Sherrilyn Kenyon - Invincible

Kody glared at him. “And what are you?”

“In a word? Damned.”

Nick had heard enough. “And I’m gone.” Before he could move, they both threw their hands out and froze him in place.

This feeling of being a fly trapped on flypaper was getting really old. If they kept this up, he’d start charging them rent for the time of his they were eating alive with nonsense.

Kody shook her head. “This is not how I wanted him to find out about me. I was supposed to be incognito. Thanks for outing me, Malphas.”

He gave her a fake bow. “My pleasure. Anything to ruin your day.”

She cast a meaningful glare at his groin. “Yeah and I’m about to ruin your nights, lover boy. For eternity.”

Caleb snorted. “What else is new? Not like I have free time, anyway.”

“I don’t understand where your head is,” she said in a disgusted tone. “How can you be so cold after everything?”

“I’m tired, Nekoda. Unlike you, I don’t get a break from my hellish existence. And I don’t see why we’re doing this ridiculous dance when we both know how this play ends. Prophecy is prophecy. Nothing ever changes it. Nothing.”

She disagreed. “And human will is the strongest force ever created. There are those born to succeed and those who are determined to succeed. The former fall into it, and the latter pursue it at all costs. They won’t be denied. Nothing daunts them.”

Caleb rolled his eyes. “Do you really believe what you’re spouting?”

“Yes.”

“Look me in the eye and tell me that you’ve never once had a single doubt.”

She screwed her face up. “Of course I have. Without doubt there can be no faith.”

Shaking his head, Caleb stepped around her. “And I grow sick of your pithy little sayings. Really. Change your tune, hon.”

Kody didn’t try to stop Caleb from walking away from them.

“What’s going on, Kody? Who are you? What are you doing here?”

She appeared heartsick. “Think of me as a guardian.”

“For what?”

“I can’t tell you that. It’s forbidden.”

Like everything else seemed to be these days. It was really getting old to have no real answers. “Are you here to kill me?”

She shook her head. “I’m an observer who reports your progress to others.”

“What?”

“It’s true, Nick. Like Caleb, I’m here to watch over you, but for a whole other reason. We have to make sure that you stay human and that your feelings don’t wither and die.”

“Why?”

“Because when you stop caring about anyone or anything, Nick, you will become a pawn and a slave to some of the darkest powers ever created. When that happens, you will destroy the world.”

It wasn’t every day you found out that you were destined to destroy the world. And as those words slammed into Nick, he felt as sluggish and lost as the people barely moving in the air around him. Like he was going in slow motion, attempting to catch up.

“What are you saying?” he asked Kody, trying to get a handle on this moment.

“It’s true, Nick. It’s why so many creatures are after you right now. If they can capture you while you’re weak, they can harness your powers and use them for their own gain.”

“I won’t let them do that.”

She inclined her head to him. “That’s what we’re here to ensure. Caleb and I are your protectors. He for your body and I for your mind.”

Huh? Other than the fact he was insane, there wasn’t anything wrong with his mind. Why would it need its own protector. “That doesn’t make sense.”

“Of course it does. Think about it for a second. Your goodness and your free will are all that keep you from breaking and becoming apathetic. You have to hold on to that part of yourself always.”

“And if I don’t?”

“You know the answer.”

He would kill everyone, and all the people around him would cease to exist. He shook his head. “I don’t think I like this. I don’t want this power. Take it away from me.”

“I can’t. No one can. And right now, you don’t have the power either. You’re just an embryo.”

Maybe there was time. Maybe …

“Then I won’t learn it.” If he never embraced his powers, they couldn’t be used by anyone, not even him. That should protect everyone.

Kody gave him no reprieve. “You have to. If you refuse, your hand will be forced one way or another, and everyone you love will pay the price. You have to become strong enough to protect yourself and those around you. It’s the only hope any of you have. It’s the only hope any of us have. Don’t you understand, Nick?”

“No. I don’t understand.” He felt like the entire world was caving in on him. He had a principal dying to send him to jail. A coach out to kill him. A boss who was an immortal vampire slayer. His two best friends were certifiable, and a pseudo girlfriend who’d just told him he was the ultimate bomb that would end the world.

I’m not old enough to cope with this.

He was just a kid.

Unable to breathe, he met Kody’s gaze. “I want to go back and be normal again. Forget all this. I want to spend mindless hours playing video games and—”

“Nick, you’ve never been irresponsible, and you know it.”

It was true. But …

He could learn. He was willing to.

Stop it. Since the moment he’d been born, he’d had to take care of his mother. Watch out for her.

And …

The spell on his classmates broke. In the blink of an eye, everything went back to normal with a loud, angry rush. None of them the wiser for the battle that had been fought right in the middle of them while they scurried along, trying to make class before the next bell. None of them seeing the remains that had already faded to nothing more than his bad memory.

Except him.

Nick knew, and he’d never be normal again.

It’s a lie. She’s messing with you.

But deep down inside, he knew better. This wasn’t a lie. It felt like the truth.

I won’t do it. I won’t.

You said that about stealing, and what are you doing?

Given the right stimulus, anyone was capable of anything. Bubba had hammered that thought into him repeatedly. Even Mother Teresa could be moved to violence if the right buttons were pushed.

Nick had never been too sure of that analogy, and yet …

“I need a break for minute.”

Kody moved toward him. “You want me to stop—?”

“No!” he snapped, terrified of what she might do. “I don’t want any kind of hocus-pocus or anything else. I just want to sit here for a minute and think.”

The bell sounded.

He needed to get to class and start his day. He had a list of things to steal for his coach.…

That was laughable, given everything else going on. “Can I be killed?” he asked her, wondering exactly who and what he was.

“Oh yeah.”

“What happens if I die?”

“Honestly, we’re not completely sure. Other than your father’s powers will continue to grow until—”

“Wh-wh-whoa-what? My father?”

She nodded. “Where do you think all of this came from? You were born to be your father’s replacement. Once you are safe, he will have to surrender.”

“Surrender or die?”

“If he doesn’t yield his title willingly, he will be killed.”

Well, that explained why the man hated him so badly. Why he couldn’t stand to even look at him. Out of everything else he’d learned, that actually made him feel a little better. For the first time in his life, he understood his father.

And …

“The stuff my dad told the police about demons attacking him—”

“All true, and those forces will now be after you, too.”