Chosen (12 page)

The lump in her throat was slowly becoming a boulder. Time for chitchat would come later. Right now, she just wanted to make sure he'd stay okay. That he wouldn't backslide into whatever was wrong with him.

“I need to figure out where we are so I can get us home.”

Henry twisted beneath her hand and sat up. “There is a park . . . less than a hundred miles . . . from wherever we are.” His words were clearer now. He was getting a better handle on his old self. Relief swelled in Kyana and she sat beside him. “It's where he had my bones brought . . . where he raised us all.”

Excitement steadied Kyana's hands. “Is that where Cronos is staying?”

Henry gave a brisk nod. “For now.”

Kyana felt the weight of the night settle on her shoulders. If Henry was right, Cronos could pick up and move again before Kyana could assemble a group to hunt him down. Going alone would be suicide. She gnawed on her lip as she considered her options, which didn't take long given she really didn't have a single one.

She opened her mouth to say as much but Henry's icy hand cupping her cheek froze her lips.

“Beautiful,” he whispered. “My daughter.”

Tears stung her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Years of catching up and rebuilding bonds would have to wait. Henry could still swing to Cronos's side, and small glimmers of the man she knew weren't enough to convince her otherwise.

“I need time to . . . heal. Run.”

There was no way she was leaving him to face Cronos and the consequences of saving her life alone, and there was no doubt in her mind that Cronos
would
hunt them down.

“No, we'll have to find a place to hide out until dawn. Then I'll figure out where the closest port is and get us home.”

“No,” Henry snarled, sitting so straight he looked as though he might shatter if she touched him. His fingers bit into the flesh of her arm, leaving instant bruises. “I've broken a vow . . . to
him
. He'll be able . . . to find me. Get away . . . from me.”

“I liked it better when you couldn't speak,” she muttered.

The hum of power inside her wasn't as strong as it had been a few minutes ago, but it was still alive. She'd use it to get as close to home as possible before it fizzled out completely. She had no idea if she could use her goddess speed with a passenger, but she was about to find out.

Before Henry could offer any further excuses, Kyana laced their fingers and pulled him to his feet. “Hold on tight.”

Not knowing if it would work, but having no other options, she focused on their destination. Once she had a clear image of where she was going in her head, she tightened her grip on him and disappeared into the wind, trusting the huntress in her to get her home.

They fled from town to town, pausing long enough for Kyana to check on Henry before shooting off again. She didn't know how much time had passed, but her body ached like she'd been running for days. Her limbs felt like lead, and her body was turning blue from the combination of speed and March winds.

Still, once they crossed into St. Augustine, she didn't allow herself to break her pace until she finally reached Castillo Drive and the fort was within her sights.

Her strength gone, she collapsed onto a bench outside the drawbridge and took a minute to catch her breath. “I need to clear your entrance so I can get you to portal Below,” she said. “I need you to stay put for a minute.”

“Won't go . . . Below. Can't be trusted.”

“Yeah, well, I'm certainly not going to leave you up here with the humans, then, am I? Now sit tight while I go get help bringing you inside.”

Gods knew she was too tired to do it herself.

Henry gave a soft sigh. “Still my daughter. Stubborn,” he said. “I should be . . . taking care of you.”

“I think I owe you a little taking care of.”

Kyana stood and used the last of her strength to make her way to the sentinels standing guard outside the drawbridge.

As she strode down the wooden path, her insides spasmed at the thought of her close call tonight. Of the memory of Mehmet's mouth and hands on her. Of how close she'd come to being murdered by the people who'd stolen her life the first go-round. If not for Henry, Kyana—and the Goddess of the Hunt—would definitely be dead by now.

For the second time in her existence, Henry had given Kyana life.

And as she pointed the guards in his direction only to find his bench empty, she noticed with exasperation that, for the second time in her existence, he'd also vanished from her life without giving her a chance to say good-bye.

