Page 19

A sharp jerk snapped me out of the peaceful darkness to find Josie gripping me by the shoulders and shaking me like money might fall out if she tried hard enough. “Hmph?”

“We’ve got a problem.” She quit rattling my brain when my head started lolling. “Kierce is outside.”

“Kierce.” I shot upright, wincing at the throb in the back of my skull. “In the street?”

“Yeah.” She sank onto the mattress next to me. “Two guys are with him.”

Suddenly wide awake, I scrambled for a plan. “Any idea if they’re god bloods?”

“I don’t know what they are, but they’re not here for a tea party.”

“I can’t hurt Kierce.” I amended my statement. “I won’t hurt him.”

“You may not have a choice.” Jean-Claude entered the room. “They’re hammering the wards to get to you.”

“Then I’ll go speak to them. Anunit can come too.” I sounded braver than I felt. “Maybe I can negotiate a truce.” I climbed out of bed, ignored my wobble, and yanked my hair into a ponytail. “We’ll lead them away from the house then…”

“Yeah.” Josie snorted at my half-baked idea. “And then what, exactly?”

As if speaking her name had summoned her, Anunit prowled into the room in her spirit form, free of her poor, battered host. “Where’s Harrow?”

“Nice segue. Real smooth. I almost didn’t notice you ignoring my question.” Josie rolled her eyes. “Harrow is in bed, resting, so no worries there.”

“Your sister has been blessed with our strength.” Anunit rubbed her cheek along mine, which was much cuter than when she did it wearing my ex. “The three of us will face them.”

“Josie was never part of our bargain,” I growled at her, earning me an odd look from Josie until she put it together that Anunit must have returned. “I’m the guardian. She stays put. Rollo too.”

“I’m not letting you go down there alone, especially when Kierce is pitching for the other team.” Josie crimped her lips then waved her hand. “You know what I mean. He’s not on our side.”

Not on our side. The reminder stung. But she wasn’t wrong. Even if it wasn’t his choice.

“Wait for us on the balcony.” That was as far as I was willing to let her go. “Vi has all sorts of plants you can use. I’m sure you’ve made friends with most of them already.” Aware I was releasing a genie from its bottle, and there was no corking that knowledge again, I added, “There’s a poison garden in the courtyard if you need more ammo than the vines out front.”

“Poison garden.” Her expression turned dreamy. “So that’s what I’ve been sensing.”

Thank God she had been kept too busy to investigate, or she would have stumbled across it sooner.

“I asked Rollo to conceal it from you,” I confessed. “I didn’t want you bringing home any new roomies.”

“I would never—” She scowled at me. “This is because I brought home that air plant, isn’t it?”

The same plant that had snuck into her luggage and was, even as we spoke, hanging in her window.

“And the rhododendron, and the rosebush, and the calla lily, and the list goes on and on and on.”

“But a poison garden,” she said wistfully.

“Exactly.” I pitied Carter if Josie slipped any cuttings past us. “There are plants in there you don’t need to add to your collection.”

“Blasphemy.” She clutched the collar of her shirt. “How dare you.”

“Berate me later.” I kissed Matty’s forehead then gave her a quick hug. “Be safe now.”

“You’ve already died once.” She squeezed me back. “Stop being an overachiever.”

“Keep Harrow locked in his room. He doesn’t need to be a part of this. He’s done enough. More than enough.” I cut Anunit a warning look, but she only blinked at me. I half expected Josie to bite back too, like she always did where he was concerned, but she kept her mouth shut. “Jean-Claude, I’m going out the hatch. I’ll close the wards behind me.”

Thanks to my promises to Vi, I hadn’t shared all the secrets of her house with Kierce, and I was doubly glad for it now that I needed an escape route that wouldn’t endanger the others for the split-second it would cost me to cross the wards onto the street a block behind the house.

