Page 97

Chapter 24

Caleb switched off the engine, and they both sat, staring out into the darkness, neither wanting to make the first move.

Regan took a deep breath and forced her gaze to the small wooden box on the dashboard of the truck. She let the fury rise within her once again. That fury was all that kept her going. All that kept the despair at bay.

She climbed down from the cab and went around the back to release Satan and Diablo. The hounds sniffed around, small yipping sounds emerging from their throats as they picked up the scent. But then they fell silent as they made their way through the forest, back to the clearing where Caleb had fought his father. It was only two nights ago but seemed like a lifetime.

How long must it have seemed to Catrin?

They found Sardi seated on a rock at the far side of the clearing. He stood as they emerged from the cover of the trees. Regan gave him one quick glance, then looked around for her sister. Catrin was at the center of the pack of hellhounds, kneeling on the forest floor, head bowed, her arms wrapped around herself. Regan looked her sister over carefully, and some of her tension drained away—Catrin appeared unharmed apart from the bloody bandage on her left hand.

She raised her head. As she met Regan’s gaze, a faint frown flickered across her features, and she glanced down. Regan followed the look; around her neck, Catrin wore a chain with a silver star at the end. It was similar to the charm Ethan had placed around Regan’s neck that night so long ago. She nodded once to show she understood, and then turned back to Sardi.

“You’d better not have touched her,” Regan said.

He smiled a cruel curl of his full lips. “I have to admit, I thought about it. It seemed a fitting punishment for you. After all”—he glanced at Caleb, and his expression turned icy—“you’ve given yourself to another. Why shouldn’t I?” Then he shrugged. “But while she’s a sweet little thing, I like more fire in my women.”

Relief washed through her. She’d been trying not to even contemplate the idea that Sardi might rape her sister. She hadn’t believed the man she’d once loved was capable of such a thing, but the doubt lingered, festering in her mind. Still, Sardi had hurt Catrin, and for that he would pay. Her fury rose again, and she allowed it to show in her eyes.

“You cut off her fucking finger, you bastard,” she said.

He shrugged again. “You needed to know I mean business. From our past association, you might be inclined to believe I’m not serious. But I am. Very.”

Caleb shifted beside her, and she could sense his impatience.

“Cut the crap,” he snapped, “and tell us what you want.”

Sardi ignored the question but cast Caleb a look of intense dislike. “What do you see in this dog, Regan? I thought you had better taste.”

“Obviously not, but he’s right. What do you want?”

“You in your rightful place—at my side. Loving me as you once did.”

Regan rolled her eyes. “Never going to happen.”

“In which case, I shall have to settle for my second option.”

“Christ, you never said he was a complete bag of wind,” Caleb muttered. “Tell him to get on with it.”

“Are you so eager to die?” Sardi asked.

“Yeah,” Caleb snarled. “It’s got to be better than listening to this boring shit.”

Sardi stepped closer, his face tightening, his fists clenching at his side. Regan stepped between them. “Enough,” she said. “Sardi, tell us what you want.”

He stared at Caleb for a minute longer then turned his gaze to her. “I want you to open the portal to Hell and release my people.”

“And then what?”

“And then we take our rightful place in this world.” He smiled. His old smile—the one she had fallen in love with two thousand years ago. It did absolutely nothing for her.

“Come on, Regan,” he murmured, his voice soft, enticing, “you have no love of mankind. How can you have?”

Regan didn’t bother answering. There was no point with someone like Sardi. He saw humans as nothing and would never understand a different viewpoint. She tried another tack. “The Council will never let you get away with it.”

“The Council will be no match for me once I have my people here.”

She didn’t know if he was strong enough to take on the Council or not, and she didn’t want to find out. She took a deep breath. Time to move this on.