Chapter Eighteen
Dylan
Unbelievably, in a haze of blood and sweat, the fight comes to an end. My brothers, Hildi, and I stand over the slain bodies. The roar of the crowd is both as astonished as I am and ecstatic at the results. I hardly remember it at all. Not the kills, not how we came out on top. But we did, and I’m not one to argue with the fates, so when that final buzzer rings I raise my arms like a champion and accept the win.
Now to take our prize.
“Go clean up,” the Shaman says. He’s not as angry as I expect. “I’ll have the Legion and the paperwork prepared for transfer.”
“That’s it?” Clinton asks, never one to trust the Shaman. I understand. There’s usually a catch, but as we walk back down the tunnel that is already shifting back to normal with a magical haze, and enter the training room, I realize that for once there isn’t.
“I wish you luck,” the man says, although I’m not sure he believes in such a thing. “Believe it or not, I’m on your side. The Morrigan’s ways…they aren’t my own. I like the balance of the realms as they are.”
“Because you profit from it?” Hildi asks, the large cut on her cheek already starting to fade.
“Because it took many centuries for me to settle in. Establish my ways.” He smiles. “Plus, I like the comforts of this world. Coffee. Pizza. The internet. An apocalypse isn’t in my favor any more than it is in yours.”
There’s honesty in his words. And truth.
“And the Legion,” I ask. “How will they feel about it?”
“The stories of the Legion are complex and not always as they seem. But they’ve waited a long time to put a god or goddess of war to an end. They’ll be useful allies. I understand why you’ve chosen them.”
Clinton pulls his shirt over his head, there’s a nasty bruise on his side, but it too is disappearing. He jerks his chin at the Shaman. “Any suggestions on how to handle them?”
“They’re soldiers. Warriors like yourself. Tell them what the mission is and they’ll fight accordingly.”
The Shaman spreads his right hand and waves his other across his palm. There’s a ripple in the air and a roll of thick paper appears. It’s old and the magic holding it together is strong enough to smell. Sulfur is the primary odor.
“Once we sign these, they’re yours.”
“And when the battle is over? What do we do with them then?”
The Shaman shrugs and unfurls the papers. “That’s up to you.”
He cuts his finger with a sharp blade and places a drop at the bottom. He passes it to me and I scan it over. I see no tricks. No manipulations. Once we sign, the Legion will belong to us. And their contract as well as our own with the Shaman are now void.
I take the blade and slice into my own skin. Blood beads at the tip of my finger and with a look at the others I seal the contract between us.
Now we’re the owners of an army.
Chapter Nineteen
Morgan
There’s little time for food, and I’m definitely holding back on the drink tonight as the affair seems to be more about dancing and socializing than anything else. I still can’t exactly figure out what and who the members of the Queen’s court are, why they’re here, but at least three handsome men line up and ask me to dance.
“Thank you,” I say to the most recent one. He’s blonde with brilliant green eyes. I smile sympathetically. “But, no. I really can’t.”
Seriously. I have no idea how to dance—at least not in the style of the Otherside.
Anita has no problem saying yes and once they walk away from me they rotate over. Her red dress flares as she spins, completely fluent in the movements of this world. Her hand lingers flirtatiously over the shoulder of the blond courtesan that I’d just rejected. He doesn’t seem to mind. Why would he? Anita is at home in this world. The way she has acclimated to the kingdom brings about a million questions, and without realizing it, I scan the room for the one person that can answer them.
“It’s fascinating, isn’t it?” Bunny says, from behind me, like he knew I was searching for him. “How you and Anita are so different.”
“Why is that?” I ask him, feeling our bond stretch with him so close. The Morrigan’s Darkness tickles at the back of my throat. I’d give anything for Bunny to douse the fire with his mouth.
“She didn’t have five guardians watching over her from the day she was born.”
I glance over, unsure if us speaking is a good idea. There are no runes to protect us from the Morrigan’s careful eye—other than the one Bunny etched on my skin. Somehow I doubt that’s enough.
Yet Bunny grazes his fingers on my waist and offers me his hand. “May I have this dance?”
“I’ll tell you what I haven’t told the others…I can’t dance.”
“I’m sure we’ll manage.” He gives me a crooked smile and a strand of his copper hair falls in his eyes. He’s wearing formal attire; black pants and a gray tunic. Add in his glasses and he looks quite distinguished.
I don’t hesitate. I want his touch. I crave the way he soothes the dark power surging inside of me. My body trembles in relief when his hand takes mine and I fight to keep my knees from shaking as we walk across the marble floor. He leads me gracefully, the warmth of his hand easing into the dip of my back. There’s no lack of confidence as he guides me with only one hand, but he does stand close,, using his full body to lead. Without missing a beat we fall in step with the music.
“Why are you shaking?” he asks in a low voice. People are watching, including the Queen.
“She keeps pushing her magic on me. Anita, too.” I look at our connected hands. “I think she’s testing me, seeing how I handle such an influx of dark power.”
“So that’s why you came to me before.”
I nod, not feeling the slightest bit of guilt. “I can’t do the job I need to if I’m drunk on dark magic, Bunny.”
“You know you can come to me whenever you need to. I don’t judge.” He spins me around and my skirt flares like a flower. When I come back to him, he pulls me closer, dropping his hand behind my back. I don’t miss the way his eyes graze over my breasts or the gentle but possessive feel of his hand. “Believe it or not, we have the same goal.”
It is hard for me to believe that. But I think about my dream earlier in the day. My guardians are sacrificing themselves for this fight. Hildi has joined in at the risk of everything. And the Shaman, what had he said?
“I never underestimate your Ravens.”
I knew at that moment he didn’t just mean the ones in the fight below, but the one in front of me, too. I open my mouth to tell him everything, about the directions I gave Clinton. The dream and the warriors the guardians went up against. How I’m doing all of this to save my world, my family, and how I want to save him, too.
Our eyes meet and I feel walls crumbling between us. We’re bigger than this. Bonded. Mated in all ways except one.
Before I can speak, the music changes and Bunny twirls me to the edge of the dance floor, slipping through a crowd of people until we’re behind a large stone pillar near one of the roaring fireplaces.
It’s against that pillar, hidden from the eyes of the court that Bunny kisses me, deliciously hard. He takes the Darkness building up inside and gives me something I’d been missing since arriving in this cold, barren kingdom.
Hope.