To the Dogs

Chapter Thirteen

Welcome home. Not welcome to our home. It was a vast difference, but I didn't mention it. I enjoyed hearing it too much. Plus, after the big to-do over my name, I didn't want to get into another round of don't-upset-Indigo. We might never leave the foyer.

So, I just said, “Thank you.”

Then the men took me deeper into the house, past living rooms they called sitting rooms, an inviting library, and a little washroom. Then we were at the back of the house, in a kitchen that was the perfect mix of modern appliances and 1800s elegance.

A long, marble-topped island stood in the center, with cookbooks and stacked copper pots displayed on the shelves beneath. The stove was one of those expensive models that looked as if someone had plucked it out of an English manor—all black with gold knobs. Paneling concealed the fridge, and the microwave sat beside an antique bread box. I loved it. All of it.

We went through the kitchen and over to the dining room. It was dark in there, and I don't mean from a lack of light. Velvet featured—deep green for the curtains and burgundy for the upholstery. Swirls and thin legs would have given the furniture a delicate look, but those details were weighed down by the darkness of the wood. The chandeliers were already on, but their frosted glass cups muted the light. It should have felt dreary, but it comforted me. I had the sense of being wrapped in the room like a warm blanket. When Gage pulled out a chair, I sat down and got hit with déjà vu.

“Do you like pancakes?” Gage asked. “I can make you some. Bacon too.”

“Love them both,” I said. “Especially at night.”

“Me too.” Gage grinned and hurried back into the kitchen. “Go ahead and start. I can listen in.”

“Start what?” I asked.

“Telling you about us,” Garret said with a guilty look at Gideon.

“You told her already,” Gideon said.

“She guessed. Sort of. Just about the Greeks.”

“Garret!” Gage growled from the kitchen. “That's everything.”

“No, not everything.” Garret sighed.

“He told me you're a Cerberus, Silas is a minor Greek god, and you were . . .” I frowned. “Were you made by Hades?”

“Yes,” Gideon said. “We were human once. But when Hades realized one Cerberus wasn't enough to guard the Underworld, he started recruiting souls to make more.”

“He did what?”

“Okay, let's start from the beginning,” Garret said. “Hades rules the Underworld. It is not Hell. More like a combination of heaven and hell.”

“There are regions where good souls go and then places for the baddies,” Gage shouted from the kitchen.

“I see,” I said. “Tartarus and, uh, the fields? Tartarus is like hell, right?”

“Yes!” Garret exclaimed. “Tartarus is indeed similar in that bad souls go there. The Fields of Asphodel and the Elysian Fields are neutral and good places.”

“Then there's the Isle of the Blessed,” Gideon said. “That's where the really good souls go.”

“Is that where you were?” I asked.

“Doubtful.” Garret snorted. “You have to save babies and shit like that to get there.”

“If we die now, we'll probably go there,” Gideon said.

“Can you die?” I asked.

The men went quiet.

I had just asked the main question Silas wanted answered. Shit. But I hadn't done it for Silas. I’d done it for myself. I needed to know that nothing could kill them. Because I didn't like the thought of them dying. And I didn't like the suspicion in their eyes either. So, I came clean.

“Look. I know trust has to go both ways, so I'm going to tell you what Silas was planning.”

Gage came in from the kitchen, holding a pan of half-cooked pancakes. He looked too grim to be holding pancakes. “Go on.”

“Silas said that Cerberuses have mates.” I saw them twitch. “And he said that you may believe I'm your mate.”

“Son of a bitch,” Gideon muttered.

The other two just looked away.

“Is it true?” I asked.

“We don't know,” Garret said. “Do I think it's possible? Yes. But we won't know for certain until . . . ugh, this is going out of order now. Just tell us the rest first, Indie. What was Silas planning?”

“He said the Devil cast a spell to bring each team a mate to share. Did Hades cast a spell?” I had to know before I said anything more.

“Yeah, he promised each Cerberus a mate,” Gage said. “A love patterned after the love he shares with Persephone.”

“Each Cerberus,” I said. “So, you're packs of three men. That's what makes a Cerberus, right?”

“Yes. We'll tell you more after you tell us about Silas,” Gideon said.

“All right. So Silas wanted to use me to get to you. He thought you'd take me in and I could learn your secrets.”

“Just as we've done,” Gage growled. “And now you're asking if we can be killed.”

“Gage!” Garret snapped. “She wouldn't have told us this if she planned on betraying us.”

“Or she might have said it to get us to drop our guard.”

“We already dropped our guard. She didn't have to go this route.”