One of the reasons the Fontenots had purchased this property was because of its proximity to a network of underground tunnels built and magically enforced by a local witch coven who had since relocated to Metairie. To prevent flooding and collapse cost the family a fortune in reinforcement spells, but it was worth it for the access it gave high-profile clients to come and go in privacy. It also served as an escape route in the event of an emergency.

“These walls smell of death.” Anunit wrinkled her nose. “Many died here.”

“Bodies were stored here for weeks at a time while waiting for room to open up in crypts during the yellow fever outbreaks.” I trusted her senses to know the difference, even if I didn’t understand how it was possible after centuries. “It’s not much farther. The exit is around this next turn.”

A stinging prickle swept over me as I neared the secondary wards. These operated independently of the ones protecting the main house. That was the only way of ensuring it was safe to lower and raise them to accommodate visitors without compromising the entire property.

Using a lancet from my pocket, I pricked my finger and smeared blood on a piece of smooth bone protruding from the wall. I hummed a soft lullaby and, within seconds, the barrier dissipated, and we crossed it. I checked to ensure Anunit’s tail was clear before pricking my finger a second time, touching a second bone, and raising it again.

As soon as they hummed into place, I breathed easier, grateful my family was safe behind it.

The process was similar for unlocking the hatch. Only those with Fontenot blood—plus Jean-Claude and me—could operate it. The spell was simple, requiring more blood to verify my identity before the dial on the center could be spun to the correct position.

After the latch gave way, I swung the hatch open onto a shadowy corner where the nearest lamppost was often targeted by vandals who broke the bulb but weirdly never caused any other damage.

And if the vandals often resembled Rollo or me, well, everyone has a twin, right?

“What is your plan, Frankie Talbot?”

As soon as I resecured the path behind us, I admitted, “I don’t really have one.”

“I see.” She whipped her feathery tail, and her single wing twitched. “Do you mean to confront your consort?”

“He’s more of a boyfriend, but yes. That’s the plan. I don’t think he’ll hurt me but ? —”

“His will is not his own. He will act as his god commands. That is the burden of his station.”

The reminder left me tasting copper and regret in the back of my throat.

“I’m more concerned about the two guys with him.” I sidestepped her worry. “Any idea who they are?”

“More god bloods. Whether they belong to Dis Pater or he borrowed them from another god, that is what they will be.”

“Why would he borrow them?” I thought back to the smoky-voiced man. “Wouldn’t he have others at his disposal?”

“It is no small thing to control the Viduus. Dis Pater is not what he once was, and your consort’s loyalty to you will test their bonds. The wisest course of action would be to use others’ servants so that he can pour his strength into one vessel rather than splitting it among many.”

“That sounds like a good-news/bad-news situation.”

The good news was Kierce was the greatest threat. The bad news was…Kierce was the greatest threat.

“I do not know what that means.”

“Never mind.” Head on a swivel, I padded out into the street. “It’s not important.”

We jogged to the corner then crept through a side yard to check Kierce’s position. I crouched low to use the boxy hedges as cover, and Anunit pressed against a brick wall to conceal herself, dimming her glow in case one or both of the other god bloods could see spirits too.

Kierce stood with electricity coating his hands like gloves, his eyes as silver as the moon and just as distant.

The powers of the two men flanking him were harder to peg from a distance. One scented the air, giving shifter vibes. The other rolled a crystal wand the size of a pencil between his palms. A witch maybe?

Warm lips brushed my ear as a low voice whispered, “What are we doing?”

Panic kicked my heart into overdrive as I whipped my head toward the voice to find Ankou leaning over my shoulder. “What are you doing here?”

“Saving the day, obviously.”

“You’re not the hero. You’re not even the villain.” I awarded Dis Pater that title. “You’re just an extra.”

“First of all, I didn’t know you were casting a superhero movie. Secondly, I am solid villain material. I’ve got that dark and sexy thing happening. And thirdly, that hurts my feelings, Bijou. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m the guy standing beside you and asking how I can help.”

“Help stab me in the back? Do you want me to draw you a diagram to make it easier since you missed the mark last time?”

