaded myself in, with not only the lock on the door but also throwing a cabinet across the frame for good measure.

And this was where I remained for the rest of the night.

Knocks came and went from so many different people, they all mingled into one. At some point of my solitude I realised this was a strange reaction from me but the underlying reasons were there, as if they had been cut out of me. A shameful reaction to go with the shameful truth…damn temptations of the worst kind! I hated myself for giving it even a single thought of possibility.

I should have shouted and screamed at Lucius for even thinking of such a thing, but I found myself so petrified of giving in to a moment’s weakness, I just had to run. I wanted so badly to be this girl who had faced all these death defying trials and come out on top, come out of it all with the one man I loved. But no-one ever said in these trials would be the lure of a man I had grown to have secret feelings for, if only a very small percentage of what I felt for Draven.

So, with this heartbreaking revelation came my breakdown. Because it wasn’t just Lucius, and the truth of the matter was what I felt for Lucius was the same as what I felt for them all. Vincent and his forbidden kiss. Sigurd and his blood binding bond that fused a small part of his soul with mine. Jared with the bargain we made and the conflicting possessiveness he felt towards me. And then there was Lucius and the last words he had said to me that day…

“That power won’t ever love me back and she was right, power was only ever gained in loving her.”

And so I cried and sobbed and held onto my chest like the hole Draven had left was freezing around the edges. I knew how easy it would have been to say yes, but how hard it would be to live with that answer given. I couldn’t do it, no matter what it promised me in the end.

So this was it, this was what all I had gone through came down to. The biggest test of them all and I didn’t even know if I was making the right decision. Was this really what fate had in store for me? A man I considered a friend, who I always knew wanted so much more than the only thing I could offer him. But now what? Did he really think that he could use this opportunity as a tool to show me how he cared or was this just another game played from an added opponent?

I felt as though I didn’t know anything anymore. Only it felt more than that, it felt as if I was running towards Draven, but without even realising I was on damn treadmill that would always keep me back. I felt that no matter what I did I could never run fast enough!

I don’t know when it happened but at some point I must have exhausted myself because I felt my body being lifted. I knew Lucius had hit his limit on letting me wallow in my misery and in the back of my mind I could only hope this was enough of a sign to take back his deal. I was lowered into his bed, wrapped in his arms and fell back to sleep, hoping that the next day would be a day that answers weren’t needed from questions not asked.

Of course, this was not the day I woke up to, or should I say night as living with Vampires my nights had become my days. I was at least thankful that this time I woke alone. I rubbed my sore eyes from hours of pitiful sobbing and sniffed trying to unblock my nose thanks to wasted energy on breathing through the panic.

I was hit by so many emotions, but I had to say the top two were shame and anger. Both were directed at myself but only one was aimed at Lucius and it was obvious which one. So, whilst I was letting this one overrule over every other one, I took my opportunity to put it to good use. I whipped the covers back and stormed into the sitting room to let rip.

I found Lucius having some sort of meeting with every one of his council and I barely registered the new comers, Liessa and her husband Caspian, before I screamed,

“HOW DARE YOU!” I stood there panting with my fists clenched by my sides, wanting so much to put them to good use. Every head turned to face me, including Percy who was the newest council member. But I cared nothing for the mortified looks I received as I only had vengeful eyes for Lucius.

“My Keira girl, good to see you…”

“Cut the shit Lucius! You and me need words!” I snapped cutting off his bullshit condescending tone. He sighed and then said softly,

“As you wish.” He rose from his seat to face me.

“How could you do this to me? How could you use me like that?” He frowned at my take on his proposition and I circled round the couch to come closer to him. Meanwhile the others all looked round in shock at my freak out.

“Use you?” He asked as though he couldn’t believe he was even asking me this question.

“Then what would you call it?!”

“I…” He found himself stumbling for the right way to answer.

“You! You are using my pain for your gain!” I was losing it as my voice rose to just below a scream. I was shaking with the force of it, knowing that he was using this situation to get his rocks off from a one night stand, which might leave him smiling but leave me broken from guilt for the rest of my life!

“What? No, You…I…” It was the first time I was watching Lucius struggle for words and I realised that all the surprised looks weren’t from witnessing my outburst but from Lucius’ inability to handle it. We both stopped to look at everyone and then both shouted together,

“GET OUT!”

“GET OUT!”

Within seconds the room once again only belonged to us as it had done last night. Only instead of the flight option I opted for then, now I was there to fight. We stood facing each other, both breathing heavy and both trying to hold something back.

“I need to explain.” He finally said in a sharp voice that sounded close to the edge.

“Damn straight!” I said poking at the beast that barely held back a growl.

“The offer I made you last night was…”

“Ridiculous.” I cut in this time making him growl.

“Watch it, little girl.” He warned but I stood my ground.

“Or what Lucius, ‘cause you know you can’t force the issue, that’s not part of the deal!” I snapped being malicious.

“And what do you mean by that exactly?” Oh, he wanted bitch, then he was gonna get a bitch!

“Well, let’s call this what it is and cut the bullshit, the only reason you want me is for some fucked up way of getting back at Draven. But for that you need me willing or what would be the point…?” At this point he really did hit the roof! He roared, losing all his iron control and burst into his demon self. I took a single step back but other than that, I held my ground.

I knew it was a low blow, but it wasn’t one I could have taken back even if I wanted to, which right at that moment I didn’t. This was for the pure plain fact that this was the only reasoning I could have as if it was for anything more, like the fact the bastard cared, then he would never have asked this of me. No-one with half a brain would ask someone they had feelings for to do something that would rip them to shreds later on!

Or at least that is what I thought before seeing Lucius change. His gleaming white horns stood proud at his back and with them the angel’s wings that went from white to yellow, then rust to blood red in the centre of his back. He was like the rising phoenix and as he rolled his shoulders I could see the flash of gold that tipped his impressive horns.

“You should be running, little girl.” He said this in his demonic voice that cut into me as if the claws that grew from his fingers were gouging grooves in my bones. I swallowed down my fear and stood my ground in the face of a demon about to blow.

“I am not afraid of you!” I said and was impressed that I did so without the waver in my voice.

“Then you are even more foolish than I thought minutes ago.” He snarled as he started to advance slowly on me.

“What, when I spoke the truth?”

“A truth you clutch at so desperately to shadow the real reasons behind what is really going on here.” I shook my head but my eyes must have shown him the insecurities of what lay beneath.

“NO!” I screamed but with my outburst came his own as he flipped one of the large couches back as though it was pumped up with air. However, when it went crashing against the far wall and smashing a big hole there, it looked as though that air had been replaced by iron bricks. I jumped but not only at the sounds of destruction but also the speed in which he reached me.

His hands took possession of the top of my arms in a bruising hold and I twisted to try and escape.

“No…no…Lucius…pl…” I pleaded but he lowered his head to mine and whispered over my lips,

“Please.” Then I screamed as he wrapped his arms round me, lifted until my feet no longer touched the ground and ran at the closed window. I turned my head to watch and his name came strangled from my throat as the window exploded outwards. Then he launched us both through it with a twist of his body. I found myself being held to his front with my back to the coming ground and I screamed in sight of my death.

Glass scattered the ground like deadly snow but thankfully there was no one there underneath to receive the brunt of his actions. I closed my eyes and buried my head in his chest having to trust in him not to kill me.

“Please.” There it was, the word whispered again in prayer hoping to break through the damage I had done. I felt his legs hook round mine as the weight of them was pulling me away from him. Now I was trapped to the length of him and I was soon glad of this when I felt his wings start to move. He pulled us both upright, so I opened my eyes again to see us flying off into the night.

I didn’t know where he was taking us, but just as long as it wasn’t at greater heights, so he could do more damage in dropping me, was fine by me. Thankfully, his strong grip on me told me he wasn’t letting me go anywhere and even through our argument I still found comfort being held in his arms.

He didn’t say a word or even steal a look down at me the whole time. It gave me the chance to study the harsh lines of his chiselled face, which at this minute was clearly set in annoyance. Normally his smirking lips were the indication of a playful character set in a granite body but now they were gone and in their place a grim line of resolve.

Only when it became too painful to look at the evidence of what I had done, did I turn away from him. I looked out to the night and saw the orange glow of Munich’s massive city hall coming closer. I bit down on my bottom lip hoping the bite of pain would help control the raging current of my emotions. I didn’t want to hurt Lucius and I knew my words would cut deep but what other option did I have? I wanted to push him away…so, so far away that this bargain would have been the last thing on his mind. What had I really expected? For him to throw Draven’s whereabouts at me like an insult? Did I really think that was going to happen?

My internal questioning stopped as I saw him fly us closer to the rising clock tower. I briefly saw the dark shape of an angelic figure mounted at the very top of the spire we were circling.

“What are we…?” I braved to ask but stopped when his wings suddenly folded inwards making us drop quickly. I let out a little cry as we fell past the bells and then some windows before I felt a thud vibrate through Lucius as his feet hit something.

“Open your eyes, Keira.” Lucius commanded softly and with this I felt him lower me down until my own feet touched a floor. I forced my eyes open and looked up to see Lucius watching me. His features were half shadowed but his eyes blazed with emotions he barely kept unleashed. I could no longer stand it and I raised my hand to caress his cheek. I was only a hairsbreadth away when his hand snatched out to grab my wrist to prevent my touch. I couldn’t deny that it hurt but not in the physical sense.

“Don’t!” One warning was issued by the depth of his hurt. I was about to speak, not really knowing what I would yet say when quickly I was spun away from him. At first I thought it was because he could no longer stand the sight of me, but then I took in the sight in front of me and gasped.

“I brought you here for a reason.” He spoke so gently and if there had been any other sound I would have missed it. But looking out to the beauty before me, I could understand why his voice lowered to such a tender tone. Right in front of us was all of Munich lit up around us and although we were in the thick of the city, up here we couldn’t have been more alone.

“This… is your place?” I forced the words out, barely making it past a whisper.

“Yes.” He answered honestly and I quickly felt like crying again. He had brought me here to his special place and the reasons made me start to shake.

“You know why?” He asked me and at the same time started to rub his hands up and down my arms. I could only nod. What else could I do as I could barely speak for fear of what I would say? A man like Lucius didn’t bring you here to tell you of his revenge plots for a night of sex with his ex-friend’s girlfriend. A man like Lucius didn’t bring you here to boast about his plans of seduction, just because he could. No.

A man like Lucius brought you up here for one thing…

A confession.

“Keira I…”

“Please Lucius…don’t do this.” I begged, my voice close to breaking.

“I have to, my little Keira girl and I will not ask for your forgiveness.” I felt his hands come to rest on my shoulders and he held them there for the longest seconds before finally bringing them to circle my neck. I sucked in a quick breath as I felt him lower his lips to my ear. Suddenly the whole world no longer mattered as I felt, heard and absorbed every word he was about to say,

“I bargained not for one night of your body but for the chance of a lifetime to own your soul.” A single tear fell and the hands I had gripping onto the bars slowly let go. I took a needed breath and then let my emotions for this man take over every last thought. I turned in his hold and crushed my lips to his.

In his shock he was frozen, no doubt in the questions begging this to be a dreamless reality. Only when his senses told him so did he react, taking all of me and giving me back everything that was him. His lips took possession in such a way that left me blinded by the intensity of it all. His tongue tasted every last bit of me until it was branding this moment to both our minds’ memory, never to be replaced by another time. This was ours and only ours belonging to no one else in the world, that could touch us up in this fairytale tower.

I had kissed Lucius before but this time it was different. There was no blinding sun, no feeling of revenge or guilt or bitter sweet in knowing what we were doing was wrong. It was just…

Us.

The passion grew to a burning fever that left us clawing at each other’s clothes in hopes of getting skin to skin. I felt my clothes tear and one hand tore the material away from my body as though it was a poison being stripped from my flesh. He pushed me up against the bars that prevented the public from trying anything stupid, like trying to fly without wings and with that thought I could understand the pull. This right here felt like falling under, knowing that if I hit the ground that one last feeling of being free was worth a lifetime of being scared of the heights faced.

So I held on to Lucius and I fell.

Our bodies were so close to entwining in the most sensual way two people ever could. I felt his hands touching my now naked body anywhere he could get and in a frenzied way mine did the same to his suddenly bare skin. It was like we were both lost and with nothing out there to find us we were unstoppable. Spiralling down into the point of no return as all it would now take was for one first thrust and Lucius would be inside me, with nowhere else to go but to finish what he started.

Then something happened…

Something found us.

Behind the clouds in the night sky came a light which I saw reflected back at me in Lucius’ open eyes. He was looking right at it so what we saw, we saw together. I felt a tingling in my wrist and felt the power there mirrored by the Quarter Moon I saw in Lucius’ eyes. We let go of each other at the same time and Lucius took a step back where I couldn’t.

The spell was broken.

We both were motionless bodies painted naked in the Quarter moon’s light, with only our heavy breathing penetrating the stillness. We were panting at each other as though the very Gods had caught us creating a new sin. And that’s when we felt it. Being together that way was something that could have destroyed the very fabric of time, pulling at its seams until there was nothing left but the remains of what was once beautiful. It was the chance of something bigger for both of us and one second later it would have been ripped from us with nothing but one perfect moment to speak of. But what was one perfect moment in the sight of hundreds, thousands….millions of lifetimes all each with their very own perfect memories just waiting to be lived through.

This was what we both nearly just lost and each of us now knew it. Not just for me with Draven but even Lucius had his own chance at the happy forever after that was coming to him. All he had to do was wait.

And now he knew it wasn’t me he had to wait for…

It was his soul mate.

Chapter 56

Broken Time

I would have liked to say the next two weeks went past in a blur of time but that would have been a big fat lie. In fact, so much of a lie that I wouldn’t have been surprised if one of the Gods had struck me down with a bolt of lightning for speaking such bullshit!

But there was little I could do about it so I just had to suck it up and wait. However, it wasn’t as if nothing had happened in this time. In fact, lots of things had happened, just not in the whole ‘getting me closer to Draven’ side of things. I think the greatest change was between Lucius and I. After that fated night where we nearly crossed that invisible line, things had become…different.

Oh don’t get me wrong, he was still the same flirty bad ass he always had been, but it was the intensity that had calmed and been replaced by a playful friendship. It was as though that night he saw something in the very Cosmos that answered an unspoken question. When I saw that moon, I saw my life with Draven slipping away for good, but when Lucius saw that moon, he saw a life that he would never even have a taste of if we had made that last unforgiving step.

Now we had come to a mutual understanding and thankfully, he agreed to help me to find Draven, as he cryptically stated once that it was now in his best interests as well as mine. I tried to ask him what he meant by this, but other than a knowing smirk he didn’t answer me. So that is where he spent most of his time, in his lavish office doing what I could imagine was time spent searching for clues as to who had Draven and where they were keeping him.

Which left me in the hands of one naughty little Imp. But I wasn’t left completely clueless, for one, I found out from spending many days with Pip about the whole Martha elephant incident… all after getting my roots done of course.

This day was spent like most of my others, sat in her crazy apartment being bug eyed from the moment I stepped foot in her domain up until I left to go back to Lucius’. No wonder he told me he never went in there as it always left even his supernatural self with a colossal headache!

It was, what could only be described, what you could imagine if an amusement park’s funhouse and a wacky comic bookstore had a love child… this would have been Pip’s apartment.

There was everything from curtains made from hundreds of 80’s piano ties, Eiffel tower seats, a sofa made to look like a hamburger, with tomato, cheese and lettuce cushions and an actual old caravan painted bright pink, with lime green stripes parked in her living room. We even had tea in there one afternoon, and I must admit it took me back to last year sat in a winter wonderland, under a tree, drinking from strange cups.

However, this year was, unbelievably, even stranger when I found myself sitting down inside the caravan whose interior was covered in lush green grass. It still had in it the bench seats and table in between but all that and more was growing and I wondered if she had to trim it often. I had to laugh as at the centre of the table was a bunch of daisies growing there instead of being in a vase.

The tea set was another thing entirely. In keeping with the woodland theme the set consisted of a ceramic flower and toadstool set. The tea pot, being the odd part out, was in three tiers, starting with the biggest at the bottom made to look like a crazy multi coloured townhouse. The front door was stamped with the word ‘Liquid Bliss’ and held the brewing tea. The second ‘floor’ was a window stamped ‘Milky Piss’ and the last one was the smallest teapot with a tiny clock tower stamped ‘Sugary Kiss’.

They all had a spout and when pored depending on the level you held it at, first came the tea, then the milk and lastly the sweetener. Thankfully for me, Pip held her finger over the end of the sugar so that I wouldn’t get any. You would have thought by this description alone that this would have been the weirdest parts but no, this honour went to the two pet teacup pigs she had sat in giant striped and spotted cups with us.

“Adam wanted to call them Belly and Scratch.” She informed me as she petted them lovingly.

“Aww is that because they love having their bellies scratched?” I’d asked innocently as she handed one of them over to me. I cradled the cutest little bundle in my arms just as she shook her head and then covered his big ears with her hands. She nodded for me to do the same to the girl I held. Only when they could no longer hear us did she whisper,

“No, it’s because Adam loves Pork Belly and I love Pork Scratchings.” On hearing this I just closed my eyes and shook my head trying not to laugh.

“So, what did you name them instead?”

“Oh, well this little dude is ‘Over’ and his girlfriend over there is ‘Left’” Now at this I did burst out laughing.

“You named your pet pigs, Left and Over!” I said between the snorting I couldn’t help.

“Yeah and if you carry on sounding like them I will start calling you ‘There’”. I couldn’t help it, at this we both burst in to a fit of more giggles!

After we had calmed and were drinking our tea, still with ‘Left’, ‘Over’ on our laps and me being called ‘There’ for the rest of the afternoon by Pip, she started to tell me the story of what happened with Martha the Elephant.

The story began with Pip bidding on Martha and Adam bidding against her with the intention of donating her to a zoo, as sanctuaries in this time period we’re unheard of. Pip obviously wanted to keep her as a pet but no surprises there. However, as the bidding went on, some of the men carrying through a large suspended gong from China tripped and as the gong hit the floor it scared the Elephant.

Pip, being Pip, charged after Martha in an attempt to calm her down (although offering her a Fry’s chocolate bar wasn’t ever going to lead her on the road to success). The elephant charged at her making Adam lose control over Abaddon. He erupted into his other self and in doing so, not only killed the elephant accidently but also set the building on fire. Hence, why Adam was now banned from all Lega Nera events. I had to say that I felt for him after hearing this story and found out that to make it up to Pip he bought her an Aldabra giant tortoise that she named Duncan, which she later changed to Michelangelo after her favourite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character.

Unbelievably, I met ‘Mikey’ who was 174 years old and had not a fondness for pizza but for donuts… with jam of course. But with Mikey also came a rat called Splinter, a pet hedgehog called Shredder and a yellow canary called April. Going into Pip’s home was a bit like a petting zoo, only instead of the usual enclosures you would expect to find, these creatures were living it up in utter luxury. April lived in a miniature New York apartment, complete with kitchen decorated in bird poop. The rat lived in a mock Japanese style sewer and had been taught to walk a rope ladder on command. It was without a doubt crazy, but crazy beautiful as it was obvious she absolutely adored her pets.

The rest of my days spent with Pip brought about a magical madness that can only be described as like being friends with someone related to Willy Wonka. Her living room was cut into two different sections. The first was obviously Adam’s and looked like an old English library/office. Dark wood panels matched the dark wooden floors and the deep red leather in the furniture. A massive oak desk carved with eagle legs that had big brass claws which pierced the floor boards. Old books and classical paintings from the renaissance period added to the feel of the place. It felt more like this space belonged to a professor of some kind, not the right hand to a Vampire King.

But now Pip’s side of their home was what made me drag my gaping mouth around the place. There was everything from shelves of old cartoon action toys, every colour of Carebear, lamps made from her ‘own’ chest x-ray, doors covered with Barbies glued to them (all wearing evening dresses) to a giant black swan that used to be a lake boat now converted into a fluffy seating area.

The swan (who I was told was called Fanny) sat in the centre of the room inside a large ornate gothic pool. There was a little bridge that you could walk over to get into the ‘swan sofa’. Once in there, Pip would flick a switch and what I first thought was yellowish water started to pour from the swans open mouth. Then I saw her grab a glass from a little cupboard under the seat and fill it up to take a swig of what she informed me was actually white wine. Needless to mention, that when I re-crossed the bridge I could no longer do so in a straight line.

But putting aside the tables that looked like pints of dripping blood and the fang shaped fairy lights that covered the entire ceiling of her bathroom or even the bar area set up like a freaky mad scientist’s lab, complete with cocktails in beakers, vials and test tubes, I still found myself with plenty to talk about and always someone to listen.

In fact, it was at the end of my two weeks waiting and whilst I was watching Pip painting her nails we discovered something important. See, while all this time was going by, I was left to do nothing whilst Lucius tried to track down Draven’s whereabouts. This was the most frustrating part of my journey so far and even more so than being captured and held in that disgusting tower. At least then I was being held against my will and had no other choice in the matter but now, as I watched Pip draw little miniature ice cream cones, I was close to tearing my hair out!

I had brought along with me my Ouroboros book in the hopes that my shadowed knight would once again try and contact me. Or even the Oracle, who after all this time had still not sent me one word. In fact, the only person I had heard from briefly though Lucius was that Jared knew I was safe and in turn I knew he and all his men…including Marcus, were all fine. I did, however, get the impression that Jared had tried to see me but Lucius wasn’t allowing it. I tried to talk to him about it one day only to get shut down with ‘He knew best’.

So here I sat, on one of Pip outrageous day beds that was a big round iron nest, complete with egg shaped cushions and long foam brown twigs. If anything, by the end of this journey, I would be surprised if the urge to go out and buy a damn bird would ever leave me!

But then it hit me as I was playing with my bracelet absentmindedly that the next quarter moon had passed by two weeks ago and I had forgotten to ask the book what it meant. I ended up scaring Pip into giving herself a wonky cone as I squawked something in my excitement at finally having something to do.

“Hey, I just messed up mint choc chip!” She complained with a cute winey pout. I leant over, kissed her nose and said,

“You’ll get over it!” Then I quickly opened up my book and looked around for the time.

“Is there a clock in this mad house?” She gave me a smile that screamed evil genius and tapped her lip ring before she said,

“I will give you a clue.” I rolled my eyes and said a warning,

“Pip!”

“No, no, it will be fun, trust me, I am a Jedi master and a member of the Browncoats.” She said proudly sitting up and propping an egg behind her…although thankfully not a real egg given the amount of punching she did to get it into shape!

“Eh…Browncoats?” I asked knowing like any conversation with Pip, we were getting of course quicker than a rally car.

“Oh My Bejesus and Kentucky fucking chicken! Tell me you have watched Firefly before?!” She had her hands over her ears as if waiting for my answer was going to physically hurt her.

“Umm…that would be a no.” I winced as I said it, knowing now the girl was going to put me through I don’t know how many hours of Firefly chatter and more than likely doing so whilst watching the entire show. She closed her eyes, put her pointed nails to her forehead like she had a migraine and shook her head for my shame.

“Er…Pip, can we try to focus here?” I asked after she still wasn’t moving.

“Fine! But only if you promise me one thing.” I had a bad feeling about this.

“Go on.”

“Firefly marathon after your little book wig out.” I rolled my eyes and said,

“Pip, if it will get me the damn time, then I will even go out there and buy myself a damn Brown coat!” I said shaking the book in hopes of showing my urgency. Note to self…next time Pip says something weird, just don’t ask and pretend to know what she is talking about!

“Oh don’t worry about that, I have plenty…did you know that when they cancelled the show, loads of people set up a charity and they…?”

“Pip, can we possibly leave out the Browncoats for now and focus on my little ‘wig out?’” I asked making quotation marks around what she liked to call my dilemmas.

“Oh right…ok, so this is your clue…” I groaned out loud and stuffed my head in another one of the egg pillows I had on my lap.

“You can play them in the round or play them in the air, but these little suckers aren’t going anywhere, for they tell me the time when I listen to their rhyme, but thank the rock God they don’t chime.”

She finished off her cryptic poem with a massive grin and then it fell away just as quickly when ‘We will Rock you’ by Queen blasted from the far wall.

“Ah shit!” She moaned as I turned my head to find a massive wall display that was actually a wall sized clock. It had twelve records all fixed in a circle and two mounted guitars in the middle that acted as the arms of the clock. It was pretty damn awesome and it also showed me it was two o’clock in the afternoon. I had to giggle as I recalled her riddle.

“That was pretty good.” I told her which soon had her smiling again.

“What time does the book wakey wakey eggs and all that jazz?” Pip asked nodding at my leather bound friend.

“5:36.” On hearing this she bounced up and down on her egg.

“Coolioso, then we have three hours and thirty…ummer lingy thingy ding dongs…” She turned back round to count and finished,

“Thirty four and half minutes to introduce you to the delicious Captain Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds…let me just go and get my coats and guns.” And with that she jumped from the nest, nails long forgotten and this Captain ‘Mal’ in the forefront of her mad mind.

So there I was, hours later, sat in Pip’s theatre room in a huge armchair that was made from thousands of teddy bears glued together in the shape of a giant teddy bear. Pip was sat next to me coiled in a giant stuffed toy snake whose tail acted as a foot rest and we were both wearing long brown jackets and had replica guns from the show in our laps. To say in the beginning I felt like a colossal idiot was an understatement, but then I could only be thankful I wasn’t watching Star Wars in a Chewbacca outfit …! Oh yeah and I was now officially addicted to Firefly.

Now, as I got into watching space cowboys adventures set in the year 2517, I was shocked to find Pip’s Mickey Mouse alarm going off. She clicked her wristwatch off and paused the episode.

“Time to do your thing.” I nodded and handed my gun over to one of the bigger bears on the arm rest to take care of whilst I opened the book. I asked it to tell me about the third Quarter moon and when the next one was, which the Oracle said would lead me to Draven.

This was my answer:

On this third Quarter Moon, the Yellow Moonstone gives great insight into things yet to come. It supports the heart and stimulates the mind when making great decisions that will change the foundation to ones future. It aids those difficult choices, bringing out the best in people and increasing loving energies needed in Divine situations where the mind is sometimes overruled by lust. Worlds maybe divided and time may seem against you but what is time to a clock with no hands.

The next Quarter Moon breaches your skies tomorrow evening after long Goodbyes.

I jumped up out of my seat after I read the last line and stood there panting as if I could barely breath.

“What is it…what did it say, Toots?” Pip asked with a quiver to her voice that was full of concern. I turned back round to face her and simply said,

“That I will see Draven again.” Her large green eyes widened with excitement and strangely a bit of worry I didn’t understand.

“When?” I bit my lip at her question and felt a single tear fall before I said…

“Tomorrow night.”

Chapter 57

Lakeside Plans

After quickly re-reading the book’s words again and again, I jumped from my seat, ready to storm the castle which was Lucius’ city home in search of the only man who could help me. Problem was I found I had to wait until nightfall when he woke up. This was quite possibly one of the most frustrating moments of my life and Pip could do little to get me to stay calm. She must have stopped me half a dozen times from running into his room and jumping on his bed like an over excited kid at Christmas.

It was times like this that I was thankful to Pip for re-arranging her sleep patterns for me so that I didn’t become a complete night owl or a bored to tears daylight walker. She told me that this was no big deal as she was an Imp and therefore needed little sleep. Her exact words were along the lines of ‘More chance for mischief’.

In fact the very reason we spent so much time in her apartment was because Adam would get restless if he didn’t feel her close by. I did, however, have to put a limit on helping her chain him to their bed (which turned out to be a giant round cage shaped like a castle turret), as that went far beyond the realms of friendship…plus he kinda scared the shit out of me!

