Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
“Calm the fuck down, baby warrior.” Nina gripped her arm. “This isn’t the way to handle shit. You go off half-cocked and who knows where the fuck you’ll end up. Now, stop. Breathe. Let’s figure this out.”
Dom clung to MC’s handle, infuriated, ready to take out anything and anyone in her path. “I’ll kill the motherfuckers, Nina! Do you hear me? I’ll kill them!” she hollered, as she paced her grandfather’s room.
Nina jammed a finger in her ear before she grabbed hold of Dom’s shoulders and gripped hard. “I heard you, and if you don’t quiet the fuck down, you’re gonna hear my foot when it jams right up your ass! Calm down. We have to have a plan, and part of that plan is to get your shit together mentally.”
Squeezing her temples, Dom winced. Nina was right, but goddammit, she was mad. “I don’t know what happened. One minute he was there, the next he wasn’t. Just poof. Gone!” She snapped her fingers. It had happened so fast. How could she fight something that can make someone disappear?
Nina pulled her into a tight hug, giving her a shake in the process.
“Breathe, Dominique. Just breathe. We’re going to get him back.
We’ll do whatever it takes. I fucking swear that to you, but you’re at the core of this.
You need to be strong to take on this fight.
Remember, you have all the GD power. Now, say it,” she demanded.
When Dom fought for words, Nina gave her another gentle shake.
“Say. It.”
On a quivering breath, she repeated the words. “I have all the power.”
Inhaling deeply, she let Nina’s clean scent of laundry detergent and soap soothe her.
But all she could think was, they had her papa.
Would they hurt him? Was he cold? Was he afraid?
Was another one of those horrible serpents breathing down his neck—in his face, the way it had been in hers—terrifying him?
Clenching her fists, she forced herself to calm down, to let the vibration of MC’s handle remind her she wasn’t powerless.
Wanda and Marty flew into her grandfather’s room with Darnell right behind them, throwing their arms around Dom, enveloping her in a floral hug. “Oh, honey! We’re on it. Don’t panic!” Marty crowed, squeezing her hard.
Wanda tightened her grip on Dom. “You’re shaking, honey. Please, please listen. We’re going to find your papa. I promise you. Help is on the way.”
Harvey, in the middle of the chaos and panic, remained calm as he and MC summoned Heimdall.
Just when Dom thought she might pass out from the fear of her papa with those monsters, a beautiful woman with flowing hair and sparkling eyes walked in the door.
Unsure if she was friend or foe, Dom spoke to MC.
“Hammer! Prepare to battle!” she bellowed, planting her feet firmly to ready herself for impact.
She held him up in the woman’s face, taking a threatening stance. “Who the fuck are you?” she growled.
But the woman simply smiled, tilting her head. “I’m Roberta Tisdale-Winthrop. Though, I prefer Robbie. And this is my husband, Greer.”
A handsome man, healthy and tall, came in not far behind her. “Greer Winthrop. Nice to meet you, Dominique.” He held out his hand, but she hesitated.
Nina stepped between the group, pushing MC away from the newcomers. “Calm down. They’re here to help. Don’t threaten the fucking help.”
Marty and Wanda threw their arms around Robbie. “Thank you for coming!” Marty squealed.
Robbie hugged them back. “Always.” Then she took a step back and sniffed the air, wrinkling her nose. “You were right to call us. I smell the magic. Can you smell it, too, honey?” she asked Greer.
He nodded his head, his green eyes somber. “I do, babe. But it doesn’t smell like anything we can’t handle. It’s not strong magic, if that helps at all. And I definitely think it’s the giants who have him.”
Now Dom took a step back. “Who are you?”
Robbie planted a hand on her shoulder, her smile gentle. “We’re here to help get your papa back, Dom. We’re witches, and if there’s anything we know, it’s magic.”
Harvey stepped forward, his face somber, but his eyes screamed interested when he stuck out a hand to both Robbie and Greer. “Harvey Larsen. Thanks for coming to help. We’re all a little on edge right now. Forgive our jumpiness.”
Dom’s shoulders collapsed in relief. She instantly dropped MC to her side. “Oh…oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to come at you in attack mode.”
Greer smiled at her. “It’s all right. You’re worried for your grandfather. But that you’re ready to do battle is a good sign, Dom. You’re strong. I can sense it.”
She gave him a sheepish glance, horrified by her behavior. “I’m…I’m so sorry for my approach. I’ve been in warrior mode for the last couple of weeks, and I seem to have forgotten my social graces. I’m ready to fight anyone who looks at me crooked.”
Robbie chuckled, the tinkling sound pleasant to Dom’s ears.
“No one gets that better than I do. This accidental business is pretty crazy, huh? But then there’re these ladies, and all the amazing things that have happened to me since I became a witch.
They helped the entire way. I’d have never made it without the saucy vampire, my favorite werewolf, and the calm in the eye of the storm, Wanda.
And of course, Greer. But I won’t tell you getting there was easy, Dom—because it wasn’t. But you can get there, and we’ll help.”
“Can you explain what you mean when you say this magic the giants used to abscond with Stavros isn’t strong magic, Robbie?” Marty asked.
Robbie drove her hands into the pockets of her oversized coat with a pop of her lips.
“I mean, whatever they used isn’t something we can’t harness and control.
It’s weak. And I’ve done a bunch of sniffing around since Wanda and I had that Zoom meeting.
I can’t find a hint of any ancient magic anywhere that’s been dug up.
