Going Thru Hell (14 page)

Chapter Twenty Two

I'd waited years to go home. To hug my parents, feel their arms, hear their voices, see their smiling faces. To hold Riot again, bury my face in his hair and smell his intrinsic scent of winter and hay. To make him laugh, and learn about the last four years of his life.

Instead, I found tears, panic,
and misery. I blamed myself. If I'd done as they said, maybe this wouldn't have happened, although I knew the truth. Not one string indicated a livable outcome should I choose a pantheon. Logic has no root in emotions, however. No matter how muted the emotions, guilt was powerful.

Mom and Dad met us on the front porch. Both looked older, more than
the four years since I’d last seen them. As if life had beaten them, demanding submission. But their spines were straight, looking for all the world like warriors refusing to kneel in the chaos.

“Kylie,” Mom held me close, kissing my cheeks as tears streamed down hers. “I'm sorry. It was too late by the time we realized they'd found us.”

I hugged her tighter, because it was expected. She pulled away, looking me in the eye.

“Oh, no. What happened? Why are you almost soulless? How did you get the scars?” Her hands held me still.

“Mrs. Rippons, she tried. For Riot, she tried to keep them away.”

“It is as Mother said. Inside, all of you.” She ushered us into the house and to a door. She gave Aki a double take, before her eyes opened wide and she gasped. “No. Please, no.”

“What, Mom?”

“It is nothing, Braider.” Aki threw me a stern look. Old habits die hard
, and I ignored the request for silence.

“Apparently it is something. Start talking.”

“No, Kylie, come on. Maybe later. We have to talk about your son,” Mom continued to glance at Aki.

Why were they always hiding information from me? I shook myself and followed. Concern was there, but not enough.
My parents led us down stairs into a fifties era service elevator, the doors closed and Dad pushed a series of buttons. Loud grinding noises, a flew clanks and the lift slowly descended.

We were led through a dizzying amount of tunnels, all painted concrete. Twists and turns, stairs at odd intervals until we finally walked through a door into a brightly lit room. Room wasn't a good name for it. It used to be a missile silo, converted into a kind of sunroom. I glanced up, seeing a glass lid
far above, letting in plenty of light. The silo had a metal staircase following the rounded walls, intermittent landings filled with plants of every conceivable kind. Vines hung fifty feet in the air, tall palm trees graced the base of the room, several pine trees, and a small vegetable garden tucked in a corner receiving the benefits of the sunlight filtering into the room. The smell of lush greenery filled the air, and I instantly felt better. Part of me said it was the amount of oxygen shed by the plants. The other part didn't give a damn.

Dizzy from staring upwards, I looked at the furniture spread around. It broke the room into several seating areas, and I chose the most comfortable looking furniture.

“Did they say where?” I asked, deciding to get to the point.

“How long have you been fighting, Kylie?” Dad countered. He'd always been a handsome man, with a decidedly bookish cast to his masculine features. His hair almost completely gray, more lines around his mouth and forehead, all he needed was a tweed jacket and he'd be ready for a Harvard classroom.

“I don't know. I went on vacation in late August. I've lost time.” I tilted my head to the right, watching his reactions. Shock, surprise, followed by alarm and finally dismay. Dad knew something. “Spit it out, Dad. What do you know?”

As I said the words, threads appeared in their bright colors, beckoning to release the power and braid. The one string to the side, the one which couldn't be braided, glowed, the consequence
s I wanted to avoid. I told myself I could regenerate my soul, death wasn't the answer. The other strings showed so many different results, surely I could find them without use of power, without following the one time line I feared most.

“Kylie, what do you remember about the stories Grandma told you?” Mom asked, holding Dad's hand until her knuckles turned white.

“Some of the history, their sacrifices.”

“Did she ever tell you about your great
-grandmother?”

“Adelaine? The one who interfered with the suffrage movement?”

“Yes, that's the one. She was my father's grandmother, a powerful mortal. She believed in women's rights, especially after losing her sister.” Mom paused, took a deep breath, stared at her hand linked with Dad's. “She tried to save so many lives, working in the ghettos of New York City. A certain deity would not leave her alone, and used the women in need against her. He wanted her to choose a pantheon. Your grandmother was little more than a toddler at that time. Later, after one particular release of power, she disappeared for two months. Your grandmother said she didn't really disappear, but was held in the dimension just beyond our normal vision. Grandma told of how she could see her, as if behind thick glass, asleep.”

“What does this have to do with me?”

“You are losing control of your power. It is setting to autopilot. Your soul is how you control it, Kylie. Even use of the secondary creates loss of soul. You have to stop, or you will end up in a hospital for the insane. Out of control and dangerous.”

