After being tossed over someone’s shoulder, Tayla felt weak from the smoke. Instinctively she knew the arms she was in were not Thaddeus’. The person carrying her was not her protector. The last thing she saw was the little cabin with flames escaping from the front windows.
He was gone.
She whimpered. Her lids fluttered, then finally closed as the thought of Thaddeus’ death consumed and defeated her.
Then she was aware of being pulled by a force stronger than she’d ever encountered before. It was faceless, voiceless, as it urged her forward, toward an opening just ahead. She screamed to be let go, to be left in peace, although peace was the last thing she was feeling. But the force continued pulling her, then moved behind her, pushing her along. She stumbled once, coughed, then started moving again.
Her eyes fluttered. Streams of light filled her vision and she reflexively closed them again. But it was too late, she was already through the opening, the unknown force smiling, pleased with itself at its accomplishment.
She cracked her eyes open again, slowly this time so the brightness wouldn’t overwhelm her. She was in a room, a dark room. She extended her hands to feel beside herself, and surmised that she was lying on a bed, but this wasn’t the bed she’d shared with Thaddeus. It wasn’t even the cabin.
Her heart thumped heavily at the thought of Thaddeus. He was gone. He’d said he would die in her place, and he had. Tears sprang to her eyes and streamed down her cheeks.
He was dead, the man she’d known for such a short time, the man who had filled her so completely she’d sworn she wouldn’t be able to breathe without him. He was gone. And each breath she now took was as painful and heart-wrenching as she’d anticipated it would be.
“He’s not dead. He will come.”
She gasped, tears clogging in her throat as she searched uselessly for the owner of the voice echoing throughout the room.
She formed her lips to speak, to ask who had said that, but a warm breeze over her body stayed her tongue.
“He is looking for you and will be here soon. Don’t give up on him.”
There were two voices now, two strangers in this room where she lay. “Who?” she finally managed to whisper.
Above she heard the sky rumble, then the sound of the wind outside picking up and the steady crash of waves. She smelled the sea and whimpered again.
“I am Zeus.”
“I am Poseidon.”
Tears filled her eyes again as Tayla heard Thaddeus’ father and uncle. Again she looked around the room, but there was no physical sign of either of them. Yet she knew they were there, felt their presence. “Is he alright?”
“He will be soon.”
“Where am I? Why can’t you help me?”
“It is not our duty, not our assignment. That is for Thaddeus to do, and he will.”
“But the fire?” He could not have possibly escaped that blaze.
“He is born of fire and he will die of fire. But not yet. He grows weak, but he still must complete his destiny. He must save you.”
Just as Tayla opened her mouth to ask another question, the door burst open and a man she’d known for two years walked in. Yet he was now a stranger.
* * *
Thaddeus awoke in the lushness of the rain forest, his face moist with the morning dew. He remembered the fire, remembered Tayla’s husband screeching inside the burning cabin. Then with painful clarity he remembered searching the house for Tayla, calling her name only to receive no answer. He’d tried to zone in on her thoughts, her aura, but couldn’t seem to manage it.
He felt sick even as he sat upright on the grass. It was morning; the sun was creeping through the thick trees. Struggling to stand, he tried taking deep breaths. He reached to his side and assured himself that his weapon was there.
But Tayla was not.
Where had she gone? Had she left him? Had she decided that she wanted to be with neither Jerome nor him? He remembered his father’s prediction that he’d be fighting over a woman soon and realized with a start that was exactly what he had been doing with Jerome. Sure, he’d masked it as protecting her from her dangerous, lovesick husband, but in the end he’d been fighting to keep her for himself.
She’d told him she loved him and he’d never heard sweeter words, had never felt so right as when he’d said them back to her. They were meant to be together, for however long fate would allow them. He realized then that this must have been the same way his father and mother felt about each other. They had known the truth, the limitations placed on their love, but had not cared, had not tried to avoid love. That was the path he and Tayla had taken, or at least he thought they had.
As he took a few steps to test his balance he felt a brisk breeze rip through his body, rejuvenating him, for a time at least. He knew it would not last, but it provided him with the energy he needed to finish his assignment. He had to find Tayla, ensure that she was safe. And if she had left because she didn’t want to be with him, then he would deal with that.
