"Pull over here, Atlas. If I'm gone more than twenty minutes, you back up and get the fuck out. Send in the security team," I said as I lowered my ski mask.Atlas nodded. I wasn't sure I trusted him to do what I asked in this case, but I knew he wouldn't add to the body count. I shut the door as quietly as I could. I turned from the big military vehicle. Kiema was out here in this mess somewhere. I pushed the emotion, the stress, away. Focused only on the mission. Get in. Get her out. Get home.Everything else could wait. Would wait. I took two deep breaths and pushed away from the truck. Slinking down into the waist-high grass, I pulled my thermal imaging glasses down over my eyes. A grouping of bright yellows and reds appeared off to the far left. "I found the camp," I let everyone know. A single click sounded in my ear. I smiled. Xander knew what he was doing when it came to covert work. I guess those video games weren't complete trash. "Her last position sh
"Again!" I punched my gloved hands together, lifted them to guard my face. Taryk and Atlas had been silent since telling us they were headed back here. The waiting was driving me insane. If I'd still had wings, I would've gone after her myself. Not been stuck in here, no matter what Kiema said. She was mine. I should've been the one to go get her. To save her from the horrors since she'd been taken from the cabin.Saint rushed me, his gloved hands up and ready. I stepped out of the way. His fist glanced off my ribs.I had a longer reach, but Saint was faster than a demon. He slid to the side as I returned the blow. The edge of my glove brushed against the end of his nose. He raised his knee, slammed it into my side. I inhaled the pain with a grunt. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him bouncing on his feet. He didn't go for the kill shot. The bastard.I bit back the begging I'd been sending to Gaia every night since Kiema had been gone. I needed the escape. I needed
I pushed through the doors to our lab. Everyone else was already here. Damn it. A small group of developers were standing around, watching the action play out behind the glass walls. "T here yet?" I asked them. The group jumped, almost in sync. "I heard Xander say less than a mile," one of the nanite techs said.I nodded, pushed through the glass doors to the infirmary. The nurses and medical staff were running around like chickens with their heads cut off as Atlas barked orders over the phone line. Sidling up next to Xander, I waited. Hands jammed into the pockets of my grease-covered jeans, I bounced up and down. Nerves, stress, and anxiety had made me a bitch of a mess lately. The bay doors began cranking open. Ransom, Saint, Xander, and I all stood up, moved to the doors. Almost like a barricade. We were her shelter. The only one she'd ever had. Or would ever need.The huge black military vehicle screeched to a stop just inside the bay doors. The back doors we
It felt like someone was running sandpaper through my veins. I whimpered against the pain. Everything hurt.A low voice next to my ear was murmuring, the tone low and soft. I turned my head, wanting more of that sweet music. With a fight, I raised my lids a fraction. Bright light surrounded me, stabbing me through the eye straight into my brain. I snapped my lids closed, turned away. That low sonorous voice grew harsh as it barked commands. Soon, darkness descended behind my lids as a cool mist fluttered into the air around me. Like being dipped in a cool pool after too long in the sun, I could feel my skin soaking up the moisture. I relaxed down onto the uncomfortable bench, letting my muscles lengthen as much as possible. "That's the way, love. Let the eggheads do their work," Lukas said. His accent and slang making me smile. "You can take your hands off her now. And no, that wasn't a suggestion," someone said from above me, voice harsh and tight. "I'm not leaving un
I gritted my teeth as Kiema's eyes slid closed once again. I needed to see her, feel her, hold her myself. To know that my mate would be okay. I clenched my fists at my side. Ransom was curled above her, scenting her, touching her. As the machines hooked up to Kiema settled into a steady, normal rhythm, Ransom reached out and collared the tall red headed man who was attempting to get away. Pushing the stranger in front of him, Ransom indicated for all of us to leave the room. "Just outside the doors, Saint. We'll keep an eye on her."I pushed the need to get in his face, to stake my claim on her, to the back of my mind. She wasn't only mine. I ground my teeth together so hard a spear of pain slid from my jaw to my temple. Ransom released the intruder. "Explain yourself Lukas. And fast.""Wait. This is Lukas?" Xander asked. Ransom nodded. Without so much as another breath, Xander laid into Lukas like he was a championship fighter in the ring. All of us stood around
I rushed back into the room that held Lukas. Wrapping my hand around his wrist, I yanked him to follow me. He groaned as he clutched at his stomach. Stumbling behind me, I half carried him out to the hallway."Touch him." I pointed at Asher's bear. Lukas leaned down, another pained groan flowing from his mouth, and touched Asher without another word. Awful rips and groans, tears and screams emerged from my rapidly changing brother. Xander woke at the first tearing sound. He pushed back as far as possible, a horrified look on his face. "What the fuck is happening to Asher?""I think Saint has some questions for him that he didn't want to wait for answers over the implant," Taryk said, a hint of a chuckle in his voice. I snarled at the man behind me. Asher lay naked, panting and retching on the cold concrete floor of the lab. "The fuck, Saint?" he said between dry heaves."Explain yourself, Asher." I could feel myself going cold. That place inside me that held not my