“I will kill him,” Anunit decided, curling her lip over her very sharp teeth.

“We’re on the same side.” Ankou spread his hands, proving he understood her fine. “Team Frankie, if you will.”

“Prove it.” I smiled inwardly. “Provide a distraction so I can get to Kierce and talk sense into him.”

“That sounds like a terrible idea with zero chance of success.” He grinned, pumped for the chance to start trouble. “Let’s do it.”

Straightening to his full height, he swaggered out into the street in clear view of the god bloods. “Hello, boys.”

A bolt of lightning as thick as my torso struck him in the skull, and pavement exploded at his feet, leaving him standing in a crater the morning rush wouldn’t appreciate.

“You have no business here,” Kierce thundered, his voice low and terrible. “Leave.”

“Frankie is what you call a passion project for my boss,” Ankou countered. “I can’t let you spoil his fun.”

“A passion project?” That…did not sound good. For my past or my future. “What does that mean?”

Ankou made it sound like his god was invested in me, but gods hadn’t been a problem for me until Kierce showed up in Bonaventure. Even my god parent, whoever they were, couldn’t have been all that concerned about my welfare since they let me grow up at St. Mary’s, preyed upon by the children-eating Perchten who had disguised themselves as nuns and acted as our caretakers.

“Perhaps we can ask him if he survives.” She appeared thoughtful. “And then I will kill him.”

With a death god for a patron, Ankou didn’t tend to stay dead, but I was willing to let her try. “Okay.”

Her eyes flashed with delight at me endorsing her murderous tendencies.

“You.”

The single word snapped across the distance, stunning everyone into silence as my sister locked on her target.

“Well, shit.” I flinched at the swear word after just thinking of the Perchten, but seriously. “One mega distraction coming right up, whether we want it to or not.”

Before I could settle on a plan of attack, Josie enacted hers, unleashing her pent-up hurt and rage.

Thorny vines shot from the house, snapping at Ankou like whips, drawing blood where they landed hits. She sent one length to wrap his ankle, snatching him into the air, dangling him upside down over Kierce.

“Josie, baby, you’ve got it all wrong.” Ankou morphed into Armie before our eyes. “I’m on your side.”

“You’re on your own side.” She used another vine, lengthening its thorns until they stretched longer than my palm, and whipped his ass with them. “How dare you show your ugly face around here?”

“You liked my face just fine when you were sitting on it,” he yelled, his voice high-pitched as he writhed to escape. “Fucking hell, woman. Quit spanking me. You know that’s not my kink.”

“Keep talking, and I’ll show you the true meaning of kink.” Her voice dripped with malicious glee. “Tentacle porn ring any bells for you? How would you like to experience it for yourself?”

While Josie did a bang-up job of distracting everyone, I hatched a plan to get my one-on-one with Kierce.

Using a fresh lancet from my bag, I pricked my finger and smeared blood up my forearm, over the likeness of Badb. The summoning token hadn’t worked for a while, but Kierce was recovered now.

“Come on,” I chanted under my breath, massaging in the blood. “Work.”

Almost a full minute later, after my heart already accepted defeat, Kierce appeared a foot in front of me.

“You have to get out of here.” He balled his fists, concentrating his powers, but he refused to unleash the blow that would no doubt ring my bell. “I don’t know how long I can control myself.”

“What will it take to end this?” I surged to my feet. “What can I do?—?”

“You stole from him.” His eyes gleamed brighter, almost manic. “You violated the sanctity of his home.”

Fury kindling in my chest, I growled at him, “He almost killed my brother.”

“He can’t afford to be seen as weak. Now more than ever. He won’t let this go. He won’t let you go.”

As much as I didn’t want to believe Kierce would ever hurt me, the way he fought every step closer, his muscles straining, told me he was losing the battle. And the magic wreathing his hands had only grown.

“Good work.” The shifter, probably, loped up behind Kierce. “You found her.”

