Page 48 of Vengeful Mates

My woman’s bond tightened, holding onto the small flicker of hope, and I encouraged the flames with my own. This lead came at a perfect time. Success eluded us for too long and I’d be the one to turn that around.

CHAPTER17

Castor

Chills prickledon my skin the moment we hit the peak overlooking the ancient burial grounds. Souls dwelled here in the valley below. Those that sought the Duat, the promised riches and feasts of the afterlife, but for whatever reason, they were locked out. Offending the gods, perhaps?

Dark magick itched at my nape, reminding me never to go into any situation without a complete canvas. Vigilance paid off in my history as an enforcer. Danger lurked at every corner of our world. If our enemy was behind the curse, as Mads’ old texts suggested, I doubted Anubis or Colton Raine would let us waltz into the Valley of Kings to destroy the spell. They would have set traps and precautions. What I would have done.

Wary of a showdown after gunmen confronted Slade and Zethan, I pulled my mount in ahead of Aaliyah’s at the top of the hill. “Stay there, Sorceress.”

“What’s wrong?” Brave woman pulled her camel in beside me.

The closer we got to the tomb’s location, the feathers on my ibis shifter’s neck rose, warning of danger. Magick of the dead pricked the air. “Reconnaissance. Never walk into a trap.”

I cast out my magick, scoping out the valley. Scorpions crawling across the sand. Predators casing for prey. Servants delivering fresh incense and candles to tombs. Light and scent for the dead in the afterlife.

Traces of Underworld magick suggested Colton’s fading presence, days old, perhaps. Dark magick mirroring my own set up a perimeter around three tombs, protecting them, including the priest’s, setting off my interest in the contents of the other two. Investigation for another day.

Proficient in dark magick, Anubis wrote the Book of the Dead, and Thoth considered him a contemporary, equal only to Isis. I better have all my wits about me to go up against him and his avatar. The same for Aaliyah.

Testing her, I pointed to our intended location. “The priest’s tomb should be three hundred yards northeast. Tell me what you see, Sorceress.”

Magick sizzled between us as she performed a scan. “Colton’s been here.” She identified each tomb guarded by Anubis’ powers. “There are spells on several tombs.”

Proud mentor moment. Months of teaching her what I knew paid off. “Good, Sorceress. Anything else?”

“Someone doesn’t want us here. Doesn’t want us to break the curse.” Exactly what I detected. Why every nerve in my body remained on alert.

Satisfaction weaved through my chest at her keen examination. “Let’s take a closer look at the spells.”

I clicked my tongue, kicked my mount, steering the camel in that direction, and Aaliyah’s settled beside mine. The camels gave a long protest as we hit the valley’s floor.

“Whoa!” I stroked the coarse fur on the neck of my stubborn ride, and it kicked its leg and spat.

Its objection to moving ahead became apparent. Howling winds swept across the desert, lashing at our facial scarves, stirring a sandstorm intended to keep us from moving further. Our camels whined and tucked their heads, fighting the grit irritating their eyes. My woman and I raised our arms to shield our vision.

Her bond tightened, looping around me, trying to keep me close in the haze of sand blinding and grazing us, preventing us finding the priest’s tomb.

Lowering my gaze to the whirlwind, I cast a net of magick out across the Valley of Kings, searching for the source of the sudden sandstorm and how to deactivate it. Inky spots moved in the shadows, responding to my power. Creatures emerged from hiding spots in between the tombs, under rocks, and in caves. Wolves and jackals trotted across the desert to surround us. Guardians. Predators. Loyal protectors of the graves. His servants.

Anubis’ beasts.

That fucker and his avatar could try all they liked. Sabotage and almost destroy the club. Break Aaliyah and her mates apart. Vengeance on our gods for his demotion in the pantheon. Something to take up with Ra, King of the Egyptian gods. Anubis and Colton weren’t going to keep us from this. Time that shadow-skulking coward came out to pay.

Aaliyah’s camel whined and turned to leave, and she wrestled with her reins to keep it on track.

“Castor!” My woman’s pitch rose to meet the predators closing in on us.

“Stay where you are,” I commanded. “Stand your ground. Animals hate eye contact and confrontation.”

I was an Alpha in personality, and I wouldn’t back down to these beasts, nor to fucking Colton Raine or his damn cunning god.

A whirlwind rose between Aaliyah and me, cutting us off from each other.

“Castor, where are you?” Angst in my woman’s voice cut me.

I threw a dark magick barrier out around us. “Ten feet from you, Sorceress.” I used the tether to find my woman amid the mass of sand. “Connect to my magick and stay with me.”

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