Death Lord

12

The women moved closer, hands outstretched as if they were trying to pull me toward them through sheer force of will. “Find us,” the second hissed, curling her fingers over and over, like she was trying to grip onto me but couldn’t quite make it.

I looked around wildly, trying to figure out how to get out of this. There was nothing that could help me and no way to escape. I was glued to the spot, and their fingers would reach me at any moment.

Then a new clarity suddenly hit me. This was where I had to come. The women were right. I needed to find them. They would help me.

I belonged with them.

7

BELIAL

M

y door burst open. I sat straight up in bed, instantly on high alert. Who would break into my house at night—

Oh, right.

Eira came running into my room, dressed in nothing but the shirt I’d loaned her. I hardly had time to think about her being in my room before my eyes dropped to her legs. The shirt barely covered the tops of her thighs, and I found my c**k hardening at the sight.

I’d already been awake when she’d busted through my door, since I didn’t need to sleep anymore. I did still try to rest, more out of habit than anything, but one of the perks of being an Elder God was that I didn’t need food, sleep, or water anymore. No, instead I had an insatiable thirst to steal souls, although it had been much weaker ever since meeting her, like her mere presence nearby calmed the urge. I’d been tempted to stare at her while she slept, trying to figure out what made her different, but I’d forced myself to stay in my room instead.

Eira’s eyes dropped to my naked chest, her mouth opening slowly. At first, she seemed as caught up in the lust as I was, but then she shook her head violently and then looked back up at my face. Still, words seemed to fail her.

“Have you come to try to kill me again?” I asked, stretching my arms behind my head in a way that I knew would draw her attention. “Or are you in my bedroom for something else?”

Her eyes widened at my words, and her nostrils flared a little as her eyes traced the tattoos on my arms and the muscles in my chest, before going lower, to where the sheet had pooled around my hips. I always slept in the nude. Who knew it would be useful to put a mouthy shifter in her place?

“No way in hell,” Eira finally spat.

“I can take you to Hell if you’d prefer, though I assure you my bed is more comfortable.”

Eira huffed out an annoyed breath. “Could you shut up for two seconds? I had a...dream.”

“What kind of dream?” I asked, arching an eyebrow.

“Not that kind.” She rubbed her hands over her arms as if they were cold. “There were these two women…” She paused and then shook her head. “I don’t know if women is a good descriptor. They had these long claws and hair made out of snakes. They told me to find them.”

A chill ran down my spine at her description. I had a feeling I knew who she’d been dreaming about, though I hoped I was wrong. I slid out of bed, my thoughts moving quickly as I planned what to do next, but then Eira gasped and turned around. Oh, right. Naked.

“Can you at least give me a warning next time?” she growled. “And put some damn clothes on!”

“You’re in my bedroom,” I reminded her. “What, did you like what you saw a little too much?”

“In your dreams,” Eira snapped.

I pulled on some loose sweatpants so Eira could focus, because I was sure she wouldn’t be able to if I stayed naked. No matter how much fun it was to tease her, I needed to figure out if this dream that had freaked her out so much was actually anything to be worried about.

“I might know who you saw,” I said. “The Furies. Did you happen to see a third one?”

Eira shook her head, frowning. “No, just the two.”

“That’s odd. They always come in a group of three. Never less.” I grabbed a t-shirt and pulled it on. “Are you sure that’s what you saw? Could it have been something else? Describe them to me again.”

Eira looked annoyed, her hands going to her hips. “Yes, that’s what I saw. They had snakes for hair, nails dripping with blood, and auras of color around them—one green and one red. I couldn’t see their faces.”

“That’s how they looked in the old days when they walked the Earth.” I ran a hand along my jaw, as I took in this new complication. “They’re Elder Gods, and should be trapped in Void like most of the others. They have the ability to send images and dreams to people, even across great distances, but they shouldn’t be able to do that unless they were somehow here in this realm.”

“The Furies?” Eira asked. “Yes, goddesses of anger, jealousy, and vengeance. They caused a lot of havoc in ancient times, before they were sealed away with the rest of the Elder Gods. But no one’s heard anything about them in centuries, as far as I know.”

“Well, that’s what I saw.” She bit her lip, her eyes distant. “I feel this odd compulsion to go to them, like I can’t help myself, even now. I’m fighting it, but it’s like someone’s attached a string in my stomach and is pulling on it.”

Shit. This was really not good. My parents and I were supposed to be the only Elder Gods on Earth right now, but if the Furies were somehow getting into people’s heads, they had to be close “I wonder if they got the other shifters that way.”