Hunter Forsaken (Wild Hunt #2) (15 page)

Chapter Twenty

Tegan tugged on her fingerless gloves, hiding her mate mark, then waved her arm. A shimmering wall appeared with a puff of sulfur-scented air. Minerva stood on the other side.

The sight of the goddess tore Tegan’s control to shreds. Her Hunter form emerged in a rush of pain she welcomed. Talons extended, she leapt at the woman and pierced her shoulders. With a shove, they flew backward. Minerva hit the rock wall. She flinched but didn’t cry out. Not good enough. Tegan wanted her screams. She dragged her claws across Minerva’s chest. Blood welled. Muscle showed. Minerva closed her eyes.

Tegan growled and wrapped her hand around the goddess’s throat; sharpened nails dug in, ready to rip it out. Still Minerva didn’t respond, didn’t fight back, didn’t even look at Tegan.

Tegan released her grip. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I needed you to mate him. You were the only one who could.” Minerva glanced at Tegan’s hand. “You did, didn’t you?”

Tegan turned and faced the smooth wall where the portal only the Huntsmen could use connected the human realm to the Underworld. Ian was on the other side. Alone. With Rowan close by. She might not have been able to save Ian by mating him, but she could satisfy his other needs.

Tegan took a step toward the mystical doorway. She should’ve ensured her sister had left the estate for the day before entering Hell, or ordered one of her brothers to watch over Ian. A growl crawled from her throat. What had she been thinking, leaving her incubus mate alone?

“Arawn will be angry once he learns of my sacrifice. I had to make sure my son was safe before that happens,” Minerva said.

Tegan spun on her heel. “Sacrifice? You cheated on your mate. That’s not a sacrifice. That’s called infidelity!”

Minerva stood and wiped at the dirt on her silver gown. Brown streaks added to the blood staining the gauzy fabric. She sighed and dropped her arms. “I never meant to cheat on Arawn.”

Tegan strode forward. The lure of knowledge pushed her concern over Ian and Rowan to the side for the moment. With the power Tegan had fed him last night, he should be well sated, for a while anyway.

“You never meant to cheat.” Tegan snorted. “But you did, and it resulted in a child you shouldn’t have been able to conceive. Explain that.”

“I’ve always been resentful of Arawn for giving up his ability to have more children. I’ve tried to accept his actions and forgive him. I understand why he did it, that it was necessary to build his army in order to protect the humans. That knowledge doesn’t ease my hurt. Neither has time.” Minerva looked imploringly at her. “You of all his children should be able to relate to this.”

Tegan hated to admit she did. She gave a small nod.

“Thirty years ago, I went to the heavens to beg for a child. The Triad had mercy on me and assured me that the next time I had sex, I’d conceive.” Minerva pressed her hands to her stomach. “Pleased but a bit surprised that the deity hadn’t asked for a sacrifice, I ran to Arawn’s chambers, afraid the Triad would change its mind, but there was some emergency and my mate wasn’t there.”

“So you went to the Haven and fucked a demon.”

“No. I waited in his office for him. Aroused, horny and giving off enough pheromones to ensure Arawn wouldn’t turn me aside because he was busy. He didn’t come.” She scrubbed at her face, streaking the gunk caked there. “Lucas did.”

The Demon King.
Tegan covered her mouth. She hadn’t expected Ian’s father to be him. No wonder Minerva wanted Ian mated to Tegan. Her father and Lucas might not be friends, but Arawn trusted him. Lucas was the only male outside of their Teulu who held such an honored role. Once Arawn found out Lucas had fucked Minerva, anarchy would reign in Hell. Lucas might not rule, but three-quarters of its inhabitants owed their allegiance to him, not Arawn.

“Lust took over. Neither of us wanted it, but we drowned in it. He bent me over Arawn’s desk and took me hard. Then he carried me back to his home where we continued to fuck, all night and into the next day. Finally I slunk away and returned to the heavens.”

“And?” Tegan prompted when the goddess remained silent.

“And I was thanked for choosing the strongest of the demons as my baby’s father. The Triad was worried I’d reproduce with one of the lesser males.”

Thanked her?
“The Triad planned Ian’s birth.”

“Yes, and my downfall.” Minerva fisted her hands and strode forward until inches separated them. “The deity told me I would miscarry within days since it wasn’t Arawn’s babe I carried. My body would reject him. After the Triad dropped its bombshell, it demanded a sacrifice to save my child.”

With the Triad, it always came down to sacrifice. Nothing was free.

Tegan looked the goddess in the eye and felt the first stirrings of sympathy. She’d been manipulated too. “Why?”