Too focused on me, he failed to notice Anunit manifest her physical form. Her smile was beatific when she lunged at him.

A beast tore out of his skin the second her paws touched his chest, some fantastical melding of tiger and lion, and then there were two massive creatures wrestling for dominance.

Those poor ornamental shrubs behind me would never be the same after this.

“It’s harder to control myself this close to you.” Kierce gritted out the warning, his eyes holding a plea for me to run far away from here. From him. “I don’t know how long I can hold myself back.”

Though I meant to ask him how to fix this, all that came out was his name. “Kierce?—”

“You really do like living dangerously.” Pencil Wand strolled up next to Kierce, magic a hum in the air, looking me over like he couldn’t see the appeal. “His god’s got him by the balls. He can’t deny a direct order, and he was ordered to kill you. You’re wasting your breath—and the time you have left to live—by standing there staring at him.”

“This isn’t your fault, Kierce.” I swallowed a lump in my throat. “I don’t blame you.”

“Still not running? Bold choice.” Pencil Wand laughed. “I didn’t think the Alcheyvāhā guardian would be quite this stupid, but they’re extinct for a reason, I suppose.”

“Watch your mouth,” Kierce rumbled, and lightning struck an inch from Pencil Wand’s foot.

“The old gods are starving, Viduus. They’re withering away. You know this. Now she’s cut them off from the one source that’s kept them from an all-out war with one another.” He slid his gaze toward me. “His god set him in your path for a reason, whether he knew his purpose at the time or not. Don’t romanticize him. He’s an empty shell to be filled with his god’s will. That’s it. That’s all any of us are.”

“You’re wrong.”

“You don’t know how much I wish that was the case.”

The wand glowed an eerie green, and a burst of light erupted from the tip, grazing my side as I dove out of its path. Burnt skin and fabric left a bitter scent on the air, and bright pain knifed through me. I gritted my teeth, gasping through it, and hit the grass. I spun the jarring impact into a controlled tumble (more like a geriatric starfish cartwheeling at maximum velocity) and put the battling shifters between us.

Their fight was winding down. The liger couldn’t keep up with Anunit. Had she been at full strength, able to manifest her solid form for longer periods of time, it would have ended before it began.

Head spinning, I got back on my feet, hoping I didn’t resemble someone who spent Fat Tuesday at the bottom of a hurricane glass on Bourbon Street.

“You’re spry.” Pencil Wand eyed me up and down. “Are you a runner?”

Seriously?

The first person in my life to look at me and make the connection, and he was trying to kill me.

Sheesh.

“Thanks for noticing.” Weirdly enough, I meant it.

A shock stole my breath as a tendril of Kierce’s power sizzled along my cheek, and I backed away as he advanced on me, shoving Pencil Wand out of his way. A distortion rippled across his face, revealing his crow god aspect. Round eyes gleaming like obsidian, a hard beak in place of supple lips, his expression was impossible to read.

Maybe that was why he did it, raising a final barrier between us.

Before he slammed three bolts of lightning through my skull in rapid succession.

I cracked my knees when I hit the pavement. I knelt there, ears ringing, skin pink, and coughed smoke.

He did it.

He actually did it.

He struck me.

So much for hoping I was different or special or whatever the hell had been running through my mind up to this point. I had been so convinced our feelings could overcome the will of an ancient god. That Kierce and I would break his chains and skip off into the sunset to braid flowers into one another’s hair.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

A loud crack rent the air, and for a second, I thought Kierce had attacked again.

Until the screaming began. Then I pieced together that Ankou was done playing with Josie—or the other way around—and noticed I was in trouble. While I was busy with an existential crisis, steam curling from my nostrils, he had used his osteokinetic ability to straighten Pencil Wand’s ribs, thrusting the bones through the skin down his sides. A thicker, louder crack bent him backward as Ankou snapped his spine.

“Get away from her, Kierce,” Ankou panted, limping toward me, blood smearing a trail behind him.