“What does it matter?” Gideon asked. “If she is ours, she'll sense the truth, and she'll never betray us.”

“But if she's not, she'll run back to the Host and tell them everything,” Gage said.

“I'm not sure if being our mate automatically makes her loyal to us,” Garret muttered.

“The Host?” I asked—partially because I was curious and partially to get that sad look off Garret's face.

“That's what Michael called his army,” Garret said. “Remember how I told you that Michael started this? He likes to tell people he's an angel on Earth to recruit holy soldiers to fight for heaven. So, he called them the Host, after the Heavenly Host.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Exactly,” Gideon said. “It's so fucking stupid.”

“He went with what he knows,” Gage said.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“A Cerberus mate had a psychic vision of Michael when he was human. She painted him. He was a crusader.”

I made a huffing sound. “That tracks.”

“Yeah, but now, instead of slaughtering people just for not believing the same things he does, he preys on humans who are in despair or otherwise desperate. People who need to believe in something.”

Garret had mentioned that before. But now, I didn't just think about how convincing Michael was. I also thought about the people Jake brought back with him every day. I never got to know any of them, but they all looked desperate.

“Yes, I can see that,” I said. “All right, let me finish telling you about Silas's plan because I have some questions for you.”

“Let me finish cooking first. Now, I want to be sure I hear every word.” Gage went back into the kitchen.

We waited in tense silence as he finished my pancakes and bacon, then brought out a plate heaped with food.

“Thank you, Gage,” I said.

He nodded and set down a bottle of syrup and a glass of ice water as well. “Eat a little before you go on.”

I took a few bites. The carbs and sugar helped. After a swig of water, I said, “I didn't want to come to Montana. Jake sort of coerced me. At one point, he threw my phone out the window. But I couldn't leave, even when he gave me the option. Jake . . . I love him. And he was dying. I was prepared for him to die. And now, he's not. It's been insane. I can barely keep up. First, he gets miraculously healed, and then he spouts crap about God and angels. I didn't believe any of it, even after Silas teleported in front of me.”

“Teleported?” Gage lifted a brow.

“He vanished and appeared several feet away. I don't know what else to call that.”

“Fair enough. Go on.”

“I told you how confused I was,” I said to Garret. “Silas has inexplicable power, but he didn't behave as I expected a benign deity to. I couldn't understand why God would need humans to fight demons for him.”

“Demons.” Gage snorted.

“He called you hellhounds,” I said.

“Well, he got it half right.”

“But that's just a title, right? You're not part dog.”

The men exchanged another of those hesitant looks.

“You're part dog?!”

“No, not exactly,” Garret said. “We're shapeshifters, Indie. We can transform into hounds. But we only do that when we collect souls or—”

“You collect souls?!”

“Remember when I told you about the guardians who—”

“Damn it, Garret! Will you just shut the fuck up for five minutes?” Gage snapped.

“Sorry,” Garret muttered and shut up.

“We'll tell you about it after,” Gideon said to me. “Finish what you were saying, Indie.”

“You collect souls,” I murmured. Garret didn't have to finish what he'd been about to say. I remembered now. He said that Michael was an escaped soul and there were guardians who went after people like that. Or souls like that. Dead people. Whatever. It was starting to make sense, pieces falling into place. Eager to hear more, I went on, “Okay so, I've been here for a couple of weeks now. I'm sure Garret told you about what I've witnessed, so I won't go into that. Let's get back to today, after I met Garret. When Jake and I got back, Silas pulled us into his room for a talk, and that's when he said I'd make a perfect spy. He correctly assumed you'd take me in.” I motioned to Gage for his patience. “Silas asked me to find out about you. Learn your secrets. He especially wanted to know your weaknesses. And he even implied that I should try to kill you if I could.”

Gage started growling. Like a dog.

I stared at him.

“Gage!” Garret smacked his shoulder.

Gage's face twitched, but he stopped growling. “It sounds as if we can't trust you, Indigo.”

“All right,” I said. “I was trying to be honest, so you would trust me, but I understand. Don't tell me your weaknesses, if you even have any. Frankly, I don't want to know. I only asked if you could die because I was hoping you couldn't. That would have reassured me. And just to be clear, this wasn't a setup. Jake . . .” I took a shaky breath and ran my hand over the front of my shirt—which was now knotted and pulled tight enough to cover everything. “It wasn't Jake. Well, he started it. But, uh. Oh, fuck.” My hand rose from my chest to my face.

