Gena Showalter - The Darkest Whisper

When she’d seen him in town, bloody and lethal, her heart had truly stopped—absolute proof it belonged to him. What a fierce picture he’d presented. Any woman would be proud to have such a strong, competent man at her side. She’d wanted to be that woman. Then and always. She lacked the confidence to grab on to the dream, though. Which was funny if you thought about it. Physically, she’d never been stronger.

“I’m gonna hate leaving you,” Bianka said, releasing her, and stepped back.

“Well…” Now for the hard part . “Then why try? I need you to stay here, at the fortress, and help Torin guard it and the humans.”

“And where will you be going?” Taliyah released her, too, pale eyes studying Gwen’s face. At least they hadn’t denied her request.

She squared her shoulders, determination rushing through her. “That’s actually why I called this meeting. Could I have everyone’s attention please?” She clapped her hands, waiting for the room’s other occupants to turn their gazes her way. “Sabin and I will be going to Chicago to find his missing friends. They’ve gone silent, and we think something is wrong.”

At that, Sabin blinked. That was his only reaction. She knew he was waiting for information from Torin, but she figured it was better to be en route while they waited than stuck here, ineffective.

“I’m so glad you’re going,” Ashlyn said. “I don’t know if anyone told you, but Aeron, Cameo and, yeah, your sister Kaia, took me into town this morning. I heard some things.”

Uh-oh. There was gonna be some trouble in the fortress. “You shouldn’t have gone into town. Your man will be ticked if he finds out.” She’d seen Maddox with the pregnant woman only a few times, but once had been enough to assure her of his fierce need to protect.

Ashlyn waved a hand through the air. “He knew about it. He can’t take me himself because I can’t hear conversations when he’s with me, so the compromise was to let me go with guards. He knew I’d just sneak out later otherwise. Anyway, some of the Hunters were headed to Chicago, as well. They were afraid of you, unsure of what you could do to them.”

Hunters, afraid of her. They’d feared her while she’d been trapped in that pyramid, but there had been nothing she could truly do to them. No longer was she helpless. The thought made her smile. Sabin, too, practically glowed with pride.

Her stomach quivered at the sight, and breath heated in her lungs. When he looked at her like that, she could almost believe he truly loved her and would do anything for her. Mind on the task at hand . “What about the prisoners?”

“Still locked up.” Facing her, Paris rested his cue on the floor and leaned against it. He was paler than usual, lines of stress around his eyes. “Aeron and I, multitaskers that we are, have taken over their…care.”

“Me helping,” Legion the female demon piped up.

Care. Aka torture. Had Sabin interrogated them? She knew he liked to do so, yet he’d barely left her side since that battle. “The children…”

“Like I mentioned earlier, they’ve already been separated and moved to nicer quarters. They’re scared and haven’t used whatever powers they have. Yet. So we’re unsure what we’re dealing with. But we’ll get it out of the adults, don’t worry,” Sabin said.

Paris nodded with grim determination. “I’ll do it when we get back. I’m going with you.”

Sabin and Aeron shared a heavy look.

“You’re staying here,” Sabin corrected. “All of you are. We need as many warriors here as we can get. We don’t know how many Hunters remained behind.”

“More than that, Torin saw Galen in town,” Cameo said. “We haven’t yet caught sight of him, which could mean he’s hiding, planning to strike again.”

Sabin approached Gwen’s side and banded a strong arm around her waist. She didn’t protest. Though her mind was unsure about him, her body knew she belonged with him. His lemon scent wafted to her nose, a drug she’d become addicted to. “But you, Paris…your new favorite thing to do puts everyone at risk. You’ll stay here and get yourself cleaned up.”

Paris opened his mouth to protest.

“Torin can take care of our travel arrangements,” Sabin continued, cutting him off. Up and down, he caressed her arm, perhaps not even aware of what he was doing.

“You’ll have to fly commercial,” Torin said, “since the boys have the jet we always charter in the States with them.”

“What if we’re spotted by Hunters? And how will we get our weapons past security?” If they were caught with even one blade, they’d be questioned—a waste of time—and arrested.

“I have ways.” Sabin kissed her temple. “Trust me. I’ve been doing this for a long time. We won’t be spotted.”

“Bring Reyes and the others home safely.” Danika’s fingers twined, as if she were saying a prayer. “Please.”

“Please,” Ashlyn echoed.

“And don’t forget Anya,” Kaia said. “No telling what kind of trouble she’s stirred up.”

“I’ll do my best,” Gwen told them, and she meant it. But would her best be good enough?

“TELL ME, what’s a goddess doing with a demon?”

Anya eyed her lover’s sworn enemy: Galen, keeper of the demon of Hope. He occupied one side of her new prison, and she the other. His long white wings were tucked into his back, the top arches rising over his shoulders. His eyes were blue like the sky, and the more she looked into them, the more she would swear she saw fluffy white clouds. Those eyes were meant to lull, to relax.

They only managed to piss her off.

Ghost Boy had “escorted” her—damned kid had taken control of her body as if it were his own—into this small, sparse hellhole and left her. Where she’d waited. And waited. Alone, enraged. Now she knew the Hunters had left her for their leader—who had remained in Buda until he’d been told of the bounty here.

Meanwhile, though, Gideon’s screams had echoed through the halls—and with his screams, gleeful laughter from his captors. Poor Lies. She felt a little guilty for kicking him earlier. Had he spilled any secrets?

“Have you no answer, beauty?”

“I’m having fun, that’s what.” They’d made the mistake of leaving her unfettered. Although Ghost Boy had accompanied Galen, of course. Apparently, he was their insurance policy. Well, they’d soon learn they should have picked a better policy. Without that strange metal walling her in, her strength was returning. Soon, she would be a living nightmare. And they would suffer.

Was Lucien recovering as she was? Anya hated being away from him.

Slowly Galen’s lips curled with amusement. “You’re feisty. I like that. Lucien is a lucky man. More than lucky. Such an ugly man capturing the heart of one such as you is nothing short of a miracle.”

Even his voice was meant to calm. Actually, everything about him seemed purposely honed to offer hope, like a bright light in a room of darkness and fear. What he didn’t know was that Anya preferred the darkness. Always had.

“He isn’t ugly,” she said, pacing from one side of the back wall to the other. The more she stayed in motion, the less her actions would be watched, she suspected. “He’s honorable and loving and wonderfully fierce.”

A scoff. “But he’s a demon.”

She stopped to arch a brow at him. “Well, yeah. And so the hell are you.”

“No.” Patient, Galen shook his head. “I’m an angel, sent from the heavens to cleanse this earth of evil.”

“Ha!” She kicked back into motion. “That’s a good one. Believing our own press, are we?”

“I won’t argue my origins with a demon whore.” No longer did he sound amused or tolerant. “Now, tell me what the Lords know of the two artifacts that remain missing.”