“You’re not stone.”
“I’m your mate.” His tongue tripped over the word, but it was getting easier to say. After all these years, after everything he’d lost, he could at least get the word out. “You’re safe with me. And I’m safe with you. But we need to get out of here. The flames are getting worse and closer, and we’re going to die of smoke inhalation if we’re not careful.”
“Okay, I’m okay.” Her snakes still writhed around her head. She hadn’t yet put on her glamour.
“Keep your glamour off,” he ordered, and her silver eyes widened.
“Why?
“Because it’s a good defense against those that are coming after you.”
“But what if there’s an innocent?”
“Then close your eyes and pull your glamour up quickly. But I only scent smoke, fire, and those three damn gorgons. Apparently, I didn’t stab the bastard hard enough.”
He ground out the words, and her eyes widened for a minute before he lifted her to her feet, both of them coughing.
“Let’s go.”
She nodded.
They made their way out of the burning home, and he felt a tinge of regret that he was losing the place, but it didn’t matter. His true home was in the lion realm, as was his heart. No, that wasn’t the case anymore. Because the person beside him could also hold that organ. Just like baby Penelope already did as his ward.
“Can you fight at all?” he asked, and Poppy shook her head.
“I don’t know the moves. My parents didn’t want me to fight, thought it wasn’t in my nature. And not all gorgons are as violent as the current court and these men after me. And it won’t be just these three. The queen has far more.”
“I figured as much. Sending her entire army out at once would be idiotic. We’ll get out of this. I just need to know your skills.”
“My only skill is death,” she whispered, and he reached out and squeezed her hand. He hadn’t even realized his claws were out until she looked down, her eyes wide.
“Sorry,” he grumbled as they ducked under another fallen pillar.
“No, don’t be. You didn’t scream at the sight of my snakes. I’m not going to do so at your claws.”
He held her hand and pulled her through the damaged house. Soon, they were outside, hidden behind a tree, both coughing up smoke and whatever else had gotten into their lungs.
They were paranormals and would survive this, but Poppy was far younger, and therefore would take longer to heal.
Jonah looked at the wound on her head, grateful that the bleeding had stopped, but he still ran his hands over her body to make sure she was okay. Her snakes didn’t hiss at him, they just stared at him curiously.
If they were in any other situation, he might have quirked a smile or tried to reach out to say hello to introduce himself. That would come later. For now, he needed to keep them alive.
“I’m okay,” she whispered, and he really wished that were true. But there wasn’t a lot of time to ask and make sure.
The scent of gorgon intensified, and he knew they were out of time. Suddenly, they were on them, all three of them, and two extra little buddies. The gorgons had their snakes out, but they weren’t as strong as Poppy’s. They weren’t Medusas, so he might be safe from turning to stone as long as he didn’t let them focus for too long.
Poppy threw herself in front of him and screamed. “You know the laws. You do not use your powers within the human realm.”
“Yet you have your snakes out, your glamour gone. Maybe you’re just as weak as the rest of the world thinks you are,” one of the gorgons spat. Blood covered him, and he was limping, but he had caught up to them. Had hunted them.
These gorgons would die. By Jonah’s teeth and claws if he had any say in it.
“Will they hurt me?” he whispered, so low that he knew the gorgons wouldn’t be able to hear him, even with how close they were.
“They’re of lower rank and power. They can’t actually use their hair like a Medusa can. It’s only for show.”
“Truly?” he asked, surprised.
“We don’t speak of it outside the realm.”
The closest gorgon must have heard the last part because he snarled. “You dare defy our laws? You’re a murderer, a slayer of innocents, and now you’re telling our secrets to an animal?”
“And that is enough of being called an animal,” Jonah growled. And then they moved. He trusted Poppy, maybe not enough to defend herself because she didn’t know how—something that would change. However, he trusted her because, deep down, he knew that she wanted him to survive just like she wanted to survive.
He moved then, the soldier deep inside clawing at him, ready to fight for what was right, just, and his.
Five gorgons were on him at once, seemingly ignoring Poppy. Did they want her dead, or just incapacitated so they could bring her back to the queen? He wasn’t sure, and he wasn’t going to find out.
He slammed his fists into one of their jaws, and the gorgon spat blood. His snakes bit at Jonah’s hand, and he really hoped the damn fuckers weren’t poisonous. Venom wasn’t something he needed to deal with at the moment.
Another gorgon came at him with a knife, trying to slice him from behind, and Jonah ducked, spun, twisted the first gorgon’s arm behind his back and used him as a shield.
The gorgon that had been coming at him stabbed his friend, and they both growled, shocked, before falling into a heap as Jonah kicked them both from behind so they were on the ground in a blink. Jonah could move fast, even with just one leg. Not that anyone knew exactly what was beneath the leg of his jeans. They didn’t know that if they took out his prosthesis, they might have an advantage. He had been fighting with the fake limb for nearly as long as he’d been at war when he was whole.
He knew what he was doing.
The end of his stump hurt as he pressed all his weight onto the metal and other materials that made up his prosthesis, but he ignored the bite.
Because he needed to fight.
He leapt away from the two as they clawed at one another, trying to stanch the bleeding, still growling at him. He ignored them. At least, for the moment.
Three others came at him, one with a knife, the other two with their fists. And Poppy was there at his side, her hands outstretched, her snakes coiling and hissing around her head.
“Stay back,” Jonah ordered.
“You don’t get to do this alone.”
And then she opened her eyes, and the first gorgon in front of her spat, screaming. Stone slid up his calves, his knees, his hips. He clawed at it, screaming as blood seeped from his eyes, his nose, his mouth. The stone crept up his chest, and then down his shoulders to his fingertips, wrapping around his neck as if a vise. The snakes hissed, growled like they were shifters rather than snakes, and they spat at him, but then they were all stone. Dead.
Poppy shook at his side, her body swaying. He grabbed her, holding her close as she closed her eyes, sweat pouring from her.
It must have taken such strength to do that, even as she had more power than a normal gorgon. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if another gorgon tried to do what she had just done. But she had been beautiful, so strong, courageous. He wasn’t going to let the pain that he knew she had to be feeling from doing that to one of her own be in vain.