Page 5 of Call of the Ride
Sharply observing me, Veles’ voice took on a challenging tone, the glint in his dark eyes daring me to react. “I wonder…do you think you’re powerful enough yet to take on a god?”
I can certainly try…
Before I could decide whether to risk an attack, a woman’s voice cheerfully called out from the depths of the willow behind him. “Behave, Vel! Once Vasi achieves her full power, shewillbe able to take you on, so play nice while you still can.”
Tension bled out of me as a familiar shock of orange hair appeared in the tree’s doorway. “And I’ll also remind you that our little witch needs to haveallof her Riders on the surface, if we have any hope of stopping The Devouring.” Marena caught my eye and winked, making no attempt to hide her sly grin as she roughly elbowed the god. “So why nothelpthem?”
Veles scowled, his gaze narrowing on the horns I now noticed still adorned my Riders’ heads. Tans were thick and white, glowing with that natural light of his, while Asa’s were red and curling, similar to a gazelle’s. The sight of both made desire flare up in me again, and my men instantly zeroed in on me, primal lust shooting down our bond so intensely I gasped.
The god groaned, waving a hand in front of his face as if to clear the air. “I will gladly help if it puts an end to the suffocating pheromones permeating this sacred grove. All right, Vasi, I’ll tell you what the problem is.” He paused dramatically, his fiery gaze sweeping over the three of us. “You’re a bunch of idiots.”
Not. Helpful.
Marena loudly sighed before interjecting again. “What Vel istryingto say is that Nox went a little too hard with his power and essentially became one with the darkness that he wields. Since the four of you are still relatively untrained, this was bound to happen, but it’sfixable!” Her hopeful smile faltered as she warily glanced at the god beside her. “Itisfixable, right?” she hissed under her breath.
A noncommittal shrug earned Veles a punch in the jaw from an unseen hand.“Fuck!”he bellowed, a wall of fire exploding from his body, causing my Riders and me to leap backward in alarm. “How the…how was he able to strike me in this state?!”
Oh, does that bother you?
“Hmm, it would be such ashameif Noxy haunted you, wouldn’t it?” Tan taunted, eerily replicating Veles’ wicked grin. “If he were to use his power of darkness to repeatedly kick you in the nuts until they shriveled up and fell off...since you don’t need them anyway, ya?” My Bright Dawn punctuated his threat by raising a hand for a phantom high-five from Nox that echoed through the grove.
Asa wrapped himself around me from behind, sliding his hands down my body until he gently cupped my aching pussy, sending soothing warmth through his fingers. “Sho'nuff. It would be a crying shame if the three of us figured out how to combine our powers to take on a god…”
Although he was murmuring in my ear, my Beautiful Sun’s words were loud enough to show they weren’t aimed at me. And I didn’t need to see my Rider to know he was pulsing with an angry red glow, every bit the vengeful demigod, making me wet for him all over again.
Perhaps we can start by suffocating Veles with our pheromones…
“Enough!” Veles boomed, the fury in his expression flavored with a pinch of uncertainty. “There is a…humanwho can help coax that moron back from the darkness, and teach the rest of you to only be half as useless.” He snapped his fingers at Marena and she openly rolled her eyes before handing him some paper and an antique quill pen.
The god grumbled to himself as he scribbled something down before handing the paper to me. Glancing at it, I saw the name and London address of what sounded like either a fortune teller or a lady of ill repute.
Registering my confusion, Veles sighed. “The shop owner’s name is Cassandra Moonstone, and she’s a highly skilled medium and…”
“How the hell doyouknow Cass?” Tan interrupted, narrowing his hazel eyes at Veles. “I always got the distinct impression you prefer not to fraternize with us lowly humans.”
Marena also appeared to be expectantly awaiting an answer, and I wondered if secrets between them were unusual. The god of the underworld awkwardly smoothed his hands down the front of his robe before answering. “Let’s just say we met a few decades ago and she...impressedme with what she offered.” He suddenly whipped his fiery gaze back to Tan. “How doyouknow her, Taneer?”
My Rider’s gaze roamed over Veles like he was trying to solve a puzzle. “She was my mum’s mentor at university and they are still quite close,” he abruptly stopped, clearly distracted by whatever path his own thoughts were taking. The god of the Nav and my Bright Dawn suspiciously eyed each other in the ensuing silence—neither man willing to offer any further information to the other.
No surprises there.
“So, I’ve noticed your Riders still have theirhornshanging out,” Marena’s voice cut through the tension as she slyly smiled, tilting her chin upward toward the appendages.
Jealousy flared within me, but as Marena was respectfully keeping her gaze locked above my Riders’ waists, I reeled it in. “Yes, I noticed,” I sighed, frustrated by yet another mystery. “Usually their horns disappear after we’re…finished, so I’m not sure what happened this time.”
It was Veles who explained, albeit begrudgingly. “It’s because they took another step closer to their divinity. I would hazard a guess it was yourintentionof calling me to your aid that added to your powers.” He snorted, his distaste in our appearance—in our very existence—a palpable thing. “Either way, this is how you look now, so I suggest you get used to it.”
Registering our alarmed expressions, Marena smoothly cut in. “Don’t worry.Humanswon’t be able to see your horns, and eventually you’ll learn how to hide them from each other, if you so choose.” She gestured to the space above her own head and I realized the goddess had been disguising her own set all this time.
“Will Vasi grow a pair as well? She already seems to have cajones to match ours, so…” Tan murmured, his gaze hungrily fixed on Asa’s horns. I registered a new thread of desire curling through our bond, radiating outward from both men, with me in the middle.
Sounds familiar…
Marena chewed her lip, considering his question. “I’m honestly not sure. We still don’t knowwhatVasi is or how she even became Yaga, so her divinity status is up for debate.” She suddenly brightened. “Perhaps this Cassandra Moonstone will know more! I would be happy to quickly transport you all to London through the underworld, if that helps.”
I smiled, grateful for the offers of assistance. Even with as difficult as Veles could be, he’d provided a promising lead, and I appreciated anything that might return Nox to us. That we were already planning on investigating Matthew’s contacts in London—which was where this fortune-teller Cassandra lived—hinted at a serendipity I couldn’t deny.
“Thank you both for the help,” I addressed the gods. “We hope to leave for London tomorrow morning. If all goes to plan, we’ll return with more information on what the Facility intended to do with the captured shifters and how we might halt and repair the destruction of my forest.”
