Page 104 of Blood

I kick out once again, hitting the creature squarely in its disfigured snout, and it finally gives up its pursuit with a cry of pain.

At the same time, Cal turns toward the window and flies us inside, landing clumsily on the ground. He staggers forward a few steps, still gripping me tightly, and blows out a breath of air.

“Usually, my landings are much more graceful,” Cal huffs, frowning.

“Of course, they are, baby,” I coo, already racing forward. Where the fuck is Zeus?

I barely notice the framed portraits lining the walls, each one depicting Zeus in a different pose. One shows him swinging a tennis racket, dressed in white shorts and a skin-tight shirt. Another has him bedecked in only a blanket. His hairy chest is on display as he puckers his lips at the camera. Beside that one is a portrait of Zeus in space, galloping across the moon and holding a flag with his face on it.

“There!” Cal bellows, pointing. I follow the direction of his finger to see a familiar, dark-haired man rushing into a room farther down the hall.

I quicken my pace, desperation a living, breathing entity in my lungs.

Zeus will die today.

I’ll make sure of that.

I reach the door Zeus disappeared into and kick it open. The door careens off the wall with a deafening crash as I stomp inside.

“Zeus,” I growl out as I find the man—murderer—in question in the corner of the room, desperately searching for an escape route.

But there'll be no escape. Not this time. Not ever.

Cal materializes behind me and wraps his arms around my waist, holding me flush to his chest. “Zeus, this ends now,” he growls. Anger laces his tone, and he squeezes me even tighter. No doubt, he’s thinking about his family, who were brutally slaughtered on the off chance that one of them would emerge as a cupid capable of creating mate bonds.

A mirthless laugh belts from the god’s chest as he straightens imperceptibly, smoothing a hand down his long beard. The fear I thought I saw on his face only moments before dissipates, as if it had never been there to begin with.

“You really are stupid, aren’t you, Violet?” An amused smirk plays on his lips. “Leaving the battle...the safety of your army...” He tsks and gives a slow, sardonic shake of his head. “Do you want to die?”

“I’m not the same girl you once knew,” I hiss, anger clawing at me, even as anxiety burrows into my chest. Because I know, the same way I know the sky is blue and the grass is green, that this is the end. The final showdown. Only one of us will be leaving this room today alive, and I’ll be damned if it’s Zeus.

I shrug out of Cal’s embrace, ignoring his shout of protest, and take a single step forward.

“You tried to break me by killing my mate, and you almost succeeded.” Another step. “But you didn’t break me, Zeus. You made me stronger. You gave me something to fight for, and more than that, something to live for. I’m not leaving this world until Mason is avenged. And if I do go...I’m making sure you come with me.” The last words are practically a growl, wrenched free from the confines of my chest where all of my hurt, anger, and fear have accumulated over the past few months.

Surprise flickers over Zeus’s indolent expression before anger quickly takes over. “Once I digest your soul, Violet Dracula, I’ll be unstoppable. No one, not even your mates, will be able to defeat me.” Pure malice glimmers in his eyes as he matches me step for step, stopping when only a few feet separate us. “But it doesn’t have to end like this. You don’t have to die. We can rule together, side by side, until the end of time.”

My heart slams hard against my breastbone as I struggle to wrangle both my anger and disgust. “Aren’t you my uncle?”

Zeus chuckles. “Don’t be daft, Violet. I don’t mean it like that.” He turns to stare off into the distance, his eyes glazed, his lips smashed together. While he’s distracted, I inconspicuously grab the hilt of the god-blessed dagger I stole from Cal. “We’re both outcasts in a society that would love nothing more than to chew us up and then spit us back out. Together, we would be unstoppable. I’ll even allow you to keep your mates. Wouldn’t that be nice, Violet? To rule the world with your mates by your side?”

“I never wanted to rule the world.” My words are a rasp of air. “I just wanted to save it.”

“Oh, Violet.” His eyes flick to me, brimming with disappointment. “You truly believe that you’re a changed woman, don’t you? But is love really capable of taming the beast?” His shrewd eyes narrow in on me. “Or are some monsters meant to roam free?”

“I think—” I jab my dagger at his chest.

Or, at least, I try to. I have the pleasure of seeing Zeus’s eyes widen in fear a second before he twists out of the way, grabs my wrist, and snaps it.

My lungs burn with the scream I refuse to unleash as pain assaults me.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

“You stupid, stupid girl,” Zeus hisses in my ear as he fumbles for the dagger and holds it against my throat. “I’m a god, you fucking idiot! You can’t kill me!”

“Fuck. You.” I meet Cal’s eyes—wide with terror and anger—across the room and nod nearly imperceptibly. Then I allow my body to turn limp in Zeus’s arms, and he curses as I slump downward. At the same time, Cal notches one of his few remaining arrows—now god-blessed—and shoots it at Zeus’s forehead.

Zeus shoves me away, and I roll, accidentally putting pressure on my broken wrist. My mind fractures with agony. It feels as if a thousand teeth are ripping me apart from the inside out.

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