But one thing he had done. He’d helped her create an incredibly powerful daughter, one a little too powerful, to be honest.
Well, now she was Pazuzu’s problem.
Sabine thought herself such a clever witch. Giving Paz her daughter’s soul and the vryko had cemented their deal. She would have power beyond imagining, no more competition from Kaia or any other sea witch, and an end to her enemies, all in one blow.
Watching Will slowly die next to that bastard partner of his was so satisfying. Trust Will to find the one demon in all of hell who wanted to be nice and help people. “Asshole.”
“You called?” Her husband appeared behind her, whole and hearty. And amused.
“You piece of shit,” she screeched and ran at him, exploding into her half-kraken form and bursting through the castle.
As everything crumbled, she did her best to crush him but knew she’d missed. She saw him watching her with Anton, that pathetic excuse for a demon, standing on the ground away from her destruction. So close to death...
Then, to her shock, a dark elf was suddenly there, in front of her, holding a sword that felt like dragon and fire. “You,” he snarled and sliced her throat before she could blink.
As she clutched her neck, trying to stop the bleeding, she heard him bitching about all the animals who’d apparently died during the skirmish on her island.
“I found baby deer ripped apart,” the elf cried, and actual tears trickled down his cheeks. “Squirrels and wolves. And so many birds, so many, forced to endure your cruelty.” He bellowed in a foreign tongue she’d never before heard.
She tried to ignore him as she trailed her tentacles toward the water to aid in her healing. But Anton and his stupid halfbreed of a son grabbed her.
“Good hold, Cho.” Anton grinned. “Not today, witch.”
“There can only be one White Sea Witch, Uncle Anton,” Macy Bishop-Dunwich said, her eyes sad. “Kaia is worth a hundred of you, Sabine, and you know it.”
Desperate, Sabine reached out with her magic.
But the dark elf was there, hatred burning in his eyes. “Your life is forfeit,” he said, clear as day, and sliced off her head. As she slowly died, her magic returned to her, just a spark.
But something soft and furry ate it, swallowing her soul whole. In an instant, her new world became one of pain and servitude.
For an eternity.
Pazuzu winked at her through green eyes and lifted a small gray paw to clean his face.
“Shadow?” She heard the elf gasp. “How did you get here?”
Orion woke with Kaia wrapped around him like a constrictor, but he’d never been so happy to be smothered in his life. “Kaia?”
She woke and kissed him all over. “Oh my gosh, you’re here. You’re alive!” She burst into happy tears. “I almost l-lost you.”
Orion kissed her and couldn’t stop kissing her. Until several disgusted groans told him they weren’t alone.
“Get a room,” Kraft said. “You mated vampires are disgusting.”
“Get a life,” Rolf said. “You Kraft, not Orion. He’s got one. And a connection to some water gods, if I’m not mistaken. But that’s just what I heard. I didn’t get to see it, because Mormo shoved me with the B team.” He sighed. “I missed out on all the fun.”
“We did kill a lot of zombies,” Duncan reminded him, his tone dry. “And we did get to watch Onvyr behead a sea witch turned kraken and take over her island.”
Everyone paused.
Kaia realized what Duncan had said.
“Nice, Duncan.” Macy glared at him, and to his credit, he looked shamefaced.
“Sorry.”
Kaia wiped her eyes. “She needed to go. Maybe now she’s at peace.”
Orion didn’t think so. Sabine had made a pact with a demon, and she owed it a soul. Pazuzu didn’t seem like the type to go away emptyhanded.
Kaia blinked and looked around her. “Why are we on the couch?” She kept looking. “In your house?”
Orion hugged her tighter. “My guess is this was the safest place for us to recuperate.”
Macy nodded. “You two need time to heal, but we saved the day. I think.” She frowned. “Khent still hasn’t convinced us the danger is past. How did you stop Pazuzu?”
He wondered if he had. But no, the demon had taken his offer. A life for a life. He put a hand over his healing heart, feeling a slight twinge as the organ continued to repair itself, but no tie to a demon. He didn’t think. But he remembered giving the demon something. A life...that purred.
Green eyes came into view, and Shadow licked his nose.
Orion slowly sat up, keeping Kaia in his lap, and took the kitten in hand. Kaia turned with him, staring in awe at Shadow.
“What’s going on?” Mormo asked, then froze. “And who the hell let that into my house?”
Everyone stopped and stared at Shadow, who chirped and grew small, leathery wings.
“What is that?” Macy asked in a shaky voice and took a step back into the arms of her mate. “Because that’s not a cat.”
Kraft frowned. “Yes it is. Look at it. He just has wings now.” Kraft cocked his head. “And he smells like brimstone.”
“He’s my familiar,” Kaia said in a light voice as Orion placed the kitten back down. “He saved us when Orion had hold of Hanbi through Pazuzu. Don’t worry. He’s friendly.”
To prove it, the kitten rubbed his face along Kaia’s, and purred, settling against her breasts with a sigh.
“Hey, watch it, buddy.” Orion glared, knowing who occupied the kitten, now Shadow and Pazuzu. Oh boy. Varu was not going to be happy about this.
We made a bargain, Shadow reminded him, still a kitten, yet more.
How is this possible? Orion paused. Had he inadvertently sacrificed his cat? His heart broke at the thought.
Kaia stroked the little guy, and Shadow blinked slowly at him.
Onvyr entered the room eating an apple, battered yet smiling as if he’d been given the answer to everything he ever wanted. “It’s simple,” he explained. “Smoky was just a shadow of Nightmare to begin with. A shell, I think he said.” He looked at Shadow and nodded. “Yep. So he’s a cat but not a cat. A perfect familiar for a sea witch, because, well, they’re usually more on the bad side than the good side. Like vampires.” So saying, he walked out with the large battle cat that appeared by his side.
“A perfect mate for a vryko,” Varu murmured as he entered the room and nodded. “Mormo, the Night Bloode now counts the new White Sea Witch and her demon familiar as kin.” Power settled over the group as new energy added to the collective strength of Hecate’s death bringers.
His dusk elf mate looped her arm around his middle and smiled. “Sounds about right.”
“I don’t know about this.” Mormo ran a hand over his head, looking frazzled. “Hecate needs to be told.”
“Like she doesn’t already know,” Khent said with a snort.
But Orion didn’t care about any of it. No worries, no problems would ever be insurmountable, not with his kin and his mate by his side. “You think the ADR would let you shift to nighttime hours?” He asked her with a smile.