Chapter Seventeen

K
yana slumped against the drawbridge entrance to the fort, her gaze lingering on the vacant bench. She could go after Henry, but her sprint back to St. Augustine had exhausted her. She was feeling the withdrawal of ambrosia, and if she pursued him now, she wouldn't get very far before running out of the last remaining drops of steam she'd retained.

Besides, it wouldn't matter. The harder she looked for Henry, the harder he'd make sure she didn't find him. He'd done as much in his first life when he'd learned he'd become a target for the Vampyre hunters. If he really was traceable by Cronos because of a broken vow, Henry would stop at nothing to protect her from being close to the fallout.

Still his daughter? Yes. And he was still very much acting the part of her Sire.

But as much as she wanted to find Henry, her priority had to be Cronos. There was no telling how long he'd hole up in the park where Henry had said he'd be.

With a sigh, she pushed off the wall and made her way toward the fort's portals. She needed to eat, rest, and find Ares and the others. Cronos wasn't far away, and if she wanted to make certain it stayed that way, they were going to have to find his camp before he had a chance to move on.

“T
here you are!”

Kyana turned from her position looking out onto the sunrise lighting up Artemis's gardens to find Haven striding toward her, Ryker and Geoffrey in tow.

“Where the hell have you been?”

She allowed her gaze to slide over Haven's shoulder and settle on Ryker. Anger was radiating off him like steam, and she wasn't in the mood for a lecture any more than she was in the mood to deliver the sordid details of how she'd spent her horrifying night.

She plopped down at the table, helping herself to another handful of tangerine slices. “Don't start,” she muttered. “I'm in a mood.”

“Do you have any idea what we've been through looking for you?” Haven demanded. “Your scent disappeared in Tolomato and Geoffrey couldn't follow it out of there, but hell if you were there! Hiding in a grave maybe? What gives?”

“Yeah,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Hiding in graves, looking for shinies. You know me.”

Geoff stood beside Haven, his arms folded and his glare piercing. “What happened to you?”

Kyana shoved another tart wedge into her mouth, wishing she'd had more time to collect herself before they confronted her. Time to prepare a story, maybe bathe. Anything.

“Leave,” Ryker said, saving her from creating a diversion from the topic herself. “Both of you.” He snapped his glare to Kyana. “Don't look smug. You're not off the hook. I want explanations, I just don't want witnesses when I throttle you.”

Kyana glared right back. She wasn't about to be put on a leash or resort to answering to anyone. She wasn't a naïve fifteen-year-old girl, victim to the whims of an abusive husband anymore. What had happened tonight wasn't her fault, but all three of them were looking at her as though she'd done something stupid. More than that, like she'd done something stupid
again
.

“How 'bout
all of you
leave,” she grumbled, pushing to her feet. “I'm tired and sore and really in no mood for a chat.”

She thought she caught Haven staring at her face and remembered the blows she'd received. Surely by now they would have healed, but there was something in Haven's gaze that made Kyana wonder what her Witchy eyes could see that the others could not.

“You all right?” Haven asked, her tone softened with worry.

“I will be as soon as I talk to Ares.” She needed to talk to all of them, to see which of them would look for Cronos at her side. But not now. Not until she'd fully calmed from her rendezvous with Mehmet.

“I said leave,” Ryker repeated. Kyana looked up to find him glaring at Geoffrey, who finally nodded and whispered something to Haven.

A moment later, they were striding from the hall, Haven glancing back wearing a concerned expression on her face.

“I summoned Ares,” she muttered when they were alone. “You might want to leave before he gets here.”

After what she'd been through, seeing Ryker was indeed a comfort, and yet, that he was always there, every time she turned around, every time she had a moment of weakness, was grating on her nerves. She wasn't used to being watched over so carefully, which was exactly what Ryker had been doing since Kyana had been changed into the Goddess of the Hunt.

“I hear all summonses.” He was behind her now, his arms reaching out to pull her toward him. She stepped closer to the window, silently letting him know that she was in no mood to be coddled, though truly, she was. “What the hell happened to you tonight?”

