Page 29

You'd think that after that, Jake would have been smug. Ace was out of the way and Jake had nearly fucked me on a library table. But he wasn't smug. Instead, he acted as if nothing had happened. And for that, I eased up on the guys a little.

That night, we shared a nice dinner at the dining table like a proper family.

The hounds had cooked, moving about the kitchen like seasoned chefs while I sat on a stool and drank champagne.

Not a bad deal for a captive. We also discussed ways of drawing Silas out.

They were still trying to come up with a plan that wouldn't involve using me as bait. It went against their instincts.

Slowly, all that instinct and magic stuff was sinking in, seeping past my defenses.

Feeling more and more normal. In some ways, it annoyed me.

I wanted to be loved, not just needed. I could admit that now.

Did I want them to love me? Maybe. But I was still thinking about Ace.

A love that spanned lifetimes was something special.

We'd been drawn back to each other through that love while the hounds and I had been drawn together by the will and magic of a god.

We had a fucking contract, for fuck's sake.

I needed to see Ace again. It was the only way I could be sure of what I wanted.

But first, I had to take down Silas. With him handled, Hades might be inclined to let me off the hound-hook.

His priority was finding that god. And it was my priority too, because I wanted Wren safe.

I mean, shit. If I sacrificed my soul to save Wren's life only for her to be killed by Silas, I'd be fucking pissed.

I had gotten torn apart for her. By a fucking hydra!

A hydra! You know, the thing with nine heads?

You cut off one and two grow in its place?

That hydra. That monster shredded my soul.

I was not about to let Silas get to my girl after that.

“If we take you back, you have to promise not to see Ace,” Cyrus said.

I met his stare across the dinner table and lied, “Fine.”

Jake made an annoyed sound.

“You're lying,” Cyrus called me on it.

“Am not.”

Jake growled.

“What the fuck, Jake?” I glared at him.

He narrowed his eyes at me.

“He connected with you.” Lex waved his fork back and forth between Jake and me. “That means all of us connected with you, Salina. We can sense you more easily now.”

“And you think you can sense when I'm lying?”

Jake grunted.

“Yes,” Cyrus said. “You're not leaving this house without a real promise not to see Ace.”

“How can I promise that? I don't control him. He'll probably show up on my doorstep. I haven't responded to his calls.” I pointed at Lex. “And I know you have my phone, so you know he's been calling.”

“I do,” Lex freely admitted. “But how do you know he's been calling?”

“Because I know men, baby.” I lifted my glass to him and took a sip of champagne. It wasn't the cheap sparkling wine crap either. It was the real stuff—Veuve Clicquot, my favorite. “He's been calling all right. He's probably been by my house a few times too.”

“Yeah, because Silas is sending him,” Cyrus said.

Oh, that stung, but I didn't let it show. Instead, I turned that verbal dagger around and flung it right back at Cy. “Which is why you should want me to see him. Silas isn't going to show up at my house now. He's got an ace in the hole.” I chuckled. “Oh, my. That sounded naughty.”

Jake started growling again.

“You're right. We have to deal with this.” Cyrus looked at Jake and Lex. “Maybe we should let her see Ace.”

“No,” Jake said.

“We can follow them. At this point, Silas will want Ace to bring Salina to him.

We know that he knows where she's been this entire time and yet he hasn't taken her or tried to hurt her.

I don't think he'll hurt her now. He'll think we're on the verge of mating her, and that will make her valuable. He'll want to hold her over our heads.”

“I don't like that we have to risk her to find Silas,” Lex said. “But Salina is right. She's here because she's the key to catching him.”

“And as much as it annoys you, Ace is my motivation.”

All three of them growled at me.

I set my glass down and glared at them until they shut up.

“We can't change the past. None of our pasts.

Ace was a part of my life once and now he's back.

That has to mean something. Maybe he's meant to play a part in this too.

He must be. It's too much of a coincidence for him not to. But either way, I have to at least save him. I owe him that much.”

“Tell us why,” Jake said.

“I already told you. He saved me.”

Jake leaned forward. “How?”

I looked from man to man.

They stared back at me.

I decided they might as well know everything. “I was with a pasha in the Ottoman Empire, and he—”

“You were with a pasha? Do you mean you were in his harem?” Lex asked.

“No, and that's a prime piece of my story.” I waved my glass about.

“I didn't want to be a part of a harem. I knew that the only way to escape that trap was if I accumulated my own wealth.

But in that world, a woman's worth was handed to her by a man.

So I found a man who would hand me my worth without caging me.

