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Legion laughed. “I’m the stepmother. I get to give you a magic apple.”
Patting the woman the way Legion had patted her, Fox said, “Maybe I don’t deserve to run. Those Sent Ones were in some sort of trance and weaponless, yet I removed their heads.” Free of charge! No. Wrong. She would be paying a terrible price. “Whatever fate their brethren deliver is justified.” The guilt and shame returned and redoubled, overtaking Fox completely. Stupid tears scorched her stupid eyes. Her chin trembled, the salty droplets spilling down her cheeks.
“You need to ease up on yourself, Foxy. You are newly demon-possessed. You haven’t learned to fight Distrust properly yet.”
How did one properly fight a demon? Though the bastard had quieted—appeased and sleeping at the moment—it was only a matter of days…hours…before he woke and began her torment anew. How did she silence his dark whispers? How did she ignore the constant paranoia?
“What’s more,” Legion continued, “those Sent Ones could have been the evilest, vilest Sent Ones in town, banished to the temple for terrible crimes.”
Maybe, but probably not. Wait. She arched a brow and asked, “Foxy?”
Legion shrugged. “I’m trying out new nicknames. Just go with it.”
“Sure thing…Mommy.”
One corner of Legion’s mouth twitched. “We aren’t without resources. We have allies able to aid us in amazing ways. Harpies, and queens, and goddesses, oh my. We will all do everything in our power to protect you.”
No way she would endanger Galen and Legion. No, Fox would rather be on her own, the only one at risk.
“Thank you for everything.” For the first time in their acquaintance, Fox wrapped her arms around Galen’s mate and hugged her. Her first female friend in...ever? Fox wasn’t just cold. Her acerbic personality tended to prick tempers. “I’m sorry for the pain I caused you.”
“I told you the past is in the past, and I meant it. No more apologies from you. I reminded you how wonderful you are, and I meant that, too. You are loyal to the ones you love. Do you know how rare that is? You are strong and cool, and I want to be more like you so bad!”
“No!” Fox blurted out, then repeated the denial at a lower volume. “Don’t be like me.” Mostly unfeeling, unwanted, and despised by others. Distrustful of everyone. “You are perfect, just the way you are.”
“Dude. I just got a compliment out of you. This is a good news day!” Again, Legion patted her knee. Then she gave Fox another momma-bear-like hug and stood. “Shout if you need anything, all right? I’ll be nearby.” She padded to the door and paused. “Love is truly the only thing worth fighting for.”
Not waiting for a reply, Legion closed the door, leaving Fox alone.
Love is the only thing worth fighting for.
Love. An emotion she had yet to experience.
Great! Her chin began trembling again. She stripped, her motions jerky, turned on the hot water and stepped into the stall. Crimson-tinged water rinsed from her and circled the drain. The blood of her victims.
Guilt and shame intensified, burning her throat and chest as if she’d drunk a gallon of acid. Her chin trembled, and her chest tightened. Emotions were garbage, she decided. They always shaved points off her IQ.
She needed to think of a way out of this situation, which meant she first needed to calm. So, Fox stuffed every emotion in a mental lockbox, the good and the bad. In seconds, she went cold, her preferred MO. No feelings equaled no problems.
Time to work through my troubles and find a solution. Ten dead Sent Ones, murdered by her hand. An assassin would be sent to her, Legion and Galen were right about that. Probably ten assassins. Like for like. Sent Ones couldn’t flash or open portals, so they’d have a difficult time catching her.
What if she—?
A loud crash sounded. A sound she recognized. Someone had just kicked in the door.
Chapter Two
Heart racing, Fox pressed a series of tiles on the wall before rushing out of the shower stall. Ahead, a section of the wall popped open, revealing a sword hilt. As soon as she reached it, she grabbed that hilt, freeing the weapon. A little compartment she’d built for emergencies like this. She refused to open a portal to a new location. Her attacker(s) might or might not follow her through. If not, Galen and Legion would be vulnerable to ambush. No, Fox would stay, and she would fight.
