3 Lethal Rider-Lords Of Deliverance (51 page)

“Idiot? That was a little uncalled for.”

Sighing, Reaver rocked his head back against the wall. He should have known Hades would toy with him. Azagoth had warned him as well. Of course, Azagoth had been full of warnings.

Empty yourself of power, and you’ll be helpless in Sheoul-gra and trapped there forever. Don’t expose your wings unless you want to start a riot. Too many will already know what you are. Don’t let anyone have a feather. A single angel feather could give a demon the power to reincarnate himself before his time. If you

become trapped in Sheoul-gra, I won’t save you. If someone comes to rescue you, you’d better hope I’m in a good mood, and they have something awesome to offer me, or they aren’t getting in
.

Azagoth was such an ass. But Reaver supposed if he’d been relegated to this dreary realm, where his only pleasures came from what he could bargain for, he might be an ass, too.

“See, here’s the thing, angel.” Hades straddled Reaver’s outstretched legs and got right in his face. “I like the Horsemen. We’ve traded favors for centuries. Limos sends ice cream. You’re their Watcher, and they like you a lot. So I want to help you out.” He palmed Reaver’s cheek none-too-gently. “On the other hand, you’re an angel in my house. If I just waltz out of here and let you go, I’ll lose a lot of respect. You get that, right?”

Unfortunately, he did.

Hades shook his head, almost as if he truly regretted the situation. “I have to make your life hell, Reaver. I don’t fancy that, I swear. But you’ve given me no choice.” He clapped Reaver on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’ll get the word out to the Horsemen to rescue you.”

Reaver lunged forward, taking Hades by the throat. “Don’t. They can’t know I was here or that I came to see Reseph.” They believed their brother was dead, and for now, at least, it was for the best.

Smiling, Hades pushed into Reaver’s grip, and Reaver knew then that the guy enjoyed pain. “If I don’t contact them, it narrows your options for a rescuer, doesn’t it.”

Yeah, it did. He couldn’t get help from angels—even if one was willing to try to get past Azagoth and cross through Sheoul-gra, he didn’t want anyone to know why
he’d come here. Reaver had taken Reseph’s memories and dropped him in the middle of nowhere in hopes that he’d find a new life.

The Horseman was still part of Biblical prophecy, and they needed him whole—and sane. Reaver was hoping that a few hundred years as a normal person would do a lot to heal the damage to his mind, lessening the pain when he remembered. Reaver didn’t want anyone messing with that delicate process. No one could know where Reseph was, and he didn’t trust his angel brethren not to find him, return his memories, and watch him suffer for all the damage he’d caused to mankind.

Hades’s smile faded, but the amused glint in his eyes didn’t. “Don’t worry, angel. We’ll have fun together. I don’t bite. Much.” He pushed off of Reaver. “I hope whatever you did with Reseph was worth it, because I’ve already sent word to someone who will be very interested to know you’re stuck here.”

Well, this couldn’t be good. “Who?” But then he realized he didn’t need to ask. “You blue-haired bastard. You sent for Harvester, didn’t you?”

“Aw, come on, Reaver, she’ll love to see you.”

Yeah, she’d love it all right. Because there was nothing the black-souled fallen angel loved more than torture.

Torturing
Reaver
.

Thanks to Eidolon’s amazing healing ability, one week after giving birth and being declared dead, the demon doctor gave Regan a clean bill of health… and the go-ahead to have sex.

Which was great, except Thanatos didn’t seem interested. It wasn’t that he hadn’t been the very definition of attentive and protective and loving since the minute he’d brought her back to the keep. But he’d also been evasive when she tried to discuss anything serious or intimate, or when she tried to get physical. He’d insisted that Eidolon declare her healthy, but she had a feeling his delaying tactic had been more about avoiding sex than anything else.

She hadn’t confronted him about it—hell, she’d been too busy with the baby to make a big deal of it, but today she was going to get some answers from him.

After
they got rid of the friends and family, who had
come over for a belated baby shower for Logan Thanatos, named after her father and, obviously, Than.

Regan finished dressing in jeans and a sweater, then checked on Logan, who was sleeping peacefully next to the bed in the cradle Than had made. She lingered for a few extra minutes, fussing with his teeny camo pajamas that had been a gift from Kynan and Gem, making sure his little hands were covered with mittens, and double-checking the monitor. She’d taken to motherhood more easily than she’d expected—the instinct was there, if not the knowledge, and she loved the little guy in a way she’d never thought possible.

Smiling down at him, she rubbed her neck where Thanatos had bitten her in his failed bid to turn her. He might not have turned her, but his bite had killed her, which ultimately allowed her to come back. She’d never have believed that she’d be thankful to have fangs punched into her vein, but she’d repeat it in a heartbeat.

Not that any kind of biting would happen if Than wouldn’t even have sex with her.

A dull ache squeezed her chest, and then it was gone before she had a chance to know what Thanatos had been thinking about. That was one of the side-effects of his deal with Azagoth—his painful emotions would forever filter through her instead of through the tattoos he’d been getting for so long. At first, his memories from the tattoos Azagoth had taken had blasted through her, reducing her to tears she hid from Thanatos. But now they were gone, and she would have to wait for the next one, the next scene of death he’d be drawn to. It would hurt them both emotionally, but she and Thanatos would work through it together.

Taking on his emotional agony occasionally was a very small price to pay for a life with him and their son.

Bracing herself for the noise of a party, she joined the crowd in the great room. The trestle table was covered in food, and a barrel full of ice had been set out to chill bottles of beer and wine. From the looks of things, everyone had been indulging. A lot.