So, some hours later and with most of my nails long gone, I was soon barging into Lucius’ stylish office that had a strong influence of art deco. Even the espresso cup he drank from was made in sharp lines and bold colours. He was also on the phone and didn’t look impressed at my intrusion.

“Ich werde Sie zurückrufen” (means ‘I will have to call you back’ in German) He cancelled his call and raised one eyebrow at me in question.

“And to what do I owe this pleasure little Keira…browncoat?” I flushed as I looked down at myself and I had indeed forgotten I was still wearing Pip’s Firefly outfit. Well, at least I didn’t still have the gun so Lucius would think I planned on robbing him…but fat chance at that, although, I was now wondering if I could get him to tell me Draven’s whereabouts at gunpoint?

The sound of Lucius laughing brought me from my semi-violent thoughts.

“Keira, tell me you didn’t barge in here just to look cute and confused because as amusing as that is…” I cut him off by slamming the book down and sliding it across to him so that it faced the right way for him to read. He looked down and I could see his stunning grey eyes work as he read each word.

“I think we have re-established our new relationship, my dear.” I groaned in frustration and said,

“Not that, the last line.” He released a big sigh and then leant back in his chair.

“And what of it Keira, it’s just another Quarter Moon?”

“It’s not just another Quarter Moon, Lucius…don’t you see that…look.” I held out my arm and my bracelet, which now had a beautiful Yellow moonstone to match the others, gleamed under the spotlights.

“There is only one stone left.” Lucius crossed his arms across his chest.

“And?”

“And, it means that on the last Quarter Moon I will be reunited with Draven!” I said not being able to help getting animated throwing my arms up, hoping this time he would take me more seriously.

“Keira…” And there it was. That same way he would say my name every time I would get impatient at how long it was taking or how I wished he’d let me do something, go somewhere, ask someone…just anything other than sit around wasting my time when I could be getting closer to finding him.

“No Luc! I am not going to wait any longer, I can’t do it…I need to find him.”

“Just give it some more time, Keira.” He tried now with the soothing voice and the next stage after this tactic would be enveloping me in his arms and telling me everything would be alright before sending me on my not so merry way.

Well, not this time.

“But that’s just it, there is no more time! The Oracle told me I would see Draven again on the last Quarter Moon, the fourth stone would change and that is tomorrow!” On hearing this he finally started to look as though it was sinking in.

“And the Oracle…she definitely said this…those exact words, think about it carefully, little doll?” I put both my hands on his desk, leant forward and said in clear certain words,

“Yes Lucius, I swear by the Gods that is what she said.” He looked at me for a moment, as if trying to pry the very truth from the exact time that had long passed. It didn’t take long before he found it and after another big sigh he nodded.

“Very well, I cannot intervene any longer…forgive me.” He said this last part looking up at the Heavens.

“Lucius?” I asked not understanding…well, that was until he opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a small piece of folded parchment paper. He handed it to me and when I opened it I couldn’t help the gasp that came from me.

“Is this what I think it is?” I asked but he didn’t answer me. Instead he picked up his phone and after a few seconds said,

“Adam, have the jet refuelled and ready to leave.” After a few seconds more he then added,

“Italy.” He put the phone down and faced the rage that was building from inside me.

“You knew!?” I shouted like a whistling teapot too long on the boil.

“Try to understand, this was for your own good, Pet.” Ok, now sod the teapot I was now going for a steam train off the rails!

“YOU KNEW!” I screamed now wishing I had the superhuman powers of strength so that I could flip his desk out of the way so I could strangle him.

“I knew.” He said those two little innocent words which I never expected would be the ones to light the fuse that made me blow. I was surprised that it didn’t come in the form of violence or even me screaming about how I would make it my mission to murder him in his sleep. No, instead I just leant further into the desk and said with as much venom as I could muster,

“Fuck your jet and fuck you!” And then I turned and stormed out of that office with the address Lucius had given me firmly in my grip. My plan worked for about five feet until I felt Lucius’ arms band round me, restraining me to his chest. I didn’t struggle. I no longer had the heart for it.

“Listen to me very carefully, little dove, because you don’t know what you are about to walk into by going to that address.” He said all this leaning down to my ear and I couldn’t help but take note of the seriousness in his tone. I remained frozen in his arms but this didn’t hide the hurt and anger I still felt as I panted as though my lungs were too furious to work properly.

“And what exactly am I walking into?” I asked through gritted teeth.

“A world of hurt.” I couldn’t help but shudder in reply.

“That’s the right reaction to have.”

“Are you going to stop me?” I asked tensing my body as I awaited his answer.

“No, because it is not in the fates any longer, but I can at least warn you and have you know, I did what I felt I had to do in order to protect you…I…I only wanted you safe, my little Keira girl.” At the sound of the emotional hitch in his voice my body couldn’t help but soften in his hold. As soon as he felt this he turned me quickly and crushed my body to his in a fierce hug.

“I’m sorry Keira, for whatever might happen next, but I want you to know, you will always be welcome with me and my people…” He pulled me back by the arms so I could look up at his face before he whispered,

“I will always protect you.”

And this turned out to be our goodbye.

Lucius, being a man of his word, protected me all the way to a hotel in Milan and even provided me with a driver to take me to the address when the time came. I knew I had a lot to think about and even more so after the cryptic way Lucius tried to warn me about something he wasn’t allowed to say. So now I didn’t know where the danger lay. Was it with the people that had him or what would happen to me if I got caught? I asked Lucius if he could help me rescue him but he just shook his head and said that in this matter, if I couldn’t set him free, then no one could.

The flight hadn’t taken long but it was long enough to drive me insane with questions I had no answers to. I found I couldn’t stay still as the adrenalin, from so many heightened emotions coursing around my body, was making what felt like my very soul vibrate.

It had been hard saying goodbye to everyone, but seeing how well Percy was coming on under the careful instructions of Adam and Pip, it was lovely to finally see him happy. And boy was he taking his new role seriously. He even had Hakan teaching him some fighting moves and Ruto teaching him to use weapons. During my stay, Pip and I would often spend our nights watching them and cheering on Percy whenever he got it right. Pip even went to the extreme of dressing up like a gothic cheerleader, which caused Adam no end of embarrassment when he would find a tent in his pants. It was moments like this that his helpful wife would drag him away giggling and spell out ADAM in her new cheers.

When it came to saying goodbye to Pip she started sobbing like a baby, which was hard to take seriously when the person crying was wearing a pair of knitted square glasses without the lenses but with lickable candy canes as the arms. In the end Adam had to pick her up and carry her away from me or the plane would never have left without an extra passenger. All the while I would hear him whisper,

“You know you can’t go love, she must do this alone.” Which just made my own tears fall even harder.

My goodbye with Lucius had been just as emotional for me, but no words were needed after his last promise. He had simply kissed me on the forehead and called for Adam to come and take me where I needed to go. I had little in the way of luggage, thanks to my kidnapping, as I had been rescued with nothing but the feathers on my back. However, thanks to Pip I was not taking this trip naked and had with me a small cabin bag with everything in it that I needed.

Which brought me to now and hanging up the few items I had to wear, which thankfully were more my taste than Pip’s. I was just placing the few toiletries I had in the spacious bathroom’s counter when I looked up to see a tired looking Keira staring back at me. I could barely believe it was actually me, not really taking in my new appearance until now. So much time had passed since the beginning of this trip, yet thanks to everything that had happened, it felt like only yesterday that I was getting on that first flight leaving the States behind.

And now my quest had brought me to Italy, which hopefully would end up being my last destination in finding Draven. I didn’t want to think about what I would do if I got to this address and found my search had to continue further. No, I couldn’t think that way, not after everything I had been through to get to this point. I had to remain strong, just a little while longer, if not for me then for Draven’s sake.

With all of this going on around in my head, I thought it would have been impossible for me to find sleep, but as soon as my head hit the pillow I found for the first time today the questions finally stopped.

The next day I woke late in the afternoon with only one thing on my mind…Draven. I couldn’t wait to see him again, but before I let my excitement rule my head I needed a game plan. I had tried looking up the Villa at Lake Como to see if there was any information on it but it was as though it didn’t even exist. I was just glad that when I handed the driver the piece of paper, he seemed to know where it was.

The drive wasn’t that long, just over an hour, but given the amount of time I had now been separated from Draven, then even an extra hour felt like an extra month! The summer heat felt thick, like a storm was coming and I wiped my sweaty palms down the dark denim of my jeans. I had decided to wear black clothes, despite the weather, as I wanted to go as undetected as possible if I was going to pull off any kind of rescue mission.

I was just glad that I had the foresight to buy a baseball cap from one of the shops by the hotel I’d stayed in. As we were travelling I gathered up all my hair and tied what I could back with an elastic band I found at the bottom of Pip’s bag she’d given me and put the cap on, pulling my hair through the back. I looked down at myself and thought I just looked like a tourist. I had wanted to wear a pair of my gloves but knew this would be too obvious in this weather and for the first part of my mission, I wanted to blend in.

I was wearing a black vest that had on it a faded grey rose, (one of Pip’s), jeans and a pair of heavy duty boots in case I found myself in a situation that required running or kicking. My bag contained the Ouroboros book, a small first aid kit just in case, a map of the area, a Spiderman wallet with some Euros (a gift from Pip) with a credit card (provided by Lucius), a new passport, a new smart phone (complete with everyone’s numbers) and a few miniature bottles of spirits, including tequila (also a gift from Pip).

So, with my decent sized bag acting as an unusual survival kit hanging around my torso on its long strap, I got out of the car to look around the area we had just pulled up to. I had asked the driver not to get too close to the actual house so that I wouldn’t be seen by anyone. From the start it was pretty obvious the type of place it was going to be from the amount of private estates we passed on our way. The multimillion Euro homes could only just be seen through their gates, amongst their beautifully designed gardens and almost all of them exclusive, which translated into, ‘hard to break in!’

I got out my map, which the driver had circled for me and walked along the winding road which I could see was taking me closer to the lake. It must have been the last house along the road, which also happened to be the biggest, if the view in front of me was anything to go by.

The whole property was surrounded by a high stone wall that was sectioned by Roman style columns, each mounted at the top with Goddess figures. From what I could see, as I passed by the guarded gates, the Villa itself was made from large sandstone blocks with parts rendered and painted in a pale terracotta colour. As I walked as slowly as I could without looking too obvious, I noticed there were at least three different buildings all surrounding the main mansion but all were situated on different levels. The one closest to the lake was the hardest one to see as it was blocked by all the trees, but from what I could see it looked as if most of that building was covered in ivy, reminding me of Afterlife.

I heard someone clear their throat and jumped. The security guard by the gate nodded for me to carry on and I laughed nervously holding up my map.

“Sorry, I think I’m lost.” I said thinking how stupid, as the guy probably couldn’t understand a word I said, but then he surprised me by not only speaking English but also having an American accent.

“There won’t be anything you’re looking for beyond this point as its all private property…where are you looking for?” He motioned for me to come over and I gulped down my panic. He looked like he was going to look at my map which, considering the place he guarded was circled, I didn’t think it one of my best ideas to let him see it.

“Oh…uh…that’s alright, you know I think I will figure it out.” I said just as I heard a car coming down the road. As it slowly got closer I decided to use the new powers I was forced to learn and threw up every mental barrier I could, just in case whoever was in that car was not of the human world.

I watched the guard quickly get back to his post and the gates started to open to let in the blacked out Bentley saloon car that was coming our way. I quickly pulled down my cap and turned just as it swung round to enter, making the big flashy tires crunch on the gravel of the long driveway. I started to walk away from the car not knowing who was inside but willing my head to keep down the driving urge to look.

I had the greatest need to pull down on sleeves I wasn’t wearing or start tugging on gloves I had bravely left behind. So instead, I held on to my map and pulled out my phone taking pictures of the countryside, trying to pull off the whole tourist gig. It was only when I heard the roaring of bikes coming along the same road, that I nearly dropped both phone and map. I looked back at the car that was disappearing out of sight and noticed no-one was looking so, instead of hoping the whole tourist thing still worked, I stepped into the wooded area and hid.

I crouched down low and as I heard them coming, I could only pray no-one could see me. I really wanted to look but knew I couldn’t chance it, just as I couldn’t do with the Bentley. In my head though the possibilities seemed vast and the list of bikers I now knew was growing. There was Vincent, Sigurd and now Jared’s lot of beasts…who was next I had no clue but the most important question remained, were any of those riders someone I knew?

By the time I had memorised a good enough lay of the land, I had a firm idea in my mind of where would be best to sneak in. I could only hope they didn’t have motion sensors, cameras everywhere but most of all, nasty growling attack dogs, Mr Burns’ style!

I decided it wasn’t so much the getting in part that would be the hardest, although I wasn’t expecting the red carpet welcome, it would really be the getting out that would be the tricky bit. I had spent the rest of the day checking out the surrounding area and found there was a small gap that led straight through the woods down to the lake. It was from this bit that you could climb down to the water and swim round to the lakeside of the property, which just so happened to have a stone wall that could be easily jumped over.

So, the plan was to use a tree to climb close to the main wall to get in and depending on what state Draven had been left in, to get to the lake and jump in, then using the darkness as a good cover to escape. The best part of this plan was that the closest property to where the woods led to the lake, looked to be locked up tight and without occupants. This meant my driver could wait down the private road and wait for us without being seen, or more importantly asked to leave.

I was lucky in the sense that Lucius must have told my driver to do as I said with no questions asked, because it surprised me when I didn’t receive any weird reactions to my odd directions.

Which brought me back to now and under the cover of night, I zipped up the black hooded sweater shirt I had brought with me, as now the weather had turned a little wild. The angry clouds and clammy heat of the day told me there was going to be a summer storm tonight and I wanted to be ready for it. I hooked my thumbs into the thumb holes of the Goth style top and pulled the big baggy hood over my head to conceal myself further. I told the driver to park by the empty Villa and wait for me no matter what.

He nodded to me in way of acceptance as I’d learnt early on he didn’t really say much. This was just fine by me considering I had plenty to occupy my mind without having to explain myself at every crazy decision I made. I watched him back out of sight and leave me at the same spot he had done earlier that day when I was playing spy mode Keira.

“Well, here goes.” I said quietly to myself and started to walk down the road until the start of the property came into view. After my stake out hidden by the bushes, I’d noted how often the guards walked by and knew that anywhere near the gated entrance wasn’t going to be any way I could get in. The only parts of the property they didn’t seemed too bothered about were the lakeside walls, which couldn’t be accessed by anything but a boat. This they had covered by mounted camera’s I’d seen when I climbed a tree to get a better look. This was also what gave me the idea in the first place as there was one particular tree that overhung the wall, making it the easiest place to gain access.

So that was where I was now headed, into the woods using my mobile phone screen as a small torch so I wouldn’t break my leg. I walked in a U shape which brought me closer to the lake and the side not as well monitored. I found my spot with only one small slip up where I had to back track and was soon looking at my first hard task.

I took a deep breath and rubbed my hands together as I looked up at the tree I needed to climb. I just reached up for the first branch and then screamed when the first bolt of lightning lit the sky, followed quickly by the booming thunder. Thankfully, the noise hid my fright and I held my hands to my chest as a mental crutch to help slow my erratic breathing. I thought, as if what I was about to do wasn’t nerve racking enough!

I let myself have a few minutes to rebuild up my courage and then I went for it. I jumped up, cursing my short height when it took me three attempts to grab hold of the branch. Once I did it I then used my legs, walking up the trunk to get to the next branch. I was surprised as I made short work of the climbing up to the wall’s height and found myself actually grinning when I could swing my leg over the other side.

Once there, I reached out to grab hold of the next tree that was a little more difficult to climb due to its lack of branches. My foot slipped just as I reached out but thankfully I caught hold just before I could fall, which ended up just scraping my palm on the rough bark. I hissed at the sting but kept going, not helping the quiet sigh of relief when my feet finally touched the grass.

I looked back up at the wall, just glad I didn’t have to go back that way as I knew I would’ve be completely screwed! I rubbed my hands down my jeans and looked around to make sure I was out of sight and that’s when I noticed all the weird stuff.

All the statues that were dotted around the landscaped garden were destroyed. It looked as if it was something that had been done recently and definitely not through age. But on further inspection I also noticed that they weren’t the only evidence of someone’s rage. All the lights that should have been illuminating not just the garden art, but also for security reasons were also smashed. Of course, not that I was complaining, as this certainly made things easier for me and even more so when I walked around one corner to find broken pieces of what used to be the cameras.

This had to make me wonder who did this and if it was in some way to benefit me…did Lucius get word to someone on the inside? Either way, this type of destruction was obviously seen as the norm considering they hadn’t yet been fixed. Either that or the people who held Draven didn’t fear for his possible escape. Which begged the question…was I enough to make it possible?

Well, I was soon to find out as I neared the house. I kept in the shadows and tried not to jump whenever the sky lit up with lightning, hoping it wouldn’t give me away in case any guards veered off their normal route and saw me acting like a cat burglar. I walked further round, staying close to the walls of the house, until I could see the lake as it spread out in front of me. It was a startlingly beautiful sight as it produced the biggest natural mirror, reflecting the impressive storm above it. The show it put on was nothing short of masterful and dangerously magnificent, which went hand in hand with what I was about to do.

I continued to stick to the wall as I moved further down the gardens, until I could see the last building that was right on the lake’s front. It was in a U shape and had a raised walkway all around its ground floor, and it too was decorated with broken statues. One Goddess’ head looked as though it had been punched through with an iron fist. If anything, it just added to the creepy vibe the storm produced for my fearful mission.

The building was set into levels and looked half built down into the rocks below, the same ones I had seen when forming my getaway plans. I also found the front of it had a number of balconies and knew when I saw them from the rocks I climbed, that this would be my way in. The old ivy that clawed its way up the side of most of the building would act as a natural ladder similar to the one I had used once before back at Afterlife.

Well, at least this one wasn’t as high up so that had to be a bonus. I was lucky that there were just enough lights from the windows above that I could see but not be seen. I made sure my bag strap was secure and started to first pull at the thick ivy to make sure it would hold. When I was happy, I looked up to the first balcony and just hoped the door was left unlocked. I climbed up to stand on the top of the balustrades that went round a patio area which meant I was already a third of the way there. Then I took a deep breath, grabbed a hold and started to pull myself up.

Thankfully it didn’t take me too long and I soon found myself reaching out to grip the edge of the stone wall that wrapped around the large balcony above. I had a sudden thought of ‘Again with bloody balconies!’ when a noise had me freezing on the spot. I heard a woman’s voice but it got cut off when the thunder came quickly after the flash. I looked to see if there was some room for me to stand next to the glass doors so that I could remain hidden, but was surprised to see one of them was slightly open.

I decided I couldn’t stay here all night hanging on like a stunned monkey, so as quietly as I could, I climbed over the ledge. I made sure my swinging bag didn’t make a noise and I held it back as I stepped a little closer to the glass doors. It looked as if the last person who closed them hadn’t done it properly, as the gap was just enough to hear voices though.

The light coming from the room was low and flickering as though it came from a candle. Footsteps tapping on hard wooden floors walked by the door for a second and I held my breath, thinking I was about to get caught. That’s when I heard the female voice again, only this time, I recognised it.

“I am here, as ever, to serve you, My Lord.” My hand flew to my mouth as I heard Aurora ask the question, but it became a true task of sheer willpower I didn’t realise I possessed, when I heard who answered her,

“You know what I want from you, as I do every night Aurora, so close the door and approach my bed to do your promised duty to your King.” I sucked in a painful breath and tears clouded my sight, as for the first time, since the beginning of May, I heard the only voice I had longed for. The only voice I had awakened from sleep and cried out in my despair for. The only voice I would have bled for and the only voice I nearly died for.

Would have died for…

Draven’s voice.

Chapter 58

Shattered Hearts and Chasing Storms

I felt the first of my tears fall just as the first of the storm’s rain fell from the sky. It was as if it knew my pain and shared in my devastation. I had to be wrong in what I heard. That couldn’t be my Draven asking his ex-girlfriend into his bed…it just couldn’t be…it was…impossible.

But I had to be sure.

So I gathered up the last of my strength and I did the unthinkable, only to catch the unthinkable.

I took those very last steps in my quest to find the only man I’d ever loved and faced my window of truth. So now here I stood, directly in front of my dead boyfriend, watching as his ex-lover started to straddle her radiant body over his bare one, which was lay waiting. He raised his arms above his head and held them against a rock wall that acted as a massive headboard to an oversized bed.

Aurora was wearing a shimmering nightgown that was not only see-through but also split up both her legs which she now had bent on either side of Draven. I felt like a wide-eyed doe caught watching the truck coming closer and the longer I waited the more I knew it would end me…but like that innocent doe, I couldn’t look away from the killing blow.

“Are you ready, My Lord?” She asked sweetly, making it even more difficult for me to breathe. Then, when it finally got too much to bear I closed my eyes to try and clear my vision through the tears that just wouldn’t stop flowing. When I opened them again, I looked at Draven’s face and saw his determination set in hard lines of this woman’s master. He closed his own eyes for a moment and then said through gritted teeth as though he was trying to hold something back,

“Do it!” I saw the smile from Aurora that Draven didn’t and then felt sick as I let the pain start to drown me. I was hypnotized to watch as Aurora lent further over him and whisper some sweet endearment I couldn’t hear just over his closed lips. She then reached out to grip onto his arms and started to stretch out on the length of his body before pulling his arms up and holding them securely to the rock. I continued to torture myself as I watched as the energy started to build up under her hands, causing Draven’s own skin to start to glow with power.

That’s when it all hit me. That conversation we’d had so long ago about Draven having to hold back when being intimate with me. Was this what this was? Was this Draven getting what he obviously needed, something he could never get with me? I sucked back a sob as I finally got it. Draven wasn’t dead, he…he…

He was just dead to me!

I watched the last I could before breaking beyond a point of not being able to get my shattered heart out of there. It was just as Draven’s back arched in a deep moan as Aurora raked her nails down his forearms that lit up under his veins. It looked like pure carnal pleasure and this caused more than just my heart to crack further but it also completely destroyed my mental barriers.

This happened at the same time the lightning forked the sky, the rain battered down at my body and the thunder echoed my cry, screaming into the night. The glass doors blew inwards with the force of the gale behind me and shattered, mirroring my own soul that Draven had ripped out of me.

Aurora’s head whipped round and I saw her whisper my name as she stared right at me. That’s when the Draven storm really hit as his head snapped up and now I had his purple eyes burning into mine. Then he roared, bellowing out like I had never heard Draven’s demon erupt before. Aurora fell backwards with the force of it and landed on the floor by the foot of the bed.

I thought he would jump up but he seemed to be trapped by his arms that I could now see fused to the rock. He snarled at me and I took a step back which finally released me from this nightmare. I took another making him snarl louder this time.

“Don’t you dare run!” His Demon warned in a frightening growl that made me shake in a fear I had never felt once before from Draven. So I did the only thing I could do…

I ran.

I turned and jumped the edge, grabbing the ivy letting it scrape down my hands as I tried to drop down from the balcony as quickly as I could. I heard Draven going crazy with rage and my feet hit the grass followed by my knees as I fell upon hearing Draven’s demand,

“RELEASE ME… NOW!” I knew from this I had one chance to get out of here and I was going to take it if it was the last thing I was still able to do! I forced myself up and ran while Draven was obviously still trying to free himself. I didn’t know what kind of sex games they had been about to play, but right now I was just thankful Draven couldn’t get his hands on me!

I ran down the bank, getting closer to the lake and turned when I got to the path that would lead me to where I needed to be. I heard masses of glass smashing all at once from behind me. I heard screams and didn’t release they were mine until the roaring stopped.

“KEIRA!” Draven thundered out my name, making the storm mirror his rage with light and sound…but still I ran. The rain poured down soaking my hair, slapping it to my face as I looked behind me to see Draven emerge onto the balcony. He was looking for me and I quickly threw up a mental force so strong I knew no-one would ever be able to break it down, not even Draven.

“KEIRA! COME BACK!” He screamed again making part of the balcony around him crumble as though from an earthquake…but I kept running. Even when I saw his wings erupt as his full Demon side burst forth, drowning the man I once loved in Hell’s power.

Tears had now mixed with rain and travelled down my face in a never ending current, all fuelled by the greatest hurt one could ever imagine. But it was this raw pain I used to make myself go on…I forced myself to move, to get as far away from this loathsome place which had brought me nothing but the truth I unearthed…

The truth of Draven’s deceit.

“GET THEM NOW!” This was the last order I heard being followed by the thunder as the night now truly took on a murderous element. I tried not to look back just before I jumped down to the next level, but when I saw Draven drop down from the destroyed balcony, I knew my time had run out. I landed, thankfully this time on my feet and ignored the pain that shot up through my legs from the impact.

I saw the place I was trying to find and ran to the side of the wall. From here I couldn’t see much, but just as that thought entered my mind, something unbelievable happened. I first saw it being reflected back at me from the water’s surface. It wavered with the movement of the water and I bit down on my lip to hold in the growing need to cry out. The last Quarter Moon had come out from behind the clouds, beaming through the raging storm that couldn’t seem to touch it.

I looked up and nodded, knowing that this was the very last time it would help me, but just not in the way I would have thought or hoped…It no longer lit the way on my journey in getting to Draven but now in my only means of getting away from him.

So, with that heart wrenching help, I looked down at the rocks behind the wall that led into the lapping water. I dropped my bag over the side so it landed without getting wet and then I pulled myself up and did the same. I let myself fall just as I heard the search party coming my way. I didn’t know if Draven had seen me, so I needed to move and get my ass in the water. I picked up my bag and scrambled over the rocks until I came to the area I had seen that would be perfect for hiding. I threw my bag into the bushes and then lowered myself into the water sucking in a sharp breath as the cold penetrated my clothes through to my skin.

I started treading water but all the while holding onto the jagged rocks that kept me from view. At this point I could just see the shadows of people on the water, thanks to the freaky glow of moonlight and with the added wingspan it was easy to spot which one Draven was. They weren’t that far away as I could still hear them, so I remained as still as I could so as not to disturb the water, giving away my whereabouts.

“You’re sure you saw her come this way?” I felt my body shudder as I could now add another to my list of people who had betrayed me. Vincent’s voice was easy to detect as he asked his brother this question and soon Sophia’s could be heard, making me want to bite my fist from crying out.

“She must have turned back when she realised there was no escape for her here.” Draven’s hard voice cut through me deeper than the cold water that felt as if it was seeping past my skin and into my bones.

“Can you feel her?” Sophia asked and for a moment there was silence but it was hard to ignore that strong pull of power that was Draven trying to find me. I closed my eyes and gripped onto the rock in a painful hold that kept me grounded enough to keep him from my mind.

“No and she is nowhere near powerful enough to evade my reach.”

“Are you sure, she could be in the water or what if she fell?” Vincent was clearly worried and out of them all thinking closer to the truth, but his idea was thankfully cut off by Draven’s arrogance.

“NO...!” He snapped.

“…I would have felt her.”

“But you know after this time the bond has…” Vincent was silenced by first the growl and then the warning,

“I suggest you don’t say another word, Brother!” Draven’s demon warned, sounding too far on the edge that no wonder nothing more was said.

“My Lord, there has been no signs of her yet, but a guard at the gate remembered seeing a girl late this afternoon, just before you arrived back.” This time it sounded like Zagan speaking, but again Draven shouted him down just as he did with his brother.

“It wasn’t her.”

“But My Lord, he described her as…”

“IT WASN’T HER!” He roared and in doing so I heard a big splash which sounded like one of the statues had just crumbled off its plinth and into the water.

“Now go and FIND HER!” Draven commanded which then just left two shadows remaining.

“It wasn’t her, Vincent… I still would have felt her nearby, I know this.” Draven sounded determined to believe this and I shook my head at how little the great and mighty King really knew!

