Page 24

CHAPTER 23

A s their kind went, Odessa wasn’t the ugliest Ardghal had seen, but she was damned close. The infusion of magic transformed her body, leaching her dyed hair of color and turning it to the palest white. Her beady eyes glowed an unholy red, and the horns that emerged from her temples to curl skyward were harder than bone, encased in withered leather. A second set of arms grew from her ribcage and were the most useful tool a demon could possess. Long claws sprouted where her fingers should be, and her skin developed a thick rusted-metal veneer as her cells shifted from flesh to protective scales. Her scapula took on the new shape of wings, pushing through the scaly barrier. Resembling a bat, they were human-sized and could encase her entire body twice.

Slack-jawed, Taryn was frozen, mesmerized by the sight, making her the perfect victim should Odessa target her. He gave her a little shake.

“Loan me your magic, love, so that I might defeat her.”

His request woke her to the danger.

“Bring Fintan back,” Taryn replied.

“Are ya mad, girl?” Peter hissed as he appeared beside her. “She’ll just murder ya both faster.”

“Odessa wants Ardghal’s power, and she can’t get it if he isn’t here,” she snapped back.

Admittedly, Taryn’s idea wasn’t the worst Ardghal had ever heard, but a Sullivan was stronger in Siren form. And as the first and only of his kind, he was the strongest. Yet his goal wasn’t to fight today if he could avoid it. His mission was to take down the Authority and neutralize Fintan’s fake “ancestors.” But he couldn’t do that if he were mortally wounded.

“How many of Elizabeth’s journals did you read, Odessa?” he asked as she glided within striking distance.

“Only the one.” Her voice was serpentine, as was the calculating gleam in eyes tracking his every movement. “The others disappeared along with the necklace years before I learned of your existence,” she said, ending with a hiss as her forked tongue struck her teeth.

Peter surged forward, and if it was to protect him or Taryn, the man was misguided. In his ghostly shape, he was useless as anything but a distraction. But perhaps that was his plan, because he asked, “And how was it ya got your grimy hands on the one, sister? Sure, and I scattered them to the winds when I became the Seer.”

A sneer curled her lips. “Did you forget the wealth I possess, fool?” she boomed.

“ You possess?” Taryn sidestepped Ardghall, avoiding him as he lunged for her. “The bulk of the Sullivan holdings belong to Brenna, Narissa, or Fintan. Not you.” She grinned. “But we can easily settle this, right? Peter, why don’t you be a dear and fetch your niece and grandniece? They should be part of this discussion, I think.”

With a conspiratorial touch of his finger to the side of his nose, he disappeared.

“And then there were three,” Taryn said. Hands on hips and the light of battle in her eyes, she lifted her chin in challenge. “What is it you want , Odessa? What will avoid bloodshed and your ultimate demise?”

Ardghal almost choked on his tongue.

Odessa actually might’ve, considering her purple complexion.

“Ah, Fintan, my boy. She sure is the perfect woman, isn’t she?”

“Aye, but watch my aunt. She’s as dangerous as a vipers’ den.”

Her eyes, flat and glinting like polished stones, locked on him. Cold and unblinking, they spiked Ardghal’s unease. Odessa’s head swiveled to measure Taryn’s worth as a magical meal, and his fear coiled at the base of his spine. His back grew clammy. Was the cunning bitch baiting him, or was the lure of Taryn’s untapped power too mouthwatering to resist?

As if sensing the dangerous atmosphere brought on by the subtle shift in Odessa’s stance, Taryn inched closer to him. “Uh, you can’t just”—she twiddled her fingers—“like her?”

“If I bring forth my Incubus without the necklace, it will kill everyone present. You’re friends included.”

Without removing his focus from Odessa, he subtly gestured toward the far side of the cave where Peter had returned with Brenna, Eoin, Narissa, and Creed in tow.

“Why the blasted fool brought those deadweights is a question for the ages,” Ardghal said. “Brenna and Narissa are backup enough.”