“What does this have to do with Riot?”

“It is a warning, babygirl. That is all.”

“How did they get in? Where is he?”

Mom looked at Dad, exchanged a look.

“Braider, he is being held on a plane you cannot reach alone.” Tiamat's voice startled me, and I whipped around to see her standing to the side, in human form. “They will ar
rive soon, with their demands, and we will follow them to where the young demi-god is kept.”

I wondered why she said
what
Riot was instead of his name. I met her eyes, letting it roll around my thoughts. Like a V8 smack to the forehead, I understood.

“They won't hurt him, yet.” Tiamat gracefully moved around the furniture, her linen clothing barely moving, a mere whisper of sound. Her black eyes drilled into mine. “What are you willing to do for Riot, Kylie?”

“My life, as you well know.”

“It may yet come to that.”

Chapter Twenty Three

We spent time trying to make plans, but until the dema
nds were made, nothing could be set in stone.

Mom showed us to our room, Bru and Aki refusing to leave my side. I'd expected a protest, but my parents merely nodded in agreement.

The bedroom was likely a former conference room. Huge proportions, high ceiling and rounded walls painted a dark tan. Mom's sense of décor helped to make it warm and comfy, with a king sized bed, enormous walk in closet and dressers, and fake windows covered with heavy drapes in a deep navy blue. Two sitting areas to each side of the bed for reading or relaxing, another opposite the bed. In the far sitting area, a large flatscreen mirrored our movements. Tucked into an odd shaped niche, built in bookshelves filled with titles of every genre.

I should have ooh'd and ahh'd, explored out of curiosity. I shrugged and unpacked instead
, while Bru enjoyed the beautiful room, and Aki watched my every move.

“Aki, explain why my mother is upset at your presence.” I finished putting my shirts away, straightened,
and turned to face him.

He turned away. “It is not important.”

“Upsetting my mother is important in my book,” I crossed my arms.

“I can't tell you, damn it
,” he answered.

“So be it
.”

I
left him, walking the halls, trying to figure out what to do next. The threads never really disappeared, lingering, always hidden in the shadows of my thoughts, ready to come forth at the smallest request. It was exhausting, fighting the instinct. Constantly reasoning with myself while my palms remained hot, forcing me to keep them clenched to avoid harming others.

“Tired, are you? Have we finally driven you to exhaustion, will you choose a pantheon now?” I whirled to find Thor. Such a beautiful sight. Tall, strong, classic Nordic features under a thick mane of strawberry blond hair.

“Driven me?” I opened my hands, preparing for the worst.

“Oh, I know of how you learned to manipulate the power, Braider. I shall not come close. The stories abound, Zeus and Cronus
are still trying to regenerate.”

“What do you mean, driven me?”

“We have my grandson. Handsome, strong. Looks much like his father, doesn't he? I will raise him to be the warrior of legend.”

“Give him back to me.”

“Why? You refuse to fight on our side, and he is so enjoying the new place. He is young, impressionable. What could you possibly offer?”

“Time, training, knowledge of how to work the lines. I willingly trade myself for Riot.”

“Not that easy. I know of your allies, the Valkyries. Well done.”

“What do you want in exchange, then?”

Artemis appeared, smiling. A beautiful female, it was no wonder Aki gave in to her charms. Too bad she was a rabid bitch. “She isn't far enough gone. Taking the child did not push her over the edge as we wanted. But I think I know what will.”

They turned at the ear
-splitting roar of grizzly bear. I followed their open-mouthed gaping to find Aki standing less than ten feet away, the image of a bear flickering over his half-clad form. He held a sword high, stalking the two immortals.

I stepped backwards until I hit the wall, remaining still as the three clashed. Bru raced down the hallway, gave me a pointed finger, signaling me to stay put, two short swords in her hands. I ga
wked as the four of them engaged, the clang of metal ringing echoing against the walls.

Aki brought his sword down, missing Artemis's face by millimeters. She swung around, bow at the ready and releasing an arrow. Aki twisted to the left, but not fast enough and the arrowhead opened a long gash in his left arm. He executed an almost perfect pirouette, bringing his sword upwards and cutting her thigh to the bone.

Bru battled Thor, and as Aki was gracefully spinning, she managed to stab Thor in the gut and pulled to the left until her sword exited somewhere around his kidney. Thor fell to his knees, holding the wound, gasping and cursing between breaths.

The two immortals remained on the ground, Aki and Bru standing over them
, ready.

“Where is the child?” Aki spoke low and commanding.

“Not until the Braider agrees to our terms,” Artemis snarled, glaring at Aki.