His thoughts got that far before he felt his strength returning full force. He closed his eyes to it, let it wash over him, even as his arms spread out, feathers sprouting instantly. His body contorted, bones cracking and reshaping. Power flowed through him until he threw his head back and screeched with the wealth of it. His chest heaved as adrenaline spread throughout him. He sniffed the air and took to the sky, circling the forest like his distant relative, the vulture. Searching, seeking, hunting.
He would find her before nightfall, before the occupants of the Underworld made their appearance. He had to.
* * *
“Usef? What are you doing here? What am I doing here?” Tayla sat up on the bed, feeling not one ounce of fear, partly because of the reassurance she had of Thaddeus’ appearance, but mostly because she knew if need be she could take Usef on herself. He was tall and lanky and…twitchy, she thought with an inner grin.
“I am not at liberty to say.” Usef went to the windows, pulled down each shade until all sunlight was blocked. “Are you hungry? I have toast and juice in the kitchen. You’ll need your energy.”
Tayla swung her legs off the bed. She was surprised that she still had her shoes on after all she’d been through. For a moment she attempted to brush the wrinkles out of her shirt, but then realized where she was and forgot about such things as appearances. “No, I don’t want your toast and juice. I’d like to first find out why you brought me here, and then I’d like to go home.” She had begun walking toward the door when Usef quickly moved to block her path.
“I’m afraid that’s not the plan.”
“What?” His eyes looked strange, dazed, and if she didn’t know him better, she’d say glassy, as if he were high on some drug. “Usef, move out of my way so I can get out of here. I see you don’t have any answer, as usual.”
His lips set in a tight line, and his brow furrowed at her words. For a minute Tayla thought he might actually hit her, or at least use some of his manly force to get her to do his bidding. She kept her arms straight but balled up her fists, just in case.
He grabbed her shoulders, squeezed tightly and gave her a little shake. “I said you cannot leave and that’s what I meant. Now sit down and I will get your toast.”
Without another word Tayla landed a punch right in his gut and, when he bowed with the pain, she kneed him in his groin. “I don’t give a damn what you said, Usef. And don’t put your twitchy little hands on me again!” She reached for the doorknob, turned it and wrenched the heavy barrier open, only to come face to face with her real life nightmare.
“I see your hooligan ways have yet to change. I told Jerome you weren’t redeemable.” Lorraine Ranier made her way into the room, pushing Tayla back inside before closing the door. In passing she gave Usef one sickening glare, then focused on her ex-daughter-in-law once again.
“Lorraine,” Tayla whispered as she staggered back into a chair.
“Yes, please do sit down, dear. We have lots to talk about.”
Lorraine sat in a chair close to the window. Tayla took her seat, not so much afraid as shocked to see the woman who had made her life a living hell for five years. She looked exactly the same. Her long, straight hair was pulled into a bun so tight her eyes looked pinched at the corners. Her makeup was impeccable, as always. She wore a very classy black pantsuit with Italian leather pumps. Both she and her son seemed to forget that the wilderness called for different clothing. On both hands Lorraine wore rings, on her left ring finger was a large square-cut diamond that looked too heavy for her delicate hand. On the right ring finger she wore that same glossy onyx, the one thing that never seemed to fit her—it was ominous looking, almost evil in its shape and bland character.
That was probably the piece that most depicted the woman on the inside, Tayla thought. Lorraine was looking at her with cold, dark eyes, a frown the only thing marring her perfect face.
“I prayed my son would see you for what you were in time, but he never did. He was too much like his father.” Lorraine shook her head and absently picked at a piece of nonexistent lint on her shoulder.
In the corner Usef moaned and tried to get himself upright.
“Oh, for God’s sake, man, get yourself together. I can’t believe you let her manhandle you like that. I told you what type of person she was; you should have been prepared for her to attack.” Lorraine spat the words at Usef, then looked back at Tayla. “I’ve been prepared for you for some time now. And believe me, your little street antics won’t prevail in this instance.”
Tayla remembered being afraid of Lorraine. She remembered cowering at the woman’s every word in her attempt to be a good wife to her son. But she was no longer Jerome’s wife. She no longer had to take the verbal abuse from him or his deranged mother. She leaned back in her chair, figuring that physically fighting with Lorraine would be futile, no matter how much she longed to give her one good ass-beating. They’d said Thaddeus was coming, and she believed them. She’d simply wait for him. But in the meantime she would be anything but the submissive prisoner.
“So what is it that you want, Lorraine?” she said in a bored tone.