“I hope you’re right brother…I really do.” I watched as one shadow left and knew Draven still remained when I heard a breaking voice speak to himself,

“As do I, Brother…where are you Keira?”

The trek back up the rocks and into the woods took so much longer than I thought it would, even when I stupidly, stupidly, stupidly imagined I might have an injured Draven in tow. I can definitely say the hardest part was getting out of the water. After I watched Draven’s shadow walk away from me, I bawled so hard I actually went under the water a few times. It was only when I was snorting out lake water that I knew I needed to pull myself together.

So, by using the last of my strength, I managed to get my soggy ass out of the water, collect my bag and drag myself over the rocks until I found the small gap of wooded area that would take me to the empty Villa. By the time I got there it felt as though I had aged by another ten years. I was a shivering mess in wet clothes and a broken heart. I tried not to think about what was actually happening to my life or I don’t think I would have made it two steps. So, I took things one priority at a time which was ‘Getting the Hell out of there!’

When I saw the car, I couldn’t help the sob of relief and the closer I got the weaker I felt. The driver must have seen me coming and opened both his door, got out and opened mine in the blink of an eye. I shouldn’t have been surprised that he was of the supernatural variety, as what did I really expect, working for Lucius? Well, in this case, I could be nothing but grateful if it got me in the car quicker. I just got to him and that’s when my legs decided to give out. My nameless driver who had barely said two words to me, caught me before I crashed to the floor and picked me up.

At this point I didn’t even realise I was crying as hard as I was, until I found myself curled up on the back seat of the luxury car, with a blanket around me. I don’t know how long I remained like this obviously in such a state of shock that I could only just find enough energy to keep breathing.

I could vaguely hear the driver speaking with someone and I gathered it would have been his boss. This was enough to get me to sit upright and take note of where we were. It looked as if he had been instructed to take me back to the hotel in Milan, which was just fine with me. Given the way I felt right now, I didn’t know if once in a bed I would ever make my way out of it again.

I felt stripped bare and left out in the wilderness, cut wide open and bleeding ready for the wolves to finish me off. Draven had filled my life with deceit and spun a lie so great, that I had believed it enough to go to Hell and back just to save him. But as the dark world passed us by and with it more time for realisation to set in, I was starting to understand the very depth that I had been played…

By everyone.

This caused even more raw tears to flow, but this time these were created by anger. Lucius had known Draven was still alive which is why I got that warning…and Pip, all those funny looks of sadness when she would see how I asked for help in finding Draven. All those tears shed in her arms when the waiting got too much to bear.

She had known.

Then there was Vincent. The day I cut my hair off and left it for a man I had just found in bed with another woman, after trying to convince me he was dead! I just didn’t get it, why go to all that trouble if all he wanted to do was reconnect with his Ex. It didn’t make sense and even more so given his reaction to me running. Why even try and find me if he didn’t want me anymore?

There was a side of me that wanted to shout ‘turn the car around’ and demand answers but the torn and shredded pieces of me just couldn’t do it. The agony was all too fresh and I needed to sort my head out before ever facing that man again. It was as if all the questions I had before had now been buried by a thousand others and through the pain one word kept on getting dragged to the top of the pile…

Why?

So many whys.

Why the Oracle lied to me and sent me on this merry quest of death, beasts, Hell and prisons? Had Sigurd known, had Jared known, Christ even looking back at it even Gastian had tried to warn me! But I had been a blind fool that couldn’t let go of the man I thought loved me with every fibre in his body, mind and soul…just like I did…

Just like I had done.

I pulled my wet clothes away from my body and then gave up trying to peel them from my chilled skin. What did I care at this point if I got sick with flu? I was too far gone in my misery to give a shit anymore and didn’t think it was possible for anything else to make me feel worse than I already did. Ok, so I know this wasn’t completely true, but I just couldn’t help giving in to self-pity, not after this killer blow.

I was so far fallen into my Draven induced pit of torment, that I only just realised we were back in the city and making our way to the hotel. The rain still pelted down the windows, blurring my world, but doing nothing for my excruciating memory of Draven there underneath his old lover. Or was she ever an old lover…was it possible I had been played from the very start?

NO! I just couldn’t think of it that way…he couldn’t have done that to me, but then if he could do something as painful and destroying as playing dead, then who knew what else the man was capable of?!

I decided to try and conquer these fears before I would soon be able to add crazy to the array of raging emotions playing my body to a painful tune. I just couldn’t wait to get back into my hotel room, take a hot bath and never leave in the hopes of thawing not only my cold body, but also the icy layer that was frosting over my heart.

My driver didn’t pull in front of the hotel, but instead turned down a side alley. He stopped the car and just as I was about to ask what he was doing, he opened my door and a hand reached in to help me out. I grabbed my bag and scooted over to take the hand given. I unfolded my sorry state from the car and noticed a side door that was open, so that light was flooding the industrial sized rubbish bins.

I turned to look at my driver but he just nodded back to the door and when I saw a member of the kitchen staff carrying out a large black sack, I knew what this was. He had driven me round the back entrance so that I wouldn’t have to be seen by the rest of the hotel’s guests. I looked down at my soaked clothes and feeling the raw skin around my nose and soreness blinking caused me, I could more than imagine what I looked like.

“Thanks.” I sniffed out the small word of gratitude and then started my walk of shame through the kitchen, thankful it was only the very few that would witness it. I was surprised I even managed to hold my head up high, but then a voice stopped me.

“He will find you, you know.” My driver’s voice was enough to push a single tear up and down my cheek, falling in the path of many others before it. I didn’t look back at him when I replied, but instead looked down at my hands.

“I know.”

Once inside the hotel room, as soon as I managed to slam shut the door, I lost the very last of my strength. I slid down the door and cried until I lost my voice. I cried until my tears ran dry and I cried until it hurt to breathe. My body shook with violent tremors until I curled myself up on the floor in a foetal position and held my knees tight to my burning chest.

I don’t remember how long I stayed like this, but I must have fallen asleep from exhaustion at some point because it was long enough for me to dream. I would like to have said it was a re-load of tonight’s events, where I found Draven in bed alone. Where I ran to him and instead of Aurora’s body he waited for, it was mine instead. I dreamt of his shock that quickly turned to immense joy, instead of the undiluted rage I had received.

But my life was not a dream.

My life was back as it had always been.

Full of living nightmares.

I got up feeling like I was just dragging around an empty carcass with every step I made. I wondered if this was what a soulless vessel felt like, before being taken over by a new host? I thought on this for a while as I ran my bath, going through the motions just to survive. I knew I needed to get out of my damp clothes which must have dried marginally while I found misery a comfortable position on the floor.

So I got out of my clothes and stepped into the hot bath that made my skin itch. Skin I felt like I wanted to crawl out of it instead of wash clean.

Once again, I didn’t know how long I sat in the tub holding myself, hoping that by hugging my legs this might somehow help in keeping me together. I remembered back to the day that Draven lied the first time to me and how that had felt. Seeing another woman walk up to Draven and act like she was his fiancée was bad enough but this…

This might just end up in killing me.

I got out of the bath and wiped away the steam from the mirror to reveal the evidence of what was left, once Draven had torn me apart. It was when staring at myself that I made the decision. I could let this man destroy what was left, which granted right now didn’t feel that much, or I could fight. I could fight for what I did have in life and that was the only thing a person needed… A family who loved you. Friends that cared enough to go against what they believed in, in order to protect you. A child that would grow up calling you Aunty Kazzy and could learn from your trusting mistakes. This was the only thing that mattered to me now and this was what I needed to fight for!

I held my hand over my image, looked down at the sink and vowed,

“I can do this…you can do this Keira…you have to…to…survive again once more.” I couldn’t help this last vow breaking on a sob.

After this profound moment of clarity, that came surprisingly quick, I picked myself from the pity shelf and got ready for my next plan. I first got changed into another pair of jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt that was worn navy, with faded white hand prints done in the shape of a butterfly. I also put back on my long gloves, getting back the lost security that I no longer felt from my so called supernatural family. That family had all lied to me, so now it was time to stop playing in this dangerous game and get back to the only family who mattered.

I rang the airport and found that the next flight back to the states was in about four hours and after giving them some card details, booked myself on it. I then packed what little I had, dried my hair and left the hotel room, one that I hoped never to remember. I was just making my way to the lifts, when I heard Vincent’s voice from around the corner.

“I will go in first Sophia, as I fear she will not yet be up to the happy reunion you are hoping for.”

“But…” Sophia started to argue, but Vincent’s stern voice cut her down.

“No! I could barely convince Dom to wait by the entrance. I do not have the patience to do so with another stubborn sibling.” I looked around desperately, hoping to see my next escape when I saw the clear exit sign above a door. I ran the few feet and opened the door hoping not to make too much noise. I dropped my suitcase knowing that I didn’t need any of it and it would only aid in slowing me down.

Then I flew down the stairs, hoping Vincent would be busy thinking I’d silently refused to open the door. I felt a slight twinge of guilt which I quickly squashed down to being irrational. After all, the deceit from his side had been far greater and what else could I have done? I didn’t want to be in the same damn country as Draven, let alone the same room! No, I had no other option than to run…again.

I made it all the way down the stairs before hearing anyone else entering the stairwell, thankful I hadn’t been on the top floor. I remembered from earlier that night the way back into the alleyway and at this time in the morning, I could only hope there was very little staff around. As I made my way through to the restaurant, thanking the architect that he’d designed the place so that I wouldn’t have to go into the Hotel’s lobby, I found the swinging doors into the kitchen.

One guy mopping the floor started talking to me in Italian which I gathered meant I was in the wrong place.

“You have no idea, matey.” I said making him frown with lack of understanding. I tried to think of the best way to get him to show me the right door leading to the alleyway, when it came to me while looking down at his mop.

“I…sick…you know, bluah.” I made a sick noise and then decided to step it up a notch with the acting. I held my hands to my mouth and pretended I was out of time. His eyes widened and he quickly ushered me to the back, where he flung open the back exit…after all, no one liked mopping up vomit.

I ran outside, turned and shut the door rudely, hoping the guy would just think me as a shy puker. Looking down the alley was a gamble that paid off, as there was no one in sight. Now, all I needed to do was make it to the airport and I was scot free. So, holding my mental barriers in place like a spiritual Fort Knox, I made my way to the street, at the same time I saw all the Dravens emerge from the hotel. Luckily though, I’d had the foresight to just peek my head round the side and then back out of sight when I saw them.

Draven was once again looking for his lost human pet, but all I could think was how…

The tables had quickly turned.

Chapter 59

Worst Kind of Walking Alone

“I spoke to the front desk and they said they have not seen her come back to the hotel since leaving in the afternoon.” I heard Vincent relay the information back to who I knew was Draven, given the snarl of anger.

“Find me the driver and bring him to me now!” Draven snapped out his orders and I suddenly both thanked my driver for the idea to bring me round the back, but also felt sorry for him once Draven had caught up with him.

“Sophia, phone!” Draven demanded and I could just imagine how he looked, standing there holding out his hand waiting impatiently for Sophia to do as he wished.

“Lucius… you told me she would be here and she isn’t fucking here!” On hearing Lucius’ name becoming even tighter entwined in the web of deception, I took another stab to the heart.

“I want to speak to your driver and be warned Lucius, I will tear the bastard apart if he has harmed her!” I shuddered at the violent promise in Draven’s voice.

“He never brought her back to the hotel you said she would be at, so think clearly old friend, as your punishments are mounting every minute she is kept from me!” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing! All this coming from the man who had done everything in his power to break away from me… And now what? Was this a slice of immense guilt that was driving him to find me? A sudden thunder clap above his head of conscious clarity at the things he had done to me?

“I don’t have time to indulge you in your excuses or your feeble reasons, you were given an order and you disobeyed it along with your council! Now force my hand at leniency for you and your kind by fucking finding her!” Draven roared this last part and must have thrown the phone to the ground as I could see the small parts dance across the alleyway’s entrance from where I hid.

“Maybe you should have listened to what he had to say.” Vincent tried for reason.

“He had his orders and disobeyed them, as did you! I want her found Vincent and only then will I find the truth, when I force her answers… now go and tell the men to tear the city apart if need be, but just find her!”

“Very well, My Lord.” Vincent said calmly, knowing there was no use trying to talk sense into a man whose rage fuelled him right now. There was a time, not that long ago, when I used to be the only one to tame the beast in him, but those days were long gone…so far that they were already becoming dust in the desert of a lost mind.

“Sophia, have someone monitoring all transport, make taxis a high priority.” Vincent said as his way of parting, because after this I never heard his voice again, nor did I hear any other sound but that of a car speeding away. After they were no longer a threat, I lifted the hood of a sweater that Pip had packed for me which thankfully, was black. She had wanted to pack one that was bright green and had fleece yellow spikes that made you look like a dinosaur. Not a great choice for acting stealthily around a busy city, even if most of that city was still in bed, given the early hour.

At least it was still raining, which would be reason enough to not look suspicious, but I had to be careful. It was still dark which was on my side, but I didn’t know how long I would have before the sun started to come up. Of course, the major problem I had now was how on earth was I going to get to Milano Malpensa Airport without the help of a taxi?!

Well, I knew one thing and that was I couldn’t just wait around here for him to figure out I had in fact come back to the hotel. Sooner or later they would talk to one of the staff members who remembered seeing me or worse…find my poor fated driver. So, the only thing left to do was to walk and try to find some sort of transport that would get me there without being detected.

This didn’t sound quite as simple when hearing the way Draven had wanted ‘his people’ to tear apart the city to find me, but I had reason to feel confidant if you considered that I had twice now been right under his nose and still I went by undetected. This made me realise just how powerful my blocks had become and all thanks to a short time in a hellish prison trying to evade an evil captor…

It was a Hell of a year even for my standards, that was for sure!

I soon realised the area of Milan that I had been staying in was in the heart of the beautiful city, but the further I walked, the more I became lost in the guts of the city. I started wandering down streets and then into run-down industrial districts, where the tightly knit neighbourhoods became less attractive than those in the city’s centre. Whereas before I was coming across stunning architecture and pale marble sculptures, matching the settings in which they sat, now those were long gone, replaced by what looked like the makings of a dangerous place.

So here I was, walking alone with not a clue where I was going and not having even one person I could call that I trusted to help me. And the further I walked, the more it seemed I was leaving the regal part of the city behind me. I had been asking myself if I was doing the right thing by running from Draven, or was it just considered cowardly? Well, whatever the answer, the truth of the matter remained…

For the first time since meeting Draven, I could honestly say, in my heart of hearts, I no longer wanted to see him, so damn the Oracle and damn the prophecy she spoke of! I had been played, simple as that and there was not one possibility that I would stand around and let it happen again, so if that meant running, then that was what I was prepared to do.

By the time I had sorted out about ten per cent of the shit rattling around in my head, I realised I had walked into the rougher side of a bad neighbourhood, if the graffiti and burnt out cars were anything to go by. I looked around for the direction I’d come from, but thanks to being so deep in my personal downfall, I couldn’t even tell where that was. I had just walked for what could have been hours with no direction in mind, just one that took me further from Draven.

Well, now that had cost me, as I saw a few homeless people asleep in doorways trying no doubt to keep out of the rain that had now begun to trickle instead of pour. In fact, I looked to be the only shmuck walking around in it. But I couldn’t give one damn shit about what people thought of me. I did however hope that the dodgy looking group all stood round a running car didn’t take much notice.

I saw about three guys stood there smoking what I quickly smelled was weed and one guy inside the car who was lighting something that looked like a crack pipe. Music I didn’t recognise blared from the speakers and I looked around to notice there was no one else in sight. The car was parked next to what looked like an abandoned warehouse and I could only hope they were more interested in the bottles of spirits they were swigging back than what I was doing.

I knew I had two options, one was to turn around and run, which would no doubt end up drawing their attention. Then there was my other option, which was to just walk past as quickly as possible, in hopes they wouldn’t take any notice of me. The deciding factor turned out to be two taxis that I saw not that far away. Just down the road they had both parked up and were chatting, smoking and obviously having a break.

I knew Sophia was going to be monitoring the taxis, but at this point I really didn’t care, just so long as it got me out of this part of the city! So this was where I made my millionth mistake in life.

As soon as I started walking past, one of them must have spotted me because they began shouting things in Italian. I just ignored them and tried to walk even faster, ready to wave to the taxi drivers if they would just look up.

“Dove vai, vieni a giocare con noi” (Means ‘Where are you going, come play with us’ In Italian)

I heard their shouts getting closer, so I decided to make a run for it. The taxi drivers weren’t that far away now and if I made enough of a racket then surely they would look up…That was until I felt a hand clamp over my mouth.

I began struggling as soon as I felt it, but could do nothing to stop them as my body was being dragged backwards. This could not be happening! I tried to contain my panic and think about how I was going to get out of this, but right now the only thought swamping my rational mind was utter disbelief that this was actually happening to me…again! I watched with horror in my eyes as the taxi drivers went from my sight and not once did they even look up.

“Portala qui e cerchiamo di avere qualche divertimento” (Means ‘Bring her here and lets have some fun’ in Italian) I could hear the others getting excited behind me and the sound of the last one getting out of the car as the door slammed shut. Then I was pushed away by the one who had his hand held over my mouth, using the back of my head to do so. I fell forward on a failed step but managed to right myself before I went down. I quickly spun round to face my attackers to find them advancing.

“Vieni qui e succhiare il cazzo!” (Means ‘Come here and suck my cock!’ in Italian) I didn’t know what the one on the left was saying but considering he had grabbed the front of his pants I could only guess.

“Fuck you!” I shouted knowing the F word was universal when said in anger.

“Look we found English Bitch, Mi capita di andare per primo.” (mean’s ‘I get to go first’) Another one said first in broken English then something I couldn’t understand in Italian. I started backing up as they all started to come closer and the scrawny one on the left finished the dregs of his liquor bottle before throwing it to smash on the ground. This was when I ran, which was looking to be the theme of the night.

I felt one of them grab me from behind, this time by the hair and I screamed out at the pain inflicted to my scalp. I let my natural reactions take over and turned in his hold biting through the hurt. I then grabbed his shoulders to me and kneed him as hard as I could in the groin. He screamed out and dropped to the floor cupping his injured package. Well, that was one down but as the other three ran for me, I doubted I was strong enough to put the rest down, no matter what Draven had taught me in his training room.

I was left backing up again as they approached, knowing out running them was no longer a good plan. Now it was the scrawny one’s turn to try it on, only he wasn’t going to make the same mistake as his friend on the floor groaning. He motioned for the other two to get me from the sides and for once I just wished it was like it was in the movies. You know, when the main dude is surrounded and staring at ridiculous odds of surviving. But of course, the dude is also a master at every martial art known to man! Of course it always helps when each of the bad guys just comes at him one at a time, like they had collected a bloody ticket at the meat counter…I mean why don’t they just all jump the guy all at once?

Well, I wasn’t the main combat ninja dude and this wasn’t a movie, which translated into, I was in big shit as all three of them went for me all at once. The flight mode kicked in and I tried to get away only to be roughly pulled and pushed, grabbed and slapped to where they wanted me. Hands holding me everywhere bit into my flesh and dragged me back over to the car where the rock music created the perfect base for the horror that I knew was about to happen.

I heard the bark of an order in Italian, just before I was spun and slammed into the side of the car. Pain rippled up my back as the unforgiving metal hit me and I looked up in time to see the one I had kneed was now back on his feet. He stormed over to where the others had me pinned to the car by my arms. I kicked out and watched as he avoid the kick only to see his fist coming at me full force before it connected with the side of my face.

“English Bitch!” He roared at me, hitting me again, only this time I felt my lip burst and my mouth quickly filled with the metallic taste of blood. The throbbing exploded across my cheek, making me feel sick as my brain felt rattled inside my skull. I tried not to give in to the feeling and soon panic over-rode any other sensory action, as I saw the guy motion to his friends again.

I watched horrified as he started to unzip his jeans, freeing his excited erection. This was when I went crazy, bucking and kicking so much it was a mission for his friends to hold me still. He tried to step up to me but I screamed and spat the blood from my mouth in his face, doing anything in my power to keep him from me. He hit me again but this did nothing in stopping the rage that was building up in me. If only I could free the power I had somewhere hidden deep down in me as I had done before. But there was no tingling of fingertips or supernatural aid that came to help me.

I was all alone in this.

In the end my soon to be rapist must have thought it too risky to get his kicks this way. I was grabbed roughly by the hair once more and with the help from the others together, they managed to get me to the front of the car. I was pushed over it and this time only held there by one guy as he stepped up behind me. My hips dug into the car and I decided my only chance was to become still, as though I had accepted my fate.

“Now you want my cock, yes?” He said grinding his erection into my behind. I felt him reach round to undo my jeans and as he did this he leant his chest over my back to whisper in my ear.

“I give you my cock, Bitch.” He snarled and just as his hand dipped down to touch me in my open jeans, I made my move.

“Yeah…well this Bitch gives great head!” I said as I slammed my head back as hard as I could just at the right moment, feeling his nose crack on the back of my head. In his shock and agony at having his nose broken he let me go. I wasted no time in bolting up and running away from the car.

I must have made it all of five feet when I felt myself being tackled to the ground. I felt the body on top of me try to turn me and just before I let him I grabbed a fistful of gravel. As soon as he got me round I threw the stony handful in his face and took his surprise to twist his body off mine. I scrambled up and delivered two kicks to his ribcage before turning to face the other two that had left their bleeding friend to get me. Their lustful faces were now a thing of the past as only revenge entered their minds when they saw me.

“COME ON YOU BASTARDS!” I yelled out knowing the only thing left for me was to fight till the bitter end. I saw that the one with the broken nose had clearly had enough of me as he had slumped down by the car. The other one cradled his ribs and a nasty scratch across his forehead running into his eye. Looking at him I think I could also count him out of the fight, which just left these two who had been the ones to hold me down at the car.

I kept backing up so as to prolong the time they got to me, hoping for a plan to formulate but when I saw one of them produce a small blade from their jacket, I knew I was screwed! I tried not to let him see the panic on my face but from his smile I had failed. I retreated so far that I knew I would soon feel the warehouse wall at my back but with that dirty looking knife coming closer I was all out of options…or was I?

Just as they both ran at me, I gave it my last shot at survival. I not only dropped all my mental barriers but I pushed on them so hard I hoped it would have the opposite effect on keeping Draven out.

“DRAVEN!!!!!” I screamed out at the heavens, smashing my walls and feeling the pulse of power that I released along with it. That’s when I felt the first slice of the blade that cut along my belly as the guy had slashed out at me before fully reaching me. My hand went to the hurt but then right back up again blocking the first hit. I even repeated what I had been taught by Draven, saying ‘High Parry’ in my mind. The other guy tried once again with his knife but this time in a stab motion, telling me this wasn’t just an attack on an innocent woman anymore, this had now quickly switched to murder.

I was thankful for my quick reactions as I dodged the damaging blow and the momentum of his actions took him forward into the side of the warehouse. Meanwhile, I foolishly took my eyes off the other guy and felt a stomach punch that hit closer to the side. It hurt but at least didn’t hit its mark in winding me. I was then pushed until I landed side on into the warehouse wall putting me at a dead end I couldn’t afford to be in.

Before I had a second to get out of it they were both on me and the fight ended with the blade held under my neck. I knew this was it, as one wrong move from me and it was all over. The guy smiled at me and I could smell the stale taste of whisky he had been drinking all night. His eyes were red rimmed and erratic as the drugs coursed through his veins, pumping him full of falsehoods that told him he was doing the right thing.

“Dead Bitch!” He said and I knew this was it. I sent out that last of the love not broken to those I cared for and waited for the pain to come.

“Che cosa è stato?” (Means ‘What was that?”) I heard the guy next to me say something I couldn’t understand and looked to see something rumbling over our heads. The early pre-dawn was thundering as I saw the darker shadow descending at a speed only I had witnessed before, giving way to the landing of a demon I would know anywhere.

“Oh, you are all so dead.” I informed him just before the screaming erupted, this time though, it didn’t come from me. The guy next to me, who had been aiding his friend in holding me to the wall, found his body ripped from the spot in a blur of shadows. My eyes weren’t powerful enough to see the actions clear enough, but all I knew was that one minute he was next to me and then he was on the ground with a broken neck. I almost gagged as I saw his head facing the wrong way, staring at me with dead eyes, that put a whole new meaning to the saying ‘eyes in the back of your head’.

The two I had left injured on the floor were screaming at the sight of what true murder looked like. The guy who still had me pinned by the throat looked around frantically and just before the pressure became deadly, the blade crumbled into metal dust. I looked past the face of pure terror and right into one that truly created it.

Draven stood behind my attacker with not a single ounce of Angel in sight. It looked as if he had shot right out of Hell itself with the flames still engulfing his body. Eyes swimming red like the blood he would soon find covering his hands, burned into mine. I couldn’t believe this was to be our first moment together after all this time. This was to be the first face of Draven I was to see as we reunited once again. As heartbreaking as seeing him for the first time in Aurora’s arms was, I couldn’t tell which was more so…now or then.

“Draven.” I whispered his name like a prayer that had come true. This was when he snarled and his hand shot out around the guy’s neck. My eyes quickly left Draven’s demon form and found my attacker’s eyes that were now bulging from the pressure. They haemorrhaged, turning frightened white into blood red making me once again want to be sick.

Draven moved his arm out to the side taking the body he held with it so that soon the guy was dangling by his neck in Draven’s grasp. He tried pointlessly to claw at his hand, but it was no use. This move left Draven and me face to face without anything between us. I saw the flicker of emotion, one other than rage, flash across his face and for a single moment the eyes that were staring back at me went purple.

I was too frightened to move, as it was like looking in the eyes of a rampant beast you knew could erupt into killer at any moment…and I was right. His gaze dipped down to do a scan of my body and I quickly knew what he would find. A bruised cheek and a bloody lip was one thing but a bloody slash across my stomach and jeans that were still undone from my rape attempt was another.

His eyes took in my state and within seconds knew what it all meant and so did I. These men were not leaving this world without being punished. Draven’s eyes told me as much when they exploded back into his demon side and he roared his head back, bellowing his fury with his wings bursting backwards.

“Which one?” His demon asked me making me shake with a fear deeper than one I’d known. I had seen Draven’s demon many times before but never like this… never before so out of control that the very flames around him hummed and vibrated with power. It even looked as though he was growing. Like Hell’s trapped energy inside him couldn’t be contained to the body it had been given.

“Draven I…”

“WHICH ONE?” He thundered back at me cutting me off. I knew I had no choice, as these men’s actions had already condemned themselves to death, but the one I nodded at now would no doubt receive whatever horrors he could conjure up in his nightmares…that and more.

So I did the only thing I could do, which was nod at the guy with the broken nose who was trying to get in the car to make his getaway. Draven looked behind to see for himself, all the while still holding his arm out straight with a human dangling from it. He nodded and then the engine suddenly blew up, knocking the guy back just as he opened the driver’s door.

Draven seemed satisfied enough that he wasn’t going anywhere for now, so looked back at me one last time. Then he gave me my last order speaking the only word needed,

“Go!” I didn’t need to be told twice as I held on to the bag at my side and ran out of there as fast as my frightened legs could carry me. Draven had looked truly possessed by the Devil himself and his version of payback wasn’t one I wanted to stick around and lay witness to. So I did as I was told and got the Hell out of there!

I ended up running and running until my lungs were close to giving up…but still I ran. I ran until everything in me burned and demanded things of my body it just wasn’t willing to give anymore. I just wanted to stop, crumble into a helpless heap to allow the shock to sink in, letting the shakes that wanted to be released rack my body. But I couldn’t. I was a survivor and survivors didn’t quit. They didn’t just sit down and say die. So I kept running until my body gave up before my mind did.

