Chapter 24

"In this future, you failed," Gaius explained to me and Nero. "You survived, but your daughter Sierra turned against you. She became the Guardians' champion, a champion of nefarious intentions."

"Are these really the only two options for our daughter?" I asked. "A life as a hero, but in a miserable, forsaken world where everyone she cares about is dead? Or a life where the world and her loved ones have survived, but we've lost Sierra because she serves the Guardians?"

"You can save the world and your daughter," Gaius told me. "You just need to be smart about it. There's always another way."

"Your way." I frowned in frustration. "You're telling me the only way to save Sierra and the world is to do what you say."

"I would never tell you that."

"And yet you're giving us no other option."

"In fact, I presented two alternative options, Leda."

"Neither of which is truly an option!"

He nodded. "I thought you might see it that way."

"Of course you did." Scorn dripped from my words. "Everything you showed me was to make me see it your way."

"You still have a choice. No one can take that away from you."

I made an exasperated noise. "Ok. I'll bite. What is this ‘smart' way? How do we save our daughter and the world?"

Gaius opened his mouth to speak, then shut it again. He glanced around, looking suddenly nervous. "Later. Need to go now."

Then he faded out, but we were still here at the crossroads. We hadn't returned to the real world, to the airship.

"What a drama queen," I grumbled. "I bet he's left us hanging so we have a chance to digest those awful future visions for a while. And then he believes we'll pick his ‘way out', whatever that is."

"I'm not so sure he left to create drama," Nero told me. "Gaius was so focused throughout our conversation, and then he was suddenly so nervous. He looked like someone had just walked in on his conversation with us. Perhaps he was attacked."

"Great. Even better. The only person with answers is now out of commission."

Nero touched my cheek softly. "You're usually so optimistic."

"I'm not usually dealing with the fate of our daughter."

"Don't lose heart, Leda. We will figure out how to protect our daughter, with or without his help."

I set my hand over his. "Thank you. For being, well, you. And for not panicking."

"Panicking serves no purpose." Nero was pragmatic like that.

I chuckled. "I'll try to remember that." I turned to Arina. "Are there any more visions in the Vault?"

"There might be, but I can't tell. Someone is blocking my magic, my access to the visions." She looked like she didn't like the feeling one bit. "But you've been connected to the Vault since you stepped into the Lost City two years ago. Maybe you can access them?"

I closed my eyes and tried focusing on the visions. I didn't find a thing. I felt like a wall had sprung up, blocking them off from me. I was locked out.

I opened my eyes and shook my head. "Nothing. Gaius must have inserted himself into the memories by being there, at the Lost City, in the Vault. But now he is silent and so are the memories. Someone must have stopped him from sending them to us. And whoever that someone is, they don't want me seeing these memories right now. They've turned off my access."

"The Guardians," said Arina. She looked like she wanted to punch someone. Yep, the Guardians were clearly at the very top of her shit list.

"That's my guess," I said. "The Guardians have the most to lose if Nero and I can find a way to save our daughter from suffering that terrible fate. We have to go there, to the Lost City. We have to expel the Guardians from the Vault. We have to hear what Gaius was going to tell us."

"What we must do, above all, is exercise caution," Nero told me calmly. "Our going there might be exactly what the Guardians want. We do know they want our daughter. We can't let them get her."

I set my hands over my belly, shielding our daughter. "You're right. The trouble is we don't even know what causes our path to spiral toward those terrible futures—or which choices will help us avoid those futures." I sighed into a slouch. "I think I preferred things when I didn't know what possibilities the future might hold."

"It's generally a good idea to have no prior knowledge of what nonsense we might cause in the future," he replied.

"Yeah, imagine what you'd have done if you'd been forewarned of all my chaos." I gave him a coy look. "You'd never have tried to seduce me by showing off your physique."

"I take issue with your statement that I was ever showing off."

"What about when you went totally hardcore on the salmon ladder in the gym?" I pointed out.

"There's a difference between training and showing off, Pandora. It's not my fault that you're easily impressed by—"

"By your acts of raw, supercharged masculinity as you powered your way up that ladder, muscles bulging, hot sweat dripping off your—"

"Do you need to sit down?" Nero arched his brows.

I fanned myself with my hand. "Yes, please."

Nero snorted.

I winked at him.

"You're one to talk," he said. "You were always going around the gym in those…inappropriate outfits."

"Crop tops?"

"Yes. And those tiny shorts." He wet his lips.

"If you don't like the Legion's sport attire, you should take it up with the Head of Wardrobe," I laughed. "Come to think of it, maybe I'll have a chat with him myself. I notice the men's outfit doesn't consist of a skimpy sport bra and hot pants…"

I stopped. Nero was watching me, an odd look on his face.

"You're picturing me in a skimpy sport bra and hot pants, aren't you?" I asked him.

There was fire in his eyes. "Not as much clothing as that."

I looped my arms over Nero's shoulders. "I've had an idea."

"That sounds dangerous."

"I haven't even told you my idea yet."

"It doesn't matter. I know you, Leda. And I know that look in your eyes."

I fluttered my eyelashes, the picture of innocence. "Oh?"

"It's the look you get right before you're about to do something reckless."

I winked at him.

"So what is your reckless idea?" He sighed.

I decided to take that as a sign that he'd surrendered himself to my chaos.

"You know how you didn't want to do anything ‘dangerous'?" I said.

Nero looked down at my hands, which were squeezing his butt. "Given your condition, I didn't think it prudent," he said cautiously.

"Don't use words like ‘prudent' when I'm trying to seduce you, Nero," I chided him. "It's not sexy."

His halo crackled with amusement.

"You see, since our bodies are not really here…" I quickly pulled off his shirt. "It's not even dangerous."

"You want to have telepathic sex with me?" He looked totally perplexed.

"Nero, I'd like to have any and every kind of sex with you that I can get," I replied solemnly. "My hormones are through the roof, and my body is aching for you."

Silver flashed in his eyes. He looked like he was seriously considering my proposal.

"Uh, I guess I'll just be leaving then." Arina flickered out.

I looked coyly at him through lowered lashes. Then I grabbed my black tank top and tossed it down. It fell at my feet.

Nero leaned into me. "Pandora, behave yourself." His words fell gently against my lips. His eyes ensnared mine.

"I always behave." I licked my lips. "Behave badly."

Nero captured my lips with his, and he kissed me, savage and hungry. Dark, deviant desires uncurled inside of me. I clutched him closer. Close was not close enough.

"We should stop," he said between kisses, but he made no move to do so. "It's against the rules."

"It doesn't count," I whispered. "We're not breaking any holy rules of pregnant angel celibacy because our bodies aren't really here."

Nero's chuckles buzzed against my lips. "You are a temptress."

"And that's a bad thing?"

"Yes, it is. But right now, I just don't care." His voice was a soft caress, his hands rough.

"I've been wanting you for so long, Nero."

"I hadn't noticed," he said with a sexy, self-satisfied smirk.

He ran his hand slowly, lightly, along the inside of my thigh. A gasp parted my lips. This felt every bit as real as in real life.

"Enough fun," Nyx's voice barked.

I snapped my head around to find the First Angel standing beside us. Arina must have sent her consciousness here.

"Windstriker, Pandora, put your clothes back on," she commanded us. "We have important work to do."