Chapter 14
Strapped with two Sig Sauers and cartridges holding silver bullets, Rafe made use of every fold of his tactical vest. He stood on a raised stone platform as Ilsbeth circled him.
The High Priestess, his only hope for shedding the beast, spoke in tongues, releasing her incantations.
He’d need all the mojo the witch could conjure to help him survive an underworld of Hell.
Every last person he knew who’d been touched by the evil that seeped from its pores never came back the same way they’d gone in. Rafe planned on returning good as fucking new, determined no limp dick demon was going to ruin the only chance at getting his life back.
Rafe caught sight of Greyson who stared at him with a recognizable condescending look. “What’s your problem?”
“Do you really need all the gadgets? Are you not wolf enough?”
“Go fuck yourself. I look badass.” Rafe smirked, unfazed by the vampire.
“Concur,” Dominique agreed. “Momma likey.”
“Get real.” Greyson rolled his eyes.
“Look at these pants,” Thorn crooned. “They are a masterpiece.”
“Lovely stitching in all the right places.” Dominique shot him a devilish grim.
“This neanderthal can’t appreciate fine leather,” Thorn continued, irritation in his voice. “Be so for real. You could wear them to any club.”
Dominique shrugged and nodded.
“I know a guy. Florence. He does high fashion. Specially designed for the hybrid.” Thorn drew closer to Rafe inspecting the pockets.
“Stop lookin’ at my ass. Y’all are some creepy mother fuckers.” Rafe patted his chest.
“You got holy water?” Dominique asked, ignoring his comment and held out her hand to him, revealing a tiny glass heart topped with a gold crown.
Rafe raised a questioning eyebrow at the vampire.
“Go on. Take it.”
The second Rafe’s fingers touched the object he sensed its energy.
“It’s holy water. It’s from Fatima,” she told him.
“But I’m not human.”
“You don’t need to believe. Leave that to me.” Dominique had once been human. Her children had been murdered, and she’d suffered with grief having been turned vampire. “If a demon gets too close…well, you know what to do. It won’t stop them, but it might buy you time.”
Rafe unsnapped a pocket on his harness and slid it inside, securing it. “Thank you Dominique, that was thoughtful.”
She turned on her heels and headed back to her chair, mumbling, “Maybe you’ll let me bite your human one day.”
“You don’t need all the gadgets,” Greyson assured him.
“You don’t know what I’ll need,” Rafe countered. Between Ilsbeth and Thorn, they’d offered him an assortment of weapons. He’d take what he could carry easily and hope for the best.
“Use the talisman. Move silently. Slowly. Head on a swivel,” Greyson instructed. “I’ll pop in and out when I can. No talking to anything you see in there. Just get in and get out. Hopefully you won’t have to use all that shit you’ve got, but if you do, we’ll get you out one way or another.”
“Rafe is the prophecy. He will succeed.” With an otherworldly aura, the High Priestess glided about the room, twisting magick into the air.
Dressed in a lavender silk dress cinched with an intricate boned corset, and her long blonde hair swept up into a French twist, Ilsbeth appeared confident in her plan.
“Kellan may have lied about many things but of this I’m certain.
Saving Rafe was the catalyst. My sister will do whatever she thinks must be done to get to me and to cause him harm.
Until she is gone, no one in our realm is safe.
” Ilsbeth locked eyes with Rafe. “I have warded you as best I can. You have the talisman?”
“I’ve got it.” He patted his chest. “You’re sure they won’t be able to see me?”
“As long as you’re still. A smart fae may suspect magick but not likely.”
“Let’s do this.” Rafe took a deep breath, his mind calm, focused.
“I shall open the portal,” Ilsbeth announced.
Greyson readied to flash, while Thorn and Dominique remained seated, anxiously awaiting the fate of the wolf as a swirling cloud of light materialized before them.
Rafe took note of each person in the room with him who watched in fascination as the great witch held out her hands.
Though he noted Skylar’s absence, he refused to let his mind wander.
Rafe slammed down the distracting thoughts, focused exclusively on his task. Tonight he’d wrestle with Hell and win. Tomorrow the vampire would be eradicated, and he’d once again be wolf.
Rafe scanned his surroundings and questioned his life’s choices. What the fuck? He gazed upward at the enormous dome’s apex. A galaxy of stars shone down on him from the universe above.
The crunch of footsteps echoed to his right. A bipedal creature with horns protruding from its head hobbled toward him. It paid him no mind as it passed, disappearing into a curved wall.
Rafe locked in and slowed his breathing, calming his mind. He could panic later…after he’d completed his mission. He estimated the diameter of the dome to be about fifty yards. Rafe moved with slow deliberate steps across the uneven gravel surface, dust stirring into the air.
He stilled as he caught sight of a heavyset woman dressed in a business suit stomping in a straight line through the dome. He waited on her to pass before advancing along the curvature.
An illusion, he told himself as he continued. The room rumbled and he froze, distracted from his task. The face of the dome morphed into a deep red opaque color. The floor beneath his feet appeared as hot coals. What the fuck now?
The Alpha steeled his nerves as the thumping intensified.
The noise grew louder and louder, the deafening sound vibrating throughout the dome.
As its source came into view, Rafe warned his wolf to stand down, remaining invisible.
An enormous hell hound, nearly twenty feet high, lumbered across the dome.