I stepped forward, unsure of myself. If I agreed, perhaps I could find Riot and bring him home. On the other hand, it wouldn't take much before I lost what little sou
l I retained and wouldn't care if my child was safe or not.

Damn it.

“I'm not going to braid for any of you. Period.” Tiamat shimmered just out of sight, her power calling to me. I was a little surprised, normally I could
feel
their innate power, but it never whispered to mine. Soothing the instinct, yet tempting at the same time.

“Then you will never find Riot.” Thor disappeared slowly, his Cheshire cat smile the last to
vanish.

Artemis's expression of betrayal was aimed at Aki. “I'm surprised you hurt me for this whining mortal. After all we were together.”

Aki laughed, a harsh sound. “You aren't that good, goddess.”

She hissed at him and without further words, disappeared.

Tiamat's power disappeared with her.

I stood on shaky legs, unsure. Aki and Bru smiled at each other.

“It worked,” Bru moved to stand in front of me, a hand on my shoulder. “You did great. Tiamat will follow them until Riot is located.”

“How can we be sure she will find him? They may go in different directions.”

“Let her work. Not to mention, as one of the oldest goddesses, she has tricks none of us have ever thought of. Come on, let's get you to bed. My sisters have all arrived and are keeping your mother busy.”

I followed. I wondered how long Tiamat had been able to call my power, to soothe and tempt. The thought bothered me, although not as much as it probably should have. Bru must have felt a change and handle
d me like a porcelain doll. I said nothing, only followed her directions as she put me in a pair of flannel Hello Kitty pajama bottoms and pink camisole. I crawled into bed, laying quietly as she fussed with the bedding. Nothing ebbed across our bond, leaving only an empty tunnel to look through.

I felt the weight of Aki before his heat surrounded me. A muscular arm slid across my waist and pulled me into his strong body. I could feel his face burrow into my neck, hot breaths on my skin creating goosebumps. One hand moved between my breasts, to push against the breastbone over my heart. He held it in place, remaining silent.

I felt a certain peace at the nightly ritual. His nearness soothed the gaping wounds, as if I'd waited my whole life for such a thing. I questioned why I found Aki so damned late.

“Those thoughts will not bring you the peace you seek, Kylie,” he whispered in the dark.

“Reading minds?”

“No, you spoke out loud, honey.”

I nodded, and fell asleep.

Snick, snick
. The sounds of metal sliding against metal of the creature's teeth didn't create fear. The windowless house stood in shadows, the smell of apples wafting on a light breeze. I clutched the teddy bear tight to my chest, enjoying the feel of the soft outer shell. I glanced down, my body no longer five years old, instead seeing the gangly, knobby kneed legs of my early teen years. My hands were bigger, minus a few scars I'd gather later in life.
Snick, snick
. The creature was close, a low snarling joining the apple smell.

“Who are you? Why chase me?” I asked.

“You know who I am,” the familiar voice whispered.

“No, I don't.”

“Ah, child, I am no stranger to you.”

I walked to a window, overlooking a picture perfect field of green. I reached out, testing. It reminded me of cartoons I'd watched every Saturday morning
as a kid. An invisible force field, stretching as my hand pushed outwards, but never allowing me through.

“I do not fear you any longer.”

“Then you are close to understanding.”

I jackknifed in bed, startling Aki. The room was jet black, no lights this deep underground. Disoriented for a moment, I reached out, searching. Wrapped in Aki's strong arms, he pulled me into his body as comforting sounds vibrated through his chest. Relaxing into the embrace, allowing the gentle rocking, I wondered what the creature meant. I'd never actually seen it, nor had I talked to it before. I thought about being thirteen instead of five in the dream. Everything meant something.

“Why do I smell apples, Kylie?” Bru's disembodied voice interrupted my thoughts.

“You smell that?”

She flipped the light switch. Blinded for a moment, I thought about the smell of apples. For many, apples are a sign of fertility, apple pie, comfort. Not for me. I hated apples, but the smell didn't cause repulsion on my part. Instead, it was along the lines of something I should see clearly, but blinded by my own stubbornness. A symbol I needed to get out of my own way. Too bad I had no clue how to do that.

“Kylie, you reek of apples. It's happened before, but not this strongly. You smell like a damned apple pie.” Bru frowned at me, as if trying to puzzle out the mystery and my face would hold all the answers.

“I don't know. It's a dream.”

“I think we need to take this to your mother, Kylie. For now,
can you go back to sleep?” Aki’s hand lightly rubbed my side.

“Yeah, I think so.”

Bru turned off the light as Aki gently lay me down again and returned to his full body cuddle.

The heat, the comfort of his embrace and exhaustion helped to put me back in the land of dreams. This time it was all about pretty purple unicorns stamped with Hello Kitty.