“They’re already shifting,” Taryn murmured.

“They recognize the threat, and their protective instincts are engaged,” he replied. “It may be good for us all.”

Odessa honed in on the newcomers and licked her lips.

A single thunderous clap from Ardghal snapped her attention back to him. If she let her hunger cloud her mind, she’d become more dangerous than she already was. Siren females were lethal when protecting a mate. A battle between the Sullivan women? It would be nothing short of catastrophic.

The tentacle struck without warning.

It whipped toward Taryn and woke Ardghal’s instinct to protect. Grabbing her, he twisted midair to shield her from the blow. The impact against his ribs was brutal, otherworldly, and hurled them both into the pool.

The cold rush of water flooded his mouth and stoked his rage. He’d grown soft and complacent in the shadows while Fintan toiled around this estate, hiding from the outside world.

No more.

With a few strong kicks, he surfaced. Taryn emerged beside him, looking far less rattled. Then again, water was her elemental magic, so drowning was unlikely.

But she was enraged.

So was he.

Their combined energy crackled like a live wire, and the water responded. Around them, it churned. At its center, a whirlpool formed, tossing them like dinghies lost in a hurricane.

“Control yourself,” he barked.

“It’s not me,” she hollered back. “The water, it’s aliv?—”

A wave crashed over her head, sucking her downward.

Ardghal didn’t hesitate. Nor did he think about transitioning; it happened instantaneously when he fell in. His legs fused into a mighty monofin, and with a swish of his tail, he cut through the current. He found Taryn fast and, clamping an arm around her, launched them upward. With one explosive surge, Taryn was airborne, flying toward the far side of the grotto.

Eoin and Creed were already waiting to catch her. Their intervention prevented her from slamming into the boulders along the shore.

Satisfied she was safe, Ardghal turned away. Swift and purposeful, he sliced beneath the surface, fury tightening every muscle. He was ready to tear Odessa’s mutated head from her shoulders.

A large portion of his anger was self-directed. He should’ve seen it coming. Should’ve warned Fintan that his aunt had a hidden motive for retrieving the necklace. But it hadn’t seemed important. The amulet would only work for him, its creator.

Narissa’s and Brenna’s Sirens had Odessa cornered, fierce and relentless in their mission to stop her.

But it wouldn't last.

She’d fed recently.

Odessa’s skin was rich ebony, taut and gleaming with vitality. She was fully charged.

Every time the Sirens advanced, she fended them off with a vicious tentacle strike or a razor-sharp swipe. If she meant to kill them, Narissa and Brenna would already be bleeding out on the cavern floor.

When her glowing eyes flicked from him to the overhead stalactites, he guessed her intent.

He twisted toward Taryn, trying to catch her attention. She and the men were huddled together, with Creed alert and ready.

“Teleport!”

Bless her, she reacted swiftly. Latched onto Eoin and Creed, she vanished just as the first note of Odessa’s screech rang out. There was no time to be grateful for Taryn’s fast action. He barely had time to brace as the cavern wall behind him rumbled.

Odessa, the clever bitch, had learned to weaponize sound. With surgical precision, she directed her voice to collapse the grotto ceiling.

As the first stalactite plummeted, Ardghal dove deep. His merman body could survive for hours beneath the water, but he hoped like hell someone survived the Succubus and came to dig him out.

* * *

“I have to go back!” Taryn cried. “Ardghal, he?—”

“Ardghal? Who the hell is?—”

“Fintan’s Siren,” she said, cutting Creed off.

“Fuck that!” Eoin said. “Past experience has taught me to let the Sullivan’s fight that shite out. We’re no match for those bleedin’ creatures.”

“You don’t understand, Eoin. Ardghal’s trapped! I can feel it.”

“Trapped?”

“Aye,” Peter said, appearing beside her. “There was a cave-in.”

