Page 47

I barked a laugh even as I stared down the literal muzzles of death.

The wolves growled, advancing slowly. No one wanted to strike first, or be the first to get hit with my power.

“I’m not the girl you remember,” I said, my voice darkening. “I’m not even Juniper anymore.” Wrath awakened in my veins. “I’m what comes after the last straw. You don’t have to do this. I can talk to Pride, who works for Hades. Apophis won’t harm you.”

The wolves hesitated.

The air snapped. Flames danced at my fingertips. Apophis took a step back, whistling low. “Ah. Now that’s familiar.”

Kabe in his wolf form barked.

The order was clear: attack.

But the pack didn’t move.

Because they knew. .

Even Lust, unconscious, radiated danger. Even the child looked at me with awe now instead of fear.

“I will not warn you again,” I said, stepping forward, fire licking my heels. “Leave. Or burn.”

“Kill her or I’ll kill every last one of you!” Apophis raged, impatient.

Kabe lunged at the exact moment I screamed in rage.

Lust’s eyes opened with a snap, glowing gold and red with my magick.

He held his hand up and twisted it. Kabe’s body danced in midair and an audible crack snapped across the clearing.

He dropped, and so did Lust. I bent down and gathered him in my arms, my gaze promising murder to the next wolf that tried.

The wolves backed up, but didn’t back down.

“The next one to attack I will protect personally,” Apophis promised.

“Oh my god, dude, fuck you!” I screamed at him.

The pack attacked as one.

I screamed and magick exploded, blinding us all. Something hit me in the side but I couldn’t even attack; all I could do was hold onto the goblin child and tuck him down against my chest as I leaned over Lust, protecting him as best I could.

“Juni–Wrath …” he rasped, struggling to get up. I pushed him back as teeth found my shoulder and bit down.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, white hot pain lancing through my shoulder.

More furry bodies piled on top of me. The goblin child was ripped away. I tried to move to get to him, to see if he was safe, but I couldn’t move!

Lust was somewhere underneath it, crushed. I didn’t want to use my magick and kill the child or Lust.

I was trapped and it was just like when Xavier killed me. I couldn’t breathe as darkness closed in, and suddenly I was back in the dirt–back to being buried like I was someone’s dirty secret, or trash being discarded.

Some Sin I ended up being.

I could use my magick and destroy everything around me. It’d be easy, even.

But I wouldn’t hurt Lust.

I wouldn’t hurt the goblin child.

We are more than our sins.

I refused to be controlled by mine.

Movement fluttered under me and magick stirred, flaring down a bond I’d forgotten I had. Voices whispered to me, male–the other six sins.

You do not bend. You are Wrath. One of us.

One of us.

Family.

My fucking family.

“Relax! I have him! Let loose!”

That voice–no. There was no way! It didn’t matter. I would take it.

I focused the magick inwards and pushed, just as two of the writhing wolf bodies on top of me were flung away. I took a gulp of clean air as a familiar face filled my vision, grabbing Lust by the arms and yanking him out of the fray, the goblin child already on his back like a spider monkey.

“Gluttony–” I choked out.

A cold, pale hand reached out to cup my cheek. A smile with equal chill curled the edges of his lips, warm affection and desire in his eyes. “Give them hell, my Wrath.”

With vampyric speed he took Lust and the child and ran toward the edge of the trees. The wolves spun, confused, but it was too late.

I let the rage of being betrayed by Xavier mix a potent cocktail with the indignation at how he’d thrown me away and the fear and claustrophobia of being buried alive.

Mixed with my fury and rage that his pack had been behind the child kidnappings?

They didn’t stand a chance. My blood boiled with it all, until I couldn’t stand it anymore.

Wrath exploded.

The wolves’ whines and howls filled the sky, and a male voice laced with old, ancient power screamed into the night.

When the dust settled, I was surrounded by concussed and twitching werewolves.

They aren’t dead. Kill them. All of them.

My sin burned in my veins, screaming for retribution and vengeance. I took a step forward and the whining increased.