Wraith sauntered over to her, his blonde vampire mate, Serena, on his arm. “Congratulations, Aegi. If you need any tips on raising a kid, I’m there for you.”

“That’s sweet of you.” Serena patted his hand in that universal, yes-dear-I’ll-humor-you way. “But I’m sure Thanatos can mess up a kid as well as you can.”

“I doubt that.” Wraith planted a kiss on Serena’s neck, breaking it off when Thanatos punched him in the shoulder.

“Glad you could make it.” Than slung his arm around Regan’s shoulder as he scanned the crowd. “Glad all your brothers and sister could come.”

“You kidding?” Wraith said. “You Horsepeople always throw great parties. Plus, there’s usually a fight.”

“Not this time, man. Not this time.”

Wraith looked disappointed, but he perked up when Sin, her black hair pulled back into a wild ponytail, came over and handed Serena and him two glasses of Scotch.

“That,” Sin said with a wink, “is the best way to shut him up.” She sobered, turning to Than as Wraith and Serena joined another group of guests. “I wanted to thank you. You and your siblings.”

“Why?”

“Because I started all of this.” She shifted her weight and licked her lips, clearly uncomfortable. “It was my
fault Pestilence’s Seal broke. If you three hadn’t gone all out to stop him, we’d be looking at the end of the world.”

“You didn’t break his Seal intentionally, and it was a team effort to put everything right again.” Than slid Regan a smile, which did funny, fluttery things to her insides. “Underworld General, The Aegis—everyone helped to stop the Apocalypse.”

It had been stopped, but so much damage had been done. People had died, governments had collapsed, and entire continents were still in chaos, even though land claimed by demons had reverted back to the humans. It would take decades to recover.

Ares and Limos approached, Cara and Arik with them, and the rest of the guests gathered around. It was so strange to have a group of people surrounding Regan with genuine affection. Strange, but wonderful, and Regan had never been so happy.

“Time for the presents,” Limos chirped. “Ares and Cara have the best one.”

Ares scowled at her. “So much for the surprise.”

She adjusted the flower in her hair—orange, to match her flirty strapless dress. “Trust me, it’s still a surprise.” Her grimace told Regan it might not be a normal gift, like a playpen or a baby swing. “And for the record, I don’t want one when I have my baby.”

Well, that got everyone’s attention. Especially Arik’s. He lost a lot of color. “Are you… are we…”

“Nope.” She batted her eyelashes at him. “But maybe tonight.”

Thanatos and Ares both groaned. “Let’s not go there,” Ares said, and Arik nodded vehemently.

“So.” Cara jumped in, no doubt to save Arik from an
incredibly awkward situation. “Do you want your surprise now?”

“This’ll be fun.” Ares’s smirk was downright evil.

“Ah …” Thanatos scrubbed his hand over his face, but Regan laughed.

“Sure. Let’s see.”

Cara darted off, and a minute later returned with a black, squirming bundle of hellhound in her arms. “Every boy needs a dog.”

Regan wasn’t even sure what to say. They wanted to give her baby a demon animal that ate people. A furry land shark. It was enough to make her want to hyperventilate.

“That’s not exactly a dog.” Than eyed the pup warily.

“You’re right,” Cara said. “He’s a harmless puppy. Pestilence killed his family, and he needs a new one. If he bonds to Logan, trust me, he’ll have the best lifelong protector on the planet.”

Regan glanced over at Hal, who never left Cara’s side unless she asked him to go with Ares. Velcro, the hellhound that had guarded Regan, had also been attentive and intimidating, and okay, that sounded pretty good. Call her an overprotective mom, but Regan would take a guardian for her son that would eat anyone who tried to hurt him.

God, what a freaky family she belonged to now. But it
was
a family, and it was hers.

“Oh, hey,” Wraith said. “How many of those do you have? My son wants a dog. Or a bear.”

The conversation turned to hellhound puppies and kids, and Regan backed herself out of it, wanting to catch Kynan before he left.

He was standing by himself next to the beer barrel, watching over everyone, but his gaze kept drifting with possessive heat to his wife, Gem, whose head was together with her twin sister, Tayla’s. When he saw Regan, he pushed off the wall he’d been lounging against and gave her a hug.

“I’ve never seen you look so good,” he said. “Horsemen agree with you.”

“Weird, right?” She stole a glance at Thanatos, which was only fair, because he stole her breath. She was so going to get laid tonight. “Ky? I want to be there to help rebuild and reunite The Aegis.”

Kynan smiled sadly. “The Aegis is gone, Regan. This has been coming since the day Tayla hooked up with the head doctor at Underworld General. What she put into motion changed the course of The Aegis, and this split has been coming for a long time.”

“So what are you saying? That we let Lance and the others just take The Aegis and run with it? That’s bullshit.” Then there was the fact that she still had a score to settle with those assholes. If Thanatos didn’t get to them first, anyway.

This time, Kynan’s grin was blinding. “It
is
bullshit. So I say we salvage what we can—knowledge, property, the Guardians who share our philosophy—and we build our own organization. New name, new mission statement. The Aegis is moving backward. I say
we
move forward.”

The very idea was terrifying. To let go of everything she’d grown up with and start over gave her chills. But what it didn’t give her was the insane desire to organize the room or eat until she was ready to pop and then throw it all up.

Wow. Okay, so that was new. And it felt freaking awesome. She waited for the urge to count or flip a light switch three times or something, but nope, nothing happened.

Her eyes stung at the realization that she hadn’t gone OCD in the face of stress. She’d passed a milestone somewhere between being kidnapped and being killed, and wasn’t it funny how the ultimate trauma made everything else seem so trivial.