The Wicked Within

Its piercing shriek sent pain flowing through my eardrums. I removed the blade and went for the next one.

Flames burst in my peripheral vision. Dub had set one of the creatures on fire.

“Damn it, Dub! Not in the house!” Henri yelled as he fought.

“I know! It was an accident!” Dub beat the burning minion back through the front door with his baguette.

I took a hard shoulder to the gut as one of the minions charged. The force pushed the air from my lungs and rammed me high into the drywall. The wall buckled with the impact. I held the creature’s bony head away as its jaw snapped inches from my face. Over its shoulder, I saw Violet stroll out of the kitchen, wipe her mouth, and then survey the scene. Calmly, she pulled down her mask and crawled on top of the entry table.

Pulling my leg up, I managed to get my foot in between me and the creature and shoved it off. As it flew back, Violet leaped from the table onto its back.

The River Witch’s words echoed in my mind. Your day is coming, little one. Just like we talked about. Putting yourself in harm’s way can be a glorious thing. Damn it. I yelled at her to move, pushing off the wall to intervene when Violet withdrew a dagger and plunged it into one side of the creature’s neck as she bit the other. It was savage and quick. And shocking.

I’d seen Violet do something similar before, and, like before, witnessing her violent nature firsthand was startling. Dazed, I glanced away and saw Sebastian striding into the house and toward me, blue energy forming over his hands so fast, the wind of it hit me as he gathered it to him. His gray eyes burned with intent, his face grim and his aura lethal.

I felt a minion at my back and ducked, just as Sebastian let fly his power. It hit the creature dead on, sending a shower of spent energy radiating overhead and leaving a glop of flesh behind.

As I spun back around, another minion came up behind Violet as she released her now dead minion. I ran forward, jumped over the body she’d dropped, and landed in a puddle of black blood. I slipped right past her and between the oncoming minion’s legs, grabbing an ankle as I went and flipping the creature off its feet. I scrambled up and stabbed it in the heart.

It was the last kill, and quiet descended again, broken only by the sound of our heavy breathing. We stared at the scene, taking stock. The attack had happened so fast. . . . I thought I’d have more time before Athena sent her goons after us. And honestly, I hoped, despite what the River Witch had said, that I’d dealt the goddess a death blow during our last battle. I’d stabbed Athena with my father’s blade, which had channeled my gorgon power. My power had gone straight into Athena’s chest and begun to turn her to stone.

The minions tonight were a sure sign I’d failed.

Apparently the witch was right.

Dub was the first to move. He sat down on the stairs. “Wow.” His skin had gone a little pale. He rubbed his face as though he knew it, as though trying to stir his blood and bring himself back to normal—well, as normal as Dub could be.

I didn’t need to look in the mirror to know I looked just as frazzled. I felt it in the shaky muscles, in the numbness and the chill in my skin. I straightened, pulling my blade from the dead creature at my feet.

Deep, even breaths. That’s what Bran would say after one of our grueling training sessions at Presby. Slow and easy. My gaze stuck on Sebastian as he bent down and picked up Violet’s mask, which had come off during the fight. He handed it to her and then faced me.

Nice of him to finally show up.

Ever since he’d become a full-fledged vamp, I’d expected Sebastian to go through some rough spots. Yet he hardly acknowledged he’d changed, even though the stress was written plainly on his face. It was in the haunted shadows lurking in his eyes, the tight set of his jaw, and the tension that radiated all around him. He was becoming more and more reclusive, withdrawing from me and the kids. Avoiding. I wished to God he’d lean on me, let me in, let me help in some way.

Footsteps echoed from the porch outside, drawing my thoughts away from Sebastian. As a group, we straightened, ready for the next onslaught.

Brown suede boots stepped over the corpse blocking the threshold. The boots went all the way up to the knees. Bare thighs. Leather skirt. Bow and arrows peeked over her shoulders. I blew a strand of hair from my eyes, relieved it wasn’t another attack and yet wary as to what drama would unfold next.

Menai, daughter of Artemis, stood in the foyer. The tall, red-haired, sarcastic demigod—or god, depending on who her father was—surveyed the scene. She lifted an arched eyebrow as her earthy green gaze settled on me. Full lips quirked into a smile. “Still kicking ass and taking names, I see.”

I wiped the bloody blade on the back of one of the minions and then slid it into its sheath. “The only name I care about is your aunt’s.”

Another figure, dressed in a tight black tank and black stretch pants paired with tall combat boots, stepped over the corpse. I recognized Melinoe immediately. It was hard not to; the daughter of Hades definitely left an impression. Melinoe’s skin was two different colors. Her left side was coal black and her right side was a ghostly white. She parted her hair in the middle, and it followed the same colors as her body. She looked split in two. Black and white. Her eyes, though, were both an eerie, light bluish gray.

Violet walked right up to Melinoe and regarded her like an interesting specimen she’d found in the swamp. “You’re two different colors.”

Melinoe looked down slowly. Even the way she moved was eerie. “And you are but one.”

Violet nodded thoughtfully and tested the name on her tongue. “Meh-lin-oh-way. You were at the temple.”

“I was.”

“You’re Death’s daughter.”

“I am.” Melinoe lifted her white arm. “With this hand I can rip your soul from your body and send it to the Underworld, leaving you but a shell, a ghost of your former self. With this hand”—she lifted the black one—“I can destroy that soul.” Her fist closed. “Crush it until it’s nothing but ash. No Underworld. No afterlife. Nothing.”

Violet cocked her head and stared at her for a long moment. “Cool.”

And then she skipped back into the kitchen, leaving us all a little dumbfounded. Typical Violet. Melinoe’s lips twisted into a shadow of a smile as she watched Violet disappear.

“Were you shittin’ her?” Dub asked. “Can you really do that?”

Melinoe’s eyes went narrow and shrewd. She lifted her white hand and took a step toward him. “Want to find out, human?”

Dub ran.

Melinoe’s smile broadened.

Menai elbowed her in the ribs. “Knock it off, Mel.”

Death’s daughter shrugged.

Menai stepped farther into the room and surveyed the damage. “Sorry about the mess. Our ????? tend to get a little carried away.”

“I’m sure you told them to be on their best behavior,” Henri said with a frown.

“Where would the fun be in that? It’s not like I told them to attack.” Of course she hadn’t. She’d said nothing, knowing they’d be true to their nature and hunt. Menai did Athena’s bidding, but she didn’t like it or chose it, and she probably figured seven less minions around the better.

My fists clenched with the desire to hit her smirking face. Playing with the lives of my friends wasn’t something I appreciated. I was quickly learning that the gods, even the benevolent ones, had very little understanding of how short and precious and fragile human life really was. Easy to forget when you’re immortal.

My ribs ached, and pain pulsed through the bite on my shoulder and along my back where I’d slammed against the wall. I went to the stairs and sat down, feeling pretty damn disappointed that I hadn’t destroyed Athena.

Menai being here now meant she’d been sent. And I was pretty sure I knew what came next. “So what’s she want?” I asked tiredly, flexing my sore wrist.

Menai’s gaze lingered on Sebastian. “Last time I saw you, vampire, you were”—she grinned—“hard as a rock.”