I didn’t know how far I had come, but bent over panting trying to kill the stitch that cut into my side along with the actual slash I had there. I soon found I could no longer stand either as first my knee landed, quickly followed by the other.

So there I sat, knelt on one of Italy’s cobbled streets, lost, alone, hurt and head hanging down, staring at the wet stone, praying for the last of the storm that mirrored my life.

And what did praying to the Gods give me…

A taxi.

Chapter 60

A World of Hurt.

As the taxi pulled up I sent up a whispered thank you to whoever had heard my silent prayers. A middle aged man got out and came to me, speaking first in Italian, words I couldn’t understand.

“I’m alright.” I said as he started to help me up.

“English sì?” I nodded to him and let him help me into the back of the car as my legs didn’t yet feel like they were strong enough to support me.

“Stupidi giovani prendere farmaci!” (Means ‘Stupid young people taking drugs’) He got me in the back muttering something in Italian.

“Ospedale?”

“Uh…?” I dumbly responded as I didn’t understand the word.

“Hospital, sì?” He asked just as he flipped up the sun visor giving me a quick glimpse of a family photo he had stashed there.

“Oh…no, no not hospital, airport… Milano Malpens Airport.” He frowned but then lifted his shoulders in a shrug before pulling away. I was just thankful that this early in the morning a taxi happened to come across me and hoped I could take this as a sign for no more incidents in getting me home. I knew the likelihood of me catching that flight was slim to none, but at least I would be there where I could wait. Hell, I would bloody live there for a whole week if it would eventually mean me getting a flight home!

I let my head fall back on to the headrest and closed my eyes for a few seconds as the night’s events tried to creep their way in. I then snapped my eyes open as I refused to let them. I couldn’t allow myself to think back to what had almost happened, both if I had not decided to fight or if I had not called out for Draven and he had answered that call.

I could only imagine that I would have just ended up another dumped body joining the mile long list of other victims killed for being stupid enough for walking anywhere in the world alone. It being Italy, had nothing to do with it, as every country in the world had its dark side of beauty that was invisibly labelled ‘no woman’s land’.

“Are you alright?” I heard the driver ask and I looked from the window where I had subconsciously been watching the world whiz by but not taking any of it in. The guy had a strong Italian accent but his English was better than I first thought.

“Yeah…I’m fine.” I said this as if the words were glue, thick and sticky lies that didn’t want to be said. I saw him motion in his mirror to my face and said,

“Are you sure, you really look like you need a hospital?” On hearing that very word I closed my eyes and sighed.

“Look, I don’t want to seem rude and mean this in the nicest way possible…but please… just drive…alright?” I didn’t want the guy to think I was mean or anything, but I couldn’t have this guy taking me to the hospital or worse, the police. I was happy when I saw him just nod and look back at the road.

“So if not a hospital, where to?” He asked again making me frown. Hadn’t he heard me the first time?

“Eh…like I said before, just the airport will be fine…thank you.” I said leaning forward closer to the circle of holes through the Plexiglas so that he could hear me properly. He nodded to show he heard and once again I settled back against the worn black leather. You could see in the distance the sun had just begun to rise as the guy took the motorway out of the main part of the city.

He was a kind looking man who had laughter lines around the eyes and a streaking of grey peppered in jet black hair near his ears. He was what I would class as typically Italian with sun-kissed skin, dark soft eyes and a face that spoke of a world of knowledge. I just bet that nice looking family of his was back at home, all tucked up in bed like they should be.

God only knew what he thought of me, dressed like a lost little Goth, half beaten and found half collapsed by the side of the road…I was just thankful the guy had given up trying to convince me to go to the hospital, but it did beg the question, why didn’t he then insist I go to the cops? Maybe he just didn’t want to be caught up with my drama any more than he needed to be. Get me from A to B and we would both be happy.

I lifted my bag up and plonked it down next to me, thinking it might be a good idea to do some first aid. I rummaged through my bag, noticing that the looks from the driver were a mixture of concern and frustration. I decided to ignore it as I lifted up my top, hissing as the blood stuck to the raw sliced skin. Thankfully it looked much worse than it was, as now the bleeding had stopped. I knew the cut hadn’t been that deep but bloody Hell it was enough to sting like a vinegar and salt shower to a thousand paper cuts!

I jumped slightly when the light above me turned on so that I could see it better and I nodded my thanks to the driver, wondering how he’d done that?

Still looking down, I dug my hand in my bag until I felt one of the little bottles of spirits, feeling for the one with the little red hat. Once that beauty was in my hand I pulled it out and flipped off the hat, unscrewed it and broke the seal.

“Is that wise?” The driver asked me, obviously keeping a close eye on me.

“Probably not.” I replied before downing my first swig of tequila. I felt the burn of liquid and welcomed it, unlike what I was about to do next. I then poured some across my stomach washing the slice, making the dried blood run down in little bloody rivulets.

“Arrrh!” I cried at the bite of pain and tried to shut out the tears that sprang to my eyes. I took a few deep breaths and did it once more just to be sure I had cleaned it well enough. After all I remembered seeing that dirty blade and Hell only knew what he had done with it before me!

Once I thought I had been through enough self inflicting torture, I opened up the first aid bag that was no bigger than both my hands put together.

“Bloody Hell, Pip.” I moaned as the first thing I saw was a bag of jelly beans sat on top. Everything had been labelled and the first one read ‘For the pain of missing a colourful friend’. Alright that was the very last time I was putting Pip in charge of the important stuff!

I moved these to one side and found a lipstick saying ‘For when you’re ready to kiss again’ and also a hand warmer in the shape of cupid that heated when something inside is clicked. This one said ‘To warm a damaged heart’ and this was when I realised what Pip had done. This wasn’t a kit to help heal the body, but to heal the mind…she had known.

The next items helped slightly more as I found a packet of Aspirin labelled ‘for the heartbroken hangover’, which I swallowed down chased by the tequila, much to the disapproval I saw in the driver. I looked through the rest of the items, finding a business card advertising a gay club with the ladies night circled in red marker. The other side held the note ‘Just in case the Royal bastard made you wanna play for the other team…they would be lucky to have you hot stuff ;o)’

The driver shot me a look when I laughed.

“Oh Pip.” I whispered before continuing on, finding the last piece to be a chocolate heart lollypop that she had obviously made herself as the icing simply said, ‘To help in forgiving me’. I bit down on my lip to hold in my emotions and nodded to myself when I knew what needed to be done.

I first pulled off one of my gloves and used it to clean around the wounded area the best I could and then folded it to cover the cut, in case it started weeping again. Then I felt inside my bag for my phone. I scrolled through the contacts, knowing the very first person I needed to speak to. She answered on first ring but I didn’t allow her to say anything other than,

“Toots?”

“I forgive you.” I said and then hung up knowing she would know that’s all I had to say right now. She didn’t call back as I didn’t expect she would, so I scrolled to the next name on my list.

“Jack.” I said his name on a whisper, feeling the tears form.

“Keira?!” He asked half in disbelief, half in hope.

“Yeah, it’s me.” I said trying not to break down. I also tried to ignore the funny looks I was getting from the driver, so turned my body sideways in the seat to face the side window.

“Kaz, where have you been?!” Jack sounded worried and I wondered why he asked this question. See, after I had gone missing and Jack had got Lucius on the case, they had decided the best course of action was crowd control. Or in this case, ‘family and friends control’ as the last thing they needed was the police being dragged into the disappearance of one Keira Johnson/ Williams…again!

So to keep this from happening, Pip had made the rounds and rang not only Jack and RJ but also my mum and sister, pretending to be me, exact voice over and everything. So other than thinking I was going through a weird spell, the next time I actually spoke to them they were none the wiser. So I had to remind myself this was only the second time I was calling Jack, having no clue what Pip had said to him as me, but just praying she had kept the crazy flirting to a minimum.

“Why?” I asked confused by his question, as it was only a few days before that I had rung him from Pip’s apartment.

“Because I have had your ex-boyfriend half crazed on the phone demanding from me if I had heard from you or know where you are.”

“And what did you tell him?” I asked already knowing the answer to this one.

“I told him about the last time I heard from you and that you were in Germany staying with the friends you had there…I also…” I almost groaned knowing this was the start of how Draven knew about the hotel I was staying at.

“It’s alright Jack, you can tell me.” I encouraged knowing the damage was already done.

“Well, when he asked if I knew what you were doing there, I kind of let it slip that you were there looking for him.” And yep there it was, the final catalyst in contacting Lucius, no doubt to demand answers.

“It’s fine Jack, I found him so there’s no need to worry.” I heard him exhale a big sigh before asking,

“How did it go?” Now it was my turn to sigh. Then I answered truthfully,

“It was Hell on earth.” Strangely I heard both Jack and the driver curse at the same time, but only one of them I could understand. I looked up to see him quickly flip the bird at another driver, so I put it down to a ‘Co winky dink’ which was Pip’s way of explaining a coincidence.

“That bad huh?”

“You have no idea.”

“So what now?” He asked making me look to the rising sun and lift up my wrist to check out what colour the very last stone had turned. I was amazed to see it had now become a beautiful rainbow moonstone and I couldn’t help but wonder what this one had meant. I looked back at the orange glow that was the clear signs to another day and I said the only thing on my mind,

“Now, I come home.”

“You ready for that?” He asked and this was where I really hit him with the lies Draven had now warped into a truth.

“Jack honestly...? Remember what you said to me, about how some things are better left?” I asked him knowing he would.

“Yeah Keira, I do…so this means…?”

“So…The relationship I had with Dominic Draven is now well and truly dead …so yeah I would say I was more than ready for that.” I had to wipe the single tear that fell on saying such painful words. The car swerved into the next lane and started speeding past the other cars, making me wonder was this guy all of a sudden desperate to get rid of me. I was close to telling him to slow it down but considering the small amount of traffic around, I decided if he got me there sooner it wouldn’t be a bad thing.

“Well I can’t say that I’m not glad, the guy was no good for you and I said that from the start.”

“I know you did Jack and if I could go back in time and take your advice I would, just to kill the pain I feel now but I can’t.” I think I made my point enough with that confession so that would be the last comment I would get like that one.

“Point made.” I nodded and ran a hand through my hair, gripping a fistful near the base for a second. The frustration I felt was more with myself than it was with Jack.

“Thanks Jack, you’re a true friend, you know that right?”

“Yeah Keira, right back at ya.” I gave him a half smile he couldn’t see and then said,

“I gotta go.”

“Alright, but ring me whenever you manage to get a flight. I’m cool with picking you up when you need it, just give me a call…alright honey?” I put my head back and closed my eyes before saying,

“Yeah, will do Jack, see ya soon.” And then I hung up, knowing any longer and I would have cried.

I was quickly feeling the last of my reserved energy being zapped out of me and all I wanted to do now was curl up and fall into a deep dreamless sleep. I turned my head and rested it on the back seat to watch the countryside whizzing past me, when something suddenly clicked…

We were not only heading far from the city but also in the wrong direction. And it was as we passed one sign that said Como on it that it finally clicked into place. All those little reactions to the things that had been said, all those things I myself had said. I turned back round to face the driver and couldn’t help myself when I asked,

“Do you have a family back in the city?” For a minute the ‘Driver’ looked surprised by my question and then looked around before saying a sharp,

“No.” I wanted to laugh out loud for the first time in a day.

“Right” I said knowing there was no end to this man’s lies.

“Did you steal this car then?” I asked making him do a double take at me in the mirror. Before he could answer I said,

“Pull down the visor.” He did as I asked and when he saw the man’s family staring back at him he knew I had caught him in the lie.

“So I don’t suppose this is the part where you pull over the car and let me go…is it?” I asked looking back out of the window, knowing the answer when I heard the locks click.

“No, that part is long gone.” I sucked in my bottom lip and nodded my frustration, to hold back the yelling that I felt soon in coming.

“That’s what I thought. So what now, you take me back to that fortress by the lake and force your answers from me?” I asked, injecting a bite of vindictiveness into the part at the end, so that he would know I heard him when he said this to Vincent. I saw him grip the steering wheel in a crushing hold, only to fix the damage again…if only the damage done to me was that fixable.

“I would suggest silence right now, Keira.” He warned and my anger wound up even tighter, getting ready to strike.

“And I would suggest if you want that fucking silence then you pull over and let me out of this fucking car, but I doubt that is going to happen now is it?” I snapped back adding to the very few times I had actually said the F word in front of Draven.

“Careful, Keira.”

“Careful, Dominic.” I mimicked back, knowing how much he hated to hear his first name coming from me in anger. When I heard his growl I knew I had gotten to him.

“Well, I gather we have enough time for confessions Draven, so here’s an idea, you first!” I said after a time and yet another sign for Lake Como.

“Not now, Keira.” This made me snap and my reactions couldn’t be helped as I leant forward and punched the plastic divider between us and shouted,

“No NOW, Draven!” At this his head snapped round and he growled at me.

“Do that again and you will regret it.”

“I regret many things when it comes to you Draven, but right now, not one of them is showing you how fucking angry I am!” I said trying my best to inflict even the tiniest amount of pain he had done to me.

“I know you are hurt…”

“You think?” I snapped, interrupting him, knowing how much he hated this as well if the look I received was anything to go by.

“So therefore, I will take that into account for the things you say.” On hearing this I became furious!

“I couldn’t give a shit about how you take what I say Draven, but if I could choose, it would to be taken very seriously as I never took you for a disbelieving fool!” Oh this hit its mark alright but instead of reacting to his rage I was almost stunned by it. I mean why did he even care what I said to him? So without responding to him swearing in another language, saying God knows what about me in the process I just sat back in the seat and stared out of the window silently.

I mean what else could I do, or what else was I left to go on? It wasn’t like Draven was giving me any answers or excuses or anything for that matter. No, instead I was getting a big fat nothing with shit loads of heartbreak on the side!

Once I gathered Draven had regained his control through a series of deep breaths and muttered words in whatever language sounded good at the time, he had calmed enough to ask,

“Are you in any pain?” I rolled my eyes through my growing misery and said,

“None you should be concerned about.”

“And the parts that shouldn’t concern me…what of them?” He asked and I quickly made him regret it.

“The none physical pain...? Well, that I am drowning in.” I added looking back to the window once more, finding his own look of pain too much to bear. He had no right to it, no right at all given what he had put me through!

The rest of the drive neither of us spoke and I was thankful for it given that whatever he said was going to either put me tears or have me lashing out in a fit of rage. I could see us coming closer to the same place I had foolishly found yesterday, that was barely even a nightmare away. I knew I only had one last chance to do what I wanted to do, that was before I had discovered Draven was the one driving, taking over the poor guy’s vessel and using it as a tool to play puppet master.

I reached for my phone and scrolled to one last number, making Draven growl when he heard who answered the phone.

“Keira girl, are you alright, are you hurt?” Lucius asked me sounding truly worried.

“I’m alright, Draven found me.” I heard his sigh of relief and it was one I wanted to be angry with but found I couldn’t.

“He wouldn’t allow me to contact you.”

“I thought as much.” I replied quietly.

“And now?” He asked obviously referring to Draven and the fact that he had not yet destroyed my phone in protest.

“Well, now I gather he has learnt that adding to my pissed off hurt state wouldn’t be the best of ideas right now.” I said looking at Draven’s glowing purple ring in another man’s eyes.

“I can imagine not. So the question remains, what can I do for you, Pet? Because if it is to ask me to aid you in getting away from Draven, then I am afraid that would have to be a no.” I had to smile a little at the sound of Lucius being diplomatic.

“It’s not that Luc, but I did want to ask you something.”

“Go ahead my little…” He trailed off knowing that calling me my nickname right now was probably not the best of ideas with the level of shit he was already in with Draven.

“I just wanted to confirm what I think I already know.” I took a deep breath and then asked,

“Did you know before you saved me…did you always know he was alive?” I saw Draven flinch and I closed my eyes readying myself for the ache to come.

“Yes, I did.” I swallowed down the hard lump of rock solid reality and said,

“Then I want to thank you and tell you that you were right in the last thing you said to me when I left.” I heard Lucius sigh before saying,

“Alright Keira girl, I understand.”

“Goodbye, Lucius.” I said and then hung up just as Draven was pulling the taxi up to gates that were opening for us. He turned his head and looked straight at me to softly ask,

“I have to know, what was the last thing he said to you?”

“He told me of the only thing I would find here.” I said finding it painful looking at the purple I saw there.

“And that was?” I looked away from him and said in a voice that held no more emotion, but just proved how much there really was hidden there…

“A world of hurt.”

Chapter 61

Levels of Betrayal

Draven pulled the taxi through the open gates and I watched as they closed behind us, knowing I had come right back to where it all started. Till then I had been set firm on a mission to find and free the man I loved…but now that mission was over. In fact, with my first sight of Draven it was enough to tell me that mission had never even really started. I was like a soldier still fighting a war long ago lost and not knowing how to let go of failure.

The car stopped and I watched as the driver suddenly slumped forward and then off to the side, where he remained passed out. I looked out of the side window that now faced the main house and a figure emerged from the front steps. Draven was flanked first by his council and then some of the guards from Afterlife, some of whom I was used to seeing daily. The whole sight had me sucking in a tight breath in an attempt at holding on to my anger in place of the pain that wanted to consume me. But no matter how strong I pretended to be, tears still found their way past my barriers. They trickled down even as he reached the door and pulled it open.

“Come on, Keira,” said a voice that wasn’t making it any easier to bear. At least before when talking with Draven, he had been in the body of a sweet family man, just doing his job. But like this…Draven’s powerful presence, his towering frame and his commanding voice, no matter how softly spoken, still caused me such a depth of agony that I just couldn’t do it!

“Keira, get out of the car.” It wasn’t said harshly and not even with a hint of frustration, but there was something there…an underlining current lacing his words and it was only when I figured out what it was did the anger return full force.

It was pity.

I hated pity.

I loathed pity.

But coming from Draven it became so much more than something I loathed. It became a trigger. One single shot fired straight to my heart leaving nothing left for Draven to hold onto…ever again.

I nodded to myself, knowing deep within my soul this was the end and all that was left was saying so, but to do that I first had to face my Demons, Angels and every other bastard left pulling my strings. Because this was it, I was finally done.

I wiped my tears away angrily and got myself out of the car, ignoring Draven’s reaching hand. I stood refusing to look at him but still seeing my other life for the first time in months. The very ones who had all stood up at once and left me, all because their Master commanded it. And now here I was, like none of them expected me to be. Stood outside the fortress doors after infiltrating the lies and staring them all in the eye as though we had not once been side by side.

Because now I was no longer part of the family Draven had knotted me into, but I was back to being the outsider looking in. The one who had once dreamed of belonging in Draven’s world…well now I knew of the pain that lay waiting there, like a poisonous snake waiting to strike when your guards were down.

There was a piece of it in every person here and as I walked past, head held high with not an ounce of fear in my eyes, I knew what they knew. What their eyes told me, what my eyes told them. But more importantly, what their Master’s told us all from the very beginning, I just didn’t want to see it. This wasn’t the end because for me…

There was never a beginning.

I felt the air around me start to change and I knew this was down to the Master at my back. Most of his council lowered their heads in submission, but it was only Sophia and Vincent who weren’t affected.

“Keira I…” Vincent started to reach out to me but I sidestepped out of his touch and turned my head away, not being able to bring myself to even look at him right now. I knew that what was happening wasn’t his fault, just as it hadn’t been anyone else’s fault who cared for me. But right now the wound was just too raw to find comfort in those that helped inflict it, no matter what their orders had been.

I felt the pain radiating from him like an ice cold fog rising from the stone steps I walked upon. I looked straight ahead when I saw I had passed him and his sister. But I not only saw the entrance looming in front of me, but also Vincent turning away in anger from the rest of the group, thanks to the reflection in glass provided by the double doors. I must have paused for a moment as I knew that walking through those doors was the very last place I wanted to go. That’s when I felt it.

Draven’s hand touched the small of my back to motion me on, but for me that one single touch, the first real one in so long, felt like his mark branding into my flesh. I shrieked out like I had in fact been burned and jumped out of his reach, still feeling the tingles that hummed along my veins, lighting the way for fresh pain to penetrate my heart.

“Don’t touch me!” I screamed it at him, facing him for the first time and really taking in his face. The harsh lines told me just how deeply my words had cut him, but I didn’t care! He had no right to that hurt, no right at all. He had caused all of this and damn him if I didn’t want him to feel sliced open because of it, ‘cause God and the Devil only knew how much I really did need it right now!

“Very well, Keira.” He said softly as he must have known how truly on the edge I really was. I could no longer stand looking in those eyes, eyes I had once been mesmerised by, happy in the knowledge that I could freely get lost in their depths. I looked to see all the shocked faces my outburst had caused and for a moment I knew what I was seeing…

The prophecy was now lost in their eyes.

“Inside.” Draven’s one word wrenched me from all those faces that looked to have been depending on me for something I would never know.

I turned away, gladly complying if it meant getting away from them all. Zagan who had help control my Hell’s army now looked lost, consoling someone I once considered to be a sister. Celina locked in a surprised sympathy stood next to Takeshi, whose disappointment couldn’t be hidden under soulful eyes. The only one not here condemning me was Ragnar and I found I was glad for it as I think this would have been the last of the torture I could endure before I broke, confessing sins I never knew I had committed.

So, I turned away from them all, not in a dignified walk, head held high as it once was but now I ran. I let everything go and ran from the faces that would forever haunt me. Those judging faces that spoke of my failure in a way I couldn’t explain.

This was Draven’s decision not mine. He had left me, not the other way around! I should have stayed and argued this point but instead I let the coward in me rule my emotions and my actions. I heard Draven behind me shouting my name but it meant nothing. I just ran, not taking in any of my surroundings as doors and corridors all merged into one.

I didn’t know where I was going, but for some reason my journey led me to only one door. It was at the end and stood directly in front of me like a beacon to Pandora’s Box. It was the one you knew you shouldn’t open. The one you knew you should be running from not towards, but it couldn’t be helped. It was there in front of me and I knew that all I would find behind it was the very last piece to Draven’s lies…but still I reached out for the handle and opened the door.

“You!” Aurora looked up in surprise at the venomous word I spat out. She was sat amongst the broken room looking like a broken doll herself. It had been the same room I had first found Draven in and the only thing left in one piece looked to be the enormous bed with the strange rock wall headboard. I looked to the smashed glass doors that now led out to a crumbling balcony and saw a flash of my earlier self looking in. The agony I saw there was like no other and the word devastation didn’t even begin to touch the surface of it.

I looked back to Aurora, who had risen from the floor and I witnessed her make her second mistake. She sniffed and wiped the tears away from her pale cheeks and asked,

“Keira, why did you have to come back…what have you done?” This was when the bad stuff started to happen. It began with the tingling in my fingers, as a rage so profound started to seep up from the darkest place within me so that I couldn’t have controlled it if I had tried. I had no clue as to how it really happened, but one minute I was stood there taking in the destruction of the room and then I was adding to it.

Every broken piece of furniture started to rise from the floor in slow motion. Fragments of Draven’s anger held prisoner under the spell of my own fury, but it wasn’t just pieces of wood and glass that I commanded…it was also Heaven’s unlikely Angel.

Aurora’s frightened face was held frozen as was her body which my anger held in place. She too was suspended in a time only I controlled. Her tense limbs were powerless to stop me and I knew with only one thought I could have torn them from her body like a bully would to a spider.

Something in my head was screaming at me to stop, that this wasn’t right…this wasn’t me! But then the feeling of my heart being ripped from my body and used to paint this picture was what kept everything locked into the space I commanded. I felt the power hum through me like a current so strong I had to control the urge to not let it shake my body to pieces.

“Keira!” Draven shouting my name entered somewhere in the shadowed corners of my mind, but this influence that had me by the fist wouldn’t let him in. It would only watch as the reason for all my pain was held as my captive and ready to be destroyed if only I would give into the need for revenge…but then that word didn’t sit right with the parts of my brain screaming to stop.

“Keira, listen to me… try to hear my voice.” I let myself be lulled into the bliss that was someone I loved.

“Draven?” I said his name and watched as everything I controlled dropped by a few inches. I heard him exhale as though finally getting through to me.

“That’s it, listen to my voice now… this isn’t you, Keira…you wouldn’t harm anyone, so let her go.” On hearing him trying to save her, that determined part that wanted to hate lifted everything a little higher making Aurora scream.

“No! Keira you have to try and hear me when I say that is not the reason I am trying to stop you from doing this. What you saw with me and her wasn’t as it seemed! Please Keira, I stop you now only because once you cross this line there is no going back…don’t you see, this is a test!” I heard everything Draven was saying and I felt the tears flowing freely down my face as I wanted so much to believe him but how could I.

Then I asked the only thing I knew would stop the madness that raged inside me like the rivers of Hell.

“D…ddo yyou…do you… love her?” My broken words finally made it through and only when I received his answer did I let the world fall and free them all from my pain.

“No!” Draven said in such a way there was no possible way it was a lie, not even after everything he had done…this one word I would have laid my life down for and trusted in it to a point where I would have traded in every beat my heart had left.

He didn’t love her…which meant what he had done to me wasn’t all so that he could be with her. The realisation crippled me with both relief and confusion. Aurora screamed as she dropped to the unforgiving floor, along with everything else in the room, but when she started to say something, Draven just snarled one word at her,

“Go!” and then he caught me as I too crumbled to the floor.

“It’s alright my love, I have you now…I’ve got you again.” His voice felt like tasting a pill I was addicted to. So long I had been without it and now I had no choice than to let it sweep over me like a warm blanket, only hoping it wouldn’t smother me to death.

“Let me in.” Draven asked as he held me in his arms, pulling me closer to him and breathing me in like I too was his own curing drug. We were like two addicts who had been reunited with their poison, knowing how dangerous they were to each other but as with all drugs of choice…

It was only the aftermath that ate away at your soul.

“I can’t, not again.” I said sobbing in his arms knowing I couldn’t hold on to the feeling of his loving protection around me as it wasn’t real. It was all lies that no matter what words said or no matter what time lived through, one could never erase.

“Try… just try and let go of your walls, Keira and I promise you with every vow in Heaven and Hell there is, I will keep you safe, nothing will hurt you here.” He said holding me tighter to him and I sucked in one last sob as his words alone did just as much damage as his action had.

“You can’t promise me that.” I said turning in order to get closer to him, as I never wanted this moment to end, even if it was under these circumstances I just needed to hold on a little longer. Grip on a little tighter.

“Why can’t I?” He asked me, his words brushing the top of my forehead. I shuddered in his arms as his touch took away the last of my energy to fight.

“Because you can’t protect me from yourself.” This was the last thing I had the strength to say as he tore down the last of my feeble remains of the barriers I had holding him at bay. I felt his presence there take hold, flowing through me and just before the darkness he clouded my mind with overtook me, I heard his last words whispered in my ear, that I knew were words he didn’t really intend for me to hear,

“That’s what I have been doing all this time, my love.”

I woke up feeling groggy and it took me a moment to look back and understand why I was now waking in a room I had never seen before. Although, I must admit this was becoming a bad habit of mine. In the last four months just how many rooms I didn’t know had there been? How many different countries had I woken up in and how many views from an unknown bed had I seen?

And all for what, just to find myself alone in the very last bed of my journey, before going home empty handed. This was when it all came thundering back to me making me groan in pain.

“Here, take these, it should help.” Vincent’s soft voice startled me as he threw an aspirin bottle at me, landing on the big bed. I looked to the door to find him standing there, arms folded as if he had readied himself for my rejection. I sat up hissing at the pain on my stomach from the cut and also the thumping in my head from being punched…as in a lot! I popped the pill cap with one hand and grabbed the unopened bottle of water with the other. After the pills were where they needed to be, I put both down and nodded to the Angel in the doorway.