Lorraine arched an eyebrow. “You don’t know, my dear? Pity, I really despise having to say such vile things.”
“Oh please, you get off on saying vile things, you simply sugarcoat them in that fake aristocratic voice of yours.” Tayla felt rejuvenated, renewed. She wasn’t backing down from the Raniers anymore. This was her life, and she deserved to live it the way she wanted to. Thaddeus had told her that, and now she knew he’d been exactly right.
“I didn’t like you when my son brought you home, and I grew to hate you more with every passing year you stayed with us.” Lorraine’s knuckles went almost white as she clenched the arms of the chair. “When you left I thought we were finally well rid of you, but Jerome couldn’t let go. He couldn’t leave well enough alone. I told him over and over again how wrong you were for him, but you put some sort of curse on him.”
Tayla laughed. “Me? A curse on your son? His heart is as black and evil as you made it. I’d like to see the woman who could penetrate that enough to curse him.” Then, realizing how much Lorraine loved her son, Tayla couldn’t resist taunting her for a change. “Speaking of Jerome, do you know where he is?”
Lorraine looked to Usef, who looked down at the floor. “He’s out there taking care of that man you’ve shacked up with. Isn’t that correct, Usef?”
Usef didn’t answer, nor did he look at either of the women in the room.
Tayla shook her head, a ghostly smile appearing on her face. “Poor Usef, you really are twitchy aren’t you?” Then she turned back to Lorraine. “Your son is most likely dead as we speak. You see, no matter how much you loved him and tried to train him to be like you, Jerome had no fight in him, no backbone. That’s why he could never stand up to you or defend me.” Lorraine’s face paled, and Tayla felt a small ounce of triumph. Although she wasn’t particularly happy that Jerome was probably dead, she certainly wasn’t devastated.
“You lie,” Lorraine said in a shaky voice, standing from her chair.
“Why would I lie, Lorraine? I was there. I saw it all. And so did Usef.” Of course Tayla didn’t know this for sure. She hadn’t seen Usef in the cabin, but he must have been there since he was undoubtedly the one who had brought her here.
Lorraine made an awful screeching sound, then hurled herself at Tayla. Tayla had only a second to lift her own hands in defense. When Lorraine’s fingers clenched around her neck, she quickly grabbed her wrists, reducing the pressure.
“You whore! You wretched little gold digger! What have you done to my son? What have you done to him?” Lorraine screamed.
Tayla squeezed her wrists, but was shocked at the older woman’s strength. Then Lorraine was yanked away from her, and Tayla’s own hands went instantly to her burning throat.
Usef held a still babbling Lorraine around the waist as he pulled her off Tayla and back across the room. “Put me down, you clumsy fool!” Lorraine admonished him. “When I needed you to act like a man you cowered in that damned corner! And where is my son? Is she telling the truth? Is Jerome dead?” She whirled around to face the man, waiting for his answer.
“Ah, yes…yes, ma’am. There was a fire and Mr. Ranier, he didn’t come out.”
Tayla choked and gasped. “You didn’t wait for him to come out. You left and didn’t look back.” She remembered from television shows that the best way to get away from captors was to turn them against each other, to divide and conquer. And at this moment Lorraine’s rage was about to fall smack on Usef’s head.
But Tayla was in no way prepared for how deeply that rage would affect the older woman.
* * *
Up above the mountain, circling for what must have been the billionth time, Thaddeus heard a hideous screech. He hovered in one spot as it echoed through the forest and off the mountain tops. That definitely was not a human sound.
He zoned in on the location of that sound and soared toward it, knowing without a doubt that’s where Tayla would be.
* * *
Tayla gasped, then screamed herself as Lorraine’s perfectly made-up face seemed to crumble and fall to the floor. She had to do a double take, but that’s exactly what happened. Huge chunks of flesh dropped away from Lorraine’s face like a broken mask. Her fists clenched, then released as her fingers wrinkled terribly, her nails growing gray and pointed. The black suit she wore seemed perfect for the ashy hue her skin had now become. Her eyes, those dark orbs that always seemed to pierce straight through Tayla, were now yellow, glowing as they looked in her direction.
Her hair was now free, cascading down her back in a gray color that only came with age. She tilted her head back and howled.
That was the only way Tayla could describe it. It was a deafening sound that filled the little room to capacity and threatened to break the windows.