The chiding in his voice was replaced by such a real note of concern, Kyana's resentment quieted. She wasn't mad at
him
. She had no reason to be. She was pissed that she'd nearly been a victim tonight, but Ryker's concern didn't deserve bitchiness in return. She still couldn't believe how easy it had been to be terrorized by Mehmet. How easily she'd reverted to a frightened kid.

She swallowed back the bitter retorts begging to be barked. He didn't seem eager to press her for explanations. Likely, he could sense that this wasn't the best time for her to offer answers . . . he was becoming so good at reading her lately, that wouldn't surprise her in the least. “Long story. But I'm fine.”

He took a step back and crossed his arms over his chest. The moment of tenderness fell away from him, replaced by granite again.

“What?” she asked, suddenly feeling like he was a mile away instead of a couple of feet.

The muscle in his jaw ticked. “I thought we were past all the secretive bullshit.”

Her defenses rose, wiping away the need to cry and putting in its place the need to protect herself. She didn't owe him any explanations. She'd never promised him anything, and this was why. That look of entitlement in his eyes made her want to punch the shit out of his gorgeous face.

“I thought I was past a lot of things. Apparently, I was wrong.”

“What happened?” Some of the anger in his voice disappeared.

They stood looking at each other in silence for a long moment as Kyana contemplated how much she was willing to tell, and how much he deserved to hear. Probably, he deserved to hear the whole truth, but that wasn't happening.

If she talked about Mehmet, even uttered his name aloud, she could break down, could become inconsolable. Could be weakened and pathetic. No. It helped no one to talk about Mehmet. That bit, she'd keep to herself.

But Ryker did deserve
some
explanation. If the shoe was on the other foot, she'd sure as hell want to know where he'd been too.

So what the hell could she tell him that would satisfy him for at least a little while?

“I saw Henry.” Now why the hell had she said that? She'd already told herself that she wouldn't say a word about Henry until she was sure he was safe. The last thing she wanted was for Ares or Ryker to put him on the list to be hunted and killed.

“What?”

“Never mind.” She dropped to her chair, propped her elbows on the table, and rubbed at her temples. “Why isn't your father answering my summons?”

“No clue. You saw Henry?”

She'd given him a bone that he'd fight to keep. Damn it all. “Leave it be. He saved me. That's all you need to know. Forget he's alive. For me.”

He sat beside her, his gaze so intense she felt herself squirm. “What the hell did you do this time to need saving?”

She flinched. “Excuse me?”

“Can't stay put and do your damned job, can you? Let me guess. You went off half-cocked, forgetting that you're a goddess now whose powers haven't been fully siphoned. Forgetting that, should you die, the world will suffer.”

His tone steady, his gaze never wavering. But deep down, he was seething, and Kyana was pretty sure it would hurt less if he just punched her and got it over with.

“I did not!” Lovely. Now she was sounding like the insolent child he seemed to think she was. She took a deep breath and stalked to the fire burning in the marble hearth across the room. Holding her hands over the open flame, she tried to calm herself. Confessing that she'd been stolen away in the night, caught off-guard like a naïve fool, didn't sit well with her.

Pride goeth before the fall.

“There are some things I had to relive in the last few hours,” she said, deciding that was safe enough to say. “And you know enough about my past to understand why I won't talk about it again here and now. I'm only going to tell you that Henry saved me from that, and I want him saved now despite misgivings anyone, including you and your father, might have about keeping a Novus alive.”

Ryker watched Kyana pull her hands from the heat and wring them in the skirt of her chiton. She was nervous, and the fear in her eyes made him regret lashing out so harshly. The mention of her past held his tongue from doling out more punishment.

There was only one thing from Ky's past, that he knew of, that would have her twisted in so many knots. She'd confessed some of her human life to him, confessed her murder, her rape. Was that what she referred to now? How could Henry possibly have saved her from the tormentors of her past who'd long since been dead?