“You can come in Vincent, I promise not to be a bitch this time.” I said shaking the sleepy fog from my head and rubbing my eyes, drawing a new hiss when I touched the bruise there.

“I guess being the Angel in this picture I should feel remorse on my brother’s side for killing them, but one look at what they did and I can only find myself sorry I had not been there to help him.” I snorted a humourless laugh thinking back to the horrors that early morning held.

“Yeah well get in line, if I had found a weapon Draven would have found them in pieces.” I said not knowing if this was strictly true but it sounded good at the time.

“From what he told me you didn’t do too badly without one… what is it with you and breaking noses anyway?” He asked smiling as he came closer to sit on the bed facing me.

“Well, Hilary was a bitch and deserved it at the time, as for the other guy…I didn’t really care for his idea of making friends.” On hearing this Vincent’s anger flashed through white, clouding the beautiful crystal blue that usually looked back at me. In sight of his growing rage I placed a hand over his tensed fist and said,

“Hey, I’m fine…Draven got to me in time so let’s not go there… alright?” He looked down at my hand on top of his and before I could speak another word of comfort, he had me in his arms, holding me to him like he never wanted to let go.

“I’m so sorry, Keira.” He whispered over my head as he pulled me to the crook of his neck. I felt the emotions rise up but remembering all of yesterday, I found I no longer wanted to cry. I had nothing left in me and that was the truth. No more uncontrollable rage. No more tears from an ever flowing well of pain. And no more hate for those around me who had acted like puppets in a brutal play at the expense of my heart. I was left numb.

“What’s done is done Vincent, there is no taking it back, there is only living on past it.” I said and after another moment he pulled back to look at me. He looked to be evaluating if what I said was truly what I meant, as I gathered anything said ruled by emotions was never a good place to start when looking for that new beginning.

“You think you can?” he asked me withholding nothing.

“If Draven can, why can’t I?” I replied with another question.

“Is that what you think, that Dom has been ‘living past it’? No one lied to you when they said he was no longer living, Keira.” I shook my head in confusion at what he meant.

“I don’t…”

“Draven has been in Hell, Keira, just not the one you think.”

“I…what do you…”

“That’s quite enough, Brother.” Draven’s voice interrupted my questioning what he meant and for a moment Vincent’s eyes closed as if in discomfort. Then, without a word in parting to me, he stood and walked over to Draven who had been watching our exchange from the doorway. At the sight of him I felt my heart pinch before beating that little bit quicker. I didn’t know what it was in life that did this to us, but as soon as your soul connects on that level with another, it is then forevermore interlocked to it like no other soul on the planet.

I had seen this man in every way possible… naked, vulnerable, angry and cold, protective, fearful, loving, devoted and hopeful. And every other hundreds of emotions out there and still it was as though I was seeing him for the first time, after being forced without his perfection in my life for too long.

Vincent walked up to him and said,

“You’re still not going to tell her, are you?” Draven didn’t answer him but just shook his head in a small motion to indicate what Vincent already knew. This didn’t shock me considering Draven hadn’t given me any answers so far, not even in the sight of both my anger and my heart wrenching grief. But what did shock me was what Vincent said next and shocking me even more was Draven’s reply to it.

“Then you don’t deserve her.”

“No, I don’t.” Draven said as simply as if he had been told this by the very Gods themselves. I didn’t think my heart could break anymore but upon hearing this I know it did. Was this what his leaving me was about? Had I just heard my reasons voiced for the first time?

“How do you feel?” I had been so deep in my shock that I hadn’t noticed Vincent had now left and for the first time it was just Draven and I, alone and as we truly were.

“Confused.” I said as all physical pain was now a thing of the past, overshadowed by the biggest question of all…why?

“That’s not surprising.” He said and like his brother before him he wouldn’t come any closer until I said something.

“If you fear for my nails scratching out your eyes, I think you’re safe, although I wouldn’t let me loose in your kitchen just yet…too many pointy ends.” I said dryly, trying to kill the tension being in his presence was bound to bring. He didn’t laugh but I at least noticed a light spark brought to his eyes.

“I will have to remember that.” He replied stepping further into the room. I was expecting him to approach the bed like Vincent had done and I braced for it, knowing what being so close to him would do to me, but in the end I needn’t had worried. Instead of coming too close, he moved a chair with his mind until it was over a metre away from the bed. I had to say it hurt that he didn’t want to be close to me, but then I really couldn’t expect anything else could I…? I had to keep reminding myself that this wasn’t a reunion, this was an ending.

“I think you and I are overdue a chat, don’t you?” He said after a moment of silence had let me take in my surroundings. The room was a pretty girly room that screamed chintzy, but tastefully so. It was actually such a feminine room it was difficult to see Draven being comfortable in it.

The walls were whitewashed stone and on the only flat wall that must have been the divider to an ensuite bathroom, there was a blue and white china pattern painted, one that you would normally have found on an old Chinese plate. I looked down at the bed I was in and saw there was a folded comforter at the end in the same design which also matched the cushions both on the bed and on the cute wing backed chairs. I could at least be glad I was no longer in the same room I had found Aurora in.

This thought brought on one of deep shame at my actions and Draven must have seen it written across my face.

“How is Aurora?” I felt disgusted with myself for asking but couldn’t help it.

“I hear she’s fine.” He stated like he cared little on the matter and I couldn’t hold back the feeling of great relief I felt when I heard that he hadn’t seen her for himself.

“What happened?” I asked him, looking down at my hands that were fiddling with the sheet still covering half of me.

“You don’t know?” He asked in a surprised voice that had me really looking at him more than my usual aching glance. He was wearing a pair of light denim jeans and a charcoal shaded long sleeve t-shirt moulded to the hard lines of his ever impressive upper body…it was a painful sight to someone who, up until now, had been so used to touching such perfection.

“I…well since you…you know…” He nodded knowing what I was trying to say without words.

“I started to feel stuff happen when I get angry only…it never really seems to happen when I want it to…like when those guys…”

“I would advise you not finish that sentence.” His voice had turned hard and I saw the flash of purple lurking there around his beautifully angry eyes.

“Did you…?” He knew I was trying to ask about what happened to them all, but he cut me down with a harsh,

“They got what they deserved and more! I will not have them mentioned again, do I make myself clear?” I frowned at him and then when I saw his hands ball into fists, I decided to simply snap out,

“Crystal!” and have done with it. He nodded once and after he must have thought the silence was long enough for me to calm, he said,

“Why don’t you continue by telling me when it happened the first time.” I thought back to the first time as he suggested and was surprised to find when the first time was.

“I was on the balcony in Germany, it was just after Lucius had taken me. I was so angry, that it just kind of happened.” I said wondering at the fact that I might have lost my mind, considering here I was having this relatively calm conversation with a man I had thought dead for months.

“What happened?” Draven asked leaning forward to rest a bent arm on his knee. His hand spread out over the lower half of his face that was dark with thick stubble, making the muscle in his arm bulge and I forgot just how huge the man really was.

“I threw a shot glass across the lake at the mountain opposite and it not only hit it, but it caused some damage.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” He asked almost accusingly, which made me snap,

“Oh what, do you mean before you left me to go and find an Oracle that didn’t need saving or after that, when you then decided not to come home and just play dead instead!?” I was at least thankful for the flash of pain I saw, no matter how brief it was.

“I understand…” I held up my hand to stop him and said,

“Unless you do fancy that eye scratching after all, then I would definitely not say that you understand anything when it comes to my feelings.” I said this in a way that spoke volumes to how hard I was trying not to lose it.

“If you think this has been in anyway easy for me Keira, then you are decidedly mistaken.” His eyes bore into mine as if he was trying to will me to see something in that sentence he couldn’t say…but instead of giving him that hope, I hit him where I hoped it hurt the most.

“Oh really, well let’s put this to the test then Draven, how would you have felt that day if it had been Libby turning up at your door and telling you I was the one who was dead!?” I saw the agony that thought brought him when it wasn’t red that circled his eyes…or Hell, it wasn’t even purple…no, it was all Heaven’s blue light, an emotion I hardly ever saw on Draven…I knew I had gotten through.

“That’s what I thought, so don’t you dare say that you understand what you have put me through, Draven…never again, you get me?” I said swinging my legs round and leaning forward to make him understand exactly what I was saying.

“Alright Keira, I think you’ve made your point.”

“Agreed.” I said, getting up from the bed, making Draven lean back in his chair.

“Where are you going?” He said as though I was about to bolt out the door any minute.

“To the bathroom, unless you want to come with me to carry on with this delightful conversation whilst I pee?” He gave me pointed look that said I was acting like a child without actually saying the words. I just shrugged and then said,

“Your loss.” And stormed off to the bathroom, knowing relieving my bladder came second to needing to put some space between us. I didn’t know what was harder, us fighting with anger, standing in the aftermath of a battlefield filled with the evidence of our heartbroken fuelled power all around us…or this. Simple, calm and even reasonable to a degree that could be called civil. Either way it hurt just looking at what was no longer mine. The man I could no longer touch like I once had or the love I made no attempt to hide, as I had to do now. Because love was a weakness in this war and my heart couldn’t afford to lose again.

After using the toilet and peeing like I had needed to for days, I came out of the room asking how long I had been asleep for, when a commotion stopped me dead.

“You can’t keep me from her! Where is she…? I care not for your kingdom and I swear you this, I will tear everything apart to find her! Keira...! KEIRA!” I walked in just as Draven stepped in front of me as though to protect me. But the man looking for me was not one I would ever need protecting from, no matter what Draven thought he knew. I tried to side step only to see one mountain trying to stop another as Ragnar struggled to hold back the man trying to enter.

“Sigurd? Is that really you?”

“It’s me Lille øjesten…now let me through old man!” He said, calming his rage enough to speak softly to me.

I cried out at the sight, shouting,

“No, let him through! Please…I need him!” Draven’s head snapped round to face me and the jealous temper flaring there in his eyes was easy to spot, considering I’d had great experience with it not that long ago. Ragnar looked back to Draven, then to me and my heart melted at the sight of two men who had protected me with their very lives, time and time again.

But it was only when seeing these two stood side by side did the penny finally drop and my hands flew to my mouth in shock. I could barely believe it until the words came out and I saw the reaction to my assumption, which turned out to be a deeper level of betrayal…

“Ragnar’s your father!”

Chapter 62

Bad Blood

For a moment everyone seemed to be in a state of shock and it was obvious from different reasons for each of us. Draven looked as though he couldn’t believe I even knew who Sigurd was, let alone that I was trying to get round him to get to the man.

“You told her!?” Ragnar bellowed the question at his son and Sigurd rolled his eyes before answering his father.

“I think it’s obvious enough she figured it out without my help, old man.” He remarked dryly making Ragnar look even more pissed, which was a clear sign when his potted skin turned a deeper shade of red.

“Ok, can someone please tell me what’s going on here?!” I said before the father/son bickering stepped up another notch.

“I second that…Ragnar, what is the meaning of this?” I turned to Draven who now had his arms folded, looking even more pissed than Ragnar did. Well, at least I wasn’t the only who had no clue what the Hell was going on…which in this year seemed to be a first!

I side stepped Draven given he now had his arms folded, but this turned out to be a mistake. Before I had even made one step to Sigurd he had wrapped his arms around me and picked me up, turning on one foot so that I was once again behind him.

“I think not…now stay.” I frowned up at him and then snapped,

“Stay? What am I now, a damn dog?” He growled down at me proving what I already knew about who was the dog in this picture…well he was the one who had hurt me after all, I think calling the man a dog was pretty fitting!

“Well said, øjesten.” Sigurd said getting in on the action, which just aided in getting Draven more outraged.

“I suggest you control your child, Ragnar as I will only grant so much patience your family’s way.” Draven threatened without looking away from my eyes, which I think were matched evenly on the pissed off scale.

“Child! Ha! Yeah, well this child was the one saving your woman’s ass when you were taking this little vacation, so maybe you should add some fucking respect along with that patience, buddy!” Sigurd had clearly had enough and the tick in Draven’s jaw told me he had some time ago.

“You will hold your tongue, boy and know your place in sight of the King!” Ragnar almost roared at his son but Sigurd didn’t look in the slightest concerned. He just turned his hooded head and snarled,

“He isn’t my fucking King, Elder!” At this Draven lost all control and spun from me. He had Sigurd by the throat and in turn Sigurd did the same. They were quickly locked in this stronghold, both changing into their demons in a show of dominance. Draven’s veins flooded with pulsating purple and Sigurd unleashed his shadowed serpents that slithered in the air around by his shoulders.

The two provoked men were similar in height, with Sigurd being only an inch or so taller. Their bulky bodies were both tight with muscle giving in to the anger they displayed and seeing them opposite each other you could also see their height wasn’t the only similarity. Both of them were huge and both of them were acting like animals!

“Oh for Christ’s sake...! Stop it now!” I said rushing to try and split them up, but it was as if I wasn’t even here.

“You need to leave, son.” Ragnar said trying to get him to back down.

“The Hell I do! I have protected her and it looks like my job hasn’t finished yet!” Sigurd said making Draven react by bringing Sigurd’s face closer to his, to roar in his face,

“She doesn’t belong to you!”

“And she no longer belongs to you as you foolishly gave up that right when you relinquished your protection!” He argued back.

“She was safer without our kind being involved! Why do you think I ordered for no contact allowed and for it to be punishable by death!” Draven said this last part facing Ragnar.

“My Lord, you wouldn’t listen, but she was still in danger.” Ragnar tried but Draven shouted in denial,

“NO, she wasn’t!”

“Why don’t you tell him just how much, old man? You were with me that day.” I frowned taking this all in, feeling sick to my stomach at how much of my life was kept hidden from me.

“Explain!” Draven snarled without looking at Ragnar.

“I know what you ordered, My Lord, but I owe the girl a life debt and in the ways of my people I could not just walk away leaving her unprotected.”

“She was in no danger.” Draven was adamant in this but it was about time the guy got slapped with his own damn saying.

“Assumption is the mother through all mistakes are born” I whispered making him glare at me through his anger, but before any of us got to say anything more Ragnar continued,

“At first I just sent my son there to make sure, but then the killings started in the mountains.”

“What killings!?” This time it was Sigurd who answered, only he looked like he took greater pleasure in it than his father had,

“From the remains of what was left of the bodies, I would assume demon but there was something else.” Draven finally released Sigurd and I was thankful when Sigurd did the same.

“Tell me!” Draven looked as though he couldn’t believe this was happening but the leader in him continued to demand from those around him what he needed to know.

“It looked like both Angel and Demon were working together, but from the scorch marks I found near the bodies, I would say the Demon had been summoned and was without a host.” I thought back to that day when Jack had first told me about the attacks on the hikers found.

I had remembered feeling the same weak feeling of nausea I did now, when hearing how they had needed too many body bags for just a few bodies. But this was the first I was hearing about it being supernatural, although at the time, given that Sigurd had dropped some evidence of his own, that being an Oreo cookie packet I had given him, I had thought he had been involved. Well, I guess I had been right in a way, but it would have been nice coming from the man himself!

“And how do you know it had anything to do with Keira and wasn’t just some random attack?” Even I knew with this question Draven was clutching at straws because let’s face it, if something supernatural is going down and I am anywhere within a fifty mile radius, then it’s a given it would have something to do with me! I was starting to wonder if the whole of the supernatural race didn’t consider me as a bad penny.

“Really...? This is Keira we are talking about, Hell just her name should mean trouble!”

“Hey!” I said even though I was just thinking along the same lines not moments before.

“Sorry kid, but you know it’s true.” He said smiling down at me making me roll my eyes and bump my hip into his leg. Draven took in our exchange with a frown and his flashing eyes told me not to do that again for fear of Sigurd finding his throat ripped out.

“Whatever” I said for both their sakes.

“Anyway, I got there before the humans were all over the scene and found a picture of Keira that had no doubt fallen from the killer. It had obviously been taken by someone in her class and considering your sister isn’t the one sat next to her, I would say it was after your disappearing act.” Oh shit, and it was going so well! Sigurd looked smug when Draven took a step toward him in anger, but I quickly intervened by placing my hands on Draven’s chest that felt like I was pushing against a rolling boulder.

“Draven, please.” I pleaded looking up at him trying to drill holes into Sigurd.

“No Keira, I would be happier if you let him.” Sigurd said pulling his hood back giving us all a chance to see the serpent in his eyes start glowing.

“Knock it off big guy and quit being a big ass! He might have left me unprotected but so did you! I seem to remember you saying you would come back for me!” I challenged in an unbelievable turn of events…was I really kind of sticking up for Draven?!

“And I seemed to remember you promising me you would keep your little ass in that hotel room until I did come back for you!” He growled back.

“You do not speak to the Chosen One like that, boy!” Ragnar almost roared and we both shouted back,

“I’m not the Chosen One!”

“She’s a pain in the ass!” Only one of those statements was said in earnest but Draven looked ready to blow at both of them.

“Enough!” He ordered shutting us all up.

“I will have the matter investigated but as far as I am concerned you are no longer required in your services, the girl will be protected from here on…Ragnar, release your son of his duties.” Once again we both spoke out our annoyances at the same time.

“The Girl?!”

“The Hell I will!”

Draven ignored us both and nodded at Ragnar to continue, but as soon as he put his hand on his son’s shoulder he shrugged it off aggressively.

“No Viðara, it is not possible, you know the bond won’t allow it.” Sigurd said making Ragnar’s hand drop as if he had just remembered what his son said was true.

“I think everyone needs to just take a minute here.” I said trying to diffuse the situation that I knew was about to erupt again any minute. Besides I didn’t think Draven was going to take the fact that Sigurd and I were still blood bound as a happy, happy, joy moment!

“What bond?” This time it was his demon asking and I replaced a hand to Draven’s chest feeling the power there pulsing beneath my cold fingers. Wait…why was I suddenly feeling so cold? And my head felt like it wouldn’t stop moving…was it moving, or was it just my vision turning funny?

“I feel a bit strange here.” I whispered but no-one heard me or rather they chose to ignore me in sight of their hatred for each other.

“blóð auðit innan minn Ouroboros bók!” (Means ‘Blood fated within my Ouroboros book’ in Old Norse) I didn’t know what Sigurd had said to him but it was enough for Draven to go ballistic!

“YOU LIE!” He roared and once again they were at each other’s throats! Only this time Draven had Sigurd up against the wall and pieces of the stone crumbled from the impact. There now looked to be a Sigurd shaped indent that would forever be decorating Draven’s Italian home, as the stone dust rained to the floor.

“Stop it!” I screamed as Draven was using his forearm against Sigurd’s neck, holding him there with what looked like little strain. Sigurd in response, wasn’t helping when he started smiling. The snake started to spin and I knew this was not a good sign as things were about to go from bad to destroyer worse in seconds.

“Do something!” I shouted at Ragnar who was simply standing there with his arms crossed like a disappointed parent watching two boys fighting.

“If you think what I saw is not the truth, then you should call upon your fates for you know they cannot lie, as who do you think it was that bound us!” Draven thundered a deeper roar than before at the ceiling making pieces of it crack with the force. I had covered my ears as the woozy feeling started to increase, making me feel like my head was going to fall right off. The pain in my stomach started to cramp and I desperately wanted to end this bickering and just lie back down, but first it looked like I was going to have set a few things straight.

“Draven it’s true, he’s not lying the Oracle…the Oracle.” I couldn’t finish but Draven had heard all he needed to erupt once more. Sigurd pushed back and when I saw the tattoos on his hand start to spin I knew what that meant. I ran at them both…well more like fell into them and tried to pry them apart with what little strength I had.

“I SAID STOP IT!” I screamed at them both but then something strange happened. My heart felt like it was going to explode out of my chest and I couldn’t take air into my lungs quick enough. I felt the dizziness and nausea hit me like I was once again being punched in the face. Then I started to fall.

“Keira?”

“øjesten?” Both Draven and Sigurd said my name which sounded slurred and stretched. My head was spinning or was it just my brain? I couldn’t tell, but soon the world was horizontal and my head fell back. I opened my eyes to see Ragnar holding me but his red face was blurred.

“Hey you.” I said up at him but I didn’t receive a smile back for the one I gave him.

“What’s wrong with her!?” Sigurd asked just as it started to feel like someone had turned up the AC to the igloo setting. I felt myself being transferred to Draven’s arms before he said,

“She’s burning up.” Were they crazy, I was freezing!

“Keira, can you hear me?” Draven asked, all anger now replaced with concern.

“Cooold…sooo…so…cccold.” I tried to say but now my teeth were chattering.

“She has a fever, I need to bring her temperature down now!” I felt myself being carried somewhere but it was only when I heard the sound of water being run that I gathered it was the bathroom.

“Everyone out! Ragnar inform my brother and bring him to me… now go!” Draven sounded barely in control as shakes started to jar my body in his hold.

“Come on Keira, keep with me, sweetheart.”

“Drra…ven…wha…happ…” I couldn’t finish the sentence properly but he answered me all the same.

“I don’t know. How long have you felt like this?” I shook my head and said weakly,

“Dunno”

“You have been asleep for nearly two days, that is more than enough time for an infection to develop…were you ill before you found me…? Keira, try and focus…Keira!” He roughly jerked my body to get me to respond and did it again when I felt my head falling back on his arm.

“Keira!” My head snapped back up and I opened my eyes to find my vision still fuzzy.

“No…ill.” I said hoping this was enough for him as I wasn’t up to speaking much.

“Dom?”

“In here!” Draven shouted back to his brother who was in the other room.

“What has happened to her?!” Vincent’s disbelief was warranted considering I seemed fine not an hour ago.

“I don’t know but she is burning up with fever and is finding it difficult to stay coherent…” Draven started to recall but then erupted,

“Get him out of here!” Draven’s roar made me moan from the increased pounding it created in my head.

“Just let me see her, I think I know what it is.” Sigurd said and from the sounds of it all cockiness was gone, replaced only by the desperate need to help.

“No!”

“Dom let him help if he can, come in Sigurd.” Vincent said sternly.

“I have been feeling strange for few days and thought it might be connected to Keira.” Sigurd said and I felt an extra pair of hands on my body, this time feeling around my temple.

“Explain.” Vincent asked despite the rumbling growl of Draven’s displeasure.

“Our connection, it feels…wrong somehow.”

“Connection?” Vincent asked, only this time it was Draven who answered grimly,

“They are blood bound.”

“But how, when?!” Well if you could get Vincent to shout then you knew it was really an ‘oh shit’ moment, I thought giggling in the fog.

“I think we can add delirious to the list of symptoms,” Sigurd said dryly and I just managed to raise my middle finger at him before shouting,

“Si…ck!” Being thankful that Draven turned me in his arms so that I could vomit into what I think was the sink.

“And another one.” Sigurd said making Draven snarl,

“That’s not helping, Viking!”

“Did she have a bag with her when you found her?” Sigurd asked forgetting Draven’s comment.

“Yeah, why?” Vincent asked as Draven was busy whispering encouraging endearments in my ear, whilst smoothing back my hair.

“The book,” was all Sigurd had to say to get Vincent shouting,

“Sophia her things, where are they?”

“Sop..hia?” I said trying to lift my head to look.

“Ssshh now, take deep breaths…that’s it, can you drink?” I couldn’t see but I felt the rim of a glass being held against my bottom lip. I gulped in a mouthful only to spit it back out to rid myself of the horrible taste. The next few were drank down eagerly to kill the burn.

“Here…here it is…oh Keira.” Sophia said as she must have joined the party. Thankfully the Dravens liked big bathrooms otherwise this would have been a bit of a squeeze given how big these men were!

“Hey.” I said not wanting to be any ruder than I had been with her.

“vándr blóð!” Sigurd cursed and I opened my eyes to see him holding my book…only I didn’t know whether it was my blurred vision or the fever, but now the snake on the front looked black and infected with thin veins of ink coming from its body. It looked…

“Poisoned?” Sophia asked but Draven dismissed it the same time Sigurd did as they both said,

“Bad Blood.”

“Bad Blood.”

“You mean…blood poisoning… as in Sepsis?” No one answered Vincent but I quickly felt my top being raised up to expose my stomach. From the reactions of those around me I would say they all hit the jackpot, when everyone sucked a sharp breath.

“What the fuck! How did that happen?!”

“You said you saw her clean the wound?” Vincent said ignoring Sigurd’s outburst.

“I did but the infection must have already taken hold as I was searching for her.” Draven said as though this was all his fault, which if you wanted to find a place to start then I guess it kinda was, but it wasn’t like it was Draven who had slashed at me with a dirty knife.

“She needs healing.” Sophia said the obvious, but when the room went silent I gathered this wasn’t as easy as that.

“Dom?” She prompted but again there was no response to what she’s said, only a commanded,

“Sophia, I need you to test the water, first we need to get her temperature down…everyone else out!” Draven ordered the rest to leave and only when I heard the door close did I start to feel large hands pulling sweat dampened clothes from my body. I had to say that when I envisioned this part of our reunion all those weeks ago, this would not have played a part of the fantasy.

“Its fine, place her in and I will take care of her.” Sophia ordered just as Draven was removing the last of my underwear. I felt Draven lower me and I sucked in a stuttering breath at the feel of the tepid water.

“By the Gods, look at her, she has lost so much weight, Dom.” Sophia sounded so hurt by the sight of me that I felt out for her hand to squeeze it.

“I know.” Whereas Draven sounded like he had just discovered what real pain felt like.

“Draven.” I said his name trying to give him comfort but by his reaction he must have thought I needed it because he knelt down to me and placing a slow kiss on my forehead he said,

“I will be right outside, you are not alone…not anymore.” I felt the weight of those words stay with me and comfort me like all my past torment was now over…that was until Sophia asked the question,

“Are you going to heal her?” But it was Draven’s answer that made my blood run cold and it had nothing to do with the fever that now raged through my body…

“You know I can’t”

Chapter 63

One Last Time

After hearing those last words from Draven, I think it was safe to say I was lost. What did he mean ‘he couldn’t’? I had tried to speak to Sophia after he left but she just hushed me and told me to conserve my strength, so I decided to give up. So, with very little in options I found it easier just to give in to Sophia’s care.

She washed me gently with a velvety wash cloth, taking care around the infected area of skin that had been cut. The one thing we both did was try to pretend we weren’t listening to the argument that was going on in the next room. Although I can imagine Sophia was getting it a lot clearer than my foggy mind was…oh and of course supernatural hearing had to help.

The occasional word like ‘Hospital’ and ‘Healing’ and ‘Time’ was heard but if I had to choose one that would make it on the ‘word of the day calendar’ that one would have to go to the F word, which mainly came from my Viking warrior Sigurd, (I’d had a last minute name change from Shadowed knight protector) although that could be put down to my fever.

Speaking of which my symptoms hadn’t gotten any better by the time Draven stormed back into the bathroom to get me back out of the tub. It was obvious from one thunderous look that the argument was continuing and so far without much success.

“Wait for us outside, Sophia.” Draven said gently receiving a sisterly pat on the arm as she went past, closing the door behind her. I tried to sit up and I don’t know why, but the first thing I wanted to do was cover my nakedness. Foolish, given the amount of times this man had seen me naked. But I guess after both Sophia’s and his reaction to my new look, I felt a bit ashamed at not being able to take better care of myself.

“You don’t need to do that, sweetheart, I would never be capable of forgetting even an inch of you.” He said softly, surprising me with how tender he sounded. I didn’t know what to say to that and was at least glad I could blame it on my illness.

“Let’s get you out and dried…alright?” I nodded, not being able to look at him fully for fear of what I would find. This meant that when he finally did touch me I jumped making him whisper,

“Easy now.”