Usef fell back against the wall as Lorraine’s arm lashed out and slapped him across the face. Her other hand lifted him by the neck and raised him until his head touched the ceiling.
Tayla could do nothing but watch in awe as Usef, strange little twitchy man that he was, proceeded to wet his pants.
“You left my son to die! You idiot! I paid you all the money you asked for and told you to watch over him! But you couldn’t do that; you left him to die! Why? Tell me why.”
Usef, who was crying as well as embarrassingly relieving himself, struggled to speak, his hands slapping at the strong arm that held him. “You said you wanted her. You said no matter what, I was to bring her to you. And that’s…that’s what…I did.”
Usef’s resistance was subsiding. Tayla knew what was happening and stood to leave the room before this same fate befell her. But she wasn’t fast enough. With her free arm, Lorraine reached out with amazing strength, knocking Tayla back to the floor.
Tayla crumpled into a corner, her back slamming forcefully against the wall. But she refused to cry. A few weeks ago Lorraine’s transformation would have scared the life out of her. But since Thaddeus’ arrival, since he shared the truth about his origin with her, Tayla had begun to think there had to be so many more out there like him. Yet Lorraine wasn’t like Thaddeus. She was evil through and through.
Quickly Tayla scooted across the floor on her butt until she was huddled behind the bed. She heard one last scream from Usef, then what sounded like something being torn. She smelled an awful stench and peeked from around the bed to see Lorraine tearing the flesh from Usef’s body. With a long black tongue she lashed out, took bits of his flesh from his face and his arms, and slurped it into her mouth.
Tayla covered her own mouth when vomit threatened and resumed her hiding place, refusing to look up again. Then, as quickly as all this had taken place, it was over. There was silence in the room. Tayla took a few steadying breaths, wondering if she should venture another look. Then she didn’t have to. She heard the clicking of heels on the bare floor and looked up to see Lorraine standing over her.
The regular Lorraine—her hair and makeup impeccable once again—with no traces of the haggard monster she’d just been except for one small speck of blood at the corner of her mouth. “Now you sit tight, girlie. I have something special planned for you.”
Lorraine smiled at her and Tayla could swear she felt her blood freezing in her veins. What the hell was she? Then again, Tayla realized she really didn’t care. All she wanted to do now was to get out of here. And there was probably only one way that was going to happen.
He said he could read my mind. Well here goes: Thaddeus, you are supposed to be my protector. You might want to get your god-like behind in gear and save me!
* * *
He caught sight of the cabin and felt her presence there. The black mist around the building was also a dead giveaway.
As he landed he thought again of the Underworld and the meaning of its involvement. If Hades were angry he would have had this moment in the works for a long time. Thaddeus was well aware that there were people like him who chose to live in the mortal world, attempting to be mortals, until their true selves inevitably came to the surface.
While he hadn’t lied to Tayla, and was the only one of his kind—meaning he was the only half god, half phoenix in existence—there were many beings that could walk amongst the mortals without anyone having a clue to the power they possessed. As he transformed again, he thought of who that person could be. It had to be someone close to Tayla, someone she’d known for some time now. It wouldn’t be anyone at the school because they hadn’t been around her long enough for this retribution to have been put in place.
Whoever it was, they had Tayla now and he needed all his strength to get her back. He was up against one of his own now. Powers beyond belief would rival like powers, but only one would be the victor.
This was exactly the circumstance he’d warned his father and uncle against. All the battles of jealousy were not necessary, yet they happened, and they destroyed so many in the process. But neither one of the elders had heeded his warnings. Now he had to participate in one of these battles himself. Yet this time he didn’t see it as pointless. An evil being was threatening the life of a mortal, one Thaddeus was meant to protect. This battle was necessary for him and for Tayla’s survival.
If nothing else came of this, Tayla had to survive.
* * *
Tayla peeked through the drawn curtains to see that the sky was now indigo. She hadn’t left that room. She’d tried the door but it was locked, and there was no sound of movement on the other side. Where had Lorraine gone? She’d said she had something special for her. As she wondered what that could possibly be, Tayla couldn’t help the growing dread.
What was taking Thaddeus so long to get to her? She knew he wasn’t dead, knew he hadn’t abandoned her, yet he still was not there. Long ago she’d prided herself on needing no one, on being able to take care of herself. But now the tables were turned. She needed Thaddeus, needed him as she needed air. What would that mean for her when he was gone?