Oh, there was green everywhere, but it was Saint, not the landscape. His dark brown eyes were a shimmering yellow green gold in here. The dark brown was still evident, but nearer the center surrounding the pupils. The shape of his eye was still the round, almond shape I was familiar with. The pupil, though...that was elongated.Saint laughed, the sound big enough to rattle my bones. "I'm not a dragon in here, honey. Are you sure you're feeling okay?""I'm feeling great, Saint. Why do you ask?"One of his reptilian eyes squinted at me. "Because you look like some kind of spirit goddess of old. Your hair is a rainbow of colors until it darkens into black at the ends. And let's not forget, you think I'm a dragon."I looked down at myself. Just regular old Kiema, golden bronze skin, black hair. I looked back up at him. He towered over me in his dragon form. "You're saying I don't look how you remember me?"He shook his head, the movement of his new snout caused a breeze to shi
"How long have they been like this?" I snapped at Lukas. "At least twenty minutes. I thought he'd let go." He held his hands up in defense. "I put my hands back on both of them. Nothing was happening, so I took my hands off." He dusted them twice, raised them in the air. "Atlas. We've got a situation," I called down the mental line. "What's wrong, Ransom? We're brainstorming how to get Kiema's magic back." He sounded pissed as he pushed through the doors to the infirmary. "I came in after I saw Lukas acting weird. Turns out Saint touched her without Lukas nulling her magic.""Fuck." He rushed to the far side of the exam table. Pushing Lukas out of the way, he read the printout of the machine hooked up to Kiema. "Wait." I looked up. Atlas' brow was scrunched. "What's wrong?""Nothing. Absolutely nothing. She should be awake. All of her vitals are normal, her temperature. Her O2 count. Her skin and lips look full and plump." He reached out. "Wait." Lukas jumped forw
Three months later"And I'm telling you right now, dad, that if you want to ever see these babies, you'll stop sending my mates to the Underworld for a cooling off' period. That shit is getting old," I said as I waddled into the hospital built for gods and demi-gods. He chuckled beside me. "But, bubbles, they deserved it. Crowing like they built Olympus bare handed. They were getting on your Circle's nerves. I could tell." He said as he lifted me into the bed. "Bring them back, dad. Now." I glared at him. Even though, on the inside, I was smiling like a loon. This was the type of relationship I'd always dreamed of having with a father. He sighed, a smirk still pulling at his mouth. With a snap, my three mates stumbled into the room."Damn it, Apollo," Saint said as he flicked his shirt. "Cerberus almost got me that time."My dad's head tipped back as he laughed and laughed. The babies inside me loved that sound. They kicked at my belly. I rubbed at the spot. "Easy
Six months later"Last time, I'll ask. I swear." Kiema swallowed heavily as she moved around behind me. "You promise you're okay not getting your deer back?" Kiema asked me as flicked the fabric of my dress this way and that to get it to lay perfectly.I waited until she looked up at me. That look of slight hesitation on her face tugged at my heart. "I promise. I was never meant to be a deer. A shifter of any kind."She nodded, sniffled quietly. "You ready for the rest of this then?" Kiema asked me as she adjusted the crown of flowers in my hair. "So much more than ready. I've been waiting for this my entire life." I bit back the tears that wanted to flood my throat. Not today. I wouldn't ruin this day with tears.She smiled as she stepped back. "You look beautiful, little sister." Tears gathered in her eyes. I held up a hand, looked at the ceiling. "Don't do that. I told you I wasn't crying today. You start crying, then I'll start crying. Then we'll have to postpone e
The next night"Wake up, Saint," I said softly in our shared consciousness. I could barely contain myself. I had felt the swell of magic. Had felt it when it took root."Saint," I said again. The man slept like a rock at the bottom of a spring. "Mgmgs," he mumbled.Forcing our arm to move, I slapped our face. He shot up, his teeth bared. "Who's there?" he called out. "It's me, you buffoon," I said.Our head cocked to the side. "Ten? Why are you waking me up? Can't whatever it is wait until morning?" He snuggled back down into the comfortable bed in our new home. "No." I shook our head so he would fully wake up. "Wake up!"He sat up, pulling the blankets with him. "I'm awake. What can't wait until the morning, Ten?""Kiema is pregnant.""WHAT THE FUCK!?"I snickered as everyone in the room burst from the bed, fists and knives raised in defense. "What is it?" Ransom's head turned back and forth quickly, visually sweeping the room. With a grunt at its emp
