The Dark-Hunters (457 page)

Sin took the scroll and studied it. He only vaguely remembered seeing this centuries before. “Now the question is, what house did he put it in?”

Xypher shrugged. “He said you would know.”

And in that instant he did. It was genius really and it was the only place Zakar could have meant. “Ishtar’s tomb.”

Kat’s face paled. “What?”

Sin set the scroll aside, feeling ill at the thought of having to go there again. “It’s the only safe place. No gallu would think to go there and it’s hidden—not even the nosiest of archeologists would be able to find it. Zakar must have stashed the Rod there after he locked the Dimme down last time. It’s the only place that makes sense.” He took a step back, intending to leave.

“Wait,” Kat said, taking his hand. “I’m going with you.”

He shook his head. “Kat…”

The stern, determined look she gave him both touched and warmed him. “You don’t need to be alone there.”

He would have argued had she not been completely right. It was the last place he wanted to be without her and he knew it. “Thank you.” He laced his fingers with hers.

She inclined her head to him before he flashed them out into the remotest area of the Sahara, into a hidden cave that was concealed by ever-changing sands and guarded by a spell that would never allow mortal eyes to see what it contained.

It was here that Sin had laid his daughter to rest and here Ishtar slept in a peaceful repose he had never been able to find for himself. At least not until Kat had come crashing into his life.

Kat hesitated as they appeared in a deep, dark cavern. She could hear the sounds of rodents and insects scurrying out of their way. Cringing in dread, she hoped they didn’t come any closer to her.

Sin held his hand above his head and a torch appeared to light their way. Kat was instantly relieved as she looked about and didn’t see any icky things running toward them or even away from them—she hated bugs and rodents.

But as she looked around, she was struck by the beauty of this place. The walls surrounding them were covered with inlaid art of children playing in fountains and of deer running through a forest. An eternal fountain made of solid gold splashed in one corner. It had a raven perched on one side and a small girl on the other who was looking into the pool to catch her own reflection.

“How beautiful.”

Sin swallowed and she could feel the awful wave of grief inside him. “Ishtar used to love to play in fountains and with animals when she was a child.” He paused by one scene of a little girl who had a butterfly sitting on her shoulder while she fed a fawn out of one hand and a jackal out of the other. He splayed his hand over the image and she saw the tears in his eyes. “I found her like that one day when she was four. She looked up at me with her deep blue eyes and said, ‘Don’t worry, Daddy. I won’t hurt them.’”

Kat wrapped her arms around him and held him close as his grief reached out and brought tears to her own eyes. “She wasn’t really your daughter?”

“It didn’t matter to me. She was always my daughter in my heart.”

“I know.”

He cleared his throat as he laid one arm over hers. “I was never sure who her real father was. Ningal wouldn’t say and she had lovers by the handful. It could have been anyone.”

But he’d never held that against Ishtar. He’d loved her regardless and that made Kat love him all the more.

“I don’t know why Ningal hated me as much as she did. I tried so hard to make it work, but there was never any pleasing her. It was as if she just wanted to hurt me.”

Kat tensed as a bad feeling went through her and she had to bite her lip to keep from speaking. Given what he’d just confided, she wondered if Ishtar wasn’t his daughter after all. How cruel to lie to him and tell him his own daughter belonged to someone else.…

Surely Ningal hadn’t been that mean. But as Kat stood there, she felt the truth in her heart. It would be the deepest blow and it was one Kat was sure Ningal had taken.

Sin stepped away from her and headed down the narrow corridor to a chamber at the end of it. As soon as he entered, the torches lit themselves all around the room. The fire made dancing shadows that formed the images of children playing and animals running.

Kat gaped at the splendor. Every part of the room was covered in gold. Emeralds and diamonds were encrusted along the wall to make the grass where the children danced, and there in the center was a sarcophagus in the shape of an ancient temple. It was exquisite.

On the top of it was carved the image of Ishtar, whose eyes were two perfect sapphires. In her features, Kat saw the likeness to Sin. She’d been right about Ningal and it amazed her that anyone could be so cruel. How could Ningal have lashed out so viciously at the one person who should have meant the most to her? It defied logic.