His father had said he was growing weak. She’d sworn not to think of that, not to even consider the moment Thaddeus would no longer be with her. But there was a myth, and he was a part of it. She would have to accept that, wouldn’t she?
She climbed back onto the bed, sat in the center with her legs crossed. She’d never thought she’d love again, yet in had walked this man who had turned out to be so much more than just a man. From the moment she first laid eyes on him, she’d known that something was different, that he was different. He made her feel so alive inside, so free and ready to live. His talk of being sent to protect her hadn’t alarmed her; in fact, it had lessened the impact of Jerome’s antics.
How could she let him go?
She knew she’d have no choice. It would be done and she would once again be forced to survive. Now she knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she’d never love again. Not because of any will or creed of her own but because Thaddeus had been the only man to ever hold the key to her heart. No man could ever compare to him. No man could ever love her as he had.
She clutched the pillow between her arms, trying to keep her thoughts of Thaddeus’ death, and possibly her own, at bay. It was deathly quiet one minute and then the next she heard it…
Hsssssss.
She blinked, cleared her mind to focus on the light sound to make sure it was real.
Hsssssss.
Memories flooded back quickly, and an icy spike of fear eased down her back as the sound came it sounded again. Only this time, it was closer.
She crawled to the edge of the bed, looked over at the floor, but didn’t see anything.
Hsssssss.
She looked on the other side of the bed. The sound increased and Tayla let her feet fall to the floor so that she could move to the lamp across the room. If something were in here with her, she couldn’t fight it unless she saw it.
She was at the lamp, had just flicked it on, when the sound came again, so loud it seemed to fill the tiny room. She turned quickly, looked toward the door and saw them.
Two skinny, slimy snakes were slithering through the crack at the bottom of the door, little red tongues darting in and out. Her heart lurched as she remembered the ones in the cafeteria looking the same way. She hurried back to the small table beside the bed, pulling open the drawers, looking for anything she could find, anything that resembled a weapon. All she saw was a bunch of candles.
They weren’t going to help her.
On second thought, she remembered how that awful three-headed creature had reacted in the forest when Thaddeus had burned him. But there were no matches in the drawer. She felt her pockets, thinking that when she was back at the cabin with Thaddeus she had intended to light the fireplace herself. Thaddeus had quickly moved her aside and touched the logs, igniting them instantly. She’d slipped her lighter back into her pocket. And…bam…she felt the rectangular object and pulled it from her back pants pocket. It was still there.
She grabbed up one candle and lit it. By that time the two reptiles were nearing the spot where her feet rested on the floor. She’d never been an overly squeamish female, so she took the last few remaining steps, bent down and touched the tip of the fire to one of the snakes. As it rolled and transformed to a charred mass, the other one moved in the opposite direction. Tayla got on her knees and crawled until she caught the pesky creature and lit his tail on fire as well.
“Keep your friends away from me,” she said into the now silent room, knowing that Lorraine would hear her.
No sooner were the words were out of her mouth than she saw five or six more snakes slithered through the crack. Adrenaline pumped through her as she realized she had a weapon to take care of the reptiles, and she moved toward them to do just that.
But the faster she burned them, the faster more appeared, until it seemed they were coming from all around the door’s base. They were all along the wall now, filling the floor. Tayla couldn’t burn them fast enough unless she dropped the candle and risked setting the entire cabin on fire. But then, with the door locked, she’d surely die in this little room. She crept to the window, lifting the shade. Her plan was to take the chair and break the window. She’d already looked out earlier and seen that it was ground level, so she could easily get outside.
But behind the shade was a huge snake.
She gasped and fell back from the window. There were more candles in the drawer; she’d just have to take her chances with dying a fiery death. That was preferable to being stung to death.
She managed to creep to the table without stepping on any more of the creatures, but just as she did the door squeaked open. She turned to see if it were yet another larger snake coming to get her. Her heart now hammered in her chest, her mind beginning to allow the panic she’d so valiantly fought off.
A scream died in her throat Lorraine walked in—she knew it was her because she was still clad in the chic black suit. But her head—correction, her heads—were now void of the black chignon, and even of the gray mass that she’d seen earlier. In their place were layers and layers of snakes. Lorraine smiled, then opened her mouth to reveal the tongue she’d used to flay Usef’s skin from his body.
Okay, now Tayla was officially scared as hell!
“Thaddeus!” she yelled, and prayed he’d hear her.