“The Triad wanted me in a position where I wouldn’t be able to refuse the gift offered to me, a way to save my baby.”

“By placing Ian’s soul in a human body.”

“Yes. I considered telling Arawn afterward, but I needed the events to play out the way I planned.”

“Setting Ian up with me?” Her voice sounded hollow. She couldn’t help it. Resentment mixed with sorrow over the way they’d been manipulated. Even still, she was glad they’d met. She just wished they’d been allowed to fall in love on their own.

“Yes, I needed the two of you to mate. It was the only way to guarantee he’d keep his immortality, especially after he dropped into Hell as a Huntsman. I hadn’t expected Calan to invite him to join the Hunt. When I learned about it, I was terrified Arawn would uncover his true nature, but the Triad had kept its word and bound his abilities.”

“And I unleashed him.” Tegan wrapped her arms around her middle. “You played us.”

Minerva inclined her head. “Love is a game too, daughter.”

Tegan tipped her head. “How so?”

Minerva smirked. “Have you never watched people fall in love? Potential partners will dance around each other, making moves and choices, then readjusting their tactics to gain the lover they’ve set their sights on.”

Minerva had a point. Tegan wouldn’t admit it, though. She shrugged instead.

“What about seduction then?” Minerva raised a slender brow. “Have you never purposely aroused a male?”

“Does Lucas know?” Tegan asked to change the subject because in the end it didn’t matter. She’d mated Ian. Nothing would change it.

“Yes, and he’s held the secret over my head too, so that I’ll help him.” Minerva focused on where the portal had been. “Lucas wants Rowan. He’s made it very clear to your father that he’ll do anything to get her.”

“Thank goodness she can’t mate him.”

“But she can.” Minerva sighed. “The Triad gave him the means to reverse her partial mating if she mates
him
.”

Tegan stumbled back and reached a hand out to brace herself. “Why would the Triad do such a thing?”

“I do not know.” Minerva shook her head. “But I have heard rumblings among the lesser demons that Lucas plans to challenge Arawn for the right to rule over the Underworld.”

A challenge. The thought chilled Tegan. She’d heard of the ancient ceremony. Instituted as a way to protect humans from the backlash of power released between dueling gods, it placed both opponents in a separate realm to fight. Only one emerged. The loser remained trapped for eternity. Alone.

“But Lucas isn’t a god. He’ll never be able to rule. The Underworld is tied to Arawn.” Tegan’s words rushed out.

“Not as a demon, but if he mates Rowan, he can. She too holds Arawn’s blood, don’t forget.”

Tegan pressed a balled fist to her chest. “The Triad wants to overthrow Arawn, doesn’t it?”

Minerva shrugged, but defeat shone on her face. “Like always, the Triad has a master plan. Nobody is privy to it, but if I had to guess, I’d say yes. The deity isn’t happy with the Huntsmen’s failure to imprison Dar. Chaos has weaved itself into the human realm to the point where it has begun to fester and grow into something much more dangerous. The Triad will punish Arawn for it through you. Each time one of you suffers, it hurts him.”

“Then why give us a chance to heal the damaged barrier for good? Why not just let us live under the curse.”

“I don’t know.” Minerva laughed. “I’d ask, but I can no longer enter the heavens.”

“That’s your sacrifice?” It didn’t seem too much of a price to pay to save Ian.

Minerva snorted. “No. Not being able to leave the Underworld is only a consequence of my sacrifice.”

“What did you sacrifice?”

“Everything. I gave up everything. I’m no longer the goddess of love.”

Tegan covered her mouth to stifle her gasp. Minerva might not have had a noticeable influence on the world, like the other gods, but her subtle intervention ensured humans loved not only their partners but their neighbors. It was her ability to bring peace to warring nations through the touch of love that would be missed. Tegan feared what would happen without it.

“Heaven help us.”

Minerva nodded. “You’d better hope the other gods intervene, because the world won’t last long without love.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Ian ended the call and faced Trevor. “Bingo. We’ve got a lead on the location of an active fairy ring.”

Trevor closed his laptop. “Where?”

“Thirty minutes south.” Ian pointed to the map lying on the coffee table. “Two teens disappeared a week ago, and this morning an elderly man and his wife were found dead.” He glanced at Trevor. “Multiple knife wounds.”

“Or slashings from extended nails.” Trevor leaned closer to study the map. “It’s heavily wooded. Do we have any idea where the kids were last seen?”

“There’s a popular drinking spot about a mile out of town. Cops had raided it and sent the teens scurrying. We have a witness who saw which direction they ran.”