Of course, if she'd really seen Henry . . . Perhaps Mehmet had been raised as well.

Anger surged through Ryker's veins like white rapids but he kept his composure. He'd attempt to let his own calm feed her until she could feel it for herself, if she'd just let him brush that damned chip off her shoulder.

He reached for her, and this time, she didn't back away. As he pulled her to his chest, he buried his face in her hair and kissed her forehead.

“I didn't go off half-cocked,” she whispered.

“All right.”

“You won't hunt Henry?”

“No.”

“Thank you.”

“He won't hunt Henry, but I sure as hell will.” The barked words sliced through the momentary peace they'd found, and both Ryker and Kyana spun to face their intruder.

Ares stood in the doorway, his face wearing the normal scowl and intense look of concentration.

“Get lost, Ares,” he said, pulling Kyana's back into his chest, sensing this could get ugly.

His entire body was tense at the sight of his father, but he wasn't going to add to the tension. The topic of Henry was going to be a sore one between Ares and Ky, and Ryker didn't need to add fuel to the fire. He'd been dealing with Ares for centuries. He knew how to work with him without letting familial issues distract him. Family drama part two could wait until later.

Ares tapped the hilt of the sword swinging from his hip and smiled. Ryker couldn't help but notice Ares's refusal to so much as glance his way. “Your Sire has risen like the others?”

Kyana stiffened in his arms. “Touch him and I'll slit your throat with your own sword.”

She didn't look at Ares, but the promise hung in the air, leaving no room for doubt. Ares had ordered Henry's death once, the night he'd created Kyana. However, this time if Ares overstepped the bounds Ky had drawn, Ryker would have hell on his hands.

“Mm. Yes. Let's leave a Novus, unsigned to our treaty, loose because you're a sentimental fool. We hunt all the others and leave him to wreak havoc.” Ares fell into a chair by the fire and sighed. “Who raised him? Cronos?”

“Of course,” Ryker said, running his hands up and down Kyana's arms, hoping to soothe some of the fury he could feel storming beneath her skin.

Finally, Ares looked his way. Something flickered in the cool blue eyes staring at him, then just as quickly, returned to the steely coldness Ryker was used to seeing there. “If you didn't call me here to do my job and hunt your Sire, why am I here?”

Kyana released a ragged breath before stepping out of his arms to face Ares. “I know where Cronos is. At least where he
was
a little while ago.”

“Where?” Ares stood.

“I'm not sure. Close. In a park outside of Jacksonville.”

“You're strong enough to accompany my guard?”

“Like I'd let you go without me.” She grabbed a goblet of wine and ambrosia and took a long drink.

“Gather what you need and meet me at the bank of portals Below.”

Without another word, he turned and strode from Kyana's temple, leaving a sudden tension hanging between Ryker and Kyana as they stared at each other. There was a silent understanding that passed between them that he wouldn't be going with her.

He wanted nothing more than to stay at her side and watch her back, but he'd fallen in love with a woman who could take care of herself. Despite his earlier demands to know where she'd gone and what she'd done, he had to let her do that now. There were people here, on Olympus, and Above on Earth who
needed
his protection. It was his duty to give it to them.

Losing the Goddess of the Hunt was one thing. Losing the God of Gods was quite another—a responsibility he didn't take lightly.

But at the same time, losing the Goddess of the Hunt didn't mean half as much to him as the possibility of losing Kyana, the woman.

“You won't play the hero,” he said. “You'll let Ares and his guards do their jobs. Hell, Ky, there's no reason for you to even go. Ares can bring him in just as well as you could.”

He knew the suggestion wouldn't fly, but it was worth a shot.

“Ares is good at arresting.
I
am good at hunting.” She brushed her hair away from her face, tucked it behind her ear. “If Cronos isn't there when we arrive, there's still a chance I can follow and find him again. It would take Ares a lot longer to do that,
if
he was successful at all.”