Gods damn it. “I vow to the Lore never to target you for death.”
“Excellent.” Nïx smiled. “That wasn’t so hard, now, was it? Perhaps you’d like to go even further? Come, archer, step over to our side. Become one of the good guys.”
“Good? Valkyrie, you have no idea what you’re doing. You’re far too young and confused to understand the ramifications of your actions. You spoke of the monsters we keep in Perdishian? They display more reason than you.”
—Except for Kolossós,— Sian, Blace, and Allixta said as one. Darach grunted his agreement.
As if Rune hadn’t spoken, Nïx said, “Join us, and I’ll give you a signing bonus, tell you what the symbols on your talisman mean, what powers it doesn’t hold. Maybe I could fill in the blanks of your mother’s last letter to you.”
Nïx knew? “I’m Møriør,” Rune said simply. Orion might punish him for making that vow, but he still had Rune’s loyalty.
“I understand,” Nïx said, tucking her hair behind her pointed ear. “You can’t blame me for trying. To win this war, I’ll use every trick in my tricksy little bag of tricks.” She faced Sian and mouthed, Hold on to your ass, demon.
He answered with a killing look.
Then she whispered to her bat, “Evac, Bertil.” With a screech, it flew off.
Rune told Nïx, “Whatever your interest in Josephine is, retire it. She and Thaddeus are with us.”
—Scent.— Darach sounded like he was on the very brink of a full turning. —Mate.—
Rune tensed. —You have Josephine’s scent?—
He nodded. —Close.—
—We’ll start in the city. I’ll trace you all.— They clamped hands on his shoulders and forearms.
—We flee like cowards now?— Allixta said as Darach growled. But those two couldn’t trace, had no choice but to come.
With one hand, Allixta grabbed Rune. With her other, she seized one of Curses’ whiskers in her fist. —Fine!—
—We’ll return,— Blace said. —This fight is young yet. For tonight, we are done here.—
Darach wasn’t.
He inhaled a long breath, his immense lungs expanding.
—Oh, fuck.— Rune and the others braced.
With a gleam in her eyes, Allixta said, —Huff and puff, primordial. Do it!—
The wolf released his roar. A primal blast.
Nïx’s lightning protected her, but beyond . . .
The gust scattered yelling immortals and swept the beleaguered wraiths across the night sky like flecks of dust. The force sent the manor’s roof flying like a disk. Boards groaned, glass shattering. Walls collapsed.
Just as the deafening demolition quieted . . . the chimney crumpled.
Darach had flattened the manor. Val Hall was no more. The Valkyrie leader stood against a backdrop of destruction.
Rune nodded at her. “Good warring to you, Nïx.”
She smiled blankly. “And a happy Accession to you, Rune.”
SIXTY-SIX
A cool cloth bathed Jo’s face. “Please wake up,” said a muffled voice. “I didn’t know it was you!”
Consciousness came by degrees, her head pounding. She blinked open her eyes. “Thaddie?” Her brain felt like jelly after her strangling.
After that memory.
Thad tossed away a washcloth, taking her hand. “I’m here. I’m so sorry! I didn’t know you were Jo. I never would’ve hurt you.” He helped her sit up on a couch.
She was in a living room with fancy décor and expensive-looking furniture. “Where’ve you taken me?” Her voice was scratchy.
“To my family’s place in New Orleans. It’s warded. You’re totally safe.”
New Orleans? He’d always lived in a suburban pad in Texas.
Except when he lived in a phantom realm for one day. He and I crossed the universe, held in some kind of stasis. They must be thousands of years old.
She hadn’t unlocked everything from her childhood—only a few other dim snippets. Maybe she couldn’t handle more than a peek at a time. “Thad, I’ve been trying to get to you in Val Hall for two weeks.”
“Earlier, you said you were there to save me. From what?”
“Valkyries. I smelled your fear. I freaked out.”
“Oh.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Actually, I was kinda scared of . . . you and that archer. You two were attacking, and I was inside. I didn’t know who you were.”
“You weren’t a prisoner, were you?” He’d been in no danger, just as Rune had assured her.
“They’re my allies. They’ve been helping me with my powers. Nïx told me a huge threat to the coven was coming, so I was there to protect Val Hall.”
Nïx, getting the last laugh once again.
“She called for all hands on deck.”
So that’s why so many immortals had been there. Jo rubbed her throat. She hadn’t thought things could possibly get shittier for her. Wrong.
She grieved for her mother. She already missed Rune, even though he was a cheating dickwad. Her neck was killing her.
But . . . I’m talking to my little brother. “What happened after I blacked out?”
“The Møriør came.”
Rune had shown at Val Hall after he’d gotten through screwing a nymph. His allies had been there too? “Are Nïx and the others fighting the Møriør?” Not that Jo was worried about Rune.
“She said no one would die tonight; there’d just be a lot of redecorating or something. But I wasn’t taking any chances with you when five freaking Bringers of Doom showed up with a big freaking cat! Before I ditched, your mate gave me this.” Thad dug into his pocket, handed over Rune’s talisman. “He said he wanted you to have it, that you’d know what it meant.”
It meant he was falling for her. Which made his actions even worse! That prick could be in love with her, and he still would break her heart.
Jo reached for the talisman, half expecting her hand to veer. But then, he’d given it to her this time. She shoved it into her jeans pocket. Now she was going to have to see him just to return his belonging. “He say anything else?”
“That he needed to explain some things to you, and you needed to feed.”
“Explain some things?” She’d bet. Dove, you can’t keep a dick like mine caged when it wants to be free.
“Is he the dark fey I’ve heard about?” Thad asked. “Were your tears black because you’ve been drinking from him?”
“Yeah.” She glanced at a mirror on one wall. Thad had washed the tracks from her face. “My blood’ll be red soon enough.” She turned back to him. “Do you remember me?”
He seemed embarrassed. “I’m sorry, but not much. I remember impressions. You singing to me under a bridge. Teaching me how to high-five. But I didn’t know your face before.”
“Then how?”
“All my life, I thought you were dead—until about a week or so ago when the crap hit the fan with my mom.” He ran a hand over his mouth. “She found out what I am.”
“You’re not supposed to tell humans about our world.”
“I know. She kind of caught me off guard.”
Jo popped her neck. Thad could do a damn stranglehold like nobody’s business. “Did MizB see you ghost? Go intangible? I do that involuntarily sometimes.”
“Uh, not ghosting so much. More on the vamp side of things. Let’s just say she discovered I drink blood.” His cheeks flushed.
“How long you been drinking?”
“Only a few weeks. You?”
“Since I was eleven.” He looked like he was about to ask more on that sore subject. Not ready yet. “MizB discovered you drink blood. And then . . . ?”
“I figured Mom would freak out to learn her son was a vampire.”
Mom. Son. The words needled her.