Someone took my free hand. I opened my eyes to see Gideon leaning across the table, looking like the angel Michael was supposed to be.

“I trust you, Indigo,” Gideon said. “I can feel your truth. You don't have to tell us what happened tonight. It's all right.”

Oddly enough, that gave me the strength to speak. I squeezed Gideon's hand and said, “Thank you. But I have to say this. It feels strange now. Distant. As if it happened to someone else. I can't allow that. I need to accept it so that I can move past it.”

“Just tell me who tore your shirt,” Gage growled.

“You still want to avenge me?” I asked in surprise. “Even though you don't trust me?”

“Trust can be earned. The lack of it doesn't change the fact that we feel something for you. And that feeling could mean that you're our mate. Regardless, you're a woman, and I've already told you I don't tolerate people who assault women.”

“You feel something for me?” I asked. “What does that mean?”

“It's not something we can explain,” Garret said. “We . . .” He paused to look at the other two. After they nodded, he went on, “We feel what each other is feeling. Gid and Gage felt my powerful attraction to you. It's more than physical, Indie. There's something between us. Do you feel it at all? Maybe just a little?”

“Yes,” I whispered. “Being around you calms me. I feel safe. Is that what you mean?”

“It's promising.” Garret beamed at me.

But then I went on, “What if I'm not your girl?”

Garret's grin vanished.

“Either way, you needed to get out of there,” Gage said. “We promised the Spokane Cerberus that we'd look after you and Jake. So, we would have offered you—”

“Hold on,” I interrupted. “You promised who, what?”

“The Spokane Cerberus was dealing with Michael before he came here,” Garret said. “There are Cerberuses all over the world, several in each American state.” He held up his hands. “You've told us about Silas's plans. Now, we'll tell you who we are.”

“We're guardians,” Gage said. “The original Cerberus was one pack of three men. Three shapeshifters created and joined by Hades to protect the Underworld from invasion and escape.”

“So, have souls always tried to escape the Underworld?” I asked.

“Yes,” Gideon said. “There are even Greek myths about it. Despite the original Cerberus guarding the Underworld, more and more souls escaped. Hades made more Cerberuses to not only serve as guards but to also collect the escaped souls. Souls are not meant to roam the world. They must be strengthened and reborn. It's a cycle, you understand?”

“Strengthened and reborn? Reincarnated, you mean?” I asked.

“Yes and no. The purpose of the Underworld isn't just to punish or reward. It's also to strengthen weakened souls. When a soul sinks into evil acts, it's weakened by them, loses a little of its light. Punishment strengthens the soul enough to be reborn and try again.”

“Punishment strengthens souls? What would happen if a weak soul was reborn?”

“It would have no defense against darkness,” Gage said. “It wouldn't be able to help itself. Evil would eventually consume and then destroy it.”

“But often good and evil are all about perspective. Who judges the souls? Hades?”

“Souls judge themselves,” Garret said. “Everyone is born knowing good from bad. You're right that sometimes it's all about perspective. That's integral. So, the soul must judge itself. A person knows when they do wrong.”

“But what if they do something truly evil but believe it to be good?”

“Not possible,” Gideon said. “If the act was irrefutably evil, with no redeeming factors to it, the soul would know. Deep inside, they would know. But if they believed that what they were doing was good, truly believed, then their soul wouldn't be weakened. No punishment necessary. It's not up to us to judge a soul's journey or even their perspective. That is on them. A mother could murder to protect her child and only be strengthened by the act while a socialite could raise money for charity but be weakened by it because she's only doing it for her own glory. As you said, it's all about perception.”

“That makes sense. I was just playing Devil's advocate,” I said. Then I realized what I said and grimaced.

Garret chuckled. “If you call Hades the Devil, I guess that would make us his advocates.”

I rolled my eyes. Then I recalled something they said and circled back to it. “You said that souls escape?”

“Yes, usually from Tartarus.” Gage grimaced. “They don't want to be punished. I can't imagine why.”

I giggled.

Gage's expression sort of drooped into a goofy half-grin.

I cleared my throat.

“Anyway,” Garret said with a smirk at Gage. “Hades posted Cerberuses all over the world to catch escaped souls that make it to Earth. That was our original purpose. But then we noticed other issues involving souls. Some wouldn't move on or couldn't because of clinging loved ones. A lingering soul can cause all sorts of problems.”

“You're talking about hauntings?” I asked.

“That's right,” Gideon said. “We deal with those a lot. More than escaped souls. An escape is rare these days.”

“But when a soul does escape, they often possess people so they can feel alive again,” Garret said.

