After throwing on a pair of jeans, a tank top, and a leather jacket, I put my wet hair up into a bun and stepped out into the hallway. Ophois stood beneath the mounted head of a lion and drummed his fingers on his snout.“I knew this man,” he said.“Leandro Benroy?” I tilted my head and gazed up at the preserved head.He turned to me with his furry brows raised. “Why is the leader of the Logris Pride mounted on your wall?”“That’s what happened to those who challenged my dad for leadership of Lunaris,” I said with a shrug. “Back then, it was all part of the terms and conditions.”The wolf-headed god blew out a long sigh and materialized a golden key. “And you mortals call me barbaric.”With a flash of light, he created a doorway that led to the reception area of a spacious hospital. Its walls were made of glass and curved inward, much like the throne room of the Sixth Faction of Hell. Instead of skies or roads or other buildings, all I could see through the windows were schools of fis
She gave me a shaky nod, seeming to remember that Griff had saved his father from being indebted to the faeries by offering his first-born.“But people can ask for beauty or some other thing where the faerie has to give them the magic.” I pushed to check that Beki understood.She barked a question.“Griff is naturally beautiful, but some other people make those bargains,” I replied. “In cases like that, the faeries will use those black spikes to give them the magic to maintain their glamor.”There was a lot more to the issue, but Beki seemed happy enough with the basics. I turned to the healer and asked, “Could you show me what Hades did to my mate?”She flicked her fingers.The black spikes moved together, forming a single mass that filled the hologram’s entire chest cavity. Instead of black spikes, flames the same color licked at his body and covered it with soot.I held my head in my hands, trying to suppress a moan.“It’s a surprise your mate is able to function with his chakras o
Healer Sakhet strolled in through the door with her hands in her pockets. “My memory enchantment rewound his soul, and the Neutral body he inhabited made the appropriate adjustments.”I nodded, wondering if Fenrir had purchased the bodies from the same place Healer Iaso had gotten hers. “Has he woken yet?”She placed a warm hand on my shoulder. “Try kissing him awake.”Beki gave me a bark of encouragement, but all it did was upset my stomach. My heels dug into the floor. “I wouldn’t have been so forward in the seventies.”“Think of the kiss as an experiment to see if your presence activates the flames,” the healer said, sounding like she wanted to pinch the bridge of her nose.“Fine.” I walked across the room on trembling legs, my stomach churning at the prospect of kissing this version of Griff. The one who had held me under his spell for two years, the one I had loved so much that I had relinquished my alpha magic.Griff’s broad chest rose and fell beneath the white sheet that cover
I glowered at the angel. The last time I had seen him in public had been in my trial, when he had sat on a high podium with five of his colleagues and sentenced me to death. My nostrils flared. Now the bastard was asking me for favors?Bugger that.Griff sat straighter on the bed, his brows creased. “What did you say about Fenrir?”The Angel King turned to him with a smile. “Franklin, I’m pleased to see you alive and well. Perhaps you can answer a few questions.”“About what?” Griff asked.I folded my arms across my chest. “You’re going to prey on my mate in his hospital bed like a vulture?”He flinched. “Of course not.”“Who told you we were here?” I snapped.The angel narrowed his eyes. “Cathy—”“It’s Miss Aibek to you,” I hissed.He inclined his head. “I apologize for the intrusion, but this is a matter of great importance.”“Oh yes?” I raised my brows.The slippery bastard had avoided my question. Only one person would have told him our location, and that was Hades. The Demon King
“If Hades refuses to reverse his curse, then bring us someone equally as powerful who can break it apart,” I said.He nodded. “The Fae King is available.”My jaw tightened. Another bastard who had sentenced me to death. “Is he capable of doing more than standing around and bullshitting?”The door to Griff’s room opened, and the male nurse poked his head out into the hallway. “Miss Aibek? Healer Sakhet has finished.”I rolled up my sleeves and headed into the room. As I crossed its threshold, I turned to the Angel King and said, “Don’t come inside unless it’s to give me a cure for my mate. There will be no talk about Fenrir or Shifter city until the healer confirms that Franklin Griffith is free of demon, fae, and any other kind of curse.”Without waiting for the angel’s reply, I strode into the hospital room and stopped at Griff’s bedside.He slumped against the pillows, his brow furrowing. His features were slack, and rapid breaths whistled in and out of his parted lips. I’d never se
His lips parted, presumably to lie, but I spoke first. “Franklin Griffith, if you insult my intelligence by saying you’re not planning on fucking the alpha out of me when I become the Shifter Queen, I will punch you so hard you’ll be shitting teeth.”He squared his shoulders. “I didn’t know you could be so violent.”My chest erupted in a bitter laugh. “If only you knew what I was capable of doing to betrayers.”“Cathwulf,” he said with a sigh. “How could you think these things about me?”“I know everything, including your plan to steal my power. I know you find me difficult to love and you’re hanging on because of what I represent—an opportunity to escape your bargain.”His eyes bulged, and his face pinched in a look that said he’d been caught. If I could see thought bubbles, his would say ‘Oh shit.’Griff’s gaze darted around the hospital room and fixed on the door. I balled my fists. If he thought I would allow him to escape, he was about to get body slammed to the floor.“Could you
The two monarchs disappeared, leaving me alone in the hospital room with Griff.Moments later, a man in a white suit bustled in with a pair of large orderlies. “Healer Sakhet has stabilized the curse, so it won’t flare up as long as the memory remains suppressed. Would you like an escort to the Atlantis Central Station?”“Wait a minute.” I walked around the bed, closing the distance between myself and the administrator. “You haven’t finished breaking his curse.”He glanced to the side and sighed. “If two monarch-level supernaturals and a former goddess can’t resolve your issue, I’m afraid there’s nothing more the Atlantis Hospital can do.”I shook my head. “Can’t you call around to the other hospitals?”“We have already sent the invoice for your treatment to Fenrisúlr, care of Shifter City,” he said, sounding firm. “We need to free up the beds for new patients.”“No,” I snapped.“Cathwulf, it’s all right,” Griff said from the other side of the room.I turned around, my eyes flashing.
“Do you have your phone?” I asked.He stepped back and frowned. “Pardon?”I glanced down at the bulge in his pocket, pulled out his mobile, and activated its home screen.“What is that?” he asked.“It’s how supernaturals communicate with each other in the twenty-first century.”“An advanced form of a mirror?” He wrapped an arm around my shoulder, tucked me into his side, and sniffed at my hair.Shivers ran across my skin, making me squirm. Trying my best to ignore the affectionate wolf, I continued down the hallway while tapping commands into the phone. According to the Phileas Fogg website, Atlantis had a train station and a direct route to London Central.Beki barked a question.I shook my head. “What’s the point of calling Ophois when Griff can’t return to Shifter City? Even if he’s not at risk of bursting into flames, that thing inside him still wants to erode the walls.”My wolf deflated.“We’ll work something out.” I booked us a ticket to London.Griff and I followed the signs t