With each step it released a growl, spitting hellfire.
Rafe choked back the stench it emitted as it released gas from every orifice. A plume of sulfur drifted toward him. He held his breath and counted to ten as the creature disappeared through the dome.
The walls morphed, its surface appearing like blood moving through the inside of skin, veins connected to crimson tissue.
Yet when he brushed his fingers against the smooth curved surface he realized that though what he saw appeared real, it was merely an illusion.
The dome was a transportation hub, an energetic field where things passed from one world to another.
Frustrated, Rafe studied the walls. Every surface appeared identical. The crack remained hidden, not revealing itself to him. Magick.
Rafe called on his wolf, and the Alpha responded, radiating its power.
Drawing from the magick within, he focused on Ilsbeth.
His pack. Viktor. Julian. In his mind’s eye a rainbow of ribbons fluttered like leaves in the wind, twirling, darting, floating.
The strands morphed into a bright white ribbon, the energy zipping along the surface of the dome.
As Rafe opened his eyes, fine white lines emerged, a crack appearing on the wall. Excitement drove adrenaline through his veins as he moved toward it. Step by step, Rafe inched around the sides of the dome, taking care not to attract unwanted attention.
A loud bang sounded, sparks flashing from the center of the dome.
A giant creature, covered head to toe in long wooly hair, trudged across the floor.
Rafe stilled, his wolf readying to transform as it turned to growl at him.
Steady, steady. He can’t see me. The beast roared, saliva dripping out the corner of its mouth, its long green tongue lapped its snout. Keep goin’.
Rafe closed his eyes, concentrating on the magick from within, willing a protective light around him in an effort to charge the talisman. Relief washed over him as the creature disappeared.
He hurried to the crack and ran his fingers over it, the energy vibrating beneath its rough surface.
Unable to pry the crack open with his fingertips, he blew out a breath.
Nothing in the realm was as it appeared.
He focused on Ilsbeth’s magick, surging it forth into the crack.
A wall of hot wind rushed over him. His eyes blinked, adjusting to the darkness.
As he stepped into the passageway, the walls and floor appeared to move. His boot kicked at the dirt, a high squeal echoing into the chamber. What the hell? An insect scampered up the wall and he jumped back. Fuck! Why bugs?
He pressed onward. One foot after another, he moved swiftly, seeing no sign of others.
Working on blind faith, he prayed Ilsbeth’s spell would reveal itself.
The stench of sulfur grew thicker as the tunnel began to twist deeper into the realm.
A squeal sounded behind him, and he caught sight of Greyson with a single finger to his lips.
Within the blink of an eye, he disappeared.
Though traversing hell alone, he appreciated the vampire’s bravery as he readied for extraction.
As Rafe turned to continue, a white light beckoned to him in the distance. He drew closer to it, the light morphing, pulsing. As he reached for the wall, a spider ran through the light and he recoiled but remained silent, contemplating his next move.
I fuckin’ hate bugs. I can do this. Let’s go. He took a deep breath as he extended his fingers deep inside the crevice. Heat radiated around his hand the further he explored. He cringed as another insect slithered beneath his fingertips. Come on, Ilsbeth. Where the fuck is the spell?
Relief washed over him as his fingers brushed over silky fabric. He clasped the object and yanked it out of the opening. Rafe stuffed the pouch into his vest pocket and zipped it. Greyson! Time to get the fuck out!
A loud roar sounded from behind him, and Rafe whipped his head around to find its source. A mammoth beast, the size of an elephant, glared at him. At the crown of its head, three horns spewed acid from their tips. It readied for attack, snorting, its head bobbing up and down.
Rafe stiffened, hoping it hadn’t detected him, but as it roared once again, oozing green slime from its mouth, he reached for his gun.
Without hesitation Rafe emptied a round into the gargantuan creature.
His stomach sank as it shook itself like a wet dog, totally unharmed.
The silver bullets didn’t leave a single chip in its armor.
“Greyson!” Rafe turned on his heels and began running in the opposite direction. The insects squealed as his boots slammed onto the ground. Thump. Thump. Thump. The diabolical beast’s hooves grew closer, closer, closer. Rafe contemplated shifting but he couldn’t risk losing Ilsbeth’s spell.
In the distance he caught sight of the white light shining through the crack.
His lungs burned with sulfur whirling thick inside the tunnel.
With the beast at his back, Rafe turned to face it, unloading a cartridge of silver into the darkness.
The sound of its hooves continued as it released a deafening screech.
Rafe reloaded while running, turning back to shoot, firing off the rounds until its rancid breath was upon him.
“Greyson! Now would be a good time. Where the fuck are you?” As he looked over his shoulder, the beast with its burning red eyes barreled toward him. Rafe hoped like hell the crack would open for him, but without Greyson, there was no way out of the realm.
As his fist punched through the white crack into the dome, a hot streak of pain speared through his back, the acid of the beast searing his skin. He rolled into the gravel, and he tore at his vest, digging out the spell before it disintegrated.
Greyson appeared before him and reached for his hand.
As they disappeared, acid ripped through his wounds, wracking pain throughout every cell in his body.
With a thud, they landed on the hardwood floor.
Rafe rolled onto Greyson, screaming out in agony, the poison blistering his body.
As his vision blackened into a dark tunnel, his heart pounded, his wolf calling to its mate. Skylar.