I let him get me up and out of the bath which was the easy part. The harder part came when I tried to stay on my own legs whilst he dried me off. In the end he sat me down and ran the towel over my body, no doubt creating even more heat than when he first got me in the bath to cool my temperature down. I felt the lump in my throat the entire time his hands were on me and there was no way I could look at him. I just kept my head to the side and let him finish, both hating and thanking the fact that he was so professional about it. There was nothing sexual in the way he touched me, but it wasn’t by any means not affecting the emotional side of me.

He would stop a few times when his hands could feel the bones in my ribcage and then the same again by my collar and hip bones. It was at this point I couldn’t stand it any longer.

“I’m…sorry.” I said feeling a tear creeping out from under my closed lid.

“Hey.” He said as he caught the tear and wiped it from running down my cheek. He gripped my chin and turned my head to look at him to say,

“I never want you to say that word to me again…okay?” I nodded feeling foolish and hating what we had between us. It was like a line we were no longer allowed to cross, both of us holding ourselves back, but not knowing which way to turn either.

“Draven I…” I was about to ask what happened now, not referring to my new health problem, when I started coughing. This was when the moment ended and Draven got back into action. He started to dress me in a pair of light cotton pyjama bottoms with matching top that I knew Sophia had supplied. The trousers were red and dark blue tartan and the top a navy blue vest that was soft on my burning skin.

I couldn’t keep up, one minute I was freezing, the next it was like my blood was boiling beneath my skin and all the while it felt like my head wasn’t attached properly! But if I was honest, I would have much sooner dealt with the pain than give up this precious time in Draven’s arms. And as sad as that was to admit, even after everything he had done to me, the simple fact was that I wasn’t strong enough to help myself.

So here I was, as much clinging on to the dream as I was clinging on to the man himself and wouldn’t allow myself to think about what would happen to me once he let me go again…and how would I survive it the next time?

Draven carried me back through to the room and lay me gently on the bed like the lover I remembered. Everyone else was still in attendance and I waited to see what they had to say. I felt too weak to even sit up but when the decision was made clear by Draven, I knew I still had some fight in me.

“Alright, Vincent I want the helicopter fuelled and ready to leave, Sophia I want you to notify the hospital and tell them who…”

“No!” I shouted interrupting him before he could finish that sentence.

“Keira.” He said my name as if he was about admonish a small child. I struggled to pull myself up but just ended up having Draven stop me by placing his hands on my shoulders and applying the little pressure needed to get me falling back. So, I kept shaking my head over and over until the nausea came back, but again Draven just placed his hands on either side of my head to cease my actions.

“Keira stop it…you need to listen to me, I know you’re frightened but I will be with you…”

“No…no, no, no, no, no, no, no.” I repeated over and over until he ended up trying to calm me with his hands smoothing up and down my arms, whispering ‘Ssshh’ and ‘It will be alright’.

“I told you she wouldn’t go for it.” Vincent said and Sophia quickly agreed with him.

“We spoke of this! She is going to a hospital and that is the end of it!” Draven snapped but I just grabbed at his hand trying to get him to feel the desperation in me. It wasn’t just a small fear of hospitals but something deeper inside me. It was as though the thought of going there was wrong…like fate would be depending on this point in time and I couldn’t let it go.

“Heal me…please.” I whispered trying to grip his fingers harder but not quite making it.

“We will, just hold on and we…”

“Look there is no time! Can’t you see that!” Sigurd shouted, hearing enough of my pleading. It was quite obvious from Draven’s low growl rumbling from his chest that he didn’t agree.

“Oh, for fuck sake just move out of my way and let me do it!” Sigurd said coming closer and this was when Draven reacted. He was up from the bed in one of my frantic heartbeats and stood guarding me like the Gods themselves couldn’t get to me.

“I said No!”

“And why not?” I could just see around Draven enough to make out that Sigurd had come to stand toe to toe with him and we were once again back to where we started.

“Don’t… fight” I said weakly.

“Because I don’t want your shadows touching her and I think you know what I am talking about.” Draven said sternly but surprising me when this time he kept his fury under control. I waited for Sigurd to retaliate but it never came.

“Come on my niðr, you have done all you can.” Ragnar said coming up to lay a hand on his son’s shoulder and I had to say my heart bled for him. It was a tense moment before I heard Sigurd admit defeat in the form of a released sigh.

“I will be here lille øjesten, should you need me.” He said looking down at me round Draven’s unmoveable frame, his frown not one meant for me.

“Th…anks big… guy.” I said coughing in between.

“Sophia call them, make sure they know who they’re dealing with.” Draven said again making me grab at his arm, but only getting a fistful of his sleeve.

“You can’t!” I said looking up at him with tears in my eyes.

“I’m sorry, but I have no choice.” I let the tears fall and shook my head, knowing deep down in my soul this was so utterly wrong.

“Go, all of you.” Draven ordered and I heard people all filing out of the door.

“Please…I am…begging you…heal me.” I said when I thought we were alone.

“Keira I…”

“I will do it.” Vincent said and I released a held breath, along with a whispered ‘thank you’, sent to the Heavens for this man.

“No, you…you can’t!” Draven said placing a hand on his brother’s chest to stop him from coming any closer.

“And why not?” Vincent asked sounding different.

“You know why.” Draven snapped making Vincent lean forward and respond in a scary quiet voice,

“I think you gave up that right, Dominic, when you walked away and left the rest of us to pick up the pieces of a broken hearted girl we both love.” I sucked in a laboured breath when I heard the first words of love being spoken aloud. Vincent loved me...? He must have meant as a sister…but then I remembered that kiss and it was hard to think of it like that anymore. I didn’t know how to feel about this new piece of information, but the light that sparked in my heart couldn’t be ignored.

Draven took a step back in shock and his hand dropped from his chest like it didn’t belong there.

“It is not the time for this Vincent, so as your brother, not as your King, I will ask you to stand down and let me do what is best for her.” Draven sounded calmer than I would have expected at a time like this and if I was to guess, I would say Vincent’s confession had not come as so much of a shock as I would have thought it should have.

“And why don’t you, for once in your fucking existence, ask her what she wants?!” Vincent snarled and it was only the second time I had ever heard him lose it.

“This isn’t your fight brother, so I beg of you… don’t make me act on force.” Draven was now gearing himself up as he shifted his body, waiting for Vincent to make the next call.

“That fight is long overdue, now get out of my way or give her what she needs and the only ‘Gods be damned thing’ she has asked of you!” Vincent’s voice had changed in the end and instead of sounding like a demon’s fury it sounded like a God’s!

“Please…don’t do this…I…can’t let…come in between… you.” I cried and then hated what I had to do for this to stop the madness that was ripping these two apart and me right along with it!

“I will go…take me.”

“Keira?” Vincent said my name in question to my whispered ramblings.

“Hospital.” I felt Draven kneel by my side and take one of my clammy hands in his.

“You would go to hospital just to stop this fight with my own brother?” Draven’s voice sounded thick with emotion and I could only nod, knowing what I was giving up for two brothers I loved…

The connection to Draven I craved.

The connection I had come this far to find.

The connection I had nearly given my life for…

But one I wasn’t prepared to ruin theirs for.

“Very well Keira, I will do as you ask…now leave us Vincent so that I can heal the woman we love.” He said standing and I cried out on a broken sob from such relief I could barely breathe.

“You are making the right choice.”

“By the Gods I hope so…for all our sakes.” Draven said clasping the hand his brother placed on his shoulder to show the strength in his support. Then he watched him leave before turning back to look down at me and the sadness I found there brought on more tears.

“Why are you crying, Keira?” He whispered softly, leaning over me and smoothing back the hair from my damp forehead.

“Be…because I’m…sor…sor…rry.” I said breaking down even more.

“Hey, come on now, didn’t I tell you you’re not allowed to say that word again?” I nodded and I felt him wipe under my eyes, taking the tears away with his thumbs. He gave me the time I needed to get myself to calm down until there were no more tears. I opened my eyes to find him sat next to me on the bed, playing with some strands of my hair in his fingers, taking in the shorter length, seeing the black instead of the gold that once was there.

“You did this?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?” He asked with his dark eyes flashing from my hair to my eyes.

“I guess… I thought it would help…looking different… finding you.” His eyes ringed purple at my broken admission.

“So, you did this for me?” I couldn’t voice my answer this time, not unless he wanted me in tears again. I gave him a small nod which he mirrored back.

“You don’t like it?” I was taken back by the question but answered him,

“Not really, I don’t think I make a very cool Goth.” I said making him smile for the first time, even if it was slightly held back.

“I must confess I miss the sight of my golden Goddess… but Keira, the beauty you possess starts from in here…” He placed two fingers at my heart and then continued,

“…and flows out to here.” To then run the back of his knuckles down my cheek. I blushed at his tender words and hoped it was hidden under the fever that plagued my system.

“Let’s begin shall we?” He said and I started to bite my lip in worry as I knew before we started what I really needed to ask him.

“I…um, well…”

“Just ask, sweetheart.” He said looking down at me as he ran his thumb from my chin, to the hollow of my throat, leaving sparks like lighting a match with the sensation. He smiled when I swallowed heavily under his touch and only stilled his actions when I didn’t continue.

“What will happen when…?”

“When I heal you?” He finished off for me and I nodded, hoping he would find the real meaning in that question.

“Ah, I see.” He must have seen it in my face, what I was really asking. He took a deep breath and then said,

“You know what will happen, Keira, which is why you need to be sure this is what you want?” This was when it finally hit home. The reason why Draven didn’t want to heal me. It was because we would end up crossing that line neither of us had the bravery to talk about. I found the realisation of it hurt too much to look at him, knowing he didn’t want me that way anymore, but was willing to do so just to save me. It was the cruellest of remedies for both of us, but for very different reasons.

“Look at me.” He didn’t force me but just waited patiently for me to obey and when the strength of his gaze got too much to bear, I finally looked back at him, the reason for my shame written openly across my face.

“If you think I don’t want this then you’re wrong.” He told me firmly, looking down at my body so that there was no mistaking what he meant.

“Then why…?”

“Let me explain something to you…” He said interrupting me. He sat up straighter and took one of my hands in his to play with my fingers as he spoke, which managed to take away some of my sickly symptoms. Did just his touch help start the healing?

“Why do you think the stories speak of Adam and Eve being placed to live in a Paradise on earth, when really he filled that paradise with temptations of sin?” I smirked before offering my view.

“Because the part of that story they left out was that God was just a big kid playing with an ant farm and the tree of knowledge was really a snickers bar?” I said feeling my heart soar when this time I got a full Draven smile. And other than seeing my niece being born, it was quite possibly one of the most beautiful sights I had seen in this year so far.

“I missed your humour.” Draven told my hands before he raised the one he was still playing with to place a kiss on my palm. The sensation shot straight to the centre of me, making me shudder.

“Free will, Keira. It’s what the story is really about. Every human has the chance to make the right choice or in this case, the wrong one…but either way they both have something in common.”

“Which is?”

“No matter what path people take, it will affect someone, whether it be immediate or further down the road. Eve was tempted by the apple and Adam tempted by Eve’s offering. They both knew it was wrong, but free will gave them that choice and they each took it despite the consequences.”

“What are you trying to tell me here, Draven?” I asked frowning at what he was getting at.

“That when the right temptation is around, the wrong choices are mostly likely to win, no matter who it hurts down the road.” He said this looking like a man at confession but still I had to ask,

“And what is the right temptation for you, Draven?” I whispered knowing what his answer would be but needing to hear it voiced all the same.

“Temptations of my heart.” I felt a single tear roll down my heated cheek on hearing that Draven still loved me. So this was the reason I didn’t yet have the right details. He hadn’t wanted to heal me because he knew what it would do to us both after the act.

Which meant only one thing…

We would soon have to part ways.

“It’s time for my sin, Keira.” He suddenly said looking up at me with his own heat, only his was one burning straight up from his controlled level of lust. I swallowed down a hard lump of doubt and before I was just about to voice the new feelings I had on ‘our sin’, he was touching me. As soon as those large hands spanned either side of my stomach and started moving my top up, I had lost all thoughts of right choices.

I watched as the material bunched up and up until it left my stomach bare and left the reason this moment was happening on display. The cut was red and swollen with a clear path fanning outwards to where the damage had travelled. The infection had spread and we both knew that if left untreated it would start to attack my organs, if it wasn’t already.

“You ready?” I put my head back, closed my eyes tight and nodded knowing that the first feeling to wave over me would be pain. I felt Draven move above me and when his hand held my side securely, I knew its only purpose would be to hold me down. I didn’t think you could hear the sound of skin being sliced open, but I seemed to know when Draven tore into his palm ready for the healing, as I flinched.

“You have to breathe, Keira.” Draven said thoughtfully making me let go of the breath I was holding like it was my last. Only when I did this did he touch me or I should say…Ignited me!

The second his bloody hand came into contact with my wound the room filled with a blinding light and the power of that single joining tried to lift my whole body from the bed. I cried out at the intensity of it as I felt the essence of him flow into me for the first time in months. It was as though my blood had been craving his and as soon as it found it again it latched on to it, not ever wanting to let it go again.

Fire and ice duelled within the confines of my body, turning the network of veins and arteries into a playing field. I felt that part of Draven was travelling around inside me, taking the parts of me it wanted and giving me what I needed to bind me back to Draven. It even found its way to my scalp and the tingling continued like the wind was blowing in my hair.

This wasn’t like the usual healing I had received from Draven before. The only way to describe it was like being given the chance to relive through our first joining, only speeding forward to our very last. It was like every time we made love. Every time Draven left a piece of himself behind and taking something in return. It was like all those times had combined into one single moment.

This one perfect moment.

My blood was humming beneath my skin and I opened my eyes to see myself glowing. It was as if my veins had been replaced by fibre optic lights, as you could literally see his own power being transferred into me. And my body was lapping it up like cream coated morphine. Then came the need.

That sexual need so great I felt my body would set itself alight if it didn’t seek release. I looked up to see Draven above me with the same intensity I felt, staring back at me. My hand went to his that was still fuelling me, filling me to the brim with the essence of him.

“Dra…Draven…have…to…to…stop.” I panted knowing any longer and I would come undone beneath him, losing the thread of myself as he pulled and pulled me deeper.

“No!” He growled and the hand that held me down moved to pin my wrist to the bed. The liquid purple in his eyes swam round the iris like it would soon spin out of control and I knew when it did, it would ignite his body in the same supreme energy. I used my other hand to grip at the one he used, knowing he couldn’t restrain me without first moving it. Or so I thought.

He leant down to my neck and without a second of warning he bit down into my flesh and started sucking the blood from me in desperate gulps in order to complete the connection. I came screaming his name and instead of clawing at his arm, I was now doing so by his neck. I felt the vibrations of his groan and of my release simultaneously thumping through me. But it wasn’t enough and soon I was clawing at his back, trying to get to his skin.

“Draven…I need…I need…” He released my neck and with my blood still staining his lips he said over me,

“I know what you need.” Then he licked the last of me from his lips in a slow sensual swipe, before crushing them to mine in a bruising kiss. As I opened up to him it felt as though my soul was reaching out to him and I couldn’t have been happier when he answered it. He took the kiss to a place I’d never known before, as I tasted my life’s blood on his tongue, making something so dark and sinister right to Heaven’s gates. He tasted every inch of me as if I was a new discovery that needed the time taken to do it right.

I felt his body above me shaking from the strain it seemed to take in holding himself back enough not to just pound into me and one move from me would be all it took…so I took it! I snaked my free hand down in between our bodies and grabbed hold of his straining erection in a strong grip. He broke the kiss to snarl down at me like a wild animal being taunted by its keeper and I smiled back at him, not feeling the fear that maybe I should have.

“That feels like you want me.” I said biting my lip, causing him to watch my action like I was stripping myself bare for him. Then he did something so out of character I was left with my mouth gaping. He did the same thing as I did, snaking his hand down and dipping his hand under my pants, bringing two fingers through the valley to gather the moisture there. He then brought his dripping fingers back up and staring me right in the eyes, he sucked both fingers into his mouth. It was slow, it was bad and Holy Mother of God, it was sexy!

“That’s tastes like you want me.” He then said making me moan and arch my back, pressing myself into him. Thankfully, he took the hint when I heard the sound of my pants being torn away and I looked up to see him align himself with me. His hands came up to my neckline and he gripped the material with both hands. With a sudden jerk to my upper body he tore the material down the middle, freeing my breasts for his feast.

After pulling the useless top from under me, throwing it to the ground in a bunched fist, he then cupped both my breasts making them fill his powerful hands. He groaned at the sight before bending his head to suck at each nipple in turn, turning this part of me into a meal. My heart hammered and I had to grip his shoulders just to hold onto something solid. I could feel the length of him branding my belly, it near pulsating with the wait it had to endure, moisture seeping from the end making me want to weep with the wait as well.

I moaned and writhed under him as he kissed, sucked, nipped and even painfully bit at the two points that felt like instruments played in a master’s hands. All of which felt like he was making love to them, worshipping them as if they each had their own separate wants and needs.

“Draven, please!” I begged after feeling this for so long I thought I might lose my mind.

“Say it again.” He demanded still with lips around my beautifully abused flesh.

“Draven, please.” I felt him smile around me before letting me go with each nipple receiving a last flick of his expert tongue.

“Now, time to make you scream it.” His demon was the one to add the heat at the end of this promise and I shuddered beneath him. I felt him move down the bed, running his hands down my body in the slow torturous way only the man you want knows how. He raked his nails down my sides and I cried out at the blissful trails it left behind.

“A feast for the fucking Gods!” He swore and it too managed to add to the heat he built inside me. Then his hands spread out on my inner thighs and before I could say a word of protest his hands applied the pressure needed to pry my legs apart, pinning me wide open for his pleasure. His head lowered and at the first touch of his tongue tasting me, I screamed. And I screamed. And I screamed some more. And Draven was right, after he had made me come and then come again, he had me begging the only way he wanted me to…screaming it.

“DRAVEN PLEASE!”

I gripped his hair, feeling the silken strands through my fingers before I pulled at him, desperate in something I didn’t have the brain power to fully comprehend. Did I want him to carry on, did I want him to stop or would I die if he did?!

“That’s my girl.” He said rising up above me and bringing my legs up over his arms, open and ready for the finale of the show. I tried to tear at his clothes, needing to feel his skin against mine but his eyes flashed a darker purple, before he said,

“No, Keira.” I frowned not understanding why he didn’t want to show me his upper body, to complete his nakedness. I must have closed my eyes as I tried to figure it out because Draven’s voice was at me once more, commanding things of me in way that heated my insides.

“Now show me those eyes, I want to see your soul light up as it reunites with mine.” I opened them, trying to keep them more than half lidded but after the orgasms he had given me it was hard to find the strength. He leant down to nip at my nose and said,

“Oh my poor girl, don’t worry, I wouldn’t ask too much from you my love, just give me what I want to make your Master happy.” I opened my eyes a little wider and nearly sobbed the question,

“What do you want of me, Draven?” The smile I received was all demon as he quickly plunged himself into me to the hilt, growling out and as I screamed in the perfect pitch to what he wanted, when he told me my answer,

“I want to devour every reaction from you, as I consume what will always be mine!”

And then he began to consume me, taking me whole as though he had become a man obsessed with only one action, only one goal and my God it felt painfully perfect in every way!

He moved inside of me and all that was left for me to do was hold on and give him what he wanted. Every scream, every pant, every breathless word that came from my lips he ate up with his dark gaze, like it was feeding his very soul. He took it all in… my abused bitten lips, my little panicked cries every time he hit that spot inside of me and hands that had to curl around the metal headboard like I was holding on from fear of falling from this dangerous ride. I felt completely studied and every time my face showed a different reaction he would groan and moan, turning him on to impossible levels.

But it was when his hands moved down to each grab a handful of the soft flesh of my cheeks, using them to apply more pressure and gain more power for each drive into me, that I felt utterly owned and possessed, closing my eyes and shaking my head as I felt the building of another shattering orgasm I didn’t know I would survive.

“Not yet, I forbid it!” He ordered and then the feeling would retreat back in on itself making me cry out in protest.

“No!”

“Yes Keira, I command it!” His thrusts became slower but remained just as hard as he powered himself into me, almost making me wonder if this was another of his ways in getting his essence into me because it felt like soul branding!

But every time he hit that same spot, I would arch and tense just to get closer, like chasing the storm I knew would crash into me and take me whole. But Draven was waiting for what he always waited for…my lover liked to come with the sound of me begging.

“Please.” I whispered as it built up again and again just to be ripped away from me before I could complete the union.

“No!” I cried again.

“Not good enough little love, I want to hear it, I want the world to hear it and I want the fucking Gods to HEAR IT!” He roared the last part at me as his body erupted into its demon form in preparation for we both knew what was coming.

I let the tight coil of my insides and the pressure in my mind, ready itself for the release of endorphins I had started praying for. The need was indescribable and as he let it build one last time I just knew the amount of pleasure would be too much to handle this time. My muscles screamed through the movements he demanded of them but knowing the outcome, I knew they would never give up until they had no other choice to.

I was crying now and Draven leant down to taste those tears causing the shaking of my fingertips down to my very toes as the last of the tension built.

“That’s it, get ready for it, I want my girl screaming my name.” The heat that speared across my forehead was the first tell-tale sign what was coming and it beat any fever I might have known before.

“Open your eyes for me and give it to me NOW!” He bellowed and I gave him what we both wanted more than our next breaths.

“DRAVEN PLEASSSSEEEEE LET ME COME UUUHHHHHH!” I screamed and screamed over and over, my body jacked knifed up as an orgasm so intense exploded within me, I saw a blinding light fill the room. Draven held onto me upright as he thundered his own release seconds later and his head strained up to the Heavens. The sound that came from him was nothing forged from the realms above…oh no. The glass in the windows shattered outwards and the stone walls cracked with the force of Draven’s earth shattering eruption.

The utter euphoria that came flooding through every molecule in my body was working in tandem with my shuddering body as my climax continued. It was as if it would never end unless death found me and I had to say, if this was it, then I would die screaming in utter heavenly bliss. It was torture and it was pain, but my God it was beautiful, even more so than it should ever have allowed to have been.

I felt the bands of his steel arms loosen their bruising hold and it was sickening, but I relished in the thought of there being the marks on my body as evidence to our lovemaking. It was as much beautiful as it was brutal and it was the most erotic and magical experience of my life. So no matter what came next, even if he were to throw me from this very room and banish me for all eternity from seeing him again, I still would not have been able to find it in me to regret one single second of it!

But I still released a sigh of relief when he didn’t do either of these things. No, instead he gently lowered me back to the bed and placed a sweet kiss to my forehead before pulling back to look at me. His eyes had taken on a lighter shade, one that I knew made his Angel side more pronounced.

“Are you alright?” I smiled up at him with what I knew was a sappy grin making him run his thumb over my happy lips.

“You were magnificent and I am sorry I lost so much control in sight of such perfection.” He looked torn and I couldn’t stop myself from raising my own hand to his face.

“Hey, don’t do that.” His eyes widened at my words but he didn’t argue with them, he just shifted his body down next to mine for what might be the last time. He pulled me tight into his embrace, wrapping himself around me and fitting me in the shelter of his bigger body.

“Sleep now sweetheart and don’t think about tomorrow.” I did as Draven asked but couldn’t help doing so with tears running down my face, dripping on to the still covered arm he used as my pillow.

And all because of the last words he said to me,

“You’re my apple, Keira.”

Chapter 64

When the Apple Falls

I woke up feeling as if someone had replaced me in the night with a healthier version of myself. It felt as though I had drunk straight from the Holy Grail! I sat up and couldn’t help but lift the covers to see the changes I could feel there. For starters, the slice in my belly was no longer there, with not even a scar to tell me where it had been. I poked my stomach and found myself laughing out loud at the added weight I found there.

“You could have asked me.” I muttered on another laugh as I felt my hipbones that were nowhere near as bony as they had been yesterday. It looked as if Draven had a few extra ideas when it came to healing me last night. Even my breasts had a little more plumpness to them, one that I had lost before, thanks to my forced diet in camp Hell!

“Men…it figures.” I said lifting them up and testing the weight, which was right back to what they had been. I had tried to put back my weight on when staying with Lucius, but through stress never really managed it other than a few added pounds. Well, now thanks to Draven he’d kind of took the fun right out of trying to put on weight, killing my new plan of stuffing myself silly with chocolate and cakes when I got home.

I soon found out, however, that my new weight was the least of the changes made, as I felt silky strands tickling my waist, something I hadn’t felt in so long. I cried out loud when I pulled handfuls of long blonde locks forward feeling it pull on my scalp, confirming enough that it was back!

“Oh Draven.” I whispered into my hair as I brought it to my face to take it all in. I thought back to our conversation before the healing began and found myself smiling when I remembered him asking if I liked my new hair. Then I blushed as thoughts of the actual ‘healing’ were taking place and I’d felt the tingling in my scalp, knowing this was when it was happening.

After looking at myself naked taking it all in, I decided it was better to be dressed in case anyone had the thought to pop by. I looked round hoping to find Draven’s forgotten T-shirt somewhere when I remembered something important from last night. Draven had refused to take it off…so why was that?

The sound of voices not far away brought me out of my wonderings enough to find a white robe. I quickly put it on and ran to the bathroom to use the facilities. Washing away the evidence of what happened between me and Draven last night quickly brought a deep blush to my cheeks, one that lasted till I was back in the room and running back into the bed when I heard someone coming. I jumped in and covered my lower half up just so there was no chance they would get an eyeful.

Well, if I still wasn’t blushing from the bathroom then I was when Draven walked through the door. The very sight of him had me biting my lip, which just managed to bring on thoughts of what he had been biting last night.

He was wearing a pair of worn stonewash jeans that were no doubt designer as they fit him like they were made using a mould of his perfect behind. With this he had on a plain black t-shirt that managed to show some of what I missed last night in the lines of his muscle. And I couldn’t help but notice he had his arms covered again with a light grey suit jacket. Now I thought about it, the more curious I got, wishing the light had been better the night I had first seen him, where as painful as the fact was, there was no getting away from the memory that he had been naked beneath Aurora.

“You’re awake.” Draven stated the obvious, which only happened rarely and I knew the reason behind it was because he was nervous…a feeling Draven wasn’t used to having.

“Yeah.” I didn’t think it was possible for things to be awkward between us after sex, but here it was. If anything, when it came to me and Draven, it was the making love part that was the only thing we seemed to get right. He looked as if he didn’t know whether to approach me or not.

“You can sit down you know…I’m not going to jump on you or anything.” I wanted to snap it out, but in the end it sounded more like a joke, so when he gave me a small smile I let him think his actions weren’t hurting me.

“You wound my pride…I must be losing my touch.” He joked back sitting down on the edge of the bed.

“You’re much too cocky for that to ever happen, I would just put it down to a bad day.” He gave me a sad look and then when he turned back to focus on his shoes he muttered to himself,

“Yeah, bad day.” I was about to ask him what he meant but he suddenly turned to me and asked,

“Are you sore?” This time I laughed and said,

“Well, I may be walking like I lost my donkey for a little while, but I think you got that I had a good time.” This made him burst out laughing and it filled me with pure joy to hear the sound. So much in fact, I had to hold in the tears that threatened to spill.

It was so painful how much I loved this man and even after everything he’d put me through, I would be the biggest sinner of all if I tried to say any differently. But that was my problem wasn’t it? Because I still couldn’t have this man, no matter what had happened in this broken room or in this iron bed. Now that line we crossed was back between us and no matter what happened from this point onwards, we would never be able to get it to disappear again.

“Oh and thanks for the upgrade, I told you I wasn’t rocking the Goth look.” I said needing to hear his laughter or see his smile for just that little bit longer. He picked a loose wave that was resting on top of the covers where I was sat forward and started to wrap it round his thick finger.