I tempted him. I seduced. I denied. And he agreed to my terms—no marriage or harem and no other women.

He was obsessed with me, and I worked that.

But I knew there would come a day when that obsession would wane and he'd grow tired of me.”

“Fuck,” Cyrus looked at the others.

They stared back at him, grim, then looked at me.

“It was all a part of my plan. I would save every coin he gave me.

Every piece of jewelry and fine garment.

They would buy my freedom. I just had to get the timing right.

If I left too soon, I wouldn't have enough. If I left too late, the Pasha might take it all back and toss me into the street. I collected my wealth until I had enough, but that turned out to be a lot to carry.”

“You tried to leave with a bunch of luggage and tipped off your lover,” Lex concluded.

I shrugged. “I attempted to leave in the middle of the night once I realized that the Pasha's interest was waning. The guards stopped me. I knew the Pasha would see it as a betrayal. He would have killed me. He would have had to, to save his pride. I knew I was going to die. But then Ace showed up. He knocked out the guards and helped me escape. And that was no small feat. He gave up his life there to save mine. We had to leave the empire and never return.”

“He just suddenly decided to help the Pasha's girlfriend escape?” Cyrus asked.

“I hate pashas,” Jake muttered. “Greedy fucks.”

“Ace was in love with me. He'd been trying to get me to leave with him for months, but I refused. I had my plan.”

“So, it wasn't so much of a rescue as it was an opportunity.” Lex made a face.

“Maybe, but he didn't expect or demand anything from me afterward. He took care of me as he had promised. It wasn't until months later, when I finally trusted him, that we became lovers.”

Jake growled.

“Jake, can it. You're making me twitchy,” Lex said.

Jake grunted and waved at me as if I had started it.

Lex made a face at him.

“Then what happened?” Cyrus asked. “You grew old together?”

“No. No, there was no growing old for me.” I set my glass down and swallowed past the fear that suddenly lodged in my throat. “Now that I think about it, I can't ever remember growing old.” With those words, panic clawed up my chest. I couldn't breathe. What the fuck?

Jake growled again, but this time he launched to his feet as well and shot around the table. Once he was beside me, he set a hand on the back of my neck. His touch calmed me instantly.

I looked at him.

He stared back.

His eyes were so vibrant. Bright green. Emerald striations. Eyes like summer. So odd. A savage man with summer eyes that made me think of sunshine.

I cleared my throat and looked away. “Someone murdered me. Ace wasn't there.”

“Who killed you?” Jake demanded.

“I don't know.” I shook my head. Then a flash of memory surfaced. “I was hit by something . . . magical.” I blinked. “Holy shit!” Jerking forward, I looked at Jake. “I think a god killed me.”

The hounds looked at each other. Something passed between them, and then they focused back on me.

“Do you remember what the magic felt like?” Lex asked. “Or anything about the god?”

“Are you kidding me?” I snorted. “We know who killed me. It must have been Silas.”

“Why?”

“Because Hades said something about me being involved in this from the very beginning. He said, and I quote, 'One could even say it began with you.' Then he said something about them being good.”

“Who's good?” Cyrus asked.

“I don't know. Someone must have suggested that he recruit me.”

Cyrus leaned back in his seat. “Who would Hades take advice from?”

“That doesn't matter.” Lex waved it aside. “He said this started with her. That means Salina is probably right—it was Silas who killed her in a past life. It explains why she felt a connection to him.”

“Wait. What?” I asked.

“Silas is bound to those he resurrects. It makes sense that he would have a connection to the people he kills as well. Not to the point where he can control you, but enough that he would know if you were near. He may not even know why you make his spidey senses tingle.”

“Interesting,” I murmured. “Fate is a funny thing. Silas killed me back then, when I was with Ace. And now, we're all in the same city at the same time, and he's trying to kill me again, using Ace as his weapon.”

“He won't,” Jake said.

“I don't think he wants you dead,” Cyrus said. “He could have killed you already. No, he just wants to use you as leverage over us.”

“You do know he's trying to destroy you, right?” I looked from man to man. “All Cerberuses. And what would be the easiest way to do that?”

“Killing you would not be the easiest way to destroy us,” Lex said. “It would enrage us. We wouldn't stop hunting him until we caught him and tore him to pieces. Only then would we die.”

“Bleak, Lex,” I whispered. “Real bleak.”

“Okay, we need to think about this more.” Cyrus got up. “There must be a way to use this information to our advantage.”

“Should we contact Hades?” Lex asked.

“Yes.” Cyrus headed toward the kitchen. “After dessert.”