Apophis lingered at the edge of the tree line, his broken mirror in one hand and his expression one of hate.

I’d kill him too. I didn’t care. Everyone would burn. The world would burn. I–

A hand landed at the base of my neck, cool and firm. It didn’t squeeze, but it simply sat there, applying firm pressure.

“My Wrath, stand down,” Gluttony growled in my ear.

Fury funneled my senses down until I couldn’t see straight. His hand on the back of my neck squeezed harder.

It grounded me. I focused on the feeling of his fingers digging into my flesh and spine.

“Wrath often reveals itself to wreak vengeance,” he continued, voice low and gravelly. “It is a right and just force in the world, but becomes a sin when it is directed against an innocent person, or excessive.”

“They all–” I protested.

The hand clamped down so hard I couldn’t breathe, forcing me to stop. My magick didn’t rise to defend me, the fucking traitor.

Because it knows Gluttony is not a threat. He is part of you.

I took a deep breath.

I hadn’t wanted to kill them all. Not really. Xavier was the one who had done me wrong, and he’d gotten what was coming to him. The rest of his pack was just doing what they thought was right. They didn’t deserve to die. They had mates and pups.

“That’s it, my Wrath,” Gluttony soothed.

Yet as soon as I felt my magick recede and calm, another voice entered my head.

You have been wronged. You have been hurt. They will continue to hurt you until you make them stop. Make them stop.

“Apophis. Don’t you have the ghost of a Victorian child to munch on?” Gluttony taunted.

Apophis turned red and swelled, easily tripling his size. One by one, the werewolves slunk off and melted into the trees, heads lowered, tails twitching, until only the scarred leader’s broken body remained.

“Gluttony,” I begged. “I don’t think–”

“Ssh, he knows what he’s doing,” came a tired voice. “Or at least, I hope so.”

I whipped around to see Lust limping toward us, awake and covered in dirt and bruises, but otherwise fine. He carried the goblin child on his back. To his credit, the kid looked thrilled to be involved in such a great adventure.

I wish I had a tenth of his resilience.

“You sins think you’re immortal,” Apophis snarled. “It’s been awhile since you were reminded you aren’t. You remember what happened to the last Wrath, don’t you?”

Gluttony reeled back as if he’d been physically struck. Lust put a hand on his shoulder, supporting him.

Apophis advanced, his giant stature casting a shadow over us.

“We need to run,” I whispered. “We–”

In a swirl of gray and black smoke, the others arrived to flank us. Greed, Envy, and even Sloth. Pride came last, a smirk on his face so smug that my tension and fear released slightly.

“Alright there, Wrath?” Sloth asked, a small smile at the corner of his mouth.

I nodded, Envy and Greed each patting my left shoulder as they flanked me on that side, Gluttony and Sloth on my right.

“All seven of you cannot take on a god,” Apophis laughed.

“Minor god,” Greed said cheekily.

“And we don’t plan on fighting you,” Gluttony intoned seriously.

I whipped my head back to stare at him. We didn’t?

Apophis snorted. “It wouldn’t be a fight, would it? Now, which Sin dies first. I–”

“We aren’t fighting you,” Pride cut him off. “He is.”

Pride pointed over his shoulder, and I about shit myself.

He stood there, the Prince of Darkness himself, shrouded in shadows and nightmares. A dozen shadow demon cats flanked him on both sides, Damon directly on his right.

Apophis made a panicked sputtering sound, immediately shrinking back to a normal height. He rushed forward, throwing his arms out and hurriedly tucking the shard of mirror away in his robe.

“Hades! You are back from your...trip. Rested I hope? I–”

Hades merely lifted his chin and the shadow demon cats pounced, taking Apophis to the ground and binding him with black smoke and shadows.

Apophis screamed as though their touch burned him. Hades ignored his cries, gliding forward and bending down, removing the mirror shard from his pocket.

“Stealing again, Apophis? Rascal.”

With a snap of his fingers the shard rotated and hovered in the air, seven more flying from the wreckage of the cabin and fitting back together with the original piece. Hades crushed them all in his fist, and with effort, it glowed red hot.