“Like Michael,” I concluded.

“Yes. But Michael has special abilities that other souls don't. He can jump bodies. Usually, once a soul possesses a living person, that's it. They don't leave until we pull them out.”

“You can exorcise them?”

“Yes. That's one of our duties.”

“Holy shit,” I whispered. “That's why Michael is afraid of you. You're like prison wardens—no, bounty hunters! You're like bounty hunters who can take him back to prison.”

“Yes. But he's been hard to catch because of the body-jumping thing.”

“You said something about that before,” I murmured. “So, Michael escaped the Underworld and possessed someone. Then another team tried to exorcise him, but he jumped bodies?”

“Yes. He gathered an army and attacked the Portland Cerberus. I don't know exactly what happened in Portland, but Michael ended up running up to Washington. Then the Seattle Cerberus had a go at him, and he got away again. Last up to bat was the Spokane Cerberus. And that's when Silas joined forces with Michael.”

“Why?” I asked.

“We were hoping you might provide some insight on that,” Garret said. “Has Silas said anything? Hades thinks this is personal. He thinks Silas is a minor god, but he's backed by an Olympian. That's how he got away from the last pack—with the help of one of the main Greek Gods.”

“An Olympian? Like Zeus?”

“And Hades.” Gage nodded. “Hades thinks it's Apollo. Has Silas mentioned him?”

“No, but then, he was trying to convince me that he's the Christian God and you three are demons sent here by the Devil.”

“You haven't overheard anything odd or seen anything?” Garret asked.

I thought back, trying to recall any conversations I'd overheard that seemed strange. “I can't think of anything right now. Maybe something will come to me later.”

Gage huffed and sat back.

“I have seen him play with light, though,” I went on.

“Play with light?” Garret asked. “How?”

“He sort of waggles his fingers and they glow. He loves that. He always smiles when he does it. It's unnerving.”

“Apollo,” Garret said to the others. “Hades is right.”

“He suspected Apollo because a light shield protected Silas from Amélie,” Gideon said.

“Amélie?” I asked, jerking forward. “Not Amélie Chenier?”

“Yes,” Gideon said. “She's the reason we know about you. Amélie is the Spokane Cerberus's mate. Jake's sister betrayed her and delivered her to the Host. But Amélie's a powerful witch. She escaped Silas and helped her mates defeat the Host in Spokane. Then—”

“Amélie's a witch ?!” I shrieked. “Witches are real?”

“Remember the Isle of the Blessed we mentioned?” Garret asked. “When you go there, you're given a choice. You can stay or you can return to Earth for another go at life with a bonus. You get magic or, if requested, another type of boon. And that's how witches are born. They're the only ones good enough to be trusted with magic.”

“I always knew she was a good soul,” I whispered. “So kind. You could see it in her eyes.”

“Yes. And she cares about you, Indie,” Gideon said. “Jackie betrayed her for Jake. It was in exchange for Jake's healing.”

“But Jake is paying for his healing himself,” I said. “Silas healed him in exchange for Jake hosting Michael.”

“Jackie didn't know that Silas would insist on that. She didn't even know it happened. When Jake left the hospital with you, she turned to Amélie for help.”

“And Amélie helped her despite what Jackie did,” I concluded.

“Yes, Amélie forgave Jackie because she understood her motivations. Jackie told her about Jake leaving the hospital with you, and the Spokane Cerberus tracked you here. Once you crossed state lines, they had to hand you over to us. Hades had already passed on the Silas/Michael mission.”

“And you've been watching us, waiting for a chance to get to us,” I said.

“Yes, Indie,” Garret said. “As I told you earlier, I bumped into you on purpose. But only so I could get the chance to check on you and tell you the truth about Michael and Silas. We suspected Jake might be Michael's new host, but weren't certain until you confirmed it.”

“You're the good guys,” I whispered, remembering his words. “You protect the world.”

“Yes,” they said in unison.

Then Garret added, “Whichever god is backing Silas, he's an idiot. We have the support of all the Greek Olympians because they know how important it is to keep the world free of wandering souls. Without us, they'd wreak havoc here.”

“Maybe that's what he wants,” I said.

“Maybe,” Gage said. “But Apollo? It just doesn't make sense. He enjoys coming here as much as any of the gods.”

“They come here?” I asked. “Like, a lot?”

All three of them burst out laughing.

I grimaced at them. “Hey! I'm still processing. I've gone from nearly getting raped by an angel to learning about Greek Gods!”

All three hounds growled.

“Oh, shit,” I whispered.