Slowly, Kierce pivoted toward him, but he angled his chin in my direction. “You have to kill me, Frankie.”

“No,” I rasped, wishing I had the sense God gave a rock.

“This won’t end until you’re dead…or I am.” His voice broke. “Don’t make me live with that, please.”

“Bijou,” Ankou said, ripping my attention to him. “This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.”

Wet, crunching noises filled my ears as Pencil Wand’s bones continued twisting him into a pretzel.

“Not that part,” Ankou clarified. “I don’t know that guy. I couldn’t care less what happens to him. I mean this part.” He quit yapping and ripped a skeleton up through the soil under my feet and flung it at Kierce. “We’ve been here before, haven’t we?” He twisted the spine, lengthening the ribs and manipulating the spokes into the cage I used to see in my nightmares. “It feels familiar, you know?”

“Don’t,” I whispered, unsure if I was pleading with Ankou or Kierce. God. Anyone. “Please.”

“He’s got his orders, and I’ve got mine.” Ankou spread his fingers, and the elongated bones pierced Kierce from throat to groin, cinching around him until he cried out and hit his knees. “You might not want to see this part.” He yanked again, and a second skeleton ripped from the earth and shot to him. “It’s going to get ugly.”

“Stop.” I advanced on Ankou. “You’re going to kill him.”

“That’s the idea.” He stabbed Kierce from hip to ankle with bone and wrenched, contorting his body. “We need him to go bye-bye for a little while.”

Warmth encircled my wrist. Anunit. She had taken my arm in her mouth and was holding me back.

“Let me go.” I thrashed in her grip, shredding my skin on her teeth. “I won’t just stand here and?—”

“I’ll speed this along then.” Ankou took a femur, commanded it sharpen into a point, and thrust it through Kierce’s heart. “There.” He dusted his hands. “All done.”

Kierce fell back, the skeletons writhing around him like giant maggots on a corpse. I broke free of Anunit, leaving a chunk of meat in her teeth, and ran to him. I hit my knees at his side and fluttered my hands over his myriad wounds, unsure what to do or how to help him.

“Hold on.” I cupped his face, the only undamaged part of him. “I’ll get Jean-Claude. He’ll know what to do. He can fix this.”

“Let me go,” he breathed. “I’m not worth…your tears.”

That would explain why I couldn’t fucking see anything. I was sobbing, unable to catch my breath. Tears curtained my vision. I couldn’t stop his bleeding. I couldn’t heal him. Not without graveyard soil.

But…wait…

Skeletons had been buried here. That counted, right? He could use this earth.

Tearing my nails to the quick, I dug a hole and stuck his hand in it. “Heal yourself.”

“No.”

“Kierce.” I clutched at him despite his wounds. “You have to try.”

“I’ll never forgive…myself…” a single tear cut through the blood smearing his cheek, “…for hurting you.”

“I’ll never forgive you for giving up,” I yelled, yanking on the bones, trying to free him. “Fight for me.”

“I…am.” His smile gentled as he grew too weak to move, allowing him to relax into the knowledge he was no longer a threat. His graveyard-mist eyes shone up at me, soft and tender. “You were…worth it. Worth everything. Always.”

“No.” I gave up and pounded his chest. “You don’t get to say that and then shut your eyes. You told me you wouldn’t leave me. That I would have to send you away. Well, I’m not stamping your passport, pal.”

Strong hands gripped my shoulders, but I shrugged them off, not caring who had crept up on me.

“Kierce.” I shook him until his head lolled on the ground. “Kierce.”

His skin burst into black motes, whirling away on the stale breeze, blowing him where I couldn’t follow.

“I’ve got you.” Harrow hauled me onto my feet. “It’s okay.” He scooped my legs out from under me, cradling me in his arms. “You’re okay.”

“No,” I whispered, tucking my face into his chest as the tears soaked his shirt. “I’m not.”

And I wasn’t sure I ever would be again.