That’s not to say it can’t slip past us, but I have my doubts—why else would they take her grandfather and not MC himself?
They want to scare you right now, Dom. They want you to come to them, and your papa’s the bait. ”
Dom licked her lips. “Well, they’re doing a great job of it, because I’m petrified.”
Greer held out his hand again. “We absolutely will help. So let’s start again. I’m Greer Winthrop, and I’m here to help you kick some giant ass.”
Nina slapped him on the back with a chuckle.
“There’s my favorite fucking male witch who’s not a warlock.
Still don’t get that shit, but I’m glad you’re here.
” Then she turned to everyone, her eyes narrowed, battle mode unlocked.
“Now, let’s make a fucking plan, good people.
We have a grandfather to save and some giants who need to know who the fuck’s in charge. ”
Dom closed her eyes and took another deep breath before she squared her shoulders with resolve. “Okay. Let’s do this thing.”
* * *
“Where the fuck are we?” Nina griped, looking around at the rocky terrain with suspicious eyes, pushing Dom behind her.
“Where the giants roam,” MC said, his tone dark.
Dom swallowed hard. “They live here? Like this?”
If Asgard was serenely beautiful in color and vistas of ocean, this place was desolate and depressing. She’d want to suck the energy out of every planet if she had to live like this, too.
Tall, craggy rocks surrounded them, sitting on a dusty surface of red dirt. The horizon, painted with purple and dark gray streaks, screamed bleak.
And it was hot. So dang hot—humid—as though the heat actually crawled over your skin in a swarm. Who wanted to live with this kind of heat? Maybe the giants were just angry it was so ugly hot, and they were lashing out in frustration.
Though, seriously, who could blame them?
Add in the dystopian, apocalyptic setting and it was ripe for a dismal outlook on their existence.
Dragging a hair tie from her back pocket, Dom hauled her locks up over her head and put them in a high ponytail before wiping the sweat from her brow. If they were going to whip some giant ass, she wanted to be able to see clearly.
Looking at the group, their eyes all scanning the stark landscape, Dom asked, “This is where Heimdall said they were? We’re sure?”
Harvey nodded, his jaw tight. “I’m sure. There are caves all along this terrain. Caves they dwell in. Stavros has to be in one of them.”
Yet, she was worried she wouldn’t be able to defend her grandfather. “So we’re sure they haven’t been able to obtain the kind of magic it would take to get MC away from me?”
“We’re not sure of anything, Dom,” Harvey reminded. “But Heimdall and the gods believe if they had it, they wouldn’t have bothered to take Stavros. They simply would have taken MC from you.”
“And we don’t want that. I refuse to live with the lot of oversized swine in this hellscape they call home. You will hang on to me for dear life, and I’ll do my very best to obliterate them all in a fiery ball of light and electricity.”
Dom almost laughed. Almost. She couldn’t imagine cultured, refined MC living here in this disaster of rocks and debris, but she’d begun to realize she also didn’t think she could live without him in her life.
Holding him up, she gazed at him with her best look of confidence. “I promise with everything I have, I’ll fight to keep you from the oversized swine.”
Nina, Wanda and Marty all lifted their noses to the arid breeze whipping through the craggy rocks, then Nina frowned. “I can’t smell him. You guys?” She looked to the other two women for confirmation, but they shook their heads.
Robbie held up a finger, her forehead glossy from the heat. “But I can smell magic. It’s not like anything I’ve ever smelled before, but I smell it.”
Greer nodded, his lips a grim line, taking Robbie by the hand. “Same. Let’s walk. Stay together and as close as possible. Nobody veers off anywhere.”
Two of the men Dom had trained with this last week fell in line and, according to Heimdall, more were on their way. She hoped whatever more meant, it was a lot.
They all lined up, following Greer and Harvey in the lead. Harvey had his sword drawn, ready to engage, his strong hand gripping the handle.
This felt a lot like walking on eggshells with every dusty step they took.
When they rounded the corner of a cluster of rocks, everything became quite dark, the sky feeling as though it had fallen in on them. The stars were suddenly so close to her face, she wanted to reach out and attempt to touch one.
Nina had her by the hand, keeping her tucked close to her side while Marty and Wanda both held on to each other.
Then the air shifted and, without warning, she heard her grandfather cry out, “Shish kabob! Where are you? I can’t see! It’s cold here. Please, please come get me!”
The wobble of his voice, the fear, the fragility of it, made Dom’s knees buckle as panic set in. She lifted MC high in the air—but Greer grabbed her by the arm.
“Don’t respond, Dom,” he hissed. “Don’t. That’s not your grandfather. They’re toying with you.”
But the voice, whoever it was, kept taunting her until she thought her head might explode.
Nina wrenched her hand and hissed, “Fucking stop listening to the voice. It’s not real. Focus on something else. Sing a song in your head, like that ‘Moon River’ bullshit you like so much, but stop buying into their crap.”
Easy for the battle-worn vampire to say, huh? Yet, she tried. She tried with all her might, even as her grandfather’s voice echoed all around them until she wanted to scream.
As she fought giving in to answering the pleas for help, they passed caves—empty, dark, cavernous holes of nothing. Deeper and deeper they went, into this pit of a planet, until Robbie held up a hand.
Probably as a warning signal.
Obviously she’d heard something, smelled something, but Dom would never know what it was that had alerted her because the moment Robbie’s hand shot up in the air, chaos erupted.
Bona fide madness.
The last thought she had before someone grabbed her from behind?
Hell was empty, and all the devils had come out to play.