“I cannot lie and say it isn’t nice to see you like this again, Keira, but it is also…” His voice sounded thick, like the words were stuck and I had to prompt him to carry on.

“Also?” His eyes looked up from my hair in his hands and he shocked a breath out of me when he replied,

“Painful.” When he looked away, letting my hair fall from his fingers and looking angry with himself, I reached out to grab his arm and pull him back to me.

“Draven, don’t…” But my words were cut off when I managed to pull the sleeve of his jacket up a bit, giving me a glimpse of what he was trying to hide. I gasped at the brief sight of all those thin scarred lines that made up some sort of pattern I couldn’t see. It looked fresh, red and raw, as though it had been done over and over again, never given the chance to fully heal.

He roughly pulled back down on his sleeve and stood from the bed to get from my reach.

“What the Hell is that?! What have you done to yourself?” I demanded, feeling my head spin at the sight of him hurt. Draven who never so much as received a scratch was now hiding away his body and the secrets it held.

“That is no longer your concern.” His words were like a sucker punch in the chest.

“How dare you! If that is the case, then how is it that my own wellbeing and care is any of yours!?” On hearing my angry comeback he turned suddenly and barked,

“Your life will always concern me!” I couldn’t help it, at this I laughed, only there was nothing amusing about it. I whipped the covers off, quickly thanking I had on my robe and stood opposite him ready for the challenge.

“Oh yeah, then where were you exactly when I nearly got eaten by a Pishachas Demon? Or the time I broke into Afterlife and had bloody commandos shooting at me…? I mean, like really shooting at me for fuck sake…! Or when I got jumped by two guys and poisoned down an alleyway after trying to get into Devil’s Ring? Uh? Come on Draven WHERE WERE YOU? Oh and let’s not forget my little trip down to actual Hell, where I had a nice little chat with your Dad...!” I was so lost in my rant by this point, I actually started walking him backwards, poking him in the chest with each point I made, not paying attention to his shock or his building rage.

“…Who, by the way, doesn’t think I’m such a bad catch for you and couldn’t understand what you were thinking...! Although back then I hadn’t really understood what he was talking about, but hey guess what, now don’t I feel like the biggest idiot ever! So come on…tell me, what was so important to you that you thought leaving me alone in your world would be such a swell idea, because I have to say, when I was then involved in a battle between Hellbeasts and death dealers just before being kidnapped and left to starve in a tower, then I could really have done with you around. Oh yeah, I bet just one look at you storming the castle and coming to find your old buddy Gastian would have worked a treat!” At this point I was too far gone to stop and take note of Draven changing into his demon form as he took in all I had to tell him…his famous temper growing to monumental proportions…but I was already past the point of no return, no matter the storm that was coming.

“But you know what, you must have been far too busy knocking hip bones with little miss ‘all leg and no backbone, Aurora’ to come to my aid… no, no you just left that up to everyone else around me who had the guts to do it themselves…! For fuck sake Draven, even Jack did his part and he is a human, but what am I saying…? I mean nothing to you but a few letters saying goodbye, one last romp in the sack and enough money to buy me off your back…is that what you thought it would take…money? You have no fucking clue who you’re dealing with and the funny part of all this is, that if you’d had the balls to just tell me the truth, that you didn’t want me anymore, then I would have LEFT YOU ALONE!” I couldn’t contain the scream or the red mist that had taken over my thought process.

“But no! I fought, I fought, Draven, with everything I had in me and when all that was gone, I somehow managed to find even more! And you know why I did all this…? ALL BECAUSE I LOVED YOU!” By the end of this I was panting and so was Draven. But then I took in the reality of the situation and quickly realised I had gone way, way too far in all that I had told him.

His demon was breathing down at me and when it finally spoke, I nearly shook with fright and all he had asked was,

“Have... You… Finished?” I fearfully nodded and that’s when the world around us…

Exploded.

It once again seemed I was to be the cause of yet another destroyed room in Draven’s Italian Villa. I watched the room literally explode outwards like a bomb had just been detonated. My head whipped round in slow motion as the blast went outwards coming from the released wrath that was Draven.

I screamed at what I was seeing but then found myself quickly engulfed in flames that didn’t burn me. I jumped nearly out of my skin as not only a pair of arms wrapped around me but also a pair of blazing wings. I looked back up in desperate panic, searching for Draven’s face in the madness of his actions. Only the Draven I knew was so far gone it was amazing the two men were still the same entity.

“Draven, please don’t do this.” I tried to bring him back but the eyes burning into me, scorching my soul with the mistakes I’d made weren’t coming back any time soon.

“I didn’t want this!” His demon confessed and his hold on me tightened, crushing me to him, which barely allowed me to breathe.

“Please, stop it!”

“There is no way to stop this… there was no way to stop me other than tying me to the very gates of Tartarus when the nights came.” He sounded like something was overtaking him, ripping the words from the Angel his Demon was trying to bury.

“I don’t…Draven I don’t understand.” I asked him and the single tear I saw fall down his cheek evaporated before it could make any distance. He looked in pure agony and no matter what I had wanted Draven to feel before… it was never this…never this.

“I had to set you free of all this and it was the only way I was allowed to.” He nodded down to indicate himself in his demon form as he referred to what part of himself he was setting me free of.

“No…you couldn’t…how could you do that…why? For God’s sake Draven tell me why?” I begged him to tell me, to just put me out of my misery and let me understand why he put me through it all.

“I was shown the life you could have but I needed the hurt to keep you away, I needed to use your pain…the pain I inflicted to keep you from me…why Keira…? Why couldn’t you have just stayed away…? Why did you have to…?” I felt the tears again and again streaming down my face as I looked up at the man I loved, burning inside and out all for one reason, one reason I had to know,

“Why did…did I have to what Draven?” I cried out, only seeing him now through a watery mask that could hide nothing in what happened next. He placed his forehead to mine and added the last nail hammered in closing up my heart…

“Damn your love for me!”

And in damning the love I had for him, he had just killed it with only five words said. Just five words and the very last piece of me he owned was no more. He had finally accomplished what he had set out to do…

He’d killed our love.

Suddenly the world around us calmed and I didn’t know if it was down to me or down to his realisation. Either one, Draven turned back to his human form and we were left standing in the destruction of what our souls breaking apart had created. The link we had forged back last night had just shattered and I felt it leak out of me as though someone had just cut the power. We were one no more and now I knew why he had done what he had done. Everything had become so clear I couldn’t breathe from it.

It was simple really, as he had told me once. The everlasting memory of love brought forth from death had the power to change the world. But just as that love could change it for the better, living with the knowledge of it not returned, could no doubt change it for the worst. A sacrifice is all it takes for a leader to be reborn, but one truth dragged back through the lies left in its wake and it could all come crashing down like the sands of time it took to put it there.

And it had come crashing down into dust at our feet.

Sacrifice gone, prophecy over.

Chosen One no more.

I stumbled away from him and when he tried to catch me I screamed,

“No!” I managed to catch myself so I only half fell to the floor, but the pain was excruciating enough for me to want to stay there.

“Keira I…”

“No! For the love of God don’t say another word! Not unless you finally want to kill me!?” I said making him wince as though I had struck him. He looked close to saying something but with one glimpse at the pain he’d inflicted, he must have thought better of it. I got up and looked where to put my bare feet in the mess that scattered the floor as I was certain I would find the pieces of my heart down there amongst the wreckage.

“You know you could have saved me of all this, if you…if you had only said those very words to me instead of…. Goodbye.” I couldn’t stop the tears, Hell it felt like they would never stop! If I thought I knew pain before then I was wrong. That couldn’t even touch on what I felt now and how I was still standing I didn’t know.

But I was.

And not only was I still standing, but I stood tall and strong as I turned to him, knowing this was the last time. The apple had fallen and I, like Eve, had been cast out, only this time there would be no Adam to follow in my damned footsteps back to a harsher reality. Because Adam was the traitor to my heart and had been ever since that first day he ever spoke of his love for me.

Because love wasn’t supposed to be damned or cast aside like it no longer mattered. Love wasn’t supposed to be so easily turned into something you loathed to find staring back at you. But one look at Draven told me all I needed to know…

This was the end.

Only now it was my turn to finish it.

I walked up to what was still left of the door and with a strength that no longer surprised me, I ripped the hanging panel from its bent hinges, casting it behind me. Then I turned to face the picture of a broken man stood in the mess he’d created. He needed to know one last thing.

“I want you to do me a favour, Dominic, any time you try and convince yourself you did all this for me…” I swallowed my tears back just a little longer and said,

“…just remember it wasn’t only the ‘damned’ love I had for you that brought me to find you…” I saw him frowning as if readying himself for a truth that would change everything to him but nothing to me…not now.

“….it was the Oracle.” And with that I reached up to find the necklace he gave me and snapped it off, knowing that now that connection was dead, there was no reason left for me to wear it.

So I left it, letting it fall from my hands and leaving it where it now belonged, in the rubble, right along with the…

Broken pieces of my heart.

Chapter 65

Our Demons Speak at Last

I would have liked to have continued the story, saying this wasn’t the end and walking out of that room was followed by Draven running after me, sweeping me up in his arms and begging for forgiveness…but, that didn’t happen. What did happen was me walking away from that room to the sound of roaring pain drowning out the rest of the world. Draven’s cry was a hard thing to hold on to as my last memory of him, but he gave me no other choice.

I held on to my now bare neck, feeling as if a piece of me had been taken by the wind with no luck of ever finding it again. I felt like a walking, wandering dead girl, just hanging around waiting for one last hug from a loved one. I needed to get out of here and that’s when I started to run. I had no clue where I was going, but only stopped when I looked behind me and ran straight into a massive body.

“Keira?” I looked up and up, to find a Viking looking down at me.

“Ragnar!” My shouting his name was the only warning he got before I threw myself into him and cried as my world ended.

I didn’t remember much about what happened next but if I was to try and think back, it would start with Ragnar picking me up and cradling me in his massive arms like a small weeping child. The next thing I knew was finding myself in a different room and being handed a bag with some clothes in it.

“From Sophia.” Ragnar said before pushing me gently in the direction of a bathroom. This was where I was now and looking at myself for the first time since Draven had destroyed me for the second time. It was like being transported back in time, as I found the reflection of a girl with soulless empty eyes of grey blue and long limp hair that had once known the touch of an Angel’s love. And what was I now?

I suddenly punched the glass until it cracked, needing to see myself the way I felt.

“Now you are just you, Keira.” I said to the pieces of the girl in the mirror that finally reflected back what Draven had done. Then I did the only thing I could do…

I left my Hell behind.

When walking from the house in clothes I had barely looked at when putting them on, I found Ragnar following me.

“You’re leaving?” I turned to look back at my friend to see concern and frustration mingle as one.

“I want you to give him something from me.” I said not answering his question but giving him his answer all the same. I had the idea after I had changed and Ragnar had given me back my bag that still had in it my passport, purse, cards, everything it had before, including the Ouroboros book. So, looking down at the book and its empty pages, I thought about all the people who had gone against Draven and helped me through this wasted journey.

This had me quickly realising the danger of Draven’s wrath I might have brought to people’s doors, which I had to prevent and I knew just how to do it. So, in a turnaround of events taken place, I wasn’t the only one now leaving Draven instead of him leaving me, but I was also the one writing a letter.

I was just amazed that the book let me rip a page from its spine to use for my letter. But that might have had something to do with the faded snake on the front. I ran the tip of my finger around where the serpent used to be raised, only now it just looked like a burnt part of leather with the shape of the missing snake. I couldn’t help feeling a little sad looking down, knowing this was not only the end of my journey, but also so many connections I’d made along the way.

Which was why I spent the time in writing Draven that letter, one only made more powerful by what it was written upon. I pulled the letter from my bag, which I would have left with the man at the gate had Ragnar not followed me out.

“Give him this.” I said and then passed him the folded piece of thick paper that contained my very last wish from Draven.

“You won’t say goodbye to the others?” He asked taking it and then folding his arms over his chest. I looked back up at the house to see Vincent stood by the window with Sophia by his side, one arm around her shoulders in comfort.

“No, there is no need, not unless Draven refuses the last thing I ask of him.” I nodded back up at Vincent when he gestured the same motion down at me.

“I don’t think that will happen.” Ragnar said and I managed to give him a small smile before agreeing,

“Neither do I.”

“So, I guess this is it, but before I go…can I ask you a question?” He nodded and I took a deep breath before asking,

“That day I saw Sigurd standing watching my house, the day he wasn’t alone…it was you with him, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.” It was a simple answer, one that only managed to bring on greater confusion.

“But why?”

“Why?” He repeated and when I nodded, he lost some of his tough man stance and dragged a hand over the lower part of his face before nodding to a stone bench, one that was curved around a landscaped flower bed that mimicked the shape. I followed him and sat down next to him, making our size difference near comical.

“It is not well known but a Viking can only hope their death will mirror their life. To die in battle to those who fight, to die in child birth to those who cherish bringing life to the world…but when a life is saved then it must be offered back in return.” I shook my head and said,

“But what does that have to do with me?”

“When I lost myself to the Demon within me, you risked your life to bring me back. For me to have died how I did not live my life would have only meant greater shame on my family name…just like the first time.” I felt the weight of his meaning after he’d told me when he was my bodyguard how his wife and daughter had died, only for his own death to be thrown into a pit of snakes…which only just made me wonder, did that have something to do with why his son held the snake as a mark?

“Lodbrok is my proud name and you risked your life to keep it so. I owed you a life debt and seeing that my niðr Sigurd owed me one, I passed his debt onto you.” His chestnut coloured eyes looked down at me with beaming pride and I knew it wasn’t just for his son, but for me also.

“niðr?”

“It means ‘son’ in my native tongue, old Norse.”

“And let me guess, Viðara means father?” He smiled and nodded. I felt like smacking myself on the head as I remembered when Sigurd had been in my hotel room, on the phone to Ragnar calling him that, and I hadn’t had a clue!

“So that life debt…it’s been paid off now…right?” I asked making Ragnar chuckle, which sounded like it first came up through sandpaper.

“I would say my niðr did well in his duties, given what he had to work with.” He said full of humour and I nudged him, or at least tried to and said,

“Hey, I’m not that difficult!” At this he raised a disbelieving eyebrow, which made me give in,

“Alright…so I can be a little stubborn.” Making him once again chuckle.

“Speaking of your niðr, can you give him this for me?” I pulled out the book and was about to pass it to him when he looked over my head and said,

“Why not do so for yourself?” I followed his gaze to see Sigurd pushing his bike around the corner, which was where the garages must have been.

“I will.” I said standing, making him do the same.

“I will see you again…right?” I said feeling the lump in my throat form at the thought of not seeing my Viking Guardian again.

“Oh, I have no doubt about that, lille øjesten.” He said leaning his massive bulk down enough to grip my head gently in his giant paws and tilting my head up enough so he could kiss my forehead. Then, before I got chance to ask him what that meant, he left me with yet another tear falling down my cheek.

I turned round to where Sigurd was lifting a long leg over his bike and I found myself running to him, just to stop him before he went roaring off.

“You leaving, for good?” I asked him, making his hooded head look up from the front of his bike. He leant back and did a slow inspection of the old Keira.

“Well, well, look whose back.” He said whistling and I was surprised I had a smile for him, not because it was Sigurd but surprised that I had one for anyone right now. It was as though something was giving me the strength needed just to get home.

“What can I say, I have hung up my super hero Goth cape for the foreseeable future.” He looked up at the Heavens and said,

“Oh thank you God of Chaos for reining in one of your children!”

“Ha, ha!” I said hitting him on the arm.

“So, I gather from your heart warming meeting with the old man that you’re leaving too?”

“You saw us?”

“I didn’t want to impose on the gooey moment.” I rolled my eyes and he purposely pulled his hood back to show me him doing the same, making me laugh. It was strange, but just being around him and his father was helping with the pain I knew was ready in the wings, waiting for its chance to strike.

“You’re not by any chance going to an airport are you?”

“To get you back where you belong, I will give you a ride to any damn airport you want, darling.” I couldn’t help but agree with him. I really needed to get back to where I belonged and it was no longer with any of the people I had left in the building behind me.

“Thanks, big guy.”

“Hop on little pain in my ass.” He said winking at me with his snake eye, making it spin a little as if excited. He handed me a helmet, letting me figure out the clasp as he kicked the bike into life. This time I was no longer scared of the ride to come, but I had to put that down to the ride that had brought me to this point.

And after that one, I didn’t think there was anything left for me to be afraid of anymore. So, with one last look behind me as we pulled away, because I knew with a certainty I was right, there was nothing left to fear because…

All my nightmares had already come true.

Draven

As I watched the other part of my soul being taken from me, I felt the wood of the window’s frame give under my hands as I crushed it into splinters. I wanted to tear the room apart until there was nothing left for me to stand in…fuck that, I wanted to tear this whole Gods be damned house down to the very foundations until I finally felt enough pain physically to spare me a moment of the bitter agony that was tearing me apart!

I wrenched my tortured gaze from the window before my rage hit levels that would equal an 8.5 on the Richter scale or before I did what every molecule in my host wanted to do. My hands cracked into fists at just the thought of pleasure gained from ripping that Viking’s hands from his body, just so he could never touch her again.

Watching her leave made the brandings on my skin itch and burn just like it did every night I fought to stay away from her. They had been fighting the bindings and invisible chains I had forged to Tartarus, ever since her arrival, like a Legion of Zagan’s army. Sometimes I welcomed the irritation, giving me something other to focus on than the world of things that reminded me of my Goddess. But right now, they only aided in proving once again why I had no other choice but to give her up.

I thought on all the things she had told me of what she went through to ‘save me’ and I knew with the last words she said to me that I had been played by the fucking fates! The lies told to both of us were mounting, but with her life still hanging in the balance, I couldn’t risk acting on my doubts…no matter how much it destroyed me not to.

No! First I needed to look into all that had transpired in the time she had been without my protection. Why had I listened when I knew in my gut that leaving her with nothing but her human fate to guide her was not enough?

When I think about what could have happened…what did happen, reasons why I wanted to annihilate those involved, reminding my people of the very reasons they feared me! I wanted to prove my Hell’s heritage by making them beg me to let them claw their way into the inner ring of the seventh circle of my home in Hell! But this just brought on thoughts about my own father, who would not be out of reach in his castle from finding my wrath at his gates. Maybe I should take Sophia with me this time, she always did love to play Devil’s advocate.

When I heard all Keira had to say, I was stunned by the sheer level of love the girl could have for me. I didn’t think it was possible for the strength of her love to match my very own and my pride was overflowing for the power she possessed. Of course, it was also over ridden by the murdering desire that raged through my host like a hurricane needing to destroy everything in its path, but the girl in front of me.

Keeper of my heart and soul.

And what had I been forced to do…damn that keeper and love she displayed with her very life. But what choice did I have? After all I had been forced to do to her, she still looked up at me as though I was her whole world, when in reality I had ripped her fucking world apart, leaving her left with nothing more than the pieces twice trampled on. No wonder she tore the necklace I gave her from her neck as if it was burning her flesh wearing it any longer, and by the Gods had it killed me to watch.

I crossed over the vast space that was my personal suite on the grounds, after having to first fix the damage I inflicted to the adjoining room that Keira had stayed in. I couldn’t let her see the level of my obsession that looked more like a shrine to the girl. I’d had every picture I could get hold of printed onto large canvas that covered all of one wall. Some of which were just enlarged pieces of her that I needed to see on a daily basis. One of her at home baking in her sister’s kitchen, sweet mixture on her face, reminding me painfully of teasing her about licking it off when her sister wasn’t looking. I still remember seeing the blush that never ceased to get me battling my host for control of an erection that wanted to remain in her presence. The damn thing was like a homing missile where she was concerned!

There was another one of her taken at Christmas, when she sat in a pair of those adorable pyjamas, trying on a woollen knitted hat someone had given her, that would have been a preferable size for my chief of security, Ragnar. She had pulled it down her face until her little nose was peeking through and although it was the only one where most of her face was hidden, the smile she had graced the camera, made my heart ache every time I looked at it.

I would sometimes find myself just staring at this wall for hours, trying to piece together enough to hold onto the details as I remained locked to Tartarus, my prison of choice. I would have Palladio blasting through the speakers as I geared myself up for another night in my personal Hell, the very one Keira had been trying to free me from.

But having Keira back, just having that sweetness there in my life for what would be considered a fleeting moment of time in the endless years of my existence, had been ambrosia coated agony. It had been all that was needed to keep me going and yet never enough to get me through. Seeing her body laid out beneath me once more, writhing in the pleasures only she had the right to ask of me, was my Heaven’s paradise. I hadn’t lied when I spoke of her being my apple’s sin. The very reason I would choose madness over logic, just for one taste of that honeyed core that is my Keira.

Even one more time, giving in and healing her had been my breaking point. When she had begged me I had nearly wept like the adolescent I was never given that chance to be. But when she put all that fear aside just to bring peace back to two arguing brothers, I could no longer deny her for what she asked, no matter the sweet pain she would bring me in reclaiming her soul.

As soon as I bit into her and the first drop of her life had coated my tongue, I had to close my eyes against the emotion that was ripping its way out of me. For someone who kept such a tight control over their human side, it was astounding to me that one small girl could shred that control like a paper man.

To her hear beg for me, beg for things only I knew I could give her was a cruel bliss that rendered me solely in her control. Not that she knew any of this. Not that she knew all the supernatural effort it took in holding myself back, holding off just to drag a few more of those breathy moans from her. A few more moments to see her straining body as I took and took, her never knowing just how much she gave and gave back in return.

My beautiful girl.

I had to tear my gaze from her pictures. The memories still so fresh in my mind, that the Demon in me pounded inside my host to go and reclaim her…again and again. So, with an angry scowl for being so weak, I turned back to my room. One that I would not taint by being the place that took me back to Hell each night. I would not let another soul into this space, let alone the female hands it took each time to send me back to Tartarus.

To know how Keira had first found me, just before Aurora sent me back to the abyss, was just another cruelty I had inflicted upon her. If she only knew the real depth of disdain I had for the Angel in her given task, she would have curled her lip in disgust for what I had to endure, not for what she had seen.

Aurora meant nothing to me other than a torturer’s means to an end. And if it wasn’t for her Heavenly connections to those who controlled Tartarus, then she would be the very last being I would have ordered to help. The fact that she would insist every night dressing like a harem girl only made the process more infuriating to bear.

I couldn’t help the growl that rumbled up from a beast of anger, one that had lived inside me for so long now it was getting harder to find the man within. But turning to what Keira’s fair hands had created for me had me calming.

The only other colour in my space, other than my beautiful girl, was from the beautiful paintings that she had given to me. One of which I headed to now. This one painting was one she always wanted me to get rid of as it reminded her of foolish times. It was one she painted whilst under the influence of alcohol, which was testament alone in how much my little vixen could consume.

By the Gods, I had seen warriors consume less and not be able to put two coherent sentences together, let alone fight, but my little love could not only hold her poison but paint an exquisite masterpiece after this fact.

By the memory of Zeus, I would even find myself getting hard at the thought, yet the woman had little idea at just how weak she made me! Me…the King of all my kind, strong enough to bring even some Gods to their knees and this little innocent lamb could click her fingers and have me dance naked at her feet for her amusement…And Holy Hell wouldn’t I just get off on it!

But this was what my days had become. Mental ramblings over a girl I obsessed over every minute the day passed and every extended one in Tartarus through the nights. Which made the picture I touched now even more significant to our forced parting.

It was of a pulsating heart, one not painted like that of the organ. It was suspended in a dark forest as though locked there. It glowed though the dangerous night, despite its looming surroundings and the way she had added depth to the simple shape brought it out on the canvas.

But this wasn’t the part that felt like it mirrored my own, that beat desperately to get back to its true owner. It was the huge, jagged lightning bolt that came from above and struck the heart’s core, splitting it in two. And seeing as that bolt came from above where the fates resided and played their games of chance with little regard for which of the strings they pulled and were attached to whom, I would say it was more than a little fitting.

I remember Keira telling me the large side was my heart as I was the stronger one in the relationship. I had given her a look at the time she couldn’t read, but I refused to say where that look was really born from. It only proved what little she really knew when it came to my love for her, but one thing was certain, now there was no taking back the chance to ever prove it.

On closing my eyes for a moment to try and not think about the level of hurt I had to act on just to get her to leave, but it helped little. I opened my eyes the same time as I opened the picture door that hid the safe behind. I put in Keira’s birthday as the combination along with my thumb print in the middle console. The door clicked open and in it I placed her necklace along with the other treasures that lay there, all from my girl.

My most prized possession, other than Keira, was the collection of diaries she had given me of her life before the one I knew. I had read every word written and had them branded to my memory so that I didn’t miss a thing.

Everything from the day she didn’t get picked on the school team for netball, to the times she saw Demons and Angels in her day to day life. It was amazing, even at such a young age, the strength she displayed and the courage she not only possessed but conveyed onto others around her. She was a creature to be worshiped, admired and adored just for being her. And in every way she was my Chosen One, my Electus, but other than to risk her life, which I was never going to be prepared to do, I had no choice than to let her live a life without me in it.

The thought always turned me murderous.

I heard my brother coming, but seeing that I allowed no-one into this room, that I considered for my eyes only, he waited by the door, knowing I would come out when ready. I slammed the safe door shut hearing the beep, but keeping my anger in check long enough to be careful in closing the hinged painting.

I was across the room taking no care in travelling at a human’s pace as I wanted to get this meeting over with as soon as I could, having enough time to come back here before starting my nightly sentence. It was the only comfort I had and as little as it did to soothe back the pain, it was something.

This time between my brother and I had been building since the day I announced my plans to leave Keira. The fight went on for hours until even our hosts had long since given up. As always no one won the fight, but when Vincent had crossed the line by declaring his love for my Keira, a fact I knew long ago, I had almost gone too far with a blade at my brother’s neck.

Since that day we refused to talk about the reasons why. Only parts of it Vincent actually knew, but what he didn’t was about to come to light today. Something else in my life I had to look forward to, I thought with a sarcasm I normally couldn’t abide.

“Vincent.” I said trying my best not to sound as aggressive as I almost always did. The only one these days who didn’t get this venomous side of me was my little sister, although she could more than hold her own.

“I have something for you.” I knew he did as Ragnar would have no doubt opted to avoid me at all costs at this moment. I knew he had disobeyed me, but how could I punish the demon that passed on a life debt just to continue to protect my human, where I had failed. If anything, I owed my chief of security my very life in return!

“I know, follow me to the roof.” I said needing the air before my time in Tartarus. Hell, who was I kidding, I only wanted to see if I could catch her scent on the wind one last time. The fact that I hadn’t been able to scent her or feel a connection just proved how damn arrogant I had become. When she had whispered my very words back to me about presumption, I knew then and there her powers had grown incredibly strong and in such a short time, even without the proper guidance.

I didn’t look behind me to see Vincent following, as I knew my brother would have followed me into Tartarus every night, if I would only let him. I walked to the nearest balcony and without much thought put into the action, I jumped first to the railing and off it straight up until coming to the rooftop garden Sophia had insisted on. I landed, using a little too much force needed, which ended up with me fixing the cracked Italian stone my feet had destroyed.

Vincent’s more graceful landing was something that made me want to growl, but I managed to control it by grinding my teeth instead.

“You know what this is?” Vincent asked as he handed the small piece of paper over. I knew what it was and how much control she must be able to wield over the book of Ouroboros to tear from its bindings. My girl was becoming more impressive by the day. What I didn’t know was what it contained, although given how well I knew Keira’s heart, I could easily guess.

Draven,

This is not a letter of goodbye or sweet sentiments like the lies you wrote to me. I think everything that needed to be said (or more like heard on my part) was completely understood.