Sin paused before the image to place his hand on Ishtar’s face. The agony on his features tore through her. The thought of opening Ishtar’s tomb was ripping him apart.

Kat wanted to spare him any more pain. “You want me to look for it?”

“No,” he said, his voice thick. “She never liked strangers to touch her. She was actually very shy.” His expression guarded, he closed his eyes and pushed at the lid. It shook slightly before it moved. The sound of scraping stone echoed through the cavern.

Kat moved forward and then gasped as she saw Ishtar. Because she was a goddess, her body hadn’t decomposed. She was as perfect as the day she’d died. Her eyes closed, she appeared to be sleeping, and a part of Kat kept waiting for her to wake up and look at them. She wondered if Sin was having the same thought.

Ishtar had been laid to rest in a crimson gown, the hem encrusted with rubies that set off her dark complexion perfectly. Her hands, covered in gloves made of gold, were crossed over her breasts and beneath them she held the Rod of Time. In the shape of a raven, it, too, was gold and encrusted with gems.

Kat looked up at Sin. “She’s beautiful.”

“I know.” He reached in to pull the Rod out from under Ishtar’s hands. As soon as he touched her skin, a single tear slid from the corner of his eyes. “I miss her so much,” he breathed. He glanced up. “I don’t want to see you like this, Katra. Do you understand?”

She nodded as her emotions choked her. She didn’t want to bury him either. “Ditto, bud. If anything happened to you, it would definitely ruin my best day.”

Sin didn’t speak again as he closed the sarcophagus and gripped the Rod tightly in his hand. “We have the key.”

“Now we need the lock.”

“And a miracle.”

*   *   *

Kessar
stood before the lock with Neti behind him. Tall and slender and dressed in dark brown, Neti had been one of their better conversions. The former chief gatekeeper to the Sumerian Underworld, he now worked for Kessar who kept him in deep seclusion.

“You are devious, master.”

It was true. He was the master and he was devious. Kessar laughed as he stroked his chin. He’d embedded the lock that would hold back the Dimme inside Zakar’s chest. The only way for Sin to save the world would be to kill his own twin.

He relished the image of Sin ripping Zakar’s heart out to save mankind.

The only thing better would have been to have taken his woman and have her hold the lock in her chest. But that would have been suicide since her death could very well unleash a Charonte army to hunt for them.

No. This was much better. It would be like Sin killing himself, only worse.

Stepping forward, Kessar cocked his head as he looked down at Zakar who was weeping from the pain of his chest having been ripped open. The chain that led to the Dimme tomb flowed out of his back.

He smirked at the man’s pain. “What is that quaint human expression I learned last night? Sometimes you’re the dog and sometimes you’re the hydrant?” He tsked at Zakar. “Guess you’re the hydrant today, eh?”

Zakar’s entire body was shaking as he bravely lifted his head to pin Kessar with a lethal glare. “Fuck you.”

“No, thank you. I prefer women.” He ducked as Zakar tried to spit on him. “And you gods think you’re so superior. You cry and spit and beg for mercy, just like everyone else. You have no more dignity than the lowest beggar.” He balled his fist in Zakar’s hair and pulled it hard. “I can’t wait to see you die.”

Zakar panted as more pain assaulted him and that thought actually made Kessar hard.

Kessar stepped back. He needed to find a female for a few minutes. “Neti. Guard him well. I’ll be back to play with him shortly.”

*   *   *

Sin
had just returned to his penthouse with Kat when the Rod started glowing. Two seconds later, something that felt like an earthquake shook the entire casino.

“What the…?” Damien asked as several pictures fell to the floor and shattered. “Is that more bomb testing?”

Sin shook his head as a bad feeling went through him. “No. It’s something else.” He looked at Kat to see if she felt what he did.

“I don’t know what that is,” she said, her voice filled with apprehension. “But I don’t like it.”

Kish pushed himself up on the wall. “Maybe it was the quake they’re always saying is going to hit Vegas.”

“Maybe…” But the Rod was still glowing and now a low-level hum had started emanating from it. “Something’s not right.”