“Great.” Trevor stood and made his way to the door. “Let’s go. We have a few hours until it gets too dark to explore.”

Ian pressed a hand to the wood, stopping Trevor from leaving. “We can’t, not until we figure out how to get Allie out. I never got the chance to ask Tegan what Arawn said.”

“What? Did you two fuck so much you didn’t have a chance to talk about important stuff?”

“We mated.”
And fought.
Ian kept that to himself. No reason to share every mistake he’d made.

Trevor rolled his eyes. “So you fucked. Do you think it’s going to be any different the next time you see her? All you’re doing is wasting time while Allie is trapped in that freakish place. We finally have a chance to save someone. How many fucking times have we watched helplessly while people died?”

Too damn many.
Ian crossed his arms. “We’ll save her. I said I’d bring her home. I can’t break my promise.”

“You know that’s a load of bullshit, right? Breaking a vow isn’t going to damn you.”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” Ian shrugged. “It doesn’t matter why. I’m bringing Allie home. I owe it to Cynthia.”

“You can’t blame your—”

“I. Used. Her.” And he hated himself for it as much as he hated hurting Tegan because of his sham of a relationship with Cynthia.

“And she used you.” Trevor cursed. “I told you what I heard. She didn’t love you, never had. She was only with you for what she could get from you. You were her sugar daddy.”

Cynthia admitted to it too, but Trevor didn’t need to know he’d been right. Ian no longer cared. Their relationship was over, and, no matter what, he was still the one who’d dangled his girlfriend in front of the redcaps. He should’ve known better than to think she was safe from his hellish life. He’d risked her, all because he wanted to forget about Tegan.

It hadn’t worked.

“I can’t change my past mistakes, but I can try to make amends by saving Allie.” Ian reached into his pocket and fingered the ripped piece of Tegan’s shirt that she’d used to blindfold him. “And I refuse to mess up my future with Tegan. If there’s a chance breaking my vow will hurt her in some way, I’ll hate myself.”

Silence stretched. Finally, Trevor sighed. “What’s the plan on getting Allie out?”

“Hopefully, Tegan will have uncovered an easy way. If not…” Ian hated what he was about to suggest but could see no other way to accomplish the feat. “If not, tomorrow, when Calan returns, I’m going to ask him to go.” And pray it worked. Ian wouldn’t risk Harley. If it came down to that, he’d find another way.

“In the meantime, let’s locate Craig’s fairy ring. So we’re ready.” Trevor flung the door open.

Ian considered Trevor’s words. They made sense. Why waste precious time? They could locate the ring, then come back and tell the others.

“All right, let’s do it.” Ian stepped into the hallway.

“Aren’t you going to leave a note for Tegan? Let her know where you are.”

Actually, Ian wanted to wait until she returned, if only to hold her again, but they didn’t have time. “No. We’re just doing a little exploratory work. We’ll be back soon. Three hours tops. Once the sun sets, it’ll be too dark for you.”

“But not for you, right? You’re the Huntsman, defender of the damn weak mortals like me.”

The resentment in Trevor’s voice was thick. He’d complained that he didn’t understand why he couldn’t ride too. He knew the risks if he failed Arawn’s mental probe but didn’t care. Honestly, Ian wasn’t sure why Trevor couldn’t ride in the Hunt either. For close to a decade, they’d worked behind the scenes, burning fairy rings and collecting evidence on the redcaps and sluaghs. If Trevor wanted to join the Hunt, he should be allowed. Besides, they needed the help.

Tegan might have dozens of siblings, but only seventeen had walked out of the fairy prison. And out of those, he would trust only a handful with a blade. The rest were too close to losing their minds and becoming a liability to them all, the world included.

Yeah, the Triad was right. The Huntsmen needed to heal themselves. They were an untamed force none could control, not even Arawn. He’d made his army too powerful, or so Ian had been told by the other riders. Only duty, unity and honor kept them loyal.

“If you want to ride, give it some time. Earn Calan’s respect, and if he won’t let you join, I’ll talk to Arawn.”
As long as the Lord of the Underworld isn’t gunning for my head.
Ian had no intention of having a family reunion. As far as he was concerned, his mixed heritage was on a need-to-know basis, and Arawn wasn’t on the list.

“Thanks, man.” Trevor pulled his keys from his pocket and motioned him forward. “After you. Time’s running out.”

In more ways than one. Ian felt it. His clock was ticking. Or, more accurately, Tegan’s was. The knowledge worried him, but he couldn’t do anything about it. He might be her key, but she had to figure out how to use him.