Page 39 of The Death God
Both Alaric and Amell turned to stare at Jaki. “You were compelled to…what? Fuck a woman?”
“Not just fuck.” Alaric growled. “Bind himself to a female for the rest of his life. Anyone mated to a shifter gains his or her mate’s status. Amell is the second of one of the most powerful packs in the country. The day he takes a mate, the mate will become one of the most powerful people in the supernatural world.”
“Of shifters,” Rufus added. “Vampires don’t much care.”
Amell snorted but didn’t look like he was about to slaughter anyone.
“If the mating had gone through—” All eyes turned to Thanatos. “—Amell would’ve been bound for life to this female with no way out?”
“Exactly.”
“And you think Himeros was the one who compelled him into thinking the female was his true mate?”
A look of disgust took over Amell’s face, and Gregory could understand. It wasn’t a small violation.
“What is it you do?” Amell was snarling at Thanatos again, and Gregory hissed. With fangs.
The next instant, Thanatos’ eyes turned creepy white. “You’ll die on a field. It’s raining.” He tilted his head to the ceiling as if he was sensing the rain, and Gregory suppressed a shudder. Then he turned his sightless eyes on Amell, who stood frozen on the spot. “You’re jumped from behind; I can’t see any faces. It’s dark. There are trees ahead, a ruin too. Fallen walls. Old, moss-covered stones. You’re alone apart from your attackers. There are more than one but in the shadows. A group of something growly. I can’t see them.” Then he blinked, and his eyes turned back to normal.
The kitchen was silent, and Thanatos looked around. “Anyone hungry? I’ve made chicken and rice.” He gestured at the table.
Gregory did his best to swallow his chuckle but feared he hadn’t succeeded when Thanatos glared at him. He leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Maybe you should look at Himeros first. See if you recognize him.”
Thanatos shrugged. “I’ve never heard the name before, but sure.”
“We should get Minerva. She’s the one of us who knows most people. I never paid attention.”
Alaric moved his gaze from Thanatos to Jaki, then to Gregory. “You have more?”
“Thanatos, Minerva, Prophecy, and Jaki.” Gregory motioned at Jaki.
“What the fuck is going on?” Amell sat on the bench with his back to the table Thanatos had set. “They are witches? I mean…” He looked at Alaric. “We have tales of witches, but I’ve never met one.” Then he grimaced. “That I know of.”
“They’re not witches.” Gregory looked at Rufus, who sighed loudly before starting to talk. He told them about Iris and how she wanted Thanatos. How she’d sent Jaki back to the house of horrors, and how he and Gregory had attacked a convoy of vans and taken the four seers.
Gregory filled in how he’d bought the castle while Rufus was in the coffin, and how they’d moved here only to have Iris come after them. No one mentioned Zidane in the basement or how Thanatos had almost died.
“Seers.” Alaric looked at Thanatos again. “And the name tells us what you can do?”
“I would say it’s a hint. The warden’s sense of humor. Minerva is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, and law, right? But she doesn’t remember her prophecies. She isn’t all-knowing, and she doesn’t have anything to do with justice or the law. But by having her give you a prophecy, I guess you get some wisdom.”
“And Jaki? What’s Jaki the god of?” Amell’s voice had lost some of its growl, but not much.
“It means iceberg.” Jaki grimaced. “I’m not as gifted as the others. I can tell you about the weather around a certain event, but only one that’s already taken place, nothing in the future.”
Amell frowned, and Gregory didn’t blame him. Jaki had a strange skill, not particularly useful, but there was no question he was a psychic.
“And the fourth?” Alaric’s eyes had turned to wolf.
“Prophecy? He does the same as Minerva but doesn’t have to speak the prophecies out loud, and he remembers them. With Minerva, you have to listen to what she says and try to figure out what it means. Prophecy remembers what he sees, and you can ask questions once the prophecy is completed.”
“But none of you can influence another person.” Amell looked between Thanatos and Jaki with a look that made Gregory want to intervene. It promised a slow, painful death.
Thanatos looked at Jaki, then Rufus, and lastly Gregory. “We’re not keeping any secrets?” The question was aimed at Gregory.
“No. If you know something, I think you should share.”
Chapter 14