So I am writing to you now to ask but two things of you, in hopes you feel enough guilt to grant them to me.

All the people involved in helping me mainly did so for risk of their life to save my own. Therefore I can only hope you will keep this in mind so as to prevent any punishment you feel the need to inflict.

Try to remember your actions are the sole reason behind what I did and without first the lies, then the truth would have lived without danger. I hate to point the blame here but it’s hard not to when I am given no reasons behind your actions other than cryptic sentences that you know will drive me crazy! But you and your kind were always good at that one, so I guess I should not be surprised.

But this is not all I ask. In choosing to be with you I therefore gained a family and as much as you don’t like it, I ask for you not to keep them from me, or me from them. I love them all and just because of us breaking up, I do not need you breaking my heart further by taking them away from me…again. Please, this is all I ask of you and if it’s begging you want to hear then consider this letter just that.

Well that’s it I guess, nothing more to say between us than a painful hope that the decisions you made bring you a happiness, for I know they will not for me.

But I guess you already knew that.

Take care of my family

Keira.

 No being on earth or beyond had the power to stop the roar that erupted out of me as I fell to my knees and cursed the fates. I felt Vincent near me which offered me a fraction of comfort, but it was not enough…it would never be enough!

“Why brother…just tell me why?” He asked of me and this time I broke. I could feel the tears falling with no way to stop them. The pain that each one represented was immeasurable! My heart was fucking breaking and one girl held all the pieces and what had I done…

Broke her.

“Dom, please just say the words…” Vincent begged me and I wanted to bitterly laugh at the irony her words had meant, that were now reminded by my own kin. He wanted to know the level of misery I lived in then so be it. I would tell him and then he would finally know what I would eventually become if I stayed with the girl I loved.

“If I stay, then the fates say I will…” I broke on a sob I was not proud of but knew couldn’t be stopped as the words of realisation were finally heard for the first time…

“You will what brother….you will what?!” Vincent’s desperate plea to know would also break him, as how could it not? But no matter now as my mouth opened to say the words…

“I will kill her.”

Epilogue

In Everyone’s Eye, There’s an Apple

The flight back to Portland from New York was, thankfully, a quiet one. Most people on the plane were asleep and I wish I was ready to join them. You could almost tell what people were doing on this flight, whether it be for business, or coming back from seeing family and vice versa. Either way I doubted anyone could guess the same for me.

At the airport back in Milan I had the emotional task of saying goodbye to Sigurd, really not knowing this time if I would see him again. I pulled the book from my bag and passed it to him, which felt as if he was also taking a piece of me on his next journey, wherever that may lead him.

“I think there might be one more thing for you to see, øjesten.” He said holding the book out and as he placed one hand over the injured snake, I saw under his hood the serpent in his eye start to spin and glow. I waited until I watched a shadowed tattoo appear under the cuff of his jacket. It snaked round his hand and onto the book so that when he moved his hand the Ouroboros was back.

He gave me back the book and my hands shook as I opened its pages.

The fourth Quarter Moon - The Rainbow moonstone. To aid those that feel alone, lost or Vulnerable. It helps those that need emotional healing and acts like a prism, diffusing the energy throughout the aura. It provides deep psychic protection and senses emotional trauma. This stone is aligned with the Goddess needed in your aid if the fates feel it is permitted to act justly so. But to gain their help, you must first act justly so.

“And now…? What of the bracelet now?” I asked out loud hoping the book was in the giving mood.

The New Moon - The Grey Moonstone represents new potential to the Goddess, which is needed as an offering. This stone will aid in the new gifts handed to the one chosen by the Electus. Useful in all unseen realms but more so to the shadowed lands, ruled by the Ouroboros King. In doing so you will find him his future and with it whosoever carries the mysteries and powers of the new moon, where all things that exist in his world are hers to potentially foresee. Choose wisely and be granted favour with the fates you seek.

So, in a nut shell, I had to pass on the bracelet when the time came to the right girl. One I would unknowingly be condemning her life to this unseen world in which I lived. But the part about Sigurd meeting this girl added a massive weight to an already pair of weighty shoulders. And how would I know who the right girl was?

I almost threw the book back at Sigurd who had not seen what had been foretold to come. The words in fact were already bleeding from the page but wait…they were reforming something else.

“I think this is your reply just coming in.” Sigurd said dryly just as the single line holding my answer started to become legible. It simply said,

Consider Your Terms

My Undying Promise

To You

Draven

After this, my last goodbye of the day was given as a silent embrace and a single tear falling, telling him all he needed to know.

Mine from him however was a lesson to be learned. I was just about to cross the road to hear him call my given nickname one more time. I turned to look back at my shadowed knight sat atop his steel steed to hear him say,

“Lille øjesten means ‘Little Apple’, it’s what my father always called you…the only other person he called that was my sister. It means…The apple of her father’s eye, she who is greatly loved…I just thought you should know the level of our love, Keira.” And then, without another word, he fired up his bike and left me stood silently sobbing as the tears couldn’t be helped.

Suddenly, being someone’s apple was no longer a bad thing.

“Are you alright?” A young girl I sat next to asked me. She could be no more than about fifteen, but the depth of knowledge behind those chocolate eyes was startling. She was thin and looked to be still in the awkward growing stage, having no breasts or no hips to speak of. She wore big baggy clothes like she was unsure of herself and wanted to keep her slight frame under the protection of a rock band hoodie and baggy trousers.

But the beauty in her face was remarkable and angelic in an innocent kind of way. Oh, she was going to be a real beauty alright and just wait till my world got their first look at her! Large eyes, satiny dark hair and naturally red lips…she was stunning.

“Uh…yeah…actually no.” I answered honestly.

“I didn’t think so.” She said and before she continued, she looked to the woman sound asleep next to her.

“This time next year things will be different you know.” She informed me as if she knew this with absolute certainty.

“But when the time comes, I wouldn’t lift up your skirts and walk up those steps if I were you.” I frowned and then said,

“Who are you?” In a whisper.

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to freak you out or anything…it’s just, sometimes I can’t help it you know…” She looked over her shoulder at the woman asleep again and when she was satisfied said,

“…it’s why I have been passed around so much…makes me wonder if this next family will want me or for how long.”

“You’re an orphan?” I knew I guessed right when I saw her wince.

“Yep, that’s me, I’m without a family and everyone else is without a clue.” She looked sideways at me and then said,

“Sorry.” I couldn’t help but give her a small laugh.

“Oh, trust me on this one honey, when I say I know how you feel, I know how you feel…I may not be an orphan, but trust me I know what it’s like to be something that people would never understand.” The look she gave me was priceless, one of pure shock and if I wasn’t mistaken, also fear.

“You’re different too?” The girl looked as if she was close to sitting on my lap.

“Yeah, since I was seven, although I don’t think it’s the same thing you have…you’re clairvoyant right?” She nodded and kept looking round as if she would soon be found out.

“It’s okay, I know how people can judge you and distrust you, but that will all change…one day you won’t have to hide who you are from everyone.”

“How can you say that?” She shook her head and then added,

“No, that would never happen.” I nudged her shoulder and said,

“Have faith, I know these things, one day there will come a guy hidden in a hooded form. You will be scared at first…I know I was.” I said on a laugh, looking out of the window I was sat next to.

“He’s pretty big but handsome all the same and man, if you have a thing for tattoos, then you will love this guy. But the main thing is, he will help you when the time comes and he will guide you when you ask him to…the only thing to do now is hold on to who you are, no matter what they…” I nodded to all the rest of the ‘normal’ people on the plane,

“…all think of you. There is only one you, there will only ever be one you and remember, the only thing that matters is being true to just you.” And this was the point where I pulled the bracelet off my wrist for the first time since my birthday and reattached it to the wrist of a girl that I knew in my very bones was one day going to go through her own journey and when that time came…

I wanted her to be ready.

“By the way, I’m Keira.” I said after she examined the bracelet as though she had been waiting for it all her life. I smiled as I witnessed the tingles that I knew travelled up her arm, just like mine had.

“I’m Leora.” She whispered, still not being able to take her eyes from the stones and I sent up a little prayer to the Goddess,

‘Please, take care of this one’.

The flight hadn’t been long but I was thankful it gave me enough time to meet my own ‘chosen one’. We both chatted away until I heard we would be landing soon and I had needed a pee for a while. I got up and went to the part of the plane that was curtained off, noticing the toilets as I had boarded. Someone was in there, so I waited feeling a strange sense that I knew who was behind the doors.

I looked back down the aisle to see that Leora looked as if she was trying to tell me something but her counsel worker had woken up and was trying to get her to put on her seatbelt.

“Miss, the plane will be landing shortly, please take your seat.” I looked to the hostess and said,

“But I just need the…” And that’s when there was a flush and the sound of the door unlocking. We both turned to see the man exit and I could swear you could hear the hostess swoon.

“I’m sure you can let her, as I am sure you will be quick, won’t you now miss…” The smoothest French accent flowed from the lips of a gorgeous man that looked as if he’d stepped off the screen for an aftershave ad.

“Uh…” I struggled and the hostess ran a finger down the hanging clipboard and said,

“Catherine Williams, 27C.”

“Yeah, what she said.” I replied dumbly, making him chuckle.

“Well, as I was saying, I am sure Miss Williams can be quick now, can’t you?” I nodded like a dumb blonde and only when he went to slide past me, did I do the same. The brief contact was enough to tell me there was something strangely alluring about this guy.

When I had the fastest pee on Keira record I opened up the door to find the hostess waiting, tapping her foot impatiently.

“You don’t have time to get to your seat, so please sit in one of the empties.” I looked around and saw my mystery guy was sat waiting for me with his arm extended at the back of the unoccupied seat next to him. He patted the top and said,

“I would be honoured, Catherine.” The way he said my name was like a promise for things to come.

“Eh…yeah, sure, why not?” I said taking the seat.

“Please, allow me.” He said taking me by surprise when he started to buckle my seatbelt for me. I lifted my hands out of the way and he looked up from bending over me slightly to give me a smirk and a wink.

“I’m Alex…” He extended his hand after straightening and as soon as I placed my hand in his he continued,

“Alexander Cain.”

Just then a shudder laced through my body as though someone was trying to tell me something and that something was simple…

This guy wasn’t all he seemed.

To Be Continued…

    THE

PENTAGRAM

    CHILD

COMING SOON 2014

Read on for an excerpt from

The Pentagram Child

“It was over ten months ago, Keira…get a grip!” I said to myself in the mirror, after first looking round to check no-one else was in any of the cubicles. I washed my hands again in the lavish sinks that one would never expect to see in a Gothic nightclub, but then again this wasn’t just any Gothic nightclub…

This was Afterlife.

It was the first time I had come here since it reopened back in October last year and now we were in June. It felt as if so much had happened since then and yet nothing at all. Well, nothing at all compared to how my life usually went. For starters, there were no kidnappings, no attacks, no battles of any kind, not unless you called trying to change Ella’s nappy a battle…that kid just hated being still for more than a second!

I could even say that not one single person had tried to drug me yet and I was starting to feel…well, I guess a little bored with normality. Even my boyfriend, who I should probably mention was at least slightly supernatural, was as normal as they came. Sure, he was gorgeous and amazingly talented when it came to design, but he was an architect for God’s sake…I mean how normal could I get after dating Mr D. (I had forbidden myself from saying the D word not long after I arrived home). I mean, he might as well have been a dentist or an accountant!

But he was a good guy and after the emotional rollercoaster I had been on, then I needed a good ‘normal’ guy. And Alex Cain was more than a good guy, he was a friggin’ saint! But don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I met him on that flight and ‘bam’ we started dating…not even close. It was actually at college that I bumped into him again, as he was giving a lecture for the architectural department and when I say bumped, I mean in true Keira fashion, I fell into him.

You know how it is. It was after a depressing Christmas and New Year where I was about as happy as a two week old turkey sandwich! I tried not to let it be known, putting on a smile for my family’s sake, but there were certain things I couldn’t do, no matter how traditional they were in the William’s household. For one thing, everyone got their gifts from me in gift bags instead of wrapping paper because it was too painful a memory of when Draven and I were in my old room wrapping gifts together.

Oh and I stupidly crammed in Christmas pud, just because last year we declined it after dinner to go back upstairs…poor Frank had to go out in the snow and get me a packet of Rennies from the only place he could find open.

So, by the time I went back to college I was in desperate need to focus on anything that had nothing to do with a certain someone. I can’t say it didn’t still hurt, oh Hell no, it hurt every damn day! But as the days went on, as the time passed, it just hurt a little less. That was ok of course, until my friends had finally ground me down into coming to Afterlife to see them…I am not talking about Jack and RJ.

Because the main difference this time was that ‘he who shall not be named’ had kept to his word. I spoke to Sophia and Pip almost every day, but I always refused any information on him. I’d even met up with them both a few times since, along with seeing Lucius when he was near Portland, which granted was once and that was because I quote ‘Squeak nagged me’.

I had even seen Vincent on occasion and once we went for a ride on his bike to nowhere in particular, just somewhere and anywhere we could be alone. There was never anything in it, but spending time with someone I loved like a brother and always would, meant the world to me. He had tried to tell me about his brother a few times but after I made it more than a little clear (I was loud), he gave up.

I had even had a postcard from Sigurd, which was funny as it had on it a man’s naked behind with a tattoo on one cheek that was stamped ‘Pain in the ass women belong here’. I had tears in my eyes that day and laughed until it hurt. But I had to say the biggest shocker of all was when one day Jared showed up at my door. Frank nearly had a heart attack at seeing a biker on his doorstep asking for me.

He told me he was just passing through and wanted to know if I fancied getting a drink with him. It took me three days to convince Frank and Libby that I wasn’t going off the deep end and becoming a biker chick or a Hell’s Angel’s old lady! (Which had me again in stitches laughing when Libby had said that’s what they call them).

I think that was why they seemed so relieved when I finally introduced them to Alex. Libby had to fan herself in the kitchen when she heard his French accent. I just laughed and shook my head knowing my family was nuts, but I loved them.

Alex was originally born in America, but he was brought up mostly in Bordeaux, in the South of France, to then study in Paris. Both his parents were dead, but that was about as much as I had been able to get from him, as it was clearly a touchy subject, which was fair enough considering I had quite a few of those myself.

He travelled quite a bit, which was also alright with me as I wasn’t ready to jump into a demanding relationship just yet. But the strangest thing about our relationship, which had been over six months now, was that we had not once had sex. We had done some stuff together but the actual act was not on the cards yet and I found myself conflicted, wondering if I ever would be able to. I was just happy this wasn’t just down to me as he was deeply religious and didn’t believe in sex before marriage.

I couldn’t believe my luck. I had found the one guy out there who was old-fashioned enough to think this way and I couldn’t have been happier for it. After that night with you know who, I couldn’t seem to be able to get past it enough to even try, but thankfully with Alex I didn’t even have to.

Which brings us back to now and why I have been in the loo for the last ten minutes having a series of mini panic attacks. Sophia had convinced me to come to Afterlife tonight as she and Vincent were coming back for a few weeks. My first question had been answered even before I asked it.

“Don’t worry Keira, Dominic won’t be there.” The relief was obvious in the whoosh of air that came from my side of the phone. Sophia just laughed at me and then talked my ear off for an hour and half until I caved in. So now, for the first time in over a year, I was back and weeing my not so big girl knickers!

“Yo Bit’ch, your yummy French pie told me to come in here and get you…oh and he told me to say ‘Surprise’!” RJ said coming to jump up on the sinks to face me.

“He’s here?! He said he couldn’t come.” I said letting a new panic set in. I had told him my plans and silently thanked my lucky stars when he said he would still be in Portland, where the main offices for the company he worked for were stationed.

I had told Vincent and Sophia about Alex and even though they didn’t pass judgement, you could see they weren’t about to do cartwheels over the fact any time soon. But I guess who could really blame them? I had dated their brother and was supposedly destined for him by the very Gods, who had buggered things up for us in the first place!

“I think that’s where the whole ‘Surprise’ thing came in.” RJ said smirking.

“Oh God!” I said running the tap again to wash my hands which I had done about six times now. I mean, Afterlife offered nice soap in the ladies, but it wasn’t that nice!

“Oh come on, it isn’t that bad and besides, you were the one who said Draverlicous wouldn’t be here…right?”

“I wish you would stop calling him that.” I grumbled, bracing my ‘very’ clean hands on the sink and focusing on the ring of bubbles I had created by the plug hole.

“Hey Kaz, you know he is fair game now, not that that would ever help any of us commoners or the fact that the guy has done a Houdini as he never comes here anymore, is despite the fact.”

“Yeah well, you’re all welcome to him!” I commented bitterly, something I obviously didn’t mean but it was just easier acting this way. No one seemed to ask questions when I played the bitchy sour Ex.

“So, you coming or what, ‘cause I got to say, you hide out any longer in here and Cassie bitch features is gonna get her claws in your man, and this year’s fashion choice is seedy strip club.” I laughed at the thought of Alex dealing with that. Hell, one conversation with my boyfriend and this summer’s fashion would soon be Sunday school or slutty nun…but if I was to bet on just one I would go with the first for sure!

“Fine, let’s get this over with.” RJ slapped me on the shoulder and said,

“Now that’s the spirit…wow when did my optimistic friend get so much fun?” RJ asked sarcastically, making me check my fingernails only by keeping the middle finger extended her way. She just laughed and grabbed my hand to pull me from my hiding place.

“Come on blondie, time for the VIP treatment once again.” At this I groaned making her laugh, when really all I wanted to do was run screaming from the doors, in a comical, girly dramatic fashion like you see in the movies. After all, I remembered all too well what happened the first time I got suckered up into Afterlife’s VIP. I had not come out of it the same person that was for sure, which just begged the question, what would happen to me this time?

“There you are, Catherine.” Oh yeah, and ever since he got introduced to me via a snooty hostess as Catherine, that’s what he continued to call me. Or sometimes even Cathy for short. It didn’t bother me, if anything it felt nice being called something different that didn’t just end up reminding me of a certain someone whenever we were kissing or just spending time together.

I think the biggest appeal to Alex was that nothing he ever did reminded me of him. There was not one ounce that could even tie the two men together and other than first meeting him on my way back home last year, there was nothing that tied him to my memories. Of course, it helped he was hot, handsome and as smart as they came.

He wasn’t especially tall but with me being only 5’ 3”, he was going to be taller at 5’ 10”. He had a slim build, which was refreshing, given the bulk I was used to being around and when he hugged me it didn’t feel like he could ever forget himself and crush me to death!

He was fit, but had more of a swimmer’s body. All lean muscles that tapered down into a slim waist, hidden behind his usual perfect clothes. Alex was a man that prided himself on looking smart and professional at all times, whether it was his styled back dark hair that sometimes looked slick with the aid of products or his smooth moisturized face that smelt of one clean male.

He had a set of piercing grey blue eyes, but a lighter shade to mine. His features were pointed, with a sharp nose and chin to match which gave him an air of authority, but one very different to the owners of Afterlife. And when he smiled it creased his cheeks which gave him a dangerous edge that I was yet to find.

Which is what he did now, as I went into his open arms for a hug.

“Hey, I thought you said you couldn’t make it.” I tried to sound light-hearted but it was hard when my heart was pounding at the thought of introducing my new boyfriend to my ‘other’ family.

“The meeting finished earlier than I thought it would…it’s not a problem is it? I thought you would want me here for support.”

“Of course it is…I mean isn’t…umm…let me start again…” I mumbled making RJ roll her eyes at me behind him, when he laughed. I don’t know why but I always got the impression from RJ and Jack that they didn’t like him as much as they had…erm, you know who.

Although they never said so in as many words, but I guessed it was because there were just so many differences between them. I mean, take now for example…we were in a Goth club and Alex was wearing a suit without the tie. Okay, he had probably just come straight from the office but still, he stuck out like a sore thumb…which made me wonder what he saw in me sometimes.

Like now, I was wearing a pair of grey skinny jeans that I could only wear under something that covered my bum or they would be classed as indecent, given the extra pounds my chocolate habit had managed to put on. I matched this with a tight long sleeved dress in cherry red that was just like an overly long t-shirt with a bit of flare round the bottom, which kicked out like a skirt. My sister had bought it for me because it had a black lace back in the shape of a massive skull that showed off most of my skin underneath. We both agreed it would be perfect for Afterlife should I ever have the guts to go there again…which brought me to my outfit choice.

“You look different honey, what is it?” He asked, holding me back at arm’s length to take me in.

“I dunno, maybe ‘cause I left my hair down.” I prompted as this was something I still rarely did, but even more so after that night.

“That’s it, so this is a special occasion then?” He asked giving me that look. Alex didn’t think it healthy that I was still in such tight contact with my Ex’s family, but other than a few snide comments, ones I ignored, it hadn’t caused too many problems…until now.

“They’re my friends Alex, I want to look nice for them.” I said keeping my voice low. I saw that little tensing of his jaw that told me he wanted to say more, but then just like that he was back to smiling and kissing me on the forehead,

“Of course you do and you look lovely.” I smiled back up at him before taking his hand.

“Well, we might as well get going.” I said knowing that I couldn’t prolong it any longer. So, with my hand in his, we snaked our way through the crowd until coming to the left side of the double staircase. The guard at the end nodded to me, no doubt remembering me and moved aside to let us up. If I thought my heart was pounding in the bathroom, then now it was jack-hammering itself against my chest cavity, trying to break free. Maybe it was scared about what going up these steps again would do to the remainder of it, as the last time didn’t go so well.

As we got up to the VIP floor, the sight took my breath away and Alex had heard it.

“You’re sure on this, we could go back?” I felt his hand at the small of my back and the feeling gave me comfort enough to do this. I shook my head as my answer and continued to walk through until I saw the top table coming into view, as for some reason, everyone seemed to be up out of their seats standing.

When I saw Vincent and Sophia I couldn’t help the massive beaming grin from forming. I pulled Alex a little quicker, trying to get through the unusual crowd who looked as though they were all waiting for something.

“Sophia!” I shouted making her turn her head and find me. I saw her lean over to Vincent and whisper something, making him turn my way, but what surprised me the most was the expressions on their faces…worry.

“Hey, sorry we’re…late…” I stopped dead in my sentence as I came to the front of the top table just as another was coming to the head of it. Everyone around us sat down at once with just a nod from the man now in front of me. I wanted to cry, I wanted to shout and I wanted to throw something!

But I didn’t do any of these things…all I could do was let my mouth drop for a few seconds before letting out a breathy name, one not said in far too long…

“Draven”

Acknowledgements

To my Dravenites,

As always you guys are the first I wish to thank and feel blessed that you are all still taking this amazing journey with me as you have done with Keira in The Quarter Moon. It has been an emotional rollercoaster writing this book but I know I could not have done it without all the love, support and understanding each and every one of you gift me with each time I write. I would like to also like to thank you for your faith in me for leading you on this epic journey of love and can only wish you keep your trust in me until the saga’s end…

I strive not to let you down.

My next thanks go to the people that not only believe in me but make it their mission to push me to into believing in myself. As much hard work as I have put into this book there are also others behind the scenes that do so as well, so that you all can enjoy this story the way I always hoped. Belisha Husband (and of course her husband Mark) for letting me invade your lives with snorts, giggles and madness but forever working hard in getting Afterlife known to the world! It truly is a friendship of the likes I have never known but one I utterly cherish and will for all my days.

To my Mum who devotes her time to seeing that each and every one of you never discovers just how bad (and sometimes funny) my spelling really is. As let’s face it, no one really wants to read about Draven’s Demon battling with his ‘Angle’ side :o)

We all Love you for it Mum!

Also to my sister who gives all Afterlife books beautiful life with every front cover she designs, so complaints why we never get Draven naked on the front cover go to….only joking…we love you too! You make Afterlife shine and now thanks to you hundreds of people are saying,

“We Crave the Drave”

To all of my family and friends for not only following me down this mad road but also making it the craziest trip of a lifetime! Also to my wonderful husband Rob who not only takes care of his family of two crazy dogs and baby Ava (that I kid you not actually, who squawks like a bird) but for also showing his support by even dying his Mohawk purple in the name of all Afterlife fans…

I love you my hairy bearded bear!

A big shout has to go to all those mentioned in the list below and also every single one of you that find yourselves fans of the Saga. I wish I could name you all but these are just a few to show my love to those that make it their mission in spreading the Afterlife word…first rounds on me!

I have to do a special shout out to Sam Grey who is my very own Pip! And also to my youngest fan Connor who would love to be Lucius when he grows up…you are the dude!

Now to you all my new and wonderful friends:

Lisa Ayres, Alison Hucker, Lauren Brooks, Liessa Laureys, Nikki Martin Faulkner, Sam Jones, Vicki Tyrrell Scholtka, Kelly Findlay, Stacy Needham, Zara Duggan à , Hayley Barnes, Emmajane Stratton, Melissa Jenkins, Cara-Pip Durrant, Allison Martin, Scarlett Martin, Marie Saville, Alison MacPherson, Kirsty Bolton, Esme Louise Matthews, Jenny Trowler, Vicki Mattox, Moe Murphy, Nicola Nichol, Rani Marwaha, Rebecca Stephenson, Sue Wright, Mel Broom, Evie Williams –Jones, Lisa Barnard, Torhild Borg, Victoria Tierney, Gayle McFeely, Stephanie Pederson, Tina Awock, Claire Pearson, Hannah Gamble, Hazel Pescatore, Rebecca Caper, Kelly Roscoe, Lindsay Crone, Sammi Gash, Stacey Marie Adams, Aimi Murray, Kim Brown, Lilly Perez, Toni Flounders, Jacklyn Flynn, Jo Timms, Kym Cruddas, Ruth Wood, Carol Krascheneske, Leaza Barnett, Lesley McCarthy, Carrie Partridge, Tanya Watson, Lisa Ingham, Meagan Tice, Ingrid Clarke, Nicole Murphy, Tracy Moody, Lyndsey Critchley, Donna Murray, Andrea Crook, Karen Springett, Justin Darwent, Caroline Edge, Kay Isabel Saxton, Clare Porter Carey, Linzi Slack, Carla Mullins, Kelly Barton, Angela Seddon, Julie Montijo, Kayleigh Gibson, Samantha Taylor, Abbie Robertson, Alexandra Green, Angela Stuthridge, Angela Burton, Carol Grant, Colette Kennedy, Dani Cleverley, Dawn Vickers, Deborah Cox, Laura Watson, Lauren Rabbitts

And all Dravenites!

My thanks also go to the staff at The Cheshire Cheese Pub London, Somerset House London, The Savoy Hotel London and the Hellfire Caves at West Wycombe for all their help with my research.

My interpretation of the events and characters held in the Hellfire club are totally fictional for the purposes of the story and in no way portray the historical background of the club.

The historical events are recorded as follows:-

‘In its heyday, the Hell-Fire Club had certainly indulged in mock religious ceremonies at the annual election of the Abbot for the ensuing year and also at the initiation of new members. But the main purpose of the Club was, as Wilkes aptly put it, that 'a set of worthy, jolly fellows, happy disciples of Venus and Bacchus, got occasionally together to celebrate woman in wine and to give more zest to the festive meeting, they plucked every luxurious idea from the ancients and enriched their own modern pleasures with the tradition of classic luxury.'

I would also recommend a visit to any of the above as these are some of the England’s hidden treasures and I can only hope with my writing to have done them justice.

I hope you have all enjoyed this part of the story and look forward to my next instalment as much as I am looking forward to writing it. So until next time, much love and as always…

Happy Reading ;o)

Check out my website for more of Afterlife at…

afterlifesaga.co.uk or afterlifesaga.com

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Or feel free to email me with any questions or comments you may have about the Afterlife saga on

afterlifesaga@gmail.com