All of a sudden, a light shot from the Rod, illuminating the area in front of Sin. A tall, black-haired woman appeared in a dark brown ancient gown. He had no idea who she was.…

“The seal has weakened,” she said in Sumerian. “The Dimme will be freed in six marks. Whoever holds this tool, you must reseal their tomb.…”

“Six marks?” Damien asked. “What the hell does that mean?”

“Two hours,” Kat and Sin said simultaneously.

Kat looked at Sin. “I thought we had a couple of weeks?”

“So did I,” he said gruffly. “Something else must have happened to accelerate the clock.”

Damien made a face of exaggerated happiness. “That’s just beautiful. Zippity-doo-da! What a wonderful day.”

Kat sighed heavily. “So much for planning an attack, huh?”

Sin walked through the diagram as he went to retrieve his last sword that would easily kill the gallu. “We need to gather everyone we can.”

Damien scoffed. “Uh, boss, hate to be a pall, but I think everyone we can gather is currently here in this room.”

Sin paused to look at Simi, Xirena, Damien, Kat, Kish, and Xypher. It was a pitiful number of defenders. But it was all the world had. “In that case, we need to seriously arm ourselves.”

Damien crossed himself. “Hail Mary, full of grace—”

“What are you doing?” Kish asked. “You’re not Catholic.”

“Yeah, but I’m feeling really religious all of a sudden and it seemed like a good idea.”

Sin rolled his eyes. He looked at Simi and Xirena. “You two are our tanks.” He glanced around to the others. “We’ll have to guard them so that they don’t get overwhelmed and brought down. If we lose them, we have no one who can help us.”

Kat frowned. “Wait. I have an idea.… You go ahead and arm everyone. I’ll be right back.”

Sin opened his mouth to argue, but before he could speak, she was gone.

*   *   *

Kat
flashed herself to Olympus, onto her mother’s balcony. Luckily, Acheron was still sitting on the terrace, looking incredibly bored.

He gave her a chilling look. “Are the Dimme out yet?”

She gaped at the unexpected question. “How did—”

“I felt the vibration. It’s a sensation I’ve felt before the last time they almost went free. And to answer the question in your mind, you’ll have to ask Artemis. I can’t leave here until she dismisses me.”

That sucked. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“Oh, I never kid about Artemis. I promised her I’d sit here and do nothing, so here I am doing nothing. Much like a really tall, bored guard dog. Personally, I’d rather be throwing myself onto an electric fence—be about the same, I think.”

Kat growled low. “Where is she?”

“Still with her father.”

She leaned her head back and cursed at the ceiling. She hated having to go up there. “All right. Sit tight and I’ll go talk to her.”

He laughed. “Good luck.”

Kat quickly flashed herself outside the main hall of Zeus’s temple where the gods gathered to party. She stayed in the shadows as she got the lay of the situation. Apollo was off to the right with Ares and Demeter while Athena sat with Aphrodite and Nike. Hades was in a corner with Persephone while Zeus laughed with Hermes.

Luckily, Artemis was alone, drinking from a two-handled goblet. Music filled the air as other gods frolicked, danced, and laughed.

Moving as carefully and silently as she could, Kat worked her way over to her mother, who jumped in surprise as she realized Kat was there.

“What are you doing here?” Artemis snapped.

“I need to talk to you.”

Artemis glanced about nervously. “This is a bad time.”

She had
no
idea. “I can’t stress the importance of speaking to you. Now.”

“Katra…”

“Please.”

Artemis glowered at her before she pushed herself up from the table and walked her outside to the gardens. “What?”

“I need you to release Acheron.”

She laughed, then sobered. “No,” she said firmly.

“Matisera, please. The Dimme are about to break free and if I can get him out, he can help corral more Charontes and—”

“Are you insane?” she hissed. “Have you ever seen what happens when the Charonte are set loose? No, you haven’t because you’re still alive. It’s like unleashing locusts with piranha teeth and there’s no stopping them.”

“But Acheron could control them.”

“And he could get killed, which is one thing I will never allow.”

“What about me?”

“You’ll be fine.”

Kat was completely appalled, but she was also determined. “I need his help.”

Artemis waved her hand. “Leave the humans alone and don’t worry about them. We can always make more.” And with that, she turned and left.

Kat stood there with her mouth hanging open. She couldn’t believe that was all her mother had to say.
We can always make more.