Chapter Thirty-Nine

“Forget,” the voice whispered in my memories as I opened my eyes.

Stars. I saw them first. A heaven's worth of stars. It was a peaceful sight, one that matched the unnatural calm within me. Then sounds pierced my peace. Screams, shouts, and pleas for mercy blended with terrible snarls, roars, and growls. I gasped as I sat up, suddenly remembering Silas and what he had almost done to me. I remembered fighting him. How helpless I had been. But I didn't remember anything he said. Or how I escaped. How had I gotten back to Earth?

Before me was the farmhouse with its braided rugs and simple furniture. It had probably belonged to some real salt-of-the-earth people. Good people. I wondered what had happened to them. I hoped they were off somewhere nice, enjoying their retirement, and that they'd never learn what had become of their old home.

It looked as if a monkey had gotten into the driver's seat of a crane and attacked the house with a wrecking ball. There wasn't a single wall left untouched. Most of the second floor was open to the elements due to the lack of a roof. The first floor wasn't doing so great either, and with the loss of structural integrity, the house was swaying.

Above it loomed Cerberus.

The Hound of Hades smashed the house to bits as the Host tried to flee what had once been good cover. But with three heads, Cerberus was excellent at multitasking. One head oversaw the destruction while the other two snapped up Michael's minions and tossed them into the air like chew toys. Oh, yeah, Cerberus was a puppy at heart.

“Holy shit,” I whispered as I stood.

Someone ran past me, shouting, “Run! Get out of here!” He was so terrified, he didn't recognize me as one of his enemies.

On autopilot, I reached for a potion in my vest, flicked open the lid, and tossed it on him. As he fell to the ground unconscious, I strode past him, my stare on the giant dog.

“Holy. Fucking. Shit,” I said.

Pride slid through me. These men were mine. And they were even more impressive when they were one creature. With a pelt like midnight and glowing silver eyes, Cerberus was stunning. His fur was long and sleek, his massive paws tipped in claws like scimitars, and his ears were tufted. What a pretty boy. Magic and power radiated off him. I could sense it like an aura. Even see waves of it in the air like heat off an Arizona road.

Slowly, it occurred to me that Cerberus wasn't just raging. Those silver eyes—one pair pure, one flecked with gold, and one with green—were full of anguish. Truly sad puppy dog eyes. His tail hung low. His ears alternately drooped or laid back flat on his head. And every few seconds, one of the heads would lift to howl. Not in warning but misery.

“Oh, God,” I whispered. “This is for me. This is about me!”

I was just about to shout at them that I was back and safe when Silas and Michael appeared over by Cerberus—Silas gripping Michael by the throat. The god pushed the angel impostor toward the fleeing Host, saying something I couldn't hear. Michael ran toward his people. Silas then faced Cerberus.

All three heads focused on Silas.

“Oh, shit,” I whispered.

I couldn't understand why Silas had let me go and returned to fight the guys, but I knew it couldn't be good. Not for us. If he was facing them, it was because he felt certain that he'd win.

“Where is she?!” one of the heads roared while the other two tracked Michael.

They could only target one of the two men in their combined form. So, as I watched, Cerberus shrunk and went spectral. As he went from the size of Godzilla to that of a gorilla, he split into three, each head sliding onto one smaller, but still mammoth, hound. Two of them went corporeal to confront Silas while the final hound raced after Michael, still in his ghost form.

“Who?” Silas asked. “Jackie? She's fine. She's gone to the hospital to be with her brother. He's made a miraculous recovery.”

The two hounds snarled.

One roared, “Where is Amélie?! Where is our . . . ?” he trailed off as his head jerked in my direction.

Both of the corporeal hounds looked at me.

The last hound, who'd been chasing Michael, spotted me then. Or maybe he'd seen me first and the other two had been alerted of my presence by his relief. He gave a howl of triumph and put on speed. Michael was between us.

I pulled out the govi pot and started to chant.

Caught between a phantom dog and a furious witch, Michael gave up the ghost. Literally. Antonio fell to his knees and an energy that could only be Michael rushed passed me.

“Son of a bitch!” I snarled even as I reached for the gun in my vest.

I remembered being nearly naked. So I didn't know how I'd gotten my clothes back, much less the gun, but there it was. And I was using it on the fleeing Host. Because it was faster than my potions and probably more merciful. The first to go was Antonio. Sorry, bro, but I'm not leaving that asshole's favorite host alive.