Two weeks later"Are we finally going to try this? We've been prepping for what feels like forever." I licked my way up Saint's neck. He shivered as his fingers curled into the flesh of my ass. "Maybe we should wait one more day. I don't want to hurt you."I rolled my eyes under the cover of my closed lids. This man. So dominant. So caring. So sure I wasn't ready to take one of them in my ass. I guess I'll just have to show him that I was more than ready.I slid down his body. A wave of magic and all of us were naked as the day we were born. As I sucked his cock into my mouth, Kord came up behind me.Curling around my back, he pinched my nipples with one hand. With his other, he slid a hand down my belly and straight over my clit. With a sharp movement, his fingers were deep inside me. I groaned around Saint's dick as waves of pleasure washed over me. Sprinkled with the counterpoints of pain from Kord getting my nipples ready for the clover clamps. I felt my core cream at
The next day"Torture and then straight back to bed. I don't care that your father is the god of healing. This is ridiculous, Kiema," Atlas said as we stood in the elevator on our way to the basement level."Don't get trapped in the dungeons," Apollo had said as he laid his palm against the electronic plate on the wall of the elevator.Right. Dungeons in a god hospital. Gods were freaking weird.I patted his cheek. "I've got my main medical provider right next to me. I'll be fine. Besides I feel like a million bucks."He huffed a laugh as Mason and Lukas came up beside him. I wiggled my eyebrows at Atlas, looked over his shoulder, back to his face.He chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Yes, little sister. We've decided to try being a thruple."I wrinkled my nose. "What kind of word is thruple?""A three-person couple, luv," Lukas answered. I snorted. "And you guys won't let me make up words? That's a heaping load of Berserker shit right there."We were all laughi
I pushed the other two through the doors. I wasn't waiting another minute to see my girl. I'd felt her die. Felt my spirit try to follow her down that long tunnel. My heart had stopped beating when I saw Heppni literally rip her heart from her chest and crush it. But here we were. Alive. Healing. She was pale against the bright white sheets of the hospital bed. Although it was unlike any hospital I'd ever been in. Apollo said something about it being a place for gods and goddesses. I shook my head. It didn't matter to me what it was as long as it made her better. She looked over as we rushed in. Her eyes searched each one of us before returning to me. Tears flooded her eyes as I pulled her into my arms. We all sat on the bed, curled and huddled together while she got it all out. The guys and I had had some truly brutal boxing matches to deal with our own emotions. I was still achy and sore from a couple of well-placed hits from Kord. The man might be a nerdy librarian, b
My chest hurt. I tried to rub it, but my arms were restrained. "Easy there, bubbles. You'll pull your stitches if you do that," a man said. His voice was soft and melodious. Like listening to angels sing. Angels. Something about that word tickled my brain.Angel. Almost. Almost.Ransom. As soon as I thought his name, his face popped into my brain. I tried to sit up. Made it a couple inches before I was pushed back to the bed beneath me. I opened my eyes. Ignoring the stabbing pain that slid into my eyeballs, I blinked to clear my vision. A bright white room greeted me. The only color in it was the man who had a hand against my chest. I looked down at his hand. Looked up at his face. Raised an eyebrow. "Get the fuck off, perv. My mates will rip you to shreds."He huffed a laugh and removed his hand. "I doubt your mates will be doing much more than breathing for a couple more hours, but I'm glad to see that you're back, bubbles. Have a nice nap?" I leaned ba
Everyone Hellion had made me vow to keep alive fell to the ground as if they were puppets and their strings had been cut. Fuck, fuck, fuck. I hurried to the closest one's side. Pushed two fingers to his neck. Gone. I was so fucking dead. I blasted an oncoming human with a burst of magic. He withered where he stood. I sank to my knees next to the small woman with bright white hair. She was gone as well. The woman with the long brown hair threw her blade into an approaching Direct. It sliced through him like he was air. With wild eyes, she didn't even try to gather the particles of his passing. She pushed me aside as she cradled the smaller woman to her chest. "No no no not my baby no no no please no no," she wailed. Her agonized scream was muffled against the smaller woman's head.The rest of the humans who had interrupted our plans were either dead or falling back the way they'd come. Movement drew my eye. I squinted as I tracked it across the street. It wa
I sent another stream of fiery magic at the Direct who thought to protect my mother. Some pansy-assed gifted asshole wasn't going to stop me from hunting my mother down and killing her. With a wave of my hand, a path cleared. With a curl of my fist, humans fell to the ground, their spines crumbled into dust. "I'm coming for you, Herpes," I screamed at the top of my lungs. She scurried away, down the side street towards the fighting arena I'd created for us to use for practice. I picked up my pace and followed her. "You better be fucking careful, honey," Saint said through my head. He was working with Arasne and Felix at the opening of the street where the humans were still grouped. The Faeries had set up a blockade of sorts, forcing the humans into a bottleneck situation. They were taken down one by one as Ransom had his horde of beasts funneled them through the line of magical warriors. "Always, Saint baby. See you in a bit." I rushed down the street Herpes had