Chapter 36
RHI
There is nothing like waking up to the scent and mouth of the man I love.
Especially when he’s peppering soft, sweet kisses against my hip bone, the gentle press of his lips against my skin so at odds with the savage way he fucked me last night.
“Mmmm,” I mumble, peering at his head of dark hair through half-lidded eyes. “That feels nice.”
Nick’s fingers caress the spot he just kissed, tracing soothing circles. “There are marks on your skin. Here.” He places another kiss to my hip then rises, hovering above me. “And here.” His mouth leaves more taunting kisses along my neck, circling my throat like a necklace.
I stretch, letting out a long yawn. “As long as you left them, I don’t care.
” I finally open my eyes wider, my heart smiling as I stare into luminous gold eyes.
My gaze flickers down to my left hip, where Nick’s right hand currently lies, and I see a swirl of purple and blue marks in the shape of fingerprints.
“Why do you suppose I haven’t healed?” I ask, more out of curiosity than for a desire for them to disappear.
“The marks my claws made healed,” Nick says, running his finger again over the bone, causing me to shiver. “Yet, the bruises linger.” His eyes darken, fixated on my hipbone, and I can tell he is bothered by this.
I rise on my elbows, taking his mouth with mine. “As I just said, I don’t care. That is probably the reason they haven’t healed—because I don’t want them to. So, stop worrying over nothing.”
“You are my soulmate, Rhi. Nothing that comes from my person can harm you. Not my touch, nor blade, nor power.” Nick tilts his head. “I can make them disappear.”
I roll my eyes and flop down on the bed. “Is this going to cause an unnecessary argument?”
Nick lifts a dark brow. “Depends. Are you going to be an obstinate pain in my ass?”
“Very likely.” I smile then kiss him again. “Let’s compromise. The ones on my throat, you can remove, as they will be visible, but these,” I brush my fingers over his, still resting on my hip, “these stay.”
He grins. “Making deals with the Devil again, are you?”
I trail my fingers down his sculpted chest. “Rumor has it, I’m his favorite partner.”
Nick’s grin widens. “Always.”
He kisses me quickly on the lips before pushing off me and rising off the bed.
“Breakfast is being brought up shortly,” he says, shrugging on a white shirt with open laces over his chest.
“Where are you going?” I sit up and rest against the pillows.
He tucks the shirt into black pants then throws a black jacket with gold brocade on the edges. “I have to meet with the Umbra Court to debrief them of your victory in The Harrowing as well as assure them the girls are not spies from Hades’ Court.”
I arch a brow. “And how will you do that?”
Nick winces as he laces up the boot on his right leg. “The rumor mill is already spinning that the girls are my other mistresses.”
My jaw drops in horror.
“I know,” Nick says. “As much as it disgusts me, since they are like my sisters and Scar is my actual sister, I’m not inclined to dispel those rumors. They are the best defense the girls have, besides me.”
I nod, understanding, then give him a sly smile. “Just how well known is your sexual prowess for your Court to believe you are fucking all of us?”
Nick answers me with a rakish grin. “I’m the Devil, sorceress. You learned firsthand the extent of my sexual prowess last night.”
Did I ever. The soreness between my legs flares to life to remind me.
Nick leans down, grasps my chin between his thumb and forefinger, then pecks a kiss on my lips. “Expect company in about twenty minutes. I should be back this afternoon.”
He leaves, and I lie in his bed a few moments longer, savoring his lingering cedarwood and vanilla scent.
It isn’t until I get up to walk that I realize just how sore I am.
I practically limp to the bathing chamber, washing up before my company arrives, and dress in a simple, strapless onyx gown that thankfully leaves breathing room around the middle.
The first knock on the door brings the welcome, nutty scent of coffee and a large array of breakfast treats, complete with eggs, bacon, and all my favorite savory things. The servant spreads everything out on the table across from the fireplace where Nick and Baal usually sit and drink.
The second knock brings the arrival of my favorite people in the world, aside from Nick.
The girls excitedly bound inside, all in gowns of various colors and sleek styles, with the exception of Astrid, of course.
True to form, she looks positively bored to tears at the decadence of Nick’s kingly chambers and hardly bats an eye at the sprawling balcony overlooking the suns-kissed ocean.