“Wrath, would you mind?”

I blinked in disbelief as Hades pushed the hovering mass of molten mirror toward me in the air.

“What do I do?” I asked quietly.

“Help,” he answered simply.

Cautiously I released my magick, in awe as it quickly rushed through my veins, flying to the surface. It leaped out to the mirror and held it, shaping it with its own conscious will.

Ten seconds passed and it withdrew, Hades's hand reaching out to snatch it. “Lovely. Looks just like her original.”

He admired the mirror which was now cast in an obsidian setting, complete with an ornate frame and delicate handle. He gestured at Apophis with it. “Naughty boy. Hecate has been looking at it for centuries. We’ll let her play with you as punishment.”

The shadow demon cats’ howls mixed with Apophis’s screams as they all disappeared in a wisp of smoke, leaving just my Sins and the God of the Underworld himself.

Pride sighed. “That’s going to be a lot of paperwork.”

Hades grinned. “Probably.”

I turned around and crumpled into Lust’s arms. He seized me in a bone-breaking hug, and we stayed that way for a good thirty seconds. As I pulled him away, my Sin flared as I punched him in the shoulder.

“OW! I–”

“Don’t ever sacrifice yourself like that again you limp noodle!” I shouted at him.

Lust winced. “My noodle is far from limp.”

Gluttony cleared his throat.

Lust and I turned to see Hades standing there patiently, arms crossed over his chest.

“Er...thank you?” I said.

Hades chuckled darkly. “Thank you for helping locate and fix Hecate’s mirror. She will be overjoyed to have it back, and the one responsible for stealing it. We always suspected, but could never prove it.”

“Oh, uh, you’re welcome,” I managed. “How was your vacation?”

His smile was blinding. “Magnificent.” Then his expression soured. “I heard things are complicated back down below.”

His glare was directed at Pride, who withered before him.

“It was my fault!” I piped up. “There was...I mean, a lot happened,” I said lamely.

“You are supposed to keep things neutral while I am away. Not awaken a new Sin, upset the shadowcat demons, and agitate the gods,” Hades growled.

Pride started sweating. Physically. Giant drops beaded down his neck and back, and he tore his jacket from his body.

“I won’t apologize,” he panted. “She’s part of us. We needed her. I tried to contact you. I–”

He fell to his knees, choking under an invisible heat none of us could see. My own Sin flared in my veins at the injustice.

“Stop it!” I screamed, magick exploding out of me toward Hades.

He batted it away with the back of his hand, lips thinning at me.

Oh shit. Oh fuck.

“YOU FOUND IT!”

The Sins and I flinched as a female appeared out of nowhere, flinging herself at Hades. He grunted at a woman with crazy brown hair streaked with gray threw herself at him, hugging him around his chest.

Gluttony stared.

Pride made a weird choking noise.

She grabbed the mirror and it up in front of her nose, squealing with joy.

“Hecate, I–”

“Ooh, wonderful work. It wreaks of...Wrath.” The woman–Hecate–spun and stared at

me. “Oh! Hello! You’re...Wrath.” She stepped back and stared at the rest of my Sins, who stepped forward to surround me protectively. Her eyes danced with mirth. “Oooh...kinky. We must invite them all down for a party!”

Hades made an irritated sound in his throat. “Hecate, I’m determining how to punish Pride for his dereliction of duties in my absence, not invite to a–”

Hecate waved away his arguments.

“She is their mate, Hades. Calm down. And she led you to my mirror! Surely we can forget about such nastiness when the result was positive?” She reached up and tweaked his cheek.

“And thank you for the new plaything. I haven’t had a minor god to bully in ages. Toodles!” She blew us all a kiss and disappeared, leaving us flabbergasted. Including Hades.

Pride coughed, looking at the ground.

“Shall I...report Monday?” he asked tentatively.

Hades bared his teeth for a moment, but it lacked any real vehemence. “Next Monday. Settle in with your mate first,” he grit out.

And then he was gone.