“Jaysus!” Eoin grabbed his chest. “I’ll be askin’ ya to stop doing that, man. Me feckin’ heart can’t take it.”

Creed fisted his hands, and probably would’ve grabbed the wiry old ghost if he could. “Cave-in? What about Narissa and Brenna?”

“Nah, just the ceilin’ above the pool. Me sister’s monster is a wily one, able to use her voice as a weapon.”

Taryn clutched her head as Ardghal’s pain-filled thoughts clouded her mind. “He’s pinned under the weight, injured. Guys, I think his fin is crushed.”

“You have a direct line to Fintan’s Siren now?” Creed asked sharply.

She nodded. “But he’s not speaking. It’s more like sensation, and he’s in so much pain.”

“Those rocks weigh a ton.” Turning to Eoin, he said, “Do you have the same ability? To speak to Brenna’s?”

“I’ve never tried, though Brenna and I do share a thought-bond.”

“Maybe ours is stronger because Ardghal was the first of his kind?”

“Not the first Siren, those existed centuries before him. But he’s the first Siren hybrid,” Peter corrected. “Feckin’ Odessa is intent on killing the man, but she doesn’t understand she can’t. Not in the way she thinks.”

“I don’t understand.” Taryn shook her head. “He can die. He told me Elizabeth took the amulet and left him in the grotto.”

“Aye, but he willed it. His heart was broken.” Peter waved a ghostly hand. “None of that’s important, girl. The truth of the matter is Bloodstone’s necklace isn’t for Odessa. It isn’t for anyone but Fintan. It’s come home to the one who owns it and can only be operated by him.”

“So all of the fighting is for nothing?” Taryn’s frustration was at a boiling point. That crazy-ass bitch would kill them all for a useless cause. “Why is she doing this?”

“Sure, and if I had to guess, it’s because she’s afraid of dyin’ and goin’ to the Netherworld. Me sister has a lot to answer for.”

“Sounds like it makes her even more dangerous,” Creed said grimly.

“Yes. Okay, I may know how to get the necklace.”

Eoin conjured a tray of drinks. “We’re all ears, love. But ya best make it quick, yeah?”

“Yeah.” She downed the whiskey in a single gulp and slammed the glass down with a gasping cough. The burn centered her for what was to come, what she needed to do, and what she might lose.

Her life.

But Fintan and, by extension, Ardghal, were too important.

“I’m going to attack Odessa,” she said.

“You’re as mad as a toddler with feckin’ glitter and no bleedin’ adult supervision!”

Eoin’s aghast expression amused her, but her laughter was in short supply.

“Maybe, but hear me out. If I can distract her, you and Creed can don dive gear and help Ardghal. You’re an earth elemental, Eoin. You might have an easier time moving the stalactites pinning him.”

“And you’re a water elemental,” Creed said. “I should be the one to distract her while you and Eoin combine your powers to free Ardghal.”

“But—”

“No buts.” He gave her a roguish grin. “Damian chose me as a Sentinel for a reason, Taryn. I’ve got mad fighting skills.”

“I thought it was because you were a thief?” she countered with an arched brow.

“That hurt.”

She rolled her eyes. “Someone needs to call Damian. He?—”

“Sure, and he won’t come here, not even for you, girl,” Peter said with a longing look at the empty glasses. “Ardghal can steal his power when he’s in full command of the necklace.”

“I thought an Aether’s ability could only be stolen if they are murdered, or something like that?”

Eoin picked up on Peter’s message first. “As the original Siren hybrid, he’s more powerful than most, yeah? Is it that Damian fears him?”

“Damian fears no one!” Taryn said loyally. “If he won’t come, it’s for a reason. Like Fintan, he’s able to see the immediate future. And as the Oracle, Sabrina would tell him all potential outcomes.”

The men remained silent, considering what she’d said.

“But I guess we do this alone,” she concluded with dread burning her guts. “Whoever survives may want to get the Healer here. I’ve a feeling we’re going to need Jordan in short order.”