As she rounded the corner, she spied golden feathers. Oh, yes. A Sent One had come for her. Though she’d locked up her emotions, a new one sparked. Awed terror. This wasn’t just any Sent One. This was one of the Elite 7. The best of the best for allies, the worst of the worst for enemies.
Suddenly, she came face-to-face with the most beautiful male of all time. Dark hair, bronzed skin. Rainbow eyes. Wow, wow, wow. His irises contained hints of blue, green, gold, and red.
The terror faded, leaving only awe. He wore a long white robe and held a sword of flames. How he’d gotten past her friends, Fox didn’t know. Surely, someone had heard his entrance.
If so, she had a minute, perhaps two, before that someone showed up to check on her. Unless the Sent One did something to prevent others from hearing what occurred in her room. Or killed those others.
Rage overwhelmed her. “Did you hurt my friends?” The question exploded from her.
“I did not.”
The rage dulled, and their gazes met, awareness punching her dead center in the chest. Never in all the eons of her life had she experienced such a visceral reaction to another person.
As she struggled to take in air, he pursued her inch by inch. He liked what he saw, no doubt about it. An erection tented his robe an-n-nd damn! He couldn’t be that large. Nope. No way. He must have smuggled in a package of tube socks filled with dildos. Either way, her nipples puckered and goose bumps spread over her limbs.
He swallowed. “You are Fox the Executioner.” A statement, not a question, spoken in a delicious, gravelly voice.
New shivers hurried down her spine. “I am.” Why deny it?
“Then you know why I’m here.”
“I do.” Again, there was no reason to deny it. “Nice hate-on, by the way.”
A growl rumbled from him.
Excellent. She pushed back a little more. “Be honest. You’re regretting your assignment now that you’ve seen me, yes? I mean, it’s pretty obvious you gave my body a five-boner review.” Desp
ite the dire circumstances, Fox couldn’t help but tease the big, bad warrior who’d come to slay her…a male who looked like sex on legs and sounded like the world’s best-paid phone sex operator.
A blush painted twin circles of pink on his cheeks.
A blush? From an assassin? How adorable was that? Even still, she lifted her blade. As much as she’d struggled to survive her childhood, as fiercely as she’d fought to endure her demon, she would not go down without a fight. No matter how much she deserved the punishment.
“You are mistaken. I regret nothing,” he told her. “An involuntary bodily reaction changes nothing.”
“Or maybe it changes everything. Who are you, anyway?” And why hadn’t he launched his first strike, if he had no regrets?
“I am Bjorn, the One True Dread.”
Well, well. He’d actually answered. Now, her mind whirled. Bjorn… Fox kept mental files on every major species and player in the heavens, Earth, and the Underworld. He qualified. She knew Bjorn and two other Sent Ones had interacted with Galen a couple of times, and every meeting occurred while Galen interacted with the Lords of the Underworld. The men and women Galen had once convinced to steal and open Pandora’s box. Every one of those warriors played host to a demon.
In fact, Distrust used to live inside a Lord named Baden. After Baden had died—the first time—the demon had wandered the Earth for centuries, tormenting humans. Then, Galen had captured the fiend and forced him to possess Fox.
What else, what else? Bjorn’s two friends were Thane of the Three and Xerxes, once known as the Cruel and Unusual until a monstrous immortal named Lazarus came along and did something crueler and more unusual, and Xerxes was redubbed the Terrible…and why did any of this matter right now? Moving on. The three owned and operated the Downfall, a popular nightclub in the heavens.
Other Sent Ones once considered Bjorn a bit of a playboy. Then he’d been held captive for months, by someone, somewhere, and emerged unpredictable and vengeful, more selective about his partners, preferring those who wanted rough and temporary. For the last year or so, he’d been linked to a grand total of zero women. Or men! Either he’d gotten better at hiding his liaisons, or he’d simply stopped having liaisons. She’d heard rumors about a crazy ex attacking anyone who caught his fancy, but those rumors had yet to be verified.