Michael's minions pulled up in shock, the crowd folding back in upon itself before splitting in all directions. Kinda like an atom bomb. They bolted, and I kept pulling the trigger while the hound—I wasn't sure which of them he was—went solid to knock people to the ground and tear out their throats. It was the first time I had killed, and I knew I'd freak out about it. Later. Right then, I had to protect my pack.

Meanwhile, the other two hounds howled in relief. Then one of them yipped.

I looked over to see that Silas had taken advantage of their distraction to attack. Power lit the night. God magic. One of my men went tumbling backward. They could have gone spectral to defend themselves but then they wouldn't have been able to attack Silas.

“Forget these people!” I shouted at the third hound as I raced past him. “We need to help the others.”

The hound finished his kill, then ran after me, quickly taking the lead. As the downed dog got up, we joined the one still standing. I pulled out a potion, but before I could use it, Silas blasted me with energy. It wasn't a spell. Just a wave of power that sent me flying even further than the hound had gone. I hit the ground hard but luckily, I did so on my back, so none of my potions broke. Still, it stunned me.

As I lay there groaning, the hounds snarled. Then came the sounds of a wicked battle. I forced back the pain and struggled to my feet just in time to see one of the hounds leap at Silas. The god waved his hand, capturing the hound in an invisible grip before tossing him overhead. The hound arced down to smack into the ground hard enough to break bones. He laid there, motionless.

“No!” I shouted and ran for the body.

The other two instantly attacked Silas. He went down under their snapping jaws. But I was focused on the fallen hound. I sank to my knees beside it and slid my hand into the fur at its neck. He was warm. I pressed into his skin and felt a pulse. Alive. I breathed out in relief and turned toward the fight.

The hounds went flying, both of them shooting up into the air as if there had been an explosion. Silas stood up and dusted off his shirt with a smug expression. As he did, I grabbed another potion. This time, I didn't try to deliver it myself. Not physically at least. Instead, I popped open the vial and used my magic to send it flying at Silas.

He turned toward me. Met my stare. But he'd been too late to see the launch of the potion. So, as I held his gaze, I also dumped magic onto his head. Silas's eyes widened a second before he dropped to the ground, his skin going red and bubbling.

I stood up, and the fallen hound whimpered.

“Relax, babe,” I said. “I've got this.” I opened another vial and sent it flying.

Silas was starting to recover as I hit him with more nastiness. He went down again, screaming as he clawed at his skin.

The other two hounds crept forward.

“Stay back!” I shouted at them. “You can't get that shit on you.”

They changed directions, gracefully turning around and running back to flank me and their injured packmate. As they did, the third hound got to his feet. A shimmer of magic rippled the air as the hounds became men. Naked men. I didn't even glance at their bodies. And that alone should tell you how intent I was on finishing Silas.

I opened two more vials, and they rose over the palms of my hands. I lifted my hands, then waved them forward, directing the potions at Silas. More screams tore up his throat. His skin melted. His hair was gone. He was nothing more than meat. And I kept going.

“That's it, Amélie,” Darius said. “Kill that motherfucker.”

Had I been proud of them before? Seeing them fight had brought out a vicious joy in me—the pride of a woman in the strength of her man. But now, I felt a different kind of pride. Pride in myself and them for feeling proud of me. We were a team now. That special bonding was happening. The one you get when you become more than lovers. Now, we were allies. We had each other's backs, and they believed in me as much as I believed in them. I was part of their pack.

Two more vials rose. I was sending everything I had at Silas. I tossed them at him, sensing that the end was near. Even a god couldn't withstand this much magic, could he?

Silas suddenly stood and sent out a desperate blast. It knocked all of us onto our asses and sent the last of my potions into the bushes. I lifted my head, squinting through the blast, and saw Silas fall. Within the glare, his form disintegrated. Then the magic winked out.

An abrupt silence made my ears ring. The world went hollow with it. Then came the sound of our heavy breaths. The men helped me up, and we hurried to the spot where Silas had stood. There was only a puddle of goo left with bits of god in it.

“Gross,” Dominic said. “Silas stew.”

“But effective,” Declan said. “He's definitely dead.”

“I am so fucking in love with you!” Darius declared and pulled me into his arms.

Our kiss was searing and celebratory. Dom and Dec laughed and then closed in around us, their hands stroking me, their bodies shielding me, and their hearts reaching for mine. It seemed natural to go from passionately kissing Darius to tenderly kissing Declan and then sliding into a full-body make-out session with Dominic. With their naked bodies pressed in around me, I felt both safe and sexy. And I needed to get somewhere more private to celebrate that in addition to our win. Somewhere without god goo.

I pulled away from Dominic's addictive lips to say, “Let's go home.”

I didn't have to tell them twice.