“I don’t understand why we have to wear dresses,” she huffs, slumping into a seat by the table and folding her arms.
“You’d think she looks horrendous, judging by her hatred of them,” Zo replies, waving flippantly in Astrid’s direction.
I suppress a smile. Astrid really does look stunning in a sapphire gown that matches her eyes. Her hair is swept back into an intricate braid hanging like a golden rope down her back.
“You look tired, Rhi,” Scar comments, holding the skirts of her crimson gown aloft as she makes her way over to me.
“Still catching up on sleep from the last few days,” I half-lie.
B rolls her eyes, joining Zo at the table ladened with food. “I’m sure spending the night in Nick’s room has nothing to do with your sleep quality.”
Zo chokes on a laugh with a mouthful of food while Scar pinches the bridge of her nose, cementing her eyes shut. “Listen, between the idea that these people think I’m fucking my brother and now having a visual of his nightly escapades with my best friend, I’m done.”
At that, I laugh before a wave of intense happiness hits me so hard, my eyes water. “I’ve missed all of you.” I sniff. “So much.”
They stare for a moment before each embraces me in a giant group hug, including Astrid.
“We missed you, too, Rhi,” she says.
“Uh, can I address the elephant in the room?” Zo says as she pulls back.
“Which one?” B quips.
“Good point,” Zo continues. “The one where Nick called you ‘Liv’?”
“Right.” I sigh. “ Persephone told me I couldn’t use my real name, that it would put me in danger. So, when they asked, I used the first name that came into my head.”
Scar tilts her head, considering. “She would love that.”
“She does. She told me.”
Zo whips her head in my direction. “What do you mean?”
My gaze bounces between the girls, all with wide eyes and expectant looks on their faces.
“I saw her. Nick sent her to me as a guide in the Labyrinth. She led me where I needed to go, and right before she left, she told me ‘when all is lost, look for them too.’” Tears drizzle down my cheeks.
“Right before I thought I was going to die, I saw all of you. I thought I was hallucinating, or that it was a trick of the Labyrinth, but I didn’t care.
Seeing all of you made me fight. It’s what pushed me to hang on.
I wanted nothing more than to get to you, to see you guys one more time.
” I choke on the last word, breaking down.
The girls engulf me again, crying into one another’s shoulders. It’s then I realize, as much as I can’t live without Nick, I don’t think I can live without them either.
We spend the rest of the morning talking and laughing, just enjoying each other’s company.
It feels a bit too surreal for them to be here, for me and Nick to be together with what seems like the worst behind us.
Our focus now is getting rid of Argos—not just for Isa’s sake, but to summon Lucifer and keep our fingers crossed he goes along with our plan to let Nick leave.
If not, I will stay by his side, and I don’t know how to tell the girls that, despite my love for them, I won’t return to our realm without him.
Due to Nick being tied up in his meeting with the Umbra Court, I head back to my room, hoping to grab some more dresses and ask Aurelia and Mira what in the world the women here do when they get their periods, because mine is due to arrive in just a few days.
I open my door to an eerie silence—odd, considering I know the two women are usually fretting about in here. I suppose it isn’t too strange, considering I haven’t slept in my room in days.
As I head toward my closet, I spot a note perched upon the breakfast table by my window.
Waves crash along the shore, the suns sparkling against the crystalline ocean.
I contemplate asking the girls to go for a swim in a bit, but then my fingertips brush against the parchment, and the foreboding sensation of being bound and restrained snaps against my skin.
I gasp, the feeling similar to how I felt in the Labyrinth. I reach for my Scylla, and sure enough, the beast is unreachable, metaphorically caged beneath my skin.
Panic seizes my chest as my mind whirls and transports me back to that underground subway station, to the cloying scent of sterilized medicinal tools coupled with the coppery smell of blood and my own desperation.
“I must say, I am thoroughly shocked at how you have made this so fucking easy.”
I pivot toward the voice, the fear in my blood usurped by boiling rage at the man standing behind me. “What are you doing here?”
“Taking care of the fucking thorn in my side.” Argos steps toward me, yet I hold my ground, refusing to cower before this sorry excuse for a man.
