Page 22 of Shadowed Spirits

Levi narrows his eyes on his brother and clenches his jaw. “Because I didn’t know. And I’m not feeling particularly bad about it when you could’ve killed my mate.” He reaches over and grabs my hand, holding on to me like he needs to reassure himself that I’m okay.

Hades throws his hands into the air in exasperation. “Everyone was sure she wascura! I was mostly positive the earthling would be fine.” He rolls his eyes like everyone else is overreacting.

Closing his eyes to try to gather himself, Levi opens them to pin his brother with a look that’s half disappointment and half fury. “That’s not fucking good enough when it comes to my mate. How would you feel if someone did that to Seph?”

With his eyes turning bloodred, Hades is silent for a moment as he struggles for control. When he gets ahold of himself, he opens his mouth to argue further. He snaps it closed when Cain’s chest vibrates with another low warning growl. “You tried to hurt my mate.” Cain’s words come out harsh and guttural. It’s nothing like his usual soft-spoken nature.

Hades flinches almost imperceptibly at the sound, and my eyebrows shoot up in surprise. I wouldn’t think anything could scare Hades, especially not my mostly gentle shifter mate.

“Good doggie,” Hades coos. I snort at his awful attempt to calm the situation. While Cain can shift into a wolf, and maybe a hellhound, he’s very much not a dog. “It’s all just a big misunderstanding. How ’bout you put away your hellhound and we’ll talk? I’m sure I can find a nice dog treat too.”

Cain snarls and advances on Hades. As peeved as I am that Hades tried to kill me, I don’t really want Cain to rip him to shreds. Hopping up, I intercept him before he can pass my chair. I press my hands to his chest and crane my neck way back to meet his glowing red eyes. Along with bulking up, Cain has also grown an inch or two taller. “I’m okay, quiet boy. No need to murder Hades, as annoying as he is, on my behalf.”

He wraps both arms around my back and hauls me against his rock-hard abdomen. “You could’ve died,” he rasps, his harsh tone gentled for me. My chest fills with warmth when I see the worry for me swimming in his gaze. While I know my mates would be safer without me, I can’t deny how much their concern means to me.

I wrap my arms around his neck. Some of the black flames dancing around him wind around my arms playfully. Instead of burning, the flames just feel like a pleasant warmth where they touch me. It’s kind of soothing, honestly.

“But I didn’t,” I point out.

Cain scowls over my shoulder. “He’s a threat. He needs to be eliminated to keep you safe.”

I tug on the back of his neck to get him to look back down at me. The less he focuses on Hades, the better. “He really doesn’t need to. It would be super messy. You’d become ruler of the underworld, which would be a ton of work. You’d have to talk to hordes of people, which would suck so hard. We’d have tomove down here, which would make it hard for Luca to run the pack and you to see Prue. And I’d really prefer that you not kill him. He’s an asshat of epic proportions, but he’s grown on me.” A little. Mostly, I just don’t want Cain killing Levi’s brother or Seph’s mate. That’d make family gatherings awkward.

Cain exhales and closes his eyes. When he opens them a moment later, they’re a swirling mixture of green and red, which I take to mean he’s calming down. “What about maiming?” One corner of his mouth twitches up, so I know he’s joking. Mostly.

I can’t help my smile as the ghost of his. “Hmm. I suppose that could be okay.”

“No! No maiming!” Hades hops up from his chair and gestures to himself. “I need my pretty face to get shit done around here.”

Snapping his head up to pin Hades with a spine-chilling glare, Cain barks, “I didn’t ask you,cura.”

Hades clenches his jaw and balls his hands into fists but wisely doesn’t say anything. Hellhounds must be super powerful or something to make him hold himself back like this.

Since the crisis is mostly averted, I turn my attention to more important matters. “Would it be cool if we sat back down? I’m still pretty hungry.” I stare longingly at my abandoned cheesy pasta. I don’t know what they put in it, but that’s the cheesiest, gooiest, most delicious mac and cheese I’ve ever had. It would be a travesty to waste it.

“Anything for you, angel.” Cain dips down and slams his mouth on mine for a hard and fast kiss that leaves me dazed when he pulls back. Surprising me, he picks me up by my waist and carries me over to my chair. He sits down and arranges me on his lap with my legs dangling off one side so I can easily reach my food. Wrapping his arms around me, he smooshes me against him, like he’s afraid something will happen to me if he doesn’t.

“What in fate’s name is wrong with you, Hades?” Seph’s voice is filled with disbelief, reproach, and anger. She doesn’t seem like the type to get mad easily, so I’m sure glad I’m not the one facing her wrath.

Hades looks shocked that she’s upset at him. “What? She’s fine. It’s not a big deal.”

Zeus shakes his head at him. “Almost killing our great-granddaughter and your brother’s mate is a massive deal, man. What the fuck?” He turns his worried gaze to me to check that I’m really fine. He winces when he sees me sitting on Cain’s lap and promptly turns away. My actual dad isn’t nearly as bothered by me finding my mates as Zeus is. It probably sucks being his daughter. I bet he forbids her from ever dating.

Sighing, I come to Hades’s defense. “What Hades did was shitty, but what’s done is done. No point in dogpiling on him.”

“For what it’s worth, Izzy, I’m sorry.” Hades’s face is uncharacteristically serious as he apologizes. It’s like he dropped the playful, slightly crazed mask he normally wears to give me a glimpse of the real him. He looks tired, and I, strangely enough, feel bad for the man who mildly tried to kill me. “As my wonderful mate says, I have a hard time thinking through how my actions will make other people feel.”

“It’s fine. Do it again, and I won’t hold Cain back, understand?” If he had done something like this to my mates, I wouldn’t be so forgiving. Since it was only to me, I have no problem with Hades. I’d just rather him not try to get rid of me again.

Hades lips stretch into a smile that’s the furthest thing from friendly I’ve ever seen. “Understood. I like you more and more every time we talk, earthling.”

I snort. “We’ve talked twice. So, why is Cain being a hellhound a big deal?”

Levi is the one who answers, pausing in glaring at his brother to focus on me. “Hellhounds are extremely rare. Their population has been declining for thousands of years, due to reproductive struggles. The fact that Cain is not only a hellhound but one who didn’t grow up in this realm is incredible. Add in that there are no recorded hybrid hellhounds, and he is quite the mystery.”

“Why did Hades seem like a big scaredy-cat about Cain?” I would’ve thought Hades was the biggest, baddest thing in this realm. I assume that’s how he keeps control of the plane.

Hades scoffs, but Levi’s mouth curves up on one side. “Bites from hellhounds are extremely toxic, even tocura. If Cain had bitten him a few times, Hades would be dead.”

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