I ignore his threat. “Aren’t you supposed to be meeting with the Umbra Court by order of your King?”
The taunt strikes as Argos’ jaw clenches. “He won’t be King much longer.”
At that, I smile. “Finally, something we can agree on.”
Argos furrows his brow in confusion before he schools his features to neutral, his mouth curling in a snarl. He closes the distance between us.
“I know what you are, Scylla. I also know you are more than Raphael’s mistress. I scented both your monster and your mate on you the first time I had you cornered.”
Interesting. He knows what I am, knows what Nick and I are to each other, but he doesn’t know exactly who Nick is.
Argos reaches forward, twirling a strand of my hair between his fingers. I swipe with a full set of claws.
“Don’t fucking touch me.”
He dodges my attack and grins, displaying a mouthful of crude, sharp fangs. “I was of the mind to get rid of you completely, but on second thought, I may just keep you as my pet. After all, seeing as you can bear children, you are far more useful than that disappointing daughter of mine.”
I swallow down the bile in my throat just as my rage crests and thrashes.
“I’m going to tear out your heart,” I say calmly. “And I am going to make sure it is still beating so when Isadora finishes you off, her face will be the last thing you see.”
Argos throws his head back in a mocking laugh.
“And how do you propose to do that? With one touch of that spelled note, I have rendered you powerless. Your Scylla is useless and…” He takes a sharp inhale through his nostrils, mouth widening, dripping with saliva as though he just scented the most savory meal.
“Judging by how potent your fear is, you know I am right.”
I don’t reply, I react. Catching him off guard, I swipe his face with my clawed hand, feeling flesh tear beneath my fingers as Argos curses and doubles over.
I use that as my opportunity to run past him, my mouth parted on a scream for help when his hand comes over my mouth, silencing me.
His other hand wraps around my front and yanks me backward.
With as much force as I can muster, I knock my head back into his face, hearing a satisfying crunch as the crown of my head makes contact with his nose.
Argos screams another curse, and I break free from his hold.
I’m nearly at my door when the ground disappears from beneath my feet, and I fall face first toward the floor.
Pain splinters through my wrists as my hands take the brunt of the drop, but I find myself sliding backward, as though being pulled by a rope.
As I turn on my back, horror slithers through my veins as Argos stands idly with his hands in his pockets. His face is a bloodied mess, yet he is somehow commanding everything happening to me. Does he have some sort of mind control? Telekinesis like—
It hits me. Argos may not be a Scylla, but he is like me.
He drags me far enough so my feet touch his black boots. Argos wears a twisted grin as he stares down at me, his teeth ink stained due to the black blood pouring from his nose.
“Aw, pet. Did you think you were the only one who could wield snake heads? I am a Demon, one of the thirteen of the feared Umbra Court.” I make an attempt to get up, but invisible ropes constrict my chest, forcing me back down.
My arms snap above my head as those same invisible ropes secure my wrists, and I wince at the sharp change in position.
“I know the legend of Scylla. You believe you are so powerful, having six snake heads under your command. Well, pet, I have thirteen.”
Argos stands above me, his feet on either side of my hips. He lowers himself down so he straddles me, and I again attempt to scream before his hand comes over my mouth and smothers it.
“I am going to keep you hidden, locked away. You will bear more of my children, children born with the power of a monster and a Demon. They will sit on the Throne of this kingdom. And when I no longer have use for you…” His jaw unhinges, bones snapping and crunching as it enlarges.
I’m reminded of my nightmare, the one where Kieran pretended to be Nick, and terror takes root at the realization that it is coming to life.
“...I am going to eat you.” The words come out in a garbled growl, and I scream against my invisible restraints.
Suddenly, the door bursts open, blown from its hinges as it flies across the room and splinters into hundreds of shards of wood.
Argos whips his head up, removing his hand from my mouth.
I crane my neck to catch a glimpse of my savior.
Blinking through my tears , I watch him step over the threshold, golden eyes ablaze with the fires of Hell itself.
The fury radiating from him is a tangible, destructive force, a volcanic eruption decimating everything in its path.
His eyes scan me just once, more rage building within them, before they snap to Argos, pinning the Demon in place.
My heart thunders with an outpour of relief at his next words